#so the stans have no excuse to complain if they see this

[ashela-ley]

Can we talk about Cartman's tendency to pet Kyle? And the way Kyle lets him do it?

It's such an under-discussed part of their dynamic. Cartman does this all the time. He does it to tease Kyle. He does it to comfort him. He does it to express gratitude. He even does it to pictures of Kyle when Kyle's not there.

And you could say that's just Cartman, he's just touchy, that's just how he expresses himself . . . except that it's really not. All this petting and stroking isn't something you see him do with Stan and Kenny. (Friends he has said multiple times he loves.) It's not something he does with his actual pet, Mr Kitty. It's not something he does with his mom. It's not even something he does with Heidi or Yentl. There's a lot of hand-holding and kissing in those relationships, but Cartman appears to consider this expected romantic partner behavior, and to be imitating that accordingly. What you don't see with them is the clingy, almost unconscious need to touch he demonstrates with Kyle. Kyle has to be stroked, patted, petted, hugged, poked, pulled on . . . it seems to be a comfort thing for Cartman, and that is just so fascinating to me.

It's also endlessly fascinating to me that Kyle - who has no problem putting Cartman in his place about anything else - allows this nearly every time. Maybe there's some token complaining, but he never actually tries to stop it. It's not "ew, Cartman is hugging me" it's always "why is Cartman hugging me?" and that's a subtle difference I think gets overlooked. People like to claim Kyle's response to Cartman having a crush on him would be disgust, and that Kyman could only ever be one-sided for this reason. But Kyle's response to Cartman being affectionate with him is actually pretty much always confusion, not disgust. I get the impression Kyle doesn't know how he feels about it.

I'm not sure what I'm trying to say here, but it's just so interesting to me, the relationship they both have to touch. Cartman uses Kyle to fulfil his need for touch and connection - and Kyle doesn't often reciprocate this touch, but he pretty consistently makes the concession of allowing it. They're feeling each other out, trying to work out "who are you to me and what do I feel for you?" It's one of the elements of Kyman that makes the ship so endearing, I think. There's this sweetness to it that absolutely should not exist between these characters, but does anyway.

Definitely! You’re right, Cartman does seem to seek out physical contact with Kyle considerably more than with anyone else he isn’t directly romantically involved with and my favourite instances of this is when he does so under the guise of antagonizing him. Two examples of this are the whole ‘Jennifer Lopez’-thing in “Fat Butt and Pancake Head” and Cartman promoting Kyle to the Germans in “Funnybot”. In both cases he uses an instance of disrespecting Kyle as a front to compliment him, with the ‘Jennifer Lopez’-persona constantly being gushing over him, telling him how much she likes him, calling him ‘handsome’ and of course ‘kissing’ him by Cartman pressing his hand against Kyle’s mouth. This is especially interesting considering the fact that later in the episode it is very heavily implied (and then pretty much outright confirmed in “200”) that Cartman really doesn’t have full control over the character. In “Funnybot” Cartman calls Kyle either ‘gentle/soft’ or ‘juicy’ (lol), ‘pretty’, and ‘very beautiful’ in extremely mangled German (which I guess is just regular German in-universe since the native speakers talk just like that) and while the context of the scene is obviously very dark for the viewer, who can infer what’s going on, Kyle doesn’t actually seem to realise what is happening. He doesn’t appear to understand what is being said at all and as such Cartman doesn’t even really have the excuse that he’s teasing him.

This scene fits the reaction you described that Kyle tends to have when Cartman engages him in physical contact very well: Kyle reacts to Cartman excessively touching him with confusion but simply lets it happen. He has every reason to be wary of Cartman’s intentions and yet he makes no effort to stop him from what he’s doing. In “ManBearPig” Kyle wakes up to find Cartman leaning over him and while he doesn’t actually touch him, he does get extremely close to him, giving us the famous image of their faces mere inches apart. Kyle’s reaction to this is incredibly understated: He appears at most slightly irritated and attempts neither to push Cartman off nor to move away from him. Once again, he mostly just seems confused by Cartman’s behaviour but, as far as we can see, makes no further attempts to investigate the reasons behind it. This understated reaction is an indication of an (imo) often overlooked aspect of their relationship, which is that while Kyle is well aware of what Cartman is theoretically capable of, he doesn’t actually seem worried that he’d ever seriously harm him. Personally, if I found myself trapped in a cave with a person who constantly professes his hatred for me and whom I know has no qualms about killing people, and then woke up to find said person looming over me in my sleep I’d be much more worried than Kyle appears to be. In fact, considering everything that has happened over the course of their relationship and how many despicable things Cartman has done, Kyle seems Weirdly Comfortable And Safe With His Evil, Ill-Intentioned Friend. Because that’s what they are: They’re friends. To call it a complicated friendship might be an understatement but when it comes down to it the simple fact of the matter is that these two do like each other. While in earlier seasons a point could be made that they only spend time together out of necessity (with the main four being somewhat isolated from the other kids, as Craig points out in “Pandemic 2”, and Cartman originally being an incidental part of the group as ‘the friend no one likes’), they’ve both long since expanded their social circles to a point where they are no longer ‘forced’ to spend time together for lack of better options. Kyle would be more than justified in cutting Cartman off completely and yet he doesn’t and I can honestly see no real reason for this other than the fact that he simply cares about him as a person.

So I agree that Kyle probably wouldn’t react with disgust to the hypothetical reveal that Cartman harbours romantic feelings towards him. I’m not claiming that he would necessarily be elated but I’m pretty sure ‘disgust’ would not be his first reaction and I think many people who think that it would be might at least partially hold that opinion due to projection: Because while we, as viewers, are frequently meant to find Cartman repulsive both physically and emotionally (his embodiment of the 'fat bastard' trope is a key part of his character, after all), Kyle doesn’t actually appear to overtly feel that way about him – which is to say he does kinda but not exclusively and it’s all just a bit more complicated than that. Kyle being thoroughly confused does seem like the most likely reaction to me. Regarding the physical aspect: Of course Kyle frequently makes derogatory remarks about Cartman’s appearance, specifically regarding his weight (to the point where it’s been a main focus of their dynamic for almost thirty years) but we see several times that his critique actually seems to stem from a place of worry and that he feels bad when he thinks that these comments have actually managed to hurt his feelings (e.g. “Raising the Bar”). Of course, what exactly Kyle’s feelings towards Cartman are is, with good reason, a source of much discussion and I’d claim that Kyle himself isn’t very sure of this. His sentiment towards Cartman definitely seems very erratic, with Kyle going from actively attempting to get him killed in “Fatbeard” to being concerned for his emotional well-being just a season later (“201”, “Poor and Stupid”). This concern Kyle has for a person he supposedly can’t stand has been a pretty consistent part of his character in later seasons and it’s especially striking when compared to the way he disregards his best friend’s feelings when he’s in genuine need of emotional support (“Raisins”, “You’re Getting Old”). This discrepancy is not only an indicator of the complicated relationship Kyle has with Cartman but imho also hints at at least one reason for it. In a (painfully long-winded😅) comment on AO3 I just touched on the similarities between Kyle and Cartman how interesting I find the very different ways in which they deal with their shared character traits. I believe this is something that draws them towards each other, though I’m certain that neither is actually consciously aware of this. You put it so beautifully in your last sentence: "There's this sweetness to it that absolutely should not exist between these characters, but does anyway." There really is an unexpectedly soft underbelly to their relationship that is a lot of fun to explore. While I wont deny the toxic aspects of this ship (in fact, they’re a major part of what I find interesting about it), there is also the surprising potential for a real emotional connection between these characters.

[gay-dorito-dust]

What about if Stanford got sick/hurt? How do you think he’d deal with that?

Ford is stubborn as they come when it comes to injury or illness.

He doesn’t want anyone to fret over him and will try to deal with it himself first and foremost almost all of the time regardless of how he’d promise to start letting others help him, old habits die hard unfortunately and Ford was no exception to this.

He didn’t want to raise suspicions in anyone and would act like nothing was actually wrong, when it was clear as day that there was indeed something wrong. Ford just didn’t like being a burden to you, nor his family.

You’d have to force that man to sit down and force him to let you take care of him with no room to complain when you had to catch him in your arms in due to the fact that he fainted while mid sentence. It scared you to death that something bad had happened, so for when to find that he had been hiding a cold or a injury, you were more or less upset with the fact that he didn’t say anything sooner and tried to do everything by himself yet again.

So when he came to, only to find himself laying on a bed, his bed, with you hovering over him with your arms crossed, unimpressed. ‘Darling what are you-‘

‘You fainted, right in my arms when you were telling me what goblins and gnomes hate each other,’ ford winced but you continued, ���I thought we agreed to stop hiding things Stanford Pines.’ You finished as you called him by his full name to convey your upset over this.

‘My dear I-‘

‘Don’t use the excuse that you could handle it because you obviously couldn’t or else you wouldn’t have fainted in my arms.’ You cut him off as you reached out to hold his hand. ‘You scared me Ford, you really scared me back there.’ You admitted in a whisper as you tightened your grip on his hand.

‘I’m sorry my dear, I didn’t mean to scare you like that, I just didn’t want to bother you with my own things solely on the basis that we are partners and must share each others grievances.’ Ford said as he squeezed your hand in reassurance.

You smiled softly at him, knowing that you could never truly stay mad at Ford for long periods of time and kissed his forehead. ‘Well I want you to start sharing your grievances with me from now on,’ you tell him, ‘I want to help you sweetheart and I can’t do so if you keep yourself cooped up in the lab or close yourself off emotionally from the rest of us who are only trying to help.’ You finish as you go to leave Ford’s room.

‘Stay here while I go get your soup, if i see that you have taken a sock clad toe out of that bed, I’m revoking privileges.’ You warned him.

‘What privileges are you revoking my dear?’ Ford asked sheepishly.

‘Cuddling and late night campaigns of dungeons, dungeons and more dungeons.’ You told him simply as he visibly deflated as you went into the the kitchen to get his soup when you were joined by Stanley.

‘He fainted again didn’t he?’ Stanley asked.

‘Yep.’ You replied shortly.

‘What was it this time? Common cold, injured?’ Stan inquired as he helped you get a bowl for the soup intended for his stubborn brother.

‘Sleep deprivation caught up to him with a slight injury to his side, from what I don’t know.’ You told him as you thanked him for the bowl before ladling the soup into it. ‘Other than that I’m not surprised that he’s hidden it from us.’

‘Old habits die hard with my brother, there are going to be times where he won’t tell you anything in hopes of dealing with it himself, it’s all part of the lone complex he devolved while isolating himself from the rest of Gravity falls.’ Stanley said and you found yourself listening intently to it all.

‘He thinks he can do it all by himself but the moment he gets proven wrong, it makes him want to try and do it by himself even more to the point where he exhausts himself into gaining and or hurting himself further.’ Stanley continues as he leaves his back against the kitchen counter, sipping on a can of Pitt cola that seemingly magicked itself into his hand.

‘Has he always been like that?’ You asked.

Stanley chuckled. ‘Fuck no, when we were kids Ford would always come to me with whatever his big brain didn’t understand, but now after everything I’m not surprised to see that he’s become more recluse and hesitant to open up.’ Stanley saw your defeated expression and put a hand on your shoulder.

‘Don’t give up on him just yet, my smart ass brother still needs you to bring him back down to reality now and then.’ Was all he said before leaving the kitchen as you brought the soup back to Ford’s room, just to see that he had fallen asleep, not a sock clad toe out of bed too. You smiled softly as you place the soup at his bedside table and taking off his glasses before you began to ran your fingers through his hair.

‘My stubborn old fool, I love you so.’ You mused as you dedicated yourself to watching over Ford for the time being, just until he was feeling better again.

Which you did for the next couple of days, scolding him for trying to go monster hunting whilst on a cold when you spotted him trying to make a run for it out the window, not until he saw you stood there looking at him like a unimpressed parent.

Needless to say Ford went back into the really quick after that attempt.

Ford was restless and he was stubborn but you always made the best out of a shit situation by having you both cuddle in bed and have your one mini campaign of dungeons, dungeons and more dungeons to pass the time.

[ckret2]

Chapter 34 of human Bill Cipher not making friends with Stan during his imprisonment in the Mystery Shack, featuring: the tooth fairy and her dentist attempting to steal Bill's teeth in the middle of the night. Stan would care a lot less if he weren't still handcuffed to Bill. And also: Stan and Bill have a friendly chat. As you can see.

####

Even though Bill and Stan were trying to watch the same TV as they had dinner, Bill refused to sit in the living room with Stan; so he sat on the bottom step of the stairs in the entryway, Stan perched on the end of the couch, and they strung the handcuffs around the doorway with their little plastic microwave dinner trays balanced on their knees.

Both of their dinners had come out undercooked. Both of them were too proud to complain.

After picking through maybe a third of his meal, Bill decided he'd rather go to bed hungry than eat something he didn't enjoy, dropped his tray on the floor, and kicked it into the kitchen. "Hey Stanley, still glad you went with the cuffs instead of the bracelets?"

"Shut up."

Bill smirked victoriously, and looked back to the TV. "No mayonnaise in Ireland."

"What?"

Bill pointed at the screen and the rows of blank letters waiting for contestants to fill them in. "The round that just started. That's the solution."

"Oh." Stan counted out all the blank letters, frowned, and said unconfidently, "It can't be that. It doesn't make any sense."

"You're wrong," Bill said lightly; and then fell silent, running the tip of his tongue over the new gold spots on his teeth. 

When the contestants had guessed enough letters that one could hesitantly offer, "Is it... 'no mayonnaise in Ireland'?" Bill smirked triumphantly at the sound of Stan's silence. He just barely waited until the next board of blank letters flashed on the screen, and then announced, "Tip your waiter."

Stan counted the letters under his breath. "Man. I thought I was good at this, but we'd clean up if we put you on this show. No one would ever figure out how you're cheating."

Bill laughed. "Listen to you! If you were Ford, you'd just be mad that I'm giving away all the answers before you can guess. That's the great thing about you, Stanley: you don't get irritated at me for stupid little reasons. You're more fun." He took a deep breath and shouted, "Hey Ford, did you hear that?! Stan's the fun twin—!"

"Keep it down, you idiot. Ford's in the basement, he can't hear you." Stan had thought Bill was finally sobering up from the sedative; maybe not. (Then again, maybe this was just what he was like sober.) "And what are you talking about? You irritate me all the time!"

"Oh, well, I guess I just don't care when you're irritated." Bill laughed.

Stan grumbled, planted his chin in his hand, and tried to focus on Cash Wheel. It was difficult when he already knew the solution.

He tolerated the silence for less than a minute before sighing, looking toward the doorway, and demanding, "What's with you, anyway? Why are you so obsessed with my brother?"

Bill spluttered in disbelief. Stan could feel his handcuff chain jerk over. Voice even shriller than usual, Bill said, "Excuse m—Excuse me?! Obsessed? Moi?! I don't know what you're talking about!" He forced a loud laugh.

"If Ford's in the room, he's the only one you talk to, and when he isn't here you're yelling across the house for him—"

"Is it obsession to sometimes pay a little more attention to the human here I happen to know best and to whom I happen to be a teacher, muse, and friend—"

"Oh that's a load of bull," Stan snapped, "you're not any of those things! Friend? Friend? He wants you dead, you crazy—"

"Well if he does," Bill said, louder still, "then wouldn't it make perfect sense to keep my eye on the guy who killed me? There's no big mystery—"

"That's it! That's just it!" Stan tossed down his TV dinner and stood so he could face Bill properly. "He didn't kill you alone, remember? That was a two-man con you fell for! But you keep talking like Ford was the only one there!"

Without bothering to stand, Bill looked up at Stan and said, quite confidently, "Only one person killed me. You're just the place where I was killed."

"I wh...?" Stan fell silent, blinking at Bill in disbelief.

"Do you even remember what happened inside your brain? After you took my hand?" Bill asked. "You don't, do you?"

Stan glowered at Bill, but he shut his mouth and said nothing.

"I knew it." Bill laughed nastily. "We were both trapped in there when Fordsy fired the gun. Completely powerless. You were weeping and begging for a way out when the flames got too close, but there was nothing I could do by then—"

"All right," Stan took a threatening step closer, "I know that that didn't happen! I would never—"

Bill leaned back, hands raised palm out in appeasement, "Okay okay okay! All right, you got me—just embellishing the story a little—we actually had a big psychic laser battle. Imagined up all kinds of futuristic weapons. It was very 90's action movie. You did... fine, you were fine."

Stan considered that. "Ehh... sure, that sounds more like me."

"But it was all imaginary," Bill snapped. "It was a vast illusion! At that point there was nothing either of us could do to the other. We were just two victims locked inside a burning house as it came down around us. You didn't kill me, you never even had the power to kill me."

"Huh." That was all Stan said. But he kept looking at Bill, frowning distrustfully, studying him.

Bill's shoulders slowly went up under the pressure of Stan's gaze. "Oh—oh wow, okay, I see what's going on!" He gave Stan a crooked, mean smile. "You're jealous, aren't you? You thought offering up your body to be the scene of a murder finally made you a co-star instead of a sidekick! All your lives, Stanford got more attention from daddy, more attention from the teachers, more attention from the whole world... and you thought you'd finally get at least a little attention from the big bad living nightmare. Just because you let your brother shoot you in the head!" Bill laughed. "You weren't special enough for anyone else—why do you think you're special enough for me?"

Stan jerked Bill to his feet by the handcuff's chain. "I bet I'm special enough to break your face!" He dragged him into the living room, fist raised. "Let's see if you stay down this time—"

Bill scrambled back as far as the chain allowed him. "NO!" Horror filled the one ragged syllable. His free arm was raised to shield his terrified eye.

They froze, staring at each other.

Bill straightened up, forcing a nervous, rattled laugh. "Come on, I just got all this dental work done. At least give me a couple days to enjoy it before you pound it in!" He was talking fast to fill the silence. "Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't mind having a flatter face, all these bones and cartilage jutting out never did feel right—"

Stan feigned a punch.

Bill flinched.

Stan laughed at him, slapping his knee. "You big chicken! Look at you! Baw-baaawk-bgawk! HA!"

Bill tried, very hard, to explode Stan with his brain. This usually worked on people who dared try to insult Bill Cipher. "If I had one billionth of a billionth of my power, I'd have already destroyed you—!"

"But you don't, sucker!" Stan laughed louder.

Bill screamed in frustration, turned his back on Stan, and stomped upstairs to sulk.

Or, he would have, if he hadn't gotten one step up the stairs before the handcuffs yanked tight. He stumbled back, landed on his butt, and inadvertently jerked Stan down on one knee with a yelp.

Bill cast a resentful look at Stan—who was rubbing his shoulder and finally looking as irritated as Bill felt—and then he lay down and deliberately stared straight at the ceiling. "Whatever. I don't even care about your pointless mammal posturing. It's fine. It doesn't bother me. I'm calm. You're just making yourself look stupid." Bill shut his eyes. "I wanna go to bed."

####

"Bill," Ford said.

Bill cracked open an eye and peered up at the form looming over his makeshift cushion bed. "Mrm?"

In a very calm voice that suggested he was not calm at all, Ford asked, "Why are you sleeping on the floor in front of my bedroom door."

"Oh. Right, you missed it." Bill yawned and sat up. "Well, you see, Stanley got us handcuffed together until tomorrow morning," he pointed at his cuffed wrist and rattled the chain, "and I tried to be accommodating, but he doesn't want to sleep in the attic and won't let me sleep in the guest room—"

Stan yelled through the door, "And Mr. Accommodating here still refuses to sleep on the sofa bed."

"—so the best compromise we've got is sleeping on the floor with the chain under the door. Not my idea of a fun evening, but." Bill shrugged ruefully, like an adult resigned to indulging the whims of a petulant child. "Do you want in? It'll take us a little coordination to get the door open, but we've already done this once, so—"

"I'm not messing with this," Ford said. "I'm sleeping in the basement. Good night, Stanley."

"Night, Ford."

Trying not to sound miffed at being snubbed, Bill said, "Hey, do you still keep your cot on that rug you used to channel me better?" He laughed.

"Nope. I burned that rug." Ford turned the corner and left.

Bill stuck his tongue out at his back. He didn't actually know whether Ford was lying. He wished he'd thought to check out Ford's study before heading down to the portal back when he'd had his time tape.

"Hey." He rapped on the bedroom door. "I thought we weren't asking Sixer for help so he wouldn't find out about the handcuffs." They hadn't actually discussed it, but he'd taken it for granted. "Now that he knows, why aren't we getting his help?"

"What, you think I need his help to solve all my problems? Ha!"

"Okay, fine. Doesn't matter to me, I'm used to sleeping on the floor." Bill lay back down and sighed.

He shut his eyes and tried to go back to sleep.

####

Bill wasn't quite dreaming, but for a few seconds it was something very close to a dream. He saw points of light in darkness. One of his earliest, oldest memories. He'd memorized the constellations outside of his plain when his starblind species didn't even have a word for "constellations."

But these weren't those points of light in darkness. Some nearer, some farther—he could sense their distance—and all of the lights were calling to him. All of his eyes. He could see so many more than he had last night.

One was just a few inches away. He could almost reach out and grab it. 

But those few seconds of light-in-darkness were in the gray twilight between the dreamscape and the physical world, and Bill only fleetingly glimpsed them as he passed from sleep back to wakefulness. He opened his eyes.

To see a person looming over him.

And the taste of thick metal tools in his mouth.

"Hi," Bill said, for lack of anything better to say under these circumstances.

It was enough to make Dr. Illing gasp and stumble back from Bill. "Jeez." He clapped a hand over his heart. "I'm sorry— I-I didn't want to—"

"Uh-huh." Bill sat up and took the abandoned tool out of his mouth—pliers. They'd been gently clamped around one of his canine teeth. "Not the most unpleasant thing I've had aimed at my face in the middle of the night," Bill mused, "but it's pretty high on the list." He tried to lift his other hand to feel his face for damage—and only remembered the handcuff when the rattling chain caught his wrist in place.

They both looked at the cuff. As Dr. Illing realized Bill was trapped, a change came over his face—a desperate, crazed fury.

Bill shook his head. "Ohhh, no no no—"

"Give me that!" Dr. Illing lunged for Bill, one hand reaching toward the pliers and the other toward his throat, trying to pin him against the door.

Bill shoved his feet in Dr. Illing's chest, trying to hold him back. "Stanley!" He pounded on the door with the pliers. "We have visitors, wake up!"

"It'll only take a second," Dr. Illing insisted. "You were going to give me one anyway! And that tooth is already loose! You can handle the pain! Just—hold still, I can't damage it!" He managed to get his thumb in Bill's mouth—he cringed when Bill bit down, but didn't back off—and pulled a fresh set of pliers out of his tool bag.

Bill parried the pliers with his own pair. "STAAAN—"

The door unlatched and Bill tumbled backward into the room. He twisted out of the dentist's way, slid the handcuff chain out from under the door, and skittered behind Stan.

"Wha—what's—?" Stan squinted into the dark hallway. "The heck's going on?"

Bill stretched to Stan's nightstand and grabbed up his glasses and hearing aids. "Put your face on!" He shoved them in Stan's hands, then reached back for his dentures.

Stan put his glasses on first. "What the— Illing? What are you doing here?"

Dr. Illing stood forlorn in the hallway, trembling all over, eyeing Stan nervously. "Uhhh," he said eloquently. "I just..." He gestured around Stan's shoulder toward Bill, "wanted to check her fillings. I thought one of them might be a little loose—"

Bill's cackle cut through his excuses. "Oh, come on! I know your boss put you up to this! What does the little lady want with my mouth?"

Dr. Illing's eyes widened. All he managed to produce was a squeak.

Stan said, "What 'little lady,' this guy's self-employed. What are you talking about—"

"The tooth fairy, genius!" Bill flung his free hand in the air. "Why did you think your dentist pays you to pull your teeth! He lives in a van, who'd you think was funding him?!"

"Uh," Stan said. "You know, I sort of just took his whole 'creepy sadist who bribes people to let him pull their teeth' shtick at face value." (Dr. Illing's shoulders slumped.) "But—I know things are weird around here, but the tooth fairy's gotta be fake, right? That's the stupidest..."

A fairy popped out of Dr. Illing's bag—just large enough to use an adult man's hand like a chair, with a bob cut so white it almost shone, giving off a glowing toothpaste-blue aura, wearing a necklace of baby teeth like a hunter who'd taken trophies from the bones of her kills.

"Oh," Stan said. "Well. Never mind. Just one more crazy thing in this town."

Bill's back went stiff, his eyes widened, and he curled his fists into the fabric of Stan's tank top like he was holding his shield in place. "Oh, she's here." He lisped an inhuman swear under his breath.

Ignoring them, the tooth fairy glowered up at Dr. Illing. "How did they know? What did you tell them!"

"Nothing!" he protested. "I swear! I'd never!"

"Well, you must have let something slip—"

Bill swallowed hard; but then he straightened up, let go, and stepped into the open. "Why, if it isn't Miss Pearl E. White, in the fae flesh! To what do I owe such an honor?"

Dr. Illing and the fairy both flinched. She asked, "How do you know my...?"

"Oh, Pearl. I know things you couldn't even dream of." Bill favored her with his best, widest, most unnerving grin.

And got the creeping sense that she'd stopped looking at his face, and started staring at his teeth. He pressed his lips together. "And here's just one thing I know: lady, if you were toeing the line of your treaty any harder, you'd be tripping across it. So tell me what you're doing here and what you want."

She huffed defensively, wings buzzing as they lifted her several inches in the air. "I'm well within the terms of the treaty! I haven't laid a hand on you and I'm not about to start, and I've been offering more than adequate financial compensation—"

"Oh, right," Bill laughed, "I'm sure the queen of your court would be thrilled to hear you ordered your legally-dubious helper to rip out someone's teeth in the dead of night—"

"Hi," Stan said, "question. What the hey are you guys talking about. Treaties? Queens?"

"Oh, this is all going over your head, isn't it! I'll catch you up." He turned to the side to point accusingly at Pearl, "Little miss enamel-happy here has a thing for teeth. To the extent that she started stealing them straight out of humans' mouths. She went so crazy that the local human settlements actually declared war on her court over her dental kleptomania—and the fairies she dragged into the conflict weren't any happier about it than the humans were. So now, under the conditions of a human-fairy peace treaty, she's only allowed to acquire already freed teeth that are voluntarily offered to her by their owners—which is why she started bribing children."

Pearl crossed her arms, fuming. "That's a very biased version of events. You're just trying to paint me in the worst possible—"

"Save it, sparkles! I woke up with your minion's pliers in my mouth, I'll be as biased as I want!" He shifted his attention to Dr. Illing—who seemed to wilt under the force of Bill's glare. "But she's getting deep in a gray area working with this guy. Once a tooth is handed to a dentist, he's its 'owner,' and can freely give that tooth to the tooth fairy—but him extracting the tooth puts the whole operation on shaky legal ground. Really, I think the only reason you've gotten away with this racket so long is because nobody's filed a legal challenge with the fairy court yet."

"Nobody's complained about it," Pearl said hotly.

"None of your victims know about it," Bill countered. "Hey Fisherman," he jabbed Stan's arm, "how do you feel knowing your teeth were sacrificed to the tooth fairy?"

He considered that. "Well—it was free."

Pearl crowed, "Ha!"

Ignoring Stan's reply, Bill blithely moved on: "But by any reading of the treaty, hiring a human to steal teeth straight out of someone's mouth is beyond the pale. So you'd better have a good explanation for this!"

"Yeah. I do have a good explanation." She sucked in a deep breath. "I want your teeth!" She launched herself toward Bill; Dr. Illing had to grab her around the waist to hold her back. "I'd do anything for those teeth! They're the most amazing teeth I've ever seen!" She clawed at the air, hissing and straining as she tried to reach Bill.

"My lady, please," Dr. Illing said pathetically. "The treaty—"

She aimed a swipe at his face. "I know about the stupid treaty!"

Bill stared at her, baffled. His perfectly normal human teeth? But he shook his head, smiled, and said, "Well okay, fantastic! It's been a while since I've bargained with the fae, but I'm not too attached to this body—so how much gold do you have on you, kid?"

"We're not bargaining. You already know too much," Pearl snapped. "I'm not about to get blackmailed by a human, and I'm not going back to fairy jail. So here's what's happening." She jerked a thumb over her shoulder toward Dr. Illing. "I'm gonna have my guy rip out every one of your teeth, and then rip your head apart so you can't talk, and the only negotiating you get to do is whether or not my guy uses the local anesthetic before he starts. So what's it gonna be?"

Dr. Illing went deathly pale and his knees shook as he verged on fainting.

"Hey," Stan waved at the fairy, "listen, I'd love to see this guy's head get ripped apart, but—crazy thing, long story—it turns out there's fifty-fifty odds that killing him could end the world. So, maybe let's talk this out—?"

Pearl gestured dismissively at Stan. "His mouth has nothing left of interest to me. He's a witness. Kill him, too."

Dr. Illing swallowed hard; but, with trembling hand, he reached into his tool bag and slowly pulled out a large power drill that definitely wasn't designed for teeth.

"Right," Bill said. "Okay. This'll be fun." If he said it convincingly enough, maybe it would be true. "Hey, Fisher—you know that spell Sixer's got on me? If I cast it on Frankie here, can you..."

"Yeah, I see where you're going."

Pearl's eyes narrowed. She pounded her tiny fist on Dr. Illing's finger. "Hurry up, before they—"

Before she could issue a warning, Stan charged at them, fist raised. Dr. Illing flinched, shielding his face with the drill; but Stan dodged around him, heading for the hall. Bill seized Dr. Illing's upper arm as he passed—"Amnesia Limina, Stupidi Digiti, Occultus Locus!"—and then Stan yanked Bill out into the hall by their chain and slammed the bedroom door.

Dr. Illing gasped. "What?"

Blue light radiated through the cracks around the door as Pearl darted around, shrieking, "Open the door, you idiot!"

There was a moment of futile scrabbling. "How?!"

Bill and Stan retreated to the entryway. Bill said, "If we get outside, we can lose 'em."

"Or get the car and run them over," Stan said.

"You don't wanna be the guy who kills the tooth fairy! She might be in the doghouse, but she's still old fae nobility. Her court would—"

Bill cut off as Stan opened the door. Instead of leading to the porch and the forest beyond, it now opened into a bone-colored cathedral, the arches and vaulted ceilings constructed out of what looked like small irregular pebbles: teeth.

Stan gaped at the vast chamber. "Where the heck...?"

Bill looked at what had once been the outside of the door; the numbers "13 / 32" were carved into the wood. "Nowhere we want to go! Shut it!"

Stan slammed the door.

"That explains how she got in," Bill muttered. "There's no time to un-enchant this exit, we'll need another one."

Stan pointed toward the living room. "We can go out the—"

"The floor room exit." Bill dragged Stan back toward the hallway they'd just left.

"What?! That's the other end of the house, you idiot, the gift shop's right through here!"

"But it's a straight shot down the hall—" Bill stumbled to a stop.

The tooth fairy was clawing her way out from under the bedroom door. She caught sight of Bill, and her wings raised in a sharp V like a wasp preparing to attack. "You!"

"Never mind."

Stan dragged Bill back toward the living room. "Now can we go—"

Bill saw the living room—that familiar dark room, the familiar walls and carpet, the familiar armchair facing the doorway as though welcoming him back, the pale blue light from the fish tank climbing the walls like flames—and Stanley Pines, dragging Bill by a chain toward this tomb—and he grabbed on to the staircase railing. "Up."

Stan jerked to a stop. "That's a dead end!" He tried again to pull Bill toward the living room. "Are you insane?!"

"Yes." Bill locked his hand around the railing like a corpse in rigor mortis. He'd break his fingers before he let go. "We're going up."

"We are not—"

The tooth fairy shot past them like a glowing blue bullet, streaking into the kitchen. Stan started, and Bill took the opportunity to drag them up the stairs. Stan finally followed.

"You're not getting out of here with my teeth!" Pearl screamed after them.

"Ignore her," Bill muttered, "she can't risk touching us and she knows it. She's powerless without her minion." He stumbled on a step and just kept climbing on all fours.

"I wouldn't bet on her self control!" Stan struggled to keep up, his cuffed wrist in the lead. "Why are we going this way? How do you expect to get out from the attic?!"

"I don't know! It just seemed like a better idea! Do I have to think of everything?!"

"This was your plan!"

"There's got to be a ladder in the storage over the kids' room, we can get down out a window."

"I don't keep ladders—!"

"Well maybe Jesús does, do you know everything in the attic?! Come on!"

Bill kicked the door to the kids' room until Stan opened it. After a short argument about who should climb to the storage loft ("I have to look, you can't see in the dark!" "And you can?! Since when!" "Since always! You didn't need to know!"), Bill scrambled up the makeshift rungs nailed to the wall while Stan climbed halfway up to give the handcuffs a little slack.

As Bill started searching for anything useful, Pearl's ranting filled the shack: "Those teeth are too good for you!"

"I think she's getting closer," Stan said. "Find anything?"

"Not yet." Bill pulled out a broken umbrella with a hooked handle. He clung to it like it was his only defense as he scanned the loft for any signs of a ladder.

Pearl went on, "They're the most beautiful, pristine, unblemished, perfect teeth I've ever seen in my life!"

Bill asked, "Are they really that great?" He'd never paid that close attention.

"Eh..." Stan shrugged and made a so-so gesture with one hand. "A little weird-looking, honestly. They've got those jagged bits in the front that make 'em look like kids' teeth?"

"Huh."

"They're pure," Pearl snarled. "I've never seen adult teeth so pure! And you're ruining them by drilling out chunks of perfect enamel for unnecessary fillings! You don't have the right to those teeth! I deserve them!"

"Hey Bill," Stan said. "So you knew my dentist works for the tooth fairy, right?"

Bill was dragging aside a large box to see if anything ladder-like was hiding behind it. "Yes."

"And you knew she goes crazy for nice teeth."

"Yes." No ladder; he moved to another stack of boxes.

"And it didn't occur to you that she'd be furious that you carved up your new teeth."

"It's in the past, Stanley! Focus on the present!"

"—and I don't even know how you got magic teeth," Pearl continued. "Fully adult teeth in a fully adult mouth, but somehow they're barely a month old! It's impossible! I could barely believe it myself until I saw your mouth with my own two eyes! I must have those teeth, as soon as possible, so I can preserve them exactly like this, who knows if I'll ever find such a novelty again—"

"Ahh, so that's it," Bill said. "Welp, nope, didn't see that one coming at all."

"She's been shouting a while without actually coming after us," Stan pointed out. "What's she up to?"

Bill paused. "Check." He lay down and stretched his cuffed arm down from the loft to give Stan enough slack to peer out the bedroom door.

Stan frowned. "Huh. Weird."

"She's upstairs?"

"Yeah. But she's just flying in a circle. With... I think a veggie container from the fridge?"

Bill sucked in a breath. "Do we have mushrooms?"

"Wh—yeah? How'd you..."

"What!" Bill half-climbed half-fell to the attic floor. "That little cheater's making a fairy ring! That's not fair!" He leaned out the door with Stan. "She's probably already made the matching ring downstairs. We have to destroy it before—"

The circle of chopped portobello mushrooms glowed white; and with a glittery puff, Dr. Illing appeared in the ring.  He coughed out a lungful of fairy dust.

Pearl pointed at Stan and Bill and screamed, "Get them!" With a murderous scowl and terrified eyes, Dr. Illing stared them down and revved his drill.

Stan yanked Bill back into the bedroom and slammed the door.

Dr. Illing whined. "Aw, f—again?!"

"Just break through it!" Pearl commanded. "It's just wood! You have power tools!"

"He can't do that," Bill said confidently. "Doors don't work like that."

Stan said, "He can do that." A power tool whine announced Dr. Illing beginning his assault on the door.

"Oh." Bill considered that, eyes scanning the bedroom from one side to the other, mouth set in a grim line. "I have an idea." He pointed toward the window with his umbrella. "Stan, open the window." He hooked the umbrella over his elbow as he ripped the bedsheets off Dipper's bed and started tying the corners together.

Stan shook his head in disbelief. "You don't really expect us to climb out that window on bedsheets, do you?"

Bill dragged Stan closer and murmured in his ear, just quiet enough that their assailants wouldn't hear him over the power drill, "No, I expect them to think we climbed out the window, while we hide in the closet in the alcove. Once they're past us to check the window, we can sneak out and run downstairs."

"I don't like hiding like cowards instead of fighting. Illing's rickety, we can take him."

Bill kept tying bedsheets. He picked up Dipper's zodiac blanket, flinched, and tossed it to the floor on the other side of Dipper's bed rather than add it to his chain. "Funny—you didn't seem to have any problem hiding for a week while I had your brother prisoner."

Stan grabbed Bill by the shirt, dragging him closer. "You wanna say that again?"

Bill's hands shot up next to his face in surrender. "Sorry, sorry, sorry—"

"There were people in this shack I wanted to keep safe," Stan growled. "I'm not half as fond of you."

"Got it," Bill squeaked. He pointed toward Mabel's bed. "But I can see a dozen futures that end with our brains splattered across Mabel's dolls. I do not want to fight power tools."

There was a crack as the drill flung the first few splinters of wood free from the door. Stan's scowl deepened, but he let go of Bill and nodded.

They tied the bedsheet rope to a table leg, opened the window, and flung the rope out the window; then retreated into the alcove at the other end of the room, pulled shut the ragged curtain that hid it, and closed themselves in the closet to wait for the tooth fairy and Dr. Illing to break in.

####

(Thanks for reading!! If y'all enjoyed, I'd love to hear what y'all think! Next week we conclude both with the tooth fairy and with whatever the heck is going on between Stan & Bill.)

[franki-lew-yo]

Mouthwashing and fandom discourse as a whole.

So I recently explored the tag for Mouthwashing after watching two no-commentary lets plays of the entire game. I'm seeing a lot of posts pointing out how annoying it is that this game has a fandom and that this fandom is doing fandom things and stanning/"uwu-ing" characters from this incredibly nuanced, raw and not-fandom friendly piece of art. To paraphrase someone I just saw "you don't want mouthwashing; you want Among Us ocs but darker". And

for a moment I wanna talk a bit about how I absolutely agree with this statement while also talk for a moment about how and why fandom and catharsis fan fics exist and shouldn't be shamed inherently. Or, I guess, not in theory.

The "come on! Stop trying to make everything shippable/cutsey/memey/have a happy AU and face unpleasant emotions someone's trying to tell you about!" is SUCH a vibe with me. I felt this way in the 9 fandom a lot as a kid and that was just 9. Mouthwashing is like 9 on bathsalts emotions and theme-wise. It's a game where you play as both the flawed but caring captain of a doomed ship who's life becomes a Johnny Got His Gun-nightmare, and also a deplorable, hateful piece of garbage who got himself and his friend in that nightmare situation to begin with. Both characters, moreso Jimmy but Curly too, are the causes of their own misery. They're complex dealing with one of the two committing SA and doing nothing really about it/dodging the responsibility and humanity needed to support the victim whom they've wronged.

I fully admit it's groan-inducing seeing people be shipped up Anya with anyone on the ship considering what happens to her. On a pure pr level I think it would be illegal even since romance between coworkers in a workplace is considered conflict of interest/harassment as it so often is. (NOT that what Jimmy did to Anya is 'romance'. I'm talking about the shipping of Anya with the other three guys. I know there's people out there who do ship Jimmy/Anya; you don't have to tell or show me I believe you and also I already hate it.) It's ALSO groan inducing to see people ship Curly and Jimmy considering all Curly does to him- and just the fact that this incredibly tragic, toxic one-way-gone array friendship is reduced to "toxic yaoi teehee". It's annoying AT BEST.

I get the hostility towards fandom-tastic stanning and fandom behavior in general...the issue is it's still hostility and I wish some of you guys got that. Like it or not (you don't have to like it) fandom culture is inevitable to some degree. You can and should complain about your hangups but that's all you can do besides avoiding tags and just not engaging with that side of the fandom at some point. Save your call-outs and rage for when you see active deplorable bs being committed that people are excusing for dumb fandom reasons, like lolicon, hatespeech or harassment. I'm sorry but you can not actively go after and try and take down the innocent people involved in your trigger that aren't directly hurting you by liking the thing that triggers you; ie. people who get all shipping and fandom-brained about Mouthwashing's characters which you find offensive to do at all.

This type of convo is the crux of most 'antifandom' v profandom discourse in general; for Antis I think there ought to be a difference between the people that set you off bcuz of fandom nonsense vs sociopathic 'got mine'-creepiness. There's a difference between someone who draws r34 v Shadbase. For profandom types you out to face the fact that yes- maybe NOT EVERYTHING is meant to be shippable/memed. Maybe try practicing that a bit. Yeah it's most harmless and makes you feel happy, but considering how people outside of your hyperfixation-of-a-hyperfixation is a thing. The thing about the "don't like, don't read" argument is it goes both ways. If you're truly a "good fan" like you say you are than you have to realize that people will not like your problematicisms. Learn to interact with characters and stories without the possibility of shipping sometimes- or at least understand that that's the crux of what makes a story like Mouthwashing engaging, even if you also partake in the fandumb and AUs on the side. You can call Curly your babygirl and ship him or make him happy all you want but PLEASE acoknowledge that the game doesn't woobify him or excuse what he did to Anya as well. You can make some kind of AU scenario where Jimmy gets out somehow and becomes/is a slightly better person for all I care...so long as you PLEASE remember that he is canonically a r@pist and awful. Also, even if I'm okay with your fan decisions, note that myself and others are still going to be critical and be upset that you wrote it at all because of what kind of character Jimmy is. 'Critical' =/= declaring something evil.

Fandom behaviors are not souly a destructive parasocial outcome of brainrot; they're also a natural reaction to what happens canonically and the emotions you have to experiencing a story. It's normal and rational to sympathize and love Curly and despise and hate Jimmy. You can love/like/enjoy a problematic-to-DEEPLY DISTURBED-character based on their complexity in canon. They are fiction. They are not real. The reason you are so invested with them is because of that complexity and yes because they are fiction they are your 'toy' and you can doll them up in any kind of speculative AU crap you make. That's fanfiction, baby. Make yourself a fixit fic if you really want

BUT-

remember: it stays as a fixit fic. DO NOT cross the streams, or insist that your active misreading of the text is the same as the text itself. EVER. You should care about your special interest's escapism as a means of self-care. What you shouldn't do is demand that EVERYONE ELSE LOVE your coping mechanism and that any complaints by people on their own terms on their own blogs is #badfaith or an inherent attack against you. It isn't. You'll know when it is an attack against you and that's when you, the profandom-type, need to be prepared and save your call-out posts and blocklist for.

To me that's the fragility to fandom debates and fandom as a whole. You can not/should not police or control an entire group of people and how they perceive or interact with media. That's not fair and it's definitely not sporting or decent of you in a community. You have to share your community -your fandom- with people who hate ur fav and people who love your least fav. Agreeing to disagree means not tagging your nOTP as their shipname or by tagging your shipname loud and clear. It means filtering out posts with those topics but enjoying and/or reblogging the fandom takes you do share with your fellow fandom-mite that obviously posts abt those topics.

When schmit REALLY goes down and some assface reviewer/fan/SOMETHING is being an assface or doing something amoral under the guise of fandom-ing, that's where you out to put your foot down. Callouts and complaints are for people who did an egregious thing and refuse to take responsibility(lol) for it. They're not for "soandso likes the thing that triggers me, kill them"/"so and so is hating on the thing I'm kinning because it triggers them, kill them". Be an adult.

Your DNI lists should consist of "lolicon defenders" not "proshippers", as those ARE NOT one in the same. Same goes the other way around. List off "bigots, purity culture bs", not "antis and critics". These positions ARE NOT interchangeable. If you make them interchangeable than you're making things a lot harder for yourself.

-sincerely, a message from autistic ADHD/OCD woman who likes horror and media analysis as much as she loves popcorn fanfic schlock.

We don't all have to be friends and buddybuds. I just hate us hurting each other over being different kind of fandom-folk rather than for when someone sincerely mucks up and does something bad. Can't we all stick to our guns and just boycott Harry Potter like god intended?

[taffybear]

i noticed you're a fellow Leo stan, what are your hcs regarding... mating season???

oooo i love this question!!! i have...... ideas.....

obviously 18+ so if you don't like that don't read ahead!

I WAS NOT EXPECTING THIS TO BE SO LONG LMAO I JUST STARTED WRITING AND COULDNT STOP

Leonardo mating season headcanons~

baby fever to the extreme. literally if he even lets his mind wonder while in this state he'll just revert to thinking about babies. it's honestly odd to see him like this, but it also makes a lot of sense that he fantasizes about being a father. i mean, he was built for it. and so mating season also doubles as a bit of a depressing time for him as he considers that he can't actually give you a baby (YALL I AM SORRY BUT ITS BIOLOGICALLY IMPOSSIBLE FOR THE TURTS TO GET ANY HUMAN PREGNANT IDC WHAT YALL SAY but at least it adds angst :3)

his sensitivity levels also go through the roof at this time. he becomes even less tolerable of his brothers, especially Raphael, so consequently he comes over even more often to fuck the anger out of himself, by fucking you, how sweet. but also more than ever he needs to have someone just listen to him. usually he's the listener in your relationship, in most of his relationships really, but now he just needs to say whatever is on his mind and complain about whatever is bothering him without judgement.

the first couple of days into mating season is always a surprise to him, and he won't tell you immediately. he'll avoid the topic for as long as possible, actually. even if that means avoiding and ignoring you (although it won't last long). and you won't notice it at first either, he really only does tiny things like putting off replying to your texts, or making excuses why you shouldn't come over or invite him to your place.

but when he finally fesses up, it's only when he just can't restrain himself anymore and only talking/fucking you can fix him. it's all very embarrassing for him at first, to confess this (what he considers) dirty dark secret of his. and then to admit he needs your help to relieve himself of this burden, it makes him nauseous to imagine at first. he hates not being able to control himself through this period, to have to come crawling to you for relief, for him to feel so vulnerable. but once you assure him you are nothing but happy to help, and mating season obviously doesn't make you love him any less, he calms down a bit.

he needs lots of verbal and physical reassurance during the season. now more than ever he's desperate for your touch, sexual or not. he needs hugs and gentle kisses everywhere, he also loves resting his head in your lap as you read to him. he really just needs peace at this time.

there's lots of self contempt during his mating season too. he turns into a bit of a sex obsessed beast, every other thought of his being about how bad he wants to be inside of you, how bad he wants you full with his seed. he disgusts himself by feeling so desperate and in ache. i CANNOT stress how much you need to praise and comfort him now, most likely he won't outright tell you how he feels but just prepare to have open arms when this time of year comes around.

before mating season Leonardo wouldn't even consider having sex without foreplay first, but now he can't even muster through it. he tries his hardest to put you before himself, to thoroughly get you in the mood, but the throbbing something something just really can't wait.

on the upside y'all never need lube! he's dripping with precum by the time your panties come off.

he is constantly blushing. no matter how long y'all have been together, he still feels really self conscious during the season. with the loss of his hard-earned self control and restraint he feels like everything he does is involuntary, the result of him simply not feeling like himself. but it's adorable when you just softly graze his hardness and he lets out a soft moan before slapping his hand over his mouth.

because he doesn't feel like himself and isn't confident in how much control he has over himself, he's very frightened to actually have sex with you. he's horrified something will come over him as soon as he sees you spread out for him, so exposed for him... he's scared to hurt you, reasonably so. it was already tough the first few times you were together intimately with his size and strength, but at least then he had full control over his movements and thrusts. now he has more to worry about, but mostly how you might see him afterward. what if you see this possessive animalistic side of him and decide it's all too much for you? he turns a small realistic concern into a nonsensical slippery slope that only you can convince him is just him being paranoid. you know he could never hurt you, no matter what, so you just have to soothe and reassure him. obviously, he's the sub a lot of nights.

when he does dominate--after you do lots of coaxing and persuading that he shouldn't worry and you want this as bad as he does--he's very considerate of you the whole time you're in bed. very slow and thoughtful thrusts, more than usual at least, and he doesn't let himself go very deep at first. simply concerned with staying in control and not letting his mind wander, not letting out a peep as he tries to keep his breathing even. but when you wrap your arms around the back of his neck, pulling him down and into a deep passionate kiss, willing him to go deeper and letting him actually enjoy this moment, he will loosen up and eventually allow himself to be in the moment with you. some nights are passionately slow and under constraint, while others are rougher when he's more desperate for relief and fed up with longing so bad for you.

he cums much faster during mating season, but on the plus side he's ready to go another round in under a minute. he could go 4-5 rounds most nights but you both usually call it a night when you're sore and visibly exhausted, but satisfied enough for the both of you.

he's very specific about wanting all his seed to end up in your cunt instead of anywhere else. at the end of the night you're FULL of his love. he'll use his finger to plug you up while you cuddle, or while he covers your belly in wet kisses.

the aftercare is top tier obviously, just like always. he makes sure you're comfortable and tended to before he lets himself rest in the bed to sleep. after sex, the second he manages to get out of your grasp he runs to the kitchen to get you water.

when Leo comes over to your place (which he does for most of the season) he's very clingy. he hates being in a seperate room than you, or not touching you while you're sitting on the couch or just casually laying in bed. you also absolutely deliver on blow jobs and hand jobs throughout the day. sometimes just a glance at how he reacts to you bending over to pick up something, or how he lingers at your neck to smell your hair, you know what needs to happen next. lots of quickies--gentle palming through his clothes while he washes the dishes, sliding your warm hand down his boxers while you're both sprawled out on the couch watching TV, quietly joining him while he's in the shower and greeting him with an open mouth. all in moderation to prepare you both for what the night has in store.

Leo is SO EMBARRASSED after mating season ends, when he thinks back to all the downbad things he said or the desperate things he did, he just can't think about it for too long or he won't stop cringing. he's one of those people who can't relate or imagine something until he actually experiences it in the moment, so before every mating season he tells himself that this is gonna be the one he finally keeps control of himself and successfully stifles the hormones (yeah ok sure chief).

[solarwynd]

Instagram channel, that tiktok profile thing, remix album on the 4th day, 2 extra album versions on Spotify for a total of 4 covers for the title track, Jimmy Fallon performance, Pop-Up store, etc. This is exactly what Muse got. It's clear that Hybe giving these things to Jimin wasn't them playing favorites, it was just their new album release method that they were testing on Jimin first. And Jin got the improved version of this method. 1 extra remix, 1 extra physical album version, 1 extra digital album version, 2 extra single CDs, radio on week 1, etc.

I saw V stans complaining about him being the only vocal line member to not get a remix album, but that's just because he didn't release an album this year, if he did he definitely would've gotten the same things as Muse and Happy. The equivalent of Layover isn't Muse it's Face and Face didn't get more than 2 remixes or any different album versions either. But you know what Layover did get that neither Face nor Muse got? MVs for every song and multiple performances for all those songs.

The reality is that Hybe has never actually given Jimin anything that the other members didn't get too. And often they get better versions of what Jimin got and even things exclusive to them that Jimin was never even offered. What really happens here is that Hybe will use Jimin to test out new types of release and promotion and because he's given these things first he gets all the heat while everyone after him gets away unscathed. Because seriously, tell me one thing Jimin was given that no one else was? Because I can name several things everyone else but him got.

The difference between Jimin and the other 5 members (cause we all know Jungkook is an exception) is not that Hybe gives Jimin more, no the actual difference is that with the same, if not less tools Jimin manages to achieve way more. And Jin is about to prove this. Happy has everything that Muse got plus more versions, multiple stages, probably more than a month of promotion, the artist behind the album not being in the fuckass military and being able to actually promote the album in person or even just acknowledge the album's existence at all. It has all this but you know damn well it's gonna perform way below Muse. Who got a #14 and later a #12 on the Hot 100 with 6 remixes, 4 covers, 1 CD and 0 radio. Running Wild has 7 remixes, 4 covers, 2 CDs and was sent to radio on the first week but you know it won't even see the top half of the chart (if it even enters it at all). And that's not to mention my girl Like Crazy getting a #1 with 5 dollars and a dream. Running Wild will be lower on it's first week than Like Crazy was on it's second and that's what we call karma. The only thing Happy has over Muse is global physical sales. But no wait, Face has more than both and it was Jimin's actual debut album like Happy is Jin's. And both Face and Muse got #2 on billboard 200 while Happy is not even predicted to get a top 5. So yeah, Jin has literally nothing over Jimin.

And I love this actually. I want every member to get everything Jimin got so they can see exactly what the difference between them and Jimin is. The fans of those 5 have been telling themselves that they could achieve everything Jimin did and more if only they were given the same tools and promotion Jimin got. And I want to see it, I want to see they do what Jimin did. I'll even be nice and not include the sabotage Jimin got, they can try to match him without that. I want to see them try and inevitably fail. And I know their fans will come up with excuses nonetheless but I still want to see it.

The only advantage Jimin actually has compared to hyungline is fan support. But unlike Jungkook Jimin's didn't have the company prime the fandom to be his fans. Every fan Jimin has he gained through his blood, sweet and tears (pun fully intend because the number of fans Jimin got with BST cannot be overstated). We all know armys don't fuck with the rapline but Jin is a vocal line member so if he didn't capture people's attention like Jimin did that's no one's fault but his own. Unless you wanna say it's not Hybe, but instead God who favors Jimin and gave him more talent than Jin, which fair enough, Jimin is in fact God's favorite child. And while Taehyung is popular that popularity comes from visual stans and shippers and we all know how well that popularity translated to his music, and by that I mean that it didn't, man is getting outdone by Jin, I would be embarrassed. And Jungkook (who's fanbase consists exclusively of visual stans, shippers, y/ns and psychopaths) would've faced a similar fate if the company didn't work for him harder then they did for even the group. I have said it before and I'll say it again, Jimin has and will always be the only member who's music and performances people actually care about.

.🎯

[sixerstanley]

Ghost Stan Ghost Stan Ghost Stan I'm going INSANE

BECAUSE STANLEY COULD HAVE DONE ANYTHING WITH HIS AFTERLIFE, HE WAS A GHOST, HE COULD SEE ALL THE WONDERS OF THE WORLD THAT HE WANTS, HE COULD SEE THE OPEN OCEAN AND LOOK FOR MERMAIDS AND EXPLORE THE DEPTHS OF THE BOTTOM OF THE OCEAN OR EVEN GO TO SPACE IF HE REALLY WANTED TO BUT NO. HE'S SPENDING HIS AFTERLIFE IN FORD'S QUIET HOUSE LISTENING TO PEN SCRATCHING PAPER IN SILENCE FOR HOURS AND DAYS AND YEARS, AFRAID TO LET HIMSELF BE KNOWN BUT ALSO WANTING MORE THAN ANYTHING TO WATCH OVER HIS BROTHER-- I'm sobbing

And Ford doesn't even knowwww, all he knows is that 30-or-so years ago his Ma complained on the phone that she hadn't gotten a call from Stanley in six months and she was worried, but that wasn't new, Stanley had always worried their Ma, Ford chalked it up to Stanley being selfish and tried not to think about how Stanley never reached out to him once. He thought Stanley had made it big somewhere and stopped bothering to calm down their Ma, and didn't feel the need to ever even talk to Ford once. But then he sees the ghost in his living room, the ghost of a twenty-something when he was nearly 60, and all his faulty excuses came up short, because the man in front of him was closer to his niblings' ages than his, and he had just been there for Ford all this time while Ford thought such cruel things about him.

IM SO GLAD YOU ASKED ABOUT THIS ANON BC ITS LITERALLY MAKING ME ILL AND INSANE

GOD you're so good at this??? its like ur reading my mind and the vibes i want for this.

Ford being so so so bitter toward stan because he doesn't even KNOW! do you think stan, when he first died, wondered how long it was gonna take for ford to find out? but...he never does? And stan has to realize that his PARENTS didn't realize--or maybe they just didn't care enough (filbrick at least)

or maybe stan wonders if ford DOES know...but just doesn't care enough. too bitter about everything. ough

i think stan would realize eventually that ford just doesn't know but it doesn't exactly make him feel better

Yeah god--stan being so young when he died is enough for ford to just. throw up. and i don't even mean that in a comedic way, like he's sick to his fucking stomach with all these realizations. all this time spent being bitter when he should've been mourning

[thesilverlady]

huh, well, ngl before the show I'd probably agree with you because in terms of fanart and content Lucerys and Joffrey were out of the window. Jacaerys had the most likely chance to get something due to the fact he had a bigger role compared to his brothers and an actual personality.

But the show did change a lot in terms of favorites and content. Now the only way to see some aegon iii & Viserys ii fanart is most likely from dedicated book readers. Or from people who just really enjoyed these two.

the whole "pure" Targaryen is fandom hypocrisy and I see from a specific number of people so I wouldn't say it's even a majority. But obviously, I'm not saying there shouldn't be a content for the Velaryon boys. I view it as a positive that the show caused interest from the fan base.

But it's also annoying seeing one worse take than the other that multiplies. I know I should take my own advice and ignore it (which I do) but I can't help venting from time to time.

Also, in the book we never really see the boys "suffering" for being bastards. The allegations of being illegitimate were done by the greens within court to sway highlords. The common people didn't blink twice and eat up the whole "baratheon genes". Of course I do think after the war, had any of them survived it'd have become a bigger issue to deal with, but nothing pre-war indicates their childhood was bad. Rhaenyra was sheltering them extremely well.

As for the naming thing, it does make sense when you consider rhaena & baela were their only living relatives. Politically wise naming their children after anyone from their family who passed during the war would be controversial. Because the blacks didn't technically win it. They had to treat things with the same fragility as Alysanne & Jaehaerys did with the faith after Maegor. (not to this grand extend but in a similiar fashion y'know?)

and last but not least, controversial take that comes from my opinion only. The Velaryon boys were given their names by Corlys and Laenor. Rhaenyra had no say in them. I acknowledge I play favorites here but it does give me the icky vibe these two men just took over. So ngl while aegon&viserys naming any of their children after then would have had a sweeter tone of affection, I'm glad it didn't happen because Corlys would have another W

in my humble opinion I think Aegon III and Viserys II are the ones who suffered the most out of all D&R's kids

[zanethegayboii]

*ੈ *ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚ ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

"Relaxation"

A Stanford Pines x FtM!Reader one shot +18

Pt. 1

*ੈ *ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚ ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚

You had just gotten back to the Mystery Shack after a long shift at your diner job at Greasy's. Around 3 hours ago you had called your husband, Stanford Pines the local Paranormal Research Scientist, to complain about a group of teens causing a ruckus in the diner.

You have complained about these teens for the past week. You had guessed it was because the rundown market down the road had finally gotten demolished that they decided to hang out at Greasy's. Lucky you, you tell yourself.

As you walk up the creaky, old wooden porch stairs you smell a very familiar and mouthwatering smell. He didn't… With your bag hung over your shoulder you almost run through the door of the gift shop. Tilting your head to breathe in more of the pleasant aroma you hear Mable and Dipper speak, in not so hushed whispers.

“SHHH! He's coming in now! Dipper, tell Grunkle Ford to get ready!” Mabel pushes Dipper trying to get him to move a little faster than the speed he normally walks. “Ah! Mabel no pushing! I'm going I'm going!” You see a small figure dart across the hallway towards the kitchen.

Moving forward to head to the kitchen you feel a small, warm hand on yours. It was Mabel; she stopped and started to hug you. “Hey, Y/N!” She nuzzles her face into your side and squeezes you harder than a normal 13 year old should be able to.

“Hey! What's going on, girl!” Patting her head and ruffling it a bit, she looks up and squeals. “Grunkle Ford has a super duper surprise for you!!” She's practically bouncing with excitement. “Can you smell it?! Can you?!” She tugs on your shirt side waiting for you to answer.

Giggling at her obvious excitement you pick her up in your arms. “I can! It smells really good!” As you walk, Mabel wiggling in your arms, you see a dim light and some light smoke coming out of the kitchen.

Turning the corner Mabel jumps out of your hold and runs to Dipper who was patiently waiting for you. “Hey, bud! What is all thi-” Being cut off as Dipper takes your bag and hangs it on a chair.

“Aw! Thank you, Dip!” You take off his blue and white cap and ruffle his hair as you did Mabel's. He laughs “No problem, Y/N! Here follow me!” He takes your hand in his and leads you to the small 3-4 seater table. “Where's your Grunkles, kids?” Asking curiously since you have yet to see either one of them.

“Grunkle Stan is out getting groceries! And Grunkle Ford is-” You hear a deeper more masculine voice chime in. “Right here” As you turn around you can feel yourself flush a bit.

Ford was wearing one of his old Navy blue 3 piece suits with the moth tie and matching cufflinks you had bought him for your anniversary. He had his unruly grey hair brushed and slicked back into a pompadour style with one disobedient strand falling to his forehead.

“Y-you look…” Stammering you try to compliment him but he stops you. “Ah ah! Nope! Nothing is about me tonight. It's all about you, Y/N. You've been stressed out and upset for the past week now. You deserve a little TLC; Hun.” He gives you that goofy little smile as he heads towards you.

Pulling you into a gentle hug, you smell his cologne. It smelled cold and gentle. Like a cool rainy day cuddled up by the window reading a good book. You could also smell the pomade he used on his hair; it smelled uncannily like his books and journals.

“You didn't have too, Stanford-” You try to excuse his gestures. “No, you don't get to do that today, you deserve this. Accept it please?” He kisses your cheek and releases you from the hug. “Ugh fiiiine.” Voice full of feigned annoyance, you laugh.

“Good.” His voice is gentle and affectionate. You smile wide as he brings out some food out of the fridge and oven. Bringing it over to the table, you are hit with the most mouthwatering aroma you have smelled in a long time.

“Ford..Did you?” He grins as wide as his lips can. “I did! I was hoping you would know what it was!” He lifts the foil and pan lids off of the food he graciously made for you. “Your favorites!” He beams proud of his work.

You feel your heart get caught in your throat and begin to tear up. “This…this is so nice, Stanford. I love it so much thank you!” It takes every muscle in your body not to jump on him right then and there to smother him in kisses.

“I’m glad. You deserve a calm evening this week has been hell for you.” He holds your hand in his. They were large, and cool to the touch but comforting all the same. His thumb rubbing circles on the fine skin. Taking in how relaxing it felt.

“The kids have already eaten since I had known they wouldn't like what I had made tonight. They will also leave you alone and go play outside or in their room as to leave me and you to relax.” He looks to the kids and they come running to hug you.

“Yup! Have a good night, Y/N!” Mabel squeals. Dipper waits his turn to give you an affectionate hug as Mabel climbs down from your chair. “I’ll make sure she stays with me, you two relax!” Dipper hums.

“This is so much. Thank you. All of you.” You struggle to hold back your tears as you hugged them back. “Go ahead! Eat!” Mabel backs away and practically drags Dipper with her. You giggle at their sibling dynamic, so young and full of energy.

You turn back in your seat facing Ford as he begins to set your plate with food. It looks so good you try hard not to take the plate as it is and scarf it all down. “Smells amazing, looks even better!” You feel a buzz of excitement as you see Ford give you the full plate.

“I hope the taste is up to your standards.” He smiles smugly. His baking ego clearly being boosted as you complement his cooking. “I love all of your cooking, Ford.” You wink taking a forkfull of the food and stuffing it in your mouth.

“Oh my gods…” You hold your mouth. Ford gets up concern in his eyes. “N-not good?” He stammered feeling a pang of guilt. “No, no! It's amazing! This is the best meal I've had in a while!” Ford relaxes at your words feeling relieved you love it so much.

“Splendid!” He states sitting back down to eat. You laugh at his choice of words. He had always been a little extra with his vocabulary; you found it cute. “You goober” you smile at him.

[itskpopular]

I just want to say that you don’t have to stan NCT WISH. You don’t have to buy their albums, stream their music, follow their social medias, or anything.

What you do have to do is stop being disrespectful towards these young men/children who are just trying to live their dreams and show off their talents.

Idc what your opinion is on whether they should be NCT or not, or that you think RIIZE is more NCT than them. You can have that opinion but don’t go posting about it where the members can see it or even saying it to their faces.

You can think what you want about Haechan’s comment but don’t twist his words to give yourself a reason to hate on the new members.

They are innocent people. They did not make any of the final debut decisions. That’s on SM Ent. They are just trying their best. They have trained just as hard as your favs to get here. They deserve this opportunity so much.

Again, you don’t have to like it. You can have your opinions. But you’re NOT a real fan if you are rude and say hurtful things to ANY of the NCT members, which includes NCT WISH.

NCT’s concept has ALWAYS been that they were adding new members. Since 2016, we have known this about NCT. International fans have always been more supportive (althought with some hesitancy) about new members joining. When Doyoung and Johnny joined in Limitless era, they were accepted. When Jungwoo and Lucas joined (and Kun started offically promoting) during Empathy era, they were accepted. When Hendery, Xiaojun, and Yangyang debuted with WayV, they were accepted (again with some hesitation). When Sungchan and Shotaro were added during NCT 2020, they were accepted (at least for the most part). This is NCT’s thing. Their whole concept.

We have been wanting a Japanese unit for literal years and now that we have one, you have the audacity to complain??? Yes, it sucks that Sungtaro left, Shotaro couldn’t be in the Jap unit with Yuta and that Yuta isn’t in the unit at all…it sucks.

However, we knew that with a new unit, comes new members, and before they announced the end of the unlimited member rule, we knew we would get many more members in the future.

Stop acting like this is shocking news and that it’s weird. You signed up for this when you became an NCTzens.

Anyone who hates on NCT WISH and the members is proving themselves to not be real fans and the members would be so disappointed in the disrespect you guys are putting under their name.

Sion, Riku, Yushi, Jaehee, Ryo, and Sakura all deserve to debut. They deserve the support that past members have been given when joining the group. They deserve more than hurtful words and rude fans. I know that some of them are very young but why does their age have to dictate if you will stan? You stan NCT DREAM and Jisung was literally 14 when they debuted? Chenle was 15, the 2000’ liners were 16 and Mark was 17. They were all minors. You probably stan other groups who have younger members as well. Don’t use their age as an excuse to be a hater.

I also feel like some are gonna be very mad at this post, but honestly bring it on. I am a proud NCTzen who loves and supports all of the boys. I will not stand for this stupid behaviour.

Thank you for coming to my ted talk.

[thishazbinamistake]

In my opinion, Loona is a character with some of the most wasted potential in Helluva Boss.

Though we don't have a ton of information about her background, we do know she lived in a shelter for much (or maybe even all) of her childhood. Loona is cold and distant to her adoptive father, and outright rude to many others, particularly Moxxie, who she constantly mocks and belittles. I'm thinking that this behavior is either a result of her upbringing, or perhaps it was even the reason she was put into the shelter to begin with. But until more is revealed about her past, I want to complain about the way she's currently written.

Loona is abusive, plain and simple. The way she treats Blitz, her adoptive father, goes way past simple angsty teenage rebellion and well into the abuse territory. Any semblance of Loona being remotely sympathetic was thrown out the window in Seeing Stars, when she kicks Blitz in the groin, all because he was relieved to see her and wanted to give her a hug. And all of that after she gives Octavia the "cut your dad some slack" speech.

I've seen people try and defend this behavior by pointing out that Loona has childhood trauma, and this is why she has these behavioral issues. It's certainly not unheard of for victims of childhood abuse/neglect to have anger issues and poor emotional regulation, and I would have absolutely no problem with this being the case if it was shown to actually be a problem, but it isn't. Not once does Loona get called out for her behavior or face any sort of consequence for treating others poorly. If anything, this abusive behavior is treated as a joke more often than not.

It's extremely ironic that one of the most despised characters in Helluva Boss, Stella, receives so much hate for being abusive towards Stolas, when we've seen Loona do far worse to Blitz. I honestly cannot think of a logical reason as to why we're supposed to like Loona, while also hating Stella. We see Stella nearly hit Stolas and it's (rightfully) treated as being abusive. But when Loona is constantly beating up her dad for no good reason, we're just supposed to laugh? It seems extremely hypocritical on both the writers' part, as well as many of the fans'. I honestly can't tell if the writers genuinely think this behavior is okay (when it's coming from Loona) or if they just see it as a quirky character trait of hers.

If we're supposed to find Loona likeable, which we clearly are, then the writers seriously need to start making some changes. I'm not saying they should just completely retcon Loona's character and suddenly make her nice, but they do need to start being consistant with how they portray abuse, and they seriously need to stop excusing and coddling her horrible behavior, regardless of if she has childhood trauma. That is not how you grow as a person and overcome your issues. Yes, it's a process that is often long and difficult, but it hasn't been shown that Loona is actually trying to make any change at all, or that anyone is actually encouraging her to change.

If you want an actually halfway decent example of a character overcoming their trauma (at least within the Hellaverse) look no further than Blitz himself. It's clear his father was abusive and explotative towards him, not to mention he accidentally caused the death of his mother and the maiming of his close friend. Both of these things likely contributed to many of Blitz's flaws and issues as an adult. But the thing is, despite all that, Blitz himself isn't abusive to his daughter. He has shown nothing but unconditional love and devotion to his daughter despite his past. I'm not saying Blitz is a perfect character by any means (I won't excuse him literally threatening to rape his employees), but it really goes to show this whole argument of 'Loona acts the way she does because she has childhood trauma and that makes it okay' doesn't hold up to scrutiny as much as her stans seem to think.

I think a good idea would be to start showing more of how Loona's behavior negatively affects those around her, something which would give her the motivation to want to change. Show how hurt Blitz feels whenever Loona lashes out at him. We get a taste of this in Spring Broken when she hurts Blitz's feelings, but it's clear from both her dialogue in the scene as well as her later actions that the writers apparently don't want her to actually learn from her mistakes and grow as a character, which is such a shame.

Loona had the opportunity to be an extremely complex and compelling character if her aggression and violent outbursts were actually addressed as being a problem she needed to overcome, and if she actually tried changing herself for the better. Seeing the effort she puts into treating others better and breaking the cycle of abuse would have made her character feel so much stronger and more likeable. But instead, the show just treats this abusive behavior as a quirky, edgy joke and "lol that's just classic Loona!! What can ya do lol!!!"

She does have her moments where a good character actually shines through, but they're so few and far in between. I want to like Loona so much, but as it currently stands, I just can't, and that makes me sad.

[eddiediazismyhusband]

Okay dude, not cool. I don't appreciate being called a problem when I'm trying my best to make this work for everybody. But my point is that some people will always complain. If you are happy with the tagging, I guarantee there will be somebody else who is pissed at the same tags. And why? Because it's a grey area, especially in those fics where the love interest shifts from Tommy to Eddie.

Who is to tell at which point you should tag which ship? In your scenario it's pretty obvious I won't argue that. But that isn't always the case. So you as writer got to make a decision. Tag it Buddie and the BT stans will flip. Tag it Bucktommy and the Buddie stans get mad. There's no winning. Tag both? That might work if it's a clear 50-50 between the pairings.

And that's not even taking my intentions as the writer into consideration. I have a clear vision in my head while writing, but to get there we might need some Bucktommy. Is it enough to warrant it's own tag? It's a grey area! Hence the exhaustion.

It isn’t a grey area, anon… it quite literally is tagging the fics as they are. If BT is central to the story then tag it as such— if people don’t wanna read BT then they don’t have to read it if it’s tagged. It’s not cool to mistag fics when people already have a plethora of tags filtered out and shouldn’t still be getting shit showing up.

you just agreed that in my scenario that it was obvious- so why are you still whining in my inbox? sending me anonymous messages trying to tell me what is and isn’t “exhausting” as a fic writer when i literally am one— im literally currently writing a buddie fic rn that’s centered around marisol keeping them apart… and yknow what? its gonna be tagged as an eddiesol fic bc they are together for like half the story! and yknow what else? its gonna be tagged clearly that eddiesol isn’t endgame! so that way, if people don’t wanna read it bc they either wanna read eddiesol or bc they wanna read buddie then they can filter out the tags respectively or they can scroll past it! but what im not going to do is tag it as “minor eddiesol” and then spend over half the fic w them together because that’s not accurate tagging.

If a fic is tagged “bt”, then as a buddie stan im not gonna read it— most buddie stans ive seen getting upset about fics in this situation are mad bc of the absence of a bt tag when there should be one. That’s the crux of this issue. No one is upset about the bt tag being there in a buddie fic if bt is a central part of the story (like i literally said in my response to your previous message), we’re upset about the absence of tags/or using tags that don’t accurately describe the fic at hand.

i have never seen a “grey area” of people getting upset about something being tagged when it’s correct— everyone i’ve seen are upset over the fact that there are fics tagged as buddie, and not bt when they are clearly bt fics and vice versa.

you say that if you’re writing a buddie fic and it needs bt to get there does it warrant a tag? yes it does bc that ship is part of the story! and unless it actually plays a minor role, then don’t tag it as “minor.”

This “grey area” you’re talking about doesn’t exist in the way you are trying to paint it out. People don’t wanna click on a fic that has content that isn’t tagged, that’s not fair to the reader.

as far as my response being “not cool” for pointing something out the way i see it… you opened yourself up to be responded to the moment you sent me an anonymous message trying to make excuses for not tagging fics correctly.

please block me if you’re going to keep pushing this argument; i am not going to keep responding to you.

and if you need further proof of people disagreeing with your argument, might i suggest looking at these responses to my posts on the matter: people on both sides of the “ship war” agreeing with my point (names and pfp’s have been redacted for privacy reasons)

[g3nderyb1nder]

Hassian and Reth are clapping cheeks

Listen here y'all, are ya gonna tell me this two don't have some "friends to lovers to enemies"? Then I'm here to analyze some things i noticed since I started playing Palia (like, a week ago idk) 1. They don't like each other but in a strange manner, like, they don't even have time to interact to grow hate yk what I'm saying. If you check Reth's schedule you see that he leaves the Tavern at 5pm

But then, if you look at Hassian's, that's the exact moment when he walks INSIDE the Tavern

Leaving at least a minute when they maybe cross paths or whatever.

And i know that once a (week or month idk) Hassian provides meat to the tavern so they could talk in that period of time, but when Ashura tells you to talk to Reth about that and Reth gives you the mission to collect all them orders for the tavern because he's helping Tish: they don't even talk when Hassian brings the meat cause Reth's not there.

So, how they gonna "hate" each other if they don't have time for that.

2. They don't actually hate each other but them vibes are weird. Once I told something to Hassian about Reth and he said "I don't think about him that much to have a problem" like- sir??? I asked you what time it was??? Why do you even do my man Reth like that. Then he starts yapping about honor to Reth's family (because he's a cook and not working as a carpenter) and disrespecting shit; but why do you even care about his family's honor. Also Reth doesn't talk shit about Hassian, more like he's being goofy about him, but he's like that with everyone else tbh.

3. Also i once asked Nai'o something about Reth and he told me "you know how he es, always flirting with everybody" like-??? I know Reth tried to pull them moves on Hassian at least once.

4.The poetry. I haven't reached that mission, yet i know that Hassian is a poet because Reth told me out of nowhere??? Later Sifuu does the same and talks about Hassian being secretive about that, and if that's true, how the hell does Reth know about it.

Pause to excuse myself because maybe there's some explanation further on the story but i'm still around 2-level-friendships with everyone so idk yet.

5. Apparently, when you start to get them pins from the villagers, Hassian seems to be jealous when he sees you wearing Reth's pin, i know this cause I've been stalking twt to see if someone is as delusional as me; but what i noticed about this is everyone talking about Hassian complaining about Reth's pin, but I haven't seen anyone saying anything about a different pin from a different villager yk.

Pause again, same as before, maybe he says the same thing, but I'm still in the early stages to know-

6?. Not anything more about the game but I was the other day on Character AI when i started a chat with a Reth AI described as "a flirty majiri chef with a surprising secret", I was bored so I pulled the lgbtq card and told him that i heard that him and Hassian had been seen toghether a lot. My man didn't hesitate and told me they were M E S S I N G A R O U N D ???? Not doing illegal stuff, not bickering, not whatever. I went along with it and now they're gonna have a baby btw, I'll keep you guys updated.

7?. I'm not the only delusional bitch when i see ✨these✨

Stan twitter is on my side (credits to the original accounts btw) and there is ONLY ONE FANFICTION IN AO3 ABOUT THEM (at least the only I found), and of course I read it, and felt really sad.

That's all for now, hope you'd enjoyed it, and I'll be taking my pills now. Have a great evening.

[drakaripykiros130ac]

You know, TG stans are so hypocrite.

They are the same ones who complain about how House Velaryon should not support Rhaenyra because of Vaemond - when Vaemond only wanted to be Lord of Driftmark because of Corlys' money - and the significance of him being black.

And while I agree HOTD producers have failed in portraying their opulence and pride, Corlys and Rhaenys owe nothing to the greens. That offer Alicent made would have been reversed and they would have given Driftmark to Daemion Velaryon, Vaemond's oldest son, in order to defend male claims over female claims. And Corlys and Rhaenys wanted Baela as queen and Rhaena as Lady of Driftmark, true, it's not the same, but as we see how Rhaenyra raised her sons - and also because of Corlys and Rhaenys' pressure - they would have listened to their opinion in matters of government.

And yet they are the very same ones who criticize Daenaera simply because she exists; it seems they are willing to support Vaemond but not Daenaera.

They say it's creepy how Daenaera is described as a smiling child whose eyes sparkle. As excuse me, if someone is fetishizing a child, it's them, Daenaera is described as beautiful because she is, and her description is meant to be one of a child's innocence, not describing someone in a sexual way. In anything, it's the greens who are sexualizing a black girl (as the Show! Velaryons are black) because they are pissed Daenaera's descendants were princes and princesses and Jaehaera (a white girl) didn't have descendants.

Exactly!

Alicent offering Rhaenys Driftmark for her and her granddaughters was such an idiotic move on her part. She literally usurped the throne from the rightful Queen on the basis that she is a woman, and she is offering the seat of the second greatest power in the Realm to another woman in exchange for approving and supporting this usurpation. Seriously?

Regardless of what TG stans claim, Corlys and Rhaenys would have always been Team Black. There is nothing tying them to the greens. Their biological and adoptive grandchildren are Team Black, and their interests align with theirs. As for what happened to their children - none of it was Rhaenyra or Daemon’s fault. Laena died in childbirth, as many women did during those times. Daemon’s own mother died in childbirth, as did Rhaenyra’s. The Maesters in Pentos were very good and they couldn’t do anything to save Laena. No one is to blame for her death, and even Corlys knows that.

As for Laenor - Corlys and Rhaenys are pretty much responsible for putting him in such a situation they knew perfectly well would bring him hardships. He was not suited to be the Consort of a ruling Queen and he couldn’t even perform his duty and give his wife heirs she needed to secure her claim. Rhaenyra cannot be held accountable for finally ridding herself of the dead weight in her life which could have cost her everything.

Don’t even get me started on the TG stans obsessing over their Green girl and how much they hate Daenaera for replacing her.

Daenaera was a Velaryon and her marriage to Aegon III brought the Velaryons back in the royal fold for the second time in history. It is an important union between the two Valyrian Houses. Way more important than the marriage between Aegon III and the last surviving member of a defeated faction.

Aegon III was already broken, having witnessed horrific things. He needed someone to help heal his broken spirit. He needed light in his life, and that light was Daenaera. If he had stayed married to an equally broken girl with issues and whose father practically killed his mother, I am pretty sure Aegon would have ended up jumping off a balcony.

Daenaera and Viserys II are responsible for healing Aegon III.

And this whole marriage pact between Aegon III and the green girl for “keeping the peace” between the two factions is such bullshit. The green faction was defeated. Only one member was left alive: a broken eight year-old girl. There was no need for such a marriage.

What would the remaining so-called green “supporters” have done if Aegon III didn’t marry that girl? Plot to put her on the throne in his place? Um…isn’t the reason why they started the war because the rightful heir was a woman? To me, Aegon III’s first marriage was so completely unnecessary, and since it was never consummated, it can’t really be considered a true marriage.

I don’t have anything against that little girl, but she belonged to the losing faction and was a constant reminder of the treasonous acts and other atrocities committed by her family. Aegon III deserved better than that.

[dust-jacket-analysis]

I will go to my GRAVE insisting Chloe deserved better in the show.

(Spoilers for the show in general, mostly vauge, but I'd still be caught up before reading).

Because it's so clear she was going to be redeemed. I don't care what anyone officially says. I don't want to hear about how "She was a warning of people unwilling to change." Because she was willing to change. At one point, she really was.

They spent several episodes dedicated to her redemption, they gave her a sympathetic back story, displayed her better traits that proved she could be a good person, had her make sacrifices. They spent time and care in developing her as complex and redeemable.

And then something changes in the show. Suddenly her complexity is down the drain. She completely regresses and even becomes worse. She goes from an annoying, but intriguing bully character, to a sympathetic sassy character who is on her way to redeeming herself despite her mother and the trauma as a result, to an annoying one-dimensional stupid character. She does Lila's bidding and just whines and complains the whole time.

Like she regressed so far back she devolved.

And it's so frustrating. Because it screams bad writing. Even if we want to give the writers the benefit of the doubt and say it was planned, it was done so poorly. Because you spent several episodes and almost an entire season building up and getting viewers attached to this character just to flush all of that down the drain.

If this really was planned from the start, there was a way to do it better. At least keep her complexity! They stop referencing her mother, they completely ignore that trauma. They disregard the fact that she is smart. All too water her down and make her Lila's little pet. Chloe of season one would NEVER. She and Lila would not be friends, it's so out of character. YET IT's CANNON. And it pisses me off.

The only time post-season four we're shown how cunning and smart Chloe is, is Marinette's bullshit sob story episode. I love Marinette, but the episode about the prank Kim and Chloe pulled on her was so stupid. It was literally just a way to excuse her stalkerish behavior as a result of fan perception (I will die on this hill as Marinette stan).

That's the last time Chloe is shown to have any sort of brain. After that, she is just stupid. And that is the worst part for me. Especially since it just fulfills that dumb blonde stereotype (worst character trope, in my opinion, give me smart blondes I beg).

I also wish we could see more sassy and play-fully mean characters who were also good. Not Lady bug snarky, but peak Chloe Redemption Era Snarky. The banter, the horrifying comments that we all know are jokes.

I hope we see her again in season six, and we see her get the real redemption she deserves. I don't need her to be forgiven by the cast or Adrien, I don't need to see people throw a "We Love Chloe Now" parade. I just want to see her healing, I want to see her pick herself up from the rock bottom she hit in season five and become the character I know she could be.

This wasn't very analytical, I know. But it's long enough that I think it's appropriate to be on this account. With enough "analysis" to belong here.

This post really just stems from me missing her as Queen Bee. Give me back my og Hero squad (Nino, Alya, Chloe, Adrien and Marinette. That was perfect).

[yuikomorii]

Is the jp fandom really very different from the western one?

// I’d honestly say that the Japanese and Western DL fandoms are polar opposites. :”)

1. The majority of the Japanese fandom consists of people who are in their own world and only post merch and say nice things about their favorite character(s). They will also interact with fans who like the same characters as them or who compliment their shrine/bias. This is definitely not bad though, since they’re being polite after all but it’s just that in the Western fandom, most people know one another and have interacted at some point either positively or negatively.

2. Japanese stans always mind their own business. True, rarely some insult certain characters, but everyone ignores such things. However, in the Western fandom, they will give the op attention, which is a terrible decision. If you notice a really dumb take, leave it like that. It's not worth your time because you'll only be tilting at windmills.

3. Japanese stans understand that some characters are occasionally written as antagonists in different routes, and while they still like them, they don't try to excuse their behavior. Whereas... in the Western fanbase, you’ll find people who will defend the antagonist more than the character that was put in an uncomfortable position due to them.

4. Japanese stans acknowledge that some characters are more important than others but they have nothing against it because they simply focus on the character they fell for. On the other hand, Western stans will whine about FaVoRiTiSm.

5. Many people in the Japanese fandoms won’t play absolutely every route of every game, and there’s nothing bad with that, yet you will not see them mischaracterize a character they are unfamiliar with. Unfortunately, the Western community is filled of misconceptions about a few characters since some fans refuse to play their routes or don't pay enough attention to those characters, resulting in inaccurate information being circulated about them.

6. Western fans will write posts about how abusive and toxic the characters are, while Japanese stans are aware those are vampires and that’s to be expected. DL is literally promoted as a DO-S otoge, therefore having the Diaboys act as DO-S is what made them appealing to Japanese stans, who can unquestionably separate their masochistic fantasies from reality.

7. While Japanese fans are chill and respect everyone's bias, Western fans have double standards. It's all about "We should understand everyone's trauma!" until it comes to particular characters, who will be treated with contempt by the “fans” no matter how much they have been through.

8. I've seen a lot of Japanese stans criticise the way DL is written at some point, but it's not like they do it all the time, and they're mainly grateful for what they get. Western stans are continuously complaining about new official art/merch, and it's already getting tiring.

Of course, some Japanese fans can be questionable and some Western ones can be very kind too but what matters the most is trying to be more understanding and respectful so as to let everyone have fun. ;w;