#I think we might like each other

[jedidryad]

WIP:I could sense  he was not as serene as he looked

One of the challenges in writing Lightsabers are Always Loaded has been writing Luke and Mara constantly feeling alienated from one another and speaking at cross-purposes. Writing a broken relationship hurts, and it might hurt to read. So, as an antidote, here’s a bit from part 5 - during Vision of the Future when they are slowly recognizing how much they care about one another. This is an excerpt from negotiating with the Qom Jha, who had “captured” Mara on Nirauan. She needs Luke to help her  understand them, and they have to work together for the first time in a long time…

He then announced the arrival of the Bargainer and I grimaced at the realization that I would need a translator. Why couldn’t I understand them?

“It sure would make things easier,” Luke acknowledged when I expressed my frustration, and then, after a beat, he asked for my hand.

I held out my left to him and asked what he had in mind.

“I can sense them and we can sense each other. If we can make that connection strong enough..”

His grip tightened on mine and I strained to hear if it made a difference. After a moment, it became clear that hand holding wouldn’t do it. Luke murmured a nearly silent apology as he slid behind me, slipped an arm around my waist and dropped his head down to mine. Had I been facing him, we would have held the primary position of a Hosnian Bolero.

I fought the instinct to stiffen, and realized my heart was pounding harder than was necessary. His arm was warm on my waist, his breath soft in my ear.

Since when did another person affect me like this? Since when did Luke?

And then I gasped as I realized the jumbled sounds had coalesced into separate voices that I could understand. It was like a transmission finally syncing on the right frequency.

Luke tightened his arm briefly in a celebration of success and I settled in to follow the conversation.

The conversation was remarkably disturbing. The Qom Jha didn’t want me there. Apparently they had attempted to contact Luke and warn him to keep me away from the planet – although I couldn’t imagine why they thought that would be a useful approach, and the Bargainer who called himself “Eater of Fire Creepers” seemed less interested in explaining why I was in danger than in finding the right being to blame for Luke not receiving the messages. This did not bode well for a productive discussion.

And Eater of Fire Creepers did not seem to care, as he settled on blaming Luke’s guide on behalf of all of the Qom Qae. Kriff, couldn’t we go anywhere without running into hostility and skirmishes?

I sensed what might  have been wry sympathy from Luke, but it was quickly subsumed in concern as he ordered the Qom Jha to leave Child of Winds alone.

They did not, and with an obvious reluctance, he stepped away from me and into a defensive stance as he ignited his lightsaber and repeated his command.

“Leave him alone and I will question him.”

That should do it. After so many years, Luke had perfected the tone and pose of power and intimidation. His words seemed to reverberate through the Force and against the cavern walls. It was impressive, I had to admit.

But it didn’t work. They continued to harass Child of Winds, and I watched the avian pull further into his crevice. Either the Qom Jha didn’t know Luke was the real deal, or they didn’t care. Neither possibility could be tolerated though. They needed to be shown.

I waited for Luke to advance on them, to throw his lightsaber, to do something. He didn’t. Why not?

Reaching out, I could sense he was not as serene as he looked. He was frantically trying to come up with a nonviolent way to intervene on behalf of his guide. Of course, I suddenly realized, his every act was being judged against the mantle of the Jedi Master that he always had to wear. Whether he wanted it or not, everything he did reflected the Jedi and needed to match how he wanted them to be perceived in the galaxy.

I, ex-assassin, smuggler, semi-redeemed war criminal, had no such strictures.

I grabbed my holdout and fired. I sent three bolts into precise locations around Child of Winds’ hiding place, close enough to almost singe the beaks of the harassing avians without doing any actual damage.

They backed off and silence rang in the echoes of my shots.

I had everyone’s attention.

“A minute ago you called him Master,” I reminded the insolent crowd. “Is he a Jedi Master to be respected, or isn’t he?”

I settled into a combat stance and allowed the threat in my tone and words to communicate the danger they would be in if they continued this sort of disrespect.

Luke’s emotions drifted from embarrassment to disapproval.

Ungrateful of him.

The birds were speaking again and, having stepped away from Luke, I had no idea what they were saying.

“Translation?” I muttered, trying to keep the redness out of my cheeks as the weakness of my strategy became apparent. This was beyond frustrating and I was certain Luke could tell.

“He said, ‘You have no place to speak thus to the Bargainer for the Qom Jha’,” Luke gallantly translated as he slid his arms back around me and I tried to focus on what he said, despite the sudden warmth of his breath against my neck. What was wrong with me?

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

The Yiling Band Tour!

[noodles-and-tea]

For the twins in time AU, I genuinely wonder what kind of people the young twins grow up into because of Stan’s/Ford’s influence. Especially if it takes years for the portal to get fixed.

(Sorry if it seems like I already sent this question, I don’t know if it got sent the first time I asked)

I haven’t fully fleshed out how Ford grows up in the past but I do have thoughts on Stan presently

[spitedemon]

i really don’t think it’s “typical dragon age fandom nonsense” for people to be genuinely upset about the world state choices. combat, level design, art direction, gameplay gimmicks, those have all varied across each dragon age game. the one thing that’s remained constant are nods to our previous choices.

i wasn’t expecting my HoF to come riding in on a griffon, but i can’t find a monument dedicated to warden tabris somewhere around the anderfels? lucanis couldn’t have some lines about the time that one arainai boy was stirring up trouble in antiva city? you’re gonna tell me that making a mage the new divine wouldn’t have some impact on nevarra and antiva? on the anderfels, the supposed most devout militant andrastian nation in thedas? you’re saying nobody in the north is paying attention to who rules orlais or ferelden? come on.

[welcometogrouchland]

[ID in ALT] I've made posts before about Talia/Dick co-parenting Damian moments (will never happen but let me dream) and this came to me in a vision. Took me ages to finish for some reason 😭 and then even longer to post

[catgirljaneway]

I deeply dislike the voyager fandom trope where Kathryn is everyone's mom and Chakotay is the dad. (I love found family, I hate "nuclearized" found family) That woman is NOT everyone's mother. She is however Harry's mother. Which is even funnier because from what we know, Harry seems to have a perfectly healthy and good relationship with his actual mom. He did NOT need to be adopted by an insane middle-aged woman but BOOM now he's got mommy issues and it's literally his boss.

[twinstxrs]

so much happened in this whole episode but i’m still on fig infiltrating ruben’s dream, making it look like the place where his friend was murdered, and then disguising herself as kipperlilly & repeatedly saying different variants of “somebody needs to take the fall for this, and it’s not going to be me. it’s going to be you.” while adaine as the elven oracle shows up next to her. can you imagine waking up from that, the idea of a horrible truth being pinned on you by your friend to save her own skin while the personification of fate and destiny stands there, almost as a promise that this is GOING to happen to you. we don’t even know if this kid is guilty. my god.

[lautakwah]

there is no such thing as a "trans inclusive radical feminist" the entire foundation of radical feminism is built off of transmisogyny!! like, there is no way around it, 2nd wave feminism was notoriously bad at being intersectional and recognizing how different types of marginalization interact, positioning women as a distinct class regardless of race, age, class, orientation, agab, and so on, who were supposedly all oppressed the same way under patriarchy which simply isn't true.

if you really do believe you're trans inclusive then you cannot be a radfem it simply doesn't work like that; hate to break it to you the basis of your feminism is transmisogynistic as all hell and no amount of padding it out with being "trans friendly" (to whom?) will ever change that. i could even be mean about it but let me put it this way: there are so many different feminisms, many of which are incredibly accessible with tons of literature online, at your local library and in the bookshop close to your home, in english and your native language, that actively choosing to be a radical feminist is an act of transphobia in and of itself.

[horsemotifs]

Loch took that literally

[secondbeatsongs]

going through some old logs, and I need you to understand just how truly unhinged early 2010s RP omegle was.

genuinely you could stay on there for hours with just one person, hashing out complex traumatic backstories, drawn-out love confessions, detailed action scenes...collaboratively describing graphic violence, past abuse, comfort, hurt/comfort, hurt/no comfort, any number of sex acts...and then one of you would be like, "oh haha it's 2AM! I have to sleep :(" and the other person would say, "omg saaaame. :( gnight!!!" and then you'd exit the chat and never speak to each other again, and this was. fine.

you could just spend an entire evening shoving your wretched, bleeding soul into a chat log with someone you'd never meet or learn the name of, achieve some form of emotional catharsis, and then go about your day or night like this was an average way to spend your time.

I'm really normal about this, actually

[drenched-in-sunlight]

saying this as respectfully as possible but. Do not put fandom content creators on a pedestal. We are also just fans contributing to a community just as you are. We have boundary on our own work and that’s it. What I say is not and should not be considered sth the whole fandom should listen to. I’m just a normal ass person ranting about things on my blog. If it does not have a fandom tag for others to engage in, do not make it out to be me trying to start fights or addressing the whole community. Because it’s not.

I’ve said it before and I will say it again, my art, my lore talk, is biased. I’ve never tried to hide that I view Marika a certain way and will always develop my theory following that base assumption.

Aside from translation stuffs and pointing out in-game items, everything else I say you can look at it, agree or disagree, and move on to form your own opinions. Just because I draw stuffs doesn’t mean you get to saddle me with responsibilities about managing fandom expectations. What the hell? I’m a fan artist, I’m the last person who you should look at for “leaderism” (?) WHAT?

I can and will be a hater in my own space, like I know sometimes other artists will just post their stuffs and not engage too heavily with fandom, and for a while I did try to do that here (because I’m already a dramatic ass on twitter), that’s just not me though.

You will get art and you will get my opinions as well.

[bisexualdinahlance]

I'm gonna be real, I do think Tristan could be genuine in his feeling like hes "not going to be able to share" just based on how Max acted in this episode. Setting aside any potential Max/Tristan attraction, Max spent this whole episode being uncomfortable around Tristan, butting heads with him, and asserting his authority over him in a way we haven't seen since episode 1, if ever. (He dressed Tristan down in front of the Captain and called him Nurse Silva has he ever done that??)

Then Max gives his whole speech about being traditional, wanting one woman, and children, and about how they need to be able to maintain their dynamics and therefore their hierarchy. I think Tristan quite frankly lost some trust he had gained in Max in this episode. Trust that he would be listened to, trust that they could meet on the same level, trust that Max trusted him in return.

Not to mention Avery actively used to his attraction to her to get what she wanted lol. He floats the idea of them making a good duo after Max's rejection and she won't even consider it. Then she flirts with him just to get him to agree to talk to Max. It was funny but you could see even then he looked a little put out by it. There's nothing wrong with her wanting both and feeling like monogamy isn't for her, but I do think Tristan took that as "I am not and will never be enough for her" and that hit right in his emotional issues.

I think it genuinely is difficult for him to see how they could be in a balanced relationship atp (poly-v OR triad). In his eyes, Max not only doesn't want to try something "non traditional" but the threesome has also brought his power over Tristan to the forefront, causing a breakdown in trust. Avery has, unintentionally, kinda made it seem like she isn't concerned for Tristan's feelings and/or just doesn't care enough about him. It makes sense that Tristan feels like he's not going to be respected or considered in the relationship!

I also think it's significant that Avery keeps talking about fun and not putting a label on it and just... Never talks about the emotional side of it which makes sense for her prior commitment issues but is something that both Max and Tristan explicitly want.

This also isn't to say it couldn't work out between them lol, I'm still rooting for them to at least be a V (tho it's be a triad in my heart). I think that jealousy and insecurity is normal sometimes in polyamory at the beginning. The key is to communicate and they aren't... Really doing that yet lol.

[icewindandboringhorror]

Little bright colored outfit with a fun vest ~

(shoes from ebay like 10 years ago. everything else is thrifted)

[somegrumpynerd]

When Killer tells Cross he wants to sleep with him

[heart-select]

oh god stupid thought: diluc willingly disowning kaeya that day bc he knew he was going to go after the past that caught up with Crepus and if anything happens to him, he doesn't want Kaeya to follow too or get involved. (The cryo vision being the thing that 'saved' kaeya in the end in their fight? felt like a sign)

Turns out, it went better than hoped bc he's alive but mondstadt had changed so much since he's been gone and he still doesn't know if he'll also end up like his father again so he doesn't even try to amend things (smthng smthng bc he doesn't feel he deserves it either). Kaeya never learns what Diluc learned about Crepus, just that he went on a rampage in snezhnaya.

[stardustalien]

season 3 has done a lot for teen mistynat (and therefore mistynat overall) but idk the thing i can’t get over the most is Nat reaching out to Misty first about mercy killing Ben and the fact that she wanted to open up to Misty about how she was feeling???? she was looking for someone to understand her and she went to Misty.

hello???? Natalie wouldn’t have done this in the previous seasons what a development.