#every so often when I am in a fandom I will create a Woman and give her great power and responsibility

[palin-tropos]

we cannot all die, for we are innumerable — we are humankind! therefore, we will win

Narmandakh aka "Manya", call sign "Albatross"

(or, POV you are a lorry driver and you are being expropriated in the middle of the pale by a gang of anarchocommunist pirates and their leader is inviting you to join their world historic negentropic mission)

art by @excalibutt (thank you <3 <3 <3)

[archivalofsins]

I'm glad I don't look in the tag like the shit that passes my dash is like stuff I know, and then Mikoto being hypersexualized on a bimonthly basis with the implied impression that it's fine as long as it's a male being sexualized. I have no stake in it one way or the other. If that's fun to some, it's just fun, and I'm certain other characters are sexualized just as much in different circles. Maybe I'm just lucky enough not to have seen that.

Yet that again would be due to people recognizing subconsciously or not that hypersexualizing certain characters of the cast is problematic on some level. I don't see this sort of discussion as often around Yuno despite the content within her music videos. I don't see it around Mahiru or Kotoko as much either. This is excluding every other character that was a child when Milgram started all together.

This may sound like a complaint or a dig at this fandoms ethics, but it isn't because literally most fandoms treat male characters like this. This isn't something the Milgram fanbase created or anything it's quite common.

It's why Persona 5 wrote those story beats around Ryuji how they did- Because when sexual harrassment happens to a man in fiction it's comedy when it happens to a woman in fiction it's either horror or very notably a moral failing on the one doing it. Or maybe again I've just gotten lucky and haven't read a lot of egregious shit in that regard.

The way all fandom tends to hypersexualize men in general is a byproduct of how the sexual issues of men are discussed in media and ignorance. The same as it is when it comes to hypersexualization and caricaturing of female characters past and present as well. I don't want this to come off as me saying being overly sexualized is a male issue alone. Because it's not. This is a very reductionist explanation of sexualization in media, something that affects all genders differently.

There's much more to it than what I'm saying here. Plus, not everyone does this with the intent of demeaning a character or reducing them to their sexual appeal alone. Some people just find a design sexy or aesthetically appealing that's pretty reasonable. Displaying why that is- is reasonable as well.

However, when that is put alongside comments like "I'd never judge a female character like this, of course, I have some class." It starts to make me raise an eyebrow just a bit. Like, I end up wondering like um why not though?

Hate to be openly pansexual (no i don't this is hyperbole) but um, women are hot, lol. What does no one else think so? Is it bad to point out the features of the Milgram women too. I'm sorry but Mahiru is hot she dresses well and homely she has a decent figure and she is not lacking in the chest department.

It really comes down to preference at the end of the day. Am i going to sit here and say Mikoto looks average? No, like Mikoto, Kazui, Mahiru, and Shidou are all genuinely attractive and can be somewhat charismatic people. Ya know something that a good few murderers are. That's kind of the point of them being the adults of the group.

They are the end result of everyone here younger than them and are more than likely the best at what they do.

Outside of that, it would be weird of me to hold anybody to a certain standard when it comes to what they're attracted to in fiction. Unless they are romanticizing a criminal act or a child. Gotta make that really clear. Since that isn't really occurring here, it is kind of free game. Go nuts, really.

I just find it interesting that everything a person would ethically have an issue with someone doing to a character that's a woman has been done to Mikoto with reckless abandon.

From hyperfocusing on the measurements of his body, overtly sexualizing him regardless of how covered up he is, making assumptions about his romantic or sexual preferences. It's like everything that would make anyone rightfully a creep if they did it to a woman whether that be in real life or in fiction has been done to this one fictional dude to the point it technically happens in cycles. I can tell when a month has ended based on if this man's body is being talked about sometimes, and I shouldn't be able to do that at any time.

It's impressive. I need to note again that I'm not saying this because I'm a prude or to protect Mikoto's very nonexistent innocence. It's just a funny and interesting double standard to look into within any fandom, not just this one. I know it's all in good fun, and this isn't meant to call it out or anybody in any way.

It's just meant to be me going,

"Hey, this is a funny thing that hasn't really been questioned that much that actually ties into other writing tropes in media that are pretty bad. Let's talk about it."

Even if it is not that deep.

Personally, I've always found it interesting as daughter of a guy that suffered interpersonal partner violence and being raised in a community where the sexual assault of both men and women is prominently discussed to see how men and women are sexualized not only in media but by fanbases. Of course, I'm way more interested in this when it comes to black people. However, when a good example of the differences is sitting right in front of me, it's hard to overlook it.

Better excuse, though- Mahiru is hot, too! Maybe stop talking about how she's delusional and instead discuss how she had low confidence and rejection sensitivity. Causing her to not understand what she was doing was too much for the situation as well as made it difficult for her to let the fact that she was not accepted by someone she liked go. Similarly to Mu.

Like maybe this line from This Is How To Be In Love With You deserves a bit more focus,

"What do you think? I know it's not the type of question you want to be asked."

A common question for one to ask their partner about the outfits they put on.

Or this one in I Love You,

"Sigh... No appetite, I can’t sleep, my hair’s a mess. What am I supposed to do now? If you won’t tell me, I can’t be me."

I'm not hungry, I can't sleep, and worst of all- I'm not even looking good right now. Yeah fuck it actually this is a Mahiru appreciation post now that woman served this community several different outfits and this bastard only gave two fuck Mikoto stop complimenting this man for his cycling body.

Yeah, he's fit. We know! The man bikes to work to stay in shape and practices swinging a bat when angry.

But guess what-

Mahiru jogs, and she even has a cute jogging outfit. We've never even seen this man on a bike. Let alone in a cycling outfit.

Q.04 Are you picky when it comes to fashion?

Mikoto: Of course I am. Nobody would want to ask for anything from an unfashionable designer, right?

Oh, you're picky huh. People wouldn't ask for anything from an unfashionable designer, yeah... So, why does Mahiru Shiina's first music video look like a fashion catalogue-

While all we see from you is you putting your clothes where they belong,

Sorry, I got heated there. It's not a fashion competition because we clearly know who would win that. Long story short, Mahiru has a cute design too.

[suncchaser]

Misogyny in the Marauders Fandom

DISCLAIMER: This is not a personal attack. I have spoken on this topic a couple of times already on this blog and I simply decided to make a separate post to compile all my thoughts on this because this is a topic that is important TO ME. If you find it annoying, or ranty or unnecessary, you are entitled to your opinion. Also, I am not a native English speaker, so I apologize in advance for any possible mistakes. 

Since I created this blog, I have been open about my opinion that the Marauders fandom (and the Harry Potter fandom in general), like many others (I would dare say most others) is incredibly misogynistic. This is an opinion I have held for many, many years and one that I have seen a lot of people share, but usually with a lot of backlash from the people who tend to disagree. And that backlash tends to come with a certain degree of cynicism that bothers me quite a bit. 

Every single time I have seen discussions on this topic, the concept of misogyny being used is always incredibly simplistic. Misogyny isn’t the mere concept of hating women. It goes deeper than that. Every single one of us, regardless of gender identity and sexuality (because some people on this app think being attracted to women absolves them from misogyny), have ingrained prejudices against women simply because of the society we operate in. We are taught these things from a very young age and it’s hard to unlearn them. I am writing this as a 25 year old woman who needs to check herself quite often because I am not perfect and like everyone else, I have these prejudices too. And these biases will manifest on every aspect of our lives and interactions, including on how we engage with fandom because our actions do NOT exist in a vacuum. It’s all a manifestation of who we are as people.

Does this mean every single Marauders fan who chooses to engage with primarily male-centered and mlm content is a horrible person? Of course not. The main point I have been trying to make is more often than not, these biases are not at all conscious. There is no ill-intent behind their actions. That’s why I keep saying it has never been a personal attack on anyone. It has always been a broader discussion on a broader issue. 

One of the most common rebuttals I have seen when this topic is brought up is the idea that the fandom is so male-centered because most of the characters we have any canon development on are men and therefore we should blame J.K Rowling for not writing women better. We can blame J-K Rowling for many things because there are indeed many problematic things in the Harry Potter books, including misogyny in her treatment of female characters. However, that argument does not apply here for more than one reason. 

The first reason and the most blatant is how proudly this side of the fandom has distanced themselves from canon. So, you cannot in one moment say “we don’t care that (insert male character the fandom has decided to assign a sob story) was a bad person in the books because we don’t care about canon” while at the same time, blaming canon for the reason why the female characters do not get a fraction of the attention male characters get. You either care for canon or you don’t. 

The second reason and I have mentioned that several times before is the characters the fandom chooses to develop from the crumbs we get in the books. Regulus, Barty and Evan have been the three male characters who have had a massive surge in popularity since around four/five years ago and at the moment, I would dare say they are the three most popular characters outside of James, Sirius and Remus, who are basically the main characters of this era. While Barty was an important character in the Goblet of Fire, Regulus and Evan are no more than mentions and were not important at all to the story (do not lecture me about Regulus, he has a cool and interesting backstory but it has no impact on the story apart from giving Kreacher substance and make things harder for the trio) and yet, they are incredibly loved. Who they were in canon - blood supremacist terrorists - has been watered down, pushed aside and they have been given characterisations that victimize them and make them more sympathetic towards the audience. Yet, female characters like Marlene and Dorcas, who we know were members of the Order of the Phoenix and actively fighting against Voldemort, are nowhere near as developed as them, even though they have such wonderful potential and are as blank of sheets as the boys are. Same with Pandora, who is the mother of a beloved character in the main series. The fandom had five characters here to flesh out and develop, yet only the male characters were given that treatment. It was a choice. 

One other thing that has bothered me for a long time is how often, the female characters are treated as accessories to further the men’s storylines. They serve as therapists, token friends, a little object to create drama between the mlm ships. Take Pandora and Dorcas as an example. I am not going to lie, I avoid anything related to the Slytherin Skittles and despite my greatest efforts and the fact everything I have learned about them has been against my will, I know and understand the backstories that were created for Regulus, Evan and Barty. I know what their fanon motivations were. I know nothing about Dorcas and Pandora despite the fact I have tried my hardest to look into it because I actually have interest in those two. Because their storylines make no sense, their motivations aren’t explored, they are there to make the three male characters more sympathetic. How does Dorcas go from being a Slytherin student and friends with wannabe DEs and blood supremacists, which was never a dealbreaker for her because she loved them apparently, to being a member of the OoTP, so important that she’s killed by Voldemort in person? What makes you think that Dumbledore would even trust her to allow her in the Order? He wouldn’t. How does Pandora go from being a Rosier, a member of a very prejudiced pure-blood family with a DE father, twins with an aspiring DE and friends with two others (at the very least very prejudiced), and despite being portrayed as super passive and never standing up against them, she is not corrupted by their beliefs and seemingly goes on to raise one of the purest characters in the whole series. Because yes, Pandora raised Luna for nine years of her life, so the way Luna is is undoubtedly a lot to do with how Pandora was. It doesn’t make any sense. But it’s not supposed to make sense because they are there just to serve a purpose and not to be their own characters. 

I have also talked about Lily and how her character has been treated since Jegulus gained popularity. Lily, who was always the most prominent and developed female character in the Marauders fandom, has been sidelined and pushed to the background for the sake of another mlm ship with zero canon basis. James remained one of the most popular characters, a part of one of the more popular ships, still center stage while Lily was the one to be shoved aside in order to make this fandom even more male-centered than it already was.

And since then, her character has been treated horribly. Vilified, humiliated, turned into an incubator, had her son turned into a “jegulus baby” because this fandom hasn’t learned to create OCs when they want mlm ships to have kids rather than take the children from the women and remove them from the narrative (also side-eyeing Wolfstar shippers who do it with Teddy because where the FUCK do you think the name Teddy even came from?). I will leave some examples below:

The bottom line is the interest for female characters and any relationship involving them, whether it’s wlw and wlm, is much less compared to the interest the fandom has for the male characters mlm ships. And there is no explanation for this apart from misogyny. And like I said above, it may not be ill-intended or conscious but it doesn’t change what it is. Whenever I see defensiveness on this topic, whether here on Tumblr or on Twitter, I always check their pages and I find the same thing nearly every time. They will have a wlw ship on their bios that they never mention a single time in the midst of their 200 posts per week on their favourite mlm ship. They will scream to the skies they do not ship Jily because they headcanon Lily as a lesbian and it has nothing to do with their favourite mlm ship but the only lesbian Lily is mentioned on their pages is indeed in relation to their favourite mlm ship. 

Instead of attacking people, maybe it would be better to reflect a little on why you refuse to engage with content about the women and only seem to have any interest about the men. And if you find yourself not caring, at least acknowledge why you don’t care about your internalized misogyny rather than becoming defensive about it.

[mistresskayla-blog1]

A Sweet Stroll

Characters: John & Margaret Thornton

Lyn's Writing Event - Week4 - Day 23 (late submission)

May 23rd: Week 4: Rain

Characters:  John Thorton x Margaret Thornton (fem reader perspective)

Fandom: Richard Armitage – John Thornton – North & South

The character of John Thornton and Margaret Hale were created by Elizabeth Haskell. Adapted for television by Sally Welch.  

Word Count: 1.2k

Warnings: fluff, kissing, rain, public affection, romance,

            The day opened warm and sunny, and John gathered the arrangements to take Margaret out on a wonderful spring picnic. Margaret was busy with his mother that morning holding discourse at the local women’s labor group. And John smiled to himself that he had such a head strong woman to hold his heart. Her bravery and courage inspired him to no end, even if it was a bit muddled during their courting. Relieving himself of some of his ego allowed his heart to open up further and love her all the more.

He thanked God every day for her, even though he was a thoughtful man and didn’t prescribe to theology in the devout sense. John Thornton was a respectable man, but a progressive one, in work and in life, he liked to see things grow into better outcomes for everyone. Margaret gave him that peace and reassurance, so he loved to plan these little outings to make her feel special and loved.

Dixon was busy preparing the basket for John, as he awaited Margaret’s return. It was a wonderful late Saturday morning; the hour was approaching luncheon and Margaret still had not returned. John sighed at his pocket watch, clicking it closed and returning it to his vest pocket. He looked out through the front window scanning the street for a carriage, or her strolling. He wanted to make sure she was safe, afterall, as his wife, Margaret is very important to him.

Dixon came into the front parlor with the basket, “There you are, Mr Thornton, its all ready, where is Margaret, beg your pardon, Mrs. Thornton.”

John smiled at Dixon warmly, and subtly, “I have told you to call me John, please Dixon, you are as much my family now as you ever were hers.”

Dixon rung her hands slightly less and tried to smile, “Yes, yes of course, Mr.. John. Beg your pardon.” Dixon went back to the kitchen at the other end of the house. John’s smile broadened a bit more, as she left him. His eyes scanned the streets again, and a carriage drew up, stopping at his door. He went to the door and opened it, as his mother and Margaret stepped out of the carriage. Margaret beamed up at John from the doorway. His mother looking as she always had, contemplative.

“Mother, Margaret, how was the meeting?” he said, towards the open street. His mother bolstered past him in the doorway, “We shouldn’t speak openly about it John, not in the common street”, she shook her head.

John faked a response, not at all perturbed, “Yes, of course mother, sorry about that.”

His mother rested in the parlor and Dixon brought her some tea.

Margaret got up to John at the door, and her eyes smiled well beyond her lips, “Hello, my dear,” She brushed a kiss on his cheek, as she brushed past him, he turned instantly and grabbed at her arm, keeping her in the entryway away from his mother’s gaze. His lips brushed hers in a needy way, the door closing behind them and Margaret felt lightly flushed, John held her to him, dropping his hat from his hand.

They parted, moments later, and John grinned happily. Margaret looked at him sweetly, “I should go out more often it seems,” 

John chuckled, “Please do, it gives me reason to pine for your return.” Margaret giggled under her breath.

“Do what do I owe such affection, then?” Margaret queried.

“I am taking you out for a spring picnic, its all been arranged”, John said beaming.

Margaret looked to the windows, “I think it is a lovely day for it, when can we leave”

“Now, if that suits you.” John replied. Margaret’s hand reassuringly squeezed his arm.

John picked up the rather hefty basket and held it to him, as he escorted Margaret out the door.

“We will be back soon mother,” he called to her, through the open door.  Then promptly closed the door behind them.

John and Maragret strolled down the sidewalk and towards the hilly woods above the factories of Milton. John had toured this section many times before on his thoughtful walks and he found a lovely tree to post under. You could see most of Milton from up on that roost, and the clouds were gathering playfully about the sunshine now when they crested the hill. A spring breeze played Margaret’s skirts, and she spun a bit enjoying herself. John set the basket down, unraveled the blanket and sat down, watching her. He opened up the basket and tore off a bit of bread chewing it quietly as she danced.

“Its such a beautiful day, John. Thank you for doing this,” she came to sit next to him. Smiling with her bright eyes and noble heart. He felt the draw to kiss her again, but instead looked down and cleared his throat.

“Are you hungry?” John asked her. Margaret looked to the basket, “I will be, but not right now. I am too full of this wonderful air,” She breathed it in and tipped her head back letting the break in the clouds coat her face in sunlight. Her eyelids closed, John moved to kiss her again, his lips just skirting along her, as they moved over her cheek and down her neck. Margaret momentarily startled, looked at him, “What are you, doing?” she asked giggling.

“Trying to kiss my wife, is that a problem?” John asked, his eyes shyly smiling, as he looked at her. Margaret threw her arms around his neck and pulled him down to the ground. He chuckled and kissed her again, deepening it, his need growing and shrinking in intervals he no longer could deny himself. Margaret felt her passions rising as well, but she knew this was an open place and not discreet.

Despite that they both kept kissing and then both flopped down on their backs looking up at the tree foliage blowing in the breeze. A greyish cloud passed over the hill, and John looked over at Margaret his hand on his chest, sighing happily, “Margaret, I love you so much more than I thought possible,”

Margaret watched the grey cloud move swiftly past them, looking over to him, and getting lost in those dyer blue eyes of his, “I completely understand, it is the same for me. More joy, more love, more everything.” She propped up on her elbow, hand on her cheek looking at him sweetly. John rolled to his side too, his arm reaching over her hip. The warmth of it seeping through her skirts. He moved to kiss her again, and another cloud loomed over them silencing the sunlight. A low rumble did not come from John’s chest, but from the clouds above.

Suddenly sheets of rain poured down on the happy couple’s picnic. And Margaret squeaked in alarm, Sitting up abruptly, and gathering the blankets while John scurried to close up the picnic basket, they both cowered against the trunk of the tree now, water dripping through the leaves onto both of them. They both laughed as they got soaked, and John set the basket down between them and kissed Margaret again, his hands framing her face. Margaret’s hands moved to his chest in a loving manner and the two kissed under the tree’s canopy, the drip drip drip, hitting they’re faces and getting them wet.

The cloud passed just as swiftly as it had come, within minutes and John and Margaret strolled back down the hill, a bit disheveled and considerably wetter than their adventure had started. Still in love and still just as sweetly smiling as they headed for home.

(THE END)

Taglist:

@scariusaquarius @middleearthpixie @sweetestgbye @riepu10

@legolasbadass @evenstaredits @lathalea @enchantzz

[tarysande]

On Grief. And On Friendship. On Memory. And Love.

When my grandmother died, we didn't have a traditional funeral. We didn't wear black. We didn't sit around, solemn and silent. We told stories. We ate food she would have liked and drank Bailey's with cream. We got to do it together, of course, and we got to cry and hug and mourn and laugh and sing.

I'm sure all of us have heard some version of the phrase "online friendships aren't REAL friendships." I know I have. I've never understood it, either. For me, in all my neurodiverse glory, online friendships are often MORE REAL. Where else can you meet people and immediately jump into all the things you have in common? All the shared loves and hates and hyperfixations? Where else can you just bypass small-talk and, as Anne of Green Gables would say, find bosom friends so quickly? I've met so many online.

I honestly don't remember when I met Sara/@dearophelia. When I look through my tags, I know it's been at least seven years. I'm certain it's been longer because she definitely had username changes. And I am total shit at remembering username changes. More than once, I've told myself I should keep a spreadsheet. I'm pretty sure I've known her almost as long as I've been on tumblr, and that's more than a decade.

When Sara got sick, I finally used that tumblr function that notifies you whenever a blog updates. I wasn't around tumblr as regularly, but I didn't want to miss anything Sara might say. I hoped that one day I'd get the notification that everything was clear, she was in remission.

I didn't. Today, I got what will be the final notification from her blog--@vhenadahls sharing the information that Sara passed away. That there wouldn't be anymore updates. No more reblogs. No more snarky comments in the tags or gushing comments in the tags.

If this were a room and everyone who loved Sara, who enjoyed her fanfic (with or without knowing the woman behind it!), who has listened to her playlists, who played ME3 multiplayer with her, who was in any way touched by her in a way that brought their lives joy, it would be so full. We would all have stories to share. We'd all have memories to relive.

This room would be decorated with labradorite and pink and fat birbs and cats. There would be so much music--Taylor Swift and Halsey and Florence and the Machine and Hozier and so many many others. There would be a million fabulous selfies on the walls of Sara's huge smile and her vulnerability and her bravery. There would be gaming knickknacks and D&D dice and tarot decks and crystals and magic and books on every surface. All her faves would be represented. And it would still only brush the surface of how vibrant she was and how deeply and enthusiastically she loved what she loved.

If this were a room where we could also add all the characters she created, whose stories so many of us loved ... well, it would have to be awfully big. Sara wrote a lot of stories for a lot of fandoms.

And if this were a room where we and her characters were gathered, but we opened the doors for all the characters and stories that Sara helped inspire, helped grow, encouraged and enabled, well, I know a whole lot of my characters and stories would be here, too. I'm sure I decided to create Rose Trevelyan because of some conversation Sara and I had where I was imagining Rose Vakarian-Shepard grown up.

Sara, I'm really sorry I didn't get to finish the Vakarian-Shepard stories before you left. Most writers write for themselves, sure, but often they also write for specific readers. Sara was always one of mine, but I don't think she knew it. I lived for her gushing tag-comments. I loved when she was always so quick to jump in with prompts.

I'm honored that I was someone with whom Sara shared her original fic work. (She also once shared an absolutely horrifying scene with Garrus and Shepard's clones that she cut from Nora's story because it was just TOO AWFUL. In fact, she shared it with me BECAUSE IT WAS SO AWFUL and she knew I'd appreciate it.) In my heart of hearts, I wanted Sara to finish that original story and publish it. I wanted us to be part of each other's group of writer-friends (you know, you always see them thanking each other in their books). Hell, I wanted to have a small press at some point just SO I could publish Sara's stories. I believed in her THAT MUCH.

I love Sara's stories. I love her playlists. I love her blog, with its hodgepodge of interests and loves. I love her imagination and creativity and attention to detail. I love that I can still visit that mind by reading the bounty of work she left behind.

I mean, she made me wholeheartedly buy into a relationship between Shepard's mom and ZAEED.

Sara was one of the constants in my online life over the last decade. Even if we hadn't chatted for a while, I always knew we could pick up again like no time had passed (thanks, ADHD). As I write this, there's a little chat circle on the bottom right of my tumblr screen with her avatar in it and I can't bear the thought of hitting that X button and never seeing it pop up again.

Sara struggled and loved and fought and overcame and breathed and was brave. Not just in the past few years, when she was sick. As long as I knew her. And she didn't let anything stop her. She snarled in the face of it all and wrote stories so beautiful they broke my heart and then pieced it back together again in the same paragraph.

I miss her. I will always miss her. But I'm so happy I got to know her as long as I did. She'll live on in my memories, in my stories, in the characters she helped inspire. She'll live on every time I look at my favorite tarot deck--she was the first person I yelled at when I bought it--and when I see fat birbs and cute-maybe-evil cats. And if that's not REAL friendship, real love, I don't know what is.

[hecalledme-jagi]

hi! i'm so upset after picking up mystic messenger again so i wanted to ask if you could do a zen x MC hc, but they're both aware that they are in different dimensions and will never be together... but they see each other in their dreams!!

(Bruh I wrote this a yr ago and completely forgot about it. Sorry Anon ;;;)

Anon, you hurt me so T_T I love the angst, but why!? ＿|￣|○

I am a weak, weak, woman for Zen angst and now I must offer it to you and the rest of this fandom. I must break my heart for this man, AGAIN! For you, Anon, I will dive back into the depths of despair. On that note, I hope you enjoy, or feel sad(??).

Sorry for the delay, but fitting that I write Zen angst on my 6th MysMe Anniversary LOL

Zen and MC in Different Dimensions

- Zen could feel when you missed him. It’s a warm yet heartbreaking feeling that rests in his chest and stings in his eyes.

- You could feel Zen’s thoughts of you. They’re constant and lovely but left you melancholic and lonely.

- He knew when you were thinking of him or talking about him because suddenly everything appeared so much brighter.

- You knew when he longed for you because bright and unhindered smiles always seemed to paint your face.

- Sometimes he swore he could hear your voice and your beautiful laughter when he was going about his day.

- Sometimes his laughter was all you could hear and all you wanted to hear.

- Zen often wondered if you got the same feelings he did. Did your heart feel unbearably warm when he missed you? Did your world light up when he talked about you or thought of you? Did you hear his laughter and his voice throughout the day?

- The answer was yes, a thousand times over, with every ounce of love, joy, and sadness.

- And sadly, he would never know, but he knew one thing for sure, sharing dreams was something you both looked forward to.

- Knowing you could only reach each other in your dreams, made sleep the most treasured thing either of you could ask for.

- In those dreams, he could hold you and offer you the affections he couldn’t in the waking hours of the day. He’s created vast and beautiful worlds in those dreams, hoping each one would make your waking hours a little more bearable.

- He made sure that those dreams encouraged you to live in reality bc that’s where you truly belonged, but deep down he wished that sleep would never end and he could stay with you.

- On the hardest days, when his feelings of loneliness became more than he could take, when his insecurities raged and roared at him, when life got too difficult to bear; all he wanted was to sleep and be where you are.

- To feel your warmth and comfort, support and love.

- He wanted, so desperately, to bridge those distant dimensions for as long as possible, even if it became unhealthy.

- But what good would that do? He would only be dragging you down with him, and he could never do that to you.

- Furthermore, he knew, better than anyone else, that you would want him to continue living and perusing his dreams, the same way he wanted that for you.

- So, sleeping until you wake, would be enough.

- Holding you until morning came.

- Kissing you until daybreak.

- Sweet nothings until sunrise.

- Laughter until first light.

- Loving you, and you loving him, without limit or requisite.

- He would take his fill, searing ever inch of you into his memory. Filling his cup until it overflowed with you, hoping it would bleed into the day that followed. Hoping it would make up for the lack of you in his world.

- Hoping maybe one day that the yearning you shared would somehow turn the two dimensions into one, where he could finally have your scent cling to his clothes and melt into his skin. Where he could have you part of his life, morning, noon, and night. Where sleep wasn’t the only place he could find you. Where loving you beyond a screen and short lived dreams was no longer a wish, but rather something mixed with normalcy.

˚✧₊⁎𝒥𝑎𝑔𝑖𝑎⁎⁺˳✧༚

I do not own any characters, all ownership goes to Cheritz. Thanks for reading!

[leonstamatis]

Art & Attribution Issues In Blaseball: The Card Game. An FAQ covering common misconceptions and concerns.

I am not a visual artist and am not personally being impacted by the card game. But I’ve seen a lot of the same questions (and arguments against criticisms) pop up, and I’ve decided to compile some of the information into one place for the purpose of easily sharing it.

Specific questions regarding artists’ experiences probably shouldn’t go to me! I’m just following along.. A text-only version is available below the cut further down.

Sources:

Goblin’s post comparing Blaseball: TCG player designs with fanmade designs

TGB Reddit AMA (includes Tillman’s original designer, Marn @/charaznablescanontoyota, confirming she was never contacted.)

Mentions of whitewashing concerns from @/hadestigers

DMs with Wayfinder regarding credit for a stolen design and accreditation (via Goblin)

Also, adding here that Gob has posted a couple asks with specific desires and concerns as an artist affected by this.

Additional Links:

Cancel your preorder (originally found by @/waveridden)

Wayfinder contact form (or email at info@wayfinder-games.com)

Art & Attribution Issues In Blaseball: The Card Game. An FAQ covering common misconceptions and concerns.

1. What is Blaseball: TCG?

Blaseball: The Card Game is an upcoming game from Wayfinder, which aims to recreate some of the experiences of Blaseball.com in a card game format. A pledge campaign was launched in early 2022 to fund the project. The game itself was unveiled at PAX Unplugged this month.

2. So... Why are people mad about it?

The current iteration of the card game, from what we've seen, includes recognizable fan favorite players from Blaseball. Some of that art bears significant resemblance to design elements made popular by fandom creators. People working on the game have said they made an effort to avoid this and, when a fanon design was used, asked artists for permission. But as more designs were unveiled, artists have said they continued to see popular fanon ideas without acknowledgement of where it came from.

3. How do you know the ideas came from fanon?

Blaseball doesn't have player designs. All we know about the players from the site itself is coffee preference, blood type, some stats, and the name/team. That means almost everything about the player is created from the ground up by fans. Wayfinder (and The Game Band, who operate Blaseball.com) have confirmed they specifically sought out artists who weren't in the fandom for the game in order to prevent copying. But according to a Reddit AMA with TGB, those artists were then given descriptions of gender, race, and specific features of the players. Those aspects were created by fans, and often a specific fan who cared a lot. They deserve credit for that.

4. Did anyone talk to them about it?

Yes. Extensively. Goblin has spoken at length about efforts to contact Wayfinder privately about accreditation and acknowledging fan artists. They tracked down the original artists for every design being stolen and sent it to Wayfinder, despite not being involved in the game or receiving compensation. Specific examples are available on their Tumblr, @stainedglassgoblin, where they've been speaking about this process.

5. Is it possible it was accidental?

Some of it could be due to coincidence, sure. But the number of similarities has prompted concerns. Goblin has a post with about a dozen examples of overlap between fanon and Blaseball: TCG designs. Again, TGB confirmed during their recent Reddit AMA that card game artists were given specific summaries for characters appearing in the card game. Here are a few:

Nagomi Mcdaniel is an Asian woman who has undergone carcinization and developed crab attributes.

Chorby Short is a frog who plays blaseball.

Specific designs were also used for popular players like Wyatt Quitter, Tillman Henderson, etc.

There are a few issues here:

Carcinization is not implied to change a character's appearance in game. That is a fanmade interpretation. While Nagomi is a name with Asian roots, gender is always up to interpretation with names -- so why does the summary specify? That's fanmade lore, too.

Where on Blaseball.com does it say Chorby Short is a frog? (It doesn't. That's fanmade.)

While creators have confirmed one artist was asked for permission to use their Tillman Henderson design, two other artists also had huge influences on the common design -- and at least one, who initially drew the design, says she was not asked.

6. I preordered the game and now I feel weird. What do I do?

Great news! If your order hasn't shipped yet, you can cancel it. The best way to make clear your disappointment about this issue is to revoke your financial support. Visit the GameFound page for the game to find details on cancellations and refunds.

7. How do I voice my concerns?

Wayfinder Games has a general email listed on their website at info@wayfinder-games.com. There's also a contact form there that you can fill out. I recommend telling them you won't purchase the game, and will be telling others not to purchase it, either. Money goes a long way. And so does public scrutiny! Talk openly about your concerns on social media. Tag them. Put pressure on them, publicly.

8. What are artists asking for?

Credit for their work. It's also worth noting that this is a for-profit game! Wayfinder is making money off of it, while the people who came up with these players' lore aren't being compensated at all. It's a shame that the people who have made art out of genuine love for the game now have to see someone else get paid for it.

9. If people didn't recognize the player designs, they wouldn't buy the game. This is stupid.

I’ve seen this sentiment a few times, and I'm a little tired of it. I understand the need to bring people in and sell the game, but there were plenty of ways to go about it that didn't involve art theft. Here's just a couple:

Make new characters. Seriously. The fans love to make up new players, and this would not have been the business failure you think it would be. It's better than having artists call you out for plagiarism, anyway.

Don't provide character details to the artists you specifically hired because they were unfamiliar with fanon. I really don't understand why they did that. I can't figure it out.

Work with fandom artists from the beginning in order to give them credit for their designs from the start, avoiding this whole debacle. Checking for permission is the bare minimum; providing compensation is even better. This could have been a collaborative thing, instead of leaving fanartists out despite their obvious sway in fandom spaces.

Make a game without character art. This is the boring answer, I guess, but... Blaseball.com doesn't have any pictures of the players! It still has plenty of fans! If the card game were just the same player cards we already know, I'm sure it would have been fine.

10. Is there anything else?

Yeah. I don't have specific examples of this handy, having not seen all the art, but some artists have expressed concerns about the whitewashing of certain players in the current designs. While the designs may riff on art concepts from fandom artists, there are cases where artists say the skintone is lighter or facial features and other details have been scrubbed of their racial/ethnic ties. I didn't want to leave that out. Some cards have been redesigned since they were unveiled. But artists say they had to reach out to Wayfinder with concerns to make that happen, and it resulted in the artists they did hire having to do more work to completely redo cards -- instead of only doing the work once. That's unfair to everyone, and also unnecessary.

11. Stay informed and updated

We've yet to get an official statement from Wayfinder (on Twitter, at least) on this issue since it was brought up. The "blaseball: tcg" tag on Tumblr is full of posts with additional context and information, and Goblin (and other artists!) have made a number of statements regarding their experiences.

Also? Support your fandom artists. Give them a follow.

--

Thanks to Gob and to lofi for reviewing this. Again, if anyone has concerns, additions, or corrections, send them my way.

[faeriekit]

Faer i would love to know more about the event about fan ostracization from mainstream comic culture??? Do you have any like, panelist names or details or anything?

OkAY I found the program online because the paper thing they gave me for the programming sucked severely!!

It was a thursday panel, which meant pros/educator oriented (Thu, Oct 12, 2023 • 10:30 AM - 11:30 AM). The title was "Geekspaces Assemble! Safe Spaces for our Marginalized Communities". Clicking the link will give you all the details, but the panelists were (Left to right) an owner of a queer/female friendly comics store in Portland, a letterer who's been in prominent aspects of the comics industry for fifty years, a...business entrepreneur (maybe also she was an illustrator?) and Jubilee fan, and an Author/Illustrator who spent a good chunk of his childhood in Puerto Rico. The panel consisted of three women (which, for comics, seems rare as hell), one queer women, two women of color, and a gentleman of color who grew up outside of America.

The only reason I am not putting their names down is that I am Suspicious one name might be wrong and I cannot verify it because they did not link their professional contact information to their NYCC guest pages haha. Their identifying info give on the page is still present.

To summarize the bits I remember, everyone involved gave a rundown on how hostile comics culture and the outside point of view on comics culture was to their efforts to actually enjoy their hobby. The woman in the industry spoke on how hard it was to actually get her voice and interests heard, and how the need to make a safe space for women and people of color helps keep the peace. The business woman spoke on representation and how it affected her growing up, and how when there isn't anything to look up to, we sort of have to make our own role models and characters to lean into, and having a space space to create helps us do that. The man had an interesting perspective on how comics were a huge hobby of his growing up, but when the Simpsons made it to Puerto Rico, the Comic Book Guy made it so that other people looked down on him for engaging in something that seemed so snooty and unpleasant on the show. The bookshop owner talked about how it was not only super vital for her main audience, queer people and women, to have a space safe enough where they could explore comics how they wanted to, but that she heard testimonials after she opened that the main cishet white male audience of comics loved and appreciated her shop as a safe space too, because it was a place where they didn't feel the need to perform in order to engage with their hobby as they had to in the quintessential shops that were so popular at the time.

Everyone was well spoken and brought up great points about how the experience for enjoying comics is so different when you're queer, not a man, or white— something I have absolutely noticed from spending time even peripherally watching the dc fandom here on tumblr and on ao3. Having a place where you can express your interpretations and experiences with your hobby without fear of reprisal or attack makes all the difference. Comics are very often not written for us. Based on their age, comics written about us may be lacking, at the very least, or outright harmful at the very worst. Reading certain DC lore gives me psychic damage. If we want to make comics a fun, welcoming space (and I know that's not every comic fan's goal), we have to make and protect our own spaces from outside prejudice.

Overall, it was a great panel, I loved it, and I really wish it hadn't been at 10:30 in the morning because half the intended audience (and a panelist!) was still trying to get into the building by the time it hit 10:30! It also reinforced my need to make the graphic experience in the library better integrated with the younger kids, because I don't want them to think that comics aren't for them if the first experience they have is people being weird and rude when they get into it as teens. I know that the panelists are from at least one if not more generations above me, and that the landscape has expanded and changed since then, but I find the fundamental base of the talk very true, and find it even more prudent that they speak, because their work built the foundations we're trying to build up on right now— with graphic memoirs, with indie comics, with irl geekspace occupancy, with ao3 and tumblr gossip and interaction.

Anyway, occupy your local comics shop. If they suck, get on facebook, network, and see where all the weirdos like you collect.

[jack-kellys]

west end question: i obviously love my brooklyn girls and would die for them all, but is it bad that it’s taken away the sprace dynamic for me? like i’m still 100% on board with a nowhere near canon ship and it shouldn’t affect me they’ve decided to have spot be a girl, but it lowkey has? and i feel kinda guilty about it? idk i love my proshot boys. but i am 100% here for all the uk newsies cast they are amazing and so talented and it’s definitely my favourite production by far!! idk if i’m making sense

ok part of me feels a litle baited actually because like. i feel like... im vocal abt mlm musical sprace not being a big vibe for me in the first place. so im a funny person to ask if you were looking for relief lmao. anyway here's my thesis below.

wait also if ur a white newsie fan a read-thru+rb of this would be much appreciated thank youuu (also yall have been eating up my character analyses anyway sooooo!)

TL;DR THESIS: if you're feeling genuinely let down that your ship did not see the light of day and a black girlsie spot conlon got to instead, then yes, you should reevaluate that.

followers, if you've been with me long enough, you know that i have quite strong opinions about how this show gets treated when it comes to interpretations and fandom/fanon. mostly, this is because i literally work in theater, and it's extremely backwards in my brain personally when shows get treated more like a movie or tv show than a performance piece.

im also one of the only ppl in this fandom that ever seems to dare speak on race (not the damn character smh). and anon, buddy, kiddo, this does have to do with race, gender, and sexuality.

firstly, what i think needs to be understood about newsies, is that it is theater, which means it is meant to be mutable. there is no one way. there should never be one way. it does not exist. secondly, theater does not exist in a fandom vacuum. its live every night, conceptually. theater is a live performance art.

interpretations change- it's the nature of theater. so i think asks like these really do illuminate the difference between fans of the show's content or fans of... i guess the show's culture's content.

this is a culture content ask.

one thing i really, truly, deeply need you all to understand: from an objective, script- and staging-based perspective, proshot sprace does not exist. they do not speak. they barely see each other. race does not even volunteer to go to brooklyn. the ship originates from the 1992 movie, where they do actually interact, which is why the ship has prevailed through the 90s to today. they're from the movie, not the musical.

of course, this doesn't bash the ship- it has history, and naturally fans want to create new history when they get a new source material (the musical). it's true for like every newsie ship lowkey (but also not lowkey because all the manhattan newsies do interact and sprace literally does not but thats a different post!!), which is something i do admire about the fandom- we do a lot of our own legwork here, we invent relationships and backgrounds from one-liners that could be given to tbh any frickin newsie. i respect the 30 years we have invented ships.

however.

when a huge, publicized, consistently sold out production comes along with spot conlon as not only a woman, but a woman of color (specifically black rn!) as the leader of the most feared group on stage, there becomes something much more important than a "sprace dynamic", which does not canonically exist in the musical anyway bro. you can't miss something that isn't there imo. often the story and casting within a story comes first, and goddamn if this isn't one of those times. lillie-pearl's spot brings bravado, swagger, confidence, and intimidation that is literally....fine maybe i'm being personal but it is slash gen incredible to see in technically a period piece! a black woman in leadership with that kind of assuredness! in such a popular musical! how is that not– automatically surpassing an often obsessed-over (yes i am. hinting at something here, straight girl fans) mlm ship?

and while i'm on the topic of the over-obsessiveness of mlm musical sprace, let me talk about uksies sprace. because what's also wack abt this ask is that sprace is not a hopeless case in this production- it literally has about as much 'evidence' as the proshot imo!!!!!

i got to hop over to 2nd row brooklyn seating for act 2 so i saw once and for all really close up, right. there's a moment when race is upstage letting the newsies in/down from the stairs. spot comes down and she does, in fact, share a look with him. race gives spot a nod and she keeps moving.

and like im gonna see the show again (every day i am counting my mf blessings fr), so if i'm wrong or they don't do it every time i'll correct myself, but that's what i saw with my own dang eyes on saturday. they do acknowledge each other in uksies.

and since they do, i really like. i have to ask. what is bothersome/unpopular abt uksies sprace, other than oh idk.... its not white/white mlm with a twink/manly bf trope? why can't race still love who spot is as a character, this strong and fearless ruler of brooklyn, in uksies? because tbh josh's racer...nahhhh because. this is such a side note now but they'd be so good together oh jesus am i gonna ship uk sprace. and it's not like they're 'taking away' from a queer ship because a) you can headcanon spot as a queer girl and race being trans is consistently popular and b) newsies has ten billion gayass ships bro we've been eatin for literal decades.

anon, i'm sure you didn't mean harm by this ask. i'm sure, honestly, that a lot of fans are feeling the same way as you and weren't quite sure how to put it in words. but, i'm also not surprised you sent an ask like this on anonymous specifically.

should you feel guilty about it? i don't think guilt is the right word. but i believe you should think more about how newsies is not.....static. it does not exist in one form, and it never will. if you're feeling genuinely let down that your ship did not see the light of day and a black girlsie spot conlon got to instead, then yes, you should reevaluate that. in theater, you should always question why something impacted you the way it did- a major point of theater is to discuss and think about it when you leave! i know this because ive spent three years literally studying it, to back up my thesis credentials.

thank you for reading this, newsies fandom. i do honestly say all this with love, and i hope it made u think !! ♥️

[zapreportsblog]

A Fateful Encounter Turnt Into A Hearts Desire

➥ summary: Alexandra Trese is doing her job when she comes across such an enchanting beauty

➥ a/n: originally was not going to start writing for this fandom as of yet but a lovely commenter of mine (didn’t tag them because I was unsure if they were alright with that) wanted to see some Trese fandom stories on my page. So here I go, do leave feedback, it’s always appreciated :)

The moon hung high in the night sky, casting an eerie glow over the darkened streets of Manila. Alexandra Trese patrolled the city as she always did, vigilant against the supernatural threats that lurked in the shadows. On this particular night, her senses tingled with an unfamiliar presence, drawing her towards an old, abandoned mansion.

As she approached the mansion, Alexandra noticed an ethereal figure standing in the moonlight. It was a woman of captivating beauty, with long, flowing hair and eyes that sparkled like stars. Intrigued, Alexandra decided to investigate further, approaching the mysterious woman cautiously.

"Hello," Alexandra greeted with a hint of curiosity. "Are you lost?"

The woman turned to face Alexandra, a warm smile gracing her lips. "Oh, not at all," she replied, her voice soft and melodious. "I come here often to feel the night's embrace. It's quite comforting, don't you think?"

"I suppose it can be," Alexandra replied, intrigued by the woman's serene demeanor. "I'm Alexandra, by the way, Alexandra Trese."

"It's nice to meet your acquaintance, Alexandra Trese," the woman replied with a polite nod. "My father speaks highly of what you've done for the realm."

A flicker of surprise crossed Alexandra's face. "Your father? How does he know me?"

"He is the king of the vampire kingdom clan," the woman revealed, a glint of mischief in her eyes. "And I am Princess (Y/n) of the same kingdom."

Alexandra's eyes widened in astonishment as the revelation sank in. She had unknowingly been chatting with royalty, not just any royalty, but the princess of the vampire clan. Despite the revelation, (Y/n) didn't carry herself with an air of superiority; instead, she seemed genuinely interested in their conversation.

"I... I had no idea," Alexandra stammered, feeling a mix of embarrassment and awe. "I apologize if I seemed disrespectful."

"No need to apologize," (Y/n) reassured her with a gentle smile. "I prefer to be treated as any other person. Titles can be burdensome at times."

"You have a point," Alexandra agreed, feeling more at ease with (Y/n) now that the formalities were set aside. "It's just that meeting someone like you is quite extraordinary. Vampires are a rare sight in these parts, especially one of royal blood."

(Y/n) chuckled softly. "I suppose it's not every day that you encounter a vampire princess on the streets of Manila. But I find this city fascinating, and I often venture out of the castle to explore its hidden corners."

"I'm glad you find the city intriguing," Alexandra replied, a smile playing on her lips. "It's my duty to protect it, after all."

"I've heard stories about your bravery and your dedication to keeping this city safe," (Y/n) said, her admiration evident. "It's an honor to meet the woman who protects my father's realm."

The two continued to chat for hours, exchanging stories and learning about each other's worlds. Alexandra found herself drawn to (Y/n)'s genuine curiosity and kindness. The princess, in turn, was captivated by Alexandra's unwavering determination and sense of justice.

As the night wore on, (Y/n) expressed her desire to explore more of Manila's hidden gems, and Alexandra offered to show her around. Together, they wandered through the city's dark alleys and ancient temples, creating memories that would stay with them forever.

In that chance encounter, Alexandra Trese and Princess (Y/n) found an unexpected connection, one that transcended their different worlds. Little did they know that this meeting would be the beginning of an extraordinary journey, one filled with love, friendship, and the intertwining of their destinies in ways neither could have imagined.

•••

The entrance to the vampire castle was a formidable sight, guarded by imposing sentinels with eyes that glowed like hot embers in the darkness. Alexandra took a deep breath, steeling herself for the task ahead, as she was ushered inside by the stoic guards. The walls of the castle were adorned with ancient tapestries depicting the history of the vampire clan, and the corridors echoed with the whispers of centuries gone by.

Finally, Alexandra stood before the towering doors of the throne room, heart pounding loudly in her chest. She had faced countless supernatural threats, but none of them compared to the anxiety she felt now. Pushing the doors open, she stepped inside, her eyes meeting those of the vampire clan king - a regal figure seated upon a grand throne, exuding an aura of power and wisdom.

"Alexandra Trese," the king's voice was deep and resonant, carrying an air of authority. "What brings the city's protector to my domain?"

Respecting the customs of the supernatural world, Alexandra bowed respectfully before the king. "Your Majesty," she began, "I come before you with a request of utmost importance."

The king raised an eyebrow, intrigued by Alexandra's formality. "Speak, then. What is it that you seek?"

Taking a deep breath, Alexandra lifted her gaze and met the king's piercing eyes. "Your daughter, (Y/N),” she said, her voice steady despite the nerves. "I have developed feelings for her, feelings that go beyond mere admiration. I would like to ask for your permission to court her."

Silence filled the throne room as the vampire king studied Alexandra. His face was unreadable, and she couldn't help but feel a mix of hope and dread. Courtship between humans and vampires was rare and often frowned upon, but Alexandra couldn't deny what she felt for (Y/N).

At last, the king spoke, his voice measured. "You are the protector of this city, Alexandra. Your duty is to safeguard its inhabitants from the supernatural threats that lurk in the shadows. A relationship with my daughter could be seen as a conflict of interest."

Alexandra nodded, understanding the king's concerns. "I assure you, Your Majesty, that my duty to protect this city will never waver. My feelings for (Y/N) will not compromise my role as a protector."

The king observed Alexandra for a moment longer before a faint smile touched his lips. "Your devotion to your duty is evident, and it pleases me," he said. "But I must also consider my daughter's happiness. (Y/N) has spoken of you, and I can see that you hold a special place in her heart as well."

Hope surged within Alexandra as she listened to the king's words. "I would never do anything to bring harm to (Y/N),”she vowed. "I only wish to be with her, to cherish and protect her, just as I do for this city."

The king's expression softened, and he nodded thoughtfully. "Very well, Alexandra Trese. You have my permission to court my daughter, but know that if you betray her trust or put her in any danger, there will be consequences beyond your imagination."

"I understand, Your Majesty," Alexandra replied, feeling the weight of his words.

With the king's blessing, Alexandra felt a sense of relief and joy like she had never experienced before. She thanked the king sincerely before taking her leave from the castle, her heart light with hope for the future.

From that day on, Alexandra and (Y/N)’s courtship began discreetly, away from prying eyes. They would steal moments together in the shadows, exploring the city and each other's hearts. As their love deepened, Alexandra found herself not just enamored with the vampire princess's beauty and grace, but also enchanted by her kindness, intelligence, and compassion.

But as their romance blossomed, so did the challenges they faced. The supernatural world was not always forgiving, and there were those who opposed their relationship. Yet, Alexandra and (Y/N) stood together, facing every obstacle with unwavering determination and love.

In the heart of Manila's darkness, a forbidden love bloomed, defying the boundaries of their worlds. Alexandra Trese, the city's protector, and (Y/N), the vampire princess, found solace in each other's arms, embarking on a love story that would be etched into the city's supernatural history for all time.

[bungoustraypups]

idk man i just really think that if u genuinely believe that fic authors are required to care about characters they dont care about and make content for characters or ships they dont care about just to prove theyre not secretly misogynists uh. i dont think you actually care about how theyre actually treating real women. because you seem to be using solely the characters they choose to write self-indulgent free fanworks about as the metric to define that instead of, yknow. anything else they do. or at least youre putting a whole lot of emphasis on it

also theres quite a few lesbians ive met who actually dont write men. some even genderbend, whether thru a cis-swap where theyre now AFAB cis women or thru trans headcanons or whatever, canonically male characters so they dont have to write about men. theyre a minority in most animanga and other mainstream fandoms ive seen but as i am not in every fandom nor am i privy to the inner workings of every fandom idk how like, rare those ppl actually are compared to authors who exclusively or mostly write abt men

also like. not sorry for this one, but as a nonbinary trans man who is not a woman even a little bit and refuses to be seen as one or associate myself with womanhood because i am not a woman, it is specifically irritating to me to be told this, because i tend to write most about the characters i project on to or see myself reflected in, and, unsurprisingly, 99% of those characters are men, or can be read as men or are men at least some of the time, or more masculine in presentation

jasper from SU has always been my favorite gem and i didn't get invested in the series until she showed up, for example, and i heavily project onto her and see my experiences in her, despite her being considered woman-aligned, which i have no problem with and am actually glad about because there's not a whole lot of very masculine/butch women in mainstream media to start with, though i wish the show had been more sympathetic with her considering she's literally an abuse victim but i digress

but i often don't write for female or fem-presenting canon characters, or focus many of my fics on them, because in order for me to really get attached to a pre-existing character not of my own creation in a series, i need to be able to see some aspect of myself in them, or they need to have something that makes me interested in their story and draws me towards them. but seeing myself reflected in a character who is a woman or identifies mostly or often as a woman is dysphoria-inducing for me. that's why most of the female characters i write for are my own OCs, because i created them, which means a little piece of me goes into them, which means i'm able to have that connection i often lack with canon characters. i also tend to make the most content for characters i feel attracted towards, who are always men because i'm gay lmao

like i'm not misogynistic or a misogynist. i don't hate women. it's just that between my writing process and the canon characters my brain gets attached to, when i write fic, i write about the canon characters i care about the most, who most often tend to be men because i'm mostly in fandoms of male character-dominated series where the women are either uninteresting, poorly written, or extremely minor, or all three in the worst case scenario. and since i do this for fun, i'm not gonna waste my time writing something i'm not 100% passionate about just because there's a lack of f/f and women-centric content like

that's a problem! but it's a problem that can be just as easily fixed by the people who are demanding more content themselves if they, yknow, actually made some. which a lot of them don't

[ciaossu-imagines]

for the ask game you reblogged: Bleach?

Of course, anon dear! Thanks so much for the request! Honestly, I don't touch on the Bleach fandom too often, so this was a fun one to see in the inbox!

The character I'd push off a cliff

Okay, I am probably going to get thrown off a cliff myself for this opinion but Grimmjow. I know so, so many people absolutely fell in love with him but there was just something about the character that just always rubbed me the wrong way and I was never able to warm up to him at all. I can't even pinpoint why or what it was about him, but he's one of the very rare times in watching or reading something where I just automatically disliked and could not get past disliking a character.

The character I'd kiss

Okay, but this one was really, really hard for me because damn it, I would walk around randomly kissing so many people because lord, there are a lot of really gorgeous people but if I had to narrow it down to just one, I would definitely have to go with the experience of kissing Urahara...I cannot decide if he'd be rubbish at it or surprisingly good.

The character I'd marry

Okay, much like the above answer, this one was really hard for me because, when I was really into Bleach (or during any of the periods I get really into it all over again) I had a lot of f/o's from this series. Like there were so many characters that I was constantly falling in love with someone new. But my answer is actually the character I still find myself consistently self-shipping and creating happy little daydreams about even when I'm not actively really big into the fandom - Shinji!

The character I'd set on fire

Please. I'd absolutely set Aizen ablaze and pretend like it would hurt or matter at all to that jackass.

The character I'd wrap a blanket around

Weird answer coming your way but honestly, Rangiku. That woman has been through a hell of a lot in story and I don't think that really gets mentioned too often or acknowledged. I've always loved her and I just...I'd take her out for food and drinks and then I'd take her home, wrap her up in a blanket, set a glass of water beside her along with some aspirin, and lock up behind myself.

The character I'd be roommates with

I know it's probably a cheat answer but I would totally live with all of the 11th Division. Would I be in mortal danger at every given second? Yes. But would I have fun before dying? Also yes.

[tleeaves]

Thank you @luciehercndale and also @faithfromanewperspective (I am pretty sure you also tagged me and I forgot to make my reply then) for tagging me 🥺 It means the world, honestly, since I don't update a lot nor write too many fics, yet I'm still remembered.

When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Let’s spread the self-love 💖

(All of the below are in The Last Hours fandom)

Wasting Beats In This Heart Of Mine 136,108 words. Work in progress. This fic is my most ambitious and it is a various x OC story (James Herondale, Cordelia Carstairs, and Matthew Fairchild). It's my own take on how multiple universes of the same characters work and what would happen if a time loop was created by trying to save someone who is meant to die. Basically, it's the fracturing of reality, the occasional dose of heavy existentialism and derealisation/depersonalisation, fixing of some canon complaints I had, but it all takes place during Chain of Iron. It's a re-write of an earlier and now deleted fanfic of mine called Chain of Lies. Oh, and there's romance. Everything kind of revolves around that, one way or another, even in some rather dangerous ways.

The Rain (It Rains Every Day) 7,912 words. Work in progress. This is a Beauty and the Beast AU but greatly inspired by the myth of Eros/Cupid and Psyche, as well as earlier versions of the Beauty and Beast story (the French version, as well as some others under different titles like East of the Sun, West of the Moon, which is basically Cupid and Psyche in a different font). It's got James Herondale x Cordelia Carstairs, Lucie Herondale x Grace Blackthorn, and Alastair Carstairs x Thomas Lightwood. The setting is 1900, Greece in an alternate universe where a whole bunch of the TLH cast immigrated to the country or live(d) in Bulgaria or Persia.

A Diamond On Your Pillow 1,978 words. Complete work. A crack-ship fic about Christopher Lightwood x Lara Croft because of a silly joke I had with @thevagabondexpress. I still maintain that it is the most genius of my works, even if I did not get around to writing out any of the backstory we talked about. Also, it's the strangest ship in the fandom corner right now and I am proud of that. The moment someone takes my title, I will be publishing a James Herondale x Alastair Carstairs fic and no one can stop me. Not even your mother. Heed my warning because after that it might be Peeta Mellark x Cordelia Carstairs AND I WILL DO IT.

Love, We Did Our Best 3,354 words. Work in progress. A Matthew Fairchild x pregnant OC fic. I came up with the idea after a weird dream I had about IVF, but anyway. It takes place in France (past) and Tortuga (current story), 1906. Matthew has been travelling the world and generally avoiding Shadowhunters until he gets to Tortuga and meets a Nephilim woman with her marks stripped in exile there. She is a widow expecting to give birth to her first child in somewhere over three months. It only has two chapters so far, but it's supposed to be a cute murder mystery (..."cute" as in there's romance, but also the murder mystery itself is not actually cute, it gets quite dark).

Pride and Prejudice 2,460 words. Work in progress. It is literally just a Thomastair Pride and Prejudice AU. It has one chapter. I intend to continue it one day, but I have to refer to the book often so it's on the backburner because I am too lazy to refer to the book to write and this AU requires it. I'll get around to it eventually. Probably.

I am tagging @griddle-cakes, @sourlemons262, @zoyalannister, and @all-this-panic-still-no-disco (mostly because I know you're also fanfic writers, 3/4 of which have written also for TLH. You absolutely don't have to do this though if you don't want to.)

[kaifish-pond]

Howdy Hai! I’m Kai (Oshun/Fox also work!)

I’m a regressor, but this blog is not ONLY regression, but I try and keep it PG, PG-13 at absolute most (Social Justice Stuff gets posted here which is why it gets bumped in rating)

I don’t often look at messages, but I dont mind if you send me a message, it just may take a LONG time for me to get back to you!

I am a relic in internet terms ig. I’m 27 (So I’m a Zillennial, was born at the VERY tail end of ‘96)

I am nonbinary, I was raised as a woman, and still ID strongly with femininity and girlhood, BUT I am still nonbinary bc I do not feel fully woman. I’m like a femme genderflux person with a leaning towards agender. I also use Neopronouns; Pupself and Oceanself, but you can also use She/They and sometimes he

This account is my main account and is the one I follow from. 

I LOVE invertebrates! Right now I’m obsessed with Eresus hermani and Arthrosphaera fumosa. They are BOTH so cute it's maddening! My Nonnie says in the next couple years I will be able to build my own Invertebrate shed!

I have a GREAT love for the Devonian Period, it is ABSOLUTELY FASCINATING! My favorite animal from the period is Dunkleosteus, they were TANKS, just so badass! I also have a soft spot for Tikaaliks (Look em up! They are so cute)

Disability Corner!

I have several Disabilities/Disorders here’s a short list:

AuDHD, BPD, Schizoaffective, C-PTSD, Colitis, NAFLD, COPD, Spondylolisthesis (Anterolisthesis), Asthma, GERD and more :/

I am considered Medically Crippled as I have a disc slippage and pars defect. The cushioning thats supposed to be inside my disc or whatever is squeezed out and pressing against my spinal cord/nerve…

My Pain Management Doctor suggested I get a cane/walker. So hopefully next month I can get a walker/cane

I was kicked in the head by my old horse when I was in the 6th grade and got some nice TBI from it. So I’m a bit messed up in the head, and it kinda changed my personality as well as gave me severe memory loss

I have Learning Disabilities, and was supposed to be on a IEP growing up, but my grandma wouldnt allow me to be placed on one bc I was also very smart in other aspects, such as being incredibly Hyperlexic and teaching myself to read and talk, etc

If I tag something incorrect PLEASE gently correct me, I promise it was NOT intentional. I just am incredibly new to this and social media in general as I grew up UBER religious and was not allowed to have social media much, and when I would sneak and get on it, I would be punished and yelled at. 

I LOVE learning and getting better as a person!!

My Regression Fandoms

Just a smol list of fandoms I like to create Age Regression content for!

ATLA (regressor Zuko and cg Sokka are my faves, but also Flip Katara and Regressor Aang! And Regressor Toph and Cg Sokka)

Scooby Doo (I havent watched every movie/series/etc. I WILL NOT do content for that Velma Show on Max)

Breaking Bad (Transmasc Flip Jesse Pinkman FOREVER + CG Jane)

Dr Who (I have BARELY watched this show, but it consumes my brain)

Sally Face (I havent watched a Sally Face Playthrough since I was a kid and really dont remember much beside wanting Larry/Sal to be my big brothers)

Steven Universe (I have SEVERE issues with this show, but I still love it)

Diary of a Wimpy Kid (I’ve only seen the first movie, but Devon Bostick as Rodrick was AMAZING + Him as a big brother CG would be AWESOME)

Metalocaylpse (Toki is a canon age regressor!!) 

The Hobbit/Lord of the Rings (I havent read/watched in FOREVER, i used to use the movies to help me fall asleep tho xD)

Degrassi (OMG THIS SHOW RULES MY LIFE! I’ve watched from Jr High to Next Class COUNTLESS TIMES)

Teen Titans (Basically any one being a CG for Regressing Raven!! SSsssssSSssoooo CUTE!)

She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (Bratty Regressor Catra and Stern CG Adora)

[nervoustragedyluminary]

I feel like it should be pretty simple for tumblr to easily remove porn bots with how often they:

Spam tag both the "trans man" "transmasc" "gay man" "girls who like girls" and "trans woman" tags simultaneously without any mention of being multi gender/they're obviously not using them in good faith but are being tagged with any and every trans or LGBTQIA tag- I've even seen explicit porn tagged by these bots as "trans kids" - they usually also have tags like "submissive sissy" or other slurs or "need dick" & weird random ones that have zero to do with being sexwork or nsft like fandom related ones.. The use of "trans genocide" as a spam tag is particularly horrific

How often they're obviously stolen images and videos often of obviously different women being posted by a account claiming they're all one person

How often they use the following emojis 🍆🍑💦🥵 or the stock same sayings eg you like a girl with a little extra?🍆🍆🍆"" message me for my Dropbox daddy" etc completely focused on their junk in a way that sure some transfem sexworkers lean into but not all of them do and the majority of it seems like some cis persons idea of how trans women behave and have sex spammed in tags like "trans kids" is fucking sinister and reads like some transphobic chaser making bot accounts to use stolen trans women sex workers' images to make trans women out to be pushy sex pests who spam all tags with uncensored porn and make other trans people like trans guys be like "why are these women posting their porn in our tag?" when it's just bots with stolen content & a transmisogynistic agenda.

If porn bot behaviour is so predictable why is @staff not doing anything about it? Like SFW transition timelines shouldn't be what you're deleting when I am regularly reporting the same obvious bots spamming the same boilerplate all over the LGBTQIA and especially the trans tags - is there someone on staff who's behind this or letting it go on on purpose for the above reasons?

it should be really easy to create a filter for these behaviours automatically and have someone do a manual review if any genuine blogs by real people get caught up

Here's an example of a more SFW one: note the random spam tags and the fact that the woman pictured is obviously a different woman to the display pic -not all of them use trans women's stolen content and I'm sure there's stolen content of cis men being used in this way too but the majority of adult content I see spammed in this way is of either cis or trans women. More examples

[xirayn]

As a fellow nature documentary kid, I would love to hear more about your take on Omegaverse. Anything world-buildy with it

I have put way too much thought into this because I am a chronic world-builder, so there is a lot. It ranges from the biology and evolutionary reasons behind it, to how and why social constructs came to be.

[Character examples will be in context of Stranger Things because that is my current fandom]

Now to go into it under the cut.

Note: Male and female will be used to refer to assigned sex. Trans people exist in my omegaverse with the distinction between male/female vs man/woman being culturally better understood due to the existence of subsexes.

Evolutionary Origin

Subsexes are the result of a vestigial monotreme system that developed parallel to the eutherian system that humans possess. It was socially advantageous, but biologically detrimental, which is why parts of it were kept. As a result, male omegas are unable to get pregnant despite having an estrus cycle and being capable of lactating.

Subsexes

Alphas (Hopper, Steve, Mike, Lucas, Billy, Argyle, Chrissy)

The heart of the pack, alphas are usually extroverts who keep order and generally ensure all pack members are safe and supported.

Mostly male since female alphas have been historically unable to survive childbirth due to their pseudo-penis, which also makes vaginal sex tricky.

Social constructs resulted in the ideology that alphas are the ruler of a pack and should want to be dominant in their relationships.

Alphas go through annual ruts, a period of two to three weeks marked by a heightened sex drive and a decreased ability to regulate emotion.

A roar, also known as an alpha voice, is a loud, guttural vocalization. Despite popular belief, it does not force an omega to submit or obey, but does have a tendency to activate a fear response.

Happy, friendly, or comforting vocalizations include chuffs and rumbles.

Betas (Robin, Dustin, El*, Kali*, Jason)

The lifeblood of the pack, betas tend to be supporters and problem solvers who keep everything running.

Betas will often form a partnership with an alpha or, rarely, an omega. The bond is usually platonic, though it can be romantic.

An alpha or omega child may mature into a beta. They retain the personality traits associated with their original secondary sex, but do not produce any of the hormones involved in mating cycles and bonds.

Betas have an underdeveloped vomeronasal organ, which makes them less aware of pheromones and other chemical communications.

*On rare occasion, a beta is the result of subsex sterilization. These betas are even less capable of picking up scent queues, to the point they are unable to reliably identify subsexes.

Omegas (Joyce, Nancy, Jonathan, Will, Eddie, Max, Murray)

The will of the pack, omegas are independent risk-takers who drive innovation and exploration.

Omegas are typically the first to leave their familial pack, sometimes with 1-3 other omegas to form a coalition. These groups are often the start of a pack.

Mostly female due to male omegas rarely passing on their genetics due to having a lower sperm count than male alphas and betas.

To promote loyalty to a ruler over pack and prevent rebellions, many cultures have developed the false idea that omegas are meant to be subservient.

Starting between the age of fifteen and eighteen, omegas start experiencing heats every 6-15 months. During the two to seven days a heat lasts, the omega produces sex pheromones and experience a higher libido. While omegas in heat and preheat are more affectionate and outgoing toward other subsexes, they may act aggressive toward perceived competition.

Omegas are the only subsex capable of purring.

Mates/Pairbonds

A pairbond is created when an alpha knots an omega in heat, triggering the production of primer pheromones, then bites one of the omega's scent glands, typically on the neck or shoulder. The pheromones from both partners, transferred through sebum and saliva, alter the other's hormone production to create the pairbond.

Pairbonds are renewed each heat. Two to three heats are enough to break the bond, though the addictive qualities of a pairbond can make this difficult to achieve.

Mating marks are the darkened patch of skin, resembling a bite mark, that occurs after a pairbond is formed. They fade when a pairbond is broken, but never fully disappear.

Feel free to send me asks or prompts on this.