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beenbaanbuun · 2 months ago

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hierarchy w/ poly hohong

words - 3.1k

genre - smut

warnings - dom!yunho, akita hybrid!yunho, soft dom!hongjoong, human hongjoong, sub!reader, unknown dog hybrid!reader, mentions of past abuse, mentions of scars (from fighting), reader is a brat, cunnilingus

i wrote this ages ago and idk if i like it or not but rather than sitting and stressing about that, i decided to post it instead 🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️

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your dinner looks entirely unappealing as you push it round the plate with your fork. the peas are an unsettling shade of green and as they float upon the thin layer of gravy at the bottom of your dish, your stomach can’t help but churn a little. it’s nothing like the instant ramen and microwave meals your old owner used to feed you, and for that reason you simply won’t touch it.

there’s a sigh from across the table and you lift your gaze to see where it’s coming from. you’re met with two pairs of eyes, both of them equally as fed up at the other. there’s hongjoong, staring you like you’re the sole reason for everything bad in his life, and there’s yunho, watching with a tight jaw and hungry eyes. if you didn’t know any better, you’d think that the giant akita-hybrid is more seconds away from jumping your bones and taking you right there and then. you’d be lying to yourself if you said the idea doesn’t appeal to you. it just so happens that you are an exceptional liar.

“you haven’t touched your food,” hongjoong sighs as he lifts a hand up to brush over his tired expression. the so-called ‘experienced hybrid trainer’ is clearly losing his patience with you, although you’re not entirely sure why. you’re not even trying to be a nightmare; he should see you when you’re not on your best behaviour.

“i don’t like it,” you reply, putting your fork down just so you can fold your arms petulantly over your chest. yunho scoffs, his muscular arms shifting until his position mirrors yours.

“how do you know you don’t like it if you won’t even try it?” he says in the same tone he’d use if he were talking to a child. you can’t help but scoff that that; you’re not a child.

hongjoong reached over to place a hand on yunho’s arm. it’s a silent direction for him to be quiet and let hongjoong do the talking. he is your owner after all; a sentiment that fills you with a strange mixture of sadness and annoyance. you were perfectly fine in your old home. you didn’t have to be ‘rescued’ from them and you certainly didn’t have to be rehomed here.

“i know what i like,” you spit as you push the plate away from you, not even blinking an eye as gravy spills over the edge onto the mural painted upon the top of the wooden table. you’d found out on your first day here that yunho had painted it for hongjoong upon his one-year anniversary of being adopted; you hope you won’t be around here long enough to even think about doing something so utterly pathetic.

honestly, as yunho growls and lays his fluffed up ears flat against his skull, you can’t imagine him doing something so pathetic. all you see now is a highly trained attack dog, nothing like the precious puppy that hongjoong makes him out to be. you almost cower in your seat as he glares at you, but you’ve faced far worse than being pinned by an overgrown akita—you have the scars to prove it too.

“please, hyung,” he begs, voice far too soft to be coming from such a dangerous looking individual. “please let me put her in her place,” his eyes flicker down your form as another growl makes it way up his throat, “pups like her need structure; they need to know their position in the hierarchy.”

hongjoong hums, clearly contemplating it. obviously they’ve had this discussion about you before and whilst the thought of them talking about you behind your back makes you more than a little moody, you can’t help but feel like this has some deeper implications. does it mean that they’re planning on keeping you around? if they want to establish your place in this made-up hierarchy they seem to have, then surely they’re not planning on getting rid of you any time soon. your tail flicks in annoyance at that revelation.

“are you sure, yunho?” the hybrid nods and hongjoong resigns all too quickly for him to not have already been considering it. “fine; we can try it your way.”

and just like that, yunho’s expression transforms. the snarl on his lips changes from one of annoyancs to one of authority. you feel like a disobedient pup getting put in its place by an overbearing adult; one that doesn’t know the meaning of the word mercy. you suck in a shaky breath, the anxiety of facing the unknown becoming far too apparent. you’re the only one at this table who has no idea what’s going to come, and that frightens you to no end.

yunho stands up and stalks his way around the table. it takes an annoyingly short amount of steps for him to reach you, and once he does he wastes no time in grabbing your jaw with one huge hand. it tugs at your face until your neck is bent at an uncomfortable angle and your gaze is on his face. his pupils flicker over your expression, searching for any signs of discomfort or fear. you’re anxious, sure. uncertain, absolutely. but scared? not at all. you’ve been through worse and once you’re out of here, you’re almost positive you’ll go through worse again.

he leans down until his face is mere inches from your own. the smirk has fallen, morphed into something far more serious. he inhales, deep and calm and you can’t help but try and mirror it. it never twigs that his intention is exactly that; to soothe you before whatever is yet to come. if you were more aware of what he was doing, perhaps it would’ve made you spiral further. why would he want your defenses lowered?

“puppy,” he says in a tone deep enough to send a shiver down your spine, “i need you to remember that what is going to happen isn’t out of your control; if you don’t like it, you tell us. it shouldn’t be difficult for you. you’re good at telling us exactly what you don’t like, hm?”

“what’s going to happen?” you ask, your voice probably the least defiant it’s been since stepping through the doors of hongjoong’s home.

“you’ll find out sooner or later ,” he says with a soft smile, “now be a good puppy and wait upstairs in hongjoong’s room, alright?”

you furrow your brows. hongjoong’s room? you’ve never been allowed in there before. it was one of the rules that was set in place when you first arrived here. ‘hongjoong’s room is his, your room is yours. stick to your own space unless it’s an emergency.’ you remember it very clearly and it’s one of the ones you’ve tried your hardest to stick to. privacy is something you appreciate and hongjoong respects yours. the least you can do is return the favour.

“i’m not allowed in there,” you state the fact as though it’s law. to you, it practically is, “i’d be breaking the rules.”

“says the little brat who’s been stealing our possessions for her nest since the first day you got here. what, you’ll steal my ratty old sweaters but you won’t go in my room?” hongjoong’s smile is apparent in his voice. he sounds fond, for some reason, as if he hasn’t just—rightfully—accused you of stealing from him. “it’s okay to break the rule this once, sweet thing. i give you my explicit permission, okay?”

yunho gives you a smug smile. it’s a small ‘i told you so,’ even though you hardly think the situation is worth it. it’s not like you were trying to avoid whatever fate awaits you in hongjoong’s room—although maybe a little—you were simply trying to stick to the one rule you actually believe in! in a childish huff, you stick your tongue out. that ought to show him…

“cute,” he chuckles, “now do what you’re told, alright? go upstairs and wait on hongjoong’s bed,” a few seconds tick by as you contemplate whether or not you want to resist him even more. on one hand, you’re still anxiously unaware of what’s to come, but on the other, you’re almost positive things will get worse if you don’t comply. sure, yunho told you that you’re the one in control, but you really don’t feel it. no, this time it’s better to obey than to be a brat.

you push yourself to your feet, slowly enough to allow yunho to straighten up too. there’s a pleased hum fall from his lips as he scans you up and down, honing in on the small details. the way your speckled ears twitch nervously atop your head, the way your fluffy tail tucks itself between your legs, and most importantly, the way you subtly bare your neck in a subconscious show of submission. he knows it’s more of a safety thing than anything; the scars that litter your body tell him that you’ve learned how to stay safe the hard way. it hurts a little, but it’s a start. it shows him that you know you should submit; now he just has to make it so you submit because you want to, not just because you feel it’s necessary.

you side step him, careful not to brush past him accidentally. shaky legs guide you to the stairs, the anxiety of what's to come mixing with the knowledge that you’re being watched, studied, by the two men that are in charge of your fate. it’s safe to say that you’re grateful to finally get your hand on the banister that leads up the stairs. without it, you can almost guarantee that you’d have tripped and fallen.

the seconds tick by as you climb them and make your way towards the room at the end of the corridor. perhaps it’s your nerves that make it seem as though the door is getting endlessly farther and farther away with each step you take closer. it seems so far, almost like you’ll never reach it. step after step and still you’re not there yet. it gives your brain too much time to think, filling itself with ‘what if?’ questions and worse case scenarios.

until, of course, you do reach it, and then everything seems like its come to fruition all too quick. you suck in an anxious breath, placing your hand on the doorknob and counting to five before pushing it open and forcing your feet to carry you to your doom…

but it doesn’t feel like you’ve reached your doom in here; it’s far too cosy for that. in fact, it’s safe to say that you’ve probably never seen a room quite like this one, littered with soft colours and warm blankets, plants hanging from every surface and some even dangling from the ceiling. it’s a far-cry from everything you’ve ever seen before and yet it makes so much sense. hongjoong had been so eager to fill your room with things when you first arrived, none of which you’ve bothered to unpack. you told him you didn’t need them since you were certain you wouldn’t be around for long. the man had insisted upon buying you more and more until the pile of unused blankets and soft furnishings in the corner of your room could be arranged into some sort of seat that you sometimes use as a change of scenery from your bed. you didn’t understand why he wanted your room to have ‘warmth’ but now you see it; you’d be happy to spend an eternity in this room.

in some sort of giddy haze, you stumble to the bed and sit upon it, just like yunho had instructed. that pit at the bottom of your stomach is still very much there, but as your thighs sink into his soft quilt and your fingers spread themselves across the soft cotton, you find that the awe you feel is far more prevalent than your nerves right now. again, if you took the time to think about it, it might have made you panic more. the odd sense of security you feel from this room should have left you utterly terrified, and yet there you sit, a small smile upon your lips as you let the comfort of the room wash over you.

but just as fast as you made yourself at home, it’s all torn away from you. the door clicks open once more and everything positive you'd briefly felt is torn away in seconds. socked feet fall heavily against the wooden floor, followed by a softer step that you can only assume to be the smaller of the two men. your breath shudders as they grow closer, hitching when a large hand once again finds its way to your chin and pulls at it until there’s nowhere to look but yunho.

“you’re a good puppy at heart, aren’t you?” he purrs as he strokes your cheek. in your peripheral you see hongjoong crawl his way onto the bed and up to the headboard. “i know it’s hard when all you’ve known is neglect, but you deserve to have a family. you just need to learn your place.”

the hand slips from your cheek down to your shoulder and with a gentle shove, pushes you back against the mattress. your body is pushed and pulled into position until you’re lay exactly where they want you, head resting on one of hongjoong’s thighs and your legs spread just wide enough for yunho to slip between them on his knees. hongjoong wastes no time in lacing his fingers through your hair, nails catching against the base of your ear. it’s been a long time since anyone has scratched your ears like that and the sensation has your eyes fluttering shut. he chuckles at your satisfaction and while normally that would earn someone a harsh nip to whatever exposed skin you can access, you let it rest for now.

“remember, sweetheart,” he murmurs as he scratches your scalp, “this is all up to you,” yunho’s hands make their way to the waistband of your shorts, fingers dipping just below the hemline. it’s enough to have your breath hitching in your throat, and while you know you can stop this, you don’t. not because you feel like you can’t, but because you don’t want to. not yet, anyway. perhaps curiosity killed the cat, but it’s been so long since you’ve been touched like this.

besides, satisfaction brought it back.

yunho hums in agreement as he begins to tug gently on the fabric, catching your underwear with his fingers as they make their way down past your hips. “if you want me to stop, you tell me,” the air of the room is cold as it hits your exposed pelvis, and it sends a shiver down your spine as yunho lifts your hips to pull them past the swell of your ass. it’s a little uncomfortable when your wetness is uncovered but yunho is quick to remedy that with a swift kiss to your clit. it’s enough to make you moan a little, but it’s gone just as soon as it’s there. half of you is tempted to buck your hips up in a silent request for more, but you figure your safety is more important than your pleasure. you press your hips back down to the bed.

it takes him very little time to completely tug your shorts free from your legs, tossing them somewhere vaguely behind him. they thud as they hit the ground, but he has no interest in seeing where they went; not when your naked lower half is spread out on the bed for him. he tries to ignore the scars on your thighs, simply smoothing his hands over the remnants of your previous life. they don’t matter anymore, anyway. you’ll never have to fight ever again.

he lets his hands travel to the apex of your thighs, your pussy waiting, ready for him to take as his own. he must be doing something right since it’s already practically dripping. all he wants is to lean forwards and taste it, but he hesitates, gaze travelling to your face first.

“can i?” he raises a brow in question.

“can you what?” you respond.

“taste you, puppy,” you eye him up suspiciously, not quite sure why he’s asking you that. he wanted you to submit, didn’t he? so why is he asking for permission to take what he wants from you? “i want to taste you.”

“yes, but—”

“the answer’s yes?” yunho cuts you off, hands massaging your thighs heavily. there’s a sly look on his face, one that tells you you’re in for more than you you bargained for; more than just saying ‘yes’ to a simple question. you swallow thickly as you nod. “good,” he says, “now ask for it like a good puppy.”

you tip your head to the side curiously, your ears flopping as you shift your position on hongjoong’s thigh. there’s a chuckle from the otherwise quiet man, and with a quick flick of his wrist, your ear is back where it’s supposed to be.

“ask?” he nods.

“like a good puppy,” you feel a shiver run down your spine as his hand brushes against the length of your tail, not stopping until it reaches the base. he tugs upon it gently a couple of times. it’s annoying and anyone else wouldn’t have gotten away with it. you’re not exactly in a position to fight, though, so you let him tease you in the most childish of ways hoping that when all this is over you find an opportunity to tug on his tail instead. “like hongjoong always tells you; don’t tell,” he tugs, “don’t take,” he tugs again, “ask. politely.”

you grit your teeth, “can you?”

“can i what?” he leans in close, breath fluttering against your wet folds as he spurs you on. he’s so close to giving you what you want; a single buck of your hips would brush your aching clit up against his nose. you could get what you want if you really tried hard enough, but somehow you know it won’t end well for you.

“can you eat my pussy?” your words come out defeated and sad, and you have the expression to match. hongjoong coos from behind your head, fingers moving swiftly against your scalp to try and help you feel better about your surrender to yunho. it doesn’t quite work as well as when the hybrid lays his tongue flat against your slit and obscenely slurps up your juices.

“now you’re getting the hang of it, puppy,” hongjoong says, voice sweet and caring like it always is, “all you ever have to do is ask.”

#ateez x reader #ateez fanfic #ateez oneshot #ateez fluff #ateez scenarios #ateez fic #ateez smut #poly ateez x reader #poly ateez smut #poly ateez #poly!ateez #yunho x reader #yunho smut #hongjoong x reader #hongjoong smut

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epicbuddieficrecs · 1 month ago

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Weekly Recap | November 4th-10th 2024

I think we can all agree that last week was a bit of a rollercoaster? 🙃 At least we still have our emotional support gay firefighter show ❤️

(as always, if you know someone who's not tagged, please tag them in the comments!)

Complete

Good Luck Babe by jesuisici33/ @jesuisici33 (Post-S8E6: Confessions Coda | 1K | Teen): Buck nods. His own face still has that kicked puppy look. But he manages a smile. Even sad, Buck’s smiles light his face up. Eddie thinks he could never get tired of Buck’s smiles. “Why did you shave it off? I need a distraction. A happy one.” “I’m working on no longer denying myself fruit juice.” It’s Buck’s turn to open and close his mouth in confusion. “O…kay? I don’t know what that means.”

watch you win, watch you cry by wenttoafortuneteller (Post-S8E6: Confessions Coda, Pre-Buddie | 1K | Teen): Buck lets out a long, tired sigh and admits: “Tommy broke up with me.” “Oh,” Eddie says. He makes a conscious effort not to smile.

your shoulders brush (no proof, one touch) by farfromthstars/ @doeeyeseddie (S8E6: Confessions Coda, Pre-Buddie | 1K | General): “It’s not funny,” Buck whines. “I just thought– we have– were having a good time together. And he’s been so great through the whole figuring myself out, he made me feel so, um, so secure in my sexuality, you know?” “Well, you’re not any less bisexual if you’re not dating him,” Eddie shrugs. “So I guess he didn’t feel the same way, then?” “Kind of?” Buck turns on the couch and pulls one of his legs up. His knee nudges Eddie’s thigh, and Eddie is suddenly very aware that he’s not wearing pants.

ode to a conversation by markofalover/ @markofalover (Post-S8E6: Confessions Coda, Getting Together 3K | Explicit): “He was right to break it off, because—Josh asked if I thought about him when he wasn’t around, and if his concerns and happiness were important to me, if I saw a future, and, Eddie, I—” “Buck,” Eddie cuts through again, and this time Buck listens. Closes his mouth and stares at him with big blue eyes, and Eddie. Eddie’s heart is in his mouth. It’s right in front of him. “Come here.”

It’s Always Been You by scarmaddiewrites (S8, Getting Together, PWP | 3K | Explicit): Buck and Eddie travel to Texas to pick up Chris and run into some issues, all leading to them finally getting together.

ode to joy by signetsealed/ @gayeddieagenda (Post-S8E6: Confessions Coda, PWP | 3K | Explicit): “Okay,” Buck says. "Let's do that.” Eddie frowns. “Do what? Dance?” “Sure,” Buck says. “That, or whatever else you were thinking of doing. We can…be joyful.”

i must confess, i’m in love with my own sins by inbetweenthestacks/ @organizedstardust (S8E6: Confessions Spec | 3K | Teen): “I just want it to be easy, you know? I don’t want to have to think about if I’m acting the right way or saying the right thing. I just want to have a-a person. I want someone that wants to stand next to me. I want to know someone is always gonna pick me, no matter what, they’ll have my back. Like how it is with—“ he stops short. Buck, he almost says. Like how it is with Buck. — Eddie goes to confession and has a few revelations.

lock me down tonight by lecornergirl/ @clusterbuck (PWP, Getting Together | 4K | Explicit): Buck grabs the bathroom door, but freezes before he can open it more than an inch. Because Eddie is in the shower, but he’s not crying. Eddie is standing with one arm braced against the tiled wall, turned away from the door. The shower spray cascades over his muscled back and the curve of his ass. His other hand is wrapped around his cock.

"What the fuck, make your move." by dylaesthetics (Post-S8E6: Confessions Coda, PWP | 4K | Explicit): When Buck smashes their mouths together, Eddie forgets how to breathe. Then, he isn’t all that interested in basic human necessities such as that. He thinks, at the bottom of Maslow's hierarchy of needs instead lie Kissing Buck, Making Buck moan, and Trying not to come in my briefs. ~ OR Eddie is Buck's last.

Thankful for You by scarmaddiewrites (S8, BT Break-Up, Pre-Buddie): The one where Buck plans Thanksgiving dinner at his place and then breaks up with his boyfriend.

Take The Bitter With The Sweet by fruitsdoesnotknow/ @tayf-ghost (Ravi POV, Gettign Together | 5K | Teen): No one thought to brief Ravi on the Buckley-Diaz situation when he finally joins the 118. Spoiler, it goes about as well as a car crash.

first and last by hispolestar (Post-S8E6: Confessions Coda | 6K | Explicit): And suddenly, like Eddie summoned him, Buck is standing in front of his door. Eddie’s not sure if this indicates that God is real, because He saw Eddie’s quest for joy, or if it’s just Evan Buckley. It’s probably the latter.

The Only Truth by phdmama/ @phdmama (Magic AU, Getting Together | 6K | Explicit): Eddie says, “I fucking hate you.” At least, that’s what Eddie intends to say, because he means it, in that moment he absolutely means it, having just watched Buck rappel four stories down a burning building and hit the ground eight seconds ahead of the roof caving in. What comes out instead is, “I fucking love you.” Luckily, just as he had opened his mouth, the roof had, in fact, collapsed, which caused a lot of commotion and noise and whatnot, and Eddie’s words, his very strange and unintended words, get lost in the mayhem. Huh, Eddie thinks as his body moves on autopilot, racing across the cracked asphalt of the parking lot. That was weird.

a night in early october by brewrosemilk/ @gayhoediaz (Post-S5, Getting Together | 6K | Mature): Buck comes home from an extra shift, and Eddie makes him dinner.

sweet talk with a hint of sin by justhockey (Post-S8E6: Confessions Coda, Getting Together, PWP | 7K | Explicit): He doesn’t want to stop; he doesn’t even want to slow down. He wants this, here, for the rest of his life. And he’s past wondering if he deserves it, past thinking he isn’t good enough for a man like Buck, past being scared of the love that lives inside of him. He wants Buck selfishly, wants him greedily, and if he’s willing to give himself over to Eddie, then Eddie isn’t a selfless enough man to say no. He isn’t strong enough to deny himself such joy. “Need you,” Eddie begs. “Please, Buck. Please.”

said that i was fine, said it from my coffin by justhockey (Post-S7, BT Break-Up, Getting Together | 7K | Teen): Buck leans in so close that Eddie can feel his breath on his cheek when he asks, “Hey, are you sure you’re alright?” “I’m fine,” Eddie lies. And it doesn’t matter that he feels like he’s dying. Like the version of himself that he’s always been is suddenly a stranger to him - just a mask he’d spent his entire life hiding behind, without ever even realising he was wearing it. It doesn’t matter that Eddie is…that he’s gay. Because he knows - as surely as he knows that the sun will rise again tomorrow - that the only person he has ever, and will ever, truly love is Buck. And Buck isn’t his to love.

don’t mention any other name (that doesn’t sound like mine) by bandshirts (Post-S7, Getting Together | 9K | Mature): Or, Eddie flirts with a man at a gay bar. Buck is totally normal about it. (Spoiler: he’s not.)

so only say my name (it will be held against you) by bandshirts (Post-7x04, Getting Together | 10K | Explicit): Or, Buck accidentally says Eddie’s name during sex, figures out some things about himself, and finally gets the right guy this time.

WIP

wicked dreams by hispolestar (Post-S7, BT Break-Up, Eddie Sexuality Crisis, Getting Together | 3/9 | 14K | Explicit): Eddie’s trouble starts with a dream. Well, it actually starts much earlier, when he runs into a woman who is the literal carbon copy of his dead wife. Or, alternatively it starts with a lightning bolt. Or a sniper. Or a firetruck. Or a car crash. Or, realistically, a grenade embedded in a seventh-grade teacher’s leg. It starts with blue eyes, broad shoulders and a tenacity that shocks Eddie to his very core. But right now, Eddie’s trouble starts with a dream. ~ Eddie, alone and confused, is navigating Christopher's extended stay in Texas, while also grappling with feelings he's been repressing for seven years. Buck, who misses Chris dearly, is struggling under Gerrard and his boyfriend's dismissive attitude. In the wreckage of their lives, they find each other.

I guess your mama didn't know the gift she got when she got you by disasterbuck/ @disasterbuck (Post-S7, Fake Relationship | 5/? | 10K | Teen): "He has someone else he can go to," Eddie said automatically, Buck's smiling face flashing into his mind. "Your friend Buck doesn't count," she said dismissively, and Eddie felt his hackles rising defensively. "I'm talking about a partner, Eddie. Someone who will commit to being with you and Christopher for the rest of your lives." "Buck is committed," Eddie said before he could think about what he was saying. "He's not going anywhere." There was a pause on the other end of the line. "When you say committed…" she asked hesitantly, voice trailing off. - Tired of his mom's nagging, Eddie tells a lie that spirals wildly out of control.

Gentle On My Mind by Daisies_and_Briars/ @cal-daisies-and-briars (Canon Divergent, Shannon Lives, Buck/Eddie/Shannon | 7/? | 44K | Explicit): In which Shannon lives, tells a lie, and sends hers, Eddie's, and Buck's lives down a very different path.

& such by colonoscopys/ @colonoscopys (81K | Teen): prompts and spec fics and codas and all the works jumbled mumbled into one place.

Chapter 20: GAY EDDIE REAL (1K)

Podfic

🔥[podfic] a night in early october by half_bakedboy/ @half-bakedboy // fic by brewrosemilk/ @gayhoediaz (Post-S5, Getting Together | 30-45min | Mature): Buck comes home from an extra shift, and Eddie makes him dinner.

Re-read

woke up the girl who looked just like you, i almost said your name by rarakiplin (gmontys)/ @hoediaz (S5, Out Eddie, Getting Together | 9K | Teen): Or, five times Eddie dates a guy a little too similar to Buck, and one time he dates the real deal.

#buddie #buddie fanfiction #buddie fic rec #epic buddie fic rec #buddie fanfic #buddie fic #i'm quickly approaching 300 writers/podficcers recced since the beginning of this blog!!!

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crimson-and-clover-1717 · 4 months ago

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It breaks me that two of Ed’s reasons for what he likes about living are on the very bottom rung of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. And even intimacy (level 3) is phrased in such a way it might as well be.

Warmth? Fucking warmth? Ed may as well say - Reasons I like living: I enjoy breathing.

This is the traumatised boy speaking.

Ed’s list is reptilian-brain survival.

The thing is, Ed knows humans need more than this in order to thrive which is why he states his con as ‘I don’t think anyone’s waiting for me’.

But I think it does show Ed wants to live. He’ll take the bare minimum rather than set a high bar. He lists very achievable things.

Even if it’s for basic reasons, even if no one is waiting for him, a part of Ed really, really wants to live.

#ed teach #you deserve the world #ofmd

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quasi-normalcy · 9 months ago

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I know that this is the "Turning social problems into matters of individual virtue" website, but here's one change that you can make to yourself as an individual that I honestly think will have beneficial collective effects:

Stop Thinking You're Better Than Other People.

Do I mean that you should go through life thinking that you're the lowliest and most wretched scum who's ever lived? No. I mean that there exists no meaningful criterion by which one human being can be said to be absolutely 'better' than another. And even if there was, you don't know enough about other people's circumstances and interior thoughts to meaningfully judge them in these absolute terms. So don't even try! It's a futile endeavour.

"But what about fascists? Surely I'm better than them!"

Okay, so let me preface this by saying that fascists are dangerous, they're misguided, their acts and intentions are evil, and they need to be stopped, including through physical violence. But you're not better than them. I know that this is a difficult pill to swallow; I myself used to pat myself used to pat myself on the back because, well, at least I wouldn't have been a Nazi. But you know what? If the circumstances were right, I could have been. We all could have been, just as we all could have joined a cult at some point.

Looking at myself, for example: there was never any serious possibility that I could have been swept up into the alt-right movement. Why? Because I'm transgender, and I was raised to be a socialist. How easy it is to *not* become a fascist when you're one of their scapegoats! How much harder it would be to avoid if you're one of the people they flatter and groom, if you're raised by people who are sympathetic to fascist ideals, if you grow up in a community where such ideals are common! The fact that fascist movements can seemingly emerge amongst every nation and people--including those who have historically been victims of fascism--confirms this. What if I had lived a hundred years later, at a time when transgenderism was a complete non-issue, and they'd moved on to some new scapegoat? What if they had approached me on my absolute worst day and told me that all of my problems were caused by moochers and parasites, and that I could fight back and claim my birth right by joining them? Can I really say that I wouldn't? Can anyone?

But even beyond that, what is a fascist but the ultimate example of someone who needs to feel superior to others? What is scapegoating but the act of selecting an entire group of people and declaring them to be inferior to you? And if you just refuse to believe these things; if you refuse to accept the premise that some people are better than others, and call it out whenever it comes up; then you're cutting these movements off at knees! The ideological force of fascism comes from imagining humanity as a strict hierarchy, with the master race on top and the degenerates on the bottom. Simply refuse to believe in such a hierarchy! Refuse to even entertain it!

"But then how can I feel self-esteem? How can I feel that I matter and have value?"

You have value just by existing as a person! But if that's not enough for you, then try this: instead of trying to increase your sense of self-worth by finding people to feel superior to, increase it by being of value to others. Help them! Make their lives better! Contribute to society! Not even in a way that you can (necessarily) put a dollar value on, but in any way you can! Create art! Plant a pollinator garden! Tell a joke! Make someone happy! If nothing else, you can at least give someone love, and I guarantee you that that will be of value to them. The universe is so vast and we're all so small that any value we can ever have will only ever be to each other. And surely it beats spending your life trying to be king of the microbes.

#humanism #ethics #sorry I'm going off a bit here #i've been nursing this one for a while

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unadulteratedsoulsweets · 1 year ago

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A DC X DP #18

You want a taste of my brain? Okay, it's yours anyway.

Imagine dis…

This time I get inspiration from an A03 fic, and some of its parts just stuck with me and now I’m writing about it, if some of you want to read it go for it. If you are asking for the name don’t ask, I am not going to sell my soul to the devil to find it in my ever-growing history. If you do manage to find it, kudos to them.

TELL ME I AM GETTING DESPERATE OVER HERE

Credits to them as well. Also, as you’ve noticed I decided to post less, now it is due to a good old lack of inspiration. So, don’t go getting your hopes up on this one.

…

Ever since Danny Phantom had become the Ghost King he repeatedly entered the reincarnation cycle willingly to retain his morals when he was human. He still retained his ability to stay in the middle of life and death. But when he as the High King of the Infinite Realms gained immortality he found himself losing his ideals and values, he began forgetting. With Clockwork’s insistence, every few hundred years he would become human to experience a lifetime. Sometimes he would go another round in the same dimension, but only when he needed to finish an unfinished business.

Sometimes he is lucky sometimes he is not.

Sometimes he would be born into a loving family with either as the only child or him having siblings. He has experienced the life of royalty as the heir prince. He experienced the life of a knight who was known for his skills with the sword. He was born into a normal family which made him second guesses his every choice due to his lack of normality in his life. He was also born into some wild dimensions that of which could look like it came from a book. From wizards and sci-fi worlds, he never had the time to sit and be an extra.

But there were also times he was born far too unlucky.

He was born in a salve ridden society, a parent who were core members of a rebellion so when his current parents died, he was expected to be like his parents. Born in a society where the rich trample the poor and he was forced into early child labor as expected in society to work at a very young age. Born where he and the people around him had never seen peace in a war-consumed country, a war that separated his family from each other not knowing whether one is alive or not, leaving only him and his siblings to stay alive. Being abandoned by a pair of druggies for his parents left alone inside a dumpster and died in the middle of the night, looking through the dimension he saw that some homeless people found his body and reported it to the authorities leaving his parents in jail while some prisoners seem to leave them at the near bottom of the hierarchy in prison.

…

It seems this time he was born in an assassin cult this time he wasn’t alone. A twin, an older sibling that was with him in the womb and both came into the world together. The moment he laid his eyes on his grandfather he can already tell that he is a major fruit loop from the way he both look at both of them.

His name is too formal for his liking, Dylan Al Ghul, he already convinced Damian to call him Danny when it was just the two of them. Danny tries to downplay his abilities both ghost and human seeing that his grandfather is too power-hungry to the point of misusing ectoplasm that is corrupted but still ectoplasm to achieve some sort of immortality, he tried to give Damian a childhood in the form of showing him the stars whenever he could sneak him outside. He saw the absolute worship and awe Damian would give to their mother and their grandfather whenever they visit or supervised their training, Danny didn’t care for their approval nor their presence but seeing his brother seem to at awe and do anything to please the two made his heart shatter, his older brother never needed to prove anyone something.

Danny has repeatedly shown his disdain for the two most powerful people in the organization yet it is a miracle he still lives. It is because he is a spare, a spare yes not the heir but a useful spare one, twins one who specialized in stealth and espionage a twin who is a perfect copy of Damian aside from his eyes mirroring their supposed father. Both Talia and Ra seem to make it their life mission to drill his only purpose in his head, it may have never worked due to his adult mind but he pretended it would be as to not raise any suspicion.

…

The day Deathstroke attacked not only he dared to kill the demon head but also choose to kill the chosen heir, by removing an eye and some of his organs as a form of slow torture but also killing him as he made the organs unable to go back to their owner’s body.

Danny couldn’t look away from his bloodied brother, Talia slowly approached him from behind and put her hands on his shoulder, and whispered some honeyed words on how his role as the spare will be fulfilled at a much earlier date and promptly injected with a sleeping drug.

…

Danny was already awake when he noticed the cold metal bed behind him the lack of clothes as well the number of doctors seemingly in a rush to prepare for a last-minute surgery. He saw the unconscious form of Damian on the other side and suddenly heard the loud ticking noise of a grandfather’s clock.

It seems that it was meant to be, Danny thought as an image of Clockwork flashed in his mind.

He fell back asleep knowing that Damian lost an eye, kidney, a lung, some ribs as well an ungodly amount of blood, possibly more. Danny knew that this vessel of his wouldn’t survive at the sheer need and he already felt that he would not leave the room alive. So, he took one last peek at the sleeping Damian and promptly closed his eyes, the moment he opened his eyes once again he was back in his chambers in the Infinite Realms clutching his left eye in his face whilst looking at the mirror as he felt his eye be the first one to be removed.

It seems this time he died months before he and his brother celebrated their 10th birthday.

…

Damian woke up with a pounding headache being the assassin he is he immediately looked around seeing that his last memory is being tortured by Deathstroke.

He immediately took notice of his loose clothing and tried to walk towards the door but his knees immediately gave out. As he tries to gain his bearings, he noticed a scar right in the middle of his chest, it couldn’t be from the time when he was captured by Deathstroke as he noticed that this scar is too clean, too sterilized as if someone had just come out of a surgery type of scar. As he tries to loosen his shirt to take a better look at his scar when he noticed a mirror facing his way and noticed his eyes, instead of his usual pair of emerald eyes he was greeted with an emerald eye of his own and his brother’s icy blue eye in his left eye.

Damian remembered that Deathstroke took out his eye, as according to him it reminded him of the Demon head, and decided to promptly pull it out with his bare hands.

Dread began to fill his very being and tried to go and look for his brother but deep down he already knew what happened to him after all, he is the heir while his brother his beloved younger brother is just a spare.

…

When Damian had met his father’s wards most of them commented on his heterochromia eyes and promptly greeted back with his sword in their faces.

The rest grumbled that Damian couldn’t take a tease or two, but immediately chased the demon brat as he chases each and one of them with the intent to kill.

Damian couldn’t tell them; another son was hidden from Bruce. Another son he had failed, another son who died before they could even meet him.

From the first few interactions he had with his father when he first met him, he knew where his brother’s bleeding heart came from.

Sometimes he could still see him, Dyl- no Danny, every time he looks in the mirror. The constant reminder that his brother was seen by the league as nothing but a spare. Whatever love he had for his mother disappeared the moment he laid his sight at his brother’s eye embedded in his supposed empty eye socket.

The constant reminder that shows every time he looks at the mirror and the scar in the middle of his chest, Danny’s organs that were used on him to ensure his survival while Danny was left behind.

…

He was 14 years old when he went wide-eyed at the stranger across him and his brothers in a heavily populated area.

A teen looks exactly like him with a medical eyepatch on his left eye as he sits in a wheelchair chatting idly with an older man.

Damian heavily thought of a clone, did Talia, not mother never mother, make another clone after him after weeks of silence?

Damian still remembered the first time he encountered a clone with blue eyes, his running theory is that due to his new organs have bonded with him thus creating a batch of clones with blue eyes. Timothy had spoken up that since babies have a 50/50 chance of inheriting the colored eyes of either parent made a new branch of clones.

Damian was already planning on disposing of the supposed clone when the said clone suddenly laughed exposing his neck that have a feign white line across indicating a scar. But that scar made Damian double guess, all clones he encountered are scarred free thus leaving him to have no trouble disposing of each and one of them but the existence of the scar he barely caught is something both brothers swore secrecy to it.

The laugh oh god, his laugh, only his brother laughs like that, Damian thought mournfully.

As he tries to look the other way, he suddenly faced the same doctor who was the assistant doctor that foresees his surgery years ago. He may have distanced himself from the League after he had fulfilled his debt but it was no mistaking that it was the same doctor that operated him that time.

A chemist they said, an insufficient man who is more cowardly than any other man yet his talent in poisons made him quite a gem in the League.

A clone who had broke out of their collective mind control? Possible, but why this clone? What made this look alike so special that this man dared to leave the League?

…

Robin began to follow the two, the other bats thought that he had a new case on his lap that requires recon. They didn’t question Robin’s new behavior as they have seen him do the same actions when he landed himself a case or when he was following a lead. Yet they couldn’t shake the feeling that something is not right, whether it is the fact that Robin refused any assistance or just the fact they have no idea what kind of case Robin is working on.

They should have listened to their guts then maybe they wouldn’t be surprised at the bat screen, showing a maternal and paternal match to a picture of a blue-eyed black-haired kid with a medical eyepatch on his left eye looking like Damian in a good day.

…

Danny was doing some paperwork when a flying thought passed by him about his last reincarnation. All memories from his adventures when he got reincarnated are usually put behind the back of his hand yet worries about the well-being of his brother made him distracted, and kept close a special one-way mirror to monitor his baby brother.

Danny felt nostalgic at the family drama and chaos that he can’t help but cackle at each interaction Damian has with their father’s adopted children and wards. He found himself majorly of his time watching for hours and hours, he can’t help but wish he was there. As if he was summoned Clockwork appeared in front of him and told him to go back, which confuses Danny since it was Clockwork who implemented that he cannot go back to the same dimension/ world if his body is too far gone to be revived by him, yet Clockwork told him to give someone named Alfred his regards and vanished. Looking bewildered at his mentor/ grandfather he tried to sense his vessel with little to no hope seeing that the League has his body, but surprises himself when he felt his own body submerged in a portion of the Lazarus pit.

…

Going back, he was greeted by an assistant doctor that used to be in the League due to his ancestor’s debt. He explained that he cannot in good conscience do what he was instructed to after the operation, stole his body, and submerged it in an undiscovered pit due to its small size, enough to dump a child not enough for a grown adult.

After an initial check-up, both he and the doctor discovered that the mini Lazarus pit regenerated all of his organs except his eye seeing that it was his entire body submerged excluding his head. The assistant doc theorized that those organs of his may be weaker since they were generated from nothing, Danny in all his eldritch glory as well as being the most powerful being across the Infinite Realms played his part perfectly of a now disabled child.

After all who would accuse this disabled child putting the daughter of the Demon Head in an endless nightmare by his command to Fright Knight? Who would accuse that innocent blue eye of his that he had killed any assassin in their tail ever since he and his now temporary guardian began exploring the world? Who would accuse an adorable child that he was the one who had put the Joker in a definite MIA? Who would accuse this child who smiles like the sun despite his setbacks be the one who tortured Deathstroke to the brink of insanity? Danny is pretty sure his temporary guardian knew of his secret endeavors but remained quiet due to his habit when he was in the League or just to prevent any grayer hairs from growing in.

…

Now if only his brother stopped moping around the building across their apartment complex and just come inside, he made his infamous fudge to share with his brother. His brother didn’t have to drag the rest of the bat brigade in watching him across the building, he even made extra fudge, if only they could just go through the front door instead of rescuing him first in every rogue attack and pretend, they don’t him. Well, if they are playing a game then count him in to win. But for some reason all of them made a face of being constipated whenever they talk to him, Danny is so sure he used clean ingredients to make his fudge…

God dammit just enter the front door like a normal person, better yet tell Batman to stop looking at him as if he died! Those windows are not paying to fix themselves each time one of them decided to stop dropping and roll every other night!

…

PS: If someone out there wanted to continue or make a fic about this you are free to do so, don’t forget to tag me though.

#dc #dc x dp #dc x dp prompt #danny phantom #dp #ghost king danny #batfam #danny fenton #op danny #damian wayne

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gatheringbones · 6 days ago

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[“Many years ago when the Channel Tunnel—connecting England and France—was being built (1986–1992), I got the chance to talk to a nurse working on the project on the English side. The project was big, deadlines were tight, and the workers, she told me, were suffering terrible conditions in the tunnel (a total of ten workers died during the construction (Smith 2015)). I wondered how complicated her job was as part of the onsite health personnel for such a large project. Not very. “The men mostly come to me complaining of terrible headaches,” she explained, “my job is to give them two aspirin and get them back down the tunnel as quickly as possible.”

Speaking of medicine under capitalism, Waitzkin (2000: 37) notes the fundamental contradiction between the perception of health as the ultimate “caring profession” and a society which establishes obstacles to the goal of alleviating “needless suffering and death,” for “[t]he social organization of medicine also fosters patterns of oppression that are antithetical to medicine’s more humane purposes. These patterns within medicine mirror and reproduce oppressive features of the wider society as well.”

Marxist scholars of medicine have theorised this replication of the wider class struggle within the health system in a number of ways. First, the priorities of the institution favour those of capitalism and the ruling class. For example, the modern system of health care emerged out of the need for a healthier and more reliable industrial workforce (Waitzkin 2000: 48); concern for the health of the working classes has tended to peak when there are imperialist wars to be fought, while the majority of current medical research prioritises lifestyle and “me too” cosmetic treatments for the global market rather than research on life-saving treatments for cancer and infectious diseases (see, e.g., Rapaport 2015). Second, the exploitative work relations within capitalist societies are replicated within the rigid hierarchy of medicine, with high-waged, upper middle-class consultants holding a great amount of decision-making power at the top, the lower middle-class nursing managers administering consultants’ needs in the middle, and—holding no power whatsoever and subject to the whims of health managers—the low-earning working-class orderlies and auxiliary staff at the bottom of the pyramid. Navarro (1976: 446) also notes the tendency of the medical profession to maintain and reinforce these class relations through “both the distribution of skills and knowledge and the control of technology” within the health service. Third, the health system functions as an institution of social control. That is, it reinforces the dominant values and norms of capitalism through its surveillance and labelling practices. In the words of Freidson (1988: 252), medicine acts as a “moral entrepreneur” to the extent that illness is viewed negatively and as something to be “eradicated or contained.” Even cancer, he states, is a social valuation by the profession, a moral rather than an objective judgement of the body, even if it is one “on which most people happen to agree” (Freidson 1988: 252).

Taking a Marxist approach to medicine includes recognising the policing function of the health professions to label and “medicalise” social deviance as illness, as well as reinforce the ideological prerogatives of capitalism as natural and common sense (for instance, through biomedical interventions focused on the individual rather than the wider social environment).

The social control function within psy-professional work practices and knowledge claims is reasonably easy to identify and has been a major focus of critical scholars—Marxist and otherwise—since the 1960s (see, e.g., Conrad 1975; Goffman 1961; Rosenhan 1973; Scheff 1966). The moral judgements that mental health experts make of people’s behaviour under the claims of scientific neutrality and objectivity allow them to sanction forms of deviance which run contrary to the prevailing social order. For example, Szasz (cited in Freidson 1988: 249) stated in 1964 that “agoraphobia is illness because one should not be afraid of open spaces. Homosexuality is an illness because heterosexuality is the social norm. Divorce is illness because it signals failure of marriage.”

Specifically, Marxist contentions of the psy-professions as agents of social control focus on the ways in which these experts contribute to the alienation of people from their own creative abilities. These experts utilise their knowledge claims on human behaviour to depoliticise attempts at social transformation at the group and community level, in turn acknowledging only individual solutions as possible. Consequently, states Parker (2007: 2), this “psychologisation of social life” performed by mental health workers “encourages people to think that the only possible change they could ever make would be in the way they dress and present themselves to others.”]

bruce m.z. cohen, from psychiatric hegemony: a marxist theory of mental illness, 2016

#bruce m.z. cohen #antipsychiatry #currently reading

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doktorzephyr · 2 months ago

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hi im fucking insane and ultrakill somehow got me into angelology. heres some stuff on the archangel gabriel in reference to the occult/abrahamic magick

edit; added the meanings of the tarot at the bottom have fun ;)

As the Divine Herald, he is an angel of guidance, prophecies and revelations. He is also the Patron Saint of Messengers; mail carriers, news outlets, radio stations or any outlet that messages can be delivered through, he’s the one that can aid the most. As the angel who will blow the first horn of the final judgment, he is seen to also represent judgment. He is sometimes even seen as an angel of motherhood due to his announcement of the birth of Christ and John the Baptist and from this he is sometimes given the titles of Patron Saint and guardian of children. He represents the spiritual power of God, His ideals and principles of spirituality. As a result, he is seen as an angel of spirituality, dreams, divination and even magick.

He can be invoked for:

Guidance

Faith

Hope

Strength

Spiritual aid

Dreaming/dream interpretation

Theology

Understanding scripture

Birth

Here’s symbols he is associated with:

Element; Water (Spirituality, change, emotions)

Planet; Moon (Spirituality, magick, guidance)

Day of the week; Monday

Colors; White, silver

Animal; White dove (Holy Spirit)

Tarot; House of Cups, The Star, The High Priestess, Temperance, The Moon, Judgment*

Cardinal direction; West

Season; Winter

Other symbols; White lilies, trumpet, banner, feathers

How to connect with him:

Devotional Activities

Praying

Meditation

Fasting

Reading the Bible

Studying theology

Educating yourself about religion/sprituality

Material Offerings

Flowers (White lilies, white roses, lavender)

Incense (Jasmine, frankincense, lavender, rose)

White wine

Feathers

Perfume

Candles (White or silver)

Prayer cards

Bible verses

Poems/art

Moon, water, magick or religion associated items (moonstone, holy water, tarot card, etc.)

Archangels prefer devotional activities as offerings over material ones, though they will not reject them.

He can help with;

Lucid dreaming

Receiving visions

Developing divination skills and spiritual awareness

Lack of belief

Communication issues

Magick workings

When you feel lost/don’t know how to continue/unsure of how to move forward

His Kabbalistic sigil

His seal from the Heptameron

All in all, Gabriel is a very firm but merciful angel. He can be a bit pushy when you are not doing the right thing, but he is less rough about it than, say, Michael. He has a better understanding of human emotions than most angels and will act a bit more accordingly. When you don’t know where to go in life or have no ideas on how to move on, he is the one that should be contacted. He is also sometimes associated with the divine feminine due to his associations withe the moon and motherhood. He is usually seen as 3rd to God, with Michael or Sandalphon being 2nd.

Some extras about the archangels in general;

Angels mostly see humans like how we see dogs and often have a lesser understanding of human egos. It should be noted that angels have a bit of a reputation of being more difficult to work with due to them expecting a lot of discipline. They will not give you what you want, they will make you work for what you need. If one wishes to work with the archangels, they expect constant self improvement.

bit of a p.s; despite Archangel being the 2nd lowest on the hierarchy, they are the most powerful angels. Archangel is a rank and it means “governing angel” or “ruling angel”, they rule over other parts of the hierarchy (i.e Michael rules over the seraphim, Gabriel rules over the cherubim). Archangels are often called “the great princes”, however, Michael is the only one in the Bible to actually receive that title. The only reason why they are so low on the hierarchy is because they are physically far from God, as they spend their time on Earth helping humanity.

* What each of the tarot cards mean

House of Cups- relates to emotions and matters of the heart. Associated with love, feeling and inner conflict, they ask us to consider what is deeply important to us

The Star- the embodiment of hope and healing brings a message of renewal, optimism, and inspiration. When pulled, remember that the universe is working in your favor, and is encouraging you to have faith in where you are being taken.

The High Priestess- listen to your inner voice and follow your instincts, your mind knows far more than you think. When pulled, stop looking for answers around you and start looking within yourself for the guidance you seek.

Temperance- encourages peace and patience, reminds you to go with the flow of life instead of trying to force a pace and direction. When pulled, it is a message to take things as they come, and remain flexible enough to change with the changes.

The Moon- represents hidden thoughts, feelings, doubts, and fears. When pulled, you may be letting fear overtake your faith in the future. Do not be fooled, you cannot believe everything that you see, hear, or think. Once you bring your feelings to the surface and face them, only then can you rid yourself of worry.

Judgment- your past and future come together. When pulled, reflect on your decisions and actions you have made up until now and make sure that they are bringing you in the direction you want. Remember, your future is not set in stone, and it's never too late to make a change for the better.

thanks for listening to my madman ramblings baiiiii

#angelology #angelolatry #gabriel ultrakill #ultrakill gabriel #goddamn the brainworms got me #ultrakill

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raayllum · 6 months ago

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Chessmaster Ezran

It's no secret by this point that Aaravos is a chess master. He has literal pawns, his game motif is consistent across seasons (though mostly carried by the Key of Aaravos in arc 1), is associated with black and white, "eight in a line" from the 6x08 poem could reference 8 across as that's the number of pawns/pieces in a line in chess, and he's been referred to as a chess player, literally:

After more than a millennium of careful planning, moving and manipulating generations of humans and elves like pieces on some cosmic chess board, the machinations of the Midnight Star known as Aaravos are finally coming to bear.

The symbolism behind chess itself also talks about a "cyclical nature," the "unavoidable consequences" of each movement, the relationship in chess "between will and fate, but likewise between liberty and knowledge" and ideas of foresight and knowledge. (Meta here.) These are all things, of course, that Arc 2 is increasingly interested in exploring, looking at the ways characters are trapped by circumstances and choices and also deconstructing the idea of having "no choice".

I don't think at this point we have to prove, then, that Aaravos is a chess master of sorts; this is just the text, particularly because moving pawns around isn't that dissimilar from moving puppets around.

What is far more questionable, then, is Who exactly is Aaravos playing chess against?

Now, there's a few answers that could be the case. As displayed above, Aaravos lost one match against the Archdragons and was subsequently imprisoned, but it seems like maybe he was totally aware they were in the game, per se ("he let his guard down" / "as the day you betrayed me"). And while Aaravos hates the archdragons accordingly ("I'm glad you took down that arrogant monster"), they're very clearly not who his endgame victory is against. If he'd wanted to just destroy only them, he probably could've done so a long time ago.

At the same time, I don't think we can directly say the Startouch elves themselves. While they're the people he seems angriest at ("and when everything they have built lies shattered, I will savor their fall from the sky"), and therefore probably the people he wants revenge against the most... It doesn't seem like the Stars have been aware of what's going on down here in Xadia in centuries, and therefore, haven't been 'responding' to any of Aaravos' moves since he was banished and left behind. I wouldn't that it couldn't be him and Leola in some kind of proxy war, but if First elves like Aaravos are at the top of the magical hierarchy, and magic-less humans are at the bottom, it makes sense for a human to ultimately upend said hierarchy (with or without magic), don't you think?

Additionally, none of this is to say being cognizant of the Game is required to be Aaravos' opponent, but that Aaravos needs an active and reoccurring adversary to respond to. The good news is that he has one.

Now let me explain.

Set Up

While Ezran may not seem like an obvious choice — he's not a mage, he's not even one of Aaravos' current pawns to reward a 180 turn around if they turned against him, nor has he directly foiled Aaravos' plans the way Rayla has (at least once) — I think that's precisely why he's the one who's potentially in this role, symbolically at least.

While other characters are tied to the game motif in being pieces (Avizandum, Harrow and Sarai's graves, Callum and Viren's intros, the wooden Rayla doll from 1x04 of all episodes), Ezran is tied to being a piece mover and recognizing that the game and puzzle exists, each time. One that he can solve; one that he can win.

Now, part of that is helped by Ezran inheriting Harrow's status of being a thematic opposite to Aaravos. Aaravos 'serves' in order to gain control and power, and Harrow tries to even out of the scale of his control and power by serving the people: a servant king. Where Aaravos doesn't seem to see anyone as a person, in line with the way he literally uses his pawns, encourages dark magic, and dismisses his enemies, Ezran sees everyone — including animals, elves, dragons, enemies, etc. — as people (re: his sadness in 3x09 as he has to fight and kill people he wanted to save, because they literally won't stop attacking and have been robbed of their own humanity wilfully).

Piled on top is Ezran's own dichotomy of being both a child and a king ("A child is freer than a king") that mirrors Aaravos deriding the group as "pathetic children" while also relying on Claudia (whose the same age) to free him, and that he's playing a game at all that likewise involves his key ("It's a toy, a piece from a children's game" / "The whining child king, in over his head, and he knows it").

And more than that, Ezran has his own game motif. So let's talk about it:

Hide and Seek (Truth telling and Game Motif)

What begins as a little boy's favourite game, in addition to heartbreakingly always reminding you of just how young Ezran is in canon, evolves into a hide and seek game of world altering proportions. Arc 2 is largely about searching for / the acquirement of fully actualized knowledge (befitting of a mystery, mind you) and subsequently, the game of hide and seek is on for that knowledge. They just have to beat Claudia to the finding, first of the map, and then of the prison.

Knowledge of where the prison is hidden that Ezran uniquely carries and uniquely puts him at risk for. This is, of course, a call back to Ezran being the one to uncover the initial mystery of the egg (similarly to how Callum uncovers the truth behind primal magic and the fates of Rayla's parents). He discovers the egg in the dungeons, he advocates for telling the truth and being open and honest, and he is the Truth Teller of the series in so many ways, even if that doesn't mean he's infallible.

I had a speech planned for today. It was about peace and love and hope. But I think I left something out. I ignored something that was true. I denied something that is undeniable.

Ezran bears witness to the things that other people don't see, or the other things that people don't understand, as while usually we're let in on the loop ahead of time, Ezran's actions and discoveries — finding the egg, retrieving it, showing up the Bookery in the nick of time — are kept behind closed doors until the reveal. Much like Aaravos, I might add. Ezran wears the blind fold like is father did (screams in Celestial elves) properly, but can see clearly at the same time by extending it to all peoples simultaneously.

If the stars are evil because they are indifferent and potentially ignorant, if Aaravos is evil because he is aware of what's going on but unsympathetic, than Ezran is their true opposite in being 1) consistently and constantly thematically and literally aware of what's going on (i.e. his brother's sadness, Rayla's feelings upon her return, the feelings of dragons, Claudia's fight with Ibis) and 2) holding sympathy regardless (even for Aaravos).

If the truth is hidden, Ezran will find it. And that's exactly why he's uniquely fit to go up against Mr. I never lie in a thematic chess match across the whole series, so let's start unpacking it.

Kingship and Clarity (2x08, 2x09)

I'm not going to touch on S1 that much as the majority of what I would've noted is already in the previous sections, so with that in mind I want to talk the back half of S2, specifically Ezran finding out about Harrow onwards.

Upon receiving the news, Ezran is cruel to both Rayla and himself.

E: You knew? I'm such an idiot! I should've figured it out. When we met you, you had two of those assassin-y ribbon-y things. But one of them fell off that night! R: Yes. That must've been when he fell. E: Fell? Fell?! R: Yes. E: He didn't fall Rayla, he didn't trip and fall on the ground, he got killed!

Now there's parallels here about how Moonshadows will dress things up in prettier language than what's actually happening, and in Harrow's rejection of the same thing from Viren ("Call it what it is: dark magic") and Callum's critique in 3x08 ("You've got a nicer word for it?"). But the most overt thing is what we know about associations with falling and death from the elf we just recently got the name of: Aaravos.

Moving on, I want to talk about how Ezran's realization and acceptance of his father's death causes him to realize that he likewise needs to go home: "Maybe I can help the world better from the throne. I can do whatever I can to stop the war". (Something something Aaravos giving humans magic because he believed they could be 'better'.)

Aaravos was cast out of power and 'heaven' and Ezran ascends, yes, but Aaravos' descent caused him to lose clarity in childish revenge, whereas Ezran acquires clarity by moving into altruistic adulthood. He's not being radically changed morals or principles wise, but he's not stagnating. Furthermore, Ezran's bond with Zym that he acquires in 2x09 is like a 'healthy' version of Aaravos' channelling through Viren.

Ezran and Zym find that, due to their bond of love and understanding, they can see where the other person is, embodying the principle of the blindfold's basis being that you can see through another person's eyes and perspective. Here, Ezran's empathy / compassion is made completely literal, and helps Zym achieve the victory of flight in order to likewise save his brother and friend. Aaravos, meanwhile, channels power through Viren, and subsequently withdraws it entirely when it no longer suits him; Aaravos is seeing through Viren's eyes only, and they don't even win. Aaravos is eagerly participating in the fight at the beginning, but when he realizes his pawn may die, he switches tactics and "stays" with him. In contrast, Ezran and Zym achieve their aims and maintain their literal separation while being emotionally closer than ever.

This is all just set up for the Game, though. The first match that Aaravos and Ezra have, of course, is in 3x04 with

An Exchange of Kings (3x04)

As a game, chess is all about exchange and sacrifice. When Ezran is pushed into a corner of treating people like pawns (like symbols), he hates it.

What follows, then, is an exchange. In chess, if you get a pawn to the end of the board, you can exchange it for another piece that's already been taken (with the sole exception of your king, as that's checkmate). We see Aaravos do this slightly with Sir Sparklepuff and Viren in theory in 5x09, but we also see it here more directly with one king (Ezran) being swapped for another (Viren).

This is also, currently, the closest we see Ezran be a 'pawn' in any conceivable way. He's at the end of the board, he's being exchanged, except this time it's for the benefit of the opposing side. The main reason I mandate, then, that Ezran is still an Opponent rather than a piece is because of how this trade is inverted on an even broader scale later on this season:

The Final Battle (Or Not)

As king, and this is the particular piece of Chessmaster Ezran I think I adore above all else, he is fundamentally encouraged to treat his subjects like pawns.

Now, Ezran doesn't want to treat anyone this way. He doesn't view anyone, animal, human, elf or otherwise, as Not People. Even when the human armies are decidedly no longer literally human, and raging fiery monsters attacking him and everything he has left, he still holds sympathy for them and compassion for Claudia.

Claudia — and Viren — meanwhile, don't see their pawns that way at all. Claudia has yet to ever see Rayla as a person, only recognizing the elves who conveniently help her (Terry, Aaravos) as worthy of identified personhood; Viren and Aaravos' overall "plan" was to kill a baby dragon and use all the human army as "distractions". They never cared about anyone's personhood, once they'd gotten that far.

It is Ezran's distaste for seeing people as pawns ("Bait's not for sale, he's my friend!" / saving the baby glow toads) — preferring to see himself, like his father, as a servant king — versus that being all Aaravos has seemingly done for centuries that makes me feel like Ezran is the personal perfect opponent to eventually triumph in the end.

And going forward into S4, we see a few more of their matches take place:

S4 Ezran as the decision maker (4x04, 4x06)

One of the things I was most excited going into S3 was that Ezran, who'd been decisive but largely passive in the first two seasons, was going to be forced to make some difficult decisions. I was extra pleased, then, when we see Ezran step even more into that leadership role in S4 and S5; no longer is he mostly going along with Callum and Rayla's plans. Often times he's the one ultimately setting things up or making said decisions when the group is together.

It's his idea to tackle things together, and help Zubeia after all, in 4x04 (though he looks to his brother to receive an encouraging nod) and to bring Rayla along when she expresses doubts.

It's his idea to go find the puzzle pieces and express those next steps.

It's even his idea to bring Zubeia to Katolis that helps free up the Storm Spire for Claudia, as she takes the dragons leaving "as a sign" (unintentionally on Ezran's behalf, of course). But if Ezran is the stealth opponent here and there to Aaravos' mini matches, this is also something has happened before and will likely happen again, thanks to

The Orphan Queen

Chaos and confusion erupted and war threatened to tear Xadia apart, as now the elves suspected that the dragons had killed their queen. But truth came from an unexpected source. A young human girl discovered a great secret of history. A dangerous deceiver was revealed.

The last time Aaravos' plans firmly fell to pieces, and what led to his imprisonment, was ultimately the Orphan Queen. I've talked more about her potential parallels to Ezran in my Mirrored Trio theory post (as well as Callum's potential parallels to the Jailer) so I won't repeat too much here, but is an option if you'd like to see more.

The important thing to note here, though, is that Ezran's arc will 1) probably parallel the Orphan Queen's in ultimately being part of Aaravos' permanent defeat and 2) perhaps being one of the first to recognize the full scope of Aaravos' plans. I'd love it in particular if in S6, while at Katolis, Ezran does research into his ancient royal ancestor and learns more about her. Too late maybe to pass on the relevant information to keep Callum and Rayla from disaster, but... I expect this:

I should have seen it before. Ha! Long ago, it was a human who saw through the Fallen Star's schemes and helped Xadia put an end to them. You look so much like her.

to come to fruition eventually, in S7 probably. Aaravos may win his chess game in S6, after all, but he will eventually lose.

Season five, of course, also offered more evidence aligned with this reading:

Season Five Set Up

In S5, we see Ezran continue to be the Retriever and finder of objects in ways that thus far no else has really achieved.

Claudia tries and fails to retrieve objects, mostly; Viren probably comes closest, and it'll be more of an aim for Callum and Rayla in S6, I still expect Ezran to ultimately pull ahead in future seasons.

He's also associated heavily with light in the TDP short stories in ways we've largely only seen given to Rayla in canon as well, highlighting another similarity between them, and placing Ezran in a similar position as Zym as the world's hope ("Look at them, playing together. That's hope. They're the ones that are going to break the cycle"):

Even the waning moonlight struggled to pierce its veil. Somewhere out there were his friends. His duty. His king. Two years before, when the world had seemed darkest, Soren began to imagine Ezran as a kindling flame, a bright little light holding back the abyss. When he’d named Corvus a Crownguard, he’d told him that the young king was not only Katolis’ hope, but all of Xadia’s, too. Soren had sworn to protect and tend that light. To nurture it. And in his darkest moments, that oath gave him a reason to feel strong again, a way to keep smiling.

Ezran also acknowledges outright in 5x01 exactly what Aaravos is doing and is the first in canon to use language that references Aaravos' game as a chess game with it, too:

The Archmage Aaravos is trying to escape his magical prison. His pawns are working, even as we speak, to find him and release him back into our world. We need to stop them. Can you please help us find his prison?

Ezran's Plans

In the latter half of s5, we also see the group routinely go with or accommodate Ezran's plans as well, even if they don't all necessarily agree. This is true in 5x05, in which we see Ezran reiterate that violence is a last resort:

E: If Akiyu made it, then she must know where it is. Then we can stop Viren and Claudia from releasing Aaravos. C: Or, hear me out [...] How bout we hitch a ride up there, borrow this Novablade, then we wait for Aaravos to get out, and just stab stab, buh-bye bad guy! E: Wait, slow down. Shouldn't that be the last resort? If we can stop Aaravos from getting out at all, we can solve this without any violence.

and in 5x06 with talking to Finnegrin and saving the Baitlings.

R: But he's not known for doing favours out of the goodness of his heart. E: It's not a favour. The fate of the world is at stake. I'm going to go talk to him. C: I'll go with Ezran while you and Soren try the docks.

5x09

That said, I think about this line from 5x09 when it comes to all of the above:

E: One step ahead is okay. Because Domina Profundis told me something they don't know: the secret of the prison.

We find out, of course, that this is the prison is a pearl in a clam's mouth... something that Soren seemingly knew on account of travelling with Ez, but that Rayla and Callum did not. This puts a target on Ezran's back in the confrontation scene — she primarily attacks and interrogates him ("You know, don't you? Tell me everything you know little king, or I'll squeeze it out of you!") — and Ezran nearly gives the game away to disaster, so it's, again, not like he's perfect.

It does however showcase yet another example of Ezran knowing something that other characters discover after the fact, and more rarely in TDP, that the audience discovers after the fact (compare this with how we know Harrow is dead well before the princes do, for example, or that Claudia and Viren are already up to no good in early S4).

I also don't think I have to spell out that Ezran knowing the Secret of the Prison — the very thing he set out to find in 4x05! — in seasons called the Mystery of Aaravos is noteworthy, either. While there are certainly more secrets to uncover — how, for example, the prison was built exactly; how was Aaravos trapped within it; how did two humans like the Jailer and the Orphan Queen get involved — I think those are firmly moving into Aaravos backstory territory alongside the rest of his mysteries (cube included) than just relating purely to the prison's construction, per se.

Ezran received the last pieces of the puzzle, and he carried it through to the end to what, technically speaking, should be checkmate.

I can't wait to see him do it again some day, successfully this time.

Values and Gift Giving Subversion

I've already said that Ezran primarily takes on Harrow's mantle in being the the clearest thematic opposite to Aaravos thus far. That doesn't mean Callum and Rayla don't have their oppositions and parallels to Aaravos as well (they absolutely do; Rayla is currently a pretty strong foil!) but again that Ezran is the certified Opponent.

A few final ways we see this manifest is in Ezran's values. We've already seen the ultimate difference in their views on personhood, but one of my favourite ways that heavily intersects it that Ezran loves all his friends for the exact reasons Aaravos berates them in 4x04.

Aaravos taunts Rayla over her seeming inability to kill, but Ezran is the first to tell Rayla that's unequivocally a good thing: "You do realize I'm an assassin who hasn't killed anyone?" "I think that's a good thing."

Soren is a failed son 'unloved' by his father, but Ezran reaffirms time and time again how much he loves Soren, and the two always have a kind word or look for each other ("I just don't want to fail you too" "Thanks Soren [...] You're the best crownguard a king could ask for").

In a season where Callum learns his path of magic may have gotten him in a world of trouble, Ezran reminds him of the positive effect magic has had on his life, even if it's difficult: "Lots of things are hard, Callum. Like magic. But you figured that out".

We also see that Aaravos is prone to false gifts and dangling carrots. He gave Ziard a staff that couldn't ultimately protect him. He gives Viren another month of life mostly to bait Claudia into helping him. He uses and discards; these people don't mean anything to him. Not anymore.

Ezran, meanwhile, is nothing but sincere, particularly in his presentation of his crown to Finnegrin and Rex Igneous ("It's not worthless, it's made of my father's sword" / "I wanted to carry that strength with me") while also recognizing the error in his thinking: "We've got it all wrong. We offered gifts that meant a lot to us, but the truth is, they don't mean anything to you." He then realizes what Rex Igneous truly needs, and it is successful; we see this again in how his speech in 4x03 helps heal Zubeia. Ezran sees emotional scars clearly, especially after 4x03, and he responds accordingly and sensitively to them most of the time. He knows what people truly need, and that's why he's a good gift giver.

Conclusion

In the final season I think it would be Neato if Ezran had to spearhead an army against Aaravos' forces and send his brother and friends in as generals and soldiers because he doesn't want to treat them like pawns, he loves them, but to beat Aaravos at his own game he has to do so (until maybe Callum can flip the board on its head, thematically, anyway). Thank you bye

#chessmaster ezran #ezran #tdp ezran #aaravos #analysis series #tdp #the dragon prince #game motif #tdp meta #analysis #multi #arc 1 #arc 2

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sinful-lanterns · 7 months ago

Note

Path to Nowhere Monster AU

I want hot monster women to rail me and I've been brain rotting about monster!Sinners. Do with this as you please.

To talk more about the Monster AU, I think we should establish that this takes place in more of a medieval fantasy setting, rather than a modern setting. It’d probably take place in a world where monsters and humans don’t really coexist that well, as humans are actually not at the top of the food chain, monsters are (they even have a whole hierarchy system with humans at the bottom compared to weaker monsters)

However! That doesn’t stop Researcher! Reader from wanting to study them. Being the nerd that you are, you take it upon yourself to write a whole guidebook dedicated to studying monsters to help humans potentially understand them more. If only you knew however, that there’d be a variety of monster women gunning for your life, as they think you’d be the perfect mate for them, human or not.

From the desire to suck your blood from Vampire Cassia, to the need to fill you with sweet Lamia eggs from Serpent, many of these monster women are eager to claim you and make you their eternal mate. The only problem is, well…

Other monster girls want you too.

#⛓️ interrogation complete #monster au #ah #I love how all these women pine for the nerdy researcher #intelligence is attractive to them

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travellingarmy · 2 years ago

Text

✩̣̣̣̣̣ͯ┄•͙✧⃝•͙┄✩ͯ•͙͙✧⃝•͙͙✩ͯ✩̣̣̣̣̣ͯ┄•͙✧⃝•͙┄✩ͯ•͙͙✧⃝•͙͙✩ͯ┄•͙✩̣̣̣̣̣ͯ┄•͙✧⃝•͙┄✩ͯ•͙͙

✦❘༻𝚁𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝙼𝚢 𝙷𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚝༺❘✦

Ch. 2 - The Day I've Been Betrothed

Malleus Draconia x fem!reader

Chapter list + Summary

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Do not steal/copy + paste my works and upload it anywhere else.

⊰♤⊱⊰◇⊱⊰♡⊱⊰☆⊱⊰♧⊱⊰♤⊱⊰◇⊱⊰♡⊱⊰☆⊱⊰♧⊱

You remembered that day..

“Mn..” Soft.. The bed, it was soft and warm, making you not want to get up despite the sun having risen hours ago and blaring its light on your face. You buried your face further into the pillow. Ever since the war had come to a halt just shy of six months ago, it had been peaceful and you could sleep easily without a constant nagging thought of enemies breaking down your door in the middle of your sleep. Your home is still situated within the kingdom’s territories, but it was so far out– far from the castle and the main city– that enemies would have no trouble infiltrating it and not alerting the castle of their presence within the land.

Sure, you had guards situated outside and inside the manor and even had your father who was a commander of one of the Queen’s troupes but still, it did not completely quell your nervous anxiety. You’ve heard what creatures faes were during on one of the tea parties you’ve been invited to and honestly, you didn’t think the kingdom would last against them should the war go on for much longer. Unlike faes who are all natural-born magic users, not many humans possess them, yourself included, so it was not like the citizens could defend themselves while troupes were stretched far and thin across the land. Speaking of, since the war killed many soldiers, your father had to gather some of his from the manor, leaving not many to protect you which only did nothing but raise your alertness especially during nighttime where you’re aware that you could not see anyone past what the light of the lamp posts outside could reach. Those faes.. If they have sharp hearing, surely they have keen eyes, especially at night. You feel a chill crawl up your arms every time you think about it.

You planned to sleep just until a bit before lunchtime, enjoying the peaceful time. “My lady?” A soft knock was at your door, following an equally soft voice of a girl. When you ignored it to continue dreaming, another knock sounded and this time, it was a bit more firm and loud. “My lady, it’s half past eight now.”

Sighing, you slowly sat up on your bed, the ruffling sound of your silk sheets could just barely be heard on the other side of the door. “Mm.. Come in..” Groggily, you finally answered. You rubbed your eyes tiredly when the servant girl came. “Thank you, my lady,” she said and smiled warmly.

“What do you need?” You yawned and stretched your arms to shake away what the feeling of sleep remained. “Yes, of course, my lady. I shall not dawdle longer,” she gets to the point and explained her reason.

“What?” You blinked owlishly after she had finished telling you. “The palace had asked to see me? Today?” You were surprised in all honesty since anything related to the palace is usually your father’s business. Besides that, you were still not of age to be handling matters of the court.

“Yes, my lady. And the Queen had asked that you arrive on time– exactly 1 in the afternoon sharp,” she answers with immeasurable patience. You turn your head to the window adjacent to your bed and look at the rustling of leaves just past it with two black birds perched on a branch nearest to you. You were silent for a while. It was not as if you planned to decline order’s from Her Majesty, but you were wondering what today was for her to wish an audience with a baron’s daughter who has not made an effort to look worthwhile in banquets. One would assume that there is no chain of hierarchy within nobility, but they were quite wrong. It was a fight of popularity within the circle and you found yourself at the bottom of it.

—

“Huh, it seems that I’m not the only one who the Queen asked for..” You mumbled, looking at the long line of carriages outside, yours included. You peek your head out of the carriage window and find that those who have been invited were young ladies around the same age as you. If I remember correctly, they’re mostly unbetrothed daughters. You say mostly as opposed to all since you were unsure. You grew curious, especially after knowing that if you were told to come alone, it must mean that all these important daughters are without a guard either.

Finally, your carriage rolls to the front of the castle and someone from the palace opens the door and helps you out. You had informed your father about the situation just before you left in your best dress. Seeing as you were going to meet the queen, you chose a red dress adorned in white pearls and lace. White pearls were also added to your updo to complete the look.

But I guess the others also thought the same.. You sweatdropped at the number of girls wearing a red dress crowding the front steps of the castle, some flashier than others while some more modest. The questioning look they had on their face and the soft murmurs made you believe that they were in the same boat as you were; not having a single clue why you had been called so abruptly on the most random of days.

“Alright ladies, if I could have your attention.” The man who had been standing at the top of the stairs finally spoke loudly to draw attention after looking satisfied that all were accounted for. “Her Majesty, the Queen, is waiting for you all in the throne room, but I will first escort you to our great hall.”

The ladies looked at each other with questioning eyes before shyly following after the man. You followed of course since you were one of the invited guests. With all these people, you had expected your audience with Her Majesty to be brief; maybe she just needed to ask you a favour. However, that proved to be wrong when you saw the carefully decorated hall with long tables on each side draped in a white tablecloth. On them were vases of carefully assorted white and red roses and a few food and drinks.

Even though you shouldn’t based on your assessment, you were surprised. It was almost like a banquet, if it weren’t for the lack of people. But you were pleased to know that there was something to eat since you had spent the last hour getting to the palace and did not have the time to enjoy lunch. That was one of the many disadvantages to live so far out of the kingdom’s walls. Although, you believed that you weren’t the only one that was famished; the look on the others suggest that they had fretted over what to wear to have eaten. It might have been due to different reasons, but it was certain that the majority had not eaten.

“I apologize for the short notice,” the man spoke and then gestured to the tables and chairs in the centre of the hall. “I had assumed that you all must have not eaten so we had prepared you all sorts of food to fit your preferences.

“Please enjoy yourselves while I wait for further orders from Her Majesty,” he ends his little speech and exits from a side door tucked further into the room’s corner. There were slight murmurs before you dispersed. Some chose to sit while others stood idly by at the long table, but one thing remained the same: they all looked tense. Surely, seeing all these people must have caught them off guard.

You wandered off to one of the long tables to see if there was something small you could eat so you wouldn’t be seen as a glutton. Although, despite all of the food laid out that was meant to be eaten, it had been barely touched. No doubt it is because they were too nervous. Understandable since you had this nagging feeling that you were being observed the moment you entered the hall and no, it wasn’t from the servants that came and went. Was this a test of some sort?

With a small plate in one hand, your eyes scanned the hall for any abnormality, but you were disappointed to see that nothing seemed off. Actually, you should feel relieved if it truly is just you being overly sensitive.

Still..

One thing that your father taught you that he learned while he was still a knight in training was to always trust your gut when you feel a predator’s gaze. Even if you don’t see it, this feeling of being watched that settles in you is not something you should brush aside.

This time, you subconsciously craned your neck up. To the left side of the room, there was a door leading out to a small balcony that watched over the hall. There, you see it opened and although there were no lights, you squint your eyes at a particular part just past the frame of the door. You swear you can see.. Eyes? But they seemed to contrast the darkness behind it; it was glowing and unlike the shine of normal eyes when light is reflected on them. An abnormality.

You stare at it long and soon, you see its eyes trailing. Trailing until it lands on you. ‘Oh!’ They really are real and just aren't a glass orb with a similar look of eyes. You should be scared, that much you understand, but when you finally look at it, you feel oddly calm. You didn’t feel relaxed, but you did feel like it meant no harm.

After having what felt like prolonged minutes of a staring contest, the eyes vanish and you can faintly hear the sound of shoes walking away. Huh.. How odd.

—

You were all now ushered to the throne room just a few minutes after. “Greetings, your Majesty.” You all spoke in unison and curtsied. When you look back up, your attention was drawn to an oddity in the room which just stood beside the queen. There was a man standing there silently. He looks frightening. He was dressed in black head to toe adorned in silver here and there like his shoulder pads and the chain that held his cloak together. Other than that, the only striking features were the red crystal brooch on his cravat and his.. Eyes.

You blinked owlishly as you stared at him— well, specifically his eyes. They were the same striking deep colour like the one you saw earlier. Was it him? As if to answer your question, when his wandering eyes stop on you, you swear you can see his eyes smiling musingly. Before you could dwell on it, your thoughts were interrupted when the guide spoke. At this point, you believed him to be the Queen’s advisor.

“If you could please form rows..” He directs, gesturing with his right hand. There were looks of uneasiness passed around but did as told. When you got into formation, you couldn’t help but look towards the throne once more. This time, you see Her Majesty talking with the strange– huh? You blinked a couple times thinking that you might be seeing this but you’re sure you really were looking at pointy ears; not human ears.

“Wonderful,” the advisor said and then offered the stage to the queen. When your eyes land on her strikingly beautiful figure, you feel your face warm in awe. She’s like a cold beauty.. Her eyebrows were naturally shaped into a high arch so whatever she does— or in most cases, whatever one does, she seems to always look down on people.

“As you may have heard, today marks the start of proceeding through peaceful treaties with the Valley of Thorns,” she begins and you all couldn’t help but be all captivated by her stunning beauty when she spoke. “To keep the peace going during my reign as monarch, we had agreed to make arrangements so that no matter what, that peace will be unshakable.

“If you will.” She looks to her side—at her advisor— all the while having her nose still pointed high and to the front to show her superiority. “Yes, Your Majesty.” He does a quick bow and does the talking again. "Ahem. For the treaty to happen, the Valley of Thorns' Queen has chosen a representative to come in her stead."

So he’s a fae, you thought. You’re well learned about the creatures that are at war with your homeland and something notable to know are their ears. You’ve been overly cautious of everyone after learning it and for a while, looked at the side of their head’s first. Silly, I know.

You know how important this was and that you should listen carefully, but you couldn’t help but be drawn by the strange man who was talking to the queen with words you couldn’t hear from where you were and how low they were speaking. Normally, one would slightly shiver in the presence of the queen, but all he had on was an unreadable expression.

“Very well..” The advisor looks side-eyeing at the fae just on the other side of the queen. When he looks at him directly, you notice his confidence slightly deterred, now speaking with a slight nervousness in his tone. “Uh– Ahem. These are all the noble ladies that you requested for.. Sir.”

The fae’s eyes wanders over the heads of many until it lands on you, but you felt like its wandering eyes were just for show. That its true purpose was to spot you. You didn’t realize that you gulped a nervous feeling down. What does he plan to do? You see him now taking slow and elegant steps down the little steps that lead to the throne.

“And what is your name, my dear?” Before you knew it, he was in front of you and looking with kind eyes. You stiffened up and stuttered out, “I’I’m [Name], sir.. From house–” “I don’t need your family name. To tell me your family name is to give up your life,” he interjects with a serious look on his face that tells you that he was indeed telling you the truth. You stood stone cold. You swear you felt your heart drop.

He sees the look on your face but continues to talk, this time holding a hand out. “Your hand,” he said, hinting with his eyes. It took a second for you to snap back from your daze, blinking a couple times, and another to understand what he was asking for. While all the ladies look on apprehensively, you hesitantly place a hand on his palm. You had no idea what he planned to do and the cold sweat on your forehead was totally understandable, but it was soon answered rather blindingly. The moment your hand brushes with his, a soft light that seemed to come out of nowhere engulfed the both of you.

Air gets caught in your lungs as a million images— a million scenes go through your mind. You also felt lighter as if you were floating— or to better describe your situation, drowning. Drowning in a pool of memories. It felt like you were looking back at memories, but you don’t recall having these as yours. Suddenly, you felt afraid. Just what are these..?

Before you could piece what they really were, you were brought back to the present with everyone looking at you worriedly and.. With sympathy? You were confused. Why were they looking at you like that? It was then you noticed that a single tear has cascaded down your cheek.

There were so many ‘memories’ but one thing stood out to you. ‘They were all..’ You recall one particular memory and it alone gave you massive heartache.

You look at the fae who now stood in front of you with eyes just like the rest of them. And although it’s small, he is finally smiling, but also sympathetically. You wanted to croak out what you’ve been wanting to ask since seeing whatever those things were, but you couldn’t. You felt that the tears that were trying so hard to fight back down will suddenly have a chokehold on you and you didn’t want to cry in front of so many people. You bite your bottom lip as you stare in disbelief at him and that was all you could do.

—

“My lady.” There is a soft knock on the other side of the door with an equal soft voice. Normally, you would grumble incoherently and ignore it until they went away, but here you were, wide awake before the sun could have even greeted you with a proper soft, warm light gently caressing your face.

“Come in.” Your voice is hoarse but is clear nonetheless. The same servant girl walked inside with a smile that shows how much she doesn’t know from yesterday’s event. Yesterday.. You hadn’t slept a wink when you recalled what you witnessed yesterday and it shows from the dark circles under your eyes.

“Oh, my lady, you’re awake early,” she points out with a look of cluelessness. “Do you want to have breakfast right now? Your father is about to leave for his duties after breakfast.”

“…” You stared aimlessly at the blanket that draped over your lap. It was only when she had to repeat herself that you answered with a quiet ‘yes’.

You went downstairs with your nightgown and tried to have a normal breakfast and by which it meant trying to smile through the entire meal and ask your father about his plans for the day. He had known about the letter that the queen sent yesterday since he was still at the manor to receive the messenger so you had to lie through your teeth that everything was fine. You had told him briefly about what occurred, leaving out the small details such as the fae approaching you and.. ‘Whatever that was.’

‘I have no idea what that was all about yesterday, but I’m sure he meant no harm..’ Now sitting in the great chamber, you were now in a fresh change of clothes. You had no plans to go out today so you wore a simple dress and indulged in reading a book you had randomly picked up from the library’s shelf in your home.

It was still midday with the sun still way above your head so you shouldn’t have gotten so startled when there was a knock on the front door. You were curious so you placed your book beside you on the sofa and got up to peek around the hall’s corner. One of the maids stationed at the entrance opened the door to reveal a man who dressed in a tabard embroidered with the card suits and a hat to match. Another of the queen’s messengers?

When he had made eye contact with you, you knew it was time to get out of your hiding spot and receive him. “My lady, are you the lady of this house?” The messenger takes his hat off and places it over his chest in respect. “I am.. Is something the matter? If so, my father isn’t here right now..” You said as you walked closer to the door. The servant steps aside for you to fully face the man. “Ah, you’re mistaken, my lady. It is you that I come for,” he explains. “If you will, Her Majesty, the Queen, has asked for your attendance relating to your marriage.”

Now this is where you became visibly confused. You don’t recall being betrothed to someone and your father had made sure to tell you time and time again that he won’t force you into any proposals and that marriage was free reign for you to decide. You trust him so you earnestly believe that there must be a misunderstanding somewhere. “My lady, the Queen said this to be of urgence so..” “Alright. Just give me a minute to change.”

—

You didn’t believe that you’d be invited to the palace again and in just a matter of hours. ‘Since the Queen sent the invitation..’ You looked out the window to see if there were carriages from other noble daughters but to your surprise, you pulled right up at the castle’s steps without any delay and got safely escorted down the carriage.

“Ah, Lady [Name], we have been expecting you here today.” The advisor from yesterday was also in front of the carriage with a kind smile. You weren’t sure if you were growing two heads or something because while people do approach you kindly, it was rare and only happens during parties where you’d be forced to interact and the same goes for the others. It’s hard to believe that you’d be talking to the queen’s advisor.

“Come, let us go. Her Majesty has been waiting for you for quite some time now,” he said smilingly and began to lead the way up the same very steps and down the familiar halls as yesterday. When you entered the throne room, the queen was sitting on her throne with a perfect posture.

“Your Majesty, Lady [Name] has arrived.” He does a bow before turning his attention to you and gestures with his hand to go to the throne. You did so, walking across the long room all the while looking at the queen to see her expressions. “Greetings, Your Majesty..” You do a curtsy and stay like that until given the word.

“You may stand.” You did as told and stared at her, your hands in front of you and fidgeting nervously. “Well then, I congratulate you on your marriage,” she said plainly. You were stone cold like a statue. ‘Marriage? So, it’s really true..?’ Your brows knit together and look at her with dubiety as if you had misheard it. “I.. Uhm.. You’re Majesty, could you have mistaken me for a daughter from another family?” You ask. You could feel your fingers growing cold and your heart slightly quickening.

“You are the daughter of that baron from the far east of the kingdom, yes?” She asks, although she was mainly just pointing it out. “Ah.. Yes, Your Majesty..” You tried to find some confidence in your tone, but it was already nerve-wracking to be in the presence of such a cold beauty. “Then make no mistake that I have called upon you today,” she said rather coldly. How could this have happened? You were sure that your father hadn’t mentioned anything about you getting married.. And if that were to be the case, why would the crown need to come and congratulate you? Marriages between aristocrats happen all the time and not once had you heard about being congratulated by the queen.

You chose your words carefully.“T-then.. Who am I being wedded off to, Your Majesty?” Every millisecond she doesn’t answer, the more your head starts to spiral until you feel dizzy. “Why, to the prince of the Valley of Thorns,” she answers with a raised brow and adds, “You were there to hear it, yes?”

Your eyes widened and felt a large, gaping hole in your stomach as if someone had ripped through it. You were frozen on the spot, not believing your ears. It was your fault that you weren’t really paying attention to the advisor yesterday, really. Otherwise, you would have made sure to not let guests come to the house, not even that messenger. You could have prolonged this news or even better, prevented it from not attending yesterday at all. You felt tricked, realizing how brief the explanations were from yesterday.

The queen could see the conflict in your eyes and decided to say something, “Lady [Name], I assure that you will be in good hands. The crown prince is amongst the strongest magic users out of all the rest in the world, which is why we have no choice but to go into a period of peace..” She grumbles lowly at the last part, but you heard it nonetheless. “No matter what happens, it is a sure fact he’ll protect you as written in the agreement.”

You could only nod in a silent agreement. Before you could leave, she said one more thing, “Do remember that the Rose Kingdom is your home and so it will forever be open to you. I entrust that should anything happen, you will return home, Lady [Name].”

You had only a week to prepare your belongings after telling your father that night on the same very day before someone from the Valley of Thorns had come to pick you up at your door in a black carriage pulled by equally scary horses. Where did it bring you? Well, to your new forever home of course.

That was the day when your chapter had suddenly taken a turn..

⊰♤⊱⊰◇⊱⊰♡⊱⊰☆⊱⊰♧⊱⊰♤⊱⊰◇⊱⊰♡⊱⊰☆⊱⊰♧⊱

If you want to be added to the list, feel free to tell me!

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eldritch-spouse · 10 months ago

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How would Belo be with a cult leader s/o?

She already has followers consisting of both monsters and humans who rave about how perfect she is, and they think Belo is a testament to that.

I mean, not just anyone can receive the affection of an angel; she must be akin to a god!

There is a hierarchy in the cult, and Belo is at the top of it. He can rest his head on her lap and watch as the others worship the very ground his lady walks on (he doesn't have a choice; the leader demands it this physical contact, otherwise she will be unhappy the whole day).

They validate Belo in every thought he has of his lady and also obey him as he is basically the leader's right hand (or so he believes, but in reality, they respect him so much because he is their leader's precious).

And what if more angels started coming out of the woodwork to serve his lady? If he was able to handle the cultists, surely this would be a stretch.

I can just imagine the cultists praising Belo as they dress him up in lingerie fitting to their leader's taste, then tie him up, mindful of his wings, and leave him in his lady's quarters. His lady comes in and gets on top of him, caressing his wings and whispering something about being her 'pretty little canary' and 'give yourself to me, show me your devotion.'.

This is the ideal situation for Belo.

Unlike most angels, who tend to have a mindset favorable to sharing with other celestials, Belo gets intoxicated when he realizes he's the only holy entity in a location, that he no longer has to share, that his tier hardly matters because he's the only celestial present and automatically the authority in a plethora of matters. He feels special in a way he never has before and his ego swells almost incomprehensibly.

Which is exactly why he's living his best life in this situation. Not only are you a sacred being, your generosity blinds you to the misdeeds of your own following. My Lady they are clumsy, obliviously disrespectful, they hold no discipline! Someone who is built to serve and protect needs to teach them how to behave, how to conduct themselves before you and how to make sure that your love is not for naught.

It's only right that Belo be the only one allowed to touch you. His holy nature makes him incapable of corrupting you, and others live through him their own lecherous, selfish fantasies of being your favored.

With him at the helm of many secondary areas and tasks, your cult blossoms like the loveliest lotus and gains a level of steadfast efficiency previously unforeseen.

The arrival of other angels... Complicates things. They're immediately perceived as threats to Belo's position.

You may not know this, but he's only a power. If there's a dominion, throne or, Eden forbid, a seraphim... By their own laws, Belo could have to step down and allow the worshiper-tiers to overrule him in the hierarchy.

And he goes half-mad at the idea.

That's not happening.

No tier can understand and service you better than him, and Belo will personally confront the more powerful celestials about this. There is a very special balance here, in your wonderful garden of light, where the rank of an angel is not what makes them worthy of your love and guidance. Belo may be just a power outside of these blessed grounds, but in them, he is your second in command, your favored, your fighter, your whorshiper, your guardian. He's your everything.

And though he may celebrate the arrival of more angels beside you, he makes sure they always remember their place.

He's determined to keep this perfect balance.

In your name, he thinks as he placidly remains in position, bottom eye counting the patterns on his service gown and the jewelry on his spread wings, everything in your name.

This won't be like before. He's doing so much better now, the cultists are behaving perfectly, the workflow is stable and satisfactory, the other angels are impeccable. You wouldn't leave them. Not when everything is immaculate, when mistakes are non-existent. This time will he different.

You enter the room, and his thoughts vanish.

#Belo oc

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loverboy-cc · 1 year ago

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Oughsgksh thinking about newly human Neuvillette.

Pairing: Neuvillette / gn! oceanid! Reader

Cws: lil bit of hurt/comfort, sfw.

WC: 0.5k

“You’re like a fish out of water.”

The lithe man scowls at you as you chuckle at your own joke, your voice echoing from the water around him as his silvery scales fade in and out of existence as he practices moving between his human and dragon forms.

“I would like to see you try and engage successfully with a human. They’re painfully fickle, and their social structure is nuanced and strange compared to our own.”

He flexes his talons as they become hands, and you manifest your own flowing hands to hold them.

“Though I can’t help but feel like it’s not worth the effort.”

He frowns and stares at his hands and yours together.

“My love. You’ve been interested in humans for centuries, how many books do you have filled with notes on them hm? What has you discouraged after so long?”

He leans into you as you manifest the rest of your form out of the previously shapeless water. The smooth scales of his tail wrapping around you as you engulf him in your wings.

“I’ve spent many nights telling you about their mannerisms, do you happen to remember their social hierarchy?”

“Of course my love, I remember all that you’ve told me of them.”

His lips pull into a small smile, and his grip on his human form wanes, skin shaping back into scales as he speaks.

“Then you know the rigidity of it, how it’s easy to fall down through the ranks and near impossible to rise back up… I was firmly cast to its lowest tiers.”

He makes a point of keeping his form smaller than you as he settled into his draconic form, his wings folded neatly as he turned in your hold. Resting his head on your chest.

“I see… I’m shocked people weren’t more reverent. I thought the elemental dragons were important figures to them?”

“They are. But I fear my human disguise was too good. When I tried to introduce myself as the descendant of the hydro dragon they treated me like a madman.”

“Hm… I’m inclined to believe you'd not like to prove it to them?”

He tilts his head and blinks slowly, before speaking.

“No… no I fear their reaction would be too intense. I don’t seek worship, I simply want to…”

“You’d like to be human.”

He winces and looks away from you. Moving away from your hold, you make no effort to stop him, allowing him to make as much distance as he needs.

“You’re not upset at me for it, are you darling?”

“Of course not, with the fondness you speak of them with it’s unsurprising to be entirely honest with you love.”

He nods and offers you a distinctly human hand. Taking it gently with your wing you continue.

“Should you ever want to visit me I will always be here.”

He grips your wing tighter and kisses the appendage softly, looking up at you with a newfound determination.

“I suppose working from the bottom up is the most human thing I could do.”

You talk together until the early morning, when he chooses to make his way out of the water. The fresh morning sun catching his silky white hair as he wicks the water out of his clothing. He was a beautiful man as he was a beautiful dragon, and you find yourself admiring him as he left for his new life as Neuvillette, a human and nothing more.

Taglist: @yarnnerdally / @starrry-angel

Wanna be added? Send me an ask off anon!

#❥ my writing #neuvillette #neuvillette genshin #neuvillette x reader

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coolingrosa · 1 month ago

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A question I've had since I've been watching ur Roseverse content is: In RV there's a clear divide between mortal Sanses and immortal Sanses from what I can see, especially when it was talked about in the pilot. This begs the question: Is Ink actually a mortal? Because it's canonical that Ink was once a *child* and *grew*, and it's also clear Ink is also still soulless in RV. If he isn't mortal and is indeed immortal, does that mean at one point every immortal Sans was once a child and *grew* up? If this is just a personal choice of writing/characterization I'm not critiquing or hating on it! It just intrigues me very much and raises some questions

Hello! I figured I would eventually get questions along these lines, and sometimes I forget people who arrived from the pilot wouldn’t know this, so here is some RoseVerse lore building that was in the OG lore doc:

Immortal beings are split into a wide variety of groups, species, and classification. There’s a hierarchy between them, with Fate and Destiny at the top and Player and Core Chara at the bottom, right below Core Frisk. For mortals, respect is given to all immortals. However, due to this hierarchy, those at the bottom are ignored or treated as less than by those with more power. It also means they have less connections to aging natural if you’re lower on the scale.

Player, Core Chara, and Core Frisk are examples of corrupted codes making them forever stuck at the age of when they became an immortal for the first time. They had to die in order to live forever- as they are kinda like Geno (their bodies are forever stuck in time and paused) So, they do not mature past the age they died nor grow. They are called Demi-gods in the lore- or simply deities.

With full Gods, it’s not about bloodline. You meet the qualifications of a god if you are immortal, and you posses power over a certain idea, function, or way of life that sways the lives of the mortals. Ex: Reaper isn’t considered a god just because he was born from another- but because he’s over the concept of Death and serves as a reaper. Some are created as adults while others are created as children. The Reapertale God structure is based off of Greek mythology where child Gods were still birthed/created and grew. Ink is not from Reapertale, and is ranked below the Reapertale gods, but he’s still considered a full god due to him being over creation.

Ink was a god that was created and popped into existence at four years old due to insufficient power from his creator. He had a soul as a child and when Error found him, he was also in the midst of still growing too, as Error was only nineteen. Gods completely reach maturity at 25 years old, and it takes them many centuries to actually reach that age, much longer than humans. It’s why little gods are not typically created without someone able to look after them- and they have a special aura about them that makes them latch onto the first person they see so they can grow. Call it a parasite…but that’s just how they are. Little Gods are still able to die, especially since they are so young. They aren’t in tune with their magic, and a fatal incident will kill them or leave them permanently disfigured. It’s a survival instinct and magical ability that keeps them safe and keeps their distracted godly parents hyper focused on them until they reach 13 and can primarily fend for themselves. (Keep in mind they are Gods. Though they don’t fully mature until 25, they are still able to fend for themselves a lot more than a fully adult human, even as children. Once they aren’t as delicate, the parents don’t constantly need to look after them- which is why Reaper was forced to start working more when he reached that age.)

Error latched onto Ink due to this aura, and became his older brother instantly bc he was overcome by the need to take care of Ink. Like reverse imprinting

He does genuinely care for Ink- don’t get it twisted. Even if Ink didn’t have that aura, Error would be less inclined to leave him behind. But in “Wilted”, Error would not have saved Ink from getting run over if Ink wasn’t an god child. However, he felt like his whole world was going to shatter if he didn’t save him- so he did.

It’s also why Error hasn’t recovered from Ink’s assumed death. Ink was only 11. He wasn’t ready to be on his own yet. Error feels like a failure both mentally and also instinct wise, and that grief is horrid and painful. He lost his baby, and failed as a guardian and a God by letting a godly child disappear like that. It’s…rough. Nightmare deals with a similar type of grief emotionally wise, but not so much instinct wise. He misses Ink everyday, but in a typical grief way (not belittling what he deals with. He mourns him greatly and loved him like his own kin. He’s just as hurt as Error is in that regard.) Error’s is just…more…extreme

How Ink lost his soul as an adult tho? Cant say that yet…

#undertale #undertaleau #undertale multiverse #roseverse #cooling rosa answers silly stuff #nightmare sans #error sans #ink sans #RoseVerse lore questions

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lugarn · 1 year ago

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Sex Worker Camp & Groundbreaking in Playboyy

You might say that sex worker camp is a genre that doesn't exist.

You'd be wrong! For as long as there has been camp, there has been sex worker camp. Buckle up for a long meta!

I think the easiest, most well-known example of camp that touches on SW camp is Rocky Horror! Rocky is literally a gay sex bot in a narrative that's about exploring your sexual desires against the backdrop of what society has told you those desires are. He got to figure out what his desires were, even though he was created for a particular purpose!

Sex work camp also engages with the fears of sex workers, since camp often engages (in ways that sometimes seem absurd) with the fears of the characters. I don't mean specifically a character's personal fears as much as I mean their fears for the role society has determined they have. We in theory have no caste systems in most countries today, but sex workers are still somehow usually at the bottom of the social hierarchy despite that.

That's a thing I love about sex work camp: the juxtaposition of desire and knowing that whatever desire you have has little place because you have a job or are performing a role. Ownership and roles are themes that are visited and revisited in Playboyy. In every single episode, there are questions about who owns who, and what the person being owned feels about the fact that they lack freedom, and exploring the ways in which every single one of the workers chooses or doesn't choose to be owned.

The longer the show goes on, the deeper and more extreme we have gotten with roles and the limitations of roles, from the question of Zouey and his desires in episode one to the fact that Porsche and Prom are both sugaring for the same daddy and the things that means for both of them. There's been a satisfying (campy) heightening and recommitment to the theme in every episode with the roles and ownership becoming more and more complex and interconnected.

Another theme of sex work camp that is visited and re-visited is "characters doing sex work enjoy sex/sex work". Why? Because the dominant (heteropatriarchal) narrative is that sex workers are doing that job because we've been forced/"Circumstances".

I know this is really putting myself out there, but I know people must be wondering, so let's go there: here's my connections to sex work! I grew up in a family where consensual, by-choice sex work was normalized and I spent a lot of time passively absorbing information about sex work and the people who do it. My family is incredibly sex-positive; a member of my family was a madam pre-covid; former and current sex workers are the celebrated decades-long partners of multiple members of my family. That's just my background, though.

Most of my own personal experience is survival sex work--exchanging sex for things that meet your immediate needs, most often done by people living on or adjacent to the streets, often those with gaps in education. I was homeless at the time I was doing it; I didn't graduate high school. My story has been told a hundred times by a hundred different people. This is part of why I am so passionate on the subject of other narratives about sex workers and other types of sex work getting a chance to feature in media; my story is not just represented but over-represented. But the stories of people I know and love who engaged with the sex work industry far longer than me are still nowhere to be found.

Playboyy showcases sex workers as full people, no different than the rich boys they are dating/'dating', using their full agency to decide what are the best options in their own situations. It treats these decisions as correct and meaningful and doesn't treat the act of choosing sex work as pitiable or an inherently negative choice. The narrative also doesn't punish the characters for doing sex work.

(I'm aware it seems very much that Nant got hurt during sex work. They are going to great pains to humanize that pain, but there are other people whose narratives aren't about them being hurt by sex work: Teena, Soong, Jump. That's how you show a well-rounded story.)

This is the most obvious aspect of the subversive way Playboyy showcases sex work, but Playboyy's also gotten into so many other important things that people who aren't aware of sex worker priorities don't realize might be important.

If you've read opinions from sex workers or spoken to us it's very likely you've heard what problems we have with past portrayals of sex work and sex workers in TV/movies, but if you haven't, people much more qualified to write essays than me have written much better, journalist-quality pieces. Chaospikachu produced some pretty good sources on this post; they are good jumping off points that will give you ideas about what things to google further if that's your jam. (And you should google further--people have been talking about these things since usenet.)

In my experience, many former and current sex workers watch media with us in it because we love us even if society doesn't. I approach media featuring sex work skeptically and expect to be disappointed, but in spite of that approach I have found myself pleasantly surprised so far with Playboyy. The show does have problems, of course--no piece of media is without fault--but there's not much comparison for what they're doing because they've committed so fully to the ideal of 'sex worker camp' that in six (of fourteen) episodes they've already gone leaps and bounds past the places other media stopped.

Here's a little list of other things I've seen in Playboyy that I either haven't seen elsewhere or have seen so rarely that it's still groundbreaking:

SW and clients navigating starting/maintaining a relationship! This is sometimes taboo to talk about, but it happens. It happens a damn lot. Humans are humans, we just fall in love sometimes but this isn't an experience that gets to typically be seen in a complete, unflinching way. There are good parts and bad! I've known people who made it work and I've known people who crashed and burned; there are a lot of really predictable hurdles to pass and Teena/Zouey, Nuth/Phop, and Soong/First are showcasing these in a way no other media I've seen even tries to when depicting this type of relationship.

So many different types of sex work, and sex workers not sticking to one type of work either! This is much more realistic and reflective of my experiences; making money at sex work is often a matter of a lot more weaving of separate hustles together than people who aren't used to poverty seem to have the ability to understand. I can only think of a few very specific and specialized types of sex work that I haven't seen in the show yet and that's weird and wild (positive)! Normally there's one, maybe two or three types of sex work in evidence in a show about sex work so having lots of different types all co-existing is beautiful to me.

Sex workers fucking sex workers for fun and experience! It's so common in my experience but it's not something I've ever seen done before, and the way that they are showing many different types of ways of this happening makes me even happier. (So far we've gotten us having sex with us in these circumstances: for clients, as a means of protection, as a way to 'prove' yourself, and for tutelage.) There can be a real feeling of camaraderie and competition with fellow workers sometimes and Playboyy captures this like nothing I've seen before.

Sex workers having boundaries! Even mid-sex. And the boundaries aren't treated as a joke or a comedic moment that the client then disregards. They're moments of real communication where the boundary gets respected or the encounter ends, for better or worse.

Sex workers having nuanced, complex feelings! Not just about the sex work, but also the events in their lives and each other. Their relationships are complex and give glimpses of how much more there is to be uncovered! Partying, laughing, being angry, being verklempt, finding enemies and finding family with each other. Crying, too, yeah. But there's a whole spectrum of feelings on display beyond the normal tragic ones that are 'allowed', including the desire for sex inside and outside of sex work.

Everyone communicates to the best of their ability! This isn't just a sex worker thing--it applies to First and Zouey as well--but it's normal for media about sex workers to actually involve a lot of misunderstandings that don't get fully discussed. The misunderstandings between characters Playboyy get treated as serious and discussed in a way I haven't seen other BLs show before. Misunderstandings aren't a chance for Plot to fester, but rather a chance for reconciliation. It's just plain great modeling of healthy communication.

All of this and more adds up to Playboyy being a show that knows who their intended audience is and commits to that audience over and over week after week. Not by painting our experiences as flat or singular, but by fully committing to showing a very wide swath of our experiences and humanizing every single choice. You don't have to understand or like the show for these things to still be huge and important for SW representation.

Playboyy is just casually doing what it's doing regardless of the larger opinion, which is the most sex worker camp part of it all. The show knows what it is about even if fandom hasn't figured things out yet.

#playboyy the series #playboyy #playboyy meta #if you can't see this directly because i have you blocked i don't care if you dodge the block #my blocklist isn't personal #it's there to make navigating the site less stressful for me

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