#went down the rabbit hole of watching all of them and now here i am T-T

[what-even-is-sleep]

what in the fucked-up politics, uncharacteristic moments, and disregarded family tensions was Descendants 3

[kanmom51]

Dear Kanmon I'm writing to you because you know how to count and because I miss good jikook analyzes. after AYS they seem unnecessary, but they are satisfying. like putting together a puzzle. When I watched Jimin's choreography for Stuck with you for the hundredth time, I wondered if the part of the song he was dancing to was chosen on purpose. And I discovered that the dance starts exactly at 1:18 minutes into the song.

Hey love.

JM's dance to Stuck with you was just wow wow wow.

Your ask got me looking. And at first I went to the MV and lyrics YT clips and it just didn't align, so I was ready to give up.

But then I went to the actual streamed song on Spotify, and low and behold, you are so right.

Like wtf?

I am lost for words.

But you know what, if we're already doing this, then let's go down this rabbit hole...

I'm just going to throw myself down there, because you got me looking @jimjunkgfc.

Let's do this. Hold on to your seats, because this is going to be a bumpy ride folks.

The clip was released by JM on his IG account on 18.11.23.

Hmm.. do you see what I am seeing?

We have a combination of very interesting numbers here.

Just looking at the numbers, no math required.

If you take the 1,1 and 8 out of it you are left with the also very known Jikook combination of 123.

So, in the date alone we have 11-8 and 123.

The whole thing with the 123 theory is that we think we know where it originated (might have meant something to them way before but that's the first time it's mentioned) - Festa 2014 JM's profile Just one day MV at 1:23 min. represents him best. JK was by his side while filling out that profile. Since then we have had song recommendations ending at 1:23 min., posts timed at 12:30 or 1:23 am, posts on January 23rd etc. We know there is very possibly something going on with that sequence of numbers, but what it is exactly or more so, what it means to them exactly, we don't know.

Songs stopped at 1:23 min.

Post dated Jan 23 - 123

2017

2019

Using time stamps:

Posted 31 Jan 2019, time stamped 12:30 am KST.

18 Feb 2019 1:23 am KST

Again, the time stamp on going live - 12:03 am KST.

Bonus...

Like I said, we don't know exactly what it means, but it sure does mean something because it just keeps intentionally re-appearing.

And it somehow made it's way into this one once more.

Interesting.

Rabbit hole I said?

Let's continue then...

How long exactly is JM's dance clip, you ask?

1:23 min.

What in the actual fuck?

So, let's sum it up, why don't we?

We have a clip released on a date that gives us the combination of all the numbers for us to easily see 11:8 and 123.

And then we have JM dancing to a song that starts at the 1:18 min. mark and dancing for 1:23 min.

11-8

123

Yeah, clearly all a coincidence.

[pablitogavii]

could you make a jealous fic with gavi❤️

Gavi has been acting jealous the moment you met Hector Fort. Anytime Hector was in the group, he would act all grumpy trying to touch you in some way. Today he pulled you on his lap and held your butt shamelessly in front of all his friend.

You were a shy girl so it felt a little uncomfortable for them all to see your boyfriend grabbing your ass like that. You pulled away from Pablo and sat besides him instead. That move made the boy steaming mad.

"I thought Xavi was going to spank my ass for being late!" Hector told the story and everyone including you laughed..well everyone but Pablo. His jaw was clenched and he was ready to explode.

"Que haces cabrón!? She's my girl, tío!" Pablo became confrontational with Hector after you went to the bathroom before getting ready to leave to go home with Gavi.

"Yo hice nada! Not my problem you're perro celoso Gavi!" Hector smirked and Gavi was about to get into his face when he heard your sweet voice calling his name ready to leave. Hector looked at you knowing that you were leaving with Gavi..yeah that's right she's mine cabrón! Gavi thought to himself.

"Pelotudo!" Pablo said walking away and getting close to you to grab his jacket and bag. He pulled you close while exiting knowing that everyone must be watching and Gavi wanted everyone to see.

"Amor what was that with Hector before we left?" you asked while sitting at your makeup vanity and taking off your makeup. You wished Pablo could control his impulses a bit better but also secretly loving your angry bird.

"Again with Hector!? Is he all you think about!?" Gavi was defensive and you knew what to do in these moments..he needed reassurance and you were shamelessly ready to prove him he owns every inch of you forever.

You walked to him sitting on his lap while he was on his phone looking into group chat until you took the phone from him to put it on the nightstand and have his whole attention.

"I could care less about him..all I care about is why my man is angry when there is no reason amor.." you tried being sweet to him to calm him down but Pablo was clearly still in his head.

"No reason!? You got off my lap princesa!" he said angrily but you still liked that he was using your nicknames..means he's not angry much.

"Because everyone was staring and I got shy..they already know I'm yours Pablo so stop worrying amor, hm?" you say moving his hair from his forehead and he sighed loudly shaking his head.

"I can't amorcito..you're a beautiful woman..and they all want you..especially Hector" he said and you shut him up with a kiss before he could continue down the rabbit hole. Can't he understand you don't want anything with him!?

"And yet here I am with you...in your bed..on your lap..belonging only to you Pablo Gavi" you whisper the last part with the smirk feeling him harden underneath his shorts. He liked to hear this..

"But you didn't want him to know that..that's why you got off my lap" Pablo was as stubborn as they come and now you were getting frustrated with his childish behavior and jealousy.

"Dios Pablo! You seriously think I want someone else after a year of being with you? " you said and he spoke before thinking again.

"All girls want him now" he said and now you were the one angry as you got off his lap again..he knew how stupid what he said was right now.

"So I'm like all girls now!? Fine Gavira!" you pulled away when he tried to reach to you retreating back to the bathroom to finish your night routine and shower.

Pablo peaked his head through the shower curtain to ask "amor can I join you?" but you were damned if he was going to bribe you like this. You shook your head disinterestingly.

"I'm not in the mood for that Pablo" you said and he left with a loud sigh just wanting to hold you again like before. If only he wasn't so damn impulssive!

You came back to bed and he was laying there in his boxers looking at you as you applied your sweet lotion and grabbed a book. Now he knew it was time for the silent treatment..

"Amor porfa don't ignore me..I know what I said was stupid..you're never gonna be like all girls..you're mi amor, mi ciela, mi vida corazón..porfa hablar conmigo" he was nuzzling his cleanly shaved chin into your neck and you giggled since it tickled.

"I don't want anyone Gavi.." you say and he nods kissing your lips passionately before pulling away to pull you down and toss your book away.

"Hm..you know calling me Gavi get's you playtime princesa" he smirked kissing your neck and you giggled blushing and nodding your head.

"I love you mi Gavi.." you say before he kisses your lips passionately.

"I love you mi princesa" he said into the kiss and you both smiled completely forgetting about little jealous antics you had a few minutes ago. <333

[ladykailitha]

The Magic of Christmas Part 3/8

Just an extra long chapter here because they didn't want to shut up. They're getting closer and their best friends are slowly coming on board to the idea.

Part 1 Part 2

***

Eddie was vibrating. Chrissy had done a total deep dive into this guy and other then being a bratty teenager and having shit parents there was nothing in Steve’s closet that would set off alarm bells.

Steve Harrington just knew how to deal with people to get what he wanted. He knew when to back off, too. In fact, Eddie was trying to get the dude stop backing off so much.

He was a people pleaser with eroded boundaries. And while that was certainly a problem, it wasn’t a ‘might be a serial killer’ problem like Chrissy thought.

So yeah, Eddie was vibrating because he was going to show Steve his first set of sketches for him to okay the design.

Steve was late. He had called to let him know he would be late. A meeting had gone over and he would be there as soon as he could.

Eddie pulled out his drawing pad and flipped through the designs he had come up with. He itched to pull out a pencil and “fix” a line or seven. But he had to refrain. If he started on it he would be so far down the rabbit hole that he would have three new designs before Steve got here.

A shadow crossed over him and he looked up to see Steve standing there.

“Steve!” he greeted warmly, getting to his feet.

They shook hands and then sat down.

“So what have you got for me?” Steve asked eagerly, leaning on his forearms to see Eddie’s drawing pad.

Eddie grinned at him. “I’ve got loads, big boy.” He turned the drawing pad around and Steve paid diligent attention to each piece.

He went back to the third design and turned it back to face Eddie. “I like this one. But I have one suggestion, if I may?”

Eddie shrugged. “Sure.”

“What if the dragon’s wings spread out over the four other pieces connecting them?” Steve asked, biting on his lip.

Eddie began to sketch furiously while Steve watched in fascination.

“Have you ever thought about streaming your process?” Steve asked. “It’s very enthralling.”

Eddie’s head jerked up like he’d forgotten Steve was there at all. He looked down at his pad and blushed. “I never thought I’d have the patience for it, you know? The whole explaining it while I’m doing it.”

Steve nodded. “I can see why that might deter you. But if you just drew or painted and put music over the top, I think it would do very well.”

“And would you be my first subscriber?” Eddie teased.

“Hell yeah!” Steve said with a grin. “And I would tell everyone I know to subscribe too.”

“I’ll think about it.”

He slid the drawing back over to Steve, who grinned.

“Perfect.”

*

“Edward Allen Munson!” Chrissy hissed as she threw open the door to their loft. “You tell me right now: are you joking about the YouTube channel?”

Eddie looked up from his sketching and blinked at her. “I thought you’d be pleased.”

She walked over to where he had sprawled out in front of the five canvasses and flopped down across from him. “I am pleased but only if you aren’t trying to butter me up to leave you alone about your ridiculous crush.”

Eddie opened and closed his mouth, licking and smacking his lips as he struggled for words.

“It’s about the crush but not in the way you mean…?” he said with a grimace.

She crossed her legs and put her elbows on her knees. She rested her head on her knuckles to stare him down. He wiggled and squirmed under her gaze.

“Explain.”

So Eddie did.

Chrissy rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “So no talking but what if I convinced you to let me write words to put up on the screen while you paint talking about the subject matter and why you chose it?”

“Oh!” he said brightly. “Even better! Why don’t I talk about D&D or music while I paint? That way I can babble to my hearts content without out having to drone on about the process.”

She blinked at him. “Eddie Munson you are a genius.” She rose up on her still crossed legs and kissed him soundly on the forehead. “I love it and you.”

Eddie blushed and went back to his sketching.

*

“Steve!” Dustin screamed into his ear when he picked up the phone mere days after his last meeting with Eddie.

“God, kid,” Steve groaned. “Tone it down. I don’t want to go deaf please.”

He could practically feel the eye roll from here.

“Eddie Munson has a YouTube channel!” Dustin continued to scream. “Oh my god do you know how big this is?!”

“One, I need to you to breath before you pass out from lack of oxygen to your brain,” Steve said. “You like your brain, don’t abuse it like this.”

Dustin let out a slow shuddering breath. “Right. I’m breathing.”

“Good,” Steve said slowly. “And two, I know about the channel because he told me about it.”

“You already know?” Dustin squawked. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Steve sighed. “Look at the clock and tell me what time it is?”

“2:37pm. Why?”

“What time did the channel go live?” Steve asked, pinch the bridge of his nose.

“About one.”

“And where would you have been at one?” he asked, his eyes fluttering shut against the audacity of this kid.

“Oh.”

“Yeah, bud,” Steve said. “Oh. You were in class. Which I still don’t understand why you are taking summer classes. You’re young, you should enjoy your life.” He tilted his head. “How did you find out so fast anyway?”

“I follow Eddie on twitter, Facebook, Instragram, and his fan Discord server.” This was said as though it was obvious.

“Well now you have one more place to follow him,” Steve said ignoring the tone.

“Steve…” Dustin said, his voice low and dangerous. “Why are you his first subscriber?”

“Look, Dustin,” he said trying to keep the giggle in his throat from bursting through, “I’ve got to run. I have a meeting.”

“Stev–”

Steve sighed as he held the phone against his forehead, grateful they weren’t in person.

“Yeah, Steve,” Robin said from the doorway, “why were you his first subscriber?”

He blushed a dark red. “Because I promised I would be when I suggested the channel three days ago?”

Robin narrowed her eyes. “I see.”

Steve wasn’t sure what she saw, but he knew he would find out soon enough.

*

Eddie was working on Dustin’s first because he felt like it was the most important to get right. Wizards were usually portrayed as dusty old men and it appeared that this kid had done the same. But then the character was created ten years ago.

But Eddie decided to avoid a Gandolf/Dumbledore looking dude and went more for a Jafar that had gotten the time to grow old. A neat goatee, a sharp piercing gaze and weather-beaten skin.

His robe had stars on it according to Will the Wise’s picture of them. So he decided to make the robe look it was filled with swirling galaxies and nebulae.

Eddie was working on the cave background when his phone chirped. He tucked his paintbrush behind his ear and pulled it out.

Rich Pretty Boy: I got ahold of a couple of friends of mine that are going to help promote your charity. Nancy Wheeler is an investigative journalist most of the time but she owes me a favor and is willing to interview you about the charity to get it seen on a national platform. I’ll email you the details.

Eddie blinked at his phone in shock. Nancy Wheeler was the new and improved Barbara Walters (improved as in she wasn’t an ass to the people she was interviewing.) That must be a huge fucking favor she owed Steve if he got her for this.

EM: Holy shit! What kind of blackmail do you have on her for this?

RPB: LOL! I’m sworn to secrecy, sorry. :(

EM: All right, keep your secrets.

RPB: That’s LotR, right?

EM: Correct. I know you keep telling me you aren’t a nerd, but dude every time we talk I gather more and more evidence to the contrary.

RPB: I blame Dustin. He wore me down.

EM: Then I take it upon myself to complete the education that Sir Dustin has begun!

EM: Meet me at my loft on Friday at 8pm. We are going to start with the animated classics of the 80s!

RPB: Beer or wine?

EM: Beer.

EM: I’ll see you later, pretty boy. I have this huge project I’m working on that is on a deadline.

RPB: Curse the bastard that’s taking up all your time. ;)

Eddie laughed out loud.

EM: He’s the worst. ;)

RPB: See you on Friday, Eds.

EM: Laters!

Eddie put his phone down with a fond smile on his face. It was absolutely ridiculous how much he loved this beautiful idiot that had come in and swept him off his feet.

*

“Tell me again why I have to be here for this?” Chrissy complained for the fifth time that hour.

“Because fair Christine,” Eddie said through gritted teeth, “it’s not a date and he’s bringing his best friend.”

“How is his secretary his best friend anyway?” she groused, folding her arms and burying herself into the big fluffy sofa.

Eddie rolled his eyes and flopped down next to her. “They were friends before he took over the business. They had worked together in every job they’ve ever had so when he took over he put the one person he could trust in front of his office to shield himself from the assholes who make his life a living hell.”

Chrissy pursed her lips. “Fine.”

He kissed her cheek and went to go get the popcorn and candy.

“You ever going to tell this Steve you have a hard on for him?” she asked as he kept swapping bowls around for best placement.

“No,” Eddie said firmly. “Not while he’s paying me, anyway.”

She shrugged. “I guess that’s fair. It’s just...”

“That I have it so bad my only two thoughts are painting and Steve?” he finished for her.

“And me,” she agreed. “But pretty much.”

He put his head on her shoulder. “I’ve never fallen this hard for a person before. He’s sweet and funny and an absolute dork.”

Chrissy kissed the top of his head. “I’ll be good tonight. No bitching or being mean.”

Eddie snorted. “He’s also a queen bitch. So you can be you all you want. Just...”

She turned on the sofa, bringing her knees up to her chest. “But what?”

“When he starts gushing about something don’t...” he floundered for the right words. “Just don’t make him feel small about it.”

Chrissy tilted her head to side. “Has people made him feel small about his interests?”

Eddie nodded. “I think his parents were like yours, if I’m honest.”

“Rich, entitled assholes who wanted a doll and not a child?” she asked bitterly. He nodded. She sighed heavily. “Yeah okay. You got me. I know the signs and will adjust accordingly.”

He threw his arms around her and gave her a wet sloppy kiss on the cheek.

Just then the doorbell rang.

“They’re here,” Eddie said nervously.

Chrissy leaned down to look at him. “Do you want me to answer the door to give you a second to prepare?”

He nodded.

She gave his hands a squeeze and gracefully slid off the couch to do just that. She bounded over to the door and threw it open. And yeah, objectively she knew what Steve looked like, but seeing him out of his trademark blue power suit was a revelation. And immediately she got why Eddie fell hard for this guy.

He was wearing a David Bowie t-shirt from his Ziggy Stardust era and tight, light blue jeans. His sneakers were Nike’s, and his watch was Schwartz but those were the only major shows of wealth.

Next to him was not what she was expecting either. Chrissy was expecting someone more bookish. Glasses, frumpy. Or even the extreme opposite, a fashion plate. Someone who fit the sexy secretary stereotype. But nope.

She was fashionable, Chrissy had to give her that, but not in the way she thought. Billowy pants with a long-sleeved button up with sleeves rolled up to her elbows and pair of colorful suspenders. Her blonde hair was artfully tousled and she had freckles on her nose and cheeks.

In short, Chrissy was in love.

“Hi!” she greeted as though her heart wasn’t going to leap out of her chest to prostrate itself before this lovely maiden, only for her stomp all over it.

“Hey,” Steve smiled back. “You must be the agent/best friend, Chrissy I’ve been hearing so much about. It’s nice to put a name to the face.”

The woman elbows him. “Face to the name, dingus.”

Steve flushed. “I’m so glad I have you here to correct me.”

“Come on in,” Chrissy said warmly, moving out of the way for them to enter the loft. Inwardly she briefly wondered if maybe the best friend was the cause of the “limiting” as Eddie called it.

“Thanks!” he said and then pointed to the woman next to him. “This is Robin my platonic soulmate, best friend, and all around Stevie wrangler. I don’t know what I would do without her.”

“Aww,” Robin said with a smile and hip check.

Steve stumbled but laughed, too.

By the time they reach the living area Chrissy still wasn’t sure what to think about these two.

Eddie leapt to his feet at the sight of them.

“Stevie! Robin!” he greeted brightly. “You found the place okay?”

Robin nodded. “I’m glad you gave us directions on top of the whole GPS otherwise we would have ended up in some cemetery.”

Chrissy grimaced. “Yeah. But that cemetery was here before the condos and high rises so I can’t complain. Even though I really, really want to.”

“How old is the cemetery?” Steve asked eagerly.

She looked over at Eddie for help. “I don’t actually know.”

“Uh...” Eddie said unhelpfully. “I don’t know exactly but I know it’s over a century old.”

Steve lit up. “That’s so cool.”

“You like old graveyards, Steve?” Chrissy asked. She sat down on the sofa and grabbed the bag of popcorn.

“Steve is obsessed with them,” Robin said playfully.

“Am not,” he said and then turned to Chrissy and Eddie. “I’m really not. I just think it’s super neat.”

“What makes them so neat?” Eddie asked, taking the beer from Steve and setting it on the table with the array of goodies.

“Like seeing a bunch of people with similar death years knowing that it was because of a pandemic,” Steve said. “Or on Memorial Day going to see all the American flags for those that died during war time. It’s all just endlessly fascinating.”

“I could take you some time,” Eddie said. “Have a picnic lunch, make a day out of it.”

“You’d do that?” he asked eagerly.

Chrissy bumped Eddie’s shoulder. “Eddie here likes graveyards because they’re spooky.”

Steve laughed. “That’s a great reason to like graveyards.”

They settled down to watch the movies Eddie had picked out for them. A double feature of “The Hobbit” and “The Return of the King”.

“Holy shit!” Steve said afterwards. “How did they get more faithful to the books in less time than Peter Jackson?”

Eddie laughed. “Good story telling.”

They finally left for the night and Eddie closed the door behind them.

“Thoughts?” Eddie asked.

“And prayers,” Chrissy said. “Holy fuck do you have it bad. And I’ll swear under oath that if there is a god, he made Steve especially for you.”

He blushed. “Fuck, you can’t say that.”

“Why not?” she asked raising an eyebrow.

“Because it feels that way for me, too,” he whined, “and if you think that too, then I’m royally fucked.”

Chrissy sighed. “Yeah.”

***

Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8

@spectrum-spectre @estrellami-1 @zerokrox-blog @artiststarme @swimmingbirdrunningrock @gregre369 @pyrohonk ​@a-little-unsteddie @chaosgremlinmunson @chaoticlovingdreamer @maya-custodios-dionach @goodolefashionedloverboi @messrs-weasley @val-from-lawrence @i-must-potato @danili666 @carlyv @rozzieroos @wonderland-girl143-blog @justforthedead89 @emly03 @bookworm0690 @itsall-taken @vecnuthy @bookbinderbitch @redfreckledwolf @littlewildflowerkitten @yikes-a-bee @awkwardgravity1 @scheodingers-muppet @mira-jadeamethyst @cinnamon-mushroomabomination @genderless-spoon @anne-bennett-cosplayer @irregular-child @carlprocastinator1000 @mogami13 @samsoble

[popcornforone]

Spoilt

A Mr Ben Fic

Day 31 of Pedrototber (SAG Awards Prompt)

Masterlist

31 days

31 Fics

Over 32000 words

I started writing these on September the 20th when I was feeling unwell on holiday & now here we are. The last one.

Honestly I’m gonna feel a little bit lost. This has been such a project & im incredibly proud of everything I’ve written & of all the love I’ve received. So this one is written entirely for me. I am my main audience & today is my Birthday (Seriously it is) so I thought I would give myself the gift of Mr Ben!

Synopsis:- It’s your birthday & your boyfriend Ben gives you the perfect start to your evening.

Word count:- 1500

Warnings over & above:- piv sex, lots of passion & swearing & promises, basically whatever you want Ben to do for your that sweet & spicy to start your birthday off he does.

Thank you all so so much for reading all of these. I’m incredibly proud of what everyone has done art, edits & writing wise.

A huge shout out to @alyssamariag & @norththelemon for setting this all up. Maybe I’ll be back next year for it.

October 31st, Halloween. Yep it’s that day again. The day when you are kind of forgotten in the larger scheme of it all. Everyone wants to go do a fright night, or pick pumpkins, or trick or treat. But no you don’t. The world might celebrate Halloween, but you don’t. You celebrate your birthday.

Unless it’s the weekend you can’t even ever really have your birthday off. You work as a Payroll advisor, so the last day of the month people are always asking where their payslip is or why it’s different to last month. Work did remember this year. A balloon was put on your desk, & you all went out for lunch. A dodgy burger place, they actually do make a wonderful cheese burger, you wouldn’t think it but they do. When you’d done your last set of payslips they said you could leave early. So you’ve got home & face timed your family. You’re seeing them all tomorrow. You & your mum share a birthday week so always do a big joint thing every year. Your sister who’s having a baby in the spring has even volunteered to pick you up so both you & your partner can drink.

You’ve opened the cards that arrived & have made a cup of tea & are sat on the sofa wondering what to do before your other half arrives at 5ish depending on the traffic. He has less lessons on Thursday so you know he will be in then, he’s usually home before you on a Thursday anyhow. So you sit there flicking through your iPad when up it pops on your feed.

PEDRO PASCAL IS PEOPLE MAGAZINES SEXIEST PERSON ALIVE!!!

You almost drop your drink. You sit there & scroll through the article & admire his new photo shoot. He always looks so soft & sweet like he is boyfriend material, but you know deep down he’s probably a menace. This sends you down a rabbit hole & it’s not long before you have the SAG award speech he gave, up on the main TV on Netflix. Admiring those curls & that whole outfit & how adorable & humble he was. You rewind it each time after he does the interview afterwards to go back & watch his moments again. It’s your comfort as you sit there sipping your tea, sighing.

“Pedro again” you leap around like you’ve been caught masturbating. You hadn’t heard your partner come in. He’s already taken his coat off & is holding a big bunch of purple tulips for you. You pause the TV. A genuine smile forms on your lips because the one he has for you is contagious.

“What you weren’t here Ben, I needed my fix of a hot man somehow” you joke.

“I know I know” he says as he walks towards you & you lean over the top of the sofa & he kissed your lips tenderly. “But is Pedro here, did he get you flowers & did he just have to fight an old lady off at the shop to get the wine you like for dinner tonight?” You kiss him back. Short little bursts of kisses making you both giddy. Like your teenagers that Ben usually teaches.

“No he’s not” you sigh”you’ll have to do & as you have Tulips & wine I’m not gonna complain.”

“I hope not” says Ben “happy birthday beautiful” He gives you another big kiss before he backs off. “I’m gonna go put these in some water then I’ll come back”

“Okay baby”

It’s only after about 5minutes that your realise Ben hasn’t come back yet. You decide to turn off the SAG awards rerun & put on a Pedro film for background noise, one you both know inside out & can quote, Triple Frontier. You always feel sorry for Pedro character Frankie that he almost dies when that donkey falls from the cliff. You’re about 10mins in when you hear a noise behind you.

“Tadah”

You turn around & your jaw drops before you uncontrollably laugh.

“What” Ben says.

“Seriously”

“Yes”

Ben has gone to the effort to try & curl part of his hair, he’s put on his geeky im marking don’t disturb me glasses, his extra tight trousers which he’s worn once & moaned so much about chafing, & then has all but 2 buttons on a white shirt undone.

“Ben are you seriously trying to cosplay as Pedro Pascal for Halloween?”

He nod & then coughs & then put on the voice which isn’t too much different to his own.

“This is wrong for so many reasons” he says quoting the awards show you watch for comfort “& this is a state of mind you know what I’m saying” you sit there laughing & blushing & extremely aroused.

“Well baby” you flurry your hand to wave him to come join you. “If your Mr Pascal, who would you like me to be to add to your fantasy” Ben then turns bright red & pushes his glasses down his nose, he knows that will get you sodden in seconds.

“Well since you’ve asked so politely, i want you to be the happiest sexiest girl who was ever born on Halloween” he says & he sits down on the sofa & pulls you into his lap. “Forget a celebrity crush, your my girl, & just your smile turns me on” you straddle him & your caress his beard.

“Aww baby” you say before he cups your face & the intense make out begins. Your body already moving knowing pleasure will be coming.”I do appreciate this Ben, but I don’t need Pedro, I just need you, your the man I love, the man I live with, the man who in 6 months time I’m going to share a name with” you then start to nibble on his ear lobe & he moans, he’s got one hand on your arse & the other desperate to find his fly.

“Yea it’s my name you will have baby”

“Im yours, you claimed me long ago”

“Oooh don’t I know it” the noise of the zip fills the room it makes you moan.

“On this sofa after a Christmas party”

“Yea what a night”

“Yea so fucking good”

“Still think it’s good baby”

“No its… oooh fuck” you are wearing a dress but he’s pushed your underwear to the side & slipped inside your cunt so easily as you were aroused & ready to take him, you slowly sink down taking all of him & it’s a earthy deep moan you let out “no Ben… it’s fucking phenomenal” you start to rock around him as he thrusts up into you.

“Fuck baby, god your extra tight tonight Jesus”

“You got me In the mood, oooh yesss baby” your mouths mould together. A swift hand slaps your arse as you grind around his penis. Each thrust even more exquisite as the last. Your walls clamping hard.

“Yes beautiful Ooooh fuck”

“Fuck Ben more more oooh fuck”

“Gonna fill you up, your mine, all mine”

“Yours fucking yours”

“Yes baby fuck yessss” Ben puts both his hands on your neck & makes intense eyes contact with you as you bounce hard around him, overwhelmed & overstimulated. It won’t be long before you cum. You feel seen. You feel loved. But the man you are looking at is not Pedro Pascal or someone dressed up trying to be him. It’s you other half your Ben. He’s the one you adore, would do anything for & the fact he’s gone to so much effort for your birthday just makes you love him even more. You bite your bottom lip, your rhythm uneven, the climax approaches. Ben sees it in your eyes & leans in & whispers into your ear that line that’s always unspoken.

“I’m Your Daddy” was he quoting Pedro? Was he saying it for real? You didn’t give a fuck. You cum, so hard the world is filled with stars, all the magic in the world is at your fingertips as your orgasm rips through you. The lap below you trembles as you almost finish your rocking. You hear a deep moan as Ben fills you up, coating you with his seed. He’s panting heavily as you rest your head on his shoulder & whisper back to him.

“So daddy,” you giggle as you say it”are you gonna have a panic attack & leave now you’ve claimed your prize?” He soothes your back as he regains his motor skills.

“Me leave you? Never” he smirks as he kisses the side of your head. “Your gonna have to do more than that to make me leave”

“Good, cos I ain’t going anywhere”

“Neither am I baby” he says lifting your head & you both chuckle as you move the curl he tried to do out of his face. “& id never leave you on your birthday”

[lurkingshan]

Hi....If you don't mind, can I ask, what are your top 10 (or top 7) favorite media (can be books/ manga/ anime/movies/tv series)? Why do you love them? Sorry if you've answered this question before......Thanks....

Thank you for the ask, I don't mind a bit! Though I will say that this particular question sent me into a minor existential crisis, because how on earth could I ever pick just 10 things that I love across all media. I don't know if y'all have picked this up about me yet, but I consume vast amounts of media, like...unbelievable amounts of media, it is my great joy in life. I consulted @bengiyo about how to approach this question, and he suggested a frame to help narrow it down: what are my favorites that someone else recommended to me, that I then felt compelled to recommend to others? Hope you don't mind the tweak! As always, keeping this in the realm of Asian media for this blog, here is what I got:

What Did You Eat Yesterday?

When I met @bengiyo and @waitmyturtles I learned very quickly that this was their all-time favorite, and if I didn't like it we were gonna have a problem (jk but not really). I hadn't watched it on my own because until recently (shoutout to our savior Gagaoolala) it was quite inaccessible and I hadn't yet stumbled onto @isaksbestpillow and found her amazing subs. Luckily, I have impeccable taste and WDYEY is in fact a masterpiece, so they watched me watch it, I lost my mind over how unique and brilliant and technically flawless it was, and we are now all bonded for life over our love for this show, which just returned for a second season and will hopefully continue forever. I love it so much I have even started reading the manga, and I am not a manga girlie by nature (I prefer reading prose), so you can be assured I absolutely will not be shutting up about it anytime soon.

Go Ahead

Credit for this one goes to @ginnymoonbeam for watching it first and then sending up a flare for me as a fellow cdrama enjoyer that this one was worth prioritizing immediately. I love big sprawling family stories that unfold over time, I love digging into intergenerational family trauma, I love good dad characters, I love found family dynamics, and I love a well done romance subplot embedded in a much bigger story, so this show hit so many of my sweet spots. It's #1 on my list of modern cdramas and I would recommend it to anyone.

Mo Dao Zu Shi/The Untamed

Speaking of cdramas, I must give a shoutout to @dangermousie who wrote this post summarizing their favorite danmei novels, which I found when I went looking for recommendations and was trying to figure out a way into this segment of Asian media. I admit I am a bit bougie about my reading material and modality, so I really can't deal with machine translations or reading on html pages, and thus I still have not read some of these as I am patiently waiting for official English translations to become available (me and 2HA are gonna have a party in 2024 I tell you what). I had already heard of The Untamed, of course, because I am a human person who lurks in online spaces, but reading the novel got me significantly more interested, and I quickly fell down a months long rabbit hole that included consuming the novel, the show, and copious amounts of fanfiction. This story is so complex and layered and full of fun mysteries and meaty moral quandaries and interesting family relationships and has an A+ second chance romance and one of my all time favorite characters to boot; it really took over my brain for a minute. And while it hardly needs me to recommend it given how popular it already is, I'm still gonna do it whenever I get the chance.

Mo Du/Silent Reading

And while we're on the subject of danmei, let me give a shoutout to my favorite modern danmei novel, which was recommended to me by an IRL friend who is not on tumblr. Mo Du is a sprawling mystery novel that spans five major interconnected cases, and it centers on an exceedingly competent police captain, Luo Wenzhou, and a young business heir/super genius, Fei Du, who start out with an adversarial relationship (but I bet you can guess what happens next!). The crime stories in this are almost shockingly intricate and every detail comes together in the end without a single loose end, which is impressive enough on its own, but somehow the author (Priest, who some of you will know as the writer of Faraway Wanderers aka Word of Honor) manages to also write a perfectly paced, incredibly compelling love story between the two leads that is layered with complex trauma and psychological hot buttons and secrets and lies that unfold organically alongside the mystery. I am in the middle of re-reading it right now and my love for it only grows stronger. The gif above is from a recent attempt to adapt this into a live-action drama that got quickly canceled, but honestly, the less said about that, the better (though Zhang Xin Cheng will absolutely remain the Fei Du of my heart). With China's censorship laws, there will be no faithful live action version of this story, so I highly recommend reading the novel.

Pachinko

While we're on the subject of novels, I must mention another IRL friend recommendation: Pachinko. This one is a sprawling multi-generational family historical fiction epic that tracks the lives of a Korean family that is forced to migrate to Japan during Japanese occupation in the early 20th Century. Y'all, this book is amazing, and it has now been turned into a television show airing on Hulu that is also quite good (though structured quite differently, but that's another post). I learned a ton of real history in the course of reading this, and I found the journey of Sunja and her family so compelling. The book has a real intersectional lens and digs deep into themes of oppression, racism, class disparity, and sexism, and is rooted in Korean values around filial piety, respect for hard work, religion, moral condemnation, and of course, the importance of food to communicate.

The Great Indian Kitchen

Switching gears, let me give a shoutout to this Indian film that my bestie @neuroticbookworm recently recommended to me and @waitmyturtles. This film is about a modern young woman who enters an arranged marriage with a family of high status (though maybe not of the kind you think) and explores her experience of oppression as a woman in a very patriarchal religious setting. The story is really compelling, I learned about a common experience for women in India, the narrative ended in an unexpected place (in a good way), and I really enjoyed the watch. And this film is on YouTube with good subs which I linked above, so it's quite accessible.

Be Melodramatic

Let's get back to dramas, shall we? I credit this one to @kdramaxoxo, who recommends Be Melodramatic constantly, and thank goodness because otherwise this under appreciated gem would have never landed on my radar. This is a beautiful story about a group of friends who move in together in the wake of personal tragedy and tracks their progress as they heal and move on from their hardships. The themes of grief and growth and change are quite poignant, the relationships, both platonic and romantic, are all very compelling, and the music is beautiful. If you haven't seen it yet, what are you waiting for (@nieves-de-sugui this is definitely a good one to add to your list).

Make it Right

Time for @bengiyo to get another shoutout. This is a Thai bl classic that doesn't get the love it deserves, and he is its number one promoter. I don't know when I would have gotten around to watching this if he hadn't recommended it so highly, and I'm so glad I did. I wrote about this one, why I loved it, and why I think it's under appreciated, and I highly encourage others to give it a try.

Coffee Prince

We will end on an OG kdrama classic, which I watched early on in my kdrama journey thanks to a recommendation from an IRL friend who said it was the best version of the well worn Asian drama genderbend trope that they had ever seen, and my god were they right. Not only was this my first Gong Yoo drama (a life changing experience in and of itself) but this one really took me by surprise for how sharp and progressive it was about gender fluidity, sexual identity, and the struggle toward self-acceptance way back when it aired in 2007. I recommend this one to everyone, and its a great entry point for people who prefer queer media and have (justified) suspicion of mainstream kdrama's treatment of queer narratives.

[sleepanonymous]

Hi, I was wondering if you knew when Vessel started 'dancing' on stage? I'm pretty sure he started doing in in the late Sundowning-ish era/ TPWBYT era but I thought you'd probably be the best person to ask about finding videos from when he started dancing.

Oooh this is an interesting rabbit hole, thanks for asking Anon 🖤

So... I guess it depends on what you mean by dancing, because Vessel has always sort of moved on stage, you know? But what he did back then and what he's doing now is completely different. Like... maybe a better word for what he used to do is "writhing." The earliest video of a ritual I've seen of Sleep Token's was their third ritual in (what I'm assuming is) late 2017, and "writhing" is probably the best word for what Vessel was doing on stage (and I say that affectionately/respectfully).

TLDR; Conclusively I would say Vessel started dancing, as we see him dance on stage today, in the summer of 2022. He's always moved on stage, and even acted unhinged during Sleep Token's earlier rituals. Below the cut, I go through rituals on YouTube from 2018-2023 to try and pinpoint exactly when Vessel started dancing like we see currently in 2023. (I went through quite a few videos, most not even mentioned in this monster of a post, so I made a YouTube playlist here).

A great example of Vessel's early "writhing" dancing is this YouTube video of Nazareth from the 2018 Leeds Festival (he's also an absolute menace here!! He steps on III, he didn't paint his waist or his back, and he strangles and spits on the original OG IV. Like... the man had demons and I am here for them). The dancing that's most similar to current times starts around 2:37 and 3:40.

2019 is impossible to find good videos for lol, since they did most of their rituals for the Beautiful Oblivion tour as an opener and, apparently, nobody films openers. But there are some with decent audio quality from ArcTanGent (my favorite being The Offering). Interestingly, he's less animated, still writhing, but not a menace to the rest of the band while doing so. If anyone is even slightly photosensitive please don't watch these ArcTanGent videos, the lighting effects really didn't agree with the camera's shutter speed.

This is a video of Higher from December 2019. The sound is not as crisp, and the videographer is quite a bit further from the stage, but Vessel is still moving, especially towards the end. The breakdown starts around 2:15, and while III and OG IV are definitely more animated than Vessel, he's still dancing with them. He even jumps down to scream the end of the song at the barrier (and has a mini-wardrobe malfunction) at 2:39. That crowd was really feeling it and so was Vessel.

Because of the plague in 2020, all of Sleep Token's shows were in January. Vessel's behaviour was very similar to the video posted above (just with less crowd interaction). The first show they played in 2021 was the Download Pilot. This is the best audio quality of that show, and Vessel also moves/dances the most in this video, though it's toward the end around 2:31, where the videographer forgot they were filming and just started vibing, so it's really hard to see, lol. I don't blame them, but it's also shakycam to the max. (Also, a quick fun fact, this is the first show the band played with our current IV as far as I can tell.)

This is another video from 2021, but from Sleep Token's TPWBYT rituals tour. It's Hypnosis, and in the very beginning, we see some Floor Vessel, which is neat and reminiscent of the most recent NA rituals, before he does some of his usual writing, though quite a bit more animated. Around 4:06 you can see the writing again, but after 4:19 it morphs into what we've seen from more recent rituals. (Also, if anyone wants a full 70-minute video of this show, filmed from the center of the balcony looking down on the stage, you can watch it here. Some parts have major flashing, so just be careful).

Here's another video of Hypnosis, this time from September 2022. Here, finally, we see Vessel's current version of dancing, hops and arm flails included. It starts right when the song kicks in at 0:13, and he does it again at the end, around 4:29. Technically they did a UK tour with the Architects in May (see this video of The Offering at 3:50) and an Australian tour in June 2022 with Northlane (again, see this video of The Offering at 0:20, 1:37), with similar behaviour from Vessel, but that BRRF Hypnosis video is the first video I ever watched of Sleep Token live so it's very dear to me and it's also better sound quality than anything I could find from earlier in the year.

I went way overboard with answering this question, Anon, but it was super fun, so thank you again for asking 🖤🙏 Again, I made a playlist of all the videos + several others. If anyone has any recommendations for me to add to the playlist, send the links my way (especially if they aren't The Offering or Hypnosis lol) and I'll add them in chronological order.

[doctormastertardis]

"Timelords turn into Gods" (the Doctor was originally a God from BEYOND the edge of the universe; he was part of the Pantheon, adopted by the Shobogans who then created the Gallifreyan society)

THEORY DOMINO:

THE MASTER IS/WAS THE TOY MAKER.

THE DOCTOR IS/WAS, WHO? (the central theme of the show)

BOTH OF THEM WERE MEMBERS OF PANTHEON OF DISCORD!

Ok, ready? Hear me out. This is LONG, so buckle up.

My instincts told me to go re-watch Martha Jones' season, and now I'm down a rabbit hole...

The Tenth Doctor mentions in Utopia what happened to Rose Tyler. He said something about how "very human" she is (as in, she is an empathetic person), and that was why she insticntively brought Jack back from the dead when she absorbed the Time Vortex. TEN ALSO MENTIONS that had it been a Time Lord who absorbed the time vortex, the Time Lord would become a God. But because Rose Tyler is human, she couldn't, and so yada yada....

In the last 2 episodes of Martha Jones' run, we learn that the Master (being the hypnotist that he is historically in Classic Who) creates a massive "hypnotic" device called the Archangel Network -- HINT HINT Toymaker in The Giggle, anyone? The similarities are there. Both the Toymaker and The Master created and dispersed a subliminal sound that plays all throughout human history as a way to hypnotize humans. Again, the similarities are there in plain sight.

CLASSIC WHO:

We all know that the Master first officially appeared in the television series during Third Doctor's run. He was initially a friend of the Doctor's, who became his arch nemesis, but we don't really know much else about the Master apart from that he went to the same academy as the Doctor to train to be a Time Lord.

Now, the Toymaker appeared during First Doctor's run waaaaay before The Master was ever conceived... he was "defeated" by the First Doctor... But even then, it seemed like the Toymaker was already familiar with the Doctor (I have to watch that episode, actually, some other Whovian may be able to assist me here).... NOW, the premise of the show has always been Doctor, who? Who is he? Where did he come from? But I believe the series is now delving in The Master's history first before we learn more about the Doctor's origin... because it's necessary. Because they're interconnected.

So far, we know that after the events at Traken, the Time Lord society brought the Master back from his death (post-Eight Doctor's movie)... he then became the War Master. An equivalent to the War Doctor. In TSOD (The Sound of Drums), Simms!Master mentioned that he ran away from the Time War and camouflaged himself in his chameleon circuit as a child who grew up to be Professor Yana, who then, became Prime Minister Saxon... blah blah. We all know what happens. He ends up on a Mondasian Cyberman ship and meets his future, Missy...

*AUDIO BOOK SERIES ONLY* The gap between Missy and Dhawan!Master is a bit more complicated, because it involves her transformation into "The Lumiat" (the good essence of the Master) who was eventually killed by Missy herself, who then regenerated into Dhawan!Master supposedly.

CHIBNALL ERA:

We finally learn that the Doctor was adopted by Tacteun, a Shobogan, who extracted the Doctor's DNA as a way to create "Time Lords"... we learn this through none other than Dhawan!Master, who clearly became a little bit more insane than all his prior incarnations.

Honestly, my mind is a little bit blurry in regards to Thirteen's run because her last series was SO RUSHED that I can barely remember the small details so please correct me if I am wrong. But from instinct, I know that we didn't really learn much about how Dhawan!Master came to find out about the Doctor's origins. We can, however, deduce that he was PISSED about it. Why though? Maybe he loves the Doctor? I mean, that's a given. But wouldn't it make more sense if Dhawan!Master was completely mad because he wasn't yet aware that he and the Doctor were both adopted from the Pantheon?

During The Flux series, we the audience would be under the impression that Dhawan!Master became bitter because the Doctor is "essentially better" than him due to the fact that his Time Lord DNA originated from the Doctor as a child (The Timeless Child Arc).

RTD'S RETURN:

BUT, considering how we are now DELVING into the depths of God/Goddess mythologies and "fairytales" (in connection to The Beast, Sutekh, and other DW stories involving mythological dieties), it is not farfetched at all to consider both the Doctor and the Master originally as part of the Pantheon of Discord.

Ever since the events of The Flux and The Giggle, we get to take a look at the edge of the universe where all sorts of (im)possibilities exist.

And I think that's where my brain stops... FEEL FREE TO ADD TO THIS IF YOU KNOW MORE ABOUT DOCTOR WHO LORE.

[exquisite-evans]

Two years of Heartstopper TV, what can I say?! It’s a rare thing for a show to take hold of my life like this and…not let go. I hadn’t read the comics when the show was recommended to me by a friend. I trusted her recommendation, went into it blindly, and sat down to watch it on a Friday night. The moment episode 8 ended, I restarted it and watched it all again halfway through the night. Then the next morning, I woke up and watched it again. Then during dinner on Sunday, I watched it again. I watched S1 FOUR TIMES in one weekend. It was as if I couldn’t bring myself to watch anything else. It was so beautiful and loving and powerful. It made me feel GOOD. And a lot of shows out there today don’t.

I obviously then purchased all the comics and fell down the rabbit hole, taking everyone who’d listen to my recommendation with me. At this point, two years later, I’ve watched that first season an innumerable amount. I could probably recite it word-for-word.

Something shifted for me, personally, with S2. I was somehow pulled in even deeper. I was captivated by the chemistry that brought Nick and Charlie to life. Joe and Kit were born for these roles—it blows my mind if I think about it for too long. The themes in S2 obviously grew more mature, and now having read the comics, I knew where we were headed. And once again, I watched S2 on repeat. That first week of its release, I watched it every night. Then I watched it every weekend through late-October.

And, as many of you know, it inspired me to begin writing my fanfic, Because You Loved Me, of a married Narlie in their late twenties, starting a new stage of their lives. They just…infiltrated my brain. In a way that I could never complain!

So, Heartstopper has changed my life in just two short years. I am now a fan of Joe and Kit and their upcoming projects, only wanting the best for them in this world because they gave us the perfect iteration of Nick and Charlie. I am knee-deep in writing said fanfic that brings me so much joy (and others too, from what you tell me 😉). I am consumed daily by the genuine love of Nick and Charlie. One of my favorite love stories written. One of soulmates and everlasting love, ages and sexualities be damned. For those two can get through anything, together, even as teens.

Heartstopper chipped away at my cynical heart and made me believe in romance again. 🥹✨🩵

QUEER LOVE DESERVES TO BE CELEBRATED LOUDLY! 🏳️‍🌈

Cheers to our upcoming S3, which will surely ruin my life even further, and fingers crossed that we’re blessed with a S4 to complete their story how Alice sees fit.

I’ll be here. Fangirling on main.

[xxplastic-cubexx]

sorry if you've already mentioned but what (re?)ignited your love of comics/x-men/cherik? curious because there are so many different adaptations of them

i think im gonna speak for a few (or a lot of) people when i say that TL;DR the wolverine x deadpool movie that came out this summer is what pulled me back into comics and i COULD leave it there but i will go into excruciating and unnecessary detail instead because i love an origin story and i love oversharing.

under the cut tho because im nice sometimes (there's also wxdp doodles in here. if you want to see that)

ironically (and probably commonly), growing up i was more of an avengers kid. Kinda. Loosely <- binge watched the cartoons and movies and read copious amounts of comics and fics and i am hoarding fanart in my old dresser as we speak ok 'loosely' is a modest lie.

embarrassingly i remember getting into discus cause of captain america LMAO so yeah needless to say i was a Humble Fan- me joining my school's comic class/club didnt help either (shoutout to my teach from that she was the realest one out there for. A Multitude of reasons). she definitely is was inspires me to even draw still and make comics and i often think bout the tips i learned from her class tbh she was great

back to the movies t and comics tho, i got into em because my brother would offer to take me and that's how we'd hang out (i rarely saw movies in theaters and i even more rarely went anywhere as a teenager. still kinda like that today tbh ooops) and yk. it just snowballed after that.

my brother and i have always liked comics- he just more than me for a while (though he still very much loves comics and As We Know From My Posts we still talk about them whenever i see him To An Exhausting Degree)

durin then i was really into stony and i have a few surviving doodles i made but those are between me and god. and anyone who asks tbh LOL

'snap can you make this related to x-men again this is long' ok so fast forward to This Summer again I Still Don't Really See Movies but my brother offered to take me and this was the first time i'd actually seen an x-men movie in full

as a kid i only remember seeing the 'perfection' scene between erik and raven in first class while i was channel surfing. pretty sure i changed the channel after seeing mystique naked cause i was scared my parents would get mad at me if they caught me watching it LOL

BUT MOVING ON As A Kid i think it's also natural you'll sometimes watch 92 if it's on And I Did though evidently it didn't stick too hard (i do remember really liking beast and gambit though.... still do really): my knowledge of x-men was. INCREDIBLY sparse. like diabolically so so i didnt have too much expectations (aside from the fact i vaguely liked deadpool beforehand).

tbh i dont know why my bro never took me to see any of the x-men movies. it's not like he doesn't Also like x-men (90% sure nightcrawler's his favorite but my brother will be caught dead saying he has absolute favorites like that)- he owns a bitch load of deadpool comics/omnibus sets too (of which ive read over the years and reread this year) but Shrug moving on

Much Like Most Of The Internet i fell down the rabbit hole that way. i have some doodles i made a couple days after seeing WxDP that i now have an excuse to throw at all of you Look And Perceive

and so. As I Do. i got curious and told myself i'd binge watch all the x-men movies the week before i went back to school And Then I Did ft. My Brother Sometimes and then i said i'd binge watch all of '92 and And I Did That ft. My Brother Sometimes But Less So and now we're here. currently watching Evolution...

once i got to school i realized i lived near a comic shop and started getting into the comics that way (the first ones i got since going down this rabbit hole was Magneto Was Right!, The Resurrection of Magneto, and The Trial of Magneto. if you were curious !!!!! clearly i didnt care too much about context i just needed to see My Guy jelvejlkvj i have no regrets and Evidently ive read more since)

i'm pretty sure what dragged me into cherik specifically was the fact i saw a clip of The Famous ending to 92 where erik's aghast at the notion jean even has to question his love for charles. i think that was what officially had me refocus my lens on them: not a single poolverine thought after that LOL (all the cherik posting i saw on twitter definitely helped too but that was the nail in the coffin for any other interests i had: i was locked into cherik and x-men in general now)

that clip specifically, i was surprised at the fact they- frequently even- have the x-men franchise say erik loves charles and vice versa so bluntly. even if it's not meant to be romantic, i fear im just a fan of how casually the word's thrown around with them two and i got tender bout it all. Then Yk. i just live for the drama. the hilarity even. the sincerity .... they make me sick if i think of them too long so im gonna end it here

before i go tho ironically enough, the first x-men issue i owned was This one (story a this is that while stuck in some wacko dimension charles accidentally gets himself trapped in logan's mind while utilizing his astral projection. if you were curious). pretty sure i got it for free with another comic set i got years ago since our old comic shop loved to do that, but it's poetic aint it. maybe ill doodle something referencing it..

i should probably look into finishing this arc someday im Dummy curious to even know how it started and how it ends.....

[funkymbtifiction]

the end of an era

I wanted to thank you all, not only for all the notes of gratitude, encouragement, etc., in my inbox, but for being my faithful readers over the last ten years as I blundered around, answering asks, figuring things out on the fly, mistyping myself half a dozen times, and learning by “answering.” It’s been an incredible blessing for me to be part of your lives, and now, I hope, I have left behind enough of a resource, through my thousands of answered questions, my MBTI book, and my ongoing FunkyMBTI Blog, that you can be guided to your type and start the journey of self-development.

I want to say a few more things, but first, I’ll answer the burning questions that I know are going through your mind directly.

Does this mean no more character typings? No, it does not. I will continue updating FunkyMbti.com for the indefinite future, and those posts will automatically be ported over to this tumblr page, along with posts from Sixy Pixie (which I may expand to include general Enneagram posts/information/insights).

All it means is I am retiring from answering typing questions. I will still be active in various online communities, doing research, gathering information, and sharing it on my blogs. My interest in MBTI has waned since writing my book (which I consider the “achievement” of over a decade of work/research/learning), so the best way I know of is to move forward.

Does this mean I can’t request characters anymore? No, it does not. You can always contact me through FunkyMBTI.com’s contact page to make character requests. I have an ongoing list of characters people would like to see, and I hope to get around to most of them. (Such as, people want to see The OC, The Scream movies, and more Hollywood icons, such as Natalie Wood). I also have Sanditon, more Shadow and Bone typings, etc., coming.

How can I know about your Enneagram book and/or other books? Thank you for asking! You can either stay tuned here, since any announcement posts on my blog will update here, or you can join my mailing list to receive all my updates (of reviews, upcoming books, free book giveaways, and more).

Are you going to delete Funky on tumblr? No, it will stay up as long as tumblr survives, not only as a monument to my zillion hours of work, but to the thousands of people who braved the internet to ask me questions and allowed me to showcase my “Big Sister Energy.” Ha, ha. Seriously, though, I appreciate all the questions, comments, compliments, and submissions over the years, including the gigantic assortment of characters from shows/movies I may never watch.

What now? I will stock the queue for a few months and take time off, and then hopefully dig more into the Enneagram, since I think that has real potential to change people’s lives for the better.

Final Thoughts:

It seems fitting that I close “the end of an era” (as my ENFJ friend put it, when she heard about this) as I approach the end of a “decade” in my life, and a big “0” birthday. I can’t exactly recall how my journey started. I think I took one of those MBTI quizzes, shared by a friend on some social media website, got mistyped as an INTJ, and fell down a rabbit hole that took over my life for over a decade. I went through every possible type known to man (other than SP), and can now finally claim with authority to be an ENFP.

I made all the mistakes you are going to make, if you are just starting out on this journey of self-awareness – I listened to the wrong people, I took in the wrong information, I mistyped myself and others, I had to unlearn everything that made no sense, but along the way, I learned how to introspect and be present with myself. To pay attention to what I am doing, and why I am doing it, and that is the most valuable take-away from this experience. You can either go through life oblivious to your true self, or you can go through life friends with yourself, and aware of both your strengths and your weaknesses. I recommend the latter. It's hard but worth it.

Doing that for so long, getting used to being “wrong,” prepared me to read my first book on the Enneagram. And it changed my life. I knew I was a 6, that there was nothing “wrong” with me, that other people struggled with the same things I did. And my introspection started growing deeper. There were many ego battles along the way, denial of the aspects of 6 profiles that I didn’t want to admit to, followed by resignation and self-awareness (that I do that too, and it’s revolting!). But it’s a journey that I intend to walk on, for the rest of my life, and I’m glad to know these things. I wish I had known them sooner. I would have been a much better friend.

All of my current friends came to me through Funky. My friends in Sweden and Tennessee and Idaho and India and Philadelphia and Florida and Spain and Greece. I would not know them, had they not reached out to me, asked me a question, asked if we could e-mail, or helped me figure something out. Funky has been my “social” life for a decade. Some of them are still with me, even though one of them is not – Maddie, my beloved ENTP co mod, my zany, nutty, wild-hearted 793 “DJ” who could simultaneously make me laugh until I cried and drive me insane with frustration, passed away of a heart attack during the pandemic in 2021. One minute she was in my life, and the next she was gone forever. I never told you at the time, but it seems a fitting end to my time here, to pay homage to a friend I hope to meet one day “in person” in whatever comes after this. So Maddie, thank you for everything you put into this blog with me, thank you for the hours of fun and laughter, for the many hundreds of posts that will stand as a testament to your memory. I miss you. And I hope wherever you are, you are doing something crazy.

Thank you, dear reader, for coming with me on this journey. I know we shall meet again.

XOXO, Charity / ENFP Mod / Big Sister Energy

[b-courageous1010]

Day 15: The Principles of Mindful Productivity  

Since starting my career journey, I have been focused on being productive and focusing on how to get the most out of my productivity habits at work and in my personal life. Still, like most people, I've been doing it rather unsustainable. The long hours, always being on the go, and pushing out as much output as possible, have led to burnout multiple times. When starting my current role, I decided this time will be different, and I will take steps to avoid experiencing burnout.   

This goal has led me down the rabbit hole that is mindful productivity. Mindful productivity is defined as being consciously present in what you're doing while you are doing it and calmly acknowledging and accepting your feelings and thoughts when engaged in work or creative activities. This doesn’t mean you stop whatever you are doing, it's about seeing the present moment without pressing the pause button. It's interrupting the autopilot mode we often use daily, taking time to appreciate the little things, thoughts and feelings, and the world around us.

To practice mindful productivity, you have to think of it as a set of principles that can be used as a flexible roadmap that anyone can apply to work and feel better. So let's get to it:   

10 Principles of Mindful Productivity:   

Presence: Live in the Present   

Try not to get trapped in the past and pre-living future worries. This thinking causes you not to be able to enjoy the here fully and the now and can make it hard to concentrate on your tasks.  

I fell victim to this went starting this role. I was so afraid of making a mistake and so consumed with the past mistakes that I made....even more mistakes. I have since adopted the attitude that I will make mistakes because I am just starting my career. I know the bare minimum, and all my mistakes are necessary.   

Awareness: Watch your thoughts and emotions   

When your mind wanders, bring it back to the task at hand.  

You want to be aware of your emotions and thoughts so you can accept them, move on, and return to being productive.   

Flow: Get in the flow  

A highly focused mental state which facilitates productivity   

Can be described as "Getting in the zone" or feeling absorbed in an activity   

Define your goal, cut the distractions, take a deep breath, and keep your mind fully attentive.   

The brain is often the happiest when you are engaged in the meaningful pursuit of a goal.   

Single Task: Avoid Multitasking   

It's not a secret that constantly switching contexts between different tasks hurts your attention and makes you less focused. In a perfect world, people who focus on one task at a time are calmer, more effective, and more productive, but we have to find a balance in the real world.  

Use Mindful Context Switch to strike a balance between productivity and responsiveness.  

Motivation: Question your procrastination   

Use the DUST model to understand why you are procrastinating. 

Curiosity: Cultivate your curiosity  

Curiosity helps you learn. It enables you to remember better information; the more curious you are about a topic, the more likely you are to remember it.  

Observe the world, take the time to learn, ask questions, don't take anything for granted.   

Growth: Develop a growth mindset  

A growth mindset means you believe you can grow your intelligence and skills with hard work.  

It would help to question your fixed mindset attitudes to see what's holding you back.  

Metacognition: Use metacognition strategies   

A powerful form of self-monitoring and self-regulation  

It means being in tune with your awareness to determine the best strategies for learning and problem-solving and when to apply them.   

Instead of blindly working away, take the time to plan, monitor and evaluate your working and learning experiences.   

Environment: Pay attention to your work environment   

Be mindful of where you work and how it affects your productivity. Understand what works for you and adapt your environment based on your findings.   

Also, consider your habits when designing your environment.   

Breaks: Take mindful breaks   

Using breaks to remind yourself to be mindful of your thoughts, emotions, and your environment  

Set aside time for the present moment to clear your mind and take it off red alert.    

Unplug and come up for air: Make sure you have ample time for other pursuits besides productivity. It doesn't hurt to limit your screentime.  

Take time to breathe, eat a snack, and look out the window.   

Practicing mindful productivity can seem like a daunting task, but take it from me. It's well worth the effort. Life can get hectic, but by letting the principles of mindfulness act as a guiding point in your everyday life, you can be present in the midst of it all.   

[bexism]

Hi! This is going to come 100% out of nowhere and going to be super long and maybe a bit awkward but I just felt like I should tell you this lol. I feel like we never really get to know with the internet how we effect other people...so here we are.

So I can't remember how I first found your videos like 12 years ago on Youtube but I was absolutely obsessed. I think I watched pretty much anything you posted for Sherlock/Supernatural and followed you on Tumblr. I was going through a really tough time, and your videos/posts helped me! It was around then that you started to post about something called Roosterteeth. I didn't care too much, but noticed it. Then at some point in like 2013, I remember thinking 'I'm going to look into this thing. If the person I follow that also likes SPN/Sherlock/Your Beautiful/etc also likes this...maybe I'll like it.' Thats not something I do, like ever. But since I was so into your videos, I decided to give this thing I had no idea about a chance. I didn't play video games, didn't even know what Minecraft is, so I took such a big chance and started from the beginning. I went down that rabbit hole fast.

Flash forward next summer, I'm a Guardian at RTX in Austin for the first time. My first time ever travelling 100% alone, and to another country! I had the absolute best time. I continued to be a Guardian from 2014-2019, made amazing memories, tired things I never thought I was capable of and made lifetime friends. I also, to bring it all around, was drunk in Austin after RTX and wandered into Jensen Ackles lol. I would have thought it was a hallucination except others saw him too.

When I first started as a Guardian at RTX I was a VERY shy nerd lol, but RTX really helped pull me out of my shell, to the point that I became a manager of sorts there with entire teams working under me. This confidence stuck with me until now, where I am comfortable doing things I never would of been before. I'm comfortable in crowds, in parties, on stage, etc. I like video games now, which I didn't really before. It's completely changed my life. Not just that, but being a Guardian at RTX helped me pull through a severely traumatic few years of my life.

I don't know what would have happened without RTX. I don't know what would have happened if I didn't decide to follow you on tumblr like 12 years ago. I don't know what would have happened if I didnt take a random chance on your interests being similar to mine. But, my life would be very different.

Anyways, I'm done now. I don't know if you'll ever read this, and thats okay! I just saw you again on Tumblr and wanted to let you know that even though it was completely unintentional, and maybe a bit coincidental, you have changed some random girls life :) For that, I really hope you have an amazing life too!

holy crap i just woke up and i'm really emotional, thank you so so much for telling me this. i never knew making silly little vids on the internet could have such an impact, i'm so proud of you for getting out there, doing RTX and growing from it and i'm SO glad my videos led you to that journey. roosterteeth helped me a lot back in the day and to think i'm the reason someone else found them and they helped them too. thank you for taking the time out of your day to tell me this, you've made me feel incredibly special 🥹 ❤️ (also BUMPED INTO JENSEN ACKLES?? that's absolutely wild)

[aphfanficwriters]

Every month we will pose a question and collate responses as a fun and informal little exercise in getting to know each other and spark discussion.

For Hetalia's 18th anniversary, we asked our writers:

“How did you first get into Hetalia?”

Beetroot / @council-of-beetroot: People had recommended it to me prior since I'm a geography nerd but I heard it was offensive. At one point I read a fanfic about Hetalia Lithuania and that piqued my interest. But then like six months, around March of 2022, later I recalled my sister talking about a funny scene from Hetalia. So I decided to look up Hetalia out of context on YouTube. I decided nothing could be more offensive than I was at 13 so I watched that and then knew I had to watch the show. I watched the show in a weekend. It was particularly funny to watch at the time because my best friends that year in highs were foreign exchange students from Germany and Japan. Anyway here I am now.

Angel / @billowingangel: I got into Hetalia around 2015 by reading x Reader fanfiction and I stumbled upon a Germany x Reader on DeviantArt and then I went down a rabbit hole of the Hetalia countries x readers. The x reader fanfiction comforted me immensely as I was struggling greatly at the time and that was probably the worst time of my life. Then I found other Hetalia fanfiction and fanart, and I then watched some of the episodes on YouTube. Since then Hetalia has been something of great comfort and nostalgia to me. Hetalia honestly means so much to me and there's been so many lovely people in this fandom that I’ve had the pleasure of interacting with 💗

Didi / @teaedon: Searched my country on deviantart, found Hetalia OCs comics. Watched the anime when it had just 1 or 2 seasons out (both 2009), and began to keep up with blog and page translations on Livejournal (did I understand English at the time? Barely lmao). Then jumped from Livejournal to Tumblr but because a funny-unrelated-to-Heta blog, but soon more than later I started following Hetalia blogs... Made my sideblog in 2015; I should have done that sooner, it's around that time that my actual main fandom was another for a while. Even with the manga hiatus ending in 2021 (also new anime season), I only fully returned in 2022. No fics until... 2023, omg (the deleted ff.net one from when I was in school doesn't count).

Tama / @delgumofics: Back in 2012 my sister suggested I check it out, said it was funny. I watched ep1 subbed and by the end I had a glassy look in my eyes, shut it off, and promptly forgot about it. Later on it was on Netflix so I gave the dub a shot and died laughing. I binged the whole original run in a couple days then started looking at fics.

Eru / @eruverse: I first learned of Hetalia around well 10 years ago, but couldn’t get properly into it. I alrd liked Vanya but that was that [...] I properly got into Hetalia after they released Indonesia, so it was just around 2021. Was immediately thrown into Netherlands/Indonesia, the beloved ship of Indonesian fandom, creating fanarts for them and brainrotting with other Indonesian fans. Good times! Ah, NLID… other Indonesia ships would simply not compare to the weight of history, emotional baggage, and all kinds of other baggage of this one ship. You should check it out, and being Indonesian I have the front seat for accessing juicy historical materials. Nobody in the fandom knows the special side of Netherlands that Indonesians do.

@folightening: Bought and watched the first season a long time ago, I think it was out of curiosity. I remember people talking about it at school and I recognized the name at the store so I got the first season to check out. Didn't do anything more with it until ~2 years ago I think? Watched it again on a whim, bought the series in a collection set, found where I could read it, got my writer's block shattered, and the rest is history.

Yukihitomi / @arthurhonda: This is actually a funny story. So it was back in 2011, and my friend recommended it to me because I like history and was a history kid. It also had nekotalia, and I love cats. Combine the two, and it was a good recomendation. Ironically, she said "don't get into the fandom." Clearly, I didn't listen.

Ash / Lutz: A friend told me the anime was really funny so we watched a few episodes of it when we were in high school. I was hooked and almost immediately started googling amecan fanart lmao

Prush / @proosh: I can't remember exactly but I think my discovery of it was connected to the old DeviantArt series Scandinavia and the World? But it was around 2011, I'm pretty sure, and I got into it via the dubbed parts uploaded to Youtube. It activated me like a sleeper agent, having already had an early interest in history, and I've been trapped in here ever since.

Lacy: I randomly found the series while I was reading some news. (Think it was back in 2013-14). Sort of got very obsessed with it and was joining groups left and right, bought fktons of merch for a lot of characters. (i just love them all crazy at that point of time) One of the groups i was in decided to hold some event and thats where i wrote my first fic. Then theres so much stupid drama i just withdrew eventually and kept to myself with just one ship. (At this point there was this one person who was writing with me). Then came the time when she left as well, so I did question at that point if i still want to stay in this fandom alone (and i did, because i just want to finish up my wips 🫠).

Mossman / @one-more-mossman: I don't remember exactly how I did get into Hetalia , but I checked out the date of my first Hetalia pfp and it's December of 2012. I remember being super into Ivan and putting him on all my pfps and telling my friends about him and being all mushy and stupid. I had pretty limited access to the internet at that time, and didn't speak any English, so I wasn't a part of the Hetalia fandom - neither the English speaking nor Russian. So I didn't know he was an unstoppable rape truck y'know. I was drawing him and just silently vibing with him. I got into the actual fandom about three years ago - was a lurker first, not interacting aside from leaving kudos/comments, then got into fic writing (for English speaking fandom, I thought it was more lively than the Russian one). Found wonderful people here. Happy to be here, glad to have people sharing my interests. (Notice there is not a single mention of liking history. I don't like it. I can't remember a single fact.)

WhiteWings / @smuttyandabsurd: Gosh everyone started so much later than me... Anyway back in 2007, my sister forwarded a random USUK fanart to me on deviantArt simply because "it's BL and you might like it." I binged the first season of the anime and was tickled enough to keep watching as further seasons came out. I was already casually interested in history - it was my second favourite school subject behind English lit - but after Hetalia? Yeah I was reading the densest modern history nonfictions around, hovering in the military history section of the library among random middle-aged men, and writing rapetruck smutfics with a ~historical~ flavour. Anyway, 17 years later, everything from the way I consume Hetalia and tangentially-related topics to my writing has had a dramatic evolution from my humble weeb-y beginnings, but I'm still in this dang ass fandom and I can't find the exit.

Sicily: I was into countryhumans and I came across it, and was like, pft I'm never going to like hetalia.., and now we are here

[perspectivestarters]

Perspective's Sentence Starters; 1989 (Taylor's Version) by Taylor Swift (Part II)

WILDEST DREAMS

Let's get out of this town.

Heaven can't help me now.

Nothing lasts forever.

This is gonna take me down.

He's so tall and handsome as hell.

He's so bad, but he does it so well.

I can see the end as it begins.

Say you'll remember me.

Say you'll see me again.

Even if it's just in your wildest dreams.

No one has to know what wе do.

This is gettin' good now.

You'll see me in hindsight.

Burnin' it down.

Someday, when you leave me, I bet these memories follow you around.

HOW YOU GET THE GIRL

Are you insane?

It's been a long six months.

You were too afraid to tell her what you want.

That's how it works.

That's how you get the girl.

I want you for worse or for better.

I would wait forever and ever.

Broke your heart, I'll put it back together.

Remind her how it used to be.

Tеll her how you must have lost your mind.

You left her all alone and never told her why?

That's how you lost the girl.

You know that I don't want you to go.

THIS LOVE

I could go on and on.

And you were just gone.

I never dreamed of this.

This love is good.

This love is bad.

This love is alive back from the dead.

These hands had to let it go free.

This love came back to me.

Struggled through the night with someone new.

You showed up just in time.

I watched you leave.

When you're young, you just run.

You come back to what you need.

This love left a permanent mark.

This love is glowing in the dark.

I KNOW PLACES

It's a scene and we're out here in plain sight.

I can hear them whisper as we pass by.

It's a bad sign.

Somethin' happens when everybody finds out.

Love's a fragile little flame, it could burn out.

They are the hunters, we are the foxes.

I know places we won't be found.

They'll be chasing their tails tryin' to track us down.

I know places we can hide.

Lights flash and we'll run for the fences.

Let them say what they want, we won't hear it.

Loose lips sink ships all the damn time.

Just grab my hand and don't ever drop it.

They take their shots, but we're bulletproof.

You know, for me, it's always you.

I know, for you, it's always me.

CLEAN

The drought was the very worst.

The flowers that we'd grown together died of thirst

It was months and months of back and forth.

You're still all over me like a wine-stained dress I can't wear anymore.

Hung my head as I lost the war.

When I was drownin', that's when I could finally breathe.

I think I am finally clean.

I punchеd a hole in the roof.

Let the flood carry away all my pictures of you.

I screamed so loud, but no one heard a thing.

Just because you're clean, don't mean you don't miss it.

I won't give in.

Now that I'm clean, I'm never gonna risk it.

WONDERLAND

We fell down a rabbit hole.

Nothing's as it seems.

Didn't they tell us, "Don’t rush into things"?

Haven't you heard what becomes of curious minds?

Didn't it all seem new and excitin'?

I should have slept with one eye open at night.

We found Wonderland.

You and I got lost in it.

We pretended it could last forever.

Life was never worse, but never better.

There were strangers watchin'.

Whispers turned to talkin', and talking turned to screams.

Didn’t you calm my fears with a Cheshire cat smile?

It’s all fun and games 'til somebody loses their mind.

I reached for you, but you were gone.

I knew I had to go back home.

You searched the world for somethin' else to make you feel like what we had.

And in the end, in Wonderland, we both went mad.

YOU ARE IN LOVE

Time moved too fast.

No proof, not much, but you saw enough.

The light reflects the chain on your neck.

No proof, one touch, but you felt enough.

You can hear it in the silence.

You can feel it on the way home.

You can see it with the lights out.

You are in love.

He keeps his word.

For once, you lеt go of your fears and your ghosts.

You're my best friend.

He keeps a picture of you in his office downtown

You understand now why they lost their minds and fought the wars.

I've spent my whole life trying to put it into words.

NEW ROMANTICS

We're all so tired of everything.

We wait for trains that just aren't comin'.

We show off our different scarlet letters.

Trust me, mine is better.

We're so young, but we're on the road to ruin.

We play dumb, but we know exactly what we're doin'.

We cry tears of mascara in the bathroom.

I could build a castle out of all the bricks they threw at me.

Every day is like a battle.

Every night with us is like a dream.

We're the new romantics.

Heartbreak is the national anthem.

We are too busy dancin' to get knocked off our feet.

The best people in life are free.

The lights and noise are blinding.

It's all in the timing,

We need love, but all we want is danger.

We team up, then switch sides like a record changer.

The rumors are terrible and cruel but, honey, most of them are true.

Come along with me.

Please, take my hand.

Please, take me dancin'.

Please, leave me stranded.

It's so romantic.

[maplefield]

rambling about fujin and the white snake adeptus

ok so. i was watching videos of previous lantern rite playthroughs on yt (started playing at the end of january 2023 so i couldn't even take part in last year's) and looking back now after the 4.4 livestream, i thought maybe that 2022 mingxiao lantern was a nod to fujin, so i started digging and went down the rabbit hole basically and collected some things i found interesting.

NO LEAKS, everything written about here is mentioned in in-game items or is a part of chinese culture and legends, but some of it might be considered potential spoilers regarding chenyu vale

first, i wanna preface this by saying that i am no expert in chinese culture so please do correct me if i say something incorrect.

during the 2022 lantern rite they didn't mention which fallen liyue hero the lantern was for (or i missed it) but i found a really good post on hoyolab by Flora's cake.EN, talking about chinese customs and the celebration of the lunar new year. they say that the mingxiao lantern was based on the lantern with the fish pattern of the previous year's festival, and they also note that the lantern resembles carp and goldfish, how in chinese culture they symbolize wealth, fortune, and benefits, and express "people's yearning for prosperity, auspiciousness, and good fortune". this symbolism in chinese culture is very clearly transferred to the game too since we know from the stream that there is a well-known legend in chenyu vale about a carp adeptus named fujin and that "in local legends the golden carp is a symbol of good luck". they also talk about jademouth, a famous landmark left behind by an adeptus to protect the people from flooding, and mention the abodes of the white snake and the carp adeptus.

bai suzhen aka the white snake is the central figure of a chinese legend titled "the legend of the white snake". there are several versions and i'll be fully transparent, i haven't read them yet unfortunately. according to this article by Minjie Su, who researches medieval literature (and apparently had the same uni major as me lol) bai suzhen was originally an evil snake spirit, but later the story became a romance between her and a man, Xu Xuan. in one of the later versions, though she is still morally questionable (she "poisons the well to boost her husband’s pharmacy") she is devoted to Xu and sympathetic to humankind. Xu almost dies of shock when he sees her true snake form. (1) however, she "revives him and makes him believe the snake was but an illusion. Enraged, Fahai wages war against Madam White and holds Xu as hostage, Madam White commands water to rise from the lake to drown Fahai’s temple. She would have defeated the monk, if she did not feel sympathy towards the innocent townsfolk involved in her war. In the end, she surrenders to Fahai’s power and becomes imprisoned under the Pagoda, but not before her short reunion with Xu and the birth of their son. (...) she will never bee freed unless the palm tree before the Pagoda blossoms (...)" she is eventually freed by her son, though this action is not intentional, merely a coincidence. (2)

while searching, i also found this post by baoboatree on reddit, who did some huge work and re-translated the descriptions of the echoes of an offering artifact set. three things to note before i continue: 1) this part might contain POSSIBLE SPOILERS regarding the story of the new chenyu vale region, so proceed with caution 2) my chinese is not good enough to be able to compare the translation to the original and verify the information presented here (i am NOT saying it is incorrect and i'm certainly NOT trying to criticize baoboatree, just thought i should mention this) and 3) the post is relatively old, so some information might have been updated/re-written in-game and become outdated here. for these reasons, it's best to take it all with a grain of salt.

according to baoboatree's interpretation, the story "involves two adeptus - a "medicine adeptus" and a "carp adeptus". The two are bickering lovers/friends and lived near Chenyu valley. Until one day, the carp adeptus was sacrificed in an ancient ritual and loses her human form. She can no longer walk on land, but longed to see Liyue harbor. The medicine adeptus took her on a trip to Liyue harbor by taking her along in a Serenitea pot . (...) The fish adeptus is implied in at least four of the five pieces to have sacrificed herself again, becoming the sunken jade of Chenyu Vale. In at least one but maybe two legends, the medicine adeptus is implied to have become a tea tree that only grows in Chenyu Vale." they say the medicine adeptus may or may not be madame ping, which personally, i believe it's more likely they have something to do with the white snake adeptus (or is even the white snake adeptus themselves), whose husband was a pharmacist in the legend, and who stole medicine for him in another version of that legend.

i encourage everyone to read the whole reddit post, i found it fascinating and baoboatree really worked hard on it. i don't want to go into too much detail here bc this post is already way too long. when the medicine adeptus brings the carp adeptus to liyue harbor in the teapot, baoboatree also states that, in contrast to the official english translation, the teapot was not a gift from "a friend" but "friends", plural. now, this was actually something i could check, and it is absolutely correct. they theoretize that these friends might include madame ping, the role of the medicine adeptus and carp adeptus being clear. they also note in a comment that the fish lantern during lantern rite might have been representing the fish adeptus. looking back now, i would be surprised if it wasn't. hoyo has shown to pay attention to things like this.

as for why it were two fish, one might have been referencing this medicine adeptus, or one could have simply been put there to make it look more balanced, or to emphasize the wish for good fortune, or maybe there will be more to this that we'll uncover. either way, i'm interested in seeing how the story about this carp adeptus will unfold. if they try to stay close to the legend, it might have been the white snake adeptus that caused the flood which made the carp adeptus sacrifice herself. as for whether this white snake adeptus is the same as the medicine adeptus, honestly i think it could go either way. i could argue both for them being the same character and them not being the same. as of right now, i'm more inclined to think that they are different beings. (edit bc 1) i deleted my reasoning bc looking back it was just ehh and 2) bc i realized that i forgot to add this originally: obviously all of this is just wild speculation, and it could very well be that the story that we get, assuming we learn of these events, will be entirely different. the whole turning into a tree legend from the artifact set could also really just be an in-game myth, though i don't think that very likely, but who knows. either way, nothing even remotely certain can be concluded from the information i presently have.) of course i could very well be wrong, and hoyo will probably do their own take on this legend. after all, they have taken a looot of inspiration from nordic mythology as well (i might do some posts about that too, i was a scandinavian studies major so it's always interesting for me to see how nordic mythology is implemented in games/films etc).

anyway, if anyone read this whole thing, i hope you found it interesting. sorry that it was not very concise, i haven't slept in weeks so my brain is barely working lol. i'm really excited for chenyu vale and lantern rite and can't wait to see what this update brings!

(1) the author points out the storyline also has similarities to that of the french legend of mélusine but i don't have enough brain capacity to go into this as well.

(2) the wikipedia page states that Xu actually dies, and "Bai Suzhen went to Heaven to steal the immortal herb Lingzhi. She succeeded in her mission and used the herb to revive Xu Xian. (...) Bai Suzhen and Xiaoqing fought against Fahai and flooded the temple with water, hurting other living creatures.", however, i can't find this information in the relevant source.

Sources

Genshin Impact Version 4.4. Special Program https://youtu.be/abZdO3rWoVc?si=wA1QDAYqeCqh3yUA

Flora's cake.EN on Hoyolab

https://www.hoyolab.com/article/14973902 (accessed 20/01/24)

Minjie Su: The Legend of the White Snake: A Chinese Mélusine Story

https://www.medievalists.net/2017/11/legend-white-snake-chinese-melusine-story/ (accessed 20/01/24)

Bai Suzhen on Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bai_Suzhen (accessed 20/01/24)

baoboatree: Echoes of an Offering artifact lore re-translation and interpretation

https://www.reddit.com/r/Genshin_Lore/comments/tta8wo/echoes_of_an_offering_artifact_lore_retranslation/ (accessed 20/21/24)