#indicating people take shelter there sometimes

[ahollowgrave]

Day Four: RAIN / sun

Odette, Rou, and some friends wait out the rain.

[inkskinned]

one of the things that's the most fucking frustrating for me about arguing with climate change deniers is the sheer fucking scope of how much it matters. sweating in my father's car, thinking about how it's the "hottest summer so far," every summer. and there's this deep, roiling rage that comes over me, every time.

the stakes are wrong, is the thing. that's part of what makes it not an actual debate: the other side isn't coming to the table with anything to fucking lose.

like okay. i am obviously pro gun control. but there is a basic human part of me that can understand and empathize with someone who says, "i'm worried that would lead to the law-abiding citizens being punished while criminals now essentially have a superpower." i don't agree, but i can tell the stakes for them are also very high.

but let's say the science is wrong and i'm wrong and the visible reality is wrong and every climate disaster refugee is wrong. let's say you're right, humans aren't causing it or it's not happening or whatever else. let's just say that, for fun.

so we spend hundreds of millions of dollars making the earth cleaner, and then it turns out we didn't need to do that. oops! we cleaned the earth. our children grow up with skies full of more butterflies and bees. lawns are taken over with rich local biodiversity. we don't cry over our electric bills anymore. and, if you're staunchly capitalist and i need to speak ROI with you - we've created so many jobs in developing sectors and we have exciting new investment opportunities.

i am reminded of kodak, and how they did not make "the switch" to digital photography; how within 20 years kodak was no longer a household brand. do we, as a nation, feel comfortable watching as the world makes "the switch" while we ride the laurels of oil? this boggles me. i have heard so much propaganda about how america cannot "fall behind" other countries, but in this crucial sector - the one that could actually influence our own monopolies - suddenly we turn the other cheek. but maybe you're right! maybe it will collapse like just another silicone valley dream. but isn't that the crux of capitalism? that some economies will peter out eventually?

but let's say you're right, and i'm wrong, and we stopped fracking for no good reason. that they re-seed quarries. that we tear down unused corporate-owned buildings or at least repurpose them for communities. that we make an effort, and that effort doesn't really help. what happens then? what are the stakes. what have we lost, and what have we gained?

sometimes we take our cars through a car wash and then later, it rains. "oh," we laugh to ourselves. we gripe about it over coffee with our coworkers. what a shame! but we are also aware: the car is cleaner. is that what you are worried about? that you'll make the effort but things will resolve naturally? that it will just be "a waste"?

and what i'm right. what if we're already seeing people lose their houses and their lives. what if it is happening everywhere, not just in coastal towns or equatorial countries you don't care about. what if i'm right and you're wrong but you're yelling and rich and powerful. so we ignore all of the bellwethers and all of the indicators and all of the sirens. what if we say - well, if it happens, it's fate.

nevermind. you wouldn't even wear a mask, anyway. i know what happens when you see disaster. you think the disaster will flinch if you just shout louder. that you can toss enough lives into the storm for the storm to recognize your sacrifice and balk. you argue because it feels good to stand up against "the liberals" even when the situation should not be political. you are busy crying for jesus with a bullhorn while i am trying to usher people into a shelter. you've already locked the doors, even on the church.

the stakes are skewed. you think this is some intellectual "debate" to win, some funny banter. you fuel up your huge unmuddied truck and say suck it to every citizen of that shitbird state california. serves them right for voting blue!

and the rest of us are terrified of the entire fucking environment collapsing.

[stellarsecrets86]

Groom(5129) In the Houses of the Groom Persona Chart

Other posts you might like:

Masterlist

[The house placement of the Groom asteroid in the groom pc will show where in life, as a husband, his focus as a husband will be most evident, and where within the marriage his role as a husband will be most impactful. Its aspects show how this energy interfaces with other parts of his persona chart to influence his approach to love, partnership, and shared goals.]

[PS: For entertainment purposes only. Have fun.💚]

💐💐💐💐💐💐-------------💐💐💐💐💐💐

1st House

Groom in the 1st house is indicative of the groom who assumes the character of a husband with the utmost pride and confidence, his identity being closely hooked to the role of the husband in the marriage; he sees himself as both a leader and protector in the relationship. He is likely to be very initiative-taking and make sure his partner feels valued and taken care of. However, his strong focus on a role might at times make him overly concerned with appearances or what people expect. An ideal partner for him likes his sense of responsibility yet encourages him to be a little vulnerable. This placement favors a groom who seeks shared growth and harmony in marriage.

2nd House

Groom in the 2nd house brings forth a groom desirous of stability, security, and material comfort in marriage. He is likely to be a dependable provider, working hard to build a solid foundation for his family. His approach to marriage is practical and grounded, emphasizing mutual respect and shared goals. However, he might sometimes equate love with material provision, overlooking emotional intimacy. His partner should remind him that emotional connection is just as vital. This placement suggests a marriage based on trust, mutual effort, and shared financial goals.

3rd House

Groom in the 3rd house shows a groom who wants to communicate, intellectually connect with, and share ideas in a marriage. He is sure to be articulate and a thoughtful partner, engaging his spouse in meaningful conversations and encouraging open dialogue. His ideal relationship thrives on mutual learning and intellectual growth. He might, at times, however, be given to overthinking his emotions or avoiding deep feelings and going into intellectual discussions. His partner needs to encourage him to strike a balance between logic and the expression of emotions. This placement promises a marriage based on mutual understanding and clarity in communication.

4th House

He is very attached to family and home when it is placed in the 4th house. He looks upon marriage as the starting point to establish a loving, secure home, primarily with the aim of maintaining a harmonious atmosphere and peaceful domestic life. He can be very caring and overprotective, wanting to let his partner stay in shelter for comfort. Yet at times, this may make him overly concerned with home life and wary of alterations. The partner needs to support his need for stability and build up flexibility. This placement suggests a groom who gets fulfillment from the emotional and familial aspects of marriage.

5th House

Groom in the 5th house points to a groom who would marry with passion, creativity, and a great belief in romance. He thrives on shared joy and seeks a partner who can bring excitement and spontaneity into the relationship. His marriage is likely to be filled with laughter, adventures, and romantic gestures. However, his need for constant excitement might at times override deeper emotional needs. His partner should try to get him to balance up the fun with deeper connection. This placement does indicate a groom who considers marriage a celebration of love and shared experiences.

6th House

In the 6th house indicates that this is a hardworking and dedicated groom who will try with all his might to be of practical service to his spouse. He values teamwork and tries to maintain a balance and order in marriage. His ideal relationship should be based on mutual support and sharing responsibilities. His perfectionism, however, may sometimes overwork or make him sacrifice too much of himself. His partner would need to remind him that he needs to take better care of his emotional needs and himself. This placement would show a groom who finds satisfaction in serving and supporting loved ones.

7th House

This placement can suggest that the groom views marriage as a partnership of equals. Groom in the 7th house is all about harmony, balance, and mutual respect in the relationship. He is looking for someone to complement him and one who believes in open communication and joint decision-making. He is very much a committed partner but at times might tend to avoid confrontations because he focuses too much on balance. His wife needs to be encouraging of frank discussions and emotional openness. This placement can indicate a groom who is at ease in relationships based on mutual trust and respect.

8th House

In the 8th house is indicative of a groom who desires deep emotional and physical intimacy within marriage. He is drawn to transformative experiences and seeks a partner who matches his intensity and depth. He needs trust, vulnerability, and emotional connection. Marriage for him is often a path to mutual growth and healing. His passion is the strength here, though it can turn possessive or emotionally turbulent at times. His partner needs to foster balance and frank communication. This placement indicates that the groom finds deep meaning in an emotional and spiritual connecting with his partner.

9th House

Groom in the 9th House: Being with an explorer, studying and growing with a life companion, and seeking or taking a spiritually growing road within marriage-these will provide the base for partnership to this kind of individual. He foresees love filled with travel and studying or with the discussion of world outlooks together. His union would involve exchanging culture or undertaking some spiritual voyage. At the same time, one should realize that too much idealism fosters restlessness and perhaps unreal views about marriage. The partner should keep him grounded, yet support his desire to learn and grow. This is the placement of a groom who enjoys shared adventure and mental stimulation.

10th House

Groom in the 10th house indicates that for the groom, marriage is a partnership in supporting his public image and life ambitions. He is ambitious and looks for a spouse that can support his vision and ambition. His approach to marriage is very practical and goal-oriented, always focusing on shared achievements. The same strength of his-namely, the focusing on external accomplishments-could at times shadow the emotional intimacy. The partner will help him strike a balance between his ambition and personal connection. This placement suggests a groom who looks at marriage as coming together of two people in building a legacy.

11th House

Groom in the 11th house indicates a groom who desires shared ideals, social connection, and community involvement with his marriage partner. He is drawn to partnerships that can facilitate change or contribute something to a higher purpose. His ideal spouse shares his vision for making a difference and supports his dreams. While his idealism is laudable, it may at times lead him to sacrifice personal needs for the greater good. His partner needs to encourage him to strike a balance between social aspirations and private connection. This placement promises a marriage based on shared values and mutual inspiration.

12th House

In the 12th house brings out the sensitivity of a groom emotionally and his spiritual approach to marriage. He searches for a partner who will understand his introspective nature and help him sail through his inner world. This could play a very significant role in his marriage, as deep-seated trust, forgiveness, and emotional healing could make a great impact on the self-realization of individuals. Very empathetic and sensitive, he may struggle to let his emotions be seen out in the open. His partner should create an environment of safety where vulnerability can be experienced and self-awareness nurtured. He sees this marriage as a spiritual journey-one filled with growth lessons and change.

[jello-chennie]

✧ tough guy iwaizumi hajime who ends up falling for his best friend’s cute little sister

✧ genre/tw fluff ˚ʚ♡ɞ˚ (nsfw at the end ⚠︎)

✧ word count 857

all three of you grow up together, with you being two years younger than tooru. oikawa is always doting on you, treating you like a doll. despite the very little age gap, no matter how old you get, he’s always referring to you as his baby sister. oikawa spoils you rotten. one look from those big brown eyes you both share, but look a lot cuter on you for some reason, and oikawa can’t help but to give you whatever you ask for.

in the beginning, iwaizumi is almost like your other, more responsible big brother when things go wrong. you’re always trying to tag along with your older brother and his friend, which is a recipe for disaster sometimes.

when you inevitably take a spill, and bump your knees, tooru is rolling on the ground, shouting out against the heavens for forsaking you. how could the higher powers let you just fall to the ground like that?? but iwaizumi is is silently wiping off the pebbles from your knee with his little hands, blowing cool air to help assuage your pain. without a word, he carries you back home.

eventually you learn to stop tagging along so much. you can only handle so much pain and embarrassment. other than those moments, iwaizumi and you never really spend that much time together. for the rest of your childhood, you’re more acquaintances than anything else.

but at some point, after oikawa desperately begs you to join the boys volleyball team as it’s manager (“its the only time we’ll be together in high school, you wouldn’t ruthlessly deny your precious and loving and dashing and charming big brother this chance, would you???”), iwaizumi begins to notice you again. but this time, you’re a lot more grown up than you were before. seems like good looks run in the family.

but he’s not the only one that notices. in the same sense that oikawa seems to have the student body under his spell, it seems you do as well, and without even trying.

you’ve had a sheltered childhood that you mostly spent in doors, so you’re shyer than most people. and your brother enables you with his doting behaviour.

iwaizumi finds himself frequently getting jealous at the basket of love letters and confectionery that you have to empty out of your locker and lug home every night. iwaizumi finds that his hands begin to ache after a while bc he clenches them so hard whenever he sees another person confessing to you. and he waits with baited breath to see their disappointed faces as they walk away—an indication that you turned them down again in the way that you always shyly do; an indication that he might still have a chance, yet.

in an effort to put the moves on you, iwaizumi is constantly performing little acts of service for you. he goes out with you to the fountains to refill the water bottles so that you have some company, and so that you won’t have to carry anything heavy—that should be his job, after all. in the most cliche move ever, when an errant ball goes flying right in your direction, iwaizumi coolly catches it with one hand before it can bounce off of your head, making sure to ask you if you’re okay after. he stays behind to help you sweep the floors after practice, striking up a conversation with you. when oikawa stays behind to practice his spikes, iwaizumi walks alone with you home, making sure to keep you away from the side of the sidewalk that’s closest to the road. iwa also makes sure to put your back against the wall of the train while standing in front of you, keeping you safe from any wandering hands.

eventually, he even starts buying your favourite milk drink from the vending machine, and brings it to you while he visits your classroom, the place where you normally eat your lunch. he sits, and eats with you (to which oikawa complains vehemently bc “why would you just sit in a different spot than we normally do without telling me?? you left me all alone!!")

iwaizumi’s actions don’t go unnoticed. you start to fall for it.

when you two eventually start to date, oikawa is whining and complaining that you two are both stealing each other away from him (there’s also relentless teasing on oikawa’s end bc “iwa-chan, isn’t funny that you fell in love with someone that looks just like me?? are you secretly gay and actually just in love with me :3 ??”)

but what’s really the kick in the back for oikawa is the moment he runs up to his precious little sister’s room to check and see what she wants for dinner. but upon opening the door, he finds both his best friend (who, of which, he didn’t even know was over their place at the moment) on top of his “adorable baby sister who can do absolutely no wrong”; the two of them are naked from the waist down, in the throes of passion.

he falls to his knees, asking god to strike him dead, right then and there.

[loveemagicpeace]

🍓Synastry Observations🔥

✨Many couples who get married or have a long relationship have connections between the moon and the sun. The moon represents emotional needs, feelings, home, security, closeness, shelter, feminine energy. The sun represents inspiration, childlike energy, falling in love, purpose, path and masculine energy. When these two planets are connected this created a very beautiful and open energy.

🍀Moon trine Mercury-they can express their emotional needs really beautifully and directly to a person. And they can always communicate their feelings no matter what. They always want some emotional conversation and clarification of things. Which is very good for relationships

💘When someone embody the energy of your 7th house, you will feel different with that person that with everyone else. So it does not mean that if a person's planets fall into your 7th house, that you will always find things in common with that person and that you will always like the person's energy. For example: 7th house in Aries and your partner's planets fall into your 7th house does not mean that you will like this energy as much because the planets can influence you too directly and the energy can be too aggressive. Let's say: you have in your 7th house Cancer and your partner has a chart ruler in the 4th house, which means that he will naturally emit such energy that you will feel safe, comfortable, and secure with him. And you will like his energy because he will give you the feeling that he cares for you and he will give you warmth. 7th house in Aries but your partner has 1st house planets. Which means that he will naturally act independently, appreciate himself, express his energy more openly and directly. And you will like this person's energy, because the person will give you something that you don't have. Sometimes it's good to have partners who have houses that you don't have because they help you with certain aspects of your life.

🍸In most cases, the 8th house can create confusion, anger, obsession, jealousy, lack of emotional attention, secrets. Especially when the moon falls in this house, it creates the feeling that your partner never satisfies you enough emotionally. Planets that are good for this house are jupiter big gain from marriage), mars ( good sex).

🩵Moon conj Pluto-emotions can be very strong and deep. Two people can feel great emotional attraction as well as physical attraction. In this connection, I noticed that the two people are constantly inclined towards each other. The relationship can be such that you have the feeling that you can never really leave. Also very transformational emotions.

🔥Venus-Mars aspects are usually aspects that have a strong attraction that manifests itself in the beginning. You find a person very beautiful and attractive. The aspect is strongly observed at the beginning of the relationship, but can later start to lose energy.

🦋Jupiter shows how your partner can make you happy, where the relationship is lucky and benefits from this relationship. It also shows how two people work in a marriage. What their marriage could be. I would say that Jupiter is an important indicator of how the relationship can progress. For example: Jupiter in 1st house- shows that your partner can make you happy by doing things for you. suggests that both partners may inspire each other to take risks, embrace new experiences, and achieve their goals.

Jupiter in 4th house - can be a strong indicator for a shared home. Two people can create a beautiful and cozy home. Especially since Jupiter is also the planet of growth, knowledge, learning and progress and at the same time travel. People can grow a lot through life together. No matter what, you always feel comfortable at home. It signifies a strong connection and a shared sense of belonging. This aspect fosters deep emotional bonds and a sense of comfort and support within the relationship. They may enjoy spending time together in domestic settings, finding joy in simple pleasures like cooking meals, decorating their space, or engaging in heartfelt conversations over a cozy evening. Both partners feel emotionally fulfilled and supported by each other's presence. There's an innate understanding of each other's needs and a willingness to provide unwavering support through life's ups and downs.

Jupiter in 2nd house- shows that you and your partner can earn a lot of money together or be successful together. You can create comfort together. They talk a lot about the feelings they have with each other. This partnership may bring financial stability, growth, and overall abundance to both parties involved. These two people are likely to bring out the best in each other and help each other achieve their goals.

🪐Saturn shows where the relationship is most karmic, stable and how Saturn can test this relationship and also where the partners have respect for each other. Saturn in the 7th house indicates the seriousness of the relationship, perhaps from the beginning a certain stability and commitment of the partner can be felt more. Saturn in the 5th house can create a more serious look when you start seeing a person, but it may not bring such great enthusiasm. Sometimes it can take away the joy. Saturn in 1st house can create the feeling that you can never open up to a person enough, or that you are always somewhat reserved in front of them.

🪻Moon in 10th house -The person can support you in your goals, career and give you great emotional support. Which in most cases is good for the house person, but the moon person can start to feel tired over time and feel that they are never emotionally noticed and their needs are not being met enough

🌸1st house synastry- is great if there are one of two planets in this house. But the stellium shows that the person sees only you, appearance, etc. in the foreground. It is not something that could lead to something more serious because there is too much focus on the person himself. The energy can be dramatic at the times. Sometimes too much self-centeredness can be felt from the other person or vice versa. But it is great position for venus because it shows passionate love and the person will always give you a lot of compliments. No matter how you look like, you will always look your best to the person. The first house is also good because the person sees part of your personality and your beauty. If there is no planets in the first house, this means that maybe person won't find you that attractive. Because the first house shows a part of your beauty ,appearance, your personality. It's also the house ruled by Mars. Which means that how you are attractive to somebody it shows only through the first house. Venus in 1st house shows greater attraction that the person feels towards you then venus- mars aspects.

💫2nd house synastry is good for the enjoyment and comfort you find with a person. Sun in 2nd house can show that the person focuses a lot on your comfort. The Sun person sees something valuable in the house person. This house represents comfort, music, food, movies, restaurants, cinemas where you can enjoy. Which means that from many angles, it can bring a lot of things.

🍃11th house venus in synastry -love can develop through friendship and shared interests. But partners can be too dependent on each other. Maybe they have a common company and things that bring them together, but the relationship maybe won't be in the foreground as much. My opinion is that you can have a great long lasting friendship with this person that never dies. 11 houses are the best for long-lasting friendships.

✨Mercury is an important indicator for communication. Therefore, if two people have good aspects with mercury and in a good position, it can create a very good relationship. People will always know how to communicate. And also you will find the best conversation and communication with someone who has the same mercury element that you have. For ex.: if you have water Mercury and the other person also have water Mercury. It means that they will feel exactly the way you feel things when you talking about things and how you express yourself and everything. You will find more comfort than with other signs.

☔️3rd house is the best house for communication and the daily life you have with the person. Short trips, supermarket, neighbors, friends. This house shows that you and your partner can do many different things together. From having long conversations to going to the cinema, shopping. You can do many things together during the day. For ex.: mars in this house means that conversations with you two become lively, thought-provoking, and filled with an infectious energy that keeps yours minds constantly engaged. You are always exploring new things and you are never bored. Venus in this house creates a pleasant and playful atmosphere, a person can feel safe. The house person appreciates your realness, and your warm and friendly tone. You make the house person happy. It feels natural to talk to each other. You both feel that it's easy to express yourselves to each other.

🍓Moon in 9th house - from my experience, the 9th house is a very beautiful house (because it represents growth, spirituality, something higher, travel, faith, marriage) so moon being in this house provides emotional support, ensuring the 9th house individual never feels alone in their quest for knowledge or during their spiritual journeys. Two people can stand by each other in difficult times. Marriage can be emotional. Their bond often revolves around a blend of emotional and intellectual activities. The emotional connection is undeniable. They can indeed be life partners if they harmoniously merge the Moon's need for emotional security and the 9th house's drive for freedom and exploration. Together, they chart a course that's both deep within and far beyond, making their relationship an expedition of the soul.

🦋12th house synastry - it can feel like a dream. You feel an energy that you may not have felt with any person before. They are emotions that come subconsciously. When you share this house with someone, you have the feeling that the person is always with you. This house represents energy more than anything else. This house is most in touch with energy that is long-term. The person goes deep into your subconscious. This can create a soul binding connection where the house person would feel like no one else can ever understand them the way the planet person can. The planet person may instinctively feel this pull or knowing that there is a softer more serene side of the house person that not everyone see's. It is the house of giving so it feels much stronger. It feels like this person can give you something that no one else can.

🎸For personal readings u can sign up here: https://snipfeed.co/bekylibra 🎸

-Rebekah🦋🩵

[avelera]

Some Viktor (Arcane) Musings:

The thing is, I think Viktor must have told Jayce about his illness at some point in S1 before Viktor collapsed and ended up in the hospital

The reason being that it's literally impossible to ignore how much Viktor's health deteriorates in the 6-7 years between 1.03 and 1.04. There's no way he could not give Jayce some clue of what's going on with him.

But, for my own purpose and that of the fics I write, my thought was that Viktor maybe... downplayed the severity.

For example, my take is that if you have this fissure illness, you generally don't live past 30 in the undercity and Viktor knows this. He must have had some sense of a timeline, because his headlong rush to secure a legacy indicates the he knew he probably wasn't going to die of old age.

This, I think, he would be upfront with Jayce about. That they have to advance Hextech to the point where it's making breakthroughs in disciplines other than weightlessness and teleportation if Viktor has any chance of living a long life. Jayce would be on board with this fully, I think. Magic can do anything so if they're fast, and dedicated, chances are they can find something that will also improve biology too.

But, I think Viktor lied or played down how short of a time he actually had. Like, he told Jayce he probably wouldn't die of old age without Hextech intervention, and Jayce took that and like any sheltered, naive Piltie from a good family he thought, "This is awful, Viktor might never see 80!" Thinking that Viktor might, without intervention, only live to see, like... 60.

I also headcanon that once you start coughing up blood, it's a bit like TB, you don't have much time after that. So in 1.02/1.03, Viktor is driven to make a legacy for himself knowing he doesn't have a lot of time, but he might even still be fooling himself to think he's got more time than he does because of his move to Piltover. He has cleaner air here, better nutrition, better sun exposure, an easier life, etc. If the life expectancy in the underground for this disease is 25-30 or less, why should he maybe see 40 in Piltover?

But then... tragedy strikes. He starts coughing blood sometime during the time skip. His health rapidly deteriorates, and he doesn't tell Jayce that this means he's probably only got a few months to a few years left. He basically allows Jayce to keep living with the illusion that Viktor has limited time, because that would be unavoidable to realize just by looking at him, but still maybe decades remaining.

What compounds the problem here is that Viktor also tends to obfuscate his need for rapid intervention by posing them as the needs of the undercity which goes straight over Jayce's head. He tells Jayce they need to focus on new uses for Hextech to help people in the undercity now, it can't wait, they're running out of time, and goddammit Viktor, stop hiding your needs behind altruism, just be selfish, just tell Jayce that you're not talking about the undercity, you're talking about yourself and he would have dropped everything to help you!

Because this is Viktor's biggest flaw: he lies to himself and he lies to Jayce about why he's pursuing science at such a breakneck pace, and I don't even think he knows he's doing it. He's become so accustomed to the idea that he's not allowed to be selfish, not allowed to pose his own desperate desire to live as a priority, that he keeps fucking couching it in the needs of others so Jayce has no way to know just how desperate Viktor really is because Viktor doesn't admit it even to himself.

And this becomes a bigger problem writ large when Viktor creates his cult to "cure" other people because he can't fucking function if he's not posing his self-serving desires as things that also help the group. Babygirl, what is wrong with you?

So now instead of just perfecting himself in very scientifically troubling ways, he feels the need to spread around the cure that he made for himself to others to justify it, even if it doesn't fit them and in fact is horrifying to give the same solution to a bunch of people and fix things they never asked to be fixed.

[fatehbaz]

In just eight blocks of sidewalk in quiet neighborhood, walking through the not-quite-rain of a sunshower, today I encountered four missing shoe soles. Little pieces of plastic and rubber, detached from pedestrians' shoes, now lonely on the concrete, with the weeds.

No such thing, really, as a "weed", though. "Weed" is not a botanical term. Instead, describes perceived pests, at the discretion of the observer. At the discretion of the authority. Designated as weed by the one with power over that land. The agronomist, the rancher, the plantation manager. The weed wastes space that could otherwise be given to a monoculture cash crop, an "economically significant" plant. The weed interferes with the productivity of the plot of land. The weed interrupts the extraction. The weed diminishes the value. The weed doesn't belong in this place.

People are made to be weeds, too.

Some cities will designate you as a weed, and then they'll take action to pull you out. They'll uproot you. But it's not always explicit, like "we're outlawing loitering" or "we're outlawing taking a nap in the park" or "we're defunding the library". Sometimes it's quite clever, it's written into the physical landscape. Self-congratulatory "progressive" cities learn to co-opt language, to obscure the violence, to use and abuse space.

Thinking about things you might encounter, you might perceive, after you've been destitute, broken, lived at a homeless shelter, for years. Little signs of other peoples' misery. Indicators of desperation that some might overlook. And the way that environment shapes, and is shaped by, these miseries.

A friend asks "why is there always an unusual amount of scuffed detached missing shoe soles on this particular stretch of sidewalk? There are hardly any homes around here, it's all asphalt and empty lots, so where are all these be-shoed people coming from?" Because even though this is a wide expanse without either home residences or any kind of commercial or recreation space someone would want to visit, these blocks are the straight-line direct path between a low-income apartment complex and the cluster of corporate big box stores, and there's no bus line that runs between the two areas. "But don't the vast majority of customers of shopping malls and box stores drive vehicles, hence the obscenely massive parking lots?" Sure, customers drive, but guess who actually has to work at those places? An underclass of people living at that apartment complex with harsh restrictions and cheap amenities, who can't afford car insurance or who might be too physically disabled to bike. And so that apartment complex is a de facto "company town", the residents are essentially in confinement. It is written into that landscape. It can be read. "Why is there always debris, wrappers, coins, etc. in this particular quiet couple of blocks of the boulevard?" Because these blocks are between a thrift store and a same-day drop-in clinic, so many impoverished people will routinely be walking between these two locations. They attend their appointment, and then have forty-five minutes to kill before the bus comes back around, so why not check out the thrift store? The city and county collaborated and placed all the low-income assistance offices on the far side of town, which conveniently forces the poor and disabled to both stay away from the luxurious downtown district and also to waste their time making a four-hour commute, catching various connecting buses or else riding the bikepath, across the city just to attend a ten-minute-long appointment.

Then this spatial layout, this city's physical environment, will shape the physical body. This violence writes itself into the flesh. The way the denim is chafed and discolored on the left shoulder of someone's jacket from carrying a small backpack around by foot, day after day after day. The way someone's heart rate increases when they see a white and black vehicle in the periphery of their vision, subconsciously recollecting institutionalization and institutional abuse, or fearing what a ticket fee would mean for their budget (they might not be able to afford rent). The way someone develops a painful limp, maybe occasionally depends on a cane, because they had to walk great distances every day to get to work and their shoe sole fell off on the sidewalk, but they can't replace the shoes because their employer is underpaying them, and they're forced to stand all day at work anyway, and they already had some modest nerve damage in their foot because they've been rationing their insulin and can't afford their prescriptions, and federal medical insurance keeps denying them because their physical letters in the mail always show up too late or not at all, and groceries are too expensive so it's hard to get good nutrition to heal, but the diabetic nerve damage has by now damaged their digestive tract too so they have a strictly limited bland diet and can't enjoy the simple pleasure of a home-cooked meal (if they can even afford a home, at this point), and all those "little" miseries add up, and now they're hungry, and in pain, because they were forced to walk kinda funny for a long time over all those decaying sidewalks with all those other weeds.

[wispstalk]

Some writing advice for hunting, bc I see a lot of hunting scenes in fantasy that make me itch. More under the cut. Don't read if you're sensitive to blood-and-guts discussion or animal death.

Finding game:

- I don't hunt much these days bc I don't feel like getting my ass out of bed at shitfuck o'clock every weekend during the season. Which you have to do, because much of the time you come home empty-handed. Successful hunts come about when you're out there often.

- You don't really have to be a good tracker to hunt, but you do have to know the basics of your prey and you have to be able to interpret the landscape even if it's unfamiliar. It's less likely a tracker is looking for "bent blades of grass" or whatever and more likely they are noticing game trails, sheltered areas where nests and burrows are, a spot of thick vegetation which would indicate a water source.

- Scat and footprints are useful too ofc but to varying degrees. If I'm hunting deer it's just confirmation that they're in the area; more often I use knowledge of their habits to actually find them. If I were hunting something elusive and solitary like a cougar I would pay more attention to the tracks but that's also a reason people hunt with dogs!

Actually hunting:

- Bows are not the only hunting weapons, though would be most common in ur typical medieval fantasy type setting. Spears and lances, slings with stones, and clubs would also be used. And knives and swords but in this hunter's opinion, FUUUUCK that.

- Lung shot is a quick death. Heart shot and head shot too but that is much harder. Other shots might mean tracking a wounded animal as it runs away. This is where things like broken twigs/bent grass are especially telling, and ofc blood. Small game bleed out faster and won't get as far but you might spend quite a while running after an elk shot in the flank.

- This highly depends on the prey but hunting often involves more sitting around than people realize. I bring a small pad for my booty ass bc sometimes you'll spend hours in a strategic spot waiting for the game to pass by. Also hides (the shelter, not the skins) are a thing and most hunters would consider shelter-building an essential skill.

- Hunting seasons are not entirely a modern convention -- there are better times of year to find different animals. But there would be less concern, historically, about killing animals during the breeding season than we have today.

- Even when I was hunting regularly and more confident, I got a huge adrenaline spike EVERY time I had an animal in my sights.

Big game:

- A deer has a lot of meat on it and though it's not a bad thing to leave a carcass for scavengers, your party of two or three adventurers probably will not go to the trouble of hunting deer unless they have some nearby place to cache, preserve, or trade what they can't eat before it spoils. Are they leaving it behind or do they have some way to take full advantage of such a large kill?

- If your character gets a large game animal they're probably going to field dress it: deal with all the blood and guts on site, then quarter it so it can be packed back to the campsite or whatever. My dad is a big burly mutant man and he cannot carry a deer by himself. You can carry game on poles or horseback too but field dressing is pretty typical in a situation where u can't just fling it in the back of the truck and hang it at home.

- I grew up eating bear and when it comes up I'm often surprised how many people don't know that people hunt bear for meat. It's tasty imo, especially makes a good sausage

- I can hunt deer alone, though company is nice. I wouldn't attempt hunting something more dangerous by myself. Large animals especially are better taken down as a group effort. In the TES context for example it would be kind of insane to hunt horker alone. Not that some folks wouldn't try.

Small game:

- A character who subsists mostly on hunting is going to be eating a lot of small game. They are probably going to use traps and snares in addition to actually going out on hunts.

- Look up "rabbit starvation." Small game is often (but not always) lean and going without fat for a long time can cause serious health issues.

- I joke that you don't hunt turkey, you just go get one. Game birds are kind of stupid. I plan a deer hunt, but I have gone out and shot grouse on a whim.

Processing:

- Draining blood, skinning, plucking, butchering, dealing with all the bones and guts, storage and preservation: pretty time consuming and involved. It's a good excuse for social activity.

- The moneyed classes likely would not process their kills themselves, unless they're doing some kinda randyll tarly masculinity flex for the symbolism. Kitchen staff or a local butcher would handle it.

- A good skinning knife is kinda wide and short. Some game knives have a rounded tip which keeps it from puncturing the skin in case of accidental slippage.

- Skinning is done with a light hand bc puncturing the digestive system means you've poisoned the meat. I will say it is less difficult than I expected it to be the first time I tried it.

- We don't eat a lot of offal in the US but a deer liver, for example, would be considered prime meat by many and eaten first. Bear, walrus, and seal liver contain toxic amounts of vitamin A and would be thrown away.

- I've been told every animal has enough brains to tan its own hide, but I think there are some exceptions. It's definitely true of deer and elk. With small animals like rabbits it's hardly worth the effort of getting the brains out and other things can be used but brain tanned leather is soooo soft and nice.

- Hides and pelts are useful and valuable and would be kept or traded if circumstances allowed. You can tightly roll a hide to keep it from drying out before tanning, or you can freeze it, basically indefinitely. You can also air dry it once scraped clean and soften it later, which is what fur hunters would most likely do for efficiency's sake. Tanning is also so so so fucking gross imo. Really slimy process, and tanneries REEK.

That's all I can think of for now and this is already hella long but the takeaway is that it is generally a pretty involved activity and more impactful on lifestyle than I usually see depicted. So there ya have it

[msmysticfail]

Sun in the houses

✩Sun in the 1st house✩

People with a strong personality, they know what they want and generally do not need the help of others as they go after what they want alone. These are people who attract attention because this is an angular house, associated with Mars and Aries, both having a lot of power and magnetism. They do well when they take responsibility for their lives and their dreams, generally having great emotional and physical independence.

They are dedicated, but can quickly give up a project if it’s not strong enough for them. They need to feel in control of their own person in order to feel more confident in themselves.

✩Sun in the 2nd house✩

They are ambitious people, material possession and financial stability are two important issues in their lives. They are generally calm people, who appreciate a constant routine where they can calmly achieve their ambitions. They know the value of things, which is why they like to be surrounded by quality things and people. Loyalty is very important to them, they are friends who will always be there when you need them.

They are people who express beauty, whether in the things they produce, in their own physical appearance, or in the way they treat others. They value what they have, because they know how hard they had to work to achieve it. They love winning and receiving gifts.

Unless other aspects indicate, they are people who have a tenacious and persistent personality. They know how to get what they want, through calm, patience and diplomacy they go out there achieving it.

✩Sun in the 3rd house✩

They are people who need mental stimulation, they are always out there, reading books, talking to people, studying or simply binge-watching a tv show. They have an agile, eager personality, they always have a friendly and free manner, knowing how to conduct a conversation almost intuitively.

Because they understand things easily, they are always going from one project to another, sometimes without finishing them, however. People may mistake their friendly and receptive manner for a love interest, which is really a mistake. They are people who captivate others, as they feel genuine interest in the reality and world of the people around them.

They need to use their intellectual abilities to feel alive, which is why they love being at parties, group meetings or any other activity where they can exchange some type of stimulation with others.

Their intelligence is quick, they understand many subjects in a general way. It is very difficult to find this person bored, but when they enter this state they leave it soon, as they cannot bear the boredom for long.

✩Sun in the 4th house✩

These are people who have a need for intimacy, they generally have a very rich family world, the environment in which they retreat is very important, being a mental and emotional shelter that they use to recharge themselves from the world.

They have a connection with their mother, their family, their children, their ancestry in general is very important, which is why they dedicate quality time to them. Their home is usually full of photos, objects of sentimental value that they love to look at from time to time.

They are reserved people, you certainly won't see them presenting themselves spontaneously, as they generally like to observe people from afar to, if they want, introduce themselves. When you meet them, however, they show their cute and affectionate side. They are lovely people, who usually have something that captivates the attention of those who know them personally.

At work they usually remember the names of most of the people who work with them, knowing about their families and their lives.

These are people who like, at the end of the day, to come home and retire to their living room or bedroom, enjoying the comforts of home, having a good bath or just watching their favorite series.

✩Sun in the 5th house✩

These people attract attention, they are generally magnetic. You may not even know what caught your attention with the person with the Sun in the 5th, but one way or another you will remember them.

Something about their personality or appearance usually captivates people, meaning that they usually have a group of people admiring them. Whether it's the way they recount their romantic adventures, or the way they talk about how they overcame an enemy, these people have a sparkle in their eyes. They attract many people unconsciously, as they are usually just being themselves, not necessarily wanting to draw any attention.

They are creative people, they usually have a dramatic tone when expressing themselves. They are fun, everyone loves to have them present at parties, meetings or in gatherings in general. Because they have an intense vivacity, they are people who exude sexuality in some level, generally having many admirers wherever they go. Pay attention to their laugh, the way they smile, you won't be able to look away.

They have a strong personality, not accepting other people's opinions easily, preferring to always listen to their own heart. At work, they attract attention, however, they sometimes need to control their vivacity in this environment.

✩Sun in the 6th house✩

These folks are great at analyzing people and situations, if you want real advice that will change your life, go to someone with the Sun in the 6th house. They generally have their life very organized, having everything under control. You will find them always with a notebook, or an online notebook writing down their obligations and goals for the day. They are great organizers, they know how to separate the wheat from the chaff and they always have free time, thanks to their well-thought-out routine. Despite this free time, they generally prefer to be doing something, whether it's doing something at home, like shopping, getting gas, cleaning the house, or solving something at work.

They have a very strong relationship with their work, their role in society, they need to be constantly proactive to feel good. They are great at what they do, attracting envy and admiration for their capabilities. They are not very fond of romance in general, preferring to invest the time they have in themselves.

These are people who have a balanced routine, full of tasks, which they love to do. However, their health may suffer from periods of work overload, despite being fully capable of handling it, as they hate not being able to complete something, but they must take a time off, otherwise their health will suffer.

They need to always be working on their mind and body to feel good and at peace.

[paleroze]

Jing Yuan imagines

Lion Hybrid Jing Yuan

๋. ࣭ ⭑⚝๋࣭ ⭑⚝๋࣭ ⭑⚝๋๋࣭࣭ ⭑⚝๋࣭ ⭑⚝๋࣭ ⭑⚝๋࣭

Being in the most powerful pride, Jing Yuan had to make sure all the other lion hybrids has a shelter, a food, and well protected, and that includes you. Even if you, yourself is not a lion.

But, who's to say that you can't be part of Jing Yuan's territory? That man, he is one of the Arbiter-Generals.. He is wise and brave when it comes to battle, but once he is back in the seat of Divine Foresight, even in office he dozes off most of the time!

Fortunately for everyone, today Jing Yuan is wide awake and doing.. whatever a general has to do. To be his lover and assistant, it has been nice to look after him. You proceed with his meetings, arrange his schedule, the paperworks Jing Yuan had to assist and look after, and then somehow, a time to play Xianzhou Starchess.. Jing Yuan and his requests..

You look over to glance at the general to see him with a bored look on his face and cheek resting on his fist, staring down at the documents as his tail sway languidly. Somehow you can see a small pout on his lips indicating his displeasure yet are forced to work as it is his duty.

You can't help but chuckle, which causes him to look up when he heard you, but the moment his eyes met your figure, you are already looking back at your clipboard and walking away from his table to talk with the other people inside the seat of Divine Foresight. Even you get bored sometimes.

Abandoning his paperworks you gave him this morning, Jing Yuan decided to watch you from his seat instead, his eyes following your every move with interest, how you talk to that other Lion hybrid longer than intended, and another approaching you in need of help, then another to chat with. A thought crosses his mind as he realized that those fellow hybrid of his talked to you more than he can chat with you, and you are his lover, how unfair!

Clearly you must've know too, right? When both of you gets to rest in your chambers, you turn to be cuddly and would spoil him rotten with attention until you fall asleep.

Jing Yuan had a glare on his face when you noticed him on the corner of your eye, you can see that it was direct towards the group of people you are talking to, which causes you to excuse yourself and goes back to him.

"General, get back on reading those papers, I need to submit it to the six commissions." You spoke to him with a smile, leaning down that got his attention.

"You'll be coming home late again?" He asks instead, looking up at you.

He looks cute, his ears are drooped and the tail that sways moments ago stops and lowers. You nod, "Mn, you know how it is, and if you don't finish that I might not make it home till midnight." You sound like you're speaking to a child, but the way you talk to Jing Yuan, calm and in a soft voice, that man would always turn soft over your behavior.

It barely shows that you are in a relationship with Jing Yuan, when inside the seat of Divine Foresight, your mind is only focused on work, and you're strict when needed. Due to this, the people inside would always wonder if the both of you are in love, or just that the General likes to flirt with his assistant. He often does, but you turn it away most of the time and instead drives his attention on the work in front of him that makes him look like a hurt kitten after being turned down.

The door suddenly opens and all the eyes turn on the sudden burst, you recognize a lady walking in in a hurry and when she sees you, the unnamed woman rush towards you.

The Ten-Lords commission requests for your presence immediately that they send an assistant personally. Worried, you can't help but drop the conversation with Jing Yuan and go with the lady, leaving Jing Yuan alone.

Jing Yuan was displeased as another person took you away, that woman that suddenly bursts inside just to take you? What are the cloud knights doing at the entrance?

The people inside could feel the growing tension and the Lion Hybrids cower that made them look down at their work, unable to lift their head.

Also, how come you went with her willingly? What if you get in danger? Xianzhou Luofu is safe, but at the place the Ten-Lords commission residing is quite dangerous.

Jing Yuan couldn't help but finish the paperworks immediately, calling another assistant for them to deliver it to the six commissions.

Instead of following you due to his worries, Jing Yuan disregards all the schedules he had for today, pouring it to the others that worked for him since it was all meeting they can cover the General for. He went to your shared chambers and locked himself for today, Jing Yuan plans on waiting for you, even if he knew that you would scold him for passing his work to someone else, even if it was just a meeting they can handle. Yet he fell asleep as soon as his lays on the bed. He embraces the title Dozing General at this point...

The sun was setting when you arrived back at the seat of Divine Foresight, your hair quite disheveled from running back and forth to the place and now another document on hand for Jing Yuan to sign. Yet as you stood in front, the General was nowhere to be seen, you checked his schedule and the time, the meeting with the Divination Commission should be done by now..

A foxian called for your attention when you stood in the middle of the room. "The general sent someone else to attend the meetings, he's back inside his chambers right now. "

That...! You sighed and thanked the man before heading to your shared chambers where often the both of you reside when too tired to come home.

But right when you step inside, you immediately see his large figure and see him sleeping on the bed. Before you can even scold him, your furrowed eyebrows dissipates and instead you calmly walk up to him. You sat on the corner of the bed and stared at his sleeping face, he looks peaceful that you did not bother to wake him up any longer. Somehow Jing Yuan never fails to swoon you even just by doing nothing, it is why you keep falling in love with him.

As you ruffled his white hair, his ears flinched and you heard a low purr from him, yet Jing Yuan remains asleep. You began to change into your nightgown he specifically gifted you and lays next to him, lifting the covers and cuddles to the lion hybrid.

Smelling your familiar scent, Jing Yuan's eyes opened and he met yours. He was expecting a scold the moment he woke up yet none came, you instead smiled at him and pet his hair which he always leans to. He almost forgot that he was sulking.

He pulls away when he remembered, turning his back that made you surprise, Jing Yuan never turn his back at you at sleep.

'ah.. is it this time.'

Smiling mischievously, you didn't dare to get close to him to hug him from the back and instead turn to your side that made the bed creak, indicating your movements. You get comfortable to your side and closes your eyes and waits for sleep to consume you.

But before you could drift off to sleep, Jing Yuan was on top of you and forces you to lay on your back. You open your eyes and look at him, raising an eyebrow.

His ears, it's dropped and a frown plastered on his face. His gold eyes looking at you and you tilt your head. "What's wrong?"

Jing Yuan glared at you and suddenly puts his weight into you which made you huff.

"Jing Yuan! Get off, you're heavy!"

"No." He answers, trapping you beneath him. You could feel his breath on your ear as he smells you, inhaling your scent he openly claimed to be good.

You sigh and gave up, you instead began to play with his soft hair and massages his scalp you know would make him sleepy. But making him fall asleep knows more weight would be put more on you, so you force him to look up, stopping him from breathing on your neck.

"What does my grumpy cat want?" You teased, the glare on Jing Yuan face deepens.

" 'not a cat." He shortly answered.

"You are though," You laugh, pulling him down for a kiss. "There, feel better?"

"That's not my lips." Yes, you knew. But to tease him longer you kissed the tip of his nose, then your lips met his cheeks and you heard him groan as he called your name to warn you.

Finally, your lips met his and you last it longer.

"Feel better now, my lion?"

"..Yeah."

Ah, you really do love him.

[fandomofhappiness]

Shinsou Hitoshi's Parents (fandomofhappiness' headcanon)

So, I've been preparing this material and fanart for the last two months and I'm finally happy to share it with you. I've long dreamed of creating a family for Hitoshi (that weren't complete scumbags, but the most ordinary parents, like most MHA students have). So let's begin! (next part is here)

"They look like the most ordinary family, one of dozens that I've met before. And yet… There is something distinctly off about them. Perhaps, it's a tired hollow smile of a mother or a father's sickly features that indicate eternal weariness. There is something tragic that explains their son's continuous hostility to the world around him" (Aizawa Shouta, "Not Real Parent-Teacher Meeting").

"Your parents have been struggling all their lives trying to prove to the society that they deserve to be a part of it, Hitoshi. Give them a break sometimes, bitter kitten" (Shinsou Mikuru, "Meet My Aunt, Shinsou Mikuru")

Shinsou Utami

Shinsou Utami (Miryoku Utami before marriage) is Shinsou Hitoshi's mother and Shinsou Kazuro's wife. Utami is a woman with wild indigo-colored hair that flutters in the air, mimicking the underwater movements whenever she turns her head, and bright yellow eyes. She has pale pink skin and pointed ears. Utami enjoys wearing various jewelry, most often seen wearing nautical-themed earrings. When her Quirk, the Siren Call, activates, the whites of her eyes darken and her pupils lose their normal human shape and glow brightly.

Shinsou Utami is a peculiar and charming woman. At work, she is extremely focused and still very compassionate. Despite her not very happy childhood, she hasn't lost her slightly childish naivety, so sometimes during conversation, she can seem a little dreamy and light-hearted. One of the side effects of her quirk is External Charm. Even without using the quirk, people are drawn to her unusual and beautiful appearance, but this effect is short-lived.

Utami works at her mother's private vet clinic and also helps at animal shelter, providing free medical care for strays. Since she was little girl, she loved to sing, that is why Shinsous' house is always filled with quiet melodies when Utami cooks, takes care of animals or does paperwork. Moreover, she oftenly performs for public and charitable organizations. She doesn't like to talk about her Quirk and never uses it outside. However, she is fine to use it on her eternally sleepless husband, Kazuro.

Utami loves her only son, Hitoshi, with all her heart. She always tried to give him a better childhood, allowing him to participate in any hobbies and after-school activities despite all the complications that came with their Quirks. From her son's earliest years, she knew he wanted to be a hero. Although she and her husband had never forbidden him to dream about it or talk about it, she held out hope that he'd outgrow this desire and follow either hers steps, with his love of animals, or his father's because of his mathematical mindset. She wasn't afraid that he wouldn't be able to find a use for his Quirk, but the fact that there were many bright and attacking Quirks in the world that her son couldn't escape. Therefore, when Aizawa Shouta came to Shinsous for a parent-teacher meeting, she was curious to find out about the underground hero, even though she couldn't fully believe that someone really wanted to help her family.

Utami's Quirk, Siren Call, allows her to take control of men's minds the moment they hear her singing. To give an order, Utami must sing continuously, while putting her instructions into the song. The Quirk wears off when she stops singing.

Shinsou Kazuro

Shinsou Kazuro is Shinsou Hitoshi's father and Shinsou Utami's husband.

Kazuro is a tall and skinny man with dirty-blond unruly and spiky hair. He has deep blue eyes with white pupils. His whole face looks haggard and sickly, which sometimes makes him look older than his years. His cheekbones are prominent and there are large dark bags under his eyes. He prefers to wear baggy or oversized clothes to hide his thinness. He also constantly wears tinted glasses for vision, in which one of the lenses is cracked. When he uses his Quirk his pupils start to glow.

Kazuro is a reserved and quiet person. Straightforward and honest, but don't speaks much out loud. He's not a very sociable person, and rarely lets anyone touch him. This is partly due to his hypersensitive skin that remains as symptom of taking medications. He is prone to a infrequent depressive episodes. At the age of nineteen, he was diagnosed with clinical depression, which he struggles with for most of his life with medication and doctor visits. He works as a professor of mathematical statistics and probability theory at the university. He also provides private consultations for various enterprises, including military, rocket and architectural. At the same time, he secretly despises any economic calculations. He doesn't really like his job, as he has to deal with a lot of young people every day. Due to his Quirk and poor eyesight, he has headaches that lead to partial or complete loss of sleep. He often askes his wife to use her Siren Call to fall asleep.

With the birth of Hitoshi, Kazuro's life has changed a lot for the better. The birth of his son seemed to have awakened him, there were fewer severe depressive episodes, he plunged headlong into caring for his wife and son, taking a family leave at the university. He quit smoking and fiercely followed the doctor's instructions.

He is ashamed of his illness, which, as he thinks, hinders his family. Despite all his efforts, during Hitoshi's growing up, episodes happened, and he was physically unable to help his wife with care of his child. He supported his son when he failed the Hero Course exam. And although neither he nor Utami knew what Hitoshi had planned with the Sports Festival, he was proud to see his son on television.

Kazuro's Quirk, Optimal Output, helps him calculate the most optimal solution to any mathematical, logical, probabilistic problem. He needs to receive the input data, then he processes it using his Quirk, and identifies the best result from several options.

This is it for now. I have more information and art on them, and I prepare the next post soon. Hope you like them as much as I already love this family. If you have any questions you are very welcome to ask! :)

[tossawary]

Watching a lot of "Star Trek" and "Star Wars" lately has me trying to articulate a personal rule of thumb for depicting competence. Very basically, if you want to convince me that characters and organizations are not incompetent, then they need backups.

So many of the episodes that we've been watching recently hinge too strongly on single points of failure. If this one element of a plan goes down, then everything collapses. Which is fine occasionally? Cascading failures from small mistakes happen. Shit gets weird sometimes. But the repeated absence of, like, more basic operating procedures like double-checks starts to get annoying fast if we the audience are meant to believe these people are very intelligent and good at their jobs.

After the first few times, Starfleet has got to stop beaming down away teams without a couple plans for what to do if the transporters and communications go down again. "But the chances of that happening on this routine mission are so low!" Don't care. Pick a nearby cave to hide from the ion storm in BEFORE you go. Beam down a little shelter pod with emergency supplies. Arrange a rendezvous with a shuttle. Check in every five minutes so that you know the instant you lose contact. Wear safety gear. Something! Anything!

Admittedly, "Star Trek" and "Star Wars" do this sometimes, which is nice to see when it happens, but not consistently enough. These characters should regularly be considering the worst case scenarios! They should be estimating their margins of error! And sure, unavoidable accidents happen sometimes, human error is definitely a thing, and maybe the backup plans will ALSO fall through for drama's sake, but I would be reassured by the indication that these people at least tried to prepare for things going to shit while exploring the mysterious pit.

"The Clone Wars" show has so far (first half-dozen episodes) been a nightmare of logistics and protocol. Okay, so you let Anakin make a flight plan / attack plan and then... no one checked it over first? Who signed off on this? Anakin: "We're taking X shortcut!" Supposedly more senior character who is on the same mission: "What? Anakin, X shortcut is dangerous because of Y!" And it's just like, "So, you guys just didn't do an actual mission briefing first, huh? Even if it was agreed upon that X shortcut was still the best way, it sure would have been nice to warn the poor background characters about the danger of Y before flying out..."

Yes, characters and organizations making plans at all is the first step of depicting any degree of competence. But the NEXT step as a basic rule of thumb should be them anticipating what can and will go wrong, and what to do about it. After the second time something goes wrong in a very predictable, easily avoidable way and the characters act all shocked about it, it's like, "Yeah, no, this is on you now. Please start making some backup plans in advance."

[cigsotw-fikz]

— spare room. ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤbuck and dally's first encounter ──────────────── ୨୧ ────────────────

intro + reqs rules here | reqs open. . genre(s): i never know 😭 | sfw (non-smut). . warnings: mentions of alcohol, mentions of rat poison (?), cursing, descriptions of dally being underweight and looking beaten up. . a/n: there's not a single good-quality photo of buck so had to put two of dallas. i saw some fics of how they met and decided to do my own version, hopefully it's not too cliché... constructive criticism is allowed. english is not my first language!

──────────────── ୨୧ ──────────────── Buck dried some glasses with a cloth. His mom had always said he should leave them to dry naturally, because cloths left a bad smell on them. But he needed them to be useful fast, and no drinker who came to his bar would care about the glass' smell as long as it was filled with alcohol. He could pour some rat poison in the whiskey and no one would bat an eye.

Coming out of the kitchen, he began to attend some customers again. A black-haired man with a scar on his face and an unfriendly expression that didn't scare buck, a woman who wanted a beer to drink as she played pool, and an underage brunette that came in just to ask where the bathroom was and if she could use without being a customer.

What called his attention was a blond kid sitting on a short step on his front door, not quite entering the establishment, just resting there.

He wasn't sure what piqued his curiosity. A lot of people sat there on a daily basis. And it wasn't the fact that he seemed underage neither, he had faced a lot of teenagers asking him to please (or sometimes not please) serve them some booze. Thing that he refused to do, every time.

Maybe it was his poor appearance what worried him. Not poor as in the opposite of rich, but as a skinny as a toothpick, dirty and beaten up kind of poor appearance. But he didn't say anything. He waited to see if the kid would do something first.

—

He didn't.

One would think Buck was running a shelter with all the piss-drunk people he had to personally ask to leave the bar because he already closed. He locked the door and looked at the young kid who still stood in his doorway.

Looking at him more closely, he guessed he wasn't any older than fifteen. He couldn't be. Not with that wet puppy face he visibly tried so hard to pass as a tough guy facade.

"'M closin'." he notified. And the other didn't even look up at him. not even a thumbs up, or a mumbled 'okay', or a hum. Nothing. "Did ya need sumthin', kid?" he added, in hopes of getting an indication that he was being heard.

"No." well, at least he wasn't deaf, or mute. that was great…

"Ya sure?" the older man couldn't help but ask, not feeling, knowing there was more than he was saying.

"No, man. Go home or wherever. Whatever this is, is public, right? I can stay here without bein' interrogated."

Buck raised his eyebrows at the blond's defensiveness.But wouldn't question it. If he looked like that kid, he would be overly-defensive too. Who the hell knew what happened to him.

Yeah, yeah, it is." he smiled. His tone was laced with a mixture of sarcasm and even a bit of offense for being treated so weirdly by the stranger. But once again, he understood. "No need to get yer panties in a twist, kid. I ain't no cop, or whatever." he let out a dry laugh his new 'friend' didn't found understandable.

"Shut up. I told ya, leave me alone." at that, Buck sighed. "Whatever, kid. Have a good night. Take care."

—

The next day, he found himself in the same situation. –or a similar one. He didn't even got too close to the bar when he found yesterday's brat sleeping soundly on his grass. Well, it wasn't his grass, it was the grass outside the bar. But however.

He doubted if he should wake him up or not. Usually he did, when it was a hangover-drunk.

But that was a kid. A very snarky one, but still, a kid who deserved to sleep.

Finally, he sighed and tapped his shoulder. And the younger one flinched so quickly it scared Buck more than he scared the kid.

"Fuck-" the younger one gasped. He realized it was the place's owner and it didn't made him much calmer. At least it wasn't some other greaser looking for a fight this early in the morning.

"What d'ya want?" his tense body sat up with his back on the wall.

"...There's some spare rooms here in the bar. Thought you'd prefer sleepin' in a bed rather than here."

"I have no money to pay yer little hotel." he furrowed his eyebrows.

Silence.

A sigh.

You don't-" his mind wrapped on how he called it 'hotel'. "It's not necessary…" it was. Generally. But this was a special situation. Yet again; he was a kid.

"I didn't catch your name." "Too bad."

Buck was getting tired of his attitude already. But kept trying. "I let you sleep here for free and I don't get to know your name?" he chuckled. Another dry laugh. "I'll start, then. Call me Buck."

"…" after an eye roll, he compiled. "My name's Dallas. Dallas Winston."

"Great, Dallas Winston. C'mon in." in that time, he had unlocked the front door. Dallas got up and walked in without slapping the dirt and grass away from his jeans.

The bar looked cool in his eyes.

"Upstairs. Any room after the first. it locks up from the inside." was it a good idea for Dallas to knew how to lock himself up there? He didn't know. 'Don't judge a book by its cover', everyone said. Maybe he was a dirty, but kind book (despite his vocabulary).

A thought hit Buck's mind. "Dallas." he stopped him before he finished his way upstairs. "How old 'r' you, kid?"

Not surprised, yet confused Buck would ask, Dal stopped his tracks. "Why'da care?" was his response.

"Will ya tell me, or not?"

"…Fourteen. 'M fourteen. You fuckin' weird-ass." the last part said under his breath. But he didn't care if Buck heard. He wasn't afraid of the consequences.

Buck went to his usual place on the counter as Dallas went upstairs and opened a room under buck's indications.

Little did he know it would end up being his room. Dally's room. Not a spare room for hangover-drunks to pay rent for.

──────────────── ୨୧ ────────────────

. today's fic question: thoughts about their relationship?

[utilitycaster]

Hot take: with the way the campaign is going, Ashton is getting dangerously close to turning into someone who has a "don't tread on me" flag. Fully "the reason I am upset by people getting stepped on by the boots of those in power is because the 'little guy' (me) doesn't have the opportunity to be the boot". Which makes all of the people at the beginning of the campaign acting like Ashton was a 'true leftist' punk instead of a bitter and angry person with no direction in life and next to no principles hilarious in retrospect. People love to forget that sometimes the ones rebelling against those in power have a busted view of what power is, does, and who is currently wielding it.

Hi anon!

So I'm broadly in agreement. I don't think this is a terribly hot take not because it's wrong but because I've just reblogged like 5 pretty popular posts that are all saying "Ashton's teetering on the edge of full manifest destiny/blood and soil/humans are the virus ideologies" which all go rather further than just a shitty libertarian flag*.

I have a post in queue somewhere to this effect but there's a weird very Tumblr/Twitter/otherwise terminally online belief that anyone who's experienced systemic oppression is automatically going to have Good Politics from it when that's simply not true. Plenty of people look for someone else to blame, and they blame another oppressed group they don't happen to belong to, or something utterly unrelated. Like, I think a lot of punks are genuinely trying to live in a world that is unkind to them, but a lot of punks do so by taking a fuckload of drugs and kicking the shit out of someone who looks weird. I made this post YEARS ago, literally, very early in the campaign; it is ahistoric to act like punk automatically equals leftist when it started as an aesthetic to sell clothes at a London boutique and when homophobic, misogynistic, and racist subcultures were rampant within it. We remember and uplift the punks who weren't like that, but something that really gets me is like. I know some metalheads and a lot of them are REALLY open about having to learn to spot the metalheads who are here to talk about Norse Superiority vs. the people who just want to scream about Satan for fun. For some reason a lot of people in the CR fandom acted like punks were exempted from this and that's a fast track to being very easily swayed into these ideologies; it's literally "you are not immune to propaganda, but I am" and like. bud. you're not.

It feels related to the weird way people treat Liliana. I am still, to be honest, low-key furious that several white southerners are like nooooooo you should be sympathetic to people in cults, because it could happen to anyone and it's like. well. you see. I am Jewish. I am not hanging around anyone who is white and southern and in a cult long enough to find out if they want to kill me, and it's appalling and indicative of how sheltered and ignorant you are of other perspectives that you would have the gall to demand this. They're entitled people who demand that people most at risk from violence do the work of dismantling it - not them, oh certainly no, they're too busy playing Elden Ring or some shit. There's a certain kind of Tumblr user that claims to be leftist and yet extends a thousand times more sympathy and understanding to their neighbor down the road who openly flies a Confederate flag and definitely voted to deny them medical care, than to people who have a cringe "childless cat lady" bumper sticker and voted to reinstate said care and will bad-faith cherrypick why this is actually very radical of them (if not outright lie) and they have rather transparently claimed Ashton as one of their own.

As I said during Downfall, some of it is people who love the taste of the boot as long as they think it might end up on their foot one day but some of it is just people who are so nihilist they'll let the world burn and ignore that perhaps other people are also living there. Like, a big reason why, even when Dorian was angry at the gods, I never felt the same way about him as I did for Ashton is because Dorian was angry about what happened to Opal and Cyrus. Dorian wanted an option that would hurt the fewest people, and his main experience was seeing a god overtake Opal and hurt people! And as he saw new perspectives and heard from others he incorporated that, and I don't agree with everything he says but he really has been thinking about people other than himself, and increasingly I can't say the same for Ashton. The moment at the end, where they say that apologizing would be for them, was promising; but it also feels like Ashton learned this lesson with the shard and completely forgot it and was like "THE GODS WILL KILL US SPECIFICALLY" and the fact that the gods they literally met in person didn't do so seems to have failed to sink in. This is a character obsessed with their own highly specific experiences, insistent that there is someone ALIVE to blame and not their shitty dead parents, and defined by refusing to hear anything that will conflict with what they already believe, and that's REALLY fucking bad for a hero and a fast track to right-wing reactionary politics.

*ngl the Don't Tread on Me flag is darkly hilarious to me because it's available as a vanity Virginia license plate, which means there's a LOT of people who are like "I shall express my distaste for the government by paying the government 25 unnecessary dollars per year solely to have a customized license plate." Deeply indicative, frankly, of this mentality. I mean I don't hang around anyone who has one because they're probably fucking shitty, but I am going to laugh about it in private.

[savaralyn2]

Regarding the topic of monsters outside dungeons, there is a good deal of evidence to suggest that they are not outlandish or exceptional, but also not super common. For example (some spoilers below):

There is a notable amount of culture, beliefs etc surrounding monsters (they exist in suitable numbers to have implications for the lives of people semi-regularly).

Senshi discusses the taste difference of monsters in the dungeon and outside (seeming to suggest that various monsters exist both in dungeons and in the outside world).

Melini has monsters along its border in such numbers that they present a kind of unintentional defense against outside aggressions (seemingly because Laios' influence pushes them out of Melini itself, but they have no reason to wander farther than that), seeming to indicate that monsters can survive in the outside world rather decently, and exist in non-trivial numbers. Laios also notes that monsters, specifically, seem to be able to survive in environments unlivable for normal animals (for example in a salted wasteland with no sources of food).

There's other stuff too, but that comes to mind quickly. My rough estimation would be that a normal person in a settled area might not expect to see monsters with regularity, but most people likely have encountered a monster, or know about someone in their sphere who did (and in certain places this is likely much more common).

Sometimes in fan circles, there's a kind of assumption that the supernatural elements in DunMeshi are almost solely in the dungeons, but there's plenty of magic and supernatural elements depicted as part of the various cultures that clearly aren't just for dungeons (for example, a trained mage might become a graveyard keeper due to the restless dead, and the Eastern Archipelago has magic systems, despite explicitly being very poor in dungeons and monsters).

I would also, like you, assume it has to do with mana density between areas, in large parts. Since dungeons are what tends to generate mana (due to the ecosystem inside it allowing a lot of mana sprites to spawn and all that, essentially), we may assume that a dungeon "leaks" mana into the world. Natural dungeons likely form when a suitably sheltered location attracts monsters that form an ecosystem inside, stabilizing into a kind of new mana sprite breeding ground.

Good takes, honestly.

Only thing I'd say is that modern Melini may be something of an outlier due to the fact that the dungeon implosion flooding basically that whole area with magic power would presumably having a lasting effect (as we see with the fact that Yaad and the GK residents are still alive a year past the end of the manga), even if it slowly ebbs back to normal over time. Laios's monster repelling aura keeps monsters out of the kingdom/main city itself, but them gathering around the outskirts definitely shows that the land steeped with magic is drawing them in like a magnet anyways. I'd guess once enough time passes the country won't really NEED Laios's power to keep monsters away since the magic will have reached a point where the monsters go back to regular numbers along with the regular magic levels.

[maopll]

I have a request!! AHEM (fluff) rainy days w/ blade or jing yuan or dan heng or all three if you can 🥺✨ THANK U 🫶

— UNDER THE RAIN : #honkai star rail !

⌗:, a/n: first hsr request!! my favourite trio

⌗:, warning: none

⌗:,pairings: blade, jing yuan & dan heng w/ gn!reader

— BLADE

Relaxing and having fun are two verbs which do not exist in his dictionary. He may be stoic all the time but just like any ordinary being he also wishes, no, yearn to be with you. To melt in your arms, away from the worries and darkness of the world.

"Blade, look ! it's raining. " you two were currently on a mission. The streets at the moment were empty so for two wanted people it was safe, for now. He humed looking at the sky "we should get a nearby shelter. It is poring outside" and just as he was about to find one, you pulled his arms and led him into the rain. "oh come one we don't get opportunities like this. Streets empty, and a rainy day." He loved you from deep within but showing those affections in the right way were a task for him. However, you bright smile in this dark world were a beacon of light for him.

A smile escaped from his lips, a pure smile and lovesick eyes. He held you hands and said "since you asked for it, stay close to me darling". Romancing with you freely without any worries seemed like a far fetched dream but what he wouldn't do to relive these again.

— JING YUAN

It was a holiday and surprisingly the General was not running to and fro and was comfortably dozing off on your lap. The sky was overcast with dark clouds and thunder could be heard off in the distance. Rain wasn't really a common occurrence in the Luofu but you couldn't really ignore the skip of your heart. Dancing and playing in the rain were your favourite activities. Jing Yuan noticed your longing eyes "if you really want to go outside then you should do it. " to which you replied "oh well I can't waltz by myself now I'll need someone to accompany me" "I'd rather sleep" now you knew your greatest weapon against him was puppy eyes. He begrudgingly agreed to your whims.

The rain started, and he did not like getting soaked wet, and he truly wanted to go inside but your enthusiastic smile were priceless. He didn't really have the heart to tell you to go back just because he didn't like the rain. Afterall rain like these were indeed few and far in-between.

You twirled and followed the footsteps of your lover, the pure look of adoration on his eyes and the dreamy scene was enchanting. Oh, how much he would travel galaxies just to make memories with his love.

— DAN HENG

He barely shows few emotions but with you and his family he feels one and whole. The sky was grey indicating a downpour and the streets were soon starting to get emptied because of the incoming rain. You lover as usual was going through research papers and telegraph which go into detail about the opponents found in the present planet.

The weather soon started to get cold enough and what better way to get warm other than your own boyfriend hugging you close and cuddling you until you get warm and snuggled good. "um babe don't you think it's quite cold now?" "well it is indeed cold dear" "so I'm cold right?" "grab a blanket then". Sometimes he acts as if he doesn't understand what you are trying to hint at but today it was especially quite cold because of the rain. " *sigh* fine fine I'll join you" you did you happy dance of victory and got ready to cuddle him.

He pulled you close to his chest and patted your head. The patter of rain and the soft heartbeat of your lover lulled you to sleep.The warmth only further had you drift off into slumber. He kissed you on the forehead. "goodnight my star" and also let sleep take over his form.