#whether i want to do both those things or just one .

[boreal-sea]

Nothing in my post is actually explicitly Zionist. I didn’t even say whether or not I’m Zionist.

I just said that people might want to check themselves if the idea of lynching Jews gives them pause but the idea of lynching “Zionists” doesn’t.

What is your definition of an ethnostate? What is the cut-off percentage of one race? 60%? 70%? More?

What is the racial makeup of Israel?

How do other countries such as Ireland or China NOT fulfill that definition? Or do you consider China and Ireland to be ethnostates, and thus immoral?

Did you know you’re misinformed about the Ethiopian Jews and you’re spreading antisemitic lies?

Jewish Ethiopian women were offered Depo Provera when in transition camps in Ethiopia on their way to Israel. Others were offered the shots once they reached Israel. Depo Provera is a very helpful form of both control in non-ideal situations for multiple reasons, especially the fact that it lasts several months and lightens your period, both things that would make a difficult journey easier. These were administered by a mix of medical personnel, many of whom weren’t Israelis.

Every single woman who received the shot was able to get pregnant afterwards. That’s a pretty ineffective sterilization attempt if every single one of them got pregnant.

Now it is absolutely true that some of the women who received the injection didn’t know what it was and that is ABSOLUTELY a failure of the system and a failure of communication. But those women did eventually receive the proper information, were able to stop taking it, and those who wanted, got pregnant. Again, this was not a sterilization attempt in any way.

Like. I don’t know if I’m a Zionist or not and I don’t actually use that word because I’m not done with my conversion yet. I also didn’t talk about proportions of anti-Zionists to Zionists in this post, so I’m not sure why you’re accusing me of erasing anyone.

Israel as a state exists. People live there. Forcibly removing people from their homes is wrong. It would be wrong to forcibly remove every American of European descent from the USA, and we’re actually colonizers.

I actually fully support the Palestinian right to return. I think Israel needs to work out some way to accommodate and embrace Palestinians that were forced out during the Nakba. Much like Land-Back in the USA, this should be a peaceful, cooperative thing that doesn’t involve forcibly removing anyone from their homes. Yes, that means it’s probably going to take a long time.

I think the illegal Israeli settlers in the West Bank, however, should absolutely be forcibly removed. In some cases they MURDERED people to steal those homes. It is internationally recognized they are breaking the law. Even Israel admits this. So they need to go, right now.

I think Israel should absolutely pay to rebuild Gaza. They should house Palestinian refugees until the process is complete.

I don’t know what the best step forward is for the peace process right now. Both sides want impossible things from each other.

None of that is going to happen while Trump is in power, unfortunately.

The moment for thinking “what would I have done in Germany before and during Hitler’s reign” is over. Look back over the past two years. What did you do? What did you think and feel?

Did your opinion about Jews change?

If you went from supporting all Jews to thinking that a least some Jews, (namely “Zionists” or “Israelis”) deserve suffering, exile, and/or death, then you fell for modern antisemitic propaganda, and you would’ve fallen for it in Nazi Germany, too.

Maybe you would blink if the police today started rounding up the Jews in your neighborhood, or smashing synagogues, or arresting Jews off the streets. But would you feel better about it if they call them Zionists or Israelis? They’re not arresting “good Jews”, they’re arresting Zionists, to make them pay for their crimes.

It’s not too late to fix that, though. You can come back from being sucked into antisemitism. You can do better going forward.

[lovelyyandereaddictionpoint]

Yandere Eldritch Ex-Husband ///////

Your now ex-husband is incredibly surprised when the authorities are dispatched to your new house when he enters. Thinking nothing of it he broke the knob of your new home, thinking after all that time talking with the judge over some foreign topic you’d both be settling into the new place. Turns out this ‘divorce’-thing and ‘restraining order’-stuff meant something after all. That he couldn’t be with you and the baby.

“Wait, the dee - force means I don’t get to come home? What–?”

“Sir, if you give me trouble it’ll only hurt your chances of seeing your kid more.”

“Wait I can’t see him? (Y/n)! (Y/n)-honey, please!”

“Sir, please put your hands behind your back.”

The only reason he doesn’t suck their brains out through their noses+ fight more is because he’s so devastated as he thinks about how in the dark about cruel-human-practices. Only now does it register that when you were oh-so cutely crying about leaving, you weren’t talking about a late night run to the store to satisfy your cravings. That the word he had dismissed as something you wanted to buy was actually an action. An action that meant he’d be deprived of the most important person in his life.

“Hello?”

“......I did not understand before….but I understand now.”

“Kilton? You know a restraining order extends to calls, right?”

“IM nOt LetTInG yOu go—”

Click.

“Creep.”

As he reluctantly uses the resources proposed to him, to argue for custody he has time to think about when you first mentioned the word. But the more he replays those heavenly moments with you he realizes how often your brow was scrunched and a vein was popping from that kissable forehead. It’s then that your ex-husband begins to realize just how little he was actually listening to you. Ashamed, he’s realized that while he finds all your actions absolutely irresistible it didn’t mean you were happy. And he really had no one to blame but himself.

“Hello this is Kilton (L/n) if you have a message leave it at the tone….beep.”

“Hey I hope I got the right number but I need your help with the baby….there’s stuff going on that I have no idea how to deal with. I won’t call the police or tell anyone..I just need….some help. And you're the only one who can give it to me.”

“OF COURSE i’LL BE RIGht oVER!”

“Wait you never set up your voicemai—”

When you left your husband, you were tired of being so confused all the time. Your husband, your best friend was keeping you in the dark for a long time now. Starting from the occasionally odd behavior you’d witness him do, that he’d brush off as if it were nothing. Like the doors in the house that have begun to open to alternate dimensions (that’s what you believe but your husband will not explain in any way) ignoring your concerns and calling you being ‘silly.’ It was annoying but you hadn’t died yet so it wasn’t that bad…until you got pregnant.

“How can this be?”

“Yippee I told you, that one took!”

“No, I literally can’t.”

“Of course, you can babe, you already are look at your little bump.”

“No like I literally can’t this is unbelievable.”

Whether you physically can and were vigilant in prevention or you physically should not be able to conceive matters not. You are pregnant. Or you were. And while dealing with the intense hormones and birthing pains and gravity-defying phenomena happening in your home, your ex-husband would explain nothing. Doing nothing but smile wistfully at you while you demanded to know why the fridge was inching closer every time you turned the corner. Any sane person could only handle so much of his pretend assurances that you were just losing your mind. 

But hindsight 20/20 you should’ve known you couldn’t get rid of your eldritch ex-husband with your eldritch baby. 

“Hey you left the door unlocked, so I let myself in. Babe, you can’t be doing that it’s really unsa–the furniture doesn’t look at all like it did before.”

“Of course it doesn’t! Because your son has decided to rearrange it with his humming!” 

“That’s not a hum, Love. He’s singing a hymn of Utter Chaos–”

“I DON’T CARE WHAT IT IS MAKE HIM STOP.”

As you suspected the root of all the inexplicable happenings in your life were because of your ex-husband and by extension the little bundle that has been doing all sorts of things a normal baby shouldn’t. Like humming the ‘utter chaos song’ or making supplies float over to you while changing him or how at the end of his bath the water turns red and evaporates in an echo of screams. It’s just a little alarming.

“Where is the baby?”

“In that other dimension.”

“Excuse me?”

“Isn’t that something familiar to you? Every now and then he just goes into this other dimension that let’s his laugh morph the walls a little.”

“Oh my. That’s new for me too.”

Surprisingly despite your husband’s now-confirmed-eldritch-heritage he’s not an exact expert on everything his son does. Apparently no one from his world/dimension/atternate plane of existence does everything your son does and is blissfully writing off as something from your side of the family. He’ll shrug and use the opportunity to listen to you list the observations you’ve made about your darling offspring and maybe compliment you on your vigilance as a new unfortunately single parent. Don’t worry it won’t be that way for long!+

“So the blood water thing. It happens whenever he interacts with water.”

“Oh I know that one it’s an old habit of mine, for storing water for later!”

“What about the metal-eating?”

“Metal eating? With no teeth? Beats me must have gotten a taste from all those utensils you’re so fond of. By the way parenthood looks good on you have I told you that?”

As he becomes more of a constant presence in your home, there's a startling change in your baby boy’s behavior. It doesn’t stop but it’s a lot less destructive. Finally, you could have the delivery crew enter the yard without them being swallowed by the portal to your son’s crib. Finally, you can afford to have a couple-hour meet and greet with your family without anyone inexplicably sprouting horns. So reluctantly you let him back into your life with very specific conditions.

“You can’t stay the night.”

“Aww but aren’t you worried about me going home in the dark?”

“I know you’re not just some helpless human, so no. Second rule no kissing or lovey dovey things with me.”

“Got it. So vague I can work with that.”

“And finally–”

“EEEKK! WHAT DID HE DO TO MY BABY!?”

“Oh guess someone’s up from their nap.”

“I’ll distract her with a ring to her doorbell, you change back the dog.”

“As always, please try to turn down her invites for dinner this time. I don’t think I can spare her if she upsets him again.”

“No promises!”

Kilton realizes that what he has with you doesn’t mean he’s equally let back into your life, especially since so many other couples ailed by this (dee)force co-parent more or less the same so he’s got his work cut out for him. He’ll have to finally get over his listening issue while worming his way back into your heart! And don’t worry he definitely will!

[miyaz6ki]

i might let you make me juno ✰

synopsis. literally the title, each are just small drabbles though :)! 1 kink i think they would have, as well as something they'd dislike(?), idrk what I'll put since I make these before I write 😭

the blade has spoken. i forgot to post yesterday :sob: rb for pt 2 ORR FOR MORE OF MY SUPER DUPER SICK CONTENT!!

pairings. albedo, alhaitham, capitano, childe, wriothesley, diluc, neuvillette

warnings. NSFW, mdni please!! sex :pensive:, although some are fluffier than others!, lwk hatefucking in alhaitham's (academic rivals to lovers), corruption kink (capitano's), vision play w diluc (not rly my main point), cockwarming,

albedo, who already has you placed right in front of him, legs spread as he kneels before you. although he glanced at the beauty in front of him, his eyes would tell a million words, the ones he couldn't speak. in general, whatever you were into, so was he.

the alchemist, delving his tongue into real delicacy for the first time, had himself on a chokehold, every now and then gazing back up to the figure he loved the most, pleasured by what he was doing. fuck he loved you so much. the taste had him hypnotized, he could probably do this forever.

every minute that passed, he felt himself falling in love over and over again. holding your thighs closer to the sides of his face, he could feel how much pleasure he gave.

alhaitham, who has you pinned to the wall, your chest pressed up against the surface. he held both your wrists in one of his hands, and the other on the left side of your waist. rocking his hips into yours, archons he was so fucking in love with the way you clenched against his member.

as much as he hates you, or says he does, it's really the opposite. he's never met anyone who could get him as mad as he is right now, not anyone could piss him off. he loved it so damn much.

he loved watching your eyes roll back in pleasure, no one else could get him boiling, but no one could ever be this deep inside you like he does, right? he better be. or he'll spend the next nights trying to prove himself right to you. so at least for once he'll win.

capitano loved to absolutely break you. corrupt you. he wanted to make sure you were indefinitely all his. and no one else's. he loved seeing those cute little tears of yours roll down your cheeks, whining about how you can't take it when both of you know you can!

you're all his, right? hopefully, and rightfully so, because no one as big as him would ever please your little hole now. but he supposes that something should make up for the pain you feel whenever he enters, it should be the pleasure, and somewhat comfort he can attempt to give.

so he lets you pick whatever position you wanted, and honestly, his favorite while letting you choose was whatever position he could see you the most in. especially when it includes your pretty little face. he wants to see how good he makes you feel <3

he always has his hands on you it feels so dirty. but childe has no excuse for himself, his only purpose is to make sure others know how to fuck off from what's only supposed to be his, it's not your fault, nor his, but he just has the indefinite need to show you off. whether it'd be how the marks all over your collarbone would be the prettiest!

he knows it hurts, but for now, just endure it, and he'll make sure to take care of it later. he makes sure to kiss it all away anyway, no matter how deep inside he might be, you're his reason to fight, his reason to live and come back home for another day with you.

oh well, he dreams of starting a nice little family with you. coming home to you and your two.. maybe three children? you'll both figure it out later. after he finishes inside you, his rough hands, which bruised your hips with small, little crescents ingrained into your skin. oh he's already planning the names!

wriothesley is generally turned on by any position he could see you in. similarly to capitano, but the thing is... he much prefers seeing how his cock imprints itself in your stomach.

sure your expressions are pretty cute, but nothing better than seeing you throw your head back, trying to ride his big member when you know you need help from him! all you have to do is say please...

if you didn't, he'd simply watch the show. watch you trying to take him all at once, and only hurting yourself more by trying to take what you can't (without his assistance). and in which he simply.. takes control himself, and helps you slowly sink onto his shaft instead. of course whole holding your hand!

diluc who uses his vision to his advantage, his hands already over your chest, as the temperature of his palm rises slowly, while letting you cockwarm him.

whether it's while he's writing, and signing away paperwork for the wine business, and his other hand over one of your nipples, or if all his attention is focused on you, watching how you react with a VIP seat, which would be taken literally as you sat on his dick.

a teasing touch from one of his fingers would rub against the spot where his cock was snug inside you, infused with a bit of warmth with the help of his vision.

neuvillette who's instincts get to him, as he watches your reaction through the pristine, crystal mirror in front of you both. it was a gift from his daughter figure—furina.

dear archons, please do forgive him for using her gift in such a.. filthy way, but nothing gets him going like seeing you stare at yourself be pleasured so well by none other than himself. his head fitting in the crook of your neck as he only turns himself on more, only reaching even deeper with his shaft inside you.

and wow he couldn't even wait for the main course tonight, for someone who's very knowledgeable on the taste of water from every region—he much preferred whatever substances you could make.

[viviwah]

CHOI SU-BONG (THANOS) - BEST FRIEND

warnings: f!reader, unprotected sex (creampie), slight oral (m receiving), smut + fluff, smau (takes place outside of the games), mentions of drugs, friends to lovers??

a/n: i’ve been seeing so many smau’s and now i’m obsessed ^^

sum: after finding out your boyfriend was nothing but an unfaithful piece of sh*t, your best friend comes over to comfort you.

You sat on your living room couch, legs crossed and mind wandering. You contemplated on whether or not you should call your boyfriend, Nam-Gyu, for the 3rd time tonight. Yeah, he worked late some nights since he was a promoter at Club Pentagon, but you had a feeling that tonight he was busy doing something other than work. You let out a deep sigh and reached for your phone, clicking on his contact, and calling him. You waited patiently and anxiously as the phone rang. It only took a few seconds before someone picked up. Your heart raced.

“Hello?”

The voice of a woman could be heard from the other side of the phone. Your brows furrowed as you pulled your phone away from your ear, double checking to see if you clicked onto the right contact and you did.

“Uh, who’s this?”

“Who are you? You’re the one who’s calling MY boyfriend.”

“Your boyfriend?” you scoffed.

“I guess he’s been lying to both of us.”

“Wh-”

With a swift click, you ended the call, leaving whoever that girl was, dumbfounded. You couldn’t believe what you had just heard. Her boyfriend? Your heart sank and it felt like the world around you began to close in on you. Your breath hitched as tears started to fill your eyes, you shut them, allowing the warm, salty, tears to rush down your cheeks. You knew something was off with Nam-Gyu, especially since for the past month he’d been coming home late, not responding to your texts, and not returning any of your calls. Honestly speaking, it was gonna happen sooner or later. He was a club promoter after all, meaning that he was always surrounded by loads of half naked women and nine times out of ten, he and the women he encountered were under the influence. Being on drugs is no excuse for cheating though, you knew that and you weren’t trying to justify his actions, you just wanted to come to a conclusion.

Why would he ever cheat on you?

You’ve been nothing but good to him for the entirety of your relationship. When he needed a shoulder to cry on, you were there. When he didn’t feel seen or heard, you were there to make him feel both of those things. You weren’t able to come to a conclusion just now and you didn’t want to spend your night crying over spilled milk so you just decided to forget about it for now. You wiped away your tears with the ends of your sweatshirt and grabbed your phone again, this time to text your best friend, Su-Bong, since he always knew how to cheer you up.

You laughed to yourself before shutting your phone off. Su-Bong was a pro at making light out of the darkest situations and that’s why you loved him. You decided to freshen up a bit before he came, changing into some cozy pj’s and just as you made your way back into the living room, the sound of knocking could be heard at your front door. You made your way over to the front door and opened it, revealing your best friend, Su-Bong, who quickly made his way into your home.

“Hi, Señorita.” he flashed a smile and raised his hands that held two bags. “Got your favorites.”

“Thanks, you’re the sweetest.” you smiled to him, watching as he placed the bags onto the table in your kitchen.

“So, what happened?” he questioned, opening a bag of gummy worms and stuffing his face.

You let out a sigh before going into full detail to explain the events that took place about an hour ago.

“Wow, he’s worse than I thought.” his face that was once full of excitement, was now blank and his eyes were full of hatred.

“Tell me about it.” you scoffed as you made your way over to the couch, throwing yourself onto it.

Su-Bong followed behind you, taking a seat on the couch as well.

“I always thought he was too ugly for you anyway.” he let out a light chuckle and you quickly slapped him on the shoulder.

“What?!”, he pouted.

“That’s mean.” you rolled your eyes.

“He’s mean for cheating on you!” he argued.

It had been exactly three hours since Su-Bong came over and most of that time was spent watching movies, making jokes, and trolling your ex. You were having the time of your life with your best friend, almost forgetting that you were going through a breakup. You look over to him, watching as his eyes were glued onto the TV. Su-Bong was so effortlessly attractive and he always made you feel heard which was something that Nam-Gyu failed to do. You wondered what a relationship with him would be like.

STOP.

Why were you thinking like that about your best friend?

Were you starting to catch feelings for him? Were you just now realizing that the love of your life had been in front of your face this entire time?

“What you thinking about, Señorita?”

The sound of his voice rang throughout your ears, ripping you away from your inappropriate thoughts.

“Nothing.” you replied calmly.

“If you’re still thinking about that manwhore, I can help you take your mind off of him. Only if you’ll let me.” he spoke softly as he trailed his hand over your shoulder.

Your eyes met his and in that moment, you realized you could no longer hold back the feelings you had for him. Your arms wrapped around him and you pulled him in for a kiss and as your lips touched his, your eyes widened, and you suddenly pulled away. You realized that what you’d just done was wrong and you attempted to apologize.

“I’m s—”

Your apology was cut short as you were interrupted by Su-Bong’s lips clashing against yours. I guess the feelings you had for him were mutual. At first you were hesitant but soon, you gave in, melting underneath his touch. His hands trailed up and down your body as he kissed you passionately. The kiss that started off so innocently was quickly turned into an aggressive make out session and as the two of you shared sloppy kisses, Su-Bong began playing with the buttons of your pajama top. He pulled away from your lips before speaking.

“Can I take this off for you?”

You nodded in response and he wasted no time, immediately unbuttoning your shirt and throwing it onto your bedroom floor. He eyed your boobs, admiring them, even though they were still confined within your bra. You made your way onto his lap and began trailing your lips along his neck, leaving behind a few faint hickeys. Su-Bong’s hands trailed up your bare back and in one swift movement, he unclasped your bra, throwing it onto to floor alongside your shirt. His hands then rested on your now bare boobs, giving them a light squeeze. You let out a light moan into his ear and trailed your hands down to the waistband of his sweatpants, you pulled lightly before being stopped.

“Are you sure you wanna do this?” his eyes met yours, softening as he questioned you.

“Yes, I’m sure.” you gave a light nod as you spoke.

He then slid his sweatpants and underwear off, encouraging you to do the same. You watched as his thick cock sprang up, almost touching his bellybutton. You wrapped your hand around it and then began moving your hand up and down, drawing light groans from Su-Bong.

“Fuck.” he cursed under his breath.

You smirked, fastening your movements and watching as pre-cum started to leak from the tip of his cock. Your warm tongue licked up his shaft before reaching his tip and once your tongue reached his tip, it moved swiftly, licking up all of his pre-cum. You then opened your mouth, wrapping it around the tip of his cock as you moved your head down slowly, attempting to take every inch of him down your throat. Su-Bong felt like he was in heaven, he groaned loudly as he felt your warm mouth wrap tightly around his thick cock, it was enough to make his eyes roll into the back of his head. His hands soon became tangled in your hair as he forced himself further down your throat.

“Enough of this, I want to be inside you already. Let me make you feel better than he ever did.”

Su-Bong instructed you to lay on your back so you did just that and watched as he teased your wet pussy with his fingers, running circles around your clit and sliding one finger in, just to take it out immediately. Your back arched up slightly as you moaned and he loved this, he loved seeing you so weak under his touch. After teasing you for what felt like hours, he finally slid his thick cock inside of your warm and plump pussy, stretching you out. Your lips parted immediately, forcing your moans to flow out like a waterfall. Su-Bong eyed your entire body as he began thrusting into you, slowly, before picking up the pace and thrusting into you quickly and roughly. Your moans grew louder as he thrusted into you faster by the second, resting one of his hands against your right boob and squeezing your nipple as his free hand rubbed circles around your clit, forcing your eyes to roll back into your head.

Who knew he’d be this good in bed?

“Does it feel good?” he questioned in a whisper before leaning into you and kissing onto your neck.

“Y-Yes, it feels so good.” you responded.

“Even better than the way he made you feel?” Su-Bong questioned again, still thrusting into your tight pussy roughly.

You nodded, unable to speak to due to the overwhelming pleasure.

“Let me hear you say it.” his fingers moved faster around your clit as his thrusts slowed.

“You make me feel way better than he ever did.” you admitted, locking eyes with him.

He pulled you in for a kiss and started thrusting into you deeper than he did before and a familiar feeling began to wash over you, one that you haven’t felt in a while. Your pussy gushed, tightening around Su-Bong’s cock as a tight coil began to form in your lower abdomen, signaling that your orgasm was near.

“I’m gonna cum.” you whispered, moaning lightly.

Hearing this only encouraged Su-Bong to fasten his pace and deepen his strokes, his number one priority right now was making you feel good and he was doing a damn good job. Your walls tightened around him once again and he groaned loudly as his cock began to twitch inside of you, he was close too. He tried pulling away but you stopped him.

“Cum inside of me, please.”

He nodded and thrusted into you once again, forcing that coil that had built in your lower abdomen to unravel. Your pussy tightened around him again before you coated his cock in your juices. His cock twitched one last time before pumping you full of his cum. He slid his cock out of your pussy and watched as his cum began to drip out of you slowly.

“I love you, (yourname).” he breathed out, giving you a soft smile.

“I love you more, Su-Bong.” you smiled.

[dnpbeats]

Dan and Phil/IRL Merch Survey Results!!

Hi phannies 💞 sorry it took me so long to get these results out! There was a lot of data and it took me a while to get everything together and then type this post up ;,) firstly I just want to give a big shoutout to everyone who participated in this survey!!

DISCLAIMER: as I said in my original post asking for responses, this survey is just for fun/personal interest. while I have done my best to present the data in a fair way, please also keep in mind this is not my profession. I also acknowledge that the data is more than likely inherently biased as people with strong opinions are more likely to fill things like this out <3 also, a note on sample size: I was originally hoping to compare the answers of people who own merch vs. those that do not. however, I ended up getting very few responses from people who do not own merch. therefore, it would be unfair of me to compare the two groups of people. instead I will present comparisons of people who own merch who haven't had any issues, and those who own merch who have had issues. at the end I will include the data of people that don't own merch just because I have it, but it is not meant to have conclusions drawn from it in comparison to the other data!! this post is going to get long so results are under the cut <33

General Info

Total respondents: 443

Respondents who own merch: 416 (205 with no issues, 211 with issues)

Respondents who do not own merch: 27

100% of respondents who own merch bought at least one item directly from IRL. While the survey was open to people who bought merch from other IRL shops besides Dan and Phil's, every response I got was from a Dan and Phil fan. (For transparency's sake, I did not actively reach out to any other fandoms as I didn't want to skew the data by reaching out to some fans but not others.)

Results – Overall (all 443 responses)

The majority of people have neutral feelings towards IRL Merch. A strong positive opinion of the company was more common than a strong negative opinion.

Most people feel there is adequate information for product descriptions/photos and size information/guides on IRL's shops' websites. Most people feel neutrally towards detailed product information and shop contact information.

(Cut-off label reads, "I knew they were involved somehow, but did not realized they fully owned it.")

The majority of people knew that Dan, Phil, and Martyn own IRL. "Other" (3 responses) consists of two people who knew Martyn owned it but not that Dan and Phil did, and one person who used to know but forgot. (Note: one respondent said they learned Dan/Phil/Martyn owned IRL through this survey question. Their answer has been counted as a "no.")

(Cut-off label reads, "Unsure/I have no opinion on this/I haven't been here long enough to tell.")

Most people are either unsure or have no opinion as to whether or not Dan and Phil's interest/investment in their merch has changed. A little less than twice as many people believe their investment has changed for the better, as opposed to changed for the worse.

The question "Do you feel that Dan and Phil’s interest/investment in their merch has changed over the years?" compared by year the respondent started watching. (Recognize that this graph is adjusted so that each year is represented at 100%. The total number of respondents for each year can be found at the top of each column.)

Results – Those who have merch (416 responses)

For both those with no merch issues and those with issues, the majority of people have neutral feelings towards IRL Merch. On average, people with no issues have a slightly more positive opinion than those who have had issues.

(As a reminder, "mode" is the most common answer given!)

Just over half of respondents with merch have had issues with their merch (211 out of 416). Of people with issues, the average amount of items they had issues with was 1.93 items.

On average, people with issues had problems with 25.5% of their merch items. The most common percentage of merch people had issues with was 20%. (Note that since this graph is only taking data from people who have had issues, the "Less than 20%" column does NOT include those who had issues with 0% of their merch.)

For both people with and without issues, the majority did not have strong opinions towards Dan and Phil's interest/investment in their merch over the years. For people with no issues, nearly three times as many people felt as though their interest had changed for the better compared to changed for the worse. For people with issues, it was split almost evenly.

The two above charts show the answers to the same question, one overall and one split into people with and without issues. On average, people with no issues gave a slightly higher rating for the quality of merch than those with no issues.

*Excludes answers from those with one item and those who gave a rating for high but not low (and vice-versa)

For both people with and without issues, the majority selected that they did not have enough items/had not been around long enough to tell if the quality has changed. For people without issues, the second-most common opinion was that the quality has not changed. For people with issues, the second-most common opinion was that the quality has gotten worse.

"In your opinion, has the overall quality of the merch changed throughout the years?" shown sorted by year the respondent started watching (same format as the previous "by year" graph!).

Results – Those who had issues with merch (211 responses)

(Cut-off labels read, "Defective item (misprinted/print was defective/ripped or broke easily/etc)" and "Problems with shipping (item was never delivered/order was stuck and there was no info/tracking information was not correct/etc).")

For this question, people were asked to select issues they have had with any of their merch. Over half the people with issues had problems with their merch generally being low-quality. Note that for some people this was the only issue they cited, whereas for others it was one of multiple issues. "Other" responses included things like issues with sizing, issues with print coming off, and receipt of incorrect items in their orders. (Also, "not mutually exclusive" means that people could select more than one answer :3)

Those who reached out to customer service about their issues (77 responses)

"Other" responses include things like someone else (i.e. a parent) reaching out on their behalf (so they did not know the details) and having the issue resolved in person (e.g. people with issues with tour merch had the issue resolved in person, at the venue).

(Cut-off labels read, "Yes, but with problems (had to send multiple emails/took a long time to receive a reply or item/etc)" and "No (I got a response, but not one I wanted.")

"Other" responses include five people who have had issues recently enough that they are still actively waiting for a response and one person who had some issues resolved but not others.

Most people (48 people, 62.3%) did not have an opinion as to whether or not customer service quality has changed. For those that did have an opinion (29 people), the vast majority felt as though the quality has changed for the worse.

Those who did not reach out to customer service (134 responses)

Bonus Results – People who do not own merch (27 responses)

(Cut-off label reads, "I do not like the designs/the items are things I would not wear or use.")

Forgot to say on this graph, but these options are not mutually exclusive!

And that's the end! Hopefully you found this as interesting as I did <3 Please let me know if you have any questions or need/want any clarification on the data! :)

P.S. I do have written responses for some questions (Does knowing D&P own IRL affect your opinion, more details about issues with merch/customer service, more details about people's feelings towards IRL). I couldn't decide how I wanted to include them in this post so for now I'm just not adding them. But if people are interested in seeing those, let me know and I will find some way to include the answers that people consented to being shared! :)

[butlervibesonly]

Hi love! I hope you’re doing well. Can I request a headcannon with Austin x reader about their love languages? Maybe they both enjoy physical touch and words of affirmation, but the reader also enjoys quality time? Basically a bunch of fluff lol.

I love your work, it’s amazing!! Thank you sm 😊

𝐿𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑢𝑎𝑔𝑒𝑠 | Austin Butler headcannon

•Pairing: Austin Butler x female reader

• Warnings: bunch of fluff

• Note: Hi dear! Thank you so much! I love this idea and goshhhhh how I wish I could experience those! Enjoy! 🤍

• Both yours and Austin’s love languages are words of affirmation and physical touch. And yours is also quality time. And these three combined? Heaven.

• When the two of you started dating, you loved the fact you both share the same love language, and Austin couldn’t help but notice how much you love quality time together and he did and does whatever it takes to achieve that.

• You both LOVE watching movies. And while watching movies together, what could be better than cuddling during it? Either you or him would hold each other in arms, rub soothing circles to one another’s back, occasionally stealing some kisses.

• Austin’s significant gesture is definitely holding hands in public. He has to feel your touch whether it’s just walking through the park or shopping together. He feels protectiveness over you and needs to know that you’re his. 🤭 He would also hold your hand at any public event such as awards. Austin would never let go of your hand.

• What he also loves to do are massages and back rubs. When at home, he would sit behind you and give you the best massage you could ever wish for. And when at public (also at home) he would rub your back and so would you.

• Austin would do any kind of playful touches. He can start tickling you in the middle of cuddling or playfully ruffling your hair (which he would then brush to normal form, because he knows how much work you have with your hair 🤭).

• The thing you both definitely do is sleeping tangled up. Neither him nor you would fall asleep without at least some physical contact. He would spoon you, hold you, let you sleep on his chest, … And so would you, cuddle him, cling onto him just to feel his presence.

• The cute gesture between you would be definitely small kisses from time to time. He would press small kisses on your forehead, on the top of your head, on your hand, cheek. Anywhere. And you would just pepper his face with kisses until he is giggling and laughing!

• When it comes to words of affirmation, you two would definitely text each other during the day when you are not together. It would be texts like “How was your day?” or “I love you!❤️" or “I can’t wait to come home and see you!”

• Austin would remind you how beautiful you are any time. In the morning, during the night, before you go to sleep. He would whisper how beautiful goddess you are at the awards while wearing absolutely gorgeous dress. And you would also tell him how handsome he is to you!

• Daily “I love yous”. Cmon, what day would it be if either of you didn’t tell each other I love you. Austin would just randomly go and say “I love you” or he could just stare at you and say “I love you” while doing the most random thing like cooking.

• Verbal appreciation would be also really important for you. Reminders how much you mean to each other, how much you appreciate each other… I can imagine him saying “You make my life so much better,” or “You are the best thing that ever happened to me.” 🥹

• We all know Austin love letters. That would be his thing. He would write you those little letters and give it to your birthday, anniversary or Valentines. Or just when whenever he wants and feels like so. (He would definitely end each letter with “Your Austin” ���🫶🏼)

• Thing you would do the most is complimenting each other’s personality. Completing looks is beautiful, but character? “I love how kind you are.” or even “I adore how caring you are.”

• Lovely nicknames!! He would call you love, darling, sweetheart, baby, dear, and you would call him honey, love, babe, and my sweet boy which he doesn’t admit but love so much!

• You two would definitely go on walks together. Either to city or nature, park or garden… Just anywhere where you can be together!

• Cooking or baking together! You guys would cook dinner, or he would help you with baking. Just imagine that: flour everywhere but in the dough, but laughing and eating together would be worth it.

• When Austin would find some free time in bus busy acting schedule you guys would use the time to do various of activities. Weekend getaways, playing board games together, paint together, do pottery, watching movies. Anything.

• READING TOGETHER. You two would be splayed on the bed or couch, he would lay his head in your lap or conversely, and you would read together, and quote some cheesy lines. “Romeo, oh Romeo! Wherefore art thou, Romeo?”

• You guys would try new hobbies together! Who doesn’t want to try new sports or maybe doing origami? (He would surely teach you to do the napkin rose!!)

• Coffee shop dates with deep conversations – Just sitting together, sipping drinks, and talking about life. God’s…. Take my money… imagine gossiping with him once things go unserious.

[shiro-s2e2-erukinzu]

Anime only watchers and people who aren't caught up with the Manga, BEWARE... Cuz I'm about to discuss Spy X Family Mission 112 (Part 2)... You have been warned...! 👌

[SPOILERS AHEAD FROM THIS POINT ON]

THIS CHAPTER WAS JUST TOO FREAKING HILARIOUS...!!! 😂😂😂 I HONESTLY COULD NOT STOP LAUGHING!! 👏🤣👏🤣👏🤣👏🤣

My goodness, the absolute goofiness of Part 2 of Mission 112 was truly OVER 9000!!! 🗣 So let's talk about it, shall we...? 👌😌

Since this chapter IS a two-parter, of course it would pick up right where we left off last time with Tertius and the kid with his eyes closed (whose name we learn is Freddy by the end of this chapter 😁) about to engage in a "duel"...! 😌

But before that happens, the other students recognize Anya as the one who stopped the bus hijacking, and so she steps up to the plate to put end to this conflict...!! 👌😎

OH MY GOSH ANYA, YOU'RE TOO MUCH! 🤣

Anya then goes over to Freddy and tells him that she's here to help him get that booger off of Tertius' face, which makes Freddy very thankful for Anya's help...!! 😆 Anya prepares for her attack to grab the booger, but then...:

THIS GIRL I SWEAR! 😂(But honestly, I don't blame Anya for not wanting to touch someone else's booger!!👌😌)

Then, we get probably the funniest thing in this chapter (to me at least...):

THAT IMAGE OF ANYA JUST STRAIGHT UP BEAT THE SHIT OUT OF BILLY SQUIRE IS HONESTLY PEAK COMEDY TO ME!! 👏🤣👏🤣👏🤣👏🤣👏🤣

Also Anya, I think that you are pretty close to being THAT violent...!! 👌😌

After that hilarious sequence, Tertius tries to stop Anya by being chivalrous and gift her a flower, but...:

HE JUST GAVE ANYA A WAY TO GET RID OF THE BOOGER!!! 👏😂

(This chapter is gonna be the death of me for just how FUCKING HILARIOUS IT IS!! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣)

After Tertius thinks back to his training to become strong enough to deal other nations, he's ready to fight back against Anya, then...:

ANYA GOES FOR THE KILL!! (I mean, Anya tries to remove the booger...!! 👌😎)

As Anya tries to MURDER get rid of the booger on Tertius' face, she suddenly gets a crick in her neck a let's go of the flower and it successfully knocks the booger off!! 😆 Then, Freddy comes in clutch to get rid of the evidence and SAVES HIS SKIN!!! 👏👏👏

And after The Booger Incident, both Freddy and Tertius have seemingly become friends with Anya, and that makes me so happy!! 😄

But, someone might've just gotten the wrong idea about Tertius and Freddy...:

OH MY GOD BECKY!!! 🤣🤣🤣 ALSO, POOR DAMIAN...!! 🤭

And that was Mission 112 (Part 2), it was SO FREAKING HILARIOUS Y'ALL!!! 😂😂😂 My goodness, I can't believe how much this chapter got me busting out laughing, it was such a good time!! 😆

I am so glad that Tertius and Freddy (and possibly Arnold and Connie as well) are chilling with Anya by the end of this chapter because I was hoping that Anya was gonna make new friends, and it looks like that's exactly what just happened...!! 😄 I don't know if or when Becky is gonna realize that her assumption of Anya scoring two boys is wrong, but I do however know that whether Damian thinks that those guys are "together" with Anya or knows that they're just her friends, he's definitely gonna be jealous regardless...!! 😌

I can't wait to see what kind of shenanigans the Eden Kids are gonna get into now with these new kids joining the group!! 😄 So anyway, until the next Mission; take care, be safe out there and be kind to one another...!! SEE Y'ALL NEXT TIME!! 👋😆

[biowaredisasterbisexual]

Okay, so, I see a lot of people talk about “stats” on fics. Here, Reddit, other social media…often in a way that suggests one can gauge quality of a fanwork based on those metrics. Writers using them to try and determine if their work is “good.” Readers using them to filter fics for just the “best” ones. So let’s talk about stats.

And yeah, this is going to be long, so let’s have a cut, but TL;DR:

AO3 stats numbers can, in the aggregate, tell us some things but they cannot tell us the quality of a piece. Authors, stats don’t mean that your writing isn’t good, no matter what the “ratios” are. Readers, stats are poor indicators of fic quality, but you should know that writers are using those numbers as indicators of engagement with and enjoyment of their work; engagement is the encouragement writers use to keep writing.

I’ve read so many posts — on Tumblr, on the AO3 subreddit, fanfiction and writing subreddits, in other social media arenas — by both authors and readers talking about the stats on fics. Wondering if they’re good, or if they aren’t. Lamenting or judging a writer’s skill based purely on those numbers. Using those numbers as a way to filter fics to find the “best” ones. Wondering if writing is even worth doing in the writer’s fandom.

Usually, because of where I hang out, they’re talking about AO3 stats, but I occasionally see stuff about Wattpad in a similar vein. I don’t know Wattpad; I’ve never used it. So I’ll just focus on AO3 here.

So, first things first, I’m not going to tell a fanfic author that they should just not care about their stats. Not because I think stats matter, really, but because I know that’s an impossible ask. If we didn’t want people to read and enjoy our stuff, we wouldn’t post it. I can read my own writing with way less work and effort if I don’t post it, honestly. I post it to share it. So I get that saying “who cares what the stats are” is actively not helpful advice for a demoralized writer and doesn’t encourage participation for readers. So here’s what I’ll say instead about what we can, and more importantly can’t glean, from AO3’s stats as writers, and try to put those AO3 stats in perspective for writers and readers of fanfic alike:

AS A WRITER:

1) Comparison is the thief of joy. If you’re getting engagement with your fic and it makes you happy, try not to dwell on whether other authors are getting more engagement. I know this is a tough one to implement.

2) If you’re going to compare, it needs to be apples to apples, and I see a lot of folks comparing apples to oranges and then feeling let down by that comparison.

2A) Someone writing for the most popular ship in your fandom while you write a rare pair is probably going to get more engagement; not because it’s better, but because more people are going to see it. They will get more hits because more people are filtering for that pairing. That doesn’t mean what you wrote isn’t good or compelling.

2B) This goes even more granular: someone who is in the Neve/Rook tag on AO3 and either excludes M/F or filters for F/F isn’t going to see my fic. And that’s okay; they’re looking for something specific and I’m not writing it. I’m writing M/F Neve/Rook at the moment. The longer a fic is up, the more engagement it’s likely to have gotten, so I need to look at dates. If I were going to compare - and I don’t and shouldn’t for my own sake - M/F Neve/Rook posted within a few days of my post would be what I should compare myself to.

And even then, given that different fics tackle different subjects, have different OCs, etc., it’s still not likely to be truly 1:1.

2C) Multi-chapter fics and long fics get different numbers and ratios of hits/kudos/comments than one-shots. The engagement pattern is different.

2D) Smut/NSFW/Archive Warning fics also tend to get different engagement patterns than fics that don’t have those markers. Some people are concerned about their usernames being linked to those themes/plots/topics. Some readers are smut fiends (and we love that for them). Both these things can skew numbers here.

3) A registered user who is logged in can only kudo once, even if the fic has multiple chapters. Someone can read an entire 27-chapter 200k word novel and love it and only be able to leave a single kudo. Guest users are tracked by IP address, so if their IP address hasn’t changed they too can only kudo a fic one time.

4) The above means that re-readers are often not getting seen in kudo numbers even if they’re your biggest fans.

5) “Hits” counts individual views, but only if outside certain timeframes. If someone reads your fic 5 times in 24 hours it won’t count as 5 hits. However, outside that time box it will register as multiple hits, which may mean you’re getting more hits and no kudos because of re-reads.

6) Engagement from readers is lower across the board. There’s been entire articles about it. It’s not just you, I promise.

7) There is no “hits to kudos” or “kudos to comments” or “hits to comments” ratio that can reliably tell if something is good or not for all the reasons above.

AS A READER:

1) Writers want engagement. Crave it. If an author didn’t want engagement, they wouldn’t post their fanfic. It’s not like they’re getting paid. And it can be incredibly discouraging not to receive any. Writers use those stats numbers - hits, kudos - and those comments to determine if people are looking at and, more importantly, enjoying their work. It’s a way of gauging engagement.

Does that mean a writer is entitled to engagement? No. But if you want an author to keep posting fic, engagement is the way to encourage that. Like I said, I can read my own stuff with much less work if I don’t post.

2) As I said above, a registered user that is logged in (or a guest still on the same IP address) can only kudo a fic once, no matter how many chapters it has or how many times they’ve read it. If you want to show you like a new chapter after you’ve dropped that initial kudo, or show a re-read, you’ll need to comment. Even if it’s just a “❤️” or “have another kudo!”

3) You aren’t bothering writers by commenting on something; really, you’re not. I see so many readers worried that they’ll come across as weird by engaging.

Friend, we’re all weird here. Go for it.

I love when people send me a multi-paragraph comment or kudo 7 of my fics in a single night. (I also love all comments, to be clear. An “OMG” or keysmash is also great. So’s a random one-off kudo.) Don’t worry you’ll annoy the writer. We can turn comments off if we don’t want them.

4) Writing and posting fic is time consuming. There’s the writing itself (already a major labor of love) and, even if there’s no editing or beta-reading, formatting and summarizing and rating and all that. Bare minimum. If there’s editing or beta-reading, now there’s an additional (and often lengthy) part of the process that has very likely meant a time investment not only from the authors but the folks that helped them. Engagement is the only pay they get.

5) To put a finer point on topic 1: Yes, lack of engagement has absolutely ended fics people loved or led writers to stop writing/sharing fanfic at all. I don’t say that to insinuate you owe a writer your engagement, but no one wants to shout into an empty room; if fanfic doesn’t involve participation from both sides, the system does eventually break down.

If you read a fic and don’t kudo or comment, the author has no way to know if you liked it or if you accidentally clicked the wrong link and immediately fled. Writers aren’t mind readers.

If you’re someone who reads a rare pair, this is doubly true. Authors of rare pairs can face a lonely existence in fandom spaces if the readers that read rare pairs don’t engage.

6) Please read the writer’s list to understand why kudos/hits/comments numbers are poor indicators of fic quality.

In Conclusion:

I don’t say all of this to suggest that someone’s feelings about fic stats and engagement levels aren’t valid. Writers, you’re allowed to be frustrated or let down by engagement levels; I’ve been there, and I see you. Readers, I have absolutely been the person that read an author’s entire catalogue of fics and didn’t comment because I didn’t know what to say or if I should (though I’m working on that). Like many people, my earliest days in fandom were spent lurking with the lurkiest among us. I’m not judging. But I think some of this stuff is helpful to remember.

You all make fandom better by your presence. No matter what the numbers are. Be kind to yourselves. And, if you’re ready, maybe throw your writers a kudo or comment. It’ll make their day.

[sl-vega]

📷 CLICK SNAP!

-> synopsis: amateur and aspiring photographer fishii does everything they can to expand their portfolio, whether that be picking up odd projects, doing freelance work, or joining their school's photography club. after a friend of a friend tells them they know guy that can set 'em up with a solid gig with tons of experience. what fishii doesn't expect however, is for it to be an internship with a major fashion magazine team, or for it to involve taking photos of a painfully attractive model that's exactly their age- a certain yukimiya kenyu to be exact. and it's one thing to have an incredibly attractive co-worker that you have a massive crush on, it's another thing when said attractive co-worker transfers to your school! so in a snap and shutter of a camera, yukimiya finds his way into fishii's life and becomes an ever growing presence. both in their camera roll, and heart.

headcanons about click snap!

i personally think this could either be one of those single season anime series that forces you to read the manga to see how the plot goes, or a bit of a slowburn with 2-3 seasons

of course I don't think the slow burn would result from crappy miscommunication (*coughs* kimi ni todoke-) but more so because it would just be a heartfelt story about two people figuring out their feelings?

strangers/co-workers to friends to lovers!

yapper x listener (according to fishii)

they fell first x he fell HARDER trope

i think the first few episodes would be about your experience working as a photographer for yuki, and then slowly realizing you liked him, and then the first season would end with your internship coming to a close but then surprise, surprise, he TRANSFERS TO YOUR SCHOOL-

then the studio leaves season one on a cliffhanger like that and people are waiting with bated breaths for the next one

the next season(s?) are going to contain a bunch of regular romance anime stuff

ie school festival arc, probably a beach episode, and maybe some summer filler etc.

i think it would be around a school festival ep where yuki realizes he likes you? but it's not in a super flustered/in denial type thing

it would be a very sweet admission towards the end of the episode where he's kinda just staring at you from across a room or something where he realizes how much he likes you :D

i think it would be really cute if the series finale would be at the end of the school year during a firework show, and you and Yuki have a little heartfelt confession scene + your first kiss!

then one of your friends gets their hands on your camera and takes a photo of that exact moment, then the show ends with a snapshot of the photograph framed-and maybe with a little epilogue of you and yuki living together after you've graduated <3

ops and eds

openings: kimi ni todoke, message, clear

endings: let me be with you, honey, groovin' magic

playlist/ost

moodboard

thanks for participating fishii! I hope you liked the silly little concept I scrambled together for you <3 @fishii28

-> want something like this for you and your f/o? just head on over to my current event and read the rules!

divider creds to @aquazero

[mercurygray]

Advice for a Long Fic

Someone asked me recently for advice about writing a long fic, and I started making a list before realizing this was probably a post rather than a message.

I know I've said most of this before, and none of it is new advice. As with any advice, take what you think will serve you and leave what you think will not. Everyone's process is different.

-*-

Start a new folder in the place where you save your things. This is your new big project folder. You are going to save all the things here.

Decide whether you are going to write the whole thing and then post it, or post it as you go. There are benefits to both of these approaches. I am a post it as you go person, and I have friends who think this is the dumbest approach imaginable. It is whatever works for you and causes less anxiety.

I have a spreadsheet for all of my characters. While I didn't reference it too often while I was writing, the act of making the document helped solidify people in my mind a little. It was also nice to have in case you felt like doing an askbox game on a slow day.

Come up with a naming convention for the things in the big project folder. When your chapter is 'done' it should be switched to the naming convention. Mine was Darkening Sky - Working Chapter Title (for things that were still in progress) and Darkening Sky - 35 - Chapter Title for things that I'd finished. This helped me find things later after I'd been working for three years and would not have remembered what was in a document.

I personally like the model of doing a separate document for each chapter. This allows me to move these episodes around at will without the danger of possibly deleting a large chunk of text. This does not work for everyone! If you like one big document, use one big document.

The other reason I liked lots of little documents is that it gave me the opportunity to slot in other things that I didn't think were originally going to be chapters. When I first started working on TDS, I had a lot of flashes of ideas for different things throughout the whole story, and I wanted to get them down all at once. Some of those made it into the final story. Some did not. Some of them were written for one part of the story but got recycled into a different part. But they are all in the big document folder in case I needed them.

I also did something for TDS that I've never done for a story before - I wrote down all the different story beats and show beats on notecards and I laid them out on my floor underneath cards that had the show episodes on them. (You may have seen pictures of this.) By putting the plot points on notecards, rather than a list, I had maximum flexibility to move them throughout the story and could visualize over a larger space where the story was going. This also allowed the story and the characters to go places I did not think they would go.

Give yourself grace and time. It will not all happen overnight. It does not need to all happen overnight. The people who are expecting it to all happen overnight are not the people you need in your life.

Having said that, a schedule can be a wonderful and valuable thing. I was trying to post a chapter every two weeks during the pandemic, and then when work picked up again I scaled that back to once a month. The schedule was not for the readers. The schedule was for me. Having something to keep myself accountable was helpful to me to prevent burnout (a chapter a day, no thank you) but keep myself moving forward.

I am going to say something provocative here: There is Writing the Fic, and there is Doing Fandom On The Fic. Doing Fandom On The Fic is the "New chapter coming soon!!!" sorts of things. I would be very cautious about feeling like you need to do the second thing. Work on it first. When it is done, it will promote itself. (If you have already created the Doing Fandom thing as a part of your creative process - great! share that! But don't go out of your way to Make Something Just To Have Something.) There is a time and place for the second thing, and it fills a specific need, but there is a different and I would argue more effective way to do that, which is -

Find a Pit Crew. This is an endurance race, not a sprint, which means at some point you are going to look at what you have on the page and you're going to want someone to tell you that you are doing a good job. You're going to need someone to change your tires and change your oil and talk to you at ten o'clock at night when you want to rip everything up. This is not a big public server - this is one or two trusted friends who will listen to your bonkers AUs and what your characters ate for breakfast. Create a server for you and those two people and go have fun. If no one else shows up to this party, you and those two people are still having a great time, and that is what counts.

[clangenrising]

So one thing I've always felt about the heavy content warnings in the past is that even if I don't click on it, it kind of clues me in to whether or not to expect something serious for a confrontation. I do think the heavy content warning is valuable, but putting it the day before a specific post does kind of reduce suspense for me personally. I wonder, if people want to know moons in advance for stuff like deaths anyways, maybe you would consider doing like, a single heavy content warning every six moons, listing the moon and nature of triggering topics for the next six moons, and doing away with the day-before warnings. That way people who want to know in advance can still know, and those of us who enjoy the uncertainty can enjoy that suspense.

I know it would be a little different than your current system, and that it might be a little more challenging for folks who like the day before content warning to keep track of when everything is going to happen, but frankly, I do feel like people should take some responsibility for curating their online experiences as long as everything is properly tagged. Wanting to know when you're going to be exposed to potentially triggering content seems reasonable, needing multiple warnings both well in advance and the day before in addition to proper tags on the post seems excessive, and at that point maybe an indicator that stories exploring those topics are not something that individual is currently in the right headspace to manage. That's just my opinion though. I will continue enjoying the story of RisingClan, regardless of what decisions are made about content warnings, and I appreciate how much effort you have put into accommodating the requests of your audience in this respect.

Hmm. It is a good point that all the posts that contain triggering content are tagged appropriately. Still, I know that some people appreciate being able to see a quick summary of exactly what the content is.

I don't think I could manage doing spoilers that far in advance. Like, I could for deaths but the other kinds of triggers tend to emerge during the writing process and I don't have things written even close to that far in advance.

I'm considering starting a new blog that ONLY does heavy content alerts. That way, people who want them can follow and even sign up for notifications while people who don't like them can continue reading spoiler free.

[morganski-19]

What I don't want to happen with a Buck NDE in 8b

Minor spoilers for 9-1-1 8b under the cut

This is kinda old news, but Oliver's stunt double was on set for episode 12, which lead to the talk of a possible Buck NDE. The stunt double doesn't equal an NDE, but that is an interesting thought that many people have, and I have some thoughts about it.

Mainly, how this NDE would effect the Eddie storyline in El Paso.

I do not want Eddie to come back because Buck got hurt. I don't want that at all.

Do I want Eddie to be affected by Buck getting hurt and him not being there, yes. Do I want to see the spiral Eddie could have because of that, yes. Do I want him to maybe go and visit LA, or speed up the move-in date because of it, if it's done right, yes.

But Buck getting hurt should not be the sole reason that Eddie leaves El Paso to go back to LA, he needs to decide that for himself.

Why?

Because it would take all of the agency out of Eddie's decision. While Eddie and Buck's storylines are intrinsically linked to each other, they have to grow, change, and have their own plotlines as well. Eddie going back to El Paso is one of those. He needs to use the opportunity to fix things with Chris, and needs to do his own self-reflection on why moving to LA was the best decision for him.

Eddie needs to make the decision to move back to LA because it's the best decision for him and his son, to put distance between his parents, and for him to get out of an environment he hates and back to an environment he thrives. He needs to make this decision FOR himself BY himself.

If Eddie figures out about Buck's injury AFTER he makes the decision to move back, I think that would be ok. Because his decision was already made, now it can just speed up the process. But the decision has to be made first.

Now, for the Buck side of it.

He cannot get rewarded for getting hurt with Eddie coming back. He can't. That would be awful for his narrative, and only solidify what his fuck ass parents made him believe. They better not write that into the storyline, otherwise I will have choice words and some rocks to throw.

Buck needs to be chosen. Whether that be romantically or platonically, he needs to be chosen. Eddie needs to come back because it's his decision, and because he wanted to be there for Buck during his recovery. It needs to be explicitly stated that Eddie did not come back because Buck was hurt, for both his own and Buck's narrative.

That being said, if this is the route they're going, it sets up another Because Evan moment.

This season is really bringing back a lot of Buck's themes throughout the earlier seasons. Tommy broke up with him in a manner very similar to Abby, and now Eddie's leaving. They first name drop Abby and therefore bring back the abandonment issues that she caused, and then that is amplified by Eddie leaving. (which, if the way we saw them shoot that in the leak is how it will look in the final edit, is an exact recreation of Abby leaving)

By bringing up these old narratives, it brings up the need for another moment in which a character states that Buck is wrong.

What makes the "Because Evan" moment so special is that 1. the one and only time Eddie calls Buck by his first name 2. explicitly states that Eddie doesn't view Buck as expendable, which is something that was heavily dealt with in season 4.

His recklessness was and still is present, however, that mindset of being the person on the frontlines because he doesn't matter is significantly minimized.

That isn't the same for his abandonment issues. Especially with how heavily they are brought back up in this season.

With Bobby leaving the station, thereby leaving the 118 with chaos under Gerrard, Chris leaving, Eddie leaving, Maddie getting kidnapped, and Tommy bringing up the Abby trauma, it's the climax of this issue.

If they do it right, they could have a moment that has the same impact as the "Because Evan" scene.

If they do it right.

Will it happen with the possibilities of an NDE? I don't know. Do I think it is important to the Buck and Eddie narrative, yes. It all depends on how the Eddie in Texas storyline ends.

[cagenewman]

Intimacy between them had always come so easily, felt natural. From the first time until the last time, he had always felt at ease with her, had never hesitated to show her what he liked, to let her guide him through what she wanted in return. The last thing that Cage wanted was for that to be altered in any way, for either of them to feel like sex was something that they needed to think about only in terms of numbers and figures and dates on a calendar. "I don't want to have sex with you because we have to meet a deadline or … well, because we have to, period, I want to have sex with you because I love you," and that was the bottom line. Cage's gaze dropped from her face to her body, dragging low for a moment before he flicked his gaze back up to her face and let out a half laugh, because he had liked it, too. More than he had wanted to let on; it wasn't that he was restrained with her, it wasn't that he held back, she wouldn't want him to, but it had been something tense and something passionate, and he knew that they had both enjoyed themselves, but it didn't mean that he wanted to think of their child being created in a fit of anger, in a moment of uncertainty, even if it wouldn't have changed the love that he held for them. "We can have hot, rough sex any time you want, just … maybe without the broken lamp and knife play." That last part was a joke -- even if he had used the knife to take her dress off. He didn't have to be angry with her to give her what she wanted. "Logically, I know that. It's something that happens, but in the moment, finding that out, it's all I could think about, you know? That I did this, I put too much stress on you, on the situation, that's why I want to make sure when we do this, when we try, we don't stress out about it." Trying for a baby should be fun -- of course there were going to be moments of disappointment and worry, that was a part of life, too, but he wanted to enjoy the process, wanted to look back on this time in their life with fondness and warmth. "I think I was less upset with the fact that you were pregnant and more upset with the fact that I wasn't there for you," he admitted quietly, shrugging one shoulder, "and it just…" he lifted his free hand and snapped, "I knew I had to be, for you and our baby." And once that feeling had settled into his chest, it hadn't gone away, not when he made her those muffins, not when he started thinking about changing their office into a nursery, and not when they were told that there wouldn't be a baby. Everything had changed the day that she had put that test on his desk, and it had only solidified when it changed again in that doctor's office. "Alright," he laughed, nodding his head, "I'll do the heavy labor, you gals write up the score cards. She's an incredibly harsh critic, black cats have the most ridiculous attitude, you know that?" But he wouldn't have changed her for anything.

Swaying with the shove, Cage let out a louder, more jovial laugh, swinging back around to wrap his arm around her, pulling her into his side. "Doesn't matter, I'll be there," he said with certainty, nodding his head. Whether she was going to be sick every morning, or spend her days longing for the sweetest, most sugary foods that she could get her hands on, Cage would get her anything that she needed. Do whatever she wanted. There was a certain level of excitement to his voice as he looked down at her again. "You'll have a bump," which, duh, of course she would. But for some reason, it just hit him that she wouldn't be his ex-girlfriend that he ducked down the grocery aisle to avoid when he saw her pregnant years ago in their small town. It wouldn't just be a photograph in an album, something she pointed out to him on lazy, rainy afternoons. But Cordelia would have a bump, a belly, she would be growing their son or daughter in there as she baked brownies for Cienna's class, or helped Rosalyn pick flowers from the garden. But he couldn't think about that, couldn't let himself get that distracted -- the boys. They had to talk to the boys first, that was where he put his thoughts. "Shawn had Cienna, and Colton's been amazing with Archie, whenever he's around him," he pointed out with a nod. Sure, he might have teased Lucie about dirty diapers and messy burps whenever he spent time with his cousin, but he still was so gentle and careful with him as a newborn that Cage didn't worry about that. "It'll be… a lot to take on, adding a baby to a family with four kids, but I think we can do it. I just -- I need you to remind me sometimes that I can do it. I don't doubt that you can do it," he let out a soft laugh, "but unless you want my whole head to go gray…" he wasn't quite ready for that experience just yet. But they didn't need to worry about how much money a baby was going to cost when they were shopping. Ironically. That would come later. Until then, jewelry. "Mhm," he agreed with a nod, temporarily distracted by the smell of her hair as it brushed against his nose, pressing a kiss to the top of her head and then looking at the pieces in the case. Raising a brow as Cordelia said that she wanted something pre-1940s, Cage was impressed, though he kept that to himself as he watched the exchange, talking when prompted, mostly letting his wife and the attendant speak as he stepped to the side to examine a few pieces himself. Each ring that Cordelia tried on, he had some sort of comment for, a thumbs up or a thumbs down, interested, but wanting it to be her decision until he saw the look on her face, the way that she picked up her hand just enough to catch the light, turning it so that the diamonds shone. He didn't need to ask Cordelia if she wanted it, didn't bother to put it to a question as he reached into his back pocket to pull out his wallet, holding the card out with a low laugh. Cage knew his wife by now, far too well. "She'll take it."

There was almost a relief in Cage's eyes when she said she wasn't going to make this into some kind of thing they planned every single bit of. Maybe if they hadn't conceived in six months to a year they would consider talking to a fertility doctor and tracking at least ovulation but there was no need to go that way until they had to. They had the knowledge to know that Cordelia could get pregnant, it was just more about being the right time and hoping that it actually stuck around. Everything he said made sense, "No I get it, I don't want sex to become a business transaction, something we're strictly doing to get me pregnant. Kind of takes the fun out of it and I don't think we need to do that when we have a pretty great sex life as it is." Which was true, why ruin a good thing? Giving a roll of her eyes, "I didn't mind the bruises on my thighs and hips, I liked it." Looking at him a grin tugging at her lips, "I mean it, I enjoyed it, more than I wanted to admit because I was angry, but angry sex, kinda hot. Maybe a lot hot." she pointed out, because it kind of was, "And it's not some sadistic karma that caused all of this, it was the fact that my body wasn't ready to be pregnant. Maybe stress played a factor into it but no one knows the exact reasons, it wasn't like I fell, it wasn't like I got hurt or did anything crazy it just wasn't the right time. There's nothing wrong with how our first would have been conceived but I get wishing you had been more excited and I won't pretend that I wished you had been happier but I also understand that you weren't there yet." It was hard that for him to realize what he wanted he had to lose that very thing and then have to live with it as much as she did, only experience a different type of guilt feeling. Though neither one of them were guilty of anything. They had done their best with what they had been given, and now moving forward all they could do was try and hope for the best and that it wouldn't become a stressor to them personally or their marriage. Honestly, Cordelia was just happy that Cage was opening up about how he was feeling and everything that had been on his mind. Maybe getting away from Merrock for their anniversary had been the best thing, a place to openly talk away from everything, memories and just get it all out on the table and now look where they were? Communication was at least far better right now, not that she didn't expect there to be hiccups at times. "I can promise you that you will not catch me attempting to pick up hay bales prior to getting pregnant either." After losing the pregnancy so early she wasn't going to risk doing anything too crazy in case she got pregnant, and like what happened didn't know and cause any potential issues, but she also knew she'd go about a lot of her normal every day life like she had before. "Think that sounds fair, Twix and I will give you scores on how good you are at moving the bales, I'll get her her own little score board too." she offered a grin pulling to her lips, "But remember she may love you but she's a harsh critic."

Reaching out she shoved him gently, "Oh shut up, I could have cravings without being pregnant." Which was very true, Cordelia loved food and there was always a chance something could pop up in her mind that she would want, and it didn't mean she was pregnant. "Just buckle in, that's all I'm saying, because who knows I could have wicked cravings, or I could be horribly sick and threaten you to keep all food far, far away from me." Might sound a lot like her saying keep it out of the house and dramatics being her favorite form of emotions she might come up with some kind of crazy thought of get rid of it all, but she wouldn't actually mean it. They had four kids to keep fed, two of which were growing teenage boys that she was convinced were actually trying to eat them out of house and home. "No I agree, I was worried about telling them." When she had been expecting, the way her gut would drop remembering they had to break the news in a way that was kind of like, well here this is, without even having a conversation that they had or hadn't been considering this. Talk about the worst proof of non-safe sex to say it just happened to two teenage boys. "Know that that is where we're at that we can give this new little one, when he or she is ready to you know.... happen, the love and time they deserve. Deep down I think Colton and Shawn would love to have a baby sibling, I know Colton got to be around Rosalyn once she was almost a year old but think he would have enjoyed her as a baby baby, and like you said, Shawn loved having Cienna." she pointed out, maybe it wouldn't go so bad if they pointed out the fact that it was because of the four of them and how much love they proved in their family that gave them the ability to know one last child would be given that same amount of love, respect, and care needed. As she saddled up towards the few cases of jewelry it didn't take long to feel Cage behind, press up against her slightly, hands on her hips. "You know I've always loved the idea of a vintage piece, something that had history even if we don't know the history." Of course her ring was technically going to eventually fall into that category given it had been his mother's diamond. A woman approached them with a soft 'hello' and how could she help them. "Oh we're just looking, we're here on vacation for our anniversary and I kind of wanted to take a peek at a few things special maybe." The woman was kind and generous, asking them how long they had been married, them taking turns to explain the finer parts of their relationship from high school to reuniting, maybe leaving out their difficultly at first reconnecting and the whole soup debacle. "I was hoping to look at some bands maybe? For my left hand. Something antique, maybe pre-1940's if you have anything?" The woman nodding happily before returning with two trays of rings. "Oh!" Cordelia's eyes sparkling seeing all the pretty rings in front of her, definitely obvious that they were dated given the looks of some of them. Trying on a bunch the woman took the time again to explain each ring, the period it was from, Cordelia holding her hand up for Cage to see, knowing he was mostly there to oh and ah, before she picked up a particular ring, this one slipping onto her finger with ease. The woman explained it was from the 1920's, with miners cute diamonds, 7 to be exactly, and Cordelia knew it, the second it fit on her finger and held it up, the seven stones sparkling in the light, she had fallen in love.

[myfairkatiecat]

Okay I’m going to say it, some of y’all treat the KOTLC tag like it’s a tumblr community instead of an organization system that gathers together everything people post and tag as KOTLC

[kindahoping4forever]

my ultimate wish for this next era is they finally let Ryan go like they did Andy. I'm so sick of not getting the content we deserve. All the gatekeeping of tour diaries and now the crumbs of concert footage in that "documentary" yesterday. he was working for months on that? that's why we didn't get tour diaries? all that footage just goes in his vault now? Please.

Hello! I'm sorry to hear you felt disappointed by yesterday's special. However, I feel compelled to comment on a few objective points in your ask.

- "Live & Backstage in Amsterdam" was directed by James Tonkin, the same director (and production team, Hangman) they worked with on "The Feeling of Falling Upwards" (and the unreleased "Live in Brixton" special). Ryan was credited as director of the documentary footage and as a contributing editor (1 of 3) but the live footage and overall final program was not his work.

- Regardless of the particular creatives involved here (or in any given project for that matter), the fact remains that any directors, producers, photographers, etc are all hired hands operating with full input and specific direction from the band. The band chose to make this a hybrid concert film/documentary. The band chose to condense the setlist the way they did. The band chose this format over the traditional tour diaries. What happens to the unused footage will be determined by the band. Ryan is a friend but he is first and foremost an employee and the band owns that footage. (Likewise, the MYT diaries are not sitting on Andy Deluca's hard drive because he's "gatekeeping" or too lazy to edit it. If the band wanted them released, they'd be released.) All this to say, of course you don't have to agree with the decisions but it's important to clarify who your complaint is with.

- This concept of the band or their collaborators "gatekeeping" and fans not getting what we "deserve" is, to be blunt, entitled and immature. Being a fan does not make an artist indebted to you. They make music, if you feel so inclined, you listen. That's it. That's the extent of the contract. Anything beyond that is optional for both parties. Any content an artist chooses to release is not out of obligation or generosity, it's part business strategy, part artistic vision. Artists do not owe you anything. This band does not owe you anything.