#we spend so little time thinking critically and so much time asking for an easy answer or simply giving up

[pythiaswine]

I find that sometimes when I'm writing, I look up relatively ungooglable things, even things I already know the answer to. "how do children react to estranged parents" honey. i'm going to hold your hand when I say this: you have an estranged parent.

[lukolabrainrot]

Calm theory anon here!!

So I'm a bit frustrated with some fans pages today. So my instant reaction is to put them in their place, but I'm gonna try to go at this in a different way. We all know that Nicola has achieved in her career. She's getting accolades finally. And people are upset because Luke did not comment on her social media post. They feel that he should comment something. I want to ask you the ones that are actively shitting on Luke consistently if you put all of your life on social media? When your friends are doing phenomenal, do you go to their page and congratulate them consistently? Is Your whole life lived on social media? No right. Social media is a tool used to share bits and pieces of your life. It is a five seconds snapshots of your life. I may like a picture of my friends but then text them or call them and give my congratulations. Or sometimes I like to do it face-to-face. We do know that they are shooting Bridgerton. We do know that Luke and Nicola are probably already shot scenes together. We do know that they have each other cell phone numbers. We do know that they hang out off camera. So why do we think he has not said anything to her? Luke seems to be the type of person that does actions. Like for example Nicholas said that Luke was the first person That wished her happy birthday. That means he beat JVN, JD, Douglas, Camilla. We also know that he gave her a camera that she cherishes. Which shows that he took his time buying that gift. He is a thoughtful person and we know this cuz of nic and jade. So really who is the social media comment for? It's not for Nic because I'm sure he can tell her to her face. No the social media comments are for the fans. That's all we want to see some type of interaction between the two and so we give him shit every time he doesn't comment because we want to see their interactions. I'm gonna say this doesn't owe us anything. He does not owe us a damn thing we did not stick up for him. And how do you know he hasn't thanked her in someway shape or form already in person? We don't know.

There is so much criticism when it comes to Luke. Every little thing he does is criticized to point where he's had to get off of social media or at least limit his interactions and that's because of fans. Luke gave us a phenomenal performance in his role as Colin. Then he gave us six more months worth of tours that we all cherish. What did he do so wrong that he consistently gets hated on? He dated a girl. He should not be held liable for somebody else's decisions and actions. Contrary to what people think Luke cannot control grown people. He cannot control their actions. He cannot control what they post. Yes, he didn't stop being friends with them. But He's also human people. He's known Rory for how long? Years it's not easy to break connections with people. Maybe I give a little grace to people because I am flawed myself, and I would hate to be judged the way that Luke is being judged. Sorry I went out a bit of a rent. It's just people are pissing me off. Thank you for the safe place to speak.

💯

Ok I have to get this off my chest... these are all just my personal feelings/thoughts on all this:

If he did he would have just gotten TONS of hate under his comment… N would have had to clean it up and it would have turned into being about him and not her accomplishment.

I'm pretty certain these two are spending a LOT of time together BTS currently... I'm sure he congratulated her!

Just because he didn't comment on her post doesn't mean he doesn't support her or is happy for her... and guess what, he liked it so the fans knew that. That man ADORES and ADMIRES N, NO ONE can convince me otherwise.

SM is NOT a direct indicator of what is going on BTS. It is such a small part of our lives.

[kaisersbestglazer]

✧*̥˚ Four Leaf Clover *̥˚✧

⋆. .☘︎₊˚⭑ a/n - Hi!! this is my first time writing and publishing a story so constructive criticism is welcome!! This first chapter is more of a world building one as i want to turn this into a series if you guys enjoy it and ask for more!! thank you for taking the time to read this :))

⋆. .☘︎₊˚⭑ word count - 1820

⋆.☘︎₊˚⭑ content - Oliver Aiku x fem reader, strangers to lovers, u-20 game, reader plays hard to get, pretty slow slow burn,

⋆.☘︎₊˚⭑ synopsis - You and your friends go to see the u-20 vs blue lock game together when you notice him: Oliver Aiku. Spotting you in the crowd he thinks " I must have her". But what happens when you aren't as easy to persuade as the girls hes used to getting.

Oliver always worked hard for what he wanted. Nothing was ever just handed to him and he never wished for it to be like that, the feeling of pushing himself too his absolute limit to get the one thing he desired most made him excited and thats why he loved soccer so much.

It was just another game he thought, the u-20 vs something called blue lock? He didn’t know too much about the other team or the people who were on it and honestly he didnt care too. Cocky? Maybe a little, but he had faith that his team would come out of this game victorious like always, and he didn’t expect this one game to change that.

You had been looking forward to this match all week, you and a couple friends planned to see it together. it was the only thing keeping you going through your very stressful finals. you needed something that could help you unwind and plus youve never been to a soccer game in person before especially not one this big. So it was rather exciting and new for you.

You had finally finished getting ready when your friend calls you. Shes outside ready to leave, so you grab your belongings and walk towards the door, the wind hitting your face as you walk out. It was a beautiful day outside, its the middle of fall so the leaves are turning colors and falling off the trees. You step on one hearing a nice crunching sound. You make your way to the car finally entering it.

“Woahhh you look cute!!” Sophi exclaims; the excitement ringing through her voice

“Thank you!! I put so much thought into it and….”

Your words start to blend together as she starts the car and pulls out the drive way. You talk the entire car ride there but she doesn’t mind, she listens to you ramble and even asks questions; thats just the type of person she is. Thirty minutes later, you’re there: the blue lock arena. Its huge and crowded filled with stands for food and merchandise. You have never seen this many people in one place at one time this must be a huge match you thought.

You spend a while walking around with sophi looking for your other friends, you zone out but cant help but be intrigued by the other side conversations happening, everyone sounds so passionate about this match.

“Can you believe it sae itoshi is really going to play with u-20!!”

“Really?? We cant miss this we need to hurry and get to our seats”

“Shidou Ryusei s going to be playing with u-20 too, i didnt expect that because hes a total random”

“Isnt he also from the blue lock program?? Why is he playing with u-20”

“ [NAMEEEE], SOPHIII “ you freeze hearing someone call out your name quite loudly bringing you back to reality

“ [NAME] LOOK RIGHT HERE ITS ME” you look around scanning the area when you see her.

“ OH HANA OH MY GOSH” you scream, you havent seen hana in forever since she attends a different university making your friendship mostly long distance.

You give her a hug squealing as sophi approaches from behind you and gives hana a hug aswell. You guys spend the time walking to your seats catching up. School, life, relationships. You want to know everything especially because its been so long since your iconic trio has been together like this.

You guys are mid conversation when you start to hear it, the chanting “JAPAN! JAPAN! JAPAN! JAPAN!!!” The chanting is so loud its practically damaging your eardrums.

“Look guys i think the players are coming out!!”

“WHAT??? SOPHI I CANT HEAR YOU” hana yells

“SHE SAID SHE THINKS THE PLAYERS ARE COMING OUT” i scream back, hoping maybe this time hana heard

“YEAH LOOK OVER THERE I SEE THEM” hana points them out coming from the entrance in the west

You all watch as the players walk out. You made sure to get pretty good seats so youre super close to the field and have a good view of each person. One by one they all walk out each member of u-20 comes out first;

1. Gen fukaku

2. Oliver aiku

3. Kazuma nio

4. Teppei neru

5. Miroku darai

6. Itsuki wakatsuki

7. Haru hayate

8. Kento cho

9. Teru kitsunezato

10. Sae itoshi

11. Shuto sendo

12. Ryusei shidou

Shortly after team blue lock makes their way to the field.

1. Gin Gagamaru

2. Jyubei aryu

3. Ikki niko

4. Hyoma chigiri

5. Kenya yukimiya

6. Tabito karasu

7. Seishiro nagi

8. Meguru bachira

9. Eita otoya

10. Rin itoshi

11. Yoichi isagi

12. Shoei barou

13. Reo mikage

14. Yo hiori

“Woah do you guys see number 10 on u-20??” Sophi asks a sparkle in her eye.

“Yeah why??” You and hana ask simultaneously.

“BECAUSE HE IS SOO CUTE” she crys out.

“NONONONONO DID YOU SEE RIN ITOSHI ON TEAM BLUE LOCK??” Hana says practically foaming at the mouth starting an argument between the two.

While they’re discussing who is finer of the two brothers you cant help but stare out at the 6’3 giant on the u-20 team. Hes tall, with nice healthy looking hair and two different colored eyes one blue the other green, exactly the same as his hair. His jawline is sharp and his facial features are very…?? There isn’t even a word to describe it, you can’t formulate one. But if you had to choose you would say perfect. Oliver Aiku is perfect.

“So who do you think is better [name]??” Sophi asks

“[name]??? Earth to [name] where are you??”

“[NAME]!!” sophi screams in your ear quickly startling you and gathering your attention.

“Huh, what sorry i was zoned out” you say left in a daze.

“Were you zoned out or were you just too busy looking number 2 up and down” hana chimes in slyly.

“what no i just was zoned out stop it!!” you say all flustered

You turn your attention back to the field, everyone’s setting up now getting into their starting positions. You look around for a second and come to a stop. Someones staring at you, you can feel it their eyes piercing your soul. You turn your head to find whoever is looking at you so intensely when you lock eyes with oliver aiku, he smiles at you giving you a smile so warm and genuine that it makes your heart race. You think for a second that maybe you’re tweaking, maybe the delusions are getting to you. So you turn your head breaking the eye contact you shared.

“Guys i think i just made eye contact with Oliver aiku and he smiled at me…” you say questionably.

“Are you serious?!?” Hana freaks out almost jumping out of her seat.

“Did you smile back??” Sophi asks intrigued by the whole situation.

Oh my god…you didnt smile back!?! Fear settles over you as you realize you didnt even return the sentiment not even a little. you didnt even smirk…. Your face twists as you come to your realization, sophi notices.

“Sooo im gonna take that as a no, you fumbled the bag [name]” she jokes

“Oh as if, like there was even a bag to fumble in the first place” you scoff knowing there was no way in hell you even had a chance with the number 1 defender in u-20.

“Aiku what are you staring off at, the games about to start get in position” sendo warns him.

“Sorry, you’re right sendo!” He shouts making his way to his area; center back thats where he plays.

Walking to his area, he ponders about the girl he just saw she was so… Gorgeous?? he doesn’t even know if that’s the most appropriate word for her. She was beyond that; she was ethereal. He wonders if there’s a chance that he will ever get to see her again I mean it’s highly unlikely but if there’s even a slither of hope he’ll go for it. Because he has to have it. He has to have her.

The whistle blows and the game finally starts sae Itoshi starts with the ball it’s U 20s kickoff. After a series of very complex passes and saves, nagi seishiro finally scores the first goal with his iconic intro to japan. The crowd is blaring, everyone is hype ready to see what blue lock has in store for this match.

Goal after goal, the winning team keeps swaying. With only a few seconds left on the clock Isagi positions himself in a place where he assumes the ball may fall. The crowd is over the roof, its so loud in the arena that you could probably hear it from way outside, even if you’re several miles away. The ball lands right where Isagi thought it would he kicks the ball…..and he scores. Isagi scores the winning shot for the u-20 game and blue lock wins 4-3, it was a very close win but still very much a win.

The match seems like it went by so fast thats how phenomenal it was. Everyone was so invested and tuned into it. You’re quite surprised with how the match turns out. Don’t be mistaken you know blue lock was amazing but you didn’t expect them to best the u-20. Everyone stands up to make their way out of the arena but you and your friends just sit there for a little watching as everyone leaves the field.

“Man that was such a good match” hana utters, shock still sounding in her voice from such a surprising match.

“I know right” sophi says mouth agape also still in shock.

You all sit there for a couple more seconds taking in your surroundings and processing your feelings all you can think is. “Damn that was truely an amazing match” Suddenly your thoughts are interrupted when you have the sudden urge to go use the restroom. I mean its not too surprising you did drink ALOT of soda during the game.

“Hana, sophi i have to use the bathroom” you announce.

“Okay lets go its time to leave anyways!!” Sophi vocalizes.

The trio makes their way to the bathroom swiftly. As you finish up you walk outside and hear a familiar manly voice. You continue walking, looking down not paying too much attention to your surroundings when you accidentally bump into someone. Without looking up you start profusely apologizing.

“Oh my gosh im so sorry, i wasnt paying attention and-“ he cuts you off.

“Its okay, you dont have to apologize so much it was an accident.” The man coos.

Wait that voice, ive heard it somewere you slowly begin to look up at the large figure infront of you. No way, you cannot be serious. There is no way you just ran into oliver aiku.

Chapter 1 end

︎ ⋆. .☘︎₊˚⭑ a/n - I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of “Four Leaf Clover”!! Like i said i am a new writer so constructive criticism is welcome!! Along with any ideas for future chapters if you have any!! Again thank you so much for reading and i hope you liked it :)).

[moonastrogirl]

Escape the matrix month by month with astrology

Credit @moonastrogirl

Escaping the matrix is still working, paying bills and being a normal citizen. Escaping the matrix is having money to fulfil our needs and desires plus taking accountability for our actions and decisions. It’s not living in delulu land. Escaping the matrix is an inner job. It’s raising our authenticity and our frequency so that others do the same around us.

Escaping the matrix is easy. Just avoid doing what everybody is doing at the same time.

For instance : when the time for sales arrives, do not buy anything. Do the opposite. Give to others. Society wants us to buy stuff, clothes and get distracted at the beginning of the year. Why ? Because we must not. We must focus our energy into ourselves and not get distracted. Same goes for the Black Friday.

-> Where attention goes, energy flows.

In January Aquarius’s energy urge you to look at yourself and ask : What kind of person are you ? Who are you ? Who do you want to be ?Know yourself and heal yourself in January.

What does Aquariuses do best ? Think outside-of-the-box. They are knowledgeable and innovative people who improve the world. So that exactly what everybody should be doing.

-> Aquarius is also the humanitarian of the signs. The best thing to do is charity work and donate clothes in January. It’s cold outside and homeless people have it worse when everyone is outside spending their money on sales and not looking in their direction. Look at them and show empathy. Help them if you can.

In February do you really need to buy or receive flowers and go on an expensive dinner date to show love to your lover or you can simply just do it all year long ? Again don’t buy anything.

-> Do not participate in traditions which are designed to distract you from what you need to do.

February is Pisces season and Pisces are amazing at anything they do once they believe in what they do. They are not delusional, they just believe wholeheartedly in what they want to do, have and achieve. Like Pisces believe in yourself in February. Only do what you believe it’s best for you and you only.

In March like Aries, be your authentic self and become yourself. Take action on yourself and your authenticity like Aries be assertive in who you are. Like Aries be your true self. Show up as your true self and be authentic in every room you are in. Be the definition of what you see is what you get. People must see through your actions and your presence who you truly are.

In April do not be part of April’s fool. Just completely ignore it. Forget about it and go on with your life as if it doesn’t even exist. If people try jokes on you, ignore them. April is Taurus season. Tauruses are stubborn, grounded, strong willed and they know how to stay in their lane. Do the same.

In May the intellectual and stimulating Gemini’s energy urges us to think by ourselves and for ourselves. Think critically for yourself. Do not be influenced by other’s opinions and thoughts on someone or something, think about it yourself for yourself.

In June the sweet and caring Cancer’s energy asks us to feel. Feel your feelings and how you feel about yourself, your surroundings and people you meet. Ask yourself : what am I feeling right now ? Do not suppress your feelings or your emotions because they are compass guiding you.

In July Leo’s energy is here to make us focus on self love. Love yourself even when you don’t feel like loving yourself, even if you are alone, even if you don’t feel beautiful. Love yourself no matter what.

-> Again July is the time of sales and you know what it means : do not buy anything. There is a reason why sales take place in January and July. Those two months are important ones where we should be focusing on ourselves.

-> Self love has little to do with how much you can spend. Self love has everything to do with you, who you are, how you express who you are and what you love most. Self love is rooted in joy. The joy of being yourself.

In August Virgo’s energy asks us to examine, analyse and assess ourselves. Did we do what we needed to do to get here ? What else need to be done ? Abundance comes from analysing ourselves. It’s the month of harvest number 8 in numerology. The karmic month. We reap what we have sow the past months of the year.

In September Libra’s energy ask us to balance ourselves. Work on your confidence and find balance within yourself. Do not overdo, do not underdo. Balance yourself to balance your life.

In October Scorpio’s energy ask us to desire ourselves. Are we attracted to ourselves ? How is our sex life ? Do we please ourselves or please others ? People pleasers don’t see themselves as sexy and attractive.

In November Sagittarius’s energy is made for us to think big, to expand and have the vision to create our dream life. Sagittarius is optimistic and see the bigger picture. Expand your vision in November and see clearly.

In December Capricorn’s energy urge us to do things, to work and to use ourselves to make things happen in our life. After the vision Sagittarius gives us. Capricorn is the execution part. Do not get caught up in the Black Friday bs it’s a distraction once again from fully embracing the energy coming our way. Do not use yourself to benefit others. Use yourself to benefit yourself.

If you resonates with this post and you find it useful, please like, leave a comment or reblog it. It needs to be seen by as many people as possible to raise our collective frequency this year. Thank you for reading me 💜

Credit @moonastrogirl

[infamous-if]

Hi sunshine!!

Hehe I’m gonna pretend I was the first to send an ask to your newly-cleared inbox 🤣 I was just reading your writing advice post about beat sheets and I was wondering if you had any more writing advice? Mainly how you’re able to write so much but also how you’re able to do so in a linear fashion.

I have..absolutely no writing background and my writing process is very instinctual rather than organized. I type with my eyes closed so I can visualize scenes like a movie and I follow a beat sheet consisting of “fuck it we ball”

it’s dope that you have a novel writing background, little me would think you’re like the Viola Davis of literature if she heard that. (23 year old me thinks you’re cool too dw HEHEH)

Anywaysss you know I love your IF and I’m sending you a virtual hug!! 😁

Hi! and lolol I'll pretend you were too hehe

And good question! I think having a novel background does help since I've gotten used to writing a lot. I really respect IF authors who jump into IF with no writing experience because no only do you also have to code and write multiple books (routes) in one, you're also sharing that work to the public almost immediately.

It took me having to post fanfic + indie publishing to grow a thick skin and an understanding against hate and criticism, so people who choose this as their first foray into writing have my immense respect lmao it's not easy!

Mainly how you’re able to write so much but also how you’re able to do so in a linear fashion.

I've said before that I'm able to write a lot because I plan everything before hand. I'm not capable of pantsing and I'm a plotter through and through. When I know the beats to a scene and have a goal, I can just focus on reaching that goal instead of trying to come up with a purpose.

For example, I'm currently working on a novel as well as Infamous, and I just spent like....eight hours today just working on the outline (again). I think I have about 15 different variations of the outline, but I can't write if I don't know what's coming up next. I think I spend more time working on the outline than the book. (For example: One book I spent one year working on the outline and then wrote the book in 3 months lmao).

Anyway, almost every conversation in a book has a purpose, even if it's not obvious. Sometimes it's to express motivation, further the plot, create conflict. Sometimes it's to add depth to characters which usually results in conversations that seemingly have no purpose (like the band talking about whether orion would be a good band member or not) but they do! (its to establish the dynamic and level of closeness + personalities). When I know what I want to tell in a scene and what I want to express, I don't meander as much. So I plan plan plan plan.

But really, if you work best off instinct, I encourage you to go that way. There's no right way, and you don't want to force yourself. Sometimes people write their best when they're figuring it out along the way. I'm not capable of that hahahahah

As for linear, I can NOT jump around as much as I wish. I need CONTEXT like...I love referring back to old conversations and using the older conversations as context to newer ones people who can jump around and write non-linearly are superhuman.

Typing with your eyes closed seems so cool. I do have a cinematic approach to writing as well, but I also only type with three fingers lmao (I never learned how to use all your fingers for typing) so I need to see plshfhsdfhdsj

thank you!! I love your IF as well and your energy! Your posts are so fun to read and Memento Mori is SOO GOOD!

[reflections-in-a-critical-eye]

I've asked myself many times over the course of three years about how would I react to information that comes to contradict a specific image I have about people. And the answer would differ, more or less, depending on a myriad of factors, such as my mental wellbeing, my attitude toward the fandom, the group, the members, etc. The truth is, I only knew how I would respond the moment it happens and I was pleasantly surprised in a way. I see it as a sign that I'm doing better or at least I'm on the path of doing better.

These are things that I didn't want to allow to come to surface in the way I used to handle the BTM blog. Perhaps because the point was to create a platform in which I could offer the rational, researched perspective which I considered to be the correct one. I'm not retracting any of that. I still believe that it is possible to offer a more complex perspective if I can back it up with knowledge from various fields, but it was also one of my defense mechanisms.

Without expanding on the personal reasons, it has become very easy for me to separate my rational and emotional side. So much, that even when I should be staying in the moment and let my emotions take space, I can't really do it, I need to come up with a rational explanation so it can make sense. I then applied this to BTS as well. I couldn't just say I like this group when someone would ask, I would have to tell them about all the studies I read and how my fascination is mostly intelectual, when in truth it was both. I used to talk about jikook only in the context of analysis, be it GCF through semiotics or various types of interpretations when it came to their performances or fandom reception in terms of their dynamics. It had to be in the context of rational fascination and curiosity because I was merely trying to justify myself on why I care that much about two strangers that I look at on my phone. Again, my intellectual curiosity is real, but that has always been only one side if the coin, but it was one that I pushed.

It's about shame actually. I can't actually accept that I have such an interest. It doesn't fit with the idea I have of myself. And sometimes I don't like it because it makes me question my intellect, my critical thinking. How can I be so good academically and at the same time I fear that I've fallen into a fandom trap? I'm smart, right? Right?

I'm sure a lot of people have dealt with or ar going through this process of cognitive dissonance. How does one deal with the mere idea that something they believe in based on their understanding of the world, their ability of decoding (not in a conspiracy sense, but in a Saussurean way) can turn out to be wrong? We see something that resembles a specific behavior that we are surrounded with our entire lives, sometimes we ourselves engage with, but we've identified it wrong on others? Of course, it's through the visual medium, one that is edited. It's a puzzle with large chunks missing, but we're getting a general idea of it. But we can be wrong. So how do we deal with that? Well, I don't have a correct answer.

Me in 2020/2021 would have been more affected because my mental health was not good. I was functionally depressed and I clinged so much onto BTS, Jikook and the small community that I found myself in at that time, that I would have felt a lot more torn than I am now.

A couple of years later and having to actually go through a situation in which my understanding of people's relationship might not be accurate, I realized I'm fine. And I think it's because it made me really register just now that I finally learned how to have fun with it. It took me three years. By having fun, I mean genuinely being able to simply enjoy the little things. I'm still on the path of not being ashamed for liking kpop or spending time talking about the dynamic/relationship of two people.

What prompted this post was reading what is currently being written in the jikook tag. Yes, I had this big introductory chunk that perhaps people won't bother reading, but I'm doing it for myself. If I can't be honest while writing stuff into the void for strangers to read, then what is the point?

I get frustrated very easily. I like debates and contradictory points of view, but not always. And that's because I like to be right. Almost all the time. So when I see something that I believe it lacks logic or I find it absurd, then my fingers are itching. I don't comment or DM people, I can control myself. I'd rather get out of the app and do something else.

What I want to say is I was surprised at how much fanfiction is being written. More that usual. Shipping contains a big deal of fanfiction by its nature. Gestures and events taking place at different times are interpreted and having information added that fills the gaps. People do that because they have to make sense of what they see.

They like to make relationship timelines. They speculate on first kisses and first sexual experiences. That's their imagination. None of us has any way of knowing. The element of fiction is heighted when people feel like they are losing control of the narrative. When they are unsure of what they are seeing. Which is what usually happens in the shipping community on a yearly basis. Anons flooding the bloggers' inboxes because they need confirmation or they didn't get any ship content in a month or two which means something is wrong.

There's this understanding that the shipper/supporter is delusional while the one who stops shipping is the rational one. From what I've observed throughout time and mostly now, that is a false distinction. The so-called rational fan makes use of fiction just as the shipper. The difference is in purpose. One talks about why the supposed romantic relationship is real and the other tries to refute that. But both categories seem to need fiction in order to build their arguments. That is because none of them have access to someone's private life and relationship, so the gaps need to be filled with speculation. There is no right or wrong version here, despite how much the idea is being pushed. And me writing about this won't make a difference. It's simply how the fandom works. The one who position themselves on the side of anti-delulu will always be seen as the less crazy one. The similarities will fade for the collective consciousness of the fandom.

I think it's difficult for a lot of people, regardless on which side they find themselves on, to accept that the option of simply not knowing is enough as well. Or knowing, but without getting anal about it. But it's hard and they write posts after posts, anons are sending asks over asks because there has to be a firm answer. Only a few allow themselves to be in between lines.

I'll bring back something that I always used to say. Shipping and involvement in the fandom is a lot more about us and less about the people we're talking about. It's about fullfiling some needs, of needing a community, of focusing on the idea of love. Those things can still be done in a way that still makes the experience enjoyable. But not everyone can and I'm not blaming it.

There's a way to just like how people behave with each other and imagine things without adding so much weight to it. Regardless of the true nature. It's our imagination, there's no need for a moral inquisition to tell anyone how to think or that they should stop thinking a certain way. Touching some grass is a cliche and an expression I ended up hating, but I do believe that being connected to discourse on a daily basis can really alter our sense of reality and what we consider to be real issues. We really should pay more attention to that and take some distance if necessary.

[badbatchposts]

Quiet Corners of the Galaxy, Chapter 10

While on a routine mission for Cid, the Bad Batch encounter a woman fleeing from the Empire. Crosshair suspects her seemingly free-spirited, nomadic existence is actually a cover for something else, but struggles to keep his attraction toward her in check as their personalities and ideals clash.

Relevant tags/content warnings: Slow Burn, Enemies to Lovers, Periodic Smut, Canon-Typical Violence, Alcohol Use

Chapters posted 1-2x weekly!

Read the full fic so far on AO3

Read previous chapters on Tumblr: Ch. 1 l Ch. 2 l Ch. 3 l Ch. 4 l Ch. 5 l Ch. 6 l Ch. 7 l Ch. 8 l Ch. 9

Chapter 10 summary: Dara and Crosshair go undercover and look for new and exciting ways to annoy each other.

“I really don’t think it’s necessary for him to come. His tattoo might be less noticeable than yours, but he still stands out too much.” It was perhaps the dozenth time Dara had tried to convince Hunter to let her leave Crosshair behind, and still he wasn’t budging. The trip through hyperspace had been long, and they’d landed in a quiet meadow on Caameris late in the night cycle, opting to wait until the morning to begin their surveillance. This was Dara’s last chance to object, as she waited at the bottom of the ramp into the Marauder while Crosshair finished changing into his civilian clothes. The ground was damp, and the air was heavy with moisture, but the temperature was pleasant and the threat of rain seemed far off. Hunter only smirked a little, unmoved.

When Crosshair emerged from the ship, she eyed him critically and shook her head. “No rifle.”

The sniper scowled. “I’m not going anywhere unarmed.”

“This is a nice, peaceful, mid-rim planet, not outlaw country. It sticks out too much. Concealed weapons only. I have an extra blaster for you here.” She gestured to the basket she was carrying, where a carefully folded blanket disguised the hidden pistols.

Hunter looked from one to the other, not bothering to conceal his shit-eating grin. He felt a little bad sticking Dara with Crosshair for the day, but not so guilty that he wouldn’t take the opportunity to punish his brother for his earlier comments. With an exaggerated grumble, Crosshair removed his Firepuncher from his back and handed it to him. “Have fun, you two,” the Sergeant chuckled as they set off.

They kept their distance from one another and walked silently. Tech had set down the Marauder beyond a forested area that separated the town and the villa, far off the main road, where they hoped it would go unnoticed. It was a tense thirty minutes, in which each refused to acknowledge the other, before they approached its outskirts.

Dara narrowed the gap between them as they began to pass neat little houses and businesses, all roofed with colorful tiles. Locals watched them with open curiosity on the streets. It became busier as they approached the center of the town, entering a bustling, open-air market. “Follow my lead,” she muttered to Crosshair.

“Do I have to?” he sighed miserably.

She pursed her lips briefly before pasting on the easy, charming smile that she seemed to direct toward everyone else besides the sniper and began perusing the stalls attentively. She had purchased small items from several of the shops, filling her basket with fresh fruits and vegetables, before one of the merchants finally acknowledged the stares still being directed at the newcomers in the crowded marketplace.

“We don’t often get new faces around here. What brings you to Caameris?” The woman asked.

Crosshair fought to keep the surprise off his face as Dara intertwined her arm in his, gave his bicep a quick squeeze, and sent an admiring glance his way. “Oh, we only just arrived,” she explained brightly. “We’re here to spend a nice quiet honeymoon. It’s not often that we get to travel, and we just wanted the opportunity to have some quality time together away from it all. We’re nature lovers, and we couldn’t think of anything more romantic than camping together under the stars.”

“Oh, how lovely! I remember my own like it was yesterday. My husband and I have been married for nearly thirty years.” The shopkeeper, while never exactly suspicious, was certainly more open now that she had a ready explanation to satisfy her curiosity about them. In fact, as he watched a few passersby blatantly listening in, Crosshair had the impression that the whole population would be aware of the story behind these new strangers before long, the engines of small-town gossip running quickly and efficiently. He had to begrudgingly admit that Dara was good—a little too good.

“How wonderful,” Dara gushed. “Well, we were hoping to take a hike tomorrow. Is there anything we should be certain to see? We saw that lovely mansion across the lake as we were landing—I don’t suppose you know whether the grounds are open for visitors, do you?”

“Ah, I’m afraid it’s a private residence, and the owner is off world for the next week.” The shopkeeper leaned in companionably. She was already well-invested in passing gossip along to fresh listeners. “The whole estate is quite lavish, in fact. My daughter works in the kitchens.”

“Oh my! It’s quite a large house! I’m sure it keeps your daughter very busy. It seems the ideal place for some very fancy parties…”

Crosshair thought that if this conversation got any more boring he might ruin the mission by shooting himself just to get out of it. The two women, engrossed in their talk, didn’t spare him a glance as he wandered off amid the other stalls, keeping an eye on Dara between squinting warily at the locals, who were still nosily appraising him. He surveyed the market square; while it was largely surrounded by squat, unassuming buildings, one of them—taller, newer, more impressive—stood out. Prium’s satellite lab, he presumed, based on the bored-looking security flanking the doors.

He had nearly completed a full circuit of the market when he noticed that someone else had joined Dara and the shopkeeper. The uniformed Sullustan man was speaking animatedly as he approached. Thinking that perhaps Dara had not fully thought through the implications of her little ruse, Crosshair smirked as he threw a protective arm over her shoulder, feeling her stiffen nearly imperceptibly beneath him.

“Your husband, I presume,” the Sullustan observed magisterially.

“Yes,” Dara said warmly. “Allow me to introduce my husband… Hunter.” Crosshair flared his nostrils, but tried to minimize his scowl—just barely—for the sake of the mission. So, as much as she had chosen to ignore him since the other night, she certainly hadn’t forgotten their earlier altercation. She had just been biding her time to find the best way to torture him. “This fascinating gentleman,” Dara continued, “was just telling me how he is the director of the private research lab of one of the greatest geniuses of our time. You’ve heard of Kumalon Laboratories, haven’t you, sweetie?”

“Dr. Nor Raab. A pleasure,” the scientist greeted him. “Although I must say, if I were on my honeymoon with such a lovely young woman, I think I would look quite a bit…happier.”

Dara laughed, the sound generous and moving, like the tinkle of bells. He didn’t care one bit to hear it directed it toward Raab, any more than he liked Dara’s wink at the pretentious Sullustan. “Oh, don’t mind him. He’s just upset that I wouldn’t let him keep me cooped up in our ship all to himself. Newlyweds, you know.”

“I can’t say I blame him,” Raab replied with a knowing smile.

Crosshair tightened his arm, drawing Dara closer, and nuzzled his nose in her hair, not bothering to suppress a wicked grin when she shivered a little. She smelled earthy, like the beginning of rain. “Speaking of which… I think we’re just about done here, don’t you?” he asked.

“Actually, I was just about to ask Dr. Raab if he would be so kind as to elaborate a little more on his work with Dr. Prium,” Dara insisted. “You see, I’m a teacher and I would love to be able to tell my students all about this when I go back. I think it’s so important to inspire future generations of scientists, don’t you?”

“Well, I also must be returning to my duties, but perhaps you could return later this evening and we could all share a drink nearby. It’s so rare we get visitors.” Raab gestured to a bar at a corner of the square.

“Sounds wonderful. We’ll see you then.” With a small wave at Raab and the shopkeeper, the pair left the market, Crosshair still holding Dara close until they reached the outskirts of town, where she unceremoniously shoved his arm off of her.

“Tell me,” the sniper drawled as he dogged Dara through the woods in the direction of the Marauder, “how many classes dedicated to lying did you take while studying linguistics? Is it a big part of the coursework?”

“My appreciation for theater is extracurricular.” Dara bent over suddenly, drawing a knife out from where it was concealed beneath her pant leg. She rolled her eyes when she noticed Crosshair tense up, preparing for a fight. “Please. If I were going to kill you, I’d know better than to do it when your brothers are my only ride off this planet.”

He crossed his arms, watching her as she knelt and used the knife to dig in the dirt. “What are you doing?”

“It’s springtime here. Things are growing.”

He thought about telling her that wasn’t much of an explanation, but his curiosity got the better of him as he observed her activities. Where he could see a few green tufts peeking out through the dark soil, she unearthed a series of tubers the size of his thumb. Straightening, she ran her fingers along the bark of a few nearby trees until she found one where a thick, meaty fungus grew in shelves, cutting it down in slices. Ignoring him completely now, she wandered along the forest path, collecting her bounty.

Minutes passed before Dara realized the sniper had disappeared. She glanced up into the treetops, catching sight of him perched on a tall branch, still watching her idly, and shook her head in annoyance. But Crosshair could see the corners of her mouth twitching as she returned to her work.

Next chapter

Tag List: @stardusthuntress @skellymom @megmegalodondon

[luwritesomething]

can you do dating headcanons for stu? its fine if not 🫶🏻

Stu Macher Heacanons: Meeting and later Dating Stu Macher.

Warnings: Swearing lol, probably typos or bad constructed english

Edited?: Like always, no.

Reader's pronouns: Not stated, gender neautral.

Summary: Dating Stu headcanons!!

Author's note: STU i love stu. i've never written for him without it being a poly relationship with billy, so let's see how these turn out. hope you like them!!! i added the meeting him part because it's the way i like to read them. also, have this great song.

criticism, comments and reblogs are always appreciated! requests are open, especially for scream! hit that anon button and tell me your ideas.

in the scream fandom, i write for billy loomis, stu macher, mickey altieri, chad martin-meeks, mindy martin-meeks, tara carpenter, anika kayoko, laura crane

i was gonna say you probably met him in high school (like, the building) BUT NOPE

you know how he's always listening to music with his silly little headphones? well, he has to get his music from somewhere.

lets say you work the afternoon shift in one of woodsboro's music stores!

there's probably not a lot of them, anyways, given how woodsboro is supposed to be rather small.

so, even though you had been years together in the same school and all, the first time you guys talked was at the music store.

let's face it, stu's charismatic. i would even go as far as to say he's even more liked than billy. billy looks menancing, and although popular --- bc of his good looks and that misterious aura he has that WE love ---, stu is more easy going.

like, the dude's so fun to be around with. and he's also funny. i would befriend him so fast, honestly.

anyways,,,

he goes a lot to that specific music store after some casual convos with you, and you can BET it's because he likes you.

he strats calling you "my music dealer". it's funny. laugh.

you actually start getting excited whenever he crosses the door --- peak moments of your day, to be honest. and luckily for you, he always comes alone, so all his attention is reserved to you and your conversation.

after the first times you talk and begin getting along, you start seeing him everywhere.

i mean, it's normal that, after you've met someone, you start noticing them more.

but this is because he forced it. he's lowkey enough to make these encounters look like casualties, so it seems normal.

and soon, you start to talk at school too. not much, though because his friend group is big and requires his attention and it's not like you don't have to go to classes or anything.

the first time he's very obvious about wanting to be with you, though, it's one day in the biology class you guys share. stu comes into the classroom and he just steals the seat by your side.

his smile leaves you too dumbfounded to even do anything else other than smile.

i don't know how outgoing you are, but he's definetely asking you out first. and it doesn't even have a romantic undertone, but you two end up kissing for the first time then and well....

boom, dating!

he's big on petnames. like, the most annoying and corney petnames to make you embarassed. i won't elaborate.

he's a very chill boyfriend, i think. i'd like him to be my boyfriend.

he's the kind that loves to spend time with you, as long as you guys are doing something. the boy can't sit still, have you seen him?

his love language is quality time and physical touch. also he gossips a lot, for some reason, and stu likes sharing what he's heard with you, even if you don't care.

if you don't like scary movies, he won't force you to watch them too often. stu rathers watch something that will guarantee you two have a good time, and that includes clueless.

playing video games with him !

listen to me. BAKING with stu. that'd be such a ride (want me to elaborate? hit that req button!!!)

he's goofy. so, goofy boyfriend.

staining your nose with his ice cream. every. damn. time.

stu's nervous when you finally meet the others, especially billy. he needs you to like his friends, especially billy.

luckily enough, you all get along.

staying for the night at his house !!! a lot. since his parents are out so much, he feels lonely and always invites you.

not gonna lie, the first time he meets you family it's probably a disaster. the boy's a sweetheart, but also hella nervous.

since he lives on the outsides, he probably drives to school. i'm guessing he uses that bigass truck --- although i can see him walking to school, occasionally.

he probably insists on taking you to school. unless you live really close to it, he probably convinced you to let him take you to school.

CARPOOL

very loving boyfriend. have you seen him with tatum? stu's cute as hell.

he's probably jealous. won't intervene unless you actually call him, but he gets jealous as hell.

stu distracts you a lot in the classes you share. he gets bored and tries to talk to you or throw you little notes if you don't sit together --- it's a miracle you're still passing your exams.

staying by his side during his parties, especially if you're not an extrovert. he always makes sure you're comfortable, and never forgets to give you attention.

i think stu would be a great boyfriend. with his flaws (& the murder tendencies & the homoerotic relationship with billy & the crazy amount of misoginy) but still a good one.

he'd probably run away from arguments, and he's bad at taking things seriously.

and never forget, stu is as manipulative as billy is. he won't hesitate to manipulate you if he must.

well. that took a dark turn (pls never fall for someone like stu or billy in real life. this is just cute fiction! it should stay that way)

ALSO.

lots of cuddles.

he's the best cuddler!!!

bear hugs, and he won't let go if you ask him not to. he's the best if you're feeling down-

[genderless-spoon]

Okay I’m gonna rant on here for a sec cause I’m frustrated and have nowhere to put it.

I don’t know if you guys know what the term “ingredient household” means but essentially it’s a term that describes a house that doesn’t really do a lot of snack and meals that are pre-made or, in my case, even pre-planned.

Adding on to this concept, I’m sure many of us on here heard our parents claim we “had food at home” or “had plenty of food in the house” and we were “just picky and/or lazy” whenever we asked about getting food out or buying groceries or anything similar.

This was my house. We were mostly an ingredient household but my parents didn’t plan out the meals for which they were buying ingredients, my mom would just buy the same generic groceries every time with very little variety and would improvise throughout the week. This meant we ate a lot of the same food made in slightly different ways all the time (which is not, in itself, the problem). It also meant that when I got home from school and both my parents were at work, not to return home for at least a few hours each (often well after dinner time) I was usually hungry and we had no snacks unless I wanted to shove handfuls of chocolate chips in my mouth or eat spoonfuls of peanut butter (both things I used to do). This paired with the fact that my parents needed time to settle in and my family didn’t tend to eat dinner until pretty late, meant I was often told to find food myself if I was hungry.

My mom did this to us a lot growing up, but starting from a pretty early age when even making a sandwich was kind of a lot. I always wished she’d have taught me how to make at least a few small things, because when I was told that we had food and it was all just ingredients I genuinely didn’t have any clue what to do. I have been seeing a lot of parents on social media complaining about the “we have no food” line that their children pull, and it’s starting to really bother me. Obviously I know this is not the same situation for all of these kids but I think children in general tend to be pretty resourceful and creative, and do not want to sit there hungry unable to do anything about it. They aren’t just acting helpless so their parents do things for them, they are literally children, they’re supposed to be more helpless than an adult in that regard.

I think a lot of parents (especially gen x parents) seem to assume that just because something seemed simple to them their children should already know instinctively how to do it, but everyone has to learn their skills somewhere and making that process a little easier on your children is such a great way to show them how much you love them. Involving the kids in the process of making dinner little by little and encouraging them to learn is much more effective than just one day expecting them to know how to take care of themselves. If you don’t want to spend all that time making food for your children (which, by the way, is literally what you sign on for when you choose to have kids), then at least take a bit of time every so often to provide them with the skills they’ll need to be successful without your help. Children are still learning how to be humans and sometimes they need a little extra help.

I now really struggle to prepare dinner for myself regularly as an adult because I’m starting from scratch having never really learned much beyond the easy stuff I could make myself as a middle schooler. I’m also disabled (in multiple ways) and going through the whole process is so draining that I often end up not eating or eating something pre-made, and while there’s nothing wrong with that food it is frustrating to feel awful all the time from eating that kind of food but not have the time, energy, or money to figure out a way without it.

My parents never prepared me for real life tasks and self care responsibilities and my parents are my biggest critics when I fail or struggle with simple tasks like cooking dinner despite them being the reason for it. Every time I so much as attempt to make myself food that isn’t frozen or pre-made my mom has to comment on how it looks or how healthy it is when I’m literally just lucky I was able to do what I did.

I don’t know how relatable this is, maybe it’s only going to make sense to a select few people, but I just needed to get it off my chest. I’m sorry for the rant, thank you for reading. Let me know if you relate to this so I know I’m not just yelling into the void lol.

[stormoflina]

hello! I'm sure your anons have been flooded with a lot lol but I wanted to change the subject a little. I'm a little sad that Trent is out until the Atalanta game (don't know if its the first leg or second leg) feel like he's been gone for the whole season. miss watching him play with the team and the last interaction we saw with Dom was with haaland being annoying lol.

Also idk if it's just me but I don't know if Dom is very appreciated by fans on how much he does on the field. I get he's had some off games but he's such an important piece to the midfield especially when it comes to his pace. During the Brighton game the right side was getting torched until he started spending some time there to help on defense and even the man u game when he was subbed off we were winning and then we lost control of the midfield. It was a glaring difference and I'm not bashing on any other player NOT at all or saying they don't bring anything to the team, it's just he's a part of the success to the team and it's not spoken about as much.

anyway have a good day!

Hi lovely! I want to thank you for this wonderful ask, it's always both a pleasure and an honour to read your thoughts, especially when it's so well put together! 🫶🏼

I know I miss Trent so much:( I looked back at the pre-match interview he did this weekend as much as I could find, and as lovely as it was to see him, I just wish he was back on the pitch, doing his magnificent passes as he does. :( I understand that with so many reinjuries, they are being extra careful with him, but I feel like the dates just keep getting pushed back and pushed back and it's stressing me out lol.

With Domi, yeah, the narrative around him has shifted recently. In a sense, I think he, too, became the so called stepchild of the team, same thing that I have called Cody back in the past, of course just under very different circumstances. I do think that now that we are in April and have already seen how the season progressed, out of all the starting midfielders he has had the least luck lol. Meaning that he basically carried that midfield on his back for the first three months, then yes, he both got fatigued and fell off a bit, but also Macca grew more comfortable in his position and role, Endo caught up to the Prem and Curtis had entered into a really good form too. Obviously the attention then shifted to them, which is only natural, they were putting in some fantastic performances. His injury also came at a very wrong time, then I think those weird social media posts that were made about him also didn't help ( I actually have a lot to say about that lol), then when he did came back from months long injury and wasn't dropping 10/10 he was quickly made into (one of the) scapegoat(s). Sadly, it's only natural, and what's even sadder that those 'fans' will only move on from him if they find another player to overly criticize. Agendas work like crazy. Right now, if Endo or Alexis loses the ball, likely no one will say anything, if he does, he gets ripped a new one. At the start of the season, it was the other way around. It's insanely annoying, but that's online fans for you. Also doesn't really help his case, that he is in a very limited role, which is good for the team (nobody has his levels of athleticism and pressing intensity), but it also highlights his weaknesses. I have talked about this before, but going from always being the protected player to the one who has to protect everyone else can't be easy and it's pretty easy to see that it doesn't come natural to him. However, it's a role that every team needs, and I think overall, he does a good job at it.

Haha, anyways, I spend waaay too much time wondering about the psychology behind how these things work, I could talk the pants off of anyone with this lol.

Have a lovely day! <3

Edit: With all that yapping I forgot to tell you that I agree with you regarding Domi. We definitely lost momentum when him, Andy and Mo were subbed off. The midfield especially got run over. Klopp nearly always gets his man management right, it just wasn't his day that day - or anyone's really, I mean we let Antony score. 😅😅

[brookeginko]

Yukair 2, 7, 21 and 22 for the ask thing >:]

YAYYYYYYYY THANK YOU BAGEL YOU KNOW ME SO WELL

2: What’s your favorite canon thing about this character?

I love a most things about Yukari but if I had to pick just one I’d say it’s how realistically she’s written. In her romance route she admits to being jealous and upset when Fuuka hung around Makoto even though she knew it was an unreasonable thing to be upset over, and she says it makes her feel like a horrible person. Similarly in Yakushima she says something along the lines of “After everything that’s happen why does Mitsuru’s father get to live but not mine?” What I particularly like about this part of her character is that she knows what she’s saying is selfish and expresses it to Makoto with that knowledge in mind. She knows that but she can’t stop herself from feeling that way, and it’s so so natural for a girl her age who’s gone through everything she has that it just makes me ooiiiuuughhjjjggn /pos. I will always be a Yukari defender until I die and one of the main criticisms against her is that she’s ’too mean’ and while I obviously disagree with that one of my favorite parts of her is that she’s can be mean and say mean things but that’s because she’s 16 years old and has the fate of the world on her shoulders. I’d be a bit mean too. Rest in peace rank 5 hug scene i will always be your #1 defender.

#7: What’s something the fandom does with this character that you like?

OOH OKAY. I could go with the copout answer of everyone and their mother hcing her as a lesbian but outside the realm of sexuality hcs I like when people draw/write her as more toned and buff because like. Girl is an archer and running around Tartarus for an hour every night can’t be easy. I also like it when people give her archery more significance in general because canon gives us very very little to work with, especially compared to Akihiko ‘definitely doesn’t have a boxing special interest’ Sanada, so I like when people elaborate further on her time on the archery team since we know almost nothing about it.

21: If you’re a fic writer and have written for this character, what's your favorite thing to do when you're writing for this character? What's something you don't like?

OOH YAYYY okay hm. Admittedly I haven’t written for Yukari as much as I would have liked to but for the 3 or so fics I’ve written about her and the rps I’ve done, I’d say my favorite thing to write is her self-aware jealousy. The line in her romance route about being jealous of Fuuka but it making her feel like a horrible person stuck out to me a lottt so I try to incorporate it in fics as much as I can. Especially in terms of ship fics I think she would be really really jealous of anyone she thinks could be interested in the person she’s interested in but she would feel awful about it and just kinda get caught in a loop of ‘oh no kotone is spending time with akihiko she’s probably crushing on him’ —> ‘oh my god im gonna kill akihiko senpai why is he taking up all of her time does he LIKE her?????? ew’ —> ‘wait no that sounds mean akihiko senpai is fine i guess. it’s not like i own Kotone’s time or anything that was a weird thing to think yukari’ —> ‘oh god im a horrible person Kotone wouldn’t want to spend time with me anyway’ —> gets text from Kotone asking if she wants to come beat up pedestrians with akihiko or something —> back to square one. Unfortunately I don’t think I’ve published any fics with this dynamic but I’ve rped it and have drafts and I just….. I love jealous Yukari so much. Runner up is when she’s protective and somewhat pushy about it. I’ve written this with Shuyuka before because Makoto has the self preservation instincts of a goldfish cracker and I find it very sweet. As for things I don’t like I worry sometimes that I make her a bit too mean to Junpei? Though that’s more of a general Junpei-bullying problem I have rather than a Yukari-specific one LMFAO

22: If you're a fic reader, what's something you like in fics when it comes to ths character? Something you don't like?

Despite what my Bible length fanfics would suggest I actually don’t read a ton of fics so I’ll expand this a bit into the fandom in general. As stated above I really like when people make her more athletic but on the flip side I do enjoy when people make her the femmest lesbian to ever femme. I feel like in some situations people try to make femme characters more girlbossy and end up removing a lot of their femininity so I like fics and fanworks that make her a cool archer that also has seventeen dresses in the exact same color. For things I don’t like though, I don’t really like it when Yukari is made to be helpless? I understand that it’s like that in canon a few times (Awakening, Yakushima, something else im probably forgetting) but I feel like a lot of (cishet) shuyuka fans especially tend to make it into a hot yaoi base ‘gigachad door kun x little soft baby yukari’ and i just. comically large frown.

[mbti-notes]

Anon wrote: It would be helpful to hear your perspective on this. I’m a 20y INFP female. I’m single and I’ve always been single and i fear relationship for various reasons. Anyway this is not the issue. I feel like i have social anxiety and i don’t have friends. And that’s also not the issue. Few weeks ago I decided to try to meet new people and leave my comfort zone. It was difficult but worth it to an extent, i feel more brave and made some new friends. This is not the issue too.

The issue that’s bothering me is, in this experiment i developed a crush in a very short time on a guy i met just because he called me a princess and flirted sweetly. I feel pathetic a bit but I really like being called a sweet things. However one time I refused to do something he wanted me to do and he got really dry and gave me the silent treatment. I’m aware that the sweet things he say and the “princess” are probably manipulation. But now I’m attached and i feel eww.

I realised that i have a pattern of CRAVING VERBAL validation, it’s not just him. I fly high whenever someone compliments me. They say give yourself the love you want, i really love myself, but what can i do here? Do i call myself a princess? I really love myself but i want to be loved by someone else and want to be called sweet things. On the other hand, nothing bothers me as much as criticism does, any type or amount of it, it pisses me off and it’s one of the reasons I push people away.

For more context, i have an unstable relationship with my parents. My mum is nice but she’s very critical, she always finds something negative to comment on or suggestion for improvement. With my dad it’s more complicated, we used to be very close, he used to spend time with me and chat with me he even wrote love letters for me.

One day he changed, forever, he and mum separated and me and him got so distant (around 10y). And he got worse when i was a teenager, he start to be angry at me and the only kind of conversation we have is fights. I miss the loving version of him but it’s gone forever. I don’t know what to do.

I feel like i want love, acceptance and being called a princess, but I don’t know how to get these things, not from myself to myself, and not from others. I’m confused too because sometimes i hate when people do nice things to me it’s not satisfying i only want words and I DON’T FUCKING KNOW WHY

----------------------

The problem with being neglected or deprived in childhood is that it's easy for children to jump to the conclusion that the pittance of love they received is all they deserve, so they go through life with extremely low expectations. They keep unconsciously replaying the unhealthy parental dynamic with their romantic partners, always settling for less, because they'd rather have a little than risk losing everything by daring to ask for more. Does this apply to you? What kind of "love" do you believe you deserve?

Children are innocent and shouldn't be blamed for the sins of their parents. It's not a crime to want love, especially when you feel as though you were shortchanged in childhood. When you're a child, your well-being is largely in the hands of adults. You have little control over whether they help you or hurt you. As an adult, though, you get to make a decision about what kind of person you want to be. Do you want to keep being that helpless child forever, always at the mercy of others, always stuck in wishful thinking, always depriving yourself of love in the same way your parents did? Or do you want to be an independent person, in charge of your own fate, taking the necessary action to live a good life through maintaining your integrity, fulfilling your needs, and promoting your well-being?

The human need for love is legitimate, i.e., love is a necessary ingredient for living a full and meaningful life. As a general rule, when people neglect or repress their psychological needs for too long, their thinking and emotions about them become more and more distorted as time goes by. Unfulfilled needs, stuck churning around in the background of the mind, can slowly turn uglier and uglier, e.g., from a naive preoccupation, to a desperate longing, to a visceral craving, to an obsession, to a compulsion, to an addiction, to a mental disorder. It sounds like your need for love has gone unaddressed for too long and now your thoughts about love (e.g. what it is, how to get it, etc) have become distorted and misguided.

Addictive tendencies in INFPs are often a sign of Fi-Si loop. Healthy Ne grants a person optimism, confidence, and adaptability, which are all necessary for bravely confronting life's problems. With underdeveloped Ne, immature INFPs allow life's problems to linger, fester, and accumulate, eventually resulting in a slew of insecurities. In a helpless state, they grasp for things that feel good or have felt good to them before, as a way to self-soothe or create a distraction from their insecurities. However, this means that the insecurities only get worse over time. And constantly feeling triggered turns the grasping for feel-good moments into a reflexive/repetitive habit.

For example, it feels good to get verbal validation when you've felt so starved of it, right? When you're basking in that high, it doesn't matter to you in the least whether the words are true or false. The feeling is all that matters to you. And that's how you know that Fi has entered dangerously extreme territory.

Losing all control of yourself and even willing to sacrifice your integrity by rejecting the truth, how can you have healthy self-esteem and feel proud of who you are? When you're willing to do anything for a fleeting feeling that only crudely resembles "love" but you know isn't really love, you've got an addiction. And when you aren't getting that "high", you suffer "withdrawal". The high always dissipates, and then up comes the dull ache of emptiness, an emptiness that was forged through years of denying yourself opportunities to love.

Emptiness is a real problem. But what's the best solution? When you aren't psychologically healthy, you have too much emotional baggage and old pain lingering in the unconscious and influencing your decision-making from a dark place, so you aren't able to use your functions in a healthy way. When Ne is unhealthy, you can't tell the difference between fantasy and reality, so you can easily convince yourself that temporary quick-fixes are enough. Then, life becomes an endless cycle of chasing highs that never last.

When Ne is healthy, it tells you that there are always better ways and better possibilities, and you should pursue them with everything you've got. This experimentation you feel compelled to carry out is likely about Ne development. The question is: Why have you waited until now to do it? The auxiliary function should ideally develop throughout adolescence. If you resisted development, it's now up to you to make up for it by developing Ne properly, see the Type Dev Guide. Remember that "experimentation" is about running multiple trials so that you can observe a very wide range of results and get a fuller understanding of things, the bigger picture. Settling for the first result you get is a sign of desperation, of thinking so little of yourself that you don't believe you can do better.

Are you going to listen to Fi when it tells you the difference between right and wrong and then make good decisions? Are you going to listen to Ne when it tells you that life is full of opportunity? Are you going to disrupt the Fi-Si loop of instant gratification and, instead, put in the hard work to find the right people and use the right methods of building healthy and loving relationships? Or are you going to keep settling for scraps from terrible people until the pain of your unfulfilled need for love becomes so unbearable that you drown in misery and self-loathing? To finally grow up into an adult is to realize that you have a duty to yourself to make the right choices.

[just2bubbly]

Happy Fussings!

Masterlist

Summary: Cinder getting anxious over meeting Torin and his family over a lunch date, Kai being the unhelping but cute partner like always.

Ship: Kaider

Words: 1k

Genre: Fluff (mostly?)

A/N: Suho is an OC, here Torin's husband.

Cinder's Perspective:

"I can see the worry lines on your face," he jested.

"Cause I'm tremendously worried," she replied, no attempt to hide her said worry lines.

"Chill-," he muttered and before he could continue, she had turned around in her seat and glared at him promptly asking him to shut up which he effectively did.

"You have seen him so many times and not to mention you know Torin. I don't even know what you are worried about," he pointed out.

"Easy for you to say, I don't want them to hate me."

"Cinder, c'mon you are worried over a possibility that is as impossible as you being a queen again."

"I don't want to talk to you," she fumed and launched herself into the pile at her desk. Her willpower didn't maintain the charade for a long time as she voiced herself again.

"It feels like I'm meeting your parents and I have multiple expectations to fulfil," she explained.

"Cinder you met them multiple times."

"But never as your fiancee and never on a lunch date invitation."

"I don't see how it changes anything."

"Imagine you had to see my mum and seek her approval for marriage."

"I think the comparison of Torin's family to your mother is a little cruel, Cin. No offence but I think Torin will take offence there."

"Kai," she chided "I'm saying imagine."

"Well, my creative mind says that I would be more scared for my life rather than seeking a good rating from your mother."

Her mother, Queen Channary wasn't a just ruler nor was she much benevolent in person, Cinder had to admit comparing her mother to Torin was an inept scale.

"Still, you would be nervous about meeting my mother and I'm nervous about meeting your family too."

"Cinder, you're hyperventilating. It's better if you calm down, crack puns that make only Lili laugh, laugh at all of Torin's stories and speak nice about the food that's cooked and you shall get good acceptance."

"Not funny Kai."

"You don't even take criticism. All my advice is wasted on deaf ear," he grinned, mockingly shedding tears of irony.

She thought to herself for a while, scrolling through her feed to apprehend how she could be a polite guest. Honestly, she was extremely worried. She had Torin and Suho to impress, their daughters were already impressed by her so that was one point. Torin was still hostile towards her when she spoke against Kai's ideas but he had grown on her.

The real deal however was Suho- he adored Kai and Kai looked up to him far more than Torin in comparison. She couldn't deny how Kai had practically been raised in their household only to stop spending so much time when his lessons increased after his mother's death. She couldn't overstep their made-up family by just bombarding on their peace.

"Shall we buy them something?" she asked.

"That is a fine idea but keep it minimalistic. Suho doesn't like grand gestures of wealth and Torin doesn't like what Suho doesn't like."

There he goes making her feel like the outsider she thinks she is.

"Just flowers?"

"You could do better Cinder, we are the royalty."

"You said no wealth."

"But some wealth is okay."

"Says the Emperor who owns the state treasury."

"It's the state's treasury"

"You said minimalistic."

"I didn't say flowers either."

"Flowers are minimalistic."

"I mean not that minimalistic."

"Then you tell me what we should gift?"

"Maybe a painting," he suggested.

"Who is being minimalistic right now?"

"A painting isn't expensive," he said in his defence.

"Says the Emperor."

"We will buy an inexpensive one then."

"But it shouldn't look like we bought gifts 'cause we had to."

"Holograph photobook?"

"I think it is too elaborate. You could do that the next time you visit."

"What if there's no next time since they don't like me enough the first time?"

"Well you are going to be there, you are going to be wife. I refuse to not take my wife everywhere with me."

"You know if cybernetics would fail me right now, I would be blushing."

"Oh, thank you for the appreciation, my lovely fiancee." He said, a cheeky smile hiding the pale hue of pink on his flushed cheeks. She chuckled, Kai was very charming with the least of effort.

"Can't you give me some better insight than Suho Liking minimalistic things?"

"I don't know- I have never gifted him anything and they didn't gift me anything. I was the next in line, there is very little that a crown prince might not have and be gifted," He mentioned with little cheer in his voice, a gloom rather evident.

She might have consoled him but some things were better undiscussed than talked over with impending concern.

She understood his lack of gifting- Cinder herself was too poor to gift someone and too worthless to be gifted anything, Kai on the other hand was very rich to be gifted anything he couldn't have.

"Still, I want him to like me like he adores you."

"He doesn't adore me", he retorted laughing.

"He does and you absolutely love it."

"Well what can I say, everyone loves a decent fellow!"

"Oh, decent fellow would you enlighten us about all the magic you cast on your loved ones?"

"You should tell me the answer for that one darling."

Kai really might make her blush someday if machines could malfunction.

The knock on the door saved her from answering something witty enough.

"Your Majesty-"

"No need for formalities, Torin. No one here but for Cinder." He reminded Torin for the umpteenth time.

Before she could think over the idea she blurted, "I'd some favours from you, Torin. Before you announce the work you have brought, can I just ask a few questions?"

Kai eyed her sidewards, while Torin did little to hide his surprise.

"Yes Cinder-Daren, you may."

Kai shook his head, knowing exactly what she was about to do, "Take a seat, Torin, something tells me this might be a long afternoon and hand over the file, Id make the changes while you two go on."

__

A/N: All done for today, quite short but had it in my drafts for years now. Also not me trying to bring Torin in every fic I write ;)

Besides finally writing my something outside of angst, so leave some kudos!

Tagging: @cinderswrench @gingerale2017 @shellyseashell @kaider-is-my-otp @linhcinder686 @kaiderforever  @slmkaider @salt-warrior @cindersassasin @impossiblesuitcase @deprivedmusicaljunkie @cosmicnovaflare @ikosburneraccount @mirrorballsss @fangirlforever0704

[projetacme]

The moms and dads of the Loonatics (old designs)

I'm still rather happy with them over all. They just need some tweaking. All right lets get down to who they all are.

First we have the mothers starting with Slam's Momma.

Olivia (Morgan) Tasmanian. 

Olivia is a stubborn strong willed women. She loves fashion and TV dramas. She runs a business selling fine china in her own shop in the city. She is madly proud of all three of her boys and is happy to live close to Slam. She raised Slam and his two brothers on her own after her husband went missing in action. He is presumed to be dead.

Kaylee (Fang) Coyote.

Kaylee is a long time resident of Coyote Canyon. A proud and loud women with a lot to say. Was a stay at home mother when Tech was growing up. She supported Tech in all his endeavors and made sure he was putting in his all. She loves gardening and is pretty darn good at it. Loves fashion.

Gwen (Luckyfoot) Bunny.

Gwen is an ER doctor and works very hard to feed her large family. She does her best to spend time with all her kids when she can. Ace and her very much enjoy strategy games and the two can get very competitive. Lexi and her will sometimes go shopping together even if it isn't her cup of tea. She teaches Lexi sewing tricks every now and again.

Harriet (Swift) Runner. 

Harriet is a soft spoken kind lady. She is a wonderful cook and is always making sure Rip and Rev have something in their bellys. She worries a lot about her family and often over thinks things. She showed Rev how to cook and clean who was all too happy to learn. Rip on the other hand she has a hard time getting him interested in anything.

And now it's time for the fathers starting with Ace and Lexi's dad. (They are twins by the way)

Blake Bunny

Blake is an easy going fun loving guy. He is a food critic and will often bring his kids with him to work for some extra bonding time.He and Lexi are very close and spend a lot of time together. He enjoys fashion and has Lexi make sure he is looking sharp when he goes out. He went blind when Ace and Lexi where really little. The reason is unknown as every time he is asked about it he tells a different fantastic story as to how it happen.

Ethan B Coyote

Ethan is actually Tech's meddle name. His mother wanted him to be a Ethan Jr but his father refused to give his child his own name. Space age names where all the rage then so Tech he was named. Ethan is a retired PE teacher. He sometimes will coach football teams. He was disappointed that Tech wasn't into sports but they did find comen ground with motorbikes. They both are very good with fixing and raceing them.

Ralph Runner

Ralph is very loud' very rich and very vain. He owns a very powerful business. He is an engineer and inventor. He is very proud of Rev and is always bragging him up. He spends most of his free time teaching and spending time with Rev. Often overlooking his younger son Rip.

[delurkr]

Hey sorry for sending in another ask so soon but I was wondering what your headcanons for the Clarke Family where Personality wise?

And what ages do you think the kids were adopted?

I'm getting vibes that Anthony and Megan were adopted old enough to remember being adopted but that Tanya and Dennis were too young to remember when they were, if that makes sense.

No problem with another ask! If I ever need to let them sit and marinate for a while I will 😄

So ok about their personalities, some of these opinions might be less obvious than others but I try to base this kind of thing on all the doubles in each set (this will not be brief lol).

Now to get this out of the way, James was drunk in his scenes and that's not a great determiner of someone's true personality. That said all the J's are pretty angry in general so he certainly has a temper. We know he's social, spending time with "the guys" and apparently being "well loved at work" like the game says, and he has a ton of anxiety, very much a worrier. Definitely extroverted as well as expressive (whatever he's feeling, good or bad, everyone else will hear about it). Relatedly I feel like he can be pretty demonstrative with his affection for family and friends when he isn't coming unglued from stress. Protective (read also: possessive), impatient, and intense, literally not a shred of chill whatsoever.

Anne is tired ya'll 😅 She can be nosy and critical quite like Angela can and has no time for mushy stuff but clearly it stems from a lot of concern for her family. She cared enough to appeal to Rev Carson for help in handling Megan, but unless she's desperate I definitely see her as the self-sufficient, suck-it-up-and-don't-air-our-dirty-laundry type (she's totally down to hear about other people's dirty laundry tho). Also very exacting, self-assured, and tells it to you straight (without being asked) and expects you to do the same; she's fully convinced that she can fix the entire world if everyone would just do what she says (tbf she's usually right). Probably too stressed out to be seen as much fun these days but she can be super funny when she wants to (her wit isn't always at the expense of other people).

Somehow I don't have a ton to say about Tanya atm but there's a lot to go on based on her scenes and the other T's. She has her flirty ways and a lot of the time likes to keep things lighthearted and casual, and, like Taylor, canonically makes jokes to lighten the mood when things are intense (but only when she isn't the one causing the drama). Unlike Taylor though, she keeps her insubordination on the down low in public, so older people who aren't her parents love her (not that her parents don't love her 😂). Hardworking and cooler than like, everybody; popular and effortlessly good at whatever she cares to do. Also secretive to the point of being deceptive but she keeps secrets to keep things easy, she doesn't purposely cause harm but she's too sensitive to bare her soul often.

Dennis be angy and suspicious 😁 He isn't likely to go looking for a fight but he defends his territory like a bulldog when it's threatened (his territory could be anything from the bathroom at 9 o'clock on Saturday mornings to a box of cheerios on top of the fridge but he'll usually let you know what's his as soon as he claims it). Routined and doesn't like new things unless it was his idea. Tries very hard to be cool. Literally though he'd go to the ends of the earth for people he loves (and he'd do it like, on a unicycle and wearing a clown nose if Megan requested it). 1000% a mama's boy too, you cannot change my mind. Anne will swear up and down that she doesn't play favorites but there was only one kid who got to lick the cake batter spoons without having to ask and his name did not start with T, A, or M. Picked her flowers all the time when he was little too (he's in between stages now but he'll be back around to giving her flowers in a few years or so).

Anthony is just so utterly inoffensive lol, and he manages to be that way even while being his snarky little self. Tends to be oblivious to what's going on, like sure he'll notice changes in people's attitudes or in his environment if you point it out but he won't understand what it means until it doesn't matter anymore (or, thinking of the situation with Megan, sometimes not until it's too late). I say it's partly where his anxiety comes from, the awareness that things can crack and fall apart before he's caught up on there even being a problem. Daddy's boy for sure, he and James are almost exact opposites and, like Abraham with Joseph and Andrew with John, they just click. Introverted, clearly very compassionate but doesn't trust his own instincts with so many more dominant personalities around. Definitely the mediator in dumb sibling squabbles (it's a coin toss whether or not they listen to him) but on the rare occasions he musters the courage to insert himself into any more consequential situations he just might surprise folks into taking him seriously. Chronic baby brother, having to snip at people's heels or wear them down with his big eyes like a puppy to get them to pay attention. A little bitter about it too lol but he does what he has to.

Now I already had a post about the M's personality lurking in my drafts and it gets the job done, so time for a little copy paste:

~

Mary and Megan speak quite assertively in a lot of their scenes, I'm thinking for example Mary's "Liar!" line to some of the most powerful and well-respected adults in her community and the way Megan gets down to brass tacks in confronting Anne about her parent's conversation or the way she boldly tries to get Dennis's attention, even though I'm sure it's nothing new for her to get brushed off most of the time. I'll point out that M has fearful and withdrawn moments too but it's almost always triggered by Carver/Carson, with the contemporary little girl being the exception: she is entirely that way after all that happened to the other M's (I know she's more of a device than a character but the little girl's shyness is a big contrast to how outgoing Mary was to Andrew and Angela in the first flashback). So yeah I love the assertiveness we're shown and I wanted to point it out, because I see her boldness and outspokenness as more her real, healthy self and I very much appreciate that side of her because there isn't just one type of person that gets manipulated or whose needs get disregarded.

And another thing, unfortunate as it is, is that it reinforces the response the other characters (and the player) have to the M's acting out, just like we see in the game. They don't see her behavior as something new that signals a problem since they can fall back on "she's always been a troublemaker but she's even worse now." (For the most part. Joseph has his moment of "nah Mary wouldn't do that" and Tabitha and maybe David can't wrap their heads around her intentionally accusing them, but it's important that even while Abraham and Anthony try to keep her from harsh punishment they of all people don't put it past her to have done whatever she's accused of.) Also it makes me even madder at Carson and Carver because I can see her being such a delightfully spunky little force of nature if they could just, you know, not exist to torture her.

~

I don't think it all got my point across very well, but on to the adoption thing. There's different ideas in the fandom that I like but this post I wrote forever ago is kind of my baseline and my reasoning hasn't changed.

Um, the end 😅 Round of applause if you got this far 👏👏👏

[mmriesoftvat]

1. WHAT IS YOUR NAME?: "kami, i suppose.."

2. WHAT IS YOUR REAL NAME?: "kaminari."

3. DO YOU KNOW WHY YOU’RE CALLED THAT?: "the traveler named me, i didn't care otherwise. i'm not great with names."

4. ARE YOU SINGLE OR TAKEN?: "why is that so important to you?"

5. WHAT ARE YOUR POWERS AND ABILITIES?: "anemo." kami shrugs at the question. "we all have our different abilities, why should mine be singled out as special? it doesn't matter. as long as i can still fight, it matters very little to me."

6. WHAT COLOR ARE YOUR EYES?: "blue." kami smirks. the answer is not blue, and anyone could see that. but he's going to claim that anyway.

7. HAVE YOU EVER DYED YOUR HAIR?: "no, i never really saw a point to it."

8. DO YOU HAVE ANY FAMILY MEMBERS?: "none that i care to elaborate on." HERE, kami loses the more easygoing expression, growing more tense and tight-lipped. "family is a meaningless word, people will use it to bind people to some arbitrary contract. i have no one like that."

9. DO YOU HAVE ANY PETS?: "unless the aranara count, the answer is no."

10. TELL ME ABOUT SOMETHING YOU DON’T LIKE: "THIS."

11. DO YOU HAVE ANY HOBBIES OR ACTIVITIES YOU DO IN YOUR SPARE TIME?: "the scholars at the akademiya are idiots. i spend more time correcting the papers they write than writing my own. i suppose smuggling books out of the library counts as a hobby too. i dislike having to return them, though."

12. HAVE YOU EVER HURT ANYONE BEFORE?: "yes."

13. HAVE YOU EVER… KILLED ANYONE?: "yes."

14. WHAT KIND OF ANIMAL ARE YOU?: "i am not an animal, i am me. it was buer who likened me to a cat, and if that makes her happy, then i suppose i can go along with this."

15. NAME YOUR WORST HABITS: "criticizing our own flaws is too easy of a trap to fall into. i could spend forever telling everyone everything i dislike about myself, but that'd be a waste of everyone's time. nothing would change, and you'd all feel like some sort of hero hoping to fix what you see as broken. so, i'll save us all the time and move on."

16. DO YOU LOOK UP TO ANYONE?: "i suppose i'd admire buer the most, for everything she does for her people. niwa, when we knew each other. for our time together, he taught me a lot."

17. GAY, STRAIGHT, OR BISEXUAL?: "these questions are too personal and intrusive. but if you INSIST, probably bisexual."

18. DO YOU GO TO SCHOOL?: "i suppose? i'm not enrolled in the akademiya, but i AM keeping an eye on the scholars there."

19. DO YOU EVER WANT TO MARRY AND HAVE KIDS SOMEDAY?: "no."

20. DO YOU HAVE ANY FANS?: "if by fan, you mean having the scribe and the general mahamatra breathing down my neck every time i enter a room, then sure, i suppose you could say i have fans."

21. WHAT ARE YOU MOST AFRAID OF?: "nothing." THAT much is a lie. but would he elaborate? nope.

22. WHAT DO YOU USUALLY WEAR?: "my hat. my hat is the most fundamental staple of my day-to-day outfit."

23. DO YOU LOVE SOMEONE?: "there is no one i would really assign to love. but there are people i have been and am currently loyal to."

24. WHAT CLASS ARE YOU?: "what do you mean class? are we in some sort of light novel now? am i to be a main character in a fantasy? PLEASE."

25. HOW MANY FRIENDS DO YOU HAVE?: "i am my own friend."

26. WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON PIE?: "it's PIE. pie is usually sweet, therefore i won't eat it."

27. FAVORITE DRINK?: "tea."

29. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PLACE?: "what is WITH all these questions? who is so curious to want to ask me so many boring, soulless questions that make no sense? i don't have one." the sanctuary comes to mind, but kami brushes that off -- it's unimportant and no one's business.

30. ARE YOU INTERESTED IN SOMEONE?: "no."

31. WOULD YOU RATHER SWIM IN THE LAKE OR THE OCEAN?: "why swim, when i can just as easily fly?"

32. WHAT’S YOUR ‘TYPE’?: "someone with intelligence, first off. i am not seeing that on display here."

33. ANY FETISHES?: "absolutely not."

35. CAMPING, OR INDOORS?: "i think we are done with this stupid interview. nothing of value was gained, and plenty was lost."

36. ARE YOU WAITING FOR THIS INTERVIEW TO BE OVER?: "yes."

tagged by: @erabundus (thank you!) tagging: @viigilant @roleplay-abiogenesis2 @mcuntainbcrn @curiouskinetic @voyage-inferno @chiselight @celesticlnstcrs @layuten @defiedlife and YOU!