#which is probably why i'm not a huge fan of them

[invinciblerodent]

woke up pacing up and down mentally about contrasting my Josie-mancer mLavellan Harwen, and my planned fAldwir Syl, and the ways they are going to experience their elvishness

because I think I'm going to wind up making her struggle eerily similar as the one I gave him back in the day.

(rambling under the cut)

i mean for Harwen (who initially never really had any doubts and hangups about being Dalish, he was just straight up an elfy elf raised in a forest and a useful member of his clan), becoming Inquisitor in his timeline was primarily a story about a profound loss being replaced with a subsequent gain of a new, far more personal identity than the previous.

Losing his role as huntmaster and gaining a new one as "the herald of Andraste" had allowed him to break out of his predetermined role within the clan (one that he had originally accepted without question), while more or less letting him maintain his Dalish identity. But eventually, him loving Josephine ended up working as something of a symbol of him choosing to be the individual man he became during the story, rather than returning to either identity imposed upon him by outside expectation.

(it really crystallized for me that he wants to be neither Herald nor Huntmaster when, while playing him, I decided that he chose to desecrate holy grounds of his people during What Pride Had Wrought out of fear for her -a shemlen's- life specifically.) (Simply put, he elected not to honor the rituals and run through the temple instead, because the longer he dallied, the longer would she also be in danger.)

And at the end of the game's plot, I basically had him choose to forsake his heritage in favor of staying in human society, and move to Antiva to stay with Josie- primarily for love, but on a deeper level, for the singular kind of personal acceptance he never did find with his very own people.

It wasn't an easy choice, abandoning all that he had known before and sacrifice so much, and it continues to be a sore spot for him (possibly for life- I once gave him a line that went something like "no gilded saddlery will make a wild donkey into a thoroughbred, and wrapping your elf in silks and velvet won't make him a noble suitor either"), but... well, he had always been a man who lived with a layer of glass hanging between him and the community. What's being an outsider in a different culture, if it means having honest, devoted, kind love that extends beyond his performing of a function. (which yeah, that may have been me channeling my own feelings of inadequacy and separation from my own culture through him, but yknow, what the hell, having him silently struggle with loss and the guilt of not feeling more guilty despite being actually happy continues to be cathartic to me lol.) (it's pretty autobiographical for the place I was in back then, lol.)

--

For Syl on the other hand, I've been rotating in my head some plans about a potential love triangle between her, Neve, and Bellara, and kind of using that romantic conflict as a representation of the diverging paths ahead of Syl, with either woman being sort of a representative of the two "warring" sides of her.

I'm thinking of her so far as an Orlesian-born city elf (her backstory is a bit foggy still, but I kind of want her to have met and become utterly infatuated with Neve in some context before the start of the game, partly because sapphic yearning, and partly because it'd represent her upbringing to a degree) who later elected to join the Veil Jumpers as a desperate attempt to try and connect with the culture she was always told was supposed to be hers (the Dalish). As one such person, she would have experienced a lot of rejection from both sides: always too Orlesian for the Dalish, and too elvish to be more than "just an elf" in the eyes of the Orlesians. She is, in all respects, a woman in-between.

I think I'd like either outcome a lot, and it would either play on the same theme as Harwen's story, or be pretty much its opposite. And I know nobody but me cares about this, but fuck, I'm just vibrating with excitement over getting to play with new dolls in Thedas again, lol

And now I'm toying with which way I want her to go. Which means that choosing between the human- and the Dalish woman will probably represent which part of her own self she is going to choose to embrace: Is she going to end up as a city elf in Tevinter (potentially a bad time) by Neve's side, or will she remain a Veil Jumper and embrace Dalish tradition (which skin will never truly fit as it should) by Bellara's?

I think this is going to be a situation where change and complacency are kind of all mixed together in this odd soup where the two options are somehow both representative of both those things at the same time, and it'll ultimately come down to how resistant Syl is going to be to everything, and which person she is with either woman she likes better.

[harrysfolklore]

tom blyth being obsessed with his girlfriend: a compilation

this was inspired by @astranva’s famous blurbs, love you and miss you novs <3

MASTERLIST | MY PATREON

It seemed like the entire world was crushing on the same man: Tom Blyth

Unfortunately for those who watched The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes and came out of the theater in love with the man who played Coriolanus Snow, he was happily taken and loved to talk about his girlfriend any chance he got, which lead to fans making several compilations about the times he was a simp over his girl.

The most popular video was a 10 minute and 33 seconds compilation, which had around 445k views.

It started with Tom's interview with Good Morning America to talk about Billy the Kid, the interviewer asking about how he prepared for the role.

"It was during the pandemic, like any actor during that time I was just hoping that the world came back to normal so I could start making a cent," everyone in the set laughed at this, "I was living with my girlfriend YN in a barn house and we were like chopping wood every morning and visiting my friend's ranch. So when I got the part I kinda felt like I was ready for it."

"Your girlfriend, you say," one of the interviewers said making Tom smile right away, "Did she help you prepare for the role too?

"Of course she did, she's my biggest supporter ever."

The video moved to show some behind the scenes of Songbirds and Snakes footage, Tom dressed in his peacekeeper costume and dancing around while Rachel recorded him.

"See this moves?" he got closer to the camera, "I used them to charm my girlfriend."

"And I doubt they worked." Rachel laughed behind the camera.

"She loves me so I'm pretty sure they did."

The next thing shown was Tom sitting next to Hunter as they did an interview for Rolling Stone, the crew just asked about their thoughts on Olivia Rodrigo's single for the movie.

"I love Olivia Rodrigo," Hunter cheerfully said, throwing her arms up to the air, "The new album is so good."

"I'm a big fan as well," Tom joined in, "My girlfriend YN, she's obsessed with her, plays her songs all the time."

"Just so everyone knows, YN is like the coolest person ever," Hunter said, making Tom smile, "She brought us snacks on set so many times, such an angel."

"She's the best."

The following footage was Tom and Rachel's rapid-fire questions with Vogue.

"Can you guess where this is from?" Rachel asked holding up a card that showed a zoomed in picture of a suit.

"That's my Prada suit from the London premiere," Tom asked confidently, Rachel confirming that he was correct, "My girlfriend YN loved that suit, that's why It's one of my favorites."

"Oh I miss YN."

"So do I, so do I."

Next clip was Tom's interview Stephen Colbert, who just asked him if he was a fan of the books growing up.

"I was such a huge fan, I grew up watching the films. My mom and sister used to go to opening weekends to see the movies," the audience cheered at that, "Actually, for my third date with my girlfriend I took her to see the last movie, so getting to play a young president Snow is a real honor."

The video quickly moved to show the lat clip, one of Tom's interviews at the London premiere of the movie.

"Are you here on your own? No date?" The interviewer said once Tom finished answering the previous question.

"I'm here with my girlfriend, actually," his face beamed as he spoke, "She's probably somewhere taking selfies with Hunter, those two are like best friends."

"Is she close to your cast mates?" the interviewer asked again.

"Definitely, they try to steal her from me and I can't blame them, she's the best."

[yunsound]

For any Ne Zha 2 fans and especially Oubing fans, may I recommend: Shangmei Oubing

Oubing (Ne Zha x Ao Bing) is probably the biggest ship in China right now. I'm sure we can all understand why. Soulmates, red blue, enemies to lovers, friends to lovers, angst, hurt, comfort, THE WHOLE PACKAGE DEAL.

Oubing is generally a very sweet, vanilla and heartwarming ship. For those of us that like the darker stuff, though, I have something for you: 上美藕饼, or Shangmei Oubing.

What TF is a Shangmei? Shang-mei is an abbreviation for Shanghai Animation Studio, a company that made many beloved animated childhood films in the 60s-90s. They made the most iconic Ne Zha film, which is the 1979 Ne Zha Nao Hai (Ne Zha Conquers the Sea).

In the 1979 version, Ne Zha and Ao Bing are definitely not friends. Ne Zha plucks out Ao Bing's tendons and skins and kills him, and Ao Bing eats children. Ao Bing 1979 is also kind of really ugly (his dragon form is really pretty though!)

This doesn't exactly seem like ship material right? You're correct.

BUT!

Shanghai released a short promotional video to celebrate a collaboration. The promotional video featured Ne Zha and Ao Bing from the 1979 version. In the video, Ne Zha didn't kill Ao Bing. No. In this video, Ne Zha and Ao Bing have a bit of a... scary dynamic.

You can probably find the video on Douyin or XHS, but in it, Ao Bing appears in a familiar-looking red wheelchair. He looks very different from his 1979 design- he looks more human, and he's in a half-dragon half-human form. Generally much prettier than his 1979 design.

Throughout the video, he wears a slightly terrified and miserable expression on his face. His phone screen is a selfie with him and Ne Zha in which he's smiling VERY awkwardly. Ne Zha, in fact, has opened up a seafood shop for the two of them.

Probably the biggest thing is that Ne Zha in this promotional video calls Ao Bing "Bingbing". Ao Bing also calls Ne Zha "Zhazha." So cute, right? Seems normal?

Well, in Ao Bing's phone screen saver, the selfie with him and Ne Zha involves him sitting on the wheelchair, smiling a pained smile. Ne Zha is hovering over his shoulder, smiling a very THREATENING smile.

Oh, and the wheelchair? The wheelchair isn't a wheelchair. It's Ne Zha's flying red sash, the Huntianling. Remember this sash obeys Ne Zha's will.

You can interpret this two ways.

Ao Bing has had a change of heart but is a little depressed because he's disabled now. He and Ne Zha are just good friends, and Ne Zha is taking care of him while also keeping a close eye on him to make sure he's not doing anything bad.

2. The popular interpretation.

Ne Zha, out of trauma (remember his dad is a huge asshole and he had to commit suicide very, very painfully) has formed an inappropriate attachment to Ao Bing, who is terrified out of his mind of Ne Zha, but is essentially prisoner because he can't even walk and is trapped within the red sash at all times.

Ne Zha forces Ao Bing to call him by a cutesy nickname, pretend that he loves Ne Zha, and essentially is speedrunning Stockholm Syndrome.

VERY toxic and very dark. Remember that Shangmei's Ao Bing is not a good innocent baby dragon- he eats children. Ne Zha is a protagonist who believes in justice, but he's also a kid who's been through a LOT of trauma and has never had a good family, whereas Ao Bing grew up cherished and loved.

For Ne Zha, this twisted love may be all he knows. For Ao Bing, he's terrified out of his mind, but knows he "deserves" this treatment- doomed to play happy family with his enemy, the enemy that crippled him.

I am NGL, I kind of like this dynamic. Being part of a big fandom is so satisfying. Whenever I'm full on sweet happy Oubing content I can switch to dark Shangmei Oubing content.

Shangmei Oubing is now one of the most popular ships in Ne Zha fandom. It's second only to regular Oubing. People also ship Ne Zha and Ao Bing in the 2021 New Gods Reborn movie: that ship is also really yummy. Oubing in general is yummy.

The dynamic I've seen the most often is as follows, with minor alterations depending on the specific fanwork:

After beating Ao Bing's ass, Ne Zha leaves him alive, but the rest of the myth and story proceed as usual (for the actual myth, see my Ne Zha post linked here). After Ne Zha commits suicide and is reborn in a body made of lotus roots, he ascends to godhood.

Ne Zha, traumatised and brimming with hate for his "father" Li Jing, searches for any source of love and affection he can find. He settles on Ao Bing, his old enemy- the little white dragon who was once so arrogant. He doesn't know exactly why: half jealousy that someone as evil as Ao Bing can have a better family than him, and half a desire for revenge since Ao Bing's death was what led him to have to commit suicide.

He kidnaps Ao Bing and keeps him captive on the red sash wheelchair. Ao Bing's father can't help him- he's already lost to Ne Zha multiple times, so Ao Bing can only resign himself to being Ne Zha's plaything.

Ne Zha, seeking love in any way he can get it, essentially begins to play house with Ao Bing- pretending they're best friends, calling each other cute nicknames (in some versions forcing Ao Bing to share a bed with him) and generally being very affectionate.

Ao Bing, terrified of Ne Zha, goes along and essentially lives a life of misery.

Ne Zha technically treats Ao Bing very well if he doesn't misbehave. If he does, however, well then...Ne Zha sometimes tortures Ao Bing emotionally (his trauma has made him ruthless and somewhat cruel) and humiliates him by making him crawl, since Ao Bing is now crippled. When Ao Bing cries or gets upset, Ne Zha tells him it's his penance for eating children.

Mpreg is a common tag, but more commonly it's Ao Bing finding some way to either commit suicide or he goes completely insane after years of living in fear. Ne Zha panics after seeing Ao Bing break down, and realises he's come to truly care for Ao Bing.

Toxicity adds flavour, everyone. Shangmei Oubing is actually so delicious.

[beifong-brainrot]

I don't know why I feel so numb towards the new Avatar announcement. Like I'm not excited for it. But I'm also not as devastated and pessimistic about it as a lot of people are about it.

Like yeah, Korra haters are crawling out of the mud and shit again, but they would've taken ANY excuse to hate on her. Like, even if it were all sunshines and rainbows in a post Korra world they would probably be going on about how she was a 'weak avatar with no accomplishments' or a Mary Sue or something like that.

I'm cautiously suspecting that Avatar Studios are going for a Kuruk-style story with Korra, where she was somehow defamed. It seems that the Avatar books were a sort of testing ground for them, as the 'Avatar's twin' plotline was also teased in the Roku book.

I understand why this upsets some people, as it gives Korra an ultimately unhappy life and leaves her as hated in-world. However, I don't think we should jump to conclusions of Bryke somehow wanting to 'destroy' Korra's character, just because they didn't give her a happy life. Characters like the aforementioned Kuruk, and fan favourite Toph Beifong didn't have 'happy endings' in the traditional sense, but that enhances their characters, in my opinion. Like yeah, it's tragic that sometimes storylines are sad- but that doesn't make them bad storylines.

Is it a bummer that Korra seemingly had a tragic life? Yeah. But also, she's the Avatar, and would inevitably face a lot of strife in her life- and not do things perfectly. Aang also faced difficulties and had problems in his adult life.

It also feels like there's a potential meta storyline going on there, potentially having the in world hate towards Korra tied to the IRL hate towards Korra. This isn't the first time Korra's character has been used for more meta-style commentary, as a lot of her character surrounded her trying to measure up to Aang, whilie also trying to be her own person- a potential coentary on what making a follow up to atla must've been like.

And also- we are JUMPING to conclusions over leaks and blurbs.

I think my main personal concerns with the Seven Havens lie with the fact that it feels like a soft reboot of sorts. With tlok, despite its technological advancements, which I did have issues with, we see very clearly how we got to point A to point B. The world Korra inhabits feels the same as the world Aang inhabits.

Seven Havens seems to have had a post apocalyptic vibe, where the world has changed drastically, reshaping the four nations into seven new 'havens' and changing the way the Avatar is percieved. It feels like a huge departure from the previous series - which could be fine- but also feels like waste.

The world of Avatar is so complex and has been built up through multiple series, books and comics. To have it reshaped completely feels like throwing out such a rich compendium of lore and stories.

It also worries me, as it likely throws away tlok's very imteresting work with politics. While tlok didn't always tackle the dissection if politics correctly, it at least had the courage to discuss these complex topics. Getting rid of the four nations will probably toss away a lot of these politocal effects of Korra's tenure as Avatar, for example- the democratisation of the Earth Kingdom.

Reading the atla comics (while the fandom loves to bitch and moan about them) is a satisfying experience, because I get to see the building blocks for Korra's time being set up- for example the creation of Republic City. However, my concern is that any future tlok comics will feel unimportant- due to the fact that the characters accomplishments will likely be undone several years later.

I also worry that they're going to try to 'depoliticise' the next show. Dismantling tloks' complex political climate is one alarm bell. Making the new avatar a young child, seemingly even younger than Aang, despite a good chunk of the fans being adults at this point, feels like its hinting towards making the show less complex and 'grown up'. Of course, a protagonist being a certain age doesn't necessarily mean the target audience is supposed to be that age too- however it does set a model of how the world will be mainly shown to us- through the eyes of a young child.

And while Avatar gave us a serious show for kids- atla being relatively deeper than most kids shows of its time, I don't know if Seven Havens will be able to replicate that perfect storm, especially with a lot of kids media nowadays being so heavily scrutinised and policed.

Also not really as hyped for the earthbending twins concept because I already have MY preferred set of earthbending twins. "Oh but one of them is the Avatar and-" don't care. Beifong twins my belovedst.

They should've somehow kept the naming scheme set by Poi & Ping and Wei & Wing it would've been funny.

[annabelle--cane]

i wasn’t here when tma reached the height of its popularity (i only joined last year) so could you describe the Vibes (how bad the drama was, did it feel like there were too many people, etc.)

only if you want to :]

I've said this before, so this may be a familiar spiel to longer term followers, but 2020 tma fandom was honestly not the worst fandom I've ever been in, it was just by far the biggest thing I have ever been actively into at peak popularity and so the 1% of insane people that are found in every fan space were 1% of a much bigger total population. most people were fine and chill, but there were a vocal minority who Weren't.

major ingredients in the discourse pot:

from my observations, tma had a small but devoted listener base for its first few years, then it got a little bump in mid 2018, then a considerable bump in late 2019, then hit proper virality in early 2020, so there were a lot of people with hipster complexes about being Real Fans who were there first and weren't just part of the masses.

at this point I'm not even sure if this part was true, but the above was compounded by the perception that the earlier og listener base were mostly adults and the new wave of fans were mostly tweens and teens. whether the different waves actually fell along those age lines or not, a lot of people felt like the fandom was split into 80% Cringe Zoomers Who Are Here For Ships And Memes and 20% Millennials and Gen X'ers With Media Literacy Who Are Here For Horror. nice dichotomy, idiot, now what lies outside it, etc and such and such. our blessed fandom etiquette vs their barbarous dni lists.

which isn't to say that suddenly having a huge number of people, including young people, become interested in a single piece of media at a time of global stress where everyone had to be much more online and the content of the media itself was at its darkest and most socially relevant had no downsides. oh no. Oh No.

"my headcanon is not only objectively the best headcanon but it actually invalidates all of yours and if you hc something different then it's an act of bigotry against my Correct Headcanon." / "I have drawn up a list of Good Characters you have to like and aren't allowed to criticize and a list of Bad Characters you have to hate and can't acknowledge exist unless it's to make fun of and completely condemn them." / "I saw her username in the kudos of a jonelias fic" "girl what were YOU doing in the kudos of a jonelias fic" / "this latest episode handled a social issue unforgivably badly, I haven't experienced it myself but the vibes were off, everyone demand accountability and boycott the rest of the show" "hey that one was actually based on jonny's personal experiences" "ah fuck not again. well boys let's remember this for next time. this latest epis--"

honestly most of the discourse was down to like two or three friend groups. there was one group of people who you will probably remember if you were there at the time whom I have sometimes seen referred to as the Clown Gang. Clown Gang were ground zero for a good 90% of fan discourse ("hcing melanie as ace is ableist and lesbophobic" "fan content that focuses on jon's asexuality is biphobic. what's pansexuality I've never heard of it." "desolation tim aus are inherently ableist and racist"), but eventually they had a big falling out with Clown Prime and things calmed down. to be very clear I hold no ill will towards any of these people for four year old bad takes, hence why I'm not using any names, but god was it a time.

and this is only about the tumblr side of things. I was barely active of twitter so idk what it was like there but I was on tiktok for about a year during that time and the vibes were wildly different. iirc people there were less confrontational and there wasn't really a callout culture like on tumblr, but the extremes of the takes were FAR worse.

[acid-ixx]

Ellooo! I've been a huge fan of your batfam fanfics, was a silent reader til now cuz I wanted to show my appreciation for it by making some fanart of my reader ver in Halloween costume as mabel pines from gravity falls and a reason on why I chose as such! Sorry if this turns out as a long yap session and again love your works! Also warning for spoilers on adventure time if you or other ppl are not that far into it yet or planning to watch!

Okay so my reason for choosig mabel pines is because since this is child reader, i'd like to think she connects with mabel in a more emotional way. (Yes I also see child reader connecting with dipper but we'll talk about that later.) I'd like to think child reader would pick mabel when they still had some hope for getting some attention and once they slowly lost it or was trying to gain some sort of attention from their family is where they'll see how they can also connect a bit more with dipper pines with how dipper tries to get some recognition and appreciation in the show.

I'd like to also think that my ver of child reader rlly likes cartoons like me since I found comfort in them before and now. Other than that, I also like to think that child reader would sometimes go look at some episodes and stare longily at caring, loving or literally any cartoon family that gave off that the parent figure cared for said child character like with Grunkle Stan and the twins or maybe Simon/Ice King with Marceline.

So let's say childs reader is watching a cartoon, whether it's gravity falls, bluey, or maybe adventure time and child reader would to think 'How can a con man (Grunkle Stan) or a broken/insane person (Ice King/Simon) be a better father than mine?'

I dunno I just see it as a possible thing to happen and again I love your works! I can't wait to see more in the future! Also again so sorrry that this lowkey turned into a yap session for me, the idea has been in my head for a while 😓

— masterlist !

holy shit, this is so adorable and the brush strokes up close are so delicious to look at!!! <333 my one artist friend irl pointed out how there's no sparkle in the eyes and i'm like "what if it's intentional because they're traumatized very early on as a child" and they told me it makes a lot of sense and helps with lore development so i abide by that concept now hehe.

and on god, you fanartists are like the backbones of my series because i kid you not, all your personal designs and headcanons of how the reader is slowly becoming canon. and i agree with you, the reader would probably be used to connect with mabel more back when they still had that childlike spark in their eyes— and she'll probably be their favorite twin back when they used to watch cartoons with their mom through the shabby, static screen of their television. and they'll probably cling onto her enthusiasm and charm until it very much gets destroyed and then suddenly you find dipper more favorable—

all because with just how much your rambles about mabel get ignored, with just how much people, like dick, would break his promise of watching the show with you. the only person available would be alfred, and watching shows with him, no matter how short the time allotted may be, or even if you watch it with him well past the hours of midnight, will probably contribute to how much you compare him with the guardian figures in all the cartoon shows you used to watch.

which brings me to one point:

just imagine your family's envy with just how much you associate alfred with positive characters. how often you idolize characters like simon from adventure time, often comparing him to bruce, pointing out all the details on how despite his relationship with marceline turning strained, there will always be a semblance of familial love between them whilst with bruce there's not.

which brings me to another point:

the jealousy that comes to fictional siblings, specifically raggedy anne and andy, my favorite animated movie where one song (candy hearts and paper flowers) caused me to sob a lot. just imagine the absolute yearning you'd have for someone as affectionate as andy was to anne— imagining those soft moments where it would be dick who holds your head close to his heart, or how you'd share moments with jason where it's him who'll fight the monsters away.

all fantasized back when you were a child.

but because i don't want to end this in a negative light, just imagine conner and you on a date night instead, where he helps you discover and embrace the inner childish version of you, watching those shows together clinging onto his jacket and singing along the musical numbers. he'd be a very supportive boyfriend, who also never really grew up, so your lack of childhood development just manifests itself in the form of bonding together, watching animations together no matter how outdated it may be now.

picture damian seething outside your apartment window, his breath fogging up the glass due to the sheer intensity of his jealousy. because it should be him who's watching those shows with you!!! conner's taking up his space, his territory, his time with his sibling: his rightful side with you!

but really, i personally (as an actual neglected child in real life) love and cling onto cartoon shows. i don't have a childhood at all, so i pretty much relive all the old shows i used to watch now as an adult honestly. tysm for sending this in! the lineart, the colors, and the variety of brushes are very crisp and clean!!!

[sha-brytols]

🔥 anders

🔥 unpopular opinion

man this is hard because what's unpopular to the fandom and what's unpopular to the specific circle of DA blogs i've curated are completely different where anders is concerned LOL

as a general fan: condemning what he did at the chantry should be universally understood as a cringe and politically illiterate opinion idk what to say man.

as an anders fan: i feel like it's a reeeaaally significant fact that anders sought out hawke to help him specifically because he needed the champion of kirkwall as an accomplice. i don't see this pointed out a lot and it kind of bugs me because it's one of my favorite things about him. he used you. we know based on certain choices we can make that anders was fully capable of finding the ingredients and planting the bomb himself; he didn't need hawke's help. but making someone as important as hawke an accomplice to the explosion is a statement on its own, a power move. it says that the champion of kirkwall stands with the mages. he was using you to make that statement to the chantry. it was manipulation and it worked exactly the way he wanted it to; cassandra and the seekers are convinced hawke was a willing participant and everything they did at kirkwall was done so they can smuggle their way into power and start a war with the chantry.

it's why i never really fully agreed with "anders didn't betray you" despite being one of my all-time favorite characters. the 'betrayal' wasn't that he lied, or that he blew up the chantry, or even necessarily that he made hawke help. it's that he made hawke into a political weapon and symbol of revolution whether hawke liked it or not. which. idk. given everything that happened to hawke in da2 and how affected they are by having their autonomy constantly stripped from them for other people's agendas, that's. HUGE.

i'm not even saying he was wrong to do it. like. man you know me. wheeee blow up more chantries. but like. the sheer ruthlessness and manipulation he was willing to employ to make his statement is a huge fucking character moment for him. it's something he told you constantly from the start if you romanced him. if the choice was between hawke or freedom for the mages, he would choose freedom every time. i love it and it's probably one of the most down to earth and believable character arcs in the series. love and friendship mean nothing in the face of an entire population being systemically subjugated and brutalized. you can love your friends but you can't put their wellbeing over the literal lives and autonomy of a whole class of marginalized people, especially when your friend is part of the ruling class.

[thelargefrye]

February Filth Fest : DAY TWO : CHEATING / CREAMPIE … mature one - shot

pairing : gangster!seongjoong x f!reader

genre : smut, high & low au, strangers to maybe lovers, pinch of angst if you squint

word count : 2.6k

warnings : language, cheating (your bf cheats on you so you cheat on him🤷‍♀️), so douche boyfriend, smoking, a little drinking, kind of fighting, little crying (but in a good way, promise)

smut warnings : unprotected sex, implied threesome, creampie, pet names (doll, princess)

honorary suffer tag : for my bestie braincell @sanjoongie

your boyfriend cheats on you, so you seek out the two most feared men in your district for revenge.

DAY ONE ↤ HiGH&LOW: MATZ ↦ DAY THREE

"you want us to do what?" seonghwa's eyes feel like they are piercing through your body as he stares down at you, eyebrow raised. you obviously surprised him, but he's too calculated to actually show that surprise. he's a feared leader within the sword distract, he can't afford to act surprised.

"i want you guys to help me get revenge on my boyfriend," you repeat yourself, showing him and his partner, hongjoong, that you are dead serious.

"revenge?" hongjoong says as he stands up to move towards you. he bends down to where you're eye level, an evil smirk overtaking his face. it makes you consider whether you should have even come here, but you can't back out now. that bastard of a boyfriend needs to pay. "what kind of revenge are you looking for doll?"

"he's cheating on me," you say looking at hongjoong and its his turn to raise an eyebrow at you this time. hongjoong turns his head to look at seonghwa, the eldest of the two clenching jaw as he rolls his neck. his 'matz' tattoo proudly on display as he does so and you can't help but to lick your lips.

seonghwa exudes a display of power that you have never truly experienced before, and that's probably what makes him so feared among all the different gangs. which was exactly why you wanted him and hongjoong to help you with this revenge.

"cheating, huh?" seonghwa says, reaching into the inside of his jacket pocket and pulling a pack of cigarettes. he takes one out before slotting it between his lips and effortlessly lighting it with his lighter. you note the metal and detailed design on his lighter, custom made.

"and how would you want to get this revenge, doll?" hongjoong asks, grabbing your chin and making you turn your attention to him.

seonghwa blows out a puff of smoke from his lips the smile time you look at hongjoong with a grin of your own. "i'm glad you asked."

the music was loud as you walked through the club. so loud that you could feel the bass vibrating through your entire body. the lights of the club were flashing a mix of vibrant colors and you almost started to strain your eyes.

and not to mention how packed it was in here, you rarely went clubbing for this very reason of not being a huge fan of packed crowds of sweaty, drunk people. usually you would have had someone's elbow in your ribs, but tonight was different. people parted the way like you were royalty.

well... it wasn't because of you, but the one who had their arm draped over you. you were pulled closely in seonghwa's side, your body leaning into his. hongjoong was leading the two of you, a lot of people moving out of there way and you noticed a few odd looks some club-goers gave you.

which you honestly wouldn't blame them. you were wrapped around one of the most dangerous and feared men in the city and walking through a club with two of them. you would give yourself a weird look too. but you really, you didn't have time to think about these people. there was only one person who needed to see you.

your douche soon-to-be ex-boyfriend.

you soon found yourself in the vip section, looking down at the dance floor, your eyes scanning everywhere for your boyfriend. hongjoong came to stand next to you, arm around your shoulders as if he was also looking.

"do you see him?" he asks, and you're surprised you can hear him from how loud the music was.

"i don–

right as you're about to say no, that's when you spot him, wrapped around a girl as they grind against each other and it makes you cringe a little.

"right there! in the black button up," you say pointing at him and hongjoong lets out a chuckle as he pulls you against him.

"you could definitely do better than him, doll," he says. "the girl is pretty," he begins to add and you can't a wave of uneasiness crash over you, but before it could drag you under hongjoong adds, "but you're prettier. especially in this dress seonghwa picked out."

you turn to see him grinning at you and he cages you between the railing and himself. you run a hand down his chest, his bright orange fur coat standing out even against the flashing club lights. and you had to admit he was right, the sequin red dress that seonghwa picked out did not only make you look hot, but you felt like it too.

funny how these two men could make you feel something your boyfriend never could. your eyes flicker behind hongjoong to see seonghwa sitting on the leather seating, cigarette between his lips as he takes a long drag, his eyes locked on you and hongjoong. you felt a chill run down your spine and goosebumps cover your whole bond thanks to his stare alone.

"shall we go have fun now that we found him?" you ask hongjoong with a tilt of your head and hongjoong can't help but let out a small laugh.

"i knew there was a reason why i liked you, doll, that feistiness gets me going," he says, grin on his lips before he's leading you down the stairs.

like seonghwa, hongjoong was quick to drape his arm around you, showing you off as people parted for the two of you, mainly him. he lead the two of you over to the bar, the bartender immediately seeing hongjoong and coming over to get your orders. while you two waited, you looked around and spotted your boyfriend at the other end of the bar with some of his friends.

you felt an odd rage course through you knowing that he was having the time of his life partying, drinking, and cheating on you. while he thinks you're at home and waiting for him to return. you feel hongjoong's arm move from your shoulders to your waist. you turn away from looking at your boyfriend to hongjoong who's already grinning at you. he slides your drink over to before taking a sip of his own.

you quickly down your drink, "i have to use the bathroom," you say before slipping away from hongjoong; however, hongjoong stops you before you get too far away from him.

"go to seonghwa if i'm not here, okay?"

"okay," you say and he gives you a smile before letting you go and turning back to his drink while also ordering another from. and so you make your way to the bathroom.

when you exit the bathroom, you begin to make your way back to the bar, back to hongjoong, but before you could get too far you are stopped. a hand grabbing your wrist and a little too aggressively pulling you back. you let out a surprise yelp as you're turning around and coming face to face with your boyfriend.

"holy shit the guys were right," he says looking at you with surprise all over his face. "i didn't believe them and then i saw you at the bar with... with kim hongjoong. what are you even doing here?"

"what do you mean? am i not allowed to party like you?" you ask, pulling your wrist away from him, an eyebrow raised.

"that's not what i mean," he says, letting out an annoyed sound, "what are you doing here with some gangsters? everyone saw you came in draped around park seonghwa like you were his girl."

"because she is my girl, bastard," you see your boyfriend go pale at the voice behind him and you both look behind him to see seonghwa standing there with a bored expression.

"what are you talking about? i'm her boyfriend! not some thug like you!" your boyfriend says, trying his best to sound intimidating. however, it takes a lot more than a puffed chest to intimidate seonghwa.

"really?" seonghwa says with an annoyed laugh as he rolls his neck, his tattoo standing out boldly in the moment. "you claim to be her boyfriend, yet you're here with another woman instead of her. she's not yours anymore fucker, she's mine. princess," he says, now addressing you, "go get hongjoong. we're leaving."

you nod your head, but before you could get away your ex grabs you by the wrist, stopping. "you're not leaving with these punks until we ta–

he's cut off when seonghwa grabs himself by the collar and shoves him away from you. you notice a burning fire in his eyes as he stalks towards your ex who begins to back away scared by seonghwa. but then seonghwa stopped and turned towards you once more, "princess, go get hongjoong," he told you again and this time you went without anything stopping you.

"hongjoong, seonghwa wants to leave," you say, tugging on his orange fur coat. hongjoong sets his drink down before getting up and following you towards where you left seonghwa and your ex. you tell hongjoong what happened and you notice the grin the takes over his face.

seonghwa meets the two of you outside the club and you notice his knuckles are a little red and busted. however, you choose not to comment on them. instead you watch as he lights another cigarette, taking a drag before blowing the smoke out. his eyes look up to meet yours and can't help but feel something run through and straight to your core.

"your boyfriend is gonna get his shit out of your apartment tonight," seonghwa says as he guides you to get into the car – you honestly didn't notice the car too busy drooling over seonghwa.

"ex-boyfriend," you say, turning to him as you climb into the car and slide over for him to join you. hongjoong rounds the car and gets in on the other side of you. hongjoong says something to their driver before he leans back.

hongjoong wraps his arms around your waist, "i've never been more happy to hear that a word more in my life." seonghwa lets out a laugh at his partner's words. "now we can have you all to ourselves, right doll?"

"right."

you let out a moan, feeling your eyes rolling into the back of your skull as seonghwa pounded into you. you felt your thighs burn from how he has you folded in half and hands gripping the flesh of your thighs tightly. you're pretty sure he'll marks later, but you don't really care now nor will you later.

seonghwa also lets out a series of moans and a few stuttered curses as he continues to thrust into your pussy. his cock stretching your walls out and filling you up as his tip continuously hits your sweet spot. you sling your arm around his shoulder and neck as you let it run down his back, raking your nails down him as you do so.

you feel seonghwa's lip press against your neck leaving open mouth kisses before pulls away to lick up your neck before he's sucking on the skin.

"h-hwa," you moan out as seonghwa moves to sit up slightly in order to thrust harder into you. "fu-f-fuck! so good~"

"you really doing a number on our doll aren't you, hwa?" hongjoong from behind the two of you. hongjoong had fucked you first, cumming in, and kissing you until your lips bruised before he slipped out of you and off your bed to rest in the chair by your desk.

he had a cigarette between his lips when he came to stand behind seonghwa, promptly smacking his ass and making the elder of two turn and send a glare. hongjoong only laughed at his partner before grabbing seonghwa by the back of the neck and crashing their lips together.

even through the kiss, seonghwa's hips didn't falter as he kept a steady pace. when the two separated, seonghwa seemed to have gained some extra energy as he continued to drill into you. his thumb coming down to vigorously rub at your clit and you couldn't help the moans and whines that escaped you.

"f-fuck, you feel so good," he grunts out as he wraps his arms around your body and rolls the two of you over so you're now on top. you feel seonghwa's hand run through your hair before gripping it harshly and crashing your lips together. his tongue enters your mouth and you note it tastes like smoke and whatever drink he had at the club.

when he pulls away as you feel his hands roam over your body, groping different parts of you as he begins to harshly thrust into you from below at an almost unthinkable pace. to be honest you had never felt this pleasured before, your ex never making you feel the things both hongjoong and seonghwa have made you feel.

you can't but bury your face in his neck, tears welling up in your eyes at the overwhelming feelings that this man is making you feel.

"hm, do-does it feel g-good, princess?" seonghwa asks, feeling your walls clench around him. he voice becomes rather breathy, his thrust getting longer as he grabs your ass.

"s-so good," you say, voice shaking and you silently cry from how it all feels. and then like a wave pleasure washing over your body, you cum. you let out a loud moan-sob mixed with seonghwa's name and you also pumps his cum inside you.

your mind is fuzzy as you lay on top of seonghwa, both of you sweaty and out of breath. your body stuck to his thanks to the sweat and also how you don't have the energy to move.

you feel your bed dip next to you and seonghwa before a hand comes to rest on your back, running up and down before gently pulling you off and away from seonghwa. his cock falls out of you and you whine at the emptiness; however, hongjoong's hand comes down to spread your pussy lips apart and showing off your cum-filled cunt.

"god, look at pretty our doll's pussy is," hongjoong says pressing a kiss to your temple. you look to see seonghwa looking at the both of you with grin on face before he's sitting up and moving to sandwich you between himself and hongjoong.

"why are you crying princess?" seonghwa asks, hand coming up to brush the tears away. you won't lie, his softness surprises you. his eyes that are usually cold and hard are now soft and his voice is gentle in a way. soothing. you didn't even know you were fully crying.

"hmm?" hongjoong cranes his head to look at you, a pout now on his lips as he looks at you. "what's the matter doll?"

"i guess all the emotions from today and from my ex cheating on me has just finally hit me," you confess with a small laugh. "i had never felt so much pleasure before, so i guess it just overwhelmed me... in a good way."

"your ex never made you cum?" seonghwa asks, reaching over to grab a cigarette before lighting it. he rests next to you and hongjoong, against your headboard and smoking. you crawl a little bit away from hongjoong in order to sit at the end of your bed.

"figures," hongjoong says when seonghwa passes him the cigarette. "spineless fucker, imagine the poor girl who's stuck with him now."

you can't help but let out a laugh as you watch the two of the most feared men in your city share a cigarette and gossip between each other about you ex. it sure was a funny sight to see honestly.

you watch seonghwa talk a long drag before putting the cigarette out, "come here, princess. you don't have to worry about that bastard and his no pleasurable dick anymore."

you smile, nodding before crawling between the two men and immediately laying your head on seonghwa's chest as hongjoong hugs you from behind. "thank you, joongie, hwa."

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[clairedaring]

brb. currently screaming at the DETAILS of gelboys ep 1

(SOURCE © @virtualtadpole)

text version under the cut for readers' accessibility

I'll leave the raving about Boss and his team's meticulous craftsmanship to u/ThoughtsAllDay and others, but man, there's so much detail packed in here, I had to take notes. Which wasn't easy while watching on iQiyi without VIP, as each time you inadvertently scroll back past an ad insertion point it forces you to sit through another minute of unskippable ads that just ended five seconds ago. Anyway, some thoughts:

The biggest question I had from the series reveal was whether it's going to be one of those works that could generate endless discussions of "Is this a BL?" And so far it sure looks like one of those works. This first episode is the sliciest a slice-of-life teen drama could conceivably be. Or maybe it just feels that way because it's so different, due to the fact that...

The entire series being shot on iPhone (though they just say "phone" because Apple isn't paying them) gives the whole thing such an indie guerrilla film vibe, which is interesting to say the least. The unrestrained depth of field, the sound design picking up on every little jingling of the charms and chains the boys have on their bags, result in this raw, artsy feel that is almost jarring compared to conventional production values.

The open environment alone sounds like a continuity nightmare, though not having paid much attention to the people and cars in the background, I didn't noticed anything egregious.

The opening toilet shot was... a choice.

The song Fourmod's mother plays in the beginning is เด็กมีปัญหา (Dek Mi Panha) by, of course, Four-Mod. It's one of the biggest early hits from the Kamikaze teen-oriented record label. Faye Fang Kaew is another of the label's first groups. You can tell their mother is a huge fan. (By the way, the iQiyi subtitles spelling Fourmod's name after his Instagram handle is really annoying. Hope they drop it soon.)

Fourmod said "this term" when asking to take the BTS, so it's probably the start of the second semester, i.e. November. Senanikhom Station opened in December 2019, while the entire northern extension opened in December 2020. Either Fourmod was referring to starting his P.6 and M.1 years after the station and line opened respectively, or the series is set in 2023.

I laughed at how they needed a disclaimer warning not to run up the escalators and to hold the handrail - clearly mandated by BTS the series sponsor. If you're wondering about the sponsorship, by the way, it probably just involved them making special arrangements for location access and not any cash - this was the case for the 2009 movie Bangkok Traffic (Love) Story, which revolved almost entirely around the BTS. Here, the lack of crowds during the morning rush hour points to most of the people probably being hired extras.

The BTS got plenty of indirect advertising in exchange, of course. Fourmod buying the monthly pass seemed almost forced at first, but was soon leveraged to explain why he didn't know how to tap out of the system, since he'd presumably only used single tickets before. (Like Thoughts said, the attention to detail is incredible, with things like these that you have to zoom in to even notice.)

The depictions of locations are so super specific to reality, almost as if this were a documentary. The school is fictional, of course, but it's slotted into the exact location of Watpathumwanaram School in real life, and everything around it, including the path of the students' commute, is real. Don't know why they'd take a tuk-tuk instead of walking 400 metres to Siam Square, though, as the traffic is totally impossible.

I have no idea how much creative liberty they're taking with the school's flexibility with body accessories, electronics, and transgender students. I'm sure the creators based it on what's possible at some actual schools nowadays, but I can't tell how realistic it is for the setting at all. Very much appreciate the variability in the lengths of the students' shorts as a reflection of their personality, though, as it's rarely seen on screen anymore.

I raised an eyebrow at Fourmod asking for extra MSG in his fruit dip. (The subtitles mistranslate it as "chili salt".) Didn't even know it was a thing - usually it's just sugar, salt, and chilli - but apparently recipes that also add MSG aren't uncommon.

I'm about curious about the passage of time. Their painted nails almost growing out suggests probably two months passing during each of the time jumps, but that would be almost the entire school term already.

It's funny to imagine how they got Yuedpao as a main sponsor. Their shop is actually opposite Kantima Salon, one wonders whether it's a coincidence or they found the location first, then got the sponsorship later.

The Kluay Kluay banana dessert shop was clearly included to keep older viewers connected - it's probably the only Siam Square location in the entire episode that's recognizable to someone who knew the place from the 2000s. Heck, the neighbourhood has changed so much recently, few of the scene locations would have looked like shown even five years ago.

Which brings me to my final point and main impression from the episode: Everything in it feels so deliberate in its depiction of today's youth culture. Which is of course what the creators set out to do. But the thing is, I (and probably most Millennial and older viewers) can't quite tell how accurate it is. I trust that the team did their research well, and on the whole it feels real enough, but the script's particular references, slang and vernacular might as well be a foreign language. It feels rather eerily uncanny how changed some things have become in the space of a generation, and yet how familiar some things remain.

[mistressdragonflame]

All Along is All Done!

Wash rinse repeat for laziness, which is why it took so long, but I have completed the @theggning All Along the Watchtower!

First I trimmed the edges, feeling pretty confident.

Unfortunately, it was a false feeling, and 2 of the 3 sides were kind of shit. Ah well. I didn't do end bands, because I forgot, but its not like it was needed.

The next bit was to print the design. I knew I wanted a few different layers, but, uh....

Uh, more intimidating when all 4 layers are picked out. Whoo boy.

It took a while to print. Not just in the actual printing, but fighting with the bloody SVE file! Ugh, hours of my life trying to get the multiple colors (which I had made out of two solid colors to avoid much issue) and fuck me, did the file hate it. Blurred, random lines, adding color where the was none--a struggle. Weirdly, a different issue than my Inquisitor symbol, where it wanted more layers in the color scape, this one I did 4 layers and it worked better than 30 or more. Fuck me why.

I eventually had to split the image into multiple uploads. The orange/black, and the separate, the colors for the Nick Valentine sign. Solved a lot of issues by separating those, which took a bit to figure out before it worked.

Anyway, I completed it, and uploaded it, and cut them.

That's not actually white there, it's a very faint pink. Figured it would work best for the sign.

Next was the weeding... so much weeding.

Annnnnddd...

Fucking hell, why does my Cricut hate me and my fonts? Like, this is a typewriter font for fucks sake, not some cursive fancy shit. I attempted to salvage this one for probably too long, before my laptop upended and I lost some letters that had been pulled off accidentally and at that point I just gave up and reprinted a larger font. 2nd go around wasn't as bad.

While that 2nd attempt was printing, I ironed on the first pieces, layer by layer.

The bronze of the four looked like shit when I weeded it, hopefully layering will look good when put all together.

I finished the weeding and ironing, and glued in the booklet. Carefully matching the arrows to be sure the booklet is in the correct orientation.

And it is done! Look at how fantastic it is!!

The bronze looks soooo good! I love how that came out. The sign could be a bit better, the sve fucking hated the layered pinks for some reason, and refused to let the hot pink colored not be weirdly cut up on the interior.

But it is le done. I'm going to force my husband, who is a huge fallout fan and holds a British BA in writing, but weirdly hates reading, into reading this. He won't have an excuse now since its in print.

Now what's next?

[cl-0v3r]

Just a small rant that would probably have the entire fandom after me,

Why do we get so much Vi and Jinx merchandise & content but barley anything of the other characters? I'm well aware that the story mostly revolves around the sisters and that it gets Riot & Fortiche a lot of money considering their huge fanbase, but what about the others?? Why can't they release figures and posters of the other characters?? Im genuinely tired of seeing someone going "omg guys new arcane merch!! New arcane art!!!!!" And its just Vi and Jinx.

I want to see official Mel figures and posters, I want silly little Mel keychains, a Mel funkopop, what do you mean I can't have a waterbottle with Mel on it?? God not even Fan-made merch has Mel in it and thats really sad especially since she's a really important character too. All we have are her earrings and ring (which im not complaining tho, they're everything to me).

I've barley seen any Jayce or Viktor, neither do I see much of sevika or caitlyn or Ekko (despite the fact that 4 out of 5 ARE IN THE GAME.) Being added, and its surprising that cait is literally in that list because a lot of people love her too.

What I'm saying is, I feel like they should definitely divert their focus from the sisters and pay more attention to the other characters, I'm sure people would go wild over them, especially the more underrated ones (ahem, Mel, Viktor and Jayce please?!?!?!?!?!??) Like even if its just a poster of them that they post online.

Im hoping season 2's new merchandise includes them, im begging, my wallet is going to cry but please thats all I ask for 😭

[kanmom51]

Minimoni - album exchange - JM's Muse

Well my friends, this was certainly something.

I'm going to talk about somethings in this video that stood out to me, not necessarily in the order they came.

I must say, JM did surprise me. We got a level of candor from him we have never got before. And when I say candor I don't mean JM has not been truthful with us in the past, he has. But he is JM. In situations like these, the master of telling us it all without telling us anything.

When it came to Face JM talked. He told us how personal Face was to him. How he took all his pain and struggles and put it into these songs that also represent a progression in a chronological order ending with SMF pt. 2. He told us all that, and then at the same time left it so vague not going into any details. But it wasn't only the album he didn't talk much about, as we all know. And do we talk about Letter and how so very vague he was when it came to that song? The surprise, the "fan song", which he basically would not say more than two words about?

Funny how open and calm and relaxed JM is while talking about this song, eh? Not a hint of shyness. Not a glimmer of evasiveness. Just saying it loud and clear.

And very curious how for a man that was basically working on the two albums practically at the same time in his 2 mini albums he had 2 songs for the fans... Nope. Not curious at all. Because one of those songs was definitley not for the fans. Not like this one, which he tells us to think of as a letter... very funny when he has an actual song called Letter in Face. Only thing is that that Letter was not addressed to us AT ALL, while this one is!!!

You think his use of the word letter for Closer than this is a coincidence? Not thought out? Wrong once again. It's a conscious choice of a word !! One word that basically tells us EVERYTHING.

That was me kind of starting at the end. I just had to get it out of my system before getting into the nitty gritty of the rest.

Another thing we got from JM was just how easy it was for him to talk about JK in this 27 minute video.

First we get from him that JK was the first to hear the songs.

He tells RM that he is the first to listen to the Album though. Meaning, RM would be the first to listen to the songs in the order they are put on the album, as per his concept.

JM tells us later on in the video how he finished recording the songs early June 2023. And here he says that JK heard the songs back during their trip (in July 2023). The use of "since" makes me believe it is the July trip rather than the later one to Jeju. And telling RM he's the first to listen to the album means that JK got to hear them right after JM recorded them, not necessarily all at once, and not in the order they are heard on the album.

Then JM mentions the fact that they are going into the army together.

Now this one is curious to me.

This video was shot a day before JM was off to Hungary to shoot his MV. Mid November. What I find curious is him bringing it up like it was something that RM was not aware of...

It comes up as part of their conversation about JM's voice, how he is in the process of learning how to sing again, in a way that will not damage his voice.

Talking about that he says this:

RM steering him in the direction he wanted, which was the vocal tutors not JK... Lol.

This is clearly something the talk about a lot. And when I say they I mean JM and JK.

So JM talks about the vocal tutor and the things he has been doing to improve himself in that sense, and then this comes:

RM's reaction. "Oh right". So he knew. Which was understandable seeing that this was such a huge thing. Than why JM mentioning it? Well, probably explained by what comes next. But basically JM is telling RM, and us of course, that he is going to be practicing his singing with JK during their joint service. Yes haters. This is JM telling you that as much as you wish otherwise, the two of them are together right now, just doing their Jikook things when they can. And that includes, among many other things, having hours of conversation and practicing their singing.

So, here's what JM had to say:

Let's talk about this for a second here.

Complimenting JK, as he loves to.

Stating the obvious. JM confirming that they spend time together. This is throughout 2023 and while there were those that were once again, as part of the Jikook rollercoaster, claiming the two weren't actually close, not to mention together.

JM's use of wording. This is very important. And I don't even think this was intentional, as in something he was trying to tell us. I think this was just him saying things as they are and the use the different terms is because the situations are different. What am I talking about? JM talking about JK:

Talking about Suga:

When he talks about JK it's "when he and I are drinking together"... it's a regular occurrence. Not a once in a while. Using that term "when we are drinking..." as opposed to the term he uses with Suga "We had drinks with Suga..." 2 thinks we get here. 1st is the use of "having drinks", which implies a once in a while occurrence, and 2nd the use of "we" oh so very naturally. It's the two, together, going to meet Suga for drinks. And even then, Suga being the third wheel, was basically figuratively just thrown right out of their car, left by the road side, them continuing on their ride together, lol.

Love how when RM says "that's why you didn't invite me" JM says "It gets a little deep". Love it because he's basically saying that his conversations with JK are deep (he did say he loved his mind) but also he's kind of also saying what we already know and what he also continues to tell us when talking about them going for drinks with Suga, and that is that they are so deeply into each other that there is no room for another in their interaction/conversation.

JM talks about how they can go on for hours about music when drinking together. One more of the things they do when drinking together, spending those hours together. Yes, JM just also confirmed that they spend HOURS together. Something done regularly as per his wording. And just one more of the things we learnt they tend to do while drinking. Together.

Talking about music, singing, dancing.

Working out,

Giving or getting hickeys,

And having Ramyeon...

Moving on.

Let's talk about Muse and what JM tells us about it.

JM and RM filmed this just before JM left for Hungary to film his MV for Who, so mid November 2023. The convo about the choice of name was kind of telling. We basically find out that Muse was not yet set as the name for his album. He was really thinking of SGMB as the name, which really also shows us how much they were influenced by The Beatles Sgt. Peppers lonely heart club band album.

RM asks him if it's connected with Face and JM says not so much. He explains that Face was about him, his feelings, getting clarity, or if you want - of autobiographical nature, while Muse is more vague, or if you want - NOT AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL!!!

There is no doubt in my mind that JM, who wrote these songs, used his own experiences and memories and emotions to write them (some he needed reminding of, lol), but at the end of the day from JM's explanation, the concept of Muse is not about himself and not about love. It's him expressing feelings through the universal language of love. We know that language, we understand crushing and attraction and love. And through those he was conveying how he feels about his work, his music, his performances.

Excited over something... not someone...

And JM goes on...

He tried to capture the emotions he was feeling as being like...

tracks one through five:

track six

In a sense, if we are looking at it from this aspect, then indeed, his muse could be that "she" represented in the song. Or, being the artist that he is, and keeping it all vague, it encompasses it all. Those very famous JM layers we see in his art. Through his writing and his concepts and performances and the MV and what it conveys to us.

But I do have to emphasise this: JM wrote the lyrics to Rebirth (a song he states he is his favourite), he took part in writing the lyrics to the other 5 songs (all other than Who). The songs are not autobiographical. That is clear. But as an artist the question is where he draws his inspiration for his lyrics from. We know RM can just make it as he goes, create from nothing, from an idea, from a book he read. JK on the other hand can't. This comes from JK himself. It's something he admitted he would love to learn, but he creates from his own trove of memories and experiences. Songs like Your eyes tell, Film out, not personal, and yet he draws lyrics from his own life experiences...

Does that mean that every single song he wrote is autobiographical? Hell no. It means that his expression comes from feelings and memories and experiences he had. We know JM wrote from his own trove for Face, and there are hints he did the same for Muse (without the autobiographic side of it).

Clarifying once again ... a conceptual album does not mean that the artist does not draw from his own life experiences, his feelings, while writing his songs. It means it's not autobiographical but at same time he might be feeding his own reality into those songs.

All this to say, once again, that even if a song is not about himself, when writing it he takes from his own life experiences and feelings. And that is how we end up with lines like this in Rebirth:

You are the light in my darkness Like the sunshine vibe

This whole interaction:

The shining sun line. Yes, the reference to the sun again. And we know who the sun is.

But there's more. It's how JM talks about the line. It's about him saying he asked for permission from Taeyang to use the line in his song, all while the only word from that line that has to do with Taeyung is Vibe. But even more so their reaction to that line. Both of them. And RM at the end...

And look who's peaking from the window... Lol.

*See comments for connection with Taeyang = sun.

Please tell me RM what is so very funny about that line "shining sun" that has you folding over in laughter???

When talking about writing Rebirth and how hard it was writing the lyrics to the song, he says:

RM's reaction though, lol.

That "Bro..."

The snicker.🤣🤣

JM couldn't remember the last time he had a crush. You know. That kind of heart wrenching one sided feeling towards another (well, you think it's one sided until you have the guts to explore it further).

I can actually help him with that one:

Go look at some good wholesome BTS content back in 2014 and 2015. That, my friend is JM crushing.

And that is also why Mr. leader had his little snicker.

So yeah JM, it was a very long time ago. Since then you discovered the crush was not unrequited, and you happen to be with that same person for what? 9 years or so?

And yet, RM's reaction. Again. Cause JM might have forgotten what it's like to have a crush for someone, but RM on his part, has not forgotten what it was like to have two members in the band he was leader of crushing over each other. That was the start of his nightmare as Jikook's babysitter, lmao.

So yes, very amusing indeed.🤣

At the end RM says he loved Muse better than Face, but Rebirth is his favorite and he loves that song more than the whole of Face. He even thinks that Muse as an album is a lot better than Face.

Couldn't help myself, had to end the post with this RM about JM:

"Such a good FRIENDSHIP!!!", screams someone in the barracks.

🤣🤣

[valtsv]

What you find compelling about VAL is easy for me to intuit; I'm curious about what you find compelling about Shrue with regards to pairing them? I love them both as characters; I just remain perpetually confused as to pairings. Your writing is great btw; just interested to hear you talk about Shrue.

first off i need to confess that i shot myself in the foot a bit by using fandom shipping terminology to come up with the "VALshrue" portmanteau, because i don't have any desire to ship them in the typical romantic sense (or even sexual tbh, but that's an essay for another ask or post). in the best case scenarios where they aren't abusing each other and making each other worse it's still extremely aromantic - in fact any amatonormativity tends to contribute to the (unavoidable) toxic elements and make them more miserable and that is by design.

anyway! the anathema formerly known as adjudicator temerik shrue. my silly rabbit. i don't often talk about them in as much depth as VAL (which is truly a failure on my part) but i do absolutely adore their horrible ass just as much and want goodbad things for them. the easy answer to why i find them compelling is that a weaselly, hypocritical alcoholic public servant complicit in some of the worst abuses and exploitations the societal values they uphold are built on, contending with an impending inevitable divorce that will seal the nail in the coffin on their profound loneliness by drowning their regrets in more liquid shame, and denying their hand in their own and others' misfortunes at every turn - until their back hits the wall and there's nowhere left to run - is just such a fun character for me to play with. what if harry du bois was even more of a pathetic loser and a massive (but extremely funny) cunt about it too.

the slightly more thematically coherent answer is that i absolutely love a character whose hell is self-made and who can never balance the scales of that suffering, or their complicity in it, and has to understand that in order to ever develop as a person. the potential there is an absolute goldmine to me. how can you stand to live with yourself? why should you? why shouldn't you? and as much as i think their canon ending is beautifully written, i love to explore what might have happened if they didn't get an exit, and still didn't get what they wanted. if they had to put their money where their mouth is and try to build a better world, despite being cynically convinced that it probably isn't possible and that most people, them included, don't deserve to see it. honestly a huge part of the appeal of VALshrue to me is that not only are they absolutely awful people who've sacrificed everything that might have made their lives worthwhile to a heartless, insatiable cycle of violence that will never love them back, who less "redeem" themselves than succeed in recognising that the harm they've done has no justification and no meaning beyond feeding the same system that will eat them without remorse in turn when its use for them runs out - which is far more interesting and important to me than pure fantastical heroism - but they're immensely pathetic and selfish and self-sabotaging in very ugly, human ways about it. and that's SO much fun to play with as a fan creator.

also personally i think that they have a bit of a repressed sadistic streak that, while very much the result of the way they're constantly degraded and manipulated by everyone around them, is still incredibly destructive and maladaptive and extremely fun to unleash by poking them with sticks until they snap about it. and even more fun when VAL is the one poking them, intentionally or unintentionally ^_^

[talaok]

Hello!

I was thinking about this a little too much today. I often read fics / drabbles about Pedro being all sweet and flirty or him being very confident and flirty … I just want to read a fic about him being the worst flirt ever 😅 I know he’s a flirt in his interviews , but what if he’s really bad at it when it’s time to really seduce someone. Like he messes up what he wants to say , he makes stupid jokes that don’t land.

Do you think you could write that?

summary: Pedro is a bad flirt

A/n: I'm genuinely sorry this took so long, but I had to study like a bastard just for my professor to be an asshole

"please introduce me to her"

"why don't you go there and do it yourself?"

"because I can't"

"why?"

"please"

"fine"

__ __ __

It was a relatively small party, just a few friends and some friend’s friends, nothing huge.

Vanessa, your best friend, had insisted on throwing it, encouraging you to “live a little now that that asshole isn’t in the picture anymore”.

“That asshole”, was indeed your, as of two weeks, ex-boyfriend.

Neither of them had ever been fans of each other, and thinking back at it now, that should have probably been if not red, at least some kind of colored flag.

Anyway, as always, when it was V talking you into something, you had accepted, with a few conditions of course.

Hence, the small party and your playlist playing in the background.

“Y/n, did you know that?”

right, you should have probably been listening to the conversation.

“Uh, no, it’s news to me” you topped with an awkward laugh you hoped would go unnoticed.

“that’s crazy, you learn something new every day” Ryan commented, making you wonder for a sec if perhaps you had actually missed something interesting.

Just as you turned to Claire beside you to investigate, everyone’s attention moved to Vanessa as she strolled toward you.

Not unusual, you thought, she wasn’t a woman that got unnoticed.

What you found when you turned too, however, did pique your interest.

A man walked beside her, Pedro Pascal.

He fell into the friend-of-friends category.

He was one of Vanessa’s oldest friends from back when she studied in New York. She talked about him sometimes, but you had never actually met him, which, thinking about it, why was that?

"hi there, how's it going?" V asked

"very well, Pyke here was telling us that sharks do not have bones"

There it was, mystery solved.

V raised her brows clearly unimpressed "Wow, well that's great" she patted his shoulder, as everyone made space for the pair.

Pedro still hadn't spoken, and a match of awkwardness lighted as you all came to the same realization.

"Alright then, I think I'm gonna get another drink" The shark expert spoke, and all of a sudden Claire and Ryan both got really thirsty too as they followed him to the kitchen.

A strange smile pulled at V's lips 

"Anyway, Y/n, this is Pedro" she gestured "Pedro, this is Y/n"

You felt like one of those women in period dramas when their mothers introduce them to a man they think they should marry.

"Hi, it's nice to meet you" You shook his hand "V has told me about you"

"H-hi" he cleared his throat "it's very nice to meet you too" 

" Pedro's here to film a movie"

"are you?" you asked, interested

"yes, I- Uhm- I am" 

He looked nervous, and you had no idea why.

"Can I know which, or is it like one of those secret Marvel things?" you joked.

"Oh, no, of course" he laughed, "It's Weapons, it's like a horror movie"

"oh" you winced "Well that's lovely, but you'll have to forgive me if I'm not going to watch it. I hate horror movies"

"Oh, why?" he asked looking genuinely perplexed

"I get scared very easily, and... I'll sound like a 5-year-old, but every time I watch one I have troubles sleeping"

"oh that's fine" he laughed " I get it" he nodded "You don't look like a five-year-old at all" he blurted out, his eyes instantly widening as his brain realized what he had just said "Sound! I meant sound like a 5-year-old" he breathed "you look- you look extremely beautiful, not like-" he stopped himself before he could talk again, and just let out a small "oh god"

You shot Vanessa a glance.

"it's fine" you laughed "I got it," you reassured him, placing a hand on his bicep.

"so, since I'm not going to watch it, why don't you tell me what's about?"

His eyes found yours again, something sparking inside of them at the question.

"Oh you know, it's about guns and swords and rifles," he said with a smile.

You couldn't hide your confusion

"I'm sorry?" you asked, half-laughing

"y'know, because it's called weapons" he explained, his voice getting smaller as he realized the joke had bombed.

"Oh" you laughed, actually laughed "Of course! I'm sorry!"

"No, no don't be sorry it was a stupid joke"

"it was funny, I'm just..." You mimicked something with your hands.

"Y/n!" a shout from across the room caught your attention.

Mary was waving desperately at you, which could only mean that she had either broken another piece of furniture or wanted to do shots.

Neither of those options seemed particularly interesting, for some reason you wanted to know more about the man in front of you.

However, you also couldn't ignore one of your best friends.

"I'll be back in a second, I just need to make sure she hasn't broken another vase" you joked with a grin.

"o-ok" he nodded, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down as he swallowed harshly.

"get ready to tell me about all those weapons!" you called out, already walking to the kitchen.

Once you disappeared, Vanessa raised an eyebrow at him, her expression an open book.

"Don't say anything"

"I'm not"

"good"

there was a brief moment of silence before Vanessa couldn't hold it anymore.

She busted out laughing

"Guns and swords!?" she laughed, recalling his joke

"Shut up"

"And the five-year-old thing!?" she kept going "Dude you've been drooling over her for two years and that's what you go for the moment you finally get to talk to her?"

He couldn't do anything but sigh "I need a drink," he said "And I thought it was funny"

"Yeah, you were the only one, my friend"

[helpwhatsthis]

Keeping Your Heart Safe?

Part One of Lost In The Fire- J.S. X Reader

Looking for another chapter? Check out the series navigation!

Chapter Summary: Johnny doesn't like crowds, which can be difficult at parties. His anxiety at his birthday party is only worsened by what his life may become after the space launch project.

Warnings: lowkey it’s kind of a Johnny Storm character study (that will eventually lead to smut), reader has regenerative healing, angst, mentions of Johnny and Sue's parents death, these little shits are angsty asf dude idk

It's safe to say that most people probably would have given up under your circumstances already. You'd spent your entire life into your twenties looking for another person like you. Day and night, hours upon hours, leaving people behind and putting yourself (and sometimes others) in harms way for the slim chance that you might find another one. A mutant. Maybe that's just your luck? Some cruel joke played on you by the universe that you would be the only person among billions with... well, with what? Superpowers? Inhumane abilities? Yeah, that figures.

That's how Reed found you though, and you were thankful for that at least. Of course the always intuitive Reed Richards would notice the one person that just seemed a little too interested in the exhibit on genetic mutations at the science expo; and for every bit of intuition Reed has, his kindness and determination always seem to match it. Did he really need to pull you out of the crowd and confirm what exactly was different about you? No. Did he need to hire you on as his assistant just so that he could keep and eye on you? Again, no. Most of all, Reed definitely didn't need to move you off of the streets and into the Baxter building or try to start integrating you into his little family; but he did because that's just the kind of person he is.

Did you really need to grit your teeth and act annoyed the whole way through it even though you were fully aware that Reed may have saved your life in the process? No, but that's just the kind of person you are. Mostly because you've never really felt stable since the incident, you might just need to leave one day and it would be a whole lot easier if you didn't let yourself pretend like you were one of them. Like you were normal.

You'd like to think you were doing a pretty good job too, if it weren't for Johnny of course. Sickeningly Sweet and enragingly gentle Johnny. Not one little bit scared pf what you can do and definitely not eager to point out your differences or mistakes. It's amazing really, how he can be so indifferent about all of it. When Ben had told him that you were something akin to superhuman, he acted as if he'd been told something as mundane as your eye color.

"Correct me of I'm wrong, but isn't the birthday boy supposed to actually attend his own party?" You him, leaning against the door frame of the terrace. Johnny's head snaps around in surprise that he's been caught. He's been expecting his sister to come and find him for that past forty-five minutes and try to convince him to come back to the party; but he grins when he sees your own soft smile and eyebrows raised in question.

"Well shouldn’t the assistant be making sure that nothing goes horribly wrong at said party?” He laughs as you make your way to the edge of the balcony, sitting down carefully beside him. His hand immediately finds your shoulder when he sees you shiver at the sight below you, he doesn’t know the exact reason but he does know that you’re not a huge fan of heights. He supposes it’s got something to do with bad memories like most things you don’t like; which is, well… most things.

“I’d say the guest of honor disappearing is pretty wrong.” He smiles at your attempt to keep up the banter, but your eyes haven’t left the lights of the city beneath your feet. You look nervous and Johnny hates that. Finally, you gulp and pull your eyes up to him. “So why exactly are you out here?”

“You know how I feel about crowds…” He shrugs, trying to play it off like this is any normal event; but it’s different tonight. He’s different tonight.

“We start prepping for the space launch tomorrow.” He sighs, shoulders sinking in more. His words cause more confusion than clarity. Sure, Johnny was always shy and nervous. He’s better alone than in a crowd and he’s defiantly better with silence than small talk, but this wasn’t like him at all. He loved things like this. Johnny Storm is the epitome of an adrenaline junkie disguised as a puppy.

“Yeah… and that’s cool right? You get to go to space!” You force a smile, trying to lean forward into his line of view. “I mean even though your brother-in-law is a genius this still seems like a once in a lifetime opput-”

“I think Reed and Sue are going to try to have a baby when the project is over.” 

Oh?

“I know it’s unfair and I know I should be happy; I mean I’m going to be an uncle and that’s amazing…” He trails off, trying to blink the welling tears out of his eyes. “-but everything is going to be different after that. No more messing around in the lab in the middle of the night. No more dangerous experiments. Even Ben is starting to spend more time with that girl Alicia-” His voice cracks, head dropping as the dame breaks. “Life has always been the same since mom and dad died, it’s always been me and my sister and her husband and his best friend. I wanna be happy for them but I’m just scared because my family is changing again. ”

“Jesus, Johnny.” You sigh, pulling his body into a hug. It’s strange, you can’t remember the last time you were this careless in your closeness with someone but it just feels so good when he curls his body into you. It feels so good that Johnny feel safe with you. “It’s gonna be okay, J.” You promise, rubbing his back softly. “You’ve got the best big sister in the whole world. Things are going to be different but it’s not like you’re lives are just going to stop if they have a baby. You’ll still be just as important to your family even if there are a few new members.” You smile when he laughs a little.

He peaks his head out of its hiding place in your chest. “You know their your family too, right?” He asks softly. A sudden abundance of heat fills your chest.  You both sit in silence, just taking one another in with sad smiles on your faces. His hands start to inch up, slowly moving towards your jaw. It would be so easy to just lean into him-

“There you guys are!” Your head snaps to the doorway. “Come on, guys. Sue is gonna rip me a new one if you aren’t there for cake, man.” Ben laughs, eyeing you both with a stupid smirk on his face. 

Reluctantly, you follow him back into the penthouse. It’s a good thing too, you think. You can’t stop cursing yourself the rest of the night for how utterly stupid you almost were, even when Johnny’s eyes don’t leave you as he blows out the flames of his candles.

What to be added to my taglist? Send me a message!

[prescotted]

here is a huge and unnecessary post about josh and chris because i like to talk about them and i like to make huge metas for no reason: this was technically like five posts i just made into one, so enjoy, fam. some of the hyperlinks link to my writing blog's posts, those are also mine for reference.

i've always argued that josh and chris have this very strong bond. i want to start by saying i absolutely adore their friendship. i think it's so important overall to the story, so any inferences we receive are mostly probably by some artists on the team that can get away with it. especially with the remake, seeing fan reactions now, it wasn't hard to slip chris 4 josh in there but notice it's not like chris <3 josh or chris + josh, it's still sort of vague enough that like "yeah, i'm here for you, bro!" or "i like you". i think it's intentionally vague to affirm some but not really piss anyone else off. chris is a goofy guy, and also we now know that's josh's truck for sure. makes sense. it's been there a while.

i've talked about all of that in multiple different posts. if you want to read them: chris 4 josh which goes over other relationships with josh and how i see ships with him, etc, and also is more "fair" and less biased towards "climbing class" or what i now just call "chris 4 josh" (and subsequently all my ship tags now follow that for consistency) bc i kinda like that better? climbing class always was a little goofy for my tastes personally, but they are goofy, so it does work, but also ... there's no real connection between them and the climbing class line, it's just kind of a joke? but i get it, there's not a lot of content, but i am here to petition for chris 4 josh as the new ship name. also ... just kind of weird that jossam shippers don't call it "bathing bird" as their ship name? or actually thirty love is a better ship name tbh. go with that. thirty love. not my ship, but there are better names than jossam, i think.

how does everyone in the ud group know each other?

a question about why josh "victimizes chris" and how their relationship should be viewed more critically.

i think josh has other friend groups and the ud kids aren't his main posse, but chris is his best friend.

i've harped on and on about how chris is the main champion for josh's mental health ... that he is the one that truly knows "the most" about josh, despite josh lying to him, too. josh lies to everyone. he's never been really honest with people, always divulging a sort of half-truth or version of himself (his best self) for people to consume more easily.

also, let's give chris some credit here, because he gets shit on a lot for being so inactive in the basement scene.

but think about what he has gone through compared to, say, mike. shocking, right? because mike is doing so much! but what has mike been doing before all of this? before jessica gets taken? having a great fucking time. he's scaring his friends, having snowball fights, getting catty in the lodge with matt if you choose to do-so or just watching his two love interests have at it, jokes with jess all the way there, has a scary moment and runs, then gets to try and fuck her all before getting into his more serious character arc. this is all purposeful, i'm not mad at mike for this. we need this to happen to him, right? to show that he's actually super capable, cares, and will go the distance. mike is the man you want going after you, no question. he is insane for going so hard after jessica, and continuing to pursue onward instead of going back. insane in a good way. i can see why he thinks he can be president.

but chris ... by comparison? not going so great. he's worried about josh, he's already had to climb over the wall before sam, has had to encourage sam to come, has to assuage her this is a good idea, all while trying to check in on josh, trying to have fun, trying to be a good guy with ashley, trying to be the funny guy, having to go through the lodge because josh told him to with a lighter, gets attacked by a wolverine, gets made fun of all while trying to be fun about it himself, goes through the whole ouija thing, goes through the whole basement thing, goes through the saw choice, goes through trying to find sam, goes through having to choose between himself and ashley, goes through josh's reveal, goes through having to tie josh up, goes through having to go back for josh as the only one willing to do so, sees josh might be gone and dead, sees the stranger die, gets attacked, and then almost dies before he gets to the basement? he is honestly exhausted. let someone else have the trauma stick. it's not his time anymore. he deserves to be more inactive towards the end. he just carried the game for us.

but josh cares for chris, chris cares for josh. i won't repeat all my other metas because this is a new meta.

when chris is told that josh's body can't be recovered? he's all but about to cry. he's had to lose josh so many times. he really thought josh might pull it out of the hat again just one last time. that he could be alive.

i've mentioned i think for the remake both endings for sam and josh are just outright lame. josh because it detracts from his narrative, sam because it's just plot holes for days and is unnecessary. as a roleplayer or fanfic writer? good stuff, mostly for josh, but as an actual game that isn't catering to the 1-10% of roleplayers and fanfic writers out there? bad decision. josh deserves redemption, but the horror of it all is that he cannot achieve it, instead being consumed by the same thing that consumed his sister(s). josh is doomed by the narrative more than anyone else because the narrative is mostly his story and the story of his family. you're not there for any reason other than josh as the player, he's called us here so we have answered his call (to greatness).

in the beta, josh outright denies sam, who is outright coming onto him. this isn't a sam comparison post btw, that's not what this is. but in the beta, he's still very devoted to chris, even more openly kind of too much. in the game we get, that angle is sort of scrapped entirely. josh and sam have their dynamic, chris and josh are best friends, sam and chris seemed to have some implied thing (ik i write her as a lesbian but i am a slave to canon, folks, chris could very well have been her intended love interest lmao), and chris likes ashley, and thus ashley likes chris. we get a structure of intentional coupling: josh and sam are single, ash and chris are the will they / won't they, and then we have the other four paired together kind of interchangeably (ik matt and jess aren't canon, but there's kind of an implied history with how easily they go after each other, at least in a friend way). this helps not isolate non-couple players. it's a game mechanic thing.

but what's interesting is how josh, who has a lot of front-facing conversations with chris, looks at him?

he's always got a kind of ... i don't want to say tenderness, but definitely a more authentic way of being, even when acting. he is acting to these kids as himself, which is why josh is so believable. josh plays josh very well.

he's looking at chris. in the original, it's the same, but much harder to see (model placement, camera placement, lighting, shading, etc). here, it's much more upfront and obvious, even without my psd. josh looks chris up and down, bites his lip, and nods. that's a very specific way to look at someone. i'll leave that up to you to interpret.

and just more pics of josh smiling at chris i guess.

to me, i think josh probably liked chris, felt it wasn't received, encouraged him to date ashley, got mad about it, then got mad at chris for still liking ashley even after the prank, and sort of maybe punished him a bit for that but mostly made chris "his hero" for "his movie". you don't make someone your hero without really having an infinity for them, romantic or not.

chris has always valued josh as his highest even seeing him at his lowest. saying josh isn't on his meds if you don't find all the right clues isn't something was in hannah's diary, that is something chris knows about josh.

i think chris has come to the closest to knowing the real josh. he's the only one, i think, who notices when he's gone.

josh's sexuality is a whole other post, but i always tend to (when i play) go with "women make me uncomfortable" based on how he acts with his sisters, sam, ashley, chris, mike, matt, emily, and jess respectively. but in theory, the option 'men make me uncomfortable' is also correct (and canon). in short: everyone makes josh uncomfortable.

when josh tells chris to shut up and chris just does, i think that really should tell us what we need to know.

josh is great to goof with, but don't piss him off. chris knows to listen to josh if josh is being serious with him ... because josh is never serious about anything.

chris will submit to josh's more forceful will and doesn't seem to really care if josh basically demeans him (too much, there's a limit, chris isn't a total pushover or anything). it's not a nice way to tell your friend to be quiet, no one likes being told to shut up (in a non-playful way).

he's likely also being gracious to josh because of the situation. chris is more willing to "take it" from josh in that way because josh is going through a lot. i don't think josh is outright mean to chris, he doesn't bully him too bad (just calls him a big boy and teases him), but josh can act kind of stressed out sometimes, which i think chris accepts and tries to sort of help josh "feel better" through ... but can't really do anything about it. he's not in that position. he's just his friend. what can he do?

josh and chris have codependency, but chris and josh act very autonomously outside of each other. josh doesn't need chris to help him with the prank, he does that alone. chris doesn't need josh to spend time with ashley, he does that a lot by himself, likely a point of contention, and also awkward when the three of them hang (yet somehow kind of cool, because they keep doing it).

i would argue "josh needs chris more than chris needs josh" ... on the surface. when looking at their relationship, chris i think very much sees himself as needing josh. josh, for him, was a cooler "older kid" who arguably isn't even that much older (chris only moved ahead one grade, he's literally the same age as sam and hannah and beth, like), but when you're that age, even a year feels like a lifetime. josh provides chris a confidence in himself he cannot seem to achieve on his own ... until josh pushes him to. just like josh pushes chris to achieve confidence with ashley in the game, something josh himself says that chris needs.

for josh, chris is what keeps him "normal". things aren't so bad when his friend is around. so he needs him around all the time to keep things from not getting bad.

josh has all these things going on: rich kid, mentally ill, incidents at school, a sort of semi-unstable home life in the sense that i describe his parents as very "presently absent" or "absently present" depending on how you think about it ig. they are there but they are not. josh has them but he doesn't. he's always had his sisters, though, and then they're not there, so he has chris, because chris has always been there, and he can't have anything happen to him, right? that would just make josh fall apart.

but he clearly loves his sisters more than anything: josh was planning to "join them", so he was prepared to leave chris behind, something that chris struggles with. if josh dies, what will he do?

chris is inherently, in my mind, stronger than josh. he can withstand more than josh can while remaining sound, logical, and stable. josh is great in normal situations, but not in bad ones. chris is good at keeping josh from falling apart, but he's just one guy, and josh's problems are bigger than them.

and actually, last part about chris and josh, because i didn't even feel like it was worth mentioning directly but i guess i realized this matters a lot to people's view: their stats.

josh and chris always have the highest stats with each other basically no matter what you do. sure, they can drop a bit if you choose ash over josh because josh will remember that, but ... it's very marginal by comparison to how drastically relationships (and traits) can change.

but josh is always the highest stat for chris and chris for josh (chris 4 josh, you could say).

okay, that's actually a little unfair: what i should say is generally chris views ash and josh pretty similarly, which is interesting on its own, but for josh, chris is his highest stat.

viewing josh and ash the same is actually a major contention point for josh, i think. how can chris view her so highly so quickly (perceived to josh as quickly, it's dependent on how long you think ashley has known them) by comparison to josh ... who has been there since he was like 8. that's just tough to swallow, no matter what context you put on it or derive. that hurts josh. chris isn't meaning to hurt him.

because this is a choice-based game, ashley can actually have a better relationship with chris than josh. i'm not here to go against chris/ash, btw. generally, i find them cute together, i think there's a lot to be said, and i view it fairly. i'm also a huge ashley/josh shipper as well as i like them as an ot3, so my tastes are all over, but looking just at the game and not at my feelings ...

chris is very conflicted on how important he needs to value ashley to him as someone he wants to be with romantically and josh to him as someone he likely is viewing a lot as an older brother / best friend, whereas josh views chris differently (you decide - romantic, almost like family he's losing now to ashley, losing his bestie, whatever, it's different for josh). to chris, he's very stable in how he feels about josh, which explains why really it's what happens to josh or what josh does (not a lot in-game lbr) to chris (as josh, not his persona) that can sway chris. with ashley, it's all over the place, they have such an intentional up-and-down dynamic. it's for us to decide if they get together, that's part of their trope (will they, won't they).

josh is feeling like a third wheel here. it's his house half the time, and he's the third wheel? ouch.

also, i accept this, too: this game is glitchy. many people have reported doing something as ashley and like her honesty will go up for some and down for others and they capture it and it's there as both, so what do we do with that?

for me, just as a writer, that is all game mechanics. i guess it's good insight? but it's messy, hard to keep up with, and not the best imo. it's great for a game! bad for us when the game glitches. but also, again, i think it just shows how people can react to others, how your choices are making a difference, etc.

this is kind of why i don't eff with the stats too much tbh. it's just (to me) not sound proof. if it was, more people would comment that sam's stats are super low with everyone, lowest with mike and jess likely bc they got together and it's in bad taste, and like ... that speaks to me.

additionally, i don’t think chris just submits to josh all the time — he isn’t afraid to like, kind of stand up for himself, but you can tell especially in that year between and coming back he’s more compliant so josh can have a good time. josh denies chris asking if he’s okay, telling him not to do that (something chris probably does a lot). if josh wants to indulge “like they used to”, then chris will oblige him. he lets josh shut him down fast, then tell him what to do (i love game mechanic josh lmao do this so i can do this ok?) — chris isn’t necessarily josh’s submissive but josh is the dominant one between them generally. he calls the shots, he’s the cool one, he’s the older bro trope.