#i am genuinely kind of fascinated by this like

[capquinn]

Idk if you watched but I just watched Kylie Kelces podcast episode where she talks about their kid being a parrot and repeating things fans have said and it made me think of Bug doing that to Quinn one day being like “daddy… are you Quinn Hughes?? everyone keeps calling you that” and Quinn finding it so funny lmaoo

It happens so casually, Quinn almost doesn’t catch it.

You’re curled up on the couch, nursing Cub, half-watching as Bug and Quinn sprawl out on the floor with a puzzle. Bug is stretched on her stomach, little legs kicking lazily as she sorts through the pieces. Quinn is right beside her, propped up on one elbow, watching like it’s the most fascinating thing in the world, like she’s doing something much more impressive than putting together a few cardboard shapes.

And then —

“Where does this piece go, Quinn?”

Quinn snorts out a laugh before he even realises what’s happened.

You glance over just in time to see his head snap toward her, eyebrows raised, mouth twitching at the corners. His initial reaction is pure amusement, like did she really just say that?

“What did you just call me?”

Bug doesn’t even blink, still focused on her puzzle, flipping over a piece with careful concentration.

“Quinn.” Her tone is easy, matter-of-fact, like she’s been calling him that her entire life.

Quinn lets out another short laugh, shaking his head like he can’t believe it.

You hum from the couch, stroking a soothing hand over Cub’s back, biting back a smile. “Sounds right to me.”

Bug finally peeks up, her little brows furrowing as she takes in Quinn’s expression — his wide eyes, his mouth twitching with barely contained laughter — the way you had spoken with that funny lilt in your voice.

She looks between the two of you, clearly trying to gauge what, exactly, is going on.

And then, with the same casual ease she’d had before, she says, “you are Quinn Hughes, right?”

Quinn lets out another quiet chuckle, shaking his head in disbelief. He shifts to sit up properly, fully invested now, eyes still bright with amusement.

“Yeah,” he says slowly, his voice dripping with playful patience, like he’s trying to reason with a very small, very misguided person. “But you don’t call me that. You call me daddy.”

There’s still that laugh behind his words, the corners of his mouth twitching because it’s so comical to him — the way she just keeps saying it so easily, so confidently, like she really thinks she’s cracked some kind of code.

Bug's little eyebrows pull together, her head tilting just slightly as she looks up at him, all perplexed innocence.

“But… everyone else gets to call you Quinn,” she argues, her voice lilting with confusion, like she’s just uncovered the world’s biggest conspiracy.

“Mommy does. Uncle Lukey and Uncle Jacky. Nana and Grandpa.” She pauses, her eyes narrowing just a little, lips pursing thoughtfully. “Even the people on TV.”

She blinks up at him, eyebrows lifting, mouth turning down at the corners in the faintest pout, like huh? Why am I the only one who doesn’t get to do it? It’s written all over her face — the genuine bewilderment, the hint of frustration, the tiny cock of her head like she’s challenging him to explain this nonsense.

Quinn leans in slightly, his shoulders shaking with barely-contained laughter as he tries — and fails — to keep a straight face. “Yeah, Bug. But you’re not everyone else,” he says, voice soft but wobbling with amusement.

Bug’s nose wrinkles. She looks at him like he’s just told her the sky is green. “But… why?”

He tries so hard to be serious, he really does. But the way she’s arguing this, all indignant and earnest, like she’s been dealt the worst injustice imaginable — it’s too much. He presses his lips together, glancing at you, his eyes sparkling with barely-restrained laughter. You just raise your eyebrows, all smug and entertained, clearly loving every second of his struggle.

Quinn huffs out a breath, scrubbing a hand over his face. “I mean… you could call me Quinn,” he muses, his voice deliberately mournful. “But that would make me really sad. And then who would call me daddy?”

Bug’s mouth opens, then snaps shut. Her little face scrunches up, clearly not expecting this plot twist. She glances at you, clearly seeking backup, but you just shrug, thoroughly amused.

“C’mon, Bugs,” Quinn coaxes, leaning in closer, his best puppy-dog eyes on full display. “I like being your dad."

Bug considers this, her little gears turning. For a second, she looks like she’s about to argue again, but then she lets out the world’s most dramatic sigh, shoulders slumping.

“Okay, daddy,” she relents, the words heavy with resignation, like she’s conceding some massive point. Then she rolls her eyes, turning back to her puzzle. “I guess that’s pretty special.”

Quinn watches her for a second, still a little amazed by how much attitude can fit into someone so tiny. His grin softens, and that look he gets sometimes — the one that’s all warmth and quiet adoration — takes over.

He reaches out, gently smoothing his hand over her hair, fingertips tracing over the soft curls before tucking one behind her ear.

“Yeah,” he murmurs, more to himself than to her. “Pretty special.”

[pynkhues]

The same people on X who post that not partaking in the femme Louis head-canon is racist have posted that they hate when people use she/her pronouns for Lestat. And they don't care what he calls himself even though he's used she/her pronouns in the show, because he is a MAN. Surprise, surprise.

I mean, as you said, it's not exactly a surprise, anon. I sometimes wonder if some people's more aggressive behaviour in the fandom has been partially motivated by - - mm, not jealousy, perhaps, but frustration maybe over the fact that Lestat's already done in canon on the show what a lot of them want Louis to be doing (i.e. he's worn drag, used she/her pronouns, compared himself to a mother, been the unemployed, supportive spouse to a working partner, been the birthing parent of a daughter [which I say just because Louis pretty explicitly doesn't see Madeleine as one]). Things that in some people's narrow view of gender 'feminises' him - again, I don't think Lestat's all that feminine really as a character. Is he gender non-conforming? Mm, maybe? I really tend to think he's just Lestat, haha. That said, these are all things that he's canonically done already - and the fact that the show has gone there with Lestat explicitly kind of muddies the water a bit as to how you might be able to argue why the show might not have with Louis. if Louis being femme is what the show's canonically trying to get across, why haven't any of these things happened with him, given the show's clearly not afraid to go there, y'know?

I mentioned it in my posts last weekend too, but I do wonder how much of it is about trying to temper the waters ahead of s3, particularly with this holding to the idea of Louis as a gothic heroine. Again, I don't think either he or Lestat are personally (I think Claudia is a quintessential gothic heroine, and a brilliant one at that, as I've said before), but, through Anne, TVL is deeply entrenched in the female gothic as a story, and it'd be pretty impossible to deny that there are traditional gothic heroine tropes in Lestat's story - from the abuse within his father's house, to the utter lack of familial protection that sees him almost torn apart by wolves (and gosh, it's not gothic, but The Little Red Riding Hood parallels are explicitly talked about in canon - Lestat relates to her! More than once!), to Magnus terrorising him through Paris before he rapes and kills him, to Armand's tormenting obsession, to Marius' patronage that eventually sees him straight into Louis' arms and a real (albeit complicated) love story.

I do think a lot of these parts of the fandom aren't overly familiar with the books, but I think a lot of them also know enough at this point to be Aware, y'know? So in some ways it feels like - - mmm, pre-emptive action from a few people? Or, I don't know. I said it in the last post, but there is this sense of some people wanting to salt the earth of this fandom so nothing they don't like can grow, and maybe it really is just that. But anyway, yeah. Not surprised, and I'd just ignore it, anon, if you can.

[autisticaradiamegido]

day 169

this is it, the dynamic

[ayrennaranaaldmeri]

man the dev notes w/ the stormshore tabernacle convo. whatever they're there for it's kind of remarkable how so much of the notes there for her are just textbook abuser stuff.

[agentcricket-art]

happy valentine's day!!! 😘😘😘

[phagodyke]

in a hilarious turn of events my flatmate didn't even know I use any pronouns....

[ceramicbeetle]

almost no one has written binx/hob content and certainly no one had written it in the way i am currently finding it intriguing, which is admittedly disappointing. so perhaps i will have to do it if no one else will.

[stardustdiiving]

Everytime I tell people who know me pretty well I LOVED Pearl from Steven Universe as a child it’s so humiliating bc they’re always like oh of COURSE you did . I bet you loved her thing with rose quartz didn’t you and I have to admit Rosepearl was an integral part me building an understanding of queerness and they’re like that makes SO much sense. I cannot keep doing this

[emeraldcity1900]

it’s actually surprising to me how many people (including actual Christians) think lilith was made up for Hazbin. I don’t know why, I just thought that her being a part of religious mythology was common knowledge.

[bylertruther]

i don't like season three when viewing it as a continuation of seasons one and two, but i do very much like season three when viewing it as the prequel to seasons four and five... hmmmmm.

[mars-ipan]

one of my fav aspec community things is when a bunch of aspecs try to dissect and understand allo behavior. it’s like a group of scientists looking at lab data and trying to figure out Why

[courfeyracs-swordcane]

Hm. Ari Finch ballad brothers was NOT supposed to have this much in common with me gamers what the fuck

[mosscrab]

mgsv has so many literary references to books i have essays abt it kind of makes me.

[agnesandhilda]

it's one am in my time zone right now and all I'm thinking about is how li shimin (who I recently grokked is a fictionalized version of an actual historical figure, which is neat) from iron widow, as a guy who's been on death row since he was sixteen, whose severe alcoholism presumably developed in response to years of imprisonment and the loss of autonomy and violence that entails, who nuzzled the hand of the stranger(!) who comforted him while he was experiencing life-threatening withdrawals, and who also had his organs harvested that one time, is, at the very least, probably not a guy who wants to be the big spoon

[shivunin]

happy Sunday! 💖

Philautia 3 & Ludus 3 for Maria / Philia 5 for Arianwen / Eros 5 for Emmaera

Happy Sunday to you as well! 💗

(Some discussion of sex below the break and in the tags)

(7 Forms of Love Asks)

Philautia 3: Does your OC judge themselves by the same standards as they apply to others? Or are they sometimes hypocritical in condemning others for faults they also possess? Or perhaps they find it easier to forgive others for things that they cannot abide in themselves?

Maria is harder on herself than she is on anyone else. I think her standards for others vary based on the other person's situation---she has a very low opinion of the rich, for example, because they do so little to give back---but in general, she holds herself to a high standard. When she fails, she internalizes it and struggles to let it go. That isn't something she would show outwardly, though; she laughs a lot off and dwells on it in private. Only the people who know her best have any idea how personally she takes failure.

Ludus 3: How does your OC feel about one night stands? Have they ever enjoyed a night of passionate romance with a stranger? Is this something they are quite keen on recreationally? Or only something they might engage in under specific circumstances (such as the eve of a battle or after a difficult breakup)?

Ooof. Yeah.

Definitely not something she ever thought about before Fenris. Maria found people attractive before him, and flirted and dated (a little), but Fenris was the first person she actually wanted to have sex with. If she'd thought for a second that it would be a one-night thing, she would have told him to go home. After that night, she really, really struggled to find a balance between wanting him to stay around (and remain her friend) and trying to put her feelings for him aside.

(I think from his perspective...the only thing she could think to do was not touch or look at or be near him at all. Given how affectionate she is to all of her friends otherwise, the contrast was as stark as it was painful...but this question isn't about Fenris)

The most logical solution she could come up for to solve this problem was dilution. Maybe she couldn't forget that night because it was the first time. Therefore, she would just drown out the memories with a lot of other experiences and then, obviously, all of those confusing feelings would go away and she could have her friend back and everything would be just like it used to be.

So Maria spent a few weeks of focused experimentation at the Rose trying every sex act that sounded even remotely interesting. It was nice enough, interesting from an experiential perspective, but the sex never felt like what she'd had with Fenris. There was no emotional connection, and without that the whole experience remained somewhat academic.

She was working up to one-night stands when Leandra died, and after that it all seemed a bit pointless. Fenris was so present for her, especially after the fight with the Arishok, that she finally conceded that she was just going to have to live with being in unrequited love with him forever. At that point, I don't think she ever seriously considered casual sex again--though she did have suitors in the gap between acts 2 and 3.

Philia 5: What is their most fervent wish for their best friend(s)? How far would they go to make it happen?

Safety and happiness. Wen would even refrain from killing to make this happen c:

Joking aside, Alistair is her dearest friend. By the end of the Blight, he's family to her. I think her deepest wish for him is that he eventually can have a life that he chooses for herself. She is well aware that she's the reason this couldn't happen, but she didn't see any other choice at the time. She would gladly and easily assassinate the nobility to make his life earlier, but more importantly she would let them live for his peace of mind. She remains his closest confidante even at a distance even though it's really hard for her to act in that capacity. When he calls her to Denerim to act as an advisor for important meetings, she neither complains nor climbs out a window.

(Morrigan, who is her next closest friend...Wen is willing to let Morrigan go if it really makes her happy. At the end of Witch Hunt, it breaks her heart a little bit to say goodbye for good. I like to think they connected again later, after Morrigan came back to the material world with Kieran.)

Eros 5: How closely is their opinion of their own beauty (or lack thereof) linked to their confidence? Do they see themselves as more or less worthy of love or sex based on how attractive they feel?

I don't think Emma is especially preoccupied with her appearance in general. If she were to think about it, she would suppose she looks pretty enough, but then she'd move on to something more interesting. Her confidence is linked very strongly to her mind; her body is a secondary consideration most of the time. She does try to present a particular image, especially given her role as the Inquisitor, but I don't think her idea of self-worth is tied to her physical appearance at all.

But then, she is my absentminded professor OC and forgets she even has a body half the time when she's comfortable. The hardest times in her life are times where she is forced to feel herself intensely for long periods of time: after she is stabbed, when she loses her arm, the rough period in Kirkwall when she's going into Darktown several times a week and having to heal constantly.

[starfieldcanvas]

yes!!! as an exr shipper myself, can we please stop giving other people's plotlines to grantaire. if the two of them ever managed to get together it would be so, so much messier and less rational than any of those options

it’s so so funny silly. “grantaire is a working class person who inspires enjolras through new perspectives” so close, that is feuilly. “grantaire is enjolras’s intellectual equal who has complicated and conviction-informed feelings about revolutionary violence and his articulations of these feelings round out and supplement enjolras’s perspective” so close, that is combeferre. “If grantaire had joined in the fighting he would have been super awesome at it and earned enjolras’s respect and admiration” so close‼️‼️ that is MARIUS!!