#published 11/25/2023

[thevikingwoman]

I could not let this be, so here is part two of Meryta and Emmanellain. This part is explicit.

Fandom: Final Fantasy XIV | Words: 2359 | Read on Ao3

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Meryta Khatin x Emmanellain de Fortemps | start of HW | fluff/romance Rating: Explicit. New relationship, first time together, sweetness, smut, oral, handjob

Reprieve - part 2

Meryta and Emmanellain rush down the hall, giggling and holding hands. Meryta isn’t sure this is wise, but she’s very tired of worrying. Emmanellain is sweet and handsome, hapless overconfidence notwithstanding. Thanks Nhamaa – or perhaps Halone – the hallways are empty.

Emmanellain fumbles with the handle of a door, and she sneaks a kiss to his cheeks as he swings the door to his rooms open, gesturing for her to enter. She looks around curiously, hand in his. There are shelves with books, and some thrown open on a side table. A sitting area with a velvet divan, vases with flowers, ink and paper on a desk, crumbled leafs beside it.

“Here we are, pretty girl. My chambers are quite splendid, of course.” He pulls her further into the room, and he amends, “I am certain Father provided you with lodging befitting a hero, of course –”

Meryta stands on her toes and kisses his jaw. Emmanellain bends to capture her lips with his and she loses interest in the décor as he wraps his arms around her and lifts her up, bracing her against the wall. The door falls shut.

Impatient, she pushes his coat off his shoulders, its heavy fur hitting the floor with a thud. It’s probably the latest fashion, but Emmanellain doesn’t seem to care right now, and neither does she, the layers of rich cloth far too much between them. He kisses her jaw, her throat, his soft lips eager against her skin. She shivers with every touch of his lips, want pooling in her belly. She kisses him back, her hands roaming across the velveteen clinging to his shoulders, round to fiddle with the buttons on his shirt.

“I want – ”

He nods and she works the buttons, popping the buttons open impatiently. His skin is soft and smooth and she kisses it as it’s revealed, his shirt hanging open. She’s not had a lot of opportunity for intimacy since she came to Eorzea, and then only hurried moments. She’s not had much before that either, but the partners in her youth were much more like her, scaled and hardened. Now, she roams her hand over his chest and his softer belly, excited by the feel of him.

“Meryta, pretty girl –” Emmanellain kisses her, enthusiastically and messy and his arms give out as she slides to the floor. She has to look up at him, and he looks flushed, his eyes wide and soft. It’s his turn to push her jacket to the floor, the leather landing in a heap behind her. His hands move down her back and settles on her ass, gripping firmly through her heavy trousers. She wants him closer, wrapping her tail around him to pull him in, as she reaches for his face, his lips. She wants them on her again, their softness and the warm taste of the wine he’d had at his party.

He stumbles as she pulls him down to her, one arm going wild, knocking into a pedestal. Meryta barely catches the vase that comes tumbling down, flower decorations spread over the floor.

“Let me –”

“No Meryta I beseech you, I’d rather –”

He kisses her again, and he pulls on her shirt. She allows him to pull it over her head, and lands on top of the flowers, and then Emmanellain lifts her and carries her in three steps to his bed, avoiding a pile of magazines left on the floor.

“You look splendid on my bed,” he says, and grins, quite proud of himself. “You would look better with less clothes, I believe.”

She laughs and props herself up on her elbows. “You think?”

“Ah I most assuredly know, but to be certain there is but one way to find out.”

His eyes are bright and she complies with his audacity, shimmying her pants down her legs and unclasping her breastband.

“Meryta,” Emmanellain breathes, and he crawls into his bed, his shirt hanging loose off shoulders and his hair freely around his face. She pulls him close and kisses him. She likes the way he looks at her, all happy affection, free of the world’s burdens. Like she has the right to be happy, here in his bed.

He sits up next to her, and runs his hands down from her face to her neck, gently touching her scales. She shivers with the touch, and he startles and withdraws.

“Please, it’s nice,” she says. Her scales are sensitive and she wants his hand back, so she takes it puts there.

“I’ve never, uh – “ He blushes and touches lightly, down her throat and her shoulder, tracing the patches of jadeblack scales, “— with an Au Ra. Is it – is this fine?”

“More than fine, Emmanellain. You can touch as much as you want.”

She grins and Emmanellain blushes deeper, a lovely flush across his cheeks. He is still tentative, carefully exploring her body with his hands, but it feels nice and calming. She encourages him, arching and sighing into his touch. She traces two fingers over the shell of his pointed ears, curious herself.

“It’s softer than I expected, I must confess,” he mumbles, and kisses her shoulder, the scales above her breast. He kisses her nipples next, and it’s no longer calming, lighting rushing through her veins with his sudden boldness. She arches towards him, an ache between her legs. She wants his hands there, or her own, and her tail pulls free from under her to wrap around Emmanellain’s arm. He startles and she almost wants to apologize, but he lets out a low groan and continues exploring her body, every touch pulling moans from her.

His shirt drags across her belly as he moves, and he has far too many clothes on still, her thighs bucking against the silk of his trousers.

“You too,” she mumbles, and pushes his shirt off his shoulders, her hands wandering over his tall frame. She wants it off, she wants him as naked as her.

He obliges, sits up and shrugs out of his shirt, tossing it haphazardly behind him. He takes off his trousers with a flourish, treating them much the same as the shirt. He stands, pale and naked and blushing, and she pulls him down beside her, tail flickering to his waist. She reaches and kisses his sweet lips again, and his chest next and it is Emmanellain’s turn to sigh – which turns to a wince as her hands roam lower.

She frowns and pulls back, a black-blue bruise visible on his flank.

“Pray, are you injured? Does it hurt?”

“Oh, it is but a minor bruise. It was worse though,” he stretches and shows her, his hands extending to his back, his lips pouting. “The vanu were quite rough.”

“I am sorry I was not faster, Emmanellain. I should not have let you go off on your own.”

She traces his skin lightly, right above the bruise on his ribs. His skin is so soft and pale.

“You came, you’re a true hero.” He chuckles, as if he’s telling a joke. “It is much to my chagrin than I was much less of a hero than I thought, and more the embarrassment Father believes me.”

His arms fall beside him, and he looks away. She wants to bring back his boundless joy, for her to soak in and forget her own troubles.

“I should have foreseen the danger. The beastmen, the Primal... those are not simple problems.” She can hardly forget it, leaping through the sky. She does not want to think of it, but if the time comes, she will deal with it. She folds her hand in his and reaches to kiss him. “I doubt your father expected you to deal with a Primal, Emannellain.”

“I would not be so certain,” he mumbles, kissing her back. She wraps her arms and her tail around him, drawing him closer.

“No matter, you came for me like the hero you are.” Emmanellain perks up, his mood seemingly shifting like the wind, and he grins widely. “You should be treated as such.”

“I did what I had to – but had your brother and Cid not shown up… “

He pays her words no heed and pushes her back on his bed, now hooking his fingers in her smalls and tugging. She obliges and lifts her hips, allowing him to slide them down her legs. His hands wander across her legs, and she forgets what she was going to say.

He settles between her legs. “Mayhap I’ll be a hero to you too, you most assuredly deserve it.”

He looks at her, far more intent than she expects, as he’s randomly touching her legs, her belly – watching her face as she reacts to his touch, lighter and firmer across skin and scales. Emmanellain’s gaze slide lower. Heat pools in her belly and her face flushes under his attention. His hands are on her hips and he lowers his head, his breath warm against her skin, his mouth but an inch from her sex. He kisses the inside of her leg, sending shudders through her spine. Oh.

“May I?”

She nods, and he kisses her thigh again, and brushes his hand over her scales, the delicious pressure making her sigh. She spreads her legs, letting him see how she wants him. She wonders if he would mind her hands in his hair. It’s dark and smooth and tempting; she wants to mess it up. She wants to pull him closer, to where she wants him and his mouth.

She doesn’t have to wait though, his kisses moving to the apex of her legs, and his tongue darts to taste her. Despite her want, she still lets out a gasp of surprise, her hips lifting off the bed. Emmanellain doesn’t relent, holding her hips and licking up her slit, then down. He presses his tongue against her most sensitive part, and sucks and licks again, a blur of changing sensations, then easing back.

“Good? My hero, pretty girl, beautiful – ” he gasps, looking up at her under long, dark lashes.

“Yes, please, I want – ”

He’s back and she can’t help herself, her hands burying in his hair, the soft brown strands too inviting, her need for him, to guide him, too much. Emmanellain doesn’t seem to mind at all, redoubling his efforts, pressure and suction and heat.

She just feels – her world narrows to the feeling between her legs, his hands on her hips, and she moans and pleads, his name on her lips as she bucks against him, his hands no match for her strength. One of his hands finds it’s way between her legs, and his fingers in her cunt, his mouth still on her. It’s good, her whole body writhing, her tail curling away from her to slide against Emmannelain’s back. He moans at that, and crooks his fingers and she falls apart, waves of pleasure washing over her.

Emannellain pulls back and grins again, self assured and happy, licking his lips. She feels languid and boneless, and smiles back. He moves up her body, kissing her belly, her chest, her mouth. She kisses him greedily, licking the taste of herself from his lips.

“Very heroic, aren’t I?”

“Verily.”

She wraps her arm around him, pulling him close. His hardness is against her thigh, and she presses against it, to hear him groan. He ruts against her, eager and erratic. Impatiently, Emmanellain moves his hand between them and grips himself, seeking more friction.

“You enjoyed that,” she grins, mayhaps pleased herself, and she reaches for him too, putting her hand above his, moving it deliberately down and up. Emmanellain closes his eyes briefly and sits on his knees next to her, giving her room to move and grip him firmly.

“Quite so,” he says, as he lets his own hand drop and reach for her, his thumb running over her scales. She tries to find a rhythm, absorbed in the motion and intensity of his face, the velvet hardness beneath her hands – she uses her other hand too, her hands small against his full length. Faster, slower, a twist at the end, and he’s soon shaking, his eyes caught in hers, his jaw clenched and his hands scrambling over her body.

“Oh, I – Meryta!” He comes like that, white ropes over her belly, down her hand. She lets up the pressure, moves her hands gently and lets him fall forward into her, the mess smeared between them. Emmanellain grins sheepishly, his face flushed as they messily kiss again.

“So handsome,” she whispers and he blushes deeper. She decides she likes the look on him. He kisses her jaw, and then scoots off the bed.

“Oh – I should… sorry!” He grabs his shirt at random.

“Don’t be sorry –”

“Here, let me, ah, let me,” he says as he gently wipes her belly and then her hands, careful and uncaring for ruining the fabric. Meryta finds she doesn’t care much either.

After cleaning himself too, he carefully sits on the bed. He opens his mouth, as if to say something, and closes it again. A flick of uncertainty sparks in her gut.

“Are you…?” She hopes he has no regrets, as she certainly has none. “Should I leave?”

“No! I mean – unless you want to? My bed is certainly big enough, and you still look wonderful in it.”

“No! I’d love to stay, I just wasn’t sure, my own rooms are... somewhere.” She’s not been to this part of the manor before, endless corridors and halls but it’s probably not far to go back and perhaps that would be expected. She’d like to stay, though, next to his soft body and softer hair, not alone in her own borrowed bed and constant reminder of why she needs the charity of the Fortemps family. Not that she’d voice it quite so.  “I am perhaps too tired to move.”

“Wore you out?” He smirks, and crawls next to her, his arm across her body. “I’d like you here.”

Relief flooding her, she tucks herself closer to him, mindful of her horns.

[mxactivist]

Support the BBC for having a trans character in recent episodes of 'Doctor Who'

Apparently the BBC (UK) has had 144 complaints about a recent episode of Doctor Who because it contained an openly trans character.

I've made a complaint to the BBC that there weren't enough transgender characters in Doctor Who. I would love if 144 other people did the same thing. Here's the link: https://www.bbc.co.uk/contact/complaints/make-a-complaint/#/Complaint

(For your easy reference: "The Star Beast" aired on 25/11/2023 on BBC One, and the trans character is called Rose.)

Please note that the complaint form asks for your UK postcode, so only UK folks can join in with this - but if you suspect you might have any UK-based followers, maybe give us a reblog to boost the signal?

Edit: I'm told that you can fill in the form even if you're outside of the UK, because the BBC provide service to many countries other than the UK, including the USA! Go for it. :D

Reply to confirm that you've done it, so I can keep a count!

Here's my complaint:

I recommend:

Avoid sarcasm or irony. Assume your post will be taken literally. If you are clearly joking or being mean you will be ignored or misunderstood.

Include some gratitude/appreciation. It's pretty great that they included a trans woman in a positive way, and they should know that they have explicit support for that.

~

Edit again: I'm seeing some concerns in the replies/reblogs that the BBC might not distinguish between "less trans people, please" complaints and "more trans people, please" complaints. Rest assured, this is nothing to worry about - the BBC publish fortnightly complaint reports, and they do pay enough attention to know when a complaint is in favour of or against trans inclusion. In fact, their 20 November – 3 December 2023 report is where the various news articles are getting the 144 complaints figure; that report says there were precisely 144 complaints that they have categorised as "Anti-male / inappropriate inclusion of transgender character".

That means the next complaints fortnight window is 4 December - 17 December. We have 8 more days to beat 144. By my count, over Tumblr, WhatsApp, the Fediverse and Telegram, we have 85 so far, which is well over halfway there.

Also, when you've done it, please reply to confirm you have done it, so that I can count us!

Thank you, everyone!

~

Edit, 2023-12-11, 1am UK time:

We did it! I've just been counting up responses, and it looks like sometime yesterday evening we hit 144 complaints/comments in favour of Rose Noble and more excellent trans characters in Doctor Who! (We're actually up to 157 now, fantastic.)

So, my next plan is to submit a Freedom of Information Act request to the BBC sometime in the next few days, asking for complaints and compliments figures. Then I'd ideally (energy and time permitting) like to put together a press release that I can send out to the publications that promoted the tiny "144 anti-trans complaints" figure, showing them that there has been far more feedback in favour of trans representation than against.

I'll keep you posted.

[breelandwalker]

2024 Witches' Calendar

For all my witches out there, here's a handy list of the 2024 dates for the solstices, quarter days, full and new moons, and special events. I've listed my sources at the bottom.

Dates and times for all events are calculated for Eastern Standard Time, USA, Northern Hemisphere. Adjust for your location as needed and check the DarkSky Placefinder to see what special events will be visible in your area. Enjoy!

Solstices, Harvests, and Quarter Days

February 1-2 - Imbolc / Candlemas

March 19 - Spring Equinox / Ostara

April 30-May 1 - Beltane / May Day

June 20 - Summer Solstice / Midsummer / Litha

August 1 - Lughnasadh / Lammas / Summer Harvest

September 22 - Autumn Equinox / Mabon / Fall Harvest

October 31 - Samhain / Halloween / Final Harvest

December 21 - Winter Solstice / Yule

Full Moons

January 25 - Wolf Moon ♌

February 24 - Snow Moon ♍

March 25 - Worm Moon ♎

April 23 - Pink Moon ♏

May 23 - Flower Moon ♐

June 21 - Strawberry Moon ♑

July 21 - Thunder Moon (aka Buck Moon) ♑

August 19 - Sturgeon Moon* ♒

September 17 - Harvest Moon* ♓

October 17 - Hunter's Moon (aka Blood Moon)* ♈

November 15 - Frost Moon (or Beaver Moon)* ♉

December 15 - Cold Moon ♊

*- Supermoon

Fun Fact: The title of Harvest Moon is given to either the September or October full moon, whichever falls closest to the autumn equinox. Once again this year, that month will be September.

New Moons

January 11 ♑

February 9 ♒

March 10 ♓

April 8 ♈

May 7 ♉

June 6 ♊

July 5 ♋

August 4 ♌

September 2 ♍

October 2 ♎

November 1 ♏

December 1 ♐

December 30 (black moon) ♑

Special Celestial Events

January 3-4 - Quadrantids meteor shower peak

March 25 - Penumbral Lunar Eclipse

April 8 - Total solar eclipse

April 22-23 - Lyrids meteor shower peak

May 6-7 - Eta Aquarids meteor shower peak

August 11-13 - Perseids meteor shower peak

August 19 - Sturgeon Supermoon / Seasonal Blue Moon

September 17 - Harvest Supermoon / Penumbral Lunar Eclipse

October 2 - "Ring of Fire" solar eclipse

October 17 - Hunter's Supermoon

October 21-22 - Orionids meteor shower peak

November 15 - Frost Supermoon

November 16-17 - Leonids meteor shower peak

December 13-14 - Geminids meteor shower peak

December 30 - Black Moon

(Check the DarkSky Placefinder to see what will be visible in your area!)

Mercury Retrogrades (in case you need them)

April 1 - April 24

August 4 - August 27

November 25 - December 15

Happy Witching!

SOURCES & FURTHER READING:

Bree's Lunar Calendar Series

Bree's Secular Celebrations Series

Moon Info - Full Moon Dates for 2024

Calendar-12 - 2024 Moon Phases

Full Moonology - 2024 Full Moon Calendar

AstroStyle - All the 2024 Full Moons

Your Zodiac Sign - Astrology Calendar 2024

Old Farmer's Almanac - Mercury Retrograde Dates 2023-2024

Lonely Planet - Best Star-gazing Events of 2024

Sea and Sky - Astronomy Calendar of Celestial Events 2024

DarkSky International - Dark Sky Placefinder for Stargazing

Pagan Grimoire - Wheel of the Year: The 8 Festivals in the Wiccan Calendar (2024 Edition)

=

If you're enjoying my content, please feel free to drop a little something in the tip jar or check out my published works on Amazon or in the Willow Wings Witch Shop. 😊

EDIT: Mercury is stationed direct on Jan 1st, 2024. The source I used which stated it was in retrograde until the 18th had a typo.

EDIT: Fixed the zodiac signs for the full moons using a new source.

[bumblegumbees]

Update: The survey is closed. Thank you all so much for taking the survey and sharing it. I'm currently in the process of analyzing the survey data. I will use this post to give everyone updates. Below are the next steps.

- Survey closed: 11/30/2023

- Raffle drawing: TBD. Deadline: Likely winter 2023

- Results: TBD. Published likely mid 2023-mid 2024 (academic publishing can take a while)

--------

Are you a trans, nonbinary, or gender diverse video game player living in the US/UK/Canada? You are invited to participate in this survey on avatar creation and customization. Follow the link for more information. :) survey respondents will be entered into a drawing for a $25 gift card for their online gaming store of choice ♥️🎮🏳️‍🌈

https://tinyurl.com/avatarstudyinfo

Who am I? I'm Xan (they/he) :) I am a PhD student at Indiana University and I study avatar creation and play for gender diverse gamers

[thehomelybrewster]

1d8 "Free" Fantasy RPGs To Replace 5e At Your Table

D&D 5e sure is a roleplaying game, and it's one that I have enjoyed a lot. However, that doesn't mean that I'd recommend it automatically for other people. This has many reasons, which I won't elaborate here. It has also shaped the perception of TTRPGs significantly thanks to its market dominance, and not in a good way.

5e has a reputation for being an expensive, complex game, and 5e players fear that other RPGs might just be the same. That it's too much of a hassle and too much of a financial burden to switch systems.

So, to help 5e players pick out a different system, I've made this handy 1d8 rolling table to help them pick a fantasy TTRPG with a combat component that they can try instead!

Let's now go through these eight nine RPGs and see what's up with them, right below the "Keep reading" section!

I'll be listing some metrics like the page count for the rulebook(s), the core resolution mechanic, how complex the game is in terms of character creation & combat, and how well-supported the game is by their publisher and the community-at-large.

1. Cairn

Author: Yochai Gal

Release Year: 2020

Cost: Free PDF, printed copies cost between $3 to $10 depending on the print quality.

Page Count: 24

Website: https://cairnrpg.com/

Resolution Mechanic: 1d20 Roll Under system for ability checks/saving throws, attacks hit automatically, "fiction-first".

Action Economy: Movement + one action per round.

Characters: Random character creation, class-less and level-less, advancement based on "Scars" (suffering damage that reduces your HP exactly to 0)

Setting: Implied. Low-magic European-style fantasy; mysterious woodlands.

Other Noteworthy Mechanics: Hit Protection and Ability damage instead of HP, Slot-Based Inventory.

Degree of Support: Very high. Available in fifteen languages (e.g. Spanish, Russian, Chinese, and German); full rules text is under CC-BY-SA 4.0; multiple published third-party adventures & supplements available; some official bonus material (e.g. bestiary, magic items/relics, and spells) is available for free on the website.

Addendum: An expanded 2nd Edition is currently on Kickstarter (ends April 26th 2024); Cairn is legitimately easy to learn, however the Hit Protection system and the connected Scars system is a very different abstraction to health and advancement compared to 5e.

2. Cloud Empress

Author: worlds by watt

Release Year: 2023

Cost: Free PDF of the rulebook and the creator-written sample adventure "Last Voyage of the Bean Barge", $20 for the print edition of the rulebook, $12 for PDF supplements, $25 for print + PDF supplements; free solo rules also available as PDF only.

Page Count: 60

Website: https://cloudempress.com/

Resolution Mechanic: d100 Roll Under system for stat checks/saving throws, critical successes or failures on doubles (11, 22, 33, etc.), 5e-style advantage/disadvantage, attacks generally hit automatically.

Action Economy: Two actions per round with no free movement.

Characters: Semi-random character creation, four classes ("jobs"), no rules for character advancement in the ruleset.

Setting: Specific. "Ecological science fantasy" heavily inspired by Hayao Miyazaki's "Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind"; costly magic, giant insects, dangerous mushrooms; only human player characters.

Other Noteworthy Mechanics: Damage points culminate in Wounds; Wounds and Stress as ways to track your character's physical and mental state; slot-based inventory system.

Degree of Support: Low-ish. Several official supplements exist, however third-party material is very sparse. May improve due to the recent establishment of a Cloud Empress Creators Fund, has a simple 3rd party license system.

Addendum: A supplement, "Cloud Empress: Life & Death" is currently on Kickstarter (ends April 26th 2024, yes, the same day as Cairn 2e) and as a disclaimer I even backed that current Kickstarter; Cloud Empress is built on the engine of the sci-fi horror RPG "Mothership"; clearly built for one-shots and short campaigns; has a wonderful resting system that encourages roleplay between players.

3. Iron Halberd

Author: level2janitor

Release Year: 2023

Cost: Free PDF of the rules; no print option available.

Page Count: 60

Website: https://level2janitor.itch.io/iron-halberd

Resolution Mechanic: 1d20 + Bonus Roll Over system against difficulty or armor rating, however most non-combat-related actions follow a fiction first approach without dice rolls.

Action Economy: Movement + one action per round.

Characters: Semi-random character creation, class-less but there are four different "gear kits" that nudge your character towards certain archetypes, levelling up with XP.

Setting: Essentially non-existant. General European fantasy with magic, gods may or may not exist/shape the world, various fantastic ancestries included.

Other Noteworthy Mechanics: Includes rules for building strongholds and maintaining warbands; slot-based inventory with a durability mechanic.

Degree of Support: None. The game is intended to be relatively compatible with other OSR content and the creator suggests using adventures made for the D&D retroclone Old-School Essentials if you wanna use pre-published ones. An official introductory adventure, "Sea-Spray Bay", is apparently in the works. No 3rd party license available, as far as I know.

Addendum: One thing about Iron Halberd I like especially is how it uses random tables for generating equipment. Most of the equipment is listed in a numerical order by category, and the various gear kits include references on different rolling formulas for those equipment categories. For example someone taking the "soldier's kit" rolls twice on the d20 Weapons table and takes their preferred pick, while someone taking the "sage's kit" only rolls a d4 on that table.

4. Mausritter

Author: Isaac Williams

Release Year: 2020

Cost: Free PDF of the ruleset available; box set with the rules and several goodies including an adventure costs $55; additional box set + PDFs containing eleven official adventures costs $55 (or $20 digital-only).

Page Count: 48

Website: https://mausritter.com/

Resolution Mechanic: 1d20 Roll Under system, 5e-style advantage/disadvantage, attacks always hit.

Action Economy: Movement + one action per round.

Characters: Random character creation, class-less, levelling up with XP.

Setting: Vaguely specific. You play as mice and everything is related to mouse-size; cats are the equivalents of devils or dragons; humans exist as a setting background but may or may not be present in a campaign.

Other Noteworthy Mechanics: Includes rules for recruiting warbands; slot-based inventory with a durability mechanic.

Degree of Support: Very high. Several official supplements exist, as well as loads of content, be it adventures or supplements, made by other creators. Available in seven languages (all of them however are European). Has a simple 3rd party license system.

Addendum: Mausritter uses the phrase "adventure site" instead of dungeons. On the website a free adventure site generator is available, as is a digital tool that can be used to generate your own item cards for the slot-based inventory system.

5. Maze Rats

Author: Ben Milton

Release Year: 2017

Cost: $4.99 for the PDF, no print option regularly available.

Page Count: 32

Website: https://questingbeast.substack.com/

Resolution Mechanic: 2d6 + Bonus Roll Over system; advantage system that uses 3d6 drop the lowest + Bonus.

Action Economy: Movement + one action per round.

Characters: Semi-random character creation, class-less but instead there are character features (e.g. spell slots or attack bonuses), levelling up with XP.

Setting: Essentially non-existant. Magic is very irregular (s. the section below), but otherwise it implies a vaguely European fantasy setting.

Other Noteworthy Mechanics: Spells are randomly generated each adventuring day and spell effects are negotiated between the GM and the spellcasting player; includes several fantastic d66 tables that can be used to randomly generate worlds.

Degree of Support: Decent. The rule text is licensed under CC BY 4.0 and unofficial translations are available. Some third-party content has been made specifically for the game.

Addendum: The only purchase-only game on this list. However "unofficial" distribution of the PDF is very common. Also this is the oldest game on the list. Ben "Questing Beast" Milton is a prolific OSR blogger and runs a YouTube channel on the OSR. Great dude.

6. Sherwood - A Game of Outlaws & Arcana

Author: Richard Ruane

Release Year: 2022

Cost: Free quickstart PDF titled "Sherwood - A Quickstart of Outlaws" available; digital rulebook costs $7.50 and the print edition (including PDF) costs $15.

Page Count: 25 (Quickstart), 32 (Rulebook)

Website: https://www.r-rook.studio/

Resolution Mechanic: 2d6 + Bonus Roll Over system for skill checks (including attacks), 2d6 Roll Under system for saving throws; advantage & disadvantage system that involves rolling 3d6 and using the higher/lower of the two results; almost all rolls are player-facing

Action Economy: "Conversational", assumption of movement + action.

Characters: Largely choice-based character creation. Combine two (of six) background abilities with the benefits of seven different careers. Big focus on interpersonal relationships during character creation. Limited character advancement takes place during downtime.

Setting: Specific. Takes place in a fantastical version of 13th century England, with fey and magic coexisting with outlaws and crusaders.

Other Noteworthy Mechanics: The group of outlaws possesses two shared resources (Resources and Legend) that can be spent to gain certain benefits; spellcasting is divided into two categories: arcane talents and sorcerous rites, with the former being immediate and the later taking significant time; slot-based inventory.

Degree of Support: None. No further publications exist for the game and while it is published under the CC-BY 4.0 license, no third-party content exists as far as I know. It does include a guide on how to convert D&D and Troika (N)PCs into Sherwood characters, as well as three adventure seeds (one in the Quickstart, two in the rules), which is at least something.

Addendum: Might just be the game on this list that encourages the most roleplaying; the character sheet is sadly very provisional-feeling and the Quickstart feels outdated compared to the finalized rulebook.

7. The Electrum Archive

Author: Emiel Boven

Release Year: 2022

Cost: Free Rules PDF available, zines cost $12 as digital PDFs or $24 as print + PDF combos; the first zine contains the entire contents of the Free Rules PDF

Page Count: 26 (Free Rules), 72 (Issue 01)

Website: https://www.electrumarchive.com/

Resolution Mechanic: 1d10 Roll Under system, attacks always hit.

Action Economy: Movement + one action per round.

Characters: Largely choice-based; three archetypes roughly corresponding to fighters/rangers (Vagabonds), rogues (Fixers), and spellcasters (Warlocks); player characters are presumed to be human; levelling up with XP.

Setting: Specific. Mechanics heavily tie into the lore; humanity has abundant access to minerals but requires a rare substance known as Ink to operate certain pieces of tech (like guns) and cast spells but cannot produce Ink themselves; spirits of various sorts can be foes, targets of worship, or sources of power.

Other Noteworthy Mechanics: Uses a spellcasting system for the Warlock archetype that's heavily based on the one used in Maze Rats, as in it uses randomly-generated spells whose effects are negotiated between the player and the GM; slot-based inventory with a durability mechanic.

Degree of Support: Minimal. The game consists out of the free rules and (soon) two zines; a third party license exists but content produced under it is very rare.

Addendum: I need to disclaim that I recently backed the Kickstarter campaign for the second zine for this game; the free rules feature wrong page numbers in its table of contents which is unfortunate; The Electrum Archive uses incredibly simple stats for NPCs which makes creating new ones based on other games rather simple.

8. Shadowdark RPG

Author: Kelsey Dionne

Release Year: 2023

Cost: Free player and game master quickstarts exist as PDFs and are available in print for $19, the core rules cost $28 in PDF form and $57 in a print + PDF bundle

Page Count: 68 (Player Quickstart Guide), 68 (Game Master Quickstart Guide), 332 (Core Rules)

Website: https://www.thearcanelibrary.com/

Resolution Mechanic: 1d20 + Bonus Roll Over system, 5e-style advantage/disadvantage, natural 1s are critical failures and natural 20s are critical successes.

Action Economy: Movement + one action per round.

Characters: Largely choice-based; players have a fantasy ancestry and a class; levelling up with XP; class progression largely random.

Setting: Vague. General (dark) western fantasy conventions apply; alignment is a force in this universe and a sample pantheon is provided; the most potent enemies in the rules are named individuals that fit classic TTRPG monster types; illustrations and lore snippets have recurring motifs.

Other Noteworthy Mechanics: The key mechanic of Shadowdark is how the game handles light, namely that light sources are tracked in real time (i.e. a normal torch lasts 1 hour), which increases tension; slot-based inventory; has a 0th-level character creation option using an eliminationist "Gauntlet".

Degree of Support: Fantastic. Several official supplements and offically sanctioned digital tools exist; lots of third-party content available under a generous third-party license.

Addendum: Definitely the most similar game to 5e on this list besides the next entry; very robust mechanically and the Core Rules features extensive lists of magic items, monsters, and spells; also for early play giving your players only access to the quickstart is a totally valid choice; and finally, before Dionne made Shadowdark, she made 5e adventures for years and it shows (affectionate).

9. Pathfinder

Authors: Logan Bonner, Jason Bulmahn, Stephen Radney-MacFarland, Mark Seifter

Release Year: 2019 (initial release), 2023 (remaster)

Cost: Free and comprehensive SRD available via the platform Archives of Nethys, free "Pathfinder Primer" abridged rulebook available via the Pathfinder Nexus (powered by Demiplane), Core books are priced $20 for PDFs and $30/$60 for print as a softcover/hardcover; a Beginner Box set with shortened soft-cover rules costs $45

Page Count: 464 (Player Core), 336 (GM Core), 376 (Monster Core), 160 (Combined Beginner Box Softcovers)

Website: https://paizo.com/pathfinder

Resolution Mechanic: 1d20 + Bonus Roll Over system, 5e-style advantage/disadvantage, four degrees of success based on result compared to target number.

Action Economy: Three action points per round; various actions may require more than one point; every character can use one reaction per round of combat.

Characters: Choice-based; players first pick an ancestry and a background and a class (the ABCs) and then tend to have meaningful choices after each level-up; levelling up with XP.

Setting: Important. Golarion, the game's setting, is a world that has been long in development and it shows; powerful magic and influential gods; very clear notions of what the societies of the various peoples of the world are like and how they should behave.

Other Noteworthy Mechanics: Balance between character classes and reliable combat challenge calculations are an important design goal; weight-based inventory system; archetype system for "multiclassing".

Degree of Support: Fantastic. Loads of content gets regularly produced by the game's publisher Paizo; the Pathfinder Infinite program (similar to D&D's Dungeon Master's Guild) provides lots of lore-compliant third-party content; uses the ORC third-party license for content produced outside of the Pathfinder Infinite program. Translations into other languages available but Paizo does not provide a comprehensive list of available languages (only German and French confirmed after brief personal research).

Addendum: The most popular and commercially successful of the listed games; but also by far the most complicated, though it is easier to GM for specificallty than 5e; also I dislike how certain feats create situations where fairly mundane actions get mechanics through these feats instead of being things you can generally do; anyway the reason why it's a 9 on a 1d8 table is because if you wanted to try out Pathfinder 2e you already would have and because while Paizo is better than WotC it's still a flawed big company.

...

So this was an exhausting little project. I hope you found this helpful and I hope you give at least one of these games a shot! A follow-up to this post is not out of the cards, but I don't plan on one.

Before we go, have this poll about which of these systems you're most looking forward to try! Shame it can only be open for one week...

[vinecradle]

ditto - do you want somebody, like i want somebody?

pairing :: kazuha x gn!reader

summary :: a cosplay event at the mall was announced, you were waiting for this moment!! taking lots of pictures with people, but then you saw someone who cosplayed your character's partner.. and his friend asked you both to take a picture together and it goes viral on social media- and now you're faced with the cosplayer's twitter handle..

genre :: college au (reader & kazuha are in their first year), modern au, social media au, strangers to friends to fake lovers to lovers, playfully flirty x cant handle it trope, and also she fell first he fell harder trope, mutual pining, sets place after the scaramouche smau ends

warnings :: little angst, loneliness, alcohol mentions, reader is pretty touch starved, honestly not that many problems most of it is fluffy 🫶🏻

status :: on hold until i finish my scaramouche smau!

official playlist :: is linked here!

notes :: published 23 feb 2023, taglist is open! either send an ask/comment preferably so i could keep track easier and also please specific if you'd like to be in this taglist only or my permanent taglist

profiles :: ice ice baby | still a dottore hate club

teaser :: is linked here !

ACT I - music is what feelings sound like.

01. a cosplay event!!

02. character.. hunting?

03. 200 playlists

04. cosplay found!

05. cosplay received.

06. a sudden project (✿)

07. why is there a random kid

08. it's nearly time!!

ACT II - i lost myself, but you found me.

09. the cosplay event (✿)

10. post-cosplay

11. wait- im trending?

12. reporters (✿)

13. his twitter

14. bro's mesmerizing

15. this mess

16. he's actually fun to talk to

ACT III - i told the stars about you.

17. just a friendly hangout..! (✿)

18. stayed on the low

19. a priv notification

20. loveliest couple award! (✿)

21. a different cosplay?

22. when will i experience

23. she fell first he fell harder?

ACT III - cause you're so lovely

24. you are out of this world

25. second friendly hangout.. yes! (✿)

26. anything but friendly

27. him, in my dreams

28. talk (✿)

29. let's keep it a secret

30. the new event (✿)

31. we're on the news!!

ACT IIII - hm? he said it, "ditto"

32. you make me feel safe (✿)

33. a playlist for you

34. guitarist x violinist

35. my home

-> bonus! my love, my love (✿)

[kining-the-evil]

2023 Kinktober Masterlist

It is spooky time everyone! I'm super excited, this is my first big event as a writer, and I have been putting a lot of work into it! If everything goes right, a fic will be published one a day every day this month. This a mature event, so if you can't handle please don't interact.

⁙⁙⁙⁙⁙

Day 1- Cockwarming with Sam Carpenter

Day 2- Edging with James Wilson

Day 3- Knife Play with Tara Carpenter

Day 4-Phone Sex with Billy Loomis

Day 5- Mutual Masturbation with James Wilson

Day 6- Gagged with Finnick Odair

Day 7- Marking/Hickeys with Daisy Johnson

Day 8- Uniform with Bucky Barnes

Day 9-Dumbification with Jason Dean

Day 10- CNC with Stu Macher

Day 11- Thigh Riding with Kate Bishop

Day 12- Overstimulation with Greg House

Day 13- Dirty Talk with Valkyrie

Day 14- Bondage with Natasha Romanoff

Day 15- Ruined Orgasm- Johanna Mason

Day 16- Dacryphilia with Haymitch Abernathy

Day 17- Breeding with James Wilson

Day 18- Humiliation/Degration with Katniss Everdeen

Day 19- Gun Play with Jason Dean

Day 20- Praise with Peggy Carter

Day 21- Spit with Billy Loomis

Day 22- Sex Pollin with Leo Fitz

Day 23- Somnophilia with Loki

Day 24- Car sex with Daisy Johnson

Day 25- Mirror Sex with Randy Meeks

Day 26- Lactation with Dewey Riley

Day 27- Cum Play with Scott Lang

Day 28- Purity with Chad Meeks

Day 29- Pet Play with Stu Macher

Day 30- Double Penitration with Stucky

Day 31- Dry Humping with Randy Meeks

[cityof2morrow]

Bella Brand: Bella's Beauties 005 - Signature Collection

Published: 11-7-2023 | Updated: 11-20-2023 SUMMARY “Inspired by the wealth of Bella Goth lore from the Sims/SimCity franchises (aka the “simsverse”), the Bella Brand Series includes more than a dozen sets and 230+ new business-themed items. Lore suggests that the wealth/influence of the Gilman, Crumplebottom, Bachelor, and Goth families increases considerably under Mortimer and Bella Goth, especially the latter. So, this series imagines what a prestigious Bella-based brand might look like…” For the Bella brand’s most loyal customers - a special edition hosiery/display rack and several recolors of the functional hosiery from the Bella’s Secret Remix set (Simmons, 2023).

DETAILS Requires ALL EPs/SPs. You need Mesh Set 001 (Simmons, 2023) and the Display Counter (BellasSecret_Counter_Somedaythesun)from the TS2 Maxis Match Lingerie Store Set (SomedayTheSun, 2023). This set includes a hosiery rack linked to Marble Display 001 from Bella’s Beauties 003 (Simmons, 2023) and recolors of the hosiery apparel items from the Bella’s Secret Remix set (Simmons, 2023) – all of these items are required for all textures to display in-game. Optional recolors of items from the Bella Brand Gift Set 001 (Simmons, 2023) are included as well. The counter uses recolors from the Bosenklavier Model B grand piano (Bon Voyage EP). Find recolors for the counter interior in the Bella Brand: Retail Floor Set (Simmons, 2023). Recolors may include swatches for items in other Bella Brand sets such as signs, packages, cosmetics, etc. Objects in Sims 2 are limited to two recolorable parts, so not all items are recolorable in the same way. Find additional recolors for Bella Brand sets on this site under #ts2recolors, #co2recolors, and #co2bellabrand.

ITEMS Bella Brand Legs & Heels Mannequin (1735 poly, HIGH) Bella Brand Signature Hosiery Rack (788 poly) DOWNLOAD (choose one) from SFS | from MEGA

*A known game bug may disable some shelf slots. If you cannot access more than 2 slots on the hosiery/lingerie racks (the ones with 4 or 6 bars), download ONE these fixes: MORE_Custom-objects-placeable-on-shelves (Numenor, 2006) MORE_Custom-objects-placeable-on-shelves+LOCKEDTILES (Numenor, 2006) Object Freedom 1.02 (Fway, 2023)

Functional Apparel Objects Apparel objects are debug items and show up as “clothing pile” in the catalog (Misc > Dressers). They must be placed on one of the DEBUG displays/shelves or they’ll float. Once purchased, take them out of the sim’s inventory and choose from one of the following: Purchase Clothing. Select an outfit (or several) of any type. Each apparel object is worth §100 towards the TOTAL cost. Sims save more money (and your businesses make more money) if they use one apparel object per new outfit. Sell. Recycle the object for §100 simoleons.  If you exit the Buy Clothing window without adding anything to your shopping cart, §100 will be added to the sim’s household funds instead. Apparel objects are worth §100 regardless of how much sims pay for them on OFB/community lots. Pricing an item below this amount can function like a discount sale (i.e., pay $75 in-store and §100 towards the purchase or a 25% “discount/rebate.” You can decide whether this counts as cheating). Pricing it above this amount is not recommended since sims will end up losing extra money. Debug objects have slots which “catch” fellow clones if you place them too close. To prevent this when trying to clutter them close together, turn “snap objects to grid” OFF and “move objects” OFF.

CREDITS No copyright infringement intended. All trademarks belong to their respective owners. CCA = Creative Commons Attribution. Thanks: @catherinetcjd, @gayars, @gummilutt, @haziewhims, @kashmiresims (Rach’), @somedaythesun, whoward, Easy Shine Removal Kit (PF Forest, 2023), Reducing GUIDs/OBJs Tutorial (HugeLunatic, 2022), Sketchfab and Blender Communities. Sources: SEE CREDITS (ALT).

[storyofthenauseouseye]

The Duality of Woman: Anais Nin

Vogue Magazine, Anais Nin talks about being a woman, 15 October 1971

Anais Nin is a woman of duality. It's been a well-known fact for those who know or love her that she is truly a two-sided coin. She said it herself in her book Henry and June,

"I will always be the virgin prostitute, the perverse angel, the two-faced sinister and saintly woman"(bookquoters.com).

From her intense marriages to two different men on opposite sides of the country, to her literary career, to even her personal reflections and essays, Nin was a figure bathed in duality. How does one split the image of Anais Nin ideally in half? You just have to find the seam between diarist and eroticist.

The Diarist

Anais Nin is most well-loved by her adoring fans because of her published diary. As a young girl, Nin wrote her father a letter begging him to return to the family he had abandoned (The Anais Nin Foundation). This was the beginning of Nin's diary, which would be published in seven volumes, with four unexpurgated diaries later appearing after their original publication.

Her diaries were incredibly personal, full of secrets and thoughts she never thought would come to light. The biggest secret within these diaries was that she was married to two different men simultaneously, something she would remove from the diaries upon initial publication. Years later, Nin compiled the removed sections into one volume, the first of her unexpurgated diaries. It was called Henry and June, and detailed the letters and writings the two shared. The duality of Nin stretched throughout every aspect of her life.

These highly intimate journals struck twentieth-century American women directly in their souls. As one journalist famously put it in an article for The Conversation,

Anaïs Nin dreamed, in all senses. She dreamed of lives and possibilities. She dreamed in slumber and allowed her dreams to leak into the day. As I regularly committed the cardinal social sin of recounting my dreams over breakfast, she seemed a soulmate across oceans and generations (Gorman).

These teenage girls and their daydreams were instantly hooked on Nin's likeminded wonder and splendid prose. She became a sensation after the diary publications almost instantly, giving her a decent seat in literary history.

It wouldn't be long until something else gave her another boost of fame.

Ramon Casas, Decadent Young Woman. After the Dance, 1899

The Eroticist

In the late 1970s, Anais Nine published three volumes of erotic short fiction, each containing approximately ten stories. Despite their popularity, the term erotic is a tad inappropriate. Although she wasn't a follower of the transgressive art movement like Georges Bataille, Anais Nin's erotic stories are more disturbing and controversial than actually arousing.

Nin wrote about such topics as sexual abuse, incest, pedophilia, and other forms of sexual violence within her stories. These works would go on to shock and challenge readers even today (Maza).

Lost Lenore Antiques, Anais Nin ~ Little Birds and Delta of Venus ~ 1st Edition Books ~ Vintage Erotica, 27 August 2021

Works Cited

The Anais Nin Foundation. “bio — The Anais Nin Foundation.” The Anais Nin Foundation, https://theanaisninfoundation.org/bio. Accessed 11 December 2023.

Gorman, Alice. “The book that changed me: journeying to the self with Anaïs Nin's sensual, transgressive diaries.” The Conversation, 25 April 2022, https://theconversation.com/the-book-that-changed-me-journeying-to-the-self-with-ana-s-nins-sensual-transgressive-diaries-176135. Accessed 11 December 2023.

Maza, Sarah, and Paul Herron. “Swinging: The Double Life of Anaïs Nin.” Public Books, 19 February 2018, https://www.publicbooks.org/swinging-the-double-life-of-anais-nin/. Accessed 11 December 2023.

Nin, Anaïs. “Quotes from Henry and June: From "A Journal of Love"--The Unexpurgated Diary of Anaïs Nin by Anaïs Nin.” BookQuoters, https://bookquoters.com/book/henry-and-june-from-a-journal-of-love-the-unexpurgated-diary-of-anais-nin. Accessed 11 December 2023.

Further Reading

[killerandhealerqueen]

AO3 Wrapped 2024 (Writer's Edition)

1. How many words have you written this year?

747,677

2. How many works did you publish this year?

28

3. What work are you most proud of (regardless of kudos/hits)? 

Die Trying. It's my longest oneshot to date and I just really like how it turned out

4. What work of yours has the most hits? 

Okay, so technically my fic 恨君不似江楼月 | Killer and Healer has the most hits but that fic has carried over since like...2022? I think? So if we're truly counting this year then it would be It's Not the Devil at Your Door (It's Just Your Shadow on the Floor) with 4,512 hits

5. What work of yours got more feedback than you expected?

Oh It's Not the Devil at Your Door (It's Just Your Shadow on the Floor) because while it wasn't my first F1 fic, I was shocked at how many people really enjoyed it. Like, shocked

6. Favorite title you used? 

Oh, all of my titles were good this year

7. If you use song lyrics, which artist’s songs did you pull from the most? 

My song lyrics were pulled from different artists, not one in particular

8. Pairing you wrote the most for this year? 

Jiang Yuelou/Chen Yuzhi (no one is surprised)

9. Favorite pairing you wrote for this year? 

Well, Jiang Yuelou/Chen Yuzhi is always fun to write for, but I'd have to say either Loscar or Carlando (Lestappen is good too) but I'd say these two, just because they were different and their fics were fun to write

10. What work was the quickest to write? 

Promise to Keep

Wrote it literally after the finale of Chinese Paladin 4 aired

11. What work took you the longest to write? 

Die Trying

So I created the document in May but then like finally finished it in November. So...yeah. Like 7 months. 恨君不似江楼月 | Killer and Healer is taking me forever though...who knows when I'm gonna finish it. Hopefully next year or the year after that

12. How many WIP’s do you have in your docs for next year? 

7...maybe? I know I have like 3 definite ones and the other ones are up in the air

13. What’s your longest work of the year? 

Okay, so 恨君不似江楼月 | Killer and Healer is technically the longest fic of the year, but if we're just counting 2024 alone it would probably be Die Trying because all of my longer fics carried over from 2023

14. What’s your shortest work of the year? 

Stay the Night By My Side (1,096 words)

15. What WIP are you taking into next year with you?

恨君不似江楼月 | Killer and Healer

She's truly gonna follow me til the end of time

16. What’s your most common “Additional Tags” tag? 

Originally Posted on Tumblr (185) (I wrote a lot of tumblr prompts back in the day)

17. Your favorite character to write this year? 

Oh, I'd have to say Oscar Piastri in my F1 rpf fics. He's just fun

18. The character that gave you the most trouble writing this year?

I didn't really have any trouble with characters this year

19. What’s one pairing you want to explore next year?

I'd like to explore Loscar and Lestappen a little more next year and Javey. I have some good fic ideas in store for them

20. Which work of yours have you reread the most?

All of them?

21. How many kudos in total did you get this year? 

1,855

22. Which work has the most comments?

恨君不似江楼月 | Killer and Healer

23. Did you do any collaborative works this year?

No

24. Did you write any gifts this year? 

No

25. Did you receive any gifts this year? 

No

26. What’s your most common category? 

M/M

27. What do you listen to while writing? 

Anything and everything, but mainly a playlist that I listen to almost every day

28. Favorite work you wrote this year?

Tie between Die Trying and Monster Like Me

29. Favorite line/passage you wrote this year? 

         “You know…I think the reason Keying is so kind and so loving like Princess Ning’an…is because you are kind and loving” he mused, making Chen Yuzhi look at him in confusion.          “What do you mean?  Me?  Kind?  Loving?  I killed innocent people, like the fucking princess, for God’s sake.  How does that make me kind and loving person?” he hissed.  Jiang Yuelou huffed.          “That was the you then.  It is not the you now.  You are a kind and loving person, Chen Yuzhi, whether you believe it or not.  I’ve seen it in the way you treat Keying and in the way you treat villagers.  You care.  Could the you all those years ago say that?” he asked.  Chen Yuzhi was quiet before he shook his head.          “No” he whispered.  Jiang Yuelou nodded.          “Exactly.  You learned how to be a kind and loving person from Princess Ning’an and then took that love and care and kindness and raised Keying with it.  She is a kind and loving child because of you.  You, not anyone else” he declared, making Chen Yuzhi stare at him with wide eyes before he quickly looked away, silence soon falling over the both of them before Jiang Yuelou looked over at him and placed a gentle hand on his thigh.          “You are a good and kind and loving person, Chen Yuzhi.  You are not Zhan Tianqing.  And you never will be” he assured before he pushed himself to his feet and made his way towards the door, just as Chen Yuzhi looked at him.          “Jiang Yuelou” he called out.  Jiang Yuelou turned to look at him.          “Hm?” he replied.  Chen Yuzhi looked at him with glassy eyes.          “Thank you” he whispered. 

I just like this passage because I think it was something that Chen Yuzhi needed to hear and I really like how I wrote it (cuz I had something different planned out for this scene but I like how it turned out)

30. Biggest surprise while writing this year? 

That for some god damn reason, my fics wanted to fight me for no good reason. No, I'm not kidding, I had to rewrite Monster Like Me three different times because we settled on the final version (the third version) and Die Trying also wanted to be a little shit...but then again, I'm always striving for my fics to be really good (I have fun writing but I hold my fics to a high standard) so sometimes my fics like to be brats. Which is rude but *shrugs*

Tagging: @clawbehavior @breitweisergallery @sunriseverse @theotherwhybietoldmeso @hyperbolicgrinch and anyone else who wants to play

[mostlysignssomeportents]

All the books I reviewed in 2023 (Graphic Novels)

Next Tuesday (December 5), I'm at Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, NC, with my new solarpunk novel The Lost Cause, which 350.org's Bill McKibben called "The first great YIMBY novel: perceptive, scientifically sound, and extraordinarily hopeful."

It's that time of year again, when I round up all the books I reviewed for my newsletter in the previous year. I posted 21 reviews last year, covering 31 books (there are two series in there!). I also published three books of my own last year (two novels and one nonfiction). A busy year in books!

Every year, these roundups remind me that I did actually manager to get a lot of reading done, even if the list of extremely good books that I didn't read is much longer than the list of books I did read. I read many of these books while doing physiotherapy for my chronic pain, specifically as audiobooks I listened to on my underwater MP3 player while doing my daily laps at the public pool across the street from my house.

After many years of using generic Chinese waterproof MP3s players – whose quality steadily declined over a decade – I gave up and bought a brand-name player, a Shokz Openswim. So far, I have no complaints. Thanks to reader Abbas Halai for recommending this!

https://shokz.com/products/openswim

I load up this gadget with audiobook MP3s bought from Libro.fm, a fantastic, DRM-free alternative to Audible, which is both a monopolist and a prolific wage-thief with a documented history of stealing from writers:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/07/25/can-you-hear-me-now/#acx-ripoff

All right, enough with the process notes, on to the reviews!

GRAPHIC NOVELS

I. Shubiek Lubiek by Deena Mohamed

An intricate alternate history in which wishes are real, and must be refined from a kind of raw wish-stuff that has to be dug out of the earth. Naturally, this has been an important element of geopolitics and colonization, especially since the wish-stuff is concentrated in the global south, particularly Egypt, the setting for our tale. The framing device for the trilogy is the tale of three "first class" wishes: these are the most powerful wishes that civilians are allowed to use, the kind of thing you might use to cure cancer or reverse a crop-failure.

https://pluralistic.net/2023/01/11/your-wish/#is-my-command

II. Ducks by Kate Beaton

In 2005, Beaton was a newly minted art-school grad facing a crushing load of student debt, a debt she would never be able to manage in the crumbling, post-boom economy of Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. Like so many Maritimers, she left the home that meant everything for her to travel to Alberta, where the tar sands oil boom promised unmatched riches for anyone willing to take them. Beaton's memoir describes the following four years, as she works her way into a series of oil industry jobs in isolated company towns where men outnumber women 50:1 and where whole communities marinate in a literally toxic brew of carcinogens, misogyny, economic desperation and environmental degradation. The story that follows is – naturally – wrenching, but it is also subtle and ambivalent. Beaton finds camaraderie with – and empathy for – the people she works alongside, even amidst unimaginable, grinding workplace harassment that manifests in both obvious and glancing ways.

https://pluralistic.net/2023/01/14/hark-an-oilpatch/#kate-beaton

III. Justice Warriors by Matt Bors

Justice Warriors is what you'd get if you put Judge Dredd in a blender with Transmetropolitan and set it to chunky. The setup: the elites of a wasted, tormented world have retreated into Bubble City, beneath a hermetically sealed zone. Within Bubble City, everything is run according to the priorities of the descendants of the most internet-poisoned freaks of the modern internet, click- and clout-chasing mushminds full of corporate-washed platitudes about self-care, diversity and equity, wrapped around come-ons for sugary drinks and dubious dropshipper crapola. It's a cop buddy-story dreamed up by Very Online, very angry creators who live in a present-day world where reality is consistently stupider than satire.

https://pluralistic.net/2023/05/22/libras-assemble/#the-uz

IV. Roaming by Jillian Tamaki and Mariko Tamaki

The story of three young Canadian women meeting up for a getaway to New York City. Zoe and Dani are high-school best friends who haven't seen each other since they graduated and decamped for universities in different cities. Fiona is Dani's art-school classmate, a glamorous and cantankerous artist with an affected air of sophistication. It's a dizzying, beautifully wrought three-body problem as the three protagonists struggle with resentments and love, sex and insecurity. The relationships between Zoe, Dani and Fiona careen wildly from scene to scene and even panel to panel, propelled by sly graphic cues and fantastically understated dialog.

https://pluralistic.net/2023/09/11/as-canadian-as/#possible-under-the-circumstances

Like I said, this has been a good year in books for me, and it included three books of my own:

I. Red Team Blues (novel, Tor Books US, Head of Zeus UK)

Martin Hench is 67 years old, single, and successful in a career stretching back to the beginnings of Silicon Valley. He lives and roams California in a very comfortable fully-furnished touring bus, The Unsalted Hash, that he bought years ago from a fading rock star. He knows his way around good food and fine drink. He likes intelligent women, and they like him back often enough. Martin is a—contain your excitement—self-employed forensic accountant, a veteran of the long guerilla war between people who want to hide money, and people who want to find it. He knows computer hardware and software alike, including the ins and outs of high-end databases and the kinds of spreadsheets that are designed to conceal rather than reveal. He’s as comfortable with social media as people a quarter his age, and he’s a world-level expert on the kind of international money-laundering and shell-company chicanery used by Fortune 500 companies, mid-divorce billionaires, and international drug gangs alike. He also knows the Valley like the back of his hand, all the secret histories of charismatic company founders and Sand Hill Road VCs. Because he was there at all the beginnings. Now he’s been roped into a job that’s more dangerous than anything he’s ever agreed to before—and it will take every ounce of his skill to get out alive.

https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250865847/red-team-blues

II. The Internet Con: How to Seize the Means of Computation (nonfiction, Verso)

We can – we must – dismantle the tech platforms. We must to seize the means of computation by forcing Silicon Valley to do the thing it fears most: interoperate. Interoperability will tear down the walls between technologies, allowing users to leave platforms, remix their media, and reconfigure their devices without corporate permission. Interoperability is the only route to the rapid and enduring annihilation of the platforms. The Internet Con is the disassembly manual we need to take back our internet.

https://www.versobooks.com/products/3035-the-internet-con

III. The Lost Cause (novel, Tor Books US, Head of Zeus UK)

For young Americans a generation from now, climate change isn't controversial. It's just an overwhelming fact of life. And so are the great efforts to contain and mitigate it. Entire cities are being moved inland from the rising seas. Vast clean-energy projects are springing up everywhere. Disaster relief, the mitigation of floods and superstorms, has become a skill for which tens of millions of people are trained every year. The effort is global. It employs everyone who wants to work. Even when national politics oscillates back to right-wing leaders, the momentum is too great; these vast programs cannot be stopped in their tracks.

But there are still those Americans, mostly elderly, who cling to their red baseball caps, their grievances, their huge vehicles, their anger. To their "alternative" news sources that reassure them that their resentment is right and pure and that "climate change" is just a giant scam. And they're your grandfather, your uncle, your great-aunt. And they're not going anywhere. And they’re armed to the teeth. The Lost Cause asks: What do we do about people who cling to the belief that their own children are the enemy? When, in fact, they're often the elders that we love?

https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250865939/the-lost-cause

I wrote nine books during lockdown, and there's plenty more to come. The next one is The Bezzle, a followup to Red Team Blues, which comes out in February:

https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250865878/thebezzle

While you're waiting for that one, I hope the reviews above will help you connect with some excellent books. If you want more of my reviews, here's my annual roundup from 2022:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/12/01/bookishness/#2022-in-review

Here's my book reviews from 2021:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/12/08/required-ish-reading/#bibliography

And here's my book reviews from 2020:

https://pluralistic.net/2020/12/08/required-reading/#recommended-reading

It's EFF's Power Up Your Donation Week: this week, donations to the Electronic Frontier Foundation are matched 1:1, meaning your money goes twice as far. I've worked with EFF for 22 years now and I have always been - and remain - a major donor, because I've seen firsthand how effective, responsible and brilliant this organization is. Please join me in helping EFF continue its work!

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/12/01/bookmaker/#2023-in-review

[noonajoe]

Marrying best friend (Bokuto Koutarou x Reader)

"In the end, its you"

Pairing: Bokuto x Reader

Word Count: 581

©noonajoe (Published on 24 March 2023 - 11:31 Bangkok Time) this story is not going to be sold, modified, or translated in any manner.

“Marry me, Y/N,” he said

“Huh?” you startled at his proposal, it's a sudden one because they just meet again after 2 years of lost contact. You met him again because of his mother's funeral, comfort him because he desperately called you, need you in his griefing.

“You heard me, let's get married”, he grabbed her hands. Where they are in the middle of eating lunch.

You keep seeing his eyes, trying hard to seek unsureness in Bokuto's eyes. His glance is full of confidence, he never showed this side before, and it almost scared you away, “Bokuto, we just… meet again for 4 months, and my family-” he cuts you off.

“But knowing each other for 10 years, I’m enough playing around”

“Seeing you as manager when Im playing volleyball at 16, studying hard together to get to university at 18, punching your bastard ex-boyfriend at 19, my depressed era dumped by 2 girls at 21, helping me through hell when I’m jobless at 23, we fought because of my issues and we lost contact for 2 years yet I still thinking about you, at 25 my mom passed away you are the only one I want to appear to bury my sadness. Since then you cook and visit me for months, when I turned 26 you supported me to go to international matches. I may have been with other girls but in the end, it’s you. You have always been a home for me. You are the real love, I chose you, my heart chose you, and can't be replaced by anyone else” he confessed.

You tried to release your hand from his grip, “I don't want to break our friendship, Kou… It will be different”

He smiled, and frowned simultaneously, looking down at the dining table, “Y/N. I was thinking the same thing years ago. I'm really sorry but in the end, I felt love, and I can't deny it anymore after 10 years…”

You kinda love him too, you know? But somehow skipping the dating phase, and jumping over to the marriage step is a big deal to be settled, even though you have faith to be partners in the future, “Are you serious about this? Kou, marriage will be more difficult”

“I'm prepared for everything, I will take responsibility to take care of you. I will help you pay your family debts, I will comfort you when your anxiety occurs, and I’m ready to walk to the future. When we get married, I'm willing to go through progress together until you can consider me as a real husband, even if it takes years”

“I know I’m clumsy, I’m selfish sometimes, maybe I’m too dumb compared to other men, easily having a bad mood, but I’m proud when you told me my clumsines salways lightens up your days. I’m willing to learn, and face the future together as long as it’s with you”

You looked at him, willing to say yes but your energy has been taken too much to answer this proposal right now, “I’ll give you my answer tomorrow, is that ok?” you smiled, indicating a positive response to him.

"Take your time, Y/N. I'll wait for your answer tomorrow" he smiled.

Ultimately, he married you with a small party with your friends, only inviting the closest family and his volleyball team members. Every time people congratulate him, he proudly says, "I'm marrying my best friend in the whole wide world"

[warningsine]

The Norwegian Refugee Council recently released a report highlighting the 10 most neglected displacement crises in the world in 2023. Nine of the 10 countries are in Africa – the only non-African country on the list is Honduras in central America.

Neglect, according to the council, is characterised by a lack of media coverage, inadequate humanitarian funding and insufficient international political attention. The report covers those forced to flee their homes.

Burkina Faso tops the 2024 report for a second time in a row. It’s followed by Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Mali and Niger. Rounding off the top 10 are South Sudan, the Central African Republic, Chad and Sudan.

At The Conversation Africa, we’ve been working with academic experts to highlight the severe insecurity, massive displacement and urgent need for international and regional support in these countries. Here are some essential reads we’ve published.

Displacement crisis

The central African region hosts one of the largest communities of internally displaced persons in Africa. The countries in the region include Cameroon, the Central African Republic and the DRC. Long-running conflicts and armed rebellions have led to the region’s instability. The main organisation providing assistance is the UN refugee agency. However, in a pattern seen for at least three years, the agency’s budget for the region remains insufficient. Cristiano d'Orsi highlights the urgent need for a coordinated and sustained international response.

Regional instability

Armed groups like Boko Haram have been operating in the Lake Chad Basin for more than a decade. The region, which includes Niger, Cameroon and Chad, faces severe security challenges and many of the 30 million people living here need humanitarian assistance. More than 11 million have been displaced by conflict and need aid. Modesta Tochukwu Alozie proposes some solutions for a region whose population is expected to double in the next two decades.

Decades of neglect

Thirty years of violence in the DRC have left a trail of death, destruction and displacement. In recent months, however, a rebel insurgence in the eastern region has placed neighbouring Rwanda and Uganda at the centre of country’s conflict. According to Jason Stearns and Joshua Z. Walker, donors and UN peacekeepers are providing humanitarian aid, but doing little to address the emerging conflict dynamics. They explain why resolving the DRC crisis requires less hypocrisy from foreign donors, and an approach that prioritises the lives of civilians.

Military takeover

Niger is one of the poorest countries in the world and depends on foreign assistance. It’s also located in one of the most unstable parts of the world – the Sahel region, which is characterised by terrorism, banditry and trafficking. However, following a military coup in July 2023, the landlocked country of 25 million people lost significant aid contributions. This has since resulted in a deterioration in security, economic development and people’s wellbeing. Olayinka Ajala unpacks the long-ranging implications of the military takeover in Niger.

Escalating conflict

Sudan was on a bumpy transition to democracy after the 2019 uprisings ousted long-time dictator Omar al-Bashir. But this came to a halt in April 2023 with the outbreak of a civil war. Hostilities have since spread beyond the capital Khartoum and revived long-simmering violence in Darfur. Around 25 million people – half of Sudan’s population before the war – are in need of urgent humanitarian assistance. The war is creating a volatile environment beyond Sudan’s borders, as May Darwich explains.

Precarious peace

South Sudan gained independence in 2011 but remains extremely poor and underdeveloped. The country is reliant on oil exports for public revenue. This oil has to pass through Sudan to reach export markets. However, Sudan’s ongoing war poses a serious threat to Juba’s development efforts and an already precarious peace process. John Mukum Mbaku puts these risks into context.

[beiyi-genshin]

Some of my old drawings (10)

Using them as your profile picture or wallpaper is fine, but do not use them in the videos. Thank you!

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2022-11-1

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2022-11-18

"Little fox which weapon do you want? "

2022-11-19

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2022-11-22

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2023-1-16

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2023-1-20

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2023-1-25

Time to try Liyue's firecrackers

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2023-1-28

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2023-2-4

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2023-2-14

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2023-2-16

Yae Publishing House —> Fox café XD

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2023-2-19

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Find me on Twitter/X: 🌸https://twitter.com/Beiyi_

YouTube: 🌸https://youtube.com/@Beiyi_

Bilibili: 🌸https://space.bilibili.com/1065315233

[vinecradle]

into you - oh, baby, look what you started

pairing :: scaramouche x gn!reader

summary :: being a rising solo artist, you've gotten lots of support from fans. but you decided that you needed a very well needed break, what if one day your friends are suspicious and curious since you've mentioned that you have a boyfriend? it is now their mission to find out who your boyfriend is.

genre :: modern setting, artist!au, social media au, established relationship, secret relationship

warnings :: tiny angst, mentions of alcohol, cursing, they/them prns but afab reader

status :: on hold until i finish omg & ditto

official playlist :: is linked here!

notes :: published 12 march 2023, taglist is open! send an ask or comment preferably to be added to my permanent/this taglist only

profiles :: 3lectro + yn | 5wirl + scara

teaser :: is linked here !

ACT I - im so into you, i can barely breathe

01. can i stop?

02. peace and quiet

03. cant be around

04. chocolate hazelnut latte

05. time of my life (✿)

06. finally a meeting

07. love, love, and affection (✿)

08. where were you?

ACT II - a little bit scandalous

09. cant believe this

10. my bestie fr

11. jerald, who the fuck is it

12. mission A starts now (✿)

13. meet me behind the mall

14. stop screaming your lungs out (✿)

15. thank goodness

16. finally

ACT III - but baby, dont let them see it

17. caught in 4k! (✿)

18. wanted to go public

19. refreshed

20. mission B up ahead

21. worth 6 days?

22. we're exposed! (✿)

23. i can be a better boyfriend than him.

24. tell me what you came here for (✿)

ACT IIII - a little less conversation

25. got an earful

26. the support of teyvat en! (✿)

27. another day, another date

28. stop being so lovey-dovey (✿)

29. disfuckingpatch

30. what the fuck?

31. deserved (✿)

32. obvious hints

ACT V - cause im so into you, into you, into you

33. couple of the damn industry

34. collab with the bf! (✿)

35. the awards show

-> bonus! my first and last (✿)

[inevitably-johnlocked]

TOP 35 BOOKMARKS of 2023

See also:

Top 20 Bookmarks of 2018

Top 25 Bookmarks of 2019

Top 30 Bookmarks of 2020

Top 25 Bookmarks of 2021

Top 20 Bookmarks of 2022

Happy New Year’s Eve everyone! It’s time for my roundup of fics that I’ve read over the past year! 

I haven’t read as many fics as I wish I did this year, mainly due to me slowly getting back into new routines that afford me the time TO do my reading (and because I read more longer Johnlock fics too)! Plus, a lot of my bookmarks this year were for other fandoms when I got the urge to enter into those worlds again. Since I don’t have a lot of Johnlock bookmarks, I’m going to post all of the Johnlock fics I’ve read this year, and then give you guys a glimpse into the other fandoms I enjoyed and bookmarked as well! There are 3 additional fandoms for y'all to enjoy!

I got really into Loki Season 2 and needed more, so most of my bookmarks this year were for Loki, and I had to limit how many fics I suggested here mostly to pad out the rest of this list to give us a nice number! I've chosen mostly the fics I've re-read a LOT, but other than that, this list is pretty much all the fics I’ve bookmarked this year from Sherlock, Good Omens, Moon Knight, and Loki!

I hope you guys enjoy the list and will give all of them a chance! I am certain y'all will love them as much as I do! I'll get back to requested lists next week :) Have a wonderful new year, and here's to another year of fantastic reads!

ALL JOHNLOCK BOOKMARKS [11]

Bond, Sherlock Bond! by macgyvershe (T, 631 w., 1 Ch. || Fluff, Kissing, Couch Cuddles, Sexy Talk with No Explicit Sex, Bond Night, Established Relationship) – John is doing a Bond-a-thon. Sherlock is ready for a night of movies and munchies. Washed down with Devil Mountain coffee. Eventually everything comes together in the best of ways.

changing tides by simplyclockwork (M, 5,983 w., 1 Ch. || Substance Use, Drug Relapse, High Sherlock, Sherlock Falls Down Stairs / Injury, Caring John, Drugs, Oblivious John, Hurt/Comfort, Angst With Happy Ending, Acceptance, Pre-Relationship, Addiction, Starting Over, Self-Destructive Behaviour, Drugged Hallucinations, Forehead Touching, Sherlock POV) – If Sherlock were to stop to think about it, he might wonder if he’s simply lonely. He doesn’t stop to think about it.

The Skin Over My Heart by standbygo (E, 8,849 w., 1 Ch. || Post-Hiatus, Fake Relationship, Case Fic, Dog Tags, Military, Homophobia, Gay Bashing, POV First Person Sherlock, Friends to Lovers, First Kiss / Time, Declarations of Love, Undercover, Haircuts, Flashbacks, Touching, Pining Sherlock, Hospitalization, Metaphors, Introspection, Hand Jobs, On the Couch, John’s Past, Angst with Happy Ending, Fic For Me) – Sherlock and John are still trying to adjust to Sherlock's return from his hiatus when John's friend Bill Murray brings them a case. Someone is targeting the LGBTQA+ members of Bill's unit. John and Sherlock go undercover at the unit, but when they end up having to flirt to flush out the suspect, Sherlock realizes he's in over his head.

A Comprehensive Taxonomy of Tobacco-Ash by Silvergirl (E, 11,475 w., 2 Ch. || No TRF AU || Cranky Sherlock, Alternating POVs, Self-Esteem Issues, Jealous John, Pining John, Confessions, First Kiss, Frottage, Bed Sharing, Sensuality, Cuddling, Touching) – A handsome academic approaches Sherlock about publishing his magnum opus on tobacco-ash in a prestigious scientific journal. Sherlock is quite flattered and flustered, and John’s nose is out of joint.In this little AU there is no Fall and no Mary. Instead, there is humor and smut. Truly a disproportionate amount of smut.

Both Sides Now by Silvergirl (M, 14,724 w., 5 Ch. || Post-TEH / Reunion Fix-It, Bed Sharing, First Kiss / Time, Undercover John, Couple for a Case, Assassin Mary, Big Brother Mycroft, Norfolk Coast, Angry John, First Kiss, Worried Sherlock, Pining Sherlock, Hand Holding, Bed Sharing, Alternating POV, Infidelity, Meddling Mycroft, Emotional Love Making, Matchmaker Mycroft) – Sherlock, undercover on the Norfolk coast, texts that he needs help; John is still seething after Sherlock’s gambit in the train car, and he refuses. When Sherlock goes missing, Mycroft sends John in to pose as Sherlock’s bit on the side.

Winter’s Storm by LoloLolly (M, 51,812 w., 11 Ch. || Canon Compliant Through TFP/S4 Is Canon, Alternating POV,  Established / New Relationship, Parentlock with Rosie, Explicit Torture, Mentions of Sherlock’s PTSD, Mentions of Human Trafficking, References to Child Abuse, Violence, Kidnapping/Torture, Captivity, Angst with Happy Ending, Fluff, Case Fic, BAMF / Soldier John, Sherlock Whump, Mycroft and John Work Together, Marriage Proposal, Autistic Sherlock, Lestrade Finds Out, Polyglot Sherlock, Aftermath of Serbia) – Sherlock had buried the past. Shut Serbia away in the attic of his mind palace. Muddy footprints at a heinous crime scene, however, have led him right back to old enemies. And right back to captivity. For God’s sake, Mycroft. Part 2 of the Earthly Pomp (Is But a Dream) series [formerly "Genius is a Star..."]

Spare Parts by Raina_at (E, 63,497 w., 10 Ch. || 24th Century / Futurism AU || Post TRF, Pre-TRF Relationship, Case Fic, Mutual Pining, Estrangement, Reconciliation, Science Fiction, Reunion, Nightmares, Angry John, Cybernetic John, Emotional Discussions / Heart to Heart, POV John, Scars, Past Drug Use, Forehead Touching, Emotional Lovemaking, Kissing, Apologies, Kidnapping, Rescue Mission, BAMF John, Bed Sharing, Top Sherlock) – Two years ago, Sherlock Holmes jumped off the roof of New London Hospital. Two months ago, he walked into John's clinic as if no time had passed at all. John hasn't seen him since. But then Sherlock knocks on John's door with a case he can't say no to, and while figuring out why the biggest manufacturer or synthetic limbs in the System is going after veterans, they also need to find out whether there's a way to fix what's broken between them. Part 1 of Realigning Gravity

Swallow the Night by ArwaMachine (E, 87,873 w., 15 Ch. || TSo3/Stag Night Fix It, TAB/S4 Divergence, Toplock, Mutual Pining, PWP, Drunk / Public Sex, Anal Fingering/Sex, Alcohol-Induced Amnesia, Everyone Knows Except Them, Emotional Love Confession, Demisexual Sherlock, Internalized Homophobia [John], Parentlock with Rosie, First Kiss, Drug Relapse, Infidelity, Texting, Masturbation, Oblivious John, Emotional Love Making, Angst with Happy Ending, Dreams and Nightmares) – “Do you know how long,” John panted, his cheek scraping against the wall, looking back at Sherlock through half-closed eyes, “I’ve wanted this?” Sherlock pressed himself against John’s back, biting at John’s ear. “Not nearly as long as I have,” he whispered.

Fade To Black by twistedthicket1 (M, 93,389 w., 29 Ch. || Dissociative Personality Disorder / DID, Dissociation, Action, Romance, Violence, Implied Rape/Non-Con, BAMF John, Fluff and Angst, Baskerville, Human Experimentation, PTSD, Implied Self Harm, Trauma Amnesia, Past Child Sexual Abuse, Protective Sherlock, Smoking, Meddling Mycroft, Past Victor/Sherlock, Gay Sherlock, Sherlock’s Past, First Kiss/Time, Happy Ending) – John Watson believes one day he'll just fade. That he'll drown in the black spaces of his mind, and that one day he will no longer exist. It's always been like this, the dark spots marking out moments in his life he can't remember. Where for just a moment he's someone else. Having a Dissociative identity disorder, he can't even be entirely sure he's really who he says he is. Then he meets Sherlock Holmes. A brilliant detective who when he looks at you can read your entire life story. John is immediately fascinated and afraid, half-wondering if maybe Sherlock can see the other personalities in him and half terrified of the thought of him finding out. Becoming his flatmate seems at once to be a wonderful and horrible idea. Yet as John's Blackouts become more and more severe and his other personalities begin to truly awaken and show themselves with Sherlock's help, the two soon discover that sometimes even the kindest person can harbour a demon best left untouched inside of them. Because not all of John's other personalities play nicely and some may be hiding secrets best left undisturbed...

Drawn to Stars by Silvergirl (E, 109,272 w., 60 Ch. || S4 Compliant to TLD / TFP Doesn’t Exist, Sherlock’s Italian Adventure, Sherlock/OC and Johnlock, Jealous John, Mutual Pining, Misunderstandings, First Kiss/Time, Idiots in Love, 3 Part Story, Slow Burn, Inexperienced Sherlock, Bottom Sherlock, Introspection, Multiple Alternating First and Third Person POV, Separation and Reconciliation, Emotional Love Making, Love Confessions via Letters, Angst with Happy Ending) – After the Culverton Smith case Sherlock is clean, working, and looking for a romantic partner—since John has told him that’s what he needs. Shame John didn’t mention he was interested in that role himself, before Sherlock went off to Rome with a gorgeous Italian copper to try to fall in love and become a complete human being.  Part 1 of the Drawn to Stars series

Out There by DiscordantWords (T, 131,695 w., 10 Ch. || X-Files Fusion || Past Soldier John, Panic Attacks, POV Alternating Present Tense, Anxious John, Canon Adjacent, Deductions, Obsessive Sherlock,, Travelling, Sherlock’s Family, Jealous Sherlock, Mind Palace John, Awkward Flirting, Batting Cage, Kidnapped/Abducted John, Semi-Reverse Reichenbach, Worried/Anxious Sherlock, Hospital, Slow Burn, UST, Case Fic, Government Conspiracy, Aliens, UFOs, Mutants, Mutual Pining, First Kiss, Coma John, Forehead Touching, Hand Holding, Drinking/Bars, Past Jolto) – FBI Special Agent John Watson, medical doctor and army veteran, is assigned to assist eccentric genius Sherlock Holmes with paranormal investigations on the X-Files project.

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ALL GOOD OMENS BOOKMARKS [9]

Wherever We Go by leaveanote (G, 1,719 w., 1 Ch. || Fluff, Romance, First Kiss, Hurt Crowley, Aziraphale Loves Crowley, Love Confessions, Tooth-Rotting Fluff) – It’s been one week since the world didn’t end, and Crowley is going out of his mind. He needs to just tell Aziraphale how he feels, but when something's gone unspoken for this long, no words feel good enough. Eventually, he can't take it anymore, and asks Aziraphale to walk with him in St. James Park. Absolute ineffable fluff.

Exposed by LollipopCop (E, 8,867 w., 2 Ch. || Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Idiots in Love, First Kiss, First Time, Making Out, Wings, Love Confessions, Virgin Crowley, Angst with Happy Ending) – In which Gabriel can feel how much Aziraphale loves Crowley, and outs him.

equinox by leaveanote (E, 8,993 w., 1 Ch. || South Downs Cottage, Love Confessions, Mutual Pining, First Time, Romance, 6000 Years of Pining, Soft Idiots, Love, Anxious Crowley, Emotional Lovemaking) – Here in the South Downs cottage, Crowley has more than he ever thought he would: the two of them, safe, and he gets to live alongside Aziraphale every day. He still can't bring himself to say it, though, still finds himself wanting, doesn't want to drag the angel down with the mess of his love, doesn't want to ruin what they have. Aziraphale, however, is getting tired of Crowley staring longingly off into the night sky, and confronts him. There is more of a balance here than Crowley thought.

Archangel of Healing by Nnm (T, 9,317 w., 1 Ch. || Post-S1, Crowley Was Raphael, Miscommunication / Fight, Physical Intimacy, Aziraphale POV, Pining Aziraphale, Idiots In Love) – Aziraphale susses out Crowley's pre-Fall identity, as the Archangel Raphael. With this, he must rethink everything he thought he knew about the last six thousand years, about his own identity and his friend's, and even the Ineffable Plan. There is a fight, expressions of fear and hurt, reconciliation, yearning and confusion, and the sorts of questions that by all rights should cause an angel to Fall. Also, at one point, Crowley admits he once lied about breeding rats for demonic ends. Part 1 of The Healer and the Lover

wherever you are, i'll come to you by mutalune (T, 11,375 w., 6 Ch. || Post-Apocalypse, Hurt/Comfort, Fallen Angel Aziraphale, Aziraphale Loves Crowley, Crowley Tries to Help, Slight Angst, Petty Demonic Aziraphale) – “Now that I’m no longer beholden to a rather arbitrary moral code, I have to ask: Do you pay taxes? Actually, more importantly, do you think I can stop paying taxes now? That seems like a sufficiently demonic thing to do. Refusing to do my civic duty and whatnot. Quite devious, I’d argue.” This was, in hindsight, not the most sensitive way of breaking the news.

His Lips Sealed by LollipopCop (E, 11,824 w. 2 Ch. || Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Repression, Drunken Love Confession, First Kiss/Time, Making Out, Love Letters, Oblivious Crowley, Virgin Crowley, Upset Crowley, Angst With Happy Ending) – Aziraphale knew Crowley was desperately in love with him; he heard it straight from the source one incredibly drunken night. He was just the only one who remembered, and was too afraid to do anything about it.

You Never Had A Heart by HotCrossPigeon (T, 12,983 w., 3 Ch. || Hurt Aziraphale, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Blood/Injury, Scared/Panicking Crowley, Idiots in Love, Caring Crowley, Aziraphale Whump, Demonic Traps, BAMF Aziraphale, Hugs, Soft Crowley, Discorporation, Caring/Protective Crowley, Humour, Angst with Happy Ending, Crowley Rescues Aziraphale, Bad Acting, Knife Wounds, Traumatized Crowley, First Kiss, Protective Aziraphale, Hurt Crowley) – Aziraphale finds himself unwittingly ensnared in a demonic trap. Unfortunately for a panicking Crowley, there’s only one way to get the angel out of it. Part 6 of Hurt!Aziraphale Stories

Witness the Fall by Waifine (G, 14,512 w.., 5 Ch. || Pre-Fall, The Fall, Post-Fall, Crowley Was Raphael, Hurt/Comfort, Angel Crowley, Angst with Happy Ending, Crowley's Memories, Aziraphale POV, Not-Nice Archangels, Feathers, Soulmates, Wings) – Crowley never talked about his time as an angel. Aziraphale never asked. But when Hell sends Crowley a package containing his most painful memories, it is Aziraphale who is plunged into the nightmare history of when his beloved friend, the angel who had once been Crowley, was hurled from the Heavens into the bowels of Hell.

lit in the darkness by ToEdenandBackAgain (M, 40,575 w., 14 Ch. || Slow Burn, 6000 Years of Pining, Bed Sharing, Friends to Lovers, Historical, Passage of Time) – Aziraphale returns to Crowley's flat for the night after Armageddon. After all, it's hardly the first time they've shared sleeping arrangements. Or: Times throughout history Crowley and Aziraphale have shared a bed.

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ALL MOON KNIGHT BOOKMARKS [2]

What it Feels Like by DriftingPieces (NR [T], 5,154 w., 1 Ch. || MOON KNIGHT [2022] || Layla POV, Layla / Steven / Jake / Marc, Autistic System, References to Depression, Mental Health Issues, Fluff, Safe Spaces, Protective Layla, Introspection, Relationship Reflection, Identity Issues) – No one said it would be easy to be in a relationship with Marc/Jake/Steven. Does Layla have regrets? How does she cope when her relationships struggle with their mental health?

For Friendship is the True Adventure! by Rheanna (G, 5,199 w., 1 Ch. || MOON KNIGHT [2022] || Crack Treated Seriously, Multiple Personalities / DID, Co-Fronting, Past Child Abuse, Fluff and Angst, Protective Steven, Marc’s Self-Esteem, Dissociation, Marc POV) – In which Marc, Steven and Layla watch Tomb Buster.

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FAVE LOKIUS BOOKMARKS [13]

all to myself by markofalover (G, 1,577 w., 1 Ch. || LOKI SERIES || Lokius, S02E03 Rewrite, Fake Relationship, Undercover as a Couple, Pining, Flirting) – “Oh, come on, Mobius,” Loki says, finally looking over, and oh, okay, they’re really close. “Have some fun.” “This is fun to you?”

out of focus, eye to eye by markofalover (G, 2,129 w., 1 Ch. || LOKI SERIES || Lokius, S02E05 Alternate Events, Pining Loki, Loki POV, Flirting, Misunderstandings, Crush at First Sight, Insecure Loki, Oh-Oh! Moment) – “You know…are you still in the market?” Loki raises his eyebrows. “Oh, for the, uh,” he sets his hands out in a wild gesture that he hopes somehow makes the mark, because he doesn’t know what an ATV even is— “Oh, no, no,” Mobius says. He’s smiling, now, for some reason Loki can’t quite understand, eyes sparkling in the sun, soft color in his cheeks. “I mean—sorry, I haven’t done this in a while. That was a bad line.”

Are We Dating? by AindyGhosh (G, 2,288 w., 1 Ch. || LOKI SERIES || Lokius, S02E05 Rewrite, Flirty Mobius, Flustered Loki, Fluff) – Now that the thought had taken root in Don’s mind, it refused to let go, clinging on to him like a limpet. As it was, Don was infamous in his friends’ circles for his lack of a brain-to-mouth filter. Therefore, it didn’t come as a surprise to him when he just gave in, and verbalised the one doubt that had been making rounds in his head since the moment he had talked to Loki. “Are we dating?” It was only logical to deduce that. And Don couldn’t believe this God-like person had been interested in him enough to agree to date him.

Exsanguination by Beb (T, 3,061 w., 1 Ch. || LOKI SERIES || Protective Loki, Mobius Whump, Hospitals, Worried Loki, Mobius Needs A Hug, Blood and Injury, Angst, Hurt/Comfort) – As a trained agent, Mobius really believed his presence was required in every mission, no matter how risky. As a worried friend and lover, Loki really believed this was absolutely, undoubtedly the last straw. He wasn't about to do nothing and let Mobius carelessly throw himself in danger anymore. Not after the last incident nearly cost Mobius his life.

how's that for glorious purpose? by unintentionallyangsty (T, 3,081 w., 1 Ch. || LOKI SERIES || Lokius, Post-S2, S02E06 Fix It, Romance & Drama, Soulmates, Friends to Lovers, Love Confessions, Fluff and Angst, Crying, Reunion, Touch Starvation, Soft Mobius, Hugs, Both Need a Hug, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Romantic Fluff, Hopeful / Ambiguous / Open Ending, Anxiety, Made Me Cry, Forehead Kisses, Soft Loki, Love Confessions, Friendship/Love) – A Loki is left alone without his Mobius. Mobius finds himself completely alone and purposeless without his Loki. Realistically, how long can it last? (Or; directly after Sylvie reveals the reality of Mobius' previous life on the timeline to him, Loki finds a way to return).

The Green Means I Love You by VeggieHarumaki (T, 3,576 w. 1 Ch. || LOKI SERIES || Soul Mates AU || Colourblindness, Pining, Caring Mobius, First Kiss, Pining Mobius, POV Mobius, Forehead Touching, Angst with Happy Ending) – Green. It’s the first color Mobius sees. His world fills with new colors, sensory levels overwhelmed as his gaze scatters across the courtroom. Browns, yellows, colors he’d only heard of before he finally sees with his own eyes. But the green. The cold, emerald green. L1130 stares back at Mobius, eyes full of suspicion, and Mobius can’t help but let his breath hitch. Oh no. Mobius’ heart sinks as fast as it had risen. This variant, L1130, Loki, is his soulmate. But Mobius had read Loki’s files one too many times to forget. Mobius is not Loki’s. 

So, Stay by Marauderess5 (G, 4,299 w., 1 Ch. || LOKI SERIES || Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Mission Gone Wrong, Loki Whump, Caretaker Mobius, Protective Mobius, Protective Loki, Touching, Soft Mobius, Forehead Touching, Love Confessions, Idiots in Love, Fluffy Angst) – Mission-gone-wrong. Loki has to make a sacrifice to protect Mobius. Will he do it? Spoiler alert, of course he will, they’re in love. Part 2 of Lokius Whump, my Beloved

more than words by unintentionallyangsty (T, 4,716 w., 1 Ch. || LOKI SERIES || Lokius, Post S2, Slow Romance, Awkward Romance, First Dates, Awkward Flirting, Attachment Issues, Abandonment Issues, Touch-Starvation, Slow Dancing, Shyness, Insecure Loki, Anxiety Attacks, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Domestic Fluff, Romantic Fluff, Fluffy Angst, Hugs, Getting Together, Future Fic) – After everything - in spite of everything-, there are only a few words that have truly gone unspoken between Loki and Mobius. And, in spite of Loki's famed "silver tongue", none of these words ever seem to come easily. Luckily, Mobius is patient. They have all the time in the world, after all. 

The Best Gift of All by frommyhearttoyours (T, 5,992 w., 1 Ch. || LOKI SERIES || Parent / Teacher Modern AU || Lokius, Mobius POV, Single Dad Mobius, Teacher Loki, Single Parents, Love Confessions, Insecure Mobius, Frustrated Mobius, Mutual Pining, Sweet Fluff, Forehead Touching, Oh-Oh! Moment) – Mr. Laufeyson is the most popular teacher at Lakewood Elementary School, where Mobius's sons are students. He's not just popular among the children, though. He's an even bigger hit among the parents...especially the single ones on the hunt for a Mr. Right. Mobius isn't ashamed to admit he counts himself among the man's many, many admirers, but he also has no delusions that he could ever win the beautiful and intelligent Mr. Laufeyson's interest and attention. Because that would be impossible... right?

Branches by Ailendolin (T, 6,322 w., 6 Ch. || LOKI SERIES || Post-S1, Lokius, Pining Loki, Five and One, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Worried/Panicking Loki, Protective Mobius, Made Me Cry, Angst, Loki Needs a Hug, Multiverse) – 5 times Loki searched the Multiverse for his Mobius, and 1 time Mobius found him.

Magic Like You by Anonymous (NR [M], 9,714 w., 5 Ch. || LOKI SERIES || Post-S2, Light Angst, Soft, Friends to Lovers, Jotunn Loki, Pining Loki, Heavy Pining, Bed Sharing, Jealous Loki, POV Loki, Living Together, First Kiss/Time) – Loki and Mobius are trying to carve out a new life for themselves after all the chaos and hurt and destruction that was caused by the TVA. This story explores Loki's new life and his relationship to Mobius through magic. (With lots of stupid fun and soft moments along the way, because with these two, it's inevitable.)

we can stay here (& laugh away the fear) by unintentionallyangsty (T, 11,100 w., 1 Ch. || LOKI SERIES || Lokius, Canon Divergence, TVA Shenanigans, Attention Seeking Behaviour, Praise Kink, Touch Starvation, Pet Names, Angsty Fluff, Romantic Fluff, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Shyness, Awkward Flirting, Crying, Misunderstandings, Cuddling/Snuggling, Blushing, Depression Mention) – Loki is bad with people and relationships, and tends to assume the worst of every intention and interaction because it's easier in the long-run. Mobius is good with Loki. (Or, two times Loki is spooked off by Mobius' unexpected gentleness and familiarity, and one (1) time the opposite is true).

like a flood spills away as a world stains by RunnyYolk (T, 34,055 w., 4 Ch. || LOKI SERIES || S0103 Divergence, Alternating POV, Developing Friendship, Developing Relationship, Mutual Pining, Denial of Feelings, Feelings Realization, Trust Issues, Angst, Introspection, Slow Burn, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Existential Angst, Flashbacks, Recovered Memories, Psychological Torture/Abuse, Touch-Starvation, Affection, Tenderness, Hand Holding, Emotional Friendship, Hair Pulling, Touching, Softness) – Loki groans and his elbows slide forward as he slumps over the side of the desk. "Do not tell me you left all the signature fields blank again." "It makes it easier when I check." "It adds a ridiculous amount of time! Do you actually enjoy this part, is that it? Are you a masochist?" Mobius smirks, shaking his head, and stands up. "Just go to bed, scamp." Part 3 of where the edge began