#hate relying on their income so much

[boyfeminism]

gonna start applying to 10 jobs a day minimum this is insane

[pom-seedss]

We can't expect individual people to have safety nets and contingency plans for everything when as a society we have gutted any safety net we once built.

The way people can get trapped in abusive situations, or be stuck without finances if your spouse dies, is absolutely important to talk about and bring awareness to.... but we can't keep doing it by throwing disabled people under the bus because this happens to us all the time. And unlike someone choosing to be a trad wife we really have no choice in our situation.

We need more robust safety nets, community supports and resources to help people from getting stuck with no way out of abusive relationships and bad situations.

We can't personal responsibility our way out of societal problems.

sometimes, when someone is criticizing the stay-at-home-wife movement being sold to young women by conservatives, it loses focus on the "selling you a repressive and authoritarian worldview" point and slides into... well... implicitly leaving disabled people to die.

and what i mean by that is, it's all well and good to say you should do everything in your power to make sure you're not financially dependent on another person... but what if "everything in your power" is "nothing?"

what if how society is structured means you have absolutely no choice but to be financially dependent on another person? what if it's that, or simply die? this is the choice disabled people are faced with. not even uncommonly... frequently. people who need full-time carers, or who have very expensive medication and assistive tech needs, or people who simply can't work in the current job structure, often have the choice of... well... find someone to be financially dependent on, or face a slow, painful death, usually without housing. even if you're lucky enough to get on a fixed income, it's never enough to even make monthly rent, and that's not counting the extra costs of food, toiletries, medicine...

in fact, a lot of disabled people (certainly notably women, but absolutely not limited to, and in fact i see this happen to trans men over and over again, and i've lost a dear transmasc friend because of this) are funneled into being stay-at-home parents and homemakers, forced to do all of the domestic labor and childcare in exchange for a roof over their head and access to their medications/assistive tech, and isolated in all the same ways tradwives are isolated. in fact, this even happens with leftist partners/parents. all the time, i see disabled people disappear from public life entirely, lose contact with all their friends, and consign themselves to a life of cleaning up after someone while struggling to handle their own health needs, even having their disabilities exacerbated and their lifespans shortened by the amount of domestic labor they're required to do.

but it isn't a choice... it can't be fixed by focusing on academia or work... and it's not due to buying into conservative propaganda. all i ask is, please remember this, and please never leave us out of these discussions.

[wolfertinger666]

i really really hate to ask like this cuz I feel pathetic but, I am here to boost my Kofi cuz we run out of food and toiletries really fucking fast, meanwhile my neglectful mothers blows her money(mostly my own) on bullshit we really don't need...

i need help is basically what I'm saying. i feel pathetic that I am disabled and can't work a real job so I have to rely on socials for income/feeding me m the pets cuz I live with people who suck money out of me while treating me terribly. i budget my income so I eat only once a day now. i try to draw so much for my enjoyment and audience but it's genuinely hard to do so when you don't have proper energy.

sorry to e-beg constantly, I'm really struggling.

[freela]

for the love of god please help me

Hi, I'll get right to the point. In July last year, my mom and I had to move in with a family member and are currently living in her garage. This family member is a vindictive, hateful, and manipulative person, goes through our things when we're gone, does not allow us to eat after certain times, slams doors to startle us, and constantly hangs it over our heads how "gracious" she was to let us live in her garage instead of letting us be on the street. Despite complaining that she is embarrassed of us living here and wants us out of here as soon as possible/constantly threatens kicking us out (despite coming to us about us living here), we have to pay for our own food, toilet paper, etc., and my mom has to pay HALF the electric bill (this family member will randomly turn all the lights on in the house and leave them on/turn them back on when we turn them off in hopes of getting more money from my mom for the electric bill) as well as rent simply for just living here, and this eats up each paycheck my mom gets and we have not been able to save up absolutely anything to move out. Any money we save up at this point relies entirely on me having an income, and I have been job-hunting since August and haven't heard from anywhere yet. I have never been in contact with such an evil individual in close quarters like this, the way we're treated here/watching how my mom is treated is draining me of my mental well-being and there is nowhere to go to get a break, I feel hopeless that we will ever be able to move out any time soon. I had to re-home my cat who is being fostered by a friend for the time being, and it's not the main priority because I know she is safe and cared for, but on top of everything I just miss my cat so badly it hurts and I just want to be able to get by enough to get our own place and be reunited with her.

I'm opening up commissions, they are pay what you want. I truly do not care enough at this point to accurately price my art, I am so at a loss for what to do until I get a job that I am willing to accept any amount in exchange for my art. I have some recent examples of what I can do if anyone is interested listed below (I apologize for the awkward formatting).

(Text says "Simple pixel doodles/paintings" and "More detailed/clean drawings, shading/backgrounds") I have a Bluesky where I will be posting commissions on if given permission.* I also have a Bluesky for nsfw art that I do not feel comfortable sharing the name of out in the open, but if you are 18+ feel free to dm me about this. *For both my regular and nsfw Bluesky accounts, I will post commissions ONLY if given permission by the buyer. If you do give permission for me to post it, you can let me know if you'd like it to be known it's for you, or if you'd like me to leave you anonymous. All posted commission art will be posted with a large watermark that the version you get will not have. I will NOT draw: -Proship -Noncon/cnc -Aged up characters/age*play/dd*lg/anything related -Real people These apply for both my regular and nsfw Bluesky accounts. I am only able to use ca$happ, which is @/wwdits (my full name will be listed, you can check with me to confirm if you have the right account). I apologize for the inconvenience. I know this is long, but I am very desperate to convey the type of work I can do so I can make a bit of income to set aside to get out of here. Thank you so much for reading, and if you cannot commission but know someone who might be interested, please share wherever possible. Thank you so much for reading and may things get better for all of us.

[running-with-kn1ves]

Satin Pillows To Cry On

CW: coercion with money, age gap(7 yrs), transactional marriage, obsessive/yandere behavior

gn! reader

﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀﹀

You’ve got nothing else, no one else to rely on. 

‘You’re something he bought to keep from growing old.” 

Your clothes are worth small countries. Your cars stacked in 3-level garages. Diamonds, emeralds, pearls hanging from your wrists and ears, satchels made of endangered animal skins, different shoes for each day of the year. 

Your boyfriend of three years spat at your feet when you told him what you were doing. 

“His money can’t love you, not like I can.”

The wedding was only two months away when you broke up with him, told him you couldn’t live in his broke-down apartment anymore, that you couldn’t live with debt trailing wherever you went. You went so far as to make him hate you, to tell him that you never wanted to see him again, that you never loved him, that he better not bother showing up to the wedding. You didn’t want him there, you never wanted to see him again. 

“You’re lying to me; he’s making you say these things, he’s using you against me! You’ve known him what-- two seconds, and you’re going to marry this man?! He’s nearly a decade older than you!” 

Seven years of an age gap or not, he was still a thousand times more independent, wealthy, and a safer choice than your boyfriend. You weren’t some fresh college student new to the world, you had graduated over two years ago, still finding no luck in getting a stable income-- forget about whether or not it was in the field of your degree. 

You left in a single day, fitting all of your scavanged belongings into one of your fiance’s awaiting cars. You left anything worth of value with your ex-boyfriend, knowing he’d find more use out of it than you would. You would even leave the rest of your things there if he could find use for them, but you knew they’d just be one more painful reminder of your betrayal. 

He did as you said, not showing up to your wedding, staying clear, never appearing in your line of sight since the day you left. It made it easier…. For both of you that way. 

And now you were happy-- well, maybe not happy, maybe not even content, but you were… safe. You had everything you needed: a working car, a stable job that you felt productive in, a clean and comforting house to come home to, a spouse. Sure, maybe you didn’t get your new job yourself, or your house or your car-- but did that really matter, in this economy? Who wouldn’t trade their life and their independence for this kind of wealth?

And your husband… he wasn’t all bad. He might have only wanted you for the sake of having you at first, like a new jewel or the latest technological invention. But he was doting and caring in his own way. Maybe just a tiny bit too invested in you, in your schedule and who you talked to. A little too hateful towards your ex-boyfriend, the one who had you before he could. But everyone had character flaws, and on good days you could distract him from his grumpy mood and stress and obsessive behaviors by being the loving and oh so perfect spouse you had trained yourself to be ever since he asked to marry you. 

“Colder than all that gold…” You repeated in your mind, the words your family whispered to each other at your wedding reception only a few feet away from you. 

That was over six months now, though… the honeymoon phase never existed, you rarely saw your husband except for his midnight appearances back from the office, and whenever he would whisk you away for a weekend vacation to savor the time he had with you. For someone more sophisticated, much wealthier, and dare you say handsomer than the average man-- you were surprised to find he didn’t have a line of divorces behind him. 

No; he said, he had been “waiting for you.” whether  you or he knew it, he understood right from the moment of meeting you that you were the one he’d have for the rest of his life, even if it killed him. That severity… scared you. But in a sick sense, it made you feel relieved. Forever? This could be yours, forever? Your family would never have to struggle again, you would never have to worry where your next meal came from?

“I cleared your schedule until tuesday; we’re going to the isles. A mini vacation, you might call it. Get your things.”

He was cold, that was for sure. But, was he any worse than your ex-boyfriend, especially when he was offering you an expensive experience on top of that?

“All right..” You acquiesced. 

And now, you lied sunken into the bed feeling his loving, hot breath on your navel. Going so sweetly slow, so oddly and uncharacteristingly lingering with his touches as he gazes into your eyes. You didn’t like this; didn’t like that when he was cherishing you, making love to you, holding you so intimately, he was appearing… like a husband should. Where did he get the nerve to ignore you everyday, to have hardly any time for you, only to come back and beg for your love when it was convenient for him? 

But you keep your mouth shut, like you should, if you want to keep eating breakfast in bed, keep wearing silk robes while watching the view of the ocean outside your window.

“So beautiful…you’re like a work of art, the kind no amount of money can buy.” 

That was funny, hilarious even. Enough so to make you cry. 

A familiar face passes by the slightly ajar door to distract you, likely one of the housekeepers leaving for the night. But you swear the man’s figure reminds you of someone from your past, someone you loved and left for good. 

Your husband brings back your attention by placing a gentle kiss to your temple, blindly undoing the clasp of the necklace he bought you.

“I’m so lucky… so lucky to have been the one to catch you, forever. No one could’ve done it, not without what I have.”

He wanted you to kiss and caress back, but sometimes lying still was just enough. It was enough for him to witness you, basking in the glow of everything you wore from him, lying in the Egyptian cotton sheets he paid extra for, your body molded to the diet his personal chefs cooked. 

Even as he pushed a knee between your legs, traveling from your navel to your stomach with open-mouthed sucks and kisses in the rawest form of affection, you couldn’t help but turn your face deep into the pillow. So soft, the soft purple shielding your eyes from his tender gaze.

You might’ve given up love, given up everything familiar and those who you’ve cared for-- but at least you had satin pillows to cry on, and the finest jewelry to wipe your tears with. 

[yanderelionwrites]

In Sickness and In Health - Yandere!Ruggie x Reader

I like the concept of a yandere making their darling take care of them, so I tried it out with Ruggifer. Cuz as much as he loves to take care of his partner, I think he'd be extremely desperate for them to take care of him too.

Content Warning: yandere, captivity, force feeding, Ruggie weaponizing his illness, he’s also clingy af, slightest hint of Stockholm Syndrome

Word Count: 1.4k

Reader is implied to be Yuu/the Prefect

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That damn hyena.

If he didn’t work himself to the bone every day, he wouldn’t have gotten sick.

And now you’re stuck taking care of him, nursing him back to health, while he acts like a clingy, helpless cub.

“(Name)... I don’t think I have the strength to pick up my spoon…” Ruggie whines, giving you sad puppy eyes that disgust you to your core. 

You stand next to his bed, having just set a tray over his lap so he could eat the soup you prepared. Your fists clench as he stares at you expectantly while poking his spoon in your direction. This guy… 

“You could walk yourself to the bathroom just fine earlier. You don’t need me to feed you,” you grit out, resisting the urge to roll your eyes at his ridiculousness.

“How am I ever going to get better if my cruel mate won’t even take care of me?” Ruggie complains. “And after I provide you with so much…”

You wouldn’t have to if you didn’t keep me here against my will, you thought. Still though, Ruggie is the only provider of the house, considering he refuses to let you out. Without him, there’s no income.

You could try to leave while he’s weak like this, though you wouldn’t get far. It’s not just Ruggie you have to worry about; the whole hyena beastman community would be out hunting for you too. They’d do anything to help the beloved boy they’ve watched grow up, who has helped them in the past numerous times. They would only be returning the favor to him.

You hate to admit it, but you have to rely on Ruggie to survive in this world. At least until you have a solid escape plan.

A sigh escapes your lips and you reluctantly sit down on the bed. You grab the spoon and scoop up some soup, boredly lifting it up to his mouth.

Ruggie gives you that mischievous grin of his before gladly opening his maw. He clamps down around the spoon, slurping up the soup and humming.

“Mm, tastes good. Your cooking has definitely improved since last time,” he remarks while you grab another spoonful.

“...Thanks. I was just following a recipe your grandma gave me, though.”

“Ah, I thought it tasted familiar. Granny would always make this soup when I was feelin’ under the weather.” Ruggie smiles at that, and eagerly consumes more of the soup when you feed it to him.

He gets about halfway into his meal before he stops your hand. You’re confused until he takes the spoon from you and lifts it to your lips instead. Before it can touch you, however, you jerk away.

“No way, Sicky! You’ve already eaten from it, it’s got all your germs on it!” you exclaim.

Ruggie frowns and leans forward anyway to bring the spoon closer to you. “You should have some! I know you haven’t eaten anything today.”

While that was true, you weren’t about to eat the same food a sick person has touched. “I don’t want any. Finish it so you can get some rest afterwards.”

The hyena huffs, and you think you were able to convince him. Yet before you can react, he swiftly grabs hold of your chin. Squishing your cheeks under his fingers, he tugs your face closer to him. You try to squirm out of his grip, but he doesn't let up. Liar. He does have the strength.

“Say ‘ahhh.’” Ruggie pokes your closed mouth with the spoon, some of the soup spilling off and onto your lap. Good thing it’s only lukewarm now.

You press your lips together and shake your head, determined to avoid even a single drop from entering your mouth. Ruggie’s determined too, though, as he only continues to force the tip of the spoon in between the seam of your lips. A low growl emits from the back of his throat at your defiance yet his expression remains one of sickeningly sweet affection.

“Don’t be stubborn, babe. One taste won’t hurt.”

“Ruggie, stop-”

You just barely part your lips to mumble out a plea, but it’s enough for him to shove the spoon in while you’re speaking. You have no choice but to swallow the little amount that is left on there. He continues to feed more soup to you, grinning all the while. You can’t tell if the red on his cheeks is from him being ill or not, but you could hear the sound of his tail thumping against the mattress. He’s enjoying this.

Watching you eat is addicting to Ruggie. He’s the one that’s directly making sure you’re well-fed and full. He’s the one who’s doing such a good job taking care of you. Using the same spoon is just an added bonus to the whole process. It’s like he’s giving you an indirect kiss with each spoonful you take in. It’s so very intimate, wouldn’t you agree? It’s not like he’s trying to get you sick on purpose or anything.

You are forced to finish the rest of the soup, and you heave a sigh of relief when Ruggie finally lets go of your face. Wiping the excess liquid from the side of your mouth, you glare at the hyena, who is now giving you an innocent look.

“What? I have to make sure my mate is taken care of too.” He shrugs off the whole interaction. “Even when I’m sick.”

“Well, now I’m probably gonna get sick cuz you made me eat that!” you rebuke, but Ruggie only replies with an uncaring yawn.

He sets the tray off to the side and crawls underneath the covers, pulling the blanket up to his chin. You stand up from the bed to clean up the soup mess, but Ruggie grabs your wrist before you can leave. His bluish-grey eyes look desperate again, and you would say he almost looks cute with the way his ears twitch slightly. Almost.

“Wait, don’t go just yet.” His hand drops from your wrist and intertwines with your fingers, pulling your hand up to his cheek. It’s warm.

The way he’s looking at you reminds you of how he used to be when you both attended Night Raven. He’d give you that soft expression that made you cave in to his whims every time. He wasn’t as possessive when you first started to date, and he wasn’t obsessed with keeping you glued to his side.

You guess he was just really good at hiding those parts of himself.

“What else is it, Ruggie?” you ask quietly, tired of his requests.

He pats the empty side of his bed, saying, “Rest with me, yeah? I don’t think I can get better if you’re away.”

You want to leave and have time to yourself for once, but with the way he’s squeezing your hand, you know Ruggie isn’t going to take no for an answer. You hesitantly make your way over to the other side of the bed, pulling back the blanket to get in. Once you’re laying down, Ruggie scooches his body over so that his back is pressed against your chest. He tugs your arms to wrap around him, effectively forcing you to spoon him. He releases a content sigh once he’s comfortable, and you can faintly hear a low purring sound emitting from him.

A small smile quirks up on your lips, despite it all, but you immediately will it back down. Even if you think it’s endearing, you cannot forget your priorities.

* * *

Ruggie’s recovery is quick; he’s right as rain just a few days later. He still insists he stay at home for just a bit longer, though, to make sure he’s fully well-rested.

You, on the other hand, have been feeling off all day, ignoring the minor symptoms thinking it was nothing. Turns out it is something because now you’re dizzy and leaning against the wall for support.

Your body feels hot and your skin is clammy from sweat. The task you were doing beforehand is forgotten as you try to regain your balance. No… You can’t be-

“Whoa, you alright?” Ruggie comes up behind you and shifts your weight so that you’re leaning against him instead. He feels your forehead with his hand. It’s hot to the touch.

He almost seems excited when he realizes what’s wrong, eagerly hauling you towards the bedroom. “You’re burnin’ up, sweetheart. Let’s get you to bed.”

You try to fight him on it, but Ruggie all too easily picks you up and places you on his bed. He makes sure you’re as comfortable as you can be before sitting down beside you.“I’ll getcha feelin’ better in no time, (Name),” he assures while petting your hair. “It’s my turn to play nurse now~”

[alexandraisyes]

Emergency Commissions

I hate hate hate asking for help and so I’m so sorry that I am

I have three large payments due by October 16th and despite my best efforts I haven’t managed to get a job yet. I’ve gotten several interviews but I haven’t secured a job yet. It’s a total of around 650-700 dollars and I don’t have an easy way to make that happen. I’m going to try to sell adopts, which is all I can actively do. I can’t make people commission me, I’m not going to ask any of my friends to help me when they’ve helped so much in the past with stuff like this. But it’s generally been smaller payments that I’ve struggled with because I’ve been searching for a job for *months*

Art is my only income, but the only way I’d be able to afford this is if I made around 20 adopts within two weeks and managed to sell them all at full price. That’s statistically unlikely to happen even if I managed to *make* that many.

If you can and want to commission me that would help. If you don’t want to but want to help, I have a Kofi page. And if you don’t want to donate, or don’t care, could you please reblog this? I’m a small creator that has relied on my art to pay my bills for over half a year, and this is just too much of a load suddenly dropped on me without any warning that I don’t have a way to make on my own.

This is my commission sheet with my prices. I do custom adopts starting at 20$ for a base design and 40$ for a full reference (example below) with add-ons available (10$ each extra outfit - NSFW design for 5$, other add-ons negotiable).

This is my Kofi, again if you can’t donate please reblog this to help it get a bit more coverage if you’re willing. If I can’t pay these bills I’m at risk of losing almost everything and getting in big legal trouble.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

AI is a WMD

I'm in TARTU, ESTONIA! AI, copyright and creative workers' labor rights (TOMORROW, May 10, 8AM: Science Fiction Research Association talk, Institute of Foreign Languages and Cultures building, Lossi 3, lobby). A talk for hackers on seizing the means of computation (TOMORROW, May 10, 3PM, University of Tartu Delta Centre, Narva 18, room 1037).

Fun fact: "The Tragedy Of the Commons" is a hoax created by the white nationalist Garrett Hardin to justify stealing land from colonized people and moving it from collective ownership, "rescuing" it from the inevitable tragedy by putting it in the hands of a private owner, who will care for it properly, thanks to "rational self-interest":

https://pluralistic.net/2023/05/04/analytical-democratic-theory/#epistocratic-delusions

Get that? If control over a key resource is diffused among the people who rely on it, then (Garrett claims) those people will all behave like selfish assholes, overusing and undermaintaining the commons. It's only when we let someone own that commons and charge rent for its use that (Hardin says) we will get sound management.

By that logic, Google should be the internet's most competent and reliable manager. After all, the company used its access to the capital markets to buy control over the internet, spending billions every year to make sure that you never try a search-engine other than its own, thus guaranteeing it a 90% market share:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/02/21/im-feeling-unlucky/#not-up-to-the-task

Google seems to think it's got the problem of deciding what we see on the internet licked. Otherwise, why would the company flush $80b down the toilet with a giant stock-buyback, and then do multiple waves of mass layoffs, from last year's 12,000 person bloodbath to this year's deep cuts to the company's "core teams"?

https://qz.com/google-is-laying-off-hundreds-as-it-moves-core-jobs-abr-1851449528

And yet, Google is overrun with scams and spam, which find their way to the very top of the first page of its search results:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/02/24/passive-income/#swiss-cheese-security

The entire internet is shaped by Google's decisions about what shows up on that first page of listings. When Google decided to prioritize shopping site results over informative discussions and other possible matches, the entire internet shifted its focus to producing affiliate-link-strewn "reviews" that would show up on Google's front door:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/04/24/naming-names/#prabhakar-raghavan

This was catnip to the kind of sociopath who a) owns a hedge-fund and b) hates journalists for being pain-in-the-ass, stick-in-the-mud sticklers for "truth" and "facts" and other impediments to the care and maintenance of a functional reality-distortion field. These dickheads started buying up beloved news sites and converting them to spam-farms, filled with garbage "reviews" and other Google-pleasing, affiliate-fee-generating nonsense.

(These news-sites were vulnerable to acquisition in large part thanks to Google, whose dominance of ad-tech lets it cream 51 cents off every ad dollar and whose mobile OS monopoly lets it steal 30 cents off every in-app subscriber dollar):

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2023/04/saving-news-big-tech

Now, the spam on these sites didn't write itself. Much to the chagrin of the tech/finance bros who bought up Sports Illustrated and other venerable news sites, they still needed to pay actual human writers to produce plausible word-salads. This was a waste of money that could be better spent on reverse-engineering Google's ranking algorithm and getting pride-of-place on search results pages:

https://housefresh.com/david-vs-digital-goliaths/

That's where AI comes in. Spicy autocomplete absolutely can't replace journalists. The planet-destroying, next-word-guessing programs from Openai and its competitors are incorrigible liars that require so much "supervision" that they cost more than they save in a newsroom:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/04/29/what-part-of-no/#dont-you-understand

But while a chatbot can't produce truthful and informative articles, it can produce bullshit – at unimaginable scale. Chatbots are the workers that hedge-fund wreckers dream of: tireless, uncomplaining, compliant and obedient producers of nonsense on demand.

That's why the capital class is so insatiably horny for chatbots. Chatbots aren't going to write Hollywood movies, but studio bosses hyperventilated at the prospect of a "writer" that would accept your brilliant idea and diligently turned it into a movie. You prompt an LLM in exactly the same way a studio exec gives writers notes. The difference is that the LLM won't roll its eyes and make sarcastic remarks about your brainwaves like "ET, but starring a dog, with a love plot in the second act and a big car-chase at the end":

https://pluralistic.net/2023/10/01/how-the-writers-guild-sunk-ais-ship/

Similarly, chatbots are a dream come true for a hedge fundie who ends up running a beloved news site, only to have to fight with their own writers to get the profitable nonsense produced at a scale and velocity that will guarantee a high Google ranking and millions in "passive income" from affiliate links.

One of the premier profitable nonsense companies is Advon, which helped usher in an era in which sites from Forbes to Money to USA Today create semi-secret "review" sites that are stuffed full of badly researched top-ten lists for products from air purifiers to cat beds:

https://housefresh.com/how-google-decimated-housefresh/

Advon swears that it only uses living humans to produce nonsense, and not AI. This isn't just wildly implausible, it's also belied by easily uncovered evidence, like its own employees' Linkedin profiles, which boast of using AI to create "content":

https://housefresh.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Advon-AI-LinkedIn.jpg

It's not true. Advon uses AI to produce its nonsense, at scale. In an excellent, deeply reported piece for Futurism, Maggie Harrison Dupré brings proof that Advon replaced its miserable human nonsense-writers with tireless chatbots:

https://futurism.com/advon-ai-content

Dupré describes how Advon's ability to create botshit at scale contributed to the enshittification of clients from Yoga Journal to the LA Times, "Us Weekly" to the Miami Herald.

All of this is very timely, because this is the week that Google finally bestirred itself to commence downranking publishers who engage in "site reputation abuse" – creating these SEO-stuffed fake reviews with the help of third parties like Advon:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/05/03/keyword-swarming/#site-reputation-abuse

(Google's policy only forbids site reputation abuse with the help of third parties; if these publishers take their nonsense production in-house, Google may allow them to continue to dominate its search listings):

https://developers.google.com/search/blog/2024/03/core-update-spam-policies#site-reputation

There's a reason so many people believed Hardin's racist "Tragedy of the Commons" hoax. We have an intuitive understanding that commons are fragile. All it takes is one monster to start shitting in the well where the rest of us get our drinking water and we're all poisoned.

The financial markets love these monsters. Mark Zuckerberg's key insight was that he could make billions by assembling vast dossiers of compromising, sensitive personal information on half the world's population without their consent, but only if he kept his costs down by failing to safeguard that data and the systems for exploiting it. He's like a guy who figures out that if he accumulates enough oily rags, he can extract so much low-grade oil from them that he can grow rich, but only if he doesn't waste money on fire-suppression:

https://locusmag.com/2018/07/cory-doctorow-zucks-empire-of-oily-rags/

Now Zuckerberg and the wealthy, powerful monsters who seized control over our commons are getting a comeuppance. The weak countermeasures they created to maintain the minimum levels of quality to keep their platforms as viable, going concerns are being overwhelmed by AI. This was a totally foreseeable outcome: the history of the internet is a story of bad actors who upended the assumptions built into our security systems by automating their attacks, transforming an assault that wouldn't be economically viable into a global, high-speed crime wave:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/04/24/automation-is-magic/

But it is possible for a community to maintain a commons. This is something Hardin could have discovered by studying actual commons, instead of inventing imaginary histories in which commons turned tragic. As it happens, someone else did exactly that: Nobel Laureate Elinor Ostrom:

https://www.onthecommons.org/magazine/elinor-ostroms-8-principles-managing-commmons/

Ostrom described how commons can be wisely managed, over very long timescales, by communities that self-governed. Part of her work concerns how users of a commons must have the ability to exclude bad actors from their shared resources.

When that breaks down, commons can fail – because there's always someone who thinks it's fine to shit in the well rather than walk 100 yards to the outhouse.

Enshittification is the process by which control over the internet moved from self-governance by members of the commons to acts of wanton destruction committed by despicable, greedy assholes who shit in the well over and over again.

It's not just the spammers who take advantage of Google's lazy incompetence, either. Take "copyleft trolls," who post images using outdated Creative Commons licenses that allow them to terminate the CC license if a user makes minor errors in attributing the images they use:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/01/24/a-bug-in-early-creative-commons-licenses-has-enabled-a-new-breed-of-superpredator/

The first copyleft trolls were individuals, but these days, the racket is dominated by a company called Pixsy, which pretends to be a "rights protection" agency that helps photographers track down copyright infringers. In reality, the company is committed to helping copyleft trolls entrap innocent Creative Commons users into paying hundreds or even thousands of dollars to use images that are licensed for free use. Just as Advon upends the economics of spam and deception through automation, Pixsy has figured out how to send legal threats at scale, robolawyering demand letters that aren't signed by lawyers; the company refuses to say whether any lawyer ever reviews these threats:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/02/13/an-open-letter-to-pixsy-ceo-kain-jones-who-keeps-sending-me-legal-threats/

This is shitting in the well, at scale. It's an online WMD, designed to wipe out the commons. Creative Commons has allowed millions of creators to produce a commons with billions of works in it, and Pixsy exploits a minor error in the early versions of CC licenses to indiscriminately manufacture legal land-mines, wantonly blowing off innocent commons-users' legs and laughing all the way to the bank:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/04/02/commafuckers-versus-the-commons/

We can have an online commons, but only if it's run by and for its users. Google has shown us that any "benevolent dictator" who amasses power in the name of defending the open internet will eventually grow too big to care, and will allow our commons to be demolished by well-shitters:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/04/04/teach-me-how-to-shruggie/#kagi

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/05/09/shitting-in-the-well/#advon

Image: Cryteria (modified) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:HAL9000.svg

CC BY 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en

--

Catherine Poh Huay Tan (modified) https://www.flickr.com/photos/68166820@N08/49729911222/

Laia Balagueró (modified) https://www.flickr.com/photos/lbalaguero/6551235503/

CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

[themoonsbeloved]

I still need help

Its now the 8th of January and despite being told by my friend who spoke with her boss 3 weeks ago during their meeting that he was to hire me in the beginning of January and would reach out to me, he hasn't. I'm hoping somehow, eventually, when this man finally bothers to, he will contact me for a job offer since he reassured me back in november that he still intends to hire me. But since I have no idea when that will be, that means I'm left hanging completely.

long story short I am mentally ill and disabled who was dismissed from my last and only job that I struggled 2 years to get, only to be fired in 2 months in June because of my chronic fatigue and abusive managers. I rely a lot on my henna but bookings are not consistent enough to make regular income, and majority of the money ends up going to contributing to house bills for my family.

My therapy picks up again this week, very honestly been the only thing keeping me from harming myself at this point with how painful life has been and I want to be able to continue getting it low cost (£25 per session), my therapist is so amazing and we recently came to the understanding that I have complex-PTSD, and plan to look into it more this year. I'm too mentally ill to try and look for jobs right now and am basically doing 3 jobs already (one being joint caring duties with family members for my grandparents since I live with them, which I'm not paid for obviously) with inconsistent money coming in/sessional work that I will be paid for once completed further into the year.

I have so many other costs that are coming in the near future, like paying for more medication, and for more lazer hair removal sessions for my severe hirsutism, which usually is around £300 if I'm lucky to catch offers. This is another I thing I mentally can't afford to stop doing, struggling with severe hirsutism and the trauma of it all my life means its important I can feel and live somewhat comfortably in my body. Lazer hair isn't permanent and I'm looking into electrolysis, but again, I don't have that money yet and would prefer to not leave a huge gap where I don't do lazer and the mental torture of watching my body hair grow back. I also haven't gotten my eyes checked in over 3 years, and know I will need a change in perscription and need new glasses. I hate nothing more than what its come to. I'm just exhausted and burnt out from the constant anxiety and depressive episodes, I'm barely eating or sleeping, I'm sick of everything and everyone and I just wish god would give me a break.

With all of the above in mind I'm aiming for about £600. This is all basically to help me just function and continue getting the things that help me not succumb to my mental health issues. If anything, my birthday's coming up in feb so I would appreciate it if folks gave some money if they have the means to. Anything is fine at this point.

Thank you so much

https://paypal.me/iffiia?country.x=GB&locale.x=en_GB

£0/£600

[bella-goths-wife]

I wasn't sure initially but after reading them all I must admit I've enjoyed your Yandre Vs x pet posts and love Velvette in particular. Can you do something similar but just for Velvette? Either Yandre, she owns your soul or just an obsessive girlfriend (general neutral reader).

Yandere girlfriend velvette

Warnings: obsessive behaviour but not as bad as pet series, reader is an objectively bad person but in a the devil wears Prada way, ooc velvette?

This isn’t canon to the pet series and is a completely different au! So reader is not pet and is treated significantly better

First of all, you’d have to be something special for velvette to treat you as an equal, let alone develop a romantic relationship with

And you were definitely something special

You were a fashionista demon who died in the 2000s, but your death would not stop you from building an empire

You created unique clothing pieces that blended the fun and freeness of the previous generations with a fresh Y2K style

Think monster high outfits, your outfits held darker and lighter tones blended together which incorporated different cultures from all over the world

You also had a unique ability that helped you with this, you had the ability to put your emotions into the clothing you’d handcrafted

Literally, so if you made a scarf while feeling sad, whoever wore the scarf would then feel sad for however long they wore the scarf

This made your brand unique and gave you an edge that stood out from the other companies

You started out on market stalls but eventually you gained investors and expanded into a company that even had hell’s celebrity’s wearing your clothes

Stolas had commissioned you to make Octavia’s debut dress, veroskia had asked you to create her entire wardrobe for her tour around the hells rings and even the Lilith was photographed wearing one of your dresses

You had officially built your fashion empire that you’d always dreamed about and you even owned your own tower

This unfortunately meant that you couldn’t keep up with demand and handcraft each clothing item and would have to expand the workforce and hire skilful factory workers

This meant that your ability to put your emotions into the clothing wouldn’t work, so you made a limited edition line out every year with one new clothing item coming out every month

Each outfit would have a theme that connected with the emotions, so you’d do a rouge rage or a cerulean calm

You’d sell these to the highest bidder and would quickly become your top earning products with brawls happening at the bidding wars

But your company being successful only made your bad personality traits worse as you became more demanding and perfectionist to your staff in a way that made you a bad person but in a devil wears prada way that had the newer generations of demons calling you an icon

You had an attitude very similar to velvettes, only with the skills and the maturity to carry it

Velvette hated watching you grow your empire so much that it almost rivalled hers in popularity and income

She hated that you’d practically done it all by yourself while she had relied on Vox financially and he only did that because of his interest In her abilities with social media

She hated that she actually liked your clothing and she hated that your ability made you stand out

But she hated most of all that you two had come to hell within months of each other, yet you were a respected ceo and overlord while she was seen as a joke by overlords and parts of the fashion community

She also hated how insanely pretty you were, but she didn’t come to terms with that until later

She would try and do anything to discredit you and make it so your popularity would go down when you were neck and neck

She tried ‘exposing’ you on social media for having poor working conditions and being rude to workers but she forgot this is hell and literally no one cares

She tried slandering you and your clothing brand on social media, but she forgot your modern and you know how to use social media to your advantage too

You kinda turned into a meme similar to the Wendy’s twitter memes whenever you clapped back at velvette

She tried to pull your investors by threatening them with voxtech legal action, but you’d become self sustaining and could handle the loss with having hells celebrities commissioning your personal pieces

She tried to make you look foolish in front of the other overlords, but they all respected you much more than they respected her

She even tried to copy one of your designs but you called her out and she had to do one of those influencer apology videos but it mostly just consisted of her badmouthing you and justifying her actions

Her hatred bored on obsession with how regularly she stalked your profiles and life

After around ten years of this rivalry, you grew bored with it and you were running out of ideas

So you contacted the Vs and sat down in a meeting with them where you suggested a collaboration of the fashion designers on your terms

Velvette wanted to laugh and cry at the same time, but Vox insist that it would be extremely profitable and practically forcing velvette to accept

So you started a collaboration

You and velvette butted heads a lot or some stylistic choices

It was so bad that eventually you couldn’t be in a room together for a few weeks

This collaboration took months, and during this time velvette got to hate you up close as she got to know every annoying detail about you

Except that hatred changed to something different over the months she worked with you, you intrigued her in a way that no one else has ever before

It all came to a stop one night when you two had gone out to a club together for social media promo for the upcoming collab

You shared drinks and complaints about one another and one thing led to another and you two had a drunken make out session in the back of the limo

But velvette hauled ass as soon as she realised she was swapping spit with her arch nemesis

She laid in bed and thought about her actions

Could all of those years of feeling hatred and jealousy towards you just been her suppressed attraction to you?

Could all those tense moments she assumed was awkward tension actually been sexual tension?

The thought made velvette want to scream into a pillow

She pushed her feelings down and decided to just avoid you until the collab was over

She thought it would be easier to hate you rather than face her obvious attraction to you

You tried talking with her many times during the collab but she just ignored you, and this hurt you deeply

So you complied with her wishes and after the collab ended you went back to living your lives without each other

But velvette found herself missing you and being around you

Staff especially noticed that she was much harsher to them then before

She felt herself wanting to reach out to you to beg you to either kiss her or reject her because surely rejection would be easier to deal with than this

But it all changed when rumours started circulating

Velvette had been innocently scrolling through social media until she came across a drama channel that claimed to have spotted you in a romantic moment with none other than veroskia mayday

Velvette found herself consumed with absolute disgust and jealousy

She stalked yours and veroskia’s profile and begged Vox to use his hypnosis to send trolls to verkoskia’s profile

The rumours were cleared up after you made a response that claimed that you and veroskia were only friends, but velvette still felt consumed with rage

She did something completely out of character

She went to you at your place of work and cornered you in your office before confessing every little feeling she’d ever had for you

She practically begged you to be with her, but you just sighed and explained that she had hurt you with her actions and that you couldn’t see yourself in a relationship with her

“It would hurt the brands” is what you also said, and that cut velvette deeper than any knife

She had felt pathetic, and she’d never feel pathetic in any relationship

Even before she had gotten to know you, your instant rise to success left her feeling small

You held power over her, and maybe that’s why she was so obsessed and attracted to you

She’d felt surrounded by people who were less than her all her life, and falling for you felt like finally finding an equal

And she wasn’t going to let you go that easily

She’d destroy you and your company if it meant that you’d love and rely on her

Hope you guys enjoyed and let me know if you want me to make this another series

Tag list:

None yet, let me know if you wanna be tagged in future works like this for this if it becomes a series :)

[totallynotsam]

(incoming another yap session here we go) man its so sad whenever i see people try to use "Luck Runs Out" as a reason why they hate eurylochus. like that man cannot do anything without it going completely over these tiktokers heads 😭

the way I see it, the whole point of Luck Runs Out is Eurylochus voicing his concern for the crew AND ODYSSEUS' safety. He simply just knows how Odysseus is. With the Cyclops' cave he went right in and shot that first sheep (yes, that was Ody) seemingly without thinking twice of the potential consequences. He relied on wit with the Cyclops, and thats just how he is! Eurylochus knows Odysseus and that fact about him probably worries him, and rightfully so!

Luck Runs Out isnt Eurylochus "complaining" its about him being literally terrified for Odysseus' life since he's about to go see this God (Aeolus) just by himself simply "relying on his wit" whilst knowing how dangerous the Gods can be. Is that not valid? (plus Eurylochus' voice is so soft in this song its so clear that he's worried, not angry?)

"You could be caught off guard and lose your life"

"How much longer 'til your luck runs out?"

"And what will we do when it tears us apart?"

"I just don't wanna see another life end. You're like the brother I could never do without"

"How much longer 'til your great days cease? How much longer 'til your strength takes leave?"

How can you possibly listen to those lyrics and think this song is about Eurylochus complaining or talking down to Odysseus? He is quite literally fearing for Odysseus' life! They lost Polites and 13-ish other men because they went into a cave they had no clue about. How can Eurylochus be so sure he wont lose Odysseus the same way by going to talk to a GOD of all things??

I think the only reason why people see Luck Runs Out as Eurylochus undermining Odysseus because that's how Odysseus himself sees it, and he vocalizes that at the end of the song. since Ody is the main character obviously people are going to be like "yeah what the heck Eurylochus don't talk to your king like that!1!!1" because ✨media literacy is dead✨

oh and one last thing, if your argument against Eurylochus is the fact that he "can't talk to his king like that, they aren't equals!" im sorry but what? Eurylochus should be allowed to voice his concerns he is the second-in-command! That, and power dynamics like that just aren't okay to begin with?? why are we defending that 😭

anyways luck runs out is just eurylochus having a panic attack alright later 👋

[yanderemommabean]

Venting post (Homelife and abuse I guess)

Sorry for the low energy beans, my abusive grandmas been screeching her lungs out every night for hours on end and demanding the stupidest things, so I haven’t been getting much sleep.

She literally talked to me like a dog today, telling me “Come on, come here girl, come do this for me, come on”. Talk about dehumanizing.

No matter what I say or do she calls me: Lazy, selfish, slobbish, ugly and stupid, and demands that I stay on “her side” when other people tell her to back off in the family. She’ll tell me I’m a piece of shit lowlife even if I do exactly what she wants, or she’ll degrade me and mock me just because she can, and apparently we can’t do anything about that.

She genuinely needs to either die, or go to a mental institution, because my heart can’t take this stress it’s bad enough, and not being able to sleep because she’s a demanding baby is going to end up killing me.

Even if I try to ignore her, being silent does nothing and she’ll threaten more violence or nonsense, or just scream and scream and scream until you’re forced to answer, then acts like she did nothing wrong to warrant your outburst.

Going to my room does nothing, she’s right by me, her yelling and screaming and demanding cannot be blocked out.

I’m aware that I need to leave, but to do that I have to have a place to go, a car to drive, or a friend I trust and I do not have food let alone money and an income to rely on if I moved out. I don’t own a car, I’m trying to get a job DESPERATELY and my friends don’t have any room for me at their place, and have stated as such.

So I’m more or less stressed to the max and wondering why she can’t just be taken somewhere because I cannot take care of her and she refuses to listen to anyone or let anyone rest. Even if you act soft and sweet and caring she’ll spit at you this nonsense and try in some way to threaten or demean you.

There’s no “talking it out” because she doesn’t CARE. She’s never cared, not once.

I’m exhausted and I’ve been putting up with this nonsense for about four or five days now and if I don’t sleep soon and actually rest idk I might be sent to the hospital.

I hate this woman. She’s making me extremely Ill and distressed and for NOTHING.

This was just me venting, sorry loves, she’s up again and so am I so I’m trying to distract myself <3

I love you beans, stay safe and healthy

-Mommabean

[yesterdayiwrote]

Why do you hate Carmen so much? It just seems like you’re always so negative about her and I don’t understand what she’s done to warrant it?

Okay, so firstly, I don't hate her because I don't know her, but I hate what she represents and I think as the years have gone on some of her social media behaviour and the way she presents herself is incredibly disappointing and very emblematic of the dishonesty of influencer culture in general. I'll put the rest under the cut because I know some people don't like getting in to it and this might become a deep dive...

I think my main issue is I just find her Instagram persona incredibly disingenuous. She's tried/trying to carve a niche for herself as a "finance girl" and yet the reality just doesn't quite... add up. She has a degree in finance and business, she worked in finance jobs, I don't doubt she has an interest in finance, but she only has 18 months work experience and so the way she's started circling the public speaking circuit as some "women in finance" expert gives similar vibes to Mohammed Ben Sulayem reminding everyone how he's definitely a racing driver every two minutes.

I think most people know about the book scam, and I think she got off relatively lightly in terms of criticism for that, but on top of that I think the contents of the book raised more questions than it answered. She spoke about her dad being made bankrupt then a few weeks later did an interview proclaiming her parents brought her and her siblings Tommy hilfiger school coats every year. She said she wanted to make financial information more accessible to women, but she rarely references finance on her insta, unless she's profiting off of it in some way, or it's stuff you have to pay to access. She rarely offers free or accessible resources. Then of course the one I think most people have picked up on is that she claimed to want to encourage women to gain financial independence from men, yet she quit her career and her income now largely relies on her relationship with George and so there's a massive contradiction in there. She even flip-flops herself on whether she believes she's qualified to give advice or not.

Her social media output just strikes me as incredibly vapid and at times ill thought out and at the very least out of touch. There's some very questionable health information, some dodgy diet tips, a lot of sus names being recommended, a complete glut of adverts, often undisclosed.

I just think her and George have crossed into a bit of a "corporate couple" space recently as well and I just find it cringey. It all feels very fake and posed and effort-full and all contradicts George's claim that they're not chasing attention. I have multiple questions about why she's suddenly doing sponsored content for an increasing number of Mercedes sponsors...

And I get this all sounds nitpicky, and I get that none of it matters, AND that they're all guilty of doing similar. I get there's massive intricacies to influencer culture, and I probably am being unfair in some places. It's not all cut and dry and there's nuance to all these things, but I think ultimately my feeling is just that a lot of the main wag admirers are young girls who perhaps don't realise that what they're seeing isn't attainable or realistic. They see it online and they think having a career in finance means getting to travel the world and work in hotels on your own schedule. That you can work and swan around Monaco hanging out on yachts and drinking coffee and it sets them up to have an unrealistic idea of adulthood... which later down the line contributes to them feeling inferior. The kids aren't alright because social media lets them think they've failed for not achieving the unachievable. God I'm in my thirties and even I get caught up by it still?

No, she's not solely responsible for that, but she's contributing to the problem and as I said the other day in an ask game, I think all wags deserve more scrutiny for how they conduct themselves online. She is just the one that I come into contact with more because I follow George. I feel sorry for her to some extent because I think she's just got caught up in the pressure of trying to be something specific in her influencing exploits and in the process has kind of forgotten to just be... herself? She's just... not my type of person?u

[lyselkatz]

🔥 EMERGENCY 🔥

Digital Artwork COMMISSIONS

I hate advertising commissions, but I'm in a desperately tight spot. I'm out of social benefits since March 2024. I don't have anyone to rely on and won't have any other source of income because of my health condition at for the foreseeable future. I feel so hopeless right now...

I know times are difficult for way too many of us but if you can afford to and you'd consider to commission me that'd be really lifesaving. 🙏🙏🙏

COMMISSION DETAILS

As a thank you, I'll offer you 1 FREE half-body chibi character for every order under 25€ and 2 half-body chibi characters for every order over 25€ (Please be very patient because I'm only able to work on them very slowly🙏)

I also accept donations if you have a little money to spare, I will gladly draw a little something for you. Please ppal me with a note of a character or something you like.

Lyselkatz at hotmail dot com

Some oversharing about my situation under the cut if anyone is interested.

March 2025

The little benefits I had to help with the rent was cut off brutally this month as well (because they made a mistake and somehow paid me "too much" for the past year) I'm now short of about 900€/month at least for the next couple of months. I am devastated...

With much regrets, I'll have to part with one of my two cats in a couple of weeks because he's not the sharpest pencil in the case and I'm not functional enough to care for him the way he deserves and (as an additional agent of chaos) he's driving me insane, quite literally. Don't worry, he's going to a couple of friends' country home where he will be much better than with me.

I've been living off my emergency stock of pasta and cans since December but that ran out and I am still not in capacity to work, to my chagrin. I'm still doing what the national employment service requires of me. It's very difficult because I'm in therapy 3 days a week and I'm also in need of a professional reorientation.

My doctor just added some meds to my prescription that put me in a dazed state most of the time because she worries about my mental condition but I don't want to be kept for full residence in a hospital. (I don't think having to share a room with strangers and be away from my stuff would do me any good) it keeping me from my fiercest demons for now but it's not a sustainable solution.

[trohpi]

Hiya ^^

I heard that you take one-shot requests with trans characters and so I was wondering if you could maybe help me out with this...

I git the idea bc I just got my fcking period (suxks as a trans person) and needed some comfort so I thought trans!Sirius (ftm) having his period after hogwarts where he and Remus live together and he feels like sh!t because he's bleeding out and it's giving him dysphoria and then Remus takes care of him and makes him hot chocolate.

I'd rely appreciate it. Thank you so much <3

hello!! hope youre feeling better, periods can be tough ik. this will actually be my first request, sorry it took longer than expected. i hope i did your idea justice and that you enjoy <3

wolfstar w/ ftm sirius • 2.4k words • cw: periods, dysphoria

cross-posted to ao3

Sirius wakes to the sound of incessant meowing and a low ache in his gut. Bleary-eyed and sleepy as he is, he doesn’t even register the pain at first. He shifts under rumpled sheets, mid-morning sun flooding the room and blinding him. A ball of splotchy tri-coloured fur sits in the window sill, pawing at the glass and disrupting the blackout curtains Sirius insisted they have in the bedroom. Unwanted light filters through the window and he groans.

“Linette,” Sirius calls, voice thick and almost whiny with sleep. “What are you doing?”

She only meows again, tail twitching eagerly as she watches whatever it is that has caught her attention outside. Likely a bird or a squirrel, or perhaps one of the bunnies that moved into the backyard. Sirius huffs and moves to sit up, aiming to grab Linette and exile her to the living room, when a painfully familiar cramping of the abdomen hits him and Sirius’ mouth goes dry.

All remnants of sleep wash away in an instant, leaving him hyper-aware of every feeling, every minute sensation in his body. The incoming headache, the tight soreness of his lower muscles, and— Sirius discovers with a shudder as he shifts— the warm wetness of his underwear.

“Fuck,” Sirius mumbles, a sick feeling churning within. He quickly gets up, swallowing thickly at the small blood stain on the pale blue sheets. Moony just bought those, he thinks fuzzily, and suddenly he feels the urge to cry.

Sirius’ periods have always been irregular, no way to consistently track them, and it’s only gotten harder in the months since he’s started his masculinization potions. It's almost worse when he’s blindsided like this, wholly caught off guard by the onslaught of hormones and emotions. At least when he knows it’s coming, he can mentally prepare. This time, his walls were down, and now his mind buzzes as he stares at the stained sheets below.

He can’t handle this right now. He quickly looks away, resolving to deal with it later. Numbly, he scoops up a squirmy Linette from the window sill and makes his way out of the room.

Remus is curled up on the sofa, cup of too-sweet coffee cradled delicately in scarred fingers as he reads a book, the Muggle one his mother gave him when they moved in last month. He perks up at the sound of footsteps, turning to see Sirius in the hall entrance. The small, fond smile on his face quickly falls into a concerned frown when he sees the paleness of his face and tense line of his body.

Sirius’ breath hitches, a tangled mess of emotion swelling within him. He wants to not exist, and yet he wants so desperately for Remus to hold him, to cradle him just as delicately as he would the chipped porcelain mug he drinks from every morning.

Remus sits up, setting the well-loved mug aside as his book falls facedown on the cushion beside him. “Cariad?”

Sirius’ eyes well with tears, but they don’t fall. Sirius hates crying, has hated it since he was a child and his mother would punish him for it. Even now, nearly three years since he got out of that house, he can’t shake the urge to bottle everything up and hide.

Linette squirms in his arms again, dragging him back to reality. Sirius sniffles, letting her drop to the floor. The mostly-white calico wastes no time sprinting back to the bedroom, no doubt to meow at the window once more, but Sirius hardly pays attention to that. No, his eyes are locked on his boyfriend, who has already made his way over to him with an air of worry.

“Are you alright?” he asks, hands twitching as if he wants to reach out but is unsure if that would be okay. It would be. Sirius craves his touch, always will.

Sirius reaches out and tangles their fingers together for him, squeezing harshly as if doing so will tether them together.

“There’s blood on the sheets,” he mutters, and the concern melts into understanding.

“That’s alright,” Remus says softly, squeezing back. “I’ll handle the bed, you go take a bath.”

Sirius immediately shakes his head. “No, Moony, you don’t have to—”

“Sirius, it’s okay. I want to do this for you.”

“But…” Sirius chews on his lip, looking away shamefully. “It’s gross, Rem.”

Remus reaches up and gently grips his chin, tilting his head up to make Sirius look at him. His hazel eyes are tender and reassuring, immediately making Sirius melt just a bit.

“How many times have you cleaned up blood from my sheets after a full moon, Sirius?”

“It’s not the same.”

“Isn’t it?”

“Not at all. That blood isn’t from… from down there.”

“It’s just blood, love,” Remus says patiently. “Doesn’t matter where it came from.”

He hesitates, chewing on his lip once more. On one hand, he thinks he’ll end up in a ball of tears if he tries to clean the sheets himself, but on the other hand, he can’t help but feel self-conscious. Despite having been together for close to two years, Remus hasn’t seen that yet. Sirius has made sure of it. Sure, he’s been there during his period— he’s cuddled him and helped fulfil his cravings and warmed up the Muggle heating pad Lily gave him in their fourth year— but he hasn’t actually seen the blood. Sirius’ dysphoric mind is convinced that he will be disgusted with Sirius and his body when he sees it, even if he knows that Remus would never.

“I can see you spiralling,” Remus mutters, running his thumb along the backs of the other man’s knuckles. Sirius sighs.

“Sorry, I just—”

“Sirius,” he says softly. “Let me help you, please?”

He swallows thickly and, before he can change his mind, says, “Okay.”

“Okay,” Remus repeats with a smile, tugging him closer and pressing a chaste kiss to his forehead. “Now, go take a nice long bath, cariad. I’ll have your heating pad and a cuppa waiting for you when you’re done.”

Sirius hums, a warm feeling settling in his chest. “Switch the tea for a cup of that special hot chocolate your mother sent and you’ve got yourself a deal.”

“A cup of mam’s hot chocolate it is, then,” Remus says easily and Sirius feels a small smile slip on his face, his first one all morning.

“You’re too good to me.”

“You deserve good.” The other man puts some space between them and before Sirius can even mourn the loss, he’s being gently shoved in the direction of the bathroom. “Now go. I’ll get your clothes too once you’re in the tub.”

“Alright,” he says softly. “Thank you, Moons.”

“Of course, love.”

And with that, Sirius moves down the hall and stops by their bedroom. He grabs his wand and some of his clothes— minus the fuzzy knit sweater, which is actually Remus’ and two sizes too big— and makes his way to the large, tiled bathroom. The door shuts behind him with a quiet snick and, carefully avoiding eye contact with the mirrors, he quickly casts blurring charms on them all. He usually doesn’t have to resort to such measures, rather comfortable in his body now that he’s been magically transitioning for over a year, but his periods always bring about a particular sense of discomfort regarding his appearance.

Trying his best not to let his thoughts drift negatively, he strips off his bloodied clothes and sends them to the laundry hamper in their bedroom with a flick of his wand.

The water is warm and relaxing when he sinks into the tub, soothing aches he didn’t even realise he had. Sirius sighs, letting his head fall back against the tile and his eyes fall shut.

Sirius had almost thought that he was done with periods. He hasn’t bled in months, and he had just started getting his hopes up that the potions had finally stopped his cycle as they were meant to, but no. He feels a bit defeated, if he’s being honest with himself. He doesn’t think he’ll be able to handle this on his own.

But you’re not on your own, a voice in his head reminds him as he begins to clean himself.

And the thing is, the voice is right. He has Remus.

Sirius has always had trouble seeking help from others, most especially those he’s close to. It always sparks a sense of shame. Maybe his mother moulded that into him, or maybe he was always like this. Whatever the reason, he struggles.

Remus tells him it’s okay to need help sometimes. Sirius knows that, logically. He’s been on the receiving end of that request more times than he can count for Remus— in the days leading up to and following the full moon he needs all the help he can get. He also knows that if someone cares about you, they won’t mind lending a hand when you need it. It just takes some getting used to, Sirius supposes. The care, the support, the concern.

He is getting used to it, slowly but surely. Has to, when he lives with Remus Lupin of all people. His tall, scarred, mean-looking werewolf boyfriend is actually the softest and most loving person he has ever met, and he refuses to let Sirius get away with shutting him out.

Sirius loves him even more for it.

Only a couple minutes later finds him dripping onto the bath mat, towel wrapped tightly around his waist as pink-tinged water swirls down the drain. He quickly pulls on Remus’ sweater and begins rummaging through the cabinets, searching for his cloth pads. He finds one buried underneath a pile of hair scrunchies and he places the pad in his boxers, securing it with a light sticking charm just so he doesn’t have to worry or think about it.

He tugs on his baggy sweatpants with a wince, lower muscles cramping in protest at the lack of soothing warmth now that he’s left the bath. It’s not quite bad enough to need a pain relieving potion just yet, especially not before he’s got his hands on his heating pad, but he can already tell this one will be rough.

At least he’ll have Remus to help him through it, even if he has to force Sirius to let him do so.

Sirius feels a bit like a wet cat as his damp curls drip onto the muted orange sweater he stole borrowed. He quickly grabs his abandoned wand off the counter and casts a quick drying spell, feeling the weight disappear off his head as his curls become light and bouncy once more. With a huff of satisfaction, he slips his wand into his pocket and opens the bathroom door to leave. Immediately, he hears a pleased mrrrp followed by Linette darting between his legs, purring and rubbing all the while. He chuckles, bending over to scratch at her cheeks.

“Finally more interested in me than the birds outside the window, huh, ma pépette?”

Linette purrs even louder in reply, rubbing so aggressively against his hands that she nearly stabs herself in the eye with his fingers. Sirius snorts inelegantly and scoops her up, letting her perch herself comfortably on his shoulder before he finally steps out of the bathroom.

Immediately he can smell the faintest hint of chocolate and nutmeg wafting from the kitchen. Warmth bubbles in his chest as he shuffles into the living room. On the sofa sits the quilt Effie gifted them when they moved in, Sirius’ heating pad folded with care on his seat. Gentle music plays from the wireless and he has to bite back a soft smile. Merlin, he loves this man.

“Have a nice bath, love?”

Sirius turns to see Remus standing in the doorway, two steaming mugs held in his hands. Linette chirps happily at the sight of him, and Sirius privately agrees.

“It was alright,” he hums lightly. “S’that for me?”

“Ah, no, actually. Figured I’d get two hot chocolates all to myself while my poor, sweet boyfriend wastes away on the couch all by himself.”

“How utterly cruel of you, Moons. I’m heartbroken.”

Remus snickers. “Go sit down, Pads.”

“Mm, alright.”

Sirius plops down on the couch, jostling Linette whose tail flicks in displeasure, and burrows under the cosy red quilt. Before Sirius can even think to do it himself, Remus has set the mugs down on the end table and grabbed the heating pad.

“Rem, I can—”

“No, I’ve got it,” he reassures. “Drink your hot chocolate, I’ll set this up.”

“If you say so,” Sirius says a bit reluctantly.

Linette drops off his shoulder onto the couch cushion next to him as he reaches for one of the mugs.

The first sip is heaven, always is. Hope Lupin’s hot chocolate recipe is a gift from Merlin himself.

“Godric, this is fantastic,” Sirius groans delightedly. Remus chuckles as he plugs in the heating pad.

“Isn’t it?”

“Tell your mother she’s a saint for me next time you phone her.”

“‘Course, Pads,” Remus says as he walks back over, careful to avoid tripping on the cord. Linette hops down and starts smelling it curiously.

“C’mon, baban, leave it alone,” he chides while batting her away gently.

“Aw, leave her be, Remus! What’s the worst that could happen?”

“She could chew on the cord and be electrocuted,” he deadpans. Sirius blinks.

“Right. Forgot Muggle technology is utterly terrifying. Carry on, then.”

Remus snorts and picks her up, setting her on Sirius’ lap which has already started to warm up. She purrs, cuddling into the heat and closing her eyes contentedly. Sirius runs a hand through her fur while he takes another sip from his mug. A weight settles next to him on the couch as Remus cuddles up to his side, reaching over him to grab his own hot chocolate from the end table.

Sirius hums happily, tilting his body into Remus’ and melting against the cushions. A little peck on his temple makes a soft grin slide on his face and he lets his eyes fall shut.

“Thank you for this, Moons.”

A hand reaches out to tangle with his own, squeezing gently but firm. “Of course, cariad. You mean the world to me.”

“You do, too. I wouldn’t be able to do this without you, you know.”

Remus hums, pressing another kiss to his head before he says softly, “Well, good thing you don’t have to, then.”

[rainbowravez]

i think it's really disappointing how interesting and complex of a character yul could be instead of being a one-dimensional bigoted racist archetype used as comedic relief.

it would've been so much better if he were a commentary on how the entertainment industry can shape people into genuine horrible people because of the toxic work culture and serve as a contrast to james, who left the industry (or atleast isn't as involved) and how it let him grow as a person, while yul has to stay because he has no choice for other sources of income and how his bitterness and resentment only continues to grow and harbor into the man he is now. imagine if a huge part of his resentment towards james was because of jealousy that he was able to escape the industry, instead of just mostly being because he poisoned him with mushrooms last season. what if that's why he was so angry that james tried to lecture him because james has no clue what it's like for him and that he has the nerve to question him when he feels james had the privilege of being able to escape. he's angry that someone who could relate to his struggles now is just like everyone else; an outsider of how bad the workforce he's in is and he's truly alone again with nobody to confide in because he hates the only other person who can relate, grett.

his relationship with grett is implied to be forced upon him and this could've been so interesting to explore. in the first few episodes it seems like he has genuine moments with her. what if a part of him actually loved her because he finally has someone who can relate, but because he was forced into this position he sees her as his captor who is the embodiment of how he will never have the ability to make his own choices. they got the right idea when he's talking to james on the bike, where he says "when i win the 3 million, i'll never have to listen to anyone", but it's ruined when it's just chalked up to him being like "i dont want a fat girlfriend cuz shes ugly and im not". it could've been a commentary on how k-pop stars are often objectified by their fanbase and their employers and how little control they have in their lives, especially being recruited at a young age (WHICH IS LITERALLY STATED IN THE SHOW!!! WHEN HE SAID A VIDEO OF HIM DANCING BLEW UP!!) and the mental toll it has. he's so cruel to her because of his frustration with his situation and a want for her to leave, both using her as a punching bag for his lack of control while simultaneously trying to make her leave him as a way to regain the little control he has over himself.

the biggest flaw of yul's characterization is how his bigotry is NEVER called out. yes, the point is that he's SUPPOSED to be unlikable, but nobody ever says he's being racist and why it's wrong (besides gabby when she defends grett), they say it's to make us hate him more but if THESE THINGS AREN'T CALLED OUT, especially to their young fanbase of young teens, it comes across as just out-of-pocket "dark" humor that relies of shock value to make the audience laugh, which insinuates that it's okay. he's literally just saying bigoted shit for the sake of it. you can write an unlikable character without making him drop obscenities every moment he's on screen. it's bad writing and an easy opt out that takes little effort to write and has become normalized in the show, esp. considering how the spanish va of yul improvised a racist line (calling james a monkey) and how they just let it slide because "oh well it's in character". if your voice actor is randomly saying racist stuff that's not even in the script and you allow it to slide, your team has a serious problem.

there's so many characters that are intertwined with the entertainment industry (riya, james, grett, yul) and so many of the ideas are THERE but they aren't dived into and these characters end up being one-note as a result, like yul and riya. the best we can do is infer but that can only go so far. maybe i'm asking too much for a total drama inspired series to have complex writing and nuance, but if you want to differentiate and distance yourself from total drama (esp. when it prides it's writing as being more complex than total drama) maybe actually put some effort into making complex characters and not using them as a puppet to make bigoted remarks.