#also whats up with this new post editor

[courier-sux]

7 & 9 for jace, jackal & athena 😈

let's comfort the children and then make them CRY. i tried to pick songs that i could see being in the fallout setting + characters listening to (the imagine dragons song passes bc its acoustic...)

7. a song lyric that would comfort them when they’re sad

Jace: The Little Green Valley - Marty Robbins

I hear a mockingbird down in the little green valley He's singing out a song of welcome just for me And someone waits by the garden gate Down in the little green valley When I get back again, how happy she will be

This song always makes Jace think of his home, where his mamá is waiting for his next visit with hot food and a warm hug.

Jackal: My Rifle, My Pony, and Me - Dean Martin

Purple light in the canyon That is where I long to be With my three good companions Just my rifle, pony, and me

Jackal is always happiest when they're hitting their road by saddle, whistling a tune with their rifle on their back.

Athena: Into Each Life Some Rain Must Fall - The Ink Spots

Into each life, some rain must fall Too much is falling in mine Into each heart, some tears must fall Someday the sun will shine

Athena has a lot of grief in her life, but this song reminds her that everything passes, and she should be grateful for the good parts. Rain is, quite literally, her favorite thing about coming out of the vault. (You mean it just comes from the sky...?!)

more under the cut :)

9. a song lyric to make them cry

Jace: I'm Going That Way - Emily Cross

I know I shall meet Him at the gate, when trials are past I know I shall meet Him face to face in glory at last And oh, I believe that when we meet “well done” He will say For trusting His soul-redeeming love, I’m going that way

Jace has... been through a lot. He's endured physical hardship, lost people close to him, and had his heart broken. I can absolutely see him breaking down while trying to sing this church hymn when he's going through it. The idea of eternal peace after so much hardship would almost be too much to bear.

Jackal: Release - Imagine Dragons

Petty lies to everyone In the hopes that I could be someone Heaven talks, but not to me And now I wonder if it's meant to be Desolation, tragedy Is there nothing good in me?

I drew some sketches of Jackal inspired by this forever ago. Jackal has a lot of self-doubt and struggles with imposter syndrome, believing at the worst of times that they worthless and undeserving of people's care. All alone, watching the sun rise, believing that it might be better if it didn't... some tears might fall.

Athena: The End of the World - Skeeter Davis

Why does my heart go on beating? Why do these eyes of mine cry? Don't they know it's the end of the world? It ended when you said, "Goodbye"

Athena cries an awful lot throughout the duration of Fallout 3. Losing her Dad to the Enclave and later getting kicking out of the vault by the girl she's in love with... let's just say it wouldn't be good if she heard this song play on the radio.

oc ask game: song lyric edition

[thelassoway]

Jason Sudeikis as Ted Lasso Season 3 » Casual Sweaters/Jumpers

[2hoothoots]

i was having a chuckle to myself last night about Gristol, and how his plans are basically:

Restore Ford Cruller's memory

Find Maligula

???

Profit

but then... of course they are, right? this is Gristol we're talking about. Fatherland Follies drives home again and again that he's still operating on a child's logic, a warped and reductive version of the world that he never bothered to grow out of. both of his memory vaults center on the images of his childhood, this idealized version of the past that he clings to no matter what. and that's still how he remembers Maligula, too - as this saviour figure, who rushes in to help him when he's in trouble.

[ID: Two slides from Gristol's memory vault, Glory to Grulovia! Left: Gristol clings to Maligula's back as she summons waves to sweep away his assailants. Right: Gristol and Maligula waving from a balcony as the people cheer. Gzar Theodore brandishes a dagger in the background.]

like so much else, Maligula represents a return to this idyllic childhood - to the peace and simplicity of his youth, when he was free from worries and responsibilities. in his mind, he doesn't need to make any further plans - once Maligula's back, everything will go back to normal. Maligula will make everything better.

...is what i thought, but then i remembered this line:

[Screenshot source. ID: Gristol, in Truman's body, bows on his hands and knees in front of the newly-awaked Maligula. The caption reads: "Yes, High Priestess! I am here to correct the mistakes made by my father!"]

and that's kind of interesting, right?

to be clear: this happens directly after Maligula sees Helmut-in-Gristol's-body, and recognises him. her line before this is:

"Little Gzesaravich! Have you come to pay for your father's sins?"

my first thought was that Gristol hadn't expected to still be in Truman's body by the time he managed to find Maligula, and this was him trying to placate her and buy some time until he could explain the situation. but watching the cutscene back, that's clearly not what's happening here. Gristol is answering as himself, and his response of throwing himself to his knees before her is, as far as i can tell, genuine.

so what is going on here?

in Fatherland Follies, there's this line in the ride narration that stuck out to me:

"Why didn't the Gzar help Maligula in her time of need? No one knows, but historians agree - it is Gzar Theodore's biggest failure."

other lines mention Gzar Theodore's "mistake", and it's wording Gristol himself echoes in the screencap above. evidently, he believes that his father abandoned Maligula, leaving her to her fate at the hands of the Psychonauts, and it was that mistake that lead to them being driven out of the country - that mistake which he seeks to correct. maybe he even feels like he has a debt to repay to her for his family turning their backs on her all those years ago.

the 'High Priestess' thing, though - that's kinda weird, and threw me for a loop the first time i played the game. it took me until my second playthrough to connect the dots, and remember how the room in the Lady Luctopus - Gristol's room - was full of Delugionist scribblings and symbols.

[Screenshot source. ID: left, the walls of the hidden backroom in Gristol's hotel suite, covered in scrawlings of eyeballs and Maligula's name. Right, the pinboard from the hidden backroom. On its surface are photographs and newspaper clippings connected by pieces of string.]

i mean, look at this stuff! he had a whole conspiracy board and everything!

we learn very little about the Delugionists and their beliefs as a whole during the game, but i think drawing the connection here suggests two important things. one: that Gristol was in deep with this stuff. i don't know how he linked up with them - maybe via old family connections, or just good old-fashioned digging (we know he's skilled at worming his way into peoples' good graces, after all) - but it seems likely that he's begun to internalise their ideas, maybe even warping his own memories of events. and two: the Delugionists themselves are, if you'll pardon the pun, pretty far off the deep end.

like... i understand why PN2 didn't go heavy on the "mass-murderer cult worship" aspect of things, in the end, but man this is such a tantalising glimpse into the wider mythos around Maligula. Gristol is proud and haughty and thinks himself above everyone else; the fact that his first reaction seeing Maligula is to throw himself to the ground at her feet says so much about the way he's come to see her. he's not just trying to bring back Maligula, his childhood bodyguard. he's trying to bring back Maligula, the High Priestess of the deluge, the semi-mythical figure whose supporters believe even death couldn't stop. he doesn't even flinch at the way she confronts him, and maybe it's because he's bought in so completely to this deified figurehead, this idea of Maligula; more a living force of nature than a person. and it all comes back to the same place: an abdication of responsibility, not just to the person who protected him when he was little but to this avatar of floods and destruction. Maligula will make everything better.

i'd write more about my thoughts on the Delugionists but that'd be taking a hard turn into speculation, and this is already kind of long and rambling so i'd better end it here. but what an unexpected and evocative line, right? it's some of the only stuff we have to go off of regarding the Delugionists as a whole, but i think it does such a good job of hinting at the wider story - at teasing another layer to the mythos surrounding Maligula, one whose ripples we see throughout the game but which never quite breaches the surface.

[heavenlyeros]

[front-facing-pokemon]

[apostaterevolutionary]

You know what would be really funny, is if people came together to have an anti-crab day. A day where every user who joined prior to automattic’s acquisition logged off for 24 hours to show that yes, actually, older user retention is important and you should listen us just as much as new users

The users giveth, the users taketh away

[lilyoffandoms]

Y’all are amazing! I wanted to say something yesterday but I was truly at a loss for words when Elsa messaged me.

I don’t deserve the honor you have all given me by surprising me with your group decision for me being the next CFWC’s writer of the month. I would absolutely 100% choose any and all of you before me but I am so beyond surprised, happy, and excited that y’all did this for me. Thank you thank you thank you!

Thank you to each of you for participating in this little event and for supporting other writers and being all around some of the most amazing people!!

@aallotarenunelma @jerzwriter @storyofmychoices @karahalloway @tessa-liam @peonyblossom @mydemonsdrivealimo @trappedinfanfiction @petiteboheme @coffeeheartaddict2 @ladylamrian

[bitegore]

i know im always like "damn i used to write so good what happened" whenever i read any of my work because i just write real good every time i write. but this line is killing me. what was i cooking with

So, really, Haven mused, trying to decide between spearmint and wintermint and stalking and murder, really, there wasn’t anything that could actually stop him.

give it back. i miss dropping lines that sounded cool

[unproduciblesmackdown]

NOTE: THIS ITEM IS CURRENTLY IN PREORDER. IT WILL SHIP IN JUNE-JULY 2023. We will be printing based on preorder size, so grab one now if you want one!

More than 40 trans writers and artists have joined forces to explore the deeper meanings of the Fast & Furious franchise (and also gender). There's really no way to know why this exists, but it does, and you can own it! Suitable for F&F fans and newcomers alike. Contributions include:

- A new short story by Manhunt author Gretchen Felker-Martin - A demolition derby driver’s perspective on 2 Fast 2 Furious’s derby scene - An essay contemplating the queer symbolism of Cipher’s bowl cut - The scoop on the franchise’s only canonically nonbinary character - Instructions for an F&F-themed tabletop roleplaying game - A contemplation of which Taylor Swift album represents each F&F character - Plus: Bingo cards! Comics! Haiku! And, of course, hot gay erotica…

2 Trans 2 Furious is edited by Tuck Woodstock & Niko Stratis, with cover art by Mattie Lubchansky and zine design by Shay Mirk.

~

This zine is 8.5" x 5.5" and perfect-bound like a real book — fancy! Interior pages are black & white. We're guessing this baby is like 100 pages long but we'll get back to you on that.

Currently only shipping to the United States, sorry! We're hoping to at least expand to Canada soon, and also plan to add a PDF ebook option, so keep an eye out!

(that "the scoop on the franchise's only canonically nonbinary character" is the page i contributed about our one & only beloved akd-acted cam stone!! plus also if you're interested in preordering a fancy printed copy of a zine about fast & furious, which you don't have to even know about or like, with all trans contributors. including me)

[canisbasilicum]

yo, crazy but, what if I posted

[tiger-moran]

I swear every time I bother to use this site it’s got worse than the last time

[toytulini]

wish the little listicles and articles reccomending google alternatives didnt like, mention ios. like no offense but do you think i dont know what an iphone is. you think im looking into google alternatives but i dont know that apple exists? you really think that? if i was going to buy a fucking apple product id already be doing that?

[scattered-winter]

my notifs were JUST started to recover from the jason vs roy poll but now I'm right back to square one with roy vs talia 💀

[jeoseungsaja]

HAPPY HOLIDAYS, EVERYONE!!! 🎁

Whether you celebrate or not, I want to wish you all some very cozy and joyful days, full of things and people and situations that make you smile and also feel at ease ❤️ may this time be super bright and easy going, as well as wrapped in thrilling wonder. Thank you all for being here, for being sweet, lovely, magnificent souls who constantly light up this place by being you. It’s been nothing but an honor, to be able to know you and share this writing journey with all of you (all the friendships I’ve made here make my heart incredibly warm; I ADORE YOU 🥺), I’ll always be greatly thankful for the chance you’ve given my silly characters and I 💖 please know you’re dearly appreciated and cherished, and you got a friend in me!!  Take much care and stay safe!! 

[anastacialy]

got this fucking close to crying at my own edit. because im mentally ill