#(but like. in the actual events of the books. nothing)

[flower-boi16]

the "both sides have made mistakes" thing is actively funny to me because as usual it ignores that the real issue is in the framing

the worst ways the narrative twists itself to make Blitzo look better is by making what happened to Fizz just a freak accident (fr the guy carrying the candles if the circus was that flammable is just as responsible for that one) and by not really having M&M chew him out for the stalking. but the show never denies he has issues and causes problems by pushing people away before they can leave. and some places where the narrative suggested ambiguity in season 1 are actively removed to make Blitzo look worse in season 2 - he has a problem with Verosika's alcoholism in s1 but in s2 he's made unambiguously the only bad guy in their breakup

the worst ways the narrative twists itself to make Stolas look better is by: having Stolas and Blitzo both say cheating isn't bad/Stolas' cheating doesn't count as cheating because Stella is mean (basically) on multiple occasions, rewriting Stella from a classist jerk to an abusive monster, having an entire flashback episode devoted to making the viewer feel sorry for Stolas in the most on the nose way possible, retconning in Stolas treating Blitzo like a human being over the phone that happens entirely offscreen, comparing Stolas to all Blitzo's exes even though they weren't dating, massively inflating the number of people who hate Blitzo to make Stolas look better and the most telling thing of all: the entire awful argument in Apology Tour where the writers made Stolas look like a hypocritical gaslighter by ignoring all the ways he treated Blitzo in season 1 and never allowed Blitzo to mention any of them when it would have made perfect sense

Blitzo got a season that built up to the climatic point of having everyone he's ever wronged read him for filth in a mushroom samba sequence.

Stolas got a season where every episode that mentioned or featured him either retconned something to make him look better, inserted something that happened offscreen to make him look better or refused to allow other characters to bring up season 1 events to make him look better. S2 built up to the climatic scene of a trial sequence where no one gets to call out Stolas for making the deal to get sex, he gets to look like a hero for "sacrificing" himself (instead of it being framed like the book fiasco is equally his responsibility, which it is) and he ends the season having lost his daughter (but only because she somehow doesn't know how totally evil Stella is and how totally not responsible Stolas is because she's only allowed to be mad at him for the trial thing) but gets handed the consolation prize of Blitzo's unconditional love which he's done nothing outside of a single grand gesture to earn. Oh, and then he follows that up by freeloading off of Blitzo, trying to wreck his office during a temper tantrum and being a passive aggressive ass, none of which the show frames like something anyone should have a problem with

so, yeah. when it comes to the way the writers don't want to challenge the characters Stolas and Blitzo aren't even in the same postcode, never mind playing the same game. they're just not remotely comparable

^^^^^^^ THIS.

The entire argument that "they both made mistakes/their both in the wrong" falls flat on it's face when the narrative doesn't treat their mistakes as bad as they actually are. Blitzo gets dragged for filth for his mistakes and called about by both the narrative and everyone around him, and his truama and whatever baggage he may have is never used as an excuse by the narrative, which, is good writting, I'll give it that, the problem is that the narrative is holding him accountable using the wrong character.

Stolas' mistakes, however, are either ignored, downplayed, or justified by the narrative so to make it look like they weren't actually mistakes. Him cheating on Stella? Well, Stella was abusive, so Stolas was actually in the right to do that. Stolas repeatedly belittles and dehumaizes Blitz, making him uncomfortable around Stolas all the time and giving the impression that he views Blitz as nothing but a sex toy, continueing to make sexual advances to Blitz even when he can see it's uncomfortable? Actually, Stolas loves Blitz and thinks very highly of him, those sexual comments were actually Stolas thinking that Blitz enjoyed being treated that way, it's just Blitz's fault for not seeing that.

Stolas coercing Blitz? I mean, ya, the deal wasn't right, but let's just pretend it wasn't totally coercian guys!/s

You get the picture. Stolas' mistakes and actions are so frequently recontextualized and excused by the narrative multiple times, and, aside from maybe his mistakes as a father, the series has not called out the full extent of his behavior and I don't think it will.

Many fans like to counter this with "oh, the show will call him out later!", but, the thing is, it should have called him out now. Because the narrative's refusal of calling Stolas out actively harms the writting of not just Stolas, but Blitz as well.

Blitz's character arc of growing to become a better person was kickstarted by having him get gaslit and guilt-tripped into apologizing to his abuser. Even if the show calls Stolas out later, it wont change that unless it directly calls this out and recontextualized.

Series held Blitz accountable for something that he wasn't even in the wrong for. That's the issue, I don't care if Apology Tour was dedicated to calling out Blitz, it did a shit tier job of that because it didn't call out STOLAS. The series needs to start holding Stolas accountable and actually call out the full extent of his actions, not downplaying them, not justifying them, no excuses.

With Octavia their taking a step in the right direction but, we'll have to wait and see if they'll commit to it.

[anarchiii]

Where The Wild Roses Grow-1 —ACOTAR AU

Part One | Warnings: angst, very mild swearing | Azriel x Tamlin’s!Sister

Summary; in the heart of the dreaded city of Hewn. Y/n struggles to stay herself, the bleak and cold air surrounding the mountain slowly stripped its inhabitants of any hope or sense of joy, but when the Shadowsinger appears. She suddenly finds that when love and hate collide, it can be devastating. . .

Note: this is an AU it’s not in the books.

Masterlist ⚔︎

(Contains physical descriptions of the Reader—hair, eyes, ect.)

Azriel’s POV

The frigid mountain winds blew at him from all directions, his wings starting to numb, ever so slowly. He tried to block it out, taking in as much light from the never ending party inside, Azriel had never been one for parties of any kind, especially when they were full of drooling females and disgusting males—males that continue to do things that sickened even the ironists of stomachs—yes, he was a monster but he was not the same at the people in there. They were truly something else.

So that’s how the Shadowsinger found himself lingering outside in the dark gardens, how plants managed to grow down here—he did not know, did not care. All he cared about was going home before the sun crested the surrounding mountain range, the ethereal glow it created like the hands of the Mother encompassing the world in one big embrace, oh how he wished to full the wind rustle his leathery wings, the first appearances of winter’s frost landing on his hair.

Alas, he was stuck with the bleak gray rock around him, so the Shadowsinger turned his head to the sky that was not there and stared and stared, soon it was not stone looking back at him but stars, thousands of little bright lights. The moon’s soft glow illuminating every surface.

As the Illyrian male stared on, he did not hear the soft sound of gravel crunching and shifting for the feet that walked upon it, no. The only thing he noticed was the smell of oleandrin flowers and jasmine, he breathed the deadly scent in, getting a rush of ecstasy he did not realise he needed. Whoever it was-was addictive, the challenge imbedded in their scent like a bee’s nest to a hungry bear, singing a lovely song like a siren. He was enraptured.

-

Y/N’s POV

She scowled as she watched everyone dance and drink wine at the party that seemed to never die, why she came to these events that consisted of nothing more than pure debauchery, she did not know.

Y/N eyed the High lord and his court, that signature wicked smirk always on his face, his mate mimicking one of the same cruelty, she tried to tell herself that they were good people but she could not believe it, not when she saw them that way. Saw them look down on her companions, like they were merely dirt beneath their polished boots, Y/N knew better than anyone else that they weren’t the best of people, but that didn’t mean they deserved to be treated with such disdain.

She sighed, shaking her head, it was no use to think that way, no point to try to fight or disagree against the high fae that believed themselves better, not when said fae could execute her at a moments notice. It wouldn’t take much more than a wave of Rhysand’s hand for her head to become estranged from her neck. Perhaps if they caught wind of her actual identity then the prospect of death would become that much more certain.

If she was being honest, she couldn’t really blame them, Y/N had heard the things that gone on in the Spring Court—her home—involving her brother and Feyre Archeron all those months ago, years, even. Time moved differently down here, they could not rely upon the sun to tell them it was bedtime, no winds to signal the changing seasons.

It was a wonder Y/N hadn’t gone insane down here, or maybe she had. She wasn’t made for the darkness, no, Y/N was born in Spring, a place where sunshine found you anywhere and where fields of flowers stretched far across the land, further than even a Fae’s eyesight could see. She missed those frilly, colourful dresses she’d adorned daily, the jewellery she put on with ritualistic ease, like muscle memory—but what Y/N did not miss was her brother, she and her brother, Tamlin had never been close, especially after that faithful night years ago, resulting in the untimely death of their parents.

Her parents had never been the kindest Fae, that she knew. And after all the years they’d fought and screamed at one another until they could no longer speak. . . She found herself hardly grieving when she met violent purple eyes one night, widening as they realised she lived. Y/N had never found herself hating the young High Lord, no. She quite liked him, actually.

He was horribly charming and a good dance partner, and that wicked smirk of his never failed to make any female swoon—even her, to Tamlin’s eternal dismay—they’d always had such a tenuous relationship, said relationship was non-existent these days. Not that Y/N would know if that had changed, gossip was hard to come by when it wasn’t about some scandalous affair or who was looking like more of a whore that day. Such nonsensical things. Well, to her at least. It wasn’t useful information.

Gods, she sounded like that Shadowsinger, craving information, wanting to know all the secrets of this place, perhaps Rhysand would hire her. Y/N snorted out loud at the thought, gaining a few side-eyes from a couple females, she quickly gave them a vulgar gesture before walking off.

How dare they judge her when they were the ones dressed like frisky brothel workers, Y/N was nothing like them, dressed in a long black shoulder-strap dress with slits on both sides that barely went past her knees, she might as well have been dressed as a Saint among them, a true black sheep. Not that it was the most modest thing alive, but compared to the lingerie looking attire that she was supposed to wear, it was good enough.

She sighed as she rubbed her face vigorously, still careful not to ruin the kohl she’d painstakingly put on earlier and the blood red lips that made her look like a male-eater. Y/N prided herself on her looks, her ability to get whatever she wanted whenever she wanted, it was sometimes hard to believe she was from Spring, she was made for the Night court with her cunning, wicked and adept personality. She wondered what Tamlin would think of her if he saw her again, then again, perhaps he’d forgotten she’d existed—Y/N had always been the black sheep of the family, with her pitch-black hair and brown-ish red eyes, it wasn’t hard to see why, perhaps she wasn’t even related to them, that’d make sense.

She found herself once again sulking, drowning herself in the horrible voice that was her doubts and worries, drowned in it like it was the finest wine, addictive but destructive. The female shook her head in dismay and dismissed the party, opting to instead sulk outside were she could feel the wind flowing through her onyx locks, as soon as she stepped outside, she regretted it.

Not only because goosebumps appeared quickly and teeth started chattering but because she was in fact not alone out here. No, it was a Fae’s greatest mistake to believe they were alone when the Shadowsinger was nearby. Watching. . . Waiting.

-

Y/N watched her own breath curl in the wind, winding and swirling like smoke infront of her, her eyes flicked to the Shadowsinger and back, did he know she was there? No—what was she thinking? Of course he knew, he was their High Lord’s spymaster for Cauldron’s sake.

Her gulp was audible, shifting on her feet, Y/N silently wondered if she should make a run for it or if that would end in her death. She stayed still, deeming that the best option, awkward and probably about to die is better than being dead. Afterall, the Shadowsinger wasn’t known for his kindness or compassion. No, the male was a force to be reckoned with, a creature of death.

A dark part of her wasn’t scared of that darkness, yearned for that blissful tragedy. . . A broken porcelain looking for a shard to fit perfectly, no matter how chipped and uneven, hoping that one day she’ll be one for, once more, not just as thousand tiny pieces.

Suddenly—a sharp noise could be heard from inside, startling both fae. The orchestra had begun their final piece for the night, the music started off soft but got louder and louder by the minute, building to its crescendo. The Shadowsinger turned to her slowly, an indescribable emotion could be found in his eyes—like a rock in the ocean, lonely, all it’s ever heard is the crashing of waves. . . Y/N didn’t know what compelled her to do what she did that night but by the time she did It, she wasn’t regretting it. But she surely would the next day.

-

Azriel’s POV

He sucked in a sharp breath as the strange female held out a hand to him, an invitation—an offering of companionship, the Spymaster was too far from words to decline as he took her fair hand in his scarred one. Both the female’s hands rested gently on his shoulders and he put his on her waist in return, Azriel couldn’t breathe properly as they started moving, his shadows singing to a song even he couldn’t hear—but as they danced in the pale moonlight that seeped through the cracks, illuminating them like a spotlight, he let all his worries wash away.

Gone until only they remained, his blood thrumming as the crescendo built and built. He found himself doing what he’d always hated to watch—to dance, the male now realised why so many loved to dance, why they laughed as they were spun, drank in the smiles of their partners until they were too drunk to waltz. It was beautiful and wholly mesmerising, the dance of a shadow and his moon.

Tears lined his eyes faintly as he watched her, as she watched him—he swore his heart stopped in his chest when the crescendo shattered, bursting into a million little notes. Even when the music stopped, when everyone went to bed—or other people’s beds—they stayed like that, slowly moving around, her head resting on his shoulder. Beauty and the beast, he thought to himself, a dove falling for a raven. Perfectly imperfect.

Shadow and light, sun and moon, brought together in a great symphony that only they were apart of.

The End.

Authors note: I’m so sorry everyone for being so inactive, I’ve had the biggest writers block but I decided to push myself and get this fic out, it’s been sitting in my drafts for months now and I thought it was time they were brought to life, I apologise again if this series goes on hiatus so please don’t pressure me. Thanks for all the love and support, you guys are incredible <3

—Vi xX

Taglist-

@shadowsingercassia

@mellowmusings

Let me know if you’d like to be added to the Taglist for this series or all my fic’s!

[lesbiansforboromir]

Bad news everybody I do have to make another post about War of the Rohirrim THERE IS A SCENE! Where Hera corners Helm in the stables just before the battle of Edoras. And she's like FÁTHER I will fight for my people and he's like NAY CHILD do not be absurd etc etc it's like the film's thesis statement (although then it turns out to be vital that Hera was forced to remain in Edoras and her presence there ensures all of the citizens escape safely so... Helm was right to enforce feminine gender roles on his daughter I guess? NEVERMIND, NOT WHAT THE POST IS ABOUT)

WITHIN this discussion HELM SAYS; "One day, you will marry, you will live in Gondor and have children who know nothing of our ways. [-] It would please me [to send you to Gondor] you will be alive because I will have protected you." AND GANG THE LAYERS... THE LAYERS OF INANE RIDICULOUS IMPLICATIONS I-

Fuck Rohan I guess! I suppose based on, idk VIBES, we have decided this country is constantly at war and suffering is a part of it's 'ways' and it's an inherrently unsafe and undesirable place to live and THE BEST WAY TO PROTECT YOUR DAUGHTERS ☝️ IS TO SEND THEM............ TO GONDOR 👉.

You know, fuckiing GONDOR??

GONDOR

This was really the icing on the cake for me in terms of the shallowness of investment in the narratives of these countries. AGAIN, Gondor is also at war right now if you go by book canon, in fact Rohan's war is literally an orchestrated distraction to STOP THEM GOING TO HELP GONDOR! This was a combined and coordinated assault by The Enemy to get around Gondor and Rohan's extremely successful alliance! It's destruction being the main purpose of the conflict!! Even the unending winter was thought to be a sorcerous machination by the enemy!

But no, we are taking Faramir's 'they love war' schpiel entirely at face value, ignoring all actual historical events that contradict him, and Rohan has to be this grim hollywood-stereotype of vaguely nordic warlords who do not value peace, hate prosperity as 'indulgent' and must therefore be constantly imperilled. MEANWHILE Gondor, being 'civilised' but of course also indolent has had a thousand years of peace to laze about and if Hera WERE to marry 'a Gondorian Prince' like, idk, Beregond son of Steward Beren, well! She'd never see war again in her life! I'm sure Beregond's title of 'greatest Captain of war since Steward Boromir' was just like... a vanity thing or something!!! DON'T!!! WORRY ABOUT IT!!!

[freyafrida]

so funny how there's this jem/faith/walter triangle in rainbow valley and the start of rilla and then it just straight up doesn't go anywhere

[sailorskunk]

@ the antis in the tags, have you guys even played fallout? you realize most of the choices you get in game can be pretty shit? there's rarely a happy/or normal ending to various quests? factions are violent and often times morally fucked? out of multiple romanceable players, there's usually a ghoul?

like. stop. gtfo of the tags and live your lives and stop shaming people. the weird, messed up stuff is fake, it's not real, it isn't real life, has no implications for real life. IT'S NOT FUCKING REAL. IT LITERALLY MEANS NOTHING. IT IS ENTERTAINMENT. you're not holier than the rest of the fandom because you can sus out that certain factions are not cool, or that a ship isn't for everyone.

like. get over yourselves. completely brain dead to even be worried about how shitty some factions are or how fucked up the ghoul was toward lucy and that some people still like to ship them. go outside holy fuck

[riddlerosehearts]

not liveblogging my reactions to the nightmare before christmas event just because liveblogging takes so much extra time that i only like to do it for the main story. but i do have to say i saw someone on twitter complain about "idia randomly going outside without ortho Because Plot" and now that i see what they were talking about, i... think that's a good thing actually? this is like, something he NEEDS to grow into being capable of doing for his own sake and i'm glad we're seeing him actively make progress?? it's a secondhand book fair, he was probably lured there by the possibility of finding rare out of print and/or special edition manga (edit: LMAO wait he confirms this himself 5 minutes later! he says he was there looking for the first print of his favorite classic manga!) and it probably took an EXTREME amount of coaxing from ortho to get him to go by himself. also it's not like his anxiety is just gone and he's totally normal and fine without ortho now. he literally popped in like THIS and then immediately wooshed away the second another human being acknowledged his existence 😭

[nobodybetterlookatme]

I've never heard of emts working only at events? What's that like for you if you don't mind my asking?

Yeah, there are ambulance companies that staff certain events, but there's some event specific companies out there lmao. For me specifically, it's almost entirely college events, whether it's happening on a campus or not. It's not great, usually pretty boring, but it's better than being on an ambulance or in a hospital. We do get actual emergencies sometimes, but usually it's just getting drunk people to the tent or giving out water and bandaids lmao. Again, boring as fuck, but I chose this over working on a 911 rig, so that's on me 😔 if I'm being so real tho, other than my coworkers, the best part of the job is the food lmaoooo it's so good and all the food trucks/food booths give discounts or free food to us depending on the location and event. And there's almost always a ton of downtime, so I basically just get paid to sit there and vibe for the most part

[daz4i]

bro i didn't even know my city has a public library. apparently it's like a 5 minutes walk away from my house too. what

[warmhappycat]

re: ur tags on that one post. ngl i technically think that In Canon snape is a good person in that i think jkr wanted us to think he’s a good person but ur right that anyone w a brain should b able to realize how much he sucks ass. sometimes canon does stupid things and also sometimes canon takes very bad moral stances. anyway fuck jkr

You’re right, you’re beautiful, and I love you.

[uni-seahorse-572]

just finished aftg and was anyone going to tell me that it's a comedy

[anaalnathrakhs]

it's cool it's cool i'm just wondering if life could be good if i got like, help sometimes. if i didn't have to live with a painfully incompatible family. if there were enough ressources for everybody's mental health struggles. if i didn't live in a system that's supposed to crush anyone who doesn't work. if i could have time and freedom to figure out what to do with my life. if i didn't start having problems really early that influenced the very way i AM at my core for probably a very very long time.

[maddie-grove]

I cannot describe to you the relief I felt when I got into the car this afternoon to go to the library and realized that I had already finished the audiobook of The House in the Cerulean Sea and therefore did not have to listen to more of it.

[kingdomoftyto]

"Carlos, if you could just pause your experiment for a second--if you could only hear me out, hear my hypothesis! I think once you understand the science of the situation, you--" Carlos opened the door. He was crying. She had never seen him cry. He was overwhelmed and unsure of how to express his emotions, since he usually only did so in carefully worded sentences, not with water from his body. "The science of the situation?" he snarled. "That Otherworld. I was trapped there, Nilanjana. I couldn't see Cecil for ten lonely years. I was kept away from the people I love, in that desolate place where you never get hungry and you never have to drink water and so you never live. It is a place that devours. It is a place that is empty. That is the science of the situation, and I study it so I can fix it. Only I can do that. Only these experiments can do that. I'm sorry, Nilanjana; I'm not going to stop so you can tell me what science is."

🫠

[bitchthefuck1]

I feel like everybody has at least one highly specific AU that just rotates in their brain 24/7 like a rotisserie chicken

[dovedrangeas]

the internet is a stupid place because you can see someone get accused of "openly supporting child porn" just because they like. post their works on ao3

[onenotsubtle]

emotional about my favorite book on this Midnight On Monday