#like i truly cannot emphasize this enough

[agoddamn]

I frequently refer to my personal LGBT stuff as "gay shit" or "homofag bullshit" because for all my life so much of the non-heterosexual experience has been being defined as something gross/nasty/wrong throughout my life that I just can't let people forget it at this point.

I work with a guy born in '98 or so who thinks pretending to be gay is an honestly hilarious joke because he doesn't know who Matthew Shepard was. And that's one of the first things related to the word "gay" that I ever learned about.

It's just a generation gap, man. No way around it.

[dykealloy]

small aside but y'know how luffy's stupidity is usually met with physical abuse of some kind? anyway. here's law's worst in response to luffy being manipulated by his arch nemesis

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

In Regards To Your 2024 Summary:

Holy shit it’s been another year????? The hell?????

Also! Your art style is gorgeous and that being found in 2023 and then refined throughout late 2023 and the entirety of 2024 really shows, as does your growth in panel layouts, perspective, and — as you said — experimentation. If you ever post your animation or video game art I’m looking forward to it.

As cheesy as it sounds, being able to laugh at funny comics and look at all the details of your art really made my 2024 brighter, even when things were hard. Including looking at your older art— it doesn’t need to be new to be enjoyable! I’m glad your art is well loved and it’s a privilege to have been here since the (near) beginning. I hope you take care of yourself in 2025 and beyond!

You and your art bring a lot of people a lot of joy never forget that <3

Thank you so much for keeping up with my art journey throughout these last two years! Two years!!! I am baffled at how that feels both too long and too short!

Admittedly, my art summary didn't manage to capture the fact that I did a lot of comic layouts that I'm really proud of. I also drew more backgrounds and made some very detailed works (*Dungeon Meshi spoilers for these examples*).

The growth is lot more evident when comparing my 'best' comics of 2023 to 2024:

Sometimes the growth is vertical, sometimes it is horizontal - and damn, sometimes it goes out of sight into the Z-plane. But it is always happening!

[buttdumplin]

The sweet, lovely poly 141 boys and their Spanish-speaking latine partner.

This was meant to be a quick little thing, but boy did this get away from me lmao. This is the fluffiest shit I've ever indulged in and I love it. Big thank you to @mikichko for inspiring and helping with this!!!

cw: poly 141, gn!reader, latine reader, mexican slang, hint of d/s dynamics in Johnny's word count: 2.1K

Price, god love the man, is the one who seems to stumble the most. It's almost comical, considering the fact that Spanish and Arabic are so similar due to their histories. But there's a big difference between the Spanish he's learned to recognize and what you throw at him on the daily. He truly thinks it's because of his age, window of acquisition and all that. John does not expect to be able to speak fluently with you, but he does at least want to understand you. What he really wants, though, is to make you feel more fully at home with him, and he is forever grateful that you feel comfortable and safe enough with them to embrace all parts of your identity.

"Hola, amor mío. How was your day?" you greet him from the couch, eyeing him from tip to toe and almost whistling at seeing him in uniform. "Sigues rechulo, mi güerito, so I assume all went well?"

John swings down to kiss you, gripping the back of your neck to prolongue the kiss, trying to soak in as much of the affection as he can while also disguising the fact that he still doesn't fully recognize what came after.

"Yours was good too, I trust?"

"Yeah, but my brother called. El güey still con sus pinches mamadas and asking for my help. Aguas, in case he shows up this week."

"I... will keep an eye out, dove."

"Call me si les arma pedo and I'm not around."

He just nods sagely and squishes up against you on the couch, letting your warmth seep into his tired bones.

Later that evening, he rounds up the boys while you're in the shower and pulls out a small notebook where he's written things out phonetically. John may not have all the knowledge he needs, but he sure as hell is good at getting it.

"'Güey,' that's the brother's nickname?"

"No, that's like 'man/guy.' But it's also an insult. But not always," Johnny supplies.

"Fuck me, okay. 'Rechulo' is... I got nothing for that one."

"The 're' is for heavy emphasis, 'chulo' is 'cute/handsome/pretty.' 'Re' can go on practically any adjective," Simon steps in.

"'Aguas' and 'pedo' CANNOT be what they are, right?"

Kyle takes his hand and chuckles, "No, sweetheart. The first is like a warning, the second a fight or scene or scandal. In this context."

John's shoulders finally relax and he lets out a heavy sigh, putting the final touches on his notes of the day.

"Thank you, boys, for your patience and your kindness. And your secrecy," John huffs a little laughter and gives them his sweetest smile, the one where you can see the dimples poking out through the beard.

They all reach over to gently caress him, taking turns kissing the parts of him they can reach.

"Thank you, John, for trying so hard."

~

Beautiful, wonderful Kyle, the delight of a man that he is, is the one giving it as good as he gets. He's the one crooning in your ear, showering you with the most decadent terms of endearment, knowing full well they make your knees much weaker in Spanish. He'll use the advantage every single chance he has, don't doubt that for a second. But truly, it's the soft seclusion of those moments that he cherishes most, when you're looking up at him with big bright eyes, knowing you fully trust him to take care of you.

You're grumbling away as you wash dishes after dinner when Kyle comes up behind you, arms making the way slowly around your waist, chin dropping onto your shoulder.

"Oh, tesoro mío, look at you working away, working so hard for us."

You refuse to look at him and give a fussy pout. He knows it's your least favorite of the house duties. So much so that you're always willing to do almost anything as long as you don't have to touch wet food.

"It looks like you've done enough, cariño. Come join us in bed."

"No. None of you wanted to trade with me so se aguantan," you try to wiggle and bump his head away from yours.

"Come on, cosa hermosa, we need you with us to settle for the night," he pulls your hands from the water, drying them and turning you towards him.

You immediately bury your face into his chest. Can't look him in the eye, he'll win you over the moment you do.

"So they send in the smooth talker, huh?"

Kyle laughs, clear and bright, and he wraps you back up in his arms, gently cradling your head until you give in and look up at him.

"Or," he says, making you both rock gently, "I'm trying to sneak in a little solo time."

Your body melts against his as the words sink in, big eyes blinking softly up at him, "Besito?"

"As many as you want, mi vida. Until you grow bored of me," and you're letting out a sweet sigh as those soft lips meet yours.

His hands move to bring your body closer to his, to milk this quiet moment for as much contact as possible, to sear it all into his memory.

"You two are awfully quiet out there," Simon calls from the bedroom and it makes you break apart with a little jump.

You hear frantic rustling that has to be Johnny, "Hold on, what happened to doing the dishes!"

A chuckle escapes the two of you, sparkling eyes meeting in the low light from the stove hood. The sound of John huffing to get comfortable floats in from the bedroom.

"Just a minute more, hermosura," he mutters against your hair. "Wanna stay here a bit longer."

"Really liking all those pet names, aren't you?"

Kyle laughs again and gives you a squeeze, "Mean every single one of them."

And you happily linger, not pointing out that you've noticed an endearing pattern of Kyle wrapping up nights in the kitchen with you in his arms and a faint love song echoing down the hall for you two to sway to.

~

Beloved, darling Simon, he hides his own understanding of the language. He understands it nearly perfectly, with just the tiniest margin of error, nothing too big to bring attention to it. Overall, he's able to catch almost everything you mumble. It's not to be sneaky or anything like that, Simon would never do anything to compromise your privacy. It's more that he doesn't quite see the need to verbalize it. To him it's nothing special, no need to make a spectacle. Instead, he lets it seep into his actions, ever the acts of service lover that he is.

You're spread out on the couch, on the phone with your mother, complaining, "Como chingan los del trabajo. Me pidieron un reporte para el viernes y ahora me reclaman que todavía no se los he dado y apenas es miércoles."

There was a tension in your shoulders when you came home from work, he didn't miss that. Caught you jolting to a stop mid-stretch. And as the call goes on longer, Simon picks up on more.

"No he tenido chance de lavar ropa, ni una putisima pijama... Traigo un pinche antojo de mole, pero es un chingo de trabajo y ahorita no le puedo dedicar el tiempo..."

He quietly moves to gather the boys as you continue ranting and pace around the room. You're too caught up in your call to see them forming a massive huddle and their nodding at Simon right as the break and throw their joined hands in the air.

By the time you're off the phone, it's dark out and you notice the house is quieter than usual. You move to look for the boys (they can't have left without telling you, right?) when Simon pops out from the hall, crooked smile you love so much adorning his face, and he simply takes your hand to pull you into the bathroom. A hot bath greets you, some honeyed bath bomb already dissolving in the water and your laptop set up on a bucket besides the bath, your comfort show already pulled up and ready to play. Simon then points to your softest pajamas washed and set out on the counter for you.

"And you'll help me with my lotion too?"

He kisses your forehead, "When do I not?"

"The boys?"

"Setting up dinner. Kyle and I are making your favorite."

You whip around to face him, eyes wide and excited, "With fresh tortillas?"

With a low, affirmative hum Simon pulls you in closer and just holds you. He doesn't say anything, he doesn't need to. But he lends you his strength, which is all he can really hope for. The steady beat of his heart and the warmth of his arms around you help release the tightness in your body. Letting out your own little hum, you give him a squeeze and he squeezes back harder, crushing you in the way he knows you find comforting. There's a soft devotion in his tenderness with you, an unshakable support in every single thing you do.

"So you gonna undress me too, or...?"

A peal of laughter escapes you as he playfully swats at your butt, "Undress yourself. I've got cooking to do."

A day without hearing your laughter is a day poorly spent to Simon.

He's almost to the door when you pull him back into you, hands tugging on his shirt to bring him down to your height. His own laughter rumbles in his chest as you cover his face in loud kisses, and he stays locked in place. He will for as long as you need him to, never mind his back. If it's gonna go out eventually, he'd rather it go out from his time spent like this.

~

Johnny, bless the boy, is desperate to hear it, to have you address him directly. You speak plenty around the house, on phone calls with friends, talking back at the tv (some shows have been put on temporary bans, or at the very least you're not supposed to watch them alone), at the lovely crooked cat yall adopted. You shower them with pet names with every breath you take. And he loves it all! Loves that you so willingly share so much of yourself with them. But Johnny boy is dying for something specific- "Love, why don't you call me papi?"

When he voices it, it's a complete surprise. Simon and Kyle both laugh so hard so suddenly that they find themselves choking on their own spit. Price himself is caught so off-guard that he fully looks up from the dinner he's prepping in the kitchen, raw chicken slipping out of his hands and plopping back into the flour bowl. You at first laugh it off lightly, thinking it was one of his cutesy jokes he makes to get a giggle out of everyone. That would have made the most sense, honestly. But when he looks away, big blue eyes shining with the softest hint of embarrassment, it sinks in.

You shift in your seat a fraction, "Johnny, I don't even call any of you that in English. You know it's not exactly the same thing, right?"

"I know but the little old lady from the corner shop calls me "papi" and so does the older man who brings the water and other people too and it's always so affectionate and so I thought..."

He spares a glance at you, hoping he hasn't completely overstepped.

"Where did this come from?"

"Ale let it slip last time we grabbed coffee and the joy on Rudy's face was so blinding that I thought maybe we should try it."

"Honey--"

"Please, just once."

"But I--"

"It doesn't have to be a title! It can be soft and casual, no expectations."

"You don't--"

"I promise I'll be good for it."

Oh.

Your gaze meets the other boys' and you all take a good look at your Johnny. At some point during his pleading he brought himself down to kneel in front of you. His broad shoulders are slumped forward in submission, his hands clenched together so tightly his fingertips are completely white. Price nods at you, the other two eagerly nodding along as well.

Leaning forward, you grab him by the jaw, gently bringing his head to rest against your thigh.

Running your fingers through his hair, you utter out a low, "Sweet little thing like you just wants to be good, don't you papi?"

Johnny's eyes glaze over slightly, a shy, dazed smile growing on his face. There's not an ounce of hesitation in him as he nuzzles his face into your thigh, just sweet elation. Pleased grumbles escape the others, making Johnny's smile grow bigger.

You make sure to add it into your regular circulation.

[all-inmoderation]

not enough ppl know about this fic

take me to the answers (i'm the one who's listening) by annnubis

if your favorite character in JJK is either Yuuji or Geto, you have got to read this fic. This story understands those two characters like no other.

It's a canon-divergence, time-travel fix-it AU, in which Yuji, post-shibuya, is thrown back to gojo and geto's schooldays (post hidden inventory arc).

the prose in this fic is so polished and the characters are all given a level of maturity that i found so refreshinggggg. all the other characters are also just as fleshed out, from satoru, shoko, to even Yaga. Yuji's reactions pertaining to Gojo are especially touching. And the way he sees Geto is so characteristically kind.

some excerpts from the fic to entice you guys to read it:

They surround the crater and naturally Satoru gets closer to it than any of them, though he's right behind him. Suguru knows Satoru noticed it, too—something terribly human-shaped, with a soft filthy face and hunched shoulders and scuffed red sneakers.

The first thing Sukuna ever gave me, he thinks in the direction of his teacher sealed terrifyingly away in the dark, was all this blood on his hands.

Sensei or not. It's Satoru Gojo. It seems every version of him contains the fundamentals that set Yuuji just a little bit at ease.

Toji Fushiguro is dead. Suguru lies awake in his bed, reminding himself of this supposedly comforting fact that instead leaves him feeling hollow and restless, laying flat underneath a thin bed sheet staring up at his ceiling fan.

Sorcerers die all the time.

He is not one of the strongest. Not anymore.

Sukuna Ryomen’s vessel is compelling. The unscarred parts of his face look soft as down, but the scars put a warm feeling in Suguru's stomach.

Also, one of my favorite aspects of the fic is how it describes Yuuji's scent/energy. I know the accepted fanon is that Yuuji smells like peaches, but I've always found the idea of that scent to be a bit too sugarysweet and childish(?) to fit Yuuji.

But this:  Rosewater steam, faint and warm and welcoming, and pooling blood and something herbaceous.

now this is what I'm fucking talking abouttttt. That's how you fucking describe a scent, man! The idea of Yuuji's aura being ~rosewater steam~ is just so much more alluring and tantalizing than peaches, imo. ahhhhhh I'm in loveeee.

[redjennies]

i didn't want to say anything about this when it was circulating because I don't mean this to undermine people who do enjoy it, but that one post that was like "i like how video games are shifting away from calling it casual/easy mode to calling it story mode..." was so funny to me, because tbh, and this is purely a personal kneejerk response, I've always found "story mode" to sound extremely condescending.

like calling the easiest difficulty "easy mode?" yes, it is just logical to start a game on the easiest difficulty and work up from there once I better understand the mechanics. calling it "casual mode?" yes, i often enjoy a light and breezy experience when playing a video game. but "story mode?" no, thank you. I am a big boy, now, Mother, and I do not need a sippy cup. I will be playing on easy/medium difficulty and I assure you I can handle drinking from a big boy cup. I will certainly not spill my apple juice all over the floor. you can trust me.

[ahh-fxck]

The vibe tonight is: Watching 14 year old Grammys performance of Born This Way by Lady Gaga & crying into my proverbial cheerios

[camgoloud]

who else up feeling the soul-numbing empty hopelessness for absolutely no reason this friday night

[mbat]

sometimes i remember last year when i went on my first trip far from home alone, and just how long, and how lonely, the train ride was from my home city to my destination. ive had so many lonely nights in my life, ive had times feeling so, so deeply alone. and yet that 11 hours where i was alone in the train stop, on the train, and on the bus to my destination... it was the loneliest hours of my entire life. not to mention me almost missing the bus and nearly getting stranded in chicago, i was so fucking scared.

and i dont know i dont have a point here, i just think about it sometimes. i had always wanted to ride a train, but i didnt think it would be alone, and that i would be so unsure as i was sitting there. going alone hours from home by myself was just... terrifying. everything was fine, but it really couldve not been, and i dont know. i even remember when i was lost in chicago that my friends, who were also there to switch transportation to the destination, tried to find me, but i had luckily found my bus by then, and i just remember seeing them outside the bus wishing i couldve got to go up to them, latch onto the only people i knew for several hundred miles.

it just kinda sucked. it was a good thing in the end and i dont regret most parts of that trip (but the parts i regret arent relevant to the train), but that truly was just... damn.

at the least, on the ride back home, i was so tired that i slept through most of it.

[cervidsunrise]

Aswio "vessel for the greatest fear of death that's ever walked on two legs" tabris would hear that Solas 'wants to destroy the world' and beelines toward him to kill him first. Then she hears it's bc the existence of the veil created mortality and switches sides immediately

[angelsdean]

anyways this was going to actually be a silly post where i say i was chit-chattin' with my sister telling her abt the hilariousness of discovering some bitter deancrit blogs were talking shit abt me and some other deangirls and her immediately going "yea that was me. that was my blog. you suuuck!" before immediately flipping to *squints, puts on an italian mobster-esque accent* "ok but...what blog?" but don't worry haters i spared you the unhinged taurus wrath of my own samcoded sibling, so you're good.

having a sibling is great they are the most annoying person on the planet. they will also do unhinged things for you. as much as i rag on sam and also question his choices it's like, yea you should be willing to do insane frankenstein magic to keep your sibling alive, yea the life of your one sibling comes before a whole town of strangers, makes sense. it's not the "morally correct" or heroic thing to do. but it makes sense. normal sibling behavior tbh. a lot of ppl just....do not even like their siblings so they misunderstand these things in multiple directions

[hamsterl0ver]

kats vs overly fanservice-like reader ⋆☕︎ ˖

warningz⋆ fluff, mild language, reader is genuinely strange

blurb⋆ in which the katseye girls have to deal with an overly eccentric member who loves doing her job... a little too much. A person of the people they call her but her fellow members just thing she's a curious case.

wordz⋆ 2.041k

a/n⋆my first ever official fic ☕͜ (ᵔ ̮ ᵔ)› more to come, but a short and sweet one for all the girls, i wrote this to be as platonic as I could, but you can perceive reader to be in a relationship with any of the girls. nd if your curious i heavily based readers personality on a chinese cosplayer Karina! thought it'd be cute (oh and requests are open!)

Manon would be repulsed— in a teasing way, she would see you amongst the other girls as you all sat in a row, giving your all into pleasing a fan. The fans of course eat it up as usual while Manon watches you from the corner of her eye with a scrunched up face, feeling absolutely freaked whenever you do a cute pose, or laugh at some tacky pickup line at your grown age. She isn’t entirely disgusted at your actions, more just curious on how fast you can play out these corny scenarios.

It had been like any other fan meet, your drowsy body laid pressed up against the edge of the table as you held hand in hand with another one of your dedicated fans. It was only supposed to be a 5 minute long greet but after signing the SIS album, you felt as if the whole ordeal was being dragged on. The ghanaian sitting next to you emphasized with your exhaustion as she tossed you a knowing glance, before taking her focus to the woman in front of her. Manon’s peripheral vision was enough to keep track of you and your wary state.

You had been bored our of your mind— despite this being your first public fan event, you found it profound that your interactions with your fans where been heavily monitored as if you'd cross the line. Though, it didn't take long before an overly enthusiastic fan piqued your interest with her odd comment, "Doesn't my perfume smell great", the girl spoke as she sat curiously in front of you. Your eyes practically widened as she motioned towards her wrist, the location with the most concentration of the sweet scent. "Mhm, just like a fresh flower bloom" You hummed, Manon found your comment intrigued, but didn't raise an eyebrow at it, that was until she saw you raising your hand towards her as your fingers looped around her wrist from the corner of her eye.

Poor Manon tried giving her undivided attention to the fan in front of her but she couldn't puzzle what you where doing. Her eyes widen as you grab the girl's wrist and smell her perfume "seductively" as you call it, while the fan freaks out. This is when Manon cannot hold in her emotions anymore— she is BURSTING out laughing as you try your best to keep your composure. She's teasing you like crazy when you both get back home, and when clips of you with the "Oh she's that type of girlfriend" videos circulate around tiktok she's sending all those to you. And best believe she's teasing you about it on weverse with comments like "Oh guys, best believe I'll be next!" or "Some people lack shame, but thats okay."

Sophia is just, confused? She's known you since day one, assuming that the both of you where attached to the hip since Dream Academy. Sophia has genuinely never seen you like this until now, to be fair, you had been joking about being an absolutely "stud muffin" even during pre-debut days, but she never truly expected you to go through with it— AND be this committed to the bit. Best believe she's staring you down during every interview and every fan interaction, just to make sure you don't accidentally slip up and cause another viral yet incrimination moment for the girls. But despite that, she'd much rather be a fool with you, than you making a fool out of yourselves, so yes she is entertaining your strange behaviour.

She only really started playing into it during a promotion live for touch, the both of you as per usual, where too preoccupied mugging the camera that you failed to notice that both of you where too close for comfort. It hadn't occurred to you how close in proximity the two of you had become, it wasn't until Megan sweetly read out a comment along the lines of "Oh my, my sophy/n heart" that it made everything abundantly clear. Sophia opened her mouth to defend herself only for you to butt in just as quickly. "Mhm, me and my beautiful glorious queen Sophia..." You drone, your words slow as you reached your hand over the table which held all the sweet treats and grabbed the nearest edible thing and raised it up to your face.

"Are just such a great duo." You giggled, pushing the sweet up to Sophia's glossed lips, her eyebrow raised before finally giving in. As she let the sweet treat enter her mouth you continued to speak "Isn't that right Soph?" You asked, the bewildered filipino kept her composure as she mumbled 'sure' under her breath, as Megan and Lara laughed at the two's antics. Which lead to a scolding right after the camera's got shut off.

Daniela is so befuddled, to the point she's physically screaming, and running away, crying, throwing up, all of the above, she's everything but pleased. She's never been one who was used to this whole idol culture, on top of the fact that she's constantly having the please the fans is horrific to her. Which isn't as horrifying as watching one of the closest people in her life being a fan-service advocate, such as yourself. She finds you genuinely terrifying how good you are at reading people and flirting with others. Honestly, she really found you charming during the production at Dream academy, even whenever you joked about "putting your skills to the test", she never took your charms seriously, that was until she saw your true form on stage.

It had just been another stage performance, the heat the lights, the music, it all had gotten to you, the sweat dripping from the side of you neck got a some fans in a stir, but nothing notable. Walking off the stage, (which forced you to make contact with a few fans before going backstage) you hopped off with a signature smile on your face that your charm was really put to the test. As a bead of sweat fell from your face, a towel was handed in your direction, presuming it was a staff member you grabbed it within a heartbeat. With Daniela behind you, she tried her best to stop you but it was too late, it was a fan who graciously offer you their hand towel. And now you where stuck between a rock and a hard place. You could either A, play it out and pretend this was all part of your grand plan or— yeah, that was the only viable option.

Daniela wide eyed gaze faced you as you continued to wipe your neck with the towel, your ego dying a little more as you tried to keep the smile plastered on your face. "Thank you baby." You hummed folding the towel to give it back to the crazed fan, who just insisted that you keep it, and of course you did, sliding it in the back of the hem of your skirt before gliding away from the situation. As you all head back stage, Daniela who's still in shock and disgusts pulls you into an empty room to debrief. Asking you questions along the lines of "Why'd you do that" and "Are you mad?", with your only response being "Felt like it" or "Y'know that was a good show— and you like good shows!" Only earning yourself a slap on the cheek as a response.

Lara loves it, she really does because that just means you match her vibe so well. She loves seeing you do it, and she loves playing into it with you, almost always making a whole show out of it to farm some more content from the fans. Any given moment she's coercing you into doing/saying something freaking on camera or in public, just because she finds it so entertaining, best believe she's the only one among the girls who actually approves of the fan service agenda. Although Lara does have some limits, because her parent's do see all the clips that go viral of her, but she teeters on the edge of what she can or cannot do with you. It's gotten so bad, that Sophia and Yoonchae have to cover the both of you whenever your on screen, because personal bubble does not exist with the two of you.

It's always when the two of you get on live alone, which always has the PR team in shambles, having two members who have no filter is hard enough but having the two of them by themselves is practically hell. You don't understand the concept of "to much information", (Lara does though, but seeing you embarrassed in the morning after getting post sleep clarity is hilarious) so when Lara read out a comment asking you for dating advice for girls you happily obliged! "I believe that the most important thing with flirting with girls, is eye contact..." You happily answered, turning your head to Lara as she was holding back tears of laughter.

"Look for example" You chirped, fixing your gaze to the Indian as she batted her eyes up towards yours, your faces inches apart as she stared at you curiously. This lasted for a good 7 seconds before she broke it off with her laughing uncontrollably, despite everything she did find her face heating up under your gaze. You turn you eyes back to the camera with a gummy smile, "See look! If it was a few more seconds, we'd be happily married. That's the secret to flirting with a girl." You cheerfully answered as Lara was huddled off from the view of the screen laughing her ass off.

Megan is indifferent, because she knows your getting hella bag from this, she's honestly just impressed on how well you can keep your composure till you break. Doesn't mean she's any less weirded out by it, but she's also not judging, "get that bread" one may say, and yeah she's a little jealous from how much the fan's eat it up but that only gave her more of the incentive to see what she can do to get that persona to crack. Even if it means playing along, or playing dirty, she just wants to see whats your absolute limit before you call it quits.

One time during a fan event, everyone was handed a pair a fluffy animal ears and fluffy paws to match, of course if any other regular grown woman where to put this on, they'd hurl, but you weren't some regular woman. You where on a mission, so you swallowed the remnants of your pride and put it on, the others where only brave enough to put one accessory on (Manon refused to put any of it on), you put everything on, quite literally decked out. Almost instantly the girls where suppressing their laughter and second-hand embarrassment, but the flashing lights of the cameras made it worth while. You had just expected to stay in this half costume for a few pictures until you took it off to sign more albums until you heard Megan's voice on the microphone as you got ready to slide the paws off.

"Hey, Y/n! This fan told me you should do a cute pose" She snickered as the fan waved in your general direction, almost like a glass crack, your smile faltered, making Megan burst out laughing, but that didn't stop you. You lifted you hands up to your face and made a claw like gesture with the signature smile plastered on your lips, before moving into a pout. Yoonchae who sat between you a Megan just glared up at you in pure disgusted, before you embarrassingly sat down. You huffed, knowing that even your members where laughing at you, but you knew that it'd be that end of that, "no more pictures" you mumbled under your breath as Megan kept your eyes on you.

As you carefully tried to take off your paw-like gloves you heard the mic tune in again, with Megan's giggle on the other end. "Hey c'mon, she wants you pose again" Megan cackled as she motioned to the same fan, she watched as you shot her a killer glance before begrudgingly following her orders.

[grimrester]

i am really so sorry to continue harping on about the watcher entertainment streaming service. but this kind of stuff (internet content as a business & marketing it as such) is truly my obsession, and i think i will implode if i don't talk about some of the takes i'm seeing.

i'd like to emphasize again i don't have strong feelings about watcher either way. i like ghost files, i watch mystery files sometimes, i watched worth it back in the buzzfeed days. i don't watch any of their shows religiously.

anyway, here's the main things i keep seeing crop up and my thoughts on each:

"watcher has 25 employees they have to pay, and employing people in this economy is good, so we should be banding together to pay them."

employing people is good if you currently have the capacity to pay them. i checked watcher's linkedin page, and many of their employees were hired within the last year or two. if they hired people they cannot pay with the business model they had before, something is seriously wrong with their internal bookkeeping/decision making. it means they either didn't know they couldn't pay these people long term, or they did know and were content with risking newly hired employees' livelihoods on a huge content pivot in the next year.

of note is that none of their employees' titles have anything to do with managing the finances of the company. they are the size of a small business but have no one aside from the figureheads of the company in charge of their finances.

this is the kind of company decision making that leads to downsizing and layoffs, which can be devastating. but you know what's worse than laying off a portion of your staff? laying off everyone because your business is going under.

"not everyone can afford the subscription, but those who can should pay it to support the watcher team."

no. $6/month for a couple hours of content (depending on what shows you actively watch and the natural fluctuation of their release schedule) is a fundamentally bad value. i can pay that much for a few movies on amazon. i can pay that much for dropout, if i want to support a smaller business instead.

and to be totally frank, even if people do sign up, i don't think they'd get enough to compete with the amount they get through patreon/sponsorships. and the fact that they didn't know how many of their subscribers would realistically sign up is a bad sign.

a pretty good conversion rate of free to paid subscribers of a service or content is 3% (usually accomplished through a free trial). given the very poor reception of the announcement, let's say about 1% of their 3 mil youtube subs pay for their service. that's 30k people paying for their new platform. that's $180k a month in their pocket.

(they currently only have 12k subs on patreon so we are being generous here.)

a sponsorship deal (based on my googling, i have less direct experience with this) is anywhere from $10-50 per 1000 views. they've gotten about 1 mil views on their last few videos. 3 mil subs is nothing to shake a stick at, but let's say they're on the lower end of the payscale at $25 per 1000 views. that's $25k a video, $100k a month if they release 1 video a week. their lowest patreon tier is 5 bucks, so even if all their subs are at that tier, that's another $60k, so $160k total. it's entirely likely they're bringing in much more than that when you factor in merch, adsence, etc.

did anyone on their team crunch numbers on how many people would need to sub to make the switch worth it? did anyone do market research on how many people they could convert to paid users? because if not, if they really didn't have a game plan for this, the subscription service was always doomed to fail.

"this was their only option to continue making the content they want to make, with the production value they want."

i watched their announcement video. a key point in that video is that they have done sponsored videos and that's what used to pay for their content, but they did not like the amount of creative control the sponsor had over the content.

look, i get that's no fun. we'd all love creatives to be able to make whatever they want. but when you are a small business with a team of employees relying on you, you have to think about making money, sometimes at the cost of creative liberties.

and they had so many other options to make money for the projects they want to make without jumping to a subscription platform.

they could have started actually promoting their patreon, and maybe done some restructuring of the tiers. why not a highly produced, special series just for patreon members? or a special high-budget episode of each series, while the main series is lower budget?

bite the bullet and continue taking sponsorship deals on some less-produced shows, while axing sponsorships from the ones the crew feels more passionate about.

schedule larger, blowout-production shows only when they can be afforded. this is what Notorious Amongus Guy streamer jerma does. he saves up for big productions like his baseball or dollhouse streams, so he can really get creative with them.

they had other options and they've tried very little, especially when you compare them to other content house business at similar scales. try guys and good mythical morning both put out significant content with significant staff, and have had to diversify their income streams with auxiliary products, shows with widely varied levels of production, etc. but it seems to be working for them. watcher has merch and that's about it, and seems to only want to increase the production quality of ALL their shows.

really, all this just boils down to a terrible business decision. it's hard to say if the watcher team is working with a consultant or anyone outside of their team, but they certainly don't have anyone internally who is experienced with running a business like this. to me, it seems very much like they got in a room together and did some extremely optimistic income ballparking with no research behind it.

and that might have been fine for three dudes running a channel alone, but if they're a business, they have to start making decisions like one.

[foldingfittedsheets]

The infrastructure in store is that there’s just No Damn Room to physically have goods like pillows, sheets, or protectors for people to take home same day.

Despite this, corporate decided we should have physically goods on hand. Now it’s worth noting: we wanted this. If someone comes in to buy a pillow and we have to say, “Sorry, I have to ship it to you.” We asked for stock on hand. But they decided to send it despite not having shelves or displays to actually contain the wave of product.

Today I received a truly cartoonish amount of soft goods. I cannot emphasize enough, there’s nowhere to put them. It was over thirty items and the pitiful shelf in the back that previously held our personal belongings is overflowing with stuff already.

I called the little store to ask what they’d done and was met with a bleak, “I’m not sure.”

I regarded the pile. Then I announced, “I’m gonna build a pyramid.”

My coworker started laughing, “Wait, really? Where?”

“By the window,” I said decisively.

It took a while to build but it’s 15 protectors in a pyramid and it’s not the worst. At least it looks intentional.

[rosesnbooks]

Astrology observations #4

🧡if your moon is in the same sign as someone's rising sign, this is visible at first meeting. you just feel a certain pull when you see them, and they stand out from others in the room

🧡i have noticed that capricorn moons and/or mercuries like dark humor, it's not for the sensitive ones. that's why they also appreciate shows like the office and seinfeld. not to mention their interest for darker shows in general. developed capricorns are funny, but underdeveloped ones hurt people with their mockery

🧡aquarius/11th house and gemini/3rd house placements love personality tests. curiosity and the desire to understand themselves is strong. the former also want to feel more connected to others because they often feel vastly different than the people around them...these tests help them connect. honorable mentions to pisces placements as well

🧡i have yet to meet someone with virgo placements who doesn't appreciate cleanliness and/or organization. funnily enough, not all of them actually follow these values themselves. they are also good with arts and crafts

🧡virgo moons and gemini moons both have issues with silencing their minds at times, but virgos are definitely stricter with themselves. both placements need to talk with their closest people to process their feelings. they just need to let it out somehow or else, they will feel overwhelmed

🧡water signs are connected to water obviously, but there is something about cancer placements and their love for the sea. it's adorable, and they find comfort in it

🧡i think it's true that opposites attract but i think that there needs to be one point where both sides can meet. for example, if you lack earth placements, you probably benefit from having an earth placement in your life but it works best if they share an element that you have. this way, they they can understand where you're coming from.

🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸

🧡a person with scorpio mars cannot hide their intensity from everyone. especially when it comes to things/people that they deeply care about or things that fuel their rage. they can have the most sensitive and peaceful chart, but then that scorpio arrives and stirs the waters.

🧡mars in gemini can go through many difficult trials in life and adapt to anything. it's truly admirable

🧡moon in the 12th find comfort in spirtuality and/or religion. however, they need to be careful not to become fanatics and vulnerable to bad intentions from the people in these fields

🧡3rd house stelliums observe people a lot and, over time, learn how to read them very well

🧡i think parents can learn from their children as well and sometimes their chart confirms that. for example, a parent can have their north node in scorpio, and their kid ends up having one or several scorpio placements. it's up to the parent whether they'll learn from them or emphasize the differences between them

🧡jupiter in sagittarius/jupiter in the 9th house find tremendous joy in travelling. once they try it out, the urge to continue travelling is strong. staying put in one place too long is bad for their spirit

🧡i have noticed that those with earth venus (virgo, capricorn, taurus) don't rush into love as others. i think they just want to find the right person first. they're sensitive souls that want someone to trust and rely on

🧡people with north node in leo notice that they feel alive when they pursue different adventures and when they don't dim their light in front of others. they care a lot about the world and humanity, and they need to let others take care of them sometimes too

🧡it's not easy when your jupiter and saturn share the same house. i think it means you need to find balance somehow. for example, someone with jupiter in the 9th house can find happiness and luck in travel, spirituality, and having an optimistic and open-minded mindset. but also, they may fear pursuing these things either because it seems scary or because they experienced some setbacks in the past. moreover someone with jupiter and saturn in the 11th house has had meaningful friendships that brought them lots of luck, as well as some intense friendships that caused them a lot of pain

🧡pisces placements can adore libra placements because they want someone who'll give them a fair chance and some peace in their lives. pisces people are a bit weary of intense placements because they don't feel 100% safe with them, whereas libras are comforting. honorable mentions to taurus as well, since they can make pisces feel like they're at home with them

[ireneaesthetic]

Pointing out little moments and details of the last yr scene.

wilmon endgame • episode 6

the camera work is so on point - it follows wille around moving frenetically, as to emphasize the hurry and the tension.

simon gets in panic mode for a sec. he was never over wilhelm but definitely thought their relationship was.

at first he looks ... scared - not of wille but of what he feels for him at this point. he's still in love but they got to the finish line, they broke up with no idea of when or if they will talk to each other again, there's no reason for wille to chase after him if not to change something.

it makes his thoughts spiral, but somewhere in his little heart he has a lot of hope too and that's why he steps out of the car to hear what he has to say.

these words really mean everything and i'm glad they're told directly to simon. it's such a sigh of relief for wilhelm to get this off his chest and mean it for real: he's doing something for his own sake finally - to be free, to be happy, to be in control of his own life for once.

he never got to choose anything - somebody else has always done it for him - but he no longer has to be afraid anymore.

simon is just as relieved and the proudest: he proved over and over again to care so deeply. to see wilhelm constantly hurting inevitably hurt him too.

he knew wille was brave - he actually told him once - and he was so right. it takes a lot of courage to do what wille just did.

shut up he's adorable :') playing with his fingers and trying not to break into a smile. he wants to look calm and collected but his heart is jumping out of happiness.

this comes after the are you sure you're over me? - breaking up was all it took for wille to think that simon must not love him anymore: to earn love and for everything to be perfect in order to deserve love is what his family and royal life always taught him - but simon's what the hell do you think? proves him so wrong.

the tears in his eyes i cannot - this is the face of a man who's bursting out of love, he adores simon this much.

they crush into the hug like they've been dying to do it. what a moment it must be for them to close the distance.

in this hug they find what they both were needing the most.

they hold on to each other. emotions are so overwhelming and it's written all over their faces - it feels too good to be real.

it's almost scary to let go now and i love how they tighten the hug at the same time, clinging to make it last longer.

and they're at the same height so simon has to be on his tippy toes ahsjkh.

oh the beauty in simon feeling every emotion to the fullest and letting them all out. he doesn't hold himself back and it is truly heartwarming to watch.

this hug is healing - he's giving joy to be back in wille's arms, proud of wille for putting himself first, relief because the fear of losing him was too much to handle.

the single tear drop and the pure disbelief in his expression. he caresses wille's cheek and keeps looking at him like he's the most precious thing.

doing the triangle method - again. old habits never die huh.

wille letting simon choose to whether kiss him or not.

it's our simon we're talking about, the one that risked it all and initiated their very first kiss bc he liked wille that much already, so could he possibly not do that now? he obviously does and can't help but smile into it.

they can't get enough of kissing and wandering hands. it's like their only way to make this become more and more real.

fair to say they're kinda obsessed with each other's hair!

love love looove the transition from them kissing in secret in the dark of the night to them kissing freely out in the open in the daylight - the most beautiful metaphor.

completely different plot points but the feelings involved are so familiar - reunion kisses are very much their brand: there's longing, passion, need to savor the moment to make it last.

and this time it can really last forever.

something super special about simon not replying with i love you too but sticking to i love you - it is not just reciprocal.

this shot haunts me. it's from the documentary and idk why it wasn't used in the final cut, i'll make space for it here anyway!

wille can't stop smiling and simon never takes his eyes off of him - he's emotionally overwhelmed by the way he bites his lip and his chin trembles. my heart.

no ray of sunshine between them could ever distract me from wilhelm diving into this kiss with his eyes open.

simon is definitely being pulled closer by the waist here and i take it very personally.

i was already full on sobbing when this part of the scene came up - sara and felice calling them out bc they are too caught up in their own bubble.

they still take one more moment to just look at each other so fondly tho and try to get a grip on what has just happened.

i get you wille! simon is the loml too.

this shot is sooo!!! hillerska in the rear view mirror as they drive away - time for the last bittersweet goodbye.

all of them are wearing white, they're driving off in a white car, most carefree than ever - sounds a lot like freedom and fresh start.

some things never change - they're the most comfortable and happy when they can be just them, just like this.

god knows where they're headed but it doesn't really matter as long as they're together.

wilmon endgame babyyyy.

they've been through so much but come so far eventually. it's the end of young royals but the beginning of a new chapter in wilmon story - the best one - and it's only theirs to write from now on.

it's still going to be tough, storms are still about to come their way and ruin plans, life is a mess but at least they have each other. they're holding hands in a we are in this together kind of promise and it's so reassuring to know.

it was a hell of a ride but love and hope wins - and there's truly no one who deserves it more than them.

time to appreciate the comparison between wille the perfect crown prince and messy hair with undone shirt wille!

he looks at the audience for the very last time with the most content smile and we can tell he really is - ready. to leave us behind, to face the future, to experience life in the way we've seen him fight for before.

wilmon breaking the fourth wall together at the end would've been insane, but it feels so right to focus on wille actually: it's always been just him, it all started with our eyes on him and his journey, the choice to abdicate is for his own sake and not for simon - he said it himself - so for him to be alone in the closing shot makes the most sense to me.

wilhelm finally getting his own little family of people who loves and values him, simon sharing life with the person who's made him feel seen and cared for - this is honestly the best finale we could’ve ever asked for.