#Also this post is my 60th post

[purplemninja]

Little Nightmares: Six's Shield - Complete series

This is the master post for the full and complete ‘Six’s Shield’ series. The link above will allow you to see and select the following instalments to pick to read:

I picked this as the overall theme song for the series:

Each also have an achievement in them. No prizes or anything but simply for fun, can you name all of them? Mono’s past has an achievement at the end too, but it doesn’t count since it’s not a part of the series for obvious reasons.

Trivia/fun facts about the series:

I'm cutting it here because it contains spoilers for anyone who hasn't read any of the fics.

Six’s past was originally going to be the only fanfic I wrote

Originally, this wasn’t going to be a series or have other instalments, it was initially going to be just ‘Six’s past’ and none of the other instalments, which is why I was saying that people know what happens to Six afterwards if they've seen or played all of the games and comics at the end. But thankfully, I made these chapter title cards as I was nearing finishing ‘Six’s past’, and so I considered making the following instalment, ‘Six’s path’ and did make it, and then gradually decided to make the other four instalments real too. And thus, the Six’s Shield series came into reality. I’ll bet people are glad I made this choice instead of making it be just Six’s past. And in doing so it also made it so that I wrote a backstory for Mono too, even though it isn’t a part of the series since having a Mono-focused fic being part of a Six-focused series wouldn’t make sense.

The different terms I used for Mono's and Six's parents. And the reasons for the names I game them.

You may not have noticed this, but I referred to Mono's parents as his 'mum' (or 'mom' for US readers because I'm in the UK) and 'dad', while Six's parents are referred to as her 'mother' and 'father'. The treatment they give them explains why.

I also gave them their names for different reasons. I've seen a few LN posts on Tumblr that contain what real name those posters would give to Mono and Six if they had real names. One them said that they'd have 'Margaret' be Six's name, though I personally don't agree I decided to give that name to Mono's mother in 'Mono's past'. And in another post by someone else I've seen that the names 'Ellie' and 'Milo' be Six and Mono's names respectively. I forgot it being 'Milo' for Mono until I saw the post again and thought it was 'Marco'. I used that as Mono's dad's name and decided to stick to it even after I saw that it actually say 'Milo' and not 'Marco'.

And I'm not sure how I feel about Six's real name being 'Ellie', but I decided to give that name to Six's mother. As for Six's father's name, I was initially going to have Six's parents be nameless, but when I gave Mono's parents name when I started writing his backstory, I decided to give Six's parents names too. I was unsure what name to give Six's father, but as I was writing 'Into the Maw' (the last part of Six's Shield) I decided to look up male Japanese names (Japanese because I'm pretty sure that LN takes place in Japan, even if it doesn't Six definitely has East Asian racial features) and found the name 'Keisuke', which the website said means 'save' in Japanese, and I decided to use this because in his last moment of life that's what he did to Six, he saved her.

I've also seen a post by @queen0fm0nsterz where she suggests that Six's real name would be 'Miharu', which is Japanese for 'Kindness' and 'Distant'. Though I'd keep Six's name as 'Six' I find this one quite fitting because it's Japanese (and I'm pretty sure that Six is Japanese too) and the words 'kindness' and 'distant' do indeed describe some of Six's traits.

Why did I name the series ‘Six’s Shield’?.

There are multiple reasons why I named the series this, here they are:

1- I didn’t know what else to name it, plus I like the alliteration of it.

2- This one is the main reason: I’ve heard of a DLC for Dark Souls called ‘Sif’s Shield’ and I found the name a bit catchy. I let my imagination run wild when imagining a DLC for Little Nightmares 2 and came up these to serve as the gaps between each of the actual games and letting us see Very Little Nightmares and Little Nightmares 2 through Six’s perspective. To let us get a bigger story about Six, who is probably the most interesting character of the canon series, even though chances are that this stuff isn’t canon.

3- It also kind of serves as a bit of a metaphor, because a shield is obviously used for defence, and part of this series' point is to defend Six, at least in the 'Through her eyes' instalment. Because David Mervik did say that the part where she drops Mono is different in her perspective compared to Mono's and ours, so I made 'Through her eyes' to offer a take on her perspective of that event. But I felt that it's important to include everything that lead up to that as well, such as her bonding to Mono, him not being able to help her when the Thin Man takes her, and the pain that his destroying the music box caused her most especially, which the LN Twitter said twice is what caused her to drop him. As well as the tough situation she was in when she holds him on that ledge, as she's just been tortured by someone who she risked her own life for several times (as did he for her), tried to prevent him from releasing the Thin Man who tore something (Shadow Six) out her, she still was friendly with him despite that, she wasn't given a moment to take it all in when he breaks the music box because the flesh walls began chasing them immediately afterwards and everything was still collapsing around and above her on that. She was put through so much in a short amount of time that I'm pretty sure that it was too much for her (I'm not justifying her dropping Mono, just explaining it).

So I guess you could say for this instalment that the series' name is slightly saying 'In Six's defence', because ignoring the little spins of my own that I put on things that probably aren't canon (such as Six's theme reminding Six of her mother, and Six's transformation into Monster Six being a slow, gradual process like Mono's into Thin Man's (though not as long)) the events of the entire game would look vastly different from Six's POV, as in the game (Mono's POV) we can see Six's pain as he breaks the music box but we're often more focused on destroying the music box. Though I have seen a least two people say that it hurts them to see Six's pain in that part in the game. And thus, in my fic (therefore Six's POV) Mono turning her back is mentioned, but the pain (physical, emotional and psychological) that Six goes through is the main focus - she is the one on the receiving end of the torture after all.

But the stuff before that is important too, such as her bonding to Mono, her risking her own life to help him a few times, looking at Mono in surprise for a second when he burns the Doctor, him not being able to help her when Thin Man takes her, and her still being willing to share her escapism (the music box) with him at first in the tower despite that. We can see her doing this in-game, but the game doesn't focus on it, because it portrays Mono's perspective (who has been described as being single minded in his bio), whereas my fic puts more attention on those things since it's through Six's perspective. I think you get what I mean by now with it defending Six.

A little trick I found to add some immersion to the part where Mono fights Monster Six in 'Through her eyes', and possibly even make that part in the game itself feel differently.

'Old friends anew' from the LN2's soundtrack is what plays during the fight against Monster Six in the game, where Six's pain can be seen but Mono saving her is more focused on, which I take is his perspective of the situation. But since 'Through her eyes' is showing Six's perspective of the situation with Mono saved her being mentioned by her pain being focused on instead, I'm certain that Six's feelings would be different to Mono's, and I found a piece of music that probably illustrates that quite well. It even circles back to one of the reasons for naming the series 'Six's Shield' because it's Sif's theme from Dark Souls' soundtrack. And I believe that it's best played as you read the fight against Monster Six in the fic, beginning the music when Monster Six gets angry when Mono strikes the first blow to the music box. I've only recently discovered that you can add links in AO3 and learned how to do it and added links to the respective places in all of my fics.

I'd even say that if you play this during that part of the actual game (also beginning it when Monster Six turns hostile after the first blow to the music box), then the fight would feel a lot more different.

Here is the music if you want to try it out (heads up that it gets a bit loud suddenly at certain points):

A bunch of the stuff in this series is heavily inspired by Elder Scrolls stuff

I've only played Skyrim and ESO, but I've looked at the UESP wiki and watched many Elder Scrolls lore videos to get to know a lot of lore outside of those two games as well, and I've taken heavy inspiration from it for some stuff in this series (and one in Mono's past as well). The whole thing of a cult that serves the eye and sacrifices people to distort the world for their master is from the main quest of ESO, the eye only being able to claim the souls of those who worship it or are sacrificed to it is from how Daedric Princes work in TES, the (though slightly altered) wording of Pelinal's Whitestrake's last warning to Morihaus is also used as Mono's dad's last warning in 'Mono's past'. And most prominently, most of the nightmares that Six has in the series are from the Vampire nightmares in TES Morrowind and Oblivion (though changed a bit to fit with the LN universe):

Number 4 is Six's nightmare of her being pulling into the flesh wall by her mother and them both being consumed by the flesh wall in 'Six's past'.

Number 5 is Six's nightmare after she eats some of a dead mouse in 'Lost girl'.

And number 7 is Six's nightmare at the beginning of the second chapter of 'Lost girl'

All of the other nightmares that Six has in the series I came up with myself, though the one she has at the start of 'Through her eyes' is more to fit with the games' theme of each game starting with the protagonist having a prophetic nightmare of a future event.

Lastly, most of the puzzles in the first chapter of 'Into the Maw' are also straight from some of the Elder Scrolls games, with the exception of the blue paint lines puzzle, which is from Ao Oni. The armillary sphere puzzle is from the Skyrim quest 'Discerning the transmundane', the flower sconce puzzle is from the quest 'The Maelmoth mysterium' from Elder Scrolls Online (Greymoor DLC), and the buttons in the second employee lounge puzzle is from the Skyrim quest 'Lost to the ages' (Dawnguard DLC).

Some secret details I put in some of my chapter art pieces.

If there's one thing that people on the internet know me for, it's my attention to detail. I've put this in some of my chapter art of the series too:

I designed Six's bedroom to look like Monster Six's room in the Signal Tower (And yes, I copy and and pasted a number of things when making the second image) Also the design of the dress that Six is wearing in the second image (she looks that way because of the fantasy that the Tower put her in) is from Jomark's Cabaug's Monix mini movie (I'm not into shipping though), just without shoes. (Also can you see the tear stains on her face?)

I used this official png of Six in a knee-hugging-and-burying-face-in-kneecaps post when drawing Six in the last chapter card for 'Lost girl', only she's flipped horizontally, wearing the grey jumper instead of the raincoat, and she's crying.

The image of the squeamish scene with the tower preparing to corrupt Six's mind is taken straight from the TV-headed avatar from the vocaloid Gumi's song 'Echo'. I know that people associate this song more with Mono, but don't worry, @starfleetrambo already made an animation of this song with Mono.

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I'm a bit sad that the series is done now, but it was fun while it lasted. I'll finish this post with some questions for you:

What instalment of the series was your favourite and why?

Which chapter of an instalment was your favourite and why?

What was your favourite scene and why?

Which chapter art piece is your favourite and why?

Comment down below!

I'm glad to have made this series.

[northernfireart]

Bonus:

A thought that decided to randomly strike me and never left my head. Considering I completely ignore the canon dumb ass clothes change. To me he still was in thirteenths clothes.

[musicalcompanions]

In honor of the 60th special:

- Doctor Who: The Celestial Toymaker

[nuttersincorporated]

Small changes I would have made to Doctor Who’s 60th Anniversary episode

For the most part, I really like The Star Beast. However, here are a few things I would have done differently.

Firstly, I think they should have made it clear that Rose Noble is nonbinary before the Meta-Crisis was reactivated. A trans woman is no more nonbinary than a cis woman. They make it very clear she’s trans but not that she’s nonbinary. Can a person be nonbinary while using exclusively she/her pronouns? Absolutely! However, they don’t make it clear that’s what they are doing.

The easiest way would have been to have Rose use she/they pronouns. I would have had Rose wear a badge with ‘she/them’ on it. I would also have added and tweaked a few lines when Donna and Sylvia were talking about Rose in the kitchen.

Sylvia: I don’t know. When I say she looks gorgeous, is that right? I mean, is it sexist? Or is it even the right word for someone who’s nonbinary? I never said it to him when he was… Oh… oh sorry.

Donna: Does she look gorgeous? Yes! So, stop worrying.

Sylvia: I just get so clumsy.

Donna: I know. So do I. You know Rose uses they/them pronouns too. You could use those if it’s easier.

The other thing I would change is the stupid line about a male presenting Doctor not ever thinking of letting something go. I hate that line. Not only is it sexist, it’s also said to the Doctor who – in one episode – has already been more emotionally open than any of the ones who came before including the one who was a woman.

Instead, it would have gone something like,

Doctor: We’ve still got to fix you two because the Meta-Crisis might have slowed down but that thing is wrapped around your cortex.

Donna: Yes, we know.

Rose: We know everything. Thanks.

Donna: And you apparently know nothing, even though you really should.

Rose: We’ve got all that power but there is a way to get rid of it.

Donna: It isn’t even a part of us, not really.

Rose: If a part of who you are isn’t really you or it’s hurting you, you can let it go and change.

Donna: How many times have you changed Doctor and this didn’t even occur to you! Anyway, like my wonderful daughter taught me we can let parts of ourself go and so we choose to let it go.

Then afterwards, there would have been a conversation about how Donna couldn’t have done that the first time around. It was happening to quickly; she didn’t know it was an option and she didn’t think she was worth anything without it. Now she knows better.

Then they’d talks some more about why the Doctor has his ‘old face back’. Is it because he isn’t able to change and move forward at the moment or is there another reason?

[genderqueerpond]

you know, I actually really don't think that 14 is a new/distinct incarnation of the doctor. like. I think he's 10. 10 with a couple thousand years of character growth, and perspective gains which were only possible through Being Someone Else; but 10 at the end of the day.

"but the Doctor IS always the same character, just changed on the outside, so what you're saying and describing them as the next new incarnation are the same thing" nah. like. I look at this - and i think it's very strongly supported by the show - from essentially a multiplicity perspective. they share a soul and a continuity yes but they don't quite share a personhood. or yes they do but no they don't. anyway.

the doctor never wants to regenerate and sees it as a form of leaving. (relevant sidenote: 10 was possibly the least willing to leave of all of them). past doctors continue to exist in the present doctor's subconscious, as seen when 13 was regenerated out by the master.

and when she was pulled back, it was a kind of rewinding. possible because *handwaves*, lalala she hadn't REALLY regenerated away yet.... but I mean, she kinda had. no one new had regenerated in, but 13 was pretty solidly finished off. so. Yaz sets a rewind effect in motion in the doctor's subconscious, where all past doctors still remain.

Now. Who was, at least most recently, least okay with regenerating out? Who wanted to "do more", who had unfinished business? 10. and who comes out when the door is so soon opened again? 10, of course. And what's he immediately thinking about? 10's unfinished business and biggest regret, of course. Donna Noble.

This would make no sense if he was only looking forward, as the Doctor usually does. But someone who has been relegated to the deep subconscious getting a second chance? It makes perfect sense. (seeing other past companions may have been a factor as well, at least for this much and probably for allowing any of this to happen)

So yeah. It's 10. None other.

[dumbfilmschoolkid]

I'm so sorry about the rose petals not being plot relevant, I'm-!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was such a good shot, I have never been so sorry in my life

THOUGHT we had an understanding (rtd and i) but i GUESS we got all the rose we’ll ever get.

but stay tuned, there’s one last pathetic “rose stans this is how we can still win” theory to be disproven (Ruby Sunday = Mia Tyler) and then I’ll retire (lie)

[chambers003]

the zygon invasion/inversion is such a good storyline actually

[doctahpants]

In case anyone wonders, I probably won't be around much the next week or so. We're moving house and won't have WiFi until next week.

[ozzieinspacetime]

Okay so new DW pics got released and:

If this pic is not them looking at Mill/Rall or straight up something from the Doctors previous experience in the Toymakers realm I will be fucking SHOCKED. Look at that face. That is the face of a man reliving his companions (sort of) deaths. I know it.

(Pic taken from THIS article)

[oh-yeah-no]

My bones are floating in grief.

[connor-rk800]

this is a really unpopular opinion so don’t get mad at me, but I stilll have to voice it: it irks me when people treat “Sixty” as a different character than Connor.

that’s just. another Connor. there’s no difference between him and the Connor you get each time he dies and comes back.

I guess I can see it in au’s where RK800-60 gets repaired at the end and develops his own set of memories/sense of identity, but other than that they’re really the same guy. and it detracts from the CyberLife tower scene by viewing it as two separate characters, instead of a metaphor for Connor’s internal struggle.

[mizgnomer]

Behind the Scenes of Wild Blue Yonder - Part Three

Excerpt from Benjamin Cook's article on Bernard Cribbins in DWM #598

It’s a crisp Monday morning in Camden Market, and all is OK with the world. Because it’s 16 May 2022 and, just for one day, Bernard Cribbins is back on Doctor Who. “Wilfred Mott! Now I feel better,” declares the Doctor, stepping out of the blue police box parked up on the cobbles. “Now nothing is wrong. Nothing in the whole wide world. Hello, my old soldier.” A pause. “Shall I give you a hug,” asks David Tennant, “before I say, ‘Hello, my old soldier’?” “Yeah, why not,” replies Bernard, sat in his wheelchair, centre stage, framed against the iconic TARDIS. “Give us a cuddle!” Clad in Wilf’s cozy brown coat and flat cap, Bernard is rehearsing the final, climactic scene of Wild Blue Yonder, the second of Doctor Who’s three 60th Anniversary Specials, alongside David Tennant and Catherine Tate. None of them knows it, but this will be Bernard’s last working day in a TV, film and theatre career that spans almost 80 years (he started work aged 14, at Oldham Rep in January 1943). It’ll also be Wilf’s final bow. “I never thought I’d see you again,” he tells the Doctor, welling up. “After all these years. Oh, Doctor, that lovely face.” A chuckle. “It’s like springtime… Is it David’s face I’m looking at?” queries Bernard. “Yes, you haven’t seen him in years,” the director, Tom Kingsley, jumps in, “and you could not be happier. You’re playing it just right, Bernard.” “Well,” says Bernard, “no acting required.” He’s genuinely delighted to be reunited with his Doctor Who co-stars, for the first time, on screen, in 13 years. “And that is just materialising, is it? – that thing?” he asks of the TARDIS. “Wilf’s been here, waiting?” “That’s right,” says Tom.

For other posts in this set, please see the #whoBtsWBY tag. The full episode list is [ here ]

Thank you to everyone who shared filming photos!

[infiniteglitterfall]

A Chabad synagogue in Pomona, New York, burned to the ground on April 17th, along with its three Torah scrolls.

Torah scrolls are hand-written, hand-made, and kept in elaborately decorated cases or wrappings.

Many of them have long histories; my synagogue has two, I think, that were smuggled out of villages being destroyed in pogroms or in Nazi attacks. One of them is the only remaining piece of that village on earth.

Sometimes, the Torah scroll doesn't even belong to the synagogue, but is on loan from a place like the Memorial Scrolls Trust:

There's an entire Jewish holiday just for taking them out and dancing with them: Simchat Torah, "The Joy of Torah."

In fact, that was the holiday on which Hamas's invasion took place.

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So it's a particular tragedy when a Torah is destroyed.

Chabad itself has a page about what goes into making just one Torah scroll:

"An authentic Torah scroll is a mind-boggling masterpiece of labor and skill. Comprising between 62 and 84 sheets of parchment -- cured, tanned, scraped and prepared according to exacting Torah law specifications -- and containing exactly 304,805 letters, the resulting handwritten scroll takes many months to complete.

"An expert pious scribe carefully inks each letter with a feather quill, under the intricate calligraphic guidelines of Ktav Ashurit (Ashurite Script). The sheets of parchment are then sewn together with sinews to form one long scroll. While most Torah scrolls stand around two feet in height and weigh 20-25 pounds, some are huge and quite heavy, while others are doll-sized and lightweight."

I learned all of this on Tumblr.

Once upon time, in people's "punch Nazis" days, I would've been able to find some mention on Tumblr of this synagogue burning.

There is none, so I'm posting about it.

And I'm going to quote Daniel Weiner, Rabbi of Temple de Hirsch Sinai in Bellevue, Washington, when his own synagogue was vandalized last November:

"It’s horrific and heartbreaking.... [Taking out your feelings about] what's going on in the Middle East by defacing a sacred space of a synagogue -- that’s the very definition of antisemitism."

I'm also posting about the Kehillat Shaarei Torah Synagogue in Toronto, whose windows were broken on Friday, April 19th, by someone who also tried to break the front door down.

And the April 15 graffiti outside a Bangor, Maine synagogue that said, "Nazi Israel 30K murdered," next to a crossed-out Star of David. The same synagogue faced pro-Hamas flyers plastered around it in November.

I was going to include all the synagogues vandalized over the past six months. But there are way too many. Several every week. Lots are swastikas.

I'll go back to just doing attacks on and near synagogues.

Someone has to talk about the 1-year-old who was stabbed outside Temple Beth Zion-Beth Israel (BZBI) synagogue, in Philadelphia, on April 13th.

The foiled terrorist attack on a Moscow synagogue on April 11th.

The man who, on April 9th, screamed at the rabbi at Moldova's Great Synagogue, "What are you doing here? How come no one has finished you off for everything you are doing to the Palestinians?" Just one week after people had vandalized a Holocaust memorial in nearby Soroka, and sprayed "Free Palestine" on it.

The Oldenburg, Germany synagogue that was firebombed on April 5th.

The Florida Las Olas Chabad Jewish Center, which on March 16 burned, but not to the ground. The Torah scrolls were safe, and no one was hurt, but the back of the building was severely damaged.

The planned-but-thwarted-on-March-7th ISIS massacre in a Moscow synagogue.

The stabbing of an Orthodox Jew in Switzerland on March 5th. (He was badly injured, but expected to survive.)

A man leaving a synagogue in Paris was beaten on March 3rd.

People set the courtyard of a synagogue in Sfax, Tunisia on fire on February 27th. Firefighters managed to put the fire out before it consumed the inside of the building.

The synagogue is no longer used; there are no Jews left in its area, and fewer than 1,000 Jews left in Tunisia overall.

(Thousands of Tunisian Jews were sent to work camps during the Holocaust. Antisemitism across the Middle East continued to increase rapidly for decades. By the 1970s, 90% of Tunisian Jews had fled to France or Israel.)

On February 18, an Orthodox Jew leaving Synagogue of Inverrary-Chabad in Lauderhill, Florida, was beaten by an attacker yelling racial slurs.

Someone deliberately chose International Holocaust Remembrance Day, January 27, to smash all the windows in the front of Sgoolai Israel Synagogue in downtown Fredericton, New Brunswick.

On December 29, Turkey arrested 32 people linked to ISIS who were planning attacks on synagogues and churches.

On December 17, a man drove a U-Haul truck up onto the sidewalk between a barrier and the front door of the Kesher Israel Congregation in Washington D.C., got out, and started yelling "Gas the Jews." He also sprayed a foul-smelling substance on two people leaving the synagogue.

December 17 also saw 400 synagogues across the United States receive bomb threats.

On December 11, a man attacked an elderly couple on their way into a synagogue in Los Angeles, screaming, "Give me your earrings, Jew!!" and beating one of them bloody with a belt. (Happily, he chased the guy down the street, and caught him when his pants fell down.)

On December 10, a 16-year-old was arrested in Vienna for planning an attack on a synagogue.

On December 8, on the first night of Hanukkah, 15 synagogues in New York State received bomb threats. And someone screamed, "Free Palestine," and fired shots outside of Temple Israel in Albany, NY. Which has a preschool that was in session.

Meanwhile, the five Jews left in Egypt were canceling public Hanukkah candle-lighting at their synagogue out of fear of reprisals. Particularly after two Israelis in Alexandria had been gunned down by terrorists on October 8. (While Israel was still fighting Hamas in Israel.)

On November 15, a terrorist group set the only synagogue in Armenia on fire.

Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia (ASALA) has a history of working with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP).

(PFLP is part of Hamas's network of groups. Samidoun is their nonprofit arm - which is why Germany banned Samidoun last year, although it's still active in many other countries.

PFLP is also actively supported by the Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM), a diaspora nonprofit group, and Within Our Lifetime (WOL), an SJP spinoff in NYC.)

On November 11, halfway through Shabbat services, police asked Central Shul in Melbourne, Australia to evacuate "as a precaution" due to a "pro-Palestinian" protest that had chosen the neighboring park as its gathering place. Australia has seen some very outspoken antisemitism at protests, including the march shortly after October 7 that chanted "Gas the Jews."

Also on November 11, protesters targeted a synagogue along a march route. They sat in their cars, spraying green smoke and shouting at people leaving the synagogue. The march itself featured a record number of horrifying signs and chants.

On November 7th, Congregation Beth Tikvah in Montreal was firebombed, and the back door of the Jewish organization across the street (Federation CJA) was set on fire.

On November 4, protesters chanted "Bomb Israel," and burned an Israeli flag outside the only synagogue in Malmo, Sweden.

During October, there were 501 antisemitic acts under investigation in France in just three weeks, including groups gathering in front of synagogues shouting threats, and graffiti such as the words “killing Jews is a duty” sprayed outside a stadium.

On October 18, people firebombed a synagogue in Berlin after homes all over the neighborhood were graffitied with stars of David.

And also on October 18, hundreds of "pro-Palestine" rioters attacked the Or Zaruah Synagogue, in the Spanish enclave of Melilla in North Africa, while worshippers were inside.

Based on the video, they seem to have blocked the synagogue entrance completely, while screaming "Murderous Israel" and waving Palestinian flags. (Melilla is an autonomous zone belonging to Spain. It borders Morocco.)

On October 17, during pro-Palestinian protests, hundreds of rioters set fire to Al Hammah synagogue, an abandoned house of prayer in central Tunisia. They hammered down the building’s walls and raised a Palestinian flag on the building. Police did not intervene.

The Facebook page "Tunigate", which has around 88 thousand followers, published a video of the assault. So did "Radio Bousalem”, with 83 thousand users. The vast majority of comments on these videos welcome these acts. The building was severely damaged and almost completely razed to the ground.

On October 15, bomb threats were sent to many East Coast synagogues. Attleboro synagogue Congregation Agudas-Achim received one of the emails, which read, "The bombs will blow up in a few hours. A lot of people will die. You all deserve to die."

On October 8 -- again, while Hamas was still in Israel -- Madrid’s main synagogue was defaced with graffiti that read “Free Palestine” next to a crossed-out Star of David.

And on October 7, an assailant in Rockland, NY fired a BB gun at two women entering a synagogue. Later in the month, a banner at the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue in the area was vandalized with the words, “Fuckin kikes."

[ghost-bison]

Doctor Who: 1x08 The Satan Pit (2006) / 60th anniversary special 2/3 Wild Blue Yonder (2023)

I frankly love that parallel. One scene taken out of each of the two RTD eras.

First there's the colour palettes. You can see that they're polar opposites. RTD era1 was warm all the time as talked about in this post (which I love dearly, I keep referencing it in my posts), and then we have RTD era2, which has a more modern-looking, colder palette for science fiction.

But it's also a directing choice for the mood I think, cause on the one hand, we have Rose who, we all know, would even give up on seeing her mum again if it meant she got to spend the rest of her life with the Doctor (quite like Donna back in series 4 actually, who was very prompt to say she was going to travel with Ten forever). On the other hand we have Donna in 2023 who's now got a daughter and a husband and who hadn't even planned on doing a trip with the Doctor in the first place, let alone at the edge of the universe. I mean, they were just supposed to go see Wilfred! On one side we have Ten who's slowly recovering from the trauma of the Time War and falling in love for the first time in a while and re-learning that he deserves to be loved, too. On the other side we have Fourteen who, just as Donna put it, is "staggering", and as Fifteen said, is "running on fumes". He's got FOUR regenerations worth of trauma on Ten who was already struggling as it was with one (since the Time War I mean. Maybe two if we count Nine, cause who knows what he's been through between his regeneration and meeting Rose). Fourteen went through losing Rose, Donna, Amy, Rory, River, Clara, Bill, and he went through Pandorica, billions of years imprisoned by the Time Lords in his own personal hell, finding out about the Timeless Child, etc... and now, on top of everything, he's got to deal face to face with the guilt of what he did to Donna as she's been given back to him. Anyway, it's dark, when you think about it. No wonder the colours are so much colder in Wild Blue Yonder.

Then there's the music. In The Satan Pit, the soundtrack, The Impossible Planet, has a mystical quality to it. It's slightly creepy (I mean, it IS an episode about Satan), but it's mostly mysterious. Ten and Rose are only 500 years away from home. But in Wild Blue Yonder, Fourteen and Donna are 100 TRILLION YEARS away from home. The soundtrack from that scene, The Edge of Creation, isn't just mysterious, it's eerie and ethereal and perfectly encompasses what it would feel like to stand somewhere so impossibly alien it has become supernatural (if you can't tell I am obsessed with that track and episode lmao).

I love the contrast between Rose and Donna and the questions they ask. Rose's question is cute, she's like "I've seen it in films, is that it?", it stems from a place of curiosity, like she doesn't really realize the deep shit that they're in. She's just a kid. Whereas Donna's question, it stems from a place of dread: "Where's the light?". It almost has a "The Licked Hand" quality to it (if you don't know that story: the girl is scared, she puts her hand under the bed, her dog licks it. She goes into the bathroom, finds her dog dead in the tub, and written in its blood are the words 'humans can lick too').

Then, finally, there's the order in which things have been done: in The Satan Pit, Rose remarks they're "a long way from home". Ten takes a long look at her, and seeing that she seems a bit scared, he explains to her how long it would take to get home. In Wild Blue Yonder, Fourteen first explains to Donna how long it would take to get home, and only THEN, he takes a long look at her, and finally Donna says "that's my family, over there". It parallels Rose's sentence in the sense that they both talk about home and how far away it is, but they use different words for it with a different meaning behind. Donna is more specific on what she'll be returning to when it's over (her family), whereas Rose, who isn't as grounded as her, just says "home" (which, for her, probably just means the place she grew up). I also love the contrast between Rose's "a long way" and Donna's "over there". The first implies foreign, the second implies close enough to see. What's interesting about this bit is Donna is further away from home than Rose is, geographically speaking. But for Rose, Home is actually the Doctor, just him, so she has no problem saying she's "a long way from home" since she doesn't mean it in the same way Donna would. So for Donna, when she says "over there", it's because the Home she's talking about is closer to her heart, and she's probably trying to reassure herself that she'll see her family again (I used to do something like that when I was in primary school, I'd travel all the way back to my house in my head to kiss my parents on the cheek because I was so homesick).

So that's that I guess

[onlyhereforthestories]

Comeback Queen - Part 1 (Alexia Putellas x Reader)

Here you go! I really enjoyed writing this one and I hope you guys like it. Part 2 will be out tomorrow night! Also if you want to share your theories on where reader is going please send them my way. I’m interested to see what you guys think! 🫶

Months. That’s how long it had been since you had been in this position. Month and months and months. Months longer than it should have been too. Alexia had unfortunately had complications with her knee after coming back to playing the first time and this meant that she was side lined for a further few months.

During her time out on the side lines, you had picked up a knock yourself and was now part of the recovery squad. You hated the first month of your recovery purely because if you couldn’t be playing you want to be watching your love do what she does best, but that wasn’t possible either.

So, when Alexia went away with the Spanish squad and phoned you to say even though she wouldn’t be playing she is fit enough to sit on the bench, you knew it wouldn’t be long until that did happen.

You were proven right a couple weeks later. It was

You were sat in the stands with Mapi and a few of the other girls who had some sort of knock or injury, just behind the bench. Alexia had excitedly told you last night that Jona was planning on putting her on in the second half of todays match. This had excited you too as it meant you got to do your second favourite thing to do with football, watching her play. Of course, this was slightly behind playing yourself but that isn’t possible right now.

The first half flew by and with Salma’s hattrick Barca was already cruising towards the win, something that meant slightly less pressure on your loves shoulders when she did come on which you knew would help even if she didn’t really think about it. Alexia had gone through a pretty extensive warm up during the half time break so you had a feeling it wouldn’t be too long until you saw her enter the field. You didn’t leave your seat like the others wanting to make sure you caught every ball touch the woman had. She had just run back down the tunnel to catch the last bit of the half time team talk and probably give her own little captains speech with Irene.

The next time you caught her moving was in the 60th minute. She was up on the side lines in her kit, bib over the top to warm up quickly but you knew it wouldn’t be long until she was out on the pitch and the rest of the stadium could tell too. Not even a minute later and she was lined up with .. and .. ready for her much awaited and eagerly anticipated return.

She got given the captains armband and received a loud round of applause as she ran on, you made sure to whoop and cheer as loud as you could. Determined to show your support for your lover.

Alexia had been on the pitch for barely 10 minutes when the ball was crossed into Lucy at the back post, you held your breath as the ball bounced off her and into the middle of the box where your favourite number 11 was waiting. She didn’t catch the shot as cleanly as you knew she would have wished to, but it didn’t matter as it nestled into the bottom right corner.

You were up in a flash jumping with the other injured players as much as physically possible for you all. Of course she was in the right place at the right time, she had been studying tapes her whole life pretty much. She just knew the game and now even more than ever possibly, she knew her team.

The rest of the game went on and even though the opposition scored it didn’t dull the buzz around the stadium, the return of Frido last game and now Ale today just had set the right feeling within the club. Now all that was left was you and Mapi.

Speaking of, Mapi was dragging you by the hand down to the pitch where you greeted Ingrid when she approached, you chatted with them as well as Keira and Aitana for a while, but your eyes never drifted far from Alexia as she made her way round the fans. You were always in awe of how she interacted with them no matter the occasion, she always had time to sign things and take photos.

She had made her way around all the fans she could today and was about to head down the tunnel when she spotted you. Her eyes met yours and you could see the joy in them as soon as they did, the smile widening on her lips to match. She changed direction and headed towards where you were stood with the other women.

As she got closer you excused yourself from the conversation around dinner and made a beeline for her. You instantly wrapped your arms around her and held on with all you had, her arms wrapping around your waist and holding you firmly but not tight. “I’m so proud of you, mi vida. A goal too right away, only you could do that.” She gave you a little extra squeeze before pulling back.

“Had someone to score for didn’t I.” You grinned in her direction and went to reply when Pina jumped into the conversation from behind you both.

“You always score for y/n can’t you dedicate it to someone else for once.” You exchanged a look with your wife at this, you could see the smirk rising on her face, but you gave her a warning look. As much as you loved Claudia you knew she had a big mouth and what you had to share should only come from the two of you, being as it affected those you play with or did play with.

“What can I say, when you love someone this much it’s easy to dedicate a goal to them.” This caused a smile to rise to your face.

Pina walked away with a slightly disturbed look on her face, one that you knew was due to her distaste for the lovey stuff she had just heard from her captain. “You are capi mush when y/n is around.” Was a comment thrown over her shoulder as she walked away, a comment that had your girlfriend giving you a quick peck to the lips before she was off running after her. Causing the young Spaniard to squeal and bolt off in her counterpart Patri’s direction, you wife hot on her heels.

You giggled at their antics and met back up with Mapi to go out to the car, you had picked the couple up today and would be dropping them home on your way back to yours and Alexia’s place.

Mapi and Ingrid had just departed the car with the promise to be ready for when you are due to pick them up later to car share to dinner. Alexia was staring out the passenger side window obviously deep in thought because her eyebrows had the cute crinkle in them, they always had when the gears in her head were working overtime.

“What’s going on in the beautiful mind of your babe?” When she didn’t reply you got a little concerned, Alexia was not normally that far in her head that she couldn’t even hear you. To gain her attention you gently rested your hand on her thigh which caused her to jump slightly. “Lo siento I didn’t mean to make you jump, are you okay?”

Alexia grabbed the hand on her thigh and laced your fingers together and gave your hand a squeeze, “Si no sorry I’m okay just thinking.” This caused you to chuckle slightly which meant you got a confused look from the woman riding shotgun.

“I know you are thinking gupa, that’s why I put my hand on you to get your attention. I asked you what was going on in that beautiful head of yours and you were too far gone.” You squeezed the hand in yours a couple time to give her some comfort.

“I think we should tell them.” She was looking directly at you now and you knew this had been playing on her mind longer than just this car journey. You gave her hand another squeeze before you replied.

“I think we should soon too, but not today. Today is about you amor, I don’t want anything to take away from us celebrating that, you. But yes, I do think soon we need to too.” Alexia was nodding away in the passenger seat as you spoke and gave you a smile as she gripped your hand in 3 successive squeezes, a gesture you knew meant she loved you.

The rest of the journey home was spent talking about how you were going to share your news, you were still not sure how some of the girls would take your departure from the squad.

[kitzatara]

TODAY IS ZATANNA’S 60th DEBUT ANNIVERSARY!!!

Exactly 60 years ago today, Zatanna came onto the comic book pages of Hawkman #4, and has continued to thrill and delight!

So to celebrate here on tumblr, this will be a post about fun facts and information about the one and only, Princess of Prestidigitation, Sorceress Supreme, and Mistress of Magic!

Zatanna is a human and Homo Magi hybrid born to Giovanni “John” Zatara and Sindella. Through Zatara she is of Italian descent, and related to Leonardo Da Vinci, Nostradamus, Cagliostro, and Nicholas Flammel. On her mother’s side she is of Atlantean descent and distantly related to Arion the sorcerer king and demi-god of Atlantis.

Zatanna primarily casts spells by speaking backwards, originally due to her connection to Da Vinci who wrote his journals in reverse. Later it was revealed to be a way to keep the Otherkind from the dark multiverse from finding and feeding on her. And while it is her go to spellcasting method she can cast spells without speaking, through rhymes, runes, song, and even psychically!

Since she can pretty much make anything happen by speaking it backwards she has a laundry list of magical capabilities and is considered one of the most powerful Justice Leaguers, and magic users in the DC universe. Having used her powers to stop many threats over the years and save countless lives.

Despite having near limitless powers Zatanna often suffers from being sidelined in stories, or nerfed to make her more palatable to the narrative. Usually due to a combination of sexism, being not as popular as other characters, or so that the other characters can have the spotlight. But when Zatanna gets to shine, it’s brighter than the sun.

Like many of her peers Zatanna has a no kill rule, and has actually never killed anyone in the main continuity/universe. She has also never died in main canon, a somewhat rare quality among comic characters.

Despite having a no kill rule Zatanna does have a bit of temper, as well as an over reliance on her magic powers. She is a self proclaimed “spellaholic” often using magic for mundane tasks and to get even with people who vex her. And when her father, loved ones, and children are threatened she has been known to lash out. But she always sets things right, and does the right thing in the end.

Despite her temper Zatanna is a very kind and loving character, she considers many of the League members to be like family, and is much beloved among the superheroes and magic users of the world. Her fierce determination to do good and put a smile on people’s faces even when she’s feeling low is a stand out character trait. She has even gone out of her way to protect her enemies, the people who caused her mother’s death, and civilians of people who have harmed her. Because at the end of the day she is a hero, and damn good one.

Zatanna is a complex and fascinating character with so much wonderful history to explore. And it’s so fortunate that she has her first ever Black Label solo called Zatanna: Bring Down The House. What better way to celebrate her 60 years than by checking it out? Issue #3 releases next week! And tomorrow (August 21st) Superman #17 releases featuring a rare team up between the Magic Maid and the Man of Steel. And below are some of my personal comic reading recs!

May you come to love her as I do

Yojne! 🎩🪄