#i remembered i do in fact live in a city that even has a nerd shop (ok we have multiple) and if i want manga i can buy it irl

[perilegs]

i got my loyalty card for this one nerd store chain full some time ago so i decided to see if their local shop had anything of interest to me and there was this BL (sanctify) with an excorcist and some murders and i got it bc it looked interesting and i wanted to go through the pages real quick and it has two slightly-larger-than-a-standard-postcard sized cards in it of the main characters and they're so pretty....

[mommy-moth]

NEW AU ALERT!!

As a huge history/Disney fan, I found it to be my sworn duty to build an AU off of a Disney movie, and what better movie than ATLANTIS: THE LOST EMPIRE! (I am a HUGE nerd for this movie) Summary: Our main engineer and linguistics nerd, Shadow Primavera, has been searching for the Shepard's Journal since he can remember. Upon a recent discovery, he may have finally found where it resides, only problem is that no one believes in his hunt for Atlantis and therefore he can't find the funding. Upon his failure to see the museum council, he slums home where he encounters a strange bat woman who was there to deliver him to her boss, an old friend of Shadow's late grandmother, who just so happens to have acquired the journal. Shadow is sent on a journey with the finest crew, everyone in search for the lost city, especially the reward money that follows. Problems arrive on the way, even losing a handful of good soldiers. but they finally make it to the beautiful city that has been hidden away for thousands of years. Will everything goes as planned? Will Shadow finally see what he's been searching for? Or will we see the true nature of mobians and just how far they're willing to go.

Find out the truth in my brand new book "The Lost Civilization" , Chapter 1 scheduled to come out soon.

Down below are going to be the general ideas behind two of our more important characters, Sonic, the main love interest, and his sister, the heir to the Atlantis throne.

Sonic: This daredevil warrior is constantly on his toes, always awaiting the day that he'll finally get to show off the fighting styles he's been working on. He's never been one for friends, always sticking close to Sonia and Manic and hardly ever speaking to another unless told to do so. This warrior is anything but carefree, constantly worrying of the future of their people and the health of his mother, the queen.

Sonia: This princess always lives life by her own accord, never being one to follow too many rules which unfortunately falls back onto Sonic. This charming woman is able to talk her way through any situation, even if her temper does tend to take over sometimes. Don't be fooled by the fact her brother is always the one jumping in to protect her, this not so little lady knows how to fight. Sonia is closest to the queen in terms of ruling which allows her to adorn herself in beautiful jewelry and plenty of markings, showing off her royal status.

Sonia drawn by me.

Sonic drawn by my friend @taylanix

These two are a daring pair who are ready to take on any newcomers, or even foul play, that turns up in their city.

More info and refs planned to come out some time soon.

This is the edit @taylanix made for the au and it will be the temp/permanent cover for when I post the book.

[astralartefact]

Placeholder Name for Atarase's Media Diary

Entry 008 - Pentiment <<Prev: Starfield:Shattered Space

Synopsis

The whimsy of a big-city artist makes a small south Bavarian township discover that maybe religion, politics and gender roles are kind of a big deal.

How much did I know before playing?

Not much, I've seen this game somewhere before and thought huh neat but then proceeded to completely forget it existed... until now

Did I like it more than I expected?

I literally played this on a whim so I did not have expectations; that being said it's pretty good.

And since we're talking about expectations while talking about an Obsidian game - I'm also one of the three people that has not played New Vegas. Please don't look at the previous entry in this diary. No, I don't want to talk about it.

Since I liked it, here's what I hated about it

Okay, this feels like an out-of-character thing for me to critique as an anti-history nerd who detests being made to remember arbitrary facts - which means I could very well be wrong on this - and ultimately I don't really care that much either and I think I even can make sense of it in a gigabrain kind of way, but. As someone who lives relatively close to where this game is set this just occupied a little space in my brain while playing this:

The architecture design of this game doesn't seem right at all.

I don't have some bullet-proof argument to make, after all there aren't all that many villages around that preserved all details of their structures from way back in the 1500s, but it just didn't feel right that I didn't recognize the architecture of this game at all when I live pretty close to where this game is set - and that's especially confusing in a game that clearly is very invested in historical accuracy (the game literally cites their bibliography at the end of the credits). I don't know, it's just something about the texturelessness of the white infills, the timber framing feels too narrow and too clean, the color and texture of stone surfaces doesn't look right even if it maybe is actually accurate, same with the very geometric, big shapes structure of the cloister.

I do think the latter actually makes some sense looking at it from the perspective that *spoilers* the game builds heavily to the reveal that the history of the town is far more roman than the church likes to admit? The architecture style of the cloister seems very roman and the architecture of the town houses (but notably not their arrangement) reminds me more of mock-ups I've seen of roman castrum towns around the Limes (which would be close enough to where the game is set) than of old pictures of historic german buildings i've seen - so I guess that could all be intended as a little hint towards keen-eyed players.

But even looking at it that way what's in the game just reminds me more of what houses look like in generic Medieval Fantasy Animes than anything else and that made it feel a little bit less like "this is literally right here somewhere in Bavaria." Like, I can look at a house in Manor Lords and say "Yup, I've seen an old barn like that around here somewhere" and I didn't really do that for any of the architecture in this game.

It's also a bit of a headscratcher for me given how historically accurate the game presents itself. Like, they go out of their way to have an "period accurate walking cycle" but they couldn't look up a couple of old buildings? And now we have several articles commending the game for its dedicated historical accuracy... but I guess that's a journalism problem

Another thing I didn't really like is that the contents of the Third Act Mural didn't have any narrative impact at all, I played the entire third act going like "okay, i have to be at least a little bit pro-church or else the inquisitors are going to fckin kill us with those guns they've threatened me with" and yet turns out? didn't matter at all lol, what does matter is that i talked to a pagan a little bit too long, that made him do that to other people too which in turn got him killed. turns out i'm an enabler ._.

Also for those murals in particular, while I liked that you basically choose them post-mortem I didn't like that they only really explain the implications of your choice after you made it, especially since the character that asks you what you chose immediately berates you with every textbook nuance you probably didn't think about. If you want me to learn that stuff you should probably tell me before, now I just feel stupid even if I thought of some of those nuances.

also "Mags" doesn't really make sense as a nickname for the german pronounciation of Magdalene (ma as in mama) and I'm kind of mad the german localization kept it unchanged

What did this game make me think about?

Gender Roles. Classic. Oldie but Goldie as they say.

Specific Impressions that will stick with me

The font typing of the dialogue is so cool. Like, the typos are randomized to some degree which means it's built in to the code of the text animation?? That's so cool. (ngl though, i think the typos happen way too often)

And using the font to tell something about the social standing of the speaker and then, every once in a while when talking to a character for the second time they show the change of their font when the player character realizes their first impression doesn't actually align with the person they're talking to only to then use it with the dramatic purple font at the end gaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhh so cool so so so so so cool

Outstanding Audio

The music swelling in dramatic moments was really well done.

Favorite Character

Okay, guys, this is embarassing to admit but... I really liked the doctor guy, something about him is kind of hot... That has never really been my type of character, I think mean characters are most of all annoying, but... I think I get it now.

I know I can fix him. because i did

Favorite Arc/Story Line

Looking at how interconnected the 3 arcs are it's kind of hard to pick one, but I think the first arc was my favorite, the other two felt a little bit more restrictive in a way I didn't love.

I did like Mags a lot more than Andreas though...

Favorite Set Piece

I really liked the eating scenes and the story book scenes, especially the one with Sebhat.

Favorite Scene

I already mentioned some (I will think about the purple font change for a while...) but also the reveal in Act 3, you always know something's up when your character leaves, but the camera view doesn't fade away...

German Localization Notes

This is my moment. This is somehow exactly what I made this section for and I didn't even know.

I'm pretty confident in saying that if you can speak German playing this game in German will make the experience of playing this game several times better. Not in an "the English version sucks" way, in a "it just makes sense" way.

There were several points in the game where I had to remind myself that this game wasn't made by a German indie dev or something because it just all fits together really well. The English writers did their research (well, except for the architecture) and the Localization managed to make it feel like this is exactly how it was meant to be played. I feel bad that I don't really have anything specific to point to - but in my defense maybe that's just a sign of how natural the dialogue felt to me. There was nothing "noteworthy" sticking out for me to analyze. It all just felt right.

And combining that with the setting? Crazy. I'm glad I played this game just for the German of it all.

It makes me wonder if it's easier or harder to localize a game that "should" be set in the language your translating it into. I can imagine a bit of both, I think while it's easier to know how it "should" sound, how the characters "should" speak - that same thing also goes for the audience. Whatever the case may be - the German Localization knocked it out of the park with this one...

except for mags why did you keep that!?!?!?

--- ENTERING THE PRETENTIOUS SECTION OF THIS ENTRY ---

What about this game gives me Hope for the future of gaming?

If you're ever feeling down on the industry, this is one of those games that makes you a little bit more confident in the future of gaming "as an art form". You don't need unlimited funds to make an interesting and insightful game, you just need means of production (not in a communist way... but also not not in a communist way), good planning and something to say.

What about this game makes me scared for the future of gaming?

Listen, I don't care all that much about the fact they got the architecture wrong, even now I would at most bring that up as a little fun fact in a conversation about it. The only reason I'm kind of cheesed off about it is that when I went to look it up everyone went wild about the stupid walking cycle as the pinnacle of accuracy when they got something so relatively fundamental wrong, especially when the framing of the story is particularly focused on the history of the Romans in southern Bavaria. When the big thing the game wants to tell you is about how the past, present and future connect. When it wants to impart how actively learning from the past will ultimately help you to presently commit better things to the future.

Like yeah, in that context it would have been nice if you could have looked up a German building from the 1500s or the structure of a Roman castrum town - which you should probably have stumbled over during your research. Also, that sort of town structure would have been perfect for a hidden in plain sight reveal. Who cares that there was absolutely not a single way one of those towns would have survived into the 1500s - that's something to break with historical accuracy for! also p sure the town layout doesn't make sense anyways

So it's kind of weird that you're sub-textually lecturing me about how important learning, knowing and growing from our history is while in context talking about roman architecture where ...you didn't really do the things you're talking about, at least not holistically. Like... do you know what you're talking about? I think so, but... bad mistake to make if you want to prove that.

But hey, at least there are some Hyperspecific Lore Details that we can parade around, that's all we need to commend the entire game for its outstanding accuracy, because what's Understanding but learning arbitrary history facts.

Also, just for whoever needs to read it: No, none of this broke my suspension of disbelief because I'm a big boy who knows stories aren't real.

The Ramble Section where I get to actually talk about what I thought about

Marriage is really one of those things, huh. Just a constant that most of our civilization has only now considered might not be all that necessary - or let's call it sacred - but it's still everywhere. The three things family members that don't actually really know what you're about will talk about is the food, your work and then your love life. The food is lacking something... anyways how much money do you make and when can I expect children? Those are the constants. We all eat, We all work, We all procreate. Right?

Right.

I guess next time your weird uncle asks you to "hide your girlfriend" when he's announcing himself before entering the room - a lot of assumptions he never really thought about in a sentence he feels really adamant about saying - let's all take a moment to remember that that's an enduring piece of living history from all the way back in the 1500s and prior.

[alabyte]

3, 5, 27, 29, 47 for TBB ask game? 👀

I was going to do it yesterday but I forgor 💀

Thank you for the ask fren!!

3. Which Batcher would you want to be your BFF (not SO)?

Objectively speaking, probably Tech. I'm quite socially anxious and can often misunderstand contexts (my rejection sensitivity could never) and someone's intentions, so fundamental straightforwardness and explaining seemingly obvious things is literally essential when communicating with me. And I think we would have something to talk about - since childhood, my areas of interest have been space and zoology, and now my specialty is mainly biology in general and linguistics. Nerd to nerd communication!

5. Which Batcher would you take camping with you?

Without hesitation - Wrecker. Listen, I am a home person and am not suited to being in the wild in any way. Not only will I not be able to pitch a tent and start a fire, but I will be generally stressed out that everything is not going as it says in the Camping Guide For Dummies™, and I need someone to ground me in these moments. Wrecker is as simple as three cents in the most positive meaning of this phrase, he will just put his huge hand on your shoulder, say «nahhh, it's fine» and will not let you freak out over stuff. Wrecker is a sweetheart, I'm sure camping with him would be fun!

27. Tell me a random headcanon you have about Tech

Not really mine, this headcanon was mostly created by @heksahela , but I love it with all my heart. Tech has one particular special screwdriver that he always has with him. It is literally his most valuable and his most versatile tool. Repairs? Screwdriver. Need to open something? Screwdriver. Fight? SCREWDRIVER. If you argued with him and saw a screwdriver in his hands, this clone chose violence and is a threat, you can start running.

29. Tell me a random headcanon you have about Crosshair

Speaking about the screwdriver - guess who tested his brother's patience more often than others? Crosshair has a puncture scar on his left hand, which is exactly the mark from being hit with a screwdriver during a fight with Tech. This fight happened back when they were cadets, but if you think they stopped fighting later, think again.

47. Tell me an angsty headcanon you have about Crosshair

In clones, memory works a little differently than in natborns. They spent their whole lives side by side with their brothers, learned their habits, distinctive features and details, and among the 99s this differed little, even if their faces were not the same. Their memory relies heavily on everyday details, which create a cohesive image in their minds that is impossible to forget.

After some time in the Empire, after the destruction of Tipoca City, Crosshair finds himself slowly beginning to forget. At first, unimportant little details about the brothers' habits were erased from his memory when he could not remember on which side of the bunk Wrecker usually left Lula or in which mug Echo poured his caf. Then - the details of the appearance, when he realized that he did not remember where the one of the paint lines was located on Hunter's armor. Crosshair finds himself thinking that he can barely remember the intonation and voice in which Tech told yet another useless fact on the mission.

He's forgetting — slowly but inevitably. And he can't do anything about it.

[uh-velkommen]

Ever since Riot Fest was announced with Fall Out Boy headlining a show in their own home city, I made it a personal "big deal" to have to see this show. I thought since I love Fall Out Boy so much, seeing them perform on the very soil that I had been living on for a few months-- a move inspired by them, would be the biggest most special performance to date. And after having my first festival experience and my second live viewing of the band (this time close enough to the stage to feel the heat from the pyrotechnics), I found that the show just made me very sad. Hearing Patrick talk about missing his home and singing songs dedicated to the very city we stood in, made me realize just how badly I had been missing my own city. I listened to the way they talked about their love for Chicago and questioned why I couldn't feel the same way or at least when would I start to understand it. I won't deny that the city is beautiful and when I hear people's stories about how magical the city is, I can understand it on a surface level. But in my own experience, this city had been a nightmare and I guess my desire to go back home is backed by the assumption that life would be easier in Philadelphia. For the past couple of months I had been in the passive depressed/dissociated state because being here has done nothing good for me so far. Every now and then I'd critisized something stupid like the distance to the nearest yogurt shop or think "I wish I could go to Wawa" followed by "I hate this city" unaware that negative affirmations are still affirmations. Over time I had been adding more water to a boiling pot and not noticing that it had been spilling. Until yesterday.

And upon this realization, that being here and seeing my all time favorite band express love for a city I can't wait to leave, I thought maybe I should turn to a friend. Until I remembered that in a city so big, everyone become even more alone. I've made no friends here. I left no friends back in Philadelphia and the only people who would probably revel in the same joy as me from going to a festival like this are all back in Sweden. And despite having spent six hours in a hot sweaty crowd full of people who love Fall Out Boy as much as I do, I still felt so out of place. The one brown crayon in a white coloring box. Too weird, too east coast, too genderless. Living in this city has made me confront just how different I've always been because the monolith here is so different from what I know.

Growing up, Fall Out Boy was the only thing I had that made me feel seen. The band taught me that the world will always be harsh to those who are different but in the end we have each other. And if a group of music loving nerds managed to find love and family in their work, lives, and city, who's to say that it's impossible for me as well? And yet I am utterly devastated to conclude that being in this city, one that they've thanked for all it's given them and all it's opportunities, couldn't be that for me. It's in fact undone all that Fall Out Boy had taught me and a night that was supposed to be everything for me, left me in tears, feeling more alone than ever.

RE: My thoughts after seeing them live the first time

[ectoplasmer]

"How unreasonably in love I am with everything you do", "Because brick by brick you built us, and I'd fill in the cracks", and "I’ll keep the king, keep him safe at bay" for any F/O!

And I can relate to the writing paragraphs for these ask games thing, sometimes you just get Thoughts and gotta share em all lol

helloooo peyton!! thank you for the asks <3 I have a very bad habit to go on rambles that are like miles long during ask games because I just have waaaay too many thoughts about my f/os lol. But I’ll try to avoid that this time around!! I’ll be answering for my main boys because I am Clinically Unwell over all of them >_<

How unreasonably in love I am with everything you do: What is your favorite little known fact (headcanon or not) about your f/o? What is their favorite little known fact about you?

It’s mentioned a few times that the Ghouls made rare counterfeit cards, and they can be read by the Kaiba Corporation duel disks (as shown by Rishid’s duel with Jou in Battle City when he uses the fake Ra card). While this definitely ventures into headcanon territory and it’s more likely that the Ghouls made the cards themselves, I like thinking that Marik played a key role in designing them and getting them to work, and that he picked up an interest in technological things once he left the tomb his family resided in and such things became more accessible. I think he’d have fun going through the trial and error of getting things to work, considering how many things he can do and/or make with tech ^^ There are all sorts of books and shows that I want to experience, but whenever I actually get the chance to do as such (finding a place to watch said show or buying a hard copy of a book) it usually takes me forever to actually get around to it. My interests aren’t exactly “spontaneous” like Marik’s are, but they’re definitely a bit overly ambitious, and I think he’d relate to that.

It’s mentioned once in canon, but Ryou can cook!! And is actually pretty good at it. This is probably because of him living alone and having to take care of himself on his own, but I think it’s a sort of unexpected skill of him to have, considering his interests don’t seem to align with it all that much (*gestures towards his love for the occult and weird things, and him being an absolute nerd overall*). Him having such a domestic skill is just another little fact reinstating how much of a weird conundrum he is to me <3 Ryou knows that I love engaging in horror media with him, but he also understands that I have my boundaries and limits with it; I think one of his favorite things about me might be how the only times I have had to stop watching a horror movie was when it concerned the injury (or death) of animals. I am a wimp but I think he’s glad that I know what I can and can’t handle.

BAKURA CAN’T READ (hieratic) AND IT’S REALLY FUNNY TO ME AFSJDHD it’s implied (or blatantly stated?? I can’t remember) that Marik had to read the ancient chant out for him when he summoned the Winged Dragon of a Ra during his duel with Yami Marik, and this specific fact stands out to me because, just like with everything else he does, he still manages to find a way to get past this metaphorical boulder in his path to put his plan (or rather dueling strategy) into action. If I get worked up enough about something, or if I’m tired enough, I often start speaking out loud to myself to rationalize or organize my thoughts. Sometimes I’ll even get into little debates or discussions with myself during these times, so if Bakura is ever present he often throws in little questions or comments to get me even more involved with whatever ramble I’m going on about. It’s lowkey really endearing because it gives me a chance to get all my thoughts on something out of my head :)

And lastly but certainly not least, Melvin rebuilt Marik’s deck during the Battle City finals, and I think this is a fact that is often glossed over because it insinuates that Marik has a completely different dueling strategy compared to his darker half. This just further emphasizes my thoughts/suspicions that everything Melvin did during Battle City was to distance himself from and make himself independent of the “main personality”, even if it was done in really drastic ways (or, with just changing his deck, very minimal ways). I also just think it’s a neat little fact that highlights the differences between him and Marik. I tiptoe walk, but it’s not for any particular reason, just out of habit. Melvin thinks it’s “endearing” for… whatever reason >_< but whenever he catches me doing it he usually just presses a hand to my head to push me back onto the flats of my feet lol. I don’t think he likes whenever I try to be at his height >:3

Because brick by brick you built us, and I'd fill in the cracks: Do you think you've grown (confidence, self love, etc) in any way thanks to your f/o's influence?

In a way I think I’ve grown a bit when it comes to self love? But it’s in more of a backwards way… I haven’t ever been with any f/os for this long, let alone over a year, because usually I would’ve moved on to another interest. So considering how long I’ve been with my current f/os, and how much more personal my relationship with them feels… I almost want to say that I’ve learned to love myself more because I genuinely feel that they love me?? Something like that.

They’ve also helped me grow the scope of my interests, as I didn’t even give trading card games a second look before getting into YuGiOh. While I was already a fan of horror before becoming attached to Ryou and Bakura, I think they sort of expanded my interests from silly slashers into more serious psychological horror media and mystery oriented things. I’ve also definitely tried getting into a few RPGs because of them, but none of those have stuck so far ^^;

I’ll keep the king, keep him safe at bay...: Describe and gush about how it feels being held by your f/o.

MARIK IS SO WARM IT’S UPSETTING SGDKDGDJ his hugs are often really firm and enveloping but in a good way; being held by him ironically makes me feel like I can breathe at times when I can’t. Usually he just presses me right up against his chest so I can hear his heartbeat, which still gets me so flustered every single time. Sometimes he lets me trace the scars on his back… he’s literally just a weighted blanket lol <3 On the other hand, Melvin’s hugs are usually looser (unless one of us is upset/feeling down, in which his hugs are more firm like Marik’s), probably because he’s still a little worried about accidentally hurting me… despite this, I think being held by him is a bit more smothering compared to the others, but (again) in a good way. he’s also really warm sgdjdgd they’re both natural heaters

Ryou’s body is sort of lanky but it’s only really noticeable when Bakura is the one in control. They’re also much colder compared to Mariks, but usually after a while of being held by either of them they tend to warm up at least a little bit. Ryou’s hugs fluctuate between being loose and being secure. He usually smells like laundry detergent and his clothes are always really comfortable and often soft, so being held by him feels… homey, almost. Being held by him makes me feel safe and looked after and cared for <3 Bakura’s hugs are the only ones I can truly describe as tight, and I’d almost go as far to say that his are just as, if not more suffocating than Melvin’s. Surprisingly, I think he’s actually the clingiest of the four, so being held by him ranges from randomly getting hugged to actual cuddle sessions (in which he’s busy trying to figure out every possible way to get us tangled up together lol). Sometimes I wonder if he understands what personal space is, but then I remember how he looks when he nuzzles against me, or how his hands feel when they slide into mine, or how his hair sometimes brushes against my face when he’s holding me… and that sort of makes up for it <3

[tyrannosaurus-trainwreck]

I feel like Kerry was doing pretty well until he got swiftboated and then everybody pretty much fell for it?

But I mean, politics isn't a reality tv show. It's not supposed to be "exciting" or "dramatic" outside of acute crises. A big part of the current problem has been caused by the media's addiction to the political horse race--no matter how wildly unequal two candidates are, they're going to give the impression that they're neck and neck the whole way in order to drive viewer engagement.

You, as one of the poor bastards who's not a multimedia conglomerate and actually has to live with the outcome, do not want a presidential candidate who's a hot mess, or who thinks they're hosting a roast every time they get on camera. The two presidents in living memory who were very good at being entertaining--Trump and Reagan--were unmitigated human rights disasters with shit policies across the board.

You remember Trump's Muslim ban? The federal goon squads deployed to cities he didn't think were handling the police-brutality protests harshly enough? The medical gear and supplies that got distributed as a reward for state governors' loyalty during the worst of the pandemic? I mean, yeah, it made for some real crackerjack headlines, but it was fucking terrifying to live through. And that's if you did, in fact, live through it. Not everybody did.

Ideally you want a candidate who's a good, engaging public speaker and fairly charismatic, but podium-thumping demagogues and rabble-rousing activists tend not to be great at the long-term, consistent, broad-spectrum political work that most elected officials need to do. Even municipal-level politicians tend to have terms of at least 2 years, and even the ones who run on single issues still have to deal competently with a whole bunch of shit they don't personally care about all the time. They have to be able to stay focused and not burn out.

I don't even know if "take over the DNC, kids" is what will do it, since it seems like it takes about three years for leftists to turn on even the younger, more progressive and nominally "exciting" politicians like Ocasio-Cortez over the compromises made to keep the government functioning.

The kids most likely to wind up taking over the DNC are still going to be unsexy nerds more interested in diverting bloated police budgets to a slew of community initiatives, or reinstating building codes that kept unethical developers from building low-income housing on flood plains, or introducing data-driven benefits programs pegged to cost of living indices than in shaking their asses on social media, passing ideological purity tests, or giving barn-burner speeches.

They're occasionally going to have to vote for bills with shitty riders, have a shitty opinion, or endorse a shitty colleague. They're going to have to be at least palatable to a voting majority of their constituency, which means they're probably not going to be able to run on "defund the police" or "expand welfare access" or "fuck your real estate prices" at any level higher than the House, and even then only if it's a small and very liberal seat. The ones who wind up with a reasonable shot at the presidency are unlikely to be radicals or ideologues simply by virtue of needing to appeal to a majority of voters.

Like, I don't know what to tell you. The right can put up whatever clown they want so long as he solemnly swears to keep undermining the government's ability to rein in corporate malfeasance, and the superPAC money will come pouring in. They are actively trying to break anything they can't burn to the ground. There's no drawback for that guy to run around yelling "Cry harder, libs!" and being a bozo. The people he's aiming for actively want a dysfunctional government that harms its citizens through inaction, and the spectacle also serves to disengage people who don't want that but are also too terrified of socialized medicine, immigrants, and the poors to reliably vote blue.

Unless what you want is that, only the bozo is running around yelling "Nationalize your mom!", then there's a certain level of bland, workhorse dependability that you have to make peace with in a presidential candidate. So long as more than 35% of the electorate is afraid that you are, in fact, going to nationalize their mom, the Dems aren't putting up anyone without a known anti-mom-nationalizing platform.

Are their policies good? Will they work with your down-ticket radicals and reformers to move the country in the right direction, or at least stay out of the way? Do they have experts and cabinet members picked out who are going to run their agencies well? Will they get you closer to your goals than the guy whose last cabinet was primarily white supremacists? Will all that let you pressure your representatives and senators to work with progressive elements to get more progressive laws passed? Yeah? Okay, then.

We have lived through this before.

People said Gore wasn't good enough, that he was Bland and uninteresting and middle of the road and something had to change. So they voted third party or they didn't vote at all. And the Democratic party didn't wake up, and we got George W Bush and all the absolute hot garbage that came with him.

And they said Hillary Clinton was the wrong candidate, that she was middle of the road at best and conservative for the Democrats at worst, that she was entitled and they were going to vote for a third party or they didn't vote at all or worse yet, they voted for the other candidate as a joke because it's not like those votes change things, you know? And the Democratic party didn't magically wake up, they didn't majorly change, and we are still dealing with the fallout from that.

And that's not only twice in my lifetime, but twice in my voting lifetime. One of the important things you learn in therapy is that you cannot change other people, and you cannot set your expectations based on how you think they ought to react to certain things.

If you are refusing to vote, or voting third-party because of what you think it's going to make someone else do, please reconsider.

If you want to make the liberals or the centrists or whatever you want to call them wake up, you're going to need to do something that hasn't already been done twice in the last 20 years.

[mali-bee]

there was this time i was severely down bad for this person, that did not see me the same way

i think they wanted me, sexually at least, which was definitely reciprocated but i fell too hard, too fast, and i have never been the most healthy with relationships or even crushes really

they become too consuming and i remember we talked and they told me they didn't feel that way about me and i was genuinely so incredibly heartbroken for a really long time, that was incredibly difficult to get over

eventually, they wanted a relationship, they were having terrible luck on dating apps, i suggested one that i knew to work well for queer people, and now they're extremely happy with their current partner, and i am so, so happy for them both, i really only want happiness for them

but it still hurts a little bit sometimes

we'll call them N, and they're really very lovely

they're incredibly sweet and caring to those in their circle, and incredibly smart and witty, i had a hard time keeping up with them sometimes. they're a massive nerd, and they're really good with tech. they're funny and have such a lively, contagious energy, and they're gorgeous and they know it

i try my hardest not to think too often about N in this manner however, it never ends well

besides, N is now unequivocally my best friend, and without them, i don't know how i'd be right now, and that whole debacle really opened my eyes to... a lot of unhealthy facets of my being, quite a few of which N has either pointed out to me, helped me with, or both

they're one of my biggest supports, they're currently paying for my nintendo online subscription, they gave me their brita filter, a tv, they're helping me get my laptop in a few months

and i appreciate them so much, im incredibly glad they're in my life at all, but the fact that they're still so kind and caring, certainly doesn't help my feelings go away

i know it's not even remotely romantic on their end, but that's not what it is, it's more like knowing how caring they are to someone they do not like romantically, just makes it mean more to me, and just makes me admire them more

god, the very first week i met them, i needed a ride to the city and they gave it to me, no hesitation

and they weren't attracted to me either, at least at that time

i think that's something i struggle to comprehend too, people being nice to me and wanting me around, without wanting my body or something of that nature for me

it's a new experience for me

sorry for the weirdly personal rant, i heard a specific tyler, the creator lyric and it triggered old heartache

[thatlexplays]

Friday the 13th: Ranked

She's on Tumblr again? LONG POSTING? What is this, 2012?

Hi Tumblr. It's been a bit. But I decided it was the best place to talk unhinged shit that wouldn't make sense on other sites, so here we go again I guess. Last time I was here, I was straight. Now I'm uh...not.

ANYWAYS. Today's Friday the 13th, and it just so happens to also be OCTOBER (aka Halloween season). So y'know. Extra spooky.

I feel like there's only one REAL way to celebrate this day. To talk about the slasher of Camp Crystal Lake himself, Jason Vorhees.

I've had a fascination for horror movies since my edgy years from late 2009 through...honestly most of high school (I wore fingerless bike gloves to school every day--I didn't bike to school. I was CRINJ CITY). I remember watching the major slashers like Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street, one of my most cringe moments was making a YouTube video about the 2010 reboot of Nightmare on Elm Street and talking about how good it was (15 year old me, for the record, was an idiot).

I know for a fact that I remember watching the original Friday and Friday Part 2. But I'd never seen the other TEN films in the franchise. So earlier this year, I got together with a friend and over the course of a few weekends...

We watched every Friday the 13th film that currently exists (as of posting) and ranked them.

Our Rating System

This was our first time doing a ranking for horror, so we didn't come up with a fun system at the first go around, save for an exception.

For the purposes of consistency of our lists, we're going to use the following rating system: Actually Good. These are the movies that are actually genuinely good watches, with fun characters, good writing, and good sequences. These are the best of the best.

Fun Time 🎉. The movies in this category might not be amazing, but they are still a fun time and are still pretty good watches for the type of horror we're watching.

A Movie™️ . These movies range from almost fun to not boring or bad enough to be lower on the list. We'll explain these as we go.

Why? 🤷. There are movies that take things into confusing territories and make things more convoluted for one reason or another. If it makes us say "Why?" then it's here. No 🙅. These are the worst ones--reasoning will explain.

Caveats

I think it's important to note that while my friend and I love watching horror, we don't think the Friday the 13th franchise is particularly scary. But we were interested becuase the 80s slashers are known to be just fun, and that entices me more than anything. So while these aren't scary when you compare them to modern horror like Barbarian, we were looking for fun times.

Also, should go without saying, but these are subjective opinions.

So with that out of the way...let's do this in order from top to bottom.

Actually Good

Jason Lives! Friday the 13th Part VI

If you watch any of the Friday the 13th movies, make it this one. Part VI is not just a solid slasher movie with great production values, but it's also just a good movie in general.

Tommy Jarvis and Megan are the best duo protagonists we have, with great chemistry. The group of teens we have here are also just fun to watch. People are mostly likelable!

Also the guy who went on to be the voice for Disney's TARZAN is in this movie. Neat.

There's also a ton of great references to other Horror Media because Director Tom McGloughlin is a damn nerd and we LOVE IT. Watch the Dead Meat Kill Count on these. Ya learn a lot.

Friday the 13th Part II

So when it comes to the original canon (aka up through Part IV), this film is the strongest out of all of them. Mostly because of the fact that even though Jason Vorhees doesn't have his iconic hockey mask (which he gets in Part III), the film has straight up the best group of camp counselors/teens in the whole franchise. They're fleshed out more, more sympathetic, and it's just fun.

The only real reason this doesn't top the list is that Part VI is just a better movie overall. There are some weird shot choices, and the cold open is weird and has no pacing.

A Fun Time 🎉

Jason X

Ok, so hear me out. I know the conceit of this movie is WEIRD. It's literally Jason in SPACE. This should be ridicously bad, right?

It's absolutely wild, but the thing about this movie is that it FULLY commits to the crazy concept and it honestly just works. It truly has no right to be as good as it is.

It's not a masterpiece, and it's still objectively wild, but it's a good time.

Friday the 13th (the Original)

It feels weird that the original Friday the 13th movie is in this team, but while this movie is still very good, and still a fun time with great iconic kills; it's still a little anticlimatic and the other films have stronger thru-lines.

Still a good movie, and one that I'd argue that you should still watch because it's the original and iconic, but it's not the best one.

Friday the 13th (2009 Reboot)

So I remember as an edgy teen harping on this movie for being bad (had I seen it? No. Did it matter? Also no). But this is actually a VERY strong reboot. While it doesn't entirely meet the bar of the other movies thus far, it's a fun time that does act as a "best of" of the early films in the franchise.

The characters are also kinda fun.

A Movie™️

Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter (Part IV)

This is the technically the end of the main story arc of Jason Vorhees--he does die here. Every movie from this point on has a Zombified Jason.

Part IV is higher than the other movies on this list mostly because of the kills themselves--someone gets stabbed while they're holding a banana -- it's wild.

Everything else is kinda meh. Most of the characters here are kinda sleezy and high key horny af, and they're all kind sex pest energy. They kind of suck.

Friday the 13th Part IV: A New Beginning

So Jason isn't in this movie, at all. There's someone else imitating Jason

It's aggressively sleezy and almost pornographic, which isn't

The one main positive this movie has is that it has some very solid characters that very much feel more interesting than most of the characters in the franchise. The kills aren't as good as Part IV, but it's still fun.

Freddy vs. Jason

So I was expecting this movie to be a lot better than it was (for what its worth, it's one of the better Nightmare on Elm Street Movies). It's fine. Not overly worth writing home about per se.

Friday the 13th Part III

So this is an important film that brings us the iconic hockey mask and was also in 3D (because we love gimmicks). Unfortunately, this movie recycles a few kills and the characters are way more one dimensional, and annoying, and there's also some fun problematic racism thrown in.

Why? 🤷

Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood

This was one of the first movies in the Friday the 13th franchise that BAFFLED me and my friend when watching. According to Dead Meat, they tried to reach out to New Line about doing someting with Nightmare on Elm Street; they refused. So they went, "Ok but what if Jason vs. Carrie White? This slasher franchise needs telekinesis."

Part VII tries to be both a Friday the 13th film and a Carrie film at the same time. It fails at being good versions of both. The teens are forgettable; the telekenetic plotline is interesting but that's kinda not really the point of Friday the 13th, so it's just baffling.

Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday (Part IX)

Woof. This one is real rough.

This was a movie we kept pausing to see how long we had so we can say "We have NO IDEA WHAT IS HAPPENING".

The movie tries to streamline things but make things more complicated.

The effects are cool, the kills are ok, and the characters are fine. But the structure is bad.

No 🙅

Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan

Out of all of the Friday movies, this one is straight up bad. All of the characters are terrible and have no redeeming qualities. Half the movie doesn't take place in Manhattan, and once there, there's also a fun scene that's essentially SA and it's straight up upsetting. When you manage to make Jason look like a good guy, you know you've got a bad movie.

Final Thoughts

I'll go on record and say that Friday the 13th has more good movies than bad ones in my opinion. You don't watch these movies to be scared, you watch them to have a good time.

So go have fun and watch these movies!

[firephoenix23]

Where on the surface is Eli from?

Honestly, it’s really hard to tell. But I think everyone can agree that Eli was born sometime in January since I’m the Slug Run. He says that he’s been riding his mecha since January. And obviously, we know he started riding his mecha beast the day after his 15th birthday. So we can all agree that he was born sometime in January. But of course, the question is where? I remember back in the old days of the Slugterra fandom, people were so convinced that Eli was from Texas or some other place in the southern US, and the reason why they thought this was because his house had no snow in January

And I would like to make a counterpoint. I currently live in the northeast of the US and we currently have had barely any snow from where I’m from so I feel like there being no snow in January doesn’t necessarily mean that Eli doesn’t live in the northern parts of the North America. So really that kinda of brings to where could Eli likely be from.

Well looking at this very blurry picture it’s clear that Eli lives in some suburban town. There are some more houses down the street and wait what’s that in the background. It’s some buildings maybe a couple a skyscrapers. Oh I wish we could get a better look at what this potential city could look like oh wait we can because I’m pretty sure Gar showed it or a similar city like it in A distant shore

And from the picture alone it’s looks like a massive city. And a massive modern city too. Now there are a lot of cities in the US like New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Dallas and literally so many others. But those aren’t the only big cities in North America. In fact there is a whole other country: Canada. Canada has a lot of big cities too like Toronto, Montréal, Calgary, and Vancouver all of which have thousands of people live in and around them

So where do I think Eli from? Well he lives in some suburban town that has some probably big looming city in the background. Which doesn’t really help solve the issue literally all cities are like that. But I think what throws me off when looking at the picture of the surface for me is how hilly is it. And also if the city that’s in Gar’s poster the one that Eli lives near it’s got a lot of pine trees.

For example, Pronto is holding a poster from Gar and the picture is just pine trees and the city has pine trees. Plus the city in the poster has a very specific building that I think stands out compared to others. It’s the small orange one in the back

And the building kinda reminds me of this building called the CN tower in Toronto. So if Eli is from the city from the poster then he’s probably from Toronto. But the poster might not be the most accurate or even where Eli lives. And if the poster is supposed to be Toronto it doesn’t really make sense why there are pine trees. So many pine trees matches a different Canadian city: Vancouver

Now around Eli’s house there doesn’t look like there are any pine trees but that doesn’t mean that there aren’t any in that little forest that’s behind his house. Plus Vancouver doesn’t really get a lot of snow in the winter which would explain why there’s none despite it supposedly being January

Also, I like the idea of Eli being Canadian and either from the suburbs of Toronto or Vancouver since I know Sam Vincent, Eli’s voice actor, is from North Vancouver and Nerd Corps, the company that made slugterra, was founded in Vancouver, but Toronto probably makes more sense. Or, honestly, Eli could just be American. They do talk about miles in the show who knows 🤷‍♀️

[weltato]

Ty for the tag Marvel!! <3

First fictional crush?

Hmm, probably Gabe from Dani's Castle. He was always my favourite <3

First colour I think of:

Purple, always.

Emotionally scarring fanfic:

I...don't think I have one? There are several memorable ones, but I don't think I've read one that made me react viscerally...well, there was one that made me cry for a good five minutes, but I don't remember plot at all. Like, I remember there was a character who offed themself and all the other characters were super distraught about it, but don't ask me anything else bc I cannot for the life of me remember. Read it years ago.

You're coming to my house for dinner?

Ooh, ok, uhh...I'd probably nick the mac & cheese recipe off my mum, would ask you about your favourite meat (or if you're vegetarian, fave replacement), add some potatoes and veg (y'know how at Christmas you'll have carrots and parsnips done in a certain way? That's what I'd do. I'd do roasties as well bc they are the bEST-) and then bake a cake for after. My best received cake was a lemon and lime sponge with white chocolate on the top :p

Lions or kangaroos?

Kangaroos. They're bouncy kickboxers and the pouch sounds cosy.

Fictional villain?

Oh gee, now that's tough. I can only think of two options: Lucius Malfoy (bc the family dynamic of the Malfoys is interesting) or Max Jägerman. It's not that I really really really like Max, but he's the only "villain" that I can think of that has really glaringly obvious issues (e.g. his dad, the way he treats Grace (both in her fantasies and out of them), the fact that he isn't even on good terms with his "friends", etc.)

What accompanies my Burn Book picture?

Sci-fi nerd, bookworm, will NOT shut up about musicals. Total loner. (idrk what would be in the Burn Book, sorry)

How many days would I last in the universe of my favourite fandom?

Let's see: I have many. If I was in Star Trek, I like to think I'd last a good while, depends on what era. If it's any of the wars, I'd be either dead in 10 hours, just barely scrape through, or miss the whole thing. If I was in Hatchetfield then I'd have succumbed to Pokey's apocalypse immediately, and if I was in Red Dwarf then I'd probably be coasting along with The Boys just fine. They're a fun group.

Have I heard of Mischief Theatre?

They're the Goes Wrong Show people, right? I've seen The Play That Goes Wrong live and it was INCREDIBLE!! My best friend and his grandma came to see it too and none of us could stop laughing the entire time. 100/10. If it came back to my city I'd definitely go and watch it again.

Do I feel sorry for Medusa?

I doooo :((

Which song is my OTP?

I have many OTPs and tbh it depends on the song and if I feel like the vibes would fit a certain pairing. Here's an example though: listen to The School Song from Matilda and tell me that isn't Crowley right there. You can't, can you? ;)

Which song makes me disassociate and daydream the fastest?

Again, depends on the song, but also on my mood. Pretty much any song can get me into my head. Recently it's been both 'Poison' from Hazbin Hotel and 'Jester (Pomni's Song)' by Black Gryph0n, Baasik and Lizzie Freeman (Pomni's VA!) They're so good!!

Moots! No pressure tags! <3 @lilacthebooklover @jewishruthfleming @androgynous-sack-of-flesh-3 @jklovesfandoms @queermarzipan @mrtobenamedlater @the-nefarious-vampire

My own get to know you game:

Who was your first fictional crush?:

What’s the first colour you think of when I tell you to think of a colour?:

Which fanfiction emotionally scarred you and still makes you shudder to this day?:

I’m coming to your house for dinner, non-negotiable, what are you making me?:

Do you prefer lions or kangaroos?:

Which fictional villain do you brush past the glaringly obvious issues for because you really like them?:

What would accompany your picture in the Burn Book in Mean Girls?:

How many days would you last in the universe of your favourite fandom?:

Have you heard of Mischief Theatre?:

Do you feel sorry for Medusa?:

Which song makes you think of your OTP?:

Which song makes you disassociate and daydream the fastest?:

Tags: @weltato, @snarky-wallflower, @feathertru, @barclaysangel, @fanficwriter284, @silvershewolf247, @shadowbrightshine, @luxury-nightmare and anyone else who wants to have a go, feel free!

[a-clowns-words]

HEY ASH I CAME WITH THE FOOD Please give us wholesome tattoo artist Deku/feral flower shop owner Bakugou AU please please please your ideas are so good

YAYYY- you submitted a post pft but that's fine, this actually works pretty well

but wholesome goth boy x feral flower boy YES YES YES I LOVE THIS ALREADY, AU UNDER THE CUT

let's start off with izuku.

he owns a small (but very well known) tattoo parlor in the city he lives in. he majored in art in college and has been doodling since he was in middle school so he has notebooks just calk full of designs and sketches for tattoos that he tears pages from to put up around the shop.

the only design he doesn't have just aimlessly floating around is this one that's extremely important to him since he won an art contest with it in his freshman year of high school (it started him on his path to being an artist) and it's framed and hung on the wall behind the counter

the said design was a sort of couples pairing (meant to be put on the insides of one's wrist and a bit of their forearm and when two people pressed their wrists together side by side it would match up. it could be described as a very intricate and detailed drawing of two roses that branch off the same steam in the middle of the tattoo, and the steam wrapped around the two roses in a spiral that was covered with thorns and leaves but it never touched the two roses.

anyways, izuku never did that design on anyone no matter how many couples that'd ask if he'd do it. it was just his own sort of personal thing, and he was saving it to do it on himself and his soulmate (if he ever found them)

so that's that, people would come and they could choose any other of his original designs around the shop (or bring in their own) and he'd happily give it to them. though he dressed in dark clothes and had dozens of tattoos, making him look like a bit of a tough/mean person, he was actually one of the nicest shop owners in town. everyone was always so surprised when they heard him start rambling on about his designs then get embarrassed as he caught himself doing so, honestly, it was adorable and everyone thought so.

now, on to katsuki.

katsuki runs a flower shop right across the street from Izuku, he opened only a month ago (bc he just moved here) and it was already starting to get popular.

now, Katsuki wasn't exactly a k i n d shop owner. he wore soft pastel colors a lot but he was big and muscly and had clear tattoos on his neck and upper arms which made him look like a sort of- soft thug? but he was very much feral. he'd call his customers extras and often give regulars nicknames. such as one girl he nicknamed 'bubble gum' because she wore a lot of pink and had pink hair, she'd come to buy flowers for their girlfriend often.

even though he's mean, god does he have the most beautiful arrangements of flowers. so the people that live in the city look past all his grumpiness (some even find it kinda charming and manage to get to know him a bit better.)

plus, there's one specific thing that he has that almost no other plain flower shop sells. black roses.

no one exactly knows how he always gets his hands on them, due to the price and rarity, but he always somehow has a few carefully placed black as night roses in a vase on the counter.

how did the two meet/get together?

well, remember those black roses? a certain perky little goth boy happens to absolutely adore them. honestly he really just loves roses but the black ones draw him in due to them being well, goth.

so, izuku skips over to katsuki's shop every week or so and his visits are always in the morning right when the shop opens so izuku can open his right after. since he visits in the morning, he always has to deal with an even more grumpy morning katsuki, but he doesn't mind at all. he comes in, perky as ever, and cheerfully hops to the counter to order the same thing each time.

"One black rose please, Baka- Baku.. Kat-katchu- uh.. oh lord I'm so sorry, uhm.. oh! How bout Kacchan? Yeah! One black rose please, Kacchan!"

"...'Kacchan'?! Really?! Who the fuck do you think you are?!"

"I'm Midoriya! Izuku Midoriya, Heh!"

"If that's spelled how I'd guess it is, wouldn't it be kinda similar to 'useless'?"

"I uh- uhm, I suppose so..?"

"Let's see here.. useless little goth boy... hm..."

"Wha-"

"Oh I know. Deku."

"D-deku? You're really gonna call me that?"

"Yeah. Gotta problem with it, nerd?!"

"No!- No... I guess not-"

"Good, now take your rose and leave."

"A-alright... thanks... Kacchan!"

and that's that. izuku learns to get used to katsuki's teasing and nicknames, and katsuki decides to just ignore the fact that he's being called 'kacchan', such a petname like nickname, by a complete stranger

at one point, katsuki asked why izuku always came to get a new black rose every week and izuku simply gave an embarrassed laugh and explained that:

"well... i uh just really like these..! they're so pretty don't you think? plus I put the one I get every week into a vase of water and use it as a uh reference for tattoos..."

"and you need a new one every damn week?!"

"ahaha- well- i'm uh... not the best at flower keeping... plus they're much prettier fresh, you know?"

katsuki rolled his eyes at the explanation, truth be told izuku just didn't want to admit he wanted an excuse to come see the blond every week. though izuku wasn't alone, katsuki didn't say anything else because HE honestly also enjoyed the greenette coming to his shop

anyways I'm getting way too invested in this so let's wrap it up

katsuki and izuku get to know each other a bit better as they go to each other's shops. one time katsuki went to izuku's shop to get a back tattoo (that took fucking hours) so they had PLENTY of time to have an actual conversation for once and they actually had some pretty deep ones, it ended with katsuki begrudgingly pointing out the framed tattoo design, commenting on how pretty and detailed it was. of course, izuku went on a small flustered ramble about it before getting stopped by katsuki laughing and telling him to "calm down there, pretty boy." honestly just making izuku more flustered with katsuki finding it amusing as fuck. he ended up scribbling down his number quickly on a stray piece of paper to hand to izuku before heading out the shop with his classic smirk.

and shit happened yada yada yada got to know each other a bit more through text and izuku ended up asking katsuki out on a date at one point. so katsuki showed up at izuku apartment on the night of the date with a whole bouquet of black roses for his goth boy.

they decided to try a relationship and it ended up getting pretty serious. one day izuku dragged his boyfriend over to his shop and forced him to sit down so he could start working on getting his important design onto the two of them.

"Wait- really?! With me?! You sure, Deku..?"

"Yes, I'm sure. Now shut up and stay still so I can do this right, dummy-"

and that's where i'm ending it all so I don't kill you guys with reading PFT (I could go so much more in-depth tho)

[aliasimagines]

Miraculous: Tales of Kick-Ass

requested by a lovely anon 💕

Dave Lizewski x fem!reader (miraculous au)

warnings: cursing.

word count: 1814

a/n: Dave has a kwami!! Cause if we are going with Miraculous au, we are doing it properly.

“I am here again, live ,with New York’s favourite superhero battling against his archnemesis in the background. But do not worry! I just saw Hit Girl arrive at the scene and they seem to have everything under control.” the reporter, Lizzie Blonde, says through the tv in Atomic Comics. You are not sure when all of this has started, when New York turned into a battlefield for superheros and supervillains. New York used to be normal. Alright, scratch that, New York was always one crazy place. 

Not that you mind particularly, you were always a fan of superheroes and comics and to see them, in your city? That was beyond exciting. Not to mention your major crush on kick-Ass.

You took a sip from your milkshake and looked around the comic store. Dave should be here by now. Not that you are surprised he is not here. He is always late nowadays. Marty and Todd fanboyed next to you about hit Girl as you kept looking at your phone and the door, waiting for your best friend to give any sign of him.

In the tv the superhero pair just took out the Motherfucker’s minions.  You sigh a bit worried. What if Dave got in trouble? What if he is in that part of the city where the fight is going on? It’s only a few blocks away and if he got hurt it would explain why he is not responding to your messages..

You hesitantly stood up and walked outside the shop. You heard a loud crash in the distance. You bit your lip, debating whether you should go and look for Dave or not. You heard a loud cheer coming from outside, the heros probably won. Again.

You finally decided to go and look for Dave, so you started speed walking toward the street you saw in the news. Maybe you will not only find Dave but see Kick-Ass too! 

Of course Dave is more important but.. You saw a green figure flash from one of the rooftops. You gasped, Kick-Ass jumped on a building, only a few meters away from you. 

The hero seemed to notice you and waved his hand at you. 

You almost fainted, but went to grab your phone to take a picture of him but by the time you looked up he was long gone. You looked around confused but quickly remembered why you came. You started running again, when from an alleyway someone ran into you.

“AAA”

“AAAA” 

“Oh my god y/n!”

“Dave! What are you doing here?” you grasp your chest, hoping your heart won’t fall out of its place.

“I could ask the same!”

“I was worried about you! So I came looking and..Are you alright?” you carefully touch his cheek where a small cut is, slightly bleeding.  The boy slightly brushes your hand away and tries to hide the light pink flash on his cheek.

“I’m fine, I was on my way to Atomic’s when the fight started and I figured I would be safer here.” he lied effortlessly. You nodded.

“I’m glad you are okay.” you say, before remembering what happened a few seconds ago. “Oh my gosh, Dave! I was walking on the street looking for you and you will never believe what happened! Kick-Ass, The Kick-Ass saw me and waved! Ahh! It was so awesome!”

Dave laughed softly, “I bet it was. Let’s go back to Atomic’s, okay?”

 You guys spend most of your afternoon there, talking about the fight and the superhero duo.

“..so in conclusion, I love Hit Girl and she is so awesome. But Kick-Ass? Gosh, he is so hot!” you gesture with your hands. Dave clears his throat and lifts his drink to his lips. Marty rolls his eyes at you.

“You can’t even see his face!” he throws his hand in the air. Dave and Todd start laughing.

“Hey, man, leave the girl alone.” Dave says, slightly nudging your side. “But really y/n, Kick-Ass could be a nerd like me, for all you know.”

“That would be some Peter Parker shit.” you say grabbing a french fry. “But, I don’t really care for his looks, like.. The idea of him? You know? Like  he is a motherducking hero for Stan Lee's sake!"

" That's kinda.. I don't know. Shallow? Having a crush on someone you don't even know? " Dave says and barely noticeably tucks a small piece of pizza in his pocket. Before you can say anything Todd beats you to it. 

"Well that's rich coming from the guy who was practically drooling over Scarlet Witch in The Ultimates." 

"That's a completely different thing." 

Todd opens his mouth to respond when the harsh sound of the news channel floods the comic shop. You all turn to the tv and see that New York is once again under attack. Dave furrows his eyebrows. 

"Twice?" he asks himself. Before he jumps up from the booth you all are sitting at. 

"I just uhm… I just remembered I have to rush home to help my dad!" 

"Yo dude, what the heck?" yells Todd after your best friend. 

"Sorry, guys I have to run!" and with that Dave is out the door, leaving all his friends including you, confused and kinda upset. He finds the first alleyway and soon his kwami flies out of his pocket. 

"Dave? What's going on? We never have to fight twice a day." the little kwami, Kai says. His name is not actually Kai but as he is a lost kwami he never learned what his name is so Dave was the one to give him the name Kai. 

"I don't know, little dude but we better check it out." 

There wasn't anything big, Chris Damico just couldn't take the fact that he lost again and angrily tried to strike at the innocent citizens of New York in hopes of destroying Kick-Ass too. Instead he ended up getting his.. Well getting his ass kicked. 

Dave didn't change back just yet, instead he jumped from rooftop to rooftop to get home. It got pretty late so it would be stupid to go back to Atomic Comics as you guys probably left. He felt bad for bailing on you again. He hated leaving you. Even if he could play superhero and save people. The look on your face every time he rushed away to a fight? Ugh, he hates it. 

Dave jumps down to an alleyway to transform back when a girl turns into the alley. Wait. It's not just a girl, it's you! 

Dave tries to jump behind trash bags to hide but you already saw him. 

"Kick-Ass?" he hears your voice. He sighs and comes out of his impromptu hiding spot. 

"Haha, guilty as charged."

"Oh my gosh, we met earlier! You waved at me, do you remember? Ah, of course you don't, you meet so many people every day." you would have kept on rambling if it wasn't for Dave. He tried his hardest not to giggle at your fangirling, that he knows oh so well and said. 

" I actually do remember you y/-, random citizen! " 

Fuck! Dave curses himself. He almost said your name! Stupid, stupid, stupid! 

You did seem to hear anything but the fact that your superhero crush remembered you from earlier. You felt your cheeks heating up a bit. 

"You.. You do? Gosh, really? That's so awesome, you are like… ahgh you are so awesome."

"You think so?" Kick-Ass asks, smiling. "Well, you seem like a pretty awesome girl, too. What is a pretty, awesome girl like you doing out this late?" 

Dave feels weird talking to you like this, cause you don't know he is actually your best friend but… Dave also finds that a bit helpful? He could never compliment you as Dave, not like this. He would end up blushing and dying from embarrassment. But Kick-Ass? He is a cool dude, who has no problem flirting with the ladies. 

"Oh, well I was hanging with my friends at Atomic Comics." 

"So you like superheros?" he asks, leaning against a wall in a 'cool way'. 

"Oh, yeah."you nod, gulping."I love them." 

You slowly mingled in conversation. Dave softly flirted with you every once in a while and you always responded with a sweet smile and some nice comeback. Both of you were so in the conversation, you didn't even bother to pay attention to your surroundings. Dave for example, didn't even hear the beeping, the warning that he would transfer back from Kick-Ass to Dave Lizewski. When he realized what was going on it was already too late. His kwami fell tiredly into his hands. 

"Oh shit, oh no, oh shit, shit.. Aah." Dave looked around for help, any help but it was worthless. You already saw him transform. You know. 

Dave slowly, terrified of your reaction, gazed over to you. 

But you just stared at him.

"Look, n/n-"

"This is some Peter Parker shit." you whispered,still starring. But then you snapped out of it. "What the actual fuck, Dave?" 

"I know, I know, I am so sorry y/n! I couldn't tell you and fuck! I am so sorry for flirting with you, it's just I could never have the confidence to do that as Dave and- Ah, I just ruined our friendship and I think I should just leave.." he turned around and tried to walk away but you grabbed his hand and pulled him back. You quickly pressed your lips against his. Dave barely had time to react, he froze. Was this really happening? Is this a dream? 

" You are a real asshole, Dave. "you say after pulling away." You are lucky I love you. "

"You what?" Dave asks with his eyes wide open. "I thought you had a 'major crush' on Kick-Ass." 

"Well, yeah, but I like you better." you say with a small smile. Before Dave can say anything you spot the tired kwami in his hand. "Dave, what the fuck is that?" 

"Oh shit." he pulls out a small snack from his pocket and gives it to Kai who starts munching on it immediately. "He is Kai. He is my kwami, he is basically the source of my powers." 

"Uhm, hi." you wave at the small creature. 

The kwami looks up at you and then at Dave. 

"This is wrooong." 

"Shut up, little dude." he turns to you, scratching his back with his free hand. "So, uhm can I walk you home… as not your best friend?" 

You shake your head with a laugh. 

"I want nothing more." you take his hand and you two walk with huge smiles on both of your faces. 

Maybe this was an accident, but at the end of the day Kick-Ass defeated his enemy, saved New York twice, but it was Dave Lizewski who ended up getting the girl.

Here's how I imagined Kai, his kwami (i am no digital artist, i know it look horrible 😂😂) :

taglist: @sethcohenluvr @your-hispanichufflepuff

[thelooniemoonie]

Okay so storytime, there's this science centre in my city that functions kinda inbetween well, a science centre, a museum, and an art exhibit. Basically a place for all ages for learning and doing cool science stuff.

But as some of you may remember me briefly mentioning, this science centre has a biology collector trade hub to it. Essentially it's a place to exchange biological specimens to the centre, and in exchange you can take home some of their own specimens. (For free too, which was awesome)

Being that I'm a nerd who collects/catalogues and presses plant species, we racked up a whole bunch of stuff to take home. Cool rocks, fossils, stuff like that.

Although as a gift for my bestie, one of the stuff I took for her was a pinned bee specimen. And even though we had to take it out of the glass display case, the centre didn't exactly have fancy storage boxes to put the pinned insects in, per se.

So what they did was put the bee in a take out box.

Y'know:

It was quite literally one of these. They put the damn bee in a restaurant take out container. We took that Barry Benson to go.

What's even funnier is that we were literally planning to go to a restaurant after this. And the joke we thought of, was that we would stand outside the restaurant, and literally recreate one of the dumbest internet jokes to date:

"Oh man, I love going to Applebees! I ordered the apple."

To which it would pan over to my bestie, food container in hand, opening it like pandora's box saying:

"Aw man, I got the bee." Revealing a very real, and very dead bee, just sitting smack in the middle of what you would assume to be a regular take out box.

And I promise you the fact that we both forgot to film this, I will never forgive myself.

We live in Canada.

We don't even have an Applebees here.

Wait did I even tell you guys when I hung out with my bestie a couple weeks ago we missed out on the opportunity to do the funniest joke ever

[imaminoccultation]

Letter 9: The People Who Have Been Guided - Revisiting the Work of OnlyLeigh

Peace be upon those who follow the right path. Which is to say, not just the Muslims: anybody who manifests the best qualities of Imam ‘Ali by being just, generous, and kind is following the right path, however imperfectly. Anybody who has had the Record revealed to them is a follower of the right path: I am inclined to believe Fred Donner when he says the Prophet’s religious community was pluralist in nature. And so, in addition to the People of the Recitation, the Uthmanic Bible recognizes three other Peoples of the Record, or Ahlul-Kitab: 

The People of the Gospel, the Nazarenes, those who follow Prophet Jesus Christ, peace be upon him (Christians);

The People of the Tawrat, those who have been guided (الذين هادوا), the children of Prophet Israel (Ya’qub), the Judaeans, the people of Prophet Musa, peace be upon him (Jews);

The Sabians, who we must discuss another day.

Fuck the state of Israel, Zionists eat shit and eat shit forever, but I’m not gonna up and pretend that anti-Semitism isn’t a problem in the Muslim world and the Arabophone world; I’m not fucking stupid. It means nothing for whether or not the Zionist occupation has the right to ethnically cleanse Palestinians and force them out of their homeland, but it’s also a fact we need to acknowledge, as Muslim anti-Semitism is also a key tool in Zionist propaganda. I want to make my stance clear on the issue before I say:

As a kid, I was the only Muslim I knew at my school. Deadass. Only Sudani I knew at my school. Deadass. Only Mahasi I knew in my whole city. Deadass. I remember one time when I was fucking ten, this Japanese kid was telling this white kid he was descended from samurai, and when I brought up that I was descended from Nubian royals (no less than that Japanese kid was a samurai descendant, anyway), the white kid was clear what he thought about that:

“Who cares?”

Yeah, living in that kind of environment does shit to you, especially if you’re also the only gay kid you know. Not that you know you’re gay: ooh, I took way too long to accept that part of myself. Thankfully, I had a portal out of the fundamentalist community I’d been trapped in by life circumstances: a window to the world beyond Orthodox Sunnism, Evangelical Christianity, and Mormon Christianity. 

YouTube. Alhamdulillah for the internet.

This is where I encountered my first queer Person of the Record. I doubt they remember, but when I was in like middle school or some shit, I wrote a comment on one of their videos and totally lost my shit (or “fangirled”) when they responded. You see, I got into superheroes, fantasy, all the nerd shit that eventually led to the formation of fandoms on the 2010s internet: one of the places so many 2010s kids would find the tools to unpack and understand their own true identity. Tumblr culture, in other words. And I got into one of Tumblr culture’s golden age YouTubers: Leigh Motherfucking Lahav.

You know, as a kid, Musa was like always my favorite prophet. Got me into learning Hebrew, which, you know, pissed my Sudani fam off, and it’s not like the white people I knew were any less anti-Semitic. But for me personally, I always related to the Jewish kids: I mean, we both had to look at the pork dishes at lunch like “aww,” and we would have to step out of class when the real white people would do their Christmas shit or whatever the fuck. Also, you know, Judaism is like the fucking backbone of Christianity and Islam, and even though I prefer the latest rendition, I’ve always had a soft spot for those who have been guided among the People of the Book. I’ve never lost my interest in the histories of the Ethiopian, Mizrahi, and Ashkenazi Jews who, at various points, made parts of Sudan their home.

And so, I got into this Jewish nerd culture YouTuber, and even though I grew up around someone whose response to my saying “you can be anti-Zionist and not be anti-Semitic” was “anti-Semitic is such a Jewish word,” I related to Leigh Lahav a fucking ton. I loved that shit. So today, I’m taking a bowl of the duku, kicking back, and rewatching some classics and posting some random observations. Get tucked in, besties. 

Okay yeah I’m pretty fucking basic, so what? This video is fucking superb, are you kidding me? Could a 2010s shaab-of-the-homosexual-mustaqbal/future-homosexual-of-America possibly ask for more than a parody of Mean Girls set in Lord of the Rings? By the time I’d watched that video I think I’d only seen the Desolution of Smaug because Robbie dragged me to it, I didn’t watch the actually good Tolkienverse movies till way later. But anyways, looking back, definitely parallels between the Bilbo/tall sexy elf relationship and the relationship I had with this one kid in PE class, very queer. I approve. 

I mean, frankly, this is better than the Mean Girls movie. I mean, the Mean Girls movie is a classic of 2010s culture but it just does not age well, its sexual ethics (which are pretty core to its comedy) are just…weird in hindsight? Much more uncomfortable? Also sucks that Janis Ian is fucking Lebanese and it’s nothing more than a punchline. 

I mean, in this trailer, there’s much more romantic tension between Bilbo and the leader of the Elf Plastics and emphasis on that, which I think would make for a much more interesting story rather than the straight mess that Mean Girls is in reality. The scene of breaking down the cliques is also just so iconic and it’s such a wonderful format, and Lahav’s version is frankly one of my favorite renditions of it: recently, I saw the Ms. Marvel show do it and while it was accurate to the Muslim-American masjid experience it was also not funny. But that’s just me. I watched the show high, anyway.

Anyways, next:

Leftist takes on the didactic closer aside, this is another fucking classic. You see, I have a soft spot for Frozen and you can all get the fuck over it, Disney fans, it is just a good fucking movie. Maybe, anyway. I only saw the first half because one of my teachers was sick of preteens that day or something (we started the movie in class and never finished it). I just didn’t care back then, I was just sick of hearing “Let It Go” because who doesn’t have that collective trauma haha. But you know, I loved learning languages growing up and one of my favorite ways to learn was by listening to translated Disney music. It’s always an interesting experience, and guys, guys: there are Singlish dubs of Frozen on YouTube, okay? And the songs I’ve heard from the movie (never listened to the full soundtrack) do indeed slap. I listen to songs from Frozen more than Moanna, I’m just saying.

Anyways, I’ve also never seen Orange is the New Black. But I fucking loved this trailer, okay, I fucking love Disney musicals, the in-jokes are perfect, Elsa and Mulan seem like they’d be a great match, it’s a cut above the endless sea of Frozen parodies that inundated the 2010s internet. 

Basically me with You Will Die at Twenty, and it still was sort of underwhelming (I still think it’s one of the better Sudani movies tho, fight me). Anyways, got into OnlyLeigh during my MCU phase and man did this video hit, back in the 2010s, there was so much promise ahead of us! We didn’t even know No Way Home could be a thing yet! Back when I had something other than a dreary sense of fatigue at the MCU, finding my opinion of the older films souring now that I have knowledge of the breadth of their cultural impact. But I mean, like also, who gives a fuck it’s superheroes. This is funny, it’s charming, it’s relatable, it’s also the reason I avoid watching movie trailers now if I can help it. Spoilers don’t ruin something, but I do like to be fucking surprised. 

Anyways, this video takes on a new meaning for me as an Ace Attorney fan. Maybe rewatching it high was not a great idea considering Lahav goes through what academics like to call “The 3DS trilogy AA fandom cycle,” for the five of you who know what I’m talking about. 

This is really just my relationship with Jesus Christ Superstar. As much as Andrew Lloyd Webber is really really not great (to put it generously), since I was in fucking high school I was a Jesus Christ Superstar Evangelical and nobody will ever fucking take that away from me. Anyways, honestly, I love this love letter to the culture where some people were just like “okay, whatever, this is cool I guess” and some had become qualified MCU researchers (some of whom are now starring in the MCU, Iman Vellani!) Anyways, even though OnlyLeigh is our tragic villain/protagonist in this story, frankly, I think this video also serves as a decent argument for why if you’re gonna have a movie night at your house, put subtitles on and let people talk. Otherwise just go to the theatre because sitting on somebody’s couch in silence for 2 hours is boring as fuck, no matter what’s playing.

There was a time in my life where I was only friends with people who would have gotten every reference here. Frankly, some of the best friends I’ve ever had, lmao. It’s really interesting to see fandoms form as an “identity” back in that era of the internet, feels like seeing the beginnings of it all, a whole world of literature, shared narratives, and rituals people were building communities around. It’s fun to look at the parallels between fandoms and various Abrahamic religious sects: sharing principles, behaviors, rituals, and stories, but also heavily delineated by what their specific focuses were. You know, Christianity is just the Jesus fandom, Islam is the Qur’an and Hadith fandom, etc. etc. etc. I don’t mean this as an insult: actually, I strongly believe in the legitimacy of the literary culture of fucking fandom. Not to say it’s all good, or even most of it is, but it’s impact on culture is fucking immense. Just cause the adults don’t like it doesn’t mean it wasn’t fucking formative to us queer nerds who could only find people who liked what we liked on the internet, haha. Anyways, funny vid, really ironic to see the fear of the MCU fans here considering the MCU has the global cultural influence of the fucking Roman Empire at this point. Here, “fangirl” is the equivalent of mu’min, Believer: you can be a Sherlock Believer, Doctor Who Believer, you’re all People of the Record (Tumblr), who contribute to certain literary genres like scriptural exegesis (fanfiction). Sometimes there’s crossover between Peoples of the Record, sometimes there’s great animosity, both outside and within. You see what I’m saying?

Shit, this is 7 years old?? Age of Ultron??? Oh, so, so innocent. Weird, now I sympathize more with the Star Wars fans in this video than the pro-MCU headmaster is really just the CEO of the Disney corporation’s Prophet and Messenger. Like that speech freaks me the fuck out, what the hell, that’s too real, you’re right, Leigh, I had to watch Ms. Marvel! I knew I was going to hate it, I couldn’t stop myself!!

Ant-Man is still totally skippable though, really not a great MCU movie. Also, alhamdulillah the DC Universe still has not taken off, تبارك الذي بيده الملك وهو على كل شيء قدير

As somebody who’s been forced to explain Eid to every flavor of Christian fundamentalist rural white America has to offer, my sympathy for the Jewish characters here is unreal. Fuck, as somebody who’s told people they’re Shi’i Muslim and later get asked about Hinduism, this video still fucking hits. Honestly, fantastic educational tactic. Very funny, great way to demonstrate the parallels between traditional spirituality and magic (ultimately, just unregulated, forbidden, yet effective spirituality from the Abrahamic standpoint). 

The content of OnlyLeigh spoke to me because Leigh Lahav was the only queer-positive non-Christian Person of the Record I knew who was also into the MCU - and even then, only as an audience member. It’s not just the humor that speaks to my pop cultural context, but also the themes that always hit for somebody who feels the alienation that’s endemic to just not being born in the best place in the traditional Abrahamic gender/sexual hierarchy. Plus, shit is funny. Animation is cute and solid, the art style is iconic, if I weren’t so into iconography right now, I’d probably let it inspire some new cartoon-style drawings.

Anyways, thanks a ton, OnlyLeigh. You really helped! Peace be upon you, and all others who follow the right path.

But not in a “can we all get along” way, more like a “isn’t the internet fucking great sometimes?” way.

[shivada-jade]

how to be a good friend

characters: childe (the wingman), zhongli ➡ mentions: ningguang warning(s): literally just one swear

read this first: (zhongli's pov)

childe's point of view in helping zhongli get the person of his dreams.

Tartaglia is not one for romance either. He definitely knows of it, but never acted on it. Every person he walks by either fears him because of his Harbinger status, or worships him for the same reason. It's tiring.

You on the other hand, don't fear him, nor worship him. For Tartaglia, you will always be that undeniably attractive person who ran out of mora to pay for Grilled Tiger Fish.

He met you at one of the side vendors at the closed off places in Liyue and he offered to pay for you. You were skeptical at first, but you took on the offer and enjoyed your meal.

Childe remembers that day clearly. When he leaves after paying your food, he walks along the docks of Liyue Harbour, watching ships come and go.

He sits on the edge, letting his boots glide on the water.

The sun casts a glow over The City of Contracts, making the place look heavenly. Clouds dots the sky with pinks and purples. The people on the boats started to unload and head to their own homes.

Home.

That's a foreign word for Tartaglia after spending so much time away from it.

Despite his charming, confident aura, he never felt so unsure in his life. Is it right to work under the Tsarista? Childe wishes to drop his job and flee, exploring with the traveler. He wishes to live in happiness. He wishes to be home. He wishes to be lucky enough to have someone that makes goodbye's so hard.

You settle on the crate next to Childe, observing and trying to figure out why he payed for your food. He does not seem to notice you yet, but you're sure he does, after all, he is a Fatui Harbinger.

You clear your throat, taking out a small box laced with ribbon from your bag.

Blue eyes look at you, so somber and bleak.

Wordlessly, you get off the crate and drop off the box next to him and take your leave.

Childe looks at you, then to the box in confusion. His fingers weave through the ribbon, untangling it to open the box. He sets the ribbon aside and opens the box.

Mora gleams inside and shines a bit brighter from the sunset. A note stuck on one coin, making him laugh quietly.

To the hottie with the most mesmerizing eyes (you look dead in the inside),

I present to you, a haiku.

Thanks for the mora I am not a broke bitch, 'kay Have your money back

xoxo,

Richer than Ningguang

...

He always sees you by the same vendor at the same time, and every time he sees you, he pays for your food. He would hide in many places in Liyue like alleyways, under bridges, and even on roofs, but you would always find a way to give the money back to him.

Soon, he finds himself talking to you on one of the roof tops and pouring out his emotions. You stay silent, just listening under the sunset.

The next time you meet, he apologizes for dropping his rants to you, but you smile and hug him, telling him it's alright.

Home.

He feels at home in your arms. In his mind, he lists many things that make him feel at home with you: your smile, your playful banters, the warmth that you make him feel.

He feels at home when you're around, but so does someone else.

He looks at Zhongli giving the same admiration to you. Wind chimes play music against each other, contradicting the pain in his chest. The world around him seems so happy when he couldn't, but nonetheless, he continues to smile.

"So, you're interested in [Name?]" Childe says with a carefree attitude, accepting the fact he will never have a chance with you. Especially with Zhongli around.

Tartaglia records how the tip of Zhongli's ears turn red when he says your name. He notes how Zhongli's speeches turn a tad bit disoriented when he's around you, like he's excited to say everything about anything.

Maybe it was a mistake inviting his two closest friends in Liyue to meet.

Zhongli is everything Childe is not. Zhongli has time to love, he has time to spend time with you in the future. Zhongli won't put you in danger, unlike Childe who fears on putting you in danger because of his Harbinger status, so he set you two up.

...

Tartaglia never thought of himself to be a romantic, but when you came he imagined all these things he would like to do with you.

A nerd date, is what he wrote down on the scroll. He wanted to take you to beaches to show you his excitement on marine life. He wanted to explore so much with you.

He wanted to show you the animals and make shell necklaces with you.

60 little ideas he pitched in a scroll. 60 little ideas he wanted to do with you, but instead gave those ideas to Zhongli, hastily writing a title to make it look like a romance guide, because he knows Zhongli suits you much better.

...

The last day you saw him, was the same day he wrote Zhongli's love letter to you. He knows this is his only chance to say anything, but how can he when you suddenly tell him how smitten you are with Zhongli. That is when he knows it's time to let go.

Writing Zhongli's letter is easy enough when Zhongli describes what he loves about you, because everything that Zhongli lists, is what Childe loves too. He loves that stupid humour of yours when no one can understand the joke; he loves your voice when you speak to him; he loves the warmth you give when he's around you; he loves your musings on the world; he loves it all.

...

To Richer than Ningguang,

Here's my haiku. It's better than yours.

Happiness is first Make sure that nerd treats you well Five syllables here

Your friend,

Childe (who looks dead in the inside)

With one look at you and Zhongli's silhouettes dancing in your living room without music, he knows he did the right choice.

To you, the most he will be is a good friend, but to him, you're his home.

You are his love.

He folds the haiku in a thin square and slips it under your doorstep. A bag of mora is placed behind a plant and he smiles with traces or tear stains on his cheeks, boarding the docks to Snezhnaya.

How lucky is he to have something that makes goodbye so hard.

note: “How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.” A.A. Milne (Winnie-the-Pooh)