#i do one thing that makes me feel like a human and then it dominoes because i want to do more things that make me feel like a human

[wyn-n-tonic]

So... I haven't been feeling super great and it could just be because my period is three weeks late and all my hormones are in a pile up causing me to be insane or it could be the 27 years worth of major depressive disorder just chilling in my brain or it could be the EDS and the possible POTS, you know? It could be all of those! It could be none of those! But I will say... I have seen a significant decrease in my stress levels and I would like to talk about the things I'm doing for self care that are keeping me from losing my fucking mind.

Read more because this shit is just me rambling about my favorite self care things. Like I've really finally found a good combo for me and it makes me so happy that it doesn't feel like a chore. It's just nice!!! Also, this is not medical advice, this is just your friendly neighborhood mentally ill girly who deals with chronic illness sharing the things that make me happy.

FIRST OF ALL!!!! WASH YOUR FACE!!!! THEN TAKE YOUR FUCKING MEDS!!!!! I take my meds every single day at 8:10am because it's good to take your meds at the same time every single day *but* I've also discovered that's the best time to take my adderall so that it's really kicking in by 9 after I've done all my emails and things and need to focus on, like, actually doing my job. I've also been taking women's multivitamins and magnesium glycinate supplements. I feel like they've both made me less of a bitch because it's helped with the pain.

I have been eating breakfast! Not just iced coffee and prayers either, I've been eating a real ass breakfast. Everyday I make myself a little breakfast sandwich with an English muffin, egg, sausage and cheese of choice (I like colby jack, do whatever tf you want). This equals out to about 28g of protein and I'm supposed to have at least 30g first thing in the morning so it's pushed to 31g (maybe more) with the oat milk latte I make with my cute little espresso maker and milk frother. I have also limited my caffeine intake to one silly little coffee a day (but I'll have the occasional sips of coke zero when I feel a migraine trying to move in).

I've been working out recently. Even if I don't go to the gym, I try to get up and go for little walks. Which is nice. After I move, I want an under the desk treadmill.

I have a really bad habit of biting/picking my nails, especially when my anxiety is high or I feel the need to fidget but, for about the last few months, whenever I get the urge to bite or pick, I use cuticle oil instead and have been rubbing that into my nails/cuticles and it tastes god awful so of course I do not bite.

After work, I take a shower and I've started using the Saltair body wash in Santal Bloom because it smells very good TO ME. They have a bunch of different scents. But please remember that body wash is only a scent so please wash yourself with actual soap (and use a washcloth too oh my god, why is this a debate??? WASH IS LITERALLY IN THE NAME). Also, wash behind your ears EVERY SINGLE TIME.

ALSO night showers > morning showers. Argue with a wall because why would I want to get in my cozy bed with a body that has been steeped in outside germs all day??? Dirty feet??? ON MY SHEETS?!?! No.

I have *never* liked lotion because it's all too greasy or it smells gross or it's BOTH. I just get the autistic ick. I don't like things that sit ON my skin. But I know I should use it and I know I need to so I keep buying different brands of lotion but then I never finish them because oh my god so so gross and greasy. Anyway, somebody recommended that I try eos brand lotion and I have been using the coconut waters scent and oh my god. I recommend this lotion but use whatever you want and buy whatever scent you want, it's just nice. This lotion pairs very well with the body wash I like and it just makes me feel cozy as I get ready for bed.

Also wash your face again!!!!

(For skincare, I double cleanse with an oil cleanser & then a salicylic acid cleanser in the AM and a hyaluronic acid cleanser in the PM)

And I've been dermaplaning lately. That shit slaps. Why wasn't I doing that before???

And people keep telling me to buy topical magnesium to help with chronic pain but I kept getting links for Amazon and the thing about Amazon is... I don't like to use them if I can help it but I especially do not want to buy, like, make up or food or skincare products or vitamins on there because the amount of unregulated third party sellers freaks me out and I'm not trying to pop a rat poison supplement instead of what i actually ordered. You know? Anyway, my friend told me to get this Being Frenshe soothing stick... besties..... I have been using this shit ALL DAY LONG It's going on my thighs, my neck, my shoulders, my fingers, my knees, my ankles, my shins and it's so good for the chronic pain. And it smells so good and layers very nicely with the lotion and the body wash.

Seriously, my skin is so soft and I haven't really felt the need to pop a pain pill in a bit, my sleep is improved, my ability to calm my heart rate down during the day has improved. Did I mention my skin is soft?

Also, I'm currently losing weight and still healing from my biopsy (yes, I know it's been three months!!!) and I feel like the body wash + lotion combo I'm basically living in daily (sometimes twice a day because the showers are just so relaxing and not a chore to me now) are soooo helpful for my stretchmarks and scars.

Also, I've been turning my computer off an hour before bed to read which has been lovely.

Also, I bought enough lip balm (also eos because it's shea and not beeswax) to keep in different places. So I have a bed lip balm, a desk lip balm and a purse lip balm with one floater just randomly around the house.

And the *ONLY* AI we support in this household is the kind in my fancy little toothbrush that guides me in how best to brush my teeth.

Anyway, I just love being in my bed cozy sleep shirt smelling like coconut and vanilla and watching monster movies while not being in pain and having a resting heart rate that is NOT in the 120s. It's so beautiful. especially because, for the longest time, I couldn't get my resting heart rate below 85 while SLEEPING.

[nosyrobin]

💕𝐀 𝐁𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐇𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐎𝐮𝐭💕

𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: 𝐖𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚 𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐡𝐲𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐝. 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝𝐧’𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐜𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦.

𝟐𝟎0𝟑!𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐗 𝐆𝐍!𝐖𝐡𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐁𝐚𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

TW: slight harassment

💗NO ONES POV:💗

FRIDAY, 3:40 PM, SUNNY DAY

It was a slow day. No crimes being committed, no monsters, no Slade. Nothing. Just you relaxing.

Relaxing on the couch, watching your favorite cartoon while popping fruit in your mouth. You were enjoying your day, heck, you were enjoying your whole afternoon. As you go to throw a fruit into your mouth, a certain Tamaranean came up behind you.

"Hello cutest bat!" Starfire yelled out loud, prompting you to choke on your fruit as you look up and tap on her am rapidly. Starfire yelps scared and punched your back, making you fly out of the couch and land on your stomach. But at least she had taken the fruit that was stuck in your throat out.

You gasped for air as you look at starfire who is now embarrassed at how she scared you to choking. "Sorry friend Bat." She says with a smile.

"It's fine Star..." you said with a weary smile while siting up. Starfire floats over to you and sits by you. "So what you need?" You fully smiled, grabbing your bowl of fruit. You were still hungry despite the scare the girl had given you.

Starfire's smile disappeared as a flustered look overcomes her. "I...I would like to do the hanging out with you." Your eyes widen. Surprised she didn't ask anyone else.

"Me?" You questioned pointing to yourself with a raised brow.

"You." She retorted with shy smile, pointing to you.

You both sat there at the ground staring at each other with you being criss crossed and her having her legs underneath her. Her hands on her thighs. She was staring with the same flustered expression, you chuckled with a small smile.

"Sure, let me get dressed then."

You were in your silk pajamas, so of course you had to change if you were going out with your friend.

Starfire smiles at you and flies up excitedly with a bright smile. "Glorious! I will wait for you the cutest bat."

You sat up chuckling at the nickname she had started to pick up when you left your ski-mask behind as a way to hide your identity. She use to pout when you pulled a trick with having another mask under your mask when she first wanted to see your face.

—————————————————

You walked out your room and over to where Starfire was standing in the living room. You had picked out a street wear attire. You had your classic and definitely not 99th white tee shirt with your usual denim jeans that hung a little baggy with your white sneakers.

Honestly your short sleeves showed off how toned your arms were from training and working out. It like a sleeper build but you could tell that this Bat definitely had some muscle for a teen.

You still kept your domino mask on, feeling as if it helped made you feel cooler. Even if you did have it on with your silk pjs. Starfire use to pout when you deny access to see your face. You have to follow the big bat's rule strictly anyways.

"Yo! I'm ready Star." You had a toothy grin as starfire smiled excitedly.

Next thing you two knew, she was soaring through the air with a giant white bat on her trail to the city. As the two landed on the sidewalk, you dropped down transforming slowly back to human in your civilian outfit.

Dusting yourself off you looked at starfire in her usual. You frowned, now that you thought about it. Starfire doesn't really have any clothes other than her usual outfit. Guess it time to use your real self.

As starfire was looking around, civilians walked pass her. But soon as she turned to look at you, you looked normal. And not like the normal she usually sees. You didn't have your domino mask on. Your eyes were [e/c] colored and slight appearances you had before were gone and completely human.

"Why—"

You cut her off quick with you putting your hand in a motion of "wait".

You then blinked, trying to focus your vision before it stopped with your tunnel vision. You could finally see as you let out a sigh.

"My earring that someone made, so I can blend in with civilians more easy."

Starfire was now more confused as there were no crimes and monsters around. "But there are no harmful things or villains?" She walked over to you and placed a hand on your shoulder with a worry look.

"Are you hiding from something?"

You chuckled and placed a hand over hers, "no Star, I'm good. I just want to feel like a person instead of a hero today. Or even a bat." You said as you dragged her around.  You hummed as starfire looked at your hands locked with her own. She felt the urge to intertwine, but before she could even dare to do so. You let go of her hand and showed her to a candy store, honestly thanks to Beast Boy to showing you this place.

"Soooo...if we're gonna hang out I at least want to show you to a candy place I've been thinking about showing you to." You scratched the back of your neck. Starfire cups her hands together smiling at you. "Let's go shall we?" She wraps her arm around yours. You both walked in and were amazed at the colorful colors.

There was even a train holding candy in the back of it while small kids were running around with some of the parents following their own kin. Starfire's eyes were wide with a twinkle at how beautiful and delicious it looked. You turned around seeing some cotton candy flavored fun dip. Starfire ooh'd at what you held, you held it to her and immediately she ripped it open and dumped it in her mouth.

You sweat dropped at how eager she was to eat it. After she gulped down the favorable dust of fun dip. She hummed with a bright smile.

"I am in love with this shop! We should get more for our friends." She exclaimed, grabbing your arm as she checks out more candies in the shop.

It ended with you having to almost spend $1,000 of candy before you stopped her and left with a drained expression while she was excited for the rest of the day.

"Cmon Y/N, we have the more shopping to do!" She exclaimed as she walked ahead of you sighed.

"Is this how boyfriends feel when their girlfriends spend a lot of money?" You thought as you held the medium size bag of candy that the team would adore later. You followed the giddy girl who seemed enlightened by being by you.

As you two walked around, you seen a mall and smiled. "Let's go there next." You pointed to the mall, the Tamaranean girl nodded at your words as you opened the door for her to enter first. What starfire didn't expect was so many people, she unconsciously wrapped her arm around your muscular one with a weary look.

"I wish to not to lose your side....." she said softly for you to hear her. You looked at her, "you won't lose me." You said confidently as you guided her through the crowds of people. It was Friday, of course there's a lot of people and teens around.

Some teens and adults look at Starfire a little weird, making her lean her body more into you. Making her feel self conscious as she looks down. You seemed to notice as you walked over to a some mall couches. Putting down the bag of candy on the couch, you grabbed her two hands in your own.

"You okay Starfire?" You asked with a small smile. She looked up to your face, "I am not sure...they look at me as if have a Zornian muck beetle for a head.." she says with a sadden tone. Facing to the ground around. Your smile turned into a frown as you only shake your head. "Well, they're idiots for staring at you like that."

She looked up confused before you started to talk again. "Cause all I see is an amazing girl that's gonna have the best day with me." You said with a smirk, grabbing her hand as you walked forward. You had grabbed the bag of candy as well. She felt a smile curve onto her face as her spirit seemed to brighten.

You took to her clothing store, you wanted to spoil her. Thanks to Bruce's allowances, you helped the Tamaranean girl pick out some things that caught her eyes and what caught yours. You waited outside of the dressing room, passing time with playing candy crush on your phone.

A girl that looked like she work here walked by you, not noticing you before she took a double check at you and stopped walking.

You were too busy crushing this level, you smiled at passing it before the sound of someone clearing their throat grabbed your attention. You looked with a raised brow, in your view you see a girl who looked about your age with a black crop top and cowboy pants with sandals. She's a Mexican girl with a light blue eyeshadow and winged eyeliner. Her curly dark brown hair really looked good with her tanned skin.

"Why hello there handsome, how are you doing?" She said as she held her arms behind her back and leaned forward at you. You felt awkward as you never had an attractive girl give you attention.

"Uuuhh..yeah I'm doing good..." she smirked at you being awkward, mistaking it as being nervous around her. She walked up closer to you, she almost towered over you. Placing her hand on your arm, her eyes widen.  Squeezing it before she pinched your cheek.

"Well aren't you a sharp one. Working out haven't you?" You tried to speak before she shushed you with a finger to your lips. "Don't say a word cutie."

The curtain of the dressing room a certain girl was in was pushed open. You immediately pushed the girl away from you. Almost sending her across the whole store. Starfire exited out of the dressing room, her timid steps alerted you fully as you felt as time stopped.

Your jaw went slack. Starfire had crossed arms, her beautiful red hair complemented the beautiful dark purple crop top sweater that the sleeves hanged perfectly on the side of her upper bicep. She  wore with denim shorts. She still wore her gauntlets, her metal arm band was invisible due to the crop top sleeve. She had white converses with it, either way at least the top and shorts was cute and fitted her well.

Starfire stood there staring at you anxiously, waiting for your comment as you felt a goofy smile appearing on your face.

"Woah. You look beautiful Starfire..." The anxiety melted off the girl's shoulder as she giggled happily. She felt her heart swell with warmth hearing you complement her.

"Thank you friend bat!" She smiled as she hugged you tightly. Your face mushed against her chest. You felt oxygen leaving your body. You gasped for breath as you squirmed but patted her back welcoming her. As she let you go, you felt your back almost popped out and air finally come back to you. The worker you had pushed far away came back.

"Oh. Is this your girlfriend or something?" She said with slight mischievous expression. Starfire looked at the confused at who she was. You jolted from the girl, sweating bullets as you felt Starfire grip your arm and pull you to her side.

"Who are you?" Starfire says, raising her brow at the girl. "And I am the girlfriend you are talking about." Your mouth dropped open, you were certain she doesn't really know what a "girlfriend" is meant here. The air felt tense before you stepped up and spoke.

"Hey! So Uhm, Star let's go to another store. Heheheheh....." you chuckled nervously, pushing the alien girl away from the other. The dark colored hair kept her smug look as Starfire turned around and made a "I'm watching you" gesture towards her with an annoyed look.

After the whole encounter, Starfire quickly changed back to her original outfit. You carried her bag, going to the front to pay for the top and shorts. Starfire still kept her arm around yours, while you paid for the top and bottom. Feeling as if you both should leave the mall, you did.

You took a deep breath of air meanwhile Starfire still had a stank face. She felt a certain way at how that girl looked at her bat, she couldn't point to it as she huffed. You turned around to face her confused. She just stood there with puffed up cheeks and back faced to you.

"Star...you okay?"

"I am certainly not the okay...that girl seemed like a grimplork..." She then sharply turns to you. "Do you have a certain relation with her?" Her eye brow was raised in a way you felt you had to answer correctly, and honestly. "What?! No." you sweatdropped at the accusation.

"Star..let's just go around for more shops? Maybe it would take your mind off whatever that was." You said trying to light up her mood, she seemed to give you a pointed look. It soon melted seeing your eyes as she nodded and grabbed your hand. You lead the way to another clothing store. One that seemed her style.

It was small little montage with each other, trying on clothes as you put in another street wear fit. Meanwhile starfire wore a beautiful sundress that fit her perfectly. You clapped seeing her twirl in it. You two went to an arcade, playing air hockey. Starfire was confused on how to play before you got behind her and showed her how to play. She got the hang of it quickly and immediately liked it.

She sadly broke the puck, you had to pay for it with a drained expression. Now you felt how Bruce felt when he spent money on you for the first time. Either way you liked spoiling the Tamaranean girl who bowed apologetically at the arcade owner. You both left laughing at the situation though. You grabbed her hand again and walked the streets of Jump City.

Starfire seemed to understand more, it seemed like the cars and the sound of people faded out as her attention was stuck on you.

The way you pointed to more stores, the way you looked, the way you were so kind to her, made her feel...like she was really apart of your life. Her eyes softened with admiration on her face. You two hung out almost the rest of afternoon. It soon was getting a little late as the sun was starting to set.

You checked your phone you had hidden in your pocket, it read 6:30 PM.  "Alright Star, it's time to go back home." You took off the earring in your ears. A small blinding light took over you and you looked like your usual self. Pink glowing eyes and [color haired with or without white streaks]. You slick put on your domino despite Starfire already seeing your face.

Starfire smiled at you, "Yes..let's go home Y/N." She says floating off the ground now.

You shuffled the bags on your arms meanwhile Starfire put her hands under yours and flew off. You both had an amazing day with each other.

—————————————————

Starfire landed down perfectly with you first and then her. You massaged your under arms since she did have tight on you. You still had the shopping bags you bought for her and the candy. After massaging your arms, you looked up to her. The afternoon sky and sun looking beautiful on her golden skin. You smiled admiringly as she shyly smiles, "I enjoyed today with you." She says softly.

You chuckled at her being shy, you didn't really understand why since you two have hung out before. "I did too, I'm glad you loved shopping." Starfire feels her shyness goes away as you walked up to her, slight craning  your neck to look at her. "I just wanted you to feel how teenage girls felt on earth." You shifted a little with the bag. "Yknow, shopping and having usual fun like humans do."

It was a time like this where Starfire felt her heart racing again. The bat's compassion was surly winning this Tamaranean's heart. The way you took care of her the whole day. Even if it was her idea, it was something she liked a lot. She didn't know what to feel as her cheeks flushed, her hair flowing in the warm humid air. "Anyways, you can get your ba—" Before you could try to say anything and give her the shopping bags that were hanging on your arms.

She kissed your cheek. Cupping your face as she pressed her lips against the side of your face. It felt like your hearts synched as time went back to place. Her lips left the bat's cheek as she held a smile.

You froze there with wide eyes, feeling like a statue. She took this chance as she quickly taken the shopping bags from you and flew inside the tower. Not without getting the bag of candy too.

Just leaving you there as you broke out of the trance and touch your cheek. You felt your face heat up. A goofy smile appeared on your cheek, you then teleported away with a small blinding light and a heart left behind.

[too-much-tma-stuff]

I’ll Always Answer Your Call

Unexpected part 2 to Do What I Cannot

---------

Jason took Danny down to one of the smaller sitting rooms as Batman had suggested, he didn’t know what would be done with the bodies of Danny’s parents but he didn’t care. They had deserved to die for everything they had done to Danny, let alone the other ghost that had no doubt been victims of their insane obsessions. He wondered if they would become ghosts, if they did would that be good for Danny? He knew that Danny was the ghost king even if they both wanted to keep that bit of information from the other heroes for now. That would make his parents his subject, he would have every right to punish them however he saw fit, would he like that or would it be even harder on him? Maybe Jason could pass word on to Ellie about what had happened and she could pass it on to Fright Knight and Walker and they could deal with the Fentons instead, shielding Danny from all that nastiness.

That was a future problem though, it took ghosts a while to form in the ghost zone and they wouldn’t get out for a while after that, they could wait and still deal with it before it became an actual problem. For now the only thing he wanted to focus on was Danny, still curled up in his arms and sniffling slightly. He knew Danny was different now then he had been when he had lived, must be. Jason doubted when Danny was alive he’d had skin the colour of a lake covered in thick ice, a slightly elongated face, pointed ears and odd, uncanny, elfin proportions.

There was no mistaking him for a human anymore but he was so beautiful in his own way, it was one of the first things that had struck Jason about Danny, the odd unearthly beauty of him. Jason had thought he looked like the moon come to earth and given vaguely human form. He had been more right then he had known then, after seeing Danny’s even less humanoid forms, all taking after space in some way.

Jason sat down in one of the bigger arm chairs so Danny could comfortably sit sideways across his lap, Danny promptly curled up there, leaning against Jason’s chest while Jason rubbed his back, trying to sooth him while he cried. “They can’t hurt you anymore,” Jason murmured softly. “I won’t say it’s okay, because nothing about what they did is okay, but they can’t hurt you anymore, and I’m here.”

“I know you are,” Danny whispered against his shoulder softly. “You’re so good to me Jason, you have no idea how much I appreciate you. For always answering my call, I-I’m sorry I took control, I really didn’t mean to, I was just so emotional,” he murmured and Jason shook his head. He was wearing his domino mask under his helmet so he quickly took the helmet off and set it aside so he could lean his forehead against Danny’s.

“It’s alright,” He promised, “It let me know how badly you needed me. I would have come anyway, but I knew how fast I needed to go.”

“I’m guessing you still won’t let me break the band then?” Danny asked, chuckling weakly and Jason gave a crooked smile, taking one of Danny’s hands and pressing it against his chest.

“No, of course not. I was so lost before I heard your call, being with you like this is the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I’m happy to serve you as my king,” He murmured and kissed Danny softly, feeling the spirit sigh against his lips, cool arms wrapping around his shoulders.

“I’ll take responsibility for their deaths,” Danny whispered when they broke the kiss, a haunted look passing through his green eyes. “It was my will that caused it really, even if you would have done it anyway, I don’t want you to get in trouble.”

“Fuck that!” Jason barked more loudly, lowering his voice when Danny flinched, it was an automatic response not true fear but Jason didn’t want to add to Danny’s distress in anyway. “I did it, I’ve killed people before for less and I’ll probably do it again. You’re not a killer Danny, and I probably could have stopped myself if I had really wanted to. You don’t deserve to have this put on you, you already told Batman I was responding to your emotions but that’s as much blame as you’re going to get. If B lectures me about this then so fucking be it! I stand by what I did.”

Danny gave him a rueful smile and nuzzled back in against his chest, Jason just held him for a while, quietly. “I don’t think B will actually disapprove that much actually. I mean he’s really firm in his no killing rule shit, but I think even he’ll be able to see that with the way those two acted they weren’t safe to leave alive and after what they did to you… I think any lecture will be performative more then anything. He’ll understand,” Jason mused as he combed his hair through Danny’s messy white hair, now laying almost flat since the emotional upheaval had passed.

“They were a threat to everyone around them,” Danny murmured in agreement. “We’ll have to talk to the JL about taking possession of all of their research and stuff quickly, the last thing we want is for it to fall into the wrong hands. I’m just… Jason I feel really betrayed,” he admitted, soft as a breath, Jason felt his heart drop like a stone. “Why were they here? Why did the Justice League want to talk to them at all?!” He asked, his voice getting a bit louder as emotions built again. “This tower is a safe space and they brought in two fucking mad scientists that would have tried to shoot me on sight whether or not they knew about those two being my parents. I don’t understand!”

Oh no he was crying again, Jason hugged him close and tried to make soothing sounds, his half formed core letting out a stuttering purr and broken little coos to try and sooth his lover.

“We didn’t want you to be our only line of defense between us and potential ghostly threats,” Jason looked up and glared, but not as hard as he would of if it hadn’t been Diana coming in. She was always one of the better one with people, with knowing what to say and when not to push. Jason probably would have drawn a gun if it had been batman.

Danny looked up and gave Diana a watery glare, which she returned with a sad smile coming to sit in the armchair across from them, a respectful distance away. “We didn’t believe a word they said, we simply wanted access to their research and technology so we might have a bit of a head start learning about this new threat.”

“Then why didn’t you ask me?!” Danny flared, anger puffing him up again for a minute. “You had a ghost right there and instead you went to do mad scientist ghost hunters with a history of fucking war crimes?”

“We didn’t realize how bad they truly were,” Diana said regretfully. “And we didn’t want you to be the only thing standing between us and potential disaster. We wanted to take some of this weight off of your shoulders, without realizing how much worse it would make things. I understand if you won’t feel safe here for a while, but please know that we did this with the best of intentions, we didn’t mean to hurt you, and we’re so very sorry for how this turned out.”

“It’s alright,” Danny said, slumping in Jason’s arms again. He was always to forgiving, at least in the opinions of Red Hood. “You should seize as much of their research and equipment as you can and quickly. As much as I don’t really want anyone to have them better you then the GIW or Vlad, just.. Please be careful. My parents were geniuses, but they were also fools. A lot of their inventions are very dangerous to ghosts and humans alike, fueled by unstable energy sources that can be catastrophic.

“It was one of their inventions that killed me to begin with, and they didn’t even notice for almost 2 years. They were fools, blinded by their own desires. They should have never had children.” Danny said, sounding tired and resigned.

Jason’s fingers twitched against Danny’s leg and back, and Diana looked sad. “You and your sister are unquestionable goods to the world, you have risen above your circumstances and we are glad to have you, but that doesn’t mean what was done to you was right, or ‘worth it’,” Diana agreed with a sigh. “I’ll pass on the message about seizing their research. Is there anything you need? Anything at all?”

“No, just Jason,” Danny assured causing a little flare of pride inside Jason. He was glad to be someone Danny could rely on like this, someone trusted.

“Alright,” Diana agreed and stood from her chair. “Batman would like to talk to you two later, when you’re ready,” she added after a moment of hesitation.

Jason growled unconsciously and Danny glanced up at him, pressing his hand more firmly against Jason’s hand and giving him a gentle smile. “Of course, but not today. We’ll talk about it tomorrow. I need to get out of here, Jason? Take me home please?” He asked softly, giving Jason puppydog eyes he never could resist.

“Of course Starlight,” Jason murmured, stealing a quick kiss before he adjusted his grip on Danny and stood up, cradling Danny against him and heading straight down towards the Zeta-tubes so they could head back earth-side and try to forget about this whole mess.

[greatwyrmgold]

(raises hand) I think the Terrible Popular Worm Fandom would have a Nazi problem. Sorry if this clashes with the tone of other Terrible Popular Worm Fandom speculation.

Worm was written at a time where white people like me and Wildbow thought of neo-Nazis as Blues Brothers villains; they're bad people who want to commit unspeakable crimes against humanity, but they're too unpopular to be an actual threat. So Wildbow was kinda sloppy with Empire 88; on paper, there are points being made about white supremacy, but most of those were still half-formed when Kaiser got axed and E88's remnants quickly faded from narrative significance.

About nine months after Worm wrapped up, GamerGate knocked over the biggest domino that lead to neo-Nazis becoming an actual political threat, and one of the proto-alt-right's big targets was online fandoms. And the Parahumans fandom already has a notable minority who see Kaiser as a kinder, more honorable villain compared to the savage ABB and fillty Merchants.

If Worm was more popular, there would be more people in its fandom. There would therefore be more Nazi sympathizers and more apolitical teens, both of whom are useful targets for the alt-right. So they'd probably poke their way into /r/parahumans (and possibly other Worm fan communities) and do their radicalization pipeline thing. Make POC and queer people and so on feel unwelcome, spread reactionary rhetoric and memes, etc.

Two specific traits of Wildbow's become relevant at this point. First, he consistently tries to support everyone Nazis hate. He's often hilariously unsuccessful, but he tries. Second, he is perhaps too involved with his fan communities.

So once Wildbow realized his community had a Nazi problem, he would almost certainly try to do something about it. I have absolutely no confidence that it would be effective.

[viloxity]

I thought of something more fanciful, like for example, a reader girl almost a baby who entered a dungeon forgotten by everyone and there she found Jinwoo, in my delusions he can transform into a kind of chimera dragon (You know with a human body even the torso and the dragon torso hahaha) At first Jinwoo doesn't pay attention to this girl, but she keeps coming to see him, so Jinwoo tells her that if anything she doesn't have anything better to do in this abandoned world.

She tells him "I don't have parents, nor a family, much less does anyone care about my existence... Are you like that too, sir?" And although she only sees her human half hidden in the shadows, she does not see her dragon half (Let's be clear that obviously Jinwoo can transform at will but for me he is a bit lazy for that hahaha. Returning to the topic, she frequents him a lot and he He lets her be, bored more than anything since he doesn't bother leaving his territory, he usually listens to this girl's ramblings and over time he takes a liking to her (although he doesn't say it openly) Then on another day he tells her that Why don't you just stop coming to see him? If you know it's dangerous, but she doesn't care and responds with another question: "Why don't you ever let me see you? I only see your eyes, which are beautiful and changing."

Jinwoo would sigh and would take a while to respond with "Humans don't understand my existence, much less would you, but you're strange... maybe one day I'll let you see me in full."

And everything would stay there but with the passage of time she stops being a girl and at some point she is a teenager, at this point she is the only one who knows this eternal and forgotten dungeon (not so much because she is the only one who remembers and always goes to see him) In the end Jinwoo is seen for the first time when she tells him that she may not come to see him anymore because the way here is dangerous for a civilian, although he is bothered by that and blames the few police in the place.

Laughing without grace, Jinwoo finally agrees to show himself after years in darkness, she would be surprised but she would only tell him how great she looks and that would be enough to make him sigh at how strange she is but not make him love her less. Neither of them knew that Jin-Woo would become obsessed with her when she gradually stopped visiting him because she was busy in her adult life trying to survive in the remains of humanity, which would upset him and make him go out for the first time (I forgot to say it). but it's a strange AU hahaha, it occurred to me, Jinwoo is also a shadow monarch, obviously his physical form is different)

I hope you liked my delusions, anyway, thanks for reading! Another fellow novice fanfic writer greets you (Cough! I've been writing for 7 years, I'm sorry! Hahaha)

MY FIRST ASK WOOHOO!!! and an amazing one at that, I really love your mind! I wanted to wait until I got the second part out but I don’t wanna ignore this since it’s passionate and lovely so here I goooo

exploring AUs involving Jinwoo is great bc there’s soooo much to do with him—especially bc of his power as a shadow monarch. It’s one of the reasons why I decided to do a ‘bad ending’ story in relation to the main story; like what if jinwoo did not want to side with humanity? it’s like the same idea here except he’s a more neutral figure and is unbothered by the world around him, therefore he plays no hand in it…. Except you come barreling into his life. It’ll start a domino effect the moment you speak to him, which he might realize later but it’s too late then. Perhaps he might do subtle things that display his dragon like nature—hoarding—and humanity. If he has a hoard of sorts, he would give you gifts from his prized possession. Normally, he would be angered at the idea of some pathetic lowly human touching his treasure but he feels warm at the idea of providing you with something he cherishes. You would initially protest—probably because it looked expensive—but his growls that nearly ripped the cave apart would zip your lips immediately. Your departure that day would be filled with immense amounts of ‘thank yous’ and he would just give you a begrudging ‘yeah, whatever; get out of my sight.’

After some visits, and when you say the final visit will be your last, there is a new feeling that bristles within him. The way that his claws get sharper, his teeth begin to bare, and his expression contorts confused him—never before in his mundane life did he act in such a way. It was different, deviant, and new—a sensation that excited him more than anything. He would recognize, then, in his own little world how he gave you a comfortable little place in it—a place that is always, always by his side. If he was quick enough, hearing your footsteps echo as you trekked down the mountain, he would give chase whether that be through his dragon form or his shadows. If you had already left as he sorted his thoughts, he would fly to your village himself and find you. You were a priority now; someone who deserved everything and he knew he would be the one to give you the world. No matter the cost, he would have you, and he would keep you.

I hope this did your story justice? Thank you for sharing !!

[thordottir45]

The Outlaw's Spirit

After a reveal gone wrong, whether intentional or not, Danny books it. Sam and Tucker have to stay behind in Amity to prevent Maddie, Jack, and the GIW from following their best friend. The trio is 16~17 or so at this point.

Jazz, being the best big sis that she is, has been taking college classes online to protect Danny. She helps the two destroy the Drs. Fenton lab before grabbing her go bag and getting out of there. She plans to start anew in a different city so that Danny can eventually join her. She's thinking Gotham, with the ambient ectoplasm, and high crime rates, it'll feel more like home than Star City, or Metropolis.

Danny, meanwhile, keeps running. He comes across a high-tech jet and hides in it, pulling a stowaway.

This jet is a Batplane, but is currently being used by The Outlaws for a mission.

Danny's ghost sense has no idea about how to react to Jason, so it causes him to cough, revealing his location to the group.

"B." Artemis instructs Bizarro with his nickname.

Bizarro moves in slowly, while Jason pulls out his guns, and Artemis her sword. Bizarro opens wherever Danny is hiding, revealing his black hair and blue eyes of his human form. Seeing the shaking teen, B gently pulls him out and 'restrains' him via hug.

Danny is freaking out at the sight of these out-of-the-norm people, and his ghost sense is triggering a coughing fit, aggravating whatever wounds he may have.

"One of your brothers?" Artemis asks Jason, despite keeping her guard up.

"Not that I know. What are you doing in here, kid?" Jason lowes his guns, but doesn't holster them, wanting to keep them in hand in case this kid is an enemy.

Danny, coughing, takes a closer look at the three surrounding him.

"Red Hood? Artemis of the Bana-Mighdall? Bizarro? What? Huh?!"

"Worry, we hurt you." Bizarro says soothingly.

Tensing, Danny prepares to use his powers, but Artemis explains what Bizarro means before he does.

"What are you doing in here, kid? You're hurt." Jason reiterates before noticing just how the boy is breathing other than his coughing fits.

Feeling safer with these three than he had with his parents in a long time, and with them all not being entirely human themselves, Danny is willing to explain some things, but not everything.

"My parents, they're scientists, they found out that I'm not entirely human... I had to run. I saw this jet, and it was a chance for me to get further away from them before they track me down."

"They can track you?" Artemis asks while Bizarro releases Danny, setting the teen down on a bench. Jason pulls out a med kit and sets it down next to Danny.

Jason then gets the Batplane into the air while the other Outlaws get to know the stowaway more.

Jason's inner bat wants to do so much research that he resembles the Replacement more than himself, but more of him sees himself in the kid and, as much as he loathes to admit it, pull a Bruce to take care of the much-too-thin teen.

Setting the autopilot to Gotham, Jason re-joins the discussion, noting that the kid's coughs get worse the closer he gets. Odd.

Bizarro and the teen have bonded over video games and movies, even with Bizarro's speech mannerisms.

Artemis, on the other hand, is patching the boy up, not offering much to the conversation other than clearing some things up for B.

"Course's set for Gotham. Figure we'll want Alfie to get some proper food in ya. Now, can you explain all the coughing?" Jason plops down across from the teen, keeping some distance to not make the coughing worse if his hunch is right.

Danny explains in the broadest terms for his ghost sense, that it can tell when people have died, and that Red Hood didn't come back right.

Tense, Jason's vision bleeds into green as he questions, "How?"

"I can tell because I didn't come back right, either..." Danny then tries to explain ectoplasm as glowing green goo, causing Jason to tense even more.

"Lazarus Waters."

"What?"

Taking off his helmet, the lenses of Jason's domino are glowing, "Lazarus Waters. They threw me in mostly dead, and I came out mostly alive."

"That shouldn't..." Danny tilts his head, thinking of the lessons from Frostbite on the nature of ectoplasm and what happens when it gets corrupted. All part of his training for taking the throne. "Huh. Sounds like you got a batch of the more corrupted stuff. With pure ectoplasm, it would bring you back fully, with few side effects."

"Ectoplasm?" Bizarro asks from Danny's right.

Explaining in more detail, since Red Hood is some sort of subject of his and needs help, time passes and soon the autopilot is landing the jet.

"Come on, kid. Let's get some food in you, then we can see what to do about the Lazarus Waters." Jason puts a hand on the door to the Batplane, opening it to reveal the Batcave.

Just something that was floating around in my head. Not sure if I'll continue it, it's unlikely.

[theonewiththefanfics]

Dare to Hope, Dare to Dream (Part 1/?)

Synopsys: For three years now, Astarion and his love have been relegated to living in the shadows as he lost his ability to walk in the sun. But one day hope is reignited, and the vampire can't help but reminisce how he got where he is now.

Pairing: Astarion x fem!Reader

Genre: angst, fluff

Warnings: violence, abuse, talks of SA (if there is anything else that should be tagged, please do let me know)

Word count: 3240

A/N: I have not played Baldur's Gate 3 (I don't own a PS or a PC where to play it. all of this is based on the info gathered online and through Neil's own gameplay etc. Please be kind :) )

There had been a time in Astarion’s life when all he knew was pain. Physical. Emotional. Mental. Pain.

Two hundred years could be simply wrapped up with one word – abuse. What he wanted didn’t matter, what he thought meant nothing, all Astarion was reduced to was a piece of meat to lure victims for his master.

He was flayed for the most minor things, starved and entombed; he had his skin carved apart and then told to lay on his ruined back just to appease the vile tastes of the vampire he was sired to.

But now… now Astarion knew nothing but peace.

In a house which had been rebuilt from top to bottom, walls coloured cream and accented with gold to bring in as much light as he could, he got to live out his life in complete and utter bliss. He never expected to create a home for himself, never expected to live long enough to know what peace meant. Every second of his life had been shrouded by Cazador and his looming presence, like a dark cloud over the summer sky, but the vampire was long gone. Astarion no longer had to watch over his back whether a snap of a twig would be a boar or his old master.

Now the snaps of twigs meant a warm fire being lit in the hearth, a soft body curling against his as they enjoyed their time together.

That was another thing he never thought of having – someone who cared for him. Astarion was aware that years ago, there had been two loving elves, who’d cherished him, loved and worried for him. They called him Astarion for he was their “little star”. From time to time, he did wonder whatever happened to his parents, but then he thought of who he was now, what he was, and pushed those wandering thoughts away. Maybe one day he’d be strong enough to seek them out, but for now, he would enjoy the start of his new life with his love. His fearless leader. His Y/N.

As she lay against his chest, her back to him, he couldn’t help but be grateful for this crazy human to have entered his life. It was that damned tadpole that’d started to push the domino tower over, but it had been her that toppled the pieces that still threatened to stay standing. And despite all the horrors they’d had to go through, he would willingly put himself in the line of fire if it meant finding her once more.

Though as much peace as he had, not all of it was perfect to Astarion’s chagrin. He’d killed Cazador, slain him with his own hands, yes, but as Y/N had begged him to not ascend, pulling him away from the dark urge, the tadpole had been the only thing keeping him walking in the soon. And soon enough, it had to be eradicated as well, unless he wanted to turn into a mind flayer.

It hurt, that realisation as when he stood at the port and felt the sun kiss his skin, but where he’d come to relish in the warm feeling, it was now poison, turning him to ash, making him resign to live his life in the shadows of the night once more.

For two hundred years he’d been deprived of day, and the pain of losing that was even worse than the pain of the sun blistering his body. Tears had sprung out of their own volition and he dashed to hide, raising his cloak and trying to keep any of the rays at bay. As he ran for cover, quick steps followed behind, and when he curled in a ball behind some crates, body rocking back and forth, gentle arms had wrapped around him, a dark cloak pulled over their heads.

Astarion had already accepted to have to spend his life alone, he’d never make Y/N go with him to live like a spawn, but he wasn’t alone. Sure, they had created a bond he had hoped would last well after their adventures, but with the issue of walking in the sun back on the table, he knew it was too large of an ask. To give up one's life in the sun and forever live in greys and blacks – Astarion would never request Y/N such a thing.

Even as she adjusted the material over their heads, he stared up at her, trying to memorise each and every feature for the last time. He was prepared for the heartbreak. As painful as it would be to go on alone, the thought of Y/N happy and thriving would be enough to staunch his bleeding undead heart.

And yet, when he tried to say goodbye, tried to ask for one last kiss, she knocked him on the back of the head before pulling him in a bone-crushing hug.

“You stupid vampire,” Y/N muttered against the skin of his neck. “Where you go, I go. The sun doesn’t matter.”

Astarion wanted to argue, to tell her he didn’t deserve her giving up her life for him, but she silenced him with a gentle press of her lips.

“You love me, right?”

“More than anything,” came his sure reply, tears still rolling down his cheeks, and his hands clutching at her waist.

“Then please believe it when I say I love you. I want to spend my life, however long it may be with no one but you. Where doesn’t matter, as long as we are together.”

Once again, Astarion was ready to argue, but with a single shake of her head, Y/N silenced him. “You told me I cannot make decisions for you. But you can’t make decisions for me either. I want this.” She cupped his face between her loving palms. “I. Want. You.”

And that sort of settled the argument. The guilt still gnawed at Astarion from the inside out whenever he saw how tired Y/N got as she had to adjust to a new sleeping schedule, the couple of months while moving from a life of day to a life of night made his heart ache in sorrow. And the moments when he caught a glimpse of her on their balcony, the last rays of the day beaming down onto her body, making her glow like a deity seemed like a cruel reminder of what Astarion had conscripted Y/N to.

But she never complained. She never even mentioned how much she must miss the world when it wasn’t bathed in shadows. Instead, Y/N always turned to him with the brightest of smiles, one that could rival the burning star in the sky itself, and it made all his doubts vanish to some secluded corner of his mind.

At that moment though, Astarion rearranged himself in the settee, a large book in his hand as he studied embroidery patterns while Y/N ventured off only whoknowswhere.

It had been her idea he should look into tailoring not only as a pastime activity but as a profession. His eye for detail and fashion was unmistakable, and well, it gave him something to do, something to occupy his mind, and, potentially, once he gave into Y/N’s pestering, he could be persuaded into opening up a full-blown business. But for now, Astarion simply entertained the idea and turned to studying new patterns and fabrics.

For the better part of an hour, his darling had lounged with him, discussing what threads would suit best with what colours before disappearing between the rows of the library.

When the larger renovation of the house had been completed, and they at least had a bedroom and a bathroom, the two had taken on a project to present to the other. Astarion had taken it upon himself to convert the rooftop into a beautiful garden with blossoms that would bloom under the moonlight, having scoured the markets and paid ridiculous amounts of money for the bioluminescent flowers, while Y/N had decided to forego having a ballroom and turned it into a library for Astarion.

It’d been a gift unlike any other, and he’d cried the day she finally pushed open the large oak doors to reveal shelf after shelf, row after row of books. She knew how much he loved them, and how, especially now that he’d been robbed of experiencing the world to its fullest, books would take him on adventures across the universe, he couldn’t do so himself.

But what had brought him down on his knees was a large painting placed right above the entrance, and in the commission were the two of them, grinning at one another, Astarion’s lips pulled up in the widest smile, his vampire fangs on full display while Y/N had her arm wrapped around his waist, beautiful smile lines adorning her eyes and mouth.

For the first time in two centuries, Astarion had been able to see himself, and to have been depicted with such love and happiness gleaming on his face as he gazed at his lover was the only way he wished to be remembered in life as well.

With their painted twins watching over the little sanctuary, Astarion flipped a page, his scarlet eyes looking at the golden painting of the flowery embroidery pattern on a long white dress, and his chest constricted. It was something he so desperately wanted to see Y/N in one day if only he could step over his fears and propose when his sensitive ears picked up the sounds of creaking wood, small grunts and huffs, and then a loud thump from somewhere deep in the library.

“I’m okay!” Y/N’s voice echoed through the room, and Astarion sighed, closing the book.

“My darling, I would like for our lives together to be as long as possible.” He ventured deeper between the rows of shelves, finally coming up on Y/N who was scrambling from the floor. “But you and your incessant need to maim yourself seems to be quite the hindrance to my plans.”

How his clumsy human had been the one to become the leader of their rag-tag group while searching for a way to rid themselves of the mind-flayer tadpoles, was beyond Astarion, seeing as Y/N tripped and fell over every single pebble in her way. Even on thin air sometimes.

He extended a pale palm, and she took it with a soft smile. Just as she was ready to let it go and dust herself off, Astarion pulled her into his chest, pressing a gentle, but passion-filled kiss to her lips. “Please do refrain from doing things that might end up with you getting hurt. I rather like having you around.”

Y/N rolled her Y/E/C eyes at his dramatics, but nevertheless gave him a sweet peck. “I didn’t maim myself, I just took a little tumble.”

Instantly worry and guilt roiled through his stomach, no doubt showing on his face by the looks of her softening gaze. “Did I drink too much from you this morning?”

“No.” She cupped his cheeks, brushing a thumb over some unruly hairs of his brow. “My Star, you know you could never hurt me. You took what you needed, and you know I’d stop you if I felt it was too much.”

“I just…” he sighed, eyes cast to the ground.

“Star,” Y/N whispered, taking his chin between her fingers, and making him glance up at her. “I fell because my foot slipped. Not because I fell unwell after you fed from me. I am truly alright.”

Astarion took in a deep breath, eyes trailing along her neck where he could still see the faint marks of his fangs. Nothing like the brutal marks on his own left by Cazador who just wanted to inflict as much damage, to mark him as his spawn, but gentle pinpricks, not even her skin was raised.

“Okay.” He nodded. “I trust you.” And he sealed the promise with a kiss, Y/N humming in content against his cold lips. “But do tell me, what was so important you had to crawl all the way up there?” He surveyed the large bookshelf where on the very top row, he could see an empty spot.

“This.” Y/N untangled herself from Astarion’s hold, leaning down to pick up the book she’d fallen to the ground with, dusting off the cover with her hand. “I was looking for this one romance novel I remember getting ages ago, but when I was passing by these shelves, it almost seemed to be… I dunno… calling out? Whispering to me? There was this pull, and I just had to get it?”

Astarion sighed, wrapping his arms around her waist. “Have we learned nothing about strange things calling our names and not responding?”

“It’s why I have you.” Y/N’s smile was saccharine, eyes full of mischief. “You’re my impulse control.”

“Well, clearly I’m doing a shitty job of that.”

“Oh relax,” she waved him off. “What’s the worst a magical book could do?”

“Famous last words,” Astarion muttered under his breath, but clearly there wasn’t anything he could do to dissuade Y/N from seeing whatever it was through. “You could have at least asked for help, you know. You remind me of it all the time.”

She gave him the most ferocious glare she could muster, scowling over her shoulder and Astarion had to suppress a laugh behind tightly pinched lips. “Just because I am shorter than you, does not mean I am incapable of getting one damned book.”

“I never said you couldn’t. Just that you might be… vertically challenged… with some balance issues.”

Y/N pointedly ignored the comment and opened the book.

Astarion poked her cheek with his nose, but she didn’t budge, eyes spitefully trained on the pages she was flipping through. “A silence treatment, really, my dear?”

She just tilted her head and hummed.

“Fine,” the vampire condeced. “If that is how you wish to play this, I have no qualms about getting down and dirty.” And his fingers were instantly pressing against Y/N’s ribs.

A sharp intake of breath invaded his ears before she began twisting and turning away from him, uncontained laughter ripping through the silence of the house.

“Alright, alright, I give,” Y/N managed to get out through a fit of laughter. “You win!”

A self-satisfied smile bloomed on Astarion’s face as he twisted her to face him. “And what exactly is my prize?”

“No vinegar added to your wine.” She lightly jabbed him in the ribs with her elbow.

“You wound me, my darling,” Astarion put a hand against his chest, before resuming the position he was in before, pulling Y/N’s back to him in a tight embrace.

She just hummed, reopening the book he’d taken her attention away from. “That’s what you get for doling out backhanded insults.”

“My darling, I would never dare insult the love of my life, let alone backhandedly. If anything, I do it face to –,”

Y/N’s gasp of wonder interrupted Astarion mid-sentence. “Where did you get this?”

His white brows furrowed, as he glanced over her shoulder at the large tome in her hands where the picture she was gazing at seemed to be glowing. “I didn’t get this.”

“Oh, come on.” He could practically feel the eye roll. “You don’t have to lie to me. You and I both know our house has been paid. And not by our own money.”

“My darling, I would never deceive you about my looting ways.” Astarion chuckled. “Believe me, you would be the first person to know of my new… gains, but this – this isn’t something I found. And I do think I would remember if I did.”

The library might have been a gift from Y/N, but Astarion knew of every single book in it, he knew the row and the place where to find it. Not once in the three years since they had lived at their home, had he seen such a tome.

Y/N’s brows furrowed as she inspected it, on instinct, Astarion from where he’d perched his chin on her shoulder, pressed a gentle thumb between the worry lines, trying to smooth them out. He didn’t like it when she worried. She was supposed to be happy, content, smiling and laughing like in the painting of the two, though as inferior as it was in showcasing her true beauty. The time for worries was over.

“Maybe we should contact Gale?” Y/N mussed, closing the book and glancing over the cover before flipping it open again. “He could probably figure out what this is. If you didn’t put this here, and I for one, most definitely didn’t, it might be up his alley.”

Astarion groaned at the mention of the wizard. “My darling, you know better than anyone magical items and Gale,” he gagged on the name, “do not mix. He’d probably eat it before telling us anything useful about what’s in it or where it’s come from.”

“Get over it, will you?” She slapped his arm lightly, soft laughter escaping her lips. “It’s been years by now, and I’ve gotten you so many other pairs of boots.”

“The boots are the smallest of slights, darling.” Astarion pressed a kiss to the top of Y/N’s head and hid his nose in her hair. “I still remember how he tried to romance you, so I will be petty for as long as I wish to about anything I want to when it comes to that git. He tried to make you his.” His words were almost a whine of a petulant child. “When your heart was already mine. And I don’t share.

“Yes, my Star, I am very well aware of that.” Y/N chuckled, as he slowly swayed them to a song only he could hear, but both of them stopped as if frozen by a spell when her fingers turned the page.

There on the left side of the opening, a gorgeous image covered the paper by a peculiar image. On the top half of it was depicted the night sky, stars twinkling all around while the sun, not the moon, had been painted in gold so bright it almost seemed to glow and just underneath the sun a flower bloomed in full. On the bottom half was a flipped mirror image of the scene – the same flower only closed while the sky above it was that of a bright blue day and where the sun should have been, glowed a pale moon.

As his eyes scanned the drawings, they flitted to the right page as well. It wasn’t intricate, there weren’t any weaving designs around the edges, completely nothing else apart from twelve lines split apart in fours, written in a language Astarion couldn’t read, but there was something about the picture that made his chest squeeze and mind reel.

Hope. That was the feeling tightening around his heart. Hope of what the picture could mean – a flower of darkness blooming in the day and resting at night. A creature of night like him living a life in the sun.

“You know, you are always right, my love,” he mumbled as Y/N dragged a careful almost reverent finger along the paper, no doubt her mind coming to the same conclusion. “Maybe we should contact the wizard.”

When she turned around to face Astarion, his breath caught in his throat for such undeniable hope glimmered in her eyes. “I’ll write to him right now.”

Tags:

Everything tags: @palaiasaurus64 @supernaturalbaesduh @thatawkwardlittlefangirl @sea040561 @staryeyedgirl @deathbyarabbit @m-a-t-91 @maladaptive-ninja-returns @averyrogers83 @gallifreyansass @dewy-biitch @avxgers @unlikelygalaxygiver @magicwithaknife @ollyoxenfrees @bnhvrdy @tvwhoresblog @thatkindofgurl @sj-thefan @lestersglitterglue @im-squished @strangersstranger

A/N: So Tumblr is imposing text lenght now.... wtf... or is that just me? I was going to put this in a one-shot, but now I have to split it apart, so this is Part 1 or who knows. This man made of pixels on a screen is ruining my life. I want him now ! (with his consent, of course)

[hlficlibrary]

✤ Enemies to Lovers ✤

A series of posts with the top five fics of each category by kudos plus five more hidden gems from that category! Remember to leave kudos and a comment on the fics you enjoyed to show your appreciation! You can find our other recs here.

- Top 5 H/L Fics -

1️⃣ Unbelievers by @isthatyoularry {E, 136k}

It’s Louis’ senior year, and he’s dead set on doing it right. However, along with his pair of cleats, a healthy dose of sarcasm and his ridiculous best friend, he’s also got a complicated family, a terrifyingly uncertain future, and a mortal enemy making his life just that much worse. Mortal enemies “with benefits” was not exactly the plan.

Or: The one where Louis and Harry definitely aren’t friends, and football is everything.

2️⃣ Soft Hands, Fast Feet, Can't Lose by dolce_piccante / @haydolce {M, 112k}

American Uni AU. Harry Styles is a frat boy football star from the wealthy Styles Family athletic dynasty. A celebrity among football fans, he knows how to play, he knows how to party, and he knows how to fuck (all of which is well known among his legion of admirers).

Louis Tomlinson is a student and an athlete, but his similarities to Harry end there. Intelligent, focused, independent, and completely uninterested in Harry’s charms, Louis is an anomaly in a world ruled by football.

A bet about the pair, who might be more similar than they originally thought, brings them together. Shakespeare, ballet, Disney, football, library chats, running, accidental spooning, Daredevil and Domino’s Pizza all blend into one big friendship Frappucino, but who will win in the end?

3️⃣ Collision by itjustkindahappened / @tequiladimples {E, 226k}

Mythology/Fairytale!AU in which Louis is a dainty fairy with a temper who wants to be intimidating and Harry hurts people. Naturally, they hate each other.

(Featuring Liam, the big and not-so-bad wolf who’s got a thing for humans, Zayn, a human with supernaturally good looks, and Niall, the cupid who just wants his job to be easier.)

4️⃣ Flightless Bird by audreyhheart {E, 97k}

AU where Louis Tomlinson is a principal dancer with The Royal Ballet. When his rival from ballet school, moody dance prodigy Harry Styles joins the company, old wounds are reopened and old passions reignited. During the company's production of Swan Lake the secret that doomed their love is finally revealed, but will it be too late?

5️⃣ don't make this easy (i want you to mean it) by wildestdreams / @thelavendrhaze {E, 24k}

“Harry’s a player. All he does is chat everyone up. And guys like him are just--so ugh. He’s got that arrogant, self-assured smirk plastered to his face all the time. Always smug and stupid, like he could get anyone he lays his eyes on. All he does is make me mad and laugh all the time like he knows something that I don’t. That is so annoying.”

“But that’s just Harry,” Niall shrugged at Louis. “He doesn’t even try to flirt or anything. He’s just naturally charming, but that doesn’t mean he’s a player nor that he’s trying to get into everyone's pants. He’s just friendly. And he likes you. He doesn’t usually fall for people, but he fell for you.”

“Oh, should I feel special then?” Louis asked, snorting and rolling his eyes.

or Harry’s a frat boy who is head over heels for Louis and Louis wants nothing to do with him.

HIDDEN GEMS:

💎 An Amazing Race Around the World (And to my Heart) by Thingssicant / @slowlyseducedbycurls {E, 89k}

“This year marks our thirtieth race around the world, thirty seasons of teams bound by friendship, family, and even some people who just band together for the chance at the prize. But this year, we want to remove that dynamic,” Phil said, rubbing his hands together gently.

The cameras were whirring around them, trying to get every shocked face and gasp from the teams. Louis could feel a ringing in his ears, a new nervousness he hadn’t felt during the entire journey to this competition.

He was sweating more now, more than he could blame on the California sun, as Phil started to read the names of the new teams, the members hugging their loved ones before joining a complete stranger in their new allotted spot.

Or an Amazing race Hate to Lovers au

💎 no heart for me like yours (no love for you like mine) by @phdmama {E, 46k}

When Harry Styles, wedding dress designer to the stars (sort of) and Louis Tomlinson, wedding planner and relationship expert (kind of) meet on the occasion of their sisters' engagement, sparks fly. But not the good kind. Louis thinks Harry is a dick and Harry thinks Louis is an asshole.

That doesn't last long.

The road to true love isn't always smooth or uncomplicated. Can two stubborn men find their way?

💎 an ocean in my veins (you'll be diving in) by me_her_themoon / @dreamersdivin-headfirst {E, 31k}

But, since Niall is so talkative to literally anyone with a working mouth, it means that when Louis Tomlinson started to take a shine to him, Harry started to hate him.

Because suddenly, it wasn’t just Harry and Niall, and whoever else wanted to join their antics. It was Harry and Niall and Louis.

Did Harry mention that Louis is a stupid fucking prick? He wants to make sure that’s clear.

[or, harry and louis hate each other and niall just wants everyone to get along]

💎 Spinning Out Waiting for You by amomentoflove / @daggerandrose {M, 18k}

Harry Styles is a year and a half away from graduating with a masters in potions and he has one huge milestone to reach in his academy career: the Matching Ceremony.

From Halloween night until graduation, matched witches and familiars will have to create a talisman to be a physical representation of their bond. One for the witch and one for the familiar. Most pairings last an entire lifetime.

If only it were that simple.

💎 Can't Buy My Love, Can Buy Me Dinner by LadyAJ_13 / @ladyaj-13 {G, 9k}

Is it ethical to accept a dinner date for the free food? And will you hate me when I go anyway?

Fact 1: Louis hates Harry Styles. Fact 2: Louis is temporarily living off toast and spaghetti hoops. Fact 3: ...Louis may be semi-accidentally dating his worst enemy.

[fullmetal-scar-simping]

feasting on all the fantastic au/oc discussion that happens to share several commonalities with my own Scar As A Major Protagonist AU (that i swear im working on very slowly. i just have the curse of perfectionism and i keep going back and reworking things when i should be WRITING,) and its making me want to share my ideas too....

the general starting premise is that instead of getting abducted by bradley, greed manages to escape the raid on the devils nest with bido, and then via a series of dominos the two of them wind up teaming up with mei and then scar shortly thereafter

the entire idea kind of spun out of thinking about how scar would react to actually getting to know a human chimera. his pity for nina– similar to how he seems to view al– is such a goldmine for character exploration to me, because hes gotta be projecting right

like despite the obvious differences in their respective situations, from scars pov he might as well be just as inhuman as nina is, except HE isnt Allowed to die yet because he has a Duty to fulfill. which is both the last thread of self preservation hes grasping at and also a thing he hates himself for doing. its this big tangled up knot of religious guilt and survivors guilt and internalized ableism and the fact that he cant blame his brother for saving him so instead he makes a monster out of himself. and i think if he had the chance to come to terms with a chimera as still being human in all the ways that matter, and talking about those complicated body-humanity-autonomy feelings with someone who gets it on some level, maybe it could help him start to rebuild his sense of personhood

and. just generally. i think if he had more people to hang out with on the regular than Snitchy McLandlord, Self-Flagellant Genocide Collaborator, and One Literal Child. He might maybe perhaps have had better self esteem by the time the moral-superiority-in-incrementalism lecture hall power hour rolled around.

i too am killing kimblee early. scar unfortunately doesnt get to him, but he does get shot, impaled, and finally fall down a big hole and die, which i think is almost as good

scar DOES get to kill envy though. because roy "im mad you killed this one guy i liked. genocide what genocide" mustang doing it was just not as deep a plot point as people think it was. the fight with wrath was good, but i think itd be interesting to end his vengeance quest more somberly- not facing an equally-matched opponent, but putting down a pathetic, weak, spiteful thing that refuses to grow or change

uhhh what else. oh right. mei also takes the throne here, since ling never gets the stone (despite his continued efforts. his character arc is shaped like that of a pendulum. im making him worse) and i think with her at the helm, amestris would have way less leverage in any post-canon negotiations with ishval

Sure of course your super huge and powerful neighbor will help reestablish the cross-desert railroad and enrich your failing economy..... IF and ONLY IF you adhere to ALL the stipulations put forth by the ishvalan leadership council ^_^ the gun im holding? dont worry about it

im giving him so many cats when everythings said and done, however to his consternation hes doomed to wind up a beloved pillar of the community instead of just some guy who gets to hang out with cats. theres a renewed independence movement to organize & also a burgeoning faction of people who argue that because scar uses alchemy and hes cool, maybe god is cool with alchemy some of the time, like as long as youre responsible, to which scar is at the forefront of every debate desperately telling them I Am An Outlier Adn Should Not Have Been Counted

Hell yeah, more AU goodness! 🤩 Trust me, not only do I understand your pain in being caught in a perfectionism loop, but you'll get no judgment from me about taking your time with it too.

Super ecstatic that you decided to share what you've got cooking, so let's go:

Starting off with Greed and Bido is very on brand 😌 Glad he escapes getting liquified and drunken by his core self. I assume that some other members of the Devil's Nest crew survive as well? Or are they all slaughtered, same as in canon? If it's just the two of them left, then man, that's gonna hurt (and the angst~). Maybe we get a revelation that some survived later on?

I dig that Bido and Greed bump into Mei first. I wonder how fresh her arrival in Amestris must be before bumbling into an entire wayward homunculus and human-chimera. Meeting Scar after that would seem so normal in comparison lol

Oh- Oh! Omg wait, that's a fantastic angle to explore. That really taps into his self-hatred in such a unique way that I never thought about before! Alchemy is already a heresy for him that which he cannot separate from himself due to his brother's arm being the sacrifice that saved his life. Yet why wouldn't he see the sanctity of his own body as having been marred by this grave taboo to the point that he hardly sees it as truly human? If he can use this tainted gift to exact vengeance against everyone who tore Ishval to shreds, than even his unholy, "desecrated" body can be put to use. But the way this lashes out against both himself and others who don't want to die simply because someone/the state forcibly transmuted them with other living beings- damn, that's juicy

No seriously, this fuckin' rules! Using the chimera angle to really crack open the darkest pit inside of him, and how Scar's one vestige of purpose is what keeps him from succumbing to his self-flagellating dehumanization. I love that you're looking at this via survivor's guilt, the conundrums of his piety, and even the ableism imbedded in the assumptions on what constitutes a "worthy" body.

On the latter point: I'm curious to see if I understand the every facet of the ableism angle. Is it that chimerification can be seen as a disability brought on by alchemical experimentation (which I can definitely see) in contrast to Scar seeing it as an irrevocable perversion and assault on the human form, thus (in his mind) dooming the victim to be fully inhuman and in need of euthanization? Because again, I can see this as a loaded assumption on a "proper human body" vs a "destroyed, unworthy body", but I feel like I could be missing other potential readings here 🤔 It feels like it's that plus more. Hmmm

Yes, Bido (and maybe some other chimeras?) gets to help Scar navigate the messy bodily-autonomy-humanity Gordian Knot. Surely that has to unravel slowly (it's less Gordian than it may seem lol), since I imagine Scar's initial reaction to Bido must be a... heightened, perhaps pejorative one. To me I would imagine it to be quite dehumanizing (if not outright threatening) towards the poor lizard chimera man. :( Not that Greed would let anything happen to him, but then again Greed revealing himself to be a homunculus would also have to throw Scar for a loop too. We all know Greed can't shut his yap about being one, if he thinks he'll get a rise from someone who can even grasp what that is. Shame he maybe doesn't have Roa around to sledgehammer his entire cranium to smithereens. Unless? (Either that or I imagine that, given potential misgivings, Scar attempts to disintegrate Greed's head and gets the revelation of his homunculus nature right there and then.)

Wait, now I'm just recalling how cold Scar had been upon first meeting Mei when she was chilling with Yoki in canon. (I don't blame him, I'd also ask that bumbling mustachioed twat why the hell there's a random kid hiding out with them.) But now this tween shows up with a homunculus AND a chimera? Dude must have wanted to walk into the ocean lol

LMFAOOOOO STOPPP the way you described the canon party Scar had to travel with 😭😭😭 And the fucking "moral-superiority-in-incrementalism lecture hall power hour" PLEASE

Though tbh yeah, he needed some other folks to bounce off of who weren't former state actors, and, much as Mei is an absolute treasure, some adult company who also don't see him as a monster or a threat (to the extent Yoki and Marcoh do) would be very good for him. This is assuming that he and Bido are on solid terms sooner rather than later, but if Scar still struggles with being around chimeras for some time than maybe it would only be Greed who doesn't shrink in Scar's presence (besides the best kid ever, Mei, who never feared or distrusted him 😌).

Oh man, Mei might not realize that she's become travel buddies with a walking philosopher's stone. :0 Or does she immediately grasp that homunculi hold a stone within their bodies?

A standing ovation is needed for the death you're serving that pompous fascist Kimblee, and then an encore for good measure too. Stupendous, magnificent, and fully deserved. 10/10 The big hole at the end really cements his fate as comedic poetry, really. Scar may not get that personal catharsis, but he should get a front row seat to enjoy the carnage all the same. (Not suggesting that Scar has to be in the scene, just imagining him getting a theatre all to himself with the murder playing on loop while he snacks on some popcorn.)

Scar killing Envy is an intriguing change. Fully agreed that Mustang setting Envy ablaze wasn't that deep, and frankly a pretty lousy scene too. And yeah, Scar getting to fight and kill Wrath in canon was surprisingly good, but given Envy's hand in exploiting the tension of the occupied Ishvalans to jumpstart their genocide, it feels far more relevant to have Scar put them down than fucking Mustang. Envy's writhing pathetic self contrasted to Scar's typically quiet, self-contained demeanour- of course this is coming off of the canon again. However that fight or scene shakes out in your AU may or may not have Scar in that same emotional state.

Ling being denied the stone and what that does to his character isn't explored enough (bless these AUs). "im making him worse" ough that's enticing. Does Ling spiral? Does the worst in him begin to claw through the surface as he more desperately vies for whatever stone is in reach? His position as a moral paragon crumbling as he flails for the seat of power he desires, with his greed looking less and less admirable would be *chef's kiss*

Which makes me realize that the stone that propels Mei into the head of the Xingese empire wouldn't be Greed's stone, right? Perhaps it's Envy's?

But yesssss, Mei leveraging her new power to force Amestris to adhere to the Ishvalan council's demands! No need to worry about the gun, since it's symbolic of the sheer economic devastation that would sweep Amestris if they refuse Ishval whatsoever. :3c

The last bullet point-!!!

Scar gets to have his DOZENS of cats, and and he gets to be LOVED and RESPECTED, he's a- *sniffs* he's a PILLAR of his COMMUNITY- *breaks down into a sobbing fit*

But yes! The Ishvalan Independence Movement is underway and it needs him! He wouldn't let his people down at such an integral point in Ishval's history and future. And I'm goin nuts over the fact that some people are beginning to see alchemy with some renewed nuance, much to the chagrin of Scar, as he sits central to this shift in perspective. Despite what he's seen of Ishvalan alchemy and Xingese alkehestry (fuck Amestrian alchemy, no I don't care that all alchemic practices stem from Hohenheim and Xerxes stfu it's cultural drift goddammit) Scar still being adamant in the teachings he's followed all his life is very in-character. But I can see that slowly eroding and making way for some greater peace with his own brandishing of alchemy alongside his greater acceptance of his body and where his soul sits in Ishvala's eyes. 🥹 And all the cats. All the damn cats he could ever nurture and cuddle!

Ugh I love this AU too! I know you wanted to give me the Scar-centric details, but I'm big time curious about Greed and Bido's side of things. Where this journey takes them, what they have to contend with and what they lose and gain in the process, and what becomes of them. Does Greed get to live on even with the decimation of Father and the other homunculi? Do they rebuild the Devil's Nest? Can Bido live comfortably and openly as a chimera the way the four chimera-men do, or is he destined to continue living in society's underbelly due to not having been 'designed' (so to speak) to shift between a fully human morphology and his animal-infused morphology?

Many many apologies for the time it took to reply. U_U I loved going over the details you've layed out and I can't wait to one day read it 👀 The day this fic starts getting posted I'll be there!

[bluesfreakingart]

hey I just wanted to say that I really enjoy your art and the way you portray Jervis, Ed and Jon.

You do a really good job of giving them nuanced character, making them funny, yet also keeping in mind of the fact that they’re not very good people.

That’s all I wanted to say, keep it up!

AHHHH!!! CCRYING SCREAMING THROWING UP /POSITIVE

Seriously, that reassures me sm aughghghdsg. I'm glad for people liking my work! Cause I think all the characters are so interesting but sometimes I want to see the nitty gritty!

I guess that's why like with the story I have in my mind it'll show way more since they'll be the MAIN characters. so there's way more chances to see the vulnurability while not trying to come across "oh they're just misunderstood"

they're not, jesus christ, they're not.

They all are fucked in the head with plenty of flaws onTOP of the mental illness. Like Jervis main thing is the fact of his obsessivness that comes from detachment and feelings of abandonment.

Eddie wants to be in control/know everything because due to something OUT of his control it ruined his life. That fucked him up severly and just kinda dominoed his thinking on how the world around him worked.

Jonathan is similar to edward mostly because sure, the interest in fear was always there. But, knowing how to "control" that physical/mental aspect means less leverage over you and more over others. showing weakness like fear gets you places you don't wanna be.

I'm sort of rambling and idk if this makes sense BUT even despite all these things that are human, relatable even! They're selfish, they'll backstab, they'll take the opertunities that would be a troubling decision for most.

Jervis even if he knows he's horrible can't fully accept it and rather just double/triple down. (Something something "I can't go back, I'm long gone.") Besides, he'll still gladly control someone without a care in the world, he has no remorse for that.

Edward even if he knows he doesn't have it all together/is in denial for the most part...he'll gladly exploit those very feelings if he sees them in another person, or worse, knows from medical files and so on he's gotten hold of.

Jonathan is a man who thinks he knows himself enough, so he rarely does true self reflection. He crossed that line in his work a while back where he sees his subjects as...just that! Subjects, rats, stepping stones, what have you.

They hurt people, they fuck up families,they rip people apart, they're not good.

I don't find it fun to show these characters only one way or the other. Like anyone, I really like contrast...

Anyway! this has been a morning rant and thank you!! SM!!!

[classicanalyzer]

The Acolyte - Destiny Thoughts

"Destiny is not decided for you by an anonymous Force. You get to make a choice, Osha. If you want to pull the Thread, then pull it." Mother Aniseya

I love how the logo of the show matches the colors of a small part of the skies, especially when the Ascension was happening with the orange and light blue converging together. I do love how we get further humanization of this witch coven. However, I have a feeling we might have our view of them subverted since we see them from their POV.

Mae (her full name being Mae-Ho) was incredibly messed up as a child. With how Mae used the Force on the butterflies, as my friend said it best, those are serial killer signs (it also reminds me of Momin). I was incredibly surprised at how she thought killing her own sister would stop her from leaving. No wonder she became an Acolyte.

I like how Osha (her full name being Verosha) shows her desire to be more and explore the galaxy. It's hard for her and for anyone who is in her shoes to speak out for herself than others expect you to be. I also like the parallels to TPM Anakin which is even more apparent with no they were born with no father.

This leads to a major reveal of how Osha and Mae were conceived by the Force (or the Thread) by Mother Aniseya and Mother Koril. I hope we get to know more of the specifics behind this since the Force might not have liked this (in Legends, I believe Plagueis tried to manipulate the Midiclorians using the Force for immortality and the Force not liking being manipulated reacted back to this by creating Anakin) I do love this unique direction and exploration and I hope we get to learn more.

I really like Mother Aniseya. She was incredibly understanding towards Osha's well-being despite her preferring Osha to stay. It humanizes this group of witches despite the implications that the witches might've done something bad to warrant Jedi's caution. Since the Jedi did tolerate other Dark Side groups that weren't Sith, it makes one question what's up with this group in particular. I also like how her relationship with Mother Koril is shown. They both love each other but they clearly have different views on how to raise their children. It's also understandable of why the group doesn't want to give up their children given their trauma but they also have to respect that Osha wants to be more than a witch.

The HR Jedi are also portrayed well here. They're doing their best (understandably cautious towards the coven given the implied past of the group being not so great) and wanting to protect Force-sensitive children (the possession thing and what we know happened to Force-sensitive children). Sol continues to be one of the best Jedi of the HR Era and in general. His kindness and understanding of Osha stand out and show why Osha thinks so fondly of him. How he sympathizes with Osha about feeling scared just like her and comforts her that she isn't alone in this is great to see. You can feel the weight of his guilt when he had to tell her that none of her family survived.

The entire witch coven definitely didn't die in the fire (their bodies aren't charred). There's something much more going on and perhaps the Jedi are involved in it though I highly doubt they went out of their way to kill them if they did (I highly doubt Sol was a part of it if that's the case). Perhaps even the Sith or an Acolyte (the mysterious Dark Side user) was responsible for the explosion. However, I definitely think the fire was the first domino that led to the tragedy. Mae's irrational and disturbing behavior had inadvertently resulted in the loss of everything.

Episode 3 continues Acolyte's greatness and I hope Episode 4 continues this streak. Kogonada, a South Korean-born American, directed this episode and I can't for his work in Episode 7.

[unfriendlyamazon]

the demon's debt (wip weekday)

continuing the motivation i've got going on this week here's another little smidge from the inn for spirits au for my kaijou lovers out there, y'all knew i was putting a marriage contract in this

Voices roused Jounouchi. He groaned as he buried his head deeper into the blanket. He loved to spend his first few waking minutes pretending he was anywhere else but here. He imagined the air was sweet with the smell of cypress and lime, and the sheets he wore were silk, and there was a warmth that brimmed the air. A purring sound nearby sent his hand reaching out instinctively, and he clutched soft fur.

Jounouchi lifted his head up.

Red Eyes sat on the futon with him, unblinking as she purred, both tails curled around her feet. That was the most normal thing he saw. This was not his room, not his bed, not his clothes! He looked down at the yukata that had been tied around his waist, black in color and embroidered with a red dragon design. The blue silk sheets draped over the low bed, and the wooden walls were dark but cozy in their embrace. Somewhere, he could hear a bubbling spring, water being poured, the scrape of stone tableware. The perfumed air clung in his nostrils, filling his senses. He climbed to his feet and threw himself at the nearby window, staring out at what he saw.

And what he saw was this: the dark wood of a large inn traveled down the rocky path of an island, surrounded on all sides by dark water that reflect that fat full moon ten sizes too large that hung heavy in the star studded sky. Boats on the shoreline, and in the sky balloons with propellers that hung lazily. Beyond the bay’s water he could see land and more lights, a town perhaps, that reflected gold across the salt smelling waves. Kites flew above, and streaking over them was a dragon that moved in lazy waves, pouring wisps from it like faerie fire. And below, on the rocky shore of the island, onsens were half-hidden by wooden slats, but he could still make out the creatures that soaked in the water. A large fox with nine tails curled beside three kappa that rolled their heads back, paying no mind to the water spilling out. An ogre traipsed by, wearing a yukata, dragging his large brutish arms on the ground. Other creatures, some with noses like elephants, or tails like snakes, or long hair that trailed behind like a woodblock painting. Yokai, oni, ayakashi, all in one place. All in this place, which was not Domino, might not even be Japan.

Okay, now Jounouchi was starting to panic.

There was only one exit to the room if he didn’t feel like scaling the wall, and that was the shoji door. He threw himself at it, grabbing the wood, and threw it back, and he came face to face with a demon.

Jounouchi shouted, falling backwards, and landed right on his ass. Towering over with was the dragon that had grabbed his wrist. Now he wore a kamishimo of ice blue, with intricate lines depicting scales that that arced with the wide shoulders. A house name was written on a crest, the characters for sea horse. He still wore the dragon’s mask that grinned at him. The face beneath was solid, the chin set strong, and his blue eyes glowed.

“Good, you’re awake,” the demon said. “Isono, escort our guest.”

From behind him emerged an even larger shape, and Jounouchi’s mouth dropped in horror. An oni in a well tailored suit started forward, grabbing Jounouchi by the arm and dragging him into the air. He was dropped gracefully back onto his feet.

“Let go,” Jounouchi said automatically. He yanked his arm free and took a step back. “Where am I?”

“You are a guest of my establishment,” the demon said. “This is the Dragon’s Den, an inn that sits between the Hidden Realm and human realm. It is a place where spirits come to rest on their travels.”

“Okay,” Jounouchi said. “What am I doing here?”

A single twitch marred the demon’s face. “I told you. Your hand was sold to me, and I have come to claim my debt. By the next moon’s cycle we will be wed.”

“No,” Jounouchi said. “No, no, that’s made up. I never made a deal with any demon, first off, and second off, we can’t get married, we’re two guys.”

He smirked. “Isono, if you please.”

The ogre reached into his jacket and removed a scroll, unrolling it for Jounouchi to see. The kanji swam in front of his eyes, but by the end it was clear. All debts to be repaid in full and, failing that, the seizure of one Jounouchi Katsuya, signed and sealed by Jounouchi Koji.

Jounouchi stared at his father’s name, signed in his hand, and all he could say was, “Motherfucker.”

“Quite,” the demon said. “Five years ago your father walked into my gaming establishment and marked a debt in booze, food, and gambling that he was unable to pay. Laws in the demon realm are fluid in what can be traded, as long as equal value is established. Last month, your father passed, didn’t he? With his debt still unpaid, I am forced to turn to my next option.”

“But–” Jounouchi stared up at him, eyes wide. “How much was it?”

“Three million yen.”

“Three–” Jounouch felt the same way as when he took the lead pipe to the ribs. He almost hit the floor. He couldn’t even make the words that followed, could only stare and gasp like a dying fish.

“I was generous, of course,” the demon said. “A man shouldn’t be expected to give away his only son just like that. I offered him to work off the debt, or give repayment, but he never did. Normally with humans I can be forgiving. They leave this place believing it was only a dream, but this is not an insignificant payment. It leaves me with no choice, which is why to absolve your debt, I’ll take you as my bride.”

“Stop saying that,” Jounouchi spat. “I’m nobody’s bride, okay, and like I said, we can’t exactly get hitched.”

The demon grinned with white and shiny teeth. “In the human realm, it’s more difficult, but the Hidden Realm does not worry about such things. You will wed me, and I cannot exactly pay your debt to myself, so it will be rendered null. It is the fair proposition.”

“No, it’s stupid. Why would I even want to marry you?”

“I am rich, I am powerful, I am loved.” He held out his hands. “Would you like more reason?”

“Look,” Jounouchi said, stamping his foot down, “I can’t marry a demon, and I can’t marry anybody I just met. I don’t even know your name!”

“I have forgone introductions,” he said with a bow. “My name is Kaiba Seto, the White Dragon of the East. I am lord of everything east to the mountains, and this place is under my protection. As are you, so long as you’re here.”

“But–” Jounouchi sucked in a breath. “But why me?”

The demon lord looked at him through his mask. He considered him a beat too long, and then he shook his head. “You have the gift to see our kind. You are young and strong. Your heart is kind and brave. All those things make you delicious to our kind. If I can keep you, I can devour you at my leisure, or all at once, or not at all, if I so wish it.”

“Devour me?” Jounouchi crossed his arms in front of him. “No, absolutely not.”

“I am afraid you don’t have much choice in the matter.”

[a-little-lostmoon]

(warning - HSR Belobog Arc Ending Spoilers)

I know they mention it a lot in canon but like… has anyone else ever really paused and thought about all the worlds we will have to leave behind as Trailblazers? Coming and going forever, only ever being able to truly call the Express ‘Home’ but even then, the words are heavy on the tongue.

Does anyone else think about how little time they really spend there? How many trails they’ve blazed before disappearing without a trace save for the changes they’ve since left in a domino effect. Belobog took a few days for the main quest alone — perhaps two weeks if you want to include the sub-quests and story quests. And then they never go back. 700 years they’d wait — Bronya said — and it wasn’t an exaggeration.

“Dan Heng how long can humans live for?”

“…Forever. But in those situations they wouldn’t be considered human anymore.”

It’s easy to forget that we may never see those people again in that world, as they are, as they’ve become, because we as the player can always teleport back with a few clicks of a button but the characters do not get the same liberties. They have left, to never return, lest they accidentally cause more calamity.

And few of Jarilo-VI have gotten to know them by name, as anything other than “the Outsiders” or, later, “the Trailblazers”. They’re not Nameless because they have no names, they are Nameless because in the grand scheme of things; no one will recognize them by name. Only by the paths they carve and set, by the view of their backs as they set off into the stars again.

Do you think about how quickly they accept the lost onto their ship — how quickly they accept the Nameless and allow them to stay with their own? Because they are all Nameless on the express. Wonderlusters, Lost ones, confused, fearful, grieving, lonely. They accepted the Trailblazer without a second thought, extending hands that were quickly grasped in return and have yet to be let go of. They are the Nameless, they are the trailblazers, they are the lost ones, and they are each other’s family. The Express is not ‘Home’ because none of them have that anymore, but they’ve found each other and in the wake of what they’ve lost or may not have never had, they’ve got each other. They’ve forged their own trail.

Trailblazers in their name and in how they love. Only another trailblazer can truly love a trailblazer. It’s why they gravitate so closely to one another. That small part of their souls resonating with one another and bringing them solace within the vastness of the universe. Pieces of their make-up so similar and lonely and lost that they can’t help but seek out others who are the same.

I don’t know where I’m going with this, honestly, but I’m absolutely enamored with the small feeling their presences makes me feel through the Trailblazer. Platonic, Romantic, or otherwise. Storgé — Is the word for familial love apparently but not found family, so I’m not quite sure it fits. Their impact as well in the universes, beyond their relationship on the Express. It’s all beautiful but always with a touch of melancholy when you sit back to think about it rather than just quickly passing through the planets and stars. It’s lovely, and I’m hard pressed to find a universe that makes me feel so small and important all at once.

Welt said something about feeling helpless when you first step foot on the planet and see for the first time everything that goes on there… and yet I find myself feeling more powerless when I look down from above rather than up from below.

In conclusion, Star Rail is lovely so far, I’m having a great time and will continue to brainrot about this and think too much abt it constantly for a good while <3

[mysticstarlightmiracle]

My decent into the Lily Orchard Rabbit Hole started from this video, well it actually started from the original Dungeon Meshi video, and ever since then, nothing's been the same. It would have been easier to just ignore the video and move on with my life, but I literally have a youtube channel where I review anime. I talk about it. So when Lily was pulling shit out of her ass to make this fantastic show look bad, that's when I had to do a double take and actually start looking at her critically.

After the original Dungeon Meshi video the veil that Lily covered herself with to make herself seem like a very well spoken media critic started to crack (for me). This was around the time @saiscribbles popped up in my feed with her Steven Universe Lily critque and I shit you not, I sat through all 2hrs of Sai's video and I was more entertained and energized watching that long video, of a much longer VOD, then I was watching any of Lily's video. Watching Sai was the first domino that tipped over and because of that video more Lily Orchid critcism popped up in my feed and I was introduced to people like @agramuglia and @crimsonender and the more I watched them, the deeper the rabbit hole became. At first, I was more interested in watching how these people took apart Lily's media takes because I was starting to realize that Lily has shit media takes and is as media literate as 4yr old toddler, but the more they took apart her takes, the more her takes started to seem........sinister.

Enter:

I remember Sai making multiple comments about the game: The Coffin of Andy and Leyley and mentioning that Lily likes it because it is a game that has incest in it. At the time I didn't know that Lily had made a video about it and that it was popular, so I just said, "Well this is pretty weird" and tried to move on from it. Then on a random day, a video from a youtuber by the name Courtney Peet popped up

Enter Courtney:

This video was alot to watch, I honestly couldn't sit through the entire thing without feeling sick and taking breaks, and I've watched and read alot of deplorable things but this was just to much. The day after I watched this video. I shit you not, Lily released her video addressing the allagtions and I went "Allegations!?!?!? THERE'S MORE!!!!!!!", and I remember clicking on that video and in the first few minutes I clicked off immediatly, because I could tell right away that Lily was not taking the accuasations leveied against her seriously. I probably should have seen that she wasn't going to take the allagations seriously when she drew her sister, Courtney, as Leyley from the TCOAAL in the thumbnail addressing the allagations. I don't know the entire plot of the game but i do know that Andy is the one who preyed on Leyley (his sister), that should have signaled to me that this was going to be a dumpster fire of a video, but a part of me had hope in Lily's ability to be a decent human being, but reality is often disappointing.

I am skipping over alot more details here but to summarise it for anyone who read the first part and thinks that I don't like Lily because she didn't like Dungeon Meshi. That is not the reason I dislike her, it's not because she's trans either incase she or her wife stumble across this post.

I wanna make it clear that the reason I don't like Lily is because she's a bad media critic who is an alleged predator who might have assaulted her sister, and she is someone who has used the platform she is on and her populairty to allegedly, prey on her younger audience and has both written a fanfiction that has CP and partakes in stories involving incest (this is not alleged, there are multiple instances of Lily engaging in stories that have some form of incest in them).

Just wanna give my 2 cents before i go back to playing Assassin's Creed Valhalla lol.

[bluelocksource]

Shidō Ryūsei’s trivia (source: twt & Egoist Bible 1 & 2).

"What I’m doing on the field isn’t just ‘soccer’ but ‘life’ itself.” (EB1)

"My soccer instincts are exploding, and my muscles are alive!" (EB2)

☆ Character's colour: Shocking pink.

☆ Weapons:

Scoring ability, Penalty Area Perfection. (EB1) Penalty Area Perfection, Dragon Drive (Ryūsei's direct shot). (EB2)

☆ Nickname: Explosion Demon.

☆ Birthday: 7th July.

☆ Current age: 17 18 (3rd year of high school)

☆ Zodiac: Cancer.

☆ Birthplace: Tokyo.

☆ Current height: 185 cm.

☆ Dominant foot: Both are nitro (spectacular/explosive).

☆ Blood type: AB.

☆ Motto: "All for the explosion."

☆ Team before joing BLUE LOCK: - (Unaffiliated)

☆ Favorite food: Yukhoe. “Because I’ll feel more like a carnivore.”

☆ Disliked food: Bean sprouts. “They look weak and withered.”

☆ Favorite animal: Dinosaur, especially Velociraptor. “I like the scene where they eat the humans in ‘Jurassic Park’ movie.” .

☆ Favorite season: The beginning of summer. ”My cells gets excited.”

☆ Favorite football player: Zlatan Ibrahimović.

☆ Favorite song: “Hide’s music, especially ‘Pink Spider’.”

☆ Favorite manga: “Lately, Chainsaw Man.”

☆ Favorite movie: A Clockwork Orange.

☆ Mushroom shoots vs Bamboo shoots: Bamboo shoots. “They have strong and tough form.”

☆ What goes best with rice : Soy sauce and butter. “Why don’t you try wrapping them with nori? It'll tastes so good!”

☆ Hobby: My explosions.

☆ What makes him happy: A pass (soccer pass).

☆ What makes him upset: Players who won’t explode.

☆ Best subject: Art and P.E.

☆ What made him cry recently: “I cried because I thought of maybe one day, I won’t become anyone.”

☆ Usual sleeping time: 7 hours.

☆ What he usually ends up buying from convenience store: Baby Star Ramen. “At times, I crave for it.”

☆ Place he washes first when taking a bath: Neck.

☆ What will he do if received 100 million yen: Divide the money into 100 pieces and use them as dominos.

☆ What age he stops receiving presents from Santa: “Isn’t it fun getting yourself a present than by some old, red and white, fat man?”

☆ What was his last wish from Santa: “A world where Santa disappears.” .

☆ How he spent his holiday: “Break free from everything and do nothing.”

☆ What will he do during his last day on Earth: “Watch the outcome of the Earth reaching it’s end.”

☆ Favorite historical figure: "It's you, the one reading this. Life is equally beautiful and ugly for everyone. Since we were born in the same era, let's enjoy it!"

☆ If he hadn't encountered soccer, what will he be doing: "I would be into art. Being a painter would be nice, and so would sculpting. I'd create shiny and overflowing works!"

☆ If he could only take one thing to a deserted island, what would it be: "I'd bring a lot of pink paint. I'd paint everywhere and make it my island! Oh! I’ll mix in some blood-red color too ♪"

☆ If he had a time machine, would he go to the past or the future: "I'd go anywhere. No matter the time or place, I would still be me!"

Last updated: 31/10/2024

* The crossed words are the changes made from twitter’s answer to the answer from Egoist Bible.

note: i want to apologize in advance for any mistake made in the translation!

[kalimat-kalimat-kalimat]

Anhedonia

The loss of interest and enjoyment in all activities that you once liked; the feeling of not caring anymore.

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I do not care anymore, all the stuff I used to like, enjoy doing, it's no longer fun… it's boring and tedious and I hate it. I only continue to do them because it's what I'm used to, the familiarity of it makes me feel safe.

But I also just do not care anymore about anything. What's the point of caring when the place we live is so ruined? Between wars and rich people up in their towering buildings this planet is being destroyed and no one with enough power seems to care enough to change it, so what is the point in caring?

You can not force someone to care, no matter how many times you show them that their actions have consequences, that what they do is slowly killing everyone.

But they do not care, they just care about the money, the power, the status of it all, but that is also a part of human evolution, being greedy is how we got here in the first place. amassing huge amounts of food to survive, but now instead of food its money.

Is there even any reason to hope when the people who can change the world for good are all too ignorant to and only do it for the worse? Is there any reason to care anymore?

What's the point of bringing life into a doomed world anyway? Who would want to raise a child in this place? It should not be a necessity to pay to live, being able to live your life should be free, it should be joyace and fun, you only have so much time to live, so much time to make an impact, to be remembered and not forgotten, fading into obscurity.

Is it even possible to change all of this? To break the status quo and save what we can of this planet, or is it too late? Have the dominos already started to fall and we are all just too ignorant to see them falling till they have already squashed us?

I hope that when- if things change that future generations do not look back at us in disgust,hate us for what we did to this planet and forced them to fix it, i hope things change… things need to change and it needs to happen fast or we will just be a blip in the timeline of the universe.

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