#does anyone in the english speaking fandom call him that

[yyamssoup]

okay last post for today its almost 4 am and im SLEEPY

[sleepingdeath-light]

relationship hcs ; alastor

requested by ; anonymous (08/03/24)

fandom(s) ; hazbin hotel

fandom masterlist(s) ; here

character(s) ; alastor

outline ; “Excuse me, I don't know if requests are still closed but would it be okay to ask relationship headcannos about Alastor??”

warning(s) ; some references to canon-typical levels of violence from alastor, but mostly fluff!

there are an innumerable amount of reasons as to why it’s damn near impossible to get close enough to alastor to form a romantic relationship with him, but even after you have somehow managed to gain his trust and admiration to the point that he wants to court you things don’t get any more straightforward — arguably they only get more complicated the longer you’re an item

he’s nothing short of a gentleman with you and insists on taking things slow and going about things the ‘traditional’ way (or as close to traditional as one can get in hell) — and that can mean anything from holding doors open for you (either himself or through his shadows) or lending you his coat when you seem cold, to aggressively shutting down/intimidating the afterlife out of anyone who approaches you with intentions he deems inappropriate or delivering you your enemy’s severed head in amongst a gift basket of flowers and baked goods (courtesy of rosie as he’s not much of a baker himself)

he uses a mixture of french and english pet names for you depending on his mood — think along the lines of such terms of endearment as ‘my dear’ or ‘ma chèrie / mon chèri’ — and for his own part he’d rather you just address him by name unless you’re in private and he’s in a very good mood (well… a good enough mood to actually respond to being called something like ‘dearest’ or ‘honey’ instead of outright ignoring you until you actually say his name)

he frequently remarks about how much his mother would love you, how happy she’d be to see him settle down after all of this time, and how he wishes you could meet her — those moments are when you get to see a more human side of alastor, his smile softening to something more nostalgic and genuine as he speaks about one of the few people he truly cared for during his life

he’s not the biggest fan of physical affection in general and will only really partake in it on his terms, but that doesn’t mean that he doesn’t show his love for you through other means — in fact, as far as he���s concerned, his affection for you is shown as clear as day despite his own dislike for being touched

gift giving — though his gifts aren’t always the most traditional, alastor does tend to go out of his way and get you things whenever he’s out and about. sometimes that means picking something up from the tailor that he knows you’ll just love, or bringing you a box of baked goods from rosie’s emporium whenever he goes to visit her, and other times that means fetching you ‘trophies’ from the people he’s dealt with on your behalf (sometimes they’re extremely fresh and bloody, other times he actually makes an effort to clean and dry them — it’s 50/50 regarding how much cleanup you’re gonna need to do), but no matter what he’s always happy (proud, even) when he presents you with your gift — and even prouder if he comes back to your place of residence later on and sees that you’ve put anything on display (well, the stuff that can be displayed anyway…)

quality time — you’re the person whose company he actively seeks out the most, even if that just means sharing a space as you each go about whatever task you’re doing at the time. of course there are the dates he takes you on (he is a gentleman, after all, and he makes an effort to woo and wow you whenever he has the chance), but the majority of your quality time is spent in the hotel or his recording studio: going about your chores together, hanging out in the common area and overseeing the group activities charlie has planned, sitting side by side and reading or eating in silence, having your meals together, talking about whatever comes to mind when the mood allows it, or just sitting with him in his studio in silence as he broadcasts his show for all of hell to hear

words of affirmation — he’s not the most talkative person, especially not when compared to someone like angel dust or charlie, and is generally more of a listener/observer in most of his daily interactions, but with you he does make an effort to keep up conversation and ensure that you know just how much he appreciates your company. of course he always makes sure to compliment your newest hairstyle or outfit change, especially if you’re dressing up to accompany him to a meeting or another such formal event, but his affirmations go beyond just shallow praise and you get to see much more of that when you’re alone or in the brief moments where nobody is looking your way when you’re with others. for example, he’s always quick to reassure you of how deeply he admires and cares for you (as much as he’s capable of doing either, anyway) by insisting that it takes a great deal to catch his eye and that by merit of being the radio demon’s lover you must be spectacular, no matter what your insecurities may say.

acts of service — again, regardless of his more disturbing proclivaties, alastor is a gentleman and will go out of his way to ensure you’re well taken care of and that any and all unnecessary stressors and discomforts are swiftly and painlessly (for you) removed from your life. sometimes this can mean him fetching you (shockingly well made given his usual diet) breakfast in bed when it’s clear you didn’t sleep well the night before or having his shadow servants do your bidding for the day so you don’t have to worry about overworking yourself in his absence, but it can also translate to actions that are much more aligned with his terrifying reputation — for example, torturing anyone that opposes you (like an overbearing boss or annoying neighbour) into silence and compliance with his whims

alastor is also a generally very protective and territorial partner who isn’t above getting petty and passive aggressive towards anyone who tries to interfere in your relationship — and then if they don’t get the hint and back off immediately (or they attempted to cause you harm) he’ll start getting outright aggressive and make sure that they understand just how much they fucked up by trying to take what belongs to him

related to the above point, but alastor also has a nasty possessive streak to him and will heavily monitor all of your external relationships (both just by sticking by your side whenever he’s able, and also by ensuring you always have one of his shadows by your side when you’re apart) — he’s more lenient with your friendships if you happen to be with someone he explicitly trusts (like rosie or nifty) or someone that he knows wouldn’t dream of interfering in your relationship (like charlie who is too nice for her own good sometimes) but otherwise you can expect him to be extremely judgemental and passive aggressive with the people in your life that you’re close to (especially if they happen to be someone who distrusted him immediately… like vaggie)

this side of him can be managed with a lot of patience and compromise from you, but it’s never going to go away completely so you’re going to have to get used to that side of him early on

[average-mako-enjoyer]

Bigots and Failed Promises of Mass Effect games

(I had this thing in my drafts for almost a month, and it would have stayed there if not for the wonderful post by @androidtrashfire, because I saw it, and I was like: "Fuck it, I have to rant about these games." I love Mass Effect, and I really think we should critique it. We should criticize things we love because silence = compliance.)

So I was talking to @liss-art recently about the bigoted fans in the Mass Effect fandom, and I think I need to make a post about it because it's something that really, truly bothers me, and it needs to be addressed.

Canon

Mass Effect is a story about deeply flawed people with a lot of problems, and through them it touches on issues like xenophobia, sexism, corruption, elitism, morality, identity. That's why we like it, right? But why are there so many bigots in the fandom? My theory is that it happens because Mass Effect, for all its supposed complexity, only touches on these issues without giving any meaningful commentary on them.

Here are a few obvious examples:

The Quarians are a distasteful allegory of the Roma people (right down to their accents). They are persecuted and ostracized for creating Geth, but the game never gives us any socio-political reasons why the Quarians did that. They just developed real AI because they were naive and stupid? Or because they were the only ones smart enough to do it? Did they do it in secret? Why did other races not make the same mistake?

Same with the Batarians. Yes, the game mentions tensions between humans and Batarians because humans try to claim territories that Batarians think are theirs, but that's about it. Batarians are all racist slave traders and they're bad, don't think about it, here's some memes about 300,000 of them dying, good job. And yes, I know you can read more about their history in the Codex (why is it an Asari who writes about Batarian history,btw?), but it's basically the same thing as saying D*mbledore is gay (I really am sorry for this reference). If no one ever mentions this rich Batarian history, then it doesn't exist.

And please don't get me started on Hanar. They "mercifully" saved the Drell by inviting them to their planet, immediately assimilated them into their own faith and also put them in conditions where they have to train as assassins from the ripe old age of 6 and eventually die of sci-fi lung cancer. But don't worry about it, Drell actually love to serve the Hanar, they do it willingly and consider their servitude an honor. Do you really want to criticize some stupid jellyfish who talk funny? Do you really want to talk about why the so-called Council races do nothing about it? LOL

Another thing the trilogy does is present entire races, including humans, as amorphous blobs. Do all Asari believe in the same "goddess"? Do all Turians obey the same Primarch? Well, what's important is that all humans in this bright future speak English.

But what about the genophage? That's a profound story, right? Well, not really, and it raises more questions than it answers. We hear a lot about how brutal, aggressive, and short-tempered Krogans are, but every single Krogan we meet is extremely well-mannered, and they only resort to violence against other races in dire circumstances. So why not save them? Does the game really present you with this moral dilemma or not?

And can anyone tell me why Salarians are allowed to abduct and experiment on sentient beings, and why Turians are allowed to wage wars? Why does no one talk about Asari in this context?

I really want to say that at least the characters are well written, but I can't because they're not.

Kaidan is a good example of this. We are told about his implant, we are told that he has chronic pain, but do we see him suffer from it? Do we see him in those moments of weakness and vulnerability?

The scene where he gets annoyed with Jenkins acting like he's a circus monkey who has to do a trick and biotically throws a cup at him was cut from the game. We occasionally hear him mention some of the side effects of his migraines ("Too many lights, too much noise"), but that's about it. What has happened to "show, don't tell"? And no, I'm not saying that the writers should feed me the story or walk me through it. What I am saying is that if you gloss over your characters' mistakes, flaws, and circumstances, you're getting people to ignore them. Do people who call Kaidan "boring" and insult him think about how his chronic pain, his trauma from Brain Camp, and the loss of Jenkins and Ashley affect who he is? Hell no.

Thane is another great example. What Mass Effect is telling us as a story is that you can completely abandon your family and your child and be forgiven if your reason for doing it is good and heroic enough. Like avenging your dead wife, because of course there has to be a dead woman thrown somewhere.

Everyone's favorite Garrus (mine too) is a cop whose character arc basically consists of deciding that he is above the law (since the law forbids him from killing people he thinks should die) and then involving his squadmate/friend/partner (depending on your playthrough) in the public assassination of his former squadmate, whom he never even bothered to confront first. Are there any consequences for Garrus for his actions? No. Again, it's all glossed over, and that's unfortunate because it removes the conflict and therefore the character development and depth.

And if you're going to tell me that ME is just a space opera, and that I should just enjoy the spectacle and the romance, then I'm going to tell you that I know that, and that I think it's a wonderful spectacle, and that some of the romance subplots are absolutely amazing story-wise, but the superficial commentary (or lack thereof) on the most important issues that ME covers actually harms the audience.

Fandom

On the one hand, we have people making mods that remove all the clothes from all the female characters (or remove all of femShep's organs and replace them with giant tits). We have people reposting that horrible, horrible art of Miranda and Jack fighting, tearing each other's hair and clothes, and maleShep smirking and saying "I should stay". We have people who say ME2 is the best game in the series because "there are no f*gs". On the other hand, we have people saying things like "there are two Commander Shepards - female and the wrong one". We have people who say "only weird people play as dudebro in 2024". We have people who think that simply playing as a female character is some kind of feminist statement, and that it makes them better and smarter than everyone else (the same people who use the term "dude gamer" as an insult). And all of those things are kind of the trilogy's fault.

Both maleShep and femShep have the same story. The only differences are the romance options, sexist remarks directed only at femShep, and flirtations from various NPCs directed only at femShep. What this tells you is that sexism exists in the Mass Effect universe, and only women suffer from it. It also tells you that only women are worth flirting with.

Another thing this game does (and modern games like Cyberpunk do the same thing) is equate the female experience to the male experience by giving both femShep and maleShep the same lines.

So there are some mixed signals here. Sexism exists and doesn't exist in this universe, Shepard is both genderless and very gendered, romances with underdeveloped characters are all over the place, and bigots thrive in this kind of environment.

The lack of commentary, the lack of perspective, the disastrous worldbuilding allows you to freely choose your sexist, racist adventure and not be punished by the story in any way.

Mirrors

There's a passage from Solaris that I absolutely adore and think about often.

"We don't want to conquer the cosmos, we simply want to extend the boundaries of Earth to the frontiers of the cosmos. […] We have no need of other worlds. We need mirrors. We don't know what to do with other worlds. A single world, our own, suffices us; but we can't accept it for what it is."

I think that perfectly describes what Mass Effect is as a universe. And in a way, it's a reason why it's so compelling. It's just empty enough for us to invest in it, to fill in the blanks of that narrative with the stories of our own. And it's also a reason why this fandom is a fucking hellscape.

[yamayuandadu]

"There’s a misconception that Matarajin is Shiva which is perpetuated entirely by Touhou fans." - I think you overestimate Big 2Hu when English Wikipedia itself says that:

"Daikokuten originated from Mahākāla, the Buddhist version of the Hindu deity Shiva, conflated with the native Shinto god Ōkuninushi."

The Mahakala-Shiva connection is repeated in JP Wiki, quoting an encyclopedia? And I thought the Shinbutsu merger was also not too controversial

it's a bit of a mess ngl especially since Okina seems designed to be a mess as well

I haven’t seen anyone but Touhou fans make the leap from “Matarajin is associated with Mahakala” to “Matarajin is literally Shiva” let alone to “Matarajin is associated with Okuninushi”. So I maintain it is not incorrect to refer to it as a Touhou fandom misconception specifically. To be even more precise - it’s limited to a specific subset of English-speaking Touhou fans, mostly on reddit and to a smaller degree twitter. Tumblr has its fair share of misconceptions too, don’t get me wrong, but they have more to do with misinterpreting something because of what ZUN said. Anyway, it’s the Daikokuten article which says this. Not the Matarajin one. And this applies to Daikokuten, not Matarajin. These are two separate figures. Both of these wiki articles are entirely reliable on their own but you can’t perform this sort of haphazard synthesis. Matarajin and Daikokuten are not interchangeable.  More under the cut, including a quick overview of some of Matarajin’s actual associations which get entirely glossed over both by ZUN and in fan discussions.

The fact figure x is equated with figure y in one specific context does not mean all of their associations are transferable. And in particular the fact that Mahakala originated as a form of Shiva (though whether this is necessarily always vital in Buddhist context is another matter) can’t be easily assumed to also hold true for Matarajin. This is one step away from arguing Tenjin and Tamamo no Mae are basically just Okuninushi via vague Shiva connections (or rather connections with figures which originated as manifestations of Shiva but acquired distinct identities in Buddhism with time, really).

It is true that there is a theory going back to the 1950s according to which Matarajin has been partially derived from Mahakala, specifically developing as a result of confusion between him and Taizan Fukun (see discussion in William M. Bodiford’s Matara: a Dream King Between Insight and Imagination, p. 240). However, Bernard Faure interprets the connection as possibly only based on phonetic similarity between the names. Following Faure’s and Nobumi Iyanaga’s research it is entirely possible Matarajin’s name has nothing to do with Mahakala etymologically and instead comes from the Seven Mothers (mātṛkā, transcribed in Japanese Buddhist sources phonetically as matara). It’s worth noting ZUN seems to be aware of this, since Okina’s first bio calls her an “an Earth mother goddess” (地母神). It should be pointed out that in Buddhist context the Seven Mothers are a type of dakini-like disease demon, and not spouses of major deities, though.

Keiran Shūyōshū does equate Matarajin with Mahakala (“Makakaraten”) though it also states that Matarajin might instead be one of the dakinis commanded by him. It’s actually this network of associations that matters when it comes to equivalence between them, rather than the separately established equivalence between Mahakala and Okuninushi. Matarajin’s dakini association recurs elsewhere, and there are even (mostly Shingon, but still) cases of full on equation with the dakini par excellence, Dakiniten. I’m actually surprised I haven’t seen it referenced in any Touhou discussions. Matarajin being a dakini, identical with Dakiniten or at least commanding dakinis consistently pertains to the belief that dakinis consume people’s livers to free them from bad karma. As a curiosity it’s also worth mentioning that Inari Kinja Kō from the Edo period lists Matarajin, Dakiniten, but also Izuna Gongen among names applied to supernatural foxes - another major component of the dakini network (down to “fox sorcerer demon” - 狐 魅鬼 - being one of the early Chinese translations of dakini), though one with limited relevance for Matarajin otherwise. It would be fun to reference in Touhou context, though. 

To sum up, my issue is that entry level understanding of the nature of connections between deities leads to a simplified image of them, and overshadows more interesting reality. In this case there are also entirely fictitious associations on top which doesn’t help.

It’s also deeply puzzling to me that people are so eager to invent an Okuninushi connection where there isn’t one when Matarajin already has an incredibly well attested link to a figure from “classical” Japanese mythology, specifically Susanoo. The nature of this connection is somewhat variable. We have cases of direct equation: in various texts from the Mt. Hiei Sanmon tradition; in texts from Hinomisaki (a branch of Izumo Grand Shrine); in the account of Saichō’s journey to China in Sange Yōryakki; in Jimon Denki Horoku (here Matarajin is called a “trace” of Susanoo - we’re essentially dealing with reverse honji suijaku); and in Nihon Shoki Kikigaki (a medieval commentary on the Shoki; the author went all out and also equated Susanoo with around half a dozen other figures, ranging from Pangu [sic] to Kōjin).

Equation with a twist is also an option: in a local tradition from Gakuenji, Matarajin was understood as a name applied to Susanoo after he died and was buried underneath this temple. However, they can also be associated without being equated. A novel take on the Ama no Iwato myth from Fujiwara no Tameaki’s Kokin Wakashū Jo Kikigaki Sanryū Shō has Susanoo team up with Matarajin and a horde of demons (you can find a translation in John Breen’s and Mark Teeuwen’s A New History of Shinto, pp. 142-143; I have yet to add this to the wiki article).

The Susanoo connection also brings us to the arguably most important cluster of Matarajin’s associations. There is a distinct possibility it didn’t arise in a vacuum, but rather due to convergence of two other connections - between Susanoo and Shinra Myōjin, and between Shinra Myōjin and Matarajin. As a fellow old man Tendai deity, Shinra Myōjin is arguably the single figure most similar to Matarajin, though obviously they are not identical. Still, it feels pretty glaring to me he’s not referenced in any shape or form in HSiFS, not even through a single offhand comment or spell card. Matarajin and Shinra Myōjin additionally effectively formed an interconnected network with a further similar Tendai deity, Sekizan Myōjin. This brings us back to something I brought up earlier - the modern theory that Matarajin was partially derived from Mahakala nonetheless acknowledges the influence of Taizan Fukun on his character, and it is the association with Sekizan Myōjin that emphasizes it the most, since the latter was essentially patterned after him and similarly functioned as a supernatural judge determining people’s lifespans. 

The connection between Matarajin and Taizan Fukun had an additional layer to it, though - as a core member of the entourage of Enma, Taizan also had strong links to beings like the Seven Mothers and the dakinis, much like Matarajin did. Faure outright argues this might have been why they came to be associated with each other. The Taizan Fukun connection is another one I have no clue why neither ZUN nor any fan works acknowledge. Especially since Taizan is actually mentioned in Touhou (in the Yama entry in PMiSS). I really hoped we’ll get something in SFW, but not much came out of that and we instead got my least favorite Okina scene yet, the Flandre power level deus ex machina. Tragic! Maybe one day, considering hell is basically a secondary setting of Touhou in its own right, though I’m not very hopeful.

I’m willing to admit obvious omissions like lack of any references to dakinis, Taizan, or Susanoo (coupled with severely overestimating the connection with Hata no Kawakatsu, but that’s a topic for another time) do make it possible to say Okina is a “mess” as you put it, though I don’t think it had to be this way. The problem imo lies in ZUN no longer writing her the way he did in HSiFS - she hasn’t made a single religious reference since despite these making up the bulk of her dialogue. In a perfect world, her reappearances would be used to cover the missing aspects of Matarajin’s network, but it seems like even when the plot is basically begging (once again, SFW) for it we are getting basically nothing. I have no clue what happened, though it also strikes me as notable that despite being named after a Matarajin-esque figure Megumu got precisely 0 meaningful religious references so far. 

Despite my ambivalent views on Okina as a character, I think it would be unfair to call the genuine Matarajin a mess. The networks in which he was included are fairly coherent, and represent a typical example of medieval theology, not something uniquely convoluted or outlandish. It’s not a topic which is difficult to research, either, with plenty of easily accessible publications in English. If nothing else, I think HSiFS deserves credit for opening the metaphorical door to them for more people.

[alicepao13]

Hudson and Rex S04E13 - Roses of Signal Hill - Part A

Enjoyable episode. I like that there's some continuity on the pining lol. Also has one of the most shameless product placements I've seen.

Black letters in quotes: Actual show quotes.

Green letters in quotes: What I come up with my twisted brain.

Rex is a tv star!

Rex getting the star treatment.

There's an issue here and it's called, "John Reardon has chemistry with every woman he has scenes with". Like, I could see Charlie with everyone from the cute barista in S1 to this woman with whom they'll have this scene and... one more I think? And then she dies. Anyway, it's not an actual problem but it's a "fandom might hate every woman Charlie meets" problem.

I'm thinking that Charlie went to the shelter a few more times than usual lately. This is supported by... nothing we see on screen. But I remember in S1 that the more troubles he had, the more he would go to the shelter to volunteer, so it stands to reason that he would (if any of the writers remembered that).

"He does! Why couldn't I have been adopted by a party-goer?"

Dalton is me.

You know what manpain is? This. This right here. But we don't do it often in this show so I'll let it slide. Just don't think I didn't notice, show.

Once again Charlie should have recused himself but... we don't do that ever. In this case, he himself could have even appeared as a suspect since it becomes clear from the start that Melissa knew her killer.

Jesse: "Only one reason you'd meet someone at a motel in the middle of the night." me: "Drugs." I like how Charlie is sort of glaring at him and Sarah is cringing, though.

Rex is like, so what?

Literally everyone is getting some, except for Charlie. That's why he's like this. Although this right here... that's ammunition.

Her female friends slut-shamed her while her male (also cop) friend found their behavior wrong? I know that I live on the other side of the world, but this is like people from another planet. Like, good for Charlie, and I'm not really contesting his thoughts on the subject, it's more like I don't think Melissa's girl friends would speak like that about their friend, who's also dead now.

Nice weather. I can see the fog on their breaths and that's usually done in post (if you want it to show) when they want it to show because even when it's there it's not easily visible. So... -10?

Charlie: "They didn't have meat lovers." Rex: "I'll off myself right now."

I bet Jesse set up that monstrosity for Charlie. Otherwise how would he manage to hook up every electronic machine to Alexa? Although I'm sure that they are promoting it as "very easy to set up". Never. Never do this.

Well, at least someone worries. Also, Charlie's favorite answer to everything, including his house being on fire, probably.

Well, not when those saying them are already emotional. I understand his frustration, though.

There's a lot of things I'd want to ask this cast. One of them is if anyone of them had ever accidentally ingested Diesel's treats.

You don't know how to effectively use these things, Charlie.

She's speaking in plain English so that you can all understand her, peasant.

A lot of murders are stupid murders, anyway.

Give him the tapes! Why are you being so mean?

"Well, thank you television for making my job so much easier!" lol I'd give them to you, Jesse. It's just an outdoors camera anyway. What the hell.

Dalton has a whole vision for how the ad for his shelter should be lol

To be continued in Part B.

[kino-rogers]

He is always a call away (Tangerine/Reader)

Word count: 825 (reasonably short and sweet)

Song: 0800 HEAVEN | Nathan Dawe, Joel Corry, Ella Henderson (listen, I know the vibes don't fit but the lyrics inspired me to write this aha)

Short summary: Bullet Train happens and everything goes down as it does in the film. Reader is trying to process that Tangerine won't come home again.

Warnings: Canon typical swearing, angst, (light) past trauma mention

notes: thank you @nocturnest for jumping on this to fix my broken English and being a wonderful beta!! what an intro but uh [coughs] i'm already excited to write more for this fandom (bits in which Tangie is very much alive ehehe) anywaayyy, hope you guys like this!! - 🥝

It's not been the… easiest time - it has to be said.

Since that phone call from Lemon, you've been struggling with sleep. It doesn't show in your work, of course. Keeping up appearances has always come to you rather naturally. Some of it being from your repressed trauma, that even years of therapy barely scratched the surface of, but also because of your line of work too. It doesn't sit well to be an emotional wreck after every kill you're paid to do.

The call was from a number you didn't recognise. The passing sound of traffic suggested it's from a payphone as Lemon sighed heavily down the line.

"You lost your phone? On a train?" You answered the call lightheartedly and you recognized his sigh immediately, you hoped it was just a release of pent up tension over a job well finished. Although, the fact that Lemon was the one to call, put you on edge, hoping it's not coming through your pretend jolliness.

"He's gone." His statement was simple and sudden. The tone, stone cold, as his voice was raspy, possibly from crying.

"Who's gone, Lemon?"

Your throat ran dry as you swallowed around a lump. Your chest quickly tightened as you tried to piece together what he could have meant. You couldn't- no, didn't want to think about the most likely possibility.

"Tan-" He took a pause, cleared his throat before continuing. "Tangerine, was shot in the neck, he is gone."

It's not like you guys were dating, no, it wasn't anything like that. Neither of you had the emotional capacity for that. What, with your jobs requiring you to spend weeks, months away from each other at a time, sometimes in different countries, opposite sides of the world. But he was the first person, in a long while, that you genuinely cared for.

~~~

You turn to your bedside table, glance at the alarm clock there. Its digital display shines in orange numbers, 01:54.

It's a month, today.

You suddenly have a stupid idea. What would happen if you called his number? Last time you checked it was still live, it'd probably just take you to voicemail. Weirdly, your therapist at your last session suggested writing letters to him, in your bereavement. Bereavement. Such a weird word. You're not even sure that's what this is. But maybe leaving a voicemail would be an equivalent. Maybe he can listen to his voicemails, wherever he is. You scoff at the fleeting thought but reach for your phone anyway.

Tangie is still in your recent calls. You tap the saved contact and wait for it to ring.

You're not expecting anyone to answer, of course not. Your grief hasn't driven you completely nuts. But as the phone rings, you can't help but think about getting to talk to him, just once more. By some divine intervention, you'd be connected through to him, in the afterlife and you could tell him everything you couldn't the last time you spoke.

"-after the beep BEEP"

"Hi Tangie," You scoff in embarrassment, not really sure why you're doing this anymore. "I uh,"

You sigh heavily, all too aware of the silence the machine is expecting you to fill. You sniffle as you start to speak again.

"I know you won't hear this. That… Isn't really the point." You draw a shaky breath. "I know who did it though. Well, knew. Lemon and I took him out last week. What kind of an assassin's name is Ladybug anyway?" You snicker. Can't avoid the tightness in your chest though.

"I just… I dunno. Apparently I should be writing letters to you, as if I could send them off with a pigeon and they'd get to wherever the fuck you are. So, this is the next best thing. If this was anyone else, you'd tell me to fuck off and to suck it up. We always were on the same wavelength, when it came to feelings." Your chest deflates with a long exhale as you realise you need to stop dancing around whatever it is you're trying to say here.

"I guess I just wanted to tell you I really fucking miss you." You sniffle again, tears gathering in the corners of your eyes. "I miss your stupid grin, your teasing, your annoyingly cocky attitude, your… The way you looked at me."

"I wish you were here right now so I could tell you I love you. I wish I didn't, I really goddamn wish I didn't care for you so much but I fucking love you. And I hate that I can't see your face as I told you, for the first time. Please call me back."

You bury your face in your pillow and you howl into it, sobs shaking your body as the voicemail recording is saved and you continue to wallow in your bereavement. You're supposed to be feeling better. You need to stop paying your therapist.

[jolieblack]

Jolie's notes on

The Three Students (Sherlock & Co podcast)

📖 🎓👨‍🏫 This case doesn’t seem to get talked about much… and I think I agree and I know why. I find ACD’s original Three Students story rather unspectacular myself. The setting is very picture-postcard English™️, but it is otherwise completely unexciting. A solid string of observations and deductions eliminates both red herring suspects (painfully red) to arrive at the *gasp!* solution that people may not be who they appear to be on the surface. Decent work, but hardly the stuff that made Sherlock Holmes a legend. Considering that this is what Joel was up against, I’d say he did rather well for the podcast! Because this isn’t a story about a crime now, it’s a story about identity and about belonging. (Once again. I love how this is a recurring theme of our show.)

John abandoning Sherlock, Mariana and their whole project for a wild night of student partying has been called out of character by some commenters, but while I was still at a loss to understand it myself at the end of the first part, by the end of the second part it made sense to me that this whole case is a story about fitting in, about being popular, about FOMO and what FOMO does to people. John didn’t recklessly let Sherlock down in pursuit of instant gratification in the alcohol or flirting department. What actually happened there was John being bowled over by either the memories of his student days and of how much he loved being one of the boys and having a gang to party with that accepted him just the way he was, which he subsequently lost after his army days and injury; or by the memories of how he never really had a gang to belong to, having struggled at university both academically and in the popularity contest, and is catching up to that lovely feeling now. We see the same thing mirrored in Mariana‘s backstory of wanting to fit in with the cool gang at school. Then it gets mirrored in the three students, too, and in what drives them. Even Sherlock isn’t immune from being called the best in his field and it being "cool" that he’s being invited to speak at Oxford. But he - unexpectedly, given his constant sense of being a misfit - ends up being the happiest and most successful of the whole bunch in this adventure, because he fully realises, quicker than anyone else, that has found his family (a doctor from Swindon and an accountant from Sociedad!) and knows exactly where he belongs.

I don’t suppose any of us were surprised that Sherlock’s awkward lecture would end up being the live solving of a case. (We all remember the BBC Sherlock’s wedding speech in season 3 of that show, after all.) Love how he took everyone to task though. Brutal. Fantastic. I knew there was a reason why I love this man.

Details that I loved:

Sherlock stealing everyone’s sausage rolls and framing Archie! 😂 The way Sherlock got demoted from best friend to "roommate" with very sharply enunciated consonants as a punishment cracked me up.

"when I am positively carbonated with the fizzing bubbles of resolution…" - I kept looking for the ACD story that quote comes from, but it’s apparently an Emory original! 👌

I adored John once again being Sherlock’s interpreter for social cues, and how much they’ve perfected their routine by now: Their super-quick "hyperbole or sarcasm?" - "affectionate hyperbole" exchange made me tear up with affection myself.

"I will merely emit a faint glow of intrigue for now." - Another quote that I could have sworn was ACD.

Things I did NOT like: The professor’s accent. This guy was literally painful to listen to. Oxbridge alumni in this fandom, please join me in confirming that Oxbridge professors do not typically talk like that.

So… like in ACD’s stories, we can’t and won’t always have high stakes, dead bodies and mortal danger, but that’s fine with me. These are stories about friendship as much as they are stories about crime, and in this one, insights abound in the former sense.

[justalilpearlie]

Introduction/Fun Pearlie Facts

Was abt time I did one of these.

Hello everyone, my name is Pearl, Pearlie or Sam/Sammy if you're feeling like it. Friends also call me Martini sometimes.

I am a minor, my labels... we dont talk about them (fem presenting ftm gay/mlm + trying out gendervoid and verinix + bigender??) uhmm and I go by He/She, tho mostly He/Him by strangers- I can She/Her myself and close friends/mutuals are allowed! (I also go by neos: Void/Moon/Sweet/It/Fluff/Love/Fizz/Paw)

I'm from Argentina, born and raised, never moved. Speak fluent english and spanish.

I got the 'tism and the adhd, aswell as BPD and a few other things I wont list right now! But yeah I'm psychotic (ooo scary word.. lmao)

- -🌄-📀-🌙- -💚- -💛- -✨-🌄-✨- -💛- -💚- -🌙-📀-🌄- -

I'm an IRL of many, mainly c!Pearl (mcyt), Samuel Emily (fnaf [games canon]) and Shin Tsukimi (yttd). If you don't like it you can leave, block me, or whatever, cause you aint gonna change my life or how I am. I'm in therapy, which unlike random hate and harrassment online, does help me :)

I like to roleplay, draw, sometimes make playlists or moodboards.. And my biggest interests right now are Life Series (+ evo + new life), Empires1(+ a bit of e2) and FNaF! (i dont rlly like the books tho lol..)

I use kin tags for reach cause I'd love interaction from any fellow lifers or empires ppl, hermits aswell!! Tho I havent finished s8 or s9 yet...

Fictionkins, therians and traumagenic systems all welcome!

- -💥-🐺-🌙- -❤️- -💛- -✨-💥-✨- -💛- -❤️- -🌙-🐺-💥- -

DNI prefferably:

- Basic DNI criteria (proshippers, homophobes, transphobes, racists, TERFs, ableist, etc)

- Endos/non-traumagenic "systems" DNI. block me if u want, i wont argue abt it in the comments/reblogs. or interact if u want but im not gonna follow u back or anythin shrugs.

- reality checkers or anti-IRLs DNI. I aint "romanticizing" shit, I'm existing and living my life, if thats a problem to you too bad cause my psychologist aproves of what I'm doing, since I aint harming anyone and I myself am doing dandy.

- anti-kin also DNI cause most of my friends are fictionkins and if you talk shit abt my fellas idk i wouldnt like having u around much

CCs interact at your own risk. This is my domain, cyan man & moon lady. /hj

- -🪸-🐸-🌙- -💙- -🩵- -✨-🪸-✨- -🩵- -💙- -🌙-🐸-🪸- -

"Disclaimer"

- I talk about MajorMoon (Scott x Pearl) a LOT, if u didnt notice by the acc theme. These are my romantic memories, its a gay ship, not woman/gay man, so if it makes u uncomfortable or u hate it or whatever then ur probably not gonna like my content lmao. COUGH, consider joining us if you do like what you see... /nf We're a small comunity of supporters.. just me.. and a few of my peeps... that was a joke, sir. /ref

- This isn't roleplay, its my main acc where im ""unapologetically"" myself, but if u do wanna rp life series/empires u can always shoot me a dm and maybe I'll give u my discord.

- I talk about myself (c!Pearl) using 3rd person in many posts tagged with main fandom tags. This is to cause less confusion to casual fans slash ""normies"" (lhj) that well.. don't know what IRLs are! Also that way I feel safer and don't have to worry as much abt getting harassed and such for my identity.

- -🌸-⛰️-🌙- -💚- -💙- -✨-🌸-✨- -💙- -💚- -🌙-⛰️-🌸- -

Special People Mentions!! fps = * (1 or more.. wouldnt say in a priority sorta order but. more or less yea)

Family! <3 🌼@pehpurr* SISTER!! super duper cool, her art is great and you should check it out!! YOU. You're the brightest little girl (i say like ur not older than me) I'VE EVER MET ACTUALLY! You're so passionate and loving I freaking adore you!! I love you so much Scar, you're one of the best things to ever happen to me, Kanny &lt;3 ⚙️@gentlexmadman DAD!! you are my daaaad, you're my dad! woogie woogie woogie! ANOTHER amazing artist! mr "I know that guy-", very funny, Henry "Autism" Emily... the copper king, my father. Speaking to you is always comforting. Love you so much papa, you're amazing :)

Simply special <3 ☕@insomniac-coffeehouse** You're all simply so very special to me. I love spending time with you guys and playing stuff together, you mean a lot to me and I'm so glad I met you. I hope we're still close for this year and many more! You're incredibly talented, not only at art, at everything you do. You spark joy in my brain and my heart <3 From the bottom of my heart, I'm in love with the hope you bring to this world. 🍊Jack***, oh my dear Jacky, where do I even begin, sport... you really are my other half. Mi media naranja if you will. haha.. I love every second we spend together, I love your voice, I love your eyes, I love your smile, your laughter. I love your use of words, the way you speak, your humor, your seriousness and goofiness. You stiff fuck, you were made for me and I was made for you, and I wouldn't have it any other way. You're my everything, mi vida, mi luz, mi estrella. Mi amor, mi mundo. <3

New friends! 🍓@strawberrystarfield I know we met fairly recently but you're all incredibly fun to talk to, your art is also amazing, your accent is real pretty (cough for a bri-💥), you're real sweet and I love reading all your thoughts and critiques about things :} (love ya Aspen /gen) 🏜️@fagdykegtws My right hand man! I know we just met through the rarepair server but oh my god we're in the same brainwave!!! You're so fun to vc and chat with and you got the best ideas ever fr fr, love ya Chewy, you're real sweet even w how lil i know you ;)

That's it folks, love yall and see you around!

[transfemlogan]

EDIT: this post is old. Very old. And was very rushed because people kept asking me to post it. While it provides insight onto certain situations, like antiblackness or the lack of flashing lights for years, it doesn't fully go into depth about some of them (like DID & antisemitism) and only offers one opinion into most situations.

It's a great starting point or beginning into learning about certain situations and to begin your own questioning and analysis, but is not a """masterlist""" or a good, in-depth discussion on the things Thomas has done and contributed to.

Take everything in this post with a grain of salt. Take it with "I didn't know that, I will do more research" and if you discover the opposite of what this post is saying and disagree (or if you agree), then that is what I want to come out of this post. I do not want to you immediately take what I say at face value, even if I am/was "correct".

Okay, back to the original post:

Ok. Its been 2 days lets talk abt how thomas participates in anti-blackness, antisemitism, & ableism.

I do have links to almost everything mentioned here, but some of them I do not have. Whether that be because I am expressing an opinion other people have or because I could not find it.

Also, I have something called "aphasia". Some parts of this will be phrased wrong and/or difficult to read. (Look up aphasia I'm not explaining it here.)

If you are a person of colour and want to express your opinion about Thomas being racist, feel free. If you are jewish and want to express your opinion about Thomas being antisemitic, feel free. If you are disabled and want to express your opinion about Thomas being ableist, feel free. I am not trying to speak over anyone. I am a black disabled man talking about things Thomas has done and including my own opinions.

I do not think Thomas does any of this out of actively trying to harm people. This is not me "cancelling" him. This is not me telling you you cannot watch the series or whatever. I am explaining things he has done. You come to your own conclusion about this using critical thinking.

Here is a response by @/voxakumasbitch, along with my own addition, that provides clarity and a more critical response to this post.

Here is a response by @tsfander, that explains the misinformation & faults within the DID section of this post.

DO NOT TAG THIS POST AS FANDOM DISCOURSE.

Anti-blackness:

(note: if you, as a nonblack person, tries to tell me I am WRONG for saying this is racist and antiblack I will literally explode you with my mind. I am a black man, I know what is and is not antiblack & you cannot tell me what is and isnt. Dear god.)

Logan's vocab cards tend to be appropriation of AAVE (African-American Vernacular English), since it's based around what people assume is "internet slang" (for example, in Accepting Anxirty Part 1, Logan uses the phrase "You good, fam?" which is AAVE).

Another character of Thomas' that appropriates AAVE is Sleep, also referred to as "Remy" by fans, in his vines and shorts. This is because he is supposed to be a flamboyant gay man, but again, a lot white gay men appropriate AAVE from black gay men and queens (for example, "slay" is a term that people say came from queer culture, but it is a term that came from black queer culture).

Thomas made a Tik Tok talking about his roles in musicals. (I do not have this Tik Tok as I... do not have Tik Tok for mental health reasons and the idea of redownloading it is terrifying.) One (or multiple?) roles he talks about are ones of black characters. (I hope I don't have to explain how taking black roles in musicals is racist.)

The entire BLM Roman thing

During the height of the BLM protests back in 2020, a tumblr user (I will not say their user) drew a black Roman holding a trans flag. While this in itself is not racist, black people outside of the fandom (and in the fandom) expressed their discomfort with it. This art was later deleted, however their white mutual ended up creating art of black Roman angrily holding up his fist and it was captioned "I frantically drew this in a fit of rage." This user did not post about BLM before this, and also it's very weird to make a white character black to show your support of real black people being murdered.

Here is the post, along with an explanation of why this is racist by me (@/aleiimm) and my TSS mutual at the time (@/mvnte). Obviously, I do not condone the harrassment of this artist.

This sparked a weird """movement""" within the fandom where white fans, ignoring every black fander trying to explain how this is Racist, drew black roman holding up his fist. And because of this "movement", Thomas Sanders reblogged the original drawing, also ignoring every black fander. He later deleted this, without an apology or even a mention.

Here is a post by @/lamp-calm-sanders which explains it better.

(I do think this is a very big fandom problem, though Thomas contributes to it.)

Antisemitism:

This is specifically in relation to Janus Sanders' character being an antisemitic caricature. I have reblogged posts about this, but due to my awful tagging system, I couldn't find them.

(note: I am not jewish, this is me repeating what I have heard from jewish fans and my jewish friends outside of the fandom.)

I recommend finding actual jewish fans and their posts.

Obviously, making antisemitic caricatures is a lot more than just the traits you give the character. I think it's important to identify what was the original idea. In this case, Thomas meant to make a character based off of the "snake in the tree" from the Bible. I doubt he consciously meant to create an antisemitic caricature.

However, most antisemitism is unconscious. Most bigotry is. Just like how white people can be racist, even if they are actively trying not to— because racism spans over years and years— non-jewish people can be antisemitic unconsciously.

Janus is a greedy, selfish, lying half-snake character. There isn't a way to get around that. These traits on their own wouldn't necessarily be antisemitic, but combined they are.

Ableism:

This will the longest section.

In the ad "The Return of the Jam!", Roman refers to Logan Sanders as "Mr. Infodumper" negatively. (Janus also does this in Thomas' Among Us Patreon stream, if I remember correctly, though it is edited out of the YouTube video.)

As an autistic man, I dislike the use of this negatively, however, not every autistic person feels this way. I know autistic people who do not view this as ableist.

Virgil's crofters is named "Cranic Attack", based on on the word "panic attack". I do not have an anxiety disorder, though many people with anxiety disorders expressed their discomfort with this (and also many people said it was fine. Again. Not a monolith.)

Thomas Sanders does make an apology for this usage here (this link includes my response, @/gothybubby).

In this apology Thomas

one: claims that the term "infodump" is negative, which isn't true. The trait is not negative, but the way it is used by Roman (and Janus) is ableist.

two: claims that it is... the character's fault? "we were narratively depicting Roman to be in the wrong for saying it." Not a single character tells Roman off for this. It is not Roman's fault, he's a fictional character, it is the people AKA THOMAS who wrote the script.

And three: that Logan is going to get "vindication" for this. No one wants Logan to get VINDICATION, we want Roman to NOT be ableist.

Here is a response by now deleted user, @/suckerssides, and @/beeceit.

Here is a post by @/turneverybodyintopuppets

Dissociative Identity Disorder & systems

I do not have DID, this is, again, me repeating systems both in and out of the fandom. Also, again, lots of systems have different opinions about whether or not Sanders Sides is ableist towards systems.

I have a friend with DID who does not have Tumblr and is not in the fandom anymore who wants me to talk about this (this is also expressed in the tags of my reblog of my response to Thomas' apology).

I also have reblogged posts about this, but I couldn't find the ones I have reblogged that criticise this.

I recommend finding actual systems and their posts.

Sanders Sides closely resembles DID. Thomas talks about this in his video "Sanders Sides - BEHIND THE SCENES QNA" where he and Joan explains that they are not trying to represent DID, but a man and his singular (one) personality. Joan on their Tumblr made a post where they also talk about this (unable to find it, since their blog is deleted) and explained that they are trying to avoid using terms related to DID.

I know, for a fact, that thomas was going to make a video with systems to discuss DID and make sure to disconnect Sanders Sides from DID. This video was, obviously, never made. (I saw this being discussed in a discord by a system who was asked by Thomas to be in the video, but I am not a part of the discord anymore and I do not have this message.)

Still, it still resembles a system. People have express their discomfort with the sides having names for that reason. People have also expressed their discomfort with Thomas talking about the sides as if they are "real people" (unsure how to phrase this) since it makes it feel more like the sides being alters. For example, when Thomas made a tweet/instagram story where he stated "Logan has a new favourite book."

Here is a Youtube Video by The Entropy System that talks about Sanders Sides and DID

Here is a post by @/kiapet2 and my mutual @/aromanticpatton.

Here is a post by @/sticky7581

Flashing lights tagging

Thomas Sanders sucks as at tagging flashing lights. This is not an accidental, one-time thing. This is continous and has been a thing for years.

I need everyone to know that epilepsy and photosensitivity are serious. Seizures are serious and deadly. I have friends who have had seizures over his videos and I know fans who have bad seizures over his videos. Thomas Sanders and his team know that people have had seizures over his videos.

I have seen people say that he doesn't have to tag flashing and comparing it to trigger warnings. Trigger warnings are a different topic from flash warnings.

Thomas has struggled to tag flashing since 2018. This post by @/cisnesincorbata shows a timeline from 2018 to early 2021 of people sending asks to Thomas about it. I have also sent Thomas asks asking him to tag warnings, along with commenting it on his tweets.

Putting Others First was an episode that a lot of photosensitive people couldn't watch (I also know a lot of autistic people couldn't watch due to the noises and low hearing people couldn't understand Logan's voice). This video took almost a year to get a warning, and even then it is placed in the description, which is NOT a good place for a warning.

Thomas has gotten better at tagging, but this is still an issue that should be talked about. Forgetting is not a valid excuse when people's lives are on the line.

no TL;DR

Writing this post was the most difficult thing ever. If someone else wants to create a TL;DR, feel free, but I am currently out of spoons (look up spoon theory) and my aphasia is kicking my ass.

However, sometimes, things cannot have a TL;DR. Sometimes you have to take the time to read long ass things in order to understand. I acknowledge people have difficulty reading and comprehending things, especially if you are neurodivergent, but a lot of times this can be worked on. I am one of these people.

[dojae-huh]

Sometimes I couldn't help but think of the vast difference between the shipping culture of Korean fans and the international fans. International fans love eating up company ships like JaeYong. In Korea, JaeDo and MarkWoo are the most popular NCT ships. Yet I remember when that ranking came out, a lot of international fans were confused because it's not really the popular ships in the international fandom (in their own words, "Do these ships even interact?" lol). It makes me wonder if they even know their idols at all, because for example, I don't follow MarkWoo that much but anyone with a pair of eyes and ears can see how close they are, especially when watching contents and their own lives. Mark had said countless of times how he is close to Jungwoo and vice versa, they even dropped honorifics with each other. Out of everyone in NCT, Mark probably considers Jungwoo as his closest friend. But then again, their fans remain blind to this. Don't even get me started with JaeDo, but I think everyone already knows so I'm not gonna explain about them anymore. When I was a new fan in the NCT fandom, all I knew is I like Jaehyun. I hadn't explored any form of shipping culture within the fandom. I remember watching NCT Life in Gapyeong and that is the first time I am witnessing the group dynamics. And then I noticed Doyoung. That mafia game where Jaehyun picked him as his co-mafia was the exact moment that made me go "Huh, wait. There is something in there". Mind you, I was clueless about their relationships with one another. So I decided to watch more contents, checking if that was only a fraction of a baseless assumption, and boy... all I can see is JaeDo's chemistry, I would even call it the sexual tension between them that is so high up the roof. Makes me think if fans cannot discern the subtle group dynamics and obvious clique among members, because if you watch them closely, especially in contents, you will get to see who is close with who, who is fond of who. Even up to know, a lot of people do not acknowledge how obviously closer Jaehyun, Doyoung, and Haechan have gotten and that is so easy to see in their recent contents. Korean fans can obviously eye those relationships better than International fans, just see who the majority ship and you'll realize they are the members that are actually close in real life. Also, this is something that I noticed. A lot of Doyoung fans ship him with Jaehyun, either in a devoted or casual way. There are some who are dedicated Doyoung solo stans, not a shipper, but would tweet Jaedo-related content every now and then. They obviously adore Jaehyun and maybe that has something to do with all the doting (the pining looks and affectionate stares) and tangible forms of affection (attending DY's solo gigs, sending food trucks, etc) that Jaehyun does for Doyoung. But among Jaehyun fans... heh. He's so popular among shippers, majority of them that dominate are JaeYong and JaeWoo shippers. Does it have something to do with Jaehyun's loverboy image? It's so funny to see the contrast.

MarkWoo

"I-fans" is a super broad term, but I guess we all mean English-speaking part of X, and it is heavily influenced by Western fans and their ideas, they just overwhelm writing in English SEA and other i-fans.

I wonder if it depends on the type of involvement. Many i-fans seldom watch content with their chosen group, relying on short moments and re-telling on socmed. It also can be the difference in attractiveness of certain members or archetypes of relationships.

If we compare MarkWoo and JaeWoo. There were Jack&Rose, JaeWoo sightseeing in Japan, Jae teaching Woo bowling, they were roommates with TMIs, and there used to be many DJJ photoshoots. It is easy to watch this short list, choose to like the ship because of it, and later ignore everything else. MarkWoo had many lives, but their bonding moments are overshadowed by YuMark in official content. As you said, you need to pay attention to notice them in bts videos, listen to what they say about each other. And stan fanwars show that many ignore what idols say (Tae proclaiming his endless love to Do in the case of Tyongfs who hate Do).

Another possible thing. Koreans watch their idols like hawks, they follow their every move and interaction, make maps of stores and investigate how far the hotel Jae stopped at is from the venue Taeyeon had her concert, which Doyoung was attending, etc. They look for information to support their suspicion. What you and I did. While many i-fans are more of passive consumers, eating up what socmed brings, listening to what other people say, and believe what SM and idols present. Many get easily fooled by contradicting information and multiple versions. For example, Yuta said he likes Mark hundred of times. Jungwoo calls his outings with Jae as dates, writes on bubble he sleeps in his bed (when they were roommates), tells stories about Jae playing music box for him in their room, they make challenges (to mock Do). One clear narrative in both cases. Meanwhile Do and Jae don't know each other one day, tease another, say they are close and send each other food trucks, but don't congratulate with BDs on IG, their interactions are cut out from bts.

Many Korean JaeDo fans are Jaehyun-biased. Probably, the way Jaehyun is perceived, what fans he attracts and for what reasons plays here a role. Doyoung is also not popular in the West.

[jextell2514]

Hi! Tal here! If you’re feeling inspired to write anything please do! if you need any inspiration I really like your Amber time travel au and also the Jarra and Amber swap. But whatever’s on your mind is good!

ummm for fic recs I’ll read most fics if they’re in a fandom I’m in. Ummm really angst and fluffy stuff is fun! I love hurt/comfort and character studies. I like canon divergence best as an au setting! Esp crossovers idk why lol.

thanks for offering to do this btw!

Of course! Honestly I mostly just wanted some external motivation lol so thanks for providing!

I've been thinking lately about the Jarra and Amber swap because I was talking about it with someone IRL, and I think I actually do want to acknowledge the language barrier because of the angst potential. The snippet I already wrote would probably change a little but not too much because I headcanon that Jarra (like the nerd she is) actually learned English, kinda like how some people learn Latin today. So does Fian, although that's more for plot convenience.

Amber, however, most definitely does not speak Language.

I woke up and looked around wildly. I was in an unfamiliar room, with a strange man sitting by the side of the bed I was in. What had happened? Where was I? Adika wouldn't have let just anyone come to see me, and he certainly wouldn't have let me be taken--

Then I remembered. The package from my mother. Opening it. The voice in my head. The crystal cage, trying to crush me out of existence as my three-year-old self took over my life.

I wasn't in the crystal cage anymore, but I wasn't in my unit either. That meant the imprint was removed, and I was awake, but... since I wasn't in my unit, it might be too late to escape.

The stranger was saying something, but it sounded like gibberish, and I knew it must be the language of another Hive. Elden's Hive.

This man couldn't be Elden, because he didn't look anything like Forge, but he must be working with him to kidnap me to his Hive.

The stranger repeated the same gibberish phrase, but more urgently.

I decided to play clueless. If I could get some privacy, I might be able to call someone for help, explain that I hadn't requested this transfer of my own free will.

"Where am I?" I asked.

The man's eyes widened in apparent concern. He said another incomprehensible word, then tilted his head at me in a questioning motion.

"Where am I? What happened?" I said, frustrated. Not only had they kidnapped me, they couldn't even bother to translate somehow?

He pursed his lips, then pulled something off his sleeve that looked almost like a dataview but wasn't. Maybe they had different dataviews here.

He waited in silence until a blonde boy, about my age, came rushing in, and exclaimed a single word. "Jarra!" Perhaps that was the man's name? The man stopped him from coming right up to me, and they began talking to each other in their language.

Eventually, I gave in to my irritation and said, "What is going on?!"

The boy paused and looked at me. Then, finally, he said something that I could actually understand. "Why are you speaking English?"

"You haven't exactly deigned to imprint me with your language yet," I said acidly, and regretted it. Lucas had said that imprints could damage my telepathy, and I had seen in his thoughts just how vital I was to the Hive.

The boy's brows furrowed. "I'm guessing... Jarra, you don't remember me?"

"My name's not Jarra."

[dez-wade]

Just to let you know people on twt are mad about teaduo soley cause q!bagi doesnt treat foolish that nicely, god forbid a character who doesn’t primarily speak English is silly

LOL that's the hypocrisy and selectiveness I mentioned. It happens a lot with Foolish. He's allowed to do anything that he wants, but he shouldn't be getting any consequences, like people distrusting him. BUT if he does something that deserves praise then he's not silly anymore, he should be taken seriously and they have to consider his real feelings.

And what's funny is that Bagi doesn't trust anyone on the island pretty much. Just very few people. Yet you don't see other people complaining about that, just Doozers.

There's also the problem that people see Tina as an extension of Foolish, so they're not happy that Tina chose a different view than he did. This happened once when Cellbit introduced the order for her a long time ago and talked about Cucurucho. People called Cellbit manipulative because of that, especially because at the time she was walking around a lot with Foolish and Jaiden, the Cucurucho buddies.

But that's also just me criticizing the fandom, because thank god Foolish is a much better character than his fandom tries to make him be.

[braveryhearted]

More obscure muses ( Introduction ) series.

Fandom: Skip Beat.

Muse #2- Ren Tsuruga / Kuon Hizuri

Age 20-22 ( manga and anime )

Ren Tsuruga, real name Kuon Hizuri, is an actor working for the entertainment company, LME. He is currently ranked Japan's most desirable man. Ren is a very strong-willed person. He can be childish and short-tempered when his real personality slips out. Ren is a people-pleaser and often hides his true feelings behind his "gentleman smile", which works most of the time. He is labeled by many as "The Co-star killer" for his ability to make his leading ladies fall in-love with him. He is also a model for a clothing line called R'Mandy.

Ren is very serious about his work, and will not act seriously with nor respect anyone who does not take pride in acting. Hence, he disliked Kyoko Mogami at first, because her motives for joining showbiz were "impure," as Kyoko herself puts it. Both Yukihito Yashiro and Lory Takarada noted that most of his past relationships were shallow. Lory points out that Ren has never really fallen in love before. Ren routinely skips or opts for convenient meals and is regularly chastised by Kyoko for his poor habits.

Ren works hard to maintain his "gentlemanly" image, so he does not let his temper get the best of him when Sho Fuwa knocks over an ash tray in front of him, nor ask for help when he doesn't understand lines because he is not a native Japanese speaker. It is also shown that Ren acts indifferent and calm when extremely happy. In times of extreme anger, he has been known to excuse himself from the room to collect himself.

It is later revealed that Tsuruga Ren is a mask for Kuon Hizuri. Ren is deeply disturbed when Kuon breaks free on the set of Tragic Marker. So far, Kyoko is the only one able to break him out of this state with her voice or actions. Lory is aware of this side of Ren and warns Kyoko of it without directly telling her about it. Yashiro also knows nothing of this personality, though he suspects Ren had a past that is different to his current facade.

Although Ren dislikes and even fears Kuon, his true personality is not entirely bad. He drops his Ren facade in Guam and interacts with Kyoko as his true self for a full afternoon. She instantly recognizes him as "the fairy prince" she met as a child. And the two of them reconnect, as if no time has passed. As Kuon, Kyoko is less guarded around him. Because Kyoko is so open with Kuon, Ren finds himself wishing on one occasion that he had not dyed his hair back to brown.

The public knows nothing about Ren's past and background. Only his parents and Lory Takarada know about his real background. Ren is revealed to be Corn, a 10-year old boy Kyoko Mogami met when she was six years old. Ren told Bo the Chicken ( in which Kyoko is actually inside the suit ) that he used to get fired all the time when he was starting in showbiz.

In truth, Ren's real name is Kuon Hizuri. He is the son of Kuu Hizuri and Juliena Hizuri, who are popular personas in showbiz in America. He was raised in America up to the age of 15. Kuon always lived in the shadow of his father's greatness. He tried to break into the show-biz world, only to suffer many rejections. Because of this, a darker side took over Kuon and he grew distant from his parents.

Flashbacks from his teenage years imply a violent past such as acting in gangs and getting into fights. Lory brought Kuon back to Japan when he was fifteen. It was then that he adopted the stage name "Ren Tsuruga" and went on to become the most popular male actor in Japan. Kuon has a Russian, American and Japanese mix heritage, which explains why he can speak Japanese, English and Russian fluently.

[justpassingbii]

plot bunny

So I had a new plot idea. Just a thought I found interesting but anyone can feel free to take it and use it, just let me read it too 🥺

It probably fits in for any fandom, it was just thought up as a (reverse) harem setting (or at least for multiple pairings side by side) and I thought it up as a MDZS fanfic so I explain it in that setting further down.

TW: period typical racism/homophobia/sexism, slavery is a big plot point and all the issues it has, like potential non/dub con (nothing happens but it is mentioned and other characters think it is normal and what should be happening)

I tried tagging it properly but do let me know (kindly)

The basic idea was:

an AU set in the age of discovery (yes I am european fam, even had to look up the name for this in english kkkk) with an OC/reader insert that is financially Independent from their family and is very eccentric in their spendings (yes they have a family but for some reason the family does not interfere in their business. bonus points if OC is a woman since sexism was a thing at the time)

now characters from canon are being sold as slaves (not all at once, just the one first and then keep them coming and adapt to the fandom/character) OC was established as rich and eccentric so they buy the character and take them home but (not so shocking) treat them very kindly.

Now I'll describe this as I thought it up but again, I think this might fit in for any fandom/characters and I would really like seeing other people's take on this

---

OC is rich and has a family but is independent from them. I go so far as to think she is the main source of income and status for them, despite some of that having established before her. So she has her own house and does her own spendings and her fam can´t publicly interfere but they do some bashing behind her back (and to her face cuz she is a softie, especially for the family) but she will still try to stand her ground to do the things she wants and they let her cuz this is how they got their wealth and fame so far.

She is at the market and sees slave traders and is going to move past until the foreign looking (they are all foreign, it's why people decided they should be slaves - eww - but this one looks different from any other slave and is even being marketed as such). She decides to take him in so she buys him and brings him home. She speaks a couple of languages (I am making it be an unusual thing for that time but she is a language afficionado - ignore my projecting pls) but not his so another plot point is her personally teaching him and learning from him.

It's Jiang Cheng. He is moody but nothing if not adaptable and quickly resigns himself to playing along for his own sake until he can figure something else out. She takes him home, lets him bathe and gets the servants to bring over picture books and the most basic reading and writing learning books and tools. She starts personally teaching him.

Some more projecting and the OC is portuguese but speaks english so she tries to tell him only she speaks english here but if he wants to learn that or portuguese. (haven't quite decided which one he chooses and further down the line I decided they also have their own sign language system - a mix of pt sign language and other signs). She goes through the classes with him and even tries to learn some of his in return.

Cute moment when she introduces herself and he does too but she struggles A LOT with the tones for his name and he gets her to call him just Jiang, and he calls her by her first name (she insists and he isn't fully aware of it until later)

She teaches him some basic cultural stuff like how to greet someone (as in the bowing, the language stuff will come a bit later, she is on the more basic but key stuff, so basic nouns for a while).

She also lets him pick his own clothes. She calls over a servant, gestures for clothes and points to both the servant's and his clothes expectantly until he decides to keep his clothing style. She take shim to the tailors and I am playing on the assumption they have their own fabrics for clients to choose from in there so she lets him pick the fabric for his main outfit but they also get him some "normal" ones. He picks purple obviously, and she lets him, no matter how expensive purple fabric actually is - she is rich so she should spend it, no?

(this paragraph has mentioned/discussed dub con but nothing happens) Last character specific point (or at least that gets really developed for the first character that appears) is how everyone expects that he will be a sex pet (I am sorry) so a room isn't prepared for him - he is expected to sleep in her bed and with her. He is taken by the butler (who is period typical and therefore not very supportive of all the progressive shit she does and how she does it but hasn't been disrespectful so far) who lets him get washed up and then has him kneeling on the floor in her bedroom waiting for her in just his pants. She comes in, sees him there, touches his cheeks all tender but with a very obvious sadness in her eyes. She kisses his forehead and takes his hands to lead him to the bed but tucks him in, and then gets in herself (let her do a speed run of her nightly routine, baby deserves her -limited - skin care). she lies next to him and even holds his hand but nothing more. they wake up cuddled to each other but nothing happened other than that forehead kiss and hand holding (*~kya~* lol) and nothing happens the continuing nights.

Now onto more characters (that part was long cuz 1 gives a lot of setting and a lot of things are explained now because they will be very similar for all characters and 2 I love JC, if you didn't know)

I thought of letting Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian come next, caught as a pair. She is once more out and about, with JC, and he spots them. He tells her and she buys them, gives them a similar treatment, she has JC to explain the things he already knows and things go a bit smoother with that extra bit. JC tells her they are a couple so she gets them the room next to hers. JC keeps sleeping with her cuz the alternative is to sleep next to that couple and we all know they like their "everyday" (he also really likes sleeping next to her but will never admit it out loud). I havent developed much for these two so far except that I wanna play with Wangji's mommy issues so....

She is a bit keen on physical touch but not keen on crossing anyone's boundaries so she goes slowly. Hand holding is mostly for outings in crowded spaces (there are 3 guys now but she holds hands with JC and one of wangxian who hold hands themselves and problem solved) but she opens her arms wide open to express intent to hug and holds her hand next to the body part she wishes to touch (arm or face, dont be perverts - yet) and only touches if they acknowledge her intent and allow her (not moving away from her or pushing her away/pushing her hand to where they wouldn't mind/actually want her touching - no perverted shit *yet*). Wangji is actually keen on this and one time she caresses his face and he calls her "A-niang". She is clueless so far so she tilts her head and Wangji, emboldened by this, points to her and repeats it, before pointing at himself and saying "baobei". she understands this is something about how to address each other so she complies and calls him "baobei", not noticing his red ears and the shocked faces on the other two. Include a scene of WWX and JC confronting him about it and he is unfazed, in one of the language classes she still insists on personally giving, LWJ tells her and she doesn't mind either, whatever floats their boat (she is SOOOOOO into all of them but the whole master-slave thing makes consent an issue so she has decided to NEVER do anything with none of them - she can't even be sure if even if they initiated it, if it was out of a sense of obligation or because they really wanted her)

On the topic of forms of address, after trust is established and feelings, LWJ calls her A-niang and she calls him baobei, JC calls her a normal nickname for wtv name she has and she calls him A-Cheng at first and later on (after the A-niang incident) she calls him Cheng-ge (he is flustered cuz it never happened before but he is indeed older than her so she says it's only right), WWX is A-Xian/Xianxian and calls her Jiejie/*name/nickname*-jie.

Later on come 3zun. Kinda wanna separate Lan Xichen, he arrives first and Wangji recognizes him so we all know now she has to buy him too (and traders start to see she only buys this type of slaves and this might become an issue, and also now she has 2 similar ones and they think they can finally start to understand her preferred type - joke's on them hehe). The others help him blend in, etc etc, he has the gentlest vibes and maybe later on can be a bit of a right hand man to her (as well as JC because I say so and he is the one that has been with her the longest). Nie Mingjue and Jin Guangyao/Meng Yao come later but together (yes NMJ is still alive, I need his himbo energy). They are at odds with each other anyway and as she is trying to buy them, she hasn't brought enough money on her to buy both so she tries to bargain by trying to trick the merchant into a buy 1 get 1 free (throwing in a bit extra above the normal price for one so its more like a discount on the second one) and oh the mental implications this has on JGY that OC is gonna deal with.

Also just thought that Nie Huaisang will have to come looking for his brother but he at least is smart enough to come as a master himself and not a slave so he becomes her esteemed guest.

Other peripherical thoughts include her family visiting and the guys seeing the strained relationship and becoming protective of her, talks of releasing them/them escaping, thoughts of them bringing in different ideas that she capitalizes on (if one of the ideas evolves enough she might let the guy that came up with it be in charge of it), slice of life shennanigans, what pairings and they interact how (otp, 3tp, moretp ?), the servants not being understanding or not sharing in her views about the boys and being fired, reference about how she bows to them too low (she is the master and they her slaves) but even after they explained to her she souldn't bow so low, she insists even more on bowing like that, to show she sees them as her equals, how she wants kids but doesn't have a husband - men don't want her to keep her power and influence (period typical shit) and she would ruin her own reputation if she had a kid out of wedlock so she has resigned herself to not hving kids.

Possible other plot points include pressure for her to marry, business competition sabotaging her, attempted assassinations/kidnappings, one of the boys acting out in public and the consequences, her household staff messing up/messing with the guys/with her, a time of some business issues because cultural and societal views on her and how they overcome them.

---

anywyay, if you read all of this, please have a chat with me about this, I am having some huge brainrot with this.

[miriam-heddy]

The Liminality of Whiteness and Writing About Mexican American Characters (in 911 or elsewhere).

Seeing some odd claims being made in 911 fandom about racism, children of immigrants, and passing.

If you’re interested in that, there’s a whole area of scholarship on the liminality of whiteness in America. And none of it means that you can’t be both subjected to racism and commit acts of racism at the same time! One way white people maintain power is by forcing people to assimilate into whiteness at the expense of their own culture (ie, It’s us or them) by taking sides with white supremacy without being granted full access to power.

My own connection to this comes from the perspective of looking at Jewish identity and media, and growing up in a Spanish, German, English speaking family.

These are just a couple of interesting reads, not a comprehensive bibliography.

Edited to Add: @chuuzmii asked for clarification. So I tl;dr’d some more, cause it’s the hiatus and it’s that or read buddie.

@chuuzmii There’s some good stuff out there in video form. There’s a good video here: https://youtu.be/CVxAlmAPHec that’s part of the National Museum of African America History and Culture that explains how racial categories shifted over time, from first identifying family group to the idea that skin color and/or birth nation mattered.

“Liminality” just means something exists in a space between places we know. Liminal Space is called “Transitional” because people can move Through the Between to go Here or There. And now I sound like Dr Seuss (“I would not like them here or there. I would not like them anywhere. I do so like green eggs and ham!”)

Immigrants and children of immigrants (like Ryan Guzman) often find they live in multiple spaces. Ryan G said, “My mom is from Sacramento, California, and she's a blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl. She's a whitey. Unfortunately, I don't look as Latin as I am.”

But how does Latin look?

To some, his skin tone makes him white. He has some white privilege. If he dresses up and speaks English, he probably won’t be followed around a store. But if he speaks Spanish and hangs out with other Mexican Americans (some with darker skin, like his dad), he might lose that. On TV crime shows, Latinx men together are often cast as bad guys.

Because he and his wife aren’t seen as 100% white, he wrongly thought they could use a mean word that’s been reclaimed by Black ppl yet is still used by some white ppl to mean “less than white/human/me.” That’s not okay. But ppl can learn. Being able to pass doesn’t mean you want to do so. And sometimes, people fck up and then grow, hopefully without hurting anyone too badly for them to forgive.

[orjange]

Chain Reaction

Rating: General Audiences Category: F/F Fandom: Ultraman Geed Language: English Ships: Toba Laiha/Aizaki Moa Characters: Toba Laiha, Aizaki Moa, Asakura Riku, Zena Tags: Compulsory Heterosexuality, Fluff, Minor Injuries Words: 3,198 No additional warnings.

This fic was part of the Tokusatsu Femslash Ficathon 2019, gifted to ao3 user Ozuttly!

Summary:

Moa realizes that her feelings for Laiha aren't those of jealousy after the two of them find themselves in quite the unusual circumstances.

Moa loves Riku, right? He's a guy, as well as one of the most important people in her life, so clearly it has to be love. That's what her friends in high school had told her anyway, after asking her about the boy she was sometimes seen with. They all had boyfriends, so it is only natural for Moa to like boys as well, isn't it?

But Riku doesn't make Moa's chest feel tight and doesn't make her stomach weird, like an ant's nest. Laiha does. She had interpreted this feeling as jealousy at first. Laiha is always around Riku, and all that. And Moa is in love with him, so she has to hate Laiha for taking him away from her.

The turning point comes when, one day, Moa finds herself daydreaming about Laiha's muscular body, her beautiful eyes, her soft-looking lips, her sharp tongue… The realization makes Moa feel hot and cold all over, her face flushed in embarrassment.

She has never really fantasized about someone this way, with the exception of perhaps famous athletes, which is probably normal - She stops her train of thought there, her phone ringing tirelessly as she rushes to pick it up. It’s work.

Being part of the Alien Investigation Bureau, it's her job to discreetly investigate extra-terrestrial crime in the city, not that it's rampant - humans commit several times as many crimes, of course - so Moa finds her job to be not nearly as taxing as what she imagines police work to be like. The general concern with alien crime on earth, is that humans will take these few incidents to represent the entirety of every extra-terrestrial society combined, when in reality quite the opposite is the case.

So, she is on her way to one of those missions when she comes across Laiha out of nowhere and of course Moa has to say hello, because that’s common courtesy, but she finds herself stuttering helplessly instead.

Laiha looks confused, one brow raised, her beautiful eyes squinting just a little bit. She is rightfully confused, Moa is the type to chatter endlessly, like a waterfall. This is clearly so unlike her. So Moa gets out her phone and points to it, her hands shaking. “I gotta go! My superior is calling!” She shouts and bolts off, surprisingly fast for someone in a suit skirt, Laiha notes.

Laiha stifles a snicker. “Her phone wasn’t even ringing.”

Well, that was quite embarrassing, Moa thinks, her heart-rate at an all-time high. She’s leaning against a wall, breathing heavily as she tries to calm herself down. It’s all fine, she tells herself, and realizes that her main concern is with Laiha’s impression of her. Which is odd, isn’t it? Quite odd. “What if she thinks I’m weird…” Moa says to the wall she’s propped up against. The wall doesn't answer. But then again, why does it even matter if Laiha thinks she’s weird? Not that Moa is never concerned about how other people think of her, but never this much. And she’s never failed so spectacularly at simply greeting an acquaintance. Moa is quite sociable overall, she rarely has trouble speaking to anyone, so why-

“Aizaki.”

Moa freezes. Mr. Zena’s voice. She slowly turns her head, immediately reminded of her original objective. She has a job to do. Oh god. She’s late. And where even is this place. She must’ve gotten lost. Oh no.

“Mr. Zena.” She says, clearly a bit intimidated by his sudden appearance, but not at all surprised that he managed to find her.

“You’re just on time.” He says, stone-faced as usual. He is so hard to read.

“No, no, I’m like ten minutes late! I’m so sorry Mr. Zena! I’m really so sorry!” She bows rapidly.

“I know, I was being sarcastic.” He is so hard to read.

“Fortunately, we still have more than enough time.”

Moa can feel herself relax a little. “The first good news of the day…” She murmurs. Zena points to their AIB car. “Let’s go.”

They arrive at a worn out and abandoned industrial building, weeds covering the ground and even some of the walls. All the windows are smashed, as is usual for these kinds of places. Behind the building, Moa can see the sun setting slowly, tinting everything orange. She is used to situations like this, in theory, but it’s still a little intimidating each time. She runs the facts through her head to prepare. According to intel from an informant, a group of rogue Dadas has their hideout here. They’ve committed various minor offenses from littering to petty theft, with their worst crime reportedly being the abduction of a pet cat, the disappearance of which was reported to the police a few days ago.

Overall they don’t really compare to other crime groups Moa has encountered in her work so far. In fact, she’s willing to say they’re more like a group of teenage delinquents. Though they would probably have her head for that. Dadas tend to be very particular and methodical about their random acts of criminal activity, as far as she knows. Intentional chaos, as Mr. Zena had once called it.

So, everything goes fine at first. They check their surroundings, find the Dadas, make sure they’re unarmed, that all of the members are accounted for and wait for the right moment to strike. Everything should go smoothly.

Moa and Zena are getting their guns ready, taking slow steps towards where the Dadas are sitting and chatting, and- And… And suddenly there’s a large log in Moa’s way. A log that she notices far too late. So, crying out in surprise, she falls face-forward onto a pile of rocks. She can hear loud voices and the shuffling of feet, then her vision goes dark.

She wakes up again on the backseats of the car, her head covered in bandages. She groans, rubbing her forehead. “Guh… My head…” It feels like her brain is trying to escape her skull, forcefully pressing against the bone. It takes her a second to remember what had happened. “Oh no.” She sits up rapidly, much to her head’s dismay. She hisses and closes her eyes, the pain shooting through her temples. To top it all off, she’s also feeling extremely dizzy.

“Aizaki?” Zena’s voice comes from the driver’s seat. Moa just kind of grunts in response, feeling too sluggish to speak.

“I’m driving you to the hospital.”

Moa nods, even though Zena can’t see her. “W-what about…The…”

“They got away.”

Moa grits her teeth. “I keep-… I keep…” She can’t help but tear up. “You could’ve… Left me…” She says without thinking.

“You’re more important.”

Moa can’t follow those words up with anything. Zena doesn’t lie. Zena is more responsible than her.

Riku visits her in the hospital with a bag of sweets. With Laiha apparently deciding to tag along as well, and Moa has never felt more embarrassed before. “I had no idea that being an insurance salesperson was such a dangerous profession…” Says Riku, concern in his voice.

“Riku… It’s just a minor concussion… And I just stumbled over a log of wood. Also - I’m getting discharged tomorrow…”

She dares not to meet Laiha’s eyes, fearing the awkwardness of it.

“Still - thank you for visiting me…” She holds up the bag of sweets. “I do love sweets."

Riku smiles, gesturing to the side. “Laiha helped pick them out!” Moa could swear that she could see Laiha elbowing Riku in the side from the corner of her eye.

She nods and turns to Laiha, awkwardly, and smiles. “Thank you, Laiha.”

Laiha looks a bit surprised. “…Sure.”

Moa melts just a little bit.

And she realizes that Riku's presence does not make her heart jump, or her palms sweaty. Laiha's does.

After getting released from the hospital again, Moa is fired up. Sure, she’s supposed to rest for a few more days, as strenuous activity could have negative consequences, but this isn’t the time to be worrying about minor things. The Dada delinquents are still on the loose, and it’s Moa’s fault. She’s not allowed to go back to work, at least not officially, so…

“That’s a horrible idea. Genuinely.” Laiha’s words bring tears to Moa’s eyes. “Maybe you hit your head harder than they thought?” She adds and takes another sip from her mango lassi.

“Laihaaa…” Moa cries. “You’re my only hope!! I need to catch them… It’s all my fault that they got away!”

“Listen, it’s not my job to take care of things like this. It’s-”

“…Mine…” Moa sighs and slumps back into her chair, her iced coffee untouched. She’s pouting.

Taking another sip from her mango lassi, Laiha musters Moa with an almost judgemental look. “Why are you asking me anyway? I thought you don’t like me.”

Moa sits up straight again. “That’s right! Wait I mean, I don’t not like you… Anyway you’re the strongest person I know. With the exception of Zena, but I obviously can’t ask him!”

Laiha raises both brows. “What about Riku.”

“First of all, he doesn’t know about AIB… Second of all…” Moa averts her eyes.

Laiha sighs and nods. “True. He can’t even lift 50 kilos.”

“…and you can!?” Moa’s eyes go wide and she finds herself staring at Laiha’s biceps. Again.

“Obviously.” Laiha’s muscles flex a little bit, perhaps subconsciously.

Moa turns red, and finally takes a sip of her iced coffee.

They meet up at night at a big tree just outside of town. Through some prior investigating, Moa has found out about the Dada delinquents’ new hiding place. An abandoned house in the woods, a few yards from here.

Moa almost cries when Laiha actually turns up at the specified time, originally unsure if the other was really willing to go through with this or not. She takes Laiha’s hands into hers and thanks her, from the bottom of her heart. Laiha sighs, though she’s wearing a smile on her face regardless. “We haven’t even started yet.”

“Right!” Moa lets go of Laiha’s hands and excitedly grabs a piece of paper from her pocket. On it was a drawing of sorts, a few lines of text and a bunch of arrows.

“Basically, the plan is as follows…”

-

“…And then you want me to call the AIB? I thought you’re one of them.”

Moa shakes her head. “I mean, I am, but… I am off-duty…” She points to her bandaged forehead. “In fact, what I am doing is pretty illegal. If they were to find out… -”

“You’d be out of a job.” Laiha sighs and rubs her temples. “Then, isn’t this a really bad idea?”

“Yes, but… But… But…” Moa is flailing her arms around, hoping it’ll get her point across. “It’s because of me! The other day a parrot was reported missing - I know it has to have been their work, and it’s all because I went and got myself injured!” The wound stings.

Laiha clicks her tongue. “Okay - I get it already.” She grabs a flashlight from her bag, “Let’s go.”

Moa beams, overjoyed, and takes out her own flashlight from her cargo pants. She shuffles closer to Laiha and grabs hold of her arm, only to get a slightly sour look in response.

"What! I don't want either of us to get lost… Who knows what's lurking in the woods at night! Boars, bears, tanuki… Kaiju?!"

"…Kaiju?"

“…You never know.”

"Alright, alright. Whatever. Let's go already."

Moa nods, smiling widely.

They have to take an untrodden path, as anything else may expose them to the Dadas prematurely. So every step they take is calculated, lest they step on dry wood and make too loud a noise. Or worse, stumble over something. Never again , Moa tells herself.

At some point, they'd switched over to simply holding hands, for practical reasons of course.

Moa is trying her hardest not to jump a little whenever a small animal rushes past them, or a crow screams from atop a tree. Her grip around Laiha's hand briefly tightens each time though.

Twenty minutes have passed by the time they finally see the abandoned house, soft light shining from its windows. They can hear loud chattering coming from the inside, it sounded almost like a fight, but when it comes to Dada aliens it could really be anything.

Moa clenches her fist in determination. “Don’t worry, Asahi-chan and Tsuru-chan, we’re coming to save you.” She whispers, her fist shaking a little.

“What?” Laiha raises a brow in confusion.

“Oh, that’s what the parrot and the cat are called… You know, the ones these bastards abducted? Didn’t I tell you…?”

Laiha sighs. “I remember it distantly…”

Moa unintentionally raises her voice a little bit. “I can’t believe you forg-” Her mouth is covered by Laiha’s hand instantly. “ Moa .” She whispers sharply, agitation in her voice, and nervously looks over to the house.

Moa’s eyes widen and she nods, shrinking into herself. “Sorry…” Her voice is almost inaudible. “We should get this over with.”

Nothing goes wrong this time. Laiha and Moa overwhelm the group easily, knocking some of them out, simply disarming others and tying them all up in a neat circle. It’s over in a second, their resistance being lacking at best. Only one of them gives them some trouble, knocking down Moa and delivering a considerable blow to Laiha’s head. Considerable, but not enough to knock her out by any means. She returns the favor tenfold, making him lose consciousness immediately.

Now, with all the Dada aliens tied up, they have a chance to really look around. It’s a mess, to put it nicely, trash and contraband littered on the floor. Everything, from paper plates to TVs, was to be found here. Most of it taken apart or at least thoroughly inspected. And - one room over - the kidnapped pets, alive and well.

The cat - Tsuru - is cowering in a corner, presumably startled by the loud noises. A few cat toys are strewn across the room.

Asahi the parrot is calmly sitting in it’s cage, it’s colorful feathers fluffed up and it’s eyes half-lidded. It must have been asleep.

Moa sighs in relief, the mess in the other room having briefly made her imagine the worst. She's unbelievably glad they're both fine. "We're lucky the cat didn't eat that bird, you know." Laiha says, leaning against a wall.

Moa nods and bends down to pick up one of the toys. She walks over to the cat - not too close, but close enough - and wiggles the toy around.

"Hey Tsuru-chan… Check out this cute mouse. You wanna come get it? You wanna come catch it?" Tsuru just stares, her eyes darting back and forth between the moving toy and Moa.

Laiha watches the display fondly, her head throbbing a little bit from the earlier beating. It will surely swell, but it's not like this is the first time this has happened to her. She can deal.

Things could've easily turned out far worse, they clearly got lucky.

Tsuru is now chasing after the toy, instinct and playfulness winning over her initial suspicions and fear. Then she catches it in mid-air and lets herself fall onto her back, toy in mouth. This makes both Moa and Laiha chuckle. They watch as Tsuru bites and claws and kicks at the toy in the most adorable manner.

Then Moa remembers what they came here for and she abruptly gets up, startling Tsuru a bit.

She walks over to Laiha and pulls a bit of a sad face. "We have to go." Laiha nods. "I'll call in at the AIB."

After finishing the anonymous call to the AIB while standing outside the house, Laiha looks over at Moa. "You ready?" She asks, holding out her hand for the other to take. Moa nods happily and accepts the offer.

-

"'…after an anonymous call to the headquarters of the AIB, a few agents were sent over to check out the the place reported to be housing criminals. Inside, they came across the group of Dada aliens responsible for a few cases of theft, trespassing, loitering and pet kidnapping. They were all tied together and sitting in the center of a large collection of contraband. Some of them were found to be unconscious, those who weren't refused to speak, and still do. In a back room they found, alive and well, a cat as well as a parrot. Both confirmed to be pets that were reported as missing this month.'" Moa reads from her smartphone.

"Why does your superior write like a news reporter?"

Moa laughs. "I think it's all the reference he has."

Laiha and Moa are at that café again, Laiha getting her usual mango lassi, and Moa her favorite iced coffee.

Moa continues. "'We believe this to be an act of unnecessary vigilante justice committed by humans…'"

Laiha rolls her eyes.

"'but, as the group of criminals decided against pressing charges, we probably won't pursue the matter any further.' And then he tells me not to overexert myself, that I'm still healing… I'm fine! My head only hurts four times a day now!"

"He's right, you know. All that critical thinking isn't good if you're recovering from a concussion."

Moa frowns. "Anyway, do you think he knows?"

"Yeah." Laiha says with a slight smile. "Definitely."

Then Moa invites Laiha to her house, and to Moa's surprise she actually says yes.

They mostly sit around and watch samurai movies while eating spaghetti and drinking mango lassi they made together. It's nice and relaxed and… Familial. But Moa still feels her heart jump when their hands brush against each other on accident, when Laiha just so much as looks at Moa, or when Moa finds herself staring, or when Laiha nods off on Moa's shoulder while they’re sitting on the couch… Laiha is so beautiful. Her eyelashes, her soft skin, her silky hair… When Laiha smiles at Moa, the sun rises at night.

It doesn't take a genius to figure out that Moa is head over heels.

Laiha wakes up and tiredly rubs her eyes, her head resting on something comfortable. It takes her a moment to realize the position she's in. Her heartbeat quickens, and she realizes that she doesn’t want to move away.

So instead she moves closer to Moa, who looks at her now, her face clearly flushed.

A smile on her lips, Laiha takes hold of Moa's hand, interlacing their fingers. Both of their hands are sweaty and it almost feels a little gross, but most of all it feels right . Maybe cheesy romcoms are right about some things in life.

Laiha allows herself to drift back to sleep again, her head still comfortably resting on Moa's shoulder.

Moa is happy like this, finally confident in her feelings for Laiha. Riku is her little brother, she knows this now, and that's all she feels for him. Laiha though, Laiha is different. Laiha is the one she wants to hold hands with, the one she wants to share kisses with, the one that makes her chest sting and her stomach fuzzy. She gives Laiha's hand a light squeeze, and soon she falls asleep as well. Comfortable, happy, satisfied.