#i do not know how to human and cannot tell whether it's down to lack of experience or inability

[chronicbitchsyndrome]

i have been in community with profoundly developmentally disabled peers and peers with brain damage my whole life, bc i had a childhood diagnosis. i have also been leftist my whole life; my mother was a marxist and raised me that way, and while their politics were absolute dogshit, they were lefty dogshit.

my entire life, i have seen leftist educators throw mentally disabled people away as "lost causes" because they couldn't engage with the material the way it was being presented. leftist outreach and education does, genuinely, have a massive lack of accessible material. to be blunt, people are not interested in retrofitting their leftist outreach to be accessible to people who learn best through episodes of sesame street.

as in, i have repeatedly faced outright laughter and cruelty over the idea that this could be a priority. or even something that we consider doing at all.

"people who are that mentally disabled don't need to know about these things," the kindest interpretation goes. ("people who are that mentally disabled don't interact with the world, anyway, they're all in institutions or monitored 24/7 by their parents," the uncharitable underlying assumptions go. "they wouldn't be a worker who needs a union. or a library attendee. or a member of the community garden. or a volunteer at the food bank. or or or")

the people i have seen this hurt the worst, over and over again, are profoundly mentally disabled people of color whose lack of access to accessible antiracist education is causing real danger in their lives. institutionalized disabled people of color who have learned racist ideology and behaviors from white authority, whether they were adopted by white families or incarcerated in care institutions run by white staff. who are treated lower than garbage by leftist educators, who view them as "lost causes," as unworthy of time and effort and attention, as deserving of their abuses because they... what... internalized the abuses that make up every aspect of their lives since birth?

i see people saying things in this conversation like "disability isn't an excuse for racism or transphobia or whatever, people have the obligation to improve themselves." oh, believe me, i have seen again and again how many privileged disabled people utilize their disabilities to punch down on others, try to escape accountability for their punching down by citing disability. but individual weaponization of identity is just that: weaponization of identity.

the power structures at play are what they are. it is a noble and admirable goal to want leftist outreach and education to be more accessible to all. if that is truly your goal, you must eventually reckon with the existence of people who do, actually, really need it presented in a picture book. or an episode of bluey. or a conversation where you only use examples of people they know in real life, using things that happened to them personally. the existence of people who cannot grasp forms of abstract reasoning, who need information presented as rules, or as guidelines, or as categories. the idea that yes, fully grown adults who need daniel tiger to explain racism to them are human beings who not only deserve access to that very thing, but who also deserve to be a part of leftist spaces and benefit from leftist organizing. are people for whom it might be INTEGRAL they get to be a part of leftism. are victims of racism themselves and suffering without access to antiracist spaces and community and support.

and you will need to reckon with the abject cruelty of your peers who laugh and mock the very idea of this. you need to reckon with the fact that a lot of people you respect, a lot of leftists doing genuinely good work, will respond to this by making fun of the people you're serving, even outright telling you their violent fantasies about these people. that is the experience of organizing in leftist spaces for profoundly disabled people. that is why so many of us burn out so fast. there IS a structural problem with mentally disabled people being seen as disposable and not a part of community. and it is EXTREMELY present in leftist organizing and outreach efforts.

[rookrock]

Come, fellow humans. Let us drape our flesh noodles about each other, as is the custom

[genshin-scenarios]

pacts and their marks: demon au

Summary: Where you've accidentally summoned a demon (you’re an exorcist) and now you’re in a pact with them! They’re now your assistant of sorts, some more willing than others…

Characters: Venti, Xiao, Lyney, Wanderer

Content warnings: minor injury and blood (Xiao), mentions of fire and smoke with allusions to death (Lyney), mentions of death and human experimentation (Wanderer)

Generally speaking, Venti likes to float rather than walk if he can help it; he’s gotten the habit of flitting around your form often, hanging off your shoulders and clinging on to you absentmindedly. You might be more annoyed about it if it wasn’t for his voice as he greets you, light and deceptively soothing.

Venti’s music hypnotizes the heart. Whether it be singing or another instrument, he has the ability to convince any being, living or dead, to do as he wishes—so long as his melody isn’t overpowered by their strength of mind.

Honestly, sometimes you wonder if he’s testing the safety-precautions of your pact. You’re invulnerable to his powers thanks to it, but with the way he endears himself towards you, you wonder if his true motive was to steal your affections in another way.

He’s one of the rare demons that blend in with people well. You found him as a spirit living inside an antique lyre; while Venti says he was sleeping there for a lack of anything to do, you have a feeling that there’s another story behind his attachment to the item. He often uses it in battle—its strings glowing with an old magic that matches the shade of his eyes and braids.

You sometimes forget how deadly it is to lose one’s mind in the heat of a fight, when Venti’s lying next to you on the bed as he scrolls on your spare phone. Noticing your attention he peers up, twirling his hair—currently unbraided—between his fingers.

For how much he teases you about praising him, Venti’s never mentioned anything about playing his music to get rid of your nightmares. One time, when you were especially sick, you recall him singing a song in a language you didn’t recognise.

It was hauntingly beautiful, and so was the way he brushed his hand through your hair, too gentle compared to the demons you had to hunt down.

Xiao’s most unique feature had to be his wings; the same dark shade as his hair, dipped in streaks of teal.

During a quiet night, he’d told you they used to be white as snow and gilded with gold. But an angel that kills to protect is destined to fall from the clouds, shrouded by the ghosts of those they have slain.

You know there are others like him, but he says they’ve succumbed to corrosion. He is the only one left, and is one of the only demons you’ve met that hunt down their own species. In an effort to save him from his own corrosion, you’d made a pact with Xiao to link your life forces. 

Despite how he’d told you to leave him, his spirit still reached for yours—towards any form of light and warmth it could meet. Xiao still finds the marks of the pact distasteful, however, always glancing at the dark patterns now etched into your skin. You tell him it’s more reassuring than not, now that you can summon him with a call of his name.

If there’s one word to describe his powers, it’s destructive in every form of the word. Xiao leaves the battlefield entirely demolished after a fight. Sometimes he struggles to control his strength, but it’s been getting easier to do so with your presence to balance his. 

He prefers to throw himself in as the weapon. Which is why when you’re the one that gets injured this time around, all Xiao can do is panic. He holds you in his arms, frozen as he realizes he cannot help.

Thankfully, it wasn’t a serious wound. But after that, Xiao has been a lot more protective of you; almost hyper-aware.

“W—What are you doing, Xiao?” You flinch as he bites into your palm, drawing a small line of blood. 

Xiao hums. “Did you know that even using your blood, I can only heal you a limited amount with our pact?” Another bite, this time with his fangs, frustrated. “Keep that in mind the next time you plan on getting hurt.” You’re lucky the hospital could treat you this time around.

All Lyney knows is that he was reborn in a fire. At the back of his mind, he’s searching for his siblings—though he’s not sure where they are.

Like smoke filling a room, Lyney’s able to create illusions that trick all the senses. At your first meeting, he’d tried this on you; only for one of your protective amulets to diffuse his powers, revealing a larger demon he’d been working with that’d been ready to devour you. 

Suffice to say, Lyney was quick to switch sides once he noticed that you were winning. That, and the demon he was working with turned out to have lied about having a lead for him. After noticing your potential as a partner, he’d been quick to scout for your help.

He often uses his illusions to fool enemies into fighting one-another, redirecting their attention away—but after the pact, Lyney seems to lose his larger-than-life traits and falls into a casual routine with you. It makes you wonder if he’d been human before this, though sometimes he’s more cat-like than not.

If nothing else, he does like to put on a show when you’re faced with a battle. He makes your job easy, considering that your bond allows you to see past his illusions and maneuver around enemies, finding the perfect blind spots. Despite the oddity of your partnership, you start to enjoy the pattern of working with Lyney, from your smooth conversations to his smarts. 

One thing that does throw him off however, is when a demon you were trying to exorcize attempts to form a pact with you. Not that you can’t have multiple pacts at once, but it’s the first time you’ve seen Lyney openly aggressive towards an enemy, striking it with a sharp bolt of flame that diffuses it long enough for you to dispose of it.

With the threat gone, Lyney was quick to check on you, looking for any traces the other demon might’ve left behind. He calms down once he finds nothing, eyes widening when he realizes your faces are only inches apart.

“I…” He looks like he’s about to apologize, but decides against it. “Please don’t make a pact with anyone else. I don’t want to feel like that ever again.”

When you first met, Wanderer had tried to turn you into a puppet.

It was his power, after all—to attach strings onto any form and take control of them. These strings could be cut off, but it would only take so long for him to attach them again.

Most people don’t survive their encounters with him, but you’d managed to trap him into a pact right before things went dire. Now you could restrain his actions to a certain extent, though Wanderer would always push against your control, keeping you on your guard.

Many coworkers have told you to simply be rid of him—but just as you’d tricked Wanderer into a pact with you, he’s since linked your heart with his soul. That is to say, if he was exorcized, you’d be going down with him.

It’s a small relief to learn that Wanderer could also puppeteer other demons, thus you put him to work on the field by your side, turning into an unwilling duo. He has a habit of not doing anything unless you make it a ‘command’, leaning closer with a challenge in his eyes even as an enemy charged at the both of you. 

Then, with a snap of his fingers, they’d stop mid-air. As large as the pact's patterns are on your skin, you had to admit that Wanderer’s power was a deadly one.

You’ve always wondered why he had no reactions to injuries; no matter how serious, you’ve never seen Wanderer express pain. Much, much later into your partnership, you learn that he’s become numb to physical sensations a long time ago. And that him turning into a demon was a gift of reprieve more than not, as he’d destroyed and escaped from an experimental facility shortly after.

During a fight where you'd been affected by a tranquilising venom, Wanderer had been the one to save you; your eyes met briefly as you felt his strings take a hold of your form.

“Don't make me look bad now.” He'd said. “Just relax.” 

With not much of a choice, you allowed him to guide your movements. Somehow, it does feel different compared to your first encounter with his powers. With a push and pull between the strings, you could almost say it felt like a dance.

Were Wanderer's movements always this graceful?

Preorders for my wanderer fanbook and genshin letters are open! If you liked this, consider checking out the purple link on my pinned post!

[delzinrowe]

I saw your post, happy you're doing well!!!

Maybe something for Inumaki if you do him? Anything is fine 👉👈

Thank you thank you! <3

AN: I just started writing this without a real plan and just after a headcanon I had, and I didn't realise it would turn out this long... TT

Word count: ~600ish

Warnings: not beta read, pure fluff with some insecurities

I am not quite sure why but Inumaki strikes me as the type of boyfriend who would be secretely extremely insecure.

Even though he knows he's one of the most promising young sorcerers and that his cursed technique is among those few that are envied, he's still insecure, why? Because it's also a curse that forbids him from telling you all the things that other people so easily tell their loved ones.

No matter how many times you reassure him, it's something that's eating away inside of his heart that cannot be fully stopped.

It all started when you guys were on a date at the movies. Inumaki previously tried to ask you out multiple times, all of which failed because he couldn't just straight up say "Do you want to go out with me?" like others could.

Instead he decided to ask you via text if you wanted to go out, which you misunderstood and thought meant the entire group. Needless to say Yuta teased him about this for a while afterwards.

Inumaki eventually left a note in your backpack, asking whether you wanted to go on a date with him. You found the note later that day during class, yet to Toge's horror he realised he forgot to sign it. Another failed attempt.

When Maki got tired of watching him fail at asking you out she eventually blurted out that Toge had been crushing on you. First you didn't believe it, thinking she might just pull a prank on you, but when you saw the heat flush onto his face it became obvious that she was in deed serious and correct.

Afterwards you two finally went on your first date, which to you went simply amazing. Now for Toge it was great until the movie came to it's romantic climax with the lead male going on and on about his feelings in a cheesy speech. He would have almost laughed if he hadn't seen the glimpse of hearts in your eyes at the romantic words. Suddenly the popcorn you shared felt like pebbles in his stomach when he realised he'd never be able to say such things to you because of his cursed speech.

Sure, if he wrote down a speech and carefully choose the words he could make sure that there would be no accidents, but he promised himself never to risk anyone's safety.

When he walked you home he remained unusually quiet, not even his beloved onigiri ingredients were spoken. You shyly took his hand and squeezed it, thanking him for the beautiful date and kissed his cheek before hurrying into your home.

Simply holding your hand on its own had eased his worries, but the kiss on his cheek? It made him forget everything for a solid minute. The worries eventually returned but for the moment he was fully content and happy.

The dates kept going on, spending time with Toge was easy and felt natural and peaceful. It wasn't long until you two officially became a couple. At this moment he started to open up more about his worries, that he felt he lacked in terms of providing you with lovely words.

You couldn't blame him, being insecure is part of being human, even if you didn't see any reason for him having such doubts. Having been whipped for him since the very beginning you decided to come up with a new safe word for him, one that he would only utter in times of insecurities.

Whenever he said the word you'd take his hand, pull him closer and remind him how much you loved him with a kiss on his each of his cheeks and eventually his lips.

(Okay so maybe Inumaki started abusing the word to get free kisses whenever he wanted but you couldn't really be mad at him since you also enjoyed kissing him.)

[laundryandtaxes]

I think it's bizarre to believe that one approach to any problem (especially problems we know to be partly biologically mediated or constituted and partly socially mediated or constituted) is likely to universally fit every single person impacted by that problem. And I think there are many situations that have revealed that plenty of people really do prefer magical thinking and lack of any scientific knowledge if they are able to garner some hope from a perspective that is based entirely or mostly in magical thinking. I don't even think this is necessarily a problem, or at least a solvable one- it's essential, as I see it, to the continued existence of religion in humanity, which even I cannot claim has never done any good for any person or for people as a group. So long as this tendency doesn't win out on a large scale as a meaningful approach to problem solving, I don't exactly think it's a threat to humanity.

One of the most interesting examples to me, largely due to my work background and the prevalence of alcohol abuse within restaurant workers, is how absolutely vitroilic a lot of abstinence-only recovering alcoholics become when they make any contact at all with individuals who are trying to lower but not eliminate their alcohol consumption, especially in a systematic and controlled way. It is not just that they claim it is irresponsible to promote programs other than abstinence-only programs to active alcoholics (and even that I find nonsensical- less alcohol is almost always better than more alcohol, because we know for a fact that a lot of the negative health outcomes from alcoholism are a direct result of too much alcohol itself, regardless of whether it was consumed alone at night or while binge drinking at parties, which tells us that the obviously important social element itself does not mediate the biological damage) but that they often claim that it is universally the case that someone who finds themself problem drinking will only ever become more of a problem drinker until they quit entirely. The reason this is so especially striking to me is that it is so obviously and easily proven untrue by experiences which many people have outside of the bubble provided by abstinence programs. It is simply not the case that every individual who drinks more than they're comfortable with during a certain time period is destined to develop cirrhosis if they don't put down alcohol forever, and most people know several individuals whose alcohol use patterns obviously disprove that theory. Almost everyone who drinks knows someone who drank too much for their own personal comfort at one point and had to reel their consumption back in. But, of course, when most people know that someone is an alcoholic, they limit how often they talk about alcohol or their consumption of it out of respect or a desire not to trigger that person into craving alcohol, and the end result is that many alcoholics find themselves just totally cut themselves off from the alcohol use perspectives and experiences of anyone who isn't currently trying to be totally abstinent or doesn't believe that abstinence is the only way to deal with alcohol abuse. And I suspect this will only become more sparkly apparent as doctors begin to try, for instance, off label use of the GLP-1 agonists along with other medications to try to lower the desire for alcohol in patients, etc, or as more and more slightly science-backed but ultimately still pill mill or subscription peddler programs pop up aimed at helping people lower their alcohol consumption. I'm excited to see new perspectives become mainstream, and I think a lot of the pushback is quite literally an attempt to ostracize new perspectives by presenting them as irresponsible, cruel, dangerous, etc.

[xjulixred45x]

If it's okay can I please ask for a romantic yandere choso

With sister Rosa

And the rest is up to you

Also you can find more information about her on my page here on Tumblr

Okay, thanks for the Request

Yandere Choso x Rosa! Reader

Genre: Headcanons

Reader: female

Warnings: YANDERE BEHAVIOR, OVERPROTECTION UNHEALTY MINDSET, STALKING, SPOILERS FROM THE MANGA, Reader has the past and caracteristics of Sister Rosa of @nunezs-stuff .

Let's say that Choso and reader know each other (and he becomes obsessed) when reader is with Demaryius.

The reader has a great loyalty towards Demarius that many cannot understand, even Choso himself at the beginning when they had to work together for the common good of defeating Sukuna.

Why would I have respect for someone so SOFT?

What they don't know is how Demaryius practically saved the reader's life, literally and figuratively.

Choso and reader interact relatively often because they are 1- the most responsible for their groups and 2- they are the only ones who can handle Demarius' young children/apprentices, which makes Choso interact more with her.

At first, Choso had only seen a very standard side of the reader, the way she treated everyone (the overcoat) with harshness and rigidity and even became strict and disciplined.

It reminded him a little of not very pleasant aspects of someone (Kenjaku).

However, when they had to take care of the youngest children (especially children with trauma), something changed in the reader.

All her intimidating aura disappeared and she became someone much more maternal, calm and friendly.

It was almost like seeing another person.

and in a way Choso rejected that type of treatment.

Not only because of his own lack of a mother figure, but because he genuinely wanted to get closer to the reader, but had no idea how.

(I may have even asked Yuki, Yuji and company about what to do, but they all give him answers that contradict each other and he is even more confused).

Even so, Choso begins to make a strategy (not at all creepy or worrying) on how to approach the reader.

First, know what things you both like or have in common, how? easy, FOLLOWING HER everywhere so I could make sure she was okay:D

He can't help it! Reader is not even a user of cursed energy, how are you supposed to defend yourself from the horrible beings that plague this world if you can't even see them?

Add to that that by now most of Choso's brothers are dead. Therefore, he clings very closely to the relationship with the reader and wants to have her approval.

Second step, have a better relationship with her, this one is not as worrying as the previous one, but it is definitely still a bit creepy because of the previous one.

Choso tries to talk as best he can with the reader and thus be closer, which works half-heartedly, since the reader does not enjoy when Choso is not clear with what he says (he stutters) or, in his words, says nonsense.

but at least he and the reader manage to understand each other better, since Choso manages to resolve one of his doubts, his relationship with Demaryius.

reader, seeing that Choso seems(heh) to be harmless, decides to tell him how she met Father Demaryius.

It turns out that reader (like Choso) was let down by humanity on many occasions, whether with her parents, the people of her town or "religion"... her fiancé.

Everything came to a point where the reader decided to flee without thinking about whether she would live or not, she simply wanted to escape from that nightmare.

and that was when he met Father Demaryius.

He was the one who saved her, who gave her a name, a purpose, a home...

and I would always be grateful for that.

but he wouldn't tolerate any nonsense when it came to him.

Choso opens up to the reader and realizes that they both really have a lot in common, more than he thought...perfect.

Thanks to this, the reader trusts Choso more and ends up unaware of several of his worst yandere tendencies.

precisely because after knowing everything the reader went through, Choso doesn't want to end up being like the people who hurt her before.

so there is no kidnapping, but there is a lot of manipulation.

what type? the kind that makes you feel guilty for not giving him attention, for leaving him alone.

Choso is also not above using the reader's trauma to keep her close, whether by mentioning her own trauma with an abusive father or after Yuki's death.

Possessive as shit, when they are already in a relationship, rest assured that he becomes a shadow reader. He even continues to stalk her! He just feels less guilty about it now that they're official.

I think the only person he wouldn't be jealous of is Yuji for OBVIOUS reasons, and maybe Father Demaryius, but even so he is "cautious" with him (mostly because of the level of power between the two).

He still respects and even loves Demaryius, but Choso will not let him take something so precious from him.

VERY LOVING, whether physical contact, words of affirmation, gifts, etc. Choso loves to pamper the reader and have her around in general, which is sometimes a disadvantage for the reader 😅 but don't worry, eventually you get used to it.

definitely overprotective to unimaginable levels. I already said it with his stalker tendencies, but he believes that if he takes his eyes off the reader for ONE SECOND something horrible could happen to him, and it terrifies him.

A large part of their yandere tendencies are related to fear, fear of being alone, fear of the reader dying, fear of abandonment, disappointment, etc.

so the reader can also easily manipulate it if she wants, so she can make it improve or FLEE.

because he's still a yandere.

He has killed, will kill and will continue to kill as a reader.

It doesn't matter who, if they get in the way of THEIR happiness, they will encounter death.

He deserves to be happy. No matter what.

He will be selfish. For ONCE

just...leave him and Reader ALONE....

Shares, reblogs and comments are very welcome!

This is a little shorter than usual bc im not quite used to Sister Rosa😅 and honestly am not in the mood for JJK stuff but i wanted to make this for You! Hope this is of your liking and i didn't mischaracter Your oc😭

[ilminnestrone]

Midgar, 22 of July 1999

My most beloved Sephiroth,

I know that you'd probably rather spend today in recollection than reading a letter from an annoying and meddlesome friend,  and I wouldn't blame you if you did. But I guess this is the only way I know how to express my sympathy without sounding like a sarcastic little shit.

I have a mother and a month ago, on her birthday, I didn't call her. She didn't call me on mine either: she wrote a one-line message and I replied with a cold "thank you". That's all I can do, after all these years of trying.

Because I had a mother, and from time to time I actually made an effort to try and love her. I never lacked anything, and I cannot honestly say that she is a bad person, or that the evil she did to me was done maliciously: she was -and still is- just a human being, imperfect like all of us, whose mistakes caused deeper wounds than she ever intended. She simply should never have been a mother, especially mine: but how could she have known?

For many years I have envied your orphan condition, and just writing this makes me feel insensitive, horrible, less than human. I envied you because in absence, no one can let anyone down: you can decide to imagine a good, kind, beautiful, welcoming, supportive mother as much as you need one, if you did not have one. You can convince yourself that she would have been a perfect, adequate, apologising parent. You can believe that she would have defended you to the hilt at every possible opportunity and never been contradicted by the cruelty of reality, because she was simply not there to confirm or deny it.

I'm not the right person to tell you that load of crap like “she would have been so proud of you, she would have loved you for who you are, she would have accepted every flaw you had, every half-quintal of hair in the shower every morning and your stupid pouty face before your morning coffee”, because I don't know if that's true. There are wonderful mothers and there are bad mothers, and I don't have a crystal ball to tell you whether I would have been having tea with that Jenova Lady every Wednesday or spending Sunday afternoons drying your tears after another stupid argument.

What I can tell you is that it took me years to realise that I was an idiot: you and I were the same. We could have been brothers in suffering because we were grieving for exactly the same thing: a loving mother that neither of us had.

Neither of us had the mother we would need, and that is enough to mourn. To mourn not only a serene, happier childhood, an enriching relationship with someone easier to love than an absent (emotionally or actually) parent, but our very existence: what we might have been if we had had a mother who could have really pushed us forward in life, instead of keeping us on the cruel leash of regret? A question without an answer, I know, but we can't stop asking: who needs to be a hero when all they needed was a mother's love?

Perhaps Angeal does so much for our broken souls without even realising it, caring for us and never asking for anything in return. Perhaps his love is all the healing we deserve. Maybe Lazard is a bit of a mom too. Isn't it funny that, even in such a shamefully phallocentric world, we surround ourselves with mother figures? I know that friends and lovers can't make up for such an important, foundational relationship.

I know that I wasn't here to support and hold the lonely and scared child you probably were: I had Angeal and that probably made up for a lot of things. But I'm here now. We are here now. I really hope that makes a difference.

Your dear friend

Genesis

[the-s1lly-corner]

OOO what about a Dark Fey reader like Maleficent? that was being hunted down by a dangerous group of cryptid hunters, and had a broken wing n wounded by iron bullets but kept running.

And the Creeps found them took em in. and since ferfolk cannot lie,.. caught them off guard with a question on how they felt about that creep 😉

I expect to see Slenderman!👁👁 and another ig👍plz

idk I rarely see Supernatural like readers, it's a little disappointing imo. I love powerful self-inserts ok?

Slenderman with a Fey!S/o

UWAAAA I'm sorry for taking so long to get to this !! I've kinda been sucked up in a bunch of irl stuff !! (Nothing serious, just me working on things)!!

Admittedly I have never watched maleficent; so I'll solely be going off the info given in this ask I hope that's alright ☝️😔 and I apologize in advance if it's no good 😭💔

As you specifically brought up slenderman, he's gonna be our star today!! I was originally going to do the full list of characters but my brain js

A raisin

Also also!! I totally get what you mean ab the shortage of supernatural readers!!! Not just in the creepypasta fandom; but really any fandom! Let the insert have powers, let them be super strong, ect ect !!

You'd stumble into him after trying to hide and take shelter in his woods

Normally, he'd take down any trespassers after stalking them for a bit; but he was just too curious about you to make that the case

I dont know, I always think of slenderman to carry that kind of curiosity about the world and other creatures; I feel like that makes him more interesting than the fandoms standard "stern and oddly fatherly" take... also I just live the idea of curious cryptids!!

Moving on

He'd help patch you up with the resources in the forest; I've seen mixed opinions on whether or not slenderman has weird healing powers but personally; I think he has regen abilities that can only be applied to himself! Unrelated to the ask I know, but a quick little fun aside and little bonding point for him and s/o if they have the same deal going on

As for shelter? I'm personally still on the fence on if I wanna make the manor thing a part of my personal universe and hc that I write for these silly lads; but rn I've settled for a version of it! Not as grand or tidy as the old fandom hyped it up to be; it's a lil smaller and kinda... run down

Still livable, though, and you're more than welcome inside if you need somewhere to stay

Granted, I'm not entirely sure how the topic of romance would be brought up with him, but let's say he picks up on some behavior from you that makes him start putting together a picture

Bro has zero rizz I'm sorry

Regardless, he eventually asks the question; and as the rules go, you're kinda forced to tell him how you feel

I think regardless of if he reciprocates or expected your answer, he'd be surprised

I mean how many people are out here flirting with a forest monster, to their face

I think it could work, honestly! The relationship I mean!! I wish i had more hcs since this is such a fun idea, but I genuinely dont know much about fairy stuff and all the lore regarding them

But onto some more side hcs/little ideas to make up for the lack of stuff !!

If you need comfort, about the whole being hunted thing, slenderman is a good listener; and he understands what it's like, bro probably has to deal with people trying to get a look at him all the time. He gets it

Want revenge on them? Well if the hunters followed you into the woods they probably wont last long anyways; despite the whole curiosity thing he can be... rather territorial

Day to day life with slenderman is interesting as is, but with a fellow non-human companion? Shenanigans will likely ensue

What kind? Cant say, due to my lack of knowledge 😔☝️

Too injured to move around on your own? If you need to go somewhere slenderman will either fetch it for you, or just carry you to where you gotta go

Also he totally wont make it habit; even before the romantic relationship is fully formed

It just activates his neurons 😔

[kslenvs3000w24]

The Last and Final Blog

Over my past 4 years here at the University of Guelph, the environment has been at the center of my focus. Immersed in this for 1460 days has truly shaped me into who I am as a person and defined what my ethics and values are. For every job I applied to, the question I always got asked was, Why is this something you want to pursue? My answer is always the same; By being a student who is immersed in this knowledge and knows the complexities of the environment down the molecular level, I feel that it is my moral duty to relay this information and educate others. As an interpreter, my personal ethics encourages me to help educate people on ways they can learn about their impacts and how to help. It is important to look back on the daily decisions you make to see how you are either contributing or helping the environment. Some situations can be exempted. For example, they say you should buy electric cars, however, CTV News reported that the average price for an EV vehicle has reached 73,000$ (Bickis, 2023). When the price of a car is this high, you cannot blame individuals for using their gas cars to get to work so they can put food on the table for their families. Understanding that not everyone is as privileged to live a fully eco life is one step closer to stopping the blame and a step in the right direction for education on how you can become environmentally friendly with your living status. Being taught about the imbalances in the environment as a result of human disturbances and the effects they can have is very scary. Constant exposure to this kind of content every day can seriously impact your thoughts and beliefs about life and the world. In my case, it became very motivating. It drives me to want to help educate others and contribute to organizations that are focusing on the preservation and conservation of our earth. 

This course has been a very pivotal experience for me. Although I love taking courses about the environment which includes biology and chemistry, this course forced me to look beyond just these numbers and the analytical lens. It forced me to think more intuitively regarding interpretation and environmental science. Understanding the needs of our earth and how much we impact it starts with admitting to yourself that there is a problem whether created by you or someone else, and that it needs to be addressed. Today, there has been lots of greenwashing which tends to turn people away from wanting to advocate for the Earth. There is such a divide between the general public knowledge and students/scientists. I can't tell you how many people have said to me “Oh, so you want to save the Turtles” when I told them I was in environmental science. This statement right here goes to show the lack of understanding between preservation and protecting the planet. Environmental science falls under a huge umbrella. It encompasses so much that goes beyond just implementing reusable or compostable straws. 

When I have conversations with people who are out of touch with reality, I feel nothing but sad for them. That they are not as fortunate to know what I know or that their motivations might be driven by something else. But I cannot blame them, knowledge is power but it's also money. I believe it is my right as someone who holds this kind of knowledge, to help people understand and become engaged and involved with the environment. However, I do also believe as people of this earth, it affects us all, and doesn't matter what your social status, race, gender, etc. is, it is something we should all be working towards understanding. Let's just put it this way, a hurricane doesn't care if you're a billionaire with a nice house. Beck et al. (2018) state that there are immense educational benefits associated with acquiring knowledge that can result in “an enjoyable and enriching experience” encouraging a more meaningful relationship with the topic of interest. It doesn’t matter who you are, you will be affected directly or indirectly and therefore I believe we all have an innate calling to preserve and protect the earth not only for us but for the generations to come.

Nature has been a huge component of my life whether it was in the classroom or my own personal outlet. I was taught from a very young age to appreciate nature in all its glory. Over the years I have become increasingly empathetic towards the environment. When I read about things in the news I can’t feel anything but sad. It's so disheartening seeing our earth become hurt and have to constantly rebuild itself. I constantly ask myself when. When will we learn? How long does it take for us to make a change? What brutal disasters need to keep happening for us to stop? Going back to first-year environmental science, we talked about nature having intrinsic value and I couldn’t agree with this statement more. Just like we learned in this course, even if we do not gain any materialistic value from nature and it does not directly or indirectly benefit us, it still has a purpose and is still valuable on its own (Rea & Munns., 2017). Many people are motivated based on economic return and unfortunately, the environment is at the centre of those decisions. The understanding of intrinsic value is based on an ecocentric standpoint which is developed from having a serious concern for the environment, something many people lack (Rea & Munns., 2017). This concern can come from upbringing and experience that shape how one views the world. For people who are struggling to put food on the table, the state of the environment is not typically their biggest problem. Effective interpretation as described by Beck et al., (2018) involves building new knowledge, values, and beliefs. Being open-minded to adopting new concepts can truly work wonders.

Finally, I feel it's my responsibility as an interpreter to educate. Social media is a very powerful tool in today's age and being able to raise awareness about situations regarding climate issues is a great way to expose the general public. I just hope we can create a sense of unity when it comes to caring for our planet and that it gets the attention it deserves because we only have 1, but 1 is enough if we do it right! 

Thanks, everyone for a great semester I enjoyed reading all your blogs! 

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage: For A Better World. SAGAMORE Publishing, (pp. 42). 

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage: For A Better World. SAGAMORE Publishing, (pp. 91). 

Bickis, I. (2023, October 22). EVs are getting easier to find -- but with price tags out of reach for many Canadians. CTVNews. https://www.ctvnews.ca/autos/evs-are-getting-easier-to-find-but-with-price-tags-out-of-reach-for-many-canadians-1.6612044 

Rea, A. W., & Munns, W. R. (2017). The value of nature: Economic, intrinsic, or both? Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management, 13(5), 953–955. https://doi.org/10.1002/ieam.1924

[theearlgreymage]

It is yet another Six Sentence Sunday, and I have only two more Sunday's until break. The freedom is close. I can taste it.

Thankfully, these last two weeks should be a breeze and I can get back in a more regular groove with writing.

Maybe.

Here's hoping at least.

Hello to the wonderful @artsyunderstudy @nausikaaa @aristocratic-otter @confused-bi-queer @rimeswithpurple and @ic3-que3n for tagging me despite my lack of posting lately. You are all amazing <3

Despite my quietness, I have been tapping away at a couple of different projects. So, enjoy six series of six sentences --

COBB Project #1

She’s been making these excursions on her own every few months. Claiming them to be for her research, but I followed her last time. I saw the supplies she took, and didn’t bring back with her. We were outside Bristol when I lost track of her. Somehow she managed to lose all her supplies and beat me back to Watford.  There’s no way she managed that on her own.  But until she’s willing to admit the truth to me, I’m on my own with finding Simon.

COBB Project #2

Coward.  It’s the last word I’ll hear from him for a while as I step into the warm sunshine. While he can technically reach me beyond the Underworld, it is a lot harder for him to do. From what I can tell, it’s not worth the effort.  Not caring whether the chlamys around my shoulder gets dirty, I collapse onto my back into the grass. Letting the sun warm my chilled skin. 

A Gift for Someone

Nothing to see here. I wonder how many other students at Watford have used this spell for elicit sexual acts. How many students have had their trousers pulled down in the middle of the Great Lawn with none of us being the wiser? Of course, this isn't the Great Lawn - it's the back table in Astronomy that I'm crouched beneath. And it's not just any student who's trousers I'm pulling down eagerly. They're Simon Snow's trousers.

Another Gift for Someone

The snap of leather against leather sends a chill down my spine. I do my best to conceal it. The click of heeled boots on the wooden floor let me know that he's walking towards me, and still I fight the urge to shiver in anticipation. But when I feel the soft brush of the collar and warm press of fingers on my throat, I can't help but shudder. "Are you going to be good for me tonight?"

Something I'm working on in secret that may or may not see the light of day

Even if I’d come to accept myself more - feel more comfortable as my own individual person - I was still hung-up on the idea of having children that weren’t mine. It became an even bigger issue after Simon admitted to wanting a child. My mind became full of the impossible; of a small child with golden skin, freckles, dark hair, curls, and light colored eyes.  We thought it impossible, and set the topic off to the side. There were plenty of other things for us to worry over. My graduation and the wedding being the top two items on the list.

Chapter 4 of Infinity in Your Chest Pocket

This time, when I spot the movement out of the bedroom window I don't hesitate to leave the room. Fuck these wraiths. I'm not spending another night alone in a room with them. Baz can complain about me following him into the woods all he wants. It's not like he's doing anything all that secretive. We both know that I know that he's a vampire - one that has apparently never tasted human blood.

Tags and Hello's to Everyone under the Cut. Please know that I am eternally excited over everyone's projects and cannot get enough of the talent you all have. Also, I officially made a gosh darn spreadsheet to keep track of people for tagging!

@aroace-genderfluid-sheep @bazzybelle @bookish-bogwitch @buffy @captain-aralias @chen-chen-chen-again-chen @cutestkilla @ebbpettier @erzbethluna @facewithoutheart @fatalfangirl @foolofabookwyrm-activated @gekkoinapeartree @henreyettah @hushed-chorus @ivelovedhimthroughworse @ileadacharmedlife @ionlydrinkhotwater @j-nipper-95 @johnwgrey @krisrix @larkral @letraspal @martsonmars @moodandmist @mostlymaudlin @onepintobean @palimpsessed @prettylightsbigcity @raenestee @shrekgogurt @skeedelvee @stardustasincocaine @stitchyqueer @tea-brigade @theimpossibledemon @thewholelemon @upuntil6am @wellbelesbian @whogaveyoupermission @yellobb @you-remind-me-of-the-babe

[emailsfromanactor]

Hume Cronyn wrote about Redfield's February 9 letter in A Terrible Liar: A Memoir. I wanted to keep in Cronyn's thoughts about his character and this got long, so the relevant-to-today parts are beneath the cut.

*

Billy [Redfield] was not happy in this production, and he had a great deal of company. Sometimes I felt I was the only member of the cast who was reasonably content. Oh, I had my anxieties (I would be lost without them), but whether by luck or man­agement, I hit on an interpretation of the character that seemed to work. In my storm with Jessica over the character of Polon­ius, she’d likened him to Winston Churchill. I didn’t buy that at all. Polonius may have had Churchill’s authority, but as an image, he seemed to me dead wrong. Dean Acheson or even Neville Chamberlain came closer to the mark for me. These images, particularly the former, made my selection of “re­hearsal clothes” fairly easy. I wore a dark gray business suit with a very faint chalk stripe; shirt and tie, of course; a vest with a watch chain; my reading glasses hung around my neck; conservative black shoes; and I carried a cane. I hoped to es­tablish an impression of formality together with something vaguely old-fashioned.

So much for the physical; but what about the far more significant aspects of the inner man? It is easy to write Polonius off as a “tedious old fool” as Hamlet does; or again as “a wretched, rash, intruding fool.” But are those descriptions ac­curate? One of the most deceptive traps an actor can fall into is to accept another character’s description of the character he is playing. The describer is frequently prejudiced, and almost inevitably subjective. Polonius is certainly “tedious,” “old” and “intruding.” But a “fool”? Never. As with Brutus, the elements are mixed in him. There’s a lovely irony in the fact that this man Polonius, whose most famous speech idealizes character, prudence, forbearance, modesty, thrift, and half a dozen other virtues, is the same man who uses his daughter little better than a pimp might. He is a master of connivance (listen to his cynical advice to Reynaldo), and his true view of humanity is summed up with “’twere a thing a little soiled i’ the working.” Does that mean that Polonius is an out-and-out hypocrite? Not at all. I think he fervently believes in his high-minded advice to his son, Laertes. But Polonius is a believer in the precept that says, “Don’t do as I say, but as I do.” That’s what makes him such a fascinatingly contradictory character. Polonius, don’t forget, has served both king and state through two administra­tions. He is a prime minister. Such a man may on occasion prove a bumbling bore, but is not likely to lack political exper­tise or ambition.

Lady Macbeth, in speaking of her husband, says, “Art not without ambition, but without the illness should attend it.” No such lack afflicted Polonius. He had the “illness” down to a fine art, and would no doubt have termed it practical politics, and shrugged off any suggestion of deviousness. Having baited a trap with his daughter to discover Hamlet’s intention, and put a prayer book in her hand (nice touch, that), he justifies his action to King Claudius with this observation:

“Tis too much proved!—that with devotion’s visage And pious action we do sugar o’er The devil himself.”

What an inspired rationalization for a dirty bit of business! Polonius’s humanity is indeed soiled in the working.

It was this complex character that I carried into rehearsal with me. Like Billy Redfield, I had read everything I could lay my hands on relating to Hamlet. However, reading doesn’t make a performance for any actor, it can only stimulate and chal­lenge, like a good tennis opponent. You have to master your own strokes all by yourself, with, you hope, the coaching of a director—and in this instance I had one of the very best.

John Gielgud probably knows more about Hamlet than any actor alive. However, I cannot tell you how intimidating it is to rehearse a play when the director knows every word of the play without reference to the text. And therein lay part of our company’s problems. American actors in general do not have the classical background of the best of the English actors, and the occasional gulf between our company and our director was I think largely attributable to the company’s inexperience.

Redfield wrote, unhappily: “Gielgud talks little, rehearses even less. Many of the people grow uneasy, myself included. It’s all too smooth, too relaxed, too easily approved. We break too early. We take too many ‘fives.’ Every five will get us ten. . . . Obviously John places sublime faith in the actor’s ability to work things out on his own.” If John as actor could work things out on his own, why couldn’t we? If John as actor could adapt immediately to an acceptable piece of direction, what was wrong with us? The answer is fairly obvious: most of us lacked his skills. As for John’s silences, his apparent distaste for “talk” and his preference for “Let’s push on shall we?” here are two instances of direction to Burton (as reported by Billy) that strike me as pithy and about as helpful “talk” or direction as an actor could hope for.

“Have a care as to your playfulness. It’s splendid that you have such humor and wit and quickness in the part, but the long lines of Hamlet must be sad. If you frolic too much too often you may not be able to stop the laughter later on. No, don’t scowl—you’re going to make them laugh quite a bit, have no fear. But if you make them laugh too much and you can’t stop them, you will have won their stomachs while losing their hearts. Look to it.’”

Now that strikes me as pretty good talk, and to the point. And here again is another piece to Burton.

“Have a care as to shouting. You shout brilliantly; both you and Larry Olivier do—two splendid cornets. I am a violin, I’m afraid, not too good at shouting. But these hunting calls you do so well can be tiresome when sounded too often. Don’t overuse it. It’s a wonderful weapon but it’s your last weapon. Use it only when all else fails.”

And here’s a piece of direction given to me, and again cribbed from Billy’s account.

“My dear fellow, when you say to Claudius ‘What do you think of me?’ you simply must say ‘What do you think of me.’ You must emphasize the word me.”

And Redfield adds his own comment:

Cronyn finds this inflection baffling, since his intelli­gence indicates the reading to be “What do you think of me?” When he asked Gielgud for an explanation, Sir John shook his head. “I can’t give you one,” he said. “Just read it that way.”

And read it that way I did. Sometimes I know when I’m in the presence of my betters. Also, when I thought about it, con­sidered the context in which the question was asked as well as Polonius’s sense of self-importance—his hunger for approval by his king—the reading seemed right to me. John has a near-infallible ear. I argue all too easily and often when I have a conviction, but not when the director is Gielgud and it’s a mat­ter of the music of words.

[effelants]

Tagged by @mxanigel (thank you!!! <3) to find these words in my WIPs! I'll try to look for them in fresh BG3 WIPs, but if I cannot find it, I shall go looking in my Dragon Age WIPs, namely in Super Secret Fic Project!

The words I was given are NIGHT, COMFORT, and TREE!

1. Night (@anderstrevelyan's Valas DeVir x my Vierna II Do'Urden)

“I don’t know. I was raised by humans. My parents died when I was very young.” A lie — but a good one, Vierna had thought at the time. Her voice hadn’t faltered, and her eyes had been steady and sure on his.

His jaw had clenched, ever so slightly, and that, right there — that had been the first glimpse of the man: that flash of emotion, deep within that dark gaze she’d known to be violet. What she hadn’t known, however, was what that emotion was, and she hadn’t known it for many weeks to come.

Not until tonight, when she sees it once again flash across his face by the light of their campfire in the midst of conversation. Only now, she knows him well enough to put a name to it: fear. Valas is afraid — and, perhaps more importantly, Valas had been afraid, that first night when she’d turned him away without a second thought.

She leans into his shoulder, reaches over to take his hand and twine her fingers through his, and he glances down at her in question. It’s not the right time to discuss it — and so she says nothing, merely gives his hand a soft squeeze and settles more comfortably against him.

With the slightest one-shouldered shrug — which, coming from him, she is happy to construe as acceptance of her affections — he turns back to the others. Before long, the campfire dies down to embers and the conversation to sparse phrases and single-word answers. One by one, their companions excuse themselves to their respective tents, until Vierna and Valas are the only two left sitting there, staring into final glowing coals sizzling quietly against the eternally damp cavern floor.

And still she cannot bring herself to broach the subject, even as it claws its way into her gut, burrowing the guilt deeper inch by painful inch.

“I have the first watch,” Valas finally says. “Aren’t you tired?”

She shakes her head. “I’ll stay with you a while longer.”

“I’ll get us some more wood, then,” he murmurs and stands. “It’ll be cold soon.”

“Wait, Valas.” She’s on her feet before she knows it, taking his arm and pulling him around to face her.

And so he waits. And waits. And, finally, sighs, though he does an admirable job of trying to cover it.  “What am I waiting for?”

“I just wanted to say that I’m sorry.”

“For…?” he prompts, raising a brow — whether in question or in amusement, she can’t quite tell.

“That night, on the beach by the nautiloid. Do you remember?”

He nods, and his mouth draws into a tighter line.

“You asked me about my parents, and I lied to you.”

“Yes.” He’s quiet for a moment, his eyes searching her face, until they finally come to rest on hers.

“I was afraid, and I thought I was protecting myself. But tonight, I realized…” she pauses — but no, they are past tiptoeing around each other by now. They have to be, after everything they’ve been through together. “You were afraid too, weren’t you?” She feels him stiffen under her hand, and she hurries to complete the thought. “I just wanted to say that I wish I’d seen it, then. I wish I’d helped you, then — but I didn’t.”

“It’s alright. It doesn’t matter.” He goes to turn back around, to head toward their pile of firewood, but that’s not how she wants to leave it — and so she steps into him to wrap her arms around him.

“It matters to me.”

She hears a sharp intake of breath, but the rebuke she half expects doesn’t follow — instead, he pulls her closer against his chest.

2. Comfort (@owls-den's Alisterius x my Malice II Do'Urden, Fake Dating AU)

 “Please, my lady, it’s quite alright![," Alisterius said. "]I assure you, the fault was all mine. Perhaps you would indulge me, let me buy you a drink? To dispel your troubles, and to apologize for my boorish lack of care?”

What was it with this man and buying others drinks? Still, it got her closer to where she needed to be, and so she nodded — oh-so-demurely, of course, and still facing away from him. “Thank you, sir; you are most kind.”

He frowned ever so slightly before leaning to the side, gaze seeking hers as he softly, gently, swept the pad of his thumb across her knuckles. “Are you sure you’re alright, my lady?”

She lifted her eyes — and found herself swept up, held in the embrace of an expression that was all silk and gossamer, not iron chains and biting shackles. His eyes were warm and brown, calm and comforting on hers, and his voice was… tender. He was tender.

It was moments of eternity that followed until she was finally able to find her way back to herself enough to swallow heavily. “Um…”

He smiled — and, that, too, was soft.  “Might I inquire as to your name, my lady?”

“Malice.” The truth slipped out, unintentionally, unthinkingly, and the mistake broke whatever spell he’d cast over her. She pulled her hand from his grasp.

How could a mere man be so disarming? 

He glanced up at her, brow furrowing in confusion as he straightened to tower over her once more. She hurried to rearrange her expression before he could ask if anything was wrong — she could not explain what had just happened even if she’d wanted to, and by the gods did she not want to. 

Praise be to Lolth, he was all too eager to accept her smile with another of his own. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lady Alice.”

“No, it’s—” She stopped herself before she could stumble once more and ruin the blessing bestowed upon her by the cacophony of the tavern around them. “Yes, Alice. I’m Alice.” What in the Hells could this man have done to make her so quickly forsake the lessons her grandmother had etched into her skin — into her very bones? She needed to do better, to be better.

3. Tree (from the first chapter of Super Secret Fic Project! Moira Amell and Duncan heading to Ostagar)

For all he knew, she would be as useless a Warden as she was a mage, and he’d still taken pity on her.

Besides, no matter the cost of the Joining, it had to be better than the fate that would have awaited her if not for him. Irrationally, the thought made her feel better, and she nodded.

“Good girl,” he said, almost softly. He straightened to his full height, suddenly much more matter-of-fact: “and now, to business. There is a Warden in camp by the name of Alistair. He’s our most junior member, and so he will be in charge of helping you and the others prepare for your Joining. You should find him as soon as possible.”

“There are others?”

“Yes, we have two other new recruits here with us. You will all undertake the Joining together.” As he spoke, he moved off toward the camp, clearly expecting her to follow.

No sooner had she stepped beneath the next stone arch to do just that than she jolted to another sudden stop. What she had thought was a road ahead was, in truth, a bridge — which in and of itself would have been fine, were it not for the fact that it stretched over the steepest valley she had ever seen. Far, far, far below, a fine, gray mist swirled through the chasm, hurried along by the faintly howling wind so that it undulated almost like a river. But water it was not — the tops of a few fir trees, only just barely breaking through the soft tendrils of fog, ensured that it could not be mistaken for anything other than what it was: certain death, at least if her violently heaving stomach was to be believed. 

Duncan turned around to look at her, raising an eyebrow in disapproval. “Is something the matter?”

Yes, something was the matter, and he clearly knew it. Still, she closed her eyes and shook her head vehemently, as if that would somehow help.

“This bridge is sturdy enough for armies, let alone two lone Wardens. There’s nothing to fear. Come.” 

Footsteps clattered on stone as he moved off once again. Moira forced herself to open her eyes, muttering a foul word under her breath. Why did it have to be heights? 

Still, Duncan was right — the bridge certainly looked strong enough. With a deep breath, she stepped forwards, keeping her eyes carefully on Duncan’s back and resolutely ignoring the renewed twist of her stomach.

[ananke-xiii]

When I say that "Billie won" and that her values align with Dean's I'm not saying it is an unproblematic thing.

Billie's desire to go back to the "good, old days" is a pipe-dream, it cannot happen because there never were "good, old days" to begin with. (Little aside, Billie and Meg would totally vibe together, the "You ever miss the Apocalypse?" talks we could have had LOL).

"The good, old days" are just an image of a past that's ultimately unstustainable with the reality of life. Maybe for beings like Billie and Chuck, beings that manipulate life and death, life is just a thing, a pawn or a toy to play with but it's certainly not the case for humans. What's more, what the "good, old days" are for Billie is just an ideal time where there was Order:

Billie: I don't like loose ends, Dean. I don't like disorder. So clean this up. I need to know that you've got your house in order.

Billie's not interested in human things such as trauma and lived experiences, she will utilize people and other supernatural creatures as tools because she's got a "bigger picture" type of mentality. Billie doesn't care. A mentality that Dean lacks because he is human and because of his personality.

Tw: sui mention under the cut.

The issue, then, is that Dean fundamentally agreeing with Billie raises those "ethical questions" that Dean mentions in "Drag Me Away (From You)" and that ultimately cloud the whole season with a rather toxic take on the value of life itself.

Because Dean seeing his life as worthless and wanting to die is not news. It's not about Chuck and it actually never was. Tragically, Chuck wanted Dean to live and had a hand in his resurrections that Dean might or might not have seen as "punishments" just like Castiel in s7.

Whether or not she was goaded by Chuck, Billie had a hand in resurrecting Dean, too. Most notably in "Advanced Thanatology". I'm 100% not condoning Dean's actions in that episode but I want to point out this interesting little dialogue:

Dean: What do you want me to say? Doesn’t matter. I don’t matter. Billie: Don’t you? Dean: I couldn’t save Mom. I couldn’t save Cas. I can’t even save a scared little kid. Sam keeps trying to fix it, but I just keep dragging him down. So I’m not going to beg. Okay, if it’s my time, it’s my time. Billie: You really believe that. You wanna die. Dean…every notebook on this particular shelf tells a version of how you die. You specifically. Heart attack, burned by a red-haired witch, stabbed by a ghoul in a graveyard, and on and on. But which one’s right? That depends on you, on the choices you make. Dean: Well, I guess I made my choice. Billie: But…unfortunately none of these books say you die today. Dean: Come again? Billie: Since I got this…new job, I stand witness to a much larger picture. Do you know what I see? You. And your brother. You’re important. Dean: Why? Billie: You have work to do. That’s all you need to know. And trust me, having my eyes opened to the necessity of any humans, especially Winchesters, is not a thrill. So…you wanna die, but I say…keep living.

Okay, so Billie cares about the natural order but not so much about the necessity of any humans. Let's keep that in mind.

Dean says that he doesn't matter and he wants to die. He's made his choice but Billie says no, keep living. Soooooo it doesn't depend on Dean and on the choices he makes like AT ALL (although, let's say it again, Dean's "choice" in this episode is absolutely not okay and he needs help ASAP). This is s4 Sam and Ruby dialogue all over again. What's the point of having a choice if I have "work to do" or if I don't know what I'm actually choosing? This also raises a lot of "ethical questions" that the show has always resolved with the resurrection of his characters. Go back and do your work! So when its characters die once and for all in 15x20 these questions are bound to resurface. Or... to resurrect (LOL, I'm so funny!).

It seems to me that Dean Winchester is not the "ultimate killer" but the "ultimate killed", which is even worse. He's unfortunately right when the he tells Billie that he doesn't matter because this is what we are ultimately shown. We know that both Dean and Sam are highly suicidal. "First Born", for instance, is an episode that shows how both brothers consider themselves utterly worthless. It goes without saying that it's all very sad. But Supernatural is also a show that's fun, right? So when Dean says in s15 that he doesn't want to die while people watch it's a little, funny, ironical joke? Well, it turns out it was a joke on us too because the show ends just like that. It's not so funny anymore and those "ethical questions" keep popping up more loudly.

Dean 's lack of a "bigger picture" type of mentality is demonstrated in his relationship with Billie where he falls into the same trap he fell with Crowley and the Mark of Cain. He goes right for the action not because he cannot see the bigger picture but because he doesn't want to:

Bille: And you need to tell me now. Do we have a problem? Dean: No. No, I want Chuck dead. I need him dead. I don't have to like every part of the plan.

I actually see a gigantic problem. Dean wants and needs Chuck dead but his worthlessness is so ingrained in him that he thinks he doesn't have to like (or even to know) everything. We can see the consequences of that little dialogue with Billie in s13 right in this piece of dialogue with Sam in "Drag Me Away (From You)":

Dean: This is how we end Chuck, okay?! This is the only way we'll ever be free! So I'm sorry, Sam! You don't get a choice! We don't get a choice! Sam: Oh, "we."

The only way to be free is by not getting a choice. Let's just say it's not a great start. Dean wants to be free from Chuck, but Billie says how, when and if he gets to be it.

As Sam says in "Unity", Billie has got Dean "so convinced" and that she has "played" them. To be honest, I don't think that Billie has played them, if you pay attention she's been telling them the truth from day one: they have work to do and she needs them so she decides whether or not they get to quit. I also don't think that Billie "convinced" Dean but they both happened to share a certain desire for an idealized past, an order where everything is okay and back to "how it should be" (I've written about it here if you want to know more). But they meant two different things by that.

For Dean, it's an escape from reality, which he equals with Chuck (and not with the "natural order") so when he realizes that reality is not "real" because Chuck has been manipulating it, he short-circuits while Sam is sadly more... accustomed to "unreality". This is why, I think, it's Sam who can see that it's all about a "power grab", nothing more: Billie, Chuck, it's just about power, it's not about them, they are literally just tools, instruments...

Because Dean is in pure crisis mode he thinks that the real problem is Chuck and... well, in a way, yes he's right but if you've followed me this far you've probably realized that he's also totally not.

Dean: I don't care if Billie gets what she wants! I don't, man! I'd trade it all— I'd trade 'em all for Chuck in a heartbeat!

Sam: What about me? Would you trade me?

Dean: Chuck has to die. He has to! Otherwise he'll keep us tap dancing forever, and I can't live like that, man! I can't live like that! I won't!

Dean should actually care if Billie gets what she wants because they might share a passion for the jolly old times but Billie is a total Chuck in disguise too:

(from "Advanced Thanatology)

Billie: You killed yourself. Dean: No. Are you keeping me dead? Billie: Now that depends on you. Dean: Okay. Uh… Well, congrats on the promotion. Uh, but I got a house full of ghosts waiting on me and my brother to get back to, so if it’s up to me – Billie: I didn’t say it was up to you. I said it depends on you.

As I've said, this is s4's conundrum all over again: you can choose but not really. Once Chuck's gone and the so-called "natural order" is not perturbed anymore, Dean discovers the horrible truth: it was real, everything was real. Cosmic entities can manipulate humans and time and Death but the lived experiences are still lived and still real to the person who's lived them. Cas was telling him just that when he said "We are real". To be fair, Dean was working precisely on that for over 5 seasons from season 8 to 12 but it all ended the moment Mary went to the AU and Cas died. Everything Dean did got undone in that moment. But then Mary and Cas came back. And then they died again. His bond with Sam was not enough in s12 to keep him alive and was not enough in s15 too. Even when Chuck was not a problem anymore those words Billie told him in "Despair" must have echoed in his brain:

"Don't you think it's finally time? Time for the sweet release of death?"

And Dean in "Carry On":

Dean: Oh, man. Well, I did not think this would be the day. But it is. It is, and that's... Man... that's okay.

Come to think of it, maybe Sam was right, Billie had totally convinced Dean. It wasn't exactly that difficult, though :|.

To sum it up: nobody in s15 was paying attention because if they were they would've understood that Billie would have NEVER made people disappear. That's totally NOT something she wants, it's the exact opposite of what she wants. It was a bit of a rookie mistake if you ask me but again, I'm not grappling with the anxiety of living a life where I don't know what's real and what is (or am I, LOL).

Even though she dies, Billie eventually wins (and it totally sucked anyway):

Sam: You were always gonna betray us. Once you defeated God, you were gonna take power. That means everyone who got a free pass, or a second chance, everyone who was resurrected or came from another world, you were gonna kill them all. Dean and me, too. That's the order you want restored. That's always been your endgame. Billie: Ya got me.

Okay so maybe Billie didn't win per se but what about Death? Did she win in the end? Did she retake her role in the narrative? Did she avenge all her deaths? Will she reap Chuck? Maybe it's called "Death of the Author" for a reason:

Chuck: What kind of an ending is this? Sam: (to Chuck) Then I think it's the ending where you're just like us and like all the other humans you forgot about. Dean: It's the ending where you grow old, you get sick, and you just die. Sam: And no one cares. And no one remembers you. You're just forgotten.

Ya got me. LOL, Have I already said I love Billie?

*whispering in the corner*: nobody puts Death in the corner...

[ahi-django]

Monkey D. Luffy is aro-ace

It is currently June, which means it is pride month once again.

I have thought about it for a while as to what I could contribute to the spirits of the queer! So let's talk about our favourite ray of sunshine, better known as the MC of One Piece, Monkey D. Luffy.

Now before we continue, I would like to point out that this comment is purely based on speculations, supported by what the anime/manga has shown us in the past as well as Oda's point of view in past interviews he took part in. I am absolutely not caught up with the series yet, but the first 445 episodes more often than not have left rather clear signs regarding Luffy's orientation. Now let us begin.

To understand why many people such as myself see Luffy as aromantic-asexual, let us first break down what it means to identify as such:

Asexuality refers to limited sexual attraction or a lack thereof towards another person.

Aromanticism refers to a limited romantic attraction or a lack thereof towards another person.

Bear in mind that every asexual and aromantic person is individual as both umbrella terms have a wide spectrum. This means that both orientations do not have to go hand in hand, nor does it mean that people who identify as either or both are broken, weird or incapable of human emotions.

Additionally, some asexual people may still have sex in a romantic relationship, others may not. The same works for aromantic people who still might go into a romantic relationship, while others might not. I recommend watching this video (And the following videos of the trilogy, which are pinned in the info box in their video), it will explain the spectrums a little more thoroughly.

Now that we have established what it means to be aromantic-asexual, let us move on to Luffy. The debate about whether or not he is straight or not has been going on for years by now, and nobody can really decide where to place him exactly. We have seen in many other anime how romance has become a plot point for the MC eventually, yet for Luffy, this will never happen.

Oda has said on numerous occasions that he does not plan to focus on a possible romantic interest for the Strawhat captain, but instead simply wants to keep the plot straightforward with action and a story that goes in-depth with the lore of the world we call One Piece.

Thanks to multiple scenes within the pre-timeskip, we have learned a lot about Luffy as a character. We got to know him as a cheerful and selfish-selfless character, who doesn't take shit from nobody and will fight everyone who hurt his nakama. While he is not very intelligent overall, he possesses a high emotional intelligence and has the ability to read people in a way most cannot.

He is also very hyperactive, loud and sometimes very impulsive when making decisions. It is safe to say that if he ever got diagnosed, he would have ADHD (I mean, just look at him. You cannot tell me that he would not be neurodivergent of any kind).

Luffy has had the dream to become the King of Pirates ever since he was a child. From when he starts his journey to find the One Piece, he has shown time and time again that he displays his priorities openly for everyone to see. He says what he thinks and is not afraid to do so. Fun activities for him are either fighting or just goofing around with his friends. Also food. He loves food, especially meat. This man has his priorities, alright.

But that's also why people often think that Luffy simply focuses on these priorities, and once he has found the One Piece, he will get married to Boa Hancock. Then again, we know that Luffy is not interested in Hancock romantically.

We see Hancock first hugging Luffy, then her fawning over him, while his expression stays indifferent to this action. And this is only one of the many examples.

As we all remember very well, Luffy showed no reaction when Hancock used her devil fruit abilities on him. Said abilities allow "a range of attacks which use emotions of love, lust or adoration to transform opponents into stone." (https://onepiece.fandom.com/wiki/Mero_Mero_no_Mi)

Those abilities have been showcased when Hancock first refused to partake in the upcoming war against Whitebeard and turned all marine's on the Navy ship to stone. Oddly enough, when she used the "Love-Love Mellow" on Luffy, he came out of it completely unaffected. Not to mention that he saw Boa's naked body and had no reaction to it either.

The Strawhat's behaviour had confused many viewers, when he showed a reaction to Nami's body being exposed twice, and this is what Oda said about it in a Q&A:

"He's interested, but he's not entranced by her."

People can be interested in other people without the sexual or romantic attraction coming in. Hell, people usually find people interesting due to their personalities and want to get to know each other out of platonic interest! Or it's the style they wear, which would fall under the 'aesthetic attraction' department.

In other words: Just because you are interested in someone, doesn't automatically mean you want to fuck or date them.

"But when he's with Usopp, who's the same age, it's like a kid on a school trip: His bad side comes out! Yeah, both sides of Luffy feel right to me, so the culprit is definitely Usopp!"

Usopp and Luffy are almost always together in several shenanigans. Usopp usually serves as comical relief and likes to form the comedic trio together with the captain and the ship's doctor Chopper. Hence the description of Luffy as a 'kid on a school trip'. He copies the sniper's behaviour in both instances where Nami's body is exposed to them, that's it. There is nothing more to it.

I would like to add one more thing: Love comes in all shapes and sizes. I've been picking up comments on various platforms that Luffy is 'too naive' when it comes to love. That may be true to an extent, but that doesn't mean he is incapable of it. Romantic and sexual attraction are off the table, but he does know the concept of love. Just in a platonic way. He loves his crew and he loves his brothers, even though they are not blood-related.

This is where the concept of 'found family' comes into play, and it is true for both Luffy's brothers and the crew. To the Strawhat, they are all family. And that is perfectly alright. Getting married and placing kids in this world does not have to be the ultimate goal. The ultimate goal can be anything, as long as it makes the individual happy.

In conclusion, Luffy can be considered as aro-ace, but we will never know for sure whether or not this will be canon. Oda had never confirmed or denied his orientation, which leaves it up for interpretation. For some people, Luffy will be considered straight, for others not. And that's okay. As long as we can discuss this civilly, no harm will come out of it.

With this said, I will end this post here. I hope you have a great day!

[dialovers-translations]

Diabolik Lovers LOST EDEN ー Azusa Maniac [Prologue]

Monologue

The next day,

when we arrived at the Vibora Castle,

we were indeed given a warm welcome,

just like Ruki-kun had predicted.

Apparently this was all because,

I - the person with Cordelia’s heart - tagged along.

I felt happy to know,

that I was at least somewhat helpful to the others.

Ruki-kun, Kou-kun and Yuma-kun,

were all allowed entrance as well,

as our whole group was escorted to the Great Hall as guests.

ーー At present, we are awaiting Zweig-san’s arrival,

with tense expressions on our faces.

ー The scene starts in the Great Hall of the Vibora Castle

Yui: ( The Vibora King, Zweig-san, huh...? )

( I wonder what kind of man he is? I hope he’ll be understanding... )

Azusa: ...

Ruki: ...I’ve heard that Zweig-san is a decently reasonable man. He should adapt his attitude based on what kind of person he determines you to be.

I’m leaving the rest in your hands, Azusa.

Azusa: Yeah...

Ruki: ...Rest assured. Kou, Yuma and I got your back.

All you need to do is tell the truth. If you do that, I’m sureーー

ー Zweig enters the room

Zweig: ーー So you are Mukami Azusa. And that must be Eve standing next to you.

Azusa: ...Correct.

Yui: ...Y-Yes.

( His aura is overwhelming. So this man is the Vibora King, Zweig-san... )

( It’s all up to Azusa-kun now. ...If he somehow manages to convince the Vibora King... )

Zweig: Even if you are here to apologize for your previous actions, you shall not be forgiven.

Azusa: ...Ugh...

Zweig: I am sure you understand that as well?

That it is very difficult to show forgiveness when somebody not only trespasses your territory, but murders your own kind on top of that.

Azusa: ...I do.

ー Azusa bows down

Azusa: ーー Zweig-sama. I am terribly sorry.

Yui: A-Azusa-kun!?

( I didn’t expect for him to bow his head...!? )

Azusa: I shall not deny...That I did in fact set foot on your territory that day.

However...Please believe me when I say that it was not at all my intention to stir up trouble. 

...It was entirely my fault for being in a hurry...

Zweig: ...

So, this lack of a calm mind caused you to kill my people?

Azusa: N-No...!

I swear that I have not killed your comrades. Please, believe me...!

Zweig: ...Then, who is the individual who drew their weapon at my people?

Azusa: Well...

...

Zweig: Heh...You cannot say? Then I have no other choice. I will have to assume that you are the culpーー

Yuma: ーー Fuck that!!

Yui: ( Yuma-kun!? Even though Ruki-kun told him not to...! )

Yuma: Azusa’s got a heart of fuckin’ gold, he’d rather choose to hurt himself than to harm others!

He would never kill someone! I can vouch for that!

Kou: Exactly! Could you not make such groundless assumptions!? 

My precious little brother would never, ever do something like that!

Azusa: Yuma, Kou...

Zweig: ...If I recall correctly, the two of you are his older brothers.

However, I have also heard that you are not actually related by blood. ...Then why would you defend him?

I hope you realize that by attacking me like this, you could possibly put your own lives at risk?

Kou: We’re not defending him! We say this because we have faith in him!

Yuma: Hell yeah! We know him better than anyone else! Whether we’re blood related or not doesn’t mean shit!

Zweig: Heh. ...I see. It would appear that you are all connected by a strong bond.

Vibora A: You fiends! How dare you speak to Zweig-sama with such a tone...!

Yuma: ...!

Vibora B: You should be ashamed of yourself! We shall chop off your heads at once!

Yui: W-Waiーー

Zweig: ーー Step back! I did not order you to do such a thing!

Vibora A: Zweig-sama...!

Vibora B: Our sincere apologies...!

ー The two Vibora retreat

Azusa: ...

Yui: ( Don’t tell me...Did Zweig-san save them? But why would he suddenly...? )

Zweig: ーー Mukami Azusa. I shall believe you on your word.

Azusa: Eh...?

Zweig: I have been deeply moved by the way you brothers look out for each other, as well as the strong bond you share.

I wonder if you are capable of harboring such sentiments because you were once human?

...I feel like I finally understand after seeing you in action.

Why Karlheinz-san would insist every once in a while,

that even Demons should be capable of human emotions and thought.

Azusa: ...

Zweig: Your actions have made it very clear to me that you are people worthy of being trusted. Forget about my earlier accusations.

Azusa: T-Thank you very much...!

Zweig: There is no longer any bad blood between us. ...We shall hold a celebatory banquet to welcome Eve to our Castle.

Yui: A banquet? F-For...me?

Zweig: Your heart is that of the Demon Lord Burai’s daughter. We have to give you a warm welcome, obviously. 

ーー Well then, please enjoy the party to your heart’s content!

*Snap*

Monologue

As soon as Zweig-san snapped his fingers,

bright and beautiful decorations furnished the area around us,

as other people from the Vibora Clan began to enter the hall,

all dressed in formal wear.

I did not expect to be welcomed with open arms like this. 

As Ruki-kun looked from left to right,

he confirmed his earlier assumptions,

that Zweig-san is indeed a reasonable man.

While he is rumored to be someone,

who if you upset him once,

he shall show no mercy and destroy you,

he also isn’t the kind of guy who isn’t willing to listen to others.

Looking at Azusa-kun,

sighing in relief with one hand placed on his chest,

his other brothers finally smiled as well.

ーー Let’s make the best of this party.

Each of us went our own ways,

mixing in with the crowd.

Yui: This really is amazing...

( There’s an elaborate feast and festive music playing through the room. )

( Also, all of the Vibora women are so pretty... )

Azusa: Everyone’s stunning, don’t you hink...?

Yui: Exactly. Their dresses are so charming as well, I’m in awe.

Azusa: ...I’m sorry, Eve.

Yui: Eh?

Azusa: I’m sure that deep down...You’d love to dress up like a Princess as well, no...?

But...Because I can’t give you such a life...

Yui: That’s not necessary, Azusa-kun. I’m happy as long as we can be together.

Azusa: But...

All girls dream of...looking like that, no? 

Yui: Well...

( ...There’s really nothing for him to worry about. )

( I guess just words aren’t enough to convince him? I wonder what I need to do for him to understand? )

( ...Right! )

*Rustle* 

Yui: Hey, Azusa-kun. Let’s dance together?

Azusa: Eh...?

Yui: Didn’t you hear the others earlier? We should make the best of this party.

( If words won’t do, I’ll just have to show through actions instead. )

( That I’m happy just by having him at my side...I hope he’ll realize at least somewhat... )

Let’s dance, Azusa-kun.

Azusa: ...Thank you.

On certain CGs, little black roses will appear on the screen. If you click on them, you get an extra line of dialogue.

“Hey, Eve...Can you tell how I feel? I surely hope all of my feelings are reaching you...”

“Every time you tell me that you love me...A warm feeling wells up inside my chest...”

Yui: ( We went through a lot but...I’m glad we made it past one hurdle. )

( I’m so happy...To be able to enjoy dancing with Azusa-kun like this. )

*Thud* 

Azusa: !?

Yui: Ahーー!?

Azusa: ...Sorry. Seems like I can’t dance well after all.

I’m...lacking one arm after all. So I can’t support you properly...

Yui: ...

No, that doesn’t matter.

We can just support each other, no?

Azusa: ...Yeah.

Yui: Hey, Azusa-kun.

When you confronted Zweig-san head-on earlier...You looked very cool, you know?

I fell in love with you all over again.

Thank you for mustering up the courage for all of us.

Azusa: ...

I also fall deeper in love with you...just by spending time together...

More than yesterday, and tomorrow even more than today...My love for you is overflowing...

Yui: Azusa-kun...

Azusa: I love you so much...I can’t even express it with words.

...Thank you, Yui-san. For being with me like this.

ー The scene shifts to the forest

Yui: ...

( I’m glad Azusa-kun seems to be feeling better. )

( I came outside to get some fresh air but... )

( He seemed to be enjoying his conversation with the others, so I’m sure he’ll be fine. )

ー Somebody bumps into her

*Thud*

Yui: ...!

???: M-My sincere apologies. I happen to be in a bit of a rush. Are you unharmed?

Yui: Y-Yes, I’m fine.

???: I see. ...Well then, if you’d excuse me now.

ー The mysterious man leaves again

Yui: ...?

( That man isn’t a Vibora, is he? I wonder what he’s doing here...? )

( Besides, I feel like I’ve seen him somewhere before? When could that have been...? )

ー Yui can hear commotion in the background

Yui: ーー !?

( Did those screams just now come from inside the castle!? 

( Azusa-kun and the others might be in dangerーー )

ー She rushes back inside to find the place set on fire

Yui: ...!?

( How...!? There weren’t any indications of a fire earlier...!? )

( Where’s everyone!? Are they alright...!? )

ーー Azusa-kun!

Ruki-kun, Kou-kun! Yuma-kun...!

ー She spots them in the distance

Yui: ( ーー There they are...! )

You guys!

ー Yui runs up to them

Azusa: ...Eve...! You’re safe...

Yui: Y-Yeah! But how did this happen...?

Kou: We’re not quite sure either...

Something suddenly caught on fire and it spread in a matter of seconds.

Yuma: Somebody set the place on fire.

Yui: Set on fire...!? 

Yuma: I mean, it doesn’t make sense for a fire to spread this quickly out of nowhere, right!?

Yui: No way...! But who would...Coff!

Azusa: E-Eve...!

Yui: ( ...I inhaled some of the smoke...! )

Ruki: ーー Let’s go. We should get away from this place before discussing the details.

A hole has formed in the ceiling because of the flames. Let’s escape through there.

Yui: O-Okay.

Kou: Then, Azusa-kun. You take M-neko-chan up in the air with yーー ...Azusa-kun?

Azusa: Hey...What will happen to all of the Vibora left in the castle...!? 

If we make a run for it...What will happen to them...?

Yui: ( The Vibora are snake people. I’m sure they can’t fly, right...? Which means, all of them will... )

Ugh...

Ruki: ...Now’s not the time to hesitate. 

Kou: ...Ruki-kun’s right. Let’s go, Azusa-ku���ー

Vibora child: Uwaaah! Mama!

Uu...Hic...!

Azusa: ...Ah...

You guys...can go ahead. I have to...at the very least take that child with me...!

ー Azusa runs off

Yui: Azusa-kun!

*Woosh*

Yui: Kyaah!?

Yuma: ーー Ruki! Kou! Take care of her!

I’ll join y’all later bringin’ Azusa with me!

Kou: O-Okay...!

ー Yuma runs after Azusa

Yui: ( Oh no, Azusa-kun... )

ー Ruki steps closer

Ruki: Rest assured. Yuma will most definitely bring him back home.

Kou: Off we go...!

*SCENE SHIFT*

Azusa: I’ll...save you right awayーー

ーー Uu!?

ー Azusa collapses

*Thud* 

Yuma: Azusa!!

ー Yuma lifts him up

*Thud*

Azusa: ...Uu...

Yuma: Oi, Azusa!? Are ya alright!?

Azusa: ...

Yuma: ーー Damnit! Don’t be doin’ stupid shit!!

ー The scene shifts to the forest

Yui: ...Coff...

( I somehow made it out thanks to the others but... )

...

ー She looks back at the Castle still burning

Kou: Don’t let it get to your heart. We had our hands full just saving our own skin back then.

Yui: Yeah...

ーー Right, what about Azusa-kun!? Is he alright...?

ー Yuma walks up to them

Azusa: Uu...

Yui: ( His right arm is severly burned... )

Azusa-kun...!

Yuma: ...He’s just out cold. He’s not dead or anythin’.

Yui: B-But. He’s burned really badly...

Ruki: ...You’re right. He may be a Vampire, but we need to treat those burns.

Kou: Is there anywhere we can reーー

???: Huh? Is that who I think it isーー

ー Kino approaches them

???: Azusa. Long time no see. Wait, oh, he’s unconscious.

Ruki: You’re...

ー A flashback ensues

???: ーー !

*Thud*

Yui: ( Ah, the apple fell on the floor… )

Ruki: ーー Watch out. Look at where you’re going.

???: Ah, my bad.

*Rustle*

???: I’ll buy this apple. …Problem solved, right?

ー The flashback ends

Yui: ( Right, from back then...! )

Kou: You two knows this guy?

But...From the looks of it, you’re not exactly on good terms...

Yui: ‘Know’ is a strong word, but we’ve run into him before at the produce section of the supermarket in the human world...

Ruki: Since you know Azusa as well...You must be Kino.

Kou: Eh!?

Yuma: Then he’s the one who turned the tables on the Vibora...?

Yui: ( He was the Vampire Azusa-kun met in the woods!? )

Kino: Fufu, correct! Good job figuring that one out, Ruki.

...Ah. If you remember our little encounter from back then, do you recall Yuuri as well?

Ruki: Yuuri?

Kino: Hey, Yuuri. Show yourself to them.

ー Yuuri walks up to them

Yuuri: ...

Kino: He’s a Ghoul named Yuuri. My buddy.

He’s always with me and helps me out in various ways.

Yui: ( Ah...! )

ー Yui recalls bumping into him

???: M-My sincere apologies. I happen to be in a bit of a rush. Are you unharmed?

ー The flashback ends

Yui: ( ...Right. No wonder he struck me as familiar, I had met him before. )

Ruki: ...What’s wrong? Is something bothering you?

Yui: Well...I met Yuuri-san outside of the Castle earlier.

I mean, we didn’t really talk or anything because he seemd to be in a rush...

Ruki: In a rush, huh...?

...

Oi, Yuuri. Are you the one who set the Castle on fire, perhaps?

Yuuri: Yes, exactly.

Yui: ...! Why would you...!

Kino: Get them before they get you. It’d be a pain if they were to find out that I’m the one behind the murders from the other day.

Yuma: Before they get you...?

Yuuri: We’re a resistance group taking revenge on Demons after all.

Yuma: Resistance!?

Kino: Yup! I’m the leader! I’ve been going around taking down other Demons to accomplish a certain goal.

Our group is called Raven. It’s composed of Ghouls though. What do you think? Pretty cool name, huh?

Ruki: What is this goal of yours? Why would you...?

Kino: Hmー? That’s a secret! Let’s just say we’ve got our reasoning. 

Kou: B-But! You’re a Vampire just like us, no? Why would take out other Demons...?

Kino: Likeー Iー saidー What about ‘we’ve got our reasoning’ do you not get? 

I mean, it’s not like you guys are on my hit list right away.

Kou: ...Ugh...

Kino: But well, we’re still a resistance group. So I’m sure that’ll change in the future. 

ーー That being said. We’ll live up to our name and take you into custody. 

*Rustle rustle*

Kou: Where did these guys come from...!? 

Yuma: Watch out! Step back!

Yui: O-Okay...!

( We’ve suddenly been surrounded by a large crowd... )

( Are these the Ghouls from the resistance group he was talking about...!? )

Ruki: ...What’s the plan?

Kino: Didn’t I tell you? We are Raven, a resistance group who goes around defeating Demons.

Although if you choose to come with us without putting up a fight, we won’t resort to violence.

ーー Ah, make sure to take the knocked out Azusa over there along as well. Okay?

Ruki: ...

Monologue

We have been captured,

by the Raven under Kino-kun’s command.

The place we were taken to,

was Kino-kun’s manor in the human world.

As soon as we arrived,

Azusa-kun and the others were locked away in the dungeon at once.

However.

For some reason,

I was the only one who wasn’t locked up,

as I found myself face-to-face with Kino-kun in his room instead.

Yui: ーー Please, Kino-kun! Let the others out of their cell!

Kino: Ahaha! What are you saying?

If four Vampires go full-out against me, I might just lose. 

Can’t you tell that I would never take that risk? 

Yui: ...Ugh...

Kino: ...Well, I guess one of them is beaten up to the point where he can barely stand on his legs, so I doubt he’ll put up much of a fight.

Yui: Then at least set Azusa-kun free...!

Azusa-kun has been burned, and I’d like to tend to his wounds as soon as possible...

Kino: No way. Why should I do that guy a favor...?

Yui: You better believe I’m going to keep pestering you about it until you say yes.

Kino: Ehー...?

Yui: Please, Kino-kun. I want to help Azusa-kun no matter what.

( ...This is all I can say. Now I just have to hope for his goodwill... )

Kino: ...Haah.

Ahー God. Guess I have no other choice. Fine.

Yui: Really!?

Kino: I mean, you just won’t shut up. ーー Yuuri. Bring Azusa here.

Yuuri: Understood.

ー Yuuri leaves the room

Yui: ...Thank you, Kino-kun.

Kino: Let me tell you. Don’t even think about trying to get the other three brothers out of their cell. Do you understand?

The moment I find out you did, boom! ...I’m going to kill everyone just like that.

Yui: ...Ugh...

*TIMESKIP*

*Rustle rustle*

Azusa: ...

Yui: ...Phew.

( I somehow managed to patch him up. Now all I can do is wait for him to wake up. )

But...

( ...No, it’ll be fine. I’m sure he will regain consciousness... )

Azusa: ...Nn...

*Rustle*

Yui: Azusa-kun...!

( Thank god. He woke up...! )

Azusa: ーー Ugh, Eve...Where am I...?

Yui: Well...ーー 

ー She explains to him

Azusa: ...I see. So it really was Kino-san and his comrades who killed those Vibora...

On top of that...It was the Raven under his command who attacked the Castle...

...

...I once again failed to protect others. Not that Vibora child...nor myself even...

Yui: ...It was beyond your power. Please don’t blame yourself, Azusa-kun...

Azusa: ...But it’s my fault...

I mean, if only I was strong...I should have at least be able to save someone...

But because...I’m such an incompetent loser, I let everyone die...

...I knew it...I’ll forever be a weakling...

Yui: ...Azusa-kun...

ー The scene shifts to the dungeon

Yuma: ...It’s no use. The guards are patrollin’ ‘round the entrance. 

I mean, we could always force our way outta here, but it’d suck if that’d put the other two in danger...

Ruki: ...We have no other choice. Let us observe how things unfold from in here.

Kou: Hey, Ruki-kun. I wonder what those guys are plotting?

They make this Resistance group called the Raven and go mayhem with it...

Besides...I wonder if Eden is safe? What exactly...should I do...?

Ruki: ...I believe they are most likely after Karlheinz-sama’s powers currently in Sakamaki Kanato’s possession.

That guy wants to get his hands on those powers and take over the Demon World.

Kou: No way...

Ruki: However...If that is his objective, then he should be well aware that there is no point in trying to use us as hostages. 

Yuma: I guess he just captured us for now and will think of a way to use it to his advantage next.

Ruki: Well, I’m sure you’re on the right track with that.

Now’s just to hope that those two are safe...

ーー TO BE CONTINUED ーー

[forestgoblinvibes]

141 x Male!reader (shifter Au)

So! I wanted to give y’all more information about the shifters in this AU before posting the first chapter (should be out soon)

These questions are some i have worked on for a while. Since while I’m making this a Modern Warfare AU. The character you read as, and the questions/rule’s below all come from a separate project I’m doing that was worked into this!

From this point on, questions from me made after I post this will be in green. Questions in blue will be from my lovely readers!!

To start:

What is a shifter in this AU?

Good question! A shifter is a person, who’s born with the ability to shapeshift into an and animal whether it be an avian, reptile, aquatic animal and so in.

This also means some people can be shifters of domesticated animals like basic cats and dogs. Not everyone has a more wild creature.

Can a shifter turn a human?

Another great question and no. That would make them a were-creature and that’s not what I’m going for. While it would be cool it can also create many issues.

What are the physical differences between a shifter and human?

It depends. In my story 90% of shifters look just like any other human being. From head to toe you really can’t tell.

Now! That doesn’t mean it’s always like that. Shifters have ability to let more animal features take over their features.

Some examples include: an avian allowing feathers to grow through their hair or they pupils became slit shapes. Or a reptile having faint patches of scales. An aquatic having gills while swimming in a pool. Or some having claws out on a regular basis. Or faint markings like spots or stripes.

It all depends on the person, and partially on how accepting the community around them is.

Are there shifters who prefer living an animalistic life?

Yes! In the shifter community these people are known as “ferals” or “nomads”

And their not looked down upon. Some people admire them and their protected under hunting laws.

In fact that brings us to our next question!

What kind of laws are in place that go against or protect shifters and humans from each other?

Let’s start with the protection laws! And I’ll just list these off for the most part.

Shifters cannot hunt a human obviously. If a shifter harms a human there must be a probable cause for self defense or protection of property or family. This goes the same for humans to shifters

Any shifter who wishes to live a nomadic/feral lifestyle is REQUIRED to let areas of power such as (police offices, hunting and game wardens and mayors ect) know who they are and what their form looks like. They are always required to wear a item of identification such as collars, scarves, chains or specific plants to make hunters aware that they are not game.

Following this rule, if a normadic shifter is killed with malicious intent (meaning the hunter saw and choose to ignore the shifter’s identification) said hunter while be charged with murder and punished accordingly. But if a shifter is killed and lacked any identification an investigation will take place and as long as the hunter is proven not guilty nothing can be down and any family members who may more the death will be given compensation for the tragic accident

There are serval laws that protect shifters and humans from discrimination against each other. A shifter can’t be fired/not hired for being a shifter or specific animal and vice versa

Shifters do need hunting license, this was agreed upon to help protect local while from dwindling or overgrowing of the area lacks many predators. They do not need licenses for flying or swimming though

And while I think of more laws or are given ideas I will add to this

So are there only predator shifters? What about bugs?

Fabulous question! To start no! Shifters can be predator or prey and they both live happily with each other. There are deer, horses, even mice and such. Prey shifters have laws protecting them from predators shifters as well to insure peaceful living. But there are no bug shifters, for me it’s not the best? I feel like they’d be to small and I’m to much danger that even if there was they’d live happily in hiding to avoid being squished

At what age does a shifter first change?

Well normally this’ll vary person to person from how they take care of themselves to stimulants around them. But on average most shift by 16 and this earliest shift recorded was at 3 years of age

Why are shifters a dying species?

That’s because of humans sadly. Before laws and regulations were in place, when shifters were first discovered humans were scared. And what does one do when scared? Protect what you know and kill what you think is dangerous. It took serval years long ago to reach peace

Are there clothing differences for shifters in the military?

So this idea comes from a TikTok artist and I do have their permission to use this idea. The artist is (@the_dumbestbitch)

But yes, Chirps (the reader) is not the only shifter in the military and obviously not the first so there was some trial and error to find a military uniform that worked if a shifter needed to quickly shift. Obviously no shifter wants to be naked when they shift back so after some testing. A special skin tight clothing was made.

These clothing items were normally one a piece sleeveless suit that went on under all their gear. So In emergency’s or when needed a shifter could quickly shed their gear and turn. All while being able to shift back and not be as naked as the day they were born.

Do shifters have more then two forms?

Yes and no? So to start the two forms are their human and animal. That’s a given, but some people can have more than one and this depends on family lineage. Now a wolf shifter and a feline shifter can have kids together. But the child in question will only take after one parent (so no hybrids/ligers and so on) but here is where bloodline comes into play. Say a human and a shifter get together, they can have kids, those kids have a 50/50 chance of coming out fully human or fully shifter no in between. And a child from a human and shifter could only have those to forms.

Now! If two shifters have a child no matter of the animals the bloodline is stronger and depending on the strength of said like going further back the child had a chance to have more then two forms. This all depends on how common it is in your families history. Take Chirps for example

Chirps comes from a strong feline family, mother was a tiger, father was a panther. Grandma was a lion and grandfather was a panther. It goes back a long way with a few wolves at one point but never a human so the shifter gene is incredibly strong in chirps.

So chirps could have more then the two. He’s never tried. So who knows?

But for the most part extra forms come down to two basic things. Bloodline and emotions. Fear is a powerful thing. Anger can be a dangerous fuel. Sorrow can be a blanket that suffocates. All of this can be portrayed in the form someone takes. All these emotions can unlock new and dangerous things.

Are any 141 members going to be shifters?

Honestly I don’t know. What do you think? I truly want options from others. I want the reader to feel unique and special. (In my experience AND THIS IS MY OPINION. I AM NOT SHAMING OTHER WRITERS) but when it comes to reading shifter story’s a lot of it is the omegaverse or smut driven and there’s nothing wrong with that. I just want something for readers that’s not smut driven. And yes I know there are plenty of incredible writers who have story’s that aren’t driven by smut. But at the same time I don’t find a lot of shapeshifter story’s

How tall is a shifters animal form?

This is intierly based in their human highs. For example a normal adult lion can be anywhere from 6/8 feet tall nose to tail (I think)

Now this is how it works to me? Say someone whines a shifter lion is 5,5. Their animal from while average out at 6 or so feet tall. Their second form will never be smaller then a normal animal.

But they can be bigger!! Agin, take Chirps for example. As a human he’s about 6,3 (almost as tall as ghost. Dennis is 5,10)

An average adult panther is about 5/7 feet from nose to tail and height is normally 2.33 inches (I think) so for Chirps there is a big different in normal animal height.

Wanna know how I fix that? With the magic of being a writer of creative liberty hahahaha.

Anyone, Chirps Panther from stand at about 7 feet tall at the shoulder. He’s a big bish (taller then ghost like that) but this leaders to another question asked but a friend.

Can shifters pick and chose their size when that large or in general?

And the answer is yes, with practice. So for Chirps his ‘true height’ while in animal form is 7ft at the shoulder. Which in most scenarios is extremely impractical, especially in situations where stealth is required. Chirps rarely using his true height, only in cases like chapter one where he needs to carry someone on his back to safety while also fighting. It’s a bulkier form even if he’s still slender. Normally he chooses a height of about 5.10 at the shoulder. Still large but more comfortable for him. The smallest he’ll normally shift to is that of an average panther.

What inspired me to make the shifter Au Chirps story in general?

A lot actually inspired me for this AU and the story in general. The episode Shapeshifters from “love death and robots” played into my inspiration for the AU. And “Teen wolf” inspired some of the ability’s or lore for my actual story. As well as “wolf blood” (does anyone temper that show?). And even “supernatural”. And some things like eye colors, abilities and weaknesses are inspired from these shows as you’ll see in further chapters.

But for now this is it. This will be pinned on my blog for easy access. If you have any questions please, please ask them! I’ll be happy to answer them on here!!! Same for suggestions that I can go off of for the story to come!! And with that, have an amazing time!! Don’t be scared to reach out!!