#I'm gonna add Invasion of Youth to this

[gellavonhamster]

monthly media recap: july 2023

read:

Half a Soul by Olivia Atwater - a very sweet and kind Regency fantasy romance. One of the reviews on the cover calls it "the definition of a comfort read", and I couldn't agree more. Since this is Tumblr, I feel like I need to add preemptively that maybe don't judge the way the fairy curse in the novel is written (that is, in a way that resembles and, imo, should be read as neurodivergence) before you've learned how it ends

Angélique: The Road to Versailles, Angélique and the King, Angélique and the Sultan, Angélique in Revolt, Angélique in Love, The Countess Angélique, The Temptation of Angélique by Anne Golon - books 2-8 in the Angélique series of historical fiction novels that... didn't age quite well, in my opinion, I'd say a 20th century author could do better even with the caveat that the 17th century people are not by any means supposed to act like modern people. But the plot is so gripping that I can't put these books down, and then there's also this motif of people helping each other even in the bleakest circumstances running through the entire story that makes it worth the occasional cringe for me. However, my cringe level is built on a lot of classic novels that are very much Product of Their Time so idk if I'd recommend these books to anyone. I am having a lot of fun with them, though

I guess it doesn't really count as a book, but it made me spend some time with the French dictionary to read the comics, so - I ordered one of these Three Musketeers zines, the Cavalier Jaune one, and it's a gem (and clearly made with such love for these books) and I'm really glad I got it <3

+ currently reading the next Angélique book

watched:

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023) - very cool and creative and heartfelt, loved it!

Д'Артаньян и три мушкетёра / D'Artagnan and Three Musketeers (1978), Мушкетёры двадцать лет спустя / Musketeers Twenty Years After (1992), Тайна королевы Анны, или Мушкетёры тридцать лет спустя / The Secret of Queen Anne or Musketeers Thirty Years After (1993) - finally watched all three of these adaptations of the d'Artagnan romances, I've only seen the first one before in bits and pieces. The first one is delightful and has so much funny stuff I totally forgot about, such as Constance biting her assailants and Rochefort & Milady singing to Richelieu an offensive song the people of Paris wrote about him. The second one is mostly fine, even despite the ridiculously clumsy attempts to retcon the book stuff that wasn't in the first movie (yeah, right, d'Artagnan sacrificed the ring that the queen gave him to try to save Buckingham, and Lord Winter has met the Musketeers before, this was totally included in part one). I didn't like the changed ending, though - I think it's important that it is Athos who kills Mordaunt, what with the possibility of Mordaunt being his son. The third part might be the stupidest attempt at an everybody lives!AU ever, but it gets like 2/5 points for the cast and the okay-ish first episode

Strange Days (1995) - cyberpunk noir, very cool, Angela Bassett as Mace is amazing

Vai viegli būt jaunam? / Is It Easy to Be Young? (1986) - the famous Latvian documentary about the life of Soviet youth, addressing topics from the punk subculture to the war in Afghanistan. A very interesting reflection of a generation; I think some parts are gonna haunt me

Stand by Me (1986) - summer, childhood in all its cruelty, and friendship that changes you forever. I might or might not have cried

Attack the Block (2011) - really enjoyed this one. Good social commentary? In my sci-fi comedy horror about an alien invasion? It's more likely than you think

L'Apollonide: Souvenirs de la maison close (2011) - beautiful and tragic. One of those films that feel like nothing really happens when in truth a lot happens. Also, women are my favourite guy (c)

[nientedal]

Good news! While bone density might be a real concern if someone was on puberty blockers more than a couple years or into adulthood, blockers are generally not prescribed for that long. Once a kid has had some extra time to figure themself out, they either get on HRT or not and their metabolisms proceed to add bone mineral density (BMD) basically as normal. It's a risk, sure (though one study I read that reported lower BMD in trans youth also noted suboptimal calcium intake and decreased physical activity in the people they had studied, which would be risk factors in any child), but that's why doctors are advised to monitor bone density throughout the regimen of blockers. See Table 7 and the section on side effects in this paper published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, Volume 102, Issue 11, 1 November 2017, Pages 3869–3903, https://doi.org/10.1210/jc.2017-01658. Supplements can be offered to combat this issue if it becomes a concern.

Vaginal atrophy is also reversible to some extent and is treatable in basically any case I could find (I'm at work so unfortunately I cannot do as much research on this one). There are LOADS of resources available for people struggling with this, postmenopausal cisgender women being arguably the largest group affected. If indeed genital atrophy is a major concern for children whose bodies are still growing and often able to catch up developmentally when puberty resumes, that will be monitored by their physicians.

I swear to god, people have GOT to stop talking about puberty blockers as if a kid is just handed a bunch of pills and waved out the door, never to talk to their doctor again. That is a WILDLY disingenuous way to discuss these treatments, which involve far more developmental monitoring than is offered to most cisgender children (who, fun fact, occasionally need to take puberty blockers). And you should be ashamed for ignoring the fact that puberty ALSO causes irreversible changes that are ALSO incredibly damaging to trans people and expensive to correct. Any damage caused by puberty blockers (and I'm still not convinced the damage you're describing is guaranteed) can be tracked and mitigated. The damage caused by puberty cannot. Even if you're right and these are certain and irreversible side effects, it would be a damned if you do, damned if you don't situation; to feign otherwise is ignorant to the point of malice.

(Also, kinda odd that you jumped directly to "oh this is about trans children specifically," as if it could not also be about reproductive rights. Or trans adults. The push to deny people the right to decide what happens to their bodies is not exclusive to trans youth, and yeah, I'm gonna mock the shit out of control-freak, overreaching, fearmongering, pearl-clutching, fucking invasive "concerns" that center solely on someone else's potential regret.)

Anyway. Isn't it great how we have the ability to monitor and mitigate side effects? Isn't that just the best? Isn't that fantastic news? Don't you feel reassured? Maybe now you can stay out of other people's treatment. Just butt entirely the fuck out of other people's medical care. You get to decide what you wanna do with your body, and I get to decide what I wanna do with mine, and parents get to help their kids make informed decisions about what they wanna do with theirs, and nobody has to spout fearmongering nonsense about how harm is the only outcome and it's better for kids to suffer permanent unwanted changes than risk the horrors of [checks notes] calcium supplements and estrogen creams.

Seriously, dude. What the fuck.

If you have bodily autonomy, then there is always a chance that you will do something to your body that you will regret. This is not an argument for taking that autonomy away.

[triscribe]

Tavekriti

So after chatting with @fialleril last night (muffled fangirl squeaking) I found myself struck by the need to write a little thing about why Ekkreth takes the shape of a little red bird when they could be, quite literally, anything else.

(All Tatooine creature and culture headcanons either come directly from or are inspired by the amazing Fia, who is a wonderful person for allowing others to come play in the same sandbox!)

Listen closely, for I tell you this story to save your life.

One day, as Ekkreth was walking along, they found themselves accosted by a little red bird with black wings and grey eyes, which flitted all about their head and refused to be shooed away. Bemused, Ekkreth stopped, and addressed the small creature. “Little one, why do you pester me so? What have I done to earn your ire?”

“It is nothing you have done,” the bird replied. “But my mate sits injured in our burrow not far ahead, and if you keep to your current course, Trickster, you will surely trod upon the entrance and harm him further.”

“You could have simply asked me to alter my path, then,” Ekkreth said.

“I was afraid you’d laugh, and deliberately stomp as you went, the same as Depur’s servants when they came this way - that was how my mate came to be injured in the first place, and our eggs crushed at the same time.”

Good humor gone, Ekkreth bowed their head. “My sorrow for your loss, little one. Gladly, I will avoid your home, if you would be so kind as to guide me around it.”

The bird settled upon Ekkreth’s shoulder, and soon steered them through the sandy gullies and out the other side without incident. Before leaving, however, the animal took a moment to look Ekkreth in the eye.

“Travel towards the Leaking Cup for two nights and Grandmother’s Hand for a third, and at the base of the leftmost cliff you will find a small spring with clean water and many bugs to eat. Clean your tracks as you go, however, or Depur’s slavers may find and pursue your trail.”

Touched, Ekkreth pulled out their water pouch and an empty nut shell; they poured a few drops and offered the tiny container to the bird, who delicately took it with a claw. “For you and your mate, little friend, along with my thanks.”

They parted there, the bird returning home and Ekkreth journeying north towards the stars called the Leaking Cup. But that was not the end of their story.

On the second night that they walked, Ekkreth saw the glow of firelight ahead, and slowed their steps. When they could hear the sound of raucous, cruel laughter, the Trickster changed their shape to resemble a dune snake, silently slithering across the warm sand to peek over shallow dune.

Several of the servants who caught new slaves for Depur lounged around a wasteful bonfire, helping themselves to food and drink, while a small family with chains around their wrists huddled together nearby. Angry, Ekkreth wound their way around the camp, coming to a stop close to the slaves. A heavy staple pinned their central chain to the bedrock, impossible for hands alone to pry up.

Ekkreth, though, had many tricks besides clever hands.

Before acting, however, they started to sing a soft, crooning lullaby, watching as the slave family heard it and stilled where they sat.

“~Oh Brother, my Brother, the cup that we stole,

It’s leaking, my brother, that cup has a hole~

Place it we must in our grandmother’s hand,

Perhaps she can fix it, with sun-heated sand~

If not then we’ll go to the left of the wall,

And hide the cup there, in a hole so small-”

“Hey!” One of the slavers shouted. “Shut that singing and go to sleep!”

Ekkreth immediately stopped, though when the man returned to his meal, they could hear at least one of the slaves humming their tune. Satisfied that the instructions had been received, Ekkreth settled in to wait.

Depur’s slavers gradually fell to sleep, their fire dying down to embers. Only a single man remained on guard, facing away from the chained slaves. Ekkreth seized their moment to act, and slithered forward into the family’s midst. One small child nearly squeaked, but her mother’s fingers squeezed her own, reassuring.

Oh so slowly, Ekkreth pushed and wiggled their way in-between the staple and the chain, scales as hard as the Great Mother’s bones forcing a gap to form. After Ekkreth passed through completely, they turned around to repeat the action, making their form a bit bigger around. Again and again they slipped between, creating a larger and larger gap, until the staple came free completely.

“Go,” they whispered to the grateful family. “I will make a distraction for you.”

That said, the Trickster slipped away from them, around the far side of the camp and up the side of a dune. They waited until the moonglow illuminated the stretch of sand directly in front of the guard before crossing it. He noticed, and froze.

Gleeful, Ekkreth slowly slithered closer, until they came to a stop coiled around the man’s feet. Clearly terrified of potentially being struck by poison fangs, the guard remained stock still for hours, until all three moons had set and the first sun’s glow could just be seen in the sky.

It was obvious when the other slavers awoke by their furious shouts. Ekkreth picked their head up to watch as some ran to the spot the family had been chained, and others hurried to the tops of the dunes around their camp, searching in vain for some sign of where the escapees had fled.

One, though, came towards Ekkreth and their trapped guard - the enraged Taskmaster.

“You!” The woman shouted. “Why did you not wake us when the slaves were escaping?! Face me when I address you, coward!”

Stammering, the guard could do nothing to point downwards, at Ekkreth. The Taskmaster followed his gesture, eyes widening when she finally noticed the massive dune snake. Unlike the petrified guard, however, she was able to act on her fear instead of freezing in place. Drawing forth a knife, the Taskmaster held it up to throw.

Ekkreth took that as their cue to leave.

Fast as lightning, the Trickster launched forward, easily avoiding the blade and curving up the side of a dune. Finally free, the guard they’d held prisoner all night collapsed, tripping up the Taskmaster as she tried to follow Ekkreth.

“Get that snake!” The woman shouted, struggling to get back to her feet. “I want its hide!”

Laughing, Ekkreth hurried onward, wanting to gain a bit more distance before they assumed the shape of the rappali bird and took to the sky-

-but the Taskmaster had more than bladed weapons hung from her belt.

A heavy weight suddenly came down overtop of Ekkreth, and they rolled to a startled halt. Thrashing, the Trickster tried to get out from under the thick oilcloth, but a great many bodies piled on, weighing them down. The muffled sound of the Taskmaster’s voice rang out, ordering her underlings to secure the cloth around their prize.

Trapped inside the newly formed bag, Ekkreth struggled as the slavers carried them back to the camp. Before long, they were dropped onto the flat surface of a sled, the bunched folds of the oilcloth secured with more than enough rope to keep the Trickster from finding an opening.

For three days and nights, Ekkreth could do nothing but sit in place, unwilling to reveal their true self until a clear escape route appeared. The guards would laugh as they kicked the bag, discussing how fine the dune snake’s scaly skin would look stretched out upon Depur’s palace wall. Frustrated more than fearful, the Trickster hissed in reply.

Then came the moment when their patience paid off.

Something small landed atop the folds of the bag, and began to nudge at the loops of rope holding it shut. Ekkreth awoke from their doze but did not move. More nudges and tugs proceeded to loosen the bindings, just enough that a tiny sliver of an opening appeared. Quickly, Ekkreth took the shape of a kirik fly and buzzed through it.

Their friend, the little red bird, chirped as soon as the Trickster appeared. “I am glad to see you alive, Trickster. The family you sent to my spring were all quite concerned, and would not leave off their pestering until I promised to come looking.”

“Then I will forever be in their debt, and yours as well, little friend,” Ekkreth replied. After a moment’s consideration, they changed their shape again, to match the bird before them. “In fact, from now on, when I escape from Depur and his servants’ clutches, I will do so looking like you, Tavekriti - so that all the Great Mother’s Children will know you are a friend and ally.”

Laughing, the two of them took flight together from the sled, the Taskmaster driving it unaware of her prize flitting off into the sky.

True to their word, whenever Ekkreth had reason to live up to their name and go walking in the sky, they did so in the form of a little red bird, with black wings and grey eyes.

Tavru - red; Ekrit - bird (made up by yours truly)

Ekkreth - Skywalker, the Slave Who Makes Free

Depur - Master

Tavekriti’s design is modelled on the Vermilion Flycatcher

Thanks for reading!