#like if I was concerned about money in the short term I would not be doing grad school

[frankendykes-monster]

Now let's analyze how a Marvel comic by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee actually played out once it reached publication. The term "collaboration" is thrown out all the time even though all the "collaborating" would have been done after Kirby dropped the pages he wrote and drew were dropped off. The following text is copied (with edits by me) from a Facebook post by Chris Tolworthy, author of The Lost Jack Kirby Stories, a book concerning his analyses on Kirby comics that got put through the wringer at Marvel in the 1960's. (This is besides the point but the fact that these characters are not in the public domain is a major barrier to further investigative work. Like all things Kirby history and critical study, we are still in the baby steps.)

Lee wrote the FF?? He didn't even understand the story, and he didn't care.

With the Fantastic Four movie on the way, this is a good time to remind people that Lee had no idea what was going on. And he made zero effort to understand it. And he made minimal effort to make the book a success. The idea that Lee wrote this, or even cared about it (before it started to make money), is laughable. Here are some clips from issue 11 to demonstrate that fact.

Sue's Age

I haven't read any comics in a while, but I was reminded of this a couple of days ago when a friend asked me, "how old was Susan Storm?" A very good question! So I checked Fantastic Four #11 again, and the whole mess came back to me.

Originally, the question of Sue's age was simple. Kirby drew Reed like a self-portrait in the early issues. And he modelled Susan on his daughter Susan. So Reed was 44, and Susan was 16. Johnny was a couple of years younger.

But Lee wanted Sue to be the love interest, so she had to be aged up, and Reed had to be aged down. So we get the canonical ages in the letters page: in 1962, Reed and Ben are late 30's, Johnny is 16, and Sue is somewhere in her 20's.

Even if we say that Lee got someone else to answer the letters, those ages match the art and the story (and the stories in Strange Tales where Sue acts like Johnny's mother). They raise some questions, but they are easy to fix. The new ages can work.

This brings us to FF 11. And Lee's dialogue:

Problems in FF 11

Johnny was born in 1945. Yet he was cheering on Ben before he was born.

Sue goes from adult to child: look at her size and how she sits in that chair. Whenever Kirby recalls the origin, he always recalls what he planned, not the changed version. Lee apparently did not notice.

Reed says that he had the hots for Sue before he was in college. But if Sue is Johnny's brother, she is unlikely to be more than 10 years older. So, she was born in 1935. And Reed had to leave for college around 1940: so he was lusting after her when she was 5 years old. We can allow a bit of leeway, but it starts to require some serious fan theories to make her as old as possible (my head canon is that she is actually Johnny's mother, but I would not need that theory if not for Lee's lazy cliche dialogue).

Notice how those cliches are squashed into the art - there is no room for them, they are forced in, they add nothing to the plot.

Summary

In short, Lee does not care. He does not think of the characters as people. He is not thinking back to their past, as the story demands. He is just adding cliches ("girl next door", "cheering on the football game", etc.)

And there you have Lee in a nutshell. He does not care. So when people say he wrote the story, or that he added something of value, I have to laugh.

Wait what do you have against Stan Lee. genuinely curious, I don't think ever seen you post about it

Nepotism hire office worker who's stuck as Marvel's only editor as the company (and frankly the entire comic book industry) are experiencing an implosion that almost takes out everyone in the late-1950's. Jack Kirby has nowhere left to turn to so he starts working at Marvel and has to brainstorm an entire new line of books to ensure the company stays afloat. Lee begins crediting himself as the writer across the entire line of books so he can collect the writer's paycheck (the "artists" at Marvel at this time were also the writers, they were submitting complete stories on a freelance basis, Lee would eventually mandate a system where dialogue and captions couldn't be written ahead of time so he could fill them in himself). Marvel blows up in popularity and Lee positions himself at the center of it, much to the ire of Kirby, along with Steve Ditko, Wally Wood, Dick Ayers, the list can go on. When Marvel is sold to Perfect Film and Chemical in 1968 and becomes a publically traded company, Lee is part of the "package deal" wherein whatever current corporate owner of Marvel can use him as the "original creator" figurehead as a means to block royalties for dozens of people who had worked at the company throughout the 1960's, and functionally its a role he kept for the entire rest of his life, and now your average person (along with a specific subset of industry veterans that can range from Roy Thomas to Larry Hama to Bill Mantlo to Jenny Blake Isabella) thinks of him as the original-idea-guy who ~actually~ created the line of characters now regarded as the "Marvel Universe".

[im-not-a-ghost]

How will you meet your next lover?

Group 1

Cards : 2 of pentacles, Knight of pentacles, Temperance, page of cups, ace of swords, 4 of pentacles

This feels like a work setting or at least a work related meeting. You might not necessarily meet them directly at work but your occupation may lead you to meet this person. I feel like either one or both of you are in a transition when you meet. If not, a period of instability. It's like you're not really sure whether you want to keep going in the direction you're headed to. When you meet, I feel like the connection is instantly going really smoothly. You and this person may be chatting right away, exchanging ideas and tips. However, I feel like both of you are on the reserve. I don't see anyone being at the origin of your meeting with them. You will likely be surrounded by people but they will not come into play here. It's just you and your person interacting with each other. I feel like both of you are single when this happens. The transition phase may concern your respective studies or career. There might not be much going on upon first meeting. But you will instantly feel attracted to them, especially to their mind. In terms of timing, I'm picking up on a few years. A little pigy bank was depicted on the 4 of pentacles card. So I'm getting the message that in order to meet this person, you will have to save money. Or you will meet them at a point in your life when you or they need to save money for a project. Maybe you live at a distance from one another and when this person meets you, you or they are only there for a short period of time. Which would explain the transition thing. Think about a tourist visiting a country and making acquaintances with the locals.

Group 2

Cards : 4 of pentacles, 9 of swords, Queen of swords, Magician, 6 of swords, King of pentacles

I am getting a work setting from this group as well. You might have felt drawn to group 1 too. For this group, I'm picking up on a difficult phase in your career. Maybe you've reached a stalemate. You're working really hard to ensure your future and stability but somehow you're not seeing any progress. This may lead to you feeling anxious or even being depressed. I see that during this period of time, you're not entertaining any relationship. You feel very guarded and hurt and the last thing you need is for someone to come into your life and see you stuck in this mess. Yet, that's what happens. This person is also single and very career focused. You may meet them at a time of their life when they're travelling for learning purposes. This person has reached a stale mate in their career as well. And in order to overcome this phase, they have decided to make a move and find an opportunity to learn more and get more resources. This person decided to force their luck so to speak. "If I'm not going to be given the sucess that I seek, I'm going to create it on my own, no matter how hard that may be" was their mindset. Neither of you expected to meet each other. I don't know why I keep talking in past tense. This could be an indication that you may have met this person already. I get a vibe from you that both of you are very witty and cerebral people. This may be what got you to interact with each other in the first place. I'm picking up on different zodiac signs which could give us an indication as to who they are or when you met them. We have Gemini, Libra, Taurus and Scorpio. So that gives us a time frame from mid June to mid November. You may have met them during Summer.

Group 3

Cards : Hierophant, 5 of cups, The World, 10 of pentacles, King of cups, 10 of cups

For this group, the place of the meeting may vary. What triggers this meeting is a loss. It could be the loss of a partnership in any form (person, contract) or of an important belief system. In both cases, this really affected you on a spiritual and emotional level. When you start to overcome this loss and feel a bit more optimistic about life is when this person comes in. You may be travelling abroad or interacting with a lot of foreigners online. Your job or studies are going well. You may be travelling or enhancing your presence online in order to gain knowledge, notoriety or resources. The person you meet is very generous. Right off the bat, you will get a very good impression of this person. They will make you feel safe and cared for like no other. One way that you can recognize this person is by how sweet and kind they are. They will gift you many things out of the blue, for no other reason than to make you smile. They will give you compliments out of the blue, reassure you very frequently, encourage you every step you take. This person is a very good listener and a reliable support system. When you meet and start interacting, you may be living at a distance from each other and thus use social media to stay in touch. I'm picking up on fixed signs very strongly, especially Taurus and Scorpio. When you meet this person, you will notice that a lot of things in your life are improving. It will almost feel surreal. It's like this person has unlocked a cheat code that you weren't aware of and now all you ask for is in your hands. Lucky you!

[synchodai]

Give Karlach Character Flaws

My problem with how most fics write Karlach, especially when she isn't a major player, is that it seems as if she's never allowed to be selfish. She's always there to be big Mama K, ready to support and tank damage for everyone else, but that doesn't mean she doesn't have any self-interest at all. While I enjoy reading about her forcing Tav to confront their feelings and whatnot, I also want her dragging Tav along to some romp to distract them from dealing with the more difficult emotions because honestly, that's what Karlach does herself.

The very fact that she refuses to go back to Avernus, even for a short while, shows she would rather not face her fears than prevent her friends' grief. In this instance, her terror at confronting her situation trumps the care and concern she has for her friends. You can argue that she has the same attitude when you ask her about the Soul Coins. "There's no saving them and planning long-term, so we might as well use them for instant gratification and a momentary boost." She would rather not think about things than fix them. She's the "this is fine" dog.

If we go back to her time as Gortash's bodyguard, we can see this as well. Gortash built his fortune and reputation through arms dealing (and slaving), so it's hard to believe Karlach thought she was protecting an innocent guy who would never hurt anyone. We know she's insightful and not at all dumb. She most likely knew his business was shady, but choose to keep taking his coin because she was young, orphaned, and needed the money. The players never think about her complicity in any of his crimes because that would mar our image of her as a self-sacrificing precious cinnamon roll. There had to have been smoke everywhere and she went "this is fine" until she got consumed by the flames and couldn't escape.

I still think Karlach is ultimately a good person. My point here is that for a barbarian who's supposed to charge headlong into their problems, she is extremely avoidant and that part of her personality seems to be largely glossed over. It's defeatist and cowardly to accept death when there are clearly ways she could keep living. I would have liked Karlach's story to have emphasized that, making it clearer to the player that sometimes we do have to make that choice to go back into the Hell that traumatized us if we want to fully live our lives, because avoiding it and letting yourself explode means the devil wins.

I don't blame her for not wanting to. It's a very scary thing to do, and my primary coping mechanisms are all avoidant as well. But I hate how characters have dialogue in-game about how Karlach's so brave to face her death when the real radical act of courage would have been fighting to live.

[fyxestroll]

Please can you write something with Magnus the Red? Doesn't matter what

pairing: magnus the red x reader (gn.)

warnings: DEAD DOVE: DO NOT EAT, descriptions of body horror, angst

notes: tried to make this as gender neutral as possible. please tell me if I missed any feminine terms. first time writing for magnus hope I did him right.

There’s an old saying that “there’s a fine line between genius and insanity.” 

Magnus begged to differ. Genius is insanity, as it is what society labels it so; to break preconceived notions is viewed as insanity.

And then he met you.

You, the brightest pharmacist in all of Tizca with nearly enough accolades to match his.

You, the most insane scholar to ever roam Prospero’s medical institutions.

Prospero was most known for its sorcerers but at the end of the day, it was the land of scholars meaning any and all avenues of knowledge were pursued, including medicine. You, specifically, specialised in concocting medicine from the planet’s flora and fauna to assist in a patient’s physical recovery from psychic maladies.

That was how your paths crossed.

See, the thing with contracting psychic illnesses is that those afflicted have either gone mad or are days away from passing on. Ignoring ethical concerns—but you always cared about those, the latter were too unpredictable and the former would rather spend their final days with their loved ones which left you without any test subjects.

So you decided you would become the test subject. 

And you had proudly proclaimed so when proposing your research to him. He had baulked at the proposition. It was suicidal, and while Magnus is the last person to preach about caution, he wasn’t the one running around asking for money to consume poison.

He rejected it the second you finished your presentation.

In response, you continued to push, hounding him like a dog. You were practically there at every turn approaching him with passionate—— near manic eyes. He continued to reject you for years, hoping you would eventually wear yourself out, but that never happened.

Instead, he became your research partner.

Somehow, you had managed to convince him, and somehow he had let himself be convinced.

Maybe that was a sign of what was to come, a sign that that partnership would grow into something more.

Or maybe he was just as insane as you.

No, that’s not right, isn’t it? You always made far better decisions than him. Always.

Either way, the endeavour was a success, and together, you discovered several treatments in quick succession. You went on to open a clinic; it was a humble place compared to the towering pyramids that overshadowed it, and on the day of its grand opening, you asked him to marry you. 

Right. In. Front. Of. Everybody.

And he wouldn’t have had it any other way.

You became his, his partner in study and in life. Magnus was never one to believe in blessings, but you were his, and he couldn’t imagine a world where he didn’t meet you. It was a good marriage, all things considered. Propsero prospered under your care; you and he were at your happiest, and that didn’t change when his Father, his progenitor, finally came for him. You simply became a parent to his legion, to his Thousand Sonds.

Sadly, by his fault, it was short-lived.

He sought to resolve the issue of the Flesh Change that plagued his legion and paid a far heavier price than he thought.

In the beginning, you had joined him in looking for a cure. 

But his legion, his sons, continued to die. 

Bit by bit, he watched as your hope for a cure dwindled. It broke you; you, the brightest star in Prospero, the doctor who cured the incurable.

“We’ve know that this illness is connected to the Great Ocean,” you had said, looking over the cadaver of a legionnaire, an apothecary who had ended his life as soon as the symptoms of the Change worsened, “But its cause is unknown and those affected are not limited to the physchically gifted of your gene-line.” 

You looked to him, forlorn, “I’m starting to believe there is no cure. We simply do not have enough knowledge about the Great Ocean to find one.”

He should have left it at that, grieved those lost and shifted his focus to palliative care. 

But he didn’t.

Giving up did not mean you would abandon the pursuit—not even the Emperor Himself could stop you from attempting to save a life, and the research would simply be put on the back burner. He knew you had hoped that if you did not find a cure yourself in the present, you would in the future, if not, years down the line, someone would. 

You had the patience to wait.

Magnus did not.

You were always his better half.

He delved into the Depths of the Great Ocean against his better judgment and his Father’s warnings. Then It came along and It offered a deal—a cure in exchange for a piece of his soul and a piece of his flesh.

He took it, and you paid the price.

You see, when he married you, he tied his soul to yours. It was a vow of loyalty in that he would have no other but you. However, to those who looked into the Warp, they would see the two of you as one, entwined forevermore.

When he Resurfaced he had found you screaming as you attempted to claw your eyes out. Only, you had no eyes, just smooth skin where they should have been. 

The same happened to your mouth, days later. 

Next week, your ears.

By the end of the month, you were nothing but a sack of conscious flesh with a hole for a nose.

The rest of your body was in similar condition. Limbs multiplied or disappeared, and bones rearranged themselves under your skin. His best apothecaries could find no source for this unknown affliction, but Magnus knew.

He was paying his dues.

A piece of your flesh. A piece of your soul.

You suffered for months, physically screaming out in pain, begging him to put you out of your misery. He couldn’t, he couldn’t bear to let you go. You were his better half and he could not accept that he had done this to you.

He promised you a cure. 

That was for naught.

One night, you fell silent, your soul disappeared. 

To where?

Magnus does not know.

Ten millennia later, your soul still eludes him.

Perhaps, it is better this way.

Prospero, your beloved Prospero was razed and now it was being rebuilt. However, gone were the beautiful gardens, sprawling plazas and towering pyramids of Tizca instead, there was only a great war forge. 

Every bit of his homeworld will play its part in the great game.

And you would hate that.

Your clinic, your research would no longer be used for cures but to create the ailments. Some would say such an act would be more befitting for the followers of the Plaguefather but the Changer of Ways appreciated such twists of fate.

In this way, you, his beloved,  would be remembered.

You would hate this.

You would hate him.

[13flowersandfoxes]

I mean grad students are paid like shit so

[quantum27]

To whom it may concern - the mutuals, the fandom-in-laws and the average movie goer. I would like to explain the plight of the Tron fandom.

The sequel announcements Disney pulled this year (2024) are insults to anyone who enjoys movies. There's nothing wrong with sequels, don't get me wrong, but to have a catalogue that has only 1 original movie announced is truly saddening, especially to those who love animation.

Then there's also the fans of Tron.

Tron (1982) was the first major motion picture to use CGI extensively for it's settings, vehicles, and many more things. Many of it's animators would go on to work at Pixar and pioneer CGI there. It was so early that it was rejected at the Oscars for special effects because it was considered "cheating" essentially. This isn't a post about the history though I recommend learning about it if you're interested in the medium of animation.

Tron was an average boxoffice movie. It made back it's money and that was it. However it became a cult classic. It's a strange movie- a bit hard to get into- I only fully understood the plot the second watch, even though it's not that complex.

It would spawn a video game sequel, Tron 2.0 (2003). Years later, in 2010, another sequel would come out, setting the current canon timeline (think of a Star Wars legacy canon and disney canon or Star Trek alpha or beta timelines- that's how the fans treat it) Tron: Legacy.

There were also other supplements, the ever mourned, cancelled after one season cartoon midquel Tron: Uprising- tie in video games and comics and a complete ARG before the release of Legacy. Then there was the planned third movie. It languished in development hell, canceled and uncanceled. (There's more complexity there, involving even, Tommorowland (2015) and of course money.)

Now what we're getting is Tron: Ares. A movie that doesn't even feature the actor for the character Tron, Bruce Boxleitner. There's also the fact that Cindy Morgan who starred in the original movie and original video game sequel was always ready to come back has now passed away. Jeff Bridges is set to return in some capacity, the most well recognized actor from the franchise to the point people assume he is the actor who portrayed Tron.

The first short trailer shown for Tron: Ares shows fundamental flaws in misunderstanding the concepts in the prior works, watering it down to an aesthetic. Most fans I've spoken with have little hope for a good movie at this time. It even stars the controversial actor Jared L*to as it's main character! All of these are red flags.

So, to those who read, please know, after waiting for a decade, Disney has decided to shill out a product with less love than any prior element in the franchise. And I mean even less love than the tie-in movie games for Legacy, of which are of varying quality. This is likely due to the opening of the US version of the Tron rollercoaster. The rollercoaster has more love and attention in it than the trailer shown. And with complete love to it and what I've seen of it- the movie should be a higher quality than a rollercoaster in terms of story and lore.

Our only current hope is for more visual novels after Tron: Identity was released in 2023. And I suppose the NIN fans will get a soundtrack.

Disney does not care about it's audiences. But it especially does not care about Tron fans.

[dodger-chan]

On this, a totally normal day, please enjoy this short scene featuring demon Steve Harrington:

“They’re con artists,” Steve asserted, rolling his eyes. “They’re nothing I need to worry about.”

It wasn’t that Eddie thought Steve was wrong. He’d read a book about their involvement in that possession and murder case in Connecticut five years back. It had certainly read more like fiction to him.

It was just that demons tended towards overconfidence. Or at least Steve did. Maybe that was more of a jock thing than a demon thing.

“You’re bound to the mortal plain by a two-bit ring from a Crackerjack box,” Robin snarked. “Forgive me if I’m a little concerned.”

There was that, too.

“I’ll have you know that ring cost me fifty cents. It’s solid nickel,” Eddie joked. But he kind of agreed with Robin. The ring was a flimsy object, and entirely incongruous with Steve’s preppy look. Even if the couple weren’t practiced demon killers, the ring would be an obvious target.

“So that’s why my finger keeps turning green,” Steve mused. “Look, I can’t let this stand, but one of you can wear the ring until they’re gone, okay?”

-------

Which was how Edde found himself twisting his old ouroboros ring around his finger, sitting in a diner booth across from Robin. Stealthily watching the demon hunters eat their lunch. Waiting for Steve to arrive. The wait wasn’t long, but it was tense.

Steve ignored them when he walked in, only paying attention to the couple seated behind them. Robin leaned forward and stole some of Eddie’s french fries.

“I think we’re in trouble,” she whispered. She was only half joking. They weren’t supposed to be there; Steve didn’t want either of them associated with a demon. But Robin was not about to let Steve face even fake demon hunters completely alone. And - coward or not - neither was Eddie.

He shushed her, keeping an eye on Steve as he sat down at the hunters’ table.

“I read the contract you signed with Susan Mayfield. Book rights to her daughter's story for a flat fee? Seriously? My deals are more fair.” Steve was facing away from them, so Eddie had to imagine the smug expression on his face. The older couple looked confused.

“Your deals?” The man asked, like maybe he hadn’t put it together yet.

“I’m sitting here right in front of you and you still have no idea.” Steve shook his head. “And you call yourself demon hunters. I knew you were just con artists.”

Understanding dawn on the woman first.

“You’re the demon,” she said, fear in her voice. “The one who killed those kids.”

“I am a demon. But no, I haven’t killed any kids in Hawkins,” Steve corrected. “Those three dead kids, the Mayfield girl’s injuries, that really was a human. People can be evil all on their own, you know.”

“Why should we believe you?” the man asked. He didn’t appear as afraid as his wife, but Eddie was an expert on posturing. The guy was about thirty seconds away from shitting his pants.

“Believe, don’t believe. I don’t give a fuck. I’m not here to keep you from writing your little book and ripping off the American public with your absolutely true demon stories.” Eddie would bet good money Steve was rolling his eyes. “I’m here about this.”

Robin nearly turned around to see what Steve was holding even though she knew what it would be. Eddie kicked her ankle and she turned back.

“You see,” Steve went on, “I made a deal with the Mayfield girl’s brother. It means I owe her a certain amount of protection. So this contract you sweet-talked her mom into signing? We’re going to rework the terms. I’m thinking percent off the gross?”

-----------

Notes:

"that possession and murder case" refers to the Arne Johnson murder trial, where the defense tried to argue the killer had been possessed by a demon. The book was titled The Devil in Connecticut and published in 1983. It's also the inspiration for one of the Conjuring films.

Allegedly (and I'm not doing enough research to confirm it because this six hundred word story has enough notes already) the Warrens paid people flat fees for the rights to their stories and then made bank themselves off of books and films about the 'hauntings' and 'possessions.' Frankly, everything I've read about them makes them sound like unscrupulous con artists.

"two-bit ring from a cracker jack box" is a reference to a Firesign Theatre sketch (The Further Adventures of Nick Danger) released in 1969; Robin knows it from her parents.

Two-bit means cheap in general, but also two-bits refers to a quarter, so when Eddie says he paid fifty cents for the ring he's saying it cost twice as much as Robin implied (still pretty cheap)

I doubt Eddie knows for sure what alloy any of his rings are made of, but cheap jewelry often contains nickel, and nickel can turn your skin green.

"percent off the gross" is revenue percentage rather than a percentage of the profit, so Max can't be cheated out of money via creative accounting.

[wu-sisyphus-gang]

Weiss: We need to get you something casual to wear. Even I don't just have dresses. I have skirts, and jeans and yoga pants.

Jaune: What's wrong with this shirt? It's cotton. It's comfortable.

Weiss: You don't have any other shoes just those heavy boots.

Jaune: What's wrong with my boots? They're comfortable and I know if I have to I can crush somebody's skull with them.

Weiss: Besides the fact they are on my new coffee table? Get some slippers, sandals, or tennis shoes and I'll let the shirt and pants go.

Jaune: I have jeans...

Weiss: One pair? I've seen your closet. Face it. You've gone all hunter with no relaxation.

Jaune: I sleep shirtless in gym shorts. Are you complaining about that? It's not typically something a loving wife tells their husband. 'Put on more clothes.'

Weiss: You also only have one pair of gym shorts. You're so military it would make a Spartan cringe. It's not like you don't have the money for clothes.

Jaune: I've been busy.

Weiss: But now you're not.

Ruby: Ooh! We should dress him up!

Jaune: What am I? A doll?

Weiss: It's settled then.

Jaune: Settled how? Since when are we putting things to a vote. That's not allowed. Everyone has to be onboard.

Ruby: Get democratized.

Weiss: What happened to your onesie? At least you had that. At least it existed even if I am glad you just sleep in gym shorts.

Ruby: Your chest is nice to sleep on. How is it soft and hard at the same time? But we aren't hoofing it around anima anymore and you're not clawing your way back to Vale. Let us dress you up.

Jaune: Again like a doll?

Ruby: Yeah. But you're our doll. Please? For me?

Jaune: *makes the mistake of looking into her eyes, gets up with a sigh*

Weiss: We don't mean right this minute. Good gods.

Jaune: *sits back down* You know where to find me.

Weiss: You have to teach me how to do that Ruby.

Jaune: You both do that to me. You looked at me, folded your arms, and told me to get a psychiatrist and I did.

Weiss: True. But there’s something special about the way Ruby says ‘please? For me?’ Isn’t there? She does it to me too. She’s like ‘I know you like this color of paint for the bedroom but I like this one. Won’t you agree to it? For me?

Ruby: *has this look of 'who? Me? I'm not familiar*

Jaune: As far as I’m concerned you both cheat hard and ruthlessly. How often do you walk around singing in the kitchen while you’re making coffee? You cheat. You both do. You both do it as much as you can get away with and that’s quite a lot. And what am I supposed to do? I’ve got nothing. I have neither defense or offense.

Weiss: How is doing things you love cheating? I happen to sing while I’m doing chores. That’s for me. If you happen to like it, then that is on you. I am talking about how Ruby actively uses her charms to get us both to do what she wants.

Jaune: And I’m just saying you’re not innocent. As soon as you found out it turns me on when you sing you started singing at me all the time.

Weiss: Okay. I did do that.

Jaune: Bangarang. And everyone in this house knows that Ruby just looks up at you with those big silver eyes and asks nicely and gets her wishes granted. Everyone knows that. Especially Ruby. She knows we can’t help ourselves and she knows that we know that she knows. But there’s nothing to be done. What am I going to do to get what I want?

Weiss: You don’t want anything though. You don’t really care what color the annex office gets painted. You hardly care what you eat for dinner. You could probably eat the same thing every day without complaint.

Jaune: That’s exactly what I used to do at Beacon until you moved in with me. I ate the same thing every single day. And you know what? I liked it.

Weiss: You’re schizophrenic. You have to stop with these mentally unwell behaviors. That’s a part of fighting back against your illness. It’s not enough to just take the meds.

Ruby: Yeah, that’s a sign of mental unwellness… You should eat different things…

Jaune: Exactly how long term am I supposed to be thinking here?

Weiss: *Smacks his chest gently with the back of her hand*

Ruby: *much less flirtatiously and aggressively hits the inside of his thigh*

Jaune: And you both abuse me.

Weiss: Oh shut up.

Ruby: Big baby.

[numinously-yours]

Free Tarot Reading: Why did X happen?

Today's free reading is going to look deeper at why something in your life happened. I am answering the following questions:

What is X?

Why did X happen?

How can/did you grow from X?

Choose an X above and find your group below the cut:

What is X? Knight of Swords

You may have started a project and, in the middle of it, it abruptly ended. You thought you had all of the resources you needed – money, people to back the project, a solid plan – so when it ended it was really disappointing. You’re not quite sure what went wrong or why the project couldn’t get off the ground. The main point of concern keeps coming back to the people. Why did people decide to stop investing?

Why did X happen? Seven of Cups rev.

At some point during this project, there were too many cooks in the kitchen. Since it was your idea originally, you took the reigns back and decided to make executive decisions. While this isn’t always a bad thing, it feels like people may have stepped back from working with the project because they didn’t feel their voices being heard. Additionally, there were a lot of short term goals as the project was getting starting rather than looking at the bigger picture, so the small things didn’t necessarily add up to reaching the ultimate goal.

How did/can you grown from X? Ace of Swords rev.

This situation is helpful for you as you move forward with other big ideas (or even if you try this one again!). You are excited about ideas so you want to get them off the ground, but this can be a reminder that taking time to plan is just as important as the execution of the plan. Create SMART goals (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound), allow others to provide feedback, and find a balance between leading and collaborating. Something else that you may have/can learn from this is to wait on announcing ideas until you have a rough draft. It may have been too early in the planning stages of the original project and that made it asier for a lot of opinions to be thrown around. Come in with an outline/structure which allows for some movement, ideas, and opinions, but isn’t a complete blank slate.

What is X? Six of Swords & Page of Cups rev.

There is/was someone in your life who was holding you back. You are inspired, full of ideas and plans for the future, and have always been someone who’s been able to move forward. Someone came into your life and once they did, you felt dragged down. This person has an immature nature about them. They are a bit narcissistic and childish, but think they are mature and know what they are talking about. It has become incredibly frustrating for you. You feel like you have to put your needs on the back burner in order to avoid chaos. For some of you, you may have distanced yourself from this person for a while, but now they are coming back into your life and you don’t know what you are doing to do. You’ve finally gotten back into your groove – will they mess it up again?

Why did X happen? Knight of Wands rev.

Although frustrating, this person came into your life because the delays in your progress were necessary. Whatever you were trying to achieve at the time where they swooped in and paused your work was not going to be successful if you were to have finished it then and there. I feel like my mom when I say that this also happened to “build character”. In a less annoying sense (for me lol), this person was there to teach you patience – not necessarily patience in people, but in not achieving your goals as quickly as you want. Without this person, there would have been risk of impulsiveness and built up energy.

How can/have you grown from X? Three of Pentacles

On a personal level, having this person in your life will ultimately help you appreciate other people who come into your life. Knowing that the person came into your life to help delay progress may help you see people on another level. “There is a reason this person came into my life. Let’s find out why.” It doesn’t mean you have to enjoy spending time with them, lol, but it will help it be less frustrating when the people around you are frustrating.

Regarding the goal(s), it has been aided in growth by the delay. Now that more time as passed, you will be more objective, have a more solid plan, and know where you can get resources to help it flourish.

What is X? Two of Cups

This has “the one who got away” energy for me. Whether it was a romantic partner or a platonic friendship, someone who you loved and had a great partnership with isn’t in your life anymore. You’re wondering what the point was for this person to bring beauty to your life just for it to be ripped away.

Why did X happen? The Lovers & Nine of Swords

They came into your life because you deserved to know that this type of love exists. You deserve to know that, even in your darkest moments, you are loveable and worth the effort. This person was likely the first person in a long time that you were able to be vulnerable with. You learned how to trust again. You learned how to communicate. In terms of why they had to leave, I think it’s as simple as they weren’t meant to be. It’s not an easy answer to accept and it still probably doesn’t make sense. But the time that you had together really shaped you to be successful in new relationship(s) to come.

How can/have you grown from X? Eight of Wands rev. & Ace of Wands

This relationship is bringing you back to the root of YOU. It has probably started already. There are days you doubt your worth because the person did leave, but each day it gets easier to remind yourself that you are worthy. This person has lit a fire under you to live your life for yourself because you finally know that you deserve good things. They showed you the potential that relationships can have and that you have within them. You can move forward from this relationship with optimism for the future.  

What is X? The Tower & King of Wands

Your X was a huge tower moment for you. There was sudden change followed by chaos. Everything that you knew was turned upside down. You had a plan for your future. You could visualize opportunities ahead and see the steps to get there. It feels like you’re expected to build the tower back up but there aren’t any directions to tell you how.

Why did X happen? Justice

I’m not being told exactly what happened that caused the tower moment, but it seems like the actions that were being taken were not in your highest good or the highest good of others involved. Unfortunately, the collapse of the tower was the consequences to those actions. Someone did not stand by decisions that they made and left everyone to their own devices. There was a missing level of ethicality and fairness.  

How can/did you grown from X? Knight of Pentacles

This knight is the hardest working knight in the deck. They are methodical and driven. They may not be the most creative, but they get the job done. You are being called to be this knight as you rebuild that tower. You don’t have to be the most creative person in the room. You don’t have to be the most inspiring person and come into a planning session with a full list of new ideas. If you focus on getting the job done effectively and consistently, you will be successful. Sit down and write goals. Just like group 1 (which you may have been interested in checking out), create goals that are tangible and attainable. You can also grow by accepting responsibility for anything that might go wrong. The original tower moment may or may not have been consequences of your own actions, but moving forward you need to be aware of your actions so another tower doesn’t fall. Stick to what you know, stick to a routine, and soon you’ll see the tower is standing higher than ever.

[crystalelemental]

I am poking my head back here, briefly, to explain the reason for the absence. Which will continue. Don't really know how long.

In case anyone was unaware: I live in the US. Things are. Not going so great over here. I'm in a generally progressive state, and it's still bad. Literally like every day is some new bullshit. And I cannot lie to you. I'm not interested in being around Tumblr culture for this one.

It was draining before, but with the severity we're dealing with, I just have exactly no tolerance for it. Getting blasted with post after post after post of "EVERYTHING IS FUCKED AND YOU ARE IN IMMEDIATE DANGER DON'T DO NOTHING ABOUT THIS (shares zero actionable steps or suggestions)" was always annoying, but now it's actively detrimental. My energy is needed elsewhere.

I've been making calls. I've even started drafting letters, which is a lot given how bad writing by hand is for me. I've gone to our city hall meetings, am looking into committees I can join, and have drafted statements to make demanding support for vulnerable groups in our community to present at later meetings. I've even stayed (a little) late at work to talk with colleagues earnestly about the state of things and am trying to build community that way. It is...fucking exhausting. I'm so tired.

But that's not even the end of it. I alluded to the same in posts around the holidays, but there have been Big Personal Things going on, which have taken a tremendous amount of personal time, money, and energy to sustain. It's rewarding, it's necessary, but this combination is exhausting. Also our house almost burned down. We managed to get our electrical upgraded before something went off, but they told us the light flickering was because a cable in the attic was starting to go so badly that a serious enough wind storm would've snapped a cable in a way that would have definitely started a fire with the insulation. So like. Silver lining.

I am going to be generally away for a while. I do not really know if I'll be back for serious. I may stop in to talk via messages, or answer asks and replies to posts. But despite the exhaustion...I feel a lot better about things than I did when I was here in a more serious capacity.

And hey! If you're in the US and feeling broadly powerless, here are some general recommendations:

5 Calls has been immensely helpful for minor action. They give you a list of issues to contact representatives about, will give you a script to follow to speak to the issue. Truth be told, they're more verbose than the calltakers care about, they tend to just want Name, Street Address (if voicemail), City and Zip Code (for all calls), and what your position is on the thing you're calling out. They don't care about your reasons, per se. If I get someone on the line, I never get to the mini speech, and tend to truncate for voicemails. Phones are so busy one of our Senators' DC office can't accept more messages, so I have to call the local branch. Give them short messages to quickly tally where you can.

Democratic Socialists of America is a recommended organization I have not yet joined with, so I can't speak to it in specific terms. The "local" chapter for me is still over an hour from home, and with all else going on, it's just too out of the way to be viable, I have to look more local. But they hold a lot of initiatives to get involved in, and seem pretty easy to contact. I can't vouch for every chapter, but my local one just has a button to fill out a four-question request to meet another member in person to discuss what you'd like to get involved with.

Legitimately, find out when your open to the public town/city hall meetings are. Local community vibes count for a lot, and you can find out a lot about what's going on and where people's concerns are just by attending. Also you get front row seats to insanely fun drama between angry old people who hate each other, it's great. 10/10, would recommend. All I did was look up "[area] town hall meetings" and it came right up. Called their office to confirm what was open to the public and how to schedule making a public comment, and just showed up. I didn't do or say anything the first time, but met some people and have a better sense for where things stand and what I can do from one (1) meeting.

[toons-inkwell]

Finding "Frankie" AU. Chapter: 1

Warnings: Death, blood, this is a horror game AU ya know so all that.

Words: 4,980. (Check reblogs after for author's notes if interested)

The sound of metal springs rapidly coiling and relaxing reverberated off concrete walls deep in an area hidden from the public's eye. What once was an attraction built to harbor cheer, joy, and entice adults and children to come play now was a demented trap built to trick unsuspecting fools looking for money. Posters and murals depicting what the mascots were supposed to look like were plastered all over, nothing but imagery that would give people a false sense of security before finding out what those mascots really looked like. Originally cartoons, the cast of a once beloved TV show now were twisted beyond recognition. The one the springs belonged to and what lurked through staff only areas was none other than the titular protagonist and namesake of the entire show, Frankie. Of course Frankie was a bit different from his on-screen appearance, in fact he wasn't Frankie at all. Sure his name was effectively the same and he had some semblance to him in terms of appearance, but from the very moment he was created he was told a different story. He was born of the soul and in memoriam of one of the departed showrunner's who died too soon, "Franky"—with a Y. Out of grief the remaining showrunner and the brother to the deceased crafted him to carry on the legacy, for him to help continue the show even in its... New format. He didn't like to think about that though, truth be told he didn't know what he was in his current state. He held no memories of what he was like, what Franky was like, nor did he feel like something that was once a man. All he knew was that he was created to help his brother get their show back and if that meant being a ruthless monster who would rip contestants apart, so be it. He knew his place and that was right alongside his brother–

["FRANKY!"]

Franky's long lop-ears twitched as he heard his name be called out over the facilities' intercom. His body jittered unnaturally, all the springs connected to his limbs froze up and he rotated his head to face a camera on the wall pointed directly at him. On the other side of the screen watching him dwelled his creator and only family, the real Frankie.

["Sorry there Franky, didn't mean to alarm you yet we got SO MUCH to do in such a SHORT amount of time that I thought it was important enough to use the intercom to speak to you!”]

The rabbit’s ears twitched again. With a tilted head he looked at the camera and stood still, not wanting the rustling of his springy joints to drown out whatever was about to be said

["While nobodies watching right now that won't mean they won't be soon! As of this very moment I've been getting everything in order for when they are! Apologies Franky for not telling you sooner but I'm sure you'll be happy to know that we managed to earn enough donations to get this show renewed for ANOTHER SEASON!... Just barely at least..."

Franky's ears raised slightly hearing the last few words muttered quietly. Keeping the show running as well as all the expenses of the parkour palace had eaten up most of the money they were supposed to be saving up to renew the long canceled television show. He usually didn't concern himself with the finances but if it was affecting the chances of them getting what was once theirs it would soon become his issue as well.

["Heh, don't you worry your big ears about it! Just meet me in my office, we have some BIG things to discuss this new season, I'm thinking for a little shake up!"]

With directions being given, Franky scampered towards the other rabbit’s office, scrunching down here and there whenever he needed to go down an elevator or up stairs. He often wondered why he didn't have an office like Frankie did, did he merely not need one? He did run on electricity, at least his body did, so wouldn't it make more sense to give him some sorta special room where he could recharge instead of having to share a room with the other mascots? Was it that he didn't... Deserve one?

With a shake of his head he dismissed such a silly thought and he pressed on into one of the final areas of the little show they had crafted. A momentous attraction dubbed "Frankie's Frozen Peak" that was ripe to face the action of people attempting to reach the top. Sadly no one even made it past the first area, let alone this final one. Despite the rather grim decor he had been commanded to setup, not a single soul was ever able to bear witness to the various platforms, hazards, or the rising pink "slime" that were installed into the mountain. Franky didn't really care about the lack of use the mountain saw though, in fact the less people he had to deal with the better. The only thing he really paid attention to in the immediate area were the various cardboard cutouts placed along where people would line up to participate. The friendly smiling face of what he was modeled after and what a cartoon should look like followed him as he veered to the side and ignored the mountain, instead heading towards a staircase on the side. With a quick stretch of his hand to the very top, Franky let his stressed coil arm relax and skyrocket him upwards. The entire stairway shook once he landed on it, his heavy feet kicking up dust as he tilted his head towards the human sized door with a sign next to it reading "CEO OFFICE". It was a tight fit but he was more than adept at squeezing into tight spaces, with a contract of his springs he waddled over and opened the door to the office.

There awaiting him sat Frankie, his supposed brother and the one destined to eventually take the role as the host once this silly gameshow came to an end. While Franky himself looked rather unruly with rows of horrendous sharp teeth, a maw always partially agape, and accessories that consisted of old scrap metal with a sloppy, almost worn down paint coating them, Frankie had none of that. The once human was what the TV show Frankie was supposed to look like, pristine, cleanly, and friendly looking. The only real difference between the cartoon appearance of the magical rabbit and Frankie’s body was the fact that Frankie had these small beady eyes and while his was smaller than his own prototype body, it was still quite large unlike the tiny toon that was showcased everywhere. Once upon a time when Franky first awoke Frankie himself was human as he once was. His brains and nervous system wasn't exactly attuned to his body like they were now but he could still remember opening his eyes and through faded vision being greeted by a smile of his brother who welcomed him back into the world. His creation was what led to Frankie becoming as he was now, once he was created and subsequently Henry Hotline, Frankie perfected the process and ditched his old human self to become Frankie to take back the old TV show and renew his place as the host. Franky was aware once the TV show was renewed he would not be showcased in it, he wasn't perfect nor anywhere near as appealing looking as his brother, but being the main one who the cameras focused on when slaughtering the contestants was more than enough to satiate his desire for fame. After all he has 57 seasons worth of footage of him doing what he did best, and soon it was to be 58.

"FRANKY!" Frankie greeted as soon as he saw his brother's rustling limbs and head squeeze down the corridor "took ya long enough! Now take a seat because you may wanna sit down for this one"

Franky looked towards the wall and noticed a chair. Considering his torso was twice the size of it he silently rejected and stared back at his brother.

"...Okay that's perfectly okay—now DOWN TO BUSINESS!" Frankie reached down and from his desk he pulled out a file holding a stack of miscellaneous papers "we got a lot of ground to cover... A lot..."

Although Franky didn't know what was in the folder of the papers, the intensity of his brother's stare alerted him to something being off. The air grew thick and he felt unsettled to know that something changed his brother's usually cheery mood. If he was capable of sweating in his metallic body he would at the sudden light switch tone shift and feared the worse about their current show and the future renewal of the original. With a small raise of his hand he reached over, hoping to take a peek at what could possibly be considered "a lot".

FWHIP

Frankie had slammed the folder shut and leaned back "HA! No, no, no, no! You don't need to worry yourself about this!" Frankie opened it once more and sifted through the papers, his head moving with each scan of the contents "I wouldn't want you to get stressed with all this, after all I know how sloppy you can get when you're out of the zone, wouldn't want a repeat of season 26 would we!?"

Franky's hand went back into its resting position and a growl emerged from his mouth. It was his personal way of expressing subtle annoyance although it quickly subsided at the mention of season 26. The cries were something that stuck with the viewers even after all this time.

"That's what I thought, now as for what we gotta discuss–" Frankie picked up a piece of paper displaying a graph, one that had the direction one line steadily set in the red "things haven't been... Great with the gameshow and for the past 3 seasons we've had to dip into the savings just to keep this place up, running, and funded"

Franky let out another growl, this time one of worry. If they weren't profiting or bare minimum breaking even with each season that meant there would be no big Finding Frankie comeback. With how much they desired to get that show back it made him fear their dream would be out of reach.

“What I wanted to go over with you was the ratings regarding the past few seasons and why we are actively losing money, it seems here that nobody getting far becomes boring, honestly the fact that barely now it's starting to become repetitive is a miracle!" Frankie chuckled and waved his hands in the air "now we are running a gameshow here and while we certainly can't let anybody win there's at least gotta be players to play in it"

Franky didn't understand...

The mascot saw his brother's confusion and sighed, with a shake and roll of his head to mimick and eye roll Frankie spoke in a quieter, more serious tone "Listen, while I know you just loooovveee~ ripping the contestants to shreds or squishing them underneath your feet we gotta break even this time or else there may not only be no TV show, but there may be no gameshow or even parkour palace!" Frankie held his head as it spun around on his spring neck before stopping "All you gotta do is simply hold off until I give the signal, heck maybe at least let them meet Henry, I'm sure he's probably dying to chat with somebody that isn't over the phone."

Franky didn't like the sound of that. He didn't like the sound of that one bit.

His entire body vibrated in discomfort. The very idea of anything different being done made him unleash a guttural noise from the depths of his head that was lined with bolts. Springs of his emitted a rattling sound as they stretched out, his hands and feet pushing against the confines of the tiny room. It was his show, not Henry's, why would the audience care if the contestant met Henry or not!? It was bullshit on every degree and account, until they got the money HE should be the one with all the attention on him. This gameshow would be the only time he got the spotlight so why was it being stolen by the person who the show was named after—Oh wait! That's right! IT WASN'T! The shows named Finding Frankie! NOT FINDING HENRY FUCKING HOTLINE!

"FRANKY!"

Franky froze up. The heavy tone carried by the other rabbit made him feel like his entire body had spontaneously rusted. Although incapable of seeing any emotion other than a giant smile, he could feel the rage in those black dots that stared at him.

With Franky slowly retracting back Frankie sighed, releasing his anger at his brother "...listen, I know you love to kill but just this once let at least one live okay? Just long enough to give the audience false hope, donate some more, and then once we reach a goal you can do with him whatever you please" With a wag of his finger Frankie switched back to his energetic persona, speaking hoppy and jolly "we're running a game show here, we gotta at least showcase somebody actually running through a few obstacles right?! This isn't just some snuff livestream!" Frankie suddenly perked up and looked towards a printer that had a stack of cold papers in the output tray "well... At least it wasn't intended to be" Frankie reached over and looked at a few of them, each page lined head to toe with requests of donors. It was times like this the once-human wished he could grimace and not be held back by his wide smile "I'm pretty sure everyone who sends us some of these just wanna watch you kill people in different ways, pretty uhh... pretty disturbing stuff now that I think about it" he scratched his head seeing only a few of the very graphic descriptions "eugh... whatever—THIS IS A GAME SHOW AT THE END OF THE DAY!" Frankie tossed the papers and let them fly about in the air before turning to Franky one last time. With a shoo gesture he gave one last command "go tell Henry he'll be expected to actually chase a contestant this time around, maybe that could liven up that old sourpuss, last I saw he was letting the stress of that talk show of his get to him again”

Franky said nothing and did as he was told, crawling out through the small area he fell all the way to the floor of the mountain parkour area. The springs his legs consisted of broke his fall upon landing down, his torso bobbing for a few seconds absorbing the impact. As he made his way to Henry's local he couldn't help but feel... Robbed? Was robbed the right word? He didn't know, all he knew was that he didn't like this direction the show was going in if it meant he was going to get shelved. The people didn't want to see Henry, and they definitely didn't want to see some loser in a costume run about, they wanted him! They wanted Frankie—or at least who they believed to be Frankie. His name was pronounced the same and even if he wasn't the host Frankie, that title belonged to his brother, he was going to cherish every moment of attention he could get where the audience believed him to be the one and only. Just the thought of having to give up something that belonged to him made his body quake but he tried his hardest to not show any emotion, not wishing to risk having an outburst that could easily be recorded on one of the many CCTV cameras scattered about. He'd just tell the objecthead the plan and get ready for what attention he could garner by only killing 3 of the 4 contestants immediately.

"Ring! Ring! Ring! Ring! It's all they FREAKIN' DO!"

Franky came to a halt as he heard the familiar voice of the talkshow host lament his frustrations. He was only at the museum and was surprised to find Henry out of his household, the mascot just trying to exert the pain of his head constantly ringing. The monstrous rabbit couldn't help but watch the sad display before him, smelling the distinct scent of rot that filled the air from a few of the people who he had killed.

Henry stood with his back to him, preoccupied with using some of the blood of the past contestants to create a grim mural as a testament and hopefully message to all those that saw to stop calling in "why does Frankie gotta insist on playing reruns—actually better yet why do the MORONS that watch them call the number—WE AIN'T ON AIR! QUIT CALLING MY GOD DAMN PHONE!" Henry placed his hands on his receiver, repeatedly picking it up and slamming it back on the hook to hang up whoever was calling "AGH! If I could get my hands on that stupid rabbit and his STUPID FREAKIN' SMILE I'D–"

Henry turned around and was met with the sight of two springs extending upwards. The rabbit had approached him as he rambled on and upon looking up and seeing Franky face to face he felt his blood and oil run cold. Henry dropped the receiver he held and let it dangle off to the side by its cord, his pitch black eyes eyes fixated on nothing else other than the rows of large sharp teeth and black spheres with glowing circles on the center that the rabbit had. His limbs felt heavy as he took a step back and tried to speak, his once normal voice now broken revealing a nervous one overlaid with what sounded like dead air or static.

"F-Franky! How nice of you to stop by! What can I uhh... Do for you on this lovely day?"

Franky didn't respond. Instead his eyes "blinked", the blue light turning off and back on. With a slow look past the mascot he stared at the mural behind Henry, one made out of pain from simply serving his role. Henry's "eyes" followed the path Franky's took, landing on the crude drawing he made depicting him with the message "DON'T CALL" next to it.

"Oh that?... Uhh d-don't worry about that, I'll clean it up, I promise! I know Frankie leaves you in charge of decorating after all" Henry clasped his hands together, the blood smearing further over his glove-like hands "I didn't mean to make that mess I just... Just... I can't deal with this GOD FORSAKEN ringing anymore, you understand? Right?"

Henry's voice glitched again, going back to its previous tones as he surveyed Franky's eyes for any sign of sympathy. Instead all he saw were those cold lights staring back at him. With a raise of a giant "gloved" hand Henry soon began taking more steps back, the springy appendage coming near him.

"Woah! Woah! Hold on there Franky!" Henry felt his back touch the smooth surface of the wall, the dark blood smearing all over his suit "Listen I wasn't talking about you! It was your brother who I was mad at!"

Henry winced and shrunk under Franky's gaze. With a past memory playing back in his head where the rabbit had been commanded to hurt him, the telephone head covered his face in order to spare whatever damage would soon come. Franky's big hand approached closer by the moment and Henry could only imagine the worse, what if Frankie had heard him and commanded his monstrous sibling to teach him a lesson. What if the Deputy had put him up to it? That quacking AI was always looking for every excuse to lock him up and maybe this was the opportunity the duck was looking for. His mind raced with ideas of both what Franky would do to him or what set the beast off. The constant flip flop between thoughts made his head rattle and shake as if he was getting a call. The migraine he had a moment ago returned in full force and he fell to his knees, desperately grasping at himself to keep his head still and quiet down.

click

"Huh?"

Henry opened his eyes, the heavy weight of a hand was brought atop him but there was an odd sense of relief brought along with it. Instead of hitting him or using those hands to crush the plastic his face consisted of, Franky had reached down and fixed the receiver back on its hook. The rattling stopped and the talk show host sighed, relief filling him as Franky continued to look down at him. This time with the knowledge that the rabbit had no malicious intent or cause behind his surprise visit.

Truth be told Franky pitied his fellow part machine part man. Henry was the second creation made using the leftovers of another deceased person, another predecessor to what Frankie was and his perfection. The mascot head wasn't as hideous as he was, but he still suffered from the result of imperfection and ultimately being just a prototype. While the idea of a character whose head was a telephone was a good idea on paper and worked well in an animated format, sadly when that fictitious character became a reality he suffered from horrible pain from the nonstop calls he received. Each time anyone would call in on the hotline Henry would be forced to advertise on his show or press a button on the many rotary phones placed about the facility it would go directly to his head. Even if he was nowhere near the museum or household he could hear the ringing every night when he was charging. The ringing and attention had driven Henry mad and Franky wished for nothing more than to relieve him of the horrid sound and pain, to be able to take over his segment just so the object head could catch a break. Sadly he couldn't, instead all he could do was be there and hopefully provide him some solace.

"Franky... You gotta stop, you can't just scare me like that!”

Franky understandably knew where Henry was coming from and gave a small nod in response. Against his will back when Henry lashed out at a caller on his talk show Frankie had sicked him on the telephone and knew where the fear stemmed from. He couldn't fault him for thinking in such a way and recoiled his hand away, letting Henry catch his bearings before giving him the message.

"Err– thanks for hanging up for me" Henry stood up and dusted himself off, although still dirty he tried to maintain what the pristine color of his red suit should look like "Now did ya come all this way to meet with lil' ol' me or did the higher-up boss man send ya?"

Franky raised 2 fingers.

"Of course..." Henry made a sighing sound and pressed his blood stained fingers to the numbers on his head, repeatedly turning the metal dialer around he said "What is it now? I certainly didn't blow up at anyone last night nor do I think I did anything to make the big man mad" he looked back to his drawing and pointed at it "it wasn't for that... Was it?",

Franky shook his head and pointed to one of the turned off TVs. It was at this point Henry got the message, it was an all too familiar gesture signaling what soon would be the airing of a new season of the gameshow they starred in. Well, they all supposedly starred in it but it was only really Franky who did the dirty work of taking out contestants. This season was clearly different though, Franky pointed at him and Henry didn't know what to make of the gesture. The cogs in and wires in his brain started to turn and after staring into those glowing blue eyes of his mascot partner in crime it all clicked.

"Wait! Wait! Wait! No! ya don't mean that I–!?" Henry pointed at himself "But I thought you were the–" he turned his finger to Franky "I know I am using their bodies for paint but I don't–" Henry gestured to the bodies before finally letting his arms rest to his sides. With another sighing noise he looked upwards, hoping he was mistaken "You don't mean to tell me the boss wants me to actually participate in the show right? I thought you were supposed to kill 'em quick!”

Franky continued to point at Henry and gave another subtle nod. He didn't like the idea either but ultimately knew better than to get jealous, besides this would be a temporary break for the object head where he'd be free of the ever present ringing. Franky regretted thinking such harsh things earlier, seeing how Henry reacted it was clear he didn't intend to steal the spotlight in any way shape or form. The rabbit overall did enjoy his phone—associate? Friend? Brethren? Whatever he was—he found Henry not only somewhat humorous but a stark contrast to his brother. While he occasionally worried and was fearful of what Frankie would do, Henry was the complete opposite and actually feared him. Franky didn't exactly like being feared but he understood it, trying his best to appear friendly and to ease any nerves he caused to someone he never wished to harm again.

This friendly and relaxed attitude did help. Henry took a step past Franky and started to head out of the camera’s blindspot, watching closely as the rabbit tailed him "Well I can give it a shot but I wouldn't know what to actually do, it's just chasing them and trying to grab ‘em right?”

Franky stood still. That was essentially it at a first glance but there was a bit more complexity to killing in his book. There was a right and wrong time to do it, like when they are trying to run back out from whence they came and they are only a step away before you quickly grab them, yank them back, and watch as they scream as they watch the exit they were so close to get quickly farther and farther. It was small things like that that made killing a lot more than just “grabbing someone”.

“Honestly if it's as easy as you make it look then I'm sure I can put on a show that'll be close to what you're capable of” Henry stroked his phone as if he were slicking his hair back and nudged Franky’s springy legs “of course no one does it better than you big guy, honestly it may be better if I give them one little scare and BOOM! You can come out and finish ‘em!”

Franky immediately nodded at the suggestion, his head rocking so fast his spring made it bounce up and down a bit.

Henry gave a small chuckle at the rabbit’s enthusiasm and kicked a vent open “alrighty I guess that's settled, be seeing ya once we're on air then Franky”

With one final wave the objecthead departed and Franky finally calmed down, giving a wave as he watched his friend intently.

Was Henry truly his friend? It was very well established the object head did fear him to a certain degree but simultaneously Henry was the only one he felt truly comfortable with. He loved Frankie of course but sometimes he couldn't help but feel like he just wasn't his brother. As horrible as that was to say, certain moments made the rabbit consider he was wrong in one more way than he thought. He held no memories of what Franky was like when he was alive nor did he have any interest to have those memories. Franky, the original, would probably unconditionally do what he was told and not question the commands of someone that was family.

So why was it that he was questioning Frankie?

It didn't make any sense and he felt himself grasping at ideas in his head that would perhaps explain. Instead all that Franky could think of was what happened with Henry and the mural still on the wall. The demented drawing made from the deceased was a straight cry for help made because Henry was created with a massive flaw. Frankie surely didn't intend for Henry to be pained by the very shtick he was known for but why was it that he forced the telephone to do his show every single night? Why did he force Henry to continue pretending to want people to call in? The question that plagued him most of all and was what caused Henry to fear him in the first place was why did Frankie force him to punish Henry for rightfully getting mad once? It wouldn't have affected the show that drastically and it was a small mistake. Was it simply that he was in the wrong here? Were the begging words of Henry truly meant to be ignored and he was supposed to blindly carry out such a task without question? Franky didn't know. He felt like he probably didn't need to know. After all, with a new season coming on the air he should focus on getting things set up for the incoming contestants. Everything had to be perfect, and if it meant blindly following orders then so be it. It wasn't just about the TV show anymore, this was about Frankie and his desire for this entire gameshow to grow into what it originally was. To be so much bigger, better, so much more than they currently had.

[mysadcorner]

I just found your blog and I love it SO MUCH! And I was wondering if I could PLEASE request Bale?? Bruce wayne and Jason Todd Dating Rich reader hcs??

Bruce Wayne/Jason Todd x Rich!Reader Headcanons

-Credit to the gifs owner - Please be specific about characters wanted in headcanons and read request rules -

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Bruce Wayne

Bruce would probably find it easier to be with someone who grew up in a similar way he did, except from the trauma he faced. He doesn’t mind how much money you have because he’s going to want to spoil you regardless and doesn't see your financial status as a cause for concern unless he suspects any shady business.

If the two of you have a pretty similar lifestyle in terms of finances then he isn't going to need to introduce you to new things life galas or the way he handles business during the day. It may also help you be more understanding of the minimal time he has to spend with you privately due to already having witnessed the amount of time and effort it takes for someone in Bruce's position to keep things running smoothly in their businesses but also while ensuring their own privacy.

Being from a wealthy and well known family, there is definitely going to be a lot of publicity surrounding the two of you so being followed by reporters and anyone working for any tabloid newspapers and magazines will be expected when you're spotted in public. Bruce would greatly appreciate it if you kept things private, if you went and told them a lot about him or actively looked for the publicity then Bruce wouldn't keep the relationship going for any trouble and leaked privacy that might come from it.

Bruce prefers the meaningless but highly meaningful moments he has with you, such as quiet dinners together or getting ready for bed (more like the early hours of the morning once he comes back and is able to rest for a short while). He doesn't find any genuine joy from doing anything flashy or going out of his way to do things that are "impressive" if you aren't going to enjoy the simple and quite tired side of him. Anything he does that is flashy is essentially just for show and to keep up the persona he's built.

Regardless of this, Bruce is still going to spoil you quite a bit, but he would just do it in more subtle ways, or if he does doe something extravagant he would prefer to keep himself humble and quiet (leaving his big public shows just for any publicity he finds to be necessary or expected of him). You'll usually find he'll refuse you from giving any presents back and may even sneak things into your collection of clothes or jewellery rather than presenting to you outright if you start getting sick of his constant apology presents (apologies for being busy and missing dates, or having to cancel plans last minute).

Jason Todd

Jason might be slightly put off at first when he finds out that you're rich. He doesn't want to be responsible for getting someone who may have been sheltered for a lot of your life into danger (if that were the case) and he also hasn't had many good experiences with other people outside of the family who are accustomed to having a lot of money. As long as you're humble about your wealth and don't make it the focus of your life and personality then he should get along fine with it.

In no way would Jason want to become public, or at least known for dating someone who comes from a well known family; he values his privacy more than enough to keep himself distanced from Bruce in public already, he doesn't need things to backfire by being photographed with you. If the two of you are going to date, then he's going to keep it incredibly private and keep things quiet until he's literally unable to continue doing so.

Jason will actively avoid all tabloids and reporters like they were the plague, and in no way can you convince him to behave any differently. No matter how happy he is with you in private, other than the people who know you both extremely well there will be no record of him being near you at all. Not only for privacy reasons, but to also keep his tracks covered and to keep you out of danger in the long run.

He will be more than happy to take you out on dates in places he has fully control over though, and will make sure neither of you are bothered in these places giving you both complete privacy. He just needs to be in control of the situation, if he's able to ensure things go to plan and aren't interrupted by anyone trying to find out who you're with or taking photos of him when they aren't supposed to then all will go smoothly.

Just because Jason doesn't like showing off with money doesn't mean he won't spoil you. He'll literally go out of his way to get you anything you ever want, even if you're left confused where he gets the money from (because it's definitely not happily from Bruce) but he won't let you get concerned about any of that. He'll essentially ensure you keep living the rich life you're used to as he continues to live on cheap take out and hiding his night life from you for as long as possible. He can clearly afford it though, just look at all the gear he constantly has.

[kieranneedsahug]

Decided I wanted to try and do a lil digital sketch page for all of my AUs so I put them on a spinner wheel. May be slow, but here's one

The first one I rolled was for my streamer AU- I'm calling it My Screen My Heart right now, but that's subject to change, it's just the first thing I came up with haha

I'm gonna put more info under the cut, because that's the courteous thing to do, I think?

So this AU takes place before the events of the DLC in it's entirety! It also takes place before the *majority* of the main events of Scarvi as a whole. Florian only has like, 3 Gym Badges, which are the Grass, Bug, and Electric type ones-

During his battle with Iono she noticed how outgoing and (charismatic?) Florian was, bouncing off her enthusiasm really well. She ended up encouraging Florian to go down the path of streaming and *sort of* takes him under her wing in a way?

She never quite says what her motivation for doing so is, but it's sort of part cause she just, likes Florian's vibes, and partly cause she thinks it'll help her get more views if she has someone to consistently collab with lol, along with other reasons.

In terms of his relationships and status with the other quests, Arven's Herba Mystica quest was completed, being prioritized by Florian after he was told why. Additionally, Florian did *not* get given Koraidon in this AU, with Arven keeping a hold of it this time. Sada does not contact anyone as the Time Machine isn't completely uncontrollable yet.

Penny's quest was in the middle of being worked on, but put on hold for unfortunate circumstances. After the incident though Penny ends up reveling her identity early to Florian who encourages her to take a different path towards helping her friends.

The gym challenge on the other hand- (Nemona's quest, sort of) Florian put that on hold to try and start streaming and plans on restarting from the beginning because this one is something he *can* stream his progress of. Nemona and him still get close thanks to him liking to battle (it's one of the things he streams.)

At some point before he can really get going on redoing the gym quest though he gets attacked by a crazy person (an 'Iono fan' (Iono would never want Florian to get attacked.) outside of the school and due to safety concerns transfers to Blueberry thanks to Clavell's contacts with Cyrano.

Darkitty is Florian's streamer name/personality, not many people know about them being the same (School Staff, Iono, Area Zero Crew, Iono's contacts, most of the Pokemon League Staff.)

He's somewhere between half to three fourths as popular as Iono or Raihan and is a variety streamer. (Pokemon battles, video games, just hanging out at a cafe or smthng, chatting, whatever.)

Okay, now for Kieran!

Like I said this is before the start of the happens before *anything* in the DLC takes place (I'm not even sure if *any* of it is going to take happen the same way at all.)

The most major difference in this AU though, is that Kieran not only has a laptop, but he is *very* active online.

For the most part, at first he was only really on websites like whatever I end up calling the youtube/twitch equivalent, watching whatever videos, but he didn't go on forums much because like, no one online really knows or cares about his hyperfixation (ogerpon)

The short of it is that one time he stumbles upon one of Darkitty's streams and starts watching him more consistently, and eventually starts to develop more parasocial tenancies (not *super* badly, but not mild either.) thanks to how nice he is when interacting with his viewers.

That's around the time he starts using forums and social media more, he also spends a lot of money on fan merch and the small amount of official merch there is.

Basically, in this AU Kieran is a mega simp (don't worry, I know canon Kieran isn't like this, and most of my AUs aren't either.)

Some other things of note:

Despite basing his online personality off of Litten, Florian doesn't actually have one, his starter was Sprigatito, and when offered a starter Pokemon from Blueberry, he chooses something else. (I'm thinking Popplio) Florian also caught a Pawmi while he was still in Paldea, and one other Pokemon (not sure what yet.)

Kieran on the other hand does choose Litten when given a starter Pokemon from Blueberry, he also has Sentret and Yanma from home.

Kieran picking Litten, and Florian never having seen one in real life before is part of why they meet.

Kieran is also not a part of the Blueberry League Club until after Florian comes around; (Kieran runs the Darkitty Fan Club, where he is the only member, and the only reason he was allowed to start a club without the minimum 3 members is because he almost started crying when Director Cyrano told him no. Florian convinces him to change clubs.)

Kieran has no idea Florian *is* Darkitty though, Florian wants to tell him, but doesn't for two reasons. Firstly, because his manager and Clavell told him not to tell anyone, he is in Blueberry because he got attacked after all and they want to make sure he's safe before he goes back to normal, having to only do indoor streams and not being able to stream outside his dorm room. And secondly, because he's worried Kieran will treat him differently if he knows, and wants to become friends with him first. (He learns very early that Kieran is a big fan.)

Uhmm that's all I can think of for now, that isn't spoilers or something! They're just my little guys, I hold them gently...

Oh, also I'm not sure exactly how far but I imagine this to maybe be either taking place in their last year of highschool, or maybe first year of college? So like, somewhere between 17-19 years old? I'd just feel better about that with the fact someone attacks Florian and all. I'm not sure yet though, but ye.

First year of college would probably make most since, sense they got starter Pokemon and all but.. uk, I'll figure it out later haha

Honestly most of my AUs will probably be college or post school AUs/Timeskips/whatevers? Just cause that's kind of what I'm best at writing for and stuff, I'm still feeling stuff out though so we'll see.

[chlobliviate]

Wolfstar Microfic - Knight Bus

Words: 981

@wolfstarmicrofic

🌙✨🌙✨🌙

Sirius had sent his owl, Queenie, to James before he’d left, asking him to get in touch with Remus and telling him that he hoped that the Potters’ offer of a place to stay still stood.

As he slowly dragged his trunk onto the pavement, he looked up at the place he used to consider home. Regulus was watching, expressionless, from Sirius’ bedroom window. He hoped with every fibre of his being that Reg would realise how toxic their family was sooner rather than later. He told him that he could owl him, or if they were at school, talk to him, anytime.

He didn’t want to leave him. Even if he was a massive twat. Most fourteen-year-olds were twats, he reasoned, he definitely was, but he wished Regulus could just overcome the twattishness for an afternoon and come with him. Get away.

He’d be long gone by the time Walburga and Orion noticed he was missing, and although they would know where he’d gone, he knew that once he got to the Potters’, he’d be safe.

He stuck out his wand and a large purple bus popped out of nowhere, making Sirius jump.

“Alright?” The conductor said with a half smile, “Need a hand?”

“Please.” They managed to get his trunk onto the bus and under a bed frame. "Thank you." He said, realising that he'd barely contributed. He felt so shaky.

“No worries, kid. Where you off to?” He looked down at Sirius, now perched on the edge of the bed.

“Uh, Potter Manor, on The Lizard, please.” The man nodded and exchanged a ticket for Sirius’ money. “Been in a fight?”

Sirius had completely forgotten how awful he must look. To start with he hadn’t eaten in almost five days and had only slept in small intervals during that time. The final blow had been Bellatrix announcing that Sirius was gay over lunch (which he wasn’t allowed to eat, but forced to sit through anyway) and Sirius simply not having the energy to deny it anymore.

He’d healed two broken ribs himself but forgot about his face. He pressed a hand to his nose and was alarmed when the blood looked fresh. He hoped it wouldn’t worry James and his parents too much. Honestly, his face didn’t hurt anywhere near as much as his muscles did. It was always the same after she Crucio-ed him, the pain would linger for days. But she'd never get to do it again.

“Something like that,” Sirius said quietly. “You should see the other guy.”

The conductor huffed out a laugh and headed back to the front of the bus.

Sirius pulled a book out of his bag. Remus had lent him The Hobbit last term and he’d picked up a copy of The Lord of the Rings last week and he was hooked.

Before he knew it, the bus swerved into the lane outside Potter Manor. The front door flew open and to his surprise, Remus, not James, was the one rushing toward him. He helped him get his trunk off the bus, then threw his arms around Sirius making him wince slightly, his ribs were still bruised. He clung to Remus, burying his face in the curve of his neck, suddenly concerned that he might cry. A short while after the bus clattered away, Remus stepped back and got a good look at Sirius.

“Holy shit,” he said under his breath. His brows tilted inwards and his mouth dropped open. He looked devastated.

“I’m fine.” Sirius desperately wanted to believe it. “It’s just a few cuts and bruises. I'm mostly ok.”

Remus wiped at Sirius’ still sticky nose with his sleeve, frowning. “You look like shit. You’re not fine.” He placed a hand on either side of Sirius’ face and tilted it gently, assessing the damage. Sirius tried his hardest not to lean into the touch and was fairly unsuccessful. “What did they do to you?”

“Remus, please, don’t.” Sirius shook his head. “Look, I’m out now. For good. I’ll be seventeen in November, so I never have to go back.” He paused, “I’ll tell you and Prongs everything later, I promise. I’m just so fucking exhausted.”

“Sirius.” Remus’ eyes bored into him before softening, He ghosted his thumb across Sirius’ bruised, prominent cheekbone. “Let’s get you inside before he has a coronary. I left them making your bed up.”

He took one end of Sirius’ trunk and between them, mostly thanks to Remus, they carried it to the door. Before they entered, he set it down, looking at Remus.

“I really appreciate you being here.” He pressed his lips together as Remus waited for him to continue. “I know I fucked everything up so badly last term. I’m still more sorry than I can put into words. I just— I didn’t ask James to tell you to manipulate you or anything. I didn't expect you to come, I just thought that a part of you would maybe want to know I was safe.”

Remus' face was unreadable for a moment until he sighed, “What you did was so thoughtless and reckless.” Sirius nodded sadly, “But there was no way that I would ever not be by your side for this.”

“What does that mean?”

“I think it means that I’m ready to forgive you.” He said quietly. “You were so fucking vague in your letter, and I know that was probably self-preservation, but the thought of them hurting you made my blood boil and I had to physically stop myself from showing up there. I came straight here.” His cheeks were pink, “I’m saying… that I think I understand how you snapped and told Snape in a moment of rage, or whatever.”

“Oh.” Was all that Sirius could manage.

“I’m so glad to see you, Padfoot.” Remus’ eyes flicked up and met his. “I’m so glad you’re mostly ok."

[goldenfox3]

Now since I just did this for Falcon of course the question of top/bottom dom/sub Stewart is at the forefront of my mind now LMAO. This one kind of went into some tangents about Stewart's attitude towards relationships in general but. Here we go again, canon and hc-based analysis of the all-important question of:

Would Dr. Stewart be a top or bottom, sub or dom?

SNES

Just like Falcon I think Stewart is at his most cocky here. Brash bleeding into arrogant seems to be a common personality for pilots, no idea why /s. Stewart in the SNES comic is bold, flamboyant, unafraid to heckle his rivals…and also perfectly confident declaring to the world that he's racing to honour beautiful women everywhere. LOL. This lends him the image of a bit of a player, specifically the bored rich boy type since he's fresh out of his surgical career at this point (age 31). The concerns of making money or saving lives aren't at the top of his priority list right now—he wants excitement, thrills, something that will actually give him a challenge. Because apparently he was so godly at surgery that it became ho-hum to him. LMAO. Although SNES era means Stewart is also fresh after his dad's death and racing in the vehicle his father left him. It never explicitly says whether Kevin was a pilot himself (it wouldn't be in F-Zero, but something else) or whether Kevin was just a scientist who designed mach speed vehicles, but carrying on his father's legacy is something deeply important to Stewart and another reason behind the sudden career change beyond simple dissatisfaction.

With all that in mind, I think Stewart at this age would definitely have a lot of sexual experience, though more on the end of short-lived flings vs committed relationships. He's out looking for a good time and isn't ashamed about it. If he finds someone attractive he'll shoot his shot. I see him as both adventurous and flexible in terms of what he'll get up to in the bedroom. He's an adrenaline junkie with a thing for danger, there aren't many kinks he won't try though he definitely has his own preferences. Top or bottom isn't really important to him and would mostly just be based on what he's feeling like that day or if his partner has a stronger preference. He's a switch he's not picky. Though I do notice I have a tendency to write him as a bit of a size queen lmfao. He knows what he wants and he's not afraid to go after it, whether it's racing or sex. He also knows he's hot and he's not afraid to show it LMAO whether that means making someone beg for his cock or shaking his ass at them and getting railed into the mattress or just pushing them down and riding him and taking what he wants for himself.

SNES Stewart absolutely has a dominant personality both in and out of bed though lmfao like whether he's topping or bottoming he's gonna be demanding. He's gonna be fussy and hold you to his high standards because why waste time with subpar sex when there's better ways to get the pleasure he's after? I don't think he'd like walk out in the middle of something but you wouldn't be seeing him again after that. In terms of domming yeah I really believe he does it easily. He's already demanding normally but he can also be a more gentle dom if the mood hits. Even outside of him being in the medical profession I see him as a gregarious and caring person who likes to look after others (some would call it being nosy). So yeah he can be the type of dom who whips you and calls you names or he can be the type of dom who pets your hair and coos that you're such a good boy. Or both at once. Honestly I feel he's more dominant with men and more submissive with women and as for those that are neither it depends on their specific dynamic. I can also see him being a (very) bratty competitive sub with men on occasion, while with women it's easier to get him to submit because he really does have that old fashioned gentleman feel to him with the roses and everything lmao. As for domming it's a stricter sort of dom with men and a gentler sort with women, but the women would have to ask him to do so first because he really would be out here looking to get his ass kicked by a big beautiful amazon LMAO.

Once again plugging my own work here lmfao but I have a specific mental image of Stewart in riding gear that really drives my mental vision of him as a dom. It's GX Stewart which I will get to later but. Behold.

Anyways on the emotional end Stewart doesn't necessarily associate sex with attachment or romantic feelings, as long as all parties are consenting everyone's just here to have a good time, no strings attached. He can get romantic if he wants to but at this age I don't think Stewart is looking to settle down. It's not that he's incapable of it, I just think that he'd be unaware or perhaps even purposely avoiding it. The death of his father affected him very deeply and is something that weighs on him even in GX 11 years later. I think he knows on some level his response isn't "normal", that his grief is bogged down by the guilt of not being able to save his father regardless of whether or not it was even physically possible for him to (I hc his father died in an accident when Robert was otherwise occupied). He keeps things light and casual because he doesn't feel ready to throw himself into that deep of an attachment to someone and have them vanish from his life again. I'm not saying he had some kind of complex about his father, but rather that that degree of emotional closeness is something he's not yet ready for here. Maybe, subconsciously, he does want someone to hold close and come home to. Maybe he does want someone to impress and show off for and shower in roses and affection.

But he's afraid to have it. The very idea of settling down is something that seems antithetical to the risk-taking daredevil who left the stability of his prestigious, high-paying career to careen around the track in a new sport with a high risk of injury and death and no guarantees in terms of fame or fortune. Thirty-one isn't old at all but it also isn't fresh into adulthood young. Maybe his friends and peers are starting to think about settling down now, but he hasn't left the wild fervour of his youth yet. It's too early to call this a midlife crisis but in a way it sort of is lol. He's close to my age at this point so I feel like I can speak a little about the age-related sentiments he might have here. Clinging to the freedom of youth while you still can, wanting to shake up the monotony of the life you've found yourself living for the past decade or so. Not being prepared to give up that freedom, trying stubbornly to be independent.

To get Falcon/Stewart flavoured again, if Falcon is someone who wants to be kept, Stewart is someone who wants to do the keeping, but both are afraid of just that. Falcon afraid of being tied down (figuratively) and losing his freedom, Stewart afraid of driving the other away. Stewart would love to have someone to coddle and spoil and dote on, someone to hold close and keep safe, someone he can have faith isn't going to vanish from his life. At the same time he is deathly afraid of admitting this to both a potential partner and to himself. He wants to maintain the cool and suave persona he's got. Emotional vulnerability doesn't come easily to him despite how willingly he supports it in others. Admitting he has that sort of vulnerability would be like "losing", especially in a situation where he knows (or at least thinks) that the emotional desire is one-sided and his partner isn't as invested as him and would be driven away by such a thing. This is the thrust of the main conflict simmering beneath the surface in Living in the Fast Lane lmao.

What does this have do do with domming/subbing? Well I feel like his usual domineering personality would become more submissive and/or tender in the face of someone he cares for this deeply. Stewart likely isn't really used to being the one looked after, he's the one who does the saving and the looking after. So to have someone return his affections and even take care of him would get him a bit flustered. To have someone express that they want to keep him or be kept. This is especially noticeable in the case of Falcon since Falcon is the younger partner.

-----

X

Ten years later post Huge Accident, we've got a Stewart (age 41) who seems more muted but also more settled. He's been doing this for a decade now, he's surer now about his passion and about what kind of image he wants to put off. After saving so many people in the Huge Accident I think he's got more pride in who he is now—someone who may have left the surgeon profession to pursue his own passions but hasn't completely left the path of saving lives. I also think this is where his social network really opens up lmao like so many different people owe him their lives now. I like to think he's got a bunch of weird friends of all kinds of species and statuses who wouldn't be caught dead in a room with each other but they're perfectly friendly with Stewart alone. This is where you start to see the kind and charismatic surgeon that just naturally charms people versus the more try-hard aura of his younger self.

I don't think he entirely stops being a flirt but he's definitely calmed down a lot on the sexual activity since his SNES days lol. The brash cocky attitude has mellowed into a more quiet confidence. He's still a man who knows what he wants and will go after it, but he doesn't have as much need to posture. He does still like to show off a little and that's why I still think he leans more towards dom than sub—I think he'd be very proud of successfully playing a scene through and giving his partner(s) the time of their life. Still a switch, that's something that never changes. The demanding high maintenance side of his younger days isn't prominent anymore, he's got more of a mature and laid back aura now, but he still does have standards lmao. Subpar sex is still a personal affront to him, he's out here to blow minds and won't stand for merely giving or getting a "satisfactory" experience.

-----

GX

This is furry Stewart /not joking. Ok for real though he always had the Golden Fox but now he's really leaning into the fox theme with his kitsune no me and his fox point hair and everything lmao you cannot tell me that man is not at least a bit of a furry. I don't think he like fursuits or actively thinks about having a fursona or anything or involves it in the bedroom but yeah Stewart we all know you have a special interest in foxes. Besides that I think his receiving end kinks are like being bound and/or gagged, mild painplay (whips/crops/paddles/spanking/nipple clamps), being stepped on, maybe CBT, edging, basically stuff that gives him a little thrill without permanently injuring. On the giving end he will also do everything I just mentioned along with like. Prostate milking. And begrudgingly slutty nurse/doctor/whatever medical roleplay although he will be salty and complain about it LMAO. Only giving also he will NOT be on the receiving end of medical roleplay he will literally just snark and criticize the entire thing it's already enough of a concession getting him to de-professionalize the doctor persona for the bedroom. He's still very much the same thrill-seeking daredevil he was at heart though. I want to make a joke about this manifesting in him going after "bad boys" here but it's not really a joke LMAO. I toss Sword and Scalpel at you which (for once) is Goroh/Stewart—despite how bumbling Goroh is portrayed as, the danger he presents is real and I think the constant threat of that would be something that pulls Stewart in. As well as being able to be insufferably smug about how he "tamed" such a dangerous person. And of course Falcon is a mysterious bounty hunter with many enemies who becomes a near god. Danger!!!

Besides that though he's still a switch and still leans more towards dom than sub. In fact I would argue that despite being less adamant about being a dom here he's even more suited to being a dom at age 42 than at 31. Mostly because I think the weight of years lends his dominant aura more intensity I think lmfao. It's the quiet confidence of a more mature man who's completely sure of himself and his role. The absolute certainty that his commands will be followed backed up by years of barking orders in the operating room. Yeah he's been out of it for a long time by GX but like the genial demeanour underlaid with a spine of steel just projects the aura of "can and will dom you into a shivering mess" better than swaggering hotshot SNES Stew ever could. He'll still sub if his partner desires it but I don't think it's something he just naturally falls into, now more than ever.

A note on his emotional state again: at 31 or 42, Stewart is still very attached to his father's memory. By GX he's had the time to mourn properly and come to terms with it more, but he's clearly still not "over it" if his constant comments about his dad and interview response about talking to his grave regularly are anything to go by. He knows that he should've maybe moved on a bit more by now, but he's mostly accepted that this is just how he is, regardless of whether it's "healthy" or not. The guilt still lingers, but it's something he doesn't really think about much anymore beyond a faint regret. However, it's absolutely something that still subconsciously affects his behaviours around getting into committed relationships.

He has a lot of friends and spends time with any of them on a regular basis. He listens to their troubles and offers advice when asked, and he even talks about himself as well. His deepest, darkest feelings though, the possessiveness driven by a fear of abandonment…I don't know if there's anyone he's told those to. They're buried deep within the years, and he probably is aware of them at least on some level and is afraid such ugly, controlling, demanding urges will drive away whoever he ultimately gets the most attached to. That's something he hasn't grown out of and the one area he feels less than confident in. This is what's happening to him in Thousand Five atm and something he's having to come to terms with more in regards to the growth of his possessive feelings towards Falcon scaring him ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ

By this age he's not the same as the (in his opinion slightly embarrassing) person he was in his younger days. He's kind, understanding, respectable, and above all someone who wants to hold his most precious person close and never let them go off into danger or at least not without him by their side to patch them up if something goes wrong. He doesn't want to know what the guilt of not being able to save a loved one would feel like a second time, regardless of if it's beyond the realm of possibility and responsibility. And he's still surprised to be the one looked after rather than the one doing the looking after. I think by this point he's not really into the casual flings much if at all anymore and like still holds confidence in his good looks and scintillating companionship or whatever but having someone return the same depth of affection as he holds for them would still fluster him.

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ANIME

Anime Stewart is more of an overt "nice guy", less smug and a lot mellower than his mainverse counterpart. He doesn't have the same drive for thrills and danger, nor does he have the same baggage over his father's untimely death. This Stewart is just out here vibing lmao he's one of the most well-adjusted characters in the series, though I will argue that when it comes down to it the claws and steel spine can pop out. So with that in mind I say this Stewart is a switch also, though leaning towards bottom. And on the spectrum of dom/sub I'd say he leans more towards sub. The only reason he ends up being a top/dom often in A Thousand Fiery Stars is because Andy is an even bigger sub/bottom than he is. Although Stewart has these tendencies, he's very adaptable and can slide into whatever role is desired of him in the bedroom. It's the getting him there first you gotta think about because his sex drive is pretty low unlike mainverse Stewart lmfao. I think he probably experimented a bit in his med school/cybernetics graduate school days and then didn't really bother much with sex after that. It's nice but it's not something he really needs in his day to day life when he has other things occupying his time.

Despite being the vice commander of an elite special ops force, Stewart isn't very domineering and snapping out orders like Jody does isn't really his style. He's the team dad to Jody's team mom, with her being the strict parent and him being the gentle one. He's deeply nurturing and caring at heart. We actually get to see him at people's bedsides here, yelling at his team to abandon him to die to save themselves, holding Clank close as Clank sobs his eyes out, and throwing his life to the mercy of their greatest enemy on the slim chance that someone who wasn't even his direct responsibility (Roy) could be saved. Not to ramble about Andy/Robert again but this is why I'm so fond of that pairing lmao like. You have Andy the caregiver. And you have Rob who is going to determinedly override his guilt and protests and care for that caregiver.

He may not be domineering, but Robert is a lot more stubborn than he might seem from his laid back demeanour, once again bringing up the example of him going to Dark Million's base against his team's advice when usually he's the calm and level-headed one. He also stubbornly tried to solve the whole Blood Falcon deal by himself (unsuccessfully) because he considered it his fault and his failure. Despite the outward softness, it's this Stewart and not the mainverse one who has (maybe) killed people and is prepared to kill again. He also has hints of smugness flash through however briefly, like the time he had that smug little smirk bragging about his S-class booster while passing another vehicle lmfao.

All this is to say that while anime Stewart is someone often content to stay on the sidelines and play support, that doesn't necessarily translate to him being submissive in the bedroom (for example, Ryu most definitely is NOT content to stay on the sidelines and play support and he is definitely world's biggest sub/bottom). I feel like anime Stewart has more bite to him than the "generic nice guy" one might think he is in the anime compared to his mainverse self. It might not be as overt, but it's still there. We don't see him get riled up very often in the anime, but from the way he was mouthing off at Black Shadow when he was completely at his mercy makes me suspect that it's possible to rile him up enough to be less gentle of a dom than he normally would default to or more snarky of a sub than he'd normally default to. It's just a matter of riling him up ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Speaking of defaults, in terms of being a dom his default is gentle and caring as he is outside the bedroom. He's there to be kind yet firm. He doesn't necessarily need physical punishment to let you know when he's disappointed, he'll use his tone, words, and expression instead. If his sub gets things right, he'll heap them with praise, affection, and physical touch as a reward. He can be a little bit stricter if pushed but it doesn't come naturally to him. As for submitting, he isn't really one to be bratty or whiny or needy unless he's pushed into it. He'll beg if asked but it takes work to make him beg on his own. He's not a naturally demanding person and this comes through whether he's domming or subbing lmao. And I think also that sex is something very emotional to him, not purely physical, so if someone he loves is teasing him, winding him up, purposely goading him and making him desperate for it…yeah he'll get needy, greedy, becoming a carnally driven mess when the lust clouds his mind, all the stuff that the upstanding doctor wouldn't be in his public daily life. Similar to Andy it's really just fun to take a really unsexualized "clean" upstanding character and imagining them reduced to a pathetic lust-dazed puddle of goo. Do you understand my vision!!!

[masterbradleysblog]

Update on Roxanne Slapper

As many of Roxanne Slappers followers will know, Roxanne was released from Risley Prison on Wednesday 23rd April for prostitution.

Roxanne has now been home for a full 2 days now, and as to be expected struggling a little after her spell in prison, she certainly has been looking and feeling a little withdrawn from her usual self. Roxanne tells me she is concerned about the rejection she is feeling and the rejectionion she feels she'll get from her local neighbourhood and also the burden of carrying a criminal record for prostitution which she now has on her record to her name. On top of that she is very concerned about the struggles she now faces to make money without prostitution which she now knows will lead to a longer prison sentence if she reoffends and gets arrested once again. I have repeatedly said to Slapper that you must not worry about earning your keep, as i will be making sure that you don't reoffend again, and for the short term there is no need to think about earning any money as she'll be using her reserve monies that was going towards her breast implants. I have reassured her that I will be looking after her and looking out for her going forward, and that I want to go forward with my plans that I have in place for her when that time feels right for me, but more importantly Roxanne to take her to a whole new level in my fantasy world of my mind.

Message From Roxanne.

She would like to thank all her followers that have asked after her, and has been overwhelmed by the messages of support she has received in prison. She never knew she had so many friends who actually cared after her. This is a big thing for Roxanne as she has no UK Family left, just a sister in Canada who she has no contact with.

Unfortunately Roxanne has told me she will not be doing any social media at this time as she feels the time is not right and wants to steer clear of pictures that are not appropriate whilst in her rehabilitation stage.

Personally I also feel that this is a good move also if it's to keep her out of trouble and out of a return to prison.