#i guess?? but it can be looked at as individual characteristics as well not just a ship dynamic

[mirai-e-jump]

TV Life, 9/20/2024 Issue ft. Kamen Rider Gavv Cast Members (translation below)

Publication: September 4, 2024

Chinen Hidekazu x Hino Yusuke x Miyabe Nozomi

"What were your thoughts when you read the script?"

Chinen: I finished reading it in an instant due to how interesting it was. The more I read, the more I was drawn into the world of this show, and my excitement grew so much that I couldn't wait to play the role.

Hino: Me too. I was so curious about future developments, that every time I read the script, I couldn't wait to get the next one (laughs). Every character that appears is full of personality and intricately intertwined, making this a show that I think children, as well as adults will enjoy.

Miyabe: Naturally, the dialogue is interesting and fun to watch, but each and every character actually has their own problems and insecurities. I thought that the depiction of them growing while confronting these issues was wonderful and gives a human feel to the story. I'm personally encouraged by Shouma and the other's hard work and dedication, so I'd like to do my best to deliver the feelings I have to the viewers as well.

"How do you personally view the roles you play?"

Chinen: Shouma's a cheerful and energetic boy who loves to eat. He's usually innocent, adorable, and incredibly charming, but he's also a very mysterious character from another world. I think his clumsy side and his ability to work as hard as he can in everything he does is what'll make the viewers want to cheer for him, so I'd like to keep that in mind as I perform from now on.

Hino: I play the role of Hanto, a young man who works as a freelance writer, and who's pursuing info on the enemy Granutes. One of the unique characteristics of Hanto is that his feelings towards the Granutes are stronger compared to the others, so I'm always conscious of how to express that in my performance. Going forward, I hope you'll also make sure to pay attention to the development that causes him to transform and become Kamen Rider Valen.

Miyabe: Sachika's the gyaru president of the general store "Hapipare." She's really upbeat and energetic, and she's the kind of person who could just go up to the cool and difficult to approach Hanto and say, "Hey there!" I have no gyaru qualities in my everyday life (laughs), so to prepare for the role, I looked at works in which gyarus appeared and incorporated them into Sachika.

"So, to reference the theme of sweets, how would you compare each other to sweets?"

Hino: Because Hide looks so cute and has some fluffy vibes, I guess he'd be a marshmallow. He's perfectly white and pure just like a marshmallow. Truthfully however, because he also has a strong and unshakable core, he'd be candy filled marshmallows!

Chinen: Those exist?! (laughs). Still, being told I have a strong core makes me happy. Nozomi-san would be yokan.

Miyabe: Yokan?! How surprising (laughs).

Chinen: In contrast to the role she plays, Nozomi-san's usually a very refined person, so when I thought, "What elegant sweets are there?," I came up with yokan.

Miyabe: Thank you. Hino-kun is……

Hino: Huh? You seem stuck (laughs). There's tons of variety and something for everyone, isn't there?!

Miyabe: Since he's always positive when communicating with us and the staff, he's a friendly person, so I guess he'd be dagashi. The fact that he's loved by all ages, genders and generations is also appealing.

Hino: I'm relieved you gave a good answer (laughs).

"And, TV Life will start running your "Relay Series" beginning with this issue."

All: Alright! (clapping).

Chinen: Our seniors had also decided on their title. What should we do?

Miyabe: It should include "Gavv."

Hino: Definitely! I'd prefer it to be catchy and easy to remember, but…

Miyabe: I think serializations are a place where each person's individuality can come out, so how about "GavvPare!," which would be a lineup that reflects the essence of Gavv? (from "onparedo" = lineup)

Chinen & Hino: Oh~! Sounds good!

Miyabe: It'd be great if people could get to know the show and us throughout the series.

Chinen: Yeah. The first one will be mine. Once again, we look forward to your support over the coming year! _

GavvPare! Vol.1 (Chinen Hidekazu)

Q. Tell us your memories of sweets!

A. When I was a child, there was a rule in the Chinen house where sweets were only allowed on weekends, and so that in itself lead to a strong desire to eat sweets. Naturally, I didn't take eating them for granted, so I was really happy to spend time on the weekends choosing and eating my favorite sweets. By the way, when I had a craving for something sweet on a weekday, I'd chew on sugar cane as a substitute for sweets. (laughs).

[jalebi-weds-bluetooth]

Hi JWB!

I had asked an Ask on Dec 26, 2023

I waited till now thinking may be you needed time to answer the ask. But I see there are new messages you’re replying so I guess my question didn’t actually reach you or some glitch might have happened

So however I’m asking it again now, hope this reaches you this time!

First! How are you!? Hope you're having a nice day

My question is,

Khushi believed in god, her devi Maiyaa so much. I mean her beliefs were so different than that of Arnav.

Like he never believed in god never did have that faith in god like she had. And whatever he did those rituals for wedding it was for Khushi's sake only.

So I wonder how they never got any differences in thoughts and practices (on this god matter) having so strong belief individually which completely oppose each other.

Especially for this particular god matter.

Like what if Khushi wanted to perform this havan or so and she believed and wanted it to follow it with all her heart but she knows Arnav is such a person who won't follow it and even if he does he won't carry that significance in his heart for god like she does. I mean wouldn't it bother her!?

I'm asking this question because I believe a lot in god and I have complete faith in him and if at all I see my partner disregarding it or not holding that same meaning as I hold will definitely trouble me. Of course that wouldn't lessen the love or anything but deep deep down we might feel little taken back as such.

And Khushi and Arnav are two perfect individuals who have these characteristics yet they have immense love and respect for each other almost by the end of the show.

Also there's an episode scene where Aarav wanted to eat Prasad Ladoo's and later they both have fight that he shouldn't hence it should offered to god first.

Like such scenarios over the time how must they have coped with one such complex difference they have between themselves

Do let me know your thoughts and don't mind my such bhaktified questions. Honestly I'm a cool person but I just wanted to know the perspective from Arnav and Khushi’s lens.

Happy Answering!

And lots of love to you <3

Hey!

First of all I’m so sorry that tumblr ate your ask - it honestly did! There’s no trace of a similar ask in my inbox at all! And don’t apologize about the question nor your beliefs.

The friction Arnav and khushi have in the beginning also stem from their religious differences! The reason he literally released the footage is because she told him that everything happens according to the will of Devi Maiyya which is why he intentionally decided to screw with her life just to prove a point that God doesn’t exist.

If Gods did exist, then some miracle would’ve happened to stop Khushi - the most devout - from facing such humiliation.

Also just because Arnav is atheist doesn’t mean he’s intolerant. Actually he’s really tolerant and respectful of others beliefs. Despite being an atheist he has a temple in his house because he knows his family is religious and they like to pray.

Khushi later learns that she must not force other people to be a part of her beliefs - that is pre her wedding and I’m glad of it. As a religious person, I find it stupid and insulting that the Raizadas and Khushi think it’s great to manipulate or force Arnav to sit in poojas.

He’s atheist. You cannot violate that.

If Arnav respects Khushi - khushi can perform her religious duties unhindered at his house.

If Khushi respects Arnav - she wouldn’t be forcing Arnav to join in at all nor should she have expectations to be honest.

Being religious is not a more valuable trait than being atheist.

It’s like this, if Arnav was vegetarian and Khushi non vegetarian, and Arnav is completely fine with Khushi cooking and eating meat in his house (fine enough for her to be even using the same utensils to cook veg/non veg food) -

Does it make sense that Khushi still makes chicken korma with a lot of effort and tried to slyly feed it to a vegetarian Arnav?

Or get disappointed when Arnav - despite clearly stating that he’s a vegetarian - refuses/has no interest to eat the chicken korma served to him.

Like does it even make sense for Khushi to even feel bad that Arnav wouldn’t even think of eating the korma for the hours that she toiled it for?

No, it’s actually stupid for Khushi to think that a vegetarian man would even taste her chicken curry.

Arnav participates in family activities so as to no one feels left out or sad that the whole family isn’t present (point to note, very few actually respect his religious preference or do anything in the house based for his preference - he’s the one who constantly keeps compromising)

So my favorite thing in IPK is when Khushi realizes that Arnav’s preference must be respected, is moved that he considers her family enough to visit the temple for her sake (the way he does file his family) and is completely fine with him being an atheist.

Her religion is respected enough in his household thus his personal interest doesn’t matter. And it’s respectfully dealt with.

With children it’s a different matter cause then you want your values in them - hence opinions clashed. It’s disappointing they never showed a resolution to this.

But ultimately once they completely love and respect each other, neither cares about the other’s religious preference. Just love and respect makes all the difference.

For you though if religion plays a key role and something that you expect from your partner then definitely that’s a criteria that you should keep in mind when looking for potential partners 👍 like this is the thing I say to anyone in relationships/looking for relationships - your core values and expectations in religion, politics, family, children and finances should match. There’s no need to love someone who’s not religious when religion matters deeply to you. We have many leading heroes who are religious as well - Shivaay, Raghav, Deva, Abhir, Rohit to begin with.

Arnav and Khushi’s core similarity is in preserving family as a unit - thus they thrive as a couple for that. Arnav never thinks Khushi is too family oriented, Khushi never thinks Arnav is too invested in family matters. They wouldn’t hang done well as a couple if just one of them were family oriented.

And honestly Arnav and khushi are written as people who take pride in their beliefs and are prejudiced in those beliefs and slowly and gradually they let their toxic pride in their beliefs go away to become more accepting of the other - khushi goes from trolling his diabetes to managing his diet and making special sugar free sweets, Arnav goes from insulting her and her lineage to literally making Payal a part of his family with all respect.

Best,

- Jalebi

[rainbowsalt0412]

THE NEW UPDATE

Just got back from a trip and guess what, Sylus has the entire LnDs Nation in a chokehold, and I kinda knew this was gonna happen, so buckle up this is gonna be a long one.

First things first, He is SO HOTTTTTTTTTT!

Mannnn, when he was first revealed a couple of weeks ago, I had already posted about how he might surpass others to be my top, and guess what, I was not wrong, he is already making me doubt my loyalty to Zayne when he hasn't even debuted yet, but hey it's just a game so I'll be fine.

Second thing that I noticed in his trailers and the 2.0 preview livestream was that they did reveal his certain characteristics.

He is definitely 'Hard on the outside, soft on the inside' kind of guy. This conclusion was made with what the Kitty Cat told us about him when he was out in N109 Zone collecting information and how Sylus placed him softly on the ground after picking him off from top of a building and telling him its no place for soft Cats like him, and then he was seen walking past a flower when he could have easily stepped on it like some other Bad Guys like to do, but he didn't, someone (I don't know who exactly, I might have reblogged their post) even mentioned that the flower kind of reflected MC and how Sylus might just make her have an insight into his lifestyle rather then just killing her after she was captured the the last chapter.

Other thing that I noticed was that his Evol might not be Blood, instead it's Energy Manipulation or something like that, which could be a possibility as he is a leader of an organization that focus on Protocores, I'm still not sure, guess we'll have to wait to see what is it exactly.

He also might be the only LI as of now who is an actual combatant apart from Xavier, i.e., he has actual combat skills, maybe because of his position and surroundings. Like I know we can choose our companions during battle but when it comes to Main Story thing, not all LIs are fit for fighting skills, Xavier has to be the best combatant of them all due to his job, and now I can say the same for Sylus as well, if not, he can be better than Xavier as well, specially how he is the only one who is actually teaching the MC how to fight in his memories.

Apart from that, he also can cook, has a thing for singing (his karaoke 4-Star memory reference, if you might have noticed), and can and does ride Bikes, but despite that he is a walking Red flag, but I don't blame him, and would still love him if it came to that.

One thing I noticed in LnDs, which is also my favorite thing about them is the Detailing, so of course Sylus has his own as well. When I first saw him in his preview from a couple of weeks ago, I kind of thought that he looked similar to Zayne but that's not the case, maybe it was the lighting and angles that made me think that, but not anymore. I think that the LIs are made to look the way their characters are, like when I first saw Xavier in an AD, I immediately thought of a high class individual or a bodyguard with a soft side who is also jealous of whom you meet and talk to or something like that, and Zayne seemed like a Cold beauty, and it did turned to be similar to that when I started playing the game, So yes I'm gonna analyze Sylus as well (It might not be 100% true cause I'm just making assumptions which could be true).

Unlike Zayne who has a cold yet soft looks similar to his character (As he is the closest to Sylus in terms of looks and characters I'll take him for comparison), Sylus has more of 'Rough on the edge' looks, someone who has a Bad, Traumatic and Rough childhood. He seemed like the guy who didn't wanted to be here but had no choice as well, and that doesn't mean he's innocent, he has his fair share of crimes and evil doings, and would gladly take the wrong thing into consideration if it gives him his desired results.

HE WEARS A F*CKING CHOKER!!!!!!

AND IS DOMINET AS HELL, I CAN FEEL IT!!!!!!

With the showcase of his pair memories, I doubt he was with the MC in any other timeline because unlike any other boy, his pair seemed to be a part of the present timeline, and I think he is suppose to be the Bad Guy for this timeline, or he could be the bad guy for other LIs who didn't let him meet the MC in any other timeline.

Other thing that I noticed about him is that he is very much self dependent person, whether you talk about his cooking skills, his combat skills, etc. Like he does have a chef doing his food, but he could very much cook himself as well, unlike someone, *Coughs* Xavier (That prince treatment did that to you I see) *Cough*, which makes me think he has spent most of his early life alone, or maybe his entire life alone in general, and didn't have much help from others either. This also tells us that he instead trusts himself rather than others to do his work, except when he can't, maybe because he couldn't trust many people in his line of work.

OR this all could just be a hobby as well...

The 'Mechanical Crow' thing tells me that maybe he could be a good Mechanic as well, if you know what I mean, like he could have just designed and created that himself as well, and is interested in designing and creating, like come on he is the leader of Onychinus, he is a Modern Technology guy. I can see him working on his Bike every now or then.

And of course, he is a top priority target for UNICRONS.

That's what I noticed for now, so keeping his character aside for now, let's talk about the new features.

I didn't understand much about the wish system, like are we suppose to use normal wishes only cause I don't have much and enough diamonds to buy those, I bought the special ones instead cause I though that would be the one we'll have to use.

New battle system is a great feature for F2Ps like me, though I did not understand much of it as well and still do not have my memories enough ranked up yet.

How are some people already done with their Orbital when I'm here stuck on 50 or something of every orbit for past month? I'm not even halfway there.

I'm glad we'll get Sylus's first 5-Star pair and 4-Star pair in the permanent wish pool, which would gladly be his two Primary dominant colors.

You know what, I did not understand much of anything the new 2.0 version would be bringing to us, I'll just have to wait and see it for myself to get a hold of it.

ANNNNNNDDDDD, we are getting branches for every LI starting this Sept., which is an exciting part as well cause I almost thought we wouldn't have that system here. I still don't understand why Sylus was not included there, maybe because he would be a recent addition.

And Last but not the least, the letter in the end made me tear up. This shows just how much effort and time they put into the game and that they do care about us, The Players. I just wanna give a piece of my mind to the person responsible for Sylus's leak. Thank the lord I didn't see anything other than the one actually uploaded on the official channel. It must be very hard to give that level of production, not to mention they have a reputation to maintain as the world's first 3-D Otome Game, so it must have been really upsetting that someone ruined their upcoming surprise project like that when they might not even had any part in it.

When the last review mail was up I gave them 1-Star in every category because of how frustrated I was of not pulling much from any limited banner at that time because as an F2P, I literally harvest the diamond so I'm very careful about spending them so getting nothing in return took a troll on me. So if a review mail is up again in this next update, I'll gladly give them 5-Star everywhere possible, considering they did took the advice of F2Ps like us well, and it's not just that but this new update would give me an opportunity to earn diamonds a little bit easily.

And it's not like I don't want to spend, it's just I can't spend now as I'm focused on some real life resources which are really important for me, not to mention the game is really expensive. So in future if I do get a chance, I'll gladly spend some.

That's all for now. Feel free to share your thoughts on Sylus, and this new update as well in the comment section, I'll love to discuss.

(Tumblr pulled a B*tch, and didn't save my earlier draft resulting in me doing this entire thing again, took me a day to recall, might have missed some points but that okay.)

[collapsedsquid]

The thing about outputting a million decimal digits of π is that there’s only one way to do it right. There are unimaginably many sequences of a million decimal digits, but only one of them is the first million decimal digits of π. I believe that this property, where there are many ways to appear to have done it (by outputting a million random digits, for example), but only a very small number of ways to actually do it (by outputting the correct million digits), is characteristic of things that Generative AI systems will generally be bad at. ChatGPT works by making repeated guesses. At any given point in its attempt to generate the decimal digits of π, there are 10 digits to choose from, only one of which is the right one. The probability that it’s going to make a million correct guesses in a row is infinitesimally small, so small that we might as well call it zero. For this reason, this particular task is not one that’s well suited to this particular type of text generation. The sum-to-22 game is an example of a task with this same characteristic. At any given point in the game, there are seven possible moves, but only one of them is optimal. To win the game, it has to choose the unique optimal move every single time. I believe that this property of the task, where it needs to get every detail exactly right in exactly the right order, is just incompatible with the generative AI paradigm, which models text generation as a probabilistic guessing game. You can think of every individual word that ChatGPT generates as a little bet. To generate its output, ChatGPT makes a sequence of discrete bets about the right token to select next. It performs a lot better on tasks where each one of these bets has relatively low stakes. The overall grade that you assign to a high school essay isn’t going to hinge on any single word, so at any point in the sequence of bets for this task, the stakes are low. If it happens to generate a weird word at any point, which it probably will, it can recover later. No single suboptimal word will ruin the essay. For tasks where betting correctly most of the time can satisfy the criteria most of the time, ChatGPT’s going to be okay most of the time. This contrasts sharply with the problems of printing digits of π or playing the sum-to-22 game optimally: in those tasks, a single incorrect bet damns the whole output, and ChatGPT is bound to make at least a few bad bets over the course of a whole conversation. We can see this same pattern in other generative AI systems as well, where the system seems to perform well if the success criteria are quite general, but increasing specificity causes failures. There are a lot of ways to generate an image that looks like a bunch of elephants hanging out at the beach. Only a tiny fraction of those hypothetical images contain exactly seven elephants. So generating exactly seven elephants is something that a Generative AI system is going to have a hard time doing.

[randomfoggytiger]

ok I was gonna ask about your charlie scully one (still am I guess lol) but I must know your thoughts on the autism question, a while back there was a fandom-wide twitter spat over whether or not mulder and scully were autistic, and I was leaning against it but that was before I figured that out about myself, and most of my moots are in favor of it, and idk really what to think lol so your insight would be much appreciated🙏🏻 (also if I wasn’t so goddamn busy I would do all of that research for you lmao)

You should do it!! Even if one day my project comes to fruition!

My leanings on the autism question: no. But I'd have to prove or disprove my own theory if I wrote up that post; and in order to do that, I'd have to have a clearer understanding of the diagnosis, its symptoms (and symptoms that are commonly misdiagnosed), and its identifiable characteristics.

The "problem" is: the new understanding of autism and other disorders are now framed on a spectrum. In order for me to break down the topic, I'd have to ingest lots and lots of autism content from clinically licensed professionals and hear what they look for, broadly, when forming a diagnosis; then, I'd have to search up what the fandom perceives Mulder and Scully's autistic traits to be; then, I'd have to compare and contrast the strength of each claim; then I'd have to balance the whole. Currently, I'm ingesting new autistic creators that are breaking down barriers of what autism is perceived to be (and that's been helpful); and I have a few other licensed professionals I'd need to catch up on (one who even has the diagnosis herself.) In short: tons of layman research.

More importantly: who would be interested in my post, realistically? I don't have doctorate (or training), for one. Second, it's a rather popular thought that Mulder or Scully have some sort of diagnosis (besides trauma-- canon agrees with that one.) The rule dictates everyone has a right to their own opinion; and since that's the case, where would my post fit in?

Realistically, the 90s FBI wouldn't have recruited Scully out of medical school if they suspected she had autism. Mulder perhaps, but only because of Bill Mulder's (or CSM's) connection. There's a program just instituted (2021) by the Feds that is working on recruiting people with autism into their pilot program. And according to studies I've learned about from autism creators (that they've gleaned from the professionals), a neurotypical brain automatically senses something "off" or "different" about a neurodivergent brain, which can lead to ostracization (or bullying in children... and adults.) 90s Scully would have had to learn to mask her autism so well that not only was she never diagnosed but she attracted the attention of the FBI recruitment office-- not a small feat for a woman in the 90s-- and was able to keep it through their very strict recruitment circuit. (Fyi, the man who inspired "Catch Me if You Can" tried to get in with a law degree and was still turned down.)

Also, Mulder and Scully face back-to-back stimulating environments; and go right back to work without time to decompress (which is a feat nearly unachievable.) I'm not an expert-- far from it-- but the common denominator I'm finding from professionals and diagnosed individuals is that overstimulation is a key factor in autism. To varying degrees, yes, but still. Overwhelm and meltdowns are parts of the diagnosis that have to be factored in. Anecdotally, I've read one person who states she becomes better in high-stress situations than her peers because of her hyperfocus; but she seems to be an outlier (I presume.) I'd need to do more research on differing degrees of overwhelm and meltdowns (not everyone manifests overwhelm or a meltdown in the same way, of course); but since the field is still swamped with more information regarding "stereotypical" autism (a.k.a. boys who show the most extreme signs), it would take me a bit to narrow things down even more.

Lastly, we can all probably agree CC didn't write Mulder and Scully with an autism diagnosis. He definitely gave Mulder PTSD in the Pilot; and Scully's trauma from her abduction was written in later. The personal theories branch off from there; and, again, in order to finalize a perspective one way or another, a licensed professional would probably have to watch the show (or more than one season) and make a conclusion; otherwise, my "research" could be written off as another form of headcanon. And since professionals are professional, they'd probably abstain from forming an opinion either way.

Thus, the scales have been put before you: time requirements and lukewarm reception weigh against it; putting my ideas out there for me and the mutuals to puzzle over weigh for it.

[tumblweeds-omegaverse]

somewhat random thought:

If people in omegaverse can identify others based on scent, does that change how certain things are done?

Imagine playing hide and seek with friends as a child and knowing that you can hear and smell them as you near their hiding spot. Is part of the game to see how well you can find them with just visual cues? Does it tap into some kind of ancient hunting instinct? Do you need to find places to hide where other scents will mute or muddle yours, as well as visually hiding? Or is it cheating to literally sniff out your siblings in every round?

Would people in a modern day setting have a list of approved pick-up people for schools or other locations? Would it only come into play if it was an out-of-household individual? Since the assumption of "it's fine for your parents to pick you up from school" could easily be extended to others who smell like you?

When it comes to places like apartment buildings or dormitories, would there be guidelines or expectations based on people's scents? For example, if an omegaverse species had specific scenting or territory marking instincts, would there be places where this isn't permitted? Could the decision on who's assigned to a dorm, or people's choice of housing, be affected by the scents of the people already present? Is cleaning up between residents even more of a thing in order to remove any lingering signals? Would there be laws against (or encouraging) specific dynamics living in the same buildings?

Is the purpose of deodorant in omegaverse to prevent body odors, as it is in our world? Is it to repress personal scent for logistic or propriety reasons? Is it meant to be complimentary to one's natural scent instead? Is wearing deodorant / perfume / cologne that clashes a faux pah on a similar level to wearing clashing patterns?

(I guess a lot would depend on if scent is a personal identifier, similar to a name...or if it's more of a secondary characteristic, where it says more about a person's body than about their individual self...)

Would twins be mistaken for one another in an omegaverse setting where everyone has unique scent markers? Since identical twins can have different fingerprints, their scents would likely be different too.

Huh, are there verses where scents are coded in DNA? In a far future omegaverse, do people alter themselves to make their scent different? Is it something people do for self expression, like getting a tattoo, or would it not be allowed because of identity theft? In a fantasy setting, could people use magic to change their scents permanently? Or would it be a temporary thing, like a spell?

(my brain: hey, if you had an omegaverse with shifters, that's also in a fantasy setting...does a werewolf in wolf form smell like "a wolf that also smells kinda like this person." or is it "this being, for some reason, looks like a wolf right now. but smells like a person." or do they just smell like a wolf? if an ancient creature, like a dragon or a unicorn, transformed into a human, would people instantly know because they smelled weird? oh oh oh, what about illusions? would illusion spells be based on visuals and scents? would disguises not work if you were fleeing people who knew you because they could smell you on yourself? and what about--)

Might there be different processes around trying on clothes in shops or if shipped to you? Normally if you put something on and it doesn't fit, you can take it off and put it back / return it. Would people be expected to wear some form of scent blockers while trying on clothes, so the merchandise isn't messed up by sitting right on top of scent glands? Could you wind up with some policy where you don't get the full price back on a return if there's too much residual smell?

I'm really curious how different settings have dealt with these, if they have...

also this was supposed to just be "haha it's so cute to imagine the ov version of playing hide and seek with a little kid, where you pretend not to know where they are yet, but you can easily smell them, but dont go for it because that ends the game too soon"

...whoops.

[ancientcraftnoccultism]

Beginner Class - Shadow Work 101

Ancient Craft & Occultism

Shadow Work 101

___

By KB

Introduction

Hello again, everyone! Welcome back to class ♡ Now that we've gone over in more detail about our personal energy - let's discuss something that is often forced upon beginner's, especially within New Age circles. You guessed it, shadow work. First and foremost, shadow work is not mandatory in order for you to be a practitioner or a witch. Let's take a closer look into this term.

What Is Shadow Work?

In essence, shadow work is a type of emotional therapy. Traumatic events in our lives inevitably leave us with emotional scars. As a result, we frequently try to repress these feelings since they make us feel uneasy, apprehensive, and panicked. Every time these emotions are provoked, we push them to the back of our minds as a type of emotional self-defense. The issue with this coping method is that by keeping our trauma hidden, we are not healing from it; instead, it simmers inside of us and will eventually appear physically. Numerous things, such as physical disease, worry, panic attacks, mental illnesses, and self-harm, might manifest this.

The term "shadow" was initially used by Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung to refer to those facets of our personalities that we actively choose to suppress and reject. We all have aspects of ourselves that we don't like for various reasons, or that we believe society won't like, so we push those aspects down into our unconscious psyches. Jung referred to this group of suppressed facets of our personality as our shadow self.

“The shadow is a moral problem that challenges the whole ego-personality, for no one can become conscious of the shadow without considerable moral effort. To become conscious of it involves recognizing the dark aspects of the personality as present and real. This act is the essential condition for any kind of self-knowledge.” - Carl Jung 1951

What Is The Shadow?

The shadow is made up of everything we reject about ourselves, including everything we consider to be bad, evil, or unacceptable. This dark side is everything that conflicts with our conscious attitude that we have decided about ourselves. The disowned self is the individual shadow. This shadow self stands in for the aspects of ourselves that we no longer identify as being our own, including our innate virtues.

These unexplored or rejected facets of our personalities remain. We try to cast them out by denying them, but we are unable to do so. They are a part of our unconscious that we suppress. Consider whatever we are not aware of as belonging to our unconscious. The shadow won't go away. It remains with us as our dark sibling. When we fail to recognize it, trouble results. For sure, it is standing just behind us at that point.

Every young child is aware of compassion, kindness, and love, but he also exhibits rage, egotism, and avarice. These feelings are a component of our common humanity. But something changes as we mature. The characteristics of "being good" are accepted, whilst the characteristics of "being bad" are disapproved of. All humans have fundamental necessities. These needs include those for physical well-being, security and safety, and belonging. These innate and biological demands must be met.

When we were kids, our surroundings gave us cues when we displayed certain aspects of ourselves. Perhaps we had a tantrum out of rage. After the incident, our parents chastised us and sent us to our room. Or perhaps in our first-grade classroom, we were brave, lively, impromptu, or silly. In front of the class, our teacher called us to task for acting impolitely and ordered us to sit down. Every time that happened—and it may have happened frequently—it put one of our fundamental requirements in danger. We learned to adapt to the outside world and changed our conduct to suit our needs. In the first 20 years of our lives, all of the aspects of us that have been rejected or discouraged are collected and hidden.

Can I Just Ignore My Shadow?

Sure, you can, but only at your own risk. I’m sure you’re familiar with the story of Dr. Jeckell & Mr. Hyde… not only that, it causes our perception of reality to be distorted. We recognize in others the qualities we reject in ourselves. Psychologists refer to this as projection. Everything we buried within us, we project onto others. It's a safe probability that you haven't acknowledged your own rudeness if, for instance, you become annoyed when someone is disrespectful to you. This does not imply that they are not being impolite to you. But you wouldn't mind someone else being rude as much if rudeness wasn't in your shadow self.

This procedure doesn't involve conscious thought. Our predictions are unknown to us. This defense mechanism is used by our egos to protect how they see themselves. We are prevented from engaging with our shadow by our false identities as "good" people. These psychological projections skew reality, separating how we perceive ourselves from how we act in the world.

Benefits of Shadow Work

Who appreciates being honest about their flaws, weaknesses, selfishness, nasty behavior, hatred, etc.? It is more pleasurable and affirming to concentrate on our strengths. However, exploring our shadow side offers us a ton of chances for improvement. Let's look at a few ways that this work can be useful to us.

Better Personal Relationships

You have a clearer understanding of yourself when you embrace your darker side and come to terms with it. You develop into a more solid, complete person. It is simpler to tolerate the shadow in people when you can accept your own darker sides. As a result, you won't be as easily triggered by other people's actions. You'll also find it simpler to interact with other people.

Clear Perception

You'll have a clearer lens through which to perceive the world if you accept everyone as they are, including yourself. You're becoming closer to your actual self as you integrate your shadow self, which helps you make a more accurate judgment of who you are. You won't think of yourself as being excessively large or little. You can more effectively gauge your environment when you are self-aware.

Better Health

It is exhausting to drag this unseen bag of things behind us. Repressing and suppressing all the aspects of ourselves that we don't want to confront as adults is tough effort. The unstudied life can be plagued with fatigue and sluggishness. Physical discomfort and disease can also result from mental suppression. With Jungian shadow work, you can unknowingly release a huge reserve of energy that you were using to defend yourself. Your physical, mental, and emotional well-being can all be enhanced by this. You can become more balanced and develop inner strength through shadow work, which will prepare you for life's obstacles.

Unleash Creativity

Jungian shadow work enhances your creative potential, which is one of its major advantages. According to psychologists like Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers, creativity occurs spontaneously in those who are psychologically well (integrated).

Tips for Beginning

Shadow work can be very intimidating for a lot of us. We don't want to have to reopen old wounds in order to allow then to heal properly. However, there are some ways to make this process a bit easier.

Centering Yourself

Perhaps the most crucial action to take before beginning a shadow job is this. Yet, working with the shadow is seldom ever acknowledged in literature. You won't get useful results if you try to understand your shadow self while you're not grounded in your Self. The shadow stands for a collection of numerous elements that are concealed within your psyche. You can only learn about these areas by starting from your center. One of these components will take control of the process if it is "blended" with you. You'll be judgmental, harsh, or perplexed. Your capacity to integrate your shadow will be hampered by this. Be a peaceful, clear, and neutral area before you start working with your shadow.

Be Kind To Yourself

It is beneficial to develop an unconditional sense of friendship with oneself before getting to know your shadow. Its name in Buddhism is Maitri. To examine our darker aspects requires friendship and self-compassion, which can be challenging. It is challenging to face your shadow if you are harsh on yourself when you err. If you frequently experience guilt or shame, you must learn to transform these feelings into friendliness, self-acceptance, and self-compassion. Begin by acknowledging your own humanity. Keep in mind that we are all shadows in each other's soup, as Jung used to say.

Be Courageous & Honest

Shadow work requires integrity and self-honesty. It's simple to give lip service to these virtues, but real self-honesty requires being open to recognizing our negative traits in our actions and personalities. The ego spends a lot of energy suppressing your disowned portions since it is frequently uncomfortable to do so. It can be difficult to acknowledge and embrace your oppressive bad aspects and insecure selfishness. It takes bravery to examine your attitudes, behaviors, troubled ideas, and negative feelings.

Keep a Record

The desire of some of our disowned portions to remain hidden from view fascinates me. Our disowned portions can elude us, much like how a dream might vanish from memory right after you wake up. A cure is to keep a writing notebook where you can chronicle your self-discoveries. It is easier to encode the discovery into your awareness when you write down your insights and review them afterwards.

Beginning Shadow Work

Discover False Beliefs

We typically aren't aware that we are suppressing anything when we learn to hide some aspects of ourselves from others in order to please our parents, blend in with our friends, or perform well in school. We simply believe that we are being nice, useful humans. Then something sets us off.

Honor Your Feelings

Your emotions serve as a warning system for any subconsciously held resistance, myths, or emotional scars. It's critical to identify these emotions because, like to your automobile issue, subconscious problems may prevent spells from working. Never suppress your feelings or blame yourself for having them. That will simply deepen your emotional traumas and erroneous notions in your subconscious and make you feel worse.

Heal

Your pain can be healed now that you've found its source. Don't forget that the goal isn't to control your emotions. Your feelings are your subconscious trying to tell you something, and these messages are important! Changing your tale to something more positive can allow you to manage your reactions.

[greyyson-but-no]

you're staying? | aziracrow

genre | fix it fic, fluff, angst

warnings | kissing, shouting, could be the actual season 2 ending but no :D, s2 ep6 spoilers then, i guess? but not completely. crowley kinda hates himself and regrets a lot of stuff, aziraphale being... himself (not on purpose though, we know the way he is <3)

pairing | aziracrow (crowley x aziraphale) from good omens

word count | 1.1K

a/n | my first good omens fic would of course have to be a fix-it fic, wouldn't it? this is very very needed. and to help with dealing with the actual end of season 2, we can be delulu together and pretend this is what happened :). fuck the Metatron, here's a happy ending season 2, hope you all enjoy....

Aziraphale and Crowley stood in the most comfortable part of the bookshop, together, standing opposite each other, as if the earlier hours of the day had been completely and utterly normal, and as if neither of them were about to have the most vital decision of their lives. It had certainly been an odd day (even if they seemed to get more and more common these days), both of them were itching to find a way to fix it all. Whatever it took.

Crowley stood by the door, heaving from the horrid argument, looking over at the one he had unknowingly been in love with for so long. He, simply, didn’t know what to do. What to say. How to fix this mess of relationship they had thrown themselves into.

He could remember when he first fell in love with Aziraphale.

It was the Garden of Eden. The first day of life on Earth and the first time Crowley had ever felt so much love. Demons weren’t supposed to feel anything of the sort but it was something about Aziraphale and his odd dorkiness and… well, every part of him. Each individual characteristic that made Aziraphale himself made Crowley fall in love with him just that little bit more.

And here he was, standing in front of Crowley with the most disheartened and lost look on his face. Crowley had never seen him so empty. So not looking like himself and it  hurt him. Not just because he was sad in general but because he had been the one to make him like that. Of course they had argued in the past before, six thousand years being friends? It was going to happen but this time was different. This time was futile and the most hurtful. And if Crowley hadn’t spoken about it, hadn’t mentioned it and just forgotten his feelings like he always did, he wouldn’t have made Aziraphale feel the way he did.

“Crowley, I don’t think you understand what I’m offering here.” Aziraphale spoke, jutting his head forward in the ever-so-Aziraphale way. “You say we could have been an ‘us’ because we can be! I am not throwing us away, we can be together in Heaven!.”

The demon sighed, shaking his head and running a hand over his face, looking over at Aziraphale again. “Angel, that’s not me!”

“It was you. It’s the you I first knew.” He replied, and Crowley could see it in his eyes that he thought he was doing the right thing.

“It’s not the me you fell in love with, though.” Crowley sighed, tired eyes searching the endless emotions in Aziraphale, hoping for some sign of what his reply would be. Crowley had never even dreamed of opening up this much ever, let alone in one night. He had a feeling if he was going to be shut down again, maybe he would just never try again. Better to hide away and never tell anyone then to have your heart mercilessly ripped out.

Aziraphale’s shoulders dropped. “Crowley…”

“Don’t.”

“No, Crowley, wait.” Aziraphale pleads, watching as the demon he truly did love dropped his head in defeat.

“If you can’t say no to heaven, if you really want to leave everything behind, leave us behind, then I’m certainly not going to stop you. But you have to understand what you’re throwing away.” Crowley spoke, bowing his head as an excuse to not look at Aziraphale as he did so. “We’ve known each other for six thousand fucking years, and I have certainly loved you for most of that time, I just need you to see that as well. That’s all I’m asking. Then I’ll just shut up and go away. I’ll let you go, finally.”

But what Crowley didn’t see, was what he should have seen most. In the mists of that green and brown and blue concoction, was the most adoring, loving look Aziraphale could muster. Every feeling of hope and every trace of happiness he had ever felt all brought into one look, all aimed at Crowley.

Aziraphale had been in denial for a long, long time. That feeling of warmth each time he looked at Crowley was always pushed down, always forgotten and repressed because he was a demon. I am an angel. It’s not supposed to work like that. Nothing could convince him that he loved Crowley, for a very very long time. It was during World War Two that he came to terms with it. Just about.

Because really, he wasn’t fully a demon. He may have fallen, he may side with hell as much as he can and he may refuse to admit he can be nice, but deep down, Aziraphale saw the small acts of service that made him not so much a demon. A little but of a nice person. Even if he didn’t want to admit it.

His kindness had made Aziraphale realise that he loved Crowley.

And so, Aziraphale took those few steps forward, catching Crowley’s eye as he did so. Crowley caught eye contact, a worried but hope–filled look curved into his features. Aziraphale fell even harder then. With a hand reached up, the angel grabs his demon by the cheeks, softly and calmly, not to scare him, not to worry him further.

“Crowley, my dear.” Aziraphale murmurs, voice soft and filled to the brim with love. In one swift movement, Aziraphale pulled Crowley down, pushing their lips together.

It was a kiss six thousand years in the making. Filled with denied adoration and words that they regretted. Arguments that had been forgotten over time and then even more inside jokes and giving in on temptations, breakfasts and lunches and dinners at the Ritz, hearing Queen playing in the Bentley, even the smell of the old bookshop. Everything that could possibly relate to them, was piled into that kiss.

It was well worth the wait.

Crowley pulled himself back, pulling his glasses off one more time, throwing them on the ground as if to say I’m not going to hide anymore as he looked at Aziraphale, jaw unhinged in disbelief.

“Angel.”

"We have to figure it out. We'll have to talk through everything and the Metatron still wants an answer from me, but it won't be the one he wants, nor the one he expects." Aziraphale explains, taking Crowley's hand to reassure him that he wasn't going anywhere.

Though, knowing Crowley, he needed a clear answer, otherwise his mind would run and run and run. He stumbled over his words, though, still full of disbelief and not quite understanding what Aziraphale was implying. "So- you- you're staying?"

"Yes." Aziraphale nodded, the realisation finally settling in and a wide grin arriving with it.

[stuckinthesmalldoor]

i'm proud of you for simply trying

FANDOMS: Haikyuu

PAIRINGS: Oikawa Tooru x Reader

TYPE: Fluff | Angst | Crack | Platonic | Romantic | None: Hurt/Comfort

TAGS/WARNINGS: mentions of unhealthy coping mechanisms (self harm through cutting, smoking and vaping) and addiction

SYNOPSIS: Oikawa catches you falling back but old habits die hard and you don’t seem to care

NOTES: This will be part of a flood pick me ups. If you see some posted on ao3 my account is ONLY Ciphered_Entity

I usually try to write only for the ships itself and not x readers but I do enjoy reading them a lot just going through a tough time right now that I can’t be bothered to pretend what I’m writing isn't about me.

Masterlist

"Stop it." He spoke firmly, a tone he'd never use on you often. You looked at him slowly, slitted lazy eyes refusing to grow any wider. You look him up and down before releasing the smoke that had sat in your mouth.

"C'mon will you stop that." Oikawa struts towards you, everything about him screaming a serious and calm determination but you know he is anything but.

You take a hit anyway, watching the pen light up at the bottom before holding it in for a moment. He takes it out your hand.

You arch your eyebrows at him before releasing the vapors again. "It was that, cigarettes or cutting. take your pick to which you'd prefer because I'm sure as hell not feeling well enough to do neither." You spoke quick and unkindly, in absolutely no mood to compromise or talk it out.

Then you sigh, "I'm sorry, It's just getting bad again with everything and not having much alone time at home with relatives staying there's no time to be myself..."

Oikawa follows with a sigh of his own, wiping down his face, he's dissapointed, something you expected but also something you can't take right now.

"I of all people know the pressure there is to be perfect, to hide the hobbies and characteristics deemed as flaws but I also know how fucking exhausting it is, to hold a wall against everyone you know, keeping track of how much each individual can know about you..." He kneels down infront of you know, straightening your legs so he isn't blocked by your propped up knees. He places the vape down beside you hoping you take the hint not to take it just yet.

"I know its exhausting, you've expressed this before feeling like the jack of all trades but master of none...and I guess somewhere along that line you forget how impressive it truly is to be good at so many things. You're a honor student athlete, who can write, and sing, and however many instruments you've picked up over the years. You can even make something out of the bare minimum." He smiles his head and eyes pointing to your desk with the piling hobbies you've gained over the years.

"But I know, I know how tough you always want to seem, how put together you want to portray yourself as and don't get me wrong you truly are but when you know you need a break, when you're on the edge of surpassing burn out, you never show it, you never show you need help, you're so independent you'd rather rely on your unhealthy, deeply unhealthy," He takes the vape in his hands, using it to point at you. "coping mechanisms hoping it will be the solution but you know it isn't so why do you still do it?"

You're sat in silence now, just staring at him, you want to be annoyed, you've heard this speech hundreds of times by the few friends who know but looking into his eyes causes your body to betray your head and pull him into a hug and sob. it's awkward his knees lift from the ground slightly but his body doesn't his torso is stretching to reach your chest to lean forward and give you access to resting your head on his shoulders nonetheless he steadies himself and tolerates the pain.

"I just need something to control in my life, everything I've ever been good at was always somehow turned into something others could benefit out of but cutting was my little secret, cigarettes were my friend when I felt lonely, I couldn't just- I can't just." Your whole body rattles from your sobs, months worth of tears releasing at this very moment at you mess your words up, mirroring your foggy mind.

Oikawa coos at you, using the silence as an opportunity to scoop you up into a comfortable position, opting for sitting you on his lap as he switches places with you. You sob for a moment before speaking, still slightly interrupted by the tremors of your body and hics deep in your chest.

"I'll throw away the cigarettes and try to lessen how much I vape. I can't guarantee a complete stop but I'll try." You almost whisper with how squished your face is in the crook of his neck but he hears it, he heard enough to know what you were implying. He rubs up and down your back.

"I'm proud of you for simply trying." He kisses the closest body part he can which ends up being your shoulder.

[sketching-shark]

Man, zhu bajie n tang sanzang had to b up there w swk about their mischaracterization n hated in lmk fandom

I have never seen so much mishandling as i seen with those three characters 😭😭(like bro i get that the most noticeable arc that ppl retain is the white bone spirit arc bc of OSP BUT THEY DIDNT STUCK TO THAT CHARACTERISTICS IN THE LATER ARCS LIKE CMON NOW—bajie couldn’t even lie about the dragon piss medicine in a later arc, what makes yall think he’s always a fantastic liar. Theres some benefit to his lying but they also backfire. BAJIE DO END UP LIKING EVERYONE LIKE HE REFER TO SWK AS ELDER BROTHER!<- no man could ever live up to the wonder of zhu wuneng. He just sweet n he does get a fantastic arc in the novel!

Tang sanzang does have some(albeit rare moments where hes nice but his asshoole moments sometimes intertwined) where hes like “yea my disciples r greats but theyre mad ugly.” Or that he gets better at having more trust in his disciples besides zhu wuneng. Even if its followed by hella traumatizing moments that no human person would remain sane like that. <hes just barely holding on by his faith, his mission and his disciples. Not his horse bc he cant hold on to save his life but that character arc where he DIDNT FELL OFF THOO!>

Monkie Kid spoilers below

Hmmm I know about the Sun Wukong & Tang Sanzang dunking but is that happening with Zhu Bajie too? Have to say I find that a little surprising given that (if memory serves correctly) Monkie Kid did say Zhu Bajie's main fault (well besides the whole being a man-eating yaoguai thing) was being stubborn, but then lego Patriarch Subodhi said he became one of the hardest workers of the pilgrimage. I guess I was under the impression that people were more light on their criticisms and thoughts about Zhu Bajie, but maybe that's just because he doesn't seem to be a point of great interest in the lego show fandom lol.

Kind of funny story anon but I've been vicariously growing in awareness on how much Zhu Bajie is loved in China through @antidotefortheawkward's posts about the pigman. And yeah, I can see that being in large part because Xiyouji in its totality does give a very different impression of who these characters are and where they end up than a cartoony summary can provide. As a number of people on this site have noted for example, the White Bone Demon Arc can be understood in a much more complex light than "Tang Sanzang & Zhu Bajie hurt poor monkey for nothing" when placed in the context of it being more near the beginning of the journey when the pilgrims were still grating against each other a lot & it happening very soon after the whole debacle with the Ginseng fruit tree. Here after all you can see how the monk has a recent history of getting into serious trouble from the monkey lying and being quick to destruction, so he would be primed to not believe SWK, not to mention he does hesitate to use the headband against SWK more than many give him credit for here. And YEAH given all the things they go through together I am more willing to accept a Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie enemies to friends arc than that put on many another character.

Also LMAOOOOO Tang Sanzang DOES seem to have quite a few lines where he tries to comfort terrified individuals by telling them that the pilgrims are good people even with their rancid looks (ugly pilgrim rights <3). And oh dang anon you are so right about how even if Tang Sanzang is much more of a static character in comparison to SWK it's kind of a shame more attention isn't given to the series of horrifying events he goes through and what effect that would have on him so that he gets a little more depth than "weepy monk who's mean to the Monkey King & falls off his dragon horse" in the popular western imagination. But then again I can understand why the monk's trauma is largely downplayed in western cartoony retellings, given that said lighthearted cartoony retellings probably wouldn't be the best medium to even touch on stuff like human butchery, death threats, sexual assault, and the consequences thereof.

[dialovers-translations]

Diabolik Lovers LOST EDEN ー Carla Dark [08]

ー The scene starts in the Ghouls’ manor

Kino: You guys can make yourselves at home in this manor for a while. 

Also, leave the Ghouls up to me, okay? See you.

ー Kino leaves

Shin: ...I’m going to take a quick look around the house.

I’ll choose my own room, is that okay, Nii-san?

Carla: I do not mind. Be my guest.

Shin: Thanks, Nii-san.

ー Shin leaves

Yui: ...I’ll go have a look around as well.

Like it wouldn’t be bad to know what we have to work with in the kitchen and such.

Carla: Yes. 

ー Yui goes to the kitchen

Yui: ...Seems like we’ve got the basic cooking tools covered. There’s ingredients as well. 

I suppose we should be fine for a while with this much to our disposal...

( I don’t know for how long, but we’re going to live here. )

( I honestly did not even fathom we’d end up leaving Banmaden to live at a completely unfamiliar place. )

( Carla-san makes some incredibly rash decisions every now and then... )

( However, that might be characteristic of a King. )

???: Huh? So this is where you’ve been.

Yui: Shin-kun. I thought you were in your room.

Shin: I figured I’d have a drink. ...I mean, I guess I won’t really be able to enjoy it in a place as smelly as this.

Yui: But I believe the stench is much more manageable inside the house.

Shin: Don’t you think you’ve just grown used to it already?

Yui: ...You think so...?

Shin: To be honest, I don’t want to live at this place at all. I can’t wait to return to the Castle. 

But Nii-san’s thinking of taking those Ghouls along with us, right? 

I think he went too far by claiming that he’d protect them. I can’t imagine having to live under the same roof as those Ghouls.

ー Somebody approaches them

???: That is a statement unbefitting of a Founder.

Shin: Nii-san...

Carla: It is a King’s duty to protect his people. 

Shin: Haah!? You’re calling Ghouls our people...For real!?

Why would you go that far for people who don’t even have any magic...!? 

Carla: We are First Bloods. We should stand at the very top of the Demon World. 

All other individuals living in the Demon World aside from us Founders would be considered our people. 

Shin: ...I’m not saying you’re wrong, but...

Carla: Would you not agree that a King should not reign by installing fear in his subjects, but instead gain their trust and be respected instead? 

Shin: ...I feel like that’s a bit of an utopia.

I mean...I get the gist of how you feel about it.

Carla: So you are okay with it? 

Shin: Yeah, sure. As you wish. I can’t exactly go against the King’s orders.

ーー I’ll be going back to my room then. 

Yui: Eh? Um, Shin-kun, I thought you were thirsty...?

Shin: Changed my mind. See you.

ー Shin leaves

Yui: ...

Carla: ...Yui.

Yui: Yes? 

Carla: Do you also believe that I am tackling this the wrong way?

Yui: I mean, Shin-kun’s not really saying you’re wrong or anything...

Carla: His attitude says exactly that though. 

Yui: ...

I’m in no position to judge whether your decision is right or wrong.

However, I do believe that the conditions you are offering are very appealing to the opposing party. 

Now it is up to what they decide, since I have no idea what their actual response will be...

If the other party sees it as something positive, wouldn’t it make it a good deal...?

Carla: ...I see.

It would appear that Shin cannot even allow the idea of letting the Ghouls live alongside us at Banmaden, but how do you feel about that?

Yui: I wouldn’t mind.

Carla: It doesn’t concern you?

Yui: Not particularly.

Carla: ...Heh. You have a very big heart.

Yui: No, I don’t think that’s it.

Carla: Hm?

Yui: I’m not a Demon myself, and this is my first learning about the Ghouls.

Therefore, I have no assumptions or prejudices towards them. That’s all. 

Carla: ...I see. I suppose you could say that you provide a very objective perspective on the matter.

Yui: Fufu, I suppose so.

Carla: To have someone like that by my side. Heh. ...Not bad. 

Yui: ...

( I feel as if his expression softened a little... )

( I’m glad I was able to help him ease up a little. )

Hey...Carla-san.

Carla: Yes? 

Selection

→ Worry about his health

Yui: Please take good care of your health, okay?

Carla: Hmph. Why bring that up all of a sudden?

Yui: No...I can imagine it must not have been easy for you...

Carla: ...You are worried about that? 

Yui: ...Are you upset?

Carla: No. I am not unaware that this is simply part of your personality.

However, worrying too much will have the opposite effect. Understand?

Yui: Y-Yes...

( I suppose he’s trying to tell me to mind my own business... II’ll try to be careful. )

→ Thank him (❦)

Yui: ...Thank you very much.

Carla: Hah. Why are you thaking me all of a sudden? I do not remember doing anything to warrant your gratitude. 

Yui: No, you asked for my opinion. That alone made me very happy.

Carla: ...

Yui: Because I initially assumed that my opinion did not matter.

But you’re taking me into consideration as well...

Carla: ...Hmph. I do believe you are an odd one for getting happy over such a trivial thing. 

I believe I made myself clear from the very start, that I would protect you. 

I would never disregard your opinion. Rest assured.

Yui: ...Okay.

( His words seem even warmer than usual... )

Monologue

From what I’ve heard, Ghouls are the victim of discrimination (差別) in the Demon World,

because they do not possess any magic. 

In which case, Shin-kun’s reaction to the situation,

might only make sense. 

Even though we’ve come here to Rotigenberg,

I have yet to have any proper conversations with the Ghouls. 

That’s why I know close to nothing about them. 

If they were to come to Banmaden,

I hope I can get along with them,

and I simply hope that Carla-san’s wish (望み) can come to fruition. 

Please may this deal go smoothlyーー 

ーー TO BE CONTINUED ーー

[domjaehyun]

okay here we go, part 4….

first of all, i will never get tired of their push and pull antics. i love the burn of how jealous hyuck can be but at the same time oc makes sure she puts him in his place. he doesn’t own her but deep inside they know he does 🙂‍↕️ it’s interesting how hc “tries” to reason out that he can’t come to her or not flirt with his gf because he doesn’t realize that oc really has the upper hand here even if he’s the “determined” one.

i also agree with the other ask that there’s a pure difference between the smut scenes of jn and hc. usually when someone commits adultery, the 3rd party gets the meaningless s/x however, hc gives that much passion to her in comparison to jn who purely likes her. i guess i see it in a way they really do have a deeper connection with each other. cause im sure as hell oc enjoyed that s/x with jn but with hc, they know how well to please eo and as ive said, connection. it was burning as hell.

(i hope this makes sense lol i was having a hard time gathering my thoughts so i couldn’t formulate the right words to explain what i felt with part 4 🥲)

can i also just say… you have perfectly picked hc with the role. not that i picture him as an adulterer of course but hc’s aura screams passion. he’s serious, shameless, and playful all at once. i love how you shaped the character that you want to love but it’s against your morals 🙂‍↕️

overall, i enjoyed this part so much. you did it. AGAIN. !!!! 🥳 i may or may not enjoyed the smut too much….. IT WAS SO GOOOOOOOOD 🤤🤤

i love all your hc characters so much 🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️ also update i met dreamies last weekend!!!! haechan looks divine in real life 🙂‍↕️🩵

my darling i am (politely) smooching you on the cheek rn I LOVE LONG MESSAGES i only ever get proper time to dedicate to answering them on days when i’m off so im sorry for holding onto these for so long but HERE WE GO :D

yeah HAECHAN REALLY HAD SOME NERVE but also he always has nerve. dare i say almost too much nerve. that’s precisely why they’re in this predicament in the FIRST PLACE !!! i love that you see that even though he’s the persistent one, he really is following her lead she’s giving him signs she barely even knows she’s giving him and for the most part,,,,, he’s very in tune with her and how she thinks and behaves and . to be loved is to be understood :3

YAY i’m glad you saw the difference too i was struggling bc i wanted the sex w jeno to be good but for the sex with haechan to be like. better. like yes they fulfilled her physical needs but with haechan there was an emotional fulfillment as well that she didn’t get from jeno :P

(you’re making perfect sense dont you worry your cute lil head)

THANK YOUUUUUU HE IS SOOOO PASSIONATE I LOVE HIM he just says everything with his chest like i admire that i think i write him and give him some characteristics i wish i had like his level of shamelessness . his whimsy. his audacity JFGKJLSGKJL no but genuinely i wish i was as bold as i write him to be bc. those are the go getters of society they know what they want and they’ll do like whatever it takes to get it :D

THANK YOU MY LOVE :D hehehehe im glad you liked the smut :D i did too :’)

THANK YOU THANK YOU me too he’s a charming individual :D AND YOU MET MET THEM!?!?!?!?!!? OR LIKE SAW THEM IN CONCERT???? he does when i saw him at the last dream concert i started crying bc he was so beautiful :’)

[autogyne-redacted]

hi! i saw your post abt race primacy and was wondering if you'd be able to expand on that a bit more if you feel like it. i am i guess kind of new to the idea that it's possible to talk about racism without doing what the example you posted does.

Yeah, absolutely.

As far as race primacy goes, the basic, short answer is that you can avoid it by not positioning race as fundentally, across the board more important or more fundamental than other characteristics. The "if you're white you're white before anything else" part of my example post.

Prioritizing race is an analytic approach, and it's certainly an important one, but if it's your only one you're going to miss a lot of what's going on.

To give a more thorough answer means getting into a lot of background and exploring the messy entanglements that lead towards race primacy and race reductionism, so buckle up it's gonna be a Long Post.

Most of the patterns I want to criticize here are (imo) the result of taking useful analysis and loosing the nuance, generalizing sloppily, slipping between different definitions of words, being overly dogmatic, or otherwise taking it in less than helpful directions. I'm not saying to throw out these frameworks, just to recognize that they don't represent absolutely and universal truths.

I'm also not opposing any specific language here. Sometimes ppl are casual and say things that communicate perfectly well but would make shitty philosophic positions if you took them literally and held to them rigidly. That's life.

.

Whether you're looking at how demographic categories correlate with individual actions or they affect how other ppl treat you, race is significant but saying it is always the most significant factor is a wild position.

To give a clear example, and show one path to race primacy, lots of the conservative Christianity is structured and defined first in terms of religion (obviously), and then around lines of Christian / family values and gender.

The Southern Baptist Convention has had a Black president. Women are still explicitly barred from even being pastors. Out gay and trans ppl are excluded pretty completely.

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A common approach, to maintain a focus on race is to say that Christianity (or at least the SBC) is a fundamentally white religion and value system. PoC may participate in it, but that as a political and historical force it is solidly on the side of The West, Europe, Colonialism, etc.

I tend to talk about this as abstracting whiteness.

Whiteness often (even if not in our circles here) gets abstracted to talk about shit like cop calling, assimilationism, middle class values, etc.

"White feminism" is a great example of this, where the term can 100% refer to race, or point to middle class, carceral, cis, imperialist, or other shitty tendencies.

If we talk about the shifting boundaries of whiteness, especially looking back to when whiteness was necessary for full legal rights / personhood, whiteness was very directed the thing you assimilated into thru patriotism, middle class achievement, gender conformity, etc. (This is an explicit note that my knowledge is about a US context and I'm sure this shit varies)

There's a bunch of research that shows lots of minority and immigrant groups having initial disadvantages compared to white ppl (measured thru wealth, income, segregation, education, etc) that shrink over time. And a distinct lack of this gap narrowing by most measures looking at Black Americans. Related (at least in part) to this you get some theory abstracting Blackness as that which is unassimilable (some of which is really powerful).

From this and other angles I think it makes a lot of sense why ppl are drawn to abstract whiteness.

However, the second you do that you're no longer talking about race (in a way that can be mapped to individuals). And I (as a white person) am not necessarily any more a part of this abstracted whiteness than any PoC.

And since race (in the individual, traditional sense) does matter, loosening the terms to this point has significant downsides.

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You can see similar dynamics at work when ppl constantly fall back on referring to Far Right groups like the Proud Boys and Patriot Prayer as white nationalist / white supremacist groups.

They're very much not. Both have had PoC leaders, and they're centered around Western Male Chauvinism and Christian Nationalism respectively.

But, if you see The West, right wing Christianity and American Nationalism thru the lens of abstracted whiteness, than these are all white supremacist groups.

And like ..... there's clearly something to that. Having PoC leaders by no means makes these groups less racist. But there's also a clear distinction between them and what you're gonna see in a hardine white supremacist group like, say, the Klan.

If you caught the mess a few years ago when a bunch of ppl decided that Chelsea Manning had joined the far right because whiteness is ultimately all that matters, that's a great example of mixing up abstract and concrete definitions of whiteness to reach completely ridiculous conclusions.

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I don't wanna go deep in this point because I haven't seen it since I got off of fb years ago, but I want to briefly mention the argument that the gender binary is inherently European, and thus PoC are inherently non-binary. This is another argument where there lots of individual statements that make sense on their own, and then thru some shifting definitions you reach a wild conclusion.

There's tons to talk about in terms of the imposition of binary gender and specific European norms as part of colonialism. (The Coloniality of Gender is what I think of as the classic piece making this argument).

And there's plenty to say in terms of PoC being held to different standards and negatively framed as too masculine or not masculine enough.

But this argument then acts as if no assimilation to gender whatsoever has happened, and as if there are no differences in levels of gender conformity and the social positions these produce. It's extremely weird and imo the kind of position that imo could only be produced thru a tremendous amount of ppl setting aside their critical thinking due to not having the right identities to see these issues as in their lane.

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A lot of this comes down to the question of how we name That Which We Oppose. Identity politics really pushed us to frame it in terms of identity, but the world of hardline identity-based structures is largely gone.

Part of what I love about the language of Civilization and Leviathan is that it provides an answer for this question that recognizes the slippery relationship between both individuals and identity-defined groups of ppl and the structures of hierarchy we want to dismantle.

[thorraborinn]

Hi! I'm reading The House of the Wolfings and all these houses have -ing names, Elking (elk), Harting (hart/stag), Bearing (bear). And even in other lore and legend we got Ynglings, Wulfings, Hundings, Scylfings, etc. So, my last name is Haring. And anything I can find about it says it's just a different way to spell herring, and relates to the fish/a fisher. But I can't help and look at this and wonder if it has anything to do with this old naming pattern. Do you have any thoughts on that?

Hard for me to say. This is a little outside my expertise. I think if I really wanted to know, I'd start by seeing if I could trace the origin of it being used as a surname, especially the occupation of the people who used it. That would at least give some indication of whether the explanations you've found on the internet are well-informed, or just guesses. I will say, the herring explanation does make sense and even if it is a weakly-supported guess I think it would take a lot of work to unseat it as the likeliest candidate (compare the surname Fish/Fisher/Fisch/Fischer/Fisk/etc).

Surnames weren't common in most parts of Europe until relatively recently, so we should not expect that a name was coined as an ancient tribal or dynastic name and used continuously that way up until it transitioned into being a modern surname. I'm not aware of any Wulfingas or Ynglingar who are alive now. So we would have to look for a different process of that kept a name in some other kind of use in between. There might actually be one here. It seems that Haring was used a given name at one point, and the probably-related Hering even earlier. so it's theoretically possible that it could have been a group name, then became a given name for a while, and later a modern surname. Or it might be simpler to say, formed as a given name in early times, and then adapted as a surname when they started using those. I have no idea how likely that is. If the Haring surname only started being used as a surname in like the 1600's, then it remains to be explained why those guys had the same/almost the same name as a first name hundreds of years before. But in that case, we would not have a strong reason to suppose that the name stayed in a particular family or line.

Even if the name was first formulated in ancient times, it's still entirely possible that it could be related to herring. Herring are an extremely important food source, historically as well as today, and we do have evidence of ancient Germanic people named for characteristic foods (the Rugii, named for 'rye'), and furthermore, while we don't see a lot of tribal/dynastic names involving fish, we shouldn't ignore the fact that it's as much an animal as wolves and hounds, etc (though I can't imagine herringing being used as a name).

Also, while -ing names go back to ancient times, the use of the suffix to make names continued to be used into the modern era. I'm pretty sure they can still make new -ingar and -ingjar in Icelandic now. So even if your name doesn't follow a succession leading back to ancient times, and was coined in like 1600 or something, it may still have participated in that much older naming convention.

In fact, herring arguably does follow the same *[root]-ingaz, -ingijan- name-formation process, at least on the phonological level. The theories that I see for the etymology of herring derive it variously from *hēri- 'hair' (referring to its wispy bones), *harja- 'army' (referring to large schools of fish), or *haira- 'hoar; gray.' Any of these could also be tribal or dynastic names, with or without a connection to the fish. A derivation from the 'hair' word would parallel the Haddingjar, from haddr 'hair.' A derivation from the 'army' word would be similar to the Harii, a Germanic tribe whose name indicated them as warriors. I don't think any of these individually stand out as likely independent explanations of your name, but they're all feasible both for the origin of the word herring and for names that could have emerged when there were Skylfings and Skjöldungar and stuff. So really, you could be the inheritor of an ancient cool name, by means of the fish, which is itself pretty cool.

I dunno, like I said this is not really my wheelhouse (the further the discussion goes from Icelandic and its antecedents, the less capable I get) so this is all speculation but I hope it's helpful.

[rikeijo]

Today's translation #220

Animestyle 2017.05, Otsuka Manabu's interview

Part 7.

I: I'd guess that, Kubo-san and Yamamoto Director, each have a different individual style, but how does it look like from your perspective?

O: So first of all, Kubo-san is incredibly skilled at portraying characters and choosing what lines the characters should speak. [When writing Yuri!!!] she matched characters' lines with what would be shown on screen, and what's more, she drew the storyboards that were used instead of a screenplay making it easy for our staff members to share her vision. Because of that, in my opinion, the fact that she drew the storyboards turned out to be very beneficial for this show. So, I'd say that Kubo-san's individual style is visible [in the finished work]. In case of Yamamoto Director, she really has an amazing taste in visuals [as in: the visual side of anime, e.g.] and her works really entice you. It's not something that can be copied by others. And on top of that, she knows a lot about figure skating, and so she didn't have any trouble deciding what to show [in the anime] to make [figure skating] fans happy. That strength is what I think makes up her individual style. I was admiring [her work], just thinking: "Incredible…".

I: I see. What I really admire about Yuri!!!'s story is that, even though it's an original anime, the story doesn't have this compactness that is characteristic for original animes. Instead, the mainstream-ness of the story is more similar to adaptations of popular mangas. If it was an adaptation of a popular manga, however, so much story would never be stuffed in just 12 episodes of anime! But in case of Yuri!!!, the story was from the very beginning designed to fit into 12 episodes. I think Yuri!!! is a revolutionary anime, because it managed to do both at the same time: a story created especially for anime and a mainstream story, like that of a popular manga. Was this mainstream-ness something that Kubo-san's individual style brought into the story?

O: I think it was a contribution from both of them. Characters that went through Kubo-san's hands very naturally reached to the audience to charm them, and thanks to that, the sensation that you usually get when watching an original anime in case of Yuri!!! wasn't that strong. And I believe that the self-confidence and conviction of the Director, that what she wanted to do was right, were what gave Yuri!!! its stability.

I: To properly tell a story, normally, this desire to stuff in more and more scenes appears in you, doesn't it?

O: Yeah, that's right.

I: In case of Yuri!!!, you'd think that it was necessary to stuff in more of Yuuri and Victor's relationship in order to justify why they behave in the way they behave [in a given scene], but we are shown only the bare minimum.

O: Yes, yes (laugh). That's why you can feel that they only included [in the story] what they really wanted to show in best possible proportions. I think that's something they were very good at, as well. But a lot was cut out in the editing, so I think it's possible that they had their doubts.

[cattimeswithjellie]

I know you get weird-ass biology fanfic in any fandom, but the stuff for Minecraft/Hermitcraft/Traffic Series/DSMP etc is all extra-funny to me because hey...

You never know!

I mean, Minecraft is a game that leaves a lot to the imagination when it comes to all the sciences. Physics, schmisics, amirite? But it does the same thing with biology. We only know a few things about how the block people of Minecraft work, but they clearly are not operating exactly on human hardware.

Everybody can lift thousands of times their own body weight with no trouble. Injury is common but goes away almost instantly if you have food. Everybody eats but nobody poops, the food just evaporates inside the body. Sleeping is possible, but only in a bed, and it does not make you feel better or last any amount of objective time, it just makes the sun move. (Schmisics!) There are no canonical primary or secondary sexual characteristics for any creature. If there are two Minecraft genders, they appear to be Thick Arms or Thin Arms, but this is speculative at best. Reproduction does not happen among PCs, but in the closely-related villagers, it happens randomly and apparently through some variety of food-related negotiations process.

So where does that leave the fanfic author except with an absolutely wide-open field for whatever? Two genders? Sure? Three genders? Ten genders? Zero genders? Infinity genders? All equally canonical! Which genders can get pregnant? Dunno, you're making all of this up anyway, go nuts! Sleep until true love's kiss? Sure, sleep is just suspended animation anyway, right? Biologically-bound Soulmates? Why not, there's even mods for that! Cough up flowers from unrequited devotion? Do it! Who knows what your lungs even look like! Hybrids with animal characteristics? Merpeople with underwater cities? Different species of player character from different world dimensions? Sure, that's all well within the realm of possibility. When nothing is canon except what individual characters say about themselves and each other, there's a lot of room on the table for experimentation.

Which is just to say, I guess, that weird-ass fanfiction has a special place in these fandoms because technically it is just as plausible as anything else that people are writing about. Mostly it just amuses me because sometimes I'll be reading a fic and something will happen that makes me say "humans do not WORK like that!" and then I'll think it over again and realize "Well, that's actually literally as likely as anything else in this world" and move on. And it's very funny.