#that's part of the reason why I wanna go in research; at least then most of my job is discovery

[fennthetalkingdog]

My flavor of giftedness isn't gifted kid burnout, my flavor is "never quite burned out but now is stressing because academics aren't the same as the real world and while I'm good at academics I'm horrible at real world stuff so I'm desperately trying to find a career that's somewhat close so I don't utterly fail whenever I get a job"

[anexperimentallife]

The US far right has been working on their plan since AT LEAST the 1960s, when I was a kid listening to evangelicals talking about their plan to take over the US, and eventually the world. It's called "Christian Dominionism," and it's a fascist ideology which goes hand in glove with the GOP's plans.

Although it was not expressed so much to the world at large, this plan was OPENLY and FREQUENTLY discussed in far right circles. We kids, if we asked about it, were told that it was "God's Will." Ask any exvangelical about it, and they'll confirm. (Part of why I know so much about these dangerous and deluded folks is I WAS ONE OF THEM in my youth.)

And where has that plan gotten them? Well, the GOP recently released a hundreds of pages long document filled with their intentions if they win--including a nationwide abortion ban and a repeal of anti-discrimination laws, among other things.

Trump has already signaled his intent to create a military dictatorship if elected, by repealing laws against using the military against US citizens on US soil sp he can deploy them against dissenters, etc., and if the GOP pick up a few more congressional seats, he can do it. The GOP has already pushed to repeal presidential term limits, and Trump has indicated he'd like to be president for life.

So I'm amazed at all the people who think withholding their vote and letting the GOP win is going to somehow fix things and "push the Dems left."

You wanna know how to push US politics leftward? You're not gonna like it, because it takes actual work beyond stomping your foot and pouting and performatively showing everyone how "pure" you are by refusing to vote.

You have to start the same way the far right did (and again, they've been OPENLY talking about and pursuing this plan since I was a kid in the 1960s, AT LEAST)--they started by getting the most extreme right wingers they possibly could into any position they could. Positions like school board member, police chief, sherrif, city prosecuter, city council member, municipal judge, mayor, governor, hell, fucking dog catcher.

They encouraged far right extremists to become police officers and military personnel and work their way up the ranks to the point at which even the famously-racist FBI reported that major city police departments across the nation were pretty much taken over by members of white supremacist organizations.

In formerly reasonable churches, right wingers pushed for the hiring and training of more and more right wing pastors and mire right-wing theology.

More affluent right-wingers bought local papers and broadcasters, and as their political power grew, they changed laws to make it easier for a single entity to control the news--until now a mere handful of entities own nearly every major media outlet in the US.

And then they used every victory as leverage for the next one, and worked their way up. I mean, there's more, like the capitalization on economic and social anxiety and their inentional exacerbation of same so they could take advantage of it, but that's intertwined with the rest.

Essentially, they got this far because they put the work in.

If the US left is going to turn things around (and if it's not already too late), we've got to do the same, but it takes RESEARCHING and PROMOTING your local and state candidates, attending city council and school board meetings, and shit like that. It's actual fucking work to fix a country.

And then, after you've done all that--and after you've shown up to primaries to try to get any non-authoritarian leftist candidate you can nominated--then you vote for the leftest folks you're able to in the general. If there are no remotely leftist candidates, you vote for the centrist or right winger who will do the least damage.

Again, that's what the US far right has been doing for decades. Taking action. Wherever possible, taking new ground, but when they couldn't do that, ceding as little ground as possible. If they couldn't win, they made damn sure to do everything in their power to try to keep actual decent human beings from winning.

Actually doing the work doesn't have the emotional satisfaction of a grand gesture, but it definitely shows who is serious about making a difference and who would rather let everything burn than sully their imagined purity by voting for anything less than perfection.

Listen, Trump is not going to end the genocide in Gaza--in fact he increased tensions between the Israeli occupation and Palestine. And the GOP will never be persuaded. Hell, they want to let Russia take Ukraine and declare open season on asylum seekers.

The Dems suck. But the GOP is far, far worse, and will do MORE damage, and kill FAR MORE innocents. And if allowed to do so, will make it even harder to change the system than it is now. They've already PUBLICLY ADMITTED that their only chance of victory is keeping people from voting. Don't play into their hands.

Under current circumstances, you know what the Dems are going to do if Biden and a bunch of other Dems lose for not being pure enough? You think they'll be all like, "Oh, no! The left sure taught us a lesson by handing the country to the GOP! We'd better shift to the left!"

No. They're going to sip champagne in their multi-million dollar mansions and have meetings about how they need to move FURTHER RIGHT to win elections, because the left doesn't vote.

And if the US becomes a military dictatorship, most of the high ranking ones will simply take their fortunes and leave.

Yup, it'd sure teach ol' Joe a lesson to force him to spend the rest of his days sipping cocktails on the Riviera.

Look beyond the single battle and think strategically. That's how the GOP keeps gaining power. And refusing to act strategically is why the left is losing. We cannot take the hill we want right now. But if we lose the hills we've already taken, we risk losing the entire goddamn war.

So fucking vote. Work to get every leftist you can in any office you can. And if you can't do that, support the one who will do the least harm.

And if it takes voting for that shitbag Biden to keep Trump and the GOP out, hold your fucking nose and pull the goddamn lever.

[home-sweet-hive]

ALTERNATE HUMANITY

A Field Guide to "Humanity Removal Therapy"

Part 2: Facade (ft. @dawning-mars )

This is a complimentary series to this system's other Animal HRT series; Black Arms HRT

Letter from your "Penpal":

Hey, very sorry about this part taking a while to come out. It's one thing for a comic to take a while, but I feel a little pathetic that it took me over a month to write this part out. Yeah yeah, "self deprecation isn't gonna get you anywhere", I know. Let me do things wrong sometimes. But hey, I did get it complete in time for the big Dragon HRT send off, so that's something I guess. Aik did a lot of being poetic and stuff yesterday with his Fish HRT fanart, I don't wanna bore you by doing the same. (Not like I have anything of the sort to say, anyways.)

Let's get on with the show. Thanks for reading and making the community what it is or whatever, I like writing about y'all.

WARNING: This part still has the Swearing, Mentions of Death, and the Untrustworthy Narrator/Main Character from last time, but also there are now Mentions of Cults and Violent Threats. Also just a general horror vibe, especially towards the end. Reader Beware.

Prev | Next (COMING SOON. HOPEFULLY.)

8:00am, February 9th, 2025

The following is an audio recording from Doctor Theodore H. Erian, transcripted into text;

“Eight in the morning, February the 9th. … Is that necessary? I’ll admit, I’ve never done something like this. I’ve had some patients of mine send in audio tapes for their transition journals before, for one reason or another, sure, but I’ve never made one myself. I… I just want to be vigilant.”

“That journal that I read a week ago… It still haunts me a little. I know, I know, I contort human bodies into resembling animals for a living, and a simple PDF sent to me via email is what keeps me up at night.”

“But in the days that have passed since I conversed with Doctor Fortune, I’ve been rereading those journal entries in between working with patients. I’ve been picking up on… Details. Unsettling details. The one that gets at me the worst is when the author mentions how the technology behind Animal HRT would ‘go to a much more important use’ if in their hands… Just what do they even mean by that? Furthermore, the author seems to work for a news station, but their descriptions in certain places throughout their entries suggests their workplace has responsibilities far beyond the scope of such a profession. They also seem rather close with and even have some authority over a pair of researchers from a laboratory, as if the two businesses are subsidiaries of another organization. The greater organization both the station and laboratory are under is probably the one Doctor Fortune mentioned in her emails, come to think of it.”

“But back to the point. The reason why I’m recording myself right now. The day that the journal suggested its author would come for me has arrived, and I indeed have several appointments on my schedule today. One of them being for a L. Black. I… feel like it’d be a breach of privacy to give their full name in this recording. But that patient does have the same first initial as the author of the journal, which is arguably the most important detail. I do have the full first name now, mind you, though I’m sure you’re not surprised to hear that the name was generic enough for me to get flooded with results from all sorts of different dimensions when I tried to look them up. In the end, I wasn’t able to get much information on them.” 

“The surname suggests a possible connection to the Black Arms, at least in my opinion. Soon before Doctor Fortune had approached me, I had been given a ‘notice of investigation’ by the Guardian Units of Nations. They’re trying to deter me from ever making or distributing an HRT for the Black Arms, and it honestly does seem similar to what Doctor Fortune is doing. In fact, I did try asking her a few days ago if she was affiliated with G.U.N.”

“She seemed rather offended by the question, chastising me for ‘comparing this situation to a video game plot’... Can she blame me? I work in and for a land between dimensions, for fucks sake…”

“But aside from that, I suppose all I can do now is… wait. Wait and see what Mr. Black does. What they… want.”

--

9:20am, February 9th, 2025

>Real time transcription from audio recording.

>Any typos or mistakes made are either L████’s or another ████████████████████████████████’s responsibility to detect and correct.

>Reminder: I am not a grammar checker, and my knowledge unfortunately relies on what is given to me.

[sound description: door opening, followed by a bell ringing, and the door then closing]

“Welcome to the TOHC Primary Care Center. Let me guess, you’re here for Doctor Erian?”

“Yep. I have an appointment.” 

“Do you now? Heh, most just waltz in here without so much as a 15 minute notice call…” “What’s your name?”

“L████ ████.’

“Thank you.”

[sound description: Tapping of keyboard keys]

“I see. You do indeed have an appointment with Doctor Erian, but you’re quite early, don’t you think?” 

“Am I now?”

“Yes. Your appointment is at noon. Did you mean to schedule it earlier in the day or…?”

“Noon is fine.”

“Good, ‘cause you wouldn’t be able to reschedule your appointment unless you changed the day outright.”

“Tch. Of course not.”

“You can go sit down in the waiting area now.”

--

9:30-10:30am, February 9th, 2025

Removed the recording of this section of time and the subsequent transcript made for it. Nothing of importance really occurred during this time, just people coming in and out of the building without much coming from that. Keeping it around was just unnecessary in my opinion.

--

10:40am, February 9th, 2025

Okay, here’s where things get interesting again~

[sound description: door opening, followed by a bell ringing, and the door then closing]

[sound description: distant talking, sound too far for accurate transcription]

[sound description: someone sitting down in a chair nearby]

“Oh, hello.”

“Oh! Sorry, I didn’t notice you there, hun!”

“Don’t sweat it, I don’t mind having someone to talk to while I wait.”

“Ah, alright…” “So… What is it that you’re waiting for?”

“I have an appointment with Doctor Erian at noon.”

“Really? I have an appointment with him too!”

“Heh. Doesn’t sound much like ‘waltzing in here with no notice’ to me.”

“Huh?”

“Oh right, sorry. When I got here the receptionist made a remark about most people treating the place like a walk-in and I found it funny how you’re proving her wrong.” “But it didn’t quite click in time that you wouldn’t have been able to know that context.”

“I see!” “That’s… comforting? Maybe?”

“Hmm?”

“It seems like Erian isn’t the only one around here that’s got a sharp tongue…”

“Is he… known for being harsh?” 

“From what I’ve heard, yeah…”

“That explains some things, then.”

“But anyways, what kind of Animal HRT are you hoping to get on?” 

“Oh, I’m not here to get myself a prescription.” “My friend tried to get on Cat HRT through him but was denied. I’m trying to find out why.”

“Oh…”

“... Sorry if I made you uncomfortable, I-”

“No, you’re fine, hun.” 

“... If you insist.” “Can I assume you ARE looking to get a prescription, then?”

“Yeah.”

“May I ask for what?”

“A-ah, well… I know it sounds crazy, but-”

“No judgement from me, you’re in crazed company.”

“... I want to go on Eldritch HRT.” 

“Eldritch?”

“Y-Yeah. That’s… That’s what I want!”

“How interesting! Do you have a specific entity you want to be like? A cult you want to curate or join? Just how many so-called ‘eldritch entities’ across the realms are you aware of? Are… Are you-”

“I… Haven’t given it all that much thought, to be honest…”

“That’s fine! That just means you’re up for anything, right?” 

“U-Uhm… I guess so?” “You seem… really excited by all this. Are you a fan of eldritch horror too?”

“I guess you could say that~” “Oh-! Where have my manners been? I don’t think I got your name!”

“Did I not give it? Sorry about that, hun!” “Mars ████.”

“Nice to meet you, Mars! My name’s L████. L████ ████.”

“Nice to meet you too, L████!” 

“But back to the Eldritch HRT thing of yours – how many entities are you aware of?”

“Well, I do know a good bit of the writings of HP Lovecraft…”

“Is that it?”

“Is there more I should know?”

“Yes! But that’s alright, I can teach you everything you need to know. Let me just-”

“Mars?”

“That’s me!”

“Shit, is it time for your appointment already? Well maybe we can keep talking after you-”

[sound description: Mars walks off with Doctor Erian to his office]

–

She didn’t come back to talk to me after her appointment. It seemed that she was pretty upset as she left the building. Did she get rejected too? 

I hope to meet up with Mars again soon. 

I sensed some hesitation in her voice as we talked, but I just know she’d be a perfect fit for us once she learns about us and what we are.

But anyways, nothing of interest occurred in the hour after my conversation with Mars, so I deleted that section of recording as well.

Which takes us right to my meeting with Doctor Erian. 

What a mess that was…

--

12:00pm, February 9th, 2025

The following is a written recounting by Doctor Theodore H. Erian.

I had originally intended to audio record my meeting with Mr. Black, just like the recording I had made this morning.

However, the moment I saw him, I knew that I would have to get on his level, so to speak. Audio wasn’t going to cut it when it came to conveying the full picture of my experience. 

So here we are.

As I mentioned in my emails to Doctor Fortune, I had gotten many, many results when I looked his name up, but despite all that, he managed to look nothing like any of them in person.

I could sense I was being deceived, or perhaps even toyed with in some way. But I wasn’t sure in what way it was.

After having noticed that, I then took notice of a rather large bag they had slung around their shoulders. Looked to be a laptop bag, by my best guess. I of course remembered what Doctor Fortune had said to me about not allowing him to show me anything on his laptop if they offer, and so I readied myself to refuse anything of that sort.

But to my surprise, he didn’t even do so much as open the bag. 

Instead, when he entered my office, he just… stood there, looking around at the place. This went on for about a minute or two – I wasn’t keeping exact notice of the time.

At first, I had thought that they were eyeing the various types of medication I had stored. But once he opened his mouth, it became apparent that it was something else entirely that had caught their eye…

“Is that an RCA RP3503 shoebox cassette recorder and player you have back there?” 

My recorder, the one I had used to record my personal record from this morning, the one that I had intended to use to document this meeting… That had been what he noticed first.

It's a bit impressive that they identified the exact model, I must admit. Didn’t help with how much they intimidated me in the slightest, though.

“... Yes? Why do you ask?” 

I had responded. I didn’t want to come off as suspicious to him, but rather, just genuinely interested in the conversation. I couldn’t let them know I had seen their journal.

“It’s not often I see a cassette player in the wild these days. Damn shame, I know that phones and mp3 players are more modern and in ways more convenient, and the typical ‘retro throwback’ audio playing format of choice is vinyl, but I really do have such a soft spot for cassettes.”

Really, I was surprised with just how normal this starting conversation was. If I was to be conspiratory, I could even say that it was too normal, as if he was luring me into some sort of false sense of security with this mundane discussion.

“Do you now?”

I replied, allowing the conversation to carry on.

“Yes! Though, I’d rather not get too sidetracked with all that!”

I remember it felt like a pit had dropped into my stomach when they said that. Here I was thinking I could give myself some time to formulate how I was going to respond to him trying to get answers out of me by fueling this clear interest of his. But it seems that they had caught on to that plan of mine.

“The real reason I pointed it out was to ask… You’re not going to use it to record this meeting of ours… are you?” 

He then asked me.

I wish I had been able to somehow record this meeting on video, because I don’t know if words alone can describe the bone chilling aura that the look Mr. Black had given me as they said those words carried. Somehow, his face managed to darken in real time, a shadow cast over the top half of it that made it look as if his eyes were glowing at that very moment. They had tilted their head ever so slightly as they spoke, their face adorned with a subtle, yet noticeable grin, despite the seeming worry that the question carried with it. 

Considering my line of work, I’m quite familiar with the inhuman, and let me tell you – I saw that inhumanness in this man in that fleeting moment.

Despite wearing what looked to be colored contacts of some kind, I could see in his eyes a wildness that was inherently animalistic. 

I know what Mr. Black is here for, and I know it isn’t treatment. But if I hadn’t known better, I may just have been convinced to hand him a prescription right then and there.

Or maybe he is already something other than human. 

I said no, of course not.

“Good, good.”

I don’t know what came over me, but I responded to that remark by asking him if he didn’t like his life being documented. 

“What an odd question…”

As if I hadn’t already regretted my words the moment they came out of my mouth, I certainly would have after that reaction from him.

I was like Icarus in that moment, my wings equipped as I set myself straight towards the sun. I had pushed my luck too far, and they were catching on that I knew more than I should. Surely.

“But to answer it, I do actually like to document my life. But I much prefer it when I’m the one doing the documentation. I’m sure you wouldn’t be too fond of me if I took your chair right there and started giving people prescriptions and check ups, would you?” 

I’ll admit, I’m not entirely sure what they meant by that comparison. He’s a news reporter, isn’t he? I do suppose in a way that is documenting lives, but that’s much more about others’ lives rather than their own, no? 

Either way, I shook my head no.

“That’s what I thought.” 

I really can’t tell why he was so surprised that “B” kiddo and Serena were intimidated by him. He has to be doing this shit on purpose to get a rise out of people.

“Can we get to the point of this meeting, please?” 

I requested. Maybe if I act just as intimidating, I’ll manage to evade ending up in whatever position he wants me to be in.

“Hmph. We may.”

He seemed unimpressed by my shift in attitude, his grin folding into something of a snarl. But he did oblige. 

“It is to my knowledge that a friend of mine, Serena Holmes, came by your office a little bit under a month ago seeking a Cat HRT prescription from you. You rejected her. Why so?”

Perhaps it was the frown they already had from their reaction to me making demands at him, but I could both see and hear the anger coming off of him that I had seen before in that journal of his as they spoke. 

No matter his motives, it does seem he cares about their friend.

“I had gotten a questionable result when I had run a-”

I answered. I knew it wasn’t the answer he wanted to hear, but I couldn’t let them know I knew that.

As expected, they cut me off mid-sentence.

“No. I want the real reason.” 

Despite my patience being worn quite thin by this point, I took a deep breath in and began to formulate a response to Mr. Black. 

My goal, at least at first, had not been to actually tell him the truth. Rather, it was to make up a lie that was believable enough for them to take it as if it was the truth. 

As I did such, they spoke again, unknowingly giving me a hint as to what route I could go down with this lie of mine. 

“And if you are telling the truth, what was the ‘questionable result' you speak of?” 

Looking back, I should have made use of that hint in my response.

“Okay, fine! You want the real reason? I’ll give you the real reason! I turned Serena away because it was clear to me that she didn’t truly know what it was that she wanted!” 

He had raised an eyebrow at my response, clearly skeptical.

“How… interesting. She seemed pretty dead set on being a cat to me.” 

I honestly couldn’t tell if they believed me or not, but they did act as if they did.

“But I suppose my perspective was skewed.”

In a way, that did give me relief. 

Even if it was a ruse on his end, I could also go along with it and feel confident in my responses, at least for a little while.

“But tell me, Doctor Erian… If that is the true reason you turned Serena away… Then why did you tell her it was due to a background check?”

It was a valid question, honestly, and a hole in the plot I was constructing. Hence why I had said earlier that I wished I had just gone down that background check route he had given me.

“I… I didn’t want her to believe I did not believe she was truly therian.” 

With a bit of hesitation, I sputtered out that excuse.

He wasn’t buying it. I could tell by the glare he had given me.

“Then why not be honest with her? You could have explained that they had simply seemed too unsure of kitself to go through with the procedure. You could have given it advice as to how to do some soul searching so that she could come to find her true self. All these things you didn’t do… Why is that, Doctor Erian?”

Their eyes almost seemed to lock onto me as they questioned me. I was a target for them, lined up for slaughter.

Before I could even try to plead my case, he continued.

“To me, there are only two explanations for this. Either you are bad at your job, or…

You’re lying to me.”

With that final explanation – or rather, accusation, he stood up from where I had him sit and slammed his hands on my desk. To be honest, it shook me quite badly. It wasn’t just the delivery, either, the words cut terribly deep as well.

“So, which is it?”

Deep enough to cause me to make perhaps the stupidest decision I’ve ever made in my entire life.

For I had let my ego and reputation get the best of me.

“... I lied to you.” 

I so stupidly confessed. 

Mr. Black grinned, grinning wider than he ever had by that point of the appointment, as he let out a truly evil cackle.

“I knew it.” 

And with that remark, they pushed aside the chair that was behind them, and walked over to behind my desk.

I yelled out to him that he’s not supposed to be back there, but he completely ignored me as he rummaged through my personal cabinets.

They quickly found exactly what I was hoping they wouldn’t. 

“How curious…!” 

He exclaimed, holding the note Doctor Fortune had given me during my first ever encounter with her in his hands.

I felt like I could have died right then and there.

“Looks to me you know a bit too much for your own good, eh, Erian?” 

He then turned to me, a sinister grin still stretched wide across their face while they held up the note, turned over to the backside where she had drawn that blasted symbol.

I wanted to say something at the time, I really did. But I must admit, I was petrified. It really is embarrassing to look back on. 

“Hmmm… one could argue that I should kill you right about now, make sure you don’t go spreading the good word unmanaged.”

They continued to speak as they crept up behind me.

“I don’t even know what that symbol IS!! All she told me was that it was the symbol of your organization!! She didn’t even tell me what it’s called!!” 

I cried out in desperation. As most people do, I didn’t want to die.

Mr. Black paused. His face softened, somewhat. 

He seemed to have realized that I, for once, was being honest with him.

“Who’s ‘she’?” 

He asked me quite plainly.

“D-Doctor Mirai Fortune… She had come into my office a couple months ago and left this warning for me… We’ve… We’ve been talking over email ever since, but she’s very vague about a lot of things…!” 

I confessed. I confessed all of it. I was convinced that I needed to do so in order to live.

“Is she the reason why you turned Serena away?” 

They looked at me with a look of certainty in what he expected the answer to be. But I answered anyway.

“Yes.”

Mr. Black finally sat back down in the chair across from my desk.

“See, was that really so hard?” 

I did not respond. Really, I am terribly repulsed by his sarcastic demeanor. It tends to come off more as patronizing than anything else. 

“I’d love to see those emails, if you’d be so kind.”

I wordlessly turned around my computer monitor for him to look through. I had the thought to warn them not to go into any patient files, but I didn’t act upon it.

“Hah! She really was as vague as you said, huh?” 

He remarked as he read through the emails. I did not react.

“Though, I do see that she let you get a sneak peek at my notes, hmm?”

An arrow of fear shot through my chest, making me worry that they would be angered by this. But much to my surprise, they had simply laughed it off.

“Hey, how about we make a deal, old man?” 

He offered. 

I looked at them, cueing them to continue. 

“I can give you not just these notes of mine, but ALL of my notes, completely uncensored. Any information on that symbol and what it represents you could possibly desire. A brand new market for your Humanity Removal Therapy… All of it, for one simple little price…~” 

I was skeptical. That was a big claim, a big offer. But I pressed further.

“What’s the price?” 

I asked him.

“Yes, yes… All you need to do to start this new chapter in your life… Is to give Serena her Cat HRT prescription.” 

That… couldn’t possibly be all there was to it. 

That was the singular thought in my mind.

It was too simple. There had to be more to it. 

He mentioned “a new market for Humanity Removal Therapy” – for all I could know, that could mean that they would steal my formula right from under me.

It would put me out of a job!

And I can only imagine what Iris would think…

“No. I’m sorry Mr. Black, but I just can’t do that.” 

I responded to him, knowing fully that it could get me killed.

I couldn’t betray my patients like that, though.

I can’t betray Iris like that.

Sure, we butt heads many times, but I would be nothing without any of them.

And above all, I want to see each and every one of them live their happiest lives.

I saw Mr. Black frown in response to my answer. It was surprisingly genuine. He looked… disappointed.

But as he prepared to talk to me, he smiled ever so slightly.

“So that’s why so many read you as a hardass… You’re a stubborn bastard.” 

He remarked.

Again, without waiting for a response from me, they continued.

“I know the feeling.”

After that, he stood back up, grabbed his things, and left. 

--

February 18th, 2025

The following is an email. 

To: Doctor Theodore H. Erian

From: Doctor Mirai Fortune

Subject: Final Email

Hello, Doctor Erian.

I have both listened to the early morning recording of yourself and the journal entry of later in the day that you provided in your previous email.

I am deeply disappointed in how you have handled the situation.

For your trouble in dealing with them and with me, I have provided you with the documentation our adversary made on that day. Consider it a sense of closure, as this is the last time I will ever be contacting you.

While I am glad you resisted the offer to join them, I cannot afford to have cowardice such as yours weighing me down in my fight against them.

I hope you understand.

Mirai

[gyarustarrr]

LORE LORE LORE!!!🗣️🗣️🗣️ (This is super long and my English is horrible for a native speaker so bear w me)

ILL BE REAL I DIDNT PUT MUCH THOUGHT INTO A REASONABLE BACK STORY but bcuz shes a self insert i had to make a mention for my bestie who can EASILY be in the pressure universe fr <3

Pre-lockdown: I think itd be unique that if Sebastian was used to give humans gills then Phanny can be used to find immortality cuz who doesnt love when a corrupt corporate entity tries to find the cure for death, happens all the time lol. I say for the important parts shes fused with an immortal jellyfish, my favorite jelly which im extreme jelly of 😼😼😼😼, and i would say that its possible that she could live forever IN THEORY with the dna of that jelly but that would have to be tested lmaooo.

I believe because shes also able bodied (mostly) she would be given similar jobs as Sebastian so shes not depressed, rotting, or lashing out. Not sure if they'd work together but she's observant and being a psychologist, she def psychoanalyzing the hell outta everybody in the facility out of boredom. She seems happy but ofc its a coping mech to make the best out of the absolute horrors around her, still emotional unstable and freaks tf out frequently. Once Sebastian frees everybody, she's free to roam and sees what Sebastian is doing. She asks to assist him in his goal but she only plays a part once Seb handles BIDNESS on land during lockdown. Post lockdown she scavenges for data and whatever here and there but shes mostly left alone or out of most of his operation, yk,,,working with Mr Lopee and all. She really tries to get close with Sebastian (despite emphasizing hes a married man, YEAH SURE BUDDY YOU'RE LIKE 32, WHATEVER MAKES U FEEL BETTER💀) and being the drama fiend i am, i think having a "moment of weakness" would lead to their complex semi romantic possibly toxic dynamic.

Fight: And as i did my research its highly debatable if Sebastian is telling pAInter the truth about getting them both out. Phanny would believe this without question cuz if he can make a plan and has all these skills and resources, he should be able to take everyone (this also includes other peoples inserts and ocs who are experiments because it makes the setting more lively and interesting). I even thought of a cool ass line my homie thought was cold asf for argument dialogue between Phanny and Seb about taking everyone back up to the surface.

Just to summarize: Phanny mentions how noble Seb is after making progress with his escape plan, assuming that he'll take at least as many people as possible including Phanny. Sebastian at this point is already trying to push her away post weakness moment and he know damn well he's just doing this for himself and never accounted to leave w/ a whole damn facility of sentient experiments. He just wanna see his mom again and hes already working in private with Mr Lopee i mean this is a one man escape plan. This ofc shatters Phanny cuz from what hes saying, nobody and he mean NOBODY is getting out of here with him. Hes not a savior and hes not responsible for people he dont even know or fuck with like tf?? And Phannys like OKAY? Nobody's asking you to be JESUS but can you at least be Moses?? Free us so we can all get justice! Explain why you can't take a handful and come back once u take this damn company down?? What about your promise to pAInter? To ME.

Ofc it ends in a big brawl, think Mark getting his shit rocked by his own dad (Omniman from invincible) and they just have this heartbreaking dialogue and they split ways.

Post fight + breakdown: After this, Phanny is basically losing it. I even have a vision for this if it was actually in game and she was an actual character with weight to the gameplay. Like crying and wailing in the vents and pipes, shit breaking, Phanny not being seen for a majority of the game until shes physically stopping u from going through doors and rushing the player. Not to kill them, she loves the expendables and protects them but if she really has to if it means Sebastian can get out/she gets to see another day then...

Plus i drew what that would look like in my last post where shes just standing in the dark in the corner blocking the door. Even if shes not blocking the door she's obviously going through something and can't be interacted with, she just follows the player with her eyes and breathes heavily. If its not that then shes crying by the the water and interacting with her gets the player a DEVIOUS side eye or no response.

Pre-breakdown + if she were actually in the game: I can't really explain why she would help the expendables WITHOUT knowing removing the crystal will indirectly end their lives, i actually havent evaluated that yet but shes friendly to expendables, takes free trade in exchange for shiny objects, and can be seen hanging out with or talking to Sebastian, or passing by in the water/halls. She's capable of killing the player entirely by accident due to her tentacles hanging from the ceiling which she chills in and dying to her makes her scream or apologize (before Sebastian says something snarky) since shes strictly against killing and never willing.

Announcing ur presence helps her know shes in the way. Typical interactive npc shenanigans. Maybe even saving expendables from certain attacks but these are rare interactions in the game. She's overall friendly and if she were real, she'd prolly be a fandom fave (ofc not on Sebastian's level, LETS BE HUMBLE YALL😭) because shes so polite and her tragedy comes near the end where the player isnt even aware of how she became hostile in just a few hours of the run. Her story would hardly happen in game and itd be one of those things a creator would have to mention outside of their game for fans to know abt yk?

Its typical for creators to just drop the craziest lore ever about a character but they're purposefully vague or literally like oh yeah time constraints so we scrapped it lol.

ALRIGHTY CLASS, ANY QUESTIONS? (typing this on my phone was so crazy guys ik its a lot but trust me its DECENT lore </3

[munchboxart]

I wanna yap about Goodsmile's new packaging because the arguments against it are pissing me off

According to the company, the new design will cut down on 84% of plastic waste by them.

I'm very happy Goodsmile is making this change, I really fucking hate plastic waste, especially since it's pretty much useless outside of it's original purpose. Also because I think it's ugly in general.

Now, I know most people are upset about the window being gone. The more reasonable argument that I've heard was that you can't tell if it's a fake or not. Now, I don't know how much knock-offs there are of Nendo's, but can't you just ask the person to open the box and take close up photos? Also, if you're that worried about knock-offs, I'm sure there are legitimate stores where they sell officials, or guides on how to tell what's a knock-off and such. But I don't go here that often so I'm just hazarding this as a suggestion.

The other argument I heard against this is branding. Which I think is really stupid. Like yeah, the window is iconic, but it isn't a need. Brands can always do re-brands, at least this one has a positive on why they're removing it.

Also, Gundam and Transformers have made packaging that don't have a window like this and they're still fine. Goodsmile will be fine, they're a massive company anyways, not some indie studio.

Oh and "that it's harder to imagine what the doll will look like" as an argument or something. Which is... huh. I guess if you're looking for a particular angle, yeah, but I'm sure someone out there will make a video reviewing the figure.

The only alternative I can see where it reduces plastic AND gets to use the new packaging is something like this

Just imagine the plastic parts as the paper boxes instead but with the plastic window in front. Although, I think it adds more paper waste compared to what they're going for but whatever.

I kind of lost steam in the middle of writing this, but I'm just frustrated at the people against this. I get what it's like being a collector, I have a bunch of Kirby and Transformers figs. And I also get dealing with knock-offs. Although, Transformers is a surprisingly unique case where they're happy to say that they're a KO LOL, but it still happens (like with the Masterpiece series, I had to research what a KO looks like). But overall, I think the positives of reducing mass waste beats a collectors needs.

Edit: Also, if you're already a hardcore collector, I don't think this really changes anything for you outside of the box design? Just keep an eye out on pre-orders, look at reviews and photos, buy from trusted sources, etc.

[inanimateinsanitywiki]

Hi! I hope this isn't a strange thing to ask but could you tell me more about ii-critical? I'm writing a research paper on the ii community and I wanna gain more insight to what that part of the fandom was all about.

My main questions are: Why did it exist? Why were you apart of it? What were the posts like? What was the biggest drama? Hell, what platform was it even on??

I wasn't that deep in the OSC when it was up and running (only really got into the community in ~2018) so a lot of community context from that era is lost on me. If you have any other object show oldhead insight for ii you wanna share, please do! I find fandom fascinating and would love to here more stories.

hoooo boy...... cracks knuckles. i went over it a little bit in a previous post but i'll try and give more info this time

(also this should go without saying but please don't try and seek out anyone mentioned or involved its been like 6-7 years since all this happened. also most of us were mentally unstable teenagers hence the. everything)

ii-critical originated as a tumblr blog created by someone named mira (i have no idea if they still go by mira or what their pronouns are now. i'm just gonna stick to they/them for convenience) as a way for them to discuss their criticisms towards the show's writing. the blog was created in mid-to-late 2017, during a time period where "(media) critical" was becoming a common tag. the trend was started by "su critical", a tag created by steven universe fans to discuss the show's faults in response to the show being in a rut of making some VERY dubious decisions (i believe it was started around bismuth's introduction, which was heavily criticized at the time for MANY reasons). the "critical" tags were often created for fandoms who tended to be hostile towards criticism of the media they were based around. the inanimate insanity fandom didn't really have that issue, thankfully. and so, the blog "ii-critical" was born.

at the beginning, the posts were about mira going through an episode beat by beat, and pointing out things they both liked and disliked about it. occasionally, there were posts analyzing a specific character. i'm kind of speeding through the "what were the posts like" section because that is by far the LEAST interesting part of the ii-critical mythos

i found the blog very shortly after its creation. it caught me at a good time, because i was at a point where i was becoming disillusioned with the show (episode 11 was the most recent episode at this point, and i really disliked it due to it being at the peak of ii's melodrama era. the show just felt miserable to watch. s2e11 sucking butt is still an opinion i stand by today Lolzor). mira and i started talking and i was brought on as the blog's other moderator, and i wrote my own analysis posts.

the blog was decently successful and didn't actually get that much hate. most people agreed with our criticisms and were, like, normal about the concept of a thing they liked being flawed. at some point we had a decent amount of followers and made the ill-fated decision to create a discord server for the blog. for added context: at the time of the server's creation, mira was 13, and i was 14. we were NOT old enough to be running a public discord server that at least 50+ people ended up joining.

the server had a lot of problems, mainly in regards to the channels. since we were both at the age where you are hormonal and stupid, we decided to make the nsfw channel accessible to everyone, and didn't even ask for people to include their ages in their intros. a concerning amount of people assumed that mira and i were both adults, or at least older teens until we said otherwise. we also had a blacklist and vent channel, which, word of advice, you should NOT have in a public server. shit gets out of hand SO fast. i vividly remember there being at least one guy who posted in the vent channel on a near-daily basis about pretty serious stuff. trust me when i say that people shared some HORRIFIC information in there. also, we had an emoji that was just a drawing of donut from bfdi with his whole cock and balls hanging out because we thought it was funny. i'm pretty sure there wasn't a "please don't post the donut balls emoji in non-nsfw channels" rule anywhere either.

i could go into more detail about various happenings, but that delves too deeply into interpersonal drama that frankly has no business being shared publicly. one of the most concerning things that happened, however, was this one guy who would come in vc, barely say anything, and fuck around with his gun the whole time. and yes, you could hear it. eventually we got reports of him being predatory towards a younger member of the server, and he was banned. i think that was the first thing that made mira and i go, "oh, we might've fucked up". there was also another incident where somebody was leaking information from inside the server (yet another reason why the vent channel was a HORRIBLE idea), and we banned a bunch of inactive people until eventually realizing somebody had stolen the username and pfp of a real user and impersonated them to stay in the server. this whole ordeal lasted like, two weeks. and again!! we were just BARELY no longer preteens at this point!! and we still thought, yeah, we can handle this. we're super capable. at one point we hired two other moderators (one of whom was 14-15, and the other was an actual adult for once. having an adult moderator led to us FINALLY locking the nsfw channel off to minors, since we had somebody who could moderate it for us), but this was towards the end so most of the damage had already been done

i was removed as a moderator on the blog after a large amount of interpersonal nonsense that, again, i'm not going to get into. it was mainly just because i was spending too much time in the server instead of posting on the blog like i was supposed to. a couple weeks later, i was suddenly banned from the server and mira had blocked me on everything. again, interpersonal nonsense and both of us being mentally unstable, not anyone's business. we reconciled a few months after and both apologized for being dumbasses, so we at least ended things on better terms.

another notable thing is that sometimes, crew members would pop in and out of the server, and they were surprisingly chill about the blog's existence. it was mainly justin and sam from what i remember, and resulted in this legendary image:

i don't remember this bit, but at some point taylor may have responded to one of our posts and was Not Nice about it? again, i don't remember this, take it with a grain of salt. but knowing his history with getting into shit with fans for no reason and how it got to the point where it was cited as a reason he was removed from the team, yeah that tracks

talking about ii-critical is strange, because i don't know where to draw the line between "infamous blog from the early days of the tumblr osc", "stupid pointless infighting between teenagers", and "genuinely horrible decisions and moderation that caused real damage". i'm trying to stick to just the first one and giving info about the last one when necessary. i'm aware a lot of this is gonna paint my past self in a VERY unflattering light, but that's who i was and what i did when i was 14 and i just have to accept that.

ii-critical was just a facet of the tumblr osc circa 2017. a lot of what happened can be traced back to larger issues with the fandom, especially when it came to restrictions on nsfw content. remember, this is pre-tumblr porn ban. i knew an ALARMING amount of people who had nsfw blogs, and even posted nsfw art while they were minors. i don't wanna seem like i'm making excuses for fucking up when it came to moderation and keeping our members safe, but it's important to know that the blog and server were very much a product of a specific point in tumblr history. we saw minors casually posting nsfw on a regular basis and thought, "yeah, it should be fine to have the nsfw channel open to everyone, right?" and like i said, we didn't originally require ages upon introduction. people didn't realize how badly we'd fucked up until the damage had already been done.

i could go on about the dozens of other ways i fucked up, but that would start to dive into the interpersonal side of things. i think i covered everything that actually mattered. i don't plan on talking about ii-critical to this extent again any time soon. everyone who both ran and was part of the blog and server have moved on, i don't wanna keep dragging people back to what's probably a very unpleasant period of their lives.

that said, if prompted, i will talk about the 2012-2014 deviantart era + "dark ages" of the osc AT LENGTH if prompted. i swear i have wisdom beyond the shitty blog i ran with my friends as a teenager. you dont even know about the Ball OC Discourse

[skiiyoomin]

I was wondering if you could write a saiki & reader oneshot fic with a reader who has DID & C-PTSD and paranoid tendencies? I understand that that might be a bit too hard to write but just in case I got some recorces that might be handy, here is the link to DID listing from my own copy of the newest version of the DSM https://www.dropbox.com/sh/htaraej65e34tg9/AADBATmelRQFUBfTMxaJ3W6wa?dl=0 as well as this website that has a lot of good info on it https://did-research.org/ and this page I found that has a brief overview of C-PTSD https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/24881-cptsd-complex-ptsd but I also recommend quickly reading thru the different types of flashbacks (shouldn't be that hard to find info on)

The main idea is that because of the mix dissociation,switching,paranoia, different types of flashbacks etc that the readers thoughts are very fucking confusing to saiki (feel free to use this premise for any kind of plot you want just try not to make it overly angsty is all I ask, well as un-angsty as you can get with C-PTSD anyways lol) I just wanna see more y/n / reader inserts that I can actually relate to but the saiki K fandom is so small

Can be platonic or romantic

Hi!! So sorry for the late reply, I researched as much as I could so if theres anything remotely wrong or different please tell me! Ngl, im not very sure i like how it turned out, nevertheless I hope you enjoy :))

Also i totally get that its hard finding stuff for saiki k which is the reason why i write for it in the first place, they totally deserve more recognition!! Feel free to send more requests in the future!!

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Content: somewhat angsty but not really, i tried to be as vague as possible so as not to trigger anyone, reader suffers from trauma, DID, CPTSD, swearing, fluffy ending? slightly oc saiki

Summary: Saiki was used to listening to many types of thoughts, and at one point, nothing he heard surprised him. However when you came around, he was beyond confused. What sparks as a little curiosity might turn into something more.

✧･ﾟ: ✧･ﾟ:✧･ﾟ: ✧･ﾟ:✧･ﾟ: ✧･ﾟ:

ღNo matter what

He was used to it, or at least that's what he used to tell himself. Throughout the years he had heard all sorts of thoughts, at one point, he learned to tune them out when need be, having listened in on weird enough ideas that now don't surprise him anymore.

When you came in the picture, he was...baffled, to say the least. Confusing wasn't even close of a word to express how he felt. Your thought process was anything but simple. At times it'd be a fuzzy mess almost as if you lost part of your memory, other times, you'd think as if you were a completely different person, contradicting many of your previous thoughts. But what disturbed him most was the series of traumatic thoughts that would cross your mind. Flashbacks he realized in that moment.

In the beginning he felt annoyed, as per usual. Often times, he'd find you in class with a dazed expression, which to be frank, he had seen enough times to not give it a second thought. But then his attention would be caught when your mind would wander and you'd start thinking in a very unusual way. They were so unlike the person you presented to be, so much so that Saiki was left perplexed and in need to understand exactly what was going on.

The more it happened the more worried he'd be. There were days where you acted a certain way, and other days where you acted completely different. He could tell you weren't being fake trying to act differently for attention, after all, your thoughts lined up with the you acted and the things you said. Rather, it was the abrupt changes in your behaviour that had him thinking for far longer than he normally would.

Along the way, he also picked up how you'd flinch if you were in sudden physical contact, the way your shoulders would tense and the way your heart beat would speed up. Saiki wasn't stupid of course, he was aware that all of this was caused by some form of trauma.

He knew not to pry, yet his heart strings pulled everytime he saw you having a bad moment. So he began to follow you, in disguise of course, and even if he seemed like a stalker, he couldn't help it. Eventually he began to connect the dots, your reactions, behaviors, everything. It made sense now.

Unconciously, his words began to soften around you, his touch became gentler, he looked out for you in ways he had never done so with others. You began to notice but in no way did you mind, if anything, Saiki was someone you took great comfort in. What started of small slowly grew into something neither of you expected.

Of course, that didn't make it any less hard for either of you. Like right now. You were laying in Saikis bed, your head resting on his shoulder as you watched a movie, when suddenly a specific scene had triggered an anxiety attack. Your mind was racing through flashbacks of the many disturbing events you had gone through. Saiki was up almost immediately, having read your mind and sensed your reaction.

His touch was soft, his hands cupping your face so gently you'd think he was scared to break you, which he was. He was in no way someone who could comfort others easily. Nevertheless he tried his best. He attempted to lower your heart rate, rubbing small circles against your back as his other hand held the back of your head. No words were needed, they never were. He had, in a way, been there for you, way before you two even became a thing, so none of this was a surprise for either of you.

That didn't ease the guilt in your heart any less. You always felt bad. You knew Saiki could read you, literally. And well, it wasn't pretty. Countless times you had attempted to push him away, yet he never budged.

"'m sorry" you mumbled against his shoulder as your rested your head on it.

He cupped your face in his hands, pulling you to look at him.

`I won't let you push me away. The things you went through won't make me see you any differently, because to me you'll still be someone I cherish'

Your eyes welled up as you looked him deep in the eyes, finding nothing but love for you. Still cupping your face, he ran his thumbs under your eyes, wiping the tears away. He leaned forward, pressing a gentle kiss to your forehead.

'I love you'

"No matter what?"

`No matter what'

[nozomi-kaizoku]

12/4/2024

---

And just when I think cancel culture can't get any worse, it did.

So, for those who don't know, the drummer for My Chemical Romance, Bob Bryar, has passed away this november from suicide via overdose, and while I will admit that I don't know much about Bob, nor do I usually care that much about celebrity shit, I do wanna say that I am genuinely sorry for the loss, and I hope that his loved ones are able to take the time to grieve and process all of this.

But that's not what I'm making this post about.

So, i'm scrolling on tiktok out of boredom, and I see a post talking about his death. I go into the comments to share my condolences, since we are literally talking about someone's death.

You wanna know what the comments were filled to the BRIM with??

people celebrating his death and making jokes about it.

Apparently the reason why was because dude was a "racist, homo/transphobic, wife beater" and just a bunch of other shit (according to the comments).

Listen idgaf what he did, if you're SO desperate to bring up someone's controversies after they're dead, at least WAIT until people have mourned to do so.

Regardless of what happened in the person's life, death is a VERY serious topic, and Bob had loved ones and fans who are probably struggling with the grief this lost caused.

This actually reminds me of the whole Technoblade situation. Techno passed away of cancer, but because he made like one or two racist jokes in his life, that meant it was okay for people who hated techno to be insensitive assholes about it.

My sister was literally CRYING at like 4 in the morning over techno's death, because he was one of my sister's comfort youtubers. And i was comforting her the whole time too (despite me struggling with comforting people) because she was UPSET about it all. And even now, she still gets sad at the thought of techno's death.

I'm sure there's someone out there experiencing that same pain because of Bob Bryar's death, and seeing these wokeys just use some shit that Bob allegedly did when he was alive as a way of justifying being insensitive as shit about the whole thing, honestly pisses me off.

And this behavior isn't coming from just on tiktok either, saw similar behavior on reddit as well while I was doing my research on this whole thing(though most of the wokey comments were deleted luckily).

This is the problem with cancel culture: one of SEVERAL actually. It doesn't matter if they're dead or not, one they get a hold of information regarding a controversy, they will REFUSE to let it go, even for like two minutes just to let someone close to the person grieve. ANd they'll give you shit for feeling as about the person too, which is fucking ridiculous.

And the fucked up part?

While i was doing my research, I haven't been able to find a single piece of solid evidence backing up any of the claims being used against Bob, nor did i even know about the controversies until people were bringing it up after his death, which proves to me that either they're lying about most of it, or they turned a blind eye to all of it and waited till he died to bring it up, which by the way, is extremely hypocritical considering these are the same people who advocate for "accountability" for the actions that bob allegedly did.

And what's even worse is that I found out that people on twitter were telling him to kill himself before he died, OVER THE CONTROVERSIES??? WTF.....

I genuinely can't fucking type anymore cause the anger this is giving me is making me shake like hell (normal physical response to stress for me), but there's so much more I wanna say.

I will turn off the comments if I have to, but if you're one of those people who are celebrating his death or aren't showing the slightest bit of sympathy over the controversies, block me. idc what your political beliefs are, this kind of behavior in ANY situation revolving around someone's death is unacceptable, and shit like this just brings down the movements you're claiming to support.

Everyone's all "mental health matters!!!" until someone's mental illness causes them to be "bigoted" ig...

[khiphop-discussions]

RAP:Public Ep.2 part 1

They don't talk about it here but J-Tong started the "Buckwilds" crew. It had SO many members and some of them are big names as of today. Zico, Giriboy, Lil Boi, and more. Here's a list (I'm not even sure this is a full list. I remember back in the days thinking there was so many members. I didn't even attempt to memorize lol):

Some things I didn't know but found out on namuwiki:

I don't remember this (I think this was from before I got big into khh) but he was under Just Music and then Ameoba Culture. He also dissed the Soul Connection group (Bang Yongguk's old crew?!?) and it basically destroyed their career (at least as a crew. Obviously BYG ended up becoming BYG). All of this was from before the time I became a huge khiphop fan so I can't give anymore details regarding all of this, unfortunately. I'll try to do some research some other time but I'm sure almost all resources about it are in Korean.

All spoilers from this point on

There's 60 rappers to split between 8 blocks (groups/teams in the rap:public). 60 divided by 8 is 7.5 (shout out to all the contestants who were struggling to find this out in their head cause I was too lol). The teams less than 6 will get eliminated. A team can't have more than 8. So I wonder how that will be reconciled if more than 8 people want to go to one? It seems like there will be votes.

Kaogaii is right. It is advantageous to have a smaller team at the end. 300,000 won has to be split between the members of the winning block. This means it's likely we'll see teams turn on each other towards the end. Probably why we so many many arguments/crying in the flashforwards on ep.1.

Jtong becomes the first member voted on to the block. Next is Loopy. Then, Haon. 4th Since. 5th Khundi Panda. 6th Kaogaii. Apparently, he was on a show called "Money Game" too? Can't lie, I'm suspicious of Kaogaii. He's very aware of survival shows + the commentary he's made? At this point, this is just a show/business for him. So it seems like he'll make tough, sometimes harsh, cold decisions with ease. It's like those people on the reality show who say "I didn't come here to make friends" and they end up being insufferable cause they treat everyone as disposable and will be highly manipulative if they feel it necessary.

7th. Owen...*eyeroll*. 8th. Hippie Kunda. Unexpected but I'm glad to see a lesser known rapper (and another female) make it.

Why they all vote for Hippie Kunda if no one wanted to be on her team? People didn't choose her team but Haon had lots of people who wanted to be on his. 99 Nasty Kids has a short segment. They said both will leave of one leaves and most rappers (rightfully) thought that's a bad mindset to have. Owen was like "They should have gone on a dating show"...boy...shut up. (Note: if anyone other than Owen said this, I probably would have thought it was funny lol)

Jtong chooses Damini, Loopy choose Yukon, Haon chooses Yang Kyle, Since chooses Punchnello, Kaogaii chooses Geegooin, Owem = Double Down, and Hippie Kunda = Drain K (other half of 99 Nasty Kids and also the first person to say he wants to be on her team). Khunda doesn't choose cause he doesn't want people with opposing styles. Luci Gang and someone else. He says he'll wait and recruit good/better artists. Naturally some people won't get recruited to their first team of choice. I understand his reasoning cause its hard to make opposing styles fit. However, I think he might be better off with someone more trendy since show usually come down to who has the best songs/performance as opposed to solely the best "technical" rapper.

So far block 6 is Kaogaii, Jo Gwangil, Geegooin. All talented but none all that popular despite being highly successful on smtm. I understand that. If you don't blow up after smtm, its kind of a sign that you're a but niche. Most people are probably here to max their popularity so they'd wanna go for popular teams. Plus, many probably aren't really fans of these 3 or at least are bigger fans of others. Joonie comes to the team but its clear they don't want her. They don't think she's all that good clearly. Kaogaii feels like she's not good live from what we've seen.

They wanna use Joonie basically as a shield. Make sure they have enough members but if eliminations come, get rid of her. Fucking men. I can admit, this is the most strategic thing to do here. But...fucking men...

Kaogaii is right. Why vote for him but not want to be on his team? He says he's humiliated about it. No one chose his team for multiple rounds. 7th round came. At this point Haon and another team didn't recruit for a round.

Eventually, Kohway and someone else comes.

Block 8 has Bizzy and someone else.

Block 1 (jtong), 2 (Loopy), 3 (Haon), and 7(Owen *obligatory eyeroll*) all have 8 members. 5 (khundi panda) has 6 members and then announced he'd "close" recruitment. He's got Hash Swan, Mason Home, Luci Gang (who he initially rejected instead of choosing?), Mckdaddy, and someone else.

10th round recruitment, o'domar goes to block 6 (kaogaii). Kp goes to block 8 (he initially got passed in the first round with Khundi Panda. He was the one next to Luci Gang earlier).

Last one is Leo (is this the guy signed to B.I.'s label or someone else?). Since rejects him, Khundi seems like he considers to give him the benefit of the doubt but doesn't remember his rap. Everybody is getting secondhand embarrassment and sadness for the rapper but no one tries to recruit.

Finally, Hippie Kunda chooses him. Damn, I wish they'd have done that earlier instead of drawing it out. Somehow I feel more secondhand embarrassed knowing how long it took. Now it's even MORE blatantly obvious they didn't want him but recruited purely out of pity.

But he's smiling with that big pretty smile anyway! OK Leo! Next round show them why they were dumb to not take a chance on you! Head up!

Jtong recruited all of the loud, unique people. Damini, Don Mills, Jeffrey White (okashii), Fleeky Bang, Goldbuuda, and Kang Hyuk.

Loopy: yukon, kim ga yeon, shyboiitobii, khan, xwally, nosun, and raf sandou (okashii). Seems like he wants the unknown people and up and comers. He wants to showcase something new and unique.

Haon: Yang Kyle, James An, Dommiu, Noh Yunha, BBULKUP, Reddy, Osun. Everybody is saying it's balanced. I don't have many thoughts on this team. I'll have to see how they work together.

Since: Punchnello, Kim ryul, Viin, Boi B, sky minhyuk, and cocona. This is interesting. Everybody here is a good performer.

Khundi Panda: mckdaddy, jp, mason home, luci gang, and hash swan. I'm not too hopeful about this team. I'm not really sure how they can do in this show. It's an interesting mix. They are talented but I'm not sure what type of songs they can really do. None of them are really people who make songs that you want to dance/party to or just chill to. Hash Swan can make songs like that but idk about the others. Also, for Swan he can be hit and miss in terms of songs. I like some of luci gang's songs but not a huge fan yet. I am looking forward to seeing more of her on this show.

Kaogaii thinks his team can beat any team. Joonie, Kohway, Koala, Geegooin, jo gwangil, and odomar. This isn't a horrible team. Seems like it has a mix of style and technical skill. It is very diverse.

To me, right now it seems like jtongs team is the strongest. I know some of the members are polarizing. But I've seen enough of most of them to know they can carry their part in a performance or song. If it was solo (which it might become at some points in the show) then I'd be a bit more skeptical. However, I do believe they all can do well if there's other people there for support.

I'm gonna stop here cause it's late. But I plan to continue this series throughout the week.

[lusthurts]

writing meme about me!

no official tag but thought maybe time to share more about myself! mostly because I want to know more about you all as well, and @sperrywink extended an invite to seblaine mutuals so I will do the same!

How did you get into writing fanfiction?

I discovered it on accident as most of us do - I was on the Glee wiki I think? There was a link to select fanfics on the ship pages at the time, and I started reading one of the Finchel ones, and it was game over for me lol - I started writing my own a while after that, and I participated in a variety of Glee RPGs that inspired me to write other characters. I was in one of those massive Glee RPGs in like 2011 on fanfiction.net, and it was very formative for me in terms of connecting with the rest of the fandom and wanting to do more of that. RPGs are also so great for exposing you to ships you never would've liked or even thought of before, although all my current ships came from elsewhere lol

oh, and there was the whole escapism from family shit that was going down at the time thing - that was a huge factor for sure

2. How many fandoms have you written in?

I've almost exclusively been writing for the Glee fandom since the beginning, although the ships I've written for have changed drastically throughout that time. I've dabbled in some other things as well depending on my special interest at the moment, but I always come back to Glee. Other fandoms I've written for include The Outsiders, Degrassi, How I Met Your Mother, 13 Reasons Why, Girl Meets World, and Skam ! none of these are published anywhere anymore though as far as I know, it's all far too embarrassing (and yes I'm aware that's the most bizarre mix of fandoms ever)

3. How many years have you been writing fanfiction?

at least 12, I wanna say I started around 2012ish?

4. Do you read or write more fanfiction?

I genuinely think it's about equal, but it comes in waves. Sometimes I'm reading more, sometimes I'm writing more. I'm almost always working on something and I'm also almost always in the middle of reading a long fic.

5. What is one way you've improved as a writer?

I think I've gotten a lot better at writing comedy and ensemble dialogue. I like writing the silly goofy scenes with large friend groups a lot, especially when I feel like I've nailed the character's voices enough that I don't even need dialogue tags to know who said each line.

6. What's the weirdest topic you researched for a writing project?

Ohio geography lmao - I like always have Google Maps pulled up trying to map out different locations and how far drives would be, etc. I also have researched a ton about various colleges (especially for my current WIP since these characters are actively applying for college rn) and France (never been there, constantly have to write stuff that takes place there).

7. What's your favorite type of comment to receive on your work?

I genuinely do love all comments! I especially loves one that are specific/mention parts of the chapter or the fic that they enjoyed or thoughts that they had while reading. I also like chatting about the characters and canon and their predictions/hopes for the rest of the fic. The length doesn't really matter so much - I love long comments and short comments, and I try my best to respond to all of them.

8. What's the most fringe trope/topic you write about?

Idk I kinda write a lot of infidelity and toxic relationship stuff. Seblaine is the main ship I write for nowadays, and the nature of their relationship lends itself to a lot of infidelity in their process of getting together. I also just love writing angst, so even when I'm writing established relationships, they end up being sort of toxic throughout especially given the traits of both characters. I just find it more fun and probable to write a slightly toxic relationship than a 100% healthy one.

9. What is the hardest type of story for you to write?

PWP - I struggle so much with writing smut, although I like to think I've gotten a bit better at it recently. I'm also trying to get better at writing ensemble fics, but it's definitely a struggle for me to give each ship/character enough attention. And I'm pretty awful at world building, so anything remotely fantasy, sci fi, etc. is a huge struggle for me.

10. What is the easiest type?

slow burns! I've gotten so much better at delaying the characters from getting together for a really long time in fics and it's soooo fun. I prefer a character centric slow burn with lots of sexual tension and an arc that involves characters moving from enemies/friends/strangers to lovers over the course of many months or years.

11. Where do you do your writing? What platform? When?

I like to write outside of my own home - something about physically relocating makes me way more productive. I write a ton on planes (I travel a lot for work). I also love a good coffee shop, Panera, park, library, etc.

I write in Word and publish to AO3 - used to write in Google Docs but it's so slow and laggy so I much prefer Word. Used to publish on fanfiction.net but I will never go anywhere else now that I've transitioned to AO3, the far superior fanfic site lol

I am most productive with writing either during the day if I'm somewhere other than at home or in the middle of the night in bed - my most productive hours at home are between like midnight and 3 am

12. What is something you've been too nervous/intimidated to write, but would love to write one day?

I recently got over my fear of PWP and published a one shot that I'm very proud of. I have many ideas for things similar that I'd like to work through in the future!!

Most of this is fandom specific though - I'm super intimidated to write for big fandoms because I've gotten so comfortable in the Glee fandom, especially writing Seblaine which has a relatively small audience in comparison. I'd love to write Marauders, but that fandom is HUGE and very intimidating because there is so much lore and fanon to mess up. I hope to give it a shot one day though!

13. What made you choose your username?

it's a song lyric! lust hurts comes from the song "Barcelona Boots" by Arlie - the lyric goes "Lust hurts, could you bear it for me?" and I thought that was very fitting for someone like me who's obsessed with romance in fiction but can't be bothered with it in my real life

any of my mutuals are welcome to participate! I'll specifically throw in a tag for @daisyishedwig @calsvoid @xonceinadream @andyandersmythe bc these are the ones that come up first when I go to tag haha

[jellyfishjuliet]

Hey so I'm interested in writing for bartkon week, but I like doing frankly excessive research on characters before I try writing them...and honestly I don't really want to read all of SB94, impulse and YJ just to get a handle on what I'm doing, that's a lot even for me. I know some general stuff about the both of them, but not to the point where I'm like "Ah yes, I understand the soul of the matter" So I was wondering if there were like any specific arcs or points of characterization that I could read through to get the dynamic right?

shfkjdsfd ngl, I'm the worst person to ask bc my romance with BartKon didn't even start with BartKon....... it started with Clark/Bart from Smallville 😭😭😭 I'm exceptionally weak for Kryptonian/Speedster romances, but whereas Clark/Bart was the gateway, Bart/Kon is where my heart resides. And I don't ship any other Kryptonians with Speedster. Literally just Clart from Smallville and BartKon from the comics. Just giving you context so you don't think I'm some subject matter expert with a phd in BartKononomics ...... I am just a lady in her thirties who has carboard boxes full of sb/imp/yj singles cuz Clart made her Feel Things when she was a kid and she decided to Do Something about it (aka read comics).

BUT TO YOUR QUESTIONS!

If you want a high level overview of the ship, @radioactive-earthshine's KonBart Manifesto is a great place to start. It has the ship's Best Highlights, and really sums up why there is a small but dedicated fanbase to it. Dedicated enough that I broke my near-ten year cold turkey of mainline DC comics because my main man Bendis put BartKon back on the map while I was living my life blissfully unaware that DC had even hired Bendis to begin with and that the Diamond distro monopoly died. I was shocked. Still am. Two things I never thought would happen in my lifetime.

Now to understand the soul of Bart and Kon.... you're gonna have to look at that things that don't really have Bart and Kon on the same page. Part of the reason why BartKon Speaks to Me is because their relationship progression over the year directly ties back to their individual growth as characters.

So reading material 1: In Impulse, Bart starts off as the speedster equivalent of a feral bobcat, but slowly progresses into an empathetic, understanding, and an overall Good Man. Much of his story deals with the harsh realities of simply growing up different. Running theme of Imp fandom is that Mark Waid created and wrote an autist with ADHD without meaning too, and by Allah he sure did. It's fascinating because Bart harbors both grief and rage due to his predicaments, and the adults in his life are incredibly unkind (even if they are well-meaning), so Impulse has always been, in my understanding, the slice-of-life that really helps Bart to come of age into a Man and a Great Hero. You don't have to read the whole series, but if you can read at least the first twenty or so issues, you'll find yourself rooting for the little man and see how he shines in terms of empathy, understanding, love, and dealing with unresolved rage/grief/loss.

Reading material 2: Superboy is a trick and a half because it deals with issues of child neglect, grooming, the allegory of child star exploitation, and so on and so forth. The BartKon implications are There, but the reason why Superboy is incredibly important is because Superboy as a character is more than just his parentage. Contrary to popular belief, Geoff is NOT the main man in this story. Reading even just the first twenty issues of Superboy will show you Kon was failed by most of the adults in his life, and Superman is NOT his villain. Or the root of his daddy issues. Bro didn't even have a name until much later. If you wanna know who Superboy REALLY was before the Geoffian Era, you can read the first twenty odd issues. If you wanna go earlier, you could read his parts in Reign of the Supermen, just to get an understanding as to why he HAD to be the way he was during this time.

Reading material 3: I do not recommend reading all of YJ 98 for the BartKon bc YJ 98 is hijinks fun. It's GREAT reading for absurdist and comical situations, but only really works with context from Impulse and Superboy to get to the BartKon heart of it all. Not to say YJ 98 wouldn't give you the BartKon goodness, it sure does, but the soul doesn't come together if you don't get how Bart evolved in Impulse and how terribly Kon was treated in Superboy. You can read really anything in YJ to have fun with the group, but if you wanna fast track, you can read the last twenty or so issues and Titans/Young Justice Graduation Day.

Reading material 4: The Geoffian era..... I wouldn't wish Teen Titans 2003 on my worse enemy. Funniest thing is that at the time, I was just starting to watch Smallville. In love with Smallville!Bart already, I embarked on my Superboy journey.... had mixed feelings, so I stuck mostly to the 90's content. Ended up reading impulse a decade later, but long story short.... the Geoffian Era set a Tone and Direction for Bart and Kon that never sit well with me. There IS story there, if you are interested in reading about Daddy Issues, Masculine Identity, and a shit ton of other stuff that really pulled Kon away from his roots and made him more of a Emotionally Tortured Super. If that floats your boat, you may enjoy it. You can read a handful of comics from this era. Just know that in the end, he suffers anyway, just in an ugly ass outfit. The only real bit I'd recommend forreal forreal is when he dies. His whole arc in the Geoffian Era really just tells us he doesn't know how to live and thus he... dies. It's sad bc the writers before him despite having tortured Kon relentlessly, never really made him so...... hopeless.

Reading material 5: Flashpoint.... Bart dies, but I personally did not feel much for him because Bart didn't feel like Bart in the end, but yeah, he kicks it. This is where I pretty much kicked DC to the side too, minus the mistake that was reading RHATO. You can read Kid Flash Lost if you'd like.

Do not read New 52.

Reading material 6:.... my main man Bendis. No you do not have to read all of YJ 2019, but BartKon reunion and then Bart's explication as to WHY he found Kon is all you need. Bendis, despite the hate he gets, actually shows that he has great love for the YJ line. BartKon especially. The bald headed demon proves yet again that he care not for the world, only for his faves, which I'm cool with bc BartKon are me faves.

I know. A lotta reading. Those numbers I gave you.... you can also just read half of what I said kjdhgkhd Googling also helps! I know it's not always feasible to read so many comics, and I'mma be real, the Tone for many may not entice you either. Impulse feels like a slice-of-life to me, but YJ's an absurd shounen, and Superboy is the saddest book you'll ever read that is absolutely hilarious when you can accept that 90's writers just Did Not Care. Geoff hates Bart and Kon. New 52 is not real. Bendis actually loves BartKon a LOT, so you can just read their tidbits and find peace in the fact that Bart Allen, the loneliest fucker in existence, found his Kon El, who is the saddest fucker in existence. Something something, I will find you even if God wants us both dead. And God (editorial) did. I don't know how Bendis pulled the shit that he did, but he put a decades old rarepair back on the map after the Geoffian Reign. And Geoff hates Bart and Kon.

Happy Reading/Googling/Researching!!!!

[on-wine-dark-seas]

1-54 for the writer ask game. Sounds like that palate cleanser is sorely needed! Sorry you're getting so many strange anons in your inbox.

Mer this is so much homework. I assume you want it for my current WIPs for the fill-in-the-blank ones.

*cracks knuckles*

Here I go.

1. Favorite place to write.

Right now? In bed. My bones are aching and my memory foam mattress is so comfy. Also my room gets perfect lighting since my apartment faces east and there's no obstructions.

2. Favorite part of writing.

When the story starts to flow. Like riding a horse and starting at a steady trot into a loping canter. Dialogue, narration, all of it comes together so good.

3. Least favorite part of writing.

Actually having to write. Sometimes my brain is filled with noise and distractions and I can't focus and it makes me agitated because I want to write but my brain is just...not great about letting me, I guess. Also the editing process. I hate when I edit and have to chop whole scenes and chapters for rewrites. So time-consuming.

4. Do you have writing habits or rituals?

Always keep weed on deck. I mean, that's in general but weed really does help me write because my brain is no longer filled with noise and I can actually focus on writing.

5. Books or authors that influenced your style the most.

I read a lot of trans lesbian fiction, so I guess that's who's influencing me the most. Definitely drawing on the classics, of course. I also use my textbooks on writing. I have a degree in creative writing so like...I kept all my references and lessons so I could use it later. Toni Morrison and Octavia Butler are huge influences too.

6. Favorite character you ever created.

Nadja Hikmat. Originally created for D&D 3.5 back in 2003, she's evolved into one of my most beloved characters. Complex, frightening, beguiling, and utterly addictive. I love her so much.

7. Favorite author.

Hard pass on this one because I have too many.

8. Favorite trope to write.

Two people who think they cannot possibly be loved end up falling in love.

9. Least favorite trope to write.

I don't write anything I don't actually like.

10. Pick a writer to co-write a book with and tell us what you’d write about.

@sandwitchstories and I would definitely go in on a crackfic, I can feel our brain worms tingling together.

11. Describe your writing process from scratch to finish.

Step one: That one scene that pops into my head set to music. On loop in my brain.

Step two: I try to reason with my brain and ask how the fuck we got to said scene. I write down whatever stupid ass answers it gives.

Step three: I start thinking thoughts about prose and word choice and tone. I try a few test openers.

Step four: I figure out who our leading lady is and how she ends up at the point of the story she's in.

Step five: I get frustrated after writing the first chapter because my brain just wants to write The Scene on Loop but I'm trying to reason with it that we have to explain how we get to the scene [struggling to write the middle of the story].

Step six: Cry. Keep crying.

Step seven: Doubt myself a fuckton. Ask myself why the fuck am I bothering to do this at all? Who is this even for? Fuck this fucking story.

Step eight: Finish.

12. How do you deal with self-doubts?

I cry. I vent. I seek out friends who have dealt with the same.

I reread old comments on my fics to remember that I am actually a good writer and that my brain is just an asshole.

13. How do you deal with writers block?

Smoke about it.

14. What’s the most research you ever put into a book?

Researching the Heian Era for this selfship AU has reawakened my "I wanna go to Japan and do a whole cultural tour of the country" protocol.

15. Where does your inspiration come from?

Music, books, film, and TV. Sometimes dreams. Sometimes experiences. And sometimes it literally comes out of nowhere.

16. Where do you take your motivation from?

Praise. I go back and reread old comments to see what people loved about my work.

17. On avarage, how much writing do you get done in a day?

Right now? I'm averaging about 6k words a day. Most of it is slop that'll wind up on the cutting room floor, but I write constantly. I take my laptop with me everywhere.

18. What’s your revision or rewriting process like?

Lots of pulling at my hair, groaning in frustration, and desperately trying to get stoned enough to make sense of what I'm trying to revise.

19. First line of a WIP you’re working on.

Sukuna’s lips are curled into a sneer as he stares down at the shivering gaggle of priests kneeling at his feet.

20. Post a snippet of a WIP you’re working on.

Sukuna can feel the chrysalis inside of her vibrating. Her soul is vibrating. The fire crackles and seems to dance higher and brighter. The drums are in his blood, pumping his heart, making his pulse race with the same breathless anticipation he gets just before a fight.

21. Post the last sentence you wrote in one of your WIP’s.

And with that, the pair depart. For a while, Šetû watches them go until they vanish around a bend in the path, leading toward the thick forest, vanishing like mist.

22. How many drafts do you need until you’re satisfied and a project is ultimately done for you?

As many as it takes. The great thing about Scrivener is all of that can be done in the same document. So no more Final_Draft_FINALFINAL.docx struggles. LOL

23. Single or multi POV, and why?

Whatever the story calls for, but I try to keep the POV switch to one or two characters at most. Things get messy when you're constantly cutting the cameras to another character the readers have to keep track of...

24. Poetry or prose, and why?

I suck at poetry so I do prose.

25. Linear or non-linear, and why?

Whatever is called for. Lately it's been non-linear because I figure if I'm gonna be plagued by Scenes on Loop, I might as well write them and then get around to inserting them later.

26. Standalone or series, and why?

Whatever I feel. I'm a series girl because the multiverse is my friend. I love having endless adventures.

27. Do you share rough drafts or do you wait until it’s all polished?

I'm very skittish and particular about who gets to see my writing so usually I publish and that's when everyone sees it.

28. And who do you share them with?

I have like...three people I share my WIPs roughs with and it's because I trust and respect their opinion.

29. Who do you write for?

I'd be lying if I said just myself, but that's a big portion of it. I write in hopes that my words can resonate with someone else out there, or give them comfort, or hope, or make them feel good in some way. I hope my fics are the reason someone goes to bed with a smile on their face.

30. Favorite line you’ve ever written.

That's tough and my brain is mush. Let's circle back when I'm more alert.

31. Hardest character to write.

Gojo. He's so complex but mainly it's getting his sense of humor right. He's so annoying. Hard to draw too.

32. Easiest character to write.

Sukuna. I feel like he and I are alike in a lot of ways.

33. Do you listen to music when you’re writing?

Sometimes, but other times I prefer rain sounds.

34. Handwritten notes or typed notes?

Both. I keep a writing journal with all of my notes when I don't have my laptop. I also have hella shit in the Notes app of my phone.

35. Tell some backstory details about one of your characters in your story ________.

Gonna assume you wanna know about The Invitation.

Šetû [shay-too], that's me. I'm traveling with my two brothers and two cousins, making money as an entertainer. We come from a griot family but things got bad and we had to flee. Now we use our skills to bring in coin. It's just us, our wagon, and our strong and hardy horse--a gift from the Khan during our stint in Mongolia entertaining in his court.

36. A spoiler for story _________.

The Invitation.

Sukuna and I fuck, but it's not for a while, and the circumstances are...complicated.

37. Most inspirational quote you’ve ever read or heard that’s still important to you.

"If there's a book you want to read, and it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it." --Toni Morrison.

And so I apply that to everything. I'm writing the fic I'm writing because it's what I want to read and I haven't seen anyone writing it so...

38. Have you shared your outline of your story ________ with someone? If so, what did they think of it?

The Invitation? Just bits and pieces with some close fandom friends. They're all for it!

39. Do you base your characters of real people or not? If so, tell us about one.

Well, I'm writing a self-insert fic so...me.

40. Original Fiction or Fanfiction, and why?

Both. I write both, but I'm better at the former.

41. How many stories do you work on at one time?

Too many. @phyx-m pointed out that I've written a LOT and I had to take a step back and be like yeah maybe I need some rest. I think I put too much pressure on myself to finish and release my work so I'm slowing down.

42. How do you figure out your characters looks, personality, etc.

Hmm. I usually have a name first, and based on how the name flows, I can usually envision how they'd look. Once I have the name and face, then I start combing through Pinterest for aesthetic inspiration to shape their personality. Do I want a fly girl who is about the money? Do I want a sweetheart? Do I want a bad bitch who uses men as furniture? It really all starts with the name.

43. Are you an avid reader?

Very much so. Kindle and audiobooks and fanfics, etc.

44. Best piece of feedback you’ve ever gotten.

@amacabrefairytale went through Daughter of Disgrace and we had the most engaging discussions about it on AO3. Truly the highlight of my time in the JJK fandom honestly.

45. Worst piece of feedback you’ve ever gotten.

Well, my comments on AO3 are moderated for a reason.

46. What would your story _______ look like as a tv show or movie?

The Invitation? Very not safe for TV. It's not action-packed like one would expect.

47. Do you start with characters or plot when working on a new story?

Both happen at the same time. They inform one another so I'm always creating at the same time.

48. Favorite genre to write in.

Fantasy.

49. What do you find the hardest to write in a story, the beginning, the middle or the end?

The middle. Always the meat of the sandwich.

50. Weirdest story idea you’ve ever had.

Can't think of anything weirder than me writing myself fucking a four-armed, four-eyed, two-dicked sorcerer demonic deity man.

51. Describe the aesthetic of your story _______ in 5 sentences or words.

The Invitation? Fires in braziers reflecting off gold jewelry and brown skin. Dark eyes and red eyes trading looks, one full of hunger, the other waiting patiently.

52. How did writing change you?

Gave me a safe way to explore and express myself. As a budding teen going through puberty, exploring my feelings about romance and sex through my writing was essential. Now? It's my safe space to have fun, unwind, and explore.

53. What does writing mean to you?

Everything. I'm so serious.

54. Any writing advice you want to share?

I don't give generic writing advice, and I always feel imposter syndrome when I do give advice. So...just keep writing. Don't let anyone try to silence you.

[numerous-bees-in-a-skin-suit]

okay so I know I said I’d have a post for Monday but stuff happened (nothing bad don’t worry) so this is late and also not what I had planned. but it’s something at least while I’m working on drawing and trying to actually finish a drawing for once in my life

anyways without further ado: more Voltron dragon prince AU shenanigans because that is still very much a thing that I want to do and am going to at least have some “official” art done for at some point in the year.

I only have an idea for Shiro’s design right now, but I have so much more to talk about in this post.

Shiro doesn’t really have a direct parallel to anyone in the dragon prince, but he’s still important (obviously) and he still goes missing. I can’t really say too much about him because of story and plot reasons but there is gonna be Cool Stuff happening. I decided to make him a moon shadow elf because it makes the most sense, and also I just thought he would look cool as one. He’s still engaged to Adam, and he still goes missing with Sam and Matt Holt.

That’s all I can say about Shiro for now, but I still have other characters to talk about.

Adam is going to be playing an active role in this because I want him to and also he won’t fucking die because I think he should live. As a treat.

In this AU, Adam is human. A huge part of his whole deal is that he will be looking for a Shiro and Keith alone because they’re the two most important people in his life and he wants to find them.

Also, Adam and Shiro’s relationship is secret, only Keith knows that they’re together and that’s a huge motivation as to why Adam goes searching for them alone since he’s kinda trapped since he can’t exactly go out and get help finding Shiro and Keith. Anyways, that’s enough about those two, let’s get on to everyone else I’m talking about today

I’m just going to make a quick bullet point list of characters I don’t have much to say on in this post but I still wanna say what their deal is in the AU:

Coran is going to be Opeli (the like, advisor in TDP). He’s the royal adviser, but he also helped raised Lance and Allura. I don’t really have much to say about him other than he will still very much be himself and I love him

Matt is a scholar or something of that type along with his father, and they meet Shiro while doing research and end up befriending him (thank you Aeon for this suggestion your brain is great)

Romelle is going to be the equivalent of Ellis (the kid with the wolf). Also trans Romelle because I am a trans Romelle truther

Veronica is going to be this AUs Amaya but not going to be exactly like her (also, please let me know if you guys think that I should make Veronica deaf like Amaya since I would like having a deaf character in this but idk if it should be her or another side character that would most likely be an OC)

Krolia is going to be missing/MIA

The BoM are going to be the moonshadow elf assassins, but without the whole knowledge or death deal since. I just don’t want them to have that and it’s my AU I get to do what I want

Honerva is dead lol

Zarkon will be Viren

Ezor, Zethrid, Narti and Axca are still Lotor’s Lesbians and I have Several Ideas for them

I still have a lot that I wanna do, like learn how to draw dragons because Whoops I made an AU that has dragons and a lot of them but I don’t know how to draw them, and I have a lot to talk about when it comes to certain decisions I made for this, like Zarkon and Honerva and some things I have in mind for them. This is probably going to be a project that will take a long time to even officially get started because I don’t know how to write but I so desperately want to tell the story I have in mind and have it be enjoyable.

I’ll make another post soon with more in-depth descriptions and ideas for Zarkon, along with something I like to call the “kill-die scale” and also some ideas I am still struggling with

Also as always, thank you to @deuxaeonn for the help, your brain is so good and ik this hasn’t been worked on for a while but still lmao

[blueburied]

every now and then i see posts about homeschooling and i'm like hey i was that i wanna talk about it !!

so for context i was homeschooled until 9th grade (2020), when i went to high school. I think that i got really lucky? basically every post i see about homeschooling is talking about how bad it is. And i can get why! people aren't always ready to like. fully teach someone. and sometimes also people are bad parents and take their kids out of school to have more control over them. its so shitty, especially when you're used to one environment and you're settled there and all of a sudden you're trapped at home with someone you don't always like.

I was lucky. My mom is wonderful and a librarian with a masters. She also like. put proper effort into teaching. It was nice having a teacher who knew me on that level and could understand how i worked. She also enrolled me in social programs where i could socialize, make friends, and experience things she couldn't give me herself. In particular i remember the homeschool gymnastics program I went to on wednesdays extremely fondly. Co-ops (which is, at least in my experience, a once a week thing where we take classes that we want to take that are taught by other homeschool parents). In particular the classes I remember the best would be the class where i took a computer apart and put it back together and got it to post (i was SO proud of myself, also i was like 9 or 10) and a greek mythology course in which we would do readings of plays among other things which is probably part of the reason i am a theater kid. I made and hung out with all my friends that way, and my family is still friends with one of the other families we had met through the second co-op we were a part of! My mom was actually the biggest advocate for me going to high school, primarily because they have resources she knew i couldn't get at home. Now granted, I went to a vocational school, but I still graduated with a 4.0 GPA and am now going to my choice university for something i'm really passionate about! I will say i was probably a bit on the sheltered side, but the internet and four years in high school more than made up for that lmao.

It seems like i'm very much an edge case, but i do want to say that it can be done right! BUT. if you're considering, based off of other experiences i've seen, i would probably suggest not to. at least not initially. if your kid comes to you asking about it, maybe then it is a good time to consider! but remember: do your research and make sure you get proper teaching resources! be prepared to teach like its your job! and also, and perhaps most importantly. socialize your kid! make sure they have people around their age they can hang out with some regularity!

oh and also don't try to control their entire life!

If I am wrong on something, do feel free to critique me in an RB! I am open to learning, or at least wanna try to be.

[faun-fauna]

i hate highschool

Ughuyuh

I had to wake up at 4 fucking 30

For once I didn't wear a mask.. it was interesting. Usually I wear it for the feeling of security. I felt fine (someone said I looked weird ;w;)

I really liked my outfit though

There's only two freshmen in my geometry class. A kid I hate and me. I don't really like it like that.

My Spanish class is super full. We need more desks. Only one junior, rest are freshmen. I have 3rd lunch cause Spanish is my 5th period (B317)

I'm fine with my lunch period cause I have a decent amount of friends.

Honors history also has too many people. He specifically said he only wants to be called Thor. He also told us to research his religion for homework TwT

I got to Eng H seven minutes before class ended. I accidentally walked into the SPED class because it had the same number- a teacher told me to go there

I had the basement first (Eng) which sucked going up to history (3rd floor)

Biology was fine. Though a kid who somehow got into honors (IDFK HOW) called the teacher a slur T_T

The biology teacher was sweet. I like her. She was telling us about how she burned her hand in biology.

Don't really wanna do the science fair but it's required for honors. I also don't wanna cut open a frog, I think I'd cry. I really like frogs.

My art teacher touched me which was kinda weird ("I see we already have some artists in this class!") she was my favorite art teacher's art teacher. Art was fine though. I didn't particularly enjoy the assignment, but it's fine. I drew a bit in my school sketchbook.

I enjoy my Spanish teacher. She reminds me of señora. She said most people barely pass her class (eihhihhhgh) she used to live in Puerto Rico. We have her class for an hour and she said we can never leave the class ;w; and it's very specific- she will not let us touch the door.

We headed over to the middle school after highschool. Saw our teachers. Funn. I saw 2 of my favorites. Gr8 social studies and art. I miss them lol. Señora wasn't there, sad.

My sweater was fucking hot as HELLLL and my backpack is so fucking heavy for no reason I'm gonna break my FUCKING BACK. I DON'T EVEN HAVE A LOT OF STUFF

I'm a bit jealous of other kids. Even though they have honors, they have so many friends. Every class, everyone is friends with each other, everyone has their close friends. I don't understand why I couldn't have that too? I feel like it always happens to me. I never get anyone to be with. It's been like this for so long. I got lucky for 8th, I really did, but it just sucks. I really hate it. Because, already, I know I'll be that ONE kid that no one wants to work with. The one who always just stands awkwardly, waiting for everyone to pick their partners so I'm put with the last person who obviously doesn't want to fucking work with me. It's not like I'm a loner. I HAVE friends. A lot of them. Why can't I just have them for some? My BEST FRIEND got more classes with my friends than me, and he's not really friends with them. It's just upsetting, I guess. I feel isolated, almost? I have one class with a friend. Yay, I guess. But it's like. I'd feel so much better if it was at least 2 or 3. T-T

This is really complainy, I know, but I hate feeling like I'm being backed into that lonely corner like always. It's happened a lot, I guess I'm just kinda sick of it.

Today was really tiring. Maybe because I had to get up early, or maybe it was just mentally tiring. I don't know??????????????

I don't really wanna do my homework. It's nothing much but I just don't want to in general.

A while later we had a picnic. That was really fun. Chaotic, too. That part was fun. I recorded it a lot on my friend's phone - like a rap battle and hide and seek. Also, throwing cupcakes .. we cleaned it up. Yay.

I'll do my homework later .w. ughhugu

[doodle-boy]

Here it is! My guide to how the weather and how the weather factory works all in a cute little powerpoint!! Finally over a week of obsessive research, script writing and powerpoint panel creation has lead to this masterpiece!

Obviously I am just a fan making up some stuff so if any of you guys disagree with how I head-cannoned the weather please feel free to ignore this. If you wanna take this and use it for your own little ponysona's feel free to do so! Literally the reason why I made this, so that at least we as fans can have one piece of information to point too if ever we need to explain how the weather works in MLP.

Also I did cut some stuff from this, mostly fake seasonal transitional holidays that I made up to help fill in the gap for like spring to summer and summer to fall. since all we ever see in the show is winter wrap up and the running of the leaves. So I'm gonna put that info on the bottom of this cut so you can read that if you want. It is optional!

Anyways I hope you all like it. I'm going to go take a nap I am so tired.

Seasonal Transitional Holidays!

Winter Wrap Up

The Holiday that kicks off the start of a new year! This is one most ponies enjoy because it comes after a long cold season. It is also one where ponies exercise teamwork with one another as ponies split off into teams to help clear away the snow and get things ready for spring. While the teams and methods of clearing the snow are different depending on the city and the pony population. Generally, the teams are split into three categories. Weather Team, Animal Team and the Plant Team.

Weather Team: The Weather Team are the ones who are mainly in control of clearing away the snow and helping the ice melt, as well as clearing the clouds to get the sunlight to warm the earth.

Animal Team: They help with waking up any hibernating animal as well as help guide in birds from the south and building them new nests to use.

Plat Team: Are also responsible for clearing the snow as well as planting new crops to help rejuvenate the landscape.

Celestial Summer Celebration

This Holiday celebration marks the beginning of the summer season! This holiday does not require much preparation on the average pony’s part as it is mostly a celebration to share with friends and family.

Celestia’s Longest Day: Our Princess Celestia brings the sun out earlier in the morning than normal and the ponies in Equestria celebrate the longest day of the year. Ponies spend most of this day outside, swimming, grilling foods, having picnics, and enjoying the sun as it warms up the earth.

Releasing of the Fireflies: This part of the celebration is done as the sun finally sets. That is when ponies release the fireflies, who had been previously sleeping through the cooler spring air, out into the warm summer skies. This is a event celebrated with family and friends as well, though someponies think of it as an unofficial romantic celebration as couples go off to watch the fireflies in private.

Rainbow Leaves Festival

            The most colorful of holidays celebrates the beginning of fall as we encourage the leaves to change colors through song and dance as ponies often host colorful costume contests. This is also a time for feasts and other fun activities as ponies come together to share in the bounty that summer gave us. As well as helping our animal friends prepare for winter.

Animal Migrations: This is the time of year most birds start to go back to the south for the winter. Most ponies assist with this by setting up bird feeders in trees, meant to supply birds with all the food they’ll need to make the long trip over. We also leave out feeders for our animal friends who are starting to get ready for hibernation.

Changing of the Leaves: This is the main event of the festival; ponies will gather together wearing colorful dresses and suits in the appropriate fall colors and they will dance and sing songs. From formal fall balls to country square dances there is no wrong way to celebrate this festival. This is a time to come together and dance and sing and make merry. The harmonic energy from the celebrations helps to turn the leaves from green to their colorful oranges, red, browns, yellow and purples. The festival will end with a big feast as ponies enjoy the last summer crops left from the previous season, everypony making colorful dishes with the available ingredients.

Running of the Leaves

            The Running of the Leaves is a smaller celebration but one that ponies still enjoy as ponies love to race one another through the forests of Equestria. The combined force of all the ponies racing allows for the leaves to fall from the trees and allows for the transition of winter to begin. This celebration also ends in a large community feast.

Races and other Competitions: Every community and city have their own local races so as the cover as much land as they can. Races usually start earlier in the day when it’s cooler. Not only are there races, but other competitions like to be hosted on this day as well. Like Pie eating contests, tug of war, bobbing for apples, potato sack races, and scarecrow making contests. It’s a time for fun and games and face painting as ponies celebrate the end of fall.

Harvest Feast: Much like the Rainbow Leaves Festival there is also a feast at the end of the day. But this one is usually much larger than the previous celebration. Ponies go all out as they make mash potatoes and pies and other delectable treats as everyone gives thanks to the harvests they produced during the fall. It’s also a time for family and friends to catch up and share their plans for the coming winter season.