#i wrote this while high so take it with a grain of salt

[celestial-druidic]

Noticed something while rewatching Good Omens s2

When Jim said in his second big flashback “It would be an institutional problem”, It can actually be interpreted in two different ways. First, we realize that it is in reference to what the Metatron said about Gabriel being cast down to hell. He is saying that Gabriel won’t be banished from Heaven for rejecting Armageddon 2.0, but instead be demoted to scrivener. Except at the culmination of the episode, we learn that Gabriel had been meeting with Beelzebub, falling in love with them. So when we go back to the “institutional problem” line, it now has a second meaning. Having another set of Angel/Demon run off together would make it seem like an institutional problem, meaning that they would be wrong on another occasion.

Not really an epiphany but i was high so idk

[kynimdraws]

The significance of Honmun for Korean Spiritualism in KPOP DEMON HUNTERS

Previously, I wrote how this movie did an homage to the history of Korean music/pop when they were narrating the history of the demon hunters here. In this post I wanted to talk about an important plot element from this movie, the 혼문 (honmoon). For the record this term is NOT an actual thing in Korean spiritualism/shamanism/folklore, but it definitely was made with some aspects of that in mind.

FYI: Some stuff I might propose is pure speculation based on my own knowledge of Korean culture, and not something anyone in the KDH crew has said officially, so take it with a grain of salt. If there is any official interviews/info that do come out later down the line, the post will be updated. Also possible mild movie spoilers

First the word 혼문 itself is significant. It seems to be a mix of two different words: 영혼 (yeonghon) which is the word for soul/spirit, and 문 (moon) which is commonly the word for door (sometimes can be used to mean gate). So the literal meaning of honmoon is the "Soul door/gate." And it works, because the hunters sing to emotionally connect with their audience's/fans' souls, creating a mystical barrier to shut out the demons.

Using the 무당 (mudang) trio to demonstrate the early instances of making this honmoon with the hunters, as mentioned in my prev post, is not just coincidence. Mudang were important figures in Korean shamanism (Muism) and performed various rituals/rites for all kinds of people, many serving as spiritual guardians in their villages/community. The rites are called 굿 (gut) and the purpose of them range widely (there are also regional differences).

A common theme with the gut is that these are never PERMANENT. A good example is the 도당굿 (Dodang-gut), usually an annual/semiannual rite to ensure a village or a community continues to maintain its well-being and prosperity. This is no different from how each generation of demon hunters must perform to maintain the honmoon, otherwise their purpose would have been fulfilled by the first generation and ended there.

Speaking of how there are multiple generations of demon hunters, even that seems to be covered in the movie too. A woman can be a mudang via two ways: inheriting the business by bloodline aka 강신무 (Kangshinmu), or being initiated into it aka 세습무 (Seseummu). In the current generation of demon hunters we see today, Rumi is a reference to the Kangshinmu (her mother was the prev demon hunter) while Zoey and Mira are referring to Seseummu (recruited/trained by Celine). But the mudang today don't really differentiate themselves by what type they are so its a fun little detail.

Going back to the honmoon, the movie seems to have a general set of colors to represent the honmoon's condition. By default it's blue, gold at the height of its power/function, and purple/red when weakened. I am not sure if the colors have much significance other than simple association (i.e. weakness is depicted in purple/reds since Gwi-ma and the demon underworld is that color) outside of gold, which associated with high status (but that's not just a Korea thing tbh). The one thing that is neat is at the end of the movie, the coveted "gold" color that Rumi and the girls wanted to achieve to reinforce the honmoon is not present at all. It is a wholly different iridescent color.

This too is significant since their performances, which are like big musical gut to help their world from demons, is breaking away from the usual tradition of hiding their insecurities and identities for duty. Hilariously enough muism thrive on building new traditions too. Mudang and muism are not like other organized religion in that there is no central leadership or clergy, and there is a lot of different variations on how a gut is performed. So a dodang-gut performed in the Chosun era would not be the same as a dodang-gut that is performed Korean village today, which would still have their own regional differences.

So whether on purpose or not, Kpop Demon Hunters really feel like a homage to not just kpop but aspects of Korean culture that is not as well liked (throughout history Muism has been shunned by other popular religions like Christianity and even by the government, which does affect how it is percieved publically) or known. Hope you enjoyed this post and let me know what else you might want, or point out any errors in my writing!

[writingoddess1125]

Who is it?

Remy, Rouge, Scott, Morph, Jean , Jubilee

Kurt Wagner x GNReader

Please Take this story with a grain of salt, I wrote this last night after- Shocker shocker, playing a boardgame while drunk with friends.

Enjoy!

Sunday Night

The Dining Room

The dining room was a chaotic mess of snacks, board games, and half-empty soda cans. It seemed this evening hame was Clue- Which was already a bit of a mess.

The group was gathered around the table already halfway through the game and going back and forth a bit. Especially Remy and Rouge which Jubilee was egging them on While Morph, kept shifting into different characters in the Clue game- Currently Miss Scarlett.

Scott and Jean, the resident "mom and dad" of the group, were trying to keep things civil- However utterly failing. Especially since Jean had decided to focus on the snacks a bit more then the game itself as she had resigned to keep from cheating.

"Now Morph Miss Scarlett is hotter-" Remy said with a laugh seeing how more did a little leg kick through the red dress.

"Like.. Naomi Campbell Hot or Jennifer Anderson Hot?" They asked quickly.

"Jessica Rabbit Hot-"

Jubilee said, Earning a nod in agreement and sharing a small High Five which earned Remy Glare from Rouge- and giggles from the rest of the group.

"You knowww, Where’s Kurt? He hasnt been at game night last couple times and he loves Clue"

Jubilee asked, tossing a piece of popcorn into the air and catching it in her mouth.

"Dude’s been MIA every night this week. It’s like he’s got a secret life or somethin’."

Rogue raised an eyebrow. "Now that ya mention it, he has been actin’ weird. Always sneaking off after dinner."

Gambit leaned back a bit, a sly grin spreading across his face.

"Maybe our fuzzy elf’s got himself a lady friend. Or a fella friend. Who knows"

The room erupted into giggles.

"Kurt? Hes so innocent I doubt it- I mean.." Rouge waved off, but even by the tone of her voice she wasn't sure.

Now the whole team quiet as they thought, Scott adjusted his visor, trying to look serious.

"If Kurt’s seeing is someone, it’s his business. We shouldn’t pry though."

Jean elbowed him gently. "Oh, come on, Scott. You’re not even a little curious?"

Morph, now in the form of a Professor Plum smiled, "I say we investigate. Whoever finds out who Kurt’s been sneaking off with wins... uh, bragging rights!"

"Welp I'm disqualified" Jean mumbled as she knew that her abilities would take away the fun.

"And," Gambit added, his eyes gleaming with mischief, "a week off from Danger Room duty. Losers cover the winner’s shifts."

And just like that-

The bet was on.

Monday

Rogue in the Kitchem with a Poptart

Rogue decided to take the direct approach.

She cornered Kurt in the kitchen after breakfast, her arms crossed and a smirk on her face.

"Alright, sugar, spill it. Where ya been runnin’ off to every night?"

Kurt, who was munching on what remained of a stray cherry poptart choked at the bluntness.

"Ach, Rogue! I-uh-just been... training! Ja, traininc. Lots of it."

Rogue narrowed her eyes.

"Trainin’, huh? At midnight? and Ive never seen the Danger Room active thag late-"

"Welp that's what's going on- Bye!"

Kurt said suddently as he tossed the poptart at her andteleported away in that very second, leaving Rouge with a scrunched up face and a half eaten poptart jn her hands.

Tuesday

Jubilee in the Gardens with a Coat

Jubilee decided to tail Kurt like a spy.

She donned a trench coat and sunglasses as she went behind trees and trail the male as he walked through the gardens as if looking for something.

However whenever she thought she was getting close enough to do something- he teleported to a different part of the gardens.

"Fuck-"

She hissed as she attempted to keep up, rushing through the brush of freshly watered grass which lead to- Well her sliding face first into the Mud with a loud yelp.

....

Hearing soft footsteps Jubilee looked up to See Kurt smiling down at her, knowing immediately that he knew she had been following him.

"Nice try mein Freund."

Kurt said cheerfully teleporting away with a laugh leaving Jubilee there in the mud.

Wednesday

Morph in the Study with the Teacup

Morph had this in the Bag- They knew this would be it-

Transforming into a Teacup knowing that Kurt always had tea in the Study at this hour. Wiggling their way amongst the others and almost giddy.

Waiting calmly and right on Cue- Kurt walked into the kitchen grabbing a tray and some snacks to put on it as he set a pot to boil.

Opening up the cabinets to select the cups, Kurt grabbing his normal one before picking up Morph and looking the cup over.

"Das hier ist süß"

He mumbled, clearly having someone in mind on his selection Morph and set them on the tray next to the tea snacks and now pot of tea.

Kurt Looked around hesitantly as if expected one of them to pop up- before walking into the Study and grabbing the tea pot beginning to pour into both cups-

..... "AHHHH!!"

Morph yelled out before shifting out of the cup form and jumping up and down in pain. Kurt standing there like he was seconds from a heart attack before Glaring at Morph. Who looked at the other with a smile-

"Sooo About that-"

Morph started before Kurt pointed to the door of the study, his tail flicking behind him in clear annoyance. Morph silently walking out with his head down-

Thursday

Scott in the Danger Room with a pebble

Scott had head how, well Unhappy Kurt seemed to be getting-

Especially after Morphs little stunt.

So he tried a different approach, As the team practiced in the Danger Room. He happened to be the closest to Kurt in the moment as he blasted some of the Holograms holding his visor.

"Hey Kurt- I just wanted to extend a bit of a.. olive branch Fuzzy- The team has just been curious and-"

He shot another one of the decoys as Kurt moved from a attack from one of the fake robots.

"They Just want to know who it i-"

A pebble hit Scott perfectly on the side of his head incredibly hard. Making the male look to Kurt who had clearly throw it- paired with the nastiest Glare he had ever seen on Kurt's face with his tail flicking behind him so hard it cut the air.

"..Drop. It."

Kurt growled out- Scott clearly surprised and gave a soft nod.

"Copy-"

Friday

Remy in the Hallway with a Boot

Remy sat there in his room, trying to think over how to get Kurt- It had been almost impossible to find the blue teleporting all day-

Seemingly having vanished after Scott's attempt which from what was told- Kurt was now royally pissed off.

'This was harder then I thought'

Getting up from bed he decided some water- walking down the hall with hands in his sweatpant pockets pondering to himself some ideas of where to even find him when he heard it- giggling and hushed voices?.. and he defiently reconizing one of them.

Looking at were he was near he saw it was your room-

He ranked through his brain as he thought back to your name- (Y/N)? If he remembered correctly the sweet mutant who worked as a Understudy of Dr. McCoy.

He gave it another second before hearing another sound of a second voice- fairly sure it was speaking in german, Remy stepped close pressing his ear to the door he listened in.

He heard your voice first in a clearly flirtatious way- followed by Kurt’s flustered German murmurs and giggles.

Remy’s eyes widened as he realized what was happening- or what he was hearing the 'after' of. In his shock, he leaned too hard on the door, which swung open suddently.

The scene before him was... Well Damn.

"What the Fuck!" You yell out, bright red seated on the bed, covered in hickies, bites and desperately trying to pull the blanket over yourself in a attempt for modesty.

Kurt jumping from yhe bed as he fumbling with his clothes while yelling in a mix of German and English.

"Remy! What are you—ach, du lieber Gott! OUT!-"

Gambit, recovering quickly, burst into laughter.

"Oh, mon ami, Getting it in on!!"

He backed out of the room, still cackling before a boot was thrown at him square in the nose and he ran as fast as he could while still laughing.

Hearing the angry sounds of Kurt- Not knowing German but knew the sounds of someone prepared to kick his ass and cursing him out.

Saturday

The Livingroom

Remy sat on the couch of the livingroom- Still holding the ice pack on his blackeye as the others sat around as well-

...

Rouge rubbing her temple feeling quite guilty she had pushed her poor brother this far- And also absolutely humiliating the both of you by Remy little stunt.

"So you mean to tell me, You guys went so far to drive Kurt to actually attack one of you-"

Jean said with a smile as she looked at each one of them.

"And Just to find out Kurt was gonna tell you guys anyway at this next game night and wanted to invite them- (Y/N) was just being shy"

She mused, Sipping her water with a giggle Earning a half hearted Glare from Scott who deflated and nodded, Jubilee seated next to Morph as they seemed just as drained and nodding quietly.

"And now all of you guys gotta do all of Kurt's Danger Room duty for the next 6 months, and his chores AND pay for their next date nights for the month- Hope it was worth it"

Remy was the first to speak up pulling the pack from his eye.

"No- No it was not.. "

[befemininenow]

Everything. Easier said than done.

That's the reality a lot of trans people face when coming out. Sure, you may get a lot of praise from friends, colleagues, and strangers for coming out as trans and that's very valid. But what about close family members, friends, or family? While you can easily dump transphobic people out of your life like taking out the trash on garbage day, it's a different story when that transphobe happens to be a parent or a spouse. And that sucks more than somebody in a GH (IYKYK).

I wrote that previous sentence because it's easy to see why I see so much NSFW shit in here. A lot of us are either still deep in the closet or have not been fully out to close ones because even though it's been easier to come out and transition, there's also been an unfortunate increase in homophobia and transphobia these past few years. Sometimes, we can't even be out in the comfort in our own home. As a result, the only time we can express that feminine side of ours without facing negativity is through the internet. These safe spots is where we can express our fantasies and desires to the point where they can be explicit. While a lot of these themes resonate with a lot of us, it also leaves us in a vulnerable state.

Recently, there has been drama on the MTF subreddit regarding sissy content, something that has always been banned in there as far as I know. The problem is, the moderator that enforced the sissy ban has also been connected with 4tran, a site that only validates trans girls who meet questionable criteria, such as transitioning at a younger age under hormones, consider themselves straight, and a bunch of other nonsense. To them, even admitting to being into feminization caption content to cope with their identity prior to coming out "invalidates" their identity because of the NSFW content that is so common in this scene. After being around in these scene for years now, I think I can say that we should be free to explore our kinks without feeling invalid of our identity.

Look, there will always be people who equate trans women with sissies, the latter being associated with a crossdressing male. That is the point I'm trying to make with this caption. No matter how much you do to become a bombshell babe like the woman in the pic, they will always categorize you as a "man". Unfortunately, there's nothing you can do to persuade those a-holes, even if you look like her. Let them live in their world of hate. But while you do see some trans women promoting their content on femboy and sissy spaces, there's a very high chance they're doing this to fund for their transition and/or basic cost of living. Often times, it's for a need of validation of being seen as a girl due to a hostile environment that misgenders them. That doesn't make them any less of a woman, cis or trans. Remember, trans women are not sissies!

While a lot of us do like to make captions expressing our need to take hormones, doll ourselves up, have sex with men (or women), or get SRS, it's also important we educate ourselves with the pros and cons of each act before we actually act upon them. Seriously, take these captions with a grain of salt. Not every caption will speak for you and me. You don't have to fulfill an explicit act if you're not attracted to men. Fulfill what your heart and mind truly desire, as long as you play it right.

If you made it this far into my rant, I'm very happy you took the time to read it. If not, that's okay. As long as the caption caught your attention, that's all it matters to me. Even if you're not fully out, at least this small free time of entertainment can help persuade you to make big choices in the future. After all, Flashback Friday isn't always going to be nostalgic, but it also helps us make a better future for ourselves.

[meganwhalenturner]

Somebody wrote to ask me for advice on writing. This is what I told them:

I'm terrible at giving writing advice. I know that the best advice for one person can be the very worst for another, so feel free to ignore all of this except for the very first bit:  

There are a lot of people who will tell you they can help you write better, get your manuscript edited, get your book published.  A lot of them just want your money. As a general rule, don't give people your money for what you write -- make people give you THEIR money for what you write.  I've heard this called Yog's Law:  Money Should Flow to the Author.

Check out the Writer Beware site run by SFWA.

Not every writing program is a scam, but don't think you have to have an MFA or attend a famous writing workshop to be taken seriously as a writer.  You don't.

Decide who you are writing for before you start.  It's okay to write for yourself.  It's okay to write for that one person in high school with whom you shared fanfiction.  (I did that, it was The Thief).  It's okay to aim for a worldwide audience and it's okay to write for the three people in the entire world who will appreciate your story.  When you run into criticism (and you will) you want to be able to ask yourself if the criticism is coming from your audience.  If it's not, take it with a big grain of salt.

Writing can be hard work and it feels good to work hard, but it's okay to do it for fun.  Maybe you just want to write craptastic fanfiction -- you should do that and I hope you enjoy yourself.  Don't let other people dictate what "worthwhile" writing is.

Don't be afraid to write badly. Don't be afraid you'll "waste" that really good idea you have because you couldn't write well enough to do it justice.  You'll have another good idea.  

You have to write to be a writer.  That sounds obvious, but you have to figure out for yourself what makes writing happen and then you have to do it.  Some people will tell you their way of writing is guaranteed to work.  Do not believe them.  Some people can set themselves goals -- they write 2,000 words a day and they are good words!  Some set themselves a goal and they waste an entire day squeezing out 2,000 garbage words. Sometimes the conditions that you need in order to work will seem silly.  Friederich Von Schiller kept rotting apples around to sniff while he wrote.  I don't know if that would work for you. Only you know the way for you.  

Good luck,

~mwt

[castingspellsanddaisies]

How's sexy time with... Jeon Jungkook? + How he imagines intimacy with ''the love of his life''? Awn | Tarot Reading

DISCLAIMER: Take everything with a grain of salt and enjoy!

Obs: this post has 18+ content so if you don't want to read it, beat it!

So, how's it then?

3 of wands + the tower + 6 of wands + king of pentacles + ace of wands reversed + king of cups + page of swords reversed + 8 of wands reversed + 6 of swords reversed

My, my Mr. Jeon...

Alright, so the first thing that I see is that Jungkook really puts in the work to satisfy his partner - REALLY puts in the work to make the person c*m. And it's an ego thing for him (hehe), like he'll be thinking ''honey, you will c*m here with me, I don't care what I have to do but you will''. Mm.

Jungkook is dominant during sex. I don't see him letting his partner ''do'' much during it (it could also be a cultural thing, this thought just popped into my mind, so I don't know). And he likes to makeit last as long as he can, I don't see him rushing for climax at all. But he's not a brut, no, he's very sweet with his partner, very sensual - he likes to pay attention in how his partner responds to him during it. Very good.

That's kinda funny, folks, so when I wrote that he likes to make it last, I wasn't joking. This man just looses himself like there's no tomorrow. I see that he may get into subspace (to summarize, to get into ''subspace'' is when a person gets so horny and floaty during the act that the person seems lost, in another dimension) and stay in there for a while, BUT without the BDSM part - I don't see Jungkook being very risky or ''creative'' during sex, he's vanilla and he's very good at it.

Jungkook, dear, close your eyes and imagine yourself being intimate with the love of your life, what do you see? Tell us

queen of wands + ace of wands + the high priestess + ace of wands + 4 of wands + the hermit reversed

For Jungkook, the love of his life will definitely help him in his creative pursues. I see him looking up to her for approaval. Jungkook imagines spending time with the love of his life in secluded places, away from chaos, away from everybody - just the two of them and their passion. He imagines himself kind of stalking her everywhere she goes inside their house (he finds that romantic lol), like ''I can't take my eye off of you''. Sharing secrets, finding a hidden place inside their house that only the two of them know of...

--------------------------------------------------------------

That's it, folks! I hope you enjoyed the reading (hehe) and I'll see you soon! <3

[multi-fandom-lunatic]

I don't know if this is really an anti booktok question as such, but what do you think fanfiction might look like, now that authors are writing published books that come across as fanfiction? I think it's an interesting phenomenon and honestly kind of concerning because fanfiction is, well, free. But now people who've never read fanfiction are splashing money on these books for tropes and plots that fanfiction authors have been writing for decades and I feel like fanfiction authors are kind of...being disrespected because the only things they give are their time and passion, meanwhile we have published books being written in these ways (usually) solely for money. I wonder if fanfiction will end up being written more like the standards we apply to published books (though I think the tropey fanfictions that were unwillingly commercialised won't be going away any time soon).

My perspective is that of a fanfic author (who hates Booktok) so take this with several grains of salt.

I think the fanfic vs Booktok phenomenon is hugely interesting. I find it so funny that the people who praise Booktok again and again for their, quite frankly, shitty writing, mountains of tropes and vanilla characters are the same who think that fanfiction is cringe and shame it for the exact same thing they like. It's turned these tropey things that fans like to indulge in into something popular, while excluding the fans that who wrote these fanfics.

Fanfic originally was used to subvert the tropes of mainstream media (often the media they were writing fanfic of) usually with amateur writing that was meant to be enjoyed not praised. However, with recent Booktok authors using fanfic as a template for their books, they dilute the quality of the works being published, because their goal isn't to write something good, or even to communicate a perspective, but rather to find an audience and find an audience alone. Books lose their individuality and even fear broaching political topics in fear of being disagreed with, unpopularised or cancelled (Rather ironic, since writing has historically been a very political medium).

Also, fanfic has been a haven for POC, disabled, queer people (literally anyone who isn't white, Christian, abled, rich... you get the idea) because it allows them to tell stories that would otherwise not get heard because promoting those topics aren't considered marketable (which is so weird to me but then again discrimination doesn't surprise me). With Booktok, authors took these stories of people being discriminated and wrote a half baked fanfic of their work that can be used to ask the question "wait, is discrimination...bad?" without actually asking it, giving the opinion of the author, or going in depth with it. (To be clear, I have no problem with metaphors and analogies, but it seems to me nowadays that instead of using metaphors to communicate new ideas with ease to a reader, they're used to reiterate old themes without being controversial). Authors love an underdog story, until the underdog character in question is you know... actually discriminated against IRL.

I really, really don't like the state of literature right now. I do agree that fanfic authors (well, at least me) tend to feel pressure to write more novel-length, high quality stories rather than just indulge in fanfic. The pressure mainly comes from "(insert bestselling book of the early 2000s) was initially a fanfic and it was so good, so all fanfic should adhere to that quality!" for obvious reasons, there are several things wrong with this. 1. the book they're refereeing to usually aren't that good but nostalgia keeps them from believing otherwise, and 2. these books still go through a fair bit of editing before they get published. While the editing might not change the trope or story itself entirely it enhances writing and helps with spelling errors and add to the small stuff that really make a difference. Fic readers except every fic they come across to be a 100k word slowburn with their favourite characters and their favourite tropes, and this puts the pressure on fic writers to write for the readers instead of themselves, which loses the essence of fanfic entirely (not to mention, authors nowadays have this pressure too, because of how intertwined fanfic and publishing is becoming).

Personally, I love reading the tropey fanfics that people consider bad. I like writing for myself, for the ships I like, for the fandom I like, for the length I want to and choosing whether or not I should finish a piece of work people have no right to complain about. It's free, and as the golden rule of fandom goes: don't like, don't read. I'd like to add another: don't expect. Fanfic isn't tailored for anyone except the writer. And that's how it should be! Creative expression without worrying about being good lit or not. A shame what trad publishing and fanfic has become.

Thank you so much for the ask! I must admit, it has been a while but I'm grateful for the Booktok question, especially a fanfic-related one where I can talk about my opinions as a fic writer, LOL.

[obsidianpen]

Hey, I'm a blood and gold reader, and I recently saw the discussion on Alternate universes and wanted to give my 2 cents.

I am a high school physics student, so while I am quite familiar with Newtonian mechanics, I have only ever read about Einstein's general theory of relativity and only have the faintest understanding of the math involved. This is from what I have heard on youtube, and from my teachers.

Okay. According to Einstein, our universe has 4 dimensions. 3 spatial dimensions, and 1 time dimension. Essentially, we are never still. We are always moving through the time dimension, and ONLY in the forward direction. It is not impossible(A LOT OF PHYSICS STRETCHING HERE, TAKE WITH A GRAIN OF SALT), but it is impossible for US to travel back in time.

Neat physics trick. Travelling faster through space means travelling slower through time, and vice versa.

You should go research the twin paradox for this to become more clear, but, for example, I take a space ship, travel REALLY fast, orbit a few stars and come back, FAR more time would've passed on Earth than it did for you.

This has the interesting consequence that time is relative, and that NOW varies according to different observers, and all these NOWS are equally accurate, which also implies that everything that can, will and has happened already exists.

Therefore, hermione physically DID NOT travel in time since it is genuinely impossible to change ANYTHING. She did enter another universe and she was fated to enter than universe(this is stuff that has already been described.)

We physically cannot verify whether alternate universes exist. I have heard a ton of theories, from infinite black holes, to schrodinger's cat(I haven't the faintest idea how quantum mechanics works, I am stick stuck 200 years in the past) And while they may not be "all fictional universes exist", but if we assume ONE of these alternate universe theories are correct, then there would be an infinite no. of Alternate Universes, so well... nothing really stops them from existing.

I am only an amateur high schooler. If you are skilled in physics and find anything wrong with my probably flawed interpretation(this is fictional, so please give me a pass), please do correct me.

Thank you for listening to my rant.

so…. What I’m hearing….. is that I wrote everything correctly, I am a genius, no further questions your honor 👩‍⚖️

okay but in all seriousness thank you for your rant!! I find all this stuff fascinating. Also, it was an interesting challenge to try and make everything conflicting that JK has written about time-travel and make it make sense. I only recently found out that she ALSO wrote on pottermore or somewhere that the five hour thing was the greatest amount of time someone could travel with no major consequences, and that’s why it always works out then; didn’t realize that she’d written thay when I was also making up that same rule in B&G 😂 made me really laugh, like oh, jk Rowling, we both over here trying to make your ladeeda stumbling into sci fi time travel have real ass rules 🥲🫠😂 so joining that with the cursed child lore was… and is…. A chore. But a fun one!

[bonzos-number-1-fan]

TMAGP 36 Thoughts: Breaking the Fourth Wall

Another guest written episode today, but unlike the rest where Alex and Johnny get editing credits, Alex co-wrote this one. I'm assuming that means that Dylan Griggs, presumably best known for Woe.Begone, wrote the incident and that Alex wrote the office sections? Those are quite "technical" this time around and that is his baby. Unfortunately, I'm not really a fan of this one. The incident is just one of those ones that did basically nothing for me. I don't expect them all to be hits though so I'm not too displeased about it, and hopefully this is just me going against the grain and it resonates with the audience at large.

Spoilers for TMA , and TMAGP episode 36 below the cut.

CELIA (To herself) Okay so that would be… Flaying… subsection… Voluntary… cross referenced with Betrayal and-

Oh you know that's going in the doc. Shame we don't get to hear the fucked up flagellation case though, could've been a fun one. Not enough high P incidents either and this is a shoo-in for that but, alas, we are kept from yet more juicy incident. I'm still waiting for Dog, and the eventual incident that's Collector and has that dude from episode 4 in it.

While we can all agree that Celia's betrayal triggered panic attack is very karmic, I do sorta hope this isn't laying the groundwork for her to go save his ass. I like that one of the main cast is basically the villain and I think on the whole it's more interesting if she stays that way. Not that I think it will happen. She's fairly obvious guilt ridden and was seemingly about to, if not confess her sins, confess more than would be prudent to keep that secret. I do really like that Alice is all in on it being basically Hell though. While it's not exactly accurate it is at least in the right ball park. Especially in regards to how the Powers from the Primeline tend to manifest in physical space.

As mentioned in the intro I just really didn't love this one. I don't really have anything bad to say it just one of those ones I listened to but didn't really find anything exciting about. Hopefully I'm just missing a masterpiece though. IDK, something about this one felt disconnect to the rest of it somehow but I'm not really sure I could tell you why. It's not doing anything new or off-theme but something about it doesn't make me go "That's a TMAGP incident", y'know? There is a mention of an Elric Capital Ltd, which is presumably related to last week's Elric Rehabilitation Initiative. That's pretty interesting because I can't recall them name dropping something like that so often. Hopefully it's the start of a trend and we'll get more of the Institute's satellite companies soon enough. Assuming it's one of those, of course. The more exciting bit about this though is that this whole incident is very different than what you'd assume a "Rehabilitation Initiative" involves and so Elric Capital Ltd seems to have a lot going on, which does make me hope they'll end up a major player this season or the next.

It didn’t diminish all at once though, instead it disappeared into a pinpoint like an old CRT monitor.

This is very curious phrasing. We have another unknowable acronym but I think the implication is clear, just like the OIAR monitors DPHWs. Using my immense initialism cracking skills I think CRT is some sort of old DPHW system that didn't take off. Creepy, Revolting, and Terrifying just don't have the same sorta utility. Makes sense why they switched.

ALICE “Salt config manager” and found an “unmonitored orphan process” which-

While Salt/SaltStack is a config manager, and it would have a legitimate use case in the OIAR, this is most likely used to reference salt's importance in alchemy. It's one third of the tria prima and represent concepts like the body, and stability. It also means that Colin has now referenced all three with his dropping of sulphur and mercury in episode 19, Hard Reset.

GWEN Look, I don’t need to know every detail of the thing to be the manager I just need to know how to balance it. So, either tell me how I can increase “W” here or get out.

I don't think there is a lot to say on this other than it's a fairly obvious confirmation that the role of the OIAR, and the Externals as an extension of that, is about balancing the ways the supernatural manifest so no one force becomes too dominant. I believe I talked about this in my episode 13 thoughts, but if not it was somewhere. Probably.

ALICE Good. Now, unless I’m wrong, which, lets be honest, is pretty damn likely, when we cross reference this shortlist for common terms we’ll find out what Freddy thinks you need and that… is… more… The computer pings up a tone. ALICE (confused) Bonzo?

I've been telling people Mr. Bonzo is the answer to all their problems for a while and now it's not a meme. He really is the true main character of this show. When his spin-off happens just know I'll be a hipster about it.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Incident/CAT#R#DPHW Master Sheet and Terminology Sheet

DPHW Theory: 2153 is the first DPHW in a while that's made me go "huh". I was expecting more W than this by a fair bit. Like with Architecture (Liminal), but I also couldn't make a strong case for it so it can't be that far off.

CAT# Theory: It's a 3.

R# Theory: I'm getting better at judging these as they go on because it's very B to me. Which I'm taking as a sign I'm right on this whole thing.

Header talk: Entrapment (Virtual) -/- Isolation (Experimentation) is fairly uninteresting as these things go. That is what it is.

[orphiclovers]

Thinking about Underground Killer by Lee Sookyung again.

The most obvious place to start is at it's compariosn to Notes from the Underground by Fyodor Dostoevsky. Now I haven't read it and I'm not yet crazy enough to read a book just to be able to write a better orv meta (I mean I could. it's 22k words it isn't that long) but I DID read the sparknotes summary so I can make surface level comparison... but take everything I say about NFTU with a grain of salt as I'll be interpreting it creatively to fit ORV's narrative LOL

NFTU is split in two parts. The first part is a collection of notes from a lonely, misanthropic 40 something man full of self hate who feels paralyzed by inaction, overcome by inertia, unable to make a single decision about his own life. He is totally alienated from society and figuratively "underground"

I can see a fucked up inversion of Lee Sookyung's story here. Women in abusive marriages often struggle to leave for years and even decades, paralyzed by fear and learned helpnessness into not making a single decision. Underground Killer could be about her marriage to Dokja’s father and her life during that period, struggling with the desire to escape and her own fear. NFTU critises russian society - UK must have criticized the korean society that allows women to be abused this way.

But unlike the narrator of NFTU she DID make a decision in the end, she did something that required tremendous willpower- she killed her husband. Well, that's what she wrote in the book anyway.

I think Underground Killer must have been a story of how an intelligent woman could be driven to murder (providing an in depth motive so no one suspects she didn't, I suppose) and clearly it felt real. As this candid look into domestic violence's toll shook the country enough to inspire positive change in legislation. How did that happen? I assume it sparked some manner of protests and outrage and became a symbol of the feminist movement (since in no reality would it be the MEN pushing for a change in law to protect women's rights. be so fr).

It must have been a polarizing and controversial topic where everyone had their own take. I'm thinking what the reactions were.

Like I said, the women were mostly on Sookyung's side as they probably saw her actions as brave and inspirational. I'm thinking men absolutely hated it due to it's criticism of patriarchy and the feminist themes. Media at large was enchanted by the spectacle of it all and milked it for all it's worth. Kim Dokja’s peers were too young to care about the Adult thing everyone is talking about on TV at the time it came out.

Later, in high school it was the most fucked up version of "your mom" jokes possible and "don't look at kim dokja too long, or he's gonna snap and kill everyone haha"

At Minosoft it was "Kim Dokja...? Wait that Kim Dokja from that thing on TV a while ago? The son of that woman?" Just gossip.

People like Sagah who don't listen to gossip but read are vaugely familiar with it as a famous book a while ago

Then the apocalypse happens and it is irrelevant to anyone who isn't kim dokja

[dufferpuffer]

Remus' wand is made from Cypress. what fo you think, is it suits him? 🤔

In short: Eh… I don't think Cypress suits him all that well, no. It suits Severus more. It's not the worst… but there's a much better option for Remus. And it's already sitting in the hand of another character.

Note: Wand Wood descriptions from the Wand Lore and Wand Core Pottermore. While not canon, take them with a grain of salt, I also use descriptions from the 'Unofficial Ultimate Harry Potter Spellbook' - because I like them. B^)

Firstly, Wand Cores (out of the three cores Ollivander uses): Reading the Wand Core Pottermore page and summarizing in my own words:

Dragon Heartstring: Powerful, Quick-Learners, Artistic, Cooperative but somewhat disloyal. Temperamental. If you can put a Dragon wand to use it will be happy in your hand - but might find itself happier in another. Is okay with Dark Magic.

Phoenix Feather: Wide range, Slow to learn, Picky, Somewhat aloof, Independent, Difficult to tame. If you can impress a Phoenix wand it will bond with you, but it is a union earned through effort and patience.

Unicorn Hair: Consistent, Unwavering, Loyal, Uncritical, Not the strongest, prone to melancholy. Kinda needy - bonds easily and will be consistent for them and only them - withers and dies when left alone. Struggles with Dark Magic.

I agree with Remus having a Unicorn Hair core. Dragon would be a decent fit too - but Unicorn Hair is too good: Not the strongest... but attaches himself to whoever will have him and remains utterly loyal. Withers with sadness when left behind. No matter the 'darkness' in him - he is not dark by nature. Solid.

--- Wand Woods:

Cypress (I'm actually whittling a Remus wand made of Cypress right now ha)

'Cypress wands are associated with nobility. The great medieval wandmaker, Geraint Ollivander, wrote that he was always honoured to match a cypress wand, for he knew he was meeting a witch or wizard who would die a heroic death. Fortunately, in these less blood-thirsty times, the possessors of cypress wands are rarely called upon to lay down their lives, though doubtless many of them would do so if required. Wands of cypress find their soul mates among the brave, the bold and the self-sacrificing: those who are unafraid to confront the shadows in their own and others’ natures.'

...I would not describe Remus as 'noble'. I wouldn't say his self-sacrificing nature was particularly 'noble'. Sure... Remus would lay his life down for someone else. He'd lay his life down for no good reason too - like avoiding hot sex with a cool lady he loves. My man is unwell... He isn't bold and he isn't brave... He CERTAINLY isn't unafraid to face his own shadow. Like holy shit lol

I have a feeling the Author paired him with Cypress after deciding he would die - that Cypress was written around Remus, to give him a little something sweet. It paints his death in a good light: saying he grew beyond all his issues; changed for the better before the end. And while he was starting to heal and grow before his end - his progress was cut short by his death, not punctuated by it.

It was a tragic and 'pointless' death, other than to 'clean up' the old generation. (which I am not against. It is satisfying enough in its tragedy. I can't think of a particular reason why Remus should remain alive when the rest of his friends don't… it would feel weird. Tonks' death on the other hand I HATE-) He didn't die an especially heroic death. He just died.

You can say it was noble of him to risk dying in order to try and ensure his son had a better world to live in... but he was also okay with risking dying so Tonks could 'move on' from him, and he almost chose the high risk of traveling with Harry rather than staying with her when pregnant... those were seen as cowardly and cruel. He could have ensured that his son had a dad that would be there for him - but he didn't. Once again he chose risk over staying with those that need him. This is a tangent - I just mean there's nothing special about his death that made it more noble than anyone else.

Unofficial HP Spellbook: 'Pairs well with those who are gallant and unselfish. In Greek mythology, the tree's namesake, Cyparissus, was turned into a tree as punishment for accidentally killing a sacred stag gifted to him by Apollo. It's long been associated with death, grief, mourning and the underworld' (btw cypress oil is antibacterial, antimicrobial, and antifungal.)

The stag thing is, at a glance, 'wooahh just like James-!' ...but Remus didn't do that. Remus didn't accidentally get James or Harry killed. Nor did he turn into a tree and root to the one spot - he runs away, is hard to track down... It just doesn't fit him quite right.

Cypress fits Severus more than it fits Remus. Noble in life and death, called to lay down his life, brave, bold and self-sacrificing - has dedicated his life to confronting his 'shadow'. Plus the sacrificing a stag thing, being associated with grief and mourning, rooting like a tree to the one spot as a punishment - and having healing elements...? Severus Snape.

...There is a wood I think suits Remus FAR better:

Hawthorn

'The wandmaker Gregorovitch wrote that hawthorn ‘makes a strange, contradictory wand, as full of paradoxes as the tree that gave it birth, whose leaves and blossoms heal, and yet whose cut branches smell of death.’ While I disagree with many of Gregorovitch’s conclusions, we concur about hawthorn wands, which are complex and intriguing in their natures, just like the owners who best suit them. Hawthorn wands may be particularly suited to healing magic, but they are also adept at curses, and I have generally observed that the hawthorn wand seems most at home with a conflicted nature, or with a witch or wizard passing through a period of turmoil. Hawthorn is not easy to master, however, and I would only ever consider placing a hawthorn wand in the hands of a witch or wizard of proven talent, or the consequences might be dangerous. Hawthorn wands have a notable peculiarity: their spells can, when badly handled, backfire.'

Contradictory, Complex, Conflicted Nature... Healing but 'smells' of death... Passing through a period of turmoil... Requires skills to master or else face dangerous consequences... can backfire...

Unofficial HP Spellbook: 'Well-suited for both curses and healing magic, hawthorn (also called the 'May-tree') carries with it a bit of superstition. The hawthorn blossom releases trimethylamine, a chemical that forms in decaying animal tissue, which might help explain why many in the U.K. associated the plant with death and don't want it in their home.'

So the description of this wood is Remus J. Lupin's biography. A complex and contradictory man, constantly conflicted, his entire life in a state of turmoil… Healing, soothing, but has a sorta 'death' that follows him... He needs to be skilled in controlling everything about himself, lest he or others face danger... When he mishandles situations they backfire in his own face. Also an 'explosive' wand sorta suits his rare outbursts - like when he shot a hex at Harry... The superstitious 'not wanting it in your home' thing is ALSO good.

Interestingly, Hawthorn with a Unicorn core... is Draco's wand. But... I feel like this combination suits Remus better than Draco…

HAWTHORN AND UNICORN HAIR: Contradictory - but consistent. Complex - but uncritical. Conflicted - but unwavering at the core. Passing through turmoil but will not fall to 'darkness'. Holding together with bonds of sheer loyalty. Not the strongest but highly skilled - through necessity of controlling danger. Can backfire when fumbled. Withers in melancholy when losing precious bonds.

This wand doesn't just describe a positive look of Remus' last choices. It's an honest wand. Humbling. It fits his weaknesses while holding up his triumphs. I can see it working for him his entire life, from an 11yr old with a heavy weight on his shoulders to growing and healing with his wife.

[paingoes]

cute delta things i didn’t get to focus on as much as i wanted

ie my underrated facts and as of yet unused whump ideas :)

-he literally faints all the time when using his powers and needs to be carried back out. mostly by simon. sometimes by paris :)

-martino has med students!!! they pop in sometimes i never really acknowledged them directly tho. theyre older than delta but not by that much. he is basically a case study to them but some of them do try ti get close and immediately get demoted/reassigned because of “inappropriate attachment”

-i had this idea for martino taking delta to a medical conference. delta having to be on display/used for tests w really green and overexcited students. extremely awkward stay at the conference hotel. delta is probably high for a lot of it tbh.

-also. delta is on a ton of medications to keep his powers elevated. he is only vaguely aware of this. its actually kinda considered doping in universe so most people are NOT aware of this!!!!

-simon and martino fighting more. i like the idea of simon being gentle w delta and martino going out of his way to try and counteract it and dehumanize him again to preserve his conditioning

-simon and paris talks. simon is way too much of a pussy to confront paris head on and i think they generally get along fine? becuz simon is a bystander. also paris pretends not to remember either of the handlers names even though he definitely knows them.

-delta is totally starved for affection but he would not accept it from just anyone i think hes actually kinda picky about it bizarrely enough. hes v distrusting and when his internet friends tried to be nice to him his response was invariably “just fuck off”…. and he actually likes them he just gets mad anyway cause he cant handle it 😭

-delta and paris kinda just hang out sometimes LOL…. paris always (correctly!) feels like hes in an adversarial environment whenever he has to go anywhere for work and delta is usually the only person there he trusts so if theyre not doing anything else its just gossip time.

-incidentally ^ delta was really deliberately not taught anything about history or politics or ethics at the institute because they didnt want him getting ideas but paris is heavy into that stuff and complains about it so much that delta just picks up on it. he absorbs info like a sponge its why he was such a good whistleblower.

-to me this is obvious but paris’s chillness-over-time graph is a bellcurve. like he is AWFUL at the beginning and awful at the end but in the middle he got very close to actually chilling the fuck out. he barely knew delta in the beginning and i think he did v much warm to him overtime and loosen the parameters of their relationship a lot. this is peak chill time. the assassination ruined everything but paris still… liked delta afterwards he was just insane and dangerous and delta was at ground zero of that. 

         (sidenote: some of the early paris chapters are so bad in terms of what he did and how he was written i actually feel the need to retcon some of it? it took a while for me to hit my stride w him, take the early stuff w a grain of salt)

-anyway. people LIKE delta. even though he doesnt talk hes v cute and unflappable in a way that’s very endearing to people even in empire. people do definitely go out of their way to fuck w him and its dehumanizing and they shouldnt do it but its not necessarily mean-spirited a lot of the time they just think hes interesting.

-sometimes it is meanspirited though. wanted to write something w misc soldiers trying to bully him. cause delta is obviously v submissive and incapable of defending himself but he’s also not trained to obey just anyone. in fact he would have some v large objections to that! (also an excuse to write protective paris at the end lol u know theyre dead)

-more simon carewhumper status. i wrote destroyer before i knew almost anything about whump like i didnt even know what a “carewhumper” was when i wrote it so i was surprised to see someone tag it w that. i guess it’s technically true! anyway i feel bad i let simon fall so much to the wayside. i think delta deserved more comfort over the events of destroyer and his relationship w simon really was very important to him so its on my list.

-thorn era sickfic. maybe the same psychic fever that makes him loopy? might be good for a non-canon bonus i cant tell if it would be more hurt or comfort yet

-this is a lot to get into but if i had to explain the way delta’s powers “worked” i would say that his only true ability is being a conduit. he is not really producing anything he is just tapping into something that is already there. it is not a meaningful difference to an outside party but in terms of what it feels like to use them….. its very psychedelic and psychospiritual and trippy. wouldnt recommend. also i really liked the tag that called delta a mage. its cute bcuz he actually loves pulp fantasy. he would like that :)

[mountkennedie]

Personal Circus Monkey

another blurb for you lovely people

While Anakin had to keep to safe, he mainly was just following you around. So if you wanted to return to Naboo for a day or two, then so is he.

That led to your current predicament. You and Anakin had been enjoying a lovely afternoon in the countryside.

"Ani?" You looked down at the man currently resting his head in your lap. You'd been running your fingers through his golden strands for a while now. You thought he was long asleep.

"Yes, angel?" His eyes stayed shut but a smile formed on his lips.

"You can do jedi tricks right?" His eyes abruptly opened.

"Well..." he smirked, "many different kinds. Which do you mean."

"Can you do that thing where they jump really high?"

"Yes. Any other traits you're curious about?" He turned his head more towards you.

"Can you do a backflip?"

"Yes."

"Do one right now. Please."

He sighs and rises from the grassy bed he was rested on. "I'd only do this for you," he said getting into position. He flipped and you enthusiastically cheered him on.

"Again!" He sighed and flipped again. He laid back down with you. "One m-" he cut you off by pressing his lips on yours.

"Are you sick of flipping?"

"I would do whatever you ask. But too much flipping makes me sick," he ended with a giggle.

"Oh well then I apologize my nauseous jedi knight. We can go back to watching the clouds. I don't mind."

"No no, I will many more flips for you and whatever 'jedi tricks' you wish me to. Once I relax. And... I would like to watch the clouds. Anything with you." His eye contact was strong with passion. But when wasn't it.

"Good. There is much else I'd like you to do for me."

///////////////////////////////////////////////

A.N. i wrote this in one sitting so pls take this with a grain of salt

[italianpersonwithashippersheart]

This isn't a fully formed thought, I am just spitballing. But I was thinking about the movie posters by @lukaherehelp and what @lurkingshan wrote here about DFF being a marvel of mystery writing and I started to think is DFF really a horror?

Let me explain, after 4 episode in the past with no hints of anything suprenatural, I am firmly on cap this was all man made, halluciantions and drugs and tech only by humans. If this was suprenatural I would have expected some type hints, like an entity watching the boys at the cabin. Maybe even following them home, eyes in the shadows, stuff like that.

So if you take that into consideration and everything about the horror was manufactured (except the deaths, I guess) do the rules of horror even apply? Every horror elements has been tied to the movie they made, the posters are horror movies only, the temple expands on the lore they used for the movie, the masked killer is from the movie. If it's all tied to the fake movie and the horror elements are all fake, then this isn't a horror story.

Is it both? Because while I would call some of the stuff that happened to Non horrific. I wouldn't call the past 4 episode an horror, a mystery for sure, a thriller definitely but not a horror.

It feels like both the characters and the story are using the horror elements as dressing a way to scare the boys, to torment them, a way to draw us in, to present the ultimate reaction to the cycles of violence and revenge. But it doesn't feel like we are operating in a horror genre, with the genre rules.

I don't know where I am going with this. Mostly I am just wondering about the finale, and what happens when we go back to the present timeline. Because so far the two genres have not operated on the same level, at the same time. We went horror with a pinch of mystery, then mystery/thriller. Then it stands to reason going back to the present will have to juggle both.

I am not saying the story can't do it, or it's a bad decision or anything. This isn't a critique I have just been thinking about everyone calling this a slasher, and expecting slasher/horror endings and I've been wondering about it. Because I looked it up (and I know MDL barely means anything so take it with a grain of salt)

On MDL, Dead Friend Forever is not described as an horror series.

Genres: Action, Thriller, Drama

Tags: Multiple Mains, LGBTQ+, Suspense, Gay Romance, Filmmaking, Steamy Kiss, Mild Gore, Drinking, Smoking, High School (Vote or add tags)

And I looked it up on iQIYI and these are the tags there:

So, is DFF really an horror??

[meeravandaseera]

Introductory Waterfolkology literature or books Masterlist

This is a list of books which, in my opinion, tend to be swell for introducing waterfolk, for example merfolk, mermaids and mermen and the like.

All of them are pretty good to get introduced into waterfolk only. While I still have many more in my shelf, most of them are pretty limited for getting introduced. What I refer to is being thrown into this topic like being thrown into a cold pool. "Beyond Faery" by John T. Kruse for example only explains British waterfolk and not all the other ones that one should know about. Basically, I cherry-picked some books for this list. I wrote down some of my personal pros and cons, mostly like a bullet list. Questions are welcome. My personal favorites are more on the surface of this list. Cited sources, accurate information, included lesser known or mentioned information (this is more based on my own intuition from what I have read on what is "mentioned less", take it with a grain of sea salt), and different topics are a high-priority, yet folklore being a more major one. I'm pretty critical, but that is because I have a soft spot for more accurate and reliable sources that cite their information and whatnot. Some information in even the greatest literature tends to be biased. I do sound pretty dry here, but I cannot turn the tide for this one, sadly.

Many are well-researched meanwhile others are not so much. Of course no book can include literally everything when being more general about this topic. Some are older, but still have accurate information because usually folklore is something that is not based on the most up-to-date information, yet some information is. They are not meant to be one's one and only source because most do never manage to portray something in the entirety, leaving information out or giving us wrong information. Literally almost all of them include the false sighting of John Smith. That's why such a wide variety of literature is pretty good. Some books are out-of-print. I got many second-hand.

All of this is my own opinion and one should also read other reviews when sea-riously considering what to get. There are so many of these and one should really think twice about what one should get, at least physically. One can try to lend a book from a library or get it in E-Book format, of course.

>>Mermaid and Other Water Spirit Tales From Around the World<< by Heidi Anne Heiner:

Pros: Essential and satisfies my critical side. A treasury of more accurate and literal accounts of waterfolk in folklore taken from more direct sources. (Obviously not the original sources, but mostly the directly translated ones). Even includes full older articles like "Sea Fables Explained" or the waterfolk section of "Superstistions of the Sea and Sailors". Includes various notes on sections in order to add or explain some things about each sourced text. Directly cited sources. Includes lesser known waterfolk like the Kaffirs of Xhosa belief on pages 732-735. Includes many different versions of some tales like the ones of "The King's Son and Messeria". Includes ballads and all their different versions. Is not afraid to leave direct, lengthy and repeating things inside (It is okay to sum such lengthy tales up, but I am happy that such a book exists when one needs to check the actual account).

Cons: Some language of the past might make it harder to understand some sources. Need to look up some vocabulary. Stories like "The Little Mermaid" or "Undine" included within the sea of oral tradition, out of the tide.

>>The Penguin Book of Mermaids<< edited by Christina Bacchilega and Marie Alohalani Brown:

Pros: Essential. Scholarly and descriptive. Includes direct and accurate source texts and important notes to explain a source or to describe it. Makes it clear what is literary and what is not by giving it a separate section. Has some lesser known literary tales. Includes many lesser known waterfolk like the karukayn from North Australia or Persian watermaidens. Cited sources nicely.

Cons: Only includes one version each for the ballads.

>>The Mermaid Atlas: Merfolk of the World<< by Anna Claybourne and illustrated by Miren Asian Lora:

Pros: Quite essential as it dives into a wide range of waterpeople from across the world's waters with a substantial fishing net cast into the sea of these books. Mentions more obscure waterpeople like the lamiak, Ji-Merdiwa, Sumpall, Avatea, Lobasta, Peru waterfolk etc. Introduced me to many of the aforementioned waterpeople from obscure depths and uncharted waters. Illustrations are nice to look at and they do depict them well to an extent. Succinct, yet descriptive about each type of waterperson. Includes sightings and makes it clear that those featured are only some of them.

Cons: No sources for any information are stated and one is left to search by oneself in order to get the full wave. Included one literary waterperson, namely the little mermaid and mixed it up with all the other ones from oral tradition. It's a bit out of the tide.

>>Mermaids: The Myths, Legends & Lore<< by Skye Alexander:

Pros: Includes many lesser known waterpeople like Squant the sea-woman to whom it introduced me. Goes into folklore, but also symbolism and other topics alongside. Mentions lesser known waterfolk sightings. Many obscure waterfolk depictions, but only all of them in teal. Has somewhat good reference pages.

Cons: Some things are mentioned twice. No direct sources cited for any sections alongside for the depictions. Information tends to be scattered around and mixed together in the book and thus is not very easy to follow.

>>Merpeople: A Human History<< by Vaughn Scribner:

Pros: Essential. Partly made available online on articles like "What Merpeople Say About Us" on Nautilus, "Mermaids and Tritons in the Age of Reason" on the Public Domain Review and also some interviews. Descriptive, academic, scholarly. Written by a historian. Dives into many a many of obscure sightings and puts forth many ideas on that topic. Has much information on all the different frauds and includes much more obscure information. Goes into some folklore and influence on pop-culture with many great examples. Great waterfolk depictions, including some lesser known ones. Sources cited for depictions and information. Explains the fraud of John Smith's "sighting".

Cons: Does not include all too much folklore from around the world, covers only more basic knowledge in that section. Primarily only focuses on sightings and hoaxes etc.

>>Solving Mysteries with Science: Mermaids<< by Lori Hile:

Pros: Dives into sightings and theories including answers on the existence of waterfolk. Has somewhat lesser known information, hoaxes, and sightings. Covers why one might have believed in them. Has some folklore still. Succinct.

Cons: Mostly only about waterfolk sightings and hoaxes.

>>Sea Enchantress: The Tale of the Mermaid and Her Kin<< by Gwen Benwell and Arthur Waugh (1961):

Pros: Academic, scholarly, and very well-written. It's descriptive and written by scholars, obviously. They were members of the British Folklore Society and devoted several years to research this topic alone. Somewhat essential. Many diverse topics ranging from the shallow takes on waterfolk that they are "only sirenians" up to different sightings and folklore from the entire world. Includes lesser known waterfolk like the Finnish Aino in the Kalevala and the nixen in the Nibelungensage from Germany or the almost obscure Jalpari of the Punjab district in Kulu in India's mythology. Includes a small variety of diverse depictions ranging from illustrations to sculptures, but only in black and white. Has a list of waterfolk depictions in British cathedrals and churches. Dives into some more 20th century popular waterfolk media.

Cons: Sometimes only describes waterfolk with not-so-much detail. Short sources are cited, but not always, only rarely. Has a tendency to be more talking about European waterfolk than others, especially those of the British Isles. Fewer waterfolk from other countries. Does not acknowledge the misconception of Dagan, the supposed fish-god. Just assumes that Dagan is a fish-god while he most likely is not, more of an agriculture god.

>>Mermaids: Art, Symbolism, and Mythology<< by Alex Müller, Christopher Halls, and Ren Williamson:

Pros: Academic, thorough, and scholarly. Written by scholars. Includes a big list of references and sources for the depictions. Dives into different topics like the ancient waterfolk of Mesopotamia and Greece, waterfolk in early Christianity, some sightings and explanations, art and modern 21st century influence. It has many nice and essential depictions from the past and even sculptures. Describes in neat detail how some depictions came to be and where they are featured etc. Has a graph showing how the sirens changed from half-bird to half-fish with many variants.

Cons: No directly cited sources in the text. Mostly only more well-known waterfolk.

>>Mermaids<< by Beatrice Philpotts:

Pros: Descriptive. Has nice waterfolk depictions including lesser known ones. Goes into folklore and sightings with some hoaxes including answers. Some lesser known information like the supposed sea-god incarnation of King Chen.

Cons: Almost no directly cited sources. Information is quite mixed together.

>>The Mermaid Handbook: An Alluring Treasury of Literature, Lore, Art, Recipes, and Projects<< by Carolyn Turgeon:

Pros: Dives into many things from folklore to 21st century fashion and pop-culture like the name above suggests. Sources cited for the depictions and some of the texts included like smaller poems. Includes few lesser known older depictions of waterfolk. Mentions some somewhat not very well-known waterfolk like Dahut of the city of Ys or the Ben-Varrey. Some interesting speech or interviews by people on the topic of waterfolk like "A Young Man's Guide to Picking Up Mermaids".

Cons: No directly cited sources in the folklore section, not even in the back. I was quite surprised by that. While it does have a bibliography, it does not give direct citations. Does not always cite depictions on those large two page spanning ones. Mixes "The Little Mermaid" and "Undine" literary tales to the oral tradition folklore seaction with the Melusiné, it's a bit out of the tide. On page 86 it says that "it's impossible to catalogue the endless types of glitzy aquatic hybrids that exist in almost every culture", that is not very true because Theresa Bane, for instance, made a whole encyclopedia of humanoid mythical beings from the entire world. If one is daring to do so, it is possible.

Notes: Cozy list of seaweed at the end, it's nice. Interesting DIY projects.

>>Scaled for Success: The Internationalisation of the Mermaid<< edited by Philip Hayward:

Pros: Available online on ResearchGate. Descriptive. Dives into many topics like folklore and pop-culture. Includes lesser known information like about the Filipino sirenas that they could control water etc or the types of yawkyawks like the ngalworreworre of the Wugularr people in North Australia. Dives into 21st century media that have not been regarded by the Western world. Diverse. Good bibliography. Lesser known depictions included.

Cons: There tend to be no directly cited sources. Some depictions have low quality.

>>Seduction and the Secret Power of Women - The Lure of Sirens and Mermaids<< by Meri Lao:

Pros: Descriptive and academic. Goes into mythology of the sirens and their interesting evolution. A bit of other Greek mythology waterfolk alongside. Includes many interesting and more obscure aspects and theories. Has some information about waterfolk aside from the European ones. Includes some obscure waterfolk like the Morrigan from the swamps of Pilgar. Section on sightings with some lesser known information like those sightings of Sicilian seamen. Many interesting lesser known depictions of waterfolk. Cites sources for depictions and some information.

Cons: Language is more complex, need to look up vocabulary. Does not go into many different waterfolk from around the world. More basic knowledge on general waterfolk, but more complex knowledge focusing only on the sirens. No directly cited sources for some information.

>>Creatures of Fantasy - Mermaids<< by Kathryn Hinds:

Pros: Goes into folklore from around the world including some lesser known waterfolk like the Halfway People, the watermaid of St. Brendan or the mermaid of the Iona Isle in Scotland. Dives into some sightings. Has some lesser known depictions.

Cons: No cited sources for information and depictions. Mixed up a sighting with folklore from other countries at the back. Mostly shallow and not all too many details included.

>>Mermaids and Mermen<< by Shannon Knudsen:

Pros: Goes into folkloric waterfolk from the world in folklore also with some lesser known ones like the Gwenhidwy, Halfway People or adaro. Includes information like sightings and frauds such as the more obscure Filipino incident of waterfolk being claimed to be held in a lab in 2009. Some vague pop-culture at the end.

Cons: Not much detail and quite shallow in some aspects. No cited sources, only very vague references.

>>Mermaid Folklore<< by Elizabeth Andrews:

Pros: Includes lesser known waterfolk like the yacaruna. Has some interesting sightings included. Depictions do represent the waterfolk well to an extent.

Cons: Mixed up sightings with folklore oftentimes. Literally no cited sources. Includes much literary information that it does not discern from the folklore. Misconception about shellycoat being humanoid, John T. Kruse in his "Beyond Faery" clears up that it's just a foal. In some tides it's more of a fictional retelling. Sometimes hard to read when text is printed on images of paper notes on the paper. Least suggested.

[rqttlers]

why’d you only call me when you’re high? - ellie williams

sorry quick note ~ I haven’t wrote in a while, please take it with a grain of salt! also not proof read, not gonna give any warnings except from drug paraphernalia because minors are probably gonna read this anyway LMFAO

“please baby i need you.” The text that pinged on your phone illuminated your room.

“fuck.” you cursed to yourself, carefully evaluating the notification, scared to click on it.

Your thumb was grazing over the screen starting to swipe it away when another appeared.

“i could fuck you so good right now just come over”

You knew she was as high as a kite, floating in the clouds. The weed haze clouding her mind, causing her to text you illogical, meaningless words. You couldn’t fall for her trap again, although every bone in your body was telling you otherwise.

As you did every few days, you laced up your converse and pulled on one of your oversized hoodies to battle the cold for the three minute walk you were about to make to Ellie’s cabin. The three minute walk that had you contemplating every single aspect of your life.

You liked her message, too embarrassed and full of shame to click in any words. That was Ellie’s confirmation. The familiar sense of deja vu settling over the both of you. You know its a problem when even Ellie can feel it. Because at this moment in time, she literally can’t feel anything. Just desire and lust, for her ex-girlfriend. You.

The snow beneath your shoes shifted to the side as you trudged along the path. The whole of Jackson was silent, nothing but the gust of wind and a few howls of coyotes and the occasional dog bark in the distance. Stillness surrounded you like it was closing in on you. Your nervousness settling into your throat, creating an everlasting lump you just couldn’t swallow.

~ knock, knock, knock. ~

The door opened and you were immediately greeted by Ellie, hands encased in her pockets.

“You okay?” You smoothly slid past her, avoiding all eye contact. That was until you felt her hands slither around your waist, pulling you back into her.

Her breath heaved onto your neck, the rise and fall of her chest pressing against your back.

“God. Do you know what you do t’ me?” She exhaled, taking an angry bite at your clavicle as she pulled the shoulder of your hoodie down.

“N-no.” You replied innocently, but you knew full well what you were doing.

The same as every weekend, she’d fuck you dumb and then you’d leave dazed as guilt crashed onto every compartment of your brain. Why did you let her keep using you like this?

“And these jeans…” Ellie dipped her hands into your waistband, pulling at the hem of your panties, grazing her middle finger over your clit ever so gently. A low moan and breath escapes your throat and the lump suddenly disappears.

“They make your ass look so good.” She grabbed at it with the hand that wasn’t pre-occupied at your cunt, giving it a squeeze and a slap before running her fingers up to grab your hair.

“I’ve been fuckin’ soaked since i seen you at the stables with Cat today. Y’ looked so fuckin’ fine baby.” Her breathy sentence only made you arch your ass further into her hips, but she pulled them away, pulling her hand from lapping at your cunt as well.

“mmm- Els!”

“What? Use your words princess.” The girl smiled into your jaw before turning you around to face her and backing you up slowly towards the end of her bed.

“I can’t keep doing this to myself.” As the words air Ellie corks her head.

“So why do you keep giving in? Huh darling?” Her veiny hands now pulling the bottom of your hoodie up your torso, but you quickly bash them away.

“I can’t keep you out of my head-“ You keep your eyes on hers, gazing into her dilated pupils, the scent of weed filling your nose.

“mhm…” She grunts. Ellie shoves you down onto the mattress, pulling off her own jumper to reveal her discoloured sports bra then continues to unbutton her jeans.

“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, yet expecting a different result.” she mumbles, Her crotch meets your jeans as she drives her lips into yours.

“I’m not insane… but you on the other hand.”

All of a sudden your pants are being tugged off your legs aggressively.

“You just keep comin’ back for more.”

She’s now kissing down your torso, leaving marks on your chest, the top of your supple tits and then your stomach, before she reaches your abdomen.

Her eyes dart up to your face. The face thats looking down at her is lewd and doe eyed, and shes eyeing the mouth thats releasing soft moans and whimpers at the contact of her lips.

“You want me to take care of you baby? Make y’ feel good?”

“Mhm- yes, please els.”

A smirk contorted on her lips as you begged.

“who’s pussy is this? hmm?”

You writhed underneath her, arching your back and pushing your ass up so your cunt would work towards her mouth. Fuck, she knew how to work you up.

“Your- yours! Only yours baby.”

Your designation ignited her fire very obviously, as she dove her mouth, nose and jaw into you, lapping at your cunt like she had been dehydrated for hours in the Sahara desert.

Although you could hardly understand what dirty talk she was sputtering as you seen stars and heard nothing but white noise, you could still smell the weed. It infiltrated every sense except from the orgasm building up in your core.

“Cum for me pretty girl.”