#there’s obviously more but this post is already too long

[drunkinyourbenz]

YOU DON'T REALLY NEED A BREAK

☆ SYNOPSIS: in which billie is stressed, so naturally she needs you more than ever. unbenkownst to her, she takes it too far. ☆ PART ONE ☆ RELATIONSHIP: dom!billie eilish x fem!reader ☆ WARNINGS: SMUT, use of safe word, angst, fluff, comfort, mean billie, reader is a little bratty, situationship/fwb, angry sex, crying, strap-on, edging, degradation, petnames, name calling (slut, whore, brat, etc.), choking, hair pulling, humiliation, dumbification, toxic dynamic (except less so because billie's realising things hehe), unedited. ☆ REQUESTED: yes, by a bunch of anons ☆ NOTE: y'all read my mind with these reqeusts i was already thinking of writing a part two abt exactly this and you all had the same idea!! sorry this took so long lmao exams are kicking my ass :/ this is very unedited sorry for any mistakes i read it through once and then posted it lmao read part one first for it to make more sense ☆ WORD COUNT: 3.5k words

billie hadn’t texted you in a little over a week, and you almost thought that she wasn’t ever going to again. the last time you’d seen her had ended like all of the other nights, she’d cleaned you up and then left you alone in the silent hotel room. usually, she’d text afterwards, just to make sure you were feeling okay, but there was nothing. the last text between the two of you was when you’d asked where she was when she was late that night. 

the two of you normally hooked up at least a few times a week, and you’d never actually gone a week without her since you started this four months ago.

you thought the worst: someone else had replaced you as her favourite. you’d always thought it would happen, but you thought you might have a few more times before it was over. but from the looks of it, you weren’t ever going to see her again. 

which was fine, obviously. you didn’t care—or that’s what you kept telling yourself. you had agreed to a no-commitment thing when you two started whatever this was, and she could do whatever she wanted. it stung a little bit that she wasn’t doing you, but ultimately, there was nothing you could do about it. 

so when you got home from a long day, thoroughly exhausted, your plan for the night was to hide in your bed and watch 2000s tv shows until you passed out. you showered, taking your time to wash your hair and feeling your tense and tired muscles relax under the hot stream of water. once out of the shower, you changed into some comfortable clothes, flopping down on your bed in relief. you were ready to finally just cuddle up under the blankets like you’d been wishing you could do all day.

about eleven minutes into the gilmore girls episode you were up to—rewatching for the hundredth time—your phone pinged, and you almost just ignored it, but you picked it up with a groan. 

your eyes widened when you saw it was from billie, the last number you expected to text. your heart almost skipped a beat.

billie: come over?

you paused for a moment, conflicted. you truly were exhausted, and it had been such a long day, and all you wanted to do was sleep, you honestly weren’t in the mood for what you knew billie would want. but… it was billie. 

so, inevitably, you ended up at her door. you were still in the clothes you’d changed into the moment you got home, just some comfortable sweatpants and a top—billie wouldn’t care about what you wore, she wanted you to be comfortable. plus, you knew full well that you wouldn’t be wearing them for long. 

you knocked on the door, and it opened within mere seconds, almost as if billie had been waiting by the door for you to show up. from the look on her face, you wouldn’t be surprised. she looked stressed, angry, and desperate. you looked her up and down, your eyes settling on her face. she was wearing a pretty similar outfit to you, sweatpants that hung low on her hips, the “HIT ME HARD AND SOFT” waistband of her boxers peeking out, and a white tank top that you could see the slight hint of her nipples peeking through. her arms were bare and your eyes seemed to gravitate towards the toned muscles there, which never failed to make your brain short circuit. paired with the noticeable outline of her strap in her pants, it was almost too much for you to take. 

you noticed the way her eyebrows were slightly furrowed and her eyes were narrowed in a firm gaze, the frustration was clear on her face. “rough day?” 

she groaned, and when she spoke, her voice had a slight rasp to it, “you have no idea.” 

the two of you fell into silence, just staring at each other for a few long moments. it wasn’t a comfortable silence, it was one that hung in the air around you, a claustrophobic silence. there were words left unspoken between the two of you that poked their heads around the corner but never truly revealed itself, it left you wondering when it would snap, but it never did. the two of you stared at each other for what felt like lifetimes, you waiting for billie to do something, and billie simply savouring the feeling of having you in front of her again. 

finally, she spoke, her voice still holding that same raspiness—which alone could get you on your knees for her. “it’s pathetic that you’re here so fast, considering i ghosted you for a week. you’re just a desperate slut for me, aren’t you? not that you’d be good for anything else.”

the bluntness of her words sent a chill down your spine, this was exactly what you’d expected. why else would billie text you after a week of not talking, if not to use her favourite girl? 

billie continued talking before you could even get a word in, it was like she’d read your thoughts. she leaned closer, her lips brushing your ear as she spoke, “you know i could just call over any of my girls and they’d be here in a heartbeat, and they’d be exactly the same. pathetic, desperate, and begging.”

you raised an eyebrow at her words. you knew what she was doing, trying to wind you up, get you to act out. you had honestly intended to just be her good girl tonight because you were so tired, but you knew she adored it when you acted up. so you spoke with the bratty tone you knew she loved.

“sure you could. but none of them are here now, are they? you called me.” 

the brattiness, especially when she was in a mood like this, made her eyes light up. your brattiness was her favourite thing, she loved it when you gave her an excuse to be harsher and meaner than she was on a normal day. so, when you talked back to her, she lets out a dark laugh. “don’t fuckin’ test me, mama.” 

you let a soft scoff fall past your lips, “or what?” 

“you know i’ll put you in your place, i’ve done it before.” and then you realised, this was what set you apart. this was why you were her favourite. you weren’t afraid to act up, so she didn’t have to be afraid of taking it too far. she could push you, because you pushed her. “maybe you should. you want to blow off steam, don’t you?”

at your words, her lips twitched upwards into a slight, barely noticeable smirk. you knew she would be taking them as a challenge, “you’re gonna have to drop the bratty attitude eventually, mamas.”

“maybe you should make me.”

that was exactly what she wanted—she wanted you to keep going, keep winding her up. she wanted you to give her a reason to pin you down and tear you apart; and you gave her that reason with that simple suggestion.

she took your wrist in her hand, her grip almost painful as she tugged you behind her to her bedroom. the air felt different than it normally did when you were here, everything felt so tense. her entire body language screamed irritated, dominant. but it wasn’t the normal kind of dominance she normally exuded. billie always had this kind of casual dominance that just hung around her, her presence was just effortlessly assertive. this is different, she had a look in her eyes you hadn’t seen before—she was always mean, but this was her normal level of mean times ten. 

she was clearly in a whole new headspace, not one you were familiar with. this wasn’t just dominant, wasn’t just mean, no, it was something else. she wasn’t just a little stressed, she didn’t just have a little bit of frustration she needed to take out on you, this was worse. it was an almost animalistic kind of energy, one that’s so raw, so intense, you knew you wouldn’t be able to walk by the time she was finished with you.

she took one of the belts from her merch from her dresser, shoving you backwards onto the bed and tying your hands to the headboard. she tugged it slightly, making sure it was firm but not too tight. it sent a rush of excitement through you, and you knew she felt the same. 

“gonna use you, mamas,” you knew from those words that she was going to absolutely ruin you, and you could tell by the look in her eyes.

sure enough, no more than five minutes later, she had her strap deep inside of you and was pounding into you at a bruising pace. the strap was bigger than the one she usually used, and it made you ache with a constant stinging pain. she hadn’t given you any time to adjust, and had started as she meant to go on. you were naked and on her bed, with her on top of you, fucking into you at a brutal pace. your hands were still tied up with her belt and the ache it brought only amplified the pleasure. one of her hands had your hair in a firm grasp, solely to make you feel the sting of pain it brought. she wanted to bring you to tears. her other hand grabbed a handful of your ass, squeezing it before letting her hand fall down on your ass in a harsh slap. 

the intense pleasure of her cock inside you and her finger circling your clit was a perfect contrast to the pain her hands brought you, and a trail of moans fell from your lips. “b-billie-” 

a mean, almost cruel laugh left her lips, “god, you’re such a slut.” another slap landed on your ass, “it’s pathetic, really. i mean, i can ghost you for as long as i want,” another slap. “and you’re still at my door in five minutes as soon as i ask.” slap, “pathetic fuckin’ whore.” 

you whined, which simply made her laugh. in her own sadistic way, she was enjoying this. 

this continued for what felt like hours—maybe it was, you had no idea. every time you got slightly close to your orgasm, she’d pull out, tugging you away from the edge. by now, you had tears rolling down your cheeks, and the fine line between pleasure and pain was slowly but surely being crossed. 

“fuckin’ take it,” she breathed. “god, you look so dumb around my cock. all you’re good for, hm? spreading your legs and taking it like the slut you are?”

you whimpered, and she simply slapped your ass again. 

this continued for much longer, and she wasn’t even mad at you for being bratty, not in the slightest. she just needed an outlet for her bad mood, and that was what you were. merely a way for her to release her frustrations. 

you let out a choked sob, your body trembling, “billie, please, i can’t—” 

you knew she wasn’t doing this because she had anything against you, there had been something deeply wrong with her day. she had never been this downright cruel before, and you knew her well enough to know that she wouldn’t act like this without reason. but it was too much, and you weren’t sure how much more you could take. she hadn’t asked for your colour even once tonight, and that thought alone was putting you on edge. sure, her being rough turned you on, but right now it was scaring you just as much. this was darker than you’d experienced in all four months of your friends with benefits situation with her, and you weren’t sure if you liked it. 

you felt the strap hit your most sensitive spot, and you let out a sound that was a mix of a moan and a sob. “billie–” 

“like being used by me, yeah? taking everything i give you like a slut?”

you weren’t sure when you realised that you actually weren’t enjoying it anymore, but it was obvious all of a sudden. it hurt, and not in a good way. you were exhausted from both your day and the sheer amount of time she’d been edging you for. the way your arms had been tied to the bed for so long was making them ache painfully, and at some point down the line, your tears of pleasure had turned into tears of pain. 

you normally had the safety net of knowing that she was paying attention to your signals, knowing that she didn’t want to hurt you. but it didn’t even feel like she was aware of what she was doing, she was so caught up in herself and drowning out her own frustrations. you hated that lack of awareness, it was like she wouldn’t even notice if she actually hurt you. 

she looked like she was about to speak again, so before she could get out another degrading comment, you gasped out, “red, billie–”

whatever half formed sentence billie had been about to say died on her tongue, your gasped words making her freeze inside of you. her mind suddenly went silent, her frustrated thoughts about her day coming to a halt as she looked down at you with wide, almost scared eyes. you’d never actually used your safeword—obviously it was something that the two of you had communicated, but billie had never expected to actually go too far, to push you to that. she was meant to check in on your colours, and she felt an intense pang of guilt when she realised that she hadn’t done that. 

as she looked at you, noticing the tears and the exhausted expression, as well as the way your wrists were visibly sore from being tied for so long, she felt a sense of dread. she was overcome with shame and she didn’t know what to do about it. her breath caught in her throat as she processed what was going on.

“shit, i’m so sorry.” after a moment, she shook herself out of her paralysed shock, she would’ve pulled out immediately, but she was aware that that would just hurt you even more. so she leaned over, quickly untying the belt around your wrists and letting it fall to the ground beside the bed. she massaged your wrists gently for a moment, trying to soothe you. 

her hands moved over your tense muscles, trying to ease some of the soreness. she brushed some of your hair out of your eyes, her touch soft and cautious. “i-i’m so sorry, baby. i never wanted to push you that far.”

you knew that. you knew that she would never actually intend to hurt you, you knew that she wasn’t herself. you didn’t need her to over explain herself, you just needed her to hold you. the hand that had been pushing your hair out of your eyes moved to stroke your cheek, and you could see the intense guilt in her eyes. 

“i’m gonna pull out now, okay?” her voice trembled slightly as she spoke, eyes fixed on your face. 

you simply nodded, hissing slightly in pain as she gently pulled the strap out of you. billie felt her stomach twist at your obvious pain, knowing that she had done that. “i know, i’m so sorry.”

once she was out of you, she climbed off you and gently shifted you so you were sitting further up the bed, propped up on the pillows slightly. her mind was clearly racing with what she could do to help, “do you need anything? water, food, whatever?”

you shook your head softly. if your brain hadn’t been so exhausted, you probably would have thought more rationally about this. but you didn’t, and you didn’t once consider the limited affection in your dynamic. “can you just hold me?” 

billie didn’t hesitate, she just nodded instantly. “yeah, of course i can.” she joined you further up the bed, pulling you into her arms. she held you against her chest gently, her fingers soothingly running through your hair while her hand rubbed your back softly. 

you could hear her heartbeat, it was fast and a clear reminder of how stressed she was. you spoke softly, “it’s okay, seriously.”

but it wasn’t okay, not to billie. she had hurt you, she had pushed you too far, even when you were already clearly tired. she should’ve known better, and the guilt was weighing down from her and eating her up from the inside. not to mention she was terrified that this might be your last straw, that you might never want to see her again, that she might have broken your trust. wondering why she cared so much about her casual fling’s feelings was something that would have left her perplexed on any other day, but it was not currently at the forefront of her mind. “but–”

“it’s okay.” you said firmly, “i wouldn’t be asking you to hold me if i was uncomfortable around you.” 

those words seemed to ease billie’s nerves slightly, and she tightened her arms around you, holding you close. after a few minutes of this, she gently pulled you to sit in your lap, and you shifted so that your head was buried in the crook of her neck. you could feel her breathing on your skin, and you could feel her chest rising and falling with each breath. it was incredibly grounding, the feeling of just being close to her. ever so slowly, you felt your breathing calm and your heart rate slow down. 

at least an hour passed as you were just laying there in her arms, your breathing syncing with hers as her fingers ran through your hair. it was a foreign thing, for the two of you to be this close without sex, but it felt so right. it was like you were made to be in her arms, despite the situation that had brought you here. you could sense her guilt, and if you’d been a bit more aware of what was going on, you probably would’ve realised that there was something more behind that guilt—something deeper than just feeling bad for pushing you. but you were unaware, it wasn’t really what took place at the front of your mind. 

the room was filled with only the sound of both of you breathing, and your mind was taken over by the calming feeling of her playing with your hair. after a while, she broke the silence. “d’you wanna borrow something to wear?” 

you couldn’t deny that you liked the feeling of this skin to skin contact, but you also knew that it was a good idea. so you nodded quietly, and she delicately lifted you off her lap and set you down on the bed. she walked over and grabbed you an oversized t-shirt to wear, and she walked into the ensuite to grab a damp cloth. she came back over and gently wiped your thighs with the cloth, at this point you didn’t flinch too much because it had been so long. she held out the t-shirt, which you recognised as one she had worn at some point.

“arms up, darling.” that was a new pet name, but you didn’t comment. instead, you just lifted your arms and allowed her to slip the top over your head. it smelt like her, which somehow just added to the comfort. 

soon enough, she was back on the bed and you were back in her arms. she was laying down and you were laying with her, partly on top of her and partly just cuddled up to her side. this hadn’t happened before between the two of you, but you certainly weren’t complaining. her bed was comfortable, and her arms around you felt like a cocoon you never wanted to grow out of. 

gradually, your breathing started to slow as the exhaustion caught up on you, both from the recent events and your already tiring day. your head slumped onto her shoulder as a yawn fell from your lips, to which billie smiled softly. 

“do you want to stay the night?” 

that was not something you’d ever expected billie to say, but you hummed softly against her shoulder. “if that’s okay, yeah.”

you could’ve sworn you heard a sigh of relief from billie, “of course it’s okay, please stay. i want you to stay.” 

and so you did. you stayed that night, wrapped up in billie’s arms. it was so new, but it felt so right. that night had been an irreversible shift in your relationship, for both obvious reasons and more hidden ones. you knew that the two of you would have to talk about some stuff in the morning, and you knew you’d have to set some more boundaries. but you also felt closer to her than you ever had, somehow. 

little did you know, that night was just as  meaningful for billie as it was for you. she had had a revelation, one that she would likely keep to herself for a while, although there was no doubt you would find out eventually. 

but there was no doubt that billie wanted you to stay, longer than she’d ever thought.

[wasyago]

Please more Trail's gone cold au I'm begging you I need it just pour out every thought in your brain I want to hear it

hgdhhfbd i mean, sure why not

everything plot related is in the main post, there's nothing else really to tell. but i could share random details that didn't really fit into the lore drop. again tho, it's a small au and mostly an exploration of the concept, so there's not a lot.

❄️ gem and etho are siblings, i don't think it was mentioned anywhere? blood related and all that, they both have black hair, gem just dyes hers.

❄️ behind the scenes reasons for the order of deaths. generally i picked these three to be the main cast because i suddenly realized pet crew were just dungeon master and his two winners, and that was too crazy of a concept to not do anything with? so, tango as the main guy and actual master of the dungeon had to die first, seeing how he's the cave's favorite. pearl as the main explorer and as the one to unlock all the secrets had to die second, because she had to return to the dungeon / the cave to find out the truth, and she conquered it but never actually got out. and etho had to survive, because he's the "proper" winner and the one who actually escaped the dungeon with treasures.

❄️ lore reasons for the order of infection. tango you already know, but pearl and etho went in at the same time so in theory they had to start experiencing the effects together. but because etho was wearing a mask it did lessen the amount of sculk he inhaled, slowing down the process. wear masks kids!

and, well, you did say you wanted to hear every thought so. i really like the plot point of them leaving tango to die, so im gonna ramble a little about it. even just, the difference in their views on the situation is so satisfying to me. because tango had no idea something scary was happening to him! and for pearl and etho it was a life or death situation. and just-- they were talking about leaving tango and tango obviously, obviously, protested, because what the actual hell??? yes okay he's ill and a burden, but don't leave an ill guy to freeze to death in a cave, what is wrong with them????? or, okay, what is wrong with etho, pearl was against the idea. but, straight up tango did not plan for it to end this way, he had his whole life ahead of him and so many things ha still wanted to do! of course he cried when they left, what else was he supposed to do? thank etho for his awesome decision? be all cool and stoic and sacrifice himself? hell no, he didn't want to die, he never asked for this.

he did die tho, so. whomp whomp 🎺... i imagine he passed before pearl and etho even reached the stairs, so at least he didn't suffer for long. if he had a breakdown about being left alone he probably hyperventilated and inhaled like a ton more sculk, so that killed him even faster. must've sucked tho...

and then pearl, god, pearl.... she didn't encounter any dangers on the way back, since she wasn't trying to escape and the cave had no reason to be hostile towards her. but seeing how she was at the last stage before turning... she probably didn't get to tango before collapsing... not dying just yet, but too feverish and too weak to walk. but if tango was already back, he could very much go and find her. can you imagine the pure horror of drowning in your regrets as you slowly die and then having your supposedly already dead friend appear in front of you all cheery and oh so wrong. i dont know how much of tango is left in that thing, but the image of him sitting by pearl and holding her until she dies is so-- its haunting but it's sweet. and then there's still enough time to catch up with etho.

actually, gahhhh, all three pet povs are their own unique horror story and it's so good.

the horror of having to go through this terrifying experience, and then being the only survivor, knowing full well that the only reason you lived is because you left your friends to die, and there's no way of fixing it now.

the horror of everything falling apart around you because of miscommunication, and then the one time you decide to do it right you end up regretting every single decision and witnessing the direct result of your mistakes come for you.

the horror of being stupid... the horror of losing all control over your life and being betrayed in the moment of your most vulnerability, dying fully and utterly helpless.

this au is so sad but i love it so much...

okay wow that's enough for one post, ask more if you want tho!

[sgiandubh]

He was at Three Sheets yesterday night with Ashley. Check their respective stories

Dear Three Sheets Anon,

Your information is correct. What I meant by 'nothing to do with Ashley Hearn' in my post is a bit different, though. Ashley has been in London for a while already, obviously for sales & marketing purposes. She clearly posted about it and even suggested she will be in Scotland soon. But she is not the reason he is in London these days. She already successfully toured several bar outlets by herself, using her own business contacts, in New York and elsewhere: meeting her boss while in London is absolutely normal and nothing to write home about. But not the main reason he is in London right now, I think.

So it would seem they met at the Three Sheets Bar, yesterday.

S's IG story:

[Later edit]: Ashley's IG story - too bad I interrupted myself to get a delivery and then lost this thread:

S tagged both the bar and SS's IG accounts. This is a routine business meeting, especially considering the Three Sheets also deals in business consulting:

They have two outlets in London, one in Dalston and the other in Soho. Both have excellent reviews and well, the expected price range for cocktails in London (10-20 £ ):

Your ask also gives me the opportunity to come forward with several things I have been keeping in my drawers for a while, so thank you for that. Kind of.

Remember (LOOOL and then some more for that, always) my through the grapevine info that C joined S and the team at Milady's bar in New York, on October 17 2024, after the Versace Armani event she attended with Maria McManus? I also remember the Without Pix Anon:

Well, I don't have 'pix' , but I do have the next best thing (gracias a ti, siempre ❤️):

Ashley liked what C posted on October 25, 2024. One full week after the Milady's get together - why would she, if C wasn't there at all, like all the Righteous Pundits lie to you?

She also briefly followed her on IG, but not anymore (why? I will let you draw your own conclusions), along with several OL cast members (followed all of them at the same moment, after the event): Rankin, John Bell and Skeleton. Bell and Skeleton were at that get together, too (unsure about Rankin? it's Saturday, after all and I am not the Metropolitan Police, either - please correct me if I am wrong). She still follows them on IG. Clearly they met there?

The second thing I wanted to bring along is Maximum Wobbler Bullshit's recent nonsense:

This impostor and mythomaniac I have repeatedly debunked in the past still has very scant English, negligent writing skills at best and no damn idea about what marketing means. She was completely triggered by this particular post, on November 5, 2024 (while almost everyone was looking elsewhere, for obvious reasons):

Featured in the pic is Mia Kumari, a good friend of Ashley Hearn. Maximum Wobbler Bullshit conveniently forgets to explain who Mia Kumari is:

Based in London, UK and currently mixing at the Satan's Whiskers bar in Bethnal Green (after a short spell at The Savoy, hello?), she is a well-known, up-and-coming bartender with a consistent record of awards:

The press is raving about her:

[Full article, here: https://foodism.co.uk/features/long-reads/women-london-bar-scene/]

She is also a feminist bartender, with an internationally praised agenda:

[Mia was last week in Greece, as guest speaker at the very prestigious Athens' Bar Week. Too bad I left: I would have certainly bought a ticket and gladly listened to what she had to say - https://www.athensbarshow.gr/guest-speakers/mia-kumari]

Surely a trailblazer 'in London’s dynamic and globally revered bar industry', who also is 'an advocate for equality, diversity and inclusion' does not need Sassenach Spirits to promote herself. She is doing a smashing job at it, like the pro she clearly is: on trend, progressive, sought after and more than noticed. I fail to see where the fuck the alleged cronyism is, because that would simply mean Mia Kumari is a social zero, a nobody in the UK's spirits industry, taking advantage of her friendship with Ashley Hearn in order to get more attention for her sole benefit. That is a lie and that is simply wrong: if anything, it is Sassenach Spirits that needed to prominently feature someone like Mia Kumari, in order to align itself to the values she is so actively promoting (all values C is sensitive to, hmmm). We are miles away, here, from the Cutty Sark wannabe (in)famous Labour Day boat party in Marina del Rey, featuring the BBC/Blue Bikini Chick, back in September 2023 (https://www.tumblr.com/sgiandubh/727347023165145088/its-all-fake-anyway), when all the fandom trolls were on fire. So, Sassenach Spirits needed to do exactly something along these lines, in order to promote and boost the seasonal Xmas sales of their tartan scarves, SS's most expensive merch, targeting a younger, more sophisticated urban crowd.

Clever brands constantly redefine themselves, looking for the right trends and the right crowds to promote their products to. This is a clear sign that finally adults are in the room, now, at SS's Marketing and Sales respective departments. So damn glad to see this welcome shift!

[wild-karrde]

Obviously, I'll get back to Star Wars posting at some point, but if I can offer a few thoughts here as I work through my grief and anger:

We can debate until we're blue in the face whose fault it is for this. But at the end of the day, the issue is 70M people chose fascism for whatever reason, be it they don't understand the economy, that they're bigots, what have you. They were ok with what Trump stands for if not openly welcoming of it, and that is the problem.

This shit is gonna suck. It's gonna be hard. We are not going to win every fight. We are going to lose a lot. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't try.

FIND AND BUILD COMMUNITY. And I'm not just talking about activism (although that is important). But you're going to need people to get through this. Find YOUR people. Ones that remind you that there's good in the world on the darkest days. People that will mourn with you, that will fight with you, and when it comes, experience joy with you.

FIND JOY. I saw a Bluesky thread today that talked about how important it's going to be to find little moments of joy, whatever they are. Take a walk to your favorite park. Look up at the moon. Eat good food with friends. Those little moments of joy are going to keep you going during this fight. They are necessary. Please make time for them and don't feel guilt for having them.

FIND A WAY TO GET INVOLVED. There are mutual aid funds, local political movements, abortion funds, volunteer positions at the local library, etc. SHOW UP in whatever ways you can when you can. There are so many options. Figure out what's available to you locally, and if you have the means to donate to places that will be impacted most harshly (red states, poor communities, etc.), then please do so.

TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF. This is going to be a marathon, not a sprint. As someone that has already lived through one Trump presidency, I offer this: do not engage with every dark moment. You're going to feel like you have to stay outraged and engaged with everything he does. You can't. It's too much. Especially this time. You need to pick a few issues that you feel you can have the most impact on, and you need to stay in those fights. If you have the energy to do more some days, then do it. But do not fall into the habit of doomscrolling and feeling helpless about things you could not change. Do what you can. Rest. Stay hydrated. Keep going.

Fascism is fragile. We will break it. It may take a long while, but we will win. But in order to do so, you have to make sure it doesn't break you first.

It is going to be hard. There is no denying that. There are going to be days that feel so incredibly bleak that you can't get out of bed. But that doesn't mean we give up. Reach out to one another. Take care of each other. Take care of yourselves.

We have a few months to figure out how we can best help each other and contribute to the fight. Speaking specifically as part of the Star Wars fandom, I feel like we're uniquely prepared for this, as cheesy as that may sound (but fuck it, I need cheesy right now). We live for the stories of everyday people rising up against an overpowered fascist empire. We get to be those fucking people now. So take time to grieve and get your head right. And then get back up and let's fucking do this.

[weralika]

i would also love to hear your thoughts about kandreil being codependent and toxic please and thank you 🙏

SORRY I MISSED YOUR ASK SOMEHOW!!!

so lemme begin 🙂🙂

the most dependent one is kevin, obviously, because of raven's partner system and everything. when he transferred to psu, Andrew (whether he wanted that or not) became his partner and Kevin would be so broken when Andrew starts to spend time with Neil more than not.

Andrew is angry about that!! because yes, he wanted to save that stupid boy, but he didn't know Kevin would never learn to be by himself, Andrew would never treat him with that kind of caress (I dare say) if he knew Kevin would become addicted.

so yes, Kevin is addicted

there we can imagine Kevin leaving PSU and crying in his bed with dirty sheets because he misses them so much he can't even do the chores properly (same bro)

Neil is the smartest one 🙂 he quickly realised that they have a strange kind of friendship and he knows that their tension is mutual (somehow??? he was oblivious with Andrew I know, but he just knows they like each other)

he still feels some awe when talking to Kevin because wdym KEVIN DAY is training ME??? is that a dream? wtf

so he would never cross the line!! because of Andrew he learnt the concept of consent and now he's afraid to make a mistake (he is 99% sure that Kevin wants to kiss him but that 1%)

their relationship starts when Kevin gets so jealous he almost tells them to stop flirting and fuck already (bc he knows they do fuck. he has ears, unfortunately)

he only tells them to be quiet bc he has a lot of homework and Neil strikes with "I'm not your homework, but you can do me" like maaaan wtf is that (Kevin blushes, Andrew asks if they want him to go away and then long conversation about kevin not being gay and not being in love with them)

almost instantly they become a wreck!! because Kevin needs so much attention that sometimes he tries to ignore their boundaries!! he is stupid and wants to kiss!! he feels guilty as fuck after being scolded he almost cries (sorry is it too ooc???)

he learns how to be not that demanding (imagine having 2 boyfriends and still it's not enough) and Neil tries to help him (he hugs him actually)

when they are apart, Kevin is sad as fuck but when together he is a little nervous most of the time, because he is too afraid to ruin everything (like he checks if Neil really wants to kiss him)

also this post became just my rant about Kevin but he's really terrified of being a third wheel and tries to give them time alone even if he's so hungry for their attention he has to grit his teeth after saying "I'm going for a run alone because I don't want to interrupt your crazy chemistry"

Andrew is afraid of losing them!! he thinks he's not enough for Neil and Kevin, he's not even so interested in exy and they have so much in common and he is just stupid traumatized boy who can't show affection when Kevin needs it, he's so useless that they don't even ask him about going pro anymore, they do not imagine their future together like andrew does.

they do.

Neil is just a stray kitten in a warm house who thinks he would not spend another night there :D so he tries to make the most out of their relationship! he kisses Kevin 70% times he wants to be kissed, and other 30% is Andrew or no one because they're not in the mood

it turned out not toxic or even codependent I'm sorry ☠️☠️ but I tried to describe my vision or them close (as I can) to canon, not some ugly shit I have in my brain about andrew being (a little) abusive or Neil being a fucking cheater which I am guilty of thinking about!

[woodswallow]

RammWear Part II

Thank you guys so much for appreciating my first RammWear fashion-post , I was so happy about your likes and comments :) So here comes the second part where I am showing my Rammstein-inspired clothing style, inspired by the stuff Paul, Richard and Schneider wear on and off stage:

The cardigan(s): All three of them at one point wore a very loosely fitting, longer knitted jacket (or pullover), I put it all in the category „cardigan“. I absolutely loooved that look of Schneider and Paul during the „Rammstein in Paris“- premiere!

Especially Schneiders look is so good here – I especially liked the asymmetric look of the shirt and the length of the cardigan, reaching down to his knees.

Paul loved that cardigan obviously very much, he wore it on several occasions throughout different years, also in this photoshoot (such a great pic, had to involve that!)

Richard also sported that look (kind of), although I think it's something like a scarf draped over his shoulder..? And the second picture is a shirt, but it conveys the same oversized, comfy look – his self-hugging pose adds to that, I think..

I never wore cardigans or this type of loose knitted jackets before, more like sweatshirt hoodies. But I really fell in love with these comfy, oversized, cuddly jackets in fall and winter, especially when combined with a black leggins or tight jeans. I was so happy when I found the perfect black „Schneider-Richard-Paul-cardigan“ secondhand:

Because I loved the look and feel so much, I later bought another incredibly comfortable cardigan via etsy. It has some more colour in it, which I like very much. It's draped over the body and hold in place with two hidden buttons, which gives it a very organic look. It's not that close to the ot3 look anymore, but I still had it in mind while buying – and it really formed my personal style, I adore this piece :)

In both occasions you already saw my Paul-scarf, Schneider wore one with a similar colour

Paul wore this scarf also on the „Paris“-premiere and on some other occasions. It once again looks so cosy and comfortable and good on him. It also appeared in one of my fanfics and at least one other I can now think of. This scarf somehow is so „Paul-like“ in my mind. I bought mine on a medieval market, without having his in my mind (at least not consciously), because I liked that fabric and colour – and later thought how similar it looked to Paul's and was so happy about it :) I like wearing it in fall and winter, I rarely go out without a scarf in these times of the year, so I wear it quite often.

My latest addition to my little Rammstein-inspired clothes collection is a Paul-pullover (man, I love alliterations :D)!

I think he wore this during a video shoot (was it the one for Ausländer?) and once again, I really liked the cosy look, slightly oversized, kind of organic looking and with these long sleeves covering the hands. Also I like that sandy-beige colour.

I searched for a matching piece all over Vinted (a german website for secondhand clothing) and found a (as I think) perfect match a few weeks later. As I have absolutely no white shirts in my closet I also bought a white shirt secondhand for 2€ to match the look perfectly :D This makes perfect sense as the pullover itself it quite loose, so to not get a cold stomach I had to wear something underneath – I'm pretty sure that was Paul's intention, too ^^; I'm so glad I found such a good match. When wearing it I think of these nice pictures and that he wore a similar one and can't help but feel happy about it :)

Last but not least – the omnipresent leather-jacket :D

Apart from the colour black, all three can agree on wearing these type of jackets. I found so many pictures with so many damn cool ones... this is just the perfect casual rockstar look! :)

I admit, when buying my jacket I didn't really think of RammWear, but it fits this series so nicely that I included it here. I had a gift card for that one shop and decided to treat myself with this, as I think it's a damn fine leather jacket – the hoody is part of the jacket and can be taken off, together with that sweatshirt-inlay. But I love this casual-cool-sporty look so much :)

I realized that overall, I probably like Pauls style the most, he likes comfortable, but still good looking clothes. Followed by Schneider, who seems to like a more sporty and casual style than Paul, with more sweatshirt-fabric-clothes, hoodies and jeans. Richard is often made fun of because of his personal style – but I like, how he's layering clothes and after all, that he doesn't give a fuck what others think about his red cap + pink hoodie :)

Thank you so much for reading/looking/liking, I had so much fun diving into RammWear and presenting my ot3-style :D

Here are some more pics of their fashion I like:

Or...just a simple black tank top - best frickin' look ever!

[the-ferocious-kittyrose]

Stuff I wish we could’ve seen in HOTD

1. Alicent comforting Rhaenyra after her mother’s death

There’s a deleted scene that shows Rhaenyra returning to her room after her mother’s funeral, to find Alicent there waiting for her. As soon as she sees Alicent her strong facade breaks and she bursts into tears. She falls into Alicent's arms, and they sink to the floor together.

Rhaenyra has a tendency to mask her emotions when upset, and Alicent seems to be one of the few people she feels safe being vulnerable around.

2. Rhaenyra confronting Alicent about the engagement.

There’s a somewhat infamous deleted scene that shows Rhaenyra confronting Alicent about her engagement to Viserys.

She asks how long Alicent has been meeting with her father without her knowing. When Alicent says it’s been going on ever since the queen died, she is furious and calls her a whore, accusing her of seducing him.

A lot of people shit on Rhaenyra for this, saying she’s victim blaming, which, yeah, she is, but it’s also a very realistic reaction. She’s not only dealing with the fact that her father is remarrying, she’s now dealing with the fact that her best friend is gonna be her new step mom and their relationship will never be the same again. She’s probably also afraid of the possibility that her friendship with Alicent was never real and that Alicent was just using her to get power.

Alicent immediately denies it, saying they never talked about marriage, and Rhaenyra responds, saying she should’ve known it was leading to marriage since she was visiting him alone in his chambers. She asks what she expected to happen, and Alicent doesn’t answer.

Because she did know. From the moment her father told her to where her mother’s dress she knew. But their conversations were so casual and non sexual that she convinced herself that it was purely platonic, as a way of protecting herself from the horrible truth of the situation.

Instead of answering the question, she deflects, and says that she did it at her father’s command, and when Rhaenyra says she should’ve just refused him, she snaps back that not everyone can get away with doing whatever they want like she does.

This seems to be the moment Rhaenyra accepts that this isn’t Alicent’s fault and that she’s lashing out at the wrong person.

Rhaenyra says they (Otto and Visarys) can’t do this. That she is the princess and she will have it annulled.

Rhaenyra obviously doesn’t have the power to do that, and she knows it, but she’s not used to having problems that she can’t snap her fingers and have fixed. She’s also putting on a strong confident facade, saying, “don’t worry, I’ll fix it,” partly to comfort Alicent, and partly to comfort herself.

But when Alicent doesn’t seem comforted by this, Rhaenyra begins to realize that Alicent hasn’t protested the marriage. So she asks her if this is what she wants, and Alicent, who’s resigned to her role as a woman, says it doesn’t matter what she wants.

This is the key difference in their characters. Rhaenyra wants to fight against the restrictions imposed on her as a woman, while Alicent accepts them. Alicent has been groomed her entire life by a misogynistic society to view this unfair patriarchal system as the natural order of things, and to believe that her submission to it is a virtue.

3. Alicent and Viserys’s wedding

There is a deleted wedding scene that we don’t know a ton about, but it would’ve been nice to see. And by nice, I mean incredibly depressing and uncomfortable.

There are pictures of Rhaenyra helping dress Alicent for the wedding, mirroring Alicent dressing Rhaenyra for her heir announcement ceremony thing. It’s a reflection of their respective positions in the kingdom. Rhaenyra is destined to rule, while Alicent is destined to marry.

Also the sad finality of it. This is the last time they will get to be just friends. After this is done, they will be step mother and step daughter.

Also, disturbingly, in the book, Rhaenyra was at the bedding ceremony and was one of the ones who undressed Viserys. I can’t imagine how disgusting that would be. Not only having to undress your father so he can have sex with your best friend who clearly doesn’t want him, but also having to stand and watch him rape her, knowing that there’s nothing you can do to stop it.

4. Rhaenyra and Harwin Strong’s relationship

I’m not the only person devastated that we didn’t get to see Rhaenyra and Harwin’s relationship begin. We saw him eyeing her up when she was covered in blood, but that was about it.

Was they’re relationship a purely sexual fwb situation, or were they in love? I like to believe they fell in love, but the show doesn’t tell us. How did Harwin feel about not being allowed to openly claim his sons? That shit has to eat away at you after a while.

How many times did he want to tell them? When he was killed in the fire at Harrenhal, did he think of his boys? That he would never get the chance to tell them the truth? That he could never tell them he loved them?

Harwin’s sisters also become Rhaenyra’s ladies-in-waiting in the book. It would’ve been nice to see her befriending them and them being aunts to the boys.

5. Rhaenyra trying to have a good relationship with her half siblings

There is a deleted scene of Rhaenyra holding baby Aegon on her lap and trying to teach him to say her name.

Not only would Rhaenyra trying to bond with her siblings make what ends up happening even more tragic, but it also makes since politically. She doesn’t want her siblings to see her as an enemy and be tempted to usurp her in the future. So she tries to win their affection through gifts and teaching them how to ride their dragons. In the book, Aegon even says, “what kind of brother steals his sister’s throne?” But that could’ve just been sarcasm.

And Rhaenyra always wanted a sister, so you can’t convince me she didn’t try to have a relationship with Helaena. Even if she grew to be less than fond of Aegon and Aemond as they grew older, I believe she loved her sweet sister.

Of course on the opposite side you have Alicent who has Otto trying to convince her that Rhaenyra is untrustworthy and is a threat to her children. At first Alicent doesn’t buy it, but as time goes on she begins to believe it more and more, and her subtly mounting paranoia leads her to isolate her children from their half sister.

Then you have the whole thing with the fight at Driftmark, and I could go on and on about that. It was so needlessly cruel and stupid of Rhaenyra to order Aemond be interrogated about where he heard a rumor that everyone and their mother knows about. I know that’s what they say happened in the book, but I feel like it could’ve been done better.

Like, Alicent gives Rhaenyra grief about the pig incident, so she lectures the boys about how just because Aegon is allowed to bully Aemond, that doesn’t mean they can too. Aegon is not a person they should emulate. She may not be overly fond of Aemond herself, but it doesn’t matter if he’s mean and mopey, he is their uncle and they’ll treat him with respect because that’s what’s expected of them, and them acting out makes her look bad.

So at Driftmark tensions between the kids and Rhaenyra and Alicent are high, so she tries to do some damage control by going to Viserys and Alicent and suggesting that, because there are so many dragons and eggs here, they should try and get Aemond a dragon, and of course Visarys agrees.

But Aemond doesn’t want just any dragon or a lousy egg. He wants the biggest dragon in the world. He sneaks away to claim Vhagar in secret, but Rhaena (who wants to claim her mother’s dragon just like her dad wanted to claim Meleys) try’s to stop him only to be shoved by this much larger boy into a pile of dragon dung (like Joffrey in the book.) Aemond claims Vhegar, and Rhaena goes to get Baela and the boys. When Aemond lands, the fight happens like it did in the show.

When Rhaenyra finds out what happened, she’s not focused on the bastard thing, the kids care more about that stuff, instead she’s focused on the fact that Aemond, her half brother who she was just trying to help claim a dragon, threatened to kill her sons with dragonfire, and tried to bash their heads in with a rock.

Alicent demands Luke’s eye be cut out, and Rhaenyra and Viserys both refuse, with Rhaenyra angrily insisting that her sons will not be punished for defending themselves and their betrothed. Instead, she blames Aemond, saying, “Words of war become acts of war. Better he learns that now before he loses more than his eye.”

And that’s when Alicent grabs the dagger.

Idk, I’m not a writer, I’m just spitballing.

6. Laena and Rhaenyra’s friendship

In the book, after Baela and Rhaena are born, Daemon writes to Viserys and asks if he may bring them and Laena back to Kingslanding, and, of course, Viserys accepts them with open arms.

When Laena comes to Kingslanding, she and Rhaenyra become close friends. Laena and Daemon choose to live at Driftmark, but Laena and Rhaenyra still fly to visit eachother often, and would race their dragons from castle to castle.

When Rhaenyra heard Laena was in labor, she flew to Driftmark and stayed with her through her three day labor. In the show, when it becomes clear Laena won’t survive the birth, the maester overseeing the birth suggests a forced caesarean. The same thing done to Queen Aemma. I can only imagine the hell Rhaenyra would’ve raised to prevent her friend from suffering the same horrible fate her mother did.

After Laena’s death, Rhaenyra and Daemon mourn together. It’s not romantic, it’s not sexual, it’s just two people who just lost someone they both loved.

[front-facing-pokemon]

[iwoulddieforienzo]

Something really great about the persona 2 cast is that they all individually fucking SUCK to talk to casually. Every single one of them. They are all infuriating. We have:

Tatsuya, who will stare at you blankly if you try to initiate conversation (IS) and will dip without saying a word afterward (EP)

Batsuya, who will scoff and brush you off/otherwise act dismissive

Eikichi, who might honestly be the best to talk to in the IS crew and that is not saying much, who WILL talk extremely loudly over you (probably not on purpose?) and will not be paying particularly close attention to the conversation beyond whatever he wants to say (gets points for talking about his gf. gets points taken away for constantly talking about his gf)

Lisa, who will automatically assume bad faith and will be rude to you the entire conversation unless you manage to defuse her temper (good luck)

Jun, who is uncommunicative at BEST and requires an encyclopedic knowledge of flowers, metaphor and body language just to get a HINT on what he’s thinking, and who will be extremely polite but completely unhelpful. If you tried asking him what he wants for dinner I guarantee it will be the longest 30 minutes of your life as he goes “oh I have no opinion :) whatever you want. :))” EXCEPT HE DOES HAVE OPINIONS. He has SO MANY OPINIONS. He is Expecting you to be able to pick up on his “obvious” clues. He will be passive aggressive if you don’t. (Jun babygirl you suck so bad I love u)

Maya, who is a delight but will very quickly become grating if you try to talk to her about anything serious as she hits you with the white suburban mom's "how to live a happy, healthy life" lifecoach slogans. You can’t even mention, like, stepping in a puddle or something without her hitting you with the positivity beam.

Yukino is great actually. 10/10. She’s fabulous we love her. Incredible conversationalist, chill and fun and easy to get along with. But she’s from Persona One, she doesn’t Count.

Ulala, who WILL bring up her relationship problems in every conversation within 10 minutes at least once. Any longer and she will start talking about Maya.

Do I even need to explain Baofu. Have you seen him.

And finally, Katsuya, who is a cop and a kiss ass and Very Obvious about these things. Also he can't talk to women. He can barely talk to men. Help Him.

And yet they all work wonderfully as a group. They are so annoying I love them

[weezerlvr228]

rivers if he was absorbed by poisonous gas but didn’t care too much

[strawberryicemoon]

Digimon Adventure has consistently occupied a space in my brain for over a decade now, so I think it was only natural that I loved Amphibia and The Owl House too.

So there's definitely a baseline similarity Digimon Adventure has with the modern Disney Isekai. The shows are portal fantasy/isekai about a kid (or several) who have varying issues in their lives, mostly on the precipice of some major life change and/or figuring out who they are. Classic coming of age stuff. They meet people from the other world who they form deep personal connections with who change the course of their lives for the better. They grow to love the world they find as it is and of their own volition decide to risk their own lives to protect it, despite having the option to go home and stay safe.

I realize that this sounds very broad, but it's really in the details and the character drama where the similarities show for me: interpersonal conflict between friends and loved ones, growing up, understanding family members, being forced to separate from loved ones, parental death, adults taking advantage of kids. I could (and will) go on.

Spoilers for all three series obviously.

I mean right from the get go, Adventure starts with a group of 7 kids at a school sponsored summer camp, that gets struck by a freak storm. The kids take shelter inside a shrine, and when the weather abates find an aurora outside, which shoots small devices like meteors at them and sucks them into another world. (Technically Adventure starts with a short film taking place 4 years earlier but that's besides the point). The Owl House, also starts with Luz about to go to Summer Camp, as recommended by her school (though something she is dreading) when she runs into an old shack while chasing after a bird and ends up in another realm. Amphibia doesn't take place at Summer Camp, but towards the end of the school year, on what should have been a fun day for Anne, as a result she spends her summer in Amphibia. This is admittedly a rather petty connection, summer is a special time of year for kids, summer camp is already a unique experience for kids, birthday's are also good times for life changing events but it is still a notable similarity.

In the Digital World the kids each meet a Digimon. Throughout the show the kids Digimon reach higher forms upon reaching certain requirements, often involving personal development for their partnered child. The Digimon are like a Palisman in many ways. In fact, the Owl House's Digimon reference makes this connection for us.

When kids get their Palisman in The Owl House, it requires the kid to know what they want. Digimon grow in response to their human's growth, particularly as it relates to their associated crest. Each child in Digimon has an associated Crest. A trait that they exemplify. If they exemplify it well, their partner's get stronger, if they repress the trait their partner's won't evolve or will even devolve. I feel the concept is similar. Luz's palisman hatches when she realizes she "wants to be understood". Taichi's partner reaches Perfect when he had to be courageous enough to walk through an invisible gap in an electrified wall in order to rescue his friend. "Being Understood" is at the Core of Luz's character, and is reflected throughout the show. True Courage is at the Heart of Taichi's. Willow is "Be strong and wise to protect her friends", which is reflected in her arc about always trying to be reliable and not asking for help until it breaks her. Likewise being a good friend is at the Heart of Yamato's arc. Gus is to "go to the human world"… which maybe could be more reflective of a desire to learn and connect with others. Hikari's is "light", which is metaphorically life and growth (evolution). Of course, the girls in Amphibia have core concepts too, in the stones, Anne and Heart, Sasha and Strength, and Marcy and Wit. All traits they exemplify, but have to learn how to exemplify that trait well in temperance with the other two. In Digimon Adventure, if a character exemplifies their trait poorly, ie in a toxic way, they'll trigger a dark evolution, rampaging out of control power. When Taichi recklessly (suicidally) risks his life in hopes his partner will evolve further, his partner successfully pushes back their enemy as he hoped, but also turns on them. Sasha had to learn to use her strength to protect and lead people. Marcy had to learn to be strong enough to accept change. Anne had to get strong enough to stand up against Sasha and smart enough to keep the Plantar's safe in the human world and get back. In short the series both center a kid around an idea that facilitates their growth and gives them associated power.

Luz and Camila's goodbye in Yesterday's Lie is deeply reminiscent of Hikari and Taichi's goodbye in episode 21 of Digimon Adventure. Both feature a character (Luz and Taichi) returning home after being in another world for a long time, expecting their family to be worried only to find that they didn't even notice they were gone. However, the truth is revealed to their family member at home (Camila and Hikari) because of the presence of creature from another world, (Vee and Koromon), who the family member welcomes into the family with open arms. However, in the end of the episode Taichi and Luz must return to the other world, while promising to return home, while the Camila and Hikari try to get them to stay. Attempting to hold hands while their loved one drifts up and away in a beam of light. (And bonus! Luz and Hikari's names both literally mean light and are deeply associated with light thematically!).

Amphibia features a blue eyed blond haired girl of European descent in a human cast made up primarily of Asians, with issues stemming from her parents divorce. Digimon Adventure has a set of blue eyed blond haired brothers with some European heritage in a show with a primarily Asian human cast with issues stemming from their parents divorce. Sasha Waybright's parents divorce is potentially the cause of her control issues, controlling people so they don't leave and seeing relationships as transactional. The divorce left Yamato, a boy defined by friendship, lonely, and hesitant to connect to others and quick to resort to physical violence. It left Takeru with abandonment issues and a deep dislike of fighting, yet a blow up, lash out and cut off style of conflict resolution. Anyway all three of them lash out violently when they get upset.

The Plantar's parents died when Sprig and Polly were really young, killed tragically by a giant heron. Neither of them remember their parents well, but they still feel that grief, partially second hand from their grandfather. King's dad was unable to raise him, and dies before he can properly talk to him so he's raised by Eda under a misconception that he was a king of demon's and has an identity crisis when he discovers that was a lie. Koushiro's original parents were killed in a car crash when he was a baby. His current parents had recently lost a baby. So when Koushiro's current dad heard that his distant cousin had died leaving his son an orphan, his current parents saw it as a sign and adopted him. They weren't sure about when to tell him, but Koushiro overheard them talking about it one night and had an identity crisis. Though, I feel it's important to also include Adventure 02 in discussions of Adventure. That season features a kid whose father was killed when he was 6 who is still processing that during the events of the series. Not unlike Luz who lost her father as a young kid.

Digimon Adventure 02 also features a kid who feels irrational guilt for the death of his older brother was hit by a truck and died right in front of him. Speaking of the sequel season and Ken Ichijouji, he's got a lot of similarities to Marcy. He is a "genius" boy with chin length black hair who runs away from home into another world due to high expectations. His mental state is influenced by others, including an adult man who hopes to be able to travel to another world, for their own purposes and so takes it out on the digital world that he refuses to regard as real and subjugates it violently (Until he's broken out of his mental breakdown that is). He wished for his brother to disappear only to feel guilt when he did die. He also kind of has a green color motif when it's not black. Marcy is a "genius" girl with short black hair, and a green color motif who due to a conflict with her parents escapes into another world, befriending colonizers, and then is taken advantage of them by them them influencing her mind and controlling her body to direct a violent subjection of the inhabitants of a world. She wanted to stay together with her friends instead of going home, but that only separated from her friends, and then broke their trust when they found out about it.

Also speaking of kids manipulated into helping villains, Hunter reminds me of Tailmon. Naturally kindhearted people manipulated into loyally serving the main villain via abuse, where they are cocky and dismissive to others, coming into conflict with those that are theoretically their coworkers, until they find out the truth of who they are and are able to show their more playful, and kind side. Hunter was created by Belos to serve him, as his "nephew". He claims to have rescued Hunter when he was small, to be his family. Tailmon was separated as an egg from those she was meant to grow up with, and when she went looking for the place she belonged, found Vamdemon, ironically living in the place that her egg originated from. Vamdemon earned Tailmon's loyalty by abuse, under his rule, Tailmon grew from a "child" to an "adult". In other words both are the second in command so to speak of the person who on some level raised them, in a place that is meant to be safe. (As his Uncle/creator, Belos should be protecting him, Tailmon should have been safe in that castle). Both characters have scars caused by their abusers that they keep hidden (at least when we first meet them).

While they are being abused, they meet someone who is on their side, who knows a bit of the truth of their identity. Tailmon rescues Wizarmon, and tells her a bit about what she remembers about herself before Vamdemon beats it out of her and loyally keeps the secrets she keeps even from herself. Flapjack recognizes Hunter as a clone of Caleb. Wizarmon sacrifices his life to protect Tailmon from Vamdemon. Wizarmon's death unlocks the crest of light, and thus awakens Tailmon's evolved form, Angewomon who is able to avenge. Flapjack sacrifices himself to save Hunter from his possession from Belos. This gives him a magic of his own to use. When both characters realize the truth about their identity, that Hunter is a Grimmwalker, and Tailmon is the 8th Digimon, they are supported by a character with a name meaning "Light". Luz's interactions with Hunter lead him to finding out the truth behind Belos, before fleeing from him. She keeps Hunter's secret, and welcomes into her family. When Tailmon meets Hikari she realizes she senses something about the girl. But she's unable to directly confront her, unable to kill her like she feels she should. She rationalizes it away as not being sure while Hikari actively tries to befriend her, assuming she's a friend of her brother. This kind of character also exists to a certain extent in King Andrias, manipulated into being an evil dictator by his father, though his arc is somewhat reversed.

Luz's dad died of an illness that he was hospitalized for. Taichi has trauma regarding Hikari's illness as a child that left her hospitalized. Amity has high parental expectations, and two semi-rebellious older siblings who are a lost cause for those expectations. Joe also has high parental expectations and two older siblings who eschew the family expectations in favor of their own interests. Willow and Sora both feel obligated to shove down their own issues to try and look after others. Gus is a gifted kid who skipped grades and has issues related to being younger than his peers. One of the Digimon creatives was so horrified by kids skipping grades in America that she wrote Ken about it and has continued influence her digimon stories literal decades later.

Overall, the biggest difference between the shows premise wise (aside from the obvious inhabitants of each world) is the presence of Adults in Amphibia and The Owl House. Digimon takes the kids to a world where adults don't really exist. Sure there are more mature, adult-like (and adult level) monsters. But they're still not human adults. Digimon don't age or reproduce like humans, so they don't have a concept of parenting beyond babies. Or y'know. Have general concern for child safety. Which means that the kids have to depend on themselves and their partners to survive with no adult supervision during most of the show. While each kid has a decently fleshed out family life, primarily the threats are handled by the children alone since they mostly take place in a world that only the kids can access. But that doesn't mean the adults aren't supportive. When things do take place in the human world, the adults help out with food, transportation, keeping the media off their backs and emotional support. I think this sort of comes from Amphibia and The Owl House's perspective on child heroes, played straight with a bit of self awareness. While Amphibia DOES play it straight, even making Sprig and Polly orphan's it takes the time to involve Anne's parents and get their blessings, and features Grime and Hop Pop as adult figures. The adults aren't dumb, but they aren't obstacles for the kids either. And of course, The Owl House bumps up adult involvement, making Camila go WITH Luz back to the Demon Realm. Either way in all shows the adults are fully fledged characters for the most part with flaws, both as people and as parents. And the kids are recognized to be just kids at the end of the day, no matter how much they accomplish.

We get to see the parents help, worry and grieve over their kids, and of course have reunions both heartwarming and heartbreaking.

All series end with the main characters dying, via breaking into pieces during their final fight, and then getting revived. In Amphibia and TOH of course, Anne and Luz meet "God". After Anne uses the stones for one last ultimate attack, Anne meets what is actually a deity who gave the stones to mortals as a test which Anne passed. Luz meets what everyone worships as a god, who gives her his last bit of power to use as a final attack because he approved of her and has been subtly supporting her. Though the sequence of events differ, Anne and Luz are both chosen for their actions, rather than by destiny. The kids in Digimon met their "god" stand in about 15 episodes before the final fight. Their "god" stepped in when given the opportunity to explain why they were chosen, after they had already chosen out of their own volition to return to the fight: the "god" was desperate to fix the instability and the mysterious trait that these children were observed to have that caused a Digimon to rapidly evolve seemed like their only hope. More of a desperate hope than anything, but from it the prophecy of the chosen was born.

Amphibia's also got a prophecy that is really more of a plea for help. It refers to the wielders of the stones, which in this case was the girls. They weren't really chosen, but happenstanced into it, and it was clear that not even the creator of the stones really knew what would transpire. Digimon Adventure, the kids are the "Chosen Children" (Digidestined in the dub). They were actively chosen, for their mysterious potential, and so preparations were made that would hopefully aid them in saving the worlds. Even the choosers are in the dark about the details. TOH of course has no chosen one, except that in the kindness Luz gave King, King's father the titan gave back, bringing her back from the dead for one final stand. The titan didn't prepare per se, but definitely was helping guide Luz towards the skills that would help her save the world. Choosing her. A reoccurring idea in later Digimon Adventure media is that the Chosen Children, choose themselves. They choose to fight, even before they knew who chose them. They chose to continue fighting. The main villain in The Owl House, parades himself as a fake chosen one, using that status to manipulate people. The final arc of Digimon Adventure 02, features many people jealous of our main characters for their specialness, before they get their own Digimon. A sort of "prophecies, destiny, chosen heroes are something you make yourself, even if circumstances help facilitate it. No matter how people are guided towards it, ultimately destiny is about choices.

The Guardian: Look, I created the stones to see how mortals would handle unlimited power. Turns out.... not that well. Would you believe that after over 10,000 years, you're the only individual who used that power for good? Anne: Uh... This is a lot to take in right now. I mean, do I have a choice? The Guardian: Well, of course you do! I'm not a jerk. Anne: Well then... I'm gonna have to pass.

The Guardian: Wha?! No! I haven't even told you about Bagel Fridays!

Amphibia ends, of course, with the stones destroyed, save for three shards that is just enough to let the girls go home. The girls tearfully depart, with their final goodbyes to. Sasha isn't able to say goodbye to Percy and Braddock and asks Grime to greet them on her behalf. Then a flash-forward shows us how Amphibia is doing after the girls left, and then all the way 10 years in the future to show who the girls became. Digimon Adventure proper ends with the gate between worlds closing, and the restructuring digital world at risk of damaging the kids foreign bodies. So the kids must go home, and each take the time to tearfully bid farewell. However, as definitive as Adventure's ending may seem, it was always meant to be temporary, 02 beginning the very next week. The true intended ending being pushed to 02. In the true ending, right after the final battle and sacrifice, there were no goodbyes so it cuts to 25 years in the future, and shows the worlds at peace, a future where a Digimon partner exists or every person and people can freely travel between worlds. The Owl House also skips directly from the end of the final fight, no tearful goodbyes, to a few years in the future to show how everyone is doing. The group all regularly traveling between the worlds.

Overall I just have a soft spot for stories about real world kids with real world issues getting dealt with in the context of world changing life or death fantasy scenarios. The ability to represent the issues in unique ways while still talking about real issues straightforwardly is fun. And I'm glad to see that other stories in the genre got their time in the limelight for a while. But I hadn't really seen anyone talk, in depth about the similarities of the two shows to Digimon. It's not like Digimon Adventure invented the Portal Fantasy with Kids genre, but the inspiration is clearly there. There isn't any direct reference to Digimon in Amphibia, but Matt Braly has stated in an interview that he was partially inspired by Digimon. Though it is apparent he hadn't seen it in a while, the Myotismon arc and the way the show handled its parents seems to have stuck with him. As far as I can tell, there is only the one reference to Digimon in Owl House (Unless that really is the crest of knowledge on Titan Luz's chest), and I don't think Dana Terrace has ever said anything about Digimon so it's possible she's never seen it. But someone on her team must have seen it in order to reference it. I'm not saying all of these similarities were definitely pulled from Digimon, because a lot of them are very broad tropes seen in a lot of things, or could have been thought up independently. And a lot of these similar characters and plot points are very different in the details and execution. Just because characters are similar doesn't mean the same obviously. But it's still the same genre, and they all handle a lot of the same beats in different ways and its fun to see what's different and the same between three shows I enjoyed a lot.

[formal-frog-shoes]

Twiststuck stuff i just wanna get out

Im a huge Cater multi-shipper

Normally this wouldn't be a problem

BUT I CAN'T HAVE ALMOST EVERYONE IN THIS AU HAVE A FLUSH OR PALE CRUSH ON HIM THAT'S ABSURD!!!

[irregularbillcipher]

watched the musical demon show (don't wanna name it so this post isn't in the tags) at the behest of an IRL friend and i can already tell this is going to be a piece of media where i absolutely cannot stop thinking about it, not because i really love the show as-is, but because it has so many individual components i really like and find incredibly fun or compelling, and i'm so frustrated that it doesn't come together for me

i think the main thing i can say about it as a show, setting aside some of the insensitive choices that were made that i really don't feel qualified to tackle or talk about, is that the entire thing sort of gives off this vibe of someone really excited to show you every single oc they made in high school and college and i very genuinely mean that in both the best and worst ways possible

there are some good hooks for season two though so i will absolutely give them that

[lucalicatteart]

Poll adventure (paventure? lol) Day 6: read the small story tidbit below the poll for more details, OR just vote based on initial impression

(✦ see past poll results + further information HERE (link) ✦)

The winning option of yesterday's poll was that the adventurer should ask the Innkeeper about the suspicious egg he got from the Well Creature….

-

After finishing his food scraps, he awkwardly creeps back over to the main counter, pulling up a stool and just hoping the Innkeeper will eventually make eye contact with him... She finally looks to the side whilst cleaning a glass, his chance to blurt out whatever he can.

"SO!- uh,, I um... I found something weird, or uh.. I didn't find it actually, I guess, I..... s-someone, or something.. gave it to me, as maybe..? a reward, or.. oh, well i-it doesn't matter why.. but UH, but so, I was just wondering, d-do you think you might know anything about it? about like, uh... stuff? Objects.. perhaps.....?"

She stares with equal parts amusement and concern, crossing her arms and letting out a soft chuckle, "Well, I've seen quite a variety of things while working here, so - Yeah, I could try to help you identify an item, if that's what you're asking."

"G-good. Okay. Well.. It's, uh..... this." He's barely even placed the little wooden egg box up on the counter before she's already slamming the lid shut and reaching over to force it back into his bag. Suddenly serious, her eyes dart around the room, scanning to ensure no-one else happened to notice.

"Don't EVER let anyone see you with that, okay??". Abrupt tone shift making him even more nervous, he just stares blankly, muttering a few gibberish noises whilst nodding at her in confirmation.

"I mean, I'm not absolutely certain," her voice lowers as she speaks, "but to me it looks exactly like a Caiploras egg. Those animals have been nearly extinct for at least a hundred years. Only tiny groups of them still exist here and there, and even those eventually get wiped out as soon as they're discovered. Kings and nobles used to hunt them, especially for the eggs, 'cause of all the theories - unique magical properties, uses in enchanting, shit like that.. I don't really know, I'm not that experienced with magic.... But.."

She pauses for a few seconds to stare him down (this does not soothe his anxiety at all), examining intently, as if to determine whether he's actually trustworthy before continuing..

"...My brother is. He's a mage, and a scholar, and he specializes in stuff like this, all these rare animals and whatnot. He'll hate me just sending a complete stranger over there, but.. I think you should go see him. He'd definitely be able to identify it- hell, he'd probably even pay you for it, if it really is what I think it is. And, he'd know how to take care of it properly, raise it well, not just cut it up for fucking potions or whatever...", she scoffs bitterly.

Grasping at a nearby napkin to fan himself with, he shifts sweatily in his seat, "W-wh... but,.. How would I do that?"

"What do you mean? Do what?"

"F-find, him.. IHhh... I just.. I don't, know the area well.. is all, I uh...."

"I'll give you directions, obviously.. Are you okay? Do you like... need some water? You look-"

"NHnnnou, I'M FINE! I just, haha.. uh... Maybe, am.. not very good at....uh.. this.." He gestures around himself nonspecifically.

With a brief confused glance, she pours a cup of water anyway, then casually plucks a small notebook from her pocket to begin scribbling messily. "Well, look, I'll give you the information, and if you feel up to it, you can go. I really think you should, but, eh... your choice, y'know."

As he fights his shaky hands to maintain control of the water glass, she lays out the paper on the table, pointing at parts of her sketch. "He's over in Fargahel, which should be a few days travel from here. See? The roads kind of go like this, but it's mostly a straight path. Look for the ruins of an abandoned castle. He's holed himself up in there, the underground part, repurposed into some sort of 'sanctuary' for rehabilitating injured birds or whatever the hell he's up to now. He probably won't attack you or anything, but I signed a little note on the back of this so he knows I sent you.. just in case."

Neatly folding up the map, she slides it towards him as she leans closer to intensely meet his eyes. "Just remember, no matter what you do, do NOT let anyone know you have that egg. There are plenty of folks out here still hunting for them. You don't want someone recognizing it and coming after you. Especially with how, uh...", it feels like she might mention he doesn't seem he'd be very good at combat, but she simply lets the sentence trail off, shrugging with a smile and politely patting his hand as he takes the paper.

"Just get some sleep, yeah? Think about it. And talk to me in the morning if you have any more questions."

He slumps over to lean on the counter, resting for a moment after she walks back to the other end of the room, just trying to wrap his head around all the new information.. He only took the egg because it looked pretty! He just wanted it to hatch into a cool chicken or something! Why does it have to actually be some big stinky scary secret rare item?... With a heavy sigh, he resolves to never again trust mysterious creatures that pop out of abandoned wells....

Eventually trudging up to his room for the night, he flops onto the lumpy mattress that seems to just be hay stuffed into dusty old potato sacks. As he rustles around waiting to fall asleep, he considers all of his options... What should he do with the egg?

[todayisafridaynight]

Mutual on Twitter was talking about Daigo instinctively feeling the need to put the pieces of Mine's ruined life back together and make him feel at ease... Is That Not The Appeal Of AraSawa As Well... like they might not know the depth of what their lives were like before in full but surely there are some details safe to share and there's very little that wouldn't sound bleak... but it's also a MineDai But To The Left sort of moment because Mine has always felt he deserves basic human decency, even if he has to earn it, but that's never been the case for Jo... [SORRY I'LL GET TO PENDING RESPONSES I'VE JUST BEEN LOST IN THE SAUCE for better or worse it feels wrong not to write in every day at this point 😭😭😭]

i remember telling my twitter mutual that arasawa was minedai but with dads and the way a light bulb seemed to go off for her was just perfect LMAO

but on the real arasawa IS a lot like minedai when it comes to some themes, and moreover they still maintain their individuality (aside from the dad aspect LMAO) in the parties involved, ESPECIALLY mine and jo

it's weird to explain, but daigo, in a sense, was an 'end goal' for mine. maybe not in THAT way, but just having his comradery was a sample of the thing he'd been striving for his whole life. ergo, mine joins the yakuza specifically due to interest in daigo, and decides to stay and commit himself to it because of daigo- and as you said, mine understands his worth and wants his efforts to be reciprocated. the problem is that he's not exactly sociable..

inversely, arakawa was, on the contrary, an accident for jo: sure, he swore up in order to be closer to his son. but now By The Fate Of The Cruel Universe jo's found himself becoming attached to arakawa too, whether he wholly admits it or not. A Cruel Fate not only in that jo undoubtedly doesn't believe he'd be deserving of something special with arakawa, but that he also shouldn't pursue something special with arakawa considering their positions in the clan (also masato would probably throw a fit and he can't be upsetting his baby boy </3)

BUT THIS IS THE SIMILARITY OF DAIGO AND ARAKAWA RIGHT so often comparing mine and jo, i never touch on how the other two relate... but of course with them, daigo and arakawa try to become closer to mine and jo (evidently we see daigo have a little more success on account of rgg refusing to let arakawa and jo be in a room together for more than five minutes). its unfortunate that we don't get to hear much of arakawa's thoughts on jo, but if it's anything like daigo and his concern over mine (i.e. worrying that mine is only concerned with money/only sees value in himself through his wealth, wanting to be closer to him and get rid of the 'stiffness' between them) i imagine he harbors similar sentiment (and being a Bonafide Father instead of a proverbial one like daigo, i wouldn't be surprised if he could be more anxious/concerned over jo, especially considering the- albeit small- age gap absent in minedai).

[orcelito]

about ready to jump off the walls for this purchase

i have bought. the full trimax set.