#if any one is wondering for any of the other 100% decided orientations:

[creaturefeaster]

Wire... what's Elliot's sexuality..?

that man is GAY!!

[velaenam]

𝐟𝐫𝐚𝐭 𝐛𝐨𝐲 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐛 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞

                                                                         ◦ ♡

𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐛 𝐱 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 – college au. you go to his frat boy party. 𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐬 / 𝐭𝐰 ; NSFW (18+)!! RAW. NASTY. smut!!, possessiveness/obsessiveness!!, rough, threatening,   angst,  𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐬;  this ones a lil long. i had sm fun writing this. caleb is on 10. im not sorry girlie. enjoy! not proofread.

you weren’t too keen on parties. in fact, you weren’t in the right headspace to be attending any events. you wanted to be home, wrapped up in your bed, watching on your tablet. instead, you’re about to knock on the doors of alpha sigma phi– or whatever theyre called. the only reason why you were here was on the behalf of your best friend, caleb. he had just been so damn busy with finals, and he finally had time to throw a party for the campus to celebrate everyones (hopeful) success. everybody was invited. b.y.o.b. you were 1st on the list, as always, but you were too socially exhausted to even indulge. you don’t even remember why you said yes, and when.  

truth to be told, if he had it his way, he wouldve just been celebrating his winnings with you, but he’d promise his frat brothers that they’d do something, since a lot of his time was spent with you. 

were you two dating? ‘no! she’s just my best friend!’ he would retort, and some how these one track boys would just agree.  they werent like your friends. they didnt relent when he denied it. yours would hawk you down, try and interrogate you (lovingly). maybe its because many women in the campus had the hots for him. you’d occasionally play wingwoman, give their numbers to him, just to be kind. he’d deny them all, no real reason, more playing to the ‘i have to put 100% of my focus on my future’ as if he isn’t organizing a glorified booze off. 

as you stand there quietly, the music drowning everything out, the vibrations moving you ever so slightly, your attention shoots upwards, as the door swings open with no care. the sound of laughing and pop music tackle your eardrums. “hey! you’re here!” your best friend exclaimed, not missing a beat, and pulling you inside. you gave him a smile, “hey. its lively in here!” you shout over the music. hes leaning down, a beer in his hand, “WHAT–WAS–THAT PIPSQUEAK?” he shouts back, and you couldnt help but burst out laughing. his gorgeous purple eyes scanning you before he chuckles, “cmon! lemme show you’round!” he drags you around the house, showing you where their poorly but charming attempted dance floor, and the kitchen, where all the snacks and booze were. you could definitely tell there was not an ounce of female gaze in their planning, but regardless, every square inch of this house was bumpin’ with many alike. 

you decided to follow his lead, denying the beer he had offered you. he’d lead you to the dance floor, his goofy dancing catching the eyes of the others, especially his flock of fans, men women and the like. you were all smiles, dancing just as silly as he was. 

as you spin, your eyes land on  her  . the girl who hated you with a burning passion. the girl who was jealous of your relationship with caleb. oh she loved this man since she met him in orientation and she hated you the moment you showed up for yours, treating him as your pack mule for all your bags. she just so happens to be running the fan club as its president. how lovely. you wonder what is her deal. you’d never personally spoken to her, and the only times you’ve had were in passing, and she was kind!

it was only for a split second, your gaze immediately disattached hers, and you return to calebs attention. he spins you one more time before the music ends, and everyone disperses to get more drinks or mingle some more. you and caleb laugh in sync, as you both step into the kitchen, and you grab a bag of chips. 

“hey, pips.” he starts. “i didn’t wanna mention it but thanks for coming. it means a lot.” he admits, handing you a bottle of water. you nod, supportive, smile widening, “anything for you, caleb.” you crack the bottle open, and as you take a swig, you see her coming into view. 

“hey caleb.” she muses, her sweet tone sticking to you like molasses. caleb turns, his smile not faltering once, “hey, jen!” he goes to put his arm around her. something you picked up on. you felt your heart tug, but you ignored it, excusing the fact that you have a slight heart problem. 

“i had something i need your help with” a hint of mirth appears across her face, and you couldnt help but let a giggle escape your lips. you wave ‘em off hinting at caleb to go ahead, and he flashes a look of need. to be assured. you gave him a gentle nod, a gentle smile, letting him be sent off with her. 

“hey you.”

it’d be 30 minutes by the time you look up from your phone. you notice one of caleb’s frat brother called out to you, and you wave at him, “hey what’s up?” you’d inquire, before he motions you to come with him, “we’re about to play 7 minutes in heaven. c’mon!” 

you werent too privy to what 7 minutes in heaven was, but you oblige, a tad bit confused. as he directs you to the upstairs, you could hear a multitude of voices, screaming over each other, ‘ooohs’ and ‘aaahhhs’. he opens the door for you, and you step in. caleb and many others sit in a circle, a bottle in the middle. 

“pipsqueak!” caleb embarrassingly shouts to you. this causes eyes to fixate on you, and you couldn’t help but fall to a blushing victim. you swore you heard jen whisper something to her lackey, but again, one ear out the other for you.

you take a seat across caleb as he flashes you a sweet little smile. there were many others coming in to join, so you didn’t feel too singled out, “spin the bottle, whoever it lands on, you and that person go in that closet for 7 minutes. questions? no? LETS GO!!” frat boys voice booms, causing everybody to hollar with excitement. you laugh, deciding to join in on the fun. ya only live once!

you see the bottle spinning, two people get up and go into the closet. you don’t really hear much, and they come out, both perplexed. 

another spin, and another pair go in, their giggles were heard. followed by wet noises. your eyes wide, what the hell were they doing!? the crowd was eating this up. people can do that in 7 minutes? you were both intrigued, and astonished. you really tried not to enjoy how fun this kinda became, but fuck it, you laughed with them.

it was jen’s turn! she flashes a big grin, particularly at you, before spinning. your smile still evident, as it …. lands on you! 

you blinked, panic slightly pouring into your internal organs. you gulped, before making your way up, “cmon girl.” she says, a bit invitingly.  you really didn’t see any issue so you oblige, guard down, playing into it, but as she shuts the door and the two of you sit down her smile no longer lingers.

you were a bit confused. smile there, and frown here. did you do something bad? as you go to speak up, she cuts into your voice, “stop hogging him, bitch.” she starts. you stare puzzled. nobody has ever spoken to you like this, especially not towards regarding caleb. you were more than confused, you were starting to get irritated. 

“what’s your problem?” you spoke. if it wasn’t the music blasting loud, everybody would have front seats to a drama right now. “you heard me. every girl who tries with caleb keeps getting rejected. its probably your fault. you’re his fucking priority, and you don’t even like him.” she says, coolly, before retracting herself from you, “back away from him, and we won’t have any problems, okay? stop being so selfish. girl to girl. ” 

you really were taken aback. girl to girl? she was delusional to even blame you for caleb’s disinterest. “first off-” you start, brows furrowed, “him not being interested, isn’t my fault. i’ll give him your number if you want me to, what he does with that is up to him.” you’d attempt to explain, but she wasn’t having it. she raises her hand in front of her face, towards you, and with an exasperated sigh she cuts you off again, “girl i don’t care. we’ve been talking for EVER now. but every time i try to have him do ANYTHING with me, he has an excuse.” she rolls her eyes, mocking caleb, “i cant she has a game today, oh i can’t do that, i’m picking her up after her class, blah blah.” 

as she speaks, you felt a pang of guilt. were you really that selfish? you really didn’t think so. hes your childhood friend. you’ve been glued to the hip. is his misfortune with women your fault?  of course not, and you weren't going to let this girl gaslight you into believing it. still. you did feel a bit pained upon hearing that. you shake your head, and as you retort, the door swings wide open, revealing caleb, “hey! you guys are taking forever!” he had a neutral look to him, and he notices your upset, but as if a seamless transition, it was covered with a smile. the two of you look up at him, laughing, and jen gets up, kissing his cheek. 

he couldn’t help but wonder what that was about. your slightest mood change was all he thought about. he was confused. 

you’d continue to play the game, until it was your turn. you hadn’t even noticed it was your turn to spin until they urged you to. a bit reluctant, you do so, meekly shoving the bottle.

of course it had to land on caleb.

a gasp from the ladies, and a hoot from the guys. caleb chuckles before nodding towards the closet. you could feel jen seething from the side. you thought long and hard whether or not you want to come in that closet with him or feign tiredness. it was too late, and maybe the group will call you a chicken if you back out, but you rather face the momentary wrath of a bunch of drunk college kids than be scrutinized by jen an her posse for as long as you both went to class together.

begrudgingly, you walk towards the closet, and sit down immediately. caleb goes to ruffle your hair, “hey, pips, are you okay?” you could sense the urgency in his tone, care practically gushing out. “yeah. i’m okay.” you lie, and very badly too. “what did jen tell you?” he inquires. he wasn’t stupid. he knew that the moment you went into this closet with her she was going to act catty, but to what degree?

you shake your head, blocking the memory, and changing the subject, “you never said. did the aviation school in skyhaven get back with you?” his face contorts to confusion, why you want to ask that question at this time was beyond him, he was trying to be serious, alas he nods, “yeah.. they want me.. next semester.” he mumbles. 

all the joy you could possibly have in your body jumps out, the feeling of dread by jen is removed, and you jump into his arms. holding him tight. this was his dream from the beginning, and him sharing it with you meant the world.  you pull away before the door can open, so you wouldn’t be incriminated. “we’ll talk more about this later! annnd we’ll celebrate!” you clasp your hands together, giggling like a school girl, before you back away from him, and opening the door. 

as much as her conversation ruined your evening, you couldn’t help but be happy for him. he got accepted into his dream school. you were already conjuring plans to make a party for him. 

as you walk out of the closet, the group was nowhere to be found. confusion etched into your face, you and caleb walk out towards the railing where everybody was dancing. the music was loud, everybody was going crazy. you check the time. 1am .  you figured it was time for you to leave. you were excited for him, but jen was in the back of your mind, and you would rather just retain the good news rather than pander about her.

as you turn to go down the stairs you felt caleb put his hand on your shoulder, and you look up at him, waiting for him to speak, “where are you going?” 

“i’m going to head home. i’m gettin’ tired caleb.” you confess

“let me walk you home?”

you laugh dryly, and shake your head, “i appreciate it, but no. i got it. hosts arent supposed to leave the party, sir… and what would your girlfriend think?” you make your way towards the door before waving at him from below.

girlfriend ? what the hell did she say to you?

you finish your skincare routine. you were a bit bummed out by the party. you really were interested in kissing someone for funsies. instead you got bitched at for something you didn’t even do.

you groan in frustration. it was damn near 2:30 by the time you finish your night routine, when you hear a knock on your door. weary, you look through the camera and notice it was caleb. you scramble to unlock the door, and there he was

“hey pipsqueak. sorry took me s’long. was kickin’ everybody out.”

your brows raise, letting him in, “no you’re fine. i didn’t even anticipate you coming by. what’s up?”

he makes himself at home, crashing on your couch after he slips his shoes off. the warmth of your dorm causes him to take his hoodie off, but he must’ve forgotten to wear a shirt under it, as he sits shirtless now. you’d seen this man damn near naked for a good part of your life, so seeing those washboard abs, and toned arms were normal for you. 

“so. what’re you doing here again?” you inquire, sitting next to him. his face had a mixture of annoyance and regret. he looked at you, with those doe eyes as if he felt bad. 

“i didn’t know she was so rude to you. i’m so sorry pipsqueak.” 

ah. jen. 

you genuinely did not want to make a big deal out of it, so you attempt to shake your head, “n-no! it’s okay! i swear!” 

“no. what she said was awful. i cut things off with her.”

- 

caleb finishes grabbing all the trash and shoving it in the basket. as soon as you’d left he told his friends to shut the party down. ‘was time to call it a night anyways. jen stayed to help, along with her friends, so cleaning was quick as it went. 

as everybody started to disperse, jen stayed behind, a cute childlike gleam in her face. “thanks for helping, jen. i really appreciate it.” caleb sheepishly smiles down at her. he was drunk, but still coherent. they sat on the step together. alone. under the beautiful stars.

“do .. i…. get  a kiss?” she piques, giggling, quite obviously drunk.

 his eyes darken, and he looks at her, a bit more serious now, “jen. what did you tell her?” he asks, straight to the point. her smile falters, and she tilts her head, as if unaware, “what do you mean?” .. “cut the bullshit. you upset her. what dumb shit did you tell her.” a whole new side of him that jen’s never seen in her whole life. hell, she’d never ever heard him cuss. and that wasn’t even a question. that was a demand. “w-wha-” .. “stop playing stupid. why’d she look so upset in the closet?”

there was an intense silence in the air, before she sighs, defeated, “fine. i told her to leave you the hell alone. i want you all to myself, and i’d be damned if that bitch got in my way.” 

in a swift movement he was on top of her, and if it were not the scary interaction she just had moments ago, she’d be all for this. jen sobers quickly, yelping quietly.

“don’t go near her, or talk to her ever again. and if i hear you’re around her or interact with her...” he stops and composes himself, before getting up. 

“obviously, we’re done. just.. don’t come near us again.” he says with such sinister mirth, that could freeze hell itself.

“you really didn’t have to do that caleb. but thank you anyways.” you go to hug him. your warmth spreading to his soft cold skin. you pull away right after, as the hug had you in an awkward position. after some more small talk you notice the change of demeanor.

“caleb.. she.. said other things.. things that she.. probably didn’t tell you..” you confess, biting your lip. “whats up?” he motions you to continue.

“well.. she said i was the reason why you never get with anybody. you kept doing things for me and dodging her plans. is that true?” his eyes are wide open, and you could tell his breath ran ragged. “you… you’re my number one, pipsqueak..” he mumbles.

your heart flooded with a warm feeling, a sweet feeling, even. but you needed to get this out of the way, before more issues arose.

“do … you.. have..feelings for me?” you’d never been damn direct in your life. you felt like exploding as you asked that question. what if you just made a mockery of yourself? ah fuck.

you purse your lips, and you were about to go back on that sentence, when he grips your wrist. 

“i do.” 

thump. thump. “i am in love with you.” thump! your ears burn with this sudden confession. your breath hitched. 

you don’t know what type of gravity it was, but you lurched forward, locking your lips with caleb.

he wastes 0 time, his arm wraps around you. your fingers wrap around his hair, pulling him closer. you were so in love with this man. he was the key to your feelings. you love him. Bad.

“i love y’too– caleb” you say in between kisses. you kept kissing, hands tangled in his brown locks. you just needed this. you needed this kiss. and he did too. he pushes you down on the couch, and pulls away, staring at you. 

he was so enamored by you, that he didn’t even mind that you were naked under that robe, your perky beautiful tits presenting itself to him. his ragged breathing, as he scans you, looking for an answer, “do you.. want…” you just nod, and that was all it took. 

caleb dips down, removing the robe from your frame. a calloused hand cupping your perfect tits. his big tongue gliding down to your nipples. your breath hitched, and you moan, earning the approval of. his other hand gently rubs your inner thigh, taking its sweet, haphazard time. it reaches your clit. you were radiating such heat, that he could feel it in his fingertips. your slutty and delicious body was just aching for this man. he loved it. so so much. 

his fingers run soft soft circles on your swollen clit. your body twitches at the surge of pleasure. he bits down gently on your nipple, and you mewl, like a sweet little whore.

“baby.. you.. sound.. so..good.. just like– that” 

he gently coos, in between his kisses on your tits. fingers gliding up and down between your clit and entrance. he could feel your pussy getting more wet on his hands. he was cherishing every single moment.

you were so helpless. a mewling slut, for her master, and this sent him to the moon. his dick rock hard in his sweats. it was getting so so hard for him to not just fuck you senseless then and there.

“it feels so good.. oh my ggg..” your fingers grip his hair, eyes close, bucking into his fingers. 

you felt his fingers slip inside you, and your eyes shoot open. moans eliciting left and right. you had to be quiet, due to the fact you were in a dorm, and walls were just a tad bit thin. 

caleb caught onto that and smirked, as he pulls his fingers out of you. making sure you were watching him, he takes his fingers and licks it, eye contact on 10 as he cleaned your juices off his fingers. you were warm beyond compared. the things this man is doing to you right now.

he gets up and pulls you up, bridal style, and walks you over to your bed, gently laying you down, before he grabs the hem of his sweater and boxer. you peeked, and silently thanked the gods you bought him that grey sweatpants. 

in one swift movement he was in front of you, naked, well hung. the sight of his cock made you see stars. it almost terrified you. 

he straddles on top of you, his tip grazing your leg. you shuddered at how hot it felt. fuck . you wanted to pass out right now.

“whats the matter pips?” you open your eyes at him, his damned smirk as he looked down at you. 

“mm.. nothing..:” 

he dips down and captures your lips. you wrap your arm around his shoulder, before he pulls away. “do you want this rough or sweet?” 

he fully fully intended on being the sweetest boy to you on your first time. but right now. he wanted to fuck the absolute shit out of you. you seem to be on the same wavelength, as you giggle, he smiles wider, ah.. music to his ears. “rough. you said you love me right?” something about the way you had said that causes ringing to flood his ears.

in a swift motion he flips you on your knees. he dips you downward, face down, ass up. and lays a smack on your ass. you grip the bedsheet, face in pillow. caleb slams his dick on your asscheek, before he wastes not a single second. his big cock buries inside you. your walls mold to his thick length. you groan in your pillow. ‘fuck’ you mewl. he almost comes, at how tight you fucking were. you instinctively push back, earning a low moan from him.

caleb leans down, his hand grabbing you by your hair, and pulling you to meet his eyes, “you’re gonna regret that.” he mumbles as he kisses your neck sloppily. slow stroking you. his other hand making its way to your clit, rubbing those slow soft circular motions. he was going slow, but he was hitting your sweet tight walls from the tip to his base. your pretty and gorgeous pussy taking him like a good girl. you were moaning as quiet as you can, but the restraint was driving him nuts. you sounded so helpless. it almost made him cum again. his pace quickens. your breath hitches, your ass slapping against his skin. you felt his balls hitting you, his sweat hitting your back, you felt him hitting your fucking wall. it hurt so goddamn bad, but your eyes were rolled back, you were drooling, you were seeing the fucking stars above you. he kept going so hard. you were losing yourself, squirting all over his hands. you cry out as stops rubbing your clit. 

“oh my fuuucking god baby… you sound soo- so good when you’re coming for me.. mm.. ill make you cum all over my dick.. is that what you want baby?” you nod, helpless. a shriveling mess. 

as you nod, he presses his hand against your stomach, and your pleasure multiplies. youre going to fucking explode. he was fucking you like a sex toy, and you were going to succumb to him. this wasn’t the same caleb you knew to be a gentle giant. that sweet sweet boy. a handsome sweetheart, pounding your pussy like life depended on it. raw dogging you like it was his last day on earth.

“c-calebcalebcaleb…pleaseple..” you moan into the pillow, but he keeps your head up. “nnoo pipsqueak.. let me hear you moaning for me.. i want to hear your sexy voice.. i want you to call my name while you cum… mm– i want to hear you scream my name while i fill you up with my kids..” 

fuck. 

you bite your lip, you are literally there, hes going to make you orgasm. hes so fucking unfair. you cry out his name, loudly. his words turns you into a mess. 

you’d probably hear about it in the next coming days, but who fucking cares. you were getting dicked down by caleb for fuck sakes. 

“caleb! i’m going to cum!” you exclaim, pleasure surging through your pussy, as your walls tighten around him. calebs eyes roll back as well, this sudden tightness milking his cock. he turns your face to meet his, as your lips collide. blowing his load inside you, thick rope twitch into your insides, rushing out, his thrusts get lazier and lazier. your pussy squeezes every ounce of nut out of him, sending him in a spiral. 

a few minutes pass. both of your breathing, raggedly in sync, as he finally pulls out of you, your perfect pussy dripping his sticky load out, and you lay on your stomach, before turning on your back, to face him. 

the sight of your beautiful face in tattered ruins sends his neurons scrambling. he looks down at his twitching cock.

 he was rock hard again.

[rey-129-fan]

Gotham-Amity Co-op AU Part 3

Part 1 | Previous | Next

“Hola beauties, and welcome back to Fashionable History, I’m Paulina,”

“And I’m Star, and on this channel, we teach you how to be at the height of fashion, no matter what time period you find yourself in.”

“Now for our long-time viewers who missed our community posts, you might be wondering about the change in location.  Well, we are moving up in the world.  That’s right, fam, we are officially-

“College girlies!” The two shouted into the camera.

“Ah, such a big step,” ‘Star’ sighed.

“Indeed it is.  And to celebrate, let us dress up like we’re going to meet the queen of fashion herself: Marie Antoinette!”

***

“So you would think it would be hard to demonstrate Amity Park’s weirdness while no longer living there, but you would be wrong,” a black man said into the camera while walking down a hallway, his glasses fallen ever so slightly down his nose.  There were voices in the background progressively getting louder.  “You see, Danny’s mentor popped by this morning, and apparently, he decided that the perfect way to tutor Danny and piss off his bosses at the same time was to allow a bunch of college kids to summon a historical figure of their choosing to discuss their area of expertise.  Once a week.

“Jazz got to go first.”

The black man stopped in a doorway.  Much clearer in the background was a woman’s even voice.  “And Jazz, being the future psychologist that she is, picked the most sex-obsessed man in history.”

The camera flipped to show a young red-head sitting across an older man with a white beard in a blue three piece suit.  In the background was a younger man, his blue eyes glazed over as he sat there sipping from his mug, his head of black hair bobbing as he fought to stay awake.  Really, it wouldn’t gather a second glance, except for the tiny detail that the older man’s skin was as green as a sunburnt person’s was red.

“-indeed homosexuality is not an illness, and in fact the only link between it and mental health has been observed to be caused by familial and community reactions.”

“That is good to hear.  Indeed, many people throughout history were homosexual, and a lot of them did not show any other signs of mental illnesses.”

“It is.  However, with the recent pushes for public acceptance of those not heterosexual, many have come forward with sexual orientations beyond just hetero and homosexuality, including those that are attracted to both men and women at the same time, as well as those who experience no sexual attraction or are completely repulsed by the idea of anything sexual.”

The camera flipped back to the first man.  “She is explaining how psychology has developed in the last 100 years without trying to rip apart Freud’s work.

“This isn’t even the first time something like this has happened.  Occasionally, we’d get guest speakers that would turn out to be some famous author or pioneer in their field.  It’s how our English teacher got his copy of the Tempest signed by the original author.  I think this might be the first one that won’t end in a raid by government idiots in white, though.

“So yeah, we occasionally get to talk to dead celebrities and don’t bat an eye at it.  Amity Park is very weird.”

***

“Danny!  You left your cups in the sink again!”

“How can you tell it’s mine?”

“They’re glowing green and you’re the only one that drinks ectoplasm!  Now take care of them before you bring the food to life again!”

“Fine…”

The camera pans over to a goth woman giving the camera a flat look.  On screen, there’s some text that reads: ‘When your boyfriend forgets to clean off his dishes after his mildly radioactive smoothies.’

***

“Urgh!” Just die you stupid, lazy skeleton!”

“How long is this attack going to be!”

“I don’t care, because when it’s finally my turn, I am going to stab the dust out of this depressed sack of bones!”

On screen was a couch, and on that couch sat 3 young adults, two women and one man.  One of the women was Valarie Gray, US National Taekwondo Silver Medalist, was jabbing her thumb down on the d-pad of her controller, lips pulled back in a snarl.  The other was Samantha Manson, more known for the TikTok channel Our Strange Lives.  The man was a muscular blond.  All three were focusing on the screen, their eyes emitting faint light and Valarie’s teeth seemed to be getting sharper.

Quietly a blond woman walked on screen, a backpack slung over her shoulder.  The woman was Star Strong from Fashionable History.

“You guys are still streaming?”

“This boss is stupid difficult and Manson and Gray are the only ones willing to play.”

“What happened to the guys?”

“Fowley, Wes, Singh all had work.  Fenton got to the first boss and then lost it because ‘Goat Mom just wanted to protect us’ before getting a call from his lil sis asking for help.  Kwan is working on a lab with a guy from his chem class, and Kyle passed out a couple hours ago.”

“Stop dodging!”

“Wanna play?”

“Can’t.  Going to the library to study for a calc exam I have coming up.  See you guys later.”

“Later.”

“FUC-”

***

“And so, with this polaroid image, we have evidence to prove that-”

“Hey, Wes, do you have something I can use for a collage?  Oh sweet, thanks bro!”

“What?  No!  Kyle!  Get back with that! That was the proof I was going to use to prove the existence of Yetis!”

“Oh damn.  This is some nice creature work!  Danny, your friend has an incredible costume, man!”

“Thanks, Kyle!  I’ll pass it on!”

***

Tim paused the video right as Wesley Weston stood to chase his older brother.

There.

The red-head’s eyes had a slight glow to them.  Tim clicked over to the other images he had gathered of the Amity Park teens, all with their eyes glowing or other signs of something inhuman.

Tim had been introduced to this group by Stephanie when she found a martial arts demonstration Gray did that involved breaking multiple boards, all several feet above her head.  Stephanie had meant it as a ‘check out his cool person doing what we’re doing,’ but Tim noticed something.  All the boards were being held by seemingly the same person- or at least people dressed very similarly.  And not in a way where they’re sitting on a ledge above Gray and are switching out the board each time she broke one.  More that there were multiple companies of the same white glove all holding a board and all floating several feet above where they should have been.  That was already a little weird, but it could’ve been some special effects or just a uniform.

No, what caught Tim’s attention was the quick glimpse of the face of one of the board holders.  It was youthful- late teens- but with paper white hair that showed no signs of bleaching.  Now these features would have been a thing to cement the mysterious person in Tim’s mind.  But it wasn’t that.

No, what got Tim to do some digging to find out about a previously unknown supposed hero from a small town that has been blacked-out by the US government, was his eyes.

His calm, glowing Lazarus green eyes.

***

So we finally get a taste for the shenanigans our liminals are up to. Sam, Tucker, and Danny all share a TikTok where they show off how weird the other two are and how weird their town is. Wes is trying to prove cryptids exist, which Kyle ruins. Dash has a gaming stream that most often Kwan joins in on, and Paulina and Star do dress history. Oh, and Valarie is a national taekwondo because karate has only been an event for one Olympic games, but taekwondo has been an event since 2000 and Val seems more like a kicker than a thrower. Plus, I actually took taekwondo when I was younger.

We do get another Bat showing up at the end. There is absolutely no plot, however, so who knows where this is going. Certainly not me!

I'm still looking for names (please, I need them). As for majors:

Jazz-Psych (obviously)

Kyle- Liberal Arts (I wanna put him in accounting, but Liberal Arts works for now)

Tuck- Comp Sci

Danny- Poly Sci, minor in Astronomy

Sam- Double Poly Sci and Environmental Science

Val- Criminal Justice

Dash- Undecided (both me and him)

Kwan- Pre-Med for now, though he wants to do Child Development/Education

Paulina- Fashion Marketing

Star- Sports Science

Mikey- Music

Wes- Journalism

[therealcocoshady]

Could you make a one shot where Marshall x Reader have been dating for almost 2 years, they start talking about kids and the thought of reader pregnant is a big turn on for him.

Author’s Note : Thank you for your request 💕. I hope you enjoy this ! ⭐️

If you like my writing and want to support it, here’s my Ko-Fi (I’m also open for commission. It’s like a request but that way you’re 100% sure I see it fast & indulge you 😉 - rn I have 200+ asks in my Inbox. Also, by commissioning my work, you’re literally helping a struggling neurodivergent student get by !).

Baby talk

You were the first one to be surprised when you felt it. The desire to have kids. You had never been a kid person. You had always found these tiny humans to be terribly underwhelming. To be fair, you didn’t hate them. But you never really understood what all the fuss surrounding babies was. Puppies ? Yes. Kittens ? Absolutely. Human babies ? Meh. When you were a kid yourself, you didn’t show an interest in babies and, as far as you could remember, you had never really enjoyed playing with dolls. And growing up, you hadn’t shown more of an interest in the topic of motherhood. Older people had told you you’d change your mind and eventually come to want kids of your own but you doubted it. When you became an adult and got into serious relationships, you had that talk with your partners and you told them you didn’t want to have children. You enjoyed your free time, being able to sleep until noon if you wanted to, the possibility of spending money on silly things like an impromptu girls trip to Vegas or a new handbag instead of diapers and an overpriced daycare. In your mind, it was clear that you weren’t meant to be a mother. You did have a lot of love and admiration for parents around you, but you didn’t envy them. So you built a child free life that was absolutely wonderful. Sure, it hurt a bit when your previous partner ended up breaking up with you because he changed his mind about kids and you didn’t. But you understood his decision and knew it was the right thing to do, rather than forcing yourself to have kids when you did not have any actual desire for it. You didn’t want to force yourself to live a life that did not resemble you, taking the risk of one day resenting the children you never wanted to raise in the first place. It all worked out in the end : your ex went on to marry a woman who, from what you heard, was wonderful and have a kid with her, and you ended up meeting the love of your life. 

Marshall was everything you hoped to find in a partner. He was kind, funny, thoughtful, knowledgeable on a lot of subjects and handsome. Yes, he was older than you, but he was definitely young at heart. If anything, you benefited from his experience in life. Also, him being older and having three grown-up children meant that he was « done with all of that », which was a relief. The feeling was mutual, his lack of desire for more kids having caused a couple of breakups for him as well. But just because the two of you decided not to have babies didn’t mean you didn’t have your hands full with them. Marshall was a loving uncle to his brother’s three kids and you were entering that stage of your life where all your friends were starting families. So whether it was a birthday party, a basketball game, a recital or a baby shower… you had your share of kid-related activities. You liked it though. More than you ever thought you would. Marshall being very family-oriented, he loved that you were involved with his family. Together, you built a perfect life. You had all the fun that came with being around kids, without the obligations. You were the fun aunt and uncle, who enjoyed spoiling other people’s kids rotten and playing with them, before happily handing them back to their parents and letting them handle the sugar crash and the noise caused by the toys you bought them. You thought you’d spend the rest of your life just like this, perfectly content, enjoying a peaceful existence with your boyfriend, with whom you would eventually grow old. 

But then, without seeing it coming, you found yourself thinking about it. Wondering how you would look like with a baby bump. Pregnant ladies had always looked like aliens to you, but you started thinking you’d actually be cute, carrying a little baby. Marshall’s baby. A baby with the cutest nose, pouty lips and the most beautiful blue eyes. The thought of a baby that would be part you part Marshall had your heart melt. And you knew he’d be such a good baby daddy, too. Obviously, he had raised three amazing daughters he was very proud of, but he was also amazing with other people’s children. He was his nephews’ favorite person in the world and he was so great with your friends’ babies. So you found yourself thinking that, if you got accidentally pregnant, it wouldn’t be the worst thing on earth. Sure, it would be inconvenient, but maybe you’d keep it. Not that it would ever happen anyway, since you were more than diligent with birth control. Then, it turned into thinking about what your life would actually look like with a little one. And you figured that, what you would have found dreadful years ago, maybe wouldn’t be so bad. Maybe you’d crush it as a soccer mom. Maybe there was actually something beautiful in having kids with someone you love, teaching them stuff and watching them grow up. 

Then, one day, it hit you like a ton of bricks. You actually wanted to have kids. With Marshall. You were at the store, doing your weekly shopping. How you ended up in the baby aisle, you weren’t sure. But you found yourself mesmerized by the tiny items of clothing. Eventually, you came to your senses and mentally slapped yourself. You were with a man in his fifties, who already had his kids and did not want more. Now was not the time to change your mind. As if to imprint the thought in your brain, you went and stocked on condoms, buying a fuckton of them. The cashier even threw you a weird glance. You probably looked like you were doing  a comparative study, getting a bit of everything from ribbed ones to flavored ones. Marshall chuckled when he saw them in the bag. 

That’s a lot of condoms, he chortled. 

Yeah, there was some kind of sale, you lied. 

He shrugged it off and promised to put them to good use. You knew he would make good on his word and figured you just needed to have that silly idea banged out of your system. Except that it didn’t work. You went a few months without talking to him about it. But the more time went on, the more you realized you really wanted a baby with this man. You still liked the idea of having a flexible schedule and 9 hours of sleep a night. But you didn’t love it as much as you loved the idea of carrying this man’s offspring. And the more time went on, the harder it was not to talk to him about it. You dreaded this, though. Because you’d been on the receiving end of that conversation. Of not wanting kids and having someone you loved tell you that they wanted to start a family with you, and having to disappoint them and see the heartbreak in their eyes. So you put it off as long as you could. Until one evening, you weren’t able to hold yourself. 

I think I want a baby, you blurted out when you walked in the kitchen while Marshall was cooking dinner.

You think you want what, baby ? He asked as he turned to you. Sorry, I didn’t hear you over the noise of that kitchen fan. 

No, I said I-I think I want a baby, you repeated nervously. 

You think you want a baby ? He repeated carefully. 

I mean… yeah, you simply said. 

He looked at you with a raised eyebrow. Clearly, you were taking him by surprise. He turned off the fan and the kitchen stove, before walking to you. 

That’s new, he said matter-of-factly. 

Kind of, you admitted. I mean… I’ve been thinking about it for some time now. 

So you don’t think you to have want a baby. You know you want to have one, he pointed out. 

Y-yeah. I’m sorry, you mumbled as you looked down. 

For how long have you thought about it ? He asked. 

I’m not sure, you admitted. Does it matter ? 

I thought you didn’t want to be a mom, he said. That you were perfectly happy with being an aunt. That it was the best of both worlds. That’s what you said. 

I know, you replied. And I meant it. I’m as surprised as you are, really. But then I thought about how I’d react if I got pregnant. And I realized I wouldn’t mind that. Having a baby that’s part you and part me. 

Oh wow, he said as he scratched the back of his head. 

Yeah, you hummed. And I thought it was just something random and that I’d forget about it. But I can’t. And it’s been months now, and I think you have great genes and that our baby would be really cute. And Target has the most adorable baby clothes and I know condoms are cheaper than a college education but there were little bunnies on the pajamas I saw the other day and I also found out that they make baby Jordan sneakers that look like the ones you love and-

You caught yourself rambling and stopped talking. Now, you weren’t making any sense and you were just dumping the whole thing on him. Probably not the best way to go about it. He was staring at you with an amused look on his face. 

I’m sorry, you said will a sad voice. I know you’re done with it. We’ve talked about it and I know it really sucks that I’m changing my mind but I needed to tell you because I’ve been thinking about it a lot and-

Do you plan on letting me speak ? He asked with a smile. 

Yes. Sorry. 

Ok, he chuckled. I have a few questions. Is there a reason why you changed your mind ? 

Well… you, I guess, you shrugged. I mean, I love you, and I see what an amazing father, what a great uncle you are. 

Ok, he said. And, another question : is that something you want ? Or is it something you need ? 

I don’t know, you admitted. I’m really happy with our life just the way it is. I don’t need a baby to be fulfilled and for my life to have meaning. But I can’t stop thinking of how much I’d like a baby with you. 

Ok, he hummed. So… it’s not something you’d break up over ? 

No, you said. I love you. I want to spend my life with you. And I don’t think I want a baby if I can’t have it with you. You’re the reason I want one. Because the baby I have in my mind… he has your eyes, your nose and your smile. 

Meh. Doesn’t sound too cute, he chuckled. If anything, it sounds like an ad for contraception. 

Oh, come on, you giggled. 

But… he ? He asked with a smile. 

Sometimes she, you corrected. I never really wanted kids so I don’t really care, I guess. Look, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to just dump this whole thing on you… we both know this talk sucks. But I couldn’t really keep it to myself. I needed to tell you. I’m sorry. 

Quit apologizing, babe, he said reassuringly. I’m glad you told me. 

Really ? You asked nervously. 

Of course, he replied. I can tell it hasn’t been easy for you. 

You nodded and he pulled you into his arms before pressing a kiss to the top of your head. You closed your eyes and inhaled his scent. You definitely felt lighter after telling him, even though it didn’t really change anything. 

So… can I get back to you on that ? He finally asked. 

Huh ?! You asked as you looked up from his chest.

I think I’m gonna need a bit of time to think about it, he continued. I can’t promise I’ll say yes. But I’ll consider it. 

Wait… seriously ? You asked in shock. 

Isn’t that why you brought it up in the first place ? He mused. 

I don’t know, you said. I guess I mostly expected you to convince me it was a terrible idea. I mean, you’ve broken up with people over that. 

So have you, he pointed out. But it’s you. It’s us. What we have is different. I feel like my family’s complete so I never really wanted to have another kid. But I’m in love with you. And if there’s anyone I’d give it a shot with… it’s you. 

Ok, you said with an emotional smile. 

I’m not saying yes to anything, though, he warned. Don’t get your hopes up. 

But you’re not saying no, you pointed out with a smile. 

I’m not, he agreed. Because even though having kids can be tough… it’s pretty great, too. And I know you’d be a great mom. 

You flashed him a smile and buried your face in his chest.  The simple fact that he was willing to consider it because he loved you filled your heart with joy. 

You didn’t really bring up the topic in the following weeks, but you could see a change in Marshall’s demeanor whenever someone around you talked about kids. You could absolutely tell he was thinking about it. You weren’t too sure what the best way to go about it was. Of course, you were curious to know how he felt about it, what was on his mind. But you didn’t want to be annoying and press him on the matter, so you figured that it was probably better to wait for him to get back to you on that, once his mind was made up. 

Waiting was trying, though. Because in the meantime, you had to watch him interact with countless babies and young children, feeling like your ovaries exploded. Patience is a virtue and that waiting period was definitely an opportunity for you to practice it. Thankfully, it finally came to an end when you came back from work to Marshall waiting for you in the living room, with a bouquet of roses on the table, as well as a paper bag. You greeted him and thanked him for the nice gesture.

What’s the occasion ? You asked. 

Since when do I need a special  occasion to treat my woman to some roses and a present ? He asked back. 

Touché, you giggled. Thank you my love. Can I open the bag ? 

Not yet, he said. I want you to have a look at this first. 

He handed you some papers and you skimmed through it. It was a printing of his schedule for the foreseeable future. You looked at him with a raised eyebrow. 

That’s, erm, fine ? You said, unsure of what he was expecting you to say. 

It’s my schedule, he said. For the next two years. 

I see that, you chuckled. I’m just not sure why you’re showing it to me ? You usually don’t consult me when it comes to your work schedule. 

As you can see, I’ve moved a couple of trips that were already planned, he explained as he pointed to a few dates. Meaning that I’ll be going to LA a little bit more in the upcoming three months. But after that, no more work trips and I put a hold on the performance planning. I’ll stay in Detroit. 

Ok ? You said - still not grasping what he was getting at. That’s nice. But why did you change the schedule ? Is there a specific reason why you need to stay here ? 

Apparently, when you’re trying to have a baby with your woman, it’s better to be in the same city, he grinned. 

You stared at him in shock, your mouth slightly agape. Marshall was smiling from ear to ear. Next thing he knew, you were in his lap, arms wrapped around his neck, peppering your face with kisses. 

Oh my God, you said emotionally. Really ? Oh I love you so much, Marshall ! 

I love you too, he hummed. 

I can’t believe it, you whispered. Wait- What’s in the bag ? 

Open it, he chuckled. 

You reached for it and saw it contained a bunch of ovulation prediction kits, pregnancy tests, some folic acid and some lube. 

Apparently, these are the basic essentials for trying to conceive, he commented. 

You’re amazing, you said with the biggest smile on your face. So… we’re doing this ? We’re making a baby ?

If you haven’t changed your mind, yeah, he nodded. 

As a response, you threw yourself in his arms and kissed him passionately. He chuckled into the kiss and cupped your face, staring at you lovingly. 

I’ll give you the cutest baby, you promised. 

I have no doubt, he grinned. 

Do you think I’ll be a pretty pregnant lady ? You mused. 

Are you kidding me ? He asked. God, you’re going to be so hot. The thought of you carrying my baby… You have no idea the things it does to me. 

Oh yeah ? Like what ? You asked defiantly. Show-

Before you had the chance to finish your sentence, Marshall had you pinned to the couch and was grinding against you. It didn’t matter that you were both fully clothed, you could feel his excitement through the fabric. 

I’m gonna fill your pretty pussy, he promised. And I’m gonna make a pretty mama out of you. 

Mmmyes, you whimpered. 

Gonna give you a pretty belly, he continued. I can’t wait to see you carry our child. Can’t wait to start trying. 

When ? You asked pleadingly.  

How about now ?  He whispered in your ear. 

[fanby-fckry]

You know what, I’m just gonna say it. I think that Alastor being aroace is part of the reason he’s so shippable to me.

Before you come at me, check the flag in my pfp; I’m aroace-spec.

Maybe it’s me projecting, maybe it’s because I love exploring relationships through an aroace lens, but goddamn. I ship him more than any other character and every time I do, his aroaceness is a major component in the ship.

Examples below the cut because it’s gonna get long:

📻🍎 || RadioApple:

There are so many versions of this dynamic and I am here for all of them.

We have the pre-canon kinky QPR that I show in UH3. I could talk about that all day, but to summarize:

Aroace x genuinely respectful allo is a dynamic that heals my soul.

Lucifer is less tied down by human constructs like amatonormativity, having never been human himself.

The Devil values consent.

Kinky cannibalism, kinky cannibalism, kinky cannibalism, kinky ca- *I am removed from the stage with a comically large hook*

Then we have the Evil and fucked up QPR dynamic:

And of course, trying to get along for Charlie’s sake and eventually bonding over their shared love of dad jokes and musical theatre, both being violinists (yup, Alastor plays violin too, check the wiki) with niche hobbies/interests (ducks, furby organ) and accidentally winding up in a loving, healthy QPR.

📻🕸️ || RadioDust:

There’s something about an aroace and a sex worker who very rarely falls in love.

Angel would know that Alastor isn’t with him for sex, would know that he values Angel beyond his body.

With greyro Alastor, Angel and Alastor would both be inexperienced with romance, but in wildly different ways. Angel has never had a healthy romantic relationship and therefor tries not to fall in love. Greyro Alastor has probably experienced romantic attraction like less than three times in his 100+ years of existence.

And if Alastor never gains romantic attraction for Angel, that’s a whole other level to the dynamic.

It’s got some great angst potential with Angel wondering if he’s not good enough to love romantically or Alastor feeling guilty or confused as to Why It Hasn’t Happened Yet when he cares for Angel so deeply, and eventually it gets resolved with the two of them accepting that their attractions don’t have to match up for them to love/appreciate/care for each other and they smash the amatonormative relationship hierarchy as queer platonic partners.

Or, Angel’s just totally cool with it from the start because he’s spent decades in the kink scene and has potentially been exposed to more relationship anarchy than Alastor.

Kink and queerness have a great deal of historical and cultural overlap, and that includes aroace queerness. Because Angel’s had way more canon exposure to both, it’s possible he knows more about Alastor’s orientation than Alastor does, and I love the idea of Angel introducing him to terms or just being super chill about not labeling things.

📻♥️ || RadioHusk:

Drawing like 90% from pilot dynamic and headcanon on this. They’re just two old men. They get drunk and cuddle. Alastor is one of the few people who knows Husk can purr and takes advantage of this fact. Alastor considers Husk a friend in a fucked up, possessive way. Husk considers Alastor a pain in the ass, but does care about him on some level.

It’s Fucked Up and Evil QPR: Remix Edition.

And the versions where the author puts them through fanfic couple’s therapy and actually gets them into a healthy point in their relationship? One where Alastor no longer owns Husk’s Soul? *chef’s kiss*

📻🌹 || RadioRose:

For me, personally, this is an exclusively nonsexual, non-romantic ship. They’re besties; they’re QPPs. They’re married for the tax benefits and so that they cannot be forced to testify against each other in court.

Rosie knew Alastor was aroace before he did and rather than sit down and explain it to him, she decided to make ace puns.

📻🖤 || RadioSiren: [edit, context here] RadioFemme

Ok, so this is entirely based on non-canon-compliant Lilith. Or, I guess, non-series-compliant Lilith. More of the old WOG stuff from the pilot era, with a healthy dose of headcanon for flavor.

I love the idea of Lilith and Lucifer having an open marriage; I love the UH3 style polycule dynamic.

Lilith being the original seductress and Alastor being aesthetically but not sexually or romantically attracted to her is very near and dear to my heart.

I’m an aroace with a voice kink who is aesthetically attracted to Lilith and I think Alastor is an aroace with a voice kink who would be aesthetically attracted to Lilith, ok?

📻📺 || RadioStatic:

I’m gonna be real with you, 90% of my interest in RadioStatic is in the one-sided version where Vox is a pathetic little incel simp and Alastor is either oblivious, mildly annoyed, or finds the whole thing hilarious.

Whenever there’s any reciprocation on Alastor’s part, I always imagine it being in a very aroace, very Alastor-esque way. He needs to be get something out of it completely unrelated to sex/romance. And he needs to be manipulative and sadistic in the process.

Whether that something is kink-related, a business transaction, or simply the quality entertainment provided by Vox being a cringefail TV-headed little bitch, I love to see it.

[i-want-all-the-cookies]

The Orange Peel Test

This is the result of scrolling through tiktok and coming across a few "orange peel test" videos. Which then made me begin to wonder how some of the characters would react in these situations. Would they pass the test or fail miserably?

Donald-

If you're with Donald it's because he chose to have you in his life. He has no room or time for anything that's not to be taken seriously, and he obviously does his homework on any venture that he invests himself into. Which, in this case, would result in already knowing the kind of person that you are and what you like and don't like. So much so, that you wouldn't have to request such small favors as peeling an orange from him. Most days, he would have a tray set on the tabletop with an already peeled orange, split nicely into slices, ready for you when you get home. It will be the same concept with him filling up items you are low on, such as your favorite granola or shampoo, to the point that you can't even remember the last time you actually bought more yourself. Now he probably won't ever leave you little notes in the way that his mom did to him as a child, because he would hold that memory too close to his soul to share or give out with anyone else, including you, but he would 100% leave encouraging and love filled notes to his own children if you both ever decide to have any.

Jimmy-

Jimmy would give an immediate little sneer if you asked him to peel your orange. Which would be quickly followed up with him just snatching it out of your hand, and complaining a bit about having to do it, while still actually doing it for you. He would also eat half of it himself as he splits the orange apart slice by slice. His reasoning of course would be that he did the "hard" work, so why shouldn't he have some of the reward? The other half of the orange he would stuff into your mouth mindlessly and not too gently, in a very one slice for him- one slice for you, two slices for him- one for you, etc. Once the orange is all done, he will get up to grab another one, and repeat the process all over again. This will continue until you finally tell him that you're full and don't need any more orange slices.

Wolf-

You can't force Wolf to do anything that he doesn't want to do.(Unless you're Donald haha). So really it's a 50/50 chance for it to go your way if you were to ask him. But luckily for you, the one thing about Wolf that is very much in your favor, is that when he's in one of his more giving moods he doesn't hold himself back from treating those close to him. Such as when he takes out his crew for a whole "order whatever you want" type of feast. So the chances of him peeling your orange is pretty high, even with his volatile nature. Just don't ask him in a cutesy voice or by giving him some sad puppy dog eyes. That shit will end up annoying the hell out of him, and you'll end up watching him as he walks away from you, with nothing to keep you company but that sad unpeeled orange you're still holding in your hand.

Jake-

Now you know damn well that Jake would 100% peel that orange for you. Heck, he would even do it with a big smile on his face. He is one of the most openly family and friend oriented person within the Yeongdeungpo union. So he would not only peel an orange for you, but he would also be the kind of guy who would wake up early in the mornings to warm up the car for you. Just to make sure that the windows aren't frosted over and to have the inside of the car nice and toasty. Making it easier for you to just take off in the mornings to wherever you need to go. AND he would do this unprompted and solely because he wants to and because he's able to.

Forrest-

Most people know Forrest as someone who's a complete asshole. Always trying to prove that he deserves the spot he inherited from Myles as Hyeongshin's school head. And truthfully he has the fist to back it up against most adversaries, so most people just try to stay out of his way. But you're one of the lucky few who has gotten to see a different side of him. Where he has been incredibly thoughtful to those close to him, and how he's even taken into consideration his subordinate's discomfort when making his moves within the Unions dealings. So it should come as no surprise to you that Forrest would have no issues with peeling you an orange. Chances are you wouldn't even need to verbally ask the question. All you would have to do is hold out an orange to him with a pleading look on your face. That alone will have him taking the orange from your outstretched hand, followed by him patiently peeling the rind away from it. Then handing it wordlessly back to you once it's peeled, and leaving to throw away all the discarded peels before you even have the chance to say thank you.

Colton-

Now you all know Colton would be a complete and total simp for whoever he's in a relationship with. And he would be SO ready to peel any oranges for you. And not just oranges either. He'll peel you some bananas or some apples. This guy will even go as far as peeling/cracking your pistachios for you! And in my opinion that's even better than peeling an orange.

[livingthedragonlife]

happy multigender awareness day!! i am aware of you!! have some q's from that ask <3

1, 2, 6, 7, 12, 21, 23, 30 :DD

yay thank you!!!! i am perceived <3

[here is the ask game in question]

1) What are your genders? Either labels/terms or descriptions :)

I’m a bigender man/woman! The double binary! I also like saying I’m a trans man/cis woman. Cistrans manwoman. Tee hee mashing words together

2) Describe your pronouns. What are they, and why?

I use he/him & she/her, and I usually write it fully out like that (instead of he/she or she/he or something) so that nobody gets to ignore one for the sake of the other, or assume it’s a typo or something. I also say it out loud fully too, so no one can mishear me.

6) Do you identify with any umbrella terms that can encompass being multigender, like "trans" or "nonbinary"?

I am trans, but I am not non-binary.

I guess by definition I’m non-binary? Like I technically fall under the umbrella, but I’ve never identified with it. People tend to assume that “non-binary” means “genderless” which is the exact opposite of what I have going on. I’d rather strangers just assume I’m a binary trans man tbh, because at least then they’d be half-right!

7) Are your genders more fluid or more static?

Static! I am 100% a man and 100% a woman at all times. They are inseparable and making out.

12) Does your gender influence your sexual orientation? I’m double gay. All my sex is gay. Get bigender’d, idiot.

Real answer: I figured out I was bisexual way before I figured out I was bigender, and that hasn’t changed. I think since I’ve started transitioning, I’ve allowed myself to connect more with being a queer man attracted to queer men. My attraction to men has always felt queer, and something did feel “missing” from it even when I discovered being bisexual, so I think transitioning has let things click into place a bit more. My attraction to women never felt “incomplete” in that way, probably because being a woman attracted to women was already queer, so I never had to worry about being misinterpreted as a straight person lmao. And of course attraction to other trans/non-binary people feel queer because duh.

21) What are your favorite things about being multigender?

Getting to do both, I guess!! I don’t have to pick one gender and completely sever myself from the other, I can take the things I like from both and use the pieces to build one whole genderful self!

23) What unique parts about your identity are you proud of?

I feel powerful in being opposites. I’m a man and woman, I’m a cis and trans person at the same time, and most people—including other trans people—would view that as contradiction that would default not make sense, one would disqualify the other. But not for me! I contain multitudes and you WILL be confused by me.

30) What do you wish more people knew about being multigender? Well first, that it exists. That it’s easy and it’s free to be two or more genders at once. So many people straight up aren’t aware that such an option exists—except they probably know about being genderfluid. But you don’t have to be fluid to be more than one gender at once, there’s a whole spectrum of options out there. You can do whatever you want forever!

But close second is that it does feel inherently exclusionary in most queer spaces to be multigender. There’s a bisexual meet-up in my city that I’ve never been to (and never will), because they separate people by “women and femme non-binary” and “men and masc non-binary”—oh, but don’t worry, “you can decide which group you feel most comfortable in!” If I show up there, which room would they decide I belong in? This is a good microcosm of being multigender in all cishetero society, but unfortunately, indeed, in the queer community as well.

A LOT of queer spaces are separated by gender, sexuality, or presentation. I’ve had to wonder which places and people are going to be safe for me to interact with as my whole self, and which ones are going to dutifully ignore the half of my identity they like the least. I have to wonder if people are going to feel betrayed when they learn I’m a trans person who’s still cis, and try to deny me my own feelings and how I relate to my gender. I have to wonder if I’m “too woman” to date queer men, or “too man” to date queer women. Especially now that I’m on T—how long before people start assuming I’m exclusively a man instead of exclusively a woman? What’s going to happen when they find out they’re wrong?

So yeah, I wish people would keep this in mind more often.

[shantalanadevil]

Nick doesn’t hate RWRB, but his management (together with his approval, as he is a grown man), for some reason is trying to make sure some people are left with that impression.

I get that his latest film is orientated to a completely different audience, on whom I assume the team wants to capitalise on, but posting about an officially announced (in the trades) project on your socials is standard. Not doing it makes it more suspicious.

Because that is how some other actors act passive-aggressively when they are not 100% happy with a work decision (a new season of a show or a sequel that they have do contractually). So it’s no wonder some fans get that impression about Nick.

I’ve seen enough in the industry and his team strategy happens quite often (distance from a typecast that isn’t seen as mainstream enough), but I am confused why they decided to go with it.

And fans have the right to ask that question when the project not being announced on one of the two leads socials is queer.

I assume they are waiting to announce whatever he is going to be filming very soon first, like they are seeing it as a more “prestige” step or whatever (yes, this is how most PR and media people plan), but at the same time people are going to notice his silence for another project.

I don’t care that he didn’t attend the GLAAD awards or that he doesn't like social media posts. That doesn’t in any significant way indicate his feelings on RWRB.

But him not announcing a new project on his socials for days (as I am certain at some point there will be something) is a very clear sign on the trajectory his team prefers his projects to be. And people can be vocal about what they think about that.

[dangermousie]

I really loved the first six episodes of AJTL. It feels adult in a way too few cdramas do nowadays. The protagonists are (sometimes sociopathic, weird) adults and the narrative is adult and the humor and darkness are both adult. Now, I don't mean this is some sort of meditation on the human condition like Royal Nirvana or NiF or Three Kingdoms, but the situations and characters are of a nature you wouldn't usually see in youth-oriented stuff nowadays - whether it's the fact that our FL just wants to ML for stud so she can have a baby with good genetics and no family ties or the fact that literally every politician in this is a complete scumbag.

I actually love that our FL isn't just the most terrifying mofo in the narrative full of killers but that she is a bona fide borderline sociopath who has no understanding of boundaries or proper behavior or consent or even any sort of flirtation let alone a deeper feeling. She's been a killer since childhood; what normal does she have? The fact that she's managed to have any sort of emotions left is a miracle.

So her deciding she needs a child because her benefactor told her she should as a dying wish and picking a sperm donor in our ML because he's suitable, all with about as much understanding of relationships as an alien - she doesn't want ML because she fancies him, she doesn't want a child to love. It's basically a weird duty thing. It all makes sense.

It's a wonderful gender reversal, with FL the goal-oriented, robotic psycho and ML going "but wait a minute, feelings, also no way, no how." His realization as to how crazy she is, is something else.

Look how she explains it, as if it's the most logical business transaction - your genetic material is great, you are not married so nobody will be hurt, if you die on this mission you will have someone to carry on your lineage, you are scheming so if a kid takes after you and is scheming, it's good. None of it will seduce a man in the least, let alone anything further. But I think in a way it's a weird mark of respect where she's not trying to lie but put all her cards on the table. But also - it shows how far from normal she is that she doesn't even realize how insane it sounds to anyone. He may be a spy but his life has been pretty different than hers; he's got friends and he had family - he is a fairly functional dude. She doesn't have any relationship, and the closest she had was weird stubs...

Like - she is acting like an alien...

Yeah, I don't think psychotic rose through the ranks assassins are big on consent.

She's bona fide nuts and I love that for once we have an unhinged FL. But one of the things I love so is that you slowly see her melt a little around the edges, if barely, because he keeps treating her as a proper lady however murdery and crazy she gets - she was an assassin and then she was a spy-whore, she's basically never been treated as a proper person instead of a tool, except possibly by the dowager and that was a long time ago. No wonder she gets drawn in - like she did by his decency in that rooftop speech scene. It's such a great reversal!

Like she genuinely doesn't get why he doesn't jump at the offer.

I really do love the ML who'd be the unhinged one in any other drama but here he's the sane one. And also his angry decency is mmmm.

I don't usually have fantasy casts for characters; there are very few exceptions - CFY and LYX for the mains of 2ha, Chen Kun for the ML of Dreamer in the Spring Boudoir, SZE for Prisoner of Beauty (alas), but LYN is on that short list - he's 100% my fan cast for Yuwu's Mo Xi and stuff like this gives me mad MX vibes:

I mean...

Anyway, this drama is awesome!

PS also the way secrets don't get dragged out. ML knows her true identity and we are long moving on to other stuff, hooray!

[kohakhearts]

randomly thinking about pikachu's popularity as a mascot but also like in-universe imagining how many little kids would see ash and pikachu win the world championships and decide that they simply Must have a pikachu. you could take this from the angle of like, ash's championship win indirectly dramatically changes the viridian forest ecosystem and other pikachu habitats, but also, imagine how many young trainers + pikachu partners ash starts encountering on his journeys after that who are all clearly awestruck by him. i like to think he would be like "huh weird we've been battling a lot of pikachu lately" and not make the connection that this is His Impact

i'm OBSESSED with this concept and if i had more time/energy i would have immediately written a fic when you sent this because it's so funny to me but alas :p but i'm seeing this with like...all of the above implications like

ash visiting home sometime down the road and crossing paths with gary or tracey maybe, who is/are currently trying to figure out why there's a sudden influx of rattata in the viridian forest area. ash might even help them investigate a bit, you know, 'cause he's helpful like that. he doesn't get the implications. he hears "pikachu and rattata don't tend to make their homes in the same areas" and thinks the reason rattata are popping up suddenly is just that they've gotten over some territorial difference. "i mean obviously there are still pikachu in the forest - we just fought like three of them!"

so he leaves his friends at the oak laboratory absolutely flabbergasted and moves on. he keeps seeing trainers with pikachu, which is great. they ask for a battle and he obliges and it never even registers to him the starstruck look in those trainers' eyes has anything to do with him. he's just like, yeah my buddy's great, isn't he? your pikachu's great too! keep training! :)

when he hears from misty about all these new gym challengers with pikachu, he doesn't think too much about it. i mean, come on, it's a water-type gym. of course they're gonna bring an electric type. when he hears from brock that his brother said the same thing is happening in pewter city, well, that's just new trainers trying to think outside the box. forrest is probably exaggerating a bit anyway, maybe he's just embarrassed that his rock types got beaten by a pikachu? there are simply no dots to connect

of course, this isn't only happening in kanto, though. he hears from cilan about seeing more pikachu than usual in unova, a concerning trend considering pikachu aren't exactly native to the region. ash figures it's just more visitors from outside regions, like he was. it's so cool to see more people embracing inter-region travel! that's probably the one thing he does know he motivated others to do - i mean, surely being the kanto-native champion of alola would inspire a few trainers out there to tackle far-off leagues of their own? he inspired his friends to do it, so it's only fair that trainers who caught his big championship win on tv might have felt similarly!

except he's got the whole thing wrong, of course. one of his more research-oriented friends (i'm betting sophocles) has absolutely been crunching numbers and can 100% confirm that new trainers taking on the league challenge in most regions are about 20457x more likely to have a pikachu in their active roster this year than any year before. ash doesn't have a response to that one, because he's simply too baffled by the metrics of this study to digest the implications of it. he's really hung up on the idea that somehow sophocles met all these people as opposed to acknowledging the more likely scenario that he hacked into the league's database, because how would he even do that? ash isn't thinking about ethics or anything. he's just wondering how he can meet all these trainers too because he'd really like to battle them all, wow!

so basically, everyone else has figured it out...except for ash. he keeps getting approached by strangers asking him about training methods specific to pikachu, which he has no answer for other than "uhh rubber gloves don't really work i guess?" (and then ofc he'd say something very Ash about how no matter what kind of pokemon you're training you just have to believe in them etc etc) because the thing all those people don't realize is he never set out to train a pikachu in the first place. arguably, his pikachu trained him. and that pikachu? absolutely knows what's going on, and finds it hilarious. but he won't tell ash. he's having fun meeting all these different pikachu, anyway :p

[attibar]

You know what's worse than software by Apple?

Having to develop the code for iOS apps using said software.

It was supposed to be simple: port my work's native Android app onto iOS like we do for many of our apps. This one in particular delt with combining videos and overlaying chosen music over it. Our lead iOS developer had left and found a different job several months back, in retrospect that should've been a warning.

I'm the main Android app developer at our work and got assigned to get better at iOS development for this. But Apple, my fucking god Apple. It's not even a matter of different coding language, this is 100% an abusive relationship.

In the past two weeks Apple's own coding software, xCode, has suddenly crashed on me more times than I can count. Like one second it works and a split second later it just closes and I lose my progress.

When it came to video mixing Android had spoiled me. If I wanted to add a still image between videos it'd only take five lines. And iOS? It doesn't have that functionality at all. I have to take a still fucking image, save it as a video, and then use it. Absolutely wasteful.

I needed a place to save the created videos and there's a directory available called NSMovieDirectory or some shit. Sweet, that's a perfect place to save the videos to! Right?

Turns out although the NSMovieDirectory is in there, you can call it, it's not implemented for iOS devices, only Macs. A fucking variable you can call in iOS development doesn't even work for iOS devices. This is not a one off experience I've seen this happen with methods and variables multiple times.

Out of the blue xCode suddenly decided to stop auto predicting as I typed. This also included no longer showing any typos or other errors.

For whatever god forsaken reason if xCode detects several physical devices that it can run debug on, it will always pick a wireless device and NEVER the device you have literally plugged into your computer! The number of times I've started a debug build and waited for the app to start only to realize it's running on some unknown device elsewhere in the office is too damn high.

I felt my computer slowly dying installing all the needed files to run xCode. Forty. Fucking. Gigabytes. That's what's needed to merely use the damn thing. If you don't have physical devices and have to use simulators that gets even higher.

Designing UI layouts while dealing with different screen sizes and orientation changes is a whole circle of hell. I'd go into further detail why but that would make this post several pages long. Just know that it is far more convoluted and buggy than it has any right to.

TLDR: If you're using an iOS app and wonder why it's buggy, more than likely it's because the developers were being dragged into programming hell by Apple.

TLDR2: For the love of all that is holy and good in this world don't be like my workplace: use something to make iOS apps that isn't native iOS.

[tfblovesmusic]

How the 24 Italian Songs and Arias and the Suzuki Violin School Are Similar, Pt. 3

So, how can we - with growing awarenesses of early music performances as well as historically informed performance (HIP) practices - rectify the shortcomings the 24 Italian Songs and Arias and the Suzuki Violin School have had in common regarding heavy edits to Baroque music excerpts since their publications?

"I attended an early singing master class once and agreed 100% with the teacher when he said, 'We should microfilm (the 24 Italian Songs and Arias) for reference and burn all existing copies," one HIP-oriented vocalist quipped on Facebook.

"Early music is great. Early music sung the way someone who had no idea about it decided that it should be sung is terrible."

Such comments respectively lead student vocalists and violinists to another problem surrounding it and the Suzuki Violin School: many music educators don't teach them fully about Baroque music history as well as the development of the modern piano enough. With the lack of knowledge of classical music history, let alone full knowledge of the Baroque era, it's any wonder why some of them have animosity towards learning the publications.

Poe, an app operated by Quora, advises voice teachers who teach the 24 Italian Songs and Arias:

Provide an overview of the Baroque period (roughly 1600-1750), highlighting the dominant aesthetic principles, such as the emphasis on emotional expression, virtuosity, and the development of opera and other vocal genres. Explain how the 24 Italian Songs and Arias fit into the broader stylistic and compositional trends of the Baroque era. Trace the evolution of opera from its origins in the late 16th century through the Baroque period, focusing on the development of recitative, aria, and other key structural elements. Discuss how the 24 Italian Songs and Arias, many of which are excerpted from operas, reflect the stylistic and dramatic conventions of Baroque-era opera. Explore the distinctive vocal techniques and ornamentation styles associated with Baroque singing, such as the use of messa di voce, trills, and embellishments. Explain how these technical and stylistic elements were integral to the virtuosic displays of Baroque-era singers, who were often the driving forces behind the creation and performance of these arias. Discuss the role of aristocratic and ecclesiastical patrons in the commissioning and production of Baroque vocal music, and how this influenced the formal and expressive characteristics of the repertoire.

Contextualize the 24 Italian Songs and Arias within the social and cultural milieu of the Baroque courts and salons, where these works were primarily performed. Analyze the poetic and literary sources that served as the basis for the text of the 24 Italian Songs and Arias, such as the Petrarchan sonnets and other Baroque poetic conventions. Explore how the relationship between the text and music in these works reflects the Baroque aesthetic of combining emotional expression with intellectual sophistication. Discuss the predominance of the Italian language and the unique challenges it poses for non-Italian speakers in terms of pronunciation, diction, and cultural nuances. Situate the 24 Italian Songs and Arias within the broader context of the Italian musical tradition and its influence on Baroque vocal music across Europe.

It likewise advised Suzuki Violin School-teaching violin teachers:

Discuss the time period (roughly 1600-1750) and its significance in music history, highlighting major composers like Antonio Vivaldi, JS Bach, and Archangelo Corelli. Emphasize the stylistic characteristics of the era, such as contrast (between loud and soft, solo and ensemble), ornamentation, and expressiveness. Explain the evolution of the violin and other string instruments during the Baroque period, including changes in construction, stringing, and playing techniques. Discuss the role of the violin in ensembles and orchestras, as well as its prominence as a solo instrument. Introduce students to Baroque performance conventions, such as the use of improvisation, ornamentation, and stylistic phrasing. Explain the significance of basso continuo accompaniment and how it supports the soloist, emphasizing the collaboration between different instruments. Highlight the role of patronage in the Baroque period, including how composers worked for courts, churches, and wealthy patrons. Discuss the social functions of music, such as its use in religious ceremonies, court festivities, and public concerts. Explore the regional differences in Baroque music, such as the Italian, French, and German styles, and how these influences shaped the works students are studying. Encourage students to recognize the characteristics that define these national styles within the pieces they play. Discuss the Baroque aesthetics of conveying emotions through music (the doctrine of the affects) and how this can be interpreted in their playing. Encourage students to explore the emotional content of the pieces and to express that in their interpretations. Introduce students to the differences in notation between the Baroque period and today, including the use of figured bass and performance instructions that may differ from modern practices. Discuss how composers of the era utilized notation to convey stylistic choices and performance practices.

In tandem with learning about the Baroque period, it also helps to have respectively student vocalists and violinists learning the 24 Italian Songs and Arias and the Suzuki Violin School books know about the history of keyboard instruments. A good audiovisual resource is Episode 4 of Howard Goodall's Big Bangs, which is one of the most comprehensive documentaries that teach that history well. Episode 2 of Goodall's aforementioned documentary series from 2000 about the history of opera is another valuable audiovisual resource especially for vocalists learning the 24 Italian Songs and Arias.

Mark Polesky, a composer and pianist, recommends that Suzuki Method violin students listen to HIP recordings of the pieces they are learning ALONGSIDE the recordings provided by Suzuki Method International. He lists recommended ones - as well as International Music Score Library Project links to original and urtext manuscripts of the mostly-transcribed works in his site, Suzuki Violin Pieces in their Original Forms.

"The majority of the pieces collected in the ten volumes of the Suzuki Violin School are not originally composed for violin and piano," Polesky wrote.

"If you count the sonata and concerto movements individually, there are 91 ‘pieces’ in total; and of these, only 10 were originally written for violin with piano accompaniment — and this includes the 5 Suzuki compositions from Volume 1. (The others, by the way, are the Jean Becker Gavotte in Volume 3, the 3 Friedrich Seitz concerto movements, and the Perpetual Motion by Carl Bohm in Volume 4.)"

"By this measure then, almost 90% of the series consists of transcriptions and arrangements — and I assume that most Suzuki students have only heard a few (if any) of these pieces in their original form, and also that many students may have never seen an original score."

"This is unfortunate. A typical Book 2 student who dutifully listens to the violin and piano recordings (provided by the company), might still never experience the boisterous humor of the original 'Hunters’ Chorus' from (Carl Maria von Weber's Der Freischütz), or the inspiring virtuosity of Niccolò Paganini’s Le Streghe (the source of 'Witches’ Dance')."

Notoriously, there are EVEN FEWER recordings of the 24 Italian Songs and Arias (as well as selections from G. Schirmer's 1894 parent publication, Anthology of Italian Song of the 17th and 18th Centuries) in their original forms than there are correlating ones in the Suzuki Violin School. Only one - Alessandro Parisotti's "Se tu m'ami," which he erroneously attributed to Giovanni Battista Pergolesi - was originally written for voice and piano.

Not to mention that although some songs - Tommaso Giordani's "Caro mio ben" included - were written a few decades after Bartolomeo Cristofori invented the piano in 1720, the harpsichord, clavichord, and chamber pipe organ largely dominated the family of accompanimental keyboards.

"It should be mentioned at some point that many of the pieces in the Suzuki series are labeled too simply, with singular names such as Gavotte or Largo. Anyone who wishes to research the original sources is faced with a particular challenge. For example, how many of Jean-Philippe Rameau’s 30 or so operas must one sift through before finding the Book 6 Gavotte buried in Act III of the obscure 1745 opera Le temple de la gloire?"

Sadly, a high school vocal student and/or chorus member learning from the 24 Italian Songs and Arias would likewise be too hard-pressed with standardized testing, homework overload, and any extracurricular activities outside music to EVEN bother sifting through Giovanni Bononcini's 26 or so operas before finding "Per la gloria d'adoravi" buried in Act II of his 1722 opera Griselda, here sung by sopranist Dennis Orellana, with the Wroclaw Baroque Orchestra accompanying him.

In the increasing onset of the HIP revival in the '70s through the '90s, some recordings of Claudio Monteverdi's Lamento d'Arianna (his 5-part madrigal arrangement included) and Guilio Caccini's "Amarilli, mia bella" sung from their respective manuscripts or urtext scores ALREADY emerged. The most notable examples are soprano Dame Emma Kirkby's and lutenist Anthony Rooley's 1992 recordings.

Fortunately, a few but growing number of musicians and vocalists highly erudite in HIP and early music like Dame Kirkby have been at first in recent years slowly offsetting the lack of available recordings of the 24 Italian Songs and Arias in original forms, besides the aforementioned Lamento and "Amarilli." Among them is French contralto and conductor Nathalie Stutzmann.

Together with her HIP ensemble Orfeo 55, Stutzmann interprets the arias as close to manuscript and urtext as possible. Among the highlights of her album of Parisotti airs, Quella FIamma, is her take on "Vergin Tutt'amor," incorporating the original figured basses of Francesco Durante's D minor solfege in the 1772 manuscript of Solfèges d'Italie.

While we hope for increases of HIP renditions of the 24 Italian Songs and Arias as there had been larger ones regarding pieces of the Suzuki Violin School, I, Jane Q. Early Music Lover, recommend both students and violinists to listen to recordings of Baroque pieces that are similar to the ones they are currently learning.

As an example, one learning "Sebben, crudele" or "Alma del core" - both of them arias from the 1710 opera, La costanza in amor vince l'inganno - from the "yellow book" for their state vocal solo and ensemble music performance assessments (MPAs) may wish to listen to Antonio Caldara's other arias. One of them is "Così a fiume" from his oratorio Joaz. The above recording is by HIP ensemble Ensemble La Fontaine and countertenor Alex Potter.

The aria includes a solo bassoon and a solo alto trombone. A. SOLO. ALTO. TROMBONE. Like many composers living in early 18th century Vienna, Austria, Caldara would use the latter in some arias in his sacred vocal works because its timbre - due in part to the slide and player's embouchure creating more notes than most other brass instruments at the time - is humanoid and God-like.

Part 4 explains more about the HIP recordings that may be relevant to respectively student violinists and vocalists who are learning the Suzuki Violin School and the 24 Italian Songs and Arias as well as other things to recommend to further enhance their comprehension of music history and appreciation for HIP practice and early music.

[jaggedwolf]

pll rewatch 2x23

The one where Aria flies a plane. Other things happen too, but you know, it’s the episode where Aria flies a plane.

Aria decides to pursue the Duncan lead, over the other’s objections that she doesn’t have to and that any of them could’ve put on that red coat

Jenna emerges from a car with a bandaged eye, Toby leading her out, and all the liars are perturbed, especially Spencer

Thus kickstarting an episode of it being very unclear whether the liars think that Toby is....dating Jenna....or is...committing an unfathomable sin against them by accompanying his blind step-sister around...

But back to Aria for a second. In wearing the red coat, Aria becomes the third liar to “become” Alison. If not to us, then at least to another character. Hanna evokes a visual comparison, given their separate terms as The Popular Blonde Girl of the school, and a drunk Emily compares her to Ali when A blackmails Hanna into dancing with Lucas. Spencer evokes a comparison on the basis of intensity, of needing to win and dominate, and inhabits the Ali-as-top-dog role to the greatest degree when the liars are pretending to fight with Emily. 

You can make a strong case for Flashback!Hanna and Flashback!Spencer wanting to be Ali, but I don’t think that’s an as accurate description of Flashback!Aria. It’s fitting that it’s only once we’re in the realm of Vivian Darkbloom that it’s Aria’s turn to try out being Ali, a realm in which Ali was desperately trying to not be herself. It’s almost like that’s what it takes for the idea of being Ali to have an appeal to Aria.  

And I just remembered, Jonah the phone repair guy concludes Aria is “Vivian’s friend Alison” when she meets with him. 

Emily has yet to “become” Alison this way. I’d argue she never does. That simply isn’t how she orients herself around Alison – she had and has and will have all sorts of feelings about Ali, but envy isn’t one of those feelings.

Ashley and Hanna argue in the house about Hanna wanting a new phone after trashing her own and Emily is so damn uncomfortable to be witnessing this argument.

Chin up, Emily. Could be worse. You could’ve experienced the horrors of the Montgomery marriage or the Hastings taking turns to visit and be mysteriously terrible to Spencer

Emily gets a text from an unknown number, the message saying it’s Maya...

Toby and Spencer argue in school about him hanging out with Jenna, with Hanna lingering around a corner to eavesdrop. I guess Hanna’s here for her stuff with Jenna

Both of them are being confusing, but we’ll focus on Spencer - my dude, you had Emily break up with him saying you were ditching him for Wren, why are you surprised that he’s not running into your arms.

Duncan says “You’re the one who kept the journals. The writer.” and I wonder how Ali described all the girls to him, and whether it differs from later descriptions of Ali’s we’ll learn about

Duncan claims Ali spent a lot of time with him that summer. I know I’ve talked about Labor Day scheduling before, but do remember that Ali’s schedule that summer grows more packed as the seasons go on. Who didn’t she spend time with that summer.

Hanna’s new phone doesn’t appear to get the next A message

I really enjoy every Jenna-Toby scene we get this episode, because it makes you go what the fuck is going on here every time.

Emily finds Spencer lurking in the school courtyard. This courtyard has very convenient little alcoves for brooding, a key design feature. They commiserate over Toby hanging out with Jenna, Wayne going to Afghanistan, and Maya’s runaway status. 

Please note Emily’s non-involvement in whatever is happening with Toby, custody once transferred is final. An individual friendship outside of Spoby, hahahaha no.

Ella pretends to do some parenting by visiting, saying she is not an ally of this adult/minor relationship when she 100% is, and when Ezra says yeah there might’ve been someone who’d want to hurt Aria because of Ezra but not anymore, Ella does not ask any further questions! She simply walks away! Ella! 

Mona and Hanna do a little tricksy trick to get Toby to talk to Hanna, and honestly Hanna is quite annoying here. 

Like yeah, Toby hanging out with his step-sister who raped him and continues to be creepy to him isn’t the best life choice ever, but Hanna isn’t yelling about it because she’s concerned for him, but because it makes Spencer sad + the liars are worried he’ll spill about the Jenna thing

To be clear, Toby’s eventual explanation for what’s happening here is very stupid and makes zero sense, but he does get to hang out with whoever he wants to without getting accosted by his ex’s friends lmao

Veronica has a whisper-argument with Spencer about Jason while Emily is five feet away. Do you think after experiencing Marin drama this morning Emily saw the look on Veronica’s face and decided to pop out to the backyard so she wouldn’t have to deal with the second-hand embarrassment again? That would be completely understandable. 

Aria gets in a plane with a guy. To be clear, she meets the guy at an airfield. She could’ve googled the address, but no, that would not jibe with the way she’s following her whims. She gets in a plane when he asks, without even texting the other liars what she’s doing!

In the words of my friend, “Aria is so easy to kidnap”. 

Who is the hardest liar to kidnap? Emily is also very easy to kidnap, given that she facilitated her own carbon monoxide poisoning. 

Duncan claims that Ali figured something out the day he flew her back to the Philly area from Georgia, and makes Aria fly the plane to interrogate/stress the fuck out of her

Byron and Ezra have a little dick-measuring contest and I wish they were both in Jason’s house when it exploded and we’d never have to see them again. They don’t even mention Aria.

Who, by the way, is flying a plane somewhere above Philly!

Emily gets a long email from Maya. Or does she?

My memory of timeline here is quite vague, in that I don’t know what Maya is up to at this point, but it is weird that we hear Shay Mitchell’s voice reading the email and not Bianca Lawson’s.

But taking it to be Maya, she says to Emily “You know how to be still. In the middle of everything, at a swim meet with all the craziness and pressure, I look at you and you're still.” 

A great characterization note for Emily, and an interesting one for Emily/Maya...perhaps Emily’s big three love interests of the show are united by this idealization of Emily as someone who has it figured out, who is worthy of emulation. (Though for different portions of the relationship for each love interest, I’d say.)

Veronica reveals to Spencer that the PI investigating Ali’s disappearance was her idea, even if Peter paid for it. Sometimes I swear the Hastings doing their shady shit communicate more than the Montgomerys attempting to do normal parenting.

Spencer figures out the newspaper wrapping is one of Ali’s things and contains clues, thanks to Hanna recognizing Michelle Obama’s outfit from 2009 <3

Jenna gets caught in a fire at Jason’s house, Hanna pulls her out before the first floor goes kaboom, Spencer helps Hanna support Jenna’s weight but offscreen goes back for the bag and gets a cut on her hand for her troubles

Y’all, I have no memory of who tried to blow her up here. Was it A? Was it Jason? Was it Jenna herself playing 4-D chess? Did Toby try to get rid of her once and for all? Maybe Melissa was tired of having to share the role of shadowy female side-character? Who the fuck knows, not me. 

At the hospital, Emily calls Maya’s parents to let them know Maya reached out. Spencer sees her mother sit next to Jason to have a cordial conversation, and yeah, I don’t think Veronica would’ve done that if Spencer hadn’t argued with her earlier this episode. 

Oh man, I love this Jenna hospital room scene. She is so distraught, the liars are so uncomfortable, when Jenna asks a question Hanna nods before she remembers to say “yes” out loud. Classic terrorized terror moment.

Meanwhile, A plants a police badge in the wreckage of the explosion...not a great moment to be a certain officer right now....

[typosandtea]

🪨🗡️

Alright I love Jude for that that’s so real ahaha! Does she make a face or panic??

Tango would try jokingly on the assumption that’s it’s fake and when the sword doesn’t move they’d be a bit perplexed and pull harder, and when that obviously still doesn’t work they’d try increasingly violent and mythbustery methods till they or the stone break (they will break first obviously). They’d never be able to, if Tango’s soul was distilled it would be tinted black with the weights of their deeds, rage and selfishness. They would leave defeated, grumbling and probably physically damaged. As a joke they would suggest Preston try, to make themselves feel better at not being able to remove Excalibur by any method, only to have a what passes for a robotic aneurism when Preston effortlessly removes it. Preston would be so confused at why tango is physically freaking out meanwhile tangos like “I used a fucking missile launcher and a second set of hacked armour and still couldn’t move the blasted thing”. It would be a very confronting experience for Tango and they may have to face that old magic still exists in some places.

Murphy would psych herself out of even touching it, that gif of the husky tippy-tapping on the edge of the pool from indecision? That’s her. ‘What if? But but but the implications!’ If she does pull it, what does that mean for her? She is already the defacto figurehead for the regions mutant population, is she destined to unite the commonwealth??? She can barely keep them from tearing each other’s throats out aaa, heck she has enough trouble keeping the factions from fracturing as it is! And If she doesn’t pull it it would just be validating all of her anxiety that she truly is a monster of awful heart. The stress of either outcome would freak her out enough to decide that it’s better not to know ..

Thorn would not be able to at all, and she knows it. Being ‘pure of heart’ has never been something of value to her at all, power on the other hand.. she would be mostly dismissive of it as myths and stories, but part of her would wonder what such power feels like, would it be everything she strives for? She doesn’t believe in souls and if she did she would have sold hers long ago.

Nathan … this is tricky since current Nathan is not really present in his body most of the time.. as is he probably would not be able to because he is of animalistic demeanour and intelligence, BUT if he is having one of increasingly rare lucid moments he probably could, but those moments are fleeting and few so the chance is incredibly slim.. prewar Nathan yeah for sure but he wouldn’t want to, he doesn’t want the attention.

Slick would be able wield excalibur for sure, and then like Murphy would have a major freak about the implications.. with guidance and a fuckton of confidence building from his friends slick would be an alright leader, though he would never agree to lead on his own, he is very people oriented and tactical, but can struggle to see in the long term. His past as a gunner shattered any confidence he had in himself and has left him very confused that the sword has considered someone like him pure of heart? He doesn’t see what others can..

Libby would not be able to, and it would be bloody close too. she’d be a good sport about it though. So many jokes, but a tiny part of her wonders if it’s because she is a ghoul, does the old magic recognise the true heart through the many walls she’s put up? Or does it recognise corruption of body as a corruption of heart? She unconsciously dwells on this for a long time after, especially if no ghoul is able to wield it. She’s certain that she felt it move, what was it about her that Excalibur didn’t like? Would be 100% in support of Slick or Preston if either of them pulled it though! She’d be so very loud about it too ahah

could your oc pull excalibur from the stone?

jude could but she would assume it was Not Supposed To Do That and put it back.

[yasminbenoit]

Yasmin Benoit in Cosmopolitan: “I’m the Unlikely Face of Asexuality”

I was 10 years old when I started to wonder if there was something wrong with me. I realised I was asexual around the same time as my peers realised they weren’t. In late primary school, the boys and girls didn't want to play together anymore - they 'fancied' and wanted to 'go out' with each other. I watched girls fighting over boy drama in the cafeteria and wondered what had gotten into everyone.

That’s when I decided I’d attend an all girls’ school under the naive belief that, in the absence of boys, none of the girls would care about sex or dating. I quickly discovered that a same-sex environment had the opposite effect.

By the time I was a teenager, my peers started to wonder what was wrong with me. The sexual frustration was turned up to 100, which made it all the more obvious that I wasn't reacting the same way as the other teens. While their sexuality was directed towards any nearby boy, a poster of a boy, or even each other, mine wasn't directed anywhere. And other people wanted to work out why that was more than I did.

Before believing that it was just my innate sexuality, it was easier to assume that I was gay and in denial. Maybe I was molested as a kid and I’d forgotten about it, but been left with psychological scars. I could be hiding a hidden perversion – my dad asked me whether I was into inanimate objects or children when I told him that I wasn’t attracted to men or women. I might be a psychopath, unable to empathise with people enough to deem them attractive. The theory that held the most weight was that I was 'mentally stunted', and I was treated as such. I started to wonder if they were right.

At 15, I learned the word asexual. It was during yet another analysis session of my sexuality at school. I described myself as not being attracted to men or women for the thousandth time, and someone suggested I might be “asexual or something.” With a quick Google search, I realised I wasn’t alone. Asexuality is a term used to describe those who experience a lack of sexual attraction and/or low levels of sexual desire towards others.

It wasn’t a mental or physical disorder, or a personality flaw, or anything related to my appearance or my life experiences. It wasn’t the same as being celibate, or anti-sex, or just being a ‘late bloomer.’ It was a legitimate sexual orientation characterised purely by a lack of sexual attraction or desire, meaning that it had no implications on whether an asexual could masturbate, or actually enjoy sex, or have children, or be in a romantic relationship. There were no limitations, just a way to bring a lot of people under one united umbrella.

I had finally found an answer to everyone’s question... only, no one else knew what the hell I was talking about. Unfortunately, that didn’t stop them from spewing the same ignorant views I had been hearing for years.

To an extent, I can’t blame them. It’s been almost 10 years since I discovered the term and it is barely part of public consciousness. It isn’t included in sex education or any conversations about sexuality. We’re left out of policies, pathologised in psychiatry and there is next-to-no representation for asexual people in the media. You can count positive examples on one hand. Most of the time, asexuality is either a fleeting reference, the butt of a joke, or a trait in a character that’s either an alien, robotic, or evil – a manifestation of their lack of empathy. Think your Sheldon Cooper, your Data from Star Trek, your Lord Voldemort.

Especially for women, it's seen as a symptom of their prudishness, unattractiveness or overall blandness, which needs to be resolved by the end of the plot so they can be complete, appealing, lovable people. After all, being virginal is a good thing, perpetual sexual unavailability is not, particularly when you need a loving sexual relationship to be whole. Even our non-fiction portrayals tend to conform to stereotypes and perpetuate a ‘woe is them’ narrative. And among all of these things, they’re probably white, occasionally East Asian, but never Black. Black people are hypersexualised to the point where that would become contradictory and confusing for the audience. And that’s what I would end up being.

When I first mentioned on social media that I was asexual, I had no intention of becoming a voice for the asexual community. It seemed too unlikely to contemplate. After all, I was a Black gothic student from Berkshire who got sat on at school because I was that invisible. On top of that, my work as an alternative lingerie model meant I was far from the girl/boy-next-door like the asexual activists who had come before me. But, apparently, that's what the community wanted. From there, my activism took off.

I quickly found myself becoming one of the community's most prominent - but unlikely - faces. I used my platform to raise awareness for asexuality, empower asexual people, dispel misconceptions and promote our inclusion in spaces we've traditionally been left out of. From incorporating asexuality into lingerie campaigns, speaking at government institutions, being the first openly asexual person to appear on LGBTQ+ magazine covers, and opening asexual spaces, my work has been intersectional if not a little controversial.

I had never experienced hatred online like I have since speaking openly about asexuality. Only through my work did I become aware of acephobia and the exclusionary discourse surrounding what at first seems like an inoffensive and discreet orientation. It’s shown me how important asexuality activism is, and it’s made me aware of just how diverse, powerful and unique the asexual community is. How they stand up for the rights of others even when we’re ignored ourselves, how they’ll never let their invisibility stop them from developing their own unique culture, history, and progressive understanding of human sexuality and love.

This week is Asexual Awareness Week, an occasion founded by Sara Beth Brooks a decade ago. It’s one of the few times in the year that the community demands to be seen and people start looking.

Don’t miss us, we have a lot to show you.

[advicesuggestions]

Hi!! You can ignore this if you want, it's OK.:) I was just looking for blogs on tumblr that help / advise LGBT people. (don't you know any please?) and I noticed your profile. Can i tell you something? I am desperate :(i'm a girl. I thought I was straight. I've always liked boys. But .. sometimes I ... like actresses. I've always said myself that this doesn't mean I'm bi, that's normal. I just think they're pretty. But .. it has happened to me a few times that .. well, for example, I have one classmate (she is 100% straight) and .. I don't know if I like her, probably yes? I could imagine kissing her, maybe others things, but sex itself probably not? I'm confused. I also tried to do orientation tests and it turned out that I was straight. But it is written somewhere that when somebody takes tests for orientation, he/she is probably not straight. I know I should know this by myself, whether I'm straight or not, .. I'm really confused. please would you help me ?? thank you very much. have a nice day and i hope i don't bother you!

desperate anon :(

Well first and foremost, My apologies for not answering this question when you asked. I didn't forget this, I never had tbh, I just didn't know how to tackle it since I wasn't fully sure of my own sexuality and gender identity at the time. I didn't feel fully qualified to answer this question, But I think I have an answer:

It's a struggle to realize a lot of things all at once. Experiencing and thinking things that tie along with the queer community is a lot to handle, especially if this is the first instance of questioning. Being lgbt or coming to the conclusion of being apart of the lgbt community isn't easy nor going to be easy for you. But, the first battle you'll have to face is questioning your sexuality, what thoughts and feelings are considered to be lgbt? do you actually find the same sex attractive? do you find both attractive? maybe the feelings you feel are platonic and maybe you've never actually felt romantic attraction?

On the rumor of "if you take gay quizzes, you probably are gay", A lot of folks in the lgbt community started off their journey by taking the "am I gay?" quizzes, I certainly did and now i'm a comfortable oriented-aromantic trans-dude. Usually the first step of knowing whether or not you're lgbt is if you take quizzes that simulate common stereotypical lgbt experiences. However, this doesn't mean anyone who takes those quizzes are automatically lgbt. It's all up to you to decide. Being informed of the diversity in the community is wonderful and I absolutely encourage you to delve deeper to (hopefully) find a label you feel comfy with. However, experience is key. You may like something in theory, it doesn't necessarily mean you will enjoy it in practice. Don't be afraid to experiment with your identity if you're willing to make that leap.

Side note: You can find someone attractive but not be attracted to the gender in particular, it's called conventional attraction. There's also a term that I suggest you look up: compulsory heterosexuality. This is a common experience with lesbians and the WLW community.

Another Side note: Romantic and Sexual attraction can go hand and hand but are not necessarily the same thing. You can romantically attracted to someone but not be sexually attracted to them. If you notice a lack of sexual attraction for the same sex but not for the opposite sex chances, you could be bisexual with a preference for women. If you notice a similar experience but vice versa, you could be a lesbian. If you notice a lack of sexual attraction for anyone regardless of identity, you could be asexual!

Again, this is YOUR experience, YOUR identity, only YOU are allowed to make the calls but never get scared to experiment. In my eyes, that's what the lgbt experience is. Just know that no matter what happens, who you end up loving/dating, you are incredibly welcome and valid in the community. I wish you luck on this journey!!

[Don't feel bad for asking this question. You aren't a bother at all. I hope that this very delayed answer will still provide some use and comfort in this path of yours. If you do ever desire to ask for more advice, feel free to send another ask or even a DM. Good Luck :] ]

-Mod K