#what the heck. i could have given you my money you know.

[fuck-customers]

I love you I love you I love you I love you. I understand you are in constant pain. I understand recovery is not linear. I understand that some days you will not be as capable as others. and I am ok with that. I will never be upset because you are unable to help as much as before. there's no shame in that and I never want to make you feel bad about inhabiting your body. I know a body can be a difficult thing to have. but. if I come in to help. and you don't WARN ME about needing to put more effort into helping you move. it will actually physically hurt me. so I'm trained in how to help other bodies move, right. I could hypothetically get you into bed and/or into dry/clean clothes with you as dead-weight. I have done this before with people who are fully paralyzed (or heck I have given literal post-mortem care if you want to know what actual dead weight is like) but the way I hold MY WEIGHT and move my body CHANGES depending on how much weight I'm going to actually move. if I already know you. and I know that 90% of the time I can provide light support to help you roll to the wall so I can change your brief. I'm less likely to do things like: get the bed up to a height that lets me stand with my back straight (because it takes too long and there are literally 20 other people I have to help within the next 2 hours or I can be tried for neglect). and if I'm already bending down and expecting to just give you a push as you do most of the rolling, and then I realize (halfway through the roll) that you are not just not helping BUT ACTIVELY RESITING because you're in pain. it will ruin my back for the rest of the day if not the rest of the week. and there's no reason not to just tell me it's a day you need more help. That's a decent part of WHY I asked how your day was. yes, it's mostly because I'm polite and I genuinely care about how you feel, but ALSO it would be a great time for you to be like "Oh, actually my hip's really been bad, and everyone keeps making me roll on it". then I can change my approach, I can ask what exactly hurts and try to come up with a way to help avoid more pain. I'm not going to belittle or question or shame you for having an off day, I promise. I might even have a different technique that keeps you off your hip altogether. I want to help you. I'm not working this job because it's the easiest way to make money. I find genuine joy in being a part of your life and helping people in the way ive been trained. I enjoy your stories and insights. I consider you a "work" friend more than my actual co-workers. but this job is wearing on my body, and when you don't warn me about how much I'm going to need to use my body. I hurt myself AND I run the risk of hurting you more. please just let me know before, please.

Posted by admin Rodney

[rinbylin]

maybe a teeny bitty pissed that one official lxy 10cm doll merch is so. nothing. negligible. and kinda silly looking even. in the official pics and i'm completely normal (unironic) about it. but all the pics of him from buyers/fans make me lowkey want him. he's so cuteee hello.

[rhenuvee]

Playing Animal Crossing New Horizons with HSR Men

Warnings: ugly villager slander, established relationship (can be platonic or romantic)

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Argenti: Your fellow knight of beauty grows quite fond of the game, immediately finding the freedom of creativity in decoration endearing. He always gives you compliments on your OOTD, and takes screenshots whenever you design a new area on your island. Argenti gave himself the gardening job- spending his bells on red rose seeds. He gets proficient in following the flower guide, and is very proud of himself if he ever gets a golden rose on your island. He loves the villagers, finding them each very cute, and even beauty in the "ugly" villagers. "Did you see the villagers wearing the red rose on their head? I must say I am flattered they love it so much. Though, I am more happy that they appreciate the beauty of our island." He enjoys documenting the beautiful places in your island with photos <3

Aventurine: From the beginning he points out the fact that Tom Nook is a capitalist, which makes you roll your eyes thinking he thinks this game is silly. However, it is quite the opposite as it doesn't take him long to get out of his home loan debt and is somehow extremely lucky. It's unfair to you that he could just log in on any given day and have the best deal for turnips. However because you are his favourite he says he’s willing to buy you whatever you want, he guesses. He happens to be able to catch rare species like the Coelacanth, and it infuriates you but you really can't be if it's helping the museum. "445 bells per turnip, sounds like music to my ears~" "What's that? You want this violin? Well I guess I could spare you a few bells... is one million okay?"

Blade: Let's not kid ourselves here- it takes a lot of convincing and help from Silver Wolf to get him to even be in the presence of Animal Crossing. He says he would much rather stand and look at the wall (SW: "You already do that everyday"). Eventually he sits himself next to you, and listens to your giddy rambling about what to do in the game while he puts on a serious face not saying anything. After the preliminary tutorial/startup gameplay, he finally says, “…why is this rat harassing me for money.” However, the loans aren't the worst but the villagers chasing him down are. He purposely ignores them and grumbles when you tell him to answer ):/. He prefers to watch you play, but because he sees you smile and laugh at his sarcastic comments, he thinks it's not so bad.

Boothill: He's definitely down to try it out, but he ends up being a bit of a troll. He doesn't really mind cute/ugly villagers, until he judges them for what they say. “That’s right, (y/n) did catch all those fish.” “Did he just ask me if he could call me Muffin.” “WHAT DO YOU MEAN I GOTTA PAY ANOTHER LOAN?!!?” Yeah… he quickly feels the grindy-ness, complaining that Tom Nook was working him like a forkin’ dog. A little bit of comical rage, but he won’t lie he is enjoying it. He also asks if there are any guns and he is disappointed, so he opts for the net. He's a little rough and rowdy, but he does it in style. That being said, he 100% spends his extra bells on a cowboy outfit.

Dan Heng: He agrees instantly- aw :(. He knows you (and March) have been begging him to play. He’s is fairly good at it- gets out of the tent quickly, masters catching creatures, a nicely organized house… He’s quite resourceful too, chopping down trees and going to mystery islands to farm the heck out of it. The villagers love him, both of you often seeing them run to him with the little sparkly flowers. And even though he's normally serious, you can't help but fawn over how sweet he is with the villagers. "...She wants to call me Shmoopy, do I-" "YES." Villagers asking him to catch a fish? He's immediately on it. He remembers their names and treats them like real people :(

Dr. Ratio: "Is it educational?" Bro is such a nerd. You deadpan at him, and sass him for expecting this to be IXL or something. He is also one to get through the tutorial part easily. You expected him to be overly critical of the game, but he finds appreciation in the museum: both the creatures and the art. Is it a farfetched idea that I think he'd know how to tell the reals and fakes right off the bat? "Do you really think Da Vinci spilled coffee on his work?" At least it saves you the troubles of wasting your bells and getting a fake. I think your island would not be a mess, and would have at least a few statues (you know the ones) which add his touch to it.

Gallagher: Honestly he's happy as long as he gets a little area for himself. Kind of a wild card this one- somehow calm and chaotic at the same time, and it's puzzling because how is he doing such weird things with a straight face? Trolls the villagers quite a bit (he's lucky ACNH villagers are nice) by hitting them with a net (just once though) and giving them different catchphrases every time they ask. "Why is Bob saying 'spaghettini' at the end of his sentences?" "Um, because I thought it'd be funny? Also I'm kinda hungry so-" "Gallagher ):/" Despite the randomness, he is wholesome at times. He is also one to compliment your new outfit, and stargaze with you on the new area you decorated.

Gepard: He's busy so you weren't expecting too much from him, but he takes pride in having a well-rounded island. He gets so excited when he catches a new species that you don't have yet- what a cutie. Also goes full throttle when there's a bug-off or fishing tourney. Despite being a video game, I feel like there will be some way he messes up taking care of plants. The flowers overgrow, the turnips rot, and he doesn't understand why the trees aren't growing? But with some tips from you along with your island designing skills, your island rank moves up and he is BEAMING. "Zucker asked about you." "...he did?" "Mhm, he asked how you were doing, and said he saw you laying out pathways on the island."

Jing Yuan: He finds it so cute when you ask him to play. Lowkey like Blade where he likes watching your happy expressions when playing. He's happy that this game provides him a way to relax while not getting bored. Secretly an enjoyer of villager drama: "Wolfgang wants to apologize to Audie with this present. What happens if I don't deliver it?" "Again? Ah, just give it to her quickly." "...what if I don't." "...Jing Yuan." Oddly I feel like he'd enjoy the group stretching (what an old man), and encourages you to join. Like the "Dozing General" he is, there will be times when he's inactive and gets the bed head.

Luocha: You weren't expecting him to enjoy the game, but he's surprisingly willing to be resourceful. His storage is full of materials, which you scold him for because this is the reason for his empty undecorated house. But he always has things you need so you can't exactly complain. Also one to be pretty smart with managing bells and resources, able to maximize their worth. When the island gets visitors like Label or Flick, he has items ready. "Luocha... where did you get that coat?" "This? It's a designer piece, from Miss Label." I'd say he does have a sense of beauty in design, so thankfully your island is gorgeous.

Sampo: Sympathizes with Redd like a true scammer. "Aw look, he just needs a bit of money to get started... he even gave us a 'cousin's discount'." However, a rivalry starts with Redd when Sampo's first art piece turned out to be fake (scammer gets scammed moment). He asks if he can be the salesman that he's supposed to be. When villagers run up to him to offer bells for an item he has, he accepts thinking it'll get him a deal along the way. Unfortunately friendship gets you nowhere in terms of home loans. I'd say he's pretty good with the turnip stonks, so there's a balance. Also TRASH ISLAND. I'm sorry, but your man is a hoarder, "But what if I need this?" (Literally me.)

Welt: When you ask him to play he asks why the animals are crossing. He finds the style and characters are so cute, and he can see why you enjoy it. This is definitely a way he gets in touch with his "youthful" side. He loves the creative freedom in the game, even getting indecisive about how to design your island, and thinking of what outfit to wear. He once made a simple t-shirt for fun, but was surprised when he saw a villager wearing it. It'd be so cute and funny when he learns new emotes- and he just spams them with a straight face. Not gameplay related, but I feel like in his free time he'd draw you both in villager form <3.

──── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ────

[darlingtulips]

Could you write a Sejanus plinth fic about reader giving sejanus anonymous little love notes in his desk/locker like a secret admirer?💋💕

Pink Envelope of Truth

____________________________________________

A Sejanus Plinth x reader <3

Author's note: Hi! Thank you for requesting. I'm so sorry that this took a while. Happy reading! Hope you like it!🥰 Also, this is so long- I'm so sorry😭

____________________________________________

Sejanus is currently walking down the halls of the academy, his shoes making a loud sound as his feet reach the floor. "Sejanus!" Sejanus stopped. He went to look at the voice that called out to him.

There; Coriolanus Snow. His sole classmate, best friend, and brother throughout this whole school was smiling and running at him. "Hey." He gave him a smile and nod. The two continue their way to the locker area, talking to each other about the new recipe that Sejanus' Ma made once again.

However, the moment Sejanus opened the door of his locker, a pink envelope fell. He flinched... 'what the?' Sejanus reached out for it from below. His hands made contact with the smooth texture of the small envelope. The boy eyed the paper. The handwriting was delicate, the envelope was carefully made. Reading the words in front, his eyes then widened in shock.

____________________________________________

To: Sejanus Plinth <3

From: Your Admirer! ;)

____________________________________________

Sejanus immediately looked up, his head turned around from left to right in an attempt to find the person who might have given him the letter. Yet, his eyes met no one in the empty halls of the academy. "What's that?" Coriolanus said. "I don't know..." "Well, open it," he snorted. With Coriolanus on his left side urging him to open the pink envelope from unknown, Sejanus slowly tore it open. He read the paragraph out loud with a blush on his cheeks.

"Dear Sejanus Plinth...

I have known you for a lot of years. Your heart is always so kind, so gentle, and so sweet. You never fail to bring a smile to my face in everything you do. Your brown eyes are so bright, that I kept getting lost in their light. Your voice is always so true and gentle, that my heart beats a thousand drums whenever you're around.

I want you to know that what I feel is genuine.

Sincerely, Your Admirer."

"Is this a prank?" Sejanus said out loud. His body became stiff, and his mind blank. Who... Who even gave this to him? There's no way this is true... just no way. "Well... it doesn't look like it," Coriolanus chuckled. He patted Sejanus on his back, removing him from his trance-like state. "C'mon, we're gonna be late in class."

The duo made their way to their classroom, well, with Coriolanus half dragging Sejanus on his side. Sejanus is shocked. SO SHOCKED. He knows this might be a prank. I mean, no one likes him inside the campus. He's a district boy, as they called him. A good-for-nothing man except for his daddy's money. Arachne's disgusting words rang through his head once again. His head aching in pain, as well as his heart.

He wants this admirer of him to be true. To finally have someone by his side that does not see him the way the others do. To have someone to hold him and someone to make him feel safe. Sejanus' hand grabbed the side of his clothes. Trying to get his mind out of the letter. He felt his heart throbbing and beating loudly. "Fuck..."

"Hmm? Are you alright, Sejanus?"

Sejanus looks at his right side, and there; a young and kind classmate that sat besides him, faced him with a worried smile. It's you...

Y/n Gaul, a rich student, whose whole life lives in the luxury and safety of the Capitol.

However, what makes you different from others is the way that you would always smile at Sejanus Plinth. Your smile is always genuine and with care. Your eyes focus on him when he talks. Always listening, always there. Heck, you never forget to ask how he is. Always making sure he's alright when the Capitol becomes too much for someone like him.

"Yes... of course. I'm alright." Sejanus gave you a small smile then lowered his head. He didn't see the way your cheeks had a soft glow of pink. The same way that the pink envelope in his locker does.

Oh sweet Sejanus had a crush on you ever since the day that the two of you met. His eyes following your movements. His eyes never fail to look at yours when your attention isn't on his.

"Well, if you need something, I'm right here, okay?" He nodded. "Thank you." Satisfied with his answer, you turn your heading in front of you. Giving your attention to the class once again.

Sejanus loves the way you smile, the way you greet him, and the way that you're a good friend of his. Oh how he wished that you were the one that gave him that envelope instead.

Sejanus is clueless and worried. Why don't they show themselves? What if they're not real? What if someone's messing with them?

"Earth to Sejanus?" Your voice is now full of worry and concern. Now, t's been a week since the sweet notes from his secret admirer keep coming. Y/n's voice didn't even reach his ears. His eyes occupied with thoughts.

"I'm sorry, y/n, but I need to go."

The next day, Sejanus devised a plan. He'd wait for his so-called 'secret admirer.' He didn't care how early he needed to be or how late he'd be in class.

'As if the academy will actually do something to me,' Sejanus thought. He waited for an hour, a little far away from where his locker was supposed to be. Time passed, and Sejanus became a little frustrated...

Did I scare them off?

Back at your end, you saw how worried Sejanus was during these passing days. His eyebrows were always furrowed, and his mouth formed a thin line. Plus, these days, he was always up in his head, almost never talking to you the way he always does.

Oh no... did he find out?

You only hoped to tell him how lovely he is without actually confronting him with it, since your heart still isn't ready. "Someday I'll confess... someday really," you said.

He might think you're becoming annoying... you know that Sejanus isn't someone like that but yet... still, anxiety creeps out to your veins. Your heart is beating very loudly, and your head is full of negative thoughts. What if he found out and hates you for giving him those envelopes?

No matter. You have to give him another envelope one way or another. An apology this time. And maybe... your last letter.

You woke up earlier than you always do. Tucking your envelope into a leather bag you owned, you ate your breakfast immediately and headed to the Academy. The birds were singing, and the sun was up. The halls of the Academy had fewer students than they usually do, probably because it's still early in the morning.

You waited for them to get going, for the halls to be empty. Finally, after some time, the halls became quiet—perfect for you to finally slide your note into Sejanus' locker.

You looked left and right, looking for anyone who might see you doing your bid. Now it somehow feels illegal. You sigh. Finally, you slid the envelope to the door of the locker that belongs to Sejanus. "So it's you?" You jumped, startled by a sudden voice that reached the back of your ears.

You looked back, and there, in his glory, Sejanus Plinth is glowing and looking much more handsome under the academy's light. "Uh... no?" Your voice was unsure, and your heart was beating. Oh my god, oh my god-- Sejanus' arm then made its way to your right, opening the door to his locker. Your eyes widened. "Oh, uh, I gotta go--"

But before you could even make a step away from his eyes, away from his warmth, you felt a hand on your arm. "Don't... Please don't go," Sejanus pleaded.

With his voice sounding so desperate, you know you have to look back. And so, you did. You faced him with a nervous look, your eyes looking everywhere but him, refusing to look at him in the eyes.

Your head now hangs below like a scolded child. "Are you...?" Sejanus' voice trailed off. He wanted to continue, to finish his sentence and ask you, but he didn't.

"Uh... uhm," you looked at his left arm, there in his hands held a pink envelope with gold ink that wrote the words:

____________________________________________

To: Sejanus Plinth

From: Your Admirer!

____________________________________________

You're caught, you know that. With no way of escaping the situation, you sigh, giving up on whatever lie you made into your head.

"Yes, Sejanus..." You heard him sigh. You wanted to look at his eyes, to tell him what you only wanted, to confess without revealing your name. Yet, you're scared.

What if he's disappointed?

What if he didn't like you back?

What if... what if

"You're unfair, you know," Sejanus started to walk much closer to you. You could smell his rich cologne, and you could feel the warmth of his body much more. "I- I- I only wanted to, uh, to, uhm, I'm sorry, Sejanus." Your eyes were now aching to let your tears out.

Sejanus gently lifted your chin, his eyes locking with yours in a shared moment of vulnerability. "Do you... like me, y/n?" You gulp. Taking a deep breath, you finally confessed your feelings to him. "Yes, Sejanus... I like you."

In the quiet hallway of the academy, both of you looked at each other's eyes with a soft intensity. A smile made its way to Sejanus's soft lips. "Me too." A delighted blush painted your cheeks, and a bright smile lit up your face as you heard his confession. "Really?" you gasp. Shocked by his words.

Sejanus chuckled. His hands caressing your cheeks. He once again repeated his words. "Yes, yes! I like you too, Y/n Gaul... so much," he admitted, his eyes crinkling as his smiles widened.

Your eyes sparkling with joy. The empty halls of the academy were then filled with a moment of realization and joy. The air felt sweet, and genuine happiness enveloped you both.

You kissed him, and he kissed you. Sejanus looked into your eyes, a silent promise forming in his mind—a commitment to always keep you happy. Sejanus made a vow. A vow to always be the source of joy in your life, a vow and silent pledge to always treat you right and protect you, no matter the costs.

Forever, he'll always be yours ready to serve you like a queen.

[jessefandomunited]

Supporting artist rant

I've been seeing a lot of people saying " oh you should support artist what watcher is doing is okay" .you do not get it.

They ARE getting paid . Their patreon, their merch , touring , ads on YouTube, and sponsors. They ARE getting paid .

Yes you are correct that they have been spending a lot on the quality of their art which is all well and good... when you have the money. If they don't I don't think putting everything behind a paywall is the way to go.

See the problem is when you have supporters that are watching this content that you are putting adds on , they are supporting you, you get paid for that. Those who are able to have been sponsoring them via patreon . If they really are hurting they could put more special videos and incentives over at patreon so more people with money would be willing to donate to see what they have to offer there. Going 100% full throttle into this venture of creating a website , which I believe is down right now( not a great sign), and saying all of our content will now be behind this wall , is a poor choice. No madder how meager their earning were on YouTube to stop posting all together not only alienating the people who were supporting them with no extra money to spare, but also bashing them in the subsequent post they had made, that's so rude.

I don't know if you guys saw Steven's post but he literally said something along the lines of " You guys who want to keep watching us we appreciate it" that is so unfair, There are so many more professional and grateful ways they could have worded that post that didn't look down on the people unable to buy it . (My opinion I think he saw the instant backlash and got heated and wrote that caption) . But just because people can literally not afford your subscription doesn't mean they don't want to watch your content. They literally can not .

I understand the people saying " support artists " hearts are in the right place. They love watcher and are upset at the backlash because they simply see them charging for their art. And while that can be seen as true that still does not justify the move. There were many different avenues they could have gone down to ask for monetary assistance, heck I would have totally given money to go fund me's for their projects. But this was just a real slap in the face to people who've been here since the conception. You can disagree that is your right but please do not go after these people who are financially struggling and tell them they're not real fans, that's incredibly cruel

[siryouarebeingmocked]

SYABM comic 70 “Donation Aggravation”.

[ Older comics | Chronological order | Subreddit ]

Some people get really mad about a computer asking them to give pennies.

AP says this meme is false.

Customer donations aren’t income, legally. So they can’t be ducked from the company’s tax bill.

Tax Policy Center says the same thing, and points out that consumers forget to deduct their donations.*

This meme was apparently popularized by, of course, TikTok.

Also, if they get a tax break, so what? 

The point of that is to encourage charity and social benefit. If you care more about the tax break than whether they’re actually helping anyone, I think your priorities are skewed.

And getting a tax break means the company has more money to spend on stuff like...the charity. Or employee raises. Or just staying open.

I know the implication is that they must be insincere, but it doesn’t actually prove anything. It’s just point-scoring.

I recently saw people complaining that Panda Express falsely takes the credit for their charity, which is entirely funded by donations from customers and employees. PE Cares openly and explicitly says so on their website.

PE also covers the admin costs for PEC. All of them.

And as someone pointed out, they could just as easily...not have the charity. In fact, it would be easier.

Heck, during the Hawaii Wildfires, PE donated meals to first responders and displaced people. And, oh yes, they matched donations to the Red Cross.

...It’s a “Cancel” button. 

Those are often different from regular choices, so people don’t click them accidentally. Heck, sometimes they’re made that way so they’re easier to see.

No 5D chess subliminal messages required.

And if you’re so easily influenced that a button color can change your mind, that’s on you.

“Saying your assumptions about us are wrong are gaslighting, even when I have no actual evidence  I am also confident that everyone does this, which justifies my assumption that any given company does this.”

It’s especially irritating because gaslighting is about perception. But assumptions are not actual perceptions, and perceptions are wrong all the time.

I also saw people in the Youtube comments complaining about grocery store food waste, because apparently stores love to waste money, and are not influenced by picky consumers or legal concerns (PDF).

I’ve argued with these types before, and naturally, they defaulted to attacking me instead of my argument. Didn’t even pretend to have any actual evidence. Unlike me. Just doubled down.

And, again, what does this have to do with charity?

Plenty of companies actually, quietly donate everything to charity that they can. But that doesn’t make the news as much. Sometimes because that leads to people trying to take advantage.

Incidentally, during the Texas blackout a few years back, one grocery store tried to donate their food to a charity. Except it was physically impossible for them to get there before the food expired, due to the bad weather.

People saw the store throw out the ruined food (under police guard), and said the store was selfish.

One Youtube comment said the Bible claimed people shouldn’t give openly. Okay, but that’s about self-aggrandizement and egotism, not just asking for donations and trying to set an example for others, out of actual caring.

I think the real motive is a combination of anti-corporate NPC hate, and the desire to attack the requester instead of admitting they just don’t want to donate.

And I gotta wonder what the overlap is with the folks who insist billionaires can “easily” afford to pay taxes that are more than what many people make in their entire lives, because it’s a small amount relative to their total wealth.

* Did see someone once claim that people pay higher taxes for donating. They may have been referring to people not knowing they can deduct donation. Which is, um, not the company’s fault. At all.

Behind the Scenes: This is the first comic drawn in Krita that I’ve animated. In fact, it’s my first Krita animation, ever.

And unfortunately for me, Krita can’t animate Vector layers or groups. I only figured that out after a literal hour looking up tutorials (which didn’t help). And it’s a tad irritating, because I often use vector layers AND groups.

So I had to manually create each frame. Three different elements with three different timings. Had to break out the paper and pencil and plot it out.

Kinda fun, actually.

This is also the first commentary in a long time that I didn’t write before I finished the comic. In fact, I’m doing it completely raw. All I had was the saved image and a link to the Youtube thread in question.

Comic Inspirations:

That one freakout scene in Bocchi the Rock.

The kiosks at my local McDonald’s.

Whatever this is;

[anonymousdisco]

How’d I get Isikiad into Yandere Obey Me Chapter Six: Hello Big Brother Part Two

(Y/N) POV:

“It’s time. He’s about fifteen minutes away.” Glitch informed me as she woke me from my nap.

”Thanks for the heads up.” I got down from the tree quickly and checked my eyes by using a compact mirror. Feeling that they weren’t red and puffy enough I rubbed them again and dabbed my cheeks slightly using water from a water bottle so it would be damp to the touch. Then I went back to the HOL as quickly as I could. Thankfully I hadn’t gone too far.

”This is gonna be one heck of a doozy to pull off, glitch.” I muttered before getting into character letting myself reveal my limp from my leg I sprained earlier. I also let my eyes tear up as I saw Mammons car pull into the driveway. I enter through the back door not letting him see me yet and I ‘coincidently’ ran into him just as he entered through the side door.

Mammons POV:

I entered quietly hoping not to get caught after being at the casino so long. Stupid casino keeping me on a win streak till last moment. I muttered angrily to myself over the money I lost as I started walking back to my room. On my way there I bumped into someone.

”Oi knock it off! Watch where you’re going and don’t bump into me-“ I trailed off as I saw who it was. “It’s late what are you doing up?” I looked her up and down as I said this noticing her looking a bit… strange. Like she’d been crying her eyes out. And why was she wearing outdoors clothes inside?

”I’m sorry…” She whispered timidly. “I didn’t mean to run into you. It was an accident. It’s hard to get out the way in time since-“ She stopped abruptly not speaking any further. She twiddled her hands nervously and despite not knowing her well I couldn’t help but be concerned a bit.

”Since what?” I asked her not letting her leave it alone.

”My ankle.” She looked at the ground with tears in her eyes. “It hurts so much.” 

I felt concerned immediately. Sure I always ignored her but I can’t just leave my little sibling injured! Lucifer would kill me! “Come over here.” I dragged her to my room and grabbed a first aid kit. 

Sitting her down on my couch I started unpacking things from the first aid kit. “Which ankle?” She pointed at the ankle that was hurt and I took off her shoes and socks before rolling up her pants enough to see the injury and I winced upon inspecting it.

”What in the name of Diavolo happened to you?” I inspected it carefully pressing on it slightly to feel for any broken bones.

“I fell in school.” I scoffed at her answer.

”Ain’t no way this is from a fall. I fall all the time and I don’t end up swollen this bad. I think it’s sprained. Luckily we have some healing potions that are still good in the first aid kit. We’ll have to wrap it in gauze after putting a balm on it too.”

I made her drink the potion and I treated her ankle. “So what really happened?”

”Like I said I fell. The halls were crowded at RAD and I think someone shoved me by accident. I ended up feeling something hurting but I ignored it so I could go to class.” Her shoulders drooped timidly. “I know it’s hard to believe but I’m not lying.” Tears started to flow again from her eyes and internally I panicked. I hadn’t soothed any of my little sibling since shortly after… Lilith died. I hesitantly sat next to her as she started to sob till awkwardly I held her. It wasn’t long till she was crying on my shoulder probably from whatever pain and stress she had today. When was the last time I got to hold one of my little siblings like this? Even belphie was too old to be taken care of now. And Lilith was long gone for me to take care of.

As I held her I couldn’t help but wonder why I hadn’t noticed she was in pain earlier. In fact when had I ever noticed her? After Lilith died it was all so painful I couldn’t even look at her. Father had created her just before the war started and she had been given to us at the time. She wasn’t even old enough to make her own decisions yet. We had all just dragged her along our rebellion and she had fallen as a result.

Feeling uncomfortable with all these sad memories she was reminding me off I showed her out my room almost slamming the door in her face before going to lay down to sleep.

(Y/N) POV: 

I went back to my room making sure to look sad till I was alone. Once I was glitch’s screen chimed and glowed green.

Message: Congrats User! You completed the mission within the timeframe. Click to open your surprise reward here:

A button popped up that I pressed. Once pressed virtual confetti appeared while a virtual gift box opened up to reveal my reward.

”That’s it?!” I asked incredulously as I held it in my hands. “This was what all my effort was for?!”

Glitch replied its screen glowing slightly red as it almost vibrated. “That is a highly valuable item I’ll have you know! It’s extremely hard to get and the fact you got it out of a random lottery on the first try is amazing!”

”But what does it even do?!” I held it up to the light puzzled.

”That quill has the ability to rewrite one detail of the story you are in so long as it doesn’t majorly damage the overall plot. There’s chances to earn more in the future but they’re very rare. I can’t believe you got one!” Glitch seemed to lighten its screen a bit as it buzzed around in excitement.

”I’ll have to keep this handy then just in case. Where should I put it…?” I looked around my room carefully.

”Why not inside your storage in the system?” Glitch sugested helpfully.

”My what now?” I looked confused.

”Did you not pay attention to the tutorial this morning? Select storage from the main menue and pass the object you want stored through my screen. It’ll then pop up on a list you can then take it out from when you want it back. Things can’t expire while on storage btw.” Glitch explained as I followed along to what it said to do. 

I yawned when I was done. “Goodnight glitch.”

”Goodnight user.” Glitch’s screen dimmed its light and turned transparent as I went to lay down to sleep.

Mammon

~Affection: 7% he refuses to believe he care for you though since he’s a tusndere

“Stupid little sister getting tears all over my expensive jacket… Crying all profusely. Not that I care though since the Great Mammon is above such a thing!

~Relation- Reluctant Older Brother 

~Danger Level- Green

[kittymama01]

So... Blood magic. Is not going to be in Veilguard.

Kind of disappointed, honestly. I mean they have some dark specializations in Veilguard. But, according to the team, Blood Magic is too "nasty" for our hero.

... What?

Look, I get that blood magic is deemed evil. But, in Inquisition, Solas makes a very good point about it. It's just another form of magic. It's no different to other magic. Magic is dangerous. One of the specializations in Inquisition is Rift Mage, which involves the Fade. The Fade is dangerous. There's also Necromancer. Necromancer really... Didn't do anything, but the concept of it is that it's messing with spirits and uh, yeah, dangerous.

It's all, I guess, "nasty".

Heck, there are specializations for other classes that are dark, like Assassin, or Reaver. Being a Reaver is honestly a different type of blood magic- involving dragon's blood. Use your abilities too much, you might lose yourself to the beast's blood. There's even the new specialization in Veilguard: Reaper. Which I'm looking forward to see. "A dark fighter who drains the life of the enemy and risks death to gain unnatural abilities". Gee... Kind of sounds like blood magic. 😂

If you're a mage in Inquisition, you can say to Solas "I wish I can learn more about it, it sounds useful."

Solas responds with "I wish I could teach you, but I also don't know it because it makes my connection to the Fade weak." Which is interesting, honestly, what does he mean by that? What does this mean for Tevinter mages who turn to blood magic, does this mean their connection to the Fade is poor?

Anyway, oh well, no blood magic. It's just that their reason for not bringing it in this game is stupid. "It's nasty", "It's mean", etc. We kill people in these games. We're given specializations for fighting and killing people. Also the entire point of these games is "what kind of person or hero are you?". Are you a tyrant, are you neutral, are you genuinely a good person, do you just do this for money, etc. So... Yeah. Dumb reason. But, thanks for Reaper, I wanna see how this specialization works.

[kiteblue42]

Part 4 of - what the heck is going on with Mobius anyway?

S2e5 - the one with where they get the band back together

Disclaimer- I’m a single parent and found it hard to be objective watching this one. For me this episode was a very perfect reflection of how hard, lonely it can be to bring up children by yourself and how you willingly give up so much of yourself for them. They did this very well - I hope they don’t screw this up in the final episode.

A good life, but not a happy one

Mobius timeline life is good but not super happy. He comes across as struggling and lonely. Mobius works 6 days a week, he tries to sell Loki one of his jet skis that he no longer can use, he’s constantly being interrupted at work by his kids, the house is chaos and he had to leave the boys to fend for themselves selves while he was at work (therefore he has no friends or family to watch them or money to pay for childcare). This is a person struggling to keep it together, but he does manage to do so for his boys and he manages to stay kind and positive towards them. The boys are the top of his list of priorities “I can’t leave my boys”/ “I need to check on the kids” “I got to get back to my boys” “I’ll know”. This all speaks of someone who has given up his own wants for the kids and feels guilty about doing anything for himself.

Given the slightly flippant tone of “long gone” when discussing his wife I think it likely she left rather than died (or blipped) - as that’s not how a grieving widower is likely to speak (especially if he might be overheard by the boys).

The whisper of adventure

There are a number of signs that Mobius has a desire for adventure. His love of jet skis, the fact he immediately agreed to try out the time door, how much he loved the idea of being “Mobius.” (“Mobius is a pretty cool name”)

The idea of being your better self

It wasn’t just adventure for fun that’s calling his name though but also the idea of being something more. Mobius reacted emotionally to the idea of himself as someone that would “save my life when I first arrived”. His delivery of “I sell Jet Skis man” showed how little he thought of himself, but also a desire to be something more.

Loneliness

This exchange killed me:

Loki “you saved my life when I first arrived. You saw something in me I hadn’t seen in myself”

Mobius “Are you really my friend?”

Loki “I am”.

Just the way Mobius says this tell us how much he really really wants to believe he could have a friend like this.

Loki’s view of Mobius

Once again the major topic of conversation between Sylvie and Loki is Mobius (this is becoming a theme - and if they do get Sylvie and Loki together it’s just mad and funny).

Anyway this conversation tells us that Loki believed Mobius when he said the TVA was the “only life he knew” and that he “liked it”. Of course there’s an element of this being wishful thinking on Loki’s part, but he is pretty insistent that Mobius should be given the choice. So Loki thinks (at least until Sylvie talks him out of it) that there is a good chance Mobius would chose the TVA - and himself. And as Frigga once said (Thor: dark world) Loki is “.. so perceptive about everyone but yourself”. So I don’t think we should dismiss Loki’s perception about Mobius. (He is also pretty insistent in his conversation with Mobius that “this is not the life of the man I know”. And there’s enough for viewers to see “Mobius” is more at ease with himself than “Don”.)

Sylvie undermines this and persuades Loki he is being selfish. (Side note - Sylvie puzzles me this season and in particular in this episode- if you watch closely she sees that her McDonalds meal disappears and Loki’s drink in the bar disappear too - but says nothing to Loki and does everything to stop Loki from trying to fix it - is it just denial or something more sinister?)

Last episode

So some theory based predictions for Ep 6

Themes that still need payoff:

- order & chaos

- Partners & Friends & loneliness

- Hard choices

Th end of the last episode has me thinking we may get a happy ending because it would be narratively neat to leave Loki surrounded by his new TVA family - especially after the way last episode was concluded.

It would pay off the themes positively as follows:

order & chaos - Loki (chaos) working with TVA (order) to give balance

Partners & Friends & loneliness - Loki and his misfit friends get to stay together so they don’t have to be alone

Hard choices - this one worries me but it would be possible for a number of hard choices to be made that still ends up in a good place (even if it doesn’t seem like it will at the time).

Hard choices Mobius

I think this is aimed specifically at Mobius - Loki made his hard choice in Ep 5 when he was willing to let this team go. I’m hoping they will be able to square the circle with Mobius and his family, because he’ll *not* be ok without the boys or without Loki (& the TVA).

Given this is a time travel show with magic I don’t see why they can’t find an solution to that - because the issue is about not having enough time to both look after the boys and look after yourself. I’ll be super disappointed if they make this unnecessarily miserable by making Mobius give up either his fulfilling life & friends at the TVA or his boys. Though I also won’t be surprised to see this as a plot point. If they try to sell it to me as Mobius being super happy to return to his life I’ll be doubly annoyed.

In theory the boys timeline should be long gone so this choice should not exist, but they seem to be setting up this hard choice for Mobius in particular ( so maybe the loom explosion was meant to be a full reset).

Hanging threads & wild cards

X5 /Brad /Zaniac - is still in the TVA - is he going to cause chaos as they try to fix the loom?

Renslayer - is in the void - will she tame Alioth? Is Miss Minutes really gone or does she have another instance in the citadel at the end of time?

Kang - is HWR really behind everything? Are all the events just one pre-planned trap of HWR?

Sylvie - Sylvie knew more than she has told anyone (eg she saw the disappearance of items and said nothing). She has HWR tempad. Loki treats her like she has words of wisdom so we also tend to accept she is right or benign, but her last piece of advice was completely wrong. She has been acting pretty oddly all season too - what’s up with that? (Worth remembering she is a Loki variant and they are generally not to be trusted).

Romance

My own reading of Mobius remains that he lost his heart to Loki sometime around S1e2. By S1e5 he’d accepted this, but concluded it wasn’t going anywhere - so conveniently he didn’t need to exactly work out what the feelings were. Mainly because Loki was focused on Sylvie. This episode doesn’t change that since we don’t get any TVA Mobius.

Loki on the other hand did give more away this episode - and it was the first one (for me) where it looked like his feelings could be romantic or at least headed that way. Whenever he talks about saving his friends we all know this primarily means Mobius. I mean how much interaction has he really had with the others? The discussion in the bar was particularly instructive- he wants Mobius to have the choice (this is *after* seeing him on the timeline when he knows what Mobius would be giving up) and he desperately hopes Mobius would choose to stay with him. But Sylvie persuades him otherwise.

Sylvie - there is really no sign of the romance from last season left here. Loki does still greatly admire Sylvie. I’d say Loki almost hero worships her - and especially takes what she says about free will and choice as authoritative (as if she were an expert on it). This is consistent with his romantic feelings from s1e4,5&6 which seemed to grow out of his admiration for her radical / free spirit nature. But by this episode it didn’t seem to be romantic any more - rather a mentor / mentee conversation. Loki did not declare he wanted Sylvie back or even anything close to it - and it would have been the obvious time to do that.

Sylvie has never seemed particularly romantically interested in Loki to me. She kissed him to distract him in s1e6 and no doubt thinks he’s quite hot, but that’s all I’m getting. I actually like this about her as a character (she’s just not that into you Loki sorry). I hope she is a bit more villainous than we know (a bit more basic Loki if you will) otherwise she has been a bit of a spare part this season.

I am not expecting any romance from the last episode though mainly because:

(1) I don’t think there is time to do either romance option justice with all the other plot points to be resolved (2) romance is not central to the plot of season 2 - they have pushed the friendship / found family theme hard and that will do for plotting & emotional payoff purposes, and (3) if you want to be commissioned for season 3 you don’t resolve romantic tension. We’re on Tumblr so we all know there are a significant chunk of fans of any media that follow the stories for the romance aspect - and we all know this audience is likely to be very loyal, vocal on social media and will predictably turn up to watch the next season just to see how it plays out. If they resolve a romance arc either way too early they kill a lot of interest in season 3 - people are always more interested in “will they won’t they” than an established relationship.

[physalian]

What No One Tells You About Writing 8— “Anyone can write a book”

Yes. But actually no. I say “writing is easy” in that it doesn’t take a degree and textbook learning to understand. You can get an English or lit degree if you want, but writing is incredibly subjective. It’s not even like an art degree that has you study different mediums and historical styles. “Writing is easy” in that it’s about feeling, and instinct, and a little bit of common sense. Anyone can do it in that it doesn’t take financial investment to start. Steal a tchotchke pen and paper from a hotel room—you’ve got all the tools you need. I have a communications degree and 9 years of experience, and I'm about to publish my first supernatural fantasy novel.

Writing is not easy, however, if any of the following applies to you:

You want to make enough money to do this full time

You want to appeal to mass audiences

You want to be a NYT bestseller**** or get an adaptation

You want to be regarded as the best of your generation and fill bookstore shelves

1. It takes a healthy dose of self-awareness and a reality check

 I beta’d for an author who thought that he was comparable to GRRM, the author of A Song of Ice and Fire, because both have adult themes in their book and if GRRM can do it, why can’t he? The sheer vastness of the divide between ASOIAF and this awful, awful manuscript wasn’t worth putting into words for the amount I was being paid, though I tried.

Yes, you can write whatever you want. Yes, you can write to please yourself and stroke your ego. You can write the hammiest wish-fulfillment author insert that you desire. But you can’t expect anyone else to want to read or pay money for it. It’s great to have confidence as an author and envision your success, but starting right off the bat with “everyone will love this book because I’m really smart and I love this book” is only going to leave you bitter and penniless.

2. You might be an expert in your given field, doesn’t automatically make you an expert at storycrafting

I really, truly want the above godawful toe wart of a human (who tried to justify pedophilia in his book with the Israel-Palestine conflict) to stop featuring in my writing advice, but I know he’s not the only person out there who thinks like this. You might have a doctorate in engineering, medicine, political science, chemistry, physics, history, paleontology—any field you want. That does not mean you can successfully translate your expertise into a well-crafted and compelling narrative. It means you can write a college textbook lecturing your readers for 300 pages. Heck, if you can't explain what you do like I'm 5 years old, then you're not an expert in your field.

Elements of good storytelling include well-rounded characters, solid pacing, compelling themes and motifs, an engaging main conflict and character arcs and edge-of-your-seat action, romance, debates, and arguments. It’s so much more than “I’m going to write a textbook, but have my character tell it to you, and everyone will love it”.

They won’t.

3. “I’m gonna be a millionaire like JKR”

The frustrating thing about making money writing is that at the end of the day, you are still selling a product. Which means that it doesn’t matter how amazing you think it is, if it’s not what sells. The Fifty Shades series is hardly a poetic epic with deep, meaningful characters and themes, but it sold. It got adaptations. Why? Because it was a product people wanted and its writing style appeals to mass audiences who aren’t entertained by fluffy, antiquated prose. I hated the Divergent books. They soullessly and shamelessly fed off the success of Hunger Games. But they sold because “teen dystopia HP houses” was what audiences craved and what Hollywood was pushing to make movies out of.

Personally I don’t have any nostalgia for Harry Potter and I both wish I did so I could have one more beloved series and fandom to participate in, but also am glad I don’t because of JKR. HP is chock full of plot holes and “fuck it we’ll do it live” worldbuilding and so many concepts that look cool on paper until you really start thinking about it.

JKR didn’t make a million dollars because she wrote the greatest fantasy series. JKR made a million dollars because she wrote a book that sells every goddamn piece of lore for $15.99 or more and collects on all those sweet, sweet royalties. She understood that she’s selling a product, not just a story, selling everything from Slytherin ties and wizarding robes to golden snitches, sorting hats, wands, chocolate frogs, and every other prop seen in the movies.

You sure can chase trends and I’m sure Divergent is somebody’s favorite book and you can hock chocolate frogs. Everyone’s writing goals are different.

4. “But GRRM did it” (or, adhering to genre expectations)

Circling back to this one. Once again, you can write whatever you want, no one is stopping you. However, books are products and if what’s in the summary and on the cover isn’t what’s on the pages, you’re going to upset and annoy your readers. For example, if I slap a chiseled six-pack of man meat on my book cover with flowy calligraphy for the title that reads something like Sex and Pink Champagne and my summary is all about how protagonist girl gets the adonis of her dreams, you’re not going to be happy if, 200 pages in, the plot detours and Mr. Sexy fucks off to sell NFTs.

It doesn’t meet genre expectations.

GoT kicks off with incest and child defenestration. It tells you *exactly* what you’re getting into immediately. You can subvert plot expectations all you want. You can subvert tropes and archetypes and throw in all kinds of twists and turns. But if you’re writing a YA novel and 100 pages in after campfire songs and the power of friendship, Protagonist gets assaulted in a 7-11 parking lot because you wanted to be ~edgy~ you’re going to piss off your readers.

Take Mulan for example. It has a dramatic tonal shift so powerful, the musical stops being a musical because it’s traumatized. Mulan doesn’t drop in the grizzled and horrifying wasteland of a battlefield with thousands of dead soldiers in an episode of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. It’s already a war movie, the possibility is already there.

If you want to write adult content, then write a book for audiences who are prepared for and want to read adult content. Otherwise you’re setting yourself up for failure.

5. “Okay but it’s not entertaining”

Your first job as an author is to entertain (your second is to do it responsibly imo). There’s millions of books out there—why should someone read yours? Whether that’s entertainment through a feel-good romance or a gut-wrenching tragedy, you need to keep convincing your readers to stay invested in the story, otherwise they can and will put it down to read something else. No one is obligated to read your book to the end.

So, yeah your protagonist might have all the elements of your own personal tragedies and it sure is meaningful to you, but the way you wrote it is incredibly boring and no one will care. It might be the most brilliant heist plot ever conceived, but you focused on all the wrong elements, the pacing is whack, and your protagonist is annoying, so no one will read it.

Very few individual elements can be good enough to carry the entire manuscript and the likelihood of an author being really good at one thing and awful at the rest is slim. Readers can quit a book over the most arbitrary reasons. Do you want to die on a hill of “I’m not changing my annoying protagonist, I’m right and they will see”? They won’t. The arguments authors get into with me over how I hated their protagonist or I told them which parts were boring and dragged because I “didn’t understand the story” are pointless. If it’s boring or confusing or annoying, no one will read it.

6. First Drafts are drafts for a reason

Actually writing is less than half the time and effort spent on getting a book to publication. Probably less than a quarter. The rest of that time is spent editing and rewriting. Some first drafts will be better than others, not arguing that, but your first run through your story has a non-zero chance of needing revisions, even for something as small as typos and punctuation.

You have to edit for pacing and tonal shifts, erroneous details and entire scenes, character inconsistencies and goals. You have to make sure your conversations flow believably, that you hit every talking point that scene requires. You have to make sure your character’s motivations don’t create plot holes and that they’re always on track like a real person and not a creation of your imagination. You have to make sure your action scenes and sex scenes are legible and as thrilling for a reader as they are for you. You have to make sure your worldbuilding is consistent and logical and easy to understand.

Some people outline heavily before starting page one. Some people have a sticky note of “beginning middle end” and run off that. Some have whole folders of different documents to keep track of all their elements. Everyone’s writing process is different, but it is a process, not a one-and-done. It requires revisions, seeking feedback, implementing that feedback, and more revisions until it’s as good as it can be.

Yes, you need to edit. No, you’re not the writing god who penned perfection on your first try. Maybe a piece of your story is perfect on the first draft, but not the whole thing from start to finish. It’s okay that your story isn’t what you thought it would be when you started, and it’s no failing of you as a writer to need edits or even massive changes. It happens to everyone.

7. “Writing is easy, thus it’s not a real job”

Really the notion that creatives are lesser than corporate business people solving problems that their business created. But specifically for writing, the idea that it’s just putting words on a page, thus it’s easy and anyone can do it, so it’s not impressive or deserving of praise and you really need a real job (you probably will because writing doesn’t make much money for most people, but that’s just how it shakes out).

I know ENNS won’t appeal to everyone. I know there will be people who hate my characters, who don’t understand them or don’t agree with their philosophies or find my writing trite and too lean and not ~immersive~. I know there’ll be homophobes out there who won’t even read it but hear about it and make assumptions and will leave me crap reviews. I know it’s not the greatest supernatural fantasy novel ever written.

I’m not in it to make money or get a movie deal and see my merch all over the shelves and get my own theme park. I write so that even one reader might see themselves in my characters and know they’re not alone. So that even one reader has one of my characters as their favorite and that character motivates them to do the Thing or keep moving forward or be brave enough to finally do whatever they’ve been too afraid to attempt before. I want to help people, even if at the end of the day, my writing only helps myself.

Yes I need supplemental income (who doesn’t these days). It’s the way of the world. But I’m doing what I love in my free time and it is a real job because it takes work, and it might not have monetary value but its value to me is priceless.

[paddedlittleparadise]

The Taming of the Slut (Patreon/Ream Teaser)

This was gonna be one interesting evening!

It had been, what? Four years now since Ron had graduated from college? In that time he'd done what most folks his age did: found an internship, then a job, and then another one. Moved twice. Got a cat. Dated a few folks. But all that time…

Well, he didn't like to sound sappy. But he hadn't yet forgotten her.

He strode up the sidewalk now, heartbeat more than a little elevated. Oh yes, her. Mandy: the heartthrob of his college friend group. The busty, loud-mouthed, shameless history major. The girl who laughingly called herself a hopeless slut. Who had openly bragged about how she'd fucked every single member of the football team – in her sophomore year. And who had held for years now the leading role in Ron's most private fantasies.

Yeah, that was "Randy Mandy," all right. Hard to believe she was actually married now.

He rang the elegant doorbell, glancing wryly around at the immaculately groomed shrubbery of this seriously expensive house. Well, she certainly hadn't made a mistake in finding a guy with money, had she? Investment bankers like this Jacob fellow were in their own class, that was for sure. This place was definitely far more than he ever could have given her – even if she had been serious about him…

The door opened. "Hello and welcome! You must be Ron, is that right? So glad you found us! Come in, come in!" And in Ron dutifully stepped, momentarily taken aback by his host's appearance. Probably more from envy than anything, he'd expected Jacob to be some smarmy little suit-wearing weasel. But this guy… wow. He was tall. Dressed in a suit and tie. Hair neatly trimmed and smoothed, his clean-shaven jaw square and sharp. Heck, he looked ready to head onto to the red carpet… or maybe a gubernatorial debate.

"Thanks for having me," Ron offered, gazing politely about him – ostensibly at the luxurious furnishings, but privately in hopes of catching a first glimpse of the lady of the house. "I was just, you know, passing through. And I thought it would be great to chat, um, with Mandy-"

"Of course, of course! Not many of Mandy's classmates seem to be able to forget her," Jacob chuckled, and now he was gallantly gesturing toward the spacious living room, complete with a piano and a tastefully modern set of furniture. "We were so happy to get your message! I think it's so incredibly important for her to keep up all of those intimate connections she's made over the years. Don't you agree, dear?"

This last sentence was pitched louder, clearly addressed at the as-yet unseen Mandy. Ron eagerly followed Jacob's gaze to the end of the room and the open doorway that presumably led to the kitchen. This was it! His pulse quickened at the thought. Mandy would be here now. She would look so amazing – so sexy – so well-off and elegant-

Or maybe not. Because the red-faced figure that slowly stepped around the corner was probably the furthest from elegant that anyone could imagine.

Gone was her long blonde hair: snipped short and blunt, and done up in two unkempt pigtails. Gone too was her makeup – and her clothes, for the most part. All she now seemed to be wearing, Ron realized with a blast of horrified fascination, was the stuff of a fetish fantasy. A lacy white bib embroidered with a pink cursive "Slut." A pink leather posture collar, snug and wide. Matching pink bondage mitts on each hand, tethered to her collar with formidably strong steel chains. And to crown it all… a puffy, bulging, baby-pink diaper taped tightly around her waist.

–––

What the heck is going on with Mandy?! Check out the rest – and hundreds of other original and commissioned story posts – on my Patreon or Ream!

[a-whispering-echo]

i saw band requests and you mentioned Red in ur last post so yk 👉👈

only if you wanna

YESSS! Red! here!

So, hes a drug dealer here -oop. hes 25 and about 5'9. he sees like a right dick, a real THREAt, but hes a sweetheart, really.

He dated Dust when he was 18, and Dust was 15. wanna make it clear that Red DID NOT know of Dust's age! Dust looked older than he was at the time due to malnutrition and living on the streets at the time, and Dust LIED about his age to Red! When Red learnt that Dust was younger than he said, he broke it off with him instantly. They have a somewhat brotherly relationship now; Red looks out for Dust and calls him 'Kid' now.

Red still deals to Dust - just weed though! Sometimes Dust pays with money, sometimes sexual favours. His partners all know about both the drug use and the payment methods. Theyre okay with it!

Well, mostly.

Cross fucking HATES Red! Cross was besties with Dust when he started dating Red, and Cross could see that Red was a bad influence on Dust. getting him into all sorts of dark and dodgy shit; hes the reason Dust smokes to this very day, in fact! And yeah, maybe some of that hatred was caused by younger Cross' 'little' crush on Dust from back in the day... Regardless, Cross decked him in the face once.

Cross doesnt know how the relationship ended because he was shipped off to boot camp by his father while Dust was still dating him, and then when Cross got out, he joined the Stars. Cross never contacted his old friends when he was shipped off, wasnt given the CHANCE to, and then by the time he came back, all his old friends had formed a band without him and had made it big. He assumed they simply were not interested in him anymore. And hey, if he dated Dream, so sweet and kind to him, if he squinted he could almost trick himself into believing he was Nightmare.

Dust thought Cross left BECAUSE of him dating Red. He knew Cross didnt approve, knew he didnt like Red, and literally after just a few weeks after a physical altercation between the two, Cross disappeared off the face of the earth? Obviously, it was his fault, and Dust realised that he himself was USING Red; for shelter for food, heck, for drugs! And that wasnt fair to Red. So, he came clean; told Red what he did, what hes doing, and his lie, and obviously, they broke up. They are on... amicable terms now, obviously.

On an entirely separate note, i actually am SO proud of how this drawing came out! If im being honest, ive always been slightly scared of drawing, not only black characters, but characters who are of another race to my own, because i dont want to fuck it up, and accidentally make some racist caricature, which, like, i know is just my anxiety, but its stopped me from drawing characters before. So, im honestly so pleased with how he came out! I think he, and all the other characters ive drawn, have actually come out very well, and im pleased with the results! And i think thats finally broken down my caution with straying from drawing them <3

[bokettochild]

Hi! First off, I sent some ramblings before, and I feel safe here to share my thoughts! Your blog is amazing, to start.

Okay, so I can't read your opera house AU, though I bet it is amazing. I just don't have AO3, and when I look it up, I can't find it, so that's fine! I read your thing where it described who each LU character was in your opera house AU, and I love how Legend is a jack of all trades.

(I think it's a jack of all trades. It might be a jock of all trades.🤷‍♀️)

I feel legend, is kinda of self-conscious about his voice and thinks he isn't good enough to be on stage. That's why he mostly stays backstage and fixes things for last minute, and lets Fable take the stage.

I feel like even though Legend has been there for...like all of his life, when he saw Dusk, Artemis, and Warriors, he kind of shrunk in on his talent, seeing how they were literally crowd-pleasers. Everyone loves them; the crowds go wild when they see them on stage.

I feel like this happened once when everyone went out to get something for the play they were doing. He went on stage and just sang a hard song that not even Artemis or Warriors could do, but he nailed it.

I also feel like he would act like Jeremy Jordan. Jeremy Jordan.

Jeremy Jordan Did Bonnie and Clyde the musical and the scene raise a little hell The song, the first one he does, this great acting where he acts like he got beaten horribly, he is terrified. I describe it badly, but if you look it up if you want, I feel like that's how legend would act. He would put his heart and soul into his acting.

I feel like the warriors accidentally bullied the legend once because of something that made him shrink in on himself more when it came to stage time.

Anyways I love your blog!

I'm sorry to hear that! I have most of my fics blocked so non-users can't see them, mostly due to the rise in bots on Ao3 scraping for works and stealing our creations. If you'd like though, I can post them here as well! I used to cross-post a lot of stuff, but I stopped when I realized I could never find the fics again after LOL

And yes! Legend is the jack-of-all-trades at the Crown City opera! He grew up in the opera house (Twilight, his uncle, has been a stage-hand there since he was a baby) so he's been able to learn first hand from masters of the trade how to do basically everything there is to know! He's not as good with paperwork and the advertising aspect, as most of that sort of thing is done by Lullaby and Dot, but he's got the bare-bones knowledge (there's a rumor that Lullaby made sure he knew because she intends to leave the opera to him one day, but it's just a rumor).

I don't know if Legend is so self-conscious about his voice, but he's definitely not aware of how good he is. Like I said; he grew up learning from the best, and a lot of the crew and cast found it fun to show him how to do stuff in their down time, so he's probably got a better education in music than anyone else in the building. However, because he doesn't take acting as his main role and mostly helps in the back, he's sort of fallen into the belief that he's only maybe slightly better than average. Is he? Heck no! He could probably give the divas a nice run for their money if he was trying hard enough! However, while he most certainly has given his all to every role (he really does love acting) he still maintains that he's an "average nobody" who fills in on occasion when someone calls out sick, or plays the lesser roles when they're short on cast.

The opera knows he's good, Lullaby knows he's good, and gosh do their audiences know he's good! but because Legend is under the impression that he's average, he doesn't seek more time in the spotlight. Additionally, since Lullaby knows he loves what he is doing (he very much enjoys his prop work and set creation and costuming opportunities, don't let the grumbling fool you), she doesn't see a reason to call on him excessively if that's not what he wants. After all, he wasn't hired to be part of the cast (although whether he was actually officially hired at all is unknown, although he's paid very well).

I will say he does compare his skill to the divas, but sort of in a casual way when he's talking to Hyrule and the rest of his team. Sort of in the whole manner of: "I'm not like Dusk or anything, there's a reason you don't see my face on the billboards". I will say he's probably compared himself a lot to them in this manner though and convinced himself that he's not that great in comparison, but he's chill with it because obviously he can't be good at everything, and he's good at his job, so that's what matters.

His biggest point when people bring up his skill is always that there's a reason the divas' names are well known and he's just crew. What he doesn't know is that he very much has a near cult following and there are theories online. He's not very present on social media or anything, but their audiences know there is this one actor/actress who appears sometimes to fill roles or to cover when the headliners can't be there. Nobody knows what said actor/actress's name is, and they actually aren't even sure what gender he is, they just know said person has a lot of skill and they wish he'd show up more!

Lullaby is aware of this, but again, she respects Legend's choice to do his job, and also has no interest in throwing him to the dogs by releasing his name if he doesn't want her too. She wants him to have a normal life, thank you, not get hounded by media and fans like some of her staff are.

His skill is totally comparable to Jeremy Jordan though! Absolutely love that idea (and the idea that maybe he sounds like him too!)

As for the whole Warriors suggestion, I think they both tease each other back and forth a lot. Warriors is a good few years older, so he isn't mean with it, but considering their dynamic, it's not too far out there to suppose that maybe he once teasingly commented on Legend's singing skill with the intent of implying it was good, but Legend (pessimist that he is) assumed it was negative. In which case, he probably is a bit self-conscious about it sometimes, although it's less noticeable. It'd be more like he doesn't sing as loudly while working if he hears Wars nearby, and gets touchy when the diva talks about his skills. Wars isn't a jerk though, so he probably is clueless about the mix-up.

With all this in mind though, I can totally see the main story (when I do actually write it, LOL) featuring Legend as that sidelined, super-star-level nobody who teaches our lead (Hyrule) how to absolutely wow the crowds. Would he know why Hyrule asked him? No. He probably assumes Rule just asked the guy he actually knows, that and the divas are unapproachable or smth, or maybe because Legend's been here a while. Man has no clue, but he will help Hyrule to the best of his abilities!

[ecargmura]

The Apothecary Diaries Episode 2 Review - The Poison Tester

Before I start the review, I want to make a little apology. In my review of the first episode, I said that Gyokuyou is voiced by Yoko Hikasa; she’s not. She’s actually voiced by Atsumi Tanezaki, who also voices Frieren from Frieren Beyond Journey’s End and Anya from Spy x Family. Yoko Hikasa voiced her in the drama CD. Sorry for the error. Now that I got that out of the way, onto the review.

I did have a feeling that this show would be an episodic one where it all revolves around Maomao utilizing her apothecary capabilities to help the palace. You know what? I like that. Usually, the eastern fantasy stories I’m familiar with are about political dramas or a forbidden love story between a higher class and lower class. It’s nice to see more of the different occupations of fantasy worlds be utilized more.

Maomao gets a promotion and now works under Lady Gyokuyou, as ordered by Jinshi. Her main task is to be a poison tester. I think my favorite aspect of Maomao is that she’s smart and observant. She knows her craft and does it well. I like that a lot. I love smart characters, so seeing Maomao do her magic is seriously entertaining to watch. She knows that poison is easily detectable when using metal bowls, but ceramic ones were given to her on purpose. Because she has been experimenting with many types of poison, she’s almost immune to a majority of them. Because of that, this can be both a good thing and a bad thing because her desensitization towards poison could be a plot point used later on. Despite that, I LOVED Maomao’s reaction to learning she can make drugs. Look at her when she is at the medicine room. She was dancing about.

More new characters are introduced in the form of Gyokuyou’s employees. There are the three servant girls and Hongniang, another lady-in-waiting and the leader of the servant girls in a way. She’s quite the interesting character as she’s strict but means well. She is also cunning in a way. When she learns that Maomao was paid less than her actual worth as she feigned being illiterate so her abductors get paid less, she breaks a pot on purpose and charges the money to her kidnappers so that they can be in debt while Maomao gets money to herself. She’s also prone to scolding the younger girls a lot as she yells at the servant girls to stop dawdling and even punishes Maomao for making the aphrodisiacs that the they ate.

Jinshi is still cemented as the most desirable man in the story and he is pretty. He is really pretty, but I still can’t help but to feel suspicious of him. What is this true goal? However, I did like learning a few things about him. He ultimately has a humiliation kink. He found Maomao’s icy glare charming and I was like “Oh gosh, he’s a masochist.” I also am convinced the anime staff has a thing for him because they drew him in a rather seductive pose, when Maomao was imagining him drugged due to aphrodisiacs. That’s when you know he’s the fan service character. Also, Takeo Otsuka is doing a great job with Jinshi, but the way he’s voicing him makes him sound a bit too similar to Takahiro Sakurai, who was the voice actor for Jinshi in the drama CD. I guess he was casted due to the similar ranges?

Gaoshun seems like a logical man. He’s very capable and reliable, unlike Jinshi. I’d like to learn more about him, honestly. Who was he before he met Jinshi? Why does he serve Jinshi? I also love that he goes away when Jinshi made a funny face after thinking about Maomao glaring at him. He knows his boss is kooky as heck.

Also, I seem to have noticed that there is a lot historical inaccuracies regarding the time period this story is set in. I’m not too familiar with Chinese history, but I know for a fact that they’re not too proficient with using English words, yet Maomao’s father called her a mad scientist in English. How do you know English, sir? I also read somewhere that cacao was introduced in an era much later than whatever era this story takes place in, so there’s that too. While it’s not too jarring, it does make it seem like the author didn’t do proper research before creating the story.

All in all, I can’t wait to see what sort of trials and tribulations Maomao will go through. It does make me wonder what the end goal will be. I’ll be watching the third episode soon. I hope you enjoyed my review of the second episode and let me know your thoughts!

[66sharkteeth]

Hello! Idk if you are still faking asks but of so thank you in advance if this gets answered!

I'm not gonna lie, it's a bit disturbing how the majority is cheering on Rex and the side he's taken. Though that side might have some points, I just can not see them as people I'd like to ever support or think they are doing it with good intentions in mind. But anyway, I apologize if I just can't understand or root for this gang. I know things aren't black or white but i just see more bad than good. And I hope that's ok.

The only think I dint understand and kind of made me not like Rex so much anymore is that when he is fighting Desmond he mentions something along the lines of "you already met my scyon" and that just raised more questions for me. One of the mane reasons Rex felt hurt and betrayed and thought it was all Desmon and Lys's fault for "betraying him" was because he couldn't under why they would turn on him (it was when he still didn't know about the other part of himself). But now he knows, he knows its the Scyon that hurt and attacked them. Hence why they had such a reaction. I've seen people stating that yes, Rex was betrayed! And I just...I don't see it at all especially when the og gang had every right to react the way they did.

This monnet kind of just made me distance myself from Rex I guess. Because he knew the scyon was the one to hurt the gang, the reason why they reacted the way they did and yet that does nothing for him. I don't think this is bad writing, nit even the slightest. Cause I know some people in real life would have such a reaction. We are flawed beings and some weren't thought or leaned how act to know their actions or way of thinking is flawed etc or self centered. It's a process everyone can go threw in different ways. So I hope maybe Rex one day can learn more as he goes.

But yeah, was there something behind the scenes we didn't see for Rex to not even question that the Scyon hurt Desmond or for him to not even care about that fact?

I still love the comic a lot and its one of 2 other webtoons I follow religiously and have given money for passes! The art and world building I feel like is really good and has made me so inspired to make a fan art and fic for this world (I'm just too afraid and shy to share I guess but I'd love to one day!).

I hope you have a good day and I apologize for any speaking or grammar mistakes I've made. English isn't my first language and I'm also dyslexic 😅

Tbh, I think the only people who are 100% wrong are the ones who think one side is 100% right.

Like you said, the situation isn't black and white (heck, it's even one of the major themes of the story), and both sides have points and flaws, some bigger than others. I know people are having fun cheering for Rex's "corruption arc" (I even love to tease about it), but that's exactly what it is- a corruption arc.

Rex has points and fair criticism, but it's important to also remember the environment he's in. He's Blan Corp's prized pig that they need to keep happy until they get that memory. Other than Bag Girl, Rex is basically surrounded in an echo chamber of yes-men. So no, you didn't really miss anything. Rex is just currently in an environment where everyone is telling him "Yeah! It WAS abusive of Desmond to make you do all those chores!! What a jerk! >:(" and Rex going "yeah, you're right!! I am the victim here! Tell me more."

He's with the villains now and there is a lot of manipulation* going on.(*Side note: Mostly from Jericho and his Scion, to be clear. You could argue Nia as well, but I kind of maintain that she is just as manipulated and in a kind of equally tough position. Remember, Blan Corp is the ticket to getting her mom back and she's kind of in just as big of an echo chamber of "human bad, blank superior" as Rex)

That said, please don't give up hope on him haha. Rex can get a really sharp tongue when he's pissed (as seen in the latest episode with his encounter with Lyss), but he's still the same Rex at heart. He could never take the steps that Jericho is willing to take, and I... Tried to make that clear in ep 133 with Desmond's criticism of Rex's changes. Desmond asked if he really has it in his (half-human) heart to follow in Jericho's foot steps, and I like to think (most of us) know he doesn't- At least not as far as Jericho. Desmond planted the seed of doubt in ep 133 and I don't intend to just...ignore that seed in my writing of what's coming up.

TLDR: Yeah! Rex is being a jerk right now after a lot of manipulation, gaslighting, and just all around anxiety. But that's what a corruption arc is. Only time will tell if he starts to realize what a jerk he's being, but I certainly didn't show him hesitating after what Desmond said because it went in one ear and out the other. That's definitely going to be living rent free in the back of his mind for now.

[dana-chan-the-control-brain]

I think I realized what an impossible task I have at my job to accomplish, and how the teachers view the library staff as a parasite.

Some of it is my fault.

But in retrospect, it's as if I sneezed loudly at a wrong moment, and now the Staff there treat me like a batman tier war criminal, and it's entirely unfair.

Example and dumb rambles of Teacher staff drama under the cut cus I'm fed up and just making this Tumblr post to vent if anything.

Today, there was a buffet potluck for Teacher staff. So I asked if I could have some. They said yes. But once I had food, they were upset I was eating "teacher staff" food and it wasn't for Library Staff.

They even sent the Elementary Guidance Councilor to tell me this. And they spoke in the same voice that they use for five year olds having a disagreement.

But this wasn't a disagreement, more of a misunderstanding.

I mean, did they think I'd eat the whole potluck? Did they want me to contribute?

I gladly would have. Heck, I could have given the parent teacher association money if that's what this was about.

I know why they treat me this way. It's because I took a few small foods from the PTO breakroom in the past without paying for them. Planning to pay back once I got my paycheck. (I'm not the only one to do this. The few teachers who I am friendly with do this all the time and assured me it was fine.)

This was over five months ago and I have since payed back the money, apologized for my mistake and misunderstanding, and have been trying to move on. As my job revolves around having good working relationship with the staff there.

So I will admit fault for my slip ups of work related hunger and poverty.

I can take responsibility for my actions, and I have sense been trying to build my relationships up since.

What I didn't appreciate was that they told me I was allowed to potluck functions, something I double checked and asked about, and made sure it was absolutely okay for me to have this food, which they said alright, then got mad when I took a small amount of food, locked me out of the breakroom, despite me having a key, and treated me like a war criminal or a Snorlax that'll eat the whole damn potluck.

Not to mention, my boss also wants me to "come up with something" to organize the library in a new way.

When they admitted personally that they don't know what they want.

So I don't know what to research.

But since I'm on probation on yet another job, I will get fired if I don't find or come up with something they want by the end of the month.

The task is impossible.

Partially self inflicted. I know I did some of this myself. But I don't think it's all self inflicted. I think it's also part of the Teacher Staff being very catty and clichey and just treating the library staff like unwanted parasites or outsiders.

And I don't think I deserve a lot of the isolation that they put me though. (I either have a choice of eating in the hallway where the library is located or a broom closet these days. And yes, the superintendent was the one who made this "compromise" so their food doesn't get "stolen" Granted, the custodians can't use the breakroom now either.... But the substitutes can.)

Either I'll quit or be fired by the end of the year.

I think I'm too autistic to have a job where building relationships and have everyone like you be part of my job description.

I feel I'm too autistic for a job anymore in general.

Anyway, long story short:

Me: oh cool. Nice food. Can I have some?

Them: sure.

Me: (eating) them: no, no. Bad girl. That's teacher food.