#full disclosure I did not click it

[gobliiine]

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espagnole_sauce

hey friend please help me out here what does this mean

[autisticlancemcclain]

The ship was shaking like a kid holding a goldfish bag.

It was not, in case you were wondering, a good time. 

Keith grit his teeth, planting his boots on the ground and half-walking half-climbing over to Allura, who was paler than Keith had ever seen her. The grip she had on her podium was tight enough to drain the blood completely from her knuckles. Despite his own fear, Keith’s heart softened for her. 

“How is it looking?” he asked, shouting over the noise of a thousand asteroids and a million laser strikes. All while their lions sat, drained of quintessence, locked in their hangars

One goddamn thing after another. Jesus. 

“It is looking bad,” Allura shouted, not taking her eyes off the space in front of her. “I can’t – Coran, I can’t hold it on my own!”

Coran looked back at her grimly. He had probably the most success keeping upright – seriously, was it posture or did he have a steel rod anchored to his back at all times – but even he was struggling against the whipping and shuddering of the massive castleship, attention focused on the controls. Trying to keep the shield up as well as possible, trying to get their own defenses running. Trying, as always, to keep the castle going, even when the odds were a million to nothing. 

“You can,” he encouraged. The effect was less encouraging when a massive asteroid hit the side of the bridge point-blank, throwing him right off the controls and splat into the walls. Despite Lance and Allura’s cries of alarm, he made a startlingly dignified crawl back to the deck controls.

Hell of a man, that advisor. 

He continued once he was steady, sweat beading on his brow but gaze soft and assuring. He waited for Allura to meet his eyes, then nodded, once. “Focus, girl. Hands on the spheres. Mind cool on the exhale. However we need to get out of this – you can guide us. Make your decision. Your team is behind you.”

“Yeah!” Pidge cheered, lifting her fist in emphasis from where Shiro held her steady, eyes trained on her computer screen. Blaring red lines of code Keith could not pretend to read flashing rapid speed in front of her, and she typed back at it just as fast, keeping their crackling systems at bay. “You got this!”

Allura breathed out. The tense line of her shoulders softened, just slightly, despite the ongoing chaos. She lifted her hands and rested them, gently, on the podium spheres as Coran instructed. They glowed. 

“We retreat,” she decided, nodding to herself. “We’re already low on quintessence, standing to fight will drain us dangerously. We must get to safety if we are to survive with our home intact.” She bit her lip, eyes opening. “But, uh, full disclosure, I have enough strength in me to open a wormhole and that is About It. I will be out of commission the moment it closes.”

Hunk shrugged. “We’ll catch you, then.”

“Try not to wormhole us into a black hole,” Shiro suggested, smiling slightly. “We’ll manage anything else, Princess.”

She laughed slightly, thankfully, but within seconds called out for everyone to brace themselves. Keith did as she heeded, or he tried to – but the castle got hit as he tried to crawl back to his seat, sprawling him on the floor. He glanced over at Allura, panicked, but her eyes were already glowing, and the space in front of them was already starting to warp. He swallowed roughly, squeezing his eyes shut. The floor was shaking too badly for him to get his bearings. He couldn’t get his feet under him, couldn’t stand, couldn’t dream to crawl to his seat. He stilled, resigning himself – he didn’t know exactly what would happen if he wasn't strapped down and protected during a wormhole jump, but it couldn’t be good. He had to hope for the best.

“God,” sighed a voice to his left, “you’d die without me, Dropout.”

A hand clenched the back of his jacket and yanked, pulling him tumbling onto another body. Quick as lightning a seatbelt was stretched over him, clicking into place just as the space in front of the castle finally warped, bright blue, and the entire bridge lit up so bright Keith was blind with it. 

When the light finally died down, Keith was half-convinced nothing had changed. The castle stopped shaking, but instead it was plummeting, hard and fast, controls dead and energy gone, towards the surface of a planet. 

“Someone catch Allura!” Coran shouted, and on queue the princess’ eyes rolled up in her head and she slumped forward. Luckily, Hunk had been more prepared than the rest of them, seatbelt already off and arms extended to catch her. He carried her back to her seat, buckling her in carefully, and strapping himself in next to her. Wise move – trying to crawl back to his own seat, fighting against the G-forces, would be near impossible.

There was a click, and then a shove, and then Keith got to feel those G-forces firsthand.

“What the hell!” he demanded, barely managing to catch himself on the arm of the blue paladin’s seat. “I coulda brained myself!”

Lance shrugged, playing for innocent, but a smirk pulled at the corner of his mouth. Keith could’ve strangled him. “What? Thought I’d let you get back to your own chair. You're welcome for saving you, by the way.”

“Some saving, jerk! We're still falling!”

“Yeah. Personally, I would find somewhere to buckle up.”

“You’re so annoying,” Keith growled, and it was by spite alone that he managed to stomp back to his own seat and buckle himself in. He was bright red, anger making him hot – Lance always made him like this, so furious he could barely blink. One day they’d be making progress, working together like a dream, wiping the floor together, and the next it was like a switch was flipped. Like Lance was reminding himself that he and Keith could never get along. It was ridiculous, and Keith couldn’t for the life of him understand it. Was he so bad?

“Incoming!” Pidge shouted, shaking Keith back to himself. Her screen was now linked up with Coran’s, the only two things on in the entire castle – electronics seemed to come alive when Pidge touched them – and diagrams of the castle systems were blaring red, flashing with symbols Keith didn’t know, but recognised as bad. “The nav and power systems are down! It’s not safe to get anyone back there to force them back on manually, but I think I can get steering up in a sec. Shiro, I need your arm for power. Hunk, keep on Allura, make sure she’s upright when we crash, we don’t want a spinal injury. Lance, Keith, I’m turning steering over to you guys. Don’t fuck it up.”

Despite their bickering, both of them nodded. Neither of them particularly wanted to be turned into paladin pancake anytime soon, so they could collaborate for one thing. 

Seconds after Pidge spoke, a screen flickered to life in front of Keith. Stats blinked back up, glitching rapidly as they translated themselves into words and symbols Keith could understand. The hologram shifted and expanded to its usual 3D model, joystick in the middle, thrusters and controls to his left, a screen with Lance’s comm line to his right. In his little screen, Lance met his eyes, eyebrows raised in question. Keith nodded. Together, they wrapped their hands around the joysticks, breathed out, and let their minds fuse.

As always, it was a freaky feeling. Imagine the weird, shuddery feeling you get when you say the same thing as someone at the same time, voices layering, tone mixing, for a moment your own voice and the voice of a stranger synching into one. The weird, deja-vu-but-not of it, the uncanny valley feel of recognising your own voice but…different. 

Then multiply that freakiness by a hundred, and you still won’t quite get it. 

On some levels Keith was aware that he was his own person. He knew his name, knew his hands, knew his history – or well, some of it. Nothing about himself had changed. 

But at the same time, he was also Lance Esposita-McClain. He knew his name, knew his hands, knew his history, more of it than he could ever get from shared stories or mind melds. There’s no telling the way your sister’s arm feels hooked around your neck for the sixth noogie in as many minutes. There’s no explaining the way your breathing only gets calm with your feet in the saltwater. There’s no describing the curve of your mother’s smile. Nothing Keith was seeking out – no memories he would even know to look for – but they were there, simmering, triggered by a smell or the crook of his finger in a particular way. Memories stored in the body and the soul and the senses, not in the brain, shared when two consciousnesses become one. 

Lance’s mind was hyperspecific. It complemented Keith’s well, with all his flitting, quick detail-oriented observance. As Keith jumped from angle to angle, noticing the planet’s curve, the pull of its gravity, the heat of its atmosphere, Lance zeroed in on an island, one of the only ones big enough for them to land. While Keith kept their craft in control, steering along the air currents, Lance kept them directed, single-minded focus on a stretch of rocky beach – not exactly a soft landing, but not a lot of living things for them to destroy when they crash. (Keith would’ve chosen to land in the meadow. Crushing frogs and bugs or whatever is never something on his top priority list of things to avoid. But he didn’t argue when Lance nudged them towards what is about to be a very bumpy landing.)

“Brace yourself!” he shouted, not daring to look away to make sure his friends were buckled. Trusting that they were, he held his position, letting them plummet, coming closer and closer to splatting on the planet’s surface before finally yanking on the joystick as hard as he could. He felt Lance’s strength twist and tangle with his own, and together the two of them levelled the castle almost parallel with the ground, letting them glide on their own velocity until they slowed down enough to let the bottom of the craft brush against the rocky outcrop. 

It was the most turbulent landing Keith has ever felt, except maybe that time he and Lance crashed blindfolded into a sand dune, and every bump on the ground gave him whiplash. When the castle finally hit the ground for good, dragging them a gauge in the ground for several miles as friction finally slowed it to a stop, the leftover inertia yanked Keith forward so roughly the buckles of his seatbelt made something crack in his ribcage. When the castle finally stopped he got slammed back into his chair so hard he was almost surprised he didn’t fall right through the impenetrable material. 

It took a minute for everything to hit. His connection with Lance had been severed the second they hit the ground, too focused on being, y’know, crashed to keep holding on. After the shock of being tossed around like dice in a cup wore off, which did not take long, Keith’s body made it very clear that yeah, no, armour actually only does so much, and crash landing is one of those things that’s just bound to hurt. His skull pounded. At least one of his ribs was most definitely cracked. His wristed and knuckles ached from the strain of holding up the entire weight of the castle as he’d steered it. He was alive, obviously, but – Jesus. Being alive sucked.

“Sound off,” croaked Shiro from somewhere left of him.

“Ugh,” groaned Pidge. “Screw you, Keith, I hate it when you drive.”

“Next time I’ll be sure to let us crash,” Keith responded flatly.

“Um, you did, bozo, I asked you to land us –”

“The castle was dead! What did you expect me to –”

“Allura and I are both fine,” Hunk interrupted. Amusement lined his voice. “She’s still out, but she’s breathing fine, and I didn’t let her hit anything on impact. She should still get checked out, though.”

“Roger that,” Coran agreed. “Ease your worries, Number Two, you did well. I will have her in the MedBay as soon as our systems are up and running again.”

“Oh, whew, that’s a relief, because I didn’t want to say anything but she kinda jammed her elbow into my sternum by accident and I’m not blaming her or anything since she’s unconscious but I think my spleen may be a little dead, not a huge deal I’m sure but –”

“Everyone quiet!” barked Shiro. “That’s six accounted for! Who’s missing?”

Immediately, heart pounding, Keith whipped to his right. His stomach dropped. The Blue Lion Command Chair was empty – seatbelt torn somewhere on the shoulder, cracked helmet overturned carelessly on the seat. The crisp blue and white lines were marred by a small splash of red. Panic clawed its way up Keith’s throat, and he was out of his seat before he could register unbuckling his own straps, looking frantically around the bridge. 

“He’s here somewhere,” Pidge fretted, “he couldn’t’ve just disappeared –” 

Coran had a gloved hand clenched in his hair. “The windows and walls should be almost impenetrable, there is no way the crash broke them enough to let someone in –”

“What the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck –”

“Guys,” a soft voice interrupted, and Keith could’ve collapsed with relief. The castle has been flipped sideways during the fall, floor suddenly now 90 degrees, and standing at the side of the control board, now the very high top, was Lance. For whatever reason he had climbed it while they bickered, and now stood very still, gloved hand pressed to the glass of the windshield. Blood trickled from his temple, tracing a line down the side of his face, disappearing in the neckline of his armour. “We got company.”

Shifting gears – Keith was about to tear him a new one, when Shiro says sound off you sound off – but froze when he looked out the window, following Lance’s gaze.

Marching towards them, in numbers Keith couldn’t pretend to count, was an army.

— — —

part two

[wildlyminiaturesandwich]

I had a message from a patron asking what changed with my updated recolours because they couldn't personally see any difference. Which, honestly? Fair. Most of the changes I made were VERY subtle and unless you know what you're looking, or put the old and new side by side, you really wouldn't be able to tell.

So here's a comparison between old and new for all the colours. To view it much larger on PC (because it's VERY hard to see the difference when the pic is small), right click and select 'Open image in new tab'.

And just in case you still can't see any difference (again, totally understandable) I'll explain a little...

Red - They were a little too pink-leaning for my liking so I made them more orange

Yellow - I turned up the saturation on them just slightly

Green - I didn't like how cool-toned they were so I added a little more yellow to them

Turquoise - Made them slightly more green just to differentiate them a little more from the blues

Blue - Turned down the saturation just the tiniest bit and made them ever so slightly more purple-toned

Purple - Same as the greens, I didn't like how cool-toned they were so I warmed them up with a nudge more towards pink

Pink - I was originally only going to change the light pink because I didn't like how blueish it looked, but once I did that it made me realise the others were too cool as well so I shifted them all more towards red

Brown - Warmed them all up a touch.

Black, Grey + White - These are the only ones I didn't touch at all colour-wise. The only difference here is I'm now using gradients to recolour and gradients preserve the original shadows and highlights better than my previous method (imo).

And in the interest of full disclosure, I'm also using a different base for recolours. I used to use the 'white' hair colour for all my recolours, but I've recently switched to using 'neutral blonde' because I feel like the shadows and highlights on that colour aren't as stark as the white, and because it's also available for children, toddlers and infants.

Again, even with that info and the side by side comparisons, some people still might not be able to see the difference and that's perfectly understandable. I can see the differences but I stare at them pretty much all day while I'm working on recolours, and I'm the one who made the changes lol

Oh and before I forgot, because I keep getting this question a lot, I will mostly likely eventually upload the gradients for others to use BUT I don't know when. I'm still working on them to get them exactly how I want them and I don't want to release them until I'm happy with them. And yes, I'm aware it sounds slightly bonkers to be updating my recolours atm even though I'm not 100% happy with the colours but my brain works in wacky and mysterious ways and I've learned to not question it anymore lol

Sorry about the long post but there you go! 😊

[little-pondhead]

Some fic because I love your au, Fenton is gender brainrot, and little baby dan cracks me up. Full disclosure, my only familiarity with DC is DP crossover fanfic, and a Batman movie I fell asleep during. (If I had a better grasp on the characters I would totally write more :(( i love interactions) also sorry for the weird spacing. Idk why tumblr did that

~~~~~~~~

There was an empty cardboard box on the table of the Justice League’s main conference room. Taped on the top flap, next to a doodle of Fenton’s logo, was a jump drive.

Heaving a sigh, Batman plugged it in and pulled up his screen on the projector. The drive, which was named “little baby dan’s evil playtime”, contained two files; WATCH_ME_FIRST.mp4 and its-a-secreeeet.pdf. He clicked on the video file, and immediately the projector filled with a blurry close-up of Fenton’s goggles.

After a moment of fiddling with the camera, Fenton stepped back, giving a cheery wave. His lab coat and goggles were a pastel pink, which was new. “Heeeeya, Bats! Whoever else is there! If you’re watching this, you probably weren’t there when I dropped the box off, aaand it’s probably empty.”

He clapped his hands together gleefully. “And Connie, if you’re there, this is payback for cussing around my daughter.” Batman was instantly relieved that Constantine wasn’t on base. Hopefully the situation wouldn’t require Constantine’s expertise. (Or any of the Justice League Dark. Fenton seemed determined to drive them all to an early grave with his casual refusal to acknowledge the supernatural air around him.)

“Now, as you’re all heroes, I’m sure you’re all familiar with the whole,” Fenton paused for a moment, as if searching for the proper words. “”You ate a burger on a Tuesday or something equally inane, and it kickstarted a series of events that led to you going insane and evil and murdering 95% of the Earth’s population and now you must fight your evil alternate self, because your time-controlling cryptid Peepaw said so,” shtick, so I’ll skip the backstory. Say hi to Dan!” Fenton grabbed the camera, and Batman quickly jotted down several notes about the concerning number of things the boy had just said.

The camera swiveled around to show Nightingale, holding a strange beast in a manner that reminded Batman of an “elongated cat meme” Nightwing had shown him when he was still a Robin. The creature bared a maw full of razor sharp fangs at the camera. Nightingale adjusted her grip to hold the creature’s paw and make it wave, which evoked a deep growl.

“Haha, he’d kill me if I did that. Dan likes Nightingale much more than he likes me.”

“Because the worst she has ever done is attempt to shoot me.”

The camera had moved, so Batman couldn’t visually confirm that the deep voice had come from the creature, but the voice didn’t match any of Fenton’s previously revealed companions. “Yeah yeah, her aim sucked back then.” Fenton gave the camera a toothy grin that was only slightly less unnerving than the creature’s. “Dan’s not technically me, he’s much more like Dani, actually, but the world would probably end again if we left him with his other... What did you call him?” Fenton glanced offscreen.

“Bane of my accursed existence.”

Fenton chucked. “The other half responsible for his existence.” Batman added more notes to his file. “So, yeah, Clocky left him with us for a bit to help along his rehab. But a certain psychologist-in-training I know says that repressing rage isn’t healthy, and even without a lot of his powers, he can wipe out most of a city in- what, an hour? We tested it. It was around an hour.”

Everyone present shared a look of deep concern. As if able to see their reaction, Fenton quickly held up his hands in surrender. “Don’t worry! Clocky reset it. Approximately zero people have died from Dan in this timeline.”

“Yet.” Came a furious rumble from off-screen.

“Yes, you’re very scary.” They heard Nightingale coo.

Fenton laughed. “Yeah, we need him- and all of you, -out of our hair for a bit while we concoct more evil plans, and you’re all the least likely to die to him, so you get to babysit! Thanks!”

He reached to shut off the camera before pausing and turning away. “Foley! Which of the furries is the one who really likes animals?”

“Man, do you realize how that sounds out of context?” Foley laughed. “I think Tim said it’s the little one. Damian?”

Fenton nodded and turned back to the camera. “Don’t let Damian try to adopt Dan. Or anyone. Dan will bite their hands off. I mean it!” To emphasize his point, he removed one of his hands.

Batman sighed and added “ability to remove limbs” to a list of Fenton’s powers.

“I’ll include a list of “tasks”” Fenton’s disembodied hand made finger quotes, “we gave Dan to keep him occupied. There’s some at the bottom for you guys. They’re mostly just blatant abuse of his powers for the sake of fun and science. I’d appreciate it if you’d let him mark things off the list and add notes on how it goes. Or you can do it. Or I can steal your cameras. Your choice.”

He thought for a second. “I think you’re supposed to leave, like, pizza money or something, but I don’t think you can get pizza delivered to space. Anyway, thanks for letting me blab your ears off while Dan’s probably committing war crimes for twelve minutes. For your sake, I hope he inherited my interest in space. Good luck! Thanks for babysitting!”

Waving with his still detached hand, Fenton ended the video. Batman closed it and opened the PDF as the few other members present murmured amongst themselves. Most of the pages were filled with a curling script Batman didn’t recognize. The fourth page had a huge, bolded header, reading JP TASKS.

The door opened and shut in half a second as the Flash burst in. “Superman!” The speedster wailed. “I can’t get this thing off of me!”

The Flash waved his arm around, sending small droplets of blood flying as he tried to dislodge the creature sinking his teeth into the speedster’s arm. Batman raised an eyebrow beneath his cowl as Superman quickly lent his super strength in attempt to pry the creature’s jaw open. Dan didn’t budge.

Well, he could certainly see the family resemblance been Fenton, Dani, and Dan. Shaking his head, he turned back to the list.

Task 1: Find Dan. He’s probably attacking someone.

He highlighted the text and crossed it out. This was going to be a long shift.

[Anon, this is me crying over the wonderful gift you have given me. You bastard.]

---

"Do you think Fenton's regeneration powers extend to his..." Green Lantern frowned, trying to remember the word the kid had used but coming up blank. "I dunno. But do you think if we cut off little Dan here, he'll heal back up with no problem?" He gestured helplessly to the scene in front of him. Flash was still screeching about the beast on his arm, and now Superman and Wonder Woman were trying to pry him off. Batman was standing to the side, silently bemoaning the lack of quiet. He just wanted one peaceful shift. Just one. Please.

"I'd like to see you try, hero. And I'm not little." Dan spoke, startling all of them. His grip on Flash's arm tightened, making the speedster squeal before releasing the man and spitting out a mouthful of his blood. Batman noticed that his mouth didn't move despite the clearly spoken words. In fact, when Dan closed his mouth, it was like he didn't have one at all.

"So you do speak!" Superman marveled.

"Of course I do. I am not unintelligent, unlike you lot."

Despite his pain, Flash still made sounds of protest that everyone promptly ignored.

Superman flushed. "I just wasn't sure. It was hard to tell in the video."

"Ah, yes. The video that the Fenton menace sent you. Was there a note for me in the flash drive?"

"Uh, no." In one of his less finer moments, Green Lantern stuttered over his words and moved in front of Batman, obviously lying. Dan merely growled and flew through both men, heading straight for the giant monitor. Batman barely suppressed a shiver. Density shifting? Might as well add it to the list. He could see Martian Manhunter, who was in the back of the room, tilt his head at the display.

Dan ignored the room as he used his entire body to manipulate the computer mouse and scrolled back up to the top of the page. Staring intently at the scribbles no one could make out, the heroes could do nothing but shoot each other nervous and confused glances. More than a few of them jumped when Dan chuckled deeply. Honestly, his tiny body was at complete odds with his baritone voice.

"Maybe rehab will be fun if he's letting me do this." Dan sneered, flashing their reflections a sharp fang. No one wanted to ask what exactly he was in rehab for. The little beast turned his gaze to Batman. "You are the one called Batman, who rules the cursed city, correct?" The dark hero nodded, not trusting himself to say anything. "Excellent. You will be my chaperone for now, just as Fenton decreed it. Good luck, mortal man. Pray, I do not destroy your home a second time."

Without any time to unpack that conversation, Dan promptly disappeared from view. Some blinking text caught his attention, and Batman scrolled back down to the English text, glancing at the next few items on the list.

Task 2: Do not let Dan read his portion of this letter until you have a way to track him. There is no containing him.

Task 3: Keep him with a chaperone at all times. (If you can)

Task 4: Do not let Dan back into Gotham unless you're fine with a sudden decrease in the clown population.

Task 5: Take him for a walk in Death Valley. He likes hunting lizards.

Task 6: Make sure he goes down for his 2pm nap every day.

Task 7: He'll ask for it, but do not give him any burgers for mealtime. It upsets his stomach.

Task 8: Dan gets ONE(1) sweet after dinner before brushing his teeth. Those green pop rocks Batman always carries will do fine; he likes those. :)

A sudden alarm blared from his wristwatch, making Batman tear his eyes away from the screen, indicating an emergency at Arkham. This time, Batman actually sighed out loud. There was more to the list, but right now, he really needed to find their new charge before he killed the Joker, from the sound of it.

[come-away-with-me87]

The Art of Love Chapter 16

Chapter 15 here

******

Disclosure: This chapter has a three-month time jump.

******

"Will you stay the night?" you asked him.  "I would love to, Y/N."  You two snuggled into each other, where you both fell into a deep sleep for the remainder of the night.  You woke up the next morning before Shouta and gazed at him, smiling, while he slept.  He really was a beautiful man.  You took your hand and gently brushed his hair out of his face.  He started stirring, opened his eyes and caught you staring at him, to which he smiled over at you.  "Good morning," he sleepily greeted.  "Good morning, yourself," you said back to him.  You leaned over and kissed him, and offered to make the two of you breakfast.  You got up, got dressed into sweat shorts and a tee-shirt, and made your way to the kitchen to put on a pot of coffee and start breakfast.

As you two sat there and ate and drank your coffee, you and Shouta continued your conversation from the night before.  You told him you still had your fears, but he assured you that with him and Eri by your side, they would help you conquer your fears.  Your heart swelled at this statement, and you couldn't help but tear up.  "We care about you, Y/N," he gently told you as he wiped away a fallen tear.  You leaned into this touch; you really did miss him and his touch over the last several weeks.  "As much as I don't want to do this, I do have to get going; Eri is expecting me for some more training this morning. And I'm sure Yamada would like a break."  With that, you two got up from your table, and you walked hand-in hand to your front door.

"Y/N, since we're starting over again, may I have the pleasure of taking you out on a date?"  You looked at him and for the millionth time that morning, you broke out into a huge smile.  "I would love to go on a date with you, Shouta."  He leaned down and kissed you, placing his one hand on your face, and his other hand on your waist.  You wrapped your arms around his neck, and deepened the kiss.  He momentarily pulled away, exclaiming, "god, I missed this. I missed you." He kissed you once more, and let you know he'll be in touch soon with date plans.  You two kissed goodbye, and you watched him as he walked away until he was out of your sight completely.  

******

The next three months were bliss for you.  You and Shouta were regularly seeing each other, and your fears were starting to subside.  Your heart was slowly, but surely, opening back up, and Shouta and Eri were the main reasons for that.  Shouta consistently and gently reminded you he was there to protect people, including you.  You and Eri also got closer outside of school, as well.  You could tell that she was happy that you and Shouta were seeing each other again.  She was also doing beautifully in school; her art was bright and positive compared to when she first started.  Your heart felt full.

Shouta picked up Eri one chilly day after school.  You watched him as he helped her put on her and button up her jacket.  He was so gentle and sweet with her, and it was that moment that it clicked; you were in love.  No more falling, you were IN love with Shouta.  The realization literally took your breath away, and your heart started pounding.  "Are you okay, Y/N? You look flushed," Shouta asked you as he helped Eri put her backpack on.  You looked over at him and froze for a moment, "oh, I'm fine. I'm sorry, I just got the chills,"  you replied as you laughed.  Both Shouta and Eri seemed to accept your answer, and approached your desk.  "What do you think, Eri?  Should we have Miss L/N over for dinner tomorrow?"  Eri beamed up at him, "yeah!"  You smiled down at Eri; she was so sweet.  Shouta then looked down at you, "well, Y/N?  Would you like to come over for dinner tomorrow evening?"  "I would love to," you replied with a smile.

The three of you said your goodbyes to each other, and once you knew they were out of the school, you sat back in your chair, taking in your realization.  You were in love with Shouta Aizawa.  You never thought you could love another man after Kento, yet here you were.  The thought of being in love again terrified you, but excited you all the same.  You decided then and there that you were going to tell Shouta you loved him at your dinner date tomorrow, after Eri went to sleep.  You thought about Kento again, and felt that familiar sense of peace wash over you, just like it did during your very first date with Shouta.  Deep in your heart, you knew Kento would be so happy for you.  You were finally able to close that chapter of your life.

******

You arrived at Shouta's dorm the next evening around 6:00pm for dinner.  He opted to order out instead of cooking, and he ordered a variety of sushi and sashimi for the three of you.  While the three of you sat there and ate, Eri talked excitedly about her time at school, and how she was growing stronger every day with her training.  She was not the same girl you saw on her first day of school; she has grown exponentially in the few months you have known her, and you couldn't be happier.  By the time 8:00pm rolled around, Shouta took Eri to tuck her in, but not before she came over to you to give you a big hug.  "I'm so glad you're back here, Miss L/N."  Your heart swelled at this statement, "oh, Eri."

Shouta came back to his dorm after tucking Eri in, poured two glasses of wine for you both, and sat down next to you on the couch.  You two just looked into each other's eyes, and he pulled you in for a kiss.  "I've been wanting to do this all evening," he said in between kissing you.  He pushed your hair to the side, and began leaving a trail of kisses from your earlobe down to your collarbone.  You felt the familiar sensation of getting stirred up at his touch, and you pulled his face back up to yours, deepening the kiss by intertwining your tongue with his.  As you two were kissing, you were suddenly interrupted by the sound of a knock on his door.

He pulled away from the kiss and frowned while looking at his door, "I have no idea who that could possibly be, I'm not expecting anyone."  You looked back over at him, "you can get the door, it's okay."  He looked back at you, gave you a quick kiss, and told you he would be right back.  You watched him walk over to his door, open it, and there stood a woman.  A breathtakingly stunning woman.  She had long red hair, big brown doe eyes, and curves in all the right places.  You couldn't help but admire her beauty.  But who was she?  You turned your eyes to Shouta, and his shoulders suddenly slumped, "Anya, what are you doing here?"  She pouted her lips, "Shouta, I haven't heard from you in months, what happened?"  Shouta suddenly turned towards you, saying, "Y/N, I am so sorry."

******

To be continued...

******

Tag list: @lili-pond ; @jaguarthecat ; @big-denki-energy ; @ivydoesit23 ; @salientseraph ; @dreamofkaty ; @simp-hub ; @bluebreadenthusiast ; @fuzzyfestcat

[ladamedusoif]

Hot Chocolate (Marcus Pike x gn!reader)

A Merry Fic-Mas - December 3

Part of A Merry Fic-Mas: A Holiday Fic Calendar - click for masterlist. FYI: I'm having so much trouble with taglists at the moment that I'm not going to use them for now - if you want to keep updated, turn on notifications for my posts.

Pairing: Marcus Pike x gn!reader

Rating: Mature

Word count: 1280 words

Warnings: Implied smut, some heavy making out, Marcus being an adorable foodie romantic art nerd, fluff city. No use of Y/N and no physical descriptions of Reader whatsoever. 

Summary: Snowed in and forced to stay over at your colleague’s Georgetown apartment, Marcus whips up a sweet treat to keep you warm.

“I don’t have much by way of dessert,” Marcus muses from the kitchen, where he’s peering into his fridge. 

You finish gathering the last of the takeout boxes from his dining table and begin cleaning them out at the sink. “You’ve given me a room for the night, Marcus, I don’t need dessert. Hey, where’s your recycling bin?” 

He gestures to a cupboard near the sink and leans back on the counter, thinking. “Actually, would you like some hot chocolate? I think I’ve got everything I need.”

Everything he needs?, you think, wondering what more you could possibly need for hot chocolate beyond some powdered mix and milk. Marshmallows, if you were feeling fancy.

“Sure, sounds good to me.” 

He grins in delight and starts rummaging in a cupboard, emerging with bars of dark chocolate and a jar of ground cinnamon, before delving into the fridge and retrieving milk and heavy cream. A heavy-bottomed saucepan is produced and positioned on the hob as Marcus mutters something about finding his grater.

This isn’t going to be cheap-ass powdered mix, is it.

Alright, full disclosure: if someone hooked you up to a polygraph machine and asked you if you had a teeny tiny harmless little workplace crush on Marcus Pike, you’d have to answer in the affirmative.

And who wouldn’t? He was kind and funny, and smart as hell, quietly undertaking a PhD in art history and cultural policy at Georgetown while continuing to work full-time. He was one of the few people in the team who actually kept up with the art world, regularly seeking you out after a new show opened at the National Gallery to exchange your thoughts on it over coffee in the canteen. 

The fact that he was also really cute didn’t hurt, either. 

When snow and ice blocked the routes out of DC back to your place in Alexandria, leaving you stranded, Marcus immediately suggested that you stay over at his place. See? Kind. 

“I’ll be fine, Marcus, really,” you’d protested, searching for hotel rooms in the city and recoiling when you saw the prices - and the lack of options. “Anyway, isn’t your place a one-bed?”

Marcus shrugged. “I’ve got a big couch, spare blankets and pillows, and I won’t stand by and see you hunkering down here for the night. C’mon. We’ll get takeout - I know a great little Korean place.”

He carefully grates the dark chocolate into a bowl while you whisk most of the cream. 

“Y’know, I really thought you were going to pull out a couple of sachets of Swiss Miss? I should have known better.”

Marcus chuckles to himself and checks the saucepan of milk. “Usually I’m a Swiss Miss kinda guy, I have to admit. But when you have guests, you do the Viennese hot chocolate. I like to make a fuss.”

You hold out the bowl of cream for him to inspect and he nods, eyes crinkling as he smiles at you. You put it down and fold your arms as you watch him work.

“Is it really Viennese, or is that just a name they use to make it sound all fancy?”

He laughs and looks at you in mock horror. “Of course it’s really Viennese! I even had it for the first time in Vienna.” Marcus takes the saucepan off the heat and adds the chocolate along with some sugar, a little cinnamon, and a dash of heavy cream. He begins to whisk the mixture carefully.

“It was one summer when I was a student - I had almost no money, but I did have one of those European Interrail tickets and I tried to see as much great art as I could. Took an overnight train to Vienna to see the Klimts at the Belvedere.” He pauses his whisking to assess the texture, then resumes.

“Like I said, I was down to my last few dollars - or Euros, or whatever the currency was at the time - but the one thing I was gonna do besides see the Klimts was go to a real Viennese café.”

The hot chocolate is frothy now, thick and glossy. Marcus nods in the direction of a cupboard and you open it, finding some mugs.

“So I’m guessing you got to a café.”

He turns off the stove and smiles at the memory. “Sure did. Café Central. It was like something out of a Stefan Zweig novel.” He takes a ladle out of a drawer and proceeds to fill the mugs with the steaming chocolate. “And I had a mug of something a bit like this - but much, much better - and a slice of apple strudel, and it was heaven.”

Marcus finishes off the chocolate by placing a large dollop of whipped cream in each mug, and hands one to you.

“This is…incredible. I don’t think I can ever go back to Swiss Miss.”

Marcus chuckles and sips his chocolate, sitting beside you on the couch. “I’m glad you like it. Perfect drink for a snowed-in night.”

You take another deep draught of the delicious, smooth drink and hum happily to yourself. “And I’m checking out flights to Vienna first chance I get.”

He looks at you intently. “Uh, you’ve… uh…”

You can see a giggle rising in his chest. He can’t suppress it, and he laughs out loud. 

“Why is the thought of me going to Vienna so funny to you?”

Marcus’s expression shifts to one of concern and he quickly shakes his head. “No, that sounds wonderful - you’ll love it - it’s just…” He reaches over and gently rubs the tip of your nose with his thumb, removing a large blob of whipped cream. “You had a little, uh, something.”

“Oh. Oh. I’m sorry.” You look down into your mug, a little embarrassed, but try to lighten the mood. “Feels like we’re in a scene from a cheesy holiday movie, y’know?”

He quirks his head. “How so?”

“Oh, you know. The whole ‘one character has whipped cream or something on their face and the other has to swipe it away and then…’”

You stop short, realising what you were about to say - and becoming very aware of just how close you are to him now.

Marcus’s voice is warm and low. “And then?”

Is he moving closer?

“And then… um. And then they usually, uh…”

He finishes your sentence by leaning in and kissing you, softly, gently at first. Your breath hitches as you feel the softness of his lips on yours. 

He breaks away for a second, staying close. “Is this okay?”

“Yeah, it’s…it’s great.” 

He takes your mug and puts it on the coffee table before cradling your face in his big hands and leaning in to kiss you again: a little harder, now, his tongue seeking entry to your mouth as your hands reach for his body and you lean back on the couch. 

You moan and whine with pleasure as you feel Marcus’s hands caressing your body, taste the bittersweetness of the chocolate on his lips and tongue. As he moves his mouth to your neck, sucking and nibbling and licking his way along the sensitive skin, you begin to unbutton his shirt and reach for his belt buckle.

“Marcus?”

He looks up for an instant, hair tousled and eyes as deep and dark and shiny as perfect hot chocolate.

“You’re not sleeping on the couch tonight. You’re keeping me warm in bed.”

Divider by @animatedglittergraphics-n-more

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

Efforts to alert Americans to the danger of Trump's fascism are beginning to gain traction

Efforts to raise the alarm about Trump's explicit threats of a fascist government are beginning to gain traction. On Sunday, the NYTimes published a powerful editorial entitled “Donald Trump says he will Order Mass Deportations, Prosecute His Enemies, Use Soldiers Against Citizens, Play Politics with Disasters, and Abandon Allies. Believe Him. (Click on the photo on top. Gift link to NYT.)

The editorial is a full-throated condemnation of Donald Trump. The article says, in part,

The record shows that Mr. Trump often pursues his stated goals, regardless of how plainly they lack legal or moral grounding. The record further shows that many of his most reckless efforts in his first administration were stymied only because of others in his administration who blocked, delayed or watered down his aims to ensure that he could not put himself above the law or the country. Mr. Trump has learned from that experience to surround himself with supplicants who would instead obey his wishes and bring his words and ideas to life even if they contradict facts, the public interest or the Constitution.

The Times Editorial Board is correct in its description of the threat posed by Trump. The question is whether it is too little, too late.

After reporting on Trump for two years as if he were a normal candidate for the presidency, the Times and other major media created a permission structure for otherwise rational, upstanding Americans to say they were voting for Trump because issues like “the economy” or “immigration,” while skipping over the attempted coup, insurrection, sexual abuse, attempted bribery of Ukraine, obstruction of justice in the Mueller investigation, and the withholding and disclosure of national defense documents.

It is never too late to start doing the right thing. But the Times deserves no special praise or credit for choosing nine days before the election to run this op-ed. It should have been running something similar every day for the last two years.

I acknowledge that this is not the first such article run by the Times; but articles of this type have been few and far between—and were overwhelmed articles about Joe Biden’s age and inflation—neither of which pose the existential danger to democracy presented by a second Trump term.

Let’s hope that it is not “too little, too late” and that the Times keeps up its attack on the real danger of a fascist second Trump term.

Many readers shared Saturday’s post by Heather Cox Richardson, Letters from an American, October 26, 2024. HCR reviews a 1943 pamphlet from the US War Department with the headline, “FACISM.” The pamphlet is a sobering description of fascism that maps neatly onto the MAGA movement of today. I highly recommend the article to your attention.

The closing paragraph of HCR’s newsletter is this:

“Fascism thrives on indifference and ignorance,” [the pamphlet] warned. Freedom requires “being alert and on guard against the infringement not only of our own freedom but the freedom of every American. If we permit discrimination, prejudice, or hate to rob anyone of his democratic rights, our own freedom and all democracy is threatened.”

The Trump rally in Madison Square Garden was the very model of “discrimination, prejudice, and hate” that the War Department warned against in 1943.

Also relevant on Sunday was JD Vance’s efforts to defend Trump's threat to use the military against American citizens. Incredibly, Vance argued that Trump did not threaten to use force against Americans but instead threatened to use the military against “lunatic members of the radical left”—who are Americans. See YouTube, JD Vance tries to defend Trump’s ‘enemy’ rhetoric.

Finally, Jonathan V. Last writing in The Bulwark gives the best explanation yet of why Jeff Bezos’s decision to not make an endorsement in the presidential race fits into the fascist playbook of forcing leaders of industry to “obey in advance.” See The Bulwark, Bezos, Trump, and the Failure of Democracy, by Jonathan V. Last

Jonathan Last writes,

When Bezos decreed that the newspaper he owned could not endorse Trump’s opponent, it was a transparent act of submission borne of an intuitive understanding of the differences between the candidates. Bezos understood that if he antagonized Kamala Harris and Harris became president, he would face no consequences. A Harris administration would not target his businesses because the Harris administration would—like all presidential administrations not headed by Trump—adhere to the rule of law. Bezos likewise understood that the inverse was not true. If he continued to antagonize Trump and Trump became president, his businesses very much would be targeted. So bending the knee to Trump was the smart play. All upside, no downside.

Bezos’s action was doubly cynical. He refused to do the right thing because he knows that Kamala Harris will abide by the rule of law. Having hedged that bet, he changed the Post’s policy at the last minute in a way that advantaged Trump—and Bezos if Trump wins.

At a time when our democracy faces the threat of fascism, those who seek to defend the rule of law do not have the luxury of hedging their bets in the way Bezos did. We need the rule of law to continue to enjoy the fruits of democracy. Bezos doesn’t, so he abandoned us. That is why Bezos is a coward. He is granting Trump obedience in advance—which is how fascists come to power.  

Three final notes about the fascist threat posed by Trump. They don’t quite fit into the narrative of this article but they are important and I need to bring the newsletter to a close.

First, the New York Times reported that Trump intends to “outsource” security clearances to a private firm in order to cut out the FBI from the process. During Trump's first term, the FBI refused to grant clearance to Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner. Trump ultimately over-ruled the FBI and granted Kushner a security clearance. See NYTimes, Advisers Propose That Trump Give Security Clearances Without F.B.I. Vetting.

By privatizing a federal function—security clearances—Trump is eradicating the dividing line between himself and the state. The private firms will be beholden to him—rather than to the Constitution.

Speaking of privatizing government functions, Elon Musk boasted at the Madison Square Garden rally that he believes he can cut “one-third” of the federal budget. See Business Insider, Elon Musk says at a New York Trump rally that he could save the country $2 trillion through a department of efficiency.

Musk has no idea how the Constitution or the federal budgeting process works. Nor does he have the emotion intelligence or lateral thinking skills to understand the havoc on personal and national security that cutting the federal budget by one-third would cause. Even suggesting such cuts would likely undermine the stability of markets, interest rates, and investments in the US. But when fascists erase the distinction between themselves and the state, their hair-brained ideas become the policy of the state.

Finally, Trump said at the rally on Sunday that he would appoint Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to a position in charge of federal health care policy. Trump said,

I'm gonna let him go wild on health. I'm gonna let him go wild on the foods. I'm gonna let him go wild on the medicines.

The last time Trump promised something would be wild, we had an insurrection. Putting RFK Jr. in charge of healthcare and medicine in the US would cause human suffering and death on a grand scale—assuming Kennedy could get anything done. But Kennedy, like Trump, has no idea of what it takes to create policy, write legislation, and fund programs. So, is Trump simply planning to override federal law for the appropriations process?

The above facts should arm us with the knowledge we need to persuade the few remaining voters who are undecided about voting. Use the information to generate turnout. That is the key to victory. Anyone who is on the fence about voting shoud be concerned about the hate, authoritarianism, and recklessness highlighted in Trump's rally at Madison Square Garden on Sunday—and at all of his other appearances.

[Robert B. Hubbell Newsletter]

[patchwork-crow-writes]

Thoughts on Kris x Ralsei

This is so long I had to split it up into parts - this is Part 1, which looks into how the roles that Kris and Ralsei are given contributes to the idea of their romance. As more parts are written, they'll be linked below in this handy-dandy TOC!

Part 1: And They Lived Happily Ever After <- (You Are Here!) Part 1.5: I Believe Your Choices DO Matter Part 2: A Pair of Star-Cross'd Lovers Part 2.5: In Another World, We Could Have Been (Just) Friends

Okay, so.

Wanted to elaborate a bit on my viewpoint of this ship, because I don't think it's something I've ever really discussed before and I think it's actually a very interesting dynamic (or at least has the potential to be, depending on where the rest of Deltarune goes).

So, Kralsei is cute, isn't it? It's fun to hug the fluffy boy and watch him melt into incomprehensible stuttering and blushing. All the little signs he's really, really into Kris, all the cute little snippets of dialogue you can initiate with him, all the alone time they spend together, in both chapters... honestly, the game makes it hard not to root for this pairing.

And yeah, it's cute... in a very surface-level, don't-think-about-it-too-hard kind of way. But once you start thinking about it... hoo boy. There is. A LOT to unpack here. So much more is going on just under the surface, and once you see it, it's difficult to un-see it. And in my opinion, it makes the Kralsei dynamic so much more nuanced, more compelling, and potentially quite tragic.

Now, a disclaimer: it's fine to like this ship on a surface level. No real harm is being done, these are fictional characters and it doesn't matter what reason you enjoy it for - if it provides comfort to you and gets you through, then more power to you! This is more me sorting through my thoughts on the subject and is not a judgment on how others approach it. With that said, and in the spirit of full disclosure, this will go into slightly uncomfortable territory - picking apart the idea of destined love, the deconstruction of common romance tropes, how outside manipulation might play a part, and even the potentially incest-adjacent nature of the relationship. If you don't want to deal with any of that, you can stop reading right now, and that's okay. Please continue to enjoy Deltarune in the manner that is best for you, and thank you for your attention thus far :)

If you're still with me, then please click the read more and we'll get started.

Part 1: And They Lived Happily Ever After

The first thing you have to understand is that Deltarune is utterly determined to cram the notion of Kralsei down the player's throat. The game is not subtle about this in any way, shape or form. Everything from the narration, to the dialogue, to major game events, to item interactions, and even the roles that Kris and Ralsei play both in the story and the party, serves to reinforce the notion that these two are very likely to end up romantically involved with each other in some way.

Let's look at the characters first. Kris is portrayed as the noble knight - stoic, unwavering, courageous, a natural leader - clad in medieval-inspired plate armour and wielding a sword and shield. And Ralsei is the archetypal princess - demure, dainty, kindhearted, nurturing - who uses magic to heal his allies and pacify enemies.

I did not mistype there - Ralsei is a prince, but the characteristics associated with him are more commonly found amongst female healers in JRPGs. Think Fina from Skies of Arcadia, or Marle from Chrono Trigger (minus the temperment), and you might have an idea of what I'm on about.

Think of knights and princesses for a moment. Imagine St. George slaying the dragon to save a helpless damsel. Imagine Lancelot and Gwenevere. Robin Hood and Maid Marion. Link and Zelda. Squall and Rinoa. Every single fairy tale involving an imperilled princess and a knightly rescuer. For a more modern take, imagine The Bodyguard. Ness and Paula. I could go on, but then we'd be here all day.

Suffice it to say that there is a pretty entrenched tradition surrounding these archetypes - a male-coded, phsyically-adept, courageous, stoic, action-oriented figure, is paired with a female-coded, magically-adept (depending on the medium of course), less-physically-capable by comparison, emotional, and more passive foil. The (male-coded) knight protects and rescues, the (female-coded) princess nurtures and soothes.

It is a very, VERY emotionally-charged dynamic, by its very nature. Through their acts of service to their protectee, the Knight displays their devotion and care for the Princess, and is in turn emotionally-enriched and cared-for. There is a great deal of physical and emotional vulnerability between them, and it is therefore ideal for romance stories.

Look at Kris and Ralsei again, through this lens. Kris is immediately put into the role of Knight, and Ralsei quickly establishes himself as a classic Princess. Almost instantly, before you've even become aware of it, you've made the connection - they're going to fall in love, because that's what ALWAYS happens in these stories. Ralsei supports and encourages Kris, both in dialogue and in battle, and Kris...

...Kris, uh...

...they...

...hug Ralsei sometimes...?

...they... they give him a ribbon...?

...no, that can't be right.

But it is right, for two reasons. One, Kris doesn't have to do anything. The roles are already established, and Ralsei is playing his part like a pro. And two, Kris doesn't do any of those things in the first place - you do. It's the player who hugs Ralsei, who gives him the ribbon, who picks the dialogue options, who makes the connections. You're the Knight in this scenario, not Kris.

Because Kris doesn't get to make that choice. Kris has to do what you tell them to do. And many of us have already jumped to the conlusion that this romance is happening, becuase that's what always happens. The Knight and the Princess fall in love. They get married. They live happily ever after.

So we ship them, because hey, it's cute, and it's easy. I can't stress enough how easy the game makes this. I'm fairly convinced that Ralsei was designed by comittee, like the Funzo toy in that one episode of the Simpsons. Like he was created with the sole purpose of being the most disgustingly adorable, lovable, awkward little cinnamon bun that ever existed. Like he was created to generate the maximum emotional response in players. It's the cuteness response dialled up to 11, and we are almost hard-wired to want to protect this little bundle of fluff from any and all danger, because lookit how sweet and adorable he is! The glasses make his eyes look all big, his fluffiness is reminscent of that of baby animals, he stutters and fumbles his way through dialogue, and you just want to scoop him up and put him in your pocket or something.

And so, we're more than happy to fulfil the role of the Knight to Ralsei's Princess. Whether Kris actually wants to or not. Because it does become increasingly obvious that outside of our influence, Kris is still their own person, with their own goals and desires, but no real agency with which to pursue them. Would that we could know what they truly want, but we are never presented with an opportunity to find out.

The thing is, Kris is not particularly... knightly. They play pranks on their friends, they swipe sweet treats from their mother, they seem to enjoy getting a rise out of people, and particularly from Asriel, if the story about "dropping the lizard into the pit to jump higher" is any indication. They sleep through class, yet by Berdly's grudging admission they are the "third smartest in the class". The only reason they go to church is so they can drink the "sick fruit juice". They don't seem to have any issue with prank-calling their mom, while she's taking about them with their tutor, while they're standing just out of sight, while they're balancing a trash orb on their head.

Nothing about this behaviour screams "Knight." If anything, it would make more sense for Kris to have become a Rogue-type character upon entering the dark world. So the question remains - why is Kris forced into that role? And to what extent is the seemingly "fated" romance between Kris and Ralsei part of that role?

Folks, we have barely scratched the surface here. If I keep writing here this will become a novel, so I have to stop for everyone's sanity. But I will follow up soon, looking into the ideas of Purpose and Destiny and how they relate to Kralsei in-game. If you've stuck with me up to this point, let me just say thanks, because wow I wrote a lot here, and it's probably a bit rambly and says the same things two or three times, but I just. Had to get this onto the page in some way or another, so... here it is.

Thanks for reading, and see you in the next one :)

[tocomplainfriend]

Responding to your post about fiction affecting reality: very well-written post and that’s something I agree with wholeheartedly!

Full disclosure: I am a Vivz supporter and don’t really interact with the critique community because of negative past experience (hence the anon), but I really liked your post as it was well-researched and brought up a lot of points that I did agree on. Mostly that, as you evidenced, “it’s just fiction” isn’t a great argument for poorly portraying a serious concept when there can be tangible consequences for that portrayal. And you gave some really striking examples.

In terms of Hazbin, it is not that I believe that Val’s portrayal as an abuser (and consequently Angel’s as a victim) lacks any impact, but instead that it adds a positive one. This isn’t something I’ve researched so the evidence I have of this is personal experience, but as you said in your post that media can affect real life I felt inspired to add to that conversation with how it personally affected me.

So I was aware rationally that a common result of abuse/SA is hypersexuality, like I’d seen that on psychology blogs and such but never really understood it. I’m ashamed to say I thought it was a little weird and very rare. Hazbin was what finally challenged that notion with me. Being able to see how abuse looks and attribute those events to Angel’s actions step-by-step made something click in my head. I even remember that shortly after seeing that episode, I apologized to one of my friends (a survivor themselves) over some judgmental comments I’d recently made over hypersexuality. Said friend also watched Hazbin with me and it’s the reason they talk more openly to me now and we’re a lot closer. Val’s “stupid” behavior in the show and mentioned in Vivz’s comments did not lessen the impact that episode had on me, or make it unbelievable to me that Val could be manipulative. If anything I understand more now that abusers don’t always appear as psychopathic masterminds. And I know my friend finds comments like the Mean Girls one funny and they tell me it’s empowering to make fun of Val’s incompetence.

That’s not the only positive influence Hazbin’s had on me, but the most relevant to your post, I believe. It’s the reason I’m often a skeptic on most criticisms, because my lived experience tends to go against them. You said the negative impact of Val was that people are drawing fetish art of him, but the only time I ever see that art is within critic’s posts. It never shows up in my regular feed, so it looks to me like he’s equally as fetishized as every other character; the unfortunate inevitability of the internet. I can’t say I’ve seen anyone post about stories like mine about learning to understand survivors, but I have heard positive stories from survivors themselves in person and online which lead me to believe that the positive impact outweighs the negative.

Fiction has real impact, very true. But consider that might be a good thing in this case.

Thanks for being respectful!

TW: Rape, SA

I'm a victim of SA myself and that's why I wrote all of this post. If you got something positive out of this piece of media, that's great. Same with victims that saw potion and were okay with it- that valid as much as the people that didn't like it at all. I recommend watching many others shows yourself (or movies, books, whatever) will help you out with sorts of topics in bigger ways. I understand you feel like you got something good out if (and I'm glad) but I do need to say, this is minimal in comparison to other media you could consume regarding the topic!

I personally suffer with Hypersexuality, and the treatment in the show (and merch and otherwise) I found completely wrong. Even if you got to a good understatement of the topic, please put research into it (also outside Tumblr for that matter! There are better places to find stuff about!). Thank you also for admitting your faults over your treatment of hypersexuality and apologizing for it. Many people will never let themselves grasp this concept, so thank you.

If you took Valentino's comparison to Mean Girls or Powerpuff Girl as a way of making fun of him, that's you. I found it, personally, terrible. Specially cause many comments regarding that (that I put on the post) were people actively disregarding the topic at hand. Saying that Valentino is just a karen, or He is Bubbles coded, feels so out of the realm of everything (the last one didn't feel like making fun of him). I don't like the comparison of an active sexual predator to a mean high school girl or a kinder garden girl that's regarded as bubblely or dumb. Feel like you should reach into his actions over It feels diminishing to me and other people (who also complained about this themselves).

People should be extremely careful of what they portray about this topic in media. Other stuff written in Hazbin or Helluva Boss regarding R-pe jokes also is extremely disgusting to me. Never forget that if you think this portrayal is ok, one episode apart it's a gang r-pe jokes towards Sir Pen... and an r-pe joke towards Moxxie in Spring Brakers. Which I find extremely disrespectful to do and adds to r-pe culture as much as any other r-pe jokes (general or towards men) in media. Especially when they want to portray it in a serious way with Angel, where was that energy then? (Don't say Viv didn't write that, she liked a tweet about the Sir pen joke, and the spring braker is written by Viv and Brandon.)

Also, about manipulation:

The tweet right below says that "He isn't manipulating them" because he is too stupid to do so. Responding "The Vees are just meangirls" it's crazy to me.

About "You said the negative impact of Val was that people are drawing fetish art of him, but the only time I ever see that art is within critic’s posts. It never shows up in my regular feed"

Val has being fetishized by the crew itself! The person (who is not an SA/r-pe victim said by themselves, who has being open of shipping ValxAngel and being into r-pe porn) is the one that produce the whole poison part of the episode (also based on his previously non canon ValxAngel comic). You could also go throught the people Viv's responds and likes and it's mutuals with, and they also do the same thing as this crew-member (Raph). Congrats that it doesn't appear in your timeline, tho. If this art appears in a critic post, it is because it's being criticized or brought up to make a point.

[It's not on my blog yet, but I don't like receiving double ask in the inbox, specially of anons! Sorry. I don't know if it's the same person or not, and I don't want to end up receiving 5 asks in my inbox again.]

[nocompassnosign]

share what clicked about chloe or sam bestie!!

ok so full disclosure this is just how i see it based on vibes, listening to it an extreme amount of times and forcing myself to meditate on it because it was driving me crazy more so than any other song on the album.

the first thing that i could not figure out but that felt very important was the title name. i just think that taylor is either very specific with title names or the name is the name for obvious reasons (main phrase in the chorus). and i believe she went with the very long and demanding to be questioned title because it summarizes the song in that all those names are each different individuals and it doesn't necessarily matter who they are but just that they are separate people, so i think the song is also about multiple individuals and it doesn't matter who they really are what matters is they are all people she's loved or cared deeply for and that ultimately didn't work out BUT what if....

which brought me to the conclusion that the song is basically just the entire thesis of midnights wrapped into one song. why did these old relationships end? it keeps her up in the middle of the night until she sees phantoms of things that never were. in the third verse she even references midnights by saying scarlet maroon and by asking multiple questions...?

i also think the song is very reminiscent of what we've learned through the vaults which is that taylor knows when something is love and doesn't understand why her partner can't also see it. so she states 'if you want to break my cold cold heart just say "i loved you the way that you were"' it's painful to think wow maybe i didn't need to reinvent myself after every relationship ended to be a "better girl" maybe they really did love me all along and had their own issues for why they couldn't tell me.

i’ve already made this too long but i could truly go line by line and interpret how this song is just midnights summarized. i think the verses represent different people she's loved and i think the bridge represents the what if and the knowledge that we can never change what we missed out on so i guess we can just pretend it would have been magical. "you could break me open if you just tell me you really did love me then, and you do still think about it" it's sad in a way where she feels this is her legacy, forever being the one that got away.

[huenistar]

what scenes from movies/shows did you script into your dr? for me it was just the full disclosure scene (su) but i def wanna add more

im not that into movies and shows (due to my short attention span and if a movie or show isnt interesting as soon as i click on it i wont watch it💔 the only show i truly watched and enjoyed was shameless (no im not a gooner its and ACTUALLY GOOD AND INTERESTING SHOW) but i dont remember that much of it even though i watched that show like… 10 times

I REALLY REALLY WISH I COULD HELP U BUT my ideas are running low💔💔

[royal-ruin]

red, white, and royal blue (rwrb) fic rec (part 1)

in honor of the movie coming out, here are some of my fav rwrb fic recs. i have a ton but i'm not entirely sure how many parts this should be, so we'll see.

other rwrb fic recs here personal favorites are starred, by the way. everything is complete unless stated otherwise.

25 Questions by clottedcreamfudge (~2k)

acdiaz how well does @hrhprincehenry know me really??? Time to find out! Full disclosure: he had to be bribed with jaffa cakes to do this, but it was worth it. Every single answer is VERBATIM and if he tells you otherwise it's a LIE.

soft and adorable, the perfect kind of fluff.

I'd Cross Oceans by 14hpgirl19 (~5k)

Dating a prince is hard. Dating a prince when you're the son of the President is even harder.  Alex is done with barely seeing Henry. When Henry gets sick while in London, Alex decides to take matters into his own hands. (And if he ends up with a fiance at the end of it, even better.)

marriage proposal fics are the best, you'll see a ton of them.

titles are the worst, we refuse byathousandrooms, clottedcreamfudge, everwitch, indomitablelove, railmedaddy for TheAmberFox (~11k)

The paparazzi, a friend, their classmates, a true enemy. Alex is no stranger to telling people to fuck off, it’s a daily occurrence; but when it’s Henry who does it? Alex couldn’t be prouder. 5 times Alex tells someone to fuck off and one time Henry does.

i clicked on the fic because one of the tags are "fuck the patriarchy"

**Never Did Run Smooth by clottedcreamfudge (~67k)

"You and me? Best friends. Stellar. Love that for us. But we could absolutely fake being in love. Dating. Whatever. I know literally everything about you—" (No you don't, Henry thinks firmly) "—and you know everything about me. We would absolutely fucking annihilate the other contestants.” "You're too drunk to apply," Henry points out, like he himself isn't about as wasted as it's possible for him to be without curling up and going immediately to sleep. "I doubt you could spell your own name right on the application. Or mine." Alex grins and pulls something up on his phone; it looks like it takes him a few tries. "Wanna fucking bet?" Or: Henry's life is a comedy of errors; a patchwork of oopsie-daisies; a quilt stitched together with hauntingly terrible mistakes. And at the centre of it all is his best friend, Alex Claremont-Diaz; director of said comedy, threading together his oopsie-daisies into a flower crown, rolling around in the quilt of his own making, and this analogy is going to shit because Henry's so in love with him he wants to die.

oh my god??? this fic has my heart?? no other words than must-read.

Play The Game by laurentknows (1k)

The papers get a little too much and Alex and Henry decide to play the game with them.

some sweet fluff and comedy.

Red, White & Navy Blue by jedusaur (~4k)

"Fine," says Alex. He clenches his jaw and his fists. "Great. Watch me. I'll bromance the shit out of the motherfucker."

two words: hockey au

Keep Most of Your Heart in Londonby cresswells (~4k)

Alex thinks he’s prepared – as prepared as he’ll ever be. He’s been waiting for months to do this. He even did his research on the proper etiquette for a British royal engagement – and then promptly ignored it all. AKA: The one with the engagement of the century.

[fruitcoops]

The dorlene love is amazing!! If you are every inclined to write more dorlene smut (or just more dorlene content in general) I would love it!

Dorlene wedding planning on Lion Pride, ft. their content cash cows loving friends <3 Full disclosure: this social media fic was entirely inspired by the Rock the Boat scene in Derry Girls, a show Finn O'Hara would adore. Character credit goes to @lumosinlove!

TW for brief mention of alcohol at weddings

Dorcas’ hair was pinned back with tiny pearl barrettes that matched the buttons on her white suit when the video began. “This is Dorcas Meadowes, and welcome to Lion Pride!” She spread her hands with a smile. “As you can see, wedding season has begun, and I for one simply cannot wait. Not only because several members of the Lions are celebrating their own upcoming nuptials, but more importantly, because I am getting married to our favorite camera darling, Marlene McKinnon.

“Lions, I want you to know one thing when you inevitably watch this: I am shamelessly mining you for wedding playlist ideas because my wife-to-be and I have been too busy filming your nonsense to put the required time or effort into it. You’re welcome.” She winked at the camera. “On to the show! Boys, what are your favorite wedding songs?”

#7: James Potter

James’ brow furrowed slightly. “Do you want my wedding playlist? ‘Cause I’ll send you my wedding playlist. Get Maz in here and we’ll do a walkthrough of each song, I can call Lily—"

#17: Finn O’Hara

“Uh, obviously it’s Rock the Boat,” Finn scoffed. A few beats of silence passed; his eyes widened. “Oh my god, do none of you know the magic of Rock the Boat?”

“Is it like…the Cupid Shuffle?” Dorcas asked.

“Is it—we’re going to pretend you didn’t just ask that. No, no, come here. Ringer!” Finn shouted over his shoulder. “Gimme the speaker for, like, ten minutes! C’mere, D, there’s a dance and everything.”

“I’m in a suit,” Dorcas laughed.

“It’s Rock the Boat,” Finn countered. “You can’t get married without Rock the Boat.”

#5: Olli Halla

Olli thought for a long moment. “Is this a good time to mention that I’ve only been to one wedding?”

#6: Remus Lupin

“Wedding songs? The Electric Slide, hands-down.” Remus gave them a look of mock-offense as he finished taping his stick. “It’s an unbeatable classic. It was the first thing I put on the wedding list.”

#55: Sergei Ivanov

“Oh, god,” Sergei muttered, scratching at his beard. “It’s been too long since I got married. Hey, Dumo, what did you play at your wedding?”

#43: Thomas Walker

“The Cupid fucking Shuffle, Big D,” Talker laughed, meeting Dorcas’ high-five with great enthusiasm. “Yes. That’s what I’m talking about. You can’t have a party without the Cupid Shuffle.”

“That’s what I was saying,” Dorcas agreed.

#86: Evgeni Kuznetsov

Kuny lit up in his stall, then reached over to smack Nado on the leg. “Cha-Cha Slide! Oh my god, favorite. Hey, hey, everybody clap your hands!”

#1: Leo Knut

Leo clicked his tongue thoughtfully. “I’m gonna go with…drunk uncles dancing to Wobble at 4:30 on a Wednesday.”

Dorcas bit back a laugh. “Are the drunk uncles necessary?”

“Oh, without a doubt. If you don’t have your own, storebought is fine. They’re five daquiris in and the life of the fuckin’ party.”

**Editor’s Note: All songs included in this video are central to the Meadowes-McKinnon wedding playlist. Additionally, Dorcas Meadowes looks fine as hell in her suit. Thank you, and goodnight.

[pastorfutureletthembe]

Full disclosure, Link Click Live Action 1x24 was underwhelming.

Honestly, it's been a good ride, Link Click Live Action got better with each episode. 1x20 to 1x23 were actually exciting, I really enjoyed it.

The issue is: you start 1x24 and you already know everything that's gonna happen. And it's kinda boring. It's hard to find this episode emotional because it's one hour long.. and could have been 20 minutes.

Spoilers:

I loved He Xu at first but the acting in the last few episodes was over the top, almost clownesque. I wanted to empathize with him but they made him so "evil". No redemption possible. Supposedly the purpose? Well, I don't eat that kid stuff, the world isn't black or white.

The worst thing is his relationship with Cheng Xiaoshi. Because it was manipulative from the start to the end, I felt cheated. One reason is how Cheng Xiaoshi himself is barely upset about it??? He Xu had actually no affection for the guy at all??? That's sociopathic. And once he understands he failed, he tries to play the victim to get sympathy? Hell no, that made it worse. That's pathetic.

I love the story about his sister to be honest. I always like siblings stuff more than dead wife/husband tropes. The sister is an amazing character. Listen, what's best about this show is how real the female characters are. Her choice made sense, because she met our expectations as the perfect sister one brother would destroy the world for. And the message she left for him was moving. Still. The director made it so long and He Xu's actor made it ridiculous.

I think they could have done better. Lots of good ideas. The whole plotline about He Xu using CXS's ability to change the past was genius. CXS going back as himself?? ✨👌👀 It's too bad the realization wasn't able to keep up but the show isnt so bad.

Note: I was actually annoyed with Lu Guang's hair subplot. They just decided it was a fun wink to the fans and did it last minute. I'm not buying this snack, nope. The last scene was cute tho. LC's donghua opening as end credits throw me into the sun.

[beth-purcell]

Beth Rambles about Bendy

because holy crap I may have been hit with a horrifying aha moment. And full disclosure, I am aware that it sounds very Tin Hat and making a lot of assumptions, but at this moment I need to get it spewed out of my head. So be aware that I'm going to be emulating the Pepe Silvia meme

And just as a heads up, I'm mentioning the designs that were leaked in the Dreams Come to Life graphic novel so click Keep Reading at your own risk! And please don't be rude or try and go after anybody, this is my own opinions and frazzled freight train thoughts.

So I just got hit with a realization regarding the graphic novel and the whole decanonization with the books.

Mike and Meatly did it so they could avoid the backlash of the designs in the graphic novel and whatever they've got planned with the games moving forward, especially as it pertains to the character's designs. Or alternatively, they did it (the blunt "the books aren't canon anymore") to distract and/or pull one over on the fans so that way they can put their designs into the games and not deal with as much as scrutiny.

Cause we've seen with BATDR that they've improved the designs of the human characters compared to Joey in BATIM, and given we have both The Cage, a game that's focusing on the horrors of GENT (which involve human experimentation as far as BATDR hinted at) and B3NDY probably focusing on the aftermath of BATDR from Audrey's perspective, which you would think would involve her trying to deal with her new living toon roommate while factoring the consequences of being pulled into the Inky Hellscape on a Monday/Tuesday depending on the time Wilson dragged her in and how long she was actually trapped there (which ya know, wasn't answered in game). Either way, there's a lot of potential of more human characters to interact with, and if they really wanted to push the idea of a more "mature" and "experimental" [And boy do I have thoughts about that], what better way than having in-universe film of experiments or photos of the victims, or even flashback sequences we could play through?

It's not a secret that Mike and Meatly are very controlling in regard to their IPs (Adrienne confirming that they had a hand in every book; what happened to Showdown Bandit; Mike's own comments in the Bendy AMA; etc) and they have a tendency to ignore the room and stick their foot in their mouths (The fact it was only Mike that made acknowledgement of the Kindly Beast Firings and the accused workplace abuse; Mike deciding to "be clearer" on Meatly's comment regarding the books being fun extras; the situation less than two weeks ago that led to Mike to delete his Twitter again; etc). And let's be real, the quality control on the graphic novel is abyssmal, even for a extremely rushed project. Like I'd argue this is past "get it done good enough" or "we're making games for stupid kids" and I'm in absolute shock that this is what happened.

Obviously the idea of them on purposely setting things in place to either distract the fan base or try and claim control over the "canon" would imply that they are competent enough to think ahead and be able to convince Scholastic to risk customer goodwill, but I find it so strange that they started this takedown of the books's role in the canon less than two months away from Fade to Black's release and then the continuing snowballing. It's probably more likely that Mike got tired of people praising the books for their work and wanted control, and basically convinced Meatly that they had to change the books' canon status because it wouldn't fit with their plans, and they didn't think of the consequences, especially after people found leaks and preview images and the fact that people still know what Mike had said in regard to diversity back during the Bendy AMA:

And while I've been putting blame on Mike, as he's been the one to be more vocal and obvious, Meatly is just as bad for letting this to get to this point, for letting Mike stick his foot in his mouth and constantly put the Bendy brand in a negative light and undermine him with every opportunity. Like I don't know what the business relationship is like, but at some point you gotta put your foot down.

As much as it's unlikely, I do like the theory @mickeys-malarkey posted where there could be more to the whole graphic novel of Buddy's take on events that just being an adaptation. I mean the idea of the graphic novels being an extension of Joey's attempts to cover his ass would be an amazing spin on the Mascot Horror media outside of the video games.

Hopefully those two manage to keep quiet for a while and not pull a "OwO here be the Cage's trailer~! And Lone Wolf Release!" and try to drown out the graphic novel's release but I'm not holding my breath xp

[broomsticks]

fic length by fic type (category & ship): hp fandom stats

more statsy conversation in the @hpsaffics discord -- @siriusly-sapphic and I were wondering how fic length varied with popularity of ship. @toastystats' findings that het works tend to be longer than f/f and m/m came to mind, and I was reminded that I've been meaning to check if some of these v interesting findings are true for harry potter fic, specifically!

so anyway I did not do quite that but did something kind of related:

took the total number of works on AO3 (filtered for english only, no crossovers, wc>=1, and otp:true), sorted by word count, and clicked through to get the word count of the ~10th* percentile fic, ~20th percentile fic, etc etc)

(*full disclosure: i used google sheet formulas to get the page number and took the word count of the first fic on that page. so, nth percentile work +/- 20 works.)

"F/F only" = F/F -F/M -M/M &c

"excl. top10" = excluded the top 10 ships, "excl. top 20" = did that and then did it again, which IK may not precisely be the top 20 ships but hey. the most common ships left were Prongsfoot, Linny, and Tomione, at ~1k works each out of 78.5k.

this above is the master graph, zoomed in versions below because the scale of that graph is impossible to actually read

'smooth line chart' went a little wonky on that last graph but

seems like the het ships DO tend to have long fics. feels like sevmione has a ton of both long (>20k) fic and midlength fic, and dramione has a lot of midlength (5-10k) fic, and jily more ~1-5k fic.

snarry has a lot of unusually short fics (<500, <1k words) that drag down the bottom-most part of the chart, but there's proportionally a lot of >20k longfic too. wolfstar surprisingly has much less >50k work than the other two mslash ships! in fact wolfstar & snarry have some real interesting contrasts going on there.

HP femslash is noticeably shorter than other types of works, ~30% shorter than mslash at every percentile and almost half the length of het works. the catch-up to mslash at the 99th percentile (or, conversely, drop-off of mslash?) is intriguing though!

brief observation re. third graph: interesting -- in the mid range at least, wolfstar looks/behave a lot more like a 'rarepair' (anything excluding the top 10 ships) than drarry, snarry, or even "M/M -F/F -F/M".