#early investment advantages | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

ezekiel-krishna · 6 months

Text

✧ 2nd House Ruler (WEALTH & Family) in All Houses

Part 3 (Final) ..

{ Vedic Astrology }

Your Guide to Check Your Placement (Vedic Astrology)

⇝ Refer To My Part 1

2nd Lord in 8th House

The placement of the 2nd Lord in the 8th House indicates a potential for wealth accumulation in your life. This is especially favorable for those involved in real estate, as dealing with properties can bring significant financial gains. However, it's important to consider the aspects and the sign in order to fully understand the potential outcomes. Generally speaking, this placement suggests a promising source of wealth.

On the flip side, this placement can also bring challenges in your marriage or joint finances. There may be disagreements and difficulties regarding shared financial responsibilities. It is crucial to find ways to calm these tensions and strive for more agreement with your spouse. Failure to do so can lead to further complications. Additionally, if you have elder siblings, they may also become a source of contention for you. It is essential to maintain harmonious family relationships in order to ensure a steady flow of money in your life.

The 8th House also governs inheritance and money gained from others. With the 2nd Lord placed in this house, if it is well aspected and has a beneficial aspect from the Lord, there is a potential for receiving inheritance and accumulating enormous wealth. However, it is important to exercise caution in your business dealings if the 2nd Lord is placed in the 8th House. This house is associated with secrecy, and there is a possibility that you may be secretive about your investments, business dealings, and taxes.

Engaging in any underhanded activities can have severe consequences and leave a significant dent in your finances. The 8th House is known for its transformative nature, and you may find yourself having to start from scratch and transform your savings and investments from time to time. Due to the placement of the 2nd Lord being seven houses away from its own house, you may experience a sense of financial instability.

There will be periods of financial security, but there will also be times when everything feels uncertain. It is important to adapt to these fluctuations and learn to make a profit from them. Overall, the placement of the 2nd Lord in the 8th House suggests both opportunities and challenges in terms of wealth accumulation and financial stability. By navigating these complexities with caution and adaptability, you can make the most of the potential benefits and overcome any obstacles that may arise.

2nd Lord in 9th House

This is an advantageous position for your wealth. You have a natural talent for accumulating wealth in your life. However, there is a slight issue that arises from this - you tend to hold onto your money tightly. It's difficult for you to let it go and allow it to flow freely, which can have a negative impact in the long run. The reason behind this difficulty lies in the fact that the lord of the second house has moved eight houses away from its original position. This eighth house represents fear, and as a result, you fear letting go of your wealth and spreading it around through expenses.

Your reluctance to let money go prevents it from flowing back to you. Despite your good fortune, it is important to maintain it by spending when necessary and utilizing the money you have. On the bright side, having the second lord in the ninth house makes you a highly skilled and diligent individual. You may even experience gains through speculation, such as in the stock market. However, the placement of the second lord eight houses away can bring about health issues in your childhood or early years.

Nevertheless, as you enter your middle years, you will experience prosperity and stability due to the influence of the second lord in the ninth house. The second lord represents moral and family values, and its placement in the ninth house makes you a person with strong religious and spiritual inclinations. You are drawn to pilgrimages, philosophical discussions, and seeking guidance from gurus. These pursuits bring you peace of mind, which in turn aids in your wealth accumulation. Furthermore, the placement of the second lord in the ninth house suggests the potential for expanding a family business into new areas, particularly foreign interests.

This can be highly profitable, especially if there are positive aspects to the second lord in the ninth house. Additionally, since the ninth house represents the father, it is common to see individuals in this position taking on their father's business. The ninth house also governs higher education, and pursuing further education can be a source of profit for you. You may excel as a teacher or lecturer in various fields, and higher education in any area will contribute to your increased income.

2nd Lord in 10th House

The 2nd Lord in the 10th House placement signifies that you are a person of great honor. Your reputation in your career is built on your integrity and the trustworthiness of your word. With the 2nd house ruling speech and entering the 10th house of career, it is important for you to find a profession where you can utilize your talent for communication. This could range from teaching and lecturing to media and journalism, or even politics. Your ability to effectively communicate will bring you wealth and success.

Your family of origin plays a significant role in supporting your career. They may provide you with education, financial assistance, or even a substantial inheritance. Pursuing education will greatly benefit your career and help you achieve financial gains. However, it is crucial to be cautious of the company you keep. Surrounding yourself with negative or toxic individuals can compromise your integrity and hinder your wealth-building opportunities. Choose your associations wisely and ensure that they are morally upright individuals.

Additionally, it is advisable to refrain from speculation or gambling, as it can lead to significant financial losses. Consistent hard work is the key to continuously increasing your profits. Any slack in your dedication, cutting corners, or displaying antagonistic behavior towards your superiors can result in immediate negative consequences, including the loss of your job.

Furthermore, it is important to maintain a healthy relationship with your children. Be mindful of giving them excessive amounts of money, as it can potentially strain your bond with them. Avoid spoiling them and instead focus on nurturing a balanced and loving relationship.

2nd Lord in 11th House

When the 2nd lord takes its place in the 11th house, it brings forth an abundance of wealth into your life. You have the potential to attain great riches through this placement. It particularly favors property deals and long-term investments. This position is highly advantageous for those pursuing self-employment and any form of business ventures.

Additionally, it signifies an increase in wealth after marriage and through partnerships. Your financial prospects are bright in these areas. However, it is important to note that there may be conflicts with your mother regarding financial matters. Awareness and effective communication can help navigate these potential disagreements.

With the 2nd house lord's presence in the 11th house, you possess a strong sense of honorable duty towards your profession. This makes you enterprising and dedicated to your job. If you are currently employed, this placement brings recognition and fame within your workplace. It opens doors for you to attain a high-ranking position. Moreover, your colleagues will prove to be supportive and instrumental in your growth and promotion.

2nd Lord in 12th House

When the lord of the 2nd house finds its way into the 12th house, it ignites a fiery courage within you. You become an adventurous soul, unafraid of starting anew in a different career or even a different country. Starting from scratch holds no fear for you, as you possess a true sense of adventure and freedom that is invaluable. I have witnessed individuals with the lord of the 2nd house in the 12th house completely transform their careers in the middle of their lives, achieving great success.

People are naturally drawn to you and will support and promote you because of your likable nature. However, this position also makes you prone to being a spendthrift. Money seems to slip through your fingers effortlessly. The more you earn, the more you spend. You possess a generous spirit, but struggle to maintain control over your finances. It may be wise to seek assistance from someone skilled in money management. The 12th house represents our fears, and in this placement, you tend to avoid looking at your bank balance. You prefer not to worry about it and simply turn a blind eye.

On the flip side, the 12th house is also associated with charity, and you find joy in giving to various causes. Your acts of kindness will bring positive karma into your life. Despite your own financial struggles, you have a knack for helping others manage their money. You could excel in financial management, particularly when it involves handling other people's finances or investment funds, even in foreign lands.

There may be challenges with a child, as they can be a bit quarrelsome and cause you distress at times. However, with time and effort, you will be able to work through these difficulties.

Feel free to share your experiences in the comments!

Remember This is a General Analysis , Whole Chart is to be consider for Accurate Personalized Predictions..

For Paid Personalized Analysis & Reviews ➤ Check Here

Masterlist ➤ Check Here

🤗 Feel free to chat with me if you have any questions about my service. Don't hesitate, I'm here to help!

#astro observations #astro notes #astroblr #astroloji #astroworld #astrology #astro community #vedic astrology

303 notes · View notes

iridessence · 1 year

Text

I would like to take a moment to acknowledge myself and say that I am elated and proud to have manifested some of my major goals since 2018-2019. Basically before then, 2014-16 I struggled with depression and suicidal ideation quite frequently due to not having steady income, as jobs in retail seemed the only available and “safe” options, but long shifts standing at a registers or posts were damagingly hard on my body. In 2017 I got a desk job that set me on the path of financial stability and reduced physical load, which did absolute wonders for my mental health but it was an absolute blight to my existence over time due to terrible management and the usual corporate garbage. I knew that staying there was fine for a time but not sustainable in the long run, so change must come eventually.

also around then, I continued to explore self portraiture and personal style but I really wanted to perform/create Burlesque acts and book them, and invest in and actually have choreography/technique and beautiful costume pieces that looked like the visions refining themselves in my head through research. I was also perpetually struggling in the dating sphere with the deficit of romantic fulfillment that I deeply wanted. and while they weren’t hostile, things were definitely weird with my family (dysfunctional, literal small town energy, upset that I didn’t want to be around them more in the suburbs but lots of interpersonal toxicity and lack of emotional growth).

I knew that in the coming years I wanted to…

quit my soul sucking job and set out to be a full-time or at least professional level burlesque performer, creating the qualitative and classic show girl acts I dream to see on stage

work on the floor at a boutique or mom-and-pop type shop that sells goods or services that are interesting to me, especially aesthetically, such as an antique shop or a jewelry boutique etc., but a place where I could sit intermittently as needed for my physical disability. Also, ideally it would be a position where I could express myself through style at my choosing and it would be received well, and also my hours would not be very early or very late.

find a loving and supporting partner who I could lavish equal amounts of love and support on to, live with and hopefully marry

Achieve/maintain financial stability enough that I have a reduced risk for homelessness and sometimes treat myself to things that I enjoy.

Figure out why the relationship with my family was such a struggle and do things within my power and desire to fix it.

In a world that isn’t a corporate machine devoid of empathy, none of that seems like a tall order to ask… but I live in America so… It took some time, but I’m starting to see the fruits and returns. Honestly sometimes things feel like a blur and I’m not exactly sure I could say there was a huge system to what I did overtime to make it work, but I know the work was there.

As of today, September 9, 2023:

I am a respected professional burlesque performer with costumes I figuratively gag over and acts that come closer and closer to hitting the aesthetic nail on the head for what I want to embody. (I quit that shitty desk job at the beginning of 2019 and haven’t looked back since. Sent a whole ass company wide message with a long and detailed “fuck you” too.😂🙈)

i’ve managed through burlesque, social media work, donations and savings, and —since the global pandemic—,odd jobs and grants/minimal loans, to continuously pay rent and ward off homelessness

I live with the love of my life, to whom I am engaged and actively planning our wedding (we looked at a venue yesterday!)

I’ve helped my mom on the growth of her emotional intelligence and commitment to learning more about values under the race, gender, and sexuality umbrella, as well pushed her to examine the enabling and entitlement dynamics with her adult children that take advantage of her. While my relationship with my brother and sister is not great, my relationship with my mom has been steadily getting better since the pandemic. we had a breakthrough at the beginning of this year where she acknowledged and apologized for guilt tripping me for not being around the family more, when I was (she quoted) “actually protecting myself like she should have been.”

and litcherally within the past week I was offered the job at a local boutique I interviewed with a year ago and didn’t get, and I signed an offer letter to begin work within the month.

To say I’m happy with the way things look right now is an understatement. The world still terrifies me, but I have no choice but to carve out a sliver of its beautiful experiences for myself, and I am doing just that. It may not be perfection, but it’s pretty damn good and I’m going to do everything in my power to keep it that way and make it even better. I am living my ancestors' wildest dreams!!

for anyone reading who might be struggling right now to make things work, I hope you hold on to hope that it can get better. A beautiful life is possible even on this hell scape, even for the marginalized.

#text post #life #faq #long post #well long-ish

551 notes · View notes

aezuria · 5 months

Note

hiii i love ur writing sm!! i was wondering if u would do leo valdez x reader headcanons? ty!!!

*ੈ✎ keep your head still, i'll be your thrill

—all the small things, blink-182

content: leo valdez x reader

warnings: cursing again

librarian's annotations: the title has no connection to the hcs but it came up while i was writing this also IM SO SORRY THIS TOOK FOREVER 🙏🙏🙏

super clingy i do not make the rules

oh you thought you were gonna get up and be productive?? not today!

fuck everyone else tbh

LOVEEES gossip sessions with u

hes so invested in all the drama u have

probably laying on his stomach and swinging his feet and gasping incredulously. "what!? no she did not..."

got very pouty that you did not invite him to the girls night bc he didnt want to "miss out on the tea" (lwk stealing from my own work oops)

who can blame him tbh

LOVE LOVES DANCING

loves teaching u too (even if u suck)

like imagine him holding your waist and moving you to the beat as you fumble along, his chest pressed up against your own

GOOD LORD

"forward, back, left- there you go," he murmured into your ear, looking down at your feet. you stepped on his shoes a lot more than you should've; did he ever think that his proximity was why you were messing up!?

"you suck at this, don't you?" he laughed, but twirled you around anyway.

"did you ever think you're just a shit teacher?"

"rude!"

also this man was born a star

can probably hit super high notes as if its nothing

ok so we all know how hes a genius right

oh my GOD imagine him explaining how his stuff works and using words you're sure don't even exist and he's so into it and he just sounds so SMART

intelligence is so attractive why does no one talk abt that

you wanted to watch him work on the engine, so you pulled up a stool next to him. you stared at his side, his tank top dirty with grease and sticky with sweat. how long had he been working since you got here?

you'd get mad at him for not taking a break later. right now? you were admiring the view. who wouldn't?

"hey leo?"

he hummed in response, still hyper-focused on the engine.

"how does all that work, exactly?" you were never one for machines—good thing you have a mechanic boyfriend!

he looks to you, a happy glimmer in his eyes. "you really wanna know? so basically— this part connects to that part and then..."

you don't know how long you've been zoned out, too busy staring at his perfect

"y/n?" he finally realizes you haven't been paying attention. "you with me, now?" he raises an eyebrow with a grin on his face.

"huh? what?" you straightened up, fumbling over your words. "yeah! why wouldn't i be?" you tried to act as if you weren't just ogling him seconds before.

"oh y'know.. cause you were checking me out." he winked, leaning back against the engine as he put himself on display. "i mean, you obviously couldn't help it. i mean, look at me!"

someone humble him

its not like he doesn't do the same tho

if he accidentally walks in on you he'd be like "oh my gods-! sorry!" and cover his eyes with his hands, but his fingers are parted so he could still look through. literally the 🫣 emoji

"GET OUT!"

"OKAY I'M GOING DON'T HIT ME- OW!"

he is SUPER ticklish and you WILL use this to your advantage

esp his ears

one time you touched them out of curiosity cause theyre pointer than average and he was like "eek!"

pause

"aww i didn't know you could make that sound!" you poked some more fun at him because that was adorable

"shut up!"

another time he's laying on you, ruining your plans of getting up early and being active. you tried rolling out from underneath him but his arms snake around you like a vice, squeezing a groan out of you.

"leo get off!" you tried shoving him off, but that didn't work either. he simply buried his face into your neck, mumbling a tired no.

you really had shit to do, so you resorted to the last possible tactic. "i didn't wanna have to do this..." you warned. (you so wanted to do this)

you slipped your hands under his shirt and started tickling his stomach, effectively getting him writhing off you with laughter.

"stop-! that tickles!" he tried doing the same back, but he was squirming far too much.

ok real talk now

love loves staying up late with you until its past midnight and you guys are just rambling about random topics. he's just so relaxed with you, his heart feels so full and there's no space anymore, so his bottled up emotions spill out

which is usually a closely-guarded secret because he's just the funny guy of the group, right?

what does he know about feelings? isn't it his job to just keep everyone else happy? joking about everything will take away the pain, won't it?

(it doesn't)

"i don't know, i just- feel like i don't really fit in with everyone. they all have these cool powers, and i'm just.. me." he laughed dryly, face devoid of his usual happiness as he stared at the ceiling. "sometimes, i feel like you could do so much better. but at the same time?" his voice lowered as he rolled onto his side, staring into your eyes. "i want to keep you to myself. i really, really don't want to lose you."

you were glad he finally opened up to you, but your heart ached at the way he thought of himself. how could he not see how highly everyone thought of him, especially you?

"just you? leo, you're the coolest person i know. you're so, so smart, you can fix just about anything, you're funny, you're kind, you can cook; what's not to love?" you smiled softly. you could go on and on about this man. for him to think that he was the lucky one? it was quite the opposite.

"and you don't have to worry," you whispered, cuddling closer to him and pressing a soft kiss to his cheek. "i'll always be with you."

#*ੈ✎ stories #leo valdez #leo valdez x reader #leo valdez x y/n #leo valdez x you #heroes of olympus x reader #hoo x reader #heroes of olympus #hoo #pjo hoo toa #pjo #pjo x reader #percy jackson and the olympians x reader #percy jackon and the olympians

188 notes · View notes

rhys-writes-some-shit · 8 months

Note

Thank you so much for the QP Alastor best friend Lucifer fic, I'm now so invested in reader and Lucifer's friendship so I was wondering if you could write some pure and fluff filled bestie headcanons on them. I feel like they would be such chaotic ride or die meanwhile Alastor and Charlie are both like, these two can never be left alone together.

I gotchu. Wrote these in 20 minutes, I'm going insane :)

Bestie Lucifer Headcanons

(ft. mentions of Alastor x Reader QPR)

🐤 You and Lucifer hit it off as BFFs right away.

🐤 You live for Lucifer's goofball energy and he uses your scemblance of responsibility to your advantage.

🐤 One time the two of you claimed be going out to advertise the hotel, but you really just put up a few fliers at Lu Lu World before going on all the rides at least twice.

🐤 Lucifer loves to send you pictures of ducks.

🐤 Similarly, you love to send Lucifer pictures of snakes.

🐤 bonus points for either of you if it's a Sinner demon or a stuffed animal.

🐤 Lucifer usually gets really depressed around the anniversary of Lilith leaving him, so you do everything in your power to help.

🐤 If he's locked himself in his room, you find a way in and make towers with his ducks.

🐤 if he's not communicating, you send him gifs until he replies, leading to entire conversations made up of gifs.

🐤 If you're ever not doing well and Al isn't around to cheer you up, Lucifer will take matters into his own hands.

🐤 He'll purposefully makes dad jokes because he knows they crack you up.

🐤 He'll watch TV with you into the early hours of the morning, no matter what it is.

🐤 If things are really bad, he'll even (begrudgingly) turn on Alastor's radio show for you, which always has a way of making you feel better.

🐤 The two of you are major cuddlers, so you're constantly snuggling with each other.

🐤 lots of hugs and the occasionally hand holding

🐤 It's gotten to the point where people think you've ditched the Radio Demon for the King of Hell, which has led to some very violent altercations.

🐤 Neither of you are allowed in the kitchen without Alastor or Charlie. Neither of you can cook. Both of you love cooking. Enough said.

🐤 On top of that, someone has to keep an eye on you when Alastor and Charlie are out of the hotel.

🐤 There was once an incident with trampolines that ended with a very stern lecture from Vaggie.

🐤 The two of you will get up to so many shenanigans, nobody can ever guess what will happen next.

🐤 As annoying as your friendship can be to them, Alastor and Charlie are both happy to see the two of you getting along.

🐤 (Even if Alastor wants to murder Lucifer where he stands from time to time)

#hazbin hotel #hazbin hotel fanfiction #alastor x reader queerplatonic #lucifer x reader #lucifer x reader platonic #hazbin hotel lucifer #hazbin hotel headcanon #hazbin hotel alastor #at this point I don't know how I'm passing my classes #i'm going feral #ngl

278 notes · View notes

inner-viper · 6 months

Text

When will you have kids with your FS?

Hello, I hope everyone had an amazing week! Let's welcome new energy into our lives. Now this collective reading was difficult to interpret but I found it fun to answer. I generally only post readings that I think people will find fun. Anyway, Tier's 2 reading will be coming out by this week and I will be asking for another question for their monthly personal readings! Guys I lowkey have baby fever too, send help because I can't have a child nor do I have money for a baby. But imagining their little kicks is so cute.

Book a reading with me for a detailed reading! There is currently a 25% discount running and the most popular tarot reading, "Full NSFW TAROT READING" has the most reviews.

Pile 1

The Cosmic Slumber Tarot: Queen of Cups, Ten of Swords, Temperance, Princess of Pentacles, and The Hanged One

Tarot of Sexual Magic: 5 of Chalices, The Chariot, 4 of Chalices, King of Pentacles, The Moon, and (Bonus card that flew out) Knight of Wands

This will happen when you feel emotionally ready, you both will discuss things and have previously had conversations surrounding children. You both agreed that you both would want to have children at a time when you both are emotionally available and stable. This will happen after a long time together, and it’s definitely after marriage.

There was a point in your life when you went through childhood neglect or pains that prevented you from seeking out a new mindset/life. This took a lot of hard work and introspection on your part, it definitely feels like “I need to be perfect before I become a parent”. You may have been stuck in old ways of thinking but eventually were able to understand that you cannot be perfect.

Now, I do see that you will discuss your values and how you want your children to grow up. You both will be fair and balanced. I am seeing you both seeking out some books and parental classes together. You both will focus on understanding what it means to be a parent, and I do see this can take up a lot of your time from other hobbies that you may have been venturing into during this time period of your life.

You are at the point in your life where you have money and will continue to grow money. I do sense that your partnership will be about creating wealth and creating things in general. This doesn’t mean that you are poor but the majority will not be loaded with billions of dollars. It feels like some of you who choose this pile can grow to be very rich after you have a baby. For some people who will be carrying the child in their wombs, you will want to be chilling and not doing anything extreme. So you both will make plans and have more than enough money and resources for this to occur.

Overall, you both will have a different outlook on life. You both had precious thoughts that may have gotten in the way of having children despite wanting children. It will be a beautiful moment to notice the little things in life and take joy in everyday life.

The sex is kinky and... subscribe to Patreon to find out about the sex

Pile 2

The Cosmic Slumber Tarot: Nine of Pentacles, Three of Pentacles, The Fool, The Hermit, and Seven of Torches

Tarot of Sexual Magic: Knave of Wands, 8 of Wands, 6 of Wands, Queen of Chalices, and 3 of Wands

You both have high incomes together, you will be at a financially advantageous time. There is stability in the earnings you make. I heard “high yield…” so you can have something in which you are investing and it will become successful over time. You both enjoy the amount of financial freedom you both have.

You both will be collaborative, so there will be a lot of exciting plans for having a child. You both will be eager to make things happen. There can be early talks of where the nursery room is going to be, and what it’s going to be like. You both will also make cute trinkets for your newborn despite no one being pregnant yet haha.

Although, you will feel overjoyed having a child. There is this sense of not understanding the full responsibilities of parenthood, it will be a whole separate journey of itself. This will be a path where you don’t know what's coming next and this can make you feel like you don’t fully understand the meaning of being a parent. Make sure to do research even if you have “baby fever”, it’s important to be informed and educated.

At times you will feel unsure, and even guilty of your naivety from the past. There was a sense of following your intuition but also looking back and seeing that you weren’t prepared for everything to come. Things will be hectic, and your life will become stressful. A period of uncertainty will come to you, you will spend time reflecting.

Overall, you both should focus on understanding your traumas. You need to look at things through different lenses because your child can resent you if you are not listening to them. Things can end badly because of your lack of parenting skills, for some, it’s a matter of not being closed off and letting these old habits go. There is some of you who will need to set boundaries with your partner if you feel like they are pressuring you because that is not ok.

The sex is very fiery and...subscribe to Patreon to find out about the sex

Pile 3

The Cosmic Slumber Tarot: Queen of Cups, Eight of Torches, Princess of Cups, Nine of Swords, and Wheel of Fortune

Tarot of Sexual Magic: Knave of Pentacles, Knight of Wands, 8 of Chalices, 3 of Wands, and 6 of Swords

This will be a time when you feel like your heart is open. After many years, your heart is ready to be emotionally involved with your children. You and your partner will experience joy in coming to a point in the relationship where you are taking it to the next step. You both will be committed to making things happen and doing things the right way by your own standards.

This may be something that you both have discussed over time, you both wanted children and were waiting for the right time. When you do make plans to have children, it will be fast. You both have a lot of trust, so that’s why this was able to occur fast. Due to having multiple prior discussions, you know you both are ready for this new beginning.

You both will spend some time thinking about the names, your cultural upbringings, and the values you want to teach your children. You both are peaceful people, so I do sense that you both will pour out your hearts and full devotion. There are a lot of times when you both will envision what your life with your child is like. You may even dream about your child with your FS haha.

However, you will be anxious about having a child and I think this is the fear surrounding childbirth. You may express a lot of stressed-out moments when you feel triggered but this is your thoughts consuming you. It will be important for you to stay grounded and focus on uplifting yourself rather than putting yourself down.

Having a child for both of you will have a positive impact on your life. There will be many good changes that will occur, for some of you, you are “fated” to have children. Maybe this is in your astrology chart and it can give you insights into your future children. There will be many adventurous days and you both will support each other thoroughly.

The sex starts off with a deep makeout...subscribe to Patreon to find out about the sex

182 notes · View notes

creacherkeeper · 4 months

Text

happy pride everyone

for some reason i was sitting outside this morning and enjoying some shockingly not boiling hot weather and reflecting on a post i had made like ... 12 years ago on here that "blew up" (like 60k notes on early days tumblr) and thinking like. wow i sure do know a lot more about myself now that makes all that make sense but

the post was someone saying like. hey how can you call yourself an atheist and support gay people because gay people go against the concept of evolution. and my reply was like. actually there are gay members of like every social species weve studied it in and i had a bunch of facts laid out about all the different very gay animals of this world (like giraffes having very largely m/m sex)

but now, like 12 years later, i am thinking about human evolution and queer identity and thought it would be fun to talk about. i am by far not an expert and so if there are experts who want to correct me or talk more in depth about this Please jump in but

... why did humans evolve to be queer anyway?

very short answer: because its helpful to raising kids

longer answer: though its debated whether humans are a prosocial or eusocial species, it is agreed upon that early humans cooperatively raised young, including those that they did not personally sire or give birth to, and that we lived in multi-generation communities where younger members would help raise older members offspring, and vice versa

(note: im using the terms amab and afab for human populations potentially pre concepts of gender but work with me here, i dont want to keep repeating genitalia or genomes when those arent always a helpful 1 to 1 either. sex is a spectrum gender is made up etc support intersex rights)

we know that due to fraternal birth order effect (npr link), youre 33% more likely to be gay with each older amab sibling that you have (not 33% total, but 33% more, so like 2% to 2.6 to 3.5 etc). this is true of both amab and afab people with older amab siblings. we also know that a birthing parent having more of a specific antibody makes their children more likely to be gay (and that antibody is not exclusive to but is highly tied to giving birth to amab children)

in addition, evolutionarily speaking, its just as advantageous for your siblings children to do well than it is for yours to. its incredibly rare you would happen to have a very helpful mutation that your siblings dont have. which means that your siblings kids would be about 25% amab grandparent, 25% afab grandparent, and 50% a parent who is unrelated to you. this is exactly the same for your own children

okay, so what does that mean?

to put it simply, it means that having older siblings, specifically older siblings who are more easily able to sire more children, makes you more likely to end up in a same-sex couple, which means you are two adults with no children who are now around to help raise children you are equally invested in the success of than if they were your own

the more older youth or adults you have around to help who are not also using up a bunch of resources by being pregnant and having non-helping-age children, the better off that community's children will be. more people to hunt and gather and create resources like tools, which means everyone prospers, especially the kids

or, to frame it from the opposite view: having gay siblings means your children are more likely to survive and thrive

(kind of funny how conservatives are like gay people shouldnt be around children when the entire point of our evolutionary development was that we were great to have around if you had kids but like. alas)

so, thats the very basic core of it. but you can apply this concept to a lot of queer identities. aroace? working adult around to help who is not bringing in an unrelated partner or having kids. trans? you now either have an m/f couple who can fill two different social niches without having kids, or you have a gay couple who is able to do more varied physical tasks whether or not they do have kids. bi people may have kids or may not, or their children may be more spread out if they have partners of different sexes over time

not to mention you kind of have some built in, ready to go parents in the case that another community member dies, and there are now orphans that need raising. its a lot harder for someone whos already a parent to take on more children, as opposed to an adult couple who doesnt have any

so yeah :) were queer because we were helpful to have in communities and allowed everyone, but especially youth, to prosper and thrive

tl;dr: queer people were an evolutionary advantage to have in an early community because we were helping-age members who were able to cooperatively raise young and take on orphans without using up resources on birthing and raising our own young

yay science :o) happy pride everyone!!!

#queer community #queer pride #pride month #pride 2024 #biology

86 notes · View notes

howtofightwrite · 8 months

Note

So happy you're back after all this time! I have a question, do you happen to know how people fought in ancient rome? Particularly gladiators and soldiers? Sorry if this isn't the blog for this question tho!

I think we've covered both of these questions independently over the years.

Gladiators were a performance sport. It was more about glorifying the Roman Empire and its victories, than a conventional fight. As a result, most Gladiators were armed with specific variant, “loadouts,” designed to cosplay as various enemies that The Empire had conquered, and they only fought against specific countering variants. Specifically, the variants would be matched in such a way that it would be difficult for either combatant to have a decisive advantage over the other, with an eye towards creating situations that would result in a lot of visible injuries, without serious harm to either participant.

In case it needs to be said, gladiators were a significant financial investment, and they weren't casually killed in the arena. The point was for visible injuries, and a bloody spectacle, not a slaughter. Sometimes someone would die, but having them die on the field wasn't the intention, and they generated a lot of money, and on the rare cases when they were killed, it was meant to be a climactic moment, not someone taking a blade to the gut and collapsing mid-fight.

Obviously, I'm barely scratching the surface here, because it gets a lot deeper, but the simple answer is that in the vast majority of cases, gladiators were armed with weapons that were designed to make seriously harming their foe difficult to impossible. Also, the gladiators were something that evolved and became more complicated over time. When they first started in the Republic, it was a much more stripped down structure with prisoners of war being given a sword and shield and forced to face off against one another.

As for the Roman Legions. I'm not sure I've ever seen a comprehensive description of their training techniques. The Testudo, (or Tortoise) is one of the more famous examples of their specific combat style. Legionaries would create a shield wall, and the soldiers behind the front line would raise their shields to cover the formation against attacks from above (usually arrow fire, or thrown spears.) While being able to strike with javelins. In practice, the formation had issues, including being vulnerable to siege fire, and mounted archers were able to easily flank the formation. It's a neat story, but the formation had serious limitations.

One thing we haven't talked about before (I think) was the Roman's use of biological warfare. During sieges, they would load (locally sourced, I assume) corpses onto catapults, and then launch them into the besieged city.

Beyond, the major thing about the Legions was the extremely disciplined and orderly combat formations, with a lot of attention paid to managing battlefield movement. It wasn't so much about exceptional individual performance, so much as their ability to operate as a unit. This isn't a particularly mind blowing concept today, but in an era when professional soldiers were the exception, or limited to the elite forces, it had slightly more impact.

Regarding the details of their training, I've never seen any of that come up. Now, granted, I've really tried to research that degree of Roman history. So, if you're asking, “how, exactly, did they swing the gladius?” I don't know, and I don't remember ever seeing anyone credibly claim they had that insight. As far as I know, the only surviving Roman training manual was De Re Militari, (there's around 200 surviving Latin copies) which is far more concerned with overall strategic planning and command. If you're trying to write Roman era military fiction, it's probably worth reading. So, I'm not sure this is exactly what you were looking for, but I do hope it helps.

-Starke

This blog is supported through Patreon. Patrons get access to new posts three days early, and direct access to us through Discord. If you’re already a Patron, thank you. If you’d like to support us, please consider becoming a Patron.

#writing reference #writing advice #writing tips #how to fight write #starke answers #roman empire #history

138 notes · View notes

sanjoongie · 6 days

Text

Pʅαɳƚҽԃ Dҽʂιɾҽʂ~ Tσραȥ Eԃιƚισɳ

🌷 Reversal scenario of @flurrys-creativity's planted desires. Go read hers, being the one attacked by the naughty plant is just as fun.

🌷Pairing: Magical Botanist Researcher! reader (f) x Boyfriend! Mingi

🌷Genre: smut

🌷Au: modern magic au, magical au, fantasy au, botanist au

🌷Trope: established relationship

🌷Word Count: 1,705

🌷Rating: 18+, MINORS DO NOT INTERACT

🌷Warnings: ⚠DUB CON⚠ read with caution!!! (the plant takes advantage of mingi), nipple play (m&f), oral (m), masturbation (f), fingering (f), voyeurism, restrained sex (bdsm), fear kink (slight)

🌷Summary: when you're intending to feed your carnivorous plant but get side-tracked, you didn't expect to see the plant life in your garden being real friendly with your boyfriend

🌷divider by @cafekitsune

You studied Respirare Picea, or in layman's terms, the breathing spruce tree, with your tongue between your lips. You were sure its breathing was becoming more labored the closer to winter it got. Would it slumber and produce less oxygen? If so, you were thinking you might need to invest in a HVAC, or hummingbird vacuum apparatus collective to have more air circulating.

“Good morning!” Your boyfriend yawned as he entered your greenhouse. He raised his arms over his head in a stretch, welcoming you with a lovely view of his faint treasure trail.

“Good morning to you too,” you hummed, wrapping an arm around his narrow waist. “What brings you here so early?”

Mingi sent you a hurt puppy dog look. “You weren’t in bed when I woke up. I missed you.”

“I,” you paused to bop your adorably sleepy boyfriend on the nose, “still have the maneater to feed, Mingi. Why don’t you make us some coffee and I’ll be out in a minute.”

Mingi nodded sleepily and then meandered back to the house.

You walked further into the greenhouse, coming up to the pink-tinted green plant that always made your inquiring mind perk up.

“Good morning,” you trilled softly to your carnivorous plant.

The plant unwound its tentacle-like tendrils and extended them out. With a gloved hand, you let it wrap around you in greeting. Normally, the maneater was quite dangerous, but you had raised this one since a seed, so it knew you by scent and sound, so it never attempted to devour you. Besides, it knew you were its only source of food as well, so it didn’t dare have a taste.

You measured its tendrils, noting the growth on your clipboard, and considered measuring the height of the cup where it usually placed its prey to devour. You were rudely interrupted by Mingi barging into the greenhouse once again.

“I burnt the coffee!” He lamented, looking to you for help.

“Mingi, I’m in the middle of performing my job,” You couldn't help but say in an unimpressed tone.

“But you always make the coffee the best!” Mingi protested.

“Fine!” You huffed.

You pulled off your gloves and removed your visor. “Go put on some gear, grab the claw stick, and feed Nelly, okay? That way, everything still gets done.”

Mingi eyed your carnivorous plant. “Me?”

“Oh, don’t be such a scaredy-cat,” You said nonplussed. “If you’re far away and covered up, it won’t harm you.”

“But I--”

Mingi started to protest, but you interrupted him with a throaty kiss. You could even feel his dick twitch in his pants from the way you pressed your body against him.

“Be a doll and do this for me?” You purred. “I’ll make it worth your while.”

Mingi’s pupils were blown as he nodded his head dumbly. “Okay.”

You walked away, confident Mingi would do as you asked.

You temporarily put away your equipment and moved back to your house attached to the greenhouse.

You hummed a little as you roasted the beans with a flip of your wrist. Your nose could pick up the piquant smell when the beans were perfectly roasted. It was a female thing. Must be why Mingi always burnt them.

Just as you were motioning with your hand to pull the tray of beans out of the stone oven, a shriek made you drop the tray.

Your head whipped around in the direction of the greenhouse. You were certain Mingi was safe, but if he had skipped a step, like say he didn’t put his overalls on, he would be in a lot of trouble.

You dashed from the kitchen to the greenhouse, your heart beating out of your chest. If anything happened to Mingi, or if you had to take out the plant to save Mingi, you were going to be devastated. You were already lucky enough that Mingi endured your obsession with your profession, but you would never forgive yourself if he was harmed from one of your plants.

You turned a corner, your heavy boots skidding along the gravel path, and you were met with a scene that can only be described as absolute filth. Mingi had indeed forgotten his overalls, but his clothes were in tatters, barely clinging to his body. ‘Nelly’, as you so fondly called the plant, was doing very naughty things to your boyfriend. The plant had used its tendrils that had been covered in the substance that broke down the bodies it ate, and had reduced its acidity so that it only wore away Mingi’s clothes where it wanted to… you were having a hard time understanding why the plant wanted to touch Mingi so lewdly.

You cocked your head as Mingi let out a low moan. Currently he had a tendril rubbing up and down his length, slowly trying to dematerialize his boxers. His shirt still clung to his shoulders, but where his chest was, the material had worn away so that two tendrils could lick at his nipples. One strong tendril was wrapped around his wrists, holding him aloft.

“Shall I leave you two alone?” You mused out loud.

Mingi’s eyes snapped open, wide and slightly scared. “No, wait, get me out of here. I thought this was a maneater, not a dickeater!”

You chuckled quietly under your breath. “Considering that you’re not being eaten, I think we might have to reclassify Nelly.”

Mingi shook his head, but whatever he was going to say was cut off, as the tendril had worn away his boxers and his long, angry-red cock, bounced against his flat stomach. A new tendril appeared, this one with a small mouth-like apparatus, opening up and encompassing Mingi’s cock. It moved up and down Mingi’s length and he let out a lengthy groan as your plant essentially sucked Mingi off.

You frowned in thought as you slowly formed a hypothesis. Perhaps your plant was attracted to Mingi’s semen. Scent was a strong motivator for the maneater. If it had discovered Mingi’s erogenous zones, which helped Mingi secrete his semen, it would use that to its advantage.

“Amazing,” You said in a tone of awe.

“A little he-help here?!” Mingi stuttered.

“But Mingi!” You protested.

You immediately pulled out the notebook you kept in your back pocket for quick notes and began to write down your theory. “I have to see this to completion to see what the plant is working towards. Besides, it’s kind of turning me on.”

Mingi bit down on his lower lip, another groan threatening to spill from his plush lips. “It is?”

You tucked your notebook back into your pocket and hummed in reply. “Oh yes.”

Mingi mentally collapsed like jello upon understanding that you liked what you were seeing. “Oh fuck, it feels so good,” Mingi whined.

“Is the naughty plant turning you on?” You cooed.

Mingi’s eyes opened, and his eyebrows furrowed cutely. “It feels so wrong, but so right.”

You bit down on the tip of your thumb, getting more and more turned on in the moment. Mingi was clearly blissed out with the pleasure he was receiving, eyes closing once again to enjoy. It was amazing how the plant was taking everything it had to consume live prey and convert it to essentially what equated to a milk machine. What was it going to do with Mingi’s semen once it collected it?

You had to take advantage of the scene before you, however. You weren’t certain if Mingi would repeat this for scientific purposes, of course, so you would only have one chance to experience this as it was.

You took a few steps backward, moving to get out of the direct reach of your used-to-be carnivorous plant. You unclipped the overalls you had donned, yes, jean overalls under work overalls, and flipped the straps over your shoulder. The garment fell down to your hips, but it left you with enough room to wiggle your hands towards your lower region and begin to touch yourself.

At first, you kept your noises of pleasure to a minimum, not looking to distract Mingi from the plant that was giving him pleasure. But, if you could tell from the way Mingi’s back was arching and the way his hips were chasing after the tendril that was acting like a mouth, he seemed pretty close to coming. So you did what any girlfriend slash scientist would do: you put on a show for your boyfriend.

You pulled up your t-shirt and bralette, letting your breasts bounce freely. You grabbed one with one hand, pinching and twisting your nipple. Your other hand circumvented your underwear and dipped into your entrance, finding the rough spot inside of you, and began to rub against that as well. Then you let out the loudest moan you could muster.

Mingi’s eyes opened again, zero-ing in on the show you were putting on for him. And with a surprised grunt, he came. His nose scrunched up, his voice getting low and gravelly as he shot his seed inside the plant.

You watched with avid interest as the plant seemed to ‘swallow’ all of Mingi’s cum up, the semen seemingly travelling along the tendril to its bucket aka it’s main body. As soon as it acquired everything Mingi had to give, it dumped Mingi unceremoniously onto the floor, recalling all its tendrils, apparently done with the human.

You assumed Mingi would scramble backwards now that he was free but it looked like he was all out of fucks to give, because he had just had the most odd but satisfying orgasm of his life.

You stopped pleasuring yourself and moved over to Mingi's collapsed form. You wrapped a supportive arm around his waist and attempted to hoist him up. You were not successful and collapsed on top of your well-used boyfriend.

Hair clung to Mingi's forehead, sweaty from the excursion. His tongue was out from panting after his orgasm. His eyes sparkled, and his skin glowed. Mingi looked so fucking good; good enough to eat, if it wasn’t too soon to say so.

“We better get you away from Nelly before it decides it wants more of your semen, Song Mingi,” You teased your boyfriend.

Mingi whimpered at the thought of being taken advantage of again by the plant. “I could really use a coffee now.”

You leaned forward and gave Mingi a loud smooch on the forehead. “You did good,” You laughed softly. “Let’s go get that coffee.”

#pirateeznet #cultofdionysusnet #ateez smut #song mingi smut #mingi smut #atz smut #topaz's work #ღatz #recent

51 notes · View notes

becca-e-barnes · 2 years

Text

"You are. Every Inch. The fantasy."

I always thought men like this only exist in fiction but it turns out I was wrong, real men like this exist too and I'm thrilled about it 🙈 This needs a part 2 and I fully intend to give it one!

This belongs to the 'Shit He Said' series, and let me tell you, he's got it backwards.

Pairing: Professor!Bucky x Female Reader

Word Count: 4.3K

Warnings: Age gap (Bucky is in his early 40's, reader is in her 20's), semi-public, professor/student, sex toys, praise kink, degradation, pet names, multiple orgasms, consensual forced orgasms, I talk way too much about trusts and equitable maxims

Summary: Your professor finds a way to distract you during class.

Minors, do not interact.

You’d never been a ‘front row’ kind of gal. Not that there was anything wrong with sitting in the front row. Nothing at all.

You tend to prefer the safety of rows four to six and the comfort that comes from knowing that you're close enough to avoid straining your eyes when trying to read the screen but not so close that you're always going to be picked on when no one volunteered an answer.

Rows four to six were a safe zone. They kept you far enough away from the chatter at the back of the room and close enough to the front that you often found your lecturers would recognise you in the corridor and offer a polite smile.

You’d found your sweet spot and it hadn’t failed you yet.

It didn’t hurt that the lecturer that took your Thursday afternoon classes was incredibly easy to look at. He was always clean shaven and he had a voice as slow and sweet as warm honey. In fact, you often wondered why he’d went into teaching in the first place. With a voice like that, he’d make a killing recording audiobooks. His hair was dark but scattered with greys and it seemed to have a natural, very loose wave that held its shape nicely. He’d aged incredibly well, proving that your 40’s have the potential to be exceptionally kind to you, just as his seem to be to him.

He came off calm. He dripped composure but he had a passion for teaching that he couldn’t have hidden if he tried.

But perhaps the most attractive aspect of his character was the fact that he pushed you. He knew you were capable of more. He coaxed some of the more difficult concepts out with you in class because he knew you were able and willing to develop your own understanding. He didn’t let you dwell in comfort for too long before asking more of you, expecting you to be more and while it left you a little on edge, it was electrifying, testing the boundaries of your own capability.

He had, in many ways, found a favourite in you. He found himself invested in your learning, keen to aid your professional development and supplement your understanding.

But tension builds, as tension does. There’s nothing wrong with letting it, after all. Playful debate back and forth inside the lecture hall turns into a more sustained conceptual analysis after hours. Your one-to-one sessions move out of the classroom and into the bar and eventually, to his bed and then his kitchen the following morning while you’re wearing one of his t-shirts and cooking breakfast.

It’s an interesting arrangement, to say the least and you’re acutely aware that no one can know about this, for both your sake and his. You know exactly the kind of speculation that would float around if people knew. They’d assume you get some kind of advantage from sleeping with your professor; that you’re only doing it for the grades. It’s difficult and ultimately pointless to try to nail down which of you are benefitting most from the scenario, nor does it help to think of only one of you as a “beneficiary”. You’re both benefitting from great sex and there really doesn’t need to be more to it than that.

“Wave of madness. I got you a present last night.” His message flashing up on your phone screen has the edges of your lips curling into a little smile. You’re not used to someone getting you gifts. It’s not unwelcome by any means, but you absolutely want some more details.

“Oh? You didn’t need to!” Your thumbs feel like they’re flying over the keyboard and a slight anxiety settles in your chest while you’re waiting on a response.

“I know I didn’t need to but I wanted to. I got a matching one for myself.” That doesn’t really clear anything up. In fact, it only raises more questions. You’re reminded for a second of your brother, his girlfriend and their matching crocs. Somehow you can’t imagine that’s what Bucky has bought for you both.

“Hang around after class on Thursday. I just hope the box is discreet when it arrives.” Your heart thumps just a little harder. This sounds far too exciting already.

“So that’s how the requirements of the common intention constructive trust were upheld by the House of Lords when they overruled the Court of Appeal’s decision Stack v Dowden.” You never thought you could possibly care so much about what happens when an unmarried couple separates and only one of them is a legal owner of their home.

7 pages of notes later, your brain was buzzing pleasantly, watching your Professor pack up his things while explaining the work for your seminar on Monday. You didn’t pay it much attention; there was very little point given that you had completed the prep work already anyway.

“Actually, Mr Barnes, I wanted to ask you something if you have a moment?” You quizzed, noticing that his face gave nothing at all away. He was as stoic as ever.

You always had a question so no one noticed anything strange about the fact you tended to wait behind after class. “How would you align the Supreme Court ruling in Jones v Kernott with the House of Lords’ decision in Stack?”

It wasn’t a difficult question. The cases were fundamentally very similar so the answer boiled down to a simple comparison of the basics. You just needed something to ask him while everyone filtered out.

“Interesting question.” Bucky smiled, looking up from his satchel to see how many people were still left in the hall before you could drop the act. It isn’t an interesting question; he’s just awfully polite. “How do you think the two rulings align?”

“Well, it makes sense that they both hinge on the fact the courts don’t have to impute the parties’ intentions. The parties’ intentions are clear in the very strict separation of assets and finances so it makes it easier to consider their respective contributions to the home. No matter what the parties allege, consideration of the fact their contributions to the home were different is a sensible starting point.”

You’ve answered your own question and he knows you know it. Ultimately, the rulings, while slightly different, do align.

The coy smirk on his lips makes excitement bloom in your chest once more.

“Good girl.” He coos, just as the heavy wooden door clicks shut at the very back of the room. “I’m proud of you.” Oh, that hits hard. Your blood thrums through your body and you’re not entirely sure how he always knows exactly what to say.

“Thank you.” Your voice is a soft squeak and barely any more than that.

He seems pleased by the effect he’s had on you and it doesn’t take him long to cross the space between his desk and the front row of the tiered seats.

He doesn’t waste any time, cupping the back of your neck in one huge hand, pulling you towards him into a searing kiss. He tastes faintly of the flat white he brought to class this afternoon and his lips are so soft and gentle, despite their urgency.

“I can’t hang around today. I have the faculty board meeting now and an event this evening.” He sounds disappointed; you are too but it’s not the end of the world. You’ll see him next week, if not sooner but you find you build your hopes up all week, almost just living for your Thursday nights with him.

“That’s okay. Enjoy the board.” You tease and he can’t help but laugh. No one has ever enjoyed those meetings in the history of their existence.

“You know where I’d rather be.” He reminds you, stroking your cheekbone with his thumb, barely able to tear his eyes off your lips. It’s a soft moment. Just a slight devolution from the passion a few seconds earlier but there’s no sense letting him go to the faculty board meeting half hard. Any arousal would be stifled in minutes and that would be a terrible waste.

“There’s always next week!” You remind him, your voice bright in spite of the disappointment that you won’t get to spend time with him tonight.

“You’re right. But that reminds me, I got you a little something. Charge it up. Play around with it. But bring it to class next week and come early.” He steps back to his desk, pulling a little brown cardboard box from his satchel before dropping it into your open bag.

“Whatever you say, Sir.” You tease, unable to help yourself but you know he needs to go. At this rate, he’s going to be late.

“You.” He whispers before pressing his lips to yours. “Are dangerous.” His lips are so inviting, it’s hard to stop. “And you know it.”

You can’t help but smirk to yourself. He makes you feel powerful and desired and it’s incredibly attractive.

“You need to go.” You remind him, capturing his lips just once more. You’ve hardly even let yourself touch him because you know if you do, you’ll not want to let him leave.

“I do. I’ll talk to you later.” He doesn’t give into the temptation of one more kiss and it’s probably for the best. Instead, he scoops up his satchel, securing it over his shoulder, heading up the stairs with you. He holds the door for you like always, going your separate ways without a second glance now that you’re back in public.

Oh.

Well.

Thank God the box was discrete.

Inside the brown cardboard, you find a second box that’s ever so slightly smaller.

The picture on the front tells you everything you need to know before you’ve even read the words “Bluetooth Adjustable Dual Vibrator”.

You’ve seen these before; the range of toys that can be controlled from an app on your phone but you’re rather excited when your head reminds you that it probably won’t be your phone that Bucky has in mind to control the toy.

The box is quickly discarded in favour of putting the toy on the charger while you read through the instruction manual. You didn’t expect to be so heavy. It’s not heavy in a bad way though; it feels sturdy. While adjustable, it holds its shape nicely and for a second, you’re just not entirely sure what shape you’ll need it to be.

Once the charging light goes out, you click the bottom button once, following the instructions to set it up. You download the app; you connect the toy and you start exploring the features with the toy in your hand.

You can sync it to music, you can control both vibrating elements separately, you can play with different pulse settings or you can make your own, the app has its own chat function, you can send voice notes or videos and then delete them. This thing. Does. Everything. But that’s when you notice the option to sync up more than one toy at once so they can be controlled together. Turning yours up would simultaneously turn the second toy up and you can’t help but feel entirely thrilled at that thought.

The following Thursday can’t come soon enough but the evenings pass a lot quicker when you have a fun new way to keep yourself entertained.

You’ve managed to find the perfect angle, one that lets the toy sit comfortably, pressed to the sweet spot inside you while the other component is pressed to your clit and you’re pleasantly surprised by just how mind-blowing this thing is.

The fact that this is really a dream come true isn’t lost on you while you walk onto campus. Each year, your professor gets a new class and you’re certain that in the years he’s been teaching, plenty of beautiful young women must’ve wanted him. You’ve seen for yourself how other girls talk to him, looking up at him through thick lashes, their hands clasped neatly behind their back. You can’t fault them. You’re just not sure how he’s never given in before now.

You press the classroom door open, slipping inside and closing it behind you.

“Well? How is it?” You hardly have the door closed before you hear Bucky’s voice from the front of the hall, setting up his presentation on the computer, ensuring it’s projected onto the screen.

“How is what?” You tease, feigning innocence, descending the steps to your usual seat in the fourth row.

“How is the vibrator I bought you?” He doesn’t waiver in the slightest and even the fact he’s so blunt about it sends a pleasant tingle down your spine.

“I’ll give you a full review once I’ve tried all the settings but I can tell you it’s been perfect so far.” He looks satisfied with that answer and there’s nothing you want to do more than please him in that moment.

“Did you bring it with you?” He has a mischievous look in his eyes, watching you pull the little black drawstring bag from your backpack.

“We can set it up when we get back to yours and I’ll show you just how good it is.” Your suggestion doesn’t seem unreasonable but the corner of his lips tug into the tiniest smirk and for a second you worry you’ve said something stupid.

“Actually, I was thinking we could try it out now.” He’s studying your face and when he doesn’t notice any evident discomfort, he leads you by the hand down to his desk at the front of the room, encouraging you to hop up onto it and you’re more than happy to.

“We don’t have a whole lot of time.” His lips are on your neck, kissing gently down the right side while he cups the other side in his hand. This is dangerous. It’s so easy to lose track of time like this and taking it slow isn’t a luxury you have in that moment. His face is so soft, you note he must’ve shaved that morning and you’re infinitely grateful because you hate how stubble makes your skin break out.

“We’ll have more than enough time.” His warm hand lands on your bare knee, under the skirt of your dress, pressing your legs apart while his mouth continues its sinful trail down your skin. “Class lasts a couple of hours. I’d say that’s long enough.”

Fuck. He’s serious.

Alarm bells should be ringing in your brain but they’re dampened by the overwhelming feeling of his mouth on your skin and his hand trailing slowly up the inside of your thigh.

“Buck, we can’t. That’s such a bad idea.” Is it really? The words are past your lips because you know that’s the response you’re supposed to give. You’re not allowed to want this the way you do.

“Is it, sweetheart? Why? You don’t think you can keep up while I’m distracting you? Maybe you aren’t just as bright as I thought.” It’d be a blow to your ego if you weren’t acutely aware he’s only looking to get a rise from of you.

“No, I wouldn’t want the standard of teaching to slip while you’re distracted.” You roll your hips forward against his hand between your legs, letting him feel what just a few minutes of him kissing your neck does to you.

“Let me worry about that. I want you to focus on answering my questions like a good girl.” He scoops you up with his hands under your ass, carrying you the few short steps back to edge of the desk in front of the fourth row. He sets you down on the desk, kneeling in front of you while he kisses from your ankle, up your calve to your knee and then over the couple more inches to the hem of your skirt.

He slips his phone from his pocket, opening the toy app and connecting his phone in just a few seconds before returning his phone to his pocket.

You watch as he turns the toy over in his hands a couple of times. The vibrant pink certainly draws your attention, not that there’s anywhere else you would rather look anyway. Not even when he’s slipping your panties down your legs, tucking them into his pocket.

“If you really need me to stop, drop your pen.” He looks sincere and you appreciate it but you’re almost certain you won’t need a way out.

The tip of his index finger trails gently between your soaked folds and you couldn’t miss the gentle wet sounds if you had tried. “Are you going to be a slut for me?” Oh, that’s a sharp turn. “You do realise I’m going to make you cum in a room full of your classmates. Not just once. I want you cumming over and over until you wish you could stop. And then I’m going to keep going.” He presses the fingertip to your clit, rubbing slowly up and down, watching your face while you melt into the pleasure. “You’re just going to be a good girl and take everything I give you. You know why?” You shake your head, barely able to look at him. “Because if you make a sound, everyone in the room will know what a slut you are.”

Your breath catches in your throat, acutely aware that he’s right. This is the sluttiest thing you’ve ever even thought of doing and for just a second you wonder if this man is ruining you. He probably is. You’ll absolutely let him keep doing it though.

He wants to coax you to your first orgasm right there on the desk. He wants to sink two of those long, beautiful fingers inside you and gently curl them, exactly how he knows you like but there just isn’t enough time. Later though, if you can handle it.

“You are.” He whispers, spreading your legs wider, giving himself full access to your sex. “Every inch.” He kisses the side of your knee, placing the bulbous head of the toy to your entrance, letting it glide inside you. “The fantasy.”

You gasp at the feeling of the toy, finally sitting comfortably, right where you need it.

He’s got it all wrong and you’re not even sure that he knows it. So many other girls fawn over this man, whether he realises it or not. He mustn’t know how desired he is; or how many young women would kill to be in your shoes at this very moment, being nothing short of worshipped by a frustratingly attractive, intelligent older man.

He hums contentedly as he stands up, offering you a gentle kiss before making his way back to the front of the hall to his computer. The other students should be arriving any second, not that you’ve even really been thinking about that.

You make yourself busy, pulling your notebook out of your bag, along with your little pencil case, lining a couple of pens up on the desk while the rest of the students start to trickle in, taking their usual seats.

Everything is going smoothly, in fact, you almost question whether Bucky has got so wrapped up in his lecture about equitable maxims that he’s forgotten about the toy altogether.

The first half hour passes quickly and while the topic is interesting, it’s hard to relax, knowing that he could disrupt your train of thought at any point.

The arousal he’s built up in you doesn’t subside either. You’re always reminded that the toy is there, despite how interested you are in his explanation of equitable maxims.

You’re about 35 minutes in before you feel the first hint of a buzz inside you and it’s so surprising, it almost makes you squeak. You faintly register that it’s only the internal element that he’s brought to life and you’re more than fine with that.

Heat blossoms through your chest and while it feels good, it’s not nearly enough. You don’t want to need more. Not when you know you can’t beg him for it so instead, you avoid his gaze, focusing on your notes and not on the man at the front of the room who’s eyes are almost entirely trained on you.

A further half hour passes before you feel any kind of change, just as you were beginning to squirm in your seat.

The clitoral element buzzes to life, quickly followed by the internal element turning up. Your thighs clench together, pleasure radiating through you and you find yourself grinding against the seat beneath you to press the toy exactly where you need it. Your hand stalls on the page, your train of thought abandoned because even at only half it’s strength, this toy is incredible.

“So now that we’ve looked at the defining characteristics of equitable maxims, what do you think the problems are?” Bucky hasn’t looked at you since he turned the toy up and you’re beyond glad. You know this question is coming to you though. He’d warned you.

You glance up from your page to find you’re right. He’s now right looking at you, waiting for an answer and he looks so incredibly smug, it makes you shiver. He knows you’re getting off on this but so is he. You’re no better than each other.

“You could argue maxims are outdated.” You provide the answer but that’s not enough. The vibration inside you gets just a little stronger and that’s when you see his phone in his hand, his thumb sliding across the screen, controlling the strength of the toy.

“Good. What else?” He’s relentless. Fuck.

The increased sensation leaves your mind blank. You can’t cum now. You can’t. Not with everyone watching. “Um, they’re too old to be relevant?” You’ve never sounded so unsure.

“You’ve said that already.” Shit, you did. “What’s the biggest potential flaw with that system?” This is embarrassing now. You should know this. You do know this. The toy inside you, getting incrementally more intense doesn’t help you gain clarity of thought though.

“The… Discretionary power maxims afford to judges.” That answer pleased him.

“Very good.” He nods, slowly making his way to the other side of the classroom, taking the attention off you. You notice his thumb sliding methodically up and down on his phone screen while he explains that maxims don’t offer the same rigidity as legislation, but you truly can’t find it in yourself to care. He’s giving your body what it needs and no matter how your head tells you to stop, you can’t hold back no matter how hard you try.

You look down at the desk, trying to keep your hand subtly clasped over your own mouth, muffling any sounds that threaten to escape your lips. Your body flutters around the toy, pleasure almost making you feel dizzy as you cum while holding your breath. You want to roll your hips. You want to take and take until you don't need more but you know you can't.

Once your high has subsided, you find yourself very quickly given over to overstimulation when the toy doesn’t stop. There’s no escape from the feeling that’s now becoming almost too intense to bear in the very best way.

“But on the other hand, how could it be argued that these flaws have been overcome?” His voice rings through the classroom and you realise that if no one answers, the question is coming to you, as it always does.

Sure enough, after a moment or two of painful silence, your professor has made his way back to your side of the room, stopping in front of you once more, waiting expectantly.

“Case law.” That’s all you can manage. You bring yourself to look up, meeting his stare and for the first time since your orgasm and he can see your desperation. He can almost feel your need, just from the look on your face. He’s seen you like this before, overwhelmed by the pleasure you’re receiving but not willing to tap out. You’re enjoying it. You’re allowed to. But he’s far from done.

“What about it?” He almost feels guilty for how much he’s picked on you during this class and he makes a mental note to make it up to you later.

The toy is at full intensity now and you can’t bring yourself to focus. You can’t think of anything except the gentle buzzing that you’re certain only you can hear, the feeling of the inside of your thighs that are now slick with arousal and the unstoppable, building orgasm that’s about to take hold of you.

“The body of case law now prevents any gaps. And case law sets binding precedent so modern judges have very little discretion.” You could’ve developed your thinking but not today.

“100%. That’s exactly right.” He looks proud and part of you almost thinks that's what was really enough to tip you over the edge into blinding pleasure once more.

Again, he walks away, over to the other side of the room to draw attention away from you. Your orgasm makes your thighs shake and if that soft whimper came from you, you’re sure it wasn’t loud enough for anyone else to hear. It’s electric; the thrill of doing something you know you absolutely shouldn’t and it only makes this even more intense. You’re almost not sure you’ve ever cum this hard before but this isn’t the time to try to recall past experiences. Right now, he’s turned the toy down, rushing through the last three powerpoint slides while explaining the work for Monday and you’ve never been more glad to have a class wrap up early.

#bucky barnes smut #Bucky Barnes x reader #professor!bucky #Bucky Barnes x reader smut #bucky barnes #bucky #marvel smut #marvel fanfic #marvel imagines #marvel fic #marvel x reader #bucky x reader #bucky imagine #bucky smut #bucky fic #james buchanan barnes #bucky x female reader #bucky x y/n #bucky x you #Bucky Barnes x you #bucky barnes fanfiction #bucky barnes series #bucky barnes x female reader #I recognise that trusts are incredibly boring and not hot in the slightest #but equity & trusts was my favourite area of law so when I get a chance to talk about it I'm going to take it #the section on the CICT was essentially a summary of chapter 3 of my dissertation #big love to my dissertation supervisor #could I also encourage you to get ready for my transition from a 'champagne problems' girly to a 'midnight rain' girly #that album is INCREDIBLE #I thought about ‘dress’ while I was writing this though if anyone’s interested

1K notes · View notes

fushiglow · 1 year

Text

Gonna lose?! It’s Gojō Satoru!!

Karma and consequence in Jujutsu Kaisen

With the release of chapter 235 of Jujutsu Kaisen, the King of Curses has been defeated and Gojō Satoru has cemented his title as the 'Strongest’. The war isn’t over yet, but the battle is won, and I think the outcome of this fight is by far the most interesting for both characters.

Truthfully, at the start of the Shinjuku Showdown arc, I wasn’t particularly rooting for Gojō or Sukuna to win. However, as the fight developed (alongside the release of the anime adaptation of Hidden Inventory/Premature Death), I found myself becoming more and more invested in Gojō Satoru as a character and, consequently, theorising about what a ‘satisfying conclusion’ to his story might look like.

Shortly after the release of chapter 232, I saw an interesting post suggesting that ‘gain and loss’ is the theme of the Gojō vs Sukuna fight. Of course, ‘Gain and Loss’ is the title of chapter 221 when Gojō finally gets out of the Prison Realm only to learn that Sukuna has taken over Megumi’s body. I’d like to go a step further and suggest that ‘gain and loss’ — and by extension, karma and consequence — is actually a key theme of Gojō’s character (and maybe even Jujutsu Kaisen on the whole).

For full disclosure, I wrote about 90% of this before chapter 235 was released, operating on the belief that Gojō would eventually win this fight. It is a long post, so buckle up and let’s get into it!

Gain and loss in Jujutsu Kaisen

The idea of gain through loss was developed very early on in Jujutsu Kaisen with the introduction of binding vows. From Nanami’s ‘overtime’ to Sukuna's open barrier domain, a self-imposed binding vow offers a sorcerer an advantage in combat in return for an increased level of risk. In other words, sorcerers can ‘gain’ strength in exchange for a ‘loss’ of security. When it comes to binding vows, the bigger the risk the bigger the reward.

The idea of gain through loss was further developed through the introduction of Heavenly Restriction. Similar to a binding vow, a person with a Heavenly Restriction is ‘gifted’ with enhanced abilities in one area in exchange for limitations in another. However, unlike a binding vow, Heavenly Restriction exists from birth (although it remains unclear whether it occurs due to mere chance).

There are numerous powerful examples of both binding vows and Heavenly Restriction throughout the series. For Gege Akutami, they are key to maintaining a balanced power system where intelligence and tactical thinking can lead an underdog to prevail in the face of a more powerful opponent — think Yūta beating Getō or Toji beating Gojō. Through these mechanics, we can deduce that understanding gain and loss, give and take, risk and reward — however you want to put it — is crucial to mastery of jujutsu sorcery.

Naturally, if gain and loss are embedded in the laws of the Jujutsu Kaisen universe, it makes sense that the theme exerts a heavy influence over the narrative, too. Of course, consequences are an important way to create compelling characters in any story, but this rings especially true for Jujutsu Kaisen which draws deeply on Buddhist themes and traditions.

In Buddhism, karma is not a deterministic system of retribution, but the natural law of cause and effect. It is directly referenced in Jujutsu Kaisen when Fushiguro Megumi explains his personal ideology using ‘因果’, a Japanese Buddhist term meaning ‘karma’ or ‘fate’ which can be more literally translated as ‘cause and effect’. The second kanji means ‘fruit’, hinting at the underlying agricultural metaphor behind karma in Buddhism: plant a seed, later receive a harvest — or, to use a saying derived from another religion with an important role in Jujutsu Kaisen, ‘you reap what you sow’.

However, an important characteristic of karma which is commonly misunderstood is that the relationship between a cause and its effect is not necessarily linear, but rather part of an intricate network that spans past, present, and future. In other words, the ‘consequences’ of one’s actions might arrive much later.

This can lead to mistaking the effect of one cause for the effect of another, creating a reality where ‘bad’ things happen to ‘good’ people and vice versa. The resulting circumstances may make it easier to do ‘bad’ deeds but, importantly, the freedom always remains to choose the path of ‘good’.

Thus emerges a system where liberation from suffering (in Buddhism, the endless cycle of rebirth known as samsara) is not determined by the judgement of some higher power, but by an individual’s continued choice to do ‘good’. In other words, you can create your own destiny, but only if you understand karma.

The beginningless karmic cycle is rooted in actions performed in ignorance. Therefore, breaking free of it — enlightenment — can only be achieved through knowledge.

Gojō Satoru: the embodiment of enlightenment

As a character, Gojō Satoru is symbolically tied to these concepts. We’re told that his birth altered the balance of the world, causing curses to grow stronger in response to the sudden injection of power into the ecosystem. However, while Gojō’s birth might be the cause of the imbalance, his very existence is itself the effect of something else.

Supposedly, the Star Plasma Vessel, the Six Eyes, and Tengen are all connected by fate. However, the term that Tengen uses — ‘因果’ — is the same one that Megumi uses for ‘karma’, suggesting a cause and effect relationship. This is confirmed when Tengen implies that the Star Plasma Vessel and the Six Eyes always appear in response to the merger — the irrepressible effect to the merger’s cause.

Kenjaku cannot contend with the immense strength of the Six Eyes nor the universal law of cause and effect. However, Fushiguro Toji, who possesses no cursed energy due to his Heavenly Restriction, is not bound by fate and is thus able to interrupt a cycle of cause and effect which has existed for at least a thousand years.

Tengen actually suggests that karma (因果) and cursed energy are one and the same so — if we take Tengen’s words at face value — Toji is an anomaly who is free from its bindings.*

However, the characters whose lives he touches are not. Toji sets another chain of cause and effect into action when the events of Hidden Inventory lead to Gojō’s ascension to 'the Strongest'.

There is much debate in the fandom about whether Gojō’s moment of ‘enlightenment’ is legitimate, especially in light of his fight with Sukuna — the only other character associated with the phrase supposedly uttered by Buddha Shakyamuni at birth.

However, if enlightenment is understanding of reality that transcends conceptual thought, then Gojō Satoru is its physical embodiment in Jujutsu Kaisen.

His given name, Satoru (悟), is a verb meaning ‘to know’ or ‘to understand’, and the root of the Japanese Buddhist term for ‘enlightenment’. His innate domain — a representation of one’s innermost self — is a flood of infinite knowledge that constitutes the ‘truth’ of the universe. His Six Eyes are reminiscent of the all-seeing Eyes of Buddha or the Six Transcendental Powers or the Five Eyes — or perhaps all three!

Gojō is steeped in symbolism not only relating to Buddhist enlightenment, but to the founding Buddha himself, right down to his world-altering birth — the divine event which sets the modern-day story in motion.

Although he may have spoken Buddha Shakyamuni’s words in a moment of euphoria, the suggestion Gojō had reached a higher state of being was never intended to be called into doubt. The pertinent question, instead, is why the unimaginable strength that accompanies his ascension to almost godlike status seems to bring Gojō more loss than gain — especially when, in a twist of irony, he was only able to gain that strength through loss.

‘The Strongest’ : an allegory for enlightenment

As the two strongest sorcerers battled it out in Shinjuku, the question on everyone’s lips during the weekly chapter discussions was, ‘Who will win?’ However, Jujutsu Kaisen has already established that ‘winner’ is not necessarily always interchangeable with ‘strongest’. Perhaps that’s why, in the aftermath of the fight, the discussion has turned to arguments about which character is the strongest instead — from cursed technique to battle IQ.

Even now, we don’t know much about Sukuna’s abilities nor his character, so it’s always been difficult to accurately judge his strength against Gojō’s. However, a surprising number of people went into this fight believing that Sukuna would win without much trouble.

Some made the reasonable argument that ‘the strongest sorcerer in history’ using the Ten Shadows technique while inhabiting the body of his dearest student presented a no-win situation for Gojō. Others made the much less reasonable argument that Gojō’s claims about his strength were little more than arrogance born from a cushy life in an era of ‘weak’ sorcerers.

Indeed, Sukuna himself echoes that sentiment in chapter 230, going as far as to call Gojō ‘unenlightened’ (凡夫) — before being immediately humbled.

This isn’t the first time that Gege Akutami has directly challenged readers’ assumptions through his characters. However, Gojō in particular lends himself to reader speculation, because Akutami deliberately makes it difficult to know the character by maintaining a narrative distance from him that mirrors his Limitless technique.

This leads to a wonderful phenomenon where the reader falls into the same trap as the characters in the series by assuming that, while other sorcerers are struggling dreadfully, Gojō is having an easy time of things — because that’s what it looks like most of the time. Nanami might be right when he suggests that Gojō could take care of everything by himself. However, just because he could do it, does that mean he should?

The problem is, with Gojō kept at a distance, it’s easy to forget how he became 'the Strongest’ in the first place. It’s true that, even before he becomes a fully realised Six Eyes user, Gojō’s abilities dwarfed those of any other living sorcerer. For people like Getō and Megumi whose techniques require a very steep learning curve to master, I can imagine that it feels like Gojō’s unimaginable strength was handed to him on a silver platter at times.

However, both things can be true: Gojō was born with innate strength that most sorcerers can only dream of and Gojō is an exceptional talent in his own right.

We all saw the suffering and sacrifice that Gojō went through on his path to becoming a sorcerer strong enough to face the King of Curses. In a series where the primary power source is born from negative emotions, perhaps it makes sense that tragedy promotes strength. Yet, Getō — whose technique is the epitome of strength through negative emotions — experienced the same tragedy as Gojō. So why did they head in opposite directions after the events of Hidden Inventory?

If Gojō is the embodiment of enlightenment in Jujutsu Kaisen, then Getō is his opposite. Where Gojō achieves understanding, Getō is blinded by ignorance which shackles him to a cycle of suffering �� the marathon game of jujutsu sorcery.

In blaming non-sorcerers’ inability to regulate cursed energy — rather than the negative emotions that generate cursed energy in the first place — Getō mistakes one cause for another. Following the natural law of cause and effect that is karma, the solution should lie in shedding negative emotions altogether — just like Gojō at the moment of enlightenment.

Sadly, in his quest to find liberation from suffering, Getō actually condemns himself to it. Where Gojō chooses to let go of hatred and anger, Getō chooses to cling to them. This is ultimately why 'the Strongest’ changes from plural to singular. However, all of this assumes that Gojō did things the ‘right’ way when it’s very possible that Gege Akutami actually seeks to criticise a religious doctrine that separates the ‘honoured’ ones from everyone else.

Getō’s response to the horrors he endured evokes sympathy because it feels fundamentally human. In contrast, enlightenment seems so unattainable to the average human being that it becomes almost inhuman — the reserve of gods.

Indeed, Gojō is often accused of having a ‘god complex’, and Gege Akutami’s continued references to the divine don’t do anything to help. However, the series more often paints its strongest characters as closer to weapons of mass destruction or natural disasters, making the reality of ‘the Strongest’ less like reverence and more like dehumanisation.

Although Gojō achieved ‘enlightenment’, he’s ultimately still a human being — something that’s easy to forget. In fact, one of my favourite things about Gojō’s character is how he exists on an almost metatextual level. Too often, characters and readers view Gojō Satoru as 'the Strongest’ first and a human being second — a notion embodied by this notorious panel.

Thus, rather than having a ‘god complex’, I interpret Gojō as a character who struggles with his place in the world. His strength is what keeps him at a distance from the people around him — from the literal distance maintained by his technique to the metaphorical distance that separates him from the ‘unenlightened’.

Even the blindfold he wears to avoid discomfort hides his eyes, shutting off the ‘window to the soul’ and making him a less approachable figure. Thus, the thing that makes Gojō more comfortable around other human beings is ironically the thing that makes others less comfortable around him.

With the power at his disposal, Gojō is frightening at times, and Gege Akutami goes to great pains to show us the brutal potential of such strength — for example, in Shibuya when he ruthlessly dismantles 1000 transfigured humans with the precision of a machine in less than five minutes.

However, this display of violence comes off the back of Gojō’s most compassionate moment in which he bends the laws of jujutsu sorcery to preserve as many human lives as possible. Each time the curses attempt to force his hand, he does the inconceivable, even going so far as to limit his own strength by fighting without his technique to avoid collateral damage to humans caught up in the chaos.

Importantly, he doesn’t agonise over his decisions like the curses expect. Instead, when presented with a choice between two options that fundamentally violate his ideals, he forces another path without thinking. This is Gojō’s ‘overwhelming sense of self’. His commitment to upholding the ‘meaning’ he inherited from Getō is so unshakeable that it’s instinctive; so engrained that it’s unconscious.

Despite his inhuman strength, Gojō’s actions in Shibuya exemplify his firm stance on the side of ordinary human beings. From his technique to his blindfold, he removes the physical barriers that separate him from the rest of humanity. The result is that, although his display of power in Shibuya is godlike, Gojō never seems more human.

Of course, it’s his humanity that ultimately makes him vulnerable to the Prison Realm, and many suggested that this ’weakness’ is why he would lose to Sukuna — a character who has wholly relinquished his humanity.

Humanity in opposition to strength

The unexpected appearance of his ‘best friend’ in Shibuya causes Gojō to falter for a heartbeat, but it’s long enough to make his brilliance look like foolishness in hindsight. His decision to save innocent people at B5F ultimately leads to the deaths of many thousands more over the course of October 31st and the following Culling Game. Among the casualties of the chaos are some of Gojō’s friends, colleagues, and students — as well as the Fushiguro siblings who were under Gojō’s personal care.

Of the Hidden Inventory arc, Nakamura Yūichi, Gojō’s voice actor said:

‘Even though Gojō had power, he failed his mission, he failed to protect Amanai, and he lost his best friend. He lost everything, and the only thing he succeeded at was awakening his abilities.’

So, it certainly seems true that Gojō’s choice to hold onto his humanity has brought him more losses than wins. In fact, at this point in the story, can we honestly say that Gojō has ever truly ‘won’?

Despite this, the characters in the series never stop thinking of Gojō as ‘the Strongest’. The narrative doesn’t ridicule him for his sentimentality in Shibuya, because it’s perfectly reasonable in the face of Kenjaku’s mind-boggling scheme. Even Sukuna recognises Gojō’s strength in the immediate aftermath of the event.

Aside from Kenjaku themselves — who has never suggested that Gojō is anything but immensely powerful — no one has ever criticised Gojō for his humanity. In fact, even prior to the Shinjuku Showdown arc, I’m not convinced that humanity is ever reliably situated in opposition to strength in Jujutsu Kaisen.

Many point to Uro Takako’s conversation with Okkotsu Yūta as evidence that tossing out one’s humanity is the only way to achieve ultimate strength. However, putting aside the fact that the translation warps Uro’s meaning somewhat, it’s unwise to assume that Sukuna’s is the only way to reach that level, simply because he’s the only example in history of a sorcerer with comparable strength to Gojō.

This is even more true when you take into consideration that everything about the context surrounding Uro’s assertion suggests otherwise. After all, this prideful, vicious sorcerer has just been beaten by a teenage boy who fights solely to protect the people he cares about.

‘Overwhelming sense of self’ — the more accurate translation of the above panel — is about having absolute conviction in who you are as a person. The quality of your ideals is irrelevant as long as your commitment to them surpasses all else, and this has never been Gojō’s issue.

To say that Gojō’s humanity makes him weak misses the point, because it’s never been a question of strength. There’s no need to invent a weakness in the form of his humanity, because we already know his weakness — he told us himself.

Perhaps this starts to get at the the truth of ’the Strongest’ and the solitude that comes with ultimate strength. In Gojō’s own words, ‘When granted everything, you can't do anything.’ Despite being strong, he simply cannot save everyone. So, if being ‘the Strongest’ doesn’t help Gojō towards his goals, then what’s the point in his strength?

Of course, this is why Getō’s parting words hit Gojō so hard. When the boy who taught him that ‘protecting the weak’ is important tells Gojō that he has the power to commit the biggest act of genocide in history, the title of 'the Strongest’ is transformed from a blessing into a curse. I can’t imagine that Gojō ever feels more powerless than when he realises that he’s trying to save people using a body that’s built to destroy — a contradiction that’s illustrated to us in our first introduction (chronologically) to Gojō as a character.

If that wasn’t enough to cause an existential crisis for Gojō, Getō’s follow-up question guarantees it. In challenging Gojō’s assertion that Getō’s goals are impossible to achieve, Getō simultaneously questions Gojō’s identity beyond ‘the Strongest’, unintentionally (or perhaps intentionally) dehumanising Gojō by reducing him to his strength. This is especially painful coming from Getō of all people.

By the end of the conversation, Gojō’s entire worldview has been called into question by the person he trusted most. Getō, who always impressed upon Gojō the importance of meaning, leaves Gojō searching for the meaning in his strength — and, over 200 chapters after Getō asked the question, the answer still isn’t clear. This, I believe, is where the Shinjuku Showdown arc comes into play.

A reason to fight

From a narrative point of view, Getō isn’t entirely wrong to insinuate that Gojō lacks an identity beyond ‘the Strongest’. His primary role in the story has always been to act as a power ceiling from which the reader can extrapolate information about Gege Akutami’s world and its mechanics. Even his absence from the story is meticulously set up to illustrate the anarchy that breaks out due to the power vacuum he leaves behind.

Prior to the Shibuya Incident, Gojō Satoru’s overwhelming strength presented an obstacle to other characters’ growth. In order to create a more balanced playing field and an opportunity to explore creative techniques and fights on a previously unseen scale, it’s understandable that Akutami needed to get Gojō out of the way — at least until Sukuna could join the story as a fixed member of the cast.

As expected, even the strongest sorcerers we encountered during the Culling Game pale in comparison to the prowess on display during the Shinjuku Showdown. It all serves to show that Gojō and Sukuna are on an entirely different level — to the point that, even after Gojō burns out the part of his brain responsible for his domain, his strength still doesn’t dip below that of Okkotsu Yūta and Hakari Kinji.

To paraphrase Megumi, I shouldn’t try to find logic in a powerscaler’s behavioural patterns, but I can’t deny it’s immensely frustrating that week after week fans get caught up in arguments about who is the better sorcerer when it’s the least interesting thing about this fight.

The only reason ’the Strongest’ even existed as a neatly defined category up until this point was because of the lack of any viable opponent for Gojō. Now that he’s fighting someone on his level, comparing these two behemoths of jujutsu sorcery is the same as any other powerscaling exercise: reductive, vulnerable to bias, and ultimately missing the point.

Gege Akutami has never written a fight simply for the fun of seeing two characters go at it. There’s been a greater purpose behind every carefully created match-up in the series, either in the form of high stakes or an important lesson for the characters involved — or sometimes both.

While Akutami clearly enjoyed writing this back and forth between two masters of their craft, carefully balancing the scales to ensure that neither gained the upper-hand for too long, there is a great deal of character development staked on the outcome of this fight.

There are parallels between Gojō and Sukuna as characters but, more than anything, the Shinjuku Showdown arc has exposed some fundamental differences between the two — namely, why they fight in the first place. While it’s true that Gojō is fighting Sukuna partly because there’s no one else who can, it’s also true that the stakes have never been higher for Gojō. He has a lot to gain and a whole lot more to lose, so his reason for fighting feels tangible to the reader.

Conversely, Sukuna’s reason for fighting is considerably less clear. While we don’t know the nature of Sukuna’s binding vow with Kenjaku — or anything about his motivations in general — it doesn’t seem like there’s much at stake for Sukuna except for, perhaps, his pride. Beyond advancing the plot, this poses a lot of interesting questions about what Sukuna would have to gain from winning this fight.

Since Gojō’s return, Sukuna has recalled Yorozu’s words about love multiple times. Their purpose — and Sukuna’s initial reaction to them — are still shrouded in mystery. However, through Gojō, we can learn something about ‘love’ and how it relates to the ‘the solitude of ultimate strength’.

Gojō never wanted to be ‘the Strongest’ alone. In fact, his entire motivation as a character is raising up ‘strong and intelligent allies’, constantly chasing the companionship he felt as one half of the strongest duo and trying to ensure that his students never feel the same isolation that’s plagued him and Getō before him.

In the recent chapters of the manga, Gege Akutami has made it clear that Gojō isn’t really alone at all — Shōko reminiscing on their friendship in chapter 220; Gojō’s comrades rallying around him during the send off in chapter 222; the wonderful ‘my students are watching’ callback in chapter 230.

What’s more, for the first time in his adult life, we see Gojō — who’s famously in his element when he’s alone — start a fight with people at his side, leaning on three characters who we’ve previously been led to believe he looked down on.

The distance that’s always existed between Gojō and the people around him is closing. He has removed his mask and he is open to the world — the blindfold is gone; the shapeless, oversized jacket is gone; Gojō even removes his technique to let people in during his sendoff. Akutami makes it explicitly clear that Gojō’s allies have got his back, and he’s got theirs in turn — they’re his reason for fighting.

On the other hand, his opponent only has a single ally in all the world and, although Uraume is a devoted servant, there is no suggestion that they would tag in when the going gets tough. Sukuna has already told us that, for him, losing and dying are the same thing — a curious contrast to Gojō who does not put ‘winning’ and ‘dying’ in opposition, and this creates an interesting situation where both fighters could ‘win’ by their standards.

If Gojō saves the people he cares about (and the world at large) but dies in the process, he wins. Equally, if Sukuna is the sole survivor of the fight, he wins — but what would that actually mean for him?

One approach embodies overwhelming selfishness, the other embodies overwhelming selflessness, but only one of these approaches has been established as the most powerful form of binding vow in Jujutsu Kaisen. With all that said, many people believed that Gojō dying to win was the most likely conclusion to the fight — but that’s what a small fry would think!

In Jujutsu Kaisen, it has always come down to one question: how much are you willing to risk — not sacrifice — in order to win? This is the lesson that Gojō impresses upon Megumi, and it’s why I was always in the camp that believed Gojō would win and survive. I didn’t expect his victory to be quite so clear cut, but it seems obvious in hindsight — and it’s all thanks to the power of love and friendship.

In chapter 234, Kusakabe suggests that Sukuna is keeping something in reserve, because he knows that if Gojō loses, he’ll immediately have to fight a number of other powerful sorcerers. Gojō knows that there are strong allies ready to back him up if he fails, so he can go all out.

Meanwhile, Sukuna is truly alone — to the point that he has to create allies in the form of shikigami in order to contend with Gojō. In the end, the explanation for Gojō’s victory is simple. Where Gojō gave it his best, Sukuna didn’t — and that was a grave underestimation of his opponent for which he paid the price.

So, the Shinjuku Showdown arc has come to an end and Gojō has reaffirmed that he is, in fact, 'the Strongest'. However, his story isn’t over yet, so what would a satisfying conclusion to his character arc look like?

Are you Gojō Satoru because you’re the Strongest?

Although Itadori Yūji is the main character of the series, Gojō Satoru is foundational to the story — despite how much Gege Akutami jokes about hating him. Gojō’s story is the thread that ties the series together, so landing the ending is crucial for completing not only Gojō’s character arc, but also that of many other characters. For Gojō, everything consistently comes back to Getō Suguru and Fushiguro Toji, but there remain unanswered questions regarding both.

Toji’s presence during the clash of the strongest sorcerers is too large to ignore. Aside from the allusions to Toji himself, his son plays a pivotal role in Gojō’s story as the human representation of gain through loss — the blessing born from Gojō’s curse. Taking Megumi under his wing marked Gojō’s first step towards a brighter future after the tragedy brought on by the failed Star Plasma Vessel mission, but there’s one major plot thread left unresolved.

I wouldn’t have thought that Megumi learning the truth about his father was important after he dismisses Gojō’s attempt to tell him during the Hidden Inventory arc. However, the combination of Megumi’s interaction with Toji in Shibuya, his visible cluelessness when Tengen mentions Toji, and the numerous ways Gojō references Toji during the Shinjuku Showdown arc has convinced me that Akutami plans to follow this up at some point.

Right now, Megumi’s fate is still hanging in the balance. Although many people are waiting for something terrible to befall Gojō — losing his Six Eyes; burning out his technique permanently; dying — I’d like to believe that, if we look at Jujutsu Kaisen through a karmic lens, Gojō isn’t owed any more losses. At the very least, he certainly doesn’t have to die to progress the story as some people have suggested.

Our heroes, including Gojō himself, have been on a major losing streak for a long time now. Gojō being freed from the Prison Realm represented a shining beacon of hope at the lowest point in the series. To extinguish that light by killing Gojō almost immediately after he’s returned to the story would be another major blow to the characters and the readers.

I wouldn’t put it past Akutami to send some more pain our way before the end of the story, but if Gojō is going to die on December 24, I don’t think it’s before a number of other things happen.

If Gojō inherited Getō’s ideals in a symbolic ‘passing of the torch’, then his death before he has confirmed the safety of the people who depend on him is a depressing end to his best friend’s legacy. Additionally, up until now, Gojō has never had the opportunity to answer Getō’s question once and for all.

I would argue that Gojō has proven multiple times during the fight against Sukuna that he’s 'the Strongest' because he’s Gojō Satoru, but is he Gojō Satoru because he’s the strongest? He can’t discover that unless he experiences what it’s like not to be 'the Strongest' — either by losing his strength or by sharing the burden with the strong and intelligent allies he’s been raising for the entirety of his adult life.

Of course, there’s one more glaring thread to tie up, and it might be the most important of all when it comes to the completion of Gojō’s character arc. His first thought when he bursts out of the Prison Realm is a desire to lay Getō’s body to rest — a desire to rectify the mistake which threw the entire world into chaos.

As we’ve already discussed, despite his strength, Gojō has racked up a collection of costly failures. Thus, his entire character arc is about learning from the mistakes of his past. He’s taken every cruel loss that the universe has sent his way and, instead of lashing out with all that power at his disposal, he has grown from his experiences and chosen the path of ‘good’ time and time again.

If Gojō dies before retrieving Getō’s body from Kenjaku’s clutches, he has failed his best friend at the very last hurdle, and this would be a truly bleak way to end his story.

Concluding thoughts

At the conclusion of the Shinjuku Showdown arc, I’d like to see Gojō Satoru step back from the fight after inspiring hope in his students by delivering a final lesson in the form of his win. It is impossible to predict what Gege Akutami will do next, but I would like to see the reins handed back to the students for a while, as I feel Gojō has played his part against the King of Curses.

It is Sukuna, not Gojō, who presents the most interesting possibilities for character development after the conclusion of this fight. I am genuinely excited to see how he grapples with this loss that has the potential to challenge his entire view of himself and others. He disrespected Yorozu and treated his fight against her as a ‘test drive’, and thought he could get away with treating Gojō the same way. I think Ryōmen Sukuna might be about to learn some important lessons, and I would love to see him in conversation with Gojō before the latter bows out of the story.

Of course, we can always trust Gege Akutami to surprise us, and it’s entirely possible that the story will veer in a completely different direction than I expected. However, I have faith that he will deliver something profound, no matter what lies ahead.

---

*This is a very interesting concept in and of itself, especially in relation to the goal of the Culling Game, Yuki and Kenjaku’s battle of ideals (i.e. ‘breaking free from’ versus ‘optimising’ cursed energy), Maki’s ‘enlightenment’ in the Sakurajima colony, and the understanding that true enlightenment lies in breaking free from all karma — both good and bad. After all, golden shackles are still shackles. Perhaps I’ll write about this another time.

219 notes · View notes