#relationship: his bride to be

[seefasterdraws]

captain and the girlssss

[just-null]

YO, SUPER LATE SUPER LONG SUPER MESSY OCTOBER POST THAT I JUST SHOVED EVERYTHING INTO BC I DIDN'T WANT TO DO MULTIPLE. FUCK IT.

I forgot halfway that these were supposed to be costumes and not mini aus... SO REMEMBER IN MY PLACE, EVERYTHING IS HYPOTHETICAL. also. some have a bit of yandere elements to them bc its SO FITTING FOR NORITOSHI.

Happy late October, everyone. it's winter now. Let's get it, baby.

[Long rambles and doodles under the cut!]

Vampire!

I kept asking myself, "How sexy is too sexy.." and "How the fuck does a sexy vampire even look like without it being a shirtless guy w fangs or Edward Cullen....." I think I figured it out

Sure, sure, vampires are superhumans with sun allergies that can drink blood really hotly. They can also easily overpower you to feast and blah blah blah, but what if said vampire (Noritoshi) was too weak to do any of that? Not literally, but he craves your say. He wants not only your blood but your affection. He wants to get praised as he drinks you in. Are you comfortable? How much will you allow him to take? Do you want to get him back in return? Guidance with this makes him feel more at ease. It's still Noritoshi at the end of the day. He's going to find a way to be a little awkward about you because of his crush. He refuses to drink from anyone other than you, even if it causes his death. Therefore, he has to keep you healthy! For the rest of your lives..! Besides, he can't really go outside or else he'd.. y'know. So if you think about it, this is a very beneficial relationship for both of you!!

The only downside is that you're losing blood on the regular, and for some reason, more people are moving away... Probably nothing, right? Noritoshi is always there to keep you company and help you recover anyways.

Witch!

my attempts also bled into the witch design.... you got greedy with requesting two in one ask, but I'll spoil you this time bc I also wanted to see Noritoshi as a (sexy) vampire and witch. heh. AND I DIDNT REALIZE HED BE SO CUTE AS A WITCH..... WHAT THE FUCK?? rip momo, fight for your title of cute witch...

Noritoshi strikes me as one of those witches who'd rather be left to their own devices because they're running some important magic whatever in the background. though, he'll take some breaks and indulge you if you insist on having him around. Insist meaning you pass by and strike conversation, leaving him to neglect anything and everything to prioritize his time with you. He doesn't want to use magic on you unless it's beneficial for either you or both. Noritoshi likes a natural progression with you that he knows for a fact is true and not some product of some spell. Though it doesn't mean he wouldn't use charms and such to get you to interact with him more often to speed up the process!

Can't sleep? He has a remedy perfect for that! Bad luck? Oh no, take a charm. Nerves? A potion he perfected will help you ease your jitters. Annoying peers? With a snap of Noritoshi's fingers, they're gone! Just don't ask what happened. Enjoy yourself instead and come to him with any new issue. He's quick to resolve it.

Definitely has some sort of doll that looks suspiciously like you.. Noritoshi would probably talk to it and practice one liners that give you the strongest sense of nostalgia once he uses them. He's simultaneously giddy that the charm he put in the doll works but also a little annoyed that his hard work isn't surprising you, but leaving you with deja vu.

Idol!

i was crying the entire time bc what does an idol look like.... noritoshi is handsome enough to be an idol without actually being an idol... now i can confirm that idols are very well dressed though. thumbs up 100% but i had some thoughts...

[Idol]

Noritoshi would be the type to cherish his fans, but hold clear favoritism over you. he'd be those idols that look cold, but they talk, and they sound smug in a charming way. i don't know much about idols, but i know he'd be so fucking good.... he'd be the type of guy to sing to you amongst the hundreds in the crowd.... ahhh the interviews w these famous aus. they're just talking and acting like themselves. can you imagine Noritoshi getting asked the question if he has a lover or not? he can lie, im sure you're alright with that, but he doesn't want to!! he does have someone!!! someone he loves more than all his fans love for him combined!!! he just can't say it for the sake of your privacy and his career. so Noritoshi does what any charming guy who's good with their words does. he deflects the question. answering the question, but not really, that'd be something he's known for. fans online are split on why Noritoshi does this. some think he's trying to keep that side of his life private, others think he's trying to mess around, and others think he's hiding a secret lover!!! though the last one is usually seen as the outlandish one, sometimes it makes Noritoshi's heart drop bc they get some things right. "Having a lover is a complicated question hidden behind a simple disguise. If I had to answer, I'd say my lovers are my audience. they make sure i'm well cared for, some more than others." AND HIS FUCKING LITTLE SMIRK I CANT COUGHS UP BLOOD. IM A THEORIST TOO. SECRET LOVER. 🫵🫵🫵🫵🫵

ON THE FLIP SIDE....

[Not an Idol]

An amusing thought where Noritoshi goes out in his casual clothes, and he's mistaken for an idol. No one knows who he is, but he just looks like he'd be one. bro's just trying to buy groceries, and now he has a fan group asking him to take pictures with them.. He'd tell them that he's just a guy, not an idol, but the group would still want a picture with him. it'd be a waste to pass by someone who's so naturally gorgeous, so with a sigh of defeat, he relents. It's just a photo, right? No harm done. Noritoshi'd go home and feel overwhelmed/embarrassed by the whole ordeal. later, he gets a call from someone in the kyoto group or you to inform him how he's all over social media, known as that handsome guy in the supermarket. HED BE COMPLETELY UNREACHABLE TO MEDIA OUTLETS BC NORITOSHI IS THAT GUY WHO DOESNT HAVE SOCIAL MEDIA.... he'd have to make one to make sure no one pretends to be him online. "Hello, I don't use social media, but I've been informed I've been getting attention online. To prevent anyone from being fooled by an impersonator, this is my official and only account. thank you." P.R. STATEMENT WRITING ASS.. his single post gets flooded with likes, comments, and DMs. it almost blows up his phone..... he was just buying bread, dude...... people try to dig up and find him through the other Kyoto group's social media.

[bonus] my second in command requested to put him in a fem idol outfit bc he thought it was funny. after frothing at the mouth and coughing out blood, I complied.

Doctor!

THIS IS SUCH A STRAIGHT FORWARD ASK BUT IT HAS SO MANY IMPLICATIONS. MY BELOVED CULT MEMBER.. THOSE EMOJIS GIVE ME A DIFFERENT IMPRESSION BUT IM NOT SURE.

Noritoshi as a doctor...... apple sales would plummet. his little clinic's business would skyrocket. sick cases would peak in his area. getting your heart checked by his stethoscope would be so fucking embarrassing bc all he'd hear is THUMPTHUMPTHUMPTHUMP

LIKE IMAGINE IF THAT WAS YOUR DOCTOR? BRO.

COUGH COUGH HACK WHEEZE COUGH COUGH.

Noritoshi would probably own a small clinic that he wants to expand. That or he opened one after working for a hospital for a while. He's a great doctor who's most likely respected but a pain in the ass to work with. Among patients, he's gotten the hot doctor reputation. Most want to be treated by him, but he's so professional, any chance of trying to flirt goes down the drain. Yeah, he puts his hair up to avoid it in his face even though his eyes are closed classic lab safety procedures. He seems like the type to have a soothing but authoritative voice during examination, so he gets his message across. it's a bit difficult when dealing with patients for Noritoshi. If he sees them too often, he firstly scolds you for not taking care of yourself, then feels guilty for not giving you the proper care. Keep yourself safe and healthy, or else Noritoshi will clearly :( Putting him in a yandere setting would be dangerous. He'd have a lot of control over you, considering he can prescribe medication, shots, visits, and other things.... he'd have a ball.... nothing that would cause you any harm, of course. he's only looking out for you and doing what's best for you..!

Pirate!

my second in command wanted a pirate. pirates are so fucking cool and i know damn well if this guy were a pirate he'd have a bunch of battle scars under that fancy coat.

Noritoshi as a pirate would be more than a little odd, but also fitting. He looks like the type of guy who'd be well put together, yet he's willing to get his hands dirty. Like the guy who got into the pirate life because of some personal issue that couldn't be solved fast enough through conventional means. Even as a pirate, i imagine he holds everyone to high standards. They're still pirates though.. so his expected standards aren't even that high. He has more freedom here, so even he himself lets loose once or twice. Especially with you. He's even able to get away with more violent actions for you, the seas are unpredictable, after all. While taking some treasure, Noritoshi'd toss you a gem or golden coin, just so you can say you were the first to claim it. Just so he can see that happy glint in your eyes when getting your hands on treasure. God forbid anyone try to get their hands on your hard earned goods. They'd be met with a bullet to the foot or a sword at their neck. Everyone and their mother knows how you're his favorite, but Noritoshi downplays it. Its not a crime to help out someone from his crew is it? Not in the seven seas. He leans more into his cold ruthless killer side here. He has goals and people to help keep in line whether hes captain or not. Yet when around you, he's almost adorable in how he shows you a pearl so entrancing that it reminded him of you.

Corpse Bride!

my submission to my Noritoshi Halloween costume closet.. CORPSE BRIDE, THIS MOVIE FUCKS. esp w the yandere elements.

Noritoshi 100% made you recite the wedding vows to him before accepting the ring. If you fumbled up, he'd correct you with SO much attitude and expect you to start from the top until you got it perfectly.

Hypothetically, in the chalice scene towards the end..

Noritoshi is the type to never be fully relaxed unless he knows for sure you'll be eternally his. In this scenario, YOU proposed to HIM but have to die to continue being together. Not only that, but someone in the living world is also after your heart. Someone who bleeds. Someone who's the obvious choice. Someone who can give you the life that you deserve. Someone who will succeed in their pursuits if you. remain. alive. Noritoshi's life was cut short, yet he still managed to lose so much and be abandoned a considerable amount of times. When he meets you and finds out about the possibility of having to go through that again even in death, it finally clicks in his rotting mind. He realizes he's been doing something wrong to keep constantly failing. Noritoshi revises his methods to a more.. selfish course. Why should he care about anyone else's wants or how his actions hurt them? You were the only one who made him truly fulfilled, to make him feel alive. The only one who deserves anything and everything good that comes from this world. Destiny is never done toying with him when he realizes your marriage is invalid because of your pulse and his lack thereof no matter how hard he'd try, but the opportunity arises. of course, he's ecstatic to give you an afterlife worth much more than what a silly beating heart can achieve. "All people die eventually. If you miss your living family or friends, all it takes is patience, darling. I'll wait by your side in the meantime." He weighs the pros and cons of everything, but when it comes to swaying manipulating your thoughts he only highlights the ones that'll get you on his side. in this case, the pros of dying to be with him! Honestly, the answer was so obvious that Noritoshi didn't know why he was stressing about it before. It hurts him to see you in any type of pain, but he reassures both himself and you that it'll only be for a moment. Afterward, he'll have the rest of your afterlives to make it up to you!! What happened to Till Death Do Us Part? Noritoshi thinks it's insulting that something as shallow as that could be so widely accepted. If your love were true, it wouldn't stop just because the world decided to take them away. "Till death do us part? Darling, don't be silly. 'Not even death will do us part' feels much better, doesn't it?" 

[miscellaneousrenaissant]

Ah, The Ancient Magus' Bride of it all...

[ladyloveandjustice]

My Favorite Continuing Manga I Read in 2023

I went into the brand new manga I read in this post, but here's an update on some great continuing series!

Shout out to She Loves to Cook and She Loves to Eat for having phenomenal storyline about find the courage to cut toxic family members off, which is pretty rare to see (in manga especially)! The story explores how your family can impose a relationship with food that harms you in many different ways, and how finding acceptance of your food habits helps you heal. It also continues to be a lovely exploration of queer adults finding themselves that makes the point that your experiences don't have to fit in a box.  And I appreciate that they included a character who doesn't like eating that much for me to relate to! See my first review here, 

Now for a quick word about the other great continuing manga I read:

- I Want to be a Wall really upped it's game and included a nuanced discussion about asexuality that I loved seeing. See first review here.

- Yuri is My Job is still the best lesbian drama manga around and hits hard. See previous discussion here,

- A Man and His Cat is still the sweetest and Yona of the Dawn is as action packed and intriguing as ever...I feel a climax slowly coming!

- A Bride’s Story is still wonderfully done historical fiction with lush art while How Do We Relationship continues to develop its web of queer relationships nicely.

- Witch Hat Atelier is still a wondrous story of magic, creativity, accessibility, and struggling under unfair systems, all told in a fascinating fantasy setting with loveable, complex characters and incredible art.

A lot of manga I like concluded this year too, so let's take a slightly longer look at the conclusions!

Dungeon Meshi- The conclusion to one of my favorite fantasy manga ever was fittingly bombastically weird and fully satisfying. It filled you up like good food should. Live well instead of being consumed by fear of death and loss. Eat well instead of working yourself to the bone and neglecting your needs. Follow your own path, but cherish your connections and get together for a good meal. This series and its intricate world and wonderful characters will stay with me for a long time.

Catch These Hands- See my first review here. I enjoyed the cute conclusion to this series, and it was nice to see a little ace rep and a message about not conforming to society's expectations of "adulthood". It's an ode to delinquent girls that a sukeban stan like me can get behind! A lot of the stuff that annoyed me in the second volume was mostly dropped for the third and fourth, so that's also nice.

Run Away With Me Girl- See my first review here. I wish this had been a little longer, but the conclusion worked well and was cathartic.

Doughnuts Under a Crescent Moon- See my first review here. A nice conclusion to a cute, slow-paced little romance series, with yet more ace rep!

The Two of Them are Pretty Much Like This- see my first review here. This conclusion felt a bit rushed, with plot lines still dangling, like it was cancelled early or something. But the series is still good overall, and I'll miss it.

My Love Mix Up -This sweet-as-pie series about cute gay misunderstandings leading to romance comes to a fittingly sweet conclusion. It's sad waving goodbye to these silly, good-hearted kids, but I'm satisfied with where they ended up.

[ninoochat]

You know, if you wanted to fag-freak out your family, you could have just told me.

[bnnywngs]

Wei Wuxian was tricked to be here, he never once heard about this competition-like one month stay in the empress palace to choose the current emperor's second son's wife. They told him he was coming to study under the most famous scholar in their country and sure, Lan Qiren is there, but not as the teacher he expected.

All the men and women present were dressed in their finest robes and all looked extremely politely or were trying to be. The empress and Lan Qiren had told them what to expect of this month - what they were supposed to do and be taught.

He told them he was mistaken and was getting out, but Lan Qiren frowned and called him by name and said that his parents wrote him down as one of the candidates, shocking him into speechless.

(later that night he would find a letter from his mother asking for his forgiveness and that she was expecting him to do well in the competition, for his annoyance)

And when he turned around to leave the room, not believing what he was being told, he crashed against a solid body, going down with a surprised yelp. The man looked at him as if he was dust, used his feet to get him out of the way and treated him as rudely as possible for a second son when Wei Wuxian tried to get a apologies from him.

Angry beyond words, Wei Wuxian decided he was going to flawlessly do every damn step of this, win this goddamned competition and when Lan family would ask for his hand he would reject Lan Wangji with a beautiful monologue about rudeness!

Write that! He's going to be on the history books!

(as an emperor consort years and years and years later, as things happened and he fell in love with Lan Wangji, his brother in law decided to marry out and his father in law stepped down because he was already too old and his youngest son was good enough to be emperor)

[average-transdalorian]

Y’know I think all of Char’s divorces could be explained by him being aroallo and trying his best to be alloallo because he doesn’t realize he’s aroallo. But also I’m not sure the world is ready for rep like that

[exaltior-a]

Having to physically and mentally restrain myself from going insane when someone says they don't like dirkjake because JAKE was mean to Dirk. THEIR RELATIONSHIP FAILED BECAUSE THEY BOTH WERE FUCKED UP.

Acting like Dirk was 100% a victim of Jake in their relationship is abysmal reading comprehension. They both fucked up. Do you hear me. It was both of their faults. Jake's got the very on brand "if I ignore my problems they'll go away" and therefore he failed to communicate to Dirk that he wanted more alone time, all while complaining to Jane all the time. Dirk was desperate for a relationship with Jake, and pushed for them to be into a relationship that they both were not ready for because he was and is incredibly lonely. Idk idk acting like Jake is more at fault or completely at fault for their breakup is kind of silly.

They're 16 year old, maladjusted, lonely children who had to raise themselves and developed vastly different ways to cope with that loneliness. They love each other but lack the skills to express it in a healthy way, both putting up a facade in fear that the friends they love so much will no longer want them if they showed their true selves, because they're messy and raw and care too much

Dirk thinks he's a monster who has to hold himself back otherwise hes bound to hurt people that he loves, and it becomes a self fulfilling prophecy- he hurts someone and takes it as confirmation that he's evil, while Jake is terrified of disappointing people to the point that he refuses to acknowledge when there are problems in fear of being blamed, not wanting to bare responsibility for /anything/ both good and bad in case people expect too much of him and dislike him when he fails to measure up. This is bound to go wrong since neither of them can actually effectively communicate their needs.

[rinzler-smoocher]

Feeling helpless & like shit. Have another Flint x Rinz set up because I have nothing else going on for me but making slightly altered AUs lol

Flint is taken as Clu's "bride" though he's more of just the Luminary's pet on a leash. Rinzler is his body guard and tuens into Flint's only friend. Things change from there.

Learning of Clu's plans for insurrection against Flynn, Flint attempts to find his allies and escape with his fellow user outside of the Grid, but his escape is interrupted by Clu and his forces. Flint's captured and dragged off, totally isolated from the world outside as Clu makes his move...

Now, since the Grid has finally begun settling after Clu's violent coming to power, Flint is still trapped within the program's vile clutches. He's had his admin privileges taken away, his identity disc & batons & weapons stored under lock & key, and has been made into Clu's special pet.

Flint's begrudgingly dragged around from event to event to showcase just how far the almighty users have fallen, taunting Flynn to come out of hiding to rescue his old ally. But, no one ever shows.

Depressed & distressed beyond belief, Flint has become nothing but a pretty piece of arm candy for Clu & a point of mockery from the digital civilization in which he's now a prisoner. He went from being a spunky ball of spitfire, trying to break away from Clu & save himself from his own dilemma, but after having his spirit broken by the all-powerful luminary, Flint's given up. He has guards constantly watching him at all times, unless he's cowering alone in his opulent prison chamber. He has no privacy beyond when he's locked in his room after Clu is done with Flint for the evening.

He is truly alone. He has nothing. And he has no one.

After trying something new to take his own life when he was locked in his own room for rest one cycle with no one watching ovwr his every breath - though he was interrupted before being able to finally inflict the deady strike with the sharpened implement he crafted by hand -, Clu realizes his pretty little pet needs a security presence at all times. And considering the Grid is [mostly] secure in his new leadership, Clu donates his head enforcer to watching over his favorite prisoner of war that he's taken to be his other half.

Rinzler has been bored with all the nothing going on & found little excitement in his day to day duties, except when he's thrown into the games to take out some last remaining beacons of "hope" that still remain after the users have been defeated. As Clu's bloody right hand, it'd a no-brainer that Rinz is assigned to be Flint's bodyguard.

At this point, Flint hasn't left his bed in days, has refused to imbibe any energy and is basically trying to exhaust himself and pursuade his body to give in to natural death. He's been humiliated & is ashamed of what he's become at Clu's demand, a pawn in his game to win over the Grid and a toy for the lookalike program to torture any way he wants whenever he so feels.

Upon Clu's introduction to the looming force standing at Flint's bedside, Rinz is commanded to keep the user alive by any means necessary. To force him to take energy, to not be able to take his own life, and not allow harm from any others to come his way either.

It's basic commands & easy enough to follow, so when Clu leaves them, locking both user & beast in the room together, that's when Rinz realizes what a handful he has with Flint.

Despite being exhausted and nearly on death's door, Flint is argumentative & difficult, fighting against Rinz in any way possible and refusing to leave the confines of his bed. When, after a particularly cruel force of strength to just force energy down his throat, Flint gets ill &, through gasping breaths & sobs as the bright blue liquid pours back from his mouth, Flint asks Rinz to either kill him now or leave him alone. The program is... somehow shaken and steps backwards, having broken one of the basic lines of protocol embedded in his code.

《Do not cause harm to the user.》

Rinzler draws away for the remaining part of the night cycle, with some unknown process running deep within his programming, & watches & waits as Flint fades between sleep & awakening, before...

Trying something different.

When Flint comes back into consciousness, he's weak & less snappy, but he notices right away how Rinz stands at his side, attentive & almost deep in thought as the user shuffles into an upright position. Rinzler tilts his head, as if asking a question, before offering a glass of energy. No fighting, no aggression, just a simple gesture after all this time of being crushed in Clu's tight grip.... Flint accepts it & studies Rinzler carefully all the while.

What starts out as Flint just bearing with Rinzler's company at every moment of time, turns into quiet companionship. After that one time of forcing liquid down Flint's throat, Rinzler stays far from attempting any more actions of violence. His very nature demands carnage and destruction, but some overriding line within his very being holds him fast, keeps him calm, and makes the beast enjoy the peace.

Flint starts talking to his silent guard about everything and anything. Rinzler isn't capable of returning words, bit he listens attentively as Flint tells his life story or about the comic collection he has at home - and will probably never see again - or of visiting his family abroad and wishing he never left his homeland.

Truly, Flint has no way of knowing if the monster actually understands him or if he's listening, but for a change, to have someone not violently force Flint to do something against his own will, it's refreshing and nice. He absolutely sees the deadly assassin as his closest ally.

But

One night after Clu throws the user carelessly back to Rinzler's watch late in the night cycle, Flint is weeping & appears wounded, though he bears no visible injuries. Whatever it was was that caused this was something dreadfully serious & made a fire burn hatefully in Rinzler's data, but he can't process what may have occurred. Still, he needs to care for his ward.

When the door shuts in on them, locking them in Flint's gilded cage, the user falls against the program, sobbing & clutching onto his armor plating. It's as natural as drawing his disc to fight that Rinz finds himself holding onto the user until the worst of his tears subside. He eventually guides Flint to his bedding, but he ardently refuses to lay down unless Rinzler will join him.

Confused, Rinz acquiesces and finds in no time at all, the user is quietly snoring in his hold.

Rinz never finds out what exactly Clu did to Flint that night, but it eats at him for cycles on.

Things naturally develop further from there. Flint & Rinzler bond & become closer & closer in their private shared prison. Clu only sees a happier "bride" and his loyal enforcer. During games when Rinz competes, Flint is at the edge of his seat, breathing sharply with each erratic move his friend makes, and finds himself breathless when Rinz turns his way at the end of each game as if to say "Yes, I'm still here."

Eventually, things change. Whether snapping from realizing what his leader had been doing to his user, or by suddenly coming to grips with how much the user means to him, but either way, Rinz's claws and discs are engaged and ready to chop Clu into tiny bits.

But, as ready & primed as he was to kill, Rinz was too late.

Suddenly catching a spike of fear that only came to him when Flint was in danger, Rinzler raced down the hallways until he mowed down the guards positioned at Clu's throne room & burst inside to find...

Flint sitting on the ground & holding Clu's identity disc. His eyes are tearing up, he has a bruise across his cheek, and his suit is rippex and torn in multiple areas with burning cuts going through his flesh while he sits calmly among golden pixilated voxels, scattered over the ground. His eyes seem empty but his mouth quirks into a smile as he docks Clu's disc.

"It's done," Flint said firmly. "Let's get the hell out of here."

[my-current-obsession]

I am taking note of every single villager who honestly suggests that Micah's half-monster status might have given his chosen bride cold feet and led to her running away and they are ALL dropping several positions in my internal character ranking.

[kashilascorner]

What were the prose Tristan authors eating for lunch when they wrote Mark and Tristan's dynamics seriously it's so toxic but also like they keep hanging around each other? Toxic exes except family instead of lovers

[outeremissary]

🧣(scarf), 🎈 (balloon) and 🥩 (steak) for ocs of your choice?

Thank you for the ask and in a BIG way for the patience :') I tried to keep this to characters from stuff I was reeeelatively sure was familiar, but I confess the last question really made me want to talk about my Dark Urge from Gate 3, so I hope that's okay ^^;; If not, the first two are all Pathfinder, promise!

(this has been placed under a cut due to length)

[prompt list]

🧣(scarf) - What comforts your oc? Is it an item? An action? A person? Whatever it is, how any why does it comfort them?

Carmen finds a lot of comfort in her mount, June. June has been with her for around five years by the time of Kenabres and she feels a strong connection to the mare. June has certainly had a more constant presence in her life than many people. She finds June's presence soothing- it's good to have a familiar creature around as an anchor. The predictability (to her) of June's temperament and the steady routine of her care make for a series of daily rituals that give her life structure and certainty even as she moves between places marked by strife and upheaval. And she's always loved animals. It's nice to just… have one around. Someone to spend quiet time with who's less complicated than a human. She always tries to carve out that time, whether it's to ride her or groom her or just to sit nearby and read through something while June quietly grazes on her lead. It keeps Carmen grounded, makes her feel sane.

Lately, though, there's a different ritual that lends a similar- perhaps sharper- clarity of mind. Her quarters in Drezen were appointed with a full length mirror when she settled into them (excessive for her needs- something smaller to check her face and pull back her hair would have been enough), and more and more she finds herself spending time contemplating it, letting herself be drawn into its depths. Other reflective surface capture her eye as well, but most have mere echoes of the depth she sees in the mirror in her room. She's never been one for vanity, but something about it helps her focus. Empties out the stress. Drains away all those pesky feelings and small, buzzing thoughts. She's not looking at anything in particular in it. She sees herself. There's nothing special about the mirror or what's in it, that empty eyed thing. It just helps her concentrate, that's all.

🎈 (balloon) - What does your character do at parties? Are they a wallflower or a party animal? Do they go with friends or alone?

Balthazar has been to more parties than he cares to count, and at one point in his life it was an almost nightly part of his lifestyle. He prefers to show up with friends (it helps that friends are how he normally got in), and he's good at matching the mood of any given gathering. He likes to talk with people, to get a feel for the room by adding himself to conversations and learning the people in them. He always has something to say about the topic at hand- even if he's never heard of it before- and has a talent for coming off clever even when he's clueless. He's the friend of a friend for gossip, the devil's advocate in a debate, the charming stranger with a touch of scandalous worldliness at an upper class ball. Big gatherings are a great chance to make connections, so keeping social is essential- as is entertaining whoever invited him with his company.

He enjoys drinking socially, and he's usually drinking at parties- depending on the gathering, sometimes a lot, and sometimes enough to reach the edge of his normal control. It feels fun and wild sometimes, and people seem to love it. And when it wasn't drinks that were the focus of the party, well, he wasn't afraid of experimenting. It's all fun when everyone's doing it. And the extra energy is welcome late at night. He's also fond of partaking in games when available and is probably very familiar with Absalom's most popular dice games and card games- though he's not fond of playing with his own money. Dancing is something he enjoys as well (and central to a lot of parties and events he's been at!). There's a delight to passing between partners and knowing them that way, to playing the game of leading and following. He's a fairly good dancer despite not having any formal training; it's just years of experience at work. A lot of the time his party experience was also one that involved hookups (if whoever brought him wasn't already expecting his company). It's just another kind of social fun when you're out meeting people.

I guess you could call him a party animal: he was never one to hang back and disappear, and he knew how to command attention when he wanted it (and how to keep moving with it even when he didn't). There aren't a lot of gatherings in the River Kingdoms where it's really possible or desirable to run wild though, especially with his new status. Most of his recent attendances have run towards the more restrained edge of things, although every so often there will be a small gathering of friends that recaptures a bit of that old spirit. And of course there was Rushlight, but he tries not to think about Rushlight.

🥩 (steak) - Does your oc have any coping mechanisms? Healthy or unhealthy?

(CW FOR DISCUSSIONS OF SELF HARM ON THIS ONE)

Kasander has long had trouble with self-harm. Being raised in a tightly controlled environment without reliable emotional support where they generally weren't allowed privacy, freedom of movement, or possessions of their own, they had few outlets for distress that didn't feel markedly dangerous. Making that distress into something physical made it easier to cope with, easier to hide. It was a quick, reliable release that let them go back to "normal" quickly. It's also something they aren't always aware of doing until after the fact- the feeling of distress is also dangerous, and so is thinking about how to handle it. It falls to someone else inside to process when it becomes intense. This is something so deeply ingrained that it can be hard for them to gauge their distress levels, because on some level it always feels like a foreign emotion and it doesn't feel "right" to concentrate on and work through. This behavior was never monitored or discouraged by any caretakers who were aware of it besides some light shaming. It was disgraceful to direct that violence towards themself instead of outwards at others, but so long as they were containing it, keeping it out of the public eye, and not allowing it to affect their performance, what did it matter? On a related note, most of their scars are from before the age of twelve- there's a long gap between that and twenty-seven where any new scars they developed were the result of self-harm.

Recently they've been developing some other ways of coping with overwhelming emotion that feed less into a cycle of shame and secrecy. They've begun to learn the lyre and to sing- they don't consider themself an especially gifted performer, but it's something to focus on and do with their hands. There's a meditative edge that music has for them, especially alone. It's good for settling and centering. Makes them feel like they can put something good into the world. They're also developing a better sense of themself internally. They try to journal to keep track of their thoughts and feelings, and it lets them interact with the parts of themself they normally struggle to access. It creates cohesion (and this time without the interference Asperia experienced when they used to dictate their journal entries to their butler). Knowing the others inside also lets them sometimes find feelings more easily- to stop and look inside and ask "where does this come from? whose feeling is this? how big is it?" It's hard to break down the barriers that cause those things to slip away and make it difficult to access the others, but it's getting better. And the sense of being able to communicate clearly and immediately with Asperia or the others makes it feel easier to control a situation.

And lastly, they have people they can talk to. It's still hard as hell to trust that others are safe with their most intimate, vulnerable moments, but they're getting there slowly. It's helped to be able to identify who they can rely on to talk about what- for example, they care dearly about Astarion as a friend and trust him to understand or at least listen to some aspects of themselves without knee jerk judgment, but they also know that he can be flippant, insensitive, and intensely self-protective, and turning to him could still cuase them to spiral, even if it may not be as fast or deep as with some others. On the other hand, they trust Jaheira unconditionally, even if there are things that sometimes they feel too protective of or scared to externalize to share with her or days it's not possible to reach for aid. They know that she'll take them seriously if they confide in her, but that she won't panic and she'll always find a way to keep things light enough to handle. She has a keen enough eye for them to recognize when they struggle, but she also respects their space, gives them time, doesn't push. She's one of the few people it's possible to be open with about the fact that "Kasander" isn't always Kasander. She's someone that sometimes they're open with in retrospect about switching or the others are open with in the moment (and it helps that Jaheira isn't a stranger to a range of behaviors in her own children across all different ages- things like Asperia's willful antagonism don't throw her off). They're grateful constantly to have her in their life, and her presence has felt life-saving at a time when they needed that safety to heal. Being able to travel with her after the resolution of the Absolute crisis brings them a lot of joy and hope.

I guess since it also didn't wind up in the body it'll be awkwardly appended at the end... The mistake of focusing on the healthy/unhealthy dichotomy is that it made it so something important that was referenced a lot didnt have a clear place to go since it wasn't really in that binary ^^;; In a way everything that "Kasander" is has been an adaptation to the need to constantly cope with overwhelming circumstances. They have a dissociative condition, and existing in a way that made it possible to separate parts of themself out to make life manageable is how they've survived as long as they have. On some level, dissociation is always a part of how they process situations. Kasander also wasn't originally the host of their system- their original role was to give Asperia a way to resist his circumstances either by escaping them temporarily or defending himself against things that were "untouchable" somehow.

[theheadlessgroom]

@beatingheart-bride

"It's exhausting," Doreen confessed with a little frown, as she took a sip of punch and brushed an loose, dark lock of hair out of her face. "I hate to say it, but...after a while, they all just sort of...blur together, I admit."

Most of these suitors were perfectly nice, perfectly pleasant fellows, but even if she wasn't already in a committed (albeit secret) relationship with Edward, she couldn't see herself falling for any of them. She could perhaps see them being friends, casually dancing and having drinks and the like, but being romantically involved? No, she just couldn't see it. She felt nothing towards these men other than a polite indifference that would never evolve beyond anything platonic.

And then there were the smarmy ones, the overly cocky, overly smug ones that left her struggling not to roll her eyes as they rattled off their accomplishments, as if any one of them would make her swoon, so taken by their arrogance that she'd fall into their arms...ridiculous. She feigned politeness, of course, but it could be a challenge, especially when they all kept on coming-sometimes she wondered where her parents found all these nits, honestly.

"So needless to say, it's very nice to...get away from it all, at least for a little while," she sighed, as she leaned against Edward's shoulder with a small smile. "It'd be nice to get away a little longer, though...perhaps a vacation is in order, one of these days. A very, very long vacation..."

Perhaps a permanent one... she found herself thinking, as Edward took her hand to press a loving kiss to her knuckle, making her smile coyly, replaying their conversation from earlier, just before she was taken aside by the de Clair's. I hear California is quite lovely year-round...

[britneyshakespeare]

this afternoon i saw the closing show of nick dear's frankenstein at the seacoast repertory theatre in portsmouth nh and i had a glass of wine at intermission and being the rarely-drinks lightweight i am i definitely had a different.... attitude, towards the second half of the show. obviously. but i wasn't like that far gone that i wasn't paying attention or anything. and i don't think a lot about frankenstein all the time; i've read it twice (ten years ago in school and then reread it about five years ago). it's like not my favorite but i like it; it's just more of a philosophical novel than a oh-i-love-the-plot-and-characters sort of thing in my opinion. doesn't really matter that's just my two cents. i certainly have thoughts on the way it was adapted for the stage bc nick dear made some creative choices that i wouldn't have, but obviously that's all well and good.

but when the show ended and my wine was chugged and the lights went up i sat there in between my two friends for a second and we exchanged words i just said: "everyone always argues about who the 'real' monster in the story is, but victor frankenstein and the creation... belong together" and this lady walking in the aisle beside us said "i thought the same thing too." she's right too and i'm glad we're both right

[friend-through-teenage-nights]

John Finnemore's Double Acts Series 1 Bath Company Lore:

Episode 1: A Flock of Tigers - Willard mentions that his company makes baths, and by the end of the episode has learned about how better to connect with his son.

Episode 2&3: WYSINWYG/Red-handed. Concerns the employees of the sales team of the bath company Willard & Son.

Episode 6: Hotdesk. Concerns the receptionist and security guard at Willard & Son, with an off-mike cameo by Adele from episode 2.

[the-coincidence-child]

// Headcanons for Aslan and Sharon's relationship? ;w;

{ Oh Sharon, poor poor Sharon. Well.. He's defo being a bit nicer to her now??? }

When they first met in the garden, it was defo a swing of emotions for one min it was like 'haha this girl funny af- tf u say.' then pulling out knifes and shi at this poor girl oml

But he thought of her as a complete annoyance, someone who wasn't even worth to be alive. He thought he should just kill her first so she wouldn't have to deal with his uncles and fathers shenanigans. He wants to shoe her away and keep her away as her mother attention scares him, but he thought she was acting like that because that's just how all the brides who come here treat him?? He actually starts to like her a bit, finding her funny to play/mess with as he enjoys getting this big outbursts outta her.

But when he saw that Sharon and Subaru were getting closer and closer, his view on it all completely changed and her being so nice to him even calling him out on his own faults/defending Subaru all the time made him believe she was just doing all this so she could get closer to Subaru, so that when she's buttered him up she can slip right under running away keeping Subaru to herself to leave him behind.

The thought scares him and pisses him off to no end, so he ends up trying to separate the two of them at all costs, telling Sharon mean things about Subaru or even making herself doubt her own self. He is a master manipulator after all.

But when it doesn't work out, he seems that he's going to have to deal with Subaru and Sharon's closeness. However when Sharon gets on the topic with him he grows distant about it telling her to do whatever she wants and that 'he could not care less' While yes he is mean to her enough but he just gets more cold and rude to her whenever Subaru's invovled'.

To put it straight forward, he's very picky about his emotions and the type of relationship he wants wit on her they tend to switch up, currently now he thinks she's selfless in a good way which is surprising and VERY RARE for Aslan as he cannot stand people like that. He still doesn't trust her at all but he doesn't hate her company even finding himself spying on js her and only her he just thinks she's interesting as her mindset is something he can't understand AT ALLL.

They kinda have a big sis/lil brother wit a mix of mother/son relationship and I am living for it, he teases her and gets so caught off guard when she teases him back or giving him a slightly back handed comment I can defo see Sharon trying to make him smile hard af and just make him giggle she just wants to see this boy be a kid instead of being in sm pain and we love her for that.

He memorized her scent, so that when she's coming up from behind him he notes not to try and kill her. But for shits and giggles he'll wipe out a gun or knife on her, sometimes even for his own sadistic enjoyment he'll try to scare the soul out of her, he just loves seeing her react to things that seem 'not very Sharon like'.

Another thing I see the two doing is drawing on Subaru's face or laying little pranks on him. I think that idea is so cute of the two of them to do cuz they so would do that.

@strawberry--bride HOPE THIS WASN'T SHIT-