#not that i'm cool or sexy enough for that i just have a history of being cyberbullied :')

[annabelle--cane]

I have read enough art history scholarship on folk arts to say that I believe there are people in every culture who say "we are the only culture to ever properly appreciate adornment and lavish decoration, we invented being cool and sexy and this is why we're special and no outsiders understand us" and also there are always people in every culture who say "we are the only culture to ever properly appreciate functionality and minimalism, we invented being humble and tasteful and this is why we're special and no outsiders understand us" and these people would like nothing more than to challenge each other to formal duels and fight to the death in public but that isn't allowed so they just publish really passive aggressive essays about the True Singular Spirit of their culture at each other for decades. and they don't even have gay sex about it most of the time. I mean I'm sure they do sometimes but it's not the rule.

[i-am-vita]

At the Bathhouse

A Shanks x Ghost Rose Oc (FemReader)

👉 Masterlist

(Now in AO3 too)

Fic based on my OPLA older guysxfemreader headcanons here and certain scene from this FanaticSnail's fic.

Because when Shanks makes a sexy cameo at a bathhouse, I need to write a oneshot of Shanks getting sexy at a bathhouse.

If I said I didn't intended for this to go as NSFW as it got... I would be lying. Of course I wrote a fic with Shanks at a bathhouse with all the intention for things going NSFW. You can thank @fanaticsnail for the idea and the moodboard. Thank you so much, gurl, you inspire me so much!!!! Everybody go give her some well deserved love.

Moodboard by FanaticSnail 💞

Summary: You found yourself separated from your crew after a plan going sideways. Stranded in this little island with a bathhouse and no signal of your captain through your phone, there's exactly one person that you can always count to pick you up. Warnings: NSFW, sex in a public setting, voyeurism, some unconsensual voyeurism due to public setting. Somehow, I managed to not use the word fuck. Is it progress? Expect: That ex-turned-bestie that always appear out of air when you need him. Lovers to Friends to Friends with Benefits. Shanks gets affectionate and handsy with you being a cool pirate thief. Brief Mihawk cameo because I'm trash and need to make him suffer. Use of You not Y/N. Bad english, consistent time tenses not detected.

11-ish years ago...

If there was one person in all the Blues that you can always count to somehow be exactly where and when you needed him was Shanks.

On the rare occasions in your young adult life since you parted ways that you found yourself in a bad place, be it literally or metaphorically, he'd be at enough short distance to pick you up, also literally or metaphorically.

Like right now when you are stranded in this whatever-island after the worst job in your pirate history.

Not that you have failed. The intel you were acquiring now in your captain's hands, unlike you that had to ditch some last minute inconveniences and resorted to your only-emergency escape plan for the first time which consisted in telling your team to get the hell out of there with the catch while you took the roll of bait, found your own way out of the Marine Base and back to your crew on your own... eventually.

You didn't know it yet but this would be the job that finally gets you your current wanted poster thanks to the one knife with rose carvings that you left behind at the scene and the fact nobody was able to catch a glimpse of you, them naming you The Ghost Rose from now on.

Hence your current predicament. Having taken the first fishing boat you found that would take you to the next neighboring island and so on until you found yourself in this little rock, almost empty except for a bathhouse and some B&B's. One of those little hot spring resorts only known by enough people to keep them going.

Perfect to lay low for a few days until you could send a message to your Captain… or it would be if the damn Portable Den Den Mushi just connected your calls.

"Damn, not again." You mutter after the fifth attempt to call your crew.

You were currently in the personal room you purchased for your stay. The architecture and interior design of the building inspired by those of Wano with its minimalist wooden interiors, sliding doors and low furniture for sitting on the floor where you lay comfortably in a light bath robe while considering your options.

There was still the possibility of calling Shanks even if the odds of him being close enough to pick you up were low, he'd probably be better equipped than you to contact Captain Erik.

The ringing tone of the call finally connecting made you sigh in relief.

"Hello?" Came the familiar voice of Benn Beckman through the shell. Because there was no way that he would allow Shanks near their own Portable Den Den Mushi after THE incident from six years ago.

"Beck! You have no idea how great it is to hear your voice right now." You answered to the Redhead Pirate's First Mate.

"Little Rose! Please, tell me you’re coming back at last so I can finally retire." How the man managed to sound so defeated at his age was a mystery to anyone who wasn’t aware of Shanks' antics. Beckman had been asking you to come back since you left to sail with the Phantom Pirates arguing how much more manageable his captain was when you were around.

"Hold on there, old man. You still have plenty of time to become the grumpy grandpa." It had become an ongoing joke between you two to mock him for being the oldest and “designated dad” of the crew. Beck didn't have time to answer when you heard a little commotion on the line and the telling sound of the phone changing hands.

"Sweetheart!!!" Shanks's excited shout was so loud you could swear it reverberated in your own walls.

"Hey, dear."

Even after you had officially ended your romantic relationship years ago, it was impossible to stop the man from calling you lover pet names so you had go on with it too.

"Where's the fight, love? I'll be there in a heartbeat." You could hear several male grunts and indefinite clothing background sounds.

"Is it a bad time? I just need you to pass a message to my cap' so they know I'm fine and on the low. My Portable Den Den doesn't connect."

"More like a bath time!"

"Hey, didn't they say the mushies didn't connect with the outside?"

"You on your own? Say no more! Where are you, babe?"

"Shanks, there's no need..."

"Nonsense. Coordinates, now." You had forgotten how much you liked when your ex lover got all commanding. He was so carefree and easygoing most of the time.

"Aye, sir." You answered with a sultry voice you know always drove him crazy. "It's this little rock with a bathhouse and hot springs..." You explained and started giving him the numbers when you felt the air getting all heavy, almost electrified, with a powerful haki seeking your presence.

Oh...

You took the shell out of your ear and calmly put your Portable Den Den Mushi away before a powerful kick sent the delicate woody and paper wall away revealing the figure of one of the most infamous pirate captains in all the Blues, almost naked save for a small towel at his hips, disheveled red hair and his signature straw hat hanging from his neck at his back.

"Sweetheart!!!" Came the man’s thunderous shout for the second time. His arms outstretched, offering warmth and anticipation, eager to envelop you in an affectionate hug.

"I am not paying for that..." You said pointing to the destroyed wall.

Yep. That was Shanks, always coming out from wherever whenever you needed him, no matter the odds.

.

Five minutes later, you found yourself sitting on Shanks lap in the spring waters. He had picked you up in his arms and hasn't let you down since then. Like a kid with his favorite transitional object. But you couldn't deny that his affectionate embrace was contagious. You had missed him dearly too.

You two haven't seen each other in almost two years, since you broke up with Kuro to the everlasting joy of the redhead who had hated the guts of the young Black Cat's Captain, knowing from the beginning that the psycho could never deserve you. Shanks was still delighted in the fact it had been him who snitched the identity of the pirate captain to the Marines after his little stunt with you. Nobody messes with his friends, he thought while embracing your almost naked form over him.

It had been even more years since he had felt your skin against his and it was getting him giddy.

The rest of the crew was scattered around in different states of contentment but no one as deeply relaxed as Beck who laid floating with a towel over his eyes, completely zone out with the knowledge that he wouldn't be babysitting his captain as long as you were there. He was always in his best behavior around you; you’ve been a really big positive influence in the past, helping him mature into the man he was now and making the First Mate’s life a little more manageable. Until it was party time and Beck had to be the “designated babysitter” of his captain to prevent him from making some extravagance.

Poor man almost never got a proper break during vacation.

"So, rosie, you said you're on the low." Said Yassop perched belly up on a rock, an arm and leg in the hot water. "What've you been up to?"

"Yeah, must've been a big score. We've been dodging battleships for three days before docking here." Added Beck from his floating spot.

That made you feel better. If the Marine was still searching the waters, it means they hadn't caught the Angel of Music, Phantom Pirate’s ship.

You started telling them how things had gone a little sideways with your last infiltration and you had to resort to the only-emergency plan so your crew could get away with the intel.

Shanks smiled even more widely, proud of your abilities to get away from an entire Marine Base all by your own and without being seen. Such a long shot from the spoiled little socialite that had run away with him all those years ago.

He knew the moment he saw you standing up to a bunch of assholes at that bar that you were a wild card, a diamond in the rough wasting away in a privileged life. And when months later, Captain Erik, a seasoned and mysterious pirate captain, infamous for dealing with the most valuable information and treasures of all the Blues, the main intel dealer of Gold Roger himself, saw the same potential in you, Shanks knew he had to let you go to bloom, even if it was away from him.

And bloomed you had, not just in abilities but in beauty. Shanks could swear you got even more gorgeous every time he sees you.

"Ah, that's my girl." He murmured against your hair, inhaling the sweet scent of flowers and berries you favored, unlike the elegant roses everybody relates to you, and still make his mouth water. Your hand entangled in his red locks with your fingernails caressing his scalp while you tell your tale wasn’t helping… or was helping too much.

"So that's why you needed to send the message to..." Roux almost choked on his turkey piece when he caught his captain's stare, the only warning before he buried his face in your neck.

"Yeah, the lady at the desk said the mushis didn't receive or send signals from outside the island. Only the big tower at the beach can make outside calls..." Commented Beck in blissful ignorance that you didn't get because Shanks had started to leave a trail of kisses on your neck.

He draw his hand from your shoulder down your back, removing the towel that covered your torso, following a delicate pattern with his fingers over your skin to your side while his lips found a certain spot behind your ear that made you arch your back, almost revealing your full bosom out of the blurring water if not for his other hand wandering from your thigh to your belly and up to your chest. His big palm and long fingers enough to cover and fondle a breast.

The crew started making a hasty exit from that part of the springs.

Yassop rolled to the other side of his rock and dropped into the water with a soft splash. Meanwhile the rest of the men walked or swam away through the rocks that formed a natural barrier to the other side of the springs. Roux managed to catch Beck by his foot and started pulling him across the surface of the water. The First Mate lifted the edge of the towel on his face to give his crewmate a questioning gaze but a female moan uttering Shanks’ name was enough to make him cover his face again and let himself be dragged away, letting his captain be re-acquainted with his not-so-former lover.

“Sha… Shanks… they…”

“Gonne, babe, you know they know better.”

Oh, yeah, all of them did. When it came to their captain, all the crew knew that when he got frisky with a woman it was everybody else who had to get another room, not him. Shanks became an immovable being just living the moment. Something you learned too some weeks after meeting him and decided that you in fact wanted to be more with him. You had to get rid of your inhibitions very early in your relationship.

“So… did you hide a blade under your towel or are you that happy to see me?”

“Ecstatic, love. Let me show you how much.”

.

When Yassop had roll over his rock to get away from the image of his captain starting to frolic with his old flame (not that the sniper blame him, he knew what it was like to decide to separate from a love to fulfill a dream of your own), he didn’t expected to find himself face to face with Dracule Mihawk drilling him with his yellow gaze for splashing him in his escape.

“Why am I not surprised that it was you, noisy lowlifes, the ones behind all this scandal?” The swordsman voiced in his bored tone while removing some plugs from his ears at seeing the Redhead's Crew appearing literally from among the rocks.

He had just arrived this morning, seeking some relaxing time after 3 days of receiving calls from some lowly Marine Captain for him to go and get some thieves that had infiltrated his office and steal who knows what. Their only clue being a brief description of a ship getting away into the fog and a forgotten knife with rose carvings from some mysterious figure. The knife was new, but that ship and the fog? He had told him to just forget about his stolen goods. The Phantom Pirates were untraceable and he was in no mood to go hunting ghosts.

Mihawk’s gaze passed over the men currently occupying HIS space, finding the absence of a certain red hair individual.

“Isn’t your captain among you? It sure was his haki I felt ten minutes ago. I could use some exercise.” He said standing up and looking over the rocks.

“No, wait!”

“You don’t want to…”

Upon looking beyond, the warlord came across the image of the redhead captain in a passionate embrace with the most exquisite woman his eyes had ever seen. At that moment, Shanks took the exotic beauty by her small waist to get her out of the water and tenderly laid her onto the surface of the nearest rock with the perfect shape to support her body like an offering. Her long dark hair barely obscured the view of her glorious body. His hungry eyes traveled over golden tanned skin, from her long shapely legs to wide hips and full breasts.

Mihawk had never considered that he had a type until that same moment.

He was about to seek the face of the woman of his dreams, when she moved one of her legs expertly, using her foot to get rid of the flimsy towel around Redhead’s hips, getting Mihawk abruptly out of his reverie with an image he was certainly NOT desiring to live in his head and a strong need for a brain bleach to clean it from what he just unwilling witnessed.

He turned around hastily to find himself with the stare of the entire Redhead’s Crew going from judgemental to “told you so” looks that got immediately diverted by the death glare of their captain’s rival who decided to take his leave and left the duel for another day… or several months.

.

Half an hour later, you laid over Shanks’ wide chest, both of you floating in the warm water in postorgasmic bliss.

It had been years since you had felt this safe and sound in the arms of a lover. The level of trust and affection Shanks inspired on you never having an equal even if those feelings came from friendship and respect instead of romantic love. Your young broken heart was still too tender at that time to let yourself fall for the redhead when you met. A blessing in disguise since you’re fully aware now that Shanks isn’t someone who would settle with just one lover for a long amount of time and you both have different life goals.

“Where were you headed before all the turmoil we caused?”

“East Blue. I found this little village months ago. It’s a good place to hide and I promised I’d go back soon.” Explained Shanks remembering a certain little kid that was surely counting the days until the arrival of the Red Force. “What ‘bout you? Where’s your meeting point with old Cap’ Erik?”

“If all else failed, Oykot Kingdom.”

Shanks' grin intensified upon hearing that.

.

That evening, Benn Beckman walked to the tower at the beach to borrow their Den Den Mushi and made a call to a certain Shostakovich Eriksson and left the message of his assistant being safe and sound and that she will reunite with him in the agreed location but to don’t count on them arriving very soon.

The Redhead’s First Mate had all the intention of taking his sweet time enjoying this unexpected vacation.

.

.

.

[arkhamjack]

Thank you everyone for the reblogs on my "how some of the fandom sees wolfwood vs how I see him" lol I wanted to continue the conversation bc I am very annoying about this stuff and it grosses me out bc I am sensitive or whatever but um yeah 🤓

It's pretty long so TL;DR stop being weird about Wolfwood thanks 👍

I'll talking about objectification, hypersexualisation, and prejudice so a warning I guess --->

The Gaze has been working overtime on Wolfwood's ass (and tits) and it's making me a little nuts. This is not to say his character cannot be presented in a sexy way, or that he cannot perform sexuality without being problematic, it's just... ask yourself: why.

It can be subconscious, you might not even notice it, but media tropes have a way of worming into people's brains to be regurgitated into fan art, especially if the character presents or is coded marginalised in a way you are not. (I do it too!)

It starts from young. I had an adult call me a "hot head Latina" as a child LMAO (I am not even Latin)

Characters and actors that looked like me were worked into typically these roles - If feminine, desired, sexy but crazy, dangerous. If masculine, similarly sexual, either hot or ugly, suspicious.

I feel silly and attention-seeking for speaking up about this kind of stuff, especially as I feel I'm not in a place to cry 'racism' specifically because I'm more 'ethnic' than POC.

I'm a Balkan mongrel - Greek, bits from Turkey, Albania, and fuck knows what else. I've always kept my head down about people being weird to me but it comes to a point like the point of a classmate comparing my hair to an animal's, where I feel I gotta go "ok yeah lets unpack that."

Now about Wolfwood, he's our classic racially/ethnically ambiguous smoky sexy guy. Particularly in the 98 anime, he's pretty bosomy. He's a struggler - swindling Gunsmoke with his charm and portable confessional. This swindler trope, I've observed, tends to go hand in hand with 'suspicious immigrant out for your money'. Again, maybe I've pulled that out my ass and I'm being oversensitive, but I notice things. Tastes left in my mouth. Anyway. Brings to mind the time some other classmate jokingly called me a 'hustler' for *checks notes* making sure my work is submitted on time.??

Now on the subject of NSFW fanart... oh boy I am so uncomfy writing this... I rarely see him depicted.. receiving. You can place the issues here pretty easily. Give him a break. Please. Also I did note this on my original post and also completely my own opinion but PLEASE that man is not bigger than Vash, and I don't mean like not taller, like, thiccer. Calm the fuck down.

I hate having to write this bc it makes me uncomfy and reflects my own experiences of objectification by other people which sounds all very "oh noo its sooo hard being attractive :'((" but I trust y'all smart enough to see where I'm coming from.

The gaze. Othering. Marginalised masculinity (not to mention my intersecting trans identity thats a whole other unrelated convo). Hypersexualisation. Objectification.

But back to Wolfwood!! - are these tropes perpetuated by the original creator? Personally, I don't think so. (Wolfwood's design is based off a Japanese guy btw - musician Tortoise Matsumoto) The 98 anime? Maybe?? Am I reading too much into it? It's hard not to - naturally I'll latch onto the ambiguous guy and go "alright let's see how they do this" so naturally certain things stand out to me.

But when some of that fanart starts rolling out ... Jesus Christ ... MY EYES

On the flipside, I've seen great fanart out there! And I've seen quite a few Latino headcanons for Wolfwood too!(like I mentioned before I am not Latin, I am also not American in general I am a filthy freak Australian with our own colonial racist histories and intricacies) (There is also Latin diaspora here but I don't wanna speak for anyone aaaah)

I'd like to think most of the fandom is cool about him. But um. Yeah.

I said what I said but if I did say anything out of line I am so sorry and PLEASE let me know - I am using my own experiences as reference and acknowledge the intricacies my own privilege

Yap session over 👍

[absolutebl]

Recommendation for something to watch and complete on a off day? I am also off today. Something soft and full of love preferably....

10 Soft BL's to Binge In A Day

(Since I don't sleep and watch high speed I binge full length Thai BL but I'm assuming you want something shorter than that, so I've limited myself to a 5hr runtime.)

1. Semantic Error (Korea Viki) - Sexy older boy discovers pouty younger boy has outed him as a slacker, starts out bullying him, accidentally falls madly in love. Korea hits it entirely out of the Parks by doing a university BL with everything we expect from BL just done exactly right. Korea's signature quality executed perfectly with added bonus good story, great pacing, stunning visuals, and fantastic chemistry. You cannot ask for more from a BL, let alone a KBL. Full review.

2. Seven Days (Japan grey in 2 parts Seven Days: Monday - Thursday, Seven Days: Friday - Sunday) - one of the best live action yaoi mangas ever made. The leads have excellent chemistry although it’s low heat, there’s still more kisses than Cherry Magic. Popular first year Seiryo has a policy of going out with any girl who asks… for one week. On a lark, third year Yuzuru tests to see if that policy also applies to boys. Seiryo agrees that it does. Along the way they accidentally fall in love. All the angst is just teen confusion. 

3. Our Dating Sim (Korea Viki) - I enjoyed every aspect from the casting to the very simple premise to the quietly smooth execution. Sure it’s very low stakes, but that makes it high domesticity and extremely warm and gentle. This is a fuzzy blanket of a story. Do we call this cozy BL? Why not? This one is going to live in my rewatch pile, I can tell already, and you know what’s best about it? Every single episode is in that pile. There’s no skipping with this one, it might be good natured and calmly sweet but it’s tight and the pacing is excellent. It perfectly suited KBL’s short-length tendencies. Full review.

4. Light On Me (Korea Viki - Korea does an elegant pastiche of traditional live action yaoi but all tropes are cleverly deployed to bolster one of the most riveting love triangles ever put on screen… and I don’t like love triangles. LoM strategically tailors classic BL tropes to 2 different semes resulting in pristine pacing, plot, and character development, explicitly serving narrative (not just to tick boxes). LoM is a master class in this trope drops. (If you write fanfic or romance you should study this show.) Full review.

5. Takara-kun and Amagi-kun (Japan Gaga & Viki) - I gnawed on my knuckles and squealed a lot with this show. Reserved cool kid who must learn to communicate to keep the tiny disaster nugget he’s madly in love with. It is beyond charming: soft and gentle, packed with cuteness and high school angst, thirst, & yearning. Was there plot? Not really. Was it emotionally tense and paced well enough for me not to notice? Absolutely. Did I enjoy the hell out of it? Oh yes. Full review.

6. HIStory 2: Crossing the Line (Taiwan Viki) - super low stakes sweetest story of the bad boy who falls hard for the senior on the volleyball team and then works to earn his love. You know it’s Taiwan so the kisses are great but in this case it also ends well. Only trigger is that the side couple is the stepbrothers trope, and some don’t like that.

7. Cherry Magic (Japan indie subbed) AKA Doutei dato Mahoutsukai ni narerurashii - the sweetest, fluffiest, most charming bit of adorable ever, full of found family and pastry and serious slapstick, the characters are utterly bonkers, but cute about it. 

8. Wish You (Korea Netflix or Viki, you want the movie version) AKA WISH YOU: Your Melody in My Heart - low stakes high pining romance about a pianist who falls in love with a busker who is on his way to being the next big idol. 

9. Restart After Come Back Home (Japan indie subbed or Gaga?) - this one is perfect if you just want a beautiful loving movie, and one that is well filmed and complex enough to appeal to those who don’t normally watch BL or romance (if you have a reluctant partner). 

10. You Are Ma Boy (Vietnam YouTube) - is there angst? Nope even what could have been angst (a gay idol) doesn’t materialize, it’s just cuties in a cafe confusing each other with cat & mouse games. The side het couple is a touch disturbing, tho. 

Also Old Fashioned Cupcake, it's a bit more complicated than soft but a FANTASTIC binge watch.

(list updated May 2023, not responsible for ones that come after that date)

[pluckyredhead]

I read your ollie and SA post and I def agree with how they don't treat that incident as rape but I'm also....I'm not excusing it but I don't like this history of making Asian women villains casually or not that DC does....

Having cool, complex villains is one thing but they disappoint me so much

Again I def don't think this at all negates what's happened to ollie, it's all terrible

Oh 100% agreed!

DC is in love with this trope of the sexy ambiguously evil rapey dragon lady Asian woman and her noble white baby daddy and the child torn between the two. See also: Talia, Cheshire, Shiva. (I know David Cain is not a good guy but Bruce essentially fills the role of the noble white baby daddy for Cass as well as for Damian.) (Also I should note that of all four of these characters, I would only classify Cheshire as an out-and-out villain - Shado was originally more morally ambiguous than anything else, Talia goes back and forth, Shiva was originally a heroic character. But DC has definitely used them all as villains at times.)

It's a huge part of why I try to be really careful in talking about Shado and this history, because again, it's important that we recognize that what happens in that story is rape because our culture is bad enough about consent already - but the writer (Mike Grell) clearly was not intending to portray Shado as a villain there and I don't want to toss out an interesting, complex Asian character because a writer steeped in rape culture made a mistake 35 years ago.

It comes back to holding multiple ideas in our heads at once, and all of these can be true at the same time:

DC has historically been enamored of a really racist, sexist trope.

Some of these characters have committed rape and we need to call it what it is (Shado, Talia although that's been retconned out, and there is some real murky stuff with Cheshire and Roy in Rebirth Titans).

(Actually it's not clear whether the Shado incident is in canon anymore either or if the New 52 totally overwrote it. If it's still in canon then she had an affair with Ollie's dad that resulted in Emiko and raped Ollie and maybe also made out with Connor, which...fucking yikes.)

These characters have all been written as complex and nuanced and sympathetic at times.

They've also been written as villains and it's not racist or sexist to acknowledge the things they've done on page (murder, nuking an entire country, whatever the hell Damian's upbringing was like), but it's fair to acknowledge that often the writing that sparked those random heel turns was racist and sexist.

It's okay to enjoy them as villains, or to want them to be more heroic, or both.

It's important to have diverse villains as well as diverse heroes.

It's more important to not turn every Asian female character into this trope.

So yeah, it's messy and complicated for sure! But I think that's why it's important to look at the context behind these stories instead of just saying "she did a bad thing, throw her away forever" or "I like this character so I refuse to acknowledge that this bad thing happened." Which is basically what you said but a lot more long-winded lol.

[ragnarokhound]

hello i came here from ao3 which makes this kinda feel like i’m following a coworker home and letting myself into their house but i’ve been rereading all your jaytim fics yet again and am! not! normal about it! and i just wanted to say that i love love love the way you write jason so much. it’s also really fun starting with your first jaytim fic that’s more like general fanon jason and tim and then following the ways you flesh both of them out so much as you write more. i feel like the true jaytim shipper arc is using tim as the self insert at first bc jason hot but then realizing jason is the one with issues that kind of make him the best to dig into and chew on and yeah. i just really really love how you write him and i wanted to let you know! ah! ok bye!

HI?? I'M GONNA CRY???

omg okay first of all-- first of all, THANK YOU for letting yourself into my house, i left the key under the mat on purpose so that folks from ao3 could come in whenever and rummage through my fridge and chat about jay and tim and jaytim over tea and charcuterie with me, so, sincerely, thank you for fulfilling that dream for me <333

second of all, ah? aaahhh?? aaaahhhHHH???? I am the one who is not normal actually! Hearing that you're rereading ALL of my jaytim fics? TuT THANK YOU omg, I'm so happy that you like my evolving take on Jason!! Because you are very right - I barely knew who Tim and Jason were when I first started writing fic of them, and was (w)riding high on DEEPLY HORNY VIBES ALONE. Coming from Teen Wolf and Sterek, I think it's quite obvious how my fandom pipeline got me to that first fic lmao >.>

(popping some rambling about characters & writing under the cut:)

Tim is such a fun character, but I do find him more personally relatable, and I find Jason more personally attractive, fjdslfjsa so YEAH. YOU'RE SO RIGHT. My motto is, as ever, "Tim Drake gets what I want, and what I want is Jason Todd" so while I find writing Tim POV to be the most comfortable, I find Jason more fun to obsessively write about. I think about Jason a lot because, to me, Tim is also thinking about Jason a lot U_U You can really see the turning point where I started thinking about Jason as a character more fjdlsfjafd

(that dog fic was a distraction from an as of yet unfinished Friends w/Benefits -> Lovers WIP from Jason's POV... maybe someday I'll finish you...)

Jason is so cool (/literary /he's actually a dork). He has a lot of mixed emotions and motives and confusing traumas and life events to navigate. His death is one of THE most important moments in comic book history, a decisive turning point in tone and theme, and people just can't help themselves when it comes to him and that moment (and the crowbars. christ. how many times are we going to hand jason a crowbar and expect him to want to use it fdjslfsa I DIGRESS).

You can write Jason a lot of ways, because how do you even react to that? How do you even come to terms with your literal death and resurrection and the messy mcfreaking history you left behind and then came back to? It's believable when Jason is edgy and sexy and volatile, THE Bad Boy of the already Bad Boy Batman franchise - but it's equally believable when he's just a scared, secretly dorky kid who came back to a family that moved on without him, his murderer still out there and killing people who aren't lucky (?) enough to have cosmic connections. Even better to me when he's both lol

OKAY i'm done i swear, but you followed me home, you signed up for this lmao

THANK YOU AGAIN, omg, I remember your comments on ao3 too, thank you SO much for your kind words, both over there and now over here!! <33 TTuTT You're gonna make me waterworks, dude ;A; <333

[homosociallyyours]

It's been a minute since we've talked about this but I would love to read a fic from you in the Selling Sunset universe!

HI HI HI

thank you for this!!!

I can't tell you how I squealed when I read this idea!!! The office intrigues!!

I picture Harry throwing the most elaborate, over the top open houses: Veuve with a View-- Veuve Cliquot and caviar at her 6.5 million dollar listing in the Hills; the Baller's Ball-- a black tie masked ball style open house in the 22 million dollar former home of a former NBA legend. She's at the top of her game until the return of one of the most successful realtors in the history of the Oppenheim group returns.

Louis Tomlinson is no nonsense and no frills, with less fanfare in her open houses. But somehow she manages to close every. damn. deal. It's probably her stupid sexy British accent or something, Harry isn't sure.

At first Harry talks shit behind Louis' back in an attempt to get the other women to dislike her, but unfortunately it keeps not working out. Finally Louis corners her after a big party celebrating the new office renovations being completed. They're out on the street, Louis having followed Harry to her car because she's' determined to get this settled between them.

--

Harry felt the sweat starting to gather between her breasts in the muggy August evening, vaguely wishing she hadn't left the coolness of the air conditioned building without making sure Louis was gone first. Not that she could've predicted Louis would choose this moment to have a showdown with her. All she wanted was to get in her car and drive home with the windows down, nothing but the sound of the wind rushing in her ears to keep her company.

"Are you even listening to me?" Louis asked, arms crossed in front of her. They pushed her natural breasts up enough to draw Harry's eyes to her cleavage momentarily as she tuned back in.

"Yes," Harry scoffed. "You asked what my problem is."

"And?"

Harry watched a bead of sweat roll down Louis' neck, snaking its way down into her cleavage. She huffed, frustrated at Louis forcing her hand like this.

"Should I take my shirt off, or are you enjoying the view enough as is?" Harry jerked her gaze up to find Louis smirking back at her, blue eyes practically dancing with mirth.

"I wasn't-- I just--" Harry sputtered, wondering how to pull back some control. "I'm not a lesbian."

"Neither am I," Louis said, shrugging. She moved toward Harry, reaching out to touch her wrist. "Does it matter?" Harry couldn't formulate a response, her brain going offline with Louis' proximity. "I'd rather we fuck this stupid tension out now than let it turn into something worse a few months from now."

A million questions crackled and popped through Harry's mind, synapses firing that she'd never imagined existed. How would another woman taste? Feel? Would she be dominant? Submissive? Both and neither at once? Had Louis done this before? Was this a joke or a mind game, or--

Louis' hand moved to her waist and Harry's mind stopped. Her heart racing, she said the first thing that came to her mind.

"Come home with me."

----

They are end game obviously and in my dreams they actually leave the O group and move to the UK to start their own brokerage together! Love wins :)

Send me a summary of a fic you wish I would write if you want!! (or just reblog the post for yourself)

[freshdickies]

For the character asks! Azuma: 4, 8, 9, 20, 24 / Shimazaki: 1, 2, 12, 25, 26

Thank you so much for answering my need for memes, Elcie-! /;0; AZUMA: 4. If you could put this character in any other media, be it a book, a movie, anything, what would you put them in?

I would ABSOLUTELY fuck with a manga side story about how Azuma first found out about and then pushed to join Border. YES tell me more about him! I wanna know how his education in military history made him an ideal candidate for recruitment! I wanna know how Sniper technology was developed and furthered while he was there! 8. What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you despise?

I don't know about 'despise,' when it comes to World Trigger fandom... the ENG fanbase is small enough that the antis are easy to avoid, and I don't think the antis care enough about 25-year-old Azuma Haruaki to have opinions about him that I can really hate [especially since he's one of the VERY few 20-something anime men about whom I DO have 'he's a single mother' feelings]. I guess the closest I can get is like... not vibing at all with Azuma as a top, especially a predatory top? He's so gentle and nurturing and innately yonic to me. 9. Could you be roommates with this character?

Y'know, REALISTICALLY... probably no? I think Azuma is probably a REALLY good roomie, honestly, probably very tidy and keeps to himself and pays the bills on time. But he's also a 25 year old professional Mom Friend, and that's a category of human being that I'm historically INCAPABLE of handling in my space for too long. 20. Which other character is the ideal best friend for this character, the amount of screentime they share doesn't matter?

Ohh, the ideal best friend... :0c I dunno! I would love to see him interact more with Izumi under friendly, we're-both-dating-Beltiston-Boys circumstances, and I would LOVE to read more fic scenarios where he has extensive personal conversations with Hyrein, also in your-brother-is-in-love-with-me circumstances. But that's pure fanon for me. Overall I think it'd be fun to see more on-screen canon interaction between Azuma and the mahjong squad. 24. What other character from another fandom of yours that reminds you of them?

Azuma's pretty singular, I think, especially for a male character! His poised, serene, nurturing and supportive character archetype is such that he's more similar to female Yamato Nadeshiko characters in any other manga or anime setting, and unfortunately, not a lot of those women are permitted the nuance to ALSO be coldly pragmatic, tactically minded to the point of being manipulative, and capable of shutting off their emotions so completely in battle.

SHIMAZAKI:

1. Why do you like or dislike this character?

Asking me this feels like asking me why I like autumn, or the smell of amber, or why cyan is a favourite colour of mine. He's just a character I like deeply, because he's fun and cool and sexy and interesting and great! 2. Favorite canon thing about this character?

His way of speaking in the original Japanese! He has a habit of speaking very politely, while also sprinkling in very deliberate and precise use of impolite words and forms of address, even down to something as simple and subtle as switching-to-katakana when he refers to Teru as 'kimi.' It's SUCH a fun detail and adds so much richness to him as a character, that he's so casual and not at all uncomfortable being polite and even complimentary towards his opponents, even if he's ALSO very comfortable making it clear when he's annoyed with, amused by, or doesn't respect them. 12. What's a headcanon you have for this character?

I've always enjoyed fanfics from Shimazaki's POV, where he describes the way that he perceives his own powers and the powers of other espers. One headcanon that I've taken on through inspiration by fanfic is that, while Teru's aura and energy is dense and bright, Shimazaki's is extremely elastic and essentially clear - I just like the idea that, while he cannot condense his power and use it to physically annihilate things the way that a telekinetic like Teruki can, the fine grain and flexibility of his power allows him to do things that Teruki cannot [teleportation, sensing subtle and minute energy without getting drowned out by what is essentially the energetic light pollution of his own aura, etc]. 25. What was your first impression of this character? How about now?

Oh, I loved him the instant I first saw him, and I love him still! I don't think my feelings about Shimazaki have changed all that much, so much as they've deepened as I've gotten more insane about him over time 26. What's something the character has done you can't get over? Be it something funny, bad, good, serious, whatever?

Honestly, the omake where Minegishi is bullying Serizawa so hard on his first day with Claw that Shimazaki has to say 'hey man, chill' lives rent free in my mind. SHIMAZAKI being the adult in a situation and telling someone that they've gone too far is just wildly funny to me.

BONUS ANSWER FOR SHIMAZAKI, SINCE I ACCIDENTALLY ANSWERED IT WITH HIM FOR THE FIRST AZUMA QUESTION: 4. If you could put this character in any other media, be it a book, a movie, anything, what would you put them in?

This is kind of a tough one, because I'm not by my nature a videogame player, but I think it'd be REALLY fun if Shimazaki showed up as a Special character in videogames, like one of those 'we're collaborating with X anime, so here's Blorbo in fully rendered art style and quality 3D game animation, available as a log-in bonus or gacha pull for a limited time!' situations. Mostly because I'd love to see his cutscene animations, in-game dialogue, and all the fanart that would spring forth from another officially endorsed AU scenario.

[dathomirdumpsterfire]

Chat writes the plot! Time for more 👑🐲🐟 KotD!

Want to be on the tag list? Have an idea for next chapter? Clicked the wrong option? Reblog or Comment! New? Check the very bottom for the Ao3 link. Latest chapter is below the cut!🔥

-Tag list- (Comment if you want added!)

@obimaulartfire @savageopressbignaturals @icequeen8043 @moonsickvampire

~King of the Dragonfish: Chapter 7~

Obi-Wan uses a faint tendril of force to brush over his kyber, sending the animus of it his affection. It murmurs back at him, ill at ease to be handled by the energy signature it knows as Maul.

With a sigh, the jedi holds the hilt out. “Kneeling wasn't in the agreement.”

The other man sways closer, tense and watchful.

“It would please me to see you on your knees,” the sith says, reaching out and lifting the unlit saber from his palm.

Obi-Wan leans back on a hip, and crosses his arms. “I'm sure it would. Beat me up some more if you must, but I won't kneel to a sith lord willingly.”

Maul squints at him, calculating, and he has the uncomfortable realization that the other man may have simply taken that as a challenge.

“Hmmm…” The half dragonfish hums, twirling Obi-Wan's saber between his fingers, then igniting it.

He can feel the kyber song shudder. It does not want to be wielded in darkness.

Maul makes a swift strike, stopping a matter of inches from his hips. “Perhaps I should take your legs as you took mine… would that not be fair?” The man sneers, “Surely you jedi care about fairness.”

“No,” Obi-Wan counters, not giving an inch despite the sputtering heat of his own blade too close to his side, crackling as it resists this use. “The jedi code isn't concerned with being fair, only just.”

Maul grins. The defiance only seems to please him.

The dragonfish sith extinguishes the blade and sways backward on his tail, retreating to the water's edge. “I will return, and then I will take you to a different cave. Be prepared to go, jedi. I will drag you under either way.”

“Wonderful,” Obi-Wan drawls as Maul backflips into the water, hardly making a splash, “It's a date.”

Alone again, unarmed again, the jedi prisoner scowls and goes to lurk beside the magma ball. It's only mildly warm now, the cooled shell being too good of an insulator. The center of it is likely still fluid, but it's thermal radiance is diminished. Obi-Wan still leans back against it, plotting.

He had been too stressed on that first day to pay much attention to the pathway Maul had taken from open sea to this particular cave as he kidnapped Obi-Wan to it. An oversight on his part. They would be going to a new one though, and as much as he isn't looking forward to the blasted cold, it would provide an opportunity to learn some of the area.

He could pay attention to the path between here and there, and then, maybe in a day or two, find a way to make Maul consider the new cave to also be an unacceptable cell. The sith would move him again. Another opportunity.

It would take time, cunning, and no small amount of manipulation, but if he could map out enough of these caves, he may be able to learn a way out.

The next problem would be getting all the way to the surface, slowly enough to not die of drowning or diver’s sickness.

One problem at a time.

Obi-Wan flips where he's leaning on the magma rock, attempting to warm his front side in advance of this next trip. That's how Maul finds him, practically hugging the misshapen ball of it.

“Jjjedi,” the sith calls to him from the water. “Come.”

Rather than waste energy being difficult when he wants to be focused and aware for the trip to the next cave, Obi-Wan opts to approach the water himself, and -with a grimace- take a deep breath and hop in. He manages to not gasp from the immense chill by a small margin of success. The temperature is bitterly cold, shocking even when he'd prepared.

Regardless of the chill, it's beautiful and alive down here. The seaweed drifts like tall, ribbon grass. The moss glows white and blue. Little fingerling fish with translucent bodies school around pink coral and porous stone.

Amid the beauty, the sith swims over to him, black and red and incongruous with it all… yet a part of it. A monster from above with dual citizenship on the ocean floor.

Maul swishes up to him, fast and graceful, and grabs his tunics before taking off.

‘Well,’ Obi-Wan thinks as he relaxes into the hold, ‘at least he isn't coiling around me like a vice this time.’

Maul glides them through the water, into a small tunnel that opens up into a larger one after only a few feet. Obi-Wan can see it going off to the left and right, lit by the moss. The sith takes them left, around a curve in the tunnel. The path splits into a dark corridor. They go left again, then right.

He hopes they arrive quickly, he'd like to breathe soon.

They go up, across the open sands of a massive cave the size of the senate chamber. The space is brightly lit by orange crystals and purple fish that glow in neon stripes.

He's running out of breath.

Their path leads though a hole in the wall. Obi-Wan looks upward, hoping to see an air pocket…

There isn't one.

Alarmed, he wacks Maul in the chest and gestures at his mouth. Where in the blazes are they going? He needs air! Even with the lungs of a swordfighter and the aid of the force, he has to-

Maul presses their mouths together, and breathes into him.

‘What,’ he thinks dumbly. The jedi master feels six different things at once. His thoughts are mangled by the chaos.

Now his lungs are overful, but the edge is taken off from his need to inhale. Obi-Wan lets some of the air escape him, making a cascade of silvery bubbles erupt around their faces. Maul does it again. A second stale breath fills him.

Oh. Right, yes, okay, the sith has made himself into a rebreather.

Obi-Wan breathes out again…

…and the Dragonfish sith gives him air once more.

… and again.

… and again.

They breach a water surface and Obi-Wan opens his eyes, blinking owlishly.

When had he closed them??

'Drat,' he thinks, dismayed.

… he'd lost track of their path.

Maul lifts him onto shore, and he feels heat at his back. Obi-Wan rolls towards it before he's even got his bearings, shivering and disoriented.

Mmmmm. Warm.

“This shall serve. A gorogoro cannot pass the threshold to enter unless it is juvenile, the door is too small,” Maul declares, sounding pleased with himself.

“That's nice,” Obi-Wan tells him, trying to get as close to the fresh magma ball as possible without burning himself. He shrimps around it with a sigh.

“You will drink. There is fruit. I shall hunt, while the magma is still hot enough to cook on. Speak your preference, Kenobi, or I will simply bring you crab.”

“I love crab,” he tells the wonderful black stone before him, “but I've no seafood cracker.”

The sith snorts, “You are an idiot,” the man tells him.

With a small splash, he's gone.

Obi-Wan's desire to be warmer fights with his desperate need to hydrate, until finally he gets up and at least looks for the supposed fruit.

There, not five feet away, is a massive pile of coconuts and laundry. He squints at it, making sure he's seeing it right. Did the oxygen deprivation do something to him…?

No, indeed, it's a pile of coconuts and laundry. There's even a laundry line and clothespins mixed up in it.

“Why-” he starts, then shakes his head, “No, nevermind. Let's see if I can split a coconut with the force.”

He can, but it spills the majority of the milk everywhere. Obi-Wan screws up enough coconut crackings to get his clothes covered in it, but who cares? The swim here might've cleaned off most of the octopus viscera, but he is still wet anyway. What's a little more?

The trick, it turns out, is drilling a hole in the top with a sharp rock, and drinking from that.

🔥🔥🔥 don't forget to reblog tysm! 🔥🔥🔥

New? Start from Chapter 1! 👇🏽

[that-one-girls-blog-posts]

girly/-girl🎀

because no matter what you like, you're never doing it right

I don't play about my girly girl things, I'm gonna reclaim all that shit! yes I am girl, I like my shallow hobbies I like my shallow thoughts and I'm gonna prove you wrong about them again and again

indulge or look down upon but girl beware to them I'm worth just as much as you are!

I'm sensitive, I have an eye for visuals and aesthetics, my makeup is art, I like my basic music, the lyrics get me, my impractical styling the fake, the fixed, the plastered and caked, all a calming ritual reminding me of beauty throughout the day

I let them dump all their "at least she can walk in them heals", "those nails probably make great weapons","she does have the body for that dress","I bet that hair and makeup took her hours"and"oh what an interesting outfit" 's on me!

let them go to bed with the satisfaction that they are better than me while I close my eyes and smile at all the stupidly girl things that make me happy

I let them feel satisfied with their wit when I uncomfortably smile at those backhanded compliments and I feel satisfied with my heart for not coming up with a single mean thing to come back with, because I can see beyond my interests!

your looks are cool, your words are cool, your thoughts are cool, and your girls so cool and important and not just accepted or tolerated but celebrated, not like those other girls, not like me, at least not right now, when we need them smart instead of sexy, because ofcourse both doesn't exist

but no! keep looking down at us with your normal life and mature behavior and proper ways, you with your artsy sporty smarty lifestyle, your games and books and fancy equipment, which "DONT TOUCH you're gonna break it, just go back to brushing your hair!" which "oh you're into that book? I bet the boys like that about you!" which "ugh just try harder princess and the pea!" and there will be pretty pink pop culture fashionista which "no makeup can fix this", "no glow up make you right", "you're not girly enough to be girl", "no letting you in until you've consumed all we did already so long ago"

be girly or be reasonable, madonna or whore, girls fight no more, be shallow or deep, Lilith or eve, it doesn't matter what you like because girl you're never doing it right, smart or dumb cause that's what that is

girls can't do make up and science fair CHOOSE

girls can't read romance and classics CHOOSE

girls can't like videogames and shopping CHOOSE

so you do and you do it wrong only girly girls like shopping, only sporty girls can run, only smart girls know history

if your hobby is skincare or reading or something else, it's valid, it's not a hobby, it's right, it's wrong and useless and helpful and beautiful and ridiculous and shallow and deep depending on the observer because it's girl!

but all our hobbies are ruined by machines you support capitalism and small peoples dreams, the products made by brands instead of innovative minds, you empower some and you hurt others, the books made of tropes instead of plots, the projects about honor instead of encouraging curiosity, the matches about money instead of skills and play

so there might never be no taking eachothers hand and showing them what girl is like, no loving eachother because we're all right, in this conversation, too different, not all the same but maybe someday aware that the problem was never girl and always system

they applaud intellect by calling others stupid, and drool at the overstyled you're not supposed to be like

my friend does math like no one else so quick and easy and always right but when she wears a dress they laugh all night, I do my math counting with nail polishes and stuffed animals but they see my dress and it's me they wanna dance with, now look at it from one side or the other, they deem both of us worthless none better than the other

by simply liking the things I like, I've been called silly, ditzy and shallow, girly all my life but hobbies are hobbies no matter if you disagree! coffee runs and hearts on my notes and trying new hairstyles, I wear my ribbons and glitter and "fakestuff" while impressing you with knowledge you thought "someone like me" couldn't posess, knowledge which you still explain slow and easy back to me not because I didn't get it but because you never will

girl isn't ditzy, girl isn't pointless, girl isn't too stupid to understand! it's misogyny not respecting women and tainting the term girl with their lack of taking me seriously

and one more word to be perfectly clear "girls" and "girly girls" and "non girly girls" and "girly not girls" if things are bad as they often are, and no one will accept you not even one of us, be confident, embrace and accept, only you have the power to truly validate yourself

[deathfavor]

Anonymous said: Also I hc (prolly semi canon to mostly canon?) That kazutora literally had fangirls in verse for the brief time he was out of Juvie (valhalla) bc HELLO? imagine a tall, dark, handsome boy, whose also having the emo asthetic, AND HE HAS A CHECKERED PAST AND CAN FIGHT?! (in a time period where emo boys were considered hot) pulls up to YOUR school and you find out that he GOES to your school?! Lke bro prolly got confessed to at least a few times in my humble opinion.

Like how would I not simp over him. (Also to further evidence. Wakui literally said that kazutora gave of dangerous yet sexy vibes (when talking about his live action actor) nd I honestly respect it.

Also I respect Tora keeping his fangirls at a distance bc they ARE finicky (not me tho I can fix him) but also enjoying the attention bc he deserves it.

I mean, we do know those two girls thought he was cute when he went to find Takemichi so i consider it canon enough lmao. Although whether he goes or not, who knows. Theoretically he would but honestly wouldn't surprise me if he didn't either. If nothing else juvie both times made sure he got some education. I'm sure he definitely did though, even if it was just while riding on his motorcycle or at an arcade or something like that. He definitely did.

Same, I respect it. Pretty bad boy with a cool tattoo. Gotta love the bad boy vibes. Plus he was actually polite when he spoke to those asking for directions so win/win. Nevermind the history but it's not easy to get names of kids who commit crimes in Japan so that'd be all be hushed to the general public so probably wouldn't even know other than whispers

[gaymersrights]

tagged by @cosmicrhetoric (thank you isha <3) to post nine book recommendations. I would literally die for some of these books

The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee, David Treuer: This is a Native American history book that tells the history of what happened after the massacre at Wounded Knee, leading up to modern native history. Because so many history books only tell about the massacres of Natives, an overwhelming amount of people don't know anything about modern day Native history, or about the time between Wounded Knee and now. I recommend this book to anyone who wants an introduction into more contemporary Native issues. The book does a great job of being clear with all of its information while still telling a compelling narrative that doesn't just end in death. I also was lucky enough to talk with the author about this book and his other work and it was a super cool experience, definitely recommend his works.

Another Country, James Baldwin: I struggled with deciding which James Baldwin book to put on here, because his work is consistently good and interesting. I ended up picking Another Country because it's just to be one of those books that manages to have a little bit of everything in it. In my mind, this is the Platonic ideal of a litfic book. It's brutal to read, in that way that only really James Baldwin books can be. There's so much about this book that I could talk about but just can't get into without starting to talk about a million other things that are equally meaningful and impactful. I honestly cannot even tell you what this book is about without just reciting the entire thing back at you so. Just trust me on this one.

Wayward Lives, Beautiful Experiments, Saidiya Hartman: This book quite honestly blew my mind when I read it last year. This book uses archival material to create fictionalized reconstructions of the lives of Black girls from the early 20th century that history forgot. The only evidence that some of these women even lived at all is a single photograph, or one surviving court room document. This book makes you empathize with the lives of people that history tried its hardest to make you forget, so that the reader is forced to find beauty in ways of life that run counter to our cultural narratives of the era.

Player Piano, Kurt Vonnegut: I also had a hard time picking which Vonnegut book to put on this list; real ones know that I'm a really big fan of his work. I chose his debut because its really underappreciated. This book got me back into reading after I burnt out in the middle of high school. It's a cautionary tale about automation (which feels more relevant now that AI is becoming a thing) and it really captures that classic scifi feel that i just can't get enough of. Its a silly, quick read, that fills you with the beautiful melancholy that Vonnegut books are so good for.

The Raven Tower, Ann Leckie: I couldn't post book recs without at least one fantasy pic, and I honestly love this one. It's a fantasy retelling of Hamlet focusing on gods that gain more power the more followers they have. It's a simple premise that the book manages to pull off incredibly well. Personally, I'm a really big fan of the second person pov sections of this book (second person pov is so sexy do not @ me on this). The treatment of the gods in this book is absolutely my favorite part, and I think it manages to combine with the main narrative very well. It's a very fun read.

Braiding Sweetgrass, Robin Wall Kimmerer: God I love this book. It's been a few years since I've read it, but it completely changed a lot of the ways that I looked at the environment and at how our society treats science. This book is a nonfic about how Indigenous knowledge is often dismissed in scientific discussions as being invalid. This book argues that scientific knowledge and Indigenous knowledge are not mutually exclusive ways of knowing, and that combining these approaches is the way forward for environmental study. Also along the way you'll read absolutely gorgeous descriptions of American plants, and the ways in which people can build connections around them.

Nature Poem, Tommy Pico: This is the first book of poetry I ever loved, and the only book that I keep saved on my phone, just in case. Basically, the one sentence description for this one is that its a book about a queer ndn poet who can't bring himself to write poems about nature. This book is part of a tetralogy but can be read standalone with no real barriers. If you like this one I highly recommend checking out the others too. These are the kind of poems that you binge in a day and think about for a month straight.

Frankenstein, Mary Shelley: How could I not recommend Frankenstein rn. If you haven't read it, read it. You already know what its about, and that it is without exaggeration the sexiest book of all time. So read it. Not optional. This book has changed my life like five times over and I honestly can't trust anyone who can't admit that it rules.

The Monk, Matthew Lewis: THE MONK THE MONK THE MONK THE MONK THE MONK THE MONK!!!!! No one does it like her !!!! This is quite literally the most batshit insane book I've ever read, and I love it. I'm writing a thesis about this book. I told my advisor that I wanted to write about it, and then she immediately told me that if I was going to write about it, then she HAD to be the chair of my thesis committee. Every single person who reads this book is cursed to be a more weird version of themself who tells everyone they meet that they should read The Monk. This is the ultimate Gothic story, about a monk (holy shit) who is renowned for being uncorruptible, who upon meeting one (1) woman, is immediately overcome with lust and corrupted. I cannot stress enough that I have no way of determining if this book is even good, but it is the MOST book you will ever read. Please read the monk.

tagging blue @glasspigeons you don't have to do all nine but I at least want a top three

[thevindicativevordan]

Comics this week ?

Anonymous asked: Comics this week (especially the Last Days of Lex Luthor)?

I did not expect Waid to beat out Hickman for the most entertaining use of a sociopathic genius villain.

Superman: The Last Days of Lex Luthor #1 -

Ruled, even better than World's Finest or the other Hitch joint coming out this week with Hickman. My belief that Waid made this a spiritual sequel to Birthright to write a take without the compromises he made previously was vindicated, the baseline here is pure Pre-Crisis Superman with modern day storytelling techniques. Superman refers to Clark as an entirely different entity, Lex is a mad scientist whom the entire world hates, Brainiac is a "space pirate", Kandor and the Phantom Zone are full of other Kryptonian survivors, it's Superman and his world the way Waid wants them to be. Happy to see Waid unleashed, especially since he likes his Superman smart. No doubt you could poke holes in the science used, but Supes using his powers to nullify earthquakes rules, and I appreciate Waid making the effort to justify it.

Know I complained about Waid bringing back Lex again, but I take it back. Lex is such an evil bastard here and it's fantastic. First he murders the techs piloting a combat machine, then he uses it to try and sink an entire island to get Superman's attention, then he reveals he poisoned himself and he's desperate enough to ask for help, and even when Superman agrees the fucker still screws Supes over for it! If Lex has to ask Superman for help he's going to make sure that Superman hates it as much as he does, by leaking Superman's agreement to do so to the world. Lex ensuring the entire world turning on Supes for helping Lex is a great notion. Show us the cost of Superman being firm in his belief regarding the validity of life!

Son of a bitch is actually going for it, this is straight up a companion work to All-Star Superman. Lex gives himself cellular degradation this go-around, the Fortress is stocked with the exact same trophies, but Waid is bringing in all the toys that Morrison didn't use like Zod. The Legion of Superheroes is said to appear, and Atlantis too which will probably have a cameo from Lori. Brainiac gets mentioned and I'm counting on him showing up at some point given it would be easily justified by Clark and Lex needing access to Brainiac's tech/knowledge to save Lex. It's a ballsy move, trying to position your story as a companion to the GOAT Superman story, and frankly I don't expect it to succeed. Regardless, if it maintains it's current quality it will easily sit alongside Secret Identity as the second best Superman story of all time.

Waid's take on Zod is basic here, but there's elements that could be expanded on. The Kandorians worshipping Kal as their savior while the Zoners view Zod the same way is a great way of positioning Zod as the "evil Superman" in ways beyond just sharing Kal's powerset and background. Amused me to see the DCEU Zod s-shield given Waid and Hitch both hate the Snyderverse. Dying to know what pushed them to use that, was it just too cool to ignore?

Hitch's art fucking rules, this is my favorite art showcase from him since Ultimates. His take on the Fortress and Kandor in particular blew me away, God I want more scenes set in the Fortress from him. Outside of the flashback page with Lex showcasing his history with Supes, Hitch's art did the same heavy lifting as Mora in keeping Waid's story from feeling retro. Everything is sleek, modern, sexy sci-fi, and it looks glorious. Waid better give Hitch a hell of a fight scene to draw before this story ends.

Knight Terrors: Action Comics #1 - Holds the honor of being the first post Reign story I've enjoyed Henshaw in. Stuff I loved included Kon being the cool big bro who lets the Super-Twins stay up past their bed time, Kon and Kenan bonding over horror movies, and the body horror of Henshaw absorbing Kon, Kenan, and Nat (plus their little dog too!) reminded me of the great early Immortal Hulk issues. PKJ has an excellent handle on the Superfamily, he's just pressed for space to show it in the regular issues. Power Girl story was good too, glad the Superbooks haven't been derailed by Knight Terrors.

Knight Terrors: Detective Comics #1 - Picked this up when I saw Watters was writing, and boy am I glad I did. Watters is two for two between this and Red & Blue when it comes to writing 5D imps, love how he and Federeci portray them as Lovecraftian horrors. DC needs to put him on a Superman book because he is absolutely the guy who can write that big Mxy story which establishes Mxy as a terrifying threat.

Batman: The Brave & The Bold #3 - Just read the Superman story and will be dropping the book. Decent ending if depressing, Supes doesn't save Hop or even stop the bad guy. As it's own thing I don't think it quite holds up given that, but I see Rodriguez posted some more WIP Superman art, and I think this will simply serve as a prologue to a Cantwell/Rodriguez Superman mini which raises my rating of the story if so. Definitely would buy more from this team, art is gorgeous and Cantwell writes a good Supes. Nice to have a good old fashioned megalomaniac villain with outrageously over the top goals, that added to the Fleschier feel.

Ultimate Invasion #2 - This issue threw me for a loop as Hickman demolished my theories about where this was going. 6160 does have a Reed Richards already, one seemingly similar (originally) to the 616 Reed. Maker lists him as "controlled" which makes me curious to know what his status is. Heh Hickman isn't being subtle by having Maker set up the City again in 6160 Latveria, but there's apparently a 6160 Doom judging by the solicits, I'm eager to see his status too. I'm assuming Howard was chosen over Tony because Hickman used Howard in SHIELD (or at least I think he did, haven't read that yet)? Otherwise I don't get the reason why Maker would want Howard under his thumb instead of Tony. People keep asking why this universe doesn't match 1610 and I have to question the literacy status of comic book fans. Maker outright states in this issue that this isn't his home universe, that's why Kang can't go back in time and kill him as a baby because he entered 6160 as his Maker self. 6160 is a totally different universe and it's blatantly obvious that Maker's changes are going to be undone. My new hunch is that Kang nabbed Cap before Maker could kill him, and this will end with Kang reinserting Cap to where he's supposed to be, with that serving as the reset to undo Maker's changes.

Hellfire Gala 2023 - Boring. All that build up and this is how Krakoa falls? Orchis' victory just feels hollow and unearned, all the deaths left me unmoved. All that buildup about mutant technology and showing how powerful the mutants had become, and here they just get steamrolled with ease. Orchis has struggled to be a credible threat from the beginning, Hickman had Xavier send Wolverine and X-Force repeatedly to assault their Solar station and never offered a plausible excuse for why Apocalypse or a team of Omegas didn't handle it. Here Orchis assaults the mutants at their Gala and we don't see the mutants unleash the way you'd expect. Why aren't the reality warpers joining the fray? I'm a Superman fan, I totally get that power levels exist to serve the story and are otherwise ignored, but c'mon this needed to feel more epic than it did. I'm sticking with Immortal and then I think I'll be done when it ends. Might not even follow Gillen to his next book, I'd rather put the money towards what Hickman has coming up.

Avengers #3 - Sniping between Sam and T'Challa is already old, let this next issue patch things up between them. Cool new foes for the Avengers

Incredible Hulk #2 - Loved the songs in The Last God, and glad to see PKJ creating some for Hulk. Gimmie a Hulk horror folk song too while you're at it PKJ! Charlie is pretty meh, she's yet another person who seeks out Hulk because she wants to be strong like he is, and I'm unsure if PKJ can differentiate her enough from Jackie who wanted the same exact thing in Ewing's run, but Hulk and Banner need someone to play off of. Seems Bruce might be responsible for Betty ending up in Eldest's clutches, that's what I got from Hulk blaming Bruce for *something* that happened to Betty. Phenomenal art by the way, perfectly captures that Southern Gothic vibe like nothing I've seen since Harrow County.

[ginjones]

about me

tagged by @wordsinhaled Thanks bud!

nickname: I'm not cool enough to have a nickname but if you're my mum then Jessie.

sign: Aquarius

Bonus MBTI sign: INFP (A)

height: 5'2

last thing i googled: “cortisol” some sexy biology research for my next fic

song stuck in my head: Too many to count. I had 'Destroy them by lazers' by Knife Party in my head for weeks last year. (On a side note: @wordsinhaled I will happily send you music recs or make you a playlist. Just send me your preferred genre!

amount of sleep: between 6-7 hours

dream job: I'm old enough now to realise the moment you make anything into a job it ceases to be a dream but I have my eye on museum education centres/ Storytelling centres about local history as my CV is leading me in that direction.

wearing: A pair of black Doc Martins, Blue Levi's Jeans and a black long sleeved top from All Saints. Three rings I wear all the time. Also 11 tattoos I wear all the time. Wooly Socks because January is no fun.

movies/books that summarize me: I rewatched Ghost World recently and think I resemble Enid in it-especially when I was younger. Scott Pilgrim Vs The World sums up my ADHD mind a lot too!

favorite song: Love is like a bottle of Gin by the Magnetic Fields. I have a tattoo with the title on my leg.

aesthetic: I like to think I'm Boho Goth but I'm not sure I always pull it off. I like darker colours, vintage stuff. Big black boots (DM stan for life) Witchy-vibes. I'm also a massive fan of the oversized suit jacket and band tshirt combo and have been rocking these recently wearing boxers and some lovely manly cologne when in boy-mode.

Artwise I love font-Courier and Century Gothic are my favourites which is why I like Dadasim. Art nouveau, Art Deco although John Everett Millais is my favourite artist.

favorite authors: Ursula Le Guin for Earthsea Alan Warner for Morven Callar.

random fun fact: I have a degree in Journalism and have written for Den of Geek. I also did work experience at an online music magazine back in the day.

tagging: @notallsandmen @historyandqueershenanigans

[prettyboyprincess]

is feederism a new kink for you or just something you're finally trying out?

im honestly not sure how to classify it. i sort of didnt admit to myself that i was into it for a long time, but i kept finding myself looking at porn of it while i was high anyway? like, over and over again?

realtalk: i have some disordered body image/a history of disordered eating patterns, and it took me a while to get comfortable enough with myself to admit to myself that i was turned on by my tummy. and once i did, i ended up leaning into it on purpose, because i gained a bunch of weight for the first time in my life and was having a hard time processing it until i realized i could be horny over it and, like, fetishize it a bit?

idk! i feel a lot more comfortable with myself now! i really like looking at soft feedism stuff rn, it makes me feel really cool and sexy to see people literally fantasizing about the exact body type i have now and desiring the exact arc my body's taken. like, i don't really get that in most of society, so much stuff just glorifies losing weight over everything else, so the idea that i could be more hot because i gained weight is just like. idk, soo affirming? i feel soooo much more confident and sexy tbh.

that is why i hate the degrading side of the scene for myself, at least, because like. idk i'm really using this to feel super hot and desired, i actively don't want to feel shame about it. i think that happy hedonism is sexy actually and i'm glad other people agree!!! and also that my tummy is really hot when it's tight and firm and stuffed ahhheheheh okay sorry anyway

im moderately stoned right now thank you for putting up with my ramblings if you read this lol

[999squidsss]

having political opinions isn't... innate. recently one friend of mine abandoned her "socialist beliefs" and another is less supportive of lgbt people because they're "actually really annoying" and they're both claiming it's because they've "grown out of their old beliefs".

and it's just. look. they never had any beliefs. they read a few sexy tweets and thought "leftists are the good ones and i'm good so i'm a leftist now :)". they watched a few charming youtubers but made No Effort to actually think whether they agree or disagree, and why that might be. they're impressed by eloquent political analysis and they think they can parrot it by just... saying words, deliberately overlooking nuance and history to just Say A Cool Political Opinion

one girl tried to brand herself as a big feminist a few years ago, during a national abortion debate, and burned out after a few days. she said something like "i thought i really cared, but i just can't do this". fair enough, but... the reason she lost steam is because raw emotions were all she had. no knowledge, no awareness, no will to gain either. she knows fuck all about feminism apart from that it probably affects her since she's a woman

i'm not saying they can't be leftists, they can be anything under the sun. but like. they do have to actually Hold Like At Least Some Leftist Beliefs to 1. be leftists, 2. stick to those beliefs when someone tries to sway them to a different side. in 5 years they're gonna vote conservative "because you have to think about the economy :0!!"(they will not know anything about the economy)