#But Quentin is and we support that

[nosidekickspod]

The World in the Walls, entirely told in Taylor Swift songs.

[spoonyruncible]

I'm not gatekeeping, I just have some gates and I've sort of vaguely known they're there, I haven't kept them and the hinges are so rusty i doubt they'd close if I tried. But, like, for ages all that came through those gates were stray geese and a dog I think belongs to a neighbor but might just belong to himself and of course there's the hunching afflicted wrathbeast. That's just having a garden. Things grow there and random folks stumble in sometimes, mispronounce the names of my favorite varietals, say stunningly inaccurate things about them, and wander bemusedly back out.

As a surprise to probably no one I was a deeply lonely child. No one really got me or what my deal was, so when I found something I loved it was mine and mine alone to treasure. As I got older I found other people who liked 'my' things. Some of those people were horrible! But there was a kinship and it was okay to be a bit horrible so long as we could be odd together. Gardens are resilient things, they tolerate mistakes and abuse. It's absolutely wonderful to share, to dance to the same music, that imperfection becomes part of the joy of it, becomes a unique thing unto itself.

So imagine my shock when there is a garden party that rapidly becomes a festival. No one has ever really been here before, it's been me and the geese and that one dog and a few other weirdos. Suddenly my things, things people beat me for loving, are things everyone loves. All at once the landscape is unrecognizable and if I acknowledge that then I'm being a hipster. I don't mind the festival, it's nice, now it's much easier to get things I need without having to put on my trekking gear and hike out to the one obscure location that has The Supplies. It's not bad, it's just weird. It feels like there is something wrong with me instead of something wrong about liking what I like.

I'm not really talking about one specific thing here, there have been a lot of these moments where what used to be unusual or even shameful is now the big thing. And it's good, it's can be great sometimes even with the unforeseen bizarre bad parts. But there is this selfish little part of me that wants to cling to my unloved love, to put a raggedy LP on a barely working record player and lay on the wooden floor of my childhood home staring at a painting of a ship in a storm that is right beside a picture of a young man in a cap and a too large jacket and listen to sea shanties belted out by people not very good at singing while I drift and drift and drift away on the sound and the whitecaps to a place where there is only this. I love the new versions like a drowning man loves air, I am happy that people have found this beautiful thing and can enjoy it, but there is a tinge to it I don't like. A prick of pain every time I see this joy over my joy, over my joy that I was punished for, humiliated for, shamed for. I'm glad people can love these things without suffering but it makes my suffering seem so fucking stupid.

There is a certain temptation, a bitter agony, that makes me want to hiss like an abused cat and cling jealous to my silly little toys. It's not that I want them all for myself, it's that I can't let go of that little kid with a bruisy eye sulking because no one wants to play with him. It's the whisper of, "We can be friends but only in secret. I don't want people to know I'm like you." It's the enthusiasm that rapidly becomes muted because the whole world is demanding to know why you can't just be normal for once. But that same temptation to lash out is the one that makes me reach out my hand instead, especially to people who are like, "Wow! I've never been to a garden before. I'm gonna screw this up. How do I not screw it up?" because now they're that bruisy eyed kid no one wants to play with. I can't protect the person I used to be by becoming the exact thing that hurt me. Gotta keep the gate open, gotta get used to new things even if it takes noise cancelling headphones and an entirely rational amount of backsliding, gotta wake up every day and keep trying even though the world keeps throwing curveballs that no sane person could anticipate. It's all okay. We're in this together and we're all gonna be okay,

[lavender-rosa]

Tumblr: gushing over a celebrity

Me knowing which petition said celebrity signed in 2009

[alexandrafxx]

authors notes: sorry it’s taken so long for me to get this out, ive been busy with my tennis schedule. ill try to get to my inbox either tn or tmrw!! ily all 💗

theacademy

liked by yourusername, leonardodicaprio and 502,667 others!

theacademy Y/n Y/l/n takes home the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Quentin Tarantino’s ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’

tagged: yourusername

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user12 she’s an angel

username99 her acceptance speech brought me to tears 😭

user03 the way nicholas looked at her as she was on stage tho omg

user35 y/n deserves all the awards

theacademy @user35 we agree ��

florencepugh the best winner 🤍

liked by yourusername

user09 she looks so good omg

username27 GUYS NICHOLAS WAS THERE

user89 she’s his gf ofc he’s there lol

yourusername

liked by nicholasalexanderchavez, bellahadid and 1,267,009 others!

yourusername grateful beyond belief to have been able to stand on that stage and accept this award.

id like to send thanks to my family and friends for showing me nothing but support, i love you all! id also like to give my deepest gratitudes to Quentin for allowing me this opportunity.

lastly, nicholas, you’ve been my rock through long nights - reminding why i love this industry. i’m only where i am today because of your love and care and i cannot wait until it’ll be my turn watching you on that stage.

this award is mine as much as it is all of yours. i love you all! 💗💗

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bellahadid forever proud of you 😘🦋

username21 STOP im sobbing

user99 the most genuine and real celeb in a WHILE

username34 can they just get married alr????

nicholasalexanderchavez I love you more than you’ll ever know! 💗 so very proud of you, my winner 🏆

liked by yourusername

user81 she deserves this so much

username23 i literally screamed when they announced her name

user88 were in the era of y/n

user56 MOTHER IS MOTHERING

bestfriendsuser she’s a ⭐️

yourusername im flying you out here RN

nicholasalexanderchavez

liked by yourusername, user23 and 745,109 others!

nicholasalexanderchavez winner winner chicken dinner 🍗

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user23 i love how the majority of their posts is just each other now

username89 HOW DOES IT FEEK TO LIVE MY DREAM??!😭

yourusername my 🌎

liked by nicholasalexanderchavez

user67 im never gonna stop talking abt this

user45 THEYRE SO PERFECT KMG

username00 i want what they have

user39 when am i gonna find a man like nicholas 😔

username92 that’s my wife

nicholasalexanderchavez 👎

username92 HELP OMG ILY

user68 when’s the wedding??????

user01 hopefully never

user67 girl bye he don’t even know who you are

bestfriendsuser fiyeeee 🔥

liked by yourusername and nicholasalexanderchavez

bestfriendsuser posted a story!

caption: guess who she was waving at (it wasn't me) 💔

[celestemona]

𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐘'𝐑𝐄 𝐃𝐀𝐃𝐒

a brief look at their daily life & random family’ moments (not the same timeline)

pairing: dad & husband! wriothesley, cyno, kaveh x fem! reader

cw: original characters, maternity, pregnant reader in wriothesley's part, parenthood, use of endearment names, arabic terms & fluff stuff. not beta-read.

reblogs and comments are appreciated ♡

x

Wriothesley

Busy with your daily tasks, you and Wriothesley enjoyed each other's company in his office allowing only the rustling of papers and the noises of the pen signing documents to cause any sound in the slightly silent environment. 

The weight and movements in your womb didn't bother you as much as the discomfort caused by the swelling in your feet, and so you took advantage of those moments to work while allowing your body to relax on the sofa that your husband had recently bought.

A stack of papers was supported by your belly as you placed all the revised documents to be filed on top of it, but Wriothesley could see that all that paperwork didn't interest you as much as the crossword puzzle from The Steambird newspaper that you currently entertaine yourself.

“Honey, quickly. Known as Liyue’ enlightened beasts or gods. Seven letters.” 

Wriothesley looked up from a form and pondered for a few seconds before smirking, “Easy. Adeptus.”

You smiled excitedly, gratefully and scribbled down the answer right away.

Moving on to the next riddle, you had barely noticed someone knocking on the door until your husband allowed their entry and the presence of your teenage son was present. The boy peeked shyly through the crack in the door before entering.

“Mom. Dad. Are you busy?”

“Never for you, sweetheart,” you replied, setting the newspaper aside and placing the other papers on the tea table in front of you, gesturing for him to come closer. Cameron smiles sweetly and walks over to you, sitting next to you and soon being covered by your attention and affection. 

“Is there a problem, buddy? I thought you were in the city with Quentin,” Wriothesley asks. 

“No no. Everything's okay, don't worry. Quentin forgot that today was his parents' performance day and Corinne picked him up while we were at the beach. Éveline is also busy so I decided to come home,” the boy explains. 

You and Wriothesley nod in acknowledgement and your husband stands up from his own table announcing that he was going to prepare a pot of tea for the entire family. 

Cameron leans into the warmth of your embrace as you return to entertain yourself with your puzzle, but never pushing your son away from you. Meanwhile, seeming to sense her older brother's presence, your daughter starts kicking your stomach as if she too wants attention. Both you and Cameron laughed. 

“Does it hurt?,” he asks.

“No. I mean... Sometimes it feels like your sister thinks my belly is a playground and not even my ribs escape unscathed, but that's nothing I can't handle with,” you respond as you feel the boy's smaller hands caressing the area where Marie's little feet stretched. Gradually the heavy kicks became light nudges and you breathe a sigh of relief. 

“I can’t wait to meet her,” Cameron coos. 

Smiling, you kiss the top of your child's head and respond, “She's looking forward to meeting you too.”

A few minutes later, as Wriothesley returned with tea and some treats, the sight of his wife and son welcoming him warmly brought a small smile to his face. Even after so many years together and living this life, Wriothesley felt that there was nothing as beautiful and full of love as his little family. He was truly grateful for you three. 

Cyno

The General Mahamatra was accompanying the Less Lord Kusanali back to the Sanctuary of Surasthana after a long meeting with all the sages and the scribe of the Akademiya when he saw you leaving the Grand Bazaar with the twins by your side. 

The sparkle that briefly crossed his eyes when he saw his family could have gone unnoticed by most people who, themselves, would avoid entering the matra's vision at all costs. However, as smart and aware of her surroundings as she could be, the little dendro archon giggled softly and suggested that Cyno end his day's work to enjoy that comfortable afternoon with his wife and children. 

“Don’t worry about me. I'm just going to take a look around here and I'll be back home before dark,” she assured. 

Hesitant and perhaps a little worried about the little girl's well-being, Cyno took a while to accept the offer, arguing that he’d see you at the end of the day. However, after much persuasion from Nahida, and perhaps even inappropriate use of her hierarchy, the electro user soon found himself thanking the goddess for her kindness and bidding her farewell as he made his way to you and your children next. 

As if his senses were warning him of a new presence, Isaar was the first to notice his father approaching — welcoming him with a genuine smile and an excited wave that drew his twin's attention and yours back to him. You greet your husband with a quick peck on his cheek that didn't fail to leave him embarrassed and you amused, and the twins approach to receive a pat on the head simultaneously. 

“Hey baba, guess what,” Isaar announces excitedly “We’re having Shawarma Wrap for dinner tonight!”

Cyno blinks contemplatively and stares at you with a raised eyebrow, “That’s unusual. Any special occasion?”

“I won three rounds against Yan in the Invokation TCG, and we had bet that whoever won would be able to order mama for a special dinner.”

Cyno nods in understanding and Aryan sighs in defeat but already resigned. 

“I really wanted to eat mama’s Panipuri. Grandpa even helped me pick the best potatoes for them,” the quieter twin murmurs, but you hear him and let out a giggle, stroking the boy's face. 

“I’ll make them next time, Ary. Promise. I’ll even make double the quantity just for you,” you respond quietly so only he can hear and your son nods.

The general, unable to avoid listening to your conversation, also smiled a little. Here you were once again resolving a situation that might seem insignificant to others, but to you, it’d never cease to be important — and just with a few simple words you managed to express exactly what your son wanted to hear. 

In the end, Cyno removed the shopping bags from your reach and held them tightly with one hand while the other reached for yours before intertwining your fingers, guiding you back home. The twins walked in front of you two engaged in a conversation in their own language, never leaving their father's or mother's sight. 

Even though moments like these were rare given his and your duties, Cyno enjoyed every second he could get in the presence of the people he loved most. Because as simple as they were, they were just as special. 

Maybe he should ask Nahida for a holiday. But just maybe. 

Kaveh

“Daddy, daddy, daddy! Guess what! I will marry Hakim!” 

Those were the words your sweet girl announced as she entered the kitchen, making you pause your lunch preparation to look at her and Kaveh choke on the wine he was currently enjoying. 

The architect needed your help to relieve the coughs that filled his throat and inhale deeply to recover from the situation that almost dug his grave before his time — the words of his little princess, not the wine. 

“Princess, I thought you were going to marry daddy,” the man reminded her with a shaky smile and voice. You snorted.

“No! Daddy is already married to mommy. Also, look how beautiful this drawing Hakim made for me!” Zahra responds excitedly and hands her father a colorful and childish, but almost identical, replica of the Palace of Alcazarzaray. Although he didn't want to acknowledge it, Kaveh had to admit: the mini copy of his best friend had talent. 

“Oh my. How beautiful Zaza,” you praise the drawing as you lean over your husband, “Did you thank him properly, right?”

“Yes! I gave him a rose,” she says proudly. 

Kaveh's heart suddenly softens. Zahra truly was a thoughtful, sweet, and kind child, and he was proud of the beautiful girl he watched grow up every day — taking only the best traits from both her parents. That's why Kaveh protected her so fiercely because his little princess was too precious and he’d never forgive himself if something took that bright smile away. 

“Daddy is still against this marriage, though,” he says suddenly after snapping out of his reverie, “You are too young, I doubt Hakim would have the ideal resources and qualities to provide you with a good home and above all, men, in general, are horrible. But daddy isn’t. So daddy is the best option!” Kaveh ends his speech by crossing his arms and pretending to make a displeased face. You roll your eyes and pinch his cheek. He pouts at that. 

“Let kids be kids, love.”

Zahra, in turn, didn't seem sad or shaken by her father's words at all, but rather contemplative. The little girl's brow furrowed for a moment before she answered him.

“But daddy, Hakim promised that we’d get married when we were big like you and mommy and his mama and papa. He said that when he grows up he’ll become a great house artist like you and then he will make a house for the two of us to live in and you can visit us all the time!”

Kaveh was internally horrified. They were already making plans for the future and Zahra hadn't even had her seventh birthday yet. 

That was unacceptable, intolerable — the architect didn't even want to think about other possibilities. 

But looking at his daughter's sparkling golden irises and genuine smile because of all that fairy tale, the man couldn't retort but sigh in resignation. Besides, Hakim's word about he being a great artist were appreciated. But just a little bit.

“Fine. But you won't get married until you're thirty-seven. And Hakim has to build a palace with many rooms and a beautiful garden. And I will visit you every day!” he snorts and Zahra nods excitedly, giggling hugging him afterwards.

Meanwhile, you kept watching them with mild amusement and a warmth comforting your heart. 

If only your husband knew that childhood friends to lovers was a very common thing he’d go back on his words.”

.

a/n: i planned to write a part for kazuha and alhaitham but i'm a little bit tired so maybe in the next update? we'll see...

please let me know if there’s any mistakes ;)

[angst-is-love-angst-is-life]

@elutrosop My friend do you know what you just did? You just opened a floodgate. You just released an ancient evil upon these characters. You just fed the mogwai after midnight.

You have enabled me

…

The ever persistent need to hurt Barry won’t leave me alone until I make this post SO

Remember that scene in Coex when everyone’s planning how to break into the base? When Barry runs off to do recon and comes back telling Oliver there are dampeners around the whole facility? Can you see where I’m going with this :)

Welllll my gremlin brain has been thinking about this for years. It’s a wonder I haven’t written it already quite some time— how easy would it have been for him to ~accidentally~ run too close to said dampeners and get caught? :)) and of course he would be interrogated for information since there’s a bunch of other heroes running around (including the resistance that’s what they were called right? It’s been a bit) and obviously the bad guys would assume he knows something…

[rei-ismyname]

X-Men #6 FROM THE ASHES

Last issue is starting to make a lot more sense - I think Jed McKay might have strong feelings about the Morrison era. Spoilers, obviously.

Hi Xorn! Hi Magneto! Good to have you join us. It's nice to see Magneto is progressive, polite and welcoming. It's still an ideological regression from where he was at in X-Men Red/RoM/Uncanny X-Men #700, but I guess he's mostly scenery in this comic sadly. As a fellow disabled burden on society I empathize with him, but I'd like to see him still be a character of focus. Otherwise, why put him in the book? It's a shame his moment makes Xorn look like a fool - is that really his first question? Dude is a fucking monk and these people are right there.

He's wearing his Morrison/Quitely uniform too, which is not a great comparison to be drawing imo. He was last seen hanging out with his brother and Legion in Way of X, but I suppose this is as good a place as any for him to be now. Hopefully we see more of him.

Look how much Quentin has grown since Riot at Xavier's. Or maybe he's depressed. Either way he's definitely looking sharp. Idie notices one of the protesters throwing up the M.

People want Beast to solve their problems but he doesn't have the same experience and knowledge as old Beast, not that X-FORCE Beast did any of that. It's a character beat, but one we've seen before. Maybe he'll learn magic again! Magik is still very defeatist it seems, and perhaps her determination is waning. Can't say I blame her.

Quiche is dope but jokes about it aren't. Not this millennium. The Glob/Quentin dynamic is another Morrison callback. Don't worry, there's plenty more this issue 🙄. One pitfall with light-hearted quippy nostalgia is it undermines serious events happening next to it and gives mood whiplash. Somehow Idie knows Ilyana is communicating secretly with her brother. It doesn't come up again. Based on how McKay has been seeding beats we'll find out in issue #10.

Okay, so we know Magik is smart and now Idie does too. It'd be nice if more of this team started acting like friends - maybe this is the start of something beautiful. I can't say I buy Magik undermining Cyclops on a whim but she lays out the dilemma then puts Idie in charge.

They walk into the trap by putting Cobb Sr to sleep. Idie's secret is pretty cute and an effective 'cost of magic' shorthand. I am wary that it refers to nostalgia about a time that was already hyper nostalgia, but I'm getting used to it. We get to see the Cobb family dynamic, utterly predictable.

I enjoy everything on this page.

- Cyclops and Psylocke sparring

- Expanding on Hank and Mags' budding relationship with reference to their history.

- Building on Beast's fear of becoming a monster again.

- Magneto being emotionally supportive.

No new information here, though I love a jab at Fabian Cortez. This is more of a reference than anything else, though it's good to see some self awareness from Max. Although, Cortez showed a lot of growth on Krakoa.

This is a nice moment too. This version of Hank was a massive horn dog. Not saying that's where it's going but he's gregarious and it does make sense to have him be welcoming to another non-passing mutant. Glob too, though he comes off as massive dork. We still don't know much about Jen or Ben which makes it hard to get invested. If they do stick around they'd be inflating a cast that's already being covered unevenly.

Okay, Piper is here and Scott isn't pleased. Idie would have a point but it would have taken 2 minutes to talk about it. Yeah she asked for help and came willingly but as Scott says she's a minor. Her home life looks miserable and tracks closely enough to many queer experiences, but society unfortunately says children are property. It sucks, but she needs support. Nobody wins when her mother calls the cops. Is this about Piper or Idie here? I would love to see Idie being the moral core of the team but this just makes her look naive and impulsive - which is at odds with her 15+ years of characterisation. She was in jail last year!

Piper reveals that the 'Wild Sentinel' was after her and the Iron Night was her 'fault.' It's left on a cliffhanger but let's hope this doesn't torch the X-Men's relationship with Merle, Alaska.

The Morrison thing - Psychic rescue, Quentin and Glob, scientists making mutants, Cassandra Nova, Xorn is still in his uniform from the time, wild sentinel mention (which is super bizarre and out of place.) It's a lot and I'm probably missing stuff. My question is who this is for? New readers will just be confused. Morrison super fans are more likely to roll their eyes, judging by responses to last issue.

Overall this issue was pretty good. It progressed the plot, gave us time with the 3 characters who'd been ghosts, introduced new information and setup conflict with the town for next issue. I really wish the creative team would get their batting average a little higher in terms of solid issues. 33.3% is low enough in the abstract to make me drop the book - and this is one of the better ones. I know we can do better than this and it disappoints me how aggressively mid the X-books are right now.

I'm starting to recognise the formula they're working off, with information dribbling out at a snail's pace to the point that any issue becomes skippable then ending on a cliffhanger that's rarely paid off quickly. Uncanny has the same issue, which makes me think it's an editorial problem. Hell, solicits usually give more information than issues do. I'm not talking about tropes, I'm talking about the narrative tricks that allow them to publish issues that move at a glacial pace and use nostalgia to disguise the characters not being developed. One can hope :)

[bullet-prooflove]

I realise I might be picking from the wrong list, can we pick from any of the prompt lists of just the the most recent one?

May I please have, 5. There’s a rumor going ‘round about me and you

With Dean Winchester or Will LaMontagne, your choice.

Thank you 💗💗💗

Tagging: @kmc1989 @yourfellowmarzipan @daydream-wordflow @the-gotham-zone @solar-raccoon

There’s a rumour going around the precinct about you and Will. He hears about it when Stawaski asks him if he minds him taking a turn with that hot piece of ass up in Sex Crimes. Will nearly slugs the son of a bitch there and then because no one talks about his girl that way. The only thing that stops him is his partner Trudeau getting in between the two of them.

“Heard you nearly got into a fight in the breakroom.” You say when he stops by your desk at the end of the day.

It’s quiet up here tonight, everyone else has either gone home or is out on a call so it’s just the two of you illuminated by the light of your desk lamp because the fluorescents give you a headache. It still surprises Will how conscientious he is of that, of the accommodations you make for each other. He lists them off in his head.

He likes to sleep with the windows open and you need the lamp on in the hall. You can’t stand mushrooms in your food, and he prefers honey in his tea. There’s more, so many more and it’s just further proof of just how deep this thing between the two of you goes.

“The cat is definitely out of the bag.” He says as his ass comes to rest on the edge of your desk, his hands clasped together.

“Is that a problem for you?” You ask, closing the report you’ve been working on and Will shakes his head.

“Nah.” He says, his palm rubbing over the back of his neck. “I’m tired of sneaking around, it’s not us. We deserve to give this a shot, a real one and we can’t do that if we’re worried about whose going to find out.”

He pauses then because yea, it’s not a problem for him but he’s not the one whose going to be labelled as fair game for other cops. Frigid is what they call you behind your back because you refused to go for a drink with Diego, or spend the night with Quentin, he hates the fact it works that way but it does. The tide is already turning in the opposite direction, Stawaski is just the start of it.

You must see the concerned expression on his features because you raise to your feet, your hands slipping underneathe the confines of his suit jacket to rest on hips. He exhales then, because the feel of your hands on him, there’s nothing else like it.

“You worry too much.” You murmur, your lips brushing over his. “The two of us, we’re gonna be just fine.”

Love Will? Don’t miss any of his stories by joining the taglist here.

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Like My Work? - Why Not Buy Me A Coffee

[purplekoop]

Kinda just now got hit by the realization that Dipper could've solved the big author mystery right away if their family just. Talked about the Stans and didn't shame them into being effectively forgotten.

"Hey so your one great uncle is a weirdo wannabe scientist who last we heard moved to Who Cares, Oregon to do paranormal research. He also had six fingers, isn't that whacky?" Just as like a casual little fact to drop at any point would've given him a pretty big clue about where these journals probably came from.

And I don't think this is a plot hole, far from it. It really does feel like a significant truth with strained distant families like the Pines. It's just "easier" to forget about an inconvenient relative or two rather than taking the effort to try and support them or, if NOTHING else, learn from them. I really don't find it hard to believe that with Shermie as an infant when the Stans effectively vanished, that whole family history was just... never brought up again. Shoot, the only reason Stanley got away with passing as Ford is probably because Shermie just never got to learn anything about his brothers, because why *would* his parents tell him anything about those failures? Even Ford's polydactylism was probably something they were ashamed of and didn't want to have anyone remember.

I think even past the core Pines family plotline, a lot of the show's mysteries only happen because there was something (or someone) shameful that somebody decided was more convenient to just ignore. Quentin Trembly, the Northwest Manor Ghost, most of Gideon's schemes, all are just constructed for the sake of vanity or convenience. And god, McGucket, the man who accidentally founded a cult for forcibly forgetting inconvenient truths, only to be ignored by his own son for becoming an inconvenience.

I dunno, I just think it's a neat and thoroughly true to life core theme for a show about mysteries that the biggest cause of obfuscated information is that someone decided it'd just be easier that way, regardless of the actual consequences.

[jooeeydee]

Bringing this one back since the same goes for Lauriver fics. One line that mentions that Sara and Oliver slept together in Heir of the Demon and Sara brought him to the family dinner and then using Oliver blowing up at Laurel to make him the bad guy, Laurel the victim and shipping Sara back off to the League does not warrant the Canarrow tag. Especially if Oliver does a one-eighty right away and he got involved with Sara again because he's still madly in love with a single Laurel whom he'd had plenty of time to get back together with before Sara came back home... seriously people ever heard of logic?

Sorry for my rant but this stuff just pisses me off.

Just like the people claiming Quentin and Dinah had a favorite child... no, they did not. Of course Quentin would sort of idolize Sara after her death, he did the same with Laurel after her death... that is a very normal thing to do in a situation like that. You focus on the good while remembering your dead loved one and not on the bad. But that doesn't mean Sara had been his favorite. I swear people seem to not understand the simplest concepts.

And Dinah is not a bad mother simply for not knowing what else she could do to prevent her 19 year old adult daughter from running off with her sister's boyfriend besides begging her not to do this to her sister and was probably not prepared to have Sara tell her that she was in love with Ollie and had to follow her heart. Honestly, if people would put themselves in her shoes for one moment they might realize what a difficult spot she was put in when she found Sara in the process of leaving.

This rant turned out longer than planned and took an entirely unexpected and different turn.. oh well...

Why are there so many Olicity fics in the Oliver/Sara tags? I'm really trying to avoid anything Olicity because it makes me anxious but this makes it very difficult. Thrre's no need for the Oliver/Sara tag in a fic that simply mentions that they used to be a thing... everyone who watched the show is aware of that... there are already so few fics about Canarrow, don't put toxic Olicity in their tags!

[stellavesperis]

I hope your are doing better :)

I found these notes of Tolkien's in Nature of Middle Earth and thought of you :

"Language we must suppose was a specifically Elvish gift, not possessed by the Valar even until they found the Quendi ; a gift of Eru inherent in their nature, so that from their Awakening they immediately began to try to communicate in speech with one another. Men had a similar gift, but less marked and less skilled, as they were less skilled in all artistic matter : language being the primary art ; hence their ruder tongues were much improved by contact, later, with Quendi". (italics are Tolkien's) (Vaguely Chomskian undertones ?)

This from a note on the chronology about the Awakening of the Elves, in which he states : "Also, which is important, time to invent the beginnings of the Primitive Quentin language."

This is how further away he imagines the "discovery of language" (as told in a legend, though) : "Imin, Tata, and Enel awoke before their spouses, and the first thing that they saw was the stars, for they woke in the early twilight before dawn. And the next thing they saw was their destined spouse lying asleep on the green sward beside them. Then they were so enamoured of their beauty that their desire for speech was immediately quickened and they began to "think of words" to speak and sing in."

This one made me think of Rousseau's (as, in the XVIIIth century Swiss philosopher) theory of the origin of language (not supported by modern linguistic theory, I bet !) : he thought that at first, humans were solitary creatures, who lived on their own, and that they just met to mate, which is how language first evolved, in the form of songs : songs to woo and seduce a mate (like birds).

I'm doing a little bit better! Thank you for checking in. And thank you so much for thinking of me!!! :DDDDDD Wait, that's so interesting-- so even the Valar did not know language before the Quendi? That makes sense-- I suppose the Music itself was its own means of communication for the Ainur. But yes, vaguely Chomskian undertones of UG-- clearly, the Elves were born either with the capacity to create language or with innate knowledge of it. I love that music still plays an important role in the creation of language in Tolkien's world, that they needed words to sing, not just speak. (For my part, I do agree that there is a universal capacity and desire for language in all humans, so in that sense, I lightly subscribe to Universal Grammar, but certain theories that get tacked onto it cause me to be a fair bit more skeptical XD). Interesting theory on the origin of language! It seems a bit off on an anthropological perspective, but it definitely does seem similar to how it emerged in Arda. I'm actually not super versed on theories regarding the origins of the first language, but I knew someone who was researching this pretty recently, and I might ask them more about it because it is very fascinating. My understanding is that it's 90% speculation XD; it may be better to explore the origin of languages from a biological, anthropological, or evolutionary psychological perspective. But I do remember music being somehow linked to porto-language, if my memory serves correctly.

[artfilmfan]

Quentin Tarantino shaking hands and taking photos with soldiers who have committed some of the most horrific acts in recent history will be his legacy and forever taint his work. I was already unimpressed by most of his recent rehashed work, and the idolizing of the Tarantino fanboys of anything he does always made me wonder, but he managed to seal the deal himself with his real life actions. After actual footage of decapitated babies killed by IDF is seen by the entire world (or an IDF sniper deliberately killing a 5 year old girl), he goes and does the most tone deaf thing in his entire life. Obviously intentional to show support and that's what makes him one of the biggest kind of genocide enabling douchebags one can imagine in the filmmaking world (even Steven Spielberg who i'm no fan of had the decency of defending Jonathan Glazer's Oscar accepting speech where he blasted Israel's policies). Utterly disgraceful and disgusting. Says more about him than anything he ever did in his life. In such cases you cannot separate the art and the person. He's finished. We will never forget. We will never forgive.

[hollowsart]

Maguire Beck / Jack O'Lantern / Mad Jack

--

Maguire took inspiration from her cousin when she crafted her 'Jack O'Lantern' costume, but gave it her own little personal twist. Glowing ribs and a special pumpkin helmet to hide her identity really make for quite the look.

She really looked up to him, she was his biggest supporter and was the one who suggested getting Quentin the video camera to her dad. Always she wanted Quentin to have a good life and be happy, especially ever since he finally grew up and escaped his father.

Unfortunately.. Maguire didn't have the full picture of what was really going on between Mysterio and Acedia when she finally came around to see Quentin again and learned of his less than ideal and unceremonious career change.

She has good intentions and motives for doing what she has all for her cousin's sake, but.. Her methods were always a little.. extreme in how she managed to deal with those who wronged Quentin.

--

Maguire is very protective of her baby cousin, Quentin.

She is just a few years older than him, and her family lived relatively near by to his when they were little, so often they would end up playing together.

They would act out fantasy scenarios, dramatic and cinematic in their minds. She'd do this with Quentin to cheer him up, it usually worked quite well. She had the better life between the two of them.. and she always felt bad for him, having to live with her clearly awful uncle. She would beat up his bullies whenever they would meet up and play together.

She was so proud of Quentin and happy to see him going up in life and not letting what happened with his dad when he was little kill his drive for theater and movies. that was his "special interest"! his dream! so to hear he made it into the film industry was nice.. unfortunately. Maguire never heard about what came of him after that.

For Maguire to learn about the mistreatment that Quentin received and where his life has gone now? She's out for revenge. Against the film crew.. and against Acedia after she sees Acedia "attacking" her baby cousin.

--

"Aw, what? Not happy to see your favorite cousin, Quentin? I thought you'd show a little more excitement considerin' we haven't heard from each other in about 10 years and seen each other in longer. ..Is somethin' the matter? I'm just here to see my favorite baby cousin, y'know? I heard about your career and never had the time before to send my praises about making it big. I always knew you'd go places with the skills you have." -- Showing up to Quentin's apartment suddenly, meeting again after so long.

He would avoid telling her about what happened for fear she would only go out to cause trouble, seeking revenge on his behalf.. He already tried and it would do him no good if his identity had been revealed like that to those people.

"I followed Quentin's online tutorials on technology, built some things of my own.. They're nowhere near as impressive as his, but they do the jobs I want them to do just fine. However, they're a bit more.. impactful.. than his own. As much as he marveled at the fire and explosive effects in film, he never could figure a decent way of recreating it without the use of real fire. I'm not afraid, though, I LOVE IT." -- Chasing Acedia and throwing her pumpkin grenades.

personality as bold and brash and.. explosive as a time bomb, it makes sense Maguire would be fascinated with the stuff, albeit in a non-arsonist way.

[spiders-hth-is-an-outlier]

The end of s4 is obviously a clusterfuck in a whole host of ways, but one way that makes me feel especially insane and conspiratorial is how weird the big Qualice reunion scene in Secret Sea is. It's not really out of nowhere -- they spend most of the previous episode teeing it up -- but it doesn't really flow naturally from anything else in the episode, it's literally a so, um, while we're both here conversation, bracketed away from the events of the episode. Okay, but that's not the real issue, although it's not helping. Also the static composition of the scene, the lack of music, the somewhat flat tone of the dialogue -- not doing anything to salvage the situation, but also not the fundamental problem.

It's really just that if you strip out the kind of roundabout route Q takes to get there, what he ultimately says is that his high expectations led him to become disillusioned with the way the Alice thing went down, and what he thinks will be different and better now is that he has a more realistic take on life. And you know what, maybe that's true! I don't know, maybe it is! But it's such a batshit thing to say as you're declaring yourself romantically to someone. Who leads with that? What would possess someone to say, let's get back together, this time probably won't go any better but now that I realize that, I can't really be disappointed?

Quentin himself pitches the relationship as the Realistic Adult Option -- in the same episode where Alice later implores him not to become too cynical to stop Believing In Fillory -- at the opposite end of his arc from where we first met Quentin, sitting in a psychiatrist's office, dully and dutifully explaining how he intends to face up to Adult Reality, starting now.

I truly don't understand what they were trying to do in that scene. I've always personally been of the opinion that the acting chemistry between Ralph and Dudley was never strong enough to support the Star-Crossed Lovers narrative the show wanted them to be, but the writing was typically there, on the page they were romantic. It's so disorienting for this incredibly pivotal scene between them to fall down so drastically on the most basic level of, like, what is actually happening in text. It feels like it has to be deliberately chosen -- right? Except nothing that ever happens at any point afterwards indicates that we're meant to feel ambivalence about the relationship. It's been like five years and I'm still genuinely befuddled by the whole thing.

[thyla-scene360]

Hell yeah more AU stuff - this time I thought it’d be fun to try and do some family trees for a few of the characters. It’s a fun little exercise in character design.

Starting off with Quentin Beck, aka one of my favorite Spidey characters. He and his parents are Marble Foxes.

Some notes: (what I have below is mostly what I’ve made up myself combined with what little we get of his family in canon. I wanna try and add his uncle and cousin Maguire later on.)

(Content warning for mentions of death and neglect.)

Quentin was the son and only child of Elmore and Henrietta Beck. He grew up in one of NYC’s many apartment complexes, and was raised solely by his father.

Unfortunately, Henrietta died just a few weeks shy of Quentin’s first birthday due to health complications. She was known to be a very sweet, mild-mannered woman with a quick wit and a love for the arts. Despite the little time she had left, Henrietta loved and cherished her son, and wanted nothing but the best for him. Unbeknownst to him, Quentin inherited her love for art and theatre.

Already a rather gruff and closed-off man, Elmore never really moved on from his wife’s death and instead became even colder, disagreeable, and generally unpleasant - particularly towards his son. He was never supportive of or interested in Quentin’s interests and talents, instead viewing them as nothing more than a waste of time and money. Overall, Elmore didn’t really care much about his son beyond the bare minimum, generally ignoring him for the most part.

All of this would have a lasting impact on Quentin, being something that would follow him well into adulthood. A combination of loneliness, deep insecurity, jealousy, a fear of rejection/failure, and a desperate need to be seen and loved ultimately culminated in Quentin becoming the ego-fueled supervillain he is now.

Beyond a few hazy memories, Quentin doesn’t really remember his mother, nor did he ever learn much about her. His father never spoke much about her (beyond the occasional mutterings or speaking to her as if she were still alive) and always shut him down whenever he asked. As of the present, Quentin doesn’t like to talk about her (or about most of his family for that matter) and usually just changes the subject when asked. He tries his best to forget about her and his relatives, and is more than happy keeping it that way.

Despite this however, there’s still that tiny, deeply buried part of him that wishes he could’ve gotten to meet her. Maybe things would’ve been different.

[co-mixed]

Magneto was...

X-Men ‘97 has already become sort of a cultural phenomenon. I think it’s fair to say even outside of our cozy comics bubble. But the show has given so much to so many. Not for a single second it shies away from what the X-men are truly about and its social commentary avoids ambiguity. 

But the thought that’s been bugging me for years now is of course “Magneto was right” or rather, the question of whether he indeed was. 

Bear with me, because I’m completely throwing away all plans or structure for this text, it’s not a clever article, it’s just my interpreting process in which I’m dissecting my thoughts on the concept. 

The phrase itself has been reimagined in the show. Val Cooper says this phrase about the fear and hate that humans will never stop experiencing and expressing toward mutants. It’s about them never changing their ways to accommodate others, it’s about human nature. And while we clearly see that it’s not entirely true and some are actively working to change that, at its core, it remains a true and sad reflection of what we see from the most powerful elites that control public opinion and ultimately, the world. 

It’s funny to me that Val, the same person who got in bed with Bastion and Sinister, was the one to spell it out. Both she and Trask state that they never expected a genocidal catastrophe of Genoshan level and frankly, I find it unbelievable. You knew you were dealing with a fanatical maniac. You knew that this is a possibility and you certainly had the same goal. You wanted to do it with clean hands and you didn’t want to see the result. You wanted mutants to be killed in alleys one by one. It’s all the same thing. 

And this actually conveniently brings me to Remender’s X-Force and Dark Beast’s homeworld where the war had been won by mutants and humans were the ones hunted and killed. As soon as the opportunity presented itself, humans made a call to replay the three most famous words uttered by Wanda.

Meanwhile, the most prominent example of how this phrase has been interpreted before is  Quentin Quire. In his young and radicalized view, Magneto was right about both the ends and the means. All he saw was violence and he chose to respond in kind (but not in kindness.) 

The show stepped away from the storyline that played out in the comics (and I absolutely love that btw). But Magneto in that story was not sympathetic. The things we know about him by now are not all flattering, especially the way he turns on his own if they stand in his way and ask him to rethink and reevaluate his position. 

Magneto is often portrayed as a dictator, like most villains. And like most well-written villains, he has a cause that he believes in fanatically which, let’s be honest, after him receiving a backstory, made all the more sense and drove compassion. But he will always go too far. 

But let’s again go back to X-Men ‘97. What happened when Magneto turned off… everything. Everything from life support - off, nuclear plants - off, trains, planes, and ships, all have to travel blindly if at all. Chaos, obviously. But while that brings in casualties, was that his intention? Because simultaneously, he saved thousands if not more of mutants. They were hunted by prime sentinels right that moment and remember, not all mutants are X-men or even have an active fighting power. So while he took away something humans needed desperately, but he saved every mutant in mortal danger. So should he have done that? 

I don’t know how to answer that. If I hadn’t thought about that before (and I’m ashamed to admit that) now, after Ep.9 it’s clear that the Earth can’t handle the blackout, so Magneto simply decided to pick up mutants he likes and sod off on his newly (and I’m pretty sure poorly) built asteroid into his Utopia. All while everyone else is left to rot. 

Not that heroic, huh?

And then there is Charles. Magneto’s way is impossible to review without Charles’s on the other scale pan. And damn, nothing shakes up Charles’s idealism like time and age. We do actually live in an era where his view has become outdated. I recently called Charles a pick-me mutant, I stand by that statement. He wants to be liked and there are so many things he overlooks and ignores. His goal is to have mutants serve for approval. This isn’t equality and this isn’t being proud of who you are. He can live knowing that some of them live in sewers, he accepts that as their choice. Again, I say that a lot, but Charles was very well depicted in X-Men The Dark Phoenix. Regardless of what you think about the movie, they showed Charles in all his glory, risking the lives of his students who hang on his every word, to score some points with humans. 

My only regret is that writers never take it far enough and make it final. Yeah, no I know he died and came back, who hasn’t (what’s up, Jean?) But let’s be real, Charles could easily fully retire and stop attempting to bring his vision to life. It doesn’t work. 

When we look at the comics, the hybrid version Magneto+Charles didn’t exactly work either. And that’s in part due to Moira’s betrayal, some writers’ magic, and the fundamentally incorrect political approach. I already wrote sheets and sheets about that. But it would’ve failed either way because we can’t have nice things i.e. a successful mutant nation won’t go well with bigots. And given clever public opinion manipulation, almost anyone can become a bigot. It won’t be allowed to exist, because they would still be expected to step back and play nice and limit themselves to avoid upsetting anyone. 

Now that I mentioned Moira, I remember the “race traitor” thrown by Magneto at Charles. Honestly, both are guilty of that. Charles for the reasons I stated above and Magneto, for continuously representing mutants as a danger to everyone. 

That’s a lot of words and thoughts that I had to dig through to finally ask the question, was Magneto right? And if he was, what was he right about? Right is really an idealistic concept in and of its own. So I’d say his actions in that moment were justifiable. As much as I want to stand with heroes and condemn him, in a post-Genosha world, I can’t. He asked them to “not make him let them down”  and that’s exactly what they did. Exactly, because some of them knew what they were getting into, I also mentioned that above. 

Is his view of humans right? Yes, without a question. It's awful but it's true. They'd do it again and again. And they will hide their eyes and claim they didn't know.

I will gladly talk about the whole season after the season ends but right now I’m honestly just happy to come to some personal conclusion. I’m not sure I can take this opinion and apply it to the real world because that would require a whole other conversation with myself.