#they are so unappreciated tbh

[rubbish78]

Hi my goal is to try to convince at least one of my followers to listen to McFly. They have been a band since 2003 so their music style has changed over the year but it's in the realm of pop/rock/alternative music.

Each album above I’ll recommend 3 of my favorite songs so maybe check them out??? 🤷‍♀️

Room on the 3rd Floor (2004):

'5 Colours in her Hair' (the song that made them famous in UK)

'Room on the 3rd Floor'

'Surfer Babe'

Wonderland (2005):

'She Falls Asleep Part 1 & 2'

'The Ballad of Paul K'

'All About You'

Motion in the Ocean (2006):

'Transylvania' (MY FAVORITE SONG)

'Sorry's Not Good Enough'

'Star Girl'

Radio: Active (2008): my favs album...so every song tbh...

'POV'

'Corrupted'

'Lies'

Above the Noise (2010): my least fav album but it has some bangers

'Shine a Light'

'I'll be Your Man'

'Party Girl' (they hate this song now and refuse to play it live and Idk I just find it amusing. Generic sounding pop song and they felt forced to write it at the time)

The Lost Songs (recorded in 2011/2012 but wasn't released until 2019/2020):

'Red'

'Touch the Rain'

'Josephine'

Young Dumb Thrills (2020):

'Growing Up' - featuring Mark Hoppus

'Young Dumb Thrills'

'Tonight is the Night'

Power to Play (2023):

'I'm Fine'

'Where Did All the Guitars Go?'

'Route 55'

OH and I liked to mention that they helped write some of One Direction songs BTW

+ BONUS ALBUM when they merged with the other band Busted for two years

McBusted (2015):

'Air Guitar'

'What Happened to Your Band?'

'Get Over it"

[bullagit]

since when does leo’s one-off obviously for-comedy “nono i’m your LEAST FAVORITE” line that he was saying specifically bc he didn’t want his rat-flu stricken father to infect him by clinging to him....... translate to him literally thinking he’s the least favorite...

genuine question

[kitconnor]

if u see me not giffing again for the rest of the month do not be surprised i think i only care about books now anyways

[themindelectricdemo4]

i guess its fine that my friend group decided to hate me (then take it back the next day??) cuz now im busy at college ..i guess it was right to happen the day before i was moving into my dorm it was like literally just one chapter closing i guess then the next one opening

[femmepire-butchbiter]

I swear I'm gonna get teary eyed! But that's exactly what it is for me, exactly what I want to exude. "Home" is how it feels. Like wandering for a long time, and finding your way back to it. It's incredible.

'interview with a butch' - a fake interview reflecting on butch-femme dynamics! inspired by the amazing piece by @llovely, which you can read here :)

(ID below read more)

[an original, interview-style poem called 'interview with a butch':

when did you know you were butch? I knew by the time I was sixteen, but that’s only when I found the word. I’ve been butch since the day I was born, at least since I was just a few months old and threw an earth-shattering tantrum whenever my mum tried to put me in a dress. (both laugh) your poor mum!

I remember being a little butch knight, chivalrous even before I was double digits. my best friend only lived up the road from school, but her parents were running late and she was scared to do it herself. so I walked her up the hill, her arm linked in mine, pride balancing on my chest. and when I got her to her door, I said that we should kiss like adults do when they say goodbye, and we took it in turns to kiss each other on each cheek. when I walked home I felt something the size of a boulder in my stomach, but I didn’t know what it meant yet, just that there was something about myself that set me apart.

how did you feel with your first femme? oh, man, even for a writer that’s hard to find the words for. (laugh) let’s put it this way: before I had my first femme, I always felt like something was missing in my relationships – not just in the relationship itself, but in me. I felt broken and wrong, unsatisfied and selfish. I thought that maybe I just had too high expectations or something. hell, even with sex I felt like something was missing, like I couldn’t find my own desire.

But then, then I had my first femme. How graphic can I be here? (laugh) as graphic as you want! okay, good!

watching my stomach hang over my harness, long nails in my hips, I felt like I had a second sexual awakening. I felt the most present in my body I’d ever been, and like I could be in them forever. I didn’t feel dissatisfied, or wrong. when their hand held mine and played with my fingers I felt lightning shoot through me. it was like realising I was a lesbian all over again. but even outside of romance, femmes are my friends, my family, my community. talking to femmes, being around femmes, I’ve never felt so seen and loved. I can handle every sharp look, every slur thrown my way, just because my armour was polished by femmes.

do you find your roles restrictive? they’re liberating. I think sometimes people see me and think that I had to fit into this constrictive box, that I disallowed myself to enjoy anything feminine. the reality is that for butches, we find the word we’ve been searching for our whole lives. I can’t even remember finding the word, isn’t that crazy? it felt second nature. it somehow perfectly described everything I’d ever felt, exposed me to a community of people who were just like me outside of my Tory town! (pause)

I think there’s a tendency even in leftist, LGBT spaces to think that masculinity is oppressive, and femininity is liberating and oppressed. but it’s really not like that. we’re punished for deviating from our assigned gender, whether you’re a masculine woman, or a feminine man, or something in between the two. I’ve had gay men try to convince me to let them do my makeup, I’ve had gay women tell me that they’re “so glad” I don’t have ‘toxic masculinity’ like “other butches”. femininity was a cage for me, something I had to imitate to survive the perils of high school, but it was never me. masculinity liberated me, and it’s not inherently toxic. I love to carry the bags, hold open the doors, cry in pride, protect those I love. and there’s nothing like coming home at the end of the day to a sweet femme, ready to rub my tired muscles. man, I’m not good at concise answers, am I? (both laugh) no, but I love it!

what do you think of people who see your relationship as heteronormative? they’re twats! (both laugh) now, that’s a concise answer! no, no that’s not fair. here’s what I’d say to them:

I see it as…a complex gender performance. no, that makes it sound like it’s play pretend. they’re complex gender…expressions, dynamics, play, desire, euphoria. a butch and a femme together is no more heterosexual than a bear and a twink, a top and a bottom. it’s a dance that we know in our bones, like we knew each other in a previous lifetime and we’re just falling back into our favoured rhythm. even every fumble and awkward gesture is a part of it. we fall into sync and into each other, we tenderise each other’s gender, affirm it, and love every minute of it. we’re not two sides of the same coin, you talk to any butch-femme couple and chances are our priori (edit: interviewee meant propositions) are the same but our conclusions are not; we’re the same side of the same coin, just one is the top of the tail and the other is the bottom of it. is that a euphemism? (laugh) take it as you will!

I’m no man, my femme is no woman, and I’m no less butch when I’m wearing a kiss-the-cook apron and cleaning their kitchen, and they’re no less femme when they’re putting together a shelf or driving me to work. To look at us and see a heteronormative imitation of cisgender predetermination is proof of their own lack of nuance – do you think all dogs are boys and all cats are girls, too? (both laugh)

I think in a lot of ways, butch-femme dynamics are inherently transsexual. or, in the very least, good friends of transgenderism. If you can’t see us for what we are then chances are you’ve got your own internalised gender biases to unlearn.

I’ve always been butch to my bones, but when I’m with my baby I’m on cloud nine. I feel desired, my gender revered and loved.

so, what you’re saying is, you feel seen? I do. we see each other and nurture each other. I’ve never really liked being called ‘beautiful’, but when it falls from the lips of a femme, I know that they’re not seeing me as feminine. I feel most comfortable to explore the depths of both my femininity and masculinity with them; I don’t feel restricted to a role.

maybe that’s what people are missing about it: our homes are temples of gender exploration and devotion.

end ID].

[mcytblrconfessions]

the skin makers for mc events are crazy unappreciated. they bring so much life to the events and there are so many awesome skins but at the same time sometimes i feel like the culture of pushing out so much so quickly is killing innovation. i know that it's a super restrictive medium but i feel like there's an opportunity to do so much more, especially with shading and overlay. tbh though at the end of the day i'm just a hater so kiss kiss skin makers i love you continue being awesome

[velvet-games]

in the middle of working on a lucifer redesign :)

thoughts/explanations + minor character analysis under the cut (this was supposed to be short but it ended up being very thorough lmao):

honestly love his canon design so I'm kind of working from that more than I'm trying to rethink stuff from scratch

I'm gonna admit right now that a lot of the design choices were very self indulgent lol; I just want him to be pretty :<

circus stuff~

I've seen a lot of people raise their eyebrows at the circus motif, so I was going to try something different, but I actually think it makes a lot of sense!

I think freakshows/circus acts have been tied to this idea that certain identities/abilities are strange and shameful, only valuable as dehumanizing entertainment -- they're mistakes, freaks of nature

but at the same time many circus performances require a lot of skill and work and love that can go unappreciated, each and every performer at the very least a person worth respecting

I think lucifer sees hell as a freakshow/circus he's been forced to lead and try to control

a bunch of wayward toys meant to be bright and beautiful that have been twisted into something terrifying

and he needs to discover a more empathetic, appreciative, and loving way to think about sinners

and also to realize that it's not about him or his mistakes; it's about a group of people with their own emotions and autonomy that he needs to respect

anyway

all that to say: we're keeping the circus ringleader thing!

I think a whip would make more sense for a ringleader, esp since alastor has a staff already (but they're enemies/foils so maybe their designs should reflect each other?)

there's room to turn the whip into a snake maybe

in the pic I made it look like his tail bc I considered making his actual tail a goat tail (cute! but the longer one suits him better I think)

maybe an apple on the top/handle still

the tux honestly looks a little too formal/cool for him most of the time lmao

so I think he should take off the jacket/have the toymaker apron on instead unless he's fighting

vaudeville doll~

lucifer has a lot going on tbh: circus ringleader, angel, devil/demon, snake, goat, vaudeville porcelain doll, toymaker, etc.

I think I'm gonna take out snake just to simplify a little, but I'll talk about that more later

I was also going to take out porcelain doll but

1) the rosy cheeks are super cute

2) fits with the circus theme

3) fits with the idea that he's both a toy and toymaker (an angel that tried to play god)

uhhh there's a couple self indulgent doodles of him in a vaudeville doll dress lol. not relevant to the design at all; I just like drawing stripes and ruffles

I ended up making him sort of androgynous in a lot of ways? (not that he wasn't already lol) which works for him I think

part of it was the vaudeville doll thing; I wanted to give him (keep?) the eyeshadow and add those little vertical marks you see on them sometimes

also because I really liked the puff sleeves in one of the references I used; it kind of emphasizes an extended hourglass shape with the puffy pants

plus I love drawing the more classic tuxedo shape <3 very yummy lines and details

hair/shape~

I fucking LOVE when people draw him with messy hair, so I made that permanent

I also think (esp since he's blond) having the hair stick out in tufts kind of makes it look like a star (morningstar, lightbringer, etc. etc.)

even more so with the pointy horns (those are also fun to draw cause they're right in the corners of his widow's peak)

I drew a random triangle on one of these as a reminder to keep the pointy/triangular shape language throughout lol

squares would def be wrong with the implications of sturdiness and stability

I think circles would be wrong too? he's vulnerable and ultimately very soft inside so I kept a lot of round lines, but I don't think he's the traditionally bubbly/friendly/peaceful archetype circles are usually used for

triangles are apparently dynamic, dangerous, and unpredictable, which is a little closer to what I'm going for

(shape language is a very flexible rule btw; I'm not saying they determine everything about a character or that one shape has to mean exactly one thing)

he's also a depressed, tortured soul, so I feel like he should look just a little unhinged and exhausted <3 (hence the eyebags on top of the messy hair)

angel stuff~

(sidenote: cherub and seraph are singular, cherubim and seraphim are plural. even the show gets this wrong tho, so feel free to say whatever ig)

I'm pretty sure most people agree lucifer was probably a cherub? cherubim only have 4 wings so I might go with that

I do think it makes more sense if he's higher ranking like a seraph tho ... it's hard to decide whether to go with the show's ideas about angels or actual religious texts cause both are interesting in their own ways

snake~

ARHHGHJF idk how I feel about his nose

again I thought about taking out the snake motif, but he honestly looks good w/o a nose (I mean it's there obviously but you can't see it if it's just snake slits lol), and I definitely like the idea of him having a forked tongue or his eyes turning into slits when he's angry

also also

mini rant on animal motifs in hazbin:

I get the impression that a lot of people think it's a bad thing that you can't tell what animal a character should be? and/or that a motif has to be clearly present in the entire design to be good

and I kind of just accepted that until I started thinking about ozzie's design from helluva boss

like the original demon he's based on is really just that fucked up and mixed with animals you can't always identify

and chinese dragons are like a billion different animals even though they sort of just look like lizards at the end of the day

like obviously if you want the audience to associate a character with a specific animal (like if you want people to think a character's spooky because they're a spider or something), then you do want the animal motifs to be clear/consistent

but sometimes you just want certain elements there and it doesn't matter if the audience picks up on it (at least consciously)

and I think with someone like lucifer, having a lot of animals/concepts mixed together in an ungodly combination makes sense lol

so idk

maybe we'll just give him the nose/tongue

I did try just giving him a button nose in some of these for the doll thing tho

goat/charlie~

urgh I hate realizing I should've designed certain characters together lol

I took out the rosy cheeks in my original charlie design since I wasn't thinking about lucifer, so I put them back in this time lol (and generally thought about how they should be visually related)

I like that it enforces the idea that charlie's lucifer's creation (toymaker makes a doll in his own image yk)

also they both have puff sleeves now :) (charlie's design is basically princess dress silhouette but make it a suit)

I also gave her goat ears, so I figured lucifer should have them too? idk because I like the way his hair looks a lot better without them, and I kind of like the idea of giving them diff combinations of goat features (maybe she should have a goat tail?)

also drawing this made me realize I have no idea why charlie has a puppy nose??? I thought it was the goat thing for some reason but that doesn't make any sense

maybe I'll just give her no nose

anyway! fucking incredible if you read all of that; idk what possessed me to write so much about a half-finished design lol. feel free to leave suggestions/answers to the questions I had!

[svltzmans]

Tbh I am completely obsessed with the idea of Fiona Gallagher x fem! Milkovich reader

fiona gallagher x fem!milkovich!reader headcanons

a/n: i'm back to writing <3 thanks to you all for sticking around during my weird hiatus

warnings: kissing/making out, this is all fluffy and silly sorry, i also didn't proofread at all, sorry again, this is not very good at all but i'm a little rusty :/

mickey was so certain that he was the only gay sibling

he didn't expect it from you at all, even though you were sure you made it obvious

when you told him, the first thing that came out of his mouth was a sarcastic remark about there only being room for one gay person in the family

but in reality, he was happy to not be alone

when mickey and ian started dating, you'd cross paths with ian quite often

and you grew to really like him, witnessing him bring mickey out of his shell

around the same time, you met fiona by chance at the alibi

it just so happened that fiona's best friend worked at the bar you met your friends at that night

and when fiona stopped by to see v, she was immediately distracted by you

luckily for her, the feeling was mutual

and she brought you home that night, planting a kiss to your lips when you finally got back to the gallagher house

mickey and ian walk downstairs, and it's impossible to hear them over your focus on kissing fiona

"y/n?"

your brother just stares blankly as he realizes what's happening

"what are you doing here?" you mutter in response to his confusion

"i'm dating ian."

"wait, y/n, how do you know mickey?" fiona had asked, still confused by the situation

"he's my brother," you had said, deadpan

after a few seconds, the whole room had erupted in laughter

bc the whole thing was just so ridiculous

but you and fiona kept seeing each other, and eventually officially started dating

at which point, you started running into mickey at the gallagher house a lot

always teasing him about how much he likes ian

but he would CLOCK you back about fiona 😭

fiona already liked mickey, but when she found out you were related she liked him even more

you're still her favorite though <3

it's refreshing for fiona to have happy relationships surrounding her

she's so grateful to be able to provide that for you too

she's obsessed with taking you on dates, even if it's just going to the park for a walk or to visit kev and v at the alibi

she likes to show you she cares in every way she can

she never wants you to feel unappreciated or unwanted, her biggest fear is making you feel the way she did in her past

she's just overall an amazing girlfriend

and your relationship brought you a new friendship with ian and a stronger bond with your brother

[loveyourlovelysoul]

If you've been highly criticized/yelled at in your past after any sudden decision you've made or if you have been played around or been unappreciated while you were just trying to do something good/nice, the shameful/guilty feeling born at those times may still be lingering inside of you. Anytime you make a sudden decision/choice without asking for confirmation about its nature or give away something from yourself (even something material like eg. a very little amount of money) it makes you wonder if you've done the right thing or if you've been deceived somehow. This happens cause you have unconsciously learnt from similar past experiences that you're "not good enough" or a bit "too stupid/naive" to make good decisions by yourself.

This feeling may have been hindering you also in other situations, like when given an important choice or something similar you may try to avoid taking a final decision without asking for guidance or suggestions to others (generally those who criticized you, like eg. your caregivers), leaving them in charge of your life so that you won't be making mistakes or feel like a failure. But this way, you may end up never really experiencing life as you deserve to. You may end up chosing things you don't want or blocking yourself when given important occasions out of fear to fail and be seen as the usual "stupid" person you were and still are (only in your mind: you're not that for real, ever). You're not stupid nor naive nor any other adjective you have been called/calling yourself: you meant your best and just didn't know what to do exactly or how to act maybe, or you were a bit too impulsive; but you had to try and learn your lesson like that. You were so criticized because you were triggering a trauma in the other person but you had to make that mistake in order to experience life and understand something (and tbh you were very likely made believe that the mistake you made was bigger and much more important than it actually was). Please forgive yourself and remind yourself you have grown and learned all you need to try and protect yourself if that's the case. There's nothing wrong in giving away when done with pure intentions, don't ever feel guilty about it. Even more for giving to yourself.

[mammoth-clangen]

Hi! Wanted to say I love your comic and it has inspired me to make my own prehistoric ClanGen comic and I wanted to double check if that is okay. It’s focused on a completely different species that existed in the same timeframe but still wanted to check and know if I could/should tag you in it :]

Oh of course!! I don't own prehistoric settings for comics, so go for it! 🦣 if you want to tag me I'd love to read it, but you're definitely not obligated too c:

Tbh even if you wanted "Sabercat Clangen" as your setting, there's so much you could do that doesn't overlap with Kindred: Amphimachairodus (likely ate early human ancestors!), Lokotunjailurus (the raptor cat!!), Xenosmilus (cookie cutter cat!!)

Not to mention Nimravids and Barbourofelids, false sabercats that are So Unappreciated!! D:

Further (maybe a little salty) ramblings below the cut 🧂

I am making Kindred partially because I always lament the lack of actual paleo settings that care they're paleo settings: lots of Jurassic park dinosaurs or "Spinosaurus and Tyrannosaurus totally lived together right?" (No they didn't!)

I think this maybe plays into Xenofiction tropes in general by ignoring the animals chosen except for aesthetics.

Which is Fine, but the only comic I know with an actual paleo accurate setting is Paleos (discontinued).

E.g. making hyenas patriarchal, tigers social or lions live in the jungle instead of matriarchal, solitary, and predominantly savannah dwelling (respectively), for the sake of? Story? Not doing research?

Anyway, sorry for the ramble, I'm driving 10 hours a day rn so I gave a lot of time to ponder until I come back into connection range cx

[witchezandwonderz]

Haunted By You

Pairing: Sihtric x Reader

Request: Heyyy! ♡ Do you still take requests? If yes, could you do promt 13. for Sihtric?

Prompt quote: "You call yourself a warrior, but I’ve seen more fear in a frightened hare."

A/N: This is a bit of a sad one, and tbh it is a bit chaotic- normally I really try to think out the plot but my mind is all over the place, and I wanted pure emotion, so its more of a stream of consciousness lol.

Reblogs, likes and comments are unbelievably appreciated:)

Tags: @leftoverp1zza @benkeibear @klaudsworld @whitedarkmoonflower (if you wanna be tagged/ untagged let me know:))

Four years.

It had been four years since Sihtric.

He haunted you, day in, day out.

You had spent a whirlwind of three years together- three years that were full of the most heart breaking love, lust, obsession and dedication- on your part anyway.

You had met him at an alehouse one evening; he was a friend of a friend, and as soon as you lay eyes on one another, your attraction towards each other was exceptionally clear. Much to your dismay, however, you discovered that Sihtric had a woman, already.

You respected this, of course. But it did not change the way he looked at you. It did not change the deep, hilarious, flirtatious conversations that you had every time you saw one another. In fact, it got to the point where you would all meet up and you and Sihtric would find yourselves sneaking away immediately.

Your heart soared when he told you that he had left his woman, for you. You felt like the luckiest girl in the entire world, you could finally be with the man that you knew you loved, with your whole being.

The entire situation was a whirlwind that lasted a life time.

Sometimes, Sihtric made you feel like you were the most beautiful, sexy, loved woman on the planet. But sometimes, Sihtric made you feel unappreciated, lost and empty- for he would go days without contacting you, and disregard his previous words by saying that he is not ready for such a commitment.

The last time you had seen him, he was cold. You had found out that he had been unfaithful to you, and a week after this, bumped into him at the alehouse. You were both drunk, and your attraction for one another always stood firmly. So, despite his new relationship with another, the two of you were intimate. He told you after that he regretted it, with a coldness in his eyes that you did not recognise.

He left you. He left you heartbroken, used and aching.

The past four years had not been easy, after your last meeting with Sihtric, you spend every single day and night crying, on your own in your bed. Your friends tried their best to get you out and cheer you up, but nothing worked. Sihtric had a firm grip on your heart, and you felt absolutely worthless without him.

Four years later, and you were proud of yourself- of the woman you have become. You ensured to grow, mentally- you ensured to love yourself, build your skills, your intellect. And most importantly, you had done a lot of work in forgiveness.

Sihtric haunted you. You lied to your friends when they rarely brought him up, you wanted to pretend you had forgotten. You felt embarrassed that you still thought about him, constantly.

You were able to get on with your life, of course, but he was always at the back of your mind. Thoughts of what could have been. Questions of why he treated you so carelessly. You concluded that it was simple; you fell completely in love and he did not- you forced yourself to view it this way, for if you did not, then you would drive yourself insane.

He had been a storm in your life; fierce and wild. That was how you chose to remember it.

Despite this, despite the upset and anger he had caused, you moved on and you were finally somewhat happy.

But he was not.

He had not moved on.

He missed you. He regretted leaving you. And he had not stopped thinking about you since the day he cowardly left you.

The inn was warm, its low ceilings trapping the soft glow of candlelight and the hum of quiet conversation. You did not attend this place often, but tonight had felt like an exception. Four years had passed, and you told yourself you were a different person now, unshackled from the shadows of your past. You are a hard worker, and so your friends had persuaded you to allow yourself one night of drunkenness and laughs. Or, they said, you will surely reach the brink of insanity.

Unbeknownst to you, Sihtric sat at a table in the far corner, nursing a cup of ale. His dark eyes flicked up every so often to catch glimpses of you, though you were blissfully unaware of his presence. He hadn’t meant to stay so long in this town. Passing through had been the plan, but the moment he’d seen you, smiling and relaxed among friends, he couldn’t bring himself to leave.

You were happy.

And it tore at him.

He had thought of you every day for four years. Regret was a cruel companion, whispering reminders of the things he had done—the hurt he had caused you when all you had given him was trust and affection. He had loved you, in his own broken way, but he had been too selfish, too reckless to show it. And now? Now he sat in the shadows, watching a life that no longer had space for him.

He gripped the cup tighter as a laugh escaped your lips. It was the sound of something he had lost forever. He wanted you to be happy, of course. But he did not want you to be happy without him. He knew this was selfish, but that is a trait that he found himself portraying very often.

“You should go to her,” Finan muttered beside him, startling him. He hadn’t realised the Irishman was paying attention. Sihtric scoffed, in turn coming across a lot ruder than he had intended.

“She doesn’t want me near her,” Sihtric replied, his voice low, weighted with guilt.

“You don’t know that.”

“I do.” He clenched his jaw. “I made sure of it.”

Finan's brows furrowed, "I thought you said that-"

Sihtric's cut his words with a raised voice. "I know what I said. It was partly untrue." He spat, his dark eyes still fixated on the ghost before him as he took a large swig from his ale.

Despite the growing volume throughout the alehouse, you had heard growing voices coming from the corner of the room. This grabbed your attention, as the bellow of deep voices usually meant that a disagreement was about to take place, one of your favourite ways of being entertained.

Your eyes darted to the corner, curious about the escalating exchange. For a moment, the faces were obscured by the dim light and shadows, but as you leaned slightly to get a better view, your heart stopped.

Sihtric.

Time seemed to slow as recognition hit you like a tidal wave. He looked almost the same—his jawline sharp, his dark hair slightly longer than you remembered, but it was him. The man who had unraveled you, who had left you broken and questioning your worth, was here.

And he was staring back at you.

You shook your head and closed your eyes. There no way that it was actually him, and you feared for your own sanity- not only was the thought of him haunting you, but now you were actually imagining him.

You opened your eyes once more, and there he was, still staring back at you. His head now tilted in slight confusion, seemingly because of your dramatic head shake. Your mouth opened, and your eyes widened. His facial expressions mimicked yours as you now stared at each other, pondering both your own and each others next movements.

Sihtric’s chest tightened as your eyes met. He hadn’t prepared for this, for the way seeing you would feel like both a punishment and a blessing. You were no longer the girl he’d left behind; you held yourself differently now, with a confidence that hadn’t been there before.

You did not know what to do. Three years ago, you would have marched up to him. You would have begged him, or slapped him and then slept with him. But that was no longer the woman that you were- you promised yourself you would not allow him to worm his way in again.

So, you stood up, downed your drink, wiped your face and made your way to the door- you had to get out of there.

Sihtric saw you rise up, and selfishly thought that you perhaps had the intention of approaching him. His heart however smashed into a million pieces when you ran towards the door and left.

“Do something,” Finan hissed under his breath, nudging him with an elbow.

Sihtric started panicking, for within his head he was having a battle; he wanted to run after you- he needed to run after you, but what if you didn't want him too? What if he was going to ruin you again?

Sihtric glared at him, his jaw working as he struggled to find the courage he had abandoned years ago. “I can’t,” he muttered.

“You’re a bloody coward,” Finan shot back, shaking his head in disgust. “You call yourself a warrior, but I’ve seen more fear in a frightened hare.”

The words stung, but Sihtric couldn’t deny their truth. He had fought battles, spilled blood, but facing you—facing the damage he had done—was a battle he didn’t know how to win.

He let out a deep breath and shot Finan a glare before using both of his fists to bang the table. He stood up firmly and ran after her, without any further thoughts of what he should actually say when he finds you. If he finds you.

The night air was sharp and cold, a contrast to the warmth of the alehouse. You stood a short distance away, your arms crossed tightly over your chest as you tried to steady your breathing. You couldn’t believe it. Sihtric. After all these years.

You cursed yourself for running. It wasn’t like you to flee from anything, let alone a man who no longer held power over you. And yet, the sight of him had stirred something you thought you’d buried—a mix of anger, longing, and an ache you couldn’t name.

Footsteps echoed behind you, hurried and uneven. Your heart leapt as you turned, and there he was, standing a few paces away, his chest heaving as though he had run the whole distance.

“Wait,” Sihtric called, his voice rough and low.

You stiffened, unsure of whether to stay or to leave. But something in his expression held you there—an almost desperate sincerity that made your throat tighten.

“What do you want, Sihtric?” you asked, your voice firm despite the storm of emotions brewing inside you.

He paused, his hands flexing at his sides as though searching for the right words. “I… I'm sorry”

You scoffed, your anger flaring. “You are sorry?” You shook your head. “Four years, Sihtric. Four years, and you just show up out of nowhere?”

“I didn’t plan this,” he said quickly, stepping closer. “I didn’t even know you’d be here. I hoped that you would. And then when I saw you…” His voice faltered, and he dropped his gaze to the ground. “I had to come after you.”

“Why?” you demanded, your voice rising. “So you can break my heart all over again? To remind me how stupid I was to believe in you?”

Sihtric felt sad, he had never evoked a reaction like this from you- he had never seen this side to you.

"No, so that I can tell you that I love you." His words fell from his mouth- he had never told anyone that he loved them before, and you had never thought you would ever hear him speak such emotions.

"You love me?" You laughed bitterly, before turning around, in order to stop yourself from hitting him.

He followed you though, refusing to allow you to look away from him.

"Y/N, I know that I was wrong, and awful and cold and you did not deserve any of it but I did not know myself, I had things that I had to learn and work on and think about." His words tumbled once again, full of chaos and pure emotion.

He grabbed your hands in the attempt to stop your pacing and look at him once again.

You stared at him, your anger still simmering beneath the surface. “And what? You’ve suddenly figured it all out now? After four years?”

“I don’t expect you to believe me,” he admitted, his voice softening. “I don’t even know if I deserve your forgiveness. But I’ve spent every single day thinking about you, about what I lost. You taught me how to love, and I was too much of a fool to see it then.”

His words hit you like a tidal wave, crashing over the walls you’d built around yourself. But the pain he had caused still lingered, sharp and unrelenting.

“You hurt me, Sihtric,” you said, your voice trembling with emotion. “You broke me in ways I didn’t think were possible. And now you just want me to forget all of that?”

Sihtric shook his head no, and used his index finger and thumb to clasp the bridge of his nose, in a strange attempt to calm his nerves. You shrugged before speaking once again. "I have moved on."

Sihtric stopped at your words, panic and anger flashing within his dark eyes. "You are with another?" He probed. You wanted to lie and say yes, but as your mouth opened you realised that you could not lie to him, even after everything.

"No, Sihtric." You breathed, in turn earning a sigh of relief from him. "You haunt me, Sihtric. I have tried being with others, and allowing them in but not one man on this earth compares to you, as much as I wish it wasn't the case."

Sihtric's breath hitched at your words, a flicker of hope mingling with the torment etched across his face. For a moment, he seemed frozen, his hands falling to his sides as he absorbed what you had just confessed.

“You don’t know how much I wish I didn’t haunt you,” he said quietly, his voice thick with regret. “But selfishly… hearing that I still do—it makes me feel like maybe there’s still a chance.”

You narrowed your eyes, your anger flaring again despite the ache in your chest. “A chance for what, Sihtric? For you to come back into my life and rip it apart again? I can’t keep doing th-"

efore you could finish your sentence, Sihtric closed the space between you in one swift, deliberate motion, capturing your lips with his. The kiss was unlike anything you’d experienced before—urgent yet tender, a raw outpouring of all the love, regret, and longing he had kept locked away. His hands cradled your face, his fingers threading into your hair as if anchoring himself to you, afraid you might slip away.

Your resistance melted in an instant. The passion in his kiss unlocked the ache you had carried for years, dissolving your anger and fear in a tide of longing. Your hands gripped his tunic, pulling him closer as you matched his intensity, your body betraying the walls you had worked so hard to build.

When he finally pulled back, his breath came in uneven gasps, his forehead pressing gently against yours. His eyes were wild with emotion, the faint glow of moonlight catching the unshed tears that clung to his lashes.

“I can’t lose you again,” he said, his voice trembling with raw vulnerability. "I refuse."

He grabbed you again, this time with accelerated desperation in his movement. The kiss was fire and confession, his hands moving to cradle your face with an almost frantic tenderness. His lips pressed to yours as though each moment could be his last, pouring into you the depth of his regret, the ferocity of his love, and the promise of a future he was desperate to build with you.

He suddenly pulled his face from yours, your eyes still closed from the passion of the kiss- everything was happening so quickly and you could not help but feel overwhelmed from all of the emotions that were being both confessed to you and stirring within you.

He dropped to one knee, his hands never leaving yours. Your breath hitched as his words came tumbling out. “I’ve spent four years haunted by the way I failed you. I’ve fought battles, faced death, and yet nothing has ever terrified me as much as losing you forever.”

You froze, your heart hammering in your chest. “Sihtric…”

“I know I don’t deserve this. I know I’ve hurt you in ways I’ll regret until my dying day,” he continued, his voice thick with emotion. “But I love you. I’ve always loved you, and if you give me this chance, I will spend the rest of my life proving it to you.”

[profounddefendorcrusade-blog]

I feel bad for Starlo. (pt. 3)

Starlo's friend, his BEST FRIEND, the woman who he's been in love with long ago (maybe he still is, we don't know because he's so nice as not to act on his feelings or even show them), the person who was supposed to be there for him, be understanding even tho she doesn't share the same passion, be considerate of the feelings Starlo's always been dealing with (hating being born a farmer, hating himself, hating feeling worthless and unappreciated)... Now, don't get me wrong, there were instances where she did try to understand his obsession and pretend she was into it, but it kinda just... fell flat. Even Ceroba herself admits:

Then there were moments like this:

Yeah, Ceroba's not trying too hard to "roll with his punches" here. It feels like she's constantly trying to figure out whether to be accepting of Star because he's so passionate, or annoyed because they're not on the same wavelength.

Then we get these:

Well, based on all this, you'd think she'd be understanding of him later on, at least on an emotional level (aka understand as to WHY he's been more 'selfish' and 'reckless' ever since Clover arrived,) but...

What now??

You mean how, instead of being miserble like when he was just a farmer who couldn't do much for his community, he now pretends not to be miserable by entertaining you all? Right??? Or do you mean he's changed in a DAY because of Clover?

But what?

huh

So you want to see the farmer who feels worthless, just being the Nice Guy™ he always has been (I decided to check out TV tropes for Star, and found out how he's basically been the "Nice Guy" archetype before Clover came. So I repeat: what's the issue with him stepping out of that for a day? I explained already how the guy's NOT to fully blame here and I really mean it. Yeah he has flaws, yeah Clover's presence brought out the "worst" in him, but we mustn't forget who he's been before that and that his true motivation has always been lifting up everyone's spirits).

The guy made all the sacrifices he could (not only worked hard to make the entire Wild East thing come to fruition, but basically became a rebel, when you remember humans are hated by monsters, and he's basically openly idolizing them) for his loved ones and even strangers. It's always been him relying on outer validation and doing stuff for others in order to feel important. But he never felt truly understood. By training Clover, he actually got to spent time with a human kid who's so much like him and shares not only the same love for westerns but the same "justice" quality. Sure, Ceroba had tried to understand, but ultimately failed and Star himself had to explain to her why he'd been acting the way he did, after Showdown.

You don't want him to have pride in himself and feel cool for a single day, Ceroba? She mentions how he's never been as ecstatic as he was that day. So in other words, Star's always been a wild card when it came to the sheriff business but not THIS wild. Which I'm sure means how other monsters have always been his main focus, and not him acting all arrogant (ties in well with that "Nice Guy" archetype). Even the training didn't feel too crazy to me, tbh. He only locked Martlet up because of the potential of his town being shut down. It's a town that he's been working on for so long, the town that makes him feel like he's more than just a nobody. Plus, he says how locking Martlet up was only a temporary solution:

I feel like I've said this a million times before, but Starlo's not a bad guy or a jerk, he just wants to be appreciated and loved and understood. Yet even his closest friends couldn't put themselves in his shoes and think: Why? What's the true motivation of Star idolizing Clover? Of him apparently acting "out of hand"?

I'll post the last part of this huuuuge rant sometime soon

[e-rated-beardo]

A happy post about comments and "book clubs" and reading fanfic

Just wanted to share this, because I periodically see these posts on my dash about leaving comments on AO3 (important; DO THAT) vs talking about fanfic "in secret" – ie where creators can't hear; in private fanfic "book clubs" or what have you – and my point is that this DM about essentially that happening made me very happy.

Because of course people will talk about what they're reading in private spaces where creators aren't present. I don't want anyone to go thinking the problem lies in conversing with your friends. The problem is only when the creator never hears about people loving their work, and ends up feeling isolated and unappreciated.

Getting this message meant four things to me:

A bunch of people really like my story. (😊)

They're talking about it where I can't hear (neutral fact of life) and it was theoretically possible that I would never know about it. (☹️)

But now I do know about it! (😊)

As a bonus result of their talk, I'm likely to get new readers! (😊) (I've actually noticed a bunch of new comments on the first few chapters lately, and this explains where some of that might come from. Knowing that is also very nice, tbh.)

I guess the moral of this lazy sleepy twixmas afternoon post from my dad's living room sofa is, that if you find yourself talking excitedly about a fic with your mates in your Discord, consider making a point of telling the author, either via DM or in a comment or wherever you can think of! Tag authors when you rec their stuff (if you know their handles)! And actually, if you find a fic through a rec and you like it, I recommend mentioning the rec in a comment, because "found this based on recs from xyz"-type comments give me a lovely fuzzy feeling, and I can only imagine the person who recced you the fic would be chuffed to know you liked it, too. (I'm shit at this by the way, because I'll click links and leave fics open in tabs for ages before I read and then I'll have forgotten how I found it. But if you're better at remembering than me, please mention.)

(Also, goddamn, the fact that my fic is so interesting that people want to talk to their friends about it? Are you kidding me? BEST compliment!)

Thanks @bellisima-writes for the messages btw ❤️

[sokkastyles]

Hi, I’m finding it difficult to wrap my head around your (and some other meta writers) take on Sokka’s sexism and how writing a nonsexist society would be braver?

Why is it more brave to write a story without bigotry than one overcoming it?

Defensive Writing Section Where I Respond to What I Imagine You Could Respond With: 1) I know the original series did not succeed in, or even really try, empowering its women. 2) I know sexism is baked into the show and its romances. 3) I know Katara deserves better (but, this might be where we diverge, I don’t feel served by a reality/story where we pretend women’s domestic, unappreciated labor isn’t a pillar holding society up. Tbh it feels kinda disrespectful to keep that offscreen and media tends to downplay it as is). 4) I know the show isn’t out yet and we’re all guessing. I am picking your brain on your guess cause it confused me. 5.) Sokka’s arc is about maturing manhood and leadership, I’m afraid removing his sexism dodges an opportunity to explicitly deconstruct its toxic expressions. Again, I know the show was unsatisfactory with this the first go around.

Fan Mail Section Where I Attempt To Convey I Meant No Harm: Love your blog! Again, just confused.

First of all, I did not say that writing a nonsexist society would be braver or that the story should not have bigotry in it. What I said is that the story should have more adult women in it.

For example, I do enjoy Katara's story of struggling against feeling like she needs to take on a motherly role because of her gender. I think it's realistic because it's a conflict many girls face, and watching her fight against that can be cathartic. But what's harder to reconcile is the way the narrative goes out of its way to justify forcing this role on Katara. Not all of this can be chalked up to a sexist world. Kya being dead before the story begins was a decision the writers made, for example. I'm not necessarily saying that should be changed, but it is a common trope in media and it's a problem that women are disproportionately killed off to serve fictional narratives this way. Compare, for example, the way the story explains Hakoda's absence without killing him off entirely, and the fact that we know a heck of a lot more about him as a character than we do Kya. His absence is still used to characterize the heroes, to explain the struggle they face in a war-torn world, but he gets to be an active agent in the story, too.

Another example is that although a lot of Sokka's sexism stems from a lack of understanding of Katara's waterbending, which can be explained in the narrative by the fact that the FN has nearly eradicated southern waterbending, this does not explain why Katara wasn't taught more about her bending by her grandmother, who is both from the northern tribe and present when Hama and the other benders were taken. In the flashbacks in "The Puppet Master," we see that there were many women who used combat waterbending, and apparently waterbending healing was not even known in the south so there was no gendered division like in the north. There's no real reason why that should change so quickly in such a short amount of time to the point where the southern water tribe all of the sudden becomes this hugely sexist society where only men are known to fight.

Katara and Sokka are presented with opposite ideas about gender, but we don't have any real sense of where they got these ideas. I like to headcanon that Katara got her feminism from gran-gran, who fled the southern water tribe because of sexism, but it's strange then that Katara doesn't even know this story. Why is Kanna such a complete nonentity in the narrative, when her story is so important to the story the show wants to tell about Katara?

We get more backstory on Sozin than we do a lot of the adult women in the story, when they even show up. Zuko's mom is fridged just like Katara's, and although I love how this serves as a bonding point between them, it would be less glaring if Iroh's and Azulon's and Sozin's wives were also not nonentities in the narrative.

Someone commented on this post that the live action might be giving us Suki's mom. So let's look at how even this small change might effect the story. Even keeping in Sokka's sexism. Let's say that it does play out like in the original, and when they get to Kyoshi Island, Sokka is shocked - shocked! - to be beaten by a bunch of women. We're supposed to think Sokka is wrong. And he does get proven wrong. But the Kyoshi Warriors are still the exception to the rule. Sokka doesn't so much learn that women deserve respect as much as he learns to respect some women because they can kick his ass.

But, if we bring in Suki's mom, then suddenly Suki doesn't have to be the sole named character responsible for teaching Sokka not to be sexist. The story becomes less about how Sokka should respect women because some of them are cool and he'll get a girlfriend out of it, and more about how all women deserve the same respect, because we see more women just present and living in the world of the story.

I'd also like to ask everyone to take a step back here, because to my knowledge, the show never said it was taking out certain arcs or presenting the characters without narrative flaws. This all seems to stem from the young actors themselves saying merely that the show took out some "iffy" moments.

So what did they take out that Ian and Kiiawntio might be referring to? Maybe some of the anachronistic and, frankly, racist moments such as, for example, Sokka and Katara calling Zuko and Sokka's cultural hairstyles "ponytails." Which would make sense, considering that the show probably feels like they can trust their audience to accept hairstyles that might appear different to Americans moreso than the writers of the original show did, considering that this is not a show airing on American kids' cable in the early 2000s, but a modern show with a global and much more globally aware audience. These are the kinds of updates that I would expect from a modern live action series. And that is a very good thing.

I also trust the young actors of color playing these kids to say "hey, these kids would not actually talk like that!" More than I trust white writers and execs.

[raccoonfallsharder]

I think I just realized based off of one of your reblogs that one of the biggest reasons I like Rocket so much is because his backstory is too fucking relatable for me

i have too many reblogs to know which one you are referring to but

i think a lot of us who love rocket do so because some part of us relates to him. i'm not saying that we feel like we are rocket (though some of us probably do) but there's a sorrowful number of people out there who know what it's like to feel unloved, unappealing, unworthy; who have been convinced (or who have convinced ourselves) that we are too ugly or petty or small or flawed to be truly accepted or to deserve acceptance; who have been alone for so long or hurt so bad that we fear togetherness; who have gifts that have gone unappreciated by those closest to us; who have had our trust betrayed by those who should have protected us; who have held ourselves up to impossible and arbitrary standards. and that's not even beginning to count those of us who have chronic pain, chronic illness, visible or stigmatizing injuries and appearances, visible or invisible disabilities, and/or just don't feel at home in our own bodies. it doesn't count those of us with some version of survivors' guilt, or those of us who have felt like we used to have people to save before we failed them.

maybe this is why (imo) the folks in the rocket fandom so often to prove to be some of the kindest and most empathetic folks on the internet

when i (we?) write rocket getting an opportunity to heal - to give kindness or love and to be able to receive it - i heal something in myself, too. selfishly, grandiosely, i hope i get to offer a little healing to other folks, too.

and. beautiful blazing bby firebird. not to be, like, combative lol but tbh it's not surprising to me that someone who identifies with the idea of a phoenix would also identify with rocket. literally his whole arc is about rising from the ashes

anyway all this to say, rocket is deeply relatable and you are in very good company if you relate to him, darling sunshine. and i believe in you. i believe that you'll find ways to overcome the things you've gone through. i believe you'll work through the impossible standards and self-doubt you've placed on yourself, and the bad things that were done to you by others. and i believe that you deserve good things - like connection and community and joy. and if you don't already know that - if you're not yet at the end of your volume three - i believe you'll get there someday too. and if you DO know that, then i'm so glad your dog days are over, bby.

[n3ptoonz]

also I just read ur riding hcs and UR LAO HCS ARE SO RIGHT!!! hair pulling and praise are SO him, and tbh — as a little personal addition — this mf wants his tits played w fr,, like his pecs are WAY too fat to go unappreciated

HUMINA HUMINA WOWOWWOW BOIOIOIOING EYES POPPING OUT SOUND EFFECTS SCREENSHOT SOUND EFFECTS (i woke up to this and almost pissed myself) BOOBEEZ i need to bite them and knead them like a cat

KUNG LAO TRUTHERS STAND UP‼️‼️‼️