#tired of forced heterosexual relationships!

[yezzyyae]

I used to love this show! But I never went back after season 2 episode 1 where Cara Delevingne & Selena Gomez’s characters was supposed to be having romantic chemistry in a scene. I turned my tv off so damn fast & never went back, I am fine with gay or bisexual people but come on everybody is not gay or have a secret gay trait that’s waiting to be shown to the world after someone of the same sex make eye contact with them. Cara Delevingne can’t give off sexual chemistry ever I mean everytime I see her trying to seduce someone on screen I feel “yucky” inside. Cara Delevingne can’t act her way out of a paper bag that’s for 1 & Selena Gomez’s character named Mabel Mora was not a lesbian. Mabel Mora & Cara Delevingne’s character did not have sexual or romantic chemistry at all! Idk who casted Cara Delevingne in “Only Murders in the Building” but they ruined one of my fav shows for me.

I can’t go back because I would have to watch season 2 with Cara Delevingne in episodes & my stomach could not handle it. I hate forced relationships in shows bad enough I have to hear people say that Sydney Adamu & Carmen Berzatto have sexual & romantic chemistry in “The Bear” when they are ZERO I mean NEGATIVE ZERO CHEMISTRY GOING ON BETWEEN THE TWO! Writers keep ruining great shows forcing romantic storylines onto characters because they saw some weirdos posts on Reddit or Tumblr. It is ruining tv shows I want to give “Only Murders in the Building” another chance cause I loved Charles-Haden Savage(Steve Martin), Oliver Putnam(Martin Short), & Mabel Mora(Selena Gomez) chemistry as platonic friends & neighbors!

Everybody does not have sexual or romantic chemistry is everybody they are around. Everybody is not secretly gay or bisexual. Everybody does not want to kiss their best friend. Everybody does not date their neighbor. Everybody does not date their boss or co worker. Damn leave people alone!

[daddyhoothoot]

Let me get on my soap box

I’m so tired of this narrative that people seem to have nowadays where it’s a problem if you love a flawed character. That’s what makes them interesting! And what person do you know that doesn’t have flaws!

Specifically tired of this anti Stolas discourse. Did he technically cheat on his wife? Sure. But being forced into a heterosexual marriage when he is clearly gay and being abused verbally and physically by his wife pushed him to his limit. Stolas went his entire life without someone to love romantically and all he had were his books. Books that were romantic and sultry and definitely influenced his reaction to seeing Blitzø again. Blitzø awoke a side to him that had been suppressed his entire life and perhaps he acted rashly but who wouldn’t after 35+ years?

I’ve also seen people say he’s not a good father. Literally where? Ask anyone who doesn’t have a good relationship with their dad, I would love to have the relationship that Stolas and Octavia have. He sheltered her from the abuse that Stella gave him. He was attentive and caring and loved her unconditionally. Just because he finally stood up for himself and decided to get divorced from his abuser doesn’t make him a bad father.

Then there’s the discourse about him having a deal with Blitzø every month. Could he have gone about this a better way? Sure. But think about what he’s been through! He doesn’t know how to be close to anyone romantically. His own parents didn’t teach him, no one was there to guide him. Also remember in the first episode how Stolas proposed the meet ups Blitzø replied with very little acknowledgement. He could have denied it and you can bet Stolas would have still let him use the Grimoire because he’s desperate for connection. Remember that Blitzø had been using it for some time before the proposition was even made. Stolas just didn’t know how to go about getting closer to Blitzø and that was the only way he thought he could make it happen. Yes, technically there is a power imbalance between them but it’s so clear that Stolas doesn’t see it that way. And obviously Blitzø has some feelings that there is that imbalance but that’s why they need to sit down and talk and realize they both feel the same way about one another.

It’s okay that characters are flawed and complicated. That’s what makes them interesting and relatable. Feeling like everyone should only like the “moral” and uncorrupted characters is outrageous and unrealistic and just plain boring.

[mazzystar24]

If you guys know my blog by now you’ll know that I will latch onto random shows/movies like a leech and will sometimes connect them for funsies in my brain

So

I still don’t know what bones/booths ship name is so ignore that but I’ve just (I’m on like last ep of season 2 ) started watching bones and I can’t stop with the buddie parallels in my brain

1. Ex soldier (Eddie for 911 and booth for bones)

2.with a complicated relationship with his ex

3. who at one point slept with her repeatedly after they’d broke up

4. who he also shares a kid with

5. Not confirmed in canon outright but definitely implied neurodivergent character (buck, who definitely has ADHD and Temperance Brennan who’s definitely autistic)

6. Neither of whom understand most pop culture references

7. Both of which are constantly given lectures by friends about how they run head first into danger

8. Both of which also know a lot of random facts (granted with bones it’s more purpose serving😭😭)

9. Also both were lied to by their parents their entire lives and said parents forced an older sibling who at the time was still only a child to promise not to tell them anything about this secret

10. Both have abandonment issues as a result of that

11. This parallel I pointed out before in their respective hospital scenes and them wishing it was them instead

12. Booth digging Bones out with his bare hands when she was buried alive and buck trying to dig Eddie out of the mud when he was buried alive

13. Both Bones and Buck having a love interest leave to travel the world

14. Both ships are like workplace romance, slightly enemies- mostly a spat- to friends to lovers (for one at least is canon), also the same vibes of both are coworkers and “partners” who act not how normal work partners or friends act (and get called on it by outsiders)

There are probably more but I’m tired and can’t think but yeah so many parallels and yet only one is canon😔 collecting this as evidence that if one side of buddie were female making the ship heterosexual then they’d have been canon ages ago

[gooselycharm]

hi there! i'd just like to say that your kris and noelle "something else" comic has been driving me insane /pos and i'd love to hear more of your thoughts on those two!! their relationship is one of my favorite things in deltarune and your comic just got everything about them so right 🙏

thank you for reading "something else"! oh man, [more of] my thoughts on kris+noelle.... i sure got some of those.

this was one of the first tweets i made after finishing chapter 2 nearly... freaking 2 years ago. and basically i've just been saying that over and over again in different ways because i'm still not tired of the concept yet and probably wont ever be LOL. i'm obsessed with how badly the narrative wants to force them into an easily categorizable dynamic, especially the romantic one in snowgrave. the literal THORN RING, the more possessive dialogue options, spamton calling noelle a side chick LOL... it all creates this unnerving visual novel bad end atmosphere that feels manufactured by someone who's only ever learned about romance through secondhand sources. they're two queer teens trying to navigate their changing relationship with the only role models they know being their parents' own failed heterosexual marriages. they're so divorced² (divorced children of divorce).

i also like that for being so tragically doomed coded they can be funny! both in a dark humor way and also like, genuinely funny, like the stories of them as kids with kris covering themselves in ketchup and hiding under noelle's bed lmao. i mean there's even something funny about the romantic trappings of the snowgrave route, like trying to put wedding cake embellishments on a crime scene... you know, funny like kids trying on their parents clothes but they're too big and for some reason they're also crying and covered in blood? um.

i'm also SOOOO interested to see how snowgrave will continue in chapter 3! i really liked the hopeful note chapter 2 ended on (well. i took it as hopeful anyway). there's that bit where noelle is talking to herself and she says something like "recently kris has been acting so strange and no one else has noticed... i have to figure out why" and then kris jumpscares her LOL but i think i took that one line and really ran with it. noelle really is the one who knows kris best and despite how scared she is, she's still determined to help them... i like the little subversion of victim/hero going on, the implication that kris might be the one who needs rescuing.

the additional story/lore that came with the spamton sweepstakes made me CRAAAZYYYYY like my GOD... it's cute that noelle likes glitches/creepypasta when kris is kinda a walking creepypasta <3 also, god, noelle falling asleep listening to kris playing piano in the other room... there's so much like. wistfulness and nostalgia and this like... distant/detached intimacy packed into how noelle narrates that scene. it's kind of funny how much there is to dig into when like on a surface level they're just fairly regular childhood friends who grew apart LMAO they're extremely deep to me okay...

on another note i guess i do ship them? i like their dynamic whether it's platonic or romantic (the best is a weird mix of both 👍). it just can't be boring LOL like... this is one ship where trying to apply cookie cutter tropes to them really falls flat and the game is ahead of you on that anyway. in terms of romantically shipping them, i honestly don't think they're doomed to repeat patterns forever... i think they could actually be good for each other! but that's not really the aspect of their relationship that interests me akldjf;alk;sdg maybe i will make 60 page comic of kriselle going to couples counseling some other time

ANYWAY i'm going to cut myself off here, because i really could go on forever lol. i'll give you some links for further reading though

hellspawnmotel's deltarune art

lula pillowbug99's deltarune art

this art by raspbearis which features prominently in my internal kriselle bible

my own unfinished kriselle playlist

my own essay on gender & allegory in deltarune if for some reason u are not tired of hearing me talk yet

okay bye now & thanks again for reading my comic!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[not-poignant]

Can I ask, why do you love BL romance better than het romance? What makes them better? I did not mean anything negative, and I know everyone have their own like and dislike but I want to know your thoughts....

Also what do you think that made Asian MLM (BL manga/manhwa/manhua/ danmei) romances better than western MLM romances?

Can I ask, why do you love BL romance better than het romance?

Because I had no choice for many years.

Because that choice was taken away from me by a homophobic, transphobic, queerphobic, acephobic society. So all the romances I read had to be heterosexual, all the romances I watched had to be heterosexual, all the romances I heard of had to be heterosexual.

Because I'm not heterosexual.

Because I never saw myself represented in any stories ever, for over about 20 years (queer stuff existed, but where I was situated in Perth, Western Australia, meant that I was not seeing it).

Because I was force-fed allonormative, heteronormative, heterosexual tropes, bullshit, toxicity, misogyny, patriarchal culture, rape culture and more, and because everyone assumed that was normal, which made me feel isolated, marginalised, alone, and bereft, and cut me out of knowing what a life could look like for myself, and made relationships harder, when you don't have the words or stories to latch onto.

People like me couldn't even be erased out of the media, we hardly existed in the media, and if we did, almost never under our real identities, and almost always having to pretend to be something we weren't, for many people who hated us, or wished we were dead, or simply didn't care about us at all.

So, when I finally got a choice, I made a choice.

And I do not want to read heterosexual content anymore, unless it's queer (like T4T). The only place I actually willingly consume heterosexual romantic content these days is like 80s and 90s and early 00s romantic comedies. It's the only thing I allow through my filter, because so many of them have a really strong bent of hurt/comfort in them, and it's rare to find movies that have this in general.

But yeah otherwise het is just not a thing I look for in fiction. Literally a squick. Literally reminds me of 20 years of oppression in the mass media. It's not inherently bad, it just wasn't good for me personally, to never have a choice.

So I made one :D And my life has been so much better for it. I'm never going back.

Also what do you think that made Asian MLM (BL manga/manhwa/manhua/ danmei) romances better than western MLM romances?

It's just better for me, anon! I find a lot of western published m/m (so not like m/m fanfiction which I still read) often feels stifled and too short for me, and the characterisation doesn't get as deep as I want it to get. I often can feel the rigidity of the novel structure on authors who are trying to rapid release, and the depth I'm looking for is rarely there. Sometimes that's what people want! Sometimes they don't know there's other options!

Sometimes that's true of some BL manga/manhua/manhwa etc. as well. Tbh it's probably true of a lot of it! Serial format doesn't always allow for depth either. But I find the visual format easier to read as well. If I reread western m/m it's almost always fanfiction. And tbh, I'm sure some amazing m/m was published last year, I just get tired of having to wade through it all to find something I like. It got to the point where I was reading like 60+ titles just to find one average read, and I gave up.

The recommendation systems for BL tend to be better and more on point for me, I find most people who recommend published m/m to me generally always miss the mark (which isn't their fault - I'm particular, there's a reason I write what I write - because I can't find it to read!!), but close friends like @morbidlizard who recommend BL to me almost always hit the mark!

I don't actually read much danmei, but mostly because I haven't had time to really sink my teeth into it. Aside from MXTX, I haven't explored much further.

But yeah, hope that helps! :D

[inexplicablymine]

2023 Writing Roundup

Thank you to @welcometololaland @cha-melodius @kiwiana-writes @three-drink-amy and @rmd-writes @orchidscript for the tags, it was a fruitful year for my first toe dip into fanfic ~ and it will end with quite the bang as well (hence why I’m putting off my 2023 fic wrapped until at least January 1st).

July

No Sense or Sensibility (RWRB, T, 5K)

How to win the newlywed game with your best friend with whom you are not even dating (yet)

Uncut Not Uncultured (RWRB, E, 6K)

Alex never thought about if Henry was uncut down there… but now it’s all he can think about

August

The month in which I disappeared from all internet for three weeks to enjoy one of my other loves in this life with no service!

September

- Mr BodyPillow (RWRB, T, 21K)

The adventures of Ace Alex finding love, cuddles, and assurance from Henry

October

- They Were Tentmates! (RWRB, M, 4K)

What happens when you are forced to share a tent (and a sleeping bag) with your nemesis

- Because I’m a Scoundrel (RWRB, E, 8K)

Olympic athletes! TIME Gala at the White House! Mistaken couples costumes!

November

- Mr Party Hardy (RWRB, T, 7K)

A Mr. BodyPillow follow up exploring Alex’s relationships with parties pre and post Henry

- Minty Fresh (RWRB, G, 2K)

An illustrated story of their relationship to proposal one gum wrapper at a time

- No Nut November (RWRB, E, 10K)

Can the boys survive No Nut November? Not without a lot of innuendos that’s for sure.

December

- No Laughing Matter (RWRB, T, 3K)

Alex is the dental hygienist who helps with Henry’s Wisdom Teeth removal. It’s just as funny as you imagine.

To be posted before the end of the year :)

Super Six and the Sirens Call (RWRB, T, 111K, 20th)

Camp Halfblood meet the Super Six, a quest of the likes you have never seen before

Not So Silent Night (RWRB, E, TBD, 21st)

Alex is sick and tired of his piano playing neighbor, but what happens when they get stuck in an apartment together on the longest night of the year?

Messiah (RWRB, M, TBD, 25th)

Two boys, two instruments, two churches. Midnight mass and a very religious experience between the two of them

Fifteen Hours Till Forever (RWRB, M, TBD, 25th)

A firstprince canon compliant wedding weekend

Balls to the Wall (RWRB, T, TBD, 26th)

The story of how Alex spent a night in college in the drunk tank… even though he was never drunk

Glitter Bomb (RWRB, E, TBD, 27th)

Alex comes wrapped in a bow for Henry… and in some glitter

Where Is My SuperSuit (RWRB, M, TBD, 28th)

A four way love square between two super powered idiots

3/4th Cup of Love (RWRB, E, TBD, 29th)

What really happened in the kitchen when Alex taught Henry how to make those quiches

Sleeping Beauties (RWRB, M, TBD, 30th)

Alex and Henry attend the 2024 Met Gala as the muses of world class designer Pez Okonjo

Halfway There (RWRB, T, TBD, 31st)

Canon compliant demiromantic Alex realization contemplation and conversation

So much still happening!!! Will end the year with a whopping 19 fics and over 100K words shared. Spectacular.

An open tag but also tagging some lovely people to share what a year they have had!!

@adinarj @affectionatelyrs @anincompletelist @alasse9 @clottedcreamfudge @celaestis1 @cheesecurdsgravyandfries @celeritas2997 @cultofsappho @dumbpeachjuice @daisymae-12 @everwitch-magiks @firenati0n @happiness-of-the-pursuit @hgejfmw-hgejhsf @hillerskas @heybuddy-drabbles @iboatedhere @indestructibleheart @indomitable-love @jackwolfes @kill8a @lem0nademouth @littlemisskittentoes @nontoxic-writes @pirates-against-heterosexuality @roseapothecary @rockyroadkylers @read-and-write- @smc-27 @saintlynomenclature @three-drink-amy @tintagel-or-cockleshells @thinkof-england @vonpeepsisback @wordsofhoneydew @xthelastknownsurvivorx @zwiazdziarka

[tvfangirladdict]

Rant about all the Bi-Buck Arc hate surfacing.

Made the mistake of scrolling through comments on Instagram surrounding 911 and the cast.

I need to blow off steam, so this is gonna probably start harsh.

While there was so much heartfelt appreciation for Buck's storyline, the negative comments kept stealing my attention. I'm so tired of hearing(reading) that people think the whole show is ruined because two grown men kissed. Like, get the fuck over yourselves already. You don't agree with the relationship, you're just gonna have to deal with it the same we've dealt with Buck and Eddie's half-assed, flat, forced heterosexual relationships for the last 7 years, okay?

They all want to justify their biphobia/homophobia by saying that it's "forced" or it "doesn't make sense," or that they "never saw Buck even hint at it and it's just pandering to fans." Like, bitch, welcome to real life. If you're a real fan of this show, and you watched from the beginning, you know Athena and Michael's marriage ended first thing when he came out as gay. A muscular, "straight", black guy with a wife and two kids who'd been in the closet/denial his whole life, came out to his family, and none of them saw it coming, even if they might have suspected "deep down". This shit happens every day, okay? They're all mad cause "if he was gonna be gay, they should have made him gay from the beginning". Why? So you could form your opinion of him based on who he's attracted to? Why does this bother you so much. You were okay with it when it was Michael and Hen cause you knew from the beginning and they were your token gay characters that you've just learned to "put up with" to appease the rainbow crowd.

And it's not even the ones who are just straight up, like "it's wrong"/"it's a sin"/"it's gross", etc. that bother me the most. It's the "I don't care, you do you, but don't shove it down my throat", people that make me mad. Why is simply witnessing a queer person or relationship "shoving it down your throat"? Y'all realize they exist in real life too, right? Like, personally, I have family, friends, co-workers, bosses, who are all apart of the lgbtq+ community, and I'm from a smaller suburban/rural area of Ohio. Those are just the people in my life who are out. Why is seeing them represented in modern media so bad? This isn't covid, it's not fucking contagious. If it was your brother, your cousin, your best friend, would it be okay then? Both of my brothers have only ever dated women, but if one of them came out and said "hey, I think I might like guys too," I'm not gonna throw a fucking fit and invalidate them by telling them it's not possible because they've only ever dated women. No, I'll thank them for trusting me, and gush to them about boys because I never had a sister to do that with.

Every time I read those comments, all I can think is, you just proved that you're not a safe person to be trusted if someone in your life wants to come out.

Just, how do you give up on an entire show after one kiss? And then claim that you don't have a problem with it? You can't have it both ways. If it didn't matter to you, you wouldn't react so strongly and so negatively to it. 911 and ABC's intention isn't to question your sexuality. You don't have to worry that you're suddenly going to have to kiss Buck too, okay? Chill.

The whole "Buck has only ever slept with women" and "suddenly he's gay" responses are exactly why this storyline is so important. So many people to this day refuse to acknowledge sexualities outside of straight and gay. Why is it always, "made gay"? It doesn't have to be one or the other. It can be both, or neither.

I say this with the experience of having a mom who's still in the "I don't care as long as I don't have to see it" camp. If seeing it upsets you, you've got a problem. If it really doesn't matter and you're cool letting everyone be themselves, seeing two men together should be just as accepted as a man and a women together. Unless you're also saying we need to stop portraying men and women in romantic, sexual relationships together with kissing scenes or more graphic ones, then you can't rule with a double standard. Me and my mom loved watching Teen Wolf together, but any time there was a scene with Danny kissing another guy, she'd get uncomfortable. She even told me once, that she didn't think they should show scenes like that but she wasn't sure why when watching het couples together didn't make her feel the same way.

Safe, sane, and consensual. As long as they follow that, and are happy, why can't you just be happy for them?

If you're old enough to have been following along with this show, you're old enough to know that everyone is different. And life as an adult is about opening yourself up to the outside world and learning about what makes people different. From race to religion to sexuality to nationality and beyond. Your views, beliefs, ideologies, etc, are not the only ones that matter. Getting and giving acceptance goes hand in hand.

I get it to a certain extent. Coming from a different time and all that, but it just means you've had more time to learn. Being stubborn and holding onto what you were brought up in doesn't mean a whole lot to me if you refuse to open your mind up as an adult to look beyond yourself.

Okay, I'm done now. That felt chaotic, but I feel better. If you've made it this far, thanks for coming to my TED talk☺️

[yuri-for-businesswomen]

soooo tired of men posting that one domestic violence stat where lesbian and bi women experience more as proof that heterosexual relationships are least harmful for women and that men are less violent (let me laugh)

i have not had the chance yet to examine those numbers in context but something that annoys me in general when it comes to discussing the gendered dimension of violence (sexual, domestic, any violence really) is that many people dont differentiate, for example by motivation, degree of violence, rates of aggrevated assaults, offender-victim relationships, etc. theyre like „women commit violence too so we are just the same as men“ like no. there are huge differences and its not serving victims to act like its all the same. when i say female patterns of violence are different from male patterns (less physical force, less physical damage, less frequent,…) i dont do so to tell victims of female violence how to feel or to invalidate them, im just saying there are considerable differences. context and nuance are lost in so many cases.

[gracefullou]

i’m glad you addressed the people who are obsessed with proving his heterosexuality too. i’ve seen an array of weird comments on twitter about him fucking every women he comes in contact with. how he’s in a relationship with krystle and was the reason she broke up with her husband (which there’s no proof of that), like if you have an opinion that’s fine. personally i think he might be queer, but i’m sick and tired of people who take it too far. also people who are adamant that he’s gay when, as another anon said, bisexuality exists. gay, bi, queer, straight, doesn’t matter. people who make him the “woman” of the relationship (which is both misogynistic and homophobic). he can be queer and still be a laddie lad. also, he’s a talented musician and a good, kind person, and regardless of if he’s queer or not he’s shown support for the lgbtq+ community, and to me that’s all that matters. i don’t want him to become the latest of being forced to come out to appease people.

I agree with everything you said, anon. His sexuality is nobody's business but his own. I find this obsession really weird. Like why do you care if your fav sleeps with women, men or both? His music is sooo good, he's a good person, avoids drama as much as he can. What more do you want? Like what are you trying to achieve with this obsession? What do you think is the consequence of yours and hundreds of thousands of others' obsession with a person's sexuality? Bc from where i see it, either he is in fact queer and the people who want him to be gay so bad (let's be real it's not even gay it's Hrrysexual) are basically outing him or at least trying to DAILY or, he's not queer but those "fans" are pressuring him daily to "act" like he is by using gay stereotypes and be another queerbaiter like his husband. I don't think deep down they even care what he truly is, they just want him to act like Hrrysexual so they keep their epic gay lovestory alive. They don't care that there is a possibility they spent years of their lives making someone so uncomfortable and impacting his career badly just bc his sexuality doesn't suit their beliefs. Even when he said multiple times that Larry is not real. How fucked up is that? And no matter the angle you see it from, it IS homophobic. So much for championning and supporting the lgbtq community larries think they do 🙄. And don't get me started on those fans who ship him with any woman he comes in contact with bc while i think these fans are basically the consequence of larries' existence (anti- larries if you will, i don't think they would you exist otherwise) and they're mostly harmless bc there are few of them, it is still very offensive to both Louis and the women. Louis respects women, and has never given us a reason to think otherwise. He can be near a woman and not want to f*ck her, that much is a given. And he for sure will not get involved with his employee. Like seriously they need to stop thinking so low of him

[intoxicatinginsanity]

A mini rant tonight for the void!

One thing I’ve reflected on a bit this last week in my therapy session is how tired I am as a queer polyamorous woman of monogamous men. More specifically heterosexual monogamous men and more specific than that is heterosexual monogamous men who are “open” to the idea of polyamory.

Which usually ends up meaning, that they are in fact not actually open to it, but are so incredibly A. lonely and B. emotionally unintelligent, that they end up convincing themselves that they are okay with the idea of it; despite not actually being okay with it at all.

In which this little experiment of theirs ultimately ends with me being entirely disappointed; because they go into dating me with less than honest intentions. Their actual hope usually ends up being that I’ll change my mind about being polyamorous, and fall so heads over heels with them that they believe that I’ll; A. Run off with them and leave my primary partner, or B. If they are the primary partner that I’ll give up my poly-ways all together and stop all interest in having side partners.

It’s fucking exhausting and I legit don’t have time for it. Like if it’s not for you dude then it’s not for you, but don’t try and force yourself to fit into a life style that you really aren’t about and you know deep down you don’t vibe with just because you really want a girlfriend. Lying to yourself and ultimately to me only makes shit messier and fucking wastes the time of everyone involved.

If I’m being honest too, at that point what you really need is to fucking learn to be happy alone, and probably therapy. I say this because if you’re so desperate for any relationship, that you’ll settle into forcing yourself into something that makes you feel awful, on the off chance that you can convince the other person to change their lifestyle for you or to make you their #1 and only; you’re kind fucking unhealthy dude. A relationship isn’t going to fix you, a girlfriend isn’t going to make you love yourself more; adding polyamory into all of that will actually make it so much worse. Every single insecurity you have will only be magnified x10 if you don’t have healthy coping mechanisms, self-love techniques, and a means of communicating your issues honestly. Which if they did have any of those, they wouldn’t have found themselves trying to date me in the first place: Because a healthy person who knows themselves, and is capable of expressing their needs and wants; would already have known that.

This is also something I’ve noticed exclusively happens with hetero men in most cases, queer men and women I have never had this issue with; they all seem to know what they want and their limitations in regards to polyamory. That’s just my observation from personal experience however. I’m sure there are cases of queer folk that do the same thing, but I feel like it’s not as common of an issue. Don’t ask me why, tho cause I don’t fucking know lmao.

It sucks ass not having my romantic identity taken seriously by these men, it’s frustrating that they think if they hold out long enough that they can change me. I’m not a fucking idea, I’m not some imaginary big tiddy goth waifu. I’m a real person with real fucking feelings, who doesn’t like getting used for the delulu fantasy of having a bi/pan gf that they could have a threesome with, but then cry about it when she has another boyfriend she equally loves.

If you want to have someone entirely to yourself I ain’t it. If you want to be the singular priority of my life, I ain’t it. If you are looking for your soul mate, in the monogamous sense, I ain’t fucking it. If you’re looking to own me or tie me down, I’m absolutely not fucking it.

I’m not a concept, don’t toy with me like one.

[princejackal]

The RO List

This is a long time coming.

This is a list of confirmed ROs in the game. So far I’ve focused on love interests who your MC will meet early on in the game. Love interests from other kingdoms like Assyria, Babylon and one of the Aramean states have yet to be included.

In the game, marriage is about political gain. So your MC is suppose to marry for an alliance and not because they simply love the other person. While most love interests can be romanced by both male and female MCs, a marriage will only be recognised between heterosexual couples. But gay couples can have a private ceremony to affirm their relationship.

DISCLAIMER! Your MC can choose not to marry and be single. They can choose to monogamous to one person. Or they can decide to have numerous nameless concubines to bear children for them. It’s really up to you.

Now on to the list.

The Companions:

The first group of ROs are your three companions you’ll meet shortly after getting out of prison.

Name: Najim/Najima [M/F]

Race: Ghoul

Magic Type: Blood Manipulation, Shapeshifting

Description: Your friendly neighbourhood ghoul. N is the one who helps you out after you escape from prison. He/She sees your potential and is willing to go the extra mile for you. N doesn’t mind cracking a few skulls or eggs in order to secure back your throne. But don’t expect them to open up to you in the beginning. N has a past that they’d like to keep hidden.

Political Power: N doesn’t have a family to help you. In fact, N would be reluctant to marry your MC because it would cause a scandal. Even though N is a jinn, they are a wrong type of jinn. Ghouls are not seen in the best of light in the kingdom. Their shapeshifting ability has given them a bad reputation because shapeshifting is mostly used for espionage and assassination jobs.

Name: Leila [F]

Race: Qarin

Magic: Earth Manipulation

Description: Leila comes from a merchant family. But times have been hard for her family as trade routes have been monopolised in the kingdom and only those politically connected to the elites get good trade routes.

Leila is an excellent negotiator and can sell anything to anyone. Like any good merchant she has detractors who accuse her of being a charlatan and swindler who sells fake jewelry at highly inflated prices. But she never let’s criticism get in her way of securing the bag.

Political Power: Leila has contacts around the kingdom. Even though her family isn’t super rich, their wealthy enough and well-connected enough to assist you in reclaiming your throne. They won’t help you out for free but they expect the MC to pay them back.

Name: Zaki [M]

Race: Marid

Magic: Water Manipulation

Description: Zaki is currently a fisherman. He comes from a family of mercenaries. He spent years fighting for others in foreign lands. But he got sick and tired of the bloodshed. After the death of his younger brother, he decided to return to Jinnestan and live a simple life. But his simple life will become complicated when he helps the MC out and gets embroiled in the conflict between the MC and the vizier.

Political Power: Zaki comes from a good family. His family knows how to fight and can help the MC out in a war situation. The tribe Zaki comes from is known for their bravery. That’s why in the kingdom they’re hired to protect caravan routes from bandits.

The Betrothed:

You’ll first meet these two ROs during your twelfth birthday party. Your father wants to solidify your right to the throne. And has decided a good betrothal will put you in a good position.

The player is not forced to marry the person they’re betrothed to. After the incident that occurred in MC’s birthday party, the player is free to choose whoever they feel will secure them the throne.

Name: Raita [F]

Race: [Depends on MC’s Race Choice]

Magic: [Depends on MC’s First Elemental Power]

Description: Raita is your cousin from your father’s side. She’s known to be reserved and mostly keeps to herself. Raita is an excellent gardener and spends her free time tending to the plants in the palace. Surprisingly, your uncle finds Raita to be so non-threatening that she can go in and out of the royal palace without first seeking permission . But even though she’s quiet, she’s aware of her precarious position in court and tries hard to not arouse attention to herself. Raita however makes sure to keep notes on what goes on in the palace.

Political Power: Raita comes from the MC’s family tribe but is from a different clan than the MC. She’s your second cousin to be specific. A marriage with her would solidify your family’s support of you and de-legitimise the vizier.

Name: Qaus [M] (*NB: I’ve yet to change his name currently in demo)

Race: Half-Jinn, Half-Nephilim

Magic: Levitation

Description: Qaus is the second eldest son of the king of Edom. He believes he’s better than his brother and therefore should rule Edom. But his father has other plans. So most of the time his bored and spends reading scrolls from scholars. He longs for adventure and a chance to prove himself to his father.

Political Power: Qaus is a prince. A marriage with him would create an alliance between two kingdoms. Such an alliance would be beneficial for the MC. But it also poses a risk as Edom frequently comes into conflict with Israel and could drag Jinnestan into it if the MC is not careful.

High Risk, High Reward:

So this marriage would be very controversial and has many pitfalls for the MC. But if MC plays their cards right, you can end up on top. So here are two siblings from the second powerful tribe in the kingdom.

Name: Suhail [M]

Race: Hinn

Magic: Wind Manipulation

Description: Suhail is known to be carefree. He loves going out and partying hard. Coming from a very rich and powerful family, he organises a party every week in his house. Most people don’t take him seriously. He’s seen as a goofball, a guy who likes cracking jokes at inappropriate times. And Suhail prefers having people think he’s not a serious threat.

Political Power: Suhail belongs to the second most powerful tribe in the kingdom. During the war of unification, Suhail’s tribe opposed MC’s father and allied themselves with other tribes who didn’t want Arabia to be united. But at the final battle against your father, Suhail’s tribe switched sides in the middle of fighting. They betrayed their allies and launched a surprise attack from the rear against their former allies.

This would hand a total victory to your father. And MC’s father decided to reward Suhail’s tribe for switching sides. Over time, the tribe became more powerful and richer. They’re pretty much distrusted by most people in the kingdom for their dishonorable act. But a marriage with them will give you a powerful ally. So powerful that they could consume the MC in their web if the player is not careful.

Name: Samar [F]

Race: Hinn

Magic: Wind Manipulation

Description: Unlike her brother, Suhail, who enjoys partying all the time, Samar tries to get people to take her seriously. She spends her free time writing and publishing poems and stories. She organises poetry competitions at her home and provides financial support for young artists in the capital. Samar uses most of her income for charitable ventures like building orphanages and giving aid to poor widows.

She’s trying hard to repair her family reputation the best she can. But she can be vindictive. She’ll use her power and influence to crush anyone who mocks or speaks ill of her family.

Political Power: Again just like her brother, she belongs to a powerful tribe. A tribe that could help MC instead of supporting the vizier.

And that's it for now. The re-write is chugging along well

[butmakeitgayblog]

For cardi anon, she’s been open about it since the beginning even with her earlier songs. But the community didn’t accept her (which is so fucked up) because they insisted that she was just queerbaiting. It wasn’t until she was forced to basically say something about it in twitter coz she was being bombarded about it and being labeled as one of the celebs who are supposedly bi but never dates the same gender (again such a fucked up thing to say) basically she said something like she’s always bewn proud of her bisexuality, has been with A LOT of women, had relationships with them, and been eating pussy out since before a lot of these biphobic kids were born lol

I really get tired af of these people who think actual human beings can "queerbait" 🙄 do I think there are people who knowingly and consciously use classically queer iconography and imagery and style because it'll appeal to a certain demographic, all while being definitively heterosexual? Yes, I do. But I don't think that's queerbaiting. That's not what the fuck queerbaiting means, it's not what queerbaiting has ever meant, and human beings living their lives cannot queerbait anyone. And that CERTAINLY includes anyone who you just don't feel is ~queer enough~ or public enough to be counted. That whole mindset is just fuckin ridiculous and I hate it

That being said, anons! 👇

You two should find each other 😌

[princeescaluswords]

I’ve found that the most telling evidence that Something Else is amiss in the broad dislike of Scott is the lack of enthusiasm for Sciles. Compare it to Supernatural, which was also big at that time: 2 young attractive male leads (DOB being 3rd billed aside), good chemistry (both on-screen and IRL as friends), comedic dynamic, unbreakable bond, occasional flirting, etc. Sciles should have been THE pairing by almost any metric. Sterek had the antagonistic dynamic to set it apart, but given how much people water it down to fun banter or erase it altogether in fic, that canonical difference clearly wasn’t all that essential to shippers’ enjoyment. Allison comes up ALL the time as a complaint but other fandoms seem to be able to demonize and/or erase canon girlfriends without much of an issue. It leaves very, very few explanations when you look at it from that POV.

When I first entered fandom, I wasn't very interested in relationships; I focused more on character development in relation to plot. When I wrote, it was primarily gen fiction. As time passed, positive interactions with the fandom (there can be some!) led me to consider relationships as an important part of the greater whole. But one thing I never quite understood is the hostility to both Scott and Stiles's friendship and Scott and Allison's relationship. Unlike some people, I don't think that a non-canon relationship like romantic Stiles and Derek or Stiles and Peter simply can't work. I've written Sterek myself. It's always confused me how fandom seemed to seek validation for those ships by tearing down both of Scott's primary canonical relationships, which are completely unrelated.

Now, you know, I eventually came to several conclusions about why this happens, which I have talked about a great deal and will continue to talk about. But it's always key to me when actually grappling with an issue is an attempt to understand the other side. So I asked myself, for instance, why was Scott and Allison's canon romantic relationship so unpopular? It seems to me that those opposed to it have four major complaints which I have seen expressed in print.

It was heterosexual, and that is somehow bad.

It was stupid and dangerous: a newly bitten teenage werewolf falling in love with the teenage daughter of werewolf hunters was a recipe for disaster.

It distracted the lead protagonist (Scott) from the issues he should be addressing and the people to which he should be listening.

As the primary canon relationship of the first two seasons, parts of the audience felt it was being forced on them.

With the exception of the first one, which still mystifies me to this day, these others could have some value. I mean, the Romeo-and-Juliet trope is an old one, and people may be tired, in this modern age, of seeing it being re-enacted again. So, why don't you take an amble with me over to AO3? If these are legitimate fandom concerns, then it should hold up when we examine Teen Wolf's peer group of supernatural adventure shows.

Let's look at the famous Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003); it seems that the top two ships represented on AO3 are ...

#1 Spike and Buffy Summers

#2 Angel and Buffy Summers

Strange that the heterosexual canon ships of a vampire slayer and a vampire remain two most popular subjects. But that's an old show. We've changed. Let's look at something with more direct relevance. Tyler Posey was up for the role of Jacob in the Twilight film series (2008-2012). What ships are most popular there?

#1 Edward Cullen and Bella Swan

#2 Alice Cullen and Jasper Hale

Okay, interesting but there are still differences. There is less emphasis on inherent conflict, I guess. And those are movies, let's move back to television. (I will now switch from 'heterosexual' to 'man/woman' because some of these characters are definitely bisexual.)

True Blood (2008-2014) was a far more adult television show, so it would expand beyond the mainstream that the fandom finds so cloying:

#1 Eric Northman and Sookie Stackhouse

#2 Bill Compton and Sookie Stackhouse

Or maybe not. But that's premium cable targeted at a different audience. Let's look at the competitors, such as The Vampire Diaries (2009-2017) which ran coterminous with our show.

#1 Caroline Forbes and Klaus Mikaelson

#2 Elena Gilbert and Damon Salvatore

Or its spin off, The Originals (2013-2018)

#1 Caroline Forbes and Klaus Mikaelson

#2 Hayley Marshall and Elijah Mikaelson

It's kind of weird that these all have a certain pattern that the most popular ships to write about are all man/woman ships with built-in oppositional obstacles. Now, there are shows whose fandom are focused on non-heterosexual relationships, such as Supernatural, and while I haven't watched it and never will, I'm told that one of the reasons is that any canon man/woman ship was doomed by the narrative impulse to whack female characters. There's Legacies, which I don't know much about but it seems to be focused on a woman/woman ship and isn't that refreshing?

But I think, to paraphrase my favorite show, if three times is a pattern, five times might be a trend. It seems that fandom doesn't really have any problem exploring canonical problematic supernatural man/woman relationships as long as there is a particular trait among all the people participating in those relationships. Can you spot the pattern for yourself? Can someone explain to me why these are the most popular ships in their respective fandoms but those same characteristics make Scott and Allison's relationship distasteful. Of course, and always, we have to remember one thing

BUT IT'S NOT RACISM.

[brendannichols]

BASIC INFO

Full name: Brendan Alexander Nichols

Nickname(s): Bren, B

Age: 26  

Birthday: February 14th, 1997

Hometown: Fairford, Washington

Zodiac big three: Aquarius Sun, Aries Moon, Scorpio Rising

Sexuality: Heterosexual

Residence: Mountainside

Occupation: Writer & sometimes Photographer at Fairford Daily

PERSONALITY

Brendan has always been known as somewhat of a loner. He learned from a young age to expect disappointment, thanks to his unstable family dynamic. He resorts to drug and alcohol use to ease the pain and cope with life. He's not always the most pleasant person to be around, thanks to his sharp tongue and putting his walls up as a defense mechanism. Though if you take the time to understand him and see his walls drop down, you'll see that he's actually just a softie who just wants to be loved.

BIOGRAPHY

TW: Alcoholism

Mark Nichols had thought he met the love of his life with his first wife. Shortly after their marriage they went on to have two sons within a few years apart of one another. He worked as a truck driver, traveling across the entirety of the west coast for stops and deliveries. His job entailed long stretches of time being spent away from home, which put a strain on his marriage and family. Only a few years into their marriage, his wife had served him with divorce papers and custody of the boys. Mark was devastated and found comfort within whiskey. It was the only thing that seemed to numb the pain of the emptiness in his life. That was, until Claudia entered his life a few months later. She forced him to clean up his act and get sober. By December of 1995, the couple was married and gave birth to their son, Brendan Alexander Nichols on Valentine's Day of 1997.

By winter of 1997, the honeymoon phase of their marriage was already coming to a close. The couple started to slip into unhappiness and Mark reached for the bottle of Jack Daniels to numb the pain. He knew Claudia had been cheating on him with another man while he was away on the road. Part of Mark couldn't even blame her, as he knew he hadn't been the most present husband throughout their relationship. By the beginning of 1998, the couple had taken the pathway to divorce and Claudia moved out and moved on with the other man she had been seeing. Brendan was left with his father, growing up in a double wide trailer in a small trailer park on the edge of Mountainside. Within the next few years, Brendan's mother had gotten married and had two children, one boy and the youngest a girl, with the man she had left Mark for.

Brendan grew up visiting his mother and his younger half-siblings, but he always felt out of place and like he didn't belong. Part of him resented his mother for leaving him behind and starting a new family of her own. Leaving him behind with his alcoholic father who was absent half the time thanks to his job. It left him feeling abandoned and like he had never been good enough for anyone or anything his entire life. He strolled through life feeling like a loner with no real place he belonged.

This attitude stuck with him all throughout middle school and high school. While he had a few close friends he hung out with and started casually dating a few girls here and there. He never did much to excel in school, instead always scooting by with the average C's and occasional D's. For the most part, Brendan succeeded in keeping his head low and sticking to himself. However there were a few bullies around school who picked on him. They referred to him as "trailer trash" and occasionally even called him "trailer boy". He tried to ignore it at first, hoping they would tire themselves out and go away. It wasn't until one day at lunch when they pushed him just a little too far. Brendan swung in their direction, which resulted in an immediate trip to the principal's office, one week's suspension, and another two weeks of detention. It wasn't his proudest moment, but it gained him the reputation of somewhat of a "bad boy" and was the key to those bullies leaving him alone.

By the time college rolled around, Brendan had applied to a community college in Portland, Oregon. He was desperate for an escape from Fairford and a fresh start. He picked up a part-time job as a server at a local restaurant and saved up enough to afford a small apartment with a roommate. He and his roommate began hosting parties at their apartment and inviting their classmates or anyone else the word of mouth got to. This was the start of Brendan's own alcohol addiction. It wasn't a problem until he started staying up all night drinking, only to be completely wasted and unable to attend his classes by the time they rolled around. He did his best to get his grades up, but he only passed by the skin of his teeth.

Halfway into his sophomore year, Brendan met a girl in one of his classes and instantly became smitten. He had never really been in a serious relationship, as the previous ones had all been casual and fizzled out after a few months time. He wasn't sure if he could even commit to an actual relationship, given his trust issues and fear of abandonment. All his life, he had seen and heard about nothing but rocky relationships on both his mother and father's side. Why should he put his heart out on the line just to have someone throw it back at him as they walked out the door. Any time a girl would catch feelings or want more than a casual date or a hook-up, Brendan would completely ghost and move onto something less serious. But when it came to this girl, she had Brendan wondering if he was even capable of being in a committed relationship. The walls he always built up when it came to everyone else, started to fall around him the more he got to know her. Everything between them had been going smoothly for a few months. But when it came time to define the relationship and put a label on what they were, Brendan did what he does best...he screwed up.

He found himself at one of the popular bars in the area, got completely wasted, and went home with another woman. He woke up the next morning with angry text messages waiting for him from the girl. Apparently one of her friends was at the same bar and saw him leave with this other woman. Brendan knew she was better off without him in the long run. She deserved to find actual happiness and someone who could give her all the things he never could. Even if there was a small sting of pain that came with the lingering thoughts of what could have been, Brendan numbed it with the familiar burn of alcohol.

By his junior year, his dependance on alcohol worsened. His grades began to slip further and he began failing the majority of his classes. He was left with no choice but to drop out. When his mother found out, she begged him to move back home to Fairford and set him up in a special treatment center. He went through the motions to make this mother happy, even though he had no intentions to quit. Once released from the treatment center, Brendan still couldn't learn how to curb his addiction. If anything, he just got better at hiding it from everyone around him. His first effort to get back on his feet came in the form of landing a job as a writer and photographer at Fairford Daily. He had studied both journalism and photography across the course of high school and college, which came as the perfect training for this position.

Just last year, Brendan enrolled in Fairford's Community College to finish up the last few credits of his degree. It was yet another step to prove to those around him that he was fine and no longer struggling. His mother seems to think it was just a phase he went through in college and that the rehab facility "healed" him. The fact that she only rarely checks in on him helps keep up the facade that everything is fine.

[psychewritesbs]

Hiii, long time no see!!

So my ask basically is about the previous anon ask, because i didn't think it was appropriate to comment on someone's ask ( because i think that anon asks are sacred and private and exclusive to them) . I went through and I still am in that phase . I am not going to psycho analyse another person's taste in media,but merely sharing something that i came across while scrolling on insta .

There was this reel about the power dynamics that plays out in the portrayal of homo and hetero relationships. There are of course gender roles and stereotypes assigned to the people in the relationships in a hetero ship. For the people who are tired of these fixed dynamics , homosexual relationships will be everything they've been waiting for ,where they can't assign anything.

I dunno if it makes sense to everyone,but it makes sense to me, especially in the context that I am an m/m fanfiction enthusiast. The rivalry relationships in the media can be easily converted to romantic dynamics for fanfiction,whereas the "romantic interests" in most cases are very shallow and poorly written without much attributes to them.

HEY! Long time no see :) I hope you are well 🫶🏼.

Ok, so I brought you to the front of the ask queue because this is so GOOOOOOOOOOOOD! Thank you for sharing this.

(The ask in question)

Idk why I didn't think of this before, but yes!

There's a book on the topic called Girls Who Like Boys Who Like Boys: Women and Gay Male Pornography and Erotica by Lucy Neville.

One of the arguments the author makes in her seeking to understand why women read bl is exactly what you mention--same sex couples in fiction fulfill a need for equality in dynamics that might otherwise not be present in their lives OR heterosexual "ships".

The book has many other anecdotal examples of why women like bl, so I recommend reading it because I feel like one of the main goals Lucy Neville had in doing this research was to normalize the experience of being interested in same-sex dynamics in fiction.

If I remember correctly, in a nutshell, the author argues that, for a lot of women, the interest comes down to one very simple fact--women's sexuality is fluid and expresses itself in different shapes or forms that are unique to the individual.

And since this conversation started because of someone wondering if they were weird for having said interests...

If I'm honest, I am tired of otaku men using the term fujoshi to make fun of women who like yaoi/bl which is kinda futile because the term is meant to be a sort of insult but I digress without understanding that it is an expression of female sexuality.

It's especially annoying when, as a woman, I have had to accept the fact that anime and manga has normalized the idea that it's ok for the male gaze to appreciate a big pair of melons...

No offense to Marin btw. She's awesome and I love how comfortable she is in her sexuality.

... but it is not ok for a woman to express her sexuality in whatever shape or form it takes. I am going to continue to be insufferable about this btw.

ANYWAYS! Love what you said about finding some of the dynamics cheesy compared to others that are less forced in their attempt to make them "romantic interests".

Thanks for sending this 🥲.

[slashcrz]

☼�� ( jonah hauer-king , 27 , he/him , cis male , schellenburg 5 ) - have you seen REUBEN ' RUBY ' SCHELLENBURG?  we’ve heard through the grapevine that they’re COOPERATIVE but also OBSESSIVE. when you think of them , you think of AN INHERITANCE LOST, SNOW CAPPED MOUNTAINS, SAD SMILES FOR A LOST TIME.

nicknames; ruby. not ben, never ben. sometimes rubes.

birth date; july 27th, a leo.

orientation; heterosexual.

relationship; betrothed to joanna stuart, and shockingly... enjoying it?

politics; really doesn't want to care all that much, but is trying to quickly learn more to keep his place at the grown up table. tends to lead more liberal, or whatever liberal was in 1800.

religion; agnostic, raised catholic, loosely.

languages; german, french, english, in this order - lesser known of a handful of other languages.

headcanons && backstory.

TW; drinking/alcoholism

once upon a time, reuben toddled after his eldest sibling with admiration in his eyes. he loved their taste for the expensive things, and quite contributes his own such taste in like to their influence. always, even as a child, reuben took very little seriously. their parents, older, he was a surprise baby - riding the coattails of his elder siblings, and perfectly fine with that. no one paid him much heed, and the governess, by now, was tired from raising them, and children of her own.

reuben was, essentially, the prince of his own castle long before he truly became a prince.

there was talk, early on, of marrying reuben off rather fast. it was easily dissolved, by his own hand, like much of the way of his life went. he had no problem bending will to his whim, and got quite good at it rather quickly. maybe this is a trait he learned from his eldest sibling, who always had the best parties, the best friends...

basically, reuben always went where the fun was, where the party was. it was easy to do so, in his family. much of his early 20s are a blur, a mess of his own debauchery. it wasn't until a sobering talk with his family got him to realize that somehow, in the midst of the madness, the money was spent. every drop, every penny, and they were teetering on the edge of ruin.

just like that - ruby turned on the eldest of the family, and took a very active role in the overthrow. but the loyalty was never really for the new leadership in place. in fact, reuben found himself rebelling more than ever, especially when money did not indeed come flooding back in.

he took to forgery scams, taking advantage of clueless nobles, and building a secret wealth of his own. he trusts his siblings none, and keeps his affairs private, while still leeching every drop he can from the family finances, as they begin budding. part of him truly regrets not siding by the obvious preferred sibling in the family - the overthrown eldest.

in versailles, things have changed a bit. becoming a prince as their family departed from the HRE was a shock to him, and forced him to a place of elevated attention, and responsibility, for the first time ever. he has slowed some in his forgery scams, but has amped up the misbehavior in other ways. currently he is worming his way into austria with a long-con, while also having an affair with a very taken scottish princess.

the partying, drinking, blackouts... those have mostly ended, though there are times he does get rather drunk. reuben doesn't see really any problem, and has began to naturally cut back, as his attention diverts elsewhere.

as his affair with joanna is outed to versailles, her father reacts in anger && quickly betrothed the pair, only hours after he broke up with her in an attempt to run from his mess.

he is now struggling in a place between families, unsure where to place his trusts, and mostly views joanna as his only family for the time being. all of his scams have halted except his cash influx from austria.