#he was like 'to get the full 100 i would have wanted some actual philosophy content in there' and yeah true

[dickgreyson]

one of my essays from back when i studied philosophy is being put into a good answers guide at my university<3 not one of my good ones but

[my-secret-shame-but-fanfiction]

Hi Fen! Hope you're doing well <3

I've been having such a hard time going to sleep lately and I was wondering if the moon boys ever have that problem - when they're not trying to stay up that is. So what do you think? Do any of them have trouble falling asleep? What do they do when that happens? And how do you think they'd help a Reader who couldn't fall asleep?

I’m so sorry you’re having trouble sleeping! (And that it’s taken me so long to reply) I hope you're doing better now <3

Rating: PG  Masterlist | ao3 | want to be tagged?

Warnings: brief mention to sex

Steven

Doesn’t have trouble sleeping, and can go to sleep quite easily when he’s not fighting it AND when Marc isn’t co-fronting (Marc’s sleeping issues bleed over into Steven).

When you can’t sleep though Steven is more than happy to stay up with you.

“Spend most of my adult life on 2 hours of sleep a day, didn't I? Yes. So this isn’t even water off a duck’s back, this is air off a duck’s back, this is not even noticeable love.” 

Will suggest lots of different things to do: reading (he will read to you if you want to try to sleep), watch something, listen to music, go on a weird London at 3:30am walk, “the night tube is running and we could go to 24 hour karaoke in Soho?”, “did you know these libraries are open at 4am?”, “I know a 24 gym that has a pool, we could go swimming!”, “Beckenham Place Park actually has open water swimming, I bet we’d be the only ones there! But I’m gonna wear a nose clip because I don’t want possible brain-eating amoeba up my nose, do I? No.” Proceeds to tell you a documentary's worth of information about Naegleria fowleri and how it was found in 1978 in Bath, so “yes it is in the UK Marc.”

Basically he’s full of ideas about where to go in the middle of the night that’s open because that’s what he used to do when he was trying not to sleep. (Also it’s nice to do things when there’s not so many people about.) 

Will suggest driving to a spot he knows outside of London where there’s less light pollution to look at the stars. Will wake up Jake to do the driving. Will bully the hell out of Khonshu if the sky isn’t clear. (And will make him get rid of the cloud.) 

100% would ask if you would like him to fuck you to sleep.

Marc

He’s not asleep either. 

Usually gets Steven or Jake to fall asleep for him.

However, if they’re already asleep, or not available, he goes with the ‘I am laying down with my eyes closed, because it’s still resting’ philosophy. 

He tries not to toss and turn a lot, but he does bless him. 

Has tried to drink himself to sleep on several occasions. 

Doesn’t like to see you having trouble sleeping at all and spends ages fussing over you. 

Fluffs the pillows, gets extra blankets, gets less blankets, turns the heating on, gets the fan out, will run you a bath and put all the lavender stuff in and make you 500 herbal teas, then change the bed covers. 

Will offer to sleep on the sofa or the floor so he doesn’t disturb you while you’re trying to sleep. (Then apologies when you obviously hate the idea of him being away from you.)

Is giving ALL the cuddles, however you want them. Will lay in the most uncomfortable position for himself for you to be comfy (will not tell you the position is uncomfortable for him.)

Tells you the most outrageously made up stories in quiet hushed tones to help lull you to sleep and then acts mock offended if you doubt that anything he says didn’t really happen.

Makes you cum on his mouth repeatedly until you’re so exhausted you have no choice but to fall asleep.

Jake

Can actually fall asleep anywhere at any time. 

I still firmly believe that before Steven and Marc know about him he would front just to go to sleep because they are so bad at getting some shut eye and constantly run the body into the ground.

Has melatonin tablets and a whole pharmacy's worth of sleeping aids to share. 

Will 100% take you for a drive to try to get you to fall asleep (or just to take you somewhere if you want, or if Steven has woken him up to drive.)

“Jake, I need you to drive to-”

“Steven… It's bedtime, time for sleep. No driving.”

“Oh, but S/O is having trouble sleeping and-”

Jake is already out of bed with his car keys in hand.

Will offer to be your weighted blanket and lay all over you. 

Says he will threaten Khonshu to keep the sun down so you can rest if it takes you a while to get to sleep. 

Tries to (lovingly) bore you to sleep by counting sheep out loud and in detail. “This one is a Merino sheep, the ones that are very fluffy. Her name is Harold. She likes grass, but not clover. Which is unusual for a sheep. So that’s one so far, one sheep. Now this next one is…”

Doesn’t offer sexy times because he doesn’t want to be pushy, however if you suggest it he’s happily all over you.

____________________________________

Thank you for reading!

@raven-rk @campingwiththecharmings @alexxavicry @mystinky-butt @cocodiem @oscarisaacsspit @whatthefishh @mbakubabe @romanarose @pimosworld @jake-g-lockley @saturn-rings-writes @boredzillenial @lonelyisamyw-0love @melodygatesauthor @steven-grants-world  @eyelessfaces @angel-of-the-moons @minigirl87 @queerponcho

If you'd like to be taken off the tag list please let me know here

[thatlonelycactus]

Crowley was 100% besties with the renaissance thinkers. He and DaVinci were always talking about some kind of invention or painting or just making fun of people, Michelangelo let him in on all the hidden meanings in his paintings and they’d always complain to each other about their bosses, and him and Galileo talked about the stars. In fact, it was his friendship with Crowley that solidified his belief in the heliocentric model of the solar system.

Aziraphale fraternized with the Enlightenment thinkers. He discussed morals and ethics and philosophy with Kant and Rousseau, Locke and Voltaire. Unlike Crowley with the renaissance figures a couple centuries beforehand, Aziraphale shared very little of his angelic wisdom. Partially because he didn’t want to but also because everytime he’d talk with any of them they would beg him not to. This resulted in, whenever they said something completely wrong, Aziraphale trying to hide a sly smile, failing completely and having a cup of tea thrown at his head. Very pleasant.

At the start of the 20th century, Aziraphale found himself surrounded by the likes of Joyce, Woolf and Wilde. He enjoyed it immensely. Who wouldn’t? This is how he got many of his first editions from the period. Whilst he and Wilde were very close, he probably spent the most time with Woolf. Whilst modernist literature was never his favourite period, he loved the writing of Woolf, many of her shorter works he read prior to them being published, were some of the most beautiful works of prose he’d ever read. He thought that Crowley might like Huxley’s works if he liked to read but he didn’t so Aziraphale never tried to convince him to but he always keeps an extra copy of Brave New World in his bookshop just in case (it’s signed too).

Later on in the century, Crowley befriended the men whose names most people only ever expect to hear used from time to time in a science lesson but never truly understand who they were or what it was that they actually discovered. Einstein, Schrödinger, Doppler, if they changed the science world, Crowley knew them. He had a good time with them, providing little “what if”s and queries that would stop them in their tracks. Most of them initially thought he was pretty, how to put it, stupid, at first, I mean if anyone saw they way he looked at the maths they did tragedy think he was pretty brainless too despite the fact he was only trying to figure out why they had done all that maths to get a simple answer. But his value was quickly realised because, unlike his companion, Crowley was much happier to give little pieces of information he learnt during the creation of the universe.

Sorry for my rambling. Also Aziraphale and Sappho were definitely friends and he still has full copies of her poems in the back of his bookshop but he’s not gonna tell anyone about that.

[fuckmeyer]

Do you think the Volturi would ever get desperate enough to make their own newborn army to continue being in power?

yes, but actually no

Yes

the Guide says they overthrew the Romanians by "launching a successful war." really, they just convinced a bunch of vamps to go to war for them for 100+ years on the premise that it was mutually beneficial for everyone to follow certain laws.

here's the thing. the tactic of newborn armies didn't exist until Benito tried to pull it off in the 1800s. end result: the Volturi came in full force & exterminated the newborns. this lil anecdote in vampire history tells us that 1) while the Volturi have gone to war, they have not experimented with newborn armies. & 2) when faced with a challenge to their doctrine, they do attack.

fast-forward like 200 years. in Second Short Life of Bree Tanner, they threaten to punish Victoria for creating a newborn army but give her the chance to destroy the Cullen clan first. it seems, given the right adversary, the Volturi are willing to bend their rules...

they have a history of starting wars, combat, & breaking their rules.

But actually no

their whole shtick is noninterference & secrecy. they've gained power through soft diplomacy & quiet hard diplomacy. (amassing an arsenal of talented vamps, spreading their doctrine, solidifying their reputation etc). potential problems are resolved quickly & discreetly. a newborn army is the antithesis of their mission & their strategy. bottom line, they would lose a lot of power & credibility by openly flouting their own philosophy.

"ok but 'yes, but actually no' is a non-answer"

NO, the Volturi would not get desperate enough to create a newborn army. they would prefer an elite, highly trained team of talented statesmen & gifted vampires over a hoard of volatile newborns. under the right conditions, however, they might wage a proxy war.

imo, they would be at their "most desperate" when they lose everything: the guard, the coven, & the reputation. even then, i don't think they would resort to outright creating a newborn army.

from the Guide: "Aro called his soldiers “the Volturi guard,” making it clear that they were subservient to the actual coven of five." there are 9 permanent members of the guard & more transitory members, all of which he views as his "collection." "Ambition was [the coven's] bonding element. [...] Rank in the guard is decided by power."

there's already tension among the guard fighting for their rank within the system (or to be a permanent member).

post-Breaking Dawn, the Volturi's reputation has taken a hit. covens have lost faith in their ability to lead. morale is down in the guard; perhaps some transitory members take a hike. the Volturi already rely heavily on vampires who modify relationships & mental states i.e. Chelsea, Corin, Marcus. they're all in this stupid club for ambition & power's sake; imagine one of them is dissatisfied with the Volturi's loosening grip on power? imagine the Volturi must quash an exodus in their guard, leading them into a vicious cycle of lost trust & draconian measures? imagine the guard fights with itself as some begin to turn on the Volturi...?

if the core Volturi coven don't have their guard, what do they have? a telepath (Aro), a relationship identifier (Marcus), regular-ass Caius, & two regular-ass wives who don't even want to be there. in addition, they have their reputation & their abilities as statesmen. that's it.

[consider this: "If a vampire remains unmoving often enough over thousands of years, dust begins to petrify in response to the venom-like liquids that lubricate his eyes and skin." Bella notices this milky film over their eyes. she also doesn't notice any vampire scars. it's probable the kings have seen little to no combat in centuries, if ever.]

if the guard turns on them, & they've lost reputation with the other covens, what would they do? the wives might dip bc being stuck at home for hundreds of years kinda soured them on the whole "being married" shit. Marcus would ask for death lmao. that leaves Aro & Caius. (possibly Jane/Alec/& other loyal guards.) considering the guards' experience w/ newborn armies, really the only way out of this is negotiating the kings' freedom. openly creating their own newborn army would permanently destroy their reputation, & their ties with other covens will become their greatest asset when the guard turns.

tl;dr worst case scenario, in response to an existential threat i see them saving their own hides & fucking off into obscurity while they figure out their next moves (which would largely involve diplomacy, rebuilding their "collection," & proxy wars).

[msfcatlover]

You’re all going to be seeing these back to back (thank you queue,) but I wrote the Star Sapphire Damian post last week and have been doing more research on the corps. And honestly, I like it even better now?

First of all, ever since I found out how Lantern rings work (that is, being drawn towards the entities most filled with/fueled by/capable of inspiring the emotion the ring represents,) I’ve been really curious about what happens if someone doesn’t agree with the main philosophy of the corps, but the ring was drawn to them anyway. Because the Green Lantern ring only cares about strength of willpower, but the Green Lantern Corps is a political faction with its own rules, principles, etc. What if someone had one of the strongest wills in the multiverse but when they find out about all the other stuff they’re just like, “Nah. I’m good.”  …I mean, in the case of the Green Lanterns, I’m sure they all team up to take that person down and take back the ring. But literally what is stopping the ring from just flying back to that person? Or one of the other rings just flying about? And some of the other corps seem to place a much higher value on their core emotion than the rules they have in place, so would they let that person keep a ring that had decided that person was worthy even if that person wouldn’t follow their rules? (I am 100% certain this has been addressed in the comics at some point, but I don’t know where to even start to look for it.)

What I’m saying is: Damian doesn’t have to agree with the Star Sapphires’ policies as an organization to get the powers. Which is good, because Damian definitely would not be down for the whole brainwash-recruitment strategy. But he is still full of love & loss, he’s still driven by it, he’s still willing to make huge sacrifices for the sake of those he loves (case in point: as far as Damian’s concerned, none of his family even know he exists at this point in time, and by pursuing such a dramatically different path Damian can never recover even a facsimile of those relationships—the context is just too different, there’s no way they’ll ever see/treat him the same way they did before.) (Which is just some delicious dramatic irony. Especially because I get to reward Damian with people who did live through many of those things with him, and who care about him & understand him the very way he thought he was giving up forever. Much more damaged, scarred, and emotionally shredded versions of those people, but those people all the same. Who will be just as happy to see Damian as he is to see them, because each & every one of them lost him before and probably thought they had again when they found out the League was burning & Damian was fully MIA.)

BACK ON TOPIC! Damian is filled with love & loss, and could absolutely draw in a Violet Lantern ring. And the Sapphires seem to be one of those corps who care more about the purity & power of the emotion felt rather than the rules they follow, so there is a solid argument for them letting him keep it. And it would give Damian the equipment to personally stop the invasion, because he could force the generic Evil Alien Overlord to experience all the pain they made Damian go through. Not in a brainwashy way, but more in a, “Let me help you make a more informed decision by showing you what you actually do to people in your quest for conquest. Let’s see if you still want to pursue the same path after witnessing the other side,” sort of way. (Is that more of a compassion thing? Yeah, but you can’t tell me the Sapphires can force feelings of love into people to bend their wills and not expect me to believe they can make them feel other emotions tied to love, especially when having loved & lost is one of the things the rings prioritize.)

This requires me to make the non-green Lantern corps a much longer-standing thing than they canonically are, but fuck it, that’s a retcon that should’ve been made long ago; it does not make sense for the Green Lanterns to be this centuries-old organization and all the other (supposedly equally powerful & important) emotions only getting rings & corps in the most modern last few years.  Plus, it means Earth’s primary Violet Lantern would be a very, very small child, and I think that’s hilarious. He’s gonna adopt Dex-Starr, and then they’ll both make Hal Jordon look like somehow the least competent Earth representative.

[thepunchingbag]

Mical and Visas BFF Headcanons

Their friendship started when Mical caught Visas stealing his bandages/antiseptic/kolto injections from his medical supplies. Visas expected anger and she braced herself. But he wasn't angry, simply curious. She remained silent as Mical asked if he could help somehow; until he simply offered to give her what she needed if she only asked (and it would help to know the issue, so he might know what medical aid to provide). Then it became a regular thing, her visits to the Med Bay for supplies, Mical attempting to make smalltalk before she scurried away back to the shadows. Over time, she begins trusting him enough to actually help with wound care - and Mical is able to stitch the deeper scars too. He's a good listener. Even when she reveals extremely dark moments in her life, Mical remains calm, soft-spoken and kind; she finds his presence therapeutic.

Both of them grow powerful in the Force and use it regularly, unsettling even other Force sensitives. Due to his temple upbringing, I headcanon that Mical doesn't have any qualms using mind tricks/"reading" people's thoughts; always for peace and harmony and all that, of course, but he's not above using those techniques to achieve his goals (Atton is disgusted somewhere in the background). If Mical catches an opponent mentally unawares in combat, he crawls into their head and convinces them to flee. Visas can turn the air electric if she's furious - she may remain deathly silent, but the area around her will crackle with Force energy. Or the room's temperature will drop to freezing. She's also incredibly uncanny at detecting upcoming events - she's not clairvoyant exactly but she gets incredibly accurate hunches. Together, Mical and Visas can make an incredibly unnerving pair.

They're incredibly comfortable in each other's space. Sometimes they meditate together for hours, sometimes they silently just hang out (Mical reading a book on his datapad, Visas practicing her Force abilities, hovering various objects in the room with her mind). When they do talk, oh boy, they talk for hours and hours on pretty wide-ranging subjects, from Sith vs. Jedi philosophy to Katarr mythology to "What did you think of the soup we had for dinner?" Visas was extremely taciturn with Mical at first, but over time, he's earned her trust and she enjoys their chats. To be honest, she's still rather quiet around most of the crew besides Mical and the Exile.

Visas is extremely protective of Mical. She's very irritated with how passive he is in combat - Visas wants to grab him by the shoulders and shake some sense into him, but a part of her grudgingly admires his mercy. However, if Visas thinks he's in danger, she goes into full demonic Sith mode and will salt the motherfucking earth if her cinnamon roll friend is hurt.

They're both tall. I thought the post that said Mical had to be taller than Atton was fucking hilarious - and now I just imagine Mical as this 6'5 giant beanpole. Visas is statuesque, once she's no longer slouching and hiding herself in the shadows (she's accustomed to hiding from Nihilus, it takes her awhile to relax around the crew). Standing upright, she's the tallest woman on the ship, maybe only a hair shorter than Mical. And, together, they can physically make an intimidating pair. Mical is the gentle giant but Visas 100% uses her height to intimidate others if she deems it necessary. Even when the Exile just takes Visas and Mical along on missions, they can end up unintentionally unnerving other people, these two gigantic Force-sensitives looming in the background.

Headcanon that Mical is always making a pot of tea. The man is constantly brewing tea, drinking tea, he's mad for tea. He likes his tea malty, with a drop of honey and cream. He used to only make one cup, but now he's always sure to make another cup for his friend. She likes it strong, no sugar.

[pavspatch]

Stability Not the Spectacular at Celtic

LOOK after the pennies and the pounds will look after themselves. Give that old saying a football twist, and it pretty much sums up the philosophy of Stalybridge Celtic's new co-majority shareholders Nigel Jones and Paul Bowden.

There are no grandiose statements to win the attention and approval of supporters, no plans to win Football League status within ten or 15 years, and no huge infrastructure projects. Instead, there's plenty of talk of incremental progress starting with winning promotion from the Pitching In first division west back up to the premier division.

Mr Jones equates it all with what would be called the discovery phase in business — finding out what works, what doesn't work, and what could be done better.

"It’s a journey of continual improvement. You don’t get everything right at once but if you keep steadily improving things will follow from there. It’s all about improving the squad, governance, the matchday experience and the relationship fans. That’s how we’ll drive things forward," he explained.

"First of all we need to get the right squad in place and time is against us. We have to hit the ground running and although we've been co-owners less than a week we've already made some moves such as a fans' forum on Monday, June 5. The rest will come over the next few weeks and months.

"Paul and I believe the fans are ready for a change. It's been a difficult few years culminating in last season' relegation. Rob Gorski was at the club a long time and we need to show that the change people are demanding is taking place. They need to see we’re not just following the status quo.

"We’ve started the process by appointing a new manager. That’s no reflection on Chris Willcock’s abilities – I don’t actually know him at all – but Stalybridge Celtic needs a fresh start. We also need to maximise revenues. By doing that we’ll have more money for players. We need to have the best team we can.

"First and foremost we’ll look at the more straightforward things like sponsorship and increasing matchday revenues. Let's take things one step at a time, focus on the little things first and gradually build up."

After going through seven managers in ten years (eight including the Paul Phillips's partner Steve Halford), plus many other comings and goings, the new owners also believe the club craves and indeed requires a period of stability.

In James Kinsey, who was with Mr Jones at Wythenshawe Town, they believe they have a manager who can provide it. Their intention is to have him in charge for a lengthy period.

"We need stability 100 per cent. I know James well and have worked with him. We're looking for him to be with us for many years and that's something I think is very important at this level," said Mr Jones.

"He'll be given a budget and he’ll have full control of that. James can consult us if he feels he needs to but we’re more than happy to let him get on with it.

"James is young and he has that energy and drive that goes with youth. That energy he brings is fantastic and it will make a big difference, especially if we can get the fans with us."

One of the charges often levelled at Rob Gorski was that he treated Stalybridge Celtic as a hobby rather than a business. It was an accusation he utterly refuted, and Jones and Bowden insist it's the same with them.

Although Mr Jones willingly talks about fun and getting a buzz, he adds that he and his co-majority shareholder are determined to change the club's fortunes and turn it into a success.

He said: "We’re deadly serious. We accept it’s going to be very tough to take Celtic into profit but we want to win. I run a business that employs 500 people and that’s a challenge. There are good times and there are bad times.

"While Paul lives in Bristol, I live in Sale and represent the local face of our partnership. I’m planning to be at Bower Fold every week and we're going to put some good governance in place. We really want to do this properly.

"Stalybridge Celtic has a good name in the North West and that's why we were interested in buying it. There are also some good people at the club who put a lot of time in for no financial reward – just for the love of it."

And what of the much talked-about state-of-the-art 3G pitch and new social club Celtic have chased for so long? Mr Jones added: "Every non-league club will have researched 3G pitches and know the money they can bring in from things like midweek five-a-side leagues.

"There may be grants available from bodies such as from the Football Foundation, but these things take time and are a big commitment.

"We’re not going to promise A, B and C or say we'll suddenly transform Bower Fold. We’re going to start by concentrating on what happens on the pitch. Hopefully, we should be able to achieve promotion quite quickly – maybe even in the first season. We'll move on from there."

[livredebelle]

Act II: Nineteen: New seasons

FALL/WINTER.

IT WAS A WINDY NOVEMBER MORNING, AND WEATHER-WISE everything was perfect. I stared up at the sky in wonder. Had so much time really already passed? Once school had started, the months had flown without my consent or awareness. Having no time for anything but my studies, I delved into the life of a full-time university student. I had quit my barista job, because working with Johnny after knowing my mom was controlling him would feel too strange, to say the least. I was getting allowance--or "trust fund money," as my mother called it--from my new rich stepfather anyway, so it wasn't like I actually needed a job.

Stepfather. I shuddered for some odd reason. Over the past few months, my mother had gotten very lovey-dovey, and it felt so wrong to have to witness it--especially during meals. Richard had arranged one mandatory dinner together as a family per month, and so far they had been nothing but painful--like, physically painful--as I was forced to watch my mother gush at him with round eyes and butter him up, while Richard remained stoic and deadly silent. Why didn't he stop it? I didn't understand the man. 

Rosalie, oblivious to it all, would chirp through the meal and ask me 100 questions about what I had been doing the past few years in my independence. At first I thought, Of course she wants to know. I'd be curious, too! But then it became excessive. Had she always been this nosy? I still loved her, of course, but I was beginning to remember why I frequently wished when I was younger to have been an only child. 

Thankfully, with the fall semester coming to wraps in a couple of weeks, I had a legitimate excuse to not attend those mandatory dinners. I spent most nights in the library at the penthouse studying. If I wasn't studying, I liked to read, mainly classical romance--or horror, depending on my mood--novels, as well as books about ancient mythology. I was well-suited for the solitary life. 

Just one teensy problem: I wasn't living a solitary life. 

After the initial shocking encounter with Heath--a very close call--I had confronted Mother about it, furious, but she couldn't understand why. 

"What's the matter with that? You two get along alright, don't you? Just think of it as having a roommate. That young man's been living in the penthouse floor ever since Richard hired him as his assistant, so it would be unfair to kick him out now, don't you think?"

"Surely you don't think this is appropriate?! I mean--" I stammered. Did I have to make it that obvious for her to understand?

"Dearie, there's no problem with that. Mother will simply think of it as... a double-guarantee that we have some kind of small fortune in the future, worst case scenario."

She'd winked, and I remember feeling sick to my stomach. So this had been her plan all along. Either way, through her marriage or through me, she was going to become rich via this company.

"Rest assured, child, if he steps out of line of course we'll intervene. But if nothing has happened, it seems silly to make a problem out of something out of nothing, especially before it's even known to happen, now wouldn't it?"

And that was that.

Obviously, I didn't have a say in it. And I had already moved in and made the change, so it was too late now. I had looked into whether my old apartment was still available, and indeed it was not. 

'If Quinn and I had still been friends, I could've probably moved in with him...' 

I shoved away the thought. What was even the point of wondering what could have been? It was all in the past now. 

Whenever I ran into Quinn at school, it was always extremely awkward, at least for me. It happened more often than I had hoped; both of us being coffee enthusiasts, I often ran into him at the Starbucks near campus, or even in the hallways as we were in the same department (Humanities)--he was majoring in Philosophy, while I was majoring in Literature. My reaction whenever this happened was always the same: I would duck my head down, stare hard at the floor as if I was sorely interested in the tile patterns, and walk away as fast as I could in a hopefully not-too-obvious manner. 

I couldn't help it. I knew it was cowardly, but I didn't have the guts to face him or his wrath. Since our friendship was clearly over anyway, did it even matter? In fact, I thought it would naturally be that way. 

I just thanked the Lord that at least we weren't in the same classes as each other. With him one year above me, I was sure it would never happen. 

However, Quinn wasn't the only one I was trying desperately to run away from.

I had another problem, and his name was Heath. 

He was much more persistent, and whenever we made eye contact on campus, he would start beaming and head over to me, calling me by name in a rather loud voice. Flustered, I'd run away, but it wasn't long before we became the topic of gossip in our department. Since my major consisted of only a small number of students, they were close-knit and liked to pick on gossip prey. I rolled my eyes whenever I saw them. They were like a flock of pigeons, waiting for some delicious bread crumbs to be hurled their way. Truly, like those birds, they were brainless, too. The girls in particular were jealous of the attention I was getting from Heath, the "hot" TA of our Classics class. Lucky me.

Nevertheless, although I hated being the center of attention, I couldn't help but wonder what Heath made of it. Wouldn't it be a problem if he--as a faculty member of the school--got romantically involved with a student, by insinuation or otherwise?

Some of the undergraduate girls in his classes got the same idea, apparently, because one day I found myself cornered in the bathroom by a couple of them.

One had bushy, curly red hair--looking like a raggedy-ass Ronald McDonald--

"Hey, I've been hearing some things."

The girl next to her with glowing, golden skin kicked the nearby trash can with her combat boots, probably in an effort to intimidate me. But I stood my ground, keeping my chin high.

"'Sup?"

"I'm not done talking, you slut. I was saying, I've been hearing that you've been quite the social butterfly. Everybody seems to be talking about you."

"I fail to see how that's my problem."

"Oh, but it is. You see, there's sort of this unspoken rule here--things run differently, and you can't just waltz in here and steal someone else's prey. Otherwise you'll get thrashed."

I guffawed. Seriously--that was the best she could come up with? What were we, back in kindergarten?

"Are you laughing, you dumb bitch?"

"Aw, c'mon, Ronald!" I sighed dramatically, wiping a tear from my eye in an effort to antagonize her. It worked; I saw her buggy eyes get wider as I clicked my tongue. "You're not seriously about to tell me that you called dibs on our TA, and you want me to keep my claws off of him?"

"What did you--"

"I mean, I just can't do this. I mean, no offense, but I am physically incapable of dealing with people I have zero respect for. You can't even deal with your own ego contests by yourself."

The girl with the combat boots loomed over me. "Are you done talking, or can we start 'thrashing' you now, as you so delicately put it?"

Before I could blink, her hand was flying across my face, and I fell to the floor by the sheer force of it. It didn't hurt, just stung, yet I couldn't fight back with my weak ass body. I had always been born fragile. I could do nothing but try to shield myself while the group of four or five hovered over me and began stomping on me with their feet. All I could think was, thank goodness they weren't wearing heels.

I was aiming for an opportunity to bite someone's leg when a better idea crossed my head.

"Eeeeeek!"

One of the groupies screamed as I quickly whipped out my lighter in an effort to burn her leg that was hovering over my face. I didn't care what consequences might befall me--I had to protect myself, so it would be considered self-defense. I knew that, but they probably didn't.

"What the fuck! This bitch is crazy!"

I smirked at the comment.

They had no idea.

"Let's get outta here. People are starting to gather around the commotion."

The group started to disperse, leaving me on the ground. I breathed out a heavy sigh of relief, which faded just as soon as it came. The voice had been right; a crowd of strangers were blocking the entrance to the bathroom, and I had no way out without revealing my face. In other words, I wouldn't be able to avoid becoming a spectacle and the subject of idle gossip.

"Shit," I muttered in frustration. This was very much not what I needed--I was more than content being a loner, but I didn't want this kind of negative attention more than anything.

The thought of becoming a source of everyone's vain entertainment had my nerves spike to a whole new level.

"All right, everybody, let's get back to your usual business and to class. What are you guys all camping outside of the ladies' bathroom for? This is super weird, if I must say."

A familiar voice. My roommate. Immediately, a wave of relief washed over my body; but once I realized what was happening, my sense of ease vanished.

Why would Heath's voice make me relieved? We still barely knew each other or talked despite living together, despite the one-sided flirting on his part. I had no reason to believe he was on my side--I should know better and be careful, I chided myself.

"I'd be an idiot to trust him," I mumbled out loud, but I couldn't deny that he was doing me a huge favor right now with his TA authority to shoo people away. Whether he knew he was doing me a favor, I didn't know--but I also didn't care. I just wanted to leave the shitty scene already and get back to class myself to make good on my tuition.

I strained my ears but heard nothing. Convinced, I slowly crept up to the entrance door--

--and ran head smack into Heath's chest.

Eyes widening, he asked, "What are you doing here, Irina?" I could feel my face turning hot with humiliation.

As if he didn't know! He had to know and was making a fool out of me.

I shoved away at his chest and tried to move past him without a response, but he continued to block the way.

"I heard there was a... disturbance of sorts in the women's bathroom, but I didn't expect to see you here. Did anything happen? Are you hurt?" He sounded angry as he said the last part.

"Why do you care? Oh, if you're asking as a teacher, don't worry--I'm not gonna press charges against the school, or make a big deal about it or anything. I'll be quiet, so hey, no worries."

"What?"

"That's how things are usually handled, right?" I said coolly. God, I knew that my anger was being misdirected, but I felt so mortified to be in this situation that I didn't care what I said. I'd say whatever venom I had to in order to run away.

"Look, I have no fucking idea what you're talking about." Heath's voice matched my tone, and I shivered unwillingly. "If you don't feel like telling me, then fine, that's your prerogative. But I'm not your punch bag, Rina. If you keep treating me this unfairly, I'll have no choice but to punish you."

His voice fell to a low octave, almost as if he was purring. For a second I froze, unable to decipher what the hell was happening. But it was just another one of his ploys.

I couldn't explain the tingle that ran through my body, my veins, my blood at the insinuation in the last sentence. It almost made me whimper as I dared to imagine, for a moment of insanity, what kind of things he could do to me as punishment in the bedroom.

But as quickly as the bout of nonsense had come, I jolted out of it, too much of a seasoned warrior.

No. No. I won't. I won't fall for his tricks.

"Don't make me sick," I hissed instead, hoping he didn't catch how my voice nearly wavered at the end. I successfully pushed him to the side and nearly sprinted away from him to clear my head.

This guy was like a poison fog slowly seeping into my brain. Dangerous and lethal.

I had a gene for addiction and I knew it. I also knew I couldn't afford it--physically, mentally, emotionally and even spiritually--to fall under his spell.

Get your fucking shit together, Irina. You didn't go through hell and worse just for all your efforts to go to waste on a guy of all things.

Taking a deep breath, I strode off to my next class.

[eye-of-yelough]

okay i’m just gonna turn this into a game. every random thought i have concerning them for the next. idk lets just say until i go to bed. i’m gonna write here.

- they hardly spent any time together their first 3 years of knowing each other. their third meeting i’m “writing” (hadn’t looked at it in a week) takes place 5-6 months after their first meeting. they mostly just stalk each other, gort is all sophisticated and distant about it, aeryn is a lot more up-close and personal. steak-outs in trees with binoculars type stalking. actively following him. they’re both fully aware. they leave each other notes on corpses, it’s fun. they once talk about how they kinda miss it when they stop in favour of actually spending time together.

- once in a ship template i put gort as a 100% dom top and aeryn as a 100% sub bottom and i just wanna make it clear that is not my perception of either of their characters separately but that is how they are with each other. Aeryn would happily fuck gort stupid if he asked, but he doesn’t. and not because there isn’t a part of him that wants it he just Cannot give aeryn that kind of power over him he’d literally rather die.

- despite his uhhh “devotion” or “love” for gortash, aeryn really only goes along with absolute stuff to eventually Kill Everyone Ever which i know is canon but like. he specifically does it to free them from gortash. because he knows that 1) he’s the only person that could kill gortash, he’s his one weakness, his achilles heel, and 2) he absolutely cannot bring himself to do it. even before gortash starts fucking with his head. i know i don’t talk about it much but there are no words to describe how much aeryn loathes everything gortash represents at first and how terrified he is of the future he envisions. he can’t talk him out of it. he can’t kill him. the only other option is to beat him to it. better a quick death now than a slow one later. pretty much his whole philosophy.

- of course the above is before gort starts fucking with his head. i can’t remember the name of it but that book in Flymm’s Cobblers about how much happier people would be if they were mindless sheep. he didn’t get that information from nowhere.

- first time gort sees aeryn naked he just stares at him for a really long time. like, full minutes in dead silence. before eventually saying “you have 119 spots.” aeryn tries to punch him in the face. it doesn’t go well.

- related to that. i don’t wanna copy archduke-enver-gortash (lol. lmao. that ship has sailed buddy) TOO much but man. gort would love to make shit out of aeryn’s bluegrey spotted skin. maybe gloves. no wait what am i saying it would obviously be the dolls. creep. he would stuff it and use it as a pillow. this doesn’t Actually happen but i know he thinks about it.

- i think a significant part of the reason why they don’t have actual sex until ten years in despite their relationship being overtly psychosexual is partly because gort feels like. okay familial is not the right word but you know what i mean. it feels like a taboo, like crossing a line. like fucking an inflatable sex doll. which isn’t really “taboo” but gort is definitely convinced that if he did he would feel super gross and would just get sick of aeryn after. cos he’s aspec and at this point has only had sex as manipulation, he just can’t imagine it would be as fun as his weird convoluted fantasies about it. and then the fantasies would be ruined.

- luckily aeryn got that premium shit hand sculpted by bhaal himself. that’s some “ruin your life” boypussy.

- and gort STILL prefers to fuck him in the ass just to deny him. amazing. his shittiness knows no bounds.

when you’re in an “i wanna be shamelessly annoying about my ocs/blorbo” mood but you can’t actually think of anything to say.

blinking at you 😐😑😐😑😐

[hanjifuck]

.˚｡⋆ ༊ .˚｡⋆ stray kids ideal types - series .˚｡⋆ ༊ .˚｡⋆

lee know version ʕっ•ᴥ•ʔっ

based on their birth charts! s2

✧*:.｡. t/n: i’ll be using SIDEREAL astrology on this one. it’s also important to say that when we talk about romance in astrology we have to fully analyse the couple’s birth charts individualy at first and only then apply compatibility analysis so we’re able to check out the synastry overlays.

✧*:.｡. t/n: kinda proofread.

firts of all, i'll be taking a different approach to minho's birth chart as his' way different from chris'. with him we're gonna look at other placements.

let's use Lacan (1985) as a method to examine the relationship he has between the "i" and the "others". when we look at a Möbius strip it's possible to see that if we turn one side of the two surfaces of the band, we find ourselves outside, while the other finds itself inside the circle. which leads us into thinking about how much of "i" is in the "other" and how much of the "other" is in "i". even if we look at houses of the self, it's percepcion will only be seen on others. our notion of individuality is created trough the mirror offered by the other (the mirror stage).

the basics:

someone who has the sun in gemini, libra or aquarius;

moon in cancer, scorpio or pisces. leo and aquarius moons are a NO;

venus in aries, aquarius or sagittarius;

jupiter in gemini.

obviously there’s way more aspects to look into to see if a relationship would work but i’d rather not go too deep into it right now.

a person who above all things is his friend first. he wants to make friends with the person he likes because he's not the most romantic.

someone full of surprises, who excites him in differents ways everyday. boi wants an adventurous and unique love. he loves the drama and the unexpected.

a person who has knowledge about unusal things/likes to read about all types of things. interesting personality is a MUST for him. he loves being around strange people because he doesn't want to be bored. when it's about fun he likes to engage in all sorts of not-usual activities, what seems the strangest is also what’s best.

not-into-fairy-tales-romance type of person. he wants to be around someone who's interesting and makes him curious, so their meetings are most of the time unusual. i don't think you should expect the whole wine and dine type of thing from him, specially because he can give you way more. <3

someone who likes being around groups and is good at socializing. i know this can trigger some people but hear me out, he's happy when collaborating with others and functioning in groups. when he's having fun he wants to be part of the noisiest events, so it’s normal to see him at concerts or big art related events.

a non-judgmental person. it's not that he's scared of you "not accepting" him or whatever, believe me he does not care about this. he has to live to the fullest and to be unusual. he expresses his creativity in his own way. he wants to feel excitement when it comes to a relationships, so if you're too worried about what other people will think it won't work.

a person who wouldn't be a strict parent, if it's a long-term relationship we're talking about. his kids are very likely going to have strong aquarius/uranus energy on their birth charts, meaning his chiquitos would be as accentric as he is. he wants his children to express their individuality and be themselves. he's really good with children as well, having a great way of communicating with his kids, making them mentally strong and independent. yet he may tend to stress his kids with education stuff related cus he feels they should pursue their interests. cool dad™. will be good friends with his kids (the children will be as funny as he is).

someone who's not traditional. a rebel when it comes to love and don’t prefer to date the traditional way. he wants to fall in love with your mind. his dating ways can be unusual, maybe online since he has a kick for technological advancements. he can be strange when it comes to sex as well.

but is still a 100% monogamy. the king needs to rule ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. he wants to be the center of attention, he can be a bit domineering even. he may be a bit possessive or jealous, but tries to hide it. expects absolute loyalty from you. his kinks? a lot of love, affection, and admiration.

a person who's not scared of experimenting. he wants to try everything at least once.

a "modern" person. minho has always been interested in technology. he gives me big nerdy energy. he's quick to respond to his creativity urges.

someone who has a longing for learning. he enjoys traveling and learning about technology, psychology, philosophy etc. deep and philosophic conversations are a must (but don't get it twisted he enjoys humor more than anything). he's unhappy with what he's being given, he's always looking to improve things and his thoughts.

a person who's comfortable with silence as well. even tho he loves having fun with other people he's still kinda a loner who doesn't need to interact with other humans or to talk very much.

someone passive. would like it better if the person's willing to give him the spotlight. wants to be paided attention to, wants you to worship him. his fantasies probably revolve around devotion. ofc he enjoys giving his effort to you as long as he receive the same back, too. disobeying is a no.

a feminine and elegant person. rude or harsh behavior and crudeness about sex are a no. you must have a sparkling physical appearance as well.

easy conversationalist. def not into monosyllabic communicators. he's prideful, he won’t back off from a conflict that involves his own principles so it's essential for you to be good with words, too. fights can be commom in the relationship.

someone who enjoys praising him. don't forget to show your appreciation for all that he’s doing. wants you to see him as the confident man that he is and the man that will fulfill all your dreams.

a 100% honest person. you deceive him, he will just leave and not turn back. he finds it hard to forgive. again, he wants his partner to worship him. he works hard to make sure you leave idolizing him, so his feelings will get very hurt if he finds out later on that you were “faking” things. he will feel inadequate and insecure.

patiente. he can be easy to offend or to be hurt quite easily. you may need to walk on eggshells sometimes. when you first meet him, he might come off as a bit unattainable but don't be discouraged.

a person who doesn't get scared by his feelings. when he's actually in love, he will fall head over heels. if he thinks you're a match he wants to make sure nobody else will ever get you. he can easily get caught up in the moment and be impulsive. he wants to attract your attention as soon as possible after he realises he loves you, and it will be in an obvious and eccentric way. he wants you to remember him for a lifetime. his placements makes him one of the most emotional individuals, he feels love, anger, disappointment, happiness and so on, at a much greater level.

someone who stands out. he has always attracted a lot of attention since he has a gravitational energy, so it won't be just anyone who's going to catch his eyes. as a child, he felt very different from the people he was surrounded by. he loved and still love anything that is labeled as odd by others and he likes to feel like he's strange.

someone who's interested in humanitarian work.

a person who's flexible. he needs someone who's willing to take risks with him. someone who's in to enjoy the ride.

[tobi-smp]

I was thinking about it while I was in the shower, so here’s another Hot Take on the discussion on whether we can (or should) consider technoblade as abusive

a lot of interactions between technoblade and other characters are difficult to gauge because c!techno obviously isn’t honest about his feelings at all times On Top Of cc!techno Very Rarely If Ever being completely in character, including and especially with very serious lore scenes. so how we’re meant to take anything he does or says is hard to parse, especially with the knowledge that other creators can take scenes seriously and incorporate it into their lore even if it wasn’t the intention at the time (like jack’s death at tommy’s hands during exile).

(technoblade has only recently come out to state that he’s intentionally playing his side of the story lighter to give people a break from the heavy angst in the rest of the server, but that’s hardly new. he broke the tension all the time during his partnership with tommy, namely with the confrontation with dream at the portal and tommy and tubbo’s first reunion, but it was even noticeable with doomsday, his perspective is a Palpably different tone from Anyone on the l’manberg side of things. which can make some Very interesting inconsistencies when it’s directly slammed into tommy’s more serious roleplaying style.)

you can Easily read him as Either a purely opportunistic character who uses the guise of being deeply emotionally wounded as a justification for Horrific Violence when he was never that emotionally invested in the first place Or a character that is rarely if ever honest and open with his feelings, who hurts other people by accident by trying to downplay his own vulnerability who is Nevertheless deeply emotionally invested in and impacted by the people around him. both interpretations can be soundly backed up by what we’ve been given and we can’t really discount the other reading because of the semi-canoncity of whatever technoblade does. we aren’t really gonna know unless technoblade himself decides to address it specifically.

so with that in mind, I want to take a second to take a more charitable reading, not as an argument that technoblade’s relationship with tommy Wasn’t unhealthy (because it objectively was no matter the reading of his intentions) but to ground the overall conversation a little bit here.

this, I think, is where the nuance in the intersection between “technoblade didn’t have the full picture of what happened with dream and tommy” and “technoblade knew enough to know that what he did on doomsday was wrong” Matters. 

if we read technoblade as a character that genuinely cares but either chooses not to or doesn’t know How to express those emotions in a healthy productive way (“tsundereblade” ala the scene of ranboo giving techno the axe) Combined With techno’s very dry sense of humor then it Is very possible to read some of the more uh, Unfortunate things that he’s said in a different light. which doesn’t excuse them by any means, people hurting their friends by not being emotionally honest or through jokes that hit harder than intended happens all the time and it’s the responsibility of that friend to apologize and change their behavior. but at the same time, people can’t actually change their behavior if they don’t know that what they’ve done is wrong.

we need to keep in mind that: - both technoblade And tommy express their affection with their friends by ribbing them. making fun of each other Is a sign of affection for them. if we’re meant to read that as part of their characters then it may not be entirely fair to say that technoblade should’ve known that putting tommy down was going to hurt him

- technoblade knows (or assumes) that dream wants to kill tommy and he knows that tommy has trauma. but technoblade Doesn’t know that dream systematically destroyed tommy’s self confidence to the point of being suicidal. he Doesn’t know how fragile tommy is about his own self worth, and he Doesn’t know that that kind of joking would hit tommy differently now than it would’ve back during their pogtopia days.

- technoblade knows that tommy was a child soldier, he knows that he was forced out of his home and isolated by someone that he’d trusted and loved, and he directly relates tommy’s betrayal to his own. he’s more likely to think that tommy’s mental state Now has more to do with l’manberg than dream specifically even if he recognizes dream as a threat to tommy.

none of this makes techno putting down tommy’s self worth Right, it doesn’t mean that we have to look at him charitably when he tells someone to their face that they aren’t equals only to turn around and destroy a country when he thinks he’s being dehumanized. but I also think that we can’t necessarily assume that he 100% devalued tommy both as a person and a friend from that interaction.

moreover, technoblade was For Sure being opportunistic in trying to recruit tommy. I’ve made my own analysis on techno obviously trying to prime tommy for a partnership at the start of tommy’s exile. but at the same time, I don’t think that’s necessarily Solely about taking advantage of what tommy could do for him, especially since he was trying to recruit tommy before he’d had his mind set on actively destroying l’manberg.

assuming that technoblade was as hurt by tommy as he was because he genuinely Cared about tommy, because he and tommy Were friends and he enjoyed his company, then he very well could’ve recognized that tommy being betrayed by the same people he was would open him up to being able to relate to him. techno and tommy have very fun interactions when there’s nothing driving them against each other, but they’re fundamentally incompatible on their morality and philosophies.

so the obvious solution to that would be one showing the other that their way of thinking was wrong, to let their relationship thrive without that barrier between them. and like, obviously technoblade is the extremist of the situation, it’s a little hard to swallow him trying to change tommy when he’s the one that refuses to compromise even when tommy tries to do it for him. but I think it’s worth recognizing when we’re having a conversation about whether or not he Solely saw tommy as an asset to use rather than a companion. if you choose to read techno as someone who refuses to compromise on his ideals but craves that interaction anyways, then the way he scooped tommy up while trying to relate tommy’s situation to his own, trying to convince them that l’manberg was bad for him, etc, can be read in a Much Less overtly malicious light. it’s still not a Healthy one, but at least it’s not Child Labor Meat Shield.

this particular reading Does have the fact that techno didn’t try to recruit anyone else on its side. for the entirety of tommy’s exile up until doomsday he didn’t try to seek out partnerships with anyone, even though there were Several people unaffiliated with l’manberg at the time. he sought tommy out the First Day of his exile, surely the moment he heard of it, and he was Noticeably Eager to partner with him the moment he’d found him in his house. if that was nothing but pure unadulterated ambition and opportunity seeking then you’d think he’d try to make at least One ally in the meantime.

then again, tommy was the most vulnerable person on the server at the time, you don’t have to know about tommy’s abuse to know that. if you choose to read techno as solely opportunistic then it’s easy to dismiss all of that and say that techno went for tommy because he saw it as the safest bet and that he didn’t gun for any other allies before him because he didn’t see it as immediately necessary until he’d been provoked. but on the other hand, it makes a lot of Sense that a character who’d just cut himself off from every ally he could’ve had but One would be kind of desperate for any chance at connection that he could get. that he’d seize the opportunity specifically Because he enjoyed his relationship with tommy before it went south and he wants to have a close partnership like that again.

technoblade’s a highly paranoid character, so you could argue that he’d try to seek out any partnership he could get his hands on if he was truly actively gunning for allies to the point of being willing to overlook his grudge against tommy to scoop him up as soon as possible. but on the other hand, technoblade’s a highly paranoid character, so he might not want to Risk someone ratting him out to the enemy if he can’t trust them or if they aren’t as neutral as they seem to be.

so ! with all that in mind I think that it’s a valid take to argue that technoblade’s actions could’ve been considered abusive whether he realized it or not, but I also think that it’s a valid take to say that it might not’ve been the intention of the roleplayers at the time and that some of the details that can be used to come to the conclusion that technoblade was abusive were tinged by cc!techno’s humor and him not thinking through the implications of tommy’s current arc. both takes make sense within the context of what we’ve been presented, we just need to make the space for both within overall analysis.

[whisperlullaby]

Friendly Neighbors

Pairing: Frank Adler x Reader

Words: 2025

Warnings: SMUT (18+ ONLY) Oral (f receiving), choking (kind of), face riding. 

Summary: Your neighbors with Frank Adler and can’t seem to think straight around him. His niece Mary likes you and wants you and Frank to hang out so she can see you more.

A/N: This was inspired by a thot given to me by @fluffycutecevans​ I hope you like it! Thank you to @river-soul​ for being an amazing beta and friend and for helping me with the ending. All mistakes are my own and as always Minors DNI

You looked out your window and saw your neighbor, Frank, putting his niece Mary on the bus. He was always so gentle with her and you couldn’t help but let out a wistful sigh whenever you saw them interact. Even his reprimands came out more like guidance than punishment. Mary saw you watching and gave you a small wave which you returned. Noticing the exchange, Frank looked over at you and smiled, causing you to drop your hand and offer a tight smile embarrassed at the effect such a simple gesture had on you. 

You'd never actually spoken with Frank, you always got tongue-tied around him. You have, however, run into Mary on more than one occasion when she was with Roberta. That girl was smart as a whip and took a liking to you almost immediately. She would invite you over for dinner weekly, which you always politely declined. You didn't know what you would do if you were alone with Frank for that long. The thought brought butterflies to your stomach and a deep want between your thighs. 

Friday night rolled around and you took your glass of wine to your front stoop, waiting for Frank to drop Mary off at Roberta's so you could hear about her week. You saw Mary jump down the stairs and giggle as Frank started walking towards Roberta's house. Mary, however, had different plans and doubled back to sit with you on your stoop.

"Hey, can you come over for dinner tomorrow night? Franks making burgers. He makes good burgers and you said they were your favorite so I asked him to make them."

You stared at Mary wide-eyed. "Thank you for the offer sweetheart, but I don't want to impose. Besides I have a drawer full of takeout menus to choose from." You chuckled.

Mary looked past you. "Frank can you tell her that she wouldn't be imposing."

You stiffened and slowly turned around to catch Frank's sly smirk.

"Mary what did I say about bothering the pretty neighbor? Come on we have to get you to Roberta's."

"I have a great idea, Frank. Instead of going out tonight why don't you stay in with," Mary paused to look at you with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "The pretty neighbor."

Your whole body heated up at her statement. For a kid, she was as sly as a fox and too observant. Maybe it was the wine, maybe it was to prove to Mary that women should be strong and confident, whatever the reason you decided to double down on Mary's suggestion. Although if you were being honest with yourself you knew the real reason you wanted to spend time with Frank.

"I would love the company. I have more wine inside and beer in the fridge. I also may have ordered enough takeout for a small army." You bit your lip in anticipation of what Frank would say.

Frank looked over at Mary and then back to you, a smile slowly creeping onto his face. 

"We have to get you to Roberta's first." Frank motioned for Mary to come with him. "I'll be back in 10 minutes if you wanna have one of those beers ready for me."

You smiled and nodded. As they headed toward Roberta's house, Mary turned around and gave you a not-so-subtle thumbs up that had you laughing.

You got up and went to refill your glass and grabbed a beer from the fridge. After you set them both on the kitchen table, you went back to the front door to prop it open for Frank. You ran to the bathroom to straighten out your hair and make-up when you heard heavy footfalls coming down the hallway.

“Hello? The door was open so I just let myself in,” Frank shouted through the house.

You reappeared in the kitchen and gave Frank a shy smile.

“Hey, your beer’s on the table. Food should be here in 15 minutes give or take, make yourself comfortable,” you rambled nervously.

Frank chuckled as he made his way over to the table and picked up his beer.

“You’ve made quite the impression on Mary,” Franks stated fondly. “She always talks about the pretty neighbor who teaches her about the stars.”

You let out a soft laugh. “Well, when I was her age I was fascinated by the constellations.”

“Yeah? Tell me more about yourself, sunshine.”

You bit your lip at the nickname Frank gave you. The next 15 minutes were spent talking about your childhood and where you grew up. You learned that Frank used to be a professor of philosophy and after his sister’s passing he gave that up to move here in order to make sure Mary had a normal childhood. As the conversation went on you and Frank seemed to be pulled closer together.

“I don’t know if you noticed. Mary is a bit of a genius,” Frank joked as he finished off his beer, brushing his arm against your thigh.

Flustered, you stood up to go to the fridge and get him another beer. “Yeah, I noticed. She’s a good kid, makes me think about things in a whole new way. I like her.”

Frank smiled as you handed him his beer. His fingers brushed against yours and your breath caught in your throat.

“Why is it this is the first time we’re enjoying each other’s company?” Frank wondered as he opened the beer. 

“Oh come on Frank. Have you seen yourself? I’ve seen the Saturday morning walks of shame leave your house. They don’t exactly look like me,” you reasoned, surprised at your boldness.

He considered you for a moment. “You know Mary didn’t give you the nickname ‘pretty neighbor’ I did,” Frank admitted easily.

You looked up at Frank shocked and saw his eyes blown black with lust. There was a knock on the door and you cleared your throat, getting up to answer it. Frank was right behind you, handing the delivery person money for the food before quickly shutting the door.

“You didn’t have to do that. I was the one who ordered the food.” 

He grabbed the bags from you and walked over to set them on the table.

“Wouldn’t be much of a gentleman if I didn’t pay for the food, now would I?” He offered.

“Can I ask you a question?” You rushed out, feeling the wine course through your veins giving you a sense of confidence.

He raised an eyebrow at you, signaling you to continue.

“Did you and Mary plan this?”

Frank smiled at you. “I may have suggested to Mary that I didn’t feel like going to the bar tonight, but that she was still spending the night with Roberta. She’s a smart kid, she came up with the plan all on her own. I just didn’t stop her.”

You considered his answer for a moment before you pulled him into a kiss that was filled with urgency and desperation. His hands gripped your waist and pushed you back into the wall, his grip tightening as the kiss grew deeper.

“Bedroom?” Frank asked huskily.

“Down the hall, second door on the left.”

Frank grabbed your hand and led you to the room, pausing every few steps to give you kisses and nips along your neck. By the time he laid you on the bed you were a whimpering mess, and you were sure you were soaked. He unzipped your dress and pulled down the straps with gentle ease. A perfect contrast to the urgency he was just kissing you with.

“No bra sweetheart?” Frank asked with a mischievous glint in his eye.

“It’s 100 degrees and humid Frank. I barely wanted to wear the dress,” you said breathlessly.

“Oh sunshine, I barely want you to wear this dress too.” Frank pulled the rest of your dress off your body. 

You grabbed at his shirt and ripped it over his head. You threw it across the room and licked your lips at the sight of his tanned and toned chest. He bent down and placed kisses across your chest, taking a nipple in his mouth flicking the peak with his tongue while rolling the other between his fingers. You arched your back at the sensation and wrapped your legs around his waist. You rocked your hips against his growing erection, trying to provide some relief to the ache in your cunt. 

“Relax, sunshine. I’ll make you feel real good,” Frank murmured into your chest as his fingers hooked around the hem of your underwear.

He pulled them down your legs and pressed kisses into your thighs.

“You’re absolutely soaked.” He spread your slick around before taking his fingers into his mouth with a satisfied hum. “Delicious.”

Frank climbed up the bed and pulled you onto his chest.

“I want you to ride my face honey.”

You looked up at him shocked. “I’ve never done that before what if,” you bit your lip. “What if you can’t breathe?”

Frank let out a short laugh. “If being suffocated by this pussy is what kills me then that’s how I go.”

He grabbed the back of your thighs and lifted you up towards his face. 

“Go on sweetheart, get comfortable. I’m going to make you come on my tongue then I’m gonna fuck you until you can’t see straight.”

You settled your knees on each side of his face and slowly lowered yourself, still hovering.

“Is this okay?” You asked hesitantly. 

Frank gripped your thighs and pulled you down until you felt his nose nudged your clit, causing you to mewl. 

“Just like that, now ride my face baby.” 

You tentatively rocked your hips against his face as his hands held your thighs in place. His tongue was delving into your wet folds and flicking your clit. You picked up the pace as his tongue moved faster. Soon you found yourself circling your hips as he latched onto your clit humming and sucking, bringing you higher until your orgasm buzzed through your body. Frank’s tongue relentlessly fucked into your core as you rode out your high, and with one final, hard suck on your clit that caused you to whine, he sat up and pushed you on the bed.

“Now, gorgeous, I need to be inside of you.” Frank made quick work of his pants and kicked them into the pile of clothes. 

“Condoms are in the drawer,” you panted.

Frank reached into the drawer and pulled out a condom, rolling it down his hardened length. He climbed back over you and lined himself up, slowly pushing in as you arched your back reveling in the stretch.

“Fuck, Frank you feel amazing,” you moaned.

“Nowhere near as good as you sweetheart. You’re so tight, fucking made for me,” Frank grunted.

He started slowly sliding through your warmth until you wrapped your legs around his waist urging him to move faster. As he moved you grabbed his wrist to place his hand around your neck. He gently squeezed the sides of your throat and your eyes rolled back in pleasure.

“Oh, sunshine you look so good under me with my hand around your neck. I’m not gonna last much longer.”

You moaned as his thrusts became harder and more erratic. He removed his hand from your neck and pressed circles on your clit, making you clench around him as your orgasm washed through you. Frank followed closely behind you, stilling as he spilled into the condom. After a moment he pulled out causing you to whimper at the sensation. He tossed the condom in the trash before laying back on the bed and pulling you onto his chest. 

“So, do you think you’ll come over for dinner tomorrow night?” Frank asked as he placed a kiss on the crown of your head.

“I think we can make that happen. I hear burgers are on the menu and they are my favorite,” you stated shyly.

“Well my favorite thing to eat is right here,” Frank said as he moved his fingers in between your thighs. “Might just make this my dessert tomorrow night after Mary goes to bed.”

[sideblog-usernametaken]

Kill La Kill falls into a genre of anime and manga where the themes, philosophy, and writing of the series are really good with a visual design to compliment it, but if you're recommending it someone you have to be 100% certain they'll catch those themes, and you still have some explaining to do upfront otherwise their opinion of you will probably change.

While Kill La Kill is a really good example, here are a few others:

Chainsawman

The series is largely about Denji's (And a pretty significant amount of the cast too to be honest) desire for genuine connection with others. Due to the extreme debt left to him by his father, he grew up in a situation where every interpersonal interaction he had with someone was transactional, manipulative, or both (Pochita being the one exception, but even then their partnership started with a deal and Pochita acts more like a pet than a human friend). He didn't really have a family to take care of him or for him to take care of, and he didn't have friends he could just hang out with or rely on. So the series has a lot of focus on him making or seeking out such connections and slowly teaches him the value relationships like that can have.

However, because of his aforementioned upbringing Denji doesn't realize that that's what he wants, and instead makes it his goal to get a girlfriend and have sex. A goal he's extremely open about and leads to a few intentionally akward and/or off putting scenes.

(A side note: Despite him wanting to have sex and being very open about it, he doesn't fall into the "creepy pervert" character trope that anime and manga frequently have [Like Mineta from My Hero Academia]. Unless he has full or enthusiastic consent, he doesn't even consider it as an option. There is technically one exception to this, but nothing sexual happened and he wasn't in full conscious control of his actions, any explanation beyond that would be spoilers)

Undead Unluck

This one is harder to get into without massive spoilers. It's also about human connections, except in this case everyone actually knows what that means, so everyone knows almost exactly what they want. However, certain characters are essentially fated not to have close connections with anyone, and those characters are fully aware of that. So it ends up being a story about fighting fate and fighting to be able to make those connection.

The catch? It falls into the ecchi genre (For those who don't know what that means, it's basically a genre where the humor or art style is more sexual in nature). However, 95% of the ecchi stuff makes sense with the story/characters and the 5% that doesn't is almost entirely in the beginning of the series and is all but gone after a few arcs in. Basically if you decide to look into it and get weirded out, please just hold on until you get past the first major arc I promise it gets better.

(Side note: The series actually sexualizes its male characters far more often than its female characters. You know that one anime/manga trope where it's like "Oh, this character's powers would obviously work best with as little clothing as possible/would shred most clothes so they're either scantily clad or just naked most of the time" ? Yeah there's two characters like that, the first is a man with regenerative abilities who ends up fully nude a lot of the time [He's the main reason the series is ecchi]. The other character is never drawn sexually and most of the time the shot is framed on either just their face or is too far away to actually actually show anything, when it's not those angles they're not drawn in a fan servicey way either. [Also, this is for the manga. An anime adaptation is coming out soon so I have no idea if the animators are going to start drawing the female characters in a more fan servicey way or not])

I'm almost certain there are more examples, but I can't really think of any others off the top of my head. Basically there are some really good series that I wish I could talk about without sounding like the second guy in this ProZD skit:

whenever i talk about Kill La Kill here

[vtoriacore]

✧ history doesn’t always hate lovers

note: i have nothing to say for myself except the fact that my head is full of kork thoughts because yes & because i love him sm, he's so underrated 🥺😭 i wrote this at 2 am so idk if it's any good but i couldn't sleep knowing i have the power to write it with no consequences 🙂

synopsis: in which you date korekiyo, and it’s positively magical.

kiyo wouldn't admit it but he'd love if you'd play with his hair!

please run your hands through it and just massage his head and omg he will love you for all eternity

once you make him realise his deceased sister only ever used him and never loved him, he'll be extremely attached to you because you're the only person who genuinely cares about and loves him the healthy way!

would love to share his knowledge in history and various rituals, especially if you're actually interested

bonus points if you're the ultimate archaeologist/historian or something akin to that

be prepared for long talks about morals/ethics/philosophy and whatever else you can think of that relates to humanity or culture in any way, shape or form

will take his mask off in public to kiss your knuckles or hand to show you how much he adores and treasures you

no matter how many times you say you love him (be it early on or very late into the relationship) he will 100% get flustered every time

on that note, if he feels confident, he will give you a speech about why you're the most beautiful part of humanity

museum dates are a must and that is canon idc what anyone has to say

can and will explain the importance of each artefact you lay your eyes upon

at the end of the date he'll always tell you that you're the most sacred piece of humanity there is (he really means it, you're the most important part of his life)

his nicknames for you would definitely be: 'my treasure' , 'my gold' and 'darling/dear'

if you call him 'kiyutie' or 'honey' he will overheat

he's always nervous about initiating pda and will not do so unless you give him hints or directly tell him that he can (he just doesn't wanna overstep boundaries because omg he doesn't want to make you uncomfortable and lose you-)

please initiate pda though, he will be over the moon

touch starved and craves your affection and attention 24/7 because he's never had a person like you in his life

will definitely gift you historical decorations and ornaments if he thinks you'd like them

if you buy him some in return, he might propose then and there

will sometimes get nightmares about his sister and how she wants him to leave you

if that happens, please reassure him that everything is okay and that she cannot hurt him

give him cuddles and whisper sweet nothings to him when he's distressed and boom, he's in love with you all over again

there is a 50% chance that you'll stay up for the next 5 hours talking about everything

all in all, 100/10 boyfriend experience

[therealvinelle]

I would 100 percent love a rundown of every vampire and how they would react to the option to be human again.

... every vampire..?

I guess we’re doing this.

Afton is more useless to the Volturi than ever. This changes nothing, in part because nobody notices. Afton dies of old age in a cry for attention.

Alec can have puberty?! Get tall? Have sex? Sign him the fuck up. Alec spends ten years as a human. Unfortunately it turns out he has the worst genes, so he stops at 5 feet and doesn’t grow an inch taller. He is Volterra’s short king. Even more unfortunate is the fact that the ladies still see him as a kid and would feel weird about sleeping with him, so no luck on that front either. (Somehow, Jane is both taller and gets all the hawt dewds)

Alice would not like this at all. Having a human is nice, that’s fun. Alice loves her Bella Barbie. Being a human? Oh god no.

Alistair’s whole thing is that he’s living as a hermit because he’s terrified of everyone and everything. If he became human again, he would still be a hermit, but lacking any of the survival skills or basic equipment that human hermits accrue he would quickly die out there in the wild.

Amun might just be the oldest vampire in the world, and he has been a god. Going back to being human would be too low, it would be the greatest humiliation imaginable. Hard no from Amun.

Anne was Victoria’s sister, the two girls were impoverished and Anne prostituted herself to feed them. Since she was executed by the Volturi within that same century, she would be returning to that same, horrible life. All the nopes, Anne gets her creator to turn her again.

Aro would be very practical about it, I think, and find someone to turn him back before the plague got him. Though I’m sure he’d be too curious not to try for himself the modern, global, human cuisine, so whoever was turning him has to sit by and wait while Aro drinks all the margaritas and eats all the sushi. And probably human flesh, gotta know what it tastes like from the other side

Athenodora has spent a very long time in that tower tripping on Corin’s gift. As she walks into the Volterra town square she has a full on Plato’s cave allegory epiphany, as she realizes that the tower was a fever dream and the real world is blurry and she doesn’t want to eat anybody. She comes to the conclusion that vampires aren’t real.

Bella would feel like Cinderella at the end of the ball, her beautiful gown turns back into rags and she’s an unworthy human again. Edward is overjoyed she smells delicious is fragile again and refuses to turn her back. Heartbreak ensues.

Benito invented newborn wars, he’s got a million enemies. He better become a vampire again immediately, or he’s dead.

Benjamin is the avatar, which is great. He lives in hiding because Amun has him convinced that Aro would enslave him, which is less great. Being human would not solve this.

Boris was living his best life being a fake Russian noble in the court of Versailles. Being a fake noble as a human is just not as fun, and he finds himself a vampire to get turned back.

Bree was miserable as a vampire, but her life wasn’t great to begin with. She was homeless and starving. I imagine she’d say no to humanity because she had nothing to return to, but this would be a survival move that had nothing to do with what she wanted in life.

Caius has no time for this nonsense, he turns back immediately.

Carlisle I’ve outlined in this post, but to repeat it here he is quite happy being a vampire, humanity has nothing to offer him. His ridiculously large network of friends would be put to good use once again as he tries to find someone who’ll turn him. (He has a surprisingly hard time, as no one wants to risk being the asshole who ate Carlisle Cullen. He eventually comes crawling back to a delighted Aro)

Carlisle’s creator is the lowest of the low, trash who lives in the slums, gets caught by humans, eats half a mob and then lets a newborn loose in the middle of London. This guy is a slob who does not have his life in order. Without vampirism, he starts shooting up under a bridge and dies within a few weeks. He does not get turned back into a vampire because nobody’s touching that.

Carmen would probably want a baby before turning back. The problem with trying to raise a human child as a vampire is that children bleed all the time. Eleazar Jr. scrubs his knee, Carmen goes full Cronus on her son, and Dostoyevsky is proud.

Charles... I don’t know if anybody agreed with my post on Renata, I for one think Luca is horrifying, and based on that Charles would turn back immediately because he’s not leaving Makenna on her own. Not to mention, Charles is one of the few vampires in Twilight who chose his fate.

Charlotte and Peter are living happily, thinking the Cullens are crazy for appreciating humans, so no changes there.

Chelsea might actually be a bit allured by humanity, since this way she can find out once and for all if she can form organic, normal relationships. However, she’s been a vampire for millennia, which makes it impossible for her to relate to humans. She makes no friends, and comes to believe that she is unlovable. She becomes a vampire again and, after an extended existential crisis, eventually becomes Marcus.

Corin would want to try all the human drugs. Gotta find out if weed is better than she is! Unfortunately half of Volterra is hooked on her, and she’s turned before she can find a good dealer.

Didyme would immediately suffer a brain aneurism, and die. Marcus becomes Marcus, but this is ultimately the better timeline since Aro can mourn his sister normally.

Diego’s life was pretty much over since gang members were out to get him, so he’s not returning to humanity anytime soon. Although vampirism means that now everyone he meets is a potential gang member out to get him (indeed, Victoria gets him), so maybe humanity would appear comparatively peaceful.

Demetri seems to be having a cool time being a vampire, so back into the ranks of the unholy he goes.

Edward, oh boy. I can’t imagine it, and I don’t want to.

Eleazar is a pretty self-righteous and sanctimonious fellow, I am sure he would not only choose to remain human, but talk about how noble it is that he’s staying human. He would not enjoy being human.

Emmet would be a miserable human, but to turn back would be to turn his back on Rosalie, and so he would dutifully remain, even as he grew to resent her for it. Once again I have a post.

Esme would not want humanity given the choice, but if she suddenly is human then provided Carlisle was as well, I imagine she would want to get a do-over. However, trouble is that if she wants to have a baby, then she’ll have to stick around with said baby as well. Sticking around means remaining human. Honestly, I’m not sure where that would go. Terrible places once Carlisle runs off to Italy, I’m sure.

Felix is another dude who seems pretty happy with vampirism. He sticks his hand into the first fanged mouth that he can find.

Fred is having a good time as well now that he has left Victoria’s army, no arguments here.

Garrett seems quite happy to be a vampire, although he enjoys new things enough that I think he’d want to spend a few years experiencing things from this human perspective. Alas, he’d have pictured the life human influencers and fictional humans were leading - it can’t be too far off, right? Well, real humans need jobs and housing and health insurance. One thing leads to another, and Carlisle finds himself bankrolling Garrett’s human adventures.

George is a seriously amazing guy who goes around pretending to be a demon called Astaroth and making fake demon deals with people. He’s an amazing conman, but his whole schtick depends on being a vampire, so it wouldn’t work if he were human. Vampirism it is.

Heidi apparently lived a terrible life as a human and was pity-turned into a vampire, so I don’t think she’d have any happy associations with humanity at all. She buys the first ticket back to damnation.

Hilda was a feminist bleeding heart who made suffering women invulnerable. Vampirism, to her, seems to have been salvation, with humanity a miserable state. Hard no from Hilda.

Huilen didn’t want anything to do with this supernatural horrorshow that killed her sister, and I imagine she’s one of the few who’d actually fare well as a human again, even though time has passed.

Irina drowns her Laurent-shaped sorrows in booze and men.

James would be furious with everything for letting this happen to him, and want to be turned back again.

Jane, like Alec, is overjoyed that she can have puberty again. This works out great for her. Like a middle school goth phase, she sort of pretends that whole 1200-year-stint as an actual twelve-year-old didn’t happen, going “oh, yeah... that” when it’s mentioned.

Jasper isn’t eating people anymore, praise Jesus. I think he’d actually fare quite well, he’d become a dusty professor in philosophy at some college and the violence would truly be behind him.

Joham is a monster and I imagine his children would eat him before he could get turned back. Good on them.

Kachiri is quite happy with Senna and Zafrina, she wouldn’t want that to change.

Kate loves Garrett very much, but there are all these human men she won’t have to worry about killing..?

Kebi was a slave who was chosen by Amun to be... well, his slave forever. As an unchanging vampire she’s stuck, but humanity could represent real hope for her, the only hope, really. Hard yes from Kebi.

Kristie is one of the two Victoria recruits who managed to turn the army into a high school, where you were either in the right clique or you were a square. Kristie is clearly an opportunist who’ll make the best of any situation, human or vampire.

Kumboh is a highly eccentric vampire who works in a mental hospital and gets attached to the humans there, to the point where he dies for one. This is not a man I can predict.

Laurent spent his existence in a pursuit of power without understanding what power is, and ended up stuck with the white trashiest vampires ever to white trash. Several logical leaps based on 18th century French Versailles logic later he endeavors to marry into the British royal family.

Liam is living quite happily with his wife and surrogate daughter, and even if he wasn’t then Siobhan is going to want her hubby back. And what Siobhan wants, Siobhan gets.

Luca is quite happy being the family patron who sometimes takes niece-brides (or family demon who keeps stealing their daughters), so he would want his fangs back. But, I’m sorry but I think he’d seize the opportunity to impregnate one of his descendants, because if this guy is all about preserving his family line then I can’t imagine he’d be able to resist a son.

Lucy, like Maria, would be in so much trouble. Honestly, I think Maria would eat her immediately. Easiest way to get rid of competition.

Maggie might want to grow a bit older and less emaciated before turning, but like Liam, Siobhan’s gift would see to it that the coven became whole again.

Makenna wanted vampirism once, I imagine she’d want it again. She seems quite happy with her life.

Marcus is finally able to kill himself. Happy days.

Maria would be in so much trouble. She is a human in newborn war territory, all the vampires around her have terrible control, and the ones with good enough control to turn her are enemy army leaders who want her dead. She is forced to make a phone call to Jasper and ask if he can put in a good word with Carlisle.

Mary (Carlisle’s friend), it’s been over a century and she’s still living alone. Sounds lonely, so maybe she’d be down for the change.

Mary (Hilda’s coven) is living that feminist liberation life with Hilda, and humanity would throw her right back into poverty and misery. Big nope.

Nettie would be eaten by Jasper, since Maria already ate Lucy.

Noela is a member of Hilda’s coven, meaning her life was awful. She would not want it back.

Peter is living happily ever after with Charlotte, it’s a good life. Peter does not want things to change.

Randall was turned in the 1960′s, so I’m sure he’d want some of that sweet weed again.

Raoul was a gangbanger and humanity is better off without him. So are vampires.

Renata had awful circumstances around her turning, and nothing to return to. Her human family either sold her out or were unable to protect her, my money’s on them thinking that her fate was a great honor, and either option makes them someone I imagine she has put behind her. As it is now, she has purpose with the Volturi, and no one is making her be anybody’s bride. She would not want things to change, nevermind becoming human.

Riley thinks he has found true love and glorious purpose, and would remain the way he is.

Rosalie would be delighted, but she has poured years of bitterness and crushed dreams into the dream of the perfect human life. Reality wouldn’t live up to her ideal and this time she can’t blame vampirism. I think she’d start drinking.

Santiago presumably has an alright time being a vampire, he has purpose and community with the Volturi. No changes here.

Sasha wanted a big ol’ family, turning first her niece and then women who resembled her niece enough to look like her sisters, so I imagine that, like all good Denali women, she’d seduce a sexy human male and give herself a few more daughters. Disaster would ensue if they were sons, or not blondes.

Senna is living happily with her girlfriends, let nothing disrupt that.

Siobhan’s life is great, with her gift her life will be as she wishes it to be, and she seems to truly enjoy being a vampire. It wouldn’t even be a question for her.

Stefan and Vladimir (no, they don’t get individual entries) are has-beens. Without vampirism, they would be greater has-beens than ever. This makes Aro’s century, and he makes it clear to the vampire world that no one is to turn these two back. Their lives suck and then they die.

Sulpicia is above pesky human sustenance, the mere thought is revolting. She accidentally starves herself to death.

Victoria would be at once more and less paranoid. Her gift isn’t going haywire telling her about all the danger, but she’s a human, so all is danger. I think she’d start drinking too.

Victoria’s NPC army recruits are newborns who love that sweet sweet blood, ain’t nobody turning their back on that.

Tanya would be so fucking happy, oh my god. She can bang all the dudes, and she won’t have to worry about killing them! She forgets that human women have to worry about STDs and pregnancies. Now she has chlamydia and a baby.

Tia’s big problem is that she’s stuck living with this ancient and bitchy loser who takes himself way too seriously. Vampirism on its own is great, she’s down for that.

Unnamed tracker formerly employed by the Volturi was relieved of his duties in the most “oops, you’re useless now” way possible. That hurts your self esteem. Becoming a powerless human would hurt it even more. Unnamed tracker formerly employed by the Volturi does not want this.

Vassilii would grow up, and have a host of issues because being a toddler with memories of bloodthirst and killing people is bad for child development.

Zafrina is having a great time with her girlfriends and her illusions. And it’s been a very long time since they were human, I don’t think anything remains of their culture. At least not anything they’d recognize.

Hope this answers your question, anon...

Edit: Added Carlisle’s Creator, Sasha, and Vassilii. If I’ve missed anybody else, let me know.

Edit 2: Added Bree, Diego, Frank, Kristen, Raoul, Riley, and Victoria’s NPC army recruits.

[murasaki-murasame]

Thoughts on Higurashi Sotsu Ep15 [FINALE]

For better or worse I think Ryukishi achieved exactly what he set out to do with this series, and I guess everyone’s just gonna be forced to reckon with how they feel about his own perspective on this franchise versus how they feel about it, lol.

Anyway, thoughts under the cut, plus Umineko spoilers.

I’m not entirely sure where to even start with this, but I guess the TL;DR is that I honestly think Gou/Sotsu was ultimately just fine despite it’s issues, and part me of can’t help but be like ‘I told you so, lol’ about how this really did end with this episode, and also committed pretty hard to the Umineko prequel elements.

It’s not like all of my theories were correct in the end, but I at least think I was pretty spot on in my prediction last week that this would end with the miracle of them side-stepping the sword issue entirely and choosing the third option of forgiveness and reconciliation. And also them ending it with an epilogue where we go back to the Matsuribayashi timeline and get a happy ending for Rika and Satoko that provides a ‘non-magical interpretation’ for the story while also giving us an idea of how Bern and Lambda formally split off into their own entities and start the relationship we see in Umineko.

I didn’t quite expect them to go down the route of having them agree to just spend a few years apart and accept that they don’t need to literally always be together, but I think that was a really good way to wrap things up between them. It’s pretty much the healthiest compromise to their conflict that doesn’t come across like it completely invalidates one of their dreams. I get why it feels too anti-climactic and convenient for people, but when you pull at that thread you get into wider topics of what the entire story is about, since this was always going to end with Satoko being redeemed and forgiven. People might not have taken him seriously, but Ryukishi was 100% genuine about his regrets about Matsuribayashi’s ending, and how part of why he came up with this new story was to create a better ending, while also doing more with Satoko as a character.

Basically I think a lot of the fandom negativity towards this boils down to people fundamentally disagreeing with the idea that Matsuribayashi was even ‘flawed’ in this sort of way to begin with, or that Satoko was badly written. It’s valid to disagree on this stuff, but at the very least we all have to grapple with how Ryukishi has his own specific relationship with this series.

People like to focus on how he’s a troll who likes to mess with people, but I feel like this is a bit of a wake-up call for people about how he’s actually extremely sincere, almost to a fault, and he likes to use his stories as a vehicle for expressing his personal philosophies and ideals. 

This whole story is also a good example of how he just sees this as ultimately being a fictional story about fictional characters, and not literally a matter of real people who need to be sentenced for their crimes or whatever. As early as the original VN he was almost being outright preachy about the message that nobody is irredeemable, and that philosophy carries through to this. But to be more specific, nobody *in this story* is irredeemable. He’s pretty open about the fact that in practice you can’t apply this sort of ideal to real life, but fictional stories are their own separate matter.

I think this whole issue of how he views this as a story first and foremost is also the central reason why this ended in a way that comes across as Satoko being let off too easy for her crimes. One way or another, Ryukishi’s made it clear that he sees this as being no different to how other characters had arcs where they committed crimes but still got forgiven, or how Takano is basically a straight up war criminal who also got forgiven for her crimes.

Anyway, this episode at least committed to the Umineko stuff, so that was satisfying. Sure there’s people that still want to deny it, but at this point I think a lot of people are just being stubborn, so it’s not like anything would have really convinced them, lol. I’m also genuinely not sure what people even would have expected them to do beyond what we saw her, aside from having the two of them literally put on their gothic lolita outfits and turn to the camera and go ‘we are literally Bernkastel and Lambdadelta from the video game series Umineko When They Cry’. I almost feel like there’s some kind of misunderstanding from people who aren’t familiar with Umineko when it comes to the idea of what it even means for this to be ‘an Umineko prequel’, or ‘a Bern/Lambda origin story’. I mean, this is quite literally exactly what I expected and hoped for in that regard. It’s not like I was expecting them to incorporate anything related to, like, Beatrice or the Ushiromiya family.

I think this is also one of those things where you just have to decide for yourself whether or not you want to earnestly engage with the story that’s being told, or if you want to assume that there’s some level of malice or trickery going on.

To be honest, I wasn’t expecting them to literally have Rika and Satoko recite part of Bern and Lambda’s final conversation with each other word for word, lmao. Combined with the scene at the end where ‘Witch Satoko’ talks to herself about how she’s going to give her body back to Satoko while she goes chasing after Rika, it was literally just the exact origin story of their relationship as it’s depicted in Umineko.

I still feel like this would all only really be ‘worth it’ if we actually get something like a full on anime remake for Umineko, but at this point I can’t help but feel satisfied with this part of it all.

It’s not like I think Gou/Sotsu as a whole is perfect or anything, though. I don’t hate it as much as basically everyone else does, but I think Ryukishi’s the sort of VN writer who really struggles with the shift to writing for an anime. I think a big part of the frustration people have is just from how this is formatted as a weekly anime series spread across basically an entire year, instead of being something like a stand-alone VN chapter that you can read at whatever pace you want, even if it ultimately takes the same amount of time to read as it would to watch all of Gou/Sotsu.

There’s also the whole issue of this being a sort-of-remake, which snowballed into a whole list of structural problems. They absolutely tried too hard to have their cake and eat it too, and they should have just committed to it being made for old fans only, instead of trying to sincerely incorporate elements from the VN that old fans don’t care about anymore because they’ve gone over it already.

And as I’ve said several times before, it was a major issue for them to decide to put Nekodamashi in the middle of Gou and then spend like 20 episodes on flashback answer arcs until finally getting back to that cliffhanger. I’ve been waiting until this all ended to decide exactly how I feel about that, and now that it’s all over I still think it was a really bad idea. I don’t think it was an issue for them to reveal that Satoko’s the culprit that early, but having the gun cliffhanger specifically happen that early just gave people misguided expectations and tainted the answer arcs because people were just impatient to get back to the cliffhanger. And then the cliffhanger itself ended up being somewhat anti-climactic, which is what I’d been fearing would happen. It would have worked fine if they shuffled it around so that the cliffhanger happened right before Kagurashi and was followed up in the very next episode, or if this was a VN where you could binge your way through the flashback stuff, but spending like half of an entire real-life year to get back to that point only to have the resolution be ‘Satoko just shoots Rika and the death loops keep going’ just didn’t really work properly.

I’m a lot more generous towards the Akashi arcs than most people are, since I think they really over-estimate how much re-used content there is there, but they still suffer from the central issue of the show trying to be accessible for new fans. It could have been heavily condensed otherwise, without losing anything in terms of Satoko’s whole character arc.

On the other hand I think the first half of Kagurashi was awful specifically because it highlighted how bad of an idea it was to put Nekodamashi so early in the story. They still ended up having to go back to that arc and repeat it anyway, in the most 1:1 recap-y way in the whole show, but that wouldn’t have even been an issue in the first place if that was instead the first time that arc happened in the show.

I’ve been thinking a lot about how I would rearrange the story to make it flow better while still following Ryukishi’s intentions, and I think they could have condensed it into a 2-cour season with this sort of structure if they did something like this:

-First arc where Rika gets thrown back into the loop and quickly figures out that somebody intentionally caused this to happen, and it’s not Takano because at least in this idea of mine she’d try and investigate her only to find out that this version of Takano regrets everything and is planning to flee the village with Tomitake.

Basically I think this could tie into the idea of Satoko initially wanting to just concoct an idea world for Rika so that she won’t want to leave this time, but sort of like what I think happens in Saikoroshi, Rika would still reject it, and this time around there’d be the additional layer of her knowing that somebody did this to her for an unknown reason. Maybe they could even initially market it as a new adaptation or a remake of Saikoroshi, and then reveal that it’s a sequel, to keep that whole element to the series. Either way I think this would end with everything going to shit when Rika rejects that fragment and wants to go back to St. Lucia’s, and Satoko basically snaps and kills her, and that way the audience can find out about her being the culprit without Rika finding out about it yet.

Maybe there could even be some dramatic irony where Rika’s attempts to meddle with certain ‘trigger events’, and her displaying her looper side, inadvertently triggers people around her to get paranoid, and the whole fragment would start to spiral into tragedy from there. I think they could at least use the whole conflict in Tatariakashi about Teppei actually being good this time as a starting point for that sorta thing.

-Second arc, rounding out the first cour, which is basically just Satokowashi. I don’t think there’s much that you’d need to change here, but like I said above I like the idea of her initially trying to just invent a perfect world for Rika and her to live in, instead of jumping straight to murder. But maybe instead of her literally just watching Rika’s loops, she could instead just be stuck using her looping powers to try and figure out how to create that ‘perfect world’ in the first place, by personally investigating all of the different tragedies and how to prevent them.

-Staring the second cour, a third arc where we basically just get to see those loops Satoko goes through, and her whole process of solving the tragedies and ‘purifying’ characters like Teppei and Takano, until we eventually see her perspective on the first arc, and how she reacts to Rika ultimately rejecting the world she tried to make for her.

-A fourth and final arc which is basically just Nekodamashi + Kagurashi, where she just totally snaps and tries to just torture Rika into never wanting to leave the village again, and eventually Satoko gets exposed and they have their direct confrontation with each other.

With that sorta story structure, you’d keep all the relevant bits of Gou/Sotsu as it is now, while being more focused on Rika and Satoko instead of doing kinda half-assed reruns of the Rena and Shion arcs. It’d also push the big cliffhanger between them until near the end of the show, while still revealing to the audience relatively early on that Satoko’s the culprit.

I’d also like them to do more with Satoshi and Shion, so maybe like with how Teppei gets redeemed and Satoko almost gets to have a happy life with him in Tatariakashi, the central question arc of this hypothetical story could also involve Satoko making sure that Satoshi wakes up from his coma, and Shion also gets to have a good relationship with all of them. You could probably do something interesting with the idea of Satoshi and Shion being in the camp of not trusting Teppei and his whole redemption arc.

Honestly I could spend a long time talking about how I would have done things differently, lol. For one thing, I think the Akashi arcs would have been much better if they just changed it so that Satoko used psychological tactics to make people paranoid, and we completely cut out the whole syringe plot device. I get how it fits with Satoko’s whole certainty gimmick, but it made those arcs way too predictable. Even if we knew the outcome, it’d at least be entertaining to see exactly how Satoko might go out of her way to set up the different tragedies. We kinda got glimpses of that sorta plot point in Wataakashi when things seemed to go outside of her control, but they didn’t really do much with it.

Anyway, this is a whole lot of words to say that I think that in spite of the serious structural issues going on, I think Gou/Sotsu as a whole is fine, and was at least working with a lot of perfectly good ideas that could have been executed much better.

Also, on a side note, that one scene during their fist-fight at the start where the art-style changes a bit was kinda weird, but I really liked how it looked, and part of me almost wishes the whole show looked like that, lol. I like Akio Watanabe’s character designs, but I feel like that sort of stylized, almost TWEWY-ish art style would have been really fitting for this series, especially in the horror/action parts.

Oh, and the new rendition of You was so good it almost felt emotionally manipulative, lol.