#don't you all have bigger fish to fry how can you think of getting your nut when the world's ending

[lovelyyandereaddictionpoint]

Hello, can I get more stories about yandere cheerleaders and the yandere soccer team ? It's okay if you don't want to write it right now. May you be happy and healthy. Be together with everyone for a longggggg time !

Yandere Cheerleaders + Football Team (2)

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The thing about having two of the most dedicated and competitive teams obsessing over you definitely means protection but it also means being the main point of their tug-of-war

While they’re more than gung-ho about chasing off anyone else at the college who’s thinking of being more than acquaintances 

When they’re aren’t bigger fish to fry they start looking at each other

“Look, we already planned to study with them so you need to back off!”

“Ha, you ‘planned’ to. We asked them already so unless you’d like to explain why we can’t hang–you back off!”

“Our Captain–!”

“Clearly isn’t updated on (Y/n)’s time. Better take your pom poms and go do that.”

“You’ll pay for this!” 

Just because the Captains who’ve headed this interest are dating doesn’t mean the animosity between their teams goes away

“That’s what they said? Really? You know your girls have a tendency to exaggerate.”

“Exaggerate!? Your muscle brains went and posted all the evidence needed. No, they did not exaggerate they asked them and you know how weak they are if they’re asked by the group! Which is why we made the rule–!”

“I know. I know. They probably were just tired of the stalling, the week started and they haven’t gotten any alone time.”

“Yeah well now they’re going to pay for it, the girls are vengeful before they are patient.”

“Can’t you stop them, we have a big game on Thursday.”

“No we have competitions on Wednesday and if the girls don’t have their blood our competitors are going to get more than just their butts kicked. And I refuse to bribe those judges anymore. ”

“Please baby just this once.”

“No.”

“...”

“...”

“Alright guess we’ll have to duke this out later.”

“Yeah, now do you want to invite them over for takeout or go over to theirs for takeout?”

“Oooh, we haven’t been in a while! Let’s go to theirs!”

They do end up agreeing amicably

But that doesn’t mean the teams do

Whoever’s turn it is as decided by the Captains is always happier

It’s the ones who don’t that begin to talk amongst themselves

“I love our captain but he’s such a pushover!”

“Yeah, a leader should be a leader over his woman too!”

“But have you seen the cheer captain? She’s scary!”

“Yeah but the question comes up at some point who do you love more? The witchy cheer chic or (Y/n)?”

“That’s an obvious answer for me!”

“(Y/n) all the way!”

The cheer team is no different, barely waiting for their captain to leave the bathroom before scoffing

“I can’t believe she screwed us over again.”

“Hate to say it but did you really think she’d hold her ground to him?”

“Yeah, you guys remember that one ex right? She abandoned us back in Summer just for his that greaser wannabe.”

“Hmmm true…Hey do you guys think she’d dumb Captain manscape if (Y/n) asked?”

“Oooh that might be fun to find out!”

But despite how malicious it sounds the heart of those teams knows not to act they know better

… or most of them

There’s one or two in both teams that break 

Usually hinting at the cheer captain’s doing something awful to you

Cheating on the other or talking bad about you to the new students you’ve been trying to be friends with

While they’ll swoon in the moment because you’re hanging off their every word it never lasts

By the time they return to fraternity or sorority, the dream is over

And they're about to feel the worst and last pain in their life

“Look ladies here’s someone who’s threatened our flock…MY flock. New Girl!”

“Yes, Captain!”

“What do we do with the mockingbirds?

“We push them out the nest?”

“Very good!”

On the cheer squad, a simple alone time or texting without informing two other cheerleaders is humiliation by way of social media

Flirting with you earns a spanking by the vice leader

And attempting to undermine the captain…well let’s say the Cheer team is careful to wear  their running mascara when one of their teammate's severed hand appears a couple of miles off campus

No one really knows exactly what happens

Just that the only thing that identifies their old teammate is the obscure telltale feature

Like the green manicured nail on her index, the only one not torn off 

As for the Football Team they tend not to make it too imaginative

NOT because they aren’t smart…they just don’t need to be that creative with it

Plus they’re not that great at cleaning their own messes

“Captain, can I do the honors? I’ve got something special for our…dear friend.”

"Go for it."

“Edibles, the big M, a couple of high-grade stuff from our pharma buddies, and for an extra touch something out of this world to make sure you regret all that you’ve done.”

They’re big fans of injection

Holding the offender down and give one two three if they’re awful shots and then letting them loose

On a club’s rooftop, or a dodgy club, or even on their football field 

it’s just the horrible drugs that leave them totally unaware by the rabid dog pack or the unfenced edge or the sketchy people hovering near them

It’s textbook after all that kids too focused on their careers just get lost in the drugs

A shame that this pandemic isn’t exempt from infesting Energi University

It’s a little sloppy because they don’t always die

But thanks to their indulgent cocktails they sure won’t be remembering or even capable of getting a proper sentence out

“Honey, I wanted to congratulate you on that good catch you did. I was really impressed with that blend.”

“Thanks, babe but don’t think I didn’t notice how you killed that cheer!”

“....Are you guys talking in code because I really don’t get it.”

“Don’t worry ‘bout it hon! Now about that takeout.”

“Yeah babe, we’ll pay for it and put on a movie or somethin’.”

“Oh but then it’ll be dark and even if your together I wouldn’t want you guys out there with all the danger around campus lately.”

“Then we’ll stay over!”

“Wait–”

“Yeah, it’s cool we don’t mind cuddling up with you.”

“Yup! Not at all!”

“Uh okay I guess.”

“Oh also you’re free to come to our practices right?”

“Yeah, both teams have been missing you real bad.”

Thanks for the well wishes anon! 🖤🖤🖤🖤 Rules | Kofi | Commissions

[meruz]

hi!! im sure ppl have asked this b4, but i scoured your asks tag for an hour or so looking to see if you answered anything abt it and couldnt find anything, so i was just wondering if youve made any posts on your process for making n selling merch b4? and how you know which franchises you can make merch for w/o getting into trouble w copyright n trademark stuff (hopefully that makes sense, im not sure,,,)

hi! got a bunch of asks abt merch stuff lately im gonna put it under a cut.

preface: i don't know if i'm the best person to ask about all this stuff because I'm doing merch on a strictly hobby basis LOL. I have a fulltime job which takes care of the bulk of my finances, I don't really make big quantities of anything and my main priority at cons is to just make enough money to see my friends in different cities at minimal expense. i pretty much always get a refund when i file my con taxes because my profit after all the deductions is like fucking..nothing.. lmao. So if you ultimately lose money following my advice don't blame me. OK NOW lets get into it

my process for making merch: when I have an event scheduled that I want to make merch for I start by brainstorming a bunch of stuff I wanna make. for mgscon this is what I wrote down in my sketchbook lol

i made a legend to denote which ones are actually just reprints. it gets easier to plan out merch when you already have merch. out of the new merch ideas here i actually only made like 4 of them. and out of the reprints i only reprinted like three. i also came up with like 4-5 other merch ideas after writing out this list that i actually did do. LMAOO UM. my point here is that nothing rly goes as planned.

when i get a merch idea i start with thumbnails what i want it to look like (sometimes this is based off merch ive seen before so its very realized and sometimes its really vague bc im kind of pulling it out of my ass)

then BEFORE i go into making the final art I research how I'm going to make the merch. whether its printing/constructing it myself or looking for a manufacturer. There's a lot of different places that you can get custom merch made, i used to go shopping around at local printing shops but nowadays it's really common to do it all online. For both these jet tags and the washi tape I did some of my own research into manufacturers and also asked friends for their contacts/referrals/recommendations etc. most manufacturers either have their specs/template publicly available or will give them to you when you ask. so once I've locked into a manu and gotten the specs I'll start designing the final art.

then it's sending it off and waiting! easier said than done.

i will say this process is a lot lengthier for some types of merch than others LOL. for prints... I've been doing prints for like a million years and I plan out almost none of it. I draw everything at print resolution so a week before I have a con scheduled I'll simply go through all the files I've accumulated since my last con, squeeze whatever drawings I want into standard print sizes lol (ie. 8.5x11, 11x17, 4x6 etc), and print them at a local shop. takes like a couple hours max.

how you know which franchises you can make merch for w/o getting into trouble w copyright n trademark stuff?

I mean. honestly I don't know. selling fanart is the kind of thing that IP holders kind of just let slide as long as they don't think they're losing a substantial amt of money on it. there ARE a couple franchises people avoid because they've been known to send IP lawyers after fanartists... disney is the big one and they're known for being pretty petty abt it... that's why you don't really see people selling fanart of the disney princesses at cons. ive heard pokemon will also crack down if your project seems to be making a lot of money lol, part of why i think a lot of pokemon fanzines operate on a charity basis. I do feel like the pokemon company has bigger fish to fry than someones artist alley table though so i wouldn't sweat it too much.

it's also generally considered impolite/bad taste to sell fanart of small franchises. webcomics and indie games especially if they only have like 1-2 devs who rely on the income that game makes.

I'm not a lawyer so you shouldn't consider this legal advice BUT I will say... I don't think you should let IP law stop you from selling fanart lol. especially if it's low quantities/not mass produced and you're not making crazy amts of money I think you kind of have a leg to stand on. Besides, most cases it seems like the worst you'll get is a cease and desist.

you Will notice that when people start turning their artist alley endeavors into a real business they'll generally ease up on selling fanart (the case most prominent in my mind is omocat lol). but i love fanart and thats why i will never make money and thats a promise [snake saluting gif]

SORRY IDK IF ANY OF THIS WAS HELPFUL. I've been doing merch and cons for a long time (10+ years lmao, you can find record of this on this very blog) and i think im kind of old fashioned about it. i recognize the artist alley/merch scene is a lot more demanding now than it used to be but start small at local low-risk events, online sales etc and work your way up and remember to have fun and itll be ok i believe this wholeheartedly.

its literally just layers of acrylic like any other dinky charm. I'm sure pretty much any manu that does acrylic charms could do it but this specific charm/template i did order through a group order server. they're pretty well known! heres a link to their twitter

@wheatormeat sorry for taking a full month to answer this... anyways. This is tricky because I've actually been changing up my sticker manu everytime LOL IDK if I've found one I actually love.

these ones i ordered thru an alibaba manu because I was jumping on a friend's group order to save on shipping. it was ok. they arrived a liiiitle late and printed a lil dark but i think thats kind of my fault LOL I use dark colors i always need to lighten things before i get them printed and i think i just didnt lighten these enough. otherwise i rly love the quality!

i realized i never posted these online and also this is not a good picture (the lighting in my living room sucks rn) but i printed these tmnt stickers thru stickerninja they feel really solid but they needed kind of a lot of space for the cutline. but their customer service was very nice and helpful!

these ones i got printed at washimill and i was so impressed with how fine their cutline is... pricing and quality of the sticker itself is alright they feel a lil flimsy? idk. but i do like the printing. i kind of elected to go with them solely because i was already ordering washi tape. A LOT of my manufacturing decisions are made based on how much money i can save on shipping tbh.

and thats my sticker manu reviews dont forget to like comment subscribe idk if i have one im gonna stick with forever or anything im rly indecisive. ideally id like a manu based in the u.s...? because im based in the u.s. and international shipping is pricey. but idk if i keep ordering washi tape maybe ill keep using washimill. who knows...

[romchat]

I am loving the double but I can't help feel that the main couple's relationship is so transactional, all she does is ask him to do things for her and all he does is do them. I understand the drama is about her revenge but I thought when she said she didn't want to be a burden and that she's be his pawn too she'd actually help him with his schemes she doesn't have any power but she's very smart and could certainly contribute and help. They both have bigger fish to fry and his also involves loosing his parents but he spends so much time helping her because obviously he loves her I would've liked to see her do the same even occasionally.

Anon, have you seen Episode 28 yet? This scene made me squee:

Fangfei: I've been panicking trying to figure out how to pay you back so I tried to find an excuse. I used to think I would pay you back everything I owed you. Now that I've done the math, I don't think I can. Duke Su: Don't pay me back then. Fangfei: You'll suffer losses. Duke Su: I can afford it.

Their love language is digging up dead bodies and hosting exorcisms for each other.

The ledger might be more in her favor but they clearly match each other's freak.

Although your question makes me think what would happen if they were to get married.

A key theme of The Double has been Fangfei learning to express her desires and to step into the chessmaster role she was born to play. In her previous marriage, she shrank herself to make space for her husband's career and appease her in-laws. That self-sacrifice ultimately left her with nothing more than an open grave and a shovel to the head so with the Duke she uses transactionalism to make sure the scales of their complicated relationship never tip more in his favor than hers.

But in encouraging her autonomy and putting his trust in her, Duke Su has also given her room to bloom. It's a completely different relationship than with Shen Yurong, which opens a lot of narrative possibilities around how will Fangfei's story end, especially as she has always avenged those who have helped or sacrificed for her.

Will the big cathartic moment be from her avenging herself? Or will it be from avenging the Duke and his family because his grievances are now hers? Will she ultimately have to make a trade-off between her plans and his? Or will the tradeoff really be between revenge and her own healing?

As another man's wife or companion, will she truly feel equal and at peace?

I can't believe we only have like 10 more episodes to dive into any or all of that 😭

[snoopledrooplecheesedoodle]

Day 9: Festive Lights: Mikitaka

Hey this was made for @spaceyxcowboy, enjoy the gift bestie because I know how much you love Miki. I know we don't talk much but hey I appreciate you.

TW: Being held hostage, held down, Mikitaka is a bit creepy

Humming a Christmas tune that is by Cariah Merry you spin around merrily opening the dusty boxes from the storage closet. Yes, it's that time of year to celebrate the winter season once more. You needed to bring some cheer to the outpost you were cooped up in.

Yes, being a park ranger was your dream, but you would love to be able to see your loved ones around the holidays. Unfortunately, you were the youngest member of the squad so everyone else had more authority over their vacation days. With the Christmas season comes many forest fires due to some idiot trying to stay warm.

You tried not to let any resentment seep into your bones as you string the old colorful bulbs around the outpost and your temporary home. Moriocho National Park was beautiful during winter with the evergreens creating an emerald carpet for your bird's eye view.

You cheer as the lights you found shine dully with vibrant reds and greens. Maybe your holiday won't be so shitty after all, you think as you pour yourself another cup of instant coffee. Now to sit back and relax.

As you sit watching over the forest you start to feel a bit sleepy. This coffee really is crap because you find yourself dozing off warm and cozy in your tower. Oh well might as well catch some zs.

You are awoken with a start as a loud crash followed by tremors that shake you tower causing your lukewarm coffee to spill all over your uniform. Gross you'll probably never get that out, however there were bigger fish to fry. Outside your outpost north of where you were an eerie blue glow shone bright enough for you to see it from where you were.

You don your ranger jacket and grab your first aid kit, flashlight, and a hunting knife. You'd be back before nightfall, but you'd make sure to bring these things in case things go south. You climb down the tower and walk into the deciduous forest; this shouldn't be too bad probably some lost campers.

Approaching the spot of the glowing you hear a humming noise that sounded... out of this world. Just what was on the other side of this trees? Pushing forward you were shocked to see a ship? UFO? What on Earth was this aircraft? You jump when you hear a hissing noise and see the front door of the craft open to reveal...a blonde man?

The man in question was very human looking but at the same time not, he had long blond hair and green eyes but also had pointed ears and his eyes glowed unnaturally in the fading daylight. The man surveys the forest around him before. When he spots you, he smiles. "Greetings inhabitant, could you tell me what planet we are on?" Okay this is very weird. You look at the man and his ship and narrow your eyes out of suspicion.

"You're on Earth and you happened to have crash landed in Moriocho National Park." You feel for your knife in case things go south he may have a ray gun, but you still would try. The alien walks out of the ship and stares at the damage. "This damage to my ship will take some time to repair, does Earth have psychronium plates?" What? "No never heard of those, you'll have to find something else to substitute." The alien deflated a bit at your words causing you to soften. You were a park ranger and park rangers help people, even people from out of this world. You place a gentle hand on the blond man's arm.

"Hey, you can come to the watch tower, maybe I could find somethings that might help you." The alien man's phosphorescent eyes glowed even brighter as his long blond locks floated for a second. "Thank you, earthling, you are very kind. Please take me to this 'watch tower'." Oh boy you don't get paid enough for this.

"I'm (y/n) and you are...?" The blond floats over to you and smiles. "My people call me Nu Mikitakazo Nshi." Yeah, you weren't remembering that. "I'll call you Mikitaka, that okay with you?" Mikitaka looks away before looking back at you. "Of course."

You return to the inside of your rusty rundown tower (government really likes to pinch its pennies) sighing as you see the coffee stain and shattered coffee mug on the ground. While you see a list of things to do, Mikitaka is in awe of how simple yet unknown everything was for him. The faint glow of the barely functioning Christmas lights is dimmer compared to the bright shine of Miki's bright grin eyes.

"It's not much but you're free to look around." you sheepishly stare at your shoes, embarrassed to show such a sophisticated technologically advanced person your crappy temporary home. Mikitaka hums and nods as he searches through your things until he finds a picture frame.

"(y/n) who are these people surrounding you?" The blond man asks eyes shining with a desire of knowledge. You walk over a peer at the photo before giving a bittersweet smile. "Oh, those people are my family. My parents and our dog Iggy." You laugh thinking about how angry that dog was to have to wear that ugly sweater. Mikitaka tilts his head at your expression and response. "Do these people make you happy?"

Your eyes mist over with a solemn sense of loss, it just feels like you never talk to your parents anymore. You couldn't even get bars of reception to wish them a merry Christmas. "Yes, I love them a lot, I really wanted to see them." Mikitaka looked more confused as looks back at the photo of the happy family. "Are your loved ones deceased?" You wave your hands frantically. "No, NO, my job just prevents me from spending time with them at the moment." You think about Mikitaka's presence which was a much-wanted reprieve from the gnawing loneliness.

"Besides I have you to keep me company during Christmas and that's plenty." Mikitaka studies your face before nodding. "I do not know what this Christmas is, but I enjoy your company as well." You grin happy to make a new friend.

The familiar hiss of the portable kettle as your heated water was ready for the feast you have prepared. Two cups of (favorite flavor) instant ramen for you and your new intergalactic buddy. What better way to introduce an alien to Earth cuisine than instant noodles. Opening the ramen pouring the flavor packets and hot water stirring till you had two steaming adequate dinners.

"Here you go Miki, I give you one instant ramen, the highest of Earth cuisine." Handing him the styrofoam cup as you dig into yours with (chopsticks/fork). Mikitaka smiles before staring at the noodles. He then proceeds to take a bite of the styrofoam allows the very hot water to flow onto his hands. "It seems impractical to eat something like this." You stare in disbelief as he continues eating the entirety of what you gave him (including the styrofoam). The two of you eat in silence for a while before Mikitaka speaks up.

"(y/n) you called me Mikitaka and then you called me Miki, is that an Earth custom I'm unaware of?" You snort as Mikitaka looks confused at you. Do they not have nicknames on his planet? What a sad life they must live. "Oh well Miki is a nickname; humans like to use them with friends and loved ones." You explain patiently as the blond absorbs the information, unsettling green eyes never once leaving your form.

"I see you hold affection for me, and you shorten the name. May I call you (clumsy shortened version of your name)?" You burst out laughing causing a noodle to fly out of your nose, which only made you laugh harder. Mikitaka stays completely silent enjoying the joyous noise you were producing; he didn't know why you were doing this, but he wished he could do it again.

"You're not half bad Miki."

"You are the greatest human being I have ever known."

He proved to be very blunt with complementing you. You two chat and you laugh at how adorably clueless Mikitaka was, this holiday has proved to be better than you imagined. You let out a yawn feeling Hypnos call out to you. "Well Miki I'm going to hit the hay; would you like some blankets?" Miki tilts his head confused at your figure of speech. Perhaps it was a weird Earth tradition to do before sleep. Your form sparkles under the dull lights which made you the most interesting thing in the room.

His organ that pumps blood throughout his body began to beat much faster than regular. Oh my, was he experiencing illness his people never got sick! However, this feeling wasn't bad, in fact it was the best Mikitaka had felt in a while. When you left the room, the feeling went with you making Mikitaka reach out his hand. He wanted to still be around you, yet he stood in the middle of the room watching you fall asleep in your cot.

Two glowing green eyes watch you sleep every curve of your body interested the alien. He never thought he would have a mate of another species but the way you looked so peaceful made his heart palpitate again. Running a smooth hand over your arm he shivered at the softness of your exposed hand. You shiver as his hand makes contact with you.

Oh, his mate was cold, that wasn't good, he would provide you more warmth in order to prove his worth to you. Turning into the blue goo his simple form was he covered your body and began steadily radiating heat. You sigh with pleasure as you drift further to sleep. The alien felt bliss of covering your whole skin, his blue form shining under the dim Christmas lights. Which shifted to a weird bright aqua color.

Mikitaka knows he'll extend his stay for quite a while until he can find a way to convince you to come with him. After all you are the light of his world.

Hope everyone enjoys especially you @spaceyxcowboy

[umathurwin]

On the topic of Kiara love triangle with Rafe and Sarah imo it only works if it’s Sarah ⇔ Kiara <- Rafe. Kiarah literally saved a depressed teen Kiara who was on the verge of suicide. Rafe liking Kiara and it being unrequited fits in their dynamic in the show as in most of their scenes he seems to be adamant on changing her perception of him, she couldn’t gaf but does extend empathy. If I were gonna adapt Kiara's kook year I would portray Kiara and Sarah maybe having a babe crush on one another and the idea of it being reciprocated spooking Sarah. And a strong platonic bond between Kiara and Rafe where by the probably have a deeper understanding of being their parent’s disappointments, each others clear fear of loneliness and struggles with mental health. The idea that once Sarah iced out Kiara, Kiara ends up icing out Rafe without giving him much choice fueling his envy of Sarah. Sarah and Kiara being able to reconcile but not Kiara and Rafe. Fast forward present day a morally regressed grief stricken Kiara and spiralling Rafe could have brief fling in Lisbon that never makes it back to obx cus he hurt Sarah (and the pogues) and in his eyes its still always Sarah. Just a thought lol.

oh i love this read. when i watch s1 i can see such a clear hatred for the cameron siblings coming from kiara, and that it partially stems from a failed lesbian babycrush has been my headcanon since the very beginning

i totally understand seeing rafe's crush as being unrequited, and that it was never more than platonic between them, because them being not-as-close as kiarah could explain how sarah was forgiven so much easier. but i actually see this as reversed-- i think rafe/kiara had a very deep and personal relationship (supported by the similarities that you mentioned) with an ugly break up and i've talked about it before, but i get the feeling his addiction and mental health was the main closer for them. that kind of trauma is much more difficult to work past than some petty behaviors as a teenager. especially if you're also willing to be petty (like calling the cops on sarah) and especially if you're being forced to make up and move on by the plot your best friend who needs her help to continue the treasure hunt

i think all his efforts insisting her perception of him is wrong is not "you never got to know me", it's more "you knew me, i fucking sucked, but i swear i don't anymore, pls trust me". yeah she doesn't gaf because she's a smart girl protecting her peace with bigger fish to fry. but as rafe becomes more evidently on her side (helping her in barbados, offering the pogues the boat to morocco, making the deal with shoupe to get him off their backs, reconciling with sarah finally) i think we're barreling towards her realization that maybe he doesn't suck anymore

i just feel like this has been too well set up for it not to end on a romantic note. and since again john barah is 100% endgame (despite her cheating problem having never been addressed but ok) we probably won't have our satisfying kiarah ending, so i'm gonna take what i can get :/

this was really fun to think about, thank you so much for sharing your words with me 🙂‍↕️

[wannaeatramyeon]

More Gun + Goo Shenanigans

Credit Card

The first message came through at 8am.

Accompanied with 'oops, forgot mine. using yours. hope you don't mind 🥺🫰 '

And usually Gun would mind. He would mind a whole fucking lot. But when you're in a junkyard moulding your masterpiece, having left most of your usual everyday carry at home. Well. You have bigger fish to fry. Or a smaller Daniel Park to cook.

Besides, it's probably just an energy drink anyway if the amount and the blonde's habits are anything to go buy. Gun can let it slide just for today, that for some reason Goo has desided to forgo any contactless payment and use Gun's card. Whatever.

And then the next messages from his bank continue to come through.

8:32am: Coffee shop - 8000 won

8:56am: Coffee shop - 8000 won

9:17am: Coffee shop - 8000 won

9:25am: Coffee shop - 8000 won

9:30am: Coffee shop - 8000 won

9:33am: Coffee shop - 8000 won

9:34am: Coffee shop - 8000 won

Ok. That's enough.

Gun angrily dials Goo. Seriously. "What the fu-"

"Sup man!" Goo sounds completely manic and shrill. Likely about to buzz out of his head.

"Did you just pound 7 coffees and an energy drink?"

"7 doubles and an energy drink," the voice on the other end corrects.

"I'm cancelling my card."

"No wait-"

Family friendly

"What you crying for kid? Never seen someone so handsome before?" Goo flashes his most winning smile. The one where it's all teeth and maybe a touch feral.

Understandably, the kid, probably no older than 8, wails even louder.

What. the. fuck.

That's what you get for trying to be family friend huh. Goo starts scowling at her, now inconsolable with fear.

Honestly. How dare she take one look at his face and burst out into tears.

Where the fuck are her parents.

Gun would have intervened; they have places to be, things to do. If only the whole situation wasn't so entertaining.

Especially as he now looks over and finds his partner in a bizarre stand-off where Goo's face darkens the more the kid cries, and the kid cries the more terrifying Goo's face becomes.

"This lil motherfucker-" Wait. A lightbulb goes off in Goo's head and he forces all the cheer he can into his voice. "Kid, come look at this!"

She looks up just in time to see Goo whipping the sunglasses from Gun.

Her daddy has warned her about this. The red scar. The eyes. Pitch black. DEMON.

She runs off screaming and flailing as Goo cackles.

Hospital

"Why is it when something happens, it's always you two."

"Just want to see your pretty face again, cutie!"

The elderly nurse sighs. She's experienced far too much, is too weather beaten, for Goo Kim's flowery words to have any effect on her.

Completing her last rounds before her shift finishes, she just wants to finish and then go. Have a bath. Lie in bed. Lo and behold, she has these two idiots appearing once more in the private wing.

Hmm. It had been a few weeks since she last saw them.

She rifles through the clipboard, checking the doctor's notes. "So what are you in for?"

"Fighting." Gun, on the next bed, answers.

"...And you both ended up with neck braces?"

"Yep! We got a little rough. You know how these things are," Goo chirps, light tone contrasting with his eyes angrily glaring at Gun.

"...It says pillow fight here."

"Yep!"

That doesn't sound right. " And what were the pillows filled with?"

A brief pause, where they exchange shifty glances before piping up together, "Rocks."

Outfits

"That looks great on you,"

"I know."

Gun ignores Crystal fawning over Goo. Completely ignores them and the vein throbbing on his temple.

He absolutely will not concern himself with such juvenile things.

Barely remembers the first time he wore the same outfit, picking Crystal up and accompanying her to J-High, she took one look at his outfit and held back a giggle.

He doesn't give a shit. He has more important things to think about.

Or when Goo raided his wardrobe, rifling through outfits, laughed at this monstrosity and then asked if he could have it, Gun just shrugged. He has no attachment to it.

And now Gun absolutely doesn't care that Goo is on the receiving end for his outfit.

Who gives a shit.

Gun Park is above this nonsense. So what if he is daydreaming about strangling the life out of Goo in that stupid shirt and stupid scarf.

It's no different than usual, he always fantasises about killing Goo.

It's fine.

And one I accidentally deleted: Spice Eating Contest

"...What's wrong with you two?" Kouji, face completely repulsed, watches his two hyungs scarfing down the ramen in front of him.

The store's spiciest, apparently. Renowned, Crystal had said. Three please, Kouji had asked. And when it arrived? Disappointment. Spicy? Not by a long shot. Barely even having any heat.

The same can't be said for Gun and Goo's palate, tears streaming down their sweaty beet red faces, snot flowing freely and ew. Likely mingling with everything else.

"It's not spicy at all!" Goo spits, mouth full of ramen and glowering at Gun.

"Who said it was spicy, idiot." Gun retaliates, eyes leaking even more as he shoves in another mouthful.

"Umm. Guys. You need to be careful-" Kouji tries, but to no avail. Both now too busy trying to swallow inbetween coughing fits.

Oh well.

He did try to warn them.

Guess they will just have to deal with the aftermath once the spice works its way through their digestive system and wrecks their body for a second time.

[ultfan]

HYPER-SEXUALITY AND THE TRAGEDY.

it's sinday and that means i finally can talk about one of my favorite headcanons about komaeda in the tragedy. strap in folks — and hold your judgement because i know it sounds really fucking funny at first (and it is) but i promise i have deep thoughts about this.

as i've mentioned before, i do believe that komaeda would be hyper-sexual. and i do mean hyper-sexual — not that he has a high sex drive — but rather the fact it is an issue that plagues him and inconveniences him. this, rather than being a proper addiction or even a trauma response, is instead due to his ftd. meaning that this isn't really something he can work on/fix with therapy or most typical ways of treatment. however, hyper-sexuality is one of the handful of ftd symptoms that can be dealt with via medication. and i do believe that komaeda is medicated for his health issues.

however... once the tragedy hits i do not believe that he would be able to keep getting his prescriptions. and even if he could, i don't know if he would. be it the ultimate despair mindset or simply because he has bigger fish to fry. and so, it becomes something at the forefront of his mind again.

now, i have often seen the fandom depict komaeda in the tragedy as a sexual deviant. depravity is welcome in the tragedy and thus he is able to fuck freely. thanks to the existence of the servant persona, some people even go the extra mile with that... (personally, i don't think that "servant" existed prior to udg — but that's another thing for another time). however, despite everything i've said: i think komaeda was the least sexually active member of ultimate despair during their time of operation.

lerf — i hear you cry — how can this be?! well, let's talk about how ultimate despair is:

often it is easy to forget that ultimate despair isn't extremely hedonistic in their actions. they too despair — they may revel in it, but they do cause pain to themselves as they cause pain onto others. they'll kill and torture, but they'll also destroy their own families and bodies. ultimate despair is not indiscriminate in spreading despair. there is suffering on the part of everyone involved. be it via mutilating themselves, starving themselves, or something else.

and so i bring you the thing i have been alluding to for fucking weeks (maybe months???) on this blog at this point: the cage(tm).

aka: the komaeda chastity cage era.

okay, okay, get the giggles out because this is serious business (yes it's also really funny conceptually but stick with me). komaeda's hyper-sexuality is something that is gonna unfortunately plague his mind with constant sexual thoughts and desires. he literally cannot help it. and to prevent him fro alleviating these desires someone (likely junko <3 thanks queen) could lock him up in a chastity cage. which would not only make it fucking worse, but also completely stop him from getting any real satisfaction/gratification even if he did have a sexual encounter. in essence: he is fucking suffering ladies, gentleman, and everything in between.

it is a special brand of torment just for him. it's not a kink thing or anything like that — it's not fun for him at all. it's distracting, it's annoying, it's stressful, and it is a constant source of frustration. and before you comment, yeah this is logistically sound — he can pee, and depending on the type he can probably clean it pretty well if need be. i did my fucking research (i'm committed you guys).

anyway if junko doesn't keep the key i do think the idea of ultimate despair fucking trading it around is super fucking funny. taunt him, bully him, whatever. this is me fighting against overly sexualized version of tragedy komaeda. what if he was sopping wet and pathetic guys? have we considered this? well, now you have.

[einsatzzz]

Hello ❤️ I have some meta asks for your ocs

Kana: What controversies/drama would your character incite in fandom?

And (yes she gets two because I am biased and looking for crumbs)

What is the quote between your character and their love interest/whoever they might be shipped with that their fans would latch onto?

Kurumi: What would be the ‘incorrect but wildly popular’ interpretation of your character in fandom?

Yui: If your character had a breakout show/film/comic, what would the plot be? Who would be in their supporting cast?

- 🍎

Hello 🍎Anon 🫶✨👀 Thank you for sending this over and enabling me to yap more about my blorbos 🥰🥰🥰 I only know what to talk about when I draw them, but for pure text posts I often blank out on what to say, so I love asks! I will try my best to give you Kana crumbs too!

🍎Kana: What controversies/drama would your character incite in fandom?

If Kana were a canon character, Kana and controversies/drama are like blood brothers, like soulmates. They are a set package. It wasn't there at the start or perhaps there will be initial discourse about her gender. But fandom will find out eventually that they have bigger fish to fry. As more and more layers of her character gets revealed, the more fandom discourse there is. She is certainly not a character for people who view things in a black or white manner or those with low reading comprehension 😭🤣😭🤣 *looks at those gear grindingly loud mfs on twi//ter*

On the surface, she would prob be reduced to either a some kind of siscon (memes included) or straight-up a cruel/heartless character with ulterior motives ("maybe her love for Kurumi is just a facade? and she has ulterior motives?"). If you peel off the first few layers, you will see that she really does genuinely love Kurumi and her family, for better or for worse. If you peel off more layer, you will see an asshole. If you peel even more layers, you will see an even bigger asshole banned from hell.

Also do you know that one meme where they keep putting Oi\\kawa (from Hai\\kyuu, a VOLLEYBALL series) in a line up of actual villains/war criminals?

Kana would be there, except she kinda deserves to be there. People who don't get the joke would complain about why Oi//kawa keeps getting included in these fuckass lists that includes Kana and other messed up characters lmao (truthfully i didn't get it at first when i saw it and was lowkey pissed since im an oi//kawa oshi lmaooo now it's just funny every time i see it. still crazy to see him lined up with characters like d//io or aiz//en or gri//ffith like damn wwwwww)

Did you know? My favorite character from Monster is Joh//ann Lieb//ert hahahaha nothing important, just wanna say it haha,,,hahaha,,,,, pls ignore if you don't know Monster sdkjfsdhvfsd

🍎Kana: What is the quote between your character and their love interest/whoever they might be shipped with that their fans would latch onto?

The least spoilery thing I can come up with on the spot on is Hibari telling her "You're so stupid (affectionate & relieved)" after she does (and says) something objectively very stupid that could even give YuiRumi&family a heart attack & a stroke simultaneously.

Short, simple, effective. ME, personally, I will lose my mind and latch onto it even on my deathbed.

If you want something that could potentially come from a Kana POV, I do have a quote like this saved:

🎀Kurumi: What would be the ‘incorrect but wildly popular’ interpretation of your character in fandom?

For Kurumi, I think modern fandom would focus too much on her gender? There would be a divide in the fandom based on how they interpret the "Gender: ?" in her profile lmao We can see a lot of people insisting that she's non-binary. That's fine and all, everyone is free to interpret characters as they like (except if the creator has reiterated clear rules and boundaries for it). The problem is that we can also see people say that you can't refer to her as anything else but non-binary sjdgbhjsdfvhjsbfd

🤖Yui: If your character had a breakout show/film/comic, what would the plot be? Who would be in their supporting cast?

My understanding of this question is that it's asking for a Yui spin-off where he's the MC! It would be in a light novel format under the romantic comedy genre (with some sci-fi, perhaps? because he loves making robots hahaha inb4 it becomes a mecha story). The story's main couple would be him and Hiyori, because that's what Yui would've wanted. He is delusional and down bad.

In terms of shipping, we actually have three main ships we've committed to. It's just that I often end up posting about the two CanonxOC pairs more sjkdfjskdf but the third one is an OCxOC pair between Yui and Hiyori (YuiHiyo). Sowwwwyyy Yui! uwu Hiyorin is holding me at syringe-point and telling me to shut the fuck up about it.

[autumn-foxfire]

Oooh, are these the episodes where Shinichi almost gets caught by Gin in the locker? I think they are! I'm excited, that moment has such great HC potential!

Shinichi the moment he gets a hint of the BO: All care for his cover goes out the window and he gets reckless.

I'd say it's interesting that in a situation where the BO are involved, he isn't worried that Ran has accompanied them, when he won't even tell her his secret due to fearing the BO killing her, but I guess Gosho didn't think about that. No, wait, as I was writing this, Shinichi thought about it but he's quickly put any worries to the back of his head.

You know, Shinichi, if Kogoro and Ran were aware of your situation, they would be able to help you get the disk so much easier. Ran could use Shinichi's name to get it for him, saying the man might be related to a case he's investigating so he needs to check it. Just spitballing some ideas here for you, Shinichi.

How... how does Kogoro in these moments not realise that he is not the one solving the crimes T-T I know he's dumb and prideful at times but come on, he is smart enough to be a detective.

Shinichi using the victims dying message as a way to get the file he needs without raising suspicious, he's resourceful at least. And then once again Ran, in a very weird position in this series, is the one who hinders Shinichi.

Okay, I say it a lot but it's because I mean it, I love when we get to see Shinichi be rash and reckless, I love his flaws. He had to mentally talk himself down because he's got what he wants and now he just needs to leave but he can't do so without wrapping up what he had started even though he wants nothing more than to get away and follow the scent he's found. It's in these moments we see him be a teenage boy who just wants to return to his normal life so badly.

Then stop waiting, Ran. Stop waiting for a man you don't know will return and finally live your life. And when Shinichi comes back into it eventually, then you decide what you want to do.

And stop lying to yourself, Shinichi. You have changed, you aren't the boy she remembers, not anymore. You can't go through what you have without changing. The way you lie to her is the biggest proof that you have.

"Your always crying." She is, because Gosho doesn't know how to write her beyond crying love interest whose life revolves around a man and we hate it. Ran deserves better and I'll say it until I am blue in the face. It might seem like I complain about her writing more often than most but that's because hers is probably one of the worst in this series.

Shinichi, you shouldn't be running with such an important disk in your hand.

Shinichi's lack of interest in girls is so amusing. He's very gay, gay, homosexual, gay.

Oh, this episode introduces the soccer belt. You will become one of Shinichi's most feared weapons.

Agasa is much more fearful than Shinichi is XD

The dreaded coin locker. I can't wait!

My dog is trying to liveblog as well T-T

It's Shinichi's luck that he gets picked up by jewel thieves though. He must hate his life sometimes.

Shinichi: Can I go one moment without being involved in a crime?!

Life: No <3

Yamamura should not be a police officer. He's bragging about how he misused his gun...

Shinichi to the criminals: I'm sorry, I have bigger fish to fry than you two.

Imagine being shaded like that by a boy who looks like he's in grade school. I'd never live it down.

Shinichi really did not think this through. He's down two of his main weapons and he's going to confront criminals that have bested him multiple times.

Gin has got such a cool voice...

Gin helping his partner, how kind of him.

0219. A number that Shinichi is sure to never forget.

I LOVE THIS MOMENT SO MUCH. It's such a small one but it's such a good one to explore Shinichi developing trauma from almost being caught and killed. I did a small drabble on tumblr which involved him developing claustrophobia due to this, associating the small and suffocating spaces with almost being killed.

It's so great too because Shinichi resents Conan, he hates how his body has been altered and he can no longer live his previous life, and yet it's due to Conan that he is able to investigate the BO as well as he can, it's saved his life more than once.

Annnnd he's hiding the truth from Haibara T-T I know he said he would protect her but protection is not leaving them in ignorance. In fact, especially for Haibara, it puts them more in danger.

[mypoisonedvine]

i actually didn’t mean to send the last one on anon. i stand behind what i said. dark porn doesn’t make people want to commit rape. you know that. i know that. but good fanfic does make people want to watch and read the original content. it’s that simple.

and for it’s worth, i work in both these fields. i’m a social media and marketing coordinator for work and a political activist and organizer in my spare time. and shit like this gets really fucking exhausting. jk rowling, the money she spends, and the people who support her are doing real harm.

and yet so many people can’t give up a fucking fandom. it’s disappointing to say the least. and hurtful. - previous anon

I appreciate you explaining the difference between this issue and dark fic, I see your point. I think it's much more likely that somebody reading HP fic has already gotten everything they can out of the original material and will spend nearly all of their energy seeking out more free fan content and not more jkr sponsored works, but obviously it's possible.

I don't want more energy or attention going towards jkr but if for some godforsaken reason somebody decides to stream a movie because of me and she makes a fraction of a cent, I'm at peace with that. I had to accept a long time ago that SO many people of influence are problematic at least, and it's not realistic to only listen to music, use inventions, read books or consume media by perfectly wholesome people.

knowing how many trans people engage with this fandom, I feel like it's most unfair to ask them to disengage from something if its important to them.

so if you want me to own my choices, you came to the right place. I've apologized for mistakes when I really feel I made one, but at this point I can say with my whole chest I'm not gonna take down old HP fics or pretend I never wrote them. and that I'm well aware JKR is a piece of shit and these books have their own disturbing elements (i.e. racist plotlines and character depictions)

do I think nothing I do has ANY impact? of course not, I understand nothing happens in a vacuum. do I think I have any significant or even negligible impact on JKR's income? no, I don't think I do. and the money I give annually to trans charities hopefully can balance it out a bit. and with trans people losing their rights faster than ever, I just like to think we have bigger fish to fry than me reblogging a fic from years ago.

hope that gives you whatever you're looking for from me

[free-luigi-mangione]

yep, at this point the feds are only waiting for the state to see how it's gonna go and what sticks, so they can prepare their case against him based on that. i wish i was a fly on the wall because we have no idea about the evidence they have and whether he actually did it or not (he should walk free regardless, but if he's innocent then everything they have is total bs but they're going to try and frame him anyway) just to be a bit more prepared because this could go either really well or really bad, and it's killing me.

and i agree with what you said about the spirit of the law, even in my own country i've seen people end up for ages in jail for "trivial" stuff just because people were pissed about it and people who actually did horrible stuff serving for a few years because nobody gave a fuck. in luigi's case this could be a double edged sword, because they know that people would be pissed if they're too harsh on him (i don't even wanna take the dp into consideration for my own sanity) but at the same time powerful people want to make an example out of him, and unfortunately they seem to be in charge rn.

i'm really hoping people won't forget about him, these extentions make me feel like they're also looking forward to that. plus, like i stated in the past, i think making him the face of the healthcare movement fight (at least not rn) and/or like we've said a million times already (lol) being on his side but talking about him like he did it without granting him the benefit of the doubt isn't good for him because they'll be harsher on him. if we're looking at it from the "he's innocent" perspective, i believe him and his team haven't said anything about it because right now he can't afford to lose support and attention. hopefully you don't mind if i add my opinion about how, if he did it and wanted to be a "martyr" he'd be a whole lot vocal about the healthcare reform, could've asked for a plea deal. please forgive me if i also add that i hate how a lot of people took the karen letter an admission of guilt (as if he couldn't have been just sympathethic or taking it as an inspiring story to keep fighting and all of that) but didn't take the hash brown letter as a "i didn't do it so i'm joking about the fact that they arrested me for eating an hash brown because that's literally all i did" lol. all this just to say that hopefully we can all be more objective when his side of the story will be known. i don't think he did it, but i'm aware that there's a chance he actually did and i'm ready to support him regardless. just wish more people were a little more elastic and didn't jump to conclusions, because it could do him more harm than good.

and pls people finding his docker account is especially funny to me as a fellow swe💀 i'm so sorry for everything he's going through, i don't know how i'd feel if this had happened to me. he has a bigger fish to fry atm of course, but i wonder how he feels about it since we know he knows we've analyzed all his social media accounts.

that's all fair and good anon, but does your country have jury trials or bench trials?? because that makes a whole lot of differences. Luigi wouldn't be judged by judges or any experts at law, he'd be judged by his fellow citizens. the same fellow citizens who understand why if he did it, he did it. the same fellow citizens who are beyond pissed at the authorities and the current political climate in their country. if the citizens are truly by his side, it wouldn't matter if the authorities think they're in charge. them being in charge matters little when they can't give the final verdict at all. this is exactly why jury trials exist.

also no, even if he did do it, Luigi being more vocal about healthcare reform right now wouldn't help anybody. you speak of a plea deal, he'd get life without parole at best with that AND he'd also lose his voice and the ability to speak out for the people if he so wishes to in the future. so it genuinely wouldn't help a single person and even if he wants to, the public would lose their martyr whom they're projecting their issues onto and hoping things get better.

i agree with you on how you viewed those particular letters. also the hashbrown letter was just him joking, how many times do we say things like my only crime was to get up in the morning today because goddamn everything just sucked today. we all do that. he was just joking similarly. older people might have a hard time understanding gen z humour so that worries me but i get what he's saying and how he's coping with humour. and the karen letter is just him being empathetic, there's nothing more to that letter.

i genuinely don't get what people mean by 'when we get to hear his story'. we'll probably never hear him speak of it even if he did do it. why? he wouldn't take the stand if he wants to be free, because that would literally spell death for him. and even if he wanted to do it, he could potentially pull off a successful Marc Anthony. the prosecution would never let him do it. and his legal team is definitely fighting the charges, they're not gonna let him double down on it under any circumstances.

but regardless of that, he is innocent until and unless proven guilty. and even if he is, his letter of the law guilt shouldn't matter because then he should be freed because of the 'he's a hero' clause. so no matter what, he should walk free. and he deserves it either way.

[grecoisms]

title: a heap of broken images (2/3)

pairing: kim wexler x lalo salamanca

rating: M

summary: 

“The last time Kim threw up was on the way from Red Cloud to Lincoln, at age sixteen."

"And I will show you something different from either Your shadow at morning striding behind you Or your shadow at evening rising to meet you." t.s.eliot - the waste land

.

The last time Kim threw up was on the way from Red Cloud to Lincoln, at age sixteen. Her mum blamed it on her reading a book while on a bumpy road, but it turned out she had gotten the scarlet fever, immediately missing the first two weeks in her new high-school. Not that it mattered much: they moved to Fremont two months later, the book she had read on the road (Crime and Punishment) - along with most of her clothes - abandoned at that shabby Lincoln apartment. 

As she washes her face in the sink of the nearest bathroom, she doesn't remember whether she had even, had ever, finished that book. She remembers the heat in her cheeks and the sudden fever rash, spots all along her lanky body, the telltale sign of the illness, red like berries, red like blood.

Yes, Lalo Salamanca has those telltale sign of illness as well, red exclamation marks around him. He needn't even open his mouth, no, because he might be an illness himself, hollow and horrible - all hunger. He could see it in his grin, the delight when she noticed the blood stains on him. And even if her brain knows that secondary sources are to be taken with a pinch of salt, she still can easily imagine now what Pete said: Jorge De Guzmán sitting in the blood, with the calmest of faces, with the surest of hands. Those two, the ones who tried to kill him, never stood a chance. 

There is still bile in her throat as she stands before the mirror to smooth the folds on her skirt, her shirt, her face. No matter. She has to go back, has to see this through, because she cannot bear to think of the future yet, the one which seems to turn muddier by the seconds. 

Let's try to plan this by hour then, says her practical self. First MDC officials, then the persecution, if needed. And when Jimmy comes home, we will plan the rest together. Tackle each problem one by one.

Except.

When is Jimmy coming home, huh? says her other voice. Is he coming home around the time your father will? Haven't you learnt anything? 

But for Kim, this hypothetical loss is so unbearable that she shooes it right away. 

Okay then. Let's be practical, not ethical. How about giving Salamanca up? If you do it now, right today, he will rot in prison for the rest of his life and you and Jimmy can start anew. 

Except they can't. 

Because Jimmy has already agreed to help, has already helped: first Varga, then another man in the cartel, and finally Salamanca himself. Criminal activity, in the starkest sense. And you don't get witness protection if you help criminals. You get prison, or something that makes you feel like you're in one. 

Under the current circumstances, giving up Lalo means giving up Jimmy. Jimmy and what comes with him. A life of -

Let's look at it from a different angle then, the voice continues, what if there are no bigger fish to fry than this Salamanca? Who knows how important he is? After all, they did try to murder him this morning.

But, she counter-argues. That's probably quite normal in the drug-business. If not a shiv, then poison or a bullet in the back. 

Wondering would have to wait though. If her client lets anything slip in the future, she will be first to take a mental note of it and use it later, but right now, she has more pressing issues. No point in chasing alternatives while reality awaits. And ultimately she shouldn't get her hopes up, really: Salamanca doesn't look like a guy who lets anything "slip" either by fate or circumstance, unless he deliberately wanted someone to bite. 

And just for the record, she tries to remind herself while shooting one last look at her reflection in the mirror, the actual ethical choice would really be giving Salamanca up. 

.

"Miss Wexler" stutters Pete as he spots her in the shabby corridor, aiming for the door again. "I thought you have gone home."It's true that Kim left the room in such a hurry that the words she threw at Pete in passing couldn't have made too much sense. 

"Just got some water" Kim answers levelly and catches the guilty look on the guard's face. "What?"

The strained voices from the end of the corridor answer her question.

The end of the corridor - where the chipped door stands, slightly ajar. 

"So sor..." starts Pete, but Kim is already rushing past him, past the flyers, past the weathered door, her reluctance to return forgotten. 

Inside, there is a scene. 

Besides her client, there are three of them. And Kim heart sinks. Because in the bright-light of this cubicle room, she recognizes Gina Khalil, the assistant district attorney, almost instantly. She is the only one Kim knows, but doesn't bring any relief: the man he is talking to - a young man with glasses and a pasty complexion - seems like a lawyer. He must be the Center's representative. And worse still, just behind the accused there is another man, in a wrinkly suit, with graying hair. Most likely a cop. Ninety-eight percent. 

Just between the trio sits Salamanca, still handcuffed, the very image of curiosity and calm. He is very still.

Everything is working against Jimmy and her, but just a second after entering the room, Kim sees immediately she has one great advantage against these three.  Each of them want something different.

And they seemed to have just arrived at an impasse. 

"...clear that we need to write him up, then move him to PC before we face another scandal like this" says the spectacled man with the pasty smile. "It's clear that he is in danger here. God, if this gets out, we're in it. Remember that Florentine fella, Tim? The amount of asses we had to kiss after that..."

"Do you hear yourself, Simon?" cuts in Khalil, before Tim, the detective could answer. "He clearly needs to be moved to Los Lunas, as soon as, not protective custody."

"Excuse me" says Kim, one leg in the room, the other still outside. Hardly any air left between the five of them.

Heads turn. 

"Who are you?" asks Simon, the ninety-eight percent lawyer. 

"Kim!" exclaims Khalil. "We didn't expect you."

"Well, maybe you should have" Kim says - meets Khalil's eyes with a dare. "Since I'm representing Mr. de Guzmán in Saul Goodman's absence."

Khalil's jaw drops. So does Simon's. 

Behind them, the detective looks weary. Like he doesn't want to be here. 

And Kim, who is otherwise very wise in reading people's expressions, cannot pinpoint what Lalo Salamanca is thinking at the moment. He has a careful kind of mask on, almost humble. Emphasis on almost. 

She looks back to the corridor, where another guard steps near Pete, and starts to talk to him in a low voice.

Just perfect. 

"Well" says Kim, and decides to step in for good, close the door. All in, all rise, or something akin to it. "If we are going to discuss this case out in the open, without any previous, written arrangements, we might as well sit."

She cuts her way to the table, sits next to her client who still smells metallic, who now casts his eyes downward, the very image of civility. He has long, dark lashes: they cast zig-zag shadows under his eyes. 

It's a strange detail to notice here, in this moment. 

"We are simply talking possibilities, Miss Wexler." Simon points out. "Important distinction."

"No, Simon" argues Khalil. "We are talking about possible new evidence, under our very eyes."

While Simon starts a mundane monologue about protocols in PR within the center, and just while the cop moves to sit just in front of them, papers in his hands, questions scribbled on a notebook, Kim slightly turns to Lalo, voice just audible. 

"Did you say anything?"

Lalo shoots him a quick, and very ugly look, which she translates to "no".

"... care less about publicity" Khalil lashes back. "The Whalen-case is still in progress. And Mr. de Guzmán is facing, as the judge aptly summarized, severe charges."

"And he was warranted bail" points out Kim. "Because your witness was unreliable."

Gina Khalil's shrewd eyes narrow.

"Kim. Be reasonable. We are adults here. Do you think what happened last night..."

"This morning." Simon corrects her, uncaring both women shoot him a murderous look.

"What happened earlier" continues Khalil, voice icy. "cannot be a coincidence."

"Do you think Fred Whalen's family orchestrated an assassination as retaliation?" asks Kim in a bland voice. "Because that would be quite ridiculous, wouldn't you say?"

"Gina" says the cop suddenly, voice deep, soothing. "How about we all take a seat and explain ourselves a bit better. Simon, would you join us, too, please?"

After both the attorney and representative grudgingly sat down, the cop turns to Kim once again, palms open, face friendly.

"Ma'am, my name is Detective Tim Roberts. I'm sure you know Miss Khalil. And this is Simon Ellis, from the Center."

The detective sighs, gets a linen handkerchief from the pocket of his shirt, and dabs his face with it. Must be the lights, must be the humidity. 

He leans forward as he puts back the linen in his pocket. 

"The District Attorney's Bureau asked me this morning to inquire some more from your client, you know, to hear his side of the story. We're not sure what happened, and it would be a great help if we could, y'know, clear the air. Would do good for Mr. de Guzmán as well."

Oh, I'm sure it would, thinks Kim. Would get him a free pass straight to Los Lunas. 

She must tread cautiously. 

"We are ready to make a formal statement as of today" she says after a small pause. "A written, well-formed statement, without any external or unwanted pressure."

"Except a man was killed. Another injured." inserts Khalil, brows knitted together. "Do you see how that would overthrow regular bureaucratic procedures?"

Kim stands his ground.

"I do not, really. The men we are talking about tried to murder my client, so, Gina, do you see how putting the blame on him is unfair?"

"No one is blaming anyone." intervenes Roberts. "We are following a lead."

Kim turns to the fidgeting lawyer, changing strategy. 

"What is the Detention Center's answer again?" 

"Well, it's an offer, rather." says the young man, every inch self-important. "As you might know, one of the assailants survived, but has been unconscious. Until he wakes, we are prepared to offer Mr. de Guzmán his own cell in Wing C. It won't mean unnecessary inconveniences given the doctors predicted the assailant may wa-"

"Ellis!" the detective raises his voice. Seems the lawyer isn't fond of tact. 

"That's okay" says Khalil, eyeing Roberts, then turning to them. "Let this be a warning. Either Mr. de Guzmán talks or the assailant will. So why not turn this to your advantage and prevent libel if you have nothing to hide?"

"Interesting point." Kim reaches for the two papers next to Lalo's hands, jaw tight. Strange, but she dares not look at him. "But Mr. de Guzmán hasn't been incarcerated yet and has full rights to express his own wishes and complaints, if necessary."

"What complaints?" blurts out Ellis. 

"Let me see" says Kim, placing the papers in front of them. "First: despite being the one attacked, I do not think you provided my client with any kind of medical care. Second: he is still in the uniform he was attacked in - you didn't even let him wash his hands. And third, you have engaged with him without my or Mr. Goodman's presence. From where I'm standing, these all sound like violation of rights."

This takes Ellis by surprise. But not the detective, who looks at Jorge de Guzmán, blinking slowly. 

"Are you sure you don't want to talk to us now?" he motions to the handcuffs. "Last chance, probably."

And before Kim can say but a word, Lalo speaks.

He addresses Ellis, not the detective.

"Could my family visit me in Wing C?"

Kim tries to order her face in a way that doesn't scream of complete shock. 

The other party doesn't bother with trying.

"Wha... I mean... I'm sure that could be arranged." stutters Ellis, pasty face white under the strain of the last fifteen minutes.

"My children too?" asks Lalo, tilting his head. 

"Sure."

"And her?" he asks, gesturing to Kim. 

"Naturally."

"Good" nods Lalo, and leans back, seemingly done with the conversation. 

"Are we done?" asks Kim, echoing thought.

"Miss Wexler" starts Ellis with a special kind of condescension. "About the complaints..."

"We can discuss it at the forecoming meeting, I hope." she hands him both sheets, fleetingly checking if Lalo has filled them, which he did, probably when she was busy vomiting up bile in the bathroom. "Here you are. One of them has become redundant in light of my client accepting his new cell."

She stands up exactly when Lalo decides to stand up. 

It's strange how big he is, not just in the physical sense necessarily, but his allure. A new tenseness enters the room, Kim can see Roberts' eyes widening, almost an instinct, and Khalil lean back, suspicion turning to concern. Stupidest still is Ellis who is strangely unaware of this twist in the atmosphere. 

"Sure" he says, grudgingly, still seated. He checks the first paper, the request for an out-of-court hearing. "I will send an officer to move Mr. de Guzmán to his new cell."

Deep in thought, it only occurs to Kim when they are already packed and ready that she didn't finish talking with Lalo. 

"Actually, can I have a word with him alone before you take him? Preferably somewhere with coffee?"

Elliot, who stands closest to that shabby, weathered door shouts out to Pete to lead them to the small patio. 

"Ten minutes" he says airily, before hurrying out. 

Detective Roberts doesn't spare them a second glance or a goodbye.

Unlike Gina Khalil. 

"I'm going to call Ericsen tomorrow" her voice is stern, as if Kim was a schoolgirl caught sneaking out. "All of this is very unlike you, Kim."

And while her voice is hard, her eyes have pity in them. 

.

"That was a pretty load of bullshit you pulled" says Kim unceremoniously, sitting down, careful to show her back to Pete, who is on the other side of the glass doors surrounding the small garden. The sun, like a disappointed father, glared down on them with full force, shade nowhere. Kim has spotted a huge green lizard sunbathing on the sandstone mural just in front of the tired bench they occupy.

Could be worse. 

At least, the first round is over, and there is air outside, with the sweet-smelling wind occassionally tugging on Kim's slightly wrinkled, sweaty shirt. 

She has brought coffee, which Lalo declined with a wave of his hand. He would never say, but Kim sees that he enjoys the sunlight, the five minute freedom the small patio gives, however artificial. Tilts his head back, drinks it in, eyes closed legs stretched. His hands are still cuffed, the skin reddened and dry under the metal. Under this natural light, the red of the blood looks positively brown, as if Kim has poured down half a liter of coffee on him. Or more. 

"Ver la paja en el ojo ajeno, eh?" Lalo squints his eyes, amused. "Letter of complaint and the like. Tienes algunas pelotas..."

"You wanted results" retorts Kim calmly. "Here they are. First problem solved, second is incoming."

"You really thought of everything, huh." he stretches his arms, the tattoo dancing in the movement.

"I like to be prepared" says Kim, searching her bag for the de Guzmán file. "You got this story strong? How long will it hold?"

"It's not going to be a problem if Goodman arrives with the money."

"And if he..." Kim cannot finish the sentence, the thought, the scenario. Even now, life without Jimmy is like living without her shadow. She feels like a halfperson. 

Focus.

In this moment, in this garden Lalo is peering down at him, with a leering sort of anticipation. Does he get off on pain, Kim wonders. 

"Well, then you and I are going to have a problem." he says, voice kind, eyes cruel. 

"Okay, let's say he turns up in a week. Would that still work?"

"Sure" laughs Lalo. "Ay, cualquier cosa por la reina!"

She sighs. She might have to invest in a Spanish dictionary if they are to meet daily.

"Okay, they are going to try sweating you today. What is Jorge de Guzmán doing in Albuquerque?"

"Raising children with his lovely wife."

"Do you really have a family?"

Lalo makes a sound between a whistle and a sigh. 

"Doesn't everyone?" he raises his brows. "Don't you?"

"You know what I mean."

"Goodman got me a real nice gringo family. That's what your lot likes, no?"

"What, children, too?" Kim wonders who Jimmy paid and for how long. God. 

"Yes!" Lalo stretches the final 's', stringlike. "Family means a lot to me. Do you have children, Mrs. Goodman?"

"No." Kim wonders when did their harmless conversation turn dangerously personal. There is a boundary to set. "But my life won't interest the lawyers."

"Mah, but we are talking, no? Where's the fun in just formalities?" he puts his cuffed on his chest. Heart on sleeves. Most of his nails are bloody.

However focused she tries to be, a sickening suspicion suddenly arises in Kim's mind: Lalo Salamanca looks like he copied most of his movements from pictures, or old movies. He even exaggerates a bit, like in those black and whites, to make it more dramatic. Make it more human.

She supresses a shudder. 

"We don't have too much time. What about the debt story?"

Lalo mock-pouts, leans closer. This time, he smells of the sun, and something tart. It's far better than blood. 

"Let's say.... that my father used to work on a farm where they worked him hard, for little money. He asked the owner, who was... let's say a Chilean, he asked him one day for a great sum, for us, for his family. But he put interest on the loan over the years... y mi padre no pudo soportarlo, my dad couldn't take it. He died, so it was my task to pay the debt. And I did" something black glimmers in his eyes. "But that owner...well he never lets go."

"They will want to know the name of the Chilean."

"It's an old story" shrugs Lalo. "I'll say I have some mental problems."

Well, that's apparent. 

"Where was de Guzmán born?"

"Juárez, 1962."

"You couldn't forge a fake American ID?" asks Kim sarcastically. 

Lalo's face freezes at that, but only for a second. 

"Why, you know these parts better?" he asks, all low. 

"No, I wasn't born in New Mexico." it slips out easily, although there is a siren going off in her head. Trouble. 

Behind them, the door opens. 

A slice of Pete's face appears, a warning.

"Two minutes."

Kim waits until the door closes again. 

"Okay, so when did you get married to your lovely wife?"

"I dunno, three years ago." 

They are sitting very close now: Lalo's elbow touches hers. Under the brown blood, he has freckles and birthmarks, a constellation on the skin. 

"What's her name?" asks Kim. 

Lalo shrugs. 

"Will give her one while I'm eating my lunch." he cooes. "Come on, I need your number."

According to protocol, he isn't allowed to carry any paper with him inside the cell, so Kim writes her number on his outstretched palm, skin dry and warm. She thinks of the desert, and Jimmy, wandering with seven million bucks that will save Lalo, but damn him at the same time. And it will damn Jimmy too. Maybe that's why he is taking his time. 

The blood on Lalo's palms has dried a long time ago. 

When Kim presses the pen down, specks of residue fall on the bench, fall on her skirt. 

[mx-piggy]

may i ask what your age is around and if you happen to be american? out of pure curiosity. bc i’m wondering what your point is going to be after making those assumptions/questions about marauders and sp. bc reading through them, some of them were vaguely interesting points but most of them gave me the impression (correct me if i’m wrong) that you condemn interaction with ‘problematic’ material like marauders/sp even if NOT financially supporting them. which… just reeks of moral purism and being out of touch with people who are not in trenched in fandom (which is of course the vast majority of people). the idea that if you like something with problematic aspects you are yourself therefore problematic- despite you yourself admitting you like sp you then still self admittedly seem to try to cast that light on marauders fans. neither of these source materials are deeply ‘problematic’. sp has had many moments of it, some of them addressed and some not, and has ‘bad’/dark humour. marauders is connected to JK and her world, so i suppose it doesn’t matter how transformative the work is it remains ‘tainted’ by her and the worldbuilding certainly had problematic roots in some things (house elves, ect). but i guess my question would be, what media have you ever consumed that did not have problematic aspects of it? why do especially younger (teens/early 20s) left leaning online activists think that fandom is activism? that even if someone acknowledges the problematic aspects and clearly demonstrates they themselves do not believe in them, they are still committing a moral failing for still liking the source material or engaging in transformative works- again, even when not supporting the creator financially. there is no perfect media and to be clear, yes you are completely hypocritical for feeling morally superior to marauders fans as a sp one, coming from someone who likes both. it just blows my mind how both immature and naive a worldview this is. the average person outside of fandom, or even the average leftist outside of fandom, do not think twice about this imaginary sliding scale of problematicness between what movies or shows you like, their activism is usually focused on material issues. there exists two types of media in this word; one with problematic aspects and one that is intrenched deeply with problematic aspects. finding moral superiority or basing your assumptions on someone’s politics over what fandom they’re in because it’s problematic aspects are vaguely different or worse than the fandom your in is sooo…. yeah no it’s just immature and naive. now, all that to say, you made references to all of this thought process in your post, so you may actually vaguely agree with me and just not be applying it to yourself? i’m not sure. regardless, i’d say that we will always have bigger fish to fry (and yes two issues can exist at once but again this ‘issue’ seems to be for young people to pat themselves on the back over) and that if you point me to a utopia with no problematic media/material, i will be forced to point you to a world without humans. we can always try to be better, try to be as moral as possible and aware of issues in the media we consume, but to feel like someone is morally impure or compromised because of that is shockingly black and white. but, correct me if you do not feel this way, though then you must explain why you hold animosity towards marauders fans then -\_(•_•)_/-

re: this post, for anyone wondering.

cw: for discussions about transphobia and neil gaiman.

(apologies if i fail to address anything, or if i don't do it adequately. i'm fucking exhausted but i thought it was important to get this out here)

hi! so, first off, i'm 19 and british.

i 100% get that the intentions of my assumptions/questions are unclear, or might suggest that my essay-type-thing's intent is to be judgemental, particularly towards Marauders fans.

granted, like everyone, i have a notion of what i think people in specific fandoms are like, and sometimes that idea is probably more negative- negative in the sense that sometimes fans in certain fandoms can be a little intense and take fandom way too seriously in a way that stresses me out, if that makes sense. none of these assumptions are personal judgements against the morality of these fans as individuals or the fandom as a whole. i think it's a chronically online take to say 'if you like this piece of media you are an irredeemable prick'. more often than not, that statement is ridiculous given how inconsequential that piece of media is to the world, and the 'irredeemable prick' in question is probably just some guy (gender neutral). people are well within their rights to enjoy things and create things based on that enjoyment.

so, i'm someone who finds it quite weird and obnoxious when people- usually younger people, in my experience- try to equate fandom with morality and moral purity. i don't consider myself one of those people for the most part.

to explain the exception to that, i will admit that, as a trans and nonbinary person, i have a bit of a problem with people who continue to financially support Harry Potter and JKR; i find it distasteful and it's frustrating because of how harmful and massive JKR's platform is. although i would rather people just not engage with Harry Potter and let the franchise die, i respect everyone's right to engage with whatever they want, however they want to engage with it. i'll direct you to a bluesky thread of mine that covers my feelings, but if you don't want to read it, to me, it feels like people who continue to engage with Harry Potter uncritically care more about a fictional teenager in a fictional world than they do real-life trans people whose real lives JKR is making worse. call me an asshole but, as a trans person, having to go to work and serve customers who would rather spend however many dollars/pounds on a piece of crap Harry Potter merch than donate it to a trans-supportive charity makes me want to just stop existing.

i'm of this opinion that 'giving money to JKR = bad' because of how JKR uses her platform unlike any other creator i've seen, aside from maybe Graham Linehan, but even then his influence and impact is microscopic compared to that of JKR, so, for me, i still feel comfortable engaging with his shows. the wider consensus of Linehan is that he's a sad little man who made good shows, so it's not like continuing to enjoy his work will do as much harm compared to showing support for the more well-respected children's author J.K. Rowling. JKR's unpunished transphobia, for me and many others, has eclipsed any good i can take from her work. call me a hypocrite, but i feel like it's my call to make as a trans/nonbinary person which gender-critical creators' work i can still engage with and whose i can't. Harry Potter is probably the biggest IP in the world. JKR is one of the world's most successful authors. meanwhile the IT Crowd and Linehan are far smaller in their reach. if i do ever give the IT Crowd a rewatch, though, i'll sail the seven seas.

i think it's a complex conversation around whose work you support and whose you don't, and how you support it, if at all. and, is reading someone's book without paying for it supporting it? it's complex and a lot of your boundaries are down to personal comfort. a lot of creators do awful things, such as disgraced author Neil Gaiman, and usually the only baseline boundary set is to not give such creators any more money. some people will be able to engage with his work still, but some won't.

similarly, i think a lot of media has problematic elements- poorly aged jokes, actors who have turned out to be awful people, plotlines that are racist, transphobic, homophobic- so it makes it a pretty complex thing to reckon with. one of my favourite shows of all-time, How I Met Your Mother, has plenty of regrettable jokes. i can see why people wouldn't want to give it the time of day, or might question me for loving it so much if i didn't call out the jokes about trans women being men.

personally, i view the Marauders fandom as being a separate thing to the wider Harry Potter fandom. i'm a little ambivalent of it because, as someone who has no attachment to it, i can't help but, to an extent, see it as another unnecessary thing that is maintaining the lifespan of Harry Potter, which means that JKR's relevancy and influence is still going strong. however, and this is a big however, seeing as it's so divorced from Harry Potter and is so fan-driven, i'm more willing to approve of people's participation in it- not that anyone needs my approval for anything. my problem will always be more with people who financially support Harry Potter, but i still have an issue with the fact that so many people continue to talk uncritically about Harry Potter, as though its creator isn't at all comparable to her story's villain. but, the fact that most Marauders fans seem to be anti-JKR and have shaped this pocket of the Wizarding World for themselves- i'd assume, in part, to reject the creator whose work they have build upon- means that i can't really see the Marauders fandom as being nearly as egregious as a bunch of wilfully ignorant 20-to-30-year-olds whose disregard for real-life trans people leads them to give money to and maintain the relevancy of a transphobe. i can't blame Marauders fans in the same way that i can Harry Potter fans.

with South Park, as someone who's watched a lot of it and has a fondness for it, i can't see it as just 'the racist little boys show' that so many people on here especially boil it down to being. i also recognise that watching it when you're young probably isn't a great idea, because, having watched it since i was 9, i, until my early teens, figured that it was okay to make offensive jokes like they did on South Park, because i lacked the media literacy to understand a lot of the show's messaging.

my essay is going to be about transmasculinity/queerness and fandom, with regards to the Marauders and South Park fandoms in particular. a while ago i was wondering why exactly South Park is so popular with young, queer people on Tumblr and AO3, considering most of them are likely progressive, and the show is fairly Libertarian (?) and not concerned with political correctness. i wondered if, for transmasc people specifically, it was because they are able to use it as a form of wish-fulfilment of getting to experience boyhood, if that makes sense. i think i commented it somewhere on Tumblr, and someone responded confirming that my idea resonated with their connection to the show.

fast-forward to last week, i started writing a blog post about the casting of John Lithgow, and within the post i wrote a bit about my opinion on people who still engage with Harry Potter, which is that i find it distasteful to keep engaging with Harry Potter as though its creator isn't spreading misinformation about trans people and financially contributing to anti-trans causes. i wrote a tangent about the Marauders fandom, going into the complexity of it compared to just being a Harry Potter fan, where it is questionable- if not objectionable- to still be into Harry Potter when its legacy is so tied to transphobia, but also a lot of its fans are probably queer- trans or trans allies- and from what i've seen compared to the wider Harry Potter fandom, the Marauders fans are more outspoken in their anti-JKR stances.

spending so much time thinking about the Marauders fandom for that post got me wondering if trans Marauders fans might also have that connection to the Marauders fandom from a perspective of getting to explore boyhood through these often queer-interpreted characters. additionally, like South Park, i connected that both pieces of media have ties to transmisogyny. so, i also wanted to ponder the complex ethics of being transmasc or AFAB trans/nonbinary and still engaging with a piece of media that has ties to the belittlement of transfems and trans women. a big question i want to consider is that, as a transmasc or AFAB trans/nonbinary person, is there anything wrong with engaging with media that has platformed the degradation of transfems. does your own transness give you the right to excuse transphobia that isn't entirely directed at you? i don't think it can be concrete 'yes' or 'no' thing. and, i thought it would be an interesting thing to explore given i'm AFAB trans/nonbinary, and i'm fascinated with fandom. my essay-thing aims to be nuanced, not black and white.

tldr: i don't think i'm better than or morally superior to anyone. other than, y'know, people who still give money to the world's biggest transphobe, which i think is pretty reasonable all in all.

full disclosure, if anyone else wants to contact me with any concerns about my post, can you try to not be so passive-aggressive? not to be an asshole to whoever this person is but i feel like they took my post in bad faith (or maybe i'm missing something; let me know). i think my post was pretty friendly and transparent in its intentions, enough for at least 5 people so far to feel comfortable getting in touch with me giving me their responses. i sort of get where Anon's coming from, because i know how judgemental people can be about fandoms, but i think this was unnecessarily hostile. it's the kind of response that is exactly why big fandoms make me so anxious. but, also, if i did come across that way in that post, i'm sorry. sometimes i don't realise how i come across (i'm probably autistic, i won't lie), and i assume my intentions are obvious when they're not, or i'll include things without fully thinking about their impact. but, my intentions with this aren't malicious, and i don't have any animosity towards Marauders fans. i'm kind of stressed out about this now after getting this ask so i really want everyone to know that i'm not trying to mock or belittle people or anything. i just wanted to write about something that i find interesting. but, i wanted to get some input from people in the fandom so i can have a more informed opinion.

thanks to everyone who has responded to my post so far, and thanks to everyone who has been kind and hasn't assumed the worst of me. i hope that my post really didn't imply that i assumed the worst of you guys. and, if it did, i'm sorry. i don't think i'm better than you.

[minato-division01]

Meari's Thoughts on Obihiro Division

Hisoka Tetsumasu

"Hisoka Tetsumasu? The guy behind the illegal HypMics? Yeah, Doc told me about him, though much of what she said went over my head. I mean, can you blame me? The guy's a total chickenshit, hiding behind his ranch like it's some kind of goddamn fortress!"

"Sure, he's got his horses, and I'll give him that—horses are cool. My band and I used some in a music video once, and it was badass. But that's where my interest ends. His past with the black market and all that illegal HypMic stuff? It's a joke. He thinks he can just erase all that with a change of scenery? Please."

"I've got no time for cowards. If you're gonna do something, own up to it. Don't run away and pretend to be something you're fucking not. This guy's living proof that you can take the man out of the crime, but you can't take the crime out of the man. He's trying to play it safe now, but trust me: once a scoundrel, always a scoundrel. I'm not buying his little 'reformed' act. As far as I'm concerned, he can keep to his little ranch. I've got bigger stages to conquer."

Daiki Kamiyama

"This fucking kid! He's got his fucking head in the clouds, thinking he's some kind of damn superhero. It's all fun and games until reality hits you like a ton of fucking bricks. I'm all for self-reliance and carving your own path, but let's get real—playing vigilante isn't going to cut it. Kids his age need to wake the fuck up, face the music, and start pulling their own weight. Life's not a comic book, and the sooner he realizes that, the better."

"And if he sees me as some sort of 'supervillain,' well, that’s just fucking perfect. I'll embrace that role with open arms. It's about time someone showed him what real fucking power looks like, and I've got no problem being the one to do it! When we face off in the D.R.B., he'll see just how serious I am. I'm not here to play hero—I'm here to win, and if that makes me the bad guy in his little fantasy, so be it! Let the fucking games begin!"

Jack Verrill

"The butler, trailing after the kid like some kind of watchdog? It's almost fucking pitiful. The guy's got skills, I'll give him that, but babysitting a wannabe hero? That's a waste of talent if you ask me. If he's supposed to be in charge, he should be teaching the kid how to stand on his own damn feet, not fucking coddling him! He should be using his position to give the kid a fucking reality check, not enabling his little delusions."

"But hey, that's their dynamic, not mine. As long as it doesn't interfere with my business, they can do whatever the hell they want. I've got my own path to tread, and it doesn’t include playing nanny to some fucking rich kid."

Veiled Vanguard

"Let's be real, there are bigger fish to fry, and I'm not about to get distracted by fucking small fry like these guys. If they cross us, sure, I'll show them what it means to face off against Minato. Otherwise, some other team can have the pleasure of dealing with them. I've got my sights set on the top, and I don't plan on stopping until we fucking get there."

[moonstruckme]

Oh babe I read your post about graduation and life after. I FEEL YOU SO MUCH!!!!!!! I’m graduating Friday and I pursued a film degree in a city with little to no opportunities for that industry. Don’t know why I did that. Sorry to my parents who sacrificed a lot to put me through school. Moving to a bigger city is not an option bc I can’t afford it. Might be moving back in with my parents might not be. Everyone is asking whats next for me. Girl idk. I’m stressed I’m anxious. I hate it here. The real world sucks and I just want to skip over all this character building stuff and get to the part of my life where I’m happy with a career and can actually afford groceries. Sometimes I wish my dreams weren’t as big.

Hi gorgeous! First of all, I'm so sorry you feel that way. I promise your degree has value whether you feel like you can get a job out of it right away or not, and I won't pretend to know how your parents feel but I doubt they would have sacrified anything if they didn't feel your education was worthwhile. Graduating from college is a big deal nonetheless ! We both know I'm struggling with this too but I have some pieces of advice that have been given to me and I've found helpful if you want them <3

Obviously, "almost no one works in something related to their degree" is a really disheartening thing to hear, and I bet you've been hearing it (like I have) a lot lately. But what I think the people who say that are trying to convey is that there is no shame in just doing a job that makes some money (and preferably also makes you happy), and sometimes that financial security can help you pursue your dreams with a bit more surety since you're no longer trying to find a way to eat at the same time.

A few months ago, I talked to my mom about how guilty I feel about potentially not being able to get a job relevant to my degree after she helped put me through college, and while I know not all parents feel the same way about this, I think she made some great points. She said that college is about learning how to think, and your education and the experiences you've had in college will always be valuable no matter what job you end up with. And did you have a good time? Did you like learning all those things you did about film? Did you meet some cool friends, or get to talk about your interests with people who get it? If so, none of it was wasted.

It's so, so easy to feel pressure from others when you're trying to figure out your life post-grad, but in my experience most of that pressure is really internal. People ask what's next for you because they're interested, not becuase they have any one specific path in mind, and the vast majority of the time if you seem happy, they're happy. If you're not happy, fuck it! Then your priority should probably be getting to a place where you are happy, and those conversations really don't matter when you've got bigger fish to fry.

Last thing, but as someone also struggling to re-orient herself in her life plan, I've been taking a lot of time to figure out my priorities. I kind of got stuck in this idea of what my life was going to be, and once that seemed less certain I started questioning what I wanted if I didn't have to do that. I'm making a pinterest board (always my first course of action haha), and it's helped me figure out that whatever I do, I want to be around nature and books, and to live in a mid-size city. Figuring out what I need to be happy has really put things into perspective for me, and I'm sorry I don't mean to assume we're in the exact same mental state but I just want to give you all the stuff that's been working for me in case any of it fits into your situation too.

You can still use your passion in film while working another job, or use that job to save to move to a larger city, or maybe even reflect and find that you're content keeping the film thing as a hobby and there's something else you enjoy doing for a career (I know how heartbreaking that can sound when you love something, but that's how writing has turned out for me so I just wanted to put it out there--feel free to reject it of course). For me, trying to open my mind to all the possibilities and re-evaluate what I want from the next few years has been super scary but also kind of exciting, and I hope that whatever happens for you you're able to find happiness in the big and little things. Wishing you all the best my love!

[yuespropagandablog]

Da pride flags discourse, that I put on an unofficial Glee spin-off Discord channel, and also the reason I was late for grocery shopping with @beef-smell.

[11:12][barges in] ARE WE READY FOR SOME QUEER FLAG DISCOURSE?

[11:12]Like.... ugh... this has just been on my mind a lot lately and I always feel a bit iffy bitching about the pride flags because I am also of the belief that we as a community have bigger fish to fry than debating on, idk, what shade of purple we like best, but I have sort of realised that there seems to be a trend of queer history being erased and I am just not liking it at all

[11:14]And I also feel iffy about bitching cause I am also fully aware that newer flags like the mlm flag and aroace flag mean a lot to some people and I don't want to discredit that either but a while ago I went to an info night about the bi umberella and it was neat and all that, but the discussion of bi vs. pan arose and transphobia in bi/pan spaces and what not, and someone (who is bi) said that they didn't like that the bi flag did feel inheritely transphobic because the pink stands for attraction to women and the blue for attraction to men and I just sat there like "no it fucking doesn't?"

[11:15]I explained that there are things to criticise about the original definition of the colours since pink stands for homosexuality (due to triangle yada yada) aka attraction to same sex and blue for heterosexuality aka attraction to opposite sex and the overlap of purple is bisexuality where whatever sex/gender doesn't matter, cause it implies that bisexuality is half-heterosexuality

[11:16]But they said that they heard the pink = girls, blue = boys from the host of the monthly bi meet-ups in town and I did have a moment of "how.... are you going all in for bi liberation, bi visibility, bi representation and bi rights and then not know your bi history????"

[11:17]And these are just things I keep thinking about, same with the progress flag. I love the idea of the progress flag, but not the execution cause it kind of feels less inclusive now? Yay I love the addition of the intersex flag, but also, now you can wonder "but where is the ace/bi/pan/lesbian/poly/etc. flag HUH, don't they belong too??" whereas the original rainbow flag (8 or 6 stripes)(edited)

[11:18]was always meant to be for everyone. EVERYONE. And it kind of feels disrespectful towards Gilbert Baker (and in the bi flag, Michael Page and Lia Narnia) to just completely disregard the work and meanings that went into making the flag?

[11:18]"Listen to queer elders/queer history" my ass, apparently?

[11:19]And not to say that things cannot change, cause the point of learning from history is also to know how to move on from that, but I feel like the changes that are implemented, sometimes at rapid pace, do it without even thinking about history?

[11:20]Same with that toothpaste MLM flag, that was created because people thought that the rainbow flag was only for gay men at one point. No?

[11:20]It never was?

[11:20]Again, it is for EVERYONE.

[11:21]And I get why people may have started believing that, but instead of working hard to correct that misconception, this other flag just arose and I'm like of like "sure, if gay men also want their own flag, that's fine", but genuinely a lot of people who use that seem to be younger kids who do believe it stems from a need to separate themselves from the rainbow flag. I mean there are probably more reasons and I also don't want to discredit the people who made the MLM flag either, cause I assume they put thought in it too, but when I hear the argument from some people that the MLM flag was needed since before that "there was only the rainbow flag for gay men" my eyes roll so hard.(edited)

[11:21](Also, welcome to the queer community, where gay men wear blue and gay women wear pink I guess)

[11:22]Which, with the lesbian flag... My organisation recently made stickers with the design and my first question that came to my mind was "did we pay Emily Gwen?" but I am pretty certain most of us don't even know who Emily Gwen is

[11:23]To go back to the progress flag: Gilbert Baker even updated the 8 stripe flag with a 9th stripe that stands for diversity. To be honest I find that flag so much better in so many ways compared to the progress flag where we keep tacking stuff on, but no one seems to know it (and I've heard stories of his estate being weird af too about the usage of his designs, which, ya know, is not what he wanted).

[11:24]I mean, don't get me wrong, I like the idea of the progress flag and if someone starts bitching about "ugh everyone needs to be included these days" I become the progress flag's biggest lover in the world, but I do find it a bit troubling that there's this pressure to move away from the rainbow flag since it's "not inclusive".

[11:28]Flags change. That isn't necessarily a bad thing. It's honestly also interesting to see. I have an artwork that I made in 2016 with flags and the nb flag, lesbian flag, aroace flag, MLM flag and progress flag aren't even on it, because they weren't used in the current iteration or they didn't even exist that much back then, but the genderqueer flag IS there, since that was more often used than the nb flag. But knowing where those changes came from and why they happened feels so much more productive and constructive than just going "ya it was bad for X, Y, Z" with X, Y, Z sometimes not even being true.

[11:29]Especially since spreading falsehoods even prevents us as a community from reflecting on our history in a critical way (i.e. the history of the bi flag). The purity idea of "it was always bad so we need to discard it and never look back" is just not a great idea.