#trying to hold on

[machiavelli]

it’s just me, myself and I in the Gaspara Stampa hashtag…

[x3no9]

The moment you realize that in nearly all your favorite ships one or both lovers are dead... just doesn't make for a happy time. No matter what ya do, no matter how intricate and alive of a world you build for them to live and interact in, they are dead in the one story that universally matters- the canon story.

Let's all take a moment to appreciate those writers and artists that hold that candle for love that never was but should have been, or love lost.

[autumnbell32]

am i going to disappear into this?

[tamedgod]

"you're strong. and BRAVE — but i wish you knew you don't always gotta be. we're here — i'm here. let me help carry some of that weight on your shoulders, 'kay?" — sett to haru, relogae — a little ways down the line prob,,

affectionate & affirming // @face-breaker

haru doesn't respond right away, tired grey eyes scanning across the vast gorge ahead. her feet are poised at the edge of the cliffside as she looks upon the abandoned grand cathedral off in the distance; their next destination. the southeast islands were a bounty of natural beauty; pristine waterfalls were scattered through the cliffs and mountainsides, and the scenery was seemingly in a constant state of golden hour. the monastery was supposedly where Çyreni was born — as well as Her honorary burial ground.

haru's gaze is focused on the giant crystal star carved above the center of the church, a fixture associated not only with the Paragon's being, but also Her imprisonment. something about that was... tragic, to the cat. her eyes fall to the gorge's maw below, the sound of rushing water able to be heard, but not seen in the darkness. she then turned to look onward towards the sun settling on the horizon; was it Çyreni's divinity that made this isle so resplendent? the light filtering through the star structure cast patterns and rays down to the woods surrounding the building, giving off an ethereal feeling. it reminded her of the Shards they'd already collected.

the party had been through so much up to this point, crossed so many miles only to locate three of the seven Shards — it felt like a lifetime ago that they'd started this journey together. haru could only consider herself lucky that everyone had managed to make it where they were now.

almost everyone, anyway.

she didn't know how long it had been now, since the group had split. time seemed to move differently in this place, so even judging by the seasons seemed impossible. raksha... and xiao. were the two of them alright? should she even care? haru had yet to bring violent justice upon jun for her family's deaths, drem's blank and bloody face flashing in her mind. xiao's wrathful features appeared after, like another dagger in her heart. she wished things had been different — that he would have stayed. for their friends. for sett. for her.

stormy hues finally break their thousand yard stare across the territory, landing on sett's own gaze, his eyes aureate beneath the ethereal light. after another moment of contemplation, haru shakes her head, letting out a meek chuckle under her breath as she sinks down to sit at the cliff's edge.

"how do i put it all down?"

her question is sincere, notes of despair hidden within it. when all this had started, the day she'd first died, she'd never known it would take her here. didn't know how hard it would be to remain a stone pillar, rather than crumbling into sand. all the fairytales she'd read in the castle made it seem so easy to be strong — to be brave. now haru knew it was anything but. she wanted to cry a lot, and she felt so alone — sometimes it even seemed like things might be simpler if she really was on her own. there'd be no need to worry about losing her friends, her family. xiao. sett.

the other beastkin had grown to become of deep importance to the cat, the pair having shared so much on this journey together. she found that she cared quite deeply for him, only reinforcing haru's notions of wanting to protect him — even from herself. there was so much anger, fear, and sadness pooled up inside her; it didn't seem right to unleash those floodgates on anyone, even sett. to put that burden on him, alongside her, seemed cruel. and while she was used to carrying it alone, and always had been — it was becoming unbearably heavy.

she spoke less these days, and slept even less than before. she was eating less, had less drive to hunt. all haru seemed to share with her team anymore was discussions on the next stop, or to brainstorm next steps. she kept the collected Shards close to her at all times, and would often isolate herself away from the troupe. the blackouts were becoming worse; if she were to keep her nerve on this venture, haru felt like she had to keep herself separated — not just for the others' safety, but selfishly for her own. she didn't know how much more she could take.

haru pulls her knees to her chest, the cat looking down into the dark fissure below. her feline ears laid flat, her head low and her tail lifeless on the ground around her. when she speaks again, there's a twinge of desperation in her tone.

"...i'm scared, sett. i just want this all to be over."

[chaotic-neutral-knitter]

I think one of the kindest things you can do for people with various mental health struggles is just... let people back into your life after they've been absent for a while.

Making friends as an adult is so fucking hard already and isolating yourself from other people is a very common symptom of depression, anxiety, burnout, ocd, trauma, grief, etc. Which means that someone will do the hard work of recovery/healing and resurface back into a world where their previous friends have written them off because they stopped showing up.

So if you know someone where you're like "yeah we could have been better friends but they fell off the map a bit" and that person suddenly reaches out, or starts showing up to events even though you kind of forgot they were still in the group chat... well they may have been Going Through It and you don't actually have to punish them for their absence you can just be glad that they're back.

[heart-songs]

He rumbles out a laugh, and I let myself steal another glance. It's even better than when he told me my sunroom was nice. I like how he tosses his head back with it, how his hand clutches his chest like he's trying to hold on to the feeling.

Tarah DeWitt, Savor It (pg. 92)

[humming-fly]

I love how Gerald was trying to keep Shadow from spoiling anything about the future meanwhile literally everything Shadow says and does around Maria is the biggest death flag ever

[you-dont-need-me-anymore]

[captainjonnitkessler]

You know I used to think "tumblr's absolute refusal to actually engage with the Trolley Problem in favor of insisting that there must be a third, morally pure option that doesn't require them to make a hard decision and anyone who asks them to make a binary choice is just a short-sighted idiot is really fucking annoying, but I guess it's not actually doing any harm".

Anyway that was before we asked tumblr at large to decide between "guy aiding a genocide but making progress elsewhere" and "guy who would actively and enthusiastically participate in a genocide and would also make everything else much, much worse for everyone elsewhere" and the response was that there must be a third, morally pure option that doesn't require them to make a hard decision and that anyone who asks them to make a binary choice is a short-sighted idiot.

[everwalldigan]

Only those who have seen the light know that Bruce Wayne is absolutely the type of annoying father who asks for his adult children for grandkids EVERY chance possible. This is the same man who immediately put in his two weeks notice from batman-ing the MINUTE he discovered he had a granddaughter.

Bruce, materialising in bludhaven: when are you and Barbara getting married

Dick: NO.

Bruce: *sad GRANDCHILDLESS noises*

Bruce, materialising in crime alley: when you are going to settle down with a nice girl or guy and give me a-

Jason: *starts shooting*

Bruce, materialising in the clocktower:

Babs: don’t even fucking think about it

Bruce: *dematerialises away sadly*

Finally, at the annual family dinner, Bruce: whoever is the first to bring me a grandchild will be banned from ever having to take over batman

[qifreyplushie]

can i see your necklace for a second, your highness? ^__^

[brie-annwyl]

Jason and Damian meeting at the league but Batfam doesn’t know Jason’s alive is one of my favourite fanfic tropes.

Dick, in his hoe era talking about getting beat tf up by some girl’s boyfriend: I genuinely thought the dude was gonna kill me! I was framed, I swear! Istg someone must’ve planted a strawberry handkerchief on me or something.

Damian, barely listing: was that an Othello reference?

Tim: how did you know that? I didn’t even catch that.

Damian: it was ja- *long pause ensues*

Tim: is his programming malfunctioning?

Dick: Ja??

Damian, brain farting: yep. “Ja”

*frantically messaging Jason saying he almost broke his cover*

—

Damian, annotating Jason’s old copies of the classics: I forgot how much of an idiot you were back then. *takes sticky note off page* “RIP queen, this is actually so depressing.” Yeah, Ophelia just died. Way to state the obvious.

Dick: ??

Damian:

Damian: I’m a medium. He-uh, talks to me.

Dick: oh okay- wait. What?

—

Damian, sneaking back into the manor after having a visit with Jason: *tip toeing his way to the stairs*

Bruce, waiting in the living room with a lamp: Damian, Where were you?

Damian, who can’t improv for shit: uh-

Bruce: *eyebrow raise*

Damian: I was kidnapped by red hood *runs upstairs*

—

Bruce, in his feels era: I wish jaylad was around to see this.

Damian, not thinking: can we not just ask him to come over?

Bruce:

Damian:

Bruce: what-

Damian: we can use a ouija board. That’s how I communicate with him.

Bruce, concerned: what???

[arkangelo-7]

Bruce, fighting Ra’s al Guhl: I will never let you take my son! Damian is—

Ra’s: Fool! I’m not here for Damian.

Bruce: …

Bruce: …then why are you here?

Ra’s: To recruit my one true successor—Timothy Drake!

Bruce: the fuck

[ghosthazard]

Take Aim

[nanamin-nah-nanamine]

Can you just imagine Nanami letting you ride him? Giving the illusion that you’re in control, praising you for being such a good girl bouncing on his cock so well. His big hands running up and down your sides as he watches and waits.

Waits for you to falter.

Waits for your legs to grow tired and your rhythm to falter as you whine that you still got it and that he doesn’t need to take over.

And he’ll humor you. He’ll indulge you until your bouncing turns to grinding down on his cock, your clit rubbing against his hip bones with each roll and he’ll wait until you’re close before he flips you over and pounds you until you’re squirting <3

[lunnefisk]

recreating this bloodborne meme i saw one time from memory