#any has suddenly been very popular on my twitter feed

[lindorthedragonslayer]

Akatsuki no Yona: desktop wallpaper (1920 x 1080) ♨︎ Feel free to use, but please don’t claim as your own~ { credits: #00044 / open image in new tab for full size~ }

[donnerpartyofone]

I just had the misfortune of seeing that 100k post where someone is commanding Twitter migrants to reblog all the fan art they see, on the premise that if an artist has a reblog:like ratio of 1/50 or something then they'll be so discouraged that they'll quit. OP then reblogs their own post to say that there's someone who sometimes reblogs the first post 200 times a day--which like, my reaction to that was "wow that's completely unhinged and not good", but what OP meant was that we should all cater to whatever that person wants to make them happy. I generally don't see the point in yelling at strangers on the internet, but I really had to restrain myself from pointing out that this was the stated motivation on the Staff post about fucking with the chronological feed: that if we all have too much power to curate what we see, then some users will feel unpopular. Which is like, completely normal and acceptable, in reality. There are just so many problems with this attitude:

Nobody owes you attention. Most people don't enjoy random waves of applause just for existing, and most of us have learned to live with this and place importance on things other then validation from strangers.

If your principle reason for making art is NOT the art-making itself, and if you know that you would stop making art if it never got you some form of fame and fortune, then you should literally stop making art. Just stop right now, and find something to do that is more rewarding and less psychologically perilous for you.

If you have ever tried to work in any creative industry at all, then you should know that it can take absolutely forever to get good at something. And it might never happen. And even if it does happen and you turn out to be a genius, still, people might not notice or care--especially if you're really original. There's a reason it's become cliche for people to remind each other of how famous writer X wasn't published until he was 50 or famous painter Y only became important posthumously. If you can't take the heat, see above.

If you're just begging your personal friends to help circulate your work, that's between you and them. But you can't order people who just got to this platform five minutes ago to fill up their accounts with stuff that maybe they like enough to hit the like button, but they don't like it enough to add it to their own page. People are allowed to like your art on a limited basis.

If you're so emotionally dependent on popularity that you think its acceptable to strong-arm strangers into shilling for you, then you should probably take some time to get to know yourself better and figure that out, before you rake yourself over the coals of social media conflict about it. I used to have a mutual (not an artist, just a guy) who had really serious behavioral problems in this department: One day I reblogged a very popular post that had been making the rounds, and suddenly this guy was up my ass with righteous anger about why I didn't reblog it from him personally. I actually took the time to explain that the post itself was doing a lot of traffic, I had no idea that he was one of the thousands of people who had reblogged it, and I can't bother to go combing through his blog every time I see something I like just in case I can reblog it from him individually. Incredibly, he didn't even get what I was saying, he was so invested in the idea that I should conscientiously use my blog to pay tribute to him, and eventually I had to block him for being rude like this all the time, and he was really sad about it. Don't be like that guy.

And finally, the post I'm referring to counted as art things like gif sets and "edits" (a vague concept I think barely counts as creative work but whatever) from TV shows and all kinds of other fan posts. And like, that is just a bridge too far. I shouldn't even have to explain why. And I won't.

[kenyatta]

The internet has been decentralizing for a while. According to my own archives, it became enough of a thing for me to start writing about it back in January 2021, when Twitter bought Revue (RIP). My hunch is that going from the deeply polarized era of centralized feeds from 2015-2020 directly into COVID-19, which quite literally jammed the whole world into those centralized feeds, caused a deep reaction against those centralized feeds. Basically, four companies carved up the internet into easy-to-use silos, then, suddenly, everyone had to use those silos, and found them deeply wanting. And ever since then we’ve been searching, in various ways, for something else. Whether it’s Web3 or Discord communities or Telegram groups or Substack or live audio or whatever. The big winner so far, though, of this mass exodus from “social media” has been AI. Which is especially true if you remember that TikTok runs on AI. We don’t tend to think of TikTok as being similar to something like ChatGPT, but both products are owned by rising AI companies, ByteDance and OpenAI respectively, and use a form of artificial intelligence called machine learning that is at the root of these tools’ immense popularity and, also, a lot of hysteria. In TikTok’s case, machine learning informs how the app recommends content. We don’t know a lot about its core algorithm, but anyone that’s used it can tell you how much more “alive” and reactive it feels compared to, say, Instagram’s. And ChatGPT runs on GPT-3.5 or GPT-4 at the moment. The “GPT” stands for generative pre-trained transformer, which is a type of large language model that feels just as “alive” and reactive as TikTok. Both tools are also very good at what I’ll call content colonization, albeit in different ways. TikTok absorbs trends and conversations around the web and funnels them back into its own network only to then, via its downloadable watermarked videos, spit that content back out across the rest of the web. This effectively turns any other social network that allows video uploads into an extension of TikTok. And generative-AI tools like ChatGPT colonize the web more literally, using almost everything on the public internet as a potential source for its machine learning. There are now already whole platforms like Wikipedia, Google News, and Reddit that can be functionally replaced by ChatGPT’s easy-to-use interface. And our institutions seem to have reached a breaking point when it comes to these tools eating the web and, thus, the world. And are utterly lost in a confusing moral panic over how to respond.

Two sides of the same coin - by Ryan Broderick (@ryanhatesthis)

[ausetkmt]

NPR: Turmoil on social media sites is driving users to smaller, more private alternatives

2022 has been a tumultuous year in social media and the coming year holds more uncertainties as U.S. outlets scramble to match the popularity of apps like TikTok.

DANIEL ESTRIN, HOST:

There has been a lot of upheaval in the social media industry in 2022. Beyond the chaos at Twitter under Elon Musk, Facebook is trying to pivot to the metaverse and economic pressures are squeezing Silicon Valley. So let's talk about all this with NPR's Shannon Bond. Hi, Shannon.

SHANNON BOND, BYLINE: Hi, Daniel.

ESTRIN: Shannon, hit rewind for us. What were the big moments of this past year?

BOND: Yeah, I think a lot of these big social networks started off the year, you know, attempting these kind of fresh starts. You know, Facebook spent very heavily betting on this immersive virtual metaverse that it's trying to create. At Twitter, there was already a new CEO in place even before Elon Musk made this surprise bid for the company. But, you know, almost right away, things got off track. There were ad revenue shortfalls across the sector. Facebook lost users for the first time. You know, companies were laying off thousands of workers, and many social media companies are feeling this pressure from TikTok, the very popular Chinese-owned short video app that's really redefining social media. Instead of connecting with friends, it's all about seeing the most engaging videos that anybody on the platform has posted.

ESTRIN: So if TikTok is redefining social media, how are American social media companies responding?

BOND: Well, platforms like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, they are scrambling to copy some of these features on TikTok. You know, we're seeing more short videos in your feed. You might be seeing more videos recommended from people you don't know, you don't follow. And that's a big change. I spoke with Michael Sayman, who's an app developer who's worked at Facebook, Google and Twitter.

MICHAEL SAYMAN: I think really, the moneymakers in social media and, really, the profit for these companies is not any more in the business of, like, friends sharing.

BOND: He says these apps are becoming more like TV networks, right? There's a tiny fraction of creators who are making almost all the content.

ESTRIN: Yeah, I have noticed this on my own Facebook and Instagram. You know, suddenly these videos pop up from people I do not follow. I guess at first, I was annoyed by it, and now I have to admit I find myself clicking on these mindlessly, and there they are. What do people feel about these changes?

BOND: It's pushing a lot of users to look for alternative ways to, you know, keep up with those friends that they might not be seeing as many posts from, you know? So they're turning to messaging services like WhatsApp and Discord, apps like BeReal, where users post one unedited photo every day that can't be liked or shared. And we've also seen this disillusionment with legacy social sites has inspired this new crop of apps by and for conservatives, right? They feel their views are muzzled by Silicon Valley. And this year, we saw that partisan fracturing extend to Twitter, right? Elon Musk is courting right-wing users. He's alienating advertisers, employees and regulators.

ESTRIN: Well, there has been a lot of focus in recent years on the harms of social media. So what's the effect of all these new changes in the social media landscape?

BOND: Well, I think this fragmentation of the public conversation is making life more complicated - right? - both for threat actors who are trying to spread propaganda and amplify polarization across platforms and for people trying to investigate those threat actors, whether they're journalists or researchers or even the companies themselves.

ESTRIN: So what are you looking for in the new year?

BOND: Well, you know, I think there's going to be even more fragmentation. Twitter is in turmoil. People are looking for apps to replace it, and Elon Musk has said he'll step down as CEO, though we don't have any sense of the timing there. You know, TikTok is under national security scrutiny and facing bans from state and the federal government. But even more than that, I think there's this broader evolution in how people think about sharing. They're sort of turning to these more private places, and it suggests to me that the next era of social media will be defined not by one big mega-company where you're sharing to billions of people, but by making connections and sharing content scattered across many different apps.

ESTRIN: NPR's Shannon Bond. Thank you.

BOND: Thank you.

[fromtenthousandfeet]

Send in the trucks!

I, for one, am thrilled that Jimin's Korean fans have sent trucks to HYBE and to media outlets. Most importantly, they are focusing on the company's poor treatment of Jimin and its nonsensical business decisions without dragging the other members of BTS. This should have been the fandoms' strategy from the very first moment the sabotage started, specifically when BigHit split the versions of Like Crazy. The most powerful tool the fandom possess is sowing doubt amongst the HYBE shareholders about the long-term viability of the company due to Bang Si Hyuk's poor decisions and petty grievances. Fans, stop being nice! Start using shame! Get the media involved! Stop engaging in useless arguments about who is the most popular, talented, whatever!

I said it in my first Tumblr post and I'll say it again. Where are Scooter Braun's legacy clients? When HYBE acquired Ithaca Holdings, they suddenly managed some of the biggest stars in Western music. Why haven't his clients been putting out music since his portfolio was acquired? All of the money Scooter spent on Jungkook/Seven/Golden aside, that company should have been making money off of his existing big-name clients. There's a huge story to tell here if any music journalist dares to dig into it. What about all the incentive stock his artists were given? Did they all start to bail on Scooter as soon as the stocks vested? Inquiring minds want to know. Sadly, modern media is so dependent upon corporate clients via advertisements and paid media play that they dare not bite the hands that feed them. SB is clearly one of their best customers based upon the endless media play we've been subjected to for months.

I'm so curious to see what happens in the next few days/weeks. Is HYBE going to make it? Their best bets going forward seem to be their girl groups and ENHYPEN - the creation and popularity of which Bang PD has nothing do with. Is there enough time to make them profitable enough to keep the company in the black? And what about this new venture into Latin America? Sounds like another Bang PD boondoggle.

I see that many Jimin fans on Twitter are thrilled by the announcement of HYBE America's pitiful performance in Q1-Q3, but to me it's bittersweet. The reality is, Bang PD, Scooter, and the HYBE executive team have squandered not just 10+ years of hard work on the part of the members and the staff, but they've also squandered the hard earned money, good will, and trust of the fandom.

[vergess]

This is such a blatant, malicious warping of the actual events.

First of all, tags used to be easier to avoid. In the old days, circa 2012, only the first 5 tags on a post were indexed to the tag feed. So, it was common practice to, for example, use the tags "NSFW, Not safe for work, adults only, porn, pornography" to eat up the first 5 tags on explicit works, then tag the ships, content, etc to organize your blog safe in the knowledge that you would only be posting porn to the porn tags.

Then the "search"new tag search" (my term, not theirs) was introduced. This was around 2014? 2013? It was before acecourse really took off, because it helped fuel a lot of acecourse's more heinous behaviours.

See, tumblr has always been a majority adult, majority NSFW website. This is reflected in the app stores' age ratings being 17+. Which, you'll notice is distinct from the 18+ that denotes "adult only" in the US. This is because anyone over 13 has always been able to register on tumblr. This was and is common practice on much of the internet today, eg facebook, twitter, youtube, etc. It's broadly accepted that children may be guests in these places, in the same way they may be guests at a sports bar on quiz night. So long as no one gives the children alcohol, the adults are welcome to drink.

But, many users had previously avoided porn on tumblr simply by not knowing where to look for it. This combined with a strict politeness about tagging NSFW for the benefit of fellow working adult users of the site, led to a small but vocal subset of users who genuinely had no idea about the porn thing.

Until the new tag search dropped.

Suddenly it was much harder to avoid porn. You needed a blacklist of some sort, which tumblr wouldn't introduce as a native feature for many years. Blacklists were critical for managing your tumblr experience in those days. Tumblr saviour, missing e, eventually the first xkit. They all addressed the need for blacklisting now that you couldn't politely avoid posting your porn to everyone.

Because, again, tumblr has always been a majority NSFW, majority adult website. Since its very inception, this has been true. Tumblr has never, for one single moment, been "for kids."

There are websites for kids, you know. Not as many of them as there used to be in like 2005. But they do still exist.

Tumblr is not and cannot be one of them.

Because tumblr has, since its inception, been "for" artists. That mission was frequently degraded, to the point that many people don't even remember this. But there was a time when the popular joke on "fandom tumblr" was that tumblr had "two continents." There was "art tumblr" and "fan tumblr," which was a known, smaller newcomer.

Today you still see echoes of that joke in the phrase "the science side of tumblr."

Anyway. Porn became unavoidable.

This shocked some of the kids who hadn't known they were using a porn website, but they generally quickly recovered because the contemporary horror surrounding the concept of sex was actively being fought in the popular culture of the time. See also: slut walks, female toplessness in the US.

More importantly. It horrified two groups of adults. The extremist christians, and the TERFs.

Extremist christians were quickly laughed off by most tumblr users, even the kids. This is because extreme christianity wasn't nearly as popular to discuss publically 10 years ago, when some dim concept of "separation of church and state" was still considered acceptable in a public space either.

TERFs, however, were mostly adult women, often queer, but just as often painfully capital-S Straight And Cis. Still. Often queer women. Queer adult women.

They had an extremely easy time presenting themselves as mentors and kindly protectors to any queer kid who stumbled into a bit of properly tagged porn and expressed discomfort.

To put it plainly, they were predatory. Their prey were queer teens and young adults desperate for guidance in a violently queerphobic world.

They nurtured the feelings of discomfort in their prey, purposely exposing them to uncomfortable and adult topics on purpose. Literally grooming these children, for real.

That is what bred the anti-porn minority on tumblr. Adult women who couldn't cope with the idea of trans people existing, and literally created controversy after controversy to ensure that there were always kids on tumblr exposed to violence, despite the best efforts of any normal user. TERFs started anti-asexual discourse on tumblr. Anti-nonbinary discourse. The entire "tucute vs truscum" mess (note: truscum literally named themselves 'scum' on purpose and now pretend they are being insulted). TERFs looking for victims underlie every single "queer discourse" tumblr has ever had. That includes anti-porn and anti-kink discourse.

And to be clear, this entire problem started with a poor decision on tumblr staff's part.

Then tumblr got sold to corporate masters, with corporate money. Unironically, the developers and staff were being held hostage and forced to be as user hostile as possible.

That included cuts to (or else refusal to properly grow and manage) the user support team who handle reports for bugs, harassment, etc. There were many years where you could send in a dozen clear and explicit murder threats including your geographic location to staff, and get no response.

YEARS.

So people's distrust of staff grew as they were forced to worsen everything, including but not limited to making it harder to blacklist the god. Damned. Porn.

Thus the fire remained fueled for years.

And in the mean time, political sentiment in the united states went FUCKING. INSANE. Every single basic civil right we have all come to take for granted in the US has abruptly disappeared. Now to be fair they were always tenuous, but this shit is bananas. It was done with such glee, despite the vast majority of US Americans being horrified.

But our cities were literally designed to make it as easy as possible for the military (or the militarized police) to take over, so I can see why some hesitance is warranted.

Anyway, it was in the early days of this fervor that the bills SESTA and FOSTA were passed. Advertised as a way to stop sex trafficking, they failed completely. They literally made sex trafficking worse. That's not a joke, there have been studies done.

They passed 6 months before the porn ban.

Now, one thing of note did happen during that six months.

An actual ring of child abusers sharing violent images of their victims was genuinely discovered on tumblr. This was reported to the correct authorities immediately, and handled by the feds as was appropriate.

I know this, because my moirail (yes, I am in fact that kind of homestuck fan) was the one to file the initial report.

Now, let's say you're a major corporation like, oh... verizon. You have a website that could be held liable for aiding child trafficking. It's absurdly unlikely, but the possibility exists. Your investors and business partners are breathing down your neck, including the notoriously hard to please Apple. Sex workers are pretty famously a significant part of your user base, even.

They banned porn because the US government went fucking insane 6 months earlier and no one knew yet if that shit was going to go to court.

But of course the long time anti-porn TERFs on tumblr celebrated this as a huge victory.

Meanwhile every normal person was panicking over the loss of history.

Which apparently we were right to because it's barely been 5 years and this shit is passed down like facts from on high.

The porn ban had nothing to do with your disgusting, TERF fuelled, impotent attempts to get queer sex re-criminalized. You malignant shits just happened to have the same goals as literal fascists, namely putting more people in danger while claiming it's for their own safety.

Anyway, tumblr has since been resold and that's a whole separate thing but to be clear? To be crystal fucking clear?

The goddamned US government's hatred of sex as manifested by SESTA/FOSTA caused the fucking porn ban.

Your petty little ego is, tragically, not as impressive as the imperial capital's descent into fascism.

cgl literally is the reason tumblr rules say no porn. they couldnt keep it in their own tags and started harassing minors lmao. it got really bad leading up to the porn ban

Literally not the case, but please do continue to hate on a kink in my inbox, I will totally support you eventually I'm sure!!!

[actress4him]

Overexposure - Tears

(Prompt #30 for Summer of Whump)

Taglist: @inky-whump , @michelleswhumpyreblogs

Previous | Next | Masterlist

Warnings: lady whumpee (male whumper), captivity, creepy/intimate whumper, broken ribs, referenced stress positions, referenced sensory deprivation, referenced kidnapping, restraints, gag, locked in a closet

.

.

Another gallery exhibition.

Another evening gown, another diamond necklace.

Another night of smiles and laughter and glasses of champagne and a possessive grip on her waist while her legs threaten to buckle beneath her.

She almost thought that the people attending this party, these that wanted ‘raw and primitive’ photos, would look a bit more primitive themselves. But no, they’re indistinguishable from the last group, all sharp tuxedos and beautiful gowns and elegant socializing. The thought that there are so many people out there who like this kind of thing, who will pay so much money just to see these messed-up photos of her, makes her dizzy.

Though perhaps that’s just the lack of good food and sleep. Her mind isn’t processing well enough to tell the difference.

It never helps that she’s finally faced with the product of her torment, all over the walls and impossible for her to ignore.

A close-up of her face, bruises painting her cheeks, pupils blown wide and metal glinting across her throat.

An artistically angled shot taken from the floor up at her bent, straining body, shoulders contorted backwards and on the verge of dislocation.

Her figure huddled in a tiny ball in the shadows, face half-covered by a black blindfold and red headphones...so, he was taking pictures while she waited in that corner.

Every direction she turns brings back another, unwanted memory. Ellery wants to scream, to cover her ears and shut her eyes and make it all disappear. She’d even be happy going back to her tiny basement cell if it meant not having to see or hear any more of this party.

Throughout the evening she hears so many people complimenting Lucas on how ‘realistic’ the photos are, quizzing him on how on earth he manages to create such effects. Others seem less naïve, approaching him with knowing smirks and gleams in their eye, casting obvious glances up and down her body as if they still haven’t been satiated.

At the first exhibition she had been blown away by how so many people could be so blind. Now she’s beginning to wonder how many of them actually are.

All of it - the stress, the pain, the sorrow, the hunger and exhaustion - just keeps building, an unending pressure behind her eyes and underneath her ribs. She’s on the verge of either bursting into tears or exploding into tiny pieces when another man approaches them.

His hands are empty of champagne, unlike most, and instead of immediately turning on all the charm for Lucas, his brown eyes lock onto her with the smallest of smiles.

“You’re quite the beautiful model. May I know the name of the lady who made these intriguing portraits?”

“This is Sarah,” Lucas answers for her. It’s the name he’s given anyone who’s asked, though there haven’t been many. “And you are?”

“Henry Longmire.” As pretentious a name as any she’s heard tonight. The man seems to have to drag his gaze away from her in order to focus on Lucas. “It’s an honor to be able to meet both of you in person. I have to admit, I knew of your work for a long time, but it was only when Miss Sarah here became your muse that it truly caught my attention.�� His eyes go straight back to her, his smile growing into something that she could almost label kind if she didn’t know better.

“Yes, she’s been rather popular. Glad to know you found something that strikes your fancy.”

“If I may...I’ve read some quotes from him online about his process, but I’m curious about yours. Your expressions in the photos seem so...genuine. How do you go about getting into the headspace for this kind of thing?”

For a long moment Ellery just stares at him, uncomprehending of the fact that he’s actually asking her a direct question. No one ever speaks to her at these events, they only speak of her and at her. It’s only when Lucas’ hand moves from her back to her arm, squeezing threateningly in the very spot where he knows her one long sleeve is covering up the still-healing knife wound, that she realizes she has to answer. She has to lie. She’s not sure if she can even speak without her voice trembling, much less come up with a convincing response.

Her lips part, brain reeling, and she lets the words slip out, hoping against hope that whatever she’s about to say won’t get her a beating later.

“It just...comes naturally.”

Lucas’ grip eases, and she wants to crumple with relief. But Henry Longmire isn’t done yet.

“How did you decide to get into this particular kind of modeling?”

Her mind goes completely blank. The last response wasn’t even particularly a lie, but this...how is she supposed to come up with a story for this on the spot? Lying was never her strong suit to start with, and now she’s working on night after night of sleep interrupted by pain and not having eaten since yesterday morning because Lucas, as usual, was ‘in the zone’ and forgot to feed her.

“I...i-it…”

“It wasn’t her idea.” The tight grip on her arm has returned, sending throbs of pain up to her shoulder. “She had never even modeled before, actually, if you can believe that!” Lucas laughs aloud at his own joke. “I first saw Sarah at the restaurant where she was working as a waitress, and I thought to myself, ‘This is the girl I need for this idea of mine.’ Because I had had this image in my mind for ages, and I was just waiting for the perfect model to come along. So I approached her, and asked her about it, and she was interested, and, well…” He waves a hand around the room. “As you can see, she’s a natural.”

The restaurant. Of course, how had she not realized before? All this time, she had wondered why me? Why and how did he pick me, of all people? And perhaps she still didn’t know why, but at least she now knew how. Suddenly she could picture him, sitting at a booth a few tables down from hers, nursing a coffee and just...staring. She’d laughed with the other girls that night about what a creep he was, but had then promptly forgotten he existed. Creeps happened all the time. He wasn’t anything special, or so she had thought.

The story he had told just now seemed to be essentially the truth, only there had been no ‘approaching’ or ‘interest’. Only hands grabbing her in the darkness of a parking lot, then nothingness, and waking up in a cell.

“Hm.” Henry nods, but he almost seems...skeptical? Except a second later he’s flashing a smile and all traces of whatever she saw are gone. “That’s quite interesting. So Miss Sarah, what’s it like for you? Do you ever, I don’t know, get scared of him, when he’s getting you ready for these photos?”

Why is he asking her this? Is he...does he...care? Does he know something is up? She wouldn’t dare to hope, not after last time, except there’s just something off about him, something different than all the other people they’ve spoken to. Lucas, unfortunately, seems to sense it, too. Not only has he gone back to squeezing her arm, but he’s stiff beside her, not at all liking the direction of these questions.

Questions. Oh, no, she has to answer another one. Another lie. Does she get scared of him? Well, no. Not really. She doesn’t get scared of him, she lives in a constant state of fear of what he’ll do to her next.

“No.” It’s all she can manage, not even a fake smile to go with it. But in the mindset of it not actually being a lie, her voice is steady.

“Of course not,” Lucas adds on, and his voice is as stiff as his body. “She knows I’d never actually hurt her. Now, if you’ll excuse us, I believe there is another guest waiting.”

“Of course.” Henry Longmire gives a respectful nod and backs away, but she’s fairly certain she’s not imagining the way that his gaze lingers on her, brow furrowed in...thought? concern? She tries to push it from her mind, tries not to let hope build.

The exhibition drags on, and she loses track of the man in the never-ending stream of clinking glasses and twittering laughter. She’s so, so tired. Tired of pretending, tired of being stared at, tired of, in turn, staring at herself being tortured. But most of all just tired.

When Lucas drags her across the room toward yet another group that he wants to speak to, her legs finally decide they’ve had enough of supporting her weight. She stumbles, only saved from hitting the floor by his other hand coming up and catching her around the middle, uncaring of the ribs that still haven’t healed and probably won’t as long as they keep getting abused like this.

Several of the people in the vicinity gasp, as if they’re actually concerned, as if they actually care if she gets hurt.

And it’s finally too much. Ellery can’t stop the sob anymore than she can keep from dropping all of her weight into Lucas’ arms, forcing him to lower her to the floor. Tears flood her cheeks, desperate to escape after an entire evening of being held back, and a small part of her has the presence to hope that they’ll wash away the makeup hiding her bruises. Maybe then, maybe finally someone will actually, really see her.

A small crowd has gathered, hovering over her, and the claustrophobia of it only serves to intensify her sobs. She just wants this to be over, wants to go home, but she knows, beyond the hitching breaths that bend her in half and send stabs of pain through her chest, that she’s only made things worse for herself. She can’t look at Lucas right now. She knows he has to be incredibly angry.

“It’s alright, folks, just give her some space. It seems our lovely model here has twisted her ankle.” Because of course he would have a lie ready for this. “You know how women are with their shoes. Can’t pick something practical.” As he laughs he slips off her shoe, the gold stiletto that he had made her put on.

A few guests titter with laughter, some offer coos of sympathy. Lucas stands and shoos them away. “Everyone please, continue enjoying yourselves. I’m going to take Sarah to get some ice for her ankle and a bit of rest, and I’ll return shortly.”

She wishes he would get her some ice, it sounds heavenly for her ribs about now. Somehow she doubts whatever he’s taking her to will be nearly as pleasant.

Scooping her up in his arms like he’s her Prince Charming, Lucas parades her across the room to much admiration. Somewhere just before they reach the door that leads further into the building, Ellery spots Henry Longmire again, and their eyes meet. Once again, she’s struck with the thought that maybe, just maybe, he sees her. He sees, if not what’s going on, at least that something isn’t right.

She can’t speak to him. She can’t even give him some kind of signal, not without Lucas seeing. But she tries her best to send a message with her eyes - help me, please - before they disappear into the back hallway.

“I don’t know what came over you, but that was unacceptable,” Lucas hisses as soon as they’re alone. He drops her feet unceremoniously, and she struggles to regain her footing while still being carted down the hall by her arm.

This place is unfamiliar to her other than the actual gallery hall, so when they stop in front of an innocuous door she has no idea what’s inside. Lucas pulls a ring of keys out of his pocket, unlocking the door and revealing what seems to be a janitorial closet. Obviously he had stored some things here ahead of time, because the handcuffs that he reaches for don’t seem like they belong.

“You will stay right here,” he orders, wrenching her arms behind her back to cuff her, “and ‘ice your ankle’ until I come back for you.” He pulls something else off the same shelf, but she doesn’t get a glimpse of what it is before it’s pressing up against her lips. The angry look on his face warns her not to resist, to simply open her mouth and allow the knotted fabric to be slipped inside. He steps behind her, pulling the gag tight so that it cuts into her cheeks and yanking strands of her hair as he ties it.

Tears continue to slide down her cheeks, but they fall silently now.

“And if you kick, or scream, or generally make noise and try to get someone’s attention, your punishment tonight will be twice as bad.”

Shoving her forward, he slams the door shut and locks it again, leaving her to wait in the pitch darkness.

[boop-le-snoot]

PARTY FAVOURS | CHAPTER 19

First time reader click here

Summary+TWs: We're talking serious feelings here, okay? Reader, you're literally emotionally illiterate. You also have PTSD, which is finally addressed - kinda. Bruce does his best. And he also knows how to kiss... But y'all know that if you read my ramblings about lucid dreaming/shifting/whatever... Chile-, anyways...

My phone kept buzzing and I ignored it until Bruce declared it was time to take a break and review the results. Whilst the man was typing up the data on a nearby StarkPad, I fought the sudden influx of messages that I received from haters and supporters alike after Tony decided on tweeting a reply that could be interpreted in an alarming variety of ways. It was a smart move, I'll admit, but a fucking bother for me nonetheless.

Disabling my DMs and dealing with a follower increase in the thousands wasn't hard; I didn't consider myself a problematic asshole and didn't need to be afraid of "exposure". The parties I went to - I doubted there was any blackmail material in there and the few nudes I'd sent over the years were always face-less. As a gen Z, I knew my internet safety.

The trolls didn't bother me either. It was more sad than annoying, people shitting on others for clout. Iron Man stans were witty, at least, if jealous. I must admit I've never considered the influx of popularity I would experience should I publicly out myself as a friend of Tony's. Girlfriend? Intern? Science child? Whatever cover story he was going to feed the press worked for me, as long as I still got the hugs, the kisses, the dick and the attention.

"Tony..." Bruce groaned, evidently done with the data processing, had to have opened his social media to see his own skyrocketing popularity.

"Yeah, our Tony is being a Tony again," I chuckled, having reset my social media settings so my phone wouldn't constantly beep, vibrate and bother me. School was going to be fun.

Bruce shook his head, fond, coming over to my side of the lab after removing his own hazmat suit. His eyes shiny with newfound knowledge and hair turned adorably fluffy in the confines of the head covering. He was smiling softly. "Food?"

"Sure."

We chewed our sandwiches in silence for a moment, each of us lost in our thoughts.

"I still can't believe Tony told everyone on Twitter you're his girlfriend, usually he keeps this stuff private or schedules a fancy press conference," Bruce's tone was thoughtful.

I raised an eyebrow. "Is that what it was? Seemed ambiguous to me..." I trailed off, confused.

"He worded it like that on purpose, I mean, you're still in high school," The scientist was confident in his words. "But I know Tony. I'm a hundred percent sure that he meant exactly that. Aren't you?"

Shock flooded me. Suddenly, I understood I completely misread the situation. "Um, no? I thought we were, y'know, just fucking. We never defined our relationship and we're definitely not exclusive." I said, chewing on my lip. "You make a valid argument, I'm a high school student and he's a grown ass man that does grown man stuff. Putting aside the fact that he could have anybody in the world so why would he choose me?" I was rambling, thinking out loud. Discussing my feelings has never my strong forte. "It would be stupid to impose monogamy on such a complex man like Tony. Downright idiotic to expect a genius to confine to social norms just because it suits others." I finished with a wave of my hand. Another bubble of thought that had festered within me for the longest time. I felt relieved, finally voicing it out loud. A weight had been lifted off my shoulders, a weight I wasn't previously consciously aware of.

Bruce was watching me intently, with an unreadable expression that held the tiniest bit of awe, admiration perhaps. The silence that followed was unnerving. I fidgeted with my hands, not really knowing where to put them or where to look.

"You know," He took off his glasses, fiddling them in his hands. "I'm not going to sugar coat it. For the longest time, I thought you were going to inadvertently hurt him when you get bored with whatever you've got going on. I respect you, don't misunderstand me, but you are young. Now, I've changed my mind. You've changed my mind," He punctuated his statement with his hand on mine, grasping it. "I think you managed to understand him in a way most people can't. Or don't want to. Understand and accept him in a way that some of us can't even after years of working and living side by side with him." Bruce's gentle fingers skimmed along the top of my palm.

"I don't always understand Tony but I do accept him," I agreed. "Because Tony is a great man."

"I think you're in love with him," Bruce said, absolutely having ignored my previous statement. Just like that, point blank, he pushed to the surface the very feelings I got so good at ignoring. There was no rest for me in this place.

My heart fluttered, picking up the pace. I kept my mouth shut, not trusting it whatsoever. My thoughts became akin to panicked hares, jumping and zigzagging aimlessly in my skull. I didn't see the point in defending myself because the scientist had pointed out the obvious.

Bruce looked at me, softly, warmly. "And don't think we haven't noticed the rise in team morale. The improvement not only in communication, but on the battlefield, too. It's easier to entrust your back to someone with whom you've shared a laugh and a drink the previous night. You're the glue that keeps us together."

Something warm and wet was on my cheeks. I stared at our clasped hands, his words echoing in my head over and over and over. The moment I realized I was crying, I willed myself to stop and failed spectacularly - only more salty fluid streamed down, some of it getting in my nose, on my lips. The sleepless nights were making me unstable.

It took a single sniffle for Bruce to pick me up and wrap up in his kind embrace. I didn't resist, tucking my face into the crook of his neck, holding onto the back of his lab coat, inhaling the smell of his skin and chemicals. It was familiar, calming. Minutes ticked by with me slowly leaking the tension out of my body.

"He loves you, too, maybe he just doesn't realize it yet." Bruce whispered into my hair. "I've never seen Tony so happy, even with Pepper. You are special and you are loved."

There was something unsaid, I felt it. It hung in the ear, it burned the tips of my ears, stood sharp on the tip of my tongue. "I love you too, Bwucie-bear," I whispered into the space between his ear and his jaw. His arms tightened around me.

The man placed several chaste kisses in my hair, running a palm over my back. In moments like these, the crush for him, the very crush that got out of control, blossomed fully into a deep sense of respect and admiration. He made me feel safe. He said all the right words at the right time.

Drowsiness overtook me. As usual, any worries and anxieties I had evaporated, once Banner had his arms around me, shielding me from the world. I didn't forbid myself this time: delicately, my hand slipped through the man's soft messy curls, eliciting a contented sigh.

"You haven't been sleeping well," He more stated than asked.

I had no choice but to nod. "Clint keeps dying in my dreams. Or even worse, he doesn't, he just suffers, endlessly, painfully." I admitted.

Bruce flinched under me, tensing. My face was in between his hands in a second, the scientist sternly looking into my eyes. "Why didn't you say anything? All of us assumed you were okay after what happened." He looked - angry. Not Hulk-out pissed but Bruce-pissed, which equalled a kicked-puppy look seasoned with a great pinch of disappointment.

"I am okay." I lied, shamelessly. "It's getting better. That's why I want to have a party - relax a little, dance, socialize. I don't think Tony would let me go on my own so I figured I can convince him to throw one here." I looked away. It was better for everyone if I dealt with my own problems - they were superheroes, not babysitters.

Bruce frowned. "Why wouldn't Tony let you go?"

"Because of that one time I snorted coke," I rolled my eyes at Bruce's naiveté, leaving the less obvious parts unsaid. Tony knew exactly what I was going to do once I got free reign, he considered it destructive and told me so himself. Admittedly, he had a point but still... I wished I'd been given a choice.

"I'll talk to him," Bruce nodded firmly. "That's not acceptable. He can't forbid you from making mistakes and learning from them."

He was met with my shrug. No excitement came from me regarding this particular turn of conversation. I was drained, limbs like jello, thoughts sluggish. My face was drooping.

"Let's get you to bed," Banner stood up with me wrapped around him. "You need a nap."

"No," I protested. If I went to sleep now, only Satan knew at what ungodly hour I would wake up.

"Yes, Princess," Bruce smirked. I wiggled uncomfortably - when he went all caretaker like, my ovaries wreaked havoc on my body and brain. My thoughts weren't appropriate if Bruce wanted me to see him as a father figure. The signals he was sending were mixed. People around me did that a lot and I wasn't sure how to act so I usually just went with the flow. I decided to do the very same thing in that particular moment.

Curiosity sparked within me, tightly interwoven with the deep longing that settled below my collarbones whenever Tony or one of the others wasn't sitting next to me or talking my ear off. I've almost forgotten how it was to be alone with my thoughts. The maze of my very own self was becoming unfamiliar territory. Alarming.

I allowed Bruce to help me shed my shoes and outer layer of clothing, shivering in the coolness of my room. Despite being a frequent visitor, I still had a 'guest' room in the tower - I mostly stayed at Tony's or Wanda's anyways. During our sleepovers neither me nor the witch minded sharing her enormous bed, to be fair, we could have fit at least two more people in it besides us. Tony took care of his own - all the tower's residents had their apartments furnished with the best stuff.

"Sleep now, Princess," Bruce chastised, tucking a blanket around me, having noticed an earbud in my ear and my smartphone in my hand. I had hoped to kill some time online, damn well knowing sleep wouldn't come easy.

"I don't think I can fall asleep, Bruce," I admitted, looking away. There was just so much going on. My brain wouldn't shut up and if I couldn't drown out the cacophony by being productive, I'd troll the internet, as usual.

Banner sighed, coming to sit next to me, leaning against the headboard. Gently running his fingers through my hair, brushing the outside of his palm against my cheek. "How do you usually deal with this?"

Involuntarily, my eyelashes fluttered. "Tony does most of the work," I admitted coyly. The engineer had a whole arsenal of tricks up his sleeve - sexy and exhausting tricks.

"I see," Bruce muttered, thoughtfully.

I opened my eyes to see him looking down at me with a look I haven't seen before. The usual mildly absent, slightly anxious face he wore was replaced by something I could only describe as hurt envy, like a kid looking at their schoolmate who had all the newest, coolest toys. I used to be on the receiving end of that look far too often and I hated it.

I hid my face against his leg, rubbing my cheek on the raspy corduroy fabric of his pants. "Got any good ideas of your own?" I wondered lowly, thinking about what in the world possessed Bruce to wear corduroy trousers on a semi-casual day, in the twenty-first century.

"Only bad ideas," He replied in a matching low tone. His soft fingertips relocated to my nape, goosebumps rising down my back.

"Humour me," I grinned against his leg.

Bruce was quiet for a moment, the sound of his thinking screaming louder than any words could have done. Knowing the scientist so closely, I found out he was full of surprises - bolder than he appeared outwardly and competitive to a boot. He thought he had a lot to prove to himself and by extension, to others. The unknown, the mystery dangling in front of my nose was exhilarating, trepidation addictive. It took me away from the chaos in my mind.

A gentle grasp on my chin had me turning to look upwards, Bruce's face flushed and focused on my own, open and trusting. He needed to see the obvious, that I trusted him to take care of me. He pulled and I followed, sitting up on my elbows, coming up to his shoulder level, our faces inches apart, enveloped in the unique, intense scent of his herbal tea. It was a tart, strong smell and it suited his quiet but passionate character.

Once, twice, I caught my eyes sliding to his plump lips. They looked far too appealing in this position. I usually strategically stayed away from positions so compromising, fearing the very thing that I'd already let happen, however this time the atmosphere was different. We stood on ambiguous grounds, waiting for Bruce to make a decision.

The man wasn't stupid, he saw the way I looked at him. The nightmares and inability to take a break from life put a significant dent in my resolve to keep a distance between us, romantically - I could have settled even for a pity kiss, a pity fuck. Anything to put my brain on pause.

His lips were softer than I had imagined. Skilled, too, he easily steered the kiss into the shallow waters of our combined longing.

With Tony, it was like an avalanche. Tony ran hot like Peterbilt engines, hard and fast, almost angry in his race for satisfaction. Tony was a man that was used to getting whatever he wanted and it became plainly obvious when we fucked.

Bruce was the opposite. He savoured the kiss, losing himself in a way that could almost be described as delicate. Bruce was humming, softly, as we tasted each other, holding the left side of my face with careful fingertips. Almost as if he was afraid to break me. The feel of his skin on mine was soothing in a way that made me sigh and relax even further.

"Wanna make you feel good." His voice had dropped, gone husky, but his breathing held even. He must know all about self-control.

"Yeah," I was ready to agree with whatever the fuck he was offering. My eyelids remained shut.

THE TAG LIST IS NOW OPEN! @another-stark-sub ​ @mostly-marvel-musings  @vozit ​ @littlegasps ​ @pilloclock ​ @shereadsinquiet @downeyreads ​ @hermione-grangers-wife ​ @individualistfem ​ @sleep-i-ness @capbrie @lillsxd @agustdowney @dee-vn @justanotherblonde23 @fanngirl19 @persephonehemingway @softie-socks @schemefrenzy @letsby @cutenessloading @romeo-the-cactus @jelly-fishy-babie

PS. Letsby, please don't combust. The underwear is coming off in the next chapter. 😶

[chibimyumi]

Kuromyu 2021 asks

【Response to post: Kuromyu “Secret of the Boarding School Arc”】

Dear everyone,

As many of you have already seen, MKP announced a new Kuromyu after 3 years! “The Secret of the Boarding School Arc”. I have received some asks about this, so allow me to answer them here one by one ^^

Dear Anons,

Yes indeed! “Secret of the Boarding School Arc” is going to be a thing! Erm... well, as you must have seen, no Sebastyun anymore. The announcement is official.

I don’t know Tateishi beyond the most surface level, but from what I do know, he can sing. That’s at least one thing that is promising! But otherwise I have no estimate of him whatsoever. We shall see.

I hope this time the Kuromyu fandom won’t be as nasty about him as they were about Matsushita’s calling him “a helium balloon” or “he sounds like a girl.” And then about Furukawa’s nose at first... =v= I mean, everyone can complain about an actor, but if there’s nothing substantial you can complain about then.... ugh never mind.

【Response to: Werewolf Arc as most likely candidate?】

Dear Anon,

Yes, I did, but I feel like it is useless to answer that specific part of your question now (≽ω≼;) So let’s skip to your following questions.

Well, I wouldn’t call this post a prediction, but indeed, my reasoning that the Werewolf arc would be the most likely next candidate for Kuromyu is obviously wrong, and dramatically so! Here we are, Kuro Potter arc, even though I really thought it would be the LEAST likely one.

But, just like I have explained in the post from October 2019 about a hypothetical Potter Kuromyu, I can’t say I’m really hopeful without lying. I am interested, but not hopeful. All my concerns I spoke of at the time are still my concerns right now.

I worried about Kuromyu becoming Tenimyu, and the musical is mostly likely going to be Tenimyu. Nothing wrong with Tenimyu as such, but Kuromyu is just never made to be like a Tenimyu.

I worried about KuroPotter’s story not suitable for stage adaptations and an expensive cast... and well, indeed, no expensive cast anymore. But then, how will Kuromyu2021 sell their appeal without much of Sebas and Undertaker????

I worried about a different Sebastian inevitably going to be compared to Furukawa, and judging from my Japanese twitter feed, that prediction is not going to be off.

Japanese twitter isn’t even being mean about Tateishi, most people just go: “eh? Suddenly switching out the current prince of the musical world and the Sebastian praised so highly by sensei?” “Those are crushing expectations!” “Will Tateishi be alright? Will he be able to perform outside Furukawa’s shadows?”

All are VERY legit things to say! The scariest thing for Tateishi is not just having to play Sebastian - the perfect demon butler. Nor is it having to compete against Furukawa’s Sebastian. No, he needs to compete against Furukawa’s reputation as “the prince of the Imperial Theatre” no media outlet can NOT emphasise, and the Sebastian declared above canon by Yana herself, and the man who made the highly critical Editor K go gaga for. - Talk about pressure!

But yessss, in short, I am interested and concerned.

Dear Anon,

Grell is not even in the arc... so no, no announcement for any Grell, old or new.

As for Izumi Shuuhei, the thing about supervising the script of Kuromyu2021, that was Izumi’s retweet of Yana’s tweet, not his own. Yana is asked to return for the supervision of the script and the costumes.

There is no reason for any producer to ask an ex-actor to supervise a script for a musical he is not going to be part of.

For anyone interested in what Yana wrote:

In fresh wear that is befitting of a new season called ‘spring’, it has been decided that there shall be a new musical ‘Kuroshitsuji’! This time too I was called to supervise the script and the costumes, and I shall humbly partake. Please look forward to future updates【Toboso】

Dear Anon,

YES APPARENTLY THERE IS GOING TO BE, I AM ALSO SHOCKED!! Σ(ÔAÔ)!

About the new cast, I don’t know ANY of these new actors except 2 from the most surface level, namely Sebastian and Redmond... so I have no idea. Just from instinct though:

🏫Tateishi (Sebastian): You poor... poor man, your life is going to be so hard for at least a short while... Like I said above, Furukawa left impossibly large shoes to fill to begin with, but being made to compete against his reputation as literally the highest rank performers can achieve in Japan is just unfair.

Good luck to you, young man! You seem to be capable of singing, so I hope they at least capitalise on that!

🏫 Konishi (Ciel): ... I already thought 16 year old Sakamoto was too old for Ciel in 2009, and now there’s a 20 year old adult man playing a 13 year old baby-face O.o? I’ve looked up a bit of his acting, it seems decent!

After everyone being used to really young Ciel actors since 2010, and especially with the super small and adorable Reo though... I think this man too is going to have a really hard time getting accepted as Ciel. Though to a lesser extent than Furukawa’s crushing reputation, Reo’s reputation as Ciel really is very pressing too...

But yes, no judging before actually seeing! We shall see.

🏫 Ueda (Undertaker): Like I said in this post, Undertaker really has almost NOTHING to do in this arc, so I don’t have any opinion about Ueda. I have never heard of him before this announcement, but they could have cast an android for Undertaker and the damage would still have been minimal. (I stand by my old point; why bother adapting this arc at all??? Well, at least Ueda is unlikely to be overworked from studying his script.)

🏫 Sana (Redmond): I’ve only known him from Patalliro!, but I never watched it. But for Patalliro! Sana was cast because of his beauty and flair for Maraich. So I am sure Redmond will be just within Sana’s field too!

🏫 Tazuru (Greenhill): NO idea, never heard of him, but he LOOKS the part!

🏫 Satonaka (Bluer), Godou (Violet), Furuya (Clayton), Nakajima (Edward), Taguchi (Maurice): Idem.

🏫 Fukuzawa (Chesslock): Never heard of him either, but he REALLY REALLY REALLY looks the part (≽▽≼) His face just screams: “bruh, whaddya got, loser!?”

🏫 Uchino (Hearcourt): Never heard of him, he looks VERY cute... MKP, couldn’t you cast this youngest actor for Ciel or did he just lose the audition of Ciel? Oh well, he looks appropriately Hearcourt I guess! We shall see.

🏫 Hayakawa (McMillan): Never heard of him, but from the photos I could find he does not really look like what I’d expect of a 3D McMillan. But then again, neither do Furukawa and Uehara, and we all know how much I love them. Looks are just looks ^^ Acting is more important.

🏫 Yamaguchi (Derrick): Never heard of him, looks the part, I’m sure he’ll be fine.

🏫 Agares (Takahashi): Never heard of him, but from his photos he really does have that energy, so I’m sure he’ll be fine!

🏫 Okada (Soma): I..... am actually REALLY surprised, and even right now I’m not sure I found the right guy. Is this really the guy?? Not just a different guy with the same name? I mean, I am sure he is a great actor, but this man is 20 years older than the actual Soma.

They already got 15 young men, they really couldn’t find another one? Oh well, I’m sure he’s a great actor. And otherwise, the role is so incredibly small, any potential damage is limited.

Dear Anon,

Yes, my day is lovely, but also flabbergasting because I spent most of it thinking about this announcement. But I hope your day was lovely too^^

Erm.....about a potential anime adaptation. As has been proven, I am not very good at predicting stuff! So perhaps I am not the right person to ask stuff.

Even though the Universe is probably going to prove me wrong again, I THINK the chances are a bit low for the Boarding School Arc being adapted?

Let us not talk about the Mansion Murder arc, and just look at Circus and Campania arc. Those two are unambiguously the two most popular arcs, but when they got adapted the budget was so horrifically low it was almost embarrassing to look at.

As discussed in this post, Book of Circus was also aired at the weirdest possible times, and that was one of the two MOST popular arcs... as explained before in this other post, the Boarding School Arc is the least popular arc among the main/Japanese fandom... so I personally think the chances for this to get an anime adaption to be fairly low.

Just my thoughts since you asked. The Universe has proven me wrong more often, it might again.

[naturecpw]

Birders’ Tweets Are Causing an Online Flap

Sharing photos and location details of rare bird sightings is boosting the birdwatching community. But some worry that the exposure threatens the animals. 

The moment when David Barrett spotted the snowy owl through the fence at one of Central Park’s baseball fields last week, he knew this was going to be an event. Barrett, an experienced birder and the force behind the wildly popular Twitter account  Manhattan Bird Alert, immediately understood just how rare a sighting this was: A snowy owl hasn’t graced New York City since 1890. These owls live in the Arctic but are more nomadic in the winters, sometimes flying into Canada and the Northeast, but rarely as far south as New York City.

Barrett also knew this was exactly the kind of bird that was likely to draw a crowd. “I knew going into it this would be big,” he says. Not only was this the first sighting in any New Yorker’s lifetime, but the snowy owl is a species that is likely to get non-birders excited, too. The prospect of attracting so many people to the bird’s location weighed on him as he rushed home to tweet it out to @BirdCentralPark’s more than 40,000 followers.

But tweet he did.

“I run an information service,” Barrett says of his Twitter feed. “A bird in a public park is fair game for my tweets. A rare bird is something that people want to know about, so it’s my responsibility to get the information out. If I don’t do it, someone else will.”

Twitter and other bird-sighting sites like eBird have given a boost to the birding community in recent years. The sites have made celebrities out of a few lucky ducks (and owls and hawks), species that appeal to the less ornithologically-inclined among us. They’ve made birding accessible to newcomers and given avid bird watchers a space to share photos, tips, and exciting discoveries, helping many people to find not just a hobby, but a community. “We just see each other by user names to start, and then we bump into each other out birding and we make that connection,” says Ken Elkins, community conservation manager for Audubon CT and Audubon NY. Online, your age, experience, or background don’t matter, he says: “You can be part of the conversation.”

And Twitter accounts have helped rally bird rescuers. The Wild Bird Fund (WBF), a bird rehabilitation center in Manhattan, often tweets out calls for help, including the location of birds in need, to their more than 9,000 followers. “It is a resource because it's fast and people get it right away, and that’s a big boon versus email or anything we’d post on our website,” says Rita McMahon, WBF’s cofounder and director.

But not everyone in the birding community is thrilled about the idea of focusing the attention of the internet on a bird that’s not in need, and is likely to draw a flock of admirers. Crowds can make birds uneasy and affect their normal behavior. Birds may perceive all those humans as predators or competition for food. Sometimes it’s hard to know exactly how all those leering people with cameras, jockeying for position or slowly inching forward for a better look, are changing the bird’s behavior.

McMahon does not approve of accounts like Manhattan Bird Alert and worries about how the crowds of gawkers are affecting the animals. She isn’t supportive of the Twitter accounts that draw them. “I’d like them to stop,” she says. She points to the example of some owls that used to nest near Shakespeare Garden in Central Park. As their popularity grew, the eager public began to cut away the trees to get a better view. Because of all the attention, owls don’t go there anymore.

McMahon says that while the WBF uses Twitter for rescue calls, the organization never shares where it releases rehabilitated birds, even if they are very rare or popular species. “I don’t want that rare bird being surrounded by people!” she says. “We want it to be in peace. It does not need birders.”

Elkins says that Audubon CT has limited the number of owl sightings they’ve shared publicly, and that he often chooses not to post about some of his sightings if he thinks the bird is in a vulnerable position or if the ensuing popularity might cause a problem. “There have been some sensitive owls that I have found that I might just share with one other person,” he says. He might even avoid hanging around too long with his camera so he doesn’t attract passersby who will ask about what he’s looking at. “I don’t want people to linger around a bird that’s trying to hide for the day in its roost site,” he says.

Manhattan Bird Alert has grown considerably since Barrett first started it in 2013. In the beginning, the alerts were targeted to serious birders and would just share the species and location of the animal. Barrett also automated a system that would retweet others in the birding community who tagged the account. He chose Twitter because it was fast, easy to use, and didn’t require people to join a special group or even to have an account to see the content. He racked up a few thousand followers.

Then, in 2018, The New York Times featured Barrett in an article about young people getting interested in birding. The account’s following got a boost, growing to around 10,000 people. Later that year, the Mandarin duck arrived. The brightly colored duck, a denizen of East Asia, spent several months hanging out around a Central Park pond, attracting huge crowds and the nickname “hot duck.” Manhattan Bird Alert, which had announced the bird’s presence, suddenly became an international sensation. Barrett was interviewed by international media outlets and his Twitter followership swelled even more.

The account has continued to grow since, especially as many New Yorkers are turning to birding as one of the last pandemic-safe recreational activities left in the city. As the handle’s celebrity has grown, Barrett’s goals for the account have changed too. “I’ve realized I was fortunate to have something that suddenly appealed to so many people,” he says. “I wanted to do my best to make it the best I could make it.”

He’s gotten rid of the automation and now focuses on finding good photos and videos to share. He’s also given more space to popular species like owls, which appeal to a larger audience, than to species that might only get the most devoted birders excited. Barrett says he thinks about the account nearly every waking minute. He also runs accounts for bird sightings in Brooklyn, the Bronx, and Queens and Long Island, although those are significantly less popular than his Manhattan account. “I’ve become the nexus of birding information,” he says.

That said, Barrett did take extra care before and after broadcasting the snowy owl’s presence. First, he noticed that the bird was hanging out in the middle of a baseball field and was protected by a fairly substantial metal fence that would help keep crowds at bay. Next, he alerted the city’s Urban Park Rangers so they could prepare for the crowd. And he tweeted out warnings for people not to crowd the owl or get too close. “I figured quite a few people unfamiliar with owls would be coming by. I wanted to make it clear to people that it would be improper to break the rules of the park to get a better view,” Barrett says.

Even though he has some reservations about sharing the locations of rare birds, Elkins acknowledges that a snowy owl in Central Park is something of a special case. “Central Park is so extremely public that somebody else is going to find it,” Elkins says. “There are enough other birders that the bird is not going to live a life of secrecy.”

Still, he warns watchers to err on the side of caution: Don’t stay too long, or spook the bird into flying. Definitely don’t feed it. Think about the specific environment the bird is in before sharing its location: Is it nesting? Is it safe in a high tree branch, or is it in a vulnerable position where it will be hard to for it to escape a crowd’s prying eyes? He recommends that newly-minted birders consult Audubon’s ethical bird photography guide and ask their more experienced counterparts before sharing a particularly exciting find.

As for Barrett, he thinks the flap over sharing bird locations online is misguided. “People who focus on the ethics of owl watching are misleading other people about what the real issues are in conservation,” he says. He points out that while thousands of birds die every year from collisions with buildings, habitat loss, and cat predation, very few—if any—have died from overexcited bird watchers. “There are real issues in conservation that should be addressed,” he says. “I think it’s important to keep things in perspective.”

https://www.wired.com/story/birders-tweets-are-causing-an-online-flap/?utm_source=pocket-newtab

[dearheart42regenerated]

hoo boy, okay, this is a baaaaad idea and it’s LONG but I’m doing it anyway because I’m genuinely struggling with this, I don’t have an IRL community to turn to, and I want to hear what other lesbians/wlw think about this beyond my own tiny circle. (for the record I’m not a discourse blog, so pleeeease be gentle and don’t drag me into any super messy debates? the most I want to do is get opinions from different people and learn enough to come to my own private conclusions and move on)

I’m a bby lesbian (and a long-time ace) and the “bi-lesbian” thing upsets me too. but I’ve seen an argument brought up that made me stop and think, and I’m kinda stumped about it. the argument is that we're ALREADY using lesbian as an umbrella term, but only get upset about it when bi women do the same. 

for example...when we see a wlw couple walking down the street or getting married, or two women kissing in a TV show or pictures shown on twitter (much like the cute “sword lesbians” story that’s been circulating), MOST of the time, everyone (including us!) tends to automatically call them “lesbians” or a "lesbian couple” or a “lesbian wedding”, etc...without thinking about what their actual orientations are.

I saw another person bring up an experience where her lesbian gf would joke about them "doing lesbianism babey!" but when she tried to do the same as a bi woman, her gf would get mad at her and say she couldn't do that. the main point of all of this is that there's hypocrisy in play - when lesbians put the "lesbian" label on other women, whether irl or fiction, most people don’t kick up a fuss. but when bi women use the label themselves, suddenly it's bad and lesbophobic/biphobic.

this troubles me because I DO see it happen all the time, both online and in the few irl experiences I’ve had. and I think it's a valid point to make (especially because "sapphic" is barely used irl at all). it feels unfair to use "lesbian" with the same-ish looseness we use "gay", and then draw the line at bi women using it too. (there’s also a very real problem of bi ppl with same-gender partners turning to “Gay And Lesbian” spaces cos they have nowhere else to turn, and getting kicked out for not being a “real gay”. there are tangible real-life layers to this discourse that I don’t want to brush off.)

but at the same time, "lesbian" is the only modern word we have (particularly our only mainstream word) to describe our full, unique experience as women who are exclusively attracted to other women/women-aligned people. bi women already have “bisexual” as their recognizable mainstream term, and they also have “queer”, “wlw”, “sapphic”, etc as further options to fine-tune their identity...so it feels just as unfair to use "lesbian” too, and that’s the main reason why the term “bi-lesbian” personally upsets me right now. 

it’s also upsetting because “bi-lesbian” implies that some lesbians could still be open to men, and we already face so much lesbophobic pressure to create space for men in our identity/attraction because “you never know, you might feel attracted to a man someday! sexuality is always fluid y’know! maybe you’re not really a lesbian!” we get that pressure both from the outside world AND often from the rest of the LGBTQ+ community too. it’s really harmful and painful to deal with, especially for those of us who’ve had to deal with comphet and still do (aka meeeee)

putting the rest under a readmore cos this is getting long lol

I wish "bi lesbians” and their supporters would take that stuff into consideration...and I wish I saw more people caring in general about the lesbians who are hurting from this. 

we’re tired of having the worst assumed of us, of being treated as the “bad guys” by other communities every time we speak up about things that hurt us. statistically, we’re one of the smallest groups in the alphabet soup. we barely even have our own flag, and the creator of our most popular one right now is still facing hate, harassment and being unjustly accused of being a TERF/exclusionist/bigot. 

it feels like morale and pride are so low among us right now. we just want people to care about us, to be mindful of how we feel and what we go through as lesbians, to give us the same support and benefit-of-a-doubt that you so easily give to our other LGBTQ+ siblings. 

aaand now I’m just emotionally venting lol but TL;DR - I want to be fair to both sides of this topic, cos that’s the type of person I am. I want to stick up for my own community, but I also want to be inclusive to questioning/struggling people and a good ally to my bi sisters. so help me figure all this out. how do y’all feel about what I’ve brought up here?

lesbians and bi women: how do you feel about the point that we’re already using “lesbian” as a roughly gay-equivalent umbrella term for the women we see in relationships with other women? why shouldn’t bi women use it that way too? if they shouldn’t, why aren’t we pushing harder for alternatives like “sapphic” to use in those cases and telling each other to stop when one of us uses “lesbian” or “lesbianism” incorrectly for unspecified wlw couples?

pro-bi-lesbian people: asking in genuine confusion here, how is using the term “bi lesbian” any better than using “bihet” or “bi straight”? how is it not feeding into the misconception that bisexuals are just “half-gay half-straight”? and why is it worth holding onto that label when a) “bisexual” is a mainstream term that, by definition, already has room to encompass your experience, b) other more specific words that mean the same/similar thing already exist for you (i.e. “sapphic”), and c) your term of choice hurts lesbians by undermining our definition of ourselves and adding to the cultural pressure we face to make room for hypothetical future men in our sexuality?

also I want to make it very clear that I’m NOT blaming “bi lesbians” for men feeling entitled to seduce/harass us, or insinuating that you contribute to rape culture or anything like that. predatory men will be predatory no matter what words we use, I fully acknowledge that. rather my concern is that anyone can put pressure on us (and all too often do) to make room for men in our orientation, including within the LGBTQ+ community, and “bi lesbian” as a term contributes to that type of lesbophobia.

please be nice, or at least civil, and talk to me. I want to listen and see if your opinions will help me find some clarity in my own. you’re free to message me or reblog this with your takes on these issues, but if you reblog, please focus on talking with me and don’t fight each other. I will delete this if things get ugly or out of hand.

[verystrawberrytae]

Taekook are distant, a short rant

Sorry, i lied in the title. 

Disclaimer. What I am talking about is taekook relationship in a platonic way, as a precious bond between two members. I don’t have a problem if you interpret it in a romantic one, I am a taekooker myself, just please take note that I won’t address those aspects anywhere here.

Before I start my rant I want to tell everyone who is reading it that you don’t really have to read it. If you have your opinion about yesterday’s events set in stone then there is no need for you to go through it all. If you are here just to mock what I will be saying then be my guest, I don’t really care for anyone’s opinion. This post is for me and me only. It’s my way of venting frustrations and if someone stumbles upon it and decides that it was helpful then great. 

As I’ve said it will be a rant so please do not expect it to be highly organised because it won’t be.

What I want to start with is - I have two explanations for the infamous scene of the recent episode of In the Soop. This scene has awakened something wild not only amongst taekookers but also amongst those that have never cared for taekook bonds or even those that have openly shaded and hated it. I won’t point fingers, if you are active on twitter, you probably know who I am talking about. 

And before I explain those two perspectives I want to take a moment and say that whatever it was that led to this scene coming to life, it is a very beautiful scene. If it was a scene in one of the kdramas that I watch, it would probably become one of the most iconic scenes ever. The emotions seemed so true, the story presented was both heartbreaking and heartwarming. What I try to say here is, the aesthetics of it was very pleasing. But there are many aspects that make me not able to appreciate it to its fullest. What is the biggest one of them? This is not a kdrama, this is the life of two real people, not imaginary characters.

The conversation was very intimate and that leads me to actually disapprove of what I will present as the first perspective. Still I think it’s important to mention it. Just so you know that I have thought deeply about it and I hadn’t dismissed it just like this.

I guess that it’s the simplest explanation. It requires you to believe that what you have seen on camera is one hundred percent true and there is nothing else beyond it. And it is what most people stopped at. And it’s not really a bad thing. 

The explanation is: Taekook indeed had some problem with their relationship and they patched it up while In the Soop was being recorded. They had the conversation shown in the episode. They have resolved whatever stood between them and they are now far better then they were before. 

And really, there are many arguments that support this. But want to know something? Most of the arguments have to be drawn from official content provided by their company we have got. The content that is heavily edited, cut and just captioned however they want. (I will be talking about captions later on too because it is something that actually created most of this mess.)

And before you roll your eyes and say that Big Hit does not hide Taekook so why would they manipulate content to fit any narrative, I will just say that it does not to the exact many people believe but if you take few minutes and look deeper you will notice that it’s not that Taekook does not interact but they are interrupted, cut and just generally disregarded when it comes to them being viewed as possible unit by the company. 

Of course, you don’t have to agree with me. I will be talking more about it in the second to last part of this rant because it is a part of one of the branches of the second perspective I will be presenting.

Apart from official content provided by Big Hit that they feed us there is really not much to agree with the perspective unless we want to breach taboo and analyse songs written or covered by them which I won’t do and strongly discourage you from doing because it’s something that shouldn’t be done. Their works are their own, we are only fans and unless something is explicitly stated, we should refrain from bringing it into the shipping agenda. I am saying it for both taekookers and fans of other ships.

If you stand by this perspective and you are a taekooker then i hope it simply made you realize that they are human too, that the relationships between members are not always what we see. If you are a taekook anti then now you should shut up about them not being close anymore because now according to what we have seen they have sorted things out and by the content released now you can see that they come back to being attached to a hip.

If you weren’t bought by this perspective then I have one more for you. This one branches into two completely different paths but they have a common origin.

The whole scene was scripted and acted out by the boys for us to see. 

And it’s what I actually believe because please do not let yourself be fooled, the content we get is not always one that has been born out of a spontaneous action. Remember that it is an entertainment industry, the company’s goal is to please the fans. 

I am not trying to debuk boys’ relationship, all of them are precious but it’s a show directed to fans so that they have fun and are happy. There is so much staff, there are so many cuts. We do not see the whole picture but we see what they want us to see.

If you do not think that it was scripted then it’s better you stop reading here. What is going to come is just me going into details why I think we can’t really take whatever was said in the scene for granted and we shouldn’t actually think that it’s a whole truth and there is nothing more for it. Again I respect your opinion if you do not agree with this. 

Now let me move onto presenting the two branches of this perspective. The one is harsh, negative one and I will say it at the beginning loud and clear. I don’t believe any words that will be typed here about taekook. It is just a possible reason, that actually I think is the biggest bullshit that has ever come from under my fingers. 

They hate each other and can’t stand each other so the staff makes them have this conversation so fans have something to cling onto. They want us to see that there is nothing wrong, while actually they can’t even have a civil convo out of the spotlight.

And you see? It’s complete bullshit. We can all see how much they care for each other and this is something antis try to deny only to be laughed at. Their relationship is precious and there is no doubt about it. That’s why I completely disapprove of it. If you need any evidence for it then I am sorry for you, it just means that you do not pay attention to any of their interactions and you are quick to judge them in accordance to poorly made edit on tiktok brought to life by an insecure child.

The second branch of this perspective is, it was scripted so that it again fits all the narratives they are pushing. The narrative that so many people believe - Taekook aren’t close (which... really? please, find a better excuse, i beg you, if you are an anti, that is not valid reason for hating on their bond). Have you noticed how Taekook is so loud and visible lately? You probably did, but that fits into this perspective perfectly. Taekook talked things out so surely they can be seen together again. So you know, everything that has been in the past portrayed by the official content is still valid but they can again be seen because that is what they need. It’s merely an excuse as to why suddenly we can see and hear taekook without the previous narrative being disapproved.

If they really needed to talk things out they wouldn’t have done it on camera. As I’ve said that was an intimate conversation. They were talking about their feelings. If there really was a problem, I believe that they would have resolved it away from everyone. If it was a moment for them and for their bond, we wouldn’t have seen it unless the moment wasn’t for them but for the audience. 

If it doesn’t make sense to you then I really advice you to stop reading. I do not want to torture you any further.

And you know why they need it, the visibility of Taekook? Because Taekook, despite other ships gaining popularity very fast, is still the most popular ship in the industry. You can disagree but for what? It should not be a competition. Taekook is still this one iconic ship that has so many supporters. But with so many supporters comes an insane number of haters. They try to feed both - those who love taekook and those who hate it. Please be reminded that shipping is also a business. With the increase of popularity there comes an increase of interactions and then again increase of popularity. But those ships that are already popular need their fair share of interactions, so that their supporters are also satisfied. Because as I have said they have still many supporters who are not going anywhere anytime soon.

Also, yeah, they can let just one ship grow and the other leave for it to be forgotten but I don’t believe they have no idea about the shipping wars that are happening. I am not saying that it is big and vital thing for them but it certainly makes things more spiced up and it is also some sort of marketing strategy.

It is a pure business. It still does not mean that the bonds members have are just a product to sell and nothing else. I believe that behind the cam they are even more sweet and adorable with each other and it applies to all the bonds not just Taekook.

And why don’t I believe that they aren’t actually close? Look at the content which is not coming from BigHit. The one from KBS or MBC. The one that come from behind the scenes of ads they have been doing. Those most probably weren’t edited by BigHit, there is a great possibility that no editor of the official contents touched it in any way. Look at how they act during lives. You can choose not to notice, that’s fine too.

I said that I will mention the captions. Why do you think they are there? Especially those that say that their conversation is ‘awkward’, ‘embarrassing’ or that they are ‘distant’? Those captions at first look are nothing too serious. Most of them are cute. But some of them make you, or at least try to make you think in a certain way. So that you understand it the way they want you to understand.

At the end of the day, everyone is allowed to have their own opinion. You may think what you want. It probably won’t be my last rant here but please let it be known that I won’t check any comments. I have had my fair share of hate on twitter for expressing my opinion and I just know that it’s better for my mental health to stay away from what other people may think about what I have posted.

To all my fellow taekookers, do not feel discouraged. Remember that we are here for all seven boys and we should love them all equally. Shipping is supposed to be fun so if you think your whole life is ruined because of the scene please reach out to someone. Shipping should never be this deep.

To all the antis. You too please be reminded that those are two real people and if the scene hasn’t been scripted then know that their relationship either way has become even stronger then before. Do not build your life on hating someone.

All the members are precious, love all of them, protect all of them, express your love for all of them. Do not let antis ruin your fun and happiness.

Let’s hope for another number 1 on Billboard Hot 100 next week.

And have a nice day.

[cllynchauthor]

On Aspie Supremacy and the Aspergian

CW: bullying, suicide, aspie supremacy

I feel the need to talk to you guys about what has been happening on autistic twitter lately surrounding the autistic website The Aspergian. I write for The Aspergian. Here are some of my articles:

https://theaspergian.com/2019/05/04/its-a-spectrum-doesnt-mean-what-you-think/

https://theaspergian.com/2019/04/19/person-first/

https://theaspergian.com/2019/04/05/7-cool-aspects-of-autistic-culture/

While I am white, cishet, and speaking, I am in the minority at The Aspergian.

The majority of contributors are mostly either LGBTQIA+, BIPOC, or high support needs.

Here are some of their contributions:

https://theaspergian.com/2019/10/10/stopping-the-stigma-against-people-with-disabilities-interview-with-sbsk/

https://theaspergian.com/2019/09/09/10-signs-i-was-transgender-but-didnt-know-it/

https://theaspergian.com/2019/08/08/the-cage/

Despite this, the name The Aspergian makes many autistic people uncomfortable. Several ASAN members have spoken out condemning the name.

In these days of #AltAutism, the autistic dark web and other aspie supremacists have turned the word Aspergers into a borderline slur.

Aspergers and “Aspergian” are becoming dog whistles for function labels, white supremacy and incels.

The founder of The Aspergian knows that. That’s why she named it The Aspergian.

With every pro-RPM, pro-Neurodiversity, feminist, intersectional article The Aspergian publishes, it gets left wing values all over Aspergers. If you google Aspergian now, all you will find are social justice articles.

And the AltAutism folks HATE IT.

But so do a lot of autistic advocates, for whom “Aspergers” conjures up a lot of trauma.

The founder has trauma from it too, though.

https://twitter.com/theaspergiancom/status/1185068296636375040?s=21

Image Description: screencap of a tweet from @TheAspergianCom reading

When I first told my closest living friend about being autistic, it was the first person I'd told other than my husband. This was her response:

Below is a screencap of a text conversation. The friend is talking about her autistic son saying “at this point I’ll be fucking happy if he ever calls me mom and stops trying to attack me.” Then she says “I think your autism is fucking bullshit.”

Image description: screencaps of more tweets reading:

Though she knew I was going to be tested, she'd continued to use the word Asperger's. I'd been helping her through the process of understanding her son and autism. I loved her deeply. I still do. But she blocked me on social media and told everyone before I was ready to come out.

So instantly all my social media was flooded with all these speculative and veiled comments I could only see portions of, and I was humiliated. I was a new mother struggling and lost my support system. She thought it was sinister I used the same label as her son. Minimizing.

Autism was my diagnosis. She didn't know that I was made to believe I was possessed by demons in my youth or all the hell I'd endured and all the struggles I had like being the last person in my school who learned to read six years late. She knew an articulate adult.

Image description: the next person I told, things went even worse. She outed me in local Facebook groups where I was the admin and parent groups. I had postpartum anxiety and severe breastfeeding aversion but my child wouldn't eat food. So it was BF constantly or a feeding tube. And no meds for me.

So I thought maybe the problem was me saying autism instead of Asperger's. My husband was aspie and always identified that way. I'd been a teacher with largely autistic classes for years. Those with that diagnosis were often intellectually disabled.

Image description: My best friend and one of my oldest and closest friends, both autistic, had committed suicide, and the two living best friends I had blew up my whole social circle. I was afraid to seek help, afraid to go in public, and brutally reframing my whole life and reliving traumas.

I needed help. I joined about 20-30 autistic groups and made the mistake of saying that I was aspie. I didn't want to be insulting and have another incident like what happened the first time I told someone. It didn't go well. I had no idea of the stigma at the time.

And I had no idea why I was being called a supremacist, shiny, a Nazi, ableist, etc. I argued against those claims because I'm definitely not those things. I thought I'd entered a den of extremists. I got booted. Then another group I entered started with, "Oh, there's the Nazi."

In that tweet thread, Terra goes on to say that it occurred to her that her best friend who had recently committed suicide might have sought out the autistic community before he died. And she went to look and found that he had posted and been dogpiled in the same manner. The day before he died.

Terra Vance is desperately anti supremacy. But she is also desperately anti bullying. And she felt that if people couldn’t say “I’m autistic” without losing loved ones and “I’m aspie” without being called a supremacist, then autistic people were being put in a very tight corner.

Especially since Aspergers is still an extant diagnosis pretty much everywhere but North America so people are getting shunned from the autistic community because of their DIAGNOSIS.

That’s why she named it The Aspergian.

And you know what?

The aspie supremacists HATE IT.

They hate that their dog whistle is now a popular and booming hub of Neurodiversity, anti-ABA, and intersectionality.

They hate that The Aspergian is republishing deleted Wikipedia articles of autistic nonspeakers, which the autistic dark web worked hard to get removed.

They hate that we promote FC and RPM and other AAC. They hate that we keep claiming that autism and Aspergers are the same thing.

They don’t want to share space with nonspeakers and black women. They’re a bunch of altright white incels and The Aspergian is getting autism and neurodiversity over their shiny high functioning boots.

Worst of all, we’re reaching PARENTS.

Our most popular articles are not aimed at fellow autistic people. They are aimed at NTs, parents, laymen, trying to educate them about autism.

My article on ABA went viral and made so many ABA therapists angry. It was beautiful.

Imagine description:

“And by some strange magic, we took off suddenly, going from like 100 views per month to over 100k, then 200k, then more and more. We heard a lot of stories that were not being heard. There are parents who read our site to learn about their children posthumously after suicide.

One mother told me that if she had found our site earlier, she would have known that her son's "aspie" diagnosis meant that he was fully autistic. She is filled with regrets. We hear from lots of people who had no idea that they were supposed to have these autistic struggles.

We hear from people in lots of non-white majority countries where autism acceptance and awareness is years/decades behind what a difference our site has made because they had no idea. They weren't reading other blogs and now they are. Now they are understanding autism.”

Understanding autism from a neurodivergent, autism-acceptance, Autism-Speaks-Is-Bad, anti-ABA, pro-AAC website.

The ADW HATE that.

So what do they do?

They stir up shit about the name. The autistic dark web have a bunch of sock accounts which they use to deliberately stir up shit among the #ActuallyAutistic tag on twitter so they can screenshot stuff and repost it out of context to further discredit autistic people.

So they know the ND crowd resent Aspergers. So they deliberately stir up crap about The Aspergian’s name and everybody eats it up.

They also spread lies like that we are racist and don’t have any contributors of colour (they block the BIPOC contributors who argue against this lie).

Image Descriotion:

Tweet from Riah Person (a black autistic advocate) saying

“The .@theAspergianCom has writers

• with I/DD

• that are nonspeaking

• with research background

• that are deaf

• that are blind

• with physically limiting disabilities

• that are autistic BIPOC

• that are autistic LGBTQ+

• with no formal writing skills

The list goes on”

They claim that we plagiarize. But in fact each contributor owns their own content and is free to publish in other places and often they do.

But mostly they bitch about the name.

And I get it. I do. Aspergers brings up a lot of bad feelings and associations, especially since the anti-ND movement started pushing the “Asperger was a Nazi” stuff in order to discredit Steve Silberman’s book Neurotribes.

But we can’t make Asperger’s a slur. It’s still an existing diagnosis all around the world. Happily it IS being removed from the ICD 11 in 2022 but it’s going to take decades to change the assumptions around that word.

Terra wants “Aspergers” to become synonymous with autism. No difference. No barriers. No judgements. Not because she loves or even identifies with Aspergers. Her diagnosis is autistic and she calls herself autistic. But she doesn’t think autistic people should be bullied over a label. It smacks of exclusionism.

The founder of The Aspergian feels that no autistic person should be bullied to the point of death or near-death because of their diagnosis, or because they have been trained to say they have Aspergers so NTs won’t pull the whole “you don’t look autistic” crap.

The autistic community, of ALL communities, should be the most understanding of misunderstanding. We should be the most able to understand that people don’t always mean what it sounds like they mean.

“Aspergers” is not a slur. It is not a supremacist term. At worst it is an outdated functioning label. At best it is a synonym for autism.

And it won’t become a dog whistle. Because The Aspergian won’t allow it.

[musicfeedsmysoul12]

*slides in* Hey there, love! I do believe you mentioned something about Poly ML heroes when last we spoke. Care to elaborate on a delicious concept? *vanishes on the wind*

Originally just random headcanons, but nooo. Someone has to feed me ideas and then prompt me into doing a twitter fic! Also, I don’t know twitter, and Loud!Paris is a magazine I made up.

SuperWatch @superherowatch

Rena Rouge and Carapace confirmed as a couple! Interview on… #superheroes #romance #RenaRouge #Carapace

         MissPopular @tiffanyjohnson

          Hey!!! That’s super cool! We have confirmed superhero pairing!!!

          IAmTheWalrus @walrus

          Yeah! I mean we all thought LadyNoir was real but hey- just as epic!

           Keith @keithrichards

          They keep making comments about being down for dating the others though. And joking about how hot people are. That’s sketchy.

          MissPopular @tiffanyjohnson

          Not really? I mean they’re probably just joking. I joke with my boyfriend like that all the time- we aren’t serious about it.

SuperWatch @superherowatch

Rena Rouge and Carapace have been accused of lying of their relationship or not taking it seriously… and then Queen Bee steps in. YouTube… #superheroes #romance #RenaRouge #Carapace #QueenBee

           MissPopular @tiffanyjohnson

            Holy crap!!! Did she just kiss Rena? And talk about being Poly?!?

            Keith @keithrichards

            Okay- that is taking it way to far. @ladybug, @kittycatnoir- you’ve gotta take away their Miraculous. They’re being utter perverts!!

             KeepParisSafe @keepparissafe

              I agree! This is a disgusting display of immorality and needs to be stopped!!

              MissPopular @tiffanyjohnson

              You’re the disgusting ones! Love is love you asses! Go tell the mayor to his face what you think if you’re going to whine on Twitter!

LadybugOffical @ladybug

Hey guys, just want to say that as a bisexual and polyromantic woman I support my teammates. Here’s the interview I did for the Ladyblog concerning this. #LGBT #comingout

KeepParisSafe @keepparissafe

Here’s a petition to force the so called heroes we have into giving up their powers so decent and family friendly heroes can take their place. #keepparissafe #banperversion

Ladyblog @alyathereporter

Hey Ladybloggers! I’ve got a hot scoop from a rather interesting source on the drama occurring in the media right now surrounding our heroes! Ladyblog… #ladybug #ladyblog #here’sthescoop

      HufflepuffisMe @harrypotternerd123

       Hey, can we get a transcript for the deaf bloggers?

      Ladyblog @alyathereporter

      Of course!!! Sorry for any inconvenience! …

     Miss Popular @tiffanyjohnson

     Favourite part of this:

     JT: I don’t understand why it’s such a fuss. The Seven Main Stones- as there are many other Miraculous Stones and you may see them occasionally- all tend to have a very close relationship. I was involved in such a relationship when I was in a group much closer to my age. Others were to- certainly it’s not always. We once had a full team of siblings- but it’s often enough we just don’t care.

      A: And your age…

     JT: I just don’t care. Let them be kids. Let them date, who cares. #olddudespeakswisdom #JadTurtleStan

MayorOfParis @andrebourgeois

My official statement for this entire thing is that I stand behind my daughter and proudly support her and her friends and fellow heroes. #themayor #LGBTProudparent

Queen Bee @chloebourgeois

I am not dating Rena or Carapace. I kissed Rena to prove a point. #goodkisser #notdating #stop asking

Loud!Paris @loudparis

Hello everyone, we’ve got a scoop! Our only known hero Queen Bee was seen kissing the creator of the Ladyblog Alya Césaire while a boy was holding her hand!!! #LGBT #dating

Ladyblog @alyathereporter

Official statement: yes. I am dating Chloe and my boyfriend Nino. All three of us are dating. #LGBT #notladybugstuff

     Ladybug#1Fan @kittykitykitty

     No wonder you get all the scoops then! This is blatant favouritism!!

     MissPopular @tiffanyjohnson

    She gets all the scoops because she’s a good reporter? Your blog literally steals from them all? And I don’t think she was dating Chloe earlier?!

SuperWatch @superherowatch

This in- Ladybug and Chat Noir caught kissing on the Effile Tower! #superheroes #Ladybug #ChatNoir #romance

    MissPopular @tiffanyjohnson

    IT’S CANON MOTHERFUCKERS!!!!

      Keith @keithrichards

     Given how immoral Ladybug is, I say Chat should dump her right away.

     Chat Noir @kittychatnoir

     Given I’m Pan and Poly… no.

     MissPopular @tiffanyjohnson

     BURN.

Loud!Paris @loudparis

Chloe and her girlfriend, Alya Césaire, and their boyfriend, Nino Lahiffe, caught out with Model Adrien Agreste and a pigtailed girl- and Adrien was holding hands with Nino!!! #LGBT #cute

Gabriel @gabrielagreste

I support my son in any way possible. Here is a release of Pride-related merchandise that I have been planning since he came out to me. Some of it designed by his girlfriend Marinette Dupain-Cheng. #LGBT #LGBTProudParent

     Adrien’s Wife @iloveadrienagreste

     SHE’S TOTALLY USING HIM! THEY ALL ARE! HE DESERVES BETTER.

    Ladyblog @alyathereporter

    How? Where’s your proof?

Mrs. Agreste @superpowahgirlisme

Wow, I just did some Google-Fu on the people Adrien is dating and… it’s honestly super impressive? #theseguysarecool #gothem

1- Alya is the runner of the Ladyblog which is #1 for news on Ladybug and has amazing footage- even before she started dating Queen Bee.

2- Nino won multiple DJ competitions and even has filmed small movies?!? Also the guy apparently got Akumatized cause Adrien wasn’t getting a party for his birthday so props!

3- Chloe is the mayor’s kid. And a superhero

4- Marinette is the girl who designed Jagged Stine’s glasses and his album cover. And she’s won a bunch of competitions!!!

           Adrien’s Wife @iloveadrienagreste

          THEY ARE USING HIM.

          Mrs. Agreste @superpowahgirlisme

          Given that only Marinette is like the girl who is in the fashion industry and she’s already attracted big names… ha.

Loud!Paris @loudparis

Interview with the poly couple everyone’s talking about! #polycouple #PolyLychee

DJ MIx @ninolahiffe

Apparently #PolyLychee is trending. Is it bad to want to put out some mixes I made for sale?

          Adrien’s Wife @iloveadrienagreste

         DO IT! I’d buy!!!

         KeepParisSafe @keepparissafe

         No one should buy anything from a perverted source! #BoycottDjMIx

         Adrien’s Wife @iloveadrienagreste

         Yeah- no one cares.

Loud!Paris @loudparis

Apparently there may be drama in #PolyLychee? Marinette seen with strange man! #istheredrama

Sewing Queen @risesfrombread

To all those who are asking- that’s Luka. He’s the older brother of a friend of ours… and another boyfriend. He WAS trying to keep it quiet cause he wanted to be a great musician without saying he had a leg up. Thanks a lot @loudparis

Loud!Paris @loudparis

Jagged Stone comes out with a new hit single dedicated to his sunglasses designer and friend, Marinette Dupain-Cheng and her poly relationship! As well… he comes out of the closet! #LGBT #PolyLychee #JaggedComingOut

Loud!Paris @loudparis

Another girlfriend?! Kagami Tsurugi seen with the poly relationship holding hands with Adrien Agreste!! #PolyLychee #LGBT #another

ModelMagic @adrienagreste

You know… @loudparis should shut up about the relationship we have if they keep outing our girlfriends and boyfriends. #PolyLychee #stopit

SuperWatch @superherowatch

HAWKMOTH REVEALED! Gabriel Agreste has been revealed to be Hawkmoth, with his assistant Nathalie Sancoeur being in cahoots! #Hawkmoth #HawkmothRevealed

LadybugOffical @ladybug

Please do not ask @adrienagreste any questions or disturb him. We have cleared his name and ask that he received privacy while we handle this.

SuperWatch @superherowatch

Hawkmoth has received 25 years in jail! His accomplice recieved 20! Also, new heroes on the block? The Butterfly and Peacock are in new hands! #hawkmoth #newheroes?

Loud!Paris @loudparis

This just in…. SUPERHEROES UNMASKED!! #whoisit #superheroes

 MissPopular @tiffanyjohnson

…We should have fucking known. #PolyLychee is now #PolyHeroes

Headcanons

-As you can tell, it started with Alya and Nino and rolled from there. Chloe saved them, they started hanging around her and then suddenly… all three were dating and oh, cool.

-Adrien and Marinette kinda joined after coming out as Poly as Chat and Ladybug to their teammates. They started as the heroes, couldn’t take the guilt and then… boom.

-Their families were 100% supportive and Gabriel like had the Gorilla look out for all of them. The Gorilla becomes a fan favourite cause he’s awesome and he protects them all. He has physically removed fans and haters.

-Gabriel has akumatized a LGBT member who went after homophobes and just humiliated them. The Heroes may not have bothered trying to help for a while.

-Luka joined the poly when he started hanging out with Marinette and Adrien more. He liked them all it just… happened. They did want to keep it quiet. Thanks Loud.

-Kagami was similar.

-Hawkmoth revealed, they all ended up staying in Adrien’s mansion and kind of doing a reveal to their families. No one was against it after that.

-Luka got Nooro while Kagami got the Peacock. They’re very happy together.

-They all got to keep their Miraculous and Master Fu peacefully passed not long after. They all attended his funeral- in full uniform.

-It was after that they did a giant reveal to Paris so they could properly mourn him and keep the police off Adrien’s back.

-In the end… they all become super famous and awesome. Nino become a famous DJ, Alya is a reporter who still runs the Ladyblog and other stuff, Chloe is terrifying as a businesswoman, Luka is a famous musician, Kagami is a champion fencer, Marinette is a designer and Adrien is a physics teacher.

-The Gorilla sticks with them and becomes head of security. He’s still a fan favourite- more so after he got a dog.

-The only thing that tops the Gorilla getting a dog, is the PolyHeroes having kids. Alya and Marinette got pregnant first and then Kagami and Chloe went: Shit, why not.

[recentanimenews]

Yuu Asakawa on Learning English & Why You Should Subscribe to Her Channel

  Voice actors are the passion that drive the anime we love to watch, giving their all in vocal performances that turn amazing moments of animation into memorable ones. But learning who the people are behind the voices can be just as amazing and interesting as the performances they give! At this year’s Crunchyroll Expo, we had the chance to sit down with Yuu Asakawa, a veteran voice actress who lends her voice to Fate/Stay Night’s Rider, as well as Vocaloid Luka Megurine. During our interview, we got a chance to ask her about the vocaloid process, how she got into voice acting, learning English, and even a surprising revelation about streaming video games!

    Thank you so much for taking the time to talk with us today! 

Yuu Asakawa: No problem, thank you!

Could you introduce yourself for our readers?

Yuu Asakawa: I’m Yuu Asakawa, and I’ve been a Japanese voice actress for over 20 years. Most people would know my role from the Fate series, but for everything else, please Google it. (laughs) It’s easier! 

How has your time in California been so far? Are you having a good time at Crunchyroll Expo?

Yuu Asakawa: Yes, I am! I don’t get to come to California all that often; the last time I was here was 3 years ago for a convention called AOD. And during the autograph sessions, there were fans going “Yeah, I saw you last time at AOD!”, so it was nice to see fans coming back to see me after 3 years.

How did you get started in the voice acting industry? What inspired you to pursue this career path?

Yuu Asakawa: The reason why I started doing anime voice acting was on a hunch. I wasn’t really interested in anime 20 years ago, but one day I was like “I wanna be a voice actress.” Then the next day, I went to a bookstore to check seiyuu magazines, and I found an acting school. I called the school, and I got in the school, and I started to learn acting. (laughs) So yeah, just a hunch!

Could you describe the process of how your voice was used to create Luka Megurine’s vocal library? How different was this process from conventional voice acting?

Yuu Asakawa: It’s very unique and very different from anime, in that Yamaha has a syllabalist. It’s kinda like some magic spell, where you basically have to record every possible syllable there is, so you just keep chanting random syllables over and over.

Wow, how long did that take?

Yuu Asakawa: It was very strenuous, so I could only do about 4 hours a day, with breaks. But, there were a couple of retakes, so it took a total of 5 days. With both the Japanese and English voice samples, it took quite awhile. 

With Luka having versions on both Vocaloid2 and Vocaloid4, do you have to provide new vocal samples with each new version of Vocaloid?

Yuu Asakawa: It was a “renewal” of sorts, so both of those versions got brand-new recordings. Since Crypton is the pioneer of the Vocaloid industry, with a lot of rivals popping up, they have to keep the state of the art technology! So they have to update their systems and microphones, and each time they do, you’ll have to re-record, because you can’t use the old voices recorded in the old version in the new tech.

Vocaloid has exploded in popularity, starting as a relatively small program used for fan creations and becoming a global phenomenon used by world famous musicians. How has it felt watching the franchise grow?

Yuu Asakawa: To put it in one word: it’s amazing! When you’re acting for an anime, the character stays with you, but with Vocaloids, it feels like it splits off; after you give them the voice, they take their own souls and take off on their own. Like I didn’t even know there was a Vocaloid collaborating with Kabuki nowadays! So it’s really hard to keep up with the current progress.

For example, if you voice an anime character and there’s an event coming up, and the character says something, they have to go back to the voice actress and ask “Can you record this for our event?” because that’s on a per event basis, and it needs the voice actress to actually say the line. But for Vocaloids, once you’re done recording, you’re done, so they can create new things without the voice actors! I’m never told what Luka is doing after I’m done recording.

As the voice of Rider, has it been challenging to voice different versions of the same character that pop up in different continuities and universes?

Yuu Asakawa: It’s not that difficult, because the base character is always the same, so you have the same foundation. There might be subtle changes, but since it’s still going to be the same fundamental character, it wasn’t that difficult. Rider is one of the easier characters to portray, because she’s a constant character in the series. Unless you go into the weird extras where the character suddenly falls in love with someone and changes completely, but with Rider, that doesn’t really happen, so it’s easy.

How has the voice acting process changed since the late ‘90s when you got your start? Has new technology affected the process at all?

Yuu Asakawa: The technology has improved to the point where it’s easier on the staff. When I started, they did tape recordings, so if there was an outtake, they had to pause and rewind the tape before the next take! But now since it’s all digital, they don’t have to worry about the rewinding part, so it cuts down on the recording times a lot, so it’s a whole lot easier on the staff.

One thing Western fans have noted is how comfortable you are speaking English! Did you grow up speaking English or was it something you learned on your own?

Yuu Asakawa: When I was growing up, in middle school, I didn’t have really good Math test scores, so I thought “I need to brush up on something!” And I was really good at linguistics, so I thought “Let me improve my English score!”, so it could augment my bad Math score, so that I could get into high school. I kept at it, because after I got into the industry as a voice actress, I felt that around my 10th year, the industry was shifting towards the voice actors needing to do something other than acting. Like they needed voice actors that could sing, cute little voice actress that could sing and look pretty in front of the fans. And I thought, “What could I do that is unique to me?” I learned so much English back then, and there aren’t that many voice actresses who can speak English, so that can be my one thing that I could use. 

So I went overseas to Australia for a while to re-learn English, and that’s how I’ve gotten comfortable with it. Part of the Japanese culture, since English is a mandatory subject starting from junior high, so we feel like trying to talk to anyone in English is like “Am I being tested right now?!”, especially if my conversation partner is my teacher. Am I going to fail at conversation if I make a mistake? So we basically feel that the fear of failure makes them scared to speak to people, but I don’t really feel that fear, especially after coming to different conventions so much, so the comfort level probably comes from not feeling that fear of being tested when I’m speaking to my fans.

If you think that I’m really comfortable speaking in English, it’s partially because the fans and the nature of the people in the US, because the US is such a melting pot of different cultures that they are more open to people who are not completely fluent in English. It might not apply to everyone in the country, but a lot of people, and definitely all the fans, are very receptive and nice; it’s okay to not talk perfectly, but at the same time, they’re willing to compromise and speak in easier terms, so maybe the fans are giving her the comfort to speak.

Would you ever want to provide voice overs for any English animation or video games?

Yuu Asakawa: Yeah, of course! I wish I could. Speaking in English and acting in English are very different, so if I do that, I have to learn acting in English first. So it sounds impossible, but maybe doing a small part is something I really want to try!

Again, thank you so much for taking the time to chat with us today! Is there anything you would like to say to our readers before we go?

Yuu Asakawa: I play games, and I figured I wanted more ways to contact both my Japanese and overseas fans, so I’ve been streaming on YouTube! So if you could look me up on YouTube and subscribe to my channel, that’d be great, because I have my chat open. Please come in, and say hi! I want to lessen the distance between me and my fans, and streaming is one of the ways I do that, so please come, subscribe and watch my streams!

Cool! What kind of games do you usually play?

Yuu Asakawa: Mostly horror games like Resident Evil, Dark Souls, Bloodborne, stuff like that! Usually games that have blood and gore. (laughs) Extra points if there’s really cute guys in the games! 

  We want to give our thanks again to Asakawa-san for sitting down with us and talking about all this. We’ll be checking out her YouTube channel for sure and saying hi; we think her mission to bridge the gaps between Japanese and English audiences is one we’re happy to support! Remember to smash that like button and don’t forget to subscribe, alright?

    ----

Nicole is a features writer and editor for Crunchyroll. Known for punching dudes in Yakuza games on her Twitch channel while professing her love for Majima. She also has a blog, Figuratively Speaking. Follow her on Twitter: @ellyberries

Do you love writing? Do you love anime? If you have an idea for a features story, pitch it to Crunchyroll Features!

By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com

[jikooklaundryroom]

Dry Pancakes

Gather around folks. It’s time to have an open and honest conversation about – yep you guessed it – Jimin and Jungkook and the behavior that mystifies the entire fandom.  And notice I say Jimin and Jungkook, not Kookmin or Jikook, because this talk is less about them as a couple and more about them as individuals.  A fair warning to everyone, only grown, competent adults are invited to this conversation.  If you are a twelve-year old who wants to scream about top/bottom sex positions and Omega slick and Jeonlous tongue thing – please move on.  This conversation is not for you.  Adults will be talking here.

In this essay, I will NOT discuss Jimin and Jungkook as an intimate- romantic couple, or as boyfriends, or as domestic partners, or as husbands.  In fact, those topics are so complex, that they will definitely need to be saved for another day.  Lastly, the only time Tae will be mentioned is in this sentence because I plan to write a full separate tribute to this precious man so that I can properly call out how poorly he is treated and perceived because of shipping wars.  Again, I give you fair warning, if this ain’t for you, move on because I can’t help you. OK?  I am going to give you my honest opinion here and I won’t be nice about it.  Pancakers, you should also be warned, you may be offended as well.  I leave no stone unturned.  Now that we have a proper filter in place, let’s get it.

The month of May gave us nauseating amounts of Jimin and Jungkook being seen together occupying each other’s space.  For those of you have been living under a rock, I will do a quick break down of some of their time together:  stage moments of laughing and teasing, stage moments of them comforting each other through difficult emotions (aka: the infamous ear sucking confusion), stage moments of them holding hands, sudden VLIVE, the two of them sharing a car, the two of them presumably sharing a hotel room, each one watching the other during rehearsals, the two of them watching fireworks, the elusive selca, the hand jockeying during the unboxing video and last but not least, the full day of sight-seeing they did with their friends in London.  And of course, for every moment they DO spend together there is a sea of people who only care about the moments that they DON’T spend together.  I’ll address both sides.  Within this flurry of activity/inactivty, comes a flurry of narratives from different factions within the fandom attempting to define what is happening, attempting to brain wash the neutral observer into taking their side over others.  These folks are literally and figuratively battling across social media to reign supreme in the war of narratives that explain Jimin and Jungkook.

Let’s break down some of these narratives and discuss why they are ALL bullshit shall we?

Narrative #1 -The “Bighit is forcing them to be together for publicity” crowd –  This group thinks that everything that Jimin and Jungkook do is strictly for the sake of bringing publicity/attention to Bangtan.  This shit has never made sense to me.  Exactly what additional publicity does Bighit and Bangtan need?  They just reached 20.2 million followers on twitter. They just won TWO Billboard music awards in America despite singing in only Korean.  They’ve been announced as members of the Grammy Recording Academy, they received the Order of Cultural Merit award in South Korea, they spoke at the United Nations.  They are the biggest boy band in the history of the world and if I am not mistaken they are currently on a sold-out stadium tour that has sold out over 600,000 seats in just ten shows.  SO, tell me, what bitch doesn’t know who Bangtan is?  Let’s pretend for a moment that Bangtan needed more publicity.  What additional publicity would be achieved by insinuating a homosexual relationship between two members?  Especially when you consider the vitriol that explodes when these two particular members are together.  Do you really think that forcing Jimin and Jungkook into a touchy-feely spree will help Bangtan sell more CDs or get more YouTube views?  If we consider how many homophones exist within the fandom, do you really think that highlighting the intimacy between Jimin and Jungkook would be viewed as positive and promote deeper engagement with the group?  Absolutely not.  Bighit is not encouraging Jimin and Jungkook to be fake gays for publicity. So again, I ask you, what additional publicity does Bangtan need? The answer is NONE; I think they’re good bro.

Narrative #2 - The “This is just fan service to satisfy the shipping culture” crowd – No other “ship” makes the fan more unhappy than Jikook. In fact, SNS explodes with negativity almost every single time that Jimin and Jungkook even breath near each other. Fans get extremely upset OR they ignore and refuse to acknowledge the interaction.  So how can it be fan service if it pisses off the majority of the fans?  Isn’t fan service supposed to make fans happy?  I would go even further to say that Bangtan, Jimin and Jungkook in particular know full well how polarizing their interactions are for the fandom. Seems to me like they don’t give a fuck though.  Fan service is to service the fans and give them what they want.  They don’t seem to want Jimin and Jungkook as unit.  And for those of you who think their relationship is manufactured to feed the pancakers out there, you’re mistaken and here’s why: Jimin and JK work very hard to avoid being caught or showing us too much.  It is pretty common knowledge that most of their most intimate interactions are done AWAY from the cameras – a fact that we would never know if they didn’t accidently tell us.  (“I go to Jungkook’s room at night when I can’t sleep because he also stays up late.” - Jimin) Often times, pancakers are VERY unhappy with the amount of interaction we get between Jimin and Jungkook and we are quick to yell foul if we aren’t “fed”.  This once again proves my point, it is not fan service if it doesn’t please the fans.

Narrative #3 – The “We just don’t understand Korean culture “ crowd - Uuum what? Talk to K-Army and even they will tell you that the intimacy and togetherness between Jimin and Jungkook goes far beyond typical “fan service” or “cultural norm” that would be expected from the Korean culture. It also extends beyond typical friendly male behavior given their closeness.  Westerners often get accused of “oversexualizing” Jimin and Jungkook or claiming something as homosexual because we “don’t understand” how Koreans interact.  BULLSHIT, BULLSHIT, BULLSHIT.  We know what we see.  We know what K-ARMY has explained to us.  We have taken the time to study the culture in Korea and talk with our fellow ARMY about Jimin and Jungkook.  The conclusion is always the same; there is an entire relationship being played out in front of us and it is consistent, predicable and progressive.  These interactions are not just fortuitous bits of circumstance by two friends. It is not just Korean culture.

Narrative #4 - The “Bighit is forcing them to be apart because they are too loud” crowd – Sorry Pancakes, but shut up.  This has become a ready-made excuse for us pancakers whenever we don’t receive the interactions that we expect (demand, crave, obsess over). Do you realize how much influence Jimin and Jungkook have over their own choices?  They are not mindless dummies who are mind controlled by their management. I will concede the fact that both of them are thoughtful and considerate of the feelings of the other members and they are also respectful of the wishes of management.  So if either of the two entities gives them advice with regard to watching their proximity then YES, this could affect their natural behavior’s. You have that concession from me. But that is NOT WHY THERE ARE LULLS IN THEIR INTERACTIONS.  Bighit management and Bangtan members are not playing some sadistic game of RED LIGHT – GREEN LIGHT with Jimin and Jungkook’s emotions.  Think about how ridiculous this sounds to say to grown men, “Ohh well you two were too intimate and too loud and you could expose yourself so you better repress your natural instincts as best friends and then pretend that the other doesn’t exist.” And then conversely, “You two have behaved and been good boys, so now you are allowed to interact and act like you’re in love again.”  If Bighit was trying to hide anything, they would shut it down completely, permanently - NOT IN RANDOM SPURTS.  The two of them would be threatened beyond belief and I guarantee there would be contractual implications.

It is simply ridiculous, not to mention reductive to attempt to exercise that level of control over two rich, popular and very grown individuals.  Guess what?  It’s also impossible.  Have you ever noticed that neither Jimin nor Jungkook are very good at following directions? If they are being told to stay away from each other, how come they never seem to do it?  At best, they manage to tone things down for short periods, but inevitably they always go back to just being them. My fellow pancakers have even gone so far as to develop a theory that Bighit was keeping Jimin and Jungkook from ever doing VLIVES together.  But just recently, we saw them splash tension all over the screen in a VLIVE between the two of them.  If they were restricted from doing VLIVES, then why did they do one all of a sudden after a 2-year hiatus?  Did Bighit suddenly change their mind and allow it?  Of course not.  There is a much simpler explanation and I will explain later.

Narrative #5 - The “They are just brothers, nothing they do is a big deal or any different from the rest of the members” crowd – Guess what? I actually agree with you, sorta’. So much of what Jimin and Jungkook do is the result of them being very close and loving friends who have been together forever. Even some of the gentler physical contact between the two is not exclusive to just them when compared to the other members.  But the situation is not quite that simple is it?  Brothers (not blood brothers) is just ONE of the many layers of the Jimin and Jungkook dynamic.  There’s more, a lot more.  I will come back to this one.  

Hm.  So if none of the prevalent theories above define the incongruent public intimacy of Jimin and Jungkook, then WHAT IS THE ANSWER?  Simple.  It’s called FREE WILL!  No one, especially Pancakes with butter and syrup, want to ever admit that Jimin and Jungkook do exactly what they want to do. The reason they interact and the reason they don’t is because it’s what they want to do at that moment.  They are exercising their FREE WILL.  If Jimin and Jungkook don’t speak, it’s because they don’t want to.  If Jimin and Jungkook don’t post on twitter, it’s because they don’t want to.  If Jimin and Jungkook don’t post a selca, it’s because they don’t want to.  If Jimin and Jungkook don’t do a VLIVE for two years, it’s because THEY DON’T WANT TO!  There could be months that go by where they CHOSE not to let us into their private lives and we as Jimin and Jungkook supporters have to be accepting of that choice.  Allow them to exercise their free will.  In most cases, their free will is to self-manage their own interactions.  Think about it this way – is everyday a good day for you?  Probably not. Some of us have really good days and some of us have really bad ones.  Our moods can be dictated by so many things such as: hunger, bad news, fatigue, negativity, irritation, anger, jealousy, illness, depression – so many things can affect how we feel and how we project our energy. These two men are no different.  They are not immune to the emotions that plague the rest of us mere mortals. Travel with me for a moment as we reflect on just how much Jimin and Jungkook are together,

Sharing a car during transport to and from the airport

Sitting next to each other on the plane

Spending time outside of business schedules to attend personal events (movies, dinner, tours)

Visiting each other’s parents

Presumably living together

Presumably sharing hotel rooms when they travel

Working together

Practicing together

Filming together

Presumably engaging in intimacy together

Together- Together -Together –Together- Baam  

That’s a lot of freaking togetherness.  When we see them keep their distance, why are we surprised?  It is clear that they are using their free will to be together MOST of the time and that is a sign of a very solid symbiotic relationship.  So why can’t it be conversely true that they are also using their free will when they are apart?  We pancakes are so quick to blame external forces when Jungkook and Jimin aren’t stuck to each other as opposed to blaming Jimin and Jungkook themselves.  Personal growth can only occur when you broaden your horizons and experience new things, new environments, new opinions and new people.  YES NEW PEOPLE.  It is an exercise in self-care for them to be apart from time to time.  We can’t and shouldn’t expect them to be together 24/7. It just isn’t healthy.  I would say they live a well-rounded life when they can be happy apart but still prefer to be together.  It’s beautiful.  It you are truly a part of the Jimin and Jungkook nation, then your attitudes and opinions toward the strength of them individually or as a couple should NOT be predicated solely on what they do together and how often.  Do I need to repeat that last sentence for the 14YOs who read this post even though I tried to filter you out?  Just because the two of them don’t show us blatant interactions does not meant that is an indictment or indicator that the friendship/relationship/companionship/brotherhood is dead.  Please stop posting fatalistic admonishments because their interactions are not timed according to your schedule.  Let them live.  Yes, I am saying that when we go through a pancake drought, it is because Jimin and Jungkook themselves want it to be that way.  Not because they are being forced to do so.

Now let’s talk about the nature of their interactions by using myself as an example.  I love my husband with all of my heart.  He is truly my soul mate and we get along very well. Our relationship is so complex and has so many layers.  We are friends, lovers, parents, mates, partners, business owners, even at times like siblings.  So, when he and I interact, the definition of that interaction could fall within any of the categories that I just listed.  It could be a friendly touch, or a sexual touch or a business partner touch – understand what I mean?  The same is true with Jimin and Jungkook.  Their interactions are highly conditional and must be reviewed within the context of the moment.  Which means, when they are in friend mode and they hug, they honestly are just hugging as friends.  Over hyping meaningless moments without placing it within proper context, makes pancakes look petty and delusional.  Another example, when one is sucking the other’s ear – aww shit – I have no idea what category to put that in – but it ain’t friends – we need to hype the shit out of that one.   That was a bad example.  But you get my point.  Moving on…

Let me make this really clear.  Do you remember when you first fell in love with Bangtan?  We fell so hard right?  The music, the dancing, the talent, the fashion, the creativity, the visuals – we fell hook line and sinker.  But there was more wasn’t it?  Think back.  There was soo much more.  Yes my pancakes, we fell in love with their hearts.  We fell in love with them as people.  Above all, we fell in love with their AUTHENTICITY.  You see, Bangtan was never fake.   Bangtan never presented a closed-off image to us.  They provided as much transparency and honesty as they possibly could, which was a HUGE change from what we were accustomed to seeing from KPOP artists (any artist really).  They allowed us to have a real-world peak into their emotions, vulnerabilities and personalities.  Bangtan’s authenticity is why we love them most and why we continue to love them. So when we see the love that exists between all seven of them, we know it’s real.  Accordingly, there is an extreme affinity that Jimin and Jungkook have towards each other that cannot be faked.  Even if they were being forced for publicity purposes to spend time together, they could not do it successfully unless there was already an underlying desire to be together.  Furthermore, forcing someone to be together when they don’t want to be is paramount to torture and that would greatly affect the overall happiness and chemistry of the entire group.  Imagine being forced to spend that much time with someone you don’t like.  It also explains why we don’t see other couplings “forced” upon the members because it’s not natural.  None of the members have a strong ability to vacate authenticity.  They all truly exercise their free will.  

And for my very last point, I want to talk a little tiny bit about the VLIVE (again).  I have insisted throughout this rant that Jimin and Jungkook were never prohibited by Bighit from doing a VLIVE together. So why the 2-year hiatus?  I think the explanation is pretty simple.  As we saw, it is very difficult for the two of them to maintain “composure” when they are together.  They show us so much when they fully intend to show us nothing.  They are acutely aware of how they appear on camera – which is why I argue that their two-year hiatus was self-imposed.  Think about how hard it must be in that intimate setting, sitting that close, talking that freely to repress their natural instincts to touch, or call each other pet names or possibly even kiss.  It’s like freaking impossible.  So why risk it?  It is so much easier to just keep themselves out of that situation and instead watch each other do the VLIVES from off camera.  As we know, even when one of them is off camera, they still freaking flirt.  Imagine if they were both in front of the camera on a consistent basis.  This goes back to my theory on free will.  I honestly believe that these two are being very smart to exercise their free will to stay away from Jikook VLIVES.

I have probably not changed anyone’s mind and you will likely continue to incessantly spew your narrative, whatever it is.  But for those of you who are a bit more open-minded, I hope you found some insight as well as clarity in my words.  Here’s to loving our seven boys and obsessing over two of them.

So in conclusion, I have concluded.  Thank you. Love you Pancakes – don’t be mad, k?