#anyway there's a reason Louis is always so afraid no one will be there for him and that he started out solo era playing those radio fests..

[statementlou]

https://www.tumblr.com/louisupdates/754934426217152513/goodbye-faith-in-the-future-world-tour-272024?source=share

did he or did he not lose fans then?

I will answer this because this anon actually brings a concrete question to the table rather than just "hurhur but you're a larrie??" (tell me you can't actually refute any of our points…). Anyway this post shows the decrease in Louis instagram followers between the screenshots taken directly after the release of Faith in the Future in Nov '22, when he changed his bio to promote that album and the tour tickets, and now, when he changed it again to mention the current release. But I'm putting that response under a cut because I'm tired of the actual POINT of all this nonsense getting lost in a sea of made up things people insist are important:

There is no rational argument you can make to say that Louis has less fans now than he did 2, 4, or 6 years ago. You don't need a spreadsheet of details you need to USE YOUR EYES! He has gone from filling theaters to filling arenas and stadiums. His second album made a higher chart position than his first album. His festival has doubled in size EVERY year of its existence. And for that matter: his insta post engagement numbers remain about the same (despite the fact that older posts should have way MORE likes due to having been there longer, even aside from follower counts.) SO WHO FUCKING CARES ABOUT HIS INSTA FOLLOWER NUMBER???? Serious question: what does the word "fans" mean if these things aren't what matters? ALL of this quibbling about what he should do to make things better and people can't even see that THINGS AREN'T BAD.

Anyway to address the specific question- (con't......)

NO- HE DID NOT LOSE FANS. HE LOST SOME INSTA FOLLOWERS. THESE ARE NOT THE SAME THING. As I said above, literally what does it mean to lose fans if that number change coincides with him having higher sales, more audience members, and higher engagement than ever before? Whatever he lost ISN'T FANS. I wouldn't be surprised if a significant factor was something like a bot purge, but also yes: I'm sure a lot of casuals followed him around the time of his big album release and later unfollowed him. That's extremely normal because that's how casual engagement works, and why the definition of fan really matters. Louis and his team understand this and have referenced it repeatedly, talking about how lucky he is to have *us* specifically, to have the kind of dedicated fanbase he has, to have the KIND of fans he does who will allow him to do what HE wants. @dogsliampaynedoesntinstagram named the issue of depth vs breadth with regard to fans a long time ago, and pointed out why having DEPTH is so much more important. It's like this- artists who are on top 40 radio have more numbers on things like insta follows, and for a time on sales and tickets. But those aren't FANS- they're people with a casual interest. And as soon as that person isn't being forced in their ears 10x a day, those people lose interest and stop supporting them, stop buying stuff and unfollow, and those artists end up doing the 'opener on the jingle ball' circuit rather than their own tours. One Direction as a whole, and Louis maybe most of all or near to at this point, have something MUCH MORE VALUABLE than that- DEPTH FANS. Louis has fans who will support him even if he takes years to release music, or stops parading around with a pretend girlfriend to stay in the headlines at least once a month, or completely changes his image and genre, and that is UNHEARD OF. It's ASTONISHING and worth SO MUCH MORE. And they get that! THAT is why he always bragging about us, why industry people he works with are always so agog about us, why he will do anything for US- not for randos. He is also growing his breadth- and it's OBVIOUSLY WORKING whatever his follower counts are, but that is always going to be secondary to doing things for THE FANDOM because that is his sustainable business model. That is what keeps him onstage and reaching number one. And not coincidentally, the things they do are also working to grow that- much more valuable- commodity. So the fact that that's exactly what these chuckleheads complain about- that he does things that are just fandom facing or serving rather than everything being aimed at recruiting casual fans- does nothing but betray how completely they, unlike Louis and his team, misunderstand the actual drivers of his (actual, existing, happening) success. Luckily for Louis, he and his team rely on their own data harvesting (they do a LOT of it) and growth metrics (they're off the charts) rather than the smug assumptions of random (mostly quite new to this) fans and the few bitter people leading the complaining about everything Louis does.

[nalyra-dreaming]

Hey, it's the DM anon. Sorry if I come off as too pessimistic, but I just want to address the reblog post

"Armand in the show doesn't need someone to introduce him to the modern world. He's already familiar with it."

This was kinda the point of my message. The main reason why the Devils Minion chapter is so popular is because it's not just a cat & mouse thriller; it's also a sitcom about a "normal" boy teaching a powerful 500 yr old immortal all about the modern world - the perfect blend of horror & romantic comedy. Logically I always knew that some of the relationship would be cut or altered when they adapted it to the show, but it looks like they're cutting all of the fan favorite scenes. (I will forever be bitter about losing 'Call Paris for me')

My fear is that the writers will change everything that made Devils Minion, Devils Minion. Whatever relationship Armand & Daniel have on the show will be brand new. I may be jumping the gun, but they've already changed the 2 reasons why Armand chose Daniel as his human companion in the first place:

1. He needed someone to teach him about the modern world and as the reblog stated, he no longer needs that. Which means we also won't get my other favorite scene: when Armand drags Daniel out of bed and demands he show him things in the city. He won't need to do that because he will already have explored these cities with Louis

2. He liked that Daniel wasn't afraid to stand up to him. But from everything the show, reviewers, and Eric has told us, '73 Daniel was just a bumbling idiot Yes Man. Where's the challenge?

And now we know that Loumand had several relationships with humans throughout the decades, some of whom got to live out their lives unharmed. So Daniel isn't even special, he's just the latest. Idk how the show expects to sell ArmanDaniel when they've erased everything that made them unique.

I know Assad talked about Armand's fear that Daniel knows Louis more than he does and the reblog thinks that might be the reason Armand falls for Daniel, but I'm nearly positive Assad was talking about Dubai Daniel not SanFran Daniel. The only connection Louis & Daniel seem to have in the 70s is their love of drugs, since one reviewer talked about how they're both fucked up during the first interview. I doubt young Daniel could stay sober long enough to have a meaningful conversation with Louis, let alone a meaningful relationship. So why exactly would Armand be attracted to him? I really hope the writers give us a real reason that's more than just "he likes him in the book. Y'all do the rest"

Anyway, thanks for allowing me to rant

:) All good.

But... I honestly would wait till the season has run. I do trust them when they say episode 5 and 8 are the game changers.

I know it's hard to stay calm when you have waited for so long to see a realization of something at all.

And... I don't think the "you can fuck them and I can eat them" humans (I hope everyone caught that line and that they attributed that to Lestat in s1^^) were anywhere close on the level Daniel will be.

I really don't.

Daniel is definitely special, as the interview in Dubai proves, imho. But... the timeline is different, that's all. Give it some time.

[criistalxxx]

I recently made a post about some albums that I love and that I listened to non stop back in the days. I mentioned how they helped shape me as a person and my music taste but really it was a specific artist that made me who I am and who made me truly fall in love with music. They are who I think about whenever spotifiy wrap comes around and people look at me crazy for how many minutes I listened to music. Its One Direction. Without sounding so cliche they are who I listened to nonstop in middle and high school. I've always liked music but really they are who made me fall in love with it and made me expand my music taste. Made me explore other music that wasn't radio hits and what my parents played. In a corny cliche way they were also my safe haven. My mental health took its first appearance in middle school and they were what I would listen to whenever I was having an episode. I would also sit there for hours on YouTube watching One Direction funny moments. Also of course they are what got me into reading. Shout out to Wattpad, AO3, and all the non English speaking authors who made some of the best soul crushing smutty fanfics ever. I can go on and on about all the ways one direction members inpacted me (and I will), but lets take a break and get into the actual reason I'm making this post right now. I'm going to go through each album and talk about them. I know probably no one will see this but like my bio says this is my personal diary and I'm doing this for me. lets get started and go to the very first album.

Up All Night

On May 25, 2012 One Direction released there debut album titled Up All Night. There was 18 songs on the album making the duration 1 hour and 3 minutes. This album broke many records and went certified triple platinum in my room. Their lead single 'What Makes You Beautiful' was my first introduction to One Direction. It was a fun pop song and I was obsessed with it. I would watch the music video daily and would choose which boy I thought was the cutest with my cousins and who we would date. Keep in mind I'm in middle school when this came out. At the time it was the best album but now that I got taste its not in my top listened. Dont get me wrong there's some bangers on here that whenever I hear them I totally jam out, but it has some of my leaset favorite songs on the album. Either way this a certified classic and if it was playing I would def be singing along too.

Favorites: Tell Me A Lie, More Than This, Moments

Least Favorites: Gotta Be You, Save You Tonight, Another World

Take Me Home

On November 12, 2012 they released their sophomore album Take Me Home. This was also the start of them releasing music in November. This album was what for sure made me fall in love. This was the album where we were able to hear more from my kings Louis and Niall. Just in case you don't know who the members of the biggest boy band of this century let me tell you about them. Niall Horan, Louis Tomlinson, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, and Zayn Malik. My husbands and who made me who I am now. In the begininng of their career Louis and Niall were seen as the weaker links but they were also fan favorites so there was a large demand for them to be able to sing more and be apart of the music more. At one point they would turn down Nialls mic and #LetNiallSing was trending on socials. Louis in his recent documentary talked about how they would record vocals for songs only for them to not make the cut. This album we did see more from them but nothing compared to the next couple albums. I also believe this was the first album where Louis got to be apart of the writing process more. Anyways this album is great and screams summer to me. We also got Harry rapping so that was dope.

Favorites: Over Again, She's Not Afraid, and Nobody Compares

Least Favorite: Irresistible, Magic, Truly Madly Deeply

Midnight Memories

This album is so good, like so so so good. It was released November 25, 2013. Its 59 minutes and 31 seconds of nothing but hits. The boys were very happy with this album since they felt like they actually were able to be involved with everthing on this album. Not to mention we got to see Louis and Liam write nothing but the best songs in One Direction's discography. More specifically Louis with 12 song writing credits on the album which btw theres 18 songs on the album. that more that half the album and all of them are straight bangers. This era was the best and most fun era in my opinion next to the take me home era. It was also when they were in their frat boy era were they looked SO good. With the release of this album we got their documentary and also 1D which was a beautiful disaster. This album and the next has my top favorites in their discography so it was very hard for me to choose but here's my favorites and least favorites. Which I want to clarify that I don't hate these songs theyre just the ones I don't listen to the most.

Favorites: Happily, Does He Know?, and Alive

Least Favorites: Something Great, You & I, Little White Lies

Four

Four is there fourth studio album (duh). This is probably my favorite album by them for sure. I kinda go back and forth between this and midnight memories but something about Four just has my heart. If I was trying to get someone into One Direction I will most likely have them listen to this album for sure. It's also probably there more indie alternative sounding album which is the type of music I currently listen to. Theres actually so many good songs on here that it was actually hard to decide which songs were my favorite because I am constantly changing it. 16 songs in total with 57 minutes of play time. This album was released November 17, 2014 and was the last album to feature Zayn on it. I still remember and will never forget the day I found out he was leaving. I was literally in algebra in middle school. I put on my headphones the whole day and became very very very emo. Like I literally went non verbal that whole day and everyone was cracking jokes and all I wanted to do was go home and cry. I did just that actually. Once I got home I went to my room and cried my eyes out like it was a first break up. Anyways this album is so good and in my opinion has only one skip and one song where I can only listen to it for a few more times before it becomes a skip (Once in a Lifetime and Fool's Gold). I also cant talk about this album without mentioning the No Control Project. No Control is a super sluty song written by my king Louis Tomlinson. It features a chorus where its literally nothing but him. Im so serious its just him singing the chorus and I live for it. Louis was always that person in the band where everyone outside the fandom thought he brought nothing to the band and couldn't sing. Which for at one point in his life he honestly believed which breaks my heart cause that's my boy. So you can imagine our shock when we heard this song for the first time. I literally cried and started screaming of pure joy of hearing Louis so much on a song. Please this song around a louis girl and shes crumbling. Anyways we wanted this song to be a single so bad but they never did release this as a single so we did what we did best and make it a fan project. Basically we promoted the shit out of this song and also got radios to play it. It got so huge that it broke records and charted. They still never released it as a single but it was definitely appreciated by them especially Louis. Anyways this album will always be my go to and the last real album with the core 5.

Favorite: Girl Almighty, No Control, Where Do Broken Hearts Go

Least Favorite: Once in a Lifetime, Fool's Gold, Act My Age

Made In The AM

This is their first album post Zayn. It was relased on November 13, 2015 with 17 songs and 58 minutes of play time. Although it didn't have Zayn it didn't feel any different from their last two albums in my opinion. Off topic but not really, I just stopped to check twitter and get a mini break from typing and the song Perfect started playing as soon as I read a tweet announcing that Perfect just reached 1 billion streams on Spotify making it their 5th song to achieve a billion streams. God I love this band. Anyways this song hold my all time favorite song by them, Hey Angel. I would pay any amount of money to hear this song again. Hey Angel is four minutes of everything I love about a one direction album. Amazing chorus, fantastic bridge and a random section that screams sex appeal. Harry during the second verse will always get me. I would love to have been a fly on the wall when he was recording that part. I won't say to much about it just go and listen to it on yourself and come back and agree with me. THE BRIDGE. Like are you kidding. It starts with Liam and its so catchy but then we bring it my lovely Louis and it just gets so much better. like the harmonies and melodies of that part will always get me. I just wish it was longer but it's great either way. I wont lie some of the songs on the album definitly had to grow on me but once they did it was amazing. 10 outta 10 album.

Favorite: Hey Angel, Wolves, Infinity

Least Favorite: If I Could Fly, I Want to Write You A Love Song, Long Way Down

In conclusion this band has some amazing songs and has atleast one song that I truly believe people will like. this band brings me so much joy and I could never thank them enough for everything they did to me without realising it. They shaped my music taste and the awsome humor I have. They are definitely my comfort artist and I will never hide that. Depending on the playlist they will always have at least one song there but whenever I get supre anxious, depressed or whenever I feel an episode coming on, I play their music to ground me and comfort me. Like my first breakup and the second, when I was suicidal, when my nephew died, and when Liam passed are just some of the examples I played their music to help calm me. Except the few times where I related to the songs and I cried even harder but that's besides the point. I love this band so much that ever since I was able to drive myself whenever I was with my younger brother I would play one direction so that way I will have a partner to listen to their music and not complain. I will never forget the endless nights of voting just to get them to win awards, making my first twitter and being there when stan twitter was being developed because of us, reading my first smutty book due to a fanfic about Harry, pretending to be sick during every album release so I could listen to it enough times to get it to number one. Remember to refresh instead of clicking replay. Sit me down and I can talk about them forever. This band will always mean the most to me and I will always cherish them.

[scalamore]

Rupelali's promise in Ch 33

Some clarification on this part of the debutante arc:

Some readers think it's a plot hole/contradiction that Lari has thoughts of leaving the palace (debutante arc), and how she so easily left Rupe (Secrets arc), even though in Ch 32-33, she begged him so much to allow her to stay by his side, she'll give up herself/her freedom to him/he owns her, and how in Ch 60-78, well into S3, she worked hard to show him her loyalty and wanting to gain his trust and truly be "his person" to earn his favor and protection for her and her family. The thing is, is that the promise the two made, for her to become wholly his in Ch 32ish, when they were 12-13 had changed over time.

The thing is, back when Rupert was 13. He had NOTHING for himself. He was an incredibly lonely person, who had no friends or family, and had no one he could trust. Lari knew that all he had was Louis - a military dog - and Tori, his close confidante. She quickly realized that he wanted someone to talk to - a companion. She was also desperate - she had nothing to offer besides herself. She's not strong, rich, has no political power, no knowledge. Typical of this society, for someone who had nothing - especially a female - she offered herself to him: Her body and soul, her existence to him. She will BELONG to him, one of his possessions. In exchange, he will protect her and her family from harm if they were to be accused of treason again. She gambles that the future Rupert will be reasonable, that he'll take their long friendship in consideration and not swiftly execute.

Despite knowing how suspicious she was, Rupert still accepted the offer because he craved companionship and a sense of normalcy. It's not like the weak Lari could ever harm him anyway. He just wanted someone not given/handed down to him by Eva to belong to HIM. He desperately wanted someone who was loyal to him, who wouldn't betray him - and the best way to ensure that, is for him to possess them so they won't betray him first. That's the twisted relationship the two shared. That's how their relationship started. Neither would have ever dreamed or expected how much the situation would change in just 5 years.

Rupert never expected that he would start to develop special feelings for Lari. Those feelings confused him so much: his rapidly developing feelings were so new to him, that he mistook "love" for "obsession". The stronger his feelings, the more jealous he felt when she didn't give him as much attention as she could've, he wanted her to confide in him, rely on him, talk to him as much as he wanted to towards her. He didn't know how to deal with this feelings: All he could understand was he "wanted her". he wanted to be with her all the time, he wanted her to stay beside him forever... Then there's the dilemma. All he knew of was the twisted "love" between the Emperor and Eva. He witnessed how Eva was broken down by that possessive, obsessed "love". The feelings he had for lari at age 15: he felt "similar" raw feelings like the desire to have her close and being intimate with her. But despite these feelings, Rupert was held back by the fact that he always knew Lari was scared of him, hated him even.

Knowing this, Rupe was stuck from the very start. He couldn't dare touch Lari because he was convinced the moment he inappropriately touched her, she would hate him more and run away secretly from him. He absolutely could not bear the thought of that. So he did what he thought was best - deny his feelings for her, act as if nothing had changed, and remind her that she belonged to him, to not run away.

But in doing so, those reminders caused Lari to worry, because she interpreted his fear as distrust, rather than him trying to plead with her to please stay with hm in the future too. During the debutante, Rupert finally admitted to her, that he was afraid she'd run away because she has no reason to stay. He wanted to reassure her that he'll protect her and her family as the soon-to-be Emperor to gain more of her trust, but he also had to tell her directly of his fears of her leaving. By that point, both Rupert and Lari knew that if she really wanted to, he wouldn't stop her from leaving. He couldn't. The moment he forces her to stay beside him, is the moment he will earn her resentment, fear, and hatred, the same things he's been trying to avoid since becoming crown prince.

Lari as well, thinks the situation will change. As a crown prince he doesn't have many allies yet, but soon, when he becomes Emperor, he'll be surrounded by lots of people and will form new bonds with them. Right now, he only has her, Tori, and Louis. As she's said for years, she won't leave him just yet, until he's happy. Otherwise he'll still be a lonely, sad Emperor like TL1. She at least, wants to stay beside him until he has more friends/companions to not need her anymore, and then she can leave and live her own life. She wouldn't leave before that though - she'd be too worried how he's doing. She still only thinks she's nothing special, and is just a person he trusts because of all the time they spent together. He may care for her a lot, but again, that's because of all their years together. After all, again, one he becomes Emperor he'll meet lots of new people, he'll be surrounded by those who want his companionship, the people will love him, and he'll be fulfilled that way.

During the separation arc, his decision to let her go so easily was already foreshadowed: he would never be able to chain Lari to the palace, to him. As much as he wants to selfishly keep her beside him, he can't because he loves her too much, and he cares more about her heart and happiness above all else.

It took him almost a whole year after the separation, but he realizes that as Lari doesn't hate him - or fear him- there's a spark of hope that maybe she'll learn to fall in love with him? that way, she can CHOOSE to stay beside him? He will no longer force or possess because if she returns his feelings, then she'll stay beside him and not want to leave either. Thus, by the time she returns to the palace, Rupert has already sorted out his feelings: he acknowledges them, his feelings for Lari, and instead of hiding away, he will seduce her with all his might and leave absolutely no doubt of his feelings for her. Maybe then, she will choose to stay beside him, but also keep her radiant smile as always :) So while their relation started off on the very twisted dynamic of Rupert "owning" Lari, in the end their relationship had reset during the separation. They were no longer master/maid. No longer fake Emperor/ fake Belois. They were simply Rupert and Lariette, and they redefined their relationship now as lovers. He no longer owns her - because he will NEVER cage her or limit her actions. She's simply Lariette. How dare he ever try to limit her actions.

[savagewildnerness]

I read all of the Vampire Chronicles as a teenager; some of the later ones, as they were released. I only ever reread TVL & QOTD as they’re my favourites (especially TVL which I have reread many, many times since then)… although I know when I was a teenager I also adored Memnoch the Devil & that was the only book I felt I wanted other people to read it too.

I think I never reread Memnoch because of Lestat’s existential questioning & the deep impact the book had on me & not long after I read it, my Dad died. It isn’t that I ever believed in God myself. My Mum is Catholic, but I wasn’t brought up religious & my Dad didn’t believe. But where I could have said I was agnostic till then, after my Dad died that was an absolute no for me. I had to know for certain what I believed.

And I think part of why Lestat is such a powerful character; The Character to me is that his reasoning underlay my personal development & so he helped me when I had to delve deep into what I believed in the most difficult context (when someone is dead, you wish you could believe in more, at least because it would give some comfort and so be easier… but I do not believe that. I believe when we are dead, that is it: utterly dead, dead, dead, gone.)

Anyway… I think I’m going to go through all the chronicles now. Not just my favourites. I don’t know: does it seem silly that when I do deep existential questioning or sink into dark questioning of my fundamental beliefs, Lestat is ALWAYS there with me? He is who I talk such matters over with, I suppose… and that’s despite that only 2 of the books did I ever reread till now. But Memnoch particularly had such an impact on me that even having never reread it, its impact is still the same now. Although I’m a bit afraid to reread that in case I don’t feel it the same now I’m not a teenager???

Well, TVL was actually the first Anne Rice book I read ever, but I am returning now to Interview with the Vampire for the first time since I was in my young teens & this page has just broken my heart. I was young when I first read this book. I wasn’t thinking about Anne Rice herself at all; only the book. I doubt I knew, when I read it about Anne’s own daughter.

But reading it now, knowing the context in which it was written, I hear Claudia’s challenge to Lestat & Louis “Which of you made me what I am?” as something veiled, but deeper too: Anne making her daughter challenge her & Stan (incidentally Stan was my Dad’s name too) as to why she had to die. (Not saying this was her daughter’s feeling in reality in any way ever, or even necessarily Anne’s intention. Only what I felt just now.)

Anyway - No wonder Lestat & Louis had to be redeemable, loveable, beautifully in love vampires by The End Of It All, in order to overcome this pain & trauma & the impossibility of the wrongness of death (that any soul can cease is unimaginably awful. Incomprehensible when that’s your own child & you have no power over it) that is surely impossible to ever overcome in reality, but which (o the joy of fiction), in fiction, these characters can be loveable, loved & they can be “redeemed”, they can be ok, they can endure & they can even become The Character eternally, just like their immortal selves for I am sure thousands of people, just like (you &?) me.

[gachagon]

Haru, Legoshi, and Louis are all the same

(spoilers for beastars manga)

Legoshi, Haru, and Louis all get along and work so well together because they're all fundamentally people who try their hardest to change the way they naturally are in order to "fit in" with the rest of society. They all do things that go against their "true nature" just so other people will hold a different opinion of them when they first see them.

And the main reason they ALL do this is because they are also all people who are immediately judged harshly just by the way they look from other people. Yes, the other animals in Beastars all have to deal with this as well, but with these three it's inherently different because the stereotypes that are being pushed onto them are unique to just their specific appearances.

People are afraid of Legoshi not because he's just a predator but because he's specifically a grey wolf. We notice that while there are other wolves in the school, none of them are really the same kind as Legoshi. He even pointedly sticks out when he's with them.

And Haru is a Dwarf rabbit but her white fur makes other animals think of her as some extra innocent small creature that needs to be protected by default. She's the only white dwarf rabbit, and multiple times throughout the manga when she's with men the one thing they comment on is her fur and how it's "spotless", how small she is etc, her black eyes. Features that are noticeably absent from the other dwarf rabbit girls. (and yes I am aware the others aren't rabbits)

And Louis is a stag deer, the literal embodiment of a "prey" animal that tries it's hardest to be tougher than the things trying to eat it. Louis has the advantages of being a deer with antlers, but just like real deer in the wild, he is defenseless without them. He loses whatever confident exterior that people presume him to have when he sheds the antlers every so often. People will always view him not just as a prey animal, but a deer. Animals known for the docile and weak nature, animals that will run off of cliffs if they're scared slightly. He can't let anyone ever think he's afraid, not even once, because once they see that he fears anything its a wrap. People will just go "well that makes sense he is a deer". And any accomplishments he's made thus far is just thrown out the window, it'll be obvious to everyone he was "always" faking it. (It's why he's so adamant about the play still going on despite his injury.)

All three of them do things entirely against their nature just so others can look at them in a different light. Legoshi purposefully makes himself seem small and as nonthreatening as possible to prey animals because he knows that just from the way he looks, they won't want to be his friend and will be wary of him right off the bat.

Haru sleeps around with the men who chase after her because when she's doing something that's not "innocent" she's not being looked down upon as some defenseless small creature that needs saving. No one will take her experience in life seriously, unless it comes to something like actual sexual intercourse. (She's even the one who 'takes charge' when she first meets Legoshi and tells him she's fine with being the one on top the girl knows to do okay.)

And Louis pushes down any fear he feels in favor of unwavering confidence and bravado. If he's afraid he just pushes through anyways and fakes it in front of everyone. He would rather die than admit he's even a little bit worried or even anxious in a situation. Louis ate meat in the company of lions because he didn't want them to think he was just some stag deer like his father, but something even above that.

And this is why they all have such a close relationship with each other. They may not know it, but they're all doing the same thing and can relate to the pains of having to change yourself not just because of what you are, but because of what you look like in relation to other people in your species.

[persephoneflouwers]

What things not conventionally accepted in the fandom do you believe about bg? We all have our own beliefs and I think that's totally OK. I like hearing things outside the box

I don’t think I’ve ever talked about this and quite honestly I haven’t read it anywhere. I think people too often divide Harry and Louis solo careers because they think they are on different stages, but with them I always apply the same logic. To me they go in tandem, like yoghurt packs alright? Like cherries. It’s the two of them or nothing (hypothetically either if they are together or not). It’s not a case I have a tag for them and it’s polar opposites lol I know people say they are their own people and I agree to a limited extent. They do what they have to for their careers and obviously they do what they can individually, but babygate is something else. It’s not a simple stunt. It’s not a stunt like the others. That shit is not something you just go through by yourself. I wouldn’t be afraid to say babygate is never one single individual call, never is Louis’ individually.

I want to take a few steps back to 2015. One direction is still at it, but rumours of the hiatus are on fire. You have 1 of them who’s been courted by the best in the business and your influential son since ages. You have a project for him. You have a plan. A vision. You take the frontman and you need him to be successful. You are going to invest so much money on this guy you’ll make him the new Elvis or something. You know you can. You’re rich enough for that! What 1D team did with his image was incredible. They gave him the most intriguing brand for an upcoming solo artist. They gave him the rockstar aurea, the heartthrob agenda, the golden boy super talented curriculum. They failed with one thing: the rumours on his sexuality. Not the ambiguity, you like the ambiguity. You can even use that ambiguity for his own good. You will (they did). Their failure was one and only: the rumours on your relationship status with your bandmate. You can’t have that. How’s it possible that the mortal enemies pipeline didn’t work? How can you break that? You can’t give your golden goose a serious relationship, a long lasting one… that’s going to ruin the brand. You need to think about something else.

So what if..? What if you rebrand his counterpart, who was in a 5 years long relationship instead and give HIM an even more long lasting stunt? That’s supposedly going to last forever? Like a baby*. That would settle it. How would you do it? How would you convince them to agree with this? You take 4 boys who know no better, who have been indoctrinated and manoeuvred since they were illegal of age, who are going to not be in a band anymore, who feel probably a bit uncertain about their future… and sell them a dream. Add some guilt and strong recommendations, maybe a few threats and lies. And there you have it. The perfect stunt that will serve two purposes: 1. put one of them in the heaviest of the closets (plus he was always a pain in the ass for you so you are even more okay with it), 2. set the other one free from those rumours. (Flashforward: they didn’t stop, but it worked well enough for them anyway).

I know what you are wondering. Why did Louis agreed to this? My two coins are he knew there wasn’t an alternative because in abusive places of work you are proposed with an option, but that’s the only option, which makes you question if that’s an option at all or just an obligation. Plus he saw a way to help their way out after the band and took it. If what he says about the hiatus is true (I have many doubts and questions but still), he was fucking terrified of it so when they come at you with a promise to make it go “better than”… he always felt responsible for the band, so he says anyway. I agree with you, reader! That’s manipulative, toxic, blindsiding, naive. Very naive. But the real thing is I don’t know the reasons behind and this is just me trying to look for a new perspective, because I dont 100% agree with the ones I’ve read through the years.

What pushed me into loophole was the timing of the babygate return. I know 2020 is a weird year because of the pandemic, but we literally started having babygate content in more or less July 2021 — does anyone remember what happened on Harry’s side in July 2021? Does yachtgate 2.0 ring any bell?. Anyway since then we had bg constantly. Remember the arcade date with the kid? That was August 2021! I have a timeline for it but I quitted with keeping up with it because it was too much at some point and now that we’ve seen it was literally made for the documentary it feels even more useless lol.

Isn’t it too coincidental it happened along with the holivia mess and the rampant success Harry has gained throughout 2021 and 2022? When babygate is around, there’s sony around. You cant simply distinguish the two things imo. And isn’t it too coincidental that the first time babygate happened was when they were going solo and the second time it happened huge as ever was when the above mentioned solo careers became insanely grand? Oooh the way we got the release of bg in the doc the same weekend of the Tokyo kiss performance!

What confuses me, though, is who is gaining from this? I mean Sony is for sure in a contorted way. I can see what team Harry is gaining from his stunts too. I say it often but his team always play to win, so if they agree to something they are going to get something. That’s their strategy. I don’t understand what Louis is getting yet. I see he is doing his own shit to be proud of: the tour, the new music, the festival, apparently even the doc. But my question is wouldn’t it be possible without babygate too? And we can’t know yet. I think Louis is cocky and stubborn and sometimes he has to hit his head against the proverbial wall before understanding what’s good and what’s not. But to this stage, it’s too soon to say. I want to see where babygate is going in the next year or so. It’s possible he has chosen to go with babygate instead of continuing with his beard, but then again it’s too soon to say. It’s possible he has chosen to go with babygate instead of agreeing with a revolutionary marriage. It’s possible he has seen twarries drooling over the kid and decided to feed that narrative. I don’t know where this is going yet.

All I know is this revolves around the two of them and it’s possibly one of the few things nowadays that make me believe they still are together. If they weren’t, we wouldn’t see this shit unfold again in front of your salads in the year of our lord 2023.

*not with his actual girlfriend of 5 years but with an American ONS. With no DNA test because you are sure your specimen is so very strong, you take it one for the bros and even if you’re worthy 60millions you don’t need to know if she is actually trying to take advantage of your fame. You are kind at heart like that. A gentleman 💪

Edit after tokyo kissing show.

[cosmicjoke]

Okay, bravo to AMC's "IWTV" for that last episode, for real.

The reunion between Louis and Lestat at the end had my heart aching in the best way. I didn't think they were gonna' make Armand THIS villainous, but damn, they went all the way, and they went a long way to redeeming Lestat from episode 5 of the first season, too.

Given Armand's deviousness that was finally revealed in this final episode, it shifts all of Lestat's actions from the first season into greater understanding, if he knew exactly how cruel Armand could be, trying to protect both Louis and Claudia from that.

And I finally, truly felt Lestat's love for Claudia, here, too, his breakdown with Louis at the end over her, how they both started crying and hugging each other. That was beautiful. I imagine, hopefully, we'll get to see more scenes of Lestat's and Claudia's relationship, without the coloration of bias that pervaded the first two seasons, to really drive home just why Lestat is so plainly heartbroken over her death.

I also really liked Louis kind of absolving Lestat of his guilt, here, finally admitting to his own responsibility in forcing Lestat to turn her, and admitting to how he wanted Lestat to be miserable because he was, too. I can see where they're coming from, with this angle, with this particular change from the books. Louis WAS miserable in the book, and in the show, and it was that misery that compelled Lestat to turn Claudia in the book. He was afraid Louis was going to leave him because Louis wasn't happy, and Louis was in denial about his love for Lestat, and withholding his love from Lestat on purpose. In that way, Louis holds a large part of the responsibility for why Lestat made that decision. So them just making that kind of more explicit here in the show, with Louis being the one to genuinely beg Lestat to turn Claudia, makes sense. To make more clear the reason Lestat did turn Claudia was, in large part, because of Louis' emotional manipulation of him.

Anyway, I'm sure all those fans that were talking about Louis' evil white oppressor Lestat, and how the beautiful Indian man Armand was going to save him, are all going to abandon this show now, because too bad for them, it didn't turn out that way, lol. Armand really came across as evil here, lol. I'm sure Armand fans aren't going to be happy about that, though lets face it, Armand is a pretty devious guy in the books, though always sympathetic due to his own, awful backstory.

I do wonder though about him turning Daniel and what the implications of that are for his and Daneils' relationship moving forward. The way they framed it makes it seem as if Armand turned Daniel to spite Louis for finally leaving him. Maybe it'll be another instance of not being the truth, and we'll find out Daniel asked to be turned or something. But as it stands right now, it's just an additional evil act to add onto the growing pile of evil acts Armand was responsible for.

Also, shout out to both Sam Reid and Jacob Anderson for their phenomenal acting in that final scene between Lestat and Louis. Ugh, my heart really broke when Lestat tearfully asked Louis about that day in 1973 when he tried to kill himself. When he asks "Did you hurt yourself?", and you could just see the devastation in him, the guilt and pain at not being there for him, and Louis tearfully confessing about what a bad place he was in, etc... ugh. This was definitely the most emotional I got watching this show. You could really feel the deep love these two have for one another, and it largely did away with my negative feelings surrounding the DV from season 1. You really get the sense here from Lestat that he never, ever would want to hurt Louis again, and I 100% believe that.

Anyway, like I said, a stellar conclusion to the first two seasons. I'm definitely looking forward to season 3 now.

[policemanofprincesspark]

”You have to think like an anti too if you want to figure this out, because you need to go in with the mindset of actually trying to debunk the theory rather than prove it, because, if you're trying to prove it, it's a lot easier for a ton of bias to slip in, like ignoring contradicting evidence.”

This is my biggest problem with the fandom right now. Larry being real, specifically the fanfiction version where they are possessive and protective of each other and larrie fans who are the only fans they actually like between daydreaming about a sugary-sweet happily ever after involving their kids wearing 1D merch to the reunion tour, is treated as a given and all “evidence” involves working backwards from that forgone conclusion. X has to be true for larry to be real, therefore X is true full stop. Larries dismiss everything they don’t like as fake or something the boys were held at gunpoint to do if it doesn’t fit their narrative.

“Harry doesn’t actually want to be an actor, he’s being forced by management in order to make more money off his sex symbol image.”

“Louis doesn’t actually want to move away from a pop sound to something more rock, it’s management trying to alienate the female fan base to court straight men.”

Could these things be true? Sure, but most of the conversations around them don’t bring up any actual evidence of these arguments, instead falling back on “this isn’t the real them.” Which of course they totally know. Actual documentation and discussion of potential industry abuse is being lost in the slurry of fans’ coping strategy for their faves not fitting the perfect image they’ve projected onto them.

YES! I so agree with this. Okay, so, for example, there was that one phone call that was recorded by a fan where Louis was ranting about "all these crazy Larry fans" and asking them if they were recording. I saw SO many other larries literally saying it was fake and it was someone else's voice. I mean, listen, I can't say for a fact that it is his voice, but these people just immediately dismiss everything that they don't like or that makes them angry/uncomfortable. I understand there is a heavy emotional investment into the idea of Louis and Harry being victims, but, in reality, we don't know what's going on.

I am actually going to be working on a post about what I think could potentially be occurring instead of this idea of contractual closeting, by using an example of a gay couple who came out and had very distinct parallels to Louis and Harry. I mean, I'm never going to say I know the how's and why's of their closeting, but I don't think it's as straightforward as "they're victims of illegal contracts!", which is a theory based on a whopping load of nothing. I have seen Rebecca Ferguson and a few other past XFactor contestants who were on the same season as 1D in 2010 or around that time come out and talk about blackmail, coerced contracts, etc., so I don't think you can completely write it off as impossible. If I had to just make a quick guess, I'd say they were being pressured just like anyone else in the industry and that Louis might be scared to come out for some reason or another, and, since there is a lot of money involved concerning Harry, there could be some blackmail or coerced contracts like I said. Anyway, I have more evidence to back up different possibilities (they're just possibilities with some minor evidence, of course). I might make a post covering them all one day.

Here is a snippet of one of the posts I'm working on which talks briefly about Simon's dressing down:

Basically, there aren't any examples I can find of people in the industry being contractually closeted. It's always "I was afraid I'd destroy my career" or "I was afraid I'd be letting my managers/band members down and ruining their careers, and I felt a responsibility." So, if Louis and Harry are being closeted via illegal contracts, this would be an isolated case.

Now, do I think they both want out of the closet? Considering some of their obvious signalling and their "wink, wink" moments (such as Louis pointing at a Harry sign and yelling "yes!" or Harry singing "Lou" instead of "you" and immediately laughing), I don't think they are ashamed of their sexuality or that they enjoy pretending to be straight. But could there be some fear concerning coming out? It's quite possible.

(LET ME MAKE IT CLEAR THAT THESE IMAGES DO NOT REFLECT MY OPINION NOR ARE THEY TRYING TO SERVE AS A LEGITIMATE THEORY; THEY ARE SIMPLY POSSIBILITIES THAT I AM PUTTING FORTH, SINCE THERE IS MINOR EVIDENCE TO SUPPORT THEM)

Anyway, yeah. I'm tired of people stating their mere hypotheses as fact when they either have no evidence or very minor evidence to support them (like the contractual closeting theory; which... tbh, when larries act like that theory is fact, it kind of discredits us because it makes antis immediately dismiss the concept of Larry since contractual closeting isn't legal nor has it happened before, when we could just... not act like that theory is fact and instead consider other possibilities and quite frankly the more likely possibilities such as industry pressure or coercion).

[rivraennwrites]

?

Ok so I don't really know what this is, it spilled out of me and had to go somewhere. It's like a weird, SPNPG thing about anger and whatever else, I don't know

Anyway, this needed to go somewhere and I hate using Wattpad now, so...

It's not really good to see parts of yourself in the kids you look out for, you know? You're their guardian something (angel, demon, hybrid in Louis' case because he's special) and you see them be angry the same way you were, how they don't like being angry but feel it nearly all the fucking time.

Two of them don't have the best relationship with their fathers, what with one being dead and the other being a general shitbag who would be better off dead and continues to unfortunately stick around despite multiple efforts from multiple people to terminate his life.

But it scares you because when you were angry, it would lead to violence and that led to an early grave. You know that if they end up going down that same road, any one of them, it would kill you all over again. It's bad enough you still feel guilty over your own death, I can't imagine when it'll be one of theirs, especially if it's before their time.

You can't control death, much like how you couldn't control yourself, your brain and your mouth when they decided to be angry, snap back at the people shouting at you for no goddamn reason. If you yell back, that's wrong and you're a terrible person, but why is it okay for them to yell at you in the first place?

You didn't do anything wrong but you are lumped in with the other so-called bad guys when they're mad, or you're the bad guy for rightfully getting the hell away from people like that because now you're ruining someone else's life. And they say it's okay and they don't mean it but if they didn't mean it, why say it in the first place?

The worst part is that it just. Keeps. Repeating. They have a bad day, take it out on you and you have to take it, feel your fucking anger and swallow it down, find a way to let it out that doesn't involve talking to someone, dragging people into your issues, remember last time when they laughed at you? How angry you were then, how much you wanted to break things or maybe even hurt someone?

And you wouldn't do either, you know that, but don't you feel horrible anyway? Don't you feel selfish and evil, like the very people who tormented you for your entire life? The very people you do not want to be like at all and yet are very much alike? It hurts, doesn't it, watching them go through the same thing and being unable to stop it?

That anger will stay with you forever, I'm afraid. It will burn in your heart and always rear its ugly head whenever you have a bad enough day, but you can live with it even if you cannot technically live anymore, and they will live with it too.

And it will not kill them, they won't let it and neither will you.

[nalyra-dreaming]

Hello! How incredible was that episode! Every line had meaning. The acting. The heartbreaking characters & also - how funny it was at times amid all the horror!

Anyway, I wondered if you had any thoughts on where Lestat is? Armand, when first communicating to Lestat says “I won’t say a word.” What is Lestat telling Armand here about where he is or why he can’t come to Louis, I wonder…

Hey!

Right??? What an incredible episode.

Okay, so, no, I have no idea where Lestat is.

However, he is incapacitated.

IF Lestat would be able to rise/get out/come (whatever you want to put it) he would. ESPECIALLY after that last part. He screamed for Louis before Armand cut him off. He knows something is wrong.

I don't think Armand is channeling the dead, he just reaches out with the mind gift. Lestat described the maddening cacophony of voices in "The tale of the Body Thief", sifting through the voices to find someone is supposedly not the easiest nor particularly pleasant.

And yes, Louis must know Lestat is still alive - that particularly twist that he used this interview to make Lestat come and seek him out??? That took my breath away. Louis badmouthing Lestat on purpose. In the hope that Lestat would come and chase after him!!!!

As per the "anguished and terrified"... well. Remember what Louis threw into Armand's face there? "Did you want to lick my boots or chop my hands off? Is it the gremlin or the good nurse tonight?”

Like... think on that for a moment. "Did you want to lick my boots" - their relationship has been likened to BDSM by the cast, and obviously the put that into a certain canon level with this. "Or chop my hands off" - direct Nicki reference but ALSO - why would Louis bring that as an example??? HAS THAT HAPPENED??? "Is it the gremlin" !!! - "or the good nurse tonight".

The gremlin or the good nurse. Why would Louis need a nurse? Was he hurt before? Did someone chop his hands off and he needed a NURSE???? You know? Why would Louis use an interview without Armand present to try to facilitate a situation where Lestat would come and find him?!

Louis is, no matter their ever shifting power dynamics... at least weary of what Armand can do. At least the tiniest bit afraid of what might happen. And he has good reason to! Armand killed Claudia. I bet the trial will be beyond horrific. We see what Armand does to Daniel just (more or less) playing around. It speaks volumes for what might have happened with Lestat.

That is why he doesn't ask Armand to reach out. That is why he tries to brush off Lestat as "just his maker".

The trigger is and always was Lestat - for both.

I said it in another post, but after this? After this we cannot even trust what Louis tells us about anything prior to Dubai. Will tell us still. Oh, not all will be a ... meddled-with version. 80-90% will be true, as they said in that one interview. But the other 10-20%? Holy shit.

And so I think... I think that Lestat was at the trial (but not as in the sanitized version we will still get to see) and he was locked away. And I think after Armand did throw him off the tower, and he needed decades to heal. And this is where he is then, likely, still healing. Maybe he even went to earth and is not strong enough to rise.

I think that is where Lestat is in the 70s. Healing, maybe underground.

But I also think that we might not get to see this in this season. I think this season... we will get to see Louis' memories of the trial, aftermath and what happened after as he remembers it. Maybe there will be some shifts still. But I think all that happened between Armand and Lestat? Will be story of s3.

[apostlesoftheslavsblog]

A bunch of random headcanons I'm too lazy to make entire posts about:

-Konstantin is autistic while Method has ADHD.

-Eiben is also autistic, cus I said soooooo.

-Svätopluk is bisexual. He specifically likes older men because he has huge daddy (or I guess uncle) issues and no good way of properly dealing with them.

•He has a very one-sided crush on Wiching. Wiching is blissfully unaware of this.

-Johannes and Eiben are "childhood" friends. They met as teenagers, but they've known each other for way over half of their lifes, so I think that qualifies as more than just besties.

•Johannes did not show up for Konstantin and Methodius' initial arrival because he was sick. Eiben was too worried about his health to let him leave the house.

•Both Johannes and Eiben are good cooks, as they used to work at a restaurant in Venice when they were young. (Johannes will literally kill you if you attempt to break pasta in half.) While Eiben spent most of his time in the kitchen, though, Johannes usually worked as a waiter, unless there was too much people for the cooks to keep up without his help.

•Johannes is blissfully unaware of Eiben working for Louis the German.

•Johannes and Eiben once got drafted together. They both ran away. Eiben still has a scar on his shoulder from their brief time in battle.

•Eiben was still pretty short when he first met Johannes. Johannes loves telling Eiben about his sudden growth-spurt. Eiben does not love it at all.

-Despite his irritations with the other man, Wiching considers Eiben his only true friend.

-While Method's favorite student is Gorazd, Konstantin favours Kliment.

•Kliment never turns in his assignments on time. Konstantin always just sighs and tell him to try turn it in sooner next time.

•Gorazd always turns in his assignments first. He takes "school" very seriously. Methodius always tells him to loosen up a little, but he appreciates Gorazd's efficiency and dedication.

>Konstantin has a bad habit of doing everything last second. He often suffers sleep deprivation because of this, combined with the fact most of his free time is during night time anyway.

>He likes to sleep on Eiben, or in Eiben's arms. Eiben never objects.

-Rastislav is proud of and loves Svätopluk, but doesn't tell him in order to not "make him too prideful". This backfires pretty badly, as you might know.

•Svätopluk often wishes he could have grown up with his real parents.

-Johannes is transgender (FTM). Eiben is the only one who knows.

-Konstantin used to be afraid of riding horses at high speeds. Eiben helped him overcome the fear.

-Eiben is good with kids, and would like to be a father, but is doubtful of his ability to provide a good life for any child.

-One of the reasons Konstantin decided to go to Moravia was to finally be free of having to meet the demands of Michael the III. He was sick and tired of attending all those damn parties.

-Konstantin's first word was Methodius' old name, Michael.

•Methodius kinda got forced into raising most of his siblings. However, his favorite was always Konstantin.

>Methodius used to be very lively when he was younger. He had his fair share of girlfriends, too. However, he kind of grew out of it lol.

>Konstantin, on the other hand, was always a recluse, and absolutely hated the idea of being with a woman. When he came to Moravia, he was a virgin who had never even had his first kiss. People often made fun of him for it, but he was more annoyed than self-concious.

-Konstantin loves potatoes. Eiben prefers rice.

•They both like pasta.

-Methodius started balding post-Cyril's death.

-Konstantin has always preferred having long hair over short hair.

-Konstantin has mild dyscalculia, while Eiben has slightly stronger dyslexia.

•Eiben also needs glasses. He never gets them.

-Eiben is a bottom.

[renaissanceman5073]

How to Lose a Man in Ten Minutes

This is perhaps the most over used short article topic ever - but I can't resist. Women are great at giving each other bad advice about men. They are certain they are right because, after all, women know everything about relationships, right? Well let's see. Here are the things you can do, from a man's perspective, to ensure you will not get a second date with a serious man.

Now, I said "serious man," because I am assuming that you want to wind up with a man who's worth marrying as opposed to some boy just looking to get laid. Men are not afraid of commitment. A man is looking for opportunities to show you he is a gentleman. A man is looking for intimacy and will be a stable father to your children.

Boys are playing around. They are not interested in anything long term, or anything that might get in the way of their "personal freedom." They are looking for regular sex, but without any commitment. Boys don't want children and really don't want someone else's children. Boys will string you along for years because they can. Boys are all about the fun. Men are about romance, family and yes, sex. Chances are you want a "man," and not a "boy."At least that's what I am assuming for the purposes of this post. Here are the top ways to make sure a man will never call you back for a second date.

1.  Talk About Other Guys

This is first for a reason. Men require your undivided attention when you are with them. It is just the way we are built. If you're busy texting Nancy about how your date is going, you probably are not going to keep him interested. Likewise, if you're talking about your ex or what "my friends Robert, Jake and Louis" said the other night,  you are telling your date that he will have to share your attention with other men - maybe a lot of other men. 

So what? "I don't like the jealous types anyway." Here's the thing, it's not about jealousy. It is about respect. Men are always asking the question "does she respect me" while women are asking "does he like me"? As I said, a man requires your undivided attention when you are with him the same way you want his attention when you're telling him about your day. All you're telling him is that you come with baggage. And guess what? Most men will move on to the next girl. If a man knows after the first date that he will have to compete with a bunch of other men for your attention every day of his life, it's over for you. Life is too short.

2.  Talk About his Mother

Telling him outright that you're desperate to get married is probably a little worse, but at least he might respect your willingness to be direct. Talking about his mother, especially on the first date sends the same bad message as it would be if he talked about his mother to you on the first date.

3.  Lie

No one likes being lied to, but men really hate this in the dating context. It goes back to the "respect" requirements men have. Men are direct communicators. They tend not to shy away from topics that you might find uncomfortable. If you can't be straight with him, then he knows you probably don't respect him either.

Rather than making something up, be honest with him. "I'm not sure I want to talk about that," or "maybe when I know you better," are perfectly good answers to a topic you would ordinarily lie about. If he senses he can't trust you, then he will follow his gut and move on.

4.  Act Aloof or Too Cool

Aloof women who are too cool for everyone are very attractive, sexually, in a mysterious way - when you're a teenager. But, as men get to an age where they are looking for a serious relationship, they are looking for a warm, approachable, engaging woman to share their evenings with - not the cold, aloof femme fatale. 

5.  Sex on the First Date

He knows that if you're having sex with him on the first date, you're a girl that will have sex with other first dates. While most secure men really don't care about your sexual history, no man wants to feel like he's just another notch in your belt. You may get more dates, but he'll always put you in the "booty call" box instead of the "marriage material" box.

I know there are many many other things to discuss when it comes to dating, but I thought these were  less overused. Thanks for indulging me. 

Tomorrow: How to Win a Man in 5 Dates.

[distraughtlesbian]

like ok. not to have a category 7 autism moment about the version of terri immortaldesires that lives in my head but i’m about to have exactly that

this all ties in soooo neatly w my thought that mc should’ve been a dhampir/half-vampire to begin with. idgaf if nothing in the id vampire lore implies that dhampirs are even a thing. TO ME mc’s unnamed dad was a vampire who had an illegal affair with mc’s mom (paralleling louis and esme or whatever their names are), and died defending her during the resulting coven bureaucratic bullshit (not crimson beech bureacratic bullshit, though—some other town on a ley line, like flagstone cove), leading terri to be like “lmfao fuck this noise”, peace the fuck out the same night of his death, and move to the Big City in the hopes of losing herself in the crowd. and because she’s so far away no vampire from her hometown is gonna risk weakening themselves or dying of sun poisoning to make that road trip just to kill some idiot dead fledgling’s girlfriend

anyway. terri is in her Big City era, going to med school, blah blah, throwing herself headfirst into pretending to be a normal young woman who is totally not grieving her murdered partner and the family and friends that she’s just up and disappeared on, and she discovers that she is pregnant. which is crazy. bc her only recent partner was literally undead and therefore, she reasoned at the time, infertile. and yet here the positive test is. so she’s like oh god oh fuck is this some kind of demon baby …… and then she has the mc and they are—on the surface, at least—a completely normal baby, but she just can’t shake the gut feeling that there is Something Wrong With Them, given the fact that they are a. well, a what? a half-vampire? if that’s even a thing. and who knows what vampiric traits they might have. and she’s pretty sure that her partner was the One Good Vampire and the rest of them are all monsters, just given that the only other ones she’s ever met murdered him without a second thought for the crime of loving her. but she can ignore all that if she tries. so she’s like ok. i can put all the vampire bullshit behind me and focus on my job and providing for my kid. this will totally work and i am not going to psychologically damage my only child by holding them at arms’ length their entire life bc i’m always at least a little bit afraid that their very existence is a herald of the vampire apocalypse or some other insane shit. it would be just my luck. but like everything will be ok (manifesting)

↑ terri, c. 2003

and this ignoring-supernatural-bullshit strategy works! for the next 17 years, by god, it works! she gets her doctorate and her kid starts school and they have a decent house and she makes decent money and she never has to worry about anything at all. except, like, the looming possibility that her child really does have Something Wrong With Them. but on good days she can ignore that. and on bad days she holes up at the hospital so she doesn’t have to go home and look them in the eye. and on the worst days all she can think about is how they looks more like their father every day.

but like anyway everything is coming up terri (manifesting). it’s summer and her kid’s about to start their final year of high school. she likes her job and their house. she has friends at work. they’re fine! against all odds, everything is fine!

until, naturally, a string of mysterious, violent deaths starts up in the city, and her coworkers might chalk it up to animal attacks, but she knows damn well that no animal could possibly do to these people what’s been done to them. she sees the way the wind is blowing, and she’s evaded vampiric justice for goddamn near 20 years, and she’s not about to just roll over after all this time and effort and let them catch up to her. so she breaks the news of the sudden move and expedites the selling of their house and finds a new place in as boring and sleepy a town as she can possibly find. what could possibly happen in a small town in new england? nothing ever (manifesting).

the world if terri immortaldesires was somehow made aware of the existence of vampires prior to the beginning of book 1 and that’s why she packed up her entire life and fucked off to crimson beech. also the world if she became a vampire hunter immediately post-nexus trial shitshow

[bisexual-inuyasha]

Ok, so Noé and Vanitas exist in two different types of Vampire Novels. Explained below the cut, because it's long.

Starting with Vanitas: This man is in a tragic romance novel. He is the hero of the day, he is a charming and handsome doctor, he is the savior of all the beautiful people. He choose a strong handsome man to always be ready to rescue him and for him to always be ready to rescue. The entire time we see him he never asks anyone else to join him in his quest--just Noé, at the beginning of the story, immediately upon meeting him. And Noé lives up to his role. He is reluctant but starry eyed, strong and handsome and pure, 110% behind Vanitas's cause. We can see this intent in the way Vanitas, multiple times, flings himself into Noé's way. He makes sure Noé is watching when he kisses someone else (just to tease her, he says, fully aware that Jeanne as she is will never actually return those feelings.) He is listening at the door when his chosen lead has a "dalliance" with someone else. He immediately retaliates against this by allowing Jeanne to drink his blood, both discovering what exact experience Noé was having with Domi and furthering Noé's interest in him (I don't kiss and tell, with a hand over the wound.)

He has only a few purposes to his life at this point: Be a hero (save the vampires), fall in love and be loved (as stated by Luna and his own desire for salvation. What is salvation for a man who is unlovable? Those two scenes are placed where they are for a reason.), die. That's why he is acting all the time, that's why he says he'll do as he pleases, that's why when he saves someone it is theatrical and handsome and romantic. He's living out a romance novel in the time he has left and I truly think Noé is his leading man. He has allowed himself to be the leading man for someone else in Jeanne. He's willing to (and I suspect may actually be faced with the task) kill Jeanne, but he cannot and will not kill Noé. In fact, he plans on Noé being in his final act--the tragic part of his tragic romance. To die by the hands of the one he loves, to die knowing he is loved by the person who kills him. That he died himself, and with mercy. But this leads into Noé, who is NOT living in a tragic romance. Noé is living in a horror novel. He is afraid, and the people he cares about are hurting, and it has been placed on HIS shoulders to save as many people from the Horrible Terrifying Creature who Twists People before they can be twisted too far. We can see this in the fact that Teacher gives him instructions--these are not whimsical well wishes. There is not the kindness or love in Luna telling Vanitas he will find someone to love him, if he only opens himself to it. This is Teacher telling Noé on no uncertain terms: Do not give up your name--it is everything you are. Find the book of Vanitas and study those who interact with it, become enmeshed in their lives. Decide how this book is being used and what it means. For Noé, people he loves are already gone due to the monster that is Charlatan. And he tries to destroy it every time he sees her. And he even almost falls to it! (But Vanitas, in his romantic gestures, saves Noé before he can be taken, until he doesn't, because Ruthven obviously has a large hand in this corruption.) Noé is a consistent victim of this monster--first Louis, but also it is Amelia who we first see bite him without his permission, draining him of power that he NEEDS to save her, because his instinct (despite knowing, he has to know, he's seen it before) is to save her anyway. And he's got psychological trauma. He's got ptsd that results in bursts of anger and fear and causes him to act without thinking. His only weapon against this monster that could destroy him and his entire world is a man who doesn't seem to understand the extent to which Noé NEEDS him to succeed as often as possible. And so he's stuck trying to figure out his ONLY defense against this monster that twists people into shells. And then he finds out his teacher is also a monster. A different kind, but a monster nonetheless. And you have to wonder, seeing Misha, does he not wonder about his own upbringing? About the things his teacher has told him? Noé constantly has the rug pulled out from under him, is constantly getting blood taken from him without his permission, constantly having to drink blood because of his abilities without his permission, constantly being taken hostage. He's the protagonist of a horror novel who knows nothing about the monster except that it's terrifying and a threat to everything he cares about and he's been told by another monster that he's the special guy who has to figure out how to save everyone. And again, he's faced with someone he loves, someone he clearly is IN LOVE WITH, telling him that it's him who must kill them. Before they become a monster. Before they become someone other than themselves. His literal worst nightmare, coming around to repeat itself again. See, different genres. And it works best like this. If Noé was the one living in a romance novel, Vanitas wouldn't have lasted two seconds before he was swept off his feet. If Vanitas was living in a horror novel. Well. He already did. He'd collapse under the weight of another one.

[scolpimpisdiary]

Duwang Gang Parenting HeadCanons!

What would the Duwang Gang be like as Parents?

Josuke Higashikata

NAH CAUSE HE’D BE THE SWEETEST DAD

He’d probably have the most kids imo, 5-6 max. I can see him being a family man

If Josuke has a girl, SHE WILL BE A DADDY’S GIRL.

But if they’re not, he’d still love them just as much!

I can literally imagine Josuke picking up his children from preschool and just showering them with hugs and kisses

Would heal the little one’s boo boos with Shining Diamond and play it off as a magic trick

Much like Okuyasu, he has no problem letting his lil Jojo know that he loves them

Josuke would be slightly less affectionate as they get older tho, since they’re maturing (but that doesn’t mean he loves them any less!)

Let’s be honest, once social media becomes mainstream he’d probably make one right before his children

Yes, he’d follow his kids on the social media he does have, being one of their first followers which is lowkey adorable

I can imagine Josuke trying to be the “hip” parent that just wants to fit in with his kids

I could already see Josuke trying to help little Jojo with their math problems, but then getting lowkey frustrated and just ends up doing the assignment for them

“If I have five apples and you eat two, how many apples do I have left?”

“Five!”

“Never mind, just gimme the paper..”

He would definitely be ready to discipline them if needed, though. As much as Josuke loves them, he isn’t a pushover. Probably not allowing them to leave the house/go to parties or making them clean when they aren’t at school are enough in this case.

Even so, Josuke holds his children very dear to him, even more than his pompadour. If someone says or hints at anything negatively regarding his child, he’d be ready to kill them

Like that time he tried to choke out lil jojo’s math teacher for saying that their grades are dropping in the class

That day was the day Y/N was made the designated parent for any future parent teacher conferences

Okuyasu Nijimura

He would definitely be a very laid back dad!

You know, the dad that has cookouts almost every week and invites his friends over to watch sports? He’d be one of those

I could imagine that he’d probably struggle with his children when they were younger though. His parenting style is more hands-off and constantly caring for a little human 24/7 would probably drain the hell out of a man like him.

I don’t think that would discourage Okuyasu from having more kids tho, he’d probably still enjoy the process of raising a child even though it’s time consuming

Definitely a very kind and supportive father, and isn’t afraid to show love for his kids (hugging, “i love you”s, saying he’s proud of them, etc)

I can imagine both him and Josuke making goofy tiktoks with their children

He will REFUSE to help them with their homework though, that task is left up to Y/N

And if he does end up on homework duty, he’d most likely half-ass it

“If I got five apples, and you ate two, how much apples do I have?”

“..I dunno.”

“Eh, that’s good enough! Write that down and you’re done!”

Would probably have 4-5 children max, slightly less than Josuke

Rohan Kishibe

Let’s just say his children would be DRIPPY

Nah cause they’d be wearing Louis Vouittons at the age of 3 ✋🏾

Rohan would definitely be tough on his lil Kishibe bean but only because he wants them to be successful in life like he was

ESPECIALLY when the tiny Kishibe reaches their school years. (I do feel like it would get to his head though, maybe even causing him to place unrealistic standards onto his kid)

He wouldn’t allow his children to play with Josuke’s kids, but they’d sneak out to go and play together anyways

Rohan would definitely help them with their art projects, which they’d always get an A on

YES HE WILL HANG THEIR ART UP ON THE FRIDGE LIKE THE PROUD DAD HE IS

I also imagine him being really good at math for some reason??

Would probably get frustrated during homework time with his kid

“Now if I have five apples, and you were to eat two, how much would I have left?”

“..one?”

*insert angry Rohan grumbles*

“NOW IF I HAVE FIVE APPLES-“

Rohan would have an easier time caring for them while they’re a baby or toddler, compared to when they’re older mainly because they can’t talk back

I can also imagine that because of the whole Kira incident he’d be very helicopter-ish (yes, he’d have life 360 installed on his child’s phone)

He would be stricter with punishments, taking toys away from them or when they get older, their smartphones (maybe he’d even make them delete their social media accounts)

Once social media starts to become popular, I could definitely see him criticize it heavily when he see’s Y/N or his children use it

“Back in my day we didn’t have tiktok or Instagram! All of that is just faux garbage! Kids these days need to go out and experience reality!”

I could literally imagine all the arguments he’d get into with his horomonal green-haired teenage kid while poor Y/N is stuck between the two trying to break it up. It’d be WW3 in the Kishibe household😭

He wouldn’t be the type of dad to physically express his love often. But he would express it in subtle ways, like buying them things or quietly congratulating them

Plus if his kids are in any type of danger, be ready to see Rohan dashing to the rescue. Both him, Josuke, and Yukako DO NOT play when it comes to their children

Rohan wouldn’t have a lot of children, 2 max, and they’d probably be farther apart in age (5-6 years apart)

Yukako Yamagishi

She’d definitely be the strictest with punishments, and would probably utilize all forms of discipline mentioned so far

She would also put a lot of academic pressure on her children, but actually taking the time to properly study with them and help them memorize things for tests so they’d be well prepared

“Look sweetie, if I have five apples and you’ve eaten two, how much would I have left?”

“Umm..three?”

“Good job! I knew you could do it!”

Yukako’s child was the only one that got it right btw

Yukako would definitely have a soft spot for her kids though, making them cute lunches to take to school and show off, putting cute little letters on the lunch boxes and greeting them with assorted homemade sweets when they came from school

She’s also very physically expressive with her love, showering her children in hugs and kisses on the cheek even when they’re older

(It makes them very flustered, which Yukako deems to be adorable)

She would DEFINITELY try to give her children advice on their crushes (which may or may not fail miserably and result in a traumatized crush)

I could also see Yukako being one of those insta moms that post pictures of her food and children all the time (even when they’re older)

Probably has already had some form of social media before it became mainstream

I can see her also following her children on social media, mainly for nosy reasons (which Y/N has to talk her out of)

Even though Yukako can be a strict mother, she truly cares for her children deep down and would definitely cut a bitch if they possibly threatened her children’s safety

She’d probably have an average amount of children, 3 to be exact. But I think Yukako is probably one of the only ones to not have a specific limit on how many kids she wants

Koichi Hirose

Honestly? Koichi gives me chill uncle vibes rather than dad vibes

Like I genuinely feel that the Duwang kids would just use his house as a hangout spot and vibe as he tells the story of how him and their parents defeated a serial killer all the way back in the 90s

Josuke and Okuyasu’s kids would probably just giggle in disbelief

Yukako’s kid would just shrug their shoulders “sounds like something my mother would do”

and Rohan’s kid would probably have more respect for their dad after, and the most input. His kid is a chatterbox unlike him

The Duwang kids would DEF look up to him

If he were to be a dad, he’d definitely spend a lot of the time traveling with his child and seeing different parts of the world

Koichi would probably have the least kids, maybe just one

He wouldn’t spoil or punish his children much, but would probably go on a long exaggerated lecture about whatever they did and why it’s wrong.

I could see him teaching his kid a different language or different things about the world rather than formal education (IK THAT SOUNDS CRAZY BUT STILL)