#gravity never failed [relativity falls.]

[precipine]

Tag dump!

[precipine]

Adding onto this!

Dipper's ultimate goal was to make a documentary about Gravity Falls specifically; it used to be a docuseries called The Guide to the Unexplained, but once he and Mabel settled in Gravity Falls, it became clear that he wanted to do a film on this town specifically.

One of his cameras and most of his old tapes are hidden somewhere in the Shack (probably in his room, which, like Ford's, has probably been sealed up for a little while).

He had his main handheld video camera when he got pushed by Gideon tripped into the portal as well as his favorite tapes; a travelog of his road trip with Mabel, the first tape he and Mabel made when they got to Gravity Falls, and an equally silly home video of him and Pacifica. They're a little worn now, maybe skip a few times more than they used to, but they're his most prized possessions and he watched them on repeat while he was in the multiverse.

Protectiveness, spite, and guilt have been keeping him going all this time; he's determined to get back home to Mabel and to make sure that Gideon, creep that he is, hasn't hurt her or worse. The betrayal has turned into a festering, gaping wound, and he blames himself for not having seen how crazy the whole thing was and how Gideon was using them sooner. He probably has to be physically torn away from Gideon when he sees him again. He's so angry.

When he comes back and sees that Mabel is okay, she's safe, and that Gideon (and that weird triangle thing that he seemed weirdly familiar with... what was his name? Bill something...?) hasn't blown up the universe since he's been gone, he immediately collapses out of sheer exhaustion with the world's worst emotional hangover and sleeps for anywhere from 12 to 72 hours.

He gets even madder at Gideon when he realizes he should've spent way more time enjoying the multiverse and documenting all the cool things he saw and places he went (he did some of that, which he's happy to show Mabel, Pacifica, and the boys, but nowhere near as much as he'd like) but he was so stressed out about getting home he couldn't even enjoy it (not that he wouldn't have enjoyed it much anyways, not without Mabel).

Wendy takes on kind of a big sister role to Mabel and Dipper when they first get to town and takes them under her wing, showing them around and introducing them to everyone. Dipper's disappearance hits her very hard, but she sticks by Mabel and does whatever she can to help her through.

relativity falls au headcanons + hcs about the day she lost dipper ( as shared with @precipine )

dipper and mabel moved to gravity falls because they were on a roadtrip and came across the weird and unusual. dipper wanted to study these abnormalities, mabel wanted to befriend them.

she and dipper have collaboration journals, she does all the scrapbooking, he does all the academic writing about what's going on in gravity falls.

mabel dated gideon gleeful for a few years, all while he helped them continue in their research. eventually he brought up magics and told them that he knew a way to expand their knowledge of the unknown. together, gideon, mabel, and dipper created the portal under dipper and mabel's house together.

it became more aware as the portal completed that gideon's portal was seemingly dark. the first time they powered it on, something evil came out of it. ( triangular, yellow, you get the gist )

it seemed to disappear and mabel immediately shut off the portal, asking what the heck that was.

gideon, outraged, powered the thing back on and yelled at them that they were stopping his plan of wanting to become master of all things weird that could come out of that portal.

huge argument lead into mabel unsure how to handle the situation and gideon screaming at them as they backed close into the portal.

dipper tripped and almost fell into the portal but mabel caught him. both twins then started getting sucked into it, mabel reached out for gideon as the portal tried to suck in both twins.

pacifica, just visiting the twins, walked down to visit dipper because she knew her boyfriend and mabel had been working on something in their basement for awhile, only to see the madness that was ocurring, and went to shut down the portal with the fail switch since it was using too much power and was about to take the twins.

wasn't strong enough for the fail safe.

decided to just pull the plug.

gideon "heroically tried" to save both of them but ended up only pulling his precious mabel to safety only.

due to the way that pacifica physically pulled the power from the portal, the portal refused to turn back on and dipper was lost from the portal short circuiting.

mabel immediately dumped gideon and told him that she never wanted to see him again.

she's still friends with pacifica (maybe they even dated for a little bit), but pacifica thinks mabel needs to accept that her twin brother 'died', but she holds onto hope that she can get him back. (mabel wanting to get dipper back has made dating mabel hard, so pacifica ended up dumping her but they're still friends)

[hold-on-a-little-longer-whump]

Indestructible characters breaking, my beloved

Give me the "indestructible" character needing medical attention! *cough* MurderBot *cough* They're so unused to pain that when they finally do take a hit that's powerful enough to make them stagger, the whole world tilts on it's damned axis. And of course that leads to further damage, because they're not able to give 100% to the fight. Their reflexes are slower, their endurance draining as steadily as the blood leaking from their body. They should be able to run faster than this, should be able to carry heavier loads, should have steadier aim. They shouldn't be out of breath - shouldn't be sweating - shouldn't feel like their heart was about to collapse in on itself.

And then - then their team rallies. Their vulnerable, soft friends that need to wear stronger armor - armor that makes them slower than they already are. Suddenly gravity is less of a challenge, and they realize (too slowly) that it's because a teammate is on either side of them, helping them remain upright. It doesn't matter how much they demand to know why they're out from cover. No matter how furiously they order their team to fall back, it's as if their orders fall on deaf ears. Either with strength in numbers or sheer luck, the team manages to fend off whatever enemy they were facing long enough to retreat.

Where the indestructible character could have easily carried one of them alone, it takes two teammates just to help them limp to safety. But their feet are too heavy and their head is too light. One of their legs isn't working right and there's a strange tightness in their chest. Something sharp keeps biting into their back and the fabric of their undershirt clings to their skin in too many places. Maybe they stumble, or outright collapse. A third teammate steps in to help carry them. Even then, they need to take turns. By the time they reach relative safety, their healthy complexion has gone ashen.

And it's so, so foreign to be the one at the center of attention. The medic(s) had never worked on them before. They had never had so many hands on them at once, not like this - and certainly not out of concern or urgency. Hands patting their face, stripping armor away, checking their pulse and applying pressure. Their cheeks were damp with a saltiness they could only associate with sweat or blood - certainly not tears. And they still couldn't catch their breath.

All at once, sensation comes crashing into their awareness. And it hurts - it hurts. They grit their teeth against the roar of pain that rises within their chest, but it escapes anyway. More hands clamber to grab ahold of them, only just managing to keep them still. But the pain is still there. Blinding. Nauseating. So powerful that they don't even register the tearful pleas to open their eyes, to 'look at me,' to breathe, to stay awake, to just hold on a little longer. Look at me. Look at me!

This was wrong. They shouldn't be the one being cared for. They shouldn't be surrounded by a blur of familiar faces. They didn't need protecting. They shouldn't be at the center of this guarded circle - shouldn't be guarded by small, vulnerable people. They did the caring. They provided strength when it was needed. They protected. They guarded. They... they had failed.

Give me an indestructible character that, when they break, they shatter.

[dannyphantom-justiceleauge]

The Fenton's powering the town via a portal to all times and dimensions is underused for eldritch town purposes. What if Sam's parents got replaced by a relative from the 60s and no one remembered? What about traits changing and no one commenting? People moving away only to have never considered moving a week later? And maybe only Danny and other ghosts notice.

This itches part of my brain in a good way. It also makes me think of nightvale and gravity falls as similar eldritch areas/hubs for the weird.

I've seen plenty if scenarios where amity is weird because of ambient ectoplasm leaking from the portal. Connecting ectoplasm to the power grid is just gonna speed that leak up. Pair this with amity canonically surviving both an apocalypse (via dan) and a trip to the zone (via pariah dark) due to the advanced ghost sheild it has. And mix in the headcannon the the giw pulled a massive coverup and basically wiped amity off the map and prevents people from contacting the outside world with tech. Maybe run with the amity is hard to find or leave due to dimension/ghost/magic. And we have a lovely little horror town.

Amity park, a place that is entirely paranormal, out of time, and technologically independent. A place that can survive virtually anything with its sheilds. A place where ghosts attack so regularly that the school has drills on how to react. A place that's been attacked by multiple gods in a short period of time. A place where the weatherman reports ghost attacks and if a specific person is going to be driving that day. (Asside the amount of visable crimes we see jack do, not just in driving but osha violations, assult, and property damage is making me wonder if he has some sort of diplomatic immunity. Why is he not in jail?)

The point is amity is absolutely a place where if you're driving late at night and your car breaks down, you find that you're not in kansas anymore. They have immaculately created an environment that sets of 'somethings not right here' vibes. And thats without looking at the physical effects of having an interdementional portal running the city's energy grid, the actual ghost attacks and the weird shit from that. I like to imagine that after undergrowths attack there are still parts of the city that haven't been reclaimed from plant hell. Gravity probably doesn't work right consistently. There's just pools of ectoplasm around from fights and there's a chance that if you poke those pools with a stick, the pool will come alive. There is a cooked turkey living in the alleys and gathering an army of living hot dogs. The teenagers all have been trained to fight and use weapons. There's a military presence trying to hush things up and attacking civilians.

Amity has so fully embraced being weird! i need more stories of normal people, or outside heroes, recognizing that this place is messed up and basically feeling like they're in a horror movie. Meanwhile everyone in amity is perfectly polite and adjusted to the weird. Crime is at an all time low, reparing property damage has been reduced down to a science, and a little common sense can get you out of most situations. All else fails just wait for Phantom.

Anything can be normal if you live in it long enough. But that doesn't mean the unprepared aren't right to be afraid

- hestia

[celestialpaperhaze]

I'm not sure if this is a consistent thing across RPGs, but I've noticed Paper Mario games have a bit of a pattern in terms of plot progression. I can't speak much on PM64 because I never played it in its entirety, but both TTYD and SPM seem to pick up on or around chapter 6.

SPM and TTYD SPOILERS BELOW!

Don't get me wrong, TTYD has a pretty solid plot progression throughout the entire game, for the most part (which some have said SPM is lacking). I think the earlier chapters of TTYD just end up splitting their attention between the overall plot and the designated chapter subplots more. Chapter 1 has Koops trying to find his dad alongside Mario searching for the first Crystal Star. Chapter 2 is as much about helping the Punies as it is about beating the X-Nauts. Chapter 3 places a lot of focus on solving the mystery of the Glitz Pit (which I do think is one of its core strengths; you're in a relatively small area which allows the plot to build itself in a more localized environment). Chapter 4 is about saving the people of Twilight Town from the pig curse, and it also has Vivian's sub-plot of freeing herself from her sisters. But Chapter 5 starts to change this trend a little bit because you literally have Lord Crump with you the entire time, and the big threat essentially returns.

So why is it that I think Chapter 6 is the turning point of The Thousand-Year Door? Something about it just feels FINAL. And indeed, chapter 6 is the last sort of whimsical chapter in the game before the plot focuses solely on the threat at hand. By the time you reach Poshley Sanctum, the majestic atmosphere of the hall with the real Crystal Star makes you feel like "wow this is really an important thing." That gravity is followed up by the post-chapter Peach interlude where Tec is caught betraying Grodus, which interrupts the narrative flow of "Peach helps Tec > Tec lets Peach send mail > Peach goes back to room." It makes the player realize the routine comforts of the game are being taken away, and it makes the threat feel more palpable. For most of Chapter 7, the stakes feel high solely because you're exploring the enemy's base, something you've only seen in bits and pieces through Peach's interludes. The way the momentum just carries itself from the end of Chapter 6 all the way through the end of the game is just brilliant!

Now with SPM, a lot of people have argued that the plot just doesn't get GOOD until chapter 5. And I can understand that, to be honest. Chapter 1 is very much a tutorial section to get you used to the gameplay, then the next few chapters kind of fall into a pattern. Around chapter 5, it starts to feel more like Paper Mario because the conflict between the Cragnons and the Floro Sapiens has more intrigue to it then some of the subplots in other chapters. But mostly, it's chapter 6 where things start to change because this is where Super's narrative flow gets interrupted. A little ways through the chapter, the world you're exploring is erased. Instead of "Explore world > bosses > get thing > end chapter" you have "Explore world > world is destroyed > look for thing > thing is not right > how to fix thing" and so on. This ups the stakes because not only are you being shaken from the comfort of the game's established routine, but you're also faced with the main threat of the game directly. You're seeing what The Void can do, and what it WILL do it you don't stop it.

I feel like SPM fails a little bit in one regard, which is the momentum. I'm totally biased because I don't really enjoy chapter 7, but I feel like chapter 7 is a bit of a pause in the momentum that chapter 6 created. You don't really see any of Bleck's minions, though you do get Luigi so I guess that's a plus. Whereas in TTYD, when the momentum picks up, it just keeps going. Regardless, I love both games.

[strawberryicemoon]

I am curious, how do the other story driven Disney shows with Gravity Falls, Star vs the Forces of Evil, Amphibia, and Owl House fare in comparison to DuckTales 2017? Do you think they all had similar problems of trying to cram too much (and for Owl House's case, it had their final seaosn shortened so there was definitely some sense of having to cram for the final)?

Wow a question. I'm honored that you think so highly of anything I've said previously to be worth requesting my insight. Though, I must preface this is only my opinion, as I don't know anything about cartoon development, but I will do my best to answer. This is an incredibly broad question that a lot of people have talked about before, so I'm not sure I have anything particularly new to add.

But to give a short answer: I don't think the main issue was entirely cramming in any of these cases. I think "rushed/crammed" and "satisfying endings" are not mutually exclusive. I think the issue is more a result of how the show was paced by the creators and a mis-prioritization of episode focus and misalignment of what the show is wanting to say vs. actually saying.

Now for a longer answer:

In the case of Ducktales for example the lack of prioritization of at least asking important questions meant that important questions blindsided us out of nowhere long after we assumed there must have been a far more mundane explanation, or vice versa. See I always figured "Webby's parents" must have a relatively mundane answer that she knows, otherwise its weird that the question was never brought up. So when it finally is, it feels really out of character that this was never addressed earlier. Conversely, when word of god says Hortense and Quackmore are still alive despite never appearing and Scrooge referring to Donald as a "ward", implying he was orphaned they may not have actual canon characterization, but I still feel its out of character for them not to be involved in their children and grandchildren's life. Overall Ducktales just seemed to be unsure of its own story in the end, focusing more on one off episodes without perspectiveto the larger story leaving it to me, personally, to be unsatisfying. So it wasn't the cramming alone, but that coupled with a lack of a strong enough center storyline to tie it together emotionally.

Unfortunately, I have not seen Star vs. in its entirety, as it never really clicked with me. I started it, I've seen several episodes here and there and watched an abundance of videos that touch on it either in the context of other videos or even just videos about it, so I am very familiar with it. But I do not feel I am qualified to talk about it in any meaningful way. Take my opinions here with an entire mountain of salt, but from what I've gleaned, it seems like Star Vs. had a grand, thematic idea about its finale, (remove the tool used to subjugate altogether) but failed to properly build to it, or consider how it would work in the context they'd spent several season building outside of those themes. As such "thematic" ending feels sudden, and a bad idea, even if it is, thematically strong and interesting. It sounds like it could have been interesting if they had actually taken some time to work out some of the kinks in the execution. But again, never was a Star fan so idk but it always sounded to me like they had time, but were busy with other plotlines.

In that sense it sounds a lot like Ducktales, in the sense they had a grand ideal "Webby being scrooge's daughter makes her valuable as blood, but her having clones shows that it was never the blood but the love that makes her loved". And the idea of building from stranger to daughter. But in both cases that is way too much to throw on right at the end, and while I do kinda appreciate and get what they were going for, as mentioned a few things about it just doesn't sit right and they could have the "Webby is heir" without the blood.

While I enjoyed some of the cameos just fine, Ducktales 3rd season did have a problem with too many cameos. The fact of the matter is that Ducktales 2017s new viewers could not care less about these one-off-cameos to TV shows from about 3 decades earlier. This of course also colored the finale, in how they debuted Daisy's nieces. April May June, who were nobody to most people but stripped of their one canon characteristic, being Daisy's nieces, to others. I mean, did May and June have to be separate characters for any reason other than a reference? I mean yeah, they are able to play off each other as a pair, but still. The cramming was less an issue than what felt like references for references sake than fleshing out worldbuilding and the diverse characters of the world which is unique to its status as a reboot. Meanwhile when other shows introduce characters there is usually more of a reason than "fit them in somehow". But what makes a good reboot is an entirely different discussion.

Owl House definitely suffered from being cut short. It was definitely not meant to be such a short show. You can practically feel the half a season of human world, and certain a few more episodes of plot in the demon realm crammed together in season 3. I think the Wittebane brother backstory, and an arc in which we see Vee and Luz really become sisters would have benefited from time to breath. I think a longer time on Willow's breakdown arc. Maybe more time to explore Gus's feelings. But at the same time it is very impressive what they did with such a short period. For the most part even if they weren't able to delve into everything, they hit the most important parts of a lot of things, that I think all things considered it didn't suffer horribly from being cut short. I think it deserved that full season and would have been all the better for it. But I think the Owl House was an incredible example of how to manage shortened time. It's definitely rushed, but all the important story beats still made it in, so I don't feel like important story steps were skipped. (I think the large time gaps also helped, certain developments could be inserted into those, so even if things are rushed on the viewing side, it makes me feel like things did actually happen at a natural pace on the in universe side). The finale and the thematic conclusion of the show felt like a natural extension of the themes the show was touting all along. You have to choose yourself. The act of love that is being in someone's life. The profound importance of trying to understand others and desiring to be understood. It made sense in world, and in the themes of the show. There may have been a lot crammed into the finale, but it was all necessary beats that had already been set up and needed to be concluded, even the "new" stuff (like Willow's arc and the Wittebane brothers) weren't entirely new.

I DO think Amphibia could have benefited from an extra season, one for each half of season 3, to really help us emotionally settle into the human realm and the rebellion. But I could also make an argument otherwise. Which is probably why the 3 seasons was purposeful. I understand that decision. Because the first half of season 3 is meant to harken back to season 1 which took its time to let Anne grow naturally. But then again, season 3 is supposed to be a victory lap of sorts for Anne, showing her growth. I don't think we needed a full season for that. But we did definitely need a bit more time with the rebellion, but I think nearly every LA episode was necessary. And maybe in this sense, Amphibia is a victim of the strict arc lengths that television necessitates. Because if we look the overall episode count I think there was definitely enough time for this story. I think if we had taken maybe a some episodes off season one and maybe one or two off season two, and threw them into make season 3 a bit longer we wouldn't have this issue. Or better yet, just made season 3 an extra long season. Or added a movie to the end to act as the finale. I don't think it needed a whole other season, and I don't think it ended prematurely, but I do think it could have used some more episodes. Not even a lot of extra episodes. Just like. Maybe two more human world episodes and 4 more rebellion episodes. And it's not that I think we were MISSING anything out of season 3 plot wise (aside from properly addressing Anne trauma Sasha/Marcy parents but that's a whole other thing that could have been sprinkled in), but just that I think the seasons felt rushed because we lost the slower pace of the first season. But then again maybe that's on purpose? But I think its also possible some of the episodes could have been used better, and took more time to touch on some other things. I honestly have yet to properly come to a conclusion about it, and quite frankly I probably never will. Because I don't think there was necessarily a better answer given the constraints. I think some people may disagree with how Amphibia prioritized its story elements, but I personally at least understand them. Either way, regardless of the shakiness of Season 3, the finale was near perfect, because, like the Owl House, it delivered on the themes of its show, in. I know for some people things in the finale, such as the prophecy and the separation came as a surprise. But it really wasn't for me. I went into the finale confident because I didn't feasibly see a way for the show to upset me, since I think the most upsetting possibilities (deaths/separation), had been set up thematically well. And also the fact Amphibia played genre conventions pretty straight so I saw the separation coming. As in back during season 1 my first fic was a drabble about Anne reminiscing about Sprig long after Amphibia. (Though I suppose knowing being here since the beginning and knowing that that Matt Braly described Amphibia as an ode to past friendships, and having watched Digimon Adventure and Magic Knight Rayearth which were both cited as inspirations probably helped me understand his creative vision). I understood the friends going their separate ways, but still being close since that was something I've experienced in my own life and the permanent separation was something I understood well as an element of the genre and it's thematic relevance in the value of even temporary things. In the end I still found the finale, and the show satisfying.

I do think you could say Amphibia crammed a bit too much into its final season, but since its final season was meant to bring the first two seasons full circle, it had a hell of a job to do. I think it could have cut some stuff, but then again, it would probably have weekened Amphibia's main thesis about the value of community and individuals. While family factored into Amphibia's story it waz never the main point, hence why even though Anne was Polly's sister and Hop Pop's granddaughter, being Sprig's friend was prioritzed. To summarize my rambling, Amphibia's cramming had a point, to show the vibrancy of life on Amphibia and why Anne would die to protect it. It's final arc didn't introduce so many new characters so much as return to them. The first half of the season notwithstanding.

Gravity Falls is another show that definitely was ended exactly when it meant to on purpose, and I do think it ends up being a little back heavy. I haven't rewatched it super recently, but i think it works fine, its biggest crime being lack of Wendy honestly. And that's absolutely on the creators. They could have made that work but it was not a big enough priority for them and a character who is otherwise framed as being important it just "love interest". Again, the priorities of the writing staff. Otherwise I don't feel anything is particularly rushed or crammed because it does manage to cover everything important and I don't think there was too much extraneous. Anything extra can be relegated to books and comics easily without missing anything.

You didn't bring up The Ghost and Molly McGee, but it is another Disney (more episodic but still has a story) cartoon. It was cancelled abruptly while season 3 was in production, but was given one episode to wrap things up, so it's last episode feels abrupt compared to its previous episode (which was meant to be a season finale and would have been so bad as a series finale). But since the seeds for it were laid early, and the main plot of the episode had basically been a confirmation of a fan theory, and was otherwise purely character drama it was allowed to just hit hard without tying up the hanging plot threads (that the previous episode mostly closed). The fandom mourns the lost plotlines, but the finale is also decently open ended while still providing a conclusive ending to the story. The show COULD have used more. There are definitely lots of things that could have been elaborated on. But it ultimately didn't NEED more. I think they could have gotten away with one season, even if I don't think it would have worked as well. My point is a show cut off early was still able to have a good finale, and was able to not rush itself, simply by being able to cut off plotlines before they started. This obviously doesn't work for all shows, and was just a benefit of TGAMM's more episodic episode. But it still worked. So I think NOT cramming a lot in is helpful of course, but I don't think it really works for all stories.

Unlike The Owl House and The Ghost and Molly McGee, Milo Murphy's Law didn't get the privileged of a couple extra and instead just ends with Milo in space. Of course, otherwise, the show didn't have any outstanding open plot threads. But at the same time, MML like all dwampyverse shows goes at 110% all the time, who knows what random bullshit will become a repeated plot element. Fortunately MML takes place in a multiverse with one of, if not the most popular Disney cartoon so its possible Milo will get some sort of closure in S5 of Phineas and Ferb. The finale was fine though, if not series finale fine, it was a good enough season finale. But that the show needed more time. But ask any MML fan and they'll tell you not that the show was rushed, but that we wasted too much time with Dr. D. I think that just goes on back to the it's not entirely about if you have enough time, but if you're able to properly prioritize what you're including and if that you're able to build up to the finale, at least in a way where you aren't pulling the rug out from under your viewers at the last second no matter where you are in your story.

Cramming is only an issue when the content being crammed in is less interesting than the alternative and/or doesn't serve the larger picture of the stories show. And in fairness I don't think Ducktales was the worst at this, but it did exasperbate other issues such as improperly setting up twists and losing a clear focus on how the themes and main character arcs/backstories of the show were handled. The finale in fairness did deal with a bit of appreciating the people and weirdness of the world, but it had so many other things going on too.

Good finales require good build up. A finale is absolutely dependent on the story leading up to it. But a finale can be bad all on its own regardless of how rushed something is. A good finale is good because of the build up, of not just the few episodes preceding but the whole show. A finale can be good (even if not great), so long as the show has been building up to it since the very beginning even if the immediately preceding episodes are rushed. But a bad finale is bad because it doesn't match the story building up to it. Some bad finales maybe could have been good, but very rarely is a show suddenly bad in its finale, its usually the result of a series of decisions made before the finale. Unfortunately that isn't always made clear until hindsight.

I also think the mark of an appealing finale, despite being rushed, is when its still possible to have stories that fill in those gaps made retroactively. A rushed story that also shuts out or in some way "poisons" any possibility for engaging future story telling and theorizing is particularly biting because it feels forever cut off, whether that be because there is no room for interquels that tell the in between stories that help flesh out character arcs without feeling needlessly doomed, or post-canon content that has the option of addressing things otherwise unaddressed. Though opinions on where these lines may very drastically. As much as I love the Amphibia ending, people who didn't like it, may feel a bit bitter that options are seemingly cut off from them in a canon context. Meanwhile for as rushed as The Owl House is, the plot still feels very open for places to extrapolate on. TGAMM straddles an awkward line where stories can theoretically continue, but with a major shift in status quo regarding a main protagonist. Ducktales has lots of openings, but only so long as you can accept the fact that Webby is Scrooge's clone and May and June's existance. Which some can and happily do ofc which is great, but after the finale large segments of the fandom withered away.

But not all people want to tell open ended stories and that's okay too, even if not everyone will be happy with it. At the end of the day not everyone will appreciate everything.

Someone needs to ask me about something positive about Ducktales though now because I feel like I'm turning into a Ducktales hater. (Maybe I could talk about the ideas for a Ducktales iteration that's been brewing in my mind, or certain implications in how S1 built up the secret of Della Duck).

[late-to-the-magnus-archives]

All my fic brain has been hijacked

The Magnus Archives AU. - Jon/Martin friends since teeny-tiny days - Professional Photographer Jon, jetting around the world and getting The Best Rarest Pics - Professional baker Martin, who survives off his YouTube channel - Featuring Vast!Jon and Lonely!Martin - Shenanigans - Two idiots who needs their heads thocked together - Angst - More Shenanigans - Angst and eventual happy ending but we are gonna have to EARN it, folks

Anyway, here's a snippet. Enjoy!

Er. "Enjoy" being relative. This would be where Jon is marked by the Vast.

I am so mean to my babies...

-----------------------

Jon never knew it could be so cold.

It’s so cold that he can’t feel the metal impaling his side, keeping him trapped.

So cold he can’t feel his fingers, his toes, his back against the snow, though he hears it crunching beneath him.

So cold his eyes feel like thin sheets of ice form over them between every blink.

It seems unfair that anything this cold could still hurt.

And it does. A deep ache through his whole body, probably caused by his circulatory system’s desperate attempt to constrict everything and keep him alive.

Pointless. What a stupid biological response.

I told you, Martin, he’d said one day, when Martin’s latest muffins had burned his hand and Jon had tenderly wrapped it. Our bodies are stupid. They didn’t evolve right. What’s the point of hands being so vulnerable to fire, anyway? They should be more heat resistant than anything else we grow!

Weird, the things that come to you when you’re dying.

Jon tries to move again, but at last, his body has stopped obeying him. He cannot even seem to breathe deeply anymore.

The jagged metal that pierced him - penetrated, bursting out the other side like some weird, red birth  - is still there, a weird and uncomfortable pressure, but at least it no longer hurts the way it first did.

Jon is trapped, staring at endless sky, like a bug pinned on its back.

A groan from somewhere behind him is no comfort. He doesn’t know how the rest of the team is - besides dying or dead - but he was the only one, after the crash, that called hello.

And help.

And Please, I don’t want to die.

The sky did not care.

Though now, it seems to listen.

Blood loss, he thinks, because it has to be, because the sky is atmospheric gasses and radiation and gravity, not a thing that can curve down toward you like a hand in a big blue mitten.

It’s terrifying, this hallucination.

He keeps staring, still.

He’d stared at the sky when the plane’s first engine went out, when they were still over Xi’an, and there was time to turn back.

He’d stared at the sky when the second engine went, somewhere over Chengdu, and the pilot’s rapid, angry Mandarin failed to get a response on the radio.

He’d stared when the third engine went, and everyone panicked, and - trying not to drown in sound of the people he’d lived with and loved for three years crying shouting and praying and pleading - pushed his mind and his gaze and his self out toward that perfect, thin horizon, instead of anticipating his horrible, flaming, crushing death.

He does not remember when the fourth failed. He’d stopped listening.

And when he saw the white, jagged mountain coming at the plane so fast, too fast, like a fist, all he could do was curl in a ball and close his eyes.

This’ll cost National Rage at least 6k, he thinks in a daze, tallying up the cameras, the hard drives, the lights, the mics, the various equipment his team had carried safely through four continents and twenty-eight countries.

What a weird thing to think.

Jon does not want to die.

“Martin,” he whispers, and tastes blood as his lips crack.

He wishes…

They should have kissed. He’s a moron.

My fault, he thinks, but has no strength to laugh.

His eyes will no longer close. All he can see is blue.

Gravity feels reversed. Like he’s falling up, somehow, away from the world, spinning without moving at all.

Maybe the sky will swallow him.

Maybe he’d like it to.

It seems… a peaceful way to be eaten.

Jon stares at the sky, and stops fighting to breathe.

[panoralis]

❝  I  CAN’T  SEE  MYSELF  THROUGH  YOUR  EYES  ˒  𝐢.  astre’s  anatomy

STAGE  NAME  :  kokomi  ❪  코코미  ❫

BIRTH  NAME  :  kozume  misa  ❪  孤爪 美沙  ❫

ENGLISH  NAME  :  lilia

BIRTHDAY  :  january  25  ,  2001  ❪  aquarius  ❫

BIRTH  PLACE  :  osaka  ,  japan

ETHNICITY  :  japanese

KNOWN  FAMILY  :  maternal  aunt  ,  cousin  &  nakamoto  yuta  ❪  distant  uncle  ❫

LANGUAGES  :  japanese  ,  korean  ,  english  ,  chinese  &  french

⸻  𝐚.  darling  ,  how  do  i  LOOK ?

FACE  CLAIM  :  fukutomi  tsuki  of  billlie

HEIGHT  :  one  hundred  seventy  two  point  seven  centimetres  or  five  feet  eight  inches

BODY  MODIFICATION(S)  :  standard  lobes  &  forward  helix  on  left  ear

⸻  𝐛.  watch  myself  bloom  through  the  DOWNPOUR .  

FLOWERS  :  there’s  no  way  you  can  hate  this  girl  because  she’s  just  so  adorable  and  sweet  ;  a  real  life  cinnamon  roll  to  be  exact  .  she’s  so  enthusiastic  and  excited  about  everything  that  everyone  just  wonders  if  this  is  her  first  life  .  like  the  other  girls  ,  she’s  got  a  big  brain  and  she  likes  to  use  it  for  creating  choreographies  .

SHOWERS  :  an  innocent  soul  ,  she’s  the  most  likely  to  fall  for  others’  ruse  and  get  taken  advantage  of  .  her  and  gravity  are  also  incompatible  ,  like  she  could  just  be  spinning  on  her  chair  and  suddenly  topple  over  with  it  (  someone  bubble  wrap  the  j-line  please  )  .  struggles  to  make  decisions  ,  even  for  the  smallest  things  like  which  dress  should  she  buy  .  plot  twist  :  they’re  the  same  style  ,  just  different  colors  … 

⸻  𝐜.  you  will  always  be  my  CELEBRITY !

LABEL(S)  :  astre  entertainment  ❪  2013  -  present  ❫

PROFESSION  :  idol

GROUP  :  pandora

POSITION  :  dancer  ,  rapper  &  choreographer

YET  YOU  NEVER  FAIL  TO  WEAR  MY  SMILE  ˒  𝐢𝐢.  and  her  history  ❞

❪  tw  :  unknown  disappearance  ,  hate  &  mention  of  food  ❫

VINTAGE.  what  happened  to  her  parents  ?  say  whatever  they  want  ,  but  misa  never  really  thought  about  it  because  her  aunt  took  really  good  care  of  her  .  and  then  there  was  her  cousin  who  was  more  like  a  cool  older  brother  .  she  admired  him  ,  became  his  little  shadow  that  tried  to  copy  everything  he  did  to  a  t  ,  which  brightened  her  relatives’  lives  .  in  return  ,  they  gave  her  the  childhood  that  her  parents  would  have  wanted  for  her  .  

that  is  what  they  had  emphasized  in  the  last  message  they  sent  to  her  aunt  .

CURRENT.  the  road  to  becoming  an  idol  was  tough  .  not  just  because  of  the  training  ,  but  the  tear  it  created  between  her  and  her  guardian  .  the  latter  was  scared  of  her  being  hurt  by  strangers  ,  but  the  young  girl  was  more  than  determined  to  make  it  onto  that  spotlight  .  the  sixth  member  introduced  to  the  public  ,  kokomi  was  able  to  assure  her  aunt  that  she  can  withstand  the  criticism  and  do  what  she  loves  .  wanderers  are  petitioning  for  her  to  have  a  little  mukbang  series  due  to  how  much  she  loves  food  .  and  maybe  just  maybe  ,  a  certain  member  could  do  the  series  with  her  …

[something-nostalgic]

Master Post

Hi friends! I go by Hale, and here is my fanfiction master post! I will link any masterlists or other pages as I create them.

Requests are open right now, but if you send one in please keep in mind that I might not get to it for a while because I’m currently in school and I’m a slow writer. Please keep in mind that I only do “x reader” fics right now, and please read through the characters and fandoms I’m comfortable writing for before sending in a request. I also reserve the right to politely decline any requests I’m uncomfortable with for any reason.

Feel free to inquire about any of my rules, including hard and fast rules, but never do so with the intention of changing my mind, as you almost definitely will fail to.

Hard & Fast Rules

Currently only doing “x reader” fics

List reader’s gender and pronouns when requesting

TWs and CWs will always be listed before the Keep Reading cut (if none are listed, please let me know as I may have forgotten. I will mark fics as having no TWs or CWs if that is actually the case)

No suicide/suicidal ideation

No rape/non-con

No incest

Characters will always be high school aged or older at the time of writing

No (permanent) major character death (including canon)

No (permanent) minor character death (excluding canon)

No romanticization (whether literally romantic or otherwise) of Belos/Philip Wittebane, Gabriel Agreste, or William Afton

Feel free to ask me to tag certain TWs or CWs in the future

Bigots will be blocked (racists/terfs/homophobes/misogynists/etc.)

People who creep me out will be blocked

People who are generally being assholes will be blocked

Currently only doing fics where both the reader and character are high school age (because I am in high school) but as I graduate and enter university I will probably gravitate towards that instead

Softer rules

No smut (see why/exceptions)

No abusive friends/partners/relatives (see why/exceptions)

No eating disorders (see why/exceptions)

No hard substance usage (see why/exceptions)

No crossovers (see why/exceptions)

Fandoms

The Owl House (Masterlist)

Five Nights At Freddy’s (Masterlist)

Marvel Cinematic Universe (Masterlist)

Ghost-Spider (Masterlist)

Spectacular Spider-Man (Masterlist)

Harry Potter (Masterlist)

Detective Comics (DC) (Masterlist) - Batfam specific (exception for Kon)

Miraculous Ladybug: Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir (Masterlist)

The Mortal Instruments (Masterlist)

Divergent (Masterlist)

Percy Jackson and the Olympians (Masterlist)

Heroes of Olympus (Masterlist)

Stardew Valley (Masterlist)

Gravity Falls (Masterlist)

Minecraft: Story Mode (Masterlist)

The Umbrella Academy (Masterlist)

Characters I Will Write In A Romantic Context

Boscha (TOH) x reader

Hunter (TOH) x reader

Willow Park (TOH) x reader

Emira Blight (TOH) x reader

Edric Blight (TOH) x reader

Amity Blight (TOH) x reader

Matt Tholomule (TOH) x reader

Michael Afton (FNAF) x reader

Peter Parker (MCU) x reader

Shuri (MCU) x reader

Michelle Jones (MCU) x reader

Ned Leeds (MCU) x reader

Gwen Stacy (Ghost Spider) x reader

Harry Osborn (SSM) x reader

Draco Malfoy (HP) x reader

Pansy Parkinson (HP) x reader

James Potter (HP) x reader

Regulus Black (HP) x reader

Lily Potter (HP) x reader

Jason Todd (DC) x reader

Tim Drake (DC) x reader

Damian Wayne (DC) x reader

Stephanie Brown (DC) x reader

Cassandra Cain (DC) x reader

Conner Kent (DC) x reader

Marinette Dupain-Cheng (MLB) x reader

Bridgette Cheng (MLB) x reader

Adrien Agreste (MLB) x reader

Felix Agreste (MLB) x reader

Chloe Bourgeois (MLB) x reader

Aurore Beaureal (MLB) x reader

Mei Shi (MLB) x reader

Mirelle Caquet (MLB) x reader

Luka Couffaine (MLB) x reader

Jace Herondale (TMI) x reader

Will Herondale (TMI) x reader

Tessa Gray (TMI) x reader

Jem Carstairs (TMI) x reader

Julian Blackthorn (TMI) x reader

Livia Blackthorn (TMI) x reader

Ty Blackthorn (TMI) x reader

Kit Herondale (TMI) x reader

Tobias Eaton (Divergent) x reader

Peter (Divergent) x reader

Will (Divergent) x reader

Thalia Grace (PJO) x reader

Leo Valdez (HOO) x reader

Piper McLean (HOO) x reader

Jason Grace (HOO) x reader

Alex (SDV) x reader

Sebastian (SDV) x reader

Shane (SDV) x reader

Sam (SDV) x reader

Haley (SDV) reader

Dipper Pines (GF) x reader

Mabel Pines (GF) x reader

Pacifica Northwest (GF) x reader

Wendy Courdoroy (GF) x reader

Lukas (MCSM) x reader

Aiden (MCSM) x reader

Stella (MCSM) reader

Diego Hargreeves (TUA) x reader - s1 only

Ben Hargreeves (TUA) x reader - s1 only

[starseedfxofficial]

The Curious Case of the Dead Cat Bounce If you've ever heard the phrase "dead cat bounce," you probably imagined something grim — or a very unlucky feline. But fear not, this peculiar market term refers to something that’s less about house pets and more about market dips. Simply put, a "dead cat bounce" describes a temporary recovery in a declining market that ends with a continuation of the downtrend. Think of it like buying those super discounted shoes you thought were a steal, only to find out they’re still uncomfortable and probably shouldn’t have been bought in the first place. Yeah, a lot like that. For BTCUSD, navigating through dead cat bounces can be tricky. Today, we'll explore the lesser-known strategies, underground trends, and hidden opportunities in riding or avoiding this phenomenon. Why Traders Get It Wrong: Misreading the Bounce If there's one thing traders love, it's hope. Hope that this time, that one magic reversal will be real. But dead cat bounces are deceitful little tricks, often causing new traders to think they’re witnessing a comeback. Picture this: you're staring at BTCUSD, and you see a sharp dip, followed by a sudden recovery. You think, "This is it, back to the moon!" But then — nope — it's like watching a bad sitcom where the plot twist you’re cheering for is destined to flop. But here's the real magic: Understanding the signs that separate a genuine trend reversal from a dead cat bounce. Seasoned traders look for signals beyond the usual recovery bounce — volume, price action, and the greater market sentiment all play pivotal roles. We’ll dig into those and how to use them to make sure you’re not the one left holding the bad shoes. The Hidden Formula Only Experts Use Spotting a dead cat bounce requires you to use more than just the naked eye. It’s a bit like how your grandma could tell a storm was coming just by looking at the sky, only more analytical (and less knee pain). To really get ahead, combine volume analysis with moving averages. A true dead cat bounce often shows weaker trading volume during the rebound compared to the initial fall. If fewer people are jumping in during the comeback, you know there’s something off — it’s just the smart money waiting to sell to the hopeful ones. Add in moving averages. If the price is struggling to cross over key moving averages like the 50-day or 200-day, it’s an indicator that the market isn’t confident about staying afloat. Remember, that cat can only bounce so high before gravity — or reality — pulls it back down. How to Predict Market Moves with Precision Contrary to popular belief, predicting market moves isn’t magic. It's about reading the signs others ignore. One trick for BTCUSD is relative strength index (RSI) combined with Fibonacci retracement levels. During a dead cat bounce, RSI tends to mislead; it may show oversold conditions but fail to indicate a lasting recovery. The trick here is to wait for convergence. Only when RSI crosses a level in tandem with strong Fibonacci support, should you start considering your options. It’s like having two friends confirm the gossip before you actually believe it. Moreover, Fibonacci retracement can show where price action might fizzle out. If the bounce doesn’t convincingly break key Fibonacci levels, it’s often a sign the market’s enthusiasm is waning. The excitement is there, but not enough to carry things higher — much like that friend who always talks about their gym plans but never seems to quite make it past day one. Underground Trends Most Traders Ignore It’s not just the obvious indicators that matter. Market sentiment is an underground trend that seasoned traders know to watch for BTCUSD. You’ve got social media, news headlines, and whale activity. If you notice an increase in Bitcoin discussions but lacking conviction or negative headlines, the bounce may indeed be a doomed one. Look for sentiment divergences: when price is rising but the chatter remains skeptical, it’s a warning sign the enthusiasm is simply a fleeting moment. Additionally, on-chain analysis is your secret weapon. By monitoring wallet activity, you can observe whether large holders are moving Bitcoin to exchanges (a bad sign) or if they’re keeping things tight. An uptick in exchange transfers usually suggests the big players are getting ready to sell, even if the price seems to be recovering. Avoiding Dead Cat Traps: The One Simple Trick Want to avoid being the unfortunate owner of a dead cat? Here’s the trick: Patience and confirmation. Instead of rushing in during the initial bounce, wait for at least two confirmation candles closing above a significant resistance level. It’s tempting to jump in early — FOMO is real — but learning to wait can make the difference between riding a wave and sinking in a rip current. Using divergence strategies is another gem. If the price rises but the oscillator (like RSI or MACD) diverges and fails to confirm the uptrend, it’s time to sit tight. You’ll be glad you did, instead of being the guy who hit "buy" right before the proverbial cat hit the ground. Expert Quotes to Learn From According to John Bollinger, the creator of the Bollinger Bands, "A dead cat bounce can often trick inexperienced traders into thinking they have missed the bottom. Real bottoms come with fundamental catalysts, not just technical corrections." This insight emphasizes why it's important to look for something more solid than just a rebound before diving in. Tone Vays, a well-known crypto analyst, also stated, "In crypto, the dead cat bounce is the classic bull trap. It’s designed to make you think the worst is over just before the real pain starts." His words serve as a stark reminder — if it looks too good to be true without any real basis, it probably is. Final Thought: Understanding the Emotional Game If there's one underlying theme to catching or dodging a dead cat bounce, it’s mastering your emotions. Trading BTCUSD during uncertain times isn’t just about understanding the charts or reading the news. It’s about controlling FOMO and knowing when not to act. Dead cat bounces prey on hope — the hope that you've finally caught the bottom. Remember, a dead cat bounce isn’t just a fun term to throw around at parties to sound knowledgeable. It’s a phenomenon that reveals the emotions of the market: fear, greed, hope, and regret. Mastering it involves seeing through the illusion, understanding the emotional game, and being the one trader who steps back and thinks, "Maybe not today, market." So, next time BTCUSD starts doing its dance, take a step back, look for the signals that matter, and make sure that cat’s really alive before you place your bets. Because let’s face it, nobody wants to be stuck with another pair of unwearable shoes. Summary of Elite Tactics and Strategic Advantages - Watch for Weak Volume: A dead cat bounce often has weaker volume during the recovery compared to the decline. Confirm volume before getting in. - Combine RSI with Fibonacci: Convergence of RSI with Fibonacci levels is key to confirming a lasting recovery. - On-Chain Analysis for Whales: Track if large holders are moving Bitcoin to exchanges as a signal to stay cautious. - Confirmation Candles: Always wait for two or more confirmation candles before assuming a reversal. —————– Image Credits: Cover image at the top is AI-generated Read the full article

[btscontentenjoyer]

This part... so heartbreaking and so beautiful, it makes me want to cry just thinking about it.

“i’m getting bored.” jungkook pouts sulkily, bouncing his leg. in the midst of spacing out, he spits out the first question that pops in his mind. “what crime would you get arrested for?” Lmaooo I can totally relate to getting bored and deciding to ask the most random questions.

"after putting out the small fire, your tumultuous emotions clamber to the surface, and it becomes increasingly difficult to hold them down the longer he’s around. the clouds are dark gray, as if they’re writing in pencil beforehand, my tears are about to fall. you feel stupidly envious of their ability to weep anytime they need to, in the face of the casualties. how nice would it be if you allowed yourself to be the same?" Beautiful!!!!

"jungkook rests his head on yours as he smiles at your reflections, tight-lipped, bringing out the most endearing set of dimples you’ve ever seen." I know I've said this before, but all the little details and sweet moments you put in make everything so much better. I love reading them so much and if I could point out every single one and call it beautiful I would, I just think that would start to get a little repetitive lol. Just imagine me putting every single paragraph of your stories in a little heart shaped pocket to keep forever.

"they have wild similarities: nature and jungkook. a breath of fresh air. stars. the candied scent of flowers. dulcet sounds. warmth. home. resourcefulness. whimsical. unstoppable force. they devastate you catastrophically without meaning to. sometimes you overthink that they do. sometimes you know them and sometimes you don’t. you’re part of the problem but it’s hard to admit." 😭😭😭😭😭😭

"the rain has become a clement drizzle by the time you arrive at your destination. standing before your apartment unit, jungkook sets down the grocery bags on the floor to take off the wax cord necklace hidden underneath his clothing. he uses the pendant, his copy of your house key, to unlock the front door." Again, the little details 🥺<3

“i thought we’re not supposed to shut each other out.” he whispers, pulling you closer and guiding your arms around his waist. “it breaks my heart when you cry, baby.” I feel so bad for OC, it breaks my heart when they cry too 🥺🥺🥺

"your weak knees give in to the pull of gravity, heedless of nasty bruises as you cover your mouth to restrain your afflicted sobbing, nails scratching the porcelain as your lone hand insists on holding you up. sometimes love is not a warm comforting embrace. sometimes love is teeth. sometimes love is biting and perversely holding on. were you not worth fighting for? this time around, can he sacrifice something else instead of you? does that make you sound selfish? what if you don’t care that it does? and you wonder if it’s alright for two people to be in a relationship despite having different ideas of what loving means. you wonder if you’ve truly changed his mind." I'm genuinely in tears, this is so beautifully heartbreaking!!!

"outside, jungkook anxiously paces back and forth. the piercing sob that tears itself from your throat and crawls through the small cracks of the door is a direct, forceful punch to his gut. he swallows thickly, wiping away the tears brimming his eyes. he can’t cry, not right now. four months have passed, but it isn’t time’s job to heal all wounds. it’s his." IT ISN'T TIME'S JOB TO HEAL ALL WOUNDS IT'S HIS!!!!!!!!!!!! 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

“i did a shitty job at showing it because i was stupid, but it never stopped being true.” he says, steady and sure, doe eyes longing to read your mind. “i love you so much, hm…? i love you.” The fact that now I can actually hear him saying that in my head!!! With his actual voice!!!

"it’s hilarious, really, how you were scared shitless of jungkook’s parents not approving of you, but you failed to consider his relatives. you can’t shake off the subtle looks indicating that you were dirt on her shoe, the honeyed condescending tone that made you feel small and hollow as you sat with her at the bus stop, completely clueless as she rambled. you wanted to laugh, cry, and curse up a storm. and you would’ve chased after her when she went to ride the bus without giving you the opportunity to stand up for yourself, but you had to remind yourself that your actions might taint people’s perception of jungkook, and you couldn’t risk that." Oh I'll give her a piece of my mind instead then 😤😤😤😤

"this is why his lover has been doubtful of his devotion? he has known his aunt since he learned how to recognize faces, and he knows that it takes a whole lot for you to reach this breaking point. he can only imagine the interaction that took place, and it makes him feel sick to his stomach." Let me at her 😤😤😤😤😤

“she wants to cook for you. to apologize for what her son and her sister did.” he scrunches his nose with a guilty chuckle, scratching his head. “let’s go home for dinner one of these days, okay? we’ll cook your favorites.” 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺 So cute. And totally what OC deserves 🥺🥺🥺

“t-they think i’m using you.” you hiccup, forearm covering your stinging eyes. you taste the salt in your own tears as you speak. “but that’s unfair, so unfair. i only accept what i’m given. i barely ask you for anything. it was only one time, o-only one time. i asked you to come back, because i missed you. i want to be with you because you make me happy.” 🥺🥺🥺🥺 Pleaseee OC is soooo precious.

"he makes a whispered promise carved into the walls of your apartment, sealed by his lips pressing to your knuckles, and you’re left to wonder forever if he kissed your left ring finger on purpose." Oh my god 😭💕😭💕😭💕😭

“let’s be happy, and love each other for a very long time, hm…? i know you’re not that kind of person, so you can ask me for anything. or you can even take them without asking me. i don’t care. what about it?” he says with passion and conviction, galaxy-filled eyes expanding as he shakes his head. “but never me, or my love. you shouldn’t feel like you have to ask for it. do you know why?” This conversation is just... The level of emotional intelligence on display here!!! I genuinely think healthy communication like this is a really rare sight and to see it like this makes me feel... comforted in a way, to know that it can exist. It's just beautiful to see 🥺🥺🥺 I don't have the proper words to explain it right now 😭

"he wants to be inconvenienced by you. he wants to make impulsively confrontational phone calls he will overthink before bed. he wants you to wake him up in the middle of the night clawing for snuggles. he wants you to jump on his back when you’re exhausted of walking. he wants to charm the owner of your favorite restaurant into cooking one more meal before closing because you always ask him to make a quick stop when he visits you. he wants his life to be influenced by yours in every possible way, two different colors mixed in a palette to create a new one that matches the sky." This is so beautiful 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

"not long after, you hop on the vacant counter space with the brownies for a better view of kitchen scene. you leisurely swing your legs as you watch jungkook freely move around your kitchen, occasionally getting lost as he converses with himself. if your calculations are correct, he has asked himself the questions “oing? what was i supposed to do again? what did i come here for?” twice so far. it’s a good thing he talks to himself out loud so you can remember things for him." Cuteeeeee.

Honestly, with this couple and your writing, Art, the sad/angsty parts make me cry just as much as the soft/fluffy ones, just for different reasons. Your gorgeous writing goes so well with both, amplifying the emotions and making my heart physically hurt in my chest. I really wish I could say more but I'm just left speechless and full of emotion but I hope you know I love your stories so so so so so so much 💕💞💕💞💕

summary: in which you don’t want to give up on jungkook (even when he gave you reasons to, even if they give you reasons to).

> idol!jungkook x reader, angst, fluff / word count: 7k

> warnings: tears overflowing </3 mentions of cheating (but again no one did it ok !!), heh judgemental family members amirite, is giving lipstick marks a warning ?

> in which masterlist!

note: anniversary reveal! and more of oc’s pov :( in the aftermath of in which jungkook is giving up on you but you have so much left to give !! it’s up to u which one to read first if u haven’t. the in which series is a puzzle 😭 i’d love to hear your thoughts after reading <3 hugs and kisses <3

—

“i feel like this shouldn’t be taking this long.” jungkook jokingly remarks as he pushes the shopping cart with folded arms, tiptoeing and tracing your steps as your eyes wander around the entire shelf of feline necessities.

“leave me alone. there’s too many options.” a huff escapes your mouth as your index finger underlines the flavors of cat treats, aiding you in reading the small words.

he pulls back the cart before it could collide with your hip, resting his chin on top of his arms as he impatiently waits for you to pick out a small gift for your friend’s cat, who you will be catsitting tomorrow.

“just pick the one with the happiest looking cat. that should make it easy, right?”

“jungkook!”

entertained by his own humor, his bright giggles harmonize with yours. eventually, you’re forced to sit on your toes so you can scan the other products shoved in the lowermost shelf.

“surprisingly, many of them don’t look that happy.” you mutter absentmindedly to yourself.

“baby?”

“yes?”

“i’m getting bored.” jungkook pouts sulkily, bouncing his leg. in the midst of spacing out, he spits out the first question that pops in his mind. “what crime would you get arrested for?”

“arson,” you answer with a shrug, perhaps a little too quickly. the most adorable packaging you’ve seen so far steals your attention, and it’s almost as if you’re being beckoned by the colorful jars of cat cookies.

tuna? salmon? or chicken?

“oh?” he perks up in intrigue, mouth gaping in surprise. “why didn’t i expect that? why arson?“

“i mean, nothing special. it just sounds efficient? it takes little work but creates colossal damage.”

his face lights up when you stand back on your feet, relieved that grocery shopping is almost over. you place the jar of your chosen flavor, tuna, in an unoccupied space in the shopping cart.

“but realistically? i’d probably burn down my building with my forgetfulness and then get framed for it. i imagine that sometimes when i cook.”

“who would frame you?! tell me, baby.“ he angrily yells in a whisper, a cheeky smile growing on his face. “i’ll investigate and take care of them. that’s what i will get arrested for.”

“damn, how romantic.” you reply teasingly, granting his lips a loving peck. afterwards, you whisper to him as if you’re trading a well-kept secret, hushed voice and squinted eyes. “later. i’ll show you which of my neighbors i suspect.”

—

“baby?” jungkook chirps the pet name one more time, seizing your hand and putting it under his so that he’s pushing the cart while holding hands with you.

you hum in acknowledgement, sparing him a short glance as you look around, just incase you find something else you need while you’re on your way to the counter.

“have you thought of anything you want for our second anniversary?” he asks with sparkling eyes, his excitement uncontainable as more days get crossed out from the calendar. “a gift? and where you want to go?”

and that’s when your calmness completely shifts into chaos. his questions are giant buckets filled with ice, callously dunked over your head without any sign or warning. your walking pace gradually slows down as his words sink in, and you drown in the tornado swirling violently in your chest.

“our… anniversary?” you choke out.

your evident confusion is met by jungkook’s disappointment, halting on his tracks as to not leave you behind. “yes, february 25. that’s in three months… have you forgotten?”

“excuse me-”

a middle-aged woman rudely pushes your back, and you apologize in panic as you face your boyfriend to provide her the space to pass through. your heart drops to your stomach when you notice his stoic expression, hurt and distant, before you allow yourself to be whisked away from the center of the aisles.

“babe, please don’t be mad. i swear, i didn’t forget!” you cling to his muscular arm, hugging it to your chest as you stand behind a long line of overflowing shopping carts. “i literally have all the 25th marked in my calendar. how could i forget?”

“ugh, you tell me.” he frowns at you, lightly bumping his head against yours.

“i just didn’t realize it’s that near already.” the half-lie, half-truth tastes bitter on your tongue. “have you ever thought that time moves too fast when you’re happy and having fun? that’s exactly how i feel when i’m with you.”

yes, jungkook have thought of it a million times.

“fuck, alright, i’m not mad. you’re pretty good at this, huh?”

your sweet smile is pleasantly contagious. a flushed-face jungkook unconsciously copies you. he becomes pliant as you raise his arm to wrap it around you, stealing his body warmth this chilly november afternoon.

“i want to see a waterfalls with you. can we go there?”

he presses a kiss to your temple, unmoving for seconds, before he pulls away with a distinct smooching sound that fills your stomach with butterflies. “mhmm, niagara?”

you fail to hold back an amused snort, covering your mouth to prevent unwanted attention from strangers. “be serious. think local! we barely even go out of town!”

“but i’m serious.” he blinks at you. “we can just take pictures, have a dinner date, then go home!”

“you do know that it’s at the other side of the pacific, right?”

—

the cold breeze engulfs you in a big embrace as soon as you step out of the grocery store, carefree and unaware of its thorns prickling your skin. hand in hand, you and jungkook walk to his car parked two blocks away, carrying a plastic bag while he took the heavier two.

after putting out the small fire, your tumultuous emotions clamber to the surface, and it becomes increasingly difficult to hold them down the longer he’s around. the clouds are dark gray, as if they’re writing in pencil beforehand, my tears are about to fall. you feel stupidly envious of their ability to weep anytime they need to, in the face of the casualties. how nice would it be if you allowed yourself to be the same?

“this wasn’t here before. when did they open? let’s go inside for a bit.”

distracted by your stream of thoughts, you are guided inside an establishment with you only noticing belatedly. jungkook lets go of your hand to marvel at the collection of sunglasses displayed in extended rows. you stay idle by his side, watching him check himself out in the mirror as he tries them on one by one.

“that one looks good on you.” the praise automatically slips from your mouth when he wears a rectangle-shaped brown frame, more on the bigger side. as expected from your extremely handsome boyfriend, he makes it appear more stylish than it originally looked on the shelf.

“really? should i buy it?” he wears a radiant beam, repeatedly lifting it up and down as he inspects your face with and without the filtered lens.

“hm, i think so.” you skip over the grocery bags on the floor, squeezing in yourself in the small mirror. “here, look here again.”

jungkook rests his head on yours as he smiles at your reflections, tight-lipped, bringing out the most endearing set of dimples you’ve ever seen.

“why are you acting cute today?”

“i was just born this way.” he grins proudly. “and i guess i missed you.”

the ever-present sincerity in his voice adds weight to the heaviness chained to your heart, and you reward a kiss on his cheek to conceal your uneasiness, leaving a conspicuous lipstick mark in your wake.

“yah!” he lightheartedly scolds you with a chuckle, pushing up the sunglasses over his hair to examine his face.

you reflexively seize his wrist with an offended gasp. “hello? are you about to wipe off my kiss?”

“you can give me a thousand more in the car.“

“but that defeats the purpose.” you defeatedly answer as you let him go, witnessing your lipstick turn into a faint blush that compliments his honey skin. “oh, fine! i guess i’ll go window shopping over there.”

“where’s ‘over there’?”

he whips his head around to discover that you’ve disappeared.

—

you don’t flinch when you feel someone hold your waist. maybe you know it’s jungkook. maybe you know jungkook will die before he lets anyone else touch you in his presence.

“are you sure you won’t get anything?”

“i won’t. i just saw the hot air balloon two months ago.” you timidly shake your head as you return the sixth eyeglasses you tried on. “are we going home?”

your boyfriend responds by intertwining your fingers together.

“let me take this again then.” you reclaim the grocery bag you were with earlier, taking it upon yourself to hold the paper bag of his new sunnies as well, just to lighten his load. how the hell did he manage to carry everything in one hand?

your eyelids briefly flutter shut when he kisses your cheek. “thank you.”

when jungkook pushes the door open do you only hear the raindrops crashing on the pavement, splashes of cold water staining your denim pants as you stand under the canopy roof.

“shit, it’s so cold.” he shivers with a laugh as you simultaneously pull your hoods over your heads. “carry the bags on your other side.”

“why?” you ask innocently, but you do as he says anyway, not seeing any reason not to.

“just because.” he transfers to your right, capturing your free hand to put it inside the front pocket of his hoodie along with his. “let’s go!”

and you know the probability of you buying cold medicine for two in twenty-four hours is high, but this moment feels like it could last forever — running under the rain with him and feeling overwhelmingly alive, heart and soul; realizing halfway that he switched positions so he’d be the one closer to the busy and slippery road. they have wild similarities: nature and jungkook. a breath of fresh air. stars. the candied scent of flowers. dulcet sounds. warmth. home. resourcefulness. whimsical. unstoppable force. they devastate you catastrophically without meaning to. sometimes you overthink that they do. sometimes you know them and sometimes you don’t. you’re part of the problem but it’s hard to admit.

jungkook drives ten times more carefully. the rain is pouring harder as the seconds fly by, giving the radio speakers of his car a run for their money. the twenty-five minute drive to your apartment is nothing short of torturous, tinted windows too blurry and too reminiscent of memories you’ve been trying to push into the recesses of your mind. but they’re out of control, ceaselessly replaying in your head, and you can still see his tear-stained face even when you close your eyes. the windshield wipers are working hard but the sky is remorseless.

“we should end this… i think it’s for the best, before we get drained.”

“i think that i’m just wasting your time, that this isn’t- it’s not going anywhere.”

he’s wrong. you so strongly wish that he’s wrong.

you swallow the lump in your throat, chewing your bottom lip harshly, but the thread you’ve been hanging on has been snipped. you begin to cry silently, curled up on the passenger seat and face hidden by the hood you haven’t taken off. you pretend to be asleep as jungkook softly hums the tune of the songs playing in the radio. you feel so fucking suffocated. you hate this car. you hate the rain. you hate that you’re being this way. you feel guilty that your boyfriend is excited for your second anniversary while you’re stuck up in the past. you feel ashamed of feeling, almost.

you don’t know how to tell him that you’re sad because you love him. and even sadder when he thoughtfully wraps you in a blanket in the middle of a red light, stroking your back as he whispers. “my baby must be so tired.”

—

the rain has become a clement drizzle by the time you arrive at your destination. standing before your apartment unit, jungkook sets down the grocery bags on the floor to take off the wax cord necklace hidden underneath his clothing. he uses the pendant, his copy of your house key, to unlock the front door.

you slip off the loose sneakers on your feet by the floor mat before heading straight to the bedroom. you hang your boyfriend’s backpack on your study chair and place his paper bag on top of your desk. he enters the room when you’re already pulling the thick hoodie over your head, leaving you in a navy blue body-hugging top.

“love, are you okay?” he asks as he brings out fresh clothes from his backpack, looking over your sprawled out figure on the bed, eyes shut and breathing heavy.

“i’m alright.” you force yourself to sit up, sliding off the bed to stand on your feet. your head is pounding and you want to puke your guts out. is it normal to experience such heartache that you feel physically sick? “i’ll put away the groceries.”

“okay. i’ll be there to start cooking dinner!”

you merely nod, brushing past him.

—

you begin with restocking the fridge. meat, eggs, yogurt, almond milk, fruits, and the like. jungkook arrives when you’re already unpacking the second bag, and his first instinct is to affectionately hug you from behind. after too many days physically apart, he’ll be damned if he’ll allow even an inch of distance between your bodies.

your actions are put on halt when his palm presses on your neck, and then the back of it. “why do you feel so warm? don’t you feel sick?”

it was the final blow. to be honest, it’s been long overdue. you’re frozen in place, defeated as one by one, the tears finally drip from your damp eyelashes. they roll down your cheeks, some crashing on the table and seeping into the wood to form tiny circles of a darker shade of brown. the rest of them rolls down to the hand that is checking your temperature. you sniffle before he can question the new sensation on his skin.

“hey- hey, what’s wrong? are you crying?“ he moves to your side for a better view of your face, but you shake your head in denial. “what happened? baby?”

“nothing.” you mutter, brushing him off.

you gather the bottles of soy sauce and vinegar, wiggling out his hold to place them in the shelf above the stove. you return to the table to pick up the stuff that goes in the cabinets, but jungkook catches your wrist, removing the pack of sliced bread from your hand.

“i thought we’re not supposed to shut each other out.” he whispers, pulling you closer and guiding your arms around his waist. “it breaks my heart when you cry, baby.”

his doe eyes are pleading as he tilts up your chin to meet his gaze, thumb softly drawing circles on the apple of your cheek. you feel so utterly lost, overwhelmed by his gestures of kindness and affection. and yet you cry, because if he loved you that much, how did breaking up became an option he was willing to choose?

“our anniversary…” you trail off, ripping apart at the seams. “it still counts.”

neither of you knows if it’s a statement or a question.

“it still counts.” he nods slowly, repeating your words. “sh-should it not?”

his heart races in his chest as fear creeps up on him, dreading your answer. did he fuck up again? but your response only leaves him with more questions floating above his head.

“if we only had a pause- does that mean you… didn’t try looking for someone else? right? you didn’t sleep with anyone? while we were…”

for a moment, jungkook forgets how to speak as silence reigns over. his forehead creases in confusion, a sharp pang digging in his heart like a dagger as you wait with bated breath.

“no. why would you ev- no. no, i didn’t. where is this coming from?” his round, agitated eyes search for a clue in your expression but you don’t allow him that privilege, impassive as you withdraw from the close proximity between you.

“it doesn’t matter, that’s all i needed. thank you for answering.” you sigh heavily, turning on your heel to head to the bathroom. “i’m going to wash up.“

“____, come on. don’t walk away from me.” he almost begs out of desperation as his fingers curl around your arm, itching to embrace you because serrated trepidation is gnawing at his insides. he’s not losing you. he’s not losing you. he’s not losing you. he won’t let you slip away.

you sigh. “let go, jungkook.”

“how can i let you walk away after learning that you think i cheated on you?” he frustratedly blurts out, the words revolting on his tongue. this was never supposed to happen. he was supposed to be a partner who never gave you any reason to question his faithfulness. “that doesn’t matter?”

“it doesn’t.” you assert firmly.

jungkook is scared. he doesn’t understand how you can look at him like this, pretend you’re not wounded and bleeding. he doesn’t know if you’re giving him a pass or if you’re punishing him.

“either way, you broke up with me, jungkook… i would hate it, but it wouldn’t have been cheating.”

“it is to me.” his hauntingly angelic voice shatters, along with your fragile hearts as he says- “i didn’t love you any less and you know that.”

sorrow seeps into the silence, permeating the cold air, thick with heartache and tension. you walk away from him wordlessly, and jungkook is taken aback, vision blurred and unfocused as his hand drops to his side, devastatingly dejected.

“____!” your name fades into a muffled noise.

the doorknob clicks when you lock it. numb as your feet carry you to the sink, numb as you twist the faucet until you can’t anymore. the strong pressure of the water hitting the porcelain echoes throughout the dimly-lit bathroom. you tightly grip the edge of the sink as you fall apart disastrously, like a wave blazing past the shore and destroying everything in its path with ferociousness — because it’s the only thing left it knows how to do. your endless tears turn the cold tap water into saltwater. it inevitably overflows, spilling over the edges and soaking your trembling hands.

when he broke up with you, it opened the door to many other possibilities that hurts you to think about. you thought you knew, too. but the seed of doubt was planted in your mind when you were forsaken, and it kept growing as a wildflower even when he came back and laid beside you after not reaching out for weeks.

the last time you cried like this, you begged him to allow you to keep loving him.

your weak knees give in to the pull of gravity, heedless of nasty bruises as you cover your mouth to restrain your afflicted sobbing, nails scratching the porcelain as your lone hand insists on holding you up. sometimes love is not a warm comforting embrace. sometimes love is teeth. sometimes love is biting and perversely holding on. were you not worth fighting for? this time around, can he sacrifice something else instead of you? does that make you sound selfish? what if you don’t care that it does? and you wonder if it’s alright for two people to be in a relationship despite having different ideas of what loving means. you wonder if you’ve truly changed his mind.

outside, jungkook anxiously paces back and forth. the piercing sob that tears itself from your throat and crawls through the small cracks of the door is a direct, forceful punch to his gut. he swallows thickly, wiping away the tears brimming his eyes. he can’t cry, not right now. four months have passed, but it isn’t time’s job to heal all wounds. it’s his.

—

“what are you making?”

jungkook’s bubble pops when he hears your voice. he didn’t even realize when the shower stopped running, too absorbed in the kitchen so that he won’t intrude into your boundaries despite his restlessness. he takes you in, clad in your silk pajamas, before looking back at the bowl of dark brown batter he’s been tirelessly stirring and folding to incorporate the ingredients together.

“brownies.”

“all of a sudden? thought you were going to make dinner.” you leave no space between the two of you as you dip in the tip of your pinky finger for a taste.

that was the original plan, but he knows that you like to consume sweets when you’re feeling down.

“i’m about to. are you hungry?“ he speaks in a subdued voice, gingerly rubbing your lower back. “i’m putting this in the oven now.“

“can i help?”

jungkook dies a little inside when your eyes meet and he notices that yours are swollen, yet still gleaming with affection.

“you can, uhm, peel the potatoes?”

you curiously look back to see the ingredients for gamjatang, pork bone soup, laid out on the dining table. “okay.”

as you begin to diligently do the task you were assigned, he transfers the batter to the pan covered with parchment paper before pushing it inside the pre-heated oven. the faint pitter-patter of the rain fills the apartment as the clouds squall once more. he occupies the seat next to you, entire body facing you as his arm rests on top of the backrest of your chair.

“don’t you want to talk about it?”

you frown, briefly pausing as you ponder so you won’t cut yourself. “no, i want to… i just needed time to think.”

he grows quiet, biting at his nails as he watches your hands smoothly peel off the skin of a potato using a paring knife.

“it matters to me.” he’s been dying to say. “____, you know that i love you, right?”

you thought you had no tears left in you, but your face is feeling hot yet again.

“i know.”

“i did a shitty job at showing it because i was stupid, but it never stopped being true.” he says, steady and sure, doe eyes longing to read your mind. “i love you so much, hm…? i love you.”

“i know. that’s why i’m giving you the benefit of the doubt.”

a small bitter smile appears on your face as you pick up another potato to peel.

“the other day, your aunt told me you went on dates… she even showed me old pictures of you and the girl together then apologized to me-” you resist the urge to roll your eyes. “for setting you up, because she thought i got what i wanted from you and finally backed off. but none of your friends ever mentioned this person to me… or you… that’s why i couldn’t- i couldn’t… it was embarrassing.”

it’s hilarious, really, how you were scared shitless of jungkook’s parents not approving of you, but you failed to consider his relatives. you can’t shake off the subtle looks indicating that you were dirt on her shoe, the honeyed condescending tone that made you feel small and hollow as you sat with her at the bus stop, completely clueless as she rambled. you wanted to laugh, cry, and curse up a storm. and you would’ve chased after her when she went to ride the bus without giving you the opportunity to stand up for yourself, but you had to remind yourself that your actions might taint people’s perception of jungkook, and you couldn’t risk that.

“baby- baby, look at me. please.”

he carefully pries away the potato and the knife from your hands, cupping your face in his big palms. you gaze at him wide-eyed as you ground yourself by clutching onto his wrist. your loud heartbeat pounds in your ears because it’s not always that you can look at each other like this, meeting halfway, seeing more than feeling.

his eyebrows are closely knitted, nose scrunching and barely blinking as he sets the record straight.

“it was one time. she’s been trying to set us up since forever, then… then she planned a date during the time we weren’t talking without even confirming with me… it was a place outside the company, so i just went to say it was a misunderstanding and i’m taken! i felt embarrassed because it’s a family friend. nothing more…” he caresses you tenderly, feeling a pinch in his chest as he tries to put himself in your shoes. “i promise, love, i left after like two minutes. why would i go on dates when i was losing my mind, hm? i was missing you like crazy.”

you melt into him when he crosses the short distance between you, pressing his soft lips on yours for a kiss that makes the whole world quiet. your noses brush each other before he withdraws.

“she left out that part, didn’t she?” he rhetorically asks with venom stirred in his otherwise dulcet voice.

you purse your lips into a thin line.

“seriously, this- this is ridiculous… this is bullshit. she really did it this time. ah, i’m angry! does this even make sense? what’s the point of all that?” jungkook huffs with a sarcastic chuckle as he runs his fingers through his hair, squeezing and tugging to release his growing frustration somehow.

this is why his lover has been doubtful of his devotion? he has known his aunt since he learned how to recognize faces, and he knows that it takes a whole lot for you to reach this breaking point. he can only imagine the interaction that took place, and it makes him feel sick to his stomach.

you’ve seen the good and the bad, and you focus on the good, and you stay with him despite despite despite.

he takes a deep breath to compose himself, and then his tongue prods the inside of his cheek as his determined eyes search for his phone. he quickly snatches it from the table and stands up, the screen coming to life as he unlocks it with his thumb’s fingerprint. “i’ll be right back, baby.”

“jungkook,” you call out his name as a warning, grasping his wrist before he can go too far. “don’t act rashly.”

“i’m not! i’d go to busan but i’ll put that off because i’d rather spend my day-off with you.”

you don’t know what you were expecting his reaction would be, but it’s not a great leap to say that he is furious, pending to explode.

“i’ve been nothing but polite even though she was fucking badgering me non-stop, but i won’t let her think that it’s okay to treat you like that… she doesn’t have the right to meddle with my life, and she can’t disrespect the most important person to me. i-i-” he pauses to breathe, chest heaving with the weight of his emotions. “i won’t allow it.”

you are his calmness and he is the storm.

his voice wavers by the end of his sentence, doe eyes turning glassy as he sincerely confesses, which is probably why this isn’t the right time for you to smile like a lovesick highschooler with a crush. this is exactly what you tried to avoid, making a mess and a series of uncomfortable holidays, so why does it have to feel good to hear him say that?

you nod with understanding as you free his wrist. “okay. don’t take too long.”

jungkook heads to the front door before his anger can be erased by his adoration for you, so endearing as you peel small potatoes like you had all the time in the world.

as he steps outside, the raucous rain rings in your ears and its distinct smell mixed with the soil enters the apartment.

you cluelessly blink at the ingredients surrounding you as you mutter to yourself. “how many of these am i supposed to peel again?”

—

jungkook returns after a phone call that went longer than planned, but not before wiping the wet floor from both sides of your front door to avoid accidents. he discovers you squatting infront of the unlocked kitchen oven.

“what are you doing?” he asks with a smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

“it’s baked…” you raise the toothpick you poked the brownie with, tilting your head to the side. “right?“

“oh, it is! let’s take it out.”

he rushes to the counter to wear oven mitts, and you stand aside so he can carry out the pan from the oven. you follow him as he places it on top of the wooden table mat on the table, tugging at the hem of his t-shirt to gain his attention.

“what happened?” you interrogate him worriedly as he pulls off the oven mitts from his hands.

“huh?” you’re coaxed to move closer when he caresses your nape, sliding down to the smooth expanse of your back. “my mom will call you soon.”

“what? why?!”

“she wants to cook for you. to apologize for what her son and her sister did.” he scrunches his nose with a guilty chuckle, scratching his head. “let’s go home for dinner one of these days, okay? we’ll cook your favorites.”

“but i thought…” you chew on your bottom lip, hand balling in a fist and crumpling the fabric of your boyfriend’s t-shirt. “did you call your mom too? i don’t want to cause trouble.”

“what do you mean? you’re doing nothing of the sort.” he gives you a disapproving look, gently squeezing your tense hand to quell your worries. “and it just turns out she was listening the whole time i was talking. they’re hanging out together. uh, besides, she would’ve found out one way or the other.”

“but they can’t be fighting, right?”

“aigoo, don’t worry about it anymore. stop hurting your brain. it’s mean.” he strokes your head lovingly with a small smile that suggests an answer to your question. “your mother-in-law loves you. everything’s okay. it’s cold so let’s just eat our dinner then cuddle in bed, hm, baby?”

oh. your mother-in-law?

“you’re so annoying.” you mutter half-heartedly, burying your face in your hands as the tears surge in once more.

god, you feel so relieved.

you crash against jungkook’s body when he tugs you closer to envelope you in his arms. maybe, just maybe, if he does it long enough, you will be pieced back together. even though he, himself, breaks when you weakly pound at his chest with clenched fists.

“i hate you. i hate you. i hate you.” you chant like a broken record in between sobs, glitching in cracks and pauses and stutters. the more you say the same three words, the more they lose their meaning.

he squeezes his eyes shut, enduring the heart-splitting pain and embracing you tighter. “i know- i know.” he repeats your words from earlier.

he hates himself, too. he needs to get his shit together. he understands — he has to grow up if he wants to keep you.

“but i love you, and i’m scared you’ll leave again and i won’t beg you anymore.” you ramble without thinking, brain on auto-pilot mode. “i’m not that kind of person, jungkook. that’s not me. i don’t have to prove it, do i?”

you feel so utterly exposed, disgustingly vulnerable. nevertheless, before jungkook is anything else, he is your best friend.

“t-they think i’m using you.” you hiccup, forearm covering your stinging eyes. you taste the salt in your own tears as you speak. “but that’s unfair, so unfair. i only accept what i’m given. i barely ask you for anything. it was only one time, o-only one time. i asked you to come back, because i missed you. i want to be with you because you make me happy.”

jungkook’s jaw clenches in anger, no longer able to withhold his tears. he sniffles, wiping his wet cheek on his shoulder. you’ve suffered more than enough because of him. if anything, he should be the one getting the lashings from his side and yours. this is wrong. this is all wrong.

“shh- shhh. breathe, baby.” he coos as he pushes down your arm, brushing away the tears on your face. “come here.”

you whimper when he swoops you off your feet, carrying you bridal style to the living room. he sits on the sofa, and he sits you on his lap. you slide off him, just a tiny bit for your back to reach the armrest, pulling him along with you.

“hug me,” you demand quietly.

he fails to defy the urge to smile, abruptly pulling you in for a passionate kiss that steals the air from your lungs. your eyelids flutter shut, tense body relaxing into him as your lips follow his lead in this delicate dance of enigmatic intimacy. your fingers graze his jaw shakily, afraid it might cut you and you’ll be awoken from this enduring dream. they desperately tangle themselves with his hair, digging to keep him glued onto you.

“i won’t leave again. no matter how hard you push me away, i will stay within your reach.”

he makes a whispered promise carved into the walls of your apartment, sealed by his lips pressing to your knuckles, and you’re left to wonder forever if he kissed your left ring finger on purpose.

jungkook is soft-spoken, slow and careful with his words that could make or break you.

“i’m so sorry that i hurt you. and i’m sorry that you have to go through this because of me. i’m sorry for everything. i’m sorry. but…” he inhales, and exhales, licking his lips. “the noise might never stop. i know it’s not as easy to say, but i hope we don’t let them get into our heads. just because we can hear them, doesn’t mean we have to listen, you know?”

and as much as it kills him to admit-

“we’re fragile right now, so i want to protect what we have.”

you profusely nod your head, and his thumbs sweep over your cheeks to catch your teardrops.

“let’s be happy, and love each other for a very long time, hm…? i know you’re not that kind of person, so you can ask me for anything. or you can even take them without asking me. i don’t care. what about it?” he says with passion and conviction, galaxy-filled eyes expanding as he shakes his head. “but never me, or my love. you shouldn’t feel like you have to ask for it. do you know why?”

you arch an eyebrow at him, still switching between fiddling with his long and slender fingers and tracing the veins running along his arms. “why?”

“because i’m yours. every single second of everyday. i love you. you deserve all the love i can give. that’s my number one responsibility as your boyfriend… but i failed you. i know you forgive me but… but i-i want to love you better. i won’t get tired of fighting for us, and showing you that i mean everything i say.”

“don’t say things like that.” at last, you crack a genuine smile, giggling as you lightly hit his chest. “i’ll become greedy.”

“good. that’s what i want.” he retorts with a chuckle, but he means it wholeheartedly.

he wants to be inconvenienced by you. he wants to make impulsively confrontational phone calls he will overthink before bed. he wants you to wake him up in the middle of the night clawing for snuggles. he wants you to jump on his back when you’re exhausted of walking. he wants to charm the owner of your favorite restaurant into cooking one more meal before closing because you always ask him to make a quick stop when he visits you. he wants his life to be influenced by yours in every possible way, two different colors mixed in a palette to create a new one that matches the sky.

“thank you.” you smile sheepishly. “and i’m sorry too, for everything. i don’t handle these things well… i’m still learning.”

“mhmm-hmm.” he shakes his head in disagreement, before leaning in to pepper your face with kisses. “i love you.” he smells like romance and comfort, sugar and cocoa from the brownies — the cure to your nausea. you still taste a hint of the sweet flavor when your tongue darts out to lick your dry lips, traces from your taste test and his.

“babe?” you whisper after minutes that felt like hours, drowsy and cozy cuddled up with your boyfriend in the corner of your sofa.

he hums in question, sleepily nuzzling his face on your neck.

“i’m so hungry. i think i’m going to die.”

“ah, yes. i can hear that.”

—

“should i slice the onions next?” you question in a sing-song voice as you enter the kitchen, immediately regaining possession of knife.

“stay away from them. i don’t want you to cry again.”

you pout, clicking your tongue. “you’re right. then what else can i do…? why do you look scared?”

you study jungkook’s wary stance in amusement, taking a glance at your hand where his shaking pupils are trained.

he playfully puts up his arms in surrender, laughter laced with nervousness. “baby, stop waving the knife around.”

“i’m not!”

“yes, you are! just put it down. i’ll do everything, okay?”

you place it back on the table with a scoff, slumping on the chair and crossing your arms. “and then what?”

“then have the brownies for appetizer.” with a self-satisfied grin, he cuts out a slice of brownie that has cooled down during the time it was left unattended.

“i don’t think this is how it works.”

“shhh, baby.“ he menacingly hushes you with his pointer finger over his lips. “don’t say anything. just taste it first. ahhh-“

you take a small bite from the piece that he’s holding out for you, and then another after deeming it too small.

“how is it?” he gulps as he anticipates your reply.

“yummy!”

“really?” he giggles when you chomp on the remaining dessert and accidentally bite his poor fingers.

“don’t know what makes a good brownie exactly, but it’s perfect to me.” you nod your head enthusiastically, somewhat feeling better with the prospect of having your stomach filled with more of your boyfriend’s cooking.

your jaw slacks open in offense when he slaps your hand in the middle of your attempt to pick up the knife, teeth sinking into his bottom lip as he threateningly looks at you.

“what was that for? i just want more brownies!” you cry out, lightly kicking his shin from under the table.

“oh- ow!” he cracks up in hearty laughter, corners of his eyes crinkling as he rubs the affected area. “sorry, i’m sorry for my fault! they’re all yours! please forgive me! i’m sorry!”

you send him a scowl before pouring all your focus into slicing the rest of the dessert into bite-sized squares.

he bends down to your eye-level, cutely tilting his head to the side as he speaks lowly. “i’ll cook dinner now. just wait a little more… maybe two hours?”

“please tell me you’re joking.”

—

not long after, you hop on the vacant counter space with the brownies for a better view of kitchen scene. you leisurely swing your legs as you watch jungkook freely move around your kitchen, occasionally getting lost as he converses with himself. if your calculations are correct, he has asked himself the questions “oing? what was i supposed to do again? what did i come here for?” twice so far. it’s a good thing he talks to himself out loud so you can remember things for him.

he stirs the pot of stew, leaves to gather more ingredients, then comes back to dump them in. the cycle ends with nods of satisfaction, before he waddles over to your spot for a snack break. straight away, you greet his parted lips with the chocolate-y goodness that was reaped from his sweat and tears.

as he chews on the brownie, he turns his face to the other direction and pokes his cheek for another request. with your thighs caging his hips and your hands grasping his collar, you tug him closer to your body. your plushy lips plant gentle but full kisses on his cheek, trailing down to his defined jaw and neck when you run out of space. the tingling sensation shooting up his spine prompts his fingers to dig into the soft flesh of your thighs, breathing gradually getting heavier with your every electrifying touch. the final kiss is granted to his adam’s apple, more prominent as he swallows.

you straighten back up while fixing your hair, and jungkook’s starry eyes follow your red lips in a hypnotized daze. there’s no one else who can make his heart flutter quite like you do. your breathy giggles are music to his ears as you take in the sight of both his cheeks adorned with scattered lipstick marks, appearing like watercolor on paper.

“what’s that for?” he eyed you suspiciously while you were painting your lips, but it’s him who kept coming back to you for more although you were already happy with one.

“you look so funny.”

but if this arrangement goes: he can make you laugh by granting you the permission to leave marks where your lips have been, he will happily live with that.

“can i take a picture?”

but you don’t even have to ask. your phone is still charging in the bedroom, so he proposes his for your convenience.

“here. just airdrop them to yourself.” he hands it to you with a cool shrug, nonchalant on the surface but giddy inside.

—

taglist in the reblogs! send a message/ask if you want to be added (or removed) :D

—

[ben-drabbles]

Lacretians

A stout, four-legged species of rocklike people. Hailing originally from the now-dead planet Lacron, they have since settled on a number of asteroids and small moons, from which they bring their impressive technological advancements to the rest of the galaxy. Their natural magnetic fields led to a relatively early development of electronics, even compared to the humans who had colony ships to work from. Much like the slurm and their decentralized nervous system, this magnetism also gives them a rather unique relationship with modern galactic tech - not to mention their taste for the precious metals said tech is made from. We all have to eat, I suppose.

Lacron was once a resource-rich world full of natural fuels and precious metals, but their regrettable history of exploitation and industrialization poisoned it to the point of uninhabitability. The high gravity and now-deadly atmosphere prevent true exploration, but the longevity of automated lacretian systems lead some to theorize that, despite centuries of neglect, some of their Lacron-based factories may still be running. At the very least, an entire planet's worth of culture and technology still remains, beneath the roiling toxic clouds.

While some lacretians still cling to the 'glory days' on Lacron, they are widely unpopular, even among their own people. Most lacretians have moved on, embracing cleaner energy and greener tech; some even hope to one day heal Lacron, though they know that process will take much longer than their lifespans, if it's even possible at all. Their new asteroid homes suit them just fine - after they perfected gravity generators, they were even able to stave off most of the ill effects of living in a lower-gravity environment, and subsist partially on the metals found within their new homes. Some joke lacretians always land on their feet - lacretians say they never fall at all.

Lacretian ships are, much like the the people themselves, sturdy and strong. Often built from hollowed-out asteroids directly, they sport heavy engines, metal walkways, dim lighting, and sophisticated lacretian grav generators - along with the shielding to boot, to ward off any debris caught in the gravity field. They are reliable and efficient, a real spacer's ship, but don't typically make for a comfortable living space. Though, that's starting to change - as the lacretians become more self-sufficient and find themselves with more room for leisure, it's more and more common to see small decorations, the odd cushion or two, or even lightly scented air recyclers.

Though, lacretians are much more than their industrialism and tenacity. Much like any people, they can now be found almost anywhere in the galaxy. Wandering asteroid homes or businesses might find and rescue stranded ships; mercs and scrappers can always use a durable friend. Lacretian technicians are natural experts at the repair and optimization of failing systems, often able to 'feel' where the electrical breakpoints are. Scientists, performers, artists, leaders - the lacretian people have certainly seen a comeback, and have well earned their place in the galaxy.

[kusogamesss]

AaaaaAAaaaAAAaaAAAAaAAAAA!!! -- A Reckless Disregard for Gravity

The captivation of the early Steam indie landscape can never be understated. Before the arrival of Steam Greenlight, the walled garden meant a very select few titles graced the storefront now resplendent with asset flips and low-grade eroge. Renowned games like Project Zomboid didn’t even appear on the store at that time — it and other indie darlings relied on Google Checkout and Desura for distribution. So limited was the indie space on Steam that days, weeks could go by without a new title. In looking for what underground, offbeat goodness was permitted, users invariably came across AaaaaAAaaaAAAaaAAAAaAAAAA!!! - A Reckless Disregard for Gravity, the first title alphabetically on the store. In Dejobaan Games founder Ichiro Lambe’s words:

“A name should be interesting, memorable, and descriptive — a game about jumping off of a perfectly good building in a flimsy wingsuit should be exciting. We had plenty of other ideas. The working title was Low Altitude, and we considered a bunch of others: Screaming and Falling AaaAaaAaa! Deploy Parachute for Hot Chicks Jumping to Earth From Tall Buildings Bridge. Antenna. Span. Earth. Falling Toward Earth Your Personal Crater Free Fall Don't Forget Your Parachute Remember Your Parachute Spicy Mountain Lion Freedom, Free-Fall, Freedom I Fell From a Building A few of those were obviously thrown in as jokes. "Deploy Parachute for Hot Chicks" was a dig at the industry's obsession with boobs. Spicy Mountain Lion was my personal favorite non sequitur. But when our PR/Marketing dude, Leo saw the list, he poked his finger at "AaaAaaAaa!," and refused to let me adjourn the meeting until I agreed to go with that.”

Though also available from Direct2Drive, GamersGate, Impulse, and WildTangent, the one-two punch of Steam's self-imposed exclusivity coupled with an ostentatious title made AaaAaaAaa! an enticing proposition for a couple years. Its inclusion in The Potato Sack on April 1, 2011 made it (relatively) explode in notoriety over a year after its initial launch. A crucial part of the associated Portal 2 ARG, many players, myself included, snatched up the game at its steep -75% discount and got to work inflating the player count, seeking clues, and nabbing potatoes for the ultimate goal of releasing Portal 2 early. Ten days after The Potato Sack launched, player numbers remained as high as 4,253, a number which would never be even approached again. By June 27, 2011, concurrent players topped out at 624. A year later, only 13. Since mid-2014, AaaAaaAaa! has failed to reach double digits. It has become a footnote of a footnote, a stepping-stone towards the contemporary AA indie zeitgeist of Game Pass and publishers and safety.

AaaAaaAaa! is reckless, an emblem of a sliver of a fraction of time wherein indies were starting to get the recognition they deserved. The polish of contemporary indies is absurd, their development cycles arduous, their teams an enormity, publishing rights are snatched in an instant. Finji co-owner Rebekah Saltsman in 2021 stated “Five years ago, I’m like, ‘Oh, I can make a game for a million dollars.’ And that was crazy then. And [now] I’m like, ‘I can’t make this for under four [million].” By contrast, Dejobaan’s marketing budget for AaaAaaAaa! was $0. With assets that seemingly fell out of a wallet containing lint and a single fly, AaaAaaAaa! and its ilk prided themselves not on their graphical fidelity or scale, but singular ideas explored maximally within small packages. AaaAaaAaa! isn’t bursting at the seams with content, but it didn’t need to. Like Zineth or Voxeltron or Darwinia, the aim was to present something new that hadn’t been explored within the games space as a sort of proof of concept, an offer of what games can accomplish.

As an in-effect sacrificial lamb then, AaaAaaAaa! is easy to dismiss as unimportant, as belonging to its position as a footnote’s footnote, but in revisiting it (having realised the kids of today know nothing of this time beyond its winners, its Super Meat Boy and Minecraft and Limbo) I was surprised at how enjoyable it remains. The gameplay is little more than falling while grazing obstacles and responding to simple button prompts. It isn’t good to look at. Yet it kicks ass in all the right ways. This first-person adaptation of BASE jumping evokes concepts of bullet hell with its tight navigation of enclosed spaces, of racing games in its sheer velocity, of arcade high-score chasing as you go for one more kiss, one more score plate. It oozes with risk’s rewards. It is drenched in text as an accessory, taking its overlong title and applying it to every facet of the UI and gameplay experience. It contains small nothingburgers of video chaos as if it is some valid reward in its own right. Image macros bespeckle gray slabs of polygonery. It is balloonshop’s Oreo, sounding not even half good but it is good, really Most importantly, it doesn’t wear out its welcome in the slightest, being just long enough to explore itself fully without the pressures of content bloat on the player. It would be reiterated upon with its semi-sequel AaaaaAAaaaAAAaaAAAAaAAAAA!!! for the Awesome semi-reconstructed with its long abandoned half brother 1… 2… 3… KICK IT! (Drop That Beat Like an Ugly Baby), mobilised with AaaaaAAaaaAAAaaAAAAaAAAAA!!! (Force = Mass x Acceleration) and is apparently being revitalised with the upcoming AaaaaAAaaaAAAaaAAAAaAAAAA!!! (if it ever releases).

It would be irresponsible to act like Superflight, Steep, Rush, and even Just Cause 3 haven’t trounced AaaAaaAaa! in nearly every regard with their years of hindsight to work off of, their immeasurable polish, and astounding budgets, but AaaAaaAaa! did it without a shred of shame, staying true to Dejobaan’s obtuse philosophies of making games that raise an eyebrow for their names, premises, and gameplay. It doesn’t blow my gourd, but it doesn’t need to. It’s fun, and it sits at the top of my Steam library for eternity. Jumping off of it into thousands of other games as I scroll and scroll seems fitting, somehow. It’s like Dejobaan knew they would be pioneers on an ever-growing mountain that forever shifts its form. It is a stratum fondly remembered.

[thatgirl4815]

Transitions & Tension

I know we’ve all been praising Mile and Apo for their acting this episode, but I want to jump in and say that what’s impressive isn’t only their execution of immense tonal shifts but the speed and at which they execute these shifts. Their mood changes are seamless rather than choppy and divided. Not only does it make the scenes more entertaining and realistic, but it also makes them feel whole. 

Like in this beloved scene:

The shift happens right in this gif. Kinn’s face falls ever so slightly--without saying a word, we’ve already connected the dots about what he’s feeling. It reminds me of Ep6 in a way. This flirtation between them is a break from the real world. Kinn gets caught up in the moment before reality crashes back in. Porsche’s smiling face brings him joy, but everything about their situation is fragile. Porsche is still Kinn’s bodyguard, and he must assume all of the duties that come with that, but Kinn has never really wanted Porsche in this position (and I don’t think he ever really will). In the first few episodes, it was out of obstinance and annoyance with Porsche’s attitude. But oh how the tables have turned by Ep7. Kinn has acted as Porsche’s bodyguard in previous episodes, and it’s all been leading to this realization that the only way for Kinn to guard his heart is for Porsche not to guard his body. It’s an unwinnable situation though, because regardless of Kinn’s authority, Porsche still has to assume his role, no matter how dangerous it is. Kinn failed to free him from it in Ep6, so the only option now is to keep Porsche close and pray for his safety. 

Back to my point: the fact that this one scene--this one gif--can bring all of this context to mind shows just how natural and impactful the transition is. The mood flips as Kinn’s expression changes, but that’s all we need to understand the gravity of this moment. They can flirt and play with each other, but there is always this underlying threat to their interactions--the thought that for all they have gone through together, they could be ripped apart in a million different ways. 

(We won’t talk about the fact that this scene also uses three different music selections, each with varying tone, to coincide with these transitions. It’s a risky move to use so many selections, but in my opinion, it works. And Jeff’s soaring vocals of “Why don’t you stay?” as they look at each other??? Yeah.)

Let’s not even get started on the newest installment of The Scene™, because that’s got mood changes galore. Rage, frustration, heartbreak, guilt, forgiveness, desperation, lust, love: all in the span of only a few minutes. Mile and Apo have proven themselves to be phenomenal actors on their own, but they have a unique way of communicating with each other through their expressions alone. Their emotions are almost palpable, and they silently interact in a way that heightens these mood transitions effortlessly and realistically. 

From a screenwriting and acting perspective, this final scene is risky. It quickly becomes sexual, but this isn’t a hate-sex moment, as it very well could’ve been. Kinn and Porsche are very clearly sexually attracted to one another, but their coming together isn’t initiated solely by lust; as in both of KP’s sex scenes so far, the physical intimacy is inextricably tethered to the emotional intimacy. As @fleet-off​ mentioned in one of her posts, television doesn’t show emotionally-invested sex scenes very often, but that’s what makes KP’s so poignant. The tonal transition feel seamless at the end of Ep7 (at least in my opinion) because of these emotional layers they have built up so carefully over the course of the last seven episodes. I personally went into the show expecting the feelings to come after the sex, but I have been pleasantly surprised by the added layer of emotion because it makes everything feel not only necessary, but richer. And I think it’s really difficult to portray a relatively graphic sex scene and make it feel as if it really needs to be there.

Anyways, I go into more detail about how cinematographic features like lighting and camera angle play into these mood changes in this post.

As usual, this post became a lot longer than I intended, but my concluding thought is that KinnPorsche manages to handle transitions in a masterful way that I adore very much. 🙂

[dialectrician]

The problem with Heinrich's law of the tendency of the rate of profit to fall (ltrpf) articles is that he isn't actually factually wrong, but he misinterprets things, in a way that I think makes him miss the implications of the factually right things he says.

Yes, Marx doesn't prove that the rate of profit falls in literally all cases and at all time-scales, but ltrpf believers typically don't think that. It doesn't disprove the law, just like the ability of birds to fly doesn't disprove the existence of gravity.

There are essentially two ltrpf's:

The "law as such", which could be formulated thus : "for a given rate of surplus-value, the rate of profit falls as a function of the organic composition of capital (occ)". Heinrich says, well, the growth of the occ means higher productivity, which means cheaper goods, which means the cost of life has decreased so capitalist can decreases the relative wage which increases the rate of surplus value, and the increased rate of surplus value offset the fall in the rate of profit. Therefore the law as such is a banality. i.e. rop=s/(c+v)=(s/v)/(1+occ) and there is no reason to believe that 1+occ increases faster than s/v

But the law as such precisely is the concrete reason capitalists HAVE to decrease the relative wage, thereby reproducing the proletariat as proletariat and reproducing the preconditions of capitalist production! Without the law as such, it is hard to argue why you can't have a policy where labor time decreases (or real wages increase) at the same rate as productivity increases. The law as such essentially proves that class conflicts are not contingent, not simply due to greed, but a necessity of capitalist production. Which is why we still don't have Holy Lord Keynes 15 hour work-week and reformism is bound to always fail in the long term. And so the "law as such" vindicate Marx's earlier assumption that the rate of surplus value increases as a function of productivity and brings coherence to Marx's model.

Then there's the stronger version of the law, which says that even if you increases relative surplus value the rate of profit will fall as a function of the occ anyways, no matter how much capitalists increase exploitation. This is because the number of workers employed by a given capital decreases, which mean that the absolute quantity of value which can be squeezed out of them decreases, no matter how much you make them work and how little you pay them. Two workers will never provide as much surplus value as twenty four, even if you hire a wizard to turn them into zombies and make them work twenty four hours a day and don't pay them.

Here too Heinrich gives a counter-example, where the rate of profit has risen despite the rise of the organic composition of capital. However, his counter-example relies on the overall size of the capital having decreased, which doesn't work when you consider that the general rate of profit is computed over the total social capital. For Heinrich example to work there needs to have occured a massive loss of value, which is contrary to the normal process of capital production. That is to say a crisis.

Which is why ltrpf believers considers it a crisis theory. The law of the tendency of the rate of profit to fall shows that periodic crisis are necessary to restore profitability to the economy.

And so capitalist production not only create an irresolvable antagonism between proletarians and capitalists, but also is in contradiction with itself, in the sense that accumulation of value becomes an obstacle to further accumulation of value

I think that part of the issue is that the relevant chapters in Vol 3 are badly edited, but also I think Heinrich really is going out of his way to go with the most uncharitable interpretation of the ltrpf.

In a world where Marxian economics are completely mainstream and every economist fanatically defends the law of the tendency of the rate of profit to fall, only Michael Heinrich is bold enough to rise up and say he doesn’t believe Marxism is true or coherent.

[rorimasters]

Hi, I’m relatively new to tumblr and as politely as I can, is it possible to mute a specific tag so that posts about it never ever show up in my “for you” section again? Google is failing me. I’m on tumblr mobile so maybe there’s something on desktop I’m missing.

The problem. Tumblr is convinced that I’m utterly obsessed with this show called “The Owl House”. I’d frankly never even heard of it prior to tumblr thinking it was my favorite thing in the world, no offense to the fandom, I just don’t watch TV these days. My best guess as to what sent my algorithm that direction is it’s overlap with the Gravity Falls fandom, it’s possible some people I followed are fans of TOH, but none of the posts are from people I follow and none seem to have tags I follow either. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure it’s great and the fan base seems nice enough (hence why I’m tagging them in this ask!) but it doesn’t seem to be for me.

Anyway, the point. Posts about the show started showing up over a month ago, but over the past 2 weeks it’s starting to get to the point it’s making me not log onto tumblr. I actually counted today, and out of the first 30 posts on “for you”, 12 were about this show! That’s a full 40 percent! When it first started showing up I ignored it but once it was a noticeable chunk of my feed I started clicking the “this content isn’t for me” box on every post, every day, and it’s only continued to grow. I know the usual advice on tumblr is “just accept you’re part of the fandom now and go watch it” but I really don’t have time for a new obsession right now.

This post is honestly equally as much rant as tech support, tumblr’s gotten the point when I said I wasn’t interested in some things related to tags I actually follow (apparently liking Harry Potter meant I need tons of fanfiction excerpts about Sirius and Remus secretly being gay lovers in canon, which like, good for them but I don’t care lmao) so I’m really not sure why it’s being so stubborn on something I don’t follow. I’m already 10 years late getting here and I’d hate to be driven away from my feed drowning in something I don’t care about.

Since I know someone inevitably is gonna force it on me, you have my consent to try to sell me on the show in the comments despite what I said above. But like, even if I was an enormous fan this’d still be a bit much. Even if it’s not possible to fully mute it, any info on how to reach the algorithm to chill a bit would be appreciated. Please help :(

-edit- This was solved almost immediately by someone in the comments, Leaving this up partially cause I like how I wrote it, partially in case someone has the same issue so they can find the post, and partially cause I tagged the fandom for help and owe the pittance of y’all trying to sell me on it anyway.