#okay fine i'm not normal

[bobaboob]

i saw someone say Diluc is sun coded but not in the way where he’s extroverted and and happy and bright (not to divert from his personality as a child ofc) but that he burns and there’s a fear he has for anyone to truly get close to him because of it despite him being a beacon of warmth :((

and also the vampire Diluc thoughts are rampant im afraid, i cant stop thinking of trembling hands and hunger in his gaze, the low candlelight of his home barely illuminating the horror on his face when he comes to terms with his desire and affections for you oughhhdhjffj

the need to hug this man is beyond my comprehension

ohhh my God gray..... the contrast.... his childhood self being the bright, hopeful side of the sun with all its light and warmth.... adult diluc being the dangerous, harsh side (to him. he's still the warm person he once was and he can't change that) that brings desolation and fear

VAMPIRE DILUC AND FIRELIGHT. DILUC AND CANDLELIGHT. A SUBDUED BUT STILL FERAL VERSION OF THE SUBLIGHT OUTSIDE THE WINDOWS.

guh. diluc and the candle he carries as he haunts the halls at night, warning anyone nearby before they get too close and witness something they shouldn't. diluc and the fire that burns in the grate in the sitting room day in and day out, the only source of true warmth he can endure.

(he could never touch you. he could never feel your warmth. he does not deserve the heat of another body next to his. his is the lot of the lonely and the cold (what a fucking drama queen))

[halflifebutawesome]

I am a good person. I am a powerful person, I don't believe in evil. I think that evil is an idea created by others to avoid dealing with their own nature. I understand my own nature, good and evil have nothing to do with it.

[bongosinferno]

A devastating and confusing thing about the Fallout setting, when you explore the pre-war aspects, is what the creators think about pre-war America. In the first games we only get hints of the pre-war world, but they seem to be some sort of wild fascist nation invading Canada. In Fallout 1, the first thing we're introduced to of the pre-war society is seeing a soldier shoot civilians and laughing.

Now, for the first 2 games and New Vegas we don't really know much. What we know is that there's a fascist military group known as the enclave who were a sort of US deep state even before the war, and that the government teamed up with corporate interests to preform vaguely MKULTRA-ish experiments with the Vaults. Basically, the government was an extreme version of the 50s American jingoism and McCarthyism.

This is well and dandy, I guess issues come up more when we get to the later games, especially 4, where it seems like none of this extreme plotting and societal civil unrest which would exist is seen. The society as presented in 4 also seems quite progressive, gay people are featured in the opening, and none of the baggage of say, civil rights not existing are included. Now on a baseline, I don't want settings to be more conservative, homophobic and sexist etc., but it becomes a very confusing setting when it's displayed both as this jingoist extreme thing with fascist tendencies aswell as a progressive place where everyone is seemingly equal. If you're focusing on the 50s as your setting, and American nationalism in the 50s, then you can't have McCarthyism spoofs and anti-communism as a societal paranoia norm while also general equality is the norm without misunderstanding why McCarthyism and nationalist jingoism is bad. A massive harm done in anti-communist paranoia is how it degrades and vilifies any progressive movements (women's rights, civil rights, homosexuality) as being morally un-American and therefore connected to communism. To ignore this just makes any critique of MacCarthyism and jingoism weird!

Basically, pre-war America in Fallout 4 becomes this both sides thing where America is both pure and equal and white fences in every instance that we see as the player (the intro), while also supposedly being this dystopic MacCarthyist hellscape that's broadcasting gladly about their war crimes in Canada, and wants to root out communism. I guess the only fix for this issue without getting into the fine print like they had to do is just not to focus too much on the pre-war world.

[chalkrub]

so i got through to the top 300 for the pokemon tcg contest. i'm feeling normal about it........feeling very normal and sane. which is why i also drew this in ms paint

[duncanor]

So, if I'm to believe Twitter today Nightow apparently did mention Vash and potential love interests in an old interview and-

(please forgive the shitty google translation but ya get the gist of it)

So, what I am getting from this is:

canonically, Vash avoids falling in love with humans (and from what we can see in the manga, any sexual interaction too) because their lives are far too short and he wouldn't be able to 'share a full future' with them.

Okay, okay. Mr Stampede what did you mean by this then?

Everyday, Vashwood gets more canon in a way that hurts even more than the last and I can't stand it.

What do you mean Vash doesn't want to fall in love with people whose lives will inevitably end before his and he ends up falling for the one guy that was doomed from the start to die young.

Mr. Nightow we need to talk.

[miningroseakira]

do you. do you think, in the nether, that mumbo was maybe so insistent on his deadly predicament being Grian's fault (despite it very obviously being his own, actually) because the last time they were together in the life series, his final death was Grian stabbing him through the chest?

are you also insane about the fact that in the end, mumbo's final death here, just like in last life, followed Timmy's death? that both of their final deaths were once again caused by Grian?

[cerealforkart]

Dungeons and Daddies the Manga Lesson 51: Cool Hand Linc

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[masterpost]

[ko-fi]

[isca-tide]

(from Eric Winter and Melissa O'Neil's instagrams) We have Mel and Eric filming at the same location at the same time. I repeat, we are a go for a Chenford scene! Eating up all the tiny Chenford crumbs they'll give us! 😂

[stop-breaking-my-heart-telltale]

I think for all the discussions we have of "everyone hears the jokes and the piano; after that, they stop listening" surrounding Louis, we tend to still simplify his connection to the piano.

Yes, it's very cute that he sings Clementine a little song when they first meet, and it's very cute that he plays a little prank on her while "tuning" the piano. It's super cute that they carve their initials into the piano and Clementine carves a heart around them. It's mega cute that he names his song he wrote after her when she confesses her feelings. Louis playing Don't Be Afraid at the party is, in my opinion, one of the best moments in all of TFS.

But here's the thing: That piano is Louis' heart.

I don't mean to go all metaphorical on you, but I'm dead serious—the piano is Louis' heart, and when you think about his arc and his romance route with that in mind...?

That piano is his one comfort in a world where the dead walk. It's been with him from the beginning of the outbreak. We know from his backstory that Louis wanted to take singing lessons so he could be a real musician, and his father denying him of that was what set him off to be a "vindictive fuckhead." Louis never got those singing lessons, and it's a very real possibility that Louis taught himself how to play.

Sure, others could've taught him; we know Minerva was musically talented, perhaps she showed him a thing or two. But learning piano, or any instrument, is brutal even with professional guidance. It takes hours of practice until numbness wears fingertips raw; dedication to memorize every key and finger placement to make music pleasing to the ear; self-discipline to keep going through every fumble, every failure, every single cruel thought of self-doubt; intelligence and a creative ear to write his own songs.

And yet, it's severely under-appreciated by everyone. It's annoying. It's distracting. It's unimportant. It's an excuse for Louis to mess around and not do any real work. He doesn't have any actual talent. The music and the piano are brushed off, unheard.

Yet, Louis keeps playing. He keeps singing. He keeps making jokes.

Creating music, the one thing he wanted so badly as a kid that he destroyed his parents marriage, was possibly the greatest comfort he had... a welcome distraction to disassociate from the horror and death happening around him.

It's bittersweet, like a purpling bruise that you can't stop pressing on; it hurts, but there's something else below the pain. The piano is out of tune and it's something that brings him joy... but will always act as a constant reminder of who he was and what he did, why he's at Ericson to begin with.

We first meet him while he's playing; Louis' heart is exposed, but is it really? Is he playing to his true potential? Louis hides behind the mask of a charming, charismatic goof. It's what is expected of him, so he plays a silly song intended to poke and prod at Clementine, to gauge a reaction. That's something we see him do at multiple points in episode one. In fact, we can consider a majority of episode one to be like the song he's playing when we meet him; it's mostly cheery or fast-paced.

Louis is able to soothe AJ with his "alluring" music after the kid bit Ruby is an indication that the two of them will share a bond. Louis is a natural at communicating and bonding with the younger kids [another talent that's overlooked] so it's interesting that he praises AJ for being a natural at piano, as well.

But the song stutters just a bit when Louis and Clementine are in the woods together, though; "There's only one guarantee: this moment. That's the only you got, only thing any of us got. Might as well enjoy it." ...Only for Louis to compose himself and send her away.

It's only when Clementine has a gun in her face, held by Marlon, that the music isn't fun anymore; it's rainfall and thunder and the words "I thought you were more than that" sung through the wind in a melody only Louis can hear.

Then Marlon's dead. The song is over, and reality has arrived.

I've talked at length about Louis in ep2 and his vote in the past. It's one of the most compelling things about Louis' arc and romantic route. It's a tragic mistake driven by trauma and guilt. It's people simultaneously telling him to shut up and telling him to be angrier than he is. Telling him to stop burying his head in the sand when he's never been more aware of everything happening. It's AJ peering up at him with pleading eyes that Louis can't stand to look at. It's Clementine wrapping his heartstrings around her fingers and tugging just enough to hurt, but not break.

Louis missed Clementine. He says as much when Clementine admits she missed him first. I don't even know where to begin with that! I can think of no other way to describe it other than they are half agony, half hope over this... and if you get that reference, you get a gold star. I just- the ache, the tension, the conflicting feelings of finally having a quiet moment to talk but Louis not being ready yet.

Y'know how someone carved "you suck at playing" in the side of the piano? It's something you might not initially notice while playing the game, just as Louis' insecurities aren't apparent at first.. but they're carved in him; never fully healed, still scabbed and bleeding... Until Clementine offers him a bandage.

She won't clean the wound for him, but she'll be there. She'll help him figure out how to do it himself so he can heal. She'll listen to him, not belittle his feelings or pain. She'll make an effort to know his keys and notes and practice playing his song until she understands.

When Clementine chooses him to spend time with him, it's a mirror of their first time meeting... but this time, Louis plays something real: a song he wrote, one that I believe he crafted during the two week time skip... a song he wrote with Clementine on his mind, for better or worse.

If the piano is Louis' heart, he literally asks her to sit there and try to tune it, which ends up being a joke but I say she's already tuned your heart, my guy. It's there before them, changed in the warm candlelight. He plays for her and opens up about how no one actually listens, but Clementine did.

And remember, this is the night of the raid. They don't know it's coming, but they know it'll be soon. Louis understands that he could very well die, so what does he do? He carves his initial into the one thing he's always had, and he asks Clementine to do the same.

I'm sorry, how are we NOT more feral about this? Prior to this scene, the only thing we see carved into the piano, into Louis' heart, is an insult. This thing that Louis cares so deeply about, this instrument that's become so intertwined with who he is... he wants to leave his mark on it just in case he dies. A reminder that it was his and he belonged to it just as much. Something so important, and he asks Clementine to carve herself into his heart where no matter what, they will be immortalized together in this moment.

And when Clementine carves a heart around their initials? Yes, his reaction is very cute and that's great... but she's not ashamed of him, or her feelings for him. She wants everyone who looks upon his heart to know that. She tells him how she feels and Louis is so giddy, and warm, and he names the song after her and I am going to start biting anything that moves, I can't-

Oh, and let's discuss the party scene in episode three, shall we? Y'know, where the heart covered initials are on full display? Where Louis tells the story of why he was sent to Ericson to everyone?

Louis is so... vulnerable. Sincere. Ashamed of what he did. This is the exposed nerve, the one he was so afraid of showing Clementine but there it is... and she doesn't reject him. Sure, she can say it's fucked up if you choose to, but she doesn't break up with him over it.

Also the fact that everyone sitting around him finally listens when he's at his most unshielded only for Tenn to ask him to play Don't Be Afraid for them after...? How do you not see the connection? Are you trying to make me cry? In that moment, Louis' heart was heard and appreciated and beautiful and strong and-

Listen. I am fine. I'm so normal about this. And fine. I'm fine.

But I also have to add that during the walk in episode four, if you let Louis choose what to add to the imaginary house, he picks a brand new piano because he wants a new heart to reflect the confidence and growth Clementine helped him achieve and because he loves her and AJ so much that wants the new heart to not just be his but also theirs and I am so fine with this, okay.

[teatitty]

Hinata and Kurenai's relationship is so fucking [tears up pillow with my teeth] just LOOK AT THEEEEEEM

Let us not forget Kurenai helps Hinata express her affection for Naruto and becomes the closest thing Hinata had to a proper guiding figure after asking Hiashi if he's really okay basically disowning his own daughter NO WONDER KURENAI IS A GIRL MOM LOOK AT HER HERE

[fastcardotmp3]

Die Young | Buck + Eddie (9-1-1)

watch on youtube:

[essektheylyss]

"do not show weakness"

—midst fan edict for when this show makes you need to breathe into a paper bag

[foursaints]

Can we please hear your take on rosier twincest if youre into that i would inhale everything u write abt them

unfortunately i fundamentally don't see anything like that in the cards for the rosiers :(

to me, twincest is most thematically interesting when there's a push-pull between a pair's individual identities & their overriding Sameness (a great text for this is "Gothic Incest: Gender, Sexuality and Transgression" by Jenny Diplacidi (x) ) but the rosier twins' sameness is too complete for that conflict to exist. it wouldn't make sense because there is no tension; they are content to think of themselves as one person. you can't pine for yourself.

also like. i hesitate to make the rosiers overly transgressive. their codependence isn't exactly "normal", but their siblinghood is one of the most palatable things about them... it makes them easier to understand, which makes them easier for others to accept. their sibling bond is one of the few purely Good things in their lives, and i see it as redemptive for both of them..

essentially they are normal 100% of the time but the one person insane enough to get a tiny bit weird about it is bcj (💀). he met pandora, had the earth-shattering realization that There's Two Of Them, and then said absolutely nothing but a certain look came onto his face that caused reg to immediately go "YOU'RE FUCKING DISGUSTING" in the great hall.

[oleandy]

okay this fucks supremely

[onesidedradiostatic]

Hear me out

Transfem alastor

Thoughts?

I mean honestly live your dreams anons I'm open to any of these hcs but I wanna be transparent that I am a #cis girl, gender stuff isn't really my Area of Expertise since it doesn't fit under my experiences as a cis person

that being said, transfem alastor, kinda real, hated men so much he said actually fuck being one

and I could see the vees' one, not much to say here (vox does canonically get hard but I respect the energy here. although one could question how hell works in reincarnating you when you die, if you're trans and want your gender's biological parts will it give it to you. although arguably vox IS part tech so maybe he... alright I will stop this line of thought)

[bettydice]

I accidentally initiated this cat-versation with Astarion and I- he is happy and he is going to pet the cat this is fresh post-Cazador so... HE IS HAPPY AND HE IS GOING TO PET THE CAT