#also he just likes power which fair more power to him
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"constant condescension, demands of service, and emotional abuse."
"constant condescension": do you mean the nicknames Stolas gave to Blitz where it shows the clash of POVs from both sides (Stolas POV he's just being tender and loving, but of course his oblivious ass raised in a classist family won't realize that, meanwhile from Blitz POV, where class weights way more on him, assumes he's being condescending, despite not being his intention and not being a reality either). But psh, screw that right? It's way better to oversimplify and say Stolas does it on purpose and is a big monster, surely that's the most intelligent way to go!
"demands of service": alright, it's another part of POV clash, because the so-called 'demands' are something that Blitz perhaps understands what his affair with Stolas is like, for obvious reason, he's a goetia, he's an imp, yada yada, power imbalance, logical reasons that explains why the foundation of Stolitz in the first place is messy and shouldn't ever be the base of an relationship and the reason ppl root for it is for them to get out of this but no you all just assume everyone wants them to create this narrative that 'Stolas is in the right Blitz in the wrong' when the NOT FUCKING STUPID people don't pick sides and conclude this was a trainwreck bound to happen, fans are just waiting for the resolution (which hasn't come yet)
Anyways back to my point about the so-called demands, as I explained why it's understandable Blitz views this way, this is also not an reality. Paying attention to Stolas language in Murder Family, fucked up context aside, he don't bring up consequences if Blitz didn't accept the trade neither mentioned his power to threat him to accept it either, he offered and even asked if it's fair, someone as powerful as Stolas could control Blitz easily, yet he doesn't and it shows a lot about his character, but of fucking course you all don't care about that, Stolas is a big meanie.
and lastly: emotional abuse.
What. Just what. Everything that's going on with Blitz right now is not Stolas fault, this overwhelming 'torture' for Blitz as shown in these episodes are because of the obvious fact of the MASSIVE self hatred Blitz holds against himself, which, guess what, was actually SOLVED in this episode with Millie's help. This was not a damage by Stolas, sure, it's the most recent wound and Blitz feels guilty not for falling up for him, despite him desiring that, but he just straight up refused consciously to sit and talk with Stolas seriously because he WANTED that pompous rich asshole projection he had of Stolas (that is shown on his Truth Seekers hallucination), and talking about that, YES, EVERYONE KNOWS THE STOLAS PERCEPTION OF BLITZ SHOWN IN THAT EPISODE IS FUCKED UP, is not by any means healthy and is just self degrading, Stolas social class by itself already does that but his words towards him he >unconsciously< fed this preconception;
I could discuss Stolitz for a while and explain the appeal to Stolitz is not their previous dynamic, as fun as it was to watch sometimes, most know those conditions are not the healthy base of an relationship, and no, Stolas arc is by any means resolved, him taking the action to end the transactional deal with Blitz is just an start, the episodes are setting up so much stuff about Stolas realizing more stuff and ACTUALLY CHANGE FR.
What do you think the Striker line towards him about how the royals take everything from 'us', Blitz ranting (which is not a calling Stolas out, it's a rant of feeling unfairly dismissed and how he's having his feelings being played), but regardless, mentioning his attitude towards other imps and Apology Tour description literally calling Stolas not being self aware enough, and it's the episodes where petty Stolas keep talking bs at the start (with an Blitz that refuses to talk seriously fr)
This misconception you all have that Stolitz fans think all this needs to happen is Blitz to confess, and that Stolas has nothing more to improve is just wrong. Just plain wrong. I love both of these characters and I hate seeing an enormous mischaracterization of both.
Let's see if you won't oversimplify all I just said
Not oversimplify, but to summarise how stolas fans excuse him:
(1) Not the nickname. The fact he is asked not to say it, but does anyway. Because it makes him feel good. That is condescending. He is screamed in his face how people feel, and he ignores them not because he is âobliviousâ or âtender and lovingâ but because he wants them to feel something else. This is wilful ignorance.
His response to his abusive marriage and family he has no control over, is to control those he knows cannot say no to him, to make himself feel better. The same way he abuses drugs and absinthe. He does it to his own staff, his daughter in the LooLoo land episode causing her breakdown, which he later regretted. In general to all imp kind, hellhounds also. This is the toxic mindset of someone with pain, who has let his victim mentality go too far. He is exploiting his privilege, which he is perfectly aware that he has. âBeing part of the Goetia family is rather valuable you knowâ
Oddly enough, despite his âobliviousâ selfâŠ.he knows not to act this way towards Paimon, Asmodeus, and Andrealphus. He uses respect for all three. Ever wonder why? Him and Stella are in a clear power struggle. How they use power is unstable. An explanation, not excuse, for how he acts. This isnât a prince problem. This is a stolas problem. His trauma isnât blitzos fault, but Blitzs trauma is caused by how stolas has behaved to him.
âHis oblivious ass and being raised in a classist family wonât realise thatâ hm. Wont realiseâŠ.what? But you say everything is all in blitzs head and not the reality at all? So what isnât stolas realising???
âŠ..Oh and theseâŠwhich are not even all of them.
(2) Now hang on, you canât just âyada yadaâ away a power dynamic that you recognise is the problem. Stolas can control blitz. You do not understand what the sexual abuse is here. You think the fact he could rape him even more, but doesnât, is worthy of praise. I think what heâs already done to abuse his power, is worthy of disdain. Youâre pretending this was consensual, but despite how pro stolas the narrative is, even they have to admit it was not. Stolas said it wasnt right for a reason. And you seem to take his reality and his truth as the only reality, so why make this exception. When someone says they were sexually abused, you donât get to say âWell youâre wrong. Thatâs not the reality. Because he loves you, and he didnât mean it. Heâs doesnât see it this way, heâs one of the good ones.â
That first sentence is a mess. Theyâre demands because ânoâ isnât reasonably on the table. He had to beg him not to take his business away, he said he could fulfill the bargain. You and stolas are squeamishly in denial about it. Itâs not that blitz doesnât feel this way, and that it isnât what happened, itâs that you wish he didnât and you wish that it didnât, you want to pretend it is âsocietyâ or blitzs mental illnesses or Blitzs dad. But never stolas and what he did.
ErâŠ.you are taking a side. You said everything blitz feels is not reality. The source being, his trauma, and because stolas doesnât see it that way. This feels like accusing an abuser person of âhysteriaâ
The emotional abuse part was explained very clearly, stolas does all of these; shifts blame, denial, shames him for his past relationships, switches victim and offender, rewrites past events, dodges questions, uses hefty amounts of guilt tripping, projection, deflection, silent treatment, taunting, and torment. By comparison, Blitz yells at him not to dismiss him, says he behaves in a classist way, makes sex jokes, and says âfuck youâ these are all reactions. Something called reactive abuse which is what victims do in frustration and lack of control. Like stolas screaming back at Stella. She almost always starts it. (Not counting one scene where the start of the fight is offscreen so I donât know who did)
âThis was not caused by stolas. Sure it was the most recent woundâ bit of a self contradiction. The way stolas behaved was disgusting, and abusive, his combination of control and guilt tripping, caused a massive decline in blitzs confidence triggering a mental break. As stolasâ behaviour has done to him several times.
Did Blitz ânot want to talk?â Or did stolas order him to leave three times, and kick him out by force the second time? And turn his back on him every single instance. Causing the angry âim not being listened toâ response stolas always causes in people. No. Itâs stolas who refuses to. And as you and I both know, he has all of the power.
Third last paragraph, Viv cannot allow blitz to be right about stolas, so she compares him to a more convenient âbadâ example, Striker. Ppl want to pretend the problem is âsocietyâ and painting royals with the same brush like a meanie head, and pretend itâs not stolasâ fault cause heâs just âloving and tender and oblivious and sillyâ This is a massive case of denial and creators pet behaviour, that is even irritating the spindlehorse animators and non-Viv writers.
Second last paragraph, donât tell me what I think lol?. Many of the fans say they actually do feel that way, itâs no misconception. In this message you are dodging stolas having any moments of malice at all, by using âtraumaâ and âblitz just sees it that wayâ as reasonings.
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Still on my pathologic kick, anyway, character relationships we don't talk enough about but that make me insane, Artemy addition
Artemy and Capella
First off, just the fact that she can, has, and will psychically, unconsciously SOS him across town. We need to talk about that,
and like the fact it's unconscious, please image post-canon Capella accidentally summoning Artemy bc she and Khan had a fight. Giant, angry doctor on call at any moment against both their wills
Their first conversation where she tells him about curling up in her mother's coffin, "of course we're friends", presenting herself as still weak and coming into her powers vs. their conversation at the Cape, denying an emotional connection, "we're not friends", saying she can do it all on her own - I'm insane. I don't even think it's manipulation, I think she wants an adult who treats her like a child - not a reincarnation of her mother- but gets frightened at the possibility of losing even a drop of her control. The way she specifically denied seeing Artmey as a father.
Capella desperately wanting to be her mother and to have an adult's responsibilities as a Mistress and the children of the town's mother (the way she calls Artemy's list, "our children" - like they are both adults) vs. Artemy seeing how much Capella can resemble her (shitty) dad and being the one person reminding Capella she's not her mother and she is a child, and he'll treat her like one.
The role of the White Mistress based on Victoria's Tomb as "being" the town vs. Artemy specifically talking about the Town calling him - He'll always hear Capella's troubles and pain
And we're back to the psychic SOS thing, but like from a humorous standpoint she really could do the "projecting my period cramps meme"
Artemy and Khan
Okay this is shorter, because they don't interact much but their conversation after the House of Death where Khan gets mad at Artemy for letting him and Notkin go into the dangerous house makes me want to scream
Like not in a bad way - Khan has a point that it was irresponsible to let him and Notkin do that (as does Artemy in that he couldn't really stop them), but just ....
Super independent Peter Pan-meets-child dictator character's first response being "Why didn't you (an adult) stop me (a child)?" is wild
He gives very similar vibes to Capella in which they will loudly declared they don't see Artemy as a parental figures and don't want him to be one, while simultaneously desperately (and likely unconsciously) really wanting the safety net of an adult who will selflessly care for them - something they don't have due to their (1) weird families' expectations of them as future mistress/Kain, (2) their own hyper-competence and independence
Artemy and Andrey
This isn't as serious, I just think it's funny that Andrey has suggestive lines at Artemy in patho1 and patho2. Also is like genuinely pretty friendly with him in both (he'll give you Tyrwine for checking on Peter and he's outright help in his 1st Patho 1 sidequest)
Also just straight up, doesn't believe Artmey if he takes credit for destroying the Polyhedron
Like in fan depictions, I often see them not getting along, but I'm 99% sure Andrey's impression of Artemy is "My Hot and Helpful Weed (Twyr) dealer" - outside of Dankovsky, he's the Utopian who probably likes Artemy the most
Meanwhile Artemy gives off strong "i am choosing to barely register a word coming out of this man's mouth for my own sanity" vibes
Aspity and Dankovsky vs. Aspity and Artmey
Okay, mixing Pathologic 1 and Pathologic 2 here a bit which might not be fair as Aspity in general does seem more serious in Pathologic 2 (even for Daniil in the Marble Nest)
BUT the sheer whiplash of Aspity calling Daniil a prickly prick and monologuing suggestively about naked women at him in Patho1 vs.
Declaring herself Artemy's spiritual elder-sister/mother, keeping his inheritance safe, trying to save him from a cruel fate with Patches even at the cost of her life in Patho2
The whiplash is wild, I want to lock the three of them in a room and see what she does
Artemy and Taya
I love that being the co-ruler/enforcer/parental figure mix to one weird-magical little girl ruler who can magically communicate with him wasn't enough
Taya subconsciously yoinking Artemy into her dreams to play dolls or tell her stories - he hasn't slept in a week
Also I think it would be really interesting post-canon to look at how they are doing as the two big spiritual and political leaders of the Kin
#pathologic 2#artemy burakh#capella olgimskaya#khan pathologic#long post#andrey stamatin#aspity#taya tycheek#sorry not over capellas 'OUR kids' and artemy saying âYOU are one of my kidsâ and never will be#i could probably do another no artemy version bc the inter-character relations and what Clara and Dankovsky have going on is also wild
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100% agree on the last post! James is the norm in terms of teenage boys in his society, unfortunately that is not speaking much of that society considering heâs blackmailing his crush through doing harm to her friend and pantsing people. Which is honestly the problem, that specific behavior isnât seen as an issue itâs the other stuff he does (his arrogance is whatâs mostly focused on by the other characters). Looking at violence and gender in that society and how it functions, I really donât think James is transgressing any of these norms but falling right into them. Which again is the problem. His behavior is a product of the culture which shaped him, thatâs not an excuse, but it is an explanation.
Exactly. Like on a scale from Woke Feminist King to Inbetweener, I think James would have been decent enough, average, like I said, maybe even a little bit better than average because of his sense of 'honour' or whatever lol. But not that much.
Also, I know people might not agree with this but I do think the WW is less misogynistic than the Muggle. I think this is logical in a society where magical ability is what primarily contributes to raw labour rather than physical strength. Not to get Marxism 101 on everyone but if we look at the origins of patriarchy as based in the Agricultural Revolution, the division of labour following the emergence of private property (men work in fields, women produce men to work fields, men accumulate resources) is somewhat lessened if everyone can use magic equally, and when women can defend themselves very effectively against becoming the resources that are accumulated.
I say somewhat because yes, women (cis women, I don't think we can expect neolithic farmers or Engels to be trans inclusive haha) are still the ones who can give birth. Obviously for this reason (and also because of influence from the Muggle world) the WW is still a patriarchy and misogyny does still exist, just slightly less acutely than in the real world, and women have an easier time advancing within it.
(((In pureblood society, because they value bloodlines and heirs, there is undoubtedly more misogyny. But we know from pottermore that pureblood supremacy is a relatively recent advent, certainly much more recent than the Agricultural Revolution and the emergence of private property haha. I can imagine that misogyny grew stronger alongside pureblood supremacy quite naturally. This is why Narcissa acts more as a handmaids tale esque wife to Lucius than Lily or Tonks or even Molly and Fleur, who are still housewives themselves.)))
I think there's evidence of women generally faring a bit better in the WW, such as female Ministers long, loooong before Muggle women even had the vote, and culturally I think this is reflected too:
From the intro to Beedle the Bard, which goes on to talk about 'The Warlock's Hairy Heart' in which the female character does have a passive role, so it's not like this is unheard of, just a bit less common. In 'The Fountain of Fair Fortune,' the aforementioned Asha, Altheda, and Amata are all much more useful and powerful and active characters than Sir Luckless who basically just follows them around. (I actually really like that story, and 'Hairy Heart' is delightfully creepy. Probably my faves.) James would have grown up with these stories.
Anyway this got VERY off track but for for this reason too, I think James and the other Marauders would probably be a little bit better than their Muggle equivalents, but also not perfect. Just like Ron, to whom it's perfectly normal that Hermione would be top in everything and that Gwenog Jones ('THE Gwenog Jones') would be someone to idolise, but he also displays misogyny such as when he calls Hermione a 'scarlet woman' lol. As do others. (For contrast, ask an average teen boy in our world to name 3 female football players. Yeah.)
And yes maybe some of it is jkr's learnt misogyny leaking through too, from growing up in a patriarchy along with the rest of us (and let's be objective about this, she has been a victim of it too, very much so.) But personally I think the WW still being misogynistic but slightly better than irl actually ends up being realistically relatable while also providing a level of escapism and aspiration for young girls. It doesn't feel that inconsistent to me but idk. Hermione easily outstripping her male peers in intelligence and talent, Ginny and other female Quidditch players being on the level of men and often better, and this just being accepted, was inspiring for me, anyway.
#sorry for this random the origin of the family private property and the state moment haha#it's good stuff though!#materialist analysis of harry potter society lmfao. sorry.#meta#nowadays female football players are a bit better known tbf. but ask a teen boy in the 90s then haha#i wanted to be a holyhead harpy so badly as a kid lol. esp since my dad's welsh. i think i made us visit holyhead once bc of this#i also liked the montrose magpies bc my best friend used to live on montrose road haha#which is why i always make it james's team to this day even though he's not scottish. also i like magpies.#that's what i would sell if i was the wizarding world merch team btw. i would have LOVED a harpies or magpies tee as a kid#james
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i just had a silly little scenario in my head but like imagine instead of nishiki having his little villain arc due to literally no one giving a shit about him and always comparing him to kiryu, nishiki quits being a yakuza (though he prolly wouldnt canonically lol), gets a new stable job and life, and then when kiryu gets outta jail nishiki immediately comes to see him just to give him the biggest, well-needed hug đ i may or may not sound delusional but this is the ending i need, i just want a happy ending PLEAAAAAASE
i feel u so hard we need a good ending for our koi boi </3
honestly i feel this could happen in a nishiki gets very horribly drunk, has a mental breakdown at a bar, gets therapy-talked / pep-talked by an equally drunk stranger and wakes up the next morning having resigned by the yakuza by insulting kazama's drip until kazama was too tired to deal with his shit XD
this is a very crack-y promise, but angst can ensue! :D nishiki being confronted with the fact that he has neither money nor qualifications for acquiring a job! maybe working as a host until he's saved up enough to be able to do other shit.
since this would have to be inbetween yuko dying so that he can still lose it and attempting suicide / murdering matsushige, he hasn't gotten revenge on the doctor yet, so that could be a motivating factor in what field he wants to work in.
he'd probably do well at working in the nightlife industry, as a host or manager of a cabaret / host club. keep some underground ties, maybe contribute to this whole honest living thing by helping yakuza get a proper job (i think i read that he did stuff like that at some point on his wiki article but im no longer sure)
oor the popular idea of nishiki going into fashion. which i don't know nearly enough about fashion to comment on any of that but nishiki does have drip (potential) especially if he's not at 2005-box-suit level yet.
ooooor the idea of nishiki working as an independant investigative journalist with the primary goal of making the doctor's life a living hell. somehow he ends up involved in scandal after scandal and people soon fear him for how thoroughly he exposes corrupt businesses / politicians / whatever. his reporting has steadily been getting very good and he delights in the political power his articles and the populace's favour have gotten him. he is also very hard to get rid of because HE WAS IN THE YAKUZA AND HE CAN FIGHT.
i'd also honestly live for nishiki just not knowing what to do and attending university and finding a good friend group and getting the love he fucking deserves.
i'm actually now really into the investigative journalist idea asdfghjkmjnbvcfgt i blame the judge eyes series because this idea of investigative journalism i have has an overlap with detective work and DAMN JUDGEMENT IS SO GOOD.
anyway so because in this world, nishiki isn't plotting to murder kazama, he has a clear conscience and goes to pick up kiryu when he's released and reacclimate him into society. (also nishiki totally knows everything about what's going with yumi and jingu etc and can relay that to kiryu)
yo sorry for rambling so much the plot bunny population in my brain just starts increasing exponentially whenever i get to ramble about stuff <3
#my rants#yeah i honestly believe that nishiki not only has an inferiority complex he also has a fear of being powerless#because he couldn't help (save) yumi or kiryu or yuko#also he just likes power which fair more power to him#so i think at that point in his life he wouldn't be able to become a normal civilian. whether its still being involved in shady stuff#being a politician an influential businessman or an investigative journalist i think he would seek out something where he could attain powe#it's still pretty unlikely that he would quit but hey we can just introduce a bit of ooc from time to time to spice things up XD#i didn't really go into the kiryu aspect but yeah their relationship would definitely be much much better when nishiki doesn't have#goals that will put them on opposing sides or any guilt about his actions and feeling like he isn't deserving of kiryu#because wtf was that scene in serena where he goes like 'i shot ur dad' and then like 'i did hope that we could work together'#like no?? he was obviously trying to drive kiryu away by just outright telling him that and in such a provocative way too#like hes not stupid he knows how loyal kiryu is to kazama there is no way he expected that conversation to go any different from how it wen#and i started rambling again ill just cut myself off here-#thank u for the ask <3
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ep 43 had me tearing up in a fucking shopping centre âŒïžâŒïž
b+w alt version that I truly couldn't decide if I liked it more . Also I included a lot of thoughts in the tags but they're somewhat incoherent<3
#i dont know what i expected but i was waiting for a friend and too excited to wait until later#malevolent podcast#john doe#john doe malevolent#john malevolent#malevolent fanart#grimm art#ep 43#ep 43 left me with a lot of thoughts ... i didnt quite like how much of a recap it felt like at times but that might#be because ive been relistening and like yeah everyone knows that john đ but that's not the case for everyone and with monthly uploads#things get forgotten easily#i find the discussion of âhumanityâ so interesting because John has shown that without someone that he has forcibly grown to value as an#equal... something he cannot do as the king of yellow as he is superior to all of his realm and presumably stays out of other elder god's#anyway. without that equality and enviroment to grow he fails to reach his goal of compassion and falls onto old ways.#John. The King in Yellow. shown by both times each has found themselves in human form do not just crave power and influence!!!#THEY CRAVE COMMUNITY!!! an endrich being not born or raised with nothing but power and ego#CRAVES COMMUNITY.#His goal of âhumanityâ is not a selfless goal like John projects - it is ultimately somewhat selfish as he does not want to be alone!!#which makes this desire so much more human#i don't know maybe this is just me spelling out whats already there but the way john and the witch argued about humanity frustrated me#it felt like they were missing the point or that perhaps the âgood/evilâ âblack/whiteâ retoric was already realised by me and john needed#realise it himself . which is fair !!!#i dont know!!!!#the witch was talking about how bad everyone was and how humanity is cruel and john was talking about Lily (#who also frustrates me how shes used in the plot somewhat she was literally just a nurse doing her job bro#) but to John - yes internally he is struggling with his moral greyness and im so proud of him for growing being himself SO PROUD#JUST.!!! he wants community. he needs community. he loves his friend. 'humanity' at its core does not matter as long as you try to be bette#and i think thats awesome and i really enjoyed the episode#guhh im rambling enjoy my tag rambling i dont know i want john to have more friends :(#yorrick can be another friend godd i love you yorrick so silly
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Yeah honestly I didn't mind the ratfish even though I disagreed with 90% of his takes, I just wish we could have had some payoff of seeing the cast react to him and I kinda don't get why they didn't do that. It felt like a weird choice
#game changer#i also feel like stakes would have felt higher if there was some consequence for the ratfish being discovered#like theyd lose a power or something? idk#it just kinda felt like it was 'the cast + some random guy who decides who wins or loses based on nothing'#which to be fair game changer does similar stuff all the time#but most of the time we get to see the casts reactions to that revelation and thats what makes it fun#idk. honestly part 1 was very good and i liked parts of the finale#but ive come to expect more from dropout#it just felt unsatisfying#some sort of scheduling/filming conflict or something maybe? but the ratfish was reacting to the cast in real time#maybe for some reason he had to film remotely in a different city and thats why he couldnt be there?#but still then why wouldnt you have him zoom in for a reveal or something#i just dont get it tbh#game changer spoilers
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just going about my day idly contemplating how some of the ways hawke can interact with a romanced anders are not at all unlike how they interact with leandra (and a bit of carver too, especially with a purple hawke), and then thought about my hawke in the timeline where he romances anders and was hit straight in the face with 'was he ever actually in love, or was he just desperately trying to renegotiate with his mother's ghost in any way he could' and now i need to lie down. this is the power of dragon age 2
#'you don't know my mother' haunting me through the years#dragon age#dragon age 2#hawke#On second thought let's not go to Kirkwall; it is a silly place#there are of course as many ways to do/read that relationship as there are players to interact with it haha and all valid!#but my personal version of handers is sooo fucked up and bad times for everyone involved and I love it haha.#this is a relationship neither of them should have been in and that made everything worse and everyone unhappy in the end#locked tomb levels of the horrors of love. i ship it but in the way that I want to make it sadder and more gutwrenching each time#to be clear this is a very mutual two-way kind of fucked up but I think varric in his loyalty and love would downplay hawke's side of it#for huge swathes of their relationship anders is not in a mental place to be a good partner and the emotional blackmail is Not Okay#(but it's just like how mother used to make it! hawke's soul cries sadly as it reaches for it hungrily)#which is in some ways fair enough no one could accuse him of not warning you ahead of time fjskda#but hawke is messy about it in a way only available to a covert people pleaser who has never had a millisecond of therapy#with some added stuff that my hawke is always acespec in some form and when he gets together with anders...#is the sex something he doesn't particularly care to have or not have but it 'makes anders happy'/he longs to feel wanted *and* needed#and also a way he gets out of ever being *actually* vulnerable (which I think he'd had to be with varric for example if he Went There )#'you want the hawke who's in your head so badly and I kind of wish I were that hawke too. so let's be collaborateurs with that fantasy'#(and then maybe if I do it right every time you'll finally be happy hawke says in his heart looking at this leandra-anders phantom form)#(and echoing stuff in varric's relationship to hawke but I think the important distinction there is that varric -- is a craftsman haha#he KNOWS when he's lying/making up a story he KNOWS the difference between what is and what he wishes the world was#(I think there's some deep longing there to not know; for it to blend together or have the power to change things. but he always knows)#which ironically leaves him in a better position to actually see and understand hawke the person#even as he is creating hawke the literary figure. almost to protect him in some ways? god da2 is so full of STUFF!!! I adore it)#and of course anders gets so disillusioned with hawke's inertia and lack of action (you all but married this man anders!#you should know this about him he's already carrying the whole family and city on his shoulders if you add a gram more he'll collapse!)#and hawke feels so desperately hurt that the promise anders seemed to make that he'd be enough -- that he could fix things for him --#('I'm the one bright light in kirkwall and that apparently doesn't count for shit so I'm just slowly turning to ash for you')#turned out to be untrue. anyway. sad now. imagine them meeting like twenty years on what the fuck could you even say to each other then#(I can't imagine Hawke ever physically hurting anyone he loves so he just tells Anders to leave at the end of DA2. they COULD meet again
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the chapter songs in Alan Wake 2,, flawless
#they deserve more love and discussion#saying this while also not knowing what to say other than theyâre so fucking good#alan wake 2#i think itâs partially because poets of the fallâs tracks are iconic so of course theyâre in the spotlight (as deserved)#but also the CHAPTER SONGS. them being made for a given chatacter(s) with the help of Sam lakes poetry#the changes with âthis roadâ by Poe with every Alan chapter. becoming more distorted and revealing lyrics and the spiral#the scratch song being 1) hilarious and 2) similar to Zaneâs poetry in the aw1 arg#the emotion in superhero when saga feels lost at the story making it so Logan was gone#the lines of her feeling like a ghost in this story forming around her.. how she feels guilty and absent for both what the storyâs doing#and being away from Logan because of her job. ashdhhhhjhh my heart#AND. follow you into the dark HAS to be alice. which kills me because at for at I thought of Alan#but no. Alice jumped in the dark place after him. itâs so !!!!!!!!!!!#the rabbit hole line. Alice spiraling deeper and deeper into a dreamâinto wonderland#the Lost at Sea one is also good. intrigues me. the Bowie and Lynch references are blatantly aw2 Zane#but itâs so similar to diver Zane and the âoriginalsâ death. being lost in the dark place with illusions of escape#and losing any sense of identity. whether heâs real at all or the monster of this sea or just a lost soul.#the soft and calm vocals / instrumental really makes the whole thing#NEED to stop typing more tags because this is a Lot. however.#âno one left to loveâ is also a phenomenal song and one of my favorites from the album. GORGEOUS vocals and how it all flows together.#such a powerful and beautiful way to end a chapter#anyway thatâs all I had to say :)#god. Iâve started to watch a few playthroughs of the game and 90% of people have skipped the chapter songs and every time im#thatâs fair but my brain and soul might implode if I donât see anyone else talking about how good these songs are
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Atla live action đ
#thats my honest reaction đ#to be fair ive only seen 20 minutes of the s1 finale bc my parents are watching it but. mmmmm kinda mid#like. the casting is definitely an improvement since the last time they tried a live action but it feels like the writing falls flat#or maybe im being harsh bc ive only heard negative criticism on it beforehand. but fr anytime u bring up the original its already#good and not just because its the original. so much fucking detail went into it to the point of someone noticing azula wielding mai's knive#to how well thought out irohs character is used as a way of uniting the cast especially as zukos foil#i heard that sokkas sexism was toned down and i have to agree that feels like a cheap move. like i get WHY they think it would be better#but its not about how that reflects on real world its about how it affects the story. sokka starts out as a misogynistic asshole because#it makes it that much more impactful when he changes. toning that down makes it flatter and makes his character development weak#and someone pointed out they didnt even make him wear the kyoshi warrior uniform and i know it feels like such a small detail but#come on man. they did that in the original because not only does it help him really walk in their shoes - wearing 'feminine' clothing and#makeup and having suki explain its significance but it also ties in with the shows theme of harmony and intersectionality#i was also disappointed when they had the fire sages explain how the water tribe draws power from the moon because in the original it was#IROH who explained it to aang and everyone else BECAUSE we as the audience is under the impression hes with the 'bad guys'#and it builds up to how he learned from the other nations which reconciles his past as a war general and his character overall#AND its an excellent starting point for the cast and audience to understand how the nations arent as closed off as you would think#plus you would think its only fire nation doing propaganda but they expanded on that with earth kingdom censorship and it WORKS#a lot of things in the live action also feel arbitrary like. they gave momo a near death experience for 5 minutes for no reason#im firmly on the stance of bringing back filler moments instead of putting major events right after each other so that u give your#audience a sense of time passing and to really absorb the story. but i think thats more like shock value than filler and yeah its a small#thing to gripe about but those things build up and its really annoying. the thing abt avatar filler moments is that however small#its at least meaningful. hell even the beach episode emphasizes how isolated zuko and his friends are as child soldiers#i also swore to never watch the first live action since it was that bad but i really liked the stylized tattoos they used for aang#anyway. those arejust my thoughts. im not gonna watch the rest because im a ride or die for the original aftr growing up and#rewatching it at least 20 times as a kid. but theres definitely room for improvement and i wish ppl wouldnt take it as 'better' just cuz#netflix is adapting it. i wouldve killed for them to just reanimate the entire avatar series and touch NOTHING ELSE no redub#no changes to the story. just reanimate the thing and leave the rest alone and youd make easy money just the same#ALSO its very jarring not hearing jack desena and dante basco voicing sokka and zuko cause their voices were the most recognizable to me#i get that its because its live action but im allowed to feel a little sad abt that. and uncle irohs accent was really soothing#yapping
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Just Beyond My Reach, There's Someone Reaching Back For Me (speculative mario movie fic, mario & luigi centric, around 3600 words.)
[OK SO i literally could not stop thinking about this post in the mario movie tag from last week, which turned into me trying to write out my thoughts about how the scenario could unfold, which then turned into me writing a full-fledged fanfic that's over 3,000 words long??? I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED. I've truly lost my common sense, but I just felt like I HAD to get this out before the movie arrives and their reunion is nothing like this in any way whatsoever.
This is a speculative fic of just one possible scenario out of millions, no actual spoilers; i'm working off info we've seen in the trailers/TV spots/promotions/etc, and all the characterization is based off those too, so it might ultimately be off-base. Please don't @ me after the movie comes out and get on my case about details being wrong! I AM IN THE PAST (and jealous of you in the future for having already seen it).
I present to you: A Version Of Mario & Luigi's Reunion in the Mario Movie That Would Cause Me Irreparable Psychic Damage.]
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Mario hears him first. He would know that panicked yelp anywhere.Â
By that point, heâs lost count of how many of Bowserâs minions heâs tried to interrogate as he fights his way through the airship. Thereâs so much shouting and clanging all around him, and his voice hurts from yelling loud enough to be heard over it, but he canât stop. âWhere do you keep prisoners? Have you seen someone who looks like me â but tall, skinny, and green? If you take me to him, Iâll go easy on ya, I swearââÂ
itâs hard to tell if theyâre just refusing to answer him, genuinely donât know any useful information, or canât actually communicate in a way he understands â probably some in each column. But heâs about to grab another angry Koopa by the shell and try again when thereâs a commotion far off in the distance. The yell that echoes out to him is faint, but it tugs hard at Mario like a rope tied around his middle. Something from his memories, the nightmares heâs been having this whole adventure that he hasnât told Peach and Toad about. Something instantly, certainly familiar to him in a way that few things are.Â
His heart is suddenly lodged in his throat. He barrels his way past the troops and the Kongs fighting them, moving fast towards it.
The area of the airship heâs in starts to slope down further ahead, surrounding a huge open space that, judging by the flickering embers in the air and heavy heat thatâs got him sweating through his shirt already, has a whole bunch of lava simmering at the bottom. On the other side of the chasm, there are a whole group of what look like angry blue penguins beating down some feisty stacks of Goombas with their bare flippers. Thereâs also what impossibly looks like a star, with a face and everything, beaming bright and doing twirling cartwheels in the air, giggling at the carnage underneath. And behind all that, he can seeâ
Mario reacts without having to think. He jolts forward against the railing, reaches a hand out, and yells as loud as he can. âLUIGI!âÂ
He can only see glimpses of his overalls and green hat at first amidst all the other chaos, but then pieces of the ongoing fight tumble further to either side, giving a clear view. Mario watches wide-eyed as his brother frantically swats away Goombas, shrieking and flailing his arm furiously when one snags some teeth through his sleeve until it comes loose. He looks terrified and a little queasy, but also very determined, even jumping in to help when one of the penguins gets pinned down. They seem to be working together.Â
Luigi is here. Heâs really here, alive and fighting and still in one piece. Mario isnât too late. It feels like a 20 pound weightâs suddenly gone from his back that he hadn't even realized he was carrying around.
His yell is half-drowned out by the chaos, but Luigiâs head still snaps up, eyes wide and stricken and bright with recognition. âMario?â He cries out, his voice cracking badly. He kicks another Goomba away and then starts spinning, searching the surrounding area with increasing desperation. âMario!?âÂ
âOver here!â Mario wishes he had another raccoon powerup so he could just fly across the gap and reach him right then and there. He has to settle for taking off his cap and waving it in the air like a flag. âLuigi! Over here!âÂ
Finally, their eyes meet across the gorge. Itâs not necessary at that point, but Luigi still tears off his own hat and starts flailing it around too overhead, as if just to make absolutely sure his brother knows where he is. âMARIO!â He shouts, his tired face instantly transforming into a relieved, overjoyed smile.Â
âAre you okay!?âÂ
âY-Yeah! I mean, define âokay,â but I, I'm not hurt or anything like â wait, how did you get here!? Weâre way up in the air!â
Marioâs face already hurts from how wide heâs grinning. âNot anymore! And whaddya mean? What do ya think Iâve been doing all this time? Looking for you! You donât think I could find you wherever you are, even if itâs a million miles in the air? Give your big bro some credit, eh?âÂ
A laugh bursts out of Luigi, surprised and shaky. Mario has missed that sound so much. âRight, right. I did thinkâŠI mean, I hoped, orâŠâ His brother shakes his head, his voice failing him. He lets out a deep breath, so deep that itâs almost like heâs been holding it in ever since they were separated, still smiling like the sun. âI knew you would. Mario, you â look out!âÂ
Mario turns just as a hammer goes whizzing past his ear, tumbling down into the lava pit. He dodges the next one more capably and then catches the third one that comes his way. In one smooth, lightning-quick motion, he throws it back at the attacking Hammer Bro, nailing him in the face and knocking him out cold.
âWhoa!â He turns back to see Luigi staring with his mouth agape. âWhen did you learn how to do that?â
âIt's kinda a long story!â There will be plenty of time to get into all the details about his adventure when heâs gotten Luigi safely out of an active warzone. âWhat about you? I thought you were a prisoner here!âÂ
âI am! Or I was, I guess! We â me, and the penguins, and Lumalee,â he gestures wearily up overhead, where the blue star-thing is idly playing with a pinwheel that it somehow conjured out of thin air, âand the others â we broke out! We, ah, weâve been trying to find a way outta here ever since, but this place is a maze and we need some kind of hot air balloon or one of those floating clown-car thingies to even get away in the first place, andââ
âSpinies at four oâclock!â One of the penguins shouts, at the same time that Mario yells âLuigi, on your left!â
Luigi jolts at the sight of the three spiky, spinning shells approaching fast. He jumps high enough to leapfrog right over them all, causing them to ricochet off the wall unexpectedly and careen off the side straight into the deep pit.Â
âNice, Weegie!â Mario cheers. âYou always were the better jumper.âÂ
âKeep your head in the fight, soldier!â One specific penguin calls out to Luigi. Heâs wearing a very fancy gold crown â probably their king? âWeâre not done here yet!âÂ
âI know, I know, but look!â Luigi gestures excitedly across the chasm. âMy brotherâs here! He made it!â
âGood show! If heâs as brave as you said, he can help us beat back these dastardly troops once and for all! Weâll all see the light of day again soon!â
The rest of the penguins cheer, thrusting their flippers victoriously into the air, and then let out a wave of new, guttural battle cries. The Penguin King smiles over at Mario and salutes him before rejoining the fray. There are more of Bowserâs minions crowding the walkways on both sides, Mario realizes with a newfound wave of worry. He needs to get to Luigi now.Â
âStay right there!â He calls, starting to run alongside the railing. âDonât move! Iâm coming!â
âAre you kidding!? Wait!â Luigi starts running too, mirroring Mario. âI can meet you faster this way!âÂ
Mario laughs. âIf you can keep up with me!âÂ
âYouâre on!â
The road ahead of him is pure chaos, filled with attacking enemies and whooping Kongs and weapons flying every which way, but Mario runs. He runs until his heart burns, dodging and weaving, almost tripping here and there because he canât stop looking over the gap to make sure Luigiâs still there on the other side, stumbling his way through his own gauntlet. The two areas are winding closer together, slowly but surely. They must meet somewhere. Heâll find it. He has to.
âHey, Luigi!â He yells, breathless and happy. âRemember when we were fixing Mrs. McGradyâs sink a couple weeks ago and talking about the future? Did you imagine itâd be anything like this?âÂ
âWhaddya think!?â Luigi shouts back jokingly. âI-I mean, I imagined people being mad at us, but those were customers. There was definitely a lot less lava, and magic, and crazy green pipes that send you to places from your literal nightmares!â He laughs, which swiftly turns into a yelp when he has to dodge away from a red Koopa. The next words come out thicker, almost strained. âMario, you, youâre really here, you â I missed you, IâŠâ
Even with the distance and the distracting noise and the heavy breathing, Mario can hear the familiar tearing in his brotherâs voice, and it pushes him to run faster. Luigi is so much braver than many people in their life have given him credit for, but he has a breaking point, and Mario can recognize it like the back of his own hand. Heck, he could use a good cry right about now too. They're so close. Just a little further.
Heâs never been the biggest hugger â that title belongs squarely to Luigi, who always holds on a little too long, especially when Mario protests, swinging him up into the air until Mario has to grab him in a headlock and wrestle him down, both of them laughing by then â but he genuinely doesnât know how heâs ever going to let go of his brother again once heâs within armâs reach.Â
âI missed you too! Every day!â He calls out, and if his voice cracks, well, thatâs okay. âHold on! Itâs gotta be just up ahead!â Thereâs a solid wall coming up where they wonât be able to see each other across the way any longer, but the sharp curve of it looks extremely promising. âIâll meet you on the other side!âÂ
âOkay!âÂ
The wall comes between them. Mario's finally in the clear, having left all the attackers in the dust. His legs and chest hurt, but it doesnât matter. He's about to get his brother back. He feels invincible, unstoppable.
âI told you, bro!â He canât hear Luigi at all any longer, but he shouts anyway, hoping the words reach him. âEven if it didnât turn out like we thought, itâs all gonna be okay! This is crazy stuff, but as long as we'reââÂ
Mario turns the corner and skids to a sharp stop. The words die in his throat, turning to ash.
Bowser is in front of him.Â
The King of the Koopas nearly fills the entire space wall-to-wall, hulking and monstrous, even bigger than what Mario imagined. He breathes out an angry, deep growl that prickles at Marioâs skin, star-bright embers scattering in the air, the smell of burning getting stronger and stronger. But none of that is what Mario is focusing on. Heâs frozen in place at the sight of Luigi, wriggling in one of Bowserâs gripped hands. A thick, scaly finger is coiled tight over his brotherâs mouth too, keeping him from making any noise besides a variety of muffled, panicked sounds.Â
âThought you didnât know him, Greenie,â Bowser says in a low voice to Luigi. âWasnât that what you said? Boy, you wouldnât like what I usually do to liars. It involves fire â a lot of it.â His rows of sharp teeth part, just enough for a big exhale, tinged with molten heat. Luigi cringes, turning his head away as far as he can manage. Heâs trembling. âBut lucky for you, turns out youâre not entirely useless.â
It takes a moment for Mario to come back into his body, remember how to move and think. But slowly, his hands ball into fists. A voice erupts out of him that barely sounds like his own, grave and angry, angrier than heâs ever been in his life.Â
âIâm only gonna say this once, ya overgrown turtle,â he says, shifting his footing into a fighting stance. âLet my brother go now.âÂ
Bowser looks down at him with a derisive sort of amusement for a long moment before laughing outright. "Give me a break, shortie! Youâre even punier in person â 50 of you couldn't stop me. But that hasnât stopped you from trying, has it? You and your little friends  â your pathetic excuse for an âarmy,â if thatâs what you want to call it. But that all ends now.âÂ
As if on cue, Mario hears DK and a few other Kongs turn the corner, whooping and hollering, only to pause too at the sight of Bowser. âLetâs get âem! He can't take us all at once!â Someone says, and thereâs a rush of new movement behind Mario. Bowser turns Luigi in his hand, holding him out a little closer to Mario with a shake of the wrist â a taunt. One of his claws pulls up just a little from the rest, the sharp tip arched and pressed lightly to his brotherâs neck. The implication is clear.Â
âStop!â Mario shouts, half-strangled. He must sound serious enough that DK yells âhang on, hang on!â to his brethren, grabbing them with both arms and holding them back from attacking. On Bowser's other side, Mario can see the penguins watching whatâs unfolding too with wide eyes. Even all the minions in the area have gone still, weapons lowered, waiting to see what Bowser does before making their next move. The space is suddenly quiet.Â
The claw finally relaxes again. Luigiâs eyes are very wide, and there are tears on his face as he stares at Mario. He tries to say something, the sound of it hopelessly muffled against Bowserâs hand â an apology, or a plea, or simply Marioâs name.Â
Mario is shaking. He grits his teeth hard, desperately tries to hold himself steady again. He hopes Bowser canât see it â but thereâs a gleam in the Kingâs eyes, and it couldnât be any clearer that he does.Â
âDo you know how long I worked on this plan?â Bowser says, his tone softer, more thoughtful all of a sudden. âOrchestrating these invasions, gathering forces far and wide to serve me, taking the almighty power star for myself. Iâve wanted this for years!â His wide mouth curves up, plainly wicked and self-satisfied. âAnd now here I am, about to rule the world like I deserve, and a couple of useless, pipsqueak plumbers from who-knows-where think theyâre just gonna waltz right in and ruin it for me.â Bowser chuckles to himself. Itâs a dangerous, sharp-edged sound, echoing on and on. âAinât that a laugh, Mario?âÂ
Mario doesnât say anything. He doesnât even know if heâs breathing any longer. All he can do is glare.
Bowser shrugs. The large fingers on his occupied hand flex ever so slightly, a slow, malicious ripple of movement, all the scales glinting in a wave. âYouâre less fun than I thought youâd be,â he says gruffly. "What does the princess even see in you? A tiny little killjoy who loves ruining things for others. Guess itâs only fair I ruin something of yours to make us even."
Thereâs no further warning or fanfare. In one brutal motion, Bowser crushes his grip tighter around Luigi. His brotherâs mouth is still covered, but the way he cries out is starkly, unmistakably pained.Â
Marioâs vision floods with red. Something inside of him, the patient, careful part that was still desperately clinging to one last scrap of self-control, snaps cleanly in two. He runs at Bowser full-speed, fist cocked back, teeth bared.Â
âI said LET HIM GO!âÂ
He doesnât make it there. Bowser, grinning outright, moves so much faster than Mario would have ever guessed he could. He spins, and his tail comes out of nowhere. The impact is like an oncoming train, catapulting Mario into the nearby wall with a sickening crack.
Thereâs a horrible ringing sound in his ears. His head hurts. He hears Bowser laugh, followed by a roar and a burst of fire breath, awful-smelling and close enough to singe. Thereâs a lot of shouting, and panic, and thunderous footsteps, moving in a hurry. He canât think any longer. Why canât he think? All that comes to mind isâ
(Theyâre fifteen, hiding in their bedroom with some smuggled bandages and antibiotics from the medicine cabinet because if their mom finds out Mario punched out a kid behind the school, she will LITERALLY murder him. Luigi wraps each bruised knuckle carefully as Mario winces and complains about the stinging ointment. His brother looks angrier than heâs ever seen him before, though, and that makes him quiet again in a hurry.)
âYou want him so bad?â Bowser is much further away, his voice a distant rumble over the flickering flames. Get up, Mario tells himself. Heâs gasping, struggling to push himself back up with useless, trembling hands. His legs feel numb. Get up! âThen come and get âem already!â
(âYou never stop and THINK first, yâknow?â Luigi shakes his head, badly trying to hide the tears budding under his eyes. âAnd now youâre hurt, and itâs all my fault, and â and I donât need you to do stuff like that for me! I can handle it, e-even if you think I canât!â)Â
âMario!â Thatâs Luigi, terrified and wheezing, finally able to talk again. An intentional decision by Bowser, no doubt, just to be cruel. Mario can barely hear his brother at all, and the sound of his voice keeps growing fainter. âNo! Let go! MARIO!âÂ
(âWhat are you even saying? Thatâs not why I did it at all!â Mario insists, using his uninjured hand to flick Luigiâs nose with a few fingers. His affronted expression at that makes Mario laugh, and the motion quickly turns into them trying to be the first one to swat each other in the face without getting blocked. At least the tears are forgotten, which is what he wanted from the start. âDonât ya get it? I know you can take care of yourself. But if anyone wants to hurt you, theyâre gonna have to go through me first. IâM the big bro, and thatâs just how it is forever.â)Â
Luigi!Â
Heâs standing again, even as his body protests every pull and push of the way, even as heâs still struggling to open his eyes. Someone strong and furry offers some extra support on his right side.Â
âYou okay, man?â Donkey Kong asks. âGeez, that looked like it hurt. Hey, anyone have an extra mushroom?âÂ
Stars are flashing across his vision, but finally they fade away. Thereâs a line of fire in front of them like a makeshift barrier, slowly but steadily dying out. Sure enough, Bowser and Luigi are gone. Marioâs heart lurches hard against his ribs.
âSetting a devious trap for sure,â The Penguin King grouses from further away. âUsing oneâs own flesh and blood! Does that dastardly Koopaâs depravity know no limits?âÂ
âIâm fine. Never better,â Mario groans. He points past the fire. âHe went that way, right?âÂ
DK blinks, looking a little uneasy. âUh, yeah, but we should probably regroup first and â hey! Wait a second, you idiot!â
Marioâs already charged full-speed ahead, jumping over the flames. Others yell after him too, saying it's too dangerous, but heâs running anyway, chasing the smell of molten heat, the faint, far-off echoes of yelling that feel like pinpricks in his lungs.Â
He knows itâs a trap. He knows. He just doesnât care.
He already let Luigi literally slip through his hands once before. Heck, he isnât sure if heâll ever be able to forgive himself for that alone. No matter where he has to go, who he has to fight, how much abuse he has to take, he's getting Luigi back right now, and he's gonna pound that overgrown bully's face until he regrets every life decision that led to him daring to hurt Mario's little brother.
It can't be too late. He can't have screwed this up again. He'll do anything. Even if...
The feeling of something on his cap startles him out of the thought â the softest boop-boop-boop, like someone very small is bouncing on it. He assumes heâs just imagining things until the blue star-thing (Lumalee?) floats down further, easily keeping up with his top speed, humming what sounds like a lullaby. Mario gawks in its direction.Â
âThe biggest sacrifices are often the ones that burn the brightest, out in space,â it says, bright and sing-song. âDid you know that?â
âWhat are you even talking about!?â Mario yells. âSorry, but Iâm a little busy here!âÂ
Itâs unbothered by that, twirling close enough to give his mustache a little, playful poke. âNot existing any longer is natural, inevitable. We all go into the light someday.â The way itâs staring at Mario is unnerving, as though this little, creepy star knows exactly what he was just thinking about. âYou look scared of that. Are you?âÂ
Mario swallows thickly.Â
âNo,â he says. âIf thatâs the only way, thenâŠâ His eyes are burning at the edges, just a little. âIf the people I love are safe, then it doesnât matter what happens to me.â
Lumalee smiles a dreamy, thoughtful smile.
âOh,â it sighs, little more than a breath. âThis is going to be so much fun.âÂ
And then it floats away.Â
Mario doesnât have time to stop and wonder what that was all about. He throws himself deeper and deeper into the airship, even when a heavy metal gate slams down behind him to separate him from the others, even when the slabs of rock under his feet sink down into the lava from the weight and donât resurface, erasing any way out. Mario thinks of his training, of Princess Peach and Toad cheering him on, of the exhilaration and hope he felt looking out over the Rainbow Road, of Luigi smiling in the warp zone right before they were ripped apart. He steels himself for whatâs coming next.
Further ahead, he hears his brother call out for him.
Mario runs.
#mario movie#mario movie spoilers#super mario bros#mario and luigi#super mario bros movie#cherrysip fic#super mario bros movie spoilers#(again NO SPOILERS IN THE FIC ITSELF unless you've been avoiding all trailers and TV spots but just to be safe)#(although i AM going to post a small music-related spoiler down here in the tags so don't read if you want to avoid!!!!)#'hey what were you insinuating with that weird convo at the end there' NOTHING [pointedly stares at one up mushroom in promotional stuff]#LOL this is WAY TOO DRAMATIC and probably too violent for a kid's movie but LOOK#i just need them to pay off the 'bowser is looking for mario's weakness and luigi ultimately IS the weakness' thing. I NEED IT#even if it's just in a small moment. bowser wants to fight mario but he does NOT play fair if he thinks he'll lose. I CRAVE THE ANGST#i was actually going to go a little further with the scene and carry it all the way to bowser saying 'let's end this' like in the trailer#but i just really liked this foreboding ending note#if you are curious about what came next in my head (and also where the heck peach is in all of this) mario ends up in bowser's throne room#and sees that peach has been captured too which is a whole new fun wave of horror that he didn't know about#luigi's been thrown in with her and she's helping him because he's obviously a little hurt after being SQUEEZED#the power star hangs over bowser's throne like the chekhov's gun it is. and we begin!#(the only thing i really wanted to write that i didn't get to by cutting earlier was some more mario + bowser dialogue)#(i think mario would be too tense to say much in the scene i have but once they're squaring off he's a smartass for sure)#(he's known a lot of bullies in his life and bowser is just a much bigger scalier one)#(the title is from the song 'holding out for a hero' which apparently according to a new interview is IN the movie!)#(during mario's training montage so i started listening to it and it basically become my background music for writing this lol)#(last stupid thought before i shut up: bowser hitting mario with his tail is included because i recently played mario odyssey and bowser#kept absolutely BODYING me with that move in the end fight. i died twice because i am bad at games lololol)
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Watching the Obito Reveal in naruto and while I still want to punch this guy in the face, I'm rly enjoying seeing how emotional Kakashi is getting AND how supportive Guy is being to him. Like Fuck You, obito, guy is here and he's better than you in every fucking way. Up to and including giving kakashi the support he deserves â€ïž
#speculation nation#fanny watches naruto#and madara just showed up which puts guy and madara in the same area WHICH MEANSSSS#it's guy vs madara soon >:] at some point lol. we have a lot of backstory episodes to get thru first it seems.#actually how cool is it that this fight is madara and obito vs kakashi guy And the two most powerful jinchuuriki#everyone on this field right now is so OP. it's very fun heheh#also kinda funny how five of these people are from konoha. then theres just bee here from the cloud#like shoutout to him for working with them so hard when this is ENTIRELY konoha bullshit wrecking the place#two uchiha here bc of personal vendettas etc etc and WHERES THE THIRD??????#who knows lol sasuke's off on a personal quest for the truth rn. gotta educate himself before he decides on a side to support.#it's so funny. like i mean he already did smth so helpful for the world by helping itachi take down kabuto#but then hes like. well idfk what to do now bc he hates konoha Even More but itachi declared his continued loyalty to it#so hes like. well lets talk to the All Knowing One (???) to ask questions. like ok i mean fair point.#wish we didnt have to bring orochimaru back for this tho. i quite liked him being dead for 200 episodes.#sasuke is in the midst of a metamorphosis... only by learning the Truth will he emerge as his true self... etc etc lol#anyways itd be fun to see sasuke fighting against his fellow uchiha. like come ON stop fucking up the world guys!!!!#but yeah im getting to a lot of big shit. ep 344 out of 500. still got a while to go. but im definitely in the Late Stage!!!!!#not looking forward to the neji thing. thats coming up in the next few dozen episodes. ugh.
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Upon seeing the post about second as iida my first thought was and third can be uraraka then I noticed you had the same idea in the tags
Great minds think alike I just think that's what she deserves,,,trio holders to the original trio babeyyy
#*while making a chart* third's lack of familial care meant he had to find his own in group and eventually meant supporting his leader#where later uraraka was raised with love that she would go as far for her parents as third originally would have gone for second#and still is inclined by nature to a supportive role- she has no great aspirations on leadership or power itself but in how she can help#other heroes (where previously how to help a ragtag freedom fighter group)#*continuing to make a chart* now Second's influence on Izuku could link to that early acceptance of 'yeah world isn't fair'#and i see a link in how Second really took apart his minor speed quirk to do more with it and Izuku's general quirk analysis and hacking#but where Second was mistreated as a threat Izuku was seen as a lack of one and someone to pittied even by those who looked him#which influence the way they react to said injustice though both are moving without thinking to do Something about it#(second having support of a group and Izuku very much not is the deciding factor between Izuku not going with the spider plan methinks)#and i think second + third having teamed up first like how Izuku + Uraraka met first is a good parallel with how Tenya is initially#antagonistic to Izuku but ends up joining both quickly when actual opportunity arises and he sees good things from them#and as Yoichi's somewhat black and white morality did develope somewhat specifically to oppose a terrible brotherâ(i gotta finish that fic#where i go more into how they pushed each other more extreme to try to shut down loopholes) Tenya's developed in a way both supported by and#to support a great older brother which is why murder is a hundred percent ok if it's for tensei's sake#and this can be expressed by their different aproaches to making their hair look very different from or very similar to their brothers#speaking of hair that chapter where Uraraka did#a ponytail that spiked upwards? and third's hair? i see it#just as i see a connection when it comes to how she grapples and redirects enemy momentum to the fa jin power and connected combat style#also second scar = Izuku's ofa activation and tbh both could not care less about what their hair is doing dhfhfjgg#plus something about Izuku's 'gotta give ofa away' mode we joke about activating and Second's specific disapproval of him#man that self esteem deficiency sure can spread across more than one lifetime!#and of course. hands.#hands in the vault. tenya returning the favor to grab Izuku's#though the next step is to wonder about fourth but i do have an idea. wonder if we're on the same track about it again#pocket talks to people#anon
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#hello hi I am so fucking burnt out đ« pls forgive me if Iâm inactive for a bit or real fucking weird if I am here#I was supposed to have a 3 day weekend but an hour before I was done it got turned into another 6 day week soooooo đ#we had terrible storms yesterday and I worked with no power and then came home to no power (it didnât come back till 8:40pm hELP)#cat had a vet appointment which ended up being super emotionally draining and upsetting#his heart disease has worsened and heâs on more medication#and though none of these things are ever set in stone itâs looking more and more likely that he wonât live as long as a typical cat#I uh thought I was okay and then just kind of completely broke down sobbing last night#and I canât really think too hard about it without bursting right back into tears#heâs only 6 and a half and the sweetest cat and itâs not fair#trying to stay positive but I feel so bad for him#gonna love him as much as I can for as long as heâs here which is hopefully still for a long while#itâs not a dire situation itâs just the disease progressing but like itâs still hard#dealing with too much rn#we were expecting the vet bill to be about $400 but then opted to do a few extra things and it pushed it to $750 so ouch#weâre fine we had it saved but you know how it is#he expensive but heâs worth every penny <3#I also injured my knee so thatâs fun- tore something in it I think#itâs not as bad as it was but itâs still painful and swollen and hard to bend#my dumbass is going hiking tomorrow despite this because itâs the first weekend that isnât supposed to rain since like March#so as soon as I get out of work tomorrow Iâm fucking off into the woods for a few hours to go be feral#probably bad for the knee but itâll be good for the mental health#works only a half shiift tomorrow too and Iâll be done in the am so it should still feel like a long weekend#kinda bummed about it still tho#pls stop depending on me to pick up everyoneâs slack kthnxbye#Iâm so fucking tired đ« #on the bright side I have next weekend requested off and itâs only gonna be a 4 day work week because of the holiday#thereâs a rock and mineral show here next weekend and I am very excited#gonna buy some neat rocks hopefully đđ»#and assuming the weather is good next weekend and my knee doesnât worsen Iâm gonna fuck off into the woods again afterwards to be feral#gotta go rot in the woods for a bit to fix the soul; yall know how it is
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SCREAMS
Okay now that Iâm more normal, this fic was so thrilling! Going through the mountain pass I was holding my breath too! The feeling of dread just building up until The Splashes just -chef kiss-!! Loved everything about this and I cannot wait to see pt 2! đ
The Obsidian Pearl (I)
â pairing: mermaid seokjin x (f) reader â word count: 7.2k â warnings: yandere, descriptions of death/blood/violence â summary: Sailing through The Dead Manâs Passage is a death sentence and the whole crew knows it. But with the shipâs stocks dwindling fast, your captain is left with no other choice. When a haunting melody makes the crew jump ship one by one, you find yourself alone with the demon lurking in the murky red water. As the creature beckons you to jump into the icy ocean â âcome to me, petâ â you find that you canât do anything but obey.
âCaptain, this is a bad idea.â
A hush falls over the deck, a few whispers being passed back and forth between the crew as they watch you challenge the captainâs decision. Thereâs an audible gulp somewhere behind you as the captain pins you with a hard gaze, his jaw clenched tight with annoyance.
He taps the map thatâs spread out in front of him, voice leaving no room for argument as he says, âThis is the fastest route.â
âThat may be, Captain, but itâs not worth the risk. Havenât you heard the stories? The numerous crews that have gone missing after sailing in this area? Thereâs a reason itâs called The Dead Manâs passage!â
Keep reading
#my apologies for who Iâm about to become in the tags#OHHHHHHHHH MY GODDDDDDDD THE WAY I FUCKIN JUMPED WHEN I SAW THIS FIC I GOT SO EXCITED#I HAVENT BEEN ON TUMBLR IN A LONG TIME AND I COME BACK TO THIS BEAUTIFUL HAUNTING JIN SIREN FIC THANK YOU BLESS YOU#HE CAN TALK???????#HE CAN TALK!!!!!!!!!!#ITS SO SCARY BC HE SEEMS MORE ADVANCED THAN JUNGKOOK SO BOT ONLY CAN HE SPEAK FULL ON SENTENCES HIS FUCKIN COGNITION IS OFF THE CHARTS#WHATS SCARIER THAN A MYTHICAL PREDATOR A MYTHICAL PREDATOR THAT CSN SPEAK YOUR LANGUAGE#IT DOESNT LOOK GOOD FOR MC SWEETIE IM SO SORRY#LIKE FOR ONE I LOVE THAT HE CAN TALK BC IT JUST MAKES HIM ALL THE MORE SINISTER BC HE CSN COMMUNICATE JUST HOW LITTLE HE CARES ABOUT HUMANS#POOR MC IS UPSET AS SHE SHOULD BE THO I ALSO GER THAT TO SEOKJIN HUMANS ARE A PART OF THE FOOD CHAIN HE DOES NOT CARE#THE FACT THAT HE SCARES PPL MC INCLUDED ENTERTAINS HIM SO. IM JUST SAYING I SEE THE VISION JINS PERFECT#hIS LONG HAIR TOO???? LIKE TO PICTURE THAT HEAD RISING FROM THE BLOODY WATERS IS SO CHILLING!!!#UNHINGES HIS JAW LIKE A FUCKIN SHOVEL THE HORROR!!! (I love this)#i am curious too as to why mc could resist as long unless sheâs just THAT GIRL!! which also makes sense to me bc shes great#she took the fall for the young boatswain like đ„șđą WHY COULDNT HER CAPTAIN JUST ASSIGN TWO PPL DAMN!!!#oh which reminds me the part where the captain looks back at mc in terror before the spell takes him over for good was chef kiss#i LIVE for that stuff#like how do I communicate that Iâm so excited to read what happens tho for mc SHES GONNA NEED TO BUCKLE UP#BC IK HOW TCS ENDS IM NOT LETTING SEOKJINS COMMENT ABOUT HER THIGHS SLIDE!!!! YOU CANT FOOL ME SEOKJIN!!!!! did he mean as food yes BUT!!#my eyes are OPEN Iâm WATCHING YOU SEOKJIN!!#seriously tho this fic is amazing and Iâm so excited to see what happens next!! like this is a dark yandere fic and itâs so chilling I love!#thank you for this fic I hope you have a wonderful day this has given me like a hundred doses of serotonin THANK YOU!!!!#I mean TO BE FAIR IF I HEARD SEOKJIN SINGING I WOULD STAND NO CHANCE LOL MC IS BUILT DIFFERENT NOW THAT I THINK OF IT#seokjins probably the most powerful of the siblingsâŠmost deaDLY TOO RIP#THIS WAS AMAZING THANK YOU AGAIN!!!!!#now I need to reread tcs AND op I LOVE THIS!!!
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Fun Sized
Dark!Fairy!Gojo Satoru x reader
Word Count: 2k
Synopsis: You save a tiny fairy. Gojo Satoru decides that you and him belong together, regardless of how little he is and how little you think of him.Â
(Warnings: Yandere, not many warnings in this one ngl)
The fae are a dangerous bunch. You've heard more than enough stories to be spooked. Sirens will sing beautiful songs before dragging you into the depths. Dragons will burn you to a crisp before a second's thought. Nagas would make sure you were alive until the very end as they feast on your organs. Centaurs would use their powerful legs to stomp yours to mere twigs. Driders would suck your blood until there's nothing left but a husk of your body.Â
You've never heard anything about fairies. They didn't live in your region. Their lands were high in the mountains, where humans rarely traveled. Also, they were so tiny, according to the books. The biggest seemed to be barely the size of your hand. They were harmless, you concluded. Harmless to humans. Harmless to you.Â
He had been harmless. At first, you thought it was a cluster of leaves in the stream, but as the current drew it closer, you noticed tiny arms and a tiny face. He was unconscious; you didn't even know if the poor thing was alive.Â
The Fae are a dangerous bunch, but saving one tiny fairy couldn't hurt, right?Â
Your guest quickly proved to be a bigger hassle than you initially thought.Â
When you brought him to your cottage, he laid in a basket of warm linen, asleep for hours near the warm fireplace. The blueberry pie was still hot when you turned around and caught him staring at you.Â
It was silent for a while, and then you said:Â
"Do you like sweets?"Â
That's how your tentative friendship with the other kind started. Gojo Satoru (you later learned his name) was a boisterous thing. He did in fact like sweets, which helped bribe his friendship. You're surprised that he ate so much despite his stature. Did all faires have black holes for stomachs?Â
He healed up rather quickly. At first, you were afraid that his wings had crumbled due to the prolonged exposure to water. But after stuffing himself full of the blueberry syrup, he smiled widely before flitting out your window.Â
You thought that would be the end of it, but then he just came coming back.Â
Apparently, your baking skills left an impact on the small creature. He didn't visit often, but when he did, you would always make sure you had something. Whether it be cookies, brownies, or that blueberry pie he was so fond of. Anything was good enough for Gojo's taste palette.Â
"In the fae lands," Gojo said when you prodded, "sweets are too sweet. Yours is just enough."Â Â You weren't too sure what he meant by that, but you took it as a compliment. You were sure the fae wasn't something who'd give praises so easily.Â
It's not like you were upset at providing food for your tiny friend. Quite the contrary. You loved it when Gojo visited. You found him fascinating, the way he could fly miles and miles above your head. How tiny he was. The amount of times you had to hold yourself back from squishing him between your fingers because of how cute he was scared you.Â
And you hoped you were fascinating enough to entertain Gojo. You had to be; you don't know why else he'd keep coming back. Even after gobbling down your cooking, he'd lounge around your home, entertaining you with his stories. You learned of the other magical creatures he was in contact with, the students he taught, and how fond he was of them. You don't know why he was so open about sharing his personal life with you, in the stories fae hated humanity, but you would never complain.Â
It doesn't click as to why Gojo's so invested in you until he comes out and says it himself.Â
"Instead of me coming back and forth like this, why don't you just come live with me?" He says, "I would cut down my flying time by a lot."Â
You stare at him in amusement, sure he's joking. "I'm not sure how I'd fit in your house." You tease. "I'd probably crush all your furniture."Â
"I can make my house bigger." He announces. "Don't worry 'bout it, just say yes."Â
You stare at him, slowly realizing that he isn't as amused. He's still smiling, but there's no joke.Â
"No," you finally say, "I'm not doing that."Â
He cocks his head surprised as though he's never had someone reject him before.Â
"What?" He asks, "Why not?"
"Well." You clear your throat. "For one, I'm human, and you're a fairie. I don't think Fae would appreciate a human wandering around in their lands."Â
"Who cares about all that?" Gojo waves his hands around. "You'll be with me, anyways. It'd be fine."Â
"I don't get why you're so fixated on the human realm." His mouth turns into a sneer. "It's all so boring. Nothing ever happens. And our magic is much more advanced than yours." It's true. You can't disagree with that. Satoru didn't wear clothes made out of leaves or vines, unlike the common fairy stereotype. His clothing looked much more advanced compared to your loose cotton dresses. A black shirt with intricate buttons and long sleeves. Along with black trousers. You wonder what material could make his suit so shiny.Â
You laugh at his disgust. At that time, you saw Gojo as a tiny child clutching their mother's skirts, a cute puppy. You hadn't yet taken Gojo Satoru as the threat he was.Â
"It's because I am human." You say, not offended by his remarks. "So I like being near other humans."Â
He groans as though your logic makes no sense. "Yuji and the others ask about you all the time, though. They've been dying to meet you."Â
"You talk to your students about the giant that cooks for you? I'm flattered."Â
"You're dodging," he warns. You roll your eyes.Â
"Satoru, I'm not coming to live with you. It'd be too much of a hassle." You finally say. "Besides, you're not my type."Â
"I'm everyone's type." He argues.Â
"Not mine." You smile, and then you make your first blunder.Â
"I like my men a little taller."Â
He stiffens, and you know you said the wrong thing. Your smile fades as does the cheery energy in your cottage. He says nothing, but he's zipping out your window before you can apologize.Â
He doesn't return for the longest time. You count the weeks. Guilt weighs on your shoulders, heavy and burdensome. Every day you bake something even tastier than the day before. Not even that is enough to coax him back.Â
You think you've lost him forever, when he returns on one sweltering summer evening.Â
"Hi." You blink. He's watching you, sitting idly on the window, kicking his tiny feet.Â
"Hi." He smiles.Â
You're happy enough to grab him with one fist and hugging him to your chest, but as always, you stop yourself. Instead, a shy smile rests on your face.Â
"I'm sorry," you say, "I really am...will you accept an apology pie?"Â
He grins wider, and you relax.Â
He eats, and you're grateful. Something you once cherished in your life has finally come back to you. You might not return Gojo's feelings, but you still care for him. You'd rather die than ever hurt him again.Â
"No, you're right." Gojo surprisingly concedes when you apologize for the third time. "We're too different. It'd never work out. Not as the way you are, right now."Â
You nod, grateful he's so understanding. "Exactly."Â
He's finishing up when he announces he brought you a gift.Â
"I've been working on it for the past few weeks," he cheerily says. "It took a while, but it's finally safe for human consumption."Â
He takes out a tiny glass bottle filled with something swirling and blue. When he asks you to bring a glass of water, you acquiesce. To your astonishment, when the elixer is poured, the entire water becomes a swirling mass of a color comparable to none other than galaxies. You're so mesmerized by the color, it's enough to stump your voice.Â
"For you!" He declares. "You've always been cooking for me; thought I might return the favor, just this once."Â
"What is it?" You ask, amazed by the color. You admire the glance, unaware of the glint in Gojo's eye.Â
"It's kinda like the wine you have in the mortal realms, but a little less poignant." He gives when you glance at him. "Go on, tell me what you think?"Â
You're too trusting, and so you make your second blunder.Â
Once you start, you can't seem to stop. The taste is otherworldly, addicting. You drink and drink, not wasting a single drop. You're breathing heavily once the cup detaches from your lips.Â
"Amazing." You say before looking at him. His eyes are too wide, but you're too distracted by the taste still on your tongue. "Seriously, what was that? Can I make it here?"Â
He scratches the back of his head. "Not really, the ingredients are pretty hard to find." He shrugs. "Besides, it's supposed to be a one-time use."Â
Your eyebrows twist, and then the world sinks.Â
You're falling. You think you are. You don't really know. Everything feels like it's stretching. The walls of your tiny little cottage get higher and higher and higher. The floor gets more and more warped. You're sinking, sinking through the air. When you scream, nothing comes out. You feel like you're choking because you can't breathe, and then your vision grows black.Â
The next time you open your eyes. It's still dark, and to your horror, you realize you're buried underneath something.Â
You panic, clawing and tearing your way out. The material gives away easily. It's fabric. Cotton. But there was so much, an undying ocean of fabric. You lift yourself up from the pile and that's when you realize you're completely naked.Â
The mountain of cotton you just climbed to the top of was your old dress.Â
Everything was giganticâthe table, the chairs. The windows seemed endless. The ceiling looked miles above you, and you know what happened, but your brain can't formulate it because it can't beâit just can't be.
There's a flutter of wings. You always thought he was so quiet before. Now, he's all you can hear. Immediately, you wrap your body with the cloth. It's hard to keep still; your body is buzzing with nerves and you still can't understand. You have to force yourself to look at him.
You don't know why you expected shock, guilt, something other than the pure manic glee on his face. Satoru towers above you, head tilted. He bends down, cupping your trembling face in his hand because he's big enough to do that now.Â
"Just when I thought you couldn't get any more adorable." He coos.Â
You can see him now. His skin isn't pale, it's borderline translucent. His canines are sharp and pointy. And his eyes. Oh God you've never seen eyes so terrifying beforeâan endless mass of blue, threatening to swallow you whole.Â
He wasn't a cute little fairy. He was anything but that.Â
"Gojo..." You start, heart squeezing. "What did you do.."Â
You know. He knows. That's why he ignores your question entirely.Â
"I'm surprised it worked." He says, mainly talking to himself. "Shoko said it might be a dud, and she was so sure of it, that I mostly believed her."Â
"But now look at you!" He roughly pinches your cheek. "You're the perfect size now."Â
"Stop." You blubber, pushing his hand off of you. "Don't touch me. Change me back. Change me back."Â
He frowns. "Why would I do that? You being human-sized was always such a hassle. Lumbering around. Way too loud. Don't get me wrong, I adore you either way." He proclaims like it's something benevolent. "But this has its charm."
He leans forward, and you scuddle backward in fear. His grin widens.Â
"So, am I tall enough for you, now?"Â
#yandere#yandere jjk#dark jjk#dark gojo satoru#dark content#yandere gojo satoru#x reader#yandere x reader#yandere jjk x reader#yandere jujutsu kaisen#yandere jujutsu kaisen x reader#yandere scenarios#short king gojo#he doesnt take that too well tho
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I donât have any words right now for whatâs happened. Where in the fuck do we go from here?
I don't know. I really, truly don't know. We can't sugarcoat how bad things are going to get, and we can't pre-emptively give into it anyway. This is going to be an unprecedented time in American history (if, sadly, not world history) and the forces conspiring to make you obey will gain much of their power from you doing so in advance, without a struggle. It seems fair to say that America as it has always been historically constituted is over, and may not return in our lifetimes, but we also do not know that for a fact. If nothing else, the fascists will find it very hard to cancel competitive elections, and we cannot sit back, throw up our hands, conclude that voting is clearly meaningless, and let them do that. There are a lot of other things that we need to do, but that's one.
There are various postmortems to be written and nits to pick, but Harris was thrown into an impossible situation and did the best she could in 100 days. Even her critics agree she ran a pretty much flawless campaign. But this country simply decided that a well-qualified black woman could not be preferred over the most manifestly and flagrantly unfit degenerate to ever occupy the office. They decided this for many reasons, not least because large swathes of the country now live in curated misinformation bubbles that, under Government Czar Musk, will only get much, much worse. They were helped by the cowardice and complicity of the "mainstream media" that could have ended Trump's career exactly like they did to Biden after the first debate, but chose to preserve the profits of their billionaire oligarch owners and did not do so, giving Trump the benefit of the doubt and normalization at every turn. They also hounded Biden relentlessly over the four years of his presidency, never reported on the good things he did, and drove him to the historically bad approval ratings lows for a president who was by any metric, quite successful (and will quite possibly be our last ordinary American president for a very long time). Along with the searingly ingrained racism and misogyny and misinformation, Harris could not overcome that.
Democrats clearly had a messaging problem, but it's also true that the country, quite simply, does not care about "democracy" when the economy is perceived to be at stake. Not to over-egg the Hitler parallels, but yeah. This is how Hitler returned to power in 1933 -- on the backs of widespread economic collapse of the Weimar Republic; voters decided they just didn't care about the overtly fascist stuff, which he then proceeded to you know, do with genocidal vigor. Except the American economy in this case was actually doing well, which makes it even more baffling and indefensible. Enough people simply memory-holed Trump's crimes (aided at every turn by SCOTUS, Mitch McConnell not convicting him after January 6, Merrick Garland being far too slow and timid, the corporate media), liked the racist fascist behavior or felt that it wasn't a dealbreaker, and decided that in this election, he was the "change" candidate. It's insane by any metric, but that's what happened.
The country is deeply sick. We do not know what will happen. It's going to get bad. Barring a miracle, we will not have federalized abortion rights again in my lifetime, and there will be widespread attacks on public health, women's rights, immigrants, transgender people, and other vulnerable people. Even and especially the ones who voted for Trump. Never Thought Leopard Would Eat My Face, etc. Alito and Thomas will swiftly step down and allow their seats to be replaced by 40-year old wingnuts hand-selected from the worst the Federalist Society has to offer. SCOTUS is gone for the next generation at least. There is very little prospect of it being ever fixed in the foreseeable future.
Trump will never face a scintilla of consequences for his previous crimes; all the open federal cases will be closed as soon as he takes office and fires Jack Smith. The best we can hope for is that he dies in office, but then we get Vance and the cadre of alt-right techno billionaires ruled directly from the Kremlin. Putin is celebrating this morning and with good reason; he's gotten everything he wants. Trump will egg on Netanyahu in Gaza and abandon Ukraine. Democracy across the world will remain even more fragile and badly under threat. Authoritarians will be empowered and American withdrawal from international systems will percolate in very dangerous ways that cannot and will not be fixed in the short run. I really hope all the leftists who celebrate this as the "defeat of the genocide candidate" will enjoy all the genocide and suffering that's about to come. And yes, I do think the Israel-Palestine war fucked us in a large way. Jewish voters perceived the Democrats as insufficiently pro-Israel due to the presence of far-left antisemitism, even as the far left attacked the Democrats relentlessly and never targeted the Republicans. Arab voters abandoned them, possibly deservedly. What would have happened without the war? We don't know. You get the historical period that you get. Netanyahu and Trump can now do anything they want. Hope it was worth it.
As I said, I can't sugarcoat it. We are going to be paying for this in some form for the next decade, and probably longer. I'm not as absolutely shattered as I was in 2016, but I am much, much angrier. We all thought, we all hoped, America was better than this. It isn't. That, however, is something that has also happened before. What we decide to do next will shape how the next chapter unfolds.
This would be a great time to stock up on needed medicines, renew your passport online, and anything else you need to do in preparation for next year. Many of us simply do not have the wherewithal, whether financial or otherwise, to leave the country. I don't know what will happen with me. I don't know what will happen to any of us. This was utterly avoidable and yet, America didn't want to avoid it. At some point, there's nothing else you can do. You can point to media cronyism, Russian influence, etc etc., but the fact that two of the most qualified presidential candidates who happened to be women have now lost to Trump twice makes it unavoidable. The virulent rightward shift of young men (of all races) in particular paints a grim picture as to how the reactionary misogyny of the 21st century is going to essentially undo most of the progress for social and gender equality in the 20th. The patriarchy has been a problem for most of human history. Doesn't really seem like it's going to change.
The end result of this, however grim: we're still here. We are still living within our communities. If (and this is a big if) Democrats can retake the House, they can put some checks on the process for the next two years. At this point, we are in full-out buying-time, trying-to-prevent-the worst mode. We could have continued fixing things, but we won't be doing that. We will only be trying to preserve ourselves and our friends and our smaller spheres of influence. It sounds very trite to say that we have to have courage, but we do. There's not much else.
It's going to be an awful winter. We have two and a half months to see this coming and know how bad it's going to be, and... yeah. I don't know how soon the buyer's remorse will inevitably set in, but it will. Tough luck, people. You voted for him. You get the country that you decide to have. But the rest of us are also here, and what Gandalf says is still true. We wish the Ring had never come to us, we wish none of this had happened, but we still have to decide what to do with the time that is given to us.
I don't have a lot more. I'll probably be logging off for a while. I don't need to look at the internet for.... yeah, a long time. (Will I do it anyway? Probably.) I don't know what else to leave you with, aside from again:
Do not obey in advance. Do not act as if everything is foreordained and set in stone. Fascist regimes end. They always do. We are going to have to figure out how, and it will suck shit, but the alternative is worse.
Take care of yourselves. I love you.
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