#i know i know we're all shocked that they have an interesting collection

[fashion-runways]

CHRISTIAN DIOR Pre-Fall 2024 if you want to support this blog consider donating to: ko-fi.com/fashionrunways

[xvxni]

Making Her Mine

Summary: Rebekah compels Elena to reveal her feelings for you and now your trust is betrayed. Rebekah seizes this opportunity to warm up to you as she has always found you attractive. Hanging out with her escalates to a make-out session as you relish your newfound feelings for her...

Smut, angst, a lil' bit of fluff

Elena cheating on the reader, Elena slander

3K

A/N: This is the first time I've published smut. I hope it's fine (I know it's horrible) otherwise just forget this happened... do let me know if you liked it. Happy reading!

Rebekah Mikaelson X Fem!Reader

Rebekah was dragging Stefan by the arm to the high school library and you trailed behind them, compelled to do as the Original said.

Elena, your girlfriend of two years, gasps and stands up at your arrival. "Stefan, Y/N..."

You shot her a confused look, not understanding why was she so shocked.

Rebekah shot at the brunette. "Did I say you could move?" Elena shot her an exasperated look as she slowly sat down and you moved to sit near her.

She circled you people and spoke loudly in her accented voice. "Class is in session. You know the rules. Answer my questions honestly. No disobedience, no one leaves. April, my sweet, take notes. That's how you get answers in this town."

Her gaze lingered on you, which made you feel nervous and fidgety. Sure, you didn't show it, but she was a thousand-year-old vampire who could kill you in the blink of an eye, who was currently eyeing you like a predator would do to its prey. "In the year 1114, my brother learned, thanks to yours truly, about a brother of vampire hunters with tattoos that grew with each kill. These tattoos revealed what, Elena?"

"A map" your girlfriend answered, looking down. "Which led to... Caroline?"

"A cure for vampirism."

"Perfect. So we're all caught up. Stefan Salvatore, the last time we saw each other, you had a vampire hunter. But in order to decode the map, you need the location of the hunter’s sword, which you got out of me by using some very dirty tricks. Assuming you found the sword, you also found the cure… and you’re all still vampires. Something went wrong."

She looked at April. "What are you doing?"

"Oh, you asked me to take notes."

Rebekah sighed. "Oh, I wasn't being literal, darling. But now that you mention it, a flow chart would be nice. Which means index cards and push pins. Go fetch." The teen left.

At that very moment, the blonde Original appeared oh-so-tempting to you. The way she exercised control over all of you made you feel hot all over. It has happened quite a few times before. But you were with Elena and you had no tolerance for cheaters. There was just something about Rebekah that has always piqued your interest, but then again, loyalty was the most important thing for you. No one else but Elena had a place in your heart all this time.

Stefan grew irritated and straightened up. "You're wasting your time. We don't know anything."

"So you just gave up? I thought you'd do anything to save Elena. Y/N?"

Suddenly, all eyes in the room stared at you. The tension was so thick, you though a chainsaw was needed to cut through it. You sensed something bad and grew antsy under their collective gazes. "Why are you all staring?"

No answer. "Guys...?"

Rebekah spoke again. "I'm missing something. What is it?"

No one spoke. "I asked you what happened. You have to tell me."

Finally, the younger Salvatore brother spoke. "Elena slept with Damon."

You whipped your head around to look at the mentioned brunette. Hot, white rage was all you felt thrumming in your veins. You were known for your calm demeanor and excellent control over anger, but it was getting really difficult not to claw the doppelganger's eyes out. "What is the meaning of this?!"

The doe-eyed Gilbert just looked down and spoke nothing. She knew how much your relationship meant to you. She knew that once your trust is betrayed, it's over. She knew that loyalty was the most important thing in the entire world to you. And yet she chose to disrespect you. It made you feel so pathetic. Another victim of the Petrova charm putty in the doppelganger's paws. What a bitch. Your eyes burned with hot tears, threatening to fall down. Your throat choked and tightened, making it impossible for you to say another word. No. You thought. You wouldn't shed your tears for a cheater. Tears are so precious; blood flows from the body, tears flow from the soul. Never in your entire life you had felt so insulted and betrayed. I am going to ruin them, you thought. No, I mustn't waste a moment of my life on these worthless assholes. You decided the latter was a better option. No one was as crafty and cruel as you when it came to revenge. You would be consumed by the fire of vengeance. God, you thought you sounded like you were going on a bloodbath. But that's the dark beauty of you...

You subtly took a deep breath and leaned back, your face a stone-cold mask in which even the most observant couldn't find a crack. You felt Rebekah's searing gaze in your bones. And in some way, it made you feel safe. And damn you when you didn't know why...

"So vampire Elena is a trollop who likes bad boys, but it doesn’t explain why sweet, loving, innocent Elena could be so heartless towards Y/N. How could she hurt her like that? Answer, please." The Original said, looking at Stefan.

He sighed as he spoke. "She didn't know it at the time, but she was sired to Damon."

Rebekah smirked. "A sire bond? That’s fascinating. And what do you think about that, Elena?"

Elena spat at her, "I think you’re sad. And bored. And in desperate need of a hobby."

It angered but didn't deter the blonde. She compelled the Gilbert. "You're hiding something. Fess up."

"I didn’t sleep with Damon because I’m sired. I slept with him because I’m in love with him," she spoke in such a way as if she were proud of what she'd done. That was the last straw.

"Fuck you." You spat with so much hatred and venom, that no more words were needed to convey the message: we're over. Then you spun on your heel and stormed out, carrying a kaleidoscope of emotions and the weight of Rebekah's lingering gaze.

You didn't know it at the moment, but you and Elena breaking up might just be the best thing that has happened to the Mikaelson...

It was nearly midnight, and you were at your house alone. You ate an entire tub of vanilla ice-cream, and now you were feeling guilty about it. You could have downed that bottle of Jack and Daniel hidden in your closet, but you decided you were not going to surrender to Damon's coping mechanisms.

Your room looked like a lowkey brothel, complete with silk sheets, roses, scented candles, and dim lighting. Hell, you were dressed in flimsy lace pyjamas, finding them extremely comfortable. But in your taste, it was a much-deserved self-care session.

Flipping through the pages of an erotic novel for the past hour, you got bored. It was so smutty, all the protagonists seemed to do was have sex. You grew irritated, your sex life was in shambles.

Suddenly, the bell rang. At this odd hour, you thought it would be Caroline stopping by with some ridiculously expensive cosmetics for a girl's night in, a not-so-subtle attempt of hers to comfort you. You might've hated Caroline at the moment for keeping Elena's secret, but you guessed you could live with it.

Every pore of your being protested when you rose, wrapped your robe around yourself and climbed down the stairs to open the door. The last person you were expecting to show up on your door was Rebekah Mikaelson.

Your heart skipped a beat. She looked so hot. Like get on your knees right now hot in those tight jeans and spaghetti top. For the first time ever, you could admire her classic, almost divine, beauty without any inhibitions or restrictions. For the first time, you really seemed to take her in. And gods, she was a sight for sore eyes. And damn you for wanting to bite that red lip and tear off her clothes.

You snapped out of it when she smirked. The look in her eyes made you weak in the knees. You knew that she knew of the effect she had over you.

You cleared your throat. "Rebekah, was an entirely unexpected surprise. How can I help you?"

She smiled. "Well, for starters, you could invite me inside..."

You knew it was dangerous. But you were so desperately praying for something to happen. You didn't care about the consequences. You wanted her so bad, you felt it in your bones, the desire running deep in your veins.

"Alright, would you like to come in?"

She looked surprised for a moment that you gave in so easily. But then she smiled wide and said, "I would love to." Then she stepped inside. Your heart hammered crazily in anticipation.

"Where shall I keep these?" She asked, holding up her arms. Then you noticed that she had a couple of bags looped in her arms. "I brought wine and something to munch."

You softened. "Oh, you didn't need to..."

"Oh, of course I do." She smiled softly.

You helped her with the bags to the kitchen. "Rebekah, this is a lot..." you began but she waved you off. You couldn't believe that an Original vampire was in your house in the middle of the night, who brought very costly wine and snacks to last an entire month. The blonde standing in front of you was the supposed nemesis of your friends, but what happened today was your defense.

"But why?"

"Well, that doppelganger bitch hurt you, and I was the one who meddled and you found out like this. So I guess I owed you one."

"No, no! I owe you one. I probably wouldn't have known for a longer period of time and that would've been so pathetic."

"Still... well, I hate her and you do too. So I thought that it's not such a bad idea to bond over our mutual loathing for her and maybe plot our revenge?" She said with that cute little smirk, making me laugh.

"Do you want to watch a movie?"

"Nothing cheesy."

"You think so? Elena ought to be the cheesiest girlfriend ever."

She rolled her eyes. "Thought so,".

"Come on,"

You guided her upstairs to your bedroom, and you were really, really nervous. Your heart was beating so loudly that you knew all too well that she could hear it.

Rebekah was in a frenzy of lust and excitement. She'd dreamt of this a little too many times and now it was real. You were the loveliest creature she'd ever encountered and she thought that you were really strong, funny and protective. And she really seemed to enjoy the not-so-decent outfit you were clad in.

The blonde glanced around your room and smirked in an almost-appreciative way. You felt a bit embarrassed about your clothes and your room, but hey, we all have those moments.

You put on a thriller on your laptop as you both sat comfortably on your post bed, with a huge bowl of chips to snack on.

About an hour must have passed in comfortable silence, and your dirty thoughts were put to rest for a while too as you focused on the complex plot of the movie. Then your patience was about to be tested.

An intimate scene was displayed on the screen and you froze. You became antsy as your thighs came in contact with Rebekah's hand. The tension in the room could be cut through with a knife. Your unbridled lust and roaring desire for her was consuming you and you couldn't control yourself as you turned to face her.

She was thinking the same thing as you and your lips collided. Your tongues fought for dominance as you explored every corner of her mouth, her doing the same.

It was a passionate, rough, and all-consuming kiss that had you moaning in her mouth and both of you had your eyes closed in bliss. She cupped your face while your hands tangled themselves in her golden locks.

It was so exhilarating, and you had just kissed... you were almost scared to know where the night would lead you.

Your lungs burned for oxygen but kissing her seemed the best way to die. Finally, you parted, gasping for air.

"That was..." you began, panting.

"Amazing," she finished, holding your eyes. You leaned in for another kiss, but she beat you to it. You kissed her senseless and your hands seemed to have a mind of their own as you began undressing her. Kissing her was your new favourite thing to do.

Her lips moulded perfectly into yours. The purpose of your life was to be hers, and at that very moment, everything was forgotten. She followed your actions and undid the flimsy lace and pushed you down, making you lie down.

The two of you were completely bare as your eyes met. You could drown and die in the blue ocean of her eyes. It was like being reborn. Her eyes held a challenge, promised an adventure and you reveled in the anticipation, the thrill and in her amorousness.

She raked her eyes all over your body and your every pore, every limb shook in bliss and ecstasy. "Damn, you're gorgeous..."

You smiled in satisfaction at her words and pulled her down to mesh your lips together.

Her lips slowly moved down to your neck, kissing and biting, leaving a trail of love bites all over. Lewd, wet sounds filled your ears as you flushed. She was a heady mixture. Slowly, very slowly, she moved down to the little dent at the base of your neck, then placed ticklish, feather-light kisses on your prominent collarbone. She kissed and licked through the valley of your breasts, down to your navel and your sensitive lower stomach.

She placed kisses along your waistline, making you gasp and moan into the silk-covered pillows. Your toes curled in pleasure when you felt her hot breath fanning over your womanhood. She had barely begun and you were already dripping wet.

The blonde moved down to kiss your inner thighs. So close but not giving you what you want.

"Rebekah, please..." you pleaded with her. Her eyes were a mixture of lust and amusement. "Please what?"

"Touch me!"

"Where?" She was such a tease. You grew frustrated and you grabbed her hand and guided it between your parted thighs. A loud, throaty gasp escaped your mouth as her fingers worked their magic upon your wet, slippery folds. You almost tore the sheets your fingers were gripping and you buried your face into the pillows to muffle your moans. But you decided against it. You wanted her to hear you. You wanted her to know just how good she was making you feel. Your body was so responsive to her touches .

Just then, her fingers hit that spot and you cried out in pure pleasure. You felt the pleasure building up and the sounds leaving your mouth resonated in every nook and corner of your house.

"Do you want me to stop?" she questioned innocently, but you knew all too well. "Shut up," you barely managed to say between your uncontrollable moans.

You wanted to tell her that you were going to reach your release, but the pleasure was too much and all you could think about was how good she was.

You started shaking and almost screaming as you reached your precipice. You quite literally saw stars as you came. Rebekah's gaze upon you was that of pure worship as she licked her fingers which were coated with your arousal. Then she leaned in to kiss you deeply and you could taste yourself on her lips. "You're so pretty..." she whispered, almost as if in a daze. You smiled and grabbed her my the arms, helping her lie down.

"My turn now," you spoke, aspiring to make her feel as good as she made you feel. You pulled her in for another searing kiss as you parted her thighs. Moving down, you maintained eye contact as you stuck out your tongue and tasted her. You'd never heard anything sexier than the gasp that left her lips when you did.

Soon, your tongue circled and lapped over her folds. Her throaty moans were music to your ears. You pulled back just when she was about to reach her high, deciding to use your fingers. Her sweet moans might as well would've been heard by the neighbours as you pleasured her all night long and to the breaking of dawn.

You both lay bare barring the sheet covering you as you watched the sun rise. To you, it felt surreal and as if it were a dream.

"I've wanted this for so long," Rebekah softly confessed. "When I met you first, I thought you were really pretty, like a royal. Your wit and wordplay is unmatched. I love how strong you are, how you don't need anyone to fight for yourself and how you're so ambitious. But you were with Elena and-" you silenced her with a kiss.

"You've no idea for how long I've wanted this too. But I'm afraid that with the arrival of the dawn, I'd wake up and all of this would be nothing but a dream." You spoke softly.

"Trust me, your screams last night were very real,"

You laughed as you kissed her. She pulled you into her arms for another round. And sure enough, the hickeys covering you were very real...

[archibaldtuttle]

Alien : Romulus - a 7/10 reason to stop making Alien films

This review will be spoiler-free

When I came out of the theater yesterday, after having gone through a viewing of Alien Romulus, I caught myself agreeing with my friends - this was pretty good!

And I am beyond poisoned about the Alien franchise since Ridley Scott got his grubby paws all over it with Prometheus. The only reason I made the effort to move my ass to the theater to see this one was because he wasn't directing (and also I didn't have to pay for it) (thanks sib).

I knew Alvarez from two of his previous films, the 2013 remake of Evil Dead and Don't Breathe. I am pretty mixed on both - they demonstrate solid filmmaking abilities and (in the case of Evil Dead), a deep respect for franchises he's adding to. However they are also a little heavy on the jumpscares for my taste, and in the case of Don't Breathe I just can't praise the film without having to mention that the third act twist is gross in an entirely unnecessary, shock-value way, that does nothing for the film thematically.

That did give me some hope for Romulus however, because that third act twist told me Alvarez likes talking about rape and impregnation. And contrary to Don't Breathe... that's right at home in Alien.

So what about the film then? It's good. Solid premise, I like that we're finally, finally, seven films in, seeing the planet-side society that births all those rundown spaceships. Good pair of main characters with on one side a demonstrably resourceful Rain and on the other a very nuanced look at the franchise's synthetics with Andy. The others are more forgettable but I can't blame that too much on the film - they're well characterized in a few short scenes and that's all I can expect really. The build-up is solid, the various ticking clocks and sources of tensions well established.

What I find particularly notable is the really good setpieces and the use of facehuggers in a way I've wanted to see for a long time. Very good physical effects supplemented by good to ok-ish CGI. The writing is very heavy-handed - I wish more people looked at what O'Bannon did with exposition before they write their own Alien scripts. I do give credit to Alvarez and his co-writer Sayagues for the cool concepts explored and the way they thread Andy's character exploration through them.

The editing is mostly blameless - I wouldn't call it great or even that good, especially with how hectic it gets during some more action-ey scenes, but you can tell Roberts isn't specialized or even used to horror films. I guess he took from his experience on Pressure which would explain a lot... The score is really good, one of the highlights of the film in my opinion - I've liked almost all I've heard from Wallfisch so I wasn't surprised to find out he did this one.

So why did I give this review a very baitey title. It became clear as I was watching the fourth, then the inevitable fifth act unfold, that we were, collectively, scraping the barrel on what can be done with Alien. Prometheus and Covenant, beyond the fact that they were garbage movies, were already trying desperately to find new things to do with the concept. Romulus succeeded, for the most part, in finding new ways to twist it into something interesting, something we hadn't seen before (or at least not entirely). And I'm pretty sure that's it.

I don't want more directors to spend months racking their brains to try and find three or more scene setups that haven't already been done in seven main films, two AVP films and countless video games, in order to string them together into a coherent 2 and a half hour flick. I don't think it's impossible, Alvarez clearly demonstrated that he could do it and I'm pretty sure other people could. But why waste so much time, talent and energy on a series that objectively does not need expanding upon?

I know why, it's because the current studio system is allergic to anything that doesn't have brand recognition. But I think it's sad. And I think it would be a lot more gracious to put an end to a franchise after a pretty good film that did all it could to honor its predecessors rather than try to keep squeezing more out of it until it turns into the horror version of Star Wars.

[rahhhbananas]

✭ ✭ ✭ 𝐁𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐊𝐔𝐏 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐁𝐀𝐑𝐁𝐈𝐄 ✭ ✭ ✭ ft. the batfamily

summary. Y/n goes through an anguishing breakup right before a gala aka Bruce is done with any and everything that involves his children

warning(s). He/Him pronouns, breakups, inspired by “Barbie’s Torture” scene from Toy Story!

a/n. I know the Batfamily isn’t as fluffy as I make them out to be, but I need something sweet to settle my mind 🤷🏽

"1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7... 1, 2, 3, 4..."

Bruce furrowed his eyebrows. It was necessary to do a headcount before and after a gala, but he seemed to be missing one of the kids. "Dick, Jason, Tim, Stephanie, Cass, Duke, and Damian... Barbras at the office finishing up a case, so..." Bruce muttered, “I believe we’re missing Master Y/n.” Alfred inquired. Realization dawning upon him that Y/n was nowhere to be found. His eyebrows furrowed even deeper. "I thought I told you all to be down here at 8:32..." Bruce grumbled to himself as he ascended the stairs, his pace quickening when he heard screams and cries emanating from a room.

The door swung open, revealing Y/n amidst a collection of clothes hanging from a rack, surrounded by some of the torn garments. He held a purple shimmery vest in his hands. "Y/n, baby, please! Not the vintage purple vest. I said I was sorry!" pleaded Y/n's ex-boyfriend, Ken.

"Sorry, Kenny boy, but apologies won't cut it!" Y/n snapped, tearing the jacket in two, a pained smile stretching across his face. Tear stains marred his cheeks. "You should've thought about your tacky outfits before you cheated on me and messed with my friend!" Y/n flung the torn clothing at Ken, who was tied to what appeared to be a medieval stretcher, clad only in heart-patterned boxers. Bruce stood at the doorway, his expression a mix of shock and disbelief. "Y/n..." he uttered. Y/n swiftly turned his gaze towards the door, his tense smile morphing into a pout, tears welling up in his eyes. "Dadddddddd!" Y/n cried, rushing into his father's embrace. "Y/n... what is going on?" Bruce returned the embrace, cautiously surveying the room for any more surprises. "Ken cheated on me, a-and he called Karen a bitch! I'm Gotham's Barbie, n-no one disrespects me or my friends!" Y/n's pout vanished, replaced by anger and distress in his eyes. Bruce glanced at Y/n's outfit—a white suit with pink accents, and pearl earrings. "Umm..." Bruce blinked repeatedly, trying to recall why he had come upstairs. "The gala, we have to go. W-we can sort this out later." Bruce gently guided Y/n out of the room, stealing a glance back at the bound Ken before closing the door.

The siblings lounged on the couch, waiting for Bruce to come downstairs with their brother. It had already been 20 minutes since Bruce left. "Do we even have to go to the stupid gala? I mean, we're probably hella late..." Jason chimed in, playing with Dick's kendama. "Honestly, I don't even know. I'd be fine staying here and binging one of Y/n's movies," Dick commented, looking at his brother. "I'd never be bored enough to watch all of Y/n's movies," Tim added.

"What? Why not! Y/n's movies are amazing, especially the one where he's in the apocalypse!" Stephanie exclaimed, leaping from her spot on the floor. Damian hummed in agreement, "I like those, but his aquatic ones are even better. Besides, it's about something he truly enjoys..." Titus barked in apparent agreement. "Woah, woah, woah. His high school drama movies are a hundred times better than all of those combined!" Jason interjected, discarding the kendama as his interest waned. "Jason!" Dick shouted, diving to catch the toy he had been eagerly waiting for (another story for another time). And everyone protested, disagreeing with Jason's opinion. Their debate was abruptly interrupted by a boisterous voice exclaiming, "We're back!" Y/n excitedly raised their hands in the air, sprinting down the stairs and heading straight for the door. "I call shotgun, come on Alfred!" Y/n surprised the butler, dragging him towards the waiting limousine outside.

"What? That's not fair!" Duke leaped over the couch, desperately trying to secure the next best seat. This triggered a chain reaction, causing the entire group to scramble towards the door. Bruce could only watch in despair, attempting to ignore the shouts and cries coming from Y/n’s “victim”.

"Fine... let's get this show on the road..." Bruce mumbled wearily, resigned to their chaotic adventure.

[nozunhinged]

I finally managed to put my overall thoughts about Playboyy into words and hoooooo boy do I have a lot to say.

I watched the mdl ratings go down, the blatant hate towards the plot, the actors, the scenes, the sex. There was nothing that wasn't torn apart about this series and yet I wasn't phased for a second and I kept wondering why because usually get very passionate about defending the things I love.

And then I realized that this series is the cinematic embodiment of a very lonely path that I've been walking for decades and I am already very, very used to the shame around it.

Sex is not just my special interest, I also had the privilege to grow up with excellent sex education (thanks parents) and on top of that I never struggled with my (pan)sexual identity. Sex plays a significant role in my life. But I learned VERY quickly that I should keep this to myself if I don't want to be ostracized or bullied.

"You're autistic AND you like sex? You like porn? What the fuck is wrong with you??? That's impossible."

And all the comments I read about playboyy are exactly the same just in different fonts. Ew sex. Ew kink. Ew porn. Ew sex work. Sex can't have storytelling, plot, it's just for shock value. We all read it.

And sadly it's a very accurate representation of the role sex plays in our society. Which - ironically - playboyy exactly is about.

Playboyy is a visual collection of all the experiences of lives and people in which sex plays a significant role - even the lack thereof (looking at you zouey and all you lovely aces).

It's a collection of very important social commentary, with all the characters, sets, plots and visuals as a medium. Because this way, the points they make come across even stronger and draw out all the emotions they want us to feel - which is in the rarest cases, pure arousal. Because this is, in fact, storytelling. Even if many don't want to hear it.

Telling stories about sex is so stigmatized and shunned, it only has the tiniest place to exist freely. Just like sex itself. Every sex worker, sex educator, sex therapist, everyone who has a profession that deals with sex will tell you about it. The shame. The misunderstanding. Look at the state of sex work and porn in the world. It tells you everything you need to know.

And it's happening in the middle of the "modern" western society - Yes I'm talking about you, UK and I can't not plug this here:

*btw I am not a sex worker I'm just very passionate about letting people not just live their lives but giving them a CHOICE to do what they want or don't want to do

I existed in this tiny place for decades now and I got really comfortable in my tiny lil corner, but to see a show like this go "mainstream" talking about all the topics that tickle all the knowledge I collected over the years feels so amazing. And I can tell you, all you lil smartass purists, everyone involved in this show doesn't care an inch what you think, just like me. We're used to it, believe me.

I could go on for ages about how carefully all these topics of the show are treated but what I actually want to say is that I find it incredibly ironic that a show that depicts the struggles and stigmas about sex, exactly draws out the reactions and treatments it criticises.

If you don't want to join in on the fun, that's totally fine. I get that it's not for everyone (just like sex, he). But treating it as a piece of trash just because it's a thing you personally find icky is exactly the reason the issues Playboyy talks about exist in the first place. Hence you can thank your stuck-up ass yourself that debauched individuals like me get a gem like this to enjoy.

And the fact that it didn't just find a crew, but also the funding and the mainstream distribution proves that I'm not alone in this.

It's not my lonely little corner anymore and I'm absolutely thriving on that. Cry about it.

[gendertrickster]

i dunno why i'm making a post about eridan but i thought about him and how people perceive him so why not

eridan is a really good exploration of the hope aspect i think. like aspects are defined by the characters which embody them and eridan defines a very dark and twisted side of hope, which is that of holding many harmful and dangerous views of the world and choosing never to question them or allow anyone to defy your idea of how the world functions. eridan is defined by these hollow and black ambitions and in turn this defines a part of the hope aspect itself: delusion

this shit reads like a manifesto. eridan is so hopelessly far gone down this path of broken belief and it's an extremely dangerous state for a prince of hope because the strength of his convictions directly correlates to his power (in a less allegorical sense, his will to act correlates to his desire to accrue a weapon to enact his beliefs in the way he sees fit, which is an extremely real thing that happens). he's convicted in his belief that he is disrespected and not taken seriously enough but refuses to address his own flaws or the trauma society has inflicted upon him through expectations and when pushed beyond the limit the result is a murderous monster of a 13-year-old boy

it's also interesting to note that eridan does not attack unless he has a personal justification for it. to him, sollux started it and got what he deserved. to him, feferi was a delusional woman who never understood him so when she charged forward he did not hesitate. with kanaya, they stood in a standoff until she glanced the way of the matriorb and his hatred of trollkind acted on its own and destroyed it, which provoked kanaya which justified his actions. to him, all of this is just "self-defense"

here, eridan's silhouette is white where kanaya's is black because eridan believes himself the purest arbiter of truth. to him, she is acting on thoughtless aggression where he is ever calm and collected. and thus he kills one of his best friends

the only reason karkat went untouched in this is because he's a man he didn't involve himself in it, only staring in shock at what he just allowed to happen but knowing he would never have stood a chance, being complacent in the actions of the higher troll, which is befitting of karkat

and it's THIS shit that is the core of eridan's entire character. you can definitely take his character further if you so wanted — he can be really engaging and even funny if you do him right — but you have to recognize that if you do, the mark he bears for his actions can never leave him. not to say he can't change, this is homestuck we're talking about, but he was written to be the ultimate product of alternia's broken and cruel systems, and it's something very important to keep in mind lest you forget what defines him

[gryficowa]

Watching videos commenting on miracolous episodes talking about racism is interesting (Especially when I'm older than when I watched them + I'm European, specifically Polish)

Note, if you are outraged by Chloe's defense, I'm sorry, but Europe and the US don't really have the same approach (Which can be frustrating for non-white Europeans)

First of all, the text about sushi… Sushi was created in China and then came to Japan, which means that this particular text by Chloe is not entirely racist, I know, shocking, but Thomas didn't do his homework before writing the episode, so it came out strangely

As for Chloe confusing a Chinese with a Japanese, unfortunately I have an explanation, it is related to the fact that in Europe they speak collectively, i.e. "Asian", so yes, if we assume that Chloe only dealt with Japanese, and not Chinese, it was unconsciously confuses them with each other (I remind you, this is Europe, not the USA, here the topic of racism is more complicated), anyway, I don't believe that she's the only one who confuses Asians with each other, because we're talking about Europe, where such confusion is more "Normal" (however it sounds), why is she the only one? Why don't any adults do this? This is unrealistic and distorts the reality in Europe

Besides, the very fact that the series is written by a Frenchman who has no clue about racism says a lot, hello, you live in a country where Muslims are persecuted (There is a ban on wearing hijabs), so what more can I say about all this?

It's unrealistic that only Chloe confuses a Chinese and a Japanese with each other, older generations should also have a problem with it, because the action takes place in Europe, not in the USA, plus, older generations are more racist than the younger ones (Because the younger ones have access to for information), so it doesn't make sense that none of the adults are racist, Thomas, do you know what country you live in?

So yes, taking the action in France, i.e. Europe, in practice made Chloe's racism seem even more strange, because they could make it seem that she is not the only person in the whole country who has a problem with it, but it is known that Thomas Astruc prefers to pretend, that in his country and in the whole of Europe racism does not happen (And only a white fourteen-year-old child is the only racist… Yes, it sounds bad)

Europe is not the USA, you could have searched the Internet for information about current acts of racism in your country or Europe itself to present them in your series, but you decided to do something that makes no sense because of the place of action which is France, it looks so unrealistic, when you are European and you know the approach of people from Europe, antagonizing Chloe for racism when she is a fourteen-year-old living in Europe (where such racism is more common, because it is not the USA), to punish her for… As a European, she does not have an attitude like Americans and she took bad examples from adult Europeans

Thomas' attitude towards Chloe is even worse for this reason, he forgets that children are not born racist, they acquire this through adults, the Internet and other media (Like the news), throwing Chloe on the pile for being racist is harmful, yes, we should talk about racism and fight it, but hate a child for being a racist, because adults taught her that? A child's mind is still developing, it shouldn't be done, educating children is necessary, so Thomas, you fucked up the whole series

As a European, I have more reason to criticize this series for how it ignores the very topic of racism in Europe in order to antagonize a child (Fictional, but a child), if you want to show racism, then use information about it, not create worse versions of racism from the 70s -those from America

I had to describe it because it's frustrating how Americans hate Chloe for racism and they have no idea what it looks like in Europe, instead of bashing Thomas for showing racism in such an unrealistic way, they attack a fourteen-year-old cartoon girl, it's fucked up on many levels

Thomas doesn't know anything about racism, especially in Europe, if he did, only Adrien and Marinette would know it's racism, and the adults, including Chloe, wouldn't see it as a problem because they're fucking adult Europeans and we have unrealistic shit that pretends to be that it is progressive because it talks about racism, but the truth is that there is nothing there, no realism in this topic (Compare to US productions from the 70's, even they did it better…), this episode would be better if it showed real racism, and not the one just to show how stupid Chloe is -_-

Yes, I had to get this out of the way because a lot of people in the fandom are Americans and they look at Chloe from an American perspective, the problem is that Chloe is not American, she is French and that changes the perspective, yes, racism is bad, but remember that in Europe operates on different levels and Thomas Astruc presented it so badly that if you are from Europe, you it hurts

[sgiandubh]

To your previous anon. When this side and mordor side are in 100% agreement about this latest stunt gone stupidly wrong, you know it's gone stupidly wrong! We don't agree on many things but with this we're all in agreement.

Dear 'Previous Anon' Anon,

Well, he screwed it up BIG time. He could have thought things better than reacting knee-jerk style in the spur of the moment. Holding hands was completely unnecessary, as it made him look as a disingenuous consumer of cheap company AND a fool.

His Mommies are, for the most part, Christian conservatives (this is a simple, but reliable descriptor, not a judgement) who came and stayed for the book first, then for that innocence. Of which they ALL wanted a part of. They wanted a part of the dream. But oh, now JAMMF (the confusion and the struggle are real, for the aging Onlies) canoodles with hookers in the streets of London. This is not 1744, there is no Bonnie Prince Charlie, no Murtagh, no Fergus and they are no Claire. I feel for them. And it is not the first time I am telling myself the whole agitation down here eerily mirrors particular book tropes - as if fiction seeped into their lives, somehow. Strange, to say the least.

How is he going to come out of it? I bet he hopes for the effective virtues of collective oblivion and prays for small mercies. But this is Season Eight in the making, already and both he and C are running out of time.

No underpants twisting from the *Ur-Troll will make this palatable to that public and the people still buying that particular brand of bullshit in shining wrap paper WANT to LIE to themselves. For the sake of the above fantasy only.

The Disgruntled Tumblrettes will snarl on. It is their moment of dubious grace, Gay Brigade included. At least Liberace had Sonja Henie, the Norwegian figure-skater Olympic champion. That woman is no Olympic champion (her discipline is not included in that club) and this will seal the deal to them.

What about us? I do wonder. Don't worry: I am not about to jump ship. I have better understanding of human nature than that and I am anything but shocked by what happened. However, I also do think that this man cannot go on like that, from blunder to blunder, from OL to LOL.

I will not post anything else about that woman. Anything about that woman, reblogs included, will give her traction and a raison d'être. My inbox is full with pleading Anons I am deleting. Go somewhere else for gossip, ask yourselves what happened to you in the process and why you are interested by a hooker.

I am still considering Landcon 7. I have not made my final decision and I think it's understandable. There is a fine line between being benevolent and being an idiot with one's own time and money. I will tell you very soon what my final thoughts on this are.

Tell yourself they are people like me and you. Good people make mistakes. This is a horrible mistake I am not finding excuses for. His problem to solve.

[circeyoru]

Hiii

Its the fic on paper anon again

I was re-reading the last chapter of {Collection of Overlords} when I realized

"Why did Alastor burst into Rosie's shop?"

While he mentions being ashamed (?) for it, we're not told why he did that.

So yeah

Luv u ♡

This is for {Collection of Overlords} referring to part 10. Check MASTERLIST for the work

Interesting ask. Clarification then~

Oh, this is linked back to Part 8 when it was revealed that you’re in Cannibal Town and have been staying there for a while. During that time, Alastor have been busy with helping (pushing) Husk to be a candidate for the Overlord position. Alastor knows where you are and what you’ve been doing, so he does rush his work to be by your side.

[The door suddenly slammed open and revealed Alastor, his eyes blinked and his body froze like a deer in headlights.]

He’s not ashamed. It’s more like he’s shocked and a bit embarrassed that he came in unannounced, unlike a gentleman that he portrays himself to be. Not that he’s not used to barging in, but when you’re around he avoids it like the plague. 

He came to Cannibal Town because he wants to join in on the celebration feast that you granted to Rosie and her people, since he’s like an honorary member of the townspeople. Well, more like he wants to make up for lost time when he was training Husk, but shhh, he’s a clingy deer. Anyways, he barged in cause he was trying to find Rosie and ask if he could use the kitchen and town supply to make something for you to dine in. Since the Cannibals will just feast on the bodies you provide them in an uncivilized way, better than their usual methods, but still not to standard table manners and it’s like not you corrected them as you saw no need to. 

In the end, the shock is from the fact that Carmilla and Velvette is there, then add to you letting them hug you close with Rosie as the main hugger. Alastor’s not jealous of Rosie being close to you, he knows Rosie’s like that, but he doesn’t understand why Velvette is in the group hug. Don’t go there. Why are Velvette and Carmilla even here in the first place!?

That’s all Alastor’s thoughts when he arrived.

[mcflymemes]

MISCELLANEOUS SENTENCE PROMPTS *  collection #4

we'll be fine.

anything interesting?

so what's the plan?

people who stay put don't have interesting stories to tell.

are there any places you'd like to visit?

i'll make us both a cup.

i think you've been reading too many comic books.

i can only tolerate so much time spent with you.

you handle my bad jokes better than anyone.

i stick out like a sore thumb.

you've got a whole band of idiots downstairs just waiting to catch you.

i've heard a lot about you.

well, this is awkward.

i don't fucking care.

you startled me.

at least this means we can help each other out.

if they catch us here, we're in trouble.

the coast is clear.

are you feeling ill? this isn't like you.

you know it's only getting worse, right?

have you heard of them?

this complicates things.

maybe something good can come of this.

can we try?

you can find a better place than that.

what's the coffee like here?

i suppose i should take it as a compliment.

are you safe? you look tired.

i don't have time to be shy about this.

i just need to get out.

i'm not mad!

you have to know someone. anyone. i need help here.

that's a lovely way to meet someone.

not to sound cheesy or anything, but that's the truth.

life is just better with them in it.

i'm here to keep you company.

i don't mind walking.

i can assure you there's nothing to be concerned about.

what have you been up to since i saw you last?

i assume someone died.

don't even think about it.

why didn't i think of that?

they're gone. you should go.

you order first. i'll pay.

i deal with this shit all the time. i'm used to it.

it's all going to be okay.

how's the head?

if you're not interested... you're not interested.

are you sure you have the right name?

i don't mean to be nosy, i'm just concerned.

i just want you to be happy.

we could do dinner.

drinks are on me after this.

you have every right to be concerned.

i'm in love with you.

we're in this 'til the end.

don't let your comfort zone restrict you from pursuing something special.

you have my word.

what do you say? truce?

i didn't know you were here.

can't say i'm aware of them.

i could try and do a bit of digging myself.

i know you'll leave soon.

i've missed you.

whatever happens, i'm in your corner.

who gave you this job?

you gave me quite a shock.

if you need backup, i make great backup.

i was born with these powers.

what the hell was all of that, anyway?

i can leave, if you want me to.

please say something.

why would i ever ask you to leave?

[marinerainbow]

Do you have any more information on that when’s were peach fell in love with bowser eyes 👀 it interest me a lot

Powser is my favorite Mario ship... So yes, I do >:3

Let us renember; in my headcannon, Peach is SEVEN FOOT THREE! Imagine how huge Bowser is if he can grab her up like this!?!?

This post shall also be done in dot points for my sanity XD also, this will be referring to the Powser Timeline of my Mario's Galexy.

In this cycle, Mario and Luigi showed up much later, so they aren't around for a good while. So when it came to maintaining the peace of The Strangelands, it fell on our beloved princess' shoulders. In fact, in this timeline, Bowser doesn't get to kidnap her because she approached him first for peace between their nations.

Bowser had been planning to take over the Mushroom Kingdom for the same reasons I stated in my Mario AU post. So you can imagine how surprised he was when he received an invitation to the very palace he was planning on conquering in the first place. He took this as a chance for a surprise take-over, and told his men to prepare as such.

... The thing is, though, he expected to come face to face with a sentient mushroom ruler. Not the beautiful, kind-hearted, and collected Princess Peach we know and love to greet him at the edge of her city. He actually thought she was a passing human, but no. The toads flanking her sides introduced her as their princess. And when Peach approached Bowser with a sweet smile and took one of his clawed fingers in both of her hands, he fell in love instantly... Which was quite the show when his koopa troops surrounded the princess and her toad guards as was the original plan 😅 Bowser had to quickly call them off, and come up with an excuse on the spot as to why his koopas would point their spears at her.

Peach: Wh-What is this!?

Bowser: No! No! It, uh... Y-You see, my princess *totally not squealing on the inside for getting to say that* uh... My people, we uh...

The Koopas: 😶😶🤨🤨🤨🤨

Bowser: We aren't used to uh... Friendly people, such as you.

Peach: Really?

Bowser: Yeah, yeah! It uh... We were expecting an attack, actually-

Koopa: But my lord, you said-

Bowser: *gives him the 'shut the shell up!' Look*

Peach: Oh, you poor koopas! 🥺 don't worry. You will find nothing but acceptance and peace among the toads. And with our alliance, we'll be sure to offer your people the prosperity you deserve ^^

Bowser: *definitly not wondering what Peaches ring size is already* Right, that's why we're here! For peace! Haha...

(Eventually, after they get married, Bowser tells Peach the truth of what happened. To which she surprises him by confessing she already knew, but decided to give him a chance since he called off his troops, and she's glad she did. My Peach may be a pacifist, but she's not blind.)

Anyways, they went inside her kingdom, and Bowser not only got to see a side of The Strangelands he never did get to see in The Darklands, but was also shocked at how peacefully they were able to work together. Peach never spoke down to him or his people, and made sure neither side would be treated unfairly in their kingdoms union. He was honestly amazed, having never seen anything political being taken care of through non-violent means. It made him reflect on his own laws and Kingdom, too. But he wanted to leave a good impression on Peach, so he tried to paint his kingdom and ruling in a positive light... Which failed miserably 😅😅😅 but at least it encouraged Peach to renain in contact with him and help bring his people into a new, kinder era, so... He considers it a win.

There was a lot of work to be done. Imagine if all of the main Mario games focused on Peach and Bowser teaming up and fixing various issues between their kingdoms. That's how much time passed between them after that first meeting (I actually wanna see that 🤔 Bowser being able to use force and offense when Peach's negotiations and defense fail, and vice versa. Kinda like Bigby and Snow from The Wolf Among Us). But it only made Bowser fall for her harder, and eventually Peach started to fall in love with Bowser, too. And since their kingdoms were already united, it seemed like the most natural course of action ^^

Their love and marriage lasted for the rest of their lives. Raising the koopalings and Junior, and changing all of the Strangelands for the better. However, it all ended on the star festival, as it always does with each cycle; Bowser, Peach and their children were all enjoying a night of fun and collecting star bits, and forming the final grand star before their timeline ends with the galexy resetting itself... Unfortunately, Bowser and Peach don't fall in love in the next cycle, but they at least had their happy ending while they had it...

I hope this timeline makes sense 😅 but! Time for headcannons/tid-bits of the Powser Galexy Cycle!

As you can see, Bowser is still a bit of a goof in this timeline. In fact, he's able to show that side of himself more in this cycle than in previous cycles. That's because there's no need for him to be so tyrannical, and because his precious wife encourages him to let this side of him out ^^

Even so, he still knows how to lay down the law. Peach, she is a good and benevolent ruler. However, there were plenty of times when people tried to take advantage of that. Whether it be neighboring kingdoms during negotiations, enemies trying to take over her kingdom, or even their own people trying to get out of paying for a crime they committed. In that case, Bowser is always there to make sure nobody tries to pull the wool over Peach's eyes. He's kind of like her guard dog, standing behind her with his arms crossed and ready to roast somebody if they hurt or try to fool Peach... Needless to say, this does make people think twice about trying to harm the princess.

Though on the flip side, Peach is able to get Bowser to realize when aggression is unnecessary and whether or not a punishment for a criminal is just or too extreme. It's not uncommon in the kingdom to see Peach by Bowsers' side, holding his claw and keeping him calm enough to see reason and keep things smooth during meetings. If Bowser is her guard dog, then Peach would be his emotional support kitty.

Sometimes, just to tease Peach or because he needs he close in that moment, Bowser will pick up Peach just like in the gif above to give her a kiss, whisper something in her ear, or even during meetings and he and Peach need to talk without anyone else listening in. Sometimes, Peach will hop up onto his shoulder to peck his cheek and see him turn red ^^

In my previous post, I said that Ludwig was the first to be adopted, followed shortly by Iggy. They were actually brought in by Bowser before he and Peach were married. Even though they weren't a couple, however, Peach fell in love with them instantly and would constantly ask Bowser how he and his sons are doing. And he even trusted her enough to send them to her palace whenever necessary! 🥺🥺🥺 Peach treated them like her own, and when they came back, the first thing Iggy asked his dad was why aren't he and mama Peach married yet? This was actually what encouraged Bowser to finally confess his love to her ^^ (Ludwig was in his emo phase at this point, so he was just like "Yeah, she's alright." // "Shut up, Luddy, you still have the violin Peach got you." // "SHUT UP!-")

As such, Ludwig and Iggy are the only koopa kids who remember having only Bowser as a parent. The other koopa kids, even though lived under the rule of Peach and Bowser, were adopted after they got together.

After they were married, they built their own palace on the borders of both of their kingdoms. Peaches' original castle is the families' summer vacation home, and Bowsers Castle is their winter vacation home.

The Mario Bros come to The Strangelands during Bowser and Peach's wedding planning, actually XD when they were due to be married within a week, in fact. Larry found them first and showed them to his parents like they were cool bugs or stones he found XD "Mama, look! They look like you, but very small!" They were able to fix some plumbing issues in the castle that would have potentially interferred with the wedding, so Peach and Bowser promised to help them find their way back home for their help ^^ (I like to think Mario may have developed a mini crush on Peach, but since she was getting married, it obviously went nowhere.)

When it comes to parenting, Peach is the more firm parent. Bowser loves his kids, and he can discipline them. But... He's weak. He can't do it unless it's something serious. And we know he spoils his kids 😅😅😅 Peach loves them to peices as well! But she knows where to draw the line with them and makes sure Bowser doesn't go too far with spoiling them or letting their antics slide. As such, they actually grow up less bratty and not so "we just love being mean!" Then they do when it's just Bowser raising them. Imagine Peach being like Mary Poppins with them, making sure they behave without being aggressive about it. Except she's their mother, not their nanny. Daisy though, is their cool aunt.

When it comes to Junior, Bowser still made him on his own. Even though he and Peach wanted to try for kids, their drastic size and biology differences did make them hesitate. So, to stay on the safe side, Bowser incubated Juniors egg all on his own. Though this time, he had Peach tp take care of him through the draining process and take care of their kids ^^ (and that's how, in the current timeline, Bowser Jr. Still has buried memories of a past life with Peach as his mother. Just not by blood.)

A kinda funny thing though, is that when the palace is under attack, Bowser will go face the threat and the koopalings will surround Peach in their own version of a kill circle XD even though she's their mama, it's no secret that she's the most delicate family member (koopa babies, while still being fragile compared to adult koopas, are still pretty tough compared to humans. I mean, Lemmy and Junior, the youngest kids, already have sharp spikes on their shells 😬). So even though Peach will stand between her babies and any threat, her kids really are the next line of defense if, for whatever reason, Bowser fails.

Though, Peach is still a mama. And any mother worth their salt would break a man in two for touching her baby... That is actually what people find out in this timeline, after the one and only time Peach was actually kidnapped in this cycle. She had Junior with her, so he was taken too. Bowser pulled up with his battleships, ready to destroy the whole galexy to get his wife and son back... Only for him to find his darling, wouldn't-hurt-a-fly wife having tossed her vow of pacifism out the window and curb stomping her and her sons' kidnapper the second she broke out of the cage. That was just more proof to Bowser he found the perfect woman. (He still set fire to the guy when Peach was done with him. The koopa kids all think their mom is even cooler now.)

Oh yeah. Bowser still writes Peach love songs. And Peach writes him so many lovey dovey letters- yes, even after they're married- and bakes him many cakes. They love each other so much 💕

So yeah. They are a pretty dynamic duo with running kingdoms and raising families in this timeline ^^ Thank you for sending this in! I hope you enjoy reading this ^^

[myfandomrealitea]

saw ur post about going incognito into spaces and stuff and i wanted to add my own thoughts about my experience of basically being stuck in places where proshippers r hated (not against wut ur saying! i definitely agree that theres no benefits and honestly its not that fun)

the fandom that im currently in is.. very toxic. someone got harassed to the point of having to delete their account bc they "supported" a proshipper (it was literally just them saying that u shouldnt harass this person just bc theyre proship-). a lot of my friends were very supportive of this person and agreed that ppl shouldnt be harassed over shit like that and many of them seem to have similar viewpoints as me (anti harassment and all that) but prefer to stay away from that stuff

the fandom is basically ran by antis. theres a small corner that some ppl have made where they talk about proship stuff freely (love those ppl so much theyre genuinely so nice) but overall its. not the best place to be if ur proship. which is interesting to me bc theres actually a shocking amount of proshippers that just... dont say anything. on my side blog ive had multiple ppl interact that i thought were anti (or at least just. not proship in some way) but would literally go and like all my posts about incest ships of the characters.

and sometimes i think about it and how theres actually a bunch of proshippers but we're so heavily harassed and silenced that we just- dont say anything. but the fandom is small and we cant exactly separate ourselves from it if we really like the show. and i feel especially bad for some of the bigger blogs that ppl love and adore bc i know wut would happen if somehow ppl found out and made some big post or wutever.

i dont pretend to be antiship but i dont outright say im proship unless i really trust that person

im currently trying to make my own lil space with some friends so at least if anything goes wrong i at least have a few ppl but its a bit scary to think about honestly-

Although it can be full of snot-nosed superiority complexes, I do recommend using the AO3 Subreddit in order to find likeminded people for your fandom. The very vast majority of the AO3 Subreddit is proship or at least proship neutral. Antis are generally eviscerated on sight whenever they try to poke their nose into it.

If you have any other fandoms that you are active in or have friends within, there's also no harm in introducing them to your small fandom.

From what I understand the Marvel fandom did kind of the same thing you're describing with the Starker shippers, but they flourished and supported each other anyway.

I know its easy for me to simply say 'do it anyway' as someone who generally could not give a fuck about anyone's opinion of me, but honestly. Do it anyway. Form your little collective. Support each other. Learn how to write and draw and make GIFs so you feed your own portion of the fandom. You physically do not need those people, it just unfortunately takes a bit of effort and means potentially a bit less content until you start really generating your own.

Fandom spaces do not start out from nothing. Promote the shit out of your fandom. Draw people in. Comb through the proship tags and send asks to blogs like mine asking other proshippers to check out the source material.

People in small fandoms are easy to bully because you're so enclosed into this circle of the exact same people. They happen to be the majority in the room and they're weaponising it.

Force them into a bigger room.

[seenoversundown]

For Death Or Glory : Chapter Five

Jake Kiszka x Charlotte (fem OC)

Warnings: Anxious Themes (includes a Comforting scene), Mild Meltdown (I don't want to say a panic attack because it isn't really) Mentions of Grieving, the most brief mention of funerals, silly&friendly bullying, drinking/alcohol (we know the drill), Fluff oh the fluff, & Jake yearns a little more (shocking).

Word Count: 4.6k

Summary: After caving and finally asking for help, Jake doesn't know what to do with himself until she shows up. Which takes a big ol' turn for ... well, I guess we will find out, won't we? 🤭

Author's Note: If we're being completely honest, this was the first chapter I wrote, of this story. I knew exactly how I wanted this day to go and I couldn't stop myself when I thought of the idea. It's what fueled the bulk of the storyline and I really hope you guys love it as deeply as I do. 🥹

Clocks Go Forward - James Bay "Stay warm, close your eyes, let time fly, Stay close, stay right here, nothing to fear."

I slide my phone back into my pocket. Staring at it isn’t going to make her reply, Jake. I’ve been at the bar trying to figure out this paperwork for a while, and well, I’m lost. My hands keep finding their way to the back of my head as I read through these documents; I need to focus on something else. 

“Hey, how are you?” I say in passing some day-time regulars of ours. I collect any empty cans or glasses that I can, anything to keep me busy at this rate.  

I wander behind the bar, setting all the glasses in the dirty bin.

“Jake.” 

I look over to Josh, who’s wiping out a glass.

“Why don’t you just go get some lunch or something? You’re stressing me out being here.” 

“Is it really that bad?” I ask, running my hand through my hair. 

A laugh erupting from him says enough. 

“Okay, alright, I’ll leave you alone,” I tell him, “Just let me know if you need anything.” 

Reluctantly sitting back down at the desk in my office, I find myself with my head in my hands for a moment. You’re going to be okay. You’re new at this, and it’s okay to mess up. She’s giving you time to take care of everything. 

After a deep breath or two, I opened my laptop and pulled up my email. I decided that maybe spending some time doing mindless admin work would help distract me from the inevitable problem. 

I’m flying through these emails by humming along to whatever customers have chosen for the jukebox. Looking at the time in the top corner, 2:30 pm. 

She still hasn’t replied. Maybe she’s working with someone else right now; just be patient.  

I walk back into the bar, seeing a handful more people come in. I wave slightly to the regulars who like to camp out in the corner. They enjoy sneaking away from work for a few hours; “Lunch beers” is apparently what they call it.  I laughed the first time they told me about it, but as they continued the tradition, I understood it more and more. 

Looking to the corner of the bar, I see Quinn. I can’t help but watch the two of them for a minute with a grin plastered on my face. Seeing my brother so happy makes my heart swell daily, and Quinn is perfect for him; I can’t deny it. They just know how to handle him and reign him in when he’s being a bit too much. Which is more often than not. 

“Do you two want to go grab lunch?” I ask, slinking my arm around Josh’s shoulders, “I think I can handle the rowdy folk we have here.” I shoot a wink at the few customers sitting next to Quinn. 

His eyes light up, “You don’t have to ask me twice. Let’s go, bug!” 

I don’t think he could have left any quicker if he tried. Immediately, hand in hand with Quinn, and practically pranced out of the bar. 

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

“And a squirrel fell down my chimney into my fireplace!” 

I nod with a quiet “mhm,” glancing at my phone hidden under the bar. 3:15 pm. I'm trying to look interested in this story I’ve heard a few times. The older gentleman talking to me forgets that he’s told me the majority of the tales he has in his arsenal. But I don’t want to cut him off; he seems lonely, and the least I can do is humor him. 

Hearing the door chime, followed by Josh making his entrance. 

“Welcome back,” I chuckle as he walks swiftly towards the bar. 

“I need to use the lavatory, and then I will be ready to rock ‘n roll or whatever kids say nowadays,” Josh mutters. 

You would think he’s nine hundred years old with how he talks sometimes, but it always keeps me on my toes. Watching as he disappears around the corner, I grab the older man’s glass and place it in the dirty bin. 

The door chime goes off again, causing my head to whip around. 

Oh, she’s here..?

As Charlotte slowly walks to the bar, I go to meet her at the opposite corner. I pull my phone out; she never replied? 

“I didn’t think I would see you today,” I start as she approaches. Leaning down to grab everything I had been looking at, I stowed away when I couldn’t focus anymore. 

“I have been reading through all of these, and I think you’re gonna need to explain these to me like I’m five–” I stop. I hadn’t looked at her face the entire time, and her eyes were pink and looked a bit swollen. She’s not making eye contact at all, which seems odd compared to the other afternoon, where I thought if she held my gaze any longer, I would explode. Was she crying? I questioned myself. I hope I didn’t cause this. Was she supposed to be off today? Oh my god, what if I’m the only reason she’s working? 

Finally pulling myself out of my head, “Are you okay?” 

She takes a shallow breath before looking up at me, and I can see that her eyes are fighting the urge to let the tears fall. 

“Um,” she swallows, looking back down, “Yeah, I’m fine.” Her raspy voice is so quiet I can barely hear it. Her lip quivers as she stands there, and I can see the way her breathing is picking up. Oh no, oh no, oh no.  

I hear the door to the bathroom open. Turning around, I shoot Josh a look. He makes eye contact with me as I bounce my eyes to Charlotte and back to him. I watch as he glances at her quickly, his eyes widening as if to say, ‘Do what you need to.’

I come out from behind the bar, grabbing her bag from the barstool it sat on. 

“Come with me,” I whisper to her; she just nods in response. 

I gently place my hand on her back, guiding her down the hall to my office. Just long enough to round the corner into the small room, she lets out the tiniest whimper I’ve ever heard. I toss her bag onto the chair, facing her as she finally breaks down. Her hands fly up to hide her face as she lets out the most heartbreaking sound. One sob was enough for me; I pushed the door closed behind her and pulled her into me.  

“Oh, honey,” I let slip out, holding her small frame tight against me as she cried. I listen to her sobs against my chest as I run my hand down the back of her head, holding her close. I close my eyes to help focus my breathing; being in these situations never gets easier and I’ll never understand how I always end up in them. 

“Take a breath for me,” I said quietly, trying to stay calm for her. I can feel her take a deep breath and shakily release it. Her arms drop from her face, finding their way around my back. Grabbing at my shirt gently, like she’s afraid I'll let her go.  

“I’m right here. Take your time,” I whisper, pressing my lips gently to the top of her head, “You’re okay.” 

We spend a few minutes like this. I keep rubbing slow circles on her back, resting my face against the top of her head to keep her tucked in. 

“Do you want to talk about it?” I ask. I feel her shake her head ‘no’ before turning her face and leaning back against me, reaching up to push the hair out of her face. She lets out another shaky breath. 

“I‘m so sorry,” she mumbles into me. 

“Don’t apologize for having emotions.” 

I lean back to look at her, her breathing starts to feel more normal.

She looks tired.

I don’t know what comes over me when I reach up, holding either side of her face and gently wiping the tear stains on her cheeks away. 

Our eyes finally met; she really was beautiful— crying or not. 

Her gaze doesn’t falter, her green eyes locked on me. She almost makes me nervous, not in a mean or intimidating way, but like I shouldn’t be allowed to look at someone who looks like her.

“Do you want to um-” I hesitate, “go get something to eat? While we talk about things. Not like a d-”

Despite her watery eyes, she huffs out a laugh.

“Stop,” she says, “I know what you mean. Yes, let’s do that.”

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We walked into the restaurant, and considering it’s only 4 p.m., it’s not very busy. I let her pick where we sit, following behind as she chose. She had a soft smile on her face as she claimed the booth seat like she just won a prize.  

“Hi, can I please have a Boulevardier? ” Charlotte politely orders, my eyebrows raised at her choice. 

“Actually, I’ll take the same thing,” I tell them, “Thank you.” 

Charlotte pulled out the paperwork, flipping through it to see what I had left. Watching her green eyes flit across them, setting aside anything that needs more attention. The way that she chews the inside of her lip while she’s reading is endearing. 

“Okay, so you haven’t missed too many things.” She tells me. 

“Oh good,” I start picking at my lip, “I’m sorry, I just didn’t realize how much was involved.” 

“That’s alright, Jacob. It’s a lot, and nobody generally explains this part of business to you.” Normally, I would cringe at my full name being used, but I just want her to keep saying it. 

She pulled out one of the papers and turned it to face me. She pointed at the part I hadn’t filled out. 

“So essentially, this means–” She begins explaining. Her eye contact is intense while she talks, which makes it incredibly hard to focus. I feel myself slowly smiling as she’s telling me. I glance at her mouth quickly, making it even more challenging to pay attention. 

“What?” 

Damnit. I raised my eyebrows with a small ‘mmm’. 

“You looked like you wanted to say something?” She questions. 

 “Oh, I’m sorry– no, I was just listening.” There are a lot of things I could say.

“Oh– Well, anyway,” she shakes her head a little before continuing to explain. 

I really wish that I could tell you what she’s explained to me at this point, but to be completely honest, I have no clue. I’ve been far too distracted by the freckles on her nose and the way her eyes twinkle under these lights. I can’t get over the green of her eyes, with subtle gold flecks in them. Her hair is perfectly curled, and how the color of it stands out against her blazer.  She is unreal.

“Are you planning on doing that?” She asks, immediately pulling me out of my thoughts. 

“Yeah, absolutely.” 

“Great, Melody will really benefit from that,” she tells me. Benefit from what exactly?

“Do you need me to send you the information on that?” she quickly asks, grateful I’ll at least have context on what I’m agreeing to. 

“Please, if you could,” I say quietly as I rub my eyes.  

Our server stopped our conversation to take our order, giving me a second to try and refocus myself. She is trying to help you and isn’t being an asshole about it. The least you can do is pay attention to what she’s actually saying. Get it together.

“Okay anyway,” she starts again, “I think that’s everything?”  She sifts through the papers.

“Amazing,” I breathe out. “I’m sorry I made you come out here to help.” I sit back in my chair, my hands falling into my lap, where I quietly dig at the side of my thumb. 

“No, it’s okay, really,” she says, not making eye contact this time. “I was already in Portland, so it worked out.”

Her eyebrows pulled together as she told me, but I knew I shouldn’t ask. If she wanted to tell me what was wrong, she would. I’m not going to make her cry again.  

“Well, I’m glad I caught you at the right time then,” I say, offering a small smile. Her face softens a bit, and she leans forward, propping herself up. 

“So, how long ago did you buy the bar if it’s not even a year old?” 

“About two years ago, actually,” I tell her, “We took our time renovating it to feel right.” 

“We?” 

“All the boys helped me, but Josh really did the most with making it look the way it does.” I usually have no issue talking about the bar, but her being even vaguely interested has my brain stalling. 

“I love that. He did a good job curating,” she says, “Was the goal to be pirate-esque, or did it just end up that way?” 

I chuckle, “No, it was intentional. I’ve always enjoyed pirates, even as a kid, so I felt like it just made sense.”

“I think it’s nice that you made it your own. There are enough modern hipster bars in the area. It’s a refreshing thing to walk into.” 

Her compliment made my heart beat a little harder. I’m never one to assume, but she doesn’t strike me as someone who would hang out in a bar like mine. Granted, I guess I can’t really picture her hanging out in bars in general, but maybe that’s because I have always been a fan of the smaller, more dive bars. And I can confirm that I’ve never seen someone of her caliber in any of them. 

Once our food is brought out, I ask her about how she got into working for the state. We quietly chatted about some of the situations that she’d walked into, which unintentionally made me feel much better about my slip-up. But simultaneously, it made me realize how terrible men can be. I can’t imagine yelling at her regardless of what she told me. People are awful. 

The server brings over the check, and without hesitation, I slide my card into the little black folder and hand it back to them with a quiet, ‘Thank you.’  I bring my attention back over to her, her eyes a little wide but going back to normal as she continues telling me about another bar owner being a complete ass. 

I fill out the slip, leaving cash for the tip, before looking up at her.

“Ready?” I ask. She just nods a few times before sliding out of the booth. I wave my hand in front of me, “After you m’lady.” 

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“So, how far do you live from here?” I try to make some form of small talk on the way back to her car, avoiding the elephant in the room. 

“I live in Skowhegan, so it’s a little hike,” she tells me, looking around at the area’s architecture, “but my family has a house on Sebago Lake, so it’s not as bad when I have to come down here.” 

“Oh, I'm sure it’s peaceful over there.” I imagine how quiet that lake house must be this time of year. With minimal people vacationing or trying to fish on the lake, and it’s probably gorgeous in the mornings. 

“It really is,” she says, looking down at her feet for a second, “Do you live close?”

“I actually live above the bar,” I laugh every time I tell someone, “I know that probably seems ridiculous.” 

“Convenient, at least,” She giggles softly before looking at me with a smile. Oh, I’m gonna throw up. 

“It’s a blessing and a curse,” I tell her, “Blessing when you can just roll out of bed and run downstairs if you oversleep, but a curse when I find myself in there most days.. And nights.” Pointing at the crosswalk, nobody was coming; I placed my hand on the small of her back as I led her into the street, shit, carefully pulling my hand back as she stepped off the sidewalk. 

“You don’t get sick of being there?” 

“You would think so, but no. I love it, even if working with my brothers can be an absolute chore sometimes.” I tell her. 

She grabs my arm gently.

“I think that’s great, Jacob. It’s refreshing to hear someone love their job in this industry. It’s few and far between.” I glance over at her as she says it; my stomach has little knots forming as she squeezes my bicep a few times before pulling her hand back.  

She points to her car, parked just a short distance ahead of us. I see her pulling her keys from her bag as we approach it, unlocking the doors. I open her door for her, watching her face redden a little at the gesture. As she’s settling into her seat, I notice a brochure-looking paper in her passenger seat before realizing there’s a photo on the front. And a name. Oh my god, Charlotte. That’s why she was so upset. 

Setting her bag down in front of the pamphlet, she turned back to me with a soft smile, “How much should I send you for food?” 

“Don’t worry about it,” I tell her. 

“But, Jacob..” 

“It was my idea. I’m not going to make you pay for that.” Also, it’s the least I can do, especially now.

“Okay,” she sighs. “Well, thank you for the food and walking me back here. I’m pretty sure I would have gotten lost.” 

“Of course,” I tell her, “Drive safe.” 

I go to close her door for her, and I don’t know what possessed me when I hesitate, “Actually—” what are you doing? “Let me know when you make it home? Just since it’ll be a little later.” 

She nods subtly before saying, “Okay,” with a quiet laugh. 

I bite at my bottom lip as I smile at her, gently shutting her door for her. 

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“Now, where have you been?”

 I haven’t even made it fully behind the bar, and I’m already getting harassed.

“It’s nice to see you too, Linda,”  I laugh under my breath, “I had to take care of some paperwork, but I’m here now.” 

Raising an eyebrow, she looks from me to my right, where Josh stands with a shit-eating grin. Oh, fuck me. 

“And how was that paperwork, brother?” He says joyfully, emphasizing his skepticism with heavy air quotes. 

And, here we go. 

“The paperwork went well,”  I side-eye him, “Thank you for asking.”

I watched the two of them share a look before looking back at me, and all I offered was a shrug in response. 

“Why were you not in your office doing paperwork?” Linda questions as Eleanor joins her at the bar in their usual spots. 

“Who wasn’t in the office?” Eleanor chimes in. 

“Jake! He apparently went somewhere with someone to take care of paperwork,” Linda fills her in, like two school girls at lunch. 

Rubbing my hand across my face, I turn around to dry some glasses while I’m interrogated further. I should have known my being nice to her would have me questioned. 

“Well, that sounds like he went on a date,” Eleanor unknowingly agreeing with their past statements. Josh is the most enormous pain in my ass, I swear to god. 

“It wasn’t a date!” 

 Josh laughed, “That sounds like something someone who went on a secret date would say.” I feel my body warm the more they talk about my “date.” WHICH WASN’T A DATE. 

“Well, who paid?” Linda asks. 

“Uhh… I did,” I hesitated to answer. “But- it was my idea to go there, so I didn’t want to make her pay anything.” 

“Oh! You went with a girl?” Eleanor quietly questions.

“Yes, I needed help with some business stuff, and she was able to help me,” I tell her. “If she hadn’t come in so upset, I would have just been here the whole time.” 

The ladies look at each other and then back at me before Eleanor pipes back up, “So what you’re saying is, I just need to come in here crying to score a date with you?” 

A laugh falls out of me before I can even process what she’s said; at least someone has a sense of humor about all of this. 

“That’s very nice of you to take her to lunch to try and help cheer her up, sweetheart,” Linda tells me. I smile at her compliment before putting away some of the glasses I had been drying. I feel Josh’s presence before he says anything, just setting some dirty glasses in the bin below the counter. 

“Is she okay?” he whispers, leaning over to make sure nobody else heard. 

“I don’t know, honestly,” I tell him, knowing I sound a little panicked about it. 

“Did she say why she was upset?” 

I shake my head ‘no’ before leaning over, “I saw one of those printouts you get at funerals in her car, and she was wearing all black, so I’m assuming that she uh—” 

Josh covers his mouth and turns to look at me. If there’s one thing I know about my brother, it’s that he will absolutely empathize with anybody about anything. 

“Oh shit,” he murmurs under his breath. 

I can’t hide the look of concern on my face as we stare at each other for no more than a few seconds. 

“She’ll be alright. You probably just caught a wave of grief, is all.” Josh says, grabbing my arm and giving it a few squeezes. 

I let out a small breath. He’s right. She probably just hadn’t really let anything out, and I just asked the wrong question. 

“You’re right,” I whisper back, patting the back of his hand on my arm, “I’m sure she’ll be fine.”  But that isn’t going to stop me from worrying. 

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Business picked up shortly after that, with all the tables full and chatter loud. It kept me from my thoughts, which is probably for the best. I’m grateful that Linda and Eleanor came in tonight; they always keep me busy. 

I take small breaks from behind the bar to go check on the tables of people, collecting the empty glasses and bottles; sometimes, it’s nice to just mindlessly clean up. I spend a few minutes making small talk with some of the regulars, noticing the time as one of their phones lights up. 

11:30 p.m. already? Where did the night go?  I leave the table with a slight wave and head back to the bar to leave the dirty glasses. Setting them all on the back counter, I can tell Josh is caught up in whatever the ladies are telling him. 

Rounding the corner into the hall, I quickly lock myself away in the bathroom. Pulling my phone out immediately, relief washes over me when I see her name sitting in my notifications. Thank god. 

Charlotte: I made it home. Thank you again 

Jake: I’m happy to hear that and of course

Jake: I hope everythings okay.

Sliding my phone back into my pocket, I head back into the bar. She’s home, at least there’s that. 

“You can go if you want. I can handle the rest of the night,” I tell Josh quietly. He’s been here all day, and I definitely didn’t intend for him to cover the bar for that long. 

“Are you sure?” 

“Please, go get some sleep or call Quinn. Just get out of here while you can.” 

He hands me the towel he was using and mouths ‘thank you’ as he slides by me; I really can’t blame him for being excited to go to bed. It’s been a long day. 

The rest of the night seemingly flew by. A fair number of people, including Linda and Eleanor, left by 1 am, which meant I had to clock into my true Customer Service self for the last hour of the night. But it’s always nice when people start to trickle out early so that I can start cleaning up to close and make my life a little easier. 

I’m leaning against the back counter talking to the last few customers, and I can’t help but let my mind wander. What if she’s still upset? There’s nothing I can do to help that situation, and that’s okay. Maybe she just needs a friend right now. I could do that?  Or maybe she’s already told her friends, and Josh was right. Was she just having a moment? Oh god, what if she has a boyf- 

My phone vibrates, pulling my attention away from my internal spiral.  1:57 a.m. Thank god.

Charlotte: It will be, i’m sorry that you had to witness that.

Jake: don’t apologize, i’m glad i was able to help..i hope?

Charlotte: It did help, truly. 

That makes my heart feel a little weird. Don’t get ahead of yourself. 

Jake: well.. if you need anything, let me know? 

I set my phone down underneath the bar and started printing the tabs for the last customers who were sitting. I went through the motions as I put the papers out front of each of them with a pen. I watch as they sign on the line, possibly leaving a tip; either way, I’m not bothered. Leaving with a friendly ‘Have a good one,’ I follow behind them, locking the doors and shutting off the neon lights. Happy to know that I have hardly anything left to do. 

The brisk air hits me as I lock the back door, and I practically run up the stairs. Opening the door, it’s quiet. He must be asleep then. I carefully walk through the apartment, cracking his door open to see him tucked away in bed. 

“Goodnight, Josh,” I whisper, pulling his door shut gently. 

I shut my door as softly as I could, immediately pulled my flannel off, and tossed it on the end of my bed. Followed by my jeans before I grab my phone from my nightstand. 2:34 a.m. I open my messages to see her name sitting there with the blue, unread messages dot glowing back at me. 

Charlotte: I may take you up on that.

Why is she still awake? It’s so late. 

Jake: I hope you do

Be more obvious, Jake, come on.. 

Jake: Also why are you still up? lol

It changes from ‘delivered’ to ‘read’ almost instantly. I watch the typing bubbles pop up, making my stomach turn. 

Charlotte: I just haven’t been tired enough to sleep, but I think I’m getting there.

Jake: After everything, I figured you’d be exhausted

Charlotte: You would think lol 

Dropping my phone next to me. I rub my hands down my face. Trying to get the look on her face just before she cried out of my mind. ‘I’m so sorry’ in her sad little voice, playing on a loop. The sounds of her sobs against my chest, her shaking in my arms. I almost wish that I didn’t know why she was upset now. 

Jake: well don’t let me keep you up

This time, my message sat on delivered for a few minutes. I did my daily scroll on mindless apps and looked at the few new photos people had tagged the bar in before she replied. 

Charlotte: You’re not a bother at all, but I should probably try to sleep before it gets too much later.

Charlotte: Goodnight Jacob

My mind ran through all the ways that I could reply. How I’d love to tell her that I’m sorry for her loss and that I hope everything gets better. Even that, I had a lovely time talking to someone outside of my family and their partners for more than a few minutes as I served them a beer. It felt like we could be friends even, with the way she didn’t seem phased by any of the vaguely nerdy things I said. Unfortunately, my hands settled on something more straightforward, and I quickly hit ‘send.’

Jake: sleep well, Charlotte 

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Chapter Four

Chapter Six

FDOG Masterpost | Masterlist | FDOG Playlist

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[local-hellhound-steals-spaghetti]

This is an embarassingly bad paper based on the use of two aversive based dog trainers who are clearly incompetant in the use of +R - yet the e collar training community is taking a victory lap.

The fact that this got past an animal ethics review is honestly appalling and the university should be ashamed.

Let's go over the main huge flaws with this study:

The positive reinforcement protocol they are using to compare to e collars is laughably incompetant - with no management or use of distance, desensitisation. Just use a leash? Maybe?

Use of aversives to stop chasing is, unsurprisingly, effective. Because, yes, painful consequences tend to work to suppress behaviour. That isn't the problem that people have with e collars.

The author seems to think that use of e collars is justified because it "gets results" in a short amount of time to stop dogs chasing - again, apparently we haven't heard of a leash.

"Aside from presumably pain-induced yelps in the dogs with e-collars when they received shocks, none of the dogs in any groups showed any signs of stress or distress." So we're saying a pain vocalisation isn't a sign of distress? That's your welfare parameter? Jfc.

Love how they didn't even try to get fecal cortisol baselines and just collected samples from a few dogs but not all of them. You tried, I guess?

The fact that the trainers for the study is "Ivan and Ivan's Student" is ridiculously biased. Acting as if both these trainers know how to apply +R effectively as opposed to their heavy aversive tool use is laughable.

"We designed our study’s methods around current trainer practices as well as the recommendations of our senior trainer while attempting to keep continencies as simple as possible." - yeeeah that's a conflict of interest. Especially when your "senior trainer" has an axe to grind with R+ people using scientific papers to support their training methods.

You're chucking treats in a bowl after a few sessions and you think that's going to stop a dog chasing a lure? Oh yeah, you got us. We just throw kibble in a bowl to stop dogs running into traffic. I am genuinely floored that that's how they think a +R protocol for chasing works. They have no business comparing the two when they can't even do one properly.

"We also did not test whether the food rewards we deployed were highly valued." Okay so the majority of my client dogs will go nuts for my meaty high value treats because they've only had store bought dry treats and the client is shocked at how food motivated their dog suddenly is..... So this study was relying on whatever the guardian of the dog brought with them lmao rookie mistake.

"Dogs that chase livestock may be shot or otherwise euthanized, and dogs that chase cars may be killed in traffic." Put. Them. On. A. Leash.

"The practical applicability of either the LIMA or LIFE models is likely limited, at least in the United States where dog trainers are not required to be licensed or certified. In a sample of highly rated dog trainers, more than half did not document any relevant education." Does that include your "senior trainer"? It does. Because he doesn't have any formal education in canine behaviour, welfare and science. You know this. You chose him to be your trainer for your study.

"The speed and effectiveness with which the e-collar inhibited the dogs in this study from chasing may justify the limited number of painful stimulations the dogs experienced if the object the dogs were chasing had been something that could directly or indirectly cause them serious injury or death." Or..... OR.... you could not use electric shocks on your dog and potential cause long term damage, fear responses ect.... And use a leash.

Just baffled by this whole study. My high prey drive whippet will go feral for a lure but only when she knows the context for when she's being allowed to chase. She can be at a lure coursing trial for the whole day not worrying about the lure because 1) I keep her at a distance where the stimulus isn't saliant enough and 2) she gets reinforcement for calmly watching from a distance.

I'm honestly getting second hand embarassment reading this study. It's just such bad science should never have gotten past an ethics board.

[angelkitty54]

So I recently learned about that apparently, the Princess Sally miniseries was requested by Sega coz they were interested in making a game starring her at the time!? WE COULD HAVE HAD A SALLY GAME!!!???

Apparently, half the point of the series was to draw more girls into the Sonic fandom. Which, yeah no... The writers there clearly don't understand girls in general, given the disappointment we ended up with there...

Sigh, now I can't stop thinking about what a game starring Sally might have been like. At least, if I was making it, that is ;P

Hmm, thinking about Gameplay:

Lets assume we're in the mid 90s still, so we're looking at a speedy 2D side-scrolling platformer like the other games in the Sonic franchise at the time

Potentially Sally could have learned to spindash like Tails has, but since she can't fly, you instead navigate the various obstacles in each level with a series of acrobatic flips and jumps

Thinking it would play like big double jumps, and/or triple jumps, and wall kicks

Whether or not Sally can spindash, I think her basic attack would be a kick and maybe also a stomp attack (them boots are made for more than just walking!)

At the end of each level there is the classic boss fight, but instead of the capsule full of little animals to set free, you're rescuing captured mobians (or whatever Sega wants to call the animal people of the Sonic world)

Sally is the only playable character, with others appearing on screen largely as part of cutscenes

Potentially, collecting the chaos emeralds and letting Sally go Super could also be part of the game? Just saying it would be pretty cool :)

Now for the basic Plot and Setting:

Supposedly, Sega rejected a couple of pitches for the miniseries before accepting a pitch based on the idea of Sally recruiting new Freedom Fighters, so let's assume this is what they went with more or less as the plot of the game

How about we also lean into some Satam elements for the setting, the various levels mostly being places from the cartoon

Like the other games in the Sonic franchise at this time, the story is largely told through visuals without much in the way of cutscenes, with maybe a few for brief moments of dialogue here and there

Am thinking that Robotnik is away somewhere, thoroughly distracted by Sonic showing up to absolutely wreck his shit, so the main villain Sally's fighting here is Snively who was left in charge

Which also explains why Sally is going solo here, as the rest of the Freedom Fighters are currently busy with their own missions

Let's look into the Story some more:

We start with Sally going on patrol in the Great Forest, ending the level with her encountering the rather suspicious Geoffrey St John

Just then Nicole intercepts a signal, informing them of a large group of mobains having been captured and currently being transported to Robotropolis to be robotisized!

Sally reluctantly agrees to team up with Geoffrey on a impromptu rescue mission

The pair split up upon reaching Robotropolis, Sally making her way through the streets rescuing more captive mobians, wherein she begins recruiting volunteers to help her infiltrate Robotnik's prison

While rescuing the remaining mobains, the group successfully destroys one of Robotnik's factories, Sally having now recruited all four characters seen in the comic

Afterwards Geoffrey (who keeps mysteriously disappearing) informs them that Robotnik is working on a secret weapon in a hidden facility and they need to destroy it before it's completed

After successfully infiltrating the facility, Geoffrey shows his true colours as a double agent (shocking, I know), tricking Sally into a trap where she is then promptly handing over to Snively

He reveals that Robotnik has created a robotic Sally. Unlike the robot clone plot from the comic, this robot is more like how Metal Sonic is, having been created to serve as a general for Robotnik's armies, weaponizing Sally's brilliant analytical mind against them

All they need to complete it is to copy the real Sally's mind and bio-data, which Snively does post-haste intending to also robotisize her immediately afterwards

Fortunately, Sally never fully trusted Geoffrey and entrusted Nicole to her new friends before she was captured, allowing them to break her out just in the nick of time

Unfortunately, Robo-Sally was still completed and activated, so while the others fight off Geoffrey and Snively, Sally confronts her robot double, the final boss of the game

Sally emerges triumphant, meanwhile Geoffrey betrays Snively saying that he only pretended to be the bad guy to get him to reveal the heavily guarded secret weapon so he could sabotage it, or so he claims...

Geoffrey's subordinates then arrive, revealing that they've successfully sabotaged the facility which is about to blow up, Snively manages to escape in the subsequent chaos

Sally is wholly unimpressed by Geoffrey, as he not only endangered her own life, he also nearly caused an incredibly dangerous robot to be let loose upon the world!

Though still not able to fully trusting him, the two groups part ways as tentative allies, Sally admitting that they need all the help they can get in the war against Robotnik, that and she would rather have more allies than enemies...

The final cutscene shows Sally returning home triumphantly and officially welcoming her new friends into the Freedom Fighters!

A potential bonus ending shows Robo-Sally having survived the explosion, setting her up as an ongoing antagonist and nemesis for Sally to fight!

And that's all I got so far! Man, now I kinda wish I new more about making games. Or at least new people that did, coz I kinda wanna play a game like this now!

[partyanimal167]

Hi! I heard you wanted ideas to write for Law!

I have one! Terribly specific hope thats ok!

How about something along the line of a extreme fluff ? Like Reader helps to nurse the crew back to health after loosing the ship and perhaps during a separation moment ( reader stays behind to fight the marines or something? Up to you!) And then at some point the following exchange happens:

Reader: " its not goodbye, I still want to see the submarine again! "

Law, being carried away by Bepo: " I ... I will find you! I will get you back!"

Reader:" I will be back, for as long as you want me to!"

Maybe a few tears here and there?

Thanks! Hope this helps!

Hi! I appreciate your request. I'm not the best at fluffly moments, but I will try my best. Thank you so much for the details. I'll see what I can do~

See You Later- Law x GN!Reader

CW: fluff, soft moments, comfort, non-graphic action

I'lll be right back okay! Just keep going ahead!

Law would say he was confident in his ability to keep adapting as situations called for it. You have to be when dealing with the Strawhats, of course. However losing your ship, getting ambushed by Marines, and knowing your lover is fighting can cloud one's mind.

It really wasn't supposed to go this way. In a rare spur of luck, the Marines were able to track down the Polar Tang when the crew needed to restock, and the news didn't travel fast enough. Law made the ambitious call to the guys on watch to go out to sea while the rest would wait it out and call for escape when appropriate.

Everyone had been running around with their respective mini groups trying to hide in the shadows and find ways to not draw attention. Things were going well for the first two days, but then more naval reinforcements came. The group was meeting in an abandoned warehouse when the ambush occured.

You wiped a bit of blood from the corner of your lip before putting up your fists again. You scanned the building again--ready for more opponents.

"Captain! I think we're safe for now." Bepo announced aloud.

The group seemed to collectively let out a breath as they saw either knocked out soldiers on the ground or a few retreat in a haste.

Law sheathed his sword. "We need to be cautious. There's no telling when-," the man then sunk onto a knee before going into a coughing fit.

You looked over at him before gasping at the sight of blood on his shirt. "Law, your wound is reopening. We need to get you back to the ship."

Though a knowledgeable doctor, Law was still a stubborn man. He wouldn't leave without being certain that everything would be okay. "I'm fine. We just need to find a new place to hide, and-"

"There's no need to find a place to hide. We need to escape before more Marines come. We're near their base. We'll be safer at sea." you argued.

"But there's no way we're all going to make it out right now. There's too many of us." Law groaned. There was a more reasonable solution, but he wasn't going to consider it.

You, however, weren't going to allow things to drag on. You shook your head. "Some of us can stay while you go on ahead. There's enough of us to hold off our enemies while the others escape to safety."

"I'm not leaving you. As captain, I"

"As a nonmember of the Heart Pirates, I do not care what their captain has to say." you rebutted sternly. It had been one of the things you two talked about in the past. There was always the possibility of a conflict of interest with you onboard. With your life as a outlaw before joining, you knew what to expect. Yet, you couldn't let go of all your freedoms. You didn't really need a reason to bring it up before, but Law needed a reminder. You were not an underling who needed protecting. Moreso, you were looking out even for his greater good.

"Bepo," you stated while giving a strong look.

He seemed to understand what you meant and saluted. "Aye!" he paused and looked at Law, "Sorry Captain!" Law was thrown over the shoulder of his friend which shocked him before arguing.

"Wait! No! Y/n, I'm not leaving you. I'll-," Bepo started running away while a few other members followed.

You smiled gently and waved. "This isn't goodbye at all. I'll see the Tang again."

"I... I will find you! I will get you back! All of you!"

"I'll be back, for as long as you want me to!" You beamed before running out the warehouse in the opposite direction along with Shachi and the others. "Let's keep Law and the crew safe for now."

~~~

You quietly hummed a tune while wringing out a towel. You dampened it fresh hot water before placing it on your patient's forehead.

"...I'm still mad at you."

You chuckled. "I'm sure you are." you continued to redress Law's bandages. "Too bad though, I get to play nurse."

"You shouldn't have done something so reckless."

"I think you forget which one of us had a bigger bounty when we met." you teased.

"I can't lose you." you paused after hearing that confession.

It had been a stressful couple days for Law after separating from you. His group was able to get back on the Tang, but by the time they tried to reach for you, your lot was already engaged in another battle. It took awhile and periods of no communication before it was safe for you to steal a boat and meet the crew out at sea. Law was quick to get the submarine to surface and you all onboard. You were safe with minimal injuries, but it seems you underestimated how much Law worried.

You caressed his cheek and smiled. "That stress is going to put you in a grave before any battle will." you paused and sighed. "You can't get rid of me so easily, Law."

The man scoffed before closing his eyes and enjoying your touch. "You're too stubborn to give up." he joked weakly.

You chuckled, "Precisely why you love me." You then kissed his cheek. "I love you too. I won't let anything go between us."

~~~

Thank you for requesting! I liked how this turned out--simple and sweet. Please share your thoughts. I appreciate you reading this