#MAGGIE

[nqueso-emergency]

hey not to alarm you but maggie tweeted a screenshot of the word libel and knowing you said she leaked info i would tread carefully….

I'm not alarmed, I assure you. 🤣

A Tumblr blog post is NOT a publication. They should know this. Now it's just getting really fucking sad.

[atangledfate]

Lanolin's mind was racing a million miles a second as she was trying to come to a rational decision. If they fought back then it could be disastrous! the people were here to fight Eggman not GUN or even other mobians! It was easy to pull a trigger and blow up a machine but killing poeple? That wasn't so easy was it? But more then that it was the legal ramification. If they defied an official order then they became the bad guys. That was the point wasn't it? In the public eye the president was the leader of the free world on mobius. If they defied him, they'd be in the wrong and he knew that. Even IF Lanolin believed that they had done nothing wrong. It would look bad if she decided to stand defiant against them.

That man had won before they ever spoke, and his information was spot on. How did he get that information? was alot that didn't add up but she made a decision even if deep down she knew some might hate her for it.

" I can't say i'm not angry at you, but that's the least of our worries. No matter what play we make, its going to be bad for us... The President is the leader of the free world no matter how much we dislike that ... or hate GUN. If we go against them it's akin to admitting our guilt... we'd be the villains of the story, and then what? Us vs them? how many die in that cross fire... "

She crossed her arms and looked away from Rowan and Blaze clearly she'd put alot of thought into this. Yet it was tearing her up inside, because she knew the way forward would be hard.

" No, We need to get everyone here who has a stake in this. Belle, Surge, Kit, Miles, Sonic, the Chaotix... I have a plan, my own way to deal with it all. But it's risky and we could lose everything... and i know you mean well Rowan but, i think right now trying to argue with them might just make us look more guilty. "

She pinched her nose as she was really hating this, and her own plan was risky and could easily end with Restoration being disolved. But right now that was the most likely outcome no matter what they did. This wasn't a battle of strength or power but cunning, planning, and playing by there rules.

" We have to defeat them at there own game. That means letting them believe they have won, let there people do there investigation and, beating them in the courts. That wont be easy... and it carries alot of risks... so i need everyone one board. Everyone to agree to the way forward. "

" I'm going to call Sonic and the others here, i can't make this decision alone. We have an hour... let's use it! We'll make a game plan and execute it together! we may not win today... but we'll win this war! "

She made her way to the console, and pressed a key and grabbed the microphone. She took a deep breath as she had to think carefully about what she said, she needed to make it seem official since GUN was listening and watching.

" Attention all Restoration Leadership! This is Commander Lanolin! I'm calling an Emergency meeting of all officers, from all teams in the field. Please report to the command center! double time people! This includes Team Sonic, and all Diamond Cutter units! and the Chaotix! report to the command center at once! "

She set down her mic only for Maggie to zip past Rowan through the portal and practically tackle her! which was somewhat uncharacteristic of her, but Lanolin hugged the little Wisp seeing her back and safe. She sighed and looked up at the others with a focused gaze.

" now we wait, once everyone is here... we can share ideas... and plans and come up with a course of action. "

Blaze only observed closely at the interaction, and this young man was clearly more fearsome and cunning than he was letting on. It was truly a right play. Use charisma and charm to win the people while also having a cunning and strategic mind to win the battles people didn't see. Not to mention all the intel they seemed to have on The Restoration. Surge and Kitsunami are most likely public information, though as for Clutch even she couldn't meet him which meant he was the one trying to avoid being in public eye. And she doubts anyone here would go around telling GUN she was a technical Badnik.

Then the call ended and Lanolin turned to her for advice, something she could understand. "I must say, I wasn't expecting such a fearsome president. He almost reminded me of my mother, and her ability to put pressure on anyone while holding the softest smile she could. I fear he may be above even my skill level despite his age, though I'll try. If the worse comes, we may have to abandon the base." The feline would start to think of a counter argument to try and get him to back off.

A portal would then open near the door as Rowan walked out. "This is seriously why I hate GUN. During the war when I went around blasting Eggman base's to nothing they tried several times to follow me. After the third group I sent back injured they finally backed off," the lemur said walking over to the two. "I've been listening from the Shadow Void, and I have a plan. If you trust me enough to talk to him that is. Though I guess I should let you get your free shot on me first." He was sure Lanolin might still be mad at him.

Blaze was a bit stunned to see the lemur, though it seemed he had been listening and seemed to know Lanolin so she would turn her attention to her. "I'm unfamiliar with him, though he seems to know you. If you wish to trust whatever plan he has then I'll support it. If you wish for him to leave, I shall make quick work of that." The feline could easily dash him out of here. And if he fought back, well, it'd end poorly for him.

"Hey, I'm standing right here ya know. I get the whole shadow portal thing throws people off, though I'm a nice guy. Just a bit odd, which I fully accept." If Rowan remember correctly then the feline was Blaze from another dimension.

===========================================================

The Mother Wisp's eyes change to as if she was smiling. "✋︎ ⬧︎♒︎♋︎●︎●︎ ♑︎♓︎❖︎♏︎ ⍓︎□︎◆︎ ♋︎ ●︎♓︎⧫︎⧫︎●︎♏︎ ♒︎♏︎●︎◻︎ ♍︎♒︎♓︎●︎♎︎📬︎." She would open a small portal, one that would take Maggie to where Lanolin was. "☺︎◆︎⬧︎⧫︎ ⬧︎⧫︎♋︎⍓︎ ⬧︎♋︎♐︎♏︎ ♍︎♒︎♓︎●︎♎︎📪︎ ♋︎■︎♎︎ ♎︎□︎■︎🕯︎⧫︎ ♎︎□︎ ♋︎■︎⍓︎⧫︎♒︎♓︎■︎♑︎ ❒︎♋︎⬧︎♒︎📬︎." If a single child gets hurt she wouldn't be controlling herself anymore.

The Mother Wisp then turned gaze back to all the soldiers, and maybe that should know as well. She would suddenly lean down, looking down at them. "I will only say this a single time. I am a Mother Wisp, and while all Wisp are not my creation I still see them as my children all the same. If any harm becomes of them I will not restrain my wrath." She then leaned back up.

[hg-aneh]

b

boing boing

[cliopadra]

They’re just a bit dense when it comes to feelings.

[alexxuun]

Everyday, it’s a-gettin’ gayer~🎶

[lookitsstevie]

nice indeed 😇

(everyone already knows what the reference is but still)

[inezrable]

[vavoom-sorted-art]

Happy Pride!

I promised a big pride artwork earlier this month, here it is! (Ideas lovingly submitted by my dear Patreons!)

[ato-dato]

The adventure of Muriel Part 1

[fuckyeahgoodomens]

I made a gif for everyone who needs to send away 2023 or unfrighteningly welcome 2024 (yeah I admit, I might have watched too much ofmd Izzy recently :D <3)

[pralinesims]

short n' sweet 🍓🐇💕🎀

[ineffablyruined]

Good Omens + Text Posts

[ashfae]

The thing about romance is, it makes a good story.

As soon as Neil described season 2 as "quiet, gentle, romantic" I figured we'd be in for it, because as he's the first to point out, writers are liars. And the best way to deceive is with truth.

Season 2 is romantic. The trappings of romance are everywhere. Crowley tries to set up Nina and Maggie by trapping them under an awning during a rainstorm, a classic cinematic bonding technique. Aziraphale's chosen method comes from his beloved books: the ball, the dancing, appearing as a pair in public, hands held as you twirl gracefully with your heart thrilled and racing. If they can set up a sensational kiss that will unlock the happy ever after. They've lived on earth, they've studied the tropes, they know how romance works.

The problem is a story is only a story.

Nina and Maggie had the classic romantic setup completely by accident before Aziraphale and Crowley ever began trying to interfere with them. They get locked in Nina's coffeeshop. They can't escape or communicate with anyone else, they end up talking by candlelight because there's no electricity, Nina offers wine. Maggie mentions how she'd hoped for a chance to talk to Nina, and now here they are. It's every bit as much a standard as what Aziraphale and Crowley attempt to arrange. Blanket scenarios galore exist because of that starting point. We love that story. And there's nothing wrong with that.

But it's still only a story, it's not enough. Because once that moment of connection is over, however lovely it was, all the rest of the world comes flooding back in in the form of dozens of angry text messages. Nina's messy entrapping relationship hasn't magically gone away just because she and Maggie shared a romantic encounter.

And it's so tempting think oh well, that's easy. We'll just give them more romantic encounters and eventually those will overwhelm the rest of the baggage. Must do, because it'll make them fall in love, and once they realize they're in love that trumps all other considerations, right? So it'll be fine. Love Conquers All.

Neil also mentioned Pride and Prejudice.

Darcy knows he's in love early on and makes a disasterous proposal that shows that he has no understanding of Elizabeth's perspective, possibly hasn't even thought about it. They've been meeting in forest lanes for walks, conversing, had tete-a-tetes in the sitting room, danced at a ball. And while his turn of phrase isn't as flattering as he thinks, he's still offering her everything he thinks she wants and needs: affection, security, his good name, wealth, an escape from the embarrassments of her situation, the world. How can there be anything to object to? Why would anyone ever refuse so much of value?

Elizabeth quite rightly cuts him to pieces. He lashes back with a few hard truths of his own and they separate. During that separation, he thinks and he learns. He takes to heart the criticisms she offered, re-examines his assumptions, opens his eyes. Thinks about her perspective and how sometimes the only difference between pride and arrogance is where you're standing. He does the work. When they meet again he tries to demonstrate that he's learned--not in order to court her again (yet), but because the only real apology he can offer, the only one that would have weight, is to show that he's grown, he listened to her. He changed.

Elizabeth of course has her own journey, accepting that many of her own conclusions about Darcy were erroneous because they were formed without her having the full picture to hand, and once she's done that she has to apply it to her own situation as well. She loves her family, but they do place her at a disadvantage on a number of levels, leading eventually to full-out disaster as her younger sister carelessly ruins all of their reputations. It's hard to admit, it's mortifying, but Darcy was offering her a great deal she needs. His offer did have worth for all that she dismissed it as an insult. And as she learns to value his own character more highly, and then as she sees that he did listen to her even though she insulted him so thoroughly...well, she grows too. And when they do eventually come together it's not because of courting and balls. There's a big romantic gesture in his rescue of her sister but even that isn't why they'll get their happy ever after. It was just the catalyst for the conversation. They win because they've learned how to understand each other and how to communicate for the future. How they can strengthen and support each other, how to balance their strengths and weaknesses. The films leave them at the wedding, but the book shows a bit of their marriage too, and during it they keep learning from each other. Their relationship is held up as a superior love story for good reasons.

The end of season one was romantic too. Crowley stopped time rather than face a world where Aziraphale would never speak to him again, Aziraphale walked into hell to protect Crowley, they dined at the Ritz and toasted the world. But then they stopped. Sure they spent time together, talked, enjoyed each other's company. But if they were talking about important things would Crowley still be living in his car? They had a bit of respite but all that real world baggage that exists outside of the romantic moment hasn't been faced, none of it. Four or five years sounds like a long while but for beings who are quite literally older than the earth? That's just an intermission.

Nina's relationship ends, leaving her with a tangled mess; Maggie realises the sweet dream of love she's been longing for isn't as important as the real Nina. They talk. They plan. Nina will sort through her life, get closure, figure out what went wrong with Lindsay and what she wants from a relationship, learn how to ask for respect instead of just bending under her partner's demands. Maggie will support Nina the way Nina needs, which sometimes means helping her get oat milk for the shop and sometimes means giving her processing space. They're on the same page; they're going to do the work. That's why most likely they'll succeed. To quote one of my favourite fanfics: it's not happily ever after, but it's a chance. It's all going to be okay. (The Profane Comedy by Mussimm, who absolutely nailed this theme)

The romance is nice, it's lovely. We need it to keep ourselves going. To give ourselves the dreams that help us get through the days and nights. But it's not the relationship. It's not enough on its own. The wedding can be the grandest most beautiful ceremony ever with doves flying and sweeping music and bells ringing, but that doesn't guarantee the marriage will last.

Crowley and Aziraphale have had their romantic gestures, oodles of them. One wing raised to protect the other from falling stars, another from rain. Shared ground, shared interests, hands offered in friendship and held on a bus. They've tried to get to the same page, they really have. They just aren't there yet. The biggest most important things still haven't been talked about, and season 2 showed there are even more of those big important things than we'd realised.

The show paints Maggie as Aziraphale's foil and Nina as Crowley's, even to the point of Nina casually calling Maggie 'angel'. But Aziraphale's baggage is Nina's. The toxic relationship has to be processed and understood and closed, and it hasn't been, despite season one. Lindsay never really liked Nina very much, for all that they tried to keep her trapped; Heaven never really liked Aziraphale very much for all that he believed in it. They both let themselves be used. But Lindsay left Nina and went to their sister's, whereas now the head of Heaven has reached out to Aziraphale and said here, we can fix this, you can fix this, don't you want to fix this? Others are already writing about that and maybe I'll add to it later, not sure. And Crowley, like Maggie, has had a sweet dream that he has to set aside. Maybe he'll be able to pick it up again eventually, maybe not. But sometimes you offer support by buying oat milk or rescuing your beloved from the legions of hell, and sometimes you do it by standing back while they sort through their shit.

Quiet, gentle, romantic. It was.

But that's only part of the story. Now they have to do the work. They thought they had, but they were wrong, because there's so much they just hadn't touched yet and tried to cover over with relief and sleight of hand and alcohol and forgiveness. The apology dance doesn't mean much without showing that you listened and learned. They've faced so much trauma already and that should have been enough, we wanted it to be enough and so did they and it's such a blow for it to turn out that there's still more to do, that the baggage hasn't just gone away and can't be hidden under blankets or soothed with cocoa. The texts are still coming in and demanding answers.

But it'll be okay. It will. It's still a chance. And one that in the long run makes them better, builds something real that lasts.

The best stories, the ones that last longest and become classics, are the ones that don't end with the kiss under the awning or the blanket scenario or the wedding. They're the ones that heal us while the characters heal themselves. It's hard to accept that there's still more to do. Harder to imagine how it can possibly work out. And yes, bloody frustrating to wait and see.

And we'll get through that interim by telling even more stories. Because the story is never just a story. It's how we get through the work, it's what we tell ourselves so we can do the damn work. Stories are what we cling to and how we remind ourselves we're human and connect. A book is a person you can carry with you. We're not alone, none of us, stories connect us because we love them and see ourselves in them, which means we see each other.

Aziraphale's back up in Heaven to deal with his unfinished baggage; Crowley left his behind long ago and it's clearly going to come back and bite him in the arse however much he tries to go his own way. And they can't help each other with that. Not yet.

But they'll get there. So will we.

[hg-aneh]

crimis doodles that turned into a story by accident

[cliopadra]

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