#i work with a lot of kids at my job and they're often excited to teach me how to do things

[lightyakami]

also like tbh i strongly feel that if a younger person doesn't know how to use a piece of technology that you are familiar with the correct response is to like. teach them. you know. like if you run into a child who doesn't know how to run an .exe file you can just take like five minutes out of your day to show them and then they will know. 99% of the tech we grew up is genuinely pretty simple, so if someone doesn't know how to use it it's probably a lack of familiarity more than anything else. ‘easy’ isn’t the same thing as ‘intuitive.’

ime kids are usually pretty gracious about doing it the other way around? like basically every time i've been struggling with an app or something in the presence of a younger person they've just taken my phone and showed me how to do it, or gone ahead and done it for me. so it's really not difficult to do the same for them.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Antiusurpation and the road to disenshittification

THIS WEEKEND (November 8-10), I'll be in TUCSON, AZ: I'm the GUEST OF HONOR at the TUSCON SCIENCE FICTION CONVENTION.

Nineties kids had a good reason to be excited about the internet's promise of disintermediation: the gatekeepers who controlled our access to culture, politics, and opportunity were crooked as hell, and besides, they sucked.

For a second there, we really did get a lot of disintermediation, which created a big, weird, diverse pluralistic space for all kinds of voices, ideas, identities, hobbies, businesses and movements. Lots of these were either deeply objectionable or really stupid, or both, but there was also so much cool stuff on the old, good internet.

Then, after about ten seconds of sheer joy, we got all-new gatekeepers, who were at least as bad, and even more powerful, than the old ones. The net became Tom Eastman's "Five giant websites, each filled with screenshots of the other four." Culture, politics, finance, news, and especially power have been gathered into the hands of unaccountable, greedy, and often cruel intermediaries.

Oh, also, we had an election.

This isn't an election post. I have many thoughts about the election, but they're still these big, unformed blobs of anger, fear and sorrow. Experience teaches me that the only way to get past this is to just let all that bad stuff sit for a while and offgas its most noxious compounds, so that I can handle it safely and figure out what to do with it.

While I wait that out, I'm just getting the job done. Chop wood, carry water. I've got a book to write, Enshittification, for Farar, Straus, Giroux's MCD Books, and it's very nearly done:

https://twitter.com/search?q=from%3Adoctorow+%23dailywords&src=typed_query&f=live

Compartmentalizing my anxieties and plowing that energy into productive work isn't necessarily the healthiest coping strategy, but it's not the worst, either. It's how I wrote nine books during the covid lockdowns.

And sometimes, when you're not staring directly at something, you get past the tunnel vision that makes it impossible to see its edges, fracture lines, and weak points.

So I'm working on the book. It's a book about platforms, because enshittification is a phenomenon that is most visible and toxic on platforms. Platforms are intermediaries, who connect buyers and sellers, creators and audiences, workers and employers, politicians and voters, activists and crowds, as well as families, communities, and would-be romantic partners.

There's a reason we keep reinventing these intermediaries: they're useful. Like, it's technically possible for a writer to also be their own editor, printer, distributor, promoter and sales-force:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/02/19/crad-kilodney-was-an-outlier/#intermediation

But without middlemen, those are the only writers we'll get. The set of all writers who have something to say that I want to read is much larger than the set of all writers who are capable of running their own publishing operation.

The problem isn't middlemen: the problem is powerful middlemen. When an intermediary gets powerful enough to usurp the relationship between the parties on either side of the transaction, everything turns to shit:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/06/12/direct-the-problem-of-middlemen/

A dating service that faces pressure from competition, regulation, interoperability and a committed workforce will try as hard as it can to help you find Your Person. A dating service that buys up all its competitors, cows its workforce, captures its regulators and harnesses IP law to block interoperators will redesign its service so that you keep paying forever, and never find love:

https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2024/02/13/1228749143/the-dating-app-paradox-why-dating-apps-may-be-worse-than-ever

Multiply this a millionfold, in every sector of our complex, high-tech world where we necessarily rely on skilled intermediaries to handle technical aspects of our lives that we can't – or shouldn't – manage ourselves. That world is beholden to predators who screw us and screw us and screw us, jacking up our rents:

https://www.thebignewsletter.com/p/yes-there-are-antitrust-voters-in

Cranking up the price of food:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/10/04/dont-let-your-meat-loaf/#meaty-beaty-big-and-bouncy

And everything else:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/11/06/attention-rents/#consumer-welfare-queens

(Maybe this is a post about the election after all?)

The difference between a helpmeet and a parasite is power. If we want to enjoy the benefits of intermediaries without the risks, we need policies that keep middlemen weak. That's the opposite of the system we have now.

Take interoperability and IP law. Interoperability (basically, plugging new things into existing things) is a really powerful check against powerful middlemen. If you rely on an ad-exchange to fund your newsgathering and they start ripping you off, then an interoperable system that lets you use a different exchange will not only end the rip off – it'll make it less likely to happen in the first place because the ad-tech platform will be afraid of losing your business:

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2023/05/save-news-we-must-shatter-ad-tech

Interoperability means that when a printer company gouges you on ink, you can buy cheap third party ink cartridges and escape their grasp forever:

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2020/11/ink-stained-wretches-battle-soul-digital-freedom-taking-place-inside-your-printer

Interoperability means that when Amazon rips off audiobook authors to the tune of $100m, those authors can pull their books from Amazon and sell them elsewhere and know that their listeners can move their libraries over to a different app:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/09/07/audible-exclusive/#audiblegate

But interoperability has been in retreat for 40 years, as IP law has expanded to criminalize otherwise normal activities, so that middlemen can use IP rights to protect themselves from their end-users and business customers:

https://locusmag.com/2020/09/cory-doctorow-ip/

That's what I mean when I say that "IP" is "any law that lets a business reach beyond its own walls and control the actions of its customers, competitors and critics."

For example, there's a pernicious law 1998 US law that I write about all the time, Section 1201 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, the "anticircumvention law." This is a law that felonizes tampering with copyright locks, even if you are the creator of the undelying work.

So Amazon – the owner of the monopoly audiobook platform Audible – puts a mandatory copyright lock around every audiobook they sell. I, as an author who writes, finances and narrates the audiobook, can't provide you, my customer, with a tool to remove that lock. If I do so, I face criminal sanctions: a five year prison sentence and a $500,000 fine for a first offense:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/07/25/can-you-hear-me-now/#acx-ripoff

In other words: if I let you take my own copyrighted work out of Amazon's app, I commit a felony, with penalties that are far stiffer than the penalties you would face if you were to simply pirate that audiobook. The penalties for you shoplifting the audiobook on CD at a truck-stop are lower than the penalties the author and publisher of the book would face if they simply gave you a tool to de-Amazon the file. Indeed, even if you hijacked the truck that delivered the CDs, you'd probably be looking at a shorter sentence.

This is a law that is purpose-built to encourage intermediaries to usurp the relationship between buyers and sellers, creators and audiences. It's a charter for parasitism and predation.

But as bad as that is, there's another aspect of DMCA 1201 that's even worse: the exemptions process.

You might have read recently about the Copyright Office "freeing the McFlurry" by granting a DMCA 1201 exemption for companies that want to reverse-engineer the error-codes from McDonald's finicky, unreliable frozen custard machines:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/10/28/mcbroken/#my-milkshake-brings-all-the-lawyers-to-the-yard

Under DMCA 1201, the Copyright Office hears petitions for these exemptions every three years. If they judge that anticircumvention law is interfering with some legitimate activity, the statute empowers them to grant an exemption.

When the DMCA passed in 1998 (and when the US Trade Rep pressured other world governments into passing nearly identical laws in the decades that followed), this exemptions process was billed as a "pressure valve" that would prevent abuses of anticircumvention law.

But this was a cynical trick. The way the law is structured, the Copyright Office can only grant "use" exemptions, but not "tools" exemptions. So if you are granted the right to move Audible audiobooks into a third-party app, you are personally required to figure out how to do that. You have to dump the machine code of the Audible app, decompile it, scan it for vulnerabilities, and bootstrap your own jailbreaking program to take Audible wrapper off the file.

No one is allowed to help you with this. You aren't allowed to discuss any of this publicly, or share a tool that you make with anyone else. Doing any of this is a potential felony.

In other words, DMCA 1201 gives intermediaries power over you, but bans you from asking an intermediary to help you escape another abusive middleman.

This is the exact opposite of how intermediary law should work. We should have rules that ban intermediaries from exercising undue power over the parties they serve, and we should have rules empowering intermediaries to erode the advantage of powerful intermediaries.

The fact that the Copyright Office grants you an exemption to anticircumvention law means nothing unless you can delegate that right to an intermediary who can exercise it on your behalf.

A world without publishing intermediaries is one in which the only writers who thrive are the ones capable of being publishers, too, and that's a tiny fraction of all the writers with something to say.

A world without interoperability intermediaries is one in which the only platform users who thrive are also skilled reverse-engineering ninja hackers – and that's an infinitesimal fraction of the platform users who would benefit from interoperabilty.

Let this be your north star in evaluating platform regulation proposals. Platform regulation should weaken intermediaries' powers over their users, and strengthen their power over other middlemen.

Put in this light, it's easy to see why the ill-informed calls to abolish Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (which makes platform users, not platforms, responsible for most unlawful speech) are so misguided:

https://www.techdirt.com/2020/06/23/hello-youve-been-referred-here-because-youre-wrong-about-section-230-communications-decency-act/

If we require platforms to surveil all user speech and block anything that might violate any law, we give the largest, most powerful platforms a permanent advantage over smaller, better platforms, run by co-ops, hobbyists, nonprofits local governments, and startups. The big platforms have the capital to rig up massive, automated surveillance and censorship systems, and the only alternatives that can spring up have to be just as big and powerful as the Big Tech platforms we're so desperate to escape:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/03/23/evacuate-the-platforms/#let-the-platforms-burn

This is especially grave given the current political current, where fascist politicians are threatening platforms with brutal punishments for failing to censor disfavored political views.

Anyone who tells you that "it's only censorship when the government does it" is badly confused. It's only a First Amendment violation when the government does it, sure – but censorship has always relied on intermediaries. From the Inquisition to the Comics Code, government censors were only able to do their jobs because powerful middlemen, fearing state punishments, blocked anything that might cross the line, censoring far beyond the material actually prohibited by the law:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/02/22/self-censorship/#hugos

We live in a world of powerful, corrupt middlemen. From payments to real-estate, from job-search to romance, there's a legion of parasites masquerading as helpmeets, burying their greedy mouthparts into our tender flesh:

https://www.capitalisnt.com/episodes/visas-hidden-tax-on-americans

But intermediaries aren't the problem. You shouldn't have to stand up your own payment processor, or learn the ins and outs of real-estate law, or start your own single's bar. The problem is power, not intermediation.

As we set out to build a new, good internet (with a lot less help from the US government than seemed likely as recently as last week), let's remember that lesson: the point isn't disintermediation, it's weak intermediation.

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/11/07/usurpers-helpmeets/#disreintermediation

Image: Cryteria (modified) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:HAL9000.svg

CC BY 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en (Image: Cryteria, CC BY 3.0, modified)

[3liza]

everyone arguing with material analysis/assertion about how art is a "luxury" has rarely if ever spent rent or food money on art, if they even pay rent or buy their own food, and if they did that would be considered extremely dysfunctional, and thats what i/we mean. artists are not providing a necessary service.

our plane crashes in the Andes and you are not particularly excited about my "can draw that Playboy centerfold of Marge Simpson from memory" like that is not an essential survival skill. lots of extremely skilled workers work in luxury artisan and craft jobs, it's not an insult to say even a very famous and very talented and influential artist is not producing a commodity necessary for the furtherance of human life. none of us are doing that, no matter how we stretch and strain the definitions of "essential" or even things like "morale" or "group identity". i will burn my copy of Finnegan's Wake to stay warm and thats what it comes down to.

i get foamy crazy snarling and biting about the idolization and obfuscation of what artists actually do because it is a labor issue! the public conception of artists as people possessed of a divine talent they dont consciously work to develop like any other skill, and the public idea that we are simply pleased and privileged to make art all day and "not work", something people say to my face every time i get asked "what i do", is largely responsible for the absolute dogshit reality of how subsistence and working class artists have to survive. we usually dont have health insurance unless we're so poor we qualify for medicaid AND live in a state that will enroll us. most of us are too disabled or crazy to go to a real job every day. most of us have tried, over and over, to enter the normal workforce, and have failed, and been forced to develop alternate skills that allow us to make rent in the ten hours per month we're actually functional. many of the artists i know work from bed because standing up is dicey. this has been turned into a charming eccentricity of famous artists and writers instead of people wondering why a person would need to stay in bed all day and take the enormous bother of bringing their stupid pens and paper and writing board or typewriter or whatever to their bed instead of just getting up and getting dressed and going to work. ive done this, i spilled ink in my sheets. its a huge hassle.

and artists play along with this mystique because people dont want to buy paintings from sadlords! they want to buy paintings and books and marge simpson nudes from cool guys who get a lot of chicks and wear rockstar outfits and party a lot, because of the transitive properties! of course!!! this is basic marketing!!!!! and if the artist doesnt play along they turn into Sad Story Artist where they're doing emergency commissions and posting about how sick they are all the time. this is not cool or fun or sexy. it's a sand trap and its very hard to recover from. im struggling with this right now!

famous and successful artists and writers are constantly ending up 60-90 years old with cancer and multiple sclerosis and dementia, being the subject of some sort of public, last-ditch, humiliating GoFundMe because painting paperback covers fr 60 years means you dont get a pension, you often dont even have kids who can take care of you, you dont have life insurance, you dont have health insurance. 'died penniless and alone' is one of the stereotypical artist endings for a reason, that is not fiction. this happened to more artists than i can list on two hands. look up what happened to Peter S. beagle, the guy who wrote The Last Unicorn. you write a book like that you should be set for life, right? NO. thats not how it works

i'm not saying 'all artists are disabled and working class or poor' because that isnt true, observably. nepo babies and trust fund artists exist, obviously. but they take an outsized portion of the spotlight when the public thinks of the concept of "artist". they are not actually the norm. the average artist is probably making under 40k and living in extremely precarious circumstances and has had periods of homelessness, illness, extreme debt and/or bankruptcy.

this is true even for the 'successful' artists. having one or two or ten good projects and being a household name does not save you from just not having the safety net provided by a normal career path. i was very close with a major, famous 2000s network television creator and team that you have heard of. they won awards, they changed culture entirely, they were a big deal. one of them was turned down for a half dozen projects by the same network that made millions or bilions on their franchise over several years (each pitch is completely unpaid btw, imagine carefully preparing a PowerPoint for morons for months at a time for no reimbursement and thent he morons ask you if you can put a teenage witch looking for her lost cat in the alps in it and you're like, haha, well, it's a 4 part hard sci fi miniseries set on Europa and takes place entirely inside a pressurized lander settlement, i mean Ridley Scot said he was interested already and he pitched a bottle episode about a carbon monoxide poisoning, soooooo....and the executives look at each other and they're like "it's jst not really what we're looking for right now, thanks for coming in" and you go to coffee bean and tea leaf and kill yourself and thats sort of what its like. i made that example up it didn't actually happen i'm using an illustrative example), worked on a canceled film, and just. gradually ran out of money. thats what happens. that guy ended up slowly selling off all his belongings, getting roommates in a one bedroom apartment, and then eventually having to just live on a friend's couch for years. famous guy. you probably know his name. another major member of that same team ended up in GoFundMe/commission hell for years (might still be there) because they had to take care of their two dying, dementia patient parents by themselves. these are people who go to GenCon and sign autographs for four hours at a time. THE PUBLIC IS NOT AWARE OF THIS SHIT and i'm sick of it. im sick of going to a gallery opening night ("vernissage") and drinking bad wine and having a guy with an email job that pays six figures and benefits tell me being able to push "undo" on the computer is cheating. that's a real example, that has actually happened to me. more than once.

artists currently have zero labor protections whatsoever. all of us are undercutting each other in an unregulated market and relying on welfare and private insurance and not having families or buying houses. zero security until we get so old all our illnesses and dysfunction finally ground us permanently and then we get turned into a charity case by fans (humiliating) or just fade away into ghosts and die

whats my punchline? idk i dont have one. it's possible and likely that any given artist you meet is permanently in precarity and will be until they die, even the famous ones. the culture of selling art demands that artists do not admit to this in public unless shit gets really really bad. i guess my point is you should know this, as a person who looks at or listens to or reads things that people have made for your amusement, not for your survival

[pandorasprongs]

JAMIE TARTT | i'd be better armed if you agreed to take it.

PAIRING: jamie tartt x fem!reader

WORD COUNT: 5.0k

SUMMARY: higgins' new assistant happens to be an old friend of the reader's, and their reunion hits jamie with major feelings of jealousy. when the team thinks that the pair of them are going on a date soon, jamie decides enough is enough.

WARNINGS: language

A/N: i actually like this story a lot better especially the dialogue! + jealous!jamie was really fun to write HAHAHA i hope that all of you enjoy this and title is from the song '(you) on my arm' by leith ross :) also i apologize in advance i'm not the best at writing kissing scenes

You loved your job, truly. This was the first time you've had a decent, no, fucking amazing boss that didn't make you want to pull your hair out every time they called you into the office. 

But being Rebecca's assistant also meant that you sometimes had to help Higgins out with... well, whatever the Director of Football Operations does. It was fine in the beginning, just scheduling appointments and keeping track of ticket sales, but once Richmond got promoted, it felt like your work doubled.

It only took two weeks before you begged Rebecca to get Higgins an assistant of his own. Luckily, she obliged and asked Higgins to start interviewing possible candidates for the job. 

You hoped that whatever extra load you got due to Higgins occupying himself with selecting an assistant would be worth it from how much would be lifted off you when he did. So when you got the message from Rebecca to help delegate your duties to the new assistant, you practically ran to the clubhouse that morning.

You were too excited messaging your boss that you'd be there soon that you ended up bumping into someone near the entrance.

"Shit!" You exclaim as you almost lose your balance, but are steadied by the other person who turned out to be Jamie.

"Ay, watch where you're going, yeah?" Jamie warned casually, as he let go of your arms once you recovered.

"Sorry, Jamie." You straighten up and walk in with him. "I'm just really excited. Higgins finally picked an assistant and they're here today."

"Oh yeah, you were fucking drowning in work a few weeks ago." And by drowning, he meant it literally. The football player recalled seeing you walking past the locker room carrying a stack of papers taller than you were. You refused any help from the team, partly because they had to get to training and mainly because you didn't want them to see how the tear stains on some of the pages.

"Yeah," you chuckle at the memory. "But, after a few days of helping the new kid out, I'll finally be free." You stretch your arms up in the air and cheer. You were too busy celebrating to notice how soft Jamie's expression had become. 

He loved seeing you act yourself around him, a big jump from when you used to glare at him around the office. He had denied it for a while, but Jamie started to like you around the time he'd gotten back from Man City. 

You knew him before then, when he was a massive prick who stepped over — even literally at times, — his teammates. But after he returned, you felt bad for the guy for how the rest of the team was treating him, no matter if he deserved it. Ted had told you about what they talked about when Jamie approached him about joining the team again, and a part of you felt like he needed at least some kind of welcoming presence in the building. 

You started greeting him more often when you ran into each other in the halls and sometimes offered him the candies you keep in your desk drawer whenever he passed your desk, just small things. Jamie would usually just end up hanging out with you during his breaks because he didn’t have anyone else to spend it with. The first few times, he would just sit there in silence while you worked, but one “How’s your day going?” from you, and he was more than willing to chat.

Then, of course, he gradually regained the team’s trust and started hanging out with them, but even then, your little interactions with him didn't stop. He'd invite you whenever the team had a get-together and would sometimes drop bags of candies at your desk to "re-stock" your drawer. You just thought it was his way of returning your kindness. But what you didn't realize was that the star football player was starting to fall for you. 

Jamie tried to ignore it, saying to himself that he just felt indebted to you, but then it started to manifest in different ways. How he would try and come up with reasons to approach you the next day, how he'd get distracted whenever you had to visit the pitch during practice, and how your awkward habits became something he looked forward to. It's been a while since he felt like this about anyone and was more anxious about rejection than he's felt about any of his games, so he didn't make any obvious pass at you.

So now, as you asked the receptionist where the Director of Football Operations was, Jamie decided to wait for you to spend as much time with you as possible. 

You notice Jamie staying back and relayed the information to him. "Higgins is introducing them to the team, so I guess I'll be going with you to the locker room." You nudge him with your shoulder as you continue to walk through the building. You've always tried your best to ask casual with Jamie, possibly in an effort to make yourself feel normal around him and not constantly blushing every time he looked at you.

As you approach the room, you hear Higgins explaining what the new assistant would be doing for the players. "So if ever you need help with anything I've listed, you can go to Anthony Perez here, instead."

Anthony Perez. No fucking way. You and Jamie enter the locker room and are instantly greeted by the sight of an old friend.

"Anthony, you fucking bastard!" You scream enthusiastically, causing everyone in the room to turn to you, including Anthony. It takes him a second before registering who you were. The moment he does, he raises his arms and you practically leap into him for a hug.

"Oh my god!" Anthony exclaims, as he lets go of you and puts you down.

"I didn't know you were the new assistant!" You lightly smack his arm.

"I didn't know you even worked here!" He defends himself as the two of you turn to find the entire team's eyes on you, including Jamie's.

"Shit, sorry," You laugh as you make some distance between you and Anthony. "Didn't mean to make our reunion so dramatic."

"I assume you two know each other?" Higgins asks and you both nod.

"Anthony and I went to school together," You quickly explain. "From sixth form to uni. Of course, I haven't heard from him in two years." You jokingly glare, causing him to roll his eyes.

"Sorry, I got busy, okay?" He whispers an apology before you both chuckle again.

"Well, I hope your friendship will make it easier to help him get accustomed to the job." You smile at Higgins before the three of you excuse yourself to let the players get ready for training. 

You're so engrossed in catching up with Anthony that you didn't even notice the look Jamie was giving him. 

"They seem close!" Dani innocently says as he puts his shoes on.

"You don't think something is going on with them, do you?" Colin chimes in.

"Well, she's never even mentioned him before, so I doubt it," Sam argues, but Isaac shakes his head. "Nah bruv, that hug was way too intimate for just friends."

"I've seen her hug Keeley and Rebecca like that, too. That might just be how she greets her friends." Jan offers and the team continues to debate it, but at that point, Jamie has had enough. It was already shit having to watch that interaction, but having your teammates talk about it as you pretend not to care? It could not get any worse.

Jamie pulls out a can of body spray from his locker and slams it closed, before turning to everyone. "Can everyone just stop talking about it and get ready?" 

The room goes quiet, as the football player turns around and starts getting changed. The rest of the team exchange looks, before getting ready themselves. Most of them had a hunch that something was going on between the two of you but didn't have any proof, until now. They just hoped they were wrong about you and Anthony, in an attempt to stop Mt. Jamie from erupting.

——

For most players, if something happened right before training that put them in a sour mood, it would mess up their performance on the pitch. Of course, Jamie wasn't like most players. He might be playing even better during that training period. The coaches didn't even have to give him the signal; he was already in 'prick' mode. 

Maybe it was the appearance of Anthony or the fact that you had never been that excited to see him even though he thought you guys were becoming close, but he was playing aggressively and was much more focused than he needed to be for a practice game. The coaches started to take notice after he viciously tackled one of the second teams. 

"Whistle!" Roy shouts, pausing their game. Ted takes a step forward and shouts, "Hey Jamie! Love the passion, but those are still your teammates. Ya'll have a game next week, so better save that attitude for the real one."

"Okay, coach!" Jamie replies through gritted teeth. He takes a deep breath as they continue to play, trying to calm himself down. Ted was right; there was no point in taking out his anger here. Not when the source of said anger was just inside the building.

Once the morning session was over and they were off for lunch, Jamie headed over to Rebecca's office, expecting to see you waiting at the desk outside like you usually were, but instead, he almost runs into the owner of the football club.

"Jamie!" Rebecca exclaims, backing away from the football player to avoid a collision. "What brings you here?" He only needed to glance at the empty table for her to know what was going on. "Oh, well, if you're looking for her, better head to Mr. Higgins' office. She's helping his new assistant get used to the system." 

This causes the player's jaw to clench. Jamie mutters a quick thanks before heading to the Director of Football Operations' office, where he found you hunched over a chair and directing something on the laptop to Anthony.

You had spent the first hour of the day basically catching up with Anthony about what you've been doing the past few years. Once you ran out of stories though, you were forced to actually start teaching him what to do.

You started with the simple things like how to organize the emails, fixing the schedule, and what information to take note of, so you could ask your bosses' about it. Anthony's a quick learner, so you guys were making good progress. Once he practically mastered the routine, the two of you went to the clubhouse cafe to get some early lunch. Most of the food there was pre-packed and they’d usually just microwave it, but over the years, you've developed a fondness for them. You bring back the food to Higgins' office and continue to work on it till you hear someone clearing their throat.

You perk up when you realize who it came from. "Jamie! Hi, what're you doing here?"

Jamie's eyes bounce between the two of you, before settling on your own. "Well, I checked your desk but you weren't there, and Rebecca said you'd probably be here, so I went over here. And now I'm wondering if you wanted to get lunch?"

You move to say yes, but quickly back out when you remember the wrappers on the desk. "Oh, sorry Jamie, Anthony and I just ate something from the cafe cause we wanted to spend the lunchtime working on some emails. Maybe another time?" You try and hide the disappointment in your voice by giving Jamie a small smile.

Jamie's expression falters, but he quickly bounces back. "Sure, no problem. Bye," The football player waves at you — and just you, — before heading back downstairs. He shouldn't be acting like this. Feeling this dejected someone saying she can't have lunch with him?

You weren't fairing that well, either. Your shoulders slump once he disappears from view, then you turn back to Anthony who seems to be holding back a laugh. "What's with you?"

"Nothing, just amused at how even two years later, you still don't know how to talk to the guys you like."

You scoff at his response and hit his shoulder. "What do you mean? I do not like Jamie." You protest, which only causes Anthony to roll his eyes.

"Oh please, it's like you transformed back to a seventeen-year-old the way you got excited when he asked you to get lunch with him." You shake your head, but he continues. "It's clear as day that you have a crush on him."

“That word makes us sound like we're seventeen again," You retort, before redirecting the topic back to the task at hand.

But you knew he was right. Even back in the early days of working here, you couldn't deny that you found Jamie attractive. Anyone with eyes could see it, but he was dating Keeley and was a massive prick, so nothing ever came about from it.

Then, he started spending more time with you, checking up on you and stopping you in the halls just to chat. You realized that he was actually pretty sweet when he was off the pitch and you started to realize that you wanted to spend time with him, not just out of pity like before. Plus, you don't think he's seen anyone in a while, so there really was no reason for you to deny your feelings any longer.

Except, of course, the fear of getting rejected by him and ruining the steady and comfortable relationship you currently have. Which is a good reason, you think. You shake your head and try and continue your work in peace.

After spending your lunch writing up reports, it only took another hour to finish up both your and Anthony's duties, so the two of you update Higgins on your progress and ask if you could observe practice for a bit. He scans through your work, before happily letting the two of you go. The moment you get to the pitch, your eyes instantly look for Jamie who is doing pretty well, to no one's surprise. You join the coaches where they’re standing.

Anthony was already a big football fan, so he was able to recognize almost all of the players on the pitch. In fact, he was even saying things that you weren't aware of, despite your three years of working for the owner of a football club. He bends down to whisper a joke in your ear, but the amusement never hits because soon after, you hear O'Brien groaning in pain. You both look up to see Jamie already helping the goalkeeper up after kicking the ball right into his stomach. 

"Whistle! Tartt, stop fucking injuring your teammates!" Roy shouts, to which Jamie quickly apologizes. The practice game continues, but not without you leaning to ask Beard something.

"Coach, is Jamie okay? He seemed fine when I was with him earlier," You turn your head, as Beard continues to watch the practice.

"He's been playing like that all day. Something must've pissed him off." You open your mouth to say something, but Beard reads your mind. "No, we did not give him the signal." You nod before turning back to the game.

You meet Jamie's eyes as he runs across the pitch, and you take the opportunity to give him a smile and a thumbs up, hoping it encourages him somehow. He only nods his head in acknowledgment before continuing, but you can tell in the next few plays that he seems to be calming down. After a while, you and Anthony decide to head back to the office after Rebecca asks you to send some emails on her behalf.

Jamie watched the two of you head back to the building and tried to ignore that growing feeling when Anthony leaned down and rested his arm on your shoulders. He tries and shakes himself right before continuing the game, ignoring all the possibilities of why he’d do that.

The real reason was that Anthony had decided to tease you, whispering close, "Somebody likes you," in a sing-songy voice. "And his name is Jamie Tartt doo-doo-do-doo—"

That exact remark makes you jab his side. "Shut the fuck up, Anthony. He does not." Anthony lets it go as the two of you reach your desk and he leaves you to do your work, though you can't help but feel warm inside at the thought of it being true.

—

Once he gets changed after training, Jamie practically ran upstairs to find you. Usually, he'd offer to drive you home and before Anthony, you'd be too tired to be polite and say no. He stopped himself from sending a message to you once he realized that you had already left. Maybe she's with Anthony, but Jamie shakes his head because fuck that. Jamie Tartt does not get hung over a girl. At least, the old him didn't.

New Jamie had been starting to hope that you stayed in the office longer just so he could see you again, even if you would be busy doing work. He sighs as he decides to leave the building when someone jumps in front to scare him. "Boo!"

"Jesus fucking Christ," he exclaims and steps back before seeing you losing your mind over his reaction. "What'd you do that for?"

"I'm sorry," You apologize in between your laughing fits. "I didn't realize how easily startled you were." After a few more seconds, you finally straighten up and lift two plastic bags.

Jamie gives you a confused look, before you explain, "When we went to watch training, Coach Beard said you've been playing like that the whole day which can only mean one thing; you're in a shit mood. And you don't have to tell me why, but,"

You hand him one of the bags and one whiff tells Jamie it's from that Indian restaurant he loves. "I thought some dinner would cheer you up," Jamie gives you a genuine smile, one you got used to seeing but always love when it shows up. “Because there’s nothing rich people love more than free food.” You add, causing him to roll his eyes.

"Plus, I wanted to make up for not having lunch with you, and celebrate the fact that I now actually have the time to do this again." You continue as the two of you walk over to Jamie's car.

You get in the passenger seat as Jamie turns the car on. The two of you have shared dinner there multiple times before, so you practically had a system for it, and Jamie always "pays you back" by giving you a ride home. You open all the dishes and Jamie quickly starts to devour it.

The two of you enjoy the dinner in silence, — except for the occasional "Pass the pita," or something of the sort — till Jamie decides to ask the burning question that’s been on his mind. "So, how did you and Anthony get so close?" It was an innocent question, but one whose answer could either ease Jamie's thoughts or amplify them ten-fold.

You look up at him, mid-bite, and quickly swallow the food, before replying, "Well, you already know we went to school together, but we were actually seated next to each other for a whole semester, so naturally we became close since we saw each other every day."

Jamie starts to clean up the empty containers but signals you to continue. "To be honest, I kinda liked him back then." Oblivious to how tense Jamie just got, you laugh. "But the crush didn't last long honestly, cause I realized that he wasn't really my type." 

Jamie takes the opportunity. "What is your type, then?"

"Oh, hot footballers, naturally." You decide to give a somewhat honest answer, but cloak it in a layer of sarcasm to hopefully throw Jamie off. "Like Richard," You try and convince Jamie with your tone, but you can barely hold in your laughter afterward.

"Oh fuck off," Jamie rolls his eyes, causing you to laugh even harder. "I'm telling him that tomorrow."

"Jamie Tartt, you fucking wouldn't!" You spend the rest of the ride to your flat trying to get him to promise to say nothing, which ends with a pinky promise to secrecy.

—

The next few days are a mix of hanging out with Anthony, eating meals with Jamie, and finishing up work so you can spend the rest of the day chilling at your desk. You almost forgot what it felt like to have free time and actually relax during work breaks.

You arrive at the clubhouse and immediately head to the Coach's office as per Rebecca's instructions to deliver some documents for the season. There, you meet up with Anthony who also had to bring something to Ted.

When you realize the coach hasn't arrived yet, you decide to wait outside the locker room. Anthony turns to you. "Hey, I forgot to tell you yesterday, but Mina's visiting!" Mina was Anthony's girlfriend and also your former classmate, who once again, you haven't seen in two years. You perk up and ask when you’d get the chance to see her.

Anthony pulls out his phone before responding, "I can make a reservation for us somewhere at, 7 pm?" You quickly scan your mental to-do list and once you realize your schedule is free, you nod.

"Yeah, that works! We'll both be done with work, anyway." 

The two of you are busy planning out your meeting with Mina that you don't notice Isaac and Colin eavesdropping as they make their way to the locker room. From the snippet that they heard, it sounded like the two of you were planning a night out, confirming their suspicions that there was something going on between the two of you.

They share this with Sam, who tries to reason with them. "Friends can go out to dinner without it meaning anything!"

But as they continue discussing it, the more it becomes harder to deny. I mean, the two of you were always together and not to mention, your shared history. They try and hide this from Jamie, — partly to save themselves from the football player's wrath during training, — but once the morning session was over, they crowd him and quickly explain the situation.

At this moment, Jamie didn't even protest their assumption of his feelings — he had accepted that he wasn’t the best at hiding it from them, — and simply stayed silent, which was incredibly worrying. They decide to leave him be and walk back to their lockers, trying to figure out a game plan. They thought you and Jamie would be great together and a guy from your past was not going to stand in the way of their teammate finding someone, not if they have anything to do with it.

Soon after, Anthony enters the locker room and calls out to Sam. The pair walk away to talk and Anthony starts, "Do you happen to have an open table at Ola's tonight? I'm planning to take someone special there and I know how great the food is."

"Well," Sam considers saying that they're fully booked — which big chance, they are, — and there's nothing he could do, but his guilt at even the thought of lying takes over. "Sure, don't worry." Anthony smiles and thanked the player before heading out, but not before promising that he'd send him the proper details later.

Sam heads back to his two teammates and explains what happened, to which Isaac suggests booking the whole restaurant for the team, crashing their date, and making sure they have no alone time together. Colin adds that they can possibly put something in Anthony's food to force him to go home earlier, which Sam quickly shuts down. They turn to Jamie to get his input, only to find an empty bench instead.

Said teammate was already making his way to your desk to talk. Maybe it was the adrenaline from practice or the fact that he drank three cups of coffee this morning after Roy's training session, but he wasn't going to let you go on that date without saying something.

Jamie makes it up the stairs and finds you typing away at your computer. You meet his eyes for a second, before warning, "Hold on, I'm just finishing this email."

The football player decidedly ignores that statement and exclaims, "Don't go on that date." That gets you to save the email as a draft and look up from your screen. Jamie walks closer to you and you stand up, and steer him to a remote corner. If this was what you thought it was, you’d rather not have the entire office witness it go down.

"I'm sorry, what?" You try and clarify.

"Look, some of the boys told me that you and Anthony are going out tonight and I," Jamie takes a breath, "I couldn't let you go through with it. At least, without admitting that I like you. I have liked you for a while now. I didn’t realize that someone could be so sweet and funny and attractive. It’s fucking insane actually, which is why if you haven’t noticed, I’ve been trying to spend as much time with you as I can. And I know it’s stupid of me to not have admitted it till it’s too late, but if by chance you feel the same, then please do not go on that date and instead, maybe go on one with me?”

You take a step back. The guy who you've secretly been pining over for how many months at this point is now trying to stop you from going on a "date,” and so the only thing you can do is stare at him. You stay like that for a second before regaining your senses and taking his hand into yours and giving him a small smile. "Jamie…"

If there was any right time to admit your feelings, this would be it. You open your mouth to continue, but hear Anthony call out to you. You peek over the corner and when Anthony spots you, he quickly shouts, "Look who stopped by!" and moves to reveal Mina.

"Oh my god, you're here!" You exclaim, but turn back to Jamie who has stopped in his tracks and is still holding your hand. You quickly excuse yourself, "It's so nice to see you, but could you actually give me a minute?"

The couple gives you a curious look before Jamie peeks his head over the corner and Anthony immediately understands. The two of them go back downstairs, and you assume Anthony uses the time to explain to Mina what’s going on.

You turn back to Jamie, hoping that the moment isn't ruined, and find the football player still looking at you intently. You decide to get on with it. "Jamie, I don't know why the team thought we were going on a date, but that couldn't be farther from the truth. The girl you just saw is Anthony's girlfriend, Mina, who we also went to school with." Jamie makes an 'o' with his mouth in realization and you lightly chuckle at his expression.

"She's visiting him for the weekend and we're planning to go out to dinner, the three of us, to catch up. I'm basically going to be a third-wheel all night." At this point, Jamie's expression is a cross of embarrassment and anger, likely directed at his gossiping teammates.

Your mind replays Jamie’s confession earlier. "Jamie, did you mean what you said?" Your voice is practically a whisper, but you just have to be sure. "Like right before we got interrupted?"

Instead of giving you a solid answer, Jamie lets go of your hand and cups your face before connecting your lips. It was a soft and gentle kiss as if the football player was still hesitant, but once you reciprocated it, Jamie's confidence came right back. Fuck, and he had every right to be as cocky as he was. He was an amazing kisser.

You're pressed up against the wall, almost getting lost in it, but you break apart to stop it from escalating further when you feel Jamie's hand travel to your thigh.

"Is that enough of an answer for you?" He asks, resting his forehead against yours as you take hold of his forearms. You simply roll your eyes at how easily Jamie returns to his usual self.

You peak down the corridor and thank the universe that no one passed by during this. The two of you separate and decide to head back downstairs — with Jamie never letting go of your hand, — so you could properly greet Mina.

As you walked, you decide to jokingly question, "Were you really that worried about me going on a date that you had to go all rom-com and tell me not to go?" 

Jamie protests, "Well, it's more of the boys' fault, isn't it? They're the ones who got in my head." He pauses for a second. "And don't act like you never wanted something like that to happen to you."

You jab his side and Jamie pretends to be in pain, before laughing it off and slinging his arm on your shoulders. You wrap your arm around his torso. "Only if it's 'one in a million' Jamie Tartt doing it."

You finally find Anthony and Mina in the locker room, with the former introducing her to the players there as his girlfriend. Jamie enters to find the three culprits, looking guiltily at the couple. Minutes after Jamie left, Sam had gotten a text from Anthony saying that their reservation was for three and explained that you were coming along for a reunion dinner with his girlfriend.

The moment they see the two of you enter the room though, Colin, Isaac, and Sam can't help but share a satisfied look, only to be ruined by the glare Jamie sends their way. You laugh at the exchange and only remove yourself from Jamie to greet Mina. You give her a tight hug, confirming Jan's observation that you did greet most of your friends like that.

You pull Jamie towards you and introduce him to Mina, who shares the same teasing look as Anthony. The couple waves at the team to leave and get lunch together. They invite you to join them which you accept, but not before grabbing and squeezing Jamie's hand as a goodbye. The three of you walk away, discussing nearby cafes and restaurants. You hear some cheering from the locker room and you can't help but laugh at how easily the boys reconcile.

Once there's enough distance between yourself and the room, Anthony leans down. "Guess you finally figured out how to talk to boys."

"Who knew it would be Jamie fucking Tartt that managed to get you out of your shell?" Mina adds and you roll your eyes at the pair. They really were made for each other.

[yanderes-galore]

I hope you are having a good day. Could you write a platonic concept for Glamrock Freddy sharing reader with Glamrock Bonnie? I replayed Ruin and seeing Freddy's poster again made me think that those two friends (or more, if you want to see them that way) would be a great team and work together to keep the reader to themselves.

Yeah I can do that, was not entirely sure how to write Bonnie so I winged it.

Yandere! Platonic Glamrock Freddy + Bonnie Sharing a Darling

Pairing: Platonic - Sharing

Possible Trigger Warnings: Gender-Neutral Darling, Obsession, Stalking, Overprotective behavior, Kidnapping, Manipulation, Clingy behavior, Isolation, Forced companionship.

There's no canon Glamrock Bonnie personality but I'm going to make a new version compared to my other one.

We can assume Bonnie is very caring as Eclipse's line was meant to be for him if I remember correctly.

As a result, both bots are very caring to guests and STAFF.

We can assume this whole concept took place before Monty breaking Bonnie and the missing kids.

Bonnie is probably a little arrogant but not as much as his other counterparts.

For the most part he'd probably be similar to Freddy.

Although I also imagine him as carefree and fun loving.

You are most likely close to the two as their mechanic like I do in most fics, or at the very least you work at the Pizzaplex somehow.

I think you're right to assume the two would share a darling.

They're best friends and nearly inseparable.

I can't imagine the two fighting so they'll have no big problems sharing.

You often visit Bonnie Bowl and the Main Stage to see the two.

Unbeknownst to you, you're their favorite.

The blue bunny and orange bear often meet up to speak about their best friend.

They see you as part of their duo now trio.

They only bond even more when they realize they have a shared connection with you.

I imagine they'd gush about you to each other and are very excited when you stop by.

The two are no doubt your biggest fans and hope you care for them too.

Of course these two are going to be a great team.

They both keep track of you and share information about you with each other.

You always have a pair of eyes on you as you work.

At this point they know what you bring to lunch, where you frequent, what you like… they have a lot more information than they should.

As your friends… they have to learn everything, right?

That's what they tell each other as they pry into your personal life.

Obviously you'll notice you see the two everywhere.

They are the bots you see most often.

I imagine they'd both act as parental friends or dads at times with you.

They have to watch you for overworking, right?

Oh! Can't have you getting hurt, either.

Care for an ice cream? You can hang out with them at Bonnie Bowl!

You try not to feed into their behavior as you don't want to be fired for slacking off.

Such information makes the two upset.

Their friend can be taken away from them that easily?

Hm… that won't do.

They definitely act like robot caretakers at times.

If you express any emotions that aren't normal or have any injury, one of them is checking in.

Bonnie will have you follow him to Bonnie Bowl for a couple of games.

Freddy's checking you over and even passing you a plush toy.

It's nice they care but they make it difficult to get them to do their job.

The STAFF members keep giving weird looks.

Honestly, if you ever felt like quitting or were told you were being fired, you'd end up disappearing.

Why? Well, your two “friends” ended up taking you away.

Oh, they never liked the other STAFF around you anyways.

They also didn't appreciate you ignoring them.

There's no need to worry! They'd never hurt you.

So there's no need to look so scared as they stare down at you from the darkness.

They made a little room for you in the maintenance tunnels.

They'll feed you, care for you, and be your best friends!

Don't leave your little room… they made it just for you!

They filled it with merch of themselves, there's an old arcade machine, a collection of blankets and pillows to be your bed….

They couldn't just let you leave!

Now you won't have to…

With them… you'll have endless fun!

So please… stop crying… give them a smile!

[kissmypoets-hp]

📚 Fanfic Classics Series: The Lettered Special (Part One)

Some covers for @letteredlettered's beautiful fics, which have kept me company over the years. The Drarry fandom is extremely blessed to have so many talented writers and to me lettered's fics are foundational texts. I've had a number of these already saved and when I started making ebook covers for my Kindle I knew I had to make covers for these. Life-changing!!!!! I know I use the term "life-changing" often whenever I recommend fics, but it is what it is. Please, it is 3AM. Read (or re-read) these masterpieces and thank me later.

Away Childish Things Harry gets de-aged. Malfoy has to help him.

Friends at Last This can be considered the sex extra from Away Childish Things, if you like, but you don't have to have read that to enjoy this. It's porn.

He Who Must Not Be Normal Potter has fame and fortune and posh clothes and all he wants is a simple life. Draco has a flat and a cat and a steady job and all he wants is a complicated life. Which makes you think this story has something exciting like body-swapping, but it doesn’t. Instead it has Indian takeaway and a blue jumper and people wanting a whole lot of what they can’t have, discovering themselves as they discover each other.

Hope Springs Eternal (But Love Springs in the Forest, Unannounced) Draco falls into a love spring. Harry saves him! And now they’re bonded for life. Draco is horrified. Harry thinks it’s kind of neat.

By the Grace Harry is an Auror instructor. Malfoy wants to be an Auror.

art credits + comments under the cut :)

Artworks used, in order:

“L'Atre (The Hearth)” by Édouard Vuillard (1899)

"The Open Door" by Edouard Vuillard (1900-04) 💬 Away Childish Things is one of the first fic covers I made, ever. I've reread this fic often, mostly because Harry deserved a better childhood for real!! This is, like, THE kid fic ever. Seriously. I enjoy making covers for fic series because it means I get to do matching covers by the same artist (thank you sir Vuillard). I chose the first piece because it fit the visual mood of the first fic: kind of dreary, but still warm (Draco's lab, baby Harry and his terrible childhood). I also remember some adventures involving Floo powder here :) Honestly, I think Harry and Draco were lonely in their own way before the de-aging incident happened, and both Harry and Draco (in their older and younger counterparts) needed one another. It's so special to me that they were able to meet each other where the other person was without romance involved — they weren't even friends at the start but they still managed to meet each other halfway... For Friends At Last I wanted to choose a painting with a brighter mood because hello, resolution. They're friends at last (okay, title drop)! They have communicated and [insert ACT ending here because no spoilers]! They.... have sex! The same style of chair being featured in both paintings is a happy coincidence. Perhaps Sir Vuillard had an inkling that one day his artwork would be used to make ebook covers. IDK.

"Still Life" by Pablo Picasso (1918) 💬 I was thinking of Draco's apartment here. He Who Must Not Be Normal is a dynamic I can't get out of my head (and it was published in 2013!!!). Basically, all of lettered's works are so compelling. I could be wrong (I wasn't really an active participant in the fandom until this year haha), but I swear I can see lettered's influence on other fics in the fandom...

"Schizonema Dillwynii" by Anna Atkins (1853) 💬 This is actually a cyanotype of a plant LOL but it reminded me of a spring. Sometimes the process is that literal. Anyway, this fic... It kind of set the bar for magical bond fics for me??? I still can't describe why or how. But please read it if you haven't yet!!

"The Lone Tree" by Caspar David Friedrich (1822) 💬 Because of Timothy Tree... I couldn't find a good tree artwork that perfectly got the vibe (in the public domain, at least) but I like this one too.

[isa-ghost]

amfmn missa.. p please.. please mother … feed us

I'M BEING ENABLED PPOVERHEAT

He's an actual grim reaper. That's where he's disappeared to so often in canon, reaper duties. It's a very demanding job, you know.

Doesn't stop him from feeling terrible about being gone so often though. He misses his husband and kids and hates how often he's out of the loop :(

Fr though Phil and the kids make him so so happy after spending countless hours working such a sad job. It's also partially why he sings and makes art. That brand of fun is catharsis for the soul.

He has all his canon weapons but I ALSO gave him a reaper deathscythe. And boy is he gonna use it. Fucking AWOOGA MissaSinfonia when he's angry.

Btw as a reaper he can FEEL souls. He can see their power, their condition, feel the surface level emotions and personality of its owner. This will come in handy later in the fic. ;)

As per the post I made asking for Missa appreciation so I can characterize him properly: He's undyingly loyal, he fights hard and loves even harder, he's protective, silly, and goddamn can he flirt.

All his wet cat behavior is a result of getting too overwhelmed by The Horrors. He's seen A Lot as a reaper. But somehow Quesadilla Island and all its... Everything. Always manage to show him a new brand of What The Fuck he's never even imagined before. Hence all his screaming and weeping when he's caught up on what he's missed. Like how tf else is he supposed to react??

Somewhat attached to that, he and Phil rlly were a match made in Federation Heaven bc they both have issues with self-doubt despite being insanely skilled and sharp-witted. Missa is better abt it than Phil though. His only acts up when he messes up a lot or just. Doesn't have a clue how to handle a situation where it's dire that he does. It's more of an insecurity about being unprepared and failing his loved ones than it is a doubt he has skill. He KNOWS he does, he hates when it's not enough. That's how he differs from Phil, who thinks he has none at all.

Btw when you fuck with the people he's protective over, he gets PISSED. We're getting a LOT of pissed off Missa in AMFMN <3 Ofc there'll be a lot of reaper tears too, his husband is suffering and there's little he can do about it. :( But ohohoho when the sad turns into rage. BARK WOOF. Eventually he decides EK is catching these hands and scythe.

He also shakes hands with his husband on being a self-sacrificing little shit. And. Yeah this is gonna happen later in the fic. (He's not dying dw dw)

You have no idea how excited I am that I basically get to build his dynamics with Fit, Etoiles, and Bagi from scratch. I'm so hyped. People are welcome to reply with this with any crumbs we have of their dynamics in canon but afaik they've rarely interacted outside of very minor moments, so AMFMN will largely be a sandbox for me to establish what I THINK they'd be like. Which in my fic plan so far, is largely taking each character's personality and applying how I think they'd react to a situation, and how that would look when two of them are interacting in that situation. Ex: at one point Etoiles has to comfort Missa bc he's just having a ROUGH time with this saving Phil stuff. But Etoiles is NOT a comfort guy. So he does his Etoiles thing: hearing Missa out while also cracking his usual brand of jokes in an attempt to lighten the mood.

I also have a plot point planned with him and Bagi when shit is hitting the fan the hardest and OUUGHHH. That self-sacrificing shit am I right.

God I'm being so mean to him specifically in AMFMN though. Ender King is a sack of shit, he knows exactly who to harass most using Phil's body >:/

See in my AMFMN Fitza headcanons, I said they're each other's confidants. Which IS true. However, no one in the fic gets the honor of Phil FINALLY communicating with someone about his issues other than his husband. Missa is the person he caves and confesses things to. Missa gets the HC Deity lore and what's been happening to him lately. This is actually what Chapter 3 is :D

Also I am so sorry but I'm sliding a Missa Romantic Love Confession attempt into the fic and it gets interrupted by The Horrors. But yeah Missa is romantically in love with Phil, he just respects that Phil sees things platonically. He still wants to communicate his feelings though.

[mossyivy]

CHRIS STANS RISE!!! WE NEED TO GIVE THAT MAN MORE LOVE AND ATTENTION!!! 😤

Domestic Chris…Because that’s my specialty. 🥹

I see Chris having three kids, two boys, one girl. He’d be the type of dad to push his boys so hard, always expecting the best of the best from them. His daughter as well, but not as harsh. I see them all pretty close in age, maybe 1-2 years apart for each kid.

He’d have his boys do all sorts of sports and activities. Football, baseball, basketball, tennis, track, cross country, you name it, they do it. Chris would also help them practice, especially in football and baseball. His daughter would probably do ballet, tennis, and be in the Girl Scouts with Cecilia, and maybe do drama with Violet as well.

Also, it’s very much cannon that Chris spoils his daughter 10X more than his boys. His little girl wants to go on a Sephora shopping trip? Take his card and go crazy. His boys want to go out with their friends? Here’s $25 for the both of you.

Chris is also such a loving husband. He’d buy you gifts “Just because”. Or if you mention a new designer purse online, it would mysteriously show up on the dining table to greet you when you woke up…With a handwritten note of course. You were very much a spoiled wife, but he didn’t care, you gave him three beautiful kids for god sakes, of course he’d buy you whatever you want.

If there was ever a time any of your boys were disrespectful to you while he was gone, (Because they know better than to mess with their mother while dad’s around.) He’d give them the “You don’t disrespect MY wife.” Talk. Ugh, 😣 give me a chance Chris…☹️

- Anon! 🎀

🎀 ANON I FUCKING LOVE YOU I'VE BEEN WANTING TO TALK ABOUT HIM BUT NO ONE REALLY DOES MUCH IN THE CHRIS TAG ANYMORE AND THAT PLUMMETS MY MOTIVATION!!!

But I'll scream with you anyday bb!!!

(I'm sorry this is so long I just couldn't help myself 😭)

Okay so I've had the idea that Chris met someone with a child from a previous relationship (Your first born son, Let's name him Oliver and call him Ollie for short! He's like 2 years older than Violet. He struggles a bit in school so they're in the same grade, along with his younger brother, after he was held back in 5th and 8th grade but that's okay! Everyone struggles!)

Ollie was like 2 when they first met. Your ex-husband was a HORRIBLE MAN, absolutely terrible to you and the only good thing he ever did was bless you with Ollie. That's it.

Chris and his wife met through work (let's be honest here, how tf else would he meet a woman? Chris is very much a workaholic.) His wife is basically the lead of the BSAA's dispatch response team (Basically what Hunnigan does at the FOS but the BSAA's version) and she's good at her job. Very strong willed and mouthy as a mf. Isn't scared to go back at anyone over the radio and definitely got into it with Chris once or twice before they officially met.

(catch me posting what happened when they met in person the first chance someone asks)

Anyway!!

After y'all start dating it doesn't take long before you introduce Chris to your son and Ollie is just OBSESSED with Chris. Like you've never seen this kid so excited to see another human being until Chris shows up. You two only started dating for a few months and Ollie already calls Chris dad. You try correcting him scared AF that Chris is gonna get freaked out but he's actually super chill with it. He's use to taking care of people, he basically raised Claire after their parents died but this little guy is much younger and a lot more fun and excitable than Claire was.

A few months into the relationship you find out you're pregnant. Chris is excited but also freaking out with how often he's gone. But everything works out and you end up having your second son, Christopher Jr but CJ for short.

You and Chris end up getting married not long after your first anniversary after the babies born. Not making a big deal out of anything just getting papers signed and having a little get together celebrating everything.

2 years go by, Ollie's in Kindergarten and CJ does daycare. You start getting horribly ill out of nowhere. So you go get checked out and oh God you're pregnant again...

(This would be the point in time where Leon starts bugging for another baby with his wife)

9 months of Chris being a nervous wreck fly by and the world meets your daughter, Talulla, Lulu for short.

Chris would be adamant on sticking the kids in after school activities once they're old enough. His boys would do sports and his baby girl in softball and girl scouts so she can hangout with her pseudo cousins. (Her being 2 years younger than Violet and 2 years older than Cecilia) Until her older cousin quits cause girl scouts are for babies (🙄)

Chris and his wife would be UBER COMPETITIVE when it came to cookie selling season. It's all out war between the Redfield's and Kennedy's every year.

I feel like Ollie would also really be musically gifted and play piano for the school choir and musicals. Lulu would Ed up wanting to do drama but be a stage hand or in the costume department. She's actually very shy.

CJ is basically Chris when he was a kid. Always doing stupid shit... Getting in trouble over the dumbest of things but looking out for others. (Definitely beat up that kid who was picking on Violet when they were 7.)

You're getting calls from the school at least once a month because CJ got in trouble for either getting into an argument with a teacher over rules or another kid tried something stupid.

[leoruby-draws]

hello hello hello

i just want to say i love your little drawings so much they're adorable and so full of life and everything feels exciting in them and i love how you draw and make really fun stuff for many of the minor characters, you're doing such a good job with them and it gives me so much joyy

Hi Hi Hi

Thanks for liking my stuff! Happy to bring you joy, drawing these brings me joy!

Also its fun to get into and draw minor characters because their reading lists are super short lol! But I like to give a little love to characters that most people might not know about, in fact here's some random drawings that I had in the back-burner for the past year! Never could find a chance to just post them:

Here's a cute drawing of Cyclone, Maxine Hunkle! Wanted to give her a cute costume makeover. Kinda has a magical girl look to it huh? Took a bit of inspiration from Ojamajo Doremi, but also she's meant to resemble Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz! Both the princess and the witch. I have a bit of idea of what I'm going do with her, but that's for later.

Got a drawing of Gan, Jason's friend from the Knight White books. Not sure if she exist in my Training Wheels au, but I like her a lot. Her rapport with Jason was fun to read.

Here it looks like the Outlaws are trying to recruit new members, from the Relative Heroes group, Damara Sinclaire (Allure) and Tyson Gilford (Blindside). They're not likely to join, preferring to stick with their own group. Just as well since Damara's powers might make things a rather chaotic, she doesn't need that drama in her life lol. Tho I like the thought of Tyson helping out now and then, his invisibility would be pretty useful.

Here's some random assortment of heroes, Ray Terrill the...Ray. Amethyst, tho top pic is uncolored (im lazy) but theres a Sailor Amethyst to make up for that.

There's the first Green Lantern (Alan Scott) with his kids,Jade (Jennifer Lynn Hayden) and Obsidian (Todd James Rice). Wonder why their babies here, de-aging mishap?

Jason and Toni gossip about their fellow teammates, and down below Jason decides to annoy a young Kyle Rayner. A universal constant!

Todd can't help but join in!

Also some cute father-son bonding! I sent this to someone else earlier, so imma just stick here too.

For a really minor character, here's Jay, Eddie and Rose meeting up with a very strange new friend!

And lastly here are the Metal Men, or should I say the mini-Metal Men. Read some comics about them, including a bit of silver age as well (they get destroyed pretty often, kinda funny ngl). I thought about what kinda sidekicks they could have, but I didn't want to look up metals or learn about metallurgy or chemistry or whatever. So I just made them smaller, its just temporary though, aren't they cute? Look at poor Copper, she just wants to join in!

Anyways, hope that wasn't too much, tagging all of this is gonna suck.

Sorry I haven't been posting, due to Tumblr being a pile of shit and trying give our stuff to ai websites. So I thought I would download nightshade and glaze, but that didn't work out at all (I got a new laptop but it still wont render for me at all). So I'm just gonna hope my opt-out in the settings will be enough for now. Sigh!

Hope you like all this anon, might be a while til I post again. Later!

[ashintheairlikesnow]

I am LIVING for the Chris reblogs. He truly is one of my favorite whumpees of all time. You have mastered the art of a subtle “perfect victim” with him. I may be dead wrong but realistically, what has he done that was even controversial through his whole storyline, you know what I mean? Like just as a few examples of your wonderfully written Not Perfect victims and (this isn’t to victim blame or shame at all,) Jameson did sign up for WRU, his and Kauri’s recoveries were FAR from smooth or perfect, and don’t even get me started on Antoni, yikes! Even Nat, who is doing the lords work now, has a shady past! But Chris genuinely perfect. Even the things he thought were his fault weren’t. And like I said it’s not his main character trait is being THE perfect victim, it’s one of those things that was nicely left not outright said, and for the readers to use critically thinking and I LOVE IT. I think that’s a really difficult feat to pull off and you did a fantastic job.

Also like I said I may be dead wrong but I genuinely can’t think of one true misdemeanor committed by Chris.

Having said all of that I also love all of the character flaws you bestow upon the rest of the gang! Either them being fucked up before, or the aftermath of all of the traumatic experiences leaving them fucked up and with significantly poorer judgements that lead to them getting in situations they maybe would not have if it wasn’t for having a new and definitely not improved way of thinking! Okay, yap over. Keep up the great work!!

So this is kind of an interesting thing for me, because I really do try as much as I can to steer away from that "perfect victim" archetype, but Chris kind of fell into it despite how hard I tried not to have him do that.

His basic disposition was always going to be a sweet kid who had been absolutely tortured and who had nonetheless come out of it with a resilience that would allow him to start rebuilding from that shattered foundation.

Unfortunately, it does mean that he didn't end up with a lot of the more kind of exciting to write and interesting faults and imperfections and occasionally outright malevolence that I have in other characters who are not bad guys, they're just people who had to do bad things to survive horrifying situations.

But of course, the biggest impact there as far as Chris's story is that he never saved himself. He didn't do anything against his own moral code to escape. He was saved by a woman who realized what she was looking at, driven several hours in the middle of the night by a man he'd never met before, and dropped on the doorstep of a whole new group of strangers he had no idea whether or not he could trust.

So Chris does hit that damsel in distress archetype in a way that I don't normally like to go for in main characters. But he really insisted on it, and I think there's this thing about archetypes where we see them so often that we get kind of tired of them, but one of the reasons we do see them so often is because they resonate. And there really are people like that in the world, not everybody of course.. probably not even most people put in the same situation would react the way that he reacted to things. But people do.

And what Chris did to survive was pull back inside of himself so thoroughly that when he started to come out of his shell, all the basic goodness in him was more or less intact and untouched. They could destroy so much of him, but they could never make him anything less than inherently a good kid in a bad situation.

If you were to ask chris, he would probably tell you that the biggest character flaw in him is cowardice, because even as an adult he doesn't really fully understand why he has the freeze and fawn, and hates himself a little for never having been able to fight in any real way. He would call himself a coward, not just for not fighting back but also for the times he's been too afraid, like when he walked away from Rafael the first time they met. That he was able to screw up the courage in the museum to talk to him then was an enormous feat of bravery for Chris. He was absolutely wrecked for days afterward. It took everything he had in him to do it.

[takami-takami]

,,,, hombre it is presently //squints

8:03 in the PM

i should be HONESTLY working on other projects atm on my plate

but my brain refuses to let go of disgusting Fantasy!AU fluff that's been CLINGING TO MY BRAIN LIKE WINE STAINS ON A WHITE T-SHIRT AND I NEED TO LET THEM RUN RAMPANT!!!!

so!!! here's the quickie sales pitch bestie;

Keigo since boyhood has always been… on the unfortunate side when it came to the more tangible leisures of life. Income is something I’m sure plenty of families struggled with, his situation being no different. To alter that, he'd been enlisted in the Royal Knight's brigade since a very, very young age as a result. He's solely devoted the time and energy to keep his kinsman safe from whatever horrors lie beyond and within the city's walls, occasionally being fed a “thank you, brave knight!” from the passing kids running the streets being kept safe to see the light of the next dawn, feeding his drive and purpose even if it were a crumb’s worth of gratitude. That was “enough” for him. To his surprise, the noble family often needs a fine swordsman who is better than Keigo, revered an exemplary star student who caught the eye of His and Her Royal Majesty's eye when searching for a personal bodyguard to secure their precious child and next heir to the throne. 

Keigo of course, just sees this as an ample opportunity to just overall better his quality of life for likely a higher risk per the reward. Graciously accepting the new role and the gilded uniform to boot.

He was completely baffled that the first day on the job was simply to escort the heir through a Flower Viewing Advent they'd been looking forward to for a while now!! The castle is very, very stuffy after all and I'm sure the heir's newly appointed Knight would appreciate the fresh air as well. This heir being so, so chatty and utterly keening to get to know Keigo and asks a million and one questions whilst covertly picking some idle wildflowers to keep their hands busy. Keigo was utterly baffled that their charge was just... so... endearing? Excitable? Would it be wrong to say/think that they're adorable to some extent? Is that disrespectful to refer to your charge as cute? That revelation gave him very mild panic, an unfamiliar concept to him.

He's just so not used to being taken interested in and asked about what he likes to do, what his favorite season or flower is, or if he has a favorite meal. What memories are most cherished to him, and a lot of which either were lukewarm (at best) or unanswered responses. Keigo had his tongue caught which, was also a foreign concept, given his silver tongue paired well with his blade in tandem. Swathing through his thoughts trying to muster even a false answer proved more difficult and the poignant silence was palpable at best. However noticing that his typical, automated charming maks were slipping and those catty responses died in his throat, he felt a tussling of his hair which finally dragged him out of his messy thoughts. His hands immediately lifted to his head only to be greeted with leaves and stems braided together… “A flower crown!” Compiled of Cornflowers, Honeysuckle, and Hyacinths. “Did you know that each flower has its own meaning and language, Lord Takami?” Almost caught off guard by the gesture itself, he stammers briefly before regaining that same approachable persona of his.

“I do not, Your Eminence. I’d be honored if you enlightened me perhaps what my crown means?” A gigantic smile grew on their face, pointing to each flower in order and relaying the meanings accordingly. Cornflowers being a mild-mannered plant, speaking of gentleness. “Be gentle with me,” Honeysuckle, soft and delicate. “Devoted affection,” and finally Hyacinths, expressing a delicate fondness, “Your loveliness charms me.”

Keigo could suddenly feel the outside feeling… a little uncomfortably warm, unbeknownst to him that a pink shade was tinting his face. “Y-You flatter me, truly…” Clearing his throat and turning his bashful expression away from the heir. Nothing but those playfully coy giggles ringing in his ear.

“It suits you,” They spoke, delicately navigating a loose golden lock from his flustered face to its intended place, “I’ve seen many flower gardens both wild and domesticated, and you are the most beautiful among this garden, Lord Takami.” A noticeable ‘Ba-dup’ resounds beneath the family crest… ironically set over his heart on his uniform. Oh dear… that hammering in his ribcage is going to be a problem, now isn’t it? 

Fin.

THANK YOU FOR COMING TO MY SALES PITCH IM GOING TO SCREAM LIKE A USELESS HOPELESS ROMANTIC INTO A CORNER KAY BYEEEE 🖤🖤🖤 (P.S: I am not a professional Florist so my flower language could be abhorrently incorrect, I just ripped that from the local farmer's almanac I had on hand lmfao)

- Krow Anon ˗ˏˋ ★ ˎˊ˗

KROW IF YOU DON'T WRITE THIS FIC RIGHT NOW

[inolienkiki]

sit down, I'm going to talk about how expressing interests and preferences and opinions is viewed as inherently childish and therefore societally unacceptable

--

First, for clarification: by interests, and preferences, and opinions, I am referring to several related concepts.

Interests include: Media! A TV show, a book, a toy line, a video game, a comic that is particularly meaningful to you. A subject or field of study that just gets you excited. A species you know loads about, or a machine that you could take apart and put back together. A holiday, a craft, a sport. Literally anything that makes you spark.

Preferences include: A way you prefer to manage your surroundings or stimuli. Maybe you don't like crowded places, or hearing something loud makes you uncomfortable. Maybe you feel comfortable only in specific clothes, whether because of their texture or just their look. Maybe you need a particular set of conditions in order to sleep. Maybe you don't want a romantic partner, maybe you find it helpful to listen to music while you work, maybe you don't like certain foods. Hell, maybe you just don't like someone. Literally anything that you can improve your life by having some control over.

Opinions include: Well, by opinions, I'm mostly talking about attention to detail, talkativeness, or anything that can be vaguely construed as idealism. For a great example of all three, there's that really long post about ageism and youthlib that you're five paragraphs deep in right now

--

Yes, all these things are more likely to be encountered by neurodivergent people. Interests- particularly strong, persistent ones- can manifest as autistic special interests, ADHD hyperfixations, or the comfort media of highly sensitive people. Preferences often stem from over- or understimulation. Opinions are more likely to manifest for any number of reasons: talking through feelings helps some people understand them better; sometimes, the only way to curate your surroundings is by explaining why it's helpful; and, to put it frankly, neurodivergent people have a lot of things they need to talk about. Of course we're more likely to voice our concerns about ableism, infantilization, and the ways the world is more difficult for us. [Also... and this is me... my ADHD makes me TALK. When I'm understimulated, the way I stimulate myself is often to start rambling, or explaining something, or writing a very long Tumblr post.]

Despite this, they're much more common than they're given credit for. Interests, preferences, and opinions are something everyone experiences. My mom- who I very recently made a post about probably being neurotypical- has an unusually intense interest in the Donner Party, a thorough preference for organization, and absolutely cannot sleep when exposed to any light or noise or the smell of somebody making food. My friend, who (to be fair) cannot get a psych evaluation if he wants to keep his job, is so fascinated with planes and flying and space that he's dedicated his life to it. My dad, a bird biologist by degree who works for the Fish and Wildlife Service- as you might predict- really likes birds. So much so that his entire front yard and backyard and various locations he's volunteered at around the city are explicitly cultivated to provide habitat for native birds and other species. You don't hear people assuming that sports fans or cat people or feminists must be neurodivergent because they express natural human variation.

These interests, preferences, and opinions tend to pop up in kids... for all kinds of reasons. Children are encouraged from a young age to figure out what they're interested in. They're presented with various subjects and fields of study in school to develop tastes for, pushed and often required to read books and write essays and fiction, and highly encouraged to "entertain themselves" with TV, video games, and other media to lighten the load on their caretakers. Kids are also more likely to have preferences, or voice those preferences: they're more likely to have fears of places or situations they're not familiar with, especially if they've been led to believe they're incapable or naive; their boundaries are crossed way more often when they're exposed to things they don't like or aren't comfortable with, and have no way out; and their senses are literally more sensitive than adults'. Of course a child will be uncomfortable in a room with a loud noise playing at a frequency adults can't hear, whether due to electronic noise or purposeful "teenager repellent" speakers. Of course a child will be upset if someone says something hurtful to them, because confidence and self-assuredness are considered negative and "disrespectful" traits in children, and so aren't encouraged. Of course a kid won't like the food they're being forced to eat, because up until a certain age, children actually can't taste certain flavors. And in many cases because of these more intense preferences, kids HAVE to understand, and voice, their opinions. Any situation that might make an adult feel uncomfortable could also make a child feel uncomfortable... but that child cannot leave that situation. A kid who is hurt by a classmate, a teacher, or a family member doesn't have the option to cut that person out of their life- no matter how little that relationship is worth. A kid who is eating something chosen for them that really doesn't agree with them doesn't have the option to stop eating that thing, because in many cases it's their only opportunity to eat. A child who is overwhelmed or being made to feel ashamed at a party- whether for children or adults- cannot just walk out and drive away. When kids are in a bad situation, talking about it is the only option. Like neurodivergent people, kids' opinions are also strengthened and exacerbated by their interests and their unique, forgotten marginalization. Kids are stereotyped as "whiny" when they talk about small issues and "naive" or "idealistic" when they talk about big ones. That is, until they reach a certain age, when it becomes "hormones" and "teenage rebellion". (News flash: All emotions are caused by hormones and neurotransmitters which vary in abundance when people are exposed to stimuli. Saying teenagers are emotional "because of hormones" is like saying your dog is wet because it's raining. Yeah, that's how water works... but it's only happening in the first place because you locked your dog outdoors.)

So, what? Neurodivergent people and children have a lot in common? Big surprise, some of you are saying, but you're missing the point.

I am talking about how the things that are regularly construed as shameful, or weird, or not worthy of respect, in adults... are viewed this way because they're affiliated with children, a marginalized group. A lot of the ableism that neurodivergent adults face is misdirected ageism. And no, I'm not even faintly saying that ableism isn't real, nor am I saying that neurodivergent adults are basically children or deserve to be treated like children do. (Nobody deserves that, including children.) Just like many people who perpetuate aphobia and amatonormativity probably don't know that aroace people even exist; just like gender nonconforming people and people with gender expression that strays outside of norms are misidentified, and insulted, for some perceived "gayness"; ableism can be so uninformed it's mistargeted.

--

The only other thing I want to mention here: how do neurotypical kids, with lots of interests, preferences, and opinions, lose those with time? Answer is: well, first, they don't always. My friend who really likes planes was dismissed as "overly optimistic" and "naive" by many of his friends and mentors. He's doing great in navy flight school... I think the words they were looking for are something more like "ambitious", or "determined". Turns out he's been cool this whole time. In this way, traits which are dismissed or misidentified in kids actually become VALUED in adults. My dad and his volunteering, my mom and her cleanliness, my old PI and his dedication to mentoring, etc. etc. As adults gain more influence over their surroundings, their preferences begin to be considered valid. And of course people get quieter when they aren't forced to speak out.

Yet... obviously this isn't it. I think the missing element is internalized ageism. I can only speak to this as someone who was assigned female at birth, but one way this manifests is clear enough to me: "I'm not like other girls!" This is common enough that lots of people seem to see teenage women's experiences and their individuality as immature in and of themselves. But it seems clear enough to me that, more than anything, this is a desperate demand for maturity. As a teenager, I felt incredibly pressured to shed my previously "childish" interests and preferences and change them for more societally acceptable, "adult-like" ones. I can't tell you how many times I was about to drop my lego hyperfixation, but every time I came close, they came out with something so much better. But, up until I was sixteen, I felt shame over it- and shame over my continued interest in Warrior Cats, over the kids' cartoons I still like to watch, over a fox hat that I wore to one class, one time, that I was legitimately very scared would impact everyone's perception of me- and the truth is, it probably did. Everyone seems to think this kind of thing is because of peer pressure, but the nature of that claim as a misguided assumption is so much clearer to me because I didn't go to middle or high school. I was partially homeschooled, and I partially had an incomplete patchwork education that drew from various online and in-person classes. This is fine and not actually a negative thing and genuinely was not a bad experience at all. (I'm completely, 100% serious. Educational freedom, tailoring to kids' interests, and acceleration/skipping grades is often extremely beneficial and doesn't hurt the kid. My ADHD wasn't diagnosed until recently because, as a kid, I was almost never put in a situation where it held me back.) Of course girls put on makeup and revealing dresses and get into relationships very early, because they're trying to show their maturity, and female maturity is often societally equivalent to sexual maturity and romantic entanglement. (I could talk about this all day... the intersectionality of so many different types of specific, inconsistent, and misdirected marginalization is fascinating and horrifying.) Because of this, for most women, internalized ageism seems to manifest as "I'm not like other girls, because I'm a woman, and I deserve independence and respect." For me, without the "peer pressure" (but more relevantly, without the peers) it was just the last half. It's so easy to blame kids' problems on peer pressure when 99% of kids are forced to constantly be surrounded by their peers. asjdflksjlasdhkg

I don't actually know very much about what internalized ageism is like for people who were assigned male at birth, but bravado, insecurity, and toxic masculinity seem like pretty obvious outcomes.

--

Ok, lesson from this extremely long post: if someone is telling you that something about your interests, preferences, opinions, or personality is childish, you may be inclined to pull your age. Adult or kid, the "that's for babies" response is a natural defense, but kinda misses the point: the person saying that already thinks you're a baby! Correct, productive response: Do you think that's a bad thing? Why?

If you're an adult who's part of a group that is stereotyped as "childish" or "immature"- which covers a hell of a lot of marginalized groups- know when you're seeing misdirected ageism. Once you start paying attention to it, it'll help you understand kids' experiences so much better.

Don't be ashamed of yourself for acting, or feeling, like a kid. That's valid. It's not hurting anyone. And it's not even uncommon.

Definitely don't be ashamed of yourself for being a kid. You're cool. Trust in yourself, and keep speaking out.

[adainesfroggieboggy]

i want to share my future bad kids bc that i came up with for a fic. i love them dearly. Below the cut bc its so long.

Adaine goes to Fallinel for a while and goes into politics after college, but after quite a few years of working her ass off to fix the country, she leaves because Jawbone’s lycanthropy becomes very difficult for him to live alone. He has Sandra Lynn but they’re both getting old and he’s sick. She comes home for him, takes a job as the divination teacher at Augefort, and settles back into Elmville peacefully. I also think she dates a hell of a lot and I hc pan Adaine. I feel like with immortality, sexuality becomes pretty fluid, and Adaine very much leans into that. When she moves back to Elmville, she puts dating on pause and just teaches and cares for Jawbone (the principal of Augefort).

Fig and Ayda tour together for years. Fig loves playing and she never wants to stop. Not even when in their 30’s, Ayda decides she wants to settle down. They break up pretty amicably and Fig tours for a long time afterwards. She slows down when she hits her 40s and ends up living in Bastion City, still a rock star, but she doesn't tour quite so often or go quite so far, but she never quite stops. She's happy, and pulls tons of chicks when she wants to, but doesn't really date seriously? Even in her 40s, she's so young for an archdevil. Her friends have decades, she has centuries. She lives her young soul life for a long ass time.

Kristen spreads the gospel of Cassandra for a long time. She leaves the party to run the church and just gets too busy to continue the frequent traveling. She gets married and divorced, has a couple kids, and lives in Bastion City. She has a very amicable tradeoff with the kids and shares custody but spends the majority of her time running the church. Her kids are sweet and loved, and so is she. Her life is mundane and easy now, which she learns to really love. She just settles down and learns to channel her chaos. She becomes a very great mom, pastor, and person, doing a lot of volunteer and outreach work, loving the world, her life, and her family. I think she ends up having a very serious long-term relationship but keeps her very separate from her kids. it's a quiet life.

Riz is absolutely an investigative reporter! Murph says this in one of his fireside chats, and I wholeheartedly agree! He leaves the party first because he didn't ever want the adventuring life, he wants the detective, crime-solving part of it. He goes to school and ends up with a law degree (bc he's just cool and would absolutely take lawyer classes to make sure he was able to cite laws) and a really badass job as a reporter, kicking ass and taking names, but with words as his weapon! He stays in Bastion City, makes friends, and just is happy. He doesn't get married or have kids, but he has so much platonic love and familial love! He's so happy and cool and very effective. He likes to enlist Adaine for arcane cases, and she definitely heads over every time and stays over in his apartment and they're super close. He's also super close with fabian, but their lives are so different that it's a different kind of closeness.

Gorgug's life is super chill and simple He doesn't marry Zelda bc they're children, but he does fall head-over-heels for a woman and gets married. He leaves because he suffers a pretty severe head injury, but also because his wife is pregnant! He has a son his parents are so sweet and excited. He's a tinkerer, but also a professor at Augefort! Zac said that Gorgug may help people who are multiclassing, and I like the idea that Jawbone opens a completely new section of the school that focuses specifically on multiclassing, and Gorgug teaches both barbarian and artificer classes! He really chills out and his rage is very rare and almost always in defense of his family. Chill, happy, relaxed Gorgug just vibes with me.

FABIAN! My favorite most hc. He's a dad. He has two daughters and they're his whole entire world. Leaving the party was absolutely not his choice, but he lost his leg in a brutal battle and his body no longer cooperates with the way he needs to move. He's got chronic pain and just can't adventure any longer, so he ends up moving to a seaside town and becoming a stay-at-home dad. At some point during his recovery, his first wife leaves him and the girls and Cathilda moves in. The girls call her their Dida and she's like their other grandma. He's a stay-at-home dad and loves it! He and Aelwyn reconnect as adults and end up getting married now that they're no longer so toxic in each other's lives, and Aelwyn is an absolutely amazing stepmom. She'd never imagined having her own kids, but she loves the girls so much and they're all so happy together. Aelwyn is still a researcher and an abjurative wizard, so he happily stays at home. They might have a mansion in the sky because it's a bit in one of the fireside chats and I love to commit to a bit. They're so cute! Domestic, toxic masculinity is dead, stay-at-home dad and his smart, hot, kind, caring wife.

Also, bonus one, I am so tempted to kill Gilear. A lot of my hcs are based on actual things the cast has said, and Brennan says, "As the person who plays Gilear, I'd like to see him dead in the fucking ground." I am not a Gilear lover, I find him funny and entertaining, but there is something about that sad elf man that makes me wanna kill him. Like if we were in Spyre and I knew Gilear, I might just kill him. Straight up. (Kidding, kidding. I wouldn't kill him, but in a campaign? I'd probably attack him for fun so often bc i wouldn't have Emily at my table.) If he doesn't end up just straight-up dead, he's vice principal. It's much better to have his ex-wife's new boyfriend as his boss for the rest of his sad little life. No happiness for him. I love Emily, I love Fig. Gilear? Dead to me.

[rjschoicesstuff]

Some fun facts or whatever about Rex (My main Blades mc) cause I'm thinking about her (probably very incoherent cause I've had a long day and my brain is fried and I'm not gonna check this for mistakes)

-I imagine he got orphaned + adopted at around 1,5 year old + he's older than Kade.

-I imagine (or ig it's been confirmed anyway) orc anatomy is different from humans and elves + humans have very little knowledge about orcs cause they live so isolated from the rest, it was just decided to raise her as a boy alongside Kade when they were adopted. As she got older she started experimenting more with more feminine expression, I don't think she would have the words for it, but she's basically bigender. She's very indifferent about it all though, if people ask for clarification about her gender she's just kinda like 'you can't really go wrong with either'. Like as long as people are respectful she's happy. She uses mixed masculine and feminine titles except for that she's just Kade's brother and not his sister and she's her kids' mother and not their father.

-I imagine he was the only orc in Riverbend and all the orcs he'd ever seen there were just people passing through, and so few that he can count them on two hands. If there'd been any he would probably have latched onto them a bit. Like I imagine in Riverbend he was always treated as one of them but that didn't mean that he never felt different + wanted to get to know others like himself u know?

-Due to being the only orc she often landed jobs where strength was important, and would just be people's go-to when they needed a strong person. This was something she definitely prided herself in and it made her happy to feel like she was needed and really had a role in the community. Though I think in a way that also caused her to downplay all her other qualities.

-He really really wants to connect with Orc culture and he's just like really excited when he meets Imtura and is finally surrounded by a lot of other orcs for a bit and doesn't stand out so much in the crowd. Though at the same time it becomes so clear that he's been raised in a human village and he's nothing like them. And I think in a way that makes him feel embarassed? Once they're done Saving The World I imagine Imtura will really properly show him Flotilla and orc culture and he just feels weird being an orc and having to be shown all this stuff, like he's just a human in an orc suit kinda? I imagine he'll live there for a bit and definitely gets more acquainted with the culture and everything and it is very healing in a way. Especially because apparently he still has living biological family members too, whom he gets to know now. But to some degree it also makes him realise that he's always going to feel a little bit like an outsider, no matter where he is. Tbh I think it would just really help him to meet another person like him, but I'm not sure if he ever will.

-She's not very interested in humans romantically + sexually cause they're so small and weak compared to her and she thinks she would Break them lol. I imagine she's definitely had a girlfriend or two in her teens, like it's not like she doesn't ever find them attractive (though she definitely prefers elves and especially orcs) but it just doesn't really Work for her because she's always kinda holding back because she doesn't wanna hurt them. To some degree she feels that with elves too (or I guess just Tyril because he's the only elf she'll ever be with probably) but at least the height difference is less daunting.

-He avoids using magic cause he doesn't want to shorten his lifespan much, he's also more likely to use it for healing than for battle. He worries a lot about losing track of how much he's using too, once he won't have to, he will never use magic ever again. (This one's a headcanon I had before book 2 was out)

[fun-k-board]

Some extra information on my universe's Sinister Six members.

First post here

I'm tempted to do entire fics on them but- I need to stop before I start overwhelming myself and getting too excited.

Doctor Olivia Odell

Likes - She's always had a strange fascination with ballet, always adores any dances that include sea themes, or long flowy silk.

Dislikes - Any vehicles, cars, helicopters, even bicycles make her nervous and uncomfortable because she has no control. Olivia used to walk everywhere, now, her tentacle situation can help with that.

Favourite food - Fruits, specifically strawberries and blueberries, she loves salads because they can be so diverse with what foods are included.

Least favourite food - Anything spicy, she's always preferred colder foods, and so something hot in temperature let alone flavour is just not her thing.

How does she text? - Usually her texts have very good grammar, even in crisis, she doesn't text often and prefers to use emails in which they're very professional and well structured.

Nationality - English.

What does she think of her fellow Sinister Six members? -

I... Have mixed feelings on the Green Goblin, I believe that his obsession with perfecting... Whatever he was trying to do, was rather immature, and not well thought out, but, I can understand his need for scientific discovery.

Frederick? His connections are useful, and his dedication to his family is admirable, but it gets in the way. He has a soft spot for those younger than him, which, to be fair, is a lot of people.

Marlene is far too bright, my eyes sting just looking at them. They're also very young and unsure. Their powers, however? Now, that's interesting.

Miguel, much like Frederick, has family issues that are too distracting, but, at least he's much more willing to be a firm leader and get the job done.

Mysterio... What do I say about Mysterio?... He's... His illusions are definitely useful...

Norman Osborn

Likes - He likes shiny objects, anything that can spin, and screams. They're loud, they drown out the voices.

Dislikes - Those two boys... He can't remember how he knows them, but he knows it's painful to see them.

Favourite food - Steak.

Least favourite food - Anything with too much grease.

How does he text? - Doesn't bother to check for spelling errors, punctuation, or grammar, and he's barely coherent. Yet, he insists on texting the Sinister Six group chat regularly.

Nationality - American.

What does he think of his fellow Sinister Six members?

Pretty hair, like little tentacles.

Sand is irritating, all over my skin... He does it on purpose, I know it.

Bright, loud... Perfect to listen to... Not fun to talk to.

Too quiet... He reminds me of... Of...

Shiny, I like the helmet, it spins.

Frederick Miller

Likes - Playing dolls with his daughter, he can't afford much, but his wife passed down a dollhouse with some cute little wooden peg dolls that they play with after school.

Dislikes - Soft beds, he's always preferred a hard surface to sleep on, maybe that's why his back is so horrible.

Favourite food - He likes cereal. It's cheap, the most important meal of the day, they give you a lot of what you need, plus, you can add anything to it.

Least favourite food - Honestly? Anything with an expensive price tag, the cheaper, the better it tastes.

How does he text? - He can't actually write too well and so uses the speech to text feature, it makes his texts get misunderstood regularly.

Nationality - American.

What does he think of his fellow Sinister Six members?

Olivia is strange, she's not a bad co-worker but she's intense. I don't know if she likes me, and I don't know if I like her. At the end of the day, she's just another criminal I gotta work with.

Uh... That guy...? Green Goblin, was it? He's... He's definitely a... Uhm... Person...?

Marlene reminds me of my kid, they're bright, fun, and honestly? I feel bad for them, they shouldn't be in this business, at all, from what they've told me, it was a complete accident.

Miguel, he's strict, commanding, but that's until you share a beer with the guy. He's damaged, I feel for him. Although, that doesn't make me like waking up at five AM any more.

I don't like how Mysterio acts around Marlene. He's just... Weird... At least his technology is useful.

Marlene Diegel

Likes - Ballet and classical music, they're very important to the history of theatre and the entertainment industry in general.

Dislikes - Dull colours and costumes that aren't flashy, in their opinion, if you're going to be a villain you may as well dress the part.

Favourite food - Cake, the ones with heavy icing and cherries on top.

Least favourite food - Chicken, especially with bones in it.

How do they text? - Lots of emoticons and exclamation / quotation marks, they're never professional texting even when it's about a serious mission.

Nationality - German.

What do they think of their fellow Sinister Six members?

I wish I was as smart as Olivia, I admire her, really, but she's honestly not very fun to be around. She's quiet, and kinda boring, but at least her tentacles can hold stuff for me.

Green Goblin gives me the creeps, he's literally green, I thought he was some kind of alien at first. I can't imagine purposefully doing that to yourself.

Frederick is nice to me, I don't know why, but he feels like my dad, or my brother, or just my friend, even if we never get to sit down and talk much, I always enjoy when we do.

Miguel also reminds me of my dad, but how he actually was, and not the feeling of a dad. He's very strict and he kinda scares me sometimes, but he's not doing it in a bad way, or at least I don't think he is?

Mysterio's got a fish bowl for a head, I admire the flair, especially the cape, but it is a little ridiculous, and that's coming from somebody with lighting patterns all over their clothes. There's something about him though, I can't place my finger on it!

Miguel Dominguez

Likes - Taking videos and photos, he originally wanted to be a photographer before joining the army, and he's never managed to get back into the hobby professionally.

Dislikes - Watching sports, he despises how boring it is and how you aren't even doing anything while watching.

Favourite food - Pizza, specifically with jalapenos, barbeque sauce and pineapple, it adds a spicy kick and an interesting flavour combination, which boosts his energy.

Least favourite food - Spaghetti, it was his wife's favourite, even the smell makes him sick to his stomach.

How does he text? - He uses emojis a lot and isn't well versed in how people typically use them, so tends to come off as strange. Very good grammar, but occasionally he will sacrifice a bullet point or capital letter once and a while.

Nationality - Mexican.

What does he think of his fellow Sinister Six members?

Olivia's smart, she put this scorpion tail on me, but, I know what it looks like when someone is being told to do something. That's all I'm sharing.

Green Goblin's more like a pet than a human, why would a man reduce himself to such an animalistic state of mind is beyond me. At least he follows orders, I suppose.

Frederick is a good, hardworking, man. Despite how he acts at first, he is very family centered, and I feel as if we both have an understanding of our relationship as co-workers.

I don't think Marlene's cut out for this line of work.

I appreciate Mysterio and his illusions, the technology is impressive, and he's even added advancements to my tail on more than one occasion. But, he's a bit too... Eccentric, for our missions.

Quinlan Blanchfield

Likes - Baking, specifically after a long day of working behind the stage, the lights, the music, it all gives him a rush, and baking cools him down.

Dislikes - The colour blue, it's always just annoyed him, it's too soft.

Favourite food - Cokie dough, and cookies, but, he's working on trying to convince Olivia to help him find a way to safely consume cookie dough, so far she's uninterested.

Least favourite food - Anything that's salty, he never adds salt to his baking, no matter how much it'll improve it.

How does he text? - Uses words that any regular person would need a dictionary to decipher, he's never had a spelling error or incorrect grammar, yet he also uses emojis occasionally.

Nationality - French.

What does he think of his fellow Sinister Six members?

Olivia is impressive, her advancements are far beyond any others, and I'm not just saying that because her boss funds us and our living situations.

Green Goblin interests me, his state of mind, or lack thereof, his costume, everything is such a point of intrigue, I can't wait to learn more when he starts to regain his memories.

The sand guy? He's annoying, I'm starting to think he's spilling sand into my costume on purpose.

Marlene...? No comment.

Miguel is a great leader, he's strong, strict, everything about him is intense, I admire him, I really do, but his schedules and god, the diet? Don't get me started.

[orchidstains]

hello again! this is esti with my second baby seo chanmi, or more commonly referred to as cerise. brief overview of her under the cut. i apologize in advance these intros are just going to get worse and worse. leave a like if you're interested in plotting with chanmi, and i'll pop into your ims at my earliest convenience. i also use discord so if you prefer that, just let me know and i'll be more than happy to add you.

p.s. this is a sideblog!

another firstborn on my roster but this time make it third parent. born into a family running a modest restaurant, grew up carrying more responsibilities than she should've as a kid.

helped out around the restaurant, also watched her siblings. i think they'd actually say she was their parent because their parents were busy working.

honestly sacrificed a childhood to help her parents. watched her peers play outside and longed to join them but buried those feelings, as she believed her place was at her family’s side.

ydh entertainment's ara is her one true inspiration. seeing ara on tv changed everything for chanmi. that one performance had chanmi practicing singing and dancing in her room

eventally tells her parents she wants to be an idol, and while they were hesitanct about the financial and emotional toll it'd have, they agreed to support her and start saving up so that they could send her to a couple of auditions.

chanmi also contributed to this by taking on odd jobs—delivering newspapers and helping neighbors—to save money for audition expenses.

she eventually gets into nintey9 creative where she realizes she has to work hard to have what it takes to debut.

cerise juggled part-time jobs to send money home while training, pushing herself to the brink of exhaustion juggling the hours between the two.

finally debuts, but a series of unfortunate events occur but now they're back as nymth, and she's excited for this new chapter.

fell in love with acting... a little upset she's getting calls for advertisements instead of scripts by she's also looking at the bright side, at least she has more time to contribute to the group

a deeper dive

cerise is warm, empathetic, and thoughtful. she's a person who values connection and sincerity in all her interactions.

her natural kindness often leads her to put others’ needs ahead of her own, and she’s the type to notice when someone is struggling, offering a listening ear or a comforting word. sometimes it gets too much for her but she will never say she needs a moment to herself if someone else needs a listening ear.

cerise is incredibly hardworking, driven by an inner sense of responsibility and a desire to grow. she doesn't believe in half-assing anything

while she’s generally optimistic, cerise isn’t immune to moments of self-doubt. she can be overly self-critical, constantly questioning if she’s doing enough or meeting expectations.

reflective and introspective, often thinking deeply about her actions and the impact they have on others.

she’s not one for flashy displays or seeking the spotlight, preferring to let her work and sincerity speak for themselves.

as of lately.. she's pretty optimistic about the rebrand. she dreams big, so she's already got the next two years planned out in her mind. whether or not she'll be disappointed, we'll see.

plot ideas

someone chanmi can practice lines will. well, had practiced her lines with. i think she'd attribute a lot of her success acting to this muse

your muse becomes an unexpected mentor to her. this could be for a lot of areas.

both chanmi and your muse are feeling the strain of idol life. maybe they finding comfort in shared experiences of feeling overlooked or under pressure.

your muse reminds Cerise of her siblings in some way and it causes her to dote on your muse

chanmi ropes your muse into an unplanned adventure, like exploring a new café, sneaking out to watch a midnight movie etc etc.

someone chanmi invites with her to the practice room to dance together.

someone chanmi considers a close friend. please.

chanmi and your muse have little in common at first but keep getting into situations where they keep running into each other. over time, a surprising friendship forms.

chanmi discovers that your muse is a fan of hers (or vice versa). thisrealization leads to sweet or awkward interactions as they navigate the dynamic between idol and admirer.