#is this the real life? is this just fantasy?

[muntitled]

Force-Fed

Pairings: The Salesman x Fem!Reader

Summary: You didn't need a job. Not when you only needed him.

Warnings: Dead Dove Do Not Eat, Language, Coercion, Standards Relationship, Abuse, Isolation, Gaslighting, Manipulation, Jealousy, Codependency, Stalking, Yandere!Salesman, Smut (+18) mdni, DDLG, Taboo Sex (she literally calls him dad), Freudian Slip, Daddy Kink, Dom!Salesman, Sub!Reader, Subspace, Slight!Age Regression, Choking, Degradation Kink, Praise Kink, Dacryphillia, Breeding Kink

A/n: If this isn't your vibe, leave the fic alone. Read something else. Like always I'm not responsible for the media you consume.

Installing a mobile tracker on your phone might not have been the most morally good thing to do, that he could admit. Perhaps even more incriminating is that the idea struck him while you were passed out on the floor, your body thoroughly spent from all his ravaging. He was nothing if not an inquisitive man and he needed to see what you got up to during the week, when you were without him. (Note: this started out as a precaution. For your own good. You ought to be thankful to have someone like him in your life).

Who knew that the tracker would bring him here?

His jaw is screwed shut as he leans down under the awning of a building, spotting you through the window of a tired coffee shop, donning a uniform he hadn't even known you owned- it set him alight with a certain level of possessiveness that was foreign to him.

He admits that before you, he'd never had much use for any pointless emotions like love or care. They were, at their very core function, just hormones injected into the brain in order to trick humans into reproduction. That's what he saw you as for the longest time: A means of reproduction. A conduit through which he could fulfill all his most absurd fantasies- fantasies that scared even himself.

When he hit you, fondled you, groped you or stretched your body beyond its tantalizing capabilities, he truly believed he was making you useful, and in return for your services you got to coast through university without having to worry about bills.

That's what it was supposed to be. Nothing less and certainly nothing more.

So what the hell is this?

Today is a Tuesday and your 'sessions' together are scheduled on Wednesday. He ought to just keep on walking and go about the rest of his day forgetting having ever seen you.

As far as your agreement was concerned, you were strictly expected to leave him to his devices throughout the week- it never occurred to him that he would also be expected to leave you to yours.

It makes him tsk, seeing you scrub the counters of a cafe... as if you didn't have him to provide for you.

Had he not provided you with enough?

Had you not gotten everything you wanted?

You were like a dog without a leash.

And his hand was itching to pull you right back to him.

He walks into the coffee shop before his brain is finished processing his movements.

"Good afternoon-" greeted the young man behind the counter. The place smelt like roasted coffee beans and debt. It's obvious in the very few patrons milling about that this business was doomed to fail. Your Salesman had a knack for spotting abject poverty and the owner- your boss, one Lee Junmin was teetering on the edge of financial ruin. It's a very good thing that your Salesman is here to save you from this sinking ship.

"Good afternoon," your salesman says stiffly, almost amicably.

He finds you mid-conversation with your coworker. There's a smile on your face as you crane your neck back, holding a cup under the burning faucet of a coffee machine. You're speaking amicably and you're still smiling. Genuinely. Not at all the robotic smile you reserved for the Salesman during your 'sessions'.

He realises now, watching you with a real smile plastered on your face, that you had been lying to him. You don't seem as broken as you claim to be. Seeing you here, assimilated into society. Sporting a part time job?

His knuckles clench around the handle of his briefcase. He was brimming with the need to punish you for it.

It's absurd.

To punish someone for being a fully functional human being. Not even his own psychological issues could adequately reason that.

The younger boy behind the counter rests a hand on your shoulder, finally letting your eyes settle on the tall Salesman behind the counter.

He can see the moment your breath catches in your throat.

How he wishes he had his heavy hands wrapped tight around that throat. He'd choke you for trying to get rid of him. For trying to... not need him.

"Could you take care of this customer? I need to go out for a break-" Your co-worker mumbles quietly and your heart drops like a bag of dipped in molten lava at the sight of him standing there on the opposite end of the counter. There's a smug sort of smirk playing across his features. I've caught the traitor, now it's off with your head.

You begrudgingly steel your nerves before turning to face your co-worker again, trying to even your breathing as you assimilate back into your easy banter, "And how many times have I told you smoking is bad for you-"

Your co-worker raises his tattooed hands, sporting a boyish grin. It's oddly refreshing to interact with a boy your age- someone normal who wasn't drowning in psychopathic tendencies or bullying homeless people for fun.

"Who said I'm going for a smoke break?" He asks, as you slide up to the counter. You situated yourself behind the barrier as if it was going to keep you safe. You knew nothing could keep you safe from the tense shadow hovering over your benefactor's eyes. The Salesman is livid as your co-worker finally makes himself scarce and after a few tense seconds, he finally speaks.

"I didn't know you did this." He says, staring you down the bridge of his nose.

Play it calm. Play it cheeky. Play it coy.

"You didn't know I make coffee?" That snooty remark doesn't earn you a single gratifying chuckle. It doesn't even earn you a soft, meaningless smile. In contrast, all it gets you is monotony. He's pissed.

"Worked." He spits out, "I didn't know you worked."

You only manage to stare up at him, silently before turning your attention to the screen in front of you.

There were a great many things he had already stolen from you- full autonomy over your body being the greatest loss. You'd raise up hell itself before you truly let him strip you of your independence.

"What can I get you for today?" Swift. Curt. Professional. As if you hadn't felt this man inside you. As if he hadn't choked you out until your vision was sparkling with stars. As if you didn't have his cock down your throat. No one here knew about your arrangement. In this coffee shop, you were safe from your history with the Salesman.

"Americano," You sigh softly, thinking he'll respect you enough to keep things professional. Poor, naive you.

“Tell them you quit." He says, forcing you to look up at his cold, dead orbs. "Do it now."

Your finger pause over the screen and your breathing picks up.

He couldn't do this. Not here. Not when you've finally found refuge away from him, his sadism, his demands and his reminders that he held the keys to you obtaining your degree. This coffee shop was the one place he couldn't reach you...

So why were you already on the cusp of giving in?

Your eyes flit over to the few patrons milling about before staring up at the man on the other side of the counter. Daylight was dwindling and beyond the windows, the city was drenched in an orange, almost pink late afternoon glow.

"Your order's coming right up."

"This place is going bankrupt soon. They'll fire you. It's better you quit now before they do." Your hands falter as you struggle to swallow that deeply authoritative veneer in his voice. That fatherly sort of guidance. Be careful, it said.

"Oh, this is you protecting me?" You hated that this was taking place at work, but business is indeed slow and the only other worker here is in the back of the building, smoking away his problems.

"Not protecting you." He says with a shake of his head, as a slow smile curls the ends of his lips, "Warning you."

You rolled your eyes then. It made his hand twitch with the need to correct you. To force you to submit to him. If there's one thing he couldn't stand, it's a rabid little girl.

"You can have a seat while you wait for your Americano-"

"Fuck the Americano." It comes out louder than he intended. It's a surprise, just like the vein popping out of his forehead. His mask was slipping.

"Tell them you wanna quit." He says in a much softer, more in-control tone of voice. He leans against the counter so that the words exchanged are heard only by the two of you.

There is deep anger and menace in his eyes. You can see the warning in them. Its blood-red and calling for you to just submit.

But you're feeling particularly brave. And so you immediately respond.

"Or what?"

"Or I’ll fucking kill you. You or that co-worker." His gaze fits to the door through which the boy disappeared as he sighed and said, "Remember the roommate's boyfriend?"

How could you ever forget?

There was blood.

So much blood.

Who knew humans were walking around with that much blood inside them?

"You want to threaten me out of having a job?" You were losing this battle and quickly. Desperation is the only thing you cling to as your eyes peer up at him.

"Want to?" He shakes, “Little Girl, I am threatening you. Quit now. Your co-worker would greatly appreciate it.”

He taps that counter once before taking a seat. "I'll get that Americano to go."

𓂃

Devastation.

A hyperbole of sadness and a pure manifestation of self pity that overwhelmed you in the taxi ride back to your apartment. Your mind replayed the confusion that graced your co-workers friendly face when you told him you 'just couldn't work here anymore'. The genuine sadness in his eyes had stopped you dead in your tracks. It triggered tears that you didn't even know you had because he actually made you feel loved.

Real love, not the fake stuff given to you by this hulking man seated silently in the taxi beside you.

The interior is flooded with neon lights and myriad little stars are plastered in the black sky.

"Fix your face," he grumbles without looking at you, "You're ruining everyone's mood."

You went the rest of taxi ride, sulking up a storm, until you arrived at your apartment building where you didn't look at him once, as you rode the elevator up, up, and up.

While you were contemplating genuine suicide, he, on the other hand, was one of the happiest- if not the happiest man on the planet.

He told you to correct your mood but the truth is he loved it. He loved seeing you so juvenile, as if you were teetering on the edge of a tantrum he so badly wanted to correct. He loved seeing you sulk like a child. It set his bones alight with a deep, uncomparable need.

He thought pain was the only thing that got his dick hard.

Perhaps he stands corrected.

"Take off your shoes," he hollers in that same tone of authority once you've entered your apartment building. You're like a ghost as you turn to kick your shoes off at the door before lugging your body deeper into the house. He watches you drop your handbag right there on the floor, before you're throwing yourself on the couch, face first like a sack of potatoes.

He attempts to hide his smile as he walks in along after you. He undoes the buttons of his blazer as he stands above you, eyeing you under a quirked brow as your shoulders begin to wrack with your tears.

He shrugs off the blazer before folding it on the nearest armchair.

You flinch when you feel his hand on your foot, lifting it up to make space for his large frame lowering onto the couch.

That infuriatingly warm voice is back as he quietly asks "Why are you crying?"

He extends his hands to the small of your back, rubbing dizzying circles while you cry and cry. He's comforting you after being the very reason you need comfort in the first place. Everything about this man is one big contradiction.

"I thought you'd be happy about this." Your voice is muffled by the cushion. You don't look up at him.

"What on earth would give you the impression that I want you to work?" He asks.

"W-Well," you attempt to rain in your sniffles and he attempts to not visibly grow a boner as your bloodshot eyes finally come into view. You're a beautiful mess for him. Your lashes are wet and your nose is runny and he wants to do so many vile things to you, its eating away at his soul.

He wants to play this game for as long as he can though, this sulking game that he didn't know hed enjoy so much. He settles for setting his hand at the back of your head as you talk.

"If I have a job that means there's less stuff you have to buy for me and-" You answer, sniffling cutely as you sit beside him. You're staring down at your hands fidgeting in your lap while his eyes can't leave the pathetic tears running down your face.

He doesn't think when he says it. He's not thinking about anything other than your body. How little you become for him. How sombre and sullen and sulky you are.

"And what if I prefer it?" He asks softly, "Taking care of you?"

You shake your head, trying to remove his hand ghosting behind you but he only weaves his fingers into your braids, keeping a wonderful grip on your scalp.

"You had no right to do that- you had no right to make me quit."

He leans over, sufficiently done with all these terrible games you've played and forced him to play. He was so dangerously close to combustion, his hands were trembling as he reached over to undo the buttons of your work polo shirt. You let him.

Of course you let him.

"Who was that then? You kissed him before?" His eyes find you before moving back down to the t-shirt. His fingers hook under the ends of the shirt as he lifts it up.

"Who was who? My co-worker?" You sound tired and dejected and you immediately hug yourself when nothing but cool air drifts over your naked torso. He moves a large hand over your breasts, marveling at the sheer size of it, comparing it in his hands. Your body truly was magnificent, he realizes. And all he has done this whole time is try to kill it.

"That... child," he breathes before dropping his hands down to your work pants. He undoes the buttons and you watch him with an intense look in your eye.

"You have a knack for calling every boy my age a child," you say shortly.

"That's because you're young," he admits before tapping your thigh slightly. You lift your hip and let him maneuver you out of the khaki pants, never to be worn again. The smell of coffee still hangs heavily over your skin but it's significantly less intense. Right now all he smells is you.

"And yet," you showcase to him the latest bruise along your collarbone. It's big and angry and hid very easily under the polo shirt. However, here under the overhead lights of your apartment, he could see them, "Look at everything you've ever done to me-"

He groans then. He actually groans.

His eyes flutter shut as his legs spread a little wider and he sinks a little lower into the couch. "Fuck," he whispers, head swinging towards you as he flutters his eyes back open.

"Come sit on my lap?"

His request only catches you remarkably off-guard. “Excuse me?”

"I said come sit on my lap," he replies so defiantly it nearly has your brain short circuiting. You narrow your eyes, not trusting it.

"Why?"

"What do you mean 'why'? Because I'm hard and I'd like you to sit on my lap."

"Is this another game?" You ask, still remarkably on the fence about the man who had been the pinnacle of sadism, suddenly force-feeding you his affections.

"If you don't sit on my lap I will bring out the cane again, don't tempt me-" before your able to make a decision, he makes one for you- attacking you with his large hands before you're able to protest any further. He wrestles you onto him, forcing you to take what he gave.

You're made to straddle his left thigh as he pulls you in close until your tits are pressed up against his shirt. He buries his head in-between the crook of your neck and you croak out a moan as he inhales you sharply. He hugs you towards him, bouncing you slightly on his knees. The feeling shoots straight to your cunt and you immediately begin to groan on top of him.

With his head over your shoulder, you can feel his fingers grace over the marks he'd left before. The marks from the cane. It scarred your back. Moulding the flesh in his image. Branding you as his

"You're young but you can handle it." He whispers, swiping his thumb over your scars before drifting his hands down to your hip. He slowly begins to drag your hips forward and you gasp, immediately searching for something to grab onto. You settle for his shirt. Your fingers curl around the fabric and he lets you ruin it as he pushes you back slowly on his thigh. He continues these torturous movements until your cunt gets the message and starts acting accordingly.

He watches with a slow nod as you begin to ride his thigh like he's conditioned you to.

"Jeez-" It was the sheer intimacy of the actual act that had your arousal dripping out of you and onto his thigh. You'd never had sex with him- purely for sex. It had always been an act of torture or punishment that had always led to sex. But never something so sexual being done so blatantly .

"Fuck yourself on my thigh-" he whispers hoarsely, almost pained as he urges you along. "You can do it, can't you? You can be a good slut for me?"

An equally pained whimper seeps out of your closed lips as you begin to ride his thigh like your life depends on it- spurred on by darkness in his glare and the bulge tenting his pants.

When you notice him undoing the buttons of those pants you realize you are utterly done for.

"Good little slut," he mumbles as he mindlessly reaches inside his boxers to uncover his cock already dripping precum.

"Open your mouth-" he's already shoving his fingers inside, flattening your tongue in order to collect as much saliva as possible before spreading it all over his cock. You watch in complete wonder as he begins to fuck his fist to the same rhythm you ride his thigh- it's so mesmerizing.

"D-Does this count as a session or-"

"Shh-" he says, squeezing his eyes shut as his hand squeezes the base of his cock.

He fluffers his eyes open again, only to state deeply into your lust-filled gaze.

"I don't think I've ever cum inside you with the actual objective of getting you pregnant." His words completely knock you off-kilter and he needs to bring his hand up to your side to stop you from slipping off his thigh.

He continues to stroke his cock, picking up speed.

"I've only ever just... did it.”

“Pl-Please stop talking-” you mumble, “I’ll cum,”

He doesn't listen.

“I cum inside you 'cus it's what I feel like doing in the moment," you try to stitch every piece of this moment to memory. The wrinkles lining his manic eyes, smile wiped clean from his face, leaving only a serious, aroused look of an incredibly grown, strong man.

"F-Fuck," your hips stutter on top of him as you softly whimper. "D-Dad-"

It cracks out of you.

And almost immediately you wish you could take it back but you're already cumming. And your words have his eyes widened as he lifts his hips from the couch fucking his fist deeper.

"F-Fuck I'm cumming-" he admits oh so gravely as his eyes squeeze shut.

"Me too-" you whimper as your own orgasm splits through you, soaking his thigh and ruining the fabric further.

Beyond a few shallow words, guaranteeing you that you won't be annihilated, he almost never initiates affection. In fact, you weren't even really sure if he was capable of it yet here he was, confessing the only way he knew how.

You're cumming on top of him as spurts of his cum land on his chest, making a mess on his shirt. You're both breathing heavily in the afterglow. The fog has yet to clear.

You sit up slowly, body wracking with aftershocks.

"This was nice but um- I need you to be rougher-" the words barely leave your mouth before he's clamping your throat shut with his fist. He's breathing heavily with his eyes still squeezed shut.

"You don't need anything-" he reminds you quietly, "You don't make demands, you take what I give you."

He squeezes and squeezes your throat like he did his cock.

"You're like a baby being forced fed.” He says, “My baby. My thing to take care of.”

[laurellala-comics]

I've been having so much fun with my Ace Attorney comics lately but I've been feeling the pull to do original stuff again. So to ease into the transition, here is my (very first!) comedy zine. You may spot some familiar faces B)

Thanks for reading my goofiness! I'm including some nerd thoughts about zines under the cut

Zines are sooo cool and I assume most people have heard of them since this is tumblr BUT if you haven't! Zine is short for magazine (pronounced "zeen" it does not rhyme with vine). It usually refers to handmade pamphlets that can be created by folding and cutting a single sheet of paper, which is what I did, but it can be used for any sort of self made publication. The goal is to make something that can be reprinted and shared so mine is technically not in the spirit of that because of all my little interactive details but shh that's fine. Zines have been used in sooo many ways (Was Martin Luther's 95 theses not in a way the first zine (this is a joke)) but they are especially recognized as part of the punk movement as a way of fighting back against mainstream media and of sharing information around! It was a way to get around censorship and spread the word about social movements and political messages buuuut it has also always been used to share fun things, like music recommendations OR FAMOUSLY. STAR TREK SPOCK KIRK FAN FICTION (this is real and there are academic papers about this). Some of the earliest m/m fanfic was passed along through zines because they did not have ao3 back then! All they had was a typewriter and a dream! It's actually sooo silly, but I took a class in college that heavily emphasized these zines as leading to the fandom culture we had today, so they really did shape the world we live in today. Tumblr posts are like our own little zines that we share, with our own messages and thoughts and yes even hand drawn gay people...

Anyway, like I mentioned, in these fandom spaces you had queer zines that were about explicitly romantic and sexual relationships between fictional men. At the time, slash shipping was not the most common way to engage with fandom, but today it has become very mainstream and widely accepted amongst the fandom. But you know what queer behaviors are still not mainstream within fandom spaces, even within queer fandom spaces? Aro ace rep babyyyy. With that in mind, I feel like what is considered radical and abnormal these days in queer fandom spaces is to engage with fictional men (or any characters) from an aromantic or asexual lens. And so I am here to hold your hand and walk you through the wonderful radical world of imagining non-romantic scenarios with fictional guys. You can have so much fun with it and I think more people should do it. What if you stood in line at the bank and your favorite anime man was in front of you. What if you had to go in for jury duty and the guy from five nights at freddy's was there. What if you went to the library and spock and kirk were both there researching the history of zines. In a world that expects us to prioritize one normative romantic and sexual relationship as the big thing that will bring you happiness and fulfillment, it is radical to say "actually, i could probably still be really happy and fulfilled if i had some cool friends to hang out with and do mundane things with. And also what if those friends were fictional lawyers."

Anyway. Thank you to all the spirk shippers who worked hard to get us here, I will pick up your mantle and continue to push against societal norms but with fewer sex scenes this time around. Not that you aren't valid for that, this is just personal preference. The end. Go make a zine everybody.

[spacemonkeysalsa]

Little rant, take the trigger warnings seriously.

For the most part I think it's really good to have some perspective, and allow others people to be wrong about video games on the internet without letting it affect me. But sometimes there's just a needling little thing that repeatedly bothers me, and it's usually because there's a real world analogue that I can't forget about. Something that is more important than video games.

As an example, I get more upset than is rational about the "Astarion is actually so evil" takes, because they generally come down to a handful of arguments I have heard before, but in real life, about real people. And when I say I have heard them in real life, I mean in the context of legal arguments about whether or not to prosecute people who have been trafficked for their participation in human trafficking. Additional context is that I am an atty and have a broad exposure to different areas of law.

What a lot of people don't appreciate about human trafficking is that it is incredibly common for people who have been trafficked to be put into a position where they must participate in illegal, and abusive, acts against others. One reason why this is done is because it makes it that much riskier for them to go to the authorities, creating a heavy incentive to not do that. To never ask for help.

You can be a plaintiff in one case and a defendant in another. Duress and coercion could be considered, but it's just not always what happens. Jurisdiction matters, culture matters. But regardless of all that, it doesn't often get to a legal phase in the first place because it's very easy to convince victims of human trafficking that they are just as culpable, because they have helped to traffic others, and that the duress they are under will not be considered. And like. They are often right about that, unfortunately.

Idk for sure how much research was done when they were writing Astarion's character, but this aspect of his story stood out to me because it's so rarely depicted (and then isn't depicted well) in media. I can name you several bad examples, but few good ones. Even being translated into high fantasy, and with magical compulsion and effing vampires, this element of Astarion's story, and how acclimation to cruelty has shaped his personality is not remotely subtle.

Maybe even especially with the supernatural elements, it helps, because it takes away some of the ambiguity that people argue about in a court of law irl. And I think it takes a side in that ongoing legal debate, by emphasizing his total lack of autonomy.

[bestalbertcamuslover]

Question...? pt.2

This is part two, here's part one, part three, and part four

︶⊹︶︶୨୧︶︶⊹︶︶⊹︶︶୨୧︶︶⊹︶︶⊹︶︶୨୧︶︶⊹︶︶⊹︶︶

✯ pairing:  Jenson Button x pop star!Reader ✯

✯ content warnings: none✯

︶⊹︶︶୨୧︶︶⊹︶︶⊹︶︶୨୧︶︶⊹︶︶⊹︶︶୨୧︶︶⊹︶︶⊹︶︶

It passed eventually, someone else filled her heart with awe, became the muse of her songs, and drew endless smiles on her face. Edward made her feel that fuzzy feeling in her stomach again, although not as intense, in a more steady way, not the rollercoaster she had once missed so much.

“Almost three years together,” Edward whispered softly in her ear, his breath warm against her skin.

She smiled, leaning into him as they swayed to the music in the dim glow of their living room. The song wasn’t one of hers this time—it was something soft and jazzy, the kind of melody that didn’t demand attention but filled the space between them like a comforting blanket.

“Has it really been that long?” she teased, turning to meet his gaze.

Edward’s hazel eyes crinkled at the corners as he grinned. “Feels like yesterday, doesn’t it?”

She nodded, resting her head on his shoulder. And it did. Edward had slipped into her life like a missing piece of an endless puzzle, filling a gap she had not known existed. He wasn’t a whirlwind, not the kind to sweep her off her feet and leave her breathless. Instead, he was a steady rhythm, a soft crescendo that built into something solid, something real.

He was just a finance guy—a very one-of-a-kind one, since he was down-to-earth, very caring, very sensitive. And she felt lucky, very lucky. Almost as if he saw the real her—not the pop star, not an object or a fantasy, just a person. And she saw her true self in him, grounding her, not letting her ego get too big, not letting the savage scrutiny and unrelenting criticism get to her head.

Her songs were a mirror of her thoughts, sometimes even before they passed through her conscious mind. It showed, as her lyrics were cozy, felt like home. But that lovely home sometimes felt suffocating; that steady chimney did not offer the same heat as the untamed fire that once—only once—burned her.

She hated herself for it. For the way her mind wandered when he wasn’t looking. For the way her songs had started to carry a bittersweet edge, lyrics slipping through her consciousness before she could stop them. “Your touch is safe, your love is steady, but my heart remembers wild and unready.”

Jenson was not helping. He would sometimes mention her in interviews, his tone reminiscent of the one you would use when talking about an old friend. What they had was so fleeting, maybe even insignificant, that no one, not even the most die-hard fans, could tell it had happened. To everyone, they seemed to be just friends.

Why? she asked, almost begged the universe that had once cruelly united them, every time he did that. She also wondered if he listened to her songs, questioning the same thing. However, she doubted he would see himself as the muse for those. It was her mind magnifying whatever had happened, she felt. He played—or that was what she thought.

And again, the haunting lyrics and melodies that betrayed her true feelings she was fighting to ignore. The pen hovered over the page, her handwriting messy and uneven, as though the words were tumbling out faster than she could keep up. The melody looped softly in her mind, but the lyrics—those came fast, raw, and jagged, pulling at threads she thought she’d long since buried.

Good girl, bad boy. Big city, wrong choices.

She bit her lip, her chest tightening as she wrote the next lines, the memories flooding back with startling clarity, reviving those moments in an uncanny likeness. She didn’t need to think about it; it was all there, etched in the spaces of her mind she had forced herself to rarely visited. The crowded room, the teasing laughter, the kiss that lingered longer than it should have.

Did you ever have someone kiss you in a crowded room,And every single one of your friends was making fun of you,But 15 seconds later they were clapping too?

Her breath hitched. The words felt too real, too close, as if they exposed more than she was ready to admit, even to herself. She put down the pen and leaned back in her chair, staring at the half-finished song in front of her.

“Writing again?”

She startled, looking up to see Edward standing in the doorway, his hair mussed and his smile soft. He walked toward her, setting down a mug of tea beside her.

“Yeah,” she said quickly, closing the notebook slightly, but not enough to seem suspicious. “Just... messing around with some ideas.”

Edward sat down on the armrest of her chair, glancing at the page. “What’s this one about?”

She hesitated, her mind racing. She couldn’t tell him—not about the inspiration, not about the man who still haunted the corners of her songs like the most fearsome yet most unreal of ghosts. “It’s just fiction,” she explained lightly, forcing a smile. “Something I came up with while daydreaming.”

Edward frowned slightly, his fingers brushing over the edge of the notebook. “It doesn’t sound like us.”

“No,” she admitted, her voice carefully steady. “It’s not. It’s... a story, you know? Something I imagined after watching a movie.”

He studied her for a moment, his eyes soft but searching. “It’s good,” he responded finally. “A little sad, but good. You’re brilliant, you know that?”

Her stomach twisted as piercing guilt crept in. She reached for his hand, lacing her fingers through his, and smiled as genuinely as she could. “Thank you.”

Edward leaned down to kiss her forehead, then stood. “I’ll let you get back to it. Can’t wait to hear the final version.”

She watched him leave, her smile fading as soon as he was out of sight. Turning back to the notebook, she let out a shaky breath.

Did you wish you’d put up more of a fight?

Her pen pressed harder against the page. The words came again, insistent and demanding, as if they refused to be ignored. 

She knew Edward would never suspect the truth behind the song. He’d take it for what she said it was—a story, a piece of fiction, a distant echo of someone else’s life. But she knew better. The truth was, Question...? wasn’t just a song.

︶⊹︶︶୨୧︶︶⊹︶︶⊹︶︶୨୧︶︶⊹︶︶⊹︶︶୨୧︶︶⊹︶︶⊹︶︶

✯ authors note: I will do part three ASAP. I included more dialogue because part one sounded more like a chronicle than a story.

English is not my first language. I hope you liked it <333

[kikyoupdates]

Changing Plotlines ⭑˚💞⭑ 𝑡𝑎𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑎𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠

yandere!ocs x f!reader

yandere, reverse harem, yandere reverse harem, original characters x fem!reader, slowburn, isekai

A desperate cry on your deathbed leads to you being given a fresh start at life. You're overjoyed at having finally obtained a healthy body and a real chance at living normally, only to discover that you've been transported into a yandere game, where danger lurks at every corner. Determined to protect your new life at any cost, you vow to stay as far away from the major characters of the game as possible. But things don't always go as planned.

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When you arrived back at the manor, it was clear that you needed to get your shit in order.

The situation was crazy to begin with, but this newest revelation was something you just couldn’t wrap your head around. It was one thing to reincarnate into the past, or even in a separate world, given the very high likelihood of multiple galaxies existing. But this was just a game. It wasn’t real. So then, how was this possible?

Obviously, you didn’t have the answer to that question, and you weren’t even sure if you ever would find the answer. But that was really beside the point. It didn’t matter how you ended up here—what mattered was what in the hell you were going to do.

For the time being, you decided to lock yourself in your room and try to rack for your brain for just about everything you could remember. Thankfully, you’d just recently finished the game, so most of the details were still relatively fresh in your mind.

The most pressing issue was obviously that the game you found yourself in was by no means a happy one. It was marketed as a dark fantasy for a reason, because the love interests were dangerous and hardly good people. The yandere genre had become explosively popular over the course of the past decade. It was particularly enjoyable due to the strange thrill it provided people with, the mystery and suspense, but yanderes were far from desirable. The game had both a good and bad ending for each of the love interests, with all of the bad endings being remarkably messed up, and even the “good” endings were plenty concerning in their own right.

Which is why it was quite a bitter irony that the game was called Zodin’s Benevolence, given that there was nothing truly benevolent about the twisted challenges the protagonist was forced to undergo. She repeatedly found herself tangled up in all sorts of sinister plots after being adopted into a baron’s family and acquiring a noble status.

The good news was that you hadn’t been reincarnated as the protagonist, which meant that so long as you kept your distance from the main events of the storyline, there shouldn’t really be any reason for you to get dragged into that mess.

A grimace fell upon your lips. Thinking about it like that, it sounded a bit selfish to intentionally ignore a poor woman’s suffering, but you’d finally been given a chance at a proper life. The last thing you needed was to suffer a gruesome death at the hands of yanderes simply because you’d interfered with their twisted obsessions.

“I will do absolutely nothing,” you stated determinedly. “There’s no way my character even existed in the first place. When I woke up in this world, it sort of created a little slot for me to fit in. In other words, I’m a side character, and my actions should have no effect on the story so long as I don’t get involved.”

Yes, that was the plan. Do nothing. You could do that. You were very good at doing nothing.

The rules of this “game” you found yourself in—both literally and figuratively—were rather simple. Actually, there was only one rule at all, and that was to stay as far away from the protagonist and yanderes as possible. Which, given that you’d accidentally run into Cassius today, meant that you already weren’t off to a very good start. But a simple bump-in shouldn’t be reason enough for him to go after you with a vengeance. Apart from deliberating angering him, the only thing you could of think that would incur his wrath would be to prevent him from interacting with the game’s protagonist.

Speaking of... how far into the game am I at this point?

The game began with the protagonist being adopted by a kind baron after dutifully waiting on him during one of his trips to the countryside. She then proceeded to move into his estate, getting acquainted with her new life, and promptly beginning lessons at the renowned academy in Zodite’s capital city, as per her adoptive father’s wishes to grant her a formal education. This was the catalyst that set the plot in motion, because it was at the academy that the protagonist met the first yandere—none other than Cassius himself.

As far as you could recall, Zodin’s Benevolence began sometime early summer, because the baron encountered the protagonist while in the middle of a leisurely seasonal trip. Given how warm the weather currently was, summer was either peeking right around the corner, or already here. Which meant that there likely wasn’t much time left until the official plot was set in motion.

Although you had no concrete benchmark as to when it would officially begin, one thing was for sure. If you wanted to avoid an early death again, you would need to keep your eyes peeled for the protagonist’s appearance and keep her away from you by any means.

You frowned, nibbling on your bottom lip.

It’s okay. I can be selfish. No, I have to be selfish. It’s the only way.

Dying from illness was one thing, but the things those crazy bastards were capable of... you had a feeling that dying by their hands would be a million times more painful than anything you’d ever endured.

This new life had been placed right in the palms of your hands, and you’d be damned if you were going to let go of it.

“Mom, dad. Do you think it would be alright if I stopped going to the academy?”

After having discovered that you were in a yandere dating sim, that was the question you chose to ask your parents the very next morning.

Naturally, they were completely flabbergasted.

“Is this another one of your jokes? You wanted to go to school so badly up until now. Sorry, we’re just struggling to understand where all this is coming from.”

It had been your hope that in not attending the academy, you could prevent any run-ins with both the protagonist and the yanderes. But truthfully, you did want to go to school, because your sickness had prevented you from actually attending college back in your old world. It sounded like the version of you in this world was interested in pursuing an education as well, so perhaps it was for the best that you went. You couldn’t stand to see your parents’ disappointed expression once more, even in this reality.

From what you recalled seeing in the game, the campus was quite large, so if you were cautious, there was no reason for you to get wrapped up with the yanderes.

That being said...

You still didn’t want to be ill-prepared for what this world had to offer. There was only so much that had been outright stated in the game; you would have to find out the rest for yourself. One of the key points that you wanted to look into was the usage of magic. In this world, magic was mainly used through magical ores, which helped to supply certain buildings with things like electricity, heat, and even reinforcing walls with something akin to a barrier. Some people were blessed with magical abilities themselves, although it was exceedingly rare. The topic of mages had been briefly touched upon in the game, and it seemed as though with every passing generation, fewer and fewer people found themselves capable of such feats. Dwindling bloodlines, or something like that.

It did make you curious, though. Was it at all possible that you might be fortunate enough to be a mage yourself? If so, you could train your abilities to make sure that you would be able to protect yourself from harm in the event that something really did go wrong.

You didn’t really know how to use magic, though. After all, the game didn’t exactly expand on this detail very much.

So, you tried various methods to see if you could channel some hidden power. Reciting cringy incantations, straining your body so hard that it made you feel like you had to rush to the bathroom—you even drew a horribly misshapen pentagram on the floor of your bedroom, with leftover jam from your breakfast, and Lizbell nearly fainted when she saw the mess.

Needless to say, none of it worked, so you decided to just come out and ask.

“Can I use magic?”

For the second time that same morning, your parents gaped at you.

“My dear, what’s the matter?” your father chuckled. “You’ve been going full throttle since yesterday. Your mother and I can hardly keep up.”

“Does that mean I can’t use magic?”

“Of course not, good heavens. You know very well we don’t come from a family of mages.”

Despite their immediate dismissals, you knew that it was possible for people to potentially grow into their magical powers. Magical ability was traditionally passed down by blood, but it could just as easily manifest in an unsuspecting individual. Hopefully, that individual was you.

“I haven’t been able to use magic up until now, but something may have changed recently,” you persisted. “That’s what I meant. I’m wondering if my abilities have awakened by now.”

Fortunately, your parents had always been the patient sort, so they merely shrugged their shoulders. “If you're really still holding out hope for a thing, then you can always go and get tested at the Bureau of Magic.”

You decided to do just that. The Bureau of Magic’s central headquarters was a large, impressive building. You didn’t really know anything about this organization, but you were tickled pink by the thought of being magically gifted on top of having perfect health. You could already imagine it, shooting fireballs from your hands and creating geysers out of nothing.

You were going to be the best mage ever—

“Zero magical affinity,” the man testing you stated. “Although there are cases where people may develop magic over time, by looking at your mana reservoir, I can tell that there is absolutely no chance of you ever becoming a mage.”

Well, that was certainly a short-lived dream.

The man then frowned, peering closer into the strange device he was measuring your aptitude with. “Come to think of it though, this is really strange. Even average citizens have very trace amounts of mana in their system. Mana is present in all living things, whether or not they can actually manifest that mana and convert it into magical energy. I’ve never seen a case like yours before, not in all my years of working here. You’re an anomaly. Almost as if you aren’t meant to be a part of this world...”

Uh-oh. It sounded like he was starting to get suspicious, so you hurried to wave him off. “Your machine must be broken,” you dismissed flippantly. “Anyways, I’ve already lost interest in becoming a mage, so I’ll just have to take your word for it.”

“What? Miss, if you could just—”

“Gotta go, bye!”

Since magic was clearly a no-go, you figured you should at least have another plan to fall back onto. You were weak and sickly back in your previous life, but you had a perfectly healthy body in this one. There was no reason you couldn’t pick up a weapon and learn how to protect yourself. For instance, sword-fighting!

“You want to do what?” your parents blanched. It was the third time today that they were confused beyond belief, though they looked particularly horrified in this instance.

“Sword-fighting,” you repeated calmly. “I just think it’d be neat.”

“Oh, [Name], but why that of all things? Those blades are seriously dangerous, you know. You could hurt yourself!”

“Well, not if I’m good at it.”

“Someone in your position will never have to worry about their safety,” they insisted. “We can hire more guards to keep watch outside the manor if it’ll help you feel better. Come on now, what use have you for a weapon like that?”

“It’s not that I’m worried about my safety.” That’s a lie. “I just want to challenge myself and see if I can do this. Plus, I think it’d be pretty amazing if I could pull something like this off. I’d be bragging about it constantly.” Okay, that part isn’t entirely a lie.

Their reluctance was plain as day, but as expected—they just couldn’t seem to say no to you.

“Very well,” your father sighed. “But we’ll at least be hiring an instructor to ensure that you have someone watching over you and making sure you’re safe while you train. Please allow us at least this much.”

“Yeah, that’s fine!” you beamed. “I’ll learn faster with a teacher, anyways.”

So far, things were looking good. You had your plan to stay out of everyone’s way and make sure you didn’t become a target, and in the event that it all failed, you would at least have some way of fighting for your life.

“Oh, and uh, the sooner the better,” you said. “I’d like to start learning as early as possible, since I’m just so excited! Okay? Okay!”

You proceeded to skip out the room before they could mutter a protest.

It was actually incredible how much your parents loved you. They were parents from a different reality, but your parents nonetheless. In spite of their visible concerns to allow you to wield a sword, they’d managed to secure you a personal instructor in less than twenty-four hours.

Currently, you were out in the courtyard, eagerly awaiting your guest. You were dressed in a loose tunic and comfortable pants that were perfecting for working up a sweat in. It was a shame you couldn’t wear clothes like these more often, though you had to admit that your collection of dresses was rather delightful.

It was hot out. Definitely summer, you were sure of it now. It was a good thing you were starting your sword-fighting lessons so early on. Even if you never ending up needing your soon-to-be lethal skills, you would definitely feel more at ease knowing that you had them.

Your personal instructor was apparently a knight, so you were already inclined to trust that he had hands-on experience. You wondered what he’d look like. Knights in fantasy settings like this one were always so damn attractive. Hopefully he wasn’t much older than you...

Ah, focus, goddammit! What does it matter what he looks like? The most important thing is staying alive.

You lightly slapped yourself upside the head. Right. No distractions. You were no longer the same weak person from your miserable previous life. You were a living miracle, and a future sword-wielding badass.

Hardly a minute later, your tortuous wait seemed to have come to an end, and you were able to get a good look at your new instructor.

Wait, is that...

“Good day, Lady [Name],” the knight greeted, bowing his head courteously. “My name is Sergei Garin, member of the Cavalry Brigade. I am humbled to be in your service.”

You couldn’t quite seem to hide the shock on your face. Sergei Garin. You knew this character. Fortunately, he wasn’t one of the yanderes—otherwise, you would’ve probably feigned a heart attack to get out of this situation. No, he was nothing but a supporting character, although a character that you admittedly had a soft spot for.

Why did you have a soft spot for him? Well...

Probably because he was fated to die.

More chapters are available on Quotev!

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💞 main masterlist ♡ character appearances

[glassladyoftheopera]

In Stars and Time as a Musical Follow Up: Costumes

Okay, a topic I may have enough thoughts on to make a full post about; costumes! (and a little bit stage craft in some places.)

This is mostly about what people would do if they wanted to actually put on a live version of this, versus treating it like a concept album. I am however going to mostly ignore cost restraints outside of like, truly ridiculous stuff.

So first, some general notes.

The color palette: we will still have all of the costumes and sets be in grayscale, with the red used in the 'say it's name' and Act 5 sequences probably mostly being done through lighting. We will not have the actors use skin paint though. I'm not that mean. The audience can buy the idea that the world is meant to be black and white just fine without it.

Materials: I would avoid overly synthetic looking fabrics to maintain the 'vaguely fantasy medieval' vibe, but I wouldn't worry about using actual natural fabric. Comfort and cleaning are higher priorities.

Ensemble: Not much to say about them! Just that the production would have to be careful to make sure everyone is in truly neutral grayscale and not let too warm / cool of grays slip in.

Okay, let's talk characters.

Siffrin is tricky basically every option for interpreting the cloak has it's own pros and cons. Having sleeves means better movement options for the actor, but they only show up in a handful of images in the game. Full poncho means we get Full Triangle Vibe, but it would hamper movement a lot. Cloak with a pinned closed front means we see more of the rest of the costume more often, which I wouldn't mind, but it does break up the classic triangle silhouette. It's honestly still my pick though. Then there's the eye patch. I know some shows just give characters eye patches, and as long as you're careful staging the dances it will probably be fine? But I assume semi-mesh eye patches for performers are a thing, so I'd try to find one of those. Lastly, hat. It probably couldn't be as absurdly big as in game without casting major shadows we don't want on Siffrin's face, so they'll need a slightly narrower brim and we'd keep the hat pinned in a more back position.

Mirabelle's outfit probably wouldn't need to change much, but her little fingerless gloves would need some reinforcement at the top to keep them from falling down her arms. There's also the matter of her needing to have her sword with her most of the show; it might need to be a little smaller than a true rapier, but Shakespeare shows have duels and such so we can make something work.

Odile wouldn't be particularly difficult to costume as long as you don't make her sweater / jacket too heavy and put some straps on her shoes. Fake glasses aren't hard too bad, but some rigging in the back to keep them on will be helpful.

Isabeau I'm sorry but your sleeves have to be a little less gigantic, it will get in the way of the audience being able to read your gestures / get caught on stuff. They can still be long and loose though. Also, in real life the stripes on his pants being that wide could be an issue in terms of reading where he is on stage with the set / looking kind of goofy, so I might make them just a bit thinner.

Bonnie... I do not know how to make your weird pillow hat work in real life. For most game accurate version you'd have to make it completely from scratch. Something like a beret in terms of construction but... big. And probably held up internally with stuffing and wire. The alternative would probably be a big sunhat, and if you want to include Bonnie getting a new hat just slightly redo that scene to find something else that's similar.

Heck yeah its time for Loop! Now, we're definitely not doing a full star head, that wouldn't let the actor do any of that good emoting. But! I think a lower face mask could still work. You might have to hide the actor's mic under there to make sure they could be heard, but it's definitely possible. They would definitely need a custom wig for spikiness, plus a star-like head piece to top it off. Now the rest of it... I mean, you could go full body suit. I'd probably do that as the first choice, though maybe adding a wispy loin cloth or tie around the middle for modesty depending on your performer / venue. But! Different productions could get really creative with it, as long as the base still has them black and covered with stars and there's the star in their chest. Add in some specific design quirks that are only elsewhere found in Sif and The King's costumes, but just tiny little detail type things? Chef's kiss.

Speaking of the King! He unfortunately does need to be Very Big, but thankfully Broadway shows can pull that off! Something similar to the Wizard head in Wicked could work here, where only some parts of the set piece move (mechanically or via puppetry) and the actor is a voice over. The hair could be a mix of practice and projections. The tears that show up in the fight would probably also need to be projected. The hard thing would be getting it to disappear quickly enough. Maybe the last bit before the loop resets is always in front of the curtain? Could be cool. A less well funded production would probably have to either use mostly projections or re-work to use less moving parts.

Last up Euphrasie! Since she has a long dress getting her some extra height wouldn't be too hard, and she doesn't have to dance or anything so that helps. But! She does need to do the Act 4 finale dramatic kneel down, which is harder to work around. If we cast a tall actor and just use lifts in her shoes, it could work. She wouldn't be as super tall as she would be if we used hidden stilts, but I like the image of her cupping Sif's face, it goes all the way back to the comics, I gotta keep it.

What about y'all? How would you dress everyone? Any little details you'd want to see? And tricks to deal with the problems I thought of? Have fun!

[unknown-cold]

It's fanny how some people call her evil era.

We never saw her kill an innocent person, even when my friend saw the show he is not a fan of Arcane but he saw a lot of comments about it and I also urged him to watch it after all the excitement around it when I asked him about his opinion on the show and especially the character of Caitlyn he told me, he expected after all the posts and comments about her that she would go to Zaun and kill people with her gun he didn't expect that she just wears a costume that looks like a vampire and looks tough and mean, she would get this much hate. He even asked me why people don't talk or blame Ambessa isn't she the main reason behind most of the problems in this season and also Singed or even Silco and his allies?

I couldn't answer him except that people have double standards and are hypocrites because their criticism of Caitlyn's character is not because she did one bad thing but because she is from Piltover and an enforcer. I'm sure if Caitlyn was from Zaun and did worse things they would sympathize with her and love her, so their criticism is so hypocritical and has double standards. In short, their criticism of a character is not because she did bad things, but because of who she is and where she is from.

They forget that silco kills a lot of people, mainly people from the undercity, even kids, LOL have put a mini game on the clien and there you could find out that Silco use kids as lab rat to test the chem tanks.

And I'm sure now someone will come and tell me that Caitlyn used the gas on all of Zaun and killed people with it. Seriously idiot where did you get this? Can you show me a picture from the show that people died because of gray, and if it's true then the characters must are talking about it, that Caitlyn uses gray to kill innocent people. So this claim is not true, we saw at the beginning of episode 3 how Caitlyn used the gas strategically and not randomly and Amanda confirmed that. So she used it to catch gangs there. Because logically, 5 people wouldn't go to catch hundreds of gang members that easily, and also if one of the people got hurt Ekko would have talked about it and we know that Ekko is the most loyal person to his people, so even Ekko himself didn't complain about using gray, yes he and Scar were talking about the gangs that were working with Silco, and they didn't care about gray, why? Because this gas didn't hurt them.

Even if it hurt them and that using it was an evil act, why didn't you say this when Jinx used it on Piltover and injured innocent people, women and children, she didn't target enforcers for example, Jinx use the Grey randomly unlike Caitlyn, but is anyone talking about this? Of course not. And worse when I saw comments saying that Jinx should blow up Piltover again and eliminate the people of Piltover. Like some people have shown their true colors, that they don't care if a character did something bad or good, all they care about is who this character is.

And because Jinx is from Zaun and they have every right to do bad things, but Piltover doesn't even if they do good things they are still bad, what a shallow and ridiculous thinking. some Arcane fandom are probably the most stupid fandom nowadays, to them everyone from Zaun is a perfect angel who never do nothing wrong, everyone from Piltover is a monster with no feelings

The show is not black and white, that only exists in Disney movies, go and watch it if you are this kind of boring and traditional storytelling, Arcane proves every day that this show is not for everyone and if you want to enjoy it you have to open your mind well and be open-minded, and most importantly put politics and real life issues aside, and enjoy this fantasy world with flawed characters and good writing. (This show is not designed to solve political issues at the end of the day. It is a show based on a video game)

Morally, I do not agree with a Caitlyn's Evil Cop Era. The lesbian in me, however, really likes that dumbass coat.

Like. Really likes it.

[the-californicationist]

Do you have any tips or suggestions on how to make smut better? I know that your writing in general is levels above mine but I feel particularly like my smut is never good, and I love how you write smut. I've tried to improve but it usually feels bad. Not intimate or something? Sorry, if you don't want to you can totally disregard this, I just wondered if you had anything to share that might help a fellow writer improve? :)

I can really only say that I try to write smut that I want to read. It’s why I started writing in the first place lol 😂 I wanted (selfishly) to generate my own literary porn. And I like smut that uses all five (or “six”) senses. I like to hear how his finger sounds in your hole. I wanna know how it smells and tastes when he brings his finger to his lips. I wanna know how it looks on his hand in the dim light of the room. I need to know how it feels to be touched by him in that gentle, single-digit, exploratory sort of way. I need to know how I feel, emotionally, shamefully, to see myself gleam across his mouth.

I think people focus a lot on feeling. The physicality is the primary stimulus, so it makes sense. But, to me, in my real life life, good sex is about almost everything else. The sound of him struggling to breathe. The sound of our skin slapping against one another. The words that can’t help but crawl out of his throat and fall into my ear. For example.

And honestly, I have been pushing myself to take a chance on highlighting the negatives as well. The kitchen countertop is cold on my ass. All of his friends are in the next room, just a few feet away. His gunshot wound in his shoulder makes him wince when he tries to throw me over the couch. The little moments of reality break through the realm of fantasy/ecstasy that we’re creating, and to me, those imperfections make it good just as much as the three back to back orgasms are. Better even, sometimes.

Sorry that this is so confusing. I hope this maybe inspires you even if it doesn’t help much.

Cali Conclusion: write smut that you wanna read!🩷

[krisluxxeeempress]

MARS SQUARE NEPTUNE SYNASTRY | ASTRO SYNASTRY SERIES . . .

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MARS SQUARE NEPTUNE

 This synastry aspect is going to require a lot of explaining because the Mars person just does not get it and by it, I am referring to the Neptune person. We have to take into account astrological laws. Each planet has a ruling God / Goddess and as we know, some Divine beings have more power than others. Ares, the God of war, is not only mortal but also governs the planet Mars. Poisedon, the God of water, is not only immortal but also governs the planet Neptune. Here we have the Mars person representing masculine energy and the Neptune person representing feminine energy. The Mars person considering the square, has qualms with the Neptune person and experiences constant stress and frustration because they are unable to get what they want from the Neptune person. The Neptune person just always seems out of reach to the Mars person and this becomes exhausting.

Imagine that you are traveling to a foreign island and that’s all you can think of. Arriving to this island is all you want therefore, you are up for the challenges of traveling but during your journey, everything seems to go awry. You lost your passport, the pilot or driver gets lost, technology fails, the boat hits a rock of ice and now the boat is sinking or maybe you missed your flight etc. We can imagine how frustrating any of those situations would be especially when you didn’t plan for it and the Mars person always has plans. My question to you is whether any of those situations would deter you? Would you give up and just go back home or is your desire to arrive on that island stronger than all the setbacks? How far back are you willing to bet set until your desired outcome is just no longer worth it? That depends on the signs and houses Mars and Neptune reside in. In continuation to my example, the Mars person needs (or thinks it needs) the Neptune person, in which is equivalent to someone feeling like they need to arrive to that island, no matter what.  However, that matter may overpower the mind especially for the Mars person.

Mars is a mortal God whereas, Neptune is an immortal God. In other words, mars is an human trying to challenge a God, a higher power. We see this all the time where humans think they can overpower and or outsmart a higher power until things backfire, like losing your passport and only realizing it at the airport for example. Your plans just got derailed and lost in translation- how in control are you now?

 In brief, this describes the dynamic with Mars squaring Neptune.

The Mars person is attracted to the Neptune person because they see the Neptune person how they want. The Neptune person is quite literally the Mars person’s fantasy. When we fantasize, we don’t necessarily think of obstacles and challenges. It is only when we try to make the fantasy real is when we are met with challenges and obstacles that we didn’t plan for in the fantasy stages. Fantasies are dreams that are usually pleasant but nightmares are dreams as well. Eventually over time, the Neptune person becomes the Mars person worst nightmare. I do not know about you but whenever I tried to force my will on God or a higher power- if you will, my life took a turn for the worst and the same can be said for the Mars person.

The Mars person is only motivated by selfish desires and will resort to playing games aka. manipulation, force and strategy to get what it wants and in this case, the Neptune person. However, the Neptune person doesn’t respond well or too kindly to the efforts of the Mars person. The more the Mars person pushes the more their efforts gets lost in translation in which creates the square. The Neptune person is intuitive and more than likely knows what the Mars person is after so, unconsciously or not, the Neptune person will give the Mars person a run for their money. How bad do you want me? Says the Neptune person. Since the Mars person likes challenges, they’ll have to prove it.  Just when the Mars person thinks they have the Neptune person interested or attached, poof! The Neptune person disappears and or all the efforts from the Mars person gets lost forcing the Mars person to start all over.  Imagine going through the motions of trying to gain someone’s trust and then something happens big or small and now whatever trust gained is now lost. Or, imagine asking someone on a date and secretly hoping for sex afterwards. On the date you are on your best behavior and looking good however, your date asks you a dealbreaker question. You answer the question wrong or not to their liking and now your chances of sex afterwards are ruined. How frustrating! You put in all that effort to get some and now you are forced to start over!? Your fantasy about how good the sex would be; worth having to start back at base one?

Imagine being the Mars person and actually accomplishing having sex with the Neptune person. You think the sex has secured an attachment between the two of you and then the next day you cannot reach the Neptune person. They seem to have disappeared and or suddenly there’s an aloofness in their demeanor towards you.

What the hell happened?

The Mars person asks.

Well now I’m asking is it worth the effort of trying to get the Neptune person to open back up to you? Considering this synastry a “hit or miss” is debatable. With the exclusion of transits, this compatibility is a miss. If the right astrological transits hits- then it hits resulting with the Mars person finally getting whatever they dreamt about with the Neptune person. Think of the Neptune person as the Genie in the Bottle- if you will.

Approaching this with a different perspective, the Neptune person may intentionally cause confusion or delight in making things difficult for the Mars person. Unconsciously, the Neptune person may make themselves sick or experience bouts of illness rendering them dependent on the Mars person, who, feels responsible to take on the role of the provider, protector or healer/ caretaker. The square in such case would be the burden of having a family member and loved ones depending on him/her. Whichever way we spin this, the bases of it all results in the Mars person feeling burdened or worse- defeated.

This synastry aspect is a little different in comparison to Mars Opposite Neptune, where the Mars person needed to change and learn acceptance. With Mars Square Neptune, the Mars person usually feels defeated, embarrassed, revengeful, confused, regretful- maybe? You choose. The Mars person cannot get over it wherein lies the obsession fueled my passionate hate or in a caretaking way-passionate resentment. This is due to the Neptune persons unrealistic expectations of the Mars person. The whirlwind the Neptune person creates for the Mars person should be considered an Olympic sport. The house and sign each planet resides in will determine the type of whirl.

The Mars person may be up for the never-ending challenge as this secures constant stimulation. In any case, this would be a great synastry aspect to have when you desire a partner who only wants you and still chases you, years later, even in marriage.  Mars usually has reputation of engaging in short term relationships. Once they get what they want they’re on to the next. Considering the Mars person wants the Neptune person but can never seem to acquire them, this in turn keeps them interested and more determined. It can also play out where the harder the Neptune person makes things the more turned on the Mars person becomes for the Neptune person. Again, it depends on the signs and houses involved to determine how these energies combined will spin.

In extreme cases, the Mars person may be abusive towards the Neptune person or they have BDSM sexual fantasies that they'd like to enact with the Neptune person. There is undoubtably a sexual undertone within this synastry that may be hard for the Mars person to express. This synastry reminds me of having a passionate desire for a celebrity, for example. You want them so bad and enjoyed a few private sessions alone fantasizing about them. Never in a million years, realistically speaking, have you thought about meeting them in real life. Let’s say by fate or chance you do meet them. The square would be you acting weird, quiet, unpleasant and or annoying in front of your crush. It’s like you finally get the opportunity to meet who you’ve been fantasizing about and you freeze up?

The Mars person may feel intimidated or fearful of the Neptune person especially in their presence- which isn’t usual for Mars. Back to my initial example, Mars is the one who really wants to arrive on the island but when it comes time to swim across the water (Neptune) to the island- the Mars person gets scared or can’t swim.

In conclusion, the Mars person may challenge or feel challenged by the Neptune person.

[swiftfootedachilles]

honestly i was so mad when i watched that orgy scene in s11 and at the whole monogamy situation bc wdym they're not already monogamous without having to talk about it? as if they're not borderline obsessed with each other and also jealous asf and they constantly was being pulled apart from each other through the whole show, how can ian or mickey want somebody else after all shit they went through? i just hope that they didn't actually fuck anyone and just banged in the bathroom or smth😭also when i see fics with gallavich/omc? 💀 saw this from a popular writer and i was like hell nah im not reading ts

no for fucking real those 2 are the most jealous men to ever walk the planet

on one hand i get it. they both had insecurities that made them feel like the other wouldnt want to only sleep with them for the rest of their lives. ian is the only guy mickey canonically dates and has sex with multiple times. mickey felt like ian would eventually leave him like he had in the past also multiple times.

so in the first episode the monagamy conversation seemed normal to me. they literally both specifically say "i dont want you to fuck anyone else" and mickey was obviously just waiting to see ians answer because he wanted to do whatever ian wanted. if he did write down "open relationship," it wouldve been because he thought thats what ian wanted. personally i think he didnt write anything down because he was still trying to grasp the concept of him and ian being a "normal" married couple that communicated heathily and didnt run away and flirt with/fuck other people when they got scared.... plus he actually cant spell monogamy hes a dyslexic with an 8th grade education

so that episode was fine on its own. if they wouldve left it at that, it wouldve been a silly cute moment in their bumpy marriage. but then the writers had to make that stupid ass orgy episode. first of all why the shit would they NEED to be friends with other gay men, and WHY ARE THE ONLY OPTIONS TO EITHER BE THEIR FRIENDS OR FUCK THEM??? IT LITERALLY MAKES NO SENSE. DID THEY NOT JUST DECIDE IN EPISODE ONE THAT THEY WERE GONNA BE MONOGAMOUS?

i actually cannot stand how the writers (and the fandom by extension) cant let gay characters have their boundaries and be left alone. why the fuck do they have to be open to straight sex and orgies and nonmonogamy and being verse WHY CANT GAY PEOPLE HAVE BOUNDARIES. CAN YOU IMAGINE IF THERE WAS RANDOMLY A SCENE IN SEASON 11 WHERE TAMI ASKED LIP 'HOW DO YOU KNOW YOURE STRAIGHT IF YOUVE NEVER GOT FUCKED IN THE ASS BY A GUY?' AND THEN HE ACTUALLY WENT OUT AND DID IT??? YOU CANT IMAGINE IT BECAUSE IT WOULD NEVER HAPPEN THEY ONLY DO THIS SHIT WITH GAY CHARACTERS!!!!

the inability to understand that gay people can also have preferences and hard limits actually blows my mind. and if you dont like it youre somehow a prude or dont understand the characters. actually i fear i understand the characters more than the writers do.

and im okay with showing characters experiment! but its very telling that in Shameless, it only happens with queer characters who are pretty fucking firm in their sexual identity and boundaries. why did debbie have to fuck a gay guy in season 11. why do ian and mickey have to be verse why do ian and mickey have to be polyamorous. why did ian have to fuck a woman to "truly know" hes gay. why did svetlana have to all but announce shes a lesbian but still date kev instead of just date vee. why does this only happen to gay characters!!!

the trope of queer men specifically being easy and dtf is why the AIDS crisis was so deadly. because queer men are so open to sharing sex fantasies and sharing partners and sharing needles, right? its just a gay problem, and its better for all of us if theyre dead anyway, so lets ignore it until it goes away

maybe not every queer man needs to be written as a polyamorous verse switch bisexual-under-the-right-circumstances only-married-for-tax-reasons-not-because-they-love-their-life-partner idk! this is a haters only area so if you dont like me hating why are you here⁉️

[hyperjellyfishfish]

Pkmn Champion Minecraft HC's (Part 1)

important notes: - this is going off of vanilla minecraft 1.21 (trial chamber update)! - minecraft mobs that are based on real animals in our world (pigs, sheep, chicken, cow, fish) are fictional creatures based on pokemon in the pkmn world! fantasy mobs (blaze, enderman, sniffer, drowned, guardian, creeper) are just more fictional creatures. - the champions have a private minecraft server together, though they are usually very busy and are almost never on at the same time. except for the off-season for each region's league or the annual in-person champion get-together they do. they reset the server every 2-ish years.

Lance || Awkward Builder * He never had a chance to play video games growing up, so was only recently introduced to the game by his fellow champions. has since grown to adore it! * Is very awkward about playing the game in his free time, doesn't want anyone to know that the Great Dragon Master is playing a silly block game. * Is one of the main builders on the server actually! he's never been an artsy person but found that he enjoys creating structures that breathe life into the server, filling otherwise empty spaces. * Lance doesn't do mega builds since he never would have time to finish them, but has done a few long-term projects over the course of the different seasons. one such project was when he built houses in the traditional style of each city in johto and later did the same for kanto. * Enjoys playing at a casual pace, not too fast but not too slow either. usually starts building before he's all geared up even. will sometimes go back to those early builds later on a spruce them up with fancier materials if he has time.

Steven || Redstone Guy * One might think Steven would be all about mining in the game titled minecraft... but he actually despises gathering resources! what makes going caving fun for him in the real world is the sense of discovery, of wonder, of working hard to carefully dislodge a rare stone he's been looking for. Caves in minecraft feel way too unrealistic for his tastes and he just can't find the same joy in partaking in his hobby in a video game compared to the joy of doing such in the real world. * also, he's terrified of creepers-- thinks they are the worst with their destructive abilities. he often finds himself wishing he could have his pokemon team in the game so they could deal with the hostile mobs for him. * Steven most often finds himself making creative redstone projects, games or challenges for his fellow champions to partake in whenever they have the time to log onto the server. * He's not an // expert // with redstone, but he understands comparators so he's doing better than most of the playerbase! enjoys improving his skills by making his own designs for farms, challenging himself to make it as efficient as possible. * plays at a pretty slow pace in the early game, taking the time to explore the world and stuff before picking a spot 14k blocks out to build his underground lair. the project he always does first thing once he's fully geared up is make a bunch of puzzles and clues to lead those who wish to find his base on a wild goose chase around the server. Cynthia was so good at this game, finding his base within a week of him opening the puzzle course that Steven banned her from the the challenge.

[dalishious]

I saw someone claiming that the Dragon age devs have confirmed Zevran as Afro Latino and that Antiva is based on Latin America, is that correct? I know you said before that that’s how you see Zevran but it’s never been explicitly stated otherwise I feel you would’ve mentioned it if it were canon.

And I’m pretty sure the Antiva stuff is just explicitly wrong because I’m 90% sure they said it’s based on Italy and all the city names are just IRL locations in Italy…

Re: Zevran - not to my knowledge, I can't recall ever hearing that being canonically confirmed by a dev

Re: Antiva - I cannot stress enough that it IS canonically confirmed that just like every other nation in Thedas, there is no 1:1 comparison to any real life nation. Gaider addressed this on the old social network for example. Antiva is NOT just "Fantasy Italy". Antiva has a lot of IRL comparisons, and among them are Latin American influences for sure. I mean, Viago's dev notes literally call him Brazilian for example.

[deramin2]

I think anyone complaining about Bell's Hells morality as we near the end of Critical Role Campaign 3 and whether they truly get to claim they're representatives of the Exandrian people should go watch How To Blow Up A Pipeline (2022) about direct action environmental rights activists. And the documentary Hit & Stay (2013) about the anti-Vietnam War Catholic Far Left activists while you're at it. Or The Trial of the Catonsville Nine (1972) which is based on a play written by one of the priests profiled in Hit & Stay about their trial (grandstanding in the trial was one of the intents of being arrested).

It turns out that when you're not in a binary morality unquestioned heroism YA novel that what is justified in fighting systems of oppression and what the right thing to do is actually becomes hard to determine and largely driven by internal feelings and rage at injustice.

Who determines who gets to have a big say? Who determines what actions are justified when no one will listen to the harm being done? Who determines what is overall the more harmful action? Especially when you can't know the future except that there is no option where tremendous harm is not done. Who determines which step along any road is "right" or even "wise?" Especially when they are taken one by one by specific people who are swept up by the events of their own lives and not predetermined by an all-seeing all-knowing Author writing backwards from the ending?

Playing a game isn't the same as acting in the real world at great personal cost, but real life is a kind of improv. Long form improv doesn't start with how the ending should get tied up. It's about how every single split second decision adds up to a cumulative finale. Things not turning out how you'd have played them out if you already knew everything and were living someone else's life is what reality is like.

The normal state of affairs is people making decisions you don't agree with. "They shouldn't have done that" is boring and useless analysis that shuts down further thought and dismisses what anyone else has to say. "Why did they do that" is what media literacy is about. Campaign 3 was never heroic fantasy (arguably C1 & C2 weren't either). It's a character study in people doing what they feel they must in the moment it's happening without any assurances at all that it's the right thing. It's about not having confidence and surety but having to act anyway. That's the entire point.

How To Blow Up A Pipeline (2022) is a great expression of that same dynamic. They have enough confidence to keep telling each other this is the most necessary action they can take because they don't know what the future looks like, but one where they did nothing isn't one they can stand to live through. Is blowing up this pipeline in the way they are planning to the best possible course of action morally and strategically? Literally nobody knows that. They can't possibly know that. It only matters that these people got to that point, and now it's all happening flaws and all. For love, for revenge, for discord in the face of a society that acts like this is normal. A bunch of righteous fuckups just trying to survive in a harsh world made harsher by the status quo.

If nearly 437 hours of game play was too much to sit through to get that point across, maybe 104 minutes will work better.

[mythicalfeedee]

So when you began you just thought you’d gain a little bit - like 20lbs - to see how it was…. But in the back of your mind did you know you wanted to be massive? Or would current you have shocked slimmer you? Are there things about being so big that you didn’t expect and that have really surprised you?

When I initially began I just wanted to get chubby and was actually eating like a ravenous pig because I’ve been into fatness since I was a kid, it’s just that I’d always been thin. So when I decided to give in I went for it. Then I was taught. I learned over the years how to do more pacing and how to enjoy and indulge and be more seduced by food and by the pleasure of it all. So now I have a more sensual intensity with my fat, and know how to unite feedism and sexuality into something bigger and more pleasurable and enjoyable.

Honestly, the fantasy is to be massive but the reality is to just enjoy it day by day. I have no size in mind, if I stay this way then fine, if I lose a bit and gain it back that’s fine. If I swell to the size of a whale, that’s amazing too. I just know I want to be sexy and fat! And now I feel that way :)

But I do think skinny me would be shocked. I didn’t know I’d get THIS fat lol.

Things about being fat that surprise me… belly fat is heavier than I imagined. I didn’t know my boobs would get so huge. Also I thought my thighs would be disappointing but it turns out each one is bigger around than the average man’s torso at this point.

Also, whenever I get out of a pool I’m really amazed because I can really feel the weight after being mostly weightless for a while in the water.

Lastly, I didn’t expect to gain so proportionately, because many people get like a huge belly, or huge thighs. I got huge all over kind of evenly, so in real life I look a bit less fat. But the measuring tape and scale don’t lie lol!

[sezja]

I do think there's something kind of bittersweet about one quieter aspect of Nitowikwe's last quest (as opposed to the larger and more obvious parallel it draws between Nitowikwe being willing to lay down her life if it came to it and Agna actually losing her life in the pursuit of a dream she never got to see come to fruition), and that's Shenza

Or rather Jeryk, really.

They both have these big kind of ridiculous dreams (a flying train and a giant trolley, respectively), but how the others respond to those dreams is... kind of telling, isn't it? Shenza's suggestion that their next train ought to be able to fly is met with the acknowledgment that the technology inside the dome could potentially make that happen, with the only real "yeah, but" being the question of whether the resulting vehicle could actually be called a train.

Hell, Zawpya follows it up with his own desire to make another Dawnblazer! What a sharp contrast to reasonable, practical Thaffe I love him so much I love all of them so fucking much

Jeryk's just kind of always shot down and gently scolded, by everyone except (of all people) Chai-Nuzz, from the sound of things, whose only real question is what it would even be used for. (And, depending on how you read it, maybe the WoL - at least one line of dialogue from Magnus implies the WoL is suggesting a giant trolley might be useful for his plans to expand the rail network.)

I don't think it points to any like, lack of affection for Jeryk on the part of Magnus or Thaffe, by any means, but rather that it's a continuing reflection - through Nitowikwe's survival and the impact that has on the rest of the group - of the weight losing Agna (and let's be fair, of living on the First) has had on the three of them. They're less inclined to be ambitious, less eager to entertain what seem like silly fantasies. Their whole world is still really in the early stumbling steps of learning how to live again, and the bare necessities have to be tended to first. There's not a lot of room for big dreams yet.

And everything about Nitowikwe suggests Agna was the big dreamer between her and Magnus, more willing to push limits and take risks - or at least able to support Magnus in his own riskier endeavors.

It's not even that I think a giant trolley is a reasonable or practical idea - but neither is a flying train! It's just interesting to contrast the different reactions to the boys' fantasies and how they're received by the others.