#‘and is still working some things out in regards to it’

[barcaatthemoon]

your best girl || alexia putellas x reader ||

You comfort Alexia when she returns after the Olympics.

18+

Everybody had a job. You had nearly forgotten that with the craziness of the Olympics. Alexia worked hard to be the best captain for her country that she could. There was only so much that her on-pitch presence could do. Their issue was at the coach's level, and the team suffered because of that. Alexia had only come back to you a couple days early after being knocked away from the medals, and that was where your job started.

It was always difficult gauging the amount of space to give Alexia. You understood how devastating a blow it was, having lost the chance for a medal at your first Olympics. Back then, you had wished that someone would have helped you pick up the pieces of yourself, but instead, you tried to brave it all on your own. Alexia wasn't like you, and that was where you apprehension about talking to her came in.

The thought of smothering Alexia and pushing her away haunted you constantly. You needed to do something to show her that you were there for her that wasn't over the top of dramatic. And so, you dropped as many little hints that you were just waiting for her to come to you. You thought for a moment that you'd end up driving yourself mad waiting for Alexia, but the silence and tension in the apartment only lasted for a few days at most.

"What is all of this?" Alexia asked as she stood behind your desk chair. You tried to turn, but Alexia was holding you forward. You could feel her lean down a bit, reading over your analysis of the games for work. "You've been busy."

"Never too busy for you though," you told her. Alexia dropped her hands from your chair, finally allowing for you to turn and face her. "I'm glad to see you up and around a bit."

"The bed felt a little cold, and I know that it's not really a big thing, but I was hoping that you had some time to join me," Alexia said. You nodded, quickly saving the small additions you had made to your analysis paper before shutting your computer down and following Alexia into the bedroom.

It looked like she had been cleaning a bit before she came to get you. The nest of blankets that Alexia had created to curl up and wallow in was now dismantled. She had tidied up her laundry from the floor and made the bed, which you knew were big steps. Aside from that, you didn't let the candles on the bedside table or the songs from your R&B sex playlist playing.

"How exactly am I helping you warm up the bed?" you asked teasingly. Alexia played it innocent as she sat back on the bed. She patted the spot next to you, and you all but rushed over to join her. Sex hadn't been on the table for you mentally when Alexia got home, but you were a bit relieved to not be waiting weeks like the last big loss Alexia had faced.

You didn't understand how someone so amazing could get down on themselves so easily. Alexia was under immense pressure from fans, but it was nothing compared to what she put herself through. You felt guilty learning from those around Alexia that it only got worse when you came in the picture. In your eyes, you were washed up and spat out by the game, but Alexia held you in the regard that some had during your prime.

"I did have a couple of things in mind. I think that I need a little reminder of who I am." Alexia ducked her head down until her face was tucked into the crook of your neck. She was being shy, like she was ashamed of really asking for what you wanted. Still, you completely understood wht she needed. It wasn't exactly what had become your normal, but you were still definitely up to reminding Alexia that she didn't have to win everything in order for you to love and cherish her.

"I get that you need this for what happened in Paris, but forget about football and the Olympics completely. Right now it's just the two of us. I am just me, and you are just you." Alexia struggled to take your words to heart at first, but that was expected. You were used to this little speedbump, but it was the most important part of everything in your eyes. "You love me despite the fact that I haven't worn a jersey of my own in three years. I'll love you even if you never put another Spain or Barcelona jersey on again. I'll love you when the day comes that your body can't handle the game anymore, and I will take care of you when you inevitably push yourself too far again. Do you know why?"

"No," Alexia answered. You turned her face so that she was looking at you and you only.

"Because I did not fall in love with Alexia Putellas, the footballer. I fell in love with the woman who doesn't know how to tread lightly, so she wakes me up at odd hours every single time that she gets out of bed. I fell in love with the woman who goes out of her way to take care of her community and everybody that she cares about. I fell in love with the woman who runs into the arm of the couch every single morning because she's too busy watching me walking into the kitchen. I fell in love with you because of what I saw off of the pitch," you told her. Alexia was blushing deeply, unsure of what to do with praise in that sense.

"I just wanted to win and make you proud. You got this new job after working so hard these past couple of years to learn Spanish. You're doing so much, and what have I done to compare?" Alexia confessed. You couldn't believe what you were hearing. Alexia was constantly doing things that often made you feel a bit inferior, so it blew your mind a little to hear that Alexia had been feeling this way too.

"Ale, you are the best soccer player in the world. I'm only here because I gave up and called it quits. You're doing amazing things all of the time. You're the best in the world, and let's face it, I wouldn't have gotten my foot in the door if I wasn't your girlfriend. I could have worked and worked and worked forever, but they wouldn't have cared." Alexia's face changed from its formerly soft expression to a hardened one. "I'm not here to argue about my achievements with you, I'm here to remind you that this one setback won't define your worth."

"Just you wait, they'll be referring to me as (Y/n) (Y/l/n)'s girlfriend. Hopefully one of the better ones," Alexia said. She sounded so confident and sure of herself that you had to believe her.

"You'll always be the best one. Hopefully you'll also be my last one," you told her. Alexia leaned in and kissed you, slowly pulling you on top of her. You let the kiss progress naturally, neither of you pushing things too far without the other pressing equally as much.

"Take this off," Alexia requested as she started tugging at the hem of your shirt. You sat back and started removing the pieces of your clothes that Alexia asked you to. In turn, she briefly moved you off of her lap to completely undress herself. The tension in the room thickened a bit as she laid down again, legs spread as you stood at the end of the bed.

"You look unreal," you muttered as you moved onto the bed. You didn't want to leave Alexia waiting. Alexia didn't want to wait either, guiding your head between her legs without any ounce of hesitation. You could see that Alexia was already wet. She wasn't soaked but still undeniably wet.

You didn't have a chance to tease Alexia. She guided your face to her cunt, movements on the cusp of being pushy. Alexia was almost always in control, and she doubled down whenever you were topping. She didn't want to wait around or be teased, Alexia wanted to cum. You still had your chance to revel in the taste of her, even if it wasn't in the same way that she got to with you.

It didn't come as a surprise to you to have Alexia grinding her hips to move against your tongue. She didn't seem to want your fingers at all, working herself up on just your mouth. You loved it, loved knowing that you could make Alexia feel so good with just a few simple movements. Topping Alexia gave you a rush that you'd be riding for the next couple of days, until Alexia felt up to the task of "putting you back in your place."

"I'm so fucking close. Don't stop, please don't stop," Alexia swore. She wasn't usually one for pleading, but you'd take it. Her hands were gripping your shoulders tightly, nails digging in as you savored every drop of her that you could. Alexia let you continue with the strokes of your tongue past her first orgasm, only pushing you away after the second. She rode one high into the next before her brain and body seemed to catch up to each other.

She was sensitive, and her legs jerked shut, nearly hitting you in the process. You didn't sit back and stare, instead going straight into the bathroom to get a warm washcloth. Alexia let you clean her up, not saying anything to you until after she had grabbed new clothes to wear for the night. You stripped the bed and put everything in the washer, slightly surprised to find Alexia waiting for you in the kitchen when you were done.

"I don't think I let you know how important you are to me. I don't know how badly I would have spiraled without you here," Alexia told you. You blushed as she wrapped her arms around your waist and held you from behind. "Tomorrow, I start training again. I've only got a few years until the next World Cup and Olympics."

"I mean, I guess," you sighed. Alexia pressed a kiss to your cheek before she grabbed a snack to take into the living room. You went decided to go to bed, already well aware that Alexia wouldn't get to bed for another hour or so at least. You set an alarm for 1, deciding that if she wasn't in bed by then, you were going out to the living room to collect her yourself.

[jamiepaige]

Constant Companions Closeup #9: OBJECT OF AFFECTION

(also on spotify!)

O, wayward soul, I beg of thee an ear; Companionship, a Constant of desire, is all too fleeting. Would thee quell this fire? My love, do you know what you want to hear?

Welcome back to the Constant Companions Closeups - a series of in-depth dives into the songs off of my latest album, Constant Companions! Yesterday was some gay shit (Liaison) and today is some more gay shit (Object of Affection)

---

I'm usually pretty good about letting go of the things I make and letting them live imperfectly, but there is exactly one released song of mine that I've ever been actively unhappy with the final product of, that I haven't been able to let go of my displeasure with.

Honor Majesty, off of Autumn Every Day.

It's not that it's a bad song, or that it didn't have good ideas! In fact, I genuinely think it shares more with the music I make now than a lot of my older work does. Rather, it was incredibly rushed and full of uninspired choices I made for the sake of completing the song rather than making it the best version of itself, and it ultimately ended up falling incredibly flat relative to what I wanted it to be!

I really like the intersection of synthpop/electropop and fantasy. One of my favorite musicians ever is Baths, whose album Romaplasm is chock full of this exact thematic and sonic intersection, and it's so deeply inspiring to me that it still gets put on whenever I want to dream things up. I've always wanted to make things like that! Bubbly and fantastical, brimming with a sense of magic so pervasive it makes even the mundane seem mystic.

...Also I'm just a fantasy dork okay. I like wizards and shit. Sue me

I've been wanting to make a grandiose and fantastical story song for years, and my single attempt to do so felt like it missed the mark entirely. I did touch on fantasy a couple times on Bittersweet, but ultimately, when I started working on this album, I knew exactly what I wanted to take a second crack at.

---

The intended story in question here is fairly vague, but to sum it up as literally as possible:

A rebellious, disobedient, gender-questioning prince has mildly inconvenienced "his" royal lineage one too many times. Their solution is to invoke magicks widely regarded as heretical - what's a fantasy monarchy without some hypocrisy - to seal their "son's" soul within an automaton body, rendering "him" a perfect, subservient doll.

This doll is promptly spirited away under cover of darkness by a mage, and is granted free will once again. She experiences the crushing weight of newfound self-awareness and nearly spirals out of control, before realizing the mage who saved her is the same - a doll. It turns out being a magical-mechanical construct has its perks if you are TRANSGENDER. then they overthrow the monarchy and fuck nasty or whatever idk this is where the story gives way to things like "metaphor"

this is a song about artifice and being transgender

Seriously, though, I know that being an electronic-music-producing transgender lesbian with a thing about dolls or robots or whatever is a major endless-store-shelves-of-identical-buzz-lightyear-action-figures moment on my part, but dammit, I own a copy of Logic Pro and a genuine leather wizard hat, I inject estrogen into my stomach fat every Wednesday, and I think ball joints are cute. I'm posting this on Tumblr, for gods sake, I am unconcerned as an active choice

---

With the exception of Liaison, the entirety of Constant Companions utilizes only three unique vocal synth characters - ANRI, Gumi, and Teto. This trifecta was born organically from simply being the vocal synths I enjoy using the most, and in this song, I wanted to use all three of them almost like one single singer, freely shifting intonation based on the context. I messed with this idea before on Ballroom, my voice meshing and melting into Gumi V3's voice, but it felt especially appropriate for this context; Plus, I feel like there aren't a lot of examples of vocal synths being used/recontextualized in this way, and that's a shame in my opinion!!

I really want to do more story-driven songwriting like this in the future as well. Now that I'm a bonafide VocaloP I've been floating the idea of doing a song series with this trio... I'm mostly just worried I'll want to get too ambitious with it.

Off the top of my head, Object of Affection references at least eight other songs of mine - Honor Majesty is an obvious one, but it also directly samples parts of Autumn Every Day, and lyrically references genuinely just a bunch of things. I'm probably forgetting some, even!

I know I'm the Leitmotif Lover, but it's a lot even by my standards. However, this song's entire existence already served to satisfy a fairly self-indulgent desire, and these days, I don't deal in half measures. I think the final product serves as a lovely little look back at where I've come from, though, and perhaps even a little glimpse into the future!

That all being said, Object of Affection in some sense is also a love letter to a beloved part of my creative process - the voice memo. A lot of the audio I've provided with these posts have been recordings off my phone for good reason! Not only are the chops at the beginning of the song entirely comprised of edited recordings I got on my phone, but the sample at the very end happens to be from a particularly legendary recording, never before heard by the public...

Until now. I present to you an excerpt from "the worst beat on planet earth", featuring none other than unit.0.

That's about it for today!! If you have any questions, I'll gladly answer them below, but otherwise, I'll be back here tomorrow to talk about this album's title track laid askew - My Darling, My Companion!

[beautiful-basque-country]

I’ve read your recent post like six times but I still can’t wrap my head around it. There are masses for Franco? MASSES?

I know the Catholic Church can be a real mess, but how on Earth is this allowed? Isn’t there a bishop or someone at the Vatican that can stop this?

How do all the various communities let these gatherings and masses happen?

I’m Italian and Irish, so the lose equivalent of this Franco worship would be gatherings and masses for Mussolini and Cromwell, which I could never see happening. There would be a revolts in the streets! I mean sure, there’s always a handful of fascist ass lickers in every community, but usually it’s not blatant and their actions aren’t accepted let alone celebrated?

What is the general education regarding Franco like in Spain? Is there a lot of revisionist theory trying to paint him out to be something other than a psychopathic murderer?

Sorry if these questions are stupid, I’m just shocked this is like a normal and widespread thing. I’ve been to Spain once, and I guess I missed this aspect of the culture?

Kaixo anon!

They're not stupid questions, and I'll try my best to answer in an understandable way.

I'm sorry you're shocked about the masses thing, but it becomes a bit less weird if you take into account that one of the keys to the success of Franco's regime was Catholicism and the Catholic Church. Not for nothing his political ideas were called "national-Catholicism". The Church gave its full support to Franco and the dictatorship, and worked hard indoctrinating people to first accept and then passionately defend it. We can't understand Francoism without the Catholic religion.

You ask why this is allowed. Easy!! I'm not sure how Christian masses work in other parts of the world, but in Spain and EH, you pay and the church delivers: it can be a mention of the name of a deceased person the family wants to honor on the Sunday mass, or a full mass for said person any day you want. That's why there are masses for Franco eeeeeeeevery Nov 20. Because somebody - Franco Foundation, fascist associations or parties, just somebody - pays for them to exist. Of course the Catholic church defends it's just a mass of remembrance for a deceased person and not a glorification of a fascist dictator. Okay, if they say so.

Just this year there have been 18 masses throughout the Spanish state: in Madrid, Valladolid, Zaragoza, Málaga, Toledo, Alicante, Santander, Granada, Uesca, València, Zamora, Ceuta, Teruel, Sevilla, and Santa Cruz de Tenerife.

I'd like to think that Francoism isn't part of the Spanish culture as you mention, but sadly 40 years of a fascist dictatorship do some things to people. 40 years of lefties escaping the country or being executed, 40 years of brainwashing, 40 years of turbo Catholic fascism. You don't leave all that behind just overnight. There are still monuments to the dictator or the coup (Crusade, in fascist language), streets devoted to fascist elite members and criminals, and the f*cking king is the son of the king Franco personally chose for the Spanish state. There are Francoism remnants in every single Spanish institution, from the Congress to the Supreme Court (especially there). Everything is still tainted by Franco, his political ideas, and his corrupt political ways, even now, yes. Franco himself said the infamous words maaaany still remember: everything is tied and tied well. He meant that everything was throughly planned and established to function as he wanted when he passed. And it really was tied well.

So it may be not blatant for anyone visiting, but it's there, and it's definitely apparent. There's this sociological Francoism that was somewhat hidden from the 90s to the 10s, but now with the rise of the far right / neonazi movements has taken the mask off and fascists are calling themselves fascists with pride. There have always been some nostalgic people that were considered fanatic freaks up until now, but now they're more and more since very young men - mainly - are joining them.

[pink-ivy-vines]

what it honestly feels like they did was take the concept of native rivaini people stealing their culture before the rich andrastian nobles could and then turned that on... every other culture? like, it makes sense that rivaini pirates are stealing their own history before it could become a showpiece for some asshole chantry bootlicker who approved of the dairsmuid circle being annulled in 9:40 dragon. and it makes a little bit of sense for the qunari ones because rivain is the only country in thedas that had a peaceful qunari settlement. it does not work with the elven artifacts.

my first playthrough of the game was as a lord of fortune, and i liked it a lot, but there is this really weird disconnect between what taash thinks is happening in the lords and what rook sees in the lords. rook acknowledges that they're thieves. that they steal things. in fact, one of the most interesting moments of the game for me was rook trying to connect to taash through being a lord and taash shutting it down by saying "we're not thieves" and rook saying "UM. yes we are?" then gives a very pointed example about said thievery. because the lords do steal things. sometimes they do it just because it's funny.

but taash doesn't recognize this? or doesn't believe it and sees it through these rose-tinted glasses? with every other faction i've played you're able to connect to the other character from that faction in some way. you chat with them, talk to them, and your shared history comes up often.

that does not happen with a lords of fortune rook. in fact, the only time i've ever actually seen rook uncomfortable is talking about the lords of fortune to taash. because rook tries really hard to connect with them about it and then is clearly shut down at the get-go due to their vastly different viewpoints on what the lords actually do. it's almost as though both of them have wildly different perceptions about what goes on in the lords and this is fascinating and interesting and also never brought up again.

sure, it's hinted at; isabela does not take taash on anything remotely political, doesn't bring them into dragon hoards, and tends to have taash there only for advice on dragons. rook was much more involved in the 'delving into temples and ruins' and has a much closer relationship to isabela than taash does.

some part of me actually thinks that taash's storyline should have been about realizing that the lords aren't exactly the goody-two-shoes that were presented to them. that they do commit crimes and maybe that can be good in some ways (in regards of fighting against the chantry in their country) and bad in others (like stealing and selling elven artifacts).

of course, all this also just exemplifies the problem that you bring up; which is that the lords do have good things that they're doing as well as some bad things. they're in a weird situation where they're fighting to help people, but rivain has been the subject of so many genocides and massacres that they are trying to survive the only way they know how; through piracy.

yet the only person you can talk to in a meaningful way sees them as a weird abstract painting of themselves and when you play as a lord of fortune it still never gets resolved or pointed out. it just becomes more obvious.

I got a party banter between Bellara and Taash about how the Lords of Fortune steal elven artifacts. And then Taash clarifies later that they have a Dalish expert on the team so they can check to make sure the Lords don't sell something culturally important and instead return it to the elves.

Like. I get it. You want the Lords to be fun swashbuckler Disney pirates and Robin Hoods instead of actual pirates who steal and plunder. Because we're only now in Western society realizing that stealing from indigenous groups is, uh, bad. But like. Writing really uninteresting factions for your "dark" fantasy (tho lbr Dragon Age hasn't been dark fantasy since DA2) isn't gonna solve real-world neo-colonialism, ya know? The Lords not stealing priceless elven artifacts and returning them to the elves doesn't signal to me that the Lords are total rascally good guys, it signals to me that BioWare itself is trying really hard to seem morally conscious. "See? We know stealing from other cultures is bad!!!"

And man. Not to be a "political correctness has poisoned media" grifter on main (tbh it's less political correctness itself and more the commodification of real-world activism) but I couldn't help but imagine how this convo would've played out in earlier games, potentially even Inquisition.

You could've so EASILY made this interesting while giving the Lords and Taash and Bellara a lot more depth, while also making it clear that stealing from indigenous groups is wrong.

Just have the Lords, yeah, actually sell those artifacts. But also establish that the Lords take in and help elves from all walks of life. That they free slaves, or collaborate with alienages. Then you could have Taash defend the practice by saying to Bellara that little orphaned elf kids being sold as slaves probably don't give a flying fuck about some artifacts they're never gonna see, but the money from selling those artifacts goes to buying them food. And have Bellara fire back that preserving elven culture is also part of its survival, and that there are Dalish clans that would be willing to pay for them or offer something in return. Or have her say that the Lords are doing charity for the sake of recruitment rather than actual altruism. And then Taash responds that those high and mighty Dalish elves don't do shit to help abandoned city elves, just because those aren't part of their correct elven subculture, and they care more about reclaiming old glory than helping the people that exist here and now.

Then you could have side missions or at least codex entries that describe maybe some Lord recruit being conflicted about what they're doing. Maybe a few of them are collaborating to hijack a deal or steal back an artifact. Have implications that some high-ranking Lords are, in fact, using those artifacts for their own gain, despite claiming otherwise. Have some Lords genuinely trying to help, and believing that gold and trinkets don't matter as much as people's lives, so they sell them in exchange for safety for refugees or slaves or some other helpless group.

But no. Instead it's "hey do you steal from my people?" "nah lmao we have a cultural advisor don't even worry about it" "oh wow so cool and woke of you!" And then that's it. No need for any further discussion. No conflict and no complexity. No bad actors and moral quandaries.

Weh.

[demacianpuppet]

Some more thoughts/observation regarding Viktor and whatever he had going on his cult because I'm obsessed.

First of all, what exactly was Salo doing there? He went to the power source of the Hex Gates to get some (raw) Hextech crystals I assume but this leave me with more questions than answers.

For what exactly did Viktor need the crystals?

I would assume stealing from the source, which is locked behind a specific key (which seem to only open with Hextech) makes it easier do than from higher up of the Hex Gates. Considering Viktor's followers are just an extension from Viktor himself, they have the easiest option to sneak into it.

Also, Salo wears no protection gear, something that the people who maintain the Hextech Gate clearly do as seen in Season 1.

One detail I didn't catch while watching the first time is that the discussion between Jayce and Viktor happens in the Wild Rune and also seems to be Viktor who frees Jayce from it.

(Maybe Viktor knew something about Jayce being trapped in the Wild Rune which would explain why only Jayce materialized when Salo appeared and Heimerdinger and Ekko are still missing.)

So more interesting details - first of all Salo wasn't breathing the whole dialogue. You can see how Jayce breath condensed in the Hex Gates while Salo's never did. It also lines up that Jayce saw some empty husk creature whenever he looked at Viktor's followers.

Not consider how creepy the whole scene was because we see Salo is absolutely not acting like Salo, constantly switching to being possessed by Viktor.

Also, when Jayce dispose of the empty husk that once Salo was, the blood is not just red but also prismatic. His body has been also fundamentally changed from the inside.

Also Viktor doesn't seen to really care that Jayce just killed someone? Like sure, he is worried for Jayce and mentioned that someone is in his head but she shows no pity for Salo who just got killed?

I continue that none of the Viktor's followers actually acted like normal human being. Like Huck showed no sign of fear when the Noxian appear with their weapon, nor do any other people reacted with fear when Jayce appears with his weapon in his hand and clearly not best mental state.

As someone else already pointed out, you don't see anyone doing anything but to work. No children playing, no people talking with each other. Again, not human, not normal.

Whenever Viktor touched someone and tries to heal them, you can see how he left his fingerprints on them. (Vander/Warwick has them as well.)

Interesting Viktor could spot Jayce mental state without touching him, makes me wonder how close he needs to be to a person. Maybe Jayce is a special case because they both are touched by the Arcane?

When Singed talked with Viktor, Singed touched Vikor's hand and he instantly glimpsed into Singed mind. It seems to be not even an active thing he does.

(Does it mean back then Jayce hugged him after he just woke up from his metamorphosis did he already had seen the weapons Jayce had crafted during that time in his mind?)

Interesting that Singed mentioned that Viktor grows weaker, you would assume whatever the Hexcore does should be like a virus, so more people would make it stronger and not weaker.

Was this the reason why Viktor wanted the Hextech Crystals? To make a new Hexcore to replace his failing energy source? So many question, no answers.

Also what exactly was Viktor doing when he was levitating while being connected via strings to something? Did the writers just need a reason why Viktor would not try fight back when Jayce appeared? Did he was ready to face the possibility that Jayce could actually do harm to him?

Jayce goes into the room, does the shot and refusing to even look when he was firing it. There is one frame there you can see mirror version of Jayce reading the shot, it makes me wonder how often he went to Viktor and tried to change the outcome.

Jayce also left immediately once the deed was done. While Jayce was clearly tearing up, he ran way instantly.

Viktor just watched Jayce do the shot, fear in his eyes and he couldn't stop staring at him until his last breath was leaving him. The cog (which is not the same one during Hextech breakthrough) rolled away from his hand.

We know that Viktor ends the episode with his monologue how emotions are problem but I wonder if he knew that would happened and a part of him (or the Hexcore) becked Jayce to do the shot so he finally could get rid of his heart and/or influence of the Hexcore for good.

Because in Viktor's mindscape Viktor behaved like he always did while in reality he is very emotionalless despite everything.

Also going back to the hive mind thing - their life energy was clearly connected to the Hexcore which was the reason why they all started dying when the Hexcore was destroyed.

Despite Jayce ruining everything according the fans, I don't think Viktor would have stayed alive much longer anyway with Ambessa and Singed near. I wonder if this was the best-case scenario so that they would not get the Hexcore in their hands or if Jayce basically did a self-fulfilling prophecy with this action.

[canonicallyobserving911]

My theory about "Brad" for episode 8x8

In a recent post (linked here), I indicated I would reveal "My Theory" regarding the reason why I believe the character "Brad Torrence" is still around this late in season 8 and here it is.

Full disclosure: Initially, I didn't have a problem with Brad because Bobby was working as the tech advisor for the TV show "Hotshots" and I thought he was interesting. Also, after 8x1, I posted that I hoped him and Bobby could be friends since Bobby hasn't had anyone to hang out with outside of the 118 since Michael left in season 5. But my opinion of him has changed because he should be gone and I thought he would be once Bobby went back to the 118 in 8x4. He's still there taking up screentime from the mains and I don't like it 🙄. Even though I'll be glad when he's gone, I've still provided a fair and balanced assessment of his character.

On Friday, I posted my review of episode 8x7 "Hotshots" (linked here) and earlier this week I posted about my expectations for 8x8 "Wannabes". After rewatching 8x7, I noticed a common theme between Bobby's and Athena's storylines and it was centered around preparation for their retirements with Bobby dealing with Brad, a fake firefighter and Athena working with Sparks, a rookie police officer.

Before I delve into this, I need to make something crystal clear! These are my interpretations and observations regarding what could happen in episode 8x8 and even though it's possible some might not agree, it's ok if they don't because two differences of opinion can coexist. I'm basing my analysis off things that happened in episodes 1, 2, 3, 4 and 7 along with the stills that were released for episode 8.

Let's get started.

At the beginning of season 7, I did a post about the way the show was setting everything up for Bobby and Athena to begin their retirement arcs (linked here) but something happened (probably during the three-week hiatus between 7x5 and 7x6) that changed their storylines. When season 8 started, they were and still are living in an apartment, they're looking for a home and once again, Athena was in peril during the opening disaster. At the time it seemed like neither of them would be slowing down but the "cracks" in their communication were shown again and they've been present throughout their marriage (especially in season 4 when they argued about not talking to one another and it was about their retirement). They don't talk about the important things and it was even more evident in 8x7 when Athena told Hen that she told Bobby she didn't want to walk around with a cane. IMO, they're setting up their retirement arcs again but this time they're inserting others (guest stars) to assist with the development (which is unnecessary to me especially since the main cast is large enough which means they could utilize the people who are already there. I mean HELLO Buck's right there but I digress).

After rewatching 8x7, the common theme I found between Bobby and Brad and Athena and Sparks was that both Brad and Sparks were inexperienced, hot heads who wanted power and they were aiming to use firefighting and police work to get it. Brad is an actor playing the role of a fire captain on a hit TV show that contributes to the LAFD while Sparks was a rookie cop (who Athena kept addressing as a "probie" instead of a "rookie" and I think that was done on purpose for Brad's storyline). Brad and Sparks were/are impressed with Bobby's and Athena's work and they admire them.

Athena - Sparks did his homework and learned everything he could about her including the number of arrests she'd made and her commendations along with all of her other accolades.

Bobby - Brad told Bobby to his face in 8x1 that he was going to study him and in 8x2, he suggested Bobby do a bootcamp in the mountains or at his home in Malibu with him and his friends so he could learn how to be a fire captain.

Sparks and Brad have a lot of similarities; however the major difference is Sparks is young and he doesn't have a LOT OF LIFE EXPERIENCE (Sound familiar? It should since that's what Bobby told Buck in 6x1 when Buck wanted to be interim captain). Even though Brad is older, he's an asshat and he's also a reckless manchild (Bobby's description of him in 8x7) who will likely get someone hurt and he seems like a womanizer (Sound familiar? It should since that's how Buck USED to be when he first started at the 118.) He's been married 5 times and in the stills; it seems like he's flirting with a woman during that water rescue call.

These two guest characters have a lot of similarities with 25-year-old probie Buck and I believe that was done on purpose. During one of OS's Entertainment Weekly Q and A responses, someone asked, "In 9-1-1 s8 was Brad the British actor a reference to you being a British actor" and he answered, "Yes! Well, not like based on anything but I think he is an "homage" to me." The word "Homage" means "to show respect or honor to someone or something." Therefore, I believe my theory has merit since Callum Blue the actor who plays Brad Torrence is supposed to be an "Homage" to OS.

I've included a quick video below of Brad's interactions for two reasons, one, I didn't feel like making the GIFs for them and two, I think when the things a person says can be heard as opposed to reading them, it provides more context.

It's evident that Brad is mesmerized by Bobby's and Buck's father/son relationship and before 8x7 aired, I completed a post that included the way Brad wants to be like Buck and how IMPRESSED he was by Buck's and Bobby's heroics during the opening airplane disaster (linked here).

At the end of 8x8, Brad said he talked to the chief and had the show put his character in a coma so that he could "job shadow" Bobby but in the stills for the episode, he's wearing full turnout gear with a name on the back. I found this to be problematic for two reasons. First, Brad is NOT a firefighter, therefore he shouldn't be wearing any 118 or firefighter gear period. Second, the turnout coat he's wearing has a name on the back of it. Now, it's unclear if he borrowed it or if it's his but the last name is "Boothe" and since his actor name is "Brad Torrence" it made me wonder if that's his real last name.

FTR, job shadowing means a person is supposed to observe someone while they're doing their job. It doesn't mean "participating" and they shouldn't be dressed to look like they're part of the team but Brad is and it's going to be a cluster f~ck.

Why is this a problem?

It's a problem for him to be wearing turnout gear because he should be standing off to the side without getting involved. Bobby's captain of the 118 which means Brad should have a notepad and an ink pen instead of standing next to him. Since he's wearing 118 gear, someone will easily mistake him for being a real firefighter and reminder, in 8x3, he lied to the soccer player and claimed he was one even though he isn't.

Also, during the Metro Dispatch fire in 5x16, Eddie was still a firefighter but he wasn't with the 118 and when Bobby told him to grab some turnouts, THERE WASN'T A NAME ON THE BACK OF THE JACKET.

Therefore, how is it that Brad "an actor who plays a fire captain" is wearing full turnout gear with a name on the back when he hasn't even gone through the academy to become a real firefighter?

In the above BTS stills, it seems like Brad's flirting with a victim and the statement about not dating someone they meet on a call has been spoken numerous times since Eddie said it in 6x15. Since Brad's not a firefighter, he doesn't know that and he appears to be fascinated with the attention he's getting from the people who recognize him. Therefore, it seems like he's going to hookup with someone from a call and it's likely to cause problems with the team and the LAFD.

While I was making GIFs and the video for this post, I noticed something from episode 8x3 that I didn't see before. After Athena landed the airplane and the emergency escape slide inflated, the spotlight was on Brad for about 3 seconds and he was standing there all alone. Then the camera showed Buck and Brad standing next to each other and I don't believe that was a coincidence.

Here's my theory... I believe Brad is there so that he can become a "Probie" and Bobby will be the one who has to make a decision at the end of the episode about if he wants him to be part of the 118. The interviews all indicate that Brad will be there, he's going to cause chaos and he's supposed to have a conversation with Eddie that will be life changing and I think it'll revolve around Brad asking Eddie what made him want to become a firefighter. TM (showrunner) said in an interview that their conversation will revolve around something that has to do with being an "All American" (I couldn't find the quote but I remember reading it) and based on Brad's propensity to want to be like Buck and that he does in fact have "daddy issues", it appears he wants to work with Bobby so that he can aspire to be like him. This guy has to be at least 45 years old or older so his daddy issues should be resolved but that's my opinion.

Brad wants to be like Buck so he can become a firefighter and like I said in a previous post, he was impressed by Buck's and Bobby's dynamic. Everyone knows Bobby is Buck's found dad and they've been working together for so long that Bobby didn't have to tell Buck what he needed while they were preparing to shutdown the I-110. Brad watched all of it and he called Buck, "Bobby's boy."

I don't know how long Brad will be around but based on everything that's happened so far, it seems like he could be part of the 118 at least until the end of 8B the same way Jonah was there until the end of 5B and he didn't leave until the real reason he was there had been revealed.

Do I think Brad is dangerous? No, I don't believe he is... at least not in the sense of him trying to capture someone and hurt them so he can be captain of the 118 or anything. But I do believe his reckless behavior is going to get someone hurt or they'll experience an NDE because of his actions and those someone's will likely be Buck or Eddie and/or Buddie.

All of this seems like a huge setup for the second half of the season.

These are more Bathena and Buddie parallels (related posts linked here and here) and I believe it's being done this way for a reason. IMO, it's still too early to tell if these things have anything to do with the 9-1-1 spinoff that's supposed to start filming in March but I'm not ruling it out. Since TM and RM (creators) like well-known stars with top billing name power (hence AB, PK and RL from LS) I'm not sure if Callum Blue fits that description to carry an entire series on his own but only time will tell.

The point of this post is to highlight the reason why I believe Brad is still around and it's so he can become part of the 118. That way Bobby will have someone to lead, teach and train since the core four (Chimney, Hen, Buck and Eddie) have been working with him for so long that they know what he expects. Even though Gerrard was a complete and utter terror while he was there (mainly towards Buck), when he got injured, they carried on with Hen as interim captain. It kind of seems like Bobby needs someone to lead who doesn't know anything and this is more about him than it is about Brad. At the end of season 7, Bobby left and he didn't tell his team that he was planning to retire. Now that he's back, it appears that he's realizing they can and did function without him and it's making him understand his role as captain could be coming to an end the same way Athena pulling her hamstring is making her realize her own mortality as a LAPD police officer.

It'll be interesting to see how this will play out but Brad being around at this late date is NOT a coincidence and I think Bobby will have to decide if he wants to hire Brad as a probie after Brad reveals he wants to change careers.

Just saying.

[strangepersonthefirst]

So I found this post through stalking the blog of someone who liked my servitors post, and Having seen this, I do have a few points I want to raise. First: I know all of this operates under non-astral-space definitions, in other words, All of this is for physical work. I'm not a physical work expert. I am, however, a Goober. 1: The way this post discusses the emergence of intelligence, sentience, and sapience, In regards to servitors, is extremely concerning to me. It's "Dangerous" to let a being you created get smart, or feel? I've gone into the study of what I like to call the "emergent soul property" once or twice. Souls tend to be an efficient method to use, manipulate, and process energy, on some level. And most servitors with higher functions tend to seek these processes, or are made to use these processes, and therefore form souls. This is not a "danger", this is a fact of life. If you treat your servitors like shit, then yes, be shocked when it gains a soul and punches you in the face, or punches someone else, or tries to kill them. But kindness, patience, and treating your newfound ensouled spirit like your kid? Well, that goes a long way. 2: Making processes is a thing I don't disagree with, but I have an addendum. There are a million, ten million, ways to make even one thing. Soul weaving, as an example, seems to predominantly focus on the fact that all energy comes from the soul in OP's paradigm. But, assume with me, that you can simply draw energy and shape it without any investment of your own soul or self, just the Energy and Work? Is that still Soul Weaving by this person's definition? Is it echo weaving? Charging? I tend to churn out servitors. I'm an astral practitioner, I have a realm I upkeep, and a lot of my little minions would fail to fall in these making categories- I am simply no longer involved. I gather energy from a space automatically, I set up machines to make the minions automatically. It's all done in the background, I don't manage it beyond telling it to stop or start. 3: I have already addressed this, But I will state it again. The disregard of personhood hurts. Yes, you are to blame if your servitor or child hurts another person. That's how you raised them, it's how they are. But in some ways, I feel this post was made from the perspective of the classic astral practitioner, despite being from a physical worker. "these are robots. they can be no more or no less." 4: Most servitors you create, that don't have the intent to upkeep themselves, will just fail. That's the nature of entropy. Servitors you create with the intent to upkeep fall under the principles of emergent souls. 5: Accidental servitors sounds a lot like the processes behind egregores. It can happen.

Servitors: A Basic Guide to Artificial Entities

By Sparrow

  What Are Servitors?

Servitors are entities made by witches for a specific purpose. For a simple comparison, they are like imaginary friends.

Why Do People Make Servitors?

As stated above, servitors are usually made for a specific purpose. This purpose can be long-term or just until a specific action is completed. The most common reason is to create a servitor to serve as a protector, a living ward and shield. However, the purpose can be as simple as wanting a loyal companion, like a pet of sorts.

Servitors can also be made to carry out spells or curses. They will transport the intent to the target and then will cease to exist as soon as their duty is completed.

Types and Classifications.

Independent and Dependent.

And Independent servitor does not need its creator. It can exist without any attachment to the maker, leaving room for the risk of going rogue and disobeying orders. Independents are generally Intelligent. I do not recommend making Independent servitors. Dependents cannot exist without their creator. This makes them very loyal and will not be able to revolt without ceasing to exist. Dependents can have any level of Intelligence without risk.

Intelligent, Limited Intelligence, No Intelligence (No Free Will and/or no ability to communicate).

The level of Intelligence determines whether or not the servitor can speak, think, and have opinions of its own. It is what determines whether or not it is a dog or a human, to put it simply. This can be changed post-creation and servitors can evolve their Intelligence if given the chance and potential. Simple servitors that are not programmed to specifically stay at a low level of Intelligence can become very Intelligent.

Any combination of Independence (or lack thereof) and Intelligence will give you the basic foundation and limitations for your servitor. These can be changed post-creation, but it is recommended to keep the servitor in its original and intended state. High Intelligence coupled with Independence can potentially lead to trouble down the road if the servitor decides that it is not content with serving.

All of my servitors are completely Dependent, with varying Intelligence levels. It is much safer that way.

Methods for Making a Servitor (Soul Molding, Echo Weaving, Charging)

Soul Forming: This is the easiest way to create a servitor. It also ensures that the servitor is completely dependent on its creator and can be easily destroyed should it malfunction. This is recommended for companion-type servitors and long-term servitors.

Essentially, it is the process of the creator taking part of their energy or soul (whatever term you use), pulling a bit out like Silly Putty while leaving a string connecting to the main piece, and then shaping that bit into a form pleasing to the eyes. Using this method, the servitor is literally an extension of the creator. It is very easy to perform and the servitors made with this method are extremely dependable and easy to control, as the creator is simply controlling a piece of themselves. A good failsafe for this method, should a servitor try to go against its programming, is for the extended bit that the servitor is made of to immediately be reabsorbed at the first thought of retaliation. Nothing is wasted and it is very easy to “edit” servitors made with this method.

The main problem with this method is that it is not the safest method for servitors that might take damage. Protective servitors made with Soul Forming are extensions of the creator. Should they be harmed, there is a high chance of the creator also experiencing some discomfort. There is a possibility that, should a servitor be destroyed, that energy from the creator might not be able to be reabsorbed, causing a period of exhaustion as the creator’s energy work to fill in the gap left. So far, I have not experienced any of these possibilities, though they are something to keep in mind.

Echo Weaving: This is the newest method that I have begun to use. Servitors made with this method tend to have low Intelligence and are not as strong as ones made with different methods. This method is recommended for scouting, swarming, or easy-to-manifest servitors.

To use this method, the creator needs to be familiar with energy signatures, as this is what this method depends on. Everyone leaves behind a sort of echo or trace of their energy behind them, like footsteps. Once the servitor’s design is decided upon, the maker takes that energy signature echo and forms the servitor from it. This way, the servitor takes no present energy from the creator to manifest and it will feed on the constant echoes left behind. This method is currently being tested and has not been in use enough to know any possible problems that might arise.

Charging: This method is used to make a servitor out of a previously created character. It involves taking that character’s personality and form and pushing energy into it, as if breathing life into an empty husk. This method is recommended for those who already know exactly what they want. It is a process similar to charging a sigil or stone.

Each person generally comes up with a few personal methods that they prefer to use. These are just the main ones that I have used.

Anchors

It is recommended that every servitor that is long-term be made a physical anchor. For example, one of my protective servitors is linked to our plane by a painted deer skull. Bones work very well for animal-like servitors. A physical anchor can be anything from a picture to a pencil. Sigils are often used, as well. A physical anchor should be kept somewhere safe and away from any hazards. Should the creator get too weak to manifest the servitor themselves, then the physical anchor is what keeps the servitor functioning properly until the creator is better.

It is also recommended that the creator make themself an anchor. This way, the servitor has a portable anchor and can follow its creator easily. Servitors with this type of anchor are always Dependent. The creator should never be the only anchor for their servitor, only secondary.

Anchors are like save files for servitors. Once a work is complete, it is saved to a USB or a hard drive. It exists in that save file and is preserved. The reason that more than one anchor is important is that, should one of the save files be deleted or corrupted, there is a copy in a different location.

Basic Rules

·         Whatever you create is solely your responsibility.

·         Any offense that your servitor commits falls back on you, as you are the owner and creator. The blame falls on you.

·         If you have no further use for a servitor, destroy it.

Am I Ready to Make a Servitor?

Do you have the design and purpose for your potential servitor? Do you know exactly what you want it to do, how to act, and how to look? Much like creating a character to use in a story, all of this is essential before the actual performance. You are creating artificial life, not doing improv. Details are a must.

Now that that is figured out, do you have your anchor(s) figured out? Are you healthy and have a good idea of how to make your servitor? Do you have shields and wards up in case anything goes wrong?

If all of these questions are answered with “yes,” then go ahead. Good luck.

What Do I Do If My Servitor Goes Rogue? Am I to Blame?

Yes. A thousand times yes. I cannot stress this enough. You made this, you are responsible for every little thing it does. The servitor is a part of you-or was. You must take the blame for anything it does. If it harms someone, you have harmed someone. Keep this in mind if you were planning on avoiding any consequences of cursing someone by having a servitor carry the curse.

If you have a dog and that dog attacks someone, you take responsibility for that attack.

Another thing to keep in mind, servitors typically carry the same or a very similar energy signature to their creators. If I sent out one of mine to attack someone, then it could potentially be traced back to me by someone experienced with energy signatures.

If a servitor goes rogue, destroy it immediately. Whatever it meant to you, it has decided not to follow you anymore. It is dangerous and should be erased immediately.

Things to Keep in Mind.

·         It is possible to unintentionally create a servitor. It is actually a common problem that not many people realize that they have done. If an entity shows up to work with you and acts exactly how you want it to, then it might be a servitor that you unconsciously made. These types of servitors can come in any form, even as a powerful entity that one might believe is a god or divine being. They will act out of character if they are in the form of a commonly known god, though to the creator it will seem completely plausible. They might visit others. The more people that believe them to be a powerful entity, the more power the servitor will gain. There is a possibility that these types of servitors do not know that they are not who they look like. These types of servitors, once discovered to be servitors, should be erased immediately to avoid any long lasting consequences.

·         If the creator does not name their servitor, it might name itself. This is not too big of a problem, but it is recommended to check the meaning behind the name it has given itself.

·         Do not forget that a servitor is not truly its own being. If it malfunctions or there is no need for it, do not hesitate to destroy it immediately. It can be remade better later on.

·         Intelligent servitors can access your own knowledge, resulting in them bringing up latent problems or fears that the creator has not dealt with yet. This can be distressing if the servitor presses to have the issue worked out and the creator is not ready to do so.

·         Servitors do not stop existing if you forget about them. I have one that I forgot about for two years and she is still around-she even gained a higher Intelligence level while I forgot about her. They exist in a sort of limbo.

·         Keep an eye on higher level Intelligent servitors. These can become dangerous if not kept in check.

·         Rogue servitors can come to you masquerading as entities. While you may have not created them, they are still servitors and should not be treated as true entities, no matter what they claim.

·         Should you believe in past lives, servitors created lifetimes ago by a previous incarnation might still exist. They are typically very weak after long periods of having no contact with their creator-many ceasing to exist if separated long enough. Ones that persist through the ages to find their creators are generally very dependable.

·         Servitors that can talk usually come up with a name for their creator. I have been called “mother” and “mistress” and “my lady,” to name a few possibilities. My servitors are generally very aware of the fact that they exist because I made it so, thus having some sort of reverence toward me. I would assume that this is common with servitors that know they are servitors.

·         Servitors are great constant companions. They can also be utilized in astral travel as companions, guides, steeds, and protectors.

·         A servitor might start to weaken over time or fade. Should this happen, push more energy into them to revitalize them.

·         Servitors can be given to other people should the creator no longer want them or decides that the other person can use their servitor better. Once ownership is given, the original creator has no control over the servitor. The new owner can change the servitor as they see fit and give it a new purpose. Only trust another with your servitor if you know that you will never want it back. The new owner can destroy it, as well.

·         Avoid naming servitors that only exist to carry spells, as they will cease to exist as soon as their job has been completed.

  If there are any questions not answered in this guide or confusion about anything written above, please feel free to message tinyrosemarysparrows and I will answer as best I am able.

[tanadrin]

Well that's both the beauty and the frustrating thing with a multiple-party system, right? Even if a party is in the governing coalition, it's a coalition, so their more radical ideas get smoothed out by compromise. Slows things down, which can be good or bad. I've lived in germany all my life and know I'll never get any party's pure program as government policy, so I choose based on who is likely to win and what effect different parties' ideas are likely to have in the positions theyre likely to end up in. I don't think that is considered particularly weird here, actually.

And yes, to your other question, a lot of people I know who take a similar approach do split their votes and vote e.g. SPD for the direct mandate if that's more likely to win, and green or left on the proportional vote.

Hope this doesn't come across as confrontational - i'm not trying to debate. I find the different perspectives on voting interesting and wonder if it's related to being used to a 2-party "winner takes all" system vs a multi-party system, or if my sample in germany is just not representative (i.e. mostly people who are above-average informed about politics)

But even if a party isn’t going to get its full policy program enacted, to get *any* policy program enacted it has to get into government—which requires winning enough votes that it’s not likely to be relegated to the opposition.

Now, Die Linke also has this problem where a big party like the SPD regards them as anathema and would rather ally with the CDU or the FDP than bring Die Linke into government (which is stupid, IMO), and Die Linke voters can’t really change that. But I still would prefer the party I vote for to be part of government rather than remain in opposition, you know? The idea you would vote for a party so that it could just participate in debates and not actually govern is the thing I was reacting to.

(I have lived my entire adult life in countries with proportional representation; I get how it works! Please don’t think I’m some confused American hick who’s just too puzzled by the complexities of your sophisticated MMP system to appreciate its nuances. The objection I have is that I think politics ought to be treated as a means to power, not an instrument of individual self-expression. Politics is for Doing Stuff, as it were, not achieving a personal feeling of vindication. Plenty of Americans and Germans both treat it as the latter, and I disagree with all of them.)

[stevishabitat]

And now that we've seen that Fifteen is kind of dipping his toe into dealing with some of it, after the Flux, and whatever happened as Fourteen...

We can see that the Doctor knows that he still has things to work through regarding their origin and upbringing and history and past lives.

And he's willing to say some of it out loud - which is major growth!

I want to talk about the dissonance in the Doctor and the Master’s reactions to the timeless child reveal and how it so brilliantly shows us the two sides of the same coin.

The Doctor gets thrown off at first, obviously, but she’s always been a runner. So she takes it in, packs it up and moves on to the next problem. It’ll always be there, on the back of her mind, burning. But she’ll never confront it, she won’t dwell or wallow. She lets the wound close.

But the Master, the Master obsesses, he takes it apart and examines every single particle of it, allows it to take over his life, to commandeer his actions. He doesn’t bury it within himself, but he buries himself in it. He picks and prods at the wound so it’ll bleed again.

The Doctor will never confront it if the Master doesn’t force her to, and the Master will never heal from it if the Doctor doesn’t show him how.

[97keanu]

꩜ ⋆ ˚｡ ⋆ ✩ ୨୧˚ Since it 'Tis the Season of sharing gifts with one another, I thought it would be wonderful for our community to come together to share our creative works with each other!

꩜ ⋆ ˚｡ ⋆ ✩ ୨୧˚ This event is a Secret Santa styled event for fanfiction writers* in the keanuverse community. What this means is that should you decide to participate, you would be paired with another writer to write a fic for them for the holidays! *(if you are an artist, editor, etc. and you are interested please contact me and we will work something out!)

꩜ ⋆ ˚｡ ⋆ ✩ ୨୧˚ What are the rules and expectations? Your gift must be at least 500 words, you must go off of the prompts and guidelines given to you by your giftee(don't worry! You will be paired with some of similar taste that will suit the style you usually like to write and which keanu character you usually like to write for!). It is expected that you join our community on tumblr to keep up with check ins through out, and your gift must be given by Dec. 25th and no later than Dec. 31st. You must also, under no circumstances, let your recipient know that you are their gifter, that's why its a secret! It is more than fine if people know you are participating, just make sure it's still a surprise to your giftee for who their gifter was!

꩜ ⋆ ˚｡ ⋆ ✩ ୨୧˚ What if I join but need to drop out? No worries! I understand that things happen and life can be overwhelming. Please try to let me know by Dec. 12th that you are deciding to no longer participate, and I will try to find another gift giver and work something out for your giftee. No hard feelings at all and your withdrawal will be kept private!

꩜ ⋆ ˚｡ ⋆ ✩ ୨୧˚ What dates are check ins? Check ins will begin Dec. 1 and go weekly until Dec. 25th. I will post in the community about said check ins and you simply reply letting me know you are all good for finishing your gift in time! If something should go wrong, please contact me and we will work something out. I am making the minimum 500 words so that our gifts are very achievable, but feel free to write more than that! As long as you can get your gift done in time.

꩜ ⋆ ˚｡ ⋆ ✩ ୨୧˚ Where are we putting our gifts? Once our gifts are completed and Dec. 25th rolls around, we are posting our gifts or a link to our gifts on tumblr with your recipient and myself tagged(@97keanu)! Please tag the gift as #Keanuverse Secret Santa so that readers may be able to read the works we have created! You may also send your gift into our community page as a means of sharing as well.

꩜ ⋆ ˚｡ ⋆ ✩ ୨୧˚ How do I enter? Fill out my questionnaire on Google Forms linked and I will contact you with information regarding your Secret Santa reciepent by Dec. 1st. Make sure you put down the blog you are going to be posting your gift on as your @ as well as that I may contact you privately so that your recipient stays a secret!

꩜ ⋆ ˚｡ ⋆ ✩ ୨୧˚ Other questions? Please feel free to contact me privately(@97keanu) or post any comments/questions right here in the tags/comments/reblogs etc and I will get back to you ASAP!

[thetriggereffect]

Nothing About the Stargate Is Intelligent

Don't get me wrong, I love all three Stargate shows, and I regard them as some of the best science fiction on television.

But the Stargate itself is a mass of technobabble whose operation is not just ridiculous, but impossible. And I don't mean technically, I mean logistically.

A standard Milky Way Stargate has 39 glyphs. Each glyph represents a constellation. A standard Stargate address involves seven of these glyphs-- six of them identify the location in three dimensional space, and the seventh is the point of origin.

This is several entirely distinct flavors of stupid.

Constellations are not points. One of the stars in Orion's belt, for example, is more than a thousand light years from either of the others.

Even if this weren't the case, the Stargates are millions of years old. Stellar drift has changed the constellations in the ~10,000 years that mankind has been aware of them.

You only need three points to identify a location in three dimensional space. Requiring a second position for each axis does nothing except for drastically limit the locations that can be addressed.

If every address requires the same seventh symbol at a given gate, there's no reason not to make the gate automatically supply it.

If you can identify the point of origin with a single glyph, why can't you identify the destination with one? (There is actually a bit in the original movie where Daniel tells the natives, "we're from here" and shows the symbol that corresponds to earth and they get it.)

Also, if the point of origin is one symbol.... there can be a maximum of 39 total gates. There is no such limit in the shows.

Of course, there is also the magic eight-symbol address that somehow, despite being made up of coordinates in the milky way galaxy, points to the Pegasus Galaxy. Or the nine-symbol address that can only be dialed from one gate (that apparently isn't even in the right place, affecting its ability to dial), which points to Destiny, which doesn't even have a fixed location.

And while we're on the subject of Destiny, how does THAT gate work? If the glyphs on a gate are constellations, how does that work on a ship that moves between galaxies?

How does dialing even work? The whole spinny thing is just our gate, because we don't have a DHD, but, like... why does spinning it even work? And how is it that, by the end of the show, we've developed the technology to build our own gates, but we're still dialing the main gate with the equivalent of a hotwire?

That's not even getting into the physics of the "wormhole" itself, or, rather, the lack thereof.

An incoming wormhole spits out a vortex that, in a violation of all known laws of physics, completely destroys everything it comes into contact with.

Unless it's the iris, which is just really close to the event horizon.

Or you just bury it, but that seems to have only worked the once.

The iris that we built, because the ancients who created them didn't seem to think anyone would need to be able to lock the goddamn door (until they got to the Pegasus Galaxy).

The iris that nonetheless seems to be completely integrated into the gate so seamlessly that you can't see the mechanism or where the parts go when not in use.

Wormhole travel is one-way. Except, of course, for radio waves.

It is an explicit plot point in several episodes that an object passing through a stargate is de-materialized as it passes through the event horizon, and is not re-materialized until (and unless) the entire object passes through.

Which begs the question-- how can you step through? Once your front foot is through the horizon, it can't bear weight. How is your back foot lifted up?

[tanjir0se]

Every time I think Sasuke’s clear and obvious homosexual obsession with Naruto might be maybe a little one sided, Naruto will do something absolutely insane like walk into his childhood room after two years, grab his dusty picture of Sasuke, gently brush it off, fingers lingering for a moment over Sasuke’s face, and lovingly whisper “Sasuke…I’m home…”

[rubykgrant]

(I hope there are at least a few that you can enjoy! I hope it is alright to add a few more, I don't want to overload, but I thought of more books that lean more toward being mature, for older teens/adults, that can fit the theme-)

"Practical Magic" by Alice Hoffman (a family known for many generations as witches, with a particular curse that implies anybody that falls in love with them is doomed to die... two sisters, Sally and Gillian, each try to escape from this in different ways, one by living as "normal" a life as possible, the other by trying to be free and indulgent. After a frightening event, the sisters are brought back together, and while they try to move on with their lives, ghosts of the past rise up for revenge. The writing is both straight-forward and extravagant, with very detailed looks at each character and their relationships, the scary elements a combination of mundane and fantastic. It deals with supernatural events, and issues that involve abuse and trauma, but is ultimately about love. A movie adaptation was made in 1998, and while it has to cut-down parts of the story and has a little more of a rom-com vibe, it still captures the soul of the story, and is enjoyable on it's own)

"Scorpion Shards" (the Star Shards Chronicles) by Neal Shusterman (Six young people who have never met have something in common; they aren’t normal. They have odd abilities, strange powers, and unfortunate afflictions that cause them pain, fear, and suffering. When they lose control, it can hurt other people, too. Slowly, they are drawn together, and figure out what is happening to them… and what they really are. They have to learn to work together, overcome their fears, battle their demons, and find the courage to save themselves. Some of them want to work together, while others wind up clashing. I've only been able to find the first book, and it has a sad ending... but with open possibilities for what comes next. Very dark, but in a realistic way regarding the emotions and troubles of the characters, making even the absurd situations feel more "real")

"MALICE" and "HAVOC" by Chris Wooding (this book blends illustrations with words, as well as fantasy and reality. There is an a mysterious comic book series, hard to find, and even if you get one the pages go blank as time passes… it depicts a strange and horrifying world called MALICE, full of monsters, and also children who have been transported there from the real world. An urban legend says if you gather the right ingredients and say the right words, "Tall Jake" will come and take you away. It turns out to be very real, and soon two kids begin a search and rescue mission to find their friend. The thing is, not everybody survives being the star of the comic, and you might only make it into one issue)

"Midnighters" trilogy by Scott Westerfield (a group of teenagers have discovered that because they were born at midnight, when they are within the area of Bixby Oklahoma, they are able to experience "extra time"; a thirteenth hour, in which the rest of the world within the "bubble" of the town seems frozen. As long as they stay in the area, they have an hour to experience this additional hour, and each of them also has specific abilities they can use in this time- defying gravity, telepathy and mind powers, touching flames, and more! However, they aren't ALONE in the thirteenth hour... strange creatures called Darklings live here in this part of the world that is made of dreams and nightmares, and they pose all sorts of danger. I'll be honest; these books have very intense problems, and they don't have "happily ever after" resolutions... they are still well-written, and very interesting. While not exactly up-beat, they still aren't entirely "depressing", and what happens feels like an "honest" depiction of how, even with magic powers, life can still be difficult, and even after the worst day every- you still have to keep going, into the next day, and onward)

once again wishing there was something kinda LIKE harry potter but like.

without the shitty author, aimed at an older audience, and also not conflating the "older audience" part with "making it lean way too heavily into being depressing, cynical and over-reliant on dark comedy"

and ALSO not something where you can only find it by hunting down some indie book with a miniscule fandom, thereby making you feel like you're just screeching annoyingly into the uncaring void once you want to actually talk about it.

[flecks-of-stardust]

wholeheartedly and with as much gentleness as possible, i truly think there needs to be more discussion about downpour in the community as it is now. for a variety of reasons.

[katyspersonal]

Thinking about that time when a popular artist was a prick to me personally (claimed that I "baited" them for a conflict when all I did was pointing out something in lore contradicting their claim, without any rudeness or condescension, and basically told me to go hang out with other autists instead of bothering them) but the reason I blocked them was not that, it was the fact that they've admitted on not even caring about the source material and just using scraps from it to do their own thing. Priorities hfngkfngj

[lucalicatteart]

A few little sketches of some possible school uniforms for mage schools/learning centers for magic/etc. :0c Though because Nanyevimi is so scattered and disconnected, it'd actually vary much more by region (like not everywhere would have a cultural concept of what a suit jacket or neck tie looks like lol), so it's probably unrealistic for so many of them to follow too many traditional Uniform Conventions from cultures in our world, etc. But, still, fun to mess around with designs, and think about which would be most fun to wear/what school you'd go to just based off the clothing lol~