#More misogynistic slurs of course

[autolenaphilia]

God I think I actually prefer explicit fascist transmisogyny in comparison to the disguised dogwhistly liberal transmisogyny.

Like the people who openly call me an autogynephile and other various slurs and tell me to kill myself are at least being honest. They don't bullshit me about hating my very existence and wanting me to die.

It's all the faux-loving forms of transmisogyny that really make me angry. Like it makes my skin crawl in its dishonesty and hypocrisy. And it takes so many forms. Like the transmisogynist christian "hate the sin, not the sinner" approach where they claim to love me and just want me to accept Jesus in my heart. The necessary condition for accepting their version of Jesus however is me detransitioning, and that would kill me.

There is the terfy "people with gender dysphoria are suffering and they need help but we can't endanger women's sex-based rights for them." i've even seen in arguments about legal gender changes the following: "of course trans women deserve to use women's spaces, but if we allow legal gender self-id evil cis men will take advantage of that. So trans women will have to have their rights restricted." Even J.K. Rowling used it in her terf manifesto.

It makes one yearn for the days of the ur-terf book "The Transsexual Empire" which had the "shemale" slur in its subtitle and in which the author Janice Raymond argued trans women rape real women by the fact of their very existence. That kind of brazen transmisogyny at least had some kind of honesty about it.

There is also the transmisogynist callout culture fandom, or as the japanese fittingly call them: the american feelings yakuza. They callout transfems for problematic kinks like at least once a week but deny transmisogyny. "oh we don't believe all transfems are evil predatory sex perverts, it's just that this particular transfem is."

Their evidence for her being sexual predatory is that she ships two fictional siblings. Or in meatspace meetings, things like her having "bad vibes" ("bad vibes" or "gut instinct" are polite words for what more sensible people call "ingrained bias") .

And they suspiciously keep on making callouts for transfem after transfem in a neverending series, trying to ruin her reputation and socially exile her, but of course they are not transmsiogynists.

There is also the sofboi transandrobro type of transmisogyny. They spread the vilest transmisogyny but always falls back on a terfy bioessentialism to claim ontological innocence and perpetual victimhood in all situations. I've literally seen someone say "how can i be a misogynist, i'm literally afab." These people will not say directly "shut up about your oppression, stupid tranny", but say it in coded form. I had one guy traumadump to me about his rape in vivid detail to make the point that (trans)men suffer more and imply that transfems don't suffer from sexual violence.

And that's the crux of the issue. Open hate barely fazes me anymore, unless there is an immediate threat of physical violence. But being condescended to, being emotionally manipulated, being faced with people veiling their hatred of transfems behind a veil of superficially loving rhetoric, that does make me angry. And these people always use my anger against me. "Why are you so angry when these people are being so polite and nice to you?" And that's because the point of these rhetorical approaches is to have plausible deniability for your bigotry and make transfems look crazy when they point it out.

Yet it's the same bigotry as the explicit version, it's just more dishonest about it. Like if had the They Live glasses and looked at the rhetoric, it would just read "exterminate all transfems." All those polite liberals believe the same thing about transfems as the neo-nazis openly calling for us to be hanged, they just lack the virtue of being honest about it.

[aroceu]

i've been rewatching the good place with a friend lately so i've been thinking about it a lot and i just keep thinking

about how eleanor says so much that she's not a bad person, she's just a "medium" person. she didn't kill anyone, she didn't technically abuse anyone, she was selfish but not "horrible," she was human.

except when we see eleanor pre-death, we see something different. no, she didn't murder anyone. but she was pretty horrible. she was really good at lying to elderly people to sell them fake drugs. she abused her friend's dog. she lied to her coworkers to get out of driving for them at the bar. she felt so threatened by people feeling like they were better than her that when she saw concrete proof that a coffee shop manager was misogynistic and sexually assaulted someone, she enthusiastically supported the cafe to be contrary to her boyfriend.

she is very obviously a horrible person. even in season 2, michael calls her a manipulative demon; that's not something you get called if you're just a "medium" person. what we're told, and what her reasoning is a lie. but she doesn't know it. it's a lie to the viewers.

she also stands in stark contrast with jason—who has broken the law multiple times, has gotten arrested multiple times, likes celebrities and hobbies that have a terrible reputation (not just for being "trash" but for being actively hateful), and even if he might not have killed someone, there's probably something in his repertoire that comes close. but at the same time, it's very, very obvious to see that he's a good-hearted person, who wants to do more good than harm. compared to eleanor, whose bad actions are much smaller in comparison, but her bad personality makes her less likable, and much worse. yes, of course it's about environment—but it's also about how goodness might be more accurately judged by intent than by action.

i saw someone say that it was unrealistic that eleanor didn't call chidi a racial slur when she was a white woman from arizona. sentimentally, i agree with the realism argument. but at the same time, i think it would've been out of place. eleanor would know that saying a slur is on a different level of wrong. a lot of the bad things she did were indirect; it was a lot about what she did when no one was looking. but she didn't want to see herself as a horrible person, so she wouldn't have wanted anyone to see either. as long as they didn't get too close for her.

eleanor being a "medium" person is a lie. of course she belongs in the bad place. she's initially presented as a "medium person" because the story wants us to be on her side, wants us to believe that she's as human as us, until the season one flashbacks start to tell a different story. then it makes us squint and go, no, eleanor really is a terrible person. but the show is aware of this too!

and yet, the thesis of the show is that bad people can always get better. that no one is beyond rehabilitation; that society fucks us up but it's still the choices that we make that mean the most about who we are in the end. we get to see the growth of eleanor's good person journey through the entirety of season one, so that even as we realize she was a shitty person on earth, we're still rooting for her by the end of it. season one is the show's entire thesis; seasons two through four are just proving it to us. and eleanor proves herself to us over and over again, so that even as we know how terrible she was, and how terrible she's capable of being, we still know and believe that she belongs in the good place at the end.

[bruh-changbin]

love and leather

pairing: bad boy changbin! x afab reader

genre: smut

warnings: use of handcuffs, piv, exhibitionism, fingering (f receiving), some smoochin', alcohol consumption, cigarette smoking, an icky man being kinda icky, i think that's all

word count: 3.4K

a/n: before y’all say anything i knowwww this is short but y'all i'm busy and fuck in my last semester of uni and i kinda need to prioritize that a bit more 😭 buuuuut on the flip side i am slowly but surely making progress on some longer fun things so keep your eyes peeled 🫶 this fic is basically a love letter to bad boy eyeliner bin *sigh* when will he return from war..... also lowkey a continuation of under the bleachers but also not really.... no real plot just smutty bc i've been super horknee lately lawl enjoy

————

seo changbin likes a lot of things.

he likes eyeliner and smoking cigarettes and hard sex. he likes going fast on his motorcycle and he likes his tattered leather jacket. he likes getting piercings with silver jewelry and he likes pretending that the taste of tequila doesn’t affect him.

but above all, he likes you.

he likes your pretty teeth and the curve of your neck. he likes the leather platform boots you bought to try to impress him. he likes the smell of your shampoo that’s now permanently interwoven into the fabric of his pillow.

he likes it when you cry when you cum and when you dig your teeth into his shoulder as he fucks you. he likes the way your speech becomes slurred after he’s given you countless mind-blowing orgasms.

he likes to be in control. but not in a weird, lowkey misogynistic way. more in a ‘i’m gonna fuck you so hard and act cold so we both feel good and then kiss away your tears because i love you more than anything else’ kind of way, you know? that’s why handcuffs are such a staple in your relationship.

you remember the first time he used those cold, metal cuffs on you.

it was after a halloween party and changbin was dressed up as, you guessed it, a police officer. the party was fun at first but soon grew to be quite boring. when changbin started to get a little too handsy was when you decided to call it a night. the cab ride back to your apartment was excruciatingly long and when you arrived you unlocked your door with trembling, sweaty hands.

no words needed to be exchanged for you to know to get onto your mattress on your stomach, hands behind your back where changbin cuffed them in place with a satisfying metallic click! 

his movements were painstakingly slow, removing and discarding your bottoms and costume at a torturous pace to tease you (for what you have no idea - your costume wasn’t even that revealing). you could feel the tip of his nose tracing the skin in between your shoulder blades before he fucked you from behind, his blunt nails digging into your hips and he gripped you like he was never gonna let go. all you could do was cry and drool into your bedding as your boyfriend brought you to orgasm so many times your legs felt like tv static.  

every time you tried to move, tried to find solace and stability by gripping the duvet underneath you, you were reminded of the cuffs that were binding your wrists together. changbin would chuckle every time he heard them clink and jingle, knowing he had complete and utter control over you. if anything it added fuel to his fire, resulting in him thrusting his cock into you in such a way that made it feel as if he was so deep inside of you that the two of you would forever be connected.

when he finally relented and unlocked you, your wrists were bruised and throbbing - it felt amazing. 

the stinging of your wrists coupled with the pulsing of your abused cunt had you passing out on changbin’s broad chest in minutes and falling into one of the deepest sleeps you had ever experienced. 

but of course, come morning time, he treated you as if you were royalty and kissed the marks that his handcuffs left on you with so much delicacy you thought you were going to turn into a puddle. 

unbeknownst to the outside world, seo changbin has a soft side; which you discovered the first time he brought you into his room and had forgotten to hide his munchlax plushie beforehand. watching him scramble to hide it under his bed made the situation 10 times worse, and all he could do was scratch the back of his neck sheepishly as you attempted to stifle your laugh.

once the two of you became, you know, official, he let this side of him shine through more often. 

at times he treats you as if you’re made of porcelain, as if you’ll crack and break at even the slightest touches - hence the way he traces the back of your hand with his thumb when you’re holding hands, his strokes akin to that of a feather.

you’ve lost track of the amount of times he’s almost burnt your kitchen down while attempting to make you breakfast after making love to you for hours on end the night before. it always ends the same, with changbin holding a plate of toast so burnt it's turned into bedrock and scrambled eggs you could bounce off the wall because of how rubbery they are. the result is always changbin dragging you to your favourite cafe for brunch in defeat, claiming that ‘it’s the thought that counts, y/n’. 

but only you have the privilege of seeing him like this. these small, tender moments reserved only for the two of you in private, away from the curious eyes of onlookers in public. 

on the days where both of you are lucky enough to not have to pull yourself out of bed early for the sake of attending a lecture or getting work done, you get to revel in the warmth provided by each other’s sleeping bodies. if you wake before changbin, you’re greeted with a view of his broad shoulders, his skin dotted with small imperfections and the bumps of his individual vertebrae visible. small, soft snores can be heard escaping his parted lips. if changbin wakes before you do… he never does.

sometimes you’re able to spend the whole entire day together without having to tend to other duties. these days usually entail slow, lazy starts to the day followed by changbin dragging you to the gym to watch him do lat pulldowns and cable rows followed by a shared shower where you help massage shampoo into his scalp. or, it could involve the two of you screaming at the tv as you battle over the top spot in mario kart 8 - changbin mains bowser, of course, whereas you opt to play as king boo. it takes almost all of your strength to avoid whipping your remote at the wall when he absolutely clobbers you during grumble volcano. 

“don’t be upset y/n,” he coos without fail, “i’ll make it up to you later tonight!”

and he always does.

in public, he’s brooding, mysterious, sexy. it’s rare to see him without a cocky smirk painted across his face, his puffed lips quirked upwards as if to say ‘i’m better than you’ to anyone who crosses his path. and it’s true, he is.

he’s also the type to get jealous very easily.

case in point: 

it’s friday night, and the two of you are perusing the city streets looking for some fun. earlier in the day, jisung had informed you that a small group of friends was planning on paying a visit to a well loved bar to get sloshed later that night. with nothing better to do, you and changbin accepted the invitation.

at first it was fun, with everyone reconnecting and catching eachother up on the current drama in their lives. but after an hour or two the vibe changed and the atmosphere became almost… cliquey. everyone had chosen their respective person or group for the night, choosing to only converse within their little bubble and never straying from it. this resulted in you and changbin fleeing the scene, opting to enjoy yourselves elsewhere where you can get lost in the music and each other… and alcohol. 

soon after you’re at the front of a line for some club you’ve never been to with changbin’s arm wrapped around your waist as the bouncer checks your i.d. you’re let in with a nonchalant wave of a hand, and changbin follows shortly after.

once inside you make your way up the stairs to where the crowd is, choosing to forgo coat check and instead tossing your jackets on top of a pile that has formed on one of the few tables lining the walls near the entrance. then, you make a beeline to the bar where you order yourself a vodka cran and changbin a heineken. 

with alcohol in hand you shove your way to the middle of the dance floor, getting lost in the club music while bumping and grinding on your boyfriend who’s posted up behind you. you’re not sure how much time you spend on the dancefloor with warm cheeks and limbs that have gone fuzzy, but it feels as if time itself has come to a momentary halt, allowing you to enjoy yourself in this moment while the world continues on outside without you. 

so, when changbin taps your shoulder and motions to the bar to wordlessly say ‘i’m going to get more drinks’ you only nod and continue to dance on your own while you wait for his return. 

this decision proves to be fatal however, for only moments after changbin’s departure you feel a clammy hand wrap around your bicep. you whip around only to find yourself face to face with some random man wearing a nike tracksuit ogling at you like you’re the last piece of his favourite candy at the candy store. gross. 

“sorry, are you trying to get past me?”

“nah i’m trying to get with you, ma,” he practically yells into your ear in order to be heard over the music.

“oh! no thanks, my boyfriend’s at the bar getting drinks,” you say and attempt to shuffle away, an action that proves to be harder than you thought due to the mass of people surrounding you.

much to your dismay, the man persists, “boyfriend? why’d he leave you here all alone?”

“... to get us drinks.”

“well, if i was your man i’d never leave you alone, princess.”

princess? gross. only changbin gets to call you that… when he’s fucking you.

“is everything okay, y/n?” you feel an arm nudge yours and turn around to see changbin, your knight in shining armour, who’s come to save you from this god awkward conversation. in each hold he hands a drink, one for you and one for himself, and you fear what he may do with them in the next few moments.

“yea, all good, this guy was just being… weird,” 

the skepticism that was previously evident on changbin’s face quickly morphs into annoyance (and jealousy at the prospect of someone other than himself making moves on you). without speaking he shoves the recently acquired drinks into your hands - making you scramble to stop yourself from dropping them and creating a sticky, syrupy mess all over the dance floor - before moving to size up the ‘bro’ that was just hitting on you with his chest puffed and chin held high. 

not wanting to get into any sort of trouble tonight, you practically throw yourself in front of the freight train that is your boyfriend.

“no! it’s fine, changbin, let’s just forget him and have a good time, ‘kay?” you attempt to reason with him to no avail. all changbin does is shift his gaze between you and the guy who was making moves on you several times before wordlessly grasping your arm and pulling you towards the exit; you’re forced to abandon the dripping drinks in your hands on the edge of the bar (not before you manage to spill about half of one all over your lower arm).

soon you’re out of the crowded space, and are making your way towards the exit of the building and the city streets that are surely still teeming with nightlife.

“bin-” 

“we’re going home,” he asserts, “i don’t want anyone talking to you like that.”

all you can do is allow yourself to be dragged behind your boyfriend like a ragdoll, his grip on your wrist so tight your fingertips start to lose their sensation. you know that any words of dissatisfaction you voice will be falling on deaf ears, so you opt to keep quiet and let changbin take the lead.

the bite of the cold night air of the winter jolts you awake once you step outside. a dull ring settles in your ears as the loud club music dissipates and changbin drags you further and further away from the establishment, almost dislocating your shoulder when he suddenly yanks you down a small, secluded alleyway. 

“bin i’m fine, really,” you attest, your eyes never leaving the troubled face of your boyfriend, who pulls a pack of marlboros and a lighter out of his pocket. you watch as he places a cigarette between his lips before lighting it, using his hand to shelter the flame from the wind. in that moment you become envious of a measly little cigarette, for you so desperately wish that it was you and your mouth that changbin was putting his lips on and inhaling deeply, sucking you in like you’re his lifeline. 

a haze of smoke soon surrounds you as changbin takes several drags from his dart, his eyes dark and refusing to meet yours. the scent burns your nostrils and you have to fight back the urge to cough; smoking only appeals to you when you’re drunk, and the alcohol you consumed earlier in the night has mostly exited your system.

with a sigh that manifests in a grey cloud changbin tosses his half-smoked cigarette to the ground, squashing the spark with the heel of his boot before catching your eye. his leather jacket rustles as he raises his hands to cup your face, the pads of his thumbs caressing your cheeks.

“you’re mine, and nobody else’s,” his gaze is so piercing it feels as if he’s going to burn a hole through you, “right?”

you nod enthusiastically, head bobbing up and down as you whisper a quiet ‘right’ through squished cheeks and puckered lips - lips that are then being pressed against your boyfriends. 

changbin tastes like the nicotine he just inhaled and smells like the cologne he saturated himself with earlier this evening, and you find yourself getting drunk all over again on something other than alcohol this time - him. 

with your back pressed up against a brick wall you allow yourself to get lost in the feeling of your lover’s mouth on yours, enraptured by the way changbin moves his lips in tandem with your own. the warmth radiating from the palms of his hands that have yet to leave your face makes your cheeks flush, and you tangle your fingers in the wavy strands of his hair that he’s choosing to let grow out, much to your delight. 

the skin of your cheek stings when it’s exposed to the cold as changbin retracts his hand from your face, the tips of his fingers tracing the skin of your neck and sternum before reaching the waistband of your bottoms. his curious hand only hovers there for a moment before slipping underneath, not allowing a mere piece of fabric to be an obstacle in the way of your pleasure. a feeble moan escapes you when changbin gropes your cunt over your panties, the fabric already sticky and wet with your arousal. 

“here, bin?” you question while scanning your surroundings, making sure there isn't anyone spying on the two of you being exhibitionists, “are you sure this is a good idea?’

“the best one i’ve ever had,” as he speaks his lips graze your neck, his breath hot and heavy before he starts to nip and suck at the supple skin; your pulse skyrockets and you clamp your thighs shut, ultimately trapping changbin’s hand in between them. 

he manages to pry your legs apart just enough in order to move his hand, sliding your panties to the side and running two deft fingers through the folds of your dripping, needy pussy. it’s funny in the sense that changbin’s actions are so simple yet they already have you whining in pleasure, head rolling forward as you hide yourself in the crook of his neck. 

“shhh baby, try to keep it down,” he coos, yet continues on nonetheless - easy for him to say, he’s not the one taking your fingers in an alleyway where a bunch of drunk people are parading by only metres away. 

changbin continues to play with your cunt nonchalantly, much to your chagrin. every now and then he lets the tip of his middle finger dip into your dripping hole, causing you to go weak in the knees as the calloused heel of his palm kisses and bumps your aching clit.

“binnie,” you heave out rather embarrassingly, “i need it.”

“my girl needs my fingers in her pretty pussy, huh?” he teases, you nod pathetically with glassy eyes.

and at long last changbin finally relents and slips his middle and ring fingers fully inside of you, your cunt immediately clenching around his digits. the way he drags his fingers in and out of you so slowly before fucking them back into you feels so euphoric that you can’t help the goofy, drunken smile that makes its way onto your face as you drool onto the shoulder of his leather jacket. 

with his broad shoulders shielding you from the outside world, changbin begins to curl and scissor his fingers inside of your warm, wet walls, making you moan and plead against his neck.

“god binnie you’re so good, feels so fucking good,” you cry through cracked lips while blinking away the eyeliner that stings your shiny, tearfilled eyes. 

changbin then uses his thumb to massage your clit while his fingers continue to reach deep inside of you, making your lower abdomen twist and churn and your heart go thump thump thump from behind your chest. your fingers only tighten their grip on changbin’s jacket as you subtly rock your hips against his hand in an attempt to bring your orgasm on sooner.

you find yourself tuning out the sounds of traffic and people and nightlife to instead hone in on the beating of changbin’s heart that you can hear beating in his chest, your moans that only continue to increase in pitch, the rustle of bin’s jacket as he fingers you. 

“so close honey, can you cum for me?” changbin groans into your ear in response to your pussy clenching around his fingers, a telltale sign that you’re on the brink of finishing all over his hand. at this point your back is aching from being pressed against brick for so long and you have a headache from how intensely you’ve been furrowing your brows, but the fire you feel in your aching pelvis makes it all worth it.

it only takes changbin several more thrusts before you’re creaming all over his fingers, whining his name is a nasally, needy tone as you all but collapse against his built frame as your orgasm explodes inside of you like fireworks. after a few moments you begin to come down, immediately noticing how dry your open mouth is and how sore your fingers are from gripping changbin’s jacket with everything you got.

when you pull away from changbin to stand up straight, a string of spit from your mouth to his jacket follows you - you wipe it away and pray he didn’t notice. it takes you a second to fully regain your balance and when you do, changbin finally lets go of your hips only to move his soiled fingers to his mouth where he sucks them clean of your essence. then he places his mouth on yours, allowing you to taste yourself on his tongue before he swallows you down his throat. 

words needn’t be exchanged for you to know what comes next, you simply follow changbins lead as he drags you all the way home and makes a mess of you on the sheets of his bed.

[slitheringghost]

ES: Was James the only one who had romantic feelings for Lily? JKR: No. [Pause.] She was like Ginny, she was a popular girl. Lupin was very fond of Lily, we'll put it like that, but I wouldn't want anyone to run around thinking that he competed with James for her. She was a popular girl, and that is relevant. But I think you've seen that already. She was a bit of a catch.

Everyone taking JKR's extracanon as canon and collectively claiming Lily as a "popular girl" is one of the things that irritate me, at least in the way fandom usually means it, in particular when it's accompanied by Snape being called her "unpopular weirdo friend".

For one thing, the actual quote is about boys being attracted to her, and in context of the full interview this seems to be an allusion to the Snape backstory which wasn't revealed yet.

And claiming men being attracted to her is some kind of legitimate privilege she has over Snape is truly an incel-lite misogynistic take (and from what we see, said men either publicly harass and blackmail her or call her a slur).

We know she has a gang of friends, which probably includes like 2-3 girls - Snape also has a gang of friends (and his total amount of friends includes Lucius Malfoy, Avery, Mulciber, possibly Evan Rosier and Wilkes, Narcissa Malfoy, and of course Lily - that is considerably more friends than most characters have).

I see Slughorn saying "I don't imagine anyone who met her wouldn't have liked her" as a general "why wouldn't someone like her, she's great" because he likes her type statement rather than confirmation she was universally liked. (of course Slug Club is something Lily presumably has over Snape, though I imagine that wasn't a factor until like 4th or 5th year).

I would say Snape's Worst Memory in fact indicates that Lily wasn't universally liked - that crowd laughs at James's joke at Lily's expense, and given their enthusiasm for Snape being beaten up, they probably do not love her constant intervention there.

Frankly I think Hermione is actually more outgoing and social and popular than Lily is. Hermione dates like 3-4 high status boys, and she genuinely enjoys Slughorn's parties while I see Lily as mostly kinda tolerating them and also evidence of her manipulating Slughorn for information.

Anyways, Lily wasn't a loser by any means, she was well liked and admired, but at the same time judged for being friends with a proto-Death Eater by those that opposed Voldemort.

There are plenty of characters who Have Friends, and aren't like, Popular or Unpopular, they are just kinda chillin' by themselves with their friends in their corner, like, idk Dean and Seamus, and Lily was probably one of those.

Of course, either way popularity doesn't determine whether you'd be violently attacked by teenage Death Eaters, or how some people would refuse to be around you because being associated with Muggleborns is dangerous and can label you a traitor in the war climate.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Judd Legum at Popular Information:

Elon Musk created America PAC to help Donald Trump win the presidential election. Through the end of September, Musk spent $75 million to fund the PAC's activities. More recently, Musk began giving away $1 million per day to registered voters who signed a petition sponsored by America PAC — even though such an offer likely violated federal law. The total amount Musk will spend on America PAC will almost certainly reach nine figures. 

Musk seized the handle @America on X to promote America PAC's activities supporting Trump and has repeatedly amplified the account.  On Friday afternoon, America PAC posted a video ad attacking Trump's opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris. "America really can't afford a 'C-Word' in the White House right now," America PAC posted, adding a laughing emoji. "Kamala Harris is a ‘C word,’" the narrator of the ad says. "You heard that right. A big ole ‘C word.’" The "joke" of the ad is that Harris is a "communist." Of course, Harris is not a communist. And the ad makes no effort to show she is a communist. The line is only included as a pretext to repeatedly use a crass, misogynistic slur against Harris. 

The ad had no apparent impact on the relationship between Musk and the Trump campaign, which coordinates directly with America PAC. On Sunday night, Musk was featured at Trump's high-profile rally at Madison Square Garden in New York City.  The event featured more sexist attacks on Harris. Businessman Grant Cardone appeared before Trump and described Harris as a prostitute. Cardone said that Harris "and her pimp handlers will destroy our country."

Trump has used a variety of gendered insults to attack Harris during the campaign. On Fox News, Trump said that world leaders would "look at" Harris and use her "like a play toy," adding "I don’t want to say as to why. But a lot of people understand it." On Truth Social, Trump has targeted Harris with crude sexual insults, suggesting her career is based on sexual favors. In August, the Associated Press reported that Trump refers to Harris as a "bitch" in private, citing two sources. 

Elon Musk’s America PAC released an ad that featured sexist tropes aimed at Kamala Harris with this caption: “Kamala Harris is a ‘C word.’”

The “c word” the ad claims is ��communist”, but we know that’s not the word they intend.

[rainbowdaisy13]

I’m gonna address this topic one more time because *taps mic* there are more important things going on in the US right now guys for fucks sake

If you are surprised that Jason Kelce, a 36 year old straight white man who has spent his entire life enmeshed in arguably one of the most misogynistic and homophobic sports on the planet said the F slur back at someone who said it to him, I don’t know what to tell you—like of course he did!

It’s like being offended a dog barks—that’s who he is and the level of introspection he would need to commit to to understand why that’s not an ok response is probably something we won’t see

In conclusion

PLEASE FUCKING VOTE FOR KAMALA

[sflow-er]

To me, Stedrika always felt forced and not natural. It was pretty obvious to me in S2 they were the result of fan service. It was so ironic Lisa wrote them into canon because apparently there were fans who shipped them and when it did happen, the pairing was met with backlash and vitriol.

I assume you're the same anon, so hello again!

Ironic as in 'happening in a way contrary to what is expected', yes. Ironic as in 'typically causing wry amusement because of this', no.

[Putting a cut here because this got a bit long as usual.]

Criticising Stedrika and Lisa's decision to write them in is perfectly fine. We can enjoy and love the show even if we don't think it's 100% perfect.

But I want to make it very clear that no matter how anyone personally feels about Stedrika or any other ship, or the actors or writers, or fan service in general, nothing justifies spewing hate at them for it. I am thankfully not on Xitter myself, but from what I've heard from my lurker friend, the anons who occasionally wandered over here to call Felicia various misogynist slurs and spread baseless rumours that "Lisa's pet ship" would have more screen time in S3 than Wilmon were only the tip of the iceberg.

It's also good to note that the hate wasn't the only thing that discouraged people from shipping Stedrika after S2. For example, I also saw plenty of likely well-meaning posts where it was suggested that shipping the "mean white girls" was somehow racist when Rosh existed as a canonically queer POC. The same thing was also said about shipping Henry and Walter instead of Nils with someone. And of course, it is very valid to demand more queer POC rep and fanworks about them! I just don't understand how discouraging people from liking other ships was supposed to help (and this also connects to the posts saying "no one" cared about characters other than Wilmon that became commonplace during the wait for S3, about which I have already written too much before).

So it's hard to say how many people might have actually liked Stedrika even back in S2 if the general response had been less negative. I find that very sad, even if I was never particularly invested in them and actually felt similar to how you did watching S2.

On the one hand, it's good to have different takes and ships in the fandom whether they are our own thing or not. It enriches the fandom in general and may even enrich our own experience later on. I for one am way more interested in Stedrika now than I ever was before, and that's mostly down to discussions I've had and posts I've read on the non-Wilmon fringe of the fandom that have made me reflect on my relationship to various characters.

On the other hand, once you add something to canon, it is canon, whether it was meant to be there from the start or not. I think allocating just a little more time to Stedrika in order to wrap up their story properly would have been a better choice than dropping them completely (ETA: which I guess is the other thing they could have done instead of what we got). Yeah, there were plenty of other, more central plot lines that were also cut down in S3, but I don't think eradicating a huge chunk of the WLW rep they had added in S2 would have been a particularly popular or responsible choice.

And of course, the writers could have also taken various other paths with the story, e.g. making Stella's crush unrequited and showing how that affected their friendship. I personally think those other paths would have been more interesting than making them endgame (and would have also cast S2 in a new light upon rewatch!), but unfortunately they would have required even more screen time.

[roblogging]

hii im asking your thoughts on something because i agree w a lot of what you say - i see a lot about the inherent misogyny in the fandom but not as much as the transphobia side of it. could you talk about it a bit?

below the cut for anyone who wants to skip 🫶🏻 (this is really long i'm sorry)

HI OKAY:

first of all, i dislike the use of the word inherent in these discussions - i don't think it applies. a fandom (made up of individual people) cannot be inherently anything in my opinion. and that includes misogynistic. if it were built ON misogyny/transphobia and everything and everyone followed those ideals then yes, we'd use the word. but it wasn't built on those and the presence of such things does not make them inherent. it's an individual basis.

it's a very typical view - one that i've discussed a lot before - that simply engaging with this fandom is transphobic. i (a trans man) have been called transphobic for engaging with jkrs world in non-profitable ways. so, if part of the argument is that it's inherently transphobic to be in the fandom when jkr produced the world, i refute that entirely. her views on many things may bleed into the original works and are the forefront of her "public image" but fandom does its best to alleviate the harm that causes. it's not separating art from artist, it's acknowledging that she's awful and creating a space where people from these harmed communities can still engage with something they love.

that being said,,,, yes. lots of transphobia in the fandom. BUT i think it's worthwhile to note that as a trans person with a platform, of course i see more of it. and though that might make me a better person to talk about it, it does mean i'm obviously subjected to it and see it more. i truly don't know how prevalent it is naturally, it just so happens that i see a lot of it.

not that i'm excusing it. because some of the things that have happened to me are fucking vile. but i think it the vast majority of it comes down to the eroding of fandom etiquette (and the rise of fandom on social media).

i posted a video about peter being friends with the marauders for example, and people disliked it. i got a lot of comments about my appearance because people disagreed with me, and i ended up being posted onto reddit truscum. which, if you aren't aware, essentially means they posted screenshots of me in makeup and debated how trans i am (see also: cis "feminine" sirius discourse). i had a notion page of fic recs that i made and put up because i thought it would be a fun and cute thing to do and i thought people would enjoy it. some disagreed with jegulus being on there and my irls had countless dms demanding to know what my deadname is. i've had to block it from my comment sections. if there are disagreements in my comment sections, slurs are thrown easily. i've been posted onto transmed pages because i posted a video talking about my experience on testosterone and i pointed out some of the negative things, which had led to me "not being actually trans because trans people wouldn't complain" (sorry that i don't particularly like shaving my tits ig. diy top surgery isn't particularly my goal). if i post about a ship people don't like, slurs are thrown.

or, my fav, i got multiple dms telling me that they feel as though trans people are "taking over the fandom" when i hit 10k. like??? god fucking forbid people who enjoyed these books as kids now feel comfortable engaging with them again??? god forbid we've made trans people feel welcome. and no, they aren't taking over. you're just paying too much attention to their identity. i truly don't think about the numbers on my account at all because traction means fucking nothing to me when i just want to yap and meet friends (like obviously, ofc so fucking grateful but it's not my goal or priority) but i fear i didn't get 10k for being trans, i got 10k because i'm generally a nice person who people like.

if i do *anything* that people disagree with, i'm subjected to transphobia.

because fandom etiquette is gone, because i'm confident in my identity, because i don't adhere to traditional masculine gender norms that cis men get praised for subverting, but i must just be a confused woman if i wear makeup, right?

i've definitely had my fair share of just,,, transphobia. like just people who dislike *me*, but 99% of the time it's just that people dislike my ships/hcs and instead of being a normal person and scrolling or engaging in something they enjoy, they know an easy way to get back at me. to get back at me for,,, having fun i guess.

and i could go on for ages about certain discourses, but i've said it all before on my tiktok (see again: sirius in makeup).

i think,,, there's a lot of transphobia in the fandom, from my experience. i think a lot of it stems from the fact that these spaces have become more prevalent on social media which is generally an awful place and horrible to trans people, and people can leave a comment and scroll without connecting the fact that it's an actual person.

but on the flip side, there's less transphobia than there is acceptance. i can post a yap and receive transphobic comments for the things that i've said, and i will delete those comments and watch as other people say that my voice sounds so different. or i can open up comments and see "you look so masc here", or i can reply to dms from people starting their own gender identity and be happy about the fact they thought of me to come to.

again, fandom has become more prevalent on social media. social media relies on traction, hate gets more traction than positivity, boom. we see the hate more.

i'm not gonna sit here and say it doesn't hurt. i'm not gonna sit here and say that there definitely isn't a transphobia problem in this fandom. because there is. but i'm also not gonna say that it's inherent, when every single person that i've connected with on a meaningful level, alongside a good 80% of the interactions i've had generally, has been nothing but overwhelmingly accepting.

the transphobia is there, but i won't be there to listen to it or entertain it. those clearly aren't the people i want in my bubble.

[dairy-farmer]

manipulated!jason and manipulator!tim

jason's fresh out of a break up and meets tim who's 10x worse than the last person he broke up with. by worse i mean, jason cannot escape tim at all.

tim's so good with body language, and mind games, to the point where he uses his knowledge for the worse. by worse i mean, he's never tired of making jason deluded.

no one can save jason, not even himself. why? he doesn't want to be saved at all.

tw/cw: tim calls jason a gay slur but erotically 😔

tim offers one thing that jason has always wanted but never been able to receive. unconditional love.

from the get go- bruce's love had been conditional. follow my orders or hit the road. alfred's love had hinged more on pacifying jason in order to avoid upsetting bruce. and dick's love was too insufficient for jason's starving heart. dick gave everyone a single morsel of love and you would be scorned by everyone else receiving their crumbs if you dared demand more.

the same went for every single one of jason's girlfriends. jason's entire life he'd been mistreated by men so his expectations of women were high. unfairly high was what they'd all said to him. they couldn't deal with him and his 'baggage'. it was too much they said.

at least...that was what the nice ones said because jason has a habit of dating pretty cruel girls and never breaking up with them. even when they cheat on him and call him names or slap him in public. not that it garners much concern. dick had broken down laughing when jason's most recent girlfriend left him a screaming voicemail calling him every cruel name under the sun for not buying a gift for her friend's baby shower and making her look "cheap".

but that's alrigh because in jason's mind girls can do no wrong. because even the worst one is better than the best man.

tim tells him that's stupid and asks if jason's a misogynist for refusing to hold shitty women accountable. he also asks if jason's really holding firm to that 'dating' code of his if he's seeing tim.

tim prods at jason's sensitive under belly, digs his nails into open wounds. metaphorically of course. tim's pretty small and if jason didn't want him to do something he's certain he could get him to stop.

tim gets into jason's head like how maggots crawl into fruit and rot them from the inside. even when he's not around it's like jason can feel him whispering in his ear about things.

tim doesn't scream or throw things at jason when he's unhappy.

he tugs jason close and strokes him like he's an abused puppy, murmuring gentle words of 'oh my baby'. and it gets jason on his knees faster than anything.

jason doesn't like boys. doesn't want boys. boys are evil just like men. but...but tim doesn't have a cock. he has a smooth, pretty little cunt just like a girl. he has soft little tits just like a girl.

tim softly calls jason 'ignorant' before softly whispering taunts in jason's ears when jason is fucking him that he's fucking a boy. jason's cock is in a boy. he's dating a boy. and he likes it. that means jason's gay. a faggot.

jason is trembling and curling against tim, burying his head into tim's neck and seeking comfort from the boy fingering his brain and swirling the gray matter around.

tim is mean to jason. but he touches him sweetly and softly.

he calls jason names but follows it with tender comfort and allowing jason to fuck him as softly and roughly as he wants because jason likes sex.

tim calls him a dog for always wanting to fuck and hump him. he says jason is a filthy depraved little animal while jason sobs and cums deeply inside him.

every time they fuck tim muses outloud about jason getting him pregnant and tim using their baby as leverage for the rest of their lives to get jason to do things for him.

tim is a thousand times worse than any girl jason has ever dated. he dangles love, companionship, acceptance, a baby, and the promise of a family in front of his nose like it's a carrot. before turning around and whipping him on the nose with a rising crop until his sensitive face stings with the pain.

jason doesn't know why. he doesn't understand why tim is like this.

but he doesn't ask.

because tim offers him everything he's wanted and more.

jason knows he's being taken advantage of. they only eat what tim likes. only have sex when tim wants to. only listen to music tim enjoys. only go out to places tim thinks are fun. only watch tv shows tim approves of. only hang out with people tim can tolerate.

jason knows he's being taken advantage of. his friends and family tell him he's being taken advantage of. they tell him tim is manipulating him, using him.

for what? he asks them and they....they don't know. they're not sure...

but that doesn't change the fact that tim is doing it!!!

unfortunately for them jason doesn't care.

he doesn't mind being tim's thing. his pet. the mouse to his cat.

jason doesn't mind at all.

so long as that love continues to fill his leaking heart, jason will do anything for tim.

[horizon-verizon]

You’re a whole coon, of course Rhaenyra hates women, especially Black women, she tried to murder a 16 years-old Black girl, slut shamed her, called her racial slurs, and linked Nettles “ugliness/attractiveness” to her Blackness. Rhaenyra literally acted like a pathetic pick me in regard to Daemon and Nettles. If given the chance, Rhaenyra would have enslaved her. TB must truly despise Daenerys to compare her to Rhaenyra, they couldn’t be more different. (The way Rhaenyra is never mentioned in Dany’s chapters and GRRM has never discussed them in conjunction with the other, finally y’all can thanks HOTD for turning her into a progressive and flawless Mary Sue).

And really an insanely privileged white woman dying after putting a bounty on a lowborn Black’s girl head should be a good thing right ? We just gon have to celebrate Rhaenyra death with Nettles.

If you say so, anon, I guess I'm a straight up coon. 🤷🏿‍♀️

I suppose arguing how no one can be a feminist in a medieval world is coonish. I guess that pointing out how unconstructive it is to go "she wasn't a feminist so we shouldn't care about any possible effect her coming into power like the men before and after her have been able to will have an effect on other noble women's power to maybe implement some pro-women stuff in their own domains" to us analyzing why/how Rhaenyra is important to the history of Westeros and Daenerys is coonish.

I guess it's coonish of me to flout so many non-Nettles arguments of Rhaenyra's supposed bad leadership and amorality not once, but TWICE (that I remember), where it clearly just veers into straight up sexism: HERE and HERE....thus coming into why I even bother defending Rhaenyra (in some points).

It's not like I haven't already wrote several time in several posts how Rhaenyra's trying to get Nettles' head reveals much about the Targ-Andal paradigm she grows up in and tries to use to bolster herself through her going after Nettles to the end. It's not like I don't see how essentially different Daenerys and Rhaenyra are as people through the Nettles event as well as how they grow up and come into their positions of power and how/why they desire those roles:

It's not like I haven't already written about the Black Jezebel stereotype at least three times, including on Twitter and here. It's not like I have defended Nettles not just from "dettles" stans but also from people who call themselves Rhaenyra stans while bashing on Nettles and Mysaria, totally misunderstanding both characters and what even a supporting character is.

But sure, I'm a coon bc I don't want to ignore the journey of Rhaenyra's downfall and make distinct where she decided to destroy another woman vs her being the victim. Sure, I'm a whole coon.

And for the last fucking time, "compare" does not always or only mean "these two things are exactly alike and I will show you how"! "Comparison" analyses means that you will list out what traits or developments two things have, what inspirations, and see how they differ and how they don't. And through such a process, you will find out how many and how well/or not these two or more things are alike and how.

For Dany and Rhaenyra, I never said these girls/women were the same person. I said that both women, as women in male-designated positions of power, have to deal with people in world AND out of world must contend with misogynist feelings towards of their not deserving power or leadership on account of their gender, no matter what sort of characterization either had BECAUSE even with the main series not being like F&B, not being a history book, PEOPLE IN THE FANDOM STILL TEND TO MISREAD OR TWIST DANY'S ACTIONS AGAINST HER CHARACTER AND GRRM'S INTENT. Rhaenyra is meant to contextualize that very experience into a real event of catastrophe, she was set against ever since she was 10 bc she was female and another, older woman wanted power denied to her directly bc she was a woman. This is a fact, you nor I can change that. There is a difference between what we learn from the events to make the conclusions of who should rule ideally and what we should shoot for VERSUS thinking of the situation at hand for what it would have been like for the character.

F&B (having been written after the main series) continues even this "analysis" phenomenon; what do people choose to believe when it's a woman at the center of their stories?! No matter her real circumstances or their knowledge of things not present in their understanding of the world and of history?

I also mention, several times, how it is here, Rhaenyra's end, where the Targs lose their dragons because they have assimilated into the intenser patriarchal paradigm already mentioned to the point where they weakened their women's positions by denying them their autonomy and political powers...which plot sequence wise leads to the end of the dynasty as whole and Dany's exile. I'm must be a coon to not want Nettles, a 17 year old, to fuck a 50 year old, esp with her being his bio daughter. No, anon, I am too repulsed with direct vertical incest (parent-child, grandparent-grandchild, etc.).

Then there is how the Bloodstone Emperor and the Amethyst Empress and how the former usurped tha latter and plunged the entire world into mythological "darkness"--thus leading up to the importance of the Azor Ahai, aka Dany, directly seems to reflect how another brother--Aegon II--usurped his older sister--Rhaenrya--and thus the world loses a strong magical tool against darkness "dragons". An obvious link....

In fact, I tend to repeat how different they are as people! There's this whole thread talking abt the very thing I despise abt some critiques of Rhaenyra. I even say many times that Rhaenyra couldn't have the throne after the Nettles letter, that at that point, there needed a "refresh". Up until then, there was simply more reason for us to not think her a real terror except for maybe Addam and Alyn. But I have my misgivings there and it comes down to timing and grief.

No, Rosby and Stokeworth do not count and why? I already wrote why, but for someone who doesn't stan Rhaenyra or is not a fan of hers but actually stans just Daenerys--the previous ozymalek says:

I have myself said several times how I disliked how they rewrote show1Rhaenyra to make her a much less assertive version of herself, and I agree with others how they made her female-friendless. No matter how amoral or moral she was, similarly to Dany, people have written her sexistly in the show. I believe that this is CENTRAL to the point of F&B, how people refuse to see the point of it.

Finally, I really don't see how the hell show!Rhaenyra even is a Mary Sue or a NLOG, bc for the first, she displays no skill she excels over others at. A Mary Sue is:

Show!Rhaenyra, for some reason, seems "perfect" to some people. Esp with Luke saying so in epi 8. I never felt that way, I always thought she (older, not younger) was too meek and that is her great flaw---due to the sexist writing, but if kept at face value, that's the great flaw. Other definition: Who is inserting themselves into her character on the show? you got proof?

A NLOG (not like the other girls) is a Cersei like character who goes out of their way to destroy/diminish most women who are competitors for their power or destroy any semblance of socially-defined femininity and socially-coded feminine "weakness" so as to appeal to the male authority and get privileges. Problem is that EVERY SINGLE FEMALE MONARCH AND WOMAN IN SOME SORT OF AUTHORITY OVER MEN IN EVERY SINGLE PATRIARCHAL SOCIETY had to convince their male supporters that they were the one they should follow to some degree more than any male heir or candidate--during a time where they had to either fight for their "birthright" or they were planning coups (Catherine the Great), came into power through some accident, or whatnot--that their rule was in it for them. There is no pattern of woman-hating or self-hating to define Rhaenyra as a NLOG, where she consistently tries. NLOGs tend to hate women even in their own "race" or group for perceived acts of upheaval and destabilizing their positions of power. Alicent was and she uses misogyny to do so, so Alicent is not Rhaenyra's victim; other way around. Rhaenyra has all reason to despise Alicent, justified even. It's more than the positions, it's the whole targeting since 10 deal and trying to espouse Rhaenyra's inherent unworthiness for power.

So Rhaenyra deciding to do the Rosby/Stokeworth bit is her seeing how her greatest ally, a sexist man, has basically all her ships during wartime and insisting she does not give those girls their father's seats is Rhaenyra choosing wrongly, yes, but something I don't think that you or a small number of women would bow under considering the other shit she was going through. Yes, even black/PoC women. Again, this is not about Nettles but about women vs women (yes with them all being white or white-adjacent) bc I know that this will be the next thing some will say as a counterargument to what I'm saying here.

You are correct, however, in how similar Rhaenyra's behavior abt Nettles is pick-me-ish and NLOG concerning her intent to turn Daemon back to her and how this was her seeing Nettles as competition for "control" over Daemon, who was one of her principal military commands as well as her romantic partner...and like i said once before, this is a reflection on how this Andal-Targ patriarchal paradigm makes its own female "terrors" through misogyny. To ignore the process is to endanger its justified repetition. Yeah, Rhaenyra ends up becoming like Alicent in that way after the consistent losses, and I mean defaulting back to destroying another woman for a simulation of power. This doesn't mean that she was a feminist or that she didn't intend on using the Black Jezebel reasoning to get rid of "competition" to feel more in control. It does mean that her behavior reveals her enmeshment in the xenophobic, aristocratic, patriarchal Targ-Andal feudalist paradigm that she chooses to use to, again, construct more feelings of power at a time where she seemed to feel she was losing more and more--after the betrayals and the deaths of her sons in that moment. And yet if there is anything to be extracted from her narrative it is how that built-in classism (the companion and parent of racism) can become the thing these women default onto to retrieve/gain the agency & power denied to them. I believe this is also where you can draw a core similarity to Cersei, who is rather the starkest extreme example of that classism making up for her internalized misogyny through her Lannister Exceptionalism.

The discourse has to include how we, the readers, over-blame Rhaenyra for things she has either very little control over or what she had no control over and for trying to, again, assert herself (before Nettles). She's a reflection of her times and situation; doesn't mean she isn't still a victim. You don't need to like her. I never asked for people to do so. I don't care if you do or not, I've never needed that. Just don't lie or twist information or ignore clear patterns GRRM establishes that are also important, or try to erase the lines of harm done to her and undo the work GRRM is doing to point out this pattern of misogyny that contextualizes one very key aspect of Dany's journey: sexism doesn't care how good or classist you are, you are a woman so you will be subject to disenfranchisement, distortion of facts, and destruction...if you are not like Dany, who intuitively and "rationally" discovers lanes of power while reintegrating her being to the natural process and relationships between herself and her dragons for the ecological benefit of the entire world (the Others, again). Unlike Rhaenyra, Dany doesn't fall into the ideological "trap" or the noblewoman's save-grace of exploiting of lowborn people AND dragons but intelligently seeks other non-exploitative ways to use her dragons and those inspired by he bravery. This again, does not erase or override the sexism and specific elements of gender politics that tie these two together.

It's a paradox, not a contradiction.

[redditreceipts]

hi, I’m not sure how to word this right…I’m a transmasculine (NOT TRANSMALE) woman, it’s hard to explain exactly what it means but that’s the closest I’ve gotten, gnc works too I guess though doesn’t fully articulate it.

But I’ve identified as a lot of things since a really early age, generally always circling back to a trans man. Im a survivor of sexual abuse/exploitation, and I would always find myself identifying as the “stereotypical feminine woman” when I was in a worse state and wanted to be objectified, then identifying as a trans male when I wanted to be treated like a human. I figured this meant trans-manhood was what was really right for me, that womanhood was something I only went to as self harm, but recently I thought “would I want to be a man if women were treated like people too” and I realized I wouldn’t.

I support transgender and transsexual rights fully, but I really wish that there was more acknowledgment of sexism. Not just misogyny…sexism.

I thought I was above misogyny, but I’m only recently realizing at age 19 that I didn’t view women as human the way I viewed men as human, and I felt this way because of how I’ve been treated as a female all my life. The way people treat you from birth goes beyond anything a male could comprehend, and it’s so engrained that no one even notices it. We’re not allowed to express emotions or opinions because it’s “too much” and we’re “too loud” especially if we’re not white (which I’m not), we have to do so much more work to be considered an equal by men, we’re talked about in society as objects to be obtained rather than living breathing complex humans, we’re not given margin for error like men are, we’re held to higher standards, we’re constantly forced to prove ourselves in every single capacity in a way men never have to, we’re treated as objects and toys and constantly referred to only with degrading misogynist slurs, we’re aborted for our sex and not given the same education as male classmates and shut out of conversations and objectified before we can even walk, When it’s laid out like that, yeah it’s no wonder so many women (myself included) feel like manhood is the key to humanity. Because It is. Because in society there are people and women, and the current queer community is all too comfortable to bulldoze over this oppression and pretend there’s no such thing as sexism because acknowledging that means challenging their “everyone is valid uwu” shit. Im not saying there aren’t just actual trans men, of course there are, but come on.

Hey :) sorry for the late answer, I've been a bit busy so yeah

I think I kinda get what you mean when you say that you are transmasculine, and I personally think that if that's the best word to describe it, you should go for it! Identity is always a personal matter. I would however argue that identity does not override material reality, and in political terms, we are defined by our biological sex, amongst other things :)

And yes, you are so right when you say that there should be more of an acknowledgement of sexism in the trans community! Women are seen as subhuman, and a woman has to do much more than a man to just be considered a person. That is especially true in the intersection with race and sex.

And well, the trans gender community relies on upholding gender. How many transmasculine people do you see being annoyed when they're being called "she", and they say stuff like "You're calling me she? With my short hair? Dressed like this??"

the recognition of a member of one sex as a member of the opposite sex is much, much harder without gender steretoypes. Abolishing gender leaves us with the cold, hard reality of the oppression of the female sex. I feel like gender is all the pretty fluff and mystification of a brutal truth: Women are seen as less than human.

And yes, I also sometimes feel like I have to be super androgynous to be considered human. But I'm not, and trying to change your sex instead of changing the oppressive systems is like trying to be straight instead of challenging homophobia.

Anyways, I'm glad you're here :) Here's a cat with an octopus on it's head for you :)

[sacrificialsam]

the way sam is the only female coded character in existence and the only proof we actually need is the audience reaction!!! drives me crazy! the one time i like a male character and he gets treated like a female one like not even just by people that dont like him and say hes whiny and a bitch but like he also gets the "female character is too smart to join in the boys fun" treatment in fic by people who supposedly DO like him!! why is he getting the girlboss treatment?

also dean calls him a bitch fully seriously in an argument like not in a "oh your acting like a woman" way that people call men bitches but in the fully serious like calling a woman a bitch way. i cant explain it but there is a difference and sam got women treatment in that scene (theyre arguing about dean killing amy if you cant remember the moment)

its just so unusual to me to see a male character get this treatment. its so weird to see

no you're so real anon. i primarily focused on the treatment he gets from male fans of the show because they literally act like anything but servitude or submissiveness towards dean and his actions is a moral failing, which is just like how sexist men expect women to act toward their fathers/ husbands/ male authorities at all times. and it's crazy! but i've seen the more 'benevolent' or girlbossy types of misogyny against him too; i actually made a post about a related phenomena a while back. when sam gets called a woman some people use that to separate him from the 'regular' male characters and elevate him to this infallible bystander status, which of course makes him harder to relate to, less humanized. which is not to say i haven't seen some less savory interpretations from sam fans too, though the misogyny was intended there i'm assuming, for example ones were gets targeted sexually for being 'feminine' by predatory men or entities like azazel. and that's ignoring the fandom in general being rife with misogyny, this is all focused on a character who, going by the source material, is a cis man. what not having a female main character does to you for real.

and yeah dean, and the show as a whole, absolutely try to feminize sam as another way to degrade or victimize him. comments like you're a red headed woman, the ghost goes after chicks, hell even all the jokes about possessions, or the ones straight up alluding to rape (having a girl inside you, teen pregnancy, made you my bitch), all draw from this idea that sam is very womanly and that's the reason bad things happen to him or why he deserves to be made fun of.

as for the fight, i'm assuming you mean this from 7x07?

i agree the bitch comes off as weird here, dean is playing into the 'woman too irrational to make decisions for herself' stereotype, and tries to convince sam that his choice was the moral one because it comes from a less emotional/ irrational place. and like i said before, dean's decision making is not to be challenged with how the show is framed, which makes misogynistic slurs against sam always feel more targeted.

anyway i agree that it's weird but it's also very fascinating to me. hope this still makes sense because it got a bit long. thank you for the ask.

[crosbyism]

I also think the culture of women fans feminizing players is wildly different in both intent and practice than what cherry did! I don't think people are deploying feminization as a way to demean and hate the players the way cherry was

oh absolutely, the feminisation is different in the best possible way. it was just a lightbulb moment for me; since most feminisation squicks me hard it was interesting to personally examine why it squicks harder for some players than others, and i just realised that, of course, since i came into hockey when that kind of demeaning misogynistic and homophobic language was still in use (on NATIONAL TELEVISION!!!) of course i’d feel weird about seeing it applied any which way, especially to players of that generation. i guess it’s the same way there’s generational divides over slurs (gen z being far more comfortable with “fag” and bringing it back into common use when i definitely still flinched for the first couple of years every time i saw it in a tiktok video when that became more prevalent).

it’s cool and interesting to see what’s happening in fandom with that kind of language and that kind of gender play though, and kind of heartwarming to see feminisation get “reclaimed” into a fic trope though

[aroaessidhe]

Mid-Year Book Freakout 2023

1. Best book you’ve read so far this year

The Art of Prophecy - this was so fun and made just for me I enjoyed it a lot The Misadventures of an Amateur Naturalist - really good and also quite unique for the space it’s sitting in I think! The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi - this is very good and fun I loved it

2. Best sequel you’ve read so far this year

The World We Make - love this duology!! NK Jemisin does it again etc etc A Day of Fallen Night - prequel technically, but I enjoyed it a lot and more than priory I think! Sailing By Carina’s Star - i am enjoying this trilogy a lot we love queer pirates The Shadow Cabinet - somehow even more wild than the first book

3. New release you haven’t read yet

I don’t keep lists of books I need to read, so of course when I try to think of something my mind goes blank, here’s a couple from my library holds/kindle To Shape A Dragon’s Breath Wander The Night also does Flight & Anchor count if I’ve read the original patreon version but not the published version yet

4. Most anticipated release for the second half of the year

(same situation lmao) I’m looking forward to He Who Drowned The World! that’s the first thing that comes to mind

5. Biggest disappointment

tbqh I’ve read a lot of disappointments but they’re mostly self published ones that I read soley because of aspec characters that didn’t hold up in the writing department and are not very well known anyway. (I’ve read tons of selfpubs that are amazing too of course!!) so I’ll just mention some traditionally published ones: Rosewater - I did go into this with the wrong expectations for one, but also the MC was so (intentionally) misogynistic it was hard to enjoy :/ The Wicked Remain - there were a few iffy things in the first book but also things I liked and the second book just...didn’t really add to the things I liked. idk Song of Silver, Flame Like Night - I knew this wasn’t gonna be entirely for me in the first place but man what was up with the only other female character (that’s not dead) having an absolute caricature of a mean girl rivalry with the MC in like. a calling each other slurs kind of way not a fun way

6. Biggest surprise

Beating Heart Baby - I enjoy reading YA contemporary but there’s usually a limit to how much I enjoy it compared to sff, but this went beyond what I expected and I really loved it The Meister of Decimen City - I didn’t have any expectations for this, someone just mentioned it on a discord and I got it from the library, but I loved it a lot!

7. Favorite new author (debut or new to you)

See generally I only call people favourite authors if I’ve read and loved like, at least 3 separate books from them, and I don’t really have any of those for this year.....you need to work to get my loyalty Here’s a few authors that I’ve read a second book/series from them this year and am like, ah yes, I will read the next one: Ceinwen Langley Rebecca Schaeffer Liselle Sambury

8. Newest fictional crush/newest favorite character

tbh I’m not one to separate an individual character from their book or like, the other characters surrounding them very often, so I just can’t think of anything specific... all the women in The Art of Prophecy are great

9. Book that made you cry

I’ve actually started recording this in my stats this year HAHA, with “fully crying” “teared up” and “cried from cute/happiness” and,, I did not expect that there are only 3 books that have made me fully cry????? Which are: In Other Lands and Lirael (nostalgia def has a part to play in both of those) and Beating Heart Baby. I can’t remember why I cried for that one but clearly it was a lot lmao

10. Book that made you happy

I mean it’s a reread but In Other Lands of course

World Running Down - only just read this and I really enjoyed it! a good mix of an interesting sci-fi future that isn’t super dark but also doesn’t shy away from various issues, and an interesting romance! (me enjoying a romance, shocker)

witch hat atelier! - how could it Not make you happy tbh

thanks @violaeade for tagging me!

I will tag @thereadingchallengechallenge @nycorix @speculatives @dkafterdark and anyone else who wants I guess

[dystopicjumpsuit]

Martyrs and Kings - Chapter 2

Galas Aren't as Exciting as They Seem... Or Are They?

Rating: T (rating varies by chapter; mature content will be tagged)

Pairing: Kix x archivist/historian OFC

Wordcount: 4.4k

Warnings: adult language; mild canon-typical violence; use of the slur "wh*re" as a misogynistic insult by an antagonist

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Maree threw herself wholeheartedly into her research, pulling up vast numbers of mission logs, casualty reports, individual trooper records, and personnel files and beginning to arrange the resulting mountains of text into some semblance of order. She was frankly delighted to have such an opportunity. As she’d indicated to Kix, her area of study was not exactly a popular one. 

Most of the military history research requests the library received were for earlier periods, particularly the High Republic era. People wanted to learn about the thrilling, inspiring histories of the Jedi, not melancholy reminders of one of the darkest periods in Republic history. This New Republic was very young and more interested in emulating the successes of the Galactic Republic than scrutinizing its failures. 

Beyond that, the galaxy was slow to forget that the Clone Wars had ushered in the Empire. The New Republic’s demilitarization policy was a direct result of the belief that a standing army had caused the downfall of the Republic. The clones were a convenient scapegoat, but they had merely been a catalyst for the war. 

Maree believed firmly in the adage that those who neglected to learn from history were doomed to repeat it, and thus she had spent her entire career studying the events that led to the fall of the Galactic Republic and the rise of the Empire. The interplanetary tensions that had been building for decades before the first battle of Geonosis plunged the galaxy into war were not so different from the ones currently fracturing the New Republic. To ignore the similarities was to risk replicating the missteps that led to the rise of the Empire.

Due to the discomfort with which the general population regarded the Clone Wars, it was uncommon for the library to receive a research request that provided Maree with an opportunity to lead a project of her own. Instead, most of her research efforts were either requisitioned by the New Republic Judiciary or conducted in support of her colleagues who specialized in the more approachable eras of galactic history. She also had substantial administrative responsibilities that monopolized a huge portion of her working hours. The result was that, while Maree was a busy and valued member of the archival staff, she often found herself rather unfulfilled in her work, though she did appreciate the opportunities provided by the library to further her own research when she was not assigned to another project.

She spent the next few days reviewing and summarizing, staying in her office late into the evenings, well after the rest of the archival staff had departed. The resulting report was extensive and thoroughly depressing. The Clone Wars period was tragic from beginning to end, but the last few months of the conflicts were particularly grueling and devastating. Vast numbers of casualties; system after system falling to the Separatists; and, of course, the ultimate fall of the Republic. It was hardly a surprise that nobody wanted to spend their time learning about such unrelenting darkness.

Well, nobody except Kix, she thought. She had wondered why he was interested in this particular period, but discretion and client confidentiality took precedence over her curiosity, and candidly, she was not about to lose such a rare opportunity by asking questions that might alienate the man. Still, as she reviewed the individual trooper records, she was struck by Kix’s physical resemblance to the clones. That was why he’d seemed familiar at first, she realized, though his beard had initially disguised the likeness. She wondered if his father—or perhaps his grandfather—had been a clone. It would be unusual, but not unheard-of, for a clone to father a child. The Kaminoans were reported to have sterilized the clone troopers, but unconfirmed birth records had fueled speculation that at least some of the sterilization procedures had been unsuccessful. If Kix were the descendent of a clone, that could explain his interest in the war.

There was another possibility, of course. One that was almost too far-fetched to consider, and yet Maree found herself wondering if perhaps somehow, a clone might have survived all these decades. The galaxy was a strange place, and it wouldn’t be the first time that something seemingly impossible had happened. But the likelihood of such a thing was infinitesimal, and Maree was a practical woman. There had to be a more reasonable explanation.

By Benduday evening, Maree had compiled enough material that it would likely take several days to review it all, and given that she was likely to have even more potential research topics after her meeting with Kix the next day, she decided to leave the office an hour early and get a decent night’s rest for the first time that week. Most of her day had been taken up by advisory sessions with the department interns, and she could feel the beginnings of what promised to be a spectacular headache. She wanted nothing more than a large glass of whiskey, a long shower, and an early bedtime.

It was not to be. As she gathered her things and prepared to leave, Teejay entered her office, bearing a large bouquet of hothouse flowers.

“Ah, Dr. Finnall. Are you departing early to prepare for the gala?”

“The gala?” Marree asked blankly.

“Oh, yes! Dr. Denau has been most eager to accompany you to the Galactic Library Foundation gala. He just had these delivered.”

Maree cursed under her breath. She must have had a temporary lapse in sanity when she’d agreed to attend the gala as Denau’s date.

“What time does the gala start, Teejay?” she asked.

“I believe the festivities begin at 1930 hours, but the note accompanying the flowers requests that you join Dr. Denau at 1830 hours for drinks. How romantic!”

The droid was entirely too enthusiastic for its own good. Maree glanced at the chronometer on the wall and silently cursed again.

“Please let Dr. Denau know that I’ve been held up on some unexpected business and I won’t be able to join him for cocktails, but I’m looking forward to seeing him at the gala. Then please call Capital Couture and let them know I’ll be stopping by the atelier in an hour. Send them the dress code for the gala and have them select three options in my size. They know my taste, and I’m confident they will be able to accommodate me.”

“Yes, Dr. Finnall. Would you like me to book Jafan Orden for a hair appointment as well?”

“No time. The stylist droid at home will have to be good enough. But please do have takeout delivered to my home at 1830. Library benefits never seem to provide any food more substantial than appetizers, and you know how I get when I miss a meal.”

“I believe ‘hangry’ was the term Intern Dara used,” the droid said primly. “I will inform Capitol Couture that it would be wise to provide a selection of snacks in the fitting room.”

“Remind me to give you a raise,” Maree said.

“Perhaps you should be reminded instead that I am property of the New Republic and thus do not earn a salary,” Teejay replied.

“Fine, book yourself an oil bath on my account. You’re the best.” 

Maree blew the droid a kiss and headed for the door.

Kriff, I hate these things, Maree thought for perhaps the thirtieth time that evening. Though the New Republic funded the Core Library on Hosnian Prime in its entirety, it provided only sixty percent of the funding for the library’s mid- and outer-rim campuses. The Galactic Library Foundation was integral in raising funds to cover the remainder of the budget, and events like this were among its most successful campaigns. Tickets were eye-wateringly expensive and sold out months in advance. And of course, there were plenty more opportunities for donors to spend their credits at the events as well.

It was expected that the library’s senior staff would appear at these events to mingle with the donors and encourage them to open their pocketbooks. Maree understood the importance of these events and was committed to doing her part to support the underserved satellite libraries. That didn’t mean she enjoyed it.

At that particular moment, doing her part meant she was hiding gritted teeth behind a pleasant smile as she listened to the wildly uninformed and borderline offensive ramblings of a major donor. She bit back the urge to recommend that the man spend some time in the library outside of benefit events. She had a feeling the Foundation director would be slightly displeased if Maree called the donor an ignoramus to his face.

Meanwhile, Rik Denau hovered by her side, much closer than Maree would have liked. The man was relentless. His sexual antics were the subject of frequent gossip among the archival staff, and it appeared that he had now set his sights on Maree. She could only assume he had exhausted all his other amorous possibilities in the department. Either that, or his ego inspired him to pursue Maree, who had been quite public in her disinterest in workplace romantic entanglements. Either way, he had been after her for weeks to attend the gala with him, and she had finally agreed, if only to get him to stop pestering her about it. He had spent the evening glued to her side, plying her with drinks and flattery, both of which she evaded with subtle dexterity.

Denau laughed a little too loudly at something the donor said and sidled even closer to Maree, settling a hand on her lower back. She felt her jaw clench even harder and forced herself not to let her smile slip. 

“Well, we are all so grateful for your continued support,” Denau was saying in an obsequious tone. “Aren’t we, Dr. Finnall?”

“Yes, your generosity has been vital to the library’s ongoing services in the more remote sectors of the galaxy,” Maree said diplomatically. “The Foundation is most appreciative.”

She posed with Denau and the donor for a few publicity holos and then excused herself. She’d spotted a hapless intern ensnared in the conversational web of a notorious lecher who was regrettably also a major benefactor of the library. Maree subtly steered the young Togruta away from the donor and whispered a quick warning. 

“I thought the east wing was named after him,” the intern said, surprised.

“It is,” Maree replied under her breath. “His contributions are generous enough to encourage the library administration to pretend not to know about his behavior.”

Stars, the night was never going to end. She already regretted her choice of footwear, but she hadn’t had time to have her gown altered and had reluctantly selected a pair of impractically high heels to keep the fabric from puddling on the floor. She headed to the bar to order a drink that Denau hadn’t had an opportunity to touch. As she waited, she mentally calculated how much longer she needed to stay at the gala in order to not be reprimanded by the Foundation’s director when she heard a low, familiar voice at her shoulder.

“Hello, Dr. Finnall.”

She turned, and her breath caught when she saw Kix. He was standing quite close to her, and even in her heels, she had to crane her neck to meet his eyes. He’d exchanged his mundane clothing for a formal suit. The tailoring was austere, but the deep, vibrant teal fabric suited him admirably, and she was not the only one who noticed, judging by the appraising glances directed at him by several bystanders.

“Kix, what an unexpected pleasure,” she said. “You didn’t mention you would be attending the gala.”

“It was a last-minute decision,” he said.

She raised her eyebrows slightly. He must have either incredibly deep pockets or remarkably powerful connections to secure a last-minute ticket. She wondered why, exactly, he had opted to attend.

“I’m pleased you could join us,” she replied. “Can I get you a drink?”

“Already have one,” he said, lifting a bottle of ale.

With uncannily good timing, the bartender pushed a glass of sparkling wine across the bar to Maree.

“And now, so do I,” she smiled. “Cheers.”

He clinked his bottle to her wine glass and took a long drink.

“Shall we find somewhere a little less crowded?” she asked.

“Lead the way.”

Kix had been surprised to receive a message from Sidon Ithano two days previously. It had been brief: a ticket to some charity event at the library and a recommendation for a tailor in Republic City. The pirate captain was keeping tabs on his activity, then. Not very subtle, but at least it wasn’t an overt threat. Kix had explored Hosnian Prime a bit since his meeting with Dr. Finnall, but since he had nothing better to do to pass the time until his appointment, he decided to attend the gala.

For some reason, it had not occurred to him that the lovely archivist was likely to attend as well, which was why, when he turned to identify the source of an obnoxiously loud laugh, his brain stuttered to a halt. She was there. Standing next to the Loud One. She was wearing a backless blue gown of sheer draped shimmersilk, and her hair was styled in an elaborate updo. She looked even more enchanting than he had remembered. They were talking to some mogul in a fancy robe, and as Kix watched the trio, the Loud One laid a proprietary hand on the archivist’s bare lower back. Kix swallowed the bitterness at the back of his throat. He shouldn’t be surprised. Of course she would already have a partner. How could she not?

His thoughts had strayed to her often over the past days. He’d thought of her expressive eyes and warm smile, but also of the line of her neck, the delicate shell of her ear, the impossibly long eyelashes that fanned along her cheek when she raised her gaze to meet his. He didn’t delude himself that a woman like that would be interested in a man like him. She was the total package: intelligent, sophisticated, successful, kind, and beautiful. And he was—what? A former soldier and a current pirate. Outer-Rim trash scavenged from the galactic scrapheap. He had nothing to offer her that could compare to her luxurious life in the capital, attending glamorous parties and mingling with the elite citizens of the New Republic.

Self-loathing flooded him. He began to turn away, ready to leave the gala and find some seedy cantina where he could lose himself at the bottom of a bottle of cheap booze, when he saw her shift subtly away from her handsy companion’s touch. Hope sparked, fierce and immediate. He couldn’t hear their conversation, but the trio shifted to pose for a hologram, and then the archivist seamlessly extricated herself from the conversation. She wove through the room, pausing to chat with a few other small groups, and when she headed for the bar, Kix saw his opening. As he approached her, he permitted himself a moment of weakness as he admired the graceful line of her exposed back.

“Hello, Dr. Finnall,” he said.

She turned, and when she swept an appreciative glance over him, he silently thanked Ithano for referring him to the tailor. The captain had a flair for the dramatic, and while Kix had choked at the tailor’s exorbitant prices, he was glad he’d gone through with it. He had a hoard of credits from his share of the pirate crew’s earnings over the past year, and not much else to spend it on. Based on Dr. Finnall’s reaction, the suit had been worth every decicred.

After exchanging pleasantries, she laid her hand lightly on his arm and led him smoothly through the crowd.

“I probably shouldn’t admit this, but these benefits are my least favorite part of the job,” Maree said. “I’ve never been fond of loud, crowded spaces. They make me feel like the walls are closing in.”

“Then why attend them?” Kix asked.

“I’m required to,” she said matter-of-factly. “The donors like to feel they’re getting their credits’ worth. No offense intended, of course.”

“None taken,” Kix replied, unsure of why she’d felt the need to add the caveat. “So the Library makes you attend these events so you can be professionally charming and convince donors to open their pocketbooks even wider?”

“More or less,” Maree acknowledged. “Though some events are far more pleasant than others.”

She shot him a dazzling smile, and Kix felt a little disoriented, unsure of whether their conversation merely fell under the umbrella of professionally charming. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught the flash of a holocam, but by the time he located the source, the photographer had already scurried away to find other victims for their publicity photos. Eventually, Kix and Maree reached a smaller room where the conversation was quieter and the party goers were clustered into only a few small groups. 

“This is where the staff come to hide when the socializing gets to be too much. There’s a reason we all became archivists, and it’s not because of our scintillating personalities,” she said with a mischievous look that made her eyes twinkle.

“Your secret is safe with me,” he promised.

“Oh, this isn’t the real secret,” she said. “The real hideout is a carefully guarded location known only to my most trusted friends.”

“Oh?” he asked. “And how does one gain access to this prestigious group, Dr. Finnall?”

“I asked you to call me Maree,” she reminded him.

Her eyes flickered to a movement at the door, and she winced. Kix glanced over and spotted the Loud One entering the room.

“I am susceptible to bribery,” she said.

Kix shot her an inquisitive look. “What did you have in mind?”

“Flirt with me,” she said.

“I thought that’s what I was doing,” he replied, taking her hand and trailing his thumb over the sensitive skin of her inner wrist.

“Flirt harder.”

He leaned in with a crooked smile. Under his thumb, he felt her pulse leap as he ghosted his lips over her ear.

“You don’t have to tell me twice,” he whispered.

She let out a tiny breath, and he tugged her wrist gently, pulling her body closer to him. She smelled incredible, and he wanted to bury his face in her hair. She turned her head to face him, her eyes glazed and soft. His gaze dropped to her lips and his hand rose almost unconsciously to caress her jaw. Before he could move to kiss her, though, they were interrupted by the sound of a pointed cough. They broke apart, and Kix saw that the Loud One was the culprit. He tamped down his irritation, remembering that their near-kiss had been a performance for this fool’s benefit.

“Maree, who’s your friend?” the Loud One asked.

“Rik, I didn’t see you there,” she lied.

Her voice was slightly hoarse, and Kix huffed a silent, victorious laugh. The not-a-kiss may have been a performance, but her response to it was real.

“Clearly,” Rik the Loud One said in a peevish tone.

“This is Kix,” Maree said. “He’s a research client and, as you can tell from his presence here, a significant benefactor to the library.”

Wait, what? Kix thought. Abruptly, he wondered exactly how Ithano had acquired his ticket. And then, with a sinking in his gut, he realized that Maree thought he was one of those donors whom she was contractually obligated to charm.

“Have you forgotten that you are my date?” Rik demanded.

“Rik, you know I don’t date coworkers,” she said.

“No, you are obviously after bigger fish. How much did you donate to secure her company?” he sneered at Kix.

Kix stiffened. Maree might only be indulging him because she was required to, but he would not stand by while this fragging conduit worm spewed venom at her. Maree, however, did not require a knight in plastoid armor.

“That is wildly unprofessional and inappropriate, Dr. Denau,” she said icily. She did not raise her voice in the slightest, but she enunciated her words crisply, and they carried through the room. A few of the other groups turned to listen. “I will be submitting a harassment report to the director. I suggest you leave before you dig yourself a deeper pit.”

“No one is going to believe you,” Denau snarled. “You came here as my date. Everyone saw us together. I’ll say it was just a lover’s spat.”

She laughed harshly. “Only in your wildest fantasies. What everyone saw was you groping me like a hormonal teenager while I dropped you as soon as I had the chance. Leave now, and I’ll note in my report that you were drunk. Maybe they’ll go easy on you.”

“You fucking whore,” Denau spat, lunging at Maree.

Kix snapped into action instinctively. He thrust his body between Maree and Denau, blocking the blow that was aimed for her face. His fist struck out like lightning, slamming into Denau’s jaw and dropping the archivist where he stood. A few gasps rang out through the room, and a tall Pantoran woman rushed to intervene.

“Dr. Finnall, are you all right?” she asked.

“I’m fine, Dr. Corruss,” Maree replied. “He didn’t hit me.”

“I’ve already paged the security droids,” Dr. Corruss said. “They’ll be along shortly to remove Dr. Denau from the premises. Thank you for your quick action, Mr…”

“Kix,” he supplied.

“Are you injured, Mr. Kix?” Dr. Corruss asked. “I can call a medical droid.”

“No need,” Kix said, reflecting that Denau had possibly been the least intimidating foe he’d encountered in his short, brutal life.

“This is going to cause so much paperwork,” Maree sighed.

“No doubt the Foundation director will want to keep this quiet,” Dr. Corruss said. “The security droids will want to take statements from all the witnesses, but I’m sure the official report can wait until morning. I’ll have the droids take Denau out the side exit so it doesn’t interrupt the gala.”

“I’m sorry to have caused trouble for you,” Kix said.

“Not at all,” Dr. Corruss replied with a charming smile. “Denau was the aggressor. We all saw it. He struck first, and you, hmm—How shall I put it in the official report? ‘Heroically de-escalated the situation.’”

“He de-escalated Denau’s jaw,” said a wiry, bespectacled Zabrak man who joined the group. “Been wanting to do that for a while.”

Kix liked the newcomer immediately.

Dr. Corruss tsked. “So pugnacious, Dr. Tane.”

“The security feeds will confirm Denau was at fault, but the museum will want to cover its ass,” said Dr. Tane. “Now they’ll finally have the justification to fire that parasite.”

Another man joined them, a Human with a pinched face, and he looked at Maree with an expression of intense dislike.

“Dr. Finnall, your companion’s behavior was unacceptable,” he said scornfully.

Kix bristled. “Are you suggesting I should have let him hit her?”

“I am suggesting that fisticuffs are unbefitting these sacred walls,” the man said.

Dr. Corruss and Dr. Tane rolled their eyes simultaneously.

“Thank you for sharing your concerns, Dr. Harik,” Maree said wearily. 

“Be sure to repeat them to the security droids,” Dr. Tane added. “I can’t wait to mock your report with the director. ‘Fisticuffs’? ‘Sacred halls’? Really?”

Harik sputtered and stormed away.

“What’s with him?” Kix asked.

“He sees himself as Maree’s professional nemesis,” Dr. Tane said.

“He has delusions of adequacy,” Dr. Corruss sniffed.

Kix stifled a laugh. This gala was far more entertaining than he’d expected.

“They exaggerate,” Maree said. “Though he has held a grudge since he found out I was a member of the review panel that rejected his last paper.”

“Shoddy double-blinding on the journal’s behalf,” Dr. Tane grumbled.

“And for that, he thought you deserved a punch in the face?” Kix asked. “Sounds like he needs to go outside these sacred halls every once in a while.”

The security droids arrived and removed Denau, then circulated to take statements from everyone in the room. They worked quickly, on strict orders not to draw attention from the rest of the gala guests. Once Kix and Maree had given their statements to the security droids, Maree slipped out of the room with Kix in tow. She made a beeline for the bar and leaned behind it to snag two bottles, passing one to Kix after a quick wave at the bartender.

“Friend of yours?” Kix asked.

“More like a partner in crime,” she said. “He’s suffered through almost as many of these parties as I have. Come with me.”

Once they were clear of the crowd around the bar, Kix attempted to apologize once more for disrupting her evening, but she cut him off before he could get more than a few words out.

“No need to apologize,” she said. “That’s more excitement than most of us have had in years. Academics are not the liveliest bunch, you know.”

She tugged him out another doorway and into a long corridor. She stopped abruptly and kicked off her high heels.

“Thank the gods,” she breathed, sighing with relief as she flexed her bare feet.

She bent and snagged her shoes by the straps, then resumed her progress.

“Come on,” she hurried him. “We’re not in the clear yet.”

They exited the corridor into a vast room filled with shelves upon shelves of texts and datapads, but she did not stop. At the opposite end of the room, she led him through an unobtrusive door and into yet another corridor. She took a left, then two rights, another left, and then passed through one final doorway that led to a broad staircase. He followed her down it, and once he reached the bottom, his jaw dropped.

“Pretty amazing, isn’t it?” she asked.

Kix gazed around the cavernous space. It was dark outside, and he could see the moon through the transparisteel roof. The room itself was softly illuminated by colored spotlights, and as far as he could see, it was filled with lush, flourishing plants.

“What is this place?” he asked, awed.

“It’s my secret hideout,” she grinned. “The Galactic Botanical Archive. There are plant specimens from all over the galaxy here. It’s the library’s greenhouse.”

She was standing barefoot in her formal gown, shoes in one hand and a bottle of sparkling wine in the other, and Kix had never seen a more captivating sight in his life.

“Pretty amazing,” he agreed.

She held up the bottle of wine. “Wanna get kriffed up?”

---

Chapter 3

Tagging: @blueink-bluesoul @secondaryrealm @spicy-clones @wings-and-beskar

[vamplresquid]

If you genuinely think enstars has good queer writing or rep I have news for you tumblr dot com. Everything for happyele mostly relies on fujo bait money. There’s lgbt themes of course but they’re written so around the bush or a shitty joke has to come first that it doesn’t even matter if it’s good or not. I do not want to see a game that throws arashi under the bus in almost every single story and throws literal slurs at her and won’t even add her pronouns to the English version to be labeled “good queer rep”. Are we forgetting the valk story literally had a whole trans misogynistic joke in it? Calling men who dress in woman clothing prevents? Is this the good queer rep you guys are talking about?

It does nothing more then stigmatize and keep things on the same level or throw some gay context in for a quick yaoi bait buck or two.

And yes I like enstars! But calling it good queer rep is beyond ridiculous, you can like something and criticize it. Somebody saying enstars doesn’t have good queer rep is not an attack! It’s a fact that can be and will be critiqued, and please just support actual queer creators on their stories instead of a praising a goddamn rhythm idol gacha game for “good queer rep” that’s not actually not there at all,

P.S

not to even mention the arguments for people who support the good queer rep debacles are always about mlm ships and not even for arashi, because you barely cant, there aren’t many good points since the story always makes arashi suffer for it she can’t have a nice day without somebody telling her something misogynistic about woman all together, or throwing a literal slur at her lol. poltergeist comes to mind For recent stories. It brings up a bigger problem of fandom and transphobia/ignoring misogyny all together, and especially transmisogyny that gets over looked very easily but if I go more into that this could be a very long post! And I am currently suffering trough heatwave.