#and then tumblr wouldn't let me publish it

[cetitan]

[bigcats-birds-and-books]

Books of 2024: THE NIGHT GUEST by Hildur Knútsdóttir.

Sticking with the insomnia-flavored tiny horror theme (and also, apparently, the Deeply Fucked Up Bright Pink Books Published By Tor theme *side eyes JUST LIKE HOME*).

I watched (Zoomed) a conversation between Mary Robinette Kowal and Hildur on the day the book came out, and it was really interesting! Plus I am SO susceptible to Buying Books Impulsively Because I Think The Author Is Neat (*other side eyes unintentional Columbus Book Festival haul*), so I picked up a copy when Bookshop did a coupon for it.

I'm only a few chapters in, but so far I'm very intrigued! It's starting as a tense little mystery about Why Is She Always Exhausted When She Wakes Up and so far medical professionals have Found Nothing Wrong, which she knows is bullshit but can't solve (the exhaustion and the resignation about it are uh. too real. it's a very real book). The suspense and the tension are already ratcheting up, and the chapters are very bite-size and readable! Will report back a final verdict when I'm done!!

(Side note: it comes with apparently a massive content warning re: animal death/harm, which, per the Zoom conversation, does not fuck up Icelandic readers like it tends to fuck up American readers?? Specifics are all over Goodreads, so check there first if that's a heads up you need!)

[t-hal-mothman]

I just want to show yous a little bit of "snack time" exploring Love the fact that this guy is so weird, and it's SO amazing!!!

a little bit of this

and that

and Fordsy gets bite-... probably tried to steal a snack >:(

I'm going to put a couple of thoughts under the cut, because for some reason site don't let me put these thoughts in tags…

SO it will be in a slightly expanded form, since these are no longer tags. I'LL JUST GIVE SOME SPACE FOR IT

I just love exploring the topic of all sorts of strange creatures, as if it's just fun to play with who they are and what they are, it's fun to watch how they exist and what they do, it's fun to look at their habits or features of anatomy!!! For example, how this or that creature can eat or drink, it's just cool when some example of this is given in the canon, you can play with it!

ABOUT STRAW! This fantastic straw in cup on is probably from some kind of cosmic Ice Cream Parlour?? It's like you know, usually gets for kids, but Bill just go and ordered this particular huge fancy straw for himself. AND I don't blame him, because I would have done EXACTLY the same thing if this was once an option in the order…

I was fighting all night to publish these sketches, the site just wouldn't let me do it. I had to cut it into a bunch of small sketches, because apparently tumblr believes that triangle eating food is something indecent-

I JUST HOPE THAT THIS TIME THE POST WILL WORK, BECAUSE I USED LITERALLY ALL THE TIPS TO FINALLY PUBLISH THE DAMN POST!

[f1rodrigo]

the mclaren boy mystery

l. norris / o. piastri

summary: in which your boyfriend is a formula one driver for team mclaren and when you finally decide it's time to start hinting to the world, the internet is confused on exactly which driver is your boyfriend. pairing: social media au || lando norris / oscar piastri x reader fc: jazmyn makenna

a/n: made this on a whim instead of studying for exams & doing hw. there will be more parts eventually... i hope you enjoy for the sake of my abandoned school work. (edit hours later) -> omfg i spent all day working on this (literally at the expense of my hw & studying lolol) & i was about to publish it when i went to my drafts & it was just GONE. i was about to be in tears. i tried everything & finally accepted the fact that it was going to be gone forever. BUT i just opened tumblr again & there she was!!!! so so happy. anyways hope you enjoy<33.

part two | part three

sweet relief series | valentine's day drabble

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liked by landonorris, and 22,019 others

yourusername fast cars n pretty girls 💌

view all 671 comments

user1 i have no idea who these girls are but lando is in the likes......

⤷ user2 fr i'm so curious now

⤷ user3 landos girl of the week i suppose 🤣

⤷ user4 prob just ur typical rich girls who spend their weekends at races 🤷🏻‍♀️

yourbestfriend same time next week?

francisca.cgomes gorgeous girls

⤷ yourusername love u kiks

⤷ user5 guys..... i am thinking Thoughts...

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yourusername added to their story

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liked by mclaren, and 542,111 others

oscarpiastri Singapore, the new helmet and I are ready ✨

view all 1,212 comments

mclaren ✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨

user1 LETS GOOOOO

user2 oscar piastri singapore gp winner has a nice ring to it

user3 sexy helmet for a sexy man

user4 SLAYYYYYY

yourusername love the new helmet osc liked by author

⤷ user5 now she's in oscars comments wtf

⤷ user6 and he liked 😯

⤷ user7 are f1 drivers not allowed to have friends or something

user8 absolutely loveee 🫶🏻🫶🏻

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liked by oscarpiastri, yourbestfriend, and 44,921 others

yourusername we <3 singapore

view all 891 comments

user1 guys this isn't funny anymore WHO IS SHE

⤷ user2 lando's gf

⤷ user3 SERIOUSLY?? HOW DO YOU KNOW

⤷ user2 calm 😭😭😭😭😭😭 i was joking i have no clue but honestly wouldn't doubt it

⤷ user4 would yall call me insane if i said i think she's oscars gf

⤷ user5 yes

⤷user6 hmm im listening

user7 oscar in the likes... after she was in his comments...

user8 full main post of lando AND oscar ffs no shame

⤷ user9 maybe they're friends like wtf is the big deal????

⤷ user10 obvs clout chasing

⤷ user11 literally how 😐

⤷ user12 misogyny thats how 👎🏻

⤷ user13 cmon not even close, no one in the f1 community had any clue who this girl was and one day she starts posting about f1 immediately people start talking about her thinking she's dating lando and then next post she's posting him and oscar like clearly trying to get people to keep talking about her. she more than likely isn't with either of them and is she just cashing in her 15 seconds of fame or trying to live out her wag dream

⤷ user14 not the essay in the instagram comment section bffr

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yourusername added to their story

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landonorris added to their story

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part two

part three

reply or send me a message to be added to the taglist 🤍

[dailyrothko]

So here's the deal:

I just want to be transparent with my tumblr Rothko lovers. I applied and got fiscal sponsorship as a non-profit through Fractured Atlas.

Sadly, "Fiscal Sponsorship" is not what it sounds like, I pay them, they don't pay me. What it allows me to do is take donations and make them tax deductible and secure. I hope it's worth it.

I don't expect my poor pals on tumblr to donate, I don't think most of us have any money or we probably wouldn't be here, however, I am letting you know this because there's now a donate button on the blog.

I'm very poor and needed to do this to realize certain projects Rothko related projects. This is just a voluntary thing, i'm not going behind a paywall. Nothing is changing.

I mention this because their tacky donate button makes it look like I made a deal with the devil, but in actuality it's just for everyone's security.

I hate doing this at all but I am spread very thin. I spend a lot of time and money on this project and that's fine when i can do it, it's a labor of love. But some of it is just becoming impossible for me to maintain and so it goes.

Future projects include-

-I am writing a series of (three) articles I would like to publish about Rothko's impact in the modern world. Scholarly material on Rothko from art historians is good and I don't wish to retread old ground. However, there are some sides of the Rothko legacy I would like to cover based on my experiences, including interviews I have done with people on how they have come to the work (some of you guys), coverage of fakes and misattributions, and biographical impressions based on numerous interviews I have read with his family and friends.

-A bigger and ongoing project would be to create a website and central database that art enthusiasts can use to locate travelling Rothko exhibits and find which paintings are in which museums. Many people ask me these questions personally but if there was a place where all this information lived and someone to update it, people could look up available Rothko works in different cities they are travelling to.

We are living in a troubled world with many humanitarian concerns that should rightly take precedence over my little project, but I am trying to survive myself and lately it's pretty hard.

Thanks to all for 9 years of Rothko love.

(I realized no one can donate on the mobile app, so if you wish to, use this link below.)

[olderthannetfic]

As someone who accidentally achieved BNF status in two separate fandoms, I'll let you in on the secret cheat code (but beware being a bnf comes with a price and you won't know what it is until it's much too late)

It's commenting. And I don't just mean on the juggernaut fics or ships. Both times I came into a fandom in the first two years of their run. There were already a decent number of fics, lots of kudos (or favorites on ffn) but rare comments. Even the most popular fics, the ones ending up on rec lists, would have maybe 2-3 comments total.

I came from a fandom with a culture of commenting and I brought it with me. If I read a fic, it got a comment. Before anyone starts whinging nonsense about diluting the value of a comment, there is almost always something positive that you can find to comment on. I think back to my earliest writings and the way the elders and bnfs of my fandom encouraged my writing when I know from looking back on it, it wasn't great. But they found the seedlings of my strengths and they nurtured them through commenting. Encouraged the things that worked well in my stories, and yet somehow, rarely if ever offered concrite.

Everything I read gets a comment.

At the very least, the idea was creative enough for me to click into the story. Often there was a line or even a word choice that stuck with me and I would comment on. (and if six different people comment on how they liked "this bit" but no one comments on "that part" the authors are going to start realizing what worked and what didn't without anyone getting their feelings hurt)

After a few weeks, I was known for my comments. I had people replying to my comments about how excited they were: "yes! it's you! I got one!". And when I published my first work in the fandom, it seemed like everyone who had ever received a comment from me showed up to leave one for me.

I didn't set out to become a BNF. That was an unfortunate side effect and one I said I wouldn't repeat a few years later in my new fandom. (I did)

Turns out the fastest way to make friends is to hype their work. Reblog their work on tumblr and give a little non-spoilery shout out. Reply to reblogs and start conversations in the posts or in the tags.

A fandom lives and dies not only by the creative works made by the fans, but also by the response to that work.

--

[avianyuh]

S.Coups/Choi Seungcheol as a boyfriend

He would be so much fun

I think he'd love to go out to different restaurants with you

Or take you to the studio and have you hear his lyrics

Maybe even take you to the gym with him lol

You'd be Kkuma's other parent

Most likely, you'd watch over Kkuma while he was away on tour

Anyways, Cheol would be so protective over you

He's like that with the boys, so imagine being his partner

You ARE his baby

Somebody messed with you?

You will frequently be hearing, "Do I have to make a visit to someone?"

You're cold?

"Take my jacket! Do you want me to look for a nearby store, I'll buy you a new one?"

"No Cheol, I'm fine"

"No I really will, I'm ordering one right now for next time"

This man!

Most likely, he'd introduce you to either Jeonghan, Shua or Woozi first.

Reason I say Woozi is becuase they've known each other for so long, I'm sure he values Woozi's opinion

But with Seungcheol, I don't think he needs his members opinion when it comes to you

Mainly because he'd only introduce you to the members if he was serious about you

So I see him confiding in those three in the early stages of your relationship, not really when he's sure of you

When you're in the car, he drives with one hand, so his other hand is placed on your thigh

UGH

It's so hot

And no this is not made up, I have photo evidence that this man drives with one hand

Shexy Shtuff

Defo the type to 'wait it out' lmao

He wouldn't want you to feel used or anything

So during the first year, even if YOU wanted to have sex, he'd probably be like, "Uh, let's just wait"

I think he'd want to fully get to know you first

But when he feels like you're completely committed to him and vice versa

It's all free real estate

GIRL-

Woo

He's a switch

I said what I said

Yeah, he's a total daddy dom

But I think Seungcheol would like to be taken care of sometimes

Probably more submissive when he's tired but still in the mood for sex

And like I said, once he's committed, free real estate

This man will come home horny

Constantly ready to go

Especially after the gym when he's all sweaty

You jump him every time he comes home from the gym

Back to regularly scheduled programming:

He wants kids, and loves to talk about your future

How many kids you want

When you should start your family

One of his favorites things to do in your relationship is lay in bed, your head on his chest, him caressing your hair, staring up at the ceiling

And just talking about the future

What you both want in life

It's his way of making your relationship feel like you're still in the honeymoon phase.

Anyways...

Cheol would be a committed man to you

Gives the sweetest kisses

The type to kiss you all over your face when he sees you

Hypes you up with everything you do

Awkward and adroable

Choi Seungcheol,

SVT's dad

Your daddy ;)

~~~

{A/N; I told y'all I would write the coups headcanon. I literally cried watching him give the acceptance speech at MAMA lol, he looks like he's recovering well! BTW, if you have any requests, plz send them in, it seems like I only get BTS requests? Funny cuz I used to only get NCT requests and now it's completely switched. I kinda miss my NCT requests lol, if you have anything you want plz send it in! I've also been writing for some second gen idols (not published yet)

second gen idol fics are lacking on tumblr for some reason?...but that's another story

Anyways hope you enjoyed, mwah💋}

[rjalker]

Flatland: An Adventure in Many Dimensions, a 2024 translation into casual English, is done!

You can read and download it completely 100% for free on the Internet Archive!

When it's done loading, you will be able to read it directly online, and the Internet Archive will automatically generate audiobook versions with text to speech.

You can also download and torrent various versions as PDFs, epubs, and editable documents so you can change the font, paragraph styles, and do anything else you want with it, like give everyone neopronouns or turn them into unicorns!

I will also be making my own audiobook version at some point. but that's gonna take a while since this is around 38,000 words long. You can make your own too! And you can translate this into other languages!

Edit: The "lazy" (unedited) audiobook is now available on youtube! It is in two videos, since my computer wouldn't let me combine them lol.

“https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLpFcEwm88RUsMYmhY6DBYZcIvvKv6_ZS3”

Did I mention this is public domain? Because I hate capitalism and I'm poor and I want other people to also be able to enjoy books for free.

Buy the cheapest possible print version for $7.45 (I get $2).

This version is a paperback with no illustrations, no prefaces, a greyscale cover to make it as cheap to print as possible, so that more people can afford to buy it.

Buy the regular print version for $22.17 (I get $5).

This version is a hardpack with illustrations, the preface from the original author, and one from me.

You can also download all the HD illustrations included in this story here on the Internet Archive.

If you enjoy reading it, you can also donate directly to "TinyelFlatland" on paypal!

And if I haven't made it clear yet, this is Public Domain. You are 1million% encouraged to download it, print it, share it, do literally anything you want with it. I am 100% serious.

Now you can all join me in laughing at the narrator :)

Edit: oh wait lol. I realize I wrote this post assuming only people who already know what Flatland is will see it.

Uh so people who have no clue what Flatland is, here's a quick summary:

The narrator, who hides his identity using the alias "A. Square", is a resident of a world called Flatland, a world that only exists in two dimensions, where every person is a flat geometric shape. A. Square tells us the history and culture of his world, which is rife with bigotry that he buys into without question. Until New Year's Eve, before the first day of the year 2000, when a mysterious stranger claiming to come from the third dimension appears in his living room, and starts saying things that sound absurd, and performing what seem like magic tricks.

The original Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions, was published in 1884 by Edwin Abbot Abbot. It is both a scathing political satire criticizing the systems of bigotry in Victorian England, and an entertaining introduction to the concept of more than three dimensions.

Edit: Now there's an itch.io page too!

Edit again: And you can read it here on tumblr now! @flatland-a-2024-translation and on Pillowfort!

[cilil]

Hi, do you have any advices for budding writers on AO3 or here?

Hey! :)

I've given this some thought and compiled what I hope might be some helpful pointers, but if there's anything else or anything specific you want to hear more about, feel free to ask again. Also I'm assuming this is about the amazing craft of fanfic and not, uh, building a platform or whatever (I wouldn't be very helpful with that, I'm a nobody x)).

Share what you feel comfortable sharing.

So since you're asking about budding writers on AO3 and Tumblr, I take it you're at a point where you feel comfortable sharing your writing online, which is amazing. Nevertheless, I feel the need to once again mention (just for anyone who may be in the same or a similar situation) that it's completely alright not to be comfortable with it (yet) or not to share everything you write. I share almost everything simply because I'm annoying and it makes me feel accomplished and since I've grown pretty comfortable with it, I might as well; but not everyone feels that way and feelings also change. It's completely alright to write just for yourself or a small circle of friends.

Don't worry too much about "being good".

I will be the first to admit that I deeply relate to struggling with perfectionism when it comes to writing (and other creative pursuits). However, as someone who's been reading fic for many years, tends to be into quite niche and obscure things sometimes and is rarely spoiled by big fandoms' abundance of food, I want all writers, especially new ones, to know that you don't have to write the most amazing, perfect, publishing-ready pieces. What matters is your passion and creativity, which will show in your writing regardless of skill level. Not to mention that fic is free and in fact a tool for many to experiment.

That's not to say you can't strive to improve or be good - by all means, I find it admirable if you want to hone your craft and make progress as you continue to write. Just don't let perfectionism ruin your fun and stifle your creativity.

How to get better without trying overly hard.

Aside from just writing, writing and writing (that is the most important part though), how do you improve without making it a point to do so? Well, if it works for you to read/watch guides or you enjoy specific writing exercises, that's great, but one thing that I find gets overlooked a lot in writing spaces is simply: Reading. Just reading for fun.

I find that I often discover little things in other people's writing that I really like and then I think to myself "wow, that's really neat how they did that, maybe I could take a page out of their book" (pun intended) and make it a point to pay attention to these things when I write. Essentially, it's like creating a nice patchwork blanket which is your style, made up of your own voice and preferences as a writer and cool stuff you picked up on the road.

Let me just name some examples, which, yes, are also an excuse to shamelessly blow some writer friends of mine a well-deserved kiss of appreciation. @sauron-kraut writes incredibly polished short stories with beautiful wording and atmosphere that have a lot of little hidden things to discover and dissect, and I want to steal her ability to set the stage and hide those easter eggs. @a-world-of-whimsy-5 is an absolute legend when it comes to writing medieval and medieval-adjacent stuff, and I learned so much from her fics. @i-did-not-mean-to has a way of writing with such esprit and wit that I always end up in a good mood after, a style of narrative voice I've adored for over a decade, and I've greatly improved my humorous writing in particular thanks to her. @crackinthecup has the marvelous ability to craft extremely emotionally evocative scenes, which have encouraged me to be more courageous and experimental in my sentence melody and structure. @tragedybunny has a way of writing that reminds me of coming home to a warm and comfy place, and I will find out how she did it and how I can do it as well.

So as you can see, it can be super helpful to compare notes with your fellow writers. Never be discouraged by someone else's ability; instead learn and expand your own.

Feedback, criticism and community.

Let me just get one thing out of the way: You don't have to take criticism from everyone. Or at all. As far as I understand, the fanfic community has come to to agree that we're doing this for fun and don't give criticism unprompted/when we aren't sure it's wanted or welcome. As a general rule: Take criticism from those you would also seek advice from. Ask for feedback if you feel comfortable, and if not, that's a valid boundary to have and I will gently smack anyone who presumes to pick apart writing that was made for fun and generously shared with the community for free.

The community aspect, however, should be taken into account on other fronts. While I won't tell anyone they have to interact and believe that, in an ideal world, everyone's writing would just speak for itself, it is helpful to engage with the community. Things you can do (both on Tumblr and AO3 if also applicable/possible) include: Respond to people interacting with your works, interacting with other people's works (for example while you're doing your reading sessions and looking at other writers' styles) and just overall being present, being talkative, going with the flow.

Again, this is not a must. But I will say that pretty much all of us want positive responses and interactions on their work and that just won't work if you expect everyone to show up for you all the time and never show up for anyone else. Engagement, passion and community are our "currency" in the absence of money and reciprocity is an important element of that. A lot of friction and complaints in the fanfic community regarding lack of interaction or entitlement are rooted in misunderstandings of this fundamental principle.

But don't take this in a cynical manner. Seek out what you enjoy, share the joy and passion and you'll make friends just accidentally - which is the part that I find makes fandom on AO3 and Tumblr so much fun! (I don't even want to be a "traditional" author anymore, I want this instead😁)

Find your groove and groove along.

Lastly, make sure your writing is fun for you or else it'll become a chore and eventually get ruined for you as a hobby. This is unfortunately a continuous task as your needs and interests shift - for example you might be in the mood to do an entire drabble challenge one month and during another month you feel so drained that you couldn't do another one. Or you might want to write something different for a change. Or whatever it may be.

Either way, one recent lesson I've learned is that I got too tied up in obligations and it left no space for spontaneous inspiration, so I never got to write what I wanted to write in the moment and it pushed me quite close to burnout. Do yourself a favor and always hold that space for yourself. In practice, this could for example mean that you do one event and on the side write this cool new idea you had, instead of doing three events - which is fun and games until it starts getting too much and you don't have time for your passion projects.

Finding your groove also includes the whole technical aspect, such as which writing programs you use, which device (or none at all), where you write, how to make yourself comfortable, how to get in the right headspace for things. I would also like to encourage all of you to be a bit crazy and whimsical about this: For example I've gone to the perfume store, picked out a scent for a specific character in a specific scene and sniffed it while writing the description several times now. Do what it takes. And say goodbye to your squeaky clean search history - you will research some weird stuff just to get that one line right.

So yeah, these are just my random thoughts on fic writing and what has been helpful in order for me to have lots of fun with this hobby. Happy writing!

[romanarose]

Supportive Logan Thoughts: Writer GF

Logan Howlett x fem!writer!gf

Join my taglist : Masterlist

Buy Me A Coffee : Kofi : Go Fund Me

Summary: You're an aspiring writer, but having trouble finding time to write. Logan shows his complete faith in you, no matter what your family thinks.

Warnings: Not a lot, unsupportive/mean family. My massive daddy issues

A/n: I wanted to write this for myself because Im feeling massively unsupported by my family and several friends, and I with I had a partner with this much faith in me. I have another one I wanna do with supportive logan and reader who wants to continue education. If you have any self indulgant ideas you wanna hear, send em! It'll probs be short but I can have Logan say things i think you'd want to hear in a way that makes sense for him. Trans and lgbt themes encouraged.PS: catch the bobs burgers reference?

Dinner had been going pretty well, comparatively. Logan hadn't snapped at your dad for his passive aggression, and your mom hadn't commented on how you'd gained weight. It wasn't your fault your beloved boyfriend seemed to be fattening you up!

All in all, a peaceful dinner.

Until your brother, Mark, had to be a dick.

"You still writing on Wattpad?" He asked, an innocent enough question but you knew that tone. Logan stiffened, so you put a hand on his thigh. He chewed hard on the broccoli.

You brace yourself a bit. "Yeah, I got the fanfictions. But I'll have you know, it's a fun hobby and I do pretty well for myself-"

"Writing men kissing on tumblr isn't a hobby any more than making a porno is."

Logan speaks, through a full mouth. "I bet you're the porn expert, considering you're not getting any from anyone else."

"Except your mom."

You raise to hands at both Logan and Mark "Knock if off you two!"

Your mom is glaring at Mark for mentioning porn at the table, but he's pretending to be very interested in his chicken Alfredo.

Still, your dad always has something to say. "It's a shame you can't make money off that. I don't really understand why you do it."

"For fun?" You didn't know what not to get. Your grandma made terrible janky blankets and you all gushed over them. You loved them of course, because it was grandma. Why couldn't you have a hobby weather or not you were good?

But Logan wouldn't let the silence be filled with your families assumptions. "Well, she's writing a book, actually. And it's good, really fu- I mean, it's really good." Logan abides by your moms no swearing rule, but she pays no mind to the always f word as she somehow finds a reason to embarrass you.

"Oh she's always talking about some book or whatever. As a kid it was mystery because she was into the boxcar children. As a teen she was going to write the next big dystopian trilogy." She covers her mouth as she laughs about it.

Logans hand flexes and tightens under the table, trying to remain calm. "And what did you say when she told you about these?"

"Well, I told her she should be more realistic. I mean, I read some of her writing-"

"Because you snooped through my notebooks!"

"And it wasn't exactly Hunger Games."

Logan set down his plate. "So let me get this straight, Diane."

"Lo..." You warn.

"You snooped through notebooks that your daughter wrote by hand on notebooks, at what, 14, 15? Told her that this first draft, which I cannot stress enough, was written on a notebook, wasn't good enough to be published, then you're shocked she didn't finish it?"

When you're moms mouth gapped, your dad stepped in. "She doesn't finish anything, I'm sure you picked up on that. I mean, how many half started art projects are in your house right now?"

An embaressing amount. The other day, you found three different blankets with the same color scheem started. Three! Thrice, you had the same idea and never followed through.

Your boyfriend was not deterred. "Well, maybe, she needs someone whose going to support her, encourage her. Didn't seem like she had a lot of that before."

"WHELP!" You slap your knees, then stand up. "This has been great, but as usual we passed the 15 minute mark, and right on cue, it's time to go."

Your dad was as stubborn as Logan was and stood too. "Oh yeah, and just what are you gonna do to support her, to magically fixed years of fail-"

As you pulled Logan toward the door, Logan counts off on his fingers. "One, tell her that she can actually do it, because she CAN, two, check in on her and let her brainstorm with me. Have you ever actually asked about her plot? No?"

You're giggling to yourself now. Dinner was ruined, but you liked that Logan didn't stand for people talking bad about you.

"And three, she's gonna quit her job so she can focus on writing!"

Well. That one was new. Logan always encouraged your novel in progress, he listened about the characters and offered ideas, gave you a sounding board that wasn't judgmental. Yes, you've complained about no time for writing when you work so much but... No matter, you show a united front in front of your dad.

"Yeah! Because he believes in me." And you were out the door.

*

The drive back was quiet. Espresso was on the radio, and you knew he must be distracted because he didn't change the station, so you spoke first.

"I don't have to quit my-"

"I was gonna talk to you about-"

You both start at the same time. Then you laugh. "You first, Lo."

His body language relaxes for the first time tonight. "I didn't mean to spring that on yuh." I don't wancha to think I'm like. Trying to tell you what to do or make you financially dependent."

"I don't." You assure him. "So... you thought about this?"

He nods. "Yeah I um... I really think you got something good here, baby. I think if you took leave for a while ad really could just focus on the book, it could be something great. I mean, I don't know much about books but even I like it, so... you know... it's gotta be good."

Warmth fills your body as a blush festers under your skin. Logan really believed in you. He believed in your book enough that he was willing to take this risk on you.

"Can we... afford that?"

"Well I thought..." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I can always take overtime at work. If I pick up another day or two-"

"Logan! I can't ask your to do that!"

"You're not." He turns to you briefly, smiling, then back to the road. "I'm asking to do this for you, if you'll let me. Then, when you're a high falutin writer, I can be your sugar baby." He pokes yoru side, making you giggle

Still, seed of doubt were deeply entrenched. "But what if I don't do good? It doesn't sell?"

Logan shrugs. "Well, I guess... then you'll try again. Or you don't, an you'll know you finished it and you tried."

A pause. "You're really willing to do this for me?"

"Baby..." He places a hand on yours, eyes once again drifting only briefly from the road to you, then back. "I'd get the moon right now if you asked. Let me do this for us."

For us.

***********

Okay thats it im done im sorry, that was my own daddy issues, mommy issues, brother issues- lort help lmfao

anyway if you like this, check out my other stuff on my masterlist! if you like dark content, most of my logan is being written over at @romana-after-dark

the bobs burgers referece was the 15 min rule. at exactly 15 min, big bobs says something mean to bob asdfghjkl

my middle brother hosted a surprise party for my parents anniversary and we decided to have me an the ret of my siblings be surprise one, have my oldest brother hiding bc he lives the furthest away for surprise 2, then downstairs my extended family for three. My dad walks in, sees me and my youngest brother who he was't expecting, and before he even says hi he says "where's *oldest brother*" so that felt cool. And we got into a bit of an arguement where he was discrediting my feelings about the move when i was a teenager, and then my brothers and sister were assholes- and i just kept thinking i want logan or santi or joel here to protect me and defend me even against little stuff.

enough about me!

send your requests! give me chubby read, black reader, trans reader, native reader, bi reader, male reader- literally whatever tf you want. I cant say it'll be as long as this one but i got you. you desver to feel supported.

[sicksadgames]

As the Sun Forever Sets - Terror in the time of the Telegraph

It’s nuts I’ve been working on this game for over 4 years at this point. As the Sun Forever Sets is for sure my biggest and most capital G Game. It even has a publisher and everything. It’s also my first game! Wow! It's been tough, though. We'll get into it!

Britain, 1899

As the Sun Forever Sets is a survival horror sandbox based on the War of the Worlds, utilises the Forged in the Dark ruleset, and is about ordinary people surviving a Martian invasion of Victorian era Britain. We play to find out how they rise to meet the storm of destruction, the ways in which it shapes them, and if they survive to see a new world emerge, or die amidst the rubble of the old.

In the last years of Queen Victoria’s reign, the British Empire stretches across a quarter of the globe, and under the guise of genteel progress and civilisation, it commits theft and murder on a global scale. Britain itself is on the verge of the modern era, the Second Industrial Revolution pushing people into the cities to drive the factories and forges owned by the greedy industrialist class. But beyond the common causes of humanity and unbeknownst to the men who impose their rule over it, vast wheels have begun their inexorable turning. Across 40 million miles of void, the Martian invasion hurtles Earthward. Screaming across the stars, instruments of annihilation unlike anything believed possible lie ready for assembly, alongside the Martians themselves. They are truly inscrutable beings, but their intent is as clear as it is terrible – they will suck the literal and figurative blood from the Earth, and nothing less than the complete and utter subjugation of humanity will be enough.

If this sounds cool to you... well, you gotta wait, it’s not done yet. Sorry! But you can come and hang out in the Sick Sad Games discord, where I post excerpts and occasionally organise playtests.

The Hard Times of (Old) England

Be warned, this is a long one - over 4000 words (if you don't have a Tumblr account, you won't get to the end before it starts bugging you to register one, so go read this on Medium instead.) It turns out when you work on a game for a long time, you have a lot to say about it. Strap in, grab your gin and laudanum, and let’s destroy an evil empire just by existing.

Thanks to the wonderful @hendrik-ten-napel for taking a look over my disorganised thoughts.

(Potential) Spoilers for: The Bear, The War of the Worlds, The Last of Us, Children of Men, Threads, When the Wind Blows, Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs, The Thing.

Roleplay in the Pre-Post-Apocalypse

TTRPGs love a good post apocalypse. It's understandable - gas up and ride glorious on the legally distinct fury road, run a commune of like minded weirdos in the ashes of the old world, go digging through retro-futuristic ruins to find retro-futuristic treasures. Who wouldn't want to do any of these? But As the Sun Forever Sets is about an apocalypse as it begins, not after it’s over. 

There's a lot of crossover, of course. There’s a focus on similar things - disaster and spectacle, relationships and trust, scavenging and survival. But the bonus of the world not yet being over, is that we get to roleplay out dealing with that terrible, inexorable reality.

HG Wells wrote a book about blowing up all the places he used to live, and it's a banger. I was surprised to find there wasn't a TTRPG based on the War of the Worlds, being the tantalisingly public domain ur-alien invasion story it is. As the Sun Forever Sets is very explicitly an adaption of it, to the point that before I came up with the name it almost got released as The War of the Worlds: The Roleplaying Game (lol). I'm glad I didn't, doing my own thing has meant both me and the people playing are way more free to fuck around without the expectation that it must adhere to a canon.

The book is good, strikingly modern feeling in parts, and obviously massively influential - so much science fiction can be traced back to our nameless Narrators tormentuous trek across the south of England. But Wells’ prose is typical Victorian - overly wordy and florid (any book that contains the word “ejaculating” meaning “to shout” might be difficult for readers who aren’t used to the style), so when it comes to recommending an actual adaptation, there’s only one true king. Whenever I bring up Jeff Wayne’s The War of the Worlds, the usual reaction from anyone outside of the UK is to say "... they made a what?"

My mom was very keen to get me into musicals, but nothing really stuck until she tried this, the secret best War of the Worlds adaption (sorry Steven Spielberg, but you were doomed from the start.) It's the bombast and drama you'd expect from a disaster film, the horror and pathos of Wells’ classic, all expressed through vivid narration and sick nasty prog rock - wailing guitar and crunchy 70's synths operating at full effect. It's not completely faithful to the book, it doesn't matter. It’s the best.

Ah yes, the film bro's favourite mid 2000's film. Did you see that sick oner? That’s six minutes without a cut, that means the film’s good right? Children of Men is a slow burn apocalypse, dressed up like a world that’s already ended. Plenty has been written about all the little ways the film is prescient about the state of the UK - the slow belly-crawl into facism and nationalist fervour, the particularly British decay and class divide exacerbated by the desperate times, even the willful ignorance and the explicit sense that everyone’s just given up, it’s all here.

All that thematic stuff seems like it’d be really relevant to As the Sun Forever Sets, right?

Unfortunately, we are in fact here to talk about the long takes. The unbroken moment-to-moment action scenes evoke The War of the Worlds to a tee. Theo navigates danger with the same fraught tactical tension as War of the World's Narrator - dashing between doorways, groping for an axe handle in the darkness, desperately trying to start a car as assailants sprint towards him. What’s the best way out of this situation? How do I get from here to where I need to be? He lives his life in rolling, fleeting 5 second intervals, because he’s forgotten what it means to think in the long term - about the future, and what it might hold.

I was always fascinated and terrified by the idea of nuclear war. I guess it comes from watching a lot of 90’s disaster movies, but those are often ultimately fun romps where the day gets saved at the end, or at least the main characters find themselves alive and well at the end of the saga of destruction. Instead, As the Sun Forever Sets asks you to reflect on the horror and sadness present at the end of the world. Things are going to change forever, and change is always hard.

There’s not many clips of Threads and When the Wind Blows online, so it’s a little hard to demonstrate their particular nuclear inflected pitch black darkness. They’re grim - Grave of the Fireflies grim - differing in focus but united in their horrible impact.

When the Wind Blows is a story of an elderly couple living in rural England when the bombs drop, based on the comic by Raymond Briggs. Yes, The Snowman’s Raymond Briggs made a film about 2 lovely grandparents dying of acute radiation poisoning. Jim and Hilda are completely unprepared for what’s to come, their only reference is the Blitz - terrible in its own way, but not a patch on the scale of death they’re about to experience.

They survive the blast and wait for the good old British Government to arrive to save them, as it did in the 40’s. Slowly liquifying in the nuclear fallout, they hold onto each other and keep their spirits up, eventually making the decision to clamber into the paper sacks they mistakenly believed might protect them from the blast. Clutching their medical cards and birth certificates (for the ambulance, sure to be along any minute now), Jim mumbles painfully through a final prayer that morphs into a misremembered Charge of the Light Brigade, and they slip into a perpetual slumber together.

The most tragic part is Jim and Hilda’s unshakeable faith that their government is there for them - ready to catch them when they fall - borne out of Britain’s post WW2 renewal but absent in the 1980’s of the film’s plot, and the Britain of today. It’s a masterful film, shockingly sad, but the shock is the point.

Instead of aiming for your heart, Threads aims for the head. It’s a drama that aims to be as accurate as possible to government research into what a nuclear war might look like, plainly and forensically setting it out without any thought of softening these hard facts for its audience. Rather than focusing on a personal story, Threads flits around several groups of characters - minor government figures and ordinary families. Like Jim and Hilda, they too are woefully unprepared for the end of the world, and those in charge know there’s no way the UK could ever be ready for such a thing.

As mundane life is quietly intruded upon by news updates detailing far off geopolitics and the subsequent escalation that leads to war, the tension rises subtly then suddenly, like a spacecraft on the launchpad. People we’ve seen pottering about their normal lives are maimed and evaporated in the subsequent shocking nuclear exchange, whilst stark statistics flash on the screen - the hundreds of thousands instantly killed, how long the millions more fatally irradiated have left to live, the woefully inadequate tonnage of stockpiled food to feed those who survive. Each zero hits like a gutpunch.

And when you think the film must nearly be over, it keeps going. 1 week later. 1 year later. Threads grinds to an excruciating halt 13 years after the bombs fall, after year upon year of failed harvests from a destroyed earth barely able to support a population level equivalent to medieval Britain. At one point, mute children watch a warped and scratchy VHS of classic kids educational programme Words and Pictures on a TV powered by a steam generator.

The friendly presenter spells out the word “cat” through the thick veil of static, accompanied by a picture of one - an animal the children watching will likely never see. As they watch with blank, emotionless faces, the image of the cat fades to one of its skeletal form. “A cat’s skeleton” the presenter enthusiastically intones. The unrelenting bleakness might feel like a punishment, but Threads doesn’t mean it to be. This is just what would happen, after all.

Love in the time of the Heat-ray

In fact, someone in a Reddit thread said As the Sun Forever Sets “wasn’t just endless misery” and I’m glad that comes across. I wanted there to be moments of tenderness, quiet joy, anger, frustration, love and loss to punctuate the action and the horror.

People are messy and complicated even at the best of times. Under pressure, this is amplified a thousandfold - a little crush becomes a whirlwind romance, small disagreements become full blown fights, and not fully understanding someone might transform them into an enemy in your head.

The little town Bill conspires to be left alone in ends up comparatively untouched by the horrors going on elsewhere, as untouched as anywhere can be in The Last of Us. He hated the world anyways - so he isolates himself as he prepares for it to end, and it makes sense that his life only really begins as the show does. When Frank arrives, Bill is forced not to just engage with the broader world outside of his little enclave, but in the act of truly living in it.

There’s no prepper’s guide to romance. A human heart can’t be field stripped for maintenance. By choosing to exist as a vulnerable, emotional being, Bill opens himself up to a different kind of apocalypse. Frank becomes the flowering vines that slowly crack the flat concrete wall of a world that Bill created, and when those vines die, the wall can only crumble. It’s so fraught and lovely, delicately yet absolutely gut wrenching. At least their apocalypse was one they decided to have together.

“I’m old. I’m satisfied. And you… were my purpose.” - "Long Long Time”, The Last of Us

While several of my TTRPG writing friends were gushing about how great The Bear is, Em Acosta, author of the wonderfully inspirational Exile pointed out something super interesting - a lot of the show is about how you deal with people you’ve found yourself stuck with. No matter how much they piss you off, or whatever they do wrong, there’s something that means you can’t ever let them truly exit your life. They’re there, like it or not, until the bitter end.

Turns out this is very similar to how As the Sun Forever Sets handles Player Character relationships. In both it and The Bear, nothing’s ever truly resolved between characters - every relationship is like a cooking pot perpetually simmering. You might’ve apologised, made a truce, or just ignored your issues for so long that they seem to disappear, but no matter what, you’ve got to keep your eye on that pot.

Because suddenly a crisis will hit, and someone says something, or a diceroll comes up bad and all of a sudden the pot boils over and things are once again fucked. You storm out, start screaming, throw a fork. Even in the worst case scenario where a Character leaves because they’re absolutely sick of the rest of the group, they might show up at the end of the game for one last scene. Who knows how you’ll all feel at the end - nothing is ever truly fixed, and only the dead are truly broken. 

“I quit, chef, is what’s going on. You are an excellent chef. You are also a piece of shit. This isn’t on me. Goodbye." - “The Review”, The Bear

I’ve talked about The Thing a little before, John Carpenters sweaty, paranoid antarctic masterpiece. Along with the incredible effects and the (mostly) restrained use of action and bombast, the thing that makes... The Thing work is that the staff of the stricken research base lack any and all emotional intelligence.

It’s sort of the ultimate reverse Dudes Rock movie. Nobody knows anything about each other, so when their bodies and minds are colonised by the titular chameleon from outer space, they’re just another stranger to the rest of the crew. I’d ask you a question only you would know the answer to, but uh.. I don’t know anything about you. Whoops!

Over the course of the film, the whole operation falls apart as they try their best to work together to deal with the alien interloper, but their complete lack of ability to trust or relate to each other - present even before the crisis they find themselves in - is their ultimate downfall.

That final excellent shot of MacReady and Childs sat in the snow at the end of the film as their compound burns around them is the subject of a lot of unnecessary theorycrafting youtube videos, which kind of misses the point. Each suspects the other, but ultimately it doesn’t matter if one of them’s a Thing. One stranger is the same as another. Why bother getting to know each other now?

“Well...What do we do?” “Why don't we just... wait here for a little while? See what happens.” - Childs and Macready, The Thing

Science Fiction Revenge Fantasy

I’m not a historian, but the parallels between 1899 and now are pretty plain to see. Increasing class disparity, a lack of political will to help those in need, rampant cronyism and profiteering. As long as you’re in the place for it, roleplaying in a fictionalised version of the past to air out the issues of the present can be super fun and cathartic. You’re not expected to get a degree in British history to make it work, either.

The title is a play on the phrase “The Sun Never Set on the British Empire”, and it’s plainly stated in the book that Britains Empire acted as a mechanism of genocidal oppression, and that the Martians are here to end it - intentionally or not. It’s appealing as a premise on the face of it, but it goes a little deeper. Memories of Empire echo across time in Britain like the ringing of a malevolent bell, a cause celebre for braying Tories and fascistic right wing cunts (two very close circles in the venn diagram.)

We used to be a great country before this woke nonsense. Things were better back in the old days. The DEI contingent is trying to destroy our noble past. Yada yada yada, fuck offff. I’m sure someone somewhere will accuse me of “wokewashing” the past for including explicitly trans and queer characters as part of the book, along with the historical facts around how we fit into the oppressive Victorian conception of sex and gender. Unfortunately for them, we’ve always been here.

To be a little pretentious about it, every game of As the Sun Forever Sets reaches back into the past and cuts the myth of a glorious and benevolent Empire, and the good old days enjoyed within it off at the neck, purely in the act of beginning one. That sparks a little joy for me. Destroying a racists dream is fun, even if it’s only in the abstract.

A horror game about the most literalist Victorian industrialist imaginable hearing the phrase “Eat the rich” and getting right on that. I’ve not played Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs despite fond (??) memories of playing The Dark Descent in a room full of jumpy friends, and seeing Dear Esther played live on stage, with a live orchestra and narrator - an exquisite way to experience that game.

The mechanical chops of Frictional Games mixed with the narrative verve of The Chinese Room, how could this game be anything less than incredible?

After The Dark Descent I fell off’ve the “scary guy chases you around” genre of game until Alien: Isolation revitalised it, and the reviews of A Machine for Pigs were mixed - kind of boring, middling gameplay, too dark - so I never went back. I was planning on writing a little about its vibe - dark, gothic Victoriana that rhymes nicely with As the Sun Forever Sets - but after a bit of research, Mandus’ quest for his missing sons strikes an unexpectedly resonant and terrible chord.

The writing and voice acting is phenomenal, Mandus’ split consciousness - the self you play and the other half of him that’s seen the horrors of the forthcoming 20th Century and is compelled to act, imbued into the myopic machine he built - is extremely compelling. He feels compassion for the poor and wants to save them, but they fill him with fear and disgust. He knows the industrialist class is killing the world, but feels a deep shame in the fact that he counts himself amongst them. So his machine grinds the rich into meat for the poor, who it distorts into grotesque pig homunculi and forces them to operate the machine’s inscrutable workings.

It’s Mandus’ twisted way of saving the world - kill the rich for their crimes, enslave the poor for their own good, all hail the new machine/god/manager of the 20th century. It’s a neat reflection of the way modern politicians contort themselves to the whims of big business and AI snake oil salesmen to avoid doing the simple and obvious things that’d better the world. It’s a nightmarish refutation of Victorian Liberalism, that only the upper class know how to fix the problems of the lower class. It’s brilliant, and we should play it. 

"Do you hear me Mandus? This is what you planned! This world is a machine! A Machine for Pigs! Fit only for the slaughtering of pigs! Whores, beggars, orphans, filthy degenerates. Pigs all. But I will purify the streets, cleanse this city, set the great industry free. I will clean the world, make it pure." - The Machine, A Machine for Pigs

Song of the Year, of the Century

Not long after I came out as trans, I was asked what (in an ideal world) would make transition easier. I replied - never having to leave the house. One day I'd shut the front door as a man and another day, months or years later, I'd open it again as a woman, neatly sidestepping the terror of being perceived in a notoriously transphobic Britain.

In 2020 I shut that door and didn't open it for 4 months. At work, I remember calling the nearby shelter to donate our excess hand sanitizer and toilet roll, figuring out at the last second how support workers could take calls from their already isolated clients via their mobile phones, and fixating on the steady stream of scared coworkers leaving early. Tearfully, I felt the urge to hug those that remained as we locked up, before we remembered we probably shouldn't.

I've never been more aware of the minutia of moving through a space on the way home - How many people had their hands on this handrail? Have I touched my mouth or eyes without realising? Is anyone in the office already sick? Or on this train? How many more people are going to die? - My heart was in my chest, I heard the blood whoosh through my head to the beat of my steps on the pavement. At home, I realised my boyfriend had to go into work the next day. After he went to sleep, terrified he might die, I cried.

"I remember I felt an extraordinary persuasion that I was being played with, that presently, when I was upon the very verge of safety, this mysterious death—as swift as the passage of light—would leap after me from the pit about the cylinder, and strike me down." - "The Heat Ray", The War of the Worlds

Writing As the Sun Forever Sets was my way of coping with the disconnect with the world I felt, the fear of both Covid and the rising transphobia kept me inside even as the lockdowns eased. That feeling of throbbing death creeping at the window took a long time to wrestle under control, and getting deeply obsessed with a big project became part of that process. It seems incredibly maudlin to make a TTRPG dealing with darkness and death during a pandemic that killed (and continues to kill) millions of people, but I suppose I’m kind of a maudlin person.

“I haven't written a song in a month, So I'm playing the same chords again. I know I need to get lost in the moment, But I get lost before it begins. Fingers stretching out into space. Reaching as a thought slips away.”

It also burnt me the fuck out. After years of constant work and testing (beginning long before Evil Hat picked up the game), I ran out of steam. I spent the months after Evil Hat’s public playtest ended not really able to write anything ATSFS related at all. The game kind of froze - I knew what I wanted to change or fix or add, but the moment the google doc opened I couldn’t make myself start typing. It was incredibly frustrating to have the switch flip from endless obsessive writing to constant nothing, and I don’t think I truly recognised the burnout I was feeling until recently. It turns out spending years staying up past midnight writing is bad, who know!

A lot of Forged in the Dark games don’t get finished (or more accurately, get stuck in perpetual development), something that the excellent and dearly missed +1 Forward podcast recognised in their episode collecting their thoughts on the FITD games they looked at back in 2021. I think that’s because, at least to me, writing a Forged in the Dark game is like trying to hold a plate of spaghetti without the plate. It’s deceptively simple at its heart, but the system squirms when you poke at it - write one thing and it affects 3 other things. Tug one piece of pasta out and you lose a meatball without realising it.

When I listened to that episode, I took it as a challenge. Part of me now wonders if it was a curse. I'm being hyperbolic, of course. But a little part of me did think it might be better to give the game up.

That’s not going to be As the Sun Forever Sets' fate, thankfully. Evil Hat has been there to support me when I’ve felt guilty about shifting another deadline or replying to a check-in email with another late “Not much progress this month, sorry!” The frozen writers block is thawing, and I’m so tantalisingly close to finishing the final text. This blog is part of that process, another chip in the icy dam.

The wheels of dread Martian terror turn once again, and it feels good. Part of that is down to not beating myself up about a lack of progress. The more important part came when I realised I felt able to return to the world again - living in it, not hiding from it. Staying connected to it, even when there's times I'm not able to inhabit it physically. Covid, Britains particular brand of transphobic brainworms, and the shadow of Empire all continue to exist, and so do I - a weird maudlin transsexual woman - in spite of them all.

“The day seemed, by contrast with my recent confinement, dazzlingly bright, the sky a glowing blue. A gentle breeze kept the red weed that covered every scrap of unoccupied ground gently swaying. And oh! the sweetness of the air!” - “The Stillness”, The War of the Worlds

You made it!

Thanks for sticking with my messy thoughts. If what I talked about here sounds cool to you, please stop by the Discord, we'd love to have you. Look forward to seeing As the Sun Forever Sets come to a crowdfunding platform of Evil Hat's choice (I assume backerkit) at some point in the future ♥.

[severeangerissues]

SO ABOUT THE TRUYERABI GATE

You've probably already seen the post about the artist Truyerabi, who is accused of drawing incest and eroguro. The person who posted this said they did it "just to inform" But they clearly didn't do it just to inform, because if that were the case, they wouldn't have defended their actions and called the artist disgusting. This is already becoming personal and is clearly more than just informing.

Please don't skip this post, it's important if you're against false accusations and bullying and canceling people.

Truerabi knows that she draws disgusting things, and it is important to understand this. The accuser, let's call them that, said that she was hiding it, but in fact she was not.

Next I will provide translations of the post from Truyerabi's telegram to prove that she is not as bad as she is demonized.

I want to point out that Truyerabi actually draws these things and if these pictures are trigger for you, I advise you not to follow her telegram channel. You can follow her tumblr because these pictures are not there.

Let's also remember that the Internet has always drawn and will draw guro, ero-guro, and other abominations. It was like that from the very beginning and that's how it is. There is no point in fighting what has always been.

Please note that the translation may contain strange punctuation or something else. But overall, I translated everything that was written here honestly. Except that I didn't use swear words and adapted some sentences because this is the great and mighty Russian language /hj

Left is the original, right is my translation. I've highlighted the important parts in pink, but you should still read the whole post to get more details.

1.=~=~=~=~=~=~~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=

The first important part. Truyerabi does not support what she draws, and you should understand this. There is no need to demonize her, she is a human being just like you. Yes, she is a pro/comshipper, but that doesn't put a cross on a person. Just like any other label. People can be like this for completely different reasons and it is wrong to lump everyone together. You must understand this.

2.=~=~=~=~=~=~~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=

Here Truyerabi mentions that she puts warnings on her works, which is proof that she herself knows very well that her works are not something good. This also proves that she does not draw it "in secret", "in the shadows" or "behind the scenes" as some have accused her of. Because if that were the case, she would not published it on her blog, describing everything in the picture in a trigger warning. It's not very secret when you describe everything that's "secret", is it?

The accusation that she does this "in the shadows" comes from the fact that she only publishes explicit works on Telegram. And is this logical? There is no strict moderation in Telegram. But she does this mostly because she doesn't want to trigger anyone. The argument that she doesn't post it on Tumblr is just empty words to further defame the person. By the way, the prosecutor eventually published the works that were hidden from sensitive eyes without any censorship. They didn't even hide them under a cut. This is rather reckless, don't you think? Who ended up triggering more people?

*-You may have noticed that Truyerabi is not the only one being accused, but I translated the post she wrote "from herself"

3.=~=~=~=~=~=~~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=

⚠️The third argument contains a mention of self-harm, if this is a sore subject for you, read with caution or skip the 3rd point!!⚠️

In this screenshot you can see that Truyerabi is not a crazy fetishist, but a person who uses shock drawings as vent art. She is well aware that these are disgusting topics, horrible actions. And it helps her "let off steam". Everyone has their own way of dealing with problems and she is far from the only one of those who preferred this method, believe me.

Now it is quite wrong to blame a person and insult them for something that is an outlet for them. It's still incest and ero-guro and you shouldn't watch it if it upsets you, but putting it out there in public and telling others that the author is disgusting is just wrong.

⚠️WARNING, THE BOTTOM SENTENCE CONTAINS A MENTION OF SELFHARM, READ WITH CAUTION OR SKIP IT!!

⚠️Someone told her "I think self-harm is healthier than proship" What? What for the hell? Are they saying that drawing non-existent people who have already died many times in many different ways even in the official media is worse than REAL self-harm? What? What kind of soulless bastard do you have to be to say that? It's not better at all. Anything is better than self-harm. This is an indisputable fact and arguing with it is idiotic.⚠️

4.=~=~=~=~=~=~~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=

Here is another argument that Truyerabi does not romanticize incest and so on. She's right, the pictures don't depict Scout as someone who is happy with his situation. I don't think the person who wanted to normalize this would portray the characters as unhappy. On the contrary, it portrays incest as something negative, something that causes rejection and discomfort, something that harms a person.

Here she also says that it is unfair to say that her vent art is not vent. We don’t know what she went through, we don’t know what emotions and memories she puts into these works. It's wrong to blame her for the way she copes with her problems. She doesn't have to tell anyone what she's been through or what's going on in her head, but that doesn't mean she can be bullied.

5.=~=~=~=~=~=~~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=~=

An argument with which I completely agree. I don't think that if you are a real internet hero, a public figure, you will hide behind a clean account. If you haven't noticed, the person who published one of the posts is an empty account with an anonymous nickname. Doesn't this seem strange to you? If the author of the post simply wanted to inform you, then why did they create a separate account for this, if they could fit everything into one post on their main one? Could it be that this person is a person who is upset with Truyeraby for something and does not want to be recognized. Because they might be recognized? I don't want to theorize, but it seems to me that in order to inform people, you won't create an empty account and hide behind it like a coward.

They also justified themselves with the argument that “I was disgusted by these works, that’s why I informed others.”

That's fucking weird dude. You were so disgusted by the work that you went into the person's account, looked at their work, saved a few TO YOUR DEVICE and posted it UNCENSORED to a platform where people are not ready for this, where there are many minors. They could, again, have hidden the work at least under a cut, but they did not do this. This is a thoughtless act. I think if you want to warn people, you'll write about it, you'll say it, but you won't call the artist disgusting, make up reasons out of thin air, and demonize them. You'll just warn people. But without inciting hatred towards the artist. Which, by the way, has really begun. We don't know exactly what people write to Truyerabi in her askbox, DM, anonymous messages on Telegram, but I saw that they wished death on her, wished death on her subscribers. THIS IS NOT NORMAL. This is not something a person should deserve, even if he draws something terrible.

And again. Everyone has their own limits of disgust. Someone might find what you draw or like disgusting, but they don't go humiliate you and publish a whole post about it, because no one cares. And if they do, then they are not mature people who are not able to cope with distress on their own.

So what do we have as a bottom line?

YES. Truerabi draws incest and ero-guro. If this is triggering/shocking/problematic content for you, DO NOT FOLLOW HER TELEGRAM UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES.

NO. She doesn't hide it, she doesn't romanticize it, she doesn't find it normal and it's ultimately just her vent art. She has other great normal pictures that you can see on her Tumblr blog.

PLEASE. Don't write anything like "this is disgusting, this artist is disgusting" and don't spread the qwertypsdfgh's post, because it leads to even greater cruelty. Better explain to your audience that they should be careful what they watch. But you can't bully a person for it.

REMEMBER. Before you accuse someone of such terrible things, figure everything out, because you can only make things worse for the person. You can make their life even worse. Think about your actions when they affect other people before you do them, and our world will be a happier place.

На круглой планете, гуляет круглый ветер

По кругу гонит облака.

На круглой планете, есть место всем на свете

Пускай она не велика.

[arcane-vagabond]

Hey.

Go ahead and get settled because this will be...long, in true Liz fashion.

So, by now I'm sure most of you have heard what's happened. If not, you can search this blog for some answers or others for more.

I joined this fandom offiicially at the end of September after being a long time lurker. I had just lost my job and times were uncertain for me. I felt inspired to write, and as someone whose formative years were shaped by the fandom experience, I wanted to feel that sense of belonging again - to feel like a part of a community. I've talked about it on here before, but I started my fandom days in the original Hunger Games fandom when the first movie had just come out, and then I shifted gears towards the SuperWhoLock fandom. If you know anything about SuperWhoLock, then you know you had to have pretty tough fucking skin to be a part of any of it.

Of course, this was back in the day when fandom was an actual community and not authors having to beg for scraps of engagement and people thinking its a numbers game. I was a fairly large blog within the SuperWhoLock community (Waywardly-Carrying-On was the username), but I left fandom for a few years because life got hectic and I felt like I had outgrown the fandom itself as I was no longer watching any of the shows. As the years went on, I started to yearn for the fandom experience again, which is how I found myself dipping toes into several different ones.

I was so excited to publish my first fanfic. I had convinced myself that I wasn't a good writer (much to the chagrin of my irl friends), and I had put a pause on writing my original story. I wanted to write this idea about a cowboy and a girl using characters that I had grown to love like I did way back in my older days. So, I started posting, and I was so excited for the story, that I kept posting almost daily. MamaMay was one of the first people to embrace not only my story, but me as a person into the fandom. She made me feel welcomed and wanted.

Pretty much right off the bat I was already getting anons telling me that I was being too much and that I needed to calm down with all the posting. I was confused because...this is Tumblr. It's literally a blogging website? Why wouldn't I post? I decided to ignore the mean words (not before giving my opinion, of course) and kept on doing my thing. Well, the anons got continually worse and worse. I had a suspiscion as to who the anons could be, but I never had concrete proof. So, I experimented with blocking suspects until finally it worked. I'm not naming names because that's not my style, so don't even bother asking.

The fact of the matter is, some of you have entered fandom spaces for the first time, and you don't know how to act. You don't care to learn fandom etiquette as you've made abundantly clear by calling fandom olds every name under the sun while utilizing the anonymous feature. Newsflash, you're part of the problem. You're the reason why authors don't want to publish anymore. You are the reason that something that's supposed to be fun is starting to feel like a goddamn chore.

How many times can authors on here say that we aren't machines? We have lives outside of this website: family, friends, jobs, school, etc. Some of you really are just hellbent on making everyone around you miserable, and it's sad. You can't just leave well enough alone and let people enjoy something, no you feel like everyone has to enjoy it the same way as you.

Some of you go after authors on here because of some weird sense of jealousy too. I don't know why my shit blew up, babe, I really don't. But I started out with no followers and no support just like everyone else. I'll tell you what helped me though: following fandom etiquette and reaching out to other creators to build an actual community. None of this "I've reblogged three of your things and now I'm messaging you so that you return the favor." No, I reached out to make actual friendships which is what fandom is SUPPOSED to be. If someone was clearly not interested, it was fine!! I backed off and kept doing my own thing.

Some of you think being mean on the internet makes you big and bad. Guess what! It doesn't! It's loser mentality and I feel genuinely sorry for you. I'm sorry that people in your own life made you feel so small as to feel like you had to lash out at strangers on the internet who are just trying to have fun.

Anyway, this is my really long way of saying that I am taking a break for a little bit. I have no idea how long it will be - could be the weekend, could be a couple of weeks, could be forever. I need time to decide if this is something I want to keep persuing. If I come back, I don't know if I will remain a TGM blog or if I'll shift gears and hop into another fandom with a rebrand. Guess we'll just have to see.

To the people on here who have been a constant source of joy, laughter, and support: thank you. From the bottom of my heart. Your presence has meant everything to me, and I hope that my break sees me wanting to come back and giggle about the silly plane movie with you all again.

Nothing but love,

Liz 💛

[lilacmingi]

LIVING WITH 8 VAMPIRES

My works are 14+ ONLY. If you’re under 14 DO NOT interact with me or any of my works

Pairing: ATEEZ x fem reader (they’re not dating, but they all flirt with her)

Word count: 7,445

Note: This is my most popular series on Wattpad and I’m bringing it to Tumblr! This first part was published on Wattpad in February 2021. I don’t even know how to explain this series. It started out with silly little scenarios and turned into an ongoing series of crack humor (sometimes mildly suggestive), fluff, a little romance/soft moments, and vampire tomfoolery. If you haven’t read it yet OH BOY you’re in for a ride. I truly hope it makes you chuckle :)

You stepped into the large mansion, the front door creaking as you kicked it shut with your foot, both arms weighed down with bags of groceries.

"Y/n's home!" Wooyoung shrieked, running towards you at an insanely brisk speed.

"I don't think so." You stepped aside before he could tackle you, completely dodging him.

"Hey! How'd you do that?"

"You're becoming predicable, Woo." You stated as you walked into the kitchen, completely unbothered.

You set the weighty bags onto the kitchen counter and began unpacking everything, placing your items in their rightful places.

"Hey, where were you?" Yunho asked, walking into the kitchen.

"I went out for groceries." You answered.

"You didn't tell us." He pouted.

"You wouldn't have let me leave if I did. You're all too clingy."

"You're our little human though." He stated as he hugged you, his face buried in the crook of your neck.

"Stop that." You waved him off. "I don't belong to any of you."

"I beg to differ." An airy voice came from behind you.

You turned around seeing San perched up on the countertop, a sly grin on his face.

"I'm really not in the mood for your antics." You stated bluntly and exited the kitchen.

You headed up the large cherry wood steps that seemed to stretch for miles. The only thing on your mind was going to your room for a nice and quiet bath. You made it to the top and headed to your bedroom, just as you reached your door, Mingi dropped down in front of you, hanging upside down like the bat he is.

"Boo!" He shouted, laughing loudly.

His laughter quickly died down when he saw the unamused look on you face. You glanced up at him floating upside down in front of you.

"That's not scary anymore." You stated.

He let out a huff, sticking his bottom lip out.

"Sorry." You pouted, pinching his cheek as you stepped into your room.

•

"But she smells so good." San whined.

"I'm sitting right here." You announced, annoyed.

"Yeah and you smell incredible." San winked.

"Excuse me! We agreed we would not do that." Seonghwa spoke up.

You let out a sigh of relief, thankful that someone around here had some sense.

"Thank y-"

"Besides, if we do that, I am the eldest so I should go first."

Your mouth dropped open. "Are you kidding me right now?"

"I am not."

"None of you are biting me." You pointed to all of them.

"You don't have to worry about me, Y/n." Hongjoong smiled warmly.

"Thank you."

"Please." Jongho scoffed. "I'm the youngest and I have the best control out of all you."

"Well, I have the second best control." Hongjoong announced cockily.

"Everyone knows the eldest has the most control." Seonghwa pushed his hair back.

"That's bull crap." Jongho butted in.

"What on earth are you talking about?"

"You wouldn't know. You don't keep up with the current phrases used in today's time."

"I do not need to."

"Apparently you do because you never know what anyone is talking about." Jongho shot back.

The air went quiet for a moment.

"He's right." Mingi muttered.

"Yeah he is." Mumbled Wooyoung.

Everyone else nodded, muttering in agreement under their breaths.

•

Seonghwa rushed inside, slamming the door behind him, a drawn out sigh leaving his lips as he closed his umbrella. His heavy footsteps thudded across the floor, making it quite obvious that he was upset.

"I cannot believe the audacity..." He grumbled.

"What is it?" San rolled his eyes, knowing that if no one asked why Seonghwa was in a sour mood, he would continue to sigh and groan until someone said something. It's happened way too many times.

"Yeah, if you're gonna stomp around like that, you might as well just tell us." Jongho said.

"There was an adolescent standing on the sidewalk and he blew a cloud of vapors at me, to which I gave him a swift tongue lashing for, and he said I 'harshed his vibe.'"

You stifled a laugh.

"What does that mean?" Seonghwa asked aloud.

"Harshing someone's vibe means you're a party pooper." Yeosang muttered.

"I did not defecate on his celebration."

"No, Seonghwa it means he was having a good time and you ruined it." You spoke up, trying to clarify.

He let out an offended gasp.

"It's not that big of a deal. People say it all the time." Jongho shrugged. "It's not something to get bent out of shape about."

"I am perfectly upright, Jongho."

"That's not—" Jongho let out a long sigh. "Forget it."

•

You and the rest of the guys sat around the living room, each of you doing your own thing. You lifted your feet up, resting them on the coffee table as you looked around at everyone who suddenly appeared uneasy. Before you could ask what was wrong, a voice rang out.

"Get your feet off! That is mahogany from the 1800s." Seonghwa ran over, shooing your feet off the furniture.

"Who cares? It's old." You grumbled.

"It is in perfect condition. I do not need you scuffing it up." He huffed, pulling a handkerchief from his suit pocket, buffing the tabletop.

Out of the corner of your eye, just over Seonghwa's shoulder, Wooyoung was about to set a glass onto a side table beside his chair. Just before the bottom of the glass could make contact with the table, Seonghwa, in a split second and without looking back, flung a coaster over, the glass landing right on it.

"How many times to I have to tell you to use a coaster for your refreshments?"

"How did you-" Wooyoung started.

"I sensed it." Whispered Seonghwa.

•

"So, what kind of music do you guys listen to? I don't ever see you guys listening to any radios or anything."

"I am very fond of classical music." Seonghwa spoke up.

"Of course you are." You muttered.

"I kinda like 90s music." Hongjoong spoke up.

"I haven't listened to much music." San admitted.

"How about I show you guys some new stuff?" You suggested.

"I'm down." Jongho shrugged.

"Great!" You pulled out your phone, scrolling through YouTube, trying to figure out what they might like. "This one."

You tapped on a popular hip hop song, turning the volume up on your phone. As the song played, you watched as some of the boys began to bob their heads to the beat.

"I rather enjoy the rhythm of this music." Seonghwa commented.

"It slaps." Jongho spoke up.

"Pardon? The music did not slap us."

"No, slap is when the beat hits hard."

"That music did not touch me."

"No, idiot. You say something slaps when it's catchy." Jongho explained.

"These are sounds. We cannot catch them."

"You really need to learn some of the terms people use these days." Yeosang sighed.

•

You huffed as you trudged up the steps of the mansion, heading to Seonghwa's room. You found one of his rings sitting on one of the tables in the living room so you decided to put it in his bedroom. You pushed the door open and stepped inside, Seonghwa's coffin being the first thing you saw. You looked away, shivering a bit. The sight was always a little unnerving to you. He's the only one who still slept in a coffin. All the other guys slept in beds, but Seonghwa was old-fashioned, so you expected that from him.

You managed to bring your attention back to the task at hand and placed the ring inside his jewelry box. Just as you were about to leave, you spotted his closet door slightly ajar and hurried over to close it, but you stopped when something inside caught your eye. Slowly, you pulled the door open, a black cape hanging amongst the ruffled shirts and embellished suit jackets.

"No way." You whispered, reaching out to pull the garment off the hanger.

Sure enough, it was a black cape with maroon lining on the inside, a high collar at the top. An idea popped into your head as a mischievous grin spread across your lips.

You descended the stairs in the most elegant way possible, flipping the collar of the cape up.

"Look at me. I'm Seonghwa!" You announced, striding into the living room.

Jongho stifled a laugh as you sauntered around the room.

"Do not put your tainted feet on my mahogany table! I purchased that in a quaint town in Italy in 1876!" You mocked him, spouting off random dates and locations. "Doth thee not comprehend?"

Wooyoung busted out into a fit of high-pitched laugher, clapping his hands at your imitation of his friend.

"Wait wait wait." Hongjoong spoke up through laughter. "Do— do one of him when he hears a phrase he doesn't understand."

You quickly wiped the grin off your face and got serious.

"Pardon? Lit? If you are referring to the lighting in the room, then yes. It is lit very well."

"HA!" Yunho fell back, clutching his stomach.

Mingi collapsed on top of him, laughing loudly.

"Excuse me. Am I interrupting something?"

You froze upon hearing Seonghwa's voice. You slowly turned your head, almost afraid to face him.

"S-Seonghwa." You laughed nervously. "What are you doing here?"

"Last I recalled, I live here."

"Yeah. You do."

"Were you mocking me?"

"What? Psh. No." You waved your hand dismissively. "Not at all."

"She was just having fun, Seonghwa." Yeosang reasoned gently.

"I haven't laughed that hard in decades." San fell back on the couch, huffing.

Seonghwa looked at you, his eyes lingering on the cape you were sporting.

"Very well, then. I will excuse it, but only because you look rather adorable in my cape." He muttered the last part before hurrying off.

You stood there, knowing exactly what he said but not being able to process it.

"What?"

•

"Okay. First of all, you can shorten your words. For example, you say cannot but you can say can't."

"I am aware." Seonghwa muttered.

"See? You could have said I'm aware."

"I know."

"Then say it."

"No."

"Seonghwa, c'mon. You need to at least try it out. That way you don't stand out as much when you go out and converse with people."

"I do not wish to fit in. I am content speaking the way I do."

"Will you at least speak normally so I can hear what you would sound like?" You asked.

Seonghwa looked at you, his thick and sharp brows furrowed, wondering why on earth you would want to hear him speak so casually.

"Just this once?" You begged.

"I supposed it would not kill me." He gave in.

"Seonghwa is gonna say something normal?" Mingi shrieked, suddenly making an appearance.

"Really?" Wooyoung and San asked in unison, both of them sticking their heads into the room.

Within mere seconds all eight of the boys were gathered in the living room, their curiosities piqued after overhearing your conversation.

"I suppose this is entertaining to you all?" Seonghwa quirked a brow, looking around.

Everyone nodded their heads.

Seonghwa turned his gaze back to you with a sigh. "What would you like me to say?"

"Hmm." You thought for a moment. "Y/n, you're awesome. I'm so glad you moved in with us. It's been a blast."

"You want me to say that?"

You nodded.

He paused for a moment, clearly regretting his decision. "Y/n, you're awesome. I'm so glad you moved in with us. It's been a blast."

The sentence sounded foreign coming from Seonghwa, but it was a nice change from his usual fancy talk.

"Woah." You muttered. "That was... kind of attractive."

"What?" Shrieked Jongho. "I speak like that all the time and you never told me it was attractive."

Seonghwa chuckled darkly, a smirk pulling at his lips. "Well, my dear, if you enjoyed that so much, perhaps I should speak that way more often."

"Stop flirting with her!" Hongjoong shoved Seonghwa.

"I can do as I please."

"If you get to flirt with her, so do I." Yeosang spoke up.

"What did I get myself into?" You muttered under your breath.

•

"Y/nnn." Yunho pouted, dragging out your name. "I'm thirsty."

"Do we have any blood bags?" You asked absentmindedly.

"No."

"Well, go out and find someone to drink from."

"I was thinking something else."

You glanced over at him as he scooted closer.

"I know what you're thinking and it's not gonna happen."

"Why not?" He pouted as he began crawling across the couch.

"I don't want you to."

"C'mon, Y/n." He coaxed. "It won't hurt. You'll only feel a pinch. I promise."

His eyes flashed red as he hovered over you.

In a moment of panic, you reached over to the table beside the couch, pulling open the drawer and grabbing the first thing your hands could find.

A flashlight.

You had purchased it less than a week ago since the place was so poorly lit. You placed it in the drawer beside the couch as a temporary home and it seems to have come in handy.

You retrieved the flashlight from its spot, holding it out.

"Don't you dare." You pointed it at Yunho.

"What is that?" He asked, backing off a bit.

"It's portable sunlight." You lied.

Yunho let out a gasp, cowering away.

"Yeah, that's right. It's bright and it burns."

Yunho winced at your words before his face fell flat. "Wait. How do I know you're telling the truth?"

You raised a brow, keeping direct eye contact with him as you pointed the flashlight towards the wall and clicked the on button. Yunho let out a scream, immediately jumping behind the nearest piece of furniture.

"I'll use it on you if you don't stop bothering me. I don't care if you're my friend." You threatened, turning the flashlight off.

"Okay, okay, okay!" Yunho ducked behind the chair. "Please don't use the portable sunlight on me. I won't bother you."

"Good." You huffed, leaning back against the couch.

•

"Y/n, can I play on your phone?" Wooyoung asked with a pout.

"It needs to charge."

"Aw." He frowned.

"Hey, I have an idea. Why don't you guys get your own cell phones?"

Wooyoung furrowed his brows, blinking a few times. "I never thought about that."

"I have no need for one of these cellular devices you speak of." Seonghwa muttered, flipping through the newspaper.

"You might enjoy it." You told Seonghwa. "You can text the boys and download as much classical music as you want."

"I do not need to text my friends. I live under the same roof as them."

"Okay fine, forget the texting thing."

"Seonghwa, if we get phones you should get one too." Wooyoung said.

"I shall reiterate what I just told Y/n. I do not need one. Writing letters suffices."

"It does not. No one really writes letters anymore." You stated.

"What about bills, though?" Yunho spoke up.

"You guys can all get on family plan, it'll be cheaper." You answered simply.

"Ooh exciting." Mingi grinned. "Let's do it!"

"What do you think, Seonghwa?" Hongjoong inquired, turning to his friend.

"Fine." He sighed. "I suppose I can get one of these phones you speak so highly of."

"This is great! When should we go?" You asked.

"Right now!" Wooyoung stood up. "The sun isn't out much today. I think it'll be safe."

"Okay, then. Who's coming with me?"

"All of us!" San piped up.

"Not me." Seonghwa muttered.

"But you have to be there to choose your phone color." You pointed out.

"I do not care what color the phone is."

"I'm gonna get him a pink one." Yeosang whispered to Hongjoong.

"Alright, I shall join you." Seonghwa spoke quickly, setting his newspaper aside.

All nine of you piled into the black van they had for group outings. San was quick to push everyone aside so he could sit in the passenger's seat beside you, repeatedly calling shotgun as he scrambled into the seat.

You pulled up to the nearest cellphone carrier building and stepped inside. All eyes were on you and your group of friends as you walked through the store. You were sure you all looked like a rather strange group, but you couldn't be bothered by it. An employee came up right away to assist you all in your cellphone endeavors.

It took a while to get out of the store because Wooyoung and Mingi couldn't decide which color phone they wanted and Seonghwa kept stopping the employee every few seconds to ask what gigabyte and data was. Eventually, you pulled him aside and asked that he just let you take care of it. There was also a rather long conversation about wether the boys wanted unlimited data or not.

"Do you have wifi at your house?" The employee asked.

"What is w-" Seonghwa started, only to be discreetly jabbed in the side by Jongho.

"We don't." The youngest answered.

"Okay, then you'll want the unlimited data."

After being in the store for over an hour, you finally made it out, all eight of the boys with brand new cellphones.

"I have my own phone!" Wooyoung squeaked, holding up his newly activated device.

"That was rather expensive." Seonghwa commented.

"Yeah but did you see the look on that guy's face when you dropped all those coins onto the counter?" Jongho laughed.

"It was as if he had never seen money before." Seonghwa remarked.

"That's because no one uses that kind of money anymore. It's like really old and valuable." You spoke up.

"Old?!" Seonghwa shrieked.

"Yeah." You answered bluntly.

"Well, if you think about it, we're all old. We've been vampires since like the mid 1800s." Yeosang pointed out.

"Yeah, but we don't act old." Jongho mentioned. "Seonghwa does, though."

"Oh no." You muttered, knowing there was about to be an argument.

"I do not act old. I am simply being a proper and elegant gentleman."

"Guys please." You sighed. "Argue when we get home."

"What app should I download first?" Yunho asked, seemingly oblivious to what was just happening.

•

"I got a phone. I got a phone." Mingi sang as he skipped cheerfully through the house, swinging his arms as he did so.

Suddenly, the phone slipped out of his hand, clattering to the floor causing everyone to freeze. The room was dead silent as everyone started at the phone lying face down on the floor.

"Guys." You held your hands out. "It's okay."

You crept towards the phone, slowly picking it off the ground, almost too afraid to look at the screen. You hesitantly flipped it around and glanced at it, letting out a sigh of relief when you saw the screen was still in tact.

"It's okay guys!" You announced, holding the phone up causing the boys to let out a collective sigh of relief.

"You have to be careful with this." You informed him, handing the phone back to Mingi. "It's very delicate. You can't drop it on any hard surfaces and you can't get it wet."

"Okay." He nodded. "Sorry."

"It's okay. Just be careful."

•

"Mingi!" You called.

"Yes?" He appeared in front of you in an instant.

"I got something for you."

"Ooh! A gift?"

"Sort of." You pulled out a large protective phone case that you had hidden behind your back, handing it to Mingi.

"What's this?" He questioned.

"It's a protective phone case."

"It's kind of bulky."

"That's the point. It'll help protect your phone if you drop it."

He pursed his lips, putting the case on his phone.

"I don't really like it."

"Too bad. You need to get used to having a phone and practice not dropping it. Then you can have a different case."

"Okay." Mingi frowned.

Days went by and Mingi really didn't like his new phone case. It wasn't quite fair to him that he was the only one with an ugly case.

"How come I have to be babied and have a big, bulky phone case?" He whined.

"Because you're the one who dropped your phone first." You told him.

"Don't be upset, Mingi. You're setting an example for us." Jongho said.

"Yeah we're learning from you." Yunho added.

"Really?" Mingi beamed.

They nodded.

He puffed up his chest proudly before sauntering off.

•

"Y/n!" San called while running up to you. "Look what I did!" He turned his phone around so you could see it.

Your jaw nearly fell to the floor when you saw a Tinder profile on the screen. His Tinder profile. A mirror selfie of San with his index finger on his bottom lip was displayed on the majority of the screen.

"San."

"Yes?"

"You have to delete that."

"What? Why? Is it not sexy?" He asked, looking at the photo.

"No, San, listen to me. You have to take down your profile. Delete the app."

"My date will be upset." He frowned.

"Date?" You gaped, feeling a tinge of jealousy.

"Yeah. Look." He showed you someone's profile, that someone being Billie Eilish.

"San, that's Billie Eilish."

"I know. She told me who she was."

"Do you even know who she is?" You questioned.

"Someone who wants to go on a date with me." He grinned proudly.

"No. She's a famous singer."

"Oh. That's so cool!"

"It's not."

"Why?"

"Because that's not actually her."

"But she's talking to me. How could it not be her? I have our messages."

"There's this thing called catfishing. It's where people pretend to be someone they're not. Usually they're pretending to be celebrities." You informed him.

"What?" He frowned.

"Yeah. I'm sorry."

"It's okay. I guess I should delete my profile." He dropped his head. "Here. Can you do it for me?" He held his phone out.

"Of course." You took it from him, deleting the profile and the app before handing it back.

"Hey. How about we watch a movie or something?"

San still looked upset, his bottom lip stuck out in a pout.

"I'll let you cuddle with me." You nudged him.

His head shot up, eyes sparkling as thoughts of his deleted Tinder profile went out the window.

"What are we waiting for? Let's go!" He picked you up, speeding off to your bedroom which held the only TV in the house, thanks to you.

•

Not long after the boys got phones, Yunho and San were begging to make a group chat. Seonghwa was absolutely against it, but he got added anyway, much to his distaste.

"We can name it?" Hongjoong exclaimed, his mouth hanging open.

"Yes you can."

"Ooh! Let's name it Vamp Squad." Yunho suggested.

"That's lame." Jongho shot the idea down immediately.

"How about Fang Gang?" Wooyoung suggested while striking a pose.

"Lame." Muttered Jongho.

"I don't know. It's kinda cool." You admitted.

After getting your approval, Wooyoung immediately went to typing on his phone.

Wooyoung changed the group name to Fang Gang

"Awesome." He grinned.

"Let's text right now!" Yeosang suggested, eager to see what being in a group chat was like.

"We are in the same room." Seonghwa pointed out.

"You guys can do that." You smiled, causing everyone, besides Seonghwa, to become excited.

Mingi

Hi

:)

"How did you do that?" Jongho looked up at Mingi with his mouth agape.

"The two dots and the moon shape." Mingi explained with a cute smile.

"Those are called emoticons. You can use semicolons, colons, parentheses, and more to make faces. Watch this."

You

;)

:(

:3

:0

:]

"Woaahh." The boys marveled at your little emoticon faces.

"You guys have emojis too." You pointed out. "They're like emoticons but with way more detail. Tap the little icon at the bottom of your keypad."

The boys tapped away on their phones, gasping even they saw the abundance of emojis.

Yunho

😀😎👋🏻

Hongjoong

❄️🍇🍉🧀🏀

Jongho

🧛🏻‍♂️🧛🏻‍♂️🧛🏻‍♂️🧛🏻‍♂️🧛🏻‍♂️🧛🏻‍♂️🧛🏻‍♂️🧛🏻‍♂️🙋‍♀️

That's us :)

"Okay you guys are having way too much fun with this." You shook your head, unable to hold back the fond smile pulling at your lips.

"Yes we are." Jongho nodded.

"I have so many emojis at my disposal." Wooyoung murmured, his eyes gleaming as he scrolled past the different categories.

"There's an emoji for everything!" Yeosang gaped.

"There is." You nodded. "It's actually amazing."

"So what do emojis do?" Hongjoong inquired.

"They help show a bit of emotion through text. Hence the name emoji."

"Ah." Hongjoong nodded. "So if I'm happy I can use the happy face and if I'm angry I can use the angry face."

"Yes."

"Cool." He whispered in amazement, a smile on his face as he looked at the phone.

San

Seonghwa

Seonghwa

Hey

Seonghwa hey

Seonghwa glared across the room at San, his eyes flashing red as a threat. "Stop."

San stuck his tongue out in response.

The group chat continued to blow up throughout the day. Most of the time it was just random emojis and words. You couldn't find it in yourself to be annoyed. In fact, you found it cute how they were all so excited about texting.

Yunho

Hey Y/n. Wsbatarw you dojng

You

What?

Jongho

What are you trying to say?

Yunho

I askd howjs she wa doibfg

You

I see

You're using that vampire speed of yours to respond quickly but you're making lots of typos in the process LOL

Yunho

Shut up

Yuo don't kneow tbat

You clamped your hand over your mouth to keep yourself from laughing.

•

"Is that my blanket?" Yeosang asked Wooyoung.

"Yeah."

"You didn't ask to use it."

"I didn't think I needed to." He shrugged.

"Give it back." Yeosang demanded, holding his hand out.

"What? No, I'm using it."

"It's my blanket."

"I don't care."

"Give it back or I'll use the portable sunlight on you." He threatened.

"You won't." Wooyoung chuckled bitterly.

"Alright, bet."

Yeosang snatched the flashlight from the drawer, turning it on before Wooyoung had a chance to react. He let out a hiss, shielding himself. He quickly realized that the light wasn't hot nor was it burning him. At the very least, it was mildly irritating to his eyes.

"What?" Yeosang muttered, crestfallen.

"HA!" Wooyoung laughed, pointing at Yeosang.

"Stop laughing! Do you know what this means?" He asked, clicking off the flashlight.

"What?" Wooyoung questioned, oblivious.

"This isn't actually portable sunlight. Y/n tricked us."

Wooyoung's eyes widened.

•

You headed down the steps, towards the living room area hearing lots of hushed whispers. As soon as you stepped into the room it went quiet, everyone's eyes on you.

"Why is everyone gathered here?"

"I would like to know the same thing." Seonghwa huffed, looking agitated.

Wooyoung crossed his legs, clasping his hands together and resting them on his knees.

"We need to talk."

"Why are you acting like I'm in trouble?" You chuckled, taking a seat beside Mingi.

"Because you are." Yeosang spoke up.

"Why?"

He held up the flashlight you often used to keep the boys away from you.

"This isn't portable sunlight." He stated.

You eyes widened, knowing they were onto you.

"It's not?" Mingi sat up.

"No. It appears to be some sort of miniature light. It's not sun at all." Yeosang informed the group.

"Are you kidding me?" Yunho exploded.

"It took you this long to figure it out?" Jongho spoke up. "I figured it out already."

"What?" Everyone looked at Jongho angrily.

"And you didn't think to tell us?" Hongjoong asked.

"I enjoyed seeing you all get so scared when Y/n threatened you." He chuckled.

"Y/n, please explain yourself." San crossed his arms.

"Okay. I lied. It's just a flashlight, nothing more. I just needed something to use to keep you guys away from me." You admitted.

"If you wished to have space you should have asked." Seonghwa stated.

"Not everyone listens." You spoke pointedly, eyeing San and Wooyoung.

"We just love you so much." San spoke cutely.

"You have a unique way of showing it."

•

You walked into the kitchen in search of a snack, needing something to hold you over before dinner. Pulling open the pantry door, you peered inside to see what there was to choose from.

"Whatcha doing?" Yeosang's smooth voice inquired softly.

"Looking for a snack."

"I see a snack right here in front of me."

You spun around to face him. "Excuse me?"

It wasn't often Yeosang made comments like that, so it caught you off guard.

"You heard me." He hummed, his eyes flashing red.

"Yeosang, please." You tried to push him away, but he wouldn't budge. "I am not in the mood for this."

"What do you think you're doing?" Hongjoong's voice rang out.

You snapped your head towards the entrance of the kitchen seeing Hongjoong standing in the doorway. He stomped up to Yeosang and jerked him away.

"I asked you a question." He snapped.

"She smelled nice and I'm thirsty." Yeosang answered plainly.

"Well, go out and find someone to feed off of. You know Y/n is off limits." Hongjoong said as he narrowed his eyes at the blonde.

Before he could respond, Hongjoong grabbed your hand.

"C'mon, Y/n." He muttered, pulling you out of the room and into another where you could be alone. "Are you alright?" He asked, brushing your hair out of your face.

The caring and gentle gesture had your cheeks feeling warm.

"I'm fine." You told him.

"You sure?"

You nodded.

Hongjoong pulled you into a hug.

"I'm sorry about Yeosang." He muttered.

"It's fine. I'm honestly used to it at this point." You chuckled, giving him a pat on the back.

You started to pull away, but Hongjoong held you still.

"Hongjoong-"

"You do smell good." He whispered.

You quickly shoved him away. Hongjoong claimed to have the second best control in the group and he more than likely wasn't going to do anything, but you weren't willing to test that theory.

"Jeez. You too?" You huffed, stalking away.

"Y/n?" Yunho called as you stepped into the living room.

"Hey! I was looking for you." Wooyoung spoke up as he descended the stairs.

San appeared out of nowhere and nearly tackled you in a hug, nuzzling his face against your cheek.

"San, please. I'm really not in the mood." You huffed, wiggling out of his grip. "I'll use the..." You trailed off, realizing you couldn't use the flashlight as a threat anymore.

"Yeah. That's right." Wooyoung chuckled, a smug grin on his face. "You don't have your portable sunlight anymore. How are you gonna get rid of us?"

Without a word, you spun around and immediately started walking towards the front entrance.

"Where are you going?" San asked.

"Out to eat. I was thinking of getting pizza for dinner—with extra garlic."

"How could you?" They gasped.

You smirked, reaching out to open the door only to be stopped.

"I'm sorry." Yunho wailed, dropping to his knees and latching onto your leg.

"Me too!" Wooyoung declared dramatically, following what Yunho did.

"We'll leave you alone. Please don't eat garlic." Yunho cried out.

"You two are the biggest babies." You sighed, ruffling their hair playfully. "I'm not going anywhere."

•

"Hey do you remember when we first met?" Mingi asked.

"Yes. At a social gathering in 18-" Seonghwa was immediately cut off.

"Not us. Y/n."

"Oh yeah." You chuckled at the memory. "I remember it very well.”

*flashback*

You stood on the cramped bus as it drove down the busy streets of Seoul. You had been staying in a hotel for about three days and your search for a place to live was bearing no results. You thought you had a place lined up, but someone else who was willing to pay more money got it instead. You released a long sigh, your eyes glancing down at a man sitting in one of the seats lining the walls of the bus. You couldn't help but think how lucky he was to have found a seat. Your eyes traveled down to the open newspaper in the man's hands, spotting a small section off to the side labeled: ROOMMATE WANTED in large letters. Your eyes widened upon seeing the announcement, taking a brief glance at the name of the newspaper, making sure to remember it.

You got off at the next stop, searching for the nearest newspaper dispenser, spotting one for the newspaper publisher you were in search of. You hurriedly fished out some coins, dropping them into the coin slots before pulling out one of the papers, hastily flipping through the pages until you found what you were looking for.

ROOMMATE WANTED

Name: Kim Hongjoong

Rooms: 10

Bathrooms: 3

Looking for a roommate who knows how to drive or can provide transportation. Must be able to run errands at any time of the day.

If you are interested please stop by any time.

You furrowed your brows after reading the requirements.

"That's an odd request." You muttered to yourself.

But ten bedrooms? That's crazy. It made you wonder how many people lived there currently.

Less than 30 minutes later you found yourself standing in front of a large mansion. The outside was a bit unkempt and weathered, but nice nonetheless. You reached up and gave a few knocks to the large front door. Moments later, it creaked open, a man with dark hair stood inside. His attire was a bit odd and somewhat Victorian. He had on a dressy shirt with large, ruffled sleeves, a gray and silver vest, and black dress pants.

"Can I help you?" He asked, his voice soft and airy.

"Yes. I'm here about the ad in the paper." You held it up. "Are you Kim Hongjoong?"

"I am. Please, come inside." He stepped aside, allowing you to walk in.

You were immediately rendered speechless at the mansion's interior, marveling at the exquisite and vintage-like decor.

"Who is that?" Someone stuck their head into the room.

"Do we have a guest?" A second person piped up.

"It's just someone who saw our ad in the paper." Hongjoong informed the two.

"A potential roommate?" A third person came hurrying into the room.

"Possibly. Go get the others, please." Hongjoong requested. "You can have a seat over there." He gestured towards a red couch sitting against the wall.

You took a seat, watching as more and more guys entered the room. Five, six, seven.

What did I get myself into? You thought.

"Who is this?" An eighth man with dark hair and similar attire as Hongjoong asked while striding into the room.

The way he carried himself was that of a dignified man, his aura intimidating. It was clear he held some authority, like Hongjoong, but unlike the latter, he didn't have a friendly vibe.

"This is..." Hongjoong trailed off, turning to you.

"Y/n. My name is Y/n." You spoke up, introducing yourself.

"Right, Y/n. She is here about the roommate ad."

The dark-haired guy turned towards Hongjoong, pulling him off to the side. You didn't mean to eavesdrop, but the house was so quiet you couldn't help it.

"We already discussed this. I do not want a human living with us."

What? Did I hear that correctly?

"Seonghwa, be quiet." Hongjoong shushed. "She's right there."

"I explicitly told you not to put that ad in the paper." The one named Seonghwa whispered harshly.

"Just give her a chance." Hongjoong pleaded.

"Very well."

"Alright." Hongjoong approached you, clasping his hands together as he took a seat across from you. "You said you were interested in possibly staying here, correct?"

"Yes. I just moved here less than a week ago and I haven't been very lucky so far."

"How so?" Inquired Hongjoong.

"Well, for starters, the day I got here, the house I was supposed to move into was sold to someone with more money."

"That is quite unfortunate." Muttered a brown-haired guy who seemed to be keeping to himself. He had a rather strong build and you could tell he stayed in shape.

"I wasn't aware there were eight of you here." You mentioned. "I also didn't realize it was all men living here. Are you looking for a male roommate specifically?"

"We don't mind sharing the house with a woman." A man with sharp catlike eyes and dimples smiled, shooting you a wink.

Hongjoong shot him a warning glance before turning back to you.

"Apologies. The ad in the newspaper was my idea which is why only my name was listed."

"I see."

"You seem a bit apprehensive." A long-haired blonde with extremely handsome features commented.

"Just a little, but I'm also pretty desperate to find a place to live."

"You can drive, right?" A tall blonde asked. His features were soft and reminded you of a puppy.

"Yeah." You nodded. "I don't have a car though."

"That's alright. We have a van." He informed you.

"You don't use it?"

"None of us know how to drive."

"Ah."

"Well, Wooyoung tried driving once but he nearly crashed into the house." A brunette with a deep voice spoke up.

"I told you I was sorry." The one named Wooyoung whined.

"If I wasn't already dead, you would have killed me."

"Shut up." The seemingly quiet brown-haired guy elbowed the taller one in the side.

You gave them both an odd glance before looking back at Hongjoong who appeared quite nervous.

"So, what do you think?" He asked suddenly.

"Well..." You trailed off.

"You wouldn't have to pay any rent or anything." He spoke up.

"Seriously?"

"Yes."

You were apprehensive at first, considering there were eight guys staying there, but they all seemed pretty friendly. Plus, this might be your only chance to find a place to live.

"Okay." You nodded.

"You'll move in?" Asked Hongjoong.

"Yes."

"Before you do that," Seonghwa started, stepping past Hongjoong. "There is something you should know about us."

He began circling you, eyeing you up and down before stopping at your side. You glanced over at him as he leaned in, towering over you.

"We are vampires." He spoke lowly.

You let out a loud laugh. "You're pulling my leg, right?"

Seonghwa stepped away, glancing down at your legs. "I did not touch your leg."

"Sorry about him." Wooyoung spoke up. "He's stuck in 1842."

1842?

"I'm sorry, what?" You blinked.

"You guys are making her nervous." Hongjoong hurried over.

"Good." Seonghwa muttered.

"You're not playing a prank on me?"

"No." Answered Seonghwa.

Your gaze moved across the room, taking in the appearance of everyone standing around. All eight of them wore similar outdated, Victorian-style attire. That's when it clicked.

"So, you guys really are vampires?"

They all nodded.

You looked over at Hongjoong who had a guilty expression on his face.

"Okay." You took a step back, holding your hands up. "As long as no one bites me, I'm okay with this."

"What?" Seonghwa exclaimed, clearly upset that you accepted the offer.

"You don't mind?" The tall guy with the deep voice asked, his brown eyes sparkling as his lips stuck out in a pout.

"No. Actually, I think it's pretty cool."

*end of flashback*

"I can't believe Seonghwa didn't want me to move in."

"Apologies. I did not trust humans at the time."

"It's fine. That was two years ago, anyway. Plus, I've grown on you, haven't I?" You grinned. "C'mon. Admit it."

Seonghwa cracked a smile. "I suppose."

•

You stepped into the large and spacious common room where everyone was gathered. "Hey, guys. I've invited some friends over for dinner. So I'm gonna need you guys to not be weird. Also please stay out of the kitchen."

"What kind of friends are coming over?" Yunho inquired.

"Yeah. Are they guys?" San piped up.

"Yes."

"How many?"

"Two." You answered.

"Do they like you?"

"San, they're just my friends. Please just let me spend time with them, okay?"

They all agreed, nodding their heads in acknowledgment.

You went to the kitchen and started preparing a quick and simple meal, thinking it would be nice to have something made at home for once instead of delivery. You began plating the food just as there was a knock on the front door.

"I got it!" You announced, hurrying out of the dining room and rushing to answer the door before anyone else could. "You all stay right there." You pointed to the boys all sat around the living room.

You cleared your throat and turned towards the door before opening it.

"Jungwoo, Taeyong. Hi."

"Hi, Y/n." Jungwoo gave a warm smile.

"I hope you two are hungry. I made dinner myself."

"I'm starving." Taeyong grinned excitedly.

"Come on in." You stepped aside, allowing them to walk inside.

You glanced over at San who seemed to be glaring at your two acquaintances along with the other boys.

You let Taeyong and Jungwoo walk ahead of you as you made an "I've got my eyes on you." gesture to the group of vampires in the living room.

You already had the dining room set up and the food plated. Taeyong rubbed his hands together in anticipation as he sat down at the table.

"This place is incredible." Jungwoo commented, gazing around at the fancy dining room.

"Thanks."

"Who were those guys in the living room?" Taeyong asked.

"My roommates."

"All of them?"

"Yeah but this house is big enough for all of us."

"You got really lucky." Jungwoo said before taking a bite of pasta. "Seriously. You're living the high life."

"Eh." You shrugged. "Sort of. Some of my roommates are a bit clingy."

As if on cue, San came striding in, pulling out the chair beside you and taking a seat.

"Exhibit A." You gestured to him.

Taeyong and Jungwoo chuckled.

"San. What are you doing?"

"I thought I would have dinner with you all." He grinned cheekily, showing off his dimples.

You chewed on your lip, giving him a hard glare.

San smirked in response, reaching into the basket of freshly-baked bread sitting on the table. He took a bite, clearly not planning on leaving anytime soon.

As he chewed, he furrowed his brows, coughing a few times. San reached up and scratched at his face a bit.

"Why is my face so itchy?" He asked aloud.

Your eyes widened as they trailed down to the piece of bread in his hand.

"What kind of bread is this?" He asked.

"It's garlic bread."

San froze, blinking a few times. "What bread?"

"Garlic bread."

His eyes went wide. He immediately dropped the bread onto the table, pushing himself out of his chair. "Excuse me." He spoke calmly before sprinting out of the room.

"Is he okay?" Taeyong asked, his brows creased with worry.

"He's fine! He's... got a gluten allergy." You lied.

"He didn't know that was bread?" Jungwoo questioned.

"Ah. Well, you see, we buy gluten-free bread for him and he didn't know the difference."

Jungwoo and Taeyong nodded.

"Well, I hope he's alright." Taeyong frowned.

"He's fine." You waved your hand dismissively.

Serves him right.

•

You were cleaning the living room/common room area of the house, making sure Seonghwa's precious mahogany coffee table was spotless and free of smudges or scuffs. It didn't require much cleaning since Seonghwa did such a good job of buffing it out every single day.

As you were checking the tabletop for any blemishes, you noticed a small notebook sitting on the edge. You picked it up, running your fingers along the cover. It was just slightly bigger than your hand and bound in black leather.

You didn't want to pry, but your curiosity got the best of you. You opened up the notebook to the cover page, the name Park Seonghwa written in perfect calligraphy.

Is this a journal perhaps? You wondered.

You flipped to the next page which was covered in notes of some sort.

Cool - Does not mean cold. It means you are excellent.

Lit - Does not refer to lighting. It means all the rage.

TV - A strange picture box used for entertainment.

Wifi - Helps access the "internet".

Data - Similar to wifi. Can only be used on a cell phone.

Vaping - Something I detest very much. Seriously, I do not understand these adolescents and their electronic nicotine sticks.

You chuckled at his small side note before continuing to read down the list.

Sick - Another word for "cool". When someone says "That's sick!" it does not mean ill.

Dope - Yet another word for "cool" or "sick".

You flipped through a few more pages, seeing that all of them were notes on slang terms. You pulled your bottom lip between your teeth, trying to hold back a smile as you closed the journal, placing it back where you found it and waking away.

Part 2

Masterlist ᝰ — enjoyed this imagine? reblogs & comments are very much appreciated!

DO NOT steal, plagiarize, copy, repost, alter, or translate my works in any way

[antimony-medusa]

Is that— bells ringing? Keyboards clacking? The sound of two thousand stressed writers pancing furiously about the floor? Ah yes, Yuletide.

Hello. MCYTblr. I am back again.

You are looking fine today as we move towards the end of the year. Is that a new cologne you're trying? New shirt? New glasses? It's working for you. How have I been? Well.

Well.

*I smack the wall, curtains spring aside, revealing my flip chart presentation that I've had lying in wait*

It is time for me to talk to you about Yuletide again. I was here earlier during tag nominations, but it's sign-up time, and I want to make sure everybody has a change to participate in this if they want to.

What's Yuletide?

Yuletide is an annual mega-exchange for small and rare fandoms. It runs in the close of the year, with a 1000 word minimum for gifts, with gifts revealed anonymously on the 25th of December and de-anoned on the 1st of January. It is easily the biggest exchange in multi-fandom-exchange-world, and last year more than 1,350 people signed up.

Why does everyone sign up?

Well, it's tradition, for one. There are a lot of people that only do Yuletide as their big exchange every year. It's a big holiday spectacle, it's really fun to see it operate and see pinch hits come out and get nabbed in minutes, and people kind of put on their holiday outfits and turn out for it.

For another thing, if you are in a small fandom, it's the one exchange where you can actually have a shot of getting a gift for an obscure manga fandom, or an out-of-print book, or a tv show from the eighties. If your fandom has five people in it, the odds are higher than average that two of them are signing up for this exchange, and hey presto, suddenly you're matchable in your fandom for an obscure podcast.

For another, and this is the biggie, the fact that this is an exchange for small and rare fandoms has led to a certain tradition and vibe for the fandoms that people nominate. People bring their most obscure and fun ideas, going, "hehehehe wouldn't it be fun if someone wrote a story about this", and into the tag set it goes. There is SUCH a spectrum of fandoms in the tag set.

This year there are 4,263 fandoms and 16,735 characters in the tag set. Let me just skim through and look at some of them.

There are commercials, web sketches, art pieces, songs, music videos, board games, podcasts, a dizzying assortment of anthropomorphising different places, items, and ideas, and RPF from a marvelous variety of historical periods (so, y'know, historical fiction if it was published professionally). There are people who nominated tik tok sketches. Twitter threads. A bridge. Book binding techniques. You ever wanted to write a romance between Knitting and Crochet? That's in the tag set, and someone wants to prompt you to do that. Happy Yuletide.

So if you are at all the sort of person who likes a prompt challenge, BOY is this one just a MARVELOUS one. I know I personally am going to be signing up for Humans are Space Orcs (tumblr post) and Fandom Exchanges (Anthropomorphic) amid my more traditional fandoms.

And as for my more traditional fandoms, and the reason why this post has the tags it does (I would get to it eventually)— there is a lot of MCYT in the tag set! I put out a post saying GUYS, the smaller fandoms might apply for this, and BOY did people show up for it. I scanned through it, and the MCYT (and adjacent) that made it in is:

Karmaland SMP

Legacy SMP

Lifesteal SMP

Moonlight SMP

New Life SMP

Outsiders SMP

Rats SMP

SMPEarth

SMPLive

Witchcraft SMP

Pirates SMP

Mianite

Slimecicle Cinematic Universe

SBI Rust

Generation Loss

You could make an entire sign up, 3 minimum requests and 4 minimum requests, and only select MCYT fandoms. The wild thing is that you can only select a max of 10 fandoms to offer, so you actually couldn't offer all of the MCYT. ZombieCleo Witchraft SMP is in. Tommyinnit SMPEarth. Clownpierce Lifesteal. Tubbo SBI Rust. Oli Rats SMP. A wealth of options for the block folks.

So come, join me! What's that? You say this sounds excellent, you're in? You want to know how to sign up? Well this post is already long enough so I'm putting the rest below a cut.

You sign up on the collection here, using fandoms listed in the tagset here. Before you do so though, I'd recommend you check out the blog, especially their "how to sign up" post here, because even if you're used to exchanges, the way Yuletide works is a little bit different. Let me do a quick breakdown here.

Requests

# of Fandoms

You have to select a minimum of 3 fandoms that you are Requesting (a gift that you want made for you), up to a maximum of 6 fandoms. Each fandom has to be unique. For each fandom, you can request between 0 to 4 characters in that fandom, and 0 means "literally you can hit me with anybody", and the up-to-4 characters are the people you definately want to show up in the fic.

AND MATCHING

This is one of the things that Yuletide does differently, because most fandom exchanges do "or" matching, where they match you on either characer A OR character B, (maybe you only offered character B) and you can pick among any of the selected characters on the person's request to write for. Because Yuletide does AND matching, you will only be matched if you offered every single one of the characters the person has selected, and then you get to write for every single one they have listed in their fandom, unless they say differently in their letter. If they requested character A and Character B, you get to deliver a gift that includes them both, according to the rules.

Bu like, in practice, a lot of people are a bit more like "you can pick only one of these guys if you'd like", because that is how everyone is used to things running in most other exchanges, plus people don't want to be too picky, so you can specify in your letter if you definately 100% want characters A, B, and C, or if you're fine with just A, or just A and C, or whatever constellation of characters you're chill with.

This year they have added optional freeform tags you will click on, that will specify either A) use every single one of these guys I selected. B) I have specified in my letter which guys I need for sure and which ones you can swap, C) Dealer's Choice Of Guys Go Crazy.

DNW and Optional Details

Yuletide is an "Optional Details Are Optional" (ODAO) exchange, so technically you could request (or receive) an offer that just has the characters and then you get to go absolutely buckwild for the two month writing period. Most people, however, do not want to do that, so that is where you'll put in Do Not Wants (anything that would ruin the gift for you, from major archive warnings to kinks that you don't vibe with to headcanons you loathe), and some prompts and/or likes for your person to jump off of.

DNWs absolutely must be abided by, and breaking a person's DNW is grounds for getting turfed from the exchange. Following a person's prompts or lists of likes is technically optional, but definately best practice, and y'know, part of the whole spirit of the exchange. Most people are doing their best to adhere to both the DNW and the Optional Details when they do their gift.

You can just format your DNW and Optional Details on the Ao3 signup page (easy, fast), or you can link them offsite in a letter (fancy, you can do formatting, people do them in google docs or dreamwidth pages (the traditional and more accessible option)). There's a tradition of people posting their letter links here, so that people can get an idea for what sort of prompts and signups people are offering, and make sure they're matchable to people with especially fun ideas. Note: you do have to duplicate the data if you're doing a letter, cause if you put your DNW in your letter but NOT in your Ao3, the mods won't enforce it.

And while we're here, that last link is to a community blog that includes a place where you can promo your fandoms to lure people into signing up for your guys, or participate in mini-challenges within yuletide for people who specificially want poly relationships (Three Doves Challenge), or characters of colour (Chromatic Yuletide), or horror/darkfic (Crueltide), or smut (Yuleporn), or art (Wrapping Paper), or even more. There's even a poetry challenge!

Offers

# of Fandoms

You have to sign up with a minimum of 4 fandoms, to a maximum of 10, for fandoms you are Offering (a gift you are willing to make). You must offer at least 2 characters for each fandom, to a maximum of 20— but there's also an "any" tick box if you want to go full "hit me, I like a challenge" and you'll write anything (in the tag set) within a fandom. Each of your fandoms must be unique.

Writing Period:

Signups are open through the 21st, with assignments out by the 23rd, and then you have until the 18th of December to deliver your gift.

Important Notes

You must be 18 or over to participate in Yuletide (because you might be matched with someone who requests smut), and signups close on 9pm UTC on Saturday, 21 October.

There's a known issue where the safari browser isn't letting people sign up properly, (when you get an exchange this big sometimes things break), so they say to either sign up on mobile or use a different browser. So that will be fun for me.

--

And that's it! Yuletide! Just under a week left to sign up, and 351 people have signed up as I write this letter at 1:30am. I just refreshed it and now it's 352. You can sign up on the Ao3 page here!

JOIN ME EXCHANGES SUCH FUN LETS GO.

[goldfades]

✮ 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐲, luke hughes

betty, i'm here on your doorstep and i planned it out for weeks now but it's finally sinkin' in betty, right now is the last time ── yeah, i showed up at your party will you have me? will you love me? will you kiss me on the porch in front of all your stupid friends? if you kiss me, will it be just like i dreamed it? will it patch your broken wings? ── the only thing i wanna do is make it up to you so i showed up at your party

──

♡ ─ word count | 1.5k

♡ ─ summary | a small incident at luke's draft party causes a whole lot of drama you never expected to happen.

♡ ─ warnings | unedited lol, angst!!!!!!!!!!!! so much angst, slightly asshole!luke, let me know if i missed anything.

♡ ─ taglist | tbd

♡ ─ ev's notes | yayaya, my first piece of writing published on tumblr!!! please let me know your thoughts, i'm very open to (respectful) criticism.

ALSO desperately want some hockey (or literally any lol) moots so please send in an ask to become moots!

You had no idea know why you were here, sitting outside his house.

Well that was a lie ─ you knew why you were here. You didn't know what you would say, not in the slightest. You knew you had to make some kind of plan in your mind before you went in, led completely by adrenaline and impulse.

There were a few familiar cars outside the house. You knew the red Kia was his parents' and the Quinn's gray Ram. Your stomach was filled with slight dread as you thought about how this entire thing happened.

You shook your head to snap out of your thoughts ─ it didn't matter now. You were gonna fix it and get your best friend back, no matter what you had to do.

You knew tonight was Jack's birthday party. Before this whole thing happened, you were invited to the party ─ it wouldn't have been right to not have you all here with them. Well, until the fight.

You took a deep exhale before turning off your car, looking up at the familiar house. You got out of the car and shut the door, walking up to the house. Before you even had gotten on his front porch, the door swung open and you immediately paused, looking like a deer caught in headlights.

You were met with him and suddenly all the memories of the past month came flooding back.

──

THREE WEEKS AGO

──

The loud cheers from everyone around you would've been distressing if not for how happy you felt. You were screaming along with them, cheering.

You knew that Luke would've been drafted to the Devils for a fact but it didn't dissipate the happiness that filled the room. Luke turned to you and you couldn't help but hug him tightly, as the whole room shook with excitement.

For a moment, it just felt like time stopped and it was just you two in the whole world ─ despite the 20 people who were surrounding all of you, it didn't matter. As you let him go, it seemed like you weren't the only one who felt that way as you locked eyes with Luke. He had a true, authentic smile on this face.

Every time he smiled, your heart leapt out of your chest. This time was no different; the same smile you sported on your own lips, playing off each other's emotions, and the heat you could feel rising on your cheeks. Everyone patted and tugged him around in excitement but his eyes were locked on you, your arm perched on his shoulder.

Once the celebrations died down, you set off for a quick drink break in the kitchen. As you turned around from the fridge, drink in hand, you were met with Luke's gaze. Your cheeks glowed, the familiar rush of excitement tingling through your veins. His smile was just as contagious as yours you begun talking.

"You excited?" You spoke. You hadn't talked to Luke the whole night because he was the man of the night. You were happy for him, of course ─ you missed him, though.

"For what?" He was joking of course. He usually hated being the center of the attention but this time it felt different ─ he felt deserving of it.

You rolled your eyes playfully, laughing. "Moving to Jersey, being close to Jack again."

Luke nods, a smile playing on his lips. "Yeah, I missed him. But I don't know, it would feel weird not playing with everyone else. And you not being at every home game." He whispered the last part out, almost sounding ashamed of it.

You felt the smile on your face get brighter and bigger. "Well I'm gonna miss watching you play live, Lukey."

He winced at the silly nickname, but couldn't help but smile as he looked down at you leaning against the kitchen island, comfortably close to him. "You could always come out to Jersey."

"Yeah, maybe."

A still silence hung in the air between the two of you, but it was not uncomfortable. There was a subtle switch in the air as Luke's eyes remained fixed on you. Neither of you spoke, content to soak in each other's company in the warmth of the moment, aware that there was something more to be said but not ready to be said quite yet.

You could almost see his thoughts racing, the wheels turning, trying to decide what to do next. "Y/N?" He asked softly, the smile slowly slipping from his face. He wanted to speak up, to say something, but the words were stuck in his throat. He could only let out a whisper, his expression growing more uncertain with each passing moment.

A sense of anxiety crept in but even so, you knew exactly what was about to happen. He leaned in and let his lips brush softly against yours in a quick peck. It didn't feel wrong, not even a little bit — it actually felt perfect. You could tell he had been thinking about this for a while and you'd also contemplated it in the past. However, despite the fact that it felt right, it was wrong — not just wrong, but completely off limits.

"Y/N?" You heard another voice echo in the kitchen and you both whipped your heads.

──

PRESENT

──

Luke folded his arms and averted his gaze from you. You felt your heart crack a bit from his bitter expression. The sound of laughter coming from inside filled you with a sudden sense of clarity and the realization that you could be ruining his night crept in. It was sobering and the thought of how his family would be disappointed, upset with your presence there. It made the guilt and shame that you felt sting all the more.

But you had to. You had to get him back, no matter what.

You opened your mouth to speak but before the words could come out, he started speaking first.

"Why are you here, Y/N?" Your name felt like a curse when he said it, like knives piercing your heart. He always spoke to you with such kindness and care, but now it felt almost spiteful. He looked at you through narrowed eyes, and there was no warmth left in his voice, only cold accusation.

"I wanted to talk to you, Luke." You answered, your eyes moving to look down, shamefully. "Can we talk?"

Luke scoffed; typically a playful sound, but this time it cut like a knife. "Y/N, I just… not now, please." There was hurt in his voice, a sharp contrast from his usual sweet nature. The atmosphere was tense, heavy with unspoken words.

"Luke, I can't stand this! I miss you!" You finally snapped and he looked taken aback. "What did you expect me to do? You just kissed me and─and I had no time to process it when Morgan had walked in!"

"You're blaming me, now? You never told me that Morgan liked you─"

"Luke! You're not listening to me." You sighed loudly, moving closer. "It doesn't matter, I just want to talk to me again. It's not my fault. And─and it doesn't yours, either." You explained anxiously, playing subconsciously with your rings.

Luke licked his lips, his gaze flicking up to the the ceiling in thought before looking back at you.

“I know you don’t want to talk about this, Luke, but I really need to.” You paused, feeling your heart rate speed up.

"There's nothing to talk about, Y/N." He said, plainly. "I like─" He paused, his thoughts dying on his tongue. "─liked you."

Your heart broke. Liked? "Luke..."

"We're gonna be leaving for Jersey the day after tomorrow, Y/N." He sighed. "I'll be out of your hair then. You won't have to worry about me."

"Luke, you're my best friend!"

"No, you're not my damn best friend, Y/N!" Luke shouted, his voice trembling with rage. "You're more than just my best friend and I don't know how you could be so clueless! I never wanted you like a best friend, I liked you, and it's been right in front of your face this whole time but you've too oblivious to notice it." Luke yelled, his frustration and anger boiling over.

You taken aback and felt paralyzed, your mind scrambling to form a coherent response. Your mouth was dry, your heart racing a hundred miles per hour. You desperately wanted to say something, anything, but your words were stuck in your throat. The moment dragged on, as if time had paused just for this.

Luke had never blown up on anyone, especially you. His voice echoed and you could feel everyone from inside was now listening in. This suddenly felt a like a mistake, you shouldn't have come and ruined his night.

Finally, she managed a strangled out reply. "Luke-" she breathed, her voice shaking as she spoke. "I knew that, I-"

"No you didn't." His anger had dissipated, now he just seemed tired. "It doesn't matter now, okay? I'm done with this." He pointed between them.

Again, you opened your mouth to speak only to be met with the slam of the door. You stood there, in the cool March air as you finally let the tears fall.

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