Unknown Pleasures.

I've been thinking about the possible, well, mechanics of Elster and Ariane's physical intimacy.

Specifically, whether it would be possible for Ariane to reciprocate, sexually, to Elster in some way - I have to think she'd want to, and it's hard not to imagine Elster wouldn't want to indulge her.

Some spicy musings on the possibilities to follow.

Obviously Elster isn't intended or built for sexual pleasure; we can actually probably assume that she doesn't even have genitals, if the black surface "shell" is indeed the exoskeleton Replikas are said to have. What we see when she salvages the arm and chestplate seems to suggest the same thing too, that her exterior as we see it is simply part of her body as a whole.

(I'm also inclined to interpret her "pod" as something closer to a dialysis machine than a bed or cot simply for sleeping - something that manages the waste products her external anatomy seems to make no allowances for, as far as we can tell.)

But we know from her behaviors that she definitely does have some kinds of sensation through this exterior - in particular, we know she has the approximate touch-feedback of a human, required to operate lots of the human-suitable mechanisms she comes across, and she does seem to feel some kind of pain when she's injured.

This makes sense - both these things serve obvious practical functions. Elster, as a combat engineering unit, needs to know how tightly a bolt is fitted every bit as accurately as she might have to know how hard she's squeezing a trigger; and pain is a useful thing for any organism as a self-preservation measure, especially prudent for a comparatively valuable unit type.

You can of course calibrate the roughly appropriate trigger pull standards for any number of weapons into your LSTRs as they're rolling off the production line - but the bolts, nuts, screws, panels and fittings she's going to work with in the field will all behave differently due to their unique conditions and environments. So she does definitely need to have a kind of sensation coming back, even if only to know how far to crank a wrench before it breaks something.

Following this logic, and maybe even the Nation's preference for efficiency and physical specialization in the Replikas, it would seem to me that the most sensitive interface points of her body are probably her hands, since those are the tools of her function.

As for pain - well, we know pain and pleasure in human bodies both occur via the same pathways, and given how closely Replika biology mimics that of a Gestalt, we have to assume that's just as true. Which is to say, if she can feel physical pain, she can potentially feel physical pleasure too - even if she isn't constructed with that in mind. It might just take some creativity, and some engineering knowhow to "hack" her body to use it this way, which I'm sure the two could muster between them.

Imagine then, if you will, Ariane and Elster experimenting with a jury-rigged contraption of multimeter and radio parts, wired in through the finer structures of her hands, to see if they can figure out how to induce the equivalent of organic pleasure through her existing sensory mechanisms.

Not just for a fun little experiment or to pass some time, you understand - but to find another way they can share and love each other in the freedom and isolation of their exile, even if it has to be invented. Another way for Ariane to reach for Elster despite the limits and restrictions the Nation has defined for them; another way for Elster to let her in.

Imagine Elster kneeling, so she won't fall if she is to be suddenly overwhelmed, hands outstretched like a religious devotee, while above her Ariane begins to tune into the responses she wants, chasing her ecstatic threshold like a radio operator might chase a precious, narrow, signal on the dial.

Imagine, once they'd started making a real science of it, that they'd want to bring more intimacy, more closeness into the process. Imagine Ariane sitting on Elster's torso in their cosy little bed cubby, studying her reactions as she makes herself an expert in them, taking her own pleasure in providing Elster's this time. Imagine her sitting on Elster's face while Elster faithfully offers their invention up to her, so that she can ensure as artfully as possible that they both come in time.

You might even imagine them getting real weird with it, refining and minimizing their devices, and installing parts into some of the cavity gap somewhere, like the space we've seen inside her torso, so Ariane can pop open a panel and reach inside to invent a new kind of powerful, visceral intimacy, one that's entirely unique to them.

Imagine the exchange of trust involved. Not just from Elster to Ariane either, but from Ariane to Elster; both in sending her fragile human hands into the unyielding structures of her lover's armored and artificial body, and in having to rely on Elster not to let her do any harm, even from well intended ignorance.

Just some thoughts. Got thinking about the possibility Ariane might be curious to experiment with Elster's physiology, beyond basic maintenance, after seeing @arainydancer's great latest animation "Fixer", through no fault of hers.

Hi Luna!

You wanted requests so i thought of something.

What about a blurb/fic of Cedric Diggory x fem!hufflepuffreader, in which fem is a very bubbly, happy sunshine character but the better they get to know each other, he finds her jealous side,which she trys to hide because she is always so nice. Maybe this surprises him but he finds it cute/hot. 👀

It’s very general but english isnt my first language so i don’t know.

Have a great day lovely 🫶🏻

-🍓🍰

Pairing: Cedric Diggory x Fem!Hufflepuff Reader

Warnings: AFAB reader, Toxic 'he's mine' mentality, Jealousy

Type: Fanfic x reader

Request: Anon

Word Count: Way longer than I anticipated for my first fic

Prompt: Cedric Diggory witnesses the sweet reader be jealous for the first time.

Notes: Thank you so much, Anon! Yay, my first request!!! I'm so excited to fulfill this for you! I hope I am okay with my writing; here's hoping for the best. I have my request page on my blog if anyone else wants to ask away! Cedric also doesn't die in this spinoff. (I always cried so hard at that part) P.S. I do use Grammarly as my spelling/grammar checker. I have Dyslexia, so if things are Choppy or if they look off, please don't hesitate to reach out to me and give me some constructive criticism or suggestions!

Sweet As A Daisy Smells~~~~ Cedric Diggory

You remember your first day at Hogwarts like it was yesterday, even if years have passed. The beautiful architecture, the food, the Witches and Wizards of your year, of course, nothing would beat the year below you and their entrance, seeing as Harry Potter had joined your school that year. However, one small thing might beat what the fourth years have, being placed in Cedric Diggory's house.

Yes, you were like every other star-struck 5th year and younger following Diggory. The only difference between you and them is you actually accidentally made friends with the male. It was purely an accident, not a perfectly strategic mastermind plot between you and your friends to 'plop' you in his path.

It was innocent, really; you had a notorious reputation for being one of the sweetest Witches and Hufflepuffs. Someone needs help with homework: you're on it. Someone needs a quick snack: you're in the kitchen helping the house elves. An animal is wounded and hurting: you're on your hands and knees in the dirt, healing the animal as best you can till Hagrid can assist you. You were overall a genuinely nice person even the Draco Malfoy ran out of insults to throw your way because you were so unfazed: just telling him gently, "I know we all have bad days and feel the need to belittle others, it's okay, I won't judge you for it."

Your masterful plan to 'plop' you in front of Diggory was simple and well executed; you took the initiative to help the quidditch team clean and organize their equipment one night. Your roommate, Elaine Mellonfellow, was the one who came up with the idea, as she was usually one of the three on the team that ended up with that job. She would simply suggest to her captain that you take her place for a handful of sessions so she could 'serve detention.' This was a convincing plan, especially considering Elaine's tendency to doze off during Professor Snape's lectures.

Taking the bait, hook, line, and sinker, Diggory happily agreed to an extra pair of hands to help keep the team's quidditch equipment in top shape. This is what led you to now. It went from a handful of crafted detentions by Elaine to her simply stopping showing up, and you always did. Some would say you should be mad at your friend's obvious ruse to get out of a daunting chore, but you saw it simply as a good friend making sure you got close to your crush and close you definitely got.

Weeks of small talk turned into life stories and learning in detail about one another. You learned about his father's work in the ministry, about how he knew the Weasely brothers through their fathers, how he worked hard to become Quidditch captain, and that his almost least favorite color was, in fact, yellow. However, his years in Hufflepuff definitely helped change that.

While you were learning about Diggory to the fullest extent, he quickly learned much about you. Your fierce loyalty was the only thing preventing you from being in any of the other houses. You never gave up on a task, consistently achieved the highest marks in your year, and helped everyone out as often as possible. Always putting others before yourself, especially Elaine, who he has caught multiple times not being in 'detention' and though he would like to reprimand his chaser for skipping out on duties. He couldn't bring himself out of fear you would stop coming to help every week. Course, this could be solved if he could buck up the courage to talk to you outside of the quidditch tents, but there is a reason why he isn't a Gryffindor. It was fair to say that you were the sweetest, warmest human he had ever met, and he was addicted to you like a bee to a daisy.

All of these stolen moments have led up to today, the day Cedric found out you were, in fact, not just the cutest human in the world but also a vicious opponent in the arena of love.

After dinner in the great hall, you and Elaine make your way to your normal departure point, where she would 'go to detention,' and you would take her place as the ever-faithful cleaner of the Hufflepuff Quidditch team. "Elaine, you are becoming far too obvious that you are not in detention when I am out there with him. What if he thinks I am a weirdo stalker chick who told you not to do your duties?"

Elaine snorted before speaking, "Yeah, cause Mister Lovey Goo Goo Eyes is definitely going to give up on spending time with his precious Y/N." You roll your eyes in frustration, with a slight blush present when Elaine speaks up again.

"Don't believe me, Y/N. He talks about you during our entire rest period during morning and evening practices. You might as well already be his girlfriend. If I hear him preach about how your favorite flowers are daisies again, I will puke." Elaine made a fake puking motion before laughing again at you.

"You look like a maniac, dork." you begin to laugh at Elaine's theatrics. Shaking off your nerves from Elaine's words, you begin to wonder. 'Does Cedric really talk about me that much...What if this is all being read horribly wrong, the man has half of Hogwarts on his side 24/7'

"Hey, now get out of your head; I know that look and that lip bite. Come on you are practically my sister, and he is practically my brother with all the time we spend together as a team. I promise you you got this. Just woman up and ask him out already before someone else does." As Elaine spoke to you, she followed the silhouette of Cho Chang on her way toward the quidditch pitches.

Sighing and following along as well, you felt a slight pang in your heart. Everyone knew that Cho Chang was in love with Cedric—so much so that she even rejected Harry Potter. She was perfect, the best representation of smarts, beauty, and poise that you definitely weren't. You were out there every week helping clean in the dirt and mud, for Christ's sake. You would never compare to her, and that ate you alive. Cho had shown her face at a few of your cleaning nights with Cedric. At first, it didn't bother you; they were the same year, and she could have needed help with classwork. Then, the day Harry asked her out, she turned him down only to show up that night laughing and hanging on to Cedric, making it very, VERY clear to him how she didn't like Harry. You knew right then and there. Game On.

Straightening your back, you turn to Elaine, a smile scarily plastered on your face. "I am going in," you begin to walk towards the pitch when you hear from behind, "Maybe don't smile like that; it's a bit unnerving, love! I'll be in the room of requirements with the twins!" Waving by to Elaine, you finish your trek to the pitch to see none other than Cho Chang clinging to Cedric. The slight pang boils into a full-blown constriction.

To onlookers that night, the smile on your face went from mildly unnerving to straight terrifying. Like a Lioness hunting her pray for her young. To Cedric, he just saw his girl walking up to him. Pulling away from Cho, he ran up to you. "Hi, Y/N; I was beginning to worry you got 'detention' too." Using air quotes around detention, your attention moved from the shocked female to the lovely boy before you. "Oh, Cedric, I would never miss this. Who else would help you? Elaine seems to be getting in trouble often lately. Must be all that time with the twins." A warm blush overcame your face as you rubbed the back of your head gently.

"She sure does. Why don't we get started? I was thinking of a full revamp of the whole broom closet. For some reason, half the team thinks that just haphazardly throwing their equipment in there is the best thing to do." Cedric smiled down at you, eager to start his routine and banter with you. Nodding gently, you began to walk into the tent with Cedric when a small voice spoke out behind you. "So that's what you two do in there; clean. I could always help Cedric. Here, let me lend a hand, too." Cho's voice rang like a small bell. A small bell that made you want to grit your teeth and commit a crime. Cedric just shrugged and turned to you. "I guess the more, the merrier, right Y/N?" You gently nodded your head when the constricted feeling in your chest slowly turned into a whole ball of hate.

The cleaning started like any other day; a soft, small conversation began between you and Cedric. Then it happened...that voice. That smooth, high, annoying voice that made you see red. It was bad enough that she pretended that you guys weren't always cleaning when she was hanging around. Even more annoying was her almost consistent interjecting in the conversation. You could feel your shoulders tensing every time she talked, and it didn't go unnoticed by the two peers helping you clean, either. "Everything alright, Y/N?" You could hear the concern laced in Cedric's voice, pulling you from your thoughts. "Yes I am just fine, a little tired is all but I can keep going theres not much left to do tonight anyway." Cedric nodded softly, placing a hand gently on your mid back in a comforting manner.

Then that voice again: "Cedric, it is getting awfully late, and curfew will be hitting soon. You're a prefect; maybe you could escort me back to my dorm so I don't get into trouble?" You saw it right there—the threat, the classic back-down girly pop, he's mine, the 'I get what I want because I am Cho Chang.' Not Today. "Actually, Cho," a sizeable fake smile plastered across your face, "Cedric and I have a pass from Madam Hooch to be out here past curfew to finish cleaning. You, however, seem to not have one of those. Maybe it would be best if you went back to your dorm now. Alone. Since curfew is in the next thirty minutes." You tilted your head sweetly at the girl, your forced smile still present. To others, you looked like your usual sweet self, maybe even regular sweet, with a little bit of derangement. However, Cedric picked up on your tone. That wasn't your normal tone at all. Holding back his smile, he watched the scene unfold.

"Oh, is that right, Y/N? Well, I am sure that Cedric wouldn't mind walking me back and letting you continue. It's just a short walk to Ravenclaw Tower. I know you would 'Hate' to see someone get into trouble after 'helping' you." Cho looked at you with the same false sense of kindness. You step towards her when Cedric interjected. "Cho is right; it's late, and it won't take long for us to walk up to the tower." You look at Cedric, defeated, Cho smugly standing behind him. "I will be right back, Y/N. Then we can finish cleaning." After his words, he walked to the tent's opening and guided Cho out. You couldn't describe the feeling you were having, sadness, hate, fear like you were going to throw up from anxiety because how did you lose to Cho Chang after everything Elaine said about Cedric liking you. A deep, heavy sigh left you as tears pooled in your eyes, watching the two return to the castle.

You grabbed one of the brooms nearby, not even realizing it was Cedric's, and took to the skies. You should get the heat out of your system. Now, you wouldn't say that you were a Quidditch player by any means. You were simply just fast and graceful on a broom. If they had synchronized broom work like the muggles had synchronized swimming, you would 100% join. However, Quidditch is a rough, dangerous sport, and something about a giant ball coming at your head screamed no, not for me. However, nothing mattered tonight except swoops, dives, quick turns, and sorting through the goals. Anything to take your mind off him with Cho. Cho touching him, Cho kissing him, Cho anywhere near him. As your mind raced, you went faster and faster. Not even noticing Cedric had made his way back.

Cedric stood at the opening of the pitch, arms crossed, watching you sore. Why you hadn't tried out for Seeker was beyond him; your speed rivaled that of Harry Potter. However, knowing your soft, sweet personality, he understood why you wouldn't. However, something about watching you zoom around in a jealous rage was very enthralling. Not only are you the pollen the bee is attracted to, but you are also the bee's sting. Jealousy was a perfect look on you. Smiling softly, he waited for you to calm down and land.

As the adrenaline and tears faded, you figured enough time had passed between them leaving and him returning, probably in a happy new relationship. Landing softly, looking up at the sky, you sighed, then turned to the pitch opening. Freezing in your tracks, you saw Cedric Diggory standing there with a smug look and his arms crossed. "Oh uh hey Diggory um, what's up?" You tried looking everywhere but him. "Nothing much, Y/N," He peered his head at your left hand holding the broom, "is that my broom you decided to use so gracefully in the sky." A deep red blush consumed your face as you hid the broom behind your back, shaking your head. Great, not only did he see you flying, but he also is going to think you're a crazy stalker who doesn't know her place using his stuff. A small laugh left Cedric's mouth as he walked up to you. You kept your head down, hoping he would disappear or maybe you would wake up in your bed, and this was all a horrid dream.

Cedric stopped in front of you and placed his hand gently on your head. "I turned her down, you know." You froze, eyes wide, still looking at the ground. "She asked me while we were walking up to her dorm, but I had to tell her I had given my heart to someone else." You slowly looked up at Cedric, and a soft red glow was on your face. "Though I will say Y/N jealousy is a good look on you. Why haven't you joined my team?" A snort left you, and not believing his words, you rebuttled. "I don't want to get hurt, is all." Cedric smiled, pulling you into a gentle hug. "I would never let anything hurt you, not a Quaffle or Cho Chang." You buried your head in to his chest a small laugh escaping you hugging Cedric back. In your soft embrace, you both failed to notice a displeased Madam Hooch approaching the pitch. "LISTEN, YOU TWO, I GAVE YOU A PASS TO CLEAN, NOT SNOG. GO TO YOUR DORMS." You both pulled away quickly, looking at her before running off laughing hard.

You and Cedric made it to your dorm hand in hand. Sadly, he still had prefect duties for the night while you needed to go to bed for a potion exam tomorrow. Taking your conjoined hands, Cedric places a soft kiss on your knuckles. A rose blush consumes your face. "Get some rest, and I will pick you up in the morning. We can go eat breakfast tomorrow in the great hall." You smiled widely and nodded. "Sounds good, Cedric. I will see you then." As you began to pull away, Cedric yanked you back into him. Looking up, Cedric cupped your face gently and kissed your mouth. The peck only lasted a second before he let go. "I'm sorry I couldn't help myself. The bee is just too attracted to the Daisie's pollen." You snorted before standing on your tip toes and kissing him again. This time, neither of you pulled away. Your arms snaked gently around Cedrcis shoulders, hands getting lost in his soft hair. While Cedric held your waist gently in his hands. When you pulled away this time, you rested your heads together. "Maybe I should be jealous more often if this is my reward." Cedric laughed softly before hugging you one last time and sending you to sleep.

~~FIN~~

-------BONUS------

*peering around some barrels in the kitchens, watching you two have your sweet moment."

Elaine: You both owe me 20 galleons.

George: This is ghastly, but I can't believe he turned Cho down. She is like THE it, girl, right now. She even turned down Harry.

Fred: You are mad he turned Cho down. I am angry that I owe Angela a week of butter beers cause he rejected Cho and confessed to Y/N all on the same night. I swear that woman is a mind reader.

Elaine: Both of you are horrible...I love it. Alright, now to prank Filtch.

(Thank you all so much for reading. This is my first official story back into writing. I am sorry if it is choppy or odd. I am getting back into the rhythm of things. I hope this is good enough to showcase the beginning of my writing journey!)

Nemona Team Tweaks

So while I may be ride or die for Nemona, she actually has one of my least favorite teams in SV. Figured it would be fun to talk about my thoughts on how her team was constructed, the finale of Victory Road, and my hypothetical tweaks for her team. All under the cut bc these things get long :)

While I love Nemona as a character, I don't feel like her team quite lives up to her personality in a sense. Unlike Arven and Penny, there doesn't seem to be a clear theme to her team-- or maybe there is and i'm missing it? Either way, Penny's team is a complete gimmick so revealing it all at once makes sense, and you get to watch Arven's team build over time and add to the really solid and obvious food motif. Technically you see Nemona build her team too but she adds so many seemingly random pokemon last minute that I'm just ??? ok nemona

The second issue I have with Nemona-- and the end of Victory Road as a whole-- is that they do absolutely nothing interesting with Tera Types. The gyms set you up beautifully to learn all about how fun and interesting tera types can be, but then you get to the Elite Four + champion(s) and suddenly everyone teras into the same type. It feels like a bizarre way to end things

anyway, here's the team and some reasoning behind the picks:

First, I wanted to center her team around the theme of friendship, specifically her friendship with the player. All the pokemon she has on her team are either representative of her friendship with the player as told through dialogue throughout her story OR evolve via friendship / smth similar

Midday Lycanroc -> Dusk Lycanroc: I like Nemona's Lycanroc because dog = man's best friend and Nemona is the player's bestie, but also it serves as a hazard setter. I'm pretty sure she is the only person to use hazards in this entire game, and the stealth rock was such a pain when I battled her that I feel the need to keep it. As for why I'm switching it from midday to dusk, I think the orange color matches her eyes... and her ability would be Own Tempo if she had one! This pokemon appears in the third battle just like in the games

Orthworm -> Paldean Tauros: Adding this here with a minor caveat that it would also require some extra dialogue. We see her using this pokemon in the intro which implies it's on her initial champion team, but I think she should state this outright during her dialogue with the player, explaining how this is her precious partner and one of the strongest pokemon she's ever battled with. This pokemon ONLY appears in the final battle, and because we know this is one of Nemona's previous aces, we can show through her team how she's pulling out all the stops against you and finally bringing her all

Dudunsparce or Cyclizar: Tbh i'm actually not sure about this one, I feel like it could go either way. A three-segment Dudunsparce could symbolize Nemona being able to (seemingly effortlessly) achieve things that others only dream of, but a Cyclizar is a better parallel to the player and symbolizes Nemona's connection with her pokemon and the player. They're both normal types which means there's still a fighting weakness, so honestly either could work. Still on the fence about this one, but either way it first appears in the fifth battle (either weaker or unevolved) and then at full strength in the final.

Goodra -> Palafin: The fact that no one in the game uses a Palafin is a goddamn crime and I intend on correcting it. Plus, it fits with her new friendship theme quite well! I know the AI would butcher the use of this thing but it's the thought that counts. Much like Goomy, Finizen would appear in the fourth battle with her, but doesn't evolve until the final fight. The form change serves as a fun surprise for unsuspecting player!

Pawmot: No changes here-- Pawmot is a perfect pokemon for nemona. It's introduced at a great time in the second battle, fits her theme of friendship and caring for others with Revival Blessing, and even has her hair!

Starter: I wouldn't change anything about this pokemon EXCEPT for the tera type. This time, she teras into the type strong against your starter-- it serves as a bookends from your first battle with her to your last, and shows that she isn't holding back against you anymore. You're TRULY battling her at the peak of her strength and she isn't fucking around this time

aaaaand that's about it! This team wasn't made for balance or to be an especially hard challenge (since Paldea is easy as hell anyway) but just to add a little more oomph to her team in terms of themes. If u have any ideas on how to change her team lmk I like hearing other people's takes on it too :)

I'm sorry if this is a too deep question out of nowhere, but on your HCs, how do you think the curses (and mahito especially) perceive gender? Mahito uses masculine pronouns in canon, but do you think he identifies with a specific gender? Is agender? Is interested in studying the importance we humans give to it, or thinks it's too stupid and unecessary? Does he comprehend certain prejudices that humans have due to gender ideas? I was also going to include asking about sexuality too, but I think this is already a pretty big ask </3 have a good day S2

Feel free to ask anything you like! I love deep questions.

With curses in general I think the context matters - as in, the type of curse they are. Say a curse exists that was born from the suffering women have endured, I feel like that curse would be more attached to the associated gender because its existence and nature surrounds that gender specifically. Whether that curse has the sentience or care to identify as said gender is another thing to consider. How a curse presents itself could be directly related to that gender its nature is associated with, or it could be a more ambiguous thing that covets aspects of the specific gender despite being something more akin to agender.

I think it comes down to the nature of the curse (why the curse was born to begin with) + the level of sentience of the curse (if it possesses the awareness to care about gender). I think a curse lacking sentience/awareness that identifies as a gender is likely echoing its nature without consideration - like a ghost looping in the place it died. Curses seem to echo "gibberish" about what made them or is related to their birth.

By default I lean towards the 'no' zone of curses perceiving gender to the degree humans do. While gender can be important to the type of curse it is, gender doesn't actually serve a purpose beyond that to them. It's entirely a human construct in terms of identification. Gender serves a reproductive purpose, sure, but how many curses are out there making babies? I ask that because curses, as we know them, lean more into negative and destructive habits than positive and creation based ones.

The context of a curse is what can give them a gender association, but a curse possessing sentience to some degree is what can define their perception on gender - if they even have one.

With Mahito I think he understands humans value gender perception. I don't think he personally cares deeply on the matter himself in terms of identification, but he likes the way the male form feels more-so than the female form. From the angle I write him from, I feel like he's agender but likes to be masculine presenting in body to a degree.

(Side note: I have a running theory way off to the side on the fact he was more masc leaning because human hatred, fear and betrayal in history has been more knowingly caused by men and patriarchies. That's not me saying women haven't done shit things in history, mind you, since Mahito isn't really bound to any one gender doing one. But predominantly in history, regardless of country even, we see male leaders of nations or clans being the ones to decide the fates of others. Betraying their people, enslavement, forcing their people into war, murdering for their own gain or enjoyment, etc. and the greater documentation we have of it regarding men over women.

It made me think that maybe Mahito's development into a masc leaning build was influenced by that. But he also keeps his features feminine leaning because plenty of women in history have also done wrong. Both in the past and present day - whatever the span of energy was that built up enough to make him. Or remake him (again and again).

It's a very tentative thing I'm considering because obviously it Doesn't Sound Great on paper. But Mahito is a little bit of a scholar of sorts, between human psychology, philosophy and (in my opinion) having some manner of interest in history - I can see him kind of playing with this angle because it could feel right to him to embody aspects of what birthed him. Presenting as a feminine man also is its own topic that inspires stupid amounts of hatred in people. Seeing as Mahito likes to make people upset, uncomfortable, etc. I can also see him forming his body based on that.

And while I know a person's art style is liable to change here and there and what not - I find it fun to think that Mahito is just shapeshifting himself a little here and there. Thins his muscles, gets a little leaner now and then, sometimes gets more bulky. Adjusts depending on his wants or if he thinks it's necessary to.

Anyways, these thoughts in here are just tentative ones I'm musing on because I'm trying to factor in the things that birthed him and how they've played a role in humanity. So take this section in parenthesis with a grain of salt for now.)

Back to your inquiry, I think he'd be interested to learn how humans perceive it and what the fuss is all about. The subject of gender in the modern era sparks a lot of negativity between those who are going unheard and those who are obtuse on the matter. I think Mahito understands gender in the form of human reproduction and doesn't inherently think more on it beyond that. If someone corrected him on how their identify he'd take a second to consider their physical form and if it was based on that or based on their mental perception of themselves. Either way, I don't really feel like he'd have a care in going along with how someone identifies as, since gender to him isn't a huge deal. On top of that, his interest in psychology and philosophy surrounding the subject is probably the saving grace here that would have him be interested in going along with it. Because without that, he really wouldn't care and would call someone whatever came to mind. This isn't to say he's a nice curse, btw. Mahito will likely make rude jokes at the expense of someone. Gender, orientation, whatever regarding all that isn't really off limits if he wants to be mean in some way.

I think Mahito has a good understanding on the prejudices that exist. While he has no real attachment to gender as a curse and just decides based on his whim of what he likes at the time, he understands the value humans have with it and the negativity that generates because of the subject. Hell, he was probably born from a decent chunk of the hatred ignorant people have on the subject and the hatred (and fear) people on the other side of the debate (nonbinary, trans, etc) also experience. Mahito sees this issues humans face and thinks they are silly things to squabble about. But hey, they are generating negativity and kind of proving his own ideology so he isn't about to complain either.

Also feel free to ask about sexuality! I'm pausing this answer without that part because I'm not wholly sure what about it you'd like me to address. If you mean how curses or Mahito perceive sexuality? Or if he associates with that-- like similar questions here just flipped for that subject or something else. So rather than presuming I'll let you feel free to ask if you'd like so I can give the inquiry the attention it deserves.

If I didn't answer something enough, feel free to specify and I'll clarify my thoughts further. I don't mind at all.

Mind anyone who gets this far, this is just my own opinion of how I write Mahito. It's fine if you disagree with any part of it. ^^

Thank you very much for asking! It was lovely to answer.

A modern AU sounds cool! Who out of the knife polycule do you think would adjust to modern life the fastest? What kind of real world jobs and hobbies do you think they might have?

Honestly if you isekai-ed anyone of the knife polycule into modern day we all know Jarlaxle would be the fastest to adapt. It's functionally the best tool in his arsenal.

And the knife polycule happens to be what I focused most on when constructing the AU, ironically. I was focused most on Artemis' storyline when constructing it initially so a lot of focus went into Jarlaxle and his entourage. I'm about to ramble so for everyone's sake I'll stick this in a read more.

As a real quick setup of how the Modern AU works: It's still Faerun, but moved forwards to where there's modern technology. I centered most of the concept in Silverymoon, since it's close enough to Menzoberranzan and Mithral Hall that you could, conceivably, see how those three places could eventually become functionally sister cities as time wears on.

Jarlaxle mostly lives surface-side but keeps a dedicated apartment in Menzoberranzan whenever he visits home, which is almost never so that's where Kimmuriel lives while at university. Technically, he's still old money via his family but he is, in fact, working, mostly to keep from getting bored. House Baenre I imagine plays a lot of politics so Jarlaxle has to keep up some level of propriety and attend at least a few public events, but I also imagine he prefers his own ventures. One of those being that he runs a few high-end nightclubs in Menzo and Silverymoon, which gave me the opportunity to keep the names of the two bars he canonically owns: The One-Eyed Jax and the Oozing Myconid. Since he lives in Silverymoon most of the time, he has friends mind the Oozing Myconid while he's away.

I like to think outside of his work, Jarlaxle's canon interest in fashion holds true, he is regularly the best-dressed person in the room. I think he has an interest in music, and I also think Jarlaxle just likes to read really pulpy romance novels.

I mentioned Kimmuriel is in university in Menzoberranzan, most probably because K'yorl wants to keep an eye on him and make sure he's not doing anything he's not supposed to. Living off-campus is probably the most freedom he's gotten in awhile. As for a job itself, Kimmuriel probably works at a library, his friendship with Jarlaxle is mostly through their families, and it's definitely how they met. Kimmuriel, like Jarlaxle, probably has family obligations too, but much more academic ones. Kimmuriel probably keeps a meticulous calendar, and at least once every two months there's a lecture by his mother or a sibling or someone his mother mentioned in conversation that Kimmuriel knows he's expected to attend.

As for hobbies, I think Kimmuriel is an avid reader with a wide interest in genres. I also imagine he likes puzzles and trivia games. You could say he has old man hobbies but Kimmuriel strikes me as the type that would tag along to a nightclub because Jarlaxle and Rai'gy want to go, not because he wants to go.

Zaknafein...Well aside from whatever's going on between him, Malice, and the polyandry agreement from hell, he's the bar manager at the One-Eyed Jax. This is really good for him because he gets time to himself that Malice can't argue about because he's making money. This is also bad for him because the front of house manager is Arathis Hune, and a modern AU does not mean either of them like each other. There is a position at the One-Eyed Jax called the Bar Minder and they are just there to keep Zak and Arathis from trying to shank each other in the middle of a shift. They will, and Jarlaxle has quickly learned he is not a sufficient deterrent to serve as a shield. He has the stitches to prove it too. It was an interesting emergency room visit.

Zaknafein's athleticism had to go somewhere and I'm not totally sure about everything but I wanna say he kickboxes at the bare minimum. I also imagine he likes strategy games like chess, something he and Kimmuriel have in common and is one of the few things they bond over.

Artemis, meanwhile, starts off this AU living in a poorer section of Silverymoon, working odd jobs for under the table money, not all of which are legal. When he meets Jarlaxle, that turns into being that Bar Minder because turns out an effective fight deterrent is a scruffy-looking college kid that looks just enough like Zak and Arathis' own teenage boys that they don't want to try stabbing him. Jarlaxle has found a medium with which to exploit their paternal instincts is what I'm saying. I don't know what Artemis thinks of this job but I do know he spends a lot of time reacting to Jarlaxle like "Rich people are insane" and really, looking at House Baenre, is he wrong?

Not sure if it counts as a hobby or just "I learned to do this to escape the cops and now I find it fun" but Artemis is probably really good at parkour and sometimes if he really gets the instinct he'll just start scaling a building. He's gotten in trouble for this before. I also think Artemis likes reading, but doesn't have many books of his own until he gets the job with Jarlaxle. Prior and even after I think he just frequented libraries.

as "let's see if will roland's birthday prompts any billions production clues from posts castmates may make about it" continues to yield "no one's posting about it, while some castmates post about other people's birthdays," already having more thoughts abt [i'm sure he'll show up in at least one episode even if only to be written out] type things like:

a) would be insulting if winston is fired to serve a subplot about philip and taylor having some difficulty in finding their footing re: working together as coheads, like, we're good at anticassandraing things and have gone "lol what if philip & taylor disagreed abt quants in that philip preferred winston. which he feasibly could," so what if instead it's philip arguing that winston should be fired to streamline things or because everyone who's not taylor will want him gone b/c they dislike him, and in learning how to successfully work together, taylor's like well alright. like, don't pit these elements against each other the insult is instead just Anyone, higher ups or lower downs, wanting winston gone b/c they dislike him, so he's fired

b) winston getting bullied by anyone or everyone is seen as him distracting them &/or provoking it with his presence, so he's fired winston being friends w/tuk is seen as a bad influence of loserdom on the latter (or distraction, or annoying, or w/e) so he's fired some Problem that needs solving or otherwise some need to fire Some people that really doesn't have much to do with him gets him fired anyways. like 5x05 all over again, isn't it always. or even if he's particularly involved in some problem you know it'd be something other people could get away with just fine. see:

c) what's even "a problem" like that despite everyone being in a hostile workplace, winston is especially, and we're so graced with dollar bill back on the premises who has already harassed and threatened and assaulted him (not only limiting the lattermost to something like "did he hit you, and like, closed fist, and i mean pretty hard. well that's just what he's like, you're fine." or the way like sabotaging a toilet is just epic pranks and only a problem if something looks bad to theoretical investors and we should talk about what tmc people might be doing to deserve it) while rian has been holding down the fort bullying and using winston. perfectly in line with everything if this kind of thing prompting any hostility in turn is like, nobody blinks at the other stuff, wherein if anything everyone keeps trying to fix dollar bill's feelings for him and talk about how who he's being awful to needs to appease him asap, and rian simply Wanting to use winston as a chew toy is just taken in stride while separately people have already been motivated by theoretically looking out for her / supporting her in various ways as well. whereas if winston Acts like he regards her as a hostile party, which she is, rather than seeming to operate in good faith that they can have regular constructive basic respect interactions, which he does while those decent interactions seem to come through rarely and unreliably, then i'm sure he'd be seen as mean / starting shit / out of line / etc, especially when it seems him Disrespecting the Rules & Social Hierarchy that should disallow him from like, speaking unless it's to self-flagellate, means people see him as aggressive or whatever. basically the classic scenario like, kid's bullied at school, they're supposed to just ignore it or it's otherwise "not that bad" / stuff gotten away with, even if supposedly it's like well just tell an authority figure here, that won't/doesn't work, any resulting obvious tension/dislike between the kid and whoever is like "uh oh, a Both Sides problem" at best, same if there's a physical fight or something or else it's like well That was unacceptable and if it was initiated by Your reaction to all other kinds of terrible treatment for however long, you're the problem. not that i expect winston to throw a punch about it, but, figuratively / parallel to this scenario

d) winston is sick of his deluxe hostile environment, doesn't actually like whatever coheading changes, sick of rian and/or dollar bill specifically, and/or doesn't appreciate some other goings-on, like one that results in him even being threatened with firing, and gets to just quit as has regularly seemed like something he might want to do anyways since 4x11 and intermittently on

e) not really another Way to imagine they kick him out but was thinking how like, Is a reason we're shown that taylor and rian hugging in the middle of an office was seen by i guess winston alone gonna be further relevant at all and about him making anything of it, which, he really couldn't possibly be wrong about any inferences. but going :/ at the taylor and rian dynamic just as a spontaneous, contained event would be self-explanatory too. but had the thought of like, maybe it's all "well taylor's been here 5 seasons and is in a more prominent position than last season, throw a PR problem at them for the first time for real, just as a shakeup / something that throws them off" wherein like winston wouldn't even have to be there to be cited in something like yeah i was fired or quit or whatever else and my former boss is dating an employee i think. or seems to have a real personal preference for them if not personal somethingship. which is true lmfao like? even if winston ""wrongly"" assumes they're dating like "oh sorry these claims are ridiculous, i only proposed as much to this employee who i already was informally mentoring and do favor such that she was promoted offscreen after like half a season to be able to make trades and this only came up when her using that capacity to do some shit she could've been fired for had me like 'but i'll take the heat for it' b/c any feeling that i'd wanna fire you is worth working through as a personal problem, and that employee turned me down not only just b/c apparently dating through work is too much (but not hooking up through work) but because she's afraid of how much she could love me, and now we're further personal somethings or who even knows what's ever been going on and so who can say if we were supposed to have fully closed the door on dating or not, even." wherein like....someone then doing further research consulting with every named tmc employee, in this hypothetical (and ignoring any hypothetical new, named/dialogued hires) scenario all now Former employees except rian who clearly won't have been firedor quit at the start of season 7, b/c yknow god forbid lmao....like, oh i'm taylor's best friend so no comment except that when i'm mad at them i'll apparently say that i always thought they inhumanly don't have feelings and all, very helpful. then there's like, oh yeah i was taylor's employee and dated them until business misalignments lead to a less than ideal breakup, and then kind of an aftershock of that for fun i guess. and then yeah i was also taylor's employee and knew they were dating another employee and i disapproved if only b/c i told them it could look bad but then also one of the reasons leading up to my quitting was having difficulty getting in touch with them while the other employee lived with them at least part of the time and i didn't seem to be a fan of that bonus access re: discussing business getting in the way of the formal structure / chain of command or whatever at work as well which is part of what i was already there to file a complaint over, so....even just the "it does look bad / people do think you leverage status for access to sex through employees" like no but that's My boss though. but also just that yeah taylor has at least tried to date employees twice, and their personal preference does affect professional matters, though that's also just like, pick any place of work and any slice of it, may not be a meritocracy after all versus how much it matters that some people are popular and/or liked by the right people while others can be recognized as Good Employees on paper but be left where they are or antagonized by peers or higher ups b/c of "failing" at the popularity contest aspect. and this could just be some new Kind of problem for taylor, and/or their just having to question themself more. or else go "ugh leave it to winston" and shrug it off once whatever's smoothed over.

f) winston isn't fully written off but rather it's something zany like, the twist is dollar bill coming back (god forbid he didn't either) while mafee, who evidently sees taylor outside work despite it all, is like eh we'll get dinners sometimes too, and does not likewise return despite saying he's the one who'd consider it. winston, being fired, or having quit, or just being unhappy w/things enough to consider it, is like well you're kind of regular at me sometimes and can't yell at me abt loyalty to taylor if neither of us work for them and you have weird confusing ideas about how they should be loyal to you if anything, and i can do the work of 50 phds, and i know you don't know shit abt the math and quanting but if you just leave it up to me entirely, that's pretty much been my work experience thus far anyways. then he'd be filming on different sets, possibly more rarely, and also dan soder has been likewise elusive but is also on site on the two even vaguely or implicitly [s7 production] related pics will's turned up in.

g) idk billions feel free to prank us where once again between seasons we worry winston could be written off but then he isn't, but elusivity paired with suddenly now castmates w/no mention of him for [march 5th] and [we are doing any bday acknowledgments] overlaps that otherwise get posts, especially. weird even if he Was written out in ep one but okay then

frank, what do you think about the concept of a universal language? i think it's neat in theory, but definitely impossible in practice. for one, if we use a natural language, like english, then tons of cultures and countries get left out. secondly, if we made one as people, it still has that chance to leave out countries; not to mention making something that'll be easy for Everyone to learn. esperanto was an attempt at a universal language, but it's only really universal if you live in western europe. so what're your thoughts?

The concept of a universal language is older than the concept of language itself -- it was a dream of the Athenian philosopher Plato in the fifth century BC. (And also a lot of people have wanted to invent the perfect language since, especially since the invention of writing made it easier to communicate with people who don't speak your language.)

The key problem with a universal language -- beyond "I'm not sure how to construct a language from scratch" -- is that every language has semantic spaces and grammatical rules that are defined very differently, and so in order to interpret messages written in your language you need to acquire a lot of those rules and the corresponding mental concepts.

With a natural language there's even more to be learned, because not only do speakers have to learn a native language, they have to learn their language's dialect -- and dialects actually differ a lot at this level. It is impossible to say of English, for instance, that "all dialects are equal and have the same semantics and grammar," even if you wanted to invent a "universal English" based on any one dialect you like. A "universal English" would still have to account for all the varieties of English and their differences.

I don't really know much about Esperanto, but I can guess it's probably more similar to "universal English" than people often realize. Esperanto is based on English (and German), and relies on the interlinguistic notion of a "root word." A root word is a word that serves as the basis for a slew of derivations, and certain rules can be derived from the base for how the words derived from it are used in various contexts. Unfortunately, this process leads to new words that are mostly defined by the way they function in a sentence, rather than by the things they are literally about. For instance, when we speak English, we can tell something new from the information that it is functioning as a noun (or verb, etc.), rather than from the information contained by the semantic contents of the word itself. Esperanto tends to preserve this feature, so all of the words that it uses come to serve a number of different functions; for instance, they may also be verbs, nouns, or adjectives. (This actually makes it easier to be a fluent Esperanto speaker -- you have fewer words to memorize.)

I don't think there's an elegant solution to this problem. One of the great limitations of language is that it can only encode our thoughts in a limited set of ways, and anyone who has been exposed to a different set of linguistic constraints than you has been exposed to a different set of constraints on thought. That's why Esperanto is so much more similar to English than people realize -- they both have deep roots in Latin, and that means they both preserve the type of word-to-function ambiguity that is common in English. (If you're familiar with Latin, this probably sounds strange. It seems like a language in which most of the words are neither nouns, verbs, adjectives, or adverbs -- but in English, you can just say "I am very," and it will be understood.)

I don't see a lot of people talking about this, but the uniqueness of English is partly what makes translation so hard. I've heard people say things like "you know those stories where the person speaks a foreign language and it makes you go crazy?" But there really aren't a lot of cases like that. Other language speakers normally understand English speakers relatively well (especially if they are familiar with Western culture, and they are usually familiar with some of it), even if they are bad at speaking English. For instance, although I can't speak Chinese, when I've heard Chinese people speaking in Chinese, I've known exactly what they meant. You may see this as "they were speaking English to me" (I don't know the exact details of this phenomenon), but it wouldn't really be possible for me to understand Chinese if it was really context-independent and independent of my language; if I couldn't catch any of the meaning at all, then it would be impossible for me to figure out whether it was a speaker, a static object, or a video game.

It's not clear to me that "the world is full of widely divergent languages" is a good enough reason to invent a universal language. On the one hand, most people are going to speak their natural language, and the benefits of a universal language might not be worth the time you spend trying to create one. On the other hand, look at how many people on earth speak Mandarin -- it's the most common human language, and it was invented about a millennia ago. I'm not sure I could find any problem in my life that is made easier by the fact that I speak English instead of Mandarin, and I'm sure that's true for many of the speakers of other languages as well. Mandarin is an ancient language, so it's a lot like English in this respect.

You asked about Plato's "concept of a universal language," so I would like to give him a chance to speak for himself. (This is from Wikipedia, so I'm not claiming it's accurate, but this is a good summary of the most common text of Plato's works on language.)

Toward the end of the twelfth book, Plato's narrator, who is supposedly Socrates, proposes a way to ensure the clarity of dialogues. He suggests that philosophers formulate their arguments in "a dialect which is derived from our ordinary speech, but is not in the nature of it [ordinary speech], and hence is not corrupted by it. The ordinary words would be retained when their true meaning is unknown, and new words would be introduced in the place of the corrupted ones; thus the purity of the language would be preserved." But is this a reasonable idea?

There is an alternative. All that is needed is to construct a special language which can accurately express every thought. Since the world is made up of ideas (Forms), anyone could simply speak in terms of the Forms, and so would be perfectly understood. Plato compares this to a painter who paints not the colours that he sees, but the ideas that are in his mind. The language that the philosopher would speak is not "natural language" or "ordinary language" such as Greek, but the true language of nature, whose words (eikoi logoi) should be:

"The words are not going to be 'man' and 'horse,' nor 'here' and 'there,' but they are going to be the names for the things that we know so well, and their nature will not be of the same order as those of ordinary language." [Book 11]

National Effort To Establish Connection. (NEEC) Day 7

I'm tempted to start taking a Bayer or two for the cold. If Don wants me to keep writing each day like this amongst freezing my ears and tail off in this Godforsaken attic space if you will, cause that's really what it is. Sure we got a roof over our heads, but doesn't matter when there's no heating up here, and all the foot traffic by construction on the soon-to-start antenna on the top of the McAlpin. It'd be nice to replace that Aerial we've been using since last year then. Flamm is confident we are days away from the okeh from the DOC, so he's already getting contracting in order. The door's been open so much that that Russel's coffee has turned to Ice. Serves him right for turning the entire building into an antenna.

We wound up the phonograph for a couple plays today for DXers. Played something by Carl Fenton which someone in Yorkville picked up in "great clarity" they said when they called in. We tried to play some Jazz like Ralph Williams, but we haven't worked out how to get around distortion yet. I wonder if Eugene will play any of that when we get up and running officially? Speaking of him, me and Dickson got into conversating with him on our way up this morning. We may be getting that string player Arthur Baecht who plays in the evening over WNYC, to join his band when we actually get our callsign. Now That would be something worth hearing! If that's the type of thing we should expect to hear and people we meet, then maybe I'll stay on our 50 days are over. Let's just Stabilize for now.

I feel a little bad about this, but I actually don't like small comments. Like, the ones that say "loved it" and nothing else. I appreciate their kind words and that they took time out of their day to send me that comment. But, I also lowkey hate it? Like, I gave you 5k+ words and you gave me one or two? I always respond and say "thank you" or "I'm glad you love it!". But I just wonder why they even bothered writing it. So, any advice on how to stop hating those kinds of comments? I love my readers and I know their hearts are in the right place and mine is not

Sometimes you just need to look at your comments section and be realistic about it. Set your expectations where they’re likely to be met and be pleased when someone exceeds them. If you usually get these kinds of comments, this is your normal. That’s not necessarily a reflection of your writing. It’s just what the people who read your stories are able to give you, and for some people commenting “I loved this!” is a big deal.

That said, you’re clearly looking for something in your comments section and not finding it. That can be really disappointing, and I totally get that. I think it might be a good idea to take some time and figure out what it is that you want from comments. Once you know that, you’ll be better able to find ways to get that somehow. 

You say, “I gave you 5K+ words and you gave me one or two.” Clearly, you want more words, but what kind? Getting more words won’t make you any happier if they aren’t the type of words you want.

If you’re looking for in-depth analysis of your work or constructive criticism to help you improve your writing then look outside of your comments section to get that. You’ll be better served by having a beta or a writers’ group that you can talk to about writing and the writing process. Getting that from comments will be hit or miss, if it happens at all, and expecting it there is just setting yourself up for disappointment. 

If you’re looking for extensive praise or just excitement about your work, then you might have more luck by making some fandom friendships. Friends are more likely to show their enthusiasm than random internet strangers are. They’re more invested in both you and your relationship with each other, and that will make them more invested in your writing too. 

If you want longer comments because other people get long comments and you want to get long comments too, then that’s a matter of your own self-confidence or jealousy or some other feeling. Identifying that will help you realize what’s happening and how to move on from that. 

This is a hard admission to make, but I’m so glad you decided to reach out for help with it. Gratitude is a skill like any other, and we need to practice it to get really good at it. I’m rooting for you, anon, and I’m sure you’ll find your way through this. ❤

Talk to me about an AU where instead of superheroes and supervillains, the new ISA and new JSA are legacy interns at NASA, children of a crew of astronauts/astrophysicists for a failed mission to space (think Apollo 13 ish type of disaster with fatalities).

This one is so interesting! I had to think about it for a while, but I think I've got it now (maybe). A disclaimer: I know very little about NASA and space exploration in general and have done zero research for this, so this is not going to be accurate to life at all (lol).

Let's first split our pool of candidates into two: the actual people that are going to physically be on a mission and mission control. Comprising our field team would be Courtney, Yolanda, Artemis, Beth, Mike, Jennie, and Cameron; while back in home base, we would have Rick, Henry, Jakeem, Isaac, Joey, and Cindy (it's a weird combo, I know, so let me elaborate).

I think that just like in canon, Courtney would serve as the scout team's leader. Having wanted to be an astronaut since she was a child, this version of Courtney would be a bit of a perfectionist, who has top scores in every training simulation. Her specialty out in the field would be to run/establish communications on a new base or space station that NASA is helping to launch. She would be prepared for every possible scenario except for the inevitable one that plays out, and would have to count on her teammates more so now than ever.

Yolanda would act as Courtney's right hand, and would also be responsible for studying any animals the group finds while out on their mission (I'm pretty sure that as of right now we haven't found signs of life on any other planets but it's an AU so....shh). I believe that Yolanda would have been a zoologist who was offered a prestigious position at NASA at the request of her godfather. She would suffer with a great deal of imposter syndrome, having not earned her position in the traditional way of her teammates, but she ultimately would be vital to team dynamics.

Artemis would be the most athletic member on the team, and would be responsible for the bulk of any daunting physical labors. That being said, I feel like Artemis in this universe would also be the group psychologist/therapist? Like maybe it's the fact that I'm writing this while watching Young Justice but I totally feel like Artemis would be an emotional anchor for the rest of the team. A double-legacy, Artemis would have grown up in the shadow of long-term space travel, and would have tons of advice on dealing with any homesickness the group expresses.

Beth would be the resident field medic, who is experienced on missions when compared to the others. With her mother as a medic before her, her father as a senior member of mission control, and tons of connections within the business, Beth is also no stranger to the space travel lifestyle. At some point, Courtney would experience a life-threatening injury, but Beth would be able to save her life single-handedly. She would be in near-constant communication with Rick, her fiancée, who was unable to come on this mission (we'll get to that in a second).

Mike would serve as the team's lead engineer/mechanic, following in his father's footsteps. To be more accurate, Mike would actually have gone further than Pat, who never was allowed to leave the planet. As the youngest person on the team, Mike wouldn't be taken incredibly seriously, and would pretend that it doesn't bother him as much as it actually does. He would be the person to find Courtney when she experiences a grave injury, and would have to deal with patching up the ship (and telling others what to do) while Beth is working with Courtney.

Jennie would be a second-generation physicist, specializing in optics. She was the scientist who discovered whatever star system the planet the field team is exploring in the first place. She also has a bit of background in engineering, and helped construct a telescope that was launched a few years previously. On the mission itself, she spends a lot of time trading tales with the others about their legacies, and even though everyone grew up involved with NASA to some extent, Jennie spent the most time in the actual building (her being the longest-tenured member of the group also doesn't hurt).

Cameron is a last-minute addition to the field team (replacing an injured Rick), and is a black sheep within the larger NASA community, as his father was a disgraced scientist who was one of the main people at fault for a disastrous mission twenty years earlier (one that killed numerous people, including Rick's parents). As such, perhaps unfairly, he is not trusted much by the rest of the group. Cameron was brought on due to his skills in botany as well as his achievements in cartography.

Now, for the members that stayed back at home. Rick is a brilliant second-generation chemist who was injured very shortly before the mission was supposed to commence, for which he blames Cameron and Henry for. During a late night in his lab, a routine procedure turned incredibly incendiary, severely burning Rick's chest and arms. Rick believes that Cameron and Henry tampered with his equipment, and had tried to injure Beth, as well. As such, Rick is spending his medical leave not resting as he should, but trying to investigate what exactly happened that night.

Henry is a back-up field medic, who has yet to actually see a mission, due to his father being the other NASA scientist partially responsible for the incident twenty years prior. When something in Rick's lab unexpectedly exploded, Henry was assigned as his doctor, but Rick has refused any and all help that doesn't come from Beth, even while she is off the planet. As such, Henry has spent much of the past few months not doing much.

Jakeem is Mike's best friend from engineering school that is equally as much a prodigy as he is. That being said, Jakeem has been kept at NASA's base in order to problem-solve anything that might go wrong should Mike not be in the right mindset to deal with it out in the field. He also serves as a back-up computer scientist, running simulations of possible outcomes before the field group has the chance to encounter them.

Isaac is another second-generation physicist who specializes in acoustics. Due to his specialty, his contributions on the field team were passed over for Jennie's. Isaac is currently tasked with designing prototypic weapons that destroy tiny objects with waves, but he keeps getting distracted by the fact that he's not actually on the mission. In addition, he is responsible for assisting Courtney establish communications at NASA's new base.

Joey is an absolute computer wizard who works at NASA in the chief cybersecurity position. He is potentially the only person within this team that is happy that he is staying home, and is oblivious to a lot of the behind-the-scenes drama around him. Joey most frequently collaborates with Isaac and Courtney, and also helps run simulations with Jakeem.

Cindy might have a degree in chemistry, but, much to her annoyance, her job on the team is to work public relations. Despite being a top candidate for the field missions (up there with Artemis and Courtney), disciplinary action against Cindy (which potentially served as a huge contributing factor to Rick's "accident") has left her stranded on Earth. She holds press conferences to the local press and doesn't exactly make her team look very good, but as her father is one of the most successful/famous/revered NASA scientists, she has no actual risk of losing her job.

Does all this make sense? This was more cohesive in my head lol

The 7Dream café was strange.

It wasn't because of the seven dashing young men that run it, nor was it how the café gave you the weirdest of vibes that kept you coming back but it's that the café seemed to have came out of nowhere.

You lived in a small town, if a new building, more importantly a café, was coming into construction surely it would be the talk of the town. Alas, no noise until its grand opening. Maybe you weren't as updated with the latest news nowadays...

After your best friend practically dragged you to the conjunction, you found yourself at its entrance. Catching a whiff of the freshly baked goodies, freshly brewed coffee and catching sight of the boys that worked the establishment.

Of course, the boys were a major part of the reason why your friend was so persistent in coming.

"I heard that the baristas are such eye candies," she gushes. "But honestly, I've already got my eye on the delivery guy,"

"Jesus, even the delivery guy can't escape you," you chuckled lightly at your friend.

You had found seats near the kitchen area where you could see the bakers at work by the window, piping icing on cakes and taking out new batches of cookies from the oven. A dirty blonde boy looked up from his workspace, catching you looking and giving you a wink.

The sudden gesture took you by surprise, and you widen your eyes. He laughs, averting his eyes back down to the cake he was decorating.

"A-are we ready to order?" You tear your eyes away from the young man and turn to your friend, who held a menu in her hand.

The two of you walk over to the counter. Luckily, it wasn't too packed as you'd chosen a time when the highschool girls would be in school and wouldn't hog the café seats gawking at these boys. Your university was only a few blocks away. How convenient.

At the counter, you're greeted by a boy with a smile that could cure cancer. He leaned against the counter, black hair falling over his forehead looking effortlessly stunning. "Hi, love. Welcome to 7dream Café, what can I get for you?"

"I'll have a Namericano, two shots," you raise two fingers at him, not being able to get over how a man this beautiful can exist. Jaemin, his name tag read. He types the order into the cash register and your total is summed at the screen in front of you.

"Good choice. Cramming tonight?" Jaemin chuckled. You shot him a smile before shaking your head. "Just like my coffee strong,"

"Jeno, a namericano please. Two shots, for the gorgeous lady," Jaemin calls over to the other boy behind him.

The Jeno in question turns his head, looking over at you and flashing you his pearly whites as he laughed, eyes forming crescents as he does so. "Are you sure they don't want a Jenofrappe?" He laughs. "Kidding. Your name?" he grabs a cup and a pen ready to write your name on it.

"Y/N," you replied, a little stunned by his visuals. A defined face with the softest eyes.

"Coming up, Y/N,"

You've heard your name uttered millions of times, but the way Jeno said it was probably your favourite.

You pay up and leave your friend to manage her orders. On your way back to the seats, you come in collision with a man in a suit. He had golden blonde hair and striking eyes.

"I'm so sorry!" The boy apologized profusely. You're quick to wave away his apologies and offer your own. He had a name tag, which means he worked here. God, you were meeting just about everyone on here and you only came for an americano coffee.

"Chenle, you clutz," a boy who had watched things unfold was laughing in a booth just next to you. He was on his laptop, the Photoshop tab open. The café's logo flashed on it. Did all these boys work here?

"It's completely fine," you say. "I wasn't looking at where I was headed,"

"Looking elsewhere, were we?" The boy from the kitchen was now coming towards you, a cookie in hand. He had a round face and full cheeks. Everything about the boy was round from his eyes to his full lips. Of course, another gorgeous man who worked here.

"Chenle, Mark and I made a new batch but we tweaked around with the recipe a little," he extends his arm out to you. "Would you like to try it?"

You thought about how denying would possibly make the situation more awkward than it already was. You take it from his hands and the boy beams. A sun was drawn on it and it looked like an ordinary cookie. You took a bite, it's chewy and sweet. Scrumptious. The three boys were now looking at you, awaiting your judgment.

You raise a thumbs up, "Great!"

The baker balls his fist in success and Chenle laughs, finding his co-worker amusing. "Haechan one, Mark zero,"

When you finally get back to your booth, your friend had just sat back down. The orders would be brought by someone shortly.

"What do you think so far?" You ask, leaning over the counter and resting your chin on the palm of your hand.

"Overhyped," your friend frankly discloses, causing you to burst into fits of giggles. "But the boys are definitely something else," she adds. You agree. They were all a character. The café looked minimalistic, with little decorations and art pieces hung on the walls, but the ambiance they provided made up for it.

A few minutes go by and you hear the ding of a bell before you see another boy walking towards your table. Tall and handsome. A little timid, at first glance. He carried the tray of drinks over as if his life depended on it. He did it in such an adorable manner that you didn't care if it took him a little too long to reach your booth.

"Two shots n-namericano and a Hamjji Choco latté" he read from the receipt stuck underneath the drinks. "Ah, and complementary cake from Chenle and Mark," he places two plates of cake slices on the table. It's chocolate cake with orange icing. Like the one the boy was working on behind the glass earlier. You look over at him only to instantly regret it as you catch him looking right back at you.

You and your friends thank the boy and he scurries away, a shy smile on his face.

"Cute," your best friend giggles, taking a sip of her latté. She seldom drank coffee, while you on the other hand, lived off of it.

When you bring the cup up to your lips, you watch as your friend's eyes widen. The coffee had already touched tongue and was going down your throat. Nice and warm. You worriedly halt your actions, freezing up and look back at her equally as panicked. She breaks into a grin.

"Dude, check your cup," she claps her hand over her mouth and you turn the cup around to see.

A series of number was written along with the letters JN and a little smile. Your eyes drift over to the barista who served your drink and your eyes meet. The blonde boy is preparing another drink, but his eyes were on yours. There's a smug smile on his face as he turns around to serve the customer.

"Jeez, Y/N. These boys are really something," your friend continues sipping on her latté.

The cakes were like no other. Moist and fudgy, still a little bit warm and dripped with just enough chocolate on the sides. Your mouth watered thinking about it even as you put your fork down after clearing your plate.

"How's everything? We just opened so we really appreciate any reviews," Chenle came to check on you after you started eating. You thanked him for the cake and extended your compliment to the baker, saying everything was great.

It's only then you realized the word printed on his name tag. Chenle, Manager. You scrunched your eyebrows together in confusion once the boy left. Wasn't he way too young to own this? Ah, well. This whole café didn't make sense to begin with. Just a bunch of cute boys who ran a café that came out of nowhere.

You and your friend decide to leave after a while and you carry the cup with you, thinking about what to do about the number on it.

"Thanks for coming to 7Dream Café! Hope to see you again," Jaemin chirped, waving his hand.

Outside, a small flier was posted on the post. You were almost certain it wasn't there when you first entered.

7Dream Café is hiring!

You tear the paper from where it's stuck and pocketed it into your bag. Something tells you that you were gonna be around more often than you thought.

What are the important notes to take away from the way ghouls and humans live in Japan and how should I apply them to other countries? I know a little about the country I want to set a TG AU in but I'm not sure how to apply TG-specific rules to it.

THIS IS A REALLY GOOD QUESTION AND IM THINKING ABOUT IT A LOT RIGHT NOW

There are only a few things that we can gather are constant with ghouls regardless of nationality: they need to eat human meat, they have kagune and advanced strength, their skin is not easily pierced, they’re adapted to blend in with humans, and it looks like in most parts of the world they’re hunted on sight. With that said, there are important questions and ideas to consider when writing them in other countries

Firstly, what is that country’s culture? If it’s ever been colonized, what was its culture before then? Was it wrought with savage self serving ideals like the English and French or was it built on appreciation for the earth and their people like the Diné or Mursi? How would these ideals effect how they see ghouls? A culture of relying only on oneself and some family would likely want them exterminated, a more “it’s us or them” mentality, whereas a culture of uplifting everyone in the community is more likely to see them as friends and family, and will have had more help from the ghouls they loved when it came to making art, buildings and thriving in general

Another is, what is the significant symbolism? Is there an animal that’s holy? An herb or gemstone that’s holy? An art style or article of clothing? Maybe ghouls influenced how they what they wear, a culture where shirts are flowing or not required would be easier to live in if you need to use your kagune a lot. Maybe there are types of buildings that would have been easier to construct with ghouls ability to quickly dig holes, making it so easy especially for nomadic peoples to get quick shelter by having their ghouls gouge out earth that they can cover with skins and canvases. They could even influence colors and items that are in fashion, people mimicking kagune or rc lines around eyes with makeup, cloth patterns, and costumes for festivals

Then, take a look at geographical and natural phenomena. Ghouls are very adaptive and prone to genetic mutation, so where they live has an influence over what they look like and how they function. In snowy places like Canada and Russia, they may be more likely to grow body hair and have more armored kagune to contain heat. In dense urban human populations that kill them on sight, they may evolve mimicry to copy voices and lure prey farther away. In places with lots of water like Polynesia and the Caribbean they may have adapted tail fin-like kagune to help them swim. Even very specific places can have specially adapted ghouls, like those in and around the Grand Canyon having a higher RC-Keratin bond to create strong claws that allow them to scale the sides of it easier

Lastly, apply what you find to how it would interact with history. Would your country have been welcoming to ghouls? If so, would they protect them from less accepting humans? Would ghouls who grew up in peace know how to fight? What cultures would adapt ghoul customs? How would historical events, wars, and colonization have effected them? Would some of those events even be able to happen to nations protected by ghouls? It’s all up to interpretation and can be very interesting

Steamworld ask game! I want to see 1, 17 and 20!

1. pick one steamworld game (can be your favorite if you have one!) and name one thing that you like about it and one thing that you don’t

Steamworld Dig 1, because I am currently replaying it. Love the soundtrack, I think the way it builds a steady sense of separation and your surroundings becoming more alien as the music shifts further and further away from the style used in Tumbleton is really fun, even if I don't know much about music.

I hate how obvious the game's shorter development time is, because ultimately that's the easiest way of putting all my problems with the game into words. I originally started typing a wall of text here before realizing that honestly it was just so much which kind of sucked compared to the rather lackluster description of stuff I do like. If anyone prompts me I will gladly talk about everything wrong with Dig 1.

17. gush about your favorite character. just do it

I have multiple but I'm going with Piper this time, because I just finished replaying Heist. Piper is a fantastic protagonist and I absolutely adore her and how she's characterized. She's incredibly charismatic, she's polite (unless you're either Gat or a scrapper) she's compassionate and she's really funny, which makes her a delight to watch, not to mention it helps align her personality with her abilities very effectively in how she inspires people. I love that Piper straight-up says that being good only serves to get you punished and yet she chooses to do good and be kind anyway! Not to mention the way she's animated and how she constantly holds herself inward, never stretching too far out helps visually communicate how composed she is and how much control she has over how she shows herself. Piper is extremely calculated in her mannerisms and she only really lets that guard down around Wonky, and the depth to her character in an environment where she didn't really need to have one is just *chef's kiss*

AND she did all that WHILE GAY.

20. what’s an unpopular/universally hated character that you like?

mmm. In all honesty I think I'm usually the one who dislikes the more popular characters? My best answer here is Sally. I'm not sure if anyone besides one of my friends who I got to play the game actually actively dislikes her, but I know what's a genuinely unpopular opinion is that I really like her design. Her freaky teeth help give her the immediate impression of someone more hostile I love the weird structure of her body and how it moves, her body is very specifically constructed in a way that allows her to easily withdraw, as her hips move up and down sliders and her torso slides into her wider pelvis when she crouches. Also honestly I just love women who get to look fucking weird! It's a huge breath of fresh air anywhere but especially after Dig 1's "ah yes you can tell they're women because we gave them tits" design philosophy. Also I just think she's funny even if she's a huge bitch to Fen for literally no reason.

Thank you for the asks! These were all a lot of fun. I love talking about stuff.

NFTs

A colleague of mine just pinged me on Messenger, stating he was looking for a "group share" for a few NFTs. He had a database link from nonfungible.com, with Wishlisted monkey and skull-type JPEGs that looked like someone had hastily drawn up a template and then cobbled together something similar to an old dressing-doll Flash game, all in order to generate various combinations.

I figured I'd be constructive, at first. "Are you trying to constitute a portfolio? Seeing what's happened with GSC Game World and Ubisoft, I'm not sure I'd peg this as a safe investment opportunity..."

The usual excuses come up. The blockchain is rock-solid, the items are unique, the value's appreciable on other tracking databases as well, et cetera.

I shrug in front of my monitor. "You'd honestly be better served trying to trade in crypto."

He misunderstands, thinking I'm saying he should mint. I correct him, specifying you don't need to add to the environmental impact to have a starting point in crypto. If he's just starting out, I mention, he can pick Ethereum or Cardano, conservatively drop a hundred bucks of each and just sit there until they appreciate in value.

Poor guy really doesn't get it. "A hundred bucks? As far as Ethereum goes, that's worth a fraction of a single coin!"

He whips back to NFTs as a defensive measure. "Come on, man, we could really make bank with this!"

I roll my eyes. "Tell that to Ubisoft. Listen, you'd be better off selling your Pokémon set and your Upper Decks, if what you're looking for is value trading outside of stocks."

Apparently, that hits him like a ton of bricks. "My old Pokémon cards are worth a damn?!"

I give him the basic rundown. Everyone between GameFreak, Wizards of the Coast or even Nintendo itself thrives on scarcity. It's not a new reality brought on by the pandemic; some Switch carts can sell for triple their retail asking price if supply is low enough, and first-generation prints of everything between Magic and Pokémon sets are, as most CCG players know, highly sought-after. Those Upper Decks he's sat on after buying them from Timmy Ho's? Practically priceless, if you're looking for someone who's both a 1993 Stanley Cup fan and a card enthusiast. Moreover, all of that is really fungible, unlike JPEGs and GIFs that'll be worth their weight in dead memory cells once data rot sets in.

That last concept also earns me long, long minutes of Messenger silence.

"What's data rot?"

One day, centuries from now, all the NFTs of the world will be irremediably corrupt as the energy potential of plate drives and SSDs is wholly spent. Even without that, their worth depends on someone being left to understand which transaction the NFT points to. If you don't have that, you're looking at a plain, boring, ordinary image file.

He panics and tries to trip me, for which I have to give him props. "Yeah, but if NFTs flake out, crypto coins will too!"

To which I agree. "The difference is you can cash out of the crypto economy at any time. You can transfer your wallet balance to your PayPal account, get that mailed back to you as a cheque and bam - you've got a physical object that has monetary worth. Even if you print and frame an NFT, you're not claiming total control of its worth. You can never cash out of NFTs - not without first forfeiting ownership and getting the asking price added to your wallet in crypto."

The silence that follows is even longer.

"Dude, you want a mint-condition 1993 Wayne Gretsky? It's never left my binder."

Not interested, I tell him. Privately, I'm just glad I saved the office from spawning its first official NFT Bro...

Wh-What if we kissed on the same day as The Biggest, Most Awful, Most Tragic Event in Human History? (TW: body dysphoria) // To Korekiyo, Usami and Nagito. Can I get some comfort or some cuddles? If you guys only want to, of course. How would you define beautiful? Especially you, Korekiyo. I'm interested to hear your answer, coming from an anthropologist. I know that everybody's definition of beauty is different. Because I've convinced myself that in order to be beautiful. (1/2)

Hello anon, I must admit that I am incredibly excited to answer your ask. I'm quite pleased to hear that you're interested in my response as well. I hope I can provide one that lives up to your standards. I am going to apologize in advance, as I am afraid that this will be quite a long response. You are absolutely correct, everyone has a different definition of beauty. However, these definitions are heavily influenced by social constructions and culture. I'm sure you've heard something along the lines of "conventionally attractive". But what defines this convention? The society around it. A social construct is an aspect or trait that is shaped by the social culture around it, and beauty always has been and always will be a social construct. Proof of this lies with humanity's development over its history of existing. We are animals at our roots, and animals do not have a definition of beauty. They have a biological sense of selecting a mate with the best genes to continue their species' survival. That's not beauty, that's genetics and biological instinct. Even apes, the closest living relatives to humans do not have a definition of beauty. They don't need it, beauty is not an idea that any species, including humans naturally has. So what differs with us? Culture can be called humanity's "superpower" in a way. We are the only species to ever form separate cultures, and it's more than just ethnic cultures. Any group of people can be considered a culture from the internet, to individual fanbases, to golfers, to small five person book clubs. Culture is a constant aspect of almost everything in the human existence. Culture is what determines what is "right" and "wrong" in certain scenarios, examples being superstitions in hockey players, or staying silent in a library. Those traits are social constructions that make up the beliefs of their individual cultures, and thus is the case of beauty in societies today.

A social construct of the culture that we now live in is the idea that beauty exclusively comes in the form of thin waists, symmetrical faces, and in some cases, prominent assets. And despite the widespread belief that this is "beautiful", there is no natural or biological reasoning behind why so many deem this as the most "beautiful" body type. The idea of beauty has evolved and changed time and time again throughout history. Social constructs twist and morph to reflect the culture they are a part of. Naturally there are cultures where our culture's definition of beauty is completely different from their definition of beauty, but for the sake of this ask, I'm going to be focusing on our culture. I'm guessing that from a young age you were taught that people with a certain body type and appearance are "beautiful", and it's not surprising that you have been. Above all else, beauty is marketable. All we see on tv, or in media or even cartoons are "beautiful" characters that fit something of a barbie doll body type. It's been drilled into our heads that this is beautiful, and that anything else isn't. That if someone doesn't have these traits, than they simply aren't beautiful. Essentially, we are trapped by a culture of our own making into believing stereotypes that are inherently harmful.

A maladaptive trait is a trait that was at one point useful to the survival of a species, but later became harmful as the species evolved. An example of this would be the appendix. No one is certain what function that once served, but it was useful for something once upon a time. Now however, it can cause serious damage to the human body should it rupture. Beauty is the same way. Once it was useful to use physical characteristics to identify who had a strong gene pool. An outwardly healthy looking human most likely had strong genes, and would make an ideal mate. Only the strong genetics survived then, and beauty was needed to survive. Now however, it only hurts. We no longer need to identify gene pools for the survival of our species. Our species is almost doing too well in terms of population. We don't need to decide the value of people based on appearance any longer, however we still do. It has become maladaptive, harmful to us, and you yourself are an example of that.

Tearing ourselves apart emotionally and physically is incredibly harmful to both us and our bodies, and there is no positive benefit to this. Do we need beauty? No, we don't. Can we get rid of it? Alas, not easily. There have been excellent steps forward in attempting to shift the standards of beauty, but these steps are up against hundreds of years of human history. In a logical sense, yes we can essentially "remove" beauty, but it will take a very, very long time. We're going against our cultural programming, which is something much easier said than done. Even if one person rejects these values, the culture at large still holds these values. To truly change a culture, you must change the mindsets of almost every individual. It does seem hopeless yes, but that's only if your heart is set on the large scale solution. We must celebrate the small steps, because as small as they are, they are still a step forward nonetheless. There are other solutions for this on a smaller scale, so now I must ask you anon, who do you want to be beautiful for? Yourself? Or those around you. It's easy to imagine that those with the "beautiful" body type are perfectly happy, however they are beautiful for those around them, and rarely themselves. There are so many stories of dancers and models ultimately being undone by the bodies they worked so hard to have. Is it really worth the price of our physical and mental wellbeing for a few fleeting seconds of being "beautiful"?

There are many reasons why beauty is maladaptive, however I will provide you with one more. Due to our new genetic variety as a species, different body types are emerging naturally. Some people are born with larger builds naturally, that is the way they were supposed to be born. As more and more groups of genetically diverse people mixed together, physical traits increased. Very very few people are naturally born with this "beautiful" body type, and even then it can still be unhealthy for them. There is nothing natural about the standards of beauty. What's natural is the plethora of diverse body types that have emerged in such a short amount of time on a grand cosmic scale. What's beautiful is the diversity among us, not a single two percent. I don't expect you to see it that way, in fact it is very rare for anyone to naturally see things that way. When being taught anthropology, one of the first things you are taught is how to look "beyond your culture", as you cannot begin to appreciate or examine any other cultures without detangling yourself from the stereotypes and norms of your own. It's a difficult perspective to gain, requiring a large amount of open-mindedness and practice. However, I will try to explain to you how I think as it may help you.

Most people describe wildlife as beautiful, myself included. There is something majestic about herds of deer standing by a stream, and most would agree that the sight is beautiful. However, would you consider the image of a cheetah preying upon a gazelle beautiful? Many people would say no. It's too bloody and cruel and sad to be beautiful. However, there is a whole other group of people who say yes, the cheetah's speed and strength are beautiful, and it looked positively elegant as it brought down its prey. There are always two sides to a view, two sides of a coin. And by accepting and analyzing both of these two views, a person can claim to be "thinking anthropologically." Another example would be a study I heard about briefly. A group of people from our culture were gathered and shown pictures of women with various different body types, and the vast majority from this culture chose women that were thinner and "conventionally attractive" as beautiful. However, the researcher then gathered a group of people from a different culture and showed them the same pictures. These people almost entirely viewed any other body type as beautiful as opposed to the "beautiful" pictures the first group had chosen. They stated that they looked incredibly unhealthy and almost scary. This body type was no longer "beautiful" when placed in a culture outside its own.

Hopefully this demonstrates the two sides that can be seen when looking at something outside of its culture. Now I will transition this painfully long ramble back to the original question. What is the definition of beauty? Well, from an anthropological view point, beauty doesn't exist. It can't exist. For one specific type of beauty to exist, it would have to be upheld by every single person of every single culture. If I had to define beauty however, I would define it as a social construct based on the physical attractiveness and the resulting appeal that varies based on the culture and environment it is surrounded in. There will never be a perfect definition of what is beautiful. It will always be in the eye of the beholder, which leads us to the view you hold. Again, who do you want to be beautiful for? Do you seek the approval of others? Or the approval of yourself? What does being beautiful truly mean to you? Do you think all of your internal turmoil will be resolved by becoming beautiful?

These are not easy questions to answer, and you don't need to have the answer to them any time soon. I hardly hold all of the answers myself. I'm a tragic case of not practicing what I preach. I'm often dissatisfied with my own body, I by no means have everything figured out. However, expanding your viewpoint is one step forward towards understanding beauty as much as it can be understood. You don't have a body that society deems as beautiful, but you do have a body that nature deemed beautiful. You were born with the body you have for a reason. You have always been and always will be beautiful. Just because society's mirrors reflect you as something else does not mean you are not beautiful. That would be what I call an unreliable mirror. Things such as that will never reflect you as you are, they will reflect you as what they personally think you should be. Love takes more than beauty. Love born out of surface attraction is not love in the least. Love and beauty have no natural correlation, beauty is not the defining factor in love, and it never will be. And if there are people in your life that will only love you for an unattainable visual aesthetic, then they are not worth your time. Don't let them shove you in a box. Even if you want to be in the box with your desired body type, don't enter it. You may have heard the phrase "beauty is skin deep" and in a way it is. As our skin ages, humans naturally lose this definition of "beauty". If this beauty was natural, it would last forever. There is so much more than this shallow idea of what is beautiful. It does feel all encompassing and suffocating, but it truly only is skin deep.

You are pretty anon. You are more than pretty, you are beautiful, and you will be for the rest of your life. No matter how your appearance changes, you will be beautiful. You do not need to change anything to be beautiful. You always have been. I hardly expect you to take any of this at face value. Body dysmorphia is a severe and dangerous phenomena that causes so much pain. I strongly, strongly recommend speaking to a professional about this. I am not equipped to help you with those struggles, and you deserve to be helped through them. So please, reach out. There is a healthy end to this pain, I promise you. I'll say it once more. You are pretty. You are beautiful. And that will never change. I would be happy to give you as many cuddles as you want. I truly apologize for the sheer amount of reading this answer requires, I did become quite excited when you asked for my viewpoint, and I admit I did go a little overboard. I truly wish you all the best anon, and I hope that one day you will see yourself as you are, beautiful.

~~

Holy moly swirly macaroni with a glass of pink lemonade! That. Was. Beyond amazing, Kiyo! You truly are the Ultimate Anthropologist; you have exceeded the set standards and have reached the twinkling stars! Because of that, words cannot express how proud I am, my devoted student. You practically took the strawberry shortcake, ate it, and then ordered and ate two more! That's worthy of a few gold star stickers and a few pieces of candy. You've almost left me speechless, but I'd still like to give my input anyway. My dear anonymous student, I agree with everything that Kiyo said, but I'll still say something anyway, because I wanna say something about this!

You asked a question, so I shall answer! How would I define beauty? Well, I would define beauty as being your true, unique, super duper amazing self! Basically, the love and personality we hold within ourselves, within our hearts, is beauty. Sure, things like frilly pink skirts and glittery sweatshirts may also look beautiful, but articles of clothing and body shapes don't completely define true beauty. No matter what you wear or what you look like, you're beautiful just the way you are, because within that body covered in clothes is a super duper unique, cool person. Of course, just like you said, everyone's definition of beauty is different. But that's my personal definition, and I stand by it, for it truly is true!

Sadly, you're right about the horrible, mean definition that society has set for beauty. Just because you're not 'thin enough' or wearing 'enough make-up' or anything like that doesn't mean you're not beautiful, and I mean that with every, single fiber of my squishy, soft being! So while it's easier said than done, you truly are pretty, my anonymous student. You're beautiful just the way you are. There's only one of you, after all, and you're absolutely stunning! I'll use my magic stick on anyone who says otherwise.

Ohhhh, did I hear that you wanted cuddles? Oh my golly, I would love to give you as many super duper soft cuddles as your beautiful heart desires! I sure hope what I said helped made you feel better; I have hope that what Kiyo said definitely did! If you ever need me or anyone else, don't hesitate to reach out to us again. Love love!

HI FRIEND. Can you you talk about your favorite tropes Cersei falls under? Or if you have a meta about Jaime and Cersei ruminating and needed an excuse to talk about it here it is :)

OMG HI FRIEND!!! It's always a joy to see you in my inbox. 😊 And also FUCK YES TROPES ARE MY SHIT

I'm not sure if this falls under a "trope" per se, but one of my favorite fictional devices is the Deconstruction. Which is where a common theme or character type that is typically seen as one-dimensional or even idealized is picked apart in-story to show the realistic outcome of what that event or personality trait would be. Basically, taking something to its logical conclusion if it existed in the real world.

I would argue that Cersei serves as a deconstruction of the "Rich Bitch" archetype. She is born into a position of privilege and wealth, yes. And she does use those things to act in...not nice ways toward others. To put it lightly. However, it doesn't come about for the sake of having a petty, one-dimensional joke villain. She wields the power those things afford her to take villainous actions, yes. But the narrative breaks down just how utterly shitty someone's upbringing and subsequent worldview would have to be to convince themselves they need to act like that. Cersei is not glamorous or envied or shallow (in the sense of not having character depth, I mean). She's a mess. Most people probably wouldn't want to be in her position. She's reviled and barely respected. She's a serious threat. And the wealth and resources she has at her disposal aren't her whole personality; she has richly-constructed emotional layers. She's awful. But she's also scared and traumatized and angry and feeling broken, which are all things most of us feel. She's a terrifying antagonist because she's meant to be sympathetic. We can't push her aside as an unrealistic monster with no feelings because she's specifically crafted not to be one. In order for the "Rich Bitch" to exist, what would have to happen to her? And there's still a person under there, so what exactly does that mean? Asking questions like this is what deconstruction is all about and I LOVE IT.

As for a more straightforward answer with more specific tropes, Cersei is very much a Mama Bear. So much she does is because she thinks it'll keep her children safe. She ruthlessly stops at nothing to seek vengeance for the deaths of her children. She even mentions that for a significant portion of her life, she kept fighting because she believed her children needed her. She recognized that Joffrey was...Bad™; but she didn't even think to try to distance herself from him because he's her child and she loves him. And that once scene in season 5 where she tells Tommen she'd burn cities to the ground for him? I CRY EVERY TIME. Maybe it's because Lena Headey is such a good actress who imbues every one of her scenes with such raw pathos, but in a strange way, these displays of destructive love genuinely move me: her love for her children is not only palpably strong, it's unconditional. I've often heard parents in real life talk about how they would do anything to help their children, and seeing Cersei onscreen? Yeah, honestly I believe that.

There's also a favorite narrative trope of mine which is Love Ruins the Realm. Her relationship with Jaime, its need for secrecy, and the subsequent succession crisis over their illegitimate children is responsible for the whole conflict that spans the series. (One could argue that Littlefinger's plan to have Lysa poison Jon Arryn kicks everything off, but there would have been no war to point to or reason for the Lannisters to be Ned's enemy without Jaime/Cersei being a thing.) Their codependency is one of the (many) things prevents them from constructively working through their respective personal issues, which in turn bleeds into the violent ways they deal with other people. (And, as previously mentioned, there's her hurricane-strength love for her children.) All of which causes further political issues and dangerous situations (sometimes with deadly outcomes). I've always been fascinated by the idea of love as a destructive force. Instead of redeeming or softening, it makes a character more dangerous and terrifying. Love has the ability to become an unstable, extreme emotion the way pretty much any other emotion does. And Cersei, in all of the ways she tries to love, shows us exactly what that looks like. And it is gloriously fascinating.