#also pls read the article!!! shes so well spoken and she gives a lot of insight to her multiculturalism :)

[softavasilva]

Kristina Tonteri-Young featured on Timid Magazine

[othercat2]

fic: two for mirth 48/?

Harley’s “lecture” is part of an academic conference. Karkat finds himself adrift in an audience full of historians, xeno-sociologists, theologians, ethicists troll, human and other arguing with each other about syncretism and culture. Harley’s paper is an analysis of recent changes in the Church of the Mirthful Messiahs, and what those changes might mean for continuing relations between the Empire and the UPT.

(Karkat finds himself shipping a few of the speakers.)

There’s a round of questions after Harley finishes her lecture. A few of the questions were of the “but you’re a Signlessist, why are you talking about the Church of the Mirthful Messiah,” variety. Harley points out that it’s the Subjuggalators who put down rebellions and do a lot of the border defense. Changes in policy and Church theology were more relevant to relations along the border. “Also, if I only wrote about the Signlessists I’d be wasting my degrees in comparative theology.” This was followed by questions about her knowledge of and interactions with the Church of the Mirthful Messiahs. “The same as any other heretic I guess? Except now with less death!”

(This starts a fast exchange of question/answers/comments between Harley and a tall, broad-shouldered highblood woman in Mirthful facepaint. It becomes clear they know each other, and have argued before from the ease of their exchange and the humor in both their voices.)

They meet after the conference, Harley’s DogDad at her side. The lusus’ back comes up to Harley’s waist. Beck is wearing a black vest with the words Sapient Companion Animal printed on it in white. In slightly smaller print: I am very protective of my person please give us space! “Ms. Harley,” Karkat says, and they clasp hands in greeting. Beck decides he wants to say hello as well, bumping his head up under their hands, demanding a pet. “Hello yourself, Beck,” Karkat says, and skritches behind one of the lusus’ ears. The lusus leans in, tail wagging. His suit was going to be liberally sprinkled with dog hair in no time flat.

“Dad is the best icebreaker,” Harley says with a grin.

“Was there ice? I didn’t see any ice,” Karkat says, returning the smile. “We’ve spoken over video and argued in comment threads.”

“Frost leaves, maybe,” Harley says in Alternian. “You’re a decorated war hero and everything. I’m just an academic with activist leanings when you get down to it.”

“I thought this was going to be one hundred percent free of veneration,” Karkat mock-complains.

Jade snickers. “I’m sorry; you’re more impressive in person than you are when you’re being wrong on the internet.” She slips an arm in the crook of his elbow. “So I picked a medium fancy restaurant, and it’s my treat.”

They talk during the cab trip to the restaurant and they don’t really stop talking except to pause to pay the cab and be seated at the restaurant, and order. The food according to Jade was a combination of southern and east-Asian cuisines, and very spicy. No one was very alarmed by the presence the presence of a large white barkbeast. “I’ve been here a few times before, and I never really have a problem with going places as long as Beck’s wearing his vest,” Jade says in response to Karkat’s questions about the difficulties of going places with a lusus. “When I was a kid it was harder. There are laws allowing assistance animals into businesses, but there was nothing saying a ‘sapient companion animal’ could. It took a lot of activism and a few ‘diplomatic incidents’ I’m pretty sure Ambassador Ampora staged, but the laws were extended to include lusii.”

“Diplomatic incidents?” Karkat asks, amused.

Jade nods. “A few of them! Usually someone from the embassy, or a troll businessperson wanting to go somewhere they wouldn’t be able to go because ‘pets’ weren’t allowed.” She shows Karkat a list of articles and pictures.

An article title catches Karkat’s eye. “‘Big Bad Wolf Howls Roof of Supermarket Down’?” Karkat asks. The picture is of a much younger Jade, hugging Beck’s neck. The caption read: Good Dog, Best Friend Ms. Harley’s adoptive lusus Beck didn’t appreciate being left outside and wasn’t shy about letting the manager--and the entire store--know about it.

“I maybe got involved on that too?” Jade says with a grin. “I think it was mostly that Grandma wanted Beck to carry the groceries though. The manager called the cops. It was very dumb. The cops thought it was hilarious, Beck tried to shake everyone’s hand.” Beck whuffed and looked up at the sound of his name, grinning and tail waving in a slow tick tock. “Yes, you’re very charming Dad,” she said. Beck whuffed again.

The conversation wandered to current events. Jade is as interested in what he’s doing as much as she’s interested in what Dave’s doing. Karkat makes a few half-hearted complaints about nosiness, but answers her questions. Karkat talks about Dave visiting his family. “I’m meeting Dave’s relatives for dinner tomorrow,” Karkat says.

“Are you nervous?” Jade asks with a wicked grin.

“I’m meeting people Dave considers to be pretty good with a sword, and who definitely disapprove of Dave’s legal status in the Alternian Empire, of course I’m nervous,” Karkat says.

Jade snickers. “I mean ‘oh god quadrant corners’ nervous,” she says. “I mean, ‘what if the lusus hates me?’ nervous.”

“Well for the latter, I guess I can get roe cubes,” Karkat says drily. “Maybe I’ll survive the evening, stranger things have happened.”

“Do you really think they’re going to fight you?” Jade asks. “I’m sure Dave will protect you!”

“Heh. I think he would too,” Karkat says. “The problem is that I’d rather meet them in a situation that wasn’t as…complicated as the one I’m going into. Complicated relationships are more interesting on the page than in real life.”

“You want some advice?” Jade asks, then hurriedly, “I don’t mean advice advice, just general tips on how to meet the family?”

“Advice advice,” Karkat says, teasingly. “I suppose I wouldn’t mind some absolutely not pale advice from a hate-friend.”

Jade throws her napkin at him.

They talk some more, and Jade pays for the bill. Karkat insists on paying for the cab home. They head out into the night and--

--Karkat isn’t sure what warns him. There’s a flash and flicker of movement and Karkat is knocking Jade to the ground. Something cracks against the door where they’d been standing. Beck snarls and there’s a flash of pain between Karkat’s ribs. Breathing hurts and things go watery and strange. He hears Beck howling, and thinks he hears a Mirthful battlecry: a surprisingly shrill giggle-scream--

--screamingdesperatecan’tbreathetrappedno--

Karkat falls a long way down, and keeps falling.

 ==>

<==

Pls don’t kill me for the cliffhanger. If you want, you can buy me a ko-fi or become a patron! (links are in the sidebar.)

[quadratic-shipping]

Kay, new icon is Vriska’s dice cause the gradient was lame, and every Vriska blog halfway to sunday has already had every photo of her face as their icon twice. It also works cause of yknow liking dnd and stuff. one thing I really liked about my last vriska pic one was the negative space made it feel like it popped and I feel like this one has sort of the same thing going for it. Wow, it can be that deep. I’m just rambling cause it’s 3am and yet again I have stayed up this long. I can;t wait til it’s winter again so I can force myself back into a normal sleep schedule. I stayed up all night a couple nights ago, and that gave me one decent night of sleep so I might just try that again tonight. Rest put under the readmore because it’s irrelevant and sleep deprived rambling I wouldn’t dare subject my beautiful followers and browsers to.

While I’m here, posting a late night thing no one will see or interact with; thank god; I was cleaning and I came across one of those neck warmer things that legit just a tube you pull up your face to keep your nose from freezing off because Canada Winters, I never can use them because I always fog up my glasses, and I just wanted to say that Niqabi gals with glasses are so brave? Legit if I had to deal with my glasses fogging up I’d die, I’d rather lose my nose to frostbite than fog them up (like I go outside enough loll) so for them to deal with that everyday is like, legendary. I mean, I guess if you were pretty antisocial you wouldn’t have to deal with it much but still, point totally stands. 

While we’re on the positivity train? Lesbians? y’all really like Vriska HUH? Thank you for interacting, I appreciate, yall are so valid. I’m torn between “You have good taste” jokes and “Yall will just like anything w/ vriska in it” and either way it takes too strong a stance on my own content to feel good about it. Obvs goes the same way for all the NB and Trans ppl interacting, yall are also Excellent and I appreciate yall. Obvs I’m cis so I don’t have any real godtier takes or anything abt. gender, but reading your guyss stuff is excellent please keep making it.

Uh sexuality update; Still labelling as bi, IDK if I really want to date men tho, before I actually and FINALLY get a taste of the other side; please; because I feel like the problem with my relationships re; dudes is just that I can’t just be myself, I’m just 900000% in my own head about it and not even like; trying to be idealized, idk whats going on I just have a hard time connecting w/ them and it’s defo my fault so idk bro. IDK it’s fun to have crushes but dating is BORING from my very limited experience with only guys which is why a gf would be excellent. Or girl aligned partner. I feel like maybe what I’m attracted to is like, femininity, not necessarily femmes or women. IDK bruh it’s weird. doesn’t help I can’t even figure out how to get and keep friends LOLLL it’s 3am. Sorry

Honestly before I started vrisrose posting I felt so useless yknow cause in the vriska circles there are a lot of intelligent people who understand canon better and are overall smarter and better spoken so I just felt like everything I had to say was just old hat and not very interesting. But the thing I like about VrisRose is no one else is talking about it as frequently ( I was searching the tag and my blog came up in the recco’s for blogs up top and I was very happy) so I feel like, hey, this is my niche. That one engineer of useless inventions quote: The best way to become top of your field is to specialize:, I jsut love rarepairs so much! I think it’s such a great way to approach character analysis because no one exists in a vaccum so seeing peoples interactions and what people like is so fun!!!! I say, invalidating all my personal issues lollll

CHARACTER ANALYSIS! FUCK TALKING ABOUT INTERACTIONS OR ACTIONS ON THEIR OWN OR THOUGHTS OR HC’S, I STAND BY MY ONE TAAKO ‘vriska did nothing wrong’ QUOTE; Trying to understand what characters morals, and their opinions on certain things by analyzing their opinions and interactions in canon is 500x more productive seeming to me than other things. Like, say taako’s thoughts about vriska, V and Lucretia are p similar actions wise, and he was pissed at her but that was mostly cause of the personal connections, when it doesn’t affect him Taako doesn’t seem to have any moral objections to any of the icky moral stuff; think robot planet or whatevs where they were gonna genocide the place and lup was like no and that was like the only reason he didn’t I’m pretty sure, I’m not too big brained on taako or adventurezone either so don’t take my word; So I think that Taak’s would be chill with Vriska. Another thing? The Lucretia thing was like, giving up which Taako is not ok with and Vriska thigns were about not giving up so I do legit think he would be totally coool with her, even if she were real, unless obvs she hurt one of the seven bird red robe people and their new friends.

ISN;T THAT SUCH A FUN METHOD OF CHARACTER ANALYSIS? I’m not drunk or in an altered state just tired enthusiastic and with a lot of pent up thoughts. Speaking of which, this song just came on it’s “Slowdance with you” by the Marcus Hedges Trend Orchestra and it is SOOOOO good, it’s on a vrisrezi playlist I put on bc I’m rereading song of the pyre because it was vriska day and it’s super good soo so good. It’s on loop now, legit best

Quick detours before I lay out some more hs thoughts; 

Overwatch:

-Ben “Captainplanet” came out w/ a new article and I LOVE IT so much and I want hhis job so bad I wanna get into stats so much ahhh  please so good it’s giving me a , this is crude but it’s the best way I can phrase it, a math erection. I love math so much <33333333

-The Shock, my faves, are doing well and I’m happy for them! I hope they go 7-0, I believe in them! I’m lying I am so fucking nervous for literally every match they have they’re gonna 2-5 AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH Why am I so INVESTED? They technically could take first spot but that’s require titan’s to lose every match left and the shock to 7-0, but the thing is I thought that I wanted that but 

-then I watched the titans london match today, and I HATED the thought of titans losing. And losing so hard to other teams too, and I didn’t realize this but I think I do actually kinda like the titans?The thought of them not being a great team makes me sad. I think it’s like I really like them and shock as rivals, yknow, stage one and two, then this upcoming map? If Titans aren’t still Good in this meta it just sorta makes their rivalry not fun. Kismesis vibes is what I’m gonna say cause I’m TRASSSHHHHH pls stop my terrible hands from typing also if I ever saw actual ship stuff I would kill whoever made it. Like I’m not gonna check their socials or anything but if they’ve got a match against most teams I’d probs root for them. The Wolf section today was so funny lollll

-I think I might hate the London Spitfire. I have literally no reason to? I think all the players are good and I like them as people and I would never actively hate on them? But I’m like. Really mean to them in my head. I was so satisfied seeing htem lose to Florida, and Titans like IDK? Also they’re hella overrated so anticlutch jfc. Hate the franchise, love the players if that makes sense. IDK WHYYYYYYYYYYY

-Also I’m gonna miss tomorrows shock match and I’m so scared rip.

Misc: 

-Tripped backwards and somehow upturned my moms glass scale and it fell on my foot, that shit hurted.

-Oh My God I’m Projecting a million different things right now because I feel like this will not have an audience if you see this I’m begging you please don’t interact I’d die of embarassment keep the fact you’ve seen this a secret from me

HS:

-JFC song of the pyre is an excellent fic, I wish it would ever get updated it’s so fucking good guys

-I need to read more vrisrezi long form

-Non-sgrub vrisrezi is best vrisrezi

-My ideal Vrisrezi au would be like HS canon, diverge into non-sgrub and they completely fall out of touch, Killing Eve season 1, then Song of the Pyre. THAT is what I want.

-Killing eve season one and two would be an even BETTER VRISROSE AU AHHHHHH

-I once read a very good trollstuck rose but it was an eri-rose ship so basically what I want is that persons troll rose but paired with vriska. For how much I blog about it I’ve read very little vrisrose fic but almost everything I know comes from this fic. . Oh uh this is not the erirose fic that I read w trollstuck although it does unfortunately have erirose but I can excuse it when the vrisrose is this Excellent

Alright I’ve run out of hyper juice, have a nice night, sorry for posting thisssss

bye