#I DON'T WANT TO CHOOSE

[breadmecoshy]

Experimenting with style on these two

I feel a little empty, since I finally finished the oumota comic. I can start drawing another one while I have the strength....

I have comic ideas that are tearing my soul apart. Or I can just draw something romantic ∠( ᐛ 」∠)＿

[bucksdaffy]

i actually kind of dig that we didn't officially settle on just one ship name. bucktommy is obviously pretty prevalent, but tevan and kinley also have their vocal supporters. how about we just embrace it and have three official ship names for buck and tommy?

[athenasparrow]

B4 & B10

Ask a reader meme

Who is your current favourite author? What is their best story?

This is SO TRICKY!!!! SO HARD! WHY DID YOU PICK THIS??? I'm going to skip over the big names that EVERYONE is reading because everyone already knows about them (CYOsA and ALG!). Right now I'm subscribed (and dropping everything) to read @wearingaberetinparis Love Is a Lie. It's hard to pick a favourite, because every fic she writes is actual genius and they just (somehow) keep getting better! The fic she's releasing at the moment is phenomenal and I would say Shout Out To My Ex is the one that stands out to me (the entire series!).

I may have had a more difficult time wrestling my favourite up if @itsjamespotter had posted an update recently, but my Thursday came and went with NOTHING and I'm really (lovingly) mad at him rn because WE NEED TO KNOW!

EDIT:

Lol I was so upset about choosing a favourite I forgot this ask had a second part!

What is the best plot twist you’ve ever seen?

Okay, this has nothing to do with fanfic and SPOILER if you haven't seen this movie. "Promising Young Women" is about a woman who seeks revenge on some old classmates who sexually assaulted her best friend. In the end she's killed BUT IT TURNS OUT SHE WAS PREPARED and he gets all these text messages she's prepared and it's so satisfying to watch the cops turn up and release she'd planned the risk of her own murder. HOLY SHIT! It wasn't an ending I was expecting and was extremely horrifying and at the same time satisfying.

[hinamie]

post-graduation trip airport looks

[egophiliac]

YO TREY CLOVER IS HERE !!!

TREY NOOOO you weren't supposed to look so cool, I was supposed to be able to save my keys for all the upcoming birthdays, how could you do this to me --

also hey. hey Trey. what's in that bowl.

[valkugo]

and i wonder: do you see her in the back of your mind in my eyes?

i see her in the back of my mind. all the time. (feels like a fever. like i'm burning alive. like a sign.)

[knightofleo]

Angela Orosco Silent Hill 2

[lunarian-anarchist]

Given that the three wolves represent Sybil, Wayne, and Tabitha; wouldn't the goat symbolize the player/MC?

Also while in SLP; The Long Quiet and The Princess start off as enemies, they eventually become "lovers" or along those lines.

Wayne and Tabby have a fundamentally hostile relationship and it may be a twist where instead of being lovers; "Wayne" possess an ex lover of Tabitha. Tabitha seems to know or at least suspect that Sam Wayne is being controlled by a non human being but whether or not she explicitly knows what that being is not clear.

It's hinted that she does know something because why else would Wayne torment and mock her for her breakup with the real Sam Wayne? And she explicitly calls "Wayne" an it.

Scarlet Hollow and Slay the Princess

Okay, brace yourself, we're going full strings-and-corkboard today. Also, there are SO MANY SPOILERS IN THIS POST FOR BOTH GAMES. DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T FINISHED AT LEAST ONE PLAYTHROUGH OF BOTH.

Now that the disclaimer is out of the way...

It wasn't an accident that we got Slay the Princess when we did, right before the ramp up to Scarlet Hollow's climax begins. Slay the Princess isn't just it's own thing - it's an explicit explanation of the dynamics of Scarlet Hollow. It's a direct metaphor, and may be more than that.

"You are on a path in the woods. At the end of that path is a cabin. In the basement of that cabin is a Princess. You are here to slay her. If you don't, it will mean the end of the world."

There are three forces in both games. We can see that explicitly in Slay the Princess, with The Narrator, The Long Quiet, and The Princess. We can also see it in Scarlet Hollow, with Sybil, Wayne, and Tabitha. Episode 3's tablet spells this out explicitly:

Three wolves, the three forces of the town, surrounding a goat. A sacrifice. That's the Witch, the Entity, and the Scarlets in the context of the vision.

There is a controlling force who tries to convince and cajole and control if that fails, who is immediately suspicious, and while they seem to be against the Princess, they are actually against both forces in play. The force can and does affect the minds of others. It turns people against the other two forces in play. It's friendly, as long as you do what it tells you, but betrays you as well, in the end. The Narrator. Sybil.

A being who is fundamentally disturbing, but whose face is always shadowed and unclear, or outright covered. Despite that, we always see his glowing eyes. He rots slowly as we proceed with the story, eventually rotting away to show his true form, perhaps. He is a fundamentally eternal being, one who cannot be killed permanently. He is reborn into different bodies, over and over. He may represent a "new and unending dawn", eternity unchanging. He also has the most agency of this own, though. He is fundamentally connected to The Princess. There are multiple of him. The Long Quiet. Wayne... or whatever is controlling him.

Then there's a Princess. Feels trapped in a house at the top of a hill, unable to escape unless she is freed by outside forces. A monarch, but actually has the least agency in her situation. Not yet a queen. Despite all of this, she may have the greatest capacity to change, and to change the world around her. Her role changes based on how she's treated and perceived by others. When perceived as a friend deserving of sympathy, she softens into one. When perceived as a harsh being, she is one. She is disturbed by The Long Quiet's appearance, but is inextricably connected to him. The Princess. Tabitha.

Whether Slay the Princess is just a metaphor for what's going on in Scarlet Hollow, or whether these are actual forces that exist in the Scarlet Hollow universe being replicated on a miniature stage is hard to say.

I think, though, that it's hard for me to deny that there is a strong connection between the two games. Perhaps this is why we haven't seen the choice the Mystic can influence yet?

[bumblingbabooshka]

Thinking about marriage/women's rights on Vulcan Some may think that T'Pring not being allowed to divorce Spock was because he was going through the pon farr but if she were allowed to divorce him at all she probably would have done that a long time ago, confirmed by T'Pol when she's speaking with Koss, who isn't suffering from the pon farr. She says that he can choose another mate (without invoking a fight it seems: note the difference between a 'mate' and a 'challenger') and after he makes it clear that nothing she says will change his mind about marrying her, she finally threatens to declare a kal-if-fee. It's clear that Vulcan women cannot divorce/refuse to marry a man they've been betrothed to under any circumstances if A) He himself doesn't consent to ending their marriage or B) She doesn't have someone else waiting in the wings to be given to in his stead. Though, if the challenger she selects fails to win the fight, she'll have to marry her betrothed anyway unless (again) he decides he doesn't want her after the challenge. That seems like an incredibly unfair system, heavily biased towards men. SNW is an alternate universe in many obvious respects but most egregiously in that T'Pring has a lot of non-canonical agency over her relationship with Spock. It's interesting to me that Vulcan society has women in many positions of power and treats women as equal to men from what I've seen despite these laws. We don't really see Vulcans exhibiting a misogynistic attitude towards women in general but in TOS (perhaps because of its general writing style but it's still interesting to note) both Sarek and Spock take on patriarchal attitudes specifically regarding wives. Amanda says that 'of course' Sarek commands her because "he is a Vulcan and I am his wife." It's worthwhile in my eyes to note that she specifies 'wife' instead of attributing this attitude to women as a whole. Again, with TOS' writing style it wouldn't be out of place for her to say "he is a man and I am a woman." Spock, while in a pon farr induced irritation, states that it's "undignified for a woman to play servant to a man that isn't hers" - again implying that there's something specific about being a Wife in Vulcan society which is different from being a woman in general and demands subservience to a husband. This could perhaps stem from the extreme sense of ownership that Vulcan law has permitted men to have over women. A woman legally cannot point blank refuse marriage. There is no option which guarantees she won't have to marry her betrothed other than death. When T'Pau speaks of T'Pring she refers to her as being 'property' and Stonn, before being interrupted, states he's made 'the ancient claim' - we don't know what this is because he gets cut off but it's obvious they're both using the language of Vulcan law. Men are permitted true freedom to choose. If a woman wants to choose someone else to be with there is no option available to her other than the kal-if-fee which might result in the death of the one she wants to be with. And, if her lover fails, her husband can still just decide he wants to marry her and she'll be forced to. T'Pring gives two scenarios: One where Spock 'frees' her and one where he doesn't - it's still ultimately his decision which is clear when he ends the conversation with "Stonn, she is yours." This again isn't just because of the pon farr as T'Pol also goes through this. Koss can choose another mate and when the option is talked about there's no implication that this would result in any sort of fight (both by the casualness of its mention and by the fact that there's no formal word for it unlike the kal-if-fee.) Also, the fact that Koss does eventually grant T'Pol a divorce and it's all fine means that T'Pol isn't lawfully required to have another man waiting if her HUSBAND doesn't want her. It's ONLY required if SHE doesn't want her husband. Tradition must take precedence over individual desire UNLESS!!! You're a man. Then it's fine. Like, your parents might not be happy but legally you're golden.

[fun-esta]

[radiance1]

Danny often felt tired, as of late.

He wasn't certain as to why he did, though. It happened after his, apparent, coronation as the Prince of the Infinite Realms and after finally getting a boyfriend out of that damsel in distress who made him into one.

Which was unfortunate, because though he may try, it was very hard to pay attention on dates when Danny felt he just came from using the Ecto-Skeleton and no amount of sleep would make it go away. Fortunately, however, Billy was very understanding and accommodating of his plight, letting him sleep on him whenever he wanted and having their dates be less mentally/physically demanding things.

Man, Danny loved his boyfriend.

Unfortunately, he was away on one of his Justice League mission things.

Another thing he noticed, is that he liked to sleep in more cold places now. Very, very cold places.

So much so, that he genuinely debated moving to the Far Frozen if not for his parents turning his room into a literal walk-in freezer for him.

Did he ever find out why he needs to sleep so much? No, not really. But man.

Danny could go down for a nap right now.

---

Pariah was having a good, very good day.

He woke up, stretched, ate some food he didn't actually need to, did some light exercises after aeons of not using his sword and just fighting in general and sat down for some tea.

Even had a letter from the Master of Time with a P.S that two humans would be busting down his door!

Wait what-

"Ghost King!" Came the rather loud, effeminate shout accompanying the loud slam of his castle doors. "Where is our son!"

Honestly, Pariah is impressed by the lungs on that human.

"You heard her!" He looked down calmly at the... Actually, what in the infinite is that? Since when did humans go walking around with cannons??? "Tell us where our son is our so help me! Ghost King or not we'll exorcise you right where you stand!"

Pariah blinked slowly, very, very slowly.

Then took a sip of his favorite ghost blend then calmly placed the cup back down.

"You must be the boy's, human, parents I presume?" He asked calmly, gaze sweeping over them both. They seemed to be prepared for war, a burning fire in their eyes as they stared down the very King of Infinity and saw only an obstacle.

Oooooh, how that made the part of him that longed, sung for battle purr in sheer delight.

"Why don't you join me for tea?" He said, waving a hand and conjuring forth two extra, human sized, chairs on the opposing end of his table alongside two more tea cups. "And explain whatever is going on, while you're at it."

The two shared a glance between each other, then slowly lowered their weapons down to a point where they could still draw them at a moment's notice, yet not actively antagonizing the king at the same time-

Oh, he just loves these types of mortals.

-before slowly making their way to their seats, which were right next to each other of course. Married and whatnot.

"Tea?" He flicked a finger, filling their cups with the same that was in his cup but before remembering. "Ah, right. Human and your mortality." He casually mentioned, flicking his finger and changing the liquid to one of the few mortal blends he could still recall. "Worry not, for they are not poisoned." He chuckled lightly.

Honestly, doing such a thing would be beneath him, especially when faced with mortals of such fire.

"Now," He brought his cup to his lips. "Why don't you inform me as to what, exactly, has brought you to my doorstep prepared for battle?"

They, once more, exchanged a glance between each other, making sure the king was still in sight before Maddie opened her lips.

"Our son is missing."

---

The summoning was a success.

A terrible, terrible success.

One that the Justice League, One John Constantine especially, had valiantly attempted to stop.

But, unfortunately, once it got going it seemed to be incapable of stopping.

Faced with an entity being summoned from the Infinite Realms, they had called all of the heroes who were capable that weren't occupied. Shazam, unfortunately, was one of said heroes occupied.

Superman and Wonderwoman? Were not. So, at the very least, they had two of their heaviest hitters available.

The circle glowed a toxic green, growing and growing in glow until it reached its zenith.

Then was snuffed out as brightly as it glowed.

The air stilled, followed by a chill that rivaled the chilliest of snowstorms as if they were standing within one that very moment.

The next moment?

Ice.

Pure, unflinching, jagged pillars of ice rose from the circle the same moment it glow returned. Sticking out from the circle haphazardly and nearly impaling those that stood too close.

Mist, thick, blue mist. Rolled from the pillars of ice, descending down onto the floor with a gentleness that was almost deceptive if not occupied by such cold and being completely and utterly unnatural as it was.

The Justice League readied themselves.

[curseofdelos]

mentally I'm still here:

Nico insisting that neither of them are going to be sacrificed/left behind to satisfy the prophecy is a perfect encapsulation of his growth over the series and it makes me SO soft to think about

Nico as a character - particularly in BoO - doesn't have a lot of self-preservation. He doesn't really care what happens to him as long as the mission gets done. We see this most explicitly after he almost fades into nothingness after the Bryce Lawrence incident:

And again when he considers shadow travelling into Octavian's tent to assassinate him:

(Nico himself notes here that it was unlikely he would survive another jump. If Will hadn't stopped him, he probably would have died.)

In both cases, Nico was willing to risk death for the sake of ending the war. He puts very little value on his own life, and repeatedly argues to Reyna, Hedge, and Will that the possibility of saving camp (a place he never felt welcome at, might I add) is worth the risk of losing his life.

Even before Nico went on the quest with Reyna and Hedge, the others were concerned about his safety. Percy tried to remind him how unpredictable his shadow travelling could be, and Hazel notes that he has been acting strangely lately:

It's not quite clear what Hazel is worried about here, but my interpretation of this scene is that she's concerned that Nico isn't thinking - or perhaps, isn't caring - about what effect the constant shadow travelling will have on his wellbeing. Between Tartarus, the jar, and the Cupid incident, Nico's mental state is at its worst at this point in the series, and I think Hazel is worried he'll do something reckless - something he can't come back from.

And so in TSATS, when Nico is told that he's going to have to leave something of equal value behind in order to save Bob, the old him would have had zero issue sacrificing himself if that's what it took to ensure Will and Bob's survival. This version of Nico, who's been going to therapy w/ Mr D and opening up more and built a little support system for himself, can't fathom it.

Nico in BoO did not have a future. He had fully convinced himself that nobody cared about him or would miss him if he was gone - not Percy who fought for him at every turn in PJO, not his sister Hazel, not his new friends Jason and Reyna. He was ready to leave both camps behind because he couldn't see himself ever being happy there. He couldn't see himself being happy at all.

But now, in TSATS, he has a boyfriend that he loves, he has friends that he loves, and he has a community in Camp Half-Blood. He has experienced so much loss that losing someone else is his worst fear. The old Nico would have considered sacrificing himself to protect Will and Bob. At the very least, he would have kept that option in his back pocket as a 'just in case'; he wouldn't have sworn on the Styx that he wouldn't stay behind.

This Nico, however, is doing much better - not perfect, but better. He loves Will, and he wants a life with him, and he's not willing to give that up for anything. Nico has hope for the future, and he's clinging to that hope with everything he has. He sees a light at the end of the tunnel, and he wants to reach it. He's not willing to sacrifice himself because it means losing that future.

Gone is the cynical pessimistic Nico who assumes the worst because the worst is all he thinks he can have. Here is the Nico who has had a taste of happiness and is willing to fight to keep it. He's not going to sacrifice himself because he wants to live. He's not just fighting for Will here; he's fighting for himself too.

And seeing him go from "if it kills me, it kills me" to "it's not going to be me" makes me so ASDFGHJKL

[babacontainsmultitudes]

RIP Will Campos the only person who was murdered this episode.

[dedusmuln]

yeah you support trans people but are you normal about trans men who choose to get pregnant

[demigods-posts]

okay but. annabeth having having feelings for percy. and KNOWING he's developing feelings for her too. but refusing to act on it until she thinks he's about to die. and she'll never get another chance to. so kisses him. and then he crashes his own funeral two weeks later. and now neither of them can deny the tension anymore. and they still have a year left to see if it's even worth saying out loud. or if he was always destined to leave her. because the prophecy has yet to pass. peak writing.

[bogkeep]

there's something so deeply dystopian to me how tech companies don't understand that a forced convenience is not a convenience at all. i'm sure autocorrect is helpful for many, but a function that forcibly changes my actual written words and punctuation is taking away my language. photo filters can be nice but i need to choose using them myself or else i have lost the ability to take the picture i want. i don't want a machine to draw or write for me. taking away the option for me to do things manually feels like violence!!!! all this talk of endless opportunity, why are you RESTRICTING me