#marcin minor

[enchantedbook]

'The Snow Maiden' by Marcin Minor

[mila2010]

CATS  MUSIC   illustrated by  Marcin Minor

[withnailrules]

Marcin Minor

[gabriel-xander]

Don't Forget

[Sans x Female!Reader]

30: Do It be Squirting? Of Course It Does, I'm a Water Sign

♪────✿⁠(⁠✧◕⁠ᴗ⁠◕✧⁠)✿⁠────♪

It doesn’t take long to get used to Sans’ new look, though you think it was uncomfortable for him at first from all the call-outs he’s been getting from the past 2 weeks. It hasn’t been negative comments by any means (that you know of, Sans has been the one telling you about this experience of his), but that kind of attention isn’t something he’s used to.

You had jokingly asked him if he wanted you to act like an overly possessive girlfriend so people would leave him alone. He only blushed and said: “well, i’m not gonna discourage you if you think it’s best.”

…BUT HE DIDN’T SAY ANYTHING ABOUT YOU CALLING YOURSELF HIS GIRLFRIEND–Chat, what could this mean!?!? Maybe you’re a little obsessed about this subject, but you can’t be blamed when your last relationship wasn’t this complicated.

Papyrus’s comment about it was pretty funny to you the day he came back, too.

“OH, YOU FINALLY GOT OUT OF THAT EMO PHASE. WELL DONE, BROTHER.”

Poor Sans.

All in all, it’s been a pretty chill past few weeks. Staying in Sans’ room is so much better than that couch. You didn’t realize how much you missed having privacy until you moved into Sans’ room. Though… Would you be too straightforward if you told the shorter skeleton that you wouldn’t mind sharing? He already went out of his way to move his stuff out, but maybe it’s too soon.

And today you find yourself with your head upside down from the side of the bed, raising your legs up in the air because you find comfort in the strangest positions.

“You get what I mean though, right? Marcine totally wants me.”

“…My child, I do not think that’s what it means. Could it not just be that this Marcine girl does not like you?” Toriel asks.

“It makes sense!” You gasp suddenly, sitting up with wide eyes, “She wants me sooo bad, that she’s trying to deny it by being mean! You know what that’s called? A tsundere!”

You hear your goat mom sigh heavily in disappointment.

You still call Toriel pretty regularly, once a week every Wednesday when it’s your day off. You keep her updated on your lore in Snowdin, gossiping about the people when something minor happens. You already made plans to visit her in 2 weeks (given enough time after your adventure to the AU) and you’re excited to see her!

The only thing you’ve omitted is Sans.

You have no idea where Toriel stands with him, but if your memory serves you right, then she is interested in him, right? If she likes him, then you can’t bring yourself to tell her how your relationship has developed with him. You make sure to say he’s been good to you, but you don’t say anything more than that.

You hope to keep it this way.

“By the way, my child, there is something I have been wondering. Is that friend of ours–Sans, yes? Is he alright?” Toriel asks, “I haven’t heard from him in quite a while, he stopped visiting almost a month ago. I know he’s okay because you’ve mentioned him once or twice, but… I can’t help but worry.”

Okay, dude.

What.

The flip.

You’ve been in Snowdin for about… Wow, it’s been over 2 months now. Including the time you spent with Toriel too, you’ve been in the Underground for almost 3 months?

Dang.

Does your family miss you? You want to think they do since sometimes your mind tells you that nobody gives a shit about you. You hope they miss you, but at the same time, you would feel less guilty for being gone if they didn’t care. Hurt? Yes, you would be so hurt if they didn’t actually care. But you’re not ready to accept the guilt and reality that they miss you when you are living your best life.

You know for damn sure that Elliot has definitely been looking for you. Elliot is too righteous and has the perseverance to do things like that. The selfish part of you wants him to find you down here and you two can be gay and happy. But the other part wants him to stay safe and not get caught up in this mess.

ANYWAY-

“Sans stopped visiting you a month ago? Really?” You squint your eyes at the weird stain on the wall, “Uhh… Let me think what happened a month ago…”

A month ago, a month ago… What happened a month ago? Isn’t that when you and the monster started getting closer and friendlier? Wait, yeah. That’s around the time he took you to that thrift store and you two started getting cheesy as fuck with each other.

Oh.

Oh no.

‘Sans, you beta bitch,’ You think miserably. ‘Don’t tell me you forgot to see Toriel because you were busy lollygagging with ME?! Noooo!’

“Uh… No, I-I can’t think of… why he would do that. All the-All the sudden,” You clear your throat, cringing at your words, “Uh, I can, you know, I can talk to him. Later. When I see him. Later.”

God, why are you so shit at lying or avoiding the truth? Why can’t you be normal?

“Thank you, my child. You know, when you first moved in with him, he spoke of you so much,” Toriel says with a teasing tone, “He seemed to have taken a liking to your company. Well, aside from your sick week when you arrived there.”

You scrunch your nose up, “Oh, he told you about that?”

“I DID make him promise to watch over you. And speaking of which, you did not have another run-in with that flower, have you?”

“Now that you mention it, no I haven’t…” That should be good news, but all it does is make you nervous. “How about you? He didn’t try showing himself to you, right?”

“No, I have not seen him at all,” Toriel tells you, “Oh! That reminds me, I need to tell you about that little monster, Migosp. You remember him, yes? He was your little dance buddy for a while, and told me to tell you he said hello.”

“Oh yeahh! I remember him!”

“He finally finished his higher education, and wants to start professional ballet!”

──

You go to Grillby’s after your call with Toriel, lucky that he wasn’t so busy that he couldn’t take a couple of minutes to talk. You apologized profusely that you didn’t ask for time off sooner, but that it was a little sudden on Sans’ part. When Grillby asked why and where you were going, you told him what Sans told you to tell Grillby, and it was the same story you told Pollux yesterday before your shift ended.

The story is that Sans, apparently, wants to take you out for a vacation in the Capital. Hopefully, you guys don’t lose track of time, but the plan will be that you’ll be back in 10 days.

Grillby, somehow, gives you a knowing look. “I’m glad you two finally worked things out and got together. Hearing Sans pine after you was starting to get exhausting.”

…UM? HELLO? WHAT?

You raise your eyebrows and put your hands on your hips, “What? And how long was this happening for?”

“Hm… A short while after you started working for me.”

Jesus. So it really was the night he took you thrift shopping that things started to change for him?

You make a thinking pose because you are The Thinker™: “That’s… I didn’t think Sans would be the type to be interested in someone that fast.”

You know damn well you were still serious about wanting to bend Grillby over the counter during that time. But now that you think about it, you stopped thinking that way around the same time, too.

Sigh. Those were the days for sure.

Dang, love really changes a bitch. No, you’re not in love with Sans, but it sounded better than the other L word.

Yes, that’s right.

Lice-

No. The other L word: Lesbian–

NO–It’s “like.”

“I’m surprised too, but,” Grillby mimics your pose, “I feel it’s because you guys are pretty similar. But you’re not so similar that you’re his carbon copy, but rather that–you’re like his other half.”

Oh, Grillby. He has such a way with words with his soothing voice that makes his words sound like law.

You nervously laugh at the implications, “Oh, come on, dude. You make it sound like it was meant to be or something.”

“Perhaps it was. I’ve known Sans for a long time, I think of him as one of my best friends. And one thing I’ve learned about him is that he doesn’t believe in coincidences. To him, things happen for a reason, because they’re meant to happen and need to happen.”

…Maybe that’s all you need to know for now.

────

You’ve packed and got your shit ready after talking with Grillby. Today has been going pretty fast, with one thing after another being done like a checklist of tasks you need to complete.

Let’s see, you got your vacation weeks with Pollux and Grillby. You texted Napstablook that you’ll be MIA for two weeks, called Toriel for the same reason. And you packed some clothes while Sans took your stuff into that void he has because he’s a magic man. Uhh… Oh, right. You just finished talking to Papyrus about your trip as well.

Sans had already talked to him about what you two will be doing. To your surprise, Papyrus really didn’t seem interested in “DJ-ing” across space and time. Still, he said he’ll watch the house and wish you both luck on your journey.

How sweet.

Now you are waiting in the workshop on the blue beanbag, waiting for Sans to finish some last-minute packing. You tried sitting in the pink beanbag but it felt wrong since you internally dubbed it as Sans’ spot.

You wonder how this adventure is going to turn out. You still have no idea what the hell you guys are supposed to do once you get there. Why does Sans need you to pack for a 2-week trip, does he think that’s how long it’ll take you? You’re lucky you got paid in advance, if necessary then you two can stay at the inn at Snowdin.

You wonder how Pollux would be swapped in UnderSwap. You can already guess that Callimare and Snowmill would swap with each other, that would be interesting to see. Oh, and Grillby!!

You can’t remember everything about UnderSwap, but you know the basic main characters and how they swapped with each other. Man, you wish you were still in your hardcore AU fan phase, you feel like a fake fan now.

The door of the workshop opens up, coming in Sans who locks the door behind himself.

You stand up with some struggle. You could be the most fit and athletic person on the planet, but getting up from a limp beanbag will always keep you humble.

The skeleton’s smile widens when he turns to you, reaching into his pocket for something.

“hey, got you something real quick.” Sans pulls out a small white gift bag that still has the tag attached to it.

You snort while taking it from him, “You got me something?”

“yeah, it’s just a little… anyway, hope you like it.”

You reach into the little bag to pull out a light blue lanyard key-chain, decorated with little white bones. There was another clip on the other side of it that you could hook to your pants belt loops. There was already a red key attached to the big silver ring, though you have no idea where it could possibly go. Sans had the decency to remove the tag from the lanyard at the very least.

“i noticed you have our house key and the workshop key on that little string, so i thought you could use one,” He explains, “it’ll make me less nervous about you losing it by accident, too.”

You smile warmly as he takes the bag from you, making it disappear into whatever ether or void he puts his things in. You cup the red key, noticing the top part is vaguely shaped into a heart.

You lift it to him, “And where does this go?”

The skeleton’s cheeks flare up red; he looks away from you and rubs the side of his face. “it’s the key to my heart.”

…

…

…

THIS CORNY MOTHER FUCKER HE DID NOT-

“Did you really get a fake key for that pun?”

“yeah, did you like it?”

“Dude, I love it,” You say honestly with a grin, “It’s taking everything in me not to cheese so hard right now.”

Sans sighs heavy in relief, “good, ‘cause you really had me nervous there.”

“Oh, sorry!” You laugh, reaching into your pants pockets for your other keys, “Sans, this is so sweet, thank you. Aw, I feel kind of bad that I don’t have anything to give you.”

He waves his hand dismissively, going around you towards the machine, “nah, don’t worry. i bought it spontaneously since i saw it was the only one at the shop.”

“Still, thank you!”

You’re busy trying to get the keys through the metal loop while Sans prepares the machine. Even in the Underground, these stupid ass metal loops are the bane of your existence.

You didn’t want to be dramatic with your reaction, but you actually really love this gift. You like receiving gifts a LOT and you think you mentioned it before. But you’d be surprised if Sans remembered that and got you the lanyard for that reason. Finally getting your two other keys attached, you clip the lanyard to your belt loop on your dominant-hand side. You tuck the keys in your pocket so the strap part can still be visible.

Ah, you feel so fancy now. It’s a no-brainer why Sans got you this one. You have a strong feeling it wasn’t the only one at the shop.

“Oh, by the way…” You might as well bring it up now, “I got an interesting call from Toriel today.”

He tenses up, “oh, yeah? what about?”

“She said you haven’t visited her in a month. But why? Did you guys have a fight or something?”

“if i tell you, you can’t be mad at me, okay?”

You give him the side eye, “Okay…?”

“…i forgot-”

“-WHAT!?”

“i forgot,” He turns back to you with an apologetic smile, “if i’m not continuing my hotdog business, then i’m hanging out with you. and if i’m not hanging out with you, then i’m working on the dj–but that’s only been a recent thing.”

“So before the DJ machine, what were you doing if you weren’t hanging out with me?”

“can you remember a time when we weren’t together?”

…Okay, fair. You two hang out together a lot even if it’s to do nothing at all. Sometimes you will have an adventure with Papyrus and Sans, but if you weren’t working, you were with the skeletons.

You feel so sad for Toriel. You bet she looks forward to talking to Sans with how lonely she is at the Ruins. You don’t want to be the person who ruins that for her just because you and Sans are in a honeymoon phase.

“When we get back, you should visit her again, and more regularly, too. Other than me, you’re the only person who talks to her, man,” You cross your arms, “I’m actually visiting her for a week after we get back. Maybe you should come with me, or at the very least “drop me off” there so you can see her.”

Sans looks away for a moment before meeting your eyes, “yeah, that should be fine. probably won’t stay, but i’ll be your chaperone.”

“Cool beans. Now!” You clap your hands together, “Are we ready to roll?”

“first things first.”

Sans makes a shooing motion so you can back up, giving more space in front of the machine. There’s a back flicker in your vision, and next thing you know there’s a metal, circular platform on the ground. In the small cracks between the metal plates, you can see a faint glow of teal color.

“Woah, did you make this?” You ask with an impressed smile.

Your skeleton boy only shrugs, “eh, it helps a lot that gaster did most of it when he was still around. all i did was fix it up and put it back together.”

“Come on, don’t downplay yourself like that. It’s still really impressive that your knowledge and expertise can extend to engineering and building it.”

Being cursed with an embarrassed blush, he says nothing but extends out his hand. You take it and let him lead you to get up on the platform. It looks big enough that Sans could fit on it with you. Was that intentional, or did Sans have to modify it for that?

“okay,” Sans starts with a sigh, standing in front of the machine to make some last-minute checks on it, “do you have your stuff ready and packed?”

“Yes, sir. All packed and it should be in your cool void shortcut thingy, remember?”

“that’s right, but you gotta be the one to remember that. i use it so much that i forget it most times. now, are you ready?

The machine pops open a panel on the terminal, producing something that looks like a modern phone but more chunky. It matches the look of the DJ, but you don’t get a closer look at it since he pockets it immediately.

“If I’m honest, I’m a little nervous,” You chuckle weakly, “but I’m ready as I’ll ever be.”

The Comic steps onto the circular platform and holds his hand out again. You gladly take it and give it a small squeeze. He’s wearing his pink gloves today, you like his pink gloves.

“i got you, okay?” Sans brings back your attention to him, “you don’t gotta worry ‘bout a thing.”

You don’t feel as though you need to say anything in turn, so you just nod at his words earnestly. With a nod in return, he takes the device out of his pocket and presses a few things on its screen.

────

You don’t realize you have blacked out until you’re slowly opening your eyes again.

Woah, it felt like you just took a long blink, but your body is telling you that you blacked the fuck out.

You feel the snow under your body, vaguely aware of the snow-covered trees of Snowdin forest. Right above in your vision was Sans; your head was lying on his (somehow, magically) firm lap. One of his hands was brushing your hair back from your face, the other placed on your shoulder near your neck.

If you didn’t know any better, you’d say he was checking for your pulse (which is steady, by the way). His eyes are trained right ahead of himself, almost like he was keeping watch.

You put your hands by your side to get up, but his hands press down on you forcing you to stay down.

Sans looks down with relief, all tension leaving his shoulders. “hey, how’re you feeling?”

“Uhh… I feel fine, actually. But why did I pass out in the first place?” You ask.

“the short of it is that you’re not used to shortcuts like i am. when i do it and take you with me, it was only those few times, but that’s with a small amount of magic. the dj is like a huge shortcut with a larger amount of magic being used. the amount of it put a strain on your body so you passed out,” Sans pats your shoulder and head lightly and out of rhythm, “but other than that, you’re completely fine. i was just waiting for you to wake up.”

You furrow your eyebrows together, “Are you okay? That must’ve freaked you out. I know I would’ve been scared.”

He grimaces, “i… i knew it would happen, so i was prepared for it.”

“You knew??”

“i’m sorry, really. but you said you were nervous and i didn’t want to scare you even more. you were always going to be completely okay.”

“Aye, Sans…” You groan, bringing your cold hands to rub your face, “I… Ugh. I understand where you’re coming from, but next time something like this happens, I want you to tell me. Especially when it involves me, you know, passing out.”

“yeah, of course. i will now, okay? i swear.”

“Good, good.”

Finally, he helps you sit up, making sure you really are okay. He stands up first and helps you up after. You dust the snow off yourself while Sans does the same. Your hands are freezing since your dumb-ass forgot your gloves. You don’t know why you didn’t think to wear them.

…Could you get away with asking Sans for his? Would they even fit you?

You look around the area, not noticing a difference between this Snowdin versus yours.

“Is this it?”

“yeah, seems like it.”

You shuffle closer to him when he pulls out the strange phone from his shorts pocket. The screen is showing off the same shit that was on the DJ, so you can probably call this thing a mini DJ.

“this is what’s gonna help us go back to our au when it’s time. and…” Sans furrows his brows, “it’s supposed to help us look for whatever it is we need to look for.”

“Oh, shit. So this can track it for us?”

“well, it should, but it’s not showing me anything for some reason.”

“Is it broken?”

“it shouldn’t be. hm… maybe we’re missing something…”

You snort, “What, like how I had to tell you about Gaster before the DJ could start working?”

You can see the displeasure on his wavering smile, “yeah, something like that.”

Oh, no. You’re worried that it WILL be something like that. You know, the big rule Sans said to you about NOT interacting with anyone here! What if you have to tell the UnderSwap versions about your journey if that’s actually the case?

Since Sans is more familiar with Snowdin, and so far nothing looks too different, he takes the lead with taking you guys out of the forest. While the mini DJ is kind of useless right now, Sans opted for it to be put away in his void just in case. You walk close to him while rubbing your hands together, wishing you thought ahead of time.

You’re just about to finally bite the bullet and ask Sans, but he laughs while he removes his gloves. He hands them over to you with a grin, mumbling a little “here ya go.”

[Your hands are rather small, so they engulf your hands. / You think your hands are average-sized, but they’re still big on you surprisingly. / You have pretty big hands, so they fit very snuggly and comfortingly.]

“We should get a matching pair,” You beam with a smile, “Wouldn’t that be cute?”

“ah-ha ha, uh, yeah. the cutest.”

You pout, “You don’t sound excited.”

“no, no. i just… man, i really did luck out with you.”

You look at him only to find he’s already looking at you with that wholesome, derpy smile of his. Like he really is looking at something that has been the greatest introduction to his life. You don’t know how to handle that, how can you handle that amount of pressure?

It’s your turn to look away this time, flustered and your face is warming up to boot. “You keep saying that…”

“hm? because it’s true.”

“OKAY, BUCKO!!” You cross your arms over your chest, “If you’re gonna keep saying cute shit like that, then I’m gonna have you smooch you in the middle of this fucking forest!!”

“but–i won’t say no to that, but do you have to sound so aggressive about it??”

“YES, BRUH! ‘CAUSE YOU’RE BEING SO WHOLESOME AND SHIT!!”

“‘…bruh?’” Sans’ grin widens in amusement, “i thought you said you liked the romantic fairy-tale stuff.”

Yeah, but you didn’t expect Sans to be so… wholesome and sweet. You think you expected him to be more closed off and pulled away from you. Maybe he’d have more trust issues with you or probably be a little more insecure? But if you thought that way then perhaps you’re projecting because (so far at least) he’s been nothing but kind to you and open. He doesn’t shy away from affection and while PDA isn’t his favorite, he’s not scared to be open about his attraction towards you.

Damn.

You’re not ready to say it just yet in return, but you really lucked out with Sans, too.

You dramatically roll your eyes at his earlier remark: “Oh, so you remember that but not the bagel from-”

“-enough with the bagel. i got you that bagel eventually, didn’t i?!”

“Maybe.”

“what do you mean ‘maybe’–i did get you that bagel!”

“I know, but you’re fun to tease,” You bump into his side, smirking at his eye-roll, “Awe, look at you trying not to get mad at me. Want me to kiss it better?”

“are you gonna keep teasing me with that or are you actually gonna ki-woah!”

“WAHH!!”

You don’t know who triggered it (Sans would never admit it, but he definitely felt something under his foot), but a trap was set off suddenly as you were walking. A large net was hidden beneath the snow, capturing both you and Sans with finesse. The net suspends in the air and the inertia makes you both jump and get tangled with each other, limps caught in the ropes.

Sans was nearly fully on top of you, but you’d rather that than accidentally hurt him by crushing him, no matter how light or heavy you think you are. His low defense and HP are a constant reminder in your mind in moments that require any labor from him. Even if his bony body is digging in you uncomfortably at the moment, this is a much-preferred outcome for you.

“ugh… [y/n], are you okay…?” He asks.

“Are you? I didn’t hurt you, did I?” You counter.

“hey, i asked you first.”

“I’m fine, just–I think my foot is caught in the damn net.”

Your bone boy sighs in relief, “good. uh, i think i’m fine, but my arm is-”

Shutting the fuck up fast, you two become still to listen to the sudden crunch of snow, footsteps getting closer and closer. You and Sans look at each other, silently asking each other who the fuck that could even be. Who would be unhinged enough to set a fucking net in the middle of this fucking forest?!

“OH-HO-HO! WHAT’S THIS?! A HUMAN AND AN EVIL DOPPELGANGER ALL IN ONE CATCH! MWEH-HEH HEH!”

Oh, God.

────────

A/N: REEHEEHEEEE! Just a little reminder that UnderSwap Sans speaks in Comic Sans all caps, and UnderSwap Papyrus speaks in Papyrus all lowercase! I hope this won’t be too much of an issue or too confusing. For some reason, all lowercase just FEELS more Comic Sans to me, but oh well. It is what it is. Another thing, I always do the best of my ability to research CANON information about the AU’s, but a lot of time there isn’t much because either: the Original Creator abandoned it so the majority of the content is fanon, OR because the fanon version becomes much more popular than canon. That being said, for now and future content relating to any AUs, please forgive me in advance if I get any canon information wrong, or if the characters are out of character. Unless the canon information is actually shit itself (side eye to Nightmare Sans), do not bitch to me because your head-canon of this character or that character doesn’t meet your needs. You’re free to drop this story if any of that upsets you or if it’s not what you’re looking for! Heart emoji

Taglist:

@lemonboy011

@adriixboo

@fluffyart5000

@fetusbaconegg

[frfx61]

Cyberpunk has irreversibly altered my brain cemetery so I'm gonna write about something I noticed well consuming as much content as possible

Well I was listening to some of my favorites from the ost I noticed a motif showing up in them

The motif I'm taking about can be heard in V at 1:50

Faintly in the background at 1:41 in The Rebel Path

And at 2:30 in Been Good To Know Ya

There are probably many other examples of this motif in the soundtrack but I just don't want to listen to the whole thing right now

This is a cool detail on its own, a musical through line you can hear as you progress the story, but my undertale brain is telling me it must mean something so the best guess I can make is

That the motif represents humanity

It's load and bombastic in Vs theme making itself known, like how V wants to become a living legend

In The Rebal Path it's subdued, almost not even there, just like how Johnny would drop all his relationships for his crusade against the corps (or how he's literally a set of code now) (double or it's because his metal arm gave him a minor case of cyberpsychosis robing him of his humanity)

The last song we hear when we make the decision on who lives on in Vs body and who gets merged into the Alt ai program, who keeps there humanity and who doesn't

[theyoungwaldschrat]

Cynthia Sheppard (insta @sheppardarts) / Jakob u. Wilhelm Grimm "Deutsche Sagen" (1816) / Aleksandra Dvornikova (@allyouneediswall) / Andréa Boloch (insta @popuche_mangeusedecrayon) / insta @enmiljontystnader / Melanie Miller (melaniemiller.co.uk) / Praetorius "Anthropodemus plutonicus II" (1667) / "Gullveig", @elevenrivers on insta / "Metamorphosis", Hiroko Otake (2016) / @redslug / - / jan art "moth life cycle" / mine (Ourapteryx sambucaria glowing under blacklight) / Marcin Minor (insta @marcin_minor)

[tomorrowusa]

Is it a coincidence that the election night map on TVN24 in Poland used the colors of the Ukrainian flag to designate which party was ahead in each województwo (province)? 🙂🇺🇦🇵🇱

In any case, here are the final results from the official election authority the Państwowa Komisja Wyborcza.

The official results in the number of seats per party were amazingly close to the exit polls. While the specific number of seats per party differed slightly, the Sunday night Ipsos poll and these official results both give the three pro-democracy parties a total of 248 seats.

The official turnout (74.38%) was more than a percentage point higher than the already high exit poll estimate. This is the highest turnout since the 1989 election which saw the end of communism in Poland.

When you vote, you win.

People who have lived under authoritarianism don't need to be prodded into voting.

Tim Mak is an American journalist in Ukraine. He tells about Marcin Banasiak, a Polish citizen who is doing humanitarian work in Eastern Ukraine. Long story short: Just to vote in Sunday's election, Marcin spent 26 hours traveling from Kharkiv to Warsaw. That required traveling almost the entire length of Ukraine and then over to Warsaw via the border city of Chełm.

Read Tim's account of Marcin's vote quest at Mastodon.

If Marcin can spend 26 hours (traveling one way) to help rescue democracy in Poland, we should not complain about the minor inconveniences related to voting in the US.

American historian and journalist Anne Applebaum lives in Poland with her husband Radek Sikorski who happens to be an MEP and former cabinet member in the previous Donald Tusk government. In The Atlantic (archived) on Monday she wrote about what led to the pro-democracy victory at the polls.

[A]bout 73 percent of Poles voted across the country, far more than the number that voted in 1989, and in some places the turnout was higher than 80 percent. In Warsaw, Gdansk, Lublin, and Wroclaw, as well as some European cities, voters stood in line for many hours, polling stations ran out of ballots, and some people were able to vote only long after the polls had been scheduled to close. At one Warsaw polling station near midnight, an election worker wept on live television, thanking her compatriots for showing up in such large numbers. How did they do it? Anger is a powerful emotion, and over the past year, PiS made a lot of people angry. Repeated PiS corruption scandals—corruption being one of the inevitable results of politicized judges, police, and prosecutors—certainly helped the opposition. So did high inflation, partly created by PiS’s decision to spend heavily on social programs as the election approached. So did the decision by PKN Orlen, a state-owned oil company, to lower gasoline prices in advance of the vote, thereby causing shortages around the country, as well as general mockery. But this turnout was produced by positive emotions too. Donald Tusk, the leader of the Civic Coalition, pointedly used the language of civic patriotism rather than angry nationalism. Thousands of volunteers came together to organize election-monitoring teams. Hundreds of thousands of people marched in two major demonstrations in Warsaw, carrying Polish and European Union flags; others joined a series of big public meetings around the country.

The new government, when it assumes office, won't be perfect – because no humans are perfect. But it will be enormously better. And similar to Democrats in the US after Trump, the presumed three-party coalition in Poland will spend a lot of time repairing democratic institutions degraded by PiS.

[rfsnyder]

Marcin Minor è un pittore

[manfrommars2049]

The game card - The dragons - Smoki by artist Marcin Minor via ImaginaryDragons

[vladimir777sk]

⛄ Winter by Marcin Minor

*Польский художник, иллюстратор, педагог и арт-терапевт.  Окончил Европейскую Академию Художеств в Варшаве. Использует акрил на холсте и бумаге, аквареле, чернилах, масляных пастелях и цифровом искусстве.

**Polish artist, illustrator, teacher and art therapist. He graduated from the European Academy of Arts in Warsaw. Uses acrylic on canvas and paper, watercolors, inks, oil pastels and digital art.

[lesser-known-composers]

Józef Władysław Krogulski (1815-1842) : Piano Octet in D-Minor op. 6

0:00 - Adagio - Allegro 9:28 - Adagio 14:54 - Menuetto - Trio Allegretto 19:05 - Finale (A la Bohemienne)

Flute - Jan Krzeszowiec Clarinet - Radoslaw Soroka Violin I - Lena Neudauer Violin II - Erzhan Kulibaev Viola - Artur Rozmyslowicz Cello - Marcin Zdunik Double Bass - Slawomir Rozlach Piano - Nelson Goerner

[spinmeround]

Marcin Minor.

[mila2010]

"2The dream3" by MARCIN MINOR

[mariacallous]

WARSAW, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Poland's opposition parties led by Donald Tusk's Civic Coalition (KO) prepared for coalition talks on Tuesday after official results from Sunday's election showed they had won enough seats to oust the ruling nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party.

A new government led by pro-EU centrists will mark a massive shift in Poland after eight years of conflict between PiS and Brussels over democratic standards, media freedom, minority rights and migration.

"In the coming days, after the (final) results are announced, we will talk," said Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz, a leader of the centre-right Third Way, which along with the New Left is expected to join a KO-led coalition.

The Electoral Commission confirmed on Tuesday that PiS remained the largest party in the lower house of parliament, the Sejm, after winning 35.38% of the vote. This would give it around 190 seats in the 460-seat chamber.

Tusk's KO won 30.70% of the vote. Third Way took third place with 14.40% and the New Left had 8.61%, the Commission said. The far-right Confederation won 7.16% of the vote.

KO, the Third Way and the New Left, combined, will have around 250 seats, the results suggested, enough for them to form a stable coalition government.

However, that prospect could still be weeks, if not months, away. President Andrzej Duda, a PiS ally, said before the vote that he would give the first shot at forming a cabinet to the group or party that won most ballots.

With no party indicating a willingness to join a PiS-led government, the nationalist party led by Jaroslaw Kaczynski seems unlikely to be able to secure a third term at the helm of the European Union's largest eastern member state.

"Evil has prevailed in Poland, temporarily," Marek Suski, a senior PiS official, told public broadcaster TVP. "PiS is likely moving into a really democratic opposition."

MASS MOBILISATION

Turnout in Sunday's election exceeded 74%, the highest in Poland since the collapse of communism in 1989, after the parties managed to galvanise large numbers of especially younger voters for the first time.

But the election campaign was marred by harsh, divisive rhetoric, reflecting deep polarisation within Polish society.

Vowing to protect Polish borders and sovereignty, PiS cast the vote as a fight against unfettered migration and against unwarranted interference in national life by remote, unelected EU bureaucrats.

Opposition leaders including Tusk, a former European Council president, said PiS would take Poland out of the EU if it won a third term - a charge denied by the ruling party despite its constant legal and political feuds with Brussels.

The opposition parties have yet to name a candidate for the post of prime minister but Tusk, 66, is widely expected to be their nominee. He served as premier from 2007 to 2014.

"Nobody doubts today that without Donald Tusk's energy and determination, change in Poland would not have been possible," Marcin Kierwinski, a senior KO official, told Polsat News broadcaster.

Still, the three parties are likely to face complex talks over issues such as abortion and LGBT rights.

On abortion, Kosiniak-Kamysz of Third Way said on Tuesday his party would support reversing a 2021 near-total ban on terminations by reinstating the right to abortion in cases of fetal defects, but would not agree upfront to further liberalisation.

KO and the New Left also want to allow abortions up to 12 weeks without limitations. Third Way wants Poles to decide the matter in a referendum.

"No ideological issues can be part of any coalition agreement," Kosiniak-Kamysz said.

[essskel]

I think my point was not as 'fare' to Roche and Ves's character, since they were created in the second game. I was trying to make an argument on how Cdpr's writing is dogshit, so I should show the other example, but in the game where they make their original appearance. Sorry for disturbing you again, english isn't my native language, so it's really hard for me to articulate my thoughts properly. I put more brainpower into sounding smart. But anyways, back to the point.

In tw2, there's one thing that absolutely fucking destroyed my brain with how stupid it is. And that thing - is the genocide of vrans. The devs really said: "The elves are oppressed and all, but we kinda made them too good, we need to make the situation more grey. Hm...UH YES, let's make them guilty of genocide!! They're actually as bad as humans! See, player!! Don't feel too bad for them!"....why, Cdpr, WHY?! Sapkowski shouldn't have sold his books to these morons...

So yeah, I really-really doubt, that Cdpr wanted us to perceive Roche and Ves as some kind of metaphor.

Okay, I hear you, and I'm never going to come on here and defend CDPR's writing as a whole. They treat women like hell, they've tried to equate genocidal military forces with minority freedom fighters (your example with the elves), they've been explicitly racist with the way they framed the Ofieri people in hearts of stone, there's antisemitic tropes used in the added vampire lore from blood and wine, and on and on, sometimes stuff just literally doesn't make sense, I could go on forever.

They're a corporation, they selling a pop culture franchise product, of course it's a mess when it comes to social commentary sometimes.

But there is still a team of professional writers behind it. They're aware of concepts like archetypal characters, mirroring between two story lines or people, theme, metaphor, tone, and social commentary.

continued with sources below:

You mentioned the Bloody Baron in an earlier ask, I agreed with you, I also can't stand his quest. I think it's badly written, it reads way too much as a centrist stance on domestic abuse and that's useless, he'll never be a sympathetic character to me. And yet here's an interview with Paweł Sasko who wrote the quest:

The roots of Family Matters can be traced back to Sasko’s childhood, growing up in a poor village in the Polish mountains. “I saw families destroyed by alcoholism and violence,” he says. “I saw parents fighting with each other and beating their kids, but they were also in love and loyal to their family.”

“The Baron was created as a parallel to Geralt,” says Sasko. “They’re two fathers who have lost their loved ones; two men with blood on their hands; they both have personality issues; they’d do anything for their families.” (Link to full article)

The whole interview is really interesting, I still think it's a bad quest, I think Sasko failed to write the nuanced story that he set out to tell, but regardless, he was trying to tell a story. He considered real life examples, he attempted to created a character parallels, he approached social issues, cultural links, he DID want us to view this character as a metaphor for something, something from his own community and childhood - and I really doubt that he was the only writer at the studio who at least tried for similar depth, or that the Baron was the only side character who was written with similar considerations in mind.

Here's story director Marcin Blacha on the writing choices in the witcher games:

“We want to talk about serious problems, about complex situations, about things that, sometimes, make the player uncomfortable. Choices must then be crafted in such a way that they do not simplify the world, but instead, have the player think and interpret it.” (Source)

Again with this emphasis on more complex levels of storytelling and the inclusion of heavy themes. When they write a character who does something super racist like a militarized hate crime, it's safe to assume that yeah, they're probably trying to address or at least touch on racism here, or misogyny, or nationalism, or something kinder like the difficulties of fatherhood. Maybe you disagree with the way I interpret a certain character or story line - good! normal! - but the writers still intend for us to interpret, to discover our own real word links, to challenge our own views.

Here's a link to a (way too long) presentation by two quest and level designers from CDPR about how they approach narrative and tone in a video game -> If you jump to minute 32, they discuss how even something as benign as choosing where to place food items was done with a narrative in mind, with the intention of enhancing setting, atmosphere, relatability, ect.

There's also a great interview with CDPR writer Karolina Stachyra who talks about how she got hired, why she loves the witcher, how some scenes (specifically in hearts of stone) pay homage to classic polish literature, and she also says: "We make sure to establish [the characters in TW3] as real people, so they are not just there to advance the plot." (source)

I'll stop cause this is getting long, but there's also this interesting interview with writers from TW2.

What I'm trying to say here is, yes, CDPR has a lot of bad writing going on, I'll never defend that, but there is a still a clear attempt at genuine storytelling - a process of narrative, framing, metaphor, ect. I fully expect you or anyone else to disagree with my personal opinions of what a character may stand for, but do you really believe that these characters therefore were meant to stand for nothing? I'm sorry that there's a language barrier here, I hope I'm addressing the core of your ask, but this the best response I can give you right now.

disclaimer: really don't want to excuse any of CDPR's failings either. I'm not saying: aw, but at least they tried, that's better than nothing! And actually, in a lot of cases, the intent makes things worse. When they do something like approach the harsh realities of misogyny in military settings through Ves' character but then just write more misogynistic shit by having her enthusiastically jump into a sexy cutscene with geralt.....yeah now you guys made it WORSE???

[nedsecondline]

10 #InterestingThings I Found on the Internet 143 – Content Catnip

This week’s #InterestingThings Polish #owls, old-fashioned #dog names, UK jungle and 90’s style R&B, #London’s lost #medieval bridges where people once lived, Marcin Minor’s therapeutic #surreal #art and much more #ContentCatnip Source: 10 #InterestingThings I Found on the Internet 143 – Content Catnip