#dropping an excerpt

[buttertheflame]

For All You Give (I’ll Give It Back to You) ❄️🥾❄️

*excerpt from Chapter 3: “Just Like Christmas”*

I love you, I love you. It was a feeling in her heart, a notion on her mind, that got stirred up by the cold press of his lips. After changing, they were able to make their hearty dinner of fried beef and potatoes in the skillet and wolfed it down. Yet it stayed with her even as he took her by the hand and led her outside their hot tent an hour later. The waxing moon was already rising, peeking through thin clouds and the stars were shining bright.

A Christmas party met them, their friends gathered around the roaring fire in their resting layers, thermoses in hand, elf ears, reindeer headbands and Santa hats still strapped on. They cheered when they appeared and her heart lifted. She had joked to Jon that the previous weeks spent visiting their two families had felt like the movie Four Christmases. But out of them all, Aegon was the biggest film buff and did not disappoint.

“Ah! It's my older cousin, the richest man in town!"

Joyful laughter rose with immediate recognition of the line from It's a Wonderful Life. But Daenerys was startled, barely aware of Missy pressing a thermos into her hands. He and Jon had been best friends since their first year of college...but had her cousin ever called him that?

Aegon earned a few punches for his trouble, but she could tell Jon was secretly pleased.

Her head was floating as she took a seat with the girls. They were passing around Grey Worm's famous spicy chickpeas, courtesy of his mother's recipe book. They were talking, but she could hardly hear them. There was a steady breeze moving through the clearing, taking her heart with it.

"Okay, so spill!" Arianne said. "How long did you know how you felt about him?"

The question pierced her little bubble, given the sense of deja vu it gave her. She met Missandei's eyes, who had raised her brows knowingly. She had posed that same question a few months ago on a regular night out, a little innocuous but dangerously curious. They had all known Jon Snow for years, but neither he or Dany gave an indication they'd one day end up like this. What changed? She gave Jeyne a rueful grin. Arianne shifted forward, listening closely.

"Well," Dany sighed softly, "from the beginning, I think."

"No way!" they screamed, and she laughed. "Oh my God! Dany! Come on!"

She corrected herself, tucking her hair behind her ear. "I mean, it's been so long that I'm not sure. It had to have been from the beginning."

"Wow," Arianne said, while Jeyne shook her head. "How many years is that?"

One, Dany thought, or two. I can't count it. Did it begin with his visions? Or before then?

"The last time I really saw you two together was on your birthday," Arianne continued. "And you had just started dating then, right? Things got a little tense with your dad."

Missy nudged her playfully. "But you two got through it."

"Ugh," Arianne groaned, "I feel like I've missed everything. Jeyne? Do you know about this?"

She tilted her hand back and forth. "Only a little. Nothing more than Robb was willing to share of course."

Dany tweaked Jeyne's nose, a habit she'd picked up from Jon. The other woman gasped and Dany chuckled. It was a wonder they could keep any boundaries, as long as they'd all known each other.

"Okay, okay, forget the beginning," said her cousin's fiancée, while Jeyne stuck her tongue out at Dany. "How did you get past that? Please? It has to be cute, right?"

Dany thought about her father's recent efforts. And well, what happened between her and Jon wasn't exactly cute. But it was them. And that would always mean everything. She took a few more sips of her spiced eggnog and let her mind drift back to springtime, earlier that year, about four months before his confession.

In their friend group of athletic flirty thirty-somethings, Jon and Dany never got along, though they’ve seen the most intimate sorrows. They’ve been there for lay-offs, lost pets and failed relationships. It turns out they loved each other all the while, made apparent when visions he has about her leads him to open up his heart.

In the wake of his confession about them, a few months after they’ve gotten together, their friends take a forecast of perfect weather as an opportunity to offer him the best Christmas gift. They join the couple on a search and rescue mission for his dog on Mt. Shenandoah. When it goes wrong, can Jon make his way back to her? Or are his visions destined to separate them for good?

Rated: E!!! read more here on ao3

[breannasfluff]

What Binds Us

There are a lot of places Danny could go for help. Tucker’s, until Danny’s parents think to call the house. Sam’s, for at least 24 hours until her parent’s notice. Vlad's for a full week if he resigns himself to some blackmail. Jazz, if she wasn’t on a semester-long study abroad for college halfway around the world. 

There are also a lot of places Danny shouldn’t go. Metropolis with Superman and Supergirl, believing the law will always be just. Washington DC with its tiny population and resident Wonder Woman. Gotham City with Batman, a low tolerance for metahumans, and a high crime rate. 

Danny picked Gotham City–specifically Crime Alley. 

The multiple vigilantes in the city shouldn’t pose a problem; they are normal humans. No superpowers to contend with when he’s trying to hide. As long as Danny lays low and doesn’t rob a bank, no one should notice him. Most importantly, the Ghost Investigation Ward has no base in the city, unlike Metropolis or DC. 

As a half-ghost and teen hero, Danny’s not too worried about staying safe in Crime Alley. By the Ancients, he defeated Pariah Dark and went toe-to-toe with Mayor Vlad. He’s ready for anything the street can throw at him.

It’s this attitude that landed him in his current situation, sitting in a free clinic with a bleeding bullet wound to the arm.

Maybe he underestimated Gotham City.

Read the rest here!

[room-surprise]

EXTERNAL INFLUENCES IN DUNGEON MESHI: INDIAN PHILOSOPHY

(SPOILERS FOR DUNGEON MESHI BELOW)

We know that Ryoko Kui spent considerable time at the beginning of working on Dungeon Meshi doing research and planning the series. Kui constantly references real world culture, history and mythology, but she also occasionally references real-world philosophy.

The story of Dungeon Meshi is full of philosophical questions about the joy and privilege of being alive, the inevitability of death and loss, the importance of taking care of yourself and your loved ones, and the purpose and true nature of desire. Kui explores these issues through the plot, the characters, and even the fundamental building blocks that make up her fictional fantasy world. Though it’s impossible to say without Kui making a statement on the issue, I believe Dungeon Meshi reflects many elements of ancient Indian philosophy and religion.

It’s possible that Kui just finds these ideas interesting to write about, but doesn’t have any personal affiliation with either religion, however I would not be at all surprised if I learned that Kui is a Buddhist, or has personal experience with Buddhism, since it’s one of the major religions in Japan.

I could write many essays trying to explain these extremely complex concepts, and I know that my understanding of them is imperfect, but I’ll do my best to explain them in as simple a way as possible to illustrate how these ideas may have influenced Kui’s work.

HINDUISM

Hinduism is the third-largest religion in the world and originates in India. The term Hinduism is a huge umbrella that encompasses many diverse systems of thought, but they have some shared theological elements, and share many ancient texts and myths.

According to Classical Hindu belief, there are four core goals in human life, and they are the pursuit of dharma, artha, kama, and moksha.

Dharma is the natural order of the universe, and also one’s obligation to carry out their part in it. It is the pursuit and execution of one’s inherent nature and true calling, playing one’s role in the cosmic order.

Artha is the resources needed for an individual’s material well-being. A central premise of Hindu philosophy is that every person should live a joyous, pleasurable and fulfilling life, where every person's needs are acknowledged and fulfilled. A person's needs can only be fulfilled when sufficient means are available.

Kama is sensory, emotional, and aesthetic pleasure. Often misinterpreted to only mean “sexual desire”, kama is any kind of enjoyment derived from one or more of the five senses, including things like having sex, eating, listening to music, or admiring a painting. The pursuit of kama is considered an essential part of healthy human life, as long as it is in balance with the pursuit of the three other goals.

Moksha is peace, release, nirvana, and ultimate enlightenment. Moksha is freedom from ignorance through self-knowledge and true understanding of the universe, and the end of the inevitable suffering caused by the struggle of being alive. When one has reached true enlightenment, has nothing more to learn or understand about the universe, and has let go of all earthly desires, they have attained moksha, and they will not be reborn again. In Hinduism’s ancient texts, moksha is seen as achievable through the same techniques used to practice dharma, for example self-reflection and self-control. Moksha is sometimes described as self-discipline that is so perfect that it becomes unconscious behavior.

The core conflict of Hinduism is the eternal struggle between the material and immaterial world. It is often said that all of the material world is “an illusion,” and what this means is that all good and bad things will inevitably end, because the material world is finite. On the one hand, this is sad, because everything good in life will one day cease to exist, but on the other hand, this is reassuring, because all of the bad things will eventually end as well, and if one can accept this, they will be at peace.

The central debate of Hinduism is, which is more important: Satisfying your needs as a living thing, having a good life as a productive member of society, serving yourself, your family, and the world by participating in it the way nature intended? Or is it rejecting desire and attachment, discovering the true nature of existence, realizing the impermanence of material things, and that one can only escape the suffering that comes from the struggle of life by accepting that death and loss are inevitable?

There is no set answer to this question, and most believers of Hinduism tend to strike a balance between the two extremes simply because that’s what happens when a person leads a normal, average life, however there are also those who believe that pursuing extremes will lead to ultimate enlightenment and final release as well.

BUDDHISM

Buddhism is an Indian religion and philosophical tradition that originated in the 5th century BCE, based on teachings attributed to religious teacher the Buddha. It is the world's fourth-largest religion and though it began in India, it has spread throughout all of Asia and has played a major role in Asian culture and spirituality, eventually spreading to the West beginning in the 20th century.

Buddhism is partially derived from the same worldview and philosophical belief system as Hinduism, and the main difference is that the Buddha taught that there is a “middle way” that all people should strive to attain, and that the excesses of asceticism (total self-denial) or hedonism (total self-indulgence) practiced by some Hindus could not lead a person to moksha/enlightenment/release from suffering.

Buddhism teaches that the primary source of suffering in life is caused by misperception or ignorance of two truths; nothing is permanent, and there is no individual self.

Buddhists believe that dukkha (suffering) is an innate characteristic of life, and it is manifested in trying to “have” or “keep” things, due to fear of loss and suffering. Dukkha is caused by desire. Dukkha can be ended by ceasing to feel desire through achieving enlightenment and understanding that everything is a temporary illusion.

There are many, many other differences between Hinduism and Buddhism, but these elements are the ones that I think are most relevant to Kui’s work.

Extreme hedonism involves seeking sensual pleasure without any limits. This could just be indulging in what people would consider “normal” pleasures, like food, sex, drugs and the arts, but it can also involve doing things which are considered socially repugnant, either literally or by taking part in symbolic rituals that represent these acts. Some examples are holding religious meetings in forbidden places, consuming forbidden substances (including human flesh), using human bones as tools, or engaging in sex with partners who are considered socially unacceptable (unclean, wrong gender, too young, too old, related to the practitioner). Again, these acts may be done literally or symbolically.

Extreme ascetic practices involve anything that torments the physical body, and some examples are meditation without breathing, the total suppression of bodily movement, refusing to lay down, tearing out the hair, going naked, wearing rough and painful clothing, laying on a mat of thorns, or starving oneself.

HOW THIS CONNECTS TO DUNGEON MESHI

Kui’s most emphasized message in Dungeon Meshi is that being alive is a fleeting, temporary experience that once lost, cannot truly be regained, and is therefore precious in its rarity. Kui also tells us that to be alive means to desire things, that one cannot exist without the other, that desire is essential for life. This reflects the four core goals of human life in Hinduism and Buddhism, but also could be a criticism of some aspects of these philosophies.

I think Kui’s story shows the logical functionality of the four core goals: only characters who properly take care of themselves, and who accept the risk of suffering are able to thrive and experience joy. I think Kui agrees with the Buddhist stance that neither extreme hedonism nor extreme self-denial can lead to enlightenment and ultimate bliss… But I also think that Kui may be saying that ultimate bliss is an illusion, and that the greatest bliss can only be found while a person is still alive, experiencing both loss and desire as a living being.

Kui tells us living things should strive to remain alive, no matter how difficult living may be sometimes, because taking part in life is inherently valuable. All joy and happiness comes from being alive and sharing that precious, limited life with the people around you, and knowing that happiness is finite and must be savored.

Dungeon Meshi tells us souls exist, but never tells us where they go or what happens after death. I think this is very intentional, because Kui doesn’t want readers to think that the characters can just give up and be happy in their next life, or in an afterlife.

There is resurrection in Dungeon Meshi, but thematically there are really no true “second chances.” Although in-universe society views revival as an unambiguous good and moral imperative, Kui repeatedly reminds us of its unnatural and dangerous nature. Although reviving Falin is a central goal of the story, it is only when Laios and Marcille are able to let go of her that the revival finally works… And after the manga’s ending, Kui tells us Falin leaves Laios and Marcille behind to travel the world alone, which essentially makes her dead to them anyway, since she is absent from their lives.

At the same time, Kui tells us that trying to prevent death, or avoid all suffering and loss is a foolish quest that will never end in happiness, because loss and suffering are inevitable and must someday be endured as part of the cycle of life. Happiness cannot exist without suffering, just like the joy of eating requires the existence of hunger, and even starvation.

Kui equates eating with desire itself, using it as a metaphor to describe anything a living creature might want, Kui also views the literal act of eating as the deepest, most fundamental desire of a living thing, the desire that all other desires are built on top of. If a living thing doesn’t eat, it will not have the energy necessary to engage with any other part of life. Toshiro, Mithrun, and Kabru are all examples of this in the story: They don’t take care of themselves and they actively avoid eating, and as a result they suffer from weakness, and struggle to realize their other desires.

Kui suggests that the key difference between being alive or dead is whether or not someone experiences desire. If you are alive, even if you feel empty and cannot identify your desires like Mithrun, you still have desires because you would be dead without them. The living body desires to breathe, to eat, to sleep, even if a person has become numb, or rejected those desires either to punish themselves, or out of a lack of self-love.

Sometimes, we have to do things which are painful and unpleasant, in order to enjoy the good things that make us happy. I believe Kui is telling us that giving up, falling into despair, and refusing to participate in life is not a viable solution either.

The demon only learns to experience desire by entering into and existing in the material, finite world. This experience intoxicates the demon, and it becomes addicted to feeling both the suffering of desire, and the satisfaction of having it fulfilled. This unnatural situation is what endangers the Dungeon Meshi world, and it’s only by purging the demon of this ability to desire that the world can be saved. The demon is like a corrupted Buddha that must give up its desires in order to return to the peaceful existence it had before it was corrupted.

The demon curses Laios to never achieve his greatest desires at the end of the manga, which manifests in several ways, such as losing his monstrous form, Falin choosing to leave after she’s revived, and being unable to get close to monsters because they are afraid of him. In some ways you could compare Laios to a Bodhisattva, a person who tries to aid others in finding nirvana/moksha, even if it prolongs their own suffering and prevents them from finding personal release. Laios gives the demon peace, but Laios himself will never be able to satisfy his desires, and must eventually come to accept his loss and move on with his life.

(This is an excerpt from Chapter 3 of my Real World Cultural and Linguistic influences in Dungeon Meshi essay.)

[luckyreds]

Back on my Speirs nonsense but why does the guy have the cutest photo’s like:

And of course this one:

And then underneath it goes; yeah great guy Ron Speirs, also did you know (absolutely the most unhinged story I’ve ever read)

And I’m like; 😀 girl what-

[dabisbratz]

This might be a weird ask but how tf do you write porn? More specifically gay porn?! I’m working on a piece myself and I’m at a bit of a loss. Is there any tips you’d give someone or what because I’m stumped lol

not weird at all !! f’me. . . vgotta be in da mood to actually sit down n write it…. or s’not gonna turn out well at All .. v v important part t’remember is that it’s exactly that ! porn ! so ydont have t’be realistic, jus has t’be hot ! (for lack of a better word..) i focus more on dialogue since its easier t’get down, n usually stick to descriptor words like ‘soft, hard, plump, wet, hot, warm, sticky, leaking, dripping, tight, pretty, glistening,’ etc . . don’t be afraid t’make it sound nasty (in da literal sense) ! f’me personally, tryin to describe pleasure or orgasms s’kinda hard! so instead, m’focusin on how it’d sound, what it’d look like, how characters would react . . . does dat make sense ?!

da easiest way t’fall into a hole (no pun intended tehe) s’to write it in chronological order. y’wouldn’t say ‘he did this, and then this, and this too’, you’d describe how he did it, what it felt like, why was it arousin? n how? yknow? if y’end up fallin into it, try puttin descriptions in between. instead of sayin ‘he fingered you’, try somethin like ‘ And his fingers— God, his hands. So strong and thick, (describin how they look) they’d linger over the soft pudge of your cunt, pressing into the warm skin (describin what he’d do) and pulling apart each sticky fold to ghost over the quiver and throb of your achy, rubbed-out cock (descriptor words t’make it sound smooth). How overwhelming they’d be, using his thumb to rub smooth circles into it, eliciting a wet squelch and heady squeak as his fingers sink into your hot, gummy walls. (appealin to sense of sound t’immerse da reader)’

n when m’was very new t’it, actually tried listenin to porn t’get da sounds down. s’also a lot easier f’you’re connectin it to somethin you’re personally into. if y’feel embarrassed while writin it, don’t !! means you’re doin it right! would imagine s’not that different t’write from straight porn, tho v’never written it !

[jay-wasreblogging]

Dharma (pt 2)

[not-poignant]

Daily excerpt from today's writing, chapter 104 of Underline the Black:

‘Will you…? Uh… Will you come into the…’ Just call it a nest. Call it a fucking nest. That’s all it is. Efnisien twitched at the blankets with his hands helplessly. ‘Do you want me to nest with you?’ Flitmouse said, like he already knew what Efnisien was going to say. Efnisien nodded. ‘I don’t like smelling of anyone other than Anton, but I’ll make an exception for you, lovely thing. You smell like the sea on the freshest of days, and that’s a scent that perfumeries fall over themselves to replicate. All right, let me take off my coat and boots.’ Flitmouse lined the boots up neatly against the wall, and carefully hung the coat on the back of a hanger that Gary had over the door, and then looked over Efnisien’s blankets as he got into the nest. ‘Is it okay?’ Efnisien said. ‘It’s not really…a nest right now.’ ‘I overheat all the time in my nest after a heat,’ Flitmouse said. ‘It’s always a mess. I find I simply need the blankets around me.’ ‘Yeah,’ Efnisien said, swallowing. ‘There,’ Flitmouse said, lying down on his side and pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. ‘Lie down, you’re tall enough as it is.’

[foursaints]

can you STOP being so real…like its getting scary😞

i literallt need them to explore each others bodies in a way that is concerning to society at large

[allianettemie5]

Tay: Ever since they made up, they've become unbearable. I really hope they don't start fucking around from now on.

Skadj: Ew, Tay! Now I can't get the picture out of my head!

Cheesy: Oh my god, my dads are fucking each other, Kara, you've been replaced.

Kara: Shut up, Cheesy, your father and I are in a healthy relationship.

Jeremy: I'm wondering who's the top in their relationship...

*Chilled and Ze enter the room.*

[coquelicoq]

There are 60 million people in Britain. There are 200 million in America. (Can that be right?) How many millions of English-speakers other nations might add to the total I cannot even guess. I would be willing to bet, though, that in all those hundreds of millions not more than 50, at the outside, have read A. Roemer, Aristarchs Athetesen in der Homerkritik (Leipzig, 1912), a work untranslated from its native German and destined to remain so till the end of time. I joined the tiny band in 1985. I was 23. The first sentence of this little-known work runs as follows: Es ist wirklich Brach- und Neufeld, welches der Verfasser mit der Bearbeitung dieses Themas betreten und durchpflügt hat, so sonderbar auch diese Behauptung im ersten Augenblick klingen mag. I had taught myself German out of Teach Yourself German, and I recognised several words in this sentence at once: It is truly something and something which the something with the something of this something has something and something, so something also this something might something at first something. I deciphered the rest of the sentence by looking up the words Brachfeld, Neufeld, Verfasser, Bearbeitung, Themas, betreten, durchpflügt, sonderbar, Behauptung, Augenblick, and klingen in Langenscheidt's German-English dictionary.

The Last Samurai by Helen DeWitt, i, 1, p 17

[kyoshialone]

tyyy beloved @ash-and-starlight for the tag here r some books im excited to read next year !!!

tagging (v optionally) @wakingstone @jumping-jackalope @legofbicuriosity @lesbianboyfriend 👉🏻👈🏻👀

[thinkingisadangerouspastime]

“There was a small pool of water in front of me,” Lucy continues. She dusts off her gloves to reach for a new sunflower, carefully removing the plastic bottom. “I could tell it was transparent, but when I got closer, all I could see was my reflection.”

A fond smile drifts onto her lips. “For a moment, there was a hand on my shoulder.” Lucy carefully places the sunflower into the soil’s spacious dent, patting the dirt around it. “Lavender-skinned and dotted with infinite stars.”

I’m sorry I cannot offer you rest, a voice whispered, lost in the wind. But I hope I can at least offer you peace.

Kristen takes a deep breath. Lucy slides off her gloves and moves closer, gently pressing their shoulders together.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t do more for you,” Kristen finally says, hushed and solemn.

Lucy leans the side of her head against Kristen’s. “You did everything you could.” Another smile, sorrowful and bittersweet, falls upon her features. “We’ve all got our own regrets to carry.”

A pause.

“Kipperlilly?” Kristen asks, quiet. Not judgmental. Unusually gentle.

Lucy nods. “I wonder where she is right now.” She feels Kristen lace their fingers together. “Hell? Ankarna’s new domain? Banished somewhere else altogether?”

“I’m sorry,” Kristen says again. She winces. “Maybe… Maybe not that she died, but for what you lost because of it.”

“Can I be honest with you?” Lucy’s mouth is dry. “I’ve been thinking about trying to bring her back.” She closes her eyes, steeling herself against tears. “But I don’t know what version of her I might resurrect.”

“You’re afraid to look her in the eyes,” Kristen whispers, and Lucy’s chest aches. “You’re afraid you won’t recognize who… or what you see.”

—an excerpt from my post-canon frostkettle wip where lucy brings kipperlilly back through divine intervention

[doll-elvis]

“They sometimes played cards into the early-morning hours, when Presley would ask her to slip into a flouncy, yellow baby-doll nightie he had bought her. “I wasn’t crazy about them but he just loved them.” Anne Helm said laughing.”

“He really liked sex. A lot of nights I didn’t go back to my own bungalow. I felt a little ashamed about it the next morning, because I knew that people on the set realized what was going on.” But, Helm added, “I have to tell you, I had fun. And it was special.”

I had to close the book and regroup after reading this. great for you anne, totally not jealous or anything 😭

(excerpt from “Down at the end of the lonely street” by Peter H. Brown, highly recommend btw. so many rare interviews and stories, it’s a much much better version of BLPH by Alanna Nash)

[ghostlightfic]

also everyone thank beloved @whistlepunkz for his birthday request. and wish him a happy birthday. you get some dinner

[grailknightmonty]

"and i seriously hope that one day, when all of this is over and death and destruction aren't lurking around every corner- that we can go down to the docks and fish without a care in the world. to sit by each other's side from sunset to sunrise without a single fear. it would be amazing just to have that, even just once."

funky lil bday gift for my homie Mars from the RPG! :D I debated about redrawing a moment from the SMP but i settled on this idea of that in the middle of what's been a huge period of uncertainty and constant fear of losing it all for them, that I imagine all they could want could be found in something so mundane, so peaceful as just sitting by a lake, as the sun rises

[gift-of-prophecy]