#doesn’t have to be a mammal. doesn’t have to be one thing it can be a hybrid of many things. you have creative freedom here that’s the-

[werewolfoffeverswamp]

ik the majority of people in question will never see this but a lot of you seem really confused on what constitutes a “proper” fursona so remember this: you can do whatever you want forever and ever and ever.

[always-a-slut-4-ghouls]

I think someone put the brain of a mouse or maybe a squirrel inside my head at some point because all winter I was like “I crave nuts and seeds” and now that it’s getting warmer and brighter out my brain keeps going “it’s fruit time”

Like, modern transportation has made it possible to move many fruits all over the world (in theory) all the time! But the primal early plesiadapiform part of my brain is like “you must eat what is available this season”

[planariaareneat]

How The Nocturnal Bottleneck and Nipples Make Us Human

Almost every post here considers what humans do have, really. It’s a little tiring; realistically every world has its harsh environments and vicious species and a sophont to match. We probably wouldn’t be unique for our adaptability or our persistence or even adrenaline

But our evolution is fucked up as hell, to put it lightly.

Mammals went through what’s been dubbed the nocturnal bottleneck essentially since the start of the mesozoic right up until the Cretaceous ended the archosaur’s exclusive hold over the daylight. We lost a lot of things from every mammal spending most of its time in either a cramped, suffocating burrow or scrounging around in the faint hours of nighttime. Our blood cells lost their nuclei to hold more oxygen while we spent time deep underground, we lost protections against ultraviolet rays in our skin and eyes, we can’t even repair our own DNA using the light of the sun. Most aliens probably wouldn’t have such traits unless their evolution followed a very similar path to ours. They’d be able to see ultraviolet and wouldn’t have to worry about sunburn and all the wonderful privileges essentially all fish, birds, amphibians, and reptiles enjoy as we speak. 

There’s also what we gained from spending so much time in the dark.

Brown fat is only found in mammals, it’s a special type of fat which bear cells with several oil droplets and are utterly jammed with mitochondria. This lets it make heat, a lot of it, fast. We don’t even need to shiver to induce this heat generation from brown adipose tissue - factor in our downright hyperactive mitochondria, and we can warm up quickly. Sure, it doesn’t have too much use in adult humans, but it keeps our infants warm and still provides a little boost the whole run we have in this universe.

Unless aliens also went through a time where their small ancestors had to face cold nights, they’d have to produce heat the old fashioned way when chilled. Aliens might have to shiver the whole time they’re in a cold room while the human watches in confusion, quite literally unshaken, and wonders if the room is a lot colder than the thermostat set to 60 says. The aliens stare at their companion in confusion, it’s just a normal temperature to shiver at after all, how is the human sitting so still?

Our small ancestors spending all their time out foraging at night is also why we have such a good sense of touch, smell, and hearing. They were more important senses than vision (we’re lucky to have even redeveloped basic color vision, frankly) at the time and place and simply ended up continuing to serve us well. Birds and reptiles rarely have acute senses of smell and the latter especially are lucky to have acute hearing, and birds rarely have impeccable hearing themselves either. Our skin is free of scales and honed to sensitivity, and our external ears and complicated ear bones provide an immense range of hearing (from 20 all the way to 17,000 hertz!).

Aliens might not be able to pin down the chirp of a cricket or the light click of a lock being picked. The human might be the only one on board a ship that can pick out the finer sounds of the engine’s constant thrum and know the critical difference between when everything is fine and when something is wrong. The human could probably pick out the sounds of an approaching enemy’s careless footsteps - they’re only as light enough for *them* to stop hearing them, after all - and be the one to see the horrified expression (well, more on that later) on their face when we get the drop on them in spite of their perceived stealth. 

But perhaps the most versatile, convoluted, amazing, and utterly unique trait we have is right on your face this instant. Lips.

Lips in most animals are a simple seal to hold in the mouth’s moisture and protect the teeth, even if they’re supple they’re NEVER muscular except in mammals, and we have only one thing to thank for it; milk and nipples. Lips evolved exclusively to allow babies to suckle, it required a vacuum to be created in the mouth, and with no other animal having anything like a nipple it never happened in other animals. Many animals make milk, to be frank, but no other animal has nipples.

Your cheeks and lips are a marvel among tetrapods, no other animal can suck like mammals can. Aliens wouldn’t have straws or even be able to sip from the edge of a glass, they’d have to have a proboscis or simply tilt the whole thing back. Aliens likely won’t have woodwind instruments or balloons you can blow into. We take so much about our lips for granted. Hell, our muscular faces are vital for expressions, we’re probably absolute facial contortionists among a cast of creatures with mandibles and beaks and expressionless scaly maws. Aliens might find us ridiculously easy to read, if anything, compared to their own kind (all the better to deceive them) - or perhaps they’d find us hard to decipher anyways, with our lack of color-changing skin or erectable crests of bright feathers. Baring teeth might not be seen as a sign of aggression in most of the universe, smiling would be all too distinctly human. 

Perhaps with how infectious we are sometimes, that’s what we’d contribute to the universe; others might have to make do with opening their mouths just enough to show their teeth or splaying their innumerable mouthparts with just the right curve, but perhaps we’d teach the galaxy to smile, one ally at a time. 

Wouldn’t that be amazing?

[dreamauri]

♪ — 𝟱 𝗦𝗘𝗡𝗦𝗘𝗦, 𝗠𝗩𝟭 max verstappen x fem! reader (fluff) “. . . using his five senses, these are his favourite things about you.”

( fic master list | general master list ) ( requests | taglist )

Sight

his blue eyes appreciate anything and everything you give him.

He already thinks of you as eye candy or an angel right from a rococo painting.

But what it does for him is seeing you do something you enjoy.

If you’re playing video games or playing with his cats.

He sometimes takes videos or photos secretly so he can watch later or just to open and randomly appreciate you when he’s travelling and misses you.

“They’re so pretty,” You giggled as you watched the dolphin swim around in its tank. Max was glad he was already filming your excitement because one of the mammals noticed you and was playing with you. Sliding right and left, Max knew he was going to set the video as his lock screen later if he doesn't record for over three minutes like he always does.

Touch

One of Max's favorite things ever is hugging you or holding you in any way.

It helps keep him grounded other than the fact that you’re warm and he loves having contact with you.

You’re one of the first people he hugs after a race, an anchor helping him return to the world.

You’re the first thing he reaches for when he wakes up in the morning or before going to sleep at night.

It’s also the reason it’s difficult for him to travel without you because you’re his safe person and his source of comfort.

“All we are missing now is-” You paused, lifting your eyes from the shopping list to the hand, trying to uncross your legs. You didn’t question it, sitting properly so the blond can gently hold your thigh as he wished. Max was driving with you in the passenger seat so he couldn’t really turn and see why you paused. “Schat, I can’t read your handwriting- but we need cat food.” Max nodded in agreement, his thumb gently caressing your thigh as he made a left turn.

Smell

One of Max’’s favourite things is when you put on lotion

It has a certain sweet stubble scent that’s quite calming

he considers it your signature scent. only yours.

he also likes it when he randomly smells you on his things, like his shirts or jackts, msybe his controller or his car. it makes him all giddy

He always tells you ‘that smells nice’ and other times he just holds your hand to take a whiff

“Did you put sunscreen on?” You ask as you make sure you packed everything you need. “I don’t need it.” He doesn’t even get to finish his sentence because you already squeezed a bit and started gently rubbing it on his face. Max rolls his eyes for a second before scrunching his nose. “The sun screen covers your lotion.” He complains disappointed, making you playfully shake your head.

Hearing

max adores hearing you calling him pet names,

whether it's something like love, sweetheart, maxie, baby, darling, sweets,

or something sweet in french; amore, mon core, mon cher,

It gets worse if you speak dutch. Liefje, honing, schat, schatje.

It makes his heart go ba-dum ba-dum ba-dum and his thoughts get all tangled up and mushy

"Maxie, Shatje," You call from somewhere far in the apartment, making the blond turn around instantly, his big blue eyes searching for you and your voice. He hopped out of his chair and abandoned his sim in favour of finding you. “Amour?” “Yea?” “Liefje, can you zip up this dress for me.” Oh you got him right in his excited heart.

Taste

Max is not a huge coffee or juice drinker. All he ever drinks or needs are in his protein shakes or his red bull fridge.

But if you’re making a smoothie or experimenting with coffee and offer him a sip for his opinion or to show him how good it turned out,

he takes it as an honor,

especially if he’s drinking it out of your hand.

“Woo!” is the first thing he hears from the kitchen a few seconds after the loud noise of the blender stops. He peeks his head out of the bathroom still wet from his shower when he hears your excited hops/sprinting to his direction. “Maxie!” You hold up the glass with the pinkish smoothie he can assume is strawberries and something else. “Try?” You offer, and Max doesn't hesitate to lean forward, taking a sip, his eyes lighting up at the taste of bananas and a hint of mandarin. “That’s too good, I’m keeping this,” He teases, gently taking the glass from your hands, continuing to drink the smoothie while you follow the half-naked dutch in protest.

[yuurei20]

Hello!

Bit of a dumb question

I wanted to know if it was ever mentioned anywhere that Jade ate his siblings.. My sister keeps saying he said that he ate everyone but kept Floyd bc he looked like he'd be funny or something. I've never seen this mentioned before and I wanna prove her wrong

Hello hello!! ^^ Thank you for this question!

“Jade ate his siblings” is one of many unproven fan theories, based on a number of comments in the game that might be hints about something that may or may not have happened!

The theory goes that Jade and Floyd hatched from eggs (moray eels can lay up to 10,000 eggs at once in real life, though in-game is unspecified) at approximately the same time.

Jade then selected Floyd as the one sibling he would spare, and ate the rest. (The reason why he chose Floyd is technically not specified.)

This is based on many things that can be found throughout the game, such as this cryptic comment from Jade: “I’m glad I chose you as my partner when we were but little elvers.”

Floyd responds, “Not sure what that smile’s for, but I’m glad we survived together, too,” which may insinuate that if something did happen, Floyd might not know what it was.

Jade also says, “there are five in my family at present.” One interpretation of this line is that their family used to be larger, and might get even smaller in the future, but five is where they are at now. 

The more optimistic side of EN fandom will sometimes theorize that maybe their mother is pregnant and there will actually be a new addition to the family soon rather than a loss, but we have been given a surprising amount of information about how common it is for people to go missing in the Coral Sea, with otherwise zero hints that they will soon be getting between 1 and 10,000 new siblings.

The evidence used for the “hatched from eggs” part of the theory comes from Floyd insisting that neither he nor Jade are any older or younger than the other.

This might seem vague in English, where which twin of two was technically born first might not come up very often, but in Japanese one twin being born first would mean that one of them would refer to the other as something like “nii-san,” like Ortho does with Idia, or "aniki," as Ace does with his brother and Leona does with Falena.

(For a real-world example I recommend referring to the Twitter account of Jamil’s voice actor, Futaba Kaname. He has (弟) in his username for “little brother,” while his identical twin Yuu has (兄) in his username for “older brother.”)

But neither Jade nor Floyd refer to one another as “nii-san," "aniki" or anything but their first names.

While “bro” or “brother” will sometimes be added to their dialogue on EN neither twin has ever actually called the other “brother” in their original dialogue, because the Japanese language makes you specify older or younger (an age-neutral word for “brother” doesn’t really exist) and, as Floyd says outright in the game, neither he nor Jade are any older or younger than the other.

This makes sense if they both hatched from eggs at approximately the same time, rather than being born like mammals.

Another point that is often referenced in the “Jade and Floyd: Dead Siblings” topic is how, on the subject of ghosts they have seen, both twins mention seeing people on Halloween that looked strikingly like each other, only to realize that they weren’t. 

Floyd: “I once thought I saw Jade in three different places at once.”

The theory goes that they saw the ghosts of their dead siblings.

This may or may not be considered evidence of how the twins might have had other siblings at one point and something happened to them, but even if so, it could have just been a Finding-Nemo style incident with a barracuda or something similar.

So why do people point to Jade as the perpetrator?

(Maybe irrelevant, but Rook’s nickname for Jade in the original game is, “Monsieur Premeditated Crime.”)

Jade is a heavy eater, on par with Sebek (another thing they have in common is they have both threatened to eat Grim), saying that people are often surprised by how much he eats.

Jade says this is because his “fuel efficiency is lacking” (low blood pressure?).

Floyd is aware of this and seems to go to extra lengths to make sure Jade eats properly, encouraging him to relax and fetching food for him during Halloween.

The original meaning of Jade’s unique magic is, “the tooth that takes out a bite,” so this is definitely a theme with him.

And his official, disliked food? Eel.

To the original question: no, there is not a definitive line in the game that states “Jade ate his siblings” that we can point to as proof that it actually, canonically happened.

But we do have many cryptic lines that might possibly be insinuating that a infamously hungry Jade chose Floyd as the one sibling he would spare and ate the rest, Floyd may not know it happened, and Jade might be actively choosing not to tell him 🐬

[amerricanartwork]

RW Headcanon: Know the Difference! | An Overview of Quetzalli's Slugcats

Here’s a headcanon I’ve wanted to elaborate on for a while, and today I finally felt compelled to make it real! Also, just a disclaimer I am not a huge biology nerd nor have I studied it that heavily, so I apologize if something here doesn’t make sense or if I get something wrong. I just like fantasy worldbuilding from time to time, and I always like trying to make sense of things I’m interested in!

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Basically, I’m in the crowd that interprets slugcats as mustelids rather than literal slugs. When I say this, however I don’t mean that slugcats would necessarily be classified in the actual mustelidae family, seeing as Rain World’s world is most-likely not Earth and therefore our taxonomic classifications and phylogenetic relations can’t necessarily apply. Thus, when I call them “mustelids”, I really just mean that I imagine them as some kind of weasel with all the necessary physical traits to earn that general label. 

The first half of the name “slugcat”, in my headcanon, is thus not referring to any literal connection to slugs or other mollusks, but is instead derived simply from their appearance. Due to their long ears and thick tail, and because their fur and fat often squishes together in such a way that it makes their features blend together and their bodies appear more smooth (it’s the same physics as that whole “cats are liquid” idea), the general silhouette of a slugcat can easily be likened to that of a literal slug. The second half of their name is also not literal, and instead refers to their jumping and acrobatic abilities and their skill in hunting and pouncing on small prey, which is very similar to that of small cats.

Species Overview

Now to give a little more detail on slugcats themselves as a species! I headcanon them as small to medium-sized mammals most similar to Earth weasels in both their biology and their ecological niche, who originally served as cute low-maintenance pets for the Ancients and as hunters of small pests in facilities on the ground. They’re clever by nature and good at fitting through tight spaces, and later on they evolved greater jumping abilities to pounce on prey. They’re also very social creatures, who’ve taken to forming medium to large colonies primarily in and around the massive trees that thrive between the cracks in iterators’ rainstorm areas (like the one Gourmand, Survivor, and Monk’s colony lives in). Due to this social nature they also generally travel in groups of at least two, both for company and protection against tougher animals. Travel partners are usually siblings or good friends, and sometimes even whole families will journey out together to find food and other resources for the rest of the colony.

Despite being a small prey animal, slugcats have managed to get by not only due to their intelligence — the evolution of which would be seen as a rather unexpected twist of events if you asked their creators, for the Ancients found them cute but rather simple — but because of their impressive adaptability. It’s similar to that of real life red foxes and pigeons, and it allows them to survive decently well even in less ideal environments; a trait especially necessary for a world as industrialized as this one, even if its people are gone and most of the machinery is inactive. As such not all colonies live in trees; some find homes in the abandoned facilities, large underground hollows, and a few bold colonies have even claimed territories high up in iterator cities alongside scavengers. Slugcats are opportunists and masters at making the best of their surroundings, yet even beyond that they carry a certain other, “special” ability of their own that makes them as diverse as they are clever. But that’s a headcanon for another day…

Reasoning

Now for some out-of-universe explanation for this classification choice. I’ve always seen slugcats as some kind of small scurrying mammal (kind of a bias on my part, I just like mammals honestly, and they’re most familiar to me), mainly due to the way they look and move when on all fours, and their place in the game’s food chain. Originally though I saw them as rodents and compared them to mice and rats, which I still sometimes use for anatomy reference for these creatures. But one day a friend of mine saw me drawing slugcats and thought they were weird ferrets, and the more I thought about it and the more I developed personal speculative biology headcanons for slugcats, the more that label seemed the most fitting for them. It was also solidified when I did a bit more research and realized the main characteristic of rodents is their buck teeth, which just didn’t seem to fit with how I perceived slugcats. Not to mention rodents aren’t really predator animals, and slugcats’ implied natural diet and the gameplay itself does strongly imply if not confirm they have some instinctive hunting ability. 

Thus, it seemed “weasel” was the best classification for these creatures, and I quite like it so far! Once again it satisfies my mammal preference, but I also just think it’s a fun idea that neither part of the “slugcat” name is literal, similar to a lot of real-life creatures named after completely different animals, including fellow weasel, the polecat. Plus, I realized recently it’s kind of ironic with how I perceive the messenger slugcats, Hunter and Spearmaster, as being like hunting or guard dogs for their creators, when weasels are exactly the kind of animal humans with their dogs would normally hunt for! It’s cute, it’s familiar, it’s fun, yet I think it still has just as much potential for some interesting speculative biology ideas as the literal slug slugcat interpretations!

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

I'm so glad to finally get this out! I like seeing specbio slugcat headcanons in the RW fandom, yet I haven't seen many more in-depth takes from artists who don't take the "slugcats are literal slugs/mollusks/primarily mollusk-based" angle. Not that that's a bad headcanon of course; do what you think feels right! But once again I personally prefer slugcats being mammals, and I always look for fan-content that's as close to my personal preferences as possible. And when I can't find enough of it, I make it myself!

So hopefully this serves as a bit more of that kind of representation for the mustelid slugcat interpretation. It at least helped me develop my own idea of the species a bit more; much of that stuff in the overview part was ideas I came up with while typing this whole headcanon out!

As always, I hope you enjoy this headcanon of mine! I've still got so many ideas to develop and share, and even more coming as I continue to ponder these characters and their stories, so as long as you guys still like these Rain World headcanons of mine, they'll keep coming!

[ourfag]

THEIR FAVOURITE ANIMALS! 💕

ed: what do you mean “which?”

stede: which favourite animal?

ed: uh, the one that’s your most favourite?

stede: i know! but what sort of criteria are we working under here, do you mean animals i’ve encountered, or animals i’ve heard of,

ed: i mean any. animal.

ed: that exists.

stede: ah well. there you go, you’ve just taken out half a dozen possible answers for me

ed: half a—

ed:

ed: actually let’s shelve that other thing. what’s your favourite animal that doesn’t exist

stede: uhhmm…can i give you a top five

ed: yeah, fuck it

stede, counting on his fingers and concentrating very hard: okay. HOOP SNAKE,

ed: alright off to a weird start, like it

stede: UNICORN,

ed: of course

stede: SEA SERPENT

ed: that’s two snakes

stede: HIPPOGRIFF

ed: and we’ve got a horse and a half, okay

stede: PLATYPUS

ed: excellent

ed: wait what

stede: i said HOOP SNAKE,

ed: no what was that last one

stede: UNIC—the platypus?

ed: yeah

stede: it’s a small mammal with the bill of a duck and the—

ed: those are real

stede: hah ha!

stede:

stede: what, really??

ed: sailed with a platypus once. squiggly little fuckers

stede: are they real???

ed: mmm—i guess it was more like i sailed with a guy with a platypus. me and the platypus, we weren’t, like, associates

stede: that’s a real creature???

ed: yeah, man, what did you think it was

stede: i don’t know! i saw it in a bestiary!

ed: well i saw it in real life

stede: how??? where???

ed: with my eyeballs, and, uh, i don’t know, round panama i think?

stede: panama. how long would that take, there and back?

ed: trip to panama? umm… hmm. depending on the wind we’d

ed, realizing:

ed: no.

stede: edward

ed: please don’t bring home a platypus

stede: i can be the one to take care of it! what do they eat?

ed: i don’t know, bugs and shit? stede, we don’t have the room for a platypus

stede: it could be an indoor outdoor platypus!

ed: oh, right, ok, and when it’s three in the morning and there’s a platypus yowling on the porch because it wants let in—

stede: we’ll install a platypus flap on the door—

[hoodreader]

KISSING (ASTROLOGY THEORIES). for the real yearners. ✊🏾 this is an eighteen+ post. minors do not interact. this might have more parts as more thoughts come to me, but for now, this is my theory on kissing. part one?

dedicated to my queer little lover. love u silly. 0:) and dedicated to ur lovers as well. i hope they kiss u right.

links. 🌹 — menu. forms. readings.

💋 WHAT IS A KISS?

a kiss is defined as touching with the lips as a sign of love, sexual desire, reverence, or greeting. kissing doesn’t have to be innately sexual or romantic.

💋 FROM WHERE DID KISSING ORIGINATE?

there are some supposed theories that kissing began as something maternal. either from mothers chewing up food and spitting it directly into their babies’ mouths, or because infants use their lips to touch things as a result of breastfeeding.

the earliest form of kissing is dated back to 4,500 years ago in ancient middle east, around modern day iraq and syria. in the vedic sanskrit texts, it’s believed that kissing began as rubbing ur noses as to breathe in each other’s air.

💋 WHAT DOES A KISS SIGNIFY?

well… that depends on the culture. the ancient vedic sanskrit texts describe kissing as “inhaling the soul,” so it was reserved as something incredibly intimate.

the romans had distinguished forms of kisses depending on the context of whom they kissed, but they also were responsible for popularizing kissing as a sexual act.

kissing as we know it isn’t done by half of the world’s cultures. instead, humans often perform some variation of nuzzling, as do other mammals. kissing with the lips thought of as mainly a western thing.

for that reason, i’ll be speaking from my own cultural lens. i live in the west, and i love to kiss. whether the kiss is chaste or due to being aroused, i love to kiss! but today, i’ll be speaking about kissing in a romantic or sexual context. so keep that in mind.

NOW THAT U HAVE READ THE INTRODUCTION, CLICK “Keep reading” TO WELL… KEEP READING!

PLANET VOCABULARY.

kiss. ruled by venus, as it’s a means of expressing affection / love / desire for another using the lips to touch. it’s not innate to use the tongue, although, deep kisses usually make use of the tongue.

lips, touching, affection, love, & desire are also all ruled by venus.

in particular, lips are taurean. as is the tongue, but the tongue also shares rulership with gemini/mercury. this is a similar case for touching. touching is venus and mercury.

affection is libran and 5H (affection has roots in the word to mean ‘to influence’. it’s very libran to be influenced by others, lmao).

love is 5H/7H, venutian. as is desire. although, for desire, i can see martian (or maybe solar influence). desire has roots in a word meaning “star” or “constellation.” it’s a bit more fiery compared to the other words.

the soul is lunar, 1H. spirit is mercurial, 1H, 3H, as it origins in the word meaning ‘breath.’

there’s also an asteroid simply named “kiss (8267).” many hellenistic astrologers do not work with the extended list of asteroids, but i find myself to blend both traditional and modern ideals as i see fit. so i think the kiss asteroid should be used.

SUMMARY OF RELEVANT PLANETS & HOUSES

venus (taurus, libra), 5H, 7H, 1H, moon (cancer), mercury (gemini), mars (aries, scorpio), kiss asteroid.

i feel stronger about mars having rulership over ‘desire’ than the sun because desire’s etymology dealing with stars and constellations is telling considering stars / constellations are only chartable at night.

but i’d view desire as venutian/5H firstly.

now that we’ve defined our key terms, we can examine how to identify the act of kissing in the chart. this is an accumulation of my own personal theories.

KISS (8267) ASTEROID

the first and obvious recommendation would be to look into ur kiss asteroid, since it’s a celestial body for kissing. the sign tells u how the energy is expressed. the house tells u of the surrounding conditions informing how it’s expressed. and the aspects made to the body just tell u about how the energy of the body is expressed as well.

example. kiss in capricorn will not function the same as kiss opp saturn. although, they’ll share some qualities. for example, kiss in capricorn can mean the native is a slow kisser, a shy kisser, a tame kisser, or a kisser. for hours.

but kiss opp saturn can mean that the native feels ashamed when kissing so it delays them from being able to comfortably do so, as they feel internal tension. even if they want to kiss.

this doesn’t account house placements. a kiss-saturn opp in the 1-7 houses will be different compared to one in the 5-11 houses.

i feel like it’s a bit of an extra step, but u can also observe the placement of the kiss asteroid in the venus persona chart. i even think the houses can tell u where u like to be kissed. 1H is on the face, 2H is on the lips or neck, and so on.

then u could also read the kiss asteroid’s persona chart. read it as a natal chart specifically for how u kiss, ur ideal of a kiss, what u don’t like. etc. all of the planets have their significations — even if u don’t think it would. ie, saturn can show u shame relating to kissing. moon can show what makes u feel secure and safe. venus can show how kissing pleases u. etc.

NATAL CHART

venus is going to be the second most obvious for me. it’s the planet of love. the planet of lips. the planet of affection and physical affection. of course u would read it for kissing.

in the natal chart, it’s quite simple.

a weakened venus may not enjoy kissing.

an afflicted venus could or couldn’t enjoy kissing. that depends on whether the venus is strong or weak. but the afflicted venus may experience difficulties while kissing or some discomfort.

a blessed venus could be someone who enjoys kissing a lot, & tends to have good experiences with it too!

how u can determine whether or not ur venus is strong/weak or afflicted/blessed is through examining if u have any placements in taurus/libra, the condition of that planet (so, for example… is it a moon in taurus or is it a mars in taurus?), look to the condition of ur venus especially. is it rejoiced? is it combust? what planets is it aspecting? what house is it in? etc.

the 1H-7H tells u of ur soul and ur partner’s soul. these houses are innately connected. obviously and again, look at the conditions of the lords or planets placed if there are any. but ruler of thumb… if u want a real kisser for u… look to the 7H too. look at ur moon. this is ur soul, ur intimacy. observe its conditions.

PERSONA CHARTS

i think u should cast synastry or composite charts of the venus personas in question. where venus/mercury falls in the charts will tell u about the sensation of touch.

maybe in regular synastry y’all got venus conjunct/trine venus. which is really easy overlay (at face value). but maybe in ur synastry/composite of ur venus persona charts, y’all got saturn opposite venus. this helps deepen the context of how venus is expressed between u two.

look at venus of any ascendant persona chart to see the soul’s expression of love and thus physical touch, desire, and so on. when u align ur ascendant personas, where do y’all ascendants fall in each other’s houses? this is how the soul inhaling could also be read. u can do the same for the moon persona, as the moon is associated with the soul too. and i’d recommend casting a venus persona within the ascendant persona. then look at mercury within that chart. how does ur soul like to be touched? how about ur partner’s?

for example, in my venus persona, i have an ascendant in taurus containing the sun in taurus. that means my 7H will naturally be in scorpio. and to me, a scorpio placement is where the real kissers at. it feels wayyy more passionate for me. my bf has a scorpio moon. it also helps his natal ascendant is my venus persona’s 5H, and he has jupiter/sun/mars in my venus persona’s 3H (the house associated with breathing, thus, the origin of the “spirit.”)

tw // sexual harassment. on the other end, someone with their natal ascendant over my venus persona’s 8H (sagittarius) used to try and forcefully kiss me all the time. it got violent a few times (my natal sag mars is in my venus persona 8H, opposite my venus persona gemini mars). his natal venus was in my venus persona 1H, but taurus was his natal 6H. force is ruled by the 1H and mars. and 6H is just malefic. it rules injury and servitude. :(

so i guess this is why i’m saying these overlays help build a world around ur venus that’s even deeper than natal.

and no, this doesn’t mean just because someone’s natal ascendant is in ur 8H that they’ll harass u. there’s other conditions in this overlay that help explain why this happened to me. but again… this is all theoretical.

u could also see the overlay between their natal chart and ur venus persona or vice versa. see if there’s alignment there.

as i previously said, the moon persona + ascendant persona chart will inform of the soul. observe the 2H to see how u “give and receive” parts of urself / others in that way. but i’d recommend looking at the venus persona chart within the moon / ascendant persona, then looking at the 2H.

in the venus persona chart, i feel like mercury and venus will also be used to determine whether or not u like tongue-kissing. also other factors.

for example, in my venus persona, i have a 1H in taurus with a 2H stellium, including my venus persona chart ruler. my natal taurus venus is in the 1H of my venus persona.

the 2H shows what we like to receive or give. so quite literally… i like to give or receive affection through the mouth, tongue, throat, or breath (including fluids of the mouth, which would be ruled by the moon). this manifests as me being quite transparent with my affection for someone (i never been the type to lie & say i didn’t like someone when i did.) but also… it manifests as me loving tongue down my throat. bad.

my boyfriend also has his venus persona chart containing a 2H stellium. his venus persona ascendant is cancer containing jupiter. my natal 1H is conjunct his venus persona 1H.

between us, i think i’m the one who initiates the kisses most however… when we do kiss, it’s very deep and passionate and we whisper to each other between them. plus his venus persona 3H virgo venus is in my natal 3H and in my venus persona 5H.

so… all that to say… find somebody who astrologically match ur freak.

SYNASTRY & COMPOSITE

now… whether ur partner enjoys kissing or not is irrelevant if u think they suck at it.

for heightened desire, having mars aspecting mars, mars aspecting moon, or mars aspecting venus does a lot. whether it’s synastry or composite. i don’t really read mars for sex, but mars as a root / sacral energy planet, i think it had a lot to do with emotions that are feverish and intense. personally, i don’t even think it’s worth kissing if there is no mutual desire.

venus aspecting venus is gonna be a yes from me. also a trine or sextile aspect between venus and saturn can show y’all kiss for a long time

venus-1H… it carries. likewise, venus aspecting benefics or aspecting the sun/chart ruler of the composite chart. it’s gon carry.

as kissing was describing as ‘inhaling the soul,’ i would like to discuss the soul (re: kissing.) this’ll be significant for synastry/overlay/composite, in my opinion. because ur soul alone will be represented by the 1H. but synastry/overlay/composite tells u how ur soul interacts with the soul of a specific other.

for that reason, the planets that inform the 1H will tell u how ur souls are inhaled by each other. even if the ascendant is of a malefic (sun, saturn, mars), that doesn’t mean y’all can’t kiss well. what are the conditions of the lord, the ascendant itself, what are the planets present, etc.

but sometimes, people are simply incompatible. plain and simple. a real kisser to u might suck at kissing to the next person. someone else might not like how much i love kissing with tongue, even though my bf likes it. so do what works for u! kiss people who make u feel honored and safe! and vice versa.

okay, that’s my kissing theory. i hope y’all liked reading it. readings are open, including custom readings. 👼🏾

with love, HoodReader

[local-hellhound-steals-spaghetti]

Oooooh here we go. We have the cetacean “experts” joining in to justify the bad handling of Moo Deng and discrediting me/shooting the messenger because I support responsible cetacean management. Because everyone just made up their mind that you can’t give dolphins the habitat they need because “it’s not the ocean.”

But it’s apparently totally okay to give other species substandard habitats. I guess Moo Deng doesn’t really NEED to live in a jungle. Concrete is fine for her :)

Now we do know that dolphins can thrive in human care and “suffering all the time” isn’t actually the case (at least, not from this generalisation basis there can absolutely be poor welfare in bad facilities) and basically any time anyone mentions the word SeaWorld everyone loses the ability to critically think.

You know what we never do with cetaceans? Grab at and harass their babies for clout. The only time we ever interact with the calf in those early days is to check their health parameters. And it is always with active participation and consent.

It’s important that we make sure the calf is doing well, especially in those critical early days where the calf is so vulnerable. So, with positive reinforcement, we teach the mother to bring over her calf voluntarily and do a very gentle restraint to collect samples.

This is the only time we’re touching the calf. And not every facility does this either, some will stay completely hands off besides feeding the mother.

But this is how you do safe, respectful and stress free animal husbandry, actually using desensitisation and conditioning positive emotional responses to being handled:

When watching this video, keep in mind that restraining a dolphin physically with only a few people is almost impossible. This dolphin is staying with her carers because she trusts them and she has a relationship with them.

I know this dolphin and the people in this video. It’s an incredible thing to see cooperative care like this in action.

Commentary and tags like the one above goes to show how the “trust the keeper” argument is only for selective species that are being used for clout.

But trust the people who work with dolphins or orcas? Trust the people that work in dolphin welfare and who actively work to measure and improve it? No, because everyone and their dog are apparently cetacean welfare experts because they regurgitate Blackfish or the talking points of a handful of lobbyists parading as scientists.

And they’ll even use violent wording and thinly veiled death threats against keepers, justifying it with this idea that they want to “liberate” animals that they don’t have any idea about caring for.

Anyway here’s a bunch of research on dolphin welfare that supports positive welfare states in human care :)

• There are no scientific studies suggesting that dolphins in marine mammal facilities are more prone to disease than dolphins in the wild. In fact, peer-reviewed scientific studies have shown that the immune systems of wild dolphins are much more challenged than the immune systems of dolphins in human care (refs 1-2)

• Similarly, there are no scientific studies suggesting that dolphins in marine mammal facilities are any more stressed than dolphins in the wild. On the contrary, studies have shown that cortisol levels (i.e., the “stress hormone”) of dolphins in marine mammal facilities are either very similar to, or lower than, cortisol levels of wild dolphins, depending on the technique used to obtain the samples (See review in ref 3).

• Bottlenose dolphins in U.S facilities are living as long or longer than their wild counterparts (ref 4)

• Average life expectancy from 2001-2015 was 41.6 years in SeaWorld orcas, showing significant improvements in veterinary care and welfare (ref 5)

• Aggression and agonistic behaviour made up 1-2% of observed behaviours in orcas at Loro Parque, debunking claims of hyper aggression and chronic stress from supposed poor social structures. (ref 6)

(1) Ruiz, C. L., Nollens, H. H., Venn-Watson, S., Green, L. G., Wells, R. S., Walsh, M. T., ... & Jacobson, E. R. (2009). Baseline circulating immunoglobulin G levels in managed collection and free-ranging bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). Developmental & Comparative Immunology, 33(4), 449-455.

(2) Fair, P. A., Schaefer, A. M., Houser, D. S., Bossart, G. D., Romano, T. A., Champagne, C. D., ... & Reif, J. S. (2017). The environment as a driver of immune and endocrine responses in dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). PLoS ONE, 12(5), e0176202.

(3) Proie, S. (2013). A systematic review of cortisol levels in wild and captive Atlantic bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus), killer whale, (Orcinus orca), and beluga whale (Delphinapterus leucas). MA Thesis, Evergreen State College.

(4) Jaakkola, K., & Willis, K. (2019). How long do dolphins live? Survival rates and life expectancies for bottlenose dolphins in zoological facilities vs. wild populations. Marine Mammal Science.

(5) Robeck, T. R., Willis, K., Scarpuzzi, M. R., & O’Brien, J. K. (2015). Comparisons of Life-History Parameters between Free-Ranging and Captive Killer Whale (Orcinus orca) Populations for Application Toward Species Management. Journal of Mammalogy, 96(5), 1055–1070. http://doi.org/ 10.1093/jmammal/gyv113

(6) Sánchez-Hernández, P., Krasheninnikova, A., Almunia, J., & Molina-Borja, M. (2019). Social interaction analysis in captive orcas ( Orcinus orca ) . Zoo Biology, (April), 1–11. http://doi.org/ 10.1002/zoo.21502

Positive behavioural states are demonstrated in cetaceans in human care: Peer-reviewed scientific studies show that:

• Dolphins show anticipatory behaviors before sessions of interacting with their trainers (with no food involvement). This shows they view the interactions themselves as positive. (ref 1)

• An increase in dolphin behavioral diversity and play behavior following interactive programs suggest that such programs are in fact enriching for the dolphins and add to their psychological well-being (refs 2-3).

• Dolphins observed swimming in sync with each other at zoological facilities displayed optimistic judgements in optimistic bias tests, indicating positive welfare. (ref 4)

• When given the choice, dolphins in one study showed a preference for being in a smaller pool, despite having access to larger pools, indicating that size of pool may not be influencing dolphin movement preferences. (ref 5)

(1) Clegg, I. L., Rödel, H. G., Boivin, X., & Delfour, F. (2018). Looking forward to interacting with their caretakers: dolphins’ anticipatory behaviour indicates motivation to participate in specific events. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 202, 85-93.

(2) Miller, L. J., Mellen, J., Greer, T., & Kuczaj, S. A. (2011). The effects of education programmes on Atlantic bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) behaviour. Animal Welfare, 20, 159-172.

(3) Trone, M., Kuczaj, S., & Solangi, M. (2005). Does participation in Dolphin–Human Interaction Programs affect bottlenose dolphin behaviour? Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 93, 363-374.

(4) Clegg, I. L., Rödel, H. G., & Delfour, F. (2017). Bottlenose dolphins engaging in more social affiliative behaviour judge ambiguous cues more optimistically. Behavioural brain research, 322, 115-122.

(5) Melissa R. Shyan , David Merritt, N. M., & Kohlmeier, K. B. & J. T. (2010). Effects of Pool Size on Free- Choice Selections by Atlantic Bottlenosed Dolphins at One Zoo Facility. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, 5(3), 203–213. http://doi.org/10.1207/S15327604JAWS0503

Note how this is a body of evidence from multiple sources that are being developed and complied over time. That is what science is all about.

Anyone who tells you that the science is finalised on something eg. Lori Marino and Naomi Rose insisting that the science is settled on cetacean welfare being inherently bad in human care - be very very skeptical of them. They are trying to sell you ideology over science (and they’d love for you to donate your money to their sanctuary that hasn’t passed any approval to build for 5 years)

The science is rarely “settled” on anything.

As for SeaWorld themselves, they have not published enough welfare data for us to discuss. But their animals do show signs of positive welfare states including active participation in health care and training, engagement with enrichment, ability to learn and adapt (stressed animals can’t learn complex behaviours and won’t participate in sessions), stable social structures with occasional conflict ect.

[dwtdog]

fem dnf week dayyyyy 6 :D

--

“Hey, wake up.”

Someone is shaking George’s shoulder. She should kill them. She tries- reaching for the bow that lies beside her, dismayed when her fingers only grasp empty air. Plan B, then. 

She opens her eyes, and all the fight drains from her when she sees a mask hovering above her, bone white, carved with the visage of a smile. “Dream,” she groans, rolling over and away from the other girl. “Fuck off.”

“But you said we could start early today,” Dream whines. 

“And whose quest is this?” she shoots back, pulling her knees to her chest and screwing her eyes shut, begging sleep to come back for her. 

“Yours,” Dream answers dutifully, tugging at George’s blanket. “But you said-”

“Don’t care. Sleeping now.”

“Fine,” Dream huffs, and there’s a crunch of dirt beneath her boots when she stands. “I’ll go hunting then.” And she stomps off, footsteps heavy as always. 

George relaxes, doing her best to ignore how little her meager traveling sleep pad does to protect her from the hard ground, how the sun is already glowering through the dense trees and into her eyes. She’s mostly unsuccessful- her body seems to have decided, without her permission, that it’s time to be awake- and her limbs seem to itch with the need to move. 

And she is on a quest, after all. 

So she sits up, rubbing sleep from her eyes and stretching her legs out in front of her, socked feet emerging from the end of her blanket. Their camp is a bit of a mess- last night's fire reduced to a blackened pile of ash, Dream’s bedding left messy and uneven a few feet from George’s. 

George should hate her. Dream wakes her up early, leaves camp to chase small mammals and comes back with nothing because she doesn’t want to hurt them, and is, overall, a pain in George’s ass. But there’s a strange kindling of fondness that curls in her stomach when she thinks of the other girl and her charming voice, her strange enthusiasm for anything and everything. 

So they travel together. George’s grand solo quest, featuring Dream, the girl she’d met in a village one over from hers and who she hadn’t been able to shake since. 

In the spirit of getting a move on, George begins the process of cleaning their camp up. It’s easy enough to pack hers and Dream’s things up, distributed evenly- okay, evenly-ish- between the two of their large packs. She kicks dirt over the fire, and picks up a few errant pieces of trash, all before Dream returns from wherever she’d wandered off to- in fact, George manages to count their rations out twice over and split out the mornings before Dream returns. 

When she does, George fights back the bubbly feeling that spawns in her chest. It’s stupid. She really, really doesn’t have time for it. So she just nods to Dream, handing her rations over and munching on her own. The tough meat never gets any better.

“I saw something,” Dream says after a beat, her mouth half full of bread, her mask raised half way so she can eat. George glares at her, and she dutifully shuts her mouth. She makes a big show of chewing and swallowing, sticking her tongue out at George before continuing. “There’s a mountain to the east.”

George groans. “Seriously? Are we lost, then?” They aren’t supposed to come to a mountain for another few days yet, and George isn’t exactly eager, or ready, to climb one.

“I don’t think so,” Dream says, shaking her head and staring off in what George assumes is the direction of the mountain. “I think it’s new.”

“New?” George asks, eyebrows drawing together. 

“I can’t explain but just- I’ll show you. When we’re done eating,” Dream shoves the rest of her bread in her mouth and George makes a point to not watch. It doesn’t matter that she likes the way the muscles in Dream’s neck move when she chews, or that she finds the way her emotions play out so clearly across the lower half of her face terribly endearing. She’s on a quest, damn it. To kill a dragon.

She mulls over what Dream had said- a new mountain? It doesn’t make any sense- but George trusts her. There’s been more than one instance through the course of their journey where Dream’s intuition has saved their skin, and George isn’t about to stop trusting it now.

But if she’s right- is it a good sign? A mountain popping up out of nowhere certainly seems like dragon magic, something deep and ancient and tied intrinsically to the land. But George has never heard of something like this, even with all the research she’s done on dragons. Documented dragon magic is usually comprised of cities water becoming poisonous, or animals behaving strangely. A whole mountain- that would be a damn powerful dragon.

“Ready?” George asks when she’s done with her own food, smiling slightly when Dream nods enthusiastically, jumping up from the stump she’d been using as a chair. “Then let’s go.”

The walk through the woods is nice, in a way. The early days of summer ensure that the air in the woods is just warm enough that both of the girls can shed their coats, storing them in their packs, but not so hot that they sweat, even as they walk and walk. 

“You got this far?” George asks after a few hours, when the sun has fully risen in the sky. Dream stumbles next to her, even though their path is clear of any roots or rocks.

“Uh- Not quite,” she says, clearing her throat. “I- I climbed a tree. To see.”

“Oh,” George shrugs, filing the information away in her Dream memories- which there are a normal amount of. Obviously. “Do you think we’re close, then?”

“I’m not sure,” Dream admits, running her hand along the bark of a tree as she passes it. A bird sings overhead, its song trilling and bright. Dream whistles back, a surprisingly good recreation. 

George just watches, eyes tracing Dream’s broad shoulders as she goes back and forth with the bird. She looks beautiful, George admits to herself, with the dappled patches of light bouncing off her golden hair, echoes of a smile in the way she practically skips along the path, although the damn mask blocks any actual sighting of it.

She’s not sure how long they spend like that, but she does know the moment they reach the clearing, because Dream gasps, loud and dramatic. “George, look.”

And George gasps too, when she sees it.

The gap in the trees that the path follows opens into a large clearing, the beginning of an entirely new biome, devoid of the tall trees they’ve traveled under for the past week. This one is far more rugged, the trees scraggly and clinging to rock faces, looking to be one bad day away from wilting away. And the landscape itself- a rocky mess, of canyons and hills, all accentuated by the enormous mountain jutting from the earth.

And George knows what Dream had meant when she said the mountain was new. It looks unnatural, as if it had been pulled from the ground rather than built over time by the movement of the earth. It makes George uneasy, and she runs a hand down the wood of her bow to ground herself.

“Shit,” she says, holding a hand up to shield her eyes and look further across the landscape, for a way around the mountain. 

“Shit,” Dream echoes, shifting on her feet next to George. Out of the corner of her eye, George can see Dream’s hand resting on her axe, fingers tense around the handle. “It’s even worse from up close.”

“You feel it too?” George asks, unsurprised. She’s always been shit at recognizing magic, but if this place is making her feel uneasy- Dream’s sixth sense, or whatever the hell it is, must be going nuts. 

Dream steps closer to George, and their shoulders brush as Dream steps in front of her, as if to protect her from whatever it is that’s got both of them on edge. It should piss George off- she doesn’t need anyone's protection, thank you very much- but her traitorous body reignites that curl of affection, and George is terrified that she might be blushing. 

“I do,” Dream answers, a beat too late. “It’s- bad. We should turn around.”

“What?” George yelps, stepping away from Dream in an instant, all vestiges of affection vanishing in an instant. “Fuck no- It took us a week to get through that forest, no way in hell-”

“George,” Dream says, turning so they’re face to face. Dream is quite a bit taller than George, and she uses it to her advantage now. “This place isn’t safe. There’s- There’s bad magic at play here.”

“I don’t care, Dream,” George grits out, attempting to step around her. Dream mimics her movement, staying firmly in front. “Do I need to remind you again that this is my quest?” Dream flinches, shoulders shaking with it, and George presses.  “So let me through. Turn back, if you’re so scared.”

“I’m not scared for me, idiot,” Dream says back. 

And George shuts her out. It had been one thing, to drop the walls she’d built bit by bit, for a strange girl in a small village, who she spent every hour of every day with, learning to trust, learning to love- but she was just like everyone else. 

“Fuck you,” George shoves past Dream, uncaring of her footing as she breaks into a run, away, away, away. Dream is shouting after her, following, but George refuses to look back. She can’t- she thinks she might break, if she does. 

There’s a moment, before the world goes dark, where Dream’s shouting turns panicked, where the gait of her footsteps changes from a run to a sprint. And there’s a moment, barely there, where George feels something grow behind her, power hitting her like a roaring river. And then her vision goes black.

--

She wakes in a dark room, windowless. For a moment, she thinks that she and Dream must have stopped in a village for a night, begged for a room. But then reality comes crashing down- she remembers their fight, and running, and- nothing. 

When she tries to move, she’s surprised to find herself unrestricted, and she quickly stands from the chair, ignoring the ache of sore muscles. There’s a door across from her, wooden and strong looking, and the handle is locked when she tries it. It fits the frame near perfectly, and lets in no light.

That realization is what makes her look up, toward the ceiling, for the source of the light in the room- and she finds something. A floating ball, near the top of the pointed ceiling, bobbing slightly in place. It’s unsettling to look at, the wrongness of it churning George’s stomach. 

She starts to examine the room in earnest, running her hands over every inch of the wall she can reach, kicking at the corners where the walls meet each other and the floor. She finds nothing. No cracks, no seams, not even a damn crumb. 

She’s trapped. With a deep breath to steady her shaking hands, she sits on the floor in the middle of the room, facing the door. And she waits.

There’s no concept of time in a windowless room. The floating light is unchanging, set in its bobbing. The room is soundless, free of the creak of an old building or the bustle of a strong wind. It’s only her, and her thoughts, crowding the room until she can hardly breathe with how thick the air feels. 

And only then, when she’s on the edge of succumbing to panic, her stomach aching with hunger, does the door creep open.

It’s as silent as everything else, and she thinks, for a moment, that she must be hallucinating.

But the creature that steps through the door is like nothing George’s mind could conjure- a beast of a man, his shoulders scraping the sides of the doorframe as he steps through it, his face just close enough to human that it’s unsettling- the eyes, George realizes, peering out of a reptilian face, are human. 

A hybrid, then. George has met a few, when they’d come through town. Her parents had always warned her to be careful around them, that their animal instincts made them dangerous. And she’d always done her best to ignore them- going out of her way to greet every one she’d met with genuine kindness, and a healthy dose of curiosity.

But none of them had been like this- hulking and winged, George realizes with a start as she scrambles backward until her back is pressed to the wall, breaths coming short and shallow in fear. 

His wings unfurl further as he steps into the room, dwarfing him in size, cramped in the small room. They’re dark, tinted green under the mysterious light, and scaly. Nothing like the avians she’d met, their wings vast but feathered, dainty. 

“You’re a brave thing, coming through these lands,” he rumbles, voice low and raspy. It echoes under the vaulted ceiling, and George’s nails dig into her palms. “Most would have turned back.”

“Who are you,” George demands, summoning all her bravado. “Why am I here?” He laughs, and the sound grates on George’s ears. She thinks, foolishly, of Dream’s wheezing laugh, her soft giggles. And she stands.

“Don’t do anything foolish,” he says, shifting his hand to rest it on the handle of an absurdly large sword attached to his hip. “Why don’t you sit down, be a nice little human.”

George, shaking with fear, squares her shoulders. “No.”

“Well, alright then,” he answers with a shrug. “I suppose you won’t be getting any answers then.”

“I-” she starts, ready to throw every insult under the sun at the beast. But he cuts her off.

“Oh, shush. I thought you’d recognize me, at least. I am the subject of your quest, after all,” he says it with a smile that crawls across his face like a thing with too many legs, jerky and unsettling. 

“A dragon,” George breathes, fear stealing further into her heart. “So the mountain was dragon magic.”

“Indeed,” the dragon lifts a hand, sharp, dark nails terribly visible. “But I’m only half a dragon. It’s why I can only get this far,” he gestures to his body, twitches his wings. “A full dragon could look just like you- they’ve perfected the art of mimicking humans.”

A chill runs down George’s spine, terribly sobering. The rumors were true, then. 

“What do you want from me?” she demands, leaving no room for the man to argue. It’s an art she’s perfected, too used to being shut down in meetings, in hunting groups. “Why am I here? And why are you telling me this?”

“I was curious,” he says with a shrug. “A small thing like you, setting out to kill a dragon? Surely, she must be crazy is what I thought. And now I’ve met you, I don’t think I was wrong.”

“Curious,” George spits. “You can’t just kidnap people because you’re curious.”

“Oh, but it does get so lonely out here. Excuse my bad manners,” he waves a hand, and George jumps. “I wasn’t going to keep you for long. I do so terribly need to see if you are able to kill a dragon.”

“And why shouldn’t I kill you?” 

He laughs, again, and George really wishes he would stop doing it. “With what weapon, human? Your bow and those clever little arrows are safely outside of this room.”

“I’ll find a way,” George’s eyes dart to the open door, hidden behind the half-dragon and his daunting wings. He watches her with amusement.

“I wouldn’t be so sure of that,” he says. “I could just keep you here, you know. As fun as it would be to watch you fail to slay a dragon.”

“You don’t know anything-” George starts, tensing the muscles in her legs as she prepares to make a move, to duck under those wings and out the door. But before she can even finish speaking, the walls crumble around them.

George throws her hands up, pushing her back against the last standing wall at her side. The room is filled with dust and light that burns George’s eyes, adjusted as she is to a low quantity of it. 

Her captor is just as startled as she is, his wings fully splayed out and teeth bared with the great sword in his hands. But his gaze is errant, darting around the remains of the room, looking for what- or who- had caused the chaos, just as George is.

She finds it first, when her eyes lift to the sky, now dotted with stars and the creeping light of dawn. There’s a shadow circling over them, purple mist clinging to great beating wings, far dwarfing those of the man on the ground. He looks up as well when the beast above them roars, and the giant of a man whimpers, sword clattering as it drops to the ground.

A dragon. 

And not the half-formed kind she’s just met- this one is all harsh lines and power, radiating off it like sea mist splashing against cliffs. It’s terrifying, in a way that sets George’s heart to a quickened beat, loud as the sound of beating wings. 

The dragon is coming toward them, she realizes a second to late, throwing her arms up again as it lands with a thud that shakes the very foundation of the earth, eyes glowing a brilliant purple. And its gaze is on the half-dragon, teeth bared stark white against the black of its scales. 

And the other dragon flees. His wings beat erratically as he takes off, sword left in the rubble. The black dragon watches him go, before turning its gaze to George.

George dives for the sword the same moment the dragon opens its mouth, wanting, if anything, to die with a weapon in her hand. 

But what comes out of the dragon's mouth isn’t fiery breath, or purple poison, but a strangely familiar voice. “George!”

George, oversized sword clutched in both hands as she stares down the terrible nightmare of a beast using the voice of her companion, thinks she must be dreaming. She’ll wake back in camp, with Dream muttering in her sleep just a bit away from her. George will sigh, and brush the hair from her face with a soft hand, will watch with a fond smile as Dream chases the warmth of her hand even in sleep. Will think longingly of kissing lips she rarely sees, hidden as they are by a carved mask.

“I’m going to kill you,” George declares, using all the strength in her arms and back to lift the sword. She stares the dragon down, feet planted firmly beneath her.

And the dragon tilts its head like a lost puppy, tucking its wings to its body and shuffling its feet. “Ah- Please don’t.”

It’s that voice again. Dream’s. “Stop that,” George demands. “That voice isn’t yours.”

“But- Oh. Oh fuck,” the dragon swears, and that’s- a first, honestly. The first dragon had acted more dragon-like, until the whole cowering in fear thing. This one is just weird. 

“Well, if you want to just sit there and let me kill you-” George says, stepping forward. Her arms burn, but adrenaline keeps them steady. “Then I’m not one to protest. I’ll have plenty of time to make up a better story on the way home.”

“You really shouldn’t,” it says, taking a few steps back. George fills the distance with a confident stride, eyes scanning dark scales for a weak point. “Like, you really, really shouldn’t.”

“And why is that, beast,” George asks, calm as day. The sun is rising behind the dragon, and George can admit that its a beautiful creature. “Make your last words good ones.”

“Okay. Okay, first of all,” the dragon says, and it sounds so much like Dream. From tone to delivery, every word is just- Dream. And it’s really throwing George off. “You would not be able to kill me,” George huffs at this, advancing a step further. “And second of all. You’re an idiot.”

And George freezes. Because she can understand everything else- a dragon who speaks like Dream, sure. But the way it had said that word- “Dream?” George whispers, the tip of her stolen sword dropping to the ground. 

The dragon’s- Dream’s?- body relaxes, a familiar roiling laugh coming from it- her. “I thought you’d never- George, you wouldn’t really kill me. Right?”

And George really wishes she hadn’t asked that question. Because she can accept, in the moment,  that her traveling companion was a dragon the whole time, sure. But thinking further- to what that means for her quest, for her life- isn’t something she’s prepared to do. 

“I don’t- Know?” She offers, fully setting the sword down despite her words. Dream sits back on her haunches, exhaling a bit of purple breath. 

“Well, that’s a start,” Dream says with a bit of a laugh. “Just warn me if you do decide, okay? It’s only fair.”

“Uh- Sure,” George sits heavily, head spinning. The words Dream and dragon seem to be chasing around her mind in a game of cat and mouse, scrambling all other thoughts. “Why didn’t you just- turn? When I was threatening to kill you?”

“Oh,” Dream ducks her head, and George thinks she would be blushing, if she weren’t a dragon. “I’d be naked.”

And that breaks George. The stress of the day- night- comes out in a choking laugh that makes it hurt to breathe, her chest shaking with it. She can feel Dream watching her, gaze hot on her skin, and George lets everything sink in as she falls apart. 

“I’m sorry,” she says when her laughter trails off into the early morning air. “For not listening to you.”

“Oh- Well, I’m sorry for not telling you how I knew it was bad. And for keeping such a big secret from you.” 

“We’re even then?” George offers.

“I mean- I feel like I’m getting the better end of the deal here-”

“Yeah, well, you did kind of save me,” she says with a shrug. “That gets you a few points, I guess.”

Dream’s scaly face twists, and George thinks she must be smiling. She shouldn’t be endeared by a fucking dragon, but here she it. It’s easier to admit that sort of thing when she’s as tired as she is.

“Can you just- tune back,” George asks, tentative. “You can have my cloak.”

“I- I guess. But you have to promise to close you’re eyes.”

George rolls her eyes, but obeys, taking her cloak off and placing it between them before turning away and screwing her eyes shut. While she waits, she thinks of her pack, and hopes they’ll be able to find it somewhere- surely the dumbass of a hybrid couldn’t have hidden it too far. 

“Wait,” George says suddenly, voice rising. “Was I trapped in a fucking castle?” she opens her eyes, looking around for the first time since the room had been destroyed. 

And it’s true. A shitty castle, made shittier by Dream destroying it with her awesome dragon powers, but a castle nonetheless. George groans.

“What?” Dream asks, voice much closer than before. George turns to see her standing, now human again, and several things hit George at once. One- Dream doesn’t have the mask on. She’s- She’s gorgeous, unfortunately for George’s heart, and she’s looking at George with a teasing light in her eyes that George has heard a million times in her voice, but never gotten to see.

And two, Dream is wearing George’s cloak. 

It fits her tightly, and she has to hold it closed, but the sight makes George’s head spin. It’s way more skin than she’s ever seen from the other girl, tanned arms on full display and ankles sticking out where the cloak falls too short- and George physically can’t look away. 

But Dream seems totally casual as she continues- “You didn’t want to be the damsel in distress? The princess in the tower?”

“I could still kill you,” George grunts, meeting Dream’s eyes with a grin. Unlike her dragon form, Dream’s human eyes are gold, shining like coins in the morning light. “Would be too easy, probably.”

“Sure you could,” Dream teases. “But you’ll never be able to forget who saved who.”

“Oh, shut up,” George groans, dragging her eyes away from Dream and looking again at the mess around them. The ruins of the castle look decrepit, as if it had been destroyed decades ago rather than in the same hour.

“Dragon magic,” Dream says, as if noticing George’s attention. “The castle was tied to his- it’ll fade away now that he’s fled.”

“Huh,” George hums, kicking a stone and watching as it rolls down the mountain, eroding to nothing before it reaches half way. “And I suppose that’s why we couldn’t se it before? Dragon magic?”

“No, that was just a normal cloaking spell,” Dream says it bitterly. “Strong one, though. Took me a while to find you, sorry about that.”

“I had it under control.”

“I believe you,” Dream says, stepping closer and nudging George with her shoulder. “You totally could have killed that guy. I just came in and ruined your moment.”

George shoves her back. “Don’t make fun of me.”

“I’m not! I swear, on my life, I wasn’t. I really think you could have killed him.”

“Fine. Say I believe you. What’s with the whole damsel in distress thing? That a fantasy for you?” She means it as a tease, but she knows there’s some truth to the words- having traveled with Dream long enough, it would be hard not to notice the little things. Like her eagerness to save George from even the smallest of worries. 

“Oh, don’t pretend you’re not getting something out of this too. I saw your face when you saw me with your cloak on,” Dream grins wolfishly, which is ironic for a dragon. George hates her. “Me, all cozy in your clothes.”

“I wouldn’t say cozy,” George deadpans. “Looks like your one strong wind away from losing it.”

“And I’m sure you’d hate that,” Dream says, stepping closer. She’s fully in George’s space now, and George has to tilt her chin back to look up at her. 

Even with her heart racing in her chest, George keeps her voice flat. “I only just saw your face, idiot. I don’t need to see the rest of you.”

“Bet you’d like to, though.”

“Sounds like projection to me,” George’s eyes drop to Dream’s lips. She thinks of her as a dragon, her teeth so white and sharp, and something in her chest aches with want. 

Dream’s face is closer, suddenly, her eyes big and gold, her lips pink and so near to George’s that a phantom feeling crawls across her skin, and she can feel the ghost of the kiss before the real thing steals her breath away.

Dream kisses like she fights- too defensive, too giving to the motion of her opponent. George it, hooking her arms around Dream’s neck and pulling her closer, moving her lips against Dream’s like an arrow set free, unrestrained and searching. 

It’s George who pulls away first, gasping for air. Dream just stares, eyes impossibly wide, lips parted still.

“Never kissed a dragon before,” George grins. “Maybe it’s better than killing one. Can never be sure now, I guess.”

And Dream kisses her again.

[cafecourage]

Have now seen the other post. I low-key wanna read the chain all being bunnies for a day.

- Glitter ✨

I’ll do bunny Headcanons for you just so you know what you’re getting into. I had to do a lot of research for this.

Time:

- Time is a Flemish Giant mainly because of them being on the bigger side of the scale. But also they’re apparently the oldest and calmest breed there is.

- I don’t think he is in a rush to be turned back. If anything he is going to just plop into your lap and stay there. He is an old man let him flop over and rest.

- He doesn’t get the zoomies sadly. The most you get from him is climbing on you or following you around because he wants pets. But he will go to take care of the others too.

- Time tends to be the one papping the others to calm down if they start up again. He doesn’t want to hurt them while in this situation but he doesnt want to overwhelm you.

- He is probably in the middle of the cuddle pile. He is the biggest rabbit of them all.

Twilight:

- Twilight being related to Time also is a Flemish Giant bun. Though I would think he is a bit more fluffy compared to Time.

- THIS MAN IS SO CONFUSED WITH THIS NEW FORM. Like seriously! He isn’t used to being this type of mammal! He feels a bit vulnerable as buns are prey animals and he was a wolf.

- He will have zoomies as he is going faster than as a wolf. Which is wild to his brain as both animal brains are competing. Twilight is probably more dog then bun still as he probably has chased his tail and looked like he was about to take off helicopter style.

- Twilight is probably on Wild and Hyrule duty as they 100% will wonder off and he is the only one that really can track as an animal.

- He is also going to be in a few cuddle piles. BUT MAN DOES THIS BOY LIKE PETS. Him and Wild are going to have a pile on your lap. AKA Twilight is going to lay on top of Wild to get him to stay still.

Warriors:

- It seems French Lops are the most “prized” for rabbits but I’m doing base research. They are normally sweet, calm and Intelligent which sounds a lot like our captain.

- Warriors is slightly weirded out that he is a bun. In the end he is just trying to watch over the younger ones. He doesn’t really mind it but he really hates the feeling of having dirt in his fur. It’s also nice to have his fur brushed out.

- The captain stomps a lot mainly because he wants some sort of order. He is huffing and puffing as shenanigans keep happening while he wants just some kind of peace. You just cant help but coo over how cute he is even while pouting.

- Warriors also wont start cuddle piles but will be dragged into it. Mostly by Wind. He does something similar to Twilight and lays on Wind sometimes just incase but the sailor doesn’t seem to mind.

- WHAT HE DOES LIKE IS BEING PICKED UP. Warriors doesn’t know why but he loves getting held and can’t help but melt into your arms.

Sky:

- I saw an English Lop and pointed screaming SKY. They are very calm and easy natured and very cute but I’m bias and think long ear rabbits are cute.

- Like Time, Sky bee lines to your lap. He wants you to be his pillow now. It’s revenge really. Sky is going to hinder your ability to figure out how to fix this because as soon as you sit down he is in your lap.

- Sky is also the one’s that keep everyone in the cuddle piles. Because he is a chonk boy he is basically a weighted blanket but smol(ish). He just wants everyone to calm down and enjoy the moment of not being in instant danger.

- He probably has gotten almost everyone here to cuddle. Since he doesn’t really have the zoomies due to him being a sluggish boy but also a more chill boy. He just wants cuddles.

- Sky doesn’t care about being picked up tbh. He doesn’t mind it but he really just wants you to sit and cuddle.

Legend:

- Dutch Rabbits visually look like the rabbits I’ve seen before. Given that Legend is angry about being a rabbit in the first place I think a Docile breed would make things worse.

- He is the only one that can talk still, so he is helping you figure out how to help them as you can’t hold the master sword as your not a hero and your trying to figure out how to use a moonstone.

- Legend doesn’t mind being a bun right now as he really just is used to it at this point. If anything he is trying to fill everyone in about how to be one and avoid getting distracted by you.

- This man doesn’t get zoomies anymore sadly but he is still the fastest of the bunch so he is partly crowd control for the younger and partly trying to get everyone to stay together.

- Legend will succumb to a cuddle or two or three. He is going to flop on Hyrule though.

Hyrule:

- The American Rabbit is apparently a rare breed of rabbit. Which Given Hyrule’s whole thing makes sense. Typically they are good-natured and calm.

- Hyrule is going to wander. Though not to far as he really doesn’t like that he is small and killable. But with Wild. Maybe. He does like the new perspective.

- HYRULE LOVES CUDDLES AND TO BE PICKED UP. He isn’t gonna ask for them as its clear that the others want cuddles from you but he will join any piles though.

- Zoomies are rare for Hyrule as he is a bit anxious. He really just doesn’t want to get lost in this situation. He will give chase if he wants to.

- Please brush his fur, he really likes it when you play with his hair as a normal person so it’s 10/10 as a bun.

Wild:

- Beveren Rabbit’s are highly energetic and curious apparently so perfect for Wild! I was going to make Hyrule this one but give its Wild I thought this would be better.

- Wild is the embodiment of though caution to the wind as he will go explore in this form. Hyrule might stop him but Twilight wasn’t going to let him get lost ether.

- He doesn’t mind getting into a cuddle pile but he definitely minds if SOMEONE flops on him. That being Twilight but if you wanted cuddled then thats no issue.

- Wild was made for Zoomies. He has a lot of energy and we know he wont stay still. He might start chases and play time but that isn’t much of an issue since Wind is always up for fun.

- Wild will also 100% try to eat stuff he isn’t suppose to so please stop him. Just scoop him up and bap him lightly.

Four:

- I pick this one on perpose as I wanted to know what was the smallest domestic rabbit. Which apparently is the Netherland Dwarf Rabbit. The only issue that I am reading is that they are high energy and a bit aggressive. Which given how many times Four is about to fist fight people I am going to wave my hand.

- You don’t understand how pissed this man is to still be the smallest bun around. But this just means he is fun sizes for cuddles! You can carry him around with one hand probably and now he has the advantage because you can do things with him!

- Four is also on watch duty for the ones that tend to be more rambunctious. He had automatically helps Warriors with Wind or Legend with Hyrule. He also is probably the most used to being this small because of being minish size. Though this is obviously a bit bigger I still argue once he gets his movement right he is on his A game.

- Four is a cuddle bug and will fall into temptation is any of the boys ask for cuddles. He ends up being squish though but it does feel like he is under a weighted blanket most of the time.

- The Zoomies wont take this guy that often. However he will begrudgingly give chase. It’s fine. He doesn’t want to run around the group chasing Wind but here he is. Zooming around.

Wind:

- This is another breed I looked up because I wanted a specific thing. Marsh Rabbits live semiaquatic lives and are really good swimmers!

- This boy is running into so many people as he wants to play. This boy is a ball of energy and will run circles around the camp. He has jump straight into the water a few times.

- Wind loves cuddle times and will take anyone’s offer to cuddle. Four, Warriors and Legend will be his target to bring into cuddles as it’s fun!

- He is also going to chase Four around for fun as the mini bun’s just want to have fun. So they will probably distract each other.

- Wind is just happy for things are more interesting than traveling to one town to the other. He really just wants to take advantage of this.

[seakicker]

as a certified hairy pussy enjoyer, i am obligated to share my hairy pussy enjoyer genshin headcanons because i am objectively correct 110% of the time. i have never shared an incorrect take in my entire life.

i (self-indulgently) consider childe a hairy pussy lover because i’ve always been obsessed with the idea of snezhnayan men valuing fertility and comfort in a partner over all else given how uninviting and uncomfortable the snezhnayan landscape is. soft bodies that suggest luxury, a comfortable lifestyle, and fertility are the apex of snezhnayan beauty standards because the ability to successfully birth, care for, and raise a child is so important in a place where the elements act against you the entire year. you know how humans don’t have a designated mating season because we’re the one species able to consistently mate indoors and don’t have to worry about “surviving the winter” as much as other non-human animals do? childe didn’t get the memo. he needs a thick, soft wife to get him through the winter, and a soft bush of pubes suggests fertility like absolutely nothing else. this applies to any other snezhnayan character btw childe’s just my fave hairy pussy enjoyer LMAO

tighnari and gorou both love hairy pussy for the same reason— as fox and dog hybrids, they have finely-tuned senses of smell and hair tends to hold onto a body’s scent more intensely than smooth, shaved skin does. you know that inner-thigh sweat that builds up on a hot day underneath the legholes of your shorts? consider that the appetizer before the feast for tighnari and gorou because they go ham on your body’s natural scent like absolutely nothing else. the chemically, artificial smells of perfumes and ointments? no thanks, those irritate their sensitive noses— you smell loveliest with your natural scent.

i like to imagine that albedo and scaramouche don’t grow body hair below the nose because they’re not human and mammals are partially characterized by having body hair. i also have the headcanon that scara and albedo’s head hair never grows and they were just created with the exact hair + eyelashes eyebrows they have now and nothing ever grows naturally, but that’s not really the point here. anyways, i like to imagine that they take some sort of fascination with your body’s hair because it’s something they don’t experience and don’t know too much about. it’s a lot of fun. you’ll have to ask very nicely for scaramouche to not tug on your hair because he doesn’t really care if it hurts you or not— it’s just another way he can make things miserable for you since pubes are unique to you and not him LMAO

[gardenofnoah]

love is not what Katsuki thought it would be.

he’d put it off for so long, afraid of the overexertion—the bending himself into halves and then into fourths, over and over until he’d no discernible edge or shape. elaborate, public displays of affection and sickly sweet words, seemingly only impactful when heard by ears they weren’t privy to. a checkpoint to reach, a prize to be won.

he’d never considered that he could be loved quietly. he’d never dreamed that he could give love the same.

there are days when he thinks the arms that loop around his middle in the morning hold him together. you say nothing—the press of your forehead between his shoulder blades is words enough to him. he finds it’s over too quickly—you’re there and then you’re gone, and you leave a phantom ache against his spine that is only dulled when he follows you to the couch and pulls your feet into his lap. he feels rooted then—tethered by you.

he’s never been one for words but finds himself bursting with three of them when the weight of your head presses into his lap and the slip of your hair sweeps across his fingertips. when he can’t bear to look down at the soft, upward curve of your mouth anymore—when some part of you burrows deep in his chest and smothers him from the inside at the crinkle of the corners of your eyes—he leans down to whisper the words against the curve of your temple, knowing that the sleepy, sighed response you’ll give might really stop his heart one day.

Katsuki feels out of his mind with it—when you loop an arm through his during the wee hours of the morning market, he wonders if you know that it’s only you holding him upright. he leans into you and you into him and there’s a strange and sudden feeling of equilibrium that throws his own off kilter. you walk with such assuredness that he forgets the shakiness of his own gait—weak under the weight of this.

he’s reduced to something animal and simple in your arms—he lets you fuss over him with little words and only feeling, nudged on by something neither of you can see. you wrap around him, limbs weaving through the spaces that have been carved into him for you, and he lets his body tell him what to do. neither one of you particularly compelled to dispute the things that only feel natural—preening, protecting, divine in the blood of a bonded mammal. there’s a part of him that mourns a little on the nights he comes home without even a tiny scrape and without a reason for you to touch him tenderly—but you don’t need a reason. you never do.

he expected to feel something akin to fear but he finds that the truth of love is that it’s hard to be afraid when he’s this warm. he finds himself at peace with things that once felt monumental—you will stay, or you won’t. he will be enough, or he won’t. this love will smolder inside of him all of this life. there is no alternative to that one.

it’s a risk to take, and it’s an obvious one—when you reach for him, blind and fumbling in the dark of your bedroom—only to reassure yourself that he’s there next to you, he understands how you feel. Katsuki weaves his fingers through your own and doesn’t have to hope the sentiment is received. he knows that your love is just like that.

[whxre-bxby]

Period Oneshots: Quaritch, Mansk, Wainfleet

How I think these 3 (big) men would react to you having your period.

Masterlist

I don’t know whether Na’vi women get their period but since they would probably be mammals, I assume so. Either way, I’m going to write this how I imagine it goes for them. Since this fandom decided that they have mating seasons and heat cycles, the period is a 2-3 day period once their mating season is over. Meaning they get it only once a year ( I wish that was me )

Also, choose whether you are human or Na’vi. Doesn’t matter, both go for this one. 

Also, yes I am on my period while writing this. Credit to @jinx14 for the idea. I apologise for any typos, it's almost 2am :)

Quaritch:

Now Miles is a man who, back when he was human, knew everything he needed to know about the woman’s body. Of course, his memories are still with him now, but his old normal life seems more distant to him now that he is focusing on one mission only. 

Either you are on his squad team and are a part of project Phoenix or you work in the lab as a scientist or doctor/nurse. 

Miles knows you as a colleague and has grown unintentionally closer to you in the last month. He found you interesting and liked that you were helpful with missions, polite and knew your place, and loyal to him. Those aspects were very important to him as a person. 

One day he sees you working on something, whether it be working out or filling out lab reports. He notices you look worn out and agitated, which is unlike your usual upbeat mood. 

He comes over to question you and make sure you’re okay. He won’t mind bringing you something if you need it, as long as you ask politely. Asking polietely is one of the least important things on your list if you are fighting cramps, headaches or other pains. It doesn’t help that you may not have slept well. 

You’re too tired to dance around the subject. You know you look tired as shit and you know he can see that, so you just cut down to the chase. 

“I’m on my period, Miles.” you groan out frustrated, stopping your workout or dropping your pen on your lab report. 

He freezes and shuts up. It doesn’t get him embarrassed or anything like that, the answer just takes him by surprise. He was expecting you to say that someone was getting on your nerves or that you had too much to do. 

He had almost forgotten that that happens to women. Then again, your answer had refreshed a few old memories and he understood what you were going through, from the biological view. He knew how it worked and why it happened and for how long etc. 

He didn’t want to make you feel worse so he silently left the room and returned with a hot drink in his hand for you. He will let it slide once. Then, you will have to ask politely again. 

“Do you want company?” he asks, not wanting to get on your nerves. 

You are unable to answer and you nod your head, groaning again before taking the cup into both hands and just holding it for a while. 

He doesn’t start small talk, you both just sit in peaceful silence. He might scan over a few of your reports without understanding them or might take a look at the equipment you were using to workout. 

Miles enjoys your company just as much as you do. And he was ready to help you if you needed anything. He was also happy to be spending time with you. 

He knew you were quiet when it came to personal things so he felt a sense of pride in his chest when you felt comfortable enough to just tell him what’s going on. 

Mansk: (sorry for the low quality gif)

You would both be outside on a mission. The whole team was out but you were divided into groups to cover more ground. He was focused on his surroundings, eyeing every tree and listening to every noise. 

You were both advancing through the forest pretty quickly and after a while, you started to feel bad. 

Mansk was walking ahead of you when he heard a groan behind him. With quick movements, he swung around and aimed his gun right at you. He relaxed his body and let his ears perk back up when he saw that you were not being attacked. 

“What are you doin’?” he asks, lowering his weapon and slowly walking back to your hunched-over figure. You were leaned against a tree, one hand clutching your stomach and wrapping around your waist tightly. 

Mansk noticed your odd position and started to think about what was happening. He stood next to you, eyes scanning over your body before he looked around again to ensure both of your safety. 

“You good?” he asked, leaning down to try and read my facial expression. 

“Just- give me a moment.” I say, biting my lip. This cramp was almost unbearable and it hit me without a warning. 

He nodded, standing up-right again but in reality, this man had no idea what was going on. His first thoughts were food poisioning or maybe you got sick from the helicopter ride here.

I stood up again, the feeling gone. 

“All good, let’s go.” I say, my normal self back again. Mansk was confused as shit. He stood still, watching you start to walk again. His mind was like a television without signal. After a few moments, you gasped and bent over, clutching your abdomen again. 

While he was still oblivious to your period symptoms, he was more worried and jogged over to you, resting a hand on your back. 

“Do you need-” he started to ask but my moody self interrupted him. 

“Shhhh… I need quiet.” I mumble. He ran out of ideas. He was about to settle on the hypothesis that you had just lost your mind until you mumbled something that made his ears perk up. 

“I’m on my period, it’ll be fine in a sec.” 

Right. Periods. He forgot about those. 

His eyes glanced at your shorts and he was relieved to not see any blood. Mansk had no idea what to do, how to help you or just how to deal with the situation himself. 

“You want water?” he genuinely asked, offering me his bottle. I look up at him, showing clear signs of discomfort and he doubts his question, leaning his ears back. He felt a little stupid for not knowing what to do. Usually in missions, he was the one to have the best ideas on how to do whatever. Now, he felt useless.

“Yes, why not.” I say, grabbing it from him. My answer surprised him. 

“Thank you.” I mumbled, wiping a few drops with the back of my hand from my mouth. He nodded, smiling to himself that he had managed to do something in your favour.

“We can keep going again.” you softly say, straightening your posture and turning around again. 

Mansk isn’t a very talkative person, therefor you both walk in silence most of the way again. But neither of you mind. You are distracted by your discomfort anyway. 

From now on, he will always offer you water.

Water obviously doesn’t help against pain, you were just thirsty from walking, but Mansk doesn’t know that. You weren’t going to tell him either. Looking at him, you saw how he was holding the bottle ready in one hand, so he could give it to you again. It was sweet that he wanted to help, even if he didn’t know how. 

He makes sure to stay close by your side, incase you need to stop again. Mansk is slightly more cautious now because he knows your attention is elsewhere. That is also why he suddenly feels very protective of you. 

When you return to the others he doesn’t spill that you are shedding blood as you speak. If you weren't there and it would be his buddies, he would though. Just to brag about how well he thinks he handled the situation. 

Upon arriving, he pretends as if nothing happened and that it was a normal situation, trying to forget the little panic moment he felt before. 

Mansk also pushes anyone sitting next to you away, so that he can be by your side. 

Lyle Wainfleet: 

You and Lyle work out regularly together. It started off when you would just run into eachother at the gym room. He started conversation with you and it formed a friendship. Now you meet up and both do your workout together. You help spot him while he helps to ensure that you keep a stable form and stuff. 

Anyway, right now you and him are competing against each other, trying to see who can hold a plak the longest. 

You’re going 2 minutes strong and you were ready to hold it longer. Lyle was keeping his posture obtained too. 

Suddenly you started to feel a light pressure in your lower abdomen. Within seconds, it became more intense and then it struck you like an arrow from hell, causing you to fall flat on the ground. Immediately, you turned to your side, scrunching up and hugging your waist as you experienced discomfort. 

Next to you, Lyle cheered. 

“Ha, told you so. You almost had 3 minutes. I can go for another 3, just watch and-” he started bragging until his gaze landed on you all curled up into a ball. 

“Okay, don’t you dare trick me into thinking you’re hurt just so I can’t break my record.” he chuckled, focusing on his plank again. After you hadn’t moved in a few seconds he glanced back at you. 

He was starting to get worried. 

“Y/N quit playin’.” he said but already, you were able to pick up a hint of worry in his voice.

“Y/N.” he repeated, hoping you would turn around smiling. But you stayed still. Something felt off to him so he decided to stop. He got out of his plank position and knelt beside you. Lyle looked down and noticed your facial expression. You were in fact not messing with him. He felt slightly relieved by that but then again worried for you. 

“You okay?” he asks, slightly shaking your arm. You nod but stay in your position. Lyle is confused now. What are you doing?

Did you get a cramp from the workout? Even the word ‘cramp’ didn’t ring a bell in this soldier's head. 

“I think I just got my period.” you whined. You were dreading it but it had to come eventually. 

Lyle’s eyes went wide. “Oh…” he said, almost sounding like it was a whisper. “Right…” 

“Just give me a moment, I’ll be fine in a few…” you mumbled, keeping your eyes squeezed shut. 

“Yeah, sure. Of course. Take as-as long as you need…” he started rambling. “We are in no hurry, just- yeah take your time. You know, relax.” 

“Lyle.” I warn him. 

“Yep, I’ll be quiet. I’ll just sit here and wait with you until you feel better. Which you will, right? Like, this thing won’t-”

“Lyle!” I snap at him. I was short-tempered at the moment and I couldn’t deal with his long string of words. 

He sat in silence, watching me to make sure I wouldn’t pass out or die. While he did still find himself fascinated with how the female body worked, it scared him to a certain extent. If he would see blood on your leggings, he would definitely freak out.

Once the cramp fades away, you sit up, taking a few deep breaths. Lyle continues to watch you patiently and you smile and apologise for snapping. He isn’t upset. Lyle is an overly friendly angel and just wanted you to feel better. If you had asked him to, that man would have sat next to you for a few hours. Even if you fell asleep, he would not leave your side.

Since you were in a vulnerable state, he was happy he was the one looking out for you. And look out for you he will. He will get you absolutely anything and will make sure you are comfortable. If someone would need to talk to you he would handle it, sending them away. If you would get cold, he would cover you in his jacket or hoodie, etc. Wainfleet was just a big friendly giant to those he cared about.

[servethelight]

Shit I’ve noticed during my clone wars rewatch and my interpretation (very Obi-Wan focused because he’s my favorite character lmao):

(Includes spoilers obviously)

+ I love this show to bits, but it has horrible issues with consistency. Every other episode there is a new weapon or something introduced and we’ll never see it again. This is very prevalent in especially the first seasons.

+ Obi-Wan is such a fucking enabler. Like he tells Anakin his plans are stupid at least twice during the Malevolence episodes, but then joins him on all of those. It’s literally like: “Anakin this plan is reckless and won’t work, anyways what’s my part in your plan?”

+ Rex running into that metal pipe. I forgot about that and laughed for 20 minutes straight.

+ Anakin pulls a “Are ya winning son?” on Obi-Wan about Ahsoka.

+ I once saw a post that it isn’t confirmed that Obi-Wan and Cody are friends, but you have Obi-Wan literally marveling on how competent the commander is and Cody always going the extra mile to save his general’s ass. To me that’s pretty much a friendship.

+ The Jedi are in general very gentle, but quite touchy. They might not go for hugs, but there is always someone touching someone’s shoulder or waist. And they’re just so fucking kind. I don’t think I ever noticed that as a kid, but they’re so respectful about life and culture and always helping someone. I just love them so much.

+ And I love the understanding and kindness the clones have. They’re soldiers and programmed to kill, but they’re also good people in most cases. I just wanna hug most of them.

+ My mother told me I cried as a child during the episodes with the Zillo beast. Well, I didn’t cry again, but I’m still so fucking mad at Palpatine for putting that poor creature in that position. If he just had listened to Mace Windu (more of the characters should actually, just saying) that poor animal wouldn’t have killed people and found its end like that.

+ Mortis is quite hated by the fandom but for me it’s a defining showcase of Obi-Wan’s, Anakin’s and Ahsoka’s relationship. I’ve seen people in the fandom saying that Anakin would’ve turned out differently if Obi-Wan would’ve told him he’s proud and took care of his feelings. This episodes literally show that he does exactly that and Anakin still doesn’t give a shit.

+ Anakin tells the son in his dream, that he’ll never come to the dark side willingly. Only to walk over to the literal manifestation of the dark side like 10 minutes later to save Ashoka. I came to the conclusion that the only way to tempt him was by promising to save his loved ones. I still think it was a really awful and greedy thing to become Vader for that, but I must admit it’s a noble character trait to put others first.

+ Kit Fisto doesn’t have nipples. Therefore I’ve concluded he’s isn’t a mammal and hatched from an egg like Nemo the clownfish. (And no, that isn’t a animation thing, Rex does have nipples when his shirt is off).

+ The discussion with my gf about Kit Fisto nipples and Star Wars biology also touched the topic of “how does Maul use the bathroom”. My conclusion is: he has a stoma, because the lower abdomen, where that would be, is always covered.

+ Hardcase mentions he is hyperactive. I now see him as my favorite ADHD clone, because having ADHD myself I can fucking relate.

+ I forgot Waxer died on Umbara and bawled my eyes out. Waxer is one my favorite clones and when he cried while dying I just couldn’t take it.

+ My friend spent the entire Umbara arc just simping for the clones (mostly Jesse), while I was suffering. So maybe they look hot or something for people attracted to men in this episodes.

+ In the episode after the Umbara the duo usually consisting of Waxer and Boil is sent out, but this time it’s just Boil and I was about to bawl again.

+ For being called “the negotiator” Obi-Wan gets his ass beat quite a lot after his “negotiations” (aggressive flirting).

+ While I’ll never forgive Obi-Wan for doing that Raako Hardeen shit, I nearly pissed myself when the Ziro the Hutt’s ex gf is flirting with not one but two women there. Like I didn’t expect her to be the fucking gay rep in clone wars.

+ I’m seriously never forgiving Obi-Wan for that. I can’t get over Ahsoka’s tear filled eyes while she’s holding his corpse. Also she doesn’t seem angry like Anakin just massively sad and disappointed after it is revealed that he’s still alive. Personally I believe she’s starting to doubt the order here.

+ Point three on hating on my favorite character for that shit, I feel like Anakin becomes quieter and less playful after that disaster.

+ Maul is me. He’s obsessed with Obi-Wan and mentions that he has massive problems what is going on inside his head. As a mentally ill person, that makes me feel really seen lmao.

+ The underwater episodes and the ones with Ventress on that train were just the most beautiful worlds I’ve ever seen. Like the planets in general are so beautifully designed in clone wars, I’m so in love.

+ Motherfucking “I said fuck the council and became a child soldier for a rebellion at 13” Obi-Wan Kenobi seems very reluctant on doing it again. There are two entire arcs of him disagreeing on helping rebels. First I didn’t understand, because like dude you literally did this before, but since he talks about his worries about bringing the separatists in or worsen the situation, I think the poor man is just a little bit traumatized.

+ After the events of Onderon I’m pretty sure Ashoka is already filled with doubts about the order, the republic and the war. I also feel like she’s feeling massively led down by Obi-Wan again, which broke my heart because I love their relationship.

+ I just realized he fails Ahsoka a third time, when she is captured by Hondo and Obi-Wan is supposed to help her. Instead he gets attacked by Grievous and is forced to postpone the helping them until they help themselves. I mean it’s not his fault but in Ahsoka’s place that wouldn’t feel good to me.

+ This particular fight with Grievous ignited my love for Obi-Wan again. Before he attacks Grievous he helps an injured clone and when he goes into the fight, Grievous directly kills a clone. Instead of his usual witty remarks, he just goes: “you’re gonna regret that” and jumps Grievous. He just loves his clones as much as I do.

+ One of the most beautiful shots in the entire series for me is in the episode before the droids find Gregor. This WAC droid looks into the desert and it reflects in his eye. Because of the cracks in the desert ground it looks almost like a retina. Beautiful metaphor of combining something artificial and metallic with an organic and almost human part. This was such a fucking raw shot for me, it took my breath away.

+ Tarkin is an asshole, but he’s climbed the asshole latter so hard after he has been mean to Plo Koon.

+ Shotout to Obi-Wan for convincing the order to let Anakin go after Ahsoka. Additionally the whole time he acts in her support only to be shut down by the council. I didn’t remember him doing that so I was surprised.

+ Fives tells the plot with the inhibitor chips to a cab driver. Do you think the cap driver ever thinks back after the war and is like: “Fuuuuuuck”?

+ I kid you not, the clone bar has gender neutral bathrooms (and no, it’s not bc the clones are all male, in the bar are also women). The bathroom are just decided by humans, hutts and a third species I cannot quite recognize.

+ I forgot Teckla gets shot, NOOOOOOO

+ I always say clone wars anakin is better, but Jesus stop acting like a jealous bitch. Padmè deserves an award for putting up with his bullshit. Obi-Wan too. He even tries to give him reassurance by telling him that feelings are not forbidden and Anakin just bitches at him.

+ Obi-Wan casually passing on babysitting duty for Jar Jar fucking killed me (and yes, taking care of Jar Jar is babysitting duty).

+ Never in a million years I would have thought to see Jar Jar admitting to fucking this queen, but here we have him saying he was making love to her last night. Imma set myself on fire and I believe Windu will join me.

+ You could also call the clone wars the exposition wars. Every episode has their one minute exposition in the beginning, but I feel like a lot of the dialogue is used for exposition.

+ Obi-Wan doesn’t learn shit. That man got drugged by Hondo, but yet still accepts drinks from the Pykes. MY BROTHER IN CHRIST PLEASE DONT

+ I AN GOING TO SCREAM. You have been informed that the Clones have a behavior influencing chip in their brains and then you find out Dooku was behind the creation of the clones and no one connects the fucking dots. I love the Jedi, but goddamn are you all dense.

+ Do you think Hunter thought Rex was screwing his general? Because their conversation sounded kinda suggestive and then they trail off to do something secret.

+ Ahsoka going “my older brother thought me”after kicking a guy where it hurts most. I now imagine Anakin going to Ahsoka as soon she got to be his padawan: “Listen up Snips, if you ever facing a creepy guy, you kick them right there”

+ When the sisters make their escape I don’t get why they don’t let Ahsoka fly. She’s clearly the more capable pilot.

+ Controversial opinion: I have a strong dislike for Bo Katan. She’s a fucking terrorist who doesn’t betray the deathwatch when they murder an entire innocent village, no but when there’s Maul trying to take their authority. Says a lot about her character if you ask me.

+ I mcfucking cried when the clones painted their helmets according to Ahsoka’s face markings and my flatmates gf came in and asked me if everything’s alright. I am fucking embarrassing I have seen this scene three times already but I still bawl like a baby.

+ Also my dear Obi-Wan can you quit being an ass? A “hello Ahsoka, nice to see you” wouldn’t have killed you.

+ Through the whole show most of the characters seemed to appear increasingly tired towards the end. Especially Obi-Wan and Ahsoka, but other characters aswell. The only one who seems to stay energized is Anakin. He becomes more serious but I feel like he’s the only one at the end that is still going into battles with full energy. It almost felt like he’s especially thriving in a war scenario which is incredibly sad.

+ The beauty of that last scene with Vader is truly unparalleled. I don’t ever think a tv show can recreate that.

+ I still love this show to bits and I cried 5 times total during that rewatch, shit this was nice.

[britishraptor]

Gonna kick the hornets nest here, but the file from the most recent episode of The Magnus Protocol was incredibly underwhelming. It didn’t take into account at all anything that actually makes snakes scary, little to no foreshadowing, and basically attempted to jumpscare the audience with a reveal that reads more like a parody of a horror story than an actual one.

I might look like an idiot or a fool when everything all strings together later than the line, but I’m questioning so much about this episode.

Parasites are scary. Worms, and insects and mold and rot. Decay, possession. Spiders are scary because they’re hard to see, hard to pinpoint and they move fast, plus the connections with webs related to control, and manipulation. So yeah, a worm lady, sure, a person filled with spiderwebs, also sure. But the only connection between snakes and parasitism could be a joke about ‘shedding your skin’ or how disturbing that one scene in Harry Potter was.

Snakes are scary for two reasons:

1) the same reason bears and tigers all that are scary. Hunt style being hurt, and killed, and eaten. Simple.

B) uncanny valley reasons. Snakes don’t blink. They don’t have facial expressions. The way they move and eat and exist is totally different from humans and mammals. They’re often described as alien and cold.

My questions:

a) why rodent control? why was he even actually brought in? His walls are FULL OF SNAKES. It wouldn’t have lasted five minutes. It doesn’t make any sense even if you know he was concerned about parasites. Snakes don’t give a shit about other snakes. To call someone a snake is to literally call them callous and prone to betrayal. A snake eats the rodent, so you kill the snake. Plus a snake store would have access to medications to kill mites and deal with snake illness? Why call the guy at all?

b) the foreshadowing on the owner is terrible. You could have mentioned his skin needed moisturising. That it seemed dry, flaky. Scaly. But just. A red rash? A rash? Are you saying being full of snakes is an infectious disease? That’s what he said at the end, right? That his throat itches. It was swelling. You can just?? Grow your own snakes?? Is that the implication?

No uncanny valley mention on the owner either at all. He didn’t move weird, being full of snakes? Didn’t sway or limp as he walked, didn’t move sluggishly? Bad hearing, didn’t know what to do with his hands? No? Just a short tempered customer. Okay.

c) You lost me at the thousands of snakes. THOUSANDS? What is this, a clown car? A snake clown car in some random guys skin, who explodes because he was mad a customer walked out.

Look, I’m Australian. And when I ask my friends ‘hey, how big do you normally picture a snake being?’ we picture snakes about 1.5m long. Dinner table length is pretty common for all of our common brown, tiger snakes, red bellies, and even longer for our common carpet pythons. But even if I adjust to like, other countries’ grass snakes, thousands?

The throwaway line at the end was plot relevant I’m sure, but I’m all around confused, and totally not even a little bit scared.

The only praise I have is that the description of the crickets was very creepy, and I loved the visual of them moving around like a shuddering wave of pixels on a screen, only really perceived by their screaming.

But yeah. The setup, the foreshadowing, the coherent theming and consistency all just fell totally flat for me. The only thing I learnt was that this guy applied to the institute and was rejected, and that snakes can’t do dishes.