#-for me I feel like you would also tell me it isn't really a good date if only one of us are enjoying ourselves and would rule out-

[rooniearts]

Metal Wins Asks 1: Initial Reactions

YALL TORE ME APARRRTTTT IN THE ASKBOX LOL THANK YOU FOR ALL THE RESPONSES!!! I'm glad to see that the AU has been well received despite it all! :'D I already have enough asks about it (TWENTY SEVEN!!!!!!!!!!!!) to justify a longpost, so here goes!

Any trigger warnings that pertain to the Metal Wins AU are gonna apply here in the discussion, just so you're warned. You can find the warning under my pinned post

@railway323

IM SORRAYYYYYYY,,,, IT HAD TO HAPPENNNNN,,,,

@zezodacol

yeahh,,,, yeahhhh,,,....,..,

@akaneenaka33

Unfortunately, it's gonna have to be cruel and unusual punishment for now :') This AU works differently from my other ones in the sense that this one has a bit of a running story to it, so I can't tell you much without spoiling things.

The basic premise is that this incident happens and everyone has to navigate how they cope with it, Metal included. Some find their way through, while others continue to spiral downwards to rock bottom.

MY BABY BOYYY!!!!!!!!! MY LITTE GUYYYYY!!!!! AUUGHHHHH

@niyana-the-ambiguous-mobian

The true answer is that I just thought Metal looked really cool whenever I put blood on him and then it just kinda went downhill from there </3

So. Metal killed him and brought him there to mess with Sonic. That's about the lore I can give you about it for now unfortunately, except for the few other bits and pieces throughout the rest of this post :')

@sanicdetails

YOU KNOW WHAT. Good point. All crimes have been forgiven <3

@sparkyboi

NEVERRRR!!!! IF SEGA CAN KILL TAILS THEN SO CAN I!!!!!!!

BWUH,,,, Tails nation please don't publicly execute me I would be so very sad

@disgruntled-rat

YAYYY thank goodness...... I may rejoin my people..............

@thatbirdguyy

Unfortunately for our little guy, it is by decree of the author that he Must suffer. It is simply inevitable for any Tails enthusiast to put him through the wringer </3

ALSO YO?? I love your art and au sm! :D I'm so glad you find mine interesting too!! <3

@thecustomcosplayed

HE DID NOTHING WRONGGG THATS THE WORST PART,,, MY POOR LIL GUY DOESN'T DESERVE THISSSS

Ohohhhh yess ! I too love me a good whump au or two

Oh, he was long gone before Metal even showed up with him :( There was nothing they could've done

@cheeseburgerhelper

See, Metal wanted an efficient kill, but the problem is that Tails isn't about to go down without a fight. That's why he got so brutal, and also why he's sporting some scuffs and dents.

@humble-introvert0808

LMAOOO NOO MY GIRL AMY 😭 I do really enjoy this response to seeing me kill off my blorbo baby boy being "ooohh do mine next!! do mine next!!" bcus it's so so real

I prob won't do anything like that anytime soon, but rest assured that Amy's a MAJOR player in this AU and gets to be sad asf a LOT <3

@anactualfuckingnerd

Well. Yes. But I get the feeling that it's not what the most of y'all are looking for rn because Metal does, in fact, NOT get obliterated immediately :'D

Sonic WISHES he could've pulverized Metal on the spot, but no, he lost the fight and Metal got away. Sure, he was mad, but more angry =/= better at fighting

The next part (which I'm currently working on!) will go over this, but basically it was a fit of jealous rage. A "if I can't have this, then you can't either" type of thing.

But you're right. The real Sonic would NEVER have done that. Metal's realization of this fact is the basis that sets off his character arc and exploring that is what half of this AU is all about :]

(I use any pronouns for my version of Metal! I tend to mostly use he/him before character growth, and mostly they/them and she/her after, but y'all can use whatever)

YEAH they are fighting an uphill battle for that redemption arc after this one :') They fucked up BADDDDDD and they KNOW it.

LMAOOASDFGH,,, It's definitely a slow climb for her :'D All will be revealed in due time!

HELP NOOOO NOT THE BLAME SHIFTIIINGGG!!!! HES THE BLAME SHIFTER!!!!!!

I think he might have, like, a twinge of resentment towards him about it, but on some level he does understand that Silver had no earthly chance of knowing even if he is from the future. That, and Silver's like one of the only people who are willing to go along with his murder death revenge quest, so he can't afford to piss him off lol

Even still, I'm sure it comes out as snide remarks once in a while though :')

@i-only-created-this-to-read

The Tornado is fine! It's probably just sitting in Tails' hangar, collecting dust. No one can bear looking at it right now.

And oof. That's actually hard to say! I don't think I can accurately place it in a specific game timeline, unfortunately. But I can say that Sage isn't here nor has she been created yet (as much as I love her </3 but my co-auther hasn't played Frontiers) Eggman will behave much like he does in IDW, if that gives you a good reference point.

Eggman is very much alive, and we will see him! But no, he's NOT happy about any of this. We'll see this explored later, but yes, he absolutely sees Metal as a liability now that he's gone and painted such a HUGE target on their backs. And also little mad that he acted autonomously and took away a potential asset/victory from him.

From what I've heard, he needs either the real or fake set of Chaos Emeralds to do that....??? And right now he has neither, so no, unfortunately not :') He's never once allowed near any of the emeralds, because his friends know he's crashing out and will hurt himself and others if he goes super/dark. They spend the whole time playing Emerald Hot Potato to keep them from him lol

Sonic absolutely drops his whole being the better person shtick IMMEDIATLY though, at least regarding Metal. He's gone too far, and now there's no more second chances for him. As far as Sonic's concerned, Metal is to be destroyed on sight.

YES! Or, at least, Shadow tries. He tries to reach out, and he tries to help him cope, but Sonic just isn't open to it. He's not in a headspace to be able to receive any advice at all.

@i-only-created-this-to-read

Honestly, I like to think Amy probably came crying to him and told him about it pretty much immediately, and that he becomes one of the biggest comforts to her during all of this. He seems like he'd be a great listener and give some top tier advice <3

@anactualfuckingnerd

LMAOOOO yeahh,,.,,, Valid reaction

[dreaming-of-epiphanies]

𝓛𝓸𝓬𝓴𝓮𝓭 𝓞𝓾𝓽

Description: Slytherin!Reader and academic rival!Tom get locked out of the common room late one night. Things get tense and... slightly risqué. (Reader x Tom, academic rivals with tension)

A/N: So this kind of took a turn I didn't intend for it to when I started writing it, but I can't say I'm mad about it. This is also longer than I meant for it to be (final word count is 4231 words which isn't super long but longer than I thought it would be) but stick around til the end if you want some pretty good tension!

Warnings: Suggestiveness (nothing terrible but enough to warrant a warning).

--

The library was dead silent as you bent over your parchment, your quill scribbling furiously across the page as you tried to finish the twenty-five inch essay you’d forgotten about until the night before it was due. It really wasn’t your fault; you’d been too preoccupied with studying for your Defence exam to remember about the mammoth of an essay Dumbledore had assigned until your friend had made an offhand comment about it. The next second, you were taking off at full speed for the library. Transfiguration was your first class tomorrow, so you had to finish this essay tonight. 

You had been at the library since classes had finished and you didn’t even know what time it was, but you assumed it was late considering how deserted the desks around you were. Still, you were determined to reach the end of your parchment.

You had written nearly twenty-four inches by now, and the final inch shouldn’t have taken much longer if it weren’t for a sharp sigh interrupting your focus. 

Your eyes immediately cut up to the person standing next to you, who was standing with his arms crossed and looking disapprovingly down at you, his eyes dark and mouth turned down at the corners. 

“You are here exceedingly past curfew,” he remarked, eyes narrowed and stupid prefect badge glistening on his chest. 

“I’m writing an essay, Riddle,” you said dryly, gesturing to the parchment in front of you. He didn’t pull his eyes away from yours. 

“I can see that. However, it is nearly two-thirty in the morning. You were supposed to have returned to your common room three hours ago.” He pointed out and you rolled your eyes, turning back to your work. 

“I’m almost finished. I’ll be back before three-thirty, if it makes you feel better.” You said sardonically and you felt his glare on the back of your head. 

“It does not. What assignment are you even working on, pray tell?” He asked, voice rife with exasperation as he leaned down, reading your work. You quickly tried to shield it, knowing the absolute wrath he was going to give you if he realised you were writing-

“The Transfiguration essay?” He said in disbelief. You threw him an annoyed look. “That is due tomorrow!” 

“Technically today,” you muttered, bending back over your parchment as he let out a frustrated groan. 

“How are you competing with me for top of our class if you wait until the night before assignments are due to complete them?” He muttered to himself with a perplexed shake of his head. 

“Because most times I don’t have annoying prefects hovering around me while I’m trying to finish them,” you shot back, continuing to write. Riddle turned, leaning his back against the table you’re working on. 

“I am simply doing my job. And that job includes giving you detention if you stay out past curfew, which you have.” He pulled out a pad of paper and a quill, beginning to write up a detention slip. You immediately straightened up, eyes darting to the slip in panic. 

“No!” You objected quickly. “If you give me detention you’ll ruin my chances at being Head Girl next year!” Riddle looked at you with a bored expression, as if to say ‘does it look like I care?’ 

“Perhaps you should have thought of that before you remained here this late.” He said, continuing to write you up. You let out a groan and leaned back, running your hands through your hair. All you wanted to do was finish your essay, for Merlin’s sake, not deal with Riddle being such a prick as always. But now that you had stopped writing, you felt the exhaustion start to set in and you knew if you didn’t get back to the assignment now, you’d have to finish right before class in the morning and that would significantly lower the quality of your writing. 

“Fine, write me up! Just let me finish my essay.” You grumbled, picking up your quill again, but Riddle snatched it out of your fingers. 

“I had hoped the threat of detention would deter you from staying here, but it appears not,” he snapped, looking irritated. “However, if you come back to the common room now, I will not give you the punishment.” 

You looked up at him in annoyance. “It’s one more inch, Riddle. I’ll be done in thirty minutes if you leave me be.” You bargained, but it was clear he wasn’t budging. 

“Leave now, or I will write you up.” 

You groaned, shutting your book shut with more force than necessary and shoving your parchments in your bag. “Fine.” You grumbled, getting up.

“Come on, let’s go.” He turned on his heel, stalking towards the exit. You rolled your eyes and followed him. 

He walked you briskly back to the Slytherin common room. The halls were completely empty except for a couple ghosts and snoring portraits. The castle seemed a little foreboding at night, what with the shadowy corridors and faint creaks. Normally you returned to your dorm before it got to be this late at night.

Riddle was walking so fast you had to take two steps to keep up with his long legs. “Merlin, Riddle, think you could slow down a bit?” You panted, practically having to jog. He glanced back at you and only slightly slowed down, without a word. 

Once the chill of the dungeons settled across you and the common room door came into view, you pushed past Riddle to give the password. You had to get into your dorm and finish the essay before you fell asleep and had to work on it tomorrow.

“Obscurum,” you said confidently, only for the door to remain closed. You blinked in confusion. “Obscurum,” you repeated. Nothing happened

Riddle stepped forward, a smug smirk on his face. “The password changed at three this morning. Now you see why I encouraged you to leave when I did.” He explained, looking infuriatingly triumphant. 

“Forced to leave is more like it,” you muttered, but stepped back so he could give the password. 

“Aconite,” he drawled loudly. The door didn’t budge. You tilted your head curiously and Riddle threw a glance over his shoulder, clearing his throat almost uncomfortably. “Aconite,” he said again, trying to sound commanding. Still, the door remained closed. 

“Having some trouble, Riddle?” You asked innocently, stepping forward and crossing your arms. He looked down at you through narrowed eyes. 

“Not at all. The new password’s enchantment may have yet to set in. We simply have to wait for a few moments,” he said calmly, though he looked slightly irritated. 

“Mm,” you hummed, nodding and leaning against the wall next to him. He ignored you and waited with his hands clasped behind his back for a couple of minutes. Then, with a confidence that was only comical after what happened next, he lifted his chin and repeated the password. 

The door didn’t move. 

You laughed, shifting off the wall and putting your hands on your hips. “Sounds like I could’ve stayed in the library a bit longer after all, huh?” You grinned, enjoying Riddle’s frustrated glare at the door. 

“I do not know why the password does not seem to work,” he said in a low voice, eyes narrowed on the door in concentration. 

“Are you sure the password’s right?” You asked, and his eyes cut to yours. 

“Of course,” he said sharply, and you shrugged. 

“Doesn’t sound like it to me,” you singsonged, twirling absentmindedly around the corridor behind him. 

Riddle remained at the door for a few more minutes, muttering incantations and flipping through a small notebook from his robe pocket. You continued to wander around the corridor, mentally going through your essay and smirking every time you remembered Riddle’s mystified expression when the password didn’t work. It sucked you were stuck out here for a bit, but Merlin help you if you weren’t just a little bit satisfied he’d been knocked down a peg. 

Eventually, he turned around and cleared his throat. “If you’re quite done spinning around, I believe I have come to a conclusion.” He said unhurriedly, watching you stop pacing with a bored expression. You looked up at him expectantly, and his expression flickered into a slightly annoyed one. You bit back a smirk- you always seemed to have that effect on him. 

“It appears we are locked out,” he said, and your smug smile dropped. 

“Until when?” You exclaimed, and now it was Riddle’s turn to look smug at your visible agitation. 

“Until somebody leaves the common room, of course.” He said, and made a dramatic show of looking at his watch, clicking his tongue with a shake of his head at what he saw. “Which will not be until seven at the earliest.” 

Your jaw dropped and you stared at him and his stupid little smirk. Until seven?! You’d barely have time to get dressed and eat breakfast before class, let alone finish your essay! 

“Sounds like you could have left the library earlier, does it not?” He said, mocking your words from earlier. You scoffed. 

“This isn’t even my fault. You’re the prefect who doesn’t know the next password.” You countered, and Riddle’s eyes flashed with annoyance. 

“They must have changed it again and neglected to notify me,” he snapped.

“Oh yes, I’m sure they waited until you had the password memorised to change it,” you said sarcastically, nodding wisely. “Oh come on, Riddle. You obviously just remembered it wrong.”

“I did not remember it wrong,” he immediately said sharply. “I do not remember things wrong.”

“You’re very humble, aren’t you?”

“The password is right, I guarantee you,” he said again, and you cocked an eyebrow. “I did not mis-remember it.”

“Then how do you explain this?” You asked, waving a hand at the still-closed door. He glared at you, taking a step closer and you felt your breath catch for some reason. 

“I am not wrong.” He repeated, voice low and eyes dark as they bored into yours. You swallowed and took a step back, putting your hands up in a mock ‘surrender’ gesture. 

“Alright, whatever you say,” you said with more nonchalance than you feel. You spun on your heel and dropped down next to your bag, pulling your parchment and quill out as you tried to shrug off the strange racing of your heart. 

“Are you working on your essay again?” You heard Riddle ask after a minute, still standing over you.

“You’re quite observant,” you muttered, dipping your quill into the inkpot balancing precariously on your bag. 

“You could always wait until the morning,” he pointed out and you looked up at him with a raised eyebrow. 

“Were you not just on me for procrastinating in the library? Besides, if I wait to write it in the morning it’ll sound horrible.” 

“You are sitting on the corridor floor at three in the morning writing an essay you should have finished a week ago. I believe you are past the point of worrying about the quality of your work.” He drawled.

“I appreciate the concern. I’m still going to write this now, though.” You said dismissively, already beginning to write another sentence. 

“I highly doubt it will turn out the way you want it to.” He warned.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m a terrible procrastinator who still manages to beat you in nearly everything you do,” you shrugged, dipping your quill in the ink again, and waving a hand at Riddle. “Go away, I need to concentrate.”

He sighed. “You’re impossible.”

“And you’re still talking.”

Riddle wandered away from you as you worked to finish your essay. It didn’t take you too long, considering you were almost done in the first place, and by the time you put away your quill and neatly rolled up your parchment, it was still only three forty-five. Three hours and fifteen minutes till we can get inside. 

You sat against the wall for a bit, trying to entertain yourself by mentally reviewing for your upcoming Herbology exam, but after a while you got bored and with nothing better to do, you decided to go annoy Riddle. 

You found him sitting at the bottom of the stairs leading to the dungeons, reading a book. “Don’t you have any more corridors to prowl?” You asked, skipping over and sitting down next to him, leaning up against the cool stone wall. He looked up but didn’t close his book.

“My prefect duty ended at three,” he explained. “Hence why I walked you back.”

“So you would’ve been locked out even if you hadn’t walked me back?”

“Precisely.”

“Well, at least you have company.” 

He eyed you, looking irked. “Unfortunately.” He agreed and you smirked, leaning your head back against the wall. 

“Don’t sound so enthusiastic, Riddle, or I’ll think you don’t actually hate me.” You joked, stretching your legs out with a yawn. He surveyed you with something like exasperation in his gaze before returning to reading his book. 

The two of you sat in silence like that for a while, him reading his book and you staring off into space, feeling yourself get sleepier and sleepier until-

Your head nearly fell onto Riddle’s shoulder and you started awake, blinking your eyes quickly to keep yourself from dozing off again. 

Riddle looked up at you in mild concern. “Are you quite alright?” He asked, eyes narrowed as he looked at you. You realised the two of you were sitting fairly close together- close enough you could see the moonlight reflecting in his eyes and smell the musky vanilla of his cologne.

It actually smells quite nice, you noticed, and then immediately leaned away. 

“Yeah, I’m fine! Just almost fell asleep.” You said cheerfully, drumming your fingers. Riddle nodded and looked back down at his book. You intended to resume your blank stare-off into space before you found yourself watching him, noticing the way he always kept two fingers behind the page he was on, the way his hair fell slightly out of place with his head bent down, and how his eyes appeared more of a light brown than the mahogany you always pictured them to be. 

Since when have I been picturing Riddle’s eyes?! You thought with a start, shaking your head slightly to clear it and instead continuing to study Riddle. His prefect badge was fastened perfectly to his robe (of course), but his tie was slightly wonky and you were possessed by a sudden desire to reach out and straighten it for him, wondering if you’d be able to feel the warmth of his skin through his shirt. 

What?! Now that is not a normal thing to wonder, you looked away, focusing on a snoozing portrait across the hall. Get yourself together, you chided yourself, before finding your eyes wandering back to Riddle’s form. 

I need a distraction. “Put your book down, Riddle, and entertain me.” You said suddenly, getting to your feet and clapping your hands together. 

He didn’t even look up. “No thank you.” 

You rolled your eyes. “Well, I’m not the one who got us locked out, so come on.” You said, grabbing his arm and tugging him up. He let out an audible sigh before setting his book to the side and allowing you to pull him up. 

“How do you suggest I keep us awake?” He drawled, and your mind immediately jumped to a scenario in which you were pressed against a wall and Riddle’s mouth was-

“Figure it out.” You said, turning away from him to lean against the wall. He stood there for another moment before taking a step closer. 

“Perhaps we could review for the Herbology exam next week,” he suggested, and your eyes cut to him in surprise before you could stop them. 

“Together?” You asked abruptly and he nodded. “But you never study with other people. Something about ‘your own skills reigning supreme’?”

Riddle rolled his eyes. “It was a rumour I said that, but yes, I do not make it a habit to study with other students.” He explained. 

“But you will with me?”

“You are different.”

“I’m ‘other students’.” You pointed out, but he shook his head. 

“However much it astounds me, you are top of the year, as am I. That is what makes you different.” He said, and you felt a slight twinge of disappointment it wasn’t because he enjoyed your company or wanted to spend time with you or-

Shut up. 

“Thanks for the almost-compliment,” you said dryly, and he rolled his eyes yet again, shoving his hands in his pockets. “But you know what, I’m not in the mood to study.”

“What did you have in mind, then?” He asked quietly, eyes glinting, and for a second you wondered if he’s thinking about the same less-than appropriate scenario you were earlier. Surely the steps he was taking closer were just by chance and not because he was trying to be near you. There must be a perfectly normal explanation for why his head seemed to be tilting down and why his gaze was dropping to your lips-

“Tell me something I don’t know about you,” you blurted out, and he stopped his slow approach, looking slightly surprised. 

“Why?” He asked, leaning back slightly. 

“Uh…” you blinked up at him, at a loss for a good explanation. “Why not?”

“You are very strange.” 

“Go ahead and tell me instead of insulting me, why don’t you?” You said wryly and he sighed, nodding his head in thought. 

“I suppose I could tell you why I am completely sure that was the correct password,” he mused, and you looked up curiously. He looked down at your intrigued expression and smirked slightly. “It was impossible for me to remember it incorrectly,” he explained. “I have a photographic memory.”

Your eyes widened at this. “What?” You said, dumbfounded, and Riddle simply nodded. You stared at him for a second longer before a realisation occured to you. “So you’re not a genius!” You exclaimed, and he looked at you in confusion. 

“What do you mean?” 

“Everyone thinks you’re top of the year because you study a bunch and work really hard. But you just read something once and memorise it- that’s not hard work, that’s just a lucky skill you have!” You explained, and he rolled his eyes. 

“I still study and complete extra research, you know,” he told you and you waved a hand dismissively. “It is still hard work.”

“Yeah, yeah. But if you didn’t have a photographic memory, I’d be top of the year!” 

“That is not true!” Riddle protested and you laughed, crossing your arms and tilting your head back on the wall.

“Sure, Riddle,” you smirked, biting your lip to hold back a laugh. His eyes cut down to the movement for a split second before they came back up to meet yours. 

“What about you?” He asked immediately and you looked up, still revelling in the knowledge he gave you. “Tell me something I do not know about you.”

“Oh,” you said, caught off guard. You cast your mind around before narrowing your eyes slightly. “Hold on. Why?”

“You asked me, did you not?” He answered simply. 

“Yeah, but I was under the impression you hated me. People don’t try to learn new things about the people they hate.”

“I have never hated you,” he said, looking almost offended. “I simply find you infuriating and a nuisance when it comes to academics.”

“That makes me feel so much better.”

“Oh, come on,” he sighed and you smirked before he fixed you with an intent look. 

“You said people do not inquire about those they hate, yet you did so for me. Is that to imply you do not hate me?” He said, and you felt your mouth go dry. You didn’t think about this particular complication when you gave him that explanation. In truth, you were trying to ignore the slight fluttering in your stomach when he asked about you. He was your academic rival, for Merlin’s sake, not a boy for you to get a schoolgirl crush on.

“I don’t hate you, I just find you maddening when it comes to academics,” you said, parroting back what he said to you earlier. He smirked, stepping closer. 

“Using my own words against me,” he drawled, eyes narrowing as he moved in such a way he blocked out the moonlight streaming in from the window. Now all you could see was the outline of his body. “And here I thought you were more creative than that, what with your… overactive imagination.” 

“My what?” You said, confused, and his smirk widened. 

“Really, darling?” He said, and your heart jumped into your throat at the nickname and his proximity. He was nearly toe to toe with you now, and you could barely breathe. “I thought you were smarter than that. Could you not feel me probing your mind?”

Your eyes widened at the implication. Legilimency. “I thought it was just a headache from exhaustion,” you breathed, and he tilted his head, shaking it slightly disapprovingly. 

“Mm,” he tsked, backing you completely against the wall. “I heard you. I heard all of your thoughts. Tell me, are my eyes copper and not mahogany as you pictured?” 

Your breath hitched. “I…”

“And what exactly were you doing while you were picturing them, hm?” He leaned down so close you could feel his breath hot against your cheeks. He lightly brushed his nose against one side of your face before moving to the other side, his eyes fixed on yours. 

“I…”

“Use your words, darling,” he murmured, one of his hands coming to rest lightly on your shoulder. It was heavy and warm and you felt every thought leave your brain, your senses taken over by every point of burning contact of his skin on yours. “Tell me what you want.”

“I want…” your voice trailed off as his other hand came up to touch your neck, his fingers pushing into your hair and his thumb brushing the length of your jaw. He tilted your head up slightly. 

“Do you want this?” He dipped his head, mouth hovering over throat and you could feel his words rumbling against you. You imagined him pressing his lips to your neck, moving them on your collarbone and across the slope of your shoulder, his hands sliding down over you and the intoxicating scent of his cologne overwhelming you as-

“I can hear you, but I need you to say it.” He chuckled, pulling his head up to meet your eyes with his. They were looking at you with such darkness you felt frozen against the wall as he towered above you.

“Say what you want,” he repeated, hand tightening slightly on your jaw. “Tell me what you want me to do to you.”

You finally found your voice. “I want you to kiss-”

But before you could finish your sentence, you heard the telltale creak of the common room door opening. Instantly, Riddle stepped back and his hands fell from your body as he straightened his robes. You forced yourself to turn and look at the door, though you could hardly think straight. 

A fourth year student stepped out, looking nervous but exhilarated at the same time. They were clearly sneaking out, and their face fell as soon as they saw Riddle, standing there looking all angry and imposing. 

“Detention.” He said immediately, pulling out his pad of paper and Summoning a quill. He scratched up a note while the guilty student stood there, looking abashed. They took it as soon as Riddle put the note into their hand, turning on their heel and scurrying back into the common room. Riddle caught the door before it swung closed.

“We can go inside now,” he said, not looking at you. You continued to stand there against the wall, still in shock from what happened earlier. You weren’t not sure if you trusted yourself to move at this point, but Riddle clearly expected you to from the slightly impatient look he gave you when he finally met your eyes. 

You grabbed your bag and hurried into the common room, waiting for him to step in and the door to close before turning to look at him. He stared back at you, not saying a word. 

“Is there something I can help you with?” He asked, and you blinked. Was he going to pretend like nothing had happened? Like he hadn’t just nearly kissed you? Or… almost done whatever he clearly had wanted to do? 

“Uh,” you swallowed, suddenly parched. “No. I’ll just be going to bed.” 

He nodded. “Have a nice rest of your night,” he said, and you stood there for a couple of seconds longer before it became clear he was waiting for you to leave first. 

“Goodnight,” you said, voice slightly strained, before hurrying up the stairs to the dormitories, trying not to take two steps at a time. 

Before you disappeared into your room, you risked a glance down at Riddle and saw him already looking at you. You froze, hand immobilised on the banister of the stairs. Neither of you broke your gaze for a moment, but then he blinked and looked away, breaking the trance, and you raced down the hall to your room. 

What the hell?

--

A/N (again): Sooo I realize it's set up pretty well for a part 2. Let me know if anyone wants one!

Tags (aka my favorite Tom Riddle blogs!): @viperify @sunder-soul @anawritez-posts @tomriddlehyperfixataion @riddleswhcre @cardansriddle

[pagesfromthevoid]

Bob + Drawing Headcanons

Quick note: So I wrote in my piece last night that one of the things Bob does to distract himself is draw. Here’s some headcanons for that PLUS some bonus for something else towards the end 👀

He doesn’t draw anything special; usually just spirals or doodles.

Think like what you would draw in the margins of your math notes

No one really comments on them. They’re not great; it’s not like he’s some hidden artist

He just likes the sound of the pen on the paper and the feel of it in his hand. It’s a nice numbing feeling when things are overwhelming

He draws the logos for the team —Bucky and Alexei’s stars, Yelena’s Widow mark, Walker’s shield, Ava’s mask. Doesn’t draw his; he doesn’t like it anyway. They’re not good drawings —let me make that clear. Very 2000s-esque binder decor vibes

But it helps, and he enjoys it. So the team will always have extra little notepads on hand during meetings in case he needs one or forgets his

He likes the idea of coloring but it feels childish, so he doesn’t bother with it

Until you join the team, and you’re covered in (what he assumes) are unfinished tattoos

They’re not; they’re just line work tattoos. No colors, just a bit of shading and the outline

Bob finds himself drawing the likes of your tattoos with his eyes when you’re not looking, then tries to recreate them in his notebook.

He wonders what it would feel like to trace them with his fingers --though that thought usually ends poorly because he imagines you naked, covered in tattoos, and his hands tracing all of them --even the ones he can't see.

During a meeting one day, he notices that Yelena is taking a highlighter to some of the tattoos on your arm and you're letting her

Everyone is bored, no one wants to be there. So you're enjoying the distraction yourself as you take a different highlighter to another one of your tattoos.

He'd never considered you coloring your own tattoos, or letting anyone else do it.

The next day, the colors are washed away and you're back to a clean slate and he...he can't help it.

"Can I...you let Yelena draw on you yesterday. Can I?" He asks, and he feels like he sounds stupid because what a weird thing to ask someone. But you just grin and nod, telling him he's welcome to do whatever because you like when people color your tattoos in

And thus starts what Walker calls the living coloring book

When Bob isn't doodling, he's filling in the line work on your arms and shoulders and hands --deliberate and careful --with markers that you eventually get him that are actually safe to use on skin

He likes that he can touch you in a way that's kind of productive while also still close. It's grounding in a way that doesn't scare him or worry him that he's going to suck you into a shame room

He also likes that you like it too.

You sit next to him on purpose now, no matter where you are. You usually wear sleeveless things, just because you like showing off you tattoos anyway, but now you make a conscious choice to do so for Bob (you wore a shirt that was like 3/4 sleeve once and he was so worried about pushing your sleeve up out of the way that he just stopped below your elbow)

It's probably silly, but he likes that he's able to be this close to you --it makes it easier when he finally gets brave enough to tell you he has a crush on you

Definitely makes it easier when you tell him you figured; but that you liked him too

[crushedsweets]

Okay, but like, realistically, how would the Creeps having a partner (who isn't a proxy or associated with Slender/The Operator) even work? I mean, they're serial killers, and the whole Slender Sickness stuff would probably make that even harder, right? I feel like a lot of people would be scared off once they found out their partner was actually a murderer. Would the Creeps even try to convince them to stay?

(I have no idea where I was going with this. I pray it makes sense.)

ok fine x reader work from me YOU GOT ME.

ok jk i might use 2nd person/"you" cos its easier. but this isnt purposefully x reader content cos thats not my niche + i struggle with writing romance LOL . and a lot of these r very unhealthy dynamics, cos im not writing for romance, just answering the prompt

im not covering laari, ben, sally, dina, ann, or lulu in this cos theyre either children or not fit for a relationship (well nobody in this damn au is but ykwim)

FOR THE PROXIES... im imagining you meet them cos they come into your job. maybe a diner or grocery store or something

tim would have to get a partner completely by accident. as in, he's a regular at a diner and keeps getting the same server - and the server would have to make the first moves. it's not that he doesn't notice if someone's attractive or kind or something, but he idea of romance sounds so...unfair to him? unfair to whoever he's inflicting his life on. fearful of infecting them, etc - so you'd have to be really persistent, or really phenomenal for him to push. LOL. he'd try everything in his power to prevent you getting involved with the forest - which unfortunately makes him a less than ideal partner. wont explain why he's gone for so long besides "work" (which, to be fair, he's a truck driver in my au so its true most of the time). wont explain why he only hangs out with brian. why he's stuck in a shoddy apartment rooming with the same guy from college. why he's stood you up on a few dates. he'll apologize and mean it, trying to make up for it in some gifts and late night drives.

if he somehow fucked up and let you in on his life, he'd try to lie and lie and lie. he doesn't want you to know. he'll blame others, or try to convince you you're seeing things, misunderstanding - and frankly, he'll leave you if he thinks there's no turning back. an apology and half-honest conversation telling you he cant do this anymore. for your safety, for his job, etc etc - he wont hold on. if you love something let it go he sayssss

brian is kinda similar, in the sense that he isn't purposefully seeking out a relationship, but if you were to keep bumping into him and flirting every time, he probably couldn't help himself much if he found you attractive. he'll give you his number and entertain you, but he doesn't have intentions to maintain a long-term, serious relationship - HOWEVER, if it got that far, he'd be a bit messier than tim. tim will gladly look like a shitty partner if it protects his s/o, but brian hates that idea. he feels like an asshole and just wants to make you happy and be with you, but fuuuuuck DUTY CaLLS I GUESS. the issue with this is that, while he might come see you more often, he's also coming disheveled. dirty jeans, mysterious gloves, weird red spots, a gun in his backseat - his response to that depends on your nosiness and persistence

and if your nosiness and persistence resulted in you finding out what happened (he'd keep lying until you completely trap him in his lies) then maybe. maybe he'd come clean. only if you two are VERY serious. and in a way, part of him just ... expects you to stay. he's been a good boyfriend, and if he can prove to you this is some supernatural entity destroying his life and he isn't maliciously hurting people, (plus he will downplay his kill count drastically, if he even admits to it), then why wouldnt you stick it out?

but if you were deadset on leaving? welp. he's not begging

toby is. interesting actually im not too sure. honestly i HC that he really does want the whole white-picket-fence family lifestyle, but its a VERY repressed desire. completely buried it. i also HC that he's kinda pathetic when it comes to romance, so he develops short, fleeting crushes and infatuations pretty easily. so dont flirt with him he will get too excited and itll be upsetting when he later drops it. and he's so insecure and drowning in self hatred + trust issues, it's really difficult to get anywhere with him romantically - cos one day he'll be texting nonstop, seem super interested, and the next he's ignoring you or completely dry cos he's convinced you're fucking with him. you gotta start as friends, probably, and just hope he's still interested in friendship if he had a dying crush on you. THEN you can prob progress into romance. LOL

anyhow, like brian, he messily hides his work - he'll lie about being a hunter and it helps out, but.. its just very suspicious that he wont let you come to his house. or that he keeps talking about his female roommate named kate and you cant help but raise a brow. or when he comes over with a black eye and gets really fidgety around cops. RED FLaGS. it's not like he's some hard badass player, but your mind will wander... but he tries to be a good boyfriend, even if his idea of it is warped or he's really forgetful or insecure or moody . he's not disloyal or purposefully mean

chances are you find out his job cos he has a breakdown in front of you. prob comes to you already disheveled, bloody, panicking, seeking comfort, begging you not to see him differently. he's the only proxy to completely expose himself - and unlike the others, he will beg you not to go. try to overexplain everything, dig his grave deeper, subtle threats, so on. if you accept him as is, he's elated - stuck to your hip even more than usual. if you tell him you cant, he's livid. he'll leave, but expect calls and him on your doorstep later, telling you to hear him out.

but he'll give up eventually. he can only handle so much humiliation and if he keeps getting rejected, he'll start to hate you - and he doesnt want to. he rather remember you well and hate himself

kate is difficult. getting into a relationship with her is virtually impossible because she just. . has like, no interest ? ok. not no interest. the idea of romance and love doesnt sound bad to her, but she genuinely cannot imagine herself in a relationship - she barely can comprehend she has friends. she cant really do anything for you besides awkwardly sit with you and pick at her nails. and she has a flip phone for calling the others, but she will not text - so unless youre willing to call 5 times before getting a tired "why are you calling me", youre very likely to give up on her.

even if she falls head over heels for someone and cant get them out of her head, she isnt going to call you first or reach out to spend time with you, completely convinced it would just be you doing "charity work" or something stupid she heard from toby's own self deprecation. SO GOOD LUCK. if you manage to make her your partner, she'll finally process that maybe she needs to start behaving differently LOL but be patient. its not that she doesnt love you or think about you, but she'll run through 30 reasons why calling is a bad idea before she settles on "i just wanna hear their voice"

regarding work, she doesnt know how to navigate it. asks toby for advice, but he just says "keep them from this stupid shit" and she doesnt ask for details. so she wont tell you where the cabin is, only briefly mentioning she lives with a lumberjack (panicked lie), etc. when you find out about everything (cos she's the only proxy where its a definite), she just kinda slumps. shrugs and waits for you to tell her what you want to do. if you're done, she'll feel sick to her stomach and MaYBE try to insist "but it makes it easier now that you know". ask you to not go for one night, at least, then she'll forget about you by tomorrow - so just one more night, nothings gonna happen, etc etc. up to you by that point, but it IS true, it is easier now that you know. you can meet everyone and come to the cabin now, which helps

FOR THE SUPER NaTURaL...

jack....GOOD FUCKING LUCK HE'S SWORN OFF LOVE FOREVER. im joking but like kate, he truly doesn't believe he can ever ever ever be in a relationship again - either from fear of betrayal or disgust with himself. plus, like...he can't even leave the forest. HOWEVER, if youre okay with tucking yourself away in a cabin forever, he'll be good. he makes solid money being a 'human remains disposer' on the dark web, even if 99% of it rots in a random crypto account LOL. he only does it for the meat, but ykw.

you would have to meet him through one of the other creeps or the dark web thing(but that implies ur not a normal civilian so ill skip that..). depending on who introduces you, it can change his approach - if its someone like toby or jeff, he wont think twice about you in a romantic sense. if its someone like nina or clocky, then he might silently listen to your voice and let his mind wander to a nice little life in the cabin with you - but like everyone else, youd have to be the one making advances. even if you confess, he'll gently let you down - regardless of his interest in you. "it just wouldnt work, you deserve good things, i couldnt do that to you" etc etc. but he wouldnt be able to coldly turn you away, every bit of rejection makes it clear he doesnt mean it - WHICH SUCKS. hurts to say n hurts to hear.

but by that point, if the relationship progresses, then youre good there. LOL. nothing else you can find out - to date jack, you need to know everything and be okay with it already. so yay :3

FOR THE INFECTED...

clocky. ok finally someone easier than the proxies or jack. but not easy... clocky isnt exactly against dating, but her standards are very high. one wrong sentence and shes not going to entertain you. her guard is up so , so , so very high and all she wants is to protect her peace, not entertain someone who wont make her life better - even though shes friends with a buncha weirdos who complicate it more, but whatever.

if its by time she's in her tattoo apprenticeship, she's not so opposed to just...getting lunch or coffee with someone. talking, going on a walk, buying them lunch, listening to their day. she sees beauty in the mundane, so she likes to observe mannerisms of someone if she's on a date(but she's prob not even sure its a date) and it would stress her out later on. LOL. she's so focused on her independence and building a life for herself, so it's stressful for her - but she wouldnt take it out on you. she's big on respect, and if you've been good enough to her to reach this point, then she's nver gonna disrespect you by ignoring you or speaking down on you or pretending you're unimportant.

its very easy for her to hide the whole proxy-slendy stuff, luckily. she's long been healed of O/S syndrome and since slendy didnt want her to be a proxy, she's just...living life. she comes to the proxy cabin, helps with hunting, the algoids, etc - so its very , very easy to hide that part of her life. but if it causes issues, and you're already dating, and you bring it up respectfully, she'll gently apologise and insist itll be different - and it will be, she doesnt make empty promises.

BUT if you somehow find out, then she. ok two paths. she'll break back into the scared girl she used to be and snap at you, getting aggressive, push you away, completely shut you out - somehow blame you for getting involved. or she'll just. let you go silently. no fighting, no begging, no lashing out. just let you go - but then she'd freak out to the proxies, esp toby. "you fucking assholes keep taking and taking and taking from me"

nina is easy to fall for and she's easy to fall in love. you could meet her in any situation, really , and either one of you could be the first to pursue eachother. and i. ok i cant say shes a good girlfriend. she's erratic, hypocrytical, jealous, clingy, etc - it sucks sometimes, but she can be really good provided the chance.

similar to clocky, very easy for her to hide everything - biggest issue would be her inability to keep a secret. she likes to brag and share parts of her life with everyone, so she's always talking about her "totatlly badass friends in the forest" and insisting she sees ghosts, demons, etc - which i mean. shes being honest. thats up to you if you believe her

if you find out everything, she completely expects you to be normal about it. cos why r u being weird she told you already, right?

which is why she'd freak if you took that as a reason to break up. like toby, she's gonna beg - and if she keeps begging, she'll start to hate you. it sucks and theres not much i can write abt her here cos its very straight forward - she wouldnt hide it very well, youd find out, and she expects you to stay and be normal.

jane ...doesnt interact much with the proxies. her biggest tie to the supernatural is sally, which is the only reason she has small agreements with them - so honestly. if you two were together long enough and serious enough, she'd sit you down and tell you everything. she isnt the type to lie

dating jane is difficult - this is assumign she never married mary, of course, and even in that timeline, i made mary a highschool friend of hers who took care of her after jeffs attack. if it werent for that bond, jane wouldve been so closed off - esp cos of how dedicated she is to her work.

but if you manage to get with her, she's lovely. takes good care of you, save for her workaholic habits

jeff um. ok. again, you cant date him unless youre already okay with his lifestyle, so there isnt rlly the whole "when they find out, will they leave?" but instead moreso.... "when it gets too much, will they leave?" which. ok. i think if jeff RLLY fell in love with you, like genuinely, he wouldnt kill you obviously. cos he loves you. but he's livid if you suddenly decide its too much. "the fuck you mean its too much? you put up with this bullshit for how long, and now youre giving up?" etc etc. doessnt understand why youd do that to him, especially cos he thinks hes doing really good

which. ok, good is subjective, and jeff isnt ever gonna be perfect to any extent, but again, regardless of his massive ego and other. issues. if he loves you, he's gonna try - he wants to be around you, wants to hear your laugh, etc. but it takes a lot of effort from him, even if it feels like bare minimum. which isnt good, but that explains why he gets so angry about it - and at the very least, even if he agrees to break up, he's not agreeing to letting go fully . still expects you to hang out, text, call, talk. not good

[linkspooky]

THE PHILOSOPHY OF KAGURABACHI

So, Kagurabachi is my favorite manga in shonen jump right now, but my enjoyment of it comes from a different place than most people's. While I liked the first chapter, the manga did not really click for me until chapter 17 when Chihiro was forced to recognize that his enemy had interpreted the actions of his dead father entirely differently, and he was fighting with a conviction too, even if Chihiro did not agree with that conviction.

Since then, Chihiro has slowly been changing his outlook on the world from a simple avenger to acknowledging the complexity of the world around him and this is the most interesting aspect to me - Chihiro and his changing beliefs over the course of the story.

I have been waiting in anticipation for Chihiro's reaction to learning the truth about the war, and the genocide one of the sworsman carried out with his father's weapon. We see his reaction this chapter and I was a little bit surprised to say the least.

Chihiro states that it's wrong to kill all five of the sword-bearers in order to disarm the nukes essentially, remove the potential for anyone else to cause another disaster and wipe out hundreds of thousands of more people. This seems inconsistent with something that has been Chihiro's belief since chapter one, his entire mission is to take his father's swords back in order to make sure they never end up in the wrong hands and can't be used to hurt innocent people.

I had to ask my friend @kaibutsushidousha for Chihiro's reasoning here, but thankfully Comun is really smart and has good taste:

I feel like Chihiro is extremely influentiable. He has a lot of moral opinions inside his head, but can only use one at a time. And the one he holds changes easily depending on the most recent thing people tell him. What he's currently holding is how much he relates to Iori, so he's in it to prevent Iori from losing a father like he did Only once that's resolved that he can start thinking about his other moral opinions that conflict with this one.

When I read that I returned to the question of: what are Chihiro's morals? I finally realized the answer that Chihiro is practicing what we call moral relativism. If we dig in a little deeper we can see some of the ethics and morality that Kagurabachi is exploring in the story as a whole.

LETS TALK ABOUT ETHNICS

Moral philosophy is defined by the oxford dictionary as "sign up to pay a $9.99 subscription in order to read the rest of this article."

Moral philosophy is the study of morals. What people do, how should they act, what principles should guide their lives. Which started out all the way back with Plato who argued for the "form of the Good." Plato was theorizing on where higher-minded ideas like "justice" comes from and his conclusion is that these ideas exist as "Forms", perfect, eternal, and changeless concept existing outside of space and time.

Plato asserts that goodness is a force outside of us, that pushes us to strive towards things like justice. His argument essentially that good is inherent, that people possess the spirit of good inside of them and that drives them to seek out good.

This is what you would refer to as moral absolutes. That morals exist outside of us and they are absolute rules we should follow. "Goodness" isn't just an idea, it's a force which compels us to do good.

Rules like "Don't kill people" are absolute. They don't exist because someone wrote down in a law that it was bad to kill people, but because the moral principle of "don't kill people" is universal and should be followed by everyone.

The question is if these moral principles are absolutes then where do they come from? Plato put forward the idea of an objective moral order linked to a transcendent reality, while Aristotle believed that morality came from objectivity and human nature.

Under Christian doctrine morals are also absolute and there is an idea of good which we all strive for, but the reason those morals are absolute is because they are given to us by god. "Don't kill people" becomes "Thou must not Kill."

The opposite of moral absolutism that morals exist as a set of rigid principles that exist outside of us, is moral relativism. Moral relativists assert that there are not "objective" morals, usually following two basic principles.

1.  Moral judgments are true or false and actions are right or wrong only relative to some particular standpoint (usually the moral framework of a specific community). 2.  No standpoint can be proved objectively superior to any other. [SOURCE].

If I say "killing people is wrong no matter what the situation because human life has inherent value", I'm arguing for moral absolutism. If you rebuttal with "Chihiro was killing human traffickers, who if they had lived would have created more victims" that is an argument for moral relativism.

To dive deeper into moral relativism though, let's explore one of the biggest critics of moral philosophy.

In Beyond Good and Evil: Prelude to the Philosophy of the Future, Nietzsche rejected the works of all of the moral philosophers that had come before him, especially to Plato who argued for that "form of goodness." He took a special offense to the idea that good and evil and in the first place. Nietzsche suggested the modern man and the modern philosopher needed to reject good and morality entirely.

"Let us not be ungrateful toward it, althought it must certainly be admitted that the worst, most drawn-out, and most dangerous of errors hitherto has been a dogmatist error- namely, Plato's invention of the Pure Spirit and the Good as such. But now that it has been overcome, when Europe, rid of this nightmare, can again breathe freely and at least enjoy a healthier sleep - we, whose duty is wakefulness itself, are the heirs of all strength which the struggle against this error has fostered. turning the truth on its head and denying perspectivism itself, the fundamental condition of life, to speak of the Spirit and the Good as Plato of spoke.

Nietzsche's took particular umbrage with the idea that good is fundamental and innate. That these are not concepts just made up, but they just exist... somewhere.

"Here we need to learn to think differently, as we have learned to think differently about heredity and "innateness."

In Nietzsche's viewpoint humans aren't rational creatures striving towards some objective good, but rather they are extremely subjective, and all of them fallible to their own personal biases. People aren't driven by the spirit of good, they are driven by emotions and instincts, and their own personal values.

"Conversely, in the philosopher there is absolutely nothing impersonal; and expecially his morality furnishes a decided and decisive testimony as to who he is - that is to say, in what order the innermost drives of his nature relate to others.'

One of these most important drives is what Nietzsche labeled "the drive to power", but it could also be translated as the "drive to agency".

"A living being seeks above all else to discharge its strength - life itself is will to power - self-preservation is only one of the indirect and most frequent results thereof."

A lot of the material covered in this book is a criticism of christian doctrine, which puts forth that we must follow these absolute morals because they are imposed on us by god. Nietzsche pointed out and rightly so that for a large chunk of european history, a peasant class has been ruled over tightly by an aristotcratic class, one that is supported by the church.

His explanation for why the peasants never rebelled against the aristocrats and why this structure remained in place is that christianity wishing to keep the lower class complacent began espousing morals about "turning the other cheek" and "the meek should inherit the earth". Suffering under the boot heel of the rich and not fighting back became a moral virtue. In Nietzsche's mind the church has hoodwinked the general population into believing that instead of rising to power they should remain powerless and suffering in this lifetime, for the reward of happiness in some theoretical afterlife.

"From the beginning, Christian faith is a sacrifice: sacrifice of all freedom, all pride, all self-confidence of spirit; at the same time it is enslavement, self-mockery, and self-mutilation."

I'm not going to go into religious philosophy, but I do think these are important questions to ask. Why does the church tell us we shouldn't envy our neighbor? Why does the church tell us we should not desire for more than we have?

You could apply this very easily to the modern day. Several christians say that trans people are immoral, because god says there are only two genders and these two genders are absolutes there is no wiggle room. Not only is being transgender immoral, but also they have the right to create laws regulating what people do to their own bodies. Governments have to make laws violating people's personal autonomy like this for the greater good? But, for who's greater good is this?

Nietzsche's describes the origin of christian morals as master and slave morality herren- und sklavenmoral. Master and Slave morality has some negative connotations so let's try to explain this using memes instead.

[Source]

Nietzsche's assertion was that the chads of the world don't listen to the church and the people in power telling them that suffering is righteous, that they should fast, and stay impoverished. That they should not make a morality of suffering like it is some kind of virtue.

"It cannot be helped: we must mercilessly call to account and bring justice he sentiments of surrender, the sacrifice for one's neighbor, and all self-renunciation-morality ... There is far too much magic and molasses in these sentiments "for others" and "not for myself" for us to not have to be doubly distrustful...

The chads of the world are out there employing chad morality. They are goated enough to invent their own morals, to think for themselves, and assert their own power. Not only is the nietzschian viewpoint that morality is relative, but also that a free thinker must create their own morals.

Which is where we finally tie this back into the manga, is Chihiro as a character following Nietzschian principles? Is he employing Chad morality to become a truly goated individual?

Has he taken the steps beyond good and evil?

Well, to start with you would have to ask what Chihiro's morals are which is a hard question to answer because they are not consistent. Early on he states that the swords are to: defeat evil and protect the weak. He definitely believes that evil exists.

However, he doesn't view them as absolutes. He admits himself that murder his horrible, that killing people makes him a monster and therefore evil, but he also believes that this evil is killing others can be done to commit good.

There's a pretty obvious contradiction in Chihiro's ideals. He is simultaenously both a killer, but also a hero protecting others. He maintains that same paradoxical view of his father and the other sword-bearers, they are responsible for the deaths of countless people but they are still: "heroes." Chihiro may be going to hell for everyone he has killed, but there's still a nobility to what he is doing.

The idea of going to hell and being punished for his evil means he knows on some level murder is horrible and he'll eventually face punishment for it, but he is going to do it anyway even if he goes to hell?

Is there a paradox to this statement? How can one be a hero and a murderer at the same time? For Nietzsche there isn't. Nietzsche would argue that following christianity's ideas of meekness and turning the other cheek you can never be a hero, and the only way to be a hero is to transgress.

That the only people truly capable of being heroic are not those who passively turn the other cheek, but those who have the strength to to fight back and assert themselves.

"A man who seeks to achieve goathood, looks upon every one whom he encounters on his way either as a means of advance or a delay and hindrance - or as a temporary resting-place. His characteristic, lofty kindness to his fellow-men is only possible once he has reached the height from which he rules."

So, let's touch briefly upon Chihiro's choices again. Chihiro's father is murdered and he is left alive with a scar, and all the blades his father made to end the war are stolen by criminals except for one. Chihiro could have gone into witness protection like Iori and lived a normal life. You could see that in one of two ways, Chihiro is deciding to be above revenge and trying not to continue the cycle of harm. Or you could see it as Chihiro passively accepting all of the harm that's done to him, shutting up and taking it instead of choosing to fight back against the evil done to him.

Chihiro has a second choice which is assert his will-to-power, and evolve into Chadhiro someone who has the power to fight for what he believes is moral.

A man who says: "I like that, I take it as my own. nd will guard and protect it from everyone", a man who can conduct a case, carry out a resolution, remain true to an idea, keep hold of a woman, punish and overthrow insolence, a man who has his indignation and his sword, and to whom the weak, the suffering, the oppressed and even the animals willingly submit and naturally belong; in short, a man who is a master by nature- when such a man has sympathy well! That sympathy has value.

Because Chihiro embraced Chad morality and became the Chadhiro, he gained the power and strength to help people, people who would not have been helped if he did not decide to become an avenger.

So you may ask in the first chapter what does it matter that Chihiro did not quibble over slaughtering human traffickers in the first chapter? He was using his power to do what he thought was right, killing criminals in order to prevent them from selling any more human beings in the future.

Then I would ask: Who gets to decide whether they deserve to live or die?

The Nietzschian response is Chihiro does. Chihiro decides his own morals for himself, and has the power to assert them over others. In fact if he didn't, he would be completely ineffectual. If Chihiro passively turned the other cheek and forgave his enemies, then he would not have the power to help anyone.

Is there something wrong with this? As we see in the story, Chihiro is very principled, he hates unnecessary killing, he has sympathy for people like Hakuri and Iori and won't sacrifice them for the greater good.

He's even capable of putting aside his revenge if it means saving people like Hakuri and Iori. If all morality is relative, then isn't Chihiro just doing what everyone does, deciding for himself in the moment what is moral and what is not?

Even in opposing Samura's decision to disarm the nukes that could potentially blow up the country at some point in the future Chihiro is raising an interesting point, is it fair that an orphan like Iori has to lose her father because of a danger he might represent? Is it alright to trample over an orphaned little girl and take her father away?

If Chihiro has the power to protect the people he wants to protect, to punish the people he sees doing evil and harming innocents, then what is wrong with him asserting this power even if it means killing people?

Is the option to choose to passively suffer somehow more noble?

"It has the same effect on them as Epicurean philosophy on the sufferers of higher order by refreshing, refining and effectively using suffering and finally even sanctifying and justifying it. There is perhaps nothing so admirable in Christianity and Budhism as the art of teaching even the lowest to elevate themselves by a piety to a higher, illusory order of things and thereby keep themselves satisfied with the actual world in which they live in great hardship - but precisely this hardship is necessary!"

Well alright, it seems like we've got this figured out. Chihiro is someone we can trust, because he creates his own morals and he has freed himself from the biases society's morals. We can trust he will do good, because he has the strength to always think for himself and follow his own morals and he doesn't submit to anyone else. Chihiro would never submit to anyone else's morals, and he would especially never join a shady government organization that was totally cool with doing nothing when humans were being sold on an auction block in the auction arc.

Oh, wait hang on a second.

DR. STRANGELOVE: OR HOW I LEARNED TO STOP WORRYING AND LOVE THE BOMB

The flaw with moral relativism is that it is at best incoherent and vague. Let's take the nietzschian argument, if there are special people in this world who have the right to transgress over other people in order to achieve great things, like the way Chihiro has murdered so many in order to achieve his revenge then how do you distinguish that type of special person from a normal person.

"They begin executing other people?" "If it's necessary; indeed, for the most part they do. Your remark is very witty." "Thank you. But tell me this: how do you distinguish those extraordinary people from the ordinary ones? Are there signs at their birth? I feel there ought to be more exactitude, more external definition. Excuse the natural anxiety of a practical law-abiding citizen, but couldn't they adopt a special uniform, for instance, couldn't they wear something, be branded in some way? For you know if confusion arises and a member of one category imagines that he belongs to the other, begins to 'eliminate obstacles' as you so happily expressed..." Crime and Punishment

This quotation is taken from Crime and Punishment where the main character Raskolnikov is discussing with a detective his theory that certain people have the inherent right to remove obstacles out of their way in order to achieve greatness. The detective's counter argument is the obvious: Well, what makes them so great exactly?

Well, from Nietzsche's perspective there are in our society members descended from an ancient Aryan race... wait, what?

"Was Nietzsche Woke?" Philosophytube

Nietzsche died in 1900, but fascists loved using his ideas as justification for their actions, especially Hitler and Mussolini. Does that make Nietzsche specifically responsible for it, well not really because he's dead.

Instead of discussing whether Nietzsche's ideas are inherently fascist which I think is a boring discussion, I am going to touch why fascists find these concepts of moral relativism and nietzsche's rejection of morality so applicable to their won ideas and the answer is that it's vague. If your entire belief system is just "everything is relative" then you're not really operating under any kind of consistent rules.

Trying to string together a consistent ideology from Nietzsche's writings is hard because so many of its writings contradict itself, that his message becomes very vague. Trying to describe what moral relativists believe is like trying to describe post-modernism or porn to other people, I don't know how to describe it but I know it when I see it.

I talked about how earlier that if you reject the notion that "Thou must not kill", then Chihiro has every right to assert his power over the human traffickers and kill them in order to punish them. Yet, if as Nietzsche argues that the "drive to power" exists within everyone then what about the human traffickers? Don't they have the same "drive to power" and right to assert their power over other people, in this case by kidnapping humans and selling them in order to make money? If there are no objective morals, then slavery isn't objectively evil either. Neither Chihiro or the Human Traffickers are good or evil, they are just both asserting their power. Then Chihiro isn't the moral victor, he's just STRONGER than them.

"All morals are relative" is in itself, paradoxically, a moral absolute. As much as Nietzsche challenges us confront our own biases and challenge what society taught us to think for ourselves, there's also no such thing as an unbiased person. If you read Nietzsche's work, a lot of what he says is also parroting pretty common attitudes of Jewish people at the time in germany.

Chihiro is definitely not unbiased either, he is extremely biased by his hero worship towards his father. So far we have seen him completely sidestep the greatest moral dilemna of this entire manga.

When Oppenheimer was released, a lot of Japanese people protested the movie, especially the decision to focus on the man who made the bomb instead of the over 200,000 victims that the bomb created.

The swords are nukes. They are explicitly nukes. They were dropped on an island nation and wiped out the entirety of the population in order to end a war. Nothing short of godzilla crawling out of the water to attack Chihiro could make them more obviously a metaphor for nukes. 200,000 is around the estimated number of dead at Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

The enemy had surrendered, a peace treaty was signed to preserve the civilians of the island, and then one of the five swordsmen decided that was not good enough and killed 200,000 people in an instant.

Who's fault was this?

Well, one obvious one is the guy who made the nukes in the first place. If that weapon had never been placed in the hand of the fifth swordsmen, then he never would have had the means to kill an island full of 200,000 people.

The justification that the Kamunabi give is that they needed the magical swords in order to fight off the invaders, and if they didn't have those swords the number of casualties would be much higher.

I am an American and this is the exact same justification I have heard over and over again for Nagasaki and Hiroshima. "Well, the japanese never surrender so way more people would have died in a land invasion if we didn't drop the bombs."

The underlying point though is that if you decide who gets to do what based upon who has the power to do it, then that very quickly slides into fascism. Why did the last swordsman decide that he had the right to kill 200,000 people because someone gave him the power to. He used his power to do what he believed was right even if it means stepping on other people, and eliminate his enemy.

Is Chihiro killing criminals the same thing as killing an entire island's worth of people? Not necessarily, but in principle Chihiro is killing people because he believes he has the right for himself to decide who lives and who dies, and the way he asserts that right is by power.

Am I being reactionary by saying that Chihiro's philosophy that he is entitled to revenge resembles fascist ideology and can spiral out of control into fascist ideology? Well, maybe - but objectively right now Chihiro is working for a government that committed a genocide against a nation of 200,000 people that they had signed a peace treaty with and then covered up the fact that they committed that genocide in the first place.

It's also very easy to fall right down that slippery slope. Fascism is very appealing to people who are feel they have been injured or victimized by something, and want the power to take vengeance against that vague something.

Chihiro would not kill civilians right now, he draws the line very clearly and will even give his life to protect civilians but it is also true that Chihiro is not unbiased and his morals are very bendy.

As I said above, Chihiro says he that he will do anything to protect innocent people, but if that's the case then shouldn't he be in support of killing Samura and disarming the nukes even if it means all the swordwielders have to die?

He is making a personal judgement that Iori is more important than the potential deaths of hundreds of thousands of innocent people, not based off of any ethical principle but because his dad died and he relates to Iori and she also loved her father.

Chihiro's morals are not consistent and well-thought out, and that is dangerous because Chihiro doesn't really submit to anyone's authority other than his own and he definitely does not follow due process. We as the reader have to trust Chihiro's judgements that he is a moral person, but Chihiro is biased.

Chihiro is currently working for the government organization that decided to cover up their mistake in killing an island full of people, use the heroes as propaganda and brand the island dwellers as inhuman savages, and then not disarm the nukes.

Why didn't they disarm the nukes? Is it because the government thought it was unfair to kill the four other heroes for the actions of one of the swordwielders and that they didn't deserve to be punished for rewarding their country? Or is it because of the much more likely reason that they didn't want to give up the magical swords that could completely wipe out an enemy army if they ever needed to use them for self-defense again?

For example, if the Kamunabi had done the opposite then what then? What if the Kamunabi had arrested Chihiro's father in front of his son, dragged him into court, gave him a fair trial and then decided to hang him for his crimes against humanity in his decision to build the bomb I mean the swords.

If that had happened would Chihiro have accepted the decision, or would we be reading an entirely different manga where Chihiro was fighting against the government in order to avenge his father?

That's a hard question to answer, because Chihiro's morals are so vague and easy to influence. Hopefully Chihiro will figure it out for himself over the course of the story, because as badass as Chihiro saying that he'll choose to face god and walk backwards into hell in order to get his revenge I think it would be much better if he found some other reason to live for revenge by the end of the story.

[gutsheapofrawiron]

adding on to the binggeyuan political streamer x hater au, I can't pick between these two options of what'd be funnier:

bingge experienced a complete 180 on his political views post-Meetcute, like after bumping into shen yuan in that grocery store he just goes 'yeah no actually everything he's ever said is correct' and becomes a full-on outspoken leftist (for the peach), regularly sending superchats engaging in the conversation on-stream and lowkey becoming a known chatter in the community (he makes sure to delete his previous account, scrubbing all the content and creating a new one with a clean record, re-subbing to shen yuan with that one), posting about whatever on the forum and being the first upvote/like on every edit or gifset that's posted there (it becomes an inside joke in the community that you can summon him just by editing cat ears onto any photo of shen yuan).

not only does he turn his life around politically, shen yuan's criticisms of the right-wing streamer's lack of personal hygiene and dogshit living standards get bingge to go through a huge 'glow-up', finally cleaning his nasty badger's nest of an apartment for once, cleaning himself up as well, learning grooming tips and tricks via the internet, and he manages to find a routine for his hair that works, turning a rat's heaven into what we know and love as his luscious, long glossy locks.

he already was obsessive with watching all of shen yuan's streams before obviously, but now it's a different kind of Enrapturement in which he starts to actually take note of the tidbits of information shen yuan divulges about his personal life now and then in between topics, also memorising whenever shen yuan usually takes his meds and sometimes even sending a superchat/donation to remind him when he either forgets or procrastinates taking them on time. shen yuan, when he gets these donations, is always very much like 'oh you really didn't have to spend money to tell me that are you crazy!! fine i'll take them, i'll take them!!' huffing and puffing, continuing: 'thank you but seriously, i'd rather people donate to causes that actually need it. here's a few fundraisers…' (he's blushing and avoiding eye contact with the camera but his hand is reaching for his meds while he's talking regardless).

and then one stream shen yuan admits that his diet isn't very good (read: absolutely terrible) after chat calls him out on the 4th cup noodle manifesting mysteriously in his hands during one 7 hr stream, and bingge decides ok no. and with resolve he gets up (after the stream ends) and begins teaching himself how to cook! and this continues where shen yuan isn't really taking care of himself properly in certain aspects and bingge just decides to 'git gud' and get his shit even more together so he'll be worthy of shen yuan.

he stops surviving off of takeout and frozen meals himself, his skin is now glowing and he no longer has vague ailments plaguing him. he started going to the gym and already had to size up his clothes twice since. he's become everything he thought he hated, but he feels better than ever and has an actual purpose in life now (meeting shen yuan a second time and NOT fumbling it again).

all that OR:

bingge holds onto his right-wing sentiments for a while longer even when he makes it his mission to worm his way into shen yuan's personal life (he's parasocial as fuck in both options, go figure), so he'd be in immense internal conflict with shen yuan being the pinnacle of all that he 'despises' (woke leftist, absolute beta chud with not even a sliver of muscle mass going on under those (weirdly high-quality and well-fitting) clothes of his, still somehow popular w/ the ladies but he doesn't even seem to know? (probably gay AND a bottom)) while simultaneously foaming at the mouth wanting to push this nerdy radical twink up against the wall and snatch his glasses and hold them up so high he wouldn't be able to get them back and watch as he would get himself all worked up and frustrated and then bingge would take that opportunity to pull him up higher by his shirt and push his knee in between his thi—

either way bingge does end up meeting shen yuan and becoming involved in his life, whether that's through becoming such a notable chatter that shen yuan ends up inviting him onto the stream, stream/live bombing (what's it called again? i forgot) when shen yuan's doing a rare stream out and about somewhere or going to the next con shen yuan'll be a guest at after the one he had to... ahem, take a rain check on. just know he'll find a way.

[hillbillyoracle]

This post got me thinking. Like really churning. I just started working through Momento Mori by Joanna Ebenstein and this post kicked up some realizations for me.

Most of my major experiences with death happened before the age of like 25. Some were the ones you "expect" like grandparents and others were friends in my scene who either OD'd or straight up disappeared. My more recent experiences were supporting my partner through 3 deaths in the family in 3 months - one a cousin that was a few years younger than her that accidentally OD's leaving behind her children. Another was the grandmother who was her rock growing up in a chaotic household and who steadfastly included me at family gatherings when my partner's mom and sister would ice me out. All passed suddenly.

I think the only thing that is universally true about grief is that everyone goes through it differently.

Because so much of what these replies held up as "this is what you say" and "this is what you do" - I fucking hate that stuff (even though I admit I default to it) as much as or more than so many people here hate the religious comments (which I usually don't tend to mind personally).

To me:

"I'm sorry for your loss" = "I am having the correct feeling about this."

"I can't imagine what you're going through" = "I can't relate to you and I'm putting distance between us to feel better about it."

"How are you doing?" = "Share something vulnerable with me so I feel like I helped you."

And you could say I'm hearing that wrong, and I get that I likely am, but that's what those words mean to me. And when I'm grieving I've learned I can't really access that part of my brain that better attunes me the "proper responses".

I also do not want someone to feel angry with, I do not want my anger fed at all. I want help dissolving it because if I don't it'll fully consume me and that's even worse than the grief for me, to have all the good in me burnt up while I'm still alive because that's my personal experience of anger.

Which is all just to say, it has nothing to do with religiosity in my experience - there's simply no "correct" response you can rely on for all people. In words or in deed.

And that is what makes experiencing grief so hard - everyone gives you what they got and often it's a reflection of their own stunted relationship with death, yes even the atheists, and it often sucks.

And trying to comfort someone in grief sucks - how do you use words and actions to reach them when communication of any kind is so highly individual and this individual might not be able to tell you what they need and want to hear/have done?

If you go "no actually they're using the wrong words/actions, these are the correct ones", you wind up doing the very same things as the people who've pissed you off.

Or at least, that's what I found when I dug into it.

I try to be forgiving when I'm grieving but I fall short. I don't expect someone grieving to be forgiving if I miss the mark, but I appreciate it immensely when they're able.

My favorite things to hear when I'm grieving are ones I know some other people hate:

"I miss them so much."

"Remember when they..."

"I thought about them today."

"I wonder what they'd say about..."

"They would have loved this."

"I had a dream about them."

Releasing the idea that there was a correct thing people could say to me and I would feel a little better (or ensure I wouldn't feel worse) let me grieve how I needed to grieve. It let me support in ways I could better sustain over the long term (because boy howdy if grief isn't long term).

Anywho, a heartfelt hug and virtual cup of tea to anyone else reading this and going through it. On other side. Solidarity friends.

it's been a year so i feel more comfortable talking about it..

when you're atheist and you lose someone, religious people don't really know how to interact with you. it's fine, we have different worldviews.

'He's in a better place, now.'

Sorry auntie, but I don't believe that. I believe that his brain stopped working at 5h55pm on december 11th 2022, and that's it. Nothing after that.

It makes grief very difficult, because not believing in god or the afterlife also means accepting that you will never, ever see that person again. That's it. The end. Nada mas.

But, back to the aunties and other faceless people gravitating in the grey blurry waters of your awareness.

They tell you 'He's with god now' and you tell them 'Yeah I don't believe that' and.

they. get. annoyed.

Here I am, gutted open, the worst day of my life, barely holding myself together, and they! Get annoyed that I won't smile and entertain their point of view!

Another faceless person tried to heal me with cristals. She also got annoyed when I told her I didn't believe in that.

I usually don't really mind religious people. It's fine, we have different worldviews. I think I'm right but so do they. As long as they're good people, I don't judge them for their faith.

I'll even be grateful for them trying to console me. I get that you're trying to give me strength and love. Thank you.

But I'm going to be true to myself, yes even when I'm mad with shock and grief. And I still can't believe they got annoyed that I didn't play along to placate them, on the worst day of my life.

(I wanted to share because I've never heard anyone talk about atheism and grief, and the loneliness that comes out of it.)

[resident-idiot-simp]

Soulmates AU idea

Ft: @orcadork4ever

Ok ok but like soulmates AU but like only in Logan's universe.

OK OK WAIT I JUST HAD A REALLY GOOD IDEA!

Soulmates AU but it's a quote you say you your soulmate in a moment of high emotions (or something)

But it's a line from the car rant

"Except that's on all of us."

I mean he's so mad he has no idea what he's saying he's just spewing whatever comes to mind. He's beyond livid and as soon as it clicks his first thought is did I go too far? Then it's '....oh fuck'

Logan freezing as he realizes he just tore apart this obviously broken and hurting man who is his soulmate. This man who he has been looking forward to in dread and hope in equal measures.

I feel like they wouldn't fight Logan would want to serve penance and not really fight back. Maybe he's not fighting back and Wade gets mad because what? And then Logan has to explain

Od:

Wade doesn't really believe him and isn't feeling very forgiving.

"Oh, so now you wanna know what I have to say?"

Me:

Logan is horrified with himself. He's hurt so many people and now his soulmate who he's already torne apart.

He truly is the worst Wolverine.

But Wade wants to fight and he's PISSED

Od:

Wade wouldn't stab him if he's just laying there and taking it, that defeats the purpose.

But he also isn't ready to talk about this.

I can see him just leaving the car to hack at a tree and scream (and then break down crying)

Me:

And Logan so DESPERATELY wants to make it better but he has no idea how to or if he even can

Od:

Wade comes back to the car hours later when its dark. His face is tear stained, he's covered in blood though the sources have already healed. Hell, even his hoarse voice is already healed.

He so desperately wants comfort but won't allow himself so he sits in the back seat with his arms and legs crossed and glares out the window. "Talk."

Me: Logan looks like a kicked puppy for God's sake.

They both do. And its gonna take more than a few "I'm sorry"s to fix it.

Logan asks what he can do for Wade to forgive him

Wade says "you can start by helping me save my world. Then maybe I'll think about forgiving you"

Me:

Jokes on both of them it takes a hell of a lot less.

But Wade also understands where Logan's coming from. As much as he's an asshole Wade gets it better then anyone

Now the question is does he explain everything to Wade or does Cassandra make a comment?

I mean after she gets in his head the first time does she mock him for it. Revealing it or does he just tell Wade in that damn car?

(we are unsure vote)

[rcmclachlan]

I don't know if the comparison between Eddie and Tommy is intentional on the writers part, but they're turning me into an Eddie hater and I don't really want that, but it's so fucking hard to like Eddie at this point, even taking grief and regression due to grief into account. I mean am i supposed to like this fella who doesn't apologize or do what he promised and belittles his best friend? When I see that there's a Tommy who genuinely likes Buck and treats him well and risks his life and/or career willingly for his ex-colleagues and his ex-boyfriend? The contrast just highlights how much Eddie isn't bringing to the table in their friendship and it sucks so much because I do think he's an interesting character and I want to like him

PQ, I'ma be honest about something I've forced myself to downplay ever since I started watching 9-1-1 last May: I don't like Eddie, full stop. Never have. I just never clicked with the character, and the more I saw of him, the less I liked. But he's loved by so many in this fandom that I felt it prudent to keep my mouth shut about how much I don't like him—mostly because I was trying to make friends 'round these parts. Also, I'm not here to yuck on anyone's yum.

I really feel for the people who have loved this character, or at least loved the potential of what he could be, for years—and who have given him a lot more grace than I think he deserves—just to have him turn around and be the worst version of his worst self when faced with a supposed loved one's pain. To be deliberately cruel and weaponize the love Buck has for his son against him. To have the audacity to call Buck selfish for grieving his surrogate father's death.

Eddie's been a terrible friend to Buck from the get go and their relationship has always been incredibly one-sided, but this episode really exposed the imbalance. Like, Eddie may be Buck's best friend, but Buck sure isn't Eddie's.

And nothing made it clearer than 8x17's opening scene when Hen asks Eddie when he's going to tell Buck he's going back to El Paso. And Eddie asks Hen to do it. Actually, he doesn't ask Hen—he says something like, "I was hoping his acting captain would do it." Eddie wants Buck to hear the news in a professional capacity so he doesn't have to deal with Buck getting emotional about it. What kind of fuckass prick would do that to a "friend"?

I said to @screamlet a couple of days ago that if Eddie had posted any of this in r/amitheasshole, there'd be 6.1k comments all saying variations of "YTA, your friend should've left your ass in the dust ages ago, and you should probably live alone in the woods until you get that bitch-ass attitude under control."

Meanwhile, Tommy—who is operating under the impression that Buck feels nothing for him and that he's good for no-strings sex and nothing else—gets one (1) phone call from the man after weeks of radio silence and happily steals another helicopter so Buck can commit some light domestic terrorism.

Like, Tommy, my lad, you have nothing to worry about. There's no competition in this game. Eddie's name isn't even on the roster.

[undead-moth]

I know I've been on about this for a while now and I'm being a hater but you're telling me SydCarmy was "always meant to be platonic" even though there are two seasons of writing making use of tried-and-true explicitly romantic tropes, themes and writing signals, and SydLuca is going to be romantic because...he was nice to her on screen for a few minutes?

I don't even care if people ship SydLuca, or if they just prefer it, but you can't honestly tell me that you believe Carmy was always meant to be a friend but Luca is an obvious love interest.

Just because Syd and Carmy haven't kissed or confessed their love to each other doesn't mean that isn't very obviously the direction this show is going. The Bear has already shown you who is endgame. It has shown you every episode of the show so far.

Honestly I really don't think The Bear fanbase understands this show or cares about these characters or the story being told here, which is unfortunate because this show is shockingly well-written in comparison to most shows right now, and we should be so grateful for it but all we're doing is complaining that the writers led us on by not making a ship canon fast enough. It's just. Sad.

[glorioustidalwavedefendor]

THIS

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Much more often, they are told step-by-step what to do, and they succeed because they obey--respecting the wisdom of others.

I feel like ultimately fairytales want to tell you how important it is to KNOW wenn to follow the rules and wenn to disobey

-> Bluebeard!

-> forgott the name but basically a girl safes her godmother by disobeying her. Which her godmother counted on XD

I once read that a lot of the "you gotta obey the rules" fairytales are more modern ... to teach kids to be good little citizens

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I get that, but instead of recognising that what we need is more variety, more diversity in stories and female characters. Instead of realising that any trope can be good or bad depending on its usage. It seems like society just flipped the switch to only girlbosses, nothing else.

Louder for the ones in the back!

The key here is DIVERSITY in story telling

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*Do not come for me with the bad take that "'Actually disabled people can save themselves!" Some can, some are entirely dependant on others for aid. Neither of those is wrong. And sometimes, even if you can save yourself, you just would like to not have to be the strong one for five minutes. To just have the fantasy of someone else doing the fighting for you. For being valued enough to matter. Because you're tired and you need a fricking break.

That's why I really love sleeping beauty, snowhite, 7 swans (she safes her brothers but her brothers have to safe her), the rose Bey, the husband of the night, Love and trickery ...

I am all for a women safing herself, but I am also all for someone else coming and safing her

-

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There are plenty of fairy tales in which the female lead has an active role, but all these stories are the heroine saving others.

They are, aren't they ...

The only one I can think of, where she safes herself is cinderella -> the version without the fairy (the version wih the fairy is french, the one without isn't)

And of course the basilicon girl ... but she didn't need much saving XD

Those "modern fairy tales where the princess saves herself" types of books not only misrepresent the gender roles in fairy tales (there are tons of stories where girls get to save the day), but they fundamentally misunderstand the entire genre.

Fairy tales aren't about saving yourself.

These aren't epic myths or heroic legends about the great warriors who slay every monster in their path because they're so awesome. Fairy tales are almost always about ordinary, even incompetent, people who get thrown into strange situations where they only succeed because of the help of others.

It's not a gendered thing. The boy who goes off to seek his fortune is usually the dim-witted third son whose older brothers are the strong, smart ones. The third son succeeds because he is kind to the magical helpers who then complete the tasks for him--and the exact same thing happens when a girl is the main character.

The characters in a fairy tale rarely succeed because they embrace their own strength and take their own path. Much more often, they are told step-by-step what to do, and they succeed because they obey--respecting the wisdom of others.

The core virtue of a fairy tale is not pride, but humility. It's not a story about the strong, but those who are weak, small, helpless. The people who can't do it all on their own, but can recognize the worth and wisdom of others.

Turning this story into a "girl power" (or even a "boy power") story warps it into something that is fundamentally the opposite of a fairy tale, and it has nothing to do with the gender of the main character.

[dazais-guardian-angel]

Chapter 110 is 13 pages long welcome to hell!!! so in a lot of ways this is just more fuel for a theory that I've had for a few weeks now, that's only gotten stronger with each recent season 5 episode, which is that the last episode of the season is gonna end on 110, and that Asagiri/Harukawa and Bones have been collaborating to make this happen, specifically because it's a major turning point that would be the only good place to end the season on.

When we started getting especially long chapters again (like from 25-35ish pages, with the exception of 107.5, the last two being some of the longest we've ever had), at first I just assumed that Asagiri/Harukawa got freed up from some other obligations they'd been having to cause the extremely short/half chapters, like promotional stuff for the anime/Beast movie, or working on light novels. But then 109 happened, with the "supposed" death of Dazai, and heavy emphasis at the end on how literally everyone is at their lowest point right now, and I got to thinking. 11 episodes is a strangely specific number for an anime season -- why not 12, or 13, or even 10, like you'd usually see? Why have we gotten suddenly gotten two 35 page chapters out of nowhere, that's almost unheard of at this point? They're both beautiful chapters, don't get me wrong (as always), and maybe A/H simply just didn't want to cut them in halves because they felt like the full emotional impact wouldn't hit/that there were no good cutoff points in them, but you can't deny that it's surprising, after all the shorter chapters we've been getting. Why has the anime been going at such insanely breakneck pacing for the most part ever since around the Sunday Tragedy chapters, even more so than it has in the past? So much so that it feels dangerously close to overtaking the manga?

Well, maybe, just maybe, it's because..... Asagiri decided a long time ago that whatever happens in 110 is the only point that feels "season finale"-worthy enough, in an arc that still isn't anywhere close to being completely wrapped up, and so both the manga and the anime have been specifically coordinated to reach that part within 2 and a half weeks of each other?

I've seen a lot of people now think season 5 will end with 109, and as much as my sadistic side would find that hilarious, I honestly don't think they'd do that and realistically don't want it to happen; it'd be so cruel to cliffhanger the anime for years like that, and just doesn't feel like a season cliffhanger BSD would do, a series that is ultimately hopeful and uplifting. Seasons 2 and 3 had a positive, conclusive ending; the only reasons seasons 1 and 4 didn't was because they're technically not really full seasons of their own, and are more like the first cour of another "season" that also came out that same year (seasons 1 and 2 both aired in 2016, so they're more like one big season, and seasons 4 and 5 have both aired this year, so they're also more like one big season, again taking into account how episodes 12 and 50 are not satisfying finales like episodes 24, 37, and hypothetically, 61, are). I really can't see season 5 ending with Dazai and Fukuzawa's supposed deaths, Sigma being unconscious and maybe close to death, Atsushi being vulnerable and limbless again, everyone we love still vampires, and the entire world being basically doomed; that's just too depressing and not like BSD at all. However, having said that, if it doesn't end there, there really isn't any good place to end the season before that, either, that feels in any way satisfying or like a finale at all. And so, to me, that only leaves after 109: chapter 110.

I think things are really gonna turn around next chapter. Like I said, everyone is at their lowest point right now, it cannot possibly get any worse, the framing of Dazai, Fukuzawa, and sskk at the end of 109 is telling us that; this is the time for the heroes to finally start winning again, with Aya being so close to pulling out the sword, and for all the thematic reasons other people have talked about to death that I don't need to go into here again. This upcoming chapter being so short again makes a part of me wary of 110 being "the one", so to speak, I won't lie, but at the same time, it's very possible that it needs to be that short because that's all the final episode of the season will be able to reasonably fit in, since it's already gonna be VERY close if they do make it all the way to 109. And at the end of the day, I don't doubt at all that Asagiri and Harukawa can make these the most monumental and game-changing mere 13 pages ever if they wanted to; a chapter does not at all need to be extremely long in order to be an important and impactful one, even if short ones we've gotten in the past haven't felt the most important.

An additional thought I've had, though this is much more crack territory than all this already is, is that since we know from Anime Expo that a Stormbringer movie at some point is highly likely (judging from Asagiri's reaction when someone brought it up), it's possible that chapter 110 and thus the final episode will involve the long-anticipated return of Verlaine and/or Adam, or at least some other major reference to Stormbringer, that would naturally and smoothly lead into a Stormbringer movie to explain things to people who haven't read the novel. It would make a lot of sense, especially since the s4 OP has the Old World sign behind Chuuya, which might be a hint that this has been in the works ever since seasons 4/5 were first in planning with Asagiri. We also know that Dazai and Chuuya's voice actors apparently struggled to record their lines together this season, which probably relates to 101 and possibly 109, but it could be 110 too.... I could be very wrong, as I'm no expert on this kind of thing, but I kinda doubt they would bring Chuuya's actor in for just the vampire growls, and Asagiri placing heavy emphasis on Chuuya's importance this season in that one interview gives me the impression that he's talking about much more than just 101/109. But that's the least solid evidence I have, that's just mostly based on vibes I get.

So basically, I think a lot of factors -- the unusual episode count, how close the anime is to catching up to the manga with three whole episodes left, the seemingly arbitrary recent chapter lengths, and the climactic events of 109 -- can tell us that 110 might be a very, VERY big deal. Again, there's of course no way this arc is anywhere near close to being finished, with so much left to address and resolve, but since it is currently incomplete in the manga, unlike the previously adapted arcs, if the anime was going to adapt it at all, they'd have to find a place that feels satisfying enough to end this season, knowing there won't be more anime for a long time after this, and so I think they specifically planned for that, from both Bones' and A/H's sides. 10 episodes might not have been enough to reach that point, but 12 or 13 might have been too many it wouldn't have been if Bones actually decided to slow down and let the story breathe the way it needs to, but this post isn't meant to criticize the anime, so maybe 11 was just right. And maybe Asagiri and Harukawa specifically pushed to make recent chapters longer than usual, in order to make sure that the manga reached the story content in 110 the monthly release right before season 5 was to end.

Is this just copium? Absolutely. Am I going to look like an absolute clown in two days when this post ages like milk? Probably. But the evidence is There, so let me just enjoy my delusions until Sunday, okay 🥂🫡

[stuck-in-jelly]

Every day I get more and more tempted to actually post my break downs of the myths and legends in the Tales of Xadia book because oh my boy thoughts

[oifaaa]

I'm not gonna lie I've been pondering for the last 30 minutes or so on what a good animated Robin movie would look like and Im kinda coming up blank I'm even getting stumped on which Robin the movie would focus on and outside of that what story should be the main focus

[chimerafeathers]

#i don’t go here but i think mirabelle had every right to react the way she did #how was she supposed to know siffrin cared at all if they were acting like he didn’t? #secret goodness only gets you so far if you aren’t willing to be honest about it with the people you love (via @kaiju-lightning)

i don't know to what degree you "don't go here" (what context or information you have or don't have outside of what's in this post) but, if you didn't know, Siffrin isn't like. some asshole with a secret ultra-hidden deep-down heart of gold that no one can see. they're just kind of quiet a lot of the time, and when they do speak up, it's usually either lightly jokey or very sweetly supportive. Mirabelle doubting his motives is VERY much fueled by her anxiety; none of the others (including Bonnie, a pre-teen) sincerely think that Siffrin doesn't care about them, even after Siffrin spends a day burning all their bridges.

more specific spoilers ahead!

there's a flashback in the very beginning of the game where Siffrin remembers Mirabelle checking in with them, trying to make sure he's really willing to be on a dangerous quest with her, and he tells her point-blank that traveling with them all is the happiest he's ever been. they're being completely honest, but Mirabelle doesn't really know that! because like! how could that possibly be true?? they're on a dangerous quest that they may not survive, for a country that he has no ties to, AND THEY JUST LOST AN EYE??? it doesn't make sense that nothing in his life made him happier than they are right now! maybe they're teasing her, or just trying to make her feel better, or something that would make more sense than that.

Siffrin's also in the habit of reminding Mirabelle not to bite her nails too much when she's feeling anxious. they start visibly panicking whenever they think someone is upset (especially if he thinks it's his fault or it's aimed at him). they lost their eye protecting Bonnie and only really cared that Bonnie was safe afterwards. he spends a lot of time trying to be quietly reassuring or keeping people happy with his jokes. Isabeau at one point calls them nice, and says he "always listens to what everyone has to say, and always tries to give advice even though they're not always very good at it"—that's all specifically about pre-time-loop behavior!

it's really not a secret AT ALL that Siffrin cares about the party in general. the "secret" part is how MUCH and how DEEPLY they care. it's the difference between "yeah, we had a great time together! i really enjoyed hanging out with you. we should keep in touch and hang out again sometime" (where everyone thinks everyone else is at, emotionally) and "i care about all of you more than anyone else i've ever known and the thought of you leaving is painful, but i can't bear to ask you to stay with me when you all have lives and homes and jobs and families to get back to and i don't want to keep you from your goals. i'm fine with just 'keeping in touch.' it's FINE"

it's also worth noting that the "secret" part is also kiiiiinda a secret even to Siffrin himself? as in, they're trying so hard to accept the fact that everyone will leave, that it's completely normal and natural for them to go back to their own lives, that they're shoving all their feelings about that into a tiny box and burying it in the back of their mind.

all of this to say, yes, Mirabelle absolutely has a right to be upset when Siffrin hurts her! but the reason she reacts so strongly is that she struggles much more than the others to consistently read Siffrin's behavior as sincerely friendly, because of her own anxiety and hangups. it's NOT because Siffrin is outwardly cold, callous, rude, flippant, or anything like that at a baseline.

hope that clears things up!

i really love how intensely Mirabelle reacts to act 5 Siffrin botched friendquest.

Isabeau is mostly operating out of concern and, eventually, hurt. he already knows something’s up before Siffrin gets to him. he knows something truly awful must be wrong for Siffrin to be lashing out like they are, and as soon as he can’t handle the situation anymore, he leaves and asks (with strained cheer) for time apart to cool off.

most of Bonnie’s anger comes from being upset and afraid that Siffrin would willingly put themself in danger for no reason, when that’s exactly why they’ve been so unsettled since the eye incident. they hate that Siffrin values their own life so little, they hate that they’re the cause of any pain or loss for him, and here he is, putting himself in that situation AGAIN. on purpose. it’s loud and explosive, but it’s familiar, too, being “hated” by Bonnie for this reason.

Odile pushes, and keeps pushing, until her concern overwhelms Siffrin and they strike where they know she’s most vulnerable. she gets physical, just for a moment, grabbing his collar before controlling herself and letting go. her fury shuts down into cold detachment, and she walks away.

but Mirabelle—dear, sweet, gentle, loving Mirabelle, “the most wonderful being on earth,” with her secret “ruthless side” that largely involves lightly badmouthing people behind their backs and then apologizing—slaps them. immediately.

and then COMPLETELY RENOUNCES THEIR FRIENDSHIP.

not just “we’re not friends anymore,” but “we were never friends in the first place.”

that’s!!! pretty extreme!!!!

of course, she ALSO starts by asking what’s wrong. something must have happened for him to act like this. but as soon as Siffrin brushes her off, she jumps past that line of questioning and dives headfirst into re-evaluating everything she thought she knew about them as a a person.

if he could say something like that to her and not see anything wrong with it, then she was wrong to treat him as a friend, wrong to read camaraderie into his teasing, wrong to think they must care about them all under their aloof demeanor.

that’s how Mirabelle phrases it—“I was wrong about you”—but i think that there’s a hidden layer of I was right about you, too.

she talks about the way they tease her like she had to convince herself that he was doing it in a friendly way. she says they talk like they “know better than her” like that’s a thought she’s had for a LONG time.

“Always soooo mysterious, Siffrin, always talking as if you're better than me! As if you know me!!! But you don't, Siffrin!!! You're just as lost and useless as I am!!! So stop!!! Talking!!! As if you know me!!!!!!”

none of this comes across as a new, sudden way to view Siffrin for her. it doesn’t shock or confuse her. it makes her angry, defensive, almost like she was waiting for something like this to happen at some point. the feeling of resentment, frustration, jealousy, being patronized and condescended to—this is something she’s been actively pushing down and rejecting this entire time, but they’ve given her ample reason for it all to boil to the surface. violently.

Mirabelle’s kindness is not inherent or easy. it’s a choice she’s making. she treats Siffrin warmly because she gives him the benefit of the doubt—refusing to act based on anxiety-fueled, cynical speculation, and reassuring herself that his actions are driven by care and friendship even if she can’t quite see it.

“I was wrong about you” doesn’t mean she always and without question believed them to be a fundamentally kind, caring person from the beginning—it’s that her first, colder instincts were right, and she was wrong to convince herself otherwise.

never mind that she asked what was wrong at first. she barely gives them time to speak in their own defense, to explain what they really meant by what they said. all of her suppressed doubts and frustrations are getting aired out now, now that all the trust she’d so deliberately placed in him has been betrayed. her pain feels bigger than this singular moment, so when she hurts him back, she makes sure it extends back through the entirety of their relationship for him, too.

“You're awful. You're not my friend, not my ally, not anything. You never were.”

like the others, she goes back to the clocktower and tells Siffrin not to come back until later. but there’s a finality to the way she ends this confrontation that isn’t quite there with the others. Isabeau and Odile reach their breaking point and remove themselves from the situation, asking for space to cool off but still somewhat leaving the door open for Siffrin to tell them what’s really going on at some point. Mirabelle is the only one who tries to fully cut ties—after everything else she says, her “I don’t want to see you until tonight” reads to me somewhat as “I don’t want to see you anymore unless I have to.”

I can’t wait to never see you again.

even back at the clocktower, Mirabelle doesn’t really defend Siffrin’s place in the party when Odile suggests leaving them behind out of concern for their trustworthiness on the most important day of the journey. Isabeau and Bonnie protest out of sentimentality and faith in Siffrin’s abilities and connection to them, and Mirabelle agrees, but…

“I agree, but... B-But would he even agree to come with us, still? Maybe they won't even come back tonight...”

she doesn’t say much outside of that. maybe the stutter and hesitation here are signs of regret about how things happened, but she lacks Isabeau and Bonnie’s confidence that Siffrin even wants to come back to them in the first place. she doesn’t trust that their bond was real anymore. maybe it never was in the first place, or maybe she broke whatever was there herself.

and she’s still mad when they finally catch up to Siffrin at the King! and she makes sure Siffrin knows that—after saving them, assuring him that he no longer needs to fight, that they’re all there for him. she still cares, of course she still cares—she’s still hurt, too, but they can figure that part out once there’s less world-ending stuff going on.

she’s the first to say that they all reserve the right to still be angry at Siffrin later—and that they’ve already forgiven him.

she’s also the first to say we want to stay with you, too. it’s not just you.

she was wrong! she thought they didn’t care but they care so much, it’s overwhelming, it’s world-ending.

i think she’s gonna be wallowing in guilt post-canon the moment she remembers what she said and did TO SIFFRIN and not just what Siffrin said to her. especially now that she knows Siffrin’s exact hangups, and especially especially if she figures out what Siffrin was trying to say.

they put themself through hell out of loneliness and fear that none of the others cared about him the way he cared about them, he was going insane from repetition and exhaustion and hunger and trying to keep them all safe and together, and all they did in the midst of all that was say something kind of mean to her one time (that turned out to not even be MEANT to be mean it was supposed to be HELPFUL they just SAID IT ALL WRONG) and she SLAPPED THEM? and told him that they WEREN’T FRIENDS AT ALL??? how could she!!! she should have known better!! what they said hurt a lot but still!!!

so when they eventually manage to try to talk about it, they end up almost in, like, a guilt competition.

Mirabelle apologizing for how she reacted, that she shouldn’t have yelled or hit him, that she doesn’t want to be the kind of person who acts that way out of anger and she’s sorry that she made Siffrin expect that reaction from her, she should have known better and believed in him more and they only messed up like that because they were losing their mind in a time loop but what’s HER excuse—

and Siffrin going nononono stop I deserved it—(HUH DON’T SAY THAT NO YOU DIDN’T)—and that he should never have said such awful things to her, ever, and she was under so much pressure already with the weight of the country and everyone’s lives and futures and her religion and their whole party counting on her to do this impossible task because she’s the only one who can, all this unbearable expectation and hope crushing her, and they KNEW that but they thought they could skip to the ending as though her feelings didn’t matter at all, like helping her wasn’t as important as saving a little time—

until they’re just. in tears together, apologizing for all the horrible things they did in between complimenting each other’s strength and kindness and resilience and how much they admire each other and saying that no, everything you did was completely understandable, actually, the only one who sucks here is me. which neither of them will accept coming from the other!!

they’re so similar, in ways they couldn’t really understand, before.

warm, affectionate, perfect Mirabelle, the resolute hero, a beacon of compassion and hope for all those around her, who wears her heart on her sleeve, her fear making her courage shine all the brighter—nothing like the insignificant, forgettable Siffrin, too terrified to be known, too fragile to touch, too selfish and disgusting to bear letting go.

cool, mysterious, unflappable Siffrin, the worldly traveler, as charming and silly as they are confident and skilled, who brushed off losing an eye like it was nothing, accepting the risks of this journey with barely more than a shrug—nothing like the anxious, stagnant, underserving Mirabelle, a fraud and a nobody crumbling under the weight of a mission too important to be entrusted to someone like her, doubting herself, doubting her friends, doubting her mentor, doubting her faith, too weak and brittle to bend and change the way the world needs her to without breaking.

not worth bothering others with their problems. they should be able to handle this alone. stay positive, stay calm. breathe in, and out.

they’ll struggle with it, still—the hiding, the minimizing—but now, they understand each other a little better. they can hold each other accountable for what they leave unsaid.

it’ll get easier, eventually. they have plenty of time.

[livingdeaddoctor]

would that knowing the thoughts were irrational would Make Them Go Away!!!!