#from may lol i am very far behind with posting these things

[turtledotjpeg]

gon & kon, inspired by the cover of "the little prince"🌟

made with crayola watercolors that are probably around 20 years old lol

[rafesangelita]

♡ when a double date with rafe leads to him feeling a sense of familiarity + you may have revealed your biggest secret yet..

warnings: mean!rafe. enemies to ???, suggestive language, lots of cussing lol, slight angst, mild sexting, light degradation (reader and rafe just like being snarky towards each other), sexual tension, flirty banter (?), slight arguing

a/n: this is part two of this fic right here! if you’d like to be added to the taglist just comment on this post or leave me an ask <3 i do plan to write three more parts to this!

links: previous | next | mini series masterlist

wc: 2.9k

[1:19 AM] countryclub: we have the same area code.

you felt cold sheer panic run through your veins at the revelation, your heart beating in your ears as you kept rereading his message. you refused to believe what he said to be true. this couldn’t be happening. sharing the same area code could only mean one thing— both of you resided on the island.

sure, the island was small, but it couldn’t be that small.. right? your mind was reeling, everything that you two had talked about, the pictures that you two shared, over the last few months ran through your mind at lightning speed. tossing your phone to the side, you rested your head in your hands, trying your best to piece something, anything, together. this mystery man didn’t talk like anyone you knew, or so you thought. you chewed on your bottom lip, your chest rising and falling as you realized that you hadn’t even confirmed if you two shared the same area code. for all you know he could just be making up some lame excuse for leaving you high and dry.

yeah, that had to be it.

[1:33 AM] brattydiaries: fuck you. i don’t believe that.

[1:35 AM] brattydiaries: i don’t need you to come up with some elaborate lie in order to spare my feelings. if you weren’t serious about reaching out to me in the first place, then you shouldn’t have asked for my number.

rafe was pacing back and forth in his room, the taste of tequila from his earlier activities still lingering on his tongue. he scoffed once your messages came in, his eyes narrowing at his screen as he scratched the back of his neck. insinuating that he didn’t really want to talk to you was just flat out insane. nowadays, all he could do was imagine the way your voice would sound in his ears while he pounded you in, the thoughts and images of you taking up his headspace.

[1:38 AM] countryclub: are you fucking stupid?? i was very serious about wanting to talk to you, you live in my fucking brain.

[1:39 AM] countryclub: 252. that’s the area code for kildare island.

[1:39 AM] countryclub: and judging by the way you post your nail appointments every two weeks, along with all the sexy lil try-on hauls you did for me, i could confidently say that you’re not a pogue.

your eyes widened in horror. only someone who lived on kildare island would know about the whole ‘kooks vs. pogues’ thing. besides the confirmation with the area code, you knew he wasn’t lying. you stared blankly at the screen, having no idea what to say or even do about this situation. having these kinds of blogs and letting anyone you knew in real life find out about them was social suicide. maybe not so much for rafe, but you? you were a totally different person out here. you had a reputation to uphold, you couldn’t risk the scrutiny you or your parents would face if anyone ever found out.

as mad as you were at the mystery man behind the screen for ghosting you without an explanation, you could understand his sudden disappearance now that you currently felt sick to your stomach at the realization. he was far too close for comfort. based off of his username, you knew you two had to be running in the same social circles, your blood running cold at the thought of this person being someone you might’ve had contact with before. figure eight wasn’t big enough to keep a secret like this, it was only a matter of time before you two would unintentionally reveal yourselves to one another.

[1:50 AM] brattydiaries: this can’t go on any longer. sorry not sorry.

you ignored the small pang of hurt in your chest when you pressed send. apart of you hoped that he wouldn’t let you off so easily. you couldn’t deny the thrilling feeling that sat in your tummy at the prospect of knowing who he is but also being utterly clueless at the same time.

[1:55 AM] countryclub: nah.

[1:55 AM] countryclub: i got you right where i want you now.

there was no way in hell rafe was going to just allow you two to go back to not talking. he did it once, but he wouldn’t be able to do it again. especially now that he knows everything he wants is on his side of the island. just in arm’s reach. obviously, he couldn’t physically stop you from blocking him, but at least he knew that if you responded to him then you two were on the same page.

and sure enough..

[1:59 AM] brattydiaries: whatever.

were you scared shitless? yes. did you believe that this was going to backfire in some way? most definitely; but you’d be lying if you said you didn’t want this. whatever little sexting arrangement you two had going on, it was the only relatively exciting thing you had going for yourself and you weren’t necessarily ready to let it go.

[2:03 AM] countryclub: so can i call you or what?

you shook your head even though he couldn’t see you.

[2:05 AM] brattydiaries: fuck no. goodnight.

rafe smiled down at his phone before getting ready for bed, both of you finding it nearly impossible to get any kind of sleep. when you woke up the next morning, you were met with at least a dozen messages from chanel.

[8:10 AM] chanel ♡: topper just dropped me off at home..

[8:12 AM] chanel ♡: crazyyyyy night.. but anyways! me and you are going on a double date tonight. idk who topper is bringing but you don’t get to say no because love me, okay!?

[8:12 AM] chanel ♡: LMAO imagine it’s rafe

[8:18 AM] chanel ♡: omg you srsly need to wake up already and come over so you could help me choose an outfit!!

you continued reading through her texts, already dreading tonight’s plans as you decided to go ahead and get the day started so you could get this whole ‘date night’ thing over with. even though chanel jokingly said topper would bring rafe to be your date, you really hoped that wasn’t the case. the last thing you felt like doing was fighting or bickering with him because of your indifferences. after spending the afternoon rummaging through chanel’s closet, she finally settled on a dress that she hasn’t worn out before. “where are we even going?” you asked.

“topper said it’s a surprise so he’s picking both of us up from here.” she smiled, her words making you roll your eyes. you hated not knowing what you were getting yourself into. yet again, here you were, sexting with a stranger who just might not be a stranger after all. by the time topper texted chanel that he was outside, you two were in full glam, ready for whatever tonight may bring you. topper opened the doors for both of you, his eyes widening slightly at the sight of you two. “we weren’t sure how to dress, sooo..” topper nodded, “yeah, i can see that.”

topper had on a casual outfit, a stark difference to the mini dresses and heels you and chanel currently wore. “now is probably a good time to tell us where we’re going.” you quipped from the backseat. at your cattiness, chanel flashed you a glare. “rafe offered up his boat, so i figured we’d just have a couple drinks, have a good time, ‘you know?” you scoffed, crossing your arms over your chest as chanel happily agreed. this was bullshit. not only did you have to spend the next few hours with rafe on his stupid boat, but you were sure this ‘double date’ was going to turn into a third wheeling act real fast.

fifteen minutes later, and rafe was reaching out to help you onto the druthers, an annoyed look written all over his face as you tossed your purse at him first. “what? i don’t want my bag to fall in the water, okay?!” taking hold of your hand, rafe caught a glimpse of your nails, the french tip design looking oddly familar. you squeezed his palm, stepping onto the deck with a sigh. topper and chanel had already made their way inside the cabin area, both of them laughing as they slid the door shut, leaving you and rafe all by yourselves. it was moments like these that made you wish you could be anywhere else.

rafe scanned your outfit, his eyes lingering on your cleavage before you turned around, annoyed. “i guess it’s a good thing topper didn’t mention i’d be spending majority of my night with you. ‘cause i wouldn’t have came.” you snatched your purse back, your heels clicking against the deck as you sat on one of the cushioned chairs near the lounging area. rafe grabbed his cooler, deciding to entertain your antics since all you two had was time. “mmm, i don’t know about that. apart of me thinks you like arguing with me. i know i do.” you scoffed, a bittersweet smile gracing your lips.

“yeah? i bet. female attention seems to be something you lack.” rafe laughed, taking a seat next to you. “oh, i can guarantee you that’s not the case.” he scooted closer, unscrewing the cap from his beer. yeah, right. you knew all about rafe’s inability to hold onto a relationship, rumors of his emotional unavailability spreading around the island like wildfire. “no? i’m sorry, i just assumed since, you know.. you’re a full time asshole.” rafe put his beer down, his adam’s apple bobbing in his throat as he swallowed thickly. “only with you, i am.”

you laughed, finally meeting his gaze. he was a lot closer than you thought, his cologne filling your senses as your eyes flickered down to his lips for a second. “so i’m special then?” you had a faux innocent look in your eyes as you blinked up at him, the sight making his jaw clench. “no,” he smiled, leaning in, “but i can be nice. i can be real nice.” the insinuation made your cheeks heat as his face was just mere inches away from your own. tilting your head, you flashed him a sweet smile before shoving him in the chest.

“that’s never going to happen.” rafe acted like you didn’t have any effect on him, but inside? he was fighting every urge to pick you up and take you back to tanneyhill. he couldn’t help but feel like he knew you more than you let on, your demeanor reminding him of a certain someone. “can i ask why?” he watched as you grabbed his beer, your lipgloss smudging around the rim as you took a swig. “why i don’t like you, or why i won’t let you fuck me?” rafe leaned back in his chair, his thighs spreading as he crossed his arms over his chest.

well you definitely had a way with words..

rafe took the time to get a really good look at you. he had a feeling about you that he couldn’t quite put his finger on, the familiarity driving him crazy. he was determined to figure you out. “both.” he answered, taking his beer back from you. slipping your heels off, you brought your feet up and got comfortable in your spot next to rafe. “well i only realized i didn’t like you when i found out you had been talking about me first. so, really, i should be asking you why you don’t like me.”

rafe blinked. all this time he thought that you felt the way you did just because. “how come you never asked me then?” you stayed silent for a few moments before shrugging. “everyone has always made their assumptions about me. about my parents, about my life.. but no one really knows me, or what really goes on in my home. i just let people think whatever they want.” rafe’s eyebrows knitted together in confusion. “what do you mean?” at his words, you realized you may have said too much.

putting your defense back up, you backed away from him slightly before you scoffed. “you’re the last person i’d ever confide in, rafe.” the man next to you immediately recognized what you did, having veered away from being vulnerable a countless amount of times himself. rafe couldn’t help but keep digging. “let’s go tit for tat, then. you tell me something, anything you want, and i’ll say something in return. ‘that way it’s an even exchange.” apart of you hated him for making this so easy.

“i’m not doing that with you.” your voice sounded different. it lacked that usual bite and now rafe felt bad for opening his mouth in the first place. before the awkward tension could settle over you two again, you got up with your phone in your hand. “where are you going?” rafe watched as you slid the door open to the cabin area. “inside. i need to make a phone call.” you lied, walking past chanel and topper who were aggressively making out on the couch in the corner.

locking the small bathroom door behind you, you sighed, taking a moment to let go of a breath you didn’t know you were holding. what even was that out there? unlocking your phone, you sent chanel a text that you wanted to leave even though the chances of her seeing it was extremely slim. you stalled, deciding to freshen up your makeup as you waited for this so-called ‘date’ to end already. you were reapplying your lip gloss when your phone went off, making you mutter a ‘thank god’. instead of the notification being a message back from your best friend who was currently getting her face sucked off, it was from tumblr instead.

[9:14 PM] countryclub: what are you doing right now? i could use someone to talk to rn ngl

you looked up from your screen and stared into your reflection. this message came at just the right time.

[9:15 PM] brattydiaries: that makes two of us. i’m not with the sweet talk rn though, but i could use a distraction right now for sure..

[9:16 PM] countryclub: define ‘sweet talk’ cause i had every intention of asking you for some sexy pics and maybe a phone call if you’re down with that?

you refrained from laughing at his text, his bluntness throwing you for a loop. you couldn’t deny the giddy feeling you had in your tummy when you thought about hearing his voice. biting your lip nervously, you pulled the neckline of your dress down, exposing the lace of your bra before snapping a few pictures.

[9:19 PM] brattydiaries: 3 attachments

[9:20 PM] brattydiaries: here’s the first half of your request. make me wet and just maybe i’ll accept the call..

rafe was outside on the deck looking over his shoulder every two seconds to make sure you weren’t coming back in time to see the explicit photos currently illuminating his screen. he cursed under his breath, his eyes raking over the soft swells of your breasts. you were so fucking perfect, he couldn’t believe you were so close yet so far.

[9:22 PM] countryclub: fuckk you’re unreal.

[9:22 PM] countryclub: i hate that i’m wrapped up with something right now, otherwise i’d be sending you paragraphs about how pretty your tits look for me.

you sighed in defeat, making a mental note to send him a text once you were finally in the comfort of your own bed. with you still in the bathroom, rafe took his time examining the photos, his eyes widening slightly as he zoomed in on the dainty diamond pendant of your necklace, the background looking like something he has seen before.

[9:25 PM] brattydiaries: aww, too bad.

just then, chanel knocked on the bathroom door, her hair looking slightly out of place once you opened it. “i just saw your text. you ready to go?” you nodded, adjusting your dress before stepping out. “sorry to cock block you, i just had a really weird moment with rafe.” you explained, tossing your phone back in your purse. chanel waved you off before interlocking her arm with yours. “don’t even worry about it, we’re going back to his place, anyways.” she reassured you.

topper was already outside on the deck once you two made your way out of the cabin. glancing at rafe, you quickly looked away once you saw that he was already staring at you. “well, thanks for letting us use the druthers.” chanel smiled, in which rafe just shook his head. “ah, don’t even worry about it,” he held your stare, “..i had a good time.” blinking away from him, rafe’s eyes caught onto your cleavage once again, except this time; a sparkle from right above your neckline took him out of his reverie.

that necklace..

before he could piece anything together, you were moving with chanel, not sparing rafe another look as you were getting back onto the dock. the car ride back to your place was deadly silent. all except for the music topper had playing in the background. by the time you had gotten home and showered, you felt your world come to a stand still when your phone started ringing, an unsaved number with kildare island’s area code showing up at the top.

accepting the call, you held up the receiver to your ear with a shaky hand before speaking.

“hello?”

“..you sound pretty.”

taglist: @meallan01 @sf1738 @emeloyy @hmmshhhh @chelzaa @starkeycore @liyah4evaaaa @hnybitches @urbimom @kittenjujusblog @femaholicc @lil-sparklqueen @yktayy9669 @matthewswifeyy @icaqttt @jjasmiineee @lilithblackkk @rafecameronswhoore @rafesgreasycurtainbangs @ditzyzombiesblog @i-love-gvf @blondrafe @wolf-2005 @brianquinnlvr @lightbluebaby @jkrafe @lovemaybankk @xcinnamonmalfoyx @drewstarkeysbabe @issues4him @dahliaparton @slut-4-gojo @luvagirlsworld @nemesyaaa @jwdiaries @midsoulz @drewstarkeyzwhore @urmotherlvr @chillgal135 @wtfisastiles @dollyfiles @annaconscience @rafesluvr @locallyhateddoll @acidfeens @cherubfille @whathechickenstrip @my-name-is-baby @wtfdudesblog @atjlovverr

[starmocha]

So the preview of the new theme song uses imagery of the guys' myths, including Sylus'. Rafayel, Xavier, and Zayne, I think we are all fairly familiar with, but since Sylus is not released yet, there are a lot of speculations about what kind of tragic past he and MC shared. Let's try to break it down. Or make it more confusing. 🫠

Interestingly, before the "tragedy" we see their wrists are bounded together by a red thread.....perhaps....the Red Thread of Fate? As the saying goes, rough paraphrasing on my part: Two lovers, regardless of time, place, and circumstances, are destined to be together, connected by a single red thread. The red thread may twist and tangle, but it may never break.

However, as we can see in the video, Sylus and MC's thread does break, and unlike in the traditional belief, their thread is wrapped around their wrists and not fingers. As the thread breaks, we also see Sylus behind bars. Imprisonment? A crime?

Speaking of wrists, another thing I've noticed with Sylus' trailers is that it involves handcuffs a lot, which seems more significant now in light of this preview.

Especially since we see him also breaking them so easily.

I kind of made a passing joke in the tags of a previous post that Sylus' upcoming chapters carry shades of the Greek myth with Hades and Persephone, but perhaps I may not be too far off?

Just take a look at this wide view of the scene of Sylus and MC separated:

The N109 Zone is shown during the night with a bright red moon, giving a feeling reminiscent of the Underworld ruled by Hades. Note how it looks like Sylus is behind bars, a prison, if you will. In Greek mythology, Hades was tasked with ruling the Underworld, not by his choice, but the wills of others (so in a sense: trapped). Could this mean that perhaps Sylus has no desire to be the leader of Onychinus? Could he be bounded there against his will?

Meanwhile, MC is shown on the side of light. If we compare her to Persephone, she is on the surface world with other people. But from the preview, it looks like she is abducted and taken to the N109 Zone, much like Persephone was abducted and taken to the Underworld to be Hades' bride.

(Brief unserious interlude, because I want to spread my Hades/Persephone agenda:

Sylus is the Hades to MC's Persephone

The dark to her light

He is feared by everyone except her.

He'll let her get away with everything (covering him in silly band-aids, poking him in the side) because he adores her.

If anything happens to her, the world will feel his wrath.

He embodies the feeling of "if anything happens to her, I will kill everyone in this room and then myself."

In short, scary leader is big softie for his wifey and I am willing to die on this hill

OK. End interlude.)

Also, um... 😭

Bringing up the theory that Sylus is trapped? The Beast is trapped in the castle because of the curse by an enchantress. I seriously couldn't get this comparison out of my mind when I saw the dancing scene in the trailer, so it feels appropriate to bring it up here.

Perhaps like the Beast initially, Sylus does display a very dominating and aggressive temperament, but then in his 5* memory, Captivating Flavor, he seems more approachable, so perhaps we will soften him over time?

Now...since Infold had the audacity to drop that trailer while I was writing this, here is another example of them going with the trapped/caged/bounded theory (there is also an image of a bear trap earlier, but I'm at my 10-pic limit, so the cage seems more obvious (and aesthetically pleasing lol)

So could Sylus be trapped in the same way as the Foreseer is trapped within the Tower? But unlike the Foreseer, Sylus is always trying to break free from his chains. Circling back to his myth, could it be that his tie with MC was broken...by him? Perhaps out of a sense of protection? For her sake?

In Beauty and the Beast, the Beast was willing to let Belle go, to be killed by Gaston, to succumb to the curse, all for the sake of Belle's happiness and freedom.

In the myth of Hades and Persephone, Persephone was allowed to leave the Underworld to return to her mother for half a year, but since she ate a few pomegranate seeds, food from the Underworld, she was also bounded to return to the Underworld for the other half to be with her husband. Each year, the cycle returns. Come spring, Hades must let his beloved wife leave him for half a year, and there's nothing he can do to change it.

Bonus Greek myth tidbit: the crow plays a significant part in a myth involving the sun god Apollo, where it acts as a messenger for him. The crow, once white, was burned and turned black, as retribution for telling the truth (revealing an affair) that led to Apollo killing his lover.

So, let's recap real quick the symbolism we have seen. 🤔

Handcuffs: bounded

Bars: imprisonment

Bear trap (couldn't include the pic, but it's there, trust me): caught, trapped

Birdcage: trapped, caged

The crow: a messenger; punished for revealing the truth (so, punishment)

So, gathering my random little thoughts...

Theory 1: Sylus and MC must have been destined lovers in a past life, but due to whatever conflict, Sylus decided to break his bond with her for her protection and accept any punishment that comes with it, which could mean to be ruler of a place he has no desire for, an imprisonment of sort.

Theory 2: Destined lovers, but perhaps a third party interfered out of jealousy or spite. Could Sylus have been caught and framed of a crime and been literally imprisoned, thus forcing him and MC to separate?

Something to this effect, I think, from working with the crumbs I've gathered. It's also almost midnight as of the time of writing this, so my brain is feeling loopy now (also no thanks to that Sylus trailer that popped up while I was writing this 💀)

Anyhoo, make of all of this as you will. My Hades/Persephone agenda will persist.

[delphi-shield]

classified intel // jill valentine

Jill x GN!Reader Fluff wc: 1,543 read on ao3 suggestive themes bc reader sends jill a tasteful nude, reader implied to be civilian, post-di!Jill.

this almost turned into angst, but i excised the sad parts and it turned into another wip. tbh i should be prepping for my tabletop tomorrow but i miss my wife.

Jill's on a work trip, but that's never stopped you from texting her before and it sure as hell's not going to stop you now.

also known as:

i am ruminating on a relationship with jill once more. 😔

Technically speaking, your relationship isn’t long distance.

Just because Jill spent a large portion of her time overseas, god-knows-where, doing god-knows-what, did not mean that you were long distance. Yeah, maybe you do have to schedule calls, fighting timezones and your responsibilities to carve out a measly half hour with each other. That doesn’t qualify, technically, as long distance. You tell this to your friends over and over again. Still, they roll their eyes, hum their doubt, and insist that you may as well be long distance.

Their point remains. You and Jill are apart far more than either of you would like. She’s a busy woman by her own design. Her drive had been something that you had admired about her, even if it was the very same thing that kept her from you. You hadn’t entered this relationship blind to the fact that she would be gone sometimes. You had learned to be okay with it, learned to handle the distance that was often double-edged. 

Texting was usually infrequent when she was away. Her personal cell phone was usually left behind when she went out for assignments - and if she did have it, it was turned off and shoved to the bottom of her pack. You texted her throughout the day, leaving behind a collection of your thoughts for her to come back to. She had taken to responding in one text, a bullet-point list to catch up on everything that she had missed.

 Once, you had gotten anxious about bothering her, about the egregious amount of notifications she would be flooded with when she finally turned her phone back on. You had sent her just one text, telling her to be safe, that you loved her. She had called you the moment she had service, demanding to know what was wrong. Thought something happened to you, I don’t know, she had grumbled, dismissing her paranoia easily over the phone. You had let it go unchallenged, quietly returning to your text spam. The next time she had a chance to talk to you, she had saved her bullet-points for a phone call.

The last time you had heard from her, her plane had landed safely. Her day was going to be packed with intelligence meetings - not really the kind of thing she could be on her phone during. You’ve just gotten home from work when your phone chimes. You take your time checking it, not expecting your girlfriend to be able to chat. She was at least three hours behind you, still in the middle of her work day.

It's a pleasant surprise to see a text from her. Instead of her usual bullet-point reply, she had sent an unflattering picture of a pitbull. Jill’s arm came in from the side of the frame, her hand blurred in the motion of a head pat. The text accompanying it simply read:

5:12 PM: PB&J.

Before you could even ask what that was supposed to mean, Jill sent a second text.

5:29 PM: His name is PB&J.

You grin at your phone, sending her an array of emojis to show how cute that is. You flop back onto your bed, your phone held over your face.

5:31 PM: can you call? just got home lol

5:35 PM: Sorry. Waiting for my next meeting to start.

Shit. You push down your disappointment and look for the silver-lining. At least you could text her for a little bit before she got wrapped up in work again. The dishes in the sink were forgotten in favor of the back and forth between you and Jill. It was hardly the most thrilling conversation. You exchanged the daily monotonies with each other - what sort of coffee she had that morning, how terrible traffic had been for you on your way home, your coat forgotten over the back of your chair at work and Jill’s pen borrowed from an embassy, blue ink, ballpoint and scratchy. It’s easier to superimpose the memory of her alongside you when you have the little details to work with, when you can fill in the gaps in your imagination with the particulars.

Naturally, this devolved into teasing.

5:47 PM: what are you wearing?

5:47 PM: That’s classified.

5:48 PM: tank top and jeans again, huh was kind of hoping for a pantsuit 👀 i know u packed that navy one send pics

You scrolled through your photos, searching for a set of pictures you had taken a few nights ago. If you were going to ask for pics, it was only fair that you send one in return. You had taken them early in the week, consumed by a swell of confidence that had been flushed away the moment you had to scroll through them. You had scrutinized every angle, pinpointed every flaw, every way the light played off of your skin. Your motivation to send them had dwindled quickly. They were filed away into a password protected album, a break in case of emergency stash of photos that may never see the light of day.

Rip the band-aid off, you tell yourself. Send it before you can second guess yourself. You pick your favorite photo, your thumb hesitating over the send button for a fraction of a second before you decide fuck it. She’ll like it. Hopefully.

You drop your phone facedown onto your chest so you don’t stare anxiously at the conversation. It takes all of ten seconds for it to chime again.

5:55 PM: You know the BSAA monitors my texts, right?

Your heart lurches. No way. No fucking way. She’s got to be bluffing. The idea of Jill’s colleague scrolling through your messages with her was mortifying. It wasn’t like this was the first time you had sent her pictures like that. Even if you hadn’t sent those, there were still plenty of texts that you didn’t need anyone else seeing.

She’s bluffing. Has to be.

5:57 PM: bullshit lol 5:57 PM: very funny 6:13 PM: youre not serious right 6:14 PM: ?? 6:14 PM: jill pls 6:24 PM: omg ur not joking are you

Logically, you knew that Jill’s meeting had started. That was why she wasn’t responding. You knew there was no way the BSAA monitored her personal communication 24/7, and you knew that if they did she would have told you about it the first time you had sent her a picture like that, not the hundredth. However, you also knew that she loved keeping you in suspense. No matter what she said to the contrary, you knew that Jill loved to watch you squirm. She found it cute, or so she had confided in you one night, half-asleep and tangled in your sheets.

It took a full hour later for Jill to get back to you. During the course of that hour, you damn near paced a track around your bedroom and filled your google search history with plenty of things to ruin your targeted advertising. Choice examples include ‘employee handbook bsaa north america’ and ‘bsaa employee phone policy’. 

Your phone doesn’t even finish the first ring. You see Jill’s name flash on screen, and you’ve already got your phone up to your ear.

“Please tell me you’re joking,” you blurt out, your thumb wedged between your teeth.

Jill blurts out a confused what, her voice wobbling with a laugh. It clicks for her a moment later.

“Oh - the ‘monitoring my texts’ thing?” She says, voice lighting with amusement. “Yeah, no. They don’t do that. You look good, though. Did I buy that?”

You let out a relieved groan. “You are such an asshole,” you huff. “I was worried the entire United Nations had just seen my ass.”

“Oh, c’mon. I would have told you not to send stuff like that if they were pulling my texts.” You can’t argue with that. She may have liked to see you squirm, but she was well aware of your boundaries.

“Got any other angles? I remember that outfit having more straps.”

You snort. “Maybe. Gonna need some reciprocation first, though.”

You hear Jill hum over the phone. A door opens in the background, a deep voice drifting over the phone, indecipherable. Jill pauses, listening.

“I’ll see what I can do. Gotta go.”

You hurry to say goodbye, squeezing a quick love you in before the call cut off.

The quiet creeps back into your apartment. You’re left staring at Jill’s contact photo. You tap it to view it in full. Jill’s arm wrapped around your shoulders, your head thrown back in a laugh. You were cuddled up on the porch swing of a bed & breakfast, an impromptu weekend trip Jill had taken you on a month ago. You had cropped the photo, centering it on Jill - on the way she looked at you and smiled, her eyes soft in a way that you had never seen before.

Your phone buzzed, and you nearly swiped the notification away out of habit. You caught yourself just in time, catching Jill’s name.

8:53 PM: 1 attachment

Your eyes scoured the picture, grin crinkling the corners of your eyes. Goddamn - you knew she had packed that pantsuit. You’re typing a reply when she sends another text.

8:54 PM: Do not say awooga.

You delete your draft and think of a different way to express your appreciation.

[funishment-time]

🔵 Kodaka BlueSky Q&As: Game Development & Sequels

⚠️ DISCLAIMER: Please be advised! Translations of all Japanese answers derive from a combination of Google Translate and my manager's three-quarters-remembered Japanese. We've tried our best to work out what he's saying, but there will be mistakes here and there. Do not take this as gospel!

To avoid spreading too much misinfo, where we're completely boggled about an answer, we've decided not to even make an attempt. We'll still list the post, but mark it accordingly.

💕 FEBRUARY 2024:

Q: How is the progress of the new work?

A: The game is progressing at a rapid pace with the death march. But it is a death march.

NOTE: From the date of posting, we can assume the above refers to The Hundred Line, which was not fully announced until June 2024. However, that's just an assumption.

/////

Q: How do the death games you have released so far get through the ratings system?

A: I try to recognize and avoid expressions that are not appropriate to use.

/////

Q: i have a question! will there be more raincode games?

A: I would like to.

/////

Q: What is the likelihood that you will really create an online killer training game that both adults and children will enjoy?

A: 0% which is as close to 100% as possible.

NOTE: Likely the above refers to a game idea Kodaka had where you train someone into becoming a serial killer.

/////

Q: Are there plans to make a sequel to Rain Code?

A: I'd love to do that...! Please support me...!

/////

Q: Are there plans for a new Danganronpa release? I've loved it for a long time❗️♡

A: Thank you very much! Plans…? Thank you very much!

NOTE: Please take this with a grain of salt, but Kodaka's use of 予定, yotei, for "plans," is interesting here. My manager tells me that if someone says yotei they intend to do something and/or are actively working on pulling it together. If our understanding is correct, this could mean...well, a lot of different things, but does tell us at the very least he wants to do more Danganronpa.

/////

Q: It would be interesting to see a battle game using characters from Danganronpa or Rain Code, but will there be any games in the future that use characters from Danganronpa or Rain Code in genres other than mystery games?

A: I'd like to try it, but there doesn't seem to be a demand for it...

/////

Q: If it's OK to ask a second question, I'd like to hear about the stories behind the casting of each cast member in Danganronpa and Rain Code.

A: Generally, we choose from the sound company's selection or candidates, but on rare occasions we specify the cast. For almost all roles in Rain Code, we held auditions and selected the cast.

/////

Q: When playing the Danganronpa series and Rain Code, I feel like there is a lot of impressive music, but what kind of image did you have in mind when ordering the music? Also, do the impressions of the finished music ever have an influence on the game's production? I'd love to know if you don't mind!

A: I just roughly present the direction and leave it up to Takada. I've liked Takada ever since he was making songs with Grasshopper, so I don't reject any of his songs. Although I might use them in a different way.

NOTE: Masafumi Takada's behind all the bomb-ass music in DR and Rain Code.

/////

Q: Is there a possibility of a sequel to Akudama Drive?

A: I think there is! If you haven't already watched it, please do!

/////

Q: Is there a follow-up story to Danganronpa v3? Also, is v3 the end of the Danganronpa series?

A: I'll do a crowdfunding campaign to motivate myself…Just to motivate. The reward is to make a sequel. lol

/////

Q: May I please ask again? 🙏 Are you working on any unannounced projects? Or what project or projects should your fans be most excited for? I am a big fan of yours, and I want to thank you on behalf of all your fans for all the creative works you and your friends have brought into the world! 🌎 🗺

A: We are working on all kinds of works at the same time. First of all, a collaborative work by kodaka and Uchikoshi will be unveiled soon.

NOTE: Again, from the date of posting and the reference to Uchikoshi, we can assume the above refers to The Hundred Line, which was not fully announced until June 2024.

🍀 MARCH 2024:

Q: What are your plans for the future of Danganronpa? Something I’ve been wanting to ask in particular is if there were any ideas for possibly rantaros game or maybe a v3 animation? :3

A: I don't know what will happen to Danganronpa since Spike Chunsoft has the rights to it. But personally, I would like to make it someday.

/////

Q: Would you like to see your games in more languages? Along with English, Rain Code was released in French, Italian, German and Spanish. I'm Brazilian and I'd really like to see your games in Portuguese! Maybe even with voices in Portuguese, too...

A: I want to translate as many languages as possible in the game. And I want to visit many countries.

🥬 APRIL 2024:

n/a

🌺 MAY 2024:

n/a

☀️ JUNE 2024:

Q: Did you have any difficulties with CERO while creating Dangaronpa and Raincode?

A: V3 was canceled in South Korea right before its release, and when we tried to do a parody of Jibanyan with Jibakuma, the company stopped us.

NOTE: Jibanyan is a character from Yo-Kai Watch. CERO is the organization that applies age ratings to games etc in Japan.

🎇 JULY 2024:

Q: will a character introduction trailer be released soon for last defence academy? Also, can you tell a little about Suminos personality (not spoilers ofc)? 🙈

A: Wait a little longer! They are all wonderful characters!

/////

Q: Mr. Kodaka, do you have a policy when deciding on character names? What I think is amazing about Danganronpa is that you take impossible surnames in real life, like Fukawa and Pekoyama, and mix them with common words like river and mountain to make them less incongruous, so I'd like to know if you have any other policies when deciding on names.

A: We put a lot of importance on the sound and the appearance of the names. But we changed them a few times along the way. We can't know the balance between normal-sounding names and strange names until all the names are finalized.

🌭 AUG 2024:

n/a

🍁 SEPT 2024:

n/a

🎃 OCT 2024:

Q: If we have a chance to release a game to celebrate the anniversary of Danganronpa in the future, could we hold an event where fans can submit their own character designs, and then officially select the best characters from the submissions to participate in the game as a way to give back to the fans?

A: Is it possible to move characters created by other people?

/////

Q: How involved were you and the rest of TooKyo Games in Tribe Nine? Did you write any of the stories or handled any of the directions? Or was it limited to worldbuiding and designs?

A: I do not write the story. We do the character design and music.

/////

Q: You said before that The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy will be TooKyo Games' last game. Is this true? Is it also your and/or Uchikoshi's last game? We, your fans, love TooKyo Games and all of the projects that have come out of the company ❤️ We want you guys to be able to make more cool stuff!

A: [Written in both English and Japanese:] In the meantime, please buy it. It is absolutely a masterpiece.

🦃 NOV 2024:

Q: IS this arts related to The hundred line?

A: Since then, it has been rebuilt and is no longer relevant.

[The art in question:]

/////

Q: Regarding Final Defense Academy, how involved is Mr. Uchikoshi in character design and settings?

A: I made it while consulting with others.

NOTE: Presumably the "others" here = Uchikoshi and "it" = the design/setting.

🎄 DEC 2024:

Q: How did you come up with the plot for Rain Code? 🌧 I've seen some people reference a similar plot twist from Xenogears. Was Xenogears, the Xenosaga, or the Xeno franchise an influence on the story of Rain Code?

A: Actually, I have never played it. When I was writing the scenario, the staff pointed out that there was a slightly similar development, and I looked into it, but since it was not exactly the same development, I decided not to fix it as it was.

[n0tamused]

✮⋆˙World of Maii'ard

Hello! I recently did post about wanting to make my own original word and expressd some doubts about doing so, but thanks to some encouragement (and scolding from a friend/pos) I decided to give it a go, even if it doesn't end up going anywhere. But I have to admit that it was way more fun than I would have thought! I was in fandoms and creating for fandoms so long and tied myself to only that canon, that I forgot how it delt to make something for just myself. But I'll not yap for much longer.

I want to introduce you to the first three characters I created! Although there are many more that I have, and that I want to draw, but the story of these three has grown very close to me and I just had to draw them first.

First character I want to introduce is - Izarra Mayfindel Kalint'ara, an elf King in the North.

After the Year of Woe, he found what survivors of his kin there were and led them to the safety of the Mountains in the North. Although it was far from home and full of the unknown, he rallied his people and made it all work out - and for his efforts and good deeds he was crowned as their King.

I really am so proud of the embroidery I did on his outifts, I was just sort of winging it and hoped for the best. And it turned out really good!

Next up, we have Nurul Layla (not the real name, also it is subject to change too)

Believed to be half elf by outsiders, she is the legend of the Northern Kingdom held by Izarra. The stories told by the Va'banova (Kingdom of Men located to the southeast of the continent) speak of the maiden that swallowed the star and fell into deep slumber when she reached North, whose soul now travels across the mountains. But her tale has been told my many generations and changed even more times than that. To carry the Zvyezda is no easy feat and the North offered her shelter against those that wish to misuse it.

Some of you may remember Elinsaer, my LOTR sona, and my HSR sona Jien, well this is her just in this universe lol. I love my sona too much to not include her in this world as well. And tbh she gives me comfort writing all the lore. She is not the main protagonist of the overall story, but nonetheless she does play a big role anyhow. I love her <3

And last but not least! Isto'nad!

Isto'nad, they call him, but he was known as the Breakspear during the old years before the Year of Woe. He served dutifully as the knight of a lesser noble house in the South (of the continent of Heart of the World), before advancing in ranks to the Court of Geregheid. But his story is lost after the disasters hit, and he only resurfaced years later in the Northern Kingdom.

He is so precious to me, I can't explain to y'all. I'm still on the lookout for a better name for him, Isto'nad is his last name and I really love the meaning behind it. I combined two words of my language meaning 'east' and 'hope' and mashed them together to have somthing that sounds like a name hehe

I'm still working out the details of all of them here, but they do have connections to one another. Also, intentionally or not, but I love that their dynamics correspond to the sun-moon-star thing. <3 (so tempted to make Isto'nad and Nurul/Jien romantic AAAAAA)(they're comforting to me ok?)

I already have some sweet sketches of them that aren't so platonic lmao. But in their story I'm not sure how they'll go just yet. But they're there and they make me happy

Also here's some sketches I did of all their faces, as I'm trying to escape the same face syndrome and also draw them more accurately as well.

Again, not finished, but it's close!

I have so much more worked out in my world that I hope to share with you all, but I don't want to make this post too long, so expect me to make more posts in the future as I work out more details <3

Let me know what you think.

So many thanks to @eebeewrites for both the encouraging words and the useful tips for writing, I'm so grateful pookie <3 thank youuuu <33

Ⓒ n0tamused/jarttavia_. Do not repost, translate, edit, and/or copy any of my works. Likes, comments, and reblogs are appreciated.

[curio-queries]

SMERALDO GARDEN MARCHING BAND

My thoughts prior to the release of MUSE. I've avoided pretty much all reactions and analysis posts until I finished this so I have no clue if anyone else has come up with better words to describe some of these concepts but here's my take on it. I wanted to get this out prior to MUSE so that I can see how my view evolves with further context but here's where I am now.

Initial Reaction:

I'd actually had a few issues that night so I wasn't in the best headspace to take in a new song but I did listen to it on Spotify first and then watched the mv twice, once without subs and once with. (And yes, I know it's technically not called an mv...deal with it lol)

Anyways, I definitely wasn't immediately sold on it - which is expected from me, it's EXCEEDINGLY rare that I like any song on first listen but SGMB only took a couple of runthroughs before I was on board. One thing that helped me reframe it in my mind and with my previous expectations is to remember the first part of Jimin's self-proclaimed attributes: Cutie, sexy, lovely. SGMB leans very solidly into the cutie aspect, a little near the lovely side but far deeper into Cutie than anything we've seen in his solo releases. (RememberCute was an answer in the seossword puzzle). That got me thinking about where the rest of his songs would be in comparison and here's the placement I've landed on. Some of these have changed over the past few days but I'm curious where y'all disagree with my placements.

Good old Serendipity, a perfect balance of the three in my opinion. All of FACE is firmly in the Sexy section with Like Crazy leaning more evenly into Lovely. Lie is also right there with LC but more closely on the border. My beloved Promise and Letter holding down the Lovely section with CTT straying closer to Cutie. If you forgot about the cutie circle though, SGMB would have seems like it was complete out of the expected range. I am curious if we'll ever get something that's a mix of cutie and sexy, I can't comprehend what that would be like but I wouldn't put it past our JM to find a way!

Theories?

So, how do I think I did with all of my theories? Let's go through them one by one:

Open Locker Meaning: nothing to prove/disprove this yet. There were an awful lot of references to Serendipity in the mv though, so maybe that's the tie-in? I don't know, this one was a streeeeeetch in any case.

Sound Effects Interlude: we know we're getting an interlude but we'll have to wait for MUSE and any behind info to learn if it's sound effects that Jimin recorded himself like Dive.

Rooms Going from Dark to Light: Yes! I mean we knew it was going to be a lighter album than FACE but I think the word BRIGHT is all over SGMB. And I think this technique in both of those videos was trying to highlight that for us.

SGMB as an Actual Band: Yes! Definitely right here too! I'm going to talk about this more below because I think this is actually a very important part of this song.

The Emoji Poll from the Insta Chat: Yes! I think some people are still trying to make the argument that each option is supposed to represent different songs on muse. And while the others may lean more into any of these specifically, SGMB definitely has elements of all of them as well

An Actual Band?

So, like I mentioned in the theory above, I had the thought that SGMB could be portrayed as a fictional band itself, very similar to what MCR did with the Black Parade. And since Jimin decided to use this as the song's title; as well as make it the pre-release track, I think this is an important topic to delve into.

First, this allows Jimin a perspective shift to share with us his career outside the lens of BTS. Not because he NEEDS or WANTS to separate himself from them but he has had his own journey as an artist that may differ from his experiences from the perspective of a BTS member. Obviously BTS is completely woven through this journey and he gives us an acknowledgement of that with the line about 12 June and the handsign.

(Sidenote, whenever I see any of them do that now, I instantly think of that moment in Jimin's pixid ep where he said they don't anymore...I think we may have been misled...) 😝

Second, the frame of SGMB from a band's perspective also puts the song firmly in the categorization of 'work' rather than 'personal'. With FACE being such a deeply personal projectregarding his very deep human experiences, i love that he'svery upfront with us about MUSE being a work project. I've said this before, and it's one of my absolute favorite things about Jimin's music: he crafts it so that we can easily adapt it to our own interpretations. There's a lot of loving and beautiful imagery in the lines of this song that can have special meaning in all levels of relationships; platonic or not. But his delivery if this message to us, is professional. This is reinforced by the suits Jimin has worn in all of the material released so far. He's following a work dress code. (If you happen to see this post within a week of release, we have a poll regarding Jimin's suits on @bts-polls )

ME + US = MUSE

I just want to touch on this briefly here as I expect there'll be more once the album releases but there are some hints already. Like I discussed in my FACE post, Jimin has again come up with some key words to weave through the project. In FACE, it was several sentences but MUSE seems to be focusing on the following:

ME: Jimin himself

US: Jimin's view on his audience

MUSE: His awareness of us and how that effects his creations and manner of artistry.

SGMB and CTT are both bursting with these references and viewpoints. But I honestly don't think of SGMB as a traditional 'fan song'. I have another post where I talk about the different kinds of fan songs. Like I said above, SGMB details Jimin's experience as an artist and how his audience plays into that process. Not like CTT that's literally a diary of our journey with him. Maybe an extremely nuanced take but SGMB just doesn't feel like it belongs in the same 'fan song' categorization that CTT does.

The End for Now

Does anyone know anything about that little hand-wave Jimin does during the bow at the end? He repeats it. Is just an additional flourish that he's added in himself? I've never seen anyone do that during bows after a performance so I'm wondering if it's a cultural/industry thing.

What do y'all think? I'd love to hear your thoughts! If any of you have made posts about SGMB, I'll try to read them now but rumblr is not very forgiving if you miss something in the timeline. I'm very happy for you to share links to your posts in the comments!

[anamoon63]

Hi guys, I am writing this in case anyone wonders why I have been kind of MIA lately. No, I haven't forgotten you, but I have had a difficult week, more than a difficult week, I have been through a real ordeal. Where or how it started it's a long story which I don't have the time or the energy to tell, so I'll just share a brief chronology of what happened during this past week.

Friday May 3 - I turned in my finished work and set out to do my sims posts, play and rest for the weekend since more work would be coming my way on Monday.

Saturday May 4 - My husband came down with the flu, I spent most of the day with him in the emergency room.

Sunday May 5 - I spent it taking care of my husband, who fortunately no longer had a fever. I barely slept two hours at night giving care and medication.

Monday 6 May - My birthday, we couldn't go out for dinner as usual, so we celebrated at home.

Tuesday, May 7 - My son comes down with the flu, too, another afternoon in the ER and sleepless night caring for him and bringing down his fever.

Wednesday, May 8 - My son starts to feel better, and begins to recover very quickly. I start working on the following translations, at the same time I take care of both my husband and my sick son, do food, laundry, order home medicines, and all kinds of small chores, including disinfecting things. It's like going back to 2020.

Thursday, May 9 - My husband no longer has a fever but does have a cough that won't go away and minor problems with his asthma.

Friday, May 10 - Mother's Day, my son was feeling fine, my husband still had a cough, and had a doctor's appointment at noon, when he returned, we celebrated at home just like on my birthday, I spent the rest of the day working, and juggling a thousand other things. In the evening my daughter started to feel sick, but still no fever.

Saturday, May 11 (yesterday) - My daughter woke up with a fever, another visit to the ER. She was prescribed flu medicine, painkillers and rest, and sent home.

And that's my odyssey so far. On top of it all, from Wednesday through Saturday we were in the middle of a heat wave with temperatures of 37ºC with real feel of up to 45ºC; at night we get a "cooler" temperature of 29ºC. So imagine a person with a fever of 38 ºC and with this heat, obviously it's not of much help.

Surprisingly, I haven't gotten sick so far, but I'm not claiming victory. I have been taking care of my family for a week, sleeping two or three hours a night, getting up at different times to check on them, or give them medicine. I don't have time for getting sick! Lol. Thankfully, everyone is better and last night for the first time in a week I was able to sleep straight through. Honestly, I don't need many hours of sleep, but I am routinely and usually I am in bed a 11 pm and up at 8 am every day, so all this did upset my sleep cycle a little bit.

Anyway, that is the reason why I wasn't here much, since the whole day I was too busy, and at night I was so tired all I wanted was to go to bed. I apologize if I've fallen behind on your updates, I'm not ignoring you in any way, I just didn't have the strength or the time, not even to play The Sims. If I did, it was just a little free play to distract myself.

Last week I told you that I was juggling a lot of things, well now I have even more things, lol, at times I feel really exhausted, and even a little cranky from lack of sleep, the first few days my feet and legs hurt so much from going back and forth, but I'm fine, healthy, and in good spirits. Today I believe, as never before, that the universe does not send you more than you can handle.

At this point my family is already in recovery, if I don't get sick too, it's likely by I'll be able to get back to my simming routine. Now, if I do get sick, I hope to recover as quickly as the others. Whatever happens, I'll be around. Know that, even if I don't comment, I read you, and I am with you, especially with those who are going through difficult times of any kind.

Ok, I said to myself this was going to be a short post, but I made a wall of text instead (for a change). My apologies if it's written in a sloppy or confusing way, I just wanted to write it quickly to let you know where I have been and what has been going on with me these days. I hope you are all well, please take care of yourselves, health is a treasure that can be lost at any moment, the flu is a nasty disease, we must never let our guard down and forget to take the necessary measures to prevent it.

Last, but not least, I want to thank all of you who have mentioned me, tagged me, sent me asks and/or stars to my inbox, commented and/or liked what few posts I could do these days, I appreciate it very much and I'll try to reply to you as soon as I can, though I've fallen so far behind that I don't know if I'll be able to find your mentions in my notifications. In any case, thank you very, very much to all of you for thinking about me in my absence. 💗 I'll see you soon, hopefully, with more sim adventures, stay tuned!

[shoukiko]

Hi, you can keep this unanswered and not post it, but I want to help you understand the thought behind some of the points in your criticism post. Before I start I want to apologise if I come off as blunt and rude, that's not my intention and I'll try my best to show my tone as unthreatening but I'm autistic and not a native English speaker, which complicates things lol

*general you used throughout the ask

First, I want to start with this: they all are part of the army. You don't need to dig much to see you'll rarely see a "morally upstanding" person in the army, be it because they're cheaters, abusers, compliant with all that or they're (insert -ist/-phobe category here). UK military spouses are 3 times more likely to experience intimate partner violence (IPV). I'm not saying the COD characters need to be written like that, but it wouldn't be "unrealistic" if we take real life statistics into account.

Second, and maybe the most important thing, everyone writes COD characters OOC. The majority of the active fandom on Tumblr and tiktok have seen gifs and 10min out of context clips from the game at best. It's to be expected to not frequently find something actually in character for a lot of the guys. Especially with characters that are just operators like König, Nikto and Krueger. In their case everything is and isn't OOC at the same time because we just... Don't know these characters. We lack characterisation past maybe 1-3 traits about them. I'd argue that's why the fandom liked König so much, other than being masked, he's the perfect paper doll! You can dress him up in whatever characterisation you want and it probably won't contradict his canon (because he barely has one and what he has is quickly misinterpreted (anxiety disorder turning into shyness for example)).

Now specifically on your "How are you going to hc a victim as the abuser?" - simple, whether you like to accept it or not is up to you, but it's not far fetched for victims to become abusers later in life. Just look at serial killers statistics - 74% of US serial killers were psychologically abused and 42% were physically abused as children and later in life followed a similar pattern brought to an extreme. Or on the other hand, a tamer example would be generational trauma because that's how we get that (grandparent was abused and because that's all they know, they implement it in bringing up their child who, for the same reason, implements it in bringing up the grandchild and so on).

The final thing I want to say is, it's good to block people who you don't vibe with. Doesn't matter if it's because they wrote something that personally disturbed you or you simply don't like their blog theme or you see them too often in the tag. Personally curating your experience is key in fandom, utilise the tools Tumblr has given us. Of course as you and others have mentioned that's impossible without some assistance from the other side. Tagging is extremely important (tagging with the correct words without censoring!!! Or the filter won't catch! Rape, noncon, incest ✅; r@pe, n*nc*n, 1nc*st ✖️✖️).

I hope this isn't too messy or long aaaa

I really appreciate you taking the time to type this up and actually speak to me about this, your input is very appreciated. /gen

I do think I could've done better on that post since I wrote it in the heat of the moment, all characters are written OOC and it was ignorant of me to say

"Maybe read the characters backstories and actually take their past into consideration because you guys kinda look dumb for making these characters so OOC."

I hope ya'll can really take the time to see my POV, I did not mean. any harm, I've come across some gross things, but blocking and filtering tags so much as begun to be tiring.

My main issue is tagging, without tagging I am left with getting triggered by random posts because the first few sentences may include something on my trigger list.

That's all I want and also what a lot of other people want.

Writing is meant for anyone and everyone, a form of art and perhaps a for of therapy.

Please tag your work, you are not the only person on the internet.

Thank you for reading!

[mercysought]

this is indulgent only because i have Thoughts myself lol, but what is anora's reaction to what goes down in redcliffe in inquisition, and is it any different from what we see in the game? does she blame fiona and the mages for alexius' presence? how does she feel about the inquisition coming there to clean up the mess?

unprompted asks my beloved . @skyheld

I am always so exhausted about how the games after Origins just have a way of making Ferelden and its government to come off as the most ignorant, uninterested and/or incompetent. It is one of the things about the games that I find myself constantly feeling just drained about.

You cannot tell me, for a single moment, that the same woman that would have at one point gone with Cailan to fight giants in the Ferelden wilderness by themselves would also be the same woman that would just be vibing. And, as far as I know, or at least without having to dive into codexes (which I don't find to be a good way of storytelling, but alas, time is limited and is focus, but still, a topic for another post) she only shows up when things are resolved. There is no attempt to really communicate with the Inquisition except from brief glimpses of dialogue that Josephine has. And honestly, honestly the Circles are and have always been mostly a Chantry concern.

The towers are spread across nation because while the Chantry was initially an Orlesian organization it is also the main religion practice in Ferelden (especially after being occupied for so long). But it is also that occupation and the ripples from the fifth blight that make me feel so frustrated if I think about this for longer than five minutes.

Here are some assumptions I'm making, for my own sanity:

Josephine and the Fereldan crown have reached an agreement to extend some authority of the Inquisition in Ferelden. They are to aid with the rogue templar and mages.

They are not to occupy forts without express consent from the crown.

They are not to enforce acts of violence against Ferelden and its people without express wishes from the crown.

Anora is too busy trying to keep track of the status of different breaches opening across Ferelden, that is the only reason why she has not reached out to negotiate or threaten Alexius

To loop back to one of the questions, she doesn't blame Fiona because Fiona is a Chantry concern. She is a Fereldan, sure, but she is a mage first. And unfortunately from a Chantry standpoint I think that logic remains even when the Circles are disbanded. For as long as Anora remembers she has never had to deal with mages directly without some involvement from the Chantry and Templars. Not that it's good, it's just the reality. So no, she would not blame Fiona. She would blame her own Fereldan soldiers and whoever was responsible for keeping Redcliff safe (whoever Bann was it, Eamon I guess?)

If nothing else, I can understand why she may not have raised the army towards Redcliff, it is a nuclear option however if a Tevinter mage is occupying a Fereldan's noble castle, then I think it should call for the very least for strained negotiations. And at worst a response in force.

Lastly, I imagine relief? If we follow the assumptions said above. If we don't and it's an Inquisition that has not attempted to reach out to the crown she will drill into them for thinking themselves lords of the place. She will thank them but also to be warned.

I don't think she would ever blame Fiona or the mages, they are homeless for all intents and purposes and it is a crisis for Ferelden as a whole where the Chantry seems to be doing fuck all except amass an army behind a "Herald of Andraste" as a way of fixing their shit. If nothing else, she sees the Inquisitor as an unwilling puppet, in the best case scenarios in the worst? She sees someone that she will eventually need to remind that borders of Ferelden and Orlais exist for a reason.

In any case, a strongly worded letter is sent to Orlais. Not to the Divine obviously, but to whoever is running the circus. And another to Tevinter to the Archon to get their fucking people in line.

[justsomerandomplanet]

pls bestow upon us ur gems of wisdom (ur take on jjk ending and such)

I'm gonna start this with an upfront statement since this will be a long post and i don't think anyone wants to read most of the things i will say/I do not want to be misunderstood;

I like the jjk ending enough that it satisfies me, but still leaves me feeling a bit disappointed. Overall, as a series, I rate it a 17 out of 20 Sukuna fingers.

That being said, jjk is an extremely important manga to me on a personal level that will probably be formative for me moving forward. Regardless of the (valid) critiques on jjk, everything I will be saying in this post will end up being subjective, personal opinions that may be a bit biased.

And to akutami, thank you for making this manga and all your hard work; I look forward to whatever they have planned next!

[ read more to hear my more rambly thoughts of the story now ]

I think the last five chapters or so of jjk could have benefited from being 2-3 chapters longer, simply because it feels like a lot was packed into them.

In fact, jjk would probably benefit from having roughly an added 20 chapters or so in total, sprinkled between different story arcs here and there to really explore the lore, plot, and characters more. However, in real time, that would mean an added half a year for the work to be ongoing (more or less), and the reality of the situation is that I simply don't think akutami has the desire to do that. I am not going to claim akutami doesn't like the story they made, but I do think the exertion of weekly manga has clearly taken a toll on them in some way.

Nevertheless, I actually really enjoyed where we ended. JJK was never about "everyone dies and it sucks, despair!!!". In comparison to other stories I've read, JJK has always felt hopeful. Of course, there are plot points I Wish was explored, like:

Megumi's Domain Expansion - Never got to see it fully realise. A shame, really, since it would show his growth as a character. I understand why this never really happened, but considering the level of build up we did have of his character...a shame!

Yuuji's Domain Expansion Name - Not important enough in the grand scheme of things, but it is kinda disappointing. However, leaving it unnamed suits him, a boy who had no specific CT initially with a nameless domain (as far as we know)

New Shadow School clan lore - Kinda have a gripe about this simply because we didn't explore this early on. A very vague thing to leave for the last few chapters

Sukuna's Afterlife - As an endpoint, I like it! However, because we didn't get a lot of exploration on the backstory of Sukuna, Uraume, and that woman (his mother?), it leaves a sense of confusion. I don't really need a whole backstory for Sukuna cause as a character, he can stand without it, but because we've never really seen their whole dynamics really explored, it leaves me feeling disappointed we know so little.

The state of jujutsu society - It's very vague in that we aren't really sure what's happening now. We already know the higher ups and those behind the large political plays are out of the picture, and it seems the three big clans are on the verge of collapse, but the characters seem to still be conducting themselves in the old system. It ended how I did want it, in that the entire old system of jujutsu society is dismantled (aka the old guys are dead lol), and yet its not explored enough for there to be a clear picture (how does the reformation look like? how do we build a system that prevents what happened? we're still using tengen's foundations, how are you sure it would be beneficial? etcetc).

Heian - this is just a me thing but PLEASEEE I NEED HEIAN ARC

I could list down more and more points here, that range from personal disappointments to actual parts that actively hindered the story, but I'm really not here to talk about that. I want to take this time to appreciate the parts I really like, namely gojo's end and yuuji's character.

I speak this genuinely, but Gojo's death and character as a whole is one of the things I have always found to be good and consistent in this entire series. That last conversation he had with Yuuji really clarified how I've always seen Gojo. He is a teacher.

What really always bothered me about the Gojo revival theories (as much as they were fun) always boiled down to one question: "Why?" In the grand narrative of it all, what purpose would Gojo have coming back really? As per the theory, he would lose his powers upon the revival, and then what? Lead the students?

I understand his dream was to reset jujutsu society, and for that, he became a teacher. But more than that, with that last conversation, it shows that gojo wanted his students to reach their full potential more than anything. The world revolved around Gojo Satoru's birth, and he wanted the world to break from that ("Haven't we had enough Gojo Satoru?"). He trusted in his students that they could do it, and that it was okay for him to let them do it on their own. The idea this is self hatred talking feels weird because to me, its a realisation that Gojo believes in reform without himself in the picture. That he doesn't need to be "The Strongest" for the sake of others, but for himself to be like the rest, Gojo Satoru.

A teacher doesn't need to be the lead, for the students to be dependent on them; a teacher is someone that shows the path to where their students can reach their potential, and it is for the student to grab onto it.

The fact that we saw the strongests, Gojo and Sukuna, go in the complete opposite directions of what was initially thought makes this feel even more good. Gojo, who had his youth taken away from him and was entitled "the strongest" by destiny, went south because he was satisfied with what was his life and the dreams he left behind for others to pick up; Sukuna, who lived by his own values in a life purely for hedonistic pleasure and isolation and defied his destiny as a twin, went north because he realised such a life was not the only way you could live in. It is the marks we leave behind that decide whether it is worth staying as who we were (south), or to change and find a new path (north).

As for Yuuji, I love that he's still just Yuuji. His conversation with Sukuna, his empathy towards Megumi, his philosophy about life and the value of life, I love Yuuji so much because he is a boy who was born out of an experiment, who was lonely in childhood save for a grandfather who was there to guide him, who was forced in a situation that was unforgiving and cruel, in a world that did not reward kindness, and yet still chose a path of mercy and understanding.

It's easy to like characters that go off the rails, that do things for the sake of pleasure for themselves, and its Very easy to think it's boring for a character to be kind. But knowing that even in the path of hopeless despair, Yuuji still chose kindness, because that was the way he saw the value of life. And it was a realistic kindness, understanding that total optimism is impossible but still wanting to choose the harder, more unforgiving path because it is kindness that made him who he was. I love that, so much.

I could go off more on other things, but these were mainly my thoughts of the JJK ending! The things I've said here may be a bit of an over analysis, and could be interpreted differently in a different lens, but what I wanted to get out of this is that I genuinely love JJK. With the way things ended, there could be a part two of JJK and I wouldn't be surprised at all, but with where things are at, I like it!

Anyway, sorry for the rambles on that, I just had many thoughts on it

[spectralsleuth]

Now that we're entering into 2024, I'm asking some artists and writers that I follow:

1) What is the one piece you're most proud of from this past year?

2) What are some pieces that you would have liked more people to see? If you can include links, I'd love to go check them out!

3) What were your top three favorite pieces (art, comics, fics, etc) that someone else has made this past year?

(As always, no pressure to respond! Feel free to just ignore, or let me know if you'd rather I not send you these kinds of asks in the future.)

This is such a sweet and fun ask!! Thanks so much! I enjoyed seeing other authors answering this it’s so hype to get it myself.

1. This is hard to answer, because this year I tried to do something different with every fic I posted. When I got a concept I very pointedly didn’t shy away from it because it seemed difficult, or I thought I might be bad at it, so there’s something that makes me proud with each one. IF I HAD TO CHOOSE THOUGH I’m going to cheat and pick two.

What it Will Be I’m proud of this because it fell out of me SO EASY. I felt like the process of writing it was a testament to how hard I’ve been working at improving all year, and it came together very quickly and very well. I’m also proud because I incorporated @heckitall ‘s comic page to base it off of, and I’d never tried writing fic for a visual media like that. It was super fun!

On the OTHER end of the spectrum is Case of the Hidden City vs Lou Jitsu because it is VERY technically and narratively complicated and is by far the most ambitious thing I’ve ever written. It’s very hard, but I am VERY proud because I haven’t QUIT it. It’s not complete yet, but it is a good amount of the way there and I’m excited to finish it. Probably once I’ve recovered from surgery lol.

2. This sounds insincere maybe, but I really am happy with the engagement I get on my fic. I really do write my fic for me, and while I love to make sure as many people who want to read it can find it, at the end of the day I don’t like assigning people homework! I went through my whole works list and scratched my head and really tried to think of there was anything I wanted to plug, and I don’t think there is!

I guess I’ll post my lowest viewed, my Swanatello fic! @tangledinink ‘s AU I’m sure everyone’s familiar with lol. I knew that one would be lower when I posted it, if only because it has prior required reading (Swanatello). But I wrote it mainly because the AU was starting to reach a critical point and I REALLY wanted to write fanfiction of how I fantasized an ending might be, so I could go back and read it for comfort. I love Odette and the lore Kayson made for his AU, so I’ll plug this only because I think some people may have missed it!

3. Three works!! JUST THREE?? AUGH.

little kid with a big death wish

By @remedyturtles ! This made me leak tears the whole way through, so huge CW’s obviously. Not only was it one of the best fics I’ve ever read, but I got the privilege of seeing how talented Rem is behind the scenes a little and saw how they write and work and I really want to emulate them going forward. One of many all timer fics for me, for sure, I’d love to read any original fiction they put out.

The Whispering Forest and Other Tales

By @sroloc--elbisivni and @kithnkin ! I love love LOVE the feudal Japan fusion, the research, and the perfect blend of Usagi Yojimbo’s universe with what the Riseverse would have been like in this era. Even the little segues into what they’re wearing and eating is endlessly fascinating to me. Every single character is written to be the best and most interesting version of that character I could imagine. Theres Leosagi, there’s a PB&J murder mystery, there’s spookiness- AND Raphael Hamato gets wifed up!! WHAT MORE COULD YOU WANT? I love people that write a fully fleshed story that could be a standalone universe, without losing ANY of the flavor or humor or narrative of the original source material.

And last is I’m Sorry, Teenage Mutant What Now

@tangledinink has such a good grasp of family and writing, and realistic portrayals of what would HONESTLY HAPPEN if you discovered literally any aspect of the ROTTMNT narrative. Not even taking into ACCOUNT the turtle nonsense, how do you unpack a family that’s been devoted to destroying a magic monster and sacrificing themselves, or a Dad that fought in a death match battle royale for over a decade, or a RIVAL CLAN OF NINJA? All the characters are written SO WELL, and Kayson does a fantastic job of never letting the characters or story fall into cliche tropes. Their characters are always super detailed, to the point where I really feel it if they’re hungry or hurt or itchy. Which is a weird thing to point out but they make sure you really FEEL the situation. Also like, turtles in highschool? Body dysphoria? My CO-CEO of Hamato Yoshi???

What a great year!! I had so much fun in fandom this year and made a lot of friends.

[not-poignant]

It never used to be, but put like 200~ written sex scenes behind you, and one day as you keep trying to make them better and better they suddenly just become more challenging than the average action scene. (Because they are a kind of action scene).

I relate to this on a spiritual level. When I've done something enough times and have become good at it it starts to get difficult again. It's kind of a paradox. But I've learned that once I let go of always trying to improve something I'm already good at or 'make it better' I actually rediscover my enjoyment.

Your stories are some of the best I've read. And your smut is amazing because there's always worldbuilding and character development behind it. Perhaps I'm biased because I'm demisexual and I need emotional components to enjoy the smexy stuff 😅 But it honestly doesn't bother me that you don't write pure smut anymore.

Obviously i hope you don't stop writing it completely (I'd be sad if you only wrote gen fics going forward but I'd still read and love them) but you gotta do whatever's best for you. And if that means no longer writing sex scenes then so be it.

But just know that you don't have to get better at it because you're already the cream of the crop as far as I'm concerned.

Maybe you just need a break from writing that sort of stuff? You might rediscover your love for it after some time away. Just food for thought.

Anyway... looking forward to whatever you write in the future. We'll support you no matter what <3

Hi anon,

This is super kind, and I have definitely taken lengthy breaks from writing erotica (literally almost over a year). In fact two of my main stories over the last few years - Falling Falling Stars and The Nascent Diplomat haven't had smut in them partly for that reason.

Unfortunately it's still just a struggle. We all have things that don't come easily to us. I can generate characters as easily as breathing, and dialogue / character voice is an instinctive, natural skill. But erotica is just... yeah, challenging.

I definitely don't plan on stopping writing it! A bunch of my stories right now have smut in them and are going to have smut in them going forward. :D

I can't see me ever just writing gen honestly.

But yeah I've taken very very long sabbaticals from writing smut. The reality is even these days I can go 2-3 months without writing any, which is kind of amazing, because I write over 100k words in those 2-3 months. So there's definitely breaks happening.

I don't know that I am good at erotica, though I appreciate that you think so! I'm a bit unconventional re: how lengthy my erotica scenes are (and how character-growth focused they are lol), but AO3 taught me and I prefer AO3 sex scenes over all others.

...I wandered away from this post for 5 hours and then came back like 'oh you didn't press post to this yet?' so anyway sadlfkjjas I may be having problems writing smut for a wHOLE lot of additional reasons too lmao

[night-bunnie]

Is there a posibilaty that you would start writing again? (Just would like to know i love your writing style, love to you)

I still write!! Writing is the biggest passion I have and I don't think I'd ever stop writing, even if the industry became as commercialized as I am so terrified of it becoming, I will be here writing because it's not really a choice for me, it's a lifeline

However, dramatics aside, I understand you likely mean fanfiction and I honestly have no idea? I have some growing icky feelings surrounding the hyperconsumerism of fandom, but I'm actively researching and working through those feelings right now

That being said, if you're interested in my writing specifically, I am working on two projects that will have paid and free options.

The first is a Zombie Apocalypse fiction named Sweet Of Flesh, which is mostly just me trying to desperately figure out the political landscape we currently live in and cope with it. It has two storylines, Haven's End and Red Widow. Haven's End, the free story, is a quirky little found family story featuring mostly Sapphic relationships. Red Widow is a bit more political horror exploring the actual universe behind the stories and will be paid. This universe will have more plotlines, too, including one focused on my home city of St Louis.

These will be posted first and I'm shooting for an April release. I do need a beta reader, I've just been at the work stage so far with this story specifically

And then the other universe is why I had to delete An Academic Achievement. It's an Urban Fantasy universe called Dark Divinity with it's own two plotlines, Desire and Denial and Petals Lost. Petals Lost is the free plotline, following Sophia, Bella, and Esmiette during a year of university and the drama and romance they encounter during it. Desire and Denial is the paid storyline and is a bit more expansive but mostly follows Jasmine and Cordelia, best friends with mirrored relationship angst, who are dealing with societal pressures on top of the general woes of being young women.

I'm shooting for April with this one, too, but I'm not honestly holding my breath.

But! I have plenty to talk about for both universes and plenty of random writing to show you guys if you're interested! I also will have art and other things to post for them, soon. (thezombieuniversemayormaynothavetweets)

This does not get into the insane amount of books I've been working on. Those are all in various stages of development, though. Feel free to ask me about any of them and I will gladly share quotes, excerpts, details, whatever. I have two thrillers, a horror novel, a romantasy, a high fantasy, and then a SciFi story I'm about to lock in and try to smash out.

I've also been working on a multi-format horror webseries that will be posted across multiple platforms. Sweet Of Flesh may also get a chat-game style video series on Youtube if it does well.

Basically, I am still very busy writing. I've already written 200k words this year, 50k of it was fanfiction that I even posted for a bit lol. I write more than I breathe at this rate

Shoot me an ask and I'll gladly tell you about anything I'm writing! I will also let you all know when the Patreon is up and being posted to, as it will also be posting extra content for my youtube channel that I've been slowly working on as well!

(Info about the stories under the cut)

Haven's End will follow Sloane Phillips, a former pro-wrestler now navigating the zombie apocalypse completely alone. It's when she ends up dehydrated and with a broken arm that she finds Evie Isaacs and Meridia James on a rooftop. Meridia is nearly fatally wounded from being impaled by some kind of receiver antenna and Evie is her best friend, diligently trying to save her. Sloane easily saves them and she's thrust right back into the societal politics the zombies were supposed to have eaten... And as she starts to romance Evie, who is entirely and unfairly her type, Evie's mother, Emily Isaacs, comes right out of the bullpen to buck heads up against Sloane, who she has decided to hate for seemingly no reason. The only explanation Sloane ever manages to receive is that she's too similar to Emily's late wife, Esther, but Emily is hiding something, something fundamental to the situation they all sit in. Sloane really should have just left Evie and Meridia alone...

Red Widow is the other side of the story, following Esther Isaacs as she navigates the hellish landscape her own late wife, Emily, is partially responsible for terraforming. She can't remember the last two years, suffering a condition that doesn't even actually exist; Retrograde Amnesia. Or is it? Is her amnesia the condition? Or just a symptom? On top of this, she's become some sort of... local legend, known for being some sort of inhuman vigilante, saving the people from the new and multiplying evils of their world. Well, none of that matters as she reunites with two of her inferiors from her time in the military and CIA, and they drag her into the complex interpersonal relationships they have. Nadia, a former miliary captain who got her job way too young, and Damian, a former highly specialized CIA agent who also got his job way too young, are socially incompetent. Both of them were built by Esther to be weapons, not people, and now they're struggling to be either. Not to mention, Nadia brought along a young woman who Esther cannot determine whether she is there of her own free will or not. Whatever, her main goal is to get to Georgia and locate her daughter, Evie. She's confident she's still alive, even if it's already been two years since all of this started...

Desire and Denial is about Jasmine Dewgold and Cordelia Glorios, two angels living in Zephyr Arcadia. Zephyr Arcadia is the only of the twelve realms were all four races have found peace. The four races being Angels, Demons, Fae, and Shifters. The rest of the realms are still wartorn and unsafe. Sure, Angel Supremacy as an idea is on the rise and more and more conflicts are breaking out between Angels and Demons like the other realms. Lycanthropy and Sanguinism are nearing Plague level epidemics, and hate crimes happen... well daily. But that's fine, it's all fine. At least... thats what Jasmine and Cordelia have to tell themselves everyday to survive. Jasmine has an friends with benefits situation with her childhood friend, Desidaero Lolicia. He's a well known A-List actor and a demon, an incubus to make it worse. Angels and Demons aren't supposed to be together, couples are regularly persecuted, even murdered for it. But she's desperately in love and Daero is desperate for them to be together. He's almost unfair in his pursuit of her and he's made it clear it will be endless, that he's made his choice and it's her. All she needs to do is get over the fear that society has instilled in her. Cordelia has the opposite issue. She's madly in love with Dylan Quinn, a shifter lioness who was adopted by Cordelia's father's best friend, Astrid Quinn. Dylan and her adopted sister, Beatrix, were infected with Lycanthropy young and now Dylan's condition has her avoiding relationships entirely. It's an open secret that Dylan is in love with Cordelia, maybe obsessed with her, but she still won't give in. She won't be with Cordelia, out of fear for Cordelia's well being. Cordelia is frustrated with the other woman, and maybe she's started to stop buying it. There has to be another reason, right?

Well, their little sisters are faring better in romance, it seems, anyway. Sophia Dewgold did not come to college to fuck around. She's got a lot to live up to with her older sister, Jasmine, being an academic legend. Jasmine graduated as Valedictorian with two majors, ran the debate club, and left her mark on the University with a court system for infractions still being used TO THIS DAY. So, during her second year, when she meets Morana Stark, a prolific member of an all girls Fraternity, Alpha Delta Phi, (that utilized loopholes in the universities rules in order to become an all girl fraternity) and campus darling, she's uninterested. Morana doesn't care about academics, she just likes to fuck and to party and that is entirely antithetical to Sophia's plans. However, Morana gets some kind of fixation on Sophia and now it seems she's stuck with her... she is rather charming though. Bella, however, is there to fuck around. She doesn't even want to go to college, but her father convinced her and her older sister, Cordelia, seems to think it's a requirement for any fulfilled life. Bella doesn't really want a career, though, she just wants to find a nice girl and become a stay at home wife. A trophy wife, even, she doesn't care. She's had a long term crush on Delilah Moss, who's close friends with Cordelia and Jasmine, and maybe a bit too old for her. But Delilah's never paid much (or any.) attention to her. Um... until her second year of university where she's suddenly doing nothing but paying attention to Bella?? And then there's Esmiette, Daero's niece who's been in his custody since she was 14. She's a succubus, it's her first year of college, she's just out of a horrible high school experience, and she doesn't have much hope for university either. She did, but her first week left her traumatized beyond belief. So now she has a... well, she's made a plan. And before she throws herself from the tallest building in the city, she plans to have one crazy year of college. Which is how she somehow ends up in a love triangle between Vivienne Devereaux and Estella Mason. Both are Angels, which is forbidden enough to make Esmiette excited, but they're also older than her. Vivienne is in her last year of college and Estella is three years graduated. Worse? Estella is the former chapter president of Alpha Delta Phi and Vivienne is the current, with Estella being her mento figure. Worse still? Estella is Desidaero's sworn enemy and Vivienne is Delilah's, Delilah being the closest thing she had to an aunt. But they're both wealthy and they're both classy and they're both very hot. Oh it's set up to be a fun year, whether any of them like it or not.

[oftlunarialmoon]

No Expiration Date on Fun!

originally posted to www.onlyfunthings.org on February 22, 2017

Ciao lovelies! Today I have an opinion piece for you about societal expectations, breaking the norm, and having fun!

This post was inspired by many anonymous comments criticizing my hobbies. Their main argument is that I am too old to enjoy things like dolls and Monster High.  So I’m here to explain my opinion on this matter! And, acknowledging that I am putting my opinion on the internet, I know that somehow, some anonymous person will find fault with it. So forewarning, I’m not answering any “trolling” comments, meaning if your only commentary is “lol ur lame for liking dolls” you’ll be respectfully ignored. Let’s get into it!

Part 1- Acknowledging Societal Influences

I’d like to begin by acknowledging the depth of influence that society has on the individual. To understand this, we must understand the different levels of society. Every country is a society, states inside that country are also societies within the main society, then counties and cities, etc, etc.. Where someone comes from will influence what societal norms they were affected by.

A common societal expectation in American society (and the one we’re focusing on in this piece) is the idea of what it means to be an adult, and that adults can’t enjoy “childish” things.

In the earlier days of American society, there were very rigid expectations and ideas on what it meant to be a bonafide adult. But around the 1960’s-1970’s, this rigid construct became a lot more flexible, and as time moved forward, different lifestyles became legitimized for the “American Adult.” Fun became not only allowed, but encouraged, and not just the boring kinds of fun either. The ideas for what was a legitimate recreational pursuit for the American Adult were wildly diverse and interesting.

But even though we have come so far in terms of these ideas, society has still maintained a talon grip on certain biases and ideals for “true adults.” The main  ideal that is still foolishly upheld by society that I want to open dialogue about today is this old-world notion that things marketed towards children can’t be enjoyed by adults.

Part 2- On a Personal Level

To bring things back to the point of the piece, let’s make it personal. I enjoy many “childish” hobbies. I unironically like Monster High, the show, movies, and merchandise. The message behind it is really great; celebrating diversity and being yourself, and being proud of your heritage. 

They even have an episode teaching viewers not to be patronizing towards people with disabilities.

Something like Monster High, with such a good message and great lessons, shouldn’t be limited to children! I think some adults need these lessons too.

Part 3- A Return to Generalization

To continue, let’s return to a general sense. There are many “Children-oriented” things that can be enjoyed by adults. One of these is the hobby of collecting dolls!

Despite how common it is for adults to collect dolls, there is still a social stigma attached to it. Many different media portray adult doll collectors as creepy, mentally unstable, possibly violent or predatory people. Just look at Criminal Minds, where they had an episode where a woman accidentally kills other women trying to make herself new dolls. (Not that I’m saying I dislike Criminal Minds, but they do perpetuate some mental illness and societal stereotypes.)

In reality, adult doll collectors are usually quite normal. Some may collect dolls for photography purposes, some are parents who collect dolls with their children, some repaint the doll’s faces to create beautiful works of art, some may just enjoy dolls.

Similarly, video game use by adults used to be heavily stigmatized, adults who played video games were seen as nerds, shut-ins, or losers: Now, there are many jobs in the video game industry, and a legitimate possibility of success via playing video games on platforms like YouTube or Twitch.

Thinking of changing standards brings me to…

Part 4- Breaking The Norms

To think about breaking a societal norm/expectation scares most people, and for good reasons. Society is very protective of its norms, and has developed methods to protect them, much like a mama bear with her cubs.

But we shouldn’t fear backlash from expressing ourselves! Society is crafted, controlled, and run by those within the society, meaning that WE, you reading this, your friends, your family, me: We have the power to change society, and we should.

What do you all think? Do you agree that adults shouldn’t be stigmatized for liking “childish” things? Do you think hobbies shouldn’t be labelled based on age? Let me know in the comments! I love hearing your opinions, or even if you have other ideas, links, articles, etc!

Thank you for reading!

 I have found that I really enjoy writing opinion pieces. Do you all enjoy reading them? Let me know!

[crow-raven-crow]

hey first of all i LOVE you’re work

i wanted to ask which fics you’re currently working on ?

𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨, 𝐝𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐲 - tldr at the bottom of the post xx

first of all - thank you🥰 I honestly never knew I would get this far, but posting my work here was the greatest decision I could've made. It feels amazing to post my work and have people enjoy it just like me :)

second - I have six requests in the works right now. I work in order of request and (because I'm traveling a lot these next few months) I'm mostly going to be doing requests and any other one shots that I come up with/want to indulge myself in. I really want to do fics with Brienne (i love her so much) and even some of the lovely Morningstar, so I'll either follow the requests or post something of my own.

This is also going to allow me to build up my next series because it's actually a really cool idea (to me) but I have absolutely no idea how many chapters its going to be.

★ In terms of requests, I have (in order from top to bottom):

Enemies to lovers - hate sex, Larissa x Reader

Lyric Fic to Eat Your Young by Hozier - going the sexual route with this one instead of the real meaning (about capitalism lol), Larissa x Reader

Sex Tape - g!p Larissa x Reader, plot twist, good ending

Lyric Fic to Young and Beautiful by Lana Del Ray - romantic, full of fluff, Larissa x Reader

Hecate Hardbroom x Reader - I'm currently looking into this character, but she seems really cool. Anon, if you have any specific requests for this, shoot me another message in my inbox please. I wanna know if you want fluff or smut or if you want anything specific to play out &lt;3

Virgin Reader x Larissa Weems - first time, everyone expected otherwise from reader, soft

What's above is what's in the request. When I get there, titles will be posted to my masterlist of what is in the works in sections, but the titles are subject to change. The top request is the one I'm currently working on, so the title is actually already on my masterlist.

★ In terms of series (in the works, not coming out for A WHILE):

Larissa Weems x Professor Reader (title on my masterlist)

Brienne of Tarth x Reader

these are both on the longer side, are still in the works, and are listed VERY vaguely because the ideas I have behind them are ones I haven't seen before (I am and will continue to gatekeep, sorry xoxo)

★ When it comes to my own ideas:

I have around 6-7 one shots, two of which have the potential to become series. HOWEVER, I do prioritize my requests, so I won't mention my ideas for them because I do not know when they will come out. Most are Larissa x Reader, there's one that's Lucifer x Reader, and there's another where I don't know if i should do Brienne, Larissa, or Lucifer (it will probably be Brienne, though).

★ Other Notes:

sections of other characters will be created on my masterlist when a fic with them in it gets posted, but I seem to be a main Larissa Weems blog. If they're one-offs, they'll be posted in an "others" sections.

please remember I'm in college and also work, so things might take longer than some of you may like (I'm getting there, I swear)

look at my masterlist before turning in requests - there are some things I won't write, so if it's requested then I'll skip over that part of the request or the whole request entirely

TLDR: 6 requests, 2 series, 6-7 of my own ideas in the words. I prioritize requests sent to my inbox, and I work in order. Titles of things will be posted on my masterlist in sections and are subject to change. Series are on pause for me due to travel, so don't expect them for quite some time.

Thank you for the ask, lovely anon. This is the first one I've gotten that was just a question, and it was a nice excuse to update everyone else as well. Any questions like these will be under the same tag on my profile (second tag down below).

~ 𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐯𝐲𝐧

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