#also releasing this from my drafts

[tokutaiseichan]

[Ren voice] Senpai, you should kill them.

[nuclearanomaly]

Spite Loves...

[title]

Josh O'Connor 🚬 La Chimera (2023), directed by Alice Rohrwacher Challengers (2024), directed by Luca Guadagnino

[crazymecjc]

look at yourself… you’re the true puppet.

[fernsnailz]

some sketches/doodles of my dnd character, Gorb :] my stupid lizard boy with a -1 intelligence modifier

[somegrumpynerd]

A bunch of doodles inspired by @wickjump saying Cross has an eternal kicked puppy look (and steadily devolving into dadmare because y'know. My Brand)

[nonglukest]

✦•┈๑⋅⋯A William Jakrapatr Collection⋯⋅๑┈•✦

📸 Est Supha

[odo-apologist]

I was looking up information for a completely different post but Red Dwarf was inspired in part by a prison sitcom? Like, from the beginning??

The implications of this are getting to me

[asha-mage]

FFXVI really takes your hand and says 'come with me', then shows you a world that is broken and full of pain and heartache and selfishness and cruelty. It shows you the terrible things people are willing to do to each other for no good reason, it shows you how how leaders can be short sighed and foolish in their earnest desire to do the right thing for their people, and that causes no less pain then when they are corrupted and arrogant and vain monsters. It shows you how people's cruelty all to often is born of a world that beats them down that gives them no other choice but to be cruel if they want to survive.

And then it asks: is this worth saving? Is this worth protecting? Wouldn’t it be better if you just let it all go? Let it all be destroyed, and broken apart, and lost? Wouldn’t it be enough to just end the pain? Wouldn’t that be salvation?

And in the same breath it answers, no because salvation isn’t the point. Humanity is cruel, greedy, fractious and hateful and it always will be. Just as humanity is kind, generous, united and loving and always will be. Even as the world falls apart The Dame fights to keep Northreach together, even as monsters beat down her gates Martha takes in refugees and escaped slaves and refuses to stop, even as nations crumble and bandits flourish the Dragoons still battle for the sake of their people and country, while the Crusebreakers keep struggling to free the innocent and protect the weak. Even as Joshua is hacking up blood, even as his body is shutting down he keeps walking forward at Clive’s side inevitably, inexorably to the end, because he loves his brother and refuses to give him up to Ultima’s scheme.

FFXVI tells you that there are no promises, not guarantees, that the only people who can promise salvation are the ones who want to sell it. FFXVI says that no one is assured victory, or safety, or paradise. The point is not to save the world from it’s evils. The point is that we fight to try and reach the next dawn with the people we love. Humanity can never create a perfect world because we are imperfect creatures, but the battle to make a better world, a kinder world, a more free world, a more gentle more fair, more loving world is what defines us.

[ilonacho]

💚🥑💚

[kindaorangey]

hold on wait. wait. regime change between when show!armand leaves delhi, and when he's turned into a vampire. god. i'm thinking about his speech to madeleine, his "what will you do when there is nothing left of your era?". if he tried to visit the village he came from during his time with marius, he will likely have witnessed exactly that. within his mortal life. armand believes he is uniquely suited to endure immortal life, to adapt and survive no matter what. he might have seen the fall of the lodi dynasty while he was in his 20s; maybe that's why. but god. how devastating. his village might even have been destroyed in the fall of the lodi dynasty. what do you do if you are taken from your home and when you finally have the freedom and strength to return to it, it is unrecognisable to you. fuck.

[pompompurin1028]

ᴋᴀᴛᴢᴀɪ • Emperor's Advisor!Dazai x Princess!Kat

tags - childhood friends to lovers, imperial China au, first love, slow burn, he's one of the emperor's trusted advisor / she is trying to not show him too much favor, court politics, sun x moon, hiding their love from others in court, sneaking out to festivals together, potentially running away and eloping, filial piety and duty vs love, 'you're the only one for me', red string of fate, flower motifs: water lilies, peach blossoms

妾發初覆額，折花門前劇。郎騎竹馬來，繞床弄青梅。同居長幹裡，兩小無嫌猜。十四為君婦，羞顏未嚐開。 - 李白 (poem translation and context here)

Headcanons

Dazai was originally from a noble family and is of the same age as the princess

Childhood playmates while their parents dealt with politics

Eventually because of hierarchical differences they cannot be seen together as much as it would be inappropriate

Dazai taking the imperial examination to get closer to her in court

Dazai gets one of the highest scores in the imperial examination

With his foresight and brilliant observations he quickly and gains the admiration of the emperor

Some of the older officials are suspicious of Dazai but then see the support that the princess gives him and how much the emperor trusts him so they lay their suspicions low

Dazai is not really that 'loyal' to the empire, while he does his job well and would not betray his country, he feels no deep obligation to the emperor or the country; he feels a greater sense of loyalty to the princess than he does the emperor (mans is just a good schemer)

Dazai doesn't really care for the teachings of Confucianism like the way of the superior man / Junzhi (whatever you call it). In Confucianism Junzhi embodies a way of living that emphasizes conducting oneself in the highest moral conduct and staying true to these principles in spite of everything (for more info read up Junzhi in the wiki)

I feel that Dazai doesn't really care for these things and like in canon has more of a pessimistic view of human nature. In Chinese philosophy there is one philosopher who also has the view that human nature is 'bad' but education is the key to tuning our nature but I have the feeling Dazai would doubt that

So I have the feeling some of Dazai's manipulation tactics he would suggest would definitely garner dislike from followers of Confucianism

Despite how often he is correct in his predictions and the fact that his schemes are often successful the other, older advisors underestimate his potential

While he had gained the support of the emperor being young he does not have THAT much influence in the court because other advisors or officials might disagree with him (some are suspicious how he knows certain information while others don't trust him because he doesn't really reveal why he believes x plan/scheme is the best rather than y that other people suggested)

Some officials that have been around longer like Oda and Ango kind of 'took Dazai under their wing' to support him

Like to think Kunikida is another advisor who is somewhat close to Dazai in court but thinks Dazai isn't working as hard as he should but has admiration for his abilities

But being young and sometimes underestimated allows him to have less attention on him which allows him to sneak around and see the princess :)

Because it is not appropriate to see each other very often, the princess finds excuses to seek his advice. Whether that be on the history of the country to politics or philosophy, she tries to find excuses so she could have him by her side

Dazai always obliges to her requests and indulges her

Hidden meetings during the night are often for them, there are whispers among the maids that the emperor's most trusted advisor is spotted in the princess' verenda

Sneaking kisses in the imperial archives

At one point sneaking out together to the festival happening in the capital because she could never go together with him. They enjoyed watching some exploding firecrackers together and had some food together

When he goes out to the city he brings back the sweet cakes she loved as a child. While they're by no means as elaborate as the desserts made in the palace it makes her happy because they remind her of their childhood

While likely not realistic for ancient China, she tends to overwork herself with paper work and other duties she is given and Dazai often scolds her for doing so and if she falls asleep at her desk he will try and cover her up

She likes inviting Dazai for tea to 'thank' him for the successful schemes he had concocted for her father

If we were to set this in a specific dynasty it's probably the Song Dynasty. If memory serves me right the North Song Dynasty was prosperous culturally, economically and artistically. But lacked strong military strength and therefore was eventually invaded by the Mongols which put the North Song Dynasty to an end and the people fled to the south which became the South Song Dynasty

I like to think that because the army strength was not the best, marriage was used as a way to appease the Mongols (who were the Song Dynasty's biggest threat at the time) and so a marriage was arranged between the princess and the leaders there (which was something often done at the time)

Being in love with Dazai she doesn't want to and that's when we see the events of the end of the Song Dynasty taking place and Dazai and her escape together

While the dynasty still remained in the south of China, they decided to live remotely together, away from the responsibilities of court

I like to think that they became poets or something later down their lives and lived near a river

Flower meanings: water lilies (I remember studying this old Chinese text talking about how water lilies are grown from mud but are left pure and not corrupted. I feel like this flower is a somewhat good symbol of their relationship of like 'embracing and living in the dust of the world'), peach blossoms have associations with love and romance

Misc

Because I am limited to the imperial China setting I chose I couldn't include this scene but if it were set in a western royal setting in my mind there has to be a Dazai lacing up her corset scene. Something like:

"I don't think I should be here so early in the morning in your chambers, your highness. Won't your maids be suspicious that you are not in need of their help this morning? And instead invited an advisor to your room?"

While he says that he laces her up with the gentlest of hands

[redonionlover]

btw rw fandom if someone claims to be a "lore expert" they are most certainly talking out of their ass. please stop taking random people's words for granted and actually play the game and read its lore for yourself. come to your own conclusions. dont just watch youtube videos and read popular people's posts on tumblr and twitter. lmao

[cultivating-wildflowers]

cozy horror game called “that’s not my cat” where you wander around a dark house trying to find your cat among an increasing number of vague, shadowy objects scattered across the floor and furniture

[odo-apologist]

I know that Trixie Labouche isn't supposed to look like Rimmer in drag but I can't not picture Rimmer in drag when I think of her. I read her description in Better than Life and blanked on it as soon as I finished it

[neixins]

ngl i’m very curious to see the dragons’ reactions to losing their powers (both the guilt of realizing that yona’s trapped bc she wanted to save them and in a practical sense (the disability allegory of it!!)), especially gija, who cares so so so much about his Duty as a dragon warrior and who doesn’t really have any combat skills outside of his dragon arm. there’s just so much potential there. on the combat skills note, if only there was someone who carried a whole stash of weapons on his person and could offer some guidance…..kusanagi if u give me this gijaeha-flavored treat i’ll pardon all of your diabolical crimes