#i don't even think this is gaslighting i think she genuinely thinks it never happened

[anglerflsh]

I like talking to my parents it's a fun game of "which one of us is gaslighting the other This Time?"

[kawareo]

Have a ramble about my Durge and his issues with sex because why not

TW for mentions of sexual assault and abuse, attempted incest, grooming and mentions of underage stuff; nothing is graphic but it does get dark so please don't read if you don't feel like you're in the right space for it

Strike is a very sexual guy as I'm sure you've had the chance to notice, but honestly, his relationship with sex and sexuality is complicated to a degree that he completely refuses to even acknowledge.

His Urges and Bhaal-given 'Ectasy of Murder' make it practically impossible for him to seperate between his own desires and those of Bhaal. He was way too young when he first got them, practically when he hit puberty, and then he was immediately encouraged to 'explore' and 'experiment' with either corpses, other Bhaalists, or still living victims. Sceleritas was the one to encourage and 'guide' him and Strike stopped feeling sick about the new need that overcame him whenever he killed well. He had to practically gaslight himself into seeing it as a gift from Father, or he would dislike it, and you can't afford to dislike something your god wants when you're his Chosen.

He also doesn't really know how to say no to sex. The way I try to write him is in a similar way of how society expects a cishet guy to always be down to fuck, except it's cranked up to a thousand - he is Bhaal's seed, scion, his breeder - there is no reason for why he would ever want to say no, is there? If you asked him for any reason he could think of for him not wanting to have sex, he genuinely wouldn't known the answer.

He said no once though, only once - when the temple attempted to match him with Orin once they were in their late teens. Orin would've pushed through with it even though she was obviously less than enthusiastic, but Strike was the one to push her away that time. It wasn't the incest aspect of it that turned him off, tbh; that really isn't a value the temple of Bhaal would consider abnormal, but Strike just... Orin was always the only relationship he's had where he never felt like it could turn sexual at any moment - they've bathed together, they slept cuddled up on the same bed, they straddled eachother when beating the shit out of the other and none of it was ever sexual, for either of them. But that was the first time he refused Bhaal's will and also the first time he lied to Him - he made up that he didn't think Bhaal's blood should get even more diluted and defiled than it was in Orin's veins. After that, Orin never forgave him for thinking he was above her (as she interpreted it) and their relationshio only strained more when Strike met Gortash a few years later.

Gortash is a whole other can of worms that I don't think I have to get into right now, but Strike's religious upbringing makes every sign of weakness, such as signs of softness or affection (for an enemy, especially) a sin and having sex reduces the sinfulness of it. Holding hands, kissing? Unforgivable. Intertwining fingers during sex, or cuddling right after while they're both still chasing their breath? Not ideal, but it can happen. Not the worst thing. It's not like he was doing something intimate just for the sake of intimacy, you know?

He's very hypersexual now as an adult because of all the above mentioned things combined, and when I get to Godsbound (my bg3 timeline fic has a name now btw!) He likes to joke and flirt and fuck literally whoever, that doesn't change end after tadpoling, he still has no idea how to be close to anyone without it being sexual but also he is so horrifically touchstarved that he wakes up screaming if he doesn't have a body next to him to hold onto it. I would like to explore how much of an actual issue that is for him, especially when he has forgotten all of the excuses he told himself through the years and the decades of religious fanaticism. But then again, he does tend to push his problems away to 'deal with later', so who knows.

[d3f3n3str4t10n]

Playing through Chapter 1 with the info gained from Chapter 2 (Or I guess, watching playthroughs, in my case) helps shed a lot of light on certain details... but one thing that always struck me as strange even after that was the phone call between Ashley and Renee.

Here, it seems like she's showing genuine shame for what she's doing, or what she feels like she has to do... though exactly what that is, is left unclear. The vagueness of it all is, of course, to build up mystery as to what it could mean, which we find out more about in Chapter 2. And in chapter 2, we find out that Renee was... heavily implied to be very much in on what these quarantine people were doing. Selling their organs, using their deaths as an insurance scam, to the point of willingly and deliberately hiring a hitman to kill Andrew and Ashley once they escaped.

We aren't fully sure about how deep this conspiracy goes; If this is something the water company as a whole is pushing on a widespread scale, or just certain people within it, or even if the 'parasites' are real or not. (Though I think it's all but clear that they were just made up...) We know from flashbacks and the Grave's own words that Renee wasn't exactly the most 'present' mother figure. Yet when confronted about it, she of course, denies it. (To a degree, anyway.)

We haven't seen or heard much of any direct interactions between Leyley and Renee, or much of Renee in general, so we don't have too much to go off of. This could very easily just be classic Graves' Family Gaslighting here... but I honestly think there's some truth to what Renee is saying here.

(Is it just me, or are Renee's eyes in this picture... slightly more green than they are in the present day?) Anyway, as we see in the screenshot above, Renee doesn't seem very worried about whatever Andy is upset about. We know that Andy had the responsibility of raising Leyley from a young age, which is likely what this conversation is about. Her uncaring, nonchalant look here gives off the impression that she's more annoyed about the situation than concerned. (Or she just has a resting bitch face, who knows?) She claims she "Thought they were getting along, so she didn't want to see what was happening." when apologizing to Andrew. I'm assuming this mainly meant that she didn't want to spend the time and effort to raise her kids, and just put the burden of disciplining Leyley on Andy. She was never counting on Leyley being such a handful... But she does bring up a... well, not a great point but a point nonetheless.

Why... didn't she turn her in? Ashley's quick to point out that it was simply to cover her own ass, and save herself the embarrassment and trouble that would be; having your kids murder another kid, even if accidentally... but is that... really it? Considering Andy and Leyley were so young when that happened (I'm willing to bet Andy wasn't even 10 yet. At the most, he was probably 12-13, meaning Leyley was around 10-11...) I really don't think the sentencing for them would've been... THAT bad? I don't know about the laws for this kind of stuff, but kids accidentally killing another kid while playing an innocent game of hide and seek... It feels like they very easily could've played the "I'm just a little kid I had no idea what would happen I'm so sorry" card fairly easily. This probably would've led to Mr. and Mrs. Graves taking most of the heat, being their parents. At least, that's what Ashley claims Renee was actually concerned about. But... then... why was she 'sorry' when she told Ashley to stop calling her? If she saw her as nothing more than an embarrassment, why would she say that? Was she only doing it to come off as caring one last time? Was a small spark of regret and humanity poking through her facade as she left her kids to slowly starve to death and be harvested for their organs? Did she really 'try' with Ashley? We know through the "Mother's Intuition" preview video that we'll be getting at least 1 flashback from Renee's perspective, and we know that we'll be seeing many more flashbacks with the family when they were still together, and possibly seeing some of their extended family. (Staying at their grandparent's house, for example.) I'd very much like to know what *they* thought about all this. Their reaction to Renee getting pregnant to young, why Renee decided to keep the baby, (If that was even her decision to begin with...), why she thought it was fine having another, (Even if Andy was an 'easy child,' there had to be more to that decision, surely. Was Renee just that impulsive back then? Did she not see that having 2 children would just be more work? Why did she want to have another kid specifically???)

I really do think there's more to Renee than we've seen and heard so far. I don't think she's as heartless as some of her actions make her seem. I genuinely think that, at one point, she 'tried' with Ashley. But at some point, she gave up, and left Andy to pick up the slack. Maybe it's just cope, idk.

[chaifootsteps]

I know it's been said before but do you think it's definitely the case that Stolas is Viv's self insert, or she's at least seriously projecting on him?

it just seems so unintentionally revealing that the only way the writing makes sense anymore is if Viv genuinely doesn't think Stolas' flaws are flaws. She thinks he's behaving either in a totally understandable way or that his issues are minor quirks at worst

he spent the entirety of apology tour being petty and awful in a way he hasn't been since s1, but in a worse way in some respects because he obviously thinks he's in the right

he acts like he's owed Blitz's love and loyalty even when he was just using him, he has complete and total disregard for the lives of anyone he can't use in some fashion, he's rich and privileged and in complete denial about the power that gives him over other people, he treats people like garbage only to gaslight them about it after the fact, he's been told multiple times he's the problem only to reject it or act the victim again five minutes later, he acts like a petty mean girl and is a total hypocrite about numerous things, he expects to be easily forgiven when he asks for it even if he gives the most wormy non apology ever

so much of this maps so cleanly onto the way people describe Viv - that she's dismissive or outright hostile to anyone who aren't her favorites, that she treats people like expendable work machines, that she feels entitled to have people work for little pay and hates when they complain, that she shit talks or abuses friends only to turn around and be nice to them again

I try and take discord screenshots with a grain of salt until confirmed but there's a whole lot of smoke around the way Viv acts and her writing is so incompetent it can't help but feel a bit revealing about the way she views power and what right and wrong is. I can't help but think it's just going to grow into fire as NDAs expire

and as far as hb has gone lately, right and wrong are just 'how much does this character suck up to Stolas, accept lousy treatment from him or stick their neck out for him'. It's more than just the show worshipping power and treating it as self justifying, it worships this one rich character who just happens to be the victim of basically everyone else

I don't think Stolas started out as Viv's self-insert and I don't even know that she's doing it intentionally, but he definitely reeks of the way she handles conflict and views her place in the world.

Stolas's entire deal is that he's "trying," that he "feels bad" for his mistakes and he's totally sorry and won't do it again, even as it becomes increasingly apparent to the audience that he really isn't, that he keeps repeating the mistakes he's ostensibly sorry for, and that he's getting worse. That's Viv to a T, whose last apology was in 2019 -- and it was one of those "Sorry you think I'm the actual worst and that I can't do anything right" apologies -- and who's never apologized since. Viv, whose biggest enemy is herself and whose most outspoken critics have been her maltreated former employees.

Stolas in Viv's mind is a little insensitive sometimes, longing for love, and up against a world (both in-universe and out) full of unfair, unkind people who just don't understand him. Stolas in actuality is manipulative, a gaslighting liar, and most of the characters who speak out against him have considerably less power and privilege and have been hurt by him.

Remind you of anyone?

[murfpersonalblog]

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTFqc5yJ3/

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTFqcGyPq/

I hope this isn’t weird but, I stumbled upon these TikTok’s and they reminded me of some your iwtv metas.

@louis-of-nola omg it's not weird at all; thank you for liking my IWTV metas, and for sending me links to these REALLY good analyses of Black & LGBTQ+ people in white media! ❤️ TBH I'm never on apps like TikTok, Twitter or Instagram, so NGL I was bracing myself for rage bait when I clicked the links, only to be pleasantly surprised by these two videos by Mouseabolition on film theory--I sincerely appreciate it!

The first link especially got to me:

Cuz in Mouseabolition's critique of the White Gaze--particularly the White (Female) Gaze--she mentioned one of my favorite horror movies, Get Out.

"A lot of black people I know are able to very deeply care about and empathize with pieces of media that are attempting to speak to our experiences, even when it's done poorly. And we're not necessarily trying to say: 'That's a good thing and that was done well.' But it's the same reason why Chris from Get Out--THE template for black horror--why Chris from Get Out felt like such a new, refreshing horror protagonist. A huge part of what makes Get Out work, and what differentiates Chris from the average horror movie protagonist--outside of just like the surface level analysis of he's a black man--is that Jordan Peele (who is also a black man) was able to write a black character with the realistic higher level of consciousness and alertness towards danger, that all black people have to move with. And that higher level of consciousness is a huge part of why most black people I know can't take white people's horror movies seriously anyway. It's because white people walk around throwing themselves into situations that are destined to create horrific scenarios; and when you are somebody who has to walk around going: 'I can't do that, I'm gonna die!' it's really hard to feel shocked and horrified and surprised when somebody does something that you know damn well is gonna end up with them dead! Black people--particularly like black women and queer folks--don't really have the privilege of walking around with the illusion that we are more or better represented than we are. And so you learn to look at things more critically, and that gets stereotyped as nagging or a bad thing! But it's not, because thinking about things critically, genuinely all the way through, is frequently what leads the black people I know to finding those kernels of good in stories, where most people are just like: 'No, I just think that's silly, it's just dumb.'" (4:10 - 6:02)

I've made four IWTV metas comparing the horrific experiences of Chris in Get Out and Louis in IWTV, cuz I noticed that the core themes of Black men in white spaces wrt vulnerability, exploitation, gaslighting & manipulation resonated between both horror shows in a way that directly reflects IRL experiences.

This is particularly the case when Black people are involved in toxic interracial relationships that end in horrific tragedy for the Black partner. The horror comes into even sharper focus when it's the Black victim who ends up blamed/lied on by their white abuser/murderer that tried to play the innocent victim, weaponizing White Tears to justify/get away with literal crimes--which I've also provided links to before, cuz this BS really happens to us (x).

It's especially effed up when you're dealing with victims of abuse who suffer from mental illness, and are blamed/attacked by the authorities/masses. IRL we see Bipoc mentally ill folk who call the white cops for help and are the ones who get killed (x x); yet the IWTV fandom is overrun with racists who REFUSE to put 2 + 2 together to save their biased AF souls. I felt so vindicated in 2x5 - 2x8 when AMC explicitly showed that Louis & Claudia were telling the truth about the Drop Scene in 1x5, and that Armand had lied the whole time, effing with Louis AND Daniel's memories; after so many racist AF white Lestans & Armstans said the Lou & Claudia were spiteful liars who just wanted poor uwu blorbo Lestat & Armand to look bad cuz they're not Black, like WHAT!? We saw a literal Black LYNCHING happen on screen, where Black!Louis was buried alive & Black!Claudia was burned alive by a bottle-blonde white man in front of a predominately white audience in a "play"/snuff film co-written & directed by 3 non-Black people (Armand, Sam & Lestat); meanwhile the fans INSIST that this show's NOT about race. 🤡 BUFFOONERY!

By race-swapping Louis & Claudia & heightening the abuse they suffered in the books to make their treatment WORSE, AMC was literally talking to the predominately white gaze of the audience that SALIVATES over fetishizing Black people on one hand but still perpetrates injustices against Black people on the other hand; and the racist IWTV fandom proves them right every effing day!

And I also LOVE what MouseAbolition's Tik Tok said about the careful & highly conscious ways that Black people (esp. Black queer people) have to move in society, BECAUSE they're more vulnerable to persecution & penalties & punishment than white people.

Black gay men are marginalized by white AND black people alike; there are Black fans who are also against seeing Louis as a female-coded character. Because this is a white world, the white gaze affects ALL of us, and the panopticon of censure & censorship forces us to police each other and mistreat our own sometimes even worse than white people will--look at emotionally abusive/negligent mothers like Florence who has a particular image to uphold amongst the conservative Catholic Black elite during Jim Crow (vs. white Gabrielle who CAN support her white son's eccentricities); and homophobic women like Grace (who herself is married to a man who's NOT "the man of the house," Levi coddled by Florence & financially supported by Grace's inheritance & Louis' money). But at the end of the day the problem still lies with white (wo)men who weaponize Othering by means of race/gender/sexuality/etc in order to isolate marginalized peoples from systems of support, so that they might be more easily exploited & abused--which I've constantly argued wrt to Loustat.

It grates on my effing nerves when white fans (esp. Lestans) hypocritically talk about gender, culturally appropriating Black queer terminology like "Mother"--which originated in Black gay drag, pageantry & ballroom culture, a la Drag Mothers as exemplified in Paris is Burning, and shows like Ru Paul's Drag Race & Pose--in order to prop up Lestat's femininity and dismiss Louis', all because Louis (as a Black man they've hypermasculinized) doesn't conform to their cis white paradigmatic bias of what femininity & motherhood looks like--which is informed by the white patriarchy to control the social hierarchies of both women AND men, straight & gay alike!

I've adamantly critiqued white female fans' surface-level discrimination against Louis as a female-coded character just because Louis doesn't crossdress--as if Lestat's Mardi Gras dress is the only indexical determiner of gender; esp. for closeted & conservative Black gay men who historically CANNOT safely & freely move in public spaces the way out white liberal LGBTQ+ men can.

Cis white women lusting after Lestat & screaming Yaaas Mother~!, or circling the wagons around Armand cuz they want AMC to move on to Devil's Minion (which not even AR GAF about, lol), just loooove to jump on Louis for being a pimp, for not being feminine enough, for fighting back in 1x5. Black men are hypsersexualized to the point that straight AND gay Black men are perceived as universal dangers to white/non-Black purity, and were lynched by the mob in DROVES whenever if it was even suggested that they stepped out of line; "Louis can sometimes act out."

So yeah, people act like I'm crazy cuz I call this ish out, when the facts are staring them right in the effing face. But I've already been explicitly told by white Lestans that they're deliberately ignoring the red flags cuz it's not fun to turn their brains on & look at their precious blorbos critically and that they'll casually dismiss negative portrayals of Lestat on the show as "poor writing"--

--then the same stans spin their effing tops when they actually pick up a effing book and read for themselves that we're telling the truth when we say AR's darling Lestat's a LEGIT abusive rapist p.o.s.--

--and that Hannah Moscovich was legit for pointing out that it's not character assassination when Lestat's abusive oppressive toxic behavior is effing CANONICAL.

[mae-i-scribble]

My post on How I Attended and All Guys Mixer picked up a few more notes than I was expecting recently and it reminded me that I've been wanting to talk about how appreciative I am about how the series handles sexuality. I'll only be talking about the manga here bc I haven't seen the live action drama nor do I plan to. But I just think it's really neat that with our 3 male protags we get to see 3 very unique reactions to 1) learning that crossdressing is a thing and 2) how they in turn feel attraction wise.

I'll start off with Asagi as I feel his is the most straightforward in that he just takes everything in stride. Literally nothing phases him. Thanks to that he's the most nonchalant of the group, just chatting up and trying to make friends per usual. He's confused somewhat, but doesn't pay it any mind and just tries to get to know everyone as he would any other new friend. Personally, I can really see an aro/ace argument for Asagi due to the way he's just, completely unaffected and uninterested in the romantic ongoings around him. He compliments the girls and such but even when the manga is going pretty hard pushing its other pairings Asagi and Fuji truly just seem like good friends. I'm not delusional, this is a romance manga that from the get-go clearly has these pairings in mind to all get together romantically, but until it happens I can gaslight myself into believing my aroace truth (is coping so bad).

Going from most chill about everything to 2nd most chill we have Tokiwa. Tokiwa is an interesting case in that he's polite to such a degree that he does his best to mask his initial confusion and shock (to the extent that yknow, a comedy manga will allow). Though it doesn't really work because he is very overwhelmed by the situation at hand. However, I don't think this is attributed to the girls' crossdressing alone in the same way that Hagi can't get over his initial shock of the concept. Tokiwa's chief concern isn't the "weirdness" of it all but the fact that he came here expecting a meet cute with a cute girl and instead is getting a meet cute with someone equally as charming but with none of the reserved attitude we see Suo have while she's fem-presenting. My boy is not worried about gender norms he is worried for his sanity due to the attractive person flirting with him.

Honestly, this panel here implies that he finds masc-presenting Suo even more attractive. The fact that he even tries to reassure himself that because Suo is a woman this situation is less flustering is very interesting. Not that it does anything. Pouring one out for Tokiwa for real. As the manga goes on, Tokiwa gives off the vibe of someone who is comfortable with his sexuality enough that the gender presentation of the person he likes is irrelevant, both are attractive to him in different ways. Again, while Suo's crossdressing is a point of interest in the sense that it's not something he understands or gets intuitively, he doesn't have nearly the same level of crisis as Hagi does. His attraction to Suo is never questioned- rather it seems to be a question of whether or not he thinks Suo is genuine in her flirting.

And our last boy is Hagi, poor beloved Hagi who is having the time of his life trying to figure out that hey, sometimes people don't dress or present stereotypically. It's a rough life for you Hagi. However, his inner conflict is very gripping. I find his reaction and subsequent coming to terms with the idea of crossdressing a very realistic take on the subject much more akin to your average person being introduced to everything for the first time. It never feels mean spirited even if Hagi can be offensive in this thoughts and comments at first- it's born from a place of genuine confusion, both towards himself and towards the girls. Hagi falling in love with Kohaku, while a little to rife with misunderstandings for my taste, I think is a wonderful narrative of how even being straight doesn't mean that there is one way to feel attraction. While Kohaku throws around the idea of him being bi due to him being attracted to Kohaku while she's masc-presenting, Suo best sums it up when she says that it's not about the words or the looks, its about who it's coming from. And given that we haven't seen Hagi struggle with this from anyone else, it's a safe bet to say he likes Kohaku as masc-presenting, not necessarily masc-presenting people or men in general. Attraction as a fluid concept is something most straight romance stories, let alone a comedy based one, seldom bother to explore along the gender spectrum. Hagi's struggle to understand himself and what his attraction to Kohaku means to him personally is such an interesting take that it elevates the entire storyline out of miscommunication hell almost (just almost).

Idk idk this feels like a very silly rant to have but I do in fact love this manga more than a reasonable amount and this is definitely one of the top reasons for it. I would love for it to get a bit more attention but I shall settle for rereading it for the 20th time I suppose

[d3sertdream3r]

I've been loving trop this season!! I am wondering how the whole SauronxGaladriel thing is going to play out though I'm nervous it won't be very satisfying with everything they've built up and all the marketing hype it's gotten. I'm worried they're baiting shippers to get more people to watch. Thoughts?

Oh boy, I have MANY thoughts!

I am absolutely DEVOURING this season, anon! The first episode in particular really blew me away. As a Saurondriel/Haladriel shipper, I thought all the direct parallels shown in Sauron and Galadriel’s journeys were PERFECT! 

I was worried they were going to retcon Sauron’s genuine feelings of despair and questioning if he should “repent” or not due to the amount of hate and toxicity from the usual suspects on the internet. Instead they really leaned into it, and I loved seeing The Dark Lord having nightmares. It’s a side of him we’ve never seen explored before! And that Annatar reveal… holy moly! Celebrimbor and I were both like: 

Galadriel has been breaking my heart in each episode. Elrond and Gil-Galad need to give my girl a break! Morfydd Clark’s acting is stellar. She is so heartbroken over not recognizing Sauron for who he truly was and even worse… catching feelings for him! She’s really going through it and it hurts, but it’s also brilliant on the writers’ part. 

Everyone else’s acting and stories are great too. Arondir was a favorite of mine last season and continues to be this season. Disa is FANTASTIC and I love her and Durin so much there aren’t any words to describe it. Isildur and Estrid are cute and I’m interested to see how their story plays out. I hardcore ship Elendil and Miriel, and his daughter needs to take a seat before she helps Pharazon destroy their home! I know the story, but MAN was it killing me to see how Eärien is contributing to its downfall in this show (in a good way… I think having her be involved with the opposite side of her father makes for great drama). 

As to the second part of your ask… I have been involved in many online fandoms for about 13 years now, and I gotta say that 98% of the time fans come up with way more interesting storylines than the creators of any show. A lot of the time they just don't deliver. I’ve been burned over and over again, so my bar is pretty low at this point. 

They’ve done a fabulous job with the Saurondriel dynamic so far, and I’ve seen some really interesting fan theories about Galadriel briefly joining Sauron or being taken prisoner by him. As truly fascinating as that would be, I’m not holding my breath. I think it’ll be a rehash of season one’s ending with more violence since they have swords this time around. After that, I’m guessing they’ll focus on Sauron gaslighting, gatekeeping, and girlbossing his way to the throne of hell while Galadriel and company work together to stop him. They’ve hinted at Celeborn a bit, I’m sure we’ll see them reunited at some point. 

I’m sorry if this isn’t very reassuring! I wish I could be more optimistic about Saurondriel in season 3, but I honestly don’t think Tolkien’s estate would go for Galadriel falling to the dark side in any capacity. Sauron taking her prisoner could happen, but I highly doubt it simply because as I said before, fans tend to have better ideas than a lot of creators in my opinion.

I could be completely wrong! I have just learned not to trust creators to handle things the BEST way, but that doesn't mean it won't be handled in a GOOD way. Hopefully that makes sense, lol. I think some people will be satisfied and some people won't, just like every other story. The shippy photoshoots and marketing have been delightful! I can't tell if they're baiting until I see the last episode. I think they were just having fun, but some comments from cast and creators would definitely seem a bit baity if the payoff is underwhelming. We'll see!

I really hope the season goes out with a bang and we all have something to love about it; especially Saurondriel shippers!

[hearts4golbach]

The Night Shift.

Chapter 7.

Johnnie Guilbert x Fem!Reader.

I sat at the counter with my notebook and pen, scribbling down ideas for new recipes or drinks. My mind frequently wandered to johnnie, and it worried me. I couldn't get what Jake asked me out of my brain. did I like johnnie? I couldn't tell if what I was feeling was just having a really good friend or something more. I cringed at myself. I doodled on the side of my page, drawing hearts and stars until someone walked in.

"Hello, miss." the man said with a heavy southern accent. I suppressed a laugh, thinking about Jake.

"Hi, what can i get for you?"

"Let me get the peanut butter mocha, please. That'll be all." he sighed. I nodded in response. "You got a boyfriend?"

I furrowed my eyebrows. I'm sure he didn't mean it the way it sounded. I immediately thought about johnnie. "No, sir."

"Well, don't worry. once you find someone, you'll know." he had a crooked tooth grin.

"Oh, thank you." I smiled. it confused me where this came from. "Why do you say?"

"You learn to read how people feel when you have a bipolar wife." he snorted.

"Well, you were spot on."

a woman walked in behind him on her phone. she looked up and smiled at me. she was beautiful, even if she had a messy bun and no makeup. she seemed sweet.

"Listen, you seem like a nice girl. you've got looks on your side, too. I say go for it. I know I don't know your situation, but when you look back, you'll regret it."

I was getting a little more concerned each second. this was almost creepy. how could he be so right? I passed his coffee over the counter. "Thank you." I said genuinely.

he nodded, not saying a word as he walked out of the cafe.

"What was that about?" the girl asked, walking up to the counter.

"Apparently, he could sense how I was feeling. I've been overthinking about this guy I met, and he was spot on." I shrugged.

"so, when's he going to tell my fortune?" she joked, pulling out her wallet. "tell me about this guy."

"well, I met him a few days ago. I think he's really cute and we've had our... moments, I guess. i think I might be gaslighting myself into thinking I don't like him like that. I've never had a boyfriend, let alone a genuine crush." I rambled. "I genuinely do not know why I'm opening up to strangers."

"I mean, who knows if we'll ever cross paths again."

"still, I feel stupid." I shake my head. "anyway, what can I get for you?"

"can I just get an iced caramel coffee?" she asked with a sweet smile on her face.

I hum, turning around to make it. What a weird night, I'll probably end up rephrasing to tell johnnie later. we talked little after she asked.

"I hope you have a good night." I smiled softly as I handed her coffee over the counter.

"you too." she smiled back before walking out.

I sat back down and continued to try and write, but my mind frequently wandered back to johnnie. was he even coming tonight?

about an hour and a half later, the door bell rang. "Hey, y/n." Johnnie's tired voice called. I looked up, he carried his computer under one arm.

"johnnie, how bad is your sleep schedule?" I teased, "this is the 3rd night in a row you've come to see me. you must love my face to come here at like 2 am every night."

"what can I say? I get really bad nightmares and your face does in fact make me feel better."

my gaze softened as I smiled.

"do you mind if I hang out in here and edit a video?"

"I'd love that." my heart fluttered at Johnnie's presence.

I turned around to clean the counters as he chose the table closest to where I was. he lazily opened his computer and pulled up the needed footage.

I hummed quietly to what was playing in my headphone as I finished wiping everything down. I fixed myself a coffee and went to sit across from him.

"I had the weirdest fucking encounter today." I mentioned.

he looked up. "what happened?"

"This guy came in and told me that I seemed stressed over a guy and that I'll know if he's the right person and I shouldn't fight my feelings off." I blurted, not bothering to rephrase it.

he made eye contact with me again, curiosity glistening in his eyes. "so, like, a connection you can't explain? thats really poetic."

"yeah, it's scary cause he's right." I mumbled.

"well, if you think you've found that person, then go for it. life's too short to not." he looks back down at his laptop.

"what if I'm not sure if he likes me back?"

a twinge of hurt flashed in his eyes. he seemed to be scrounging for ways to respond. "well, what if he's just as unsure as you?" he asked knowingly.

I furrowed my eyebrows. "so should I really think on it?"

"you might be wasting time, but you never know. maybe waiting is a good decision." he avoided eye contact with me.

"are you good?"

"yeah." he trailed off, rubbing his arm.

silence filled the room for a good minute, I zoned out, staring into my coffee once more.

"have you ever felt that way?"

"felt like what?"

"when you like someone but you're terrified it'll ruin something good?" I pondered.

he looked up, his gaze softening. "yeah, the fear of losing someone so special even though nothing has happened yet?"

"yeah, exactly."

"well, I guess we have to take risks. step out of our comfort zone, you know?" he paused. "at least we could say we tried, right?"

"right." I whispered, awkward tension filled the room.

he cleared his throat. "when you know, you know."

[couldpolyamorysavethem]

BRAD CHILES, JUDY REEVES, and FREDERICK "FRED" JONES, SR. FROM SCOOBY-DOO

Justification:

"Look. In the universe that most of the series takes place in, they are all absolutely perfectly terrible for each other. I want to see the three of them tormenting one another in the most horrific ways possible because the three of them deserve it. It wouldn't save them, but it sure would be fun as hell to see the three of them burning each other down in a perfect blend of toxicity and mutual pain! But that's not the version of them that I'm talking about here. I'm talking about the universe that Mystery Incorporated ends in!

Like, for anyone that's seen the show, we all agree that the universe that the show ends in is horrific, right? The gang are in some bizarro "good" universe where everything bad that they were subjected to didn't happen. But the writers sure have a strange idea of a "happy" and "better" universe, right? Shaggy is successful, loved by his parents, and well on his way to become a famous chef. Velma and Marcie are dating. Daphne's army of older sisters… Are failures in life…? And Daphne is seen as the "successful" daughter because… She's still engaged to Fred…? Speaking of which, Fred, who experienced the worst of The Horrors(tm) gets the worst of it! His father aka the guy that kidnapped him as a baby and whom Fred decided was his only legitimate parent is now his school principal who has no real reason to be in Fred's life after he graduates, meanwhile Fred now has to live with his biological parents who were… Just the absolute fucking worst in the old universe! They tried to kill Fred and his friends on multiple occasions, and then they did the SUPREMELY fucked up thing of getting plastic surgery as part of an elaborate scheme to gaslight the gang into giving them an artifact that the gang were hiding by them kidnapping Fred and replacing him with Brad (who got plastic surgery to look identical to Fred), and gaslighting Fred into thinking that the world blew up and that he's hanging out with an elderly Daphne (who is actually Judy, his biological mom also having undergone plastic surgery… AND WHO HAS TO FLIRT WITH HER BIOLOGICAL SON FOR THIS SCHEME TO WORK). And some time after that scheme fails, they swear their loyalties to an eldritch abomination from another dimension, and get eaten alive for their troubles! While still looking like Fred and an elderly Daphne!!! Like… It takes a A LOT for one to make a good case that someone's kidnapper should actually be their victim's legal guardian… But Scooby-Doo Mystery Incorporated sure as fuck does it! And now Fred has to live with those two while he wouldn't really be able to see his only legitimate parent after he graduates! So like… It is genuinely no surprise that Fred decided to run away from home at the end of the series! But at the same time… Fred's biological parents in this new universe seem to be… Like… Fine. Perfectly nice people. They're doctors and deal with newborn babies in this new universe rather than being professional pieces of shit. So they genuinely did nothing wrong! But that doesn't diminish the trauma that their alternate universe counterparts made Fred go through! Trauma that Fred would still need to deal with! And now that they're in this new universe… It does bring up some questions… Because like… In the previous universe, Fred was kidnapped as a baby. We don't even know what his birth name would have been! Would he still be "Fred" if he wasn't kidnapped by a "Fred"!???? And if his name is still "Fred" in this new universe, then why!?

But do you know what would make all of this just a little less horrific and answer some questions…? Polyamory of course! Fred can't see his only real parent after he graduates? Well, Principal Jones is actually dating Brad and Judy! He's going to be over all the time, if not outright move in with them! Of course Principal Jones sees Fred as the son he never had! He only helped Brad and Judy raise him! And that's also why Fred is still named Fred! He was always going to be named Fred because Fred was always going to be named after the same guy! If they weren't allowed to include Mr. Jones' last name on the wedding certificate or the birth documents, by jove, they could at least give their son Mr. Jones' first name! And sure. Fred's only legit dad may not have any memories of the old universe. But he can stay in Fred's life and now comes with a wealth of experience of dealing with kids Fred's age and knowledge on how to deal with kids going through problems and dealing with trauma! I ship the Jones Parents Polycule where no one else does and I'm proud of it! Polyamory can just outright FIX many of the problems that I have with Mystery Incorporated! Polyamory FTW" - @maniacwatchestheworld

[dreamingomens]

for me?

CW: mentions of blood/murder, manipulation and gaslighting

this is my first actual piece of writing so bare with me if it sucks 😩

a quick blossoming romance is a nice way to describe the situation that occurred with you and ethan. from the moment you two met, everyone could practically see the sparks flying. he followed you like a lost puppy for weeks until he had the actual courage to ask you out on a date. ethan was a great boyfriend, he truly was. he did everything in his power to make you happy. you were his top priority, even if it meant to suffer his happiness. he would do ANYTHING for you.

if someone told you in three months that the love of your life would be standing in front of you and your friends with a bloody knife that was dripping in chads blood, you would think it was a sick joke.

as the curly brunette took his mask off, a sick smile displayed on his face.

"hi, honey." he smirked. he was eager for this moment. he was finally going to get the recognition he deserved for all his hard work he did for you.

as tears brimmed your eyes, you couldn't help but take in the facial expressions displayed on tara and sam's face. they were hurt, but certainly not as hurt as you.

this is the same boy you helped make a cardboard knight costume with at two in the morning. the same boy who used to organize his comic books in alphabetical order. how was he capable of such gruesome murders?

the gears in your brain started to turn as the puzzle pieces slowly started to fit. it all made sense.

the professor that gave you a failing grade who was found days later butchered in the ally.

poor anika who spoke negatively on your relationship with ethan.

chad who expressed his concerns about the friend group falling apart if anything were to happen with the relationship.

"you.. YOU did this?" your shaky voice croaked out.

"not alone." quinn spoke out from her hidden spot behind her father. "you seriously didn't see this coming, y/n?"

in quinn's eyes, she was getting revenge for her brother- richie. ethan begged for his family to spare you. he broke the one rule his father put in place.. don't get attached. ethan clearly didn't want to listen. he never had someone have genuine feelings for him. how could he let this opportunity slip from his hands? he might not have this opportunity ever again. he needed to keep you in his hands forever.

"you tricked me..."

ethan flinched at these words. he did have genuine love for you. couldn't you see that? would he have gutted your professor in an alley if he didn't? did you see him differently? how couldn't you be happy knowing he did all of this for you!

"tricked you? no.. no i SAVED you." he explained. "if it wasn't for me, quinn would've killed you when she had the chance. did you ever think how EVERYONE in our lives were targeted except you? that's because of me, honey. i did that for YOU. for US. we can be happy now without anyone getting in the way!" he didn't see anything wrong with his actions. how could he?

"you're a monster" you croaked out

"great. we kept your little bitch alive for nothing." quinn rolled her eyes. "i told you she wouldn't understand or appreciate it."

"well.. you know what to do." wayne bailey kicked at his feet and looked at the ground.

"get them."

[richeeduvie]

Roman loves to shoot his loads inside Baby’s shoes. She goes to put on her pumps and finds them wet… and sticky.

That's disgusting. Utterly fucking gross. Like...it's gross. Freakish. Fuck feral and filthy. Give me more of it.

VERY NSFW, but can you imagine the sound? The warm, sticky liquid Baby feels as her feet press into the inside of her shoes? And even though she doesn't know, she already knows. Her brain already connects the dots, every filthy little dot.

There, an idea kicks in. Literally. She smiles.

There was anger at first, because these are good shoes and it's cum on her feet, but she'll pretend to stretch the anger out as long as she can, with every squish of her heel.

The degradation will turn Roman on, light a fire in him...but too much of it, too much of seemingly genuine anger without her touching or cradling him will put him in a whiny, insecure panic. Right where Baby wants him before she picks him off the floor. Makes him burn and maybe cry. Something like regret.

She slams the door open.

"Roman!"

Roman's head is almost thrown back, eyes clenched like the way you do when the sun's right in your face. "Jesus fuck-oh...how'd you like my present? Fucking got you - you should see the fucking look on your face-"

He gets to wear his shit-eating grin for a second before Baby throughs her shoe on the bed. Hard. It makes a thud. Roman blinks fast. She has to force herself to not smile.

There it is.

"What did you do to my fucking shoes? I put up with all of the disgusting shit you do. I tolerate it but...Rome, fuck! These were my favorites."

It's knowingly an asshole move to use the word tolerate, to pretend that she doesn't revel in their dynamic as much as he does, but Baby knows how to get him. How to get his throat to bob and pulse to throb thinly on his forehead.

"...Why are you fucking playing it like you're not leaking at the thought of wearing my jizz? You fuck-you walked here in them. What the fuck happened? It can't be this that gets you?"

Roman's voice is still adultly defensive and mocking, but it wavers.

"It's disgusting! And not what I-I wear these to work!"

"...Okay?"

"You are always looking for attention. Always, You don't know me at all if you think this will get me off."

That's wrong and confusing and it's plastered on Roman's brows and the slight lines on his face. "No, no. What the fuck are you off about? What happened? Don't-this is what you want. You were...you do like this. Are you sexual gaslighting me right now? You baby - you...no!"

Baby revels in his panic she'll soothe as much as his cum on her skin.

"Roman-"

He grabs the shoe and looks down at it. "...What happened? Why are you saying this?"

"Roman-"

"I know you! Tolerate? Actually...fuck off."

Wavering and cracking. Pitchy. Like he's about to cry. His head shook once and stiffly, almost a joke as he unknowingly put the shoe to his stomach.

Cradling it like how Baby knows he likes to be held.

"We like the same things and you love me, why are you lying?"

It's genuine, like he's smaller. He is.

Baby sighs and feigns defeat. Her poor boy. She turns.

"Where are you going? What happened? You can't just fucking-" Roman scoffs. "You can't just lie and leave. You don't do that. You don't..."

He took in a harsh breath. It's cartoonish how fast his feelings can turn.

"I know you."

And it's amazing how fast Baby's performance can come to a halt. She smiles brightly, comes over quick and kisses Roman's cheek with his palm on his crotch.

"I know. I'm just fucking with you. I love you, Rome."

Routine whiplash that Roman never gets used to. It's obvious he how he doesn't blink and the vein keeps pulsing - how his back straightens out.

"Roman."

"Fuck you."

It's like when his brother makes a bad joke that hurts Roman. Not so obvious hurt, but it's worn in annoyance. He flicks Baby's crotch.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?"

Baby's flattens herself out of the bed, taking the shoe from him and putting it on clumsy. Squish. She admires her feet with them pointed.

"It's my own version of cum in shoes."

Roman won't realize how red he is until all of his body is, Baby's feet white.

[randombookposts]

Canaan University Au

Ok I thought of a college au for the locked tomb a awhile ago but I never bothered to write it down until now. Anyways I think they would all go to this imaginary university in New Zealand and it’s like the first book but with a lot less murder. Here’s what I think each house would study

Judith- Criminal justice major. Huge stickler for rules and doing homework. If she’s not in the gym reading a textbook while doing push-ups, she’s in the library getting into a heated debate with a Corona. Had a huge crush on Marta and went to the same college as her to hangout, just getting over it, may or may not have feelings for Corona, maybe.

Marta- In law school, was a mentor to Judith when she was in high school and that’s how they know each other. Gently turned Judith down but they’re still friends and study together sometime. Is the DD at every party.

Corona: Majoring in marketing with a minor in fashion merchandising. Doesn’t do great on tests but aces every presentation. President of her sorority. Can and will gaslight frat boys. Everyone wants her but she only has eyes for the stuck up criminal justice major.

Ianthe- Management major with a minor in maybe finance. Commits tax fraud and gets away with it. Sometimes does Corona’s homework for her. Doxxes people online (mostly Babs), smokes in the dorm hallways. Flirts with Harrow during their study sessions, which Harrow ignores.

Naberius- Economics major, and major fuck boy. Makes thirst traps and is doxxed. Hangs out with the twins even though they bully him. Doesn’t do shit during group projects. Will get a job at his dads company post graduation.

Jeannemary and Isaac don’t go to college but are tutored by Abigail at her house. They just silly teens who experiment with makeup and clothes to find their look. Talk loudly about anime in the school hallways. A little cringe but they’re doing their best.

Abigail- Anthropology professor and is really cool. Tough grader but genuinely loves her students and shares trivia with them. Brings donuts to test days. Will accidentally derail class to talk about books or her husband. If one of her students brings up one of the incredibly niche topics she likes, she will talk about it for hours.

Magnus- Not a teacher but visits Abigail's classes often. Nice guy, helps look after Jeannemary and Isaac. I'm not sure what he would do as a job, maybe chef or stay at home husband lol. Regardless, he's the one making all the meals.

Palamedes- Pre-med, wants to become a doctor so he can save Dulcinea save people. Smartest guy in the room always, a go to for anyone struggling with their biology homework. Has a friendly rivalry with Harrow (it's more rivalry than friendly for Harrow but she grows fond of him over time). Is the one derailing class with philosophical debates.

Camilla- Physics major, too cool for you. Really into sports, just not sure which, like gymnastics or soccer or rugby or fencing. Works hard but actually remembers to eat and sleep too. Probably in student government as well. Her and Palamedes are attached at the hip, they later get an apartment together and that's where all the main hangouts with the other characters happen.

Dulcinea- Suffers from chronic illness and focuses her life on learning and traveling rather than getting a traditional job. She's got multiple degrees in stuff like literature, philosophy, and art history. She is active on social media and has a blog, and sells crocheted animals on Etsy. Became mutuals with Pal and Camilla on social media and they met up later when they went off to college.

Protesilaus- Dulcie's caretaker, helps her with her medical stuff. Becomes like a cool uncle figure to her and her friends. Hangs out a lot with Ortus and they share poetry.

Silas- Double major in theology and philosophy. Freaky teen prodigy who graduated high school early and attends university. Little shit who people are either freaked out by or straight up just don't like him. Will snitch on anyone for anything he doesn't like. Really only friends with Colum.

Colum- Silas' nephew, but way older than him, weird dynamic. Not in school but drives Silas to his classes and Silas lives with him during the school year instead of in the dorms. Nice guy, looks out for Silas' well being the best he can but tries to keep him from being too nasty to others.

Harrow- Double major in theology and archeology. Studies at all hours and forgets to eat and sleep. Local cryptid. Autistic with special interests in religion and burial rituals. Went to Catholic school and had a suffocating home life. Trying to grapple with that as she starts to navigate adult life. Also trying to mend her relationship with Gideon after being so harsh in her younger years.

Gideon- Kinesiology major, butch vibes to the max. Does swordfighting and weight training in her down time. Has kissed both Ianthe and Corona at some point, though it never went anywhere after that. Wears her sunglasses at all times even in class. Finds the worst fashions from thrift stores and wears them to piss Harrow off. Grew up with Harrow in a foster home Harrow's parents ran and also attended Catholic school with her but they rarely interacted beyond antagonizing each other. Reconnected after being randomly assigned roommates. Now they're buddies and hang out alongside the 3rd and 6th, (also the 2nd and Dulcie sometimes too). They all do stupid shit together like sing karoke off key and hit up Taco Bell at 2am after binge watching movies.

[hiswordsarekisses]

If they did know they were deceived, they would not be deceived. No one chooses to be deceived. It starts with a lack of love for the truth, according to 2 Thessalonians chapter two.

To love the truth is to want to know the truth regardless of what it is - even if it means we are wrong. But honestly, my question is - why wouid we want to believe a lie??? What good would it do? I want the truth - and nothing but the truth - because it's the truth that sets us free.

I know one well known reporter who lost her job at a well known news channel because she refused to back down from the truth.

She was so committed to the truth that she had reported what she believed to be the truth about the candidate she wanted to win the presidency - even though this information cast him in a bad light - and could possibly affect whether or not he would be elected.

THEN...

when she found out that the actual truth was actually that this particular candidate was innocent, she recanted

- and she was fired.

She loved the truth more than she loved her job... That takes genuine integrity.

It is very hard to come by the truth these days - you really have to dig for it on both sides of any given report.

And that's really easy to do if you truly want the truth.

People have lost their consciences these days, just as the Bible foretold.

There is no dishonorable length that is too far to go for many who find popularity and acceptance by the crowd to be the most important thing.

Some will even create an exaggerated extremely dramatic scene to convince others of their (UN)righteous indignation.

(I recently witnessed this the one time I happened to flip past the channel where the "The View" was airing, and it was one of the most disturbing thing I have ever witnessed.)

Staying consistently in the Word and prayer is the only way to have the discernment necessary for the type of gaslighting that is now being perpetuated on the world by those with an unholy and willful agenda. . .I would say "evil" agenda but I honestly believe they do not know they have been deceived. . .

As scripture states:

"they have been taken captive by the enemy to do his will." (2-Timothy-2:26)

The deception is becoming so severe, the Bible says, that - if it were possible - even the very chosen of God would be deceived as well.

But if you are looking to Him, and trusting Him - to keep you in truth - and also daily in prayer and in the word - and praying to love the truth - God will never never NEVER let you down.

Even if you get off track, He will bring us right back. He remembers that we are only humans, made of dust - He comes RUNNING with compassion to rescue us from our deception - because He loves us - but also because He knows that we are trusting Him!!!

Jesus used an earthly father as an example when saying; "would a father not give his son bread when he asked for it, and not a stone instead?" He was reassuring us that we can trust Him even more than an earthly father to answer our prayers and needs.

God says those without wisdom and discernment - have only to ask for it and He will give it to us. But we cannot ask - and not be following. We cannot ask and not be living for the Lord.

Scripture clearly instructs us that "to be readers of the Word and not doers of it, we deceive ourselves!!" (James 1:22)

Reading the book of first John is a good way to test ourselves. God loves us too much to be some kind of sugar daddy or spoiling grandparent - just giving us whatever we ask for as we live our lives for ourselves - contrary to the Word of God.

Do you see the process progress in your life? Or are you the same way you were when you got saved?

Are you convicted by your sin, or is sin just as normal as ever, and you don't think twice about it? Where it’s habitual?

Do you love the brethren?

Are you growing in the fruits of the spirit?

It does take a tree a long time to begin to produce fruit, but you know deep inside your knower whether you feel the energizing and conviction of the Holy Spirit within you - transforming you from the inside out, getting ready to bud. Reading the Word prayerfully helps us to examine these things.

We absolutely will not know the truth if we are not going after it for ourselves and we are listening to everyone else too much. Preachers, teachers, and prophets have their place - but they should never replace our own searching and learning of truth in God's Word.

As soon as we begin to rely on other voices, another persons research, other books, etc., we open the door to possibly be fed lies and deception.

Right now is more critical a time than ever to be playing around like that. It's not worth it. Those other voices are not who will be standing before God for you, YOU will stand there alone - face to face with Love Himself, but also face to face with truth.

Jesus said “I Am The Truth, z the Way, and The Life.” (John 14:6)

There are so many warnings throughout scripture that explain what kind of things open the door of our mind, heart and life to deception.

These are scriptures that literally say "we deceive ourselves."

I typed the following into google:

"scripture deceiving ourselves"

And it came back with the very top search result link saying:

“53 verses on deceiving ourselves."

The very best thing we can do is to get alone with God and ask for understanding, insight, discernment, revelation knowledge and wisdom. God surely does answer this prayer in bucket loads.

I learned to ask this by experience, and by experience I learned that God loves to answer! It's incredible.

I wonder how much deeper our understanding and wisdom would be if we fasted from other voices and books, etc...

Just alone with God and His Word for days - weeks - months maybe. It will literally transform our lives in ways we never dreamed.

God wants to speak to YOU.

Maybe it's time to get all the other voices and stuff out of the way for a while.

Pray to be able to drop all preconceived thoughts and teachings of men, and be taught by the Holy Spirit.

To forget everything we have been {taught to see} as we read scripture, and to be able to see what has been blocked by deception

- things that we never even knew was there.

I have been there.. a lot!

I am not dumb enough to ever assume I have it all figured out, so l regularly continue to study in this way, because I was so amazed and shocked by what I learned that I can never go back to the way I used to be fed.

Once Jesus Himself feeds you the WHOLE meal - meat, milk, and even desert

- nothing else will ever satisfy again.

He gets deep inside of us and we are left too ruined and spoiled to ever settle for secondhand news from those other voices ever again!

•*•*•

"O Lord, if I be deceived - in ANY way - please un-deceive me!" - C. H. Spurgeon

•*•*•

(His Words Are Kisses - Dana Jean Klibert)

[slocumjoe]

some things I love about the companions 💞

Ada; is best girl. She's a cool ass robot who gives me glue and doesn't judge me. No, this is not my "transformers prime permanently rewired my brain" bias for robots. At risk of sounding like a 12 year old boy, Assaultatrons are just badass designs. And she's blue!

Cait; is a lot funnier than anyone gives her credit for. Also, weirdly educated? For example, she wonders if Raiders like tunnels as a "Freudian" thing. Few people she'd have met would known about Freud, so she'd have to have gone and read about it herself. Also also, is on Danse's level of romantic sweet talk. Girl makes me swoon.

Codsworth; somehow hates the wasteland more than X6. His wording and tone is very optimistic but you can tell that, underneath his chipper facade, Codsworth is so fucking grossed out by everything he sees. Also, the only two companions he doesn't trust to keep you safe, are Piper and MacCready. Make of that what you will.

Curie; X6-88 (like, 10 years old) calls her unqualified and she (200ish) basically tells him to get the fuck back in the play pen

Danse; Sending his eyebrows to space by showing the smallest amount of care and affection. I'm pretty sure this man would die if someone asked if he was okay.

Deacon; talks a big game about being a liar, and being very good about it, but if you don't read that 'recall code' ASAP, he bugs you about it constantly because he hates lying to you. It's not even that you're being naive, he genuinely hates that he's being trusted when you were supposed to question him.

Dogmeat; my favorite thing about Dogmeat is that I'll spend an hour scrapping all dog houses in Sanctuary, make him a little area in my backyard with a house, food bowl, toys, a rug, and classical music, and he thanks me by getting up on my countertops to sleep, using my antique pie collection as bedding.

Gage; Wears a fake eyepatch and throws hissy fits when my army of sexy chads curbstomps his furries, Nepo babies, and Joker stans. This is entirely wishful thinking and I get why this didn't happen, but I would have liked an option to convince him "Hey, I'm coming back with my army to wipe out all these raiders, but I'll give you a chance to join me or leave since you also seem to hate these chuckleheads." I appreciate his shady convict uncle vibes. I would let him teach Shaun how to cheat at cards.

Hancock; takes mentats to feel "intellectual" when he has the second highest INT of all the companions. Also, his puppy dog eyes. "IM FERAL NOW" as he gets his ass kicked by a legendary god roach

MacCready; dork man. he has more cliche stock line jokes than Deacon. I unironically vibe with his taste in trailers, fucking LOVE leopard print (fake bc we don't fuck with wasteful animal hunting like that). He's a very cozy companion to travel with, for lack of a better description. Like if a thermos of soup was a human.

Nick; Nick is what I imagine Mac would be like as he got older—just a laid-back weirdo who wants whats best for you and will insult you so you understand that. I love his tacky ass agency sign. I wish you could put him in other clothes, because I need him in a bathrobe wielding a cane against my enemies. Just really succumb to the grumpy uncle vibes.

Old Longfellow; reminds me strongly of my old neighbor, an elderly southern gentleman who was a sniper in the military, had a chunky rottie named Baby, and once watched me play Fallout and gave his opinions on the design of the weapons in game. That man is now in Thailand with his girlfriend. I've never traveled with Longfellow but I'm pretty sure its a 1 to 1.

Preston; if you don't take Preston to Quincy, I don't blame you, because oh man, does he not have a great time there! Preston sounds five seconds away from snapping his gun over his knee and going for strangulation in Quincy. King shit.

Piper; I was pretty harsh to Piper but I love her gaslight gatekeep girlboss approach to her life. She's like an adult Junie B Jones. Piper has never had her shit together and is self-medicating with sugar harder than Hancock and Cait do with drugs. She's a cringefail woman. If Bethesda was brave they would have gone with her pixie cut concept.

X6-88; a blank canvas for me to go wild on with the fanon. But I love how he's just an asshole 10 year old murderbot that's scared of heights, thinks Power Armor is so cool he privately fangirls over Danse, is scared of children, and gushes over how awesome the Survivor is to his courser buddies. What a babe.

[thecarnivorousmuffinmeta]

Hello, I hope you’re well. Genuine question, I know it’s joked about quite a lot, but what do you think Edward’s reaction would’ve been if at some point (probably before we get to breaking dawn), Bella had suggested that Edward, Jacob and her were in a polyamorous relationship. She loves both of them and she just can’t choose, so she decides that’s the only solution? Likewise, how would Jacob have taken it? (I imagine not quite as badly as Edward?)

For the Love of a Woman by me and @therealvinelle

Leech in the Rain by me and @therealvinelle

Caveat

This wouldn't happen both because it didn't and because that's not really what Bella wants. Bella's in this weird situation where Edward and Jacob are both gaslighting her into believing she wants a sexual relationship with Jacob. Now, she does find Jacob attractive, and she is very emotionally close to him, and things are deeply awkward at the wedding when they slow dance in a way that would have had me raising my eyebrows had I been there in person, but that doesn't seem to be what Bella wants from him.

What she wants from Jacob is for him to remain her best friend and emotional support. Jacob is the one who insists this is a romantic love, that she loves him as much as she does Edward, while Bella goes "... nooooooo I think it's difffereeeeeeeent" and neither Edward nor Jacob listening to her about it for their own reasons.

Add to that that Bella's terrified of jeopardizing her relationship with Edward. She will (and did) absolutely drop Jacob to keep Edward, 100%. Jacob makes it clear many times, even leaves town, and Bella agrees to marry Edward and turn into a vampire knowing Jacob has said he will be out because she can't lose Edward.

She's not suggesting to Edward that she actually does want to sleep with another man, let alone Jacob, who Edward has accused her of wanting to/wanted her to be with Jacob instead of him. This could cause their relationship to collapse, the Cullens to move, and Bella to not become a vampire.

And of course, that Jacob was very clear that he despised Edward/vampires in general and could barely tolerate let alone sleep with one.

It was very clearly made into an ultimatum: Bella could not choose both.

So, Bella chose Edward.

(The caveat to this caveat is that Jacob and Edward might suggest this: in which case Bella would cry, end up having to get turned by Carlisle, and Jacob/Edward takes off.

The other caveat being Leech in the Rain when Bella is safely turned but her life has utterly imploded, Edward's falling apart emotionally, and her seeking comfort from Jacob turns into "let's make a threesome tee-hee")

But She Does It

Bella summons her courage after having been made to believe she wants both Edward and Jacob sexually. She's an unconventional modern girl, marriage is stupid anyway, and she's in true love with Edward and Jacob in different ways but the same way so that's all okay. You can't choose love, you know?

So, Bella deep into the night comes up with the solution: she will fuck them both and live happily ever after.

This idea lasts 0.01 seconds.

Edward says "no" firmly. He wants to get married to have sex with her/before he turns her, he doesn't want to sleep with Jacob, don't be ridiculous Bella.

However, Bella, if you do want to choose Jacob, Edward will disappear out of her life like the morning mist never to have existed in the first place. He loves Bella, of course, but he believes she should live a human life and Jacob is technically better for her. Even if she loves Edward, she should choose Jacob. Woe.

Bella backtracks hard.

Then Edward backtracks because actually...

To have a relationship with Jacob, Bella would need to be human. If Edward has to suffer being in the room and watching them go, he'll do it, if it keeps her human. Jacob, too, might go for it so long as Bella will remain human even if it means sharing.

Jacob, while reluctant, is eventually amenable as he too would do nearly anything to keep Bella human.

We end up in a For the Love of a Woman variant, where Bella quickly realizes she doesn't like this, as Jacob and Edward are talking about her only fucking Jacob in front of Edward while he does nothing and Bella stays human.

No amount of backtracking gets Edward and Jacob to go back to the way things used to be.

Bella ends up having to dump them both, becomes a vampire, and is very sad.

[gojuo]

Is satosugu a queerbaiting ship?

Yes and no. No, it's not queerbaiting in canon because Gege is not writing anything romantic in their relationship; Yes, it's queerbaiting coming from the fandom because the majority of stsg shippers are genuinely convinced there's something romantic between them in canon, and fandom is what a fan engages in way more than just canon therefore people get brainwashed/gaslighted into thinking stsg is meant to be canon.

Theories you read? That's fandom. Art you reblog? Fandom. Memes you consume and regurgitate? Fandom. Sending me asks about JJK? You're engaging in fandom. When you only—and I really mean only—read the manga and do not engage in any other aspect of JJK in online spaces, then you are not engaging in fandom therefore you have no stsg shippers forcing their headcanons down your throat and manipulating you into believing that shit. However... not engaging in fandom really isn't the reality for most JJK fans ... and because the majority of the JJK fandom are stsg shippers ... and because the majority of stsg shippers are truly convinced Gege wrote those two with a romantic dynamic ... people start to think there's actual romance happening and therefore he's queerbaiting bc "Gege will never have the balls to make stsg canon so he just sprinkles in random hints bc he's being censored by homophobic Shueisha!!!!" even though JJK has a lgbt couple and openly trans character like ... Lmfao.

The answer is no, there's no queerbaiting going on because there is no romance between stsg happening. Neither Gege nor his editors have never insinuated anything of the sort, nor have the voice actors, or anyone from the animation team. In canon, Gojo and Geto's relationship has only ever been portrayed as platonic. Any stsg cope that their friendship is secretly romantic is manipulative gaslighting. They keep twisting facts to suit their narrative and it's so annoying. "My one and only" is not romantic, the line before that is literally "My best friend"; "My soul knows otherwise" is not romantic, Gege said in the fanbook it's about the way Kenjaku's CT interacts with Gojo's Six Eyes; "Geto is the only deep bond Gojo has with a person" Literally a lie but this is also because of the age-old issue of Shonen writers' misogyny.

The biggest and greatest example of this issue is what Kishimoto did with Naruto/Sasuke/Sakura. To keep it short, Kishimoto, self-described as "I don't know how to write women", put all his effort into developing both Naruto and Sasuke as independent characters, their dynamic with each other, their relevance to the plot, their narrative arcs, etc. etc. and Sakura? She was just ... there. Not saying she was a nothingburger character but the gap between Naruto & Sasuke vs Sakura was considerably evident. And what happened when Kishimoto gave way more depth to the two guys in the trio over the girl? Mass shipping and delusional nrss is canon takes and egg hunts everywhere, even though it was clearcut that nrss was nothing but platonic. It's the same story with Gojo/Geto/Shoko (she literally disappears during HI like fuck you Gege), and the same story with Yuuji/Megumi/Nobara. Hell, I'd even go as far as to say it's the same with the Special Grades: Gojo/Geto/Yuuta/Tsukumo. There's a big disparity between character work for Gojo, Geto & Yuuta vs Tsukumo.

Gege might not make his female characters do fanservice like panty shots, unreasonably big tits, mad sexualization, KYAAHHH!!!, etc. all the time but that don't mean he's above being misogynistic to his female cast .

Gege did a lot of character work for both Gojo and Geto in HI which led up to the iconic Kenjaku reveal moment in Shibuya arc. Great. None of that shit was romantic in any way though. Had he given Shoko the same care and love he's given to the boys, we wouldn't be having this conversation right now. Because that would mean that the fujos would have to engage with her character and her dynamic with other characters in a meaningful way. Alas... that didn't happen because Gege said this is a sausage fest.

Now, all this doesn't mean that you can't ship stsg. It just means that stsg is not a canon ship, Gege is not being censored so he can't "confirm their love", it means that in canon there is no romantic love between those two and there never has been. But you can still ship it, though. Hell, I ship TojiGo! Literally negative romance there in canon obviously, but that won't stop me because exploring character dynamics outside of the confines of canon and the what-ifs is what shipping is all about! (Majority) stsg shippers are just annoying as fuck because they genuinely believe their ship is canon, try to force their headcanons and misinterpretations of the material down everyone's throats, and send death threats to anyone who dares to ship Gojo with literally anyone else. And then gaslight the part of the fandom that isn't into shipping culture so bad that people start to think this fujo ship is queerbaiting. Goddamn.