#idk if you needed an explanation but i figure some people might

[rosepetalsthings]

what callout post i wanna find it im nosy

I think it got deleted (I did check their blog when I couldn't find it in the tags, so it wasn't cause I was blocked).

Essentially it was a no name new innittwt user who was making a list of "dream supporters" and "grooming apologists" as a Blocklist for others, but they @ everyone they named so they all knew they got mentioned. Some people reacted to it so more people knew of the existence of the callout post. It was a very little meme very briefly, because of how ridiculous it was (hence my little post. I actually found it in the tags before I saw people reacting)

It was however an awful thing to do, because being randomly mentioned in a post like that can be a triggering experience for some, and was also half based off people simply saying that the situation as it is now is not grooming (a true fact), or just because someone was in dreblr (honestly I think they just looked down a post with dreblr people and called it a day), despite the fact that some of them do not support him.

[adventuringblind]

AUS24 (3k words)

Oscar Piastri x Liam Lawson x Reader x Logan Sargeant

Genre: Angst, fluff, spice, A/B/O AU

Summary: James Vowels takes things a step further when covering his ass in the media. Logan and his mate pay the price but Oscar and Liam are there to help.

Warnings: A/B/O dynamics, heat/rut cycles, James Vowels is the bad guy in this one, Alex being a king, Thigh riding, other alluded to sexual things but not specific so IDK what else to put

Notes: This one was a lot and I hope I filled the request okay! I struggled... Therefore y'all should feed my praise kink in order to motivate me. Jk...... unless?

Side Note: My ABO dynamics and how I write it is different so be forewarned ig. Also, NSFW under the cut. MINORS AVERT YOUR EYES!

Masterlist // Request Form // My Website // buy me a Ko-Fi

Oscar didn’t think much of it when he jumped out of the car and didn't see Logan. He figured he’d rushed off to make sure Alex was okay after that nasty crash and see if the team was going to be able to fix the beta’s car. 

Practice had gone pretty decent. He should probably meet up with Lando to talk about how he’d felt in the car. All things considered, he’s mildly optimistic. 

The itch in his neck leaves him wondering which of his three mates could possibly be annoyed. Oscar usually assumes Liam, given the nature of the omega. Oscar had to learn to pick his battles early on. He understands that in entirely alpha or omega families, dynamics have to be flexible. Liam is more alpha coded then he is omega. Unfortunately for the mess of things that is the paddock, people give him shit for it and Oscar has had to haul the kiwi away before he killed somebody. 

Oscar, because he’d prefer not to spend his home race weekend bailing Liam out of jail, speeds off towards the RB garage. He doesn’t have to go far since Liam is also sprinting in his direction. “Oscar! Are you alright? I thought maybe something happened when you got out of the car since I feel all prickly.” The blonde smells both annoyed and concerned. 

Oscar shakes his head. “I thought you might be trying to take the head off Helmut again…” He shakes his head and continues his walk down to the Williams garage with Liam on his heels. “Have you seen the other two at all?” 

“Her and Logan walked down to the William's garage together. That was about twenty minutes ago.” 

On their trek to the end of the paddock, They end up running into George. The second British Omega on the grid. He’s pacing outside of the garage and Oscar has to bite back a gag at how distressed he smells. “George?”

“Oscar! They won’t let me in.” He’s raking fingers through his and getting increasingly more distressed the longer they are stuck outside. “He sent me a text saying something happened, but didn’t elaborate. I can feel his anger.” 

Oscar, because he has no idea what to do in this scenario, sends Liam with George to find Lewis, or Carlos, or Max, or Lando, or anyone else who might know what to do right now because he has no idea. He just needs to see the other half of his mates or he’s going to lose it. 

He tries to flag down anyone in the vicinity, only to be ignored. He’s about ready to come unhinged until he gets the attention of James. The alpha team principal keeps his distance - the invisible boundary line the only thing keeping Oscar from shaking the information out of him. Only, James doesn’t just smell like James. No - he smells like Oscar’s other two omegas. Both of which must be in heat. 

He tries to breathe; reign himself in so he doesn’t lose it and end his entire career (though he will if it comes down to it). “Where are they?” If there is a growl laced within the question, he can’t be bothered to care.”

James looks like he might jump into an explanation of some kind, but gets foiled by Alex. The beta looks pissed. The kind of anger that shows in every movement. 

“JAMES!” While Oscar flinches at the olders tone, James remains calm. It's aggravating in a way. “Tell Oscar what you did or I will.”

James sighs and motions for the Australian to follow him. Alex can't growl, but the way he's seething tells Oscar that he would if he could. It's ironic to think that between the three of them, Alex is the most angry compared to the two alphas trudging through the garage.  

James gestures for him to go inside. The scent leaking through the cracks in the door is terribly seductive and Oscar has to dig his nails into the palm of his hands to ground himself. “Neither of them were supposed to be in heat this early. All four of us are synced and just went through this a month ago.” he stares down the older alpha for an explanation. 

He takes an inventory of his own body. His own reaction to his mates in heat is more… intense. Like he can't keep himself off them. Currently he feels more protective than anything. 

“since James won't tell you, I will-”

“It's team business!” 

“Not when the safety of others is concerned!” 

James makes a lunge for Logan but Oscar matches his speed and steps in front of him. He wants to retch at how awful James smells at the moment. 

Four pairs of footsteps from the direction they had come from. Liam and George have managed to find them and dragged Carlos and Lando as well. It's terribly comforting to have more people around. 

“what's going on?” Lando whines at the door the closer he gets. “Is Logan in heat? But didn't he just have one?” 

Alex is much taller than Oscar, but the beta appreciates the gesture given the nature of how betas usually are towards anyone else. “Oscar, why don't you, me, George and James speak about this in his office. Carlos can come too, if you'd like.” 

“yeah - yeah okay. I need to know what happened.” He looks around for Liam and pulls him away from James. “Sorry - I don't know what's happening. I didn't mean too-” 

Liam attaches himself to the alpha and noses at his neck. “I'll take care of them while you're gone. Lando is going to stay also.” 

Oscar nods, kisses his head, and drags himself away. He doesn't want to go anywhere but inside that room. Be it biology or his own mind, clearly something is wrong and he would desperately like to be there for the people he loves. Still, Liam is here and that makes things better. They aren't alone. 

They settle into chairs in James’ office. Carlos opts to stay by the door watching everything going on outside. “Why are they taking apart Logan's car?” 

Oscar blinks at him. They're what?” 

“I crashed the car and broke the chassis. James decided to punish Logan for it. But that's not even the worst part!” Alex looks expectantly to his team principal. A silent urge for him to tell his own story. He gestures for Alex to come continue on and the beta rolls his eyes. “Logan and y/n walked here together. James summoned them into the office together. He told Logan he was going to give me his car. Obviously, I said no and…” 

George shuffles his way over to Alex. The physical contact between the two seems to lessen Alex's rising emotions. “It was probably my fault, since I kept saying no.” Alex throws a packet of heat inducers on the table. “I was restrained. James didn't show he had a whole package - just dissolved way over the recommended amount into a cup and commanded Logan to drink it. She got to it first so he didn't have to drink it, and downed the entire thing in seconds.” 

“That doesn't explain Logan’s-”

“He had more and just repeated it. Then he used that fucking voice to get them to not tell anybody and lock themselves away.” Alex looks like he's on the brink of tears. “I'm sorry, Oscar.” 

Oh - the rage that's building beneath his skin. He moves to throw himself at James, but is foiled by Carlos. “You can't help from jail.” 

Which, the Spaniard isn't wrong, so Oscar goes limp in his hold. He takes a few ragged breaths to force himself to calm down. “It's not your fault Alex, at all. Sounds to me like it's a move to cover his own ass.” 

“Alex is out best chance-” 

“Bullshit! I just murdered my car!” 

The door to the office is thrown open and Oscar has no time to react to the fact Max and Daniel, his pack alpha and omega - respectively, got word of this. 

“Did we need to alert the entire grid, Alex?” 

Max openly, and without hesitation, growls at the team principal in question. Daniel hits him upside the head to get him to stop. “Where’s Logan at?”

“My driver doesn’t need anymore assistance, Daniel-” 

All of them (aside from Alex) Descend into a fit of threatening noises. “Really? Because heat inducers can fuck up anyone’s body on a normal dose. Trust me James, I’ve been in this scenario with my own team.”

Briefly, Oscar recalls Lando talking about McLaren trying to induce Daniel’s heat without his knowledge. Andrea is a much better team principal and He can vividly recall Lando near sobbing when they were assured that would never happen. 

“In Logan’s room.” 

“Great! Here’s what we’re going to do then.” 

George has to drag Alex away from the Office and back up to his room. The British Omega throws a middle finger at James before he’s out of sight completely. Max is staying with James until things get sorted out. Which - unfortunately since the laws are so unfair - will mean James gets away scot free. Daniel says he’s going to be subjected to a lecture first. The rest of them head back to Logan’s room with the intent on getting out of the building. 

“Should I call Andrea and Zak?” Oscar looks desperately at Daniel for instructions. He’s never had to leave so suddenly and has no clue if there is a protocol for these things or not. 

“No worries, I took care of it. We just need to get them out of the paddock.” the older Aussie pats his shoulder reassuringly. “I’m assuming the four of you aren’t prepared at all?” 

Oscar shakes his head. “We all synched just last month.” 

“Anything you need then? I can send George and Alex on errands. Actually, I’m hoping for that seeing as Alex is desperate to help.” 

“I hope he sees that this isn’t his fault.”

“He’ll come around, I hope you know it’s not your fault either.” 

And here Oscar thought he was hiding it so well. He tries to shake it off, play his own insecurities down. “I’m-”

“Relax mate, Max felt guilty for weeks.”

“But it’s my job to protect them-” The voice crack was unnecessary and completely screwed him over in terms of hiding whatever feeling he had buried.

Daniel turns to face him right outside the door. “You can’t change the past, Oscar. You were never going to be able to stop this from happening. What you can do is help them now because they need you.” 

Oscar nods with newfound determination, and opens the door.

She certainly wouldn’t say it was her greatest decision, definitely one of the easier ones in the moment. She’d downed the drink without a hesitation. 

They’d attempted a nest. Tried to make the room comfortable. The amount of drugs in their systems was not making it easy. Instead opting to throw everything on the floor and try to sleep before they can’t. 

They’d stripped down to undergarments within the last few minutes. The heat steadily building and becoming too much. Still, she lays plastered against Logans body; his scent intoxicating. 

“You didn’t have to do that for me.” He noses at her neck, teeth nipping at the three scars lining her collar bone. 

“Wanted to help, Lo.” She feels like crying. The odd lack of connection bombarded her after James used his stupid voice. “Wanted you to race.” 

The door squeaks open sometime later. After a nap and the first round of what will probably be many. She peaks her head out from around Logan who’s gone defensive from the new intrusion. Only - Liam peaks his head inside and Lando follows before shutting the door again. She whimpers and tries to claw her way to Liam, but is pushed back gently by Lando. 

“He’s grabbing a few things.” She can see him trying to smile gently at her. 

Liam ends up between them, his own shirt off and one of Oscar’s sweatshirts in hand. She makes herself as small as possible to curl up into his side. “Do you two need anything specific right now.” 

“Where’s Osc?” Logan beats her to the question. 

“Talking with James, I believe.” 

The whines are involuntary. That part of her brain still fighting for its life wants to know why he’s not here right now. The overthinking side is claiming it’s because she’s undesirable now. “Does he still want us?” 

Liam coos at her, as does Logan and Lando. “You'll never not be undesirable.” 

“But what about James?”

“What do you mean?” She can feel Liams muscles tense underneath her. She shrinks in an attempt to hide from the new angry scent permeating the room. 

Thankfully, Logan takes over for her. “He used his voice on us. He wanted to give me inducers…” 

She, despite the struggle, rolls herself over Liam and into Logan's lap. “Not your fault.”

“I know-” his desperate whine nearly kills her. And Liam - by the looks of it. He's restraining himself if the way his jaw is tensing is any indicator. 

“Lando, would you mind possibly grabbing mine and Oscar's stuff so we don't have to leave here again if possible?” It's not fair really, that Liam can be bossy and she finds it attractive.  Oscar is also bossy, but he’s the gentle bossy and Logan isn’t bossy at all. Wow - her stupid hormones have her drooling over this and she doesn’t even know what this is. 

Liam makes up a list for Lando and the Brit runs off to collect the items. She wonders how long Oscar is going to be and if the ache in between her legs will let up until they can leave. 

It’s the only thing on her mind. It’s also now all over her thighs. An unfortunate circumstance where there are no towels on the ground. At this rate she might die if she can’t do something about these feelings and the longer she waits the more desperate she becomes. 

“Do you need something, darling?” Her hazy mind decides that now is a great time to register that she’s grinding into Liam's leg. She doesn’t stop though. If anything - she can’t, because he has a hand on her hip urging her to continue. “Only one of me at the moment, is this okay for now?” She makes a weak sound and makes a mess of herself and Liam’s poor thigh. Not like Logan is doing any better. They both smell good like this. 

She has no idea how much time passes, the endless amount of work she’s having to do finally wears her out enough to relax for the time being. 

“I guess I should’ve stripped all the way, huh?” She’s too tired to be embarrassed about Liam’s teasing comments. She barely even notices Liam attempting to clean her up. Her mind is too far gone. Enough that her and Logan are both ready to go again after a few measly minutes.

They don't get very far, instead scrambling under whatever is available as the door swings open. Liam is hissing at the intruder, only to see Oscar and Lando poke their heads inside. 

“Hey Daniel, I think maybe we’ll stay here for the time being and then when the traffic of the paddock dies down we can try and leave.” 

Daniel also slips into their space. She makes a lunge for either of the two Australians. Oscar is quick to react to her movements and get her to stay put underneath the little amount of covering she has. 

Lando drops the bags of stuff he was holding and tries to smile at them before he leaves. Unfortunately, his sad scent gives away his true feelings. She wonders if he knows the full story now since Oscar definitely does. 

It’s just her, her mates, and Daniel now. The pack Omega is hovering by the door and is clearly ready to leave them to their own devices. “Keep in mind that reactions to heat inducers are unpredictable but fast. You’ll only be in “heat” for about a day. Then you’ll just be sick, but we’ll take it as it comes.” 

Daniel reminds Oscar to text him if they need anything and then leaves them alone. Which - she likes Daniel, but being able to jump the bones of her mates sounds all too appealing. 

“James?” Logan looks pleadingly at Oscars for some kind of reassurance. 

“Is going to get an earful from Max and Daniel. Aside from that, he will probably get a slap on the wrist. Alex is ready to kill him though, if that’s what you wanted.”

The three of them find humor despite the nature of the situation. It’s why she loves them so much. The way she can feel safe and taken care of, but still be herself and laugh and give into her own desires. 

Oscar loses his own clothes. The fireproofs he was wearing around his waist come off in record time. 

“You're still going to race, right Osc?”

“We’ll see-” Oscar nearly jumps when the three of them whine and pout in unison. “I take it that you want me to race?” 

“We’ll make do without you.” 

“Hey!-”

“Liam is good for something after all!” Logan wheezes in laughter. Only for Liam to grumble and decide enough is enough. He takes Logan by the hips and slams right into him. 

She looks between the two of them and Oscar. She leans up to his ear, fully intent on whispering to him but gets a little distracted by his scent while shifting around.

“Need something?” 

Finally, she surrenders herself to the haze knowing she has all her mates with her. “Just you three.” 

[factual-fantasy]

30 Asks! Thank you!! :)) 🦒

I have developed a few backstory ideas for almost all the characters, I could talk a bit about those at least! :000

First, Home. (Wally's house) Home is supposed to be a living entity with unknown intentions.. so far I haven't planned out any major ways that it interacts with anyone. Other than it watching Wally sleep at night.. the feeling is so intense and disturbing that he constantly wakes up feeling anxious..

Speaking of Wally, he's supposed to be this genuinely innocent friend of the neighborhood and he has no idea that his house is alive. Wally thinks that he just has some kind of sleeping and anxiety issues which is why he keeps waking up at night feeling afraid and uncomfortable. That's also why I always draw him with bags under his eyes and my explanation for why he talks the way he does. <XDD The poor guy cant get a good night sleep! Sometimes when his "anxiety" gets really bad he'll go crash at Barnaby's house for a night or two. For some reason he feels a lot safer there..

Speaking of Barnaby, I haven't thought too much about his backstory. But I like the idea that he's a lot like sans. XDD By that I mean he's a goofy guy but there's a lot more too his character and he's a lot more intelligent than people think he is. Barnaby is actually very aware of what's going on around him. He's the first to know when one of his neighbors isn't doing well and the first to figure out what's bothering them. Even if he's not close friends with them.

Also tacking on a last minute note on Barnaby- I like think Barnaby has lived in the neighborhood for a very long time. If not the longest. He was there to see Howdy open shop and saw Julie, Sally and Frank all move in. He was the first neighbor everyone became acquainted with and he always made everyone feel right at home. Barnaby is so friend shaped 🥺💞💞

Next is Julie. I haven't done the best job at showing it when I draw her.. but Julie is intended to kiiind'a be an amalgamation of all the neighbors. What I mean by this, is her and her sisters are naturally these huge horrible looking beasts that live in the woods. But Julie was able to slowly transform herself and modify her appearance to look more.. friendly! So that she could become a resident of the neighborhood and not scare anyone away <XDD

How she did this is she just studied the neighbors from the bushes and modeled her appearance after them. Long eye lashes like Poppy, Different colored nose like Howdy,, and since she never saw anyone else bare foot.. Little feet paws like Barnaby <XDD She kind'a kicks herself for that one. Turns out the people she was trying to mimic the most, Wally and Eddie, don't have paws for feet- But that's alright. No one really questions it!

Now Eddie is the usual interpretation I think. He was originally a real human but now he's a neighbor with no memory of who he once was.. he doesn't really remember his childhood or where he came from. He's also just generally forgetful. 😅 The only thing he consistently does right is get everyone's mail delivered right on time!

I have ideas of him having hallucinations, strange dreams or even fainting spells when he encounters something significant from his past life. I considered one of the triggers for his spells could be imagery of an orange cat. Maybe he had one as a pet in his original life? If he ever encountered one and then fainted.. he might just start telling the neighbors that he's allergic to cats.. <XD idk, I haven't fully thought that all through yet XDD

Sally is the last I'll comment on. Her story keeps changing up but I have solid ideas for her biology.

I want her to be an actual celestial being of some kind. I imagined her being a glowing star child that is always warm to the touch. She can control/dim her light pretty significantly but she can never fully go dark. So she's hard to sleep near during sleep overs <XDD

Speaking of sleep overs, I actually imagined that she doesn't need to sleep! Perhaps its like the gems from Steven Universe. She can sleep if she wants to but she doesn't need to by any means. She gets all her energy from what she eats! I also pictured her wearing what ever she wants year round! She absolutely thrives in the sunlight and her body is much stronger than the cold around her. So she can wear shorts in the winter and sweaters in the summer all she wants! Lucky gal.. <XDD

I have some ideas for the other neighbors, but this is already a wall of text. Maybe next time <XDD

Perhaps I should go back sometime and draw these guys again :00 At least get around to redesigning Sally and Julie, it could be fun! :}}

XDDD AAAA IDK!! Its been a while since I've thought about him! XDD

Hmm let me think... well, He's a loyal and devoted servant of the king and his family. Almost to the extent you'd wonder if he's been brainwashed or cursed..

I've haven't thought too much about his backstory or how he came to be in the position of power that he's in.. But I do have some ideas floating around for how me may interact with some of the Koopalings. :00

The main idea I had in mind was Morton coming to him and voicing and insecurity of some kind, putting himself down in the process. perhaps he said it absentmindedly.. but Commander was quick to defend him, bowing at his feet "Who dared to speak to my Lord in this way? With your command, I shall have their head!" Upon explaining that no, no one said that to him.. he just feels that way.. Commander has a talk with him that boosts his confidence. Not sure what exactly the insecurity could be.. perhaps Mortons appearance? <:0

(In response to this post)

Aww! I love those names!! :DD Though I don't know if its just me, but I feel like the names should be swapped? <XD Idk- the plup roly poly feels more like a Bernard than a Diego to me. But I totally agree withy them having Tea on Tuesdays! XDD I'm glad you like them! :))

@silly-creetur

<XDD Sorry you had to scroll so far to find Octonauts- but I'm glad you liked what you saw! :))

@lolzwaitwhat (Love your username XDD)

They will be forever confused yet grateful. 🥺🥺💞💞💞

I'm still open for suggestions! And I don't get as many as people seem to think I do.. 😅 also thank you! I'll do my best! <XD

(Referencing this post)

:DDD THANK YOU!!

As for the canvas size, yeahh, for the pixel stuff the canvas's are absolutely tiny. That first dragon drawing is on like a 300-300 canvas. If I were to post it as is it would be really small if you tried to view it. Soooo I just copy/pasted and blew the image up to like 800/800. Its a lil blurry but that's okay <XDD

@aria-the-derg

XDD Thank you! Man its been years since I've done an OC trade..

@thesunbun

XDDD THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! :DDDD

@clownaroundtowne

Oh wow.. neotony.. that's so interesting! I learned something new today! :00 And yeah! Perhaps it could be! :0000

*snimfle...* ..am I weewy yow favowite? 🥹💞💞💞 fank you!!

AAAA THANK YOU SO MCUH!!!! :DDD AND YES IT DID MAKE ME SMILE!! :}}}}

Its cool to hear that you wanna try FireAlpaca! Though I warn you, it can be a but buggy/wonky at times! <XDD It takes some time to learn how to work around its quirks <XD

I have not heard of it, no.. but upon Googling it, I love the art style! :))

@astaherussy

Do I like Jax? Personally I think he's pretty funny, but he's hard to like because he's such a jerk. <XD Although I'm not totally set in my opinions on him. I know there's a lot of angst going on behind the scenes that probably helps to explain his behavior.. I'm sure once we see that backstory- if we ever do, I'll like him a lot more :))

My opinion on the FNAF movie is it wasn't as bad as I thought it might be. :00 My favorite parts were the inclusion/intended inclusion of MatPat, Markiplier and other Youtubers. I also FLIPPED OUT when Bonnie was the first to move. Just like the game! And it recreated that initial horror so well XDD Overall I'd say 7/10, WOULD watch it again! :))

My FNAF AU has been shelved hard. 😔 I've been battling health problems for almost a year now. I don't have the strength to comfortably sit at my desktop PC long enough to work on those comics right now.. All these recent posts of mine have been drawn from the couch on this old laptop, where I don't have access to any of my FNAF stuff from my main PC.. its been rough man. 😔

The cookie crew is doing well! I've actually been thinking about drawing them again soon.. 👀

The Factual fam is the same! Doing great, thinking I might draw them again soon! :))

Awe, thank you!! I've thought about making some kind of merchandise on and off. Since all these medical expenses are really starting to stack up.. so its really encouraging to hear that some folks would be interested! <:}}}

Oh boy have I. <XDD Ya'll were right, my heart was NOT ready for Appa's episode 🥺💔💔💔 I already have something angsty in mind for that but I'm having trouble with trying to make that comic..

I'm looking for an opportunity where Aang, Appa and the gang are all back together and traveling like usual. Then when they set up camp for the day is where the angst will strike- but it seems like right after they got Appa back the gang split up..

Soo I'm just continuing to watch for now. Perhaps the angst I have in mind will occur later? Or perhaps the perfect gap in time I'm waiting for is only a few episodes away. Who knows <XDD

@socherryblossomstrawberry

XDD Noooo!! Why do that??

XDD THANK YOU!! I'm glad you think so! :))

I haven't drawn much for it yet because Its a little challenging for me to draw fanart the way I want to for series that have a linear story.. if that makes any sense-

Shows like SpongeBob or series likeeee.... Welcome home? Things where its more of "a day in the life of" type deal. I can draw fanart and funny scenarios for those a lot easier. Where as with Avatar I'm still kind'a waiting for the perfect gap in the story where I can draw goofy group shenanigans without thinking "Oh wait they'd be dealing with this plot point during this comic..." does that make sense?? <XDD

@coolguyoninternet

:0... huh?

🫠Not really- but I'm hoping this is all over soon <:)

@dummdummdummy

<XDD I'm afraid I am unfamiliar with those names- the osc fandom..?

@mimiocto

Fank you 😌

@olives-in-shadows

I'm hanging in there as best I can 🫠🫠🫠

When he said "Well, how did I get here?" I felt that 💔

@anikakitty11

Oh my goodness I love this beautiful puppo 🥺🥺🥺

@tallchest13-blog (Link to document)

THIS IS SO COOL WHAT???

@chimerathekid (Image is from this post)

XDDD That's how I like to interpret him at least! XDD

@invaderdrey

Ah yes! The mystery dungeon games!! :DD Someone told me about those games and the key to getting Grim to mega evolve! The empowerment seed!! :DD

I was gonna make a comic about it, buuuut after sketching it all? It came out to like 4 parts and 80 canvases. With 3-6 drawings per canvas. Soooo I might not get around to finishing that... 😅

@minnesotamedic186 (In response to this ask post)

😔

@mason-gaylord

I don't know if my Gengar in game has that trait or not- but it looks like it wouldn't be too much of a bother! :0 Google seems to say that it only has a 30% chance of disabling attacks that hurt the user. So as long as none of Grim's friends decide to fight him it shouldn't effect them XDD

[alexturne]

I'm having a lot of thoughts and idk if I've fully thought it all out, but I needed to get it down and try to work out how I feel about it all..

I genuinely don't think this whole "discourse" is what's happening. I'm sure they just really wanted to do the whole bit with the strings and that's all.

Nothing to do with Alex and Miles being less close than they once were. Nothing to do with their relationship being less profound than it has always been. They're super important people in each other's lives and there comes a point when you've been that for someone for so long that it no longer requires constant reconfirmation. Their friendship is so solid, so deeply rooted within them both, that they don't need to perform together to assure themselves that they're good. There's no question. They're friends, and they always will be, no matter how much time passes, they'll always be there for each other. I have no doubt about that.

And they asked Miles to come along, they knew they could count on him to make it and do an amazing show, even on short notice. And Miles was there watching, having fun, riding the high of his own show, and I bet it doesn't hurt him the slightest bit not playing 505 with them. And neither does Alex not joining him for a tlsp track. And it's just very fun to watch Miles do such a great job on such a massive stage and to watch Alex (maybe) send some inside jokes his way, and definitely acknowledge his presence more than he has for any other opening act.

Miles has enjoyed playing a couple of the more Miles centric tlsp tunes during the last year at his own shows, and he probably just took them off the setlist when they figured out they wouldn't have the time/energy to rehearse and work it all out. And to not lead anyone on and create false hope that Alex might show up. It's been a long time since they've done it. And Alex is the sort of guy who has probably forgotten his own lyrics, and would require more time and brain capacity to practice to get it in order. Or something else that is perfectly reasonable.

Like, I'm all for delusions but I guess I'm just saying that I don't think it's that deep. They're friends. Close friends. Very important to each other. (Maybe more if that's how you choose to view it). And I bet they don't even think about the shows in the same terms as we do, every little thing doesn't matter as much to them as it does to us. Not everything is a "sign" and there are so many pragmatic and logistical reasons that play into a tour like this that we know nothing about.

I bet Alex is exhausted, excited for the tour to be over and to get to go home and rest, I know I would be! Even if he has loved every bit of it, I would be completely worn out and just ready to go home. But I bet they were also so excited to have the strings and they wanted to really have them shine during the set. It was their show. The Monkey's show, and they finally had the chance to let the vision they had for the album come to life. What an amazing end of the tour.

I won't get too much into why they haven't utilized the strings sooner, because they obviously could've and I don't get why they didn't, and maybe they could've skipped the strings on 505 and had Miles up for it instead. It would've been incredible. So much potential. A lot of fans would've been pleased bout that, and I know they'd enjoy it and have fun playing together too.

But they didn't, and even if I would love to know the actual reason, I'm choosing to let it go and assume there is a very logical and reasonable explanation, and not some big dramatic fallout going on. I can be disappointed about not seeing them, but I don't think it "means" anything in the grander scheme of things.

Miles could've played with them (assuming he doesn't for the last one either), and I won't get into that discussion too much either, because ofc they could have done it together, but so many things had to work out and maybe Miles just wanted to do his own thing. Maybe they never got around to having the conversation, maybe something entirely different happened. We don't know.

And yes ofc I'm disappointed that we didn't get to see them together, I won't deny it. I would've loved it, both as a fan of their music and performances and as a tiny little happy milex lover, my shipper and fic writer heart would've been so so pleased about it. But we didn't get it this time around, and that doesn't mean that their friendship is over or that they hate each other or that they're not close anymore or that they don't love each other anymore. And it doesn't mean that we won't ever see them play together again.

I think they would love to perform together again, but I would assume they also have so many other things they love to do too. So many other things that require their energy. Even together, but also just their personal dreams and wants in life.

They're both into the idea of tlsp being back someday, but as it has always been with them, tlsp will return when the time is right, when it happens naturally. That's the beauty of it. It's something that just happens and that's why they both love and enjoy it so much, I think. It's about freedom and spontaneity, it's without boundaries, it can't be planned or controlled, it's a beautiful chaos between two close friends who love to make music together, and who are incredibly talented at it. But they're also artists who have other ambitions. Other projects they love.

And their friendship doesn't depend on tlsp releasing new music. It is a product of their beautiful friendship, but the friendship came first. Them not writing together right now actually says absolutely nothing about the current state of their friendship. Which we have seen signs of being as healthy and strong as ever, if a bit more private than it used to be. And that's fine. They're super private people, and honestly I would have much more reason to worry for their friendship if they suddenly started posting about it all the time and parading each other around. They're not like that and they never will be and that's fine.

Anyway, back to the topic at hand.

Yes, they're being dumbasses - both the band and our dear milex boys, throughout the whole tour - with not utilizing the strings earlier on the tour, not playing more of The Car on the setlist, not skipping more of AM, not taking advantage of ALL THAT POTENTIAL. They could've done the strings for Glastonbury, it would've been perfect. They could've easily included Miles in a few more gigs (it was sooooo lovely when they did), these last ones in particular, and it would've been so beautiful and meaningful and they would've had so much fun with it - they could've made so many better decisions than they did. The whole tour came with some question marks. We can all agree on that. They're being stupid and they seem to not always think very far ahead, and sometimes forget to use their brains, and I assume that's why they end up not having time to rehearse and work things out sooner, and that is honestly just so dumb of them. They could be doing so much more and I hope some things will improve next time.

But either way - the tour is over and I've loved every second of it.

The new album is super gorgeous and it finally got the string section it deserved. What an amazing finish to the tour. I sincerely hope they will be bringing a lot of The Car back next time around.

Deeply in my own heart I wish we would see Alex and Miles on stage together again soon, but at the same time, I wish Miles the very best with his own work, he truly deserves all the success in the world. And I hope Alex will get some well-earned rest and time off. I hope he will go free of paparazzi and find peace and quiet after this insanely taxing year, and I hope he finds bunches and bunches of inspiration for new songs. I hope tlsp will be back sooner rather than later and I hope they're happy.

I've loved getting to follow the tour, I've loved being on here freaking out with you guys, and I will miss getting to see their little faces everyday. Truly.

But I think it's so well deserved for them to take a break and I hope they will be back soon.

[heavenangelly]

Hi, I wanted to ask this because I’ve had this doubt for a while and I feel like to some extent it’s getting in the way with my manifestations because of the contradictions it represents and I want an external opinion, so for example recently this youtuber from my country is being criticized for saying a bunch of nonsense conservative stuff and people are also making fun of him because he said that he’s white and red haired/blond but he’s just tanned, and when you look at him you can realize it clearly isn’t the case, you can tell by looking at him he’s brown and not even light skinned, and he’s been saying this for a while which makes me wonder if he’s so sure of himself, if he truly believes his assumption why hasn’t it manifested?, and he’s not the only example of that, because let’s say even if he didn’t truly believed what he was saying, there’s people just like him who genuinely believe they’re white when they aren’t, or that they’re skinny when they aren’t and they’ve been thinking that for quite a long time, they’ve been persisting in that assumption and they’re convinced that it’s true yet it’s not showing up and they just appear as delusional to everyone, and letting those cases aside, I’m at college mastering in psychology which has led me to get to know people during my practices that as a symptom of their mental illness they experience delusions, and they’re very sure of their delusions, they’re convinced that they’re real, no matter how much people might tell them they’re not they firmly persist in their assumption, they don’t even hesitate yet why isn’t it showing up?, why it hasn’t been reflected in the 3D even if they’ve doubtless persisted in that assumption for months or years?, and at some point I was just like yk fuck them they’re them and I am me so I have my desired already and the 3D needs to confirm but it’s still something that bothers me because if it’s a law and those people have been doing the “formula” for the law to work in their favor why isn’t ir working?, and it’s not about what their delusions consist of because you can manifest anything, not either due to them not holding the intention to manifest what they’re being delusional about because they don’t even view it as manifesting they already view it as it was theirs which is essentially what loa is about yet why isn’t it reflecting?, it’s a doubt that I’ve had for idk the seven years or so that I’ve known loa and manifestation for, and I haven’t found any actual answer to it, maybe because I haven’t thought about it for that long because I didn’t wanted to overthink too much, but now that I’ve changed some assumptions that I had in order to improve my self concept it’s something that has been bothering me again because it actively contradicts a lot of loa stuff that’s constantly being preached over and over and basic loa principles and I’ve debunked my other doubts with no problem before but I can’t find an explanation for that one and tbh it even makes me feel scared like why isn’t loa working for them if they’re doing everything right?, what if it doesn’t work for me even if I do everything right? and I've never asked anything to bloggers because I thought I could just figure my own things out and there wasn’t need for any guidance but I hate that it’s just making me doubt more and kinda ruining the self concept work I’ve been doing, also I haven’t seen any blogger ever talk about this ever

I’m super proud of you for being able to answer ur own questions!! And to answer you, it’s because they assume in the 3d. They haven’t changed themselves and their identity, so they trick their brain and delude themselves into believing that they are different. They’re hyper dependent on the physical world changing to prove to themselves that they are different, instead of an inner change. Anything shown in the physical world could be a sign to them. They know deep down they aren’t like that so they make up for it by telling everyone they are their ideal, and trying to prove it to people instead of just knowing. They could also be putting up a false personality where when they’re filming or they’re around people, they act like that in the moment but when they get home they cry bc they’re not like that, they just want to be like that. And most of them don’t even know about the law, so they’re just 3d based.

I hope this answered your question! If not, feel free to ask another <3

[cherryroselock22]

Out of curiosity, how would you describe the dynamic between Bede and Hop in the context of their romantic relationship? I think of that one drawing where Hop holds Bede's head in his hands and I crack up at the thought of Hop seeing Bede as an especially disgruntled wooloo

Hi hello i’ve been waitin for this ask forever. ALSO I WANNA SAY THANK YOU!1 i love getting asks like this (two ship charts under cut n explanation if you're interested)

The non-detailed way I see their dynamic is basically just that, grumpy x sunshine. Whenever I think about em I just think about that post that reads ‘’Hop and his boyfriend whom he needs to fight with constantly’’

But I do have some more in-depth thoughts/headcanons on their relationship, I have been hyperfixatin hard on em for the past 9 months;

To me, Bede’s the more physically affectionate, or clingy to be more accurate. He keeps affection in public at a minimum cause well, you know gossip travels fast. But in private? He’s constantly seeking out Hop’s attention. At first he was awkward about hugging n stuff, getting overwhelmed easily, which is why Hop waited for him to seek it out but he eventually got more comfortable and now Hop can’t sit down without him laying down on him.

Out of the two of them, I think that (surprisingly) Hop is the most touch starved, he always gives affection without receiving much himself. I think that at some point, Bede realized this and it’s half the reason for why he’s so clingy.

They bicker a lot, at some point it just becomes a love language. Bede’s still a little bit of a jerk and Hop has to keep him in check. I like to imagine Bede is flustered easily n Hop loves to take advantage of that.

I think that Hop is usually the one planning dates and hangouts, it’s either that or he shows up at Bede’s door at 11 pm with roses out of nowhere. He also almost always insists on paying. In turn, Bede randomly sends him gifts. I definitely think Bede spoils Hop

Even though Bede’s taller, and Hop’s shirts are too wide and short for her, he steals Hop’s clothes all the time. Hop keeps losing shirts. If you see him without his jacket means that Bede probably has it.

Hop fidgets with Bede’s hair methinks, he likes to run his hands through it and occasionally braid it. Reminds him of a wooloo lol.

I also think Bede is very easily jealous, not to a possessive extent but it is very clear when she’s jealous. She’ll glare daggers to anyone who’s a little too close to Hop and will act very affectionate towards him in front of said person

Also I just think Bede’s smitten with Hop to the degree it becomes everyone’s problem. Hop might have fallen first but Bede fell harder. Like. Idk I just think that Bede gets attached to people way too easily but acts like he doesn’t while Hop is the opposite way

Also I’d be very funny is Hop’s dubwool was borderline homophobic towards Bede (I have a hc that dubwool is very overprotective of Hop lol, he does not let anyone near him). Bede reaches to grab Hop’s hand and is instantly tackled by dubwool. I have this scene in my mind where they’re both up in a tree and when they’re about to kiss, Hop’s dubwool just begins to tackle said tree non-stop.

(Applying my gender hcs woo). Even though Hop’s not really a guy, Bede still refers to him as his boyfriend. Hop also refers to Bede as his girlfriend as much as he can to fluster her or try to cheer her up.

I find it funny to imagine Bede being horrified upon figuring out he has a crush on Hop. Also also Bede cooks for him a lot. Usually just sweets or baked goods since that's what he knows what to do best.

I think that the confession was a disaster. Like they were probably hanging out, Bede’s just starin at Hop not payin attention at all and without thinkin blurts out a ‘you’re pretty’ or something like that. Cue panic and Hop tryin to get a direct answer and Bede just denying everything. It works out somehow

I think Hop’s mum would like Bede, Leon would not lol. Opal is supportive not only cause Hop is a good match for him but also because Bede can’t stay at the gym all the time, Opal has to kick him out sometimes.

Movin onto the angst stuff:

I think that Hop would struggle with saying ‘I love you’ while Bede would say it too easily.

Hop is very observant, he notices when there’s a slight change in Bede’s behavior and when she’s nervous. Bede isn’t as observant and is usually a little awkward when it comes to comfortin Hop

I think both Hop n bede have scars. Bede has scars on his hands from the gym challenge and digging through caves to get wishin stars. He also has a light yet constant tremble to his hands, aka his hands are always trembling, can’t control it (I also have this and I get to choose which character to give it to). While Hop generally has scars from wounds he’s picked at, he has them primarily in his arms but some in his legs too. He also has a burn scar from eternatus.

I think Hop has low self-esteem and doesn’t think he’s a good person. I definitely imagine there’s times were he feels like he isn’t worthy or deserving of the affection Bede gives him. I also think his intrusive thoughts (I hc him as having intrusive thoughts cause I do lol) don’t help. Bede does his best to try to distract him from it

That’s all I have rn cause I’m sleepy n also my mom is yelling at me to go to sleep lol, have some charts I did. SORRY IF THIS IS KINDA RANTY, I’M NOT GOOD WITH WORDS

[redsplash1]

Hi hello idk how this works + never gposed in my life so she’s doing literally nothing here but this is my char Tatake Take in her red mage fit <3 featuring Middy cuz he’s bestie. More under the cut this might get long, it’ll just be a mess of ideas with no coherency LMFAO. Currently it’s white glowing hair because it’s post SHB, where she’s channeled the light within her into something manageable, which will inevitably turn back into her original red highlights. Spoilers for like everything up to SHB btw:

Honestly her lore I keep changing back and forth cuz I didn’t start using mods till SHB 😭 (just beat it btw so 🤫 on any spoilers afterwards) Like originally she had cat ears + a tail and it was gonna be a whole thing about her being some kinda spirit/yokai from the forest LMFAO???

Rn the barebones idea I have is that she’s part dragon and hid it till SB when Rhalgr’s Reach was attacked. (I won’t even lie, I’m low(high)key inspired by Dan Heng’s lore from Honkai Star Rail, I’m even debating if I wanna steal the reincarnation thing or not 😭) so yeah she is. Old LMFAO

Zenos with his plot armor and unexplained strength ends up landing what should’ve been a killing blow on Tatake. Everyone watches on in horror, which makes way to shock as she begins to change in response to the physical stress, revealing her draconic eyes, horns, tail, and the glowing highlights of her hair signifying her power. Zenos looks on in surprise, then intrigue as he sees what the famed Warrior of Light has been hiding all this time. Afterwards, it was no trouble pushing away him and his forces back.

(This ends up creating a somewhat subplot conflict between Lyse and Tatake, as the former is angered by this reveal; why didn’t she use this power to save everyone in Rhalgr’s Reach, hell, even back at the Wall? Did Papalymo really need to die if this what their friend was capable of?)

Nobody gets an explanation from Tatake. It’s the twins who get the closest to an answer, which even then wasn’t much. Their mother figure simply says that it was of absolute importance that nobody finds out, as she hid away her draconic features almost immediately after Zenos and his forces retreated. But, she points out with a bitter smile, she supposed it was too late for that now. Alphinaud and Alisaie want to know more so badly, but Tatake’s comfort and boundaries are infinitely more important than any curiosity they have.

On the carriage to Gridania, she kept her answers to Bremondt’s questions pretty vague, aware of two sleepy twins watching with interest. (She/I started as a lancer)

So yeah you might assume HW was a very important expansion for Tatake. It was! Seeing her brethren struggle made her wish and strive for the same thing Ysayle did; peace between dragon and mankind. The dragons weren’t afraid to subtly nudge at her to be her true self, either. Tatake was also not a fan of Estinien’s views and attitude LMFAO

(It’s also the expansion where Alphinaud couldn’t help but notice the way the dragons were talking to Tatake; it didn’t seem like they were exactly referring to her status as the WoL. Of course, he had virtually no information to go off of, so he dropped that line of thinking. Later on, he’ll realize that he truly knew nothing about the Lalafell he figuratively looked up to.)

Side note, Tatake continues to hide away her features until SHB, where the absorbed Light makes it too difficult for her to do so. Fortunately, almost nobody questions it, as people on the First are a bit too focused on trying to survive their world.

Another side note! Tatake currently mains Reaper, but she is also very proficient in Dragoon, Machinist, Samurai, and Red Mage. She’s currently learning Dancer (at least, the Eorzean version of it. She was worried using the traditional dances she knew would have people asking questions), which she finds to be a good stress reliever from her troubles.

Anyways that’s all I got hahaaaaa, I stay off of tumblr and I come back just to go full send on my character 😭 whoever’s got one of those templates with questions for WoL character building plz send, I’d love to fill one of those out for my reference + understanding Tatake more as her writer

[sentientgopro]

I've written this piece of advice shortly before, and alot of people seem to dance around this idea alot but I don't think I've personally see someone outright say it clearly. This might be good advice, idk, it helped me.

So, to be clear, this is about questioning gender identity and sexuality.

This advice is for people in the situation of "I might be x, but I'm probably not because y". And the key question is, its hard to tell, it can be very subconscious, but how does that make you feel?Dissapointed?

Lemme give a few personal experience examples to explain what I mean: "I think I might be Ace, but I'm not because I have a libido". And I felt disappointed. That's the key thing. The reason feels more like a barrier than an explanation. It didn't feel like "I'm not ace because", it felt like "I CAN'T be ace because". And that's a hard difference to tell in your feelings, but it helps. As it goes, it often turns out that the barrier is based in misconceptions anyway. Ace people can have a libido, its got nothing to do with being ace.

And another example: "I can't be ace because Ive had a crush" and I was dissapointed, but after further examining my feelings, I realised I was wrong, it wasn't really a crush.

"I can't be trans, I don't feel dysphoria." And I was disappointed. But Not all trans people do. However, I did later realise I do feel dysphoria and just didnt notice it before.

And, the important one: "I might not be aro, because I think dysphoria was clouding my judgement and attraction, I just couldnt be hally in a relationship as a guy and so repressed my feelings, I think Im a transbian." And I did not feel dissapointed, I felt fine and comfortable with this fact.

What I'm trying to say is, when finding yourself in a position of "I can't be x because y" if that makes you feel disappointed, there's a good chance you're x. And you also need to do some looking into reason y because theres a good chance it turns out to be flat out wrong and not a barrier. If you think you aren't x and you feel fine with that? You're probably right. Keep an open mind, don't get me wrong, but you're probably right.

I don't know how useful this is, or how original it is, but I hope I'm along the right lines and can help someone either figure themself out or give others the right explanation of how to help and advise other people who they talk to.

[my-castles-crumbling]

hey cas! hope ur day is going well, i have a probably dumb question for u that i'm sure you've answered before but i'm struggling, maybe other people have some insight too?

i have no clue how on earth to tell if i like someone romantically.

i've had a couple of crushes before, but they've all been surface level "oh they're attractive" but i could never see myself actually dating them, and it usually fades away after a couple of days. i don't know what the actual signs are and i don't know how to tell if what i'm feeling is romantic or platonic and i'm one of those people who needs like..literal explanations if that makes sense?? people telling me "you'll just know" isn't helpful and i've asked friends who've been in relationships and they just say "idk" like help??

i'm on the ace spectrum, so saying you'll be sexually attracted to them doesn't help me, cause yeah, and i just don't know.

are there things i'm supposed to be looking for? like am i supposed to be thinking about them a lot? are there physical reactions?? i have no clue and i need some help cause i have a friend who's expressed their interest in me (they were super respectful and like have not made me feel pressured at all to reciprocate) but im constantly thinking about them and what it would be like to date them, but i have no clue if it's because im actually interested in them, or if i only want to reciprocate because they've expressed interest first and i feel wanted. i don't want to lead them on if im not sure and i don't know what to do.

Hi!!!

Honestly, I think the answer to this is different for everyone. For me, it's not just about attraction, but a feeling of like...safety, and always wanting to be around the person. You feel affection and caring and just like warmth and a sense of home that's deeper than just with friends.

Sometimes that feeling can be instantaneous, but sometimes it takes time to develop. If you think you might be interested in this person, there's nothin wrong with going on a date and seeing if feelings are there/if they develop. For some people, it takes time, you know? I think as long as you're honest. Say like "I'm not completely sure how I feel, but I know you're an amazing person, and I'd like to give this a chance. Is that okay with you?" Then just keep them updated as you figure it out. it's okay not to always know, as long as you're honest, and the other person is okay with that.

I hope this helps!

[onepunchcatboi]

A Very Long Thing About DawnTrail

I’ve been having a lot of thoughts on DT and decided to compile them into a giant fucking essay and post it on the internet because that’s how we all get our enrichment these days lolol

Overall I have mixed feelings about it. It seems like for everything I liked about it, there are just as many I didn’t.

I want to preface this with the fact that I only did MSQ as of this essay and did no side content or side quests aside from the ones needed for aether currents. Also I played the expansion over like a couple weeks in between masters class assignments so my memory could be fuzzy on some things lol if you know a thing that gives more insight to anything, please share! I make this not to slam the new expansion, but to discuss what I did and did not like about it lol

Also like…these are my opinions lol if you thoroughly enjoyed DT and feel it does not have any flaws then maybe idk skip this post bc I'm about to

think critically about media

And my first opinion is this: if it's a problem that has to be solved in MSQ, then its explanations and solutions also have to be addressed in MSQ. If that is not occurring then the writing has failed to inform the player properly.

Again if you find yourself disagreeing on that then maybe this post isn't for you lol

Everything under the cut because uh…how many pages did I write in word? >_>;;

I feel like it started off really good! I loved coming to a new place, learning all the things about it and such. I loved getting to help Wuk Lamat learn and gain confidence in herself! I loved that Thancred and Urianger were there to be cheeky little shites [affectionate] on the other team guiding their own baby ruler. I loved the trials and how they gave different lessons about the different peoples of Tural and how different problems require different approaches [yes I even liked the trading quest. It was funny]. I think Galool Ja Ja is a mad old genius and it was fun to know him, someone who was essentially like us in that he traveled with a band of friends and united a continent in an effort to bring peace to the land. And I was thrilled when the result of the trial was both Wuk Lamat and Koana becoming equal rulers, because they both have two halves of the right idea: love for people and their culture, and forward thinking for innovation to solve their problems.

Honestly, aside from some minor weirdness in the Mamool Ja section, I was so pleased with everything that I found it very sad I did not enjoy the second half of the expac;;

I’ve read a few posts about it now and so has my gf so the following is an amalgam of thoughts that are my own and bouncing off others. I'm both trying to make sense of what disappoints me narratively about it, and what would have made more sense for both me and my WoL

First I’ll get my small critiques of the first half out of the way:

The first a minor thing, but there were odd moments of passivity where the player didn't get to do much. The one I think of the most is when Wuk Lamat has to wrangle an alpaca. It makes sense she has to do this on her own, but why do we as the player have to sit at the campfire and wait? We could have played as Wuk Lamat to do it like we do when she confronts Bakool Ja Ja. Hell, maybe it might have been a really funny sequence, too! I don't mind taking a backseat as the WoL here, but I do mind taking a back seat as a player. I suppose you can argue it's because we need to have a bonding moment with Erenville, but this scene could still have easily occurred anyways.

Most of what I don't think feels right has to do with the Mamool Ja section. Now, my memory's not perfect here, but my understanding is that they have had to dwell in the lower forested area for a while? At least it sounded like they had an age-old conflict with the Xa'brun, so more than a few generations. In that context it feels...a little oof to have to come in and help them figure out how to grow food down there. Maybe I'm not remembering when the meteors struck? Because if it was recent then this makes sense and is not as weird, but otherwise its a bit awkward;; [to say the least;;]

As for the second half:

I think generally, a thing that would have helped is to keep the threat local. After Endwalker, it feels...maybe unwise to continue to escalate the stakes. I don’t need world-ending threats. I already did that. Or at the very least I need a break from them lol we just finished saving the Star, settling any sort of unrest on one continent would have been a fun little jaunt in comparison. I understand not a lot of people would have enjoyed that or felt this would have been a step back. But I feel that trying to take the shonen route of continuously upping the stakes tends to run the risk of ridiculousness. I mean we just finished defeating the literal embodiment of despair trying to end all life as we know it because supposedly there is only pain and suffering in life anyways. Do you keep trying to figure out more world ending stakes from there? Or do you look for different kinds of stakes? Maybe some wouldn't have felt the latter was "worthy" or "challenging" enough for their WoL, and I'm not against having some other big threats happen. I just need more time and build up from that lol. There's a reason you need your "beach episode".

The second half of DT also felt extremely jarring. I know the reality of it was there were three main writers working together on the whole thing [far as I know outside looking in], but what it felt like was one person wrote the rite of succession half, and then handed it to a completely different person to write the second half of the story. And while the first half felt really solid, the second half was highly disjointed and uninterested in the WoL or their friends. It felt much too focused on its own ideas to consider them in fact, which is...a choice, for a long form RPG where lots of the player base is pretty invested in them by now. Hell at this point I wonder if someone completely different higher up the chain looked at the first draft and went “too small, make it bigger” and thus the writers had to make sudden changes to an otherwise solid narrative. Something to look into I guess.

Again, I loved the first part, and I think the writing there felt really good! It makes sense for the WoL to be a guiding hand and a mentor to Wuk Lamat, Thancred and Urianger were playing the same roles for Koana. "What is it you want to do?", "What do you think is important?", "I think your ideas are great and I support them", "This is your country and your people, tell me what you need, and I will help you make it happen". It would have been inappropriate for us to step in any more than we did. [although I do think it wooouuuld have been nice for the WoL to come in just to ensure Wuk Lamat and Bakool Ja Ja had a one-on-one bout for realsies. Or! Have a great moment where the WoL makes to do so, and Wuk Lamat be like "No...I have this *glint*", in fact forget my first suggestion, that would have been amazing]

But if we are going to make a world ending event happen, then this is where the WoL needs to take charge again. And I don't mean that Wuk Lamat and Koana and the other major players shouldn't have been involved, this is their home and their Star too. What I mean is that the WoL should have had that moment to take the reins and guide them through it, because this is unfamiliar territory for them, but it is our bread and butter [more on this later]

Related to this I… don’t like the Azem magicial maguffin item that has fallen into our laps;;

Don’t get me wrong, I actually think its brilliant and in fact, fucking hilarious that Krile’s people yeeted themselves out of the source to avoid possible extinction due to a calamity. The idea is great, I just…have problems with its execution. I feel this story point would have been stronger if it was done through their own prowess or technology. The how of it doesn’t even have to matter right now because it was long ago enough that the methods could have been lost to time, or only have the tiniest bit of clues for our local prospective world hopper Y’Shtola to fiddle with. [speaking of that it does create an awkwardness of Krile’s soul being 2-3 steps lighter than everyone else's which presumably Y’Shtola would have noticed, which Krile herself even states early on, but that's another thing for later]

The issue is that making this exodus happen because of an item with Azem’s symbol on it actually creates more questions than answers and not in a good way. We don’t actually know right now how much contact Azem had with Venat post Zodiarc forming, but generally speaking it does not make sense for Azem [or anyone really] to have created a item to world hop between the shards, because the shards did not exist in the time frame that this item would have been made. The only way this item works then is if someone else made it and slapped the Azem symbol on it, just as our Azem crystal was. Otherwise the writing has to walk it back and say it has a different primary function, it can just also be used for reality bridging lol

But I also don’t like the maguffin because I don’t actually want to world hop with ease. We had extraneous contrived ways we were able to access the 1st and the 13th shards, and that’s great! It’s not supposed to be easy! It’s supposed to be a whole thing, because the magic used to create this world state in the first place required the power of a fucking god. And while I don’t think accessing the maguffins power will be done quickly or easily, I don’t want an item to let me do the thing in an identical manner going forward. It feels…like a gimme. [Or rather a “give her”, I am again surprised Y’Shtola hasn’t been all over this yet but it's probably because the writers don’t want to let her more on that later]

Ok now is when I am going to get the most critical because I feel like everything goes literally off the rails the second we're done with helping to fix them lol This is one part Everything to do with Alexandria/unknown shard, one part lack of character writing for WoL/Scions, one part Zoraal Ja's missing back story, and one part wtf with Sphene.

There first two points I feel are kind of intertwined, as almost everything weird about this shard mostly comes around to "why where the WoL/Scions suddenly mute on everything they are seeing". It's pretty clear that this shard was being led to a calamity by ascian activity. We just have a lack of ascians to verify this at the moment. The results are easy to see by our surroundings and the state of the world. The things that stick out to me the most are the Levin Sickness, and of course the...soul munching :'>

The Levin sickness is described as an imbalance of lightning aether, so much so that the person afflicted is in a torpid state most of the time in severe cases. But an imbalance of an aether element in a person is how tempering is described, so...why do we not bring up the fact that we know how to cure that? Even if they wanted to write in a reason for it to not work the same, the fact that Alisae is right there and has that ability, and doesn't say anything is extremely out of character for her. It's like they forgot how desperately she tried to find this cure in the first place [its a big part of her character development in fact].

But the elephant in the room has to be the use of souls as both fuel to keep people alive and a currency. I think the idea was to build in the rest of the story, where you first had to learn about a culture and understand it before making judgments but uh...I'm sorry but eating the souls of the dead is a really hard sell out the gate. Even if we hadn't been to the aetherial sea to like, witness all that, this is a hard sell. But the thing is we actually have like, been there. We saw that souls travel to a place where-after they are reborn later. And maybe I didn't understand this right, but the implication then is that those souls used for life force don't get to be reborn. I guess this point is slightly less abhorrent if the Alexandrians don't know this, and this could be the case maybe? It's never brought up. We also never bring it up! Why don't we tell people that we've seen what happens when people die?! I mean maybe they wouldn't have believed us [understandable], but it’s weird that we don't say it!

The idea of using the souls of the dead is I think, the most workable if the culture is of a mind of: when you’re dead you’re dead and nothing special happens afterwards. No afterlife, nothing, the body decays the aether disperses, that’s it. Perhaps this is clearer in the sidequests?? But if that’s truly how they view death, then it should have been touched on in MSQ. I would say this is what the function of Living Memory is but…it doesn’t seem to be a place the Alexandrians are widely aware of, nor is the concept of an Endless at this point. So their continued mantra about their dead always being remembered, while they are currently forgetting about them all the time, rings a bit hollow. They can only remember them after the fact of living the rest of their life to the point of death IF they become an endless. Which maybe the point was always to make all the Alexandrians endless [fuck;;;] but I think if it was written that the populous knew they’d go to an unending heaven place where all their memories and loved one were waiting for them, it might have made a lot more sense.

After looking at this post/reddit thread though, it seems that the main culprit for this sticking point is possibly that the EN translations were unclear on this issue??? And that some of the souls do pass on to the aetherial sea, just that many of them keep being recycled into the system? If so this does make the cast's reactions to the whole thing slightly less weird, but goddamn they should have stated this more clearly then. Because my presumption otherwise is that they are essentially erasing souls from existence or that they just never get the opportunity to be reborn in order to preserve the currently living, both of which elicit a wholly different reaction vs they'll get there eventually just not right now and possibly not for several hundred years. Which like, is still halting gears in a natural cycle, but it isn't breaking the machine outright by yanking the pieces out. Still a little fucky though? To be honest? For those souls that by chance keep getting shuffled about instead of getting reborn.

Actually another thing I am just remembering too is we never really address the whole like…deeply unethical methods Alexandrian scientists used to get to this level of precision in separating soul from memory and the effects of using the separated souls. We encounter it for a brief moment as we move through the facility to fight Zoraal Ja and it’s kind of hand waved in this moment. Which I get time is of the essence here but then yeah it wasn't discussed. Maybe it will be in the lead up to the next expansion? But that will not be for a while. And I don't like that.

Zoraal Ja is another strange point in here.

I remember reading a great analysis about the beginning of the Rite of Succession, how each of the siblings are extremely reflective of their birth order. And for Zoraal Ja, this idea of him being an expansionist falls in line with this well. Most things he has going for him are because he's his father’s son, to surpass his father is to move out of his shadow and become something more. For this he needs to either outdo his father or find different ways to outshine him. So, gaining new territories and new victories [since he’s the most martial of the bunch and doesn’t want to use his cunning for other things?] falls in line with this. And honestly...if that’s all he did I feel like the story would have been more solid for it. 

But from the beginning also, he keeps mentioning this need for him to make the people know how terrible war is? To know what suffering is so that they will beg for his rule?? Where does this idea come from??? As far as we know the boy grew up in peacetime, so there's not much to suggest he's had hardship aside from the pressure of being a miracle baby. At first I thought maybe something had happened to his still not mentioned mother during Endwalker, when anyone succumbing to despair could have become a monstrosity. [an entire tangent and a half for another day btw, no one…mentions the Star going out of whack a short while ago??] But this is never referenced...soooo...where does this motivation come from? Honestly at one point I theorized that maybe he'd actually been a wish-baby by Galool Ja Ja at the golden city but he'd been born with the soul of someone else from the golden city who'd gone through immense suffering in a war and this was why he was…like that. It just...seems an incredibly far reach for him to think this way. The only thing I can think of at this point is that he's pissed off about it being peace time so he has to find ways to cause conflict just so he can prove himself better than his father? But if that's the way it wasn't very clear.

 Finally...Sphene.

There's a lot wrong here I feel, but it's not really to do with the concept of the character, rather all the writing around her. It is interesting to have an AI with a benevolent ruler’s personality that was made to help ensure the love and safety of a kingdom. A terrible idea really, but an interesting one to play with in fiction lol the program has been around for I think 1000 years so it makes sense for this figure to feel eternal and well loved…if you're…into monarchies, I guess. But AI Sphene from the beginning is sus as fuck. In hindsight this is because it can only do what it's directive and the limiter of the personality programing can agree on, but as a person meeting another person, there is little reason for us to trust her. It gets presented as sort of a red herring at first, is she or isn't she a good person? It tries to convince us to assist in its directive by running us through a similar process as in the first half of the game. We learn about Alexandria and its people, and you know they're fine, except for...everything that happened because of the cataclysm, and the definitely normal but only been happening for the last 1000 years soul eating. It is a culture that fears death in the most extreme way possible, but they're chill.

And at this point it’s clear that AI Sphene is to be a foil of Wuk Lamat. Which makes sense given how much they both want to ensure their people’s happiness. The problem mostly arises the second we understand that Sphene is not a person. So...why do we keep treating her as such afterwards? I can understand if Wuk Lamat is not familiar with a lot of tech, that’s not her forte, but it is for some of us in the group. Who are also...just ignoring that bit?? Like if we needed to stop and explain to her what a program is like we did the reflections and such, why didn't we? I know she might not have got it fully, but again, weird that we all just carried on like the program was something that could be reasoned with. Especially if it’s at the point where massacre of anyone not in its kingdom was perfectly acceptable for it. And just...even if Sphene was real, she is no longer a good person at this point. People who love their country and their people, but are completely fine with killing others to ensure their own survival exist in this world. We know those are not good people. We have named them before, it’s just genocide masquerading as nationalism. Which is why it’s baffling and frankly infuriating that the characters are written to carry on like the program is a good person continuously after this point.

A lot of people have been making the comparison to Emet Selch and Amourot and it’s a fair and good one to make, they mirror each other well. I think the reason Emet works and Sphene doesn’t comes right back around to the writing. We as the WoL have a history with the Ascians, we know what they are up to long before Emet arrives, and when he does, we are rightfully suspicious of his intentions. Also, he is an asshole, and we are allowed to be an asshole back to him, because he deserves it lol. After knowing him and arguing back and forth for probably a few weeks’ time, we kill him. We do it because he will kill us otherwise, as he does not value or see us as people, and he is only redeemed long after this fact. The reason people like Emet is partly in this and partly because his narrative is one of tragedy: the man he was would have hated the man he became, and our once friend in a past life became our enemy. Also he’s…a real person, but I digress.

To me the reason Sphene the program doesn’t work is because we have for some reason, decided to make Wuk Lamat the main decision maker throughout the second half. This isn’t a criticism of Wuk Lamat, she is going through the narrative according to her character. Our beautiful baby ruler is hopeful, and at the onset, presuming to broker a peace as an ambassador of her people. She is operating in the mode of “learn first, ask after”, because it’s worked for her before. And she so wants to believe in the good in people, and we love her for that! 

But she’s now up against something entirely different and the WoL and Scions are bafflingly mute on it. We didn’t become Wuk Lamat’s mentor to teach her to be the next WoL to carry our mantel, we did it to help her carry her fathers. Like Thancred and Urianger for Koana, our service to Wuk Lamat ended the moment she became the Vow of Resolve. So what needed to happen at this point is for Wuk Lamat and the WoL/Scions operating on equal terms as allies, rather than continuing to defer to her. Like our relationships to Hien and Rauhban, and so on, we defer to them when it comes to the citizenry and decision making on a nation level, but when it comes to world-ending shit they leave it to us. And honestly one of the first things we should have done is be like “Wuk Lamat you have known that girl for 5 hours and she’s outright stated she will kill literally everyone in the universe just so save like 500,000 of her own. I don’t think this one can be saved. Believe me I’ve seen it before. Also that’s not a girl it’s a robot”  

Because the reality this is a perfect storm, and the only wrench in it is that WoL/Scions are present. Here's where I wax poetic as an “old”. The conversation between the characters of the Spene program and Wuk Lamat, is actually perfect and reflective of a lot of issues we're dealing with today. “Sphene” is someone who cares deeply about her own, she is a kind person who visits terminal kids and brings them flowers….and this same person is perfectly willing to sacrifice anyone outside her circle for her own. She does not care about other people actually, just the ones important to her. But she does it with this with a cute twirl and a smile, so it’s disarming. If you ask her directly she won't say she'll throw others under the bus for her owns sake, but she will still do it. This kind of person exists and is incredibly dangerous, especially to those who are not familiar with it, like Wuk Lamat. 

When you have never encountered this sort of person, you struggle to see how these two conflicting views can work together. It’s actually fucking brilliant writing in that sense, because the fact that “Sphene” is a program with conflicting goals creates a perfectly logical way for this to work! The program has its main objective-the continued survival of its people aka Alexandrian citizens. It has its limiter, the memory data of Sphene, who was a kind person that desired peace and unity. This is why “Sphene” acts kindly and loving to her own people, but is equally ruthless when it comes to anyone outside this sphere. It’s “necessary” for their survival, and it “cannot” be changed, because “Sphene” literally cannot fathom other solutions. Real people who are like “Sphene” are able to do this too, they compartmentalize so that the narrative works in their own mind, and they cannot change this mindset unless challenged by outside pressures. Wuk Lamat’s struggle to logic out that the Sphene program is still a good person despite this echos a lot of real life people trying to figure it out.

And if it was just Wuk Lamat vs “Sphene” this would work. But the WoL and the Scions are there too, and they have seen it before. They watched it time and time again through their conflict with the Garleans and the Ascians. So the fact that no one speaks up about this repeating pattern unfolding is…bad. The writing wants so badly to put this point across that it has to pretend these other characters have suddenly gone brainless to do it. Any if not all of them should have spoken up to help Wuk Lamat in this moment, not just as a newfound ruler, but as her friends. So again the player is made to take a back seat while watching events unfold, only this time it's about 1,000 times more frustrating than waiting for Wuk Lamat to wrestle an alpaca. I’m glad in the end Wuk Lamat understood the problem was not solvable with peace, but I feel dissatisfied with my part in it because I should have been able to say something before we got to this point.

Where I feel DT is its strongest is in its writing about family, as well as its themes about death and grief. The writing around the Dawnservant and his children, their relationships with each other, the writing around Erenville and his mother, and even the brief segment with Krile and her parents, are all really good! 

The bond between Koana and Wuk Lamat I feel is without question, it's the easiest to understand. Between the fact that they’re adopted alongside Zoraal Ja, Wuk lamat’s relationship with Nakkia, and their earnest attempts to connect with Galool Ja, there is a lot of love in that family to have beyond blood and it's great to see!

But the writing shines so, so well between Erenville and Cacuia too. It was incredibly relatable to watch them struggle with their differences and similarities. Evernville’s growing frustrations while Cacuia continues to not just be work focused, but just go along her merry way in general while they BOTH decide ultimately not to address their issues until the very end- that is a very real and relatable familial experience for a lot of people [myself included lol]. Even Krile’s little awkward moment with her parents that she’s never met before is so on point I want to die of secondhand awkward. Bonus points of G’Raha being the one to fix it, because he’s like family to her and knows just what to do!

It’s weakest point here is in regards to Zoraal Ja and Galool Ja Ja sadly, but I think this is more to do with the fact that there just seems to be a missing piece of Zoraal Ja’s story in general?? There’s a suggestion of tension between the two, as Galool Ja Ja says something to the effect that he is the source of Zoraal Ja’s anger, but it's not explained beyond this. 

And while the writing around the soul usage and the memory uploading is a bit clunky [to say the least], the idea of the Endless and Living Memory itself is also quite good. It's a wish fulfillment fantasy really, not just in the idea of avoiding death, but in avoiding what death takes from us. The goals left undone and the things left unsaid. Wouldn't it be nice if death wasn't the end and we could do all the things we wanted and speak the words we needed when we didn't get the chance before? It would be nice…but it can't be that way. It's not how things are meant to be, and to do otherwise is to lose value in living life while you have it. There's a bittersweetness to the whole concept, and as someone who's lost older relatives to stroke and Alzheimer’s and had to comfort my brother at their wake reminding him that this is why we must value the time we have with those still with us…let's just say the Nakkia part hit home. 

I know this already so long, but here’s some other random shit I thought about while writing this but doesn't fit in the overall story discussion well before I close out:

The Scions themselves feel…almost like they are here because someone thought we’d be mad if they weren’t. And don’t get me wrong I’m glad they are here, but it feels like a bit of a stretch for some. Alphie, Alisae and Krile make perfect sense, they have reasonable motivations for coming along.  In the case of Urianger and Thancred I’m mostly just mad we never actually got to fight lmao. Estinien…well I guess he is a wandering hobo just short of being an adventurer himself [affectionate]. And then by the time G’Raha and Y’Shtola arrive its like “oh finally! Are they going to like…actually get to do stuff though at this point?” and the answer is…kinda. They get to be the answers people. Again it mostly comes around to the second half being…ehhh??? The fact that we had to write out a reason to keep several of them out of the golden city was a little telling. Not like Alisae was being allowed to do anything as it was =7=; [I know I keep looking at her expectantly specifically but it's because she tends to be the most outspoken when things are nonsensical lol]

Who the fuck was Galool Ja's mom? Where IS Zoraal Ja's mom?? Hell we also meet Wuk Lamat's birth father but where is her birth mother??? I know she's got Nakkiah, that’s not the point! She just doesn’t exist! Koana's the only one that has an explanation on why his are missing. WHAT IS THIS DISNEY BULLSHIT, anyways-

Maybe a minor note but also the Echo was used...hardly at all? This isn't as much a hard criticism as just puzzlement. I know as a narrative tool, something like the Echo is a thing to be used sparingly. Usually they use it to "show don't tell" a thing we need to know but were not witness to [or as a flashback], and it makes sense that for really learning about new cultures that we wouldn't really want this right now. But I remember thinking "wow, been a while since we did this" when it finally happened. And it stuck me that like, this usually would have happened at least once or twice before this point. I'm surprised we never had it to gain insight to Zoraal Ja like Krile seemed to, or honestly, the second after Bakool Ja Ja fled after defeat from Wuk Lamat would have been a prime moment. And yet it did not happen. It almost feels like the writers either forgot about the Echo for a while, or simply deliberately avoided it to the point of its absence feeling unusual. Both are...hmm.

I’m sure I will think of other things later but this is already horrendously long so maybe it’s best to leave it at this and tack on other points later. In the end I mostly ruminate on all of this because previous expansions were more satisfying or more tightly written. Some of them had their issues, HW had some pacing problems with the Ul'Dah stuff and Stormblood had some awkwardness in pacing throughout, but on the whole I found these expansions fun and satisfying anyways. I don't ask that the game be doing a 10/10 all the time. It just can't lol but I do want the plot to make to at least make sense in its own rules and by the characters in it. If the characters in your story suddenly have to behave differently for your message to work, then changes need to be made to your story. Whether this means changing things about your plot, or creating situations to keep certain elements from disrupting it. And it seems that they went with the latter, but in the most ham-fisted ways possible sadly. Hopefully things will straighten out when the story picks up for the eventual continuation of the story.

[loonybun]

hi guys here’s the cannibalism drabble as promised. i want you all to keep in mind i started this around 1 AM and finished around 3 AM and that is abundantly clear because it may seem less coherent the further it goes. which might add to it idk. also this entire thing is unedited so i’m slapping it at you like a wet fish

this isn’t canon, its for a specific au of mine called stainedrose :)

CONTAINS: cannibalism (a LOT of cannibalism), consumption of raw meat, disease mention, consumption of the brain, splitting someone’s skull open, past beheading mention, extreme gore all around, vivid descriptions of gore and violence, also the head is what’s eaten, very vague references to past trauma, implied conditioning, experimentation, dehumanization, sort of cult-like setting but also not really, unaware whumpee, parental figure whumper (not that obvious in this specific drabble but yeah. whumpee is an adult though), scientist whumper, carewhumper, test subject whumpee, inhuman whumpee, starvation, loss of autonomy, captivity, sleep deprivation, medical inaccuracies (i did research but never enough)

yeah it’s a doozy. enjoy!

He couldn’t remember the last time he felt hungry. Being starved for years had that effect. After a while, the feeling just faded away. It was as if he realized that he didn’t need such things. He was better than that, he wasn’t like these people. That’s what his superior always said, anyways. The boy had yet to internalize it, but at least the smaller sensations had faded entirely. Pain, fatigue, hunger, they seemed more like suggestions than experiences. The more he told himself that, the less they seemed to affect him.

When his superior entered the room one morning, carrying the newly severed head of an ordinary-looking brunette man, he was initially confused. His superior tossed it over to him, and it landed on the concrete floor with a hollow thud. The viscous liquid still flowed from where it had been lopped off, leaking onto the textured gray floor. He couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed by the smell. It reminded him of worse times— It reminded him to be grateful. He was being treated exceptionally well, considering his previous situation. He could bear the smell, and he could bear the way the cloudy brown eyes settled loosely on him.

He looked back to his superior, who nodded towards the head with a subtle smile. Hesitantly, the boy approached it, observing the finer details he hadn’t noticed before. It had been a clean cut, as the queen’s often were, and he could only assume that the man had died directly on contact. It was a merciful death. Quick and nearly painless. His superior stood in the doorway, removing his bloodied gloves and inverting them, before sticking them into his coat pocket. This wasn’t an ordinary gift. He’d been given knickknacks every so often, little bottles of fluid or clothes or trinkets. This was a test. Another test.

“…What is this?” He spoke at last, hoping for some sort of direction. He felt relieved when he watched the man’s face soften ever-so-slightly. He’d been right to ask. He waited for his superior’s instructions, or at the very least an explanation.

“Supper. You haven’t been eating much, and while I’m pleased with your results so far, I’d like to see how well you readjust. It’s also a test of your immune system. It’s an incredible testament to our work so far, and I’d love to see it in action.” He explained casually, a neutral smile upon his face. “All you need to do is enjoy your meal. I won’t mind the mess.”

The boy pushed any questions to the back of his mind. He’d gotten an answer, and he should focus on the task at hand rather than ruminate on specifics. If he performed well, everything would make sense sooner or later. His superior was a logical and kind man, and there was no reason for him to act off of a whim instead of necessity. Perhaps this was some sort of poison resistance test? He vaguely recalled something from his past life— the one he’d left far, far behind— something about prions infecting the brain. But of course, he wouldn’t be affected. His brain would obviously cancel the production of unnecessary proteins to prevent them from forming in the first place. That’s how that worked. That’s how it always worked. He just had to keep that in mind.

Without further hesitation, he sunk his teeth into the cheek of the head, holding it as you would a lover. The skin was warmer than he expected. Still fresh. He relished the sound that came as he tore off the chunk of flesh, and the flavor that bloomed in his mouth as the blood seeped from the wound. No meal he’d ever had before could begin to compare to the taste. Something more primal than hunger overtook him— the need to indulge. Engorge. Consume. He plucked the softer pieces of skin from the face and neck, gently tracing his lips against the skin as he sucked the blood and gore from the open wounds. The way the muscles actively began to tense with the more time he spent with it made it seem almost alive. Two interconnected beings becoming one. This soul had died alone and without struggle. The fight was over and lost. Neither of them had to be alone now. Whoever the person had been before death hardly mattered to him. That’s the beautiful thing about death. There’s no judgment in death.

Rigor mortis made the muscle and fat easier to bite into, though harder to chew. The texture was different now, more waxy. He’d worked away at most of the meat now, save for the scalp and area around the orifices of the face and the eyes. The exposed bone and viscera on the rest of the face was a sight to behold, saved from the possibility of rot. This body, or at least the head, would never know imperfection. It would be made useful, as all things should be.

He bit through the lower lip, easily pulling it away from the bone with his fingers and placing it into his mouth. Next came the upper— and then the nose, which was admittedly a lot more awkward to remove with how stiffly it clung to the bone beneath it. By the time he’d gotten to the eyes, he had already planned how to go about excavating them. The boy peeled the eyelids and swallowed them down, before placing his fingers between the space where the eye nestled into the skull. He didn’t need to apply much pressure before they came free with a squelching pop. He ate them one at a time, pressing them between his teeth until they burst. They tasted meaty, but not in the same way that the rest of the body had. The taste was a bit odd, even for him, though he downed them without complaint.

The gorey sockets stared back at him, the face now devoid of anything that resembled life. Hair still clung to the top like a matted mop, now tangled in blood and messy scraps where he had been less neat. The tendons that kept the bones together remained untouched. He’d been gentle with the process. As gentle as he could have been. He could have easily ripped the jaw from its hinge in order to get to the last bits of gore he’d missed, but he wasn’t a barbarian. He didn’t feel like his superior would approve of him disassembling the entire thing. It would make it so much harder to clean.

He turned back to his superior, who was observing his bloodied face with his typical soft smile. He wasn’t allowed to stop yet. The man motioned for him to continue, and the only thing he could do was comply.

The boy tore off the epidermis and hair, dropping it to the floor. The cranium was wet with blood and fluid, and he silently questioned how he could even go about breaking the thing. After a bit of contemplation, he bashed it against the concrete floor, watching the bone splinter and crack. The noise rippled throughout the room, and while he didn’t see it, he could feel his instructor flinch for the first time. He threw it down again, this time with more force. The back of the skull split, and he was able to pry his fingernails through a fracture. He chipped away at the skull until half of the brain was exposed. The squishy wet folds gave way as his hand slipped through them, before gripping onto a slippery blob. It came apart in his fingers, so he grabbed at more until he had a sensible handful. The brain was so soft he hardly even needed to chew. It was almost buttery in texture, and tasted nothing like the rest of the body. It didn’t have as strong of a taste as the rest of the body, being almost pure fat, but he persisted regardless. It’s what his superior wanted from him, and he’d be a fool to decline generosity when it was handed to him so kindly. The blood that mingled on his fingers at least added a bit more of a flavor, though it was diluted from whatever fluids the brain was already saturated in. He eventually decided to try a different approach, moving his hands to cup the skull like a bowl. The partially eaten brain sloshed around in its confinement. He put his mouth to the jagged edge and attempted to eat it like a soup. The mounds of pink brain matter that still remained were quickly devoured, leaving nothing but a hollow shell stripped of everything it could possibly be stripped of.

He stared over at his superior with a sheepish smile. The man nodded and stared at the fragments of skull and viscera on the floor. “Well, that was a spectacle. You did well. We’ll continue as usual, though you may have the rest of the day to yourself assuming you’ve finished your affirmations. Don’t worry about cleaning up, I’ll send someone in.” He walked over to the disfigured skull and plucked it from the boy’s hands, before patting him on the back. “You’ve done so well today. I hope you keep up the good work.”

[lunar-years]

Ngl when I see ppl shipping Jamie and Dr. O'Sullivan I think they're at least a little homophobic and very straight.

well, i disagree with a blanket accusation of homophobia, but I do think it's an opinion that holds a very ~straight appeal~, definitely, lol.

there are honestly a boat load of reasons i hate it but they boil down to:

i kind of get why people (esp. a segment of the general audience) might be attracted to it because it's soooo something (bad) shows/sitcoms would do. Like, my god is it TRITE. Predictable, formulaic...boring as all hell! Of course he's going to get with the nameless sister who has less than five minutes total of screen time, just for a little added spice and drama, sure. That's what happens in (bad) shows. But luckily for the rest of us, Ted Lasso even at its worst is not that brand of bad, lol.

it's completely baseless? Nothing wrong with a baseless ship i guess, but at the same time...literally why this one? lol. Like, Jamie and Roy's sister share one scene together in which I don't believe they even say anything to one another directly? There is no chemistry, no...anything? The entire premise for the ship seems to be Jamie telling Roy his sister is hot. Which was very clearly intended as a way for Jamie to get under Roy's skin. Nothing about the scene makes me want to see those two dating.

the big proponents of it i've seen (often, definitely not always) seem to fit into one of two categories 1) people who don't really like Jamie and/or are upset Jamie "got in the way" of their ship, and thus want him to be written into a corner that pulls him away from their preferred couple/inherently shuffles up their dynamic. they don't actually care to watch a plot between Jamie & Roy's sister, they just want Jamie firmly categorized as Taken and thus Not Interested in Roy and/or Keeley, and this is a convenient and predictable(y stupid) way to do it. lol.

OR 2) people who DO really like Jamie and in fact really like Roy & Jamie, but in a very "no homo" way, who want to see more of their dynamic and have a way to define/further explore their closeness, whilst also justifying their own enjoyment of it, that's well set apart from "they have homoerotic tension." Jamie & Roy's sister dating holds an appeal because it more explicitly puts their relationship into firm "brotherly" territory. And I unabashedly loathe that for the same reason i loathe "Roy is Jamie's father figure!" ...foremost because no really, they can just be best friends!! Even if you do not want to ship roy-jamie romantically, you do not need to slap different familial labels on them (or put them into random other pairings) to make their relationship "more." Their relationship is already "more"...they are canonically best friends!! idk if I'm explaining this in the best way but the mindset behind it often feels very rooted in ~the nuclear family is the most important relationship a person can achieve~ and thus a need to fit everyone into traditional family roles (and in some cases that PLUS blatant homophobia) and it gives me a personal ick. Ew.

If you want to see quirky jamie & phoebe antics or roy and jamie bickering, Jamie x Roy's sister getting it on is in fact not actually necessary for any of that? (and imo doesn't add anything to anyone's arc) Going back to point one...using that pairing to get there feels TO ME very boring and sitcom cartoony.

(i also obviously dislike it for my personal shippy reasons and must acknowledge my bias. 🫡 Jamie dating his best friend's sister when he clearly has a crush on said best friend is a relationship-based mental low point/cry for help i do not actually want him to go through as my fav character, LOL.)

(disclaimer: people can of course feel differently and are entitled to ship whoever they want without even needing a clear reason or explanation! that's totally valid! i want to reiterate I don't think it's inherently problematic as a ship. I just personally think it's a rotten tomato of a plot point and i'm so beyond glad the show didn't waste time entertaining it.)

[zeroducks-2]

hi! maybe spoilers ahead for the upcoming flash issues? i’m not really sure. i wanna preface that this is all speculation and i could be completely wrong about this, but the upcoming solicitations for spurrier’s flash #13 and the leaks for #14 that were posted on twitter the other day are kinda making me worry barry isn’t going to be around for much longer in the mainline continuity. which imo would kind of suck because the man has already spent more than two decades dead for goodness sake. i can’t figure out if i’m just being insane and jumping to conclusions or?? do you think they’d kill him again and if they did, would it stick as long as it did the first time around? don’t get me wrong, i love wally, but i’d be sad if they had barry die again bc he’s a great character too and i feel like there’s room in the dc universe for both of them. idk if you follow current flash stuff at all and i totally get it if you don’t want to respond to this for spoiler reasons but i’ve been worrying about this all day and i need to get it off my chest by asking somebody about this. i haven’t seen anybody else talking about this so maybe i’m just freaking out over nothing 😭

Hey anon. I wouldn't worry about the spoilers since we're just talking speculations, but I'm going to be real with you. I've been scared that DC might want to get rid of Barry AGAIN for months now.

It does seem that they're building up to that, and for some reason they aren't able to understand that if something flops, it isn't because of the titular character being received poorly - it's because they did a shit job. I'm talking about that movie with Ezra Miller that performed poorly because it was done poorly, but DC might and likely did interpret it as a disinterest from people towards Barry Allen (even if Flash fans hated the movie for the opposite reason).

I am being told that Barry is still selling merchandise which is a good sign, but I'm not sure how safe he is at the moment. Now if something really bad happens to him, I'm pretty sure they will also bring him back pretty quickly - everything with DC got quicker, and no important character stays dead for more than 12 months at this point. That being said, Si Spurrier already did some lore breaking things because he very much did not read Flash comics and likes to come up with his own explanations for everything, which is absolutely stupid. So if they do kill Barry and Spurrier is the one who brings him back, I'm not looking forward to the nonsense he'll come up with 😅

I'm sorry anon I would have rather reassured you about this and told you not to worry, unfortunately I've been fearing the same thing for a while. Let's hope we're all mistaken and nothing bad happens.

[saltysideblog]

It's Like Music

Tek Knight x OC, Homelander x OC

Summary: Lovebug explains how her empathic powers work.

A/N: idk what this is, let's just enjoy the vibes together ✌️

Warnings: gets a bit spicy, dacryphilia if you squint...

Word count: ???? I can't count, sorry

Daisy stands in the Seven's conference room, mere feet away from its captain.

Homelander sits across from her, cape gracefully draped across his chair's armrest, legs crossed. He stares up at her with darkened eyes and an amused smile. The situation feels awfully familiar...

"How does it work?"

Tek Knight sits across from her, jacket draped gracefully over the back of his chair, legs spread. He stares at her with darkened eyes and an amused smile, swirling the scotch in his glass slowly. She knows what that hungry look means; he wants her. From the moment she walked in, she could feel it. And he knows that she knows. He has to.

She considers her answer carefully; too professional and she comes off as prudish, too receptive and she might be labelled a gold digging whore... it is an interview, after all. She wants this job.

She acts coy, "It's like a radio."

One of his brows shoots up, "Care to elaborate?"

"Everyone is broadcasting at all times. I'm one of the few people with a receiver. I can't ever turn it off, but if someone interests me", she leans forward slowly, she makes a point of looking him up and down, "I pay close attention to them."

Pride. It rolls off him in waves. He sips his drink to hide his grin. She looks at him through her lashes, "I can transmit too, if I get close enough... but most people get overwhelmed."

The hand resting on her thigh squeezes slightly and he feels it on his own, just enough to give him a taste... just enough to keep him hooked. He swallows hard, shifting in his seat. Her eyes catch a glimpse of his lap before he has a chance to cross his legs... she didn't need to be an empath to know exactly how he was feeling now. Time to pull it back. Time to reel him in... She sighs, leaning away,

"It's more of an art than a science, though. It is a lot like music in a way. You ask a hundred different people what makes a song sound happy and you'll get a hundred different answers."

His voice is strangled, "There's comm-", he clears his throat and collects himself, "There's gotta be commonalities."

She smirks. Yes, she wants to say, I always know when someone wants to fuck me... but she can tease him later.

"Yes", she begins, "I suppose. There are patterns if you look for them. A sad song might be in a slower tempo or in a minor key, but there's more nuance in most cases. It's not always possible to pin the answer down unless you really know the person."

"Learn what makes them tick."

She smiles, "I call it fine tuning."

He watches her for a long time, eyes tracing up her figure, finger tracing the rim of his glass absentmindedly. She makes sure to show off her good side...

"I know what you're doing."

"I'd be disappointed if you didn't."

"You really want this?"

There's an edge to his question, that she chooses to ignore. For now. She answers him honestly, no use lying now,

"I'm tired of being sidelined. I can do so much more."

He knows the feeling. If it wasn't for his wealth, he might've been where she was now. On a B-List team, acting as support... no one recognizing her true potential. He smiles at the young woman in front of him, so eager to impress. To please. He can give her what she wants. And she knows that he knows.

"Y'know, Lovebug, I think we'll get along just fine..."

Homelander laughs at her explanation, hands on her hips, swaying her back and forth,

"Music? God! You're just as pathetic as he was."

She snaps at him,

"I may not be a lion, but a housecat is a predator all the same."

She pokes a finger to his padded chest, "Show some fucking respect."

He looks up at her defiantly, "Or what?", pulling her into his lap. He grins when she straddles him, but she doesn't speak. Doesn't tease. She barely reacts at all as his expression morphs from smug to grief stricken. His gloved hand reaching up, trembling, to dab at the tears now rolling down his cheeks. She didn't have to dig deep to find his old wounds, all the pain comes right up to the surface with barely any prying.

"Stop it...", his bottom lip quivers.

She wipes a tear away with her thumb and brings it up to her lips. She hums as she tastes the salt on her tongue,

"Or that."

It's barely a scratch.

Nowhere near the kind of harm he could inflict upon her, she knows, but this kitty needs to remind him, she's got claws and she won't go down without a fight.

Hell. She's already loved outlived one sadistic narcissist... what's another?

[typellblog]

Oh Mighty Typell, do you have thoughts on the fanservice in Monogatari? Your essay on Tsubasa Family made me get the Tsukihi panties conversation, where previously I had sped through the book at that point because it weirded me out. The Hachikuji stuff and the Karen teeth brushing are parts I just can't figure out an explanation for

So first and foremost one does have to admit that this is the author's completely undisguised fetish

Bearing in mind that this is just a normal part of Monogatari's narrative that forms part of the appeal for some readers, that likely forms part of the appeal for the writer, and that these facts provide the majority of the impetus for its inclusion-

We discover that the writer nonetheless knows what he's doing, and matches the fanservice to the kind of story he's trying to tell overall.

Sometimes this leads to a fanservice scene that people embrace as deeply meaningful - take for example in Hitagi Crab where she undresses and how the sensual way this is described contrasts deeply with how her attempted rape in the past is depicted. The fanservice emphasises Hitagi's agency, but also her vulnerability, in a way that avoids coming off as tasteless. But did she really need to strip to convey this? Well, probably not.

Sometimes this leads to fanservice that people struggle to explain - I would say that the stuff in Nadeko Snake is pretty high up in terms of pointlessness, being the most excessive arc in Bake despite not really having much to say. We can relate how Nadeko's body is displayed to some themes of the arc, how it characterises her as someone who dislikes being perceived. But did it need to be bloomers and a school swimsuit specifically? No, lol.

As for the examples you mentioned, the consistency and depth of Koyomi's assaults upon Mayoi prove somewhat intractable to most, but consider how their first interaction wasn't sexual in nature but just a fight. I think both the physicality and rudeness of it are important. The rudeness is an element of Koyomi's characterisation as someone who can often violate boundaries in the pursuit of helping people, while the physicality relates to Hachikuji's ghostly nature and inability to normally interact with others. There's a reason why she seems to welcome Koyomi's usual greeting after it becomes an established routine. But did he really need to grope her breasts? Well, no.

Karen's teeth frustrates me more and more over time because of how disconnected from the overall narrative it seems, but of course on a basic level we can still make something of it. Karen changes her appearance with Tsukihi's clothes, and in doing so forces Koyomi to re-evaluate his perception of her. Their casual intimacy (as represented by the deeply familial symbol of the toothbrush) is complicated by sexual desire (need I remind the reader that this forms the main appeal of incest porn) and results in, idk. Koyomi seeing her as more adult? Like I said it feels frustratingly disconnected from the rest of what's going on but at the same time it does inevitably orient itself around Koyomi's relationship with his sisters - the fact that it's deeply character-driven adds to the appeal.

I'm sure more work could be done here, especially with the context of the rest of the series that I haven't looked at too deeply yet, but one warning I want to give is that you shouldn't approach this with the object of explaining the fanservice away. The fact that it is sexual in nature can be deeply necessary to what it is saying, or, like in Mayoi's case, it could be easily substituted with play-fighting.

Point being, the fact that it icks you out might lead you to assigning it more weight than it was ever conceived with.

[strqyr]

I've been sooo back and forth on Summer willingly joining Salem tbh. I mean, given what Salem said to Ruby in v7 ("your mother said those words to me etc") it doesn't make a ton of sense? UNLESS Summer did go there to stop her but was defeated or tortured a bunch or Salem threatened her family, idk

Even with the v9 flashback there's still so much mystery to Summer that it could literally go either way. Raven give us answers I'm frothing at the mouth over here

i completely understand the feeling. there's definitely a bunch of arrows pointing at all kinds of directions, so what it really comes down to for me is figuring out 1. which ones are potential red herrings, and 2. would they spell out the answer before the big reveal?

it was the same with 'is this alyx?' i read a lot of theories about who might have been ascended alyx, and i could see the logic behind them all, if some more than the others... and then it turns out that alyx was just alyx, never ascending and becoming someone else.

that alone makes me lean towards the option that if summer is alive—which is looking likely, i don't think they would avoid saying she's dead for so long only for her to actually be dead—she's going to be recognizably herself. then there's also like. the way the writers do mysteries is less about drawing attention to things that need explanation and more about introducing something and leaving it to stew in the background while distracting the audience with something else.

and that gets me to the questions like 1. why does salem have two extra seats at the table? 2. who at beacon was she talking to via a seer, a method of communication we've only seen happen between two people? and 3. salem wants ruby brought to her alive (despite cinder wanting her dead, and tyrian thought she was sending him to kill her at first) and let's yang and her friends go (despite the grimm arms holding through hazel punching her!! it's one thing if the punch had caused them to disappear but that's not what happened!!) after yang identifies summer as her mom. why?

i think the biggest stumbling block people have over summer working for salem willingly is that they see it as summer being suddenly Evil™ when that's. not the point lol. i mean i wouldn't complain if it was, i love my evil ladies very much, but to me it's more about summer learning what salem's end goal actually is, making a choice for what she considers a better option, while also holding to her morals as much as she can: she has not partaken in any of the destruction directly, if she's commanding the grimm at beacon she's keeping them there instead of letting them spread to vale after the initial attack, and would have made a deal with salem that her family comes to no harm.

what you end up is a character with complexities, who has made difficult choices and stuck with them. sure, her lying and keeping secrets already covers some of that but also... it would be kind of boring if those are her biggest flaws narratively like c'mon, that's the whole cast right there, that's like the bare minimum lmao give me more to chew on.

i'm so ready for raven to gives us answers but i'm also fully prepared to spam the 'where's the rest of it' gif right after cos i bet she bailed right before summer's fate was sealed.