#yulia being like say no more

[italoniponic]

in the lack of a Jack's masterchef video, I'll be going over a quick scenario of Yulia helping him out in the kitchen and stuffing all those "broken" macarons in her mouth following Ruggie's ways to show true appreciation for his work

all bc this is stuck in a cycle with me like my mind is a microwave and it cannot be stopped

warning: it will takes months to finish over tho

[why-animals-do-the-thing]

The Woodland Park Zoo is my home zoo, and the possibility of a strike has been brewing for a while. The staff at the zoo have been working without a union contract for over 200 days because the zoo is unwilling to pay them a living wage.

Zookeepers around the country are consistently underpaid, and Seattle is an incredibly expensive place to live. The zoo is losing animal care staff rapidly - I've been told they'd lost five keepers and a vet tech to another nearby AZA zoo this year alone - because they can't afford to live here. And I've been told that because there's no contract, the zoo is on a hiring freeze, which means they're perpetually understaffed.

Photo credit: Yulia Issa

There was an informational picket outside of a big event last month, which got a ton of community support. Then the only content the zoo put out for National Zookeepers Week was a single post about how much gratitude the staff are owed, which... hmmmm, came off a little tone-deaf in the current moment.

Now it looks like staff might end up striking to make their point, after almost a year of negotiations.

"Workers at Woodland Park Zoo, who are members of the Joint Crafts Council (JCC) Coalition of Unions, have been making plans to protect the animals if they go on strike. If the group of 200 workers is unable to reach an agreement with their employer over a new contract, they say they will run a skeleton crew that would provide necessary care to the animals but require the Zoo to close its doors to the general public. “We are making contingency plans to ensure the continued well-being of the animals if we are forced to strike,” said Janel Kempf, a learning coordinator who has been with the Zoo for 25 years and is a Shop Steward with Teamsters 117. “A strike is an absolute last resort and one that none of us takes lightly, but the Zoo keeps pushing us in that direction. If the Zoo doesn’t change course soon, we will have no other choice than to withhold our labor.” Negotiations between the Coalition of Unions and the Zoo have been ongoing for the last ten months with workers growing increasingly frustrated at what they say is the Zoo’s failure to value and retain an experienced workforce. “We are hemorrhaging critical animal care experience which directly affects the standard of care we can provide for our animals,” said Allison Cloud, an animal keeper and member of Teamsters 117. “The Zoo is forcing us to choose between our livelihoods and our animals, a heartbreaking decision no zookeeper ever wants to make.” Workers say low wages, the skyrocketing cost of healthcare, low morale, and high turnover have put the Zoo’s AZA accreditation at risk. Loss of accreditation could cripple the Zoo’s resources and lead to the transfer of animals to other accredited facilities. "Woodland Park Zoo cannot maintain AZA accreditation without us,” said Joe Gallenbach, an Exhibit Technician with IATSE Local 15. “The loss of AZA accreditation would demonstrate catastrophic mismanagement on the part of the Woodland Park Zoological Society.” The Coalition of Unions and the Zoo have one more bargaining session on the calendar: Friday, August 9. If the Zoo does not make an acceptable proposal next Friday, workers say they will take their case for fair wages and benefits to the public through direct, concerted action."

Now, when you bring the risk of AZA accreditation loss into the conversation, things get interesting. I've written before about how some zoos are legally or contractually obligated to maintain AZA accreditation and couldn't choose to leave. Woodland Park Zoo is one of those facilities: the agreement with the city that allows the Woodland Park Zoological Society requires them to be AZA accredited. If they lose it, they default on the agreement.

So, would there actually be a chance the facility could lose accreditation if the staff struck? I couldn't find any recent information about staff at other AZA zoos striking and how it related to their accreditation cycle, but I did find this, in an AZA press release about how the Aquarium of the Bay lost accreditation a few months ago.

"Silver Spring, Md. (May 24, 2024) –  The Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Accreditation Commission unanimously voted to rescind the accreditation of the Aquarium of the Bay.  The independent Commission notified the institution on May 13, 2024, following its conclusion that the aquarium was not meeting accreditation standards in a number of key areas, including financial stability, staffing capabilities, and employee morale and turnover. Aquarium of the Bay has until June 13 to appeal the Commission’s decision."

So it looks like staffing issues and employee morale can definitely be things taken into consideration. Let's look at the AZA standards for more info. I found a couple standards that appear to be relevant:

7.3 "There must be an adequate number of trained paid and unpaid staff to care for the animals and to manage the institution’s diverse programs." Justification: "Although there is no set formula for prescribing the size of the staff (paid and unpaid), some of the criteria that may be used to define what is considered “adequate” include the number and type of species within the institution, the general condition of the animals and exhibits, and past staffing practices."

7.4 "Compensation for paid staff should be competitive with other similar positions in the local/regional/national market, as appropriate." Justification: "Institutions must be able to recruit and retain qualified paid staff. Competitive compensation is a key component in recruitment and retention of paid staff. Some positions can be successfully recruited for locally, while others are competitive on a more regional or national basis (e.g., animal care specialists)."

Both of those look like they could quite reasonably be an issue for WPZ at this point. They're losing paid staff due to low wages and operating understaffed due to the hiring freeze. Staff obviously aren't getting appropriate compensation if they're looking for jobs at nearby facilities that pay better.

Now, would the zoo actually lose accreditation if a strike came to pass? Honestly, I doubt it, because WPZ is too big a feather in AZA's cap for them to penalize them that harshly. Columbus - an equally prominent institution - got kicked because of a major public animal use scandal, but it was pretty clearly political because of how quickly they were re-accredited. I'd expect AZA might give WPZ a slap on the wrist, some stern public comment, maybe some minor penalties, but I'd be very surprised if they were willing to kick WPZ to the curb over something "just" as minor as a staffing problem.

Regardless, zoo staff deserve to be paid a living wage. I'll be really sad if the zoo is closed to a strike once the snow leopard cubs get old enough to debut - but I'd still rather the staff be paid a living wage than be able to see the fluffballs immediately. I want the people working at the zoos I visit to not be living in poverty. Zoo staff pub in an incredible amount of effort to care for animal collections and to facilitate the guest experience, and they should be able to do that without multiple roommates or three jobs. I know that the practical reality is that not all facilities can afford to pay their staff as highly as is ideal, but I'd expect a big zoo with reliable city funding to be able to do better. Supporting the zookeepers (and other zoo staff) is supporting the zoo.

I'll be keeping an eye on this going forward, both from a personal perspective (I'm a member, and I have a vested interest in what the organization I give money to does) and a professional interest in industry politics (what does AZA choose to do). I'll update if there's anything interesting on either end.

[knivpojke]

When a content creator you like is outed as someone who's done harm/something bad, it sucks!

Your first reaction is usually thinking "Is it true?" or blatantly deny it because you like what the creator put out, especially when they're mentally ill and make something you find relatable to your own experiences.

When TWO people come out about it, and more provide eye witnesses to the account, with evidence, and you decide to not even look into it? Then stay out of the conversation. This place isn't for you.

If you decide to become a part of the conversation, be sure you examine EVERYTHING properly with a critical mindset for both sides. Who has more evidence? Who has counter evidence? Who is just talking out of his ass to make you hear what you want to hear?

With the case of Andreas and Sani, if this were fake, Sani would have been bored of this by now. I've made a post saying something along the lines of "Be careful around Andreas, minors, because he could groom you next" and I got a minor saying "I sure hope so!" and that is the very attitude Andreas fans have that I've personally witnessed.

Sani and Yulia are trying to warn people about what Andreas does with his reputation. He needs to take accountability for his actions. He needs to apologize.

Andreas has tried saying Sani admitted to lying, which was itself a lie. Then he said he's not accountable for his actions because he was under the influence, which is an admittance of guilt, and still should be held accountable.

And now he's copypasting a string of useless words to let everyone hear what they want to hear "Sani is just trying to ruin my reputation." FOR WHAT PURPOSE?? He's saying he's not transphobic despite him telling me he will only use someone's correct pronouns if he respects them, which is still transphobic. He says he's not homophobic but drew Purnell raping Simon as a respinse to people wanting gay characters in the game, which is homophobic. I could go on, but the evidence is there already, look at it.

And if you don't want to look at the evidence, and stay in your special little bubble where everything is right with the world and people who have an ounce of power don't abuse it? Then stay out of the conversation. This topic isn't for you.

You all complain about "everyone being outed as abusers" till your dying day but this is the harsh reality we live in. There's more shitty people as your neighbors than you'd think. EVERYONE IS CAPABLE OF DOING SHITTY THINGS. Even me, even you.

Fuck man, he released Sanis nudes, ssn, and other personal data to his discord. That's revenge porn, and shitty in of itself.

Sani WANTS to go to court, and has reported Andreas for stalking and harassing multiple times, but they've given up on it ever coming to pass, which is why there's so much evidence out there.

If you're new to the conversation, brush up on your history, you're in for a ride.

Yulias story

Sanis story part 1

Sanis story part 2

*edit: I'm not saying you can't interract with cry of fear content. Just think critically of the creator.

[inblackwoods]

Isidor and Simon, Daniil and Artemy

There’s one line that Daniil says to Yulia that has been driving me absolutely batty. Yulia says:

“You can call these demons what you want… you may refer to the Hair Eater as ‘time’ if this will make you any happier. I am comfortable with a more juvenile vernacular. It is what I am used to.”

And Bachelor replies: “You are repeating something that Isidor had once told me, almost word for word…”

When did this conversation happen? We don't have many letters between Daniil and Isidor to know how well they knew each other or how often they spoke. How did they meet? Why? How close were they? It’s hard to say, but Daniil refers to Isidor as “[m]y gentle associate, my selfless advisor.” Assuming he’s not being sarcastic, this is high praise. It also makes me think that Daniil took Isidor’s words to heart- deeply. That means that this idea, that people can be using different words to talk about the same things, is one that Daniil is more comfortable with than he’s always given credit for. Bachelor might be more open to setting aside semantic/linguistic differences for the sake of finding middle ground to agree on.

In the introductory healers cutscene, Daniil says, “it seems unlikely that we will ever get along well,” and then a few moments later he amends that statement to, “no… We won’t ever get along.”

That sounds sad. He seems almost like he had hope that the other two immediately dashed to pieces. Before, it was "unlikely" that they would get along "well," not impossible that they could get along at all. Now it is simply "we won't ever get along." He seems uncertain, perhaps because it is against his hard logic to completely bar any possibilities without confirmation. And he is usually adherent to standard social etiquette/ideas about politeness. It is possible that certain ideologies can find overlap and find a means of coexistence. But unlikely. Termites and Utopians don't often share tables. 

But Isidor tried to teach him that they could, and Daniil tried to remember that.

[indigo-constellation]

Your changeling!Daniil is amazing. Your Clara Burakh is amazing. Your totally-normal-scientist (who totally didn't do anything like Jack the Ripper and Victor Frankenstein in the capital! only ethically sourced bodies here!) Artemiy is amazing.

Clara as Haruspex is breaking my heart especially! The way you wrote her being friends with the kids - how Artemiy was once with Stakh, Grief and Lara - and how she has a foreboding feeling she won't belong with them once it is all over, because her role is to protect them, not be one of them! Rat man still found a way to be mean my girl 😭 Also she and Grace are so sweet. Wanted to say that Grace's name (Ласка) in Russian has double meaning: 1) weasel (animal); 2) tenderness. Do with that as you will~

Also Daniil (both of them) is so good as a changeling. I loved that quiet moment he had with Clara on the stage, where they say how odd it is to play like that. Love the eyes of the "twins" being what sets them apart, too! Raven feels like he wants to be a bad guy, but can't quite bring himself. Regretful plague that is also a dead man who is alive but only because the sickness is. Snake being so gentle and kind and seemingly having some sort of planning he doesn't fully share even with the reader. Also Daniil speaking Hebrew! I gasped when I realised. It's also a fun contrast to him only speaking in Latin in the game, especially if we still to see him as Jewish. Makes me really want to see how you'd write bachelor!Daniil! Want to take a look inside his head! I know what I shall read next.

Artemiy having a worst imposter syndrome out of all of them because of coming back home where he was supposed to take on his father's role and finding the man who was a founder of a project that could be called Artemiy's life work is comedy gold. Also his little sister literally living the life he refused! 10/10 no notes. Artemiy and his unfun coming-home-to-steppe party! 🥳 Roots, Rain and Reflection is secretly a comedy.

Thank you for writing this amazing role reversal, don't think I will be able to get it out of my head.

tumblr is so annoying bc I had a whole response and then it got deleted roijepigjetiuheoigj let me try to write what I can remember and hopefully do it better

I literally screamed when I read this ask btw thank you so much

the healers in this fic are so incredibly dear to me and I love them so much, I love getting to focus on them, yes Artemy's organs and cadavers as ethically sourced and fresh as he can get them :D

Haruclara truly deserves so much, she doesn't fit into the Termites despite being a kid herself, half because of the way she was raised and half because of the nature of the story and the separation of Healers and Bound. While also having messy connections with the other two Healers. I really wish I could have more Grara but this is primarily p1 focused so the Bound's role is limited (the amount of Yulia/Rubin/Lara/Aspity I had to cut- istg I was so excited to have an Aspity and Artemy interaction on day 6 but it would've been too long) I will keep what you said in mind though! thank you ^^

Changeniil has been so write, he keeps so much of himself hidden, so getting to reveal those small bits of him like in that theatre bit are great. The hands and the eyes being the main things to distinguish the twins Dankovsky is fun because those are two things Pathologic focuses on a lot, though I will say that there might be more later on. The Raven is a miserable wet beast, the idea behind the twins has been that different bits of Daniil are split up, so and what's fun about that is that it's Plagueniil that has the idealism. He's a fucked up guy held together only by spite and disease but he cares so much it hurts him. The Snake is also a creature, truly, he knows his plan, Raven knows his plan (and doesn't like it at all), and I know how it will fail, the narrators being unreliable is such a fun part of patho. I always write Daniil as Jewish (because he is to me lol) but specifically Daniil I think fits with Hebrew because it is a revived language and as a guy who is trying to defeat death I think it would suit him (also revived language and revived Daniil was an intentional choice) I will say though, idk how well my old writing holds up bc my writing got a lot better while writing roleswap so go at your own risk lol

Finally, Bachtemy, a dearly beloved fool <3 he used to have a much bigger conflict with Daniil about Daniil not being who Artemy expected him to be and that being a lot more angsty but then I started writing that scene and it turned out gay so nice. There's a lot about Artemy I'm planning to go into in chapter 7 so look out for that. Artemy is also 100% the character I get to make the funniest, truly the comedian of the cast, I am putting him in the blender as I write this.

thank you again for this!! sorry with inflicting you with the thinking about it curse lol, it's happened to a few people as I've seen and idk how to fix that (I am also infected I cannot stop thinking abt this au) but this long ask really made me so happy to see and I'm so glad you're enjoying it!!

[meirimerens]

the pathologic cane using as i see it...

MARK IMMORTELL canonically. he has a cane canonically, now whether or not the game wants us to believe he uses it for real or it's an accessory... for real to me. in my mind's eye he has sciatica. it acts up on and off so sometimes he'll be prancing around like a goat swaying his cane like he's trying to hit people with it, sometimes he uses it for real, and sometimes he has a fanciful little wheelchair when the pain's too bad to stand on his two legs. in which case he still holds his cane for hitting people purposes. his cane is a constant thing.

Yulia... she also mentions Leg Problem in P2 so Joy the cane be upon ye. i think her deal is a repetitive strain injury of tendinitis in the knee & ankle, and she never got enough rest for it to heal properly, never did physical therapy, so now, like other types of tendinitis, it flares up from use & some movements/postures. as the rainy & cold season approach, she gets more and more sedentary because the weather makes tendinitis worse by stiffening the tendons, so it gets in vicious cycles of Stiff tendons from the cold -> even less easy to do some stretches to help with the pain -> tendons get stiffer from no stretchin -> even less easy to do some stretches... her cane is an on and off thing, but becomes regular as fall & winter roll around

Notkin as he grows up. in p1 & 2 his spoken dialog mentions (a) bad leg(s); considering his mom died in childbirth (likely His birth) in my mind's eye his bad leg(s) is attributed to having been pulled out of there Fucked Uply. mom didn't make it through a complicated birth and baby got a leg messed up when they hurried to get him outta here. adolescence and getting taller gets him apophysitis (a bone + cartilage inflammation/strain injury often seen in teens because the bones grow faster than the muscles around them) in his knee and he never gets to have the rest needed for it to heal properly so as an adult, while the pain is mostly gone, it flares up sometimes. he's way past giving a fuck what anyone might think about seeing him limp with a cane in hand so he periodically, but quite often uses one. also might use it to hit people.

Khan occasionally once he gets into his mind that it's not a big deal & if he needs it he needs it. he already has a messed up knee as a kid (p2 model bandage) but i'm still deciding how extansive of a wound that is. more than what that is i think this guy gets inflammatory arthritis as a plague residual symptom, and while most of it is concentrated in his hands, fingers and wrists, it sometimes, rarely, attacks his ankles & knees, which is when he gets on his legs wobbly like a newborn foal. while his coping mechanism for it is to lie down and suffer through gritted teeth because he still has in mind that showing pain is showing weakness and is undignified of a man of his rank (the imaginary kingdom he once had) he eventually, from being yelled at "hey moron CATCH" and thrown a cane at, gets into his mind that he should use one for such moments and not even his Mortal Enemy* will care. his own would be a fanciful thing, black-lacquered wood, silver rings, a silver dog's head at the end of the handle. too proud and proper to hit people with it but he can't say he doesn't think about it.

Burakh, later in his life (his 40s). he also has a bad leg as of Being In His Twenties, but copes and manages without a physical aid for a while. he's on homemade painkillers and various rest regiments (when he can). when it gets too bad & arthritis sets in around 40s he's on that wood and bone tool in a blink and keeps it. maybe his father used on in his old(er) age... he reuses it...

[blindmagdalena]

Do you think Homelander would ever inject a non-supe lover with Compound V? My immediate thought it yes 100%, but I don’t think you’ve ever written about him even considering it-

If you don’t agree, what do you think his motive for not doing it would be? I mean, it’s not like being super-abled would make them more powerful than him by any means so it couldn’t really be a control thing. Maybe the dynamic between god & worshipper.

ah yes! i've roleplayed this scenario, but i've not written a fic for it. my oc Yulia was originally a human who got into a tumultuous relationship with Homelander, and he ended up mortally injuring her during an argument. when he was faced with the prospect of her either dying or being paralyzed for the rest of her life... he chose V. very much against the wishes of the doctor present! she's changed since then (she's always been a supe now) but all this to say i do really love the drama of Homelander forcibly injecting his s/o with V.

that said! i view it as a last resort. like you said, injecting them with V is never going to turn someone into his equal. powers range DRASTICALLY from amazing to literally useless. there's no guarantee that V would make them stronger or more durable.

but the main reason i don't think he would opt for injecting his s/o without significant motive is because he's witnessed first hand what happens to adults when injected with compound V. it's an absolute horror show. it's incredibly painful, it often horribly disfigures them, and more often than not it's fatal.

the cons just outweigh the potential pros too heavily. if he was attached enough to someone to care that much about their wellbeing, i don't think he would be willing to risk killing them on the very slight chance that they survive and develop the power to, idk... make soda go flat instantly.

[yourdeepestfathoms]

a Pathologic tier list based on how good of an adult the characters are to Clara, a child

this is based on P1, but the tier list site i was using only had the P2 models!

i was meant to have longer, more in-depth explanations, but then i got lazy 😅 so i just have some basic reasoning!

also i haven’t replayed the Changeling route in a few months, so i’m going off of memory!

Actually A Kind, Considerate Adult To A Stressed and Traumatized Child

Lara- Lara is hands down the best adult in this entire game. She’s kind, understanding, and patient with Clara. She never insults her, and even when Clara is being a bit snooty, she still treats her gently. She also literally has a line where she points out that Clara is a child struggling with an immense burden. She calls attention to the fact that she’s just a kid, which NOBODY ELSE DOES.

“Poor thing, I’m so sorry for you. I wouldn’t want to carry your burden.”

It can kinda be read as pity, but pity is better than the cruelty and ignorance to her situation most of the others give her.

Also she has the one voice like where she’s like, “Poor child, she’s so tired” in reference to Clara.

Lara stays winning fr fr

The Tragedians and Executors- Idk if these guys can count, but they’re here anyway. They’re always so nice to Clara, calling her little pet names and explaining stuff to her in a kind way. They talk to her like how adults talk to young children, which she is. And it’s wild how these bitches beat THE ENTIRETY OF THE WHOLE CAST, minus Lara.

A Good Adult

Oyun- I actually cannot believe this guy is this high.

Surprisingly, he’s actually pretty nice to Clara. If not nice, then very respectful. He treats her like a queen.

Rubin- He’s chill with her 👍 (if i remember correctly)

Yulia- Similar to Rubin, she’s chill toward Clara, minus, I think, one little offhand comment that’s kind of rude. But compared to what some of the bitches below say to her, it may as well be a compliment.

Decent But Has Their Moments

Artemy- So, I feel like Artemy is very neutral toward Clara. There is that part in the Changeling route where he sends her a letter where he threatens to kill her, BUT that only happens if you rat out his location to Daniil, so it’s not a set event that always happens.

He speaks to her very curtly, and you can get the sense that he’s probably annoyed by her presence, but he’s not outwardly verbally abusing her unlike others.

If this were a ranking based on P2 interactions, however, he would be WAY LOWER because jfc, he is SO MEAN to Clara.

Daniil- So, he was actually lower at first, but then I saw some really good posts talking about how he cares for Clara in his own way (giving her money, keeping her in the Stillwater, worrying over her)—even if they are a little unconventional.

However, that doesn’t erase the fact that he is still pretty awful to her at times. I mean, he literally threatens to kill her twice, one of which happened when he first met her.

I love the “Daniil is a reluctant father figure to Clara” so much, but I also don’t think he would be any higher than this.

Also, like Artemy, if this were for interactions in P2, he would absolutely be lower.

Neutral

Olgimsky- I think he and Clara talk exactly two (2) times, and both interactions are short and don’t really do anything for the story (if i remember correctly). Also I don’t think they give af about each other at all.

Bad Grief- Neutral. I could have put him higher, actually. He seemed actually kind of nice.

Eva- Same with Bad Grief. Her interaction with Clara wasn’t hostile at all.

Victor- I’ll be real with y’all- I don’t remember them talking 😭

Not A Good Adult

Maria- She’s my second favorite character in the whole game (just behind Clara ofc), but even I can’t deny how cruel she is to Clara. She is SO MEAN.

Aspity- I actually had no idea where to put her. At first, she was in the “decent” section, but that didn’t seem right. Then she was in “Neutral,” but that didn’t seem right, either. Finally, I just decided to put her here. Because, looking back on their interactions, they were pretty hostile.

I don’t think Aspity liked Clara. A lot of the things she said to Clara were either vaguely threatening or directly threatening.

Anna Angel- She was so rude to Clara in the Haruspex route when Clara came running to her house, crying, on Day 6. Also I remember her making shots at Clara often.

Georgiy- Literally threatened to kill Clara the moment he met her. Enough said.

Mark- I remember this bitch ass being snappy with her. Which is good enough for me.

Vlad Jr.- This dude isn’t necessarily mean, but I do remember him being weirdly fanatical toward Clara. He spoke to her like she wasn’t a child but rather someone to be idolized.

Peter- He also wasn’t rude, but I just felt very uncomfortable every time he talked to her. He didn’t speak to her like a child but rather an adult. And yeah, a lot of people did that, but he was just so creepy to me. He acted like she was a goddess or something. It really rubbed me the wrong way.

Block- This may be a bit of an unpopular opinion, but I just can’t put this guy anywhere but here.

Yes, he was kind to her, but he also idolized her, which is just…Not Very Good. Also he fully tries to bring her to war?? If you say no when he first makes the offer, he literally ignores her and keeps going on about it which is a huge red flag.

Horrible Fucking Person

Andrey- I can’t stand this guy. Y’all don’t understand how deep my hatred for him goes. But this spot isn’t even a biased decision he is, SO CRUEL. The way he screams in Clara’s face when she went to his bar?? And yeah, he’s kinda right in some sense, she isn’t old enough to fully understand what she’s doing, but that is not her fault in any way. The blame should fall upon Katerina for making her run around indoctrinating people, not her. And he shouldn’t have yelled at a little girl, spewing insults at her, because at that point, his argument is meaningless when it directly attacks her.

He’s terrible. I hate him.

What The Fuck Is Wrong With You

Aglaya- Basically every word she spoke to Clara felt like a shotgun blast to the chest and had my jaw on the FLOOR. I was not expecting the sheer disgust and hatred she had toward this child.

As such, I have compiled a short list of some of the things she said to Clara:

1. Calls her a “dim, pathetic creature”

2. Calls her insane and deranged

3. Accuses her of having a split personality disorder and being schizophrenic

4. “Prohibits her from existing”

5. Says she has to leave the town or else she’ll have her executed

Among other stuff.

Obligatory “Awful Parents” Spot

The Saburovs- I could go on about how horrible these guys are. Not even just as people, but as parents, too.

The neglect, the exploitation, the abuse, the total disregard for Clara’s feelings when she comes back traumatized while carrying a severed head, the way she’s used to inaugurate people into a religion…

They are truly awful people, and they do not deserve Clara.

[fancifulplaguerat]

Once again thinking about the overlap between justice/truth in Clara and Daniil’s characters. These are obviously Daniil’s guiding principles, but they are almost equally embedded into Clara’s character, though it’s when Clara is acting as the disease and envoy of the Law that she most adheres to justice and truth. I notice that overlap between justice even exists in their respective patron families.

For one, both the Saburovs and Kains are associated with justice and law despite being in direct opposition. According to Alexander’s character concept, the Saburovs support “‘the Plague’s faction’” and are fittingly aligned with the capital-L Law that opposes the miraculous and considers it blasphemy; this may be thematically emphasized in that Saburov is given emergency gubernatorial powers during the outbreak. The Kains are conversely and obviously aligned with the miraculous, but again, also associated with justice and law-making; ex. Georgiy being “The Judge.” Maria claims that Townspeople go to Georgiy to settle disputes rather than Saburov because:

“His verdicts are fair. Common folk believe that the Kains possess a third eye. They say it’s a raven’s eye, spinning in the brain, leaving us restless and capable of peeking into the forbidden. […] The eye can see the covert, and people are prepared to endure its wrath to be granted the boons of high justice that its everlasting suffering reveals.”

Yulia also describes the Kains thus:

“One could even say, they are the architects of the law by which we are to live. Conceivably, they should do their utmost to define and implement the boundaries which we should never transcend—after all, this is the core function of any lawmaking entity. But then, do you know what is especially fascinating about the Kains? The boundaries are nowhere to be seen.”

The Kains are perhaps presented here, then, as those who instate their own law or justice over the capitalized ones the narrative presents; in overcoming the Law they construct their own, though ones that are chaotic or unfettered.

A final detail, too—Georgiy tells Clara: “Every time you show up at The Crucible, be prepared to suffer! These walls will burn the very thing within you that allows you to do your wicked work. Call it magic, if you will, or call it supreme justice.” Though, it’s somewhat unclear to me in English and Russian whether the so-called ‘magic’ or ‘supreme justice’ references Clara’s power or the Crucible’s—either it’s ambiguous on purpose or I’m being stupid. Either way, I’m inclined to put it against Clara saying “I’m afraid of visiting [the Kains]. I can sense how dangerous they are to me! Their very name, it seems, is something the whole of my nature protests against…” That Clara, as an embodiment of the Law/Plague, cannot bear the Crucible because it’s where the Kains cook up their various little lawbreaking miracle stews. So to me, the Kains sharing the Saburovs’ attributes is not necessarily a contradiction, but with Daniil… I mean. What is going on there. 

Daniil’s principles are basically the Law’s tenets, minus resignation to inevitability. In the theatre opening, his infamous “The truth is my shepherd. Whatever happens, I will find answers, and justice will be restored” or “there’s only one truth” sound more like they belong in the mouth of Saburov or Clara Sand Plague with their lines like “Let truth prevail,” “The truth will speak for itself,” or “I only want one thing, and that is—justice!” Perhaps it’s notable, too, that Saburov and Daniil get along fairly well ((some of the time)) despite their opposing philosophies. Likewise, on the flipside, the Kains just love to be diabolical liars at every chance they get, and multiple characters claim that Kains are affectatious: “They always try to be intimidating, they like to dramatize everything, they enjoy striking up a pose!” and “[Maria] puts on airs, but that’s just how the Kains are.” So in terms of Daniil’s ideal of honesty, he seems closer aligned to the Law than his own Bound. I am pacing my study. What is going on with you Daniil D Dankovsky

[rathologic]

Eva and yulia? Also Daniil and Eva? I could never tell if Daniil is meant to like Eva 😞

OKAY SORRY THIS WAS DELAYED...

eva/yulia: mostly I'm just glad to have a canon wlw relationship in the game :-) I don't have a ton to say about it as an ongoing pairing, but what really gets me about yulia in general is her fatalism as a response to losing things that she honestly could probably have fixed with a little personal effort (see also: LARA), c.f. her Humble trait being hypocrisy. her ability to cope with eva's loss is exactly what yulia's optimized herself to do and exactly the type of Misery that I find compelling in a pairing so... heehee... although the vast majority of evayulia content is them having a much deserved nice time together and not that

daniil/eva: Honestly, I don't think it matters if dankovsky is "meant" to like eva romantically; it's a compelling piece of writing either way! I like to think he does care a lot, since that makes his failure to pay attention to her as a person / grasp the Utopian building/death situation / save anyone resonate harder. on the other hand, also fun to see it as "dankovsky's lack of interest in human connection is making his and the people around him's lives worse." ALSO very fun to consider all of the ending options where he knowingly throws her sacrifice away, like, after meeting her actual ghost. how's your quest to defeat death being superseded by an obsession with the magic of the utopian ideology going pretty good it doesn't seem. adding feelings back into that mix is more fun though :^) and we have eva's canon interest in him relating to her death in a way that's fascinating to dig into with taking unrequited love as generosity (real unrequited love fans know)

[abbyromanoff]

Imagine this Alpha!Natasha w Omega!reader who just gave birth to both of her pups, natty who's really protective of r who is in labor she snarls at the nurse's because of the fear of hurting her mate and her pup's, so Natasha scent marks and holds reader the entire time of the process and at the end of everything natty teary-eyed gives reader kisses and praises after the birth of the 2 of her pup's and reader just looks at her with love in her eye's

(The birth is natural and the pup's are twin females, the names are dahlia and yulia)

A family

Pairings: Alpha!Natasha Romanoff x omega!reader

Summary: Nat is very overprotective while you give birth and after you have. She refuses to let you or her pups go

Word count: 1,026

Warnings: A/B/O fic, fluff, giving birth, the word pups are used for the babies but they’re not actual puppies…

No one is permitted to steal, copy, or reblog my work as their own!!

“Come on Mrs. Romanoff, push a little more!” The doctor yelled out into the scream filled room. Nat held you hand in a panic manner as you squeezed a human out of you. This was the most painful thing you’ve ever experienced.

“I’m doing the best I can, you bitch!” The other nurses tried to hold their laughter as best as they could but failed. When Nat laughed you immediately started yelling again.

“Oh you think this is funny? How about you push a human that you put inside of me out of you!” She cowered down and went to hold your back. When the first pup started crowning Nat quickly moved to look, still gripping your hand with dear life. A few tears escaped her eyes as she watched you bring life into this world. When the lady grabbed the baby Nat noticed how her hand placement on her head could possibly hurt her.

“Hey, be careful with her, you could hurt her head like that.” She snarled at the woman who quickly fixed her mistake. Nat glared at the nurse and focused back on you for a moment, trying to calm you down before you start pushing again.

“It’s alright, my sweet omega, you can do it. You just pushed an entire human out of you, I know you can do it one more time for me.” She placed kisses on your hand as her encouraging words sunk in. She moved to your scent gland and marked it, soothing you further. She reassured you that she would be right back before going to admire her baby who was being cleaned and wrapped up in a blanket. When she heard the doctor say the next pup is coming she quickly rushed to your side, stealing occasional glances at her child being cared for.

You grabbed her hand tightly as you squeezed for what you hoped would be the last time, it wasn’t. For a whole twenty six minutes you were put through painful pushing and the others had to deal with you yelling at them repeatedly. Nat went to watch the baby crown just like she did before, tears slipping like earlier.

The second baby was handed over to one of the workers, you sat relieved knowing that you were finally done. Nat was handed her first child as she delicately held her, Dahlia was the name. You both decided on names for the pups the minute you found out you were having two girls and chose Dahlia and Yulia. They were unique names but you two loved them, almost as much as you loved the babies you chose the names for.

You were handed the younger one and held her with just as much care, watching the way her greens eyes stared into your own. The both of them had green eyes, just like their mother. Nat handed you Yulia as you gave Dahlia to her, the both of you admiring their cuteness. Nat cried when the baby wrapped her hand around Nat’s finger, playing with it as she tried to figure out what it was.

The door suddenly opened to reveal Nat’s family, the Avengers along with her parents and sister. They congratulated the two of you and asked to hold the two. You gladly let them, handing Wanda the youngest of the twins while Nat refused to let the other go.

“Nat-”

“No.” You sighed, realizing she wouldn’t give her up no matter what you said. Everyone just laughed awkwardly and focused on the one in their hands while Nat sat next to you on the bed.

“Aren’t they perfect?” “They really are.” You both sat in a comfortable silence before the nurse had to take the children, stating she had to bring them to the nursery. Nat unwillingly let the two go, immediately fearing they were in danger without her.

“What if they get hurt, or worse, what if one of the other babies is sick and it gets to them? We can’t have our little ones being sick. They could die or need serious medical attenti-” “Nat calm down, alright? They’re going to be fine, the hospital will take great care of them and then they can come home with us.” You rested your hand upon her shaking thigh, trying to calm her down. Nat shooed everyone else out of the room before lying down on the bed with you, holding you sacredly in her arms. She stared into your eyes with pure love, wondering how she got so lucky. You often wondered the same thing, you didn’t know how the person you loved could ever love you back and want to have a family with you. She interlocked your hands together, using her other one to trace shapes on your back.

“My sweet omega, you did amazing today, I’m so proud of you. Because of you we have two beautiful daughters and are a family. I can’t wait to grow old with you and watch as our little pups get to experience this moment with their mate. God I love you and our babies so much.” She used her hands to wipe the tears that threatened to escape your eyes. You kissed the alpha with passion as you both melted into it. When the two of you settled down she cuddled into your chest, rubbing your stomach that she knew would disappear soon now that you’ve given birth.

“I want more.” Came her small voice after minutes of pure silence. You stopped brushing her hair with your hands and looked down at her, “Okay one, I just gave birth to those rascals, two, I am not doing that again and three, how about you try pushing two eight pound pups out of you and tell me if you want to do it again.” She laughed at your response before yawning out of exhaustion. You were even more tired than her and was on the brink of falling asleep, so, you did. When the doctor came in a few minutes later she saw the two of you cuddled asleep and audibly awed before leaving quietly. You were now a family.

[lovelyyandereaddictionpoint]

Just want to say, I really love your yandere family! They all seem so sweet lajdkal

Ah! Thank you! I'm so glad!

I've been meaning to make more content for them

So here's a little something

🖤🖤🖤

How Sweet They Are | Yandere Family

Remalda

To Everyone else: Is as sweet as she needs to be. How can she be anything other than that when she’s going for mayor? But what’s underneath the sweet smiles and friendly disposition is a spiteful woman with a violent string of thoughts.

“Miss Remalda! If you weren’t married I’d propose to you!”

“Awww that’s so sweet! But I’m very happy in my marriage!”

‘If you had found me 14 years earlier I would have skinned you for even thinking you could replace my love with yourself. Disgusting Pig!’

To You: She’s sweeter than sugar. Anything you ask for you can have even if it comes with detriment to someone else. She just can’t resist it when you look up at her with those adorable (e/c) eyes. It's just too much! Too perfect! That’s her beloved baby alright!

“Awww you reached so nicely for it, you can have all the cake you want!”

“Mom! They can’t even digest solid food!”

“But they asked so adorably how can i refuse?*Mwah*”

Spencer 

To Everyone else: He’s as cordial as he needs to be. He’s been keeping people at a distance for quite a long time so this is nothing new. He doesn’t often waste any time thinking about those he meets or what he can do for them because he’s too busy thinking about his own family. 

“Thank you for your patronage.”

“You’re really pretty for a man in your work!”

“Hmmm.”

‘Did I leave the dishwasher running? If I did (Y/n)’s sippy cup should be in there. That’ll be good. Oh, and Yulia has a skating competition this week…’

He’s so disconnected sometimes he forgets the...consequences that spring from his own actions or lack thereof.

“So darling who was that tramp?”

“What tramp?”

To You: He tries to be as sweet as any parent should be. Your chubby body, your gleeful squeals, and your tiny grip on him–are always reminders to him about how much he cherishes you. He’s aware that Remalda is inclined to spoil you and he doubts that will ever change so he has to take initiative and be the adult. But he didn’t have to worry about it now, not when you were so young and it was normal anyway to act on your whims. You have no other way to communicate so it's okay!

“Baby, be careful waving that toy in the air! You might hit a bird!”

You’ll babble and ultimately end up flinging the toy in the air wacking a bird off its perch.

“Oh s-dear! Okay okay, you can have it back just don’t do that again. Okay?”

Michael 

To Everyone Else: Only if you pay for it. He’s a businessman after all and he doesn’t get the results he does by being “sweet.” He’ll make his peers pay a fee if they want to see his pearly whites and even then it's never the real thing. It’s safe to say he takes after his Mother and Father when it comes to being sweet…it covers his real thoughts that are either completely unrelated or especially violent.

“Geez Michael you could’ve at least acted like you care! I’m paying for the experience, right?”

“You right, I don’t care. But if you want the experience with a friendly disposition you’ll have to pay the fee.” 

“What!? Seriously this is a lot more than I imagined…”

‘Of course I do I need to have enough to support my baby and little sister…I wonder if I would get more if I just stabbed him.’

To You: He’s sweet t in the way that he always holds you with care and reprimands your wrong-doings. While he’s not too different from his father he still feels like it's his duty to ‘properly raise you’. He thinks-no he knows you're the precious baby that needs his loving hand to guide you in this messed up family. And since you're his sweet baby he will be the sweetest to you and Yulia.

“Alright (Y/n)...give me your hand.”

“(Y/n). (Y/n), listen to big brother. Give me your hand.”

He’s trying his hardest to be sweet with you, it's not typically in his nature to choose kindness over violence but he tries. He loves you after all so he’s willing to try anything to see your gummy smile and hear the bells of your laughter.

“Good job, (Y/n). Next, you’ll have to learn to give me one of your toys.”

Yulia

To Everyone Else: Of course, she is sweet to everyone! Why not be? Everyone’s usually so nice to her–always complimenting her ice skating and how good of a big sister she is. Sometimes when she talks to those who know her brother they seemed surprised she is so nice. 

“Huh, Michael? Oh well, he’s quite curt but I wouldn’t say he’s mean.”

So where her beloved brother slips up she carries the weight, hoping to dissuade others from building too much aggression towards him. Because she knows him and he’s the kindest big brother; yes, he may mysteriously be ridding her of any and all problems she speaks about.

“Threatened you? He’s just…doing his own thing. Yeah, sorry about that…”

To You: Yes! Why wouldn’t she?! Her darling baby sibling is just so cute and when Michael’s busy and the parents are fighting+ you always seem to reach out for her. Always seem to remember her. So she gives you kisses and risks her mother’s wrath to sneak into your nursery for a sleepover.

“Come on (Y/n), how about we stay up and I tell you all about everything1”

[aicosu]

Pathologic headcanons? You mentioned having a lot of them

So fucking many I dont know where to start? Maybe with bigger ones? Then character ones?

The Town/Kin

- I actually played much of p2 first before playing 1 and then returning to finish 2. So I have a lot of attachment to the Kin, and Boddho and their pov.

-I think that Boddho is an empty nesting eldritch mother. That she either is like... Illuvatar from Silmarillion (from what my husbands told me) where she came or grew from earth and wanted to make specificslly humans, but made the worms and brides and shabnaks first at her version of the Valor, or their job is to prepare the world for her true children (humans). even as "excess materials" shabnaks excess bones, worms excess muscle, and brides excess blood. But she didnt expect them to grow out of their need for her. Steppe life does eventually evolve towards integrating with the settlement and she resents creations who can create towers to heaven without her. Hence plague. But again, boddho creates creatures who are individually sentient. Even some of the proto kin seem rebellious. So I imagine the plague too, is sentient with its own ideas and goals. Poor boddho seems a bit immature and frustrated that yes. Eventually, even the plague and kin will want to grow and elvove without her.

-or shes already dead. Love the dead boddho theory, thanks andrey stamatin. That maybe everyone who hears boddho is just hearing her talk from centuries ago cause shes to unfathomable and eldritch creature to speak to. Neat! I think it doesnt hold up in 2, since you see her (someones?) Heart beating but cool.

-i do think the proto humans have preferences but dont know what a preference even is. Theres obviously (in p2, i know p1 was more an obvious patriachal straightfoward thing) brides who prefer townsfolk and brides who prefer the steppe. There are worms who like the city people they make friends with, and shabnaks that feel fear but aspire to grow ans meet and learn langauge.

Daniil Dankovsky

-trans daniil just makes so much damn sense to me its stupid like its perfect. At first I thought maybe he was amab and experiencing gender envy at the women in the town, coming to a conclusion he's in denial of why he favors their company or feels a sort of kinship with. To me, women are to Daniil what children are to Artemy. His bound in 1 as the uptopians is eh to me, but yet anytime he is speaking with Lara or Yulia, even Aspity, there is a understanding, condescending, even familial, protective frustration he has thats so complicated.

-to me that works so well as his journey as afab. Only child. Born to a young dead mother and a military man who didnt want much to do with him.

-I imagine him pursuing college and medical school for a year before his father dies and he drops out to transition. Ive seen other fans of transkovsky say he invented hrt himself, but if I think about how medical was approached or even philosphized about in patho or the older days I think he approached it by killing singular nerves and doing invasive surgey. They werent super great at the hormone or brain level and its just more... danils style to think to himself "i will literally kill what i dont need or want" (and then wearing uterus trophies on his neck because he cant brag out loud)

-which leads me to my other headcanon that this secret invasive self experiments and his success at splicing himself gave him a bit of cancer or a debilitating "mystical" disease he refuses as mystical. While i do love daniil being pompous about defeating death just cause hes pompous, I also love the idea that he wants all his cake and flowers. He succeeded in defeating gender, birth, orientation, and now its making him die? How unfair. How horrible. No one will steal his time at finally being himself not even death.

-thanatica I see as a mask over that research, too. Cause he can not come out and show himself off to substantiate his achievements. The medical world would be too distracted by the social ques to care that, hey, I've stopped cell generation. I've propugated cells. I've made parts of a body grow that stopped in the womb. Its a breakthrough he cant discuss so hes hauling in dead bodies and reanimating skin with the same methods or stacing off tuberculosis with the same technique hes using to stave off his death disease and it give him all this internal, unvalidated, seething frustration that he cant just scream what a fucking genuis he is. (He does anyway but without that to back him up)

-I think he joins the military for a year or two and assumes the identity of a dankovsky son. And the military stupidly, weirdly, validates him in his identity but also hardens him the way war does. The way death does when you have soldiers dying on your medical table. Then goes back and finishes his degree before opening thanatica.

-i hc Daniil as a messy bisexual. I think pre transistion he was always attracted to women actually, and that also motivated him to a smaller degree of well, why not get married to a lovely lady. Why not be the head of my household. Why not conquer society and genetics and death and enjoy things I could not myself feel comfortable to portray, but want to covet.

-you know and he gets to busy to actually finally indulge in that and then gets to town on ghorkan and meets artemy burakh and is like, wait, no, stop, this isnt the plan dammit.

-but I do think also that's complicated when it comes to sex and love. I can identify aapects or a gradient of a sexuality to him. Not necessarily demisexual, but his identity and his mind can get in the way of desires or even, that it takes a specific amount of vulnerability that he avoids. So maybe it's trauma or his being on the spectrum. So in his journey of self-discovery, maybe he's been a lot of whatever "labels." I think so much of labels and identity play into his vast acknlowdgement of philosophy too. Why talk about sex at all if we arent also talking about society and death and culture and etc (que daniil stopping his one night stand mid sentence to lecture about the differences of breeding expectations in different economic structures or population.)

-I ship daniil with Burakh mostly, (stamatins and block too at times) but I also ship him with the Marble Nest bride at the stillwater, who I guess is like a projected OC of mine. (Shes a special model, one of the only ones wearing jewelry and also one of the only kin whose sweet to daniil? She also seems critical of her own culture "weddings are a sad thing for us". I have a million headcanons and ideas for them two, who I think he names her Theralydice (thera for theraputrix the assitants to aescluipis or healers, therayl for feral or wild, and dice for custome or law as well as a common form for femininenames) Something heretically latin and inappropriate and artemy shakes him stupid for naming a bride at all- "but how will I refer to the only reasonable one burakh") but I wont bore you with all that crack.

OTHER:

Sorry this has already gotten so long so ill just list random other stuff.

-I think burakh is a man of little words not cause he's shy or reserved but because hes very smart about his town. He knows that information and gossip spread like wildfire. And stating his ideas, thoughts, plans, TO ANYONE so plainly (as dankovsky does) means in another twenty minutes 6 other people might find out and stop him. It's in his best interest to act stupid and complacent. It's the best idea to shrug at young vlad and go "idk maybe" because saying yes or no would maybe mean making an enemy.

-I think there are two eldritch horros now one. Aside from boddho i think the mistresses are hearing something else out there in the ether. Same as those whispers to peter about building the polyhedron. Boddho from this planet or not, something in that void is wanting to come in and use her or the earths power to its own end. Town on Ghorkon seems like an open battery everyone wants to suck dry. And while the kains can talk a big talk about plans for nina or simon, I wouldnt be suprised if someone or something kicked their souls out and took over for itself.

-I 1000 percent think Aspity is the first outbreak in human form if that wasn't already established. But I also dont think clara is. But I do love the idea that it's possible to do. In the same way, maybe annaAngell occupies Willows body? Hmm.

-also all yes to everyone is just actually dolls, but then wheres the fun in hc-ing the world lore???

[shmowderslut]

I recently started a "im going to read EVERYTHING" bachelor playthrough, and im surpriced i havent seen anyone talk about the many-legged fugitive side quest. Im sick and feel like my brain is filled with rats, so here's my unorganized and unholy feelings about it.

MINOR MECHANIC SPOILERS BELOW!! PLOT SPOILERS UNDER THE CUT

First of all the house you need to go in is *not* easy to find, it is not the nearest house to the staircase (also theres two of them!) and definetly isnt visible from the stillwater. I have to confess, i needed to look it up online, and even the guide had misplaced the marker! As always, the frustration fuels me, and makes my love this game even more. And this is day 1! Its a nightmare and i love it. If youre stuck here, its okay, it seems like so many people were too.

Plot and character spoilers under the cut!

Okay now into the juicy stuff. Technically not about the quest yet, but we're getting there.

You get the quest talking to Lara Ravel, after learning about her from talking to Yulia in the main mission. A thing i dont think is mentioned a lot is that Yulia dislikes Lara Ravel. Now Yulia being a queer woman in stem (i will not accept criticism on this) She raves about all the other women like theire goddesses (they are) but she sees Lara as ungenuine and almost sad.

"She pities everyone she comes across, for she knows they will all die just like her dearly departed. She sees a corpse in everyone she looks upon"

And maybe i havent been paying attention, but this is very different from how Lara is usually portrayed, as a literal angel and a philanthropist. She always stood out to me as a surprisingly simple and good character is pathologic, so i was exactic to find out this detail of hers. Also the relationship says a lot about Yulia and her no-nonsense attitude, that she values honesty over good deeds.

Then we finally get to the quest in itself, where Lara tells you the children have brought an old dangerous game back. They used to play doctor using a dangerous mix of medicine and pretend healed eachother. She asks you to find a secret stash these kids hid and destroy all the shmowders (again, i went a lil insane trying to find the house). Unfortunately the bachelor is just too late, again, and the stash has been distributed among the children.

Theres 2 dogheads you can talk to, one of them tells you more about shmowders. That they doent believe in shmowders and its the little kids who are playing epidemic with deadly conjuctures. They blame Capella for distributing them, and all the kids should just go to the polyhedron to stay safe.

The second doghead tells you that yes, the shmowders do work and they came in use the last outbreak. That the kids were safe in the polyhedron, but some of them wandered out and made shmowders. Shmowders that were stored in this stash, but have now disappeared. Also as a fun fact, he tells you the spesific people who made the shmowders. Now i dont recognize these, but if you do please tell me.

"The original ones were made by Catchfly, but they were no good; the disease would pass, but the person would pass away along with it. But then Beaker's brothers made some nice ones. Crowfoot's weren't too shabby, and neither were Flanky's..."

I just think its neat to have an in universe reason the pumpkin girl sometimes carries a shmowder. Also this plays into what i think is the most prevalent pathologic theme, two impossible truths existing at the same time. The shmowders are a live saving medicine AND poison. Its childrens imagination AND real. You get the jist, my head hurts and im going to sleep

Also if you read this far, thank you?!? I am in no state to check this for clarity, but im pretty rambly (battling to not write a fanfic about this quest) and this is not my native language

[shmowder]

Back to your dom/sub tierlist for a bit. Which of the doms and switches on your list would prefer an obedient sub and which would prefer a bratty one?

I personally feel like Andrey would definitely go for a bratty, feisty sub, as would Bad Grief when he's domming. They both seem like they'd be into someone who's a free spirit. When Grief moves into the Cathedral and you don't get rid of Barley, he says, "There's some undeniable freedom inside you." Idk, I keep thinking about that.

Also, something tells me Daniil and Mark might have fun with a brat? Georgiy might get something out of putting them in their place, but I don't know if he'd like it, necessarily.

Everyone else, though, I think would prefer an obedient sub. They're too serious. This is perhaps influenced by the tragic absence of brat bones in my body 😔 I'd love to hear your thoughts even if they're different from mine!

🐿️ anon

Those are really good ideas omfg we are on the same wavelength

All the Kains claim they want an obedient bottom but really, they want a brat to break and wear down until they obey their every word.

Not all the characters hold the same intentions for the type of reader they want. For example, Aglaya would try to get you to obey her every word and follow her rules while Mark Immortell thrives on tricking you and making you accidentally break the rules. Aspity wants you to have blind trust and faith in her while being completely unhinged.

Or the spoiled Reader. Victor would be still try to show he's in control, while someone like Rubin would steal the moon from the sky for you and be at your beck and call for every need. Lara is more authoritarian while Artemy is more sentimental in bed.

The enthusiastic category refers to a bottom reader who makes their partner know how much they want them, how much they're enjoying this and absolutely smitten with their partner.

Dom or top Characters there would be down bad for a reader who showers them in compliments and drowns them in love.

Yulia would absolutely melt from the affection.

While someone like Eva would match your energy and return it tenfolds.

General Block would find your enthusiasm refreshing, especially since he has no use for coyness or shyness. He wants someone direct and as honest about wanting him as he is about them.

Anna thrives under attention and praise, stroking her ego is the best way to ensure she has a great time in bed. She doubles her efforts to impress you and show off her flexibility.

With brat Reader, someone like Maria would get an absolute thrill from breaking you down.

While someone like Georgiy would gradually wear you down and make you concede on your own.

Andrey would take you up on your big talk and all bark no bite, then ask why you're quiet all of the sudden, huh? He earned his arrogance and the right to be confident because he knows he can follow up with his promises.

With Daniil, it's like having a brat off? He'd love an obedient reader just as much ngl, but I had to make him pick a side. He claims he can handle a brat, but absolutely cannot in reality and end up getting his ego hurt when he can't get you to obey him. Dankovsky can only tame the softest of brats.

The powerbottom category is super fitting.

Someone like Oyun would willingly give up power and let you pull him around by the horns and take the lead.

While Katerina would pretend to put up a fight for power and lose at the last minute.

Peter is there because it's less work to do for him during sex, he's– Well he isn't the most attentive partner, you'll do most of the work.

Young Vlad actually wants to be overpowered. He would piss you off deliberately just to have you ride his face out of spite.

-

Isidor is... well... Listen. All of us thought about being sandwiched between Isidor and Simon at least once, right? That is a very normal and common thought that everyone in the pathologic fandom has at least once...right???

He'd want you to obey, that man has very little control about the things around him; his bedroom won't be one of them.

Simon is a little fucking shit I tell you. He'd walk on you and Isidor doing the deed all unbothered just to have a conversation with him then leave without sparing you at glance, at other times he's very attentive in bed and lets you be freely without rules or anything.

[valiant-if]

How would the ro’s react to a usually bold mc 

Getting flustered around them relationship stage

Hi, anon!

Anton's not necessarily shy or bold himself—probably somewhere in the middle—so a usually bold MC can fluster him from time to time. If the MC is suddenly flustered, it's a bit of a reprieve for him, but he also takes that as a signal to take more charge in an encounter.

Switch might be a little disappointed, but she would never admit to it. I would consider her more reserved rather than shy, but a bold MC takes a lot of pressure off of her in a relationship since they are the one usually making the first move. If an MC is suddenly acting flustered around her, Switch does her best to take charge, but it's likely very awkward in a painfully obvious way that she's stepping outside of her comfort zone.

Zero would tease MC good-naturedly but only if the teasing doesn't make MC uncomfortable. She wouldn't let them suffer under the teasing for too long, though. Zero is pretty open and bold with her affections and has no problems taking the lead.

Path would tease MC, but he's not as conscientious as Zero and might not let up on the teasing even if MC is uncomfortable about it. He would turn the rare occasion into a game of cat and mouse between them, playing up the anticipation of any romantic encounter.

Depending on how the flustered MC presents themself, Kiran may or may not notice. If he does notice, though, 9 out of 10 experts say Kiran is likely to attribute the change in behavior to the MC not feeling well or to something being off about their environment. Kiran shifts to problem solving mode and tries to find the root issue.

Yulia interprets it as a game and is eager to play, upping her own boldness to make up for MC's sudden lack of it.

Hex is a little glad and he's not quiet about it, saying how nice it is that he can still manage to fluster MC sometimes. It mostly doesn't change much about his behavior though.

A2 might interpret that scenario as the MC pulling back, which would make her worry that she did something wrong or said the wrong thing. She keeps those worries under wraps, but she subtly makes extra effort to be affectionate when the two of them are in private.

Thanks for the ask!