#as is the new good quality scope

[ivan-fyodorovich-k]

People seem to lack a sense of “obsolescence.” Something old might not automatically be garbage even if something new and better has come along. The older thing that is no longer in use might have been genuinely bad, but it’s very possible that it worked and maybe even worked quite well in its time—it may still work quite well now—but the new thing is still better or more effective. This is a question of societal and personal values and it has practical consequences.

I am trying to research vintage (and replica) rifle scopes right now, and it is extremely unhelpful to read people say that such and such thing is “garbage,” because I don’t know if that means garbage for its time, subjectively bad to the person speaking, or simply inferior to a modern high quality optic.

To give an analogous example, I have a pair of WWII binoculars. They’re clearly well-made, durable, good materials, and when you look through them, you can indeed see a thing that is far away as though it were closer. But my younger brother has a good pair of modern binoculars and when you look through them not only is the image better resolution than real life, it is brighter and I’m pretty sure you see colors invisible to the naked eye. It’s insane how good they are.

The old binoculars are still perfectly functional. The new ones just do the same thing much better.

[redflagshipwriter]

Hot Ghouls in Your Area

Chapter 1

“A cult?” Jason blew out a bubble and enjoyed the disgusted face that Bruce made.

“Yes.” His voice was tight. Jason could tell that he wanted to turn back to the Batcomputer. ��They’re operating in Park Row-”

“Crime Alley.”

Batman sighed and accepted the correction. “I would like to propose a joint operation.” He sounded so tired and not very optimistic.

Jason eyed up his on-again-off-again Father figure and popped his gum, thinking it over. Bruce clearly expected him to say no, fuck off, and take the information himself.

He could. There was nothing wrong with that.

“Sure, old man.” He clapped Bruce on the shoulder and finished screwing together the tool he’d brought in for maintenance. He’d had to fabricate a new part and the Red Hood didn’t exactly have the equipment for that in his two room apartment. “Thursday night alright?”

“They’ve a planned meeting on Wednesday, actually,” Bruce said, frowning slightly at him but looking soft around the eyes with confused hope. “Would that be possible? They seem to gather mid-week.”

Jason let out a sigh. “I can make it work. Ta, old man.” He made sure to toss off an especially insouciant salute as he sauntered away. Sure, he was willing to put a little effort into maintaining their relationship, but he couldn’t be too compliant. If you gave Bruce an hour of your time, he wrote you down on the schedule for an hour every day until one of you fuckin’ died in a warehouse explosion. Something like that.

He wasn’t that trusting, though. Jason took the information that Bruce emailed him and did his own legwork. He wasn’t stubborn enough to bother redoing digital work that Bruce had done or gotten from Babs. That would be a waste of his time, and he valued his time. But he scoped out the cult’s meeting place.

Of all the undignified things, it was a rented room in the community center. Jason found himself sheepishly breaking into the office to check on the reservation and poking around the room itself.

There was nothing special about it. It was a shitty room with shitty paneled walls and cheap, well-trodden grey carpet. It boasted a few too many tables, arranged in a U shape, and a whiteboard pushed up against the wall that hadn’t been cleaned off well enough to erase what he was pretty sure was a reference to their lord and savior, destroyed of worlds.

So. That was a point for Bruce’s cult thing.

He hadn’t really doubted it, if he was honest, given that this had originated in a tip from Zatanna. She had told him as a courtesy that some creep had moved their base of recruiting and operations into Gotham.

Apparently, recruitment was going pretty well. The room could seat like, twenty? Jason counted chairs and left.

He came back on Wednesday at 8pm with the Batman and an attempt at a good attitude. He probably wasn’t going to need any of the weapons on his person. They were going to check in so that this guy knew they had an eye on him and that he would be suspect number one if there was any hint of people or cats being sacrificed.

Bruce fucked off to peer in the windows, like the giant caped creep he was. Jason took the front door, nodded congenially at the old man in the office, and knocked at the room the cultists had reserved.

He could hear Bruce internally curse through the comm. It was silent, of course, but the quality of the silence changed. “Knock knock,” he called, since a literal knock hadn’t done it. He opened the door without waiting. “Just checking in, heard you’re new to town and that you tried to feed Zatanna’s shitty little cousin to the god of Death?”

The room stared at him. A whiteboard marker squeaked to a stop. He idly followed the sound to the board. A …. Huh. that looked like some kind of mystical bullshit.

“You’ve been touched by death,” said the fraud himself, a man in his fifties with a wildly pretentious robe that was wrinkled from the paper bag he’d clearly used to carry it in. He outstretched the hand that didn’t have a blue whiteboard marker in it. “You would be a perfect sacrifice to our Lord.”

“So will it be,” said about half the people there, at the same time a young woman said, “No shit?” in an impressed tone.

Jason rolled his eyes through the helmet, unintimidated by the room of weirdos standing up. The kind of people who gathered at a community center on a Wednesday night were not going to summon the God of Death. Light glinted off the window where Batman was clearly weighing the possibility of breaking glass and swinging in. Jason silently waved him off with a headshake. They weren’t to the point of property damage yet. He took a couple of steps into the room with deliberate swagger. “What a lucky guess,” he drawled. “The Red Hood has had brushes with death? No one but a legitimate prophet could possibly make such a statement.”

“I’m not a prophet,” said the man, and turned back to his white board. “I’m a devote.” He rubbed out a line with the meat of his hand and then hurriedly wrote in ‘The Red Hood’ in a tilted cursive. “The sacrifice!” he shouted, throwing his arms wide and accidentally making a big blue line through his evil little sigil or whatever it was. The elderly lady to Jason’s right opened up her bag, thrust her hand in, and came up with a fistful of -

“Salt?” Jason asked, confused and unimpressed as the silly twit threw her handful of salt at him. “Thanks, I’m better seasoned now,” he snarked. He pulled out a gun easily. “Alright, let’s get serious. I-”

The whiteboard was glowing. The blue letters were glowing green.

“What the fuck?” Jason said. The windows exploded with broken glass as Batman decided now was the time to make his entrance. He barely got to see it before something hooked unpleasantly on his body and soul and twisted it sideways.

The world was green now. Holy shit. Jason spun a circle on uneven ground and gaped. “...Egg on my face,” he said. “I’ve been sacrificed. Consider me embarrassed.” A quick check showed that his comm was useless. It was giving off a steady little eeee of static that kinda sounded like screams. Whimsical. Jason turned it off.

He wasn’t panicking yet. The void wasn’t that freaky. It was weird, sure, but there weren’t any demons or enemies. He flicked the safety off his favorite gun just in case and frowned into the darkness.

It was like he was standing under a spotlight with no light source. There was ambient lighting in all directions, but the world faded into darkness only a few dozen feet away. He took some experimental steps to determine that, yeah, the field of visibility traveled with him.

Well. Time to get moving. Jason walked. There was nothing for the first - hour, he was gonna call it an hour. He got antsy and started jogging. The green stretched on, placid and infinite in a way that was really starting to piss him off. “Hey!” Jason barked into the void. “Anyone there?”

There was an answering electronic whirr. He stopped in his tracks. Jason looked in every direction, including up, and only saw the fucking thing when it was basically on top of him.

The vehicle was probably most equivalent to a spaceship, he decided, as what was probably a 3-man craft at most parked. The top clicked. It opened from the top and someone bounded out. “Hey!” came an annoyed male voice. “What’s the deal, bud?” The stranger landed in front of Jason with crossed arms and a pissy expression. His white hair floated above his head as if he was the little fucking mermaid in the ocean.

Jason scowled, the back of his mind cataloging the other guy’s outfit as pristine and undamaged and his musculature as athletic. “What’s it to you?” he asked, defensive. He didn’t know if it was safe to give information to this guy. “I might be a little lost,” Jason conceded.

“A little lost,” the guy repeated, and then- okay, he flew in a weird little flippy circle, scowling all the while as Jason gaped. “A little lost.” He scoffed. Then he let out a sigh that made his whole body look smaller. He uncrossed his arms and ran a hand through his hair. “This is a weird question,” he said, making it sound more defensive than apologetic. “Did you uh.” He scowled, like the words were distasteful. “Look,” he tried again. “Are you delulu, or did you get caught up as the sacrificial bride? I told Frank to knock that shit off.”

Sacrificial bride. Jason felt his brain go offline for a moment. Say what now.

“Helloooo,” the… was this rando a god of death? He was impatient. He flew way up into Jason’s personal space and snapped his fingers. “Someone just smashed metal trash bins together at my grave to get my attention, basically. No, it’s more like one of those spam pop ups that says there’s hot girls in your area?” He made a gesture at Jason. “Only it’s loud. It’s ringing in my ears, and I had to come track you down. Do you think this is funny?”

“...Sacrificial bride?” Jason finally managed to croak out.

Weirdly, this made the other guy relax immediately. “Just found out, huh,” he said, sounding much more sympathetic. “Yeah, okay, we need to sort out a spiritual divorce immediately. And then you can go home and there will be no more hot girls in my area and I can get back to my ess- my work.”

Jason took a few moments of grief and confusion to accept his apparent status. “We’re married?” he said weakly.

The white haired man looked a little sheepish. “Marriage is probably not quite accurate,” he said, and Jason felt a little bit of relief before the guy continued, “It’s more like you’re my concubine?” He sounded mortified by this. “I didn’t want this!”

“No, no,” Jason said, meaning both that he believed it and that he needed this conversation to change directions immediately. “I- who are you?” He gestured at his– what the fuck was the other side of a concubine relationship? King was the associated word that came up, but that…

“I’m nobody, really,” said the white haired man weakly. “But I may technically be King of ghosts or whatever. The Infinite Realms.” He scratched at his face. “So… yeah.”

They stood in utterly mortified silence for a long moment before he seemed to remember something. “You can call me Danny,” he offered.

“...Call me Jason,” he said.

“Thanks, Jason,” Danny said genially. “So, uh, this is a mess, right?” He started floating away backwards. “I’m going to hunt down my mentor and advisor and get some uh- advice, I guess. Do you wanna come with? Or should I come back and check in once I’ve heard from him?”

Jason weighed up his situation, the conventional wisdom about getting in vehicles with strange men, and wondered how useless his gun was going to be in this situation. Danny had never reacted to it being pointed at him, so his guess was ‘utterly unhelpful’. He put it away. “I’d like a ride, thanks,” he said dryly.

They made some stilted conversation on the ride. Danny was clearly trying to hold back and give him no identifying information. That was fascinating, because it implied that there was something Jason could do from the human world to track Danny down. It was also reassuring because there was no reason to withhold information if he’d planned to keep Jason prisoner, so, ya know, that was a good sign.

Anyway, Jason got a lot of information from Danny.

Danny was a terrible liar and he misspoke like, all the time. Jason was pretty sure he was in the ghost equivalent of school, like college or something. He talked like someone in Jason’s age group would, so he’d probably died very recently. Maybe he had been a college student when he’d died and he just hadn’t given up on that degree yet, honestly. Jason managed to drag the conversation around to education. He got nowhere with asking about literature but he hit the jackpot with science. Danny was still babbling about a telescope when he landed the …ship outside of a wonky clocktower.

Jason took off his safety belt and froze in his tracks when Danny absently stopped him with a cool hand. Jason looked down at that hand.

“You had better stay here,” Danny said. He shook his head slightly. “Clocky doesn’t like everyone.”

He melted into the chair as if he had never wanted to get up. “Alright,” Jason said.

Danny was out of the spaceship by the time that Jason realized something was very wrong with that interaction.

He hadn’t decided to sit down. He hadn’t wanted to sit back down. Did- did he actually think it was reasonable to stay behind, or would he have argued and gone in normally?

‘...I think Danny did something.’ Suspicion swirled in his gut. Jason tried to take the safety belt off and stand up. He couldn’t. It was like his muscles wouldn’t respond to it.

Well, that was pretty fuckin’ evil. His pulse picked up in his throat. It… It was some kind of compulsion? He had to do what Danny told him to do? That was really fucked up. He was starting to feel really unsafe now. He wished he’d hung back with Bruce. He wanted someone to bring him home. And weirdly, he felt betrayed. He hardly trusted Danny, didn’t know the fucker well enough to, but he hadn’t gotten that impression off the guy–

‘It wasn’t him,’ Jason realized. ‘It was the binding ritual. Danny said it wasn’t like a marriage, it’s not equal. That’s why I did what Danny wanted me to do.’

Well. Well then. If Danny didn’t know that Jason had to follow his orders, Jason was most fucking certainly not going to spell it out for him. It was a grim calculation to make, but it seemed the safest. As it was, Danny seemed to want to get rid of him as fast as possible.

So that was it. He’d play along and get Danny to spit him back out into Gotham, a young hot divorcé free on the streets.

[oceaneyesinla]

Fabric and Feelings

I've been thinking about Sanemi and how he ended up confronting Madea. This is my idea on how it might have come about

Content warning: brief mentions of harassment

Divider by @/cafekitsune

Sanemi couldn’t say he particularly liked being paired up with the new recruits, but sometimes there just wasn’t another choice. He grudgingly accepted that they were useful for gathering information, especially if they were still bright eyed and eager, friendly and approachable in a way Sanemi himself hadn’t been since childhood. So, despite the fact the quality of their members was dropping with every passing year, they still had some small uses.

The demon he was tracking at the moment was proving elusive, a fact that had already put him in a foul mood even before he had to call in support from one of the new Mizunoto, barely a month out of Final Selection. He figured you would be just another poor excuse for a Slayer, still shaking in your boots at the thought of a demon.

He met you just outside the village, and the first thing he noticed was your uniform. It was hard to miss; with a skirt that barely covered the tops of your thighs and a shirt that hardly deserved to be regarded as such. A slit down the middle revealed the swell of your breasts, and he imagined it was only the single small button at the top of your white undershirt which kept everything even slightly covered. It wouldn’t do a thing to defend you against sharp claws and bared teeth, which was the whole point of the fabric it was made from. It was supposed to give new Slayers like you a vague chance of surviving past the first week without being maimed by the low level demons you were sent after.

Was this really what Demon Slayers were being given these days? Well, he couldn’t really judge, taking a look down at his own uniform, jacket and shirt unbuttoned to reveal muscle built and scars gained from years of fighting for survival.

His eyes landed on yours as you stopped in front of him, and you were quick to look away with a slight flush in your cheeks and a hand fiddling with the hem of your skirt. Great - one of those. The Slayers with stars in their eyes and fantasies of having lives and families and the ones who treated the Hashira like they hung the moon and stars. Stupid idiots never realised that the Hashira were just as painfully human as the rest of them - what separated them was the will to destroy; the bone deep desire to see every demon eradicated, no matter the personal cost. Sanemi had learned over the years that their own death wasn’t the worst thing a human could experience.

“Shinazugawa-san. My crow told me to meet you here. What’s our mission?” Your cheeks were still red, but your voice was steady as you addressed him, eyes already scoping out the area around you both. Maybe this wouldn’t be a complete waste of time after all.

“Come on.” He didn’t wait to see if you were following, taking off in the opposite direction. It wasn’t his responsibility to babysit you.

***********

Your mission was proving successful, and Sanemi almost felt bad about his initial assessment of you. As expected, people looked at him with guarded concern, but as soon as you opened your mouth, they were at ease, chattering as if you had lived in this village all your life. It reminded him of Masachika, and Kanae, and he pointedly ignored the way his heart clenched at the thought. That attitude could never last, not in the Corps. Masachika’s blood, a permanent invisible brand on his skin, and the memory of the dead look in the younger Kocho’s eyes at Kanae’s funeral were stark reminders of that.

You just had a way with people, and he had to admire that. He knew he was hard on the new recruits (and for good reason) but he wasn't too proud to acknowledge when someone proved themselves useful to the Corps.

That natural charisma was starting to work on him too, though he would rather eat glass than admit it. A few days after your reconnaissance began, he found himself watching as you regaled a couple of old ladies with an animated tale, your hands moving as you told your story. They were enchanted, as everyone else had been thus far, and as they walked away, Sanemi heard them comment on how you were ‘such a nice young girl’.

You seemed more relaxed than you had been when he first met up with you, and by the time you split off from him to chase leads on opposite ends of the village, his opinion of you had improved drastically. He still hadn’t seen you fight, which was the make or break factor of any Demon Slayer, but he was impressed with your perception, and the way you kept up with him - seamlessly following his lead even when he didn’t bother to tell you what he was planning.

He also liked the way you called him out afterwards. It was almost amusing to watch you grumble and bitch about his impulsive actions before you suddenly realised you were badmouthing a Hashira and your jaw snapped shut, a pretty red flush covering the apple of your cheeks. Usually, he would have the guts of any lower rank Slayer who mouthed off to him for garters but something held him back in this case. It had been a long time since someone actually gave him a hard time - usually too busy being terrified of his reputation or his attitude to even consider it. 

His solo questioning went well, and he finally felt like he was cornering the demon prowling this area. Hopefully, your exploration had been just as fruitful. As he walked towards the centre of the village to meet back up with you, he barely paid any mind to the sound of raised voices - not an uncommon occurrence, and never usually worth getting involved in.

That was until he got closer and realised he recognised one of those voices. His lips pulled into a frown as he rounded the corner and found you facing off with a civilian, eyes flashing with anger as you argued with the man. Great. The Corps struggled enough with its reputation as it was - the last thing they needed was random recruits having it out with civilians in the street. He didn’t bother to focus on what you were so pissy about as he stalked over, more concerned with ending this little spat and drawing attention away from you both, “Oi, Y/L/N! What the hell are you doing?!”

You whirled around to face him, mouth opening but he just held up a hand to cut you off, “I’m sorry about her, sir. She needs to keep her temper in check. I’ll handle it.” More than a little hypocritical, coming from him, but soothing the guy’s ego was probably the quickest way to end this little drama. Sanemi was familiar with men like this; they didn’t like women to stand up to them, or to fight back, and the last thing he needed was this guy feeling belittled and raising a hand to you.

Thankfully, the man accepted his apology and walked away, casting one nasty glare back at you before he did so. Sanemi took a breath to centre himself before wrapping a hand around your upper arm and dragging you away from the scene, careful not to grip too tightly; he would never want to hurt a woman, no matter how pissed off he might be.

He shoved you onto a deserted side street, turning you to face him, “What are you doing, picking fights with the locals? I leave you alone for a couple of hours and you start causing trouble.”

You scanned his face, studying his expression and he couldn’t say he liked the guarded look that grew in your eyes as you did so. Jerking your arm out of his hold, you stiffly briefed him on what you had learned in your time apart, succinct and to the point. He wanted to assume you were angry with him, but something about the way you held yourself just didn’t fit that. Your shoulders were hunched in, as if you were trying to hide away, to make yourself smaller, and you wouldn’t meet his eye even as the pair of you planned to meet up just after sunset, near the border of the village. Your intel matched, and Sanemi was certain this was the night the demon would fall to his blade.

As soon as the plan was set, you turned on your heel and stormed away. Sanemi just shook his head - whatever was going on, hopefully you would get over it before tonight. You both had a job to do.

*************************

The wait for the demons to appear was awkward, to say the least. You hadn’t said a word to him since you met up at sunset, and you were pointedly avoiding looking at him, feigning interest in a nearby tree. Part of him wanted to say something - now he had cooled off, he felt a little bad about not hearing you out. He made an assumption based on past experience with hot-headed Slayers, but that didn’t quite fit with what he had seen of you so far, nor with how you had closed yourself off after he confronted you.

Before he could broach the subject, rustling from beyond the bushes caught both of your attentions, and for the first time that night, you met his eyes, silently agreeing a plan. Sanemi unsheathed his sword and watched as you did the same before gesturing towards the clearing ahead of you - time to end this.

*********************

His sword slashed through the demon’s neck, and a thud signalled the end of his fight. Immediately, Sanemi scanned the area, finding you standing across the clearing, a demon of your own at your feet, its head rolling towards the treeline. He straightened up and flicked the blood of his sword, hissing as the movement pulled the new gash in his arm. Self-inflicted, of course, but still hurting like a bitch.

He was impressed - you held your own. Before this, he was convinced he would have to step in and save your ass like he usually did with new Mizunoto. However, you took on the weaker of the two demons like you had been a Slayer for years. However, you hadn’t escaped unscathed, which wasn’t surprising given the amount of exposed skin on display. After all, the uniform was supposed to protect against low level demons like this. A particularly nasty set of claw marks was dripping blood down your leg, and he could see the pain lining your face no matter how hard you were trying to hide it as you limped over to him.

He called out to his crow, “Get a couple of Kakushi here. She needs to get to the Butterfly Mansion.”

“No. I’ll get there myself.” Your face was pale with blood loss, and you already looked a little unsteady on your feet even as you argued. The throbbing of the wound on his arm made him a little quicker to anger, and he couldn’t help the rush of frustration flowing through him as he was reminded of just how little protection you had from the uniform you wore. Yes, his uniform was exposing, but he wasn’t fresh out of Final Selection and prone to catching a demon’s claws during fights.

There was no way you could get to the Mansion in your condition, and he told you as much, watching as your face scrunched up in frustration, “That thing you’re calling a uniform didn’t do shit to protect you. Shut up and wait for the Kakushi.”

He saw the flicker of hurt in your eyes, but before he could apologise, it morphed into anger as you squared up to him, “I know it doesn’t protect me, okay?! I know it’s revealing - I see the way people look at me. Men treat me like a doll to stare at and play with. I spoke to Madea when I got my uniform, and I begged for a new one, but I was told it wasn’t allowed. So I make do with what I’ve got. Your judgement isn’t needed or appreciated. I thought you were different, but I guess I was wrong.”

Rage burned in your eyes, but he could see tears welling up on your lash line, face flushing a blotchy red with emotion. Your voice stayed steady despite all that, just as it had the first time you met. Was this how you felt then, too, when his gaze found your clothing before anything else?

“Goodbye, Shinazugawa-san. I trust you can report to the Master alone.” Somehow, you managed to make the honorific tacked onto the end of his name sound anything but respectful as you stalked off, gait remarkably even despite your injuries. You didn’t even give him time to respond to your outburst, which he honestly couldn’t blame you for. Guilt began to curl in his gut, and anger wasn’t far behind. You had mentioned one Kakushi in particular - Madea - who was responsible for the design of your uniform. Once Sanemi had reported his - your - success, he would pay the man a visit. The piece of shit was abusing his position to objectify the Slayers his uniforms were supposed to be protecting, and Sanemi wasn't about to let that go unpunished.

*************************

A few days after your mission, you were still feeling more than a little bitter about the Wind Hashira. You really thought you were getting on well - after that initial eyeing of your uniform when you first met, he had been nothing but respectful. His eyes never wandered below your face and he never once commented on the too short skirt or the uncomfortably revealing shirt. For that, you were grateful - you were all too aware of just how scandalous the uniform was, and you couldn’t shake the discomfort you felt every time you had to put it on. It made you feel vulnerable and exposed - a horrible combination when your job was to fight man eating demons.

You thought the Wind Hashira was different, and even had plans to ask him to spar once your mission was over; maybe even become his friend, over time. His reputation preceded him, and you had spent the whole journey to the mission site fretting over how best to make a good impression, and not earn his ire before you had even begun. Over the course of your mission together, though, your opinion had changed. More than once, you had caught him watching you, eyes studying you with curious concentration, and you felt your cheeks heat up at the memory. The last month had made you hesitant to find yourself under the gaze of others, but something about the way he looked at you made butterflies flutter in your tummy. 

Then he walked in on a man harassing you in the street and still decided you were the one causing trouble. At first, you thought it an act - playing along to get the man away from you. As he chewed you out in that alley, you came to the realisation that there was no act at all.

His comment after your fight with the demons just solidified your opinion. He was just like the others; judgemental, making assumptions about you just because of the clothes you were forced to wear. You had managed to hold your tongue after the incident with the civilian - you knew it would do you no good to get into a fight with a Hashira. However, the pain in your thigh and the humiliation burning through you made something snap, and you lashed out, hurt that he would judge you so easily, without even a chance to explain why you continued to wear such a degrading uniform.

Despite your lack of regrets around telling him off and storming away, you were still a little worried about potential repercussions - he was a Hashira, and you were just a Mizunoto. That worry is what made you jump at the sound of a knock on the door of the private room you were staying in at the Butterfly Mansion.

“Come in!” You were hoping it was one of Shinobu's little girls - they were so sweet, and always willing to keep you company as you recovered. The smile you wore for them quickly fell into a frown as instead, Shinazugawa stepped into the room, “What do you want?” Your cold attitude probably wasn't the best way to avoid punishment for disrespecting a Hashira, but you couldn't help it. You still felt a flood of humiliation every time you thought back on that night.

He didn't speak, walking forward silently to deposit the stack of cloth he was holding on the end of your bed and folding his thick arms over his chest. You looked up at him curiously, but he refused to meet your eye, choosing instead to feign interest in the bed frame.

You reached out for the bundle, lifting up the item on top. As you unfolded it, your eyes widened; it was a uniform jacket, and as you held it up by the shoulders, you noted silver buttons neatly fastened all the way down. It … would cover everything. No more scandalous slit revealing the swell of your breasts, and no more wandering eyes lingering on exposed skin. Your hands were shaking a little as you looked through the rest of Shinazugawa's gift - skirts, still the same style but now long enough to protect your modesty, and shirts, designed to fasten properly and leave nothing on display.

Tears pricked at your eyes as you picked up the final item - socks. You had assumed he wasn't listening to you, when you complained to him one night in the Wisteria House, about how the boots you preferred to wear would rub at your leg. Looking at these now, you just knew they would rise to just above where your boots sat.

You blinked up at him, trying to clear away the building tears, “Why?”

He looked up then, locking eyes with you and you could tell he didn't know what to do with the tears pooling in your eyes. He cleared his throat, a brush of red colouring his cheeks as he rubbed at the back of his neck.

“I … was an ass.” A surprisingly honest confession, and one you weren’t expecting. You stayed quiet, giving him space to speak his mind. This was a side of the Wind Hashira you hadn’t had the pleasure of seeing during your mission, and you found that you liked it, “You didn’t deserve me giving you shit, especially for something you were forced into. You’re … alright. For a newbie.” He folded his arms back across his chest, muscles flexing with the movement, “I went and spoke to Madea. He should think twice before he tries this with anyone else.”

The growing smirk on his face made you think it was a hell of a lot more than a polite conversation, and you were grateful, but the double standard kind of pissed you off, “So you’re allowed to confront him, but when I call someone out for groping me in the street, I’m ‘causing trouble’?”

“That guy did fuckin’ what?” To his credit, Sanemi seemed genuinely outraged on your behalf, “Why did you not …” His rant stopped abruptly, and the anger faded as quickly as it came on, replaced with shame instead, “Shit. I never gave you a chance to say anything, did I?”

You could have held it over him; stayed angry, or thrown hurtful words his way. You didn’t really want to though. Remorse was obvious in the way he was staring at you, and he had more than proven that he was a good man. Even your Cultivator hadn’t confronted Madea about your uniform, and Shinazugawa had done it without hesitation. Holding grudges was never your strong suit anyway, and you always were a sucker for a pretty face. You felt a smile tugging at your lips, “No, you didn’t, Shinazugawa-san. I could consider forgiving you … if you promise me a sparring match once I’ve healed up.”

The wicked grin you got in response lit up his face, and you just knew this would be the beginning of something great.

[piratefishmama]

Fake it Till you Make it | Part 16

Watching Eddie scope out his surroundings was… a sight to behold. He didn’t just walk from room to room like any normal person would, no, much like an adventurer, cautiously taking in their surroundings in a new place, in a new dungeon, stretching his neck to look around corners before stepping fully around them, gently touching walls to balance himself as he stretched.

Walking with his heel off the floor, quiet as a church mouse, going from room to room, appraising each one with varying sounds of approval while Steve watched in fond amusement.

It didn’t escape him, how lucky he was. How lucky he’d gotten, how rare it was for people like him, for people like Eddie, to feel comfortable enough to just be in a place that his parents also occupied. That running into his father on the second floor, midway through twirling Eddie from the master bedroom on one side of the hallway to the other where another door awaited his eager exploration, wouldn’t result in some kind of fight, that neither he, nor Eddie, had to hide who they were and what they were doing.

It didn’t escape him that he was lucky. Not just in the freedom he had either, but that he got to see Eddie comfortable. Got to see him light up like Christmas had come early, got to witness the exact moment downstairs when he’d relaxed in Steve’s space.

When he’d taken in all that stood before him and found comfort in it. Steve knew he was lucky that he got to see that. So he wasn’t about to take it for granted.

He wasn’t going to squander the opportunity to make the most of it. Of Eddie’s childish glee. Even if it was all based on a ruse. It was a mutual ruse. A ruse they were both aware of. There was no unfortunate reveal waiting at the end of the tunnel, no high school drama where some asshole pulled the wool from someone’s eyes to reveal none of it was real!!

He was going to make it as real as physically possible, and hopefully… just… continue. After the holiday. Maybe a conversation could happen to clear up any possible misunderstandings but… Steve wanted. He wanted the ultimate nerd currently scoping out the bedroom closest to the home theatre.

“We don’t want this one” Steve advised, leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed over his chest as Eddie poked the mattress with a single finger, as if that would accurately test the quality of the mattress, as he’d been doing for each room. “The home theatre doesn’t have proper sound proofing, if someone wants to watch a film later, we’ll be able to hear it through the walls.” It’d been a solid DIY job on his grandfathers part.

No professional involved, just ‘yeah I can do that, stand back Mags, let a man work’ and that was that. He'd even put it on the second floor, absolute madman.

Steve always pictured his grandmother just standing there, in the same pose he was currently standing in, watching with fond exasperation as her husband went to work on a project he was deeply inexperienced in, and completely unqualified to tackle.

The fact that it looked good in there was a miracle.

“Okay so, not this room, not the bunk bed room, and not the hot tub room, that leeeaves—”

“Master bedroom, or either of the two on the right side of the house.” The options were actually limited when other people were staying, if it were just him and Eddie they could have any room they wanted, but with his parents there it cut down the options.

“Tch, why’d you have me explore all of em then! We should probably just take the master bedroom, right? Since it’s apparently your house, oh great and powerful Master” Steve raised a brow as Eddie dipped into a low bow, theatrical as ever, his tone teasing, his hair bouncing around his face as he righted himself again. Cute.

“Hmm, you looked like you were having fun, you’re cute when you’re having fun.” And his cheeks coloured so nicely whenever he was complimented, hid behind his hair in a way that made Steve’s heart do a funny little flip flop, he’d file that information away for later, continuing on as if he hadn’t just dropped a flirty bomb on the other man “but you’re right, we should probably just take that one, it does have its own private deck…” oh the things they could do on that private deck. If it were all real. “Usually I let my parents have it buuut…” he had company this time. He’d have more than enough of an excuse to get the private deck, even if he wasn’t going to use it for anything other than relaxing. He had a reason to want a little privacy. “I’m sure they’ll understand us wanting it more.”

Eddie rolled with it, quickly recovering with the out Steve had created for himself, or maybe the guy was just so smooth he didn’t even realise he was flirting. That was definitely it. “Or they’ll think they understand us wanting it more” Eddie winked all conspiratorially, which only served to make Steve laugh leaving Eddie looking upon what he’d done in pride. He made Steve laugh. He did that. He’d done that a few times and honestly the high kept staying pretty fucking high.

How had he been so wrong about Steve for so goddamn long? How long had Steve been this glorious thing, like sunshine in human form?

“Exactly” Steve chuckled before pushing himself away from the doorframe “let’s go get our bags then, our shit wont unpack itself.”

“Actually could you get them? I… I should probably call Wayne, let him know I’m safe. It’s not too late there so he should still be home, is that okay? I don’t wanna leave it too late and have to go through reception at the plant, it’s… not great.” Nine times out of ten he wound up speaking to one of the three other Wayne’s working there.

“Yeah, there’s a private line in the room, you go ahead, I’ll grab the bags.”

“My Herculean hero” it wasn’t even remotely fair how badly Steve wanted to kiss him for how little he did to earn it.

“Yer very quiet, Ed, considerin you called me.” He’d gotten through to Wayne after three rings, reassuring him about his safety had been the first thing on the agenda as he got comfortable on the frankly unnecessarily large king sized bed, but then Steve returned to the room with their bags.

All of their bags. In one go, and Eddie’s brain kind of short circuited. “Huh?”

“Yer quiet, somethin the matter?”

“Steve is carrying everything all at once.” It earned a scoff from the man on the phone, and an amused smile from Steve. “It’s awfully distracting, I dunno what to tell you, Wayne I am very distracted.” Steve’s smile only widened

“Uh huh, well, I’ll let you get on then, gotta head out soon anyway, money ain’t gonna make itself. You sure everythin’s alright though? No red flags?”

“Nah… all green flags here, they’re… they’re nice, y’know?” He hadn’t expected it, so many stories of rich people being awful, but… they were just two extremely hard working people who’d had their hard work pay off. Even on holiday they were still working, it was both exhausting to watch, and deeply admirable. Eddie could never. “I’ll call you again tomorrow to check in.”

“I’ll be waitin. Be safe, son.”

“Say hi to Garfield for me” there was a short laugh on the other end, before the line cut off, leaving Eddie smiling as he put the phone down

“Who’s Garfield?” Steve asked, “other than the fat cat.”

“He’s the fat cat shaped mug I can no longer drink from after the great mug smashing of ’86. That stupid earthquake killed him, but we had superglue, so it was fine, just can’t drink out of him anymore cause he’s fragile.” No amount of superglue could fix the tiny areas they hadn’t been able to fill in with pieces, slivers of pot lost to the dark underside of the cabinets. “Need any help?”

“Nah, you just sit there an look pretty for me.” It had the desired effect, Eddie’s eyes widening, a pretty blush blossoming on his cheeks and the final kicker, he hid behind his hair. Adorable. Perfect. Beautiful. Had they actually been dating he’d have pressed pause on the unpacking, instead, he snipped that last thread holding Eddie’s composure in place with a smoothly delivered “just like that, yeah, God, you’re such a good boy.”

The consequences were immediate.

Part 18

[foldingfittedsheets]

Hi! Do have any mattress and bed-related advices for someone (my partner) fat (about 600lbs) with sleep apnea?

We don't have much money, what we have is either donated by family and/or DIY. Our first (metal) bed broke and our old mattress had a sunken spot where my partner sleep. Thankfully our family gave us an old wooden bed that has been reinforced with a DIY structure of wood bars. Not really aesthetically pleasing, but if guess it does the job for now if we're careful of the random nails (I cut myself a couple times). The "new" mattress was my partner's brother old one when he still lived with his mom. It's good quality, but it's getting old now. My partner also has a mountain of blankets and pillows to keep his upper body elevated.

This solution won't last forever and I think we'll have to find at least a new mattress and maybe a new bed soon. Do you have thoughts/ideas/tips about this situation?

:(((( First off: I’m so sorry. It sucks that beds are so expensive when everyone needs them, especially when they wear out under weight so fast.

Long term, the beds that hold up best to weight tend to be firmer. I personally had a lot of positive anecdotal of the very high density foam beds but they’re more expensive. However I did see someone mention how much they liked their Big Fig which is made for bigger folks. The specs check out but I’m slightly wary of coils for weights over 500lb.

I’d recommend scoping Craigslist and Facebook for Tempur or Serta all foam mattress. You could probably find a steal if you’re checking consistently.

For sleep apnea pillows and blankets are really gonna struggle to help. If you can’t find an adjustable look for a wedge pillow, it’ll be better than nothin.

[the-curse-of-neoclones]

Moderneopets Artist Mistreatment

Edit as of 11/16/23 10:40 AM NST:

Removed names where I failed to do so before. I'm very sorry to the affected parties, this snowballed so far out of my intended scope.

Edit as of 11/16/23 5:30 PM NST

Please see this post for a small update.

As of 11/16/23 10:10 PM NST, Hazer the site owner has formally and publicly apologized to myself and Velu, the other affected artist. As far as I'm concerned he has officially handled the situation as best as he could, and I hold no further qualms with Moderneopets. I hope to hear of its management continuing in this direction.

The following post is left up for archival purposes only.

*****

Hello, I’m wren. I'm an artist responsible for some of the pet assets on the neoclone, Moderneopets. I'm just going to get into it.

Hazer was extremely lucky to somehow cultivate a dense group of largely professional artists to work together to make assets for his site. When it comes to his own management as a site runner, he’s largely hands-off of the art department, which is a good thing! If he can’t be active in the art panel enough to know what goes on in there, he shouldn’t be running it— we have many strong, capable artists on the team who are passionate about recreating the neopets style, who work together on every pet that has been released ever since critique became a requirement. 

It makes sense that, with a project this large, Hazer should have to designate moderators to enforce rules when he is absent. Choosing to bring on moderators was also a good decision. Unfortunately, he chose poorly. 

Art panel issues should have separate Art panel moderators to take care of them. People who are not overburdened with generic moderation duties from the many other channels of the server, for example. In the same vein, artists should not be moderators. When an artist has an issue with another artist, who happens to be a moderator (which has happened many times, with many people— If the mods actually open threads for all complaints they receive, they should have evidence of this & if they don’t they are not being truthful), the artist would likely not feel comfortable approaching that same artist-slash-moderator to complain about what happened. It breeds an aura of fear and discomfort any time there is an issue with an artist/mod, and that is why the two moderators on the team should have to choose one or the other if hazer wants to cultivate a healthy atmosphere in his panel. 

I’ve created many pets for this website. Neopets has been a passion of mine since the third grade. I’m also one of those professional artists I mentioned— my work is also art, industry or otherwise. I care about breaking neopets down into their core, recognizable shapes. I care about keeping them on-model and in the spirit of the original TNT art team, with improvements made where I and the other panelists think they make sense. I have redlined for other artists to an even greater degree, just as other artists have redlined for me and helped me finalize each pet into something simply good: something that made sense to get put on a little passion project website for other people with a similar passion to enjoy. I found the panel to be a community of likeminded artists with which to discuss our favorite childhood petsite while we made art for a clone, as if we could pretend we were making art for neopets-dot-com. It was nice. 

It wasn’t perfect, though. In fact, shortly after I joined in 2021 I took a hiatus because the art panel was fairly dead. I came back a little while later to see we had several new species, as well as an art director, and lots of activity! That was very exciting. Over the next year I would reach out to the panel or, if nobody was sure of how to proceed, I would reach out to the art director to propose ideas for how to make the panel a little more functional; quality of life updates, if you will. I don’t take credit for all of these alone, there were other artists with similar ideas all communicating to the director in private, but some examples: 

A designated “collab” zone where artists could seek out other artists to complete pets with. 

“The Purge,” in which the team was whittled down to ~25 current, active artists to refresh the team and allow for new artists to join. 

“The Approval System,” which I first sat down with in my workshop (public to all artists) to hammer out the details with as many other artists as wanted to give their input— a method for pitching new ideas to eventually break through the “new species/color freeze” that had been plaguing us.

Speaking on the approval system: like most things that required Hazer’s direct input in the art team, it was left without response for a very long time. Artists with ideas for custom species or colors would occasionally murmur about their excitement for the system to get a look-over by hazer, to see if our approval system pitch would be approved. But hazer is busy, as we all know, and the pitch sat for a while. We had new & returning artists on the team to keep everyone busy. 

What I would expect from a years-old panel of artists, when new additions arrive, would be some manner of tutorial. New artists would need to know the pipeline (here’s your workshop, you can post WIPs and anything else in there; here’s how you ping for critique, here are the spaces in which to ask for it; make sure you always ping before your work is submitted on-site), and there would likely be some acclimating on both sides. What I did not expect (but should have), was pushback from new artists on things that hadn’t had pushback in a long time. Why can’t [x] color be a posechange? Well, we’ve created many already and none of them were posechanges. Why can’t I use colored lineart? Well, that isn’t in line with the style standards set by this color; see, nobody else is coloring their lineart. 

Suddenly there was a divide between veteran artists, the director, and the new blood. The divide felt greater when Hazer came to his new artist’s aid to say, approximately: “Eh, if someone wants to go above and beyond and make better art, they shouldn’t have to adhere to the guidelines.” Then he threw the art director under the bus for not somehow knowing that his intentions were always to keep the panel loose and unstructured. But don’t worry, that isn’t the first bus and won’t be the last.

My personal investment in the panel waned around that time. I think a structured “work” environment with easily accessible rules and deadlines is necessary to any project of this size. If we didn’t want to enforce color standards, nor prioritize certain colors for release, and anyone could just submit whatever Nice Art they wanted, why not open it up so any user could submit pet art? Why have a panel at all? Isn’t Hazer taking any opportunity to dunk on Leopets because he wants his site to be better? How is this different? 

But I stuck around. This was a hobby I really enjoyed, after all, and I really believed it could get better. It had a good core, and despite my grievances with individual artists, none of them were bad people. 

But I noticed some trends. New artists would receive feedback that they didn’t agree with and retaliate by bringing in their emotions or personal preferences. Any disagreement where multiple veteran artists stepped in to say their piece would escalate to the point of very long messages on both sides, and would need to be left to hazer to give a final input. Often he didn’t come around to it, because he’s busy, as we know. I didn’t step in to every argument; they became cyclical after a while, and I didn’t have the time or energy to spend simply tapping the proverbial sign (or style sheet). I would try to give positive suggestions when I could, for example: I don’t think this color needs another alt for just one single design, but we did talk about eventually making this color that your design would fit into really well. 

I’ve done my time having arguments on the internet. I really just want an art environment where the rules are set and people actually enjoy following them, because I do— I see art rules as helpful guidelines at best and obstacles to cleverly navigate at worst, which is still fun. But of course not everyone is going to feel the same way, that’s normal; that’s life. 

On 11/9 I was given this message by Hazer: 

It reads:

Hello wren,

I am reaching out to you today to inform you that effective immediately you are being dismissed from the Artist and Consultant Panels. This decision has been reached through discussions and based on repeated offences in the form of user harassment and subjecting the panels to a toxic atmosphere, after multiple reports and concerns brought up to us by other users.

While we understand concerns regarding panel management, there is a distinct difference between criticising and condeming the way the panel does things and criticising and condeming users that are on the panel, and we believe this line has been crossed one too many times, further supported by concerns brought to us.

We appreciate the passion and drive of our team—all of them—and we understand you have been very passionate about the panel. Given some of the messages we see, we have also concluded that due to things in the panel not working out as you have wished, it has caused you much stress and upset as well, which we do not want. All in all, we've decided that the atmosphere of the panel and your own enjoyment of the website are hampered by your presence on it. Because of this, we have decided it is best to have you part ways with the staff sections of the website.

Effective immediately after this message, we will be permanently removing you from the panels. While normally we do a temporary removal, in this case we've seen that your compatability with our management and handling of the panel will not improve, and it will just bring stress to both sides.

We understand you have put a lot of passion into the projects you have been working on for release in Moderneopets, and in lieu of that, we offer you the option of having the project(s) still be released even after dismissal. Rewards will still be granted for releases per usual, and credit will still be given. If you decide, due to dismissal, you do not want your unreleased work to be released on Moderneopets, simply state it as such, and we will discard all progress on projects you have been working on to respect those wishes.

This decision is final and will not be revoked.

Best wishes to you,

The Moderneopets Team

[end caption]

My response:

It reads: 

No warnings huh?

[end caption]

Hazer didn’t have an answer for me. I was already removed from the panel. 

This came as a shock. I’d been there for over two years, I felt I had a good rapport with the other artists, I felt I’d been a helpful and active addition to the team. Like I said, I’ve done my time having arguments on the internet… what toxic behavior? Discussions over style guides? Giving redlines to people with permission? Working with the whole team to bolster several new color releases? I had an entire species that Hazer wanted ready to go since March— I just pushed through the Swamp Gas release, I just created the Mystical alt? 

No warnings?

Let me reiterate: I have never been spoken to by any staff about my behavior. Hazer, his then-four moderators— none of them have ever been in my DMs to issue a warning. I have spoken TO the mods about others’ behaviors, and nothing ever came of it. The one time (and I mention this for full transparency only) the art director came to talk to me about something I said, it was stated clearly that it was not a warning, and even so I adjusted my behavior around said issue accordingly. And that was well before the purge. 

But, don’t take my word for it. Here it is from hazer himself, speaking over his mods who were busy telling the rest of the panel that they always issue warnings: 

It reads:

No in this case I do agree that this has been an abrupt situation and I understand the blind-sided-ness of it. No official warnings were given out regarding the actions that resulted in the removal of artists today and that’s on fault of myself and deebs not working things out properly despite the moderation team bringing issues to a us a few times – also due to our lack of availability recently.  [end caption]

So… What happened? Well… here it is from Hazer, in longform: 

For those who use screen readers, above are several enormous discord screenshots; I've placed it in a paste bin here: https://pastebin.com/dHLiBRTF

Two other artists immediately stepped down. Hazer admits here in his message that he and the mods had multiple tickets opened about my behavior, that they had known they wanted to remove me. They never gave a warning, never talked to me until the moment of my dismissal, but they had known it was coming for months? 

Why did Hazer and his gang of mods let me continue working on art for their panel? Why did they let me work so hard to pull Swamp Gas together for an official release? Why did they let me put together a whole custom Alt and workshop it for so long? I’ve been active this whole time. Why did you let me keep working if you knew you wanted me gone? 

I am a professional artist. My work is art. Hazer made the knowing decision to exploit my time and effort for his website. He’s not paying me, he’s not paying any of us. It’s volunteer work. But I did not volunteer to be mistreated like this. To not even be given a chance to defend myself. To him, artists are disposable. To him, if someone has worked on your team for years but speaks up when your friend tries to overturn the system, even civil discussion is cause for disposal. Civil discussion negates years of effort, passion, time and care. 

I didn’t have to make art for you, Hazer. And you don’t deserve the team you have. How many artists have voiced their discomfort with your actions? How many artists are taking a break from the panel because of how you handled this? Ah, wait, you wouldn’t know… you’re busy. 

Hazer and his mod team are just another corrupt group of individuals unfortunately heading what could have been a fun and promising petsite. Everyone who speaks praise of modneo does it by and large because of the new and unique art. Hazer was extremely lucky to cultivate a dense group of largely professional artists to work together to make assets for his site. 

If Hazer wants to show any sign of his potential to be a better person, I believe he needs to formally apologize to his site for the misuse of his power and the mistreatment and exploitation of artists on his team. He needs to apologize to you, the players of his game, the subscribers to his patreon, for allowing this to happen under his watch and under his word. You know you fucked up, hazer. You shouldn’t have sided with your friend without any actual evidence of misconduct. You shouldn’t have spoken about me like I was a toxic, subhuman hindrance to your art team. You shouldn’t have treated me like that. I didn’t deserve it. None of us did. You can apologize to me and the other lost artists publicly.

[whencyclopedia]

Carthaginian Art

The art of the Carthaginians was an eclectic mix of influences and styles, which included Egyptian motifs, Greek fashion, Phoenician gods, and Etruscan patterns. Precious metals, ivory, glass, terracotta, and stone were transformed into highly decorative objects ranging from everyday utensils to purely ornamental pieces. Just as the Carthaginians imported and exported all manner of trade goods, so too their art reflected their vast network of contacts across the ancient Mediterranean but they would eventually produce their own distinctive art which uniquely blended elements from other cultures. The distinctive qualities of Punic art can be best seen in their stelae, jewellery, sculpture, and masks.

Surviving examples of Carthaginian art are sadly few in comparison to contemporary cultures, and they are further limited in scope by the fact that the majority of artefacts come from a burial context and so are predominantly small in scale and of a religious nature. Secular art and objects produced exclusively for their aesthetic value are rare indeed. Nevertheless, enough examples survive of jewellery, figurines, ceramics, and stonework to hint that the Carthaginians were not as artistically impoverished as earlier historians saw fit to claim.

Influences

Carthage was founded in the 9th century BCE by colonists from the Phoenician city of Tyre. This fact and the city's continued close ties with the mother country meant that art was heavily influenced by that of Phoenicia, at least in its formative years. Just as Phoenicia was itself a melting pot of diverse cultures, its wealth based as it was on maritime trade, so too Carthage would become a cosmopolitan city with visitors, residents, and artists from across the ancient Mediterranean. Egyptian art was particularly influential and many motifs are seen in Carthaginian art such as the goat with head looking backwards beneath a sacred tree or rigid standing female figures. Near Eastern art was another strong influence, seen especially in figurines of the god Melqart/Baal. The influence of Etruscan artists is seen especially in Carthaginian pottery decoration from the 4th century BCE.

Above all, though, Carthage's art took inspiration from the Greek world from the 5th century BCE onwards. Not only were the Carthaginians appreciative collectors of Greek art, taking fine art as booty from their campaigns in Sicily, but they also produced imitative art. There was a large Greek community at Carthage, and many of these must have worked as skilled craftsmen in the workshops of the city. In turn, they would have taught local artists or the next generation. We know of at least one artist whose father was a Greek immigrant but who signed his work as 'Boethus the Carthaginian' and who became so appreciated that his work was dedicated at Olympia.

There is a general problem of identifying the exact origin of many art pieces which is exacerbated by the Punic habit of copying foreign motifs and styles. Traditionally, historians had favoured the view that, at least in general, finer pieces were imported and more rustic art was locally made. This unflattering view is steadily being revised following the discovery of large workshop areas in the city suggesting a healthy export trade and by new archaeological discoveries so that the position that all of the fine art was imported is becoming increasingly untenable.

Continue reading...

[loveemagicpeace]

☕️☀️Virgo Season🛁🫧

Negative- earth- mutable sign

♍️The symbol for Virgo is the Virgin. In the ancient world, she is the temple virgin, dedicated to the deity. We can translate this as an instinct for self-sufficiency and devotion to practical service.

For Virgos, mind and body are linked; regular exercise and healthy eating help you to maintain effective mind-body balance. Virgo's role is to establish and work according to a system. With planets in this sign, you dislike chaos.

Virgos can often get lost in the detail, unable to see the bigger picture. Sweating the small stuff can turn into an obsessive need for order and control.

🪻Herbs associated with Virgo: lavender (it is a plant that calms and is good against anxiety).

💎Crystals: peridot (a semi-precious stone of compassion, health and abundance).

The symbol would represent the intestine, to which Virgo Government. The Virgin is represented by the image of a girl with a scope wheat in hands, which is obviously based on Greek the goddess Demeter and the Roman Ceres. A virgin girl is a symbol of endurance and chastity. Virgo is an independent sign. They have virgins a strong sense of self-confidence that ensures that their expectation of intrinsic value is not based on opinion of others. Although Virgos are ruled by Mercury in the same way as Geminis, they are completely different - Virgos don't like too talkative people and prefer to be alone than in too big a group. They are analytical and think things through.

🫧Because Virgo is a caring earth sign for the body, takes nutrition seriously and wants to ensure that her body works as efficiently as the rest areas of her Life. That's why it's a healthy choice Vegetables, such as whole grains, fruits and vegetables, eats a vegetarian diet or adheres to such a diet or different diets.

☁️People born under this sign care a lot about hygiene and are known for being in the zodiac most often they wash their hands.

☕️In virgo season you may be inspired to bring more ritual to cleansing your body and home, to bring order to what feels messy, and to bring surrender where you can’t make change. You are asked to take what feels big and break it down into small steps and little wins, and to concentrate on those steps, on how they compound, on how we evolve through and with them. To clear away all the noise, the extra, the outside, all that is not yours, and to explore who emerges from underneath it all.

🛁Virgo Rising-you will be more inspired about things that concern your appearance, style and personality. You will feel more confident in your own skin and the things you will do. You will find the light within yourself and feel more inspirational energy. Find faith in yourself and what you want to be. Be proud of who you are.

💗Libra rising-you will find a lot of inspiration through spirituality, subconscious energy, creativity. You will be more creative and maybe you will discover talents that you have not yet discovered. Everything you dream can come true, you just have to believe.

🫧Scorpio rising- you will emphasize friends more - maybe meet new people. You will find a lot of inspiration through dreams and interests. You might be more critical of who will be by your side as you turn your dreams into a reality. Follow your dreams.

🧜🏼‍♀️Sagittarius rising- you will find inspiration through the things you do, your career - maybe your parents or an authority figure. You may find yourself changing your mind constantly, especially if you have several goals or a few different professional tracks. Maybe your mind will be more serious and focused.

⭐️Capricorn rising- you will find inspiration through things that you dig deeply into and that are important to you. You will also feel a lot of inspiration through quality conversations. You will have an inner journey about the things you deeply believe into. And in the end you will notice how much you have grown and how intelligent a person you are. And how your life has progressed. Watching podcasts, reading books that inspire you will help you. Have faith!

🌿Aquarius rising-Prepare to be exceptionally introspective. You may have to reflect on whether you are in a healthy situation or entrapped in an entanglement. You will find the most inspiration through insight into yourself. Insight into deeper things will make you think.

🧁Pisces rising-you will find inspiration through good relationships and people. Whether you’re interested in someone new or thinking about rekindling with a former flame, Mercury retrograde will caution you to look before you leap. Go with the flow. Think about who is really there for you and who is not. Chill.

🍒Aries rising- improving your routine health and lifestyle it's the key here. You will be more productive and do more for yourself and your body. Maybe you start new sport. If you have struggled with financial worries, then you may feel more hopeful now. Everything you do is part of the process and eventually you will be where you want to be.

🥨Taurus rising- you will discover more of your hobbies. You will have more fun and do things related to your joy. Perhaps someone with whom you had an affair may appear. You can attract a lot of people during this time. Doing something you really enjoy will be the key now. The Sun is at home in the 5th house, which means that this will bring you even more joy and happiness.

🌴Gemini rising-Virgo sun will warm your fourth house of home and family. Also Mercury retrograde will influence what could be revealed, you may find out some family secrets that could shape your perception of your childhood as well as the home that you are creating at this time. Maybe you will be more inspired through the decoration of the room or home. Look for things that will make you feel warm and at home.

🪷Cancer rising- More and more inspired to talk, think and things related to it all. You may feel like now is the time to speak your truth. You can also travel somewhere or go on a short trip. Don't think too much, be present here and now. Don't worry about things, just be. Sometimes silence is better than words.

🎸Leo rising- finding your value, things in which you see potential and relationships that you think are really good is in the spotlight. The potential for growth and genuine connection lies in embracing reality and collaboratively shaping your journey. U may find yourself debating on saving or spending money more than usual.

✨Ig-bekylibra✨

-Rebekah🌸⭐️⛵️

[downtroddendeity]

@turnkeyassurance saw your tags and figured I'd take the opportunity to pause my descent into madness to give my more sober opinions on the Ni no Kuni franchise, lol. (Warning: I am a humongous JRPG nerd)

The NNK games are really odd ducks, quality-wise. You can call either one a good game or a bad game and call either one better than the other, and any combination of those opinions can be something I think is entirely justified. Both of them have things they do remarkably well and also serious, profound, deal-breaking flaws, and the really weird thing is that there's almost no overlap between those two lists for the two games. What clicks and doesn't about both of them is going to be deeply individual.

What Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch does, with resounding success, is Vibes. It sets out at every single step with the goal of being a playable Ghibli movie, and it sticks to that principle. It's all about beautiful, cel-shaded whimsy. It's a game for people who want to feel like they're wandering through the meadows in the movie version of Howl's Moving Castle. There are lots of puns, and you can befriend all the random encounter monsters and feed them ice cream.

But that's also its Achilles' heel: because it's dedicated entirely to imitation, it has trouble bringing things to the table that are really its own. It has the visual and narrative aesthetics of Hayao Miyazaki's films, but it doesn't have the raw emotion at the heart of them. And as a game, its mechanics combine the clunkiest features of menu-based combat and action RPGs, and while everything about the Pokemon-esque mechanics seems designed to encourage players to collect and experiment with them, the balancing turns attempting to do that into a miserable grindy nightmare.

The other problem is that it... isn't actually the first Ni no Kuni game. Wrath of the White Witch is, in fact, a remake of the Nintendo DS game Ni no Kuni: Dominion of the Dark Djinn, which was never released outside Japan. The reason for this is pretty easy to explain, because DDD had another gimmick besides its aesthetics: it came with a real-life physical copy of the wizard spellbook, and the player had to look things up in it and draw sigils on the DS touchscreen to cast spells. So, we've got a high-effort remake that had to completely cut the central mechanic... and which also expanded the plot so that the original main villain was no longer the primary antagonist. This results in a game with what is very clearly a final dungeon and very clearly a final boss and very clearly a resolution to the story, which suddenly has a completely different plot dropped on it like a fucking anvil that it expects you to be just as invested in even though it hasn't had anything like the same level of buildup.

And ironically, this is almost the exact opposite of the biggest problem with Ni no Kuni 2: Revenant Kingdom, a.k.a. the one with my new blorbo, the President of the United Union of Eagleland. 2 is an effort to try to cement an identity for the series that can be its own, rather than requiring them to depend indefinitely on borrowed Miyazaki nostalgia. It just has the teeny-tiny, itsy-bitsy problem that at some point in development it had a budget shortfall so bad that you can finish the game without ever realizing that there is a continent-sized crashed interdimensional spaceship on the world map.

This game has had a machete taken to it. Don't get me wrong, I genuinely respect the work they did to make what they could with what they had, but you can see the signs of massive scope cuts to literally every aspect of the game. The back half of the game has almost exclusively recycled enemy and environment assets; voice acting has been trimmed down to canned voice clips; the catboy protagonist's ears and tail are barely animated; one minigame was so inadequately playtested that a level 16 mission is massively harder than level 50 ones; and while whatever restructuring they had to do to the main plot still left the final version with a more solid and coherent central arc than WWW in my opinion, it also left a lot of truly gaping plot holes, like oh, I don't know, why the President of the United States got turned into a 19-year-old.

Literally, they just. Entirely forgot to explain that. Half the DLC is just the writers scrambling to fix stuff like that and add a bunch of character development that should have been in the base game.

However, despite all this, I personally enjoyed NNK2 more than NNK1 unironically, not just for Rolandposting reasons. Compared to the first one, it plays much more smoothly as a straight action RPG, and while it can't provide the same knock-your-socks-off aesthetic cohesion, to me it seemed a lot more heartfelt- that is, like a game that was made because people had a story they wanted to tell.

But, well, we wouldn't be here if it wasn't for the non-unironic reasons, because the story they really, genuinely wanted to tell was about a magical catboy growing up and learning to become a leader, and somehow, miraculously, they really thought that was the story I was here for too when they opened the game with the President of the United States being isekaied by Nuke-kun.

Sorry, guys, I have a crippling addiction to dramatic irony and my day job is tech work in local politics, you could not have more laser-targeted this at making me specifically laugh my ass off if you tried.

[vasito-de-leche]

Hello..... may I ask for more Horropedia romantic headcanons about his love languages in recieving and giving? 👉👈 I really like your Pavia headcanons about it. If it's too much, then may I ask for just Horropedia's love language in receiving? This man has been haunting me in my mind for a long time and I starve for more stuff about him. Thank you very much! 💖💖

;R1999 HORROPEDIA - Love Languages (receiving)

Headcanons and analysis on Horropedia's love languages and the way he likes to receive attention.

I miss doing love language stuff, so ty for the request! it's only receiving stuff for this post since it might've gotten too long if I did both, but feel free to drop by again!

This one is a little tricky for me! I know I have a lot to say about the way Horropedia shows affection, but when it comes to the way he likes to receive affection, I don't think I have a super solid grasp?

When it comes to love as a general feeling, I know that Horropedia isn't used to it. It's not due to a lack of receiving it, that's for sure. Horropedia knows how love is supposed to feel thanks to the loving grandfather that raised him - but genuine affection, whether platonic or romantic, and acts of kindness are extremely hard to come by in an environment as sterile and harsh as the Foundation. At worst, they come with an invisible compromise.

This, mixed with the fact that people tend to avoid him, has certainly led Horropedia not to expect anything when it comes to love as a concept. "It's not his genre", he says.

In the context of giving, it's easy for him to adapt to it because he just has to figure out the rules - the things he's comfortable with doing that feel good for you, the deal breakers, the clichés and so on and so forth, but when it comes to receiving? Horropedia is a little lost, almost like he's used to experiencing things as an outsider and a observer, rather than an active participant. It's especially difficult if the things that he wants are considered non-conventional, outside of the traditional scope of romance. Or if his partner misunderstands his eagerness to learn and the ways he engages with these new feelings as disinterest or aloofness.

Like I said in that previous post about Horropedia's relationship headcanons, it's easy to misinterpret him and his actions if they're only read at a surface level, and through the lenses of conventional displays of love. Him putting the effort into understanding the rules of romance, to figure out everything there is to know about love and the nuance of this relationship he's in... That's exactly how he shows his affections.

But once again, what happens when it comes to Horropedia receiving love and affection? He likes when you're with him, but is that enough? Is there something deeper? Something he's missing?

I think it would be very cute if he tried to figure out which love languages he likes to receive, only to find out the answers were pretty obvious the whole time, much like the formula for every romcom out there.

Receiving: Quality Time, Words of Affirmation

[Quality Time]

Out of everyone I've written about so far in this blog, Horropedia would love quality time in it's purest form the most - getting to spend time with you all alone, focusing only on each other to catch up and bond sounds heavenly to him. The activity is the least of his concerns, he'd rather much focus on the fact that someone is going out of their way to make time for him, that they genuinely want him around and care about what he has to say.

Okay, bear with me for a moment. I like to think Horropedia is particular about his space and belongings, I definitely mentioned this a few times already throughout my posts, partially because of how cautious he had to be to keep the Foundation from taking away everything that made him feel safe and happy while growing up. And also because he's just wired like that, no other deep reasoning behind it. But once he grows comfortable, this sort of "stingy" and perhaps avoidant behaviour disappears almost entirely, because that's when he becomes eager to share his life in its entirety with those he cherishes.

The process of indulging in quality time with Horropedia, whether he's the one initiating or receiving, is actually just a very slow process of being welcomed into his life.

It starts very systematic and organized, I'd say - he would prefer to set up certain dates and times to hang out. For example, Sundays are special because they're the day you come around to hang out with him, so he can't have any other plans on Sundays and he'll certainly spend part of the week just anticipating this special day. But as he grows more comfortable, he would insist that you simply show up to his work station or room whenever you feel like it. That counts as quality time, right? You two are spending time together. Easy.

And this goes on and on, to the point where you're glued by the hip and that initial barrier is gone entirely - similar to Pavia, Horropedia would insist that you have permission to just wak into the places he considers a "safe space" from the world that keeps giving him weird looks or continues to chastise him for not adhering to the model of a Foundation member. He loves whenever you invite yourself to his movie marathons, when you just tag along to keep him company, or when you invite him to fun getaways, etc etc.

I know I said that Horropedia would enjoy quality time in the purest of its forms at the beginning of this entire section, but now I'm talking about how Horropedia considers quality time to every single second he spends with you. I have nothing to defend myself, so I'll just attribute that to his themes of redirection <3

[Words of Affirmation]

Horropedia likes when people are clear about their intentions and feelings the same way he is. Words of affirmation, to him, is intrinsically linked with understanding and transparent communication. Those are the things Horropedia seeks.

I think that questions are the easiest way to show this sort of love language to him. Yes, Horropedia would prefer to hear why you dislike a movie that he likes rather than hear you mindlessly praise it just to avoid upsetting him, he would rather be told that he's done a good job in his research, and all - but directly asking him for his thoughts and opinions, asking him to clarify or explain something in more detail... It makes Horropedia feel seen, finally heard, he's given the chance to unleash all of his intellect while knowing that someone is truly paying attention to him. You went out of our way to ask him, when you could've asked anyone else.

Not to say that compliments, declarations of love and sweet nothings are useless or unwanted! I do think that Horropedia is the type of guy who would love to be hyped up by his friends and loved ones, to have others tell him he's done a good job even if he already knows that, to have his partner tell him that they love him, even if he focuses more on actions rather than words. But it has to come hand in hand with that direct honesty, lest it come across as insincere or some back-handed comment.

I'm gonna go on another tangent here!

We've all talked about neurodivergency and Horropedia at some point or another, the idea of Horropedia masking is not strange or new at all. Him being aware of these invisible rules of conduct that others expect him to live up to exist out there, while also being unable to follow them or notice them right away at times - it's just the contradictory lifestyle us neurodivergent people have to lead.

I like to think that Horropedia has grown to be wary and cautious of acts of kindness around the Foundation staff because it's not something that he associates with a group like them. So being complimented out of the blue can give him pause. Something as small as telling him that his hair looks nice today, or that someone likes his clips and hair ties. Horropedia knows he must be on the look out for these double-edged words and back-handed compliments. Just look at the way other kids treated Vertin when they were all so young.

And yet, he feels so very happy and giddy when someone he trusts, who has proven that they're honest, gives him any sort of positive affirmations. Because he knows that these people mean what they say and say what they mean, as opposed to everyone else. This is when simple compliments can go a long way with him!

[max1461]

Ok, I don't want to continue discoursing on the post in question, because OP has expressed to me that there's more context to the scenario that I'm missing and they are frustrated with people discoursing on the post for that reason.

So I'm going to make a new post, where there isn't any more context because the scenario is made up by me as a pure hypothetical, and continue my branch of the discussion that way.

Here's the scenario: straight guy sends text message to straight girl he has just hooked up with, asking if they can be "exclusive friends with benefits". This means (in this context) that they don't have sex with other people, but they pursue no romantic or emotional connection with each other, and there is no serious commitment. I.e., the offer is to become exclusive sex partners and nothing more.

The relevant question is: is the straight guy in the wrong for making this offer?

I contend that the answer is "no". It's not an arrangement that would appeal to me, and it may well not be an arrangement that would appeal to our straight girl. But it's good to have a culture in which people feel comfortable laying their cards on the table straightforwardly regarding what they want in a relationship. For all we know, maybe this straight girl would be into it, and if so, that's great for both of them. It's good to be able to talk like adults and say "here's what I'm looking for; what are you looking for?". And of course, if the girl is not into it, she is equally justified in saying "no, I'm not interested in that". Having this kind of communication be the norm is good and useful for everyone.

Ok, in response to this, @the-grey-tribe says:

Ugh. I can see both sides to this, but... [...] They hooked up. He's offering her a relationship where they are exclusive, but not official, where they hang out and have sex, but without any commitment, not even a time commitment. You can argue he's getting the sex and she's not getting the status or emotional support or shared quality time. It's an extremely one-sided offer. From his side though, he's at least putting the cards on the table. He's going through some stuff, or he's overworked, he likes her but he doesn't want a full relationship. This can be an extremely soul-sucking situation, especially if it's unclear where the relationship is going, but both sides think there is a consensus about the future of the relationship, and the scope of the commitment. At least he's honest. [...]

And I mean, I guess in a sense we agree. But my main point of disagreement would be: why are we assuming that what guys want out of a relationship is sex, with emotional connection being a cost instead of a benefit, and what girls want out of relationships is emotional connection, with sex being a cost and instead of a benefit, so that a set-up like this represents the guy "winning" and the girl "losing"? Why is this a one-sided offer, if not for stereotypes about what men and women want?

I mean, if it's an offer that the individual straight girl in this scenario doesn't like, that's fine and she should feel comfortable rejecting it. Obviously there are all kinds of reasons she might not feel comfortable rejecting it, but those are things we should be seeking to remedy in-and-of-themselves. Anytime someone has the power to pressure or coerce another person into a relationship they don't want, that's awful on its own, regardless of the details of the relationship type they are being pressured into. If coercion is what's happening, the details of the relationship being "offered" are scarcely our greatest concern. But assuming that there is no coercion, and that these two people do not already know each other's preferences, why is this a priori an unfair offer?

[maintitle]

ALRIGHT, I have beaten the game. It's time to talk about Veilguard.

I'm going to go into a lot of depth below the cut. I feel like I'm in a unique position to talk about it, because I've both been disappointed by it but also recognized that some of the criticism is... misguided, while also having enjoyed aspects while also not being too forgiving of it's failings. I think I went in with tempered expectations, both from the World State debacle and from being at every single launch, and that's kind of allowed me to sit back and take it.

For folks who don't want spoilers but want my opinion, I'll say this; It's a mixed bag, but what is there is very enjoyable if sometimes very frustrating. The game is really great mechanically and maybe the most fun I've had with a game moment-to-moment since Origins. It's story and side quests are good, although the dialogue is not always the best written parts of the game. The characters are good-to-great, however their brilliance is really downplayed and minimized until Act II, which is indicative of the quality of the game in general as Act I tends to be a slog and Act II is where the game's brilliance happens, while Act III balances the two to give a fulfilling ending. It's dialogue wheel, while devoid of aggression, is the best one for me in the series since it was added as a replacement for the unvoiced protagonist. It does, however, drop the ball in many aspects as a continuation of the series and it's lore and depth, leaving it quite shallow in many places, and angering in a few, small areas. You should go into the game with the knowledge that there are a few contradictions, that several major aspects of the series are explored on a very disappointing surface level, and the lack of world state options did harm legacy characters. I still, however, would say it's worth a play with these things in mind because once the game picks up it's very rewarding.

Okay, here we go. Obviously, spoilers below, and a lot of them.

I'm gonna start this by presenting a statement as the thesis for what I feel about the game as a whole;

Dragon Age: The Veilguard's greatest failings all exist solely within the realm of legacy.

With that said, I want to start with the good, because I feel that the actual good of the game is either being downplayed dismissed entirely. I'm someone who does love Origins most, but who accepted a long time ago that was not the direction of the series, and that has allowed me to pretty evenly both see the good and bad and also accept that good and bad, especially when understanding what the game was made to be and what it wasn't made to be. I think it's wholly unfair to dismiss the game as a train wreck, because I genuinely feel where it fails is in areas where new players likely won't even notice. For them, I suspect this game will be deeply beloved in the same way (but for FAR different reasons) DA2 is now.

The game is, mechanically, maybe the best we've had so far. Granted, I'm not sure I PREFER it, but I can recognize that's largely because my reflexes have slowed considerably, and I was never truly meant for a game like this. Even so, I enjoyed it way more than I did Inquisition, although it does have the opposite problem of that game. Inquisition's boss battles are fun but it's regular combat is dreadful, whereas Veilguard's regular combat is fun but it's big bosses can be downright frustrating.

I loved the level design a lot. I recognize folks who cut their teeth on Inquisition will balk at that, but as someone who grew very tired of Inquisition's empty open world being 80 hours of the average 120 hour game, returning to this kind of design was a blessing for me. It has it's faults (largely in how it measures height and sometimes arbitrarily decides level edge parameters), but it's smaller scope in levels allows it to make more areas memorable, because most areas in each area have a mission of some sort, and most of those missions are memorable. Even if they're kind of a dud, the plethora of companion banter makes up for some of what's missing. It strikes the proper balance between Inquisition's gorgeous aesthetics with... y'know, actual good level design.

I was very satisfied with the big choices of the game. I felt this game gave me more pause in those big decisions than past games did, and I also feel that's partially because I felt very free to roleplay within it. I really, REALLY love the dialogue wheel in this game, and I think each origin really allows me to play whoever I want in a way I haven't been able to since Origins. I recognize others have had an issue with specifically playing an Elf, but I can't really speak on that because I felt totally free as an Antivan Crow Rook. Yes, the dialogue wheel is dumbed down A LOT without pure aggression, but I think moments of anger still come through even if they don't affect every conversation. As a hater of the 'good choice/bad or sarcastic choice/mean or stoic choice' system that ME made famous, I strayed more from a static response in this game than in any other, and that allowed me to really wrestle with decisions and make ones I wouldn't normally make.

I want to next talk about the companions, because I both feel they are WILDLY not getting enough credit, but are also a gateway into background issues that are everything the game does deeply, deeply poorly.

I was kind of shocked with the sheer amount of posts about how flat or forgettable the characters in the game where. To an extent, I would kind of get it in the opening days of the game. I truly think the first act of the game is maybe the worst start in the entire series. You play it one of two ways, you either spend way too much time on it (I was there for 50 of my 100 hours of gameplay), or you run through it so fast you don't give anything a second to breathe and miss major side missions. I also don't think it helps at all that the worst voice acting of the game is in those opening hours, and I have a very strong suspicion that's because those lines were handled during the pandemic from home. But once we ease into Act II, I think these characters are really given time to shine.

I've seen people give the criticism that the game is poorly paced, and I generally agree with that, but I resist the idea that the companion quests of Act II are part of that problem. To me, part of the overall story of this genre, and specifically Bioware games, are these kinds of personal quests. I play these games in order to get to know these characters, to learn about them and grow with them, and in that way I think the game mostly succeeds. I found Neve's journey through the hopelessness of losing what she sought to protect stirring, I found Harding's struggle with the fragments of what a Dwarf is to be compelling, I found Emmrich's battle with mortality in a medium all about accepting or resisting it to be intriguing and beautifully written, and perhaps most compelling to me was Bellara's struggle with grief and loss. Davrin's struggle with what essentially amounts to fatherhood was layered metaphor, Lucanis' struggle with re-integrating with society after prison was important and well-handled, Taash's struggle with self-discovery within their own family was one many like myself struggle with for their entire lives. I wholly reject the idea that these are flat characters, they stand on their own as memorable and stirring companions.

With that being said.

I think the companions are entangled in a deeply negative aspect of this game that permeates through every corner of it, which is it's total failure to engage in the truth depth of the aspects it pulls from.

I mentioned before that the reason I play these games are for the companions, and that's true, but the reason I adore Dragon Age more than any other setting this is done in is because of Thedas. In spite of it's name, Thedas to me is the most deeply intriguing fantasy setting I've ever engaged in. It's never been one to shy away from it's own worldbuilding. Oh, there's certainly been moments where it's shifted focus aside, but it's never gone away... until now.

Veilguard isn't interested in exploring the alienation of Rook. Veilguard isn't interested in exploring the implications of Lucanis and Spite's bonding. Veilguard isn't interested in exploring what the gods being real and being terrors really is like for the Dalish. Veilguard isn't interested in exploring the true nature of the Crows. Veilguard isn't interested in what lichdom truly would be. Veilguard isn't interested in exploring Tevinter's horrors of slavery. Veilguard isn't interested in exploring the ramifications of the Venatori taking over Minrathous. Veilguard isn't interested in exploring the Antaam and their seperation from the Qun, or the Qun at all. Veilguard isn't interested in exploring the fallout of the Wardens at Adamant in this game. Veilguard isn't interested in what the mage rebellions and the new Divine would have done to the other northern nations. Veilguard isn't interested in the actual implications of Mythal inflicting her memories upon the child she abused.

I don't want to say that Veilguard is devoid of depth, it's not an entirely surface-level game. But what it is is a sanitization of the world and it's denizens. This issue starts with the lack of companion conversations outside of major scenes. To be frank, I don't think it's as big a problem as some might say it is, because if we did get them it likely would have been handled with over-the-shoulder cam like Inquisition, and I would actually challenge having that happen without any facial animations or movements ostracized people interested in those conversations. But the lack of them alienates some characters from the world and their experiences in it, and crucially, how these changes affect them.

I like Harding's personal quest, not just because I found her romance compelling, but also because it's one of the few plot points in the game where a character is forced to actually sit with the fucked up revelations of their peoples past. The Wardens also get that, and I would challenge that the Wardens are better handled in this game than they've been since Origins, but everyone else? Surface level, move past it, don't linger. Bellara repeats the same 'they are my gods but they're evil' line a dozen times, and while the character arc is clearly her struggling with the gods being what they are, she doesn't get the chance to TALK about it. Davrin I think is the most damning, not because he would have a lot to say about the Gods as it's clear his life is more involved with the Wardens than his Dalish heritage, but because they NEVER give him even a SECOND of thought with it. His reactions are essentially 'yeah, I don't relate so I don't care' and I find that a gross oversimplification of how someone who comes from a culture but has moved on to another life would react to it.

I gave Inquisition flak earlier, but it's also my second favorite game in the series. Inquisition handles it's politics almost front-and-center, and because it does that and it puts weight on it, this games refusal to pick up on ANY of those threads feels like a slap in the face to not just the player, but the world.

The truth is, the World State being cut out feels akin to a heart attack to me for the series. It's not the death of it, I actually still really enjoy this game a lot despite all this and it's not my least favorite game in the series, but it HAS done a level of damage that can't be undone, and I fear unless they do a massive time skip there's no fixing it. The series will just die a very slow, very sad death of any worthwhile meaning until there isn't enough lore to make intriguing characters anymore, existing in a flat and boring world with no depth.

It's impossible to look at the art book for this game and not see a better game in previous versions. It's clear that version of the game is the skeleton of what this one is built on, but what we got had so many bones picked out of it that it no longer resembles a human skeleton. Morrigan is still there, but she's written so blithely in order to empower a man's story without bothering to go in-depth on how it would harm her character's mental well-being to have the memories of her abuser in her mind. Dorian and Isabela are there, but they are there so little and lack so much of the spine of who they were that they might as well be any of the new figureheads of factions in the game. Those are three massive romances from each one of the games greatly harmed by the lack of a world state. Sure, they handle Varric and Solas well, but that's because one is puppeted by the other to protect him from feeling shallow, and Solas is the central antagonist that bookends the game. Perhaps most damning is the Inquisitor, who HAS to not have a character at all because the game explores them with zero depth outside of their relationship with Solas.

None of these characters should have been in the game, other than Solas and maybe the Inquisitor. Yes, even Varric. The world state was such a backbone of who they were that it being torn out leaves them not only the lesser, but nearly non-existent. These characters are the punctuation of all issues with Veilguard, hollow vapid fanservice that lacks the depth of any choice that would make their presence worthwhile.

Mass Effect and Dragon Age are series based on choice. Whether it's easy or not for the developers, they sold these games on choice. Fans were willing to give them leeway on what all they included. I genuinely just wanted the origins and romances of DA:O and DA2, with all the major decisions of Inquisition, because I felt DA:O was done well enough in Inquisition and I thought returning characters from DA2 would be a plus but not wholly necessary. Removing even that, even the BIG non-DLC decisions from the game, hurt this as a follow-up so badly it's apparent in every corner of the game.

I want to be clear, I don't necessarily blame the writers for this. I have a strong suspicion that the loss of the world state was either an EA choice or a developer choice, and that wasn't really on them. But if they knew this, they should have pealed back the cameos. Morrigan and Isabela, specifically, had no reason to be in this game, and it actively hurts them both to be present at all.

I promise you, I think Veilguard is a good game. I'm going to return to it, every single time I replay the series. I think it's characters are good-to-great, I think it's gameplay is fun, I think it's a very polished product with a satisfying end.

Veilguard's greatest sin is that it's pulled in two wildly different directions; It wants to explore and finish four games worth of interconnected stories, but it also is desperate to be something entirely new and rebooted that stands as an entry-point to new players, void of the more challenging histories of it's series and setting. These two goals do not work together. They repel off of each other and cheapen the whole thing, until what you're left with is a very enjoyable product with great characters, but exists in a surface-level, vapid piece of media that greatly disappoints the legacy of the series. And that's a damn shame.

[b-blushes]

r.e. last reblog (health disability stuff) (i am big picture okay 👍 just something that i'm rotating in my mind)

really struggling with this lately. for years but gotten worse in the last few months. really feeling like i'm at my limit but keep pushing and finding a new limit but barely feeling okay any of the time now, just managing and pushing through with A Lot happening under the surface. (this does not undermine genuine conversations and time with friends, that is true good time <3 ) meeting new drs trying to figure out my scope of improvement. i want to know if i can 'give up' or if continuing my pushing so so hard with everything might yield results if i find the 'right' problem and thus a 'right' way to improve things (one that actually impacts my quality of life, not an arbitrary 'improvement' on abstract things such as physical therapy that may or may not be contributing to pain which may be contributing to tension headache which is triggering migraine, for example. as opposed to a physical therapy which would build strength that translates to my living my daily life outside of '10 minutes doing an exercise') really hard to have these conversations with drs who will discuss it in a proactive genuine way and not a 'this patient is noncompliant way' which would mean i lose access to the degree of care that i DO need such as medications to manage certain aspects of my conditions. really hard to tell when to 'give up' and if stopping spending energy on certain things that are meant to help will actually make me worse (e.g. might i 'lose' strength -> might i become even more limited in what i can do) i'm so tired. i don't even feel like i'm 'that' ill and people (nebulous word) don't even seem to realise it and a big chunk of that is probably my fault for failing to communicate it. the problems dot jpeg. whatever i gotta go hoover my house 👍 <- entire physical activity for the day that i am putting off because it exhausts me so much. always telling myself things will be brighter another time! i want to get to a more consistent place of things being brighter now. we continue!

[moutheyes]

2025 QL Anticipations, Wishes, and Resolutions

After wrapping up my top 10 list for 2024, it's time to look ahead to next year with my most-anticipated upcoming series, series I'm planning to catch up on, and some resolutions.

Top 5 anticipated series in 2025

Us (pilot trailer) / dir. Fon Kanittha (GMMTV) / adaptation / rumored for January: Emi Thasorn had her Mark Pakin moment last year—she was literally everywhere (Last Twilight, Beauty Newbie, Wandee Goodday, The Rebound, The Trainee, and currently in Perfect 10 Liners), and that has built up my anticipation for her first leading role. I don’t actually have super high expectations for the storytelling, as this is an adaptation of an author with certain weaknesses, but I’m hoping the simplicity of the plot allows the acting to shine, and I’m enticed by the potential of two fresh GL pairings in EmiBonnie and ViewMim (if they do end up as a side couple).

Khemjira (pilot trailer) / dir. Ron Patarapon + Aoftion Kittipat (Mandee Works) / adaptation / currently filming: I am not the biggest fan of Domundi/Mandee projects, but this feels a little different in scope and flavor, with the supernatural horror elements and a largely rural setting. Also, I can’t lie, I'm excited for the combo of KengNamping and TleFirstone. I have a weird little fascination with the entire [vague handwaving] of DMD The Friendship and TleFirstone are my third-gen blorbos; I suffered through the entirety of Secret Love just to see if they kissed good (they did). Also, with the musical talent here, if we don’t at least get a banger OST out of this show I’m going to be so mad.

Knock Out (pilot trailer) / dir. Tee Bundit (Deehup/WeTV) / adaptation / recently did fitting: Boxing/martial arts settings are gonna be everywhere in 2025 (there are at least two more QLs that I can think of), but the combination of Deehup production quality, WeTV je ne sais quoi, and a promising new acting pair in GunNice is just delicious, especially after seeing that pilot trailer. Tee Bundit excels in not only drawing out excellent physical intimacy but also making show settings feel lived-in, and the action scenes in Jack & Joker were pretty decent, so I'm excited to see how he brings a boxing gym with ties to the mafia underworld to life.

Love You Teacher (pilot trailer) / dir. Dome Jarupat (Parbdee/GMMTV) / original / script being written: Boy, was this ever the most willfully misinterpreted pilot trailer from the entire GMMTV25 event. This post beautifully sums up most of my thoughts on that matter, but I want to add that after two episodes of watching PerthSanta elevate the milquetoast Perfect 10 Liners with impeccable chemistry, my excitement for them in these specific roles has grown exponentially. Give me the sunshine/grumpy dynamics with a poignant exploration of devotion and care! And we know p'Dome will bring the poignancy.

Girl Rules (pilot trailer) / dir. Jojo Tichakorn (Moongdoo/GMMTV) / original script / most likely late 2025?: p'Jojo is bringing the gospel of messy gays to the sapphics this year, and I will be seated front-row for it. I already know that Milk Pansa playing a stone cold casanova bitch is going to be A Problem for me, and I am on my knees begging for some honest-to-god hatesex or spite-fucking, just give me a truckload of whatever they have going on:

(I didn't include series like Cranium, Ticket to Heaven, and Love of Silom, which have either already been slated for 2026 or could go either way. Or series that simply don't have enough info, like 8 Hours. Ggurhggh I'm hoping the last two I listed above make the cut...)

5 series to catch up on

Pluto: I watched the first ep and definitely wanted to continue, but the series ended up on the back burner due to time. I also thought it would be a good one to binge due to the melodrama of the storyline. From the gifsets I've seen, I'm in for some good fucking food.

Century of Love: Honestly, I'm kind of looking forward to DaouOffroad's next project a little more (I think they are going to thrive in the bodyguard dynamic), but I know I'll want to watch something lakorn-ish at some point, and CoL will scratch that itch.

Reverse 4 You: This seemed to fly under the radar in fandom circles, but the concept sounded interesting (it has speculative elements like time manipulation and precognition) and by all accounts the acting was really solid. I also have Apple My Love (Kongthup + Ormsin lead = winning combo in my world) on the list but this one is just a little more compelling so it will take precedence.

Blueming + Where Your Eyes Linger (movie version probably): After losing my mind over LFCT, I promised myself to finally finish off the Hwang Daseul cinematic universe this year. 🫡

The On1y One: I prefer to binge Taiwanese series, so it's nice to have this in the back pocket for a slow weekend or whatever. See Your Love is making me remember how much the pacing of TWBLs drives me nuts sometimes, so we'll see when I'm in the mood again...

2025 resolutions

Prioritize GL! This might be obvious from the series I mentioned above lol. I did such a bad job of this last year, but luckily GL seems to be a growing slice of the pie. The things I'm looking forward to: new pairings, messier dynamics (GIRL RULES), and hopefully more original scripts (GIRL RULES!!!!) as well. Pipe dream: CAN I GET ONE (1) NON-FEMME SAPPHIC CHARACTER PLEASE...

Watch a series outside of the big four markets (Thailand, Japan, Korea, Taiwan). There are a couple of completed Filipino series on my watch list, so it's just about making time for it.

Write more consistently about QL. I did participate in Tumblr discussions this year, albeit spottily, and I'd like to do it more! I tend to put my thoughts in tags rather than adding onto a reblog or commenting on a post, so let's see if I can break that habit and contribute more directly.

[theweeklydiscourse]

Hello, I first off would like to say please take this with a grain of salt. I am very new to the ACOTAR fandom . I am seven chapters into the first book so this is no way a character analysis from anyone in the book. This is just about the fandom from what I have observed online. I really wanted to get this off my chest, and this seemed like the perfect void to yell into.

From what I have seen online, a lot of the people who read the books are trying to read or see it as Harry Potter or Percy Jackson. Where the good guys are always good and they do no wrong. ( though I would argue that even the good guys in Harry Potter and Percy Jackson have done bad things) People need to start reading it or looking at it like Game of Thrones or House of the Dragon. Where the ‘good guys’ do messed up things. ( I don’t believe there’s any true good guys and house of dragon or Game of Thrones that’s why I put it in quotes)

These are all very traumatized characters and thus they will react in the scope of that trauma. I do think that if people stop trying to put these characters into boxes, they would be able to better understand the characters themselves and be able to understand different arguments for and against these characters. And from what I’ve gathered the first three books are being told from Faya’s point of view. So we will always have a biased outlook on these characters because of that.

Once again, please take this with a grain of salt, most of my knowledge from the book series comes from what I have spoiled for myself. I just really wanted to share what I think about the book series and the fandom with someone. 

The void welcomes discourse of all kinds! There’s a common thread of absolutism that seems to run through many fandoms nowadays, and depending on the text you read, there are instances where such a reading is encouraged. A Court of Thorns and Roses is a good example of this concept, where in the first few chapters, characters are divided into categories of good and bad. The fact that this occurs in the first three chapters effectively sets the tone for the series and it creates an impression that many readers have not been able to shake off. This is later complicated by Maas’s choice to elaborate on the nuances of the designated “bad” characters later on in the series.

ACOTAR has a nasty case of protagonist-centric morality and the overall quality of the series suffers because of it. It adds to the overarching contradictions of the plot while simultaneously weakening the impact of the emotional conflicts that Maas constructs. As much as the series gestures at themes of feminism and the constraints of abusive relationships, it is all diminished by the author’s need to force a very specific narrative. If more people realized this, the fandom might not be so explosive and divided. One way readers can challenge this narrative is through critical readings and empathy (as you mentioned). Viewing characters actions through a trauma-informed lens is a great way to analyze the story and get more out of it!

I think a case can be made for Feyre being an unreliable narrator, but in my opinion, I’m not entirely convinced by that reading. She’s certainly unreliable in some pretty glaring ways, but the narrative fails to really do anything with it and instead just sinks further and further into her unreliable perspective. This perspective then becomes what the reader understands as canon in the story as opposed to a skewed view that’s informed by a biased protagonist.

[dailyanarchistposts]

O — Organize

By this point we’ve helped people get in touch with their desires for action, thought through how collective action might address their grievances, and helped people think through the risks of taking action. It’s not a linear equation here, but by now you’ll be about ready to ask people to take up the work of organizing through a particular situation. This means asking people to take up particular commitments and to follow through on them!

Tasks are anything that will take you from A to B — making a flyer for an event, booking a space, getting other organizations to sign on to your event, organizing food and transportation, coordinating the route of a march.

This is the most direct work of organizing, and can often be the most revealing. Asking someone to take on a task demonstrates their level of commitment to the work, which is important information for an organizer to know. You’ll need to be able to know who you can rely upon to get a thing done, especially when your organizing work heats up.

It also can serve as an open invitation for someone to get involved with the work who might initially be reluctant. This can look like a lot of things. For example, a task can be tailored to that person’s interest or skills (flyer design if they crafty, or tabling if they’re chatty). It can also be more or less complex, depending on the person’s involvement. Asking someone to make a flyer is an easy way for someone to start to be involved and feel included in work.

Ultimately the idea is to build up other people’s confidence in taking up, carrying out and eventually devising tasks of their own that further your organizing work. Remember, the goal is to make yourself replaceable and everyone is better off by having more confident and capable people who can operate autonomously.

Assessing People’s Stake and Commitment

A leader: Usually empathetic, inspiring, charismatic, solid belief system, committed. Often has organic relationships in community already, and people look to them for opinions.

A supporter: Someone who generally agrees with our project, and is willing to take on small tasks. This is where we’ll spend most of our time- lifting up supporters to become leaders.

Undecided: Agrees, but not willing to act now. Maybe no time, maybe want to learn more. They may become 2’s or 4’s in the future.

Pass: Someone who fundamentally disagrees, but isn’t going to actively organize against you. Essentially a “supporter” for the other sides.

Opponent: Someone who is actively organizing against you, and have all of the characteristics of a leader. They are essentially a “leader” for the other side.

Note: “Leaders” (including ourselves) can have good and bad qualities. It’s outside of the scope of this training, but sometimes “leaders” need to be challenged. This is also why we need to always be building up new leaders.

The goal here is to move people up the numbers. Not everyone is going to be a supporter, much less a leader, but we should at the very least know how to neutralize opposition.

For example, for opponents our goal would be to change them to a pass. You can’t necessarily change their ideology (you may not win at this), but you can mess with their base of support — for example by out-organizing their ability to influence other people.

Where do people in your organization fit? What is their stake?

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