#first/second/third etc. is about how far away from you they are in terms of last common ancestor | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

superlinguo · 2 years

Text

Linguistics Jobs: Interview with a Natural Language Annotation Lead

This month’s Linguistics Job Series interview is with Hadas Kotek, who works as a Natural Language Annotation Lead. Hadas previously worked in academia before transitioning to the tech industry, a move she recounts in detail in this interview. Moving away from academia can be a nerve-wracking adjustment, and in this post Hadas gives her advice to those considering pursuing roles in industry and shares her experience from applying to jobs to accepting an offer for her current role at Apple.

You can follow Hadas on Twitter (@HadasKotek) and on LinkedIn.

What did you study at university?

I double-majored in linguistics and political science at Tel-Aviv University. I took some additional courses in mathematics and computer science but never completed a degree in either one. I got a PhD is in linguistics from MIT. My focus was on theoretical syntax and semantics but there was also an experimental component to my research. I then had several non-tenure-track teaching positions in syntax and semantics after I graduated.

What is your job?

My responsibilities as a Natural Language Annotation Lead have changed over the last few years. Initially, I spent a lot of time on project management: setting project priorities for teams, creating guidelines, tracking project progress, facilitating communication between engineers and annotators, etc. In other quarters, I’ve worked on ontology development. Most recently, I’ve been growing more in the data science direction, with a focus on annotation efficiency and quality.

How does your linguistics training help you in your job?

There are various aspects of my training as a linguist and as a professor that have helped me tremendously. First, the ability to explain simple linguistic concepts with examples off the top of my head, as I would in an Introduction to Linguistics lecture. Second, the ability to teach diverse audiences and to present complex concepts and results in a concise manner. Third, the ability to think in generalizations—this is a superpower linguists possess that they should appreciate more! Knowing basic typological facts about various languages has also been helpful in my job. In addition, the quantitative aspects of my research, specifically the ability to design behavioral studies and to engage in data visualization and statistical analysis, have come in handy. Being proficient in a scripting language (R which I used previously in experimental work, and now python), is also obviously helpful.

In fact, I would say the main thing that wasn’t directly helpful (although it didn’t hurt, either) is the detailed content of my work: my academic research is in the area of A-bar syntax and semantics, including wh-questions, focus, and ellipsis, and (at least thus far), I can’t say that the cutting edge theories I developed or learned have furthered my work in any way (but, who knows, maybe one day I’ll get to discuss the finer points of covert movement, islands, and focus alternatives with some curious engineering team!).

What was the transition from university to work like for you?

There were two main parts to my transition out of academia. First, a longer and slower phase of coming to terms with the decision, which wasn’t easy at all. I would describe it as a grieving process for what could have been. This was also the discovery phase, where I connected with some friends and acquaintances who had made the move into industry earlier. I had a lot of questions and knew very little when I started: what kinds of jobs are out there, what skills do I have that are desirable, where are companies located, how do I find job ads, what the interview process is like, what I should expect for compensation, to name a few. None of this was covered when I was in grad school or later at any institution I was teaching at. I was fortunate to have some friends who were willing to take the time to answer my questions and also tell me some things I wouldn’t have even thought to ask. They also helped me with my resume, sent me job ads, and submitted referrals for me when they could, which was truly invaluable. I did most of this work in the fall semester of the year I left academia.

The second phase was the active job search. That went exceptionally quickly and successfully for me, more than I think is the norm. I started by applying to a single job that ticked all the boxes for what I wanted. I got as far as the on-site interview but didn’t get an offer. That took about one month. I then applied to about a half-dozen other jobs that ticked almost all of the boxes. This round took another month, and I ended it with three offers, and was able to pick the one that made the most sense in terms of job description and team. I also had offers for roles with the titles “ontologist” and “computational linguist”. Within another two months, I had moved across the country and started the job.

One of the reasons I preferred the job I took was that there was clear support to help me get started. That was important, as there’s a lot to learn in the beginning. The pace, the terminology, the day-to-day routines, are all different. I would say it took me about six months to feel like I understood what I was doing. And like I said in a previous answer, it’s been a growing process ever since, changing focus areas on the job and learning new skills. It was also a longer process to understand how to use my linguistic training in my work and to establish myself as a go-to expert in this area. If you have the right team and manager, you can do a lot to shape your own experience and maybe take the work in directions that both you and they would not have envisioned at the outset. Generally speaking, whenever I’ve pointed out relevant expertise I could bring to the table, it’s been embraced by my manager and given the attention it deserves.

Do you have any advice do you wish someone had given to you about linguistics/careers/university?

There are so many options out there. And not everything requires coding! It’s important when you get started to take the time to learn and understand what is available and to really think about what skills you enjoy using and would want to emphasize. If coding isn’t your thing, some basic knowledge could still be useful, but do you really want a full-time coding job where you’d be competing with people who are both more experienced than you and actually enjoy doing the work? Wouldn’t it be better to find roles that play to your strengths, where you’d really shine?

At the same time, because there are so many options, any single action and decision is less consequential. To explain what I mean: in academia, you generally strive for exactly one thing, namely a tenure-track position, which in time – often a long time – will lead to a permanent tenured position. Most people will have exactly one job for life, maybe two. Outside academia, the pace is different. You’ll move from job to job fairly frequently. This means that you can change focus over time, and the team you are on now is just one of several you’ll work on. If you don’t like the team or conditions or content of one job, you can always move to something else. You’re not locked into one single path just because you made one decision now. This may seem daunting, and it’s certainly a different pace than academia. Maybe it sounds like less job security; this is certainly what I thought. Now I think in terms of career security instead: there will always be other opportunities out there.

I would recommend thinking about this topic with some regularity and planning accordingly, especially if you still have some years left before you graduate. If you want to consider jobs that require coding or data science, then building some relevant coursework and projects into your work early on would be wise. If you’re into project management, find yourself things to organize or collaborations to lead. If you’re considering UX, figure out what you’d need to do to build a portfolio. Regardless of your direction, it’s very helpful to seek practical experience in the form of internships.

There’s also some common advice that is very true: spend the time learning and understanding what’s out there. Build your network. Understand your skills and their value. Learn the terminology of your new chosen field and understand how to translate your academic experience into this new language. Refine your resume. Start thinking of yourself as a “language specialist” or “linguist” or “(behavioral) scientist”, for example, rather than a “syntactician” or “sociophonetician” or any other narrow definition. Start out broadly and define the parameters of the job that matter most to you. When I got started, a friend told me that I had to answer three questions: (a) what do you want to do? (b) where do you want to live? (c) how much do you want to make?. The third question, especially, was hard for me to wrap my head around. But it was very useful in understanding how to approach a non-academic job search.

Any other thoughts or comments?

Network network network. It’s so important to make those connections. There are more opportunities now than probably at any time in the past. Grad schools are starting to understand that they need to support diverse career paths, and there are more and more materials out there that you can learn from, both online and in person. If your school isn’t inviting outside speakers to discuss career paths and how to prepare for them, you should be asking for that content! You’ll find that a lot of people are very generous with their time.

You can define your own path, and success can take on many different meanings over time and across individuals. Finally: academia can have a very narrow view. But despite common narratives, getting a non-academic job isn’t failure, unless you think that a fulfilling, well-paid job with lots of freedom to grow is somehow a negative. (It’s not!)

Related interviews:

Interview with a Senior Analyst, Strategic Insights & Analytics

Interview with a Data Scientist

Interview with a User Experience (UX) Researcher

Interview with a Computational Linguist

Recent interviews:

Interview with an EMLS/Linguistics instructor & mother of four

Interview with a Performing Artiste and Freelance Editor

Interview with a Customer Success Manager

Interview with an Impact Lead

Interview with an Online Linguistics Teacher

Resources:

The full Linguist Jobs Interview List

The Linguist Jobs tag for the most recent interviews

The Linguistics Jobs slide deck (overview, resources and activities)

The Linguistics Jobs Interview series is edited by Martha Tsutsui Billins. Martha is a linguist whose research focuses on the Ryukyuan language Amami Oshima, specifically honourifics and politeness strategies in the context of language endangerment. Martha runs Field Notes, a podcast about linguistic fieldwork.

#language #linguistics #ling jobs #linguist jobs #linguistics jobs #natural language annotation

41 notes · View notes

bolllywoodhungama · 6 months

Text

Trade experts discuss why Animal star Ranbir Kapoor is leaps and bounds ahead of his contemporaries: “You can add him to the league of Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan and Hrithik Roshan”

Animal has become the fifth blockbuster of 2023 and the second blockbuster for Ranbir Kapoor after Sanju (2018). The actor is in a unique position – he has delivered 6 flops and a few underperforming films. But he has compensated for it with big hits.

Since his debut film Saawariya (2007), Ranbir has made a place in the hearts of the audience. His charming looks and acting talent made him a performer to watch out for. Off-screen, he has an adorable-yet-badass image, which connected well with the audience. He’s absent from social media and keeps away from media when he doesn’t have a film to promote. But when he appears at events and interviews, he’ll make sure he becomes the talking point before disappearing into his cocoon or work. In today’s times, when actors are all over the place, it’s amazing how Ranbir Kapoor has managed to keep the intrigue alive.

All these factors would not have worked if he wasn’t a talented actor. As trade veteran Taran Adarsh rightly said a few weeks ago in an article for Bollywood Hungama, “You can find fault in his films. But you cannot find fault in Ranbir Kapoor’s performance.”

Ranbir Kapoor has dabbled in various genres and has always come out with flying colours. One can see that he has worked hard to get the character alive. Yet, it looks natural and this balance is hard to achieve. In Animal, he plays a ferocious character, making one forget about his acts in light-hearted films like Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani (2009), Wake Up Sid (2009), Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (2013) etc. With this film, his stardom has got a boost and it’s clear that he’s now a bona fide superstar. The usage of the prefix ‘Superstar Ranbir Kapoor’ in the posters of Animal did raise some eyebrows. But all these cynics had to eat their words once Animal became a typhoon at the ticket window.

Animal is the second film of Ranbir Kapoor to cross the Rs. 300 crores mark and it’ll be Ranbir’s first film to cross the Rs. 500 crores mark, if all goes well. Besides Shah Rukh Khan and Sunny Deol, he’ll be the third actor to enter the coveted club. Even Overseas, he has a loyal audience. Animal, in fact, was the number one film last weekend, surpassing Hollywood biggies like Napoleon and The Hunger Games: The Ballad Of Songbirds & Snakes with a worldwide gross of USD 42.17 million [Rs. 351.38 cr.]. If that’s not all, a viral story in Bollywood Hungama revealed that Ranbir Kapoor has collected Rs. 2018.02 crores from his 21 releases (and counting). He’ll soon surpass Aamir Khan’s cumulative figure of Rs. 2146.94 crores from 30 releases.

The newer lot of actors, interestingly, are far behind Ranbir Kapoor in terms of popularity and box-office record. Hence, is it fair to say that Ranbir Kapoor is leaps and bounds ahead of his contemporaries?

We asked trade experts to comment. Vishek Chauhan, owner of Roopbani Cinema in Purnia, Bihar said, “Ranbir Kapoor is a special talent. The world knew it from his debut film, Saawariya. He was inconsistent in his choice of films. In my opinion, he tasted superstardom with Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani. That film was released on a non-holiday and managed to collect close to Rs. 180 crores. It speaks volumes about an actor to achieve this feat in his sixth year as an actor. His next film, Besharam (2013), also opened at Rs. 20-21 crores. Hence, he was already a star then.”

Vishek Chauhan added, “A lot of people might not agree but Barfi (2012) spoiled things for him. It took him on a different tangent. Had he stayed on the commercial tangent, he would have tasted this kind of success much earlier. He deserves every bit of it. He should be doing more of such films. Post-Covid, his choice of films has become more universal. They have become palatable to the common man. Even with Shamshera (2022), the intent was to make a commercially pleasing flick. He wants to play larger-than-life characters, which is very endearing be it Shamshera or Brahmastra or Animal. Even with Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar (2023), he carried the film on his shoulders.” The exhibitor said that he didn’t quite enjoy the film and added, “Had it starred Ranveer Singh instead of Ranbir, the film would not have even collected Rs. 50 crores.”

Trade guru Komal Nahta said, “100% he’s ahead by leaps and bounds because he has now got mass patronage. Earlier, youngsters loved him. Now, the masses have embraced him with open arms and they’ll not let go of him. He has got a new fan following of unimaginable proportions because of Animal.”

Raj Bansal, the owner of Entertainment Paradise in Jaipur, stated, “He’s the next superstar of Indian cinema. I always used to feel that agar Ranbir ko lambi race ka ghoda banna hai, then he should do action films. He was never convinced about it. He did action for the first time and look at the result.”

He continued, “I put him at par with Hrithik Roshan. But he has gone ahead of Hrithik. Hrithik has done 5-6 action films. Animal is perhaps Ranbir’s first action film and this is how it has performed. If he does 5-6 more action films, toh pata nahin yeh kahan se kahan nikal jaayega.”

Vishek Chauhan also stated on the same lines, “For the first time in his life, he has done this kind of action. And look how the masses have lapped it up. It shows that this man can do anything. He was just holding himself back. Isse better action Hindi cinema mein koi kya hi karega!”

Vishek also remarked, “Usually, actors begin their careers with commercial films, make their brand and then do unconventional films. With Ranbir, the process was in reverse. He proved his mettle as an actor and now he’s doing commercial films.”

He excitedly said, “It is so heartwarming to see a young actor rubbing shoulders with the big guns. You can add him to the league of Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan and Hrithik Roshan.”

Kiritbhai T Vaghasia, who runs The Friday Cinema multiplex in Surat, revealed that Ranbir Kapoor has an insane fan following among the people in his region, “Brahmastra worked big time. Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar was a surprise. I ran that film for many weeks. I was surprised to see the audience turning up in huge numbers even on weekdays in the fifth and sixth weeks though it was not a typical family film. And Animal has also stunned us as it’s ‘A’ rated. Yet, it’s doing blockbuster business. In short, his films always do well here.”

What next? Trade experts advise Ranbir Kapoor to continue doing massy films. Vishek Chauhan opined, “I hope he doesn’t go back and sign a film with Imtiaz Ali. If his next film also has action and mass appeal, watch out for its opening! He should be careful that his next 2-3 films should appeal to both classes and the masses. If he takes care of this aspect, Ranbir can rewrite history!”

Raj Bansal said, “It’s upto him to take the call. He’ll never stick to doing only action films. He’ll keep experimenting like he’s been doing in the past. And that’s okay. If he does 1 or 2 action films out of 5, it’s fine. He has shown his range. If you get him the right script, he’ll deliver”

Komal Nahta agreed, “He should sign a couple of more such films.” He has high hopes for Animal’s sequel, Animal Park, “I can’t even imagine the earthquake Animal Park will cause. It will be huge.”

#Animal #Bobby Deol #Features #Hrithik Roshan #Ranbir Kapoor #Rashmika Mandanna #Salman Khan #Sandeep Reddy Vanga #Shah Rukh Khan #T-Series Super Cassettes Industries Ltd #bollywood hungama #bollywood latest news #bollywood gossip #bollywood #news #bollywood news #bollywood movies

1 note · View note

everythingadelaidemusic · 1 year

Text

This Week guest called “Feed the Fire” certainly know how to write a catchy riff. Their song “Haunted House” has been on my most played list for awhile. Here is the interview.

Tell us a little bit about Feed the Fire? Members, how did you get together etc?

We are a powerhouse trio playing our own brand of guitar driven rock music!!

We formed after another band we were all in was no longer really scratching our musical itch so to speak.

Whilst there was never any guarantee that us three would all end up in a band together again, the stars aligned and the rest is history.

What are you short and long terms goals?

For us I think that they are one and the same. To be continually getting better at our craft and writing the music we enjoy and getting it

out to as many people as possible be it via live shows or on line.

How was it dealing with the Covid Pandemic? Is everything back to normal?

We stayed as busy as we could. Our drummer built our studio. We continued to write and release more music and as soon as we could

we were out there playing live even though it was quite restricted and a bit strange for us to be playing to seated audiences, we definitely didn't lose any drive or love of doing what we do.

What is your career highlight so far?

We’ve been lucky enough to play alongside some pretty big Aussie bands that we look up to and have been on a few big festival stages as well.

Playing third headline at 'Caltowie Chilled Out and Fired up Festival' is definitely up there with some of the most fun we've had!

Your song “Haunted House” is my favourite of all your music releases. I listen to it a lot. What is it about and how did you come up with?

That was the first single off of our debut LP 'Maybe You Need This!?'

One of the main riffs in that song is one that had appeared in different guises in different songs over the years and finally found its home in Haunted House.

I don't really like to delve too much into what a song is about for fear of taking away from what it might mean to a listener. Suffice it to say, it was written whilst going through some dark times and heartache, much like the entire album its from.

Have you got any new music coming out? Or are you still recording?

We most certainly do and we most certainly are! We have one track that we recorded at the same time as our

last two singles 'SHAKE' and 'POLITICS' that will likely be our next release and it won't be too far off. We are currently writing for our second album.

Who are the greatest influences on you? Individually and as a band?

There are a whole lot and they are ever changing.

Individually:

Dan - Vocally it was always Chris Cornell and Axl Rose. For guitar if we go all the way back it was Billie Joe Armstrong, Darren Malakian, Chris Cheney, and Slash. But in more recent times its guys like Joe Bonamassa, Garry Morre and Marcus King.

Paul - Pantera, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath

Keeny - Black Sabbath

You'll find most of those mentioned in some part shaping the band and the songs we write.

If you could invite 4 musicians to dinner dead or alive) who would you invite?

Dan - Joe Bonamassa

Paul - Chris Cornell

Keeny - A couple of muso mates to round out the four

Any gigs coming up you want to promote?

ENIGMA BAR on July first with SISTERS DOLL!!!

If you were given the chance to support one artist in the world, who would you pick?

Dan - BIFFY CLYRO

Paul - STONE SOUR

Keeny - Any band that wants to take us the road and look after us so we can all have a good time bringing rock n roll to

the masses!!

If you were stuck on a deserted island with only one record, what would it be?

Dan - Bringing Down The Horse by The Wallflowers

Paul - Themata by Karnivool

Keeny - Thirteenth Step by A Perfect Circle

Where can people find out more about you?

Stopping short of giving out our home addresses you can find out all the goss on Feed The Fire via all the usual suspects.

https://instagram.com/feedthefireofficial?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

#Spotify

1 note · View note

idontblushsrry · 3 years

Text

Sesshomaru||NSFW Alphabet

A/N: That’s right, I wrote an NSFW alphabet for him as well. How could I not, he’s a hottie. Also somehow, I managed to keep this w a gender neutral reader, so all my Sesshomaru fans may enjoy (unless u ship s*ssrin, then leave)

Word Count: 1911

Warnings: Obviously nsfw

A - Aftercare (What they’re like after sex)

After sex, Sesshomaru returns to his initial composure almost immediately. Like he’ll pant for a few seconds, wipe his dick off and then immediately, boom, like nothing ever happened. Of course, you, are thoroughly wrecked, needing Sesshomaru’s help, help which he is more than happy to give.

B - Body part (Their favourite body part of theirs and also their partner’s)

His favorite body part on himself has to be his arm/arms (depending). He loves his arms for a reason completely separate from you, he just enjoys the fact that he finally has two arms, like he thinks back to all the times he didn’t properly appreciate his left arm, and vows to never make that same mistake.

C - Cum (Anything to do with cum basically… I’m a disgusting person)

As much as he loves cumming on your body, nothing compares to the feeling of cumming inside you. He loves to watch you slowly lose all coherency as he just fucks you full of his cum. If you let this man cum inside you, you will unleash a whole new beast, that you’re gonna have to be prepared to deal with.

D - Dirty Secret (Pretty self explanatory, a dirty secret of theirs)

Sometimes, when Sesshomaru knows he’s going to be away from you for a long time, he tries to fuck you as much as possible. He knows that he’ll miss you and gets a little more lovey dovey, but above all, he’s trying to remember the feeling of you so he can better mimic it with his had.

E - Experience (How experienced are they? Do they know what they’re doing?)

Sesshomaru is extremely experienced, on account of both his rank and his power. Demons are attracted to power and rank and, being so noble, Sesshomaru has never had any trouble with finding a partner to warm his bed. He’s not versed in everything but he has a strong sense of intuition and a deep connection with his own desires.

F - Favourite Position (This goes without saying. Will probably include a visual)

A bit cliché, but, his favorites are doggy style and mating press. Any position where he has the leverage to press you down and fuck into you also ranks pretty high on his list.

G - Goofy (Are they more serious in the moment, or are they humorous, etc)

Sesshomaru is so serious in the moment. He gets so laser focused on pleasing you that he finds any distractions to be a bit...grating. That being said, you’re the exception, if he happens to make you laugh during sex, he’ll just roll his eyes affectionately before shutting you up with a kiss.

H - Hair (How well groomed are they, does the carpet match the drapes, etc.)

He’s about as well groomed as any man of his station at the time would be. He’s not exactly shaving down there but his hair is so fine that it isn’t unbearable. Also the carpet definitely matches the drapes, his hair is extremely light and it’s hard to see sometimes.

I - Intimacy (How are they during the moment, romantic aspect…)

Sesshomaru is very intimate in subtle ways. He shows you hat he cares by doing little things to ensure your comfort. Whether it’s brushing sweat off your head, setting pillows under your hips, or retracting his nails when he holds you, Sesshomaru is the king of unspoken intimacy. He loves you and he’s going to show it in the most obvious way.

J - Jack Off (Masturbation headcanon)

As stated earlier, Sesshomaru really only jacks off out of necessity. He had no problem with getting someone to fuck, ad now that he has you, he doesn’t see the need to masturbate. The only time he’ll do so is if you’re gonna be away from him for a while and he’s really horny.

K - Kink (One or more of their kinks)

Sesshomaru has a breeding kink, sorry not sorry. Even if you can’t get pregnant, something in him just tells him to keep filling you with his cum until it spills out. At which point, he just repeats the process. He also has a thing for marking, whether it be by scent, hickies, or with his cum, he loves the reminder/proclamation that you’re his.

L - Location (Favourite places to do the do)

Sesshomaru’s not picky about location. He’s of the opinion that, as long as you’re comfy, he’s ok with it. He does enjoy having his fill of you in your shared bedroom, but yall aren’t really home often enough for him to be that particular about it.

M - Motivation (What turns them on, gets them going)

The only thing that turns Sesshomaru on is the sight/thought of you naked and waiting for him.

N - NO (Something they wouldn’t do, turn offs)

Sesshomaru does not care all that much for sharing, and in a similar vein, voyeurism. With voyeurism, he doesn’t mind fucking out in the open, as long as no one else is around. The second he gets whiff of anyone, he’s pulling out of you faster than you can even realize what’s going on. With sharing, just don’t ask. He won’t show it but, the thought of someone else even seeing you that vulnerable enrages him and sets off his baser instincts. If you suggest it, he’s going to be very hurt for some time.

O - Oral (Preference in giving or receiving, skill, etc)

Sesshomaru probably didn’t even know about oral until you went down on him for the first time. While he isn’t exactly the most experienced in it, he more than makes up for it with his sheer voracity. If you ask him to give you head, he’s getting on his knees, laying you back like, “say less”.

P - Pace (Are they fast and rough? Slow and sensual? etc.)

Sesshomaru can be both but he tends to lean on the more fast and rough side. Sure, your hips and legs hurt, but who can really complain when there’s a powerful demon pounding into you like a jackhammer.

Q - Quickie (Their opinions on quickies rather than proper sex, how often, etc.)

When you first told Sesshomaru what a quickie entailed, he was intrigued. Admittedly, he didn’t like the concept at first, but the more he thought about it the more it grew on him. He likes the thought of you being so needy for him that you’d rather jump him as soon as possible than wait to get home.

R - Risk (Are they game to experiment, do they take risks, etc.)

In terms of experimentation, Sesshomaru’s not all that open to it. He’ll try if you insist but he’s definitely not one to suggest any experimentation. As for risks in terms of location, as long as he’s far enough from others, he doesn’t really care where y’all fuck or how loud you are.

S - Stamina (How many rounds can they go for, how long do they last…)

He can go as long as you can. He does like to build your endurance more and more each time, but sex in general with him is a serious time commitment. He’s more than willing to space it throughout the day if that would suit you better.

T - Toy (Do they own toys? Do they use them? On a partner or themselves?)

No toys, Sesshomaru doesn’t see the point in them. It also goes back to his thing about sharing, while he won’t be as angry as he would be with another person there, the thought infuriates him. Just thinking about an object getting to feel you in the same way he does make him see red.

U - Unfair (how much they like to tease)

Sesshomaru prefers not to tease, but he will if he feels the need to. He prefers to get straight to the point, letting you cum as many times as he sees fit to, honestly, prep you to take him in. But if he’s feeling particularly slighted, (whether by you or some demon he can’t quite murder) he’ll take it all out on you. While he won’t tease you in public, in private, he’ll work you up, get you right on the edge of cumming, and then pull it away. The more you whimper and whine, the more tempted he is to draw out your torture.

V - Volume (How loud they are, what sounds they make)

Sesshomaru is pretty quiet... usually. While he prides himself on his control, of which extends even to the bedroom, letting out a few grunts once he’s about to cum, his rut is a different story. Sesshomaru refuses to talk about or even acknowledge how unihinged he acts during his rut but honestly, the moment he gets a whiff of your arousal, he sounds like a wild animal. Every repressed emotion and sound comes bubbling back up to the surface and he just goes around growling and panting until he can stick his dick in you.

W - Wild Card (Get a random headcanon for the character of your choice)

Sesshomaru tries his best to be gentle/hold back with you. It’s not obvious and you haven’t noticed because most of it happens in the heat of the moment when you’re distracted by...other things. But, he knows he tends to lose himself inside of you so in preparation, he’ll remove his hands from your body and let his claws rip into the surface under/behind you, whether it be a tree, bed, or just the floor. One of these times, his poison accidently activated and he shielded your body by leaning down and making out with you. That day, he discovered his affinity for kissing you while pounding into you.

X - X-Ray (Let’s see what’s going on in those pants, picture or words)

Mans got a third leg, I just know. The baggy pants hide it pretty well but when you manage to pull it out, he’s easily 8 inches (10-12 when fully hard depending on circumstances), uncut, and really pretty. Like other parts of him, Sesshomaru’s dick is beautiful, a small patch of silver hair near his base. Speaking of, Sesshomaru does have a knot, if he cums inside of you, he tries to do so without getting it stuck just because of the fact that it’s kind of a hassle waiting it out. But if you let him knot you and the situation allows it, he might go a little feral whoops.

Y - Yearning (How high is their sex drive?)

Sesshomaru has a pretty high sex drive and before you, he could control it pretty well in all instances besides his rut. He still maintains his impeccable control but he finds himself ready to go a lot more often than he used to be. Like if you ask him, he’s immediately down regardless of what he’s doing. The only time that he gets supernaturally and uncontrollably horny is when he goes into rut. At which point...good luck getting his dick out of you.

Z - ZZZ (… how quickly they fall asleep afterwards)

While Sesshomaru doesn’t really get tired after sex in the same way you do, he does understand when you’re kind of tapped out for the night/day/moment and is more than content to watch you sleep. After a while though, the sounds of your heartbeat and the quiet sounds of your breathing will set him at ease and put him to sleep.

#sesshomaru x reader #sesshomaru imagines #sesshomaru imagine #x reader #inuyasha x reader #inuyasha imagines #black reader #x black reader #idontblushsrry

2K notes · View notes

shijiujun · 3 years

Text

[END 2020] My Top 9 Danmei Novel Picks of the Year

As a part of my Round Up post for the year, here’s my pick of favourite danmei novels, that I’ve read! This is sort of an accompaniment to my previous danmei rec list over HERE, so there may be one or two overlaps, but I’ve read WAY MORE after that and am prepared to like give more options here

Note: There should be English translations for all via novel updates if you do a search of the English name, but I don’t think most of them are completed.

If you wanna see my full reading and queue list (it’s all in Chinese tho, for my own records), it’s here.

I’m leaving out the usual MXTX and Priest ones, because they’re already good and we all know that and there’re many carrds and posts dedicated to them.

I am also a sucker for fainting but smart men, and not too overly angsty/complicated storylines, just putting it out there first, which is why I haven’t read a lot of some of the ones on my queue list.

-------

1. 一剑霜寒 | A Sword of Frost by 语笑阑珊

Summary: Jing Yan Ran is the Emperor’s brother and wields military power in the novel, and it starts with an object being stolen from the palace. Jing Yan Ran has to retrieve the item secretly, and so enlists the help of Feng Yu Sect’s Sect Master, Yun Yi Feng, who heads the martial arts world’s one and only information trading post. Yun Yi Feng does not deal in business that involves any royalty, but Jing Yan Ran offers him something he cannot refuse - the Blood Red Lingzhi, a rare and mystical herb that is rumoured to be able to treat his life-threatening condition.

Yun Yi Feng was used by his shifu when he was younger to test out all kinds of poisons and cures, and since then, his body flushes dangerously hot and cold frequently, with bouts of severe coughing fits in between. Throughout the first mission where he spends time with Jing Yan Ran searching for the stolen object, he allows Jing Yan Ran to take care of him, and they fall in LURVE pretty much like 10 chapters in.

Of course, they have to uncover a plot and conspiracy against their enemies who are plotting to dethrone the Emperor, and also reveal the secrets of Yun Yi Feng’s birth.

My Thoughts: AN ABSOLUTE FAVE AND GEM, I’d say this is my favourite danmei novel ever. This is both hilarious and tears-inducing, to be honest, because for most of the novel YYF knows he doesn’t have long to live and so in the beginning he knows of his own feelings for JYR and JYR also shows him that he loves him, but he is unable to officially reciprocate because he knows his body is like weakening day by day. Halfway through the fear that he’s literally about to die as they are JUST about to find the cure is real, and damn I cried so much at that. Some highlights:

YYF falls asleep very easily in baths and everywhere actually, and pretty much within the first 10 chapters he gets used to JYR carrying him around (even naked from the bath, he’s like oh well, okay cool) and taking care of him, and JYR ALWAYS makes sure he is warm and toasty under his cape

YYF LOVESSSS RICHES, PLAYING THE ZITHER AND COOKING - He’s good at gathering the first one, but he FUCKING SUCKS AS THE LAST TWO - It’s so funny because he’s so beautiful and handsome right, and when he sits down at the zither everyone is like OH DAMN WHAT A DREAM- and then he plays, and everyone’s fantasies is shattered, he’s ABYSMAL at it, and the same goes for cooking

JYR doesn’t actually have the Blood Red Lingzhi, and throughout the first arc, he feels SO DAMN GUILTY because YYF even carved out a pendant that looks like what he thinks the herb looks like, and like carries it with him everywhere LMAO

Available: Novel Online and Manhua on Bilibili

2. 高能二维码 | High Energy QR Code by 青色羽翼

Summary: CEO Xing Ye’s brother Xing Shuo has just passed away at the age of 24, and nothing will make him believe that Xing Shuo died of natural causes despite autopsies and experts telling him that he really died simply of a heart failure. Xing Ye, who has impeccable memory, suddenly recalls the last time he saw Xing Shuo. His brother called out to him just before Xing Ye left for a business trip, and looked as if he had something to say, but ended up just wishing him a safe trip.

At that moment, there was a QR code on Xing Shuo’s phone, and the phone screen was strangely turned out towards Xing Ye, and Xing Ye, with his incredibly high IQ and memory, realizes that Xing Shuo wanted him to see the QR code. Quickly, he reproduces the QR code by pen and then scans it, and finds himself in a game world.

There he meets a narcissistic but also cute mirror which can speak, and finds out later that his name is Lu Ming Ze. Xing Ye’s mission is to clear the game missions in each round that is set by the black and white cubic game system, a system that continuously tempts its players into giving in to committing sins such as killing someone else, stealing and other things. He soon realizes that if he cannot stay on a path clear of these sins, he will never be able to triumph over the game system and return Lu Ming Ze back to his body in the real world.

At the same time, he gains new teammates and friends for life, and also finds out what role his brother played in this game.

My Thoughts: MY GOD I LOVE THIS. I LITERALLY JUST FINISHED READING THIS YESTERDAY, and honestly it’s one of my faves. I don’t like game systems very often (I’ve read three others so far, and this, and KOD are the only ones I’ve liked) but this one is *chef’s kiss*. So LMZ was born like with a really handsome face, like SUPER HANDSOME, and that’s why he’s like a harmless narcissist that cannot bear to look at ugly things LMAO, but he’s not spoilt, he makes sure that Xing Ye stays true to himself, and help him keep his head clear.

THE ONLY THING ABOUT THIS FRICKIN NOVEL IS THAT LU MING ZE STAYS A MIRROR, LIKE DIFFERENT KINDS OF MIRRORS, in the first TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY CHAPTERS. I KID YOU NOT. I FRICKIN KID YOU NOT. I swear I was sooo touched starved at the end of the novel, because they couldn’t even kiss?!! Like Xing Ye kisses the mirror, and then uses his thumbs to like hi-five mini LMZ in the mirror back, they can’t even hug. Do you know how empty my arms felt when I read this book?!! And my arms have never been filled!!!!!!

I really like this one because each game world is set up in such a brilliant way, but it’s not so unnecessarily complex that you literally don’t know what the fuck is going on. Xing Ye’s intelligence as he outmanoeuvres every single one of his enemies and convinces his would-be loyal teammates to trust him is so satisfying, world after world, victory after victory.

Humour is also absolutely ON POINT. A lot of it is centred on Xing Ye getting caught in the real world kissing his handheld mirror (LMZ) by LMZ’s parents (who cannot see him in the mirror) and LMZ’s parents going like ???!!!!!!!!

Available: Novel Online | Physical Novel is coming out on 10 Dec (freebies are, you guessed it, a mirror)

3. 妻为上 | The Wife is First by 绿野千鹤

Summary: This is set in a historical setting where men can marry other men, but it’s usually reserved for sons who were not borne by the official main first wife of the patriarch of the family, i.e. a son born by a concubine in a family may be forced to marry a man to keep him from being able to become the next family’s patriarch for example. This is because any family’s next leader needs to be able to have children with a wife who married in as a zheng shi (lawful wife), and not a ce shi (second wife) or any other concubines/mistresses etc. Most of these men who marry other men have to take them as their zheng shi and lawful spouse in a sense, and the same goes for the royal family.

The story starts with third prince Jing Shao, who was forced to marry Mu Han Zhang, a Marquis’ second son, by the Empress and Emperor, thereby officially and effectively cutting him out of the race for the throne. He’s mocked by the public as everyone knows what this means, and for the next 10 years, he neglects Mu Han Zhang, blaming him for his predicament, and deliberately showers his three other concubines with affection in front of him, but 10 years later, when Jing Shao is accused of treason, everyone leaves him except for Mu Han Zhang. They are chased to the edge of the cliff by soldiers, and Mu Han Zhang dies in his arms having taken an arrow meant for him earlier, and Jing Shao jumps off the cliff with his dead body, and promises that if there’s a next life, he will do everything Han Zhang says, and love him.

He wakes up immediately on the night of his marriage with Han Zhang, and realizes that he’s been given a second chance to make everything right. Han Zhang is definitely afraid of him, humiliated and angry when he first wakes up after how rough Jing Shao was with him earlier on their wedding night, and he has no memories of their past life. Jing Shao then sets to SHOWER HAN ZHANG with affection, love and basically everything, because he realized that this is the only person who stayed by his side until the end, and then he falls in love with Han Zhang properly this time, and also deals with every single person who maligned and schemed against him in his previous life, with Han Zhang by his side.

My Thoughts: OKAY BEFORE YALL GO INTO THE ‘WIFE’ terminology discourse and everything, in this case they do use the term ‘wife’ literally, and it’s a position, that while men frequently fall into (there are a lot of male ‘wives’ in this story), is also used to cut off like sons from inheriting the family and the fortune, and even titles. Male ‘wives’ aren’t looked down upon in this setting, in fact, Han Zhang gets a lot of leeway as one, and in his case he was also able to rise up the ranks to be an actual official later on, but the sad thing comes from sons who are most of the time forced to marry a male ‘wife’ for whatever reason, and then they are neglected as the son goes and find concubines, women he actually wants to sleep with - this is sad af yall. I don’t know, on one hand, yay for equality in marriage in this setting, but on the other hand like, damn, must you use same-sex marriage like that argh.

ANYWAY THIS IS ONE OF MY FAVES TOO?!!! I mean, especially when Jing Shao literally just goes into doting mode 200% and Han Zhang is totally like wtf why is he so nice to me is he scheming or something? And then he realizes that Jing Shao is really, really gentle towards him despite his reputation as a cruel, dark military commander, and Jing Shao always smiles at him. In any situation, especially in the beginning, when Han Zhang thought Jing Shao would not stand with him, Jing Shao literally just protects him no matter what, gives him everything, and cries, I love it.

Especially because Han Zhang is the son of a concubine and he was bullied a lot in the Mu family, and the official Lady Mu married him off to Jing Shao in hopes that he would be unhappy for the rest of his life, and I suppose that came true in the first life, but in the second, Han Zhang gets all the love, respect and support he never got before in this family with Jing Shao and that makes me WEEP.

Available: Novel Online and Manhua on Kuaikan

4. 死亡万花筒 Kaleidoscope of Death by 西子绪

OOOH I intro-ed KOD here in my previous rec list. Still one of my faves and all-time re-reads, especially under the covers in the dark hehehe.

5. 你的距离 | Your Distance by 公子优

Summary: Ting Shuang is a student at a German university, and has this handsome professor Bai Chang Yi who he swears kind of hates him. He’s just broken up with his longtime boyfriend, and then goes on this dating app that matches a profile with him based on distance. The app can also show the matched profile’s distance from him once they enter the same area, and Ting Shuang starts chatting with this Chinese guy on the app, who he finds out later, is 36 years old, 187cm in height and wears glasses.

The guy is a little aloof and cool, very mature in his replies on the app, and somehow Bai Chang Yi finds out who he is later, as Ting Shuang starts complaining to him about his professor to Bai Chang Yi. Instead of getting angry and offended, BCY is pretty much amused and finds Ting Shuang cute. A few days later Ting Shuang finally realizes who it is he’s been texting, and after getting past the initial embarrassment and fear, they start dating for real, and they really fall in love!!!!!

My Thoughts: This is sweet and also hilarious af, if you need to like satisfy your sweet tooth, this is definitely one for you. It’s really funny because Bai Chang Yi runs in the same circles as Ting Shuang’s dad, who he’s estranged from because the dad doesn’t want to recognize a son who is gay, and then BCY convinces him later in the funniest of ways, and there’s a small subplot at the end in which Ting Shuang is pretty cool, and yep, short and sweet! BCY in the manhua is handsome af too guys ;-;

Available: Novel Online, Audio Drama on Maoer FM and Manhua on Bilibili,

6. 神木挠不尽 The White Cat’s Divine Scratching Post by 绿野千鹤

Summary: Mo Tian Liao, a weapons forger and master who ruled the Demon Tribe, was hunted down and killed by other righteous sects in the region when he managed to forge an incredibly destructive weapon that could end the world. Before he died, he placed the only thing he loved, a white cat, into a hole in the tree behind him to protect it. The only thing he was grateful for was that he did not create a blood pact with the cat, Xiao Mao, because if he had done so, when he died, Xiao Mao would have died along with him as well.

Right before he dies, unbeknownst to him, Xiao Mao who is no simple demonic cat, wraps part of his consciousness around Mo Tian Liao, and MTL’s spirit ends up floating about for 300 years, until he finds a suitable time to return with a body made out of a special tree and its wood. The first thing he does, of course, is to find his white cat, but he’s poor, and the body he has isn’t powerful, so he joins Wo Yun Sect, the only sect that did not hunt him down that day hundreds of years ago.

There, he is chosen by Qing Tong shizun to be his direct disciple, much to the astonishment of other shizuns in the sect, and Qing Tong’s shixiongs. MTL has never seen a person as beautiful and gorgeous as his shizun, and if only he could find that cat (who’s actually his shizun, who recognizes him and protects him, even if MTL doesn’t actually need much protection).

My Thoughts: This was hilarious as well, and so romantic?!!! Qing Tong/Xiao Mao waited for MTL to come back, and the moment he came back, Qing Tong was there ready to grab him, and then before he went to sleep that night, Qing Tong thought to himself, “I’ve gotten my person back, I can sleep well now” and AHHHHH at this point they weren’t even like a couple yet? MTL ‘kidnapped’ Qing Tong when he was a young demon cat by accident because he likes pretty things (like his shizun lmao) and Qing Tong is attached to him because MTL never forced a blood pact on him, and gave him everything he wanted as a younger cat before MTL died. Gosh, a mirror in #2 and then a cat now with this one. XD

Available: Novel Online

7. 破云 | Breaking the Clouds by 淮上

Summary: Three years ago, Captain Jiang Ting and his team of the Narcotics division perished in an explosion due to a wrong call of his, and he returns three years later under a new identity ready to deal with the people who set him and his team up. He’s caught in what seems to be a simple murder case almost immediately and meets Yan Xie, who’s Vice Captain and in charge of this case. Yan Xie realizes who Jiang Ting is shortly after, and begins to unravel the huge mystery surrounding the events of three years ago, and falls in love with Jiang Ting along the way as well.

My Thoughts: Okay out of the FOUR crime/detective/thriller danmei novels I’ve read, the poyun and tunhai (below) series is the one that MIRRORS actual narcotics division and undercovers the best. It has the complexity and depth of the drugs/narcotics world, and both this one and its sequel focuses a lot on the position of an undercover and mole. I liked this one a lot because there are SOOOO many twists especially in the last arc, like you honestly won’t see any of them coming until it hits you? And Yan Xie is such a confident, rich-ass narcissist, and he keeps asking Jiang Ting if he can “just touch” him ONCE lmao, he’s thick-skinned af, but that’s why he and Jiang Ting are so compatible ;-;.

Available: Novel Online, Novel Print, Audio Drama and Manhua on Bilibili

8. 吞海 | Swallowing the Sea by 淮上

Summary: Sequel to Po Yun. Yu Wu is a young-looking new detective under Captain Bu Chong Hua’s narcotics team. Bu Chong Hua is Yan Xie’s cousin by actual relation, but brother in relationship because BCH’s parents died early and Yan Xie’s parents have been taking care of him mostly. He cannot stand Yu Wu, who seems to want to coast through at work and keep to a 9-5 work schedule.

It’s only after an altercation and Yu Wu dumping his nonchalant facade to snarl at BCH that he realizes that YW is actually more interesting and mysterious than he thought, and he begins to try to get close to him, understand him. It turns out that Yu Wu is a famous undercover who nearly died a year ago during an operation, and due to various reasons, he was assigned to BCH’s team by higher ups so he can peacefully live the rest of his life out there. However, his past catches up with him quickly, and his enemies turning up forces him to rely on BCH.

With BCH, Yu Wu’s resentment of having to be an undercover in the past and being so easily discarded by his team’s leaders, and of him being forced to be in the shadows while others can announce their achievements to the world, is slowly erased, because BCH sees him, knows him, and understands him more than anyone else.

My Thoughts: I actually liked this one better than the first one - Yu Wu is such a pouty, angry little thing?! And for good reason (there’s a bit of cannibalism in the book, not by choice when he was younger and in a poor village in Cambodia, where some militants forced survivors in the village to eat the meat of boiled corpses of other villagers, so YW is a vegetarian, like if he eats meat he gets really sick) and the twists here are even more amazing?! BCH really, really, devotes himself to YW the moment he realizes how much he likes him, doing a 180 degree turn. Instead of Yan Xie’s flamboyance, BCH is much steadier, grouchy, like an old uncle, but also looks at things even more clearly than Yan Xie does sometimes. Yu Wu is understandably bitter about what he had to go through, and BCH is the ONLY person who can calm him down, whom he listens to, which I LOVE. Some highlights:

Yu Wu grew up in a poor village and thus loves money, and he fights in underground betting rings to earn more money - The stash of hidden money he collects I think is half for his escape money, but if he happens to never need it, his dream is to donate the money to his village so they can open up a school there - ANYWAY because Yan Xie’s parents, and technically BCH’s ‘parents’ are soooooo rich right, Yan Xie’s mom shows her approval to her son-in-laws (Jiang Ting first, then Yu Wu), by giving them winter pants. It’s kind of like inside warmers, and usually meant for older ladies to wear LOLOL so Yu Wu was like staring at the pants when he finally got them and looked soooo reluctant until Jiang Ting told him it costs $6,000 AND HE WAS LIKE :333333 okie

He acts a lot like a kid?!! He likes eating like some snack but it’s really unhealthy for him, and BCH the mother hen keeps catching him in weird places like the toilet, where he’s hiding from BCH so he can eat his fave snack?! And the whole police station knows not to give YW what he wants in terms of snacks and smokes because once BCH finds out, he makes life very difficult for them HAHAHAHA

9. 穿成反派如何活命 | How to Survive as A Villain by 伊依以翼

Summary: Rich and handsome CEO Xiao Yu An finds out he has a terminal illness (cancer), and dies while he’s reading this online novel, where a king mistreats the crown prince from a neighbouring state which sent him over as hostage after losing a war, and ends up being killed by the crown prince years later (SVSSS much?!). He wakes up AS THE KING, and afraid of dying, he immediately goes about befriending the prince, Yan He Qing. Yan He Qing falls in love with Xiao Yu An while being his friend/hostage/bodyguard, and Xiao Yu An tries to avoid all the deaths he read in the book, while making sure Yan He Qing manages to find his three/four wives, including Xiao Yu An’s sister.

Of course, because Xiao Yu An showed him warmth and kindness, Yan He Qing ends up falling for him instead, and Xiao Yu An is an absolute oblivious idiot because he REALLY doesn’t realize until much later. Yan He Qing ends up declaring war on Xiao Yu An’s kingdom because he is duty bound to do so, but doesn’t hurt Xiao Yu An, wanting to keep him by his side, but YHQ’s scheming uncle drives a wedge between them, and XYA leaves, breaking YHQ’s heart.

They meet again a few years later, where XYA is training to be a physician in a small village and chances upon a severely injured YHQ. There, he realizes that it was all a misunderstanding, and that YHQ actually LIKES, LIKES him, but before they can enjoy this short period of happiness, disaster strikes again.

My Thoughts: THIS WAS really enjoyable, and with the manhua visuals, it is *chef’s kiss*. I think this transmigration version actually delved into the part where XYA is unable to change everything, and if he saves one person, someone else is destined to die, and that moral dilemma devastates him a lot. In this novel he actually transmigrates TWICE, once into the king’s body, and the second time into a neighbouring state’s prince/king’s body, who looks exactly like his modern self after. YHQ is real sweet to him istg, and I like that the epilogues are SUPER EXTENSIVE, including an arc where YHQ and XYA transmigrate back to the real world and everyone who died is alive and close to them, and gets their happy ending ;-;

Available: Novel Online and Manhua on Bilibili

#danmei rec list #stebeee recs #a sword of frost #your distance #swallowing the sea #breaking the clouds #kaleidoscope of death #High Energy QR Code #How to Survive as A Villain #The White Cat’s Divine Scratching Post

1K notes · View notes

boytouya · 3 years

Note

Hi<33 Could you write something like,, Aizawa being w/ a (male) reader who’s the exact opposite of him??

As in more social and reckless etc and the others being a bit shocked they would get along in the first place

Regardless I love your writing <33

𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐰𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲

a/n: that means so much to me!! thank you! sorry for the long wait! this isn’t beta read, if you find any mistakes feel free to correct me!

Warnings: none!

Aizawa isn’t calling you a breath of fresh air or anything, but that’s exactly what he’s calling you. He thought it’d be unbearable to have Hazashi 2.0 running around and causing a scene, but he actually warmed up to you faster than he had with his childhood colleagues. So much so, he even accepted your proposal to several dates. He enjoyed them immensely, though he’d never admit that out loud.

“You’re exhausting.” He grumbles, stacking up graded papers and placing them on the far right of his desk. Teachers have about thirty minutes to arrange the classroom accordingly before students start to pile in. Shouta preferred using those thirty minutes for a quick nap or meditation, but there was a loud, painfully handsome distraction standing directly in front of him.

“Hey, that’s not true! You stay awake just for me sometimes!” Your hands rest on your hips, there’s an endearingly cartoonish expression on your face, in a way you look almost animated. Shouta covers his light chuckle with a dry cough and exaggerates a yawn. You gasp at that, plopping yourself down on his desk as a way to say ‘I’m not going anywhere.’ Many people have trouble keeping up with you, whether it’s because you’re speaking too fast or jumping onto different topics, but Aizawa never has that problem. Although you’re complete opposites you manage to work better together than any other partnered heroes.

Aizawa seems to have no response to that, his scarred, nimble fingers working to grade his last few papers. He listens to you complain and whine about how he’s “ignoring you” with a bored expression. Of course, if you were anyone else you wouldn’t see past it. But since you aren’t anyone else you notice the amusement hidden in his eyes.

“Don’t laugh at me!” You pull at his arm (wow, he’s actually packing muscle under that comfortable costume), being as loud as you can to make a scene. You are referred to as “The Energetic Hero,” after all. A few teachers pop their heads in the classroom to make sure you’re alright, but their faces can't compare to the group of Class 1-A students ogling outside the door. “Aww, Shouta, your kids are here!”

When heroes in training begin to fill the classroom you don’t move your hand, and it seems Aizawa doesn’t make the effort to swat it away. His students are gawking, a pink haired girl (Mina, you remember Shouta telling you about her enthusiasm being much similar to yours) is whispering—way too loud to actually be a whisper— something about body language and dating. When you look back to face the pro hero, he’s staring at you with red eyes. His hair flows upward, and you swoon over how cool he looks.

“I didn’t know Aizawa-Sensei and Mr. {Last Name} were together.”

“They are?! Who would’ve thought.”

“Are you sure? They’re like complete opposites…”

“I thought Mr. Aizawa hated him!”

“No, look! Aizawa-Sensei is totally giving heart eyes right now.”

“No one gives a damn! Shut up already!”

“You’re giving my students the wrong impression.” His eyes are unwavering. It makes you smile, the way he looks at you with a dangerous glare but an even more dangerous pink dusting his cheeks. Shouta Aizawa *doesn’t* blush. It’s abundantly clear, he’s been hit on many times but not once has color risen to his cheeks. Not until now, so you can tell he’s genuinely flustered. It makes you want to run laps around the classroom and do a couple cartwheels, but you stay seated on his desk. You’re still sitting on his desk.

“You’re blushing, Sho!” You chirp, hearing the entirety of Class 1-A echo the nickname the second it leaves your mouth. You began to call him ‘Sho’ after your third date, and it was the first time you saw him freeze up.

“Sho?” Hearing the room of teens repeat such a specific term of endearment gets him to finally crack. Aizawa blinks and smacks your hand away, his palm moving to rub over his face. It’s a particular shade of red, one that your students get across their face when you go out training with them.

“You look like a strawberry!” You cackle, jumping to your feet when Aizawa stands to apprehend you. Darting out the classroom, you blow a kiss. After subconsciously catching it, Shouta pretends to throw it into the trash, clearing his throat and turning away from his confused students.

“So. Where did we leave off yesterday?” He continues, hoping he would get a chance to receive another blown kiss in the near future.

#🥞.aizawa #bnha x male reader #mha x male reader #aizawa x male reader #aizawa shouta x you #anime x male reader

325 notes · View notes

early2000smovieimagines · 3 years

Text

Meeting and Dating Draco Malfoy

(Not my gif)(Requested by anonymous)

(Since it came up in the meeting situation: if you request crush headcanons, they’ll include the boys reactions to falling for all the different houses<3)

- You and Draco first meet when you both begin attending Hogwarts.

- When it comes down to it, the platinum blond has a rivalry with just about everyone his age; besides his somewhat mindless goons, so there’s going to be a rivalry involved in your “relationship” regardless of who you are. The question is: how does said rivalry play out? Which is where your house comes into play.

- If you’re in any other house besides Slytherin then you’re in for a bumpy ride, though don’t get your hopes up Slytherin, it isn’t smooth sailing for you either.

- Either way, Draco is very much a “pull your pigtails” type of boy. He’s constantly teasing you, being rude, making insults, etc. If you’re a Slytherin then he’s recruiting you as one of his “followers”, acting childishly possessive over you, demanding that you come with him or scolding you when you hang out with people outside of your house. The older you get and the stronger his feelings, the worse it’ll get.

- Even though he acts cruel to you, he’s always eager to hear what you think about him; what you’d said to your friends about him and so on. Of course, deep down it bothers him when you express your contempt but he pretends it doesn’t, being particularly rude to you the next day to try and make himself feel better.

- On the same note as Draco’s eagerness to bully people: while I don’t think it’s impossible for Draco to fall in love with a half blood/other type of witch, I do think that he wouldn’t allow himself to be with one purely because of what he’s been taught and the fear of his fathers wrath.

- So, when does the snake boy stop seriously screwing with you? Around second year; if we’re referencing the other houses relationship with him. The two of you were paired up for a class around that time and slowly but slowly found yourselves on alright terms with each other.

- Because of this, it became far less shocking for people to see the two of you together and during that time, he was able to realize that he may or may not have liked you, and that he could be around you if he wished to.

- Finally, it all comes to a head around third year when he first see’s you stepping out of your carriage looking more radiant than ever and positively glowing as you laughed with your friends.

- Maybe it was the fact that he went the whole summer with the realization that he liked you and with no chance of seeing you. Maybe it was because you’d matured a bit and lost more of your babyface. Either way, he was in trouble.

- He approaches you with his usual last name greeting and you roll your eyes as per usual but as your relationship last year would suggest, he’s not nearly as rude to you as he once was.

- In fact, he’s uncharacteristically kind to you, well, as uncharacteristically kind as Draco can be while trying to remain unsuspicious. He starts making up any excuse to talk to you, goes to you for details when something happens within the school; even though you’re probably far more clueless than he is, sits/stands next to you in class, and most surprisingly, he actually acts sort of sweet to you when you’re all alone.

- If you’re a Slytherin then forget it, he’s constantly around you no matter where you are. He even openly flirts with and acts like he’s interested in you; though he tones it down so that he can keep up his reputation.

- It’s for all these reasons that you actually find yourself agreeing to go to Hogsmeade with him when he approaches and borderline tells you that that's what you’re doing. The two of you narrow your eyes at each other for a moment before you decide that you just can’t decline, as much as you want to because of his tone of voice and way of asking.

- So he takes you to Hogsmeade and you find yourself genuinely having a fun time, especially after the two of you end up in a snowball fight with each other. The two of you got progressively more elaborate with your snowy attacks until you’d wound up on the ground together with you just about ready to dump a big pile of snow on his head.

- In that moment, he’d linked his arm around the back of your neck and pulled you down to kiss him as you kneeled in front of him. The snow dropped from your hands, mostly missing his head but he didn’t stop. His playful, somewhat rough kiss softened and before you knew it, you were melting into him.

- You’re his girl now whether you like it or not. He wanted you and he always gets what he wants, doesn’t he?

- Draco has a reputation to keep up so he isn’t gonna be all cutesy and lovey dovey with you in public, though he does show you quite a bit of pda. He gives you that “I’m tough and she’s mine. Look I can touch her, see.” type of affection.

- Having his arm around you constantly; especially when he’s glaring down and trying to intimidate someone who’s looking at you too much for his liking.

- Temple kisses.

- Hand kisses. It’s a habit he picked up from his father.

- Sweet, soft kisses. You certainly didn’t anticipate him being so loving with you when you first started dating; due to his usual behavior, but you were, at times, pleasantly surprised.

- Dominating, somewhat rough kisses; especially when he’s in a bad mood for whatever reason.

- Him lounging dramatically in or across your lap.

- He’s quite a big fan of cuddling but he’d die before he let you or anyone else know that. The two of you usually cuddle hugging each other, your legs tangled together and his lips pressed to your forehead.

- If you’re not constantly by your boyfriends side, are you even dating? Why would you need to be anywhere else? You’re his girlfriend, you should be jumping to be seen with and spend time with him; especially since he’s a Malfoy!

- Him forcing people out of his and/or your way, and making Crabbe or Goyle do things for the two of you. The two boys really don’t mind helping you since you’re usually so much nicer about it than your boyfriend is.

- Sneaking around after curfew together.

- Wandering the grounds together. He’s got a few particular places that he likes bringing you to.

- Him pretending not to enjoy the things you do with him or the places that you take him to, even though you know damn well that’s he’s lying and just won’t admit that he’s having fun.

- Getting tickled or at least prodded in the side when you’ve said something teasing towards him, or just when you’re distracted. He finds it funny when you jolt and swat his hand away.

- Being lovingly referred to as your last name. When the two of you are alone together, he’ll let a “darling” slip here and there, usually without even meaning to. It’s another habit he picked up from high society life.

- Affectionate bullying. He makes fun of you in a much fonder tone now that you’re together.

- Sending notes to each other in class.

- Always being escorted to class.

- Stopping him from doing something stupid, even if it may or may not cause a fight between the two of you.

- Being forced to cheer him on at Quidditch games, even if you’re in a different house. He takes great offense if you don’t.

- He’s constantly trying to impress you and get your validation. He’s always bragging to you about his accomplishments, usually sprinkling in little white lies to make them sound even better.

- Him exaggerating how hurt or sick he is for more attention, especially when you’re completely focused on him; he wants to keep it that way for as long as he can.

- Either gaining favoritism from certain people; people like Snape, or being relatively disliked by association. Although, once people see that you’re sort of like a buffer between them and his wrath, they usually warm up to you more.

- Getting him to be nicer to people.

- You’re practically the only one he really listens to, even if it’s usually done so begrudgingly. He’ll later say that it’s just because he didn’t actually feel like doing it or tell you that you’re lucky “you’re cute” in a grumble to save face.

- Gossiping and peoplewatching together. He likes seeing you be a little mean, he finds it entertaining and gives you praise whenever you make some snide remark.

- Snowball fights.

- Going to Hogsmeade together. He treats you to a butterbeer or candy from Honeydukes whenever you go.

- Being spoiled. His father can afford the best and Draco wants to ensure that you’ll put up with his insecure ass even though he’s sometimes sorta mean to you. He also just likes the feeling he gets when he knows that he’s the one who’s made you happy.

- He probably gets you a silver necklace/bracelet either in the shape of his name or with it engraved on it, or with green jewels on it; especially if you’re not in Slytherin.

- Getting your stuff stolen. He’s a bit of a kleptomaniac so expect to find your some of your stuff in his room.

- Try not to mention it when he clings onto you at a sudden movement/sound or when something otherwise scares him. He’s sort of a coward; especially before the whole deatheater thing, and he’ll get angrily embarrassed if you do say something, denying it adamantly before avoiding you for the rest of the day out of spite.

- Occasionally dealing with his mood swings. One moment he’ll be all over you, the next he’ll be a foot away and acting cold. It’s nothing that you did, he just suddenly becomes very aware of how vulnerable or soft he’s being and get’s kind of insecure, not wanting to look too weak.

- His father will hear about you!

- Watching how his personality changes when he’s around other people, particularly his father. He isn’t a total git when the man isn’t around but he certainly acts like more of a gentleman and less like himself when he’s being observed; mainly because his father will audibly warn him to play nice.

- His parents probably have fancy parties that he may or may not be allowed to bring you to. If you’re from a well respected, pureblood family then his parents will accept you with open arms and happily welcome your appearances at said events.

- Listening to him complain about how boring or stupid things are, whether during or after they happen.

- He’ll try to keep his pride and insist that nothing is wrong; or that he isn’t as upset as he actually is, but you’ll be able to tell that somethings bothering him; usually his father. When he’s upset, you’ll merely be extra sweet to him and stick by his side for the rest of the day. It’s in those moments that he realizes just how much he loves you.

- Though you’ll have to find out about them soon enough, he definitely keeps some big secrets from you. You’ll be able to tell that there’s something wrong, that something is weighing him down, but he refuses to let you know until he’s finally forced to.

- Possessive boy. You’re his girlfriend and no one else should even look at you unless it’s to feel envious of him.

- He has nasty little habit of getting jealous over just about anyone who’s capable of taking you away from him; regardless of how irrational it may seem, or is otherwise making you happier than he can. He gets incredibly annoyed when he sees you with other guys and tends to either scare them off or glare at the two of you until you join his side.

- After that, he’ll make a few passive aggressive comments until you kiss his cheek and fluster/reassure him enough that he forgets about it.

- He’s incredibly protective of you; especially in the later years of your relationship/school life. In the beginning, he’ll pretend like he doesn’t care as much as he does but will always act in your favor and/or stick up for you on his own cruel way. When you’re older, he’s more willing to blatantly show that he cares and keep you away from danger.

- He’s a bit sensitive so the two of you have quite a few fights. He might insult you or cause problems for one reason or another but you just ignore him and give him the silent treatment when he’s acting like an ass.

- He watches you intently when you’re ignoring him, usually with a glare and especially if you’re around other guys. He keeps waiting for you to approach him but when he realizes you won’t, he’s forced to do it himself.

- At some point, he’ll force you to come with him so that the two of you can talk, trying to just “forget about” the issue before finally admitting that he was wrong. Depending on the issue, he might not give a full apology, telling you not to push your luck when you mention it.

- He doesn’t give you a ton of “I love you’s” but he does force himself out of his comfort zone to say a few. He’ll only ever say it when you’re alone and won’t look at you as he does so, usually trying to breeze past it like it didn’t happen as he blushes. The longer you’re together, the more willing he is to say it.

-He’s going to marry you is what he’s going to do! Why wouldn’t you want to marry him? He’s a pureblood, a Malfoy, and alright, he might just so happen to be really in love with you.

#draco malfoy imagine #draco malfoy headcanons #draco malfoy headcanon #draco malfoy imagines #harry potter imagines #harry potter headcanons #hp imagines #hp imagine #hp headcanons #hp headcanon

242 notes · View notes

sbrn10 · 2 years

Text

Rambling thoughts on Horizon

What are the odds that HZD would have its thunder stolen by BOTW and then five years later HFW would be completely eclipsed by Elden Ring to the point that nobody is even talking about it at all?

To be clear, I think HZD and HFW are both similarly mediocre games -- their best attribute is that they’re fucking GORGEOUS, the second best attribute is that hunting robot dinosaurs is fun, and a distant third is the overarching plot part of the story insofar as the primary driving feeling when I play through them is “I want to know what happens” (while the characters are bizarrely nondescript - literally I booted up HFW and spent most of the first thirty minutes like “I don’t remember this person from HZD at all” to anyone who wasn’t Aloy or Sylens) -- so it’s not like I’m particularly gutted over it; it’s just that “I have two nickels and that’s weird” feeling. BOTW/ER are both generational games, so it’s also just unlucky on their part. Despite despite its flaws, if HFW came out last fall, it would have probably gotten a lot more mindshare in the collective gaming consciousness. Coming out in February with Elden Ring, though? Just a total death knell to any coverage or buzz.

More thoughts (some minor spoilers?):

Anyway, since finishing the game, I’ve been thinking about the characters being nondescript part a lot and I don’t know WHAT about Horizon doesn’t work as well as something like (the counterpoint that springs immediately to mind) the late 00s-early 10s Bioware games in making both the protagonist (well, at least for Shepard, since DA mostly has blank ones) and the major NPCs memorable and endearing. I feel like nobody would come away from playing ME1 without remembering who Wrex, Liara, Garrus, and Tali are (Kaiden and Ashley... eh...); I 100% did not remember aaaaaany of HZD’s allies, and, weirdly, remembered Sylens, Elisabet Sobeck and Ted Faro far better. Obviously you can rattle off the differences in structure -- ME and DA are both party-based games that make great use of inter-party banter for character beats; Bioware has the romances; and the paragon/renegade style dialogue wheel injects routine conversations with more role-playing than Horizon, which only offers branching dialogue/choices like three times a game -- but I don’t know, it doesn’t feel like those things are dispositive. (Like, similarly, The Witcher has more memorable characters, and Horizon plays very much like The Witcher in terms of how the protagonist interacts with NPCs.)

And this weird nondescriptness extends to the people of Horizon as a whole - despite the Nora, Banuk, Carja, etc., having fairly distinct trappings, they mostly blur together -- in contrast to the Templars and mages, or the Hanar (who are, frankly, one of the most interesting alien races in any of the space scifi I’ve seen across any media), Turians, Volus, etc.

I’m not touching the political aspects of the world building, either the appropriation or (the interconnected but distinct issue of) its patronizing viewpoint on “primitive” culture and religion; I am TiredTM and simply refuse, but... I don’t know, I feel like, despite the obvious craft that goes into these games, there’s such a distinct aura of soullessness that I can’t pinpoint that leaves me so underwhelmed coming out of it, and surely some of it must be related to the underlying flaws in world building, right? It’s genuinely baffling how a game with such a (on the surface) unique setting compared to mainstream gaming (like, compared to the number of games set in generic European medieval fantasy or or whatever) can feel so... utterly derivative?

Anyway, I know this reads like I didn’t enjoy the game, but I did. I beat HFW in like a week and played about 60 hours of it -- obviously I would not have played it for like 8 hours a day every day if I hadn’t enjoyed it. I don’t know. Horizon is just very weird to me.

I will say I did enjoy the many lesbians in this game -- I called it the SECOND Tilda’s first audio thing played, and Carrie Anne Moss’s performance sold the character. Alva having a girl waiting for her back home is also sweet. I feel like 5 years later I will mostly remember that Zo was hot and tragically straight, Alva was a cute nerd, and I enjoyed Tilda (even if the last fight was... stupid).

#musings #video games #please don't be in any tags for horizon or whatever i can never tell if tumblr search will hit me or not

2 notes · View notes

thiswaycomessomethingwicked · 3 years

Note

Hello! So, I mean, this might be out of the blue, ambiguous and crazy to answer (but it's something I think about a lot, and you touched upon it in a previous ask and would love your further perspective on!) but let's say, at the end of The Return of The King, Grima lived! What do you personally think his journey and path would look like from there?

Grima asks are never out of the blue - I always want them <3 Thank you so much for asking!!

man ok - well Grima at the end of ROTK is in a really dark place. Frodo, Gandalf et al first run into Grima and Saruman on the road near the misty mountains as the make their slow return journey from Gondor.

As they (Frodo, Merry, Pippin, Gandalf) came out again into the open country at sundown they overtook an old man leaning on a staff, and he was clothed in rags of grey or dirty white, and at his heels went another beggar, slouching and whining.

[...]

‘Get up you idiot!’ he (Saruman) shouted to the other beggar, who had sat down on the ground; and he struck him with his staff. ‘Turn about! If these fine folk are going our way, then we will take another. Get on, or I’ll give you no crust for your supper!’

The beggar turned and slouched past whimpering: ‘Poor old Grima! Poor old Grima! Always beaten and cursed. How I hate him! I wish I could leave him!’

‘Then leave him!’ said Gandalf.

a man who has never been in an abusive situation in his life, clearly.

‘One thief deserves another,’ said Saruman (to Merry), and turned his back on Merry, and kicked Wormtongue, and went away towards the wood.

Great guy, Saruman.

And the famous scouring of the Shire bit that everyone on here misremembers when it comes to Grima’s whole situation:

But Frodo said: (...) But I will not have him (Saruman) slain. It is useless to meet revenge with revenge: it will heal nothing. Go Saruman, by the speediest way!’

‘Worm! Worm!’ Saruman called; and out of a nearby hut came Wormtongue, crawling, almost like a dog. ‘To the road again, Worm!’ Said Saruman. ‘These fine fellows and lordlings are turning us adrift again. Come along!’

[Saruman tries to stab Frodo as he leaves and Sam gets ready to shank a bitch. Frodo stops him saying: ‘...He is fallen, and his cure is beyond us; but I would still spare him, in the hope that he may find it.’ ...]

He (Saruman) walked away, and the hobbits made a lane for him to pass; but their knuckles whitened as they gripped on their weapons. Wormtongue hesitated, and then followed his master.

‘Wormtongue!’ called Frodo. ‘You need not follow him. I know of no evil you have done to me. You can rest and food here a while, until you are stronger and can go your own ways.’

Wormtongue halted and looked back at him, half prepared to stay. Saruman turned. ‘No evil?’ he cackled. ‘Oh no! Even when he sneaks out at night it is only to look at the stars. But did I hear someone ask where poor Lotho is hiding? You know, don’t you Worm? Will you tell them?’

Wormtongue cowered down and whimpered: ‘No, no!’

‘Then I will,’ said Saruman. ‘Worm killed your chief, poor little fellow, your nice little Boss. Didn’t you, Worm? Stabbed him in his sleep, I believe. Buried him, I hope; though Worm has been very hungry lately. No, Worm is not really nice. You had better leave him to me.’

A look of wild hate came into Wormtongue’s red eyes. ‘You told me to; you made me do it,’ he hissed.

Saruman laughed. ‘You do what Sharkey says, always, don’t you, Worm? Well, now he says: follow!’ He kicked Wormtongue in the face as he grovelled, and turned and made off. But at that something snapped: suddenly Wormtongue rose up, drawing a hidden knife, and then with a snarl like a dog he sprang on Saruman’s back, jerked his head back, cut his throat, and with a yell ran off down the lane. Before Frodo could recover or speak a word, three hobbit-bows twanged and Wormtongue fell dead.

A sad end to a very sad life.

So that’s the canon ending, obviously. A very neat, pat ending where all the baddies are dead, everyone who is broken will disappear into an asylum and/or die take a boat to the grey havens and life will move on.

How nice.

Alright, now for the speculation! My favourite thing.

Assuming Grima lived, god knows what his journey afterwards would look like. He’s mentally (and physically) in a bad way after having been physically (and emotionally) abused and starved by Saruman for the last year/two years. Saruman may have lost his powers, but he’s still terrifying force to be reckoned with. I don’t know how much Grima would be capable of on his own in terms of survival.

That said, Grima’s made it this far. He’s clearly got something in him that’s keeping him alive. Something in him wants to live. It might not know how to go about doing that, but it’s there, and that’s important.

So he’s stabbed Saruman, A+ work. The hobbits don’t shoot him. The question is then: does he take up Frodo’s offer or does his fuck off into the wilderness.

I can see him going either direction, honestly. But I suspect, given that he’s starving and in a bad way physically, I suspect he’d stay for a time. Now, considering what’s happened to him in the general vicinity of Bagend, I’m not sure how long Grima will stay, but I do think he’d rest there for a short while. Get a proper meal or two in him. Take a bath. That sort of thing.

From there he could go to somewhere like Bree or Dale, take up a new name/new life and try and move on, as much as a person can in a world that has absolutely no support networks for people who have gone through bad shit.

If he stayed for a longer period with Frodo? I could see Sam putting him to work.

‘I need someone to help me garden.’

‘...I know about horses?’

‘Plants are easier, trust me.’

‘....Are they though?’

Considering the fact that Grima has been dehumanized (Worm; like a dog; cur) and treated as worthless/unworthy by one of the more powerful beings in Middle Earth - and one who was once Great! Who was once wise and wonderful! I suspect he’s going to have a difficult time accepting kindness?

Frodo, of course, would be generous and understanding, because it’s Frodo and that’s the measure of man he is. Truly one of the nicest and most forgiving and tender people in the series.

Aragorn said of Grima that if he walked out of Orthanc alive it would be too good for him.

(Everyone is a lot meaner in the books. Funnier, yes, but also meaner. Then there’s the weird Faramir moment where he’s all up on that “Numenorian Blood Quantum Is Important” nonsense (tell that to your brother who has no blood of the Westernese in him...) There’s a lot of Oooof moments).

Frodo, though, Frodo is one of the genuinely kind and loving people who would never think such cruel things about anyone.

But back to Grima, I think the line Gillian Flynn wrote about how when you’re weaned on poison, it makes kindness seem like a cruelty is very relevant here. The first step to healing is allowing yourself to admit that you deserve to be healed, that you deserve love. That’s a very hard thing to allow, to acknowledge is something you are worthy of having.

And so it would be difficult, for him, to accept kindness and gentleness from Frodo, or anyone else. But if he was doing something to “earn” it, that might make it more palatable.

Which is a shame, since if there is anyone who understands the power and allure of the dark lord/Saruman etc. and how that can mess you up and contort you into someone you don’t recognize anymore, it’s Frodo.

Would Grima go back to Rohan? I don’t think so. Unless there were some wild, unexpected circumstances that brought him there, I truly don’t see him returning home. He’s torched that bridge pretty successfully - at least, I’m sure that’s how he sees it.

Now if he did. If something Bat Shit happened - and he went back. It would be wild and very emotional.

A Rider of Rohan, lost in the shire: I’m looking for a Mr Baggins? I understand he might know where Gandalf is? We sort of need some magic help in Rohan.

Hobbit: Turn left at the end of the lane, go past Grubby Harold’s llama farm, stop at the intersection with the red sign, take the third exit of the roundabout, turn right, turn left, turn left again, take the second switch back up the hill, at the crest of the hill, take the path that turns left at the big tree that someone carved Fuck Lobelia into and that should get you close.

Rider:

Rider: Right.

Rider eventually shows up, Grima’s out front updating Sam on some shit that Pansy Fielding said to Fardulf Braceblower, an ongoing war that has existed since the Dawn of Time. Sam is like “Please never stop telling me all the gossip, I live for this shit.”

Frodo: How did you hear about this?

Grima: I might have set up an informant’s network but it’s solely to trawl for entertaining gossip.

Rider approaches: Oh dear gods.

Grima:

Grima: Go get fucked, Gundahar.

Sam: Friend?

Grima & Gundahar: No.

Anyway. The rider tells Frodo that he’s after Gandalf because XYZ is happening in Rohan and Eomer-king is annoyed and “wants it dealt with, preferably yesterday”. Grima knows what’s up because you know, resident Spook Master also he was spending a lot of time around a lore-filled Wizard. Might as well get something for the years of mistreatment.

Gundahar: He’s not coming back to Rohan.

Frodo: We’re going on a road trip, Sam. Let’s get packed.

Sam: I’m so ready for this.

Grima: But I’m not going back to Rohan.

Gundahar: He’s not coming back to Rohan.

Frodo: Too late, he’s coming with us. Neither of us can be left alone for too long or we go weird in the head.

Merry: Oh we’re going to Rohan? Well, as a member of the royal court I’m coming.

Gundahar: .... How is this happening?

Grima: Hobbits, they move in herds.

Pippin: WAIT FOR ME!

Gandalf is UPSET that he has to travel with Grima. Grima says it’s mutual. He doesn’t like wizards. Especially wizards in white. He gets weird about hoarding food when Gandalf is around.

Grima then has to visit Theoden’s grave and have a lot of emotions about everything and it’s a Lot.

I don’t think he’d stay, though. Either he’d go back with Frodo or he might go on to Gondor or out east or something. Travel for a while.

I’ve gone off on some tangents here. Ahem.

But in general, I see his journey going in one of two directions: one where he fucks off after murdering Saruman and takes up a life somewhere else like Bree, or wherever, probably drinks too much and is miserable until he dies.

The other is where he accepts Frodo’s offer and either just chills in the Shire being the resident gossip-monger and mischief maker (Frodo: NO MISCHIEF. Grima: we can make a little mischief .., as a treat?) or he accepts the offer, stays for a while to get back on his feet and shake off some of the darkness, then goes off to travel around. Maybe he settles somewhere, maybe he doesn’t. Regardless if he stays or goes, it is a better ending to his life than he probably hoped for or expected.

And it shows the power and importance of kindness and love. Healing only happens if there is love and gentleness. And it’s terrifying - of course it is - but it’s so necessary.

Ok I am so sorry for my dissertation on Grima. I love talking about him so much.

Thank you!! <3 <3

#lotr #lord of the rings #grima wormtongue #frodo #samwise gamgee #rohan #ask #reply #return of the kings #rotk

24 notes · View notes

josefavomjaaga · 3 years

Text

Letters from Naples. 1813

All these letters are still from the first half of the year, before Murat (for the last time) joined forces with Napoleon in August 1813. Most of them are only postscripts to “official letters” (which were likely to be opened and read by secret police), some even using an extra secret cipher not used on other occasions, if only to give you this special “007″-feeling.

Translated again from “Helfert, Joachim Murat”.

Mier to Metternich [French, in ciphers].

Naples 16 March 1813.

My Lord Count!

The sort of mystery put from the beginning into the sending of Prince Cariati to Vienna, and the rumours which circulate in the public on the object of his mission, can only cause offence to the French government and will necessarily increase the bad blood of the Emperor Napoleon towards the King, which is already sufficiently pronounced without it. Since his arrival in Naples the king has not received a word from the Emperor; the queen has had two letters, but she thought she had to conceal them from her husband because of their content. The Duke of Berthier told the king at the moment of his leaving the army to return to Naples, that he believed him to be too good a Frenchman not to be sure that he would willingly sacrifice his crown if the interests of France required it. This statement, which the King supposes to have been ordered by the Emperor to prepare him for what he must expect, has increased his distrust and anxiety for the preservation of his kingdom. Knowing the King's character, I fear that this will lead him to some step contrary to his position and his true interests, and will give France a pretext of necessity for the realisation of a project which perhaps for the moment should not yet be put into execution. The departure of the Queen would be in this respect a real calamity for this country, because she prevents by her wise and reasoned advice, and her pleas, many steps dictated by the first movement of the King's hot temper, and which would end up by completely dividing him from the Emperor. At first, on his return, he intended to summon the Estates or Deputies of the kingdom and have himself crowned of the Two Sicilies; it was only by dint of persuasion and entreaties that the Queen succeeded in turning him away from this project.

Accept etc

Mier

Prince Cariati was Murat’s special envoy sent to Vienna to start negotiations with Austria, apparently behind Caroline’s back.

Metternich to Mier [French, concept; original in ciphers].

Vienna, 20 April 1813. By Neopolitan courier.

Prince Cariati has acquitted himself to me of the commission he is charged with. He told me that the King desired only the preservation of the throne of Naples; that he would renounce his claims to Sicily and was not aiming at any acquisitions; convinced, however, that his existence would sooner or later be threatened by the great preponderance of France, and knowing the liberal views of our august master, H. M. wished to have a guarantee which would ensure his future existence; that this guarantee could only be given to him by Austria, and that the king was ready, on the other hand, to support our approach, if necessary, by all his military forces.

I answered Prince Cariati that the policy of the Emperor did not require to be commented on, that it was sufficiently known in Europe to be generally appreciated at its just value. That we desired only a state of peace deserving of the name; that far from any excess in our designs, and not subjecting the good to the prospects of an often illusory better, we had succeeded in winning the confidence of all the great powers to the point of seeing them, France not excepted, solicit us to change the subordinate attitude of a merely intervening power into that of mediator. That consequently His Imperial Majesty was assembling great military forces to support his words of peace and to bring them to a successful conclusion; but that the mediating Power had no longer any choice; that he could only hope to succeed in so far as he was actually prepared to support his words by war.

As Prince Cariati kept repeating to me that this was undoubtedly the King's way of judging these questions, and that His Majesty had only the most pronounced desire to prove to us that he would be able to uphold, against all odds, the commitments which he had made, I asked him if he had sufficiently precise instructions to enter into a real negotiation with us and full powers to complete it. He replied that he did not; that he felt that full powers were necessary for our own safety, but that as for the instructions I could be assured that the King's views were invariable, and that those which His Majesty had expressed to him at the time of his departure from Naples were confined to the widest possible latitude.

The present courier (an officer of the guards who accompanied Prince Cariati here) is sent by him in secret to Naples. He asks for full powers. You will not have, Count, to meddle in the substance of an affair which is very delicate in itself, and you will keep strictly to the terms of my answer to Prince Cariati above, without taking a step to engage the King to send the document requested by his envoy. You will add, however, that the Emperor nourishes particular feelings of esteem for the King; that His Majesty's policy is entirely conservative, and that he only wishes to see the King rule the people who have devoted all their attachment to him, and that His Majesty is very sensitive to the marks of confidence which this Prince gives him. You can be sure that no evidence of this feeling has ever caused regret to any power.

As Prince Cariati is making his report to the Duke of Gallo, you can speak to him about the present communication, and you will testify to him with the confidence which we personally have in him the conviction that, if we are ready to listen to the King, it is up to him to provide his Envoy with all diplomatic guarantees.

You will also satisfy yourselves that by virtue of the present instructions you have little to add to what I have lately prescribed to you.

If I’m not mistaken the “Duc de Gallo” was minister of foreign affairs in Naples. His ... ability to adapt to several consecutive goverments at odds with each other would later result in a rather awkward situation for him: He refused to go to Vienna for the Congress of 1814 because there he would have met his ex-queen, Maria Carolina of Habsburg.

Mier to Metternich [French, in special ciphers, "très sécrèt"].

Naples this 27 April 1813.

On the return of the King I will carry out your orders, I distrust the minister too much to speak to him about it. He is persuaded of the forthcoming reunion of this country with the great Empire, and always thinking more of his own interests than those of his country and his sovereign, he does everything possible to win the goodwill of the new French government in advance and thereby secure lucrative positions for himself under the new reign. He is known as such from the past and his present conduct has not earned him an appreciation. X. also advised me not to confide in him too much.

I have the honour to be ut in litteris

Mier.

Yes. “X.” would mean “Joachim”. We have literally reached the level of a Bond movie now.

Mier to Metternich [French, in particular ciphers, "très sécrèt"].

this 30 April 1813.

We have consulted with X. about what to say to his wife. I will always keep strictly to your orders, but do not let me miss your instructions. X. requests your friendly advice on what he should say, do, ask, stipulate, promising to follow your advice in everything. All that is required is the preservation of the present fortune and independence.

I have the honour etc.

The book’s author adds a footnote here with an interesting remark:

In Nicomede Bianchi "Storia docum. della Diplomazia europea in Italia I" p. 2 we find the assertion that Metternich had already made contact with Caroline Murat in Paris, and that he had succeeded in turning her away from her imperial brother; Caroline had thus become "nelle mani del principe di Metternich il migliore instrumento per sospingere il re di Napoli a passare nel campo de' nemici della sua patria e del suo benefattore".... Since the "X" of the despatches I reproduced can only refer to King Joachim, and "sa femme" is therefore Caroline Murat, who at that time cannot yet have been fully aware of the contacts with the Viennese Cabinet, this results in the opposite of Bianchi's assertion, which, incidentally, would also be in irresolvable contradiction with other facts and circumstances.

My personal footnote to the above letter: May I find it a little piquant to see Murat ask Metternich for advice on how to break the news to Caroline? “Dear Metternich, as you have slept with my wife, how do you think I should got about this?”

Mier to Metternich [French, in ciphers, postscript 1].

Naples 29 June 1813

My Lord Count!

The article of the Moniteur relating to the isle of Ponza has enraged the King, to the point of making him ill. He has sent Mr. Durand, Minister of France, a very strong note on this subject which states, among other things, that this is the second time that the French gazettes have taken it upon themselves to insult him, and that at the third such article he would respond by dismissing the Minister of France from his State.

The Emperor Napoleon intends to ask the King of Naples again for 20,000 men.

His Majesty gave a negative answer, declaring that not a company of his army would leave the kingdom unless commanded by him in person.

All these measures of the Emperor persuade the King more and more that Emperor Napoleon nurses hostile designs against him and that he would have already put them into execution if he were not too busy on another side. Not omitting any occasion to humiliate him, doing everything to finally weary his patience he has the air of provoking him and finding a pretext of his annihilation in the resistance to his will.

The King sets himself up for any event, and I am convinced that only one Senatus Consult is needed to deprive him of his kingdom.

I have the honour to be ut in litteris

Once more we have Murat getting ill when under stress or in great emotional turmoil. And this time, Mier even has an extra secret postscript to the secret postscript:

Mier to Metternich [French, in special ciphers, 'très sécrèt', postcript 2]

this 29th June 1813.

Napoleon has had the Queen informed that war with Austria was inevitable; that he needed troops; that consequently she should engage the King to place 20,000 men at the disposal of the Viceroy of Italy. Their Majesties await with impatience the answer to Cariati's proposals in order to know the course to be followed in the event of war between Austria and France. The King is still determined to support our interests

Please give me your instructions on the conduct I should follow in the event of war with France

I have the honour etc.

If this is true, if it really was already known in Naples by the end of June that Napoleon wanted war with Austria (which means that Napoleon must have been decided already at the beginning of the armistice and a long time before his meeting with Metternich in Dresden), this is diametrically opposed to the claim of Napoleon-friendly historians, who tend to accuse the allies of not having been sincere in their peace proposals in mid-1813. And it makes me feel like crying, considering how many people at this point put all their hopes in Napoleon making peace. Which he apparently never even seriously considered.

#joachim murat #helfert murat #1813 #napoleon #italy1813 #naples #letters #metternich #caroline murat

19 notes · View notes

beneaththetangles · 3 years

Note

I'm the anon about Jess W's articles. I just wanted to say that I am sorry if my concerns would cause any other followers of Beneath the Tangles to stumble or a member of Beneath the Tangles themselves. I did not mean to come off as critical. The last I would ever want is to lead someone away from Jesus. I just became afraid that if the wrong person read that, they may not give their life over and their sin over to Christ in the way they should and may not really be saved and go to hell. I was brought up in a pretty strict family concerning LGBTQ+ things, so I found it refreshing that Beneath the Tangles offered discussions about these topics without condoning the behavior but also not putting down the person. When I saw what you posted from Jess W, it just seemed to go against everything you've tried to build up in terms of aiding your followers to understand how to live a life that honors Jesus. I'm sure Jess W has had a lot of struggles that led up to him coming out as trans, and I'm personally really sorry for how I said what I said, but I think it's super important that we encourage people to give their sins to Jesus. If Jess W is fighting being trans, why is he changing his name? Why is he saying he's "one of the girls"? If he was giving it to God,, he could have said, "I've been struggling with transgender thoughts/behaviors/etc, but I'm giving them to God) daily". That would have honored God. Beneath the Tangles is a ministry. I know you say you're not a church and you're a parent. I get that. But you are still held accountable for who you lead astray because you have a platform that you claim glorifies Jesus. I have been touched by a lot of your articles and many of them concerning homosexuality. I know the LGBTQ+ community is a sensitive topic that no one likes to talk about. This is a touchy topic on here, but if someone said something bad about Jesus, you'd just say brush it off.. Would you stand up as hard for Jesus as you are for the LGBTQ+/Jess W?

Anon, I appreciate the conciliatory tone, and so I’ll respond here, but any further conversation needs to occur privately. We don’t do these things in the public sphere between our ministry platform and individuals, much less anonymous ones. You can message us privately in any of a number of ways (but hopefully not on this Tumblr, where I rarely roam).

As for your concerns, I’ll emphasize two points. First, consider the piece in its fullness. Jess is a guest writer. Jess is sharing an experience and a testimony in progress (just as all of ours are). Jess is explaining a personal point of view. We respect it and believe it will open up conversation. Our site isn’t taking any stance but to show respect for Jess. That’s the context here. And in addition, I think it’s the longest of long shots to think that some person will read this one article, not look up anything further either on our site or anywhere else, decide being transgender is not a sin, and fall away from faith. Life and faith are more complicated than that, which is why you see transformation is those that seem most lost in the course of a life, and those who are most passionate about God eventually leave him. We like to think about flashpoints, but is working in more than just your five minute reading of an article.

Which leads to the second point, which is that you might want to try to see things from our (small) perspective. No matter how “big” we get, however that might be measured, it’s never as big as God. He will use us how he wants to, and has in extraordinary ways when I was far less mature than I am even now, and during times of my great unfaithfulness. And likewise, God is trying to bring all people to him. If I’m right about this post, He can use it to draw some that much nearer. If I’m wrong, it likewise won’t derail his plans. We’re not that great. But he is. And he’s instituted the church and family to glorify him and guide his people; we’re a far third, if that, for this audience. We will only be used as he allows us to be.

We don’t post anything (with the exception of the flurry of first impressions articles each season, perhaps) without thought. We prayerfully approach our work, and revisit how we do things time and time again, including our core beliefs as recently as this week. When we’re right, it’s only by God’s wisdom and grace, and he’ll make things happen. And when we’re wrong, God has a way of still using what’s broken to bring people to him. It is our highest honor and in most seriousness that we approach ministry, and it’s also under his grace without worry, because He loves us all and will guide us away from danger and towards that which brings us to safer, which brings us nearer to him.

Don’t worry so much. Trust that we’re doing everything with best intent and with scripture in mind. Pray for us! And love others fiercely, with the love of Christ, whom we indeed stand up for every day without fear.

#Answered Questions #Answered: TWWK #Anonymous #Christianity

2 notes · View notes

sailorbadger · 3 years

Text

Book Review - 6 modern female-led Robin Hood adaptations

In the past 8 months or so I have read/watched/listened to over 30 different Robin Hood adaptations. Over the summer I found myself reading almost exclusively adaptations that were written by women and centered women in the story one way or another. (I also found out that “lesbian Robin Hood” is a whole genre on its own.) I decided to write short reviews for 6 of these books since I know I have followers that probably share my enjoyment of this particular niche.

This post includes spoiler-free reviews for the following books

Outlaw and Scarlet by Niamh Murphy

Nottingham: The True Story of Robyn Hood by Anna Burke

Hood by Jenny Elder Moke

Marian, Princess Thief by C.K. Brooke

Heart of Sherwood by Edale Lane

The rest of the post will be under the cut since this is quite long.

Despite the fact that I read other books that could technically fit this same category, I decided to focus on these six in my review because these ones are easily accessible to most of my audience (meaning that they are in English and new enough - the oldest one being from 2018 I think - so that you should be able to find them easily).

I tried to keep these reviews relatively short and spoiler-free. That means that describing specific plot points is impossible because in most of these, the basic premise is the typical Robin Hood origin story. I tried to focus on my general feelings about the books and the characters and their relationships.

I won’t be doing any numerical ratings. I know that the order in which I read these impacted on how I felt about them. If I had read them in a different order, I would probably feel differently about some of them. That’s why it’s difficult for me to give any real ratings. The reviews are not in any real order either, apart from my favorite being the last one.

These reviews are also about 75% serious and 25% not serious. When my friend and I started to go through all these different Robin Hood adaptations, we made a bingo card that features tropes/themes/details found in a lot of different versions of the story. I’ll leave quick comments on the reviews on how each of these did, but I won’t go too much into detail on those.

Niamh Murphy: Outlaw & Scarlet

I grouped these two books together because they are the first two parts of a series. My understanding is that the author does plan on eventually releasing more, but since Scarlet was released this year, it might take a while. If a third book does come out, I might read it, but I’m not in a hurry to reread these two.

Outlaw tells the story of how Robyn, the daughter of a baron, ends up becoming an outlaw. If you are familiar with at least a few Robin Hood adaptations, you will know how it goes. There are no big surprises, but I suppose the purpose of this story is to introduce us to the characters and set the scene for the later books. Scarlet continues Robyn’s story and introduces a new character to the story. (I won’t go too much into details on the second book to avoid spoilers, since its plot does not follow familiar beats as much as the first one.)

Besides the books on this list, I have also read/watched/listened to several other Robin Hood adaptations as well, and when it comes to plot, Outlaw lands in the “uninteresting” section. There was nothing new or exciting there, and seeing that I have spent most of the year in a Robin Hood -bubble, I was left wanting more. Scarlet was a slight improvement seeing as Outlaw was mostly a very generic Robin Hood origin story. Together they still feel like this is just the beginning of a longer story, so I hope that if a third book comes out we get into the real action.

Outlaw is marketed as a “lesbian retelling” of the Robin Hood story, but compared to some of the other titles on this list, I was left wanting more. The romance aspect is barely there, so if you’re going to pick these up for Robyn and Marian’s relationship, prepare for slow burn.

The characters didn’t leave a huge impression on me. I do have to say that the Sheriff’s wife was interesting and I wish we had gotten more of her. Other than her, I felt that at times many of the characters could have been from any adaptation.

Overall, there wasn’t anything really wrong with these books, but they just didn’t entertain me as much as the others. I feel that if I had read these before all the other ones on this list, I would have enjoyed them more. Outlaw and Scarlet are a good read for someone who wants a basic Robin Hood story with a lesbian lead. I still think that marketing the first book as a “lesbian retelling” is setting unrealistic expectations for some, but I hope that in the future the series really earns that title.

I completely forgot to fill out a bingo card for these two and at this point I have forgotten many of the details so unfortunately we’ll never know the result. Most of the tropes hit were so general they probably weren’t on our card anyway.

Anna Burke: Nottingham: The True Story of Robyn Hood

Out of all of the books in this list, Anna Burke’s Nottingham is perhaps the most explicit in its queerness. Although the story obviously doesn’t use modern labels, I would say that it includes representation for (at least) lesbian, bi and trans character(s). None of this feels too out-of-place, and instead Nottingham offers a (mostly) historically accurate Robin Hood tale with a queer main cast.

The plot mostly follows your typical Robin Hood -formula: After a hunting accident, Robyn becomes an outlaw, surrounds herself with loyal friends and helps those in need. This aspect of the book doesn’t offer any new ideas or challenge the existing ideas about Robin Hood as a story. However, it focuses more on the characters, so it doesn’t really need anything new. Marian especially has to come to terms with her feelings towards Robyn and women in general. I do have to say though, that the romance between Robyn and Marian happens a little fast - they only meet a few times before falling in love. [Insert joke about lesbians moving too fast here] It didn’t bother me too much, but I do wish there had been a little more buildup.

From this list, I read this book the most recently. It may be that I was just so burned out from reading all these Robin Hood -stories but I didn’t connect with the book that well. I enjoyed it, but I wish there had been more of that fun sense of adventure I look for in these stories.

I would recommend Nottingham to anyone who wants to read a story that manages to be historically accurate and use the Robin Hood mythos to its advantage while not shying away from its portrayal of queerness. Although it did not hold my attention as well as some of the other books, it is still written well and has a good story.

This book didn’t get a bingo unless you interpret “lähentely* which is uncomfortable for the audience” as the sex scene (there is sex in this book but nothing that explicit, I would say high T/low M in Ao3-ratings) being uncomfortable for the reader OR the third person in that scene being uncomfortable. About half of the bingo card was still filled.

*I couldn’t come up with a good translation for this word, it means something along the lines of making moves/coming onto someone/making advances, though for this bingo I use it to generally mean anything flirty/intimate/sexual/etc.

Jenny Elder Moke: Hood

This book was the first one on this list I read. Compared to the other novels, I would say that Hood is the least like your typical Robin Hood story. The book follows Isabelle, Robin and Marian’s daughter, who has to find her father in order to save her mother. The adventure is brand new, though there are still familiar characters and the basic concept of Robin Hood is honored. This is a story about the next generation of outlaws, so if you’re looking for something that focuses on characters from the legends, you may be disappointed.

Speaking of the characters, I loved Little, Patrick and Helena. I could have just read a book where this group of young outlaws has adventures and been satisfied. Unfortunately I didn’t connect well with the main lead, Isabelle, and the love interest, Adam, felt like a very generic hot guy from a YA novel. The romance itself is practically non-existent, and honestly I could have done without it. Seriously, I had completely forgotten about that whole thing until I started writing this review. This story is more about Isabelle’s relationship with her parents, which I like. She also gets to build genuine friendships with the other characters. I just wish the book had been a little longer so that it could have spent more time developing some of these relationships.

Had I read this book when I was a teenager, I most likely would have loved it a lot more. It is YA, and at times it really shows. As far as Robin Hood stories go, I generally enjoy the “outlaws being outlaws in the forest” content the most, and unfortunately this featured surprisingly little of it. It still offered its own take on what could happen after the legends everyone knows, even if it doesn’t add much to the legends themselves.

It is important that I mention here that if Allan has a child in an adaptation, this child must be named either Allan jr. or Alana. This book fulfills this basic need for me and I am satisfied. It also checked most of the boxes on the bingo, and I almost filled the whole sheet. So somehow, despite not really following the typical Robin Hood formula, Hood managed to include all the important tropes.

If you are a teenager who enjoys Robin Hood -stories, I would definitely recommend this book. It’s not the best YA novel out there, but it’s a good standalone story. I think that for adults, this can be a good read if you are a fan of Robin Hood -stories and/or enjoy this type of YA anyway. I wasn’t sure what type of book this was when I started reading, but if you just prepare yourself for a fun adventure aimed at young teens, you can enjoy this. It’s very quick to read, I think I read it in one day.

Also, I must quote a review I saw on Storygraph (imagine this is in all caps) : “hjsxhfjsdksfjk???????????? Patrick best character no cap”

C. K. Brooke: Marian, Princess Thief

In Marian, Princess Thief, Robin Hood doesn’t exist at all. Instead the story follows Marian, who in this version is a princess, who escaped an assassination attempt and is now living in the forest as an outlaw with six other women - the genderbent versions of the Merry Men. Eventually there is a romance in this book as well, but the biggest force carrying through the book is the friendship between the women. If I had to describe the novel in just one word, I would say it’s lovable. If I had to describe it in two, I would say it’s dissappointingly heterosexual.

Maybe the fact that I found a genre that is basically “lesbian Robin Hood” has ruined me, but how can you write a story that features seven women living in the forest as outlaws, and not one of them is queer? This is entirely a thing that bothers me personally, and the book doesn’t need queer representation to be good, but there is no reason to not include it. Headcanons can fortunately go a long way, but I’m just saying that you could easily keep everything about Scarlett’s backstory the same except make her a lesbian. (In fact, I’m 98% joking when I say that her not being a lesbian is a homophobic choice. I will elaborate on this if you ask me but I won’t go too much into it here because I would have to explain things about other adaptations as well.)

As for the straight romance, I can’t say that I was feeling it. I could see the points where I was supposed to feel something, so maybe it’s just the fact that I’m aspec myself, but I didn’t care that much about it. Still, it was refreshing to see a story where the romance doesn’t overshadow the friendships between the women, and instead they are valued just as much (if not more) as the romantic relationship. The story doesn’t dig too deeply into the characters, but I still loved all the women. (I don’t care about the male lead. But I know others who would.)

I think the biggest “problem” this book has (apart from not making Scarlett a lesbian) is that the ending feels just a little bit rushed compared to the rest of the novel. I still think that the novel achieves everything it tries to do, but I could have used one more chapter to flesh out the climax.

The bingo card wasn’t even close to being full, but you know what, Marian, Princess Thief is good enough as it is and doesn’t need to follow all the familiar tropes. Still, how hard is it to include a bird?

This was a very quick read, in fact I basically just read it all in one go. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who wants to read something lighthearted and, like me, is often disappointed by the lack of women in Robin Hood stories.

To end this, I will leave you with a translated quote from my WhatsApp commentary: “What is it that in all these Robin Hood stories these old dudes are all after these young maidens like get yourself a hot milf and leave the kids alone”

Edale Lane: Heart of Sherwood

Heart of Sherwood is my favorite Robin Hood -novel that I have read so far. It has just about everything I could want: good characters, a fun sense of adventure, political scheming, great relationships (both romantic and platonic) and a good ending. I was less than two chapters into this book when I knew that this would be a difficult one to top.

The premise of this book is very similar to Burke’s Nottingham: both follow the story of Robyn becoming an outlaw, making friends with the other Merry (Wo)Men and developing a relationship with Marian. I don’t want to compare these two stories too much, but I did prefer the more lighthearted tone of Heart of Sherwood. This was also the first book where I was actually invested in the romance. Normally in pretty much all Robin Hood adaptations, the relationship between Robin and Marian doesn’t interest me greatly; I don’t mind it, but it’s not something I have too many personal feelings about. However, only a few chapters into Heart of Sherwood I thought: “If these two don’t get a happy ending I’m going to jump out of the window.” (I won’t spoil where this threat ended up going.)

One thing I appreciate about the romance in this one is that Robyn and Marian already know each other, so I didn’t have to deal with a romance that develops too fast. The novel also had other things to offer besides being a “lesbian Robin Hood” story, so I didn’t feel like I had to enjoy the romance to enjoy the whole story. I was very invested the whole way through, and out of all the books I’ve reviewed here, this one made me the most emotional.

As a fan of the BBC show, I do have to say that this novel had a very similar vibe; there was a good balance of action and humor. Maybe that was a part of why I enjoyed this so much. I was also able to predict exactly how certain things would end up. I kind of wish I would have been more surprised.

This novel is well paced, it is exactly the right length for the story it’s telling and overall I can’t really find things to complain about. If I wasn’t petty, I would give this book full five stars, but because I am petty, for very personal reasons I’m giving it 4,99999… stars. As for the bingo, this one filled most of the sheet.

I’ll end this review with this random line I had shared on WhatsApp for some reason: ""Does this mean I am dead?" Alan asked in jest. - - - "Nay; same annoying jester, alive as ever, and likely wanting for a pint about now."”

Conclusion

Writing these reviews was surprisingly difficult because most of the stories follow the same formula, so commenting on anything that moves away from said formula could be considered a spoiler. Hopefully if you read this far you were still interested enough in at least one of these books and feel inspired to read them. I would happily recommend any of them, and if you want to know my more detailed thoughts on them, feel free to message me. The same applies to all the adaptations I’ve gone through. I have Thoughts that I’m dying to share.

#robin hood #my post #I have no idea how to tag this???#my own tag for the bbc robin hood is pretty much my general rh tag but I don't want to put this in the public tag since this technically has #nothing to do with it

3 notes · View notes

canyouhearthelight · 4 years

Text

The Miys, Ch. 102

Okay, trying to queue this again after it apparently got eaten along with chapter 101.

Y’all pray for me to whatever higher powers you believe in or can make up on the spot. Thanks.

Thanks for this chapter goes to the fabulous anon who sent me an ask about Jedis. I really, really hope you are seeing this chapter and I hope you like it. I also want to thank @baelpenrose as my resident Star Wars expert, who checked, double checked, and triple checked my writing to make sure everything was as entertaining/accurate as possible.

Before you all cringe at some comments Sophia makes, she is deliberately downplaying her knowledge of Star Wars in an attempt to see if she can give some of the other characters a twitchy eye.

After an extraordinarily bizarre situation regarding my former foe and who I assumed was his partner, I was profoundly relieved to find myself in a very boring, very normal situation a couple of weeks later. Even the regular family dinner was pretty normal: grilled cheese on a very good sourdough, with a tomato soup so garlicky that even I had no objections to it. I made a point to puree it, so Derek was very happy with the texture and I was happy with the flavor. Arthur shot me odd looks once in a while, but it was a happy, calm dinner.

And things were going… so well… I thought as Maverick dragged everyone into his quiet argument with Sam.

“Sam,” He stated emphatically as he dunked his sandwich and ripped a tomato-soaked piece from it. “We all want it to be real but… humans don’t exist outside of Earth and the Ark.”

“Yoda is not human,” Sam insisted loudly, grinning the entire time.

I choked on my soup. “Yoda? You two have been arguing Star Wars this whole time?”

“Maverick insists they are not real,” Sam enunciated carefully. When he got excited about a topic he loved, he had a tendency to rush everything and drop syllables, making his words nearly impossible to understand.

“They meaning Jedi?” Arthur asked, eyeballing the pile of sandwiches on the table. Finally he snagged his third half-sandwich and dunked it without ceremony. “As much as I wish they were real, I have my doubts.”

So did I. “Human beings who can use telepathy, telekinesis, and distance-empathy?” I scrunched my nose. “I think that’s a bit far-fetched.”

“But extraterrestrials exist,” Sam pointed out.

Conor nodded. “They do, obviously. Otherwise, Noah would be a bloody big figment of our imagination.” Shaking his head, he smiled. “If we didn’t make Santa real as children, I doubt we could make up someone like Noah, right?”

Sam only got more serious. “I was always taught that aliens don’t exist. My teachers told me that the only life off of Earth were bacteria. But, even if Else is bacteria, Noah isn’t. So, maybe other things we thought were pretend are real.”

The table was silent for a moment, shattered only by Derek dusting bread crumbs from his hands as ceremoniously and loudly as humanly possible. “Sam has a point,” he signed. “Fabricators exist, aliens exist.. Hell, telepathy exists - “

“Not telepathy,” Miys interjected from above.

“Neuro-pheremonal communication exists,” Derek finger-spelled, making a point of how cumbersome the term was in a way none of the rest of us really could. Seven minutes later, he took a slurp of soup and continued. “Unicorns exist, even if they are chubby. Why not Jedi?”

I opened my mouth to refute, then realized I couldn’t: we had the genetic code for both narwhals and rhinoceros in the gene bank. Good effing luck convincing anyone unicorns don’t exist, I guess. Instead, I grasped on my one last leg of logic. “But humans, like Luke Starkiller and Obi-whatsit Kenoshi don’t actually exist.”

Maverick looked absolutely revolted by something, which confused me. He liked tomato soup, and actually chose the cheese for the sandwiches himself. “Sophia. Have you even seen those movies?” He was absolutely aghast as he posed his question, and I suddenly understood what he was revolted by.

“Of course I did,” I sighed, rolling my eyes. “In college, in Intro to Adolescent Literature.”

Soup abruptly coated everything on the table as both Arthur and Conor spat violently at my clarification. Arthur scrubbed his chin the fastest, so had the honor of levelling his incredulity at me. “Sophia Reid. Do you mean to tell me that you have only seen Star Wars ONE TIME?”

I shook my head, confused. “No. I’ve seen all three.”

“ELEVEN,” Sam corrected me loudly. “There are eleven movies.”

“Please, please tell me you at least saw Rogue One,” Maverick begged. “You may not have known it was a Star Wars movie?”

“Is that the one where the robot hits the guy and says he has another fresh one?” I asked carefully.

Maverick nodded. Arthur, however, looked like he was about to start breathing fire. “I am going to force you to consume every bit of Star Wars media worth consuming if I have to get Charly and Derek to program the audio versions to play in every room you enter.”

“I can do that,” Derek signed, unhelpfully.

Arthur just nodded. “See? I can make this happen. Your quarters will feel like Hoth, all digital communications will sound like C-3PO, and many Bothans will die before your datapad functions.”

Alarmingly, Miys interjected. “Wisdom, Bothans are an endangered species. Please do not encourage Educator Farro to commit atrocities.”

I was still gasping in confusion when Arthur recovered from his choking. “Oh shit. Bothans are real? They were a very back-stabby race of dog-type people who fought against fascists in Terran media. I thought, at least. I wouldn’t actually kill a real one… I am far more high functioning of a sociopath than that, thank you.”

“Noah,” I choked out. “Are you serious? Are Bothans real?”

“Affirmative,” they responded, setting off an entirely new round of choking and sputtering. I would need to have something done about my floors if this kept up. “And while they do resemble Terran canines on a very superficial level, they are genetically more closely related to a Terran fern.”

Arthur looked like his heart had been ripped out of his chest. “That is the least back-stabbing and least threatening plant I can possibly think of.”

Conor, not to be outdone, was still curious. “Boston or Fiddlehead?”

“Asparagus fern, Human Conor,” was the reply that set off a thousand coughs.

Sam recovered first. “That does not mean Jedi don’t exist,” he insisted.

“Of course Jedi exist,” Miys answered in a tone that was as close to being confused as I had ever heard.

Almost immediately, Arthur, Maverick, and Sam started cheering and high-fiving. Conor looked confused, while I spat my soup out again.

“WHAT?” I choked out between attempts at keeping tomatoes and garlic out of my lungs.

“They are as real as any member of any other Terran religion.”

Silence ruled the room for a split second, broken first by Arthur throwing his fork in the air behind him. Like a signal, it led to Sam and Maverick dropping their head to their forearms with a groan.

I managed to recover enough to slide my food away, lest I risk death over an absurd conversation. “Are there anything like Jedi in the known galaxy?” I asked, receiving a thumbs up from Arthur, who was still trying not to choke on his soup.

“Only in small measures.”

That seemed like the magic phrase to snap Arthur out of whatever coughing fit he was having. “Are there any species in the galaxy that have Jedi abilities?”

“You will need to be more specific.”

Conor, laughter out of his system, joined gamely. “Is there anything that can move physical objects without touching them directly?” he started.

“Several species can,” Miys conceded. “Those who only experience what you consider ‘sight’ as changes in air currents can, in fifty-four percent of cases so far, also change the air currents in a sufficient way as to move physical objects.”

“Wait,” I interrupted. “They can stare at something hard enough to move it?”

“Wisdom, if I experienced physical pain, I am certain that your oversimplification just now would have caused such a sensation.”

Without rebutting, I waved for Miys to continue and ignored the laughter caused by the comment.

“Similarly, there are species more limited than Hujylsogox, who can perceive the physical world strictly through sound,” they continued. “In such cases, it is not uncommon for these species to also alter their surroundings by vibrating physical objects at a frequency that causes them to move within physical space.” A brief pause before, “And no, Wisdom, that does not mean they scream at objects until such objects move. I would also like to point out, Educator Farro, that the same species can cause internal organs to vibrate as a sufficient frequency as to cut off air flow.”

“Force choke is real,” Arthur whisper-shouted, mildly horrified. Clearing his throat, he spoke more clearly for his next question. “What about ‘there is a disturbance in the Force, as if many voices cried out’ etc?”

Miys buzzed thoughtfully for a moment before replying more clearly. “There are number of species who are able to perceive and interpret with great accuracy any changes in interstellar radiation, no matter how small. Should, say, a star go nova or collapse into a black hole, they are very reliable in providing information to cartographers. Should such a species state with certainty that a planet ceased to exist, I would need to see the planet from orbit in order to disbelieve them.”

Maverick let loose a low whistle, but it was Sam who spoke next. “But what about living beings, on an individual level. I know you can do that, but can any other species?”

“It is, perhaps, the most common trait in the known galaxy,” Miys admitted. “Even humans can do this, to a degree, although you tend to ignore it against all logic.”

“Okay. What about force lightning, though?”

I actually started to respond to that, having an answer finally, but Miys beat me to the draw. “Species who communicate through electrical currents are more numerous in the galaxy than those who can see. In the same way, they need to be able to manipulate such currents. Their young are frequently sequestered on their home worlds in order to prevent electrocution of species whose neural organs can be disrupted by uncontrolled communication. The same species are capable of using those same currents to increase their own synaptic response and reflexes.”

I almost wanted to laugh at Maverick’s face. He looked frustrated and ashamed in a way that I could not figure out. Maybe because these abilities existed, but not in humans? Regardless, his tone was frustrated when he asked his next question. “What about force ghosts? Please tell me those are real?”

“Very much so,” Miys confirmed. “Though likely not in the way you think. What you consider ‘Force Ghosts’ are, in the galaxy as it is, the result of technological advancement combined with spiritual beliefs.” A few groans surrounded the table, but Maverick perked up slightly. “Many species believe, as a result of their evolution, that their predecessors’ life energy persists after death. In these cultures, it is so common as to be unremarkable for a person to have a synaptic recording chip installed shortly after birth, to record their entire lives. They, then, pass their chip on to their successor in position.” Wait a minute… I thought, but Miys continued before I could put everything together. “In such circumstances, many species’s neural organs will manifest a… personality, separate from the original, in order to preserve mental stability. Such manifestations are very similar to what Terran media considers a ‘Force ghost’.”

“Hang on,” I ventured, holding my hand up emphatically to cut off any other questions from the table. “That. Stop there.” Taking a deep breath, I thought back through everything I had read in the past. “I thought the idea of deliberately having multiple, distinct identities was… a story, honestly.”

“Even in your own past, it was discovered that the human brain can host two distinct personalities with no difficulty, Wisdom,” Miys admonished. “These species, however, are uniquely adapted so that, along with the memory implant, they suffer no actual combination or confusion of experiences. What their ancestor experienced is their ancestor’s memory, and what the person experiences is the person's memory. A person cannot overwrite an ancestral core. Only speak to it.”

“Can humans do that?” Sam asked, dazed in wonder at this new revelation.

“Not yet,” Miys responded. “But I do insist on the word ‘yet’, as you were never meant to do many of the things you do now.”

<< Prev Masterlist Next >>

#the miys #humans are space orcs #humans are weird #found family #original writing #earth is space australia #hfy #humans are awesome #aliens #apocalypse #science fiction #sci fi #original sci fi #original science fiction #my writing

65 notes · View notes

ms-m-astrologer · 4 years

Text

Transiting Mars stations retrograde

Timeline (current events in bold)

Saturday, July 25, 2020, 14:10 UT - transiting Mars enters retrograde zone, 15:14 Aries

Wednesday, September 9, 2020, 22:22 UT - transiting Mars stations retrograde, 28:08 Aries

Saturday, November 14, 2020, 00:36 UT - transiting Mars stations direct, 15:14 Aries

Saturday, January 2, 2021, 19:10 UT - transiting Mars exits retrograde zone, 28:08 Aries

Ugh. Here we go. First, a refresher from Martin Bulgerin (www dot biopscinst dot com) regarding Mars retrograde:

During Mars retrograde periods, we get to experience how we sabotage our own actions, preventing us from achieving what we desire to do. The ability to express your will-power seems thwarted. The key here is to discover what is keeping you from effective action and changing it. This inner nemesis may be an over active temper, an impatience with planning when you can rush into activity, or simply a lack of awareness that causes you to ignore useful clues. This is not a good time to initiate new projects that require perseverence, nor is it easy to work with others during this cycle.

Ms M is grumbling over “what is keeping (her) from effective action and changing it” - she thinks it’s called, “a lack of funds.” However, a look at her own natal Mars placement - Aries/5th House - shows that she’s way, way too fond of having her own way all the time. She isn’t happy when people interrupt her progress from point A to point B; and she doesn’t like being delayed between those points, either. As Mars backtracks, she’s going to find plenty of opportunities to see how that attitude of “get outta my way NOW OR ELSE” is keeping her from doing what she wants to do (and from doing what she knows is right).

During the actual retrograde portion of a Retrograde Zone, we get clarification on issues - so expect some unpleasant realities which have to be bravely faced, some admitting that we were wrong, etc.

It seemed to me, writing this up, that there’s a definite beginning, middle, and end to the fun and games. September gets us off to a slow start - although it may not feel that way, given the nature of the aspects involved. October, the middle, is when the bulk of the “difficult” aspects happen. And with November we again seem to taper off, although (again) it may not feel that way.

(Under “Keep Reading” you’ll find all the aspects Mars is going to make. Not everybody wants to read, or understand, all that crap. For those who do....)

Monday, September 14, 06:28 UT - Juno/Libra opposes Mars Rx/Aries, 28:00

Second of three. This almost looks like a break-up to me. There’s definitely a lack of cooperation. If you only want your own way all the time, why should other people help you with that? There’s a Leo Moon involved, too, applying a trine to Mars and a sextile to Juno - people’s pride is involved, and although we may find an outlet in playfulness and drama, the story isn’t quite over yet. The third/final opposition doesn’t happen until mid-April 2021, with Mars/Gemini and Juno Rx/Sagittarius. That sounds like a break-up, too. Do keep some sense of the long-term.

Placements affected lie between 27:00 and 29:00 of the cardinal signs Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn; and between 12:00 and 14:00 of the mutable signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces.

Saturday, September 19, 21:55 UT - Sun/Virgo inconjunct Mars Rx/Aries, 27:24

If you have an impatient Mars, like mine, then this is the day you’re probably thinking “Okay, lesson learned, I’ll adjust, can I get on with it now please?” Nope.

Placements affected lie between 26:24 and 28:24 of all signs.

Thursday, September 24, 10:53 UT - Mercury/Libra opposite Mars Rx/Aries, 26:36

Less of a break-up than an argument. Mercury has just entered its own pre-retrograde shadow, when we get this far. Someone is definitely giving us something to mentally chew on, all right. It isn’t good to be a Libra pushover, but it isn’t good to be an Aries bully either. Where’s that happy medium?

Placements affected lie between 25:36 and 27:36 of the cardinal signs Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn; and between 10:36 and 12:36 of the mutable signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces.

Tuesday, September 29, 01:01 UT - Venus/Leo trine Mars Rx/Aries, 25:33

Very sexy energy all right - but note that Mars will also square Saturn on the same day! And Saturn has just stationed direct, too! Enjoy whatever this brings you, but don’t count on it lasting very long.

Placements affected lie between 24:33 and 26:33 of the yang signs Aries, Gemini, Leo, Libra, Sagittarius, and Aquarius.

Tuesday, September 29, 21:50 UT - Saturn/Capricorn square Mars Rx/Aries, 25:20

Second of three. As I said, Saturn will have just stationed direct a mere 16+ hours before. (Interesting how many other planets’ Rx cycles are caught up with Mars’.) This is practically guaranteed to bring us some clarity about our Mars Rx situation, particularly as it relates to how we set ourselves up for failure by being hard-headed and impatient. Remember to keep life at those basic Maslow levels - food, water, shelter, warmth - for a while. (The third/final square happens in January 2021, when each planet will have moved on to the next sign, Mars to Taurus and Saturn to Aquarius.)

Placements affected lie between 24:20 and 26:20 of the cardinal signs Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn; and between 9:20 and 11:20 of the mutable signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces.

Sunday, October 4, 05:51 UT - Eris Rx/Aries conjunct Mars Rx/Aries, 24:07

Second of three. Being a human is so hard. Our society tells us “be nice” and then throws the most outrageously cruel bullshit at us. There is nothing wrong with being angry, as long as you’re directing it at the true culprits, and are using the anger to take constructive action. (The third/final conjunction happens on December 22, 2020.)

Placements affected lie between 23:07 and 25:07 of all signs; and between 8:07 and 10:07 of the mutable signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces.

Tuesday, October 6, 00:57 UT - Vesta/Leo trine Mars Rx/Aries, 23:35; Tuesday, October 6, 12:50 UT - North Node/Gemini sextile Mars Rx/Aries, South Node/Sagittarius trine Mars/Aries, 23:26

This looks like a nice opportunity to try and realign ourselves! The Moon will be in Gemini, too, applying toward that North Node. If we’re looking for a good cause, this is the perfect set up. Remember that with the North Node in Gemini we’re trying to be more Gemini-like. For Mars, that might translate into being more flexible, more clever, and just fighting smarter.

Placements affected lie between 22:26 and 24:35 of the yang signs Aries, Gemini, Leo, Libra, Sagittarius, and Aquarius.

Friday, October 9, 07:37 UT - Venus 7:33 Virgo sesquare Mars Rx 22:33 Aries; Friday, October 9, 13:09 UT - Pluto/Capricorn square Mars Rx/Aries, 22:29

If you’re in a solid relationship, this could translate into sexytime. Otherwise, well, expect in your relationships criticism masked as hostility, or hostility masked as criticism I guess. The Moon will not be helping matters out, as she’s in Cancer and making this into a temporary t-square - Moon/Cancer opposed Pluto/Cap, Mars/Aries squaring both ends - with Venus/Virgo nagging away. Not a good day for romance, at all. (The third/final Mars-Pluto square happens December 23. Why yes, that’s the day after the final Mars-Eris conjunction.)

Placements affected lie between 21:29 and 23:33 of the cardinal signs Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn; and between 6:29 and 8:33 of the mutable signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces.

Tuesday, October 13, 23:26 UT - Sun/Libra opposite Mars Rx/Aries, 21:05

This in a way is the whole crux of the matter. It’s the crisis point of the ongoing Sun-Mars relationship, beginning from their last conjunction (September 2, 2019, 9:44 Virgo). Mars is sometimes described as “the Sun’s right-hand man,” going out and actually achieving all the things the Sun plans. Perhaps today we’ll become aware of how far off track/task we’ve fallen. (This is also the day Mercury stations retrograde. As I heard at a meeting recently, “2020 - the gift that keeps on giving.”)

Placements affected lie between 20:05 and 22:05 of the signs Aries, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Libra, Sagittarius, Capricorn, and Aquarius; and between 5:05 and 7:05 of the mutable signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces.

Monday, October 19, 05:38 UT - Jupiter/Capricorn square Mars Rx/Aries, 19:26; Monday, October 19, 07:03 UT - Venus/Virgo inconjunct Mars Rx/Aries, 19:25

Venus is really sticking her oar in to so many of these aspects! She tried to ease matters with Saturn, but she critiqued and nagged Pluto - and now she’s teaming up with Jupiter to let Mars know how fucked u[ he truly is. “Here, dude - this is how it’s done.” The square to Jupiter is the second of three for Mars, and as with the other three-peats, this second pass should give us a little clarity about the situation. If we’ve bitten off more than we can chew, this is the day we spit out the mess. (The third/final Mars-Jupiter square occurs on January 21, 2021, when Mars is in Taurus and Jupiter in Aquarius. And yes, that’s the day after the US Inauguration Day.)

Placements affected lie between 18:25 and 20:26 of all signs; and between 3:26 and 5:26 of the mutable signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces.

Thursday, October 22, 09:10 UT - Neptune Rx/Pisces semi-sextile Mars Rx/Pisces, 18:32

The first semi-sextile brought news of a lawsuit to dissolve (Neptune!) the US National Rifle Association (Mars!), so I have very high hopes for this day. Otherwise, this can be a calming influence for Mars, perhaps reminding him of Mars/Pisces and learning how to fight by not fighting. Nonviolent resistance!

Placements affected lie between 17:32 and 19:32 of all signs.

Saturday, October 24, 04:35 UT - Pallas Athene/Capricorn square Mars Rx/Aries, 18:03

Second of three. This is like Captain Pallas Athene demonstrating to Private Mars all the myriad ways he’s screwed up. We can be strong, bold fighters, but if we’re stupid fighters there isn’t a lot of hope for us. Mars may finally clue in, under this influence. (The third/final square between Mars and Pallas Athene occurs on February 26, 2021, with Mars in Taurus and Pallas Athene in Aquarius.)

Placements affected lie between 17:03 and 19:03 of the cardinal signs Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn; and between 2:03 and 4:03 of the mutable signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces.

Wednesday, October 28, 00:07 UT - Vesta 2:08 Virgo sesquare Mars Rx 17:08 Aries

This may indicate some health issues - Mars being stamina and physique, Vesta/Virgo being health. A sesquare isn’t a major deal, but it can be serious enough to sideline us for a while. We may also be thinking wistfully (for Mars) about all the things we’d be able to do, if only we were healthier and stronger.

Placements affected lie between 16:08 and 18:08 of the cardinal signs Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn; and between 1:08 and 3:08 of the mutable signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces.

Friday, November 6, 03:40 UT - Juno/Scorpio inconjunct Mars Rx/Aries, 15:38; Saturday, November 7, 11:41 UT - Sun/Scorpio inconjunct Mars Rx/Aries, 15:31

As a US citizen it’s impossible not to relate everything happening in November to our all-important presidential election. Regardless of who wins, the other side is going to be royally pissed off. Both sides are implacable. Ms M would like to point out that she herself wants nothing to do with racists - and racism is a key component of Dolt 45’s fan base. Well, that, and making billionaires even wealthier. As puzzled as she is by their deplorable behavior, she is aware that they can’t believe how stupid she is, either. This isn’t going to be easy, or fun.

Placements affected lie between 15:14 and 16:38 of all signs.

Monday, November 9, 16:08 UT - Venus/Libra opposite Mars Rx/Aries, 15:21

The final major aspect of Mars retrograde, with the two planets dignified and facing each other down. What we’re supposed to be doing with them, is balancing them out. We need to combine Aries passion with Libra harmony; Aries bravery with Libra diplomacy; Aries honesty with Libra tact.These aren’t two energies that you bring out, and lock up, as the mood strikes you - these co-exist every day, and it’s our job to learn to walk their tightrope.

Placements affected lie between 15:14 and 16:21 of the signs Aries, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Libra, Sagittarius, Capricorn, and Aquarius; and between 0:14 and 1:21 of the mutable signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces.

Thursday, November 12, 00:30 UT - Ceres 0:16 Pisces semi-square Mars Rx 15:16 Aries

Second of three. Mars is pretty much motionless (Ms M got a 10 of Swords image right then) at this point, while Ceres is still in her post-Rx shadow for a few more weeks. All the lessons tie together - none of these energies operates in a vacuum, however much they would like to. This is either the point where we admit we need to act differently, and resolve the issues that were clarified for us - or we stay impaled on the ground. (The third/final semi-square happens on December 28.)

Placements affected lie between 15:14 and 16:16 of the cardinal signs Aries, Cancer, Libra, and Capricorn; and between 0:14 and 1:16 of the mutable signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces.

#Astrology #Transiting Mars stations retrograde #Ms M astrologer

38 notes · View notes

ashtrayfloors · 3 years

Text

(CW for discussion of pregnancy and abortion)

I was having really bad career feels, again. Like I’ve hit a plateau in my success, haven’t done enough in the past year, don’t know where to go from here, blah blah blah. I’m feeling better about it as of yesterday afternoon, because a. I took a look back at this past year and realized I’ve done more than I’d thought, and b. I checked a few things off my to-do list. One being, I sent the pitch for the nonfiction book off, and I have a very good feeling about that. I’m visualizing that the editors will accept it. I’ve decided I will not be pitching the poetry book at this juncture, because it’s just not ready, and at first that was one of the things I was getting down on myself for. But I’ve learned from experience that if I rush something just to send it in, it will either not get accepted because it’s subpar, or it will get accepted but won’t be what I want it to be.

Really, the main things I’ve been “behind” on over the past year have been sending out submissions, and self-promotion. But I’m trying to be gentle with myself, to remind myself that I did the best I could. Especially considering the goddamn pandemic, and especially right now when I’ve got so much other stuff on my mind.

Namely, the pregnancy and abortion. I’m having such mixed emotions about it. When I made the call for the appointment, I felt fine, but unfortunately my appointment isn’t until a week from today, so I have too much time to second-guess myself. It’s not even that I’m really second-guessing, it’s... I know this thing growing inside me isn’t a baby yet. I don’t believe there’s a soul there, even; I don’t think the soul comes in until later. But it’s a potential baby, a potential soul, and terminating this will really mean that I will never have another baby.

Before this happened, I’d made my peace with the baby-having part of my life being over. P. and I agreed a long time ago that we were going to have two births and be done—because twins run in both sides of my family, and we both had this fear that if we tried to have a third kid, we’d end up with four. And I felt like the two kids I have are the kids I’m meant to have, and my life/our family didn’t feel incomplete in any way. It still doesn’t feel incomplete, it’s just…

I keep trying to remind myself of all the reasons why terminating this pregnancy is the right decision. I keep telling myself: “There’s a pandemic & pregnant people are in a high-risk group for complications, the house is too small & who knows when you’ll be able to move into a bigger one, often you can barely handle the two kids you do have, you’re just finally getting your finances in order and having another kid would ruin that, P. is nearly 51 and you’re not that far from 40—do you really want to be old parents?, what about your career?—a baby would take up even more of your nonexistent time…” Etc., etc. And much of the time those reasons are sufficient and I, once again, feel at peace with my decision. But then I’ll watch D. and C. playing hide and seek together. Or C. will be in the kitchen with me, helping me make soup, dancing to a playlist I made and saying: “This is my favorite song! Oh, this is my favorite song, too!” about Modest Mouse, and then The Raincoats, and then Slapstick. Or I’ll be helping D. research igneous rocks, and both of us get really nerdy about it. And I’ll think: “We could make room in the house. I have the room in my heart.” And because I’m all hormonal and emotional about everything right now, I’ll start weeping.

It doesn’t help that my body is already going through some of the early stages of pregnancy. I’m hungry all the time but I get heartburn no matter what I eat, I’m constantly exhausted (like, physically exhausted—it’s like there’s cotton in my blood) but I can’t sleep at night, the taste of alcohol grosses me out, of course there’s the weepiness and sore breasts and the occasional cramping as my uterus expands. All this stuff seems to be happening even earlier than it did during past pregnancies, maybe because it’s like: “Oh, I’ve done this many times before, I know what to do! I will make a nice house for the baby!” And it doesn’t matter how many times I tell it there isn’t going to be a baby, it’s still trying to build a nice house. Also, none of my bras or pants fit right now. It sucks but I refuse to dig out my old maternity clothes because that would make me feel like I was really going to have a baby and I would just get too sad.

Please, please, no one tell me that it sounds like I really want to go through with this pregnancy. I can’t go through with it—all the reasons I keep giving myself why this is the best decision aren’t even the real, main reason. The reason this is my only option? After I had C., my OBGYN told me that there’s a good chance that if I got pregnant again I wouldn’t be able to carry the baby to term and it would endanger my life, too. So, no, I’m not going to try and have another baby only to ultimately lose the baby anyway, and put myself at risk of dying, too. And I don’t even actually want to go through with this pregnancy, even barring the above, I just have complicated feelings because this is a hard situation. Too many people want to make abortion this black-and-white issue where you either get an abortion and feel nothing but relief, or you’re secretly not pro-choice or something. Well, for one thing, you can be pro-choice and choose not to have an abortion, because uh, that’s your choice. But also, it’s fucking complex. I am relieved this choice is mine to make. I am sad that I have to make this choice.

And I’m flashing back to 2004, of course, and despite my sadness I am so glad my situation is not like it was then. So glad I have a supportive partner, and am not totally broke, and so, so glad that this time I have the option to have a medical abortion rather than a surgical one. Back then, I was so terrified of telling the would-be father (because, no matter how strongly I felt for him, somewhere deep down I knew he wouldn’t handle it well); I was so terrified of even having to make a decision. So I just continued drinking and drugging to excess—despite the fact that my body tried to reject it and I got violently ill nearly every night—hoping that I could induce a miscarriage. When it reached the point where I had to make a decision or it would be too late, I finally told him, and his response was: “Oh. What’re you gonna do about it?” So I emptied my savings account, the last little bit of royalties I had left from the books I’d published as a teenager, and made my appointment. And I didn’t even tell my roommate what was really going on, even though she was supposedly my bestie, too. I just didn’t know how to tell anyone until after the fact. I felt like I had to go through it alone. So I did it, alone, and at night, alone, I cried myself to sleep. For weeks. And I prayed to Mary. And I drank. I got through it, and came out stronger for it, but I’m glad I don’t have to go through that again.

P. is being incredibly supportive. He told me right away that we’re in this together, and he’d support me in whatever decision I made, though he did say he’d be worried about my safety if I decided to go through with the pregnancy. When I told him that’s exactly why I can’t go through with the pregnancy, he agreed that I’m making the right choice. But he still understands why I’m sad. He’s been hugging me a lot, making me tea, it helps. And we’ve also discussed him getting a vasectomy as soon as possible, so I never have to worry about this kind of thing again, and he’s 100% on board.

10 notes · View notes