#for some reason i remembered this post and felt like i needed to clarify that

[rampant-testiculitis]

rereading and rereading that post

[taylorftparamore]

the way some of yall talk about palestinian lives is giving white saviourism. you talk about these folks like they havent been fighting back and minimize & diminish their efforts of survival. like. palestine DOES still have adults in it fighting to protect their children & their neighbors’ lives. they are passing down their culture to save their culture from destruction & begging us to uplift their voices. maybe we as westerners need to actively check how we talk about this conflict, hm?

[shakespearean-dream]

TW!!! — blood, scarring and mild body horror ahead 🥲

benny’s turn!

before i start i wanna clarify i hesitated a bit on posting this because lovely mutual @vor-leser just posted his benny interpretation (go look at it and follow him btw), and idk if we like mind melded or smth but our human benny’s are super similar LOL. i damn near scrapped the whole thing out of fear someone would get mad at me but i Would Not be able to start over and get this done ever so this is as good as we’re gonna get. 😭 my apologies niko love u /p

this has been like a full 7 days in the making 😭😭 the art block that i felt coming on while doing ellen and ted hit me like an optimus prime sized semi truck this week along with a depressive episode so i definitely appreciate that happening and i am not upset about it at all! /s i’m totally good so don’t worry or anything /gen, mental health is just weird and i also wanted to explain the gap in my posts 😔

i do not know how to feel about this drawing if i’m so fr with you; i’m proud of myself for AM-ified benny cause i think i got the slowly rotting from the inside out primal freak energy down pretty good, but on the other hand this feels kinda empty?? i usually have a lot more commentary squished in here but i think my brain’s a little fried 🤦‍♂️ i love drawing me some beautiful buff men though so drawing normal ben was familiar territory. however his wack ass haircut i gave him is his punishment for being a PRICK!!! go sit in the corner and think about ur actions benjamin.

like ted n the rest of the sillies i’m not straying too far from canon with his personality, he’s an ass and a murderer and a hella smart dickhead who desperately needs to be punished by the universe (thank you for that one AM). hot take i did not like his “redemption arc” in his game scenario and i don’t think with how he was throughout the entirety of his life (and also throughout the game, main example his inner dialogue) he would actually go out of his way to help the kid because he means it??? n prove he changed to the guys he killed cause he means it??? i dunno maybe AM torturing him made him have a main character “omg i’ve been in the wrong this whole time!!1” moment like the game suggests i’m just not buying it 💀 i’m sure it’s just cause bennys scenario couldn’t be too long and they couldn’t fully flesh him out which i won’t fault the game makers for. i’m a steven universe fan, i know what time constrictions can do to a plot and redemption arc 😭 looking at you white diamond…

his wife n kids are up top and they’re kinda neat to me— i was considering the hc that part of the reason manya (his canon wife) left him is because she realized she was a lesbian which would be funny as fuck considering benny’s also One Of Them Queers 😭. i think during the brief times he was home and able to parent his daughters they got really scared and tired of him, one because he’s just a very threatening powerful and overbearing man, but also because i feel like he would’ve been on their ASS about everything. grades, extracurriculars, friends, wardrobe, this guy was micromanaging his family to an annoying extreme (ofc because of his perfectionist complex). he probably loved manya and the kids in his own weird way, but it was more contractual to him than any real personal relationship. maybe he inherited that from his own parents?? i doubt he ever talked to them after he moved out.

that’s about the end of my thoughts on this fucker. 🥲 funny storyyyy i just remembered i have laundry to finish so im gonna go do that, lord help me. thank you for reading all this if you did!!!!! we’re over halfway through so who do yall want next? wanna save AM or nimdok for last? i’ll see u guys later :]]]

[a-sad-mage]

Shane Colony Headcannons #4: Back to Brain Rot [Edition]

☆ Part 1 ☆ Part 2 ☆ Part 3 ☆

To clarify, the Shane Colony is what I've taken to calling the Slugs that live at the Hideout.

And yes, this was inspired by a comment on part 3, by the lovely loveart14

Also, preemptive thank you to the SlugTerra Section of the FandomWiki for all the names of the slugs I was able to use

-

I've mentioned this before, but Burpy is the defacto pack leader of the Shane Colony, followed by Doc, then by Stinky

Why Stinky? Simple, he and the rest of Prontos slugs have technically been apart of the Shane Colony the longest

Movie nights without their Slingers

Movie nights with their Slingers

All reasoning be damned, the next time Burpy sees Will Shane, it's on sight

In fact, the next time any of the Shane Colony see Will Shane, it's on sight

There are a bunch of hides and hangout spots around the Hideout, both inside and out

Makes for a killer game of hide and seek for the Slugs

'Court trials' are a spectacle

For starters, they have a whole mini court set up, gavel and all

Sometimes the Shane Gang watch and are completely dramatic about it. Like gasps and everything

Trixie has recorded trials, and edited the video like a Judge Judy episode to post on the SlugNet

The Slugs have pranked their Slingers, but sometimes it leads to an all out prank war between the Slingers because they didn't realize it was the Slugs

Doc is the mom friend

Burpy is the dad friend

Because of nesting habits, the high nesting slugs, like Granukers, Hoverbugs, and Arachnet's, tend to drop things from their high perches.

There is a cupboard filled with treats, and it's under lock and key, fortified like Fourt Nox

There have been many attempts to break in

Joules, Spinner, Buzzsaw, and Lerry were really close to getting in one night until Eli caught them.

Noodle, despite being a Flopper, is well loved :) he can no wrong and when he does, he blames Stunts, and no one questions it.

Mo is a dumb little thing, but Lerry and Suds have taken to teaching him things

Mo is a surprising fast learner, he's just uncoordinated because he's constantly seeing triple thanks to his Aura Sight

Dozer has purposefully triggered his Velocimorph inside the Hideout. His Slinger and his friends need to sleep damn it

After the 'Lightwell' all the slugs where extra carful with Burpy, much to his annoyance

speaking of the 'Lightwell' the Shane Gang was extra attentive to all their slugs, keeping their eyes pealed for any signs of their light going dim

Beeker has put out one to many fires that Burpy, Burner, and any of the other fire slugs have started

Beeker now charges extra Slug Pellets at meal time as compensation

Glimmer had flash banged people on accident and on purpose.

They play high stakes hot potato with Rookies exploding balls

The Slugs activity gamble

Eli can and will spend most of gold on his Slugs before he spends anything on himself

All the Slug's have their own preferences when it come's to entertainment

some of its weird

Bludgeon, Kord's Rammstone, its surprisingly really good at art

When Junjie's slug's joined the Shane Colony they have a horror movie night

it goes as well as you would expect

Joo-Joo actually cried after being cured from his Ghouled state

this is because, he was semi-conscious through the 20 years Junjie was forced to be the Dark Slinger, and having been with Junjie's family for so long, the poor little guy was so distressed by what was happening, Joo-Joo felt helpless. So seeing his Slinger, his Partner, his Person finally free, on top of no longer being Ghouled brakes the normally composed Slug and Joo-Joo just sobs

Yin(the Slicksilver from SFS) is baby

Torch sleeps in the oven, it gives Pronto a heart attack every single time until he remembers the Slug is a Forgesmelter

First Rule about Shane Colony Fight Club: You don't squeak about Fight Club

Doc is done with everyslug's shit when it comes to Fight Club

'You wanna brawl? fine, but don't expect me to do anything about it' [Translated from Slug]

Trixie's slugs are surprisingly the most tame when compared to the guys,

and yes, this includes Junjie's slugs because those little guys have no chill

Junjie's slugs can brew tea

Kord's slugs know how to sabotage a Mecha

Pronto's slugs, when motivated, can run a mullite million gold marketing scheme - don't ask how, they just do

Trixie's slugs know how to work a camera, and video editing software, they have made, hundreds of videos they post on their own SlugNet account

Burpy will never admit this to his fellow slugs, or even Eli for that matter, but, he actually used to like Thaddius Blakk, like before he went off the deep end.

Blakk used to be a good slinger, and the Infernus could over look some of the questionable things Blakk did. but at some point, Burpy just couldn't anymore. this is a secret Burpy will take to his grave.

[michellemouse]

Ok, I've been wanting to make this post for quite some time and I think it's time to do it

I will expose the person who harassed me and my friends during 2023

PLEASE READ THIS POST IT IS IMPORTANT, I NEED PEOPLE TO KNOW THE HARASSMENT I EXPERIENCED SO MUCH WITH MY FRIENDS

Her name is Tamara (I don't know if she changed her name but I will continue to call her by her old name anyway)

I remember meeting Tamara from a video Mausy shared at the end of February (specifically this video but that doesn't matter)

At that time I wanted to be her friend because we both shared the same interest, Wednesday's infidelity. The peculiar thing was that she was fascinated by Sui. Mouse x Wi Bf ship, so much so that when she met Mausy she started to hate her for THAT REASON

So, you're going to fight with someone just for a ship????

She started making videos making Mausy look like the typical "slut whore" from those cheap Yaoi hard gacha life stories

(Only example I found because the rest was deleted)

The funny thing about all this was that I, being her friend at the time, tried to convince her to stop doing it (since at that moment, Mausy meant a lot to me) and well, Tamara stopped doing it... BUT IT DIDN'T EVEN LAST 3 DAYS WHEN SHE DID THE SAME STUPIDITY AGAIN

A friend of mine named Skylar had found out what Tamara was doing with the character of Mausy and started to hate her. At that moment I was hoping that at least things would get better and that it wouldn't end badly (spoiler: everything went to shit-)

When it was Skylar's birthday, I had made a fanart of her along with Mausy and I as a birthday present. And it seems that Tamara felt so, SO bad when she saw that drawing that she made two videos saying that she prefers her "old friends" to her current friends.

I clarify that I had not included it for this reason:

Skylar didn't like Tamara and it would be bad taste to add a person you don't like to your own gift

https://youtu.be/oN9SWrWDHww?si=4rJPO3_lPUUyU2fY

In this video Tamara plays the victim and lies to her own subs that we were bad influences and that we were also damn ignorant (which is a lie)

I did all this FOR A MISERABLE DRAWING!!! A DAMN DRAWING!! You must be crazy to make a whole drama for a shitty drawing

When the war between Skylar and Tamara started, Skylar's brother named "Pow Mick" saw that his sister was suffering from cyberbullying, and he joined the drama to defend her. Tamara found out about Pow Mick's existence and dedicated a great deal of time to dedicate like a trillion videos to him killing him and ridiculing him globally (ALONG WITH HIS SISTER)

In all the videos, Tamara portrays herself as the poor victim who did nothing and just wanted to be happy with her "perfect" ship and her "old friends"

She thinks that others are just toxic people who aren't cool at all and that she's a "me nice" and also a "me cool xd" (I'M SORRY BUT HER TERRIBLE GRAMMAR KILLS ME JSJSJAKA)

One detail I want to mention is that when I was friends with Tamara, I really liked the character of Jur (who would basically be Wi Bf's rival). He was even going to be Stressed Mouse's opponent in my WI mod Mortimer Mix. During that period I had created an oc called "Catalina" (I'm not going to lie that it's literally Cloud xd) where I used to put her together with Jur

When I fought with Tamara, she used my Catalina oc to make a video where Jur cheats on her with a character that no one knows who she is

(The bad thing about this point is that I lost the drawing where I had created Catalina)

I don't know how she came up with the idea of making an OC that was not at all a copy of the character of Mausy (her name is literally Mausie...wow)

With that Oc she made videos saying that Mausie was better than Mausy

I don't remember if it was true that Tamara had made a video where she shipped Mausie with SUI.MOUSE... let's see, let's see, let's see... are you telling me that you hate a ship of a girl but at the same time you create a ship that is exactly the same as what YOU HATE?? how beautiful is hypocrisy

The worst thing is that one of Tamara's friends had also joined the drama to defend her and would also take on the role of Mausie, and she, along with Tamara, would copy the concept of "virtual sisters" that Mausy and I used to be

(Another detail I want to say is that Tamara's friend used to comment on my posts, making complaining comments like: "why do you make so many fangirls?", "I don't like that you make so many fangirls")

When she realizes that she can stop consuming content that she doesn't like to watch other content that she does like:😱😡😰

Tamara also made videos shipping her haters

So much so that Skylar mentions to me that she also shipped her along with HER BROTHER (AND THE WORST THING GETS WHEN YOU FIND OUT THEIR AGE, Skylar being 4 years older than her brother... 16 and 12 years old)

THIS MAKES TAMARA, IN ADDITION TO BEING A HYPOCRITE, ALSO A PROSHITTER!!! HOW DISGUSTING!!!

Extra:

A video where Tamara is accused of making an Islamophobic video

A video where she kills Mausy

Video showing how extreme Tamara is with other people's thoughts/ideologies Ok, it's fine that you want people to respect the LGBT community but... Was it necessary that way?

Yt post where Skylar exposes Tamara

Exposure of all accounts of Tamara + her accomplice:

Tamara's first account where she made most of the videos mentioned above

Tamara's secondary account (I don't know anything about this one)

Tamara's current account (It seems she lost her first account)

Possible account of the girl who took on the role of Mausie and who defended Tamara

PLEASE REBLOG/SHARE THIS POST, I NEED HELP TO GET MORE PEOPLE TO SEE THIS!!!!!

[morhath]

Tomb of Dragons thoughts:

I don't love Thara getting his powers back for three (3) reasons:

See this post.

I just thought it would've been neat to see him having to problem-solve without magic!

It felt a bit easy/convenient. I know, I know, it was a miracle that's how miracles work and also he did the classic "you have no power over me" maneuver. I mean doyleist-ly not watsonian-ly it felt too easy/convenient.

I have definitely been on board the Thara/Iäna train but you know what? I like this better. Dare I say Iäna aro vibes. It's actually hilarious that I (intense about friendship and therefore sometimes mistaken for being romantically into people who I am not into) read Iäna as being into Thara when he is in fact just intense about friendship. I love it. Sort of the inverse of the Big Double Reveal Fakeout in The Angel of the Crows (EXCELLENT Kaddison book (yes unfortunately the Kapplegate nickname for K.A. Applegate has spread))--here you think he's gay/bi but the reveal is that he's a marginalized religious minority. I knewwwwwww the captain was gonna be a love interest the MOMENT Thara thought of him as "my captain" after seeing him for like the second time. ETA: by which I mean I saw it coming and therefore wasn't excessively shocked by the Iäna thing. But also it could've been poly!!! [mildly wistful] It could've been poly...

Maia cameo!!! except as time goes on I am more and more Cranky About The Political Implications of The Goblin Emperor and therefore more and more unfortunately anti-Maia's-position-in-society. Nice guy on a personal level though.

In terms of too-neat resolutions I think this is one of the better ones--like it makes SENSE that the Shady Mining Company* was also involved in Usurpation Schemes--but... I dunno. I do appreciate that this wasn't one of those times where the narrative excuses the characters from even having to MAKE the Complicated Decision (Maia had already decided that, depending on the audit, some mines would still stay open) but then the characters are still "rescued" from the consequences of that decision (getting The Killed by a pissed off dragon ghost) by the revelation that actually the Shady Mining Company needs to be shut down completely due to treason. When I got to that bit I kind of winced at the book because I am Sick And Tired of this kind of thing. But again!!! Overall this was better than a lot of examples of the phenomenon. I think also this would bother me less if I felt like Thara getting his powers back was less convenient.

dragon ghost. DRAGON GHOST. DRAGON GHOST!!!

Overall I liked the book a lot, I just think it's more interesting to delve into these things that didn't work for me than to be like "I liked the cute neighbor kid and the clothing descriptions and everyone being niceys to Thara" etc etc.

Also getting more serious about my writing and reading other writers' work with an eye to what's working and what isn't is RUININGGGGGG me for casual reading. I CAN'T TURN IT OFF!!!

______________________________________________________________

*you know I recently had a very kind critique on one of my stories about how I threw a lot of very confusing proper nouns at the reader immediately and I was like "psh I'll clarify in a few places but they can deal it's fine" and yet here I am with every TGE/COA book not able to remember a single proper noun ever. no I will not learn anything from this.

[mrsmangi]

hi!!

i js realized and UGH I FEEL SO STUPID BUT i realized how much of an impact fanficiton can actually dent to the whole "some people are forgetting luigi's inspo and purpose and the whole crux of this situation" im not sure if it is disrespectful that's why i wanted to run it by to u guys but we can totally bring things to perspective on luigi's current conditions. how scared he is, how ignorant MEDIA is in general, we can totally do it and honestly we already are!! most of the fanfictions ive read are raising awareness about the struggles of going through traumatic surgeries, making people feel seen about injuries they had that are similar to luigi's!! i just want to clarify that im not saying that EVERYTHING we choose to write to be apart of this community must be sort of tasked to carry the weight of the world at all times and have this altruistic can-do attitude about it. what im saying is that we all require something real even if it is in our fantasies - real as in something that is close to us as humans and ive realized that there is always and forever will be a certain standing that we take against oppressors that quote and quote "work in the shadows - making them systems of cowardice" most importantly ive noticed that us as a community loves fanfiction that humanizes luigi - we live vicariously through the name of "y/n" and that is just us feeling human and through this fandom we create a community an institution with a base for smart thinkers and creative writers i think luigi has inspired a lot of people and it is important to note that people especially creators - those who know they belong or has hosted a blog or whatever type of creative craft of their that hones their skills are easily touched by topics that wake them up and inspire them - those are topics that are hard to forget

so i just wanted to share this message! and im sending this as Phoenix (pseudonym) to my favorite luigi writers, you guys dont have to respond politically or feel pressured to completely agree with what im saying i mean im still learning and im def a minor exposed to media so of course i am subject to multiple errors! i just felt the need to say it and im too shy to post it on my actual tumblr..

clarification: i really dont mean this as an attack or as a self-righteous claim :(( i sent this to you because i adore you and ur writing, how u see the world, how u contribute to this fandom, and how u make us feel dare i say... one with the one we are reading about!! im sorry if i said anything bad or insensitive or just offending in any way!! dont be pressured to reply to this i just realized that it's important for me to share my voice even if i think it doesnt matter because it might matter to others who would like to read it

by the way!! i got these ideas a lot from a book called the message by ta nehisi coates!! if you love writing you'd love this book for sure :))

i really dont mean to offend and i apologize for the long message my love!! i hope you have a great day please drink water and stay safe!!

hi, gorgeous! first of all, there’s nothing to feel stupid about! please know, in my blog, i am always open to having ur guys’ perspectives on luigi (or anything, really!), so for that i thank u for sharing it!

i rly appreciate your passion for the community and for raising awareness about luigi’s story. i completely agree that fanfiction can be a powerful tool to connect with his experiences and to humanize him, but i’ll admit, i’ve also found myself hesitant at times to write about him for similar reasons.

to me, there’s a fine line between exploring his story and romanticizing him in a way that might overshadow the real, political, and lawful consequences he’s currently facing. it’s important for everyone to remember that luigi is NOT a perfect person. i don’t mean it in a bad way, i just mean that like all of us, he has flaws. he is not a fictional character. he’s a living, breathing, and currently incarcerated human being. but personally, i believe those flaws are what make him such an interesting and complex character to write about. in my most recent work, “found,” i rly tried to balance that idea. while fiction lets writers create beautiful and romantic things, we can’t forget the reality of his situation or replace it with fantasy.

we should never sugarcoat the situation luigi is going through. i actively do my best to not do so either. i find his darker, more flawed aspects to be what makes his story so compelling, and i think that grounding my writing in that reality helps me explore him in a way that feels more authentic.

i appreciate you sharing your thoughts on this, and i encourage you to keep researching, reflecting, and learning. i’ll def do my best to do the same, and i’m so glad to see how deeply this community values meaningful discussions like this.

i see you and i hear you. 💕🫶🏼

[wolvsaalt]

Hello people! It's Dynamite here, I'm posting to provide clarification and more in depth explanation on what happened.

First off, I must sincerely thank the post owner for not bring other people's names in. My friends had nothing to do with what happened, and I'm glad to see they haven't been dragged into this.

Second off, I would like to apologize for taking so long to clarify things. The original post happened when I just got to school, so I haven't been able to respond until I got home.

A break down on everything:

The conversation started up because I asked what fanfics and recs were. I got my answer and I wanted to move on from the topic, but hatter posts a comment I barely skimmed through. I barely remember exactly what led to the argument, but I must state that Bucket never said its okay to post about sexual things, but that if people messaged them I'd be their delicision to do so, and that Hatter would most likely get in trouble for saying that.

They start arguing and I tell them to move on from the subject, which we do. I'm not at all surprised that mods came in and deleted the posts and gave us a lecture.

I don't appreciate people saying that I had a mental breakdown and went on a rant about how much I hated the rules. I did NOT have a mental breakdown, nor did I rant about hating the rules.i simply stated that I was frustrated with continuously getting in trouble, despite constantly rereading the rules and trying to abide by them.

That was only part of the reason why I decided to move the group chat somewhere more private. I know people were stalking the forum (mainly to watch Hatter), and I felt uncomfortable knowing that

And how are we being disgusting? I can provide screenshots of our group messages, where we're sharing the pups we've had, saying hi as new people join in, and some people offering some cheap wolves up for us. I'm confused on how that's considered being disgusting?

Yes, while I would've liked to include everyone, some people can't access Discord. Which led to everything blowing up at once, with Cool Guy saying we shouldn't run and that the rules are easy to follow. Cool Guy goes on to telling me that I should use a different app, including giving out my Gmail (my PERSONAL contact info), and some apps I've never heard of.

And while I'm deeply sorry some people have been cut off, it was a needed move to take things off a public place.

Crya was blocked for calling a friend a bitch because I sold a wolf she wanted to someone else. I unblocked her after a few days and invited her back, choosing to ignore the fact that after that everything she did seemed to grate on my nerves.

A few days back, Crya promised she could get me something. So I sent her the money, and she sent it back saying she didn't have it. Myself and another friend provided proof that she did indeed say she had it, and instead of owning up and taking it. She decides to post in Greek, saying she hated us and had no reason to prove her wrong.

I took her to private messages and ended up blocking her for good. Her sister, Heather, messages me, saying that me blocking her was making her depression worse and she was going to commit suicide because of me. So I blocked her as well.

Everything after that seems normal, until the fight and being moved to discord. I told everyone that if they messaged me their username on Discord, I'll invite them to the chat. Vix starts going on about Crya, and says she did nothing wrong. How crya has on her profile, stating that she has a temper and if she gets back then she's sorry. Vix proceeds to keep talking about crya, saying I should give her a chance to apologize, and that she doesn't care and I could go ahead and block her. So I proceeded to block Vix as well.

Now, I feel the need to say that I never asked anyone to spy on me. I was ready to leave those people in the past and forget about it. But I get messaged that Crya openly admitted on a public forum that Vix was a 2nd account created by Heather to spy on us. I unblocked them to see this forum, took screenshots of the post and them threatening my friend if they told me about it. And proceeded to report it to mods before reblocking them.

I have just been informed by one of my friends, that Crya, Vix, and Heather have all been banned from WD. Showing proof that I wasn't in the wrong, and neither were my friends.

I must also say, I know Cool Guy will see this. Know that I've received proof that you've been disgustingly sexual across several different websites. So how can you accuse my friend of saying something sexual on the forum (which they no way did), when you've done much worse?

- Dyna

.

[lunapwrites]

Hey so remember that time that I made that post about the sudden plot bunny about Lyall and Andromeda bonding over the corpses of their children and wouldn't that be a fun meet-cute like a complete sociopath?

Well anyway I might have written it.

Third row, fifteen down. Lyall moved through the Great Hall, woodenly scanning the bodies laid out along the floor. Children, mostly — boys and girls just sighting the light at the end of their teens. Adults scattered in between, too few to be an effective shield against their attackers, against — Christ — the Giants he'd seen collapsed on the grounds. Fires still smoldering. Third row, fifteen down. He spotted the shoes first — how many times had he heard those boots scuffing on the rug at his door? How long had it been? Not since his son had burst into the house a year before, digging through boxes like a madman. "Need a hand?" "No, I just can't remember where I — ah! There you are—" "What are you up to, lad?" "Something monumentally stupid, probably — I'll explain later, I promise." He'd run out the door then, jamming something into his pocket as he went. It was the last Lyall had seen Remus alive. He'd thought himself moderately prepared for this, having buried his wife years ago. Thought he knew grief. Remus had always been a bit pale, a bit quiet. Self-contained. But there was always a sense of movement underneath his skin, an energy about him that could burst out at any moment — for good or ill. The body at his feet lay unnaturally still, unnaturally silent, eyes mercifully closed. Not just pale, but grey-faced. Slightly blue. He felt the air leave his lungs, felt his soul wither and die, his heart crumbling to ash in his breast. That was his son. That was his son. "You must be Lyall," a quiet voice ventured. He wrenched his eyes away from what was left of his son — his son! — to see a dark-haired woman standing beside him, arms full of a tiny baby, eyes hollow as he felt. "Remus spoke of you often." He frowned. "I…" "Andromeda Tonks," she offered. "Your son married my daughter." Lyall blinked slowly. He looked down at his son's body, spotting the ring glinting on his finger. There was blood on it. And to Remus' left was a young woman with mousey brown hair and a lip ring, fingers brushing against his even in death. She was wearing Hope's ring. "Something monumentally stupid, probably." He didn't even know her name. "I had no idea," he rasped. Andromeda let out a little sigh, adjusting the baby in her arms. "No, I suppose you wouldn't have."

She offered nothing further, and Lyall didn't have it in himself to ask. They stood shoulder to shoulder for a time, staring silently down at the faces of their dead children, each drowning in their own private sea of grief until the baby in her arms began fussing. He waved his tiny little fists as he screwed his face up, turning towards Andromeda's breast as if to latch. She pulled him away slightly, frowning. "I haven't anything to feed you with," she said, and Lyall wasn't so gone that he didn't hear the double meaning in her statement. "Don't know where I'll find you a nurse on such short notice, but we'll manage." "Does he not handle formula?" "What?" Her confusion was so genuine, she could have only been from an old pureblood line. His confusion over just who his son had (apparently) married only grew. “Something monumentally stupid—” "Baby formula,” Lyall clarified. “The Muggles use it to feed babies if they can't use milk for whatever reason. We had to use it for— well. He was allergic, so…" Andromeda nodded absently. “I suppose I could try to find some. Although, Merlin knows where at this hour…” She trailed off fretfully, a tiny furrow appearing between her finely curved brows, and Lyall let out a sigh. “There ought to be a Tesco open by now; it’s near six,” he assured her, earning a blank stare in response. Oh dear. “The supermarket?” Andromeda’s cheeks finally tinged a bit pink. “Oh, I… my husband—” a ripple of pain shot across her face, and oh, he recognised that one — “he normally does the— did the shopping. He was better at that sort of thing. And then Remus took over, after…” Recent, then; poor woman. It warmed him, slightly, to know that Remus had stepped in to fill the void the other man had left. That they’d let him. “Well. I’m glad he was there, at least.” Her expression hardened almost imperceptibly. “In the end, yes.” (There was a story there; Lyall was certain he’d hear about it soon enough.) (He only wished his son was alive to tell it himself.) “Suppose I ought to figure out where to bury him now,” Lyall murmured. “Only… you know. Never thought I’d have to.” (His son!) “Them,” Andromeda corrected, meeting his gaze as she drew herself up imperiously. “Your son swore to me that he’d never leave her side again, and I mean to see he keeps his word.” She paused, her eyes drifting to her daughter’s face, and Lyall could see her walls cracking. “She kept hers, after all. Swore she’d never let him if he tried, and here we are.” Lyall nodded thoughtfully, sidestepping the landmine for now. “Alright. Suppose we can discuss that while we hit the shops, then.” Andromeda stared at him, wide-eyed. “What? I couldn’t possibly leave—”

“They’re not going anywhere, and we haven’t anywhere better to be,” Lyall reminded her. “And more importantly, we need to get this one fed. Might as well grab a bite ourselves while we’re at it and discuss details as we go.”

She hesitated, and for a moment he thought she might tell him to go hang — he certainly wouldn’t have blamed her, especially under the circumstances. And yet Andromeda seemed to gather herself, adjusting the still fussing baby in her arms whose hair was, to his surprise, slowly shifting from brown to red. She conjured up a tiny hat and popped it on his head with the expert precision of a woman who had not only expected such an occurrence, but had experience managing it.

“Right then,” she said briskly. “Lead on.”

The more Lyall was learning, the more confusion was beginning to give way to intrigue: just who was this woman his son had married? And who exactly was her mother?

“Something monumentally stupid, probably —”

But Remus wasn’t around to explain anymore, so all he had — all he could do — was this:

Show his son’s mother-in-law around the Tesco, formula in hand. Show her how to prepare it. Ask her how she takes her tea. Ask her about herself, her daughter, and his son, and the little hill where he’d buried his wife in ‘82.

“She’d like that, I think.”

Marvel a bit at the fact this poor girl survived her teens with a name like Nymphadora, sweet Circe. Keep that bit to himself.

Hold the baby — Teddy, a mercifully bog standard name, that — so she can sip and cry at the same time.

Tell her about his son — not the cagey, wand-shy man she knew, but the kind and quiet, if impulsive one he’d raised. The one she laughed and said her daughter must have known.

And then— “Would you like to stay for supper?” A wince. “I appreciate the offer—” Ah, hell. He waved her off. “Next time, then.” There wouldn’t be a next time, he thought. And then… there was. Tea after the quiet funeral turned into tea every Sunday, turned into "I was heading out to the shops for a bit, would you mind taking Teddy?" turned into bringing Teddy along as he helped her carry the bags home — "I suppose I could have Featherlighted them, but there were so many Muggles around, you know?" "Oh, of course." The grief never left — not really. Only faded to a dull roar in the back of his mind that Lyall could tuck away when he needed most days. Andie understood; she felt it too. He stepped in on the days when Harry was working and Andie couldn't get herself out of bed, and she stepped in on the days when the grief seemed to stretch out so long and deep that he couldn't climb out. Tucked a baby — a toddler — a boy into his arms, just to remind him they're still here, at least a little. Teddy was growing into something not-Remus and not-Nymphadora but something entirely, brilliantly his own, and most days Lyall could have burst with the joy of it. The sorrow. She understood that too. Held his hand as they visited the graves on the hill, beneath the alder tree he'd once carved his and Hope's initials into. Four headstones for three bodies, watching the sun rise over the valley. Watching Teddy try to do cartwheels that looked more like a pisshead falling over a bin. Watching him recover, hair brilliantly blue, and try again.

"Gran! Bampi, watch!" Merlin, they would have loved him. Merlin, but he could bleed with it most days. (Andie wrapped her arms around his waist, chin perched on his shoulder as she laughed quietly against his back. Holding them both together.)

Lyall reckoned that, most days at least, they were alright.

[to-be-a-dreamer]

Okay so this post has gained a lot of traction and I've seen some questions in the tags and also a few other posts talking about the same thing so I just want to clarify what I mean when I say "Please don't reduce Lizzie's character and death to an extension of a man's" and similar things. (Just for some clarification before we start: I don't think this is some huge issue that we need to have a big fight about, but I have seen some people talking about it and I wanted to put in my two cents)

I know no one is doing this because they're misogynistic. I know there would be similar reactions if any of the men had the same arc over the season. I know people are telling the truth when they say the connections they're making between Lizzie and the male characters aren't because she's a woman. I know no one is thinking about her gender when they're saying these things and that is what bugs me, I think.

Fandom in general, but especially the MCYT fandom, has always had issues with the way we treat women. We have a tendency to reduce them to one or two characterizations (kind, mothering, vengeful, etc.) or to their relationships with men, things that aren't inherently bad things for a character to be. The issue comes from when that's the ONLY thing they ever get to be. They're not allowed to be as complex as the men. Again, I'm not at all saying that anyone is doing this on purpose, it's just a pattern that fandom culture as a whole seems to struggle with.

And when you have an issue like, that the answer isn't to ignore the gender aspect and treat all characters the same. You have to intentionally combat it. You have to take the time to deliberately give the female characters complex characterizations and interesting storylines outside of the men. It's equality vs. equity, you know?

If you've ever done research about writing POC characters, you've probably heard people say something like "Don't just write them like you would a white character because you might accidentally enforce stereotypes and biases you didn't even know existed. You have to be aware of those things so you can intentionally go against them." It's kinda similar to that in my head. You can't just say "I would do the same thing for a man" and be done with it because men and women have been treated very differently in fandom spaces and if we want to change that, we have to be intentional about how we write them.

I don't think there's anything inherently misogynistic about connecting Lizzie's death to the Canary Curse or Joel's revenge arc, but I would like her to also have her own character lore and a connection to the Watchers that isn't about a man. In a fandom space where women are constantly defined by their relationships with men and with a character who had as tragic a story as Lizzie, I would love for some of her lore to be about her and her alone. Connections to Jimmy and Joel are awesome! I love reading them! But I don't want that to be the only thing about her, even if that's what you would talk about if she were a man. She's not a man, she's a woman in a space where women are often mistreated or only seen as extensions of men. So even if you genuinely would say the same things about a man I just want you to challenge yourself to dig a little deeper with her character and find ways to give her something that is wholly and truly her own.

She had her own plans for revenge that went horribly wrong and ultimately led to her death! Even in her vengeful anger, she held a soft spot for Pearl because she remembered how she saved her in Session 1! She was forgotten and ignored by almost everyone! She tried to cheer herself up by doing something harmless and fun and that led to her being punched and then murdered for no reason! She wasn't even angry at Jimmy when he accidentally murdered her because she felt like it was her own fault! She tried so hard at everything she did and it still wasn't enough! She knew no one would come to save her from the caves! The only thing she asked of anyone was for them to come to her slumber party and still only one person showed up for her! She was forced to turn on her own husband to complete her task! She tried to make it up to him and it led to her being out of the game! No one even gave her a funeral when she was gone! She was forgotten and ignored in both life and death! There is so much more to her than being motivation for a man or breaking a man's curse, even if those are big things that happened.

Again, I'd like to make it very clear that I'm not angry about the way Lizzie has been treated, I'm mostly joking whenever I say things like in the original post. It's mostly just a feeling of "Come on I know we can do better than that!" And in the past few days I've seen a lot of people do some really amazing things with her character! So much amazing art and fanon lore! This isn't even a huge issue anymore because a lot of people have begun to explore her individual character now that the excitement about the Canary Curse has died down. This post is just an explanation for people who were asking questions or weren't sure what people meant in some posts from earlier in the week.

[qroier]

edited my post from yesterday on spiderbit eurydice and orpheus to be clearer. it is now. way longer klsdjfk. but the idea is the same. anyway enjoy reading if you do and uh. pues f if you don't, no? lskdfjsdk. kinda already mentioned it in the post but should clarify here that i'm 100% talking about the greek myth.

-

Thinking about spiderbit as eurydice and orpheus is so interesting to me, cause I think depending on how you look at it and how you think of the story, there's an argument for both. And then you remember everything that was purgatory and how clear of a parallel it is to the myth hdksjdks. Honestly though, I feel like the purgatory parallels are the biggest reason roier cubito as orpheus is winning out on that one poll, and I kinda have to disagree with that. The evidence for orpheus roier is there from the start. Roier cubito is always and forever a perfect, permanent orpheus figure even before considering purgatory, and it's down to the devotion roier and orpheus cling to and the grief they both drown in. (The rest under the read more)

Backtracking first for a bit to set the stage. There are many different versions of the eurydice and orpheus myth out there, and its nature as a myth means that interpretations (and translations of any original latin or greek versions) are always changing. Disclaimer of course that my understanding and general knowledge of the myth has been mainly influenced by the wider english-speaking cultural approach to it. I'm focusing on the orpheus archtype from my understanding of what it means (which I'll explain along the way) because otherwise if I didn't I'd end up getting too boggled down in "virgil said this according to this translation" and "ovid went more in this direction following this translator" details. and there is no way in hell i'm struggling through translating on my own with my measle little two years of latin classes under my belt lskdjfkldfj.

But regardless, here's a very basic and brief summary that most versions tend to follow: Eurydice and orpheus are married. Eurydice dies. Orpheus treks out to the underworld through the power of music to save her and get her back. He's told the only way he can have her is if he makes the treacherous trip back to the mortal realm without turning to look at her once. He looks back right before he makes it, and fails in saving her. Sounds familiar, right? slkdjfsk

Don't get me wrong, orpheus cellbit still makes sense in a way. That's part of why the poll and idea in general is so interesting. Heed the disclaimer again but to me, the biggest, most obvious, and most immediately linked connotation the myth has always had is one of devotion. Like the type of devotion that would take you all the way into the afterlife and all the way back in the hopes that that might save the person you love. Cellbit cubito is nothing if not devoted, and normally in the loudest ways possible. He loves shouting out his devotion at all times to anyone in close proximity. It just makes sense that if anyone could hold the level of devotion necessary to be orpheus it'd be him, cause we all know he'd do anything for roier.

Plus being honest, it also makes sense just going by the dynamics in their relationship that they most often present to others. Roier cubito kinda likes playing into the dynamic of asking other people to "save" him, whether that's from mobs or hunger or anything, so long as it's not something actually serious. So much so that the idiot (said lovingly) has conditioned everyone, and I do mean everyone, both islanders and audience alike, into thinking he's defenseless and needs saving. Maxo put it best that one time when he said he felt like roier after cellbit saved him from some mobs, only for cellbit to have to correct him and say that it's usually the other way around. As far as most are concerned, cellbit does the rescuing while roier gleefully asks for the help. It is very easy to make the jump from the idea that eurydice is being saved and the image of roier cubito calling out for help with a scorpion that he could (normally at least, I know he didn't have any weapons or gear that one time during purgatory) bring down on his own. It definitely doesn't help that cellbit is, of course and as always, already running to roier with a weapon in hand to kill the scorpion. At the first chance, he's already trying to help. Anything for his husband.

So it makes sense that orpheus cellbit, who clearly loves doing the saving, would drag himself through hell in his devotion to save eurydice roier, who loves being the one saved! But then you start remembering how the story came about. You start wondering, well, why does the devotion need to be so strong? Why does eurydice even need to be saved? What has brought the both of them to the gates of the afterlife? Oh. Right. It's because she died. She's dead. Eurydice, the love of orpheus’ life, is dead. 

Saving her takes and is devotion, yes, but it's also an attempt to escape grief. If she’s saved, there’s no need to mourn. If she’s saved, then she’s not dead and there’s no grief. And, always, there is no one more grief-riddled than roier (except maybe maxo, whose grief has permanently killed him). No one knows more intimately than roier how tough of a fight it is to escape constant grief because he is constantly grieving, and it just keeps getting worse. His number one recurring theme since arriving on the island has been that he will lose loved ones. To the point that sometimes, even if the person is still technically around, the grief around them and the relationship that once was finds ways to persist (just look at the mess that revolved around spreen cubito before he was confirmed to be dead).

The devotion still applies to him too, of course. Even though it's in quieter ways, there's no denying that roier is as equally devoted to cellbit as cellbit is to him. Cellbit once promised roier he'd rescue him if the feds ever arrested him. Roier once told cellbit he'd go after him and wouldn't stop until he got him back if the feds tried taking cellbit again. And that's not even the only time roier has promised that, he's said similar things multiple times before. He even had to fulfill that same promise once already, back during the regret arc when cellbit went missing trying to save felps. If there is one thing that is true, it's that roier is not lacking in orpheusian devotion.

Actually, extending that devotion from being based in romantic love to also including familial love just makes it all the clearer how much of an orpheus roier has already been. Orpheus fights through the journey, holding on to hope and powering himself through devotion, because the alternative of having permanently lost eurydice, of having to succumb to grief, is too much for him to take. Roier fought through the entire island and later a dungeon, holding on to hope and powering himself through devotion, because the alternative of having permanently lost bobby, of having to succumb to the grief of loosing his son to something outside of his control, was too much for him to take.

And then they both fail. Orpheus looks back too early. Sometimes he forgets, in his excitement to be so close to the end, sometimes doubt gets the best of him and he has to check, and sometimes the need to see his love again overwhelms all his senses. Sometimes maybe it's somehow all three. Roier also looked back too early, in a way, but cucurucho only knows what way that actually was. It could have been that he technically did die right at the very end before he could make it through the dungeon, or it could have been that the gods were feeling particularly cruel that day. Either way, bobby wasn't returned to him. Either way, eurydice vanishes in the morning light after orpheus gets one last glimpse of her. Either way, Bobby vanishes behind the door after roier and jaiden are given only 10 minutes to say goodbye.

This is all without even touching on some of the details about how roier's singing charms everyone he meets and how music is such an important part of his character (for those of you unfamiliar with the myth, orpheus' connection to music is so deep that the greeks named a constellation after his lyre). Or, as notes in the last version of this post pointed out, how his previous journeys to the underworld have shaken his faith and trust (which would probably need to be a whole entire other post on its own). 

Roier is just permanent orpheus. He can't help it. If you believe that characters in myths are left behind, endlessly retelling their journeys even once the book is closed, then orpheus is still there, making that trip to the afterlife and back. His story is being retold through roier, who is here now. Roier, who has already gone on two trips to the afterlife and back, already told this story twice before, and is now preparing himself for a third (even a fourth, if you want to extend this whole thing and include purgatory and the eggs). It’s retold in how Roier has to do the saving, again, because he keeps getting left behind. In how he’s always drowning in grief, in some way or another. How he’ll drag himself through the journey every single time if it means a chance at saving someone he loves. If it means saving himself from more grief.

So the stage is set. Purgatory happened. Orpheus has loved, again, and he's lost, again. Roier may like it when he's the one being saved but he's been forced yet again into a position where he has a chance to do the saving. He's facing an increasingly insurmountable mountain of grief on one side and a plunging chance at salvation on the other. The book has been turned back to its first page. The story is rewinding to tell itself again. We know what path he'll pick. Now all that’s left is to see if this third trip succeeds. To see if this retelling is one where orpheus does not look back. And if he does? Well.

"Dying again, [Eurydice] did not blame her husband — What could she complain of except she was loved?" - ovid, translator: stanley lombardo

[metaldwellerrr]

Ooooh btw I just remembered about the house = courting thing I posted

Idk if it falls under nsfw ( it’s a big no no to me since I’m ace and stuff like that is gross )

I meant it in a “PLEASE DATE ME, I MADE THIS HOUSE WITH BLOOD SWEAT AND TEARS, PLEASE BECOME MY BOYFRIEND” kind of way.

I do love Palpers shooting his shot but “secretly”. Doing small things that he hopes Viv will notice

( also shocked at how Viv became the housewife on their new christmas video, the roles have truly switched + I watched with my mouth agape at their MHA roleplay )

Anway just wanted to clarify if it in any way felt nsfw 😭😭😭 promise it’s the last time

it doesn't fall under it imo? and even if it did, that wasn't your intent, so i'm not worried abt it. thank you for sending this ask for clarification anyway but it's ok you're good LOL YEAH THE MHA ROLEPLAY WAS LIKE INSANE WHAT IS WRONG WITH THEM? they LITERALLY switched. they've been doing that a lot recently..... remember when viv used to cut out all the gay shit that happened and palpers would leave it in? for some reason they COMPLETELY swapped. like. buddy. pal. no one is going to kill you for leaving in a slightly gay bit. palpers cut out SO much of the mha bit it's saddening to me... sighs. palpers has lost his touch it seems. /j no because why did palpers choose to go to the nether at first and leave vivilly to decorate. THERE ARE TWO THINGS WRONG WITH THIS. 1) palpers is shit at surviving by himself (most of the time) 2) vivilly is shit at decorating (the candy canes. need i say more) LMFAO

[yrrtyrrtwhenihrrthrrt]

Tell us a little bit about the requests you’re working on or have queued up to write.

Hi!! Sure!!

I actually have only one (1) request remaining and I am actually glad you sent this ask, because I was a little confused about the prompt and wanted to ask the sender for clarification but since it was anon I couldn't DM them 😅 so now I have an excuse to do so.

First of all thank you for being so respectful, I've not done anything like this yet and am excited to!! I was a little confused if you wanted me to write an AU where Ambrosius takes care of Bal directly after the joust (based on their messed up relationship I don't think he did in canon, but if that's what you wanted pls lmk!!) or did you want to see something more Post-Canon with A nursing B back to health in some way? I really really love this request and I think it is so cute :,) I just don't want to disappoint! If you submitted it, I hope you're reading this, pls feel free to DM me OR submit another anon to clarify!! I actually really love this request so I want to fill it right

Below the cut I offer some info about the ones I did not fill (all anon) to hopefully offer an explanation to anyone who didn't get theirs. Sorry! 🩷

CW: some stuff discussed below the cut is sexual in nature

If your request for deleted I hope it doesn't hurt your feelings, I wasn't offended receiving them I just didn't want to do it for one reason or another. Of those that I remember, one was an exact duplicate of another request, so I just filled it once of course. One was for a selkie AU which I think is a really interesting and cute idea, but I am not familiar enough with selkies or Celtic folklore to have felt comfortable exploring that. I always want to be respectful to cultural folklore and didn't feel I had the time or mental energy I needed to do the amount of research I felt was necessary. Similarly I had one for a cheerleading au which I also thought was cute but I know nothing about cheer or any sport enough to write it lol

I received one that seemed to be for an age regression Drabble, which I don't actually mind writing at all, but because it was on anon and did not specify in the request, I had no way to confirm it was NOT a person who sexualizes/fetishizes it, and so I was not comfortable proceeding, especially since I was already wary since I'd already gotten another request that, while innocently worded, was very obviously a fetish and involved something happening to a character against their will (it wasn't explicit noncon, but like-- think along the lines of bimbofication). I'm okay writing CONSENSUAL nsfw stuff but I don't like receiving requests that are worded innocently while obviously being for fetish content. If you want fet content just say that and I'll either write it or I won't 😭

[andthebubbles]

well, longer post for the wicked soundtrack (spoilers)

defying gravity: wow i nearly started crying lmao skjfngkfg either i'm in a Mood orrrr... nah i think it's cynthia's voice, she really gets all the emotion out somehow with her voice!! amazing. and it made me remember that i did get teary when i saw the stage show back in 2009. jemma rix, btw <3 (she was still the understudy back then i think?) (i had a crush on her for a bit haha)

anyway atm i'm just listening to all the tracks i usually listen to. first i listened to Dancing Through Life, then The Wizard and I, What Is This Feeling, Popular, I'm Not That Girl, One Short Day, Defying Gravity

oooh the high F sounds good in Defying Gravity (i just got to it (i'm listening and liveblogging/writing this lol))

i assume the new bit inserted into DG will make more sense after watching the movie

anyway, other comments:

one short day: i knew they'd be in it bc i saw spoilers, and i'm not bothered about spoilers/it doesn't dampen my excitement/i don't need to be surprised (someone was kinda rude/offended about it on reddit to someone else, as if everyone thinks the same as them skjfgnfg). anyway, One Short Day, the new bit is another of those moments where it'll make sense once i see the movie. so yeah XD nice to have the og there though

the wizard and i: glorioussss

i'm not that girl: reaaaally nice, then i felt like it got a bit overwrought towards the end BUT i'm sure it'll make more sense when i see the movie

defying gravity (again lol, i cbb trying to slot it back in up top somewhere): there's something about the long held un-vibrato(??) notes in the chorus bit which just get me every time. and because i hadn't heard cynthia's version till now/this is the first time, the whole emotional whatever of it hit me again. fun!! (as an aside i also really like jemma rix's voice, i might go watch the stage version i got off yt again after this)

okay so ariana's songs/voice: they're nice, she sounds a lot like chenoweth, but atm i'm not so into how... unpunchy her delivery is? idk. tentative opinion till i see the movie in about 3 weeks (rather than my usual 4-5 weeks for a movie that i want to see lol (look, i'm eager!!))

oooh now listening to the ozdust duet track! i didn't know what it was till i clicked on it and recognised the music. WOW IT'S SO ROMATICALLY GELPHIE PLS THEY'RE SLOW DANCING YOU CAN'T CONVINCE ME THAT THERE WEREN'T ~AND THEY WERE ROOMMATES~ SHENANIGANS like that beat is basically 80s (?) romance (??) slow dance (???) songs, IDK WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT, I WAS CLASSICALLY TRAINED, NOT POPULAR-MUSIC TRAINED (// to clarify/further explain, for some fucking reason my dad didn't let me listen to a lot/any popular music growing up, which he now fucking denies...! so now i'm a lil unsure but like I REMEMBER BEING A TEENAGER and him being like 'this is trash music, they can't sing' and so i had to listen in secret. and for someone who can't stand headphones/earphones (the feel of it), it was hard to listen to things lol. i heard more in primary school because primary school was more music-ey with the concerts and stuff)

anyway MUCH later i'll listen to all the other tracks i never listen to LMAO, i'm actually waiting for a better quality version than what yt can give me, so

aaand i'll add to this as i think of more things. gonna listen to all my fave tracks againnnn

ETA: ehehehe it's officially out at midnight my time!

more ETA

dancing through life: man jb's voice just makes me smile haha // I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE HIM BE A SHALLOW LIL SHITHEAD // i like the new transitions in this, better than the other tracks (just from without seeing the movie yet), i think because there's always a lot of room to move with this one, no pun intended lol

ETA2:

forgot to mention yesterday but i LOVE what they did with the start of One Short Day, because it starts a minor 3rd higher than on the OST and i was like, whaaa are we really transposing it that high? and it (the vocals and stuff) was very nice. and then it dropped down into the usual key, and it just sounded GOOD and it fucked with you a bit. very nice

[thesingingrevolution]

the way winwin carefully scheduled his year around the wayv comeback but sm suddenly switched the comeback dates up on him and he ended up not being able to participate ... and THEN he cant make it to the versache event cus he has to talk all of this out w the company.

yunquis r so strong... i would not be able to deal fr. how do u do it???

first of all thanks for your message 🙇🏻‍♀️💌

personally, i felt so upset and disappointed when the news broke :( it was bad enough it was gonna be an ot5 comeback, but when it was revealed it was because sm changed their pre planned schedule it made me angry. i understand that winwin has other important activities and if it was his own choice to sit this one out, i would have respected his decision and happily supported the other five members. but the fact that he went out of his way to ensure his schedule would align and they couldn’t even respect that.. it made me really sad. as far as we know, there is no reason this comeback had to me moved up. they just did it. and i’ve never seen anything like it, how can a company not respect their artist in this incredibly basic way? it’s heartbreaking.

i wish winwin stays in nct because i truly love him and i love his friendships in the group and his contributions etc etc but stuff like this makes me wish more and more than he only does what he needs to do for his career and happiness, regardless of how we feel. these transgressions are too serious in my opinion, to the point that when wayv were promoting on my youth during the last few months of 2023 as a proper group it almost felt like a fever dream. a full group promoting a comeback together should not be a rare occurrence. it’s so so so sad and wayv as a whole deserve so much better. the fact that i felt absolutely no excitement over this cb and haven’t even looked at concept pics or listened to any songs says so much. i will eventually, but it hurts right now :( i will need some time to get over this. not the fault of any of the members, of course!!! will always love and wish then the best.

moreover i hate that this feeds into the idea that winwin doesn’t care about his group. it’s such a common sentiment in the (toxic/misinformed/immature) parts of the fandom. if anything, winwin’s actions and deliberate desire to partake in the cb tells us the EXACT OPPOSITE. if he didn’t care, he clearly wouldn’t have gone through the trouble. like you’ve said, it’s causing more issues for him. so why would he do it if he didn’t care? i’m glad some clarifying posts went semi viral, and there was a decent amount of outrage. rightfully so.

as for how i do it….. my friend,, it’s not easy. to be honest, i have had periods where it wasn’t good for me (last summer, for example, i had so much free time to dedicate to kpop and it started affecting my mental health when i saw my fav neglected and disrespected all the time). thankfully i am better now and have been for a long time, it’s really embarrassing to admit kpop can mess one up like that lol but i hope people can be honest about how they feel since it’s very real in my experience. i try not too think about it too much and keep busy with other things, i took a huge step back from stan twitter and i only follow a few yunqi accs who post updates/positivity and don’t engage in fanwars and spread aggression across the internet. as for his company, it’s a bit more complicated. i feel as though his potential has never been fully realized, which is sad for a seasoned idol so many years into his career. but it also gives him so much space to grow, every now and then i am so surprised by his incredible work in other areas, because he was held back so much. i am so glad there are people who recognize his potential <3

i also try to remember that even though i love nct and its a huge part of my life, it’s just music and no matter what happens things will be alright. we will always have the good times and memories and that makes me feel better when i get upset. lastly, i learned to primarily focus on my own friends and my own thoughts. just last night, i told a friend i love winwin the most and she said she likes him and that he suits me as a bias. all my irl kpop stan friends have been nothing but supportive and sweet. and in my own head, winwin is the best, i dont have to think about his company and random people online to hold that opinion, and at the end of the day my thoughts are the only ones that really matter when it comes to this.

i’m sorry this is so long hahahha, but hopefully it explains a little about how i feel about all this!! once again thank you for your message 💖

[finn-m-corvex]

Jaya Week 2023 Day 1: Hobby

IT (was) JAYA WEEK! Going to be honest with you, folks, I completely forgot this was a thing until I saw the post for it literally the day before it started (today, the 31st for me) so now I'm on a mission to speed write the other six days.

I hope you guys like this one! Small something to help me get back into writing small things. I'll be posting these on ao3 too!

Words: 1.7k

[REUPLOAD!]

It hadn’t started as anything important, really. Nothing more than a hobby for them.

She could still remember the day that Jay had walked her around the bowels of the Bounty for the first time since he had built the engines, showing her the innards of the mechanations. Jay had the biggest smile on his face as he pointed out the various gears and wires, happily explaining what they did with a speed that lightning would’ve envied. His hands were articulating wildly, very nearly hitting her in the face every few minutes and she was amazed he hadn’t hit the walls with how cramped the area was.

Even then, all she could think about was how good he looked in his black tank top, his muscles on full display paired with the boyish face that she had somehow fallen so hard for.

Until he finally stopped talking to take a closer look at one of the cooling systems, frowning.

“What’s wrong?” she had asked, coming up behind him and trying to see for herself.

Jay sighed, reaching for the worn blue toolbox that he had left in the corner. “One of the pipes is coming loose. We’re going to have to get a new one somewhere, but I should just be able to tighten it until then.”

She watched as he grabbed a wrench covered almost top to bottom in rust, and part of her wondered if it was really in the best condition to be used. Jay chuckled when she asked him about it, and held it up for her to see. “My pa always says that the most worn tools are the most reliable. The more worn they are the better, because if they’ve lasted you this long, why wouldn’t they get you a little farther?”

It hadn’t made any sense to her at the time. Instead of asking Jay and trying to understand it, Nya had pressed on. “Can you show me how?”

“What?”

“Can you show me how to fix it?” Nya clarified, and for some reason she felt nervous about asking him. Jay looked at her, surprised, and she was worried that he would say no when a delighted smile spread across his face.

“Of course! Come on, I’ll teach you everything I know,” he said, and she was smitten with the way he continued babbling to himself when she stepped up next to him. Most of what he had been saying didn’t make a lick of sense, but eventually she started picking up what he was putting down. Reaching to take the wrench from him, their hands brushed, and she shivered when Jay’s touch lingered for a bit longer. His thumb rubbed small circles on the inner part of her wrist, nail tracing along the veins visible through her skin. 

Jay didn’t move his hand until she had finished tightening the bolt, but even then it was only to wrap his hand around hers. She was surprised by how warm it was, almost like the lightning buzzing under his skin was heating it, and she smiled at the small lightning scars already snaking up his hand.

Pulling back, Nya was hardly startled when she felt his other arm settle around her waist. “Did I do it right?”

What did startle her was Jay’s dopey grin, dripping with so much love and affection that it made her heart squeeze in her chest. His gorgeous blue eyes were looking directly into her own muddy brown, and Nya was close enough to see the light dusting of makeup covering the smattering of freckles that she knew to be there.

She wanted nothing more than to tell Jay that he didn’t need the makeup, and that they all would’ve loved to see the constellation of stars splashed across his face, but she knew he wouldn’t hear it.

He leaned in, and Nya smiled when he gave her a side hug. “You’re so amazing,” he praised, and she hadn’t felt so special since the day Kai had told her that she was finally big enough to start helping in the forge.

The two of them had spent the rest of the day with each other down there, Nya working steadily on all of the engines while Jay happily talked her through it and through literally every other interest he had ever experienced in his life, but it was still one of Nya’s fondest memories.

The first time she had looked back on the memory, the two of them had been staying in Dr. Julien’s old lighthouse, on the run from Nadakhan.

Leaning against the open window and watching the horizon, Nya had turned around to see Jay messing with some of the gadgets on the room’s only table. They had only been there for a few hours, his gi still crumpled from his time aboard the Misfortune’s Keep.

Almost as if he sensed her gaze, Jay turned around, and Nya’s heart ached at the sight of him; his normally bright blue eyes were dulled with pain that he could barely keep concealed, a long and thick line running right across the one on the left. It was a miracle that he could still see out of it, really, but Nya knew that his vision had been compromised immensely.

She took special care to stay on the right side of his line of sight, cupping his cheek once she was close enough to do so. He leaned into her touch with a shudder, and Nya cringed at the way bruises travelled down his neck, coating his torso in ugly shades of black and blue under the gi.

It was so hard to see him hurting, to know that every breath he took felt like inhaling shards of glass and that his vision would never be cleared whenever he blinked. “Are you okay?”

Jay gave a soft wheeze, his naturally curly hair falling forward and framing his face in a way that he wouldn’t normally allow. “I’ll be fine, Nya. I promise. Just give me a couple days, alright?”

The more worn they are the better, because if they’ve lasted you this long, why wouldn’t they get you a little farther?

No matter how much he had been worn down, how much of his outer paint chipped away and his surface seemingly rusted beyond the point of usage, Jay had always managed to come through for them, for her. Nya guessed that Jay’s pa had been right yet again.

Which all led to this moment, years after the lighthouse, even longer since she had been walked through the first mechanical marvel that had given flight to the Bounty. They were holed up in the monastery’s workshop, a place deep underground so as to not disturb the inhabitants above. It was younger her’s dream, fully stocked with every part she could imagine and loaded with as much metal as they could ever need in as good of a quality as they came. Of course, they still kept a pile of junk from the Walkers’ scrapyard, partly to keep them in business, but mostly because it was Jay’s preferred materials when it came to his projects.

Her Yin was standing at a workbench only a short distance away, working away on a circuit board with his favorite zip-up hoodie on. He turned around, the hoodie falling off of his shoulder and exposing the scars from the Misfortune’s Keep mixed with the figures from his lightning powers.

Somehow, he always knew when she was looking at him.

“Everything okay?” he asked, noticing that she had stopped working on her own project. Weariness was set deep in her bones; it was well past for them to have gone to bed, but Nya knew that Jay would be up for as long as she would be. Insomnia was second-nature to them at this point.

She held her chin in her hand, elbow on the table as she stared at him with half-lidded eyes. How had she gotten so lucky?

Nya shut her eyes when she felt Jay’s arms wrap around her from behind, resting his cheek on top of her head. He was warm, just like all those years ago, and she craved that feeling despite wearing her own fairly thick hoodie.

“Just thinking,” she said, choosing to grasp his forearm when his hand came to rest on her shoulder. Jay hummed, rubbing his thumb along the small sliver of skin exposed by her waist.

“That’s a terrible thing,” he quipped, and Nya chuckled in response. She leaned up to give him a quick peck on the cheek, and he looked at her with surprise. Nya was a little surprised herself; she wasn’t normally one for such straightforward affection.

His blue eyes, soft and as loving as they could be, suddenly narrowed in suspicion. “Did I forget an anniversary?”

Maybe it was a little mean, but all Nya could do was laugh. She giggled some more when she saw Jay’s pouting face underlined with worry that she was quick to kiss away. “No, honey, you didn’t forget an anniversary. I’m just remembering the time you were showing me around the Bounty for the first time.”

It took a second before his face cleared of the confusion. “Why were you thinking about that?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know. I guess I’m just wondering how all of this,” she gestured to the workbench piled high with parts, “became more than a hobby, you know?”

“Why wouldn’t it still be a hobby?” Jay asked genuinely. “I mean, you still enjoy it, and that’s enough for it to be a hobby for me.”

Technically, he was right, but it didn’t really help Nya to feel better. “We haven’t really built something fun in a long time, though. Most of what we’ve been making is for missions and the team; kinda sucks the joy right out of it.”

Jay gave her a mischievous smile that made the hair raise on the back of her neck. “Then tomorrow we’ll just have to do something fun. Zane and Pixal can take care of the mechs for a little while. I was just thinking about building us a new toaster with lasers.”

“Lasers?” and Nya could barely get that out before Jay’s lips brushed against her own, and a small spark burned through her body. She didn’t waste a beat, burying her hand into his curly hair when he deepened the kiss.

They never made it back to bed that night.