#the settlers can go move somewhere else

[angstandhappiness]

PREACH IT PREACH IT PREACH IT

if your "military operation" results in civilian deaths over three times the number of "militants" killed, including children, your military is a fucking immoral failure. no wonder the palestinians aren't "peacefully protesting". you're fucking slaughtering their kids.

[meowthiroth]

been meaning to post these here for AGES now but I keep forgetting to. explodes 💥

but ANYWAYS! i redid the ref art for my Stranger oc from Myst/Riven! and also finally got around to drawing the aged-up version I thought up for him between Myst 3 and 4.

also wrote out a sort of messy bio for him a while ago, which i'll put under the cut since it's kinda long lol

ACE

Basic info

• Born October 7, 1782. He is 24 during the events of Myst & Riven, 33 during Exile and 42 during Revelation.

• He stands about 5’6” (1.6m) and is around 120 lbs. Pretty scrawny and definitely built better for agility than physical power.

• He is transgender and uses he/him pronouns. That caused quite a few problems for him back home, given the social climate at the time. He really doesn’t like to discuss his past or his birth family & will quickly change the subject if asked.

• He's very kind, easygoing and silly, and he loves to help others. But he can also be quite scatterbrained, forgetful, and prone to emotional manipulation.

• While he can be a bit absent-minded at times, he’s actually quite intelligent & quick-thinking, and he excels at problem- and puzzle-solving. He often cracks Atrus’s puzzles within mere minutes, but then can't recall his thought process when asked how he did it.

• Most of his favorite pastimes involve creating and fixing things. For instance, he’s very skilled with a needle & thread, and he makes and mends all of his own clothes. Drawing is another big one for him— his journal contains a lot more doodles in the margins than actual writing.

• He also LOVES animals, especially frogs, reptiles and bugs. He’s good at reading animals' behavioral cues and often has an easier time gaining their trust than most people would.

Early life/childhood

• His birth family were early settlers in the Northwest Territory, moving out west with him in tow when he was just a small child & starting a homestead there. His family consisted of his father, mother, and 3 brothers- 2 older and 1 younger.

• His gender identity caused friction with his family later in his childhood, since they had assumed he was just a tomboyish child and would eventually grow out of it. Obviously, though, he never did.

• His refusal to adhere to his assigned gender eventually escalated to his parents viewing him as hysterical & mentally unwell. Things only continued to get worse as he grew older, which eventually led him to go on the run. He kept a low profile & travelled mostly on his own for years, pressing farther into uncharted territory in an attempt to get as far away from his family as possible, which was how he first stumbled across the Myst linking book.

Life with Atrus & family

• Despite everything Saavedro did at the start of Exile, Ace still finds himself understanding of the man's predicament (perhaps relating the experience to his own upbringing in an abstract sort of way), and he takes it upon himself to help him get home by any means necessary. He often wonders how things worked out for Saavedro after their encounter & genuinely wishes the best for him.

• Slight deviation from canon- After the events of Exile, Ace got so worried about someone else coming after Atrus and his family while he was gone that he insisted on staying with them to help keep an eye on things. He moved in with them in Tomahna and helped out, both with Atrus’s projects and just general home/family things. He sort of took up the role of another older brother figure to Yeesha.

• Over time, he begins to view Atrus & Catherine not just as friends, but sort of as a new, more accepting family. He's definitely slipped up & called them “mom” and “dad” by accident before. SEVERAL times. He was really embarrassed about it at first, although they weren't bothered by it.

• He and Atrus work well together! Although Ace can’t write his own Ages, he often helps test Atrus’s creations and suggests ways he could potentially improve them. His ideas tend to fall somewhere in between Atrus & Catherine in terms of realism- a little wacky but still somewhat grounded in reality. He’s also quick to remind Atrus to take breaks & not get TOO into his work.

• Ace also spends a lot of time back home with Catherine and Yeesha. He does a good job earning his keep by helping around the home, and he and Catherine often like to bounce ideas off of one another. He finds her creativity super impressive, and a favorite pastime of his is to try & draw various creatures and landscapes that she describes.

• Since he lives with the family in between Exile and Revelation, Ace learns about what happened to Atrus’s sons much earlier than in canon, and he often tags along with the family when they visit. Usually he doesn’t go visit the brothers by himself, since he isn’t sure how comfortable Atrus would be with that, but he has offered to deliver things like care packages to them before & he’ll often stop to chat with them for a while.

• Ace has sort of always felt drawn towards Achenar. Despite the older brother's obvious shiftiness, Ace couldn't help but feel bad for him. He'd actually collected every blue page and was going to free him before he was (thankfully) stopped by Atrus. Despite being made aware of the attempted trick, Ace still forgave Achenar pretty quickly after seeing how much he’d changed over the years, and now he's always eager to go visit him with the rest of the family. The two get along surprisingly well & become close friends over time, and Ace will often stay behind to talk to him long after the rest of the family decides to head home from their visits.

• Ace, however, has always gotten bad vibes from Sirrus ever since he first arrived on Myst. He already has a disdain for greedy rich-guy types, and Sirrus always struck Ace as very disingenuous and closed-off, which further limited their ability to connect on an emotional level. Deep down, though, Ace still has a soft spot for Sirrus, and often displays it by teasing him in a playful little-sibling sort of way. While Sirrus generally finds his jokes more annoying than amusing, it clearly isn’t malicious and at least breaks up some of his day-to-day tedium, so he begrudgingly tolerates it.

[lesbeet]

i have a question about the list about zionism and antisemitism, the one that's dont "tell Jewish Israelis to "go back where they came from". i understand that there are jewish settlers that will have difficulty moving somewhere else, but doesn't this still perpetuate that colonizers have more of a right to the land than the people who they killed to take it? like the assumption is if we don't tell colonizers they should leave, then they have can stay and continue to occupy the land and resources that were stolen from palestinians

i feel like a palestinian person (or someone else who has been victim to colonization) can answer this better than i can, but i personally have never seen actual palestinians calling for all jewish israelis to remove themselves from the land completely. i don't think the only options are "jewish israelis stay and continue to oppress palestine" or "all jewish israelis vanish from the land without a trace" and imo suggesting so only perpetuates the idea that all palestinians/muslims hate all israelis/jews and have no interest or willingness to cohabitate in a scenario where all people are treated as equals (i'm not the person to ask regarding HOW to make this happen tho)

also like......i know this isn't the problem or responsibility of palestinians who lost their land to colonizers, but where should the jewish israelis go "back to"? setting aside the argument of jewish indigeneity altogether, as that post mentioned, many jews who initially relocated to israel (like post-shoah, not present-day) did so because they were being persecuted in the countries they were coming from. many of those countries are still not particularly safe for jews, and would DEFINITELY not become so in the event of a mass migration. i feel like you're picturing a country full of european and american olim who made aliyah in the last several decades bc of israeli propaganda/intentional annexing of land, but that's not the majority by any means.

again, that's not to say "oh well, they're already there so it would be pretty shitty to make em leave, palestine will just have to deal" but like. it's not realistic and it's also not what anyone is asking for. palestinians just want equal rights and to have stewardship over their ancestral homeland. and yknow, not to be physically and emotionally and socially eviscerated for the crime of existing in a politically frought (and politically advantageous) region. probably some reparations, and rightfully so. nobody is going to forcibly expel the israelis - if anything, some will leave on their own bc they're too racist to give up their privilege and continue to live there as equals, and the rest will be people living in a multiethnic, multifaith country

[aith-art]

Falloutober 2023 - Day 1

'War Never Changes'

@falloutober

Word Count - 713

With a single push of a button the Institute was gone. People had seen science as evil technology unchecked, as the source of all ills, all misfortunes. It was easy to understand why. The institute acted without reason, tore communities apart for fear of being challenged. Created killing machines out of people. They saw science as the last hope for themselves, and no one else. The Instutie refused to see and face their history and that was their greatest failure. Maybe those who survived the explotion will seek out their past, learn what science for personal prosperity had done to the world. 

The destruction of the Prydwen, the Brotherhood of Steel’s greatest creation, was a necessary sacrifice. The Elder had survived. He and what remained of the Brotherhood scampered back to the Capital Wasteland. They wouldn’t leave forever, but the Commonwealth would be prepared when they returned. While the Institute didn’t see the history of destruction they were fated to repeat through creation, the Brotherhood ignored the flaws in their beliefs and refused to see the hope in new technology and suffered for their hubris. To blinded by the rigidity of their symbol to see how the world was changing and rebuilding. 

In the confusion and rubble of the institutes destruction, the knewly rebuilt Minutemen offered aid and protection to settlers across the Commonwealth. Their aid was steadily accepted and Minutemen, under the leadership of General Preston Garvey, became a common site across the Commonwealth. With a military station at the castle and trade hubs to the north in Sunshine Tiding and the old Drive in Cinema, the Minutemen began to be seen as an honourable group once again. An old world history brought into the present with hope for the future.  

The Railroad continued to operate in secret, helping the last of the synths become part of the world. When the last of the known synth survivors had their lives rewritten, the Railroad disbanded. Many of the tourists returned to their lives, the agents that were left continued to monitor the synths they had helped, safehouses continued to operate for anyone who had helped the Railroad. 

 Dr Carrington found himself as the leading medic for the Minutemen in the Castle. Though he believed their goals were bigger than their capability, he commended them for all they had achieved so far. 

Tinker Tom joined Sturges in Sanctuary, though his ideas were more outlandish than Sturges was used to, the two got along well and the MiLA’s became a useful surveillance system for rouge synths, and threats to the people of the Commonwealth.

PAM was eventually moved to the Castle, despite Ronnie Shaw’s protest, and became an invaluable if not slightly disconcerting member of the organisation. 

Drummer Boy continued to operate the dropbox’s for the safehouses and agents that monitored the synths. He became an invaluable messenger to the Sole Survivor. 

Desdemona dissapeared into the wasteland. Occational a message would arrive for the Sole Survivor with tips on rouge synths and coursers, all marked with a D. It became the only inclination that she was still alive somewhere in the wasteland, hiding among the shadows as she had done for years. 

I’ve known nothing but war my whole life. I fought for the people I cared about, made mistakes I can never forgive myself for. War may never change, but I’ve seen people change. For better or worse, people are always capable of change. 

There was always something to fight for, a symbol to side with. It’s not hard to fight, to offer your life for a cause you believe in. But to let go, give up the anger and fire for something calmer, that is the real challenge of life. Finding a loving family and something to live for is difficult, but not impossible. Throughout my travels I have shown mercy and relentlessness. Kindness and ruthlessness. Love and hatred. I’ve cheated death, and face the consiquences of my actions whenever I look in a mirror. I have survived but never lived. 

Now I have a chance to live. People who love me and whom I love back. A real Family. 

As an old friend said, 

‘War Never Changes, men do, through the roads they walk.’ 

I think I finally found my road’s end.

[vonclosen]

when people are like “ugh america is so bad and shitty you should just move somewhere else” and what. leave turtle island so settlers can have it all. my ancestors suffered centuries of genocide and yet they stayed. i am a product of that suffering. i’m not going to leave now. i have work to do here.

[freefalasteen]

You know that people can't just go, get up someday and live somewhere else right? it doesn't really work this way. Are you 12?

Considering the fact that when trump was elected, i packed myself up and moved to europe until he was gone, yeah it is. Half the population are great grandkids of the european settlers who originally came to israel in 1948. Means many can be granted european citizenship by blood. They can go back to europe. Many more are converts/americans/other citizens that were able to move to israel just on the merit of being jewish. They packed up and moved there, they can move out. Living in the colonial experiment that is israel is contributing to the idea of zionism. The misconception that you have a right to be there at all is killing people.

[whitherwordswither]

Logs from the Starfields, III

Captain's Log #0.03:

After some heavy trading in New Atlantis, I picked up a contract from GalBank to get some con-man who defaulted in his loan to pay up. This had me heading out to Tau Ceti.

Of course, I can't just go somewhere with something else cropping up to distract me, now can I? As soon as I hit the system I picked up a distress signal. A local settler was having spacer trouble. So, naturally, I went to go see if I could help. Any day I can unload a few rounds in to a hostile spacer trash is a good day, I say.

Turns out him and three other families in the system are having a bad time of it. And on top of that they've been feuding with each other, or as it turns out, the guy who sent the signal for help had initially been kind of a colossal asshat to the others. But at least he's level headed enough now to admit his mistakes and wants everyone to legitimately survive. So not only do I have to get these grump dirtworkers to vibe together again, I got to deal with mucho spacer trash.

I set off to repair three satellites to restore communication lines between the families. Sadly, it looks like one family was already removed from the galactic equation. Each stop I made I blew some spacers out of the cosmic skies. Good riddance. The repair jobs weren't too difficult. I don't know why the spacers didn't just blow the transmitters up entirely. But I guess maybe they were gonna move in after their prey was hung up to dry? I don't know. Ain't no point in thinkin' too hard about it.

After getting all three family heads to meet up and cooperate, we made a joint run against two groups of spacer ships then almost immediately went all in for the kill and took out their base of operations aboard a derelict station. Another ton of haul this go. And the extra creds from the settlers was a nice boost.

Luckily, my initial contract is nearby in the system so I make a stop there to negotiate before heading back to New Atlantis. The target had himself holed up in a sparsely populated military outpost near a mostly abandoned mining facility of some sort. Not a whole lot of resources of note on the planet either. I manage to scan everything of worth on a short trek around the zone. Lady Luck must be on my side today. I was able to avoid a painful confrontation with the target and get him to pay what he owed without incident. Sometimes I'm amazing at my own talkin' skills. I'm glad he wasn't dumb about it. I hate to shoot someone, even if they give me a reason 'cause they got their head too far up their own ass.

As I'm leaving the planet I run in to some old friends of mine, coming to collect the bounty on my head. Jokes on them though, 'cause I've had enough excitement for one day. I ignore their comm hail and charge up my grav drive. While they're scrambling to get a target lock I'm skipping out of the system and back toward New Atlantis.

Sorry, boys. I got more creds to acquire and I don't feel like playing with ya'll right now.

Once I'm touched down at the Atlantis port I jog over and give the GalBank man his credits and get a nice little sum for myself. I might come back and take another job. Not that I enjoy helping the big bank corps or anything, but. My ship ain't gonna last forever and I'm gonna need every spare cred I can get to afford a new one. 'Cause god damn is they expensive.

I dump my haul at the local Trade Authority down in The Well, then head back topside. I run in to the scientist I helped the other day, who wouldn't you know, could use a bit more help! Heck, why not friend. I'm right here after all. And all he needs me to do is talk to an associate and get some data. Now, this associate don't like him much for whatever reason. Ain't any of my business. And as I'm talkin' to his associate friend… gosh dang. I'd really just like to punch him in the face. I almost had to to get that data. To think… he wanted me to break in to the apartment of his MAST supervisor and falsify his records so he could get a promotion. Boy. You just told me you got terrible performance reviews and you want me to make you look like a golden shiny apple? I don't think so. I had to a get a little grumpy with him, but I got the data. From the sounds of it, my scientist friend is on to something and may need my assistance again in a few days. I look forward to it! (Apparently something downright awkward is going on with this certain species of trees in New Atlantis and it could spell trouble for lotsa folks if something ain't done about it. So, of course, I'll help where I can.)

Now… I been doin' a lot of work around the New Atlantis area. I'm thinkin' I'm gonna head out and check out one of the other main hubs. See what else is out there. Atlantis is a nice enough place but. It may just be a little posh for my blood. And I'd like to, y'know, get my own place. Never owned a spot outright before and… I'm thinkin' maybe for once… I'd like to.

I'll catch ya up later.

End log.

[untitledgoosegay]

Yes! Sort of.

Desertification is the process of another habitat (wetland, grassland, forest, etc) turning into desert. I'm gonna come out with a hot take here and say that this isn't inherently bad. All ecosystems are dynamic and transitional; change is inherent and inexorable. There are also processes by which deserts stop being deserts, and turn into another kind of habitat! These things happen.

BUT,

In the present day, desertification is happening at an exaggerated pace, faster than surrounding habitats and communities can adapt and cope with it, largely because of imperialist exploitation & its consequences. Deforestation, which eliminates shade canopies that cool air and retain moisture, and root systems that anchor soils (especially loose, water-absorbing topsoils) and prevent erosion; climate change, which raises temperatures and disrupts weather patterns, further stressing and weakening plant communities and bringing about droughts; and, most importantly, settler-colonial disruption & erasure of traditional land management practices.

This is actually accelerated by attempts to forcibly and artificially "green" deserts. Go figure.

And when this is happening to places where people live and have lived for countless generations; when it's destroying lives and livelihoods; when people are watching their homes dry and harden and wither -- you can't blame them for wanting to prevent it!

Pouring thousands of gallons of water onto imported topsoil soaked in fertilizers and pesticides, all maintained by pumping fossil fuels into transportation and power, because you want a golf course next to the goddamn Pyramids, is a fucking horror. Golf courses delenda est.

On the other hand, for example, by digging earthworks with the stones you have on hand, as Yacouba Sawadogo and Mathieu Ouédraogo did in the Sahel, you can slow and trap water when you do have rain. This means the water can soak in and deposit the silt it carries, rather than racing across and scouring hardened soils. Looser sediments provide a more habitable place for seeds to settle and sprout, which further slow the passage of water, anchor sediment, and -- as their roots grow -- begin to break up that dry, hardened soil underneath. With a little effort, you can be sure the plants that take root are local species adapted to droughts and arid climates. With a little more effort, you can include natural sources of nutrients like manure; this gives even more encouragement to sprouting plants, and provides habitat for termites, who further break up hardened soils with their tunnels.

That's called zaï, and it's a centuries-old farming technology used by farmers in the Sahel. Sawadogo reintroduced & repopularized the practice in the 70s; adding manure was his own innovation, with astonishing success.

And this requires about as much effort as it takes to move the rocks & manure in the first place. Work you could (hypothetically) do by hand -- I've done a little earthworks construction, and it's tricky and labor-intensive, but possible. You're not pumping gallons upon gallons of water away from somewhere else that needs it; you're helping the water that's already there soak into the soil and do the work it needs to. Maintenance and management are an ongoing project, but the work wants to sustain itself. You're working with the land, not constantly fighting it. And you're not burning untold gallons of fossil fuels in the process.

tl;dr There's Nuance, but yeah, desertification is generally bad for people living in desertifying areas, and in the present day it's rapidly accelerating due to climate change & the erasure of indigenous management practices. Those same practices are the key to slowing and reversing desertification, because that's the very purpose they were developed for. And the return of indigenous sovereignty is vital.

It's all about context.

[maguro13-2]

Darkness Reborn Reboot ~ Origins of the Ink Demon Final Chapter Remake Pt. 2 ~

*Somewhere at Washington State*

[Weed Out by Kenichi Tokoi plays]

*Weapons clanging*

Sayaka : Had enough yet?

Kyouko : Not quite!

*weapons clanging*

Sayaka : So you felt like that one coming?

Kyouko : Maybe! *Evades* Ha! Too slow!

Sayaka : Prepare for the finishing move!

Kyouko : Here goes!

Sayaka : HUP!

Kyouko : Haaaa!!!

*SMASH*

Sayaka : WOAAAAAA--Augh! *Thud*

Kyouko : *points at Sayaka* And that's game, Sayaka.

Sayaka : Not bad.

Kyouko : So...Let's go back into...our casual clothing.

Sayaka : Oh...Hope no one would see us in these kind of uniforms.

*later*

Kyouko : Ha...Now that's more like it.

"Kyouko Sakura : Fourth of the Holy Quintet"

Sayaka : At least save me for one more.

"Sayaka Miki : Third of the Holy Quintet"

Sayaka : What can I say...I am intrigued that I was gonna meet the man of my dreams. But why did I ended up here anyway?

Kyouko : Because...This is the only place where we like to hang out. Your ancestor was the first of your kind to visit the great magnificent land of all time. So after my parents died, I found the only place where I can finally meet you in person. And this place was thought to be called Columbia, so the settlers decided to name this land...

"WASHINGTON!"

Sayaka : Washington? I feel like this is our first time that we met at Yakima, always the time that we had our first apple at the orchard. Get a load of this.

*photo showing the girls at a Yakima orchard*

Kyouko : What's that photo you got?

Sayaka : It's a photo of us, along with the mountains of the cascades. We usually get to see the mountains, I helped you out during your day job as an orchard girl.

Kyouko : That is when I had to get myself a guardian since I decided to live alone.

Sayaka : No you're not, silly. You decided to live with me.

Kyouko : Say what now? Like, how did you know?

Sayaka : I feel like that we should spend quality time here on our new future home right here in America. I'm lean and green, all I see here is the evergreen state! Verdant forest green, caressed by silver stream! That's how people would say that Washington's their home.

Kyouko : That would be the song of the state. Kinda feels like that this state wants us to call it home. Day after day, we have nothing to be shallow when our dreams of being the coolest of the coolest. Hey, how about it. How about some apple cider on the way back.

Sayaka : Nah, that's vinegar. How about a bottle of Apple Juice?

Kyouko : What do you think I am, a kid?

Sayaka : No, glass bottle of Apple Juice! It's for grown ups that what we want for the drinks and consider yourself lucky that might you feel like the kid inside you again, Kyouko.

Kyouko : Oh yeah, that reminds me, I got myself two bottles of apple juice in my bag. We once made it ourselves back at the orchard in Yakima!

*two gives each other bottles of apple juice*

Kyouko : Bottoms up, Miki!

Sayaka : Thanks!

*RUSTLING*

Kyouko : Eh? What was that?

Sayaka : Who's there? Madoka, Homura, is that you? The Police from Seattle are right behind and I'm not fooling around.

Kyouko : Don't worry, I got this, babe. I bet it's that Kyouske and his two time backstabbing harlot girlfriend Hitomi you were talking about.

*Kyouko summons lance and be prepared*

Kyouko : Okay, dumbasses! Stop playing around or else you want some of this! Come on out, I got a big lance from nowhere and I am not afraid to use it!

??? : Told you, I just made you look!

*STRONG KICK*

Kyouko: AAH!

Sayaka : Kyouko! *hears someone moving* Oh, hi! You are--

*Smash SFX : Blow landing*

Sayaka : What the...?

*Collapses*

*scene later changes*

Kyouko : (groans) What just happened?

Sayaka : *sniffing* And why do I smell a girl with no shoes.

??? : That's because we don't wear shoes, we are always barefooted. You two would make a great satisfaction if you would be pleasing us with the forces of light and darkness.

??? : Yeah, on any occasions, we do matters the most.

Sayaka : What do you want from us?

??? : The symbol of light and darkness Yin-Yang.

Sayaka : What? You some kind of hired mercenary from china...or do you know about the forces of light and darkness?

??? : I know it. It's the symbol of duty as heroes. It's what Izumi told us about the dangers of this quest. Restoring the items of the weapon of Xing, powered by the seven stars of the Big Dipper.

Kyouko : No way, I know you guys, you're one of FMA's stars. They've been retired along with Hero Tales.

??? : No? Not gone, but working with them. So with our combined efforts of friendship and bonding, i could get used to this and lead us out of the way. I'll use Yin...

??? : And I'll use Yang.

??? : [together] We could work this out two you know.

Sayaka : That's a good question, strangers.

Kyouko : But we know one thing's for sure. Uno reverse card!

*Reverse*

??? : AAAH! No fair!

Sayaka : This state, our rules.

??? : Okay you got us.

Kyouko : Okay, strangers from FMA. You got a name or what?

Lan Fan : L...Lan Fan...I am Lan Fan from Xing

Winry : And I'm Winry...Automail Mechanic Winry Rockbell.

Kyouko : I knew you guys are from FMA. But Xing, that's also thing in the real world.

Lan Fan : But we're from another world where we meet Arakawa's other people. The chinese people of Juushin Enbu, translation : Hero Tales. But you don't know anything about our world, we come from another dimension where I got my arm fixed after a freakish accident. We are called the Yin-Yang Heroes duo.

Sayaka : Let us get to the bottom of you two EX-FMA stars come from another timeline through time and space. Over year ago, the people and world of Wuxia was one of China's greatest genres that becomes a fan-favorite to Chinese literature. They lost affiliation with the big dipper after the world of Wuxia disappeared. But I'm guessing that Dark Fantasy stories were meant to be edgy as hell.

Lan Fan : Not as edgy as it looks, we're trying to save the land of Xing from an evil sorcerer that broke the legendary item into seven items scattered throughout the land and it is our job to stop the forces of evil and had our friendship.

Winry : But more importantly, we even happened to bond each other's feelings.

Sayaka : Oh, I get it now. You two had a little "Intimate" relationship, going on women into other women. Doubt that Xing is also a real thing china from a state to being just a county within a province.

Kyouko : Let's add up the fact that Xing probably english for "Crossing". I'll let you know to cotinue the process on these details.

Lan Fan : After once we save Xing with our valorous effort, we will decided that it is time to break from the forces of Chaos, reclaim the clan and our position. But Xing will never be amazed that once we used the legendary blade of Xing that has been passed down for generations, that's why Yin and Yang needs us to get back to our world where we come from.

*Hears a Solaris Sound*

Sayaka : And that's...Evergreen's finest. Guess what, we might wrapped this whole Yin-Yang story up. It's a great story, bogus idea. You guys would be lucky enough to be the stars of a new kung fu movie in Seattle.

Kyouko : Well, certainly no more.

*the two turns to see Godoka in front of them*

Kyouko : Huh? Excuse me, tall goddess in a the dress, but you're see to--(look at Ultimate Madoka)

Sayaka : Madoka? What in the actual fu-?

Ultimate Madoka/Godoka : Hello, Sayaka and Kyouko. I am Madoka, ruler of the unvierse and co-creator of the New Era. But you can call me Godoka

"Godoka : Ruler of the Universe and Co-Creator of the New Era"

Ultimate Madoka/Godoka : It's been a long day since Homura started the new era.

[File Select by Koji Kondo]

Kyouko : Uhh, yeah. It is the 2010s alright, out with the old, in with the new. You know.

Sayaka : Uhh, yeah. We probably knew about that. Nothing's too big of a big shot coming around here, but are you sure this is the right place to be here? I mean...We're in the state of Washington State, but this isn't canada, just Washington. We're only west of the city of Seattle.

Kyouko : But how on earth did you find us.

Ultimate Madoka/Godoka : Because I am the one who brings those into hope, a gift from Angel Vibe, ruler of the realm of light. Mind if bring something closer to these guys.

Sayaka : Uhh, yeah. Sure! There's apple juice in the bag.

Ultimate Madoka/Godoka : Winry Rockbell and Lan Fan, a pair of two heroes from another dimension. I take it that you two has left the story and find it anew. You were also that great of a much bigger on saving the land what is known as Xing, once-known state in china that is alternative form of the country of China. Part of the FMA universe. Your actions deceive no minor details of you ending in Real World AU. Hopefully, there might be a place that we can find a way to get back to your own world. That gives me no credit whether you have what it takes to be heroes of Yin and Yang

Kyouko : Say what isn't say, you tell us. You're the very first to visit this beloved land. Fresh Verdant Trees, Rainy days, It makes the state of washington an enormous rainforest for all that we love the rain. Plus, I am expert training orcas at Puget Sound, Oh wait, Sayaka's the expert of Orca Whale training.

Ultimate Madoka/Godoka : I also humbly owed you any favors of saving your struggles, Kyouko Sakura. You two would great comeback as both girls who wanted to bring the balance of light and darkness to this universe back to the scales of Libra.

Sayaka : Wow. Okay, guys. Let's get this over with. I am feeling guilty about men going after women, I mean Hitomi got me jealous over the fact that why men would want to hurt me, so I ran away here in this northwestern state on the pacific.

Kyouko : Sounds like Kyouske and Hitomi were a bunch of Dolls to set this one up for her. I mean "Ouch". That's what happens when she said anything about true love. And that love is forbidden. Also it might've happened when these two girlies known each other for one thing.

*Lan Fan sneakily unties herself with her knight*

Mei Chang : There you guys! Thank goodness I've been worried about you two! We haven't have much time. But luckily I was able to find you two when your master told you about running away, but you didn't.

Kyouko : Alright, alright. If that's the case you all know the drill, then I'll play your part in this some kind of martial arts LARP from FMA, I get that well done. *clears throat* Alright, girlie--No wait, Hey you! Get your damn hands off her, little girl. You heard me, I said...Get your hands off he--

Lan Fan : --hmph!

*Smash SFX : Blows landing*

Lan Fan Hah!

*Smash SFX : Strong hit*

Kyouko : WAAAAH!

*CRASH*

Kyouko : (moans) My head.

Mei Chang : That all got you fired. So was that necessary of you, Lan Fan? Or you had something in mind?

Lan Fan : The Likely I know is that I like to see this girl to be putting her in place, I haven't gotten the glory of them all.

Kyouko : Oh man...that smarts...! Eh?

*Look at her picnic ruined*

Kyouko : That was a picnic for our date! Only between me and Sayaka! Alright that does it!

*Converts into her Magical Girl uniform*

[Guardian Robo by Sota Fujimori]

Kyouko : Alright. I don't care if you're the warriors of Yin or Yang, but that date is what we thought of it before and we had a date because Sayaka was never the right type of finding a girl. You, a chinese girl, have crossed the line, bud!

Lan-Fan : I won't recall on being your bud. But you calling me a chinese is way too far for yout stereotypes.

Mei Chang : So it's best that we decided make you not to interfere with our country! That's a political fact that you're still around the world and That's people of Xing to you, Redhead!

Kyouko : Just say when.

Sayaka : Hey, count me in, Kyouko!

*Converts into Magical Girl uniform*

Sayaka : I just wanted to get some action between two saying about interfering with one's country, but this is America and it's the land of the freedom and of course the meats, well at least there's internationals around the country tho. But let's get to the top.

Mei Chang : Here goes nothing!

"GET READY FOR THE NEXT BATTLE!"

*SAYAKA & KYOUKO VS. LAN-FAN AND MEI CHANG*

~ Day 1 : Enter the New Era ~

[wanderestless]

I was going through the Tsimshian tag (bc I like seeing what my cousins are up to) and saw your post about how you were researching William Duncan and I have some stories that I thought you might be interested in.

First, There are still Tsimshians who see him in a good light bc he learned our language and stuff(I don't know why either)

Second, apparently back in the old days, when William Duncan was leaving Met to go somewhere else, the village would send some kids to see when his boat left so everyone could take out their regalia and potlach till the sun came up lol

wow, thank you so much for sharing! the second story brings me so much joy, i can't say i'm surprised to hear it given how silly the 'model village' life sounds like. those nights must have been so healing and empowering for everyone. also, duncan was so self-assured ideologically that i'm sure it was pretty easy to move around in his blind spots, and he'd never notice.

i think i can understand how people could view duncan in a positive light, especially considering the way so many other missionaries, government agents, and general settlers behaved. the CMS which sent duncan to the northwest coast was unusual in its insistence that the missionaries learned Indigenous languages and cultures... the standard was at rock bottom, and by that measure duncan was (relatively) culturally openminded.

i stopped commenting partway through the book because the story gets worse and wasn't something i felt i could discuss lightly. however, the other thing that happened is that duncan wound up advocating hard against the Indian Act and Indian Agents, because they were clearly going to disrupt his control over the Tsimshian, and some of his ideology about how Indigenous people should 'modernize' ran counter to the way the reservation system would work under the Indian Act. because of this, a number of Indigenous groups in the region wound up coming to duncan for help while advocating for themselves - which I think may be part of the reason some people still think of him in positive terms. (that said, his motives were just as colonial and racist as the goals of the canadian government. they were just a different flavour. jean usher sucks, but the book does go into a lot of detail about everyone's varying motivations.)

thank you again for sharing these stories! i'm definitely interested in hearing stories like these. i hope my horrified posting about him isn't clogging up the tag too much.

[phoenixyfriend]

Jedi arranged/political marriage pretext I'd like to see more of: Jedi DO leave the Republic, and the marriage is of a Jedi, probably a council member, to secure the safety of their members on their new home planet.

The Mandalorian angle has the benefit of being less closely tied to Republic rule, and could be very tasty and easy to justify with either Obitine or Jangobi, both of which I enjoy. Depending on where in the timeline it happens, the spouse varies.

But I think that if it's Mandalore, especially Jangobi, a heavy part of the argument for getting the Jedi settled and making up for 'draining resources' is shoveling as many people as possible into Agricorp work on the deserts of Manda'yaim.

As an Obitine fic that takes place between TPM and AotC, it's really easy to justify?

Like just. The Jedi Council going "okay do we have any planets where we could move, and there's a primary ruler that would be open to marrying a Jedi for protection from the Republic and… wait. Someone get Kenobi."

(This also works for BailObi, but Alderaan is unfortunately still staunchly Republic territory, while Mandalore's status is a lot more vague.)

With the Jangobi angle, it would be a lot more "Mand'alor Fett captures a Jedi because he's been hearing rumors about them expanding their influence, gets the story that they're actually looking to move, and are basically going to be refugees, and decides that there would be no power move that would secure Mandalore's independence from Republic bullshit like getting their best warriors on his side, but he needs to prove that he's in control to the Death Watch-style extremists, so he's going to have to marry a Jedi for. Reasons."

IDK it's arranged marriage fic, we don't need a whole lot of justification.

God it's so easy to make these about Obi-Wan (consider: Quinlan/that one force-sensitive Stewjoni prince he saved and messed around with a few years ago), but it would be really funny to make this Anidala by shifting ages around a bit or starting the war later. Just like.

Naboo, the planet the Chancellor of the Republic is from, has taken in the Jedi, threatening secession, and refusing to give them back. Senator Amidala has married one of them. Everyone has questions but none of those questions are getting answered. Count Dooku of Serreno has made overtures to join the CIS but Naboo is uninterested. Amidala has been unavailable for her comment due to being on her honeymoon. Master Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi has only offered that this entire situation is a headache and he'd love to know where he went wrong.

I'm trying to figure out what other ships I could do with this. I think "senior padawan Barriss saves Tatooine's accidental ruler-through-incredible-violence Anakin from an attempt at retaking the planet by the Hutts, spills some personal woes while tending to his wounds (she can't leave the planet yet anyway and wasn't even supposed to be here), and he wakes up like 'hey if you need to move somewhere you can come to Tatooine, I'd marry you in a heartbeat'" would be a fun one, and also immediately collapse as like. A'Sharad overhears Barriss's report and goes to fight Anakin about it personally for inviting more settlers to a planet that's already trying to crowd out the native populace. That would need some tweaking... maybe Anakin's actually already done something similar, and led an exodus of Hutt slaves from Tatooine and settling them on a new planet, and needs help keeping Hutts and other slavers away from trying to take back their slaves? Not sure Anakin would suggest a marriage, though. Someone else might, but not him.

I considered Blyla, but IMO the plot only works if the Jedi are in decent standing (instead of suffering from war propaganda) with the galaxy at large and only need to escape the Senate's influence, not widespread hate.

OH wait if Anakin took over Tatooine when he was a teenager and then gave control to his mom, because she's the smartest obviously, and Qui-Gon survived Naboo, then maybe Qui-Gon/Shmi???

I'm struggling to think of more ships or pick one to drag on an AU adventure. Help. My brain is trying to argue that Obi-Wan marries Hondo and the entire Temple ups and leaves for Florrum.

[zvaigzdelasas]

genuinely asking here, do you think the inability to prepare food for oneself and take showers is a product of capitalism?

I think that 'product of capitalism' is a misleading way of looking at it - "disability" as a coherent category is a modern capitalist framework, so in that way yes. But as to 'would this have happened to my brain if I didnt grow up in capitalism' thats an abstract question bc if you grew up in communism you'd be a fundamentally different person than you are today, so it's an unprovable counterfactual & leads to a lot of kneejerk reactions. There is no universal "You" somewhere out there in the stars. You are a product of the world you live in.

In pre-capitalist societies, there wasn't an idea that all these different ailments (blindness, deafness, leprosy, mental illnesses, etc) were all a part of this one big umbrella, there was specific ways ppl would treat specific people, but no universally applicable category bc different 'disabilities' have different effects on people.

Now this isn't to say we should go back to that, obviously it was incredibly inadequate - it's just to show that having an umbrella category of "people with things wrong with them" is a social choice, and that social choice leads to the development of certain social institutions, social norms, and practices. It's a consequence of capitalism seeing every person as only 'worth' whatever they can contribute financially.

The word "ability" (and consequently "disability") was first used in this context in england to figure out whether a given person should be sent to the Work House or the Poor House, and it was explicitly used to be a quick guess of 'can we wring any sellable Value out of this one?' before moving onto the next one.

Thus, "ability" should be understood as "ability to be exploited" & "disability" as "inability to be exploited" ("exploit" in the marxist sense of, roughly, 'someone else wouldn't be able to make their living without your work').

(This is a good talk abt disability, capitalism, and pre-capitalist societies.)

So what would mental health look like beyond capitalism? Well as a first universal, people would have full control over the products of their own labor, and things would be made for their usefulness as opposed to profitability, so people wouldnt need to prove to capitalists that they're productive enough to deserve to eat (or pitiable enough to eat on someone else's dime).

"from each according to their ability, to each according to their needs" is the most disability-supporting maxim imaginable, and any society not living up to that is failing people.

Your brain is plastic, it is literally impossible for it to not change in response to a changing environment. That also points to your lived environment being an obvious major factor in developing your brain meat to the point it is today. "Nature vs nurture" is a false binary, you are Always & *Only* acting in response to your environment, in comparison to past environments. Plastic changes its shape, but not all at once.

As to "well what if the world got rid of capitalism tomorrow - would I still have trouble with X or Y" if you have trouble with it today, you'll have trouble with it tomorrow. The question is about repetition & the new environments your brain adapts to, as well as broader societal health (mental & physical) programs being a natural new focus, now that production is no longer oriented for profit.

The question is about how we live as vacuum-sealed individuals atomically living in our own individual worlds - that would change, you would be able to live and interact regularly with friends who know whether you experience specific problems & would be driven to check up on you about those out of love and comradery. Having everyone live in their own boxes, sealed away from each other is an ideal handed down to us by the Settler Colonial history of the US & the US's influence on global structures in the last 500 years. "You too can be the brave cowboy living on the frontier, not needing anyone else to take care of you".

Of course that image is completely inaccurate but it's what we have, bc it's also what's easiest to profit off of.

This is a great talk on neuroplasticity & the constraints set upon our neural development by capitalism, maybe a bit academic but it's got lots of good stuff

The question isn't so much "capitalism created x or y & communism will fix it overnight", the question is more about "how is capitalist society hindering each of our growths as individuals" by adding stresses, anxieties, and dangerous norms.

[thirsty4theextraordinary]

Come on love, let’s get this freak-show on the road

I’ve been replaying Fallout 4 for like the 100th time recently and again I have fallen in love with Hancock all over again. So this is a little one-shot I wrote up last night that goes through how Hancock is feeling about the SS. 

Hopefully you guys like it. 

Pairing: John Hancock X Female Sole Survivor 

Tags: Fluff, nothing else just some sweetness. 

“To think I ever doubted you.” 

That was how he had started this, how he had got to where they were now. Of course, she seemed unfazed like nothing had changed. It had been days since their conversation on the side of the road. They had made camp at a local settlement of hers, or rather the Minutemen’s. She chatted idly to the settlers as they sat beside the campfire, unaware of his eyes on her. She had achieved such an amazing amount since coming off of ice. 

When they had first met, she had come strolling into Goodneighbour with Nick Valentine at her side. She was beautiful, and fresher-looking than any woman he had seen before. Like a poster of one of those pre-war movie stars. Of course, he was attracted, you would have to be blind not to be but he kept it to himself. And that vault suit hugged her curves aa though it were painted on.  

Once they started travelling together that’s when things had changed. Into something that he had never experienced before. She was kind, intelligent, cunning and not afraid to hurt those who needed hurting. He had had pre-existing ideas of what the Vault-dweller would be like in a fight and it was nothing like this. She had the reflexes of a trained killer, and as much as he had thought he would be the one protecting her, it was sometimes the other way around. He couldn’t count the number of times she had stimpak’d him mid-battle, just to turn and shoot his assailant in the face, as though it was nothing at all. 

The more they travelled together the more he fell for her. It wasn’t like him, John had always been a lone wolf, content with the occasional one nightstand. He had no problems finding lovers, even turning Ghoul hadn’t dampened his chances. The sexy King of the Zombies had no issues with the ladies. So why was he so hung up on the woman in a bright blue vault suit? 

It was one night, when they had stopped to make camp and he looked over at her sleeping form, that he fully understood, that what he felt wasn’t just simply lust, like usual. At first, it disturbed him, he wasn’t used to feeling like this, this intense feeling was scary. The womaniser in him denied these feeling of course and he told himself that the last thing she need was the love of a Ghoul. While he had never had trouble finding lovers, he knew that not all soft-skins were so inclined to his kind. He wasn’t sure he could take the rejection from her. He huffed to himself, she had turned him into a teenager again, nervous about asking out his first girl.  John Hancock was a confident flirt, never had he questioned himself before, but then never had he felt like this. She really was something else.  And yet he had never expected her to say what she did. 

He hadn’t expected the conversation to lead that way, he hadn’t even led it that way himself. He just simply wanted to let her know what a great friend she was, how impressed he was with her moral compass, deep down he wanted to be a little more like her. He felt it was only right that he shared, after all, she had been upfront since day one about her past, and what she was trying to do out here in the Commonwealth. But up until this point, he hadn’t really told her much about himself, only how he had become mayor and why he had wanted to leave. He had just wanted to share, to open up a bit. He hadn’t expected her to turn it on him like that. He had been telling her about what had happened at Diamond City. 

“I felt like I was the only one who saw how screwed up things truly were, who couldn’t just pretend things were fine. Still feel that way… or I did. Until I met you” He mentally scolded himself for that last part would she notice, question him. But she just kept listening politely, she hadn’t taken it for any more than just a declaration of admiration. No feelings attached. So with a smile, he continued. 

“I know I run my mouth, but having someone who sees the world for what it is and is willing to do something about it. It’s meant a lot to me. I feel damn lucky to have you as a friend.” 

“And that’s what we are? Friends?” the words had fallen from her mouth like they meant nothing, like she hadn’t just propositioned him. He couldn’t help the flutter that he felt in his stomach or that grin that spread across his face, he felt suddenly exposed, was she playing with him. But like aways, John use crude flirting and overconfidence to hide his nervousness. 

“Well, now that you mention it, I have been having slightly more impure thoughts than usual. Maybe we’ll get to…. act on those. Heh,” He had said to her. It wasn’t that he regretted saying it, after all, it was the truth. Watching her ass bounce in the vault suit, as she ran and few yards ahead of him as they travelled had undoubtedly been the inspiration for a few impure dreams. But did he want her to think that was all he had to offer? A few nights of passion on the road, just friends until they got into the bedroom. He wasn’t really sure what it was she wanted, maybe that was all she expected, after all, he did have a reputation. He told himself that with any other girl, especially one that looked like her, he would be happy. But as the days went past and he saw her save people who needed saving and take out those that threaten them, he knew he would never just been content with a sex only kinda deal. But it’s not like that had happened either since their talk nothing had happened. But it had been a tough few days, maybe she was simply worn out, he couldn’t blame. Or maybe it was all just meaningless flirting.  

“I’m off to bed, thanks for the drink Ben” she suddenly announced standing from her seat beside him, the settler nodded his head to her. She turned to John and bent down.

“Goodnight, Hancock,” she said sweetly before she placed a tender kiss to his cheek. He couldn’t help but turn his head and capture her lips. Just because she made him feel something new, didn’t mean he had forgotten all his moves. She squeaked with surprise at first but kissed him back nonetheless. He pulled away, shooting her his infamous grin. 

“You can call me John you know,” he told her and she smiled at him blushing pink. 

“Goodnight, John” she replied trying his name out and he smiled like a fool. No one called him that much anymore, but it sounded so sweet coming from her.

“Goodnight, Sunshine” he replied. His whole life he had been running but at that moment he knew, he could never run away from her.  

She stood fully and without another word headed off towards the small wooden shack that Ben had offered them for the night.  With his mind whirling he took off after her. He closed the door behind him and she looked up from where she was sat on one of the mattresses on the floor. She was going threw her pack, checking out ammo supplies and the like. 

“Hey, when you got time, I got something I still need you to hear,” he said as he perched himself in the rickety chair in the corner and pull the slightly smashed packet of cigarettes from his pocket. 

“Is everything alright?” she asked suddenly looking a little concerned. God, why did she have to look at him with those big beautiful eyes of hers? He took a breath.

“Oh yeah. Better than that. This is just… tricky” he began. Pushing the cigarette between his lips and lighting it. He offered her one silently and she took both the pack and lighter from him without a word, lighting the cigarette and taking a drag. 

He found himself opening up to her again, telling her things only he really knew. Things he hadn’t really told anyone.  How he felt inside, not about her but about himself. He needed to know she understood, that she saw him for who he really was. All his self-loathing out in the open, the real John Hancock on full display.  How he was just running away, with no real destination in mind. She hadn’t just listened to him spill his guts she had consoled him. 

“You may have run, but you always ran for a reason,” she told him with a nod of her head. Hearing her say something like that from her, was like a warm shower, washing away his insecurities, his worries. 

“Been trying to convince myself of that for a long time, but hearing that coming from someone like you…. I don’t know if you understand what that means to me,” he said with a smile which she returned. Again he took a breath.

“So, lemme get to the point. Throwing in with you has been the best decision I’ve ever made. It’s like I found a part of myself I never realised was missing…. Which happened sometimes when you’re a Ghoul” there he was joking again, protecting himself. 

“If I hadn’t taken up with you, I’d probably be in a gutter somewhere, getting gnawed on by Radroaches. You have been one hell of a friend” He had used that word strategically, he hadn’t forgotten the stolen kiss they had just had but he needed to test the waters. 

“Have you ever thought about us as maybe more than just friends?” she said her face serious. Was she testing him too? 

“Heh. It that obvious? But come on. You don’t want to wake up to this mug every morning. Never wish that on anyone I cared for.” it was honest, there were no sexual undertones, no joking. He was checking, he knew he could charm the pants off most girls in the Commonwealth but this was more than that, he wanted to check he hadn’t made a mistake. 

“Who I fall for is my decision. And I’ve fallen for you” she admitted with a smile and he swallowed hard. 

“Wouldn’t expect that kind of lapse in judgement from you. But I guess that works out for me then, doesn’t it?” he joked, mentally he scolded himself he should have told her how he felt. What she meant to him. But she giggled at his joke and he couldn’t help but smile. 

“Heh. Moments like this, I know all that karma stuff is bull. Because no one like me should be this lucky.“ he said looking down at the lit cigarette in his hand, the long line of ash waiting to be flicked off. 

Her hand entered his peripheral vision and he looked towards her. She had thrown her cigarette away and she was holding her hand out towards him. He threw his cigarette out the hole in the shack wall and took her hand. She pulled him to sit in front of her. Her beautiful eyes staring into his soul.  

“Look John, I know you joke to protect yourself. But I’m going to be honest now” she said and he blinked his heart beating out of his chest, she was going to tell him that he meant nothing to her. 

“When I said I fallen for you” she began, he knew what was coming”

“I really meant it” she breathed holding his hand a little tighter. He let out a breath he hadn’t know he was holding. She meant it?

“I love you, more than I’ve ever loved anyone before,” she said and he smiled so brightly it hurt his cheeks.

“I love you too, Sunshine,” he said and she smiled.

“But I want to check what that means to you. What I mean is, I don’t one-night stands or friends with benefits. I’m either in all the way or not at all.  So what do you say?” she said her voice far less confident than he was used to hearing from her. Had she been having all the same thoughts as him? God, he was a fool. 

“You don’t know how happy you make me, saying stuff like that. With you, I’ve found the person I was meant to be with. My missing piece. I don’t want to ever be without you. So you wanna make this thing official?” he asked and she smiled so brightly he could feel the warmth of it. 

Without a word, she leant forward and captured his lips in a kiss he wouldn’t ever forget. It was passion-filled but loving, with a swift movement he pushed her back so she was lying, her back on the mattress and he hovered above her. He looked down at her grinning like a teenager, who had just seen his first boob. She giggled before she leant up and captured his lips in another loving kiss. 

[blackkatmagic]

“So you haven’t been eaten by a dragon yet after all,” Xiaan says, warm despite the wind A'Sharad can see whipping her lekku around her in wild gusts. “You had me worried, A'Sharad.”

A'Sharad snorts, tipping the holo a little as it fuzzes from the wind-blown sand. “You have more than enough to worry about already, Xiaan,” he says, and the distant hum of a speeder makes him raise his head, watching narrowly as a craft cuts across the top of a distant dune. Not close enough to be a threat, but—close. He’ll have to warn the tribe that’s hosting him. If settlers are encroaching, it might be time for them to move.

“Little enough that I can't worry about you as well,” Xiaan retorts, though she’s smiling. “Taking your leave right under the nose of the Hutts is a risk.”

“The Hutts won't bother the Tuskens,” A'Sharad says dismissively, watching her with narrowed eyes. She looks tired, and A'Sharad can't see much of the land around her, but she mentioned deployment somewhere cold. “You should wrap your lekku. If they get frostbitten, you're going to spend the next six months complaining about numbness.”

Xiaan rolls her eyes, just as there's a bark of laughter from somewhere beyond the projector. A'Sharad raises an eyebrow, well able to recognize a clone trooper’s voice, and says dryly, “I assume I'm not the first person to tell you that, Xiaan.”

“You're worse than Quinlan,” Xiaan complains, and then leans back. “Salvo, that was not an I told you so moment, you're not allowed to mark that down.”

“I did tell you,” Xiaan's commander says, leaning down into the projector and waving a heavy winter headwrap at her. “I said General Hett would tell you to wear a wrap. That’s a point for me.”

Xiaan pulls a face, but doesn’t argue as she takes the headwrap and slides it over her lekku, attaching it to her leather headwrap and then looping her lekku around her neck. “It feels stifling,” she complains, and Salvo snorts as he takes a step back out of view.

“So does the armor, General Amersu” he retorts. “But at least it’s warm.”

When Xiaan turns her scowl on him, A'Sharad raises a hand to fend her off. “You know what I normally wear out of respect for the elements, Xiaan. You’ll get no sympathy from me.”

That makes Xiaan pause, looking troubled, and her eyes sweep up and down A'Sharad’s form, then slide back to his face. “I do,” she says, and it’s even, measured. “Though I can't help but notice that you stopped dressing as a Tusken, A'Sharad. Even now that you're back on Tatooine.”

A'Sharad doesn’t answer for a long moment. It’s too easy to remember the roil of Skywalker's hatred, the fury he’d turned on the soldiers they faced. The fury he’d turned on A'Sharad, before knowing he was Human, and something dark and grim traced through A'Sharad’s bones can't help but draw connections in the fact that Anakin stopped trying to kill him once he knew he was genetically a Human. Even weeks together, with A'Sharad doing everything he could to teach Anakin, had been obliterated in a moment by Anakin's hatred.

It’s a powerful force. Too powerful, and A'Sharad has dealt with hate too often in his life, but—Anakin's unnerves him.

“There are fewer misunderstandings when I dress as a Jedi,” he finally offers. “I'm a Tusken, but…the galaxy sees Human and understands that more readily.”

“You were still dressed as a Jedi when you wore your Tusken clothing,” Xiaan points out, quiet. “You're a Tusken Jedi. Clothing doesn’t change that.”

The Order has certainly never objected to A'Sharad’s culture, or his struggles with anger in the wake of his father’s murder. Each Jedi is an individual, a Jedi first and foremost, but—none of them have ever had to give up the culture of their homeworlds.

Still, the memory of Anakin's fury and hatred, and what Anakin confessed, turns A'Sharad’s stomach, sends a thread of doubt rising. He’s a Jedi, and he always has been, has devoted himself body and soul to the Force, but—

People see the Tuskens as animals. Anakin saw nothing else, to the point that he slaughtered a whole tribe, to the point that he almost killed another Jedi because of it. The Order fights a war right now because there's no other option, and sometimes A'Sharad can't help but feel the emotions of those who stand against the Republic armies and…wonder. Wonder how much of the fear is because of what he is, and how much would be removed if he were simply Human. He knows how Anakin reacted to the removal of his mask, after all.

The pain of grief is something that A'Sharad can respect, and the weight of a secret that eats like acid at the conscience is a decent punishment, but his own decision to say nothing weighs at him. Anakin acted out of anger, and if anyone can understand the fall into Dark emotions, it’s A'Sharad. Repentance was lacking, though, and any sort of acknowledgement that the Tuskens he killed were sentient, and A'Sharad…worries. Worries what might happen if the war drags on, and Anakin becomes a Knight, and takes a padawan.

Rot spreads quickly, and the Dark Side is a habit too easily enabled when the whole galaxy lacks light.

“It’s your choice, A'Sharad,” Xiaan says, leaning forward, and her eyes are kind and a little sad. “But you should know that my best friend has always been a Tusken, and him dressing as a Human changes nothing.”

A'Sharad can't help but smile a little, and the ache of this war, of the loss of Bhat, of every clone trooper under his command, still lingers, but—death is a constant, and part of life. Bhat was taken by the desert, as he wanted, and A'Sharad saw to pyres for the troopers, and that’s the most he can do. They’ve departed, and he values them, so he’ll keep moving. And in the meantime, moments like this can offer a little bit of solace.

“Thank you, Xiaan,” he says quietly, and pauses, then offers, “Tell Commander Salvo that he is entirely entitled to his point.”

Xiaan makes a rude sound and closes the connection.  

[tae-cup]

The Last Great American Dynasty | KTH Oneshot

Inspired by: Taylor Swift’s “The Last Great American Dynasty”

Pairing: Kim Taehyung x Reader

Summary: A successful businessman meets a woman he never should have met.

Warnings: N/A, ANGST, but also lots of fluff!

Word Count: 5.8k (I really did get carried away with this one. And for what?)

A/N: I just got inspired-anywho, how’s everyone doing today?? Stay safe and wash your hands haha also I’m sorry about the end...

Other: Masterlist

There goes the last great American dynasty Who knows, if she never showed up, what could've been There goes the maddest woman this town has ever seen She had a marvelous time ruining everything

-

-

“Mr. Kim! Mr. Kim!” Dozens of reporters shouted as a handsome man made his way to his car. “Mr. Kim!” When he took a second to look back at the crowd, the reporters went into a frenzy. 

“Mr. Kim! Where are you going?”

“Mr. Kim! Is it true that your marriage with Jennie is two months away?” 

“Mr. Kim!” 

And on and on it went. The flashing lights and clicking of cameras wasn’t anything new to him. Taehyung simply smiled at the questions before stepping into his car. The driver started maneuvering through the mob of people. Inside, his stomach turned, disgusted at the thought of his arranged marriage with Jennie. He wanted to choose someone for himself, shouldn’t he be allowed that? The dark haired man was off on a short trip to somewhere secluded to enjoy his freedom. Then he would return a month before the wedding. As the scenery of buildings turned to green, he leaned back. The quiet in the car was a sound he missed. 

-

-

You walked over to the next table, carefully balancing a tray of plates and drinks on one arm. The other held the order number. Your hair was tied up in a messy bun. It hadn’t been messy when you started, it had just been hectic. Now, the lunch rush was dying down and this was your last table. You expected it would be the last table all day. You lived in a small town. Everyone knew everyone. 

“Mr. and Mrs. Jung, I have your food here.” You smiled and placed the plates in front of the married couple. They gave you warm smiles and went back to their conversation. You decided you would clean up your area early and head out. After all, every day was the same. The same residents came in and out. You knew there wouldn’t be anyone coming around. 

“Hey, Jisoo, I’m gonna clean up and then clock out. Want to go to the movies later?” You called back to your pretty friend who was manning the register and finishing up some order receipts. 

“Uh, sorry, Y/N,” She responded in a distracted voice as she focused on the totals. “I have a date.” 

“Oh, right! I completely forgot. How is he?” You wiggled your eyebrows. 

“Oh...He’s alright.” She smiled sheepishly, suddenly focused on the ground. 

“Just alright? Jisoo, he’s the catch of the town. Namjoon should be blessed to be in your presence.” 

She rolled her eyes, turning back to the register. You didn’t have much of a love life so you spent your time at home, at the diner, or wanting to know all the dirty secrets of Jisoo’s love life. Jisoo was classically beautiful. Full lips, long hair. and big eyes. It was no wonder she got the prettiest boy in town. Jisoo could have anyone in town. 

“Anyway, I’m sorry about the movies. I know you want to go see that new one.” 

“Live action Mulan can wait.” You chuckled. You walked into the back to grab a rag from the storage closet. You didn’t even hear the bell ring from the front that signaled someone entering the diner. “I mean, it’s just the most kick ass story of the 20th century and forever, am I right, Jisoo?” You found a rag and dunked it in the bucket of water nearby. Ringing it out, you started walking toward the front, damp rag in hand. “Jisoo?” 

Then you spotted what made her stop. It halted you in your tracks. 

“Oh.” You whispered to yourself. 

There stood a tall man with tan skin, beautiful full lips, and dark curly hair. Jisoo was nervously taking his order, but he didn’t seem to mind the wait. Your friend made a quick gesture under the counter. It said stop gaping you idiot. Then he looked at you. And oh, wasn’t the right word to describe your reaction. It was more like ohmygodwhoisthatwhyishesohandsomeshortcircuitinghelpme. When he shot you a small smile, you felt your heart flutter and start beating at an unusually fast pace. 

“Right this way, sir.” Jisoo hurried past you, carrying a napkin and silverware. She hadn’t expected anyone else either and had put away all the napkins and silverware. When she bumped past you, it was like the world went back to normal. You quickly went about cleaning the counters, trying to resist the urge to look at the handsome stranger a few tables away. 

He looked out the window idly as if he had all the time in the world. One hand tapped the table and he rested his chin in the other. His eyes just watched the treeline as if it could change at any moment. There was a distant look on his face. 

The bell rung at the kitchen and you jumped at the intrusion. It had been quiet. If it wasn’t for the tapping of his fingers, it would seem as if no one was there. You hurried to the back and carefully put his plate on a tray along with his drink. Then you made your way out where he sat. You didn’t want to break the lovely quiet, but you had to. 

“Hello!” You said cheerily, flashing him a winning smile. “I have your order of noodles and a coke.” You put down the plate and cool drink in front of him. 

The man watched you intently. You pushed a strand of hair behind your ear as you turned around to head back to cleaning tables. 

“What’s your name?” He said, his voice a deep rumble. 

“Ah, I’m Y/L/N Y/F/N.” You dipped your head in greeting, turning to face him again. 

“I’m Kim Taehyung.” His mouth twitched into a smile. 

“It’s nice to meet you.” 

Before you could go back again, he spoke, “Do you live here, in this town?” 

“Yes, sir.” You responded politely. 

“Here, come sit with me. I want to know more about this town.” He patted the seat next to him. You looked at him with hesitation. Finally, you found the courage to move forward. Instead of sitting beside him, you slid onto the seat across from him in the booth. 

“You’re new around here.” You pointed out, feeling dumb. Of course he’s not from around here.

“What gave it away?” He chuckled. You felt your tense shoulders relaxing. Taehyung was devilishly handsome. The name was familiar to you, but you couldn’t place your finger on it. 

“The suit. The car.” You gestured outside to the porsche. “Plus, I don’t recognize you and everyone knows everyone here.” You explained. 

The dark haired man looked pleased at your observations. “Tell me more about this town.” 

“Oh, okay, well, it used to be a mining and trading town. Settlers came from all over to find gold and trade silk.” You listed the history you remembered from your class. “But then we ran out and...” You sighed, thinking of the sad history of your dead beat town. “...and everyone left. My family stayed. We’ve been here since the beginning. I’ve always wanted to leave this place.” You whispered the last part. 

Then you turned to him, surprised as if just seeing him there. Did you just really pour out your thoughts with no filter to a stranger? He made you feel comfortable. He didn’t seem to judge you. You remembered the first person you told about wanting to leave. Your older sister had practically sobbed how unfair it would be if you left and not her. How you had to stay because it was family tradition. How you’d break your parents’ hearts. 

Well now your mother was dead, your father never home, and you had no college education. That didn’t stop you from trying and you were in no way stupid. You just didn’t have the means to get out of this town. Your sister had health complications and you felt obligated to stay. You were only 20. 

“I know how you feel.” Taehyung’s voice ripped you from your thoughts. “I wanted to get away from my life for a while. That’s why I’m here.” 

You tilted your head, taking in his words. What was so bad in his life that he needed to escape to the middle of nowhere? 

“I hope you can find something important in this town, then.” Your voice was tired. People came and went, but no one ever stayed. 

“Yes...hopefully.” When he looked at you, there was something in his eyes that you couldn’t quite read. 

He was fascinated by you. You didn’t ask too many questions and he was having a genuine conversation with someone for the first time in...years. I miss this. He thought to himself. 

“What do you do for work?” You asked, genuine curiosity tingeing your voice. You couldn’t help wondering about the newcomer in town. 

“Business.” He replied vaguely. You had a feeling he didn’t want you to pry, so you switched subjects. 

“This place used to be busy, you know?” You began. He looked at you, encouraging you to continue so you did. “I mean, when I was in high school I would have to try not to run into people at the shopping center.” You shook your head slightly at the memory. “Now I have trouble finding people.” 

“Where did everyone go?” 

The words struck a chord in you. You’d had those words ringing in your head since you graduated high school. It was lonely in this town. Your sister was in the hospital miles outside of town and your friends were merely ghosts besides Jisoo. He must have sense the atmosphere changed as he cleared his throat. Your eyes darted around his face, looking for any ulterior motives. Once deciding there were none, you sighed and gave in to the question. 

“I’m not entirely sure. Jisoo and I don’t talk about it usually.” You shifted uncomfortably in your seat. “But I think everyone left as fast as possible once high school ended and no one bothered looking back. This town will just be ghosts in a few years.” You admitted, clasping your hands together on the table. The thought of this town dying so easily always made you feel a tad emotional. You gave up your future for this. 

He nodded along. A muscle in his jaw twitched. “That’s what happened to my town.” 

That caught you off guard. Your expression must have said exactly that because he continued.

“I came from a small town just like this one. I guess this place gives me nostalgia. Now I live in Seoul. I was one of those teens who left and never came back. But I went to visit a few years ago and I knew there was nothing left for me in that town.” He shrugged nonchalantly, but it clearly still bothered him. You found yourself placing a hand on his and giving it a quit squeeze. 

“I’m sorry that happened to you.” You peered into his dark gaze. His breath hitched. Then he looked away, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly. 

“Well, the past is past.” It barely came out as a whisper. You quickly withdrew your hand, realizing how intimate it seemed. You supposed you were just used to that kind of intimacy living in such a small town. 

“Achem, right. Well, I have to close up.” You excused yourself and slid out of the booth. Golden rays of sunlight painted the diner in a soft hue. His face practically glowed in this lighting. 

“Of course, of course.” He murmured, suddenly distant again. His eyes watched the trees that now cast long shadows on the road. 

You hurried to grab the long forgotten rag and started scrubbing at the counters. Jisoo looked at you, an amused grin on her face. You knew instantly that she’d seen the entire thing. 

“I see you two are getting along.” She teased. 

“Oh shush.” You huffed, heat crawling up your face. 

“Come on, Y/N, would it be so terrible to fall in love and leave this town? When Namjoon feels ready, he said he’d be willing to leave as well.” She said. Your head whipped around to face her. 

“W-what?” 

Her gaze softened at you. She came over and put a hand on your shoulder. “I’d never leave you behind here, but please at least consider it.” You tore your body away in disgust. 

“Jisoo, You know I can’t just up and leave, even if I did find someone. I have to look after Lisa and make sure my father isn’t dead by the side of the road every night.” You hissed. 

“I know-”

You two were cut off by a sudden presence. Taehyung placed the money owed on the table and smoothed out his suit. He dipped his head to the both of you. 

“Thank you, Jisoo, Y/N.” He said politely. 

The way your name sounded on his tongue made you shiver. Your conversation was abruptly halted and you felt tongue-tied, all anger forgotten. 

“Y/N, care to go to the movies with me sometime this week?” He casually stated, shaking you from your stupor. You pointed bleakly at yourself while mouthing me? He smiled softly at your confusion. 

“Y-Yes, I’d love to.” Your shock came across. He loved the open display of emotions on your face, on everyone around here. It was so unlike the poker face everyone gave him in the business world. 

“Does...does Friday work?” You asked cautiously. Jisoo looked between the two of you, a smirk on her face. 

“I’ll do whatever works best for you, I have an open schedule.” 

“Great, then how about I meet you after my shift on Friday. I finish up at 6 P.M. then.” You said, your voice not quite timid, but not quite sure either. 

“Sounds great.” He then turned and left. Taehyung found himself smiling at the obvious nervousness on your face. He found your face invading his mind as he got into the car. You were an open book and he wanted to read everything he could. 

-

-

“Hey, I’m clocking out early!” You called to Jisoo. It had been four days since your mini fight with her and you two acted as if it didn’t happen. Jisoo just smiled as you grabbed your car keys and raced out the glass front door. 

“Have fun!” She shouted at you, hoping you heard her. You had only lied a little when you said your shift ended at 6 P.M. You actually got off around 5:30 P.M., but you decided to leave at 5 instead to get ready for your date. 

Was it a date? Some part of you hoped it was. Taehyung had shown up every day for lunch since that Monday. Then after the rush was over, you would sit and talk with him or you would clean tables and talk. You hadn’t found someone who matched your speed of dialogue since forever. Jisoo was alright, but she usually gushed about Namjoon or about the crowds that came through. You two never went out together outside of work. 

You started up your car and soon enough you were at your apartment. It was a small one bedroom flat that was on top of the barber shop in town. Inside, there was fading paint from when you first moved in and a small kitchenette in the corner. You doubted it could even be called a kitchen. There wasn’t even an oven. You had a toaster oven, but it wasn’t fancy or anything. There was a microwave, a small fridge wedged between two small cabinets, and, thank god, a dishwasher. You hurried past the mess in the sink and towards the small room in the back. The bedroom held a queen sized bed, you had insisted, and that left hardly any space. After a shower, you surveyed your options for outfits. You finally decided on a simple combination of blue jeans, a soft tan turtleneck sweater, and brown heeled boots. You brushed your hair thoroughly and pulled out your limited makeup supplies. You didn’t have much time to do anything besides be at the diner. Dates were nonexistent. 

It’s not that you thought yourself ugly, you just didn’t seem to catch anyone’s eye. You carefully applied light foundation and lip gloss. Then you attached a pair of hoop earrings to your ears. Your hands gripped the edge of the sink as you had a mini crisis. To put your hair up or not. Well, you decided to leave it down. After all, he saw you in your messy bun everyday. Your hair fell in waves a smile gracing your lips as you stared at your reflection. You had put effort into your appearance for the first time in months and...you felt pretty. Your hands unclenched themselves from the sink and now went to smooth the nonexistent wrinkles in your sweater. 

You checked the time, cursing as you realized it was almost 6 P.M. You grabbed your purse and flew out the door. Your heels clicked against the concrete stairs as you made your way downstairs. Then you saw him. 

He was leaning against his car, arms crossed as he waited for you. 

“Taehyung!” You called, waving to get his attention. His eyes flicked up to you, his face instantly lighting up at your appearance. 

“Y/N! You look stunning.” He complimented. It was true. Even in your waitress outfit you were stunning to him. Everyday he got to know you more and he was completely infatuated with you. He stepped to the side and opened the passenger door, holding your hand and helping you in. You chuckled at his princely behavior. Or maybe this was what it was supposed to be like? The last boy you tried with was in high school and he had been far from dashing or a prince charming. Very unlike Taehyung. 

“You look quite ravishing yourself.” You said teasingly. He shut the door and went around to the driver’s side. 

“Now, uh, I don’t actually know where the movie theater is.” He confessed, turning to you with a hesitant smile. You couldn’t help but giggle. The drive was then spent giving him directions to the movie theater which was on the outskirts of town. When he asked why, you shrugged and claimed it was the only building available at the time. 

As he pulled into the small parking lot of the theater, he glanced at your form beside him. You were looking out the window, no doubt surveying surroundings you’ve seen most of your life. 

“How’s your sister?” He asked gently. You let out a deep breath. Ever since you’d admitted your situation to him, he’d been careful about the subject. Maybe it was a downer, but you never spoke of your sister. 

In all honesty, you loved your sister, but you also held a certain anger toward her. You tense, at his question. Then you turned to him. He killed the engine and you sat in darkness and silence. The moon shone overhead. Your mind reeled back in time as you told him about your past visit. 

-

You opened the door quietly, not wanting to disturb Lisa. She could never sleep because of the pain. No one could figure out what was wrong with her. One day she just woke up with an unbearable pain and it spread throughout her body. When the doctors told you she was sleeping, you almost wanted to turn back around, not wanting to wake her, but they insisted that she would be happy you came. 

So now you sat next to her, holding her hand. Her eyes blinked open, but they didn’t register your presence. 

“Lisa, I’m here, your little sister is here.” You whispered, brushing a strand of hair off her forehead. “I miss you. I miss your smile. I won’t leave this town until you can leave with me. I’ve been...I’ve been saving money. Once you’re better you and I can get out of here.” You gripped her hand. “But you just got to get better before that. We can leave and never look back.” 

There was no response. She didn’t even stir. You felt tears gathering at the corners of your eyes. 

“You know, I’m still so angry with you. You forced me to stay here with you, then you left me.” Your voice broke. You were sure she couldn’t even hear you. “But, Lisa, please don’t leave me here alone.” you started sobbing. “Who will I be?” 

You swiped at your eyes, still not letting go of her hand. “I’m sorry I’m being so selfish right now. I love you so much. Just keep fighting.” You felt tired, your body was heavy. There was the smallest twitch of her hand in yours. It would be imperceptible to most people, but you felt it. You gasped and stood, leaning over her glossy eyes. “Lisa! Lisa can you hear me? I felt your-I felt your hand move. I know you can hear me. I love you, you have to know that. It doesn’t matter if I’m mad at you or who I’ll be, because I’m no one without you. I’ll always love you.” 

You watched, looking for a sign of movement. But there was none. Just the quiet beeping of the heart monitor. 

-

You repeated the event, stopping before your long monologue. “So basically, she moved. I felt it. But she didn’t after that.” You frowned. “Sorry, this is too depressing for a first date.”

He held a hand up, looking guilty. “No, no, I asked the question, so...” Then he smiled widely. “And this is a date?” He was just messing with you. Of course he knew this was a date, but he loved watching you flush a deep red. 

“I-I mean it doesn’t have to be!” You stuttered out nervously. “I just thought, you know, because movies, and and and-” You rambled. 

“Do you want it to be?” He tilted his head slightly, leaning across the barrier between you two. A few inches and his lips could be on yours. 

“Yes.” You breathed softly. You wanted to desperately close the distance, even he seemed to falter for a moment. He took note of the distance and then the look in your eye. His gaze flickered to your lips and you thought he just might lean in to kiss you, but he pulled away with a smirk instead. You felt your heart drop and then flutter. 

“Then it is.” He opened the door and went around to help you out. You were still shocked. What just happened? Taehyung was a mystery to you. You stepped out of the car, trying to stop your legs from shaking. You were nervous, but you hoped he would think it was because of the cold. Before you could take another step, he took your hand in his and led the way. You felt your heart stop and your cheeks flushed red once again. Why couldn’t you get your act together around him? He made you feel both comfortable and nervous. 

You followed behind him as he went up to the ticket booth. A very bored looking teenage boy who looked to be asleep. Taehyung dropped your hand and you instantly missed his warmth as he pulled out his wallet. 

“Two, please, for Mulan.” He said to the ticket boy. The boy nodded lazily, pulling out two tickets. As he went to pay you suddenly shot your hand out. 

“Wait, I can pay for my ticket.” You said hurriedly. You didn’t want him paying for you because you always felt bad when people paid for your things. It made you feel guilty. 

“It’s okay, Y/N.” He raised an eyebrow. 

“I know, but Tae, I just feel guilty otherwise.” Tae. The name had slipped out of your mouth before you could even think. His gaze softened and he nodded, understanding your words.

“Okay.” He relented. “How about I pay for the tickets and you pay for concessions?” He spoke like a businessman. Then you remembered that he was a businessman. He must have caught his tone as well. It was a tone he used when bargaining with clients and partners. There was a certain kindness to it, but also something that said and that’s that. 

You nodded furiously to his suggestion and he shot you a smile before turning around and paying. Once inside, you ordered a large popcorn and a soda. Taehyung ordered a soda. 

“Are you sure you don’t want anything else?” You questioned. 

“No, it’s okay.” He said, placing his hands in his pockets. 

“How much were the tickets?” You narrowed your eyes. 

“$18. It’s really not a big deal.” 

“But Tae, This all only adds up to $15.” You gestured to the sodas and popcorn. Concessions in a small town will always be cheap. 

“And?”

“I’m not really holding up my end of the deal.” You protested. He sighed. 

“Y/N, it’s three dollars.” Taehyung held your soda as you handed it to him to find your wallet. 

“I know, I just,” You bit your lip and dug out $15, placing it on the counter before turning back around. “You know how I am.” 

You took back your drink and placed the popcorn under your arm as you made your way into the theater. There was...quite literally no one there except you two. It made you feel nervous, not because of him, but because of what he did to you without realizing it. He made your heart race, your legs shake, and you couldn’t get him out of your head. What would happen in a darkened room with just the two of you? 

Well, nothing really happened. The movie started up and you both seemed very intent on watching it, though about half way through, his arm went around your shoulder. And now you could no long focus on the movie. You could only focus on his warm arm around you and how you wanted it to stay there. You barely moved, worried he might move his arm then. Taehyung looked focused on the movie, but little did you know that he snuck glances at you when you weren’t looking at him. Yes, he wasn’t an idiot, he could feel you gawking at him. He found it endearing. He was honestly surprised you still hadn’t figured out who he was. Maybe tales of billionaire CEOs didn’t make it this far. Then he remembered his tale involved an arranged marriage to a woman that would not be you. He stiffened thinking of it. It wasn’t that he didn’t think Jennie was lovely, no, he had met her, she seemed fine, but he felt she would always regard him as a business partner. You talked to him like a normal person. What happens when she finds out? He thought to himself. 

Taehyung could feel the movie was ending soon. So he took a moment to study you once more, your face illuminated by the screen. You happened to look towards him as well. Your eyes connected and it felt like time stopped. You could get lost in those eyes. He leaned forward. 

“ Y/N.” He breathed, voice deep and husky. 

“Yes?” You whispered, leaning in as well. 

“You’re absolutely stunning.” He murmured. Then you closed the small space between you and him. Your lips moved against him, needy and soft. You stood from your seat moving to straddle him. 

“Tae.” You moaned against his lips. His hands placed themselves on your hips, keeping you in place. When you broke away, he had this devilish grin on his face. 

“Be mine, Y/N.” 

That took you off guard. Yes, he was an excellent kisser, but you felt like you barely knew him. He must have seen doubt flash across your face because he carefully placed a kiss on your cheek. 

“Please?” His lips moved against your skin. You found yourself pulling away. no matter how much you longed for his lips. 

“I barely know you.” You muttered. “Tell me one truthful thing about you.” You looked at him with doubt in your eyes. 

His smile seemed forced. “Alright. I’m Kim Taehyung. The billionaire CEO to Bangtan Inc.” 

Your face became pale. You had heard his name before. You remembered him from somewhere. You could have easily fallen in love with him, but how had he kept this secret from you? You could understand it in the beginning, but you had gotten to know him so well. He knew everything about your life, you knew nothing about his. You were strangers. You jumped up, smoothing down your rumpled sweater. Panic raced through your veins. What had you done? You weren’t supposed to be anyone and you didn’t want to be caught up in a scandal. You found yourself rushing out the door. That’s the thing with everyone in your family. When you have a conflict, you run. The only constant in your life had been this goddamn town. 

“Y/N wait!” He ran after you. He grasped your wrist, halting you. No man had ever run after you once you’d run away. “You asked me, a long time ago, that you hoped I found something important here. Well, I did. I found you.” He breathed. The sight of his lips so close to yours drove you crazy. You craved his touch, despite your better judgement. 

“So what? You make out with me once and think I’ll be yours? I didn’t even know you were a billionaire, not that that changes anything, but Tae, jesus, this was important information. It’s terrifying how easily you hid it from me. What other things do I not know?” Then you remembered where you heard his name before and you felt your stomach drop. He stopped himself from moving towards you, know you had just realized what he didn’t want you to. You remembered him as the title of an article. An article that talks about his new fiance. You felt sick. You wanted to get his touch off your skin, wipe his kiss from your lips. “You’re engaged.”

His face instantly dropped. “No, Y/N, I don’t want to be engaged with her, it’s arranged.” He pleaded, trying to explain. 

“That doesn’t change anything! You may not like it, but you need to be faithful to her!” You were keeping yourself from hyperventilating. “I refuse to be a homewrecker. I’m just some girl from a ghost town.” You turned around, ripping your arm from his grasp and crossing your arms as you walked away down the street. Your head bent down, heels clicking on the pavement, as you tried not to cry. “Please just forget about me and go back home to your fiance.”

“You make me feel normal. Please, I don’t love her, Y/N.”

“And you think I love you?!” You practically screeched before sprinting away as fast as possible in your boots. 

-

-

There was a soft knock on your door. Your apartment was dark save for the TV which was currently airing the wedding preparations for Kim Taehyung and Kim Jennie. You felt your heart falter seeing his face for the first time in a while. He looked so unhappy, but you shooed away the possibility that it was about you. You couldn’t get him out of your mind and it only became harder every day. 

“Go away!” You said hoarsely, pulling another tissue out for your unending stream of tears. You still couldn’t believe that had happened to you. 

“It’s me, Jisoo. I just wanted to know if you’re coming for your shift today? It’s okay if you’re not, I understand it’s hard.” Jisoo had been extraordinarily kind to you since the incident and she had no reason to be. “I tried to text, but you’re not answering your phone.” 

You checked your phone. Indeed, there were three missed calls and a couple texts from her all dated to an hour ago. 

“Ah, Sorry, Jisoo.” You called, slowly getting up and opening the door a crack. “I don’t think I have the strength.” You admitted weakly. You felt like you had no strength. Like when Taehyung left, he took a huge chunk of you with him. 

“Listen, Y/N.” She gently peered into your face, studying your tear streaked cheeks. “There’s someone you might want to see. He’s at the diner.” 

Your heart stopped and you knew it must be him. You slowly nodded. “I’ll be there.”

-

-

It was busy, as always. At least with the crowds you could keep your mind off of who you were really waiting to see come through that door. As you helped the last customer of the rush out the door, you spotted a familiar black porsche pull up. You felt your breath quicken and your eyes stayed locked on the car. The man you had been waiting to see stepped out and it almost broke your heart all over again. He made eye contact with you and you could tell he was just as shocked. He visibly stiffened, eyes widening. You felt tears brimming, threatening to pour out. You couldn’t bring yourself to look away. You wish you had. Those eyes, like galaxies and pools of obsidian you could get lost in, turned and opened the passenger door. 

And out came a beautiful woman you could only guess was Jennie. You were moving before you could even think. You threw down the menus in your hand, eyes flicking over to the booth he used to sit at, and pulled your hair out of your bun. Without saying anything to Jisoo, you ran out the back door. You could hear two people calling your name. Jisoo. And Taehyung. 

You rushed out the back door, hyperventilating. Those eyes, those hands, that mouth. You couldn’t bear to see them again. He made you fall in love with him and then he left. 

“Y/N!” That deep voice had the hairs on the back of your neck stand tall. 

“Taehyung.” Your voice sounded weak and bitter. 

“Long time no see.” He offered painfully. 

“A long time indeed.” You whispered, facing him full on. He was just as handsome as you remembered him to be a few months ago. His eyes peered into yours, trying to convey a million words. I need you. I miss you. I love you. And you felt that piercing stare. 

“Tae, I never told you but-” You were cut off by another female voice. Her tone was laced with concern, but her eyes looked suspiciously between you and Taehyung. 

“Tae.” She said sweetly. “What’s wrong?” Then she turned to fully take you in. “And who’s this?” Her eyes narrowed ever so slightly. 

Taehyung looked at you, then his gaze flickered over to Jennie. “She’s no one important, Love.” He turned and grabbed her hand, dragging her back into the store and breaking you in two once more. 

There goes the last great American dynasty Who knows, if she never showed up, what could've been?

...... She had a marvelous time ruining everything

[phantom-of-the-memes]

AGAIN!! I thought I cleared things up with this, but just to REITERATE!!

These are my personal opinions. Yes I know there can be nuance.

You don’t need to spam me with messages with hypotheticals or your personal heritage.

“But what if I’m _%??”

“What if my dog’s aunties’ cousin is _?”

“But not all people with Irish heritage are American, and you specifically said American!”

“What about other diasporas?”

I’m not the authority on who calls themselves what and how you as a specific person engage with Irish culture, I am simply stating MY OPINION.

You have to have an ounce of common sense and realise when I’m sarcastically (or actually frustratedly) replying to people who claim to be Irish and saying they’re not, it’s people who’s only claim to being Irish is a DNA percentage from an ancestor hundreds of years ago, and not you whose literal family is from the country but moved somewhere else when you were born.

I specifically say American because 99.99% of the time it’s Americans blowing up my inbox, and it’s them who annoy us in the first place with their ignorant ideas of the Irish identity.

The great thing is I am specifically and only talking about the Irish identity, because that’s what I know and who I am. Of course people of other cultures feel differently about diasporas. It’s context dependent!

My whole point is that when someone comes to an Irish person (I’m going to use an American as an example!) and says “no I’m not American, I’m Irish”, because they had an Irish ancestor 200 years ago, it’s annoying! Especially when their idea of what being Irish is is ignorant and wrong!

There’s nothing wrong with being American! And this is coming from someone who believes in the death of American imperialism. I, of course, know that the US is filled with non-ignorant people who aren’t Trump freaks.

America does have a culture! Of course the original culture of the land is that of the native Americans, but even you ancestors of settlers have a culture! And yes it is built on slavery and war, and I get why people would want to distance themselves from that. But the food you eat, your politics, your accents, your mannerisms, your entertainment, your holidays, they are all uniquely American culture.

So that’s why it feels weird when someone who knows nothing about Irish culture or history says that my culture is theirs. It implies that our culture is just American? When in fact they come over here and notice the cultural differences, because we’re different cultures.

And fully correct me if I’m wrong. But when people attack me and say “yeah maybe it’s not Irish culture, but it’s Irish-American/ Irish diaspora culture” it just confuses me. Because in my very extensive experience with Americans who say they’re Irish, the only culture they claim is “lol St Patrick’s day let’s get shit faced and wear green”. So it’s kind of just reducing us down to alcoholic leprechauns.

If people are truly engaging with Irish culture and history correctly, like from the source of Irish people, then sure that’s great! But that’s not my real life in person experience. When 99% of your interactions go like this, you’re bound to snap at a certain stage and just say fuck it I’m not engaging with whataboutisms.

And like I’ve said, especially with the current climate in the Republic, I just don’t want to argue about how “blood makes you Irish”, because it’s just basic nazism and immigrants are being targeted because of the this.

Please read before sending me an ask about Irish stuff

I am not going to be answering the same asks over and over again, so just to reiterate my OPINIONS.

Point number one:

Before you send me an essay an how you’re actually Irish and not American, please ask yourself this question: We’re you born and raised in America? Yes? Then you’re American! It’s really that simple.

Being Irish is a nationality and a culture. You’re Irish through lived experience in the country. Yes maybe you have Irish ancestry, that’s correct to say, but culturally and nationality wise you are American.

And you have to ask yourself why it is that you cling to the Irish part of your DNA and not any other country you have nationality from. That’s why it annoys us so much. It’s Celtic-weaboo behaviour.

Another reason it annoys us so much, especially with recent events in Ireland, is that it’s equating having “Irish blood” to the identity of being Irish. You can have zero Irish DNA but be Irish because of lived experience in the culture/ country! You’re not “more Irish” than actual Irish citizens who were born and raised here, but don’t have Irish ancestry.

Point number two:

Before sending me an ask demanding to know if you can learn Irish, just to reiterate, I never said it was a closed language that only Irish people to learn. Do whatever the fuck you want.

My point was connected with the Irish ancestry thing, and what your reasonings were for learning it. Yes it’s not a closed language, but we are touchy about it since it was taken from us.

Learning it because you “are Irish”, or for a little gimmick, or because it’s a “fairy, bog, cottage core, leprechaun” language, just annoys me personally. It’s very important to us and I just wish for people to respect it.

The view that people have that annoys me the most though is having a saviour complex when learning it. You random person in America are not single handedly reviving the language and saving it.

What we want from restoring Irish is for the people of Ireland to be able to speak it and for using it to be more common place. I mean yeah sure if people from all around the world spoke it in the future too that’d be great. But restoring a language means restoring it to the country it’s from. You learning it on duolingo in America is not “saving us”.

It’s just a nasty attitude to have. I got an ask from some American saying they wanted to use some Irish words in a comic they were writing to “spread awareness” about the language, and asking “my opinion of using the language to restore it”…

First of all, awareness doesn’t need to be spread. Everyone in Ireland knows what Irish is, we all learn it in school. What needs to happen is the use of the language outside of school, because we all forget it once we finish secondary school. I made a post correcting people in calling it Gaelic, because that’s the Scottish language. But my point wasn’t to “raise awareness”.

Secondly, omg the saviour complex? What the fuck do you mean what is my opinion on using the language to restore it? Like rhetorical question much. What, was I, an Irish speaker who loves the language so much, going to say “no fuck that, let’s never use the language and let it die”?. Just say you want praise and go.

And on that, it’s not a dead language! It’s endangered, but don’t say it’s dead.

Point number three:

People be sending me asks demanding I dox myself and tell them “where exactly I’m from in Ireland” to prove I’m Irish.

I don’t need to do that. I’m Irish. All you need to know is that I’m from the Republic of Ireland. I was born here, and have lived here my whole life.

Lastly:

I don’t know how many times I can say this over and over, but these are simply my personal opinions.

You don’t agree with me? Great! I don’t care, you do you.