#i will not say it costs nothing to be kind

[trustmypoison]

SVT with a low-maintenance partner

Requested? Yes!

Request: ‘Hieee, can you please do a seventeen reaction to this significant other being low maintenance? Thank you ❤️❤️’

Drives him crazy!! - Seungcheol, Woozi, Seungkwan

Sometimes, he grabs you by the shoulders and begs, ‘Please let me spoil you!!’ It drives him nuts that you want for so little, and when you do, it’s usually practical things. Let him buy you jewelry, or designer clothes, or a new bag, or a car, or, or, or. He respects that you’re not materialistic, really. He even admires it. But he wants you to know you never have to want for anything. So trust that the moment you mention that you like something, it’s showing up the next day. Like, you could say, ‘Maybe I should get my nails done,’ and he’s booked an appointment and paid ahead of time. 

Doesn’t mind it - Jeonghan, Joshua, DK, Minghao, Chan

Doesn’t have strong feelings about it either way. Would he like to get you nice things sometime? Of course! Would he just get some things now and then just because? Of course! But if you really have no interest in something, that’s okay with him, too. Like, if you’re into thrifting or things like that, he’s supporting that just as much as the occasional designer purchase. He just likes to get you things you like, and there are really no wrong answers. 

Sort of lives for it - Jun, Hoshi, Wonwoo, Mingyu, Vernon

Sort of loves that you find a lot of the high-maintenance things superfluous. I kind of get the impression that these guys tolerate things like that because of the requirements of their career and ambassadorships that they’re asked to do, but it wouldn’t always be their preference if it were up to them. So he goes to thrift shops and second-hand stores with you, and if he sees something that you might like, cost (especially if it’s cheap) means nothing to him. But, best believe that if you showed any interest in something more expensive, he’d have his credit card ready saying ‘Okay, baby.’ 

[acciocriativity]

->You're hyper independent || Ateez Reactions || Hyung Line

Genre: fluff, angst (because of the theme on itself), slice of life AU

Warnings: NONE

N/A: This is a very real trauma response that real people have. However, I tried to keep it light, humorous, and focus on the support and love the reader received from the boys in different contexts instead of the actual trauma triggering situation that cause the trauma response. If I, in any way, offend people who have this trauma response, I'm open to learning and editing this, if necessary.

N/A ²: This is a gender neutral! reader.

Ateez Masterlist

Kim Hongjoong (김홍중): You don’t let him pay for you, and he’s helpless

On your very first date with Hongjoong, just as casually as he wiped out his card to pay for the meal, you wiped out yours. That day, he learned you were as hardheaded as he was, which was an interesting surprise. There was no dance of “Oh, I pay. No, it’s okay, I can pay. No, I insist. Oh, if you insist, then…” as he imagined at first. If you said you were going to pay, then you would do so. In the end, you both agreed to slip the bill even.

That was a common occurrence at the beginning of your relationship, a spit-even bill no matter the cost of the meal or whatever you were doing together.

It wasn’t like he was flaunting his money, nor did he want to offend you in any way, which you didn’t think was the case, thank God. It just became second nature for him to be attentive to those around him, and if he had an opportunity to do something nice for people he cared about, why would he not? Why wouldn’t you let him? You thought he was adorable when he vented that to you on a 1 A.M. something call, like those thoughts plagued his dreams or something. You liked your man a little dramatic like that.

There were times when it was a given that he bought something for the two of you, and then you made sure to put your money on something else for you both that same day. He thought you would rather keep things “separated” at that stage, where things were uncertain, to not create any kind of “debts” with each other, it seemed, although he didn’t agree with that trail of thoughts at all, and it was a bit offensive to him. First, because he’d never be the type of man to expect anybody to owe him anything after dinner, and second, because he hadn’t any doubts about the relationship.

His suspicions weren’t that far off, honestly. You said plainly you rather avoid any discomfort or expectations at this stage of your relationship with him, and he could sleep well because you knew how caring he was even if he wasn’t the one paying for you.

It was lovely for him to know what you thought of him. A simple phrase made his day, and if that was your answer, then he wouldn’t push it. Even if he was desperate to know what those discomforts were for you and if they happened frequently in the past.

For now, he’d gladly wait for you while you met in the middle, even if he feels a little helpless.

Park Seonghwa (박성화): he isn’t allowed to baby you like you baby him, but mama raised no bitch

It wasn’t a rule per se, but the only 3 times he ever tried to baby you during your one-year relationship like you usually do with him, two of them made you almost become physically ill, and the last of them, you were, in fact, ill.

He never thought karma would hit him as hard as it did when he met you for the first time. His tsundere exterior was nothing compared to yours. It felt like he encountered another version of himself, one that he lost to instantly. It was safe to say your charm wasn’t cuteness. It was how attentive you were, how you cared for anyone around you in a quiet and practical way, and how you were honest above all. You were reliable, steady, and so so warm with those you cared for. He was down bad before he could say the word “tsundere”.

The first time was a mistake, almost an instinct. It wasn’t rare for you to be cute unintentionally, but just as much as one shouldn’t make any sudden noise to not scare a grumpy cat away after it laid near, he should not have cooed and pinched your cheeks while you tried some of his stew at a dinner night at his house, the first of many.

He didn’t move, his arms hurt from the position he was in. The sheer astonishment on your face made him freeze, but there was no way of reversing time. There was no running from this. It was done. He feared for his life as you slowly processed what was happening to you.

It was clear how deeply you disliked it, even if you didn’t say so, and Seonghwa always prided himself on being a great boyfriend, so he kept that in mind to never do it again.

But he is just a man at the end of the day, a very, very weak man, and your cheeks are really, really perfect to pinch. Still, he chose his battles carefully, and the last two attempts were successful because you always let him off the hook without much of anything. In all honesty, he was the cutest and childlike one in the relationship even if he didn’t show it after first, and you fell hard for that side of him. The way his pretty brown eyes shined with mischief whenever he got away with calling you cute or cooing at you melted your heart on the spot, so you let him.

If it was anyone else, you’d run as far as you could from whoever it was, even your own parents. You were just not a touchy person at all, because maybe you grew up without people giving that kind of love to you then, but you got used to it from Seonghwa. Of course, it was best if he never knew how much power he actually had, so you let him fear for his life for a moment or two.

Unfortunately, Seonghwa was a cute, silly man, but he was your cute, silly man.

Jeong Yunho (정윤호): You don’t ask him for help, but what else can he do with his acts of service love language?

You two have been friends for a good while now, that kind of friend who everyone thought would amount to something else yet never did. The time to risk for something more was the night you two met, but neither of you took any action then. Now, you two had a good friendship, and that was more than enough for both of you.

Yunho couldn’t lie and say he hadn’t thought of what ifs with you in the past, but in his mind, you were never interested in him like this, so the whole thing was pointless. You didn’t seem interested in a romantic relationship then just as much as you don’t now, and he was fine with it.

You had a nice future ahead of you. A lot of your time was spent on building a good curriculum for college and then a solid career for yourself in a predominantly male industry. It was a rough path, sometimes you wondered if that was the right choice or not, doubted your own capabilities because your colleagues did so all the time, but at the end of the day you had amazing people to remind you who you were, you had Yunho. Sometimes, you wondered if he was a mind reader of sorts.

You dreaded the simple thought of looking weak, even if it was something as little as asking for some space to vent. You grew up with the mindset that any kind of vulnerability was bad, which wasn’t healthy for you at all, but it feels like it’s too late to change, even if you want to. However, the thing about Yunho is that he’d never allow you to ask for anything because he hands you anything you might need.

Did you need someone to distract you after a rough day of work? That’s a given. His silly memes and TikTok’s were waiting for your reply. Oh, you actually needed space for yourself? It’s ok. He’s got the hint quickly, and he’d leave you be with a simple encouraging message to remind you to rest and contact him the next day.

The good stuff came when you had your weekend free because he remembered you wanted to shop for a new couch, and given the amount of work, it’d be great to have a helping hand, right? Oh, it’s rot-in-bed day instead? Well, it's a good thing he’s versatile.

You never really asked for an all-in-one man, but you got him anyway, so better enjoy it!

Kang Yeosang (강여상): You’re the only person he choose to chase and God forbid if that ever reaches San’s ears

He’s an idol, he’s been in this industry for almost a decade, so he understood being busy, and this overwhelming need to isolate yourself and forget about everything else outside your room. The key difference is that he couldn’t do that much. However, that seemed to be your favorite way to cope lately. It was a lose-lose for him because if you were not locked away in your own world, then you were busy with a million other things.

You’re the only friend from his childhood he still has a relatively stable relationship because of how close in stages of life you two always have been, even now, both working in very different industries.

It has been like this since the very beginning. You two always aimed to be something in the future when you were kids. What you two would be was a different question, and neither was ready to answer. In the teen years, Yeosang got his answer while you worked hard to get into a good college, hoping to find yours when you got there. That could’ve been the end of the friendship, but you were both so aligned still that it could only be fate. He took a chance at a smaller company, and you decided to study something different than you had imagined for yourself. You both had similar struggles, doubts, and accomplishments around the same time. It was a running joke at this point.

He had to remind himself of that sweet part so he wouldn’t lose it the moment you actually picked up his calls. He knew lately it’s been tough for you. Only you chose not to speak about it and went right into your suffer-alone mode.

The upsetting part of all this was the fact that these were your vacation days, you earned them and he wouldn’t be Kang Yeosang if he’d let you waste it in bed all day after he heard for months all about the places you wanted to go. It was a coincidence the fact that he also recently got some free days for himself.

He was nice enough. He gave you a last heads-up that he was coming. In another life, he could say he wasn’t taking no for an answer, but you wouldn’t say no to him in this lifetime.

It’s only been a while since he was slightly concerned with this “on my own” approach to coping with the pain because you decided not to include him in it. The why he didn’t know, neither was he interested in it. But looking back, you’ve always acted like this, like a little fortress of sorts, like you had to be strong for all to see and this was the first time he was taking an action against it.

[stxrslutrestored]

GOSSIP GIRL 𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ ִ𐙚

new to the upper east side? not sure how it works round here? don’t you worry, I have you covered. sit back and put on your reading glasses while you become introduced to some of our very own gossip girl regulars 𐙚 enjoy!

gossip sweetheart, at first glance, and second, she’s the nicest girl on the upper east side, kind and well mannered, well educated and seemingly well seasoned (within her world at least). she’s the perfect amount of sheltered and innocent, but don’t let that fool you, she can get what she wants when she wants it. 

to be on her bad side is what some might consider social suicide. because to have sweetheart mad at you, you have to have done something. 

those who know her personally will get to know a much sillier girl, one who jumps easily and then plays it off like nothing. who makes stupid pop culture jokes and gets herself in shenanigans to no end.  

sarah cameron fits into her lifestyle perfectly. much like sweetheart, she’s the perfect girl for the upper east side, making the second half of the it girl duo that we love so much. sarah is classy when she needs to be, yet on the more informal side, we at gossip girl know that she has some other, less precious tendencies. 

sarah cameron is a party girl, known to be in the clubs with a new man every night. for a girl with such a good reputation, sarah cameron certainly has a dark side outside the bubble wrap of upper east side life. 

kiara carrera is somewhat of an outlier in the upper east side, instead of embracing her status and her riches, kiara chooses to live a more simple life, avoiding rich events at all costs. she spends her time hanging in brooklyn with those less fortunate than her. her money goes towards what she sees as good causes. 

this modern day rebel does what she wants when she wants. she indulges in her interest and lets be honest, she doesn’t care one bit what anyone has to say about her, or that’s what it seems like at least.

rafe cameron, the most infamous boy in the upper east side. nobody really knows what goes on inside rafe cameron’s mind,but everyone knows that he is really quite crazy. rafe is often caught in quickly covered scandals. drugs, violence, sex, you name it, if there’s something abominable going on in the upper east side, he’s involved. 

despite all his scandals, rafe still seems to make a life for himself. even after dropping out of college he lives comfortably on the upper east side, wielding his charm like a weapon to get whatever he wants. some say he’s set to inherit the cameron business and all its assets, but how well will that work out in the end? 

topper thornton, typical boy of the upper east side, facing no troubles or woes in his life. topper is laid back without a care in the world. some might say that it’s a sad existence to care for nothing but money, but topper disagrees, his life is easy, getting all he wants without lifting a finger, materials, rights, girls even. but will toppers life one day come crashing down when he really grows up and learns the harsh realities of adulthood. 

kelce rylan is yet another typical rich boy. always spotted with topper thornton, he has much of the same attitude towards life. kelce does whatever he wants and then pays as much as he can to cover it. to the naked eye he is just a regular guy, to gossip girl, we know there’s more to him. as one of rafe cameron’s minions, there’s nothing you can put past him.

jj maybank a total mystery, its common knowledge that jj lives in brooklyn with a deadbeat dad, and that he couldn’t care less about anything to do with the upper east side life. so how is this boy at constance? that’s a secret not even I can tell you. 

jj is constance academy’s resident bad boy, hanging on to his place in the school by a thread it seems. with a constantly scuffled uniform and a generally intoxicated demeanor, jj maybank still manages to carry a certain charm, and it does make him somewhat of a ladies man. 

pope heyward the star student. at constance on a scholarship by some sweet miracle, his one priority is to make it to an Ivy league and finish his education with straight A’s.

a sweet boy, a kind boy. pope heyward is the perfect gentleman. he spends his free time helping out at the family cafe, a staple for the brooklyn gang.

whilst pope heywards life seems simple, it will most likely become apparent that one little push will be enough to send everything crashing down

john b routlege, brookyns heartthrob. high status enough for constance, but not for anything else. rumour has it his father found a lost city of gold and became rich, not many believe it. a lottery win seems more likely.

john b is hard working, determined, loving and caring, the perfect boy to many. as he hangs out with the other brooklyn boys and only just scrapes by at constance, he makes the perfect other half to our very own JJ maybank

barry rodriguez, the local dealer in simple terms. nobody really knows who he is or where he comes from, but they do know he gets the good stuff. barry supplies the entire upper east side, he’s particularly well known to be around rafe cameron, whatever kind of deal they have, nobody really knows.

now you know what the upper east side is about, who everyone is and how it works.

and who am I? that’s one secret I’ll never tell. xoxo, gossip girl

[pinejayy]

╰➤ Petite Lover uwu

featuring: trafalgar law x petite f!reader

a/n: this was a request by!! @periwinklepuff !! sorry for the wait girl!! I hope you enjoy this!! hugs and kisses to you uwu uwu!!

summary: law loves how tiny you are compared to him, he loves the size difference between you two, especially in the bedroom.

warnings: nsfw content, size differences, law being a tease,

✦•·················• 𝐍𝐒𝐅𝐖 𝐀𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐃!! •·················•✦

Law always enjoyed how tiny you were compared to him, honestly he loved comparing the both of you. You were barely 5 feet tall while he was 6’3. Yes he wasn’t tall as other pirates or enemies in the pirate world but you were still very tiny and petite compared to him. And it made him feel very protective over you. Law loves how you have to look up to speak to him or to anyone.

Law loves when you wear his clothes, especially that black and yellow hoodie of his. And if you’re wearing nothing but his hoodie he’s definitely going to pounce you like some kind of animal.

Law loves holding his hand up against yours, comparing the size difference between them. “Look at how tiny you are, so tiny compared to me.”

Your hands are so tiny compared to his, this dirty boy especially loves when you have to wrap both hands around his dick to stroke him off. It’s a huge ego boost for him.

I can him resting an arm on your head. While he teases you. “Aww how’s my little princess doing?”

And also!! Whenever you’re mad at him, Law will grab your personal items and put them on high places. “Aw do you need help grabbing that princess? All you have to do is ask nicely.”

And also with you being tiny, he feels more protective around you. And honestly it’s kinda overwhelming, because he’s literally breathing down your neck. “I have to protect you…at all cost.”

Law loves how he can hold you close against his body, it could be either in just cuddles or during sex. He loves how easily he can wrap his arms around your body. How close to can against you, and how easily he can carry you.

Oh boy…sex with Law is very interesting. Before getting intimate with him, he was all talk. He was talking about how good he is, how skilled his fingers and tongue are. But when it came to the day you two first had sex he was a shy boy. Probably a virgin…nevermind IS A VIRGIN.

But of course you two have gotten closer so which means sex has gotten a lot more intense between the two of you. And Law loves exploring your body, with his hands and tongue.

And with your small body he can hold you against the wall and fuck you like a wild animal in heat. “So good, so tight..”

He loves whenever you ride his dick, the way your prefect chest bounces against the movements. And how big he looks compared against your pussy. And it especially makes him hard when he can see the outline of dick against your stomach.

Since you are tiny you can fit into cramped spaces right? So his favorite thing to do is get you on your knees and into the small space of his desk where his legs go. And you better get to sucking his pretty cock up.

He loves carrying you as he’s balls deep in you. “Mm light as a feather.”

Whenever you’re sucking him off, he can’t help but bite his lip. How your lips wrap around him. God everything about is prefect.

And Law loves returning the favor. Wrap your legs around his head and let him eat away. He can spend hours between your legs and eat your pussy all day.

So!! Since you are short the crew does tend to tease you slightly. And sometimes it doesn’t bother Law but sometimes they do tend to push your boundaries and that’s what gets him. No one is allowed to mock you for being short.

One time Penguin and Shachi were being their usual selfs and they wanted to mess around with you and it lead them to grabbing your favorite book and holding it high so you wouldn’t be able to reach it. And of course Law saw this and of course he was pissed off. Let’s just say that those two were scrubbing the deck with toothbrushes.

Law does not tolerate anyone picking on you for your height. One time Kid called you a ‘Shrimp’ and Law saw red. That day Eustass Kid was threaten that he was gonna be dickless.

Law doesn’t like anyone teasing you, but he’s fair game. He’s allowed to tease you. Well in his eyes. Whenever you don’t wanna give him a kiss he’ll grab whatever you have and hold it up high. And of course you’re on your tippy toes trying to grab on whatever he has and once close enough, he grab your hands and pin them above your head and lean in for a kiss.

Law loves mocking you when you have to tippy toe to kiss him on the lips. And if he’s being a little shit just grab him by the goatee.

Law behind close doors with you is very lovable towards you. He treats you like a princess. And of course he’s not that rough with you because of course he’s afraid of hurting you in any form.

Once you guys are alone he’s a huge lovable guy. He loves to hold you against his body. He must protect you. No matter what.

Loves being the big spoon. Because you’re so tiny and ahh he just wants to hold you. And occasionally he loves being the small spoon. He loves seeing you hold him.

He loves calling you sweet names. Such as… Princess, Peanut, Small Fry and if he’s being a little head he’s call call you shorty.

He also loves to pat your head. And he also loves to bend down and kiss your forehead.

[edelblau]

it never ends

last night, when playing stardew valley with friends, i noticed i was getting the disconnect and reconnect windows noise a lot. i thought, at first, it was just a usb i might have accidentally tugged on-- and then i thought maybe i just needed to replace the wire.

all of these would have been great. unfortunately, it was neither, and the actual port on my tablet itself is the issue. this is a massive issue, as im disabled and commissions are what let me get through the month every month and maybe even have a social life or pay for fun things.

as someone who is disabled, when i consider repairing something, i kind of have to weigh my options in terms of the cost, since for me, i have to consider things like 'ubering to a repair shop' 'possibly being in a mall because for some reason most repair shops are in malls' 'can i get an uber to bring my rollator safely'. mailing has the same issues, as id have to. you know. get to a post office.

my roommate has generously lent me her old tablet, which is Functional and will allow me to, at the very least, offer a limited repertoire of commissions until i either adjust fully to this tablet* *its smaller and a different model or i can get a new one. (maybe one with bluetooth and an optional wired mode. because nothing betrays me more than micro-usb ports.)

anyways, suffice it to say that post holidays me who struggles on a good month just cannot deal with this at the moment. ill be offering sketch commissions and discord emotes (examples on ko-fi) since im not confident in the quality of my work right now and those are some simpler (and cheaper) offerings, and donations are very appreciated, as are reblogs.

one day i will stop suffering so much and begging so much, but today is not the day. thank you all for reading, and doubly thank you to anyone who shares!

[ramshacklefey]

For the love of all that is good, can more people please understand the following about media representation?

No single story can represent the full diversity of humanity. Yes, we need more stories about more kinds of people. But a single story can only make so many points at once. There are, in fact, a finite number of characters that can be in a single story. And narrowing it down further,

No single story can fully represent the diversity within a single group. See again: finite numbers of characters and limited number of points a single story can be making. Yes, creators should be careful not to treat a single character as a mouthpiece for an entire demographic. Yes, the more characters from a particular demographic there are in a story, the less likely this is to happen. But also,

You as a reader/viewer need to try to avoid treating individual characters as mouthpieces for entire demographics. This is a problem for everyone, because we are all very used to the idea that there is such a thing as a "default human." If a character is "default human," then we (paradoxically) assume that a) they are a unique individual who doesn't represent the entire category of "default humans" AND b) whatever the story is saying about them, it is saying about all humans everywhere. When a character isn't a "default human," we all tend to assume that they are a representation of only people who are not default in the same way as them. While we need and want more characters who don't fit the "default human" category, we as readers and viewers also need to fight the tendency in ourselves to treat those characters as "default [insert category here]."

Looking at wider trends is more about publishers and distributors than individual storytellers/readers/viewers. If you start a sentence with, "No one wants to tell stories about ..." or "No one from Group A ever wants to hear stories about..." I am going to slap you with a raw fish. Because yes. They do. Yes they fucking do. Not everyone, no. But plenty of them. But individual creators are hamstrung by what publishers and studios are gonna put their money behind. And publishers and studios are generally gonna put their money behind whatever they think the most popular stories will be. Which, because of the previous point, they assume is going to be stories about "default humans."

America especially is in a shitty fucking place when it comes to how many people get to make decisions about which stories get funding. C'mon. We know this. The number of mainstream publishing houses can be counted on one hand. The number of mainstream film studios can (maybe) be counted on two. Despite the wailing of certain groups, these studios and publishers are not, in fact, particularly "woke." And the bigger the budget for a project, the less likely they are to take a risk on a story that doesn't fit their image of what a popular story will be. (Which is why you'll find a lot more diversity of characters in novels than in film. Publishing a novel costs a fraction of the budget of even relatively low-budget films.)

Representation is only a zero-sum game if you only care about stories that become massively popular/are put out by the biggest studios and publishers. Yeah, the Big Guys are only gonna put out a handful of stories every year. So maybe it's true in that corner that every character from Group A means one less character from Group B. But in spite of the absolutely shitty situation we're in with production companies, there is a fuckton of stuff out there that has nothing to do with them. Webnovels, indie comics, small publishing houses, self-publishers, local theater, podcasts, ttrpgs put out by small groups, fan fic! It's out there! You can find it if you want it! It fucking sucks that it's harder to find, it really does. But you can go outside the mainstream and find it. Which brings me to my next point:

The effects of an individual publishing their work online are radically different from those of a major studio or internationally famous author. Look. No matter how popular Online Cool Person is, their audience is fucking tiny. Take two steps outside of whatever circle they're popular in and no one's even heard of them. They may be telling the most beautiful and heart-wrenching story you've ever heard, but in the grand scheme of society? They aren't much different from you and your buddies at the table playing an rpg. For better or for worse. If they fail to tell stories about anyone but "default humans," or they try to include more people and utterly fail... just. Stop reading their work. They aren't affecting public opinion. Which is why:

Not everyone has the same level of obligation when it comes to providing good representation. Everyone does have an obligation to not be a fucking bigot with the way they write characters, but y'know, they have the obligation to not be a fucking bigot in general. But when it comes to the potential harms/benefits of particular stories, there are multiple orders of magnitude between Online Cool Person or even Officially Published Person, and Neil Popular or Jo Ann Megabitch. And lastly:

It's good to find stories about people different from you but people don't have a moral obligation to do so and trying to guilt them into doing so isn't going to get you anywhere.

[fereldanwench]

Some thoughts on ~*playing an asshole*~ and other related topics:

I've seen a post cross my dash a couple of times saying playing a kind hero has been very welcome in today's current climate--This isn't meant to be a vagueblog at all, and I even considered replying directly to that post, but it seemed like it was a very personal reflection. I really don't want to come across as trying to contradict that experience because I don't think it's a wrong experience to have.

Especially since I actually remember having a similar response to Ryder and Andromeda back in 2017. It came out about a year and a half after my mother-in-law passed away, while I was working insane overtime hours, and a few months into Tr*mp's first term--I found the optimism in Andromeda and the routes I could take with my Ryder's personality to be exactly what I needed during a really rough time.

So I get it, I really do, and I don't think anyone is wrong for feeling validated by Veilguard's optimism.

But that post did make me realize some of the reasons I personally have had such a hard time connecting to any of the Rooks I've made: I really lost my sense of self and reverted in a lot of ways back to people-pleasing* over the past few years, and it's really only been the past year that I've felt like I'm coming out of that. Because of this, many of Rook's responses in dialogue, often regardless of tone (although "crossed arms" options mitigate this some), reminded me of how I am when I want to be on my very bestest behavior, even to my own detriment.

It's my work persona, the "customer service voice," trying to keep everyone happy and at their best regardless of my own needs because if I see anyone crack, that feels like a reflection on me and my failures. But I'm not really being genuine. This isn't to say that I want to be a full-blown asshole to anyone IRL--I rarely do unless they're being a raging asshole first. But this kindness is armor born of self-defense. It is not kindness for the sake of kindness.

(*Because I know this will get mentioned if I don't mention it: Yes, I did appreciate Harding's observations about her own people-pleasing tendencies, but this is about Rook, not Harding.)

I want to pick apart the whole "be an asshole" line, too (just in general, not directed at anyone specifically)--I do recall seeing folks use that expression to describe their own wants in the game, but I kiiinda feel like it's starting to be used in bad faith, as shorthand for anyone who just wants to play a character with more bite to them. Being assertive or stoic or stubborn or direct or confident doesn't inherently make someone an asshole. But even these aren't really character traits that Rook can really claim without a lot of headcanoning.

(And tbf, Veilguard isn't unique in this regard--I always found the dialogue options for the Inquisitor to pale in comparison to Hawke or the Warden. (And I know some people feel like Hawke pales in comparison to the Warden so you know. All of this is one big YMMV.) But I still felt like I could more organically craft a personality in Inquisitor than I can in Veilguard.)

I will also say, though, that I see absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to play "an asshole," and I also find it to be a bad-faith read to assume anyone who wants to be "edgier" in an RPG is harboring some secret desire to hard people in the real world. In 2018, after a lot of my grief and fear had shifted into anger, playing a ruthless Renegade FemShep was goddamn therapeutic for me. I had a lot of pent-up rage, and it was so cathartic to channel that into this no-nonsense woman who saw what needed to be done and would get it done no matter the cost in a completely safe fictional environment where no one actually gets hurt.

Anyway, there's more I could delve into on this topic, but I think I'll save some of my other thoughts for quieter spaces. I was having a hard time pinpointing what was keeping me from getting invested in my Rooks, and this was kind of an epiphany this morning so I wanted to brain dump.

[gentlebeard]

I love Rhys "above everything else is kindness" Darby and Taika "always love" Waititi and David "if you don't like stuff, don't be a dick about it" Jenkins.

[kradogsrats]

lmao what the FUCK is this

[shmowder]

just need to vent about the Olympics

[talkorsomething]

I have Got to get more transgender

[wrestlersownmyheart]

I will say this again... making disparaging remarks against any wrestler besides Riddle will get you blocked. Especially when the wrestlers you are talking about are some of my favorites.

[yardsards]

tumblr should have a dislike button BUT the dislikes aren't stored anywhere and the amount of dislikes the post gets aren't visible to anyone. just a thumbs down button that does absolutely nothing except light up when you click it. for your own personal satisfaction.

[thetriangletattoo]

.

[caterpillarinacave]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To all my friends on here, I just want you all to know that even though I’m just a random person on the internet, I’m so incredibly proud of you for all you’ve done this year. So many of you have powered through struggles this year, and have come out the other side- no matter what in particular it was you did this year, no matter how small it is- I’m proud of you all for the changes you’ve made an endured, the problems you’ve overcome, and for waking up every day. Its been a pleasure to get to know all of you, and you’re all such kind, talented, unique people, I know you can do it, and I hope this next year brings nothing but joy for all y’all.

Happy New Year!,

CaterpillarInACave

[ableedingpromise]

I should just clean my room and take bath or something