#that said I don’t think it means ‘never ever ever make art with this dynamic’ so much as ‘know that this is what you are doing’

[grumpyoldsnake]

Stamped From the Beginning by Ibram X. Kendi does a really good job of explaining and contextualizing the various racist ideas and justifications that have been used throughout US history, with plenty of quotations from primary documents.

I recommend it, especially if OP’s point is new to you or if you want a better idea of what these ideas are and why they’re harmful.

hey writers if you want to make a metaphor for racism, please maybe remember that racism is literally based on nothing. Africans weren’t enslaved en masse because the Robo-Musa threatened to destroy the world, they were enslaved because it was economically rewarding and politically convenient. If at any point your allegory for racism includes “so <oppressed group> did this major catastrophe and” then you have not only missed the point but you are literally reinforcing the ideas that racism have let racism self-perpetuate (that e.g. black people are naturally dangerous and violent and must be contained or begrudgingly accepted by the Nice White People)

[tamelee]

pls bottom naruto is disgusting stop drawing this ooc cringe

Eh? And it hadn't even been a full day.

Anyway, do you know what this means?:

It means… that I don’t give a damn about your whiny gibberish about this top/bottom bullshit, because it sounds incredibly silly. (And wrong because I draw both?)

It’s fine to have a preference, good for you (I have one too!), but if all you care about between a character-dynamic is the single notion which establishes a rule within a fandom that demands only this particular dick in only that particular booty and nothing else, while dividing yourselves between "us and them" while seeing the people who like the same exact characters as your "enemy" and treating them as such— well, 

I have nothing to say to you, I couldn’t care less what you think about me and I don’t know you. 

But for the sake of other creators who are often a target also, some which I know quit because of this… there is a little something I'd like to say about these servers:

You don’t think I (we) know what is said in there and by who? 👀 That your rules of "what is said on here stays here" with a bunch of people online that you don't know, is actually respected? Why do you think I never join any. And bet your ass that I'm not the only one. This constant fighting between NS/SN is such an embarrassment for this fandom, seriously. I hope you realize that.

Because, instead of encouraging a (new) creator to share something about the characters you claim to love (for fucking free) you go off chastise them for not “doing it right”/“your way”, pretending it's some unspoken commission no one knew of or was paid for. Instead of being happy there’s still so much creative contribution for characters from a story that ended years ago, you go complain under fanfics and dishearten writers, often grinning away with your little server-“friends” and make fun of work someone poured their heart in. Or, you huff, puff and breathe fire as you make plans to cancel them out of pure bitterness, to the point (especially new) creators are too scared and dispirited to ever share anything again. It's easy to do anonymously, aye? And if you think that doesn’t affect their lives and sends them right back into a crestfallen pit of dark hell because it prevents them to do/share the single thing in life that gave them a bit of joy, then...

Congratulations; you’re a heartless bastard.

And you, as a fan, did yourself dirty too.

Do you know how many people don’t want to share anything at all for this fandom because you people leave comments, tags, asks, tweets constantly complaining about an incorrect portrayal of the (in your opinion) only acceptable dynamic, like a bunch a brats? Do you? Because I’ve talked to quite a few of these discouraged creators, they have to hope for the best and pray they’re spared from your scrutiny. I receive it from both sides every now and then.

Again, congratulations: you’re the reason there’s less chance of you getting what you want in the first place. 

Do you... really not realize?

The more you squabble with "your enemy" (lol) the more it affects the "us" you care about while the rest of us just bask in the glory that is SNS/NSN and couldn't care less about what you think/have to say. So, keep everyone else out of it and go mope elsewhere.

But, between you and me? There are better ways to share what you think is right. Make something yourself, because what's stopping you?

You’re perfectly capable, it doesn’t have to be art or a fic, maybe there’s just something in the story that you really enjoyed— write about it. Make a meta. Post the panel, show the moment that determined your undying love for this single dynamic and why— whatever.  Because, wouldn't it be nice having someone encourage you to create something you like? 😬 Especially because you and your server feel so strongly about it? And then you don't have to depend on others either?

Wouldn't it be nice?

Well?

Hm!?

Try it, ffs.

[bbybluemochi]

bbybluemochi's F.A.Q. ✧･ﾟ

Hi! Arun here! I thought that instead of answering your submissions one by one I’d gather all the frequently asked questions and answer them in a single post (this is a mix of art/OC/commissions related q's)!

Please note that I do read all your messages and I’m so grateful for every one of them!!!! I keep all your words really close to my heart, thank you for liking my art and loving my Ocs as much as I do, it means the world to me <3

What’s the name of your OCs?

They’re called Cotton (the blonde one) and Puppy (the dark haired one). The original idea for them was to make some silly wolf/bunny OCs (that’s why Cotton is called like that, it was supposed to be a joke about her tail…) but somewhere along the way they took over and became something completely different!

Is there a webcomic for your OCs?

Not currently! I don’t have the time or the skills (for now) but I’d love to give it a try in the future! 

I was wondering if you mind people using your OC art as character art/inspiration for DnD?Just games with friends that are for fun, nothing for commercial.

Go ahead! I find that really flattering.

Just out of curiosity, are any of your OCs bisexual?

Both Cotton and Puppy are lesbians. That’s what I feel comfortable drawing since I’m a lesbian myself. If I ever do draw a bisexual OC I’ll make sure to mention it! <3

I think you said Cotton was a dominatrix in a previous ask, but is Puppy on the opposite side of the spectrum or is she just glad to be there whichever way?

Puppy is very much a sub. They both switch (Puppy as a service top and bottom and Cotton as a top and power bottom), but the dom/sub dynamic never changes. Also I wanted to mention that these dynamics do not transcend outside of the bedroom that much, there’s more to them than their kinks but I do love to draw them deep in their submissive/dominant headspaces. 

Are one of the lesbian fairytale characters trans?

I didn’t design either of them with that in mind, but I’m super OK with people headcanoning them as trans!

May I use your art as a header/icon?

Of course! Remember to credit me tho~

Do you allow people to use your art freely?

I don’t allow reposts of my work (not that it matters that much, since almost all my art has been already reposted a million times ))): but I’d really appreciate it if you just shared my posts instead of reposting my art). As for phone backgrounds/wallpapers or stuff like that, yeah!

Do you have an instagram account or other social media, I would love to follow you there.

My main platform is twitter (same @), I post all my drawings there and I’m usually more active over there. Tumblr is kind of like an archive. I really like the community here but I find it easier to reply/interact with people on twitter! As for instagram, I do have an old art account (same @, again) but I haven’t posted in so long. I may start posting there soon if a certain rich guy decides to keep destroying the bird app tho. 

I’ve always thought about this… how do you think it’d look if the aesthetics/styles [of your OCs] were reversed?

I’ll have to explore that in a future drawing, I haven’t thought much about it! 

Do you write fics for your characters or has anyone else written fics about them?

Not yet! A couple of my friends have offered, tho! I usually like to stick to drawing because that’s what I do best, I don’t wanna subject anyone to my writing (it’s not very good,,,,). When I share some of my Ocs stories, I think it will be in comic format. 

What's the story behind your OCs? 

There are several, actually!! I like to put my OCs in different universes. As for now, there’s the Fairytale AU, the modern setting AU (this is the original one), and now the Werewolf/Vampire AU. I also did a drawing of them as spiderwoman and black cat but I don’t think that AU is gonna make a comeback for a while. I’m also planning a scifi AU but I’m not sure I’d be able to pull off that aesthetic with my current art style so I’m still working on it. 

The Fairytale AU is the one I’m working on most of the time. I wanna release a small artbook with their story + illustrations. That was my main goal for 2023 but life got in the way, so maybe,,, 2024??? *crosses fingers* 

Is your shop down? It’s saying that it’s not available.

I open my shop for 1-2 weeks every now and then, that’s why it’s closed most of the time! My plan is to open the store again in september, if i manage to finish all the merch in time! I’ll announce it on my twitter and tumblr account when I do. 

Would you ever share a tutorial on how you make your art?

Yes, of course! I’m not very good at explaining my drawing process but If it helps anyone I’d love to! Just let me know what part of the drawing process you’d like me to focus on, because If i try to make a full illustration tutorial it’s gonna be too long/difficult to follow. 

May I ask what brush do you use for your lineart?

I use a different brush almost every time I start an illustration, I’m not very consistent when it comes to that (I think it’s mainly because I haven’t found the perfect brush yet!). But let me know what illustration you’re curious about and I’ll try to remember which one I used!

Do you come up with poses off the top of your head or do you use some type of reference? I always struggle with them.

It depends on what I’m drawing! Some of my drawings are reinterpretations of paintings (I’m obsessed with pre-raphaelite painters and arthurian legend paintings in general), so in those cases I try to adapt the poses to my art style. Even If I’m trying to recreate an already existing painting I end up changing the poses/proportions a lot along the way to fit my personal taste/art style. 

Other times, I just sketch from imagination (this is more entertaining, I think, since looking at references can make the drawing process a bit tedious). If I find it hard to draw a certain pose/part of the body I will look up references on printerest, no shame in using pictures! If I still can’t find the pose I need I’ll just take a picture of myself (this is like, a last resort for me. I’m too lazy for this). 

My personal advice would be to use references for the pose and then tweaking the pose and trying to make it more personal 

I love the way the armor was designed and rendered! Can you share some tips on designing armor? 

Drawing armor is something I still struggle with most of the time. I think I’ve learned a lot in the past year (please don’t look at my armor drawings from 2022,,,,, sigh) but I still struggle to draw certain poses/angles. My advice is: don’t hesitate to draw non-functional armor!!! There’s always gonna be someone like “actually, that armour makes no sense :)” well !!!! it looks cool as hell so who caresssss !!!!! 

I think it’s more important for you to get comfortable drawing armor before you start beating yourself up for not drawing accurate ones. It takes a lot of practice (I’m still learning!!!), especially if you’re trying to draw historically accurate ones, so start by having fun, and then work your way up from there.

Most of the tips I can think about are really hard to explain without a visual example, so let me know if that’d be a tutorial you would be interested in and I’ll try to make one (I’m cringing a little just saying this bc I swear, my armor skills are so bad compared to some amazing artists out there………..).

Do you allow cosplays your OCs?

YES…. YES PLEASE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! IM BEGGING YOUUU ILL LOVE YOU FOREVER !!!!!! *rattles my cage* 

Do you allow fanart of your OCs?

Again,,, PLEASEEEEEEEEE !!! Just tag me so I don’t miss it and remember to give me credits if you do !!!!!!!!!!! :D

I was wondering if you use procreate , clip studio, or similar apps?

A mix of both. I used to draw on procreate only until I got a tablet and now I’m a clip studio user (csp sponsor me please), and now that’s all I use. I’m so used to drawing on PC now that I don’t think I’d be able to go back to procreate, but I still like that app a lot! All my drawings (even the ones I do on csp) always get retouched on procreate because I like some of the effects (*dreamy sigh* chromatic aberration filter,,, love u). 

I wanted to know if the marks Cotton has on her waist are tattoos or like a scar? 

Those are tats! Puppy is a tattoo artist ~~~ (I’m actually not sure if i’ll keep the waist tats on Cotton or if I’ll end up redesigning them,,,)

I was wondering if you take commissions?

Not right now. I also don’t have any plans of opening commissions any time soon! When I do, I’ll post a google forms on twitter and here on tumblr with the prices and type of comms I do. But there’s nothing scheduled. 

Even tho I'm not doing commissions atm, I’m currently looking for illustration jobs (specially book covers), so don’t hesitate to email me at bbybluemochi@gmail.com

That's all for now, thank you for reading!! I think I covered most of the questions, I'll make another q&a post in the future! Bye~~

[nite-puff]

Favourite head-canons for your favourite ships/characters?

okay let me itemize this.

kiyotaka: my pr scheme headcanon. i love that headcanon for thematic reasons, and just think of the possibilities if taka ever finds out about it. if anyone wants to read up on it, here’s the link.

mondo: i love him being crafty. idk how much this counts as a headcanon because it’s pretty backed up by canon, but i digress. i love him being in touch with his artistic side. i want him to whittle and make wooden sculptures while he pursues carpentry. i want him to expand his experience in embroidery to other fiber arts. i want him to paint on walls and canvases like he would on his motorcycle. i want him to experiment with makeup outside of his eyeliner. HES JUST HAS SO MUCH POTENTIAL TO BE AN ARTIST BUT HE WONT LET HIMSELF INDULGE IN IT. LET HIM BE CRAFTY.

takemichi: i love giving him survivor’s guilt after he finds out about what happened to mondo and the rest of the diamonds. he’s the last crazy diamond standing and if that doesn’t take the ultimate toll on him, then i don’t know what will. especially since his whole deal in the gang was to protect mondo. finding out mondo died, even if there was no way for him to interfere, convinces him that he failed his one job. and hearing that the diamonds have all died, EVEN if there was no way for him to interfere, convinces him that he failed the owadas even more by being a shit leader and not protecting them while mondo was at hope’s peak. i wonder what that mindset will do to him. mentally. HES SO NORMAL GUYS. anyway.

okay now to dynamic stuff

ishimondo: yes, physical touch and general acts of service will mean so much to them when they’re together, but i need to zero in on the act of cooking specifically. the act of cooking for one another is so special for them. like growing up, both mondo and kiyotaka had a tricky/bad relationship with food (with kiyotaka not having money to eat anything other than his typical rice balls and mondo not eating much due to body image issues and needing to “stay in shape”) so reaching that time in their lives when food becomes a comfort to them (due in part because of their influence on each other) is going to be so special. they know each other’s favorite foods and will cook for each other, they’ll make time to cook together and enjoy that quality time. and if they have some extra money to spend, they’ll go out and try something new with each other. i could probably make this sound better if you give me some time but just know that they get each other to appreciate food so much more and see if as something more than just a task to get done or a nuisance they have to deal with.

mondo and michi (platonic): the ultimate besties, what can i say?? michi had to deal with all the times mondo had a crush and was rejected by said crush. he practically became the ultimate shoulder to lean on as they grew up and mondo’s feelings only got bigger. when mondo would tell michi that he was gonna confess one day, michi would already be prepared with movies and snacks to help mondo get over the rejection (it’s not like michi had no faith in mondo. he just knew the chances of mondo actually getting a date were low. he’s seen how he gets when he’s nervous. he’s just being realistic). i recently came up with the scenario of how they would deal with valentine’s day. mondo would always be disappointed he didn’t get any chocolates by the end of the school day, but would never say it out loud. and michi is always tired by the end of the day with him having to lug around his bag of chocolates he’s received and having to dodge any potential confessions he saw coming (and rejecting the ones he didn’t see coming). mondo always tries to avoid talking about how he feels when he sees michi after school, but michi always catches onto mondo’s sourness. he just offers his chocolates to share with mondo without saying another word about how either of their days went. mondo always appreciates it. and they spend the rest of their day winding down and watching movies while downing michi’s entire stash (mondo always ends up having more because he has a bigger sweet tooth. michi doesn’t mind).

anyways yeah uhhh… idk if these headcanons are my most favorite (i love them all, don’t get me wrong) but they were the first ones to come to mind. hope y’all like them.

[sunriseverse]

@krownest thank you for handing me the bat my liege let us get down and dirty

okay so disclaimer before we start this is my opinion and i’m not calling people bad or saying they should stop writing yada yada yada etc etc (also wow this got long oops. readmore on ye)

i think the reason there’s such a deluge of “bad” fanfic comes down to a couple different reasons, some of them interconnected and some of them symptoms of larger issues.

i wrote and rewrote my definition of what “bad fanfic” is like, seven times, but in the end i think the characteristics of it are essentially: fanfic which makes you stop reading or become disappointed due to any number of issues, especially those which, if they were changed, would render the fanfic itself fundamentally a different piece of art (so, MOSTLY not cosmetic).

some of the most common issues i, personally, have, when trying to find new fanfic to read are ones that i’m sure you’re fairly familiar with: characterisation issues, dynamics which feel “off”, direct contradiction to the canonical themes without any seeming understanding that it is, in fact, contradictory, and prose. that last one is the trickiest, so we’ll set it aside for the moment being.

i think the first three tie together fairly neatly, and have simple to answer causes: one, people are writing not based off canon, but off fanon; two, people are not, generally, trained in media and literature comprehension and analysis as anything but a basic set of tools to pass their primary/secondary school exams; and three, tied in with one and two, people aren’t writing concepts as they would happen if they were applied to x character(s), they’re writing what THEY would want to happen in x scenario, and slapping the characters’ names over them.

obviously, we could sit here and argue for days about what “characterisation” is, what “canon dynamics” are, hell, what “canon” is, but for our intents and purposes: let us define these as the range of plausible interpretations one can draw from a canon, and find sources or references to argue the validity of (and make no mistake, this doesn’t mean there’s “one true [characterisation/dynamic/canon]”—there is, let us say, a dialectical continuum of possibilities, and the extremes, in any direction, are entirely unsupported, or outright denied by, canon). (i could tack on a rant here about why i think disagreement and different interpretations in fandom is not only healthy, but NECESSARY, as long as no singular faction dominates and forces the others to feel as if they will be ostracised if they suggest otherwise, but i digress.)

these aren’t problems that can be fixed overnight. media analysis is a tool that takes time and effort to grow, and when it comes to the average fan, in 2024, participating in an averagely-sized fandom: there is no external force driving them to stretch that muscle. fandom has, for better or worse, moved past what it once was: no longer gated communities with high bars of entry, which necessitate skill and effort and passion to enter, but more open and free for all. make no mistake, this isn’t necessarily bad—there are many, MANY problems with old fandom, not the least being cults of personality, actual cults, harassing commenters, etc, etc. my point is simply that new age fandom, by design, doesn’t require you to put in as much work—the barriers to reading fic, to POSTING fic, are far lower than they, perhaps, have ever been. open ao3, send an invite request, and bam: a week or so and change later, you, too, can post your very own writing for thousands of people to see, should they simply look.

this ties, i think, into prose; all of these things are, by nature, hard to do. some people have a bit more instinctive knack for them—but even if they do, they’ll never be able to improve if they don’t push themselves, if they don’t practice, if they don’t try and engage with canon and think critically about said canon and try, really try, to put just as much into writing as an athlete would put into running, or javelin, or swimming—but unlike physical sports, writing is not something with immediate, tangible results. it takes TIME. and in the end, it’s much easier for people to write the same fifteen tropes, the same variations on ship themes, follow fanon. i’m not here to be a prescriptivist and tell you how you MUST write fanfic—i really don’t care that much, honestly. if you want to do that, fine, be my guest; but i’m allowed to complain about it on my blog.

to end this post on a lighter note, if you do feel your fanfic isn’t very good, and you want to improve: i have suggestions! you should read as much as you can (published works, especially experimental styles, are good for for this), get your hands on as much meta (for characters, dynamics, themes, what have you), or if you can’t find any, practise writing your own the way you’d write an essay, and most keyly: don’t do things in your writing just because they’re popular in the fandom.

okay, cut! that’s all, for now, i think

[lilis-doodle-dome]

I have so many questions about every dynamic you can think of for this au im so interested in hearing more about the tenma siblings (toya included) and nene + emu's relationship with tsukasa

im also interested to hear how the dynamic between ena and mafuyu, emu and mafuyu, + rui and mizuki changes.

There is not enough space in these charts for any real information aughh, sorry for the weird text sizing. Also I didn’t put that much effort into editing Kasa/Mafu in these images haha

But relationship charts between the group! Sorry it doesn’t answer every question, but hopefully it’s enough? Feel free to ask more if anything needs clarification!

Here’s a transcript:

Tsukasa- Emu: Always tries to make me smile, but should she really waste her energy on me?…Sometimes she reminds me of Saki when she was younger

Tsukasa-Nene: Stronger than she seems. The least chaotic of the others, when we’re together she doesn’t expect anything. It’s…nice, although it might not be good.

Tsukasa-Rui: Always has something new to try, but I think it’s more for his own curiosity than for my self discovery. He knows a lot, could be more helpful if he ever shared it.

Emu-Tsukasa: Someone important to me that I’ll help find the smile of, no matter what! You’re no oohm doom villain Tsukasa-kun!

Emu-Nene: The most wonderhoy singer! Thank you for helping me see what it means to be a leader, I promise to never lose sight of my troupe again.

Emu-Rui: He always has the best, most fun ideas! I really appreciate his support, we always do best with his directing!

Nene-Tsukasa: He can seem pretty intimidating, but he’s actually rather clueless. I hope he can figure himself out, just not at the expense of others.

Nene-Emu: You’ve grown into a person deserving of the title of leader and I’m grateful you brought us together. I know you’re determined about your goal, but don’t forget we’re here too.

Nene-Rui: I’ll get stronger, I won’t turn a blind eye to you ever again.

Rui-Tsukasa: He tests anything I ask of him without complaint, I wish I could say that was a good thing. Let’s keep using each other until we’ve found what we’re really looking for, okay?

Rui-Nene: I’m glad she’s standing up for herself more, but I hope she knows there’s nothing she needs to make up for. It’s just nice to perform with her again.

Rui-Emu: A truly admirable person, she’s dedicated herself wholeheartedly to other’s smiles. Your smile is something precious as well though, don’t forget that.

—

Mafuyu-Kanade: A musical genius to match my lyrical! Her soft mannerisms belie her unmatched stubbornness, she’ll ever so gently, tell me I’m doing too much, all while she neglects herself! How confounding!

Mafuyu-Ena: She reminds me of those small dogs that get a poor reputation for being aggressive, despite it being people ignoring their fear signals that cause those reactions. That being said, it’s rather entertaining how differently she responds to Kanade versus Mizuki.

Mafuyu-Mizuki: They’ve introduced me to many new styles I’ve never experienced before. It’s amazing how they can make the most intimidating outings seem approachable. I enjoy any and all time spent with them!

Kanade-Mafuyu: She can’t see how she’s hurting herself for the sake of others. I need to help her, someone who can actually save others- shouldn’t have to suffer for it.

Kanade-Ena: Her art is still filled with hurt, but I’m glad she’s found some peace in our group. If only I could do more for her…

Kanade-Mizuki: They always have the frankest opinions of everyone else and seem to speak their mind freely, yet rarely say anything about themself. Their perspective is always appreciated though.

Ena-Mafuyu: Aren’t the big headed types supposed to not actually be good at everything? How is that fair at all, and she’s even got the nerve to be a nice person! I’ll show her-

Ena-Kanade: She’s wonderful. The soft, patient voice-of-reason needed to reign in the group, listening to her music is like a miracle cure for bad days.

Ena-Mizuki: They’re an insistent pest, that won’t leave me in peace. I guess I don’t hate the company though and they are good at putting together outfits for photos.

Mizuki-Mafuyu: A willing dress-up doll, she’s pretty enough to be one too! Kinda reminds me of an old friend with how many questions she asks about everything, guess geniuses have that in common.

Mizuki-Kanade: Always makes sure everyone feels comfortable and safe. It’s really nice to have a space I won’t be judged…

Mizuki-Ena: She’s way too funny not to tease, but she’s just as capable as the rest of the group. It’s kinda scary how easy she is to talk to, wouldn’t want to say anything I regret.

[hikaritakaishi]

Grief (Yamato & Takeru)

Disclaimer: This is a small piece of work that I wrote for the Takari Week that I could not post, but that I really enjoyed writing, so I decided to share! I love the family dynamics that we have in Digimon and everything about these two siblings’ relationship!  Enjoy!

─────  ♡  ─────

“Dad as always is going to come home late.” Yamato said while putting a hand full of spaghetti pasta into the boiling water pot. “Is mom home?”

“I think by now she is. But she must be locked in the office writing some article for the newspapers. You know, the usual.”

“Those two have more in common than they would ever admit.”

“I guess you have a point.”

Takeru took a sip from the tin the Coca-Cola Yamato had given to him. “Maybe that is the reason why they are no longer together; they are too similar to stand each other.”

“It can be.” Yamato laughed a bit. “I am very proud of you for being able to talk about it so openly now. Not a long time ago you would dismiss the topic and pretend you didn’t hear my comment.”

“I’ve been making some progress. As time passed, I think I just accepted the fact that some things would never change, and I have been trying my best to heal from it the best way I can. Writing my feelings down help a lot.”  

“I understand.” Yamato bent down and took out of a wood drawer a jar with the word 塩 (salt) written in hand, and another with the word 黒胡椒 (black pepper). “Your therapy is writing, mine is creating music. I would never admit it to them, but some songs I have wrote are inspired by them.”

“There is beauty in transforming pain into art. At least their story can be signified as such.”

“Exactly. You thought that line yourself?”

“I have been practicing.” Takeru smiled shyly noticing how Yamato observed his sentence.

“I can tell.” Yamato carefully put a pinch of salt and black pepper in the pot where the pasta was boiling. “You said you wanted to talk about something on the phone. What could it be?”

“Oh…that. Well, I think I may need some… dating advice.” Takeru said and felt a sudden urge to hide himself under the table out of shyness.

“What?” Yamato turned around quickly to face his brother with his mouth wide open. He was still holding the jars.” Who is it?”

“Ah…” Takeru looked away and started to tap his hand on the table insecurely. “Do you think Taichi is the jealous type of brother… or would he be ok if I…?”

“Taichi? No way!” Yamato quickly pulled the chair next to him and noisily sat down in front of Takeru. “There is no way you are dating Hikari!”

“Theoretically, I am not…Yet. I invited her for a date on Saturday… and she said yes.”

“I see…” Yamato was speechless. “I mean, congratulations! How… did that happened?

“It is a very long story. But the thing is, I have never been on a date before, I am kind of nervous. I don’t exactly know what to do, how to plan… “

“You never asked a girl out?”  Yamato interrupted him.

“If I never told you, it's because it never happened.”

“Make sense.”

Yamato let the idea sink into his mind. Not that it wasn't something he had already imagined, or even discussed with Taichi himself. But they always joked about it, he was not prepared to face it in real life.

“So…” Takeru broke the silence. “You are going to help me…?”

 “Let me… finish dinner first. A few minutes and I can answer you. Now I am too busy being surprised.” Yamato stood up and went turning off the pan.

Takeru rolled his eyes and kept drinking the Coca-Cola.

Yamato finished cooking in few minutes and served it, making slight jokes about the topic they were discussing before.

They expressed the typicalいただきます(itadakimasu) before anything else.

“Now that I am calmer.” Yamato started trying to look as serious as he could. “What happened? And please hide unnecessary details I don’t want to know.”

Takeru laughed at this and took a few seconds to summarize everything that have happened on this mind. It was still fresh and some things he would admit did not have processed yet. But one thing he was certain of: He could not be happier.

 “You know, I have been receiving love letters from girls at school, and many of them confessed to me. I think I told you about this already.”

“Yes, I remember.” Yamato took the chopsticks and divided them, listening attentively.

“In the quickest way I can summarize this, another one was too much for us to keep pretending we did not care about it. Hikari distanced herself and it was unbearable for me. I knew it was hurting her, and we talked about it after class. And we kissed. I mean, I kissed her.”

“Basically, we two just needed a good excuse to stop playing dumb about how you feel about each other.”

“I can confirm that.” Takeru followed his brother in the previous act. Divided his chopstick as well.

“Well, I don’t think you need to do something incredibly complicated for your first date Takeru, really. Your friendship with her naturally evolved into love and I think you should keep things as light as possible. Without pressure, you know her since you were eight, just trust yourself and your feelings.”

“Oh wow, I never expected to hear it from you.” Takeru seemed kind of surprised.

“I know, I know. But after several years in a relationship, you start to think about things differently.”

“I can see it.”

“Just take care of her and your relationship properly. Everything will be ok.”

“I… don’t want to commit the same mistakes mom and dad committed you know.”

“They are a good example of not taking care of a relationship properly.” Yamato said with as much sincerity as he could. “Dad was never at home, and mom needed to work and take care of us alone most of the time. He was always too busy working. And she needed support. Not financially, but all the other kinds, and dad just let it go. They had a very deficient communication. All I can remember were they screaming their problems at each other, frustrated and confused.”

“I remember that too. And for some reason, I remember blaming myself for it, most of the time. I think dad never expected mom to actually… leave.”

“I felt that as well. I blamed myself not just for the screaming, but for the divorce. Mom just couldn’t take that anymore.”

“I don’t want to… be like them.”

“We are not our parents, Takeru.” Yamato smiled at him, reminding the time he started to date Sora, when he had the same mental dilemma Takeru was having.” We were there, we know what happened, and we have the tools to do differently. “

“I know.”

Takeru smiled sadly, trying to remove those dark days from the focus of his present-day memory. At least he knew that Yamato understood him and these waves of old grief feelings. It didn’t matter what happened in the past, if he now got the tools to create a better future. Yamato was right, he needed to trust his feelings, and trust Hikari. Trust that they were able to create a relationship with a solid base of love and respect. He was the one in charge of creating his own fate, and he chose her to be his other side of the mirror.

[zelenxa]

1313 - The Allaires

Alexandre loves his wife, so he does not question the impulsivity of Dayana’s actions when - in search of a job - she decides to become a midwife. He understands, at least, the desire to get out of the house. Both of them are never static. There’s always something that keeps them busy, but Alexandre’s job naturally keeps him up at the wee bits of hours, and Dayana’s doesn’t. He imagines that will change soon, be it from other people’s babies or their own one day.

Today, they’re venturing to the Galbury tavern. Venturing is too kind a word when they are easily in walking distance to the tavern but, with how city crowds can get, it feels as if. The tavern is particularly crowded today, and it takes special patience to carve out a small spot of his own to play the lute at. His job takes a very, very special patience indeed because, after a few hours of playing, a drunk patron decides - accidentally* Alexandre reminds himself that the man said it was an accident - to spill stew all over his clothing.

Alexandre only walks away with a hundred simoleons that day. Not at all worth it for the hours he puts in and the fact that he smells of spoiled vegetable soup as of now. Just the large price he pays to share his love of art. It reminds him of Esteban’s vocal scorn for fishing. Is that not Alexandre’s life? A day’s work for a catch of one fish.

It’s hard to stay mad anyway when Dayana, upon him recalling the story with disdain, gets a laugh out of it. He may not have everything he wants, but he does have what he needs. Alexandre can make peace with that.

The sun has just fallen when there's a knock on the door.

Putting away today’s ingredients, Dayana glances up in the direction of the racket. She doesn’t have to spare a thought over who it may be. Their small house warrants little privacy when their front door is windowed. That and Dayana sees orange hair immediately.

“Beatrice?” she questions. She catches the full attention of Alexandre, who of which was previously scribbling something down in his worn-down note-back.

Beatrice looks briefly awkward. It’s not the first time she’s visited, though perhaps it is the first time she’s visited this late. “I need a break,” she slumps, explanation wordless with the three sons she has already.

The tension breaks when Alexandre laughs.

“What are you doing here? Seriously,” Alexandre asks, playing with the spoon of his bowl of pottage.

Beatrice sighs, looking as if she’s conjuring any excuse to avoid the topic at hand. But, aware she’s intruding on husband and wife amid night no less, she resigns, laying her chin on her hand. “Anthony and I got in a dispute.”

“Really?”

Beatrice frowns, a little defensive for unreasonable measures. They know she knows there is no judgment, which means it might’ve been truly bad. Bad enough that at least her bluntness isn’t softened. “Don’t really me. The man makes me an argumentative person,” She runs her hand through her shoulder-length hair, shoulders slouching. Dayana thinks she looks like a soaked puppy. “I don’t want to talk about it,” she murmurs.

“That bad?” Alexandre says aloud.

The dynamic Alexandre and Beatrice share is one that, originally, Dayana had trouble understanding. She remembers when she first really met the woman with the acknowledgment of who she (vaguely) was to Alexandre. She’s ashamed now that she ever felt jealous, that her own unreasonable teenage insecurity had led her to fear that Alexandre was attracted to Beatrice. Still, Dayana has to give past her some credit. It is not hard to come to that conclusion. Alexandre has known Beatrice for a very long time, and had Beatrice not even married…?

She was wrong nonetheless. Slight changes in variables wouldn’t have mattered. Dayana has trouble putting exactly why or how the two had ever become friends, but she knows this: they waltz around each other like siblings.

“…And you know what? You’ll get it once you have children,” Dayana hears Beatrice say, completely having lost track of the conversation.

“How so?” Alexandre replies, looking like he’s about to embark on wisdom. Sarcasm or not, neither of them knows.

“You’ll just know, and when you do, don’t be an arsehole and leave your just-then pregnant wife with all the labor while you go on your emotional binge.”

Dayana frowns. Are they speaking of Beatrice’s husband? Arthur, was his name?

Alexandre glances at Dayana, Beatrice continues on. “Not that I think you two could ever really argue.”

“We’ve had our disagreements,” Dayana mindlessly responds, earning a huff from the redhead.

“Right, disagreements.” Beatrice’s fingers trace over the wooden table. “See, know this, when it comes to arguments, don’t ever leave things on a bad note. Antony is all too willing to do that. Ugh, I hate the silent treatment.”

“It sounds as if you need to talk it with him,” Dayana supplies after a moment of silence. “Or, you could just take the kids and move in with us,” she jokes, gesturing to their small home. It’s a poor attempt to lighten the mood that somehow ends up working.

“As if!” Beatrice scoffs. “You know the tavern may not have been my idea, but it’s just as a part of me as it is Antony.”

“And I’ll go crazy if I have to deal with Mathew or Brian in the size of this house,” Alexandre murmurs under his breath.

next (chrono) // next (allaire) // previous

[iammissingautumn]

genuine question, in the kindest way possible: why do you like south park? i truly don’t get what the appeal is, especially in a sense of wanting to make fan content for it. i understand that it can be funny to watch sometimes, and i get when people like it casually, but i am continually confused when i see people making fan art and fanfics and intense in depth meta posts about characters and characterization because it’s like. a joke show? it’s all a joke. it’s all satire and inappropriate/sometimes genuinely over the line humor. i don’t understand why there are so many people who seem to resonate with it in such a way, especially because as far as i can tell most of the fandom seems to be very young people - teenagers and young adults. again, i don’t ask this in a mean spirited way or to judge or shame, i just am genuinely baffled every time i see south park content you share and i wanted to ask… what’s up with that? what’s the appeal, for you? why do you think people are so into it in this fandom way? do you think that the fandom is just very divorced from the content itself?

Oooo thank you so much lovely follower. This is an amazing ask. And if you’d want the answer I’ll give!!! And there’s a TL;DR at the end of this :>

Why do (you) so many people like South Park?

(C.W. for south park typical stuff, mentions of abuse and s/a in many forms and serious topics.)

1. What’s the appeal for you?

I got into the South Park fandom at the age of probably ten or so. Eight years ago. How did I get into it? Uhhhh I watched the series rarely as a younger kid. What made me want to get into fandom? To tell the truth it was Stick of Truth. That was South Park’s first video game where you are put into the town and play along side the kid. South Park was the first fictional series I ever got into. Before that I had been a youtube shipper (Septiplier). And then I saw South Park. To be fair, I saw Kenny. Early memories of South Park is fanfiction and pinterest art and playing hours on hours of Stick of Truth, and later the next game.

What did I see in Kenny McCormick? He was a poor kid, who died everyday, with parents who fought physically and verbally. He was the fourth wheel in a best friends/obsession dynamic of his close friends. Pretend this isn’t a comedy. Pretend this isn’t some silly show. It’s a boy who can barely have enough money to eat. He had a younger sister he was willing to sacrifice anything for. And an older brother who never said much without a slur to his words. Without saying too much about my life on main I had a lot of reasons to identify with that. This is a house that many people can identify with, drunks as parents and kids who have to take care of themselves. On top of this he’s Princess Kenny :) Get’s treated as a girl in a roleplaying context and loves it. She’s a great princess. My interest in Kenny then went to Bunny (Ship of Kenny McCormick and Butters Stotch).

What is there to see in Butters Stotch? He’s a boy being dragged into sexist, racist, and homophobic talk. We quite literally throughout the series see him become more and more mean. How does a nine year old boy get dragged through those things? His parents are incredibly abusive, often grounding him for things he didn’t do and finding any excuse to blame anything for. He believes he’s at fault for everything he’s in trouble for. The only friend he eventually gains is a boy who uses him for schemes and tried to kill him at least once. The other person he considers to be a friend doesn’t speak or lead. He finds someone who sticks with him and isn’t a hypocrite and sticks to him no matter the pain he’s put through. He also want made for conflict and enjoys femininity. This will be talked more about later, but I assume you can make some assumptions as to why a ten year old could like the stuff shown here. Then again the next list will be why I like it as well. But Kenny and Butters were my start. They’re on of the most popular ships in fandom. So there’s a lot of content.

2. Why is this a popular fandom?

It’s like. Have you ever been neurodivergent? Have you ever been gay? Have you ever been trans? Have you ever been abused? Have you grown up in a simple U.S. town?Have you ever accidentally become codepdent to your childhood friend as a child? Have you ever been born into a situation that hurts you for years but you’re a child you don’t know what to do? Have you ever been a child and all the adults are so stupid and they’re supposed to be protecting you?

Have you ever been all of those things or some of those things and wondered. Holy Fuck. How am I going to handle this all? I hope I don’t need to explain how or why some people would feel these things and how they would use South Park to express these feelings. (Relatability.)

(Age.) A big criticism I’ve heard is. Oh no. They’re Ageing Up These Characters To Have Sex. It’s a very weird assumption and very strange to assume that people would only care about themes of childhood, being a son, or growing up if it’s about sex. Aging up the characters often has to do with wanting to give them maturity and time to learn. You have access to kids still forming their brains, you have access to 50 year old adults who are still growing and dealing with their current problems. High schoolers going to teen parties for the first time and drinking and smoking. College kids going to parties for the first time drinking and smoking making steps to join their profession and figuring out what they want from live and having the freedom of life or being trapped by family expectations.

Infinite scenarios. The amazing thing about South Park is you have at least ten characters to make whatever drama you want with at a time. You can make an ensemble piece of friend groups full of years of love and hate or a focus on one characters inner turmoil. You can make them into fucked up adults with complicated feelings, a gay man who’s never accepted himself sees his childhood best friend and Understands. The kid being drugged secretly by his parents dies of overdose and now everyone has to deal with that and the feelings towards the person. It’s winter and there’s too many holes in kenny’s house so he asks to stay over at someone else’s by knocking on a window and sneaking in. On top of this for many seasons one of South Park’s things is they would make fun of specific movie concepts that have been run into the ground by putting the kids in it. Losing Edge, Stanley’s Cup, and Up the Down Steroid are great examples of this.

People love to take the absurd seriously. I don’t think I can explain how people who see something silly and take it seriously do it. If you don’t see the appeal that’s really fair. But when Kenny Dies plays and we see Kyle Stan and Eric deal with death in their own ways. We see their differences highlighted. As we watch The Passion of the Jew we see this internalized anti antisemitism, that many people who have the same thing or something similar like internalized racism, homophobia, transphobia, ablism, etc. see reflected on the screen in this surprisingly real way.

A lot of content. There are 26 years of seasons in this show. That’s a lot of content, but genuinely a lot of people don’t watch even half that shit. Majority of the time I’ve spent being invested in South Park I had only seen a few dozen episodes. There are two full videos games with extra content and a phone game. A movie as well. A lot of content you can pick and choose from! A lot of small moments to hang on to. (I.e. Good Times With Weapons Butters get his eye hurt, fandom draws him with a scar more often then not. Eric got Kenny’s eye as a transplant after Kenny died one time. Kyle is said to have the same nose as his mom; hooked.) these build the fandom, but everyone has always embraced those who reject and those who accept canon. There’s so many different things to sink ur teeth into, including serious AU’s of the canonical fantasy and superhero games the characters play together.

But once again I’ll harp on this. I think what brings people to this show is seeing damaged things and giving them the chance to heal. Or giving them things to make their damage a bit easier. Or maybe damaging them more. Standard exploring relationships and feelings. But on top of this we see character who have been sexually assaulted, groomed, abused, neglected. While also the show gives very liberal takes and knows how fucked up these situations are. That’s apart of the comedy (Tsst. Where we see Liane Cartman take away the chance for Eric Cartman to become more respectable and less bigoted and everything because she wants someone to hang out with her.). There’s always something enthralling about seeing yourself on the big screen, and seeing my friends right there too etc. (Relatability, again.)

Simple designs. A child could make the cardboard cutouts that we see the characters as. That’s motivating! What’s also motivating? Giving these characters with specific color schemes a full face body and wardrobe of clothes ! Oh so that means I can make my favorite superhero team Coon and Friends all hanging out together? So that means I can draw something about Kenny dying? So I can make them play dsi’s together? There’s a lot of one off concepts we get that are very cool and some people love to reimagine them in their own style. Others love to make the setting more fantastical like Princess Kenny in the rose garden during the Black Friday Trilogy. You can make them anything!

Sand box! We have set up friend groups, conflicts from twenty years ago, and a mayor of the township! We have the entire map laid out in front of us and more from every episode’s location that hasn’t been included. We have the local coffee shop and the local movie theater. We have a whole city! We have canonical neighbors and stores and everything! Where would you like to start? We have it all.

Taking things “Seriously”. Most importantly, South Park wants to be take seriously. SP doesn’t work without being able to take it seriously. The comedy in Passion of the Jew doesn’t work unless you sympathize with Kyle. I laughed at the obliviousness of the adults as Cartman formed his group and then a pit grew in my stomach as I saw Kyle and them about to crash. The comedy in World Wide Record Concert doesn’t work if you don’t know that Mr Garrison feels bad for a very dumb reason !!!! But that episode is genuinely one of the funniest to me. South Park did not make it a character trait that Mr Garrison is gay for all those early seasons just for us to not notice. And more importantly he feels like a very very ignorant gay man in those seasons, but he feels genuinely gay. As Kenny Dies it asks you to take this seriously, and we watch in Coon Vs. Coon & Friends and are asked for it to be taken seriously as Kenny describes the many deaths he’s faced. This show quickly shows how absurdist and crazy it is in most if not all episodes it has yet it still cares to ask you to take things seriously, to sympathize, empathize with these characters. It tells you to laugh at Kenny’s deaths and then it has the audacity to tell you he remembers Every Single One and is reborn every time, and that Cartman always knows and they never talk about it. They never mention it more then once. They lull us into personal moments and then never bring it up again. The fandom is built around these one off moments, these things the creators didn’t think too much about. These characters have such strong personalities and back bones that have existed for YEARS. Stuff set up and shown in the first five seasons makes sense to the characters of today. The character consistency goes rlly hard for a 25 year old show that only stops itself for exploring character because they know they’re there to be funny and not serious. It’s crazy and amazing and we want the serious shit!

History. South Park history is crazy, what’s ever crazier? Fandom history. The shows history doesn’t matter too much (except that time Matt and Trey went to The Oscars for sp while on LSD) but the fandom history is legendary. The development of fandom, the fandom blorbo of the time, the Stan and Wendy baby guy. It’s really neat. We have a steep history with artists that have come and gone in a very unique way because of how tumblr’s algorithm is set up. South Park’s fandom existed before most popular social media sites. And while this allows you to put the character in Any decade it also lets you see how old some of those ff.net fics are. The fanart on tumblr can easily be a decade old if you look at the right blog. A deactivated user behind it. Ships that have come and gone, we’ve been here this whole time !!!! I love hearing about different sites issues and problems. And also the beloved stuff that has happened here. Some people weren’t here before Creek was canon, some people came in with a canonical gay couple amongst the kids as just an average background thing.

So those are some reasons. The most important ones that I think most south park fan in the fandom. will list at least one of when being asked Why. I value all of these things heavily. You also meet some really great people with mostly solid opinions ! It’s great ! Genuinely a really understanding and accepting place with unique stories from anyone you meet.

3. Do you think that the fandom is divorced from the canonical content?

Off the rip I would say no. But it’s complicated. To those who have seen all or most of the show I’d say; We’re pretty connected. I think the majority of us are just smart enough to understand that Cartman is a bad person on purpose. A lot of this has to do with he’s something the creators use. He’s an archetype of the worst person and is the only character imo that gets pulled ooc in order to do What The Plot Needs. But majority of the fandom is gonna give Kyle curly hair, green eyes and he’ll love to study with some side sports interest. We have a lot of continuity in many ways.

That being said there’s MANY people who have seen Five episodes and read the wiki and maybe play the game(s?). And they treat the show the same as those who have seen it more. Those who have not seen the show might be a bit more outspoken about how it’s Bad or Wrong when they haven’t seen it and I usually don’t trust those people. Hence why I’m watching the entire show rn on my own, to get my own opinion. Those people who haven’t seen shit are also probably connected mainly to a duo or one character. Popular examples of this are Creek (Craig x Tweek) and Bunny (Kenny x Butters). There’s non watchers in the Style (Stan Marsh x Kyle Broflovski) and Kyman (Cartman x Kyle) community but less so from what I’ve seen.

But we’re looking at this show in a different genre. Many of us act like we’re creating CW Shows except Better. Many of us lean into drama and tragedy. Others are in it for the sillies. Majority of people know what’s bad in this show, some people are sometimes so hurt or misguided that they think Cartman is the only evil and never want to see him. Other times ppl are just uncomfortable with him (Like I’ve spent the majority of my time here being). There’s a scale! I think it’s important to realize what is wrong with the show in your own way, and I think the show gets demonized for its effects on main stream media and boys who couldn’t grow a spine for themselves so took Cartman’s personality. It’s pretty apparent that Matt and Trey are very liberal they just thought “making fun” of everyone “equally” was right which got some bad apples. No one likes season 9 episode 1. Not a soul. Tbh most of the drama doesn’t relate to bigotry, though enough does that it matters. And if you aren’t interested in exploring how bigotry effects ppl I’m not sure why you would be interested in South Park.

Like yeah Matt and Trey haven’t thought about Marjorine more than once, but everyone saw a boy being accepted and cared for and enjoying himself seen as a girl more than ever before. And Matt and Trey aren’t gonna give these kids real mental illnesses when we see the symptoms clear as day (price of making characters “unique”). We’re playing a different game then they are, so yeah we’re disconnected in some ways. But we’re very connected in others. We don’t let all 25 seasons go to waste.

And what has my opinion been from watching the show so far? Well I’m on season 11 and so far it’s not as bad as I expected. I agree with a lot of their messages and the stuff that’s obviously just. terrible isn’t as common as I thought it would be? Again, s9 e1 is the worst of it, and you phrased it really well when saying it’s mainly inappropriate humor that often goes over the line. They’re very liberal though, I mean they introduce a gay character in the first episode and in the 90’s teach a kid gay is chill. There are episodes I dislike or just get bored by, but most of what I’ve gotten through which is getting closer to half of the show runs from decent to surprisingly well made (pick any s8 ep tbh. oops all bangers). Mattrey aren’t me, and I’m here to develop the characters, they’re there to develop a comedy. we are not the same but we appreciate each other even tho we probably squint and think the other is more in the wrong then ourselves. But we enjoy each other occasionally.

EDIT: I meant to put this originally but not everyone here is a young adult. I’ve seen 11 year old fans I’ve seen 50 year old fans. we have a lot of diversity in stuff like that. I think young adults had a wave of coming into the fandom because creek became canon which gave the show credit for showing how good it can be at times. Every one of my south park friends are at least two years older then me. That being said I joined a discord that I hadn’t realized was for minors and saw the swath of young ages we get. a lot of us have a decade between each other, but even more of us are in that 17-25 range. I think it’s just more common for young adults to get into it since we have the freedom to watch whatever we want and it’s a household name some may have been restricted to. Then again I joined this when I was 10 as well so like. i may be a bit warped. either way this shows rlly has smth for everyone.

Oh wait! Oh no!!! TL;DR: South Park is a show that’s important to me and others for a lot of reasons. Nothing butters me up like seeing people in broken worlds be able to put it together again in the future, or to be torn apart idk it depends. Other reasons to like the show are: Relatability, they can be literally any age, Infinite scenarios, People love to take the absurd seriously, A lot of content, Relatability; again, simple designs, the setting is a sandbox, creators kinda want us to take this seriously, and a lot of fandom history! And probably more. We’re not that disconnected from the series itself but everyone is pretty aware how problematic it is and many disconnect entirely from the series. Other choose to embrace it to Fix Them. Ppl love to do a lot.

[welldonebeca]

The Pack (I)

Summary: Sam and Jess decide to spend Spring Break with you and Dean and finally - after a good night together - join your pack. And you all mate. Of course. WC: 3.5k words Warnings: A/B/O dynamics. Tension. Hurt/Comfort. Flirting. Lactation kink.

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Masterlist

“We decided on a neutral colour,” you told Jess as you showed her your nursery, which you had just finished painting a couple of days ago. “Because we can reuse it, you know? We plan on moving her to a bigger room by the time we have a second.”

Jess was Sam’s girlfriend, his Omega, and was just visiting along with him for spring break.

“So you know it’s a girl?” she asked.

You shook your head, caressing your belly and your barely-showing bump.

“No, the doctor said it’s still a month until we can see anything officially. Maybe even more. But I think she is a girl.”

You were her mama, and mamas never got it wrong.

“Aww, this is so exciting!” she exclaimed. “I can’t wait to be an aunt.”

She touched your belly happily, and you were happy that it was finally starting to show a little bit, though it was nothing near your tits. Now that you had started pumping, they had stopped growing so much, but they were still bigger than their past self.

“You know,” she looked at you. “Have you ever thought about having a mural? Something sweet, maybe behind the changing table?”

You nodded a little.

“Well, I thought about it. But we don’t know anyone who can paint like that,” you told her. “And it’s our baby. I don’t know if I’d let a stranger do something without any meaning on the wall, I want it to be something she looks at and I can say ‘daddy painted it for you’ or ‘mama painted it for you’, but neither of us is good with art.”

Jess pouted a little.

“Oh,” she nodded a bit. “Well…”

You finally realised what she was talking about.

“I do like the sound of your ‘auntie Jess painted it for you’,” you teased her.

Her eyes sparkled, and her lips curled in a big smile. Jess was so pretty!

“If it isn’t much to ask,” you told her. “Because you are a guest, I don’t want to make you work.”

She waved a dismissive hand.

“Oh, no, don’t worry!” she assured you. “I mean, we have all week!”

Such a short time…  you wished they could stay a little longer.

“And it’ll be my birthday present to you!” she affirmed, squeezing your hand.

Sam had bought you some gift cards as your birthday gift, which you didn’t mind.

But a mural… well, it would be very nice.

“I’ll see if I can ask Dean to take you to Home Depot for some paints later,” you offered, taking her hand as you both went outside to find your boys.

They were in the backyard… arguing?

“Dean, those are humans!” Sam stomped his foot. “They are treating those Omegas like livestock!

Oh… so they were talking about that.

“You know, for a guy who is all about researching, you’re really bad at looking into Shurley’s. All the omegas consent to it and they can quit anytime,” Dean reminded him.

“The only kind of omegas they would seek out would be the ones who are desperate, and you think they wouldn’t target that?” his brother insisted.

Ever since you two started donating milk, there had been a boom in the company’s popularity. You would like to think it was you, but you also knew they were expanding, and with that came fame.

They set up farms East, and now they had plans on going west, which Sam was not happy about.

“It’s predatory!”

“It’s a job!” Dean corrected him. “Like… like OnlyFans. And escorting. And something for the greater good, like sperm donation! They help people everywhere!”

Sam took a hand to his face, growling.

“I don’t even know why I’m talking to you about this, especially with how you treat-“

“Um? Sam?” Jess called out, stopping both men.

The way he treated… you.

Sam was very critical of your relationship with Dean. Well, he was critical of anything and everything Dean did.

It made you very sad because Dean loved him more than anything in this world.

… maybe not you. You didn’t like to ponder on that, because it wasn’t a competition.

But he adored Sam, and always made sure things were always perfect for him, so he could have everything he wanted.

Even with college, Dean wanted to pay for everything, so Sam would just study. His house, his car and tuition… but he didn’t let him do more than put his name on the lease. And since he had gone to college, he was distant from his brother.

This visit was new to him.

But he liked you, you knew that. Sam always said he wanted you to be safe and happy, but you felt like he didn’t listen to you. You had said to him a thousand times that this is the happiest you have ever been, but he still wouldn’t understand.

It was good that Omegas could do whatever they wanted, and have the lives they wanted, but you liked your life. You liked being a housewife and attached to Dean by the hip and having him take care of everything. It made you happy!

“Oh, hey, sweeties,” Dean flashed you two a smile. “Do you need anything?”

“Is everything alright?” Jess asked

“Oh, yes,” he assured you, but you knew he was lying. “Don’t worry, doll.”

Sam’s lips curled in a growl.

“Don’t call her that.”

But Jess smiled. She didn’t seem bothered at all.

“You know what?” Sam decided and walked to you two. “How about they contribute? They have a voice, you know?”

You frowned. What now?

Dean always asked your opinion on things.

“How do you feel about what Shurley is doing to Omegas?”

Jess sighed, putting a hand on his shoulder.

“Oh, that… Sam…” she looked at him, clearly something they both knew about. “I mean, we don’t want them being abused under them, you know?”

“But they are nice,” you told her. “Their Omegas have a good contract, their needs are all met, and I looked into it and their health insurance is the best in the country. Dean is even getting me in it. The insurance company, I mean.”

Jess raised her eyebrows, surprised.

“Really?”

“Yes,” you confirmed. “We’ve looked into the company. Well, I did more than Dean.”

You tried not to flush thinking of it. They didn’t need to know how you knew all of those things.

“They distribute breast milk even to smaller hospitals, and to families who don’t have ways to feed their pups,” you told her.

“Wait. Why are you looking into them?” Sam looked at you, curiosity getting the better of him. “Is Dean making you-“

You couldn’t take it.

“Can you be nice for once?”  you interrupted him. “Everything is ‘Dean’s doing this’, ‘Dean’s doing that!”

Your husband’s eyes widened, and you stomped, walked closer to his brother and raised your head to look at his face, now fully angry.

You were so tired of Sam accusing Dean all the time!

“The rain starts out of time, and it’s Dean’s fault. You can’t find a shoe, and it is Dean’s fault! If you disagree with something, Dean has to be wrong because you are never wrong!” you growled at him. “Dean doesn’t treat me right, Dean doesn’t know this, Dean’s help is useless… will you, please, stop?”

Someone put a hand on your back, very delicate, but you shrugged them off.

How dare he be so mean to your Alpha? Your husband was a very loving man, even if he wasn’t good with his words. He always compensated them with his actions.

“Dean redecorated the guest room just so that you two would be comfortable!” you told him. “He bought a new mattress, made sure we have your favourite foods, and has been spending the whole week trying to find a way to convince you into letting him get you some dental insurance because you are too stubborn to let you help him!”

Sam stared at you with wide eyes, shocked, and you stepped away from him, not wanting to get into a fight, but came back as soon as you realised you weren’t done.

“Your brother thinks the world of you! He tells the people all the time that his little brother is a smart lawyer and got into Stanford all on his own,” you continued. “He keeps pictures of when you were little all around because you don’t like to take pictures with him anymore, and always talks about gifting you and Jess a house in the town so that we could see one another more often without you being overwhelmed by his presence.”

“Baby,” Dean called you.

“So don’t come to me with that talk of Dean forcing me to do anything! Because I only cook when I want, I only clean when I want, and I am very spoiled every day because he is a very good Alpha, the same way that he is a very good brother! And I value that very much!” you finished. “And just because you think an Omega is only good when she is working, it doesn’t mean we can’t be happy staying home!”

Your eyes welled up, but you kept your stance, walking away from him in strong steps and stomping right back into your room.

After that massive rant, you curled up into your big pillow to scream, though you could still hear the three outside.

You had never, ever, been so upset with someone before, but he needed to hear that!

"I... I don't-" Sam tried to speak. "I mean..."

"Sam, you should talk to her," Jess interrupted him.

There was a moment of silence before she continued.

"Dean... I know this is strange, but she wanted to know if you could drive me for some paints. I'd love to do a mural for the baby."

"That would be very nice, Jessica," your husband agreed. "We can go now. And they should have a moment alone."

You looked up from your pillow, still hugging it.

"Come in," you mumbled.

He opened the door carefully.

"I added the colourful marshmallows you like," he tried to smile.

You glared at him, bitterly.

"Oh, how presumptuous of you," you grunted.

Still, you took the drink anyway.

You did love the colourful marshmallows.

He sighed, putting his own mug aside, and it looked way more boring than yours.

“Listen, I’m sorry," he apologised. "I shouldn’t have been so hard on Dean."

"You're right, you shouldn't," you confirmed.

He smiled the littlest bit.

"I just... I get so worried for you," he told you.

You lowered your mug, chewing one of the marshmallows.

“Why?” you finally asked him. “Sam, you’ve known me for years, why do you think I can’t take care of myself?”

Sam hesitated for a moment, and you continued to stare at him.

What, did he think you were dumb?

"You're an Omega," he said, at last. "And a woman. A very feminine woman. People sometimes take advantage of people like you."

You sighed. Of course you knew all of that. Your whole life, people looked at you different for being girly and wanting to settle down and just have a family. No fancy schools, just a house to command and babies to raise.

"I know, Sam," you touched his hand. His hand was so warm. "But I live like this because I chose this life for myself. I see how people treat me, and I’m very aware of it. The last thing I want is someone thinking they know what’s best for me.”

He nodded with you.

"You're a very nice girl," he told you. "Dean is... very lucky. To have you."

You tilted your head.

Oh, you knew those eyes.

Sure, you weren't school sharp, but you could read people like paper.

"Do you remember..." you spoke slowly, starting to reminisce. "When Dean asked me to Prom, and he had you helping?"

Dean always wanted to share everything with his brother.

Everything.

You giggled.

Dean didn't want a prom date, he wanted an easy lay.

And you weren't an easy lay.

"So he did it again," you reminded him. "And a third time."

"And then you accepted," Sam pointed out.

You chuckled.

"I remember how jealous you looked when I did," you teased him.

Sam stopped, frozen and flushing.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he tried to deny it.

You laughed.

"I always knew you had a little crush on me, Sammy," you told him. "I just didn't know it had never gone away,"

Sam was blushing so much. It was adorable.

"Y/n," he stuttered. "I... Dean... Jess..."

"Families are packs, Sam," you reminded him. "It's very normal for a pack to be big."

Still, he pulled away from you.

"Listen... I do love you," he affirmed, your heart soar and your chest ache. "But I won't do that to Jess. Packs are too traditional, and we don’t want that."

You raised an eyebrow at him.

"Does she?" you asked him. "Are you sure?"

You had seen the way Jess looked at your belly, and how she was fascinated with the ins and out of your life as you told it to her.

“It’s not wrong to want it,” you whispered to him.

Sam nearly growled.

"Not wrong?" he asked. "To want to own my omega or take control like some knot head?"

"Yes," you whispered. "Exactly. To care for her and spoil her."

He didn't look at you, and you rested your head on his shoulder.

"You know, Dean treats me very well," you told him. "He is so sweet, Sam. Always giving me little gifts, always making my life comfortable... I barely lift a finger around here."

His skin was so warm against yours. Still, Sam kept drinking his mug, and you just then realised what he was drinking.

You didn't have milk at home.

Not conventional milk, at least. Just yours...

You were producing so much, you kept a bit of yours to yourselves.

And Sam seemed to be enjoying it very much.

"I used the milk in the half-empty bottle," he told you. "I hope that's alright? I wasn't sure if it was something you were saving it for some recipe."

You shook your head.

"No, it's just milk," you assured him. "It's just not pasteurised. We got it fresh today."

“I mean, yeah, it’s really good," he nodded again, emphatic. "You guys don’t even have cows anymore, where do you get it?”

You smiled smuggle,

“Oh, just some other farmers were kind enough to give some of theirs…. Deans been experimenting with it...”

Your husband had been very curious with what your milk could bring before a baby.

“He's actually made some fresh ice cream with it," he told you. "You wanna try it?"

You raised your head from his shoulder and Sam relaxed completely now.

"Yeah," he agreed. "Of course."

You really shouldn’t get turned on by this.

You were tricking your brother in law... but you knew if Sam knew he would start worrying, and you just wanted this week to be perfect!

"I'll serve you," you hopped off your bed. "Come on."

Sam didn't say anything as you guided him downstairs and waited as you served him a big ball of sweet vanilla ice cream, and Sam almost immediately dug in.

"Oh, God," he huffed. "This is really good. It's so sweet!"

Sam licked the spoon with his skilled tongue, and you squirmed, feeling yourself getting wet, and your chest felt a little tight and-

"Oh," you gasped, feeling your clothes wet.

You were leaking again!

"I'm sorry," you covered your chest. "I need to go clean up."

You rushed out of the kitchen before he could say anything, looking for your pump.

Where had Dean put it?!

Finally, you managed to find it and hid in your work room before setting it up.

What would Sam and Jess think if they saw you like this?

Before you could overthink, your door opened, and Dean walked inside.

"There you are!" your husband smiled. "Baby! Jess is so perfect! I didn't know how perfect she would be, she is all sweet."

You raised your eyes to him quickly.

"Oh, you think so too?" you asked him. "I was thinking... oh, Dean, we really could have a pack, couldn't we?"

You two had talked a bit about it - before and after getting married.

But you never found someone who would be a good fit.

Until today, that was.

"Now you’re reading my mind,” Dean smirked, taking a seat beside you. "You, me, Sammy and Jess... I don't even know how Sam has bred her up already. They’ve been dating for four years!"

You shook your head. That was way too long of a time.

But they were at least mated.

"Of course you're thinking of breeding," you giggled. "Another cow for the family business."

He chuckled, touching your leg and caressing your thigh slowly.

"She has so much untapped potential, baby," he hummed. "Beautiful tits, long legs... oh, I imagine she can bounce pretty well on cock, uh?"

You squirmed, warmed by his words and the pump.

But Dean pulled away from you and rested on the chair slowly, just smirking a little.

Suddenly, Jessica walked into the room.

"Dean?" she called.

She gasped, though, when she looked at you.

"Oh!" she covered her eyes. "I'm so sorry!"

"It's alright," you assured her. "Just... Omega business."

She flushed and Dean looked back at her.

"Yes, doll?" he asked.

Her cheeks were flushed, and Jess couldn't look up.

"Sam wants to talk to you," he told you. "In the kitchen."

Dean nodded.

"Thank you, sweetheart. I'll go talk to him."

He left and Jess hesitated, about to do the same, but you stopped her.

"Hey," you called her. "Sit down, it's alright. Nothing you haven't seen before."

If she was going to be part of your pack, then she had to get used to this, right?

She sat down, but still didn't look at you.

"Sorry," she mumbled. "I just... always thought this was private. My mum always says people should cover-up when breastfeeding."

You scoffed.

"Oh, come on," you shook your head. "Boobs are made for babies. Anything else is an extra."

Jessica giggled.

“I guess that’s true,” she finally looked at you, and then frowned, pointing to your chest. "Uh... is that from Shurley’s? Is that why you were so defensive before?”

You hesitated a bit.

Oh, well.

"It is," you agreed. "I have a... special situation. Condition. Something like that, I can say."

Jessica frowned, worried.

"It's alright," you assured her. "I just have milk. Lots of it. So I needed a special pump and only they have it. It's been helping me a lot in the last month."

She nodded along.

"I guess that's good," she pointed out. "You wouldn't want a mess everywhere."

Oh, if a mess was everything you were worried about.

"And it hurt so much," you told her. "My body ached to feed my baby when she isn't even out yet. I was so desperate I thought about just offering to feed newborns at the hospital."

You both laughed at the joke.

"I donate my milk," you told her. "So I guess I do feed hospital babies. Just not directly."

She beamed.

“That’s amazing!” Jess exclaimed, awed. “I wish I could do that… sometimes I volunteer, but to make a difference like that..”

“And your body loves it too!” you praised it. “It can be messy, but it’s all for the babies and that’s all I care about.”

She watched you, impressed.

"That sounds dreamy," she told you. "Your life is just wonderful. I wish I could just...  you know."

She lowered her eyes, unsure, not wanting to finish it.

You looked into her eyes.

"Wish you could, what?"

She hesitated, sighing and looking at the door.

"I mean... you guys are so lucky," she explained. "Sam and I... I don't want it to come out wrong, but we are struggling a bit. With our loans, you know?"

You nodded a bit. School loans were very expensive, especially for schools so big, such as Stanford.

"It's not a crippling debt, but it will be a while before we feel ready to have a baby, and you are ready to have another as soon as this one comes out!" she pointed at you. "It's such a good place and it... it makes me a little jealous."

"Well, what if we could help?" you suggested vaguely.

Her eyes shone at the idea, but she quickly looked away.

"Sam wants to do it on his own," she shook her head. "I have to support him."

"You are such a good Onega," you praised her, and Jess flushed. "But you know... if we all work on convincing him, he can't say no. Especially if he hears how much you want a baby."

Jess blushed even more.

"You'll be such a good mama," you told her, teasing her now. "You're so sweet and caring, and with Sam, you'd have a big belly, you know? Maybe even twins."

The machine stopped, and she looked right at your tits before you moved to remove the suction, bottles now full.

"I should put these away," you sighed, sweetly. "Talk to Sam, Jess. He will appreciate it."

You leaned by her side and placed a little kiss on her cheek, tits barely in your bra, and adjusted yourself before actually dressing up fully.

. . .

"The Pack" is the second part of "The Milk series". To read its sequels "The Farm" - a Castiel x Reader x Dean - and "The Family" - a Jess x Reader & Sam x Reader - subscribe to my page! It's just $2 a month and helps me a lot through these hard times.

. . .

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[rriavian]

Shipper Tag Game

Tagged by @seiya-starsniper <3

What ship were you completely obsessed with as a teenager, but now you don't care about anymore?

I don’t think there are any actually! I’m pretty consistent and will usually circle back to a ship every couple of years 😊

Which ship would you consider your first one?

This is tough, I don’t think I actually remember. Though I think last time I answered this question I mentioned Lord of the Rings because of Aragorn/Arwen

Your first fanfic was about which couple?

My secret anon identity means I can’t answer this honestly – but the first one I’ve written without being anonymous is Corintheus

Do you remember the first couple you saw fan art of?

Long long time ago so not quite sure actually, might be a ship from Harry Potter

Have you ever gotten into ship discourse?

Nope! I try and stay away from it—though I never hide my opinions, I just don’t really engage too much in ship discourse. People are always going to have differing opinions over pairings, and I’ve seen it get very ugly in fandom spaces.

Did you use to have any NOTP or have one currently?

Oh I have a fair few, but usually they are ships I was previously neutral about. Some of them are also things I've previously shipped. My NOTPs are pretty much all results of a not so pleasant fandom experience, so I don’t really talk a lot about what they are. I’m a multishipper so the only time I actually have a NOTP is when a ship is overwhelmingly represented in a way that I just can’t get on board with.

Who were the last couple in the last fanfic you read?

Corintheus 😊 which is definitely what I’m most known for haha, so probably not a surprise

Currently, do you have any OTPs?

As I said…I am a multishipper, and I’ve never really had an OTP. It’s not a concept I really resonate with? Especially with fanfic because for me it’s all about the exploration of possibilities, and I can very much ship multiple things at once. I care more about interesting/well executed characterisation and well written relationship dynamics.

Is there any couple that, to this day, that you are extremely mad about not getting into?

Not really, because if I’m not into a ship in at least some way (or neutral/open to the possibility) then there is usually a very, very good reason.

Is there any ship you used to dislike but now you think they're kind of interesting?

Hmm. Maybe Desire/Unity? But it’s not that I ever really disliked them, more that there are some obvious consent issues within it that initially made me not really consider the ship too closely. The more I see others exploring it the more I’ve found them interesting 😊

Do you have any ship that, in the past, would have been considered normal but now you would be cancelled over?

I don’t think so actually! Though I’m probably forgetting something

What is your favourite crack ship?

Ooh I’ve read a lot of bizarre stuff. Hmm. It might have to be a certain ship that @writing-for-life introduced me to (if you know what I’m talking about it will need no further explanation haha)

What is the couple you read the most fanfics about?

I’m still anon in a lot of fandoms so I can’t actually answer this question too honestly. I haven’t actually been reading that much recently (very focused on writing at the moment)

What do most of your ships have in common?

Equality…in some fashion they are each other’s match. Which sounds like a strange thing to say for Corintheus but it doesn’t necessarily have to be in physical strength/power.

I also ship a fair few ‘enemies to lovers’ ships. Probably for the above reason! It’s the intimacy of it I think. Also the complexity, I like ships where the dynamic is compelling but not necessarily easy to pull off in a fic, because that usually means more thought is put into the execution of it. If that makes sense? And I am very much all about the execution when I read/write.

What do you absolutely hate in a ship?

Butchering characterisation just to play out a binary sex dynamic. Mostly this presents as overt feminisation of the one character who is designated to be ‘weaker’ for reasons both untrue and usually very offensive. Which sounds harsh but it’s something I utterly despise. Folded into this is also one character ‘fixing’ the other character, especially when this involves that character giving up something important/integral to who they are. I see it so much in published fiction as well and it’s just not for me at all.

I also really don’t like it when unhealthy behaviours are romanticised (usually to ‘fix’ one character) or miscommunication when it’s not something silly like accidentally buying your partner the wrong type of coffee because you were so tired you misheard a word.

[shivunin]

WIP Wednesday

Tagged by @greypetrel---thanks, as always! 💗

Tagging in turn (no pressure!) @star--nymph @ndostairlyrium @daggerbean @zenstrike @blightbear @inquisimer @dreadfutures @dungeons-and-dragon-age @nightwardenminthara @vakarians-babe

First, Warden scarf update: Progress is much quicker now that I am working on a more standard stitch. I am really enjoying the silver next to the blue and looking forward to the chainmail-y look it'll have as I add more rows. I am toying with trying to make an embroidered griffon, but that's an ambitious amount of embroidery for my current skill level. Still workshopping it a bit, but hoping to finish for the end of the month. Also, I finally found the right purple for the Leliana scarf, so I can finally finish that one, too!

And also, I have been working on some Baldur's Gate fic (below) as I feel out voice and dynamics:

“Back to camp?” she asked the others. 

Grumbling, they staggered their way back toward the clearing they’d chosen for the night. 

“What was it like?” Shadowheart asked, some time later. “Being a prodigy, I mean.”

Tav glanced sideways just in time to catch Gale’s grimace. The orb troubled him, she knew; he’d called himself prideful before, and perhaps losing so much of his skill had humbled him. Even so, nobody liked to have their nose rubbed in what they’d lost. Very well, then. She would take this blow much as she’d taken the arrow aimed for the wizard’s neck not half an hour earlier. 

“Lonely,” she said, finding the path before her and focusing on it. “You are held apart. Always praised before anyone else. Your peers resent you, even as they wish to imitate you. Mentors teach you your art at the exclusion of all other skills; the holes left by that sort of thing are never found until years later. One day, you realize that you are a master of your craft—this is around when everyone else has already learned how to make friends and fall in love and plan a life outside of your specialty. In this, you are woefully behind. But the acclaim—from far away, everybody loves you. They talk about you in their fine halls and in the city streets. They write poems and songs about what you’ve done.”

She sighed, still trying to find the words. 

“But by then—you never get to be a person again. It’s already too late.”

A bird sang in the tree overhead. Distracted, Tav paused and peered up at it. A simple tree sparrow, she thought. It blended almost perfectly with the branch it perched atop.

“Lovely day, innit,” the bird said, and she smiled slightly. 

“It is. The best I’ve seen in an age.” 

“You take care down there,” the bird said, peering down at them. “Big crowd of arseholes wandering round the woods these days. Burning trees, like.”

“I’ll be careful,” she promised, and the wound on her shoulder ached at the words. “Safe flight. Warm nest.”

“And you as well, mum,” the bird said, and fluttered away into the shadows of the wood. 

Tav hummed to herself, thinking about the smoke they’d seen in the distance. How far away might it be from camp? If someone really was burning the wood, they ought to do something about it before it caused even more harm than the crashed nautiloid. 

“Gods,” Astarion said, abruptly at her elbow, and she started. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard you say so many words at once. Did that spider knock something loose in that hard—I mean darling head of yours?” 

“Yes,” Shadowheart agreed, peering at her. “Awfully specific, too. What was it you said you did again? Before the tadpole and the crash, I mean.”

“Oh, nothing,” Tav told them, turning again to catch the last sight of the sparrow through the trees. “I’ve lived at the temple for years. I’m no one of any account.”

She started walking again. This seemed the best way to avoid the question—the other two being the ones most likely to spend long hikes grumbling than any of her other new companions. Unfortunately, Astarion kept pace with great ease. This was the trouble with all the armor, she decided unhappily. Once she got going, she could barrel right into an ogre and knock it over, but he had her beat for sheer speed. There would be no escape. 

“Oh, really?” he said. “And yet I somehow get the feeling you aren’t being entirely honest. Come now, darling, you’re among friends. Surely it wouldn’t kill you to share something. We’re all just dying to know more.” 

Something delicate and sharp crawled up her throat. Glass; always shattered glass. Tav choked it back and focused on the trees and the ground beyond. 

“We hail from the same place,” she reminded him, glancing at the pale elf from the corner of her eye. “You said yourself you don’t recognize me.”

Because she had shut herself away in her workshop for years. He almost certainly knew her name—the old one—but he would not know her now. What a blessing that was, from the hands of her Morninglord himself. How little it mattered then that she did not recognize herself when it meant that nobody else would, either. 

“I suppose I did,” he said, but his eyes remained narrow. 

“Say now,” Gale called from behind them, “about those boots you found. I think I’ve deciphered the enchantment on them. Rather clever—and simple to explain, too. You see—”

He launched into a detailed explanation not only of the boots in question, but also the method by which they might have been enchanted in the first place. Tav breathed a small, private sigh of relief and nodded to him in thanks. Gale smiled back, eyes crinkling at the corners. The topic, it would seem, had been dropped. 

For now, at least. 

[pkmnomegaverse]

indulge my curiosity bc i just remembered leena exists… if the family dynamic is still the same as uhhhhhhhhhh 4?? years ago??? and rue gets along great with marshal, is she ever aware that she shares a different parent than her siblings? are leena and colvin ever told rue is their half sibling or is it a non issue that they never learn about?

also, if you have any ideas at this point (if you need another 4yrs to marinade i understand) how do the three get along? six years isn't a significant difference but in the pkmn world when you leave to go travel at ten at the earliest (solo at least) that would make leena and colvin 4/3 when (potentially!) rue isn't around as much, so i wonder how that affects their dynamic. maybe she comes home with cool stories for them and is another influence on the two becoming competitive trainers aside from their parents.

idek if rue's friend group has been established either?? you don't ahve to elaborate on that one i'm just pondering here. if she's 15/16 when leena is 10, do you think they would travel together while leena is just starting out? or, would leena and colvin have such a relationship where they start their journey together when colvin is of age? (thinking if they're close that it would be sweet for leena to hang around an extra year, still be a trainer but just close to home, has gotten the hang of managing pkmn by the time it's time for colvin to get his license.)

this got long hhhhh pls don't feel obligated to answer it all!!

Poor Leena, the kid I've thought about the least in that trio. I def need to change up some things with this family as a whole, since I've retconned stuff with Colvin to spare him from drama. But that also means I need to figure out what they're all doing. The overall family dynamic is still roughly going to be the same, but will tweak some things at some point.

Anyway! To answer your questions as best I can. Yes Rue is aware Marshal is her step-dad and Leena/Colvin are her half siblings, mostly since she looks nothing like any of them. I always figured it was kind of a given there was no real reason to lie to her about that, since would be obvious that she only takes after Grimsley looks wise once she’s older. Plus she’s kinda sorta just barely old enough to remember a time pre-Marshal (Leena is basically a pretty quick accident baby once Marshal and Grimsley get re-involved since Grimsley making poor life choices/having bad luck is the running theme. And while Marshal is pulling the "I'll take responsibility let's get married card" right away, Grimsley isn't as gung-ho about jumping straight to that). So while they're figuring that out, Rue is calling her potential future step-dad "Mr. Marshal" and such, eventually moving to "Dad" once Grimsley and Marshal get married. So since Rue knows he's not her bio dad, Leena and Colvin know too, although I don’t think a big deal is made about it. Overall is a non-issue.

Again, I'm pretty vague on the siblings dynamic in gen but I've always pictured that they all get along pretty well. A family of eccentrics. Rue is the genki goth-leaning girl, Leena is the equally genki martial arts girl, and Colvin is kind of soft-spoken and shy (but still goth), letting his sisters have the limelight while he kind of hides behind them. But there's an eccentric performer in him lurking. Just needs to be awakened. I do think Leena waits a year so she and Colvin can travel together. Gotta look out for her little bro and all.

Rue I've apparently completely retconned in my own head over time without realizing it because I just checked and past me said her and Brenin (Hugh/Nate's foster son) travel together and are love interests. But in my heart, it's been Sorrel (Cress' son with Ghetsis) for a while who fills this role. So maybe I'll flip it back since perhaps past me had a good reason it was Brenin over Sorrel, but here's the vibe I got for Sorrel/Rue. Since Sorrel is raised by Anthea and Concordia for the early years of his life, he still visits Unova a lot since there's kind of a shared custody situation going on there. Seemed cruel to let them be his moms until he's like 3-5 and then just snatch him away forever. So he does end up living at the Hilbert/N Poke Sanctuary "x" months out of the year with his Foster Moms. Which is why he ends up deciding to start his Pokemon in Unova over Kalos, which is where he meets Rue and the two become friends. Them traveling together is kind of a carryover plot of when Colvin had abduction drama since both are the oldest sibling with a missing little brother. But even with that dropped plotline for Colvin, I still like the idea of those two traveling together. They do still have the shared connection of a mom who makes questionable choices in terms of romantic partners. Also a bio villain dad who isn't around since while Rue's bio dad is always a mystery in universe, in my heart, he's a mob boss.

Honestly Brenin is likely there too. Since I know I had Brenin and Sorrel marked as being friends. So in gen, the potential people Rue is connected to and traveling with are Sorrel and Brenin.

And your right about Rue calling home/sharing stories about her own travels, which likely inspires her siblings to be competitive trainers. Past just their parents influencing them all.

So TLDR the siblings get along pretty well but I def need to workshop this family more, since overall, they're kind of underdeveloped.

[enneamage]

bringing to the surface "platonic" sbi again, this kind of thinking probably is from my black-and-white dsmp fandom ways but, is it okay then to like dark sbi content? i have never liked anything RPF and dsmp is such a blurry line since the fandom had tried to make cc and c two completely different things, when honestly they're too connected to differentiate. take wilbur, a lot of people straight-up dropped the whole sbi thing because for the life of them couldn't separate the art from the authour, and honestly, me either. though it has gotten easier through the months with the special ability of just ignoring reality.

it's probably a little hard for you to sympathize since you've mentioned that you don't really like sbi fics in general, because at the end of the day it has become a thing of it's own, barely following the people it was based on. which is so so weird and i wonder if i'll ever feel weird about it too, or if i'll be a prisoner of the nostalgia and gooey feelings it gave me as a teen.

would really appreciate your perspective!

First off I will address the biglong ask that I got alongside this one, which made me a little teary-eyed because it caught me on an interesting day and I really appreciated the nostalgia trip. Thank you 😭. 

I tend to have a look at the impact that it’s having on the person who’s doing the reading, putting aside the production since it already exists from their POV. I’ll go partly off what you said in your longer message and say that you’re coming from a place of pretty solid self-awareness now, which can make a difference in terms of the way people go about things. When people put meanings into RPF and then keep going back to one dynamic or one story style without knowing why, they kinda put themselves at risk of not being able to move on / overinvesting in the dynamic, which it seems like you’re not doing. You have a half-roadmap for where to go when you want to move on which I think makes a difference. 

The thing is, you are an ageing person, and c!Tommy is notoriously not. Time is going to be a deciding factor in terms of going back to SBI content for a certain kind of emotional kickback. I actually think it will be natural for things to lose their charge as you move on to new and different stuff, so don’t worry too-too much. There’s still a lot of media out there and I know it can seem un-promising if you’re a person who likes to come at things with a hyperfixation-ish edge, but the thing about brains built like that is when they switch over they switch over fast. You deserve an era that exists beyond lockdown nostalgia, even though I do get feeling attached to the deeply heightened feelings that Peak DSMP brought on.

[rottenpumpkin13]

I wanna hop on this LOVE TRAIN WOOOOOO!!!!! ❤️❤️❤️❤️ 🚂 🚂

I wish I could give you the world’s biggest hug rn <333 (okay, okay, imagine that CC scene, right, with Zack hugging Angeal? That’s me to you!). I don’t think I’ve really ever gotten the chance to express how much I love your blog, your writing, your art (beautiful 😭) and your general personality <333 You have a absolute gift for humor, and legit I’ve never once passed a post of yours without breaking into a big, sloppy smile <333 You’ve helped get me through hard days- for real. Even if it’s just the Bois being total and utter morons, binging your headcanons and vlogs and everything in between has made me laugh on days when I couldn’t. There’s just something so infectiously joyous and loving and genuine about all your posts- and I admire it with all my heart <333 You being all the characters to life in such a wonderful, wonderful way- I know it sounds cliche as heck but i don’t know how else to articulate it :,3 They all feel like a family- their bonds feel so real: Seph is so sympathetic, funny, and lovable; you give Gen and Angeal more personality than they ever had in the games- just the most likable bros ever xD <3 Angeal is so dorky and real and Genesis both retains his sharp personality, but also has a kindness and empathy that little to no one truly ever portrays just right. It’s brilliant and perfect <3 Zack is both precious but not an idiot- still strong and independent. And Cloud is just a champ! I just… love it so much, Pumpkin <333 I think your universe is lowkey my favorite interpretation of the Firsts’ dynamic. You have a way of masterfully wielding the most snort-inducing humor, the warmest and coziest fluff, and the most gut-wrenching angst all at once (I mean Caroling at the Gallows….? 😭😭❤️). It’s an unbelievably hard thing to be able to be so well-rounded with genres but you do it effortlessly. It’s amazing. It’s incredible. And so are you <333 For real, so you’re so kind and supportive and appreciative of everyone around you. I’m so, so sorry that life isn’t returning that kindness to you :((( I know it will soon tho ❤️ And we’ll continue to have your back until it does!

You’re an absolute gift to this fandom and this site. Ty for being you, Pumpkin <333 I know I’m not the only one whose life you make actively better around here!

I think I read this message a total of six times before it actually sunk in, because LOOK WHO'S TALKING. IF IT ISN'T THE VERY SEPH+ZACK WRITER WHO INSPIRED ME TO START POSTING IN THE FIRST PLACE 😤💗💖

I don't even know where to begin with this. Everything you said made my jaw drop and my heart feel warmer than the flames of Nibelheim fanning Cloud's skin as he lay there watching Sephiroth in the distance cookies when you take them out of the oven 🥹🔥

Coming from you this means so so much, and I'm currently smiling so hard my cheeks hurt 😶❤️

You're so incredibly supportive and kind to those around you and I'm so lucky that we ended up in the same fandom 💖🥹

[unsleepingtales]

Burrow’s End!!! I am so excited for this season and I’m also incredibly nervous because I think it’s going to emotionally destroy me. This is a long one.

(Also I am now living in gmt which means episodes drop at midnight for me, so I’m likely gonna wind up posting about them the next day)

Aabria!! Welcome back!!

I’m so thrilled that more and more players are doing character makeup it’s so fun

OH we’re just getting classes and subclasses out the gate ok

Hi Izzy hi Erika <3

I have not seen Jasper William Cartwright in anything ever but simply based on the look and the vibes I’m so excited about this

Siobhan <3

Ooooh two paladinssss

(This is excellent for me personally because I have been slowly convincing my boyfriend that paladins are actually really cool and I can now use his crush on BLeeM to my advantage)

They’re a family!

DOME ALREADY

I hope Beatrix is in some way a reference to Beatrix Potter <3

Siobhan IMMEDIATELY in goblin mode incredible

Wooo full stats love when they give us the full stats

First roll of the campaign is a 21! Good vibes!

Oh what stat array did they use I need to look at that

I so hope that the bizarre british things counter sticks around

Izzy playing a rogue is so delightful

We’re in pvp already and I am HERE for the chaos

Ok so their dad’s Dead. Fantastic. Sure hope this doesn’t emotionally affect me at alllll.

Cheating at what??

Ten minutes in and they already made their guardian/aunt/babysitter curse

Their physicality is great

I also love the info we’re getting about Tula before we’re introduced to her

Dome? Dome? DOME??

God the art department knocks it out of the fucking park every fucking time

Oh these are KIDS

I know I say this every season but I love First Episodes. I love meeting them and learning what the vibe is for the season and settling into the world.

They’re rolling so welllll

Oh that was a Good entrance

The voice!! Her voice!!

Oath of devotion paladin !

Everyone really wanted hats huh

oh h my god

Girl WHAT

I love Aabria snatching the small opportunities to hint at what will be bigger later

Now why can he do that

Viola doesn’t go anywhere alone!

Oh that’s so bad

Oh right their lifespan is super different!

This line had been spoiled for me by my dash but that did not make it hit less hard.

“It’s interesting to watch someone go from wanting to survive, to wanting to live.”

Erika playing the grandma is everything to me

Also Erika literally shaved their head in the pattern of that character scar. Incredible

A SINGLE MOM THAT WORKS TWO JOBS WHO LOVES HER KIDS AND NEVER STOPS

Dropout team I love you so much

Brennan PC :)

Oh she’s SUCH a mother.

(Inquisitive music stops as the soft rejection hangs in the air)

CC writers are also back and on their game in full force!

Mmhmh

The first of all stoats 😭

She has cartoon anger eyebrows

Oh that’s gross

Did she just shade her dead son in law.

“I’ll try to keep up appearances” is so heartbreaking

YOU’RE LOOKING SO… LIKE YOU.

If I said that to my mom I would immediately dissolve.

Erika’s table acting is fabulous

Dome. Blue dome.

OOOOO

I love the multigenerational relationships here

No not a fanatic. A religious crazy!

Family dynamics.

Don’t threaten the children with emotional damage

The FACE

I feel like the roll for panic attack shirt is gonna make a comeback thanks to Thorn

Oh this is gonna make me feel real bad about being human huh

This is such a good season to be released over October-December. I know it was planned that way but I really appreciate it.

Straight Groucho 💀

“This is making me sad and scared” me too Brennan.

Baby girl has never known a thing in her whole life

Oh god oh fuck

His face

Ok things are being scaled down! Good to know

This is the second time Aabria’s had players use echolocation against her damn

I swear if he starts bleeding from his nose I’m gonna lose it

The CURTISES

The more she emphasizes that this is unnatural the more freaked I get

I am nervous for Jaysohn.

Oh no oh god

I love how Aabria is able to make nat ones still helpful and important

This is crushing ngl.

Is the tree gonna fucking get cut down

SHE HAS WERTHERS

I’m gonna cry this season I just know it

Oh my god this is so good.