#it is artificial it is something created and that can be beautiful as much as it can be ugly and contrived but ONLY when it is combined

[headspace-hotel]

There's a plentiful supply of nature and ecology writers that criticize "Anthropocentrism" and tell readers that we shouldn't consider ourselves more important than other life forms, and then they write things that are like "We evolved to live in Nature in a Natural environment...Long ago humans lived as hunter-gatherers instead of farming and domesticating animals...But when civilization was created, man unnaturally subjugated and modified plants and animals...Bringing them under human control for his own benefit...Man replaces natural ecosystems with artificially created "post-natural" environments...Now humans live in an unnatural environment that is separated from Nature...and i'm like buddy. do you even hear yourself

Since I have access to a bigger library now, I've explored "deep ecology" and "green anarchism" and "Biocentrism" a bit more and what i've seen is still kinda silly. The writers have very thoughtful theory and philosophy of diverse subjects relating to morality, society, power, and liberation, but...they just don't know very much about Nature.

I mean several things by that: first, they're not clear on the boring, practical details of things like food systems and the way construction alters ecosystems, second, they don't try to clearly define what "nature" is, and third, they act like "nature" has a clear definition anyway.

Now nature is pretty much undefinable anyway, a couple possible definitions are "all things that exist, have existed, or are possible in the universe" and "the thing that a forest has that a parking lot doesn't." You can say "biodiversity," but every space has biodiversity, and it's not clear how much biodiversity a space is "supposed" to have, we're just going on vibes. And the vibes are right, in a way; I visited an old-growth forest and it was DIFFERENT than any place i'd ever been in a way that is hard to describe. A flourishing, biodiverse ecosystem is different than a parking lot, a lawn, a monoculture field of corn. They say it's good for your health to be "in nature." What does that mean? At what point does a place become "nature?" How many trees does it have to have?

Something that is so painful to me is when people write "Human activities" as a cause of biodiversity loss. This is an act of cowardice. WHICH human activities? Name them.

A lot of nature and ecology writings treat humans like they have an anti-biodiversity force field that emanates from them. They write like lands on Earth are each contested between two inversely proportional forces, "Nature" and "Humans."

Without any more information, this is ethereal bullshit on par with crystals having energies. I am totally perplexed at the lack of curiosity about the specific causes and details of "human impacts." The division of habitats by so many roads and relentless speeding of cars with no way for wildlife to cross...the dumping of massive amounts of poison into soils and water...the wounding and disturbance of topsoil...these are the "human activities," but we can imagine a world without such destruction, and we can create that world.

Too many essays and papers talking about Nature non-specifically, an Idea of Nature, a Concept that everyone just intuitively knows. Nature is...you know...wildness! and trees! and...well, you know, NATURE!

And we do know! When we step out into the parking lot surrounded by low, squarish buildings and blaring signs and the stink of car exhaust, we know that something is very wrong with this place! Even we find these horrible un-places harsh and unwelcoming.

But it is very hard to imagine something different, because the other type of place, the place that is beautiful and soothes the spirit and is full of life, is by definition the place where humans only go to visit, the complete opposite and inverse of a place where humans work and live! Wherever humans live, shop, eat, fulfill their daily needs, that place is Not Nature.

The huge mistake, is that we believe that it is necessary to have places that are Not Nature. We believe that for humans to exist, areas must be set aside where the very concept of Nature is utterly obliterated.

From this imaginary and dismal point of view, we have to carefully confine our own lives to places that are utterly poisoned, sterilized, made into a hostile wasteland, and leave all the rest of the living biosphere to itself in pristine preserves.

And in this imaginary and dismal point of view, the one that divides Earth into Nature and Humans, it is okay to poison and to sterilize and to destroy, because humans must live SOMEWHERE, therefore Nature must be utterly excluded from at least SOME of Earth.

BUT...WHAT IF EVERYWHERE IS NATURE? What if the dandelions in the cracks of the pavement, the lichens growing on the park bench, the wildflowers on the side of the road, the sparrows in the parking lot—what if they are all Nature just as much as anything else? What if they too are sacred? What if it is our responsibility to see the connectedness of all life and to care for all ecosystems, however broken and hurt they may be?

What if Nature is not distant and abstract, untouched in some pristine place, but always reaching out, digging into the crumbled concrete and gravel and compacted ground, clawing to return to us and bring us back home?

It does not take away from the value of the old-growth forest or the unplowed prairie if we open our eyes and see even the scraggliest patch of overgrown weeds for the powerful manifestation of Nature it truly is.

Nature is not a place or a thing. Nature is the Movement, the Endless Happening, constantly alive throughout all life, the way of all things being family, the way of all things taking care of each other, the way of all life being constantly transformed through one another. You breathe the breath of the trees of your home, you drink the water of the streams of your home, you eat the sunlight that falls on your home, grown in the soil where all things go to be transformed through death into a new form of life, fed by the mycorrhizal network, pollinated by the bees, wasps, flies, and moths, nourished by the bone, blood and manure of beasts, and ultimately the fertile river valleys where agriculture first began, were replenished by the rich silt that washed down the river, which came from the forests in the mountains that shed their leaves to make a feast for a million decomposing critters, which is how the rich soil is made.

In this way they all take care of you, and in return you are asked to Live—to take care of them in return, to live as part of the great family of everything alive, to live, to live

What are human activities...? Deforestation? Mining? Spraying pesticides? Building housing developments? But is that all? Are we inherently a "bad" and "destructive" species, or is our ability to acquire and pass down knowledge, use tools and novel behaviors, alter our surroundings, shape ecosystems, adapt our lifestyles almost infinitely, and persist in almost any environment, simply incredibly powerful for good or for evil?

First of all, what better way to demonstrate a contrast to anthropocentrism...than to compare the impact of humans alone to the impact of an ENTIRE KINGDOM OF LIFE, the fungi????? Of course all of Fungi are more important than one single species??? Wtf?!?!?

But also, we should not convince ourselves of our own insignificance and worthlessness to the biosphere, because in the same way that individual self-loathing can be a way to avoid the hard work of loving oneself and advocating for the love one deserves, collective self-loathing as a species is a way of avoiding the responsibility we have to other life forms.

How can this author not think of a single role Humans play in the ecosystem?? What species plants trees, saves seeds, documents rare plants, rescues injured animals and heals them, raises orphaned chicks, manages controlled burns, digs ponds, thoughtfully harvests in anticipation of future seasons, mercifully culls in understanding of suffering that cannot be fixed? What species writes a new chapter in the genome of the American Chestnut so it can be saved from extinction? What species mends the broken kakapo egg with sticky tape? What species addresses their own habitat with that fondest name of Home?

[amaditalks]

Every year all of the big diet companies have to come up with some brand new labeling for their plans in order to encourage people to get on the January weight loss train.

This year, Weight Watchers is going further than they’ve ever gone before, by announcing that they have created a new system to give their members access to prescriptions for drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro.

Let me remind you that these drugs only work while you’re taking them. As soon as you stop, all of your appetite comes back. Your desire to eat returns, and because it has been artificially suppressed it may feel much stronger and less controllable than it was before you took the drugs. Many people who come off these drugs, usually because of cost (because insurers are balking at coverage for weight loss) or shortages (because so many people are taking them for weight loss, which is leaving the diabetics who need them up shit creek) or side effects report that the first weeks are really difficult, mentally painful and often binging occurs.

Additionally, all of these drugs carry a real risk of creating a terribly painful and potentially deadly condition called Gastroparesis, in which your gastrointestinal system just stops functioning, you cannot digest and process food at all.

You do not need to lose weight to be healthy. You do not need to lose weight to be beautiful or attractive, to have success, or love. You do not need to lose weight in order to pursue fitness. If you have particular health needs or goals that can only be achieved by changing the way you eat, (e.g. lowering cholesterol or blood glucose or addressing gastro issues) that does not mean that you need a weight loss diet plan, just one designed toward your needs.

But more than anything, you do not ever need to put another penny into the coffers of the multibillion dollar weight loss industry, which, if it actually had a way to take a fat person and make them thin permanently (something that cannot even be achieved by surgeries that drastically rearrange digestive systems) would be a multi quadrillion dollar industry instead. 

[thewarmblanket]

My thoughts on tsalnu

"Tsalnu" is a baby pod in which, as stated in early draft of Avatar the Way of Water script, na'vi women give birth to their babies. It described as "a beautiful translucent chrysalis" and kind of works as an amniotic sac outside of the womb, connected to the mother through tsaheylu. We don't actually have any details on how it works and looks like since the existence of tsalnu hasn't yet been confirmed canon.

A lot of fans was not fascinated by this concept and wished that na'vi would be giving birth "normally" like humans. In this topic I'm a minority, because I think tsalnu is kind of cool. And before I tell you why, I think... they still need to work on this concept because it's still a little weird and maybe if it looked more pretty then more people would like it? (Well, they liked pinkish worm-like wiggly tendrils in kuru so why wouldn't they? Ke tslolam) And now let's get to the point!

Why I think it's cool?

I'm surprised I never saw anyone stating that, but it's actually pretty cool and useful evolutional mechanism. Yeah it maybe looks weird, but I'm just reminding you that na'vi are alien species that had their own evolutional journey and wasn't created by anyone artificially and they are too part or the Pandoran alien ecosystem. So why is it cool? You know how human women needed to grow their pelvic bone wider, so that our giant big brain babies could be born? And it's still freaking painful to give birth? And if it wasn't for our science and medicine women would massively die from bleeding out and all this stuff? Well, na'vi do not have this problem, they have chrysalis.

Chrysalis allows to give birth to a much smaller baby that will come out more easily, which is a lot safer for the mother. And then she can keep nourishing her baby just fine outside of the womb until it's strong enough. Just like a kangaroo 🦘. And when baby is hatching out of it's tsalnu it's already big and strong enough to hold it's own head. Human newborns require constant attention and care from it's parents and are a lot more vulnerable at this period of time. When na'vi babies are out of their tsalnu parents can carry them around in a sling while doing their chores, fishing or gathering fruits and not worry about anything.

Just my ramblings

I've been thinking a lot on how female na'vi reproductive system works and this just bother me so much. They are non-placental, so... maybe tsalnu is a something like an egg? Egg AND amniotic sac at the same time. Somehow. Gosh I need this natgeo documentary to come out as fast as it can I have so many questions 😫😫😫

Like, is it that only mother can nourish baby in tsalnu? Or anyone can? Everyone has kuru... If only mother can, I suppose that na'vi can give birth only to one child at the time since they only have one kuru, or, if anyone can, then we can't have an exact number.. But I'd say two at max, so that both parents would be carrying tsalnu around.

I still have a lot of ideas on na'vi birth, like how it works for other animals and how they developed their own ways of taking care of tsalnu, make illustrations of how tsalnu looks like in everyday na'vi life, mating and breeding cycles, this is so interesting!!! I wanna ask my friend that is studying at med university how she thinks it all works I feel so nerdy fuck oof *catching my breath*

@annestea 👋👋

[genshin-squabbles-and-wobbles]

hi there! if it's okay, may i please request albedo, kazuha, scara and xiao when the reader sleeps on the couch after an argument (not yandere, pls)?

Yes you may dear. And of course it won't be Yandere haha.

Albedo ✦༝┉┉┉┉┉┉┉┉┉┉˚**.☣ ♡ ☣.**˚┉┉┉┉┉┉┉┉┉┉༝✦

After calming down from the argument, Albedo was heading to bed, as he was tired.

You guys have a nice quiet house in place in Mondstadt. A quiet area of the country.

Once he is situated in bed, as routined and out of habit that you two created together, he waited for you to join him, maybe you guys can talk and apologize in each other's arms.

After an hour, he sighed and sat up. "Where are they?" He muttered and stood up from bed.

He went into the bathroom to see if you were still getting ready for bed, as it was a usual routine for you to be in the bathroom getting ready for bed.

However, once he didn’t find you there, he then went towards your living room area, and there he saw you.

He saw you, sleeping on the couch, with a small blanket, and the window open.

Seeing this scene made his heart clench, a scene that will stick to the back of his head for a while, a scene he never will put on a canvas.

Slowly, he walked to you, with guilt dripping down the inside of his artificial chest.

"Hey..." He gently shook you with his hand on your shoulder. "Please, wake up. Don’t sleep here...please?"

You opened your eyes a bit and glanced at him tiredly. You then turned your back to him.

However, he grabbed your arm to prevent you from turning, as he took your chin and made you look into his eyes. "I'm sorry if I went over the line, and said something that hurt you. I never wanted to push you to...this conclusion. Please come back to bed with me...I...I miss you there with me."

You looked to the side a bit, thinking of what to do, however, you couldn’t stay mad at him.

You ended up returning to bed with him, as you feel him desperately cuddle you close to him. As if to prevent you from ever recreating such a scene again.

Kazuha Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ*:.*:..*:...｡o○*:.*:..*:...｡o○　　○o｡..:*..:*..:*○o｡..:*..:*..:*Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ

An argument with Kazuha seemed impossible, however things happened, especially when previous stress was involved with them.

Lately, Kazuha hasn’t been spending much time with you, as he seemed stressed about things. You'd always check in on him with things, but he would shut you out.

Eventually, all things came to a head, when you two got into an argument about his behavior and how you hated that you felt pushed away. However, he seemed sterned with his behavior.

With that, you were too frustrated to be in the same room as him. You decided to sleep on the couch. You need to cool off from things, maybe a nice break will do.

You slowly close your eyes and drifted to sleep. Maybe you can go out and take a day for yourself for once. You can't force him to come to you after all.

However, a few hours later, you felt arms around your torso, and a warm heat pressed against your back. You felt a face buried into your neck.

You woke up in surprised, as he hasn’t held you like this in a long while. You gently turned your head a bit. "K-Kazuha dear?"

"My beloved, I...I apologize for my behavior and how I have acted towards you...please know you are the most precious Maple leaf that as ever fallen into my hand and I never meant to crush your beauty within my grasp...."

You felt him tighten his arms around you. "You see, something happened on the ship with Beidou. I have met someone who known my friend...the friend who was struck down by Raiden Shogun and..."

There was a small pause.

"It brought back so many painful things for me to hold myself together for a bit. I am sorry for taking it out on you..I should have told you...at least let you know that I needed time...to me.."

You smiled and turned, and gently pulled his head into your chest and rubbed his back, as he recited poetic whispers to you, and reminding you that he loves you.

Kazuha eventually fell asleep in your arms, reminding himself that this was what comfort felt like with his beloved.

Scaramouche ⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙⁺˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚⁺‧͙

Of course you're going to have your arguments with this little shit, arguing is basically his love language at this point.

However, this particular argument really struck a chord with you, he was hitting all your sensitive and soft areas with the most pettiest language to express his points to you.

As it got too much, you left. No matter how much he yelled at you to come back, you refused. You had enough. You don't want to even see him.

Later that night, you decided to sleep on the couch in your office. You just wasn’t in the mood to see him.

Of course, not even seconds later, you heard him come into your office, as your back was turned to the door therefore, also him.

"This is stupid, come to bed, you are being dramatic." He complained. However you didn’t respond, immediately showing the disconnect you had with him. Showing the distance you had with him.

He continued to complain as a way to convince you, however, you never responded.

Annoyance turned into anxiety very quickly for him, as he walked to you and went to his knees by you. He placed his hand on your back. "H-Hey...at least respond to me..."

He spoke with nervousness, and why wouldn’t he? You never abandoned him no matter how difficult he was, you were all he had. The only person who understood him and made him feel loved.

Nothing, no response.

Scaramouche pressed his forehead against your back. "I'm sorry...I know I went too far...I know I shouldn’t have said those things."

He squeezed your arm. "I'll...I'll leave you alone for once..." He said quietly and stood up and left.

All you heard was a quiet click of your office door closing. That is the most quietest he had ever been.

Xiao ✧───────── ･ ｡ﾟ★: *.✦ .* :★. ──────────✧

Of course, he wouldn’t understand at first why you chose to do this.

Was this a human custom to do when they are upset or being resentful?

However, it doesn’t matter, one common thing spoke to him about this, and that thing is. Guilt.

He felt guilty, what was wrong with him? How can he pushed the only person away, the one person he wanted to protect from this world

He thought of himself as the very monster that hurt you.

Despite his thought process, he wouldn’t show it, he needed to remain strong, he needed to.

That was until he saw you sleeping in the Wangshu inn lobby, on the couch. not in his room with him.

The desire to remain strong slowly left him as he was drowning in guilt. He shouldn’t have let his temper get the better of him. Why did he do that? Overthinking guilty thoughts plagued his mind.

He had flashed backs of his yaksha family that passed, was he going to lose you like them as well?

Fear filled his heart.

He walked up you, and looked straight at your beautiful face that gave him so much smiles, kisses and nuzzles.

"Please don’t...do this to me..." He whispered to you, as he placed his hand on your arm. "I'm sorry I..."

You didn’t respond, as you were half sleep.

Reaching a limit, you felt Xiao immediately pick you up, bridal style to get your full attention. He looked at you with a desperate face.

You looked into his eyes, as you immediately woken up from his actions. "X-Xiao..."

Xiao immediate pressed his forehead against yours. "Please come back to bed with me...I can’t... I can’t stand you being here out in the open like this...with everyone seeing you..."

As he said this, he was carrying you back into his room, as he was planning to take care of you and make sure you were in his arms by the end of the day.

[mock-arts]

In honor of me not having any more bangs on the schedule for the year, here's part 1/2 of my 2023 cover collection! This portion 100% star wars. The next bit will be up tomorrow. I've started a cover collection tag for the compilations like this, but you can always look through all my bang art in my big bang tag. Though, not all of these were for big bangs. Eh, whatever.

Links and summaries below the cut!

Cover collection 2023

So There's this Guy by @catbuirs-alt & @elsaanna007 (art) (with more art by @anstarwar)

The war is over!

Jesse, Kix, Echo and Fives live together in an apartment on Coruscant.

Echo finds himself in a new romance with a beautiful woman named Hehna. After finding himself lacking in experience, Fives offers to help him out with advice and practice.

Unfortunately for Fives, this awakens some feelings he thought were buried deep and he doesn’t know what to do about them. He decides to put them aside and be happy that Echo has found someone.

Fives’ advice does help Echo become more confident with his new girlfriend, but something is holding him back. His thoughts keep returning to his best friend and he’s not the only one who notices. Will Fives keep his role as the best friend, or will Echo realize that his attraction to Hehna pales in comparison to his feelings for Fives?

Keep by @tallnegotiations (art)

Vader is a technical genius, it is a well-known fact. So, following his defeat at the hands of his old Master on Mustafar and the rise of the Empire, Vader executes his greatest act of genius to prove his dominance: he creates an artificial intelligence modeled after Obi-Wan Kenobi.

After the rise of the Empire, nothing remains of Commander Cody except for CC-2224, just another rank-and-file stormtrooper among many. He goes where he is told to go, shoots where he is told to shoot, and doesn't question it because good soldiers follow orders.

A droid told to be human meets a human told to be a droid. They meet somewhere in the middle.

(Tooka) Cat-Scratch Fever by @pebblish (art)

Luke is lonely, and instead of joining space bumble decides to cure the problem with a tooka cat. When he visits a shelter, he stumbles upon the most unadoptable feline there- a scarred, jet black, mangy creature that tears apart the homes of any who dare to adopt him.

Darth Vader has been turned into a tooka cat by his former Master, Darth Sidious. And now, he's been adopted by some blonde brat who has no idea who he's dealing with.

The pair of them are in for some startling revelations, and each will have to learn that what you want isn't always what you need.

I Wear My Sunglasses at Night by Trillium Orchid (art)

Force Osik can make things difficult and decidedly strange. Sith versions of Cody, Fox, Thorn, Thire, and Stone get switched with the bodies of their alternate selves that are from a near-cannon timeline…

They decide to Help Things- and manage to kill the Chancellor. Meanwhile, the vod’e that they switch with is trying to get back home and hop a few universes before getting switched back… after the Sith versions kill the Chancellor.

Ripple in the Universe by @darthtarvera (art)

Jango Fett has done many things in service to Mandalore. Tricking a couple of Jedi so he can use them to get to the heart of a conspiracy seems simple enough to add to the list. Get the Jedi, get to Mandalore, and find the traitors. One more step to take on his path to fix the mistakes from the last time he did this.

Ripples on the water can have longer-lasting effects than you might think. Jango Fett and Obi-Wan Kenobi meet years before they were supposed to.

This changes things.

An Hourglass in Hand by @ecarian (art) (with more art by @blog-o-randomness)

“I thought daemons didn’t eat,” Rex noted once, during a celebration feast, as he and Cody watched Boga devour her meal with some fascination. Varactyl she may be, but she was a tiny one. There wasn't much interior space for the truly momentous amount of meat she was ripping into. Boga daintily rubbed her beak against a folded serviette that looked kind of like a bird, and said, prim, “I can do anything a human can do.”

“Oh?” Obi-Wan said mildly, from where he’d been tapping at a datapad. “Shall I save you a portion of these reports then?”

No Trophies, Only Prisoners by @diviluscorner (art)

Jango’s life took a wrong turn somewhere around Geonosis and spat him out years later to haunt one of his clones.

Or perhaps Jango doesn't realize the Force has other plans for him.

Every Shadow by @kenobster (art)

The days on Kadavo were long, but the nights moved quickly. Hundreds of pairs of wide, sleepless eyes haunted the space of the holding cells. Droves of terror clogged the heavy, sweaty air, and every sound, however faint, was like a physical ripple across the crowd. Every sound. The jingling of keys, the clicking of locks, the thudding of boots, and that’s how the nights on Kadavo started—with a gradual increase in the degree of quiet.

OR—during the mass casualty event following Kadavo and Zygerria, Obi-Wan and Anakin seek ways to cope with trauma.

[woozten-x]

#. 𝘼𝙨 𝘽𝙤𝙮𝙛𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙙 𝙈𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨 | 𝙉𝘾𝙏 𝘿𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙢

[ ; M.List including other Neos! ]

─ Context: When dating, you’ve noticed many habits and cherished the many memories with your boyfriend; you recall every single one, your love for them growing stronger by the many moments shared with them. (NCT DREAM EDITION)

─ Genre: Tooth-rotting FLUFF, lots of wholesome moments of just them being ur boyfriend, Headcanons

─ Length: 7 bullet points!

❒ a/n: been in a headrot about established relationships and overall wholesome/romantic headcanons for the dreamies!! OMG by NewJeans really helped me get in the zone with these headcanons, oh lord i am sick!! i am lovesick!

!! Mark .

We all know he’s a music lover and he has a dedicated playlist for you, every song in that playlist reminds him of you! Every time Mark feels lonely, he would be listening to it; the melody of every song bringing you closer to him, no matter the distance

LOVES talking about you even when you aren’t there - literally brings you up in every conversation whenever something reminds him of you; everyone around Mark (who know you or not) is always learning something about you

Whenever he is working/composing music, he is always giving you a snippet of the project because he just can’t contain his passion for music; as Mark’s lover, he is making you experience the very same passion he puts in every piece of music he works on

Willing to drop everything or anything he’s doing at the very moment whenever you call his name; Mark doesn’t care, he is always looking at you or looking at the direction of your voice like a lovesick puppy

For some reason, he enjoys placing his snapbacks/beanies on your head; Mark just loves seeing you in his hats, finding it adorable whenever the hat is a bit too big for you

Makes you feel like a grade A comedian because he is always giggling or laughing with you; please save him, Mark’s lungs are working 10x harder after meeting you

Whenever you are talking, his eyes are pleading towards you with every drop of attention laid on you; sometimes, he would randomly utter out “Cute.” because you have Mark in a trance with your beauty

!! Renjun .

Everytime he draws, he likes to draw things that remind him of you or just anything that may be of your liking (tbh you like everything he draws); Renjun loves showing you his drawings/paintings and he loves every compliment coming from your lips the most

Definitely doodles on your skin with paint because he refuses to use markers that may stain or hurt your skin; the sensation of the brush is bringing you to a serene place, he is always smiling whenever he sees you dozing off with a sheepish smile on your face

Whenever you get teased by the other members, Renjun is always stepping in to defend you; he is your knight in shining armor, willing to let his rated E hands do the talking if necessary

Usually, Renjun can be quite sarcastic with the others when tested enough but his patience is endless when it comes with you; your attention means so much to him, he is willing to take any for his own greedy heart

Has a habit of combing his fingers through your hair, the small affectionate gesture conveying the amount of admiration he has for you; whenever his fingers get tangled in your hair and tugs, he apologizes quickly and kisses the top of your head as assurance

LOVES cuddling with you in bed with those glowing star stickers on the ceiling or galaxy projectors; he just loves holding you close to him underneath those artificial stars, telling you sweet nothings while drifting along the made-up galaxy the two of you created

Has set reminders/alarms to remind you of taking your medication/vitamins everyday; even when he’s out busy with whatever schedule, Renjun is making time to send a text to show how much he cares for you

!! Jeno .

Willing to stay up with you, whether you are working or just not tired, he is accompanying you for hours; even when Jeno is exhausted or is on phone with you, he is staying awake with you to spend every second of his day with you

When you face him, speaking to him about anything, he is listening but sometimes he gets distracted; randomly, Jeno is placing a hand on your cheek and caressing your soft skin with eyes blinded by the love for you

LOVES approaching you when you least expect it, leaning close to your face with a playful grin plastered on his face; Jeno is always planting a kiss on your cheek, nose or lips whenever he gets the chance to surprise you

He’s a gamer and we all know he has those headsets that practically cancels out all noise surrounding him; but, Jeno always keeps it lower than usual and always sacrifices his own game to give his undivided attention to you whenever you call him

Risking his back to carry you around on his back or straining his arms to carry you in his arms, reassuring you whenever you feel fearful of hurting him; Jeno is your prince charming, striving to take you anywhere regardless of your worries

Purposely leaves his hoodies, shirts and sweaters for you to have and he acts clueless whenever you ask if he wants it back; seeing you in his clothes makes him smile, crescent moons adoring you while saying “That looks good on you.” every single time

Playfully sticks out his arm for you to interlock with whenever the two of you walk together or are walking side by side; Jeno letting you know that he is by your side always and making the two of you inseparable, as he can never think a moment without you

!! Haechan .

The type to tease you, but you literally carved a spot in his heart that he can’t resist pouting or apologizing instantly whenever you get annoyed; Haechan loves getting a kick of these things, but it backfires as he ends up being the kicked puppy in the end

Shares his screen whenever he is playing games or you are sitting next to him watching, your head resting on his shoulder; Haechan loves to call you his lucky charm for winning games and show off his skills to hold the “Best Gamer Boyfriend” title

Your biggest supporter! He is always hyping you up, willing to show you off like a diamond on a ring; Haechan is the light burning every insecurity you carry, always boasting about you at any given opportunity

LOVES hugging you in whatever situation - back hugs, regular hugs, side hugs…Just anything related to hugs in general; Haechan is your personal teddy bear, clinging onto you until the very end with his addictive warmth enveloping you

Cheesy pickup lines? Suggestive jokes? Poetic words to describe his love for you? He is saying anything whenever he is with you; Haechan has no filter, completely infatuated with you, his own brain barely catching up with the words spilling out of his mouth

Likes to re-enact scenes with you or remembering the lines to have you swooning from some romantic movie he watched; due to realistic circumstances, Haechan is always laughing with you with an aching stomach and a fluttering heart

When you ignore him a bit too long, he gently grasps your chin with a feather-like touch; Haechan meets your eyes, basking in your attention for a brief moment before pulling away with a smirk as a way to have you yearning for him, also

!! Jaemin .

A smile grows on his face every time you look at him, speak to him, kiss him - just anything in general; his gaze is softening every time, Jaemin would also softly tell you “You are beautiful.” randomly to remind you of the beauty he cherishes most in life

Takes random photos of you, whether you are paying attention or not, he is your own personal photographer; Jaemin definitely has a folder of photos dedicated to you, sometimes scrolling through whenever he misses you or to show you off

Cooks and feeds you! He definitely calls you ‘Jaemin’s baby~’ or ‘My baby~’ in endearment while feeding you; you are Jaemin’s number one! Willing to spoil you rotten with his acts of services

LOVES to pinch your cheeks together, saying his iconic ‘Aigoo~’ whenever you look at him with your cheeks pinched together; Jaemin is smiling fondly at you, littering your faces with warm kisses causing you to giggle every time

Send voice messages to remind you to eat and stay hydrated! He is also sending you photos with a message attached saying - ‘looks pretty, but you are prettier though’; Jaemin always find time to take care of his number one

Always energetic around you and he is practically glowing when spending time with you; Jaemin never has any boring moments with you, always in high spirits whenever you enter the room or text/call him - you are his most treasured happiness!

When cuddling, he loves to pull you close to him and lean in to nuzzle the tip of his nose with yours; Jaemin is always so gentle with you during these moments, the world is currently in his grasp and he is always admiring it with a never ending fondness for you

!! Chenle .

Never letting you leave bed, no matter your protests or whatever important is going in his/your schedule; Chenle can be real clingy, especially when sleepy and he is not taking no as an answer towards the comfortable warmth you provide him

Random photos and videos of Daegal, always referring the cute dog as ‘Our daughter’ whenever he talks about her; Chenle is willing to be a father for any of your pets also, even if its a cat

Spams you of photos or videos he’s seen on social media, you basically receive ‘Boyfriend homework’; would sometimes feel betrayed whenever you ignore his messages, Chenle would sulk until you react to his spam of messages

LOVES dragging his fingertips along your arm or hand, mindlessly tracing your soft skin while he is on his phone or listening to you ramble; Chenle always conveys his devotion to you, letting you know he is there whenever you need him

Shuts you up with a kiss or unexpectedly kisses you; Chenle would defensively say he got bored or he just misses you, the adorable smile adorning his face makes you forgive him easily

He would play basketball with you, purposely losing to see you excited about winning; Chenle also gives you a kiss before or after a game against the other members, against your lips he says ‘Cheer for me’ or ‘Thank you for cheering for me’

Play wrestles with you on the bed or couch and always ask for a kiss whenever he wins; seeing you smile and laugh makes Chenle feel refreshed, his own heart overwhelmed by the feelings he felt when falling for you the first time

!! Jisung .

Sends good morning and good night voice messages, his voice always deep with drowsiness and saying he will see you later in the day or the next day; recording his voice is easier for Jisung, he just loves to start and end his day with his attention on you

Plays games with you, mainly the laidback games like Minecraft, Roblox or other games couples play; he is always so patient with you, at times Jisung loves showing off his skills to impress you of his abilities

Shyly pokes you or tugs on your clothes/sleeve whenever he wants your attention, the big baby pouting whenever he feels a teensy bit jealous; Jisung is quite greedy, always wanting to be in your spotlight and be the reason for your happiness

LOVES holding your hand and playing with your fingers, sometimes he just likes tracing the lines on your palm; this small gesture of affection is subtle, but it comforts Jisung knowing you are his only

Is always by your side helping you clean/cook, despite lacking some knowledge in some departments - he is aiding you and doing his very best to lessen the burden for you; Jisung is reliable, wanting you to lean on him when you get busy!

Blushes and gets all flustered whenever you compliment him about his dancing or singing/rapping; Jisung’s own confidence is skyrocketing every single time, but his bashfulness is something he can never hide each time

When he’s out and sees something that reminds him of you, he is going great lengths to obtain it; Jisung even has his hyungs help him (which they do help), willing to give you the most precious diamonds to his special person aka you

[shelandsorcery]

What I've Learned About Teaching Art

I've had the privilege of teaching art in a variety of environments - from still life oil painting at the college level, to combining art with science and history in a museum setting, to guiding highschool students through creating a comics anthology. Through these very different settings, I've found a list of constants that, when I keep them in mind, help me deliver the most enjoyable and effective art education for my students. One of my core beliefs is that art is, at the heart of it all, something a student must teach themself, and that a classroom, workshop, or camp that wants to teach art is actually responsible for creating an environment and offering projects that facilitate that self-driven learning. With that on the table, here is the pantheon of truths that, if I can hold on to all of them, help me create that learning environment:

- Almost no one is inherently unable to draw. Additionally, everyone can improve at drawing. With the wealth of "traditional" media, digital tools, and thousands upon thousands of years of art history with which we can map the possibility space, it seems obvious that if someone wants to make art, then they absolutely can.  If they want to draw, then no teacher should ever, EVER tell a student that they "can't." The teacher's role is usually to take a student who already secretly believes they can't draw and help them see both the breadth of possibilities and the potential within themselves to improve whatever skills they start with. - Drawing is not always about making a beautiful image. The obsession with one kind of "good drawing" creates an artificial limit on who is allowed to draw. Sometimes being an art teacher is about expanding a student's definition of art as opposed to pushing their frustrated and dejected pencil along a path towards a narrow goal. The reality is that even within pop culture we see so many gorgeous kinds of art! Beyond that, aiming superficially as an artist for a particular surface result will almost always create lesser work than creating an understand of underlying processes and theories that helped the "good art" come into existence. - Drawing can teach new ways of seeing. Observing with the intent of drawing can transform how a person perceives the world. So much of teaching art is teaching visual literacy, the literal act of reading meaning within visual input, whether that's a still image, a film, a building or a natural landscape. When you motivate students to read visuals by providing them with new ways to understand creating visuals, you jump start their investment in visual literacy. - Drawing can help us think about things differently. Thinking can shift along with modes of seeing - what is a structural way of thought? What is a compositional way of thought? When you teach art, you must teach a student to look at things holistically and in granular elements - besides just enhancing thought processes moving between the two states, you can get much more discovery in the analytical and planning modes of appreciating and creating artwork. - Drawing from reference is as educational as reading. Learning to examine visual reference closely creates a new kind of literacy - visual literacy. Drawing from reference, especially with guided or motivated questions to be answered, can create an opportunity for modes of analysis that students don't get to otherwise use. Developing visual observation and creating a practice of looking both closely and holistically can create a layered understanding of the subject. Even students resistant to traditional still life drawing processes can find benefit in using drawing to answer self-guided questions. - Learning by making art is a valid mode of learning. Making art can be a mode of learning that both alternates between input and output and creates a sense of ownership/agency in both modes. The hands on creative process is a kind of guess and check system that can be designed carefully to allow students to make a wide variety of types of decisions, and teaches them to create goals and investigate what processes will best allow them to achieve said goals. - Competition with each other or with some imagined ideal will deflate artistic potential. An art classroom cannot have winners and losers based on "quality" of final piece. Art education will benefit more students if it is process oriented. Quality, even in straightforward skills based art education, can still be subjective, and unless it's an aggressive battle Royale for some exclusive prize, the intent of any art programming is not to find the single best but to encourage each student to improve. So don't be a dick about it. - Art is a product of restraints. Material, process, time, subject or conceptual restraints allow for a kind of focused play. Giving students free reign is in itself a huge challenge of self direction, goal setting and prioritization. Making some of those choices for them gives them a chance to focus their own learning. - Materials change the kind of engagement. Diverse materials allow for diverse engagement. Just as subject matter can affect a student's personal investment in a project, the material or method of art making can change their engagement. Changing between drawing and painting, reductive or additive sculpting, stenciling or stamping, will not only change the tactile experience of art making but will affect the modes of thought used to make creative choices. - Venue or audience transform art. Pressure to show, and to whom, can change students self imposed limitations. Defining an audience will change and add pressure to art creation. This can help students hold themselves to a higher standard, but can also frighten or overwhelm them. Audience needs can be a useful limit or influence on the direction of an art project, but audience pressure needs to be modulated to the response of each student. - Art is most interesting when it leaves the comfort zone of its creator. This can only happen in a classroom where students feel safe to take risks. Art, even when the subject matter is utterly anonymous or benign, can be a hugely risky-feeling process. Even the act of making art in a classroom environment can feel frightening; if we want students to fully engage, and to take the artistic risks that allow them to learn, we have to spend class time making the classroom into a safe space for the students. This probably needs to be it's own post so I'll leave it there for now and come back and expand upon it in detail in future. - Subject engagement transforms art. Students with something to say about their subject may push themselves farther. Caring about the subject can be a blessing or a curse for a student - deep subject investment can drive problem solving around how best to present it in the artwork, while deep subject investment can also overwhelm a student with self imposed pressure and even a large dose of imposter syndrome. Therefore it can always be useful to intersperse self selected subject matter with "boring" or at least not emotionally significant subjects, to relieve some of the pressure and allow students to instead respond to the process alone. - Ownership of a process will empower students. Whether they've designed a process, built their own materials or set their own goals, agency gives students investment. One of the most exciting things about art is that students have a lot of potential control and thus ownership - they will always be making choices, and those choices are potentially exciting because they directly affect the outcome. You can increase this sense of ownership or investment in the class by facilitating student-made materials, like sketchbooks or mark-making tools; or by facilitating student-led exercises or challenges or projects. - Demos will guide what others make and must be done carefully. Demoing can empower and at the same time overwhelm or impose limits on the viewers. Demoing must be designed to specific goals of each assignment. Eg: if you want students to use surgical techniques to explore value, or depth, or composition, whole you absolutely have to demo the technique didactically, you need to be careful not to be didactic about the results you want in relationship to the subject of exploration. Showing a wide range of potential approaches can help in classrooms where students can handle large info dumps, but often it's better to demo the technique, get them trying it out without further instruction, and then redirect then to the topic of exploration as stage 2. - Material potential can power a room. Art supplies can be motivating all on their own. Getting excited about them can make it safe for the students to get excited as well. There are many different supplies available to teach art with, and trying different ones can add a lot of excitement to the room even if your topic of instruction is narrow. Getting excited about materials can change the mood of a classroom entirely. - Criticism must engage with the student's goals or it will work against you. Setting goals, and then reflecting on them, is key to art education as so much of art is self directed. If you then ignore that setup and approach critique without listening to your students' internal direction and goals and at minimum acknowledging them, they will not find your critique constructive. This goes for young children all the way to adults - you need to be in dialogue with them. - Open discussion and open ended questions will always help. Once you've found a way to make the classroom a safe space, group discussion powered by open ended questions can open everyone's mind up to broader possibilities. One on one conversation also benefits hugely from open ended questions and encouraging students to reflect and investigate their own process and practice. - Letting students share their learning is important to help the class grow beyond your own limited experiences. Students will often still feel in competition with each other, so instituting non-competitive collaboration and sharing will be important to minimizing classroom tension. This can be demonstrated first with art games and developed into collaborative processes on more serious projects. - You can never clarify the instructions enough. Always repeat yourself, be prepared to repeat demos, have a written list of instructions and delegate helpers. Breaking projects up into stages can help with detailed instructions, but always show an overview first. Art is overwhelming and there is no process so simple everyone is automatically good at it. Accurate following of a process will often help students who are unsure of themselves prove themselves to be competent and your job as the teacher is to make sure they have everything they need to do that. - Techniques are best remembered when students use them to solve specific problems. Show how applicable to different problems a technique is during demos. Be prepared to reteach or to teach new techniques whenever students hit a wall. Encourage them to reflect over the techniques they have at hand to see if there's a new way to use one that could solve their problem. - Art is mostly learned by doing. Material literacy is gained only through material exploration. If you spend too much time talking/demoing before they get to try the materials the enthusiasm can fade. If you have a student who is frightened of doing it wrong, the most important thing is to make a safe space for them to do it wrong, because that's the only way to eventually do it right. These are all best case scenario tips - and while I've tested them all to know they work, it's still hard work to keep everything in play in every classroom. I'm hopeful that having this written list will help me, and maybe by sharing I can help others as well. Art is a privilege to teach, but I believe it is incredibly important for everyone to get to learn it, in a safe environment where the effects of an art practice can be the most beneficial. Are you teaching a creative subject? What are some techniques or core values you bring to your classroom? Read the full article

[chiyoso]

HERRSCHER OF DEATH x HSRVerse PART TWO

▶SYPNOSIS. after successfully finding welt yang, as well as dealing with other encounters, you sought out to explore further, hoping to learn and differentiate this universe between being a new reality, or something constructed artificially by the imaginary tree. the xianzhou luofu for example, being one of many stops that you took interest on.

▶CONTENT. crossover, headcannons + combined oneshot, hsr x hi3rd, hi3rd elements, heavy descriptions of fighting, female reader, serious themes, no usage of y/n, flirting, reader's just a tease, heavy topics, dead dove: do not eat.

“You're beautiful.”

𝐉𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐘𝐔𝐀𝐍 is perturbed, taken aback by your straightforward, words for him.

You were discovered floating, at least stomach level at one of the balconies where the Jade Gate resided grandiosely behind you, floating and laid comfortably, suggestively against your elegant, divine key—your lance, the very lance which caused attention to artisans within the Luofu.

It was twice the size of you, it was darker than midnight, flowers that patterned on its surfaces were replaced in glittered lines of gold, a more elegant, eerie version of the normal Abyss Flower than that one Schicksal Valkyrie had.

And with that, you held death—it was beneath you, leisurely, awaiting your commands.

You remained motionless on air, gravitating lazily, up and down idle, nonchalant towards the leading looking figure, and the people stood before you under his command.

A ruler? He did look the part, ravishingly at that.

Not caring too much, you just wanted to explore, traversing this bubble universe, all without too much usage of your limbs really.

Since a specific someone, frilly, pink and uplifting, somehow had managed to tire and drain your mentality through rigorous, unrelenting questions about you, your nature, and the relationship you had with the previous Herrscher of Reason—no, he had previously told you to stop addressing him by that title.

The mission in search for the missing Sovereign of Anti-Entropy had reached its peak, the task was completed, you were done.

What was not, was the overwhelming curiousity you harbored towards such a complex, and sturdily built universe. This world—this... bubble universe. Behaving so accordingly, properly. The stability of everything, it was almost anxiety inducing, frighteningly perfect, you were uneasy from how detailed, sentient and alive everything and everyone was.

Perfection is non-existent wherever sentience prevailed, but this... this is truly next, next level.

You're certain that this world wouldn't fall victim to the Sea of Quanta's abyss, not after being birthed with a vast, new whole new star system, ecological ruptures scattered in highs and lows, numerous amounts of advanced technology existing in all kinds of ways and forms, each world having their own ways of tech akin to their aesthetics and traditionalism.

And if the imaginary tree can create such complex systems, visuals—just how powerful, potent and complex is it to create godlike beings similar to you that could eradicate any existing molecule if they so wished? All the more reason to explore and gather valuable data for those awaiting you in your original world.

That's speaking if you do manage to find your way back, given the knowledge from Welt Yang that he hasn't found a way yet. Safely at least.

Speaking of perfection.

Golden irises met yours, he studied your intricately and interesting designed eyes, they were different, abnormal, but he was accustomed to concepts such as yours, at least, that's what he'd like to believe.

Northern star shaped pupils, a hollow, gradient iris as its bastion, one of many things he noticed about how ethereal you really were.

To give you a compliment with those words would be an insult, it was an understatement.

You were more than mesmerizing, extraordinary, otherworldly, but one thing was most clear to the General; you were also a threat, a large scale one.

He was no diviner like Fu Xuan, but the premonition of unease settled in, engraved so deeply within his gut.

“Your kind words are received, however,” sharp sounds of armory clinked and shifted, winds being cut forward as the horizontal row of spearsmen that positioned themselves behind the general, weaponry raised—all defensively towards you,

What a predicament you've gotten yourself into.

“What are you, and what do you stand to achieve at this hour of day, my lady?” His unidentifiable gaze remained to your direction, occasionally, subtly glancing down towards the weapon you had displayed under you, and back up to meet your hypnotic eyes.

The commotion from the civilians only grew, be it humans, Foxians, or the Vidyhadras.

Some had caused an uproar from your overly grand appearance, some were whispers, quickly plaguing gossips of you being a high Emanator from the deceased Aeon of Beauty Idrila, and the majority—perceived you to be a threat.

All assumptions based on how their mighty, Arbiter General had his Cloud Knights stationed protectively for them, and with apparent offense towards you.

Even if you were, Jing Yuan remained that positive demeanor, he had to, for the lives that resided in Central Starskiff Haven.

“Your... negative, internal inputs of me are so loud and misplaced, handsome,” you had to deeply inhale back a visible reaction, the way he stiffened when you gave him a nickname was nothing but so utterly, endearing.

“But, to avoid rousing concerns and disputes that you are so desperately trying to avoid,” you exaggerate, musing him with a chesire-like smile.

“I'll lower myself down to your standards, all for you,” your mouth slightly parts into a small grin, taking in that miniscule amount of surprise that showed on his face from the upgrade of handsome to that.

Lovely, just lovely. That twitch in between his brows, the slight pursing of his top lip, kissing it to the bottom, the way he'd raise his head to stand tall, masking whatever emotions that stirred cruelly inside him.

Subtle his reactions may be, his embarassment was present to your keen observations.

Your lance beneath your body dissipates into a golden light, leaving behind particles of particles, your form now straightened again, taking footing on the railing of the balcony, your hands raised to the sides of your head.

To diffuse the intensity of the situation of course, even if you did have to make yourself look weak by a small amount, aware that last time's show of strength towards the Astral Faction did a number of them—mentally anyways.

𝐉𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐘𝐔𝐀𝐍 would push unnecessary thoughts to the back of his head. Unorthodox thoughts related to attraction, ranging from the way your fingers effortlessly be positioned in a way similar to dancers that visit the Luofu, enthralling, captivating, the way your eyes—those eyes, the way those stars would glide, seize him, his knights, and the overall dauntiny situation.

𝐉𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐘𝐔𝐀𝐍 wasn't one to fear, but you were just haunting, overflowing with elegance, and you were dangerously coy, something that would, at theory, weaken and enable that primal instinct you see in charmed men.

𝐉𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐘𝐔𝐀𝐍 would slightly lower his guard down, signaling his men to lower their weapons, his own right hand moving towards the side of his head, mirroring half of your surrendered gesture.

But alluring your appearances may be.

𝐉𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐘𝐔𝐀𝐍 will not waver, nor will he allow his self-mastery of calm resolution to be wavered by your antics. To protect the Luofu, he'd add, defensively, even if the very concept of radiance stood confidently, and defiantly before him.

𝐉𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐘𝐔𝐀𝐍 would see you, see past your entity-like behavior, observing how you behave once his golden eyes travel enough, just enough to know you were a work of art underneath the silk you wore.

You were otherworldly, but you were still human.

”My lady...” He took a step to you, eyes never leaving your more visible physiq—your eyes.

He took a few moments to claw at any given thing that would reclaim his previous state of calm again, the silence, accompanied with a light buzzing and bustling commotion, filling his ears, uncertainty dulling his senses for a moment.

Be strong, General. He reaffirms himself, steeling his mind and heart, a noticable shift in his demeanor while you both locked your gazes to one another.

“You... are not a citizen of the Xianzhou Luofu, that much is obvious. Vast, the Astral Express may be, I have not heard word of you having an alliance with the travelers accustomed in traversing within the stars,” Oh, them?

“I have also noticed that you don't bear the crest of the Interastral Peace Corporation,”

Ah, so that's what it means. Previously hearing one, or a hundred continuously yell abbreviations during their chase for you.

For an alliance that wore the word 'peace' proudly in their name, their tactics were sure far from it.

“And the way you appear and hold yourself in such high, confident regards, even in my presence...” Mm?

So there is something special about hi—

“You, are not human, and of this world, are you? At the very least, one of which where the Luofu presides,” the air shifted, Cloud Knights once at ease, now filled with confusion, mixed with an alarm as they hear their General speak out with stern, a tone that can't be differentiated between being a question, or a threat.

Ha.

...

Even that Schicksal maid couldn't discern large, and small scale details that quickly upon just meeting a stranger such a few minutes of close contact.

“...You'd be more than correct.” You attempted to hold yourself and your facial muscles motionless, keeping your hands up to both sides of your head for him. You wouldn't hear the end of it from the trailblazers if you displayed such a disrespectful, unwelcomed, excitement. It was unbefitting of this situation, that much was obvious.

Mmh, but you would digress, for this man was so very, truly fascinating, one that interested you the most. Apart from the blue haired man that craved death in earlier events.

You would assume his abilities, almost purposely rousing him to invoke terrifying reactions you know he's capable of underneath all that reservation and mental fortitude.

His observational skills, overwhelming, giving you a surge that you are being preyed upon on, cat like eyes and reflexes, dilating towards everything subtle you do. That hollow, yet welcoming enough smile that doesn't reach to his pretty eyes, staged for the civilians in confusion, protecting them from feelings of panic and terror.

The highlight in his eyes that would shine brightly as if he just solved every problem there is, the problem being you perhaps, solving you without hints and solutions, guiding him to this battle of composure. A trained body language and demeanor so used to being in regal command.

And a mouth so well versed in literature and strategic prowess, knowing what words to use in all times. you could just...—

“An Emanator, then?”

...

Huh. What did he just call you?

His voice sounded lower than before, almost threatening, the delivery of tone in which you only picked up on since that expression still retained on that pretty face of his.

It may be a pleasant, questionare he'd staged carefully to not alarm his knights and the people present, but to you—you were aware it was only masked hiding the fact that it was an interrogation.

Maybe, a deserved one at that from your sudden appearance within their faction, but since it was a public confrontation, he'd trust your judgements that you wouldn't act so rashly, especially with innocent lives around the luofu were present.

What a bold, bold man.

Already trusting you to the stars with just a few moments of talking, since establishing main key points with you in entirety, of this conversation.

Wait. No, wait a moment.

The young March 7th did ramble to you something about an adventure of theirs not too long ago—containing a word with Emanator, or Lord Ravager within the storyline of hers. Ah.

An emanator. A defeated one. Phantylia, was it?

“Tch,” You didn't like that comparison, assumption it may be, it irked you, especially since encountering a being far greater than her, at least, almost, just barely almost the same level as you being a Herrscher.

You were only nothing but...

“Greater,” you lowered your hands to your sides, standing tall, chin raised with your eyes, fierce and lowered to them—towards him.

“...Greater.” Jing Yuan would repeat, slowly, as if he was relishing the intensity of the meaning behind your answer, the both of you staring each other down, neither side's auras waning down, exceeding amounts of hostility by the second, even if his was misdirected towards you.

He could only assume negatively then, but you were only reciprocating their behavior, after all.

You move both limbs up to your sides once more, a gradiose pose, unphased to the endless sky that accompanied this enormous grand hexafleet that reminded you of the Hyperion of Schicksal.

A step back from the railing would be a mortal man's doom to, perhaps, between, a fate of an endless free fall, suffering from loneliness, with death not being able to cradle and bring you to salvation—or, you would be accompanied with a fear and thoughts of inevitable doom as you fall to something ranging from abominations of the so-called Aeon of Abundance, or.

A simple, boring splat, meeting the ground with a gruesome, inelegant end.

His eyes narrowed with your gesture, finding himself—or the hand behind him subconsciously ready to summon his glaive, a defensive stance so buried deeply into his body that the simple word 'reflex' can't do it justice.

“By 'greater', my lady, you mean you are...—”

Ancient. Everlasting. A covenant.

“Immeasurable, inconceivable, a vessel to humanity's fatal destruction that reached over fifty thousand years ago, a concept humanity has yet to grasp in those countless eras of waste and fruition,”

“An ornament, a paradoxical lament to something greater, far, far greater than destruction itself,”

“I am greater, than those who were labeled the greatest.” It wasn't as if you were trying to appear narcissistic, nor overly confident in your abilities.

But that was only the bigger, and bitter truth.

And it is how Raiden Mei (Herrscher of Origin) would potentially word things given her serious, primordial nature—and your claims of such power, being supported due to the sudden glowing of your eyes.

The sound of cracking, and shattering glass that only you and the General can only hear since he was the closest, sourced from the skin behind your exposed back, a dark mist seeping out of it little by little, along with your Honkai energy levels that were growing simultaneously in an alarming pace.

What's worse—you were unaware of the phenomenon you were displaying right now for it was subconscious, as you revel in the truth of your words with a grin. A misplaced, mistrusting grin you weren't quite aware of you were showing for the General.

Not a Welt Yang within the area right now.

Not a Sovereign, nor a retired Herrscher in your sights to control the situation with knowledge he only held about your kind—your existence.

Not a creature that matched your power and strength, living or not, to stop you in your glory.

The weight of your words manifested into something heavy, full of density, full of dread, it felt awful, sickening, suffocating, his Cloud Knights and those who were near to hear your frightening words of calamity tensed, sweat starting to surface underneath the fabric that hides their terror, their feet glued to the cement as a helplessness guided them to their internal panic, his Cloud Knights in desparate waiting for any sort of order, movement, any syllable from the man before them.

The Jade Gate behind you blocked the brilliant light for the singular, attentive individual that remained tall, a pillar that he had to be for the ones cowering in the heaviness of your words—the Arbitrator Charioteer stands tall, immovable to your claims of calamitous power.

A Lord Ravager, then. The thought internalized inside his mind based on the grevious words, words of grief worthy testaments, laid bare for the citizens to find themselves in a state of fear that doesn't have the need to use any vocal chords.

“A threat,” he voiced, low and firm. His weaponry materializing from the back, the long length of the spear-like weapon, an oriental, traditional looking glaive, finding its solace within his grasp, making him appear complete his weapon apparent.

“You say you are the home to an enemy of humanity, do you acknowledge this, my lady.”

The glaive's tip finds its way towards your direction, the seriousness of the situation finally weighing down as you, your pupils landing on the weaponry pointed at you.

You look to your surroundings beyond the man, arms lowered as your gaze dissects the crowds near you.

Fear, and only fear.

Something you are so accustomed to since bearing the Will of the last Herrscher of Death, and only those who were equally—if not stronger can only ever truly look at you in the eyes, like how this man before you is currently doing.

“You raise a weapon to me.”

“A weapon with intentions to protect those who stand behind me,” his hold tightens around his weapon, his expression mirroring the seriousness of yours, excluding the disbelief you had, mixed with... something else he couldn't discern, at least not yet.

A long, deep inhale. To the point where you exhaust your lungs of air, then exhaling through your teeth, the few last seconds of it being shaky with lips parting slightly, forming into a small, horizontal oval.

They are only fearful. A kind voice reassured in the center of your mind, though it was faint, it was impactful.

That fear being you, you mean. A familiar, malicious one intruded, causing you to bring a hand to your head again, grasping the side as you clicked your tongue.

Even talking about a truth relating to your power, urges the Houkai?

No—illogical, it attacks your mental capacity.

To weaken it. Your emotions, your willpower. You'd long forgotten since then, for it had been quite long ago that anyone, had manage to waver your mental strength.

But you can't help it, you hate being looked at with such genuine fear. You hate it, you really do.

It was unfair, it really was. You only do good.

You've been only good. Only nothing but good.

You breathe unsteadily, giving yourself to the silence to calm yourself for a few, long moments, selective hearing at play.

Something was amiss, the General would observe in his guarded silence, lowering his weapon to his side, vertical, the end of his glaive grounded to the cement. He was to take a step, treading in eggshells, making his way with intentions of closing the gap between you and him.

But a hand, yours, a palm towards him had stopped him dead at his tracks, halting his attempt of a succor—towards you.

You're not one to seek help.

But, stubborn as you are, it would be devastating to put this hyperion like faction to a ruin that you've gotten used to seeing everywhere.

Ah. You, again. Me, again.

And so? You are unwelco—

Being a Herrscher, a catastrophic one, at that.

What is a Herrscher like you blending in with human civilizations, through time and time again?

...Ha. You are weak, I have conquered you, stabilized you—and myself long, long ago.

Yes. Yes, that would be the case right now, wouldn't it, partner of Death.

But recall, where a Herrscher presides—is where my existence remains intact.

For my will... is neverending.

Just like death, infinity and everlasting.

Tch. To choose the unpredictable willingly, that was your forte, to use the unknown in retaliation against the calculative will inside you, to descontruct the threatening finality of your stupor.

It is a new era. This one especially, the world of Pegana, the world that habors no virus that nestle inside you—at least, that's what you believe and have observed in your short time in this 'bubble universe.'

They don't struggle against the Houkai that resided inside you, and that was good, relieving.

Not until traumatic imagery, thoughts of you bringing a fate worse than whatever hell already existed for them, visible, cruel, and horrible.

The fragment of that possibility fine tuning muscles on your face to something sour, having that expression noticed immediately by the General that stood brightly before you.

“You,” you let out a call towards him, similarly to a snarl in your mental discomfort, gaining his attention. You sought out in voice, seeking out warmth, pacing yourself internally, resuming to reassure your will with familiar words that led to alleviate your worries.

“I don't desire to cause harm, and—”

“—And yet, you speak in alarming malice, my lady, such brutal, unfathomable words, coming from that mou-.. from- from the way you speak.”

...What was that pause?

“Listen,” a slight jolt from him, “and listen well,”

You appeared just before him in one step. His fingers twitch, his reflexes, motor skill, practicing heavy, heavy restraint to just have a swing at you.

Time had stood still for him, seeing you closer, you were no taller than him, but you remained intimidating, if anything, the differences made you appear more alluring, accompanied with lucent eyes he only started to focus on once captured by your gaze, an eager eye contact that matched his vigor, that subconscious curiousity and excitement, growing ever so finely, but then.

He remembered those under his command.

“YIELD—yield your weapons,” his free hand simultaneously moves up, open, signaling his Cloud Knights just in time, the muted rustling of equipment now heard, winds that were sliced from their cloud piercers towards you now halted abruptly, and of course, you hadn't wavered one bit. “Wise,” you add, tilting your head up to him.

A vicious, musing smirk, one which of which he couldn't decide to detest it, or to be smitten by it.

At least for right now.

“...If you think and speak of me in such ways, why haven't I brought said ruination into this beautiful, well constructed flagship we currently reside in?”

“Mm,” A great point. He'd look over his shoulder, towards the Cloud Knights coupled defensively, a sum of Xianzhou locals, astral tourists, stilled by fear and unease.

One last deep breath—you straighten your form, the hand from your head moving downwards to your chest, this time inhaling through your teeth. Simultaneously, the glow from your eyes would dull, along with the rejuvenation of your cracked skin, closing up a rift-like wound that was sourced at your spine.

The General sighs, the free hand moving towards his head, now letting frustration that had been tugging at him since this encounter with you.

It was unhealthy to someone imbued with mara.

There were only a few lasting seconds to take a stand, an initative, a singular choice that wouldn't provoke, you—nor worsen what the crowd that flocked together was feeling.

It was truly a taxing, and difficult situation.

Only for him anyways.

𝐉𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐘𝐔𝐀𝐍 will move with purpose, in every action in his next courses of actions. You would think in his 800 years of loyalty and commitment to the Xianzhou Luofu would easily override his curiousity for you—not at all. Eight centuries of repetitiveness, without the need to indulge in the other mysteries of the universe, and that will also be eight centuries of boredom, perhaps something the discover of your existence can begin to alleviate.

𝐉𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐘𝐔𝐀𝐍 is a man, an immortal one, the mara that presides within gnaws at his mind, but death isn't able to welcome him just yet, he is unmoving to that concept, but finding himself hesitant, yet feeling that want to play this game of cunning and intelligence against you.

𝐉𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐘𝐔𝐀𝐍 found eerieness, and a not so welcomed serenity the moment you introduced yourself formally, grand and opening, having you in the center of the divining area within the Divination Commission, wrists, ankles binded separately, ones that held you together, rendering you immobile were something of astral configuration, projection, but some sort of space manipulation, enchantment you can't fanthom, and most importantly—can't get out of.

And 𝐉𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐘𝐔𝐀𝐍 would himself revel in that little smidge of discomfort you had, the little creasing between your eyebrows despite the polite and forced smile you had, amused at the way your hands would move, wriggle against the starry chains, and finding himself more impressed once you manage to hold your expression tightly, along with managing to hold back a sound with that pretty, pretty mouth of yours.

Because every time you would try to free yourself, your entire being feels this electrifying, unpleasant burning, it is invasive, mind and emotional means, it runs through your very soul, it tugs at it, warning you, and it behaves similarly like the Houkai within you, and it is sickening.

Sickening to feel something foreign creep up to you again, to try and destroy you from the inside out, what's worse—it had no traces of Houkai Energy, so you weren't able to identify and manipulate it at all, and everytime you would use your own abilities, you would be met with something sharp, a weapon immediately pressed against your nape.

Curiousity had once killed a cat, but what feline is there to be seen, for they have grasped only but a predator.

“You were the one who asked to be binded,”

“To cease any worries, of course,” a half truth. You feign another smile, one that he would mirror with slight amusement. Just where is this confidence he was getting from? You'd think, wincing as soon as your body naturally tries to free itself again, biting your bottom lip to stifle any noise.

“These... binds, they allow you to sense any malicious activity, yes?” The General would let out a musing hum, walking towards you, eyeing you.

“As much as I would love to partake in offering you knowledge,” he looks towards a direction, and you follow his gaze. “Unfortunately, you'll have to relay your questions to the Diviner over there,” A pink colored hair, a hue you wouldn't associate with Ms. March, her demeanor held respectable prowess, something you can admire.

“I see,” you reply, short and neat, sighing.

“Is this necessary, you question.” he narrates for you, taking the words that were already subconsciously forming in the back of your head.

You found it endearing, cocking your head to the side, a genuine smile this time, one that shifted immediately into a smirk. “You'd have to stare at me in long amounts to know what thoughts I currently harbor,” his head returns to your direction, finding those golden eyes gleam along with yours, his lips almost curling upwards.

Almost, but he won't allow it. Not just yet.

“Mm, you would be correct,” So, so dangerous.

“But almost anyone would think that once they know Lady Fu will be invading one of humanities vulnerabilities—the mind, being one of them.”

“Hmp, so much resistance for what...” you mumble softly, complaining about the way he would deflect your advances—he had been since encountering you, especially when you were on the way to the place where you currently are.

“I don't know what you mean,” you were heard. His answer made you look away from him, towards the calm ether, an atmosphere showered with golden leaves, most likely sourcing from the beautifully large scale tree you saw on the way to here, and those golden leaves, caught and nestled within the fabric of your outfit, only enhanced the state you were in—you being flushed, or almost from his comment.

And he'd think and believe, that this current expression suited you far more than the hierarchy fitting description one you masked yourself with.

You sigh, walking a few steps towards him. “As if I would act on malice,” you correct, fatigued, just arriving beside him, knowing he has you in his peripheral. “No, but you are still actively trying to escape, are you not?”

“If there's one thing that would unsettle me, it would be not able to move freely,”

“...Yet, you haven't, not once, have complained during your willing capture, especially when I was proving you immobile.” What are you doing, General. He berates himself internally just after saying that.

“...Your hands did feel better than these things after all,” silence. He answers with silence and three deep breaths, arms closed defensively, your words clearly, clearly affecting him, troubling him.

“Say,” he breaks the silence, and your amused humming. “Are you really fifty-thousand years old? Or did you mean it, harboring something of that age,”

“The latter,” you're quick to answer, now turning heel, moving towards the edge of the platform, eyes squinted nonchalantly. “Are these skies endless as they seem, or is there something that would await you down there?”

“I wouldn't know.” “Why n—”

“Because I haven't indulged myself in a free fall,”

You turn, looking over your shoulder, meeting his golden eyes, unable to choose between annoyance or attraction from his sudden sarcasm.

“General Jing Yuan,” a voice interrupts your reply, your head both turning to the source.

Mm. Jing Yuan, huh.

“Ah, Lady Fu,” he'd acknowledge the pink haired's presence, placing her attention quickly to you, and it only amused you, given how she had this look of disapproval, a twinge of curiousity.

But of course, emotions are more stronger when facing the unknown.

“The Matrix of Prescience is functioning at its finest, any unsealing, rudimentary or advanced would be completely left unscathed, and any type of escape will not be possible for the acting God as per dire request, at least, in 824 possibilities I've calculated f—”

“How accomodating,” you interrupt, shooting the Diviner, and the General an unamused look, a wry smile to hide a slight bitterness that you won't deny within you.

“Only for the best,” He'd add, low, teasing, grasping your attention effortlessly, noticing that slight tensing of your body language, quite liking the effect he had on you currently.

“Only for me, then?” You're quick to retaliate, now striding towards him, smirking and you'd purposely exaggerate your movements, alluring and elegant as you move, catching that miniscule, quick shift in his eyes.

“For the ones unwilling to share their truth,” he looks down as you arrive, indifferent you'd think, but he looked stiff, too professional, unnatural.

“As if your questions wouldn't be answered if you asked in the first place,” you're correct and you know it. “I digress, Lady Herrscher,” the pink is quick to interrupt. “There would be far more possibilities to assess if we were to take that free, unpremeditated route considering your claims of absolute destruction, whether it'd be the escape of your existence, endangering the Luofu, or—”

“That gate, it is acting as a fine line between the stars, and your faction, yes?” you interrupt, liking the slight crease of annoyance between her eyebrows.

“...You would be correct.” Fu Xuan answers, jolting shortly after once your head lowers to her, eyes dark with suspicious amusement.

“Be aware, had your shortly assessed claims prove multiple chances of being true, I would have already done so the moment I stepped foot into what you call the Jade Gate,” you answer with a wry, cold smile, your voice carrying a serious tone this time, along with your expression just like earlier tall, menacing, and haunting.

But still beautiful, the thought nestles comfortably in Jing Yuan's mind, eliciting a heavy exhale through his nose, and you can't identify if it was exhaustion, or frustration, but what you have determined is that he was calm, too calm for someone who is in the presence of a Herrscher.

...Or do the concept of Herrschers not exist in this universe?

“Hm,” the Diviner's eyes narrow, considering, thinking deeply, ignoring the threatening indications in your tone.

“That would... erase 7,254 possibilities of you wreaking havoc, causing no harm and chaos towards the Xianzhou Alliance, as well as having the idealogy, the possibility of you being a Lord Ravager, as well as the part where your loyalties lie for the Aeon of Destructio—”

“Thank you?” “It isn't a co—” the General interrupts by movement, and the action of coughing dryly onto his fist, stepping in between both you, and the Diviner.

“My lady, would you be so kind to indulge and alleviate our worries? It would be of much great help to the Xianzhou's mental fortitude, as well as mine,” he brings out his hand, trained, calloused yet well taken care of, towards the direction of the large, and no doubt advanced technology that was currently up and running, ready for you.

But, if you were to round up the little information you were given based on this sole interaction alone, this astral looking device would, in theory, be able to read, or pry into either your mind.

And that wasn't good for you, neither it is for the Houkai Energy that takes home in your body.

“I have a favor to ask both of you, and the Luofu,” they'd both perk, the word unexpected showing in their expressions to your sudden request.

“Whatever it is that is ongoing, cease everything once you witness something, anything, fluctuate, do everything to render me immobile, unable, or useless,” you'd look to the General for the last part of your sentence, a serious yet silent pleading on those lovely eyes, recognized by him.

He wouldn't need an explanation, he had already witnessed it, the sudden rouses of personality that didn't fit you, the physical and mental discomfort you displayed, grasping your head in earlier events and the radiant glow of your eyes.

“Do you understand, my mighty General?”

But even then, you'd still be able to surprise him, attract him despite being steeled by your vague warning, and that itself was dangerous already.

“I'm starting to destest this... lack of respect, and self preservation in your words and demeano—”

“Let's... start, Lady Fu, let's not keep our guest, waiting,” such strong words, but you'd know that you've only greatly affected him, considering his guarded expression, stoic and stern, but his eyes continue to glue to yours, unidentifiable, but determined, you just don't know if it's something related a positive one or not.

'My' General, you say. He'd pause, attempting to keep composed, giving a subtle, brief squint to you while he played your those lines over and over in his head. "I could wait all the time for you,” you muse with a teasing chuckle, letting him guide you towards the platform of spheres.

Astrological symbols and starry projections, it was pleasing to the eye, but its mechanism were unbefitting of the aesthetics, knowing this enclosure is one that is enable to invade your mind, your memories and your being.

It's funny, you are to stand within something so similar to how you are, it was beautiful, primordial like, and it was also something that people didn't want to associate themselves with. Just like you.

Jing Yuan would hum, mirroring your amused expression, he could only assume what thoughts had presented themselves to you as you gaze towards the Matrix of Prescience.

Fu Xuan's emotions dive into the categories of reminiscence, nostalgia and a twinge of guarded anticipation, you being inside it bringing memories flickering, familiar imagery of cunning, allure and authority flashing your figure.

Kafka. She'd sigh heavily, now attaining suitable form, ready to dive into mysteries that settled surfaced, or deep in your mind.

“Whenever you're ready,”

Whenever they're ready. A crude internal voice slips out, causing you a slight discomfort.

Behave, I believe they have the technology to get rid of you, and they're just unaware of it.

And considering the possibility that without me, you are nothing.

What makes you, yourself—is me.

I don't mind losing you.

You let your face muscles contract into a wicked grin on your face while your head remained low, your breathing intervallic with purpode to concentrate.

I've already found another that has the means and capacity to replace your greatness, if not greater. You look up, now taking witness to the light illuminating the entirety of you, all before placing your gaze at the General that stood with anticipation next to the initiator of this conduct.

You'd give up your divine principles for a nothing but a miniscule speck of human companionship?

Why not? You bore me.

...That is only the result of you not using me to immeasurable extents, destroying a continent, for example.

There are other ways to destroy things. Your chuckle is seen, confusing the Diviner and the Arbiter General, especially one that sounded out with endearment, especially once you bit your lip to the General.

You are all the same. Mm, yes.

I never did claim to abandon my humanity in the first place, no? That's n—

“Oh Miss lovely Diviner,” you call out, shunning the other internal voice out, closing your eyes, bliss and free, despite your restraints.

“You will be dealing with three consciousness,” you open your eyes, biting your bottom lip to stifle laughter from the priceless reactions of disbelief and confusion in both their faces.

“What.” Her eyes leave whatever she was working onto the astral projection, constellations floating adrift within her hands, just like you at the current.

“What do you mean by... three consciousness?”

“Steady, you are unfocused,” you chuckle thereafter, your words only snapping her out of seconds worth of shock, denying to process her emotions of disbelief.

“It is as literal as I can get, three, individual consciousness.” You bite your bottom lip harder, cheeks puffing and just stifling to let a sound of laughter out, your circumstances amusing the General as he crossed his arms, closing his eyes while you mused her with your teasing antics.

“Me, the last successor of the power I hold currently, and the culprit of ruination that I, have mentioned prior my captivity—the lovely General would know what I'm referring to,” you glance briefly at the General, dead in the eyes, admiring him before returning your eyes to the Diviner.

“So tread with utmost care, for once you stray off from mine, you will be dealing with fifty-thousand worth of memories, all filled with inconceivable amounts of terror... and otherworldly struggles.”

The familiar silence again, not including the sounds of stars and shapes moving around you, runes, magic circles appearing and diminishing in tempos. “...Do not take me lightly,” the Diviner refocuses, her attention and concentration towards the particles of light and spacial matter before her sights, and her fingertips.

“Hmhm,” “You need not tease her,” your full attention returns to the General, giving him that coy smile that unsettles and pleases him all in one.

“You'd prefer if I do it to you instead, then?”

“...I said no such thing,” “I don't hear resistance.”

There, that color. It suits him, and he wears the hue so, so well. He'd look away, down to the ground to avoid your smug gaze, arms crossed, as if that defense would stop you from continuing your attacks. “You hold so much beauty, General.”

Says you who continues to be frustratingly magnificent and irresistible. “Focus on the ta—”

“Mm, are you talking to me, or to yourself?” The General takes a deep breath, refusing to meet your gaze, his golden irises tearing away from yours and out towards the other platforms of the Divination Commission.

How long had it been since having himself indulge in interactions such as this? Too long.

You'd expect from the Mighty Arbiter General of the Luofu to not indulge himself in things that will hinder is work, distract him from protecting the Luofu, but you'd be surprise for how long 800 years can really be.

Eons that were accompanied by friends that named themselves longing, loneliness and emptiness, and even faced with emotions he wasn't acquainted with, the emotions being satisfaction, and this warming anticipation...—

He wouldn't, he wouldn't. He would not allow himself, or rather, the Mara wouldn't allow him.

He wouldn't let the one who will enter, capture and steal his heart witness his inevitable fate, one that involved the blossoming of ginkgo leaves, painted with the scarlet red that reeks of a cruel, unhappy death, he would rather just—let no one suffer, he will protect those who need protecting.

But of five people, four had only paid the price.

And right now, the sight of you, all tied, almost vulnerable, mixing in with the memories of pleasant interactions you and him had since the encounter.

To seek out this vixen of a woman, play her games as she did with his, testing him, observing him in the same manner he would to her.

He would gladly be the last.

How could he resist? His charms, wit, intelligence, it was all mirrored by someone so cunningly attractive, not only in physical but the way you hold yourself, his reflected charms being reciprocated if not better?

It all made him feel good.

So good, and maybe, just maybe, he can finally... at least once more in his immortality, can he finally prioritize something else other than the Luofu, other than—“General! General Jing Yuan!”

Yanqing? Familiar voices snap him out of his deep trance, eyes widened, confused, alarmed at the sight that came to be. Two floating blades of ice, both horizontal to block a large scale whip, it was dark, serpent like, exuding black mists—and it retracts again, golden dust particles trailing off from the direction it had attempted to attack him.

The serpent like whip slithered, back, back and forwards again, moving—“ABOVE!” It attacks again, its speed and velocity unmatched for the ice swords the little commander, the density and strength once it clashes with four, five blades, overruling it, shattering each sword with ease.

“Watc—Tch,” The General immediately acts, lunging and taking hold of the blonde boy to move out of the way, him being caught off guard making Jing Yuan barely dodge out of the way.

“At ease, Yanqing,” Rubbles, dusts, the aftermath of the shock scathed his skin in small cuts and dust, ornamental clothes dirtied.

“S-Sorry General... I was—” The platform gives out an unpleasant noise, one that threatened its unsteadiness as it rumbles.

His balance becomes unaffected once he steels himself, strong legs now bastioned against the floor, an arm wrapped around the blonde boy's torso. “Converge, and awaken!” Strategems of constellations manifest into the reality, its canvas a circular gradient of condensed energy, illustrated as magic circle of spatial patterns.

“Lady Fu—” “In short,” her summonings had fade, rejuvenating the two and those around within the vicinity within the Matrix of Prescience of fatigue and light injuries. The Master Diviner drifts down in glittering elegance, using her omniscial abilities to avoid rubble, footing now obtained, assuming a defensive stance to the omnidirectional moving whip, eyes attentive to any and every movement.

“A memory, one of most grief, it provoked something, triggered something. One moment she was well, infuriating, and what followed af—”

Grief? “Is—Is she... safe?”

“Physically, that would be a given, but in psychological means...” She followed his automatic gaze, up towards where you were continued to reside in. You were still restrained, but there were new details no one would miss, the first of few being your struggle that showed on your face, eyes closed, teeth grinding against each other, beads of sweat trickling along your skin.

Your skin would have these cracks, dark mists with golden particles as rifts this time would be plastered vertically on one half of your face, like train tracks, down and down to your neck, to the fabric of where your chest was located. It was beaming, pulsing, bright, despite the dark mist that shrouded you whole.

A source? Plausible. He'd reaffirm his suspicions, setting down the blonde that continuously squirmed in his arms. “G-General what—”

“Retreat, all of you.” Thank you for your consent.

He referred to your warning of earlier events, to stop you in your tracks, to harm you, to end you.

“B-But—!” “If you will, Lady Fu.” She looks over her shoulder, glaring at him, mumbling 'fool' before encasing herself, Yanqing and those who were valiant in the field, all into her spherical realm of stars, disappearing from the premises of danger. “Now then,” the General resummons his glaive, light manifesting in accordance to his hand movements.

“An attempt of harm towards the Master Diviner, my Cloud Knights, Commander Yanqing, and the Arbiter General,” he bends his knees, hands gripping the length of his weapon.

“Causing public disruption, disturbance and damage within the Divination Commission,” wind pressure forms, circular and forceful around him.

And including... particular indecencies. He adds internally, sighing, blushing, the General lifts his gaze to you, to the troubled you, radiant with no peace, veiled in darkness.

“By order of one of the Seven Arbiter Generals, you are to face judgement through the Ten-Lords Commission,” he lunges, strong and with intense speed, up and above with a grunt escaping him.

“A punishable degree, possible of long time imprisonment within Shackling Pris—” he jolts, offensive form faltering the moment he sees your eyes open slowly. “Welt... Welt Yang,” you mutter, rasp and low, struggling to maintain hold in your consciousness. What? He retracts, stopping the subconscious swing he was about to do, maintaining to float as lightning crackled all over him, keeping him leveled to you.

“Th-The Sovereign...—” You're quite accommodating, keeping this man at bay for me.

The moment your eyes widened in realization to your surroundings, the sight before already had taken a drastic turn, he had barely parried the serpent-like whip with his glaive, his strength barely able to hold against the weight and thickness of the entity like weapon.

Tch. You squirm, struggling, remembering the binds that hold you in place. “General!” You hold out both arms out towards his direction, desparate, giving your wrists out to him.

He sees you from the corners of his eyes, glancing for a second before forcing his focus to the assailant that threatens his life with ease.

Without hesitation, the General uses the weight of the whip, lowering his usage of strength and himself, now using the overwhelming momentum to force it downwards, barely dodging the vertical strike by tilting his side, a sharp air following, grazing his skin.

“Quite contradicting, are you?” His admirable strength and words that followed up bring you a sense of relief, amusement afterwards, as after images of parallel strikes, vertical, horizontal, diagonal free you from your binds.

“You like it,” you don't miss the chance to tease, grinning, moving your wrists to the opposite of each other, now moving with after-image like speed. “Do I distract you that much, General?”

“You-...” Instinct, instinct, instinct. His irises dilate, now sensing, feeling a throbbing dread that put him in a stunloc—“Focus,” you say, clicking your tongue, appearing just right infront of him again.

Your reflexes act, hands moving in elegant patterns, your own abilities manifesting that familiar golden dust-like summons as each particle hardens, coming into contact with multi-shooting, razor sharp attacks, parrying them in unsettling precision.

I truly don't understand the need to protect such selfish, greedy, imperfect anthropoids.

Cease your pet, I don't like how it uses my body to fuels itself.

Hmhm, you carry me most of your life, what's the difference of another presence?

It invades and drains me continuously, in a disgusting, putrid way most possible. Unlike you.

Flattering, somewhat, but no. Sounds of cracking could be heard, but you wouldn't hesitate to reinforce, the space all around you and the General filled with aerial destruction and explosions with each attack and defense.

You multitask, sighing, a hand moving lazily, snapping your fingers to the air beneath the two of you, setting up a barrier to protect those that remain on the Divination platform, and the whole floating structure itself.

You didn't have to protect, but you did. The natural reaction—no, reflex, for you being another surprise to the General, his eyes lowered to the see through glass-like barrier, protected from debris and the individual entity that caused the mayhem in the first place.

Then again, it did still stem from you, no?

The General glances back up to you, now standing idle, strucked with disorientation, his thoughts clashing with one another, like what you were currently doing right now.

No, you were performing, this was just another day for you, another day of familiarity. Just how much did you lose, endure in order to reach this state of almost Aeon-like advancements?

How... exhausted were you despite the strength you held? Those eyes, not once have they glimmered like in earlier events as you fend off the stray that came from you, or wherever else it came from. The radiance in your eyes, dulling, bored as it dilates to every precise attack it brings you, pinpointing its contact points with precision.

Not even Phantylia reached one-tenth of your speed and summoning.

“Sorry,” you mutter under your breath, only once had the sounds of explosions cease briefly, your unexpected apology heard and snapping Jing Yuan out of his thoughts. “I'm horrible,” you add, weak and nonchalant, but that undertone of bitterness was clear. To him only anyways.

He straightens, glancing between you, and what you had graced the ether with. A blazing, field of gold, mixed with a flashing images of the thick, dark colored serpentine that continued its relentless attacks, and you were still protecting not only him, but the whole Divination Commission space.

You were one to erase stars, your history of destruction painting over the world with your own light. Only to realize, in that self-made darkness, you were left alone time after time, surrounded by the Houkai you left behind. Huh? What?

...Don't mix your cognitive fragments with mine.

As if I could help it? You click your tongue in annoyance, deciding this situation was far too unnecessary, prolonged. You raise your hand, two fingers targeting the fast moving serpent, an orb that simulated a black hole, materializing, pulsing at the tip of your middle finger, the difference to it would be the color and how it works—it being made something of purity, transparency, visible-esqué sound waves, the closest you could describe it with, silly it may sound.

Hmph, you were experimenting with me.

A warning, actually. It surges, the orb sending off towards what your other conscience had manifested in speed even you can't quite grasp.

A low buzz it emanated, it was invisible to the naked eye, but not the sharp splitting of the clouds, Jing Yuan unable to process the severity of your strength as the clouds separate in a visible, razor sharp line. It was booming once it claimed impact, and you were unphased at the sound of a high frequency sounding explosion, once the serpentine expands in a gruesome way, withered and dissolving in its next sequences of death. It was just another day for you, but you can't say the same for the General.

Even in his 800 year long longevity.

He sighs, heavy. It's over. “...And you call you self horrible, after such a commendable, otherwordly feat?” The small frown that didn't suit your face goes unnoticed, right as you safely lower yourself and the General, drifting towards safety and back to the land. Minimal damage, in your eyes, but it was still damage, one that you had caused inevitably.

“What's commendable about all this, General?”

Rubble, cracks. Disorder, panic and peril. All in deafening, hollow silence. You'd see some people in the other platforms, safe, distanced yet disoriented, and their slowly increasing panic will become so much more once they will come to a realization that someone foreign to the Luofu had caused something so terrible.

Since visitation, of this grand hexafleet, whether it was brief or not, you would notice a troubling aura in the air, and beautiful—the skies, covered in raining gold, each leaf that welcomed themselves everywhere felt malicious, and the thought of causing destruction, hidden in beauty, hidden in aesthetics, it had set something so primal within you, it sickened you, disgusted you.

Given the chance, you would want to shrivel up in agony, processing the fact that these people's higher entities, hide their indefinite strength of terror behind something, masked in something.

They hide behind their emanators, commanding them, upholding their bidding, bestow them with a piece of their strength, and give those who choose and preside their path an even smaller fragment—all for what, exactly?

Lazy, prideful, lawless and with no purpose. They make factions based on their powers, limit those who follow their path with one or a few goals, dedicated to benefitting their Aeons wishes.

A few words out of many that you would describe how Aeons are really are. Then there's you, a Herrscher, one from a world that wasn't theirs, a concept they cannot understand, but it is human nature that they will try to do so—and it was human nature to take control of what threatens their species. Unknown specimens like you.

“...The IPC, as well as the Intelligencia Guild will certainly take interest in you, Miss Herrscher,” he breaks the silence, snapping you out from your heavy thoughts. He stood beside, staring with you onto the unpleasant sight. “They already have,” you add, moving your head to his direction, meeting his eyes, eyes that held softness.

“Just like me then,” you squint, processing his words. “You look at me as if I didn't just almost destroy a bit of architecture within the faction you lead, General.” You both fight back grinning, stifling the sly corners of your lips.

“And you certainly berate yourself like you just didn't protect the Divination Commission,” you clench your fist. This was protection? You tear away from his gaze again, letting the guilt overtake your amusement instantly, viewing the destructive sight you created. “You attempted to minimize the damage with the barrier, you kept your defenses purposeful, accurate, precise,”

He turns fully towards you, taking your attention with no effort, his words casually welcoming that swelling, warm feeling inside you again.

“You haven't attacked, not once during when my soldie—when I, encountered you,” what. The said heat only creeps up, up and up, grounded all over your face, spread to your ears. He was knelt on one knee, a hand placed over his chest, and all you could do was stare and still, trying to gain control over your facial muscles.

“Only until the last second, where you claimed victor against what threatened the Luofu, attacking only once, and it wasn't against our faction,” he looks up, assuming that charming smile, shifting even more into amusement once he took witness to your cute, confused expression, painted in flustered red.

“I didn't do—” “You did more than what I could,”

It really wasn't much. You purse your lips, not expecting him to interrupt and retaliate immediately. “I don't know how many more favors the Xianzhou Alliance will continue to owe, but with defending a part of our faction,” he lowers his head, bowing down.

“The Arbiter General will personally see to it that what you have caused within the Divination Commission would be sentenced to something more... forgiving.” Oh. That was funny. The audible exhale catches his attention, now rising his head to see you smiling widely, fighting back to laugh. “I was going to say... it would be very unsettling if I were somehow left unpunished,”

He'd mirror your expression, now pushing on his knee to stand, your gaze following his height as he stood tall, ravishing, and amused to your antics. “Mm, perhaps it would also be a chance to lengthen your stay, at least for a bit longer,”

“Missing me at the thought of my departure already, General Jing Yuan?” You'd see him freeze, his breathing paused, but his eyes would not dare to leave yours. If only you knew how deeply affected he was by you addressing him with his name the first time since the entirety of this.

“...You're dangerous,” he tilts his chin up, golden irises darkening with a certain glint.

“I did warn you,” you reply in the same tone, taking a step, closing the two-hand inch gap by one, your womanly instincts having a chance to let loose as your eyes mirrors his glint, seducing, alluring, and the cherry on top being that chesire-like grin, captivating him further.

And you knew he referred not with your strength, but the way you kept him provoked, challenged, on his toes, teasing and testing this generous, fine line between professionalism and another.

Your eyes shift instantly, a reflex as you see movement from him, his hands near reaching for your wais—“THERE YOU ARE!” A high pitched voice, all so familiar, jolts the both of you in place.

“Ah, it's Mar-... Wh—”This pink fool. Your foot rotates to her direction with dark prism-like barriers, quickly materializeling and sequenced like dominos towards her direction as she takes her rough landing with an 'oomph'.

“HAhua! See Mr. Yang? I told you she'd be fast enough to catch me!” Yang? Ah. You cock your head to the side, seeing past march to see a few others following her direction, towards you.

“That—that was still reckless March,” The Vidyhadra groans disapprovingly, only to have March laughing wryly while she rubbed the back of her head. “I'll... have to agree with Dan Heng, even I couldn't have done anything if something were to go wrong.” Welt adds, moving along with Dan Heng, two twins following along behind, only for one to shove past between her twin and the Vidyhadra, running—no, sprinting with emergency towards March, tackling her.

“Mm,” the whole spectacle leaves you dumbfounded, yet nostalgic in silence, all while familiar individuals gather and move towards you and the General. You assume they were called for assistance, but Welt would already assess that everything was already over, despite the disorder.

“...Whatever it is waiting for me,” you take the chance to break off the confusion, having a limited amount of privacy with the General left.

“I wouldn't mind being imprisoned again if it means keeping myself under your gaze, my General,” you return your sly, confident gaze to him, only for that to crumble, not having enough time to react and process as he leaned towards you swiftly.

“Then,” you let him lower your guard, letting him make you feel vulnerable, small yet womanly, letting that hand of his, opposite from the nearing group, slither from your hips, up towards your waist, seducing and with purpose, gripping your curve firmly as your cheeks brush against each other.

“Shall I bring further judgement to increase your punishment, Miss Herrscher?”

reblogs boost my audience reach, thank you.

[seakicker]

as a certified hairy pussy enjoyer, i am obligated to share my hairy pussy enjoyer genshin headcanons because i am objectively correct 110% of the time. i have never shared an incorrect take in my entire life.

i (self-indulgently) consider childe a hairy pussy lover because i’ve always been obsessed with the idea of snezhnayan men valuing fertility and comfort in a partner over all else given how uninviting and uncomfortable the snezhnayan landscape is. soft bodies that suggest luxury, a comfortable lifestyle, and fertility are the apex of snezhnayan beauty standards because the ability to successfully birth, care for, and raise a child is so important in a place where the elements act against you the entire year. you know how humans don’t have a designated mating season because we’re the one species able to consistently mate indoors and don’t have to worry about “surviving the winter” as much as other non-human animals do? childe didn’t get the memo. he needs a thick, soft wife to get him through the winter, and a soft bush of pubes suggests fertility like absolutely nothing else. this applies to any other snezhnayan character btw childe’s just my fave hairy pussy enjoyer LMAO

tighnari and gorou both love hairy pussy for the same reason— as fox and dog hybrids, they have finely-tuned senses of smell and hair tends to hold onto a body’s scent more intensely than smooth, shaved skin does. you know that inner-thigh sweat that builds up on a hot day underneath the legholes of your shorts? consider that the appetizer before the feast for tighnari and gorou because they go ham on your body’s natural scent like absolutely nothing else. the chemically, artificial smells of perfumes and ointments? no thanks, those irritate their sensitive noses— you smell loveliest with your natural scent.

i like to imagine that albedo and scaramouche don’t grow body hair below the nose because they’re not human and mammals are partially characterized by having body hair. i also have the headcanon that scara and albedo’s head hair never grows and they were just created with the exact hair + eyelashes eyebrows they have now and nothing ever grows naturally, but that’s not really the point here. anyways, i like to imagine that they take some sort of fascination with your body’s hair because it’s something they don’t experience and don’t know too much about. it’s a lot of fun. you’ll have to ask very nicely for scaramouche to not tug on your hair because he doesn’t really care if it hurts you or not— it’s just another way he can make things miserable for you since pubes are unique to you and not him LMAO

[genderkoolaid]

How do you respond to people who try to argue against various gender affirming surgeries with anorexic people wanting liposuction? I tried to point out that theres a lot of gender affirming surgeries for cis people who dont feel feminine/masculine enough, but my sister said that those people need therapy too. I feel that there's a difference between trans people and anorexic people but idk how to put it into words, im scared i accidentally made her more transphobic bc i didnt have arguments :(

Good question! It's important to question and critique our ideas of what separates "good, natural desires which should not be changed" from "bad, unnatural desires which should be changed," and I think sometimes trans people are too quick to reaffirm this binary in our attempts to defend transness.

I would say that the difference here is based in anxieties. Anorexia is born out of anxiety- which is to say, a persist concern over something that triggers strong emotional reactions and which you keep returning to over and over and over without resolution. Dysphoria can and does cause anxiety, but you can be dysphoric without having anxiety over it. You can have dysphoria, find relief, and be satisfied with your body, while there is never any satisfaction point with eating disorders. There is always a feeling of "not enough" because the desire to be skinnier is born out of anxiety over what it means to be fat & fatness' place in society (lesser value, moral weakness, medical abuse, etc.).

Like I said, dysphoria can and does cause anxiety. There are trans people who obsess over their bodies being too masculine/feminine because they are concerned with what it means for them to be too masculine/feminine: it means they aren't real, they are ugly, they're failure. And this is why its important for trans people to sit with our dysphoria and analyze it. If you are constantly worrying about your body being "real" enough, no amount of surgery or HRT will fix that (although it may fix many things).

Now, I am generally against any solution thats like "we should stop Those People from doing x because We know whats best for them!" because autonomy is a vital part of my beliefs, and I think that people rarely ever react well to being banned from doing something Because Mother Knows Best. The real goal with, say, EDs, is to get rid of the artificial desire for thinness by combating fatphobia (ah, if only all the anti-ED campaigns out there did this). The same with plastic surgery: I would much rather we focus on dismantling the system that makes people (esp. perceived women) feel they need to make their bodies fulfill the beauty standard, than saying that plastic surgery is Evil and we should stop anyone from ever getting it, because those little people aren't capable of using their basic right to bodily autonomy correctly. When we ban something, what we really want is to change people's desires. But that requires cultural change, and laws don't create cultural change out of thin air. Its like how yelling at your kids doesn't make them more honest or better people, it just makes them better liars.

Given that trans people exist in every society, potentially going back to the Stone Age, even after we unwork systemic misogyny & homophobia, trans people are still gonna want surgeries. So we should just work on combating those things instead of trying to control people's bodies.

[exceptionimagines]

Lying In Wait

(Not my gif)

(Changing the meeting scenario yet again so enjoy this little post that contains the old one: not the one where you have a boyfriend.)

- Have you ever seen a hawk in person? Not in a zoo or an aviary: somewhere where they're caged and confined to one area, stripped of the necessity to act according to nature. No, I mean seeing one completely out in the wild, being in the woods or even your own backyard when it just suddenly ...appears.

- Because that's what they do. They simply appear. If you live in an area where they're common, where they typically frequent, you learn what to look out for, what the tell-tale signs of their presence are. You don't hear them, but you do hear what comes in preparation of them: the utter silence of everything around you. One minute the sparrows are chittering noisily, and the next they're dead silent; like they can feel them in the wind.

- It creates a tangible feeling. A pin prickling sensation that tells you that, regardless of whether or not you are bigger or stronger than them, there is something out there in the wild, watching, and waiting and hunting. If you look hard enough, you might just find them, but it won't be before they've found you: their piercing eyes immediately pinning you down in place. There's something about their gaze that's chilling: beautiful, and wild, and calculated; almost to a point that's beyond your understanding.

- That's what it feels like when you meet Jerry Dandridge for the first time. Like you're locked in the gaze of something predatory: something foreign and dangerous. Something that is simply lying in wait, lingering in plain sight until the perfect moment to strike.

- It's why you're baffled when all of your neighbors are seemingly charmed by him: having nothing to say but good things whenever he comes up in conversation. You're not denying the fact that he's an attractive man, anyone with eyes will quickly realize that he's closer to a model than a regular person, but you're somewhat unnerved by the fact that no one else seems to notice how ...odd he is.

- Admittedly, when you first began avoiding him, it was entirely because he was so attractive. You're a reserved person, someone who typically keeps to themselves and the thought of approaching the statuesque figure of your newest neighbor; of attempting to endure an entire conversation without making a fool of yourself, is daunting, to say the least. Forget about letting him into your home and entertaining him one on one....

- But it was because of your avoidance that Jerry began to take an interest in you. Everyone else in your quiet suburb had welcomed him with open arms, making it all too easy to gain access to them and their homes, but nothing he did seemed to convince you to trust him; to convince you to let him inside. He isn't used to having to try so hard; especially not with someone who fits his main demographic, so he finds himself determined to wear you down; while also trying to figure you out in the process.

- You'll find yourself being pulled into conversations with him, being interrupted with knocks on your door early in the night or with offers of assistance whenever you seemingly need it. You rarely indulge him by accepting but it doesn't deter him from trying again another day, embarrassing you with all of the attention and the special treatment.

- Anyone who witnesses his actions will smile at you "knowingly", tease you about how Jerry's seemingly taken a liking to you and how lucky you are because of it. They look at you with envy; eyes blazing when he excuses himself from them in favor of approaching you, but their envy makes them oblivious, makes them blind to your discomfort.

- You don't understand why he's so intent on getting to know you, why it seems to matter so much to him that he has your approval and that you consider him a friend. There's something so ...artificial about it. About the way that he smiles and tries to connect with you, like his actions are a means to an end rather than a genuine desire for connection. And the longer his attempts to draw you in continue, the stranger he begins to behave....

- As smart as Jerry is, when it comes to you, he sort of creates a self-fulfilling prophecy. The more you refuse his bids for connection; the longer you treat him like the wolf in sheep's clothing that he is, the more frustrated and certain that he becomes: certain that you're onto him and that you've somehow realized that there is something inherently wrong with him.

- It's the frustration that makes him sloppy. The impatience that he feels when continuously being denied access to you. The carefully constructed facade begins to slip, and the atmosphere begins to change. He grows desperate and that desperation is palpable.

- He sorts through every trick in his book, hopping erratically from one thing to another, hoping that something sticks and makes you finally take to him like everyone else. He's scrambling to get you to trust him, to want him, to reach out to him, but nothing seems to be working, not like it usually does. Which only makes him want you even more.

- There's a thrill in the hunt, in being found out and sensing the fear that fills his prey once they finally realize what they're dealing with. It's a game of cat and mouse, one that he always ends up winning, and the anticipation of it is both infuriating and intoxicating. He deems you a worthy opponent and that's part of what keeps you alive. He needs a chance to stake you out, to try and figure out exactly how much you know, and how dangerous a little thing like you can be; not that he genuinely thinks that you could ever beat him.

- A part of him is intrigued by the fact that you've figured him out so quickly: that you sniffed him out from the get-go; never once faltering in your distrust. Your neighbors assure him that you're just shy, but your eyes hold the truth: the shifting discomfort that he's used to seeing when he starts picking off residents one by one.

- At first he finds your avoidance alluring. You're his perfect victim: someone who isolates themselves; unused to attention and affection. He works best with people who are crying out for something more, people who are different and yearning for someone to understand. People who are vulnerable and easy to forget about.

- But then you just don't break. You continue to keep your walls up and remain unobtainable, and it's so ...different. Frustrating, of course, but different, and different is exciting.

- Admittedly, you find him exciting as well. The attention is initially quite flattering, and though you try not to read too far into it, it feels nice to be noticed; especially by an attractive man like himself. Though, the more he notices you, the more you start feeling like he's actually kind of a creep. You're gearing more towards sex offender than creature of the night, of course; maybe a serial killer Ted Bundy style, but it's his unusual strangeness that gives you pause.

- Boundaries aren't usually in the vocabulary of men like him, so it surprises you when he refuses to enter your home, seemingly itching for you to let him in; straining against the door frame, yet never crossing the threshold himself. ...And that's just the start of it....

- It takes you a little while to realize it, to figure out why the hairs on the backs of your arms start to stand up at random, skin crawling with sudden anxiety. When you finally do, it's because you've realized that the animals of your home have become palpably tense, perfectly still and quiet for no reason, like there's something there that bothers them. But there's nothing, nothing at all and you coo at them in confusion, trying to get them to relax ...until the doorbell suddenly rings...

- Jerry materializes out of nowhere, gone one moment and right next to you the next; stepping just that tad bit too close whenever no ones around to see it. He never appears in the daylight, and it's not the whole "I work nights" thing either. He doesn't leave his house during the day, sure, but he does leave it in the evening, yet only when there's cloud cover; when the sun is low enough in the sky that you can't see it over the houses or feel the warmth of it's presence. It all makes you start to wonder....

- You feel ridiculous claiming that your neighbor is a vampire; even when it's only spoken to yourself. You feel ridiculous doing your research, of being afraid of the dark like a little kid, thinking about all of the monsters that go bump in the night. You resent the fact that you're scared of the setting sun, that you're scared of braving just a few steps outside your door, that you've developed a habit of going over all your belongings twice just to ensure that you haven't forgotten anything before going in for the night.

- Oh god, your phone.

- Your phone that's sitting in the center console of your car, plugged in and charging since you drained the battery at work; not sitting nicely in your bag as per usual. It has your work schedule, it has your alarm, it has a handful of other important things that you need before you go to bed, but it's already dark out: dark and quiet and completely abandoned. You contemplate if you really need it, then you curse yourself for being so stupid. The answer is yes, yes you really need it, so you scope out the area and hype yourself up, walking on two nervous legs as you quickly make your way over to your car.

- Your phone is right where you left it and you quickly grab it, moving to shut your car door before you happen a glance up and immediately still in place, noticing a figure standing in the distance. You think to run back to your front door as quickly as possible but you just can't do it. You're not sure which outcome will be better for you. When you're alone in a dark forest, unsure of what is out there and how hostile it might be, do you call out for help or do you remain silent?

- You stay perfectly still, eyes locked on the dripping red that's stained across Jerry's mouth, being hurriedly wiped from his lips as he begins walking away from the car that he just came from. It only takes him a moment to sense your presence and he doesn't even do you the justice of pretending to look around, of pretending he doesn't immediately know exactly where you are, his eyes locking on your figure as he begins to come to a stop.

- He watches you intently, reading your expression as you simply stand and stare, frozen in place as he tilts his head and starts to smirk. The expression makes your stomach drop, the satisfaction in it, the vagueness of it's cause. He begins walking towards you, and the idea of running crosses your mind yet again. Yet your legs no longer listen to the pleas, completely immobile, weak and quivering as he stops a few feet away from you, studying you as you stand there stupidly, clutching your oh so important phone in hand.

"You're not usually out this late," He comments and it takes you a moment to respond, to will your tongue to move and your lips to purse and press and open. "I would know."

"I forgot...I forgot my phone." You finally answer, swallowing thickly as Jerry merely continues to smile. He knows that he has you right where he wants you; even you know that: that you're cornered and helpless, and that nothing you do will change that.

- He closes the distance and you tense even further, close to trembling as he leans in and nearly brushes against you, gently closing your car door and leaning against it as he inhales deeply. He studies your face up close, taking in every nervous tick and twitch and freckle. And then he finally speaks....

"You better get to bed." He tells you, and it takes you a while to process what he's saying. It only makes him smile wider, watching you buffer in response to his comment.

- You know he's telling you to start walking to your door, and all you can think is that this is it: that you'll turn your back and he'll pounce. But it's all you have left to do, to buckle up and endure it, to knowingly take the walk towards nothingness and face it head on. You swallow hard as you turn away from him, screwing your eyes together tightly and willing yourself to accept it.

- Every second ticks by agonizingly slowly once you begin the trek to your door. You wait to feel him grab you, to sink his teeth into your flesh at any minute and tear you from this Earth in one fell swoop. But when you get to your door without an issue, you happen a glance behind you and find him gone. You go inside safe and sound, collapsing to the ground and panting wildly as you try to calm yourself, clutching your phone so tightly that you're surprised it doesn't break.

- It is now, without a fraction of a doubt, that you realize that Jerry is a vampire: the tragedy of this being that there is absolutely nothing you can do about it. You and Jerry both know that this is the case, that you're powerless to stop him, and that nothing you can do will give you any sort of leverage against him. If you tell anyone, they'll think you're crazy. If you attempt to arm yourself, you risk the chance of endangering yourself even further with faulty stereotypes. You're all alone in this, and you haven't the slightest idea of what to do, if there even is anything for you to do.

- Waiting. That's what you're forced to resort to. Sitting and waiting for the moment to come when Jerry finally decides to deal with you; to resolve the stand still that the two of you have recently come to....

- He seems to find it all very satisfying: watching you try and anticipate his actions; squirming under his gaze with both fear and the urge to act out. He takes pleasure in provoking you, in reminding you of your shared secret and the obliviousness of the people around you: smiling at you mockingly and trying to spur you into doing or saying something in front of your mutual neighbors that will make you seem like the crazy one. A reminder that no matter what you do, no matter what the truth is, you'll never be able to warn or convince anyone, and you'll never be able to save them from him....

- Unluckily for you, or perhaps luckily, Jerry finds your scent intoxicating: it's a big part of what keeps you alive for so long. He wants to play with you, to make the most of your time together and to indulge in the exquisite aroma of your fear. Though it isn't just your fear that attracts him. Soon, everything about you becomes intoxicating, and it leads to a small obsession: one that causes him to grow bolder and more bothersome than ever....

- It's this emboldened behavior that causes you to confront him and subsequently jumpstart your future relationship.

- You've tried keeping your family away from you for as long as possible, not wanting to risk their safety by having them come over to your home and potentially run into your vampiric neighbor. But at some point, your excuses stop working and you find yourself being ambushed with a visit, one you try your hardest to end before the sun begins to set. Unfortunately for you, it doesn't end up happening, and as you gather the last of your mothers things, you hear her begin to converse with someone outside.

- You rush out into your front lawn and feel your anger surge as you catch your mother laughing and talking to the man that you so desperately wanted her to avoid. You usher her to her car as quickly as possible, blood boiling as they continue to call out pleasantries to one another. She teases you about your attractive neighbor as she sits behind the wheel, urging you to shoot your shot before she sends him one last wave and a wink, driving out of your neighborhood as you stand there and seethe.

"What was that?" You growl at him, quickly closing in on the man as he simply smiles at you. You're furious, furious that he spoke to her, that he purposefully left his home to make sure that the two of them met.

"I think that was your mothers attempt at getting us together. I have to admit, I have thought about it myself-" He replies teasingly before you interrupt him.

"What do you want from me?" You growl, pushing at his chest and forcing him backwards. You're so fed up, so caught up in the high wired emotions that have built and built for the past few weeks that you don't even care about the consequences anymore. If you were more relaxed, you probably would have been surprised by how easily he went along with you, how he let you act as you as though you even held a candle to his strength.

"Easy." He breathes at you, chuckling with amusement as he takes in your anger, his teeth glinting in the low light of the evening.

"What do you want from me?" You seethe, hands gripping tightly to his shirt sleeves as you hold him against your garden gate.

"What do you think I want?" He smiles, hands coming up to tease at your flesh, returning your touch as he catches your arms and steadies both of your positions. His eyes twinkle, as if he's enjoying this entire thing.

"I don't care about what your plans for me are. I don't care if you want to sit around like a creep and torment me: ring my doorbell at all hours of the night and stand in my garden like Michael Myers. I mean it, I don't care. Just stay the hell away from my family. They have nothing to do with this." You hiss, disregarding the way he raises his eyebrows at your choices of words and the way that he licks his lips, entertained by your ferocious display.

- You pull away from him, arms jerking angrily from his grasp before you're immediately pulled right back in. It's only then that the severity of your actions begin to dawn on you: the swiftness of his grasp shocking you; the strength of it making it increasingly obvious that he let you move him and not that you managed it on your own.

"You know. I really think we got off on the wrong foot," He says with a smile, almost joking in his delivery of the line. He furrows his brows when he begins speaking again, nodding at you as if to implore you to agree. "I think this has gone on long enough, don't you think?"

- The words send a chill down your spine, and you watch as he breathes in deeply, inhaling the air around you before he shivers, pulling you closer as you struggle against him, trying to squirm away. You tense as he leans in, sniffing along the column of your throat as you remain momentarily paralyzed. He ends it with a flourish, faltering inches from your lips, close enough that you feel as though he's about to kiss you, his breath hitting your face.

- You catch his blackened eyes, catch a glimpse of his growing teeth, and your brain seems to finally catch up with you, realizing what's about to happen just in time for you to do something about it. He opens his mouth in preparation just as you fish the crucifix out of your pocket and shove it against his cheek. He quickly whips his head away, momentarily releasing you as he hisses, the holy metal searing into his skin and giving you enough of a distraction to get away.

- He wants to go after you immediately, but he's quickly drawn to the sound of a neighbor who's leaving their house: one who's just seen what's happened and is standing paralyzed in shock at the sight of "charming" Jerry who's just seemingly assaulted you. He turns to the man as he clutches his cheek, smiling at him as he tries to play it cool.

"Lovers quarrel." He jokes, but he can immediately see that the man doesn't believe him. He quickly heads over to your door, watching as they hurriedly go inside their own home and undoubtedly begin to tell their wife what they've seen. He knows that he can't get away with disposing of Mr. Brenner and his family, that the town will quickly notice and that it will compromise his cover, so the only choice he has left is to use you.

"Y/n, we need to talk," He knocks on your door, speaking quietly through the wood; knowing that you're able to hear him even though you don't respond. "You're a smart girl, y/n, and I'm not just saying that. It isn't easy to get away from me so consider me impressed."

"Since you're a smart girl, I want to make a deal with you. You go over to the Brenner's house, you tell them that we had a little argument and that everything is fine, that it was a misunderstanding between boyfriend and girlfriend, ...and you'll save yours and that entire family's lives. All you have to do is play along. And I think that's better than the alternative, don't you?" Well you don't have much of a choice, now do you?

- You slowly open the door, peering at him warily as you do your best to pull yourself together. He smiles at you, praising you for making the better decision as you step outside and begin walking across the street. You knock on the Brenner's door, forcing a smile onto your face as the older man answers. Once he see's that its you, he asks if you're alright, visibly becoming relieved when you assure him that you are.

- You do your best to act a bit embarrassed as you explain the story that you've been told to give to him: telling him that you and Jerry had a bit of a fight, that you're actually kind of seeing each other, and that things just got a little heated. You apologize for scaring him and the fact that he had to see all of that, sharing a laugh as he insists that it's fine and that he was just worried you were in danger. You both say goodnight and you make your way back to Jerry who's standing on your porch.

"Aren't you gonna invite me in?" He asks, glancing over to Mr. Brenner who's watching you through his window, seemingly still a bit suspicious. You hesitate, not thinking that allowing him access to your safe space would ever be a part of the deal.

"Of course." You insist phonily, smiling at him as though your stomach isn't completely in knots, opening your door and letting him enter your home for the first time since meeting him....

- Now that you're "officially" a couple, you're forced to act along whenever you're in front of your neighbors. You're forced to pretend as though nothing is wrong as Jerry pulls you into him, kissing and cuddling you in order to make this act of yours convincing. You don't think it's as much of a burden to him as it is to you. Frankly, you think he actually enjoys it.

- A lot of the time, he acts as though this arrangement of yours is more than that: that you're genuinely a couple or; at the very least, that he isn't forcing your hand. You find yourself beginning to struggle when trying to differentiate between all of your feelings for Jerry: where your obligation to him ends and your genuine attraction to him begins.

- Jerry is naturally magnetic. His presence is erosive, stripping you down to your weakest state and jumbling your nerves. There's a fine line between hunger and lust, and Jerry's personality embodies this line; creating this palpable desire that burns you up on the inside. You hate that he has an effect on you, but you cannot deny that it is there, and that very fact keeps you up at night.

- One evening, you get a knock on your door and when you open it, you're met with the Brenner's eldest son. He's hushed when he tells you that he knows what's going on with Jerry, that he knows you're not a couple, and that the two of you can work together to stop him. You want so badly to divulge everything, to grasp onto your only current ally and finally admit the truth that you've had to keep secret for so long. But you can't.

- You look at him, look at his baby fat and his nervous eyes, at the promise of a future that's written all over his face. You look at him and you lie. You tell him that you know what things may look like but that it's not really the case. That you believed it for a minute there too, but that Jerry isn't anything and that you're in a happy relationship with him.

- He tries to insist that he knows the truth, to tell you that you don't have to be afraid, but you simply shake your head; giving him a reassuring smile as you tell him to believe you: hoping that you're either convincing him or that your behavior is enough to make him comprehend the danger that's at hand. You see the look in his eyes before you feel Jerry behind you.

"Talking about me?" He asks, voice lighthearted and teasing but you're smart enough to sense the edge.

"Just clearing things up." You tell him, smiling back at him and towards the boy standing on your front step.

"Good, good. ...Have a goodnight Daniel." He tells him before closing the door around you, caging you with his body.

"You've really gotten good at all of this, y/n. If I didn't know any better, I'd say you liked having me around." He tells you, cupping the back of your neck as you turn towards him, smiling down at you reassuringly, almost affectionately. "Why don't we go watch something, hmm?"

- You're beginning to come to terms with the fact that this is your fate. That in the process of saving your life, you've subsequently surrendered ownership of it, and that this ownership was handed over to him. That there is no getting rid of Jerry Dandridge and that you'll be forced to stay by his side until he decides otherwise.

- The thing is, you're also beginning to find yourself concerningly okay with that....

[crisiscutie]

Heeeyy,I would like to please make a request😭🙏First I would like to reveal that I'm not the person who made the robot darling request but I wanted to make one based on that because I have a slight different version of that beautiful request in mind-

Hear me out please,a robot darling who's created specific for Sephiroth to breed with(she has certain artificial organs to make that happen,all for plot purposes XD)....and she has many modifications in her vag for example one of them is that her puss internally vibrate really hard (to milking him I think) or things like that,that can make seph go literally wild

So well,like in the original request Sephiroth was slightly weird with her and he refused to have segs but after spent time he learns that she's more human than many humans that he had know,and he decides to give it a slight try on have intimacy with her (with condom) and he gets completely hooked on her,and the extra pleasure that he can feel thanks to her modification

So that would be all,according to my silly brain this might be something interesting for you to think and write about, I think😅,sorry the text is so big and thank you if you took the time to read up to this point,take your time to think about this and thanks for all you give us in this beautiful account :)

I'll give this a try.

Pairing: Fluffy Sephiroth/Fembot Darling

Content Warning: NSFW. Body modifications.

Sitting politely on his bed, you patiently waited for your master Sephiroth to get ready.

Since he had recently expressed a desire to try intimacy with you, your programming enabled you to select the perfect lingerie.

All based on the information you had already known about him, and his preferences stored in your database.

You smiled at him warmly as he came out of the bathroom, shirtless but still wearing his dark pants. You rose, interlocking your delicate hands with his large ones.

Even an android like you saw past his stoic facade. From his nervousness to the faintest trace of a blush on his face, he had a way of showing his true emotions.

"You look stunning as ever, Lord Sephiroth... Are you comfortable to proceed?" You asked.

He nodded his head and passionately kissed you, his hands roaming your synthetic curves.

As you both lowered to the bed, he seemed unsure of what to do or say next.

So you took the opportunity to eagerly show him your capabilities.

"Shall we try the missionary position?" you suggested, spreading your cunt.

His slit eyes dilated at the sight of your welcoming, meaty cunt while his cock strained against his pants.

"Or would you rather I take you in the missionary position?" Your robot clit engorged, transforming into a fully formed cock. You gave it a few teasing strokes, pre-cum oozing from the bulbous head.

You then suggested that both styles were possible and other positions can be tried by you two as well.

Sephiroth suppressed his gasp and blushed deeply in response, undoing his belts and freeing his needy, throbbing cock.

"Let's go with the first option for now," he mumbled. You nodded happily, your cock reverted back to its clit form.

He plunged his cock into you, softly moaned while feeling your walls immediately vibrating around him.

By adjusting the settings, you intensified the vibrations, making him pant and the veins on his shaft pulse.

You tilted your head, gently smiling at him. "I can do more, Lord Sephiroth..."

Swapping to another function, your walls constricted around his cock harder and created a powerful suction-like effect, gulping his cock like never before. You wrapped your legs around his waist, keeping him fastened to you.

Sephiroth let out a deep, primal grunt. His nails sunken into your synthetic hips, as your artificial cunt sent him into a frenzy. If he didn't have so much self-control, he would've rearranged your insides by now.

He withdrew from your cunt, slathering your belly and tits with his seed.

You cupped his cheek, somewhat concerned. "Lord Sephiroth? I hope I didn't overstimulate you..." He panted softly into your ear, his body recovering from his first orgasm.

He grabbed your hips again, slamming his cock back into you.

"...I want more." His voice took on a strange, dark tone that you haven't heard before.

For the rest of the night, he pounded away at your cunt, taking no time to stop or catch his breath.

Looks like you won't have much trouble with breeding him when the time comes.

[mentallyisekaid]

「 ✦ Fatui Harbingers x Signora's Sister! Reader, PART 2.5 ✦ 」

---

Part 1 Part 2 [Part 2.5] Part 3

It's highly recommended to read the parts in order, otherwise few things will make sense!

Warnings: just me messing with Signora's lore because I can~

Word count: 1.3k

---

And so, with Columbina serenely laying on your lap - and Scaramouche and Ajax's intimate gazes dispelling a part of those doubts that had haunted you for half a millenium...

a glimpse of your past was finally unveiled.

"Rosalyne and I were only half-sisters, and it sprouted a seed of discord between us before I was even old enough to understand what family meant. Albeit, what really drew us apart in the end was my father... or rather, the crime that he committed against the divine."

Twiddling with the warm, red crystal in your hands brought you no comfort - only reminded of a life time's worth of regret.

"A crime that manifested as the Pyro Vision I'm now holding. You could say it's... a symbolization of the Lohefalters' curse. But I was the one who made it possible, and what followed..."

You shook your head. "Well, I'll start from the beginning?"

"Our mother, Freya, a Mondstadter, once met a traveling alchemist from an unknown land. Papa and mama shamelessly fell in love, even though she was married with another man and had a young daughter. After she became pregnant with me, an illegitimate child, Rosalyne's father soon found out and they got divorced. She then married my father, and we all took his surname."

The looks in their eyes revealed that La Signora's colleagues had truly known nothing about her past.

But now, all they cared about was yours.

"Papa was quite fanatic when it came to his alchemic research, and one thing fascinated him above all else: the nature of Visions. He'd become particularly obsessed with a certain thought... could Visions be created alchemically and thus acquired without the blessing of the gods?"

A pained look flashed across Scaramouche's face - maybe one day he'd share why.

"Seeing as he was an outlander, the favor of the divine would never fall upon him in such a way. Maddened, he set out on a journey to achieve a Vision, not as a gift from the gods, but by making one himself."

Columbina tilted her head. "And... did he?"

"It sounds crazy," you sighed, "but he did. He managed to create an artificial Vision. It cost him his sanity and so much more, but regardless; decades of endless research and a myriad of sacrifices materialized in the form of a gemstone - a bright red crystal with a faintly glowing Pyro symbol in its core."

Your next words gained a spiteful undertone, not unnoticed by the others.

"But, he needed a test subject to confirm that this counterfeit Vision was applicable. That was me. Not just because he was insane, but because I was a fool. I only had to promise that I'd never tell the rest of my family, or anyone, about how I had received this 'acknowledgement' from 'Celestia'."

Ajax had an unreadable expression on his face - pity with a hint of disappointment and anger, perhaps.

"You agreed, then?" he asked.

"I was nine years old and rather naïve, so yes." You frowned. "But even as I grew older and understood better, on some level, I still accepted what papa had done..."

Scaramouche crossed his arms.

"But, surely... you didn't do this just to please your parent?"

"No," you shook your head, "or maybe that was a part of it as well. I couldn't say."

Yet someone saw right through you, as always.

"It had something to do with your sister, I presume?" Columbina's voice was gentle, like a mother

Ah, there it was - the void in your heart left behind by a broken kinship with the only sibling you ever had.

It was... more painful than you admitted.

"...I knew my Vision was a fake, but even so, it made me feel special. I'd always felt meritless, living my life in the shadow of the oh-so brilliant Rosalyne, who was both beautiful and academically talented. I... I was never looked at with such admiration."

"Although," your lips curved into a rueful smile, "ever since that day, I had something that she didn't - a Vision - and it harrowed her proud heart. Thus, a mutual feeling of jealousy grew between us, creating a rift that we never tried to overcome."

You shook your head. "At least I never did."

But a question still remained in the air, one that you were consciously avoiding for the sake of the horrible things that had once happened and could yet again occur because of it.

You didn't want to betray or hurt anyone, and even more than that, you wanted to protect yourself.

Yet the other Harbingers cared about you in such a strong, unconditional way, and you had started to harbor these strangely intimate feelings for them as well.

Perhaps you... really didn't need to hide anymore?

Columbina had sat up next you and now pulled you to lay on her lap instead, as she softly spoke:

"This Pyro Vision... you called it a curse - the Lohefalters' curse, or perhaps yours, but what makes you say this, I wonder? Was the cost you had to pay for this power much greater than you have let on, my angel?"

Scaramouche was staring at you intently. "I think we'd all like to know that."

You averted your gaze. "Even if it only gets darker?"

Ajax smiled, uncertain yet encouraging. "Even so."

"I... see. Well, if I had known that my broken relationship with Rosalyne wasn't even a foretaste of this horrible curse that I would end up carrying for centuries... that what papa had done would end up destroying things far, far more precious than just my family, I... I would have done differently, I'm sure of it..."

You sighed. "It's too late for amends, though. And this is all I have to say. For now."

No one was left satisfied by this, not even you yourself.

Their first instinct was to somehow confirm whether you had been telling the truth, having sensed that you were probably quite an adept liar (when you wanted to be).

But your reserved yet sincere eyes didn't invite any distrust.

Childe looked sympathetic, though there was a nuance of something else behind his cerulean gaze. When he smiled at you, the mannerism lacked his usual assertiveness.

"I... see. I'm... at a loss for words here, girlie."

The thought of you carrying these grim secrets all by yourself made the ginger Harbinger feel strangely protective of you, and he wasn't the only one - albeit the other two did a better job at hiding it.

Damselette's expression was curious yet enigmatic, indicating that she'd perhaps already figured out much more than you had told them.

Behind her innocent, uncaring demeanor, Columbina was a very shrewd person.

"Our little angel never ceases to fascinate~," she chuckled, caressing your hair.

The Balladeer's displeasure was evident.

"Ha!" he scoffed. "You've got some nerve, disclosing something of this gravity and then conveniently deciding to leave the rest of our questions unanswered. Moreover, with each secret you reveal, another one just takes its place."

Scaramouche's tone now took a softer hint - then again, maybe you just imagined it.

"Who am I to judge, of course... but isn't centuries of hiding enough, Twelfth?"

Though his opinion was harsh and undisguised, it had voiced the truth you wanted so hard to admit, but just couldn't. You found this... soothing, in a way.

As flames flickered in the fireplace, your heart wanted to stay here with them for a little while longer - each of their gazes embracing you very differently but all in a way that made you feel warm and safe; something quite rare in Snezhnaya.

Yet, with a cryptic smile, you stood up and walked away.

Whether sharing a part of your past had been a mistake, or the first step toward some kind of redemption, you couldn't yet tell. But it was clear that it had set into motion something irreversible.

It was only a matter of time before everyone would know...

[yggdrasilhypno]

So recently I’ve found myself appreciating the beauty of a good robot.

There’s something so satisfying about a being that’s truly artificial, but built so beautifully that you could mistake it for natural.

To me, living beings are so complex in our structure that it creates this innate sense of elegance where everything has its place in a greater purpose, to live and to exist.

In this way, i believe the machine has its own inner beauty.

From the processing units down to each individual wire, each component combines itself into one idea, one purpose: function.

The machine functions in its own way, acting programmed yet still alive in its own way.

Each piece, another detail in its build that gives it the same life as something like a lung or a vein would give us.

I’ve found myself truly appreciating the beauty in these machines, how the wires all feel like blood vessels careening down into the hull, connecting each part of itself together and giving itself life.

Following these wires with my fingers, i can feel each little jolt of the machine’s energy coursing through my own veins, as if we are indeed one being together.

Connected to one another with wires, each component makes up the full machine’s purpose, its essence within that makes it, for lack of a better term, itself.

The processors and boards within creating a being all of its own.

It may be controlled by someone, or have limited functionality in its own right, and yet it’s still beautiful.

We humans have always sought to play god, to create things such as ourselves because of our natural need for companionship.

Whether we create monsters or partners is entirely up to our own machinations.

That’s why i enjoy the robot, for its concept is infinite and yet so simple.

Anyone can draw a robot, but it takes care and time to truly put one together.

Each inner detail is another addition made by its creator, with a purpose.

It’s much like our own bodies, each organic piece of flesh essential to live.

That’s why there’s so much for me to appreciate within a robot.

All of it still artificial, yet feeling so organic and human, in its own ironic way.

Artificiality is only the idea of a nonhuman-like object being similar enough to something natural.

But when something feels so natural, artificiality goes out the window.

And the machine is natural, in the way it’s constructed much like myself.

I’m made of flesh, blood, and bones.

It is made of steel, electricity, and wire.

And as it may seem, we are not so different.

It’s why i feel at home exploring a robot, to appreciate the creator’s intention.

To appreciate the naturally artificial.

To enjoy the artificially natural.

[influenzalake]

(Slight Yandere) Damian Wayne x Shy Fiance Reader - He wants a big wedding

(they/them pronouns, "wife" title, Reader Insert)

Damian sits back in his chair, watching his beautiful Bride-To-Be scurry back and forth.

(Y/N) wants a small wedding, something "cozy" they say. A sweet wedding at Wayne Manor with modest decor and a guest list of their closest friends and family. 

Damian cannot fathom wasting this opportunity. To him, this marriage is everything. He wants the WORLD to know he and (Y/N) are madly in love. This is a celebration of his next chapter in life and to any rival suitors trying to take away his fiancee. This wedding would prove to every naysayer and enemy that he is worthy of love. He wants the validation of an extravagant wedding, showing off his wealth and lineage. The power move of inviting all his hero and nonhero colleagues, regardless of relationship status, and making them watch the ceremony. He wants to present his soon-to-be wife and have their full attention when that title is changed. 

Damian told his love of his plans, and here they are now. Pacing about all the things that make them nervous.

Having to speak, stand, AND KISS in front of a large crowd.

The overwhelming amount of lights, sounds, and people.

ALL eyes on them.

His beloved looks like an ant stuck in a death spiral. He intervenes as he always does to settle their anxiety before it gets out of hand. Slowly taking their hand, putting their head to his chest, and then leading them away to his seat. Here he places (Y/N) on his knee and looks up in their eyes. He is evaluating alternative wedding plans before a soft voice breaks his focus. 

"Do you think we can compromise? May we have a medium wedding please?", (Y/N) says with a giggle.

It takes a lot to break Damian Wayne. When it comes to his bride, it takes nothing at all. Their voice like cotton and their laughter like clouds, Damian crumbles in an instant. He can compromise              (maybe-).  

A medium wedding could work. It would be at Wayne Manor like his love requested, it would be scheduled during the daytime to reduce harsh artificial lighting, there would be minimal noise interruptions for their sensitive hearing, he could easily guide his bride away if the stimuli is too much. The wedding party could continue at Wayne Manor for hours after the ceremony while he and (Y/N) would be off on their honeymoon. Damian is more inclined to agree to these wedding terms, but the guest list is where Damian hits a wall. Damian may not care much for the invitees he would extend this opportunity to, but he does care about his pride. He wants to flaunt it all. What good is a lavish wedding to portray his precious (Y/N) if there is no audience?

Damian devises a plan to help (Y/N) "get to know" their wedding guests, without really having to get to know them. It is an ingenious way to familiarize them with the vast roster. Damian plans to talk endlessly about his acquaintances, friends, frenemies, ex-friends, some enemies, rivals, colleagues, and even some people he doesn't even know (but his brothers do) to create a parasocial relationship between them and his (Y/N). If (Y/N) THINKS they know a person, from what Damian has them, they would be more inclined to invite them and not be so nervous. 

Damian is overjoyed at this solution. It may work, it may not, but he can at least try. 

He is going to share this joy of finally having (Y/N)'s hand in his own way. 

Congratulations, Mx. Wayne. 

[yuzukahibiscus]

Jewels of Takarazuka – Yuzuka Rei-san [Flower Troupe] (from Fujingaho May Issue)

This series documents the words of Takarazuka Top Stars, and their strength of living in the current age and Yuzuka Rei of Flower Troupe appears on this month’s issue.  Like a king that shines ever brightly on stage, Yuzuka-san appears on the photoshoot scene and we compliment her for having a flawless beauty like a deer in the wild. Then when she’s standing in front of the camera now, it seems like some kind of story is about to begin… Yuzuka-san speaks with carefully woven words and with a soft voice, talks about what she is thinking now.

Even if the acting is decided already every day, I just love presenting a new vibe to it

The one we admire in Shoujo Manga, the piano magician with fervent fans, the Broadway Star Dancer. With her gorgeous visual and delicate acting, Yuzuka-san brings such beautiful characters you couldn’t see in reality to life. If you watch her stage performances, you’d see that the world of dreams is here now……That’s what I firmly believe. When we interviewed Yuzuka-san, she was challenging to perform the famous work in Takarazuka Revue, the renowned musical of “MAYERLING”. It is about the tragic love story between Austria Crown Prince Rudolf and his lover Mary Vetsera. Yuzuka-san used to express it uniquely, “I don’t want [my performance] to look like it was cultivated artificially but to deliver one that is naturally moving”, so how did she feel when she was working on this famous musical?

“I’ve said that, haven’t I (LOL). I really like fresh air. So in the world that I’m portraying, even though we’d be doing the same things every day… That’s quite the opposite of what I said [about natural acting] (LOL). But even if we’re doing the same things every day, those first encounters and experiences are different every time. In contrast, even though it may be the first time I’m seeing some audience, I can feel that they’re the important people who’ve always known me… Performers and the audience can create some feelings and reactions together that not even we can imagine, and that’s something that I always find enjoyable. The premiere of this performance was 40 years ago. Even though there’s a little change in direction, the prologue song and the choreography was similar to how it was back then. I’d act according to what I understand from the whole setup of the musical. I won’t think about what I think is correct, instead I’ll continue to question my interpretation and delve into it more to act while thinking about it.”

In this musical with such intensity, you’d have to build up so much strength for the ending…

“Amidst the intensity and while continuing to maintain focused, there’s a unique kind of energy in musicals, surprisingly I’m not too overwhelmed by that. But while that builds up and accumulates densely, I think it’s difficult to overcome the “gap” or that “space” when [the tension] couldn’t build up well. Or maybe I should say, that it feels like those Jenga building blocks…… But the concentration the audience have for this musical is higher than before, so I felt that they also helped us create this ambience for us together.”

I want to walk a path that won’t feel like I’m betraying myself

This is perhaps the charm that’s only unique in live performances.

But in these 3 years, the previous situation was still unstable and as a leader she led the troupe to overcome very tough circumstances.

“I really thought that while I’ve been learning, I’ve already walked this far. Even in the same scenarios, I’ve come to learn that depending on people’s circumstances, there would be different feelings and the way we approach things also change. I know that it’s not good to just evaluate things while thinking only of ourselves. If everything was successful, I think it might be difficult to have the experience where everyone aims at “facing wholeheartedly towards stage performances” together…… so I thought I acquired a lot [during this time.] Whatever something happens, I want to be the person that people can trust in. Even if I covered it up, only I would know how I have dealt with that problem. Sometimes I may not know if I’ve made a wrong decision, and I won’t even know if that would be the best decision for that time, yet there must be something that I could learn from in failure. That’s why, I’ve decided not to do things that would make me lose confidence in myself. I often say be confident in yourself, but it’s difficult to believe in yourself without evidence. “Trust” might be a slightly different word, but I don’t try to deceive myself, instead I worked hard for it desperately… I wish I could feel that way without any hesitation,  and I would want to say that my underclassmen self when I was still trying to find that confidence.”

That delicate and soft feeling may be different from what she said a few years ago about “wanting to face my weaknesses earnestly”. 

“When we act, we think about humans, but it’s difficult to comment on whether they’re strong and weak. If they’re “weak”, they may seem negative at first glance, but they also may be someone that has great observation, a profound imagination,  and that they sincerely care only for a particular something. So “strengths” and “weaknesses” are two sides of a coin. If one believes too much that “I am strong”, that may instead lead to this pushing force that overwhelms oneself. So I’d say, it’s fine to be weak. Because humans are not born to be perfect. Rest a little, recover yourself, find your strategy to face your next task. When you find that strategy, if someone else has troubles, you could then help them. When I was playing as Rudolf, I really felt how greatly people impact others. That’s probably why I have such thought.”

Embracing her internal weaknesses with that resilient strength bestows her with the persuasion capacity on stage. Perhaps the Flower Troupe stage performances she lead will continue to shine radiantly.

MY JEWEL ~The jewel of the heart~

This is a photo of my nephew and my dog. “Even though they don’t always meet, but when they do, they’d always take a walk. My dog loves my nephew and is always smiling. My nephew leads the dog carefully like an adult when they walk together and I can slowly feel his growth. Now as I’m playing as Rudolf, I’d have to say, “Because of everyone’s great love, I have also progressed and grown.”

ON STAGE...

“ENCHANTEMENT –A Luxurious Perfume–” is a stylish  revue with perfume as the theme. This is a Takarazuka-styled revue wound in the gorgeous world of black tailcoats, silk hat and cane. Apart from singing and dancing, you could see her sometimes chic and sometimes sexy, that you couldn’t miss her out in any instant.

Next stage: Musical Romance “A Battlefield for the Two of Us” (Author/Director: Masatsuka Haruhiko)

In a stage of a fictitious federation formed by numerous autonomous states, this is about a young military officer with burning passions and how he struggles between the gap of the country and the individual, portraying his story of an “unacceptable” love and great friendship. Yuzuka-san says, “It’s very interesting learning from the rehearsal of Masatsuka (Hirohiko)-sensei’s musical. “War” is still sometimes that is relevant to us in this age, so I will cherish the importance of performing this production and do my best to create this production.”