#and also not attempt to sign cause i otherwise will fail

[ambersky0319]

I am

so tired

i woke up at midnight and couldnt fall back to sleep. i was on and off sleeping

FINALLY i felt like i was entering proper sleep

and my goddamn alarm goes off at 4:45

im so tired but i still gotta go to work 😫

[theflagscene]

I find this scene in episode six very interesting, it was very minimal but I think it said kind of a lot.

Yai is doing his damndest to convince Tharn to take a chance on a relationship with Phaya, so of course good ole doctor snakey shows up. Only he doesn’t spare a passing glance at Yai and it seems like Yai doesn’t realize the other man is there, even after another person has drawn him away from Tharn and his brooding stare.

The only time Yai has ever even acknowledged the existence of Chalothon was to Phaya in episode three, to reassure him that Tharn hadn’t just been snatched away from him by some random stranger. And that’s it, that’s all Yai has to say about that. He says that they’ve known Chalothon since they were kids, okay, so let’s break that down.

One can assume that the night Phaya drowned when they were kids, the third boy was Chalothon, right? He lures them away to the Naga festival with firecrackers and food, yet when Phaya is in fact being called into the water, sees the Naga’s green eyes and starts to drown, the third boy isn’t with Tharn and Yai. The next time you see Tharn, he’s just with Yai and the third boy, who we’re just going to assume is Chalothon, isn’t there with them. He shows back up with sweets for both boys - none for himself - after Phaya is already dying in the river.

When Tharn claims to have gotten a sign about a boy drowning, Yai laughs at him and the third (Chalothon) is quick to agree and attempts to drag the two away. That is until they hear Phaya’s auntie crying for help, which is when both Tharn and Yai take off, Chalothon following close behind. He’s playing the long con, this is their 4th incarnation (sorry for the spoilers if you didn’t know that) Which means snakey boy has failed to get Tharn to return with him to the Naga kingdom three times already, not including the first time he lost them to King Garuda. He has learned, he knows he can’t push, he needs to bide his time, but he also has to steer clear of Luangpor. Guess who is never seen anywhere near the all knowing monk? Yeah, the third boy, the other witness and sort of hero that ‘helped’ save Phaya that night. He doesn’t show up when Tharn, Yai, Phaya and their aunties speak with the revered monk the next day.

I think that Chalothon is using some witchery to insert himself into the good graces of the people in Tharn’s life when needed, but otherwise they don’t actually realize he’s there. Like he’s purposely blocking Yai from interacting with him because Yai is that annoying older brother who would tell Tharn; dude that doctor guy is sus as hell!

To Yai he’s made a memory of himself like an old childhood friend, but otherwise Yai is none the wiser to him. He already has Tharn’s trust implicitly, not only as his long time friend but as a medical professional. Chalothon has been manipulating and gaslighting Tharn for - one can assume - most of his adult life. Using mental health and basically the fear of being insane to keep Tharn controlled, and it was going so well too, until Phaya showed back up in his life.

Hot-headed, knuckled brain Phaya who’s both bark and bite. He already has his memories as King Garuda trickling back in, probably faster than Chalothon expected. And it quickly became clear that while Chalothon might have been able to cause descension in the ranks using simple medical jargon and the fear of being labeled as mentally unstable, Phaya and Tharn reconnecting has already awoken their powers, not to mention that their memories are returning as lightning speed. Think in episode five when Phaya grabs Chalothon’s shoulder and burns him, he just does it instinctually, without even trying. Not only that, but the mark left behind is in the shape of talons. Phaya is becoming too strong and Yai is pushing Tharn closer toward him, even offering himself up as protection, sacrifice, one might say.

Chalothon has no need for Yai anymore, subtly is no longer the name of the game. And while he might be willing to wait yet another lifetime to try again, that doesn’t mean Chalothon wants to. But he has made it clear that he will kill Tharn and start all over if his hand is forced and since Yai is firmly committed to keeping Phaya and Tharn together, well… I’m thinking he might have just moved himself higher up ole doctor snakey’s list of very expendable people.



[aalghul]

Nice post about Roy I like how kind your response was. But yeah as a Roy fan I find the idea that he would hate anyone but the man who killed his daughter to be silly. Cause like thing is Roy has a line till he doesn’t. Like you said Roy draws a line for himself with Cheshire but he never ever 100 percent commits. Even after the bombing and her holding a gun to Lian and threatening to shoot her while trying to escape prison, in his time with the League he still is hinted to love her and still lets Lian visit her. Flash forward to now they are still on again off again lovers/enemies. The old Titans ‘Roy breaks up with Cheshire’ story was written like it was the full end of their relationship but DC loves that concept and in comics they will always come back.

With Mia or people hurting his family Roy would not care at the end of the day unless that family member died sorry. Roy forgave a woman who babysat Lian and helped terrorists kidnap her and then broke his leg in an attempt to kill Cheshire. No he didn’t just forgive her he offered to let her keep babysitting Lian saying he didn’t think he had the right to judge anyone.

People other than Roy say he belongs in the light but Roy kind of hates that about himself and actively denies and resists it because he thinks the dirty work is the real important work. He worked in fantasy superhero CIA for years and even killed for them, left and made the Outsiders, initially didn’t want to leave and basically stayed till the last second till his mental health gave in, joined the League and didn’t actually have a great time with the group or ever really believe he belonged, had a horrible ending with that group and became a straight up villain after the ROA fiasco and worked on a team of villains all of whom except Slade he expressed some sort of sympathy for.

Roy just doesn’t give up on people and kind of really wants to do antihero work and tries to again and again. The age/maturity thing kind of gets it but that only matters where you connect Roy and Jason, they are peers and work together in some fashion off screen for a year in Outsiders, put a ROA recovering villain Roy with really any post UTRH Jason save Morrison Jason and you could write an intergenerational friendship arc easy.

People forget but before 52 first started a lot of people wanted a Jason Roy book. It was floated around as an idea for ages and rumor was even Winick made a pitch but can’t confirm. When 52 was first announced a lot of people thought not only that RHATO made sense and only Kory didn’t belong but thought the comic had real potential. And really it might have since Roy and Cheshire at one point would not have made sense for either character and notably everything about their relationship happened off screen. We give things a pass because of how well the stories are written. I think most issues with comics are people moralizing about the characters and saying they would never do this or that when 9 times out of 10 the writer just shat over the execution of a concept and the writing as is was shit.

-- i’m just going to include my thoughts down here --

I agree with everything you said about Roy just not being the person who holds a lot of hatred for people. He comes off as strict and even angry sometimes, but at heart, he’s one of the most understanding characters.

I always took Roy’s failed attempts at being an anti-hero as proof that it’s not what he’s meant to do. He keeps trying because he sees his sympathy and desire to do more as a sign that he needs to get his hands dirtier, but each time leaves him with the realization that he can’t be doing that type of work. He was reluctant to leave the Outsiders because he didn’t want to abandon them, that’s why he does leave as soon as Ollie provides funding for them (which he also does specifically because he knows Roy wouldn’t leave, no matter how much he wanted to, otherwise). The Outsiders did end in Roy himself realizing he couldn’t stay there.

I think Roy has always worked best in the various Titans teams he’s been part of. Unfortunately, Teen Titans (2003) set a new status quo with enough of the original Titans leaving and the team working under the leadership of younger members even when more experienced Titans were present. So we could never really go back to the titans as they were in any of the iterations prior to that.

I don’t think Jason and Roy worked together for a whole year; it was just Jason reaching out to Dick, and then subsequently teaming up with him and Roy to give them information of Black Lightning. Which definitely worked to let Roy know the type of person that Jason is (i.e. not a villain), but it was also very much through Dick, so it would again be a reminder of the time that Jason, as a child, teamed up with Roy and the others. Roy’s affinity to taking a guiding role when he works with team members significantly younger than him is just such an important part of who he is that I can’t get past it. I don’t mean to say that Roy’s going to treat Jason like a child, but that there’s going to be a significant gap between their friendship as compared to the friendship that post-flashpoint gave them. Roy is just at a completely different stage from Jason, who is essentially just beginning to catch up on life as a teenager. That difference can’t be ignored easily.

I didn’t read comics back then (and was also a very little kid lol) so I didn’t know about that being something people wanted back then! It must be disappointing to see how it’s turned out.

At the end of the day, I personally think that Roy and Jason could work together very well short-term, and then it would have to end in them walking their separate ways because Roy can never stay in the dark too long, whether he admits it or not. I get what you’re saying about good execution making all the difference, though! I just want to stay as consistent to Roy’s character as possible, so Jason and Roy as best friends/a long-term anti-hero duo never quite works out.

[cto10121]

Seriously, Why Did Shakespeare Make Juliet 13?

One common trope among the annals of R&J clownery is the matter of Juliet’s age, which never fails to send clowns into a frothy spiral of pearl-clutching, hand-wringing agita (Romeo’s age, meanwhile, is never a cause of much paternalistic concern). But it’s worth asking the question, especially since:

His sources for the tale feature a much older Juliet and of course, Romeo. Why the change?

13 was considered too young to be married even by Shakespeare’s time; for the lower classes it was almost unheard of. Only children by nobility were betrothed that young, and chiefly for political alliance.

So there is a bit of a ~mystery. There have been many theories, some more likelier than others. Let’s count the ways.

1. Social Criticism: The Bad Old Days(tm)

This is most likely the case, tying into the fact that early modern Englishmen and women married in their late 20s as the norm. Even Shakespeare was at least 18 when he married his 27-year-old wife.

Nobility did betroth their young children for alliance, but it was understood by the late 1500s that 13-14 year-old girls were too young to bear children safely. A delay of a year or two before marital consummation was the norm. Shakespeare may have wanted to reflect that reality for his multi-class audience.

Also, Shakespeare was adapting a history set in the 1300s, during De La Scala’s rule in Verona. If Shakespeare had wanted to clue his audience in that this tragedy was set during the Bad Old Catholic Days, making Lady Capulet and the Nurse encourage their 13-year-old to consider marriage and explain that girls as young as she were already married would set those 🚩🚩🚩 🚩 a-waving for a 1590s audience. There is definitely an attempt to problematize the Capulets. Sure enough, we do have contemporary accounts mentioning a “tyrant” Capulet.

So Shakespeare’s audience (and we) would immediately understand the critique and also the dramatic stakes for Juliet—what kind of family she has been raised in, and the danger she would soon be in for merely resisting her father’s will.

2. Social Criticism: The Disempowerment of Youth

In de-aging his lovers, Shakespeare may have wanted to emphasize just how much Romeo and Juliet are at the mercy of their families. They have a degree of agency and autonomy, more so on Romeo’s part since he is undoubtedly older. But otherwise they are largely dependent on their families, and thus more vulnerable to the (deadly) consequences of their feud.

That’s why they don’t even consider fleeing Verona—not that it wouldn’t be just as stupid an idea even if they were older. But actual minors out in the world is a recipe for disaster.

3. The Power of (First) Love

Shakespeare may have wanted to make sure R&J had as little romantic experience as possible to drive home this point. While 13 was considered too young for marriage, love was a different matter. Even now the average age of first romantic experience for most people is 13-16. Romeo is hung up on Rosaline, but doesn’t seem to know her well at all or made much of an effort to woo her. And Juliet honestly is not thinking of marriage.

That said, there are some things in the play that go against R&J having no romantic experience prior to this. Romeo is impatient with Rosaline’s chastity vow and overall does not value chastity much. He also does not hesitate to pursue and woo Juliet. Juliet picks up on the flirtation right away without so much as a “whut” and tells Romeo that he kisses “by th’book.” She also warns Romeo that if he has no intention of marrying her, to leave her “to her grief.” Kids grow up so fast, I guess.

All of this may just be a sign of their instant chemistry rather than any prior romantic experience, though. As soon as they meet each other it’s as if they have grown by like 3-5 years older lol. And R&J are just as likely to experience first love at 16/18 as 13/17. But it does show that Shakespeare and his time were well aware erotic attachments began on the younger side.

4. Practical Theater Stuff

As Shakespeare’s troupe was all men, with young boys playing women, it would make sense for Shakespeare to write closer to the actor for Juliet. 13/14/15-year-old boy=13-year-old female character. Audience verisimilitude, and all that.

He may not have been necessarily 13, though, so again, weak sauce. And Elizabethans accepted such a whole host of artificial stage conventions that I doubt they would have really had their Suspension of Disbelief threatened by an older boy as Juliet.

Bonus: Adaptations

Due to vastly changing attitudes and norms, Juliet’s age has been changed for modern adaptations, for various different reasons, many valid. Those that have kept her age intact, though, have not always understood the social criticism and deliberate purpose behind Shakespeare’s decision to age his lovers down. Hence you get a lot of 13-going-on-3 Juliets and casting kid-looking actresses in the role general. If not, then she is portrayed as more immature and energetic than the text ever suggests, from tomboyish to typical girly-girl playing with her dollies (🤮).

Ditto for Romeo. Romeo’s age is not specified in the text, but casting directors have rarely aged him down to Juliet’s canonical age (the closest is probably the Polish and Cocciante musicals with really baby faced Romeos). More often, to compensate, Romeo’s actors have simply played him as more boyish and immature than even his part reads—a caricature of a teen boy as a more “fitting” partner for a more child-like Juliet.

All much ado about nothing, imo. Shakespeare would probably not give a groat if you raise Juliet’s age, so long the cruelty of the forced marriage is conveyed. With the expansion of childhood, the delay of marriage, and the rampant neo Puritanism, 16 is very much the new 13. Even so, with the age gap discourse, the clownery about Romeo being a Creepy Italian Groomer has only grown worse.

[letslookatsewing]

I made this blog because this project took so long and I’m really proud of these and want to show them off. (also the marks are back finally so I can't be accused of plagiarism if these images are online)

For context, where I live any student who takes Textiles for Year 12 (senior year) has to complete a major work which we start in October and submit them in August. It can be any area of textiles and based around any topic. For mine, I made fabric dust jackets for all of Aiden Thomas’ current (at the time) books.

Here they are! I’m so happy with them. Details and more photos under the cut because I crammed a lot of easter eggs in these and no-one I know IRL has read the books. Warning it will be long.

!Spoilers for the books below!

I hand dyed all of the fabric, myself

The yellow dye is home-made marigold dye and there are embroidered marigolds in the corner of the back cover to represent Dia De Muertos 

The church, headstones and stingray were printed with carved rubber stamps

The beading leading from the church to the water is meant to represent the rocky cave walls of the chamber

Yadriel’s portaje is included in the beads

The left side of everything has a gold outline to show the light from the sunset hitting it

I also screen printed ‘Thomas’ on the spine ‘cause my school librarian told me it wouldn’t look like a book otherwise. Screen printing stuff that small is a nightmare but I’m glad with how it turned out (mostly)

The inside shows the boys on the beach during halloween

The sky above them has Julian’s Scorpio star sign while the lining has Yadriel’s Cancer

I used sequins to be the sand and cover the raw edge of the fabric

The lining for all the books is ice dyed

The papel picado design on the lining is screen printed. I tried to make the pattern look simultaneously like gravestones and skulls with little marigolds in the corners

The jaguar print at the bottom is 100% meant to represent Bahlam and definitely not to cover a failed screen printing attempt

I used lace dyed with every colour imaginable to cover the fraying corners because the black dye turned navy for some reason

The front of this book is made from four sheer layers of mesh with sequins, painted silhouettes and applique in between to create the appearance of a shadow box, while being two dimensional

I dyed the fabric with light reactive dye and hung it to dry from a single point so that the folds would create the white radiating lines from the centre to add depth

To cut out the front bit of the tree I used a candle flame so that it wouldn’t fray and would have a slightly gnarled appearance

I also entirely underestimated how long that much backstitch embroidery would take

The appliqued trees are the only fabric I didn’t hand dye in this project

For the inside I painted the lighter fabric to look like Wendy and her brothers’ bedroom with the fairy lights, articles about deep sea exploration and portraits 

The one in the bottom right corner is specifically modeled after the family photo in one of the character cards by Gibb_Arts on Graveyard Goods

The palm trees in the middle are meant to represent Neverland. I screen printed them and then painted the inside of the leaves with slightly sparkly paint 

There are also the stars to get to Neverland above the trees

My teacher managed to wear me down into using bias binding for the edges of this cover and I’m glad I did but bias binding really is my enemy. It was so hard to work with D:

This cover was also dyed with the marigold dye

Each of the feathers were cut with a laser cutter, dip dyed and stitched on by hand. Each one is made from one layer of dyed suiting fabric, overlaid with the same sparkly fabric from the Lost in the Never Woods cover

I used heat transprint ink to get the pattern onto the gold ribbons, which was hard because they were so shiny. The pattern is based off of Aurelio’s collar on the print by Meowlayn on Graveyard Goods. I like that with this colour scheme it can also kinda looks like jaguar print for Ocelo 

The sunburst crown in the left corner is painted. It’s hard to see but it is outlined in gold hand embroidery

The pattern beneath is meant to resemble a cut jade geode (but in black to represent Xio) It was made using light reactive dye and a stencil cut from a foil tray

The beads and chains across the top are inspired by the draping jewelry that many of the characters have in their trading cards (especially Aurelio and Dezi)

The beads are also in a ratio of 8 gold to 1 jade and 1 obsidian to represent the competitors, themselves

The inside cover has screen printed mountains for Niya and La Cumbre

The patterns on the side are based off of how the competitor results are shown at the end of each trial. The left shows the first trial while the right shows the last

If you read all this, thanks for sticking around! I'll probably add on to this series with a Celestial Monsters cover soon and I'll definitely make one for Espiritu in September (so so so excited for it!!!!!)

(Btw, the plush ghost in the first picture is called Julian in a German accent)

[omgkalyppso]

Which canon character respects your OC most? What gained that respect? for étoile?

This ask makes me realize I could someday write a very indulgent little Lae'zel pov fic about her feelings on Étoile and their faith.

Woe! A million spoilers be upon ye.

Lae'zel!

Act 1 Étoile was so respectful and understanding of Lae'zel's nature while maintaining their own way of handling things; and they gave an amount of grace to her (and Shadowheart's) faith that Lae'zel would have initially felt was unusual and later would have realized was unique.

They indulged her rough way of handling obstacles on the grounds of cultural differences, keeping faith, rightfully, that she had more discipline than to kill indiscriminately, or at least that she would not be without reason if counselled towards or against a particular target.

This was more independence than she would have been afforded otherwise, and ultimately it did cause some tension when she knew she was grasping at the straws of her old life after the temple of Lathander, because she could hear when Étoile was fumbling in their attempts to be supportive of the faulty logic she was knitting together. It was good-natured of them to suppose with her that overcoming ceremorphosis and discovering a manner of defeating this great weapon of her people's long-time enemy could earn her the forgiveness and respect of her god-queen, but it was something she grew out of along-side them, as the truth of Vlaakith became inescapable. She knew she would be no exception in her queen's favor, and even if she could have been, by now she had gathered a stronger knowledge and understanding of the richness of multiverse, and could not sacrifice her fellows for her own glory and security.

For all Étoile and other followers of Auril might be called fanatics and cruel for how they would sacrifice the plane and themselves at the order of their god, Lae'zel knew that they at least did so with both eyes open, not fooled into acts of discompassion towards one another beneath the lie of a loving god.

Étoile didn't hesitate to sign away the Crown of Karsus, for the surest way to remove the Crown from the Material Plane, for the promise of a safe and sane mind after all the broken promises of their journey, and for her. Étoile would never have chosen the Emperor over her alone, and never still over an entire people — her people.

Étoile feared they'd lost her respect when they faltered at the end: when they couldn't sacrifice themself for the safety of those same people, nor all of Faerûn, nor for Orpheus, demi-god-prince of her people; but who else but Orpheus would have had the conviction of character, or the power, to commit themselves to oblivion.

It wasn't the first time she'd seen Étoile helpless because of a mortal failing, but she was mortal too, and their continued march forward would still have been worth following even if it hadn't been the only path left to her.

Étoile's ready respect for Orpheus, to spare him a fate that they could not have suffered themself, also met Lae'zel in her values, and would fit in the great telling of their tale that she would spread with love and by force when she united with Vlaakith's unwitting slaves in the Astral.

.

I think Vlaakith performing an intentional self-destruct to send pieces of her power to phylacteries all over the multiverse like any good god-lich would be a cool excuse to bring a version or two of her and Lae'zel's ultimate showdown into Étoile's corners of the world. Like. Crown-of-Karsus!Raphael with a piece of the fallen god whose people call Étoile liberator? It could be fun.

[cassynite]

❌😊🍐 for Sparrow!

Aaaah thank you for the ask Ella!!! These were really good questions :)

❌ What kind of things would end any relationship for them? Is there a history behind why these things bother them? Could they ever take someone back despite this? If so or if not, why?

This is SUCH a tough question for Sparrow. One of her major character flaws is that she's so desperate for connections to others that she never really learns how to establish boundaries--she is incredibly guarded and lets very few people in, but once she DOES it's equally as hard to lose her affections. As a friend or as a lover, Sparrow is deeply loyal, but that becomes a double-edged sword if the person turns out to be unworthy of that loyalty. There are very few circumstances that would cause Sparrow to genuinely cut ties and end a relationship. The first is if her partner ends it first or otherwise indicates that any care, kindness, or consideration they gave her in the past was a lie. Another circumstance would be if the partner knowingly or unknowingly pressures her into being someone she is not; she would go along with it out of affection but if they don't consider her wants and needs, eventually it will feel too much like how she lived as Evaethi's shadow. In that case, she would feel very guilty about ending things, and would likely outright run away rather than confront her partner. Another situation would be if they did something so truly morally reprehensible that Sparrow would not be able to abide by it--mainly this would involve acts of enslavement of some kind. But even in that case, she would have to be in a good position mentally to have the strength to give up on the relationship, it would have to be something REALLY BAD, and she would probably be open to reconciliation if they made the effort to change or at least not do it again.

😊 What can make your OC smile even when they’re feeling down? What cheers them up and makes everything feel better for them? Is your OC genrally a happy person and do they enjoy making others smile? What about your OC makes others happy?

Ha, I think it won't be a surprise to learn that Sparrow is not really a happy person as a general rule. Her natural demeanor leans more melancholy. However, Daeran's jokes will always, without fail, make her at least smile if not outright laugh. This was true even before she liked him, and after they start seeing each other Daeran is always able to lift Sparrow's spirits easily with a joke or witty comment. In general, a comment or sign of affection from Daeran is often enough to help lift her spirits. Sparrow also likes to make other people happy as well, especially if she cares deeply for them. She dislikes seeing distress or sadness in the people she loves so she will often try to make people happier through comfort and direct action to the root cause of the issue. She'll be a shoulder to cry on and a listening ear, and will be deadly earnest in her attempt to help soothe or solve the problem that's plaguing her loved one. Daeran often gets blindsided by her earnest straightforwardness sometimes, because since she's rarely open about things it might feel like it comes out of nowhere.

🍐 What is your OC’s mentality? Are they overall positive? Negative? A bit of both? Describe their thought patterns and reasoning behind their choice making!

Sparrow's mentality definitely runs toward the more negative. She is always expecting the other shoe to drop when things are going well--her entire life has shown her that good periods never last, and that something will always come by to shatter it given enough time. Everything goes away, so she always prepares for the lean times so she's not hurt too bad by them. This is helpful in the Crusades, when she's making contingencies for contingencies and is rarely completely blindsided by her enemies, but lends to fraught situations in peacetime when she's trying to build her relationship with Daeran. It's that negative expectation that something will go wrong, this will end badly, that leads her to catastrophizing arguments and blowing things out of proportion.

[writingmyheartoutforyou]

I honestly don't care if nativenews is a psyop or not. It's not my place to speculate on a stranger's identity, so until/unless they reveal themselves I'm not going to speak on that part of their online presence. What I care about is that they're spreading misinformation (intentional or otherwise) to their followers. If their goal is to report the news, they've failed. Most of their posts from what I can tell are screenshots of quote tweets of clickbait. There are no links to the original article, or even summaries of what those articles might have said. The fact that they're mostly quote tweets is also a bad sign. They're prepping you for how to respond by leading with a reaction. You already know what you're supposed to be feeling and therefore are less likely to seek out the original article. There are also no calls to action. No links to NGOs or charities for you to support. No phone numbers for government officials to call, or donations to candidates that might be able to help. Just pictures of distressed or injured civilians that cause you to get angry, but no outlet to help or channel that anger. Meaning your more likely to lash out at others on this website, than actually help anybody. As far as I can tell they don't interact with their followers at all (or at least so rarely I couldn't find it). No comments, no replies, maybe an answered ask every once and a while, but those seem very rare. They get their followers riled up, but make no attempts to help or calm them down. That account is a breeding ground for lies and misinformation. There are no checks and balances to make sure the information being "reported" is accurate or even factual. The posts are deliberately incendiary in order to boost engagement. I have seen no attempts to correct bad information, and in fact they post so often as to drown out previous posts. None of this seems like a well-intentioned person trying to fight injustice, it feels more like a provocateur trying to start fights across Tumblr. I've blocked them and I encourage others to do so as well. At the very least don't engage with them. Get your news from actual news outlets, not random users on a dying internet platform.

[that-dreaded-wolf]

I always feel extra irate when folks talk out of their asses against other people in times of need. So many things can happen that result in folks needing to rehome their pets. It can be having a kid and the pets reacting unexpectedly, having to care for an elder with similar results, even just the pet changing without exterior changes causing them to lash out. Meds, training, etc aren’t always effective. Which sucks, but I’d rather see people make that attempt, then reach out to find a better suited home for their pets than simply abandon the animal, lock them away or otherwise. And yes, even euthanasia when that doesn’t work is a better option than risking further harm or outright abandoning the animal (no, rehoming is not abandoning and it’s insane to insinuate that.)

Other situations I see garner blame and aggression towards people are sudden cases of homelessness, owners becoming disabled, or other dire scenarios where the owner is no longer capable of housing or caring for their pets. Some folks manage, as I did when homeless for a series of months, but this isn’t possible for everyone. I got lucky, could camp in a parking lot near my vet’s. Had what basic materials I needed to keep up on their enrichment and care all the while tending to my own medical needs. I could keep them warm. Fed: watered, clean.

Working at a vet hospital after years at school, years of rescuing animals from feral colonies, etc, I feel gave me an insight others lack. I’ve seen people be awful towards their pets, discard them for ridiculous reasons, neglect them in many ways: the amount of DOAs we got with severe abuse signs, a man trying to use his own needles on a dog’s abscess rather than spend coin on our treatments, another man trying to beat his pet in the waiting room because she looked at him wrong, upper class folks rolling their eyes at their pets in distress and doing everything to avoid care- while poorer folks wailed over their inability to cover a surgery resulting in the animal’s needed euth. Poorer folks jumping each and every hoop, having medical episodes in our lobby, yet still trying to find what’s best for their pets. A man running in covered in gashes while cradling his pup’s body after a severe attack from another dog let loose. I’ve seen behavioral trainings and meds work, I’ve also seen them fail, with people crying over their pets, pets that went from loving sweet creatures to incredibly aggressive and reactive over the slightest things. It changes fast, it changes hard, and sometimes the professionals are just as helpless as the owners.

It is incredibly easy to judge. Especially knowing the bad people that exist out there. Especially after seeing it firsthand. But it costs you NOTHING to be kind, understanding or simply close your mouth and step away from the computer to keep from speaking on a situation you find yourself thinking poorly towards.

[adamwatchesmovies]

The Hurricane Heist (2018)

While I didn't enjoy this film, that doesn't mean you won't. No matter what I say, the people involved in this project did it: they actually made a movie. That's something to be applauded. With that established...

I’m going to throw myself at the mercy of the court because the first time around, I liked The Hurricane Heist. In my defence, I was tickled by the premise and the potential rather than the execution. This is a dopey movie that makes flabbergasting decisions along the way and some good ones too. You’ll probably laugh at it more often than not but there are good ideas within someone will someday steal and use to greater effect.

As a hurricane descends upon the East Coast, Federal Bank employee Casey (Maggie Grace) is double-crossed by Perkins (Ralph Ineson). He and his team plan on using the storm to cover their tracks while they steal millions from the treasury. To stop them, she teams up with meteorologist Will (Toby Kebbell), whose brother Breeze (Ryan Kwanten) is being held hostage.

Anyone with a functioning brain will immediately spot tell-tale signs this movie isn’t going to be very bright. A pre-title scene has a terrified young Will look into the hurricane that just killed his father and spot a distinctly skull-like cloud leering at him. “Well… he’s a kid. Maybe he just imagined it?” I have to assume so, but then why does it show up again during the film’s climax in present day? Meanwhile, the fields we see Casey and Will race through as they try to catch up to Perkins are bone-dry! I understand they’re in the eye of the storm (a device every hurricane movie uses at some point) but just because it’s sunny doesn’t mean the rest of the wind and rain wasn’t there a second ago!

To be fair, we get plenty of good shots of the devastating storm. Streets are flooded, normally innocent projectiles are flying so fast they could impale you and buildings are barely holding together. We see the devastation, even if the wind's power is inconsistent and the protagonists always manage to avoid flying debris, even when shards of glass are whirling through the air and skewering the bad guys.

The technical flaws are a nitpick. The real problem is the writing. There are so many things that could’ve gone wrong you’re surprised the villains didn’t throw away this scheme while cooking it up in their lair. They needed a hurricane big enough for the entire town to be evacuated to land at the same time as the money drop-off. The thieves also need the hurricane to cover up their crime… which must be done under mounting pressure as they take down the guards they haven’t seduced to their cause, crack access codes, transport the money and then drive allll the way to safety? I understand the movie "needed to happen", that riches are motivating enough but if they were willing to go that far, why not just highjack the truck on the way to the facility instead?

With all of these problems, how could anyone ever think this movie was good enough to endorse? Well, here’s the thing. The hurricane actually serves to spice up what would otherwise be a pretty dull heist movie quite well. In many scenes, characters are either ahead, or in a jam when suddenly… HURRICANE! and things get thrown all out of whack. It isolates our heroes and adds danger to an already dangerous situation. "The Hurricane Heist" had my mind swirlig with possibilities. How about a story where a dedicated police officer is after a prison escapee… in the middle of a giant monster attack? Or a city-wide revenge film while a reccord-breaking snow storm rages outside? There’s got to be something there someone can use.

The Hurricane Heist is ridiculous. The attempts at making the characters endearing fail and the action/chase scenes are exciting but not enough to make you forget how convoluted the plot is, or to overlook the flaws in the special effects and writing departments. Writers Scott Windhauser & Jeff Dixon managed to give the villain a believable, full-rounded arc and the last chase is pretty cool (director Rob Cohen also brought to us the first Fast and Furious, so he knows car action) but despite these legitimately well-made elements, I still feel a little embarrassed at the thought of having seen this movie not once, but twice. (July 5, 2019)

[shvdwscng]

the  commander  of  the  night  court  was  not  accustomed  to  roam  about  with  answers,  information  did  not  evade  him.  one  way  or  another,  through  his  spies  or  otherwise,  he  uncovered  every  bit  of  dirt  others  would  attempt  to  hide.  anything  that  would  pertain  to  the  night  court  as  a  whole  did  not  remain  hidden  from  the  commander  for  long.  there  was  a  lingering  frustration  that  continued  as  days  passed  by  and  his  abilities  showed  no  signs  of  returning.  here  of  all  places  he  needed  it  more  than  anything,  but  until  his  gifts  returned  he  did  entirely  rely  on  caelan  and  imalda  to  uncover  what  they  could,  and  siara  as  well.  which  was  not  to  say  he  did  not  have  ample  time  on  his  hands,  when  he  was  not  with  his  shadowsinger,  he  devoted  his  time  to  learning  what  he  could  through  the  grapevine  and  doing  what  he  did  best,  reading  others,  observing  their  hosts.  "precisely.  i  doubt  their  citizens  will  attack  without  cause,  but  there  are  other  forms  of  torture  they  might  be  privy  to,  and  until  we  learn  their  capabilities  and  their  gifts,  until  ours  fully  restored,  better  to  exercise  caution."

"i  had  no  doubt  you  would,  even  here.  though  eyes  will  remain  you,  because  we're  all  a  novelty  to  these  lands  in  some  manner."  a  slight  twitch  of  his  lips  in  response  to  the  other's  joke.  since  he  had  brought  them  into  his  cause,  kalore  had  began  to  think  of  caelen  and  imalda  as  family  of  sorts.  not  a  man  who  placed  his  trust  in  others,  but  his  two  companions  had  proved  themselves  ten  times  over.  they  could  be  trusted  with  imperative  secrets,  secrets  he  hated  keeping  from  the  spymaster  of  the  night  court,  but  one  he  could  now  share  without  placing  her  in  a  difficult  position.  no  matter  what  happened,  he  could  not  implicate  her  in  any  manner.  it  was  a  some  form  of  relief  to  share  his  tightly  held  thoughts  to  caelan.  "your  pride  can  handle  a  comfortable  bed  for  a  time,  friend.  you  will  not  find  nearly  a  proper  sleep  in  the  inn's  in  the  city."  his  gaze  once  more  meeting  that  of  his  spy's,  "you  will  find  many  chatty  mouths  on  the  palace  grounds.  i  have  spoken  to  some  of  the  titled  faes,  they  do  not  seem  entirely  opposed  to  speaking  to  most  of  us,  but  not  the  inner  circle  yet,  i  am  working  on  that.  it's  not  as  easy  for  them  to  speak  freely  with  a  commander,  so  that's  where  you  and  imalda  will  come  in.  i  do  however  plan  to  work  along  with  the  other  commanders,  i  have  spoken  with  them,  and  spring  and  autumn  have  agreed  to  work  with  me,  i  will  also  work  with  day  and  dawn."

"i'm  not  fond  of  them,  not  yet,  not  until  we  know  what  their  motives  are.  they  could  prove  to  be  an  ally  or  the  entire  opposite."  living  in  isolation  perhaps  did  not  allow  the  thought  processes  the  other  courts  employ.  it  was  also  possible  their  isolation  may  have  made  them  too  arrogant  to  work  with  the  other  solar  courts.  a  brow  rose  with  mild  curiosity  as  the  other  spoke  of  the  dusk  general,  "you  will  have  ample  time  to  change  the  general's  opinion.  the  high  family  appears  to  not  be  entirely  eager  to  get  to  their  guests.  as  for  the  dragons,  they  do  possess  some  sort  of  intelligence,  to  not  attack  any  one  of  us.  i  wonder  do  they  obey  the  high  family?  or  their  riders?"  kalore  nodded,  "you  will."  not  that  the  daemati  held  any  doubts,  neither  had  failed  him  thus  far.

caelan knows that to be true, but he doesn't like it. he isn't going to explain to kalore about his pride, though, and his lack of trust and how deep it runs. he hardly trusts anyone enough to sleep alongside them, especially considering that he's heard far too many secrets these days. the other does, unfortunately, have a point that he knows he can't ignore. "i suppose you're right. better the evil you know than the evil you don't." he doesn't like knowing that kalore's gifts are reduced, either. this whole place makes him uneasy. he can't imagine that it's not the same for him, but he remains quiet and lets the other man speak, to get his thoughts out. he appreciates the note of concern, and he nods, keeping it in the back of his mind. most would consider kalore's relationship with him to simply be kalore being kind, but he knows it to run deeper than that. even if he pretends it's not so, there's a certain level of trust that runs between them now.

"you'll be pleased to know that i seem to fly under the radar here as well," he replies, which he says in an almost joking tone. he is serious, and although the dragons make him uneasy, the fae here seem to be just like the ones at home. "i will try and gather what information i can. perhaps sleeping in the palace is the key to it all, my own pride be damned." he pauses, scratching the back of his head, before continuing. "i'll befriend who i can and see what i can pick up. if your location is the focus, i'm sure there'll be some sort of literature i can uncover, should i sneak around enough. and what of the fae of the court, how many have you spoken with?"

at his question, he glances around once more, finding no one else to be near them. he drops his voice to a bit of a whisper, leaning slightly closer so that only kalore could hear him, although there's no one else around to hear them but birds, and birds are horrible communicators. "i don't think i like them." he pulls back slightly. "thus far i've learned which dragons not to trust, that the armies are getting along, and that the general doesn't seem to like me." he pauses, and sighs. finally his voice shifts into seriousness. "i'll see what i can find," he promises, with a nod.

[versadies]

「 BE WITH YOU ! 」

SALUTATIONS. BE WITH YOU!

ADDRESSED. tartaglia, kaeya alberich, scaramouche, and thoma (w/ gn!reader)

STAMPS/SYPNOSIS. 4 characters, 4 different drabbles, 4 (almost failed) attempts of fluffiness <33

CONTENT. fluff/no-angst, spoilers to scaramouche’s real name, ooc characters, mentions of being sick (kaeya), mentions of violence/fighting (childe), second hand embarrassment (scaramouche), slight crack (scaramouche), harbinger!reader, novelist!reader, adventurer!reader

PENPALS. @scaraslover @saving-for-xiao @dawgimsohot @kazu-topia @chiruru @aqualesha @renamichii @mrkamisato @shenhesl0ver @serami00 @serenareiss @hiqhkey @emperatris-rinaka @bystander36 @irisxiel @ladycoleigh @034ven @dear-dairiess @owozi8 @hadesaedes @chiro-chiro-kun @hersscherofyatta @mariusvonhangme @yuzuricebun @nejibot @hoshikistarlette @solaaresque @crowbird @lordbugs @flowersforayato @headintheclouddd @estelwrld @giyusimpsassemble @irethepotatosblog @moonlightaangel @alice0blog @shotosbrainrot @sniffoat @chihawari @mxsomn @kuni-kuzushii @jiminscarmex @mitsukii14 @ylimeprive @sachispet @loreleis-world @sn-owo @starforecasts @someonetookmynamelmao @ceylestia @lychme @ymikkos @reallysporadicarcade @melodyyamino

POST-SCRIPT. came back from buying milk just to write this b4 today ends (def did not deadass crammed this 🤡🤡🤡) anywayz hope you enjoy <333 !!! this fic is for @bluexiao & @anantaru ’s sweet 'n spice collab :DDDD

LINKS. SOMETHING SWEET MASTERLIST | MAIN MASTERLIST | TAGLIST

Sometimes, you often wonder what goes on inside CHILDE’s head.

Most days — if not everyday — without fail, the 11th Harbinger would often come to you and bother you for the sake of having a duel with him by the training grounds, something that you always weren’t in a mood for.

Sure, it’s established that you’re much stronger than him — but so are most of his seniors. It didn’t make sense for him to bug you of all people to fight him besides the fact that you’re the same age as him.

“Care to have a fight with me?” The harbinger asks for the nth time as he follows you around Zapolyarny Palace much to your dismay.

“No.”

“Aw come on! It’ll be great, don’t you want to let out some steam? I could destroy the world for you to fight me ag—”

“No. Don’t you have some work to do, Tartaglia?” You said, walking towards your office. “Go ask someone else to fight. I’m not in the mood for your silly antics.”

“But I want you!”

You stop your tracks and turn towards his direction with a raised eyebrow, causing him to realize his words and stop his tracks as well.

“…Wait, I didn’t mean it like that.”

You would’ve believed it, if it weren’t for the fact that he’s covering half of his face that’s obviously red.

Huh, cute.

You try to stop yourself from grinning at the sight of the now flustered harbinger.

“My my, I didn’t know the 11th Harbinger would see me that way. If you want me so bad, you’ll have to do a lot more than just ask me out to fight.” You teased, not meaning any of those words. You just want to see him getting more flustered, nothing more, nothing less (at least that’s what you want to believe).

Unnoticed by you, Childe’s eyes widen a little. He did get flustered, but your words left more than just embarrassment for your comrade.

It left him a signal. A sign that he can shoot his shot with you!

You watched the ginger-haired man, who now has a new idea and determination, run away from you. You thought he left out of embarrassment like you hoped, but a part of you thought otherwise.

You shrug to yourself before continuing walking towards your office. Oh well, we’ll just have to see next time when he decides to bother me again. You thought, unaware that you just made things escalate more and gave Childe a reason to start asking you to go on dates with him instead of fights.

Today’s a lovely day.

Not only are you free to do what you want after finishing your tasks, but you also have all the time in the world to relax without a certain Cavalry Captain bothering you for reasons unknown.

“( Name ), care to deliver this to KAEYA Alberich’s home?”

Or so you thought.

You slowly look at Sara with a “really?” look on your face, looking at the packed meal your colleague dropped by the counter. “Care to ask why you want me to do that?” You asked.

Sara giggles in response. “Well for starters, you’re one of the only adventurers that’s available at the moment and have nothing to do.” She said as she started cooking up another meal. “Besides, this one’s sort of important. It turns out that Kaeya got sick, so he needs some soup for him to eat.”

You raise an eyebrow. You didn’t hear anything about Kaeya getting sick… Is that why he hasn’t come around Good Hunter for the past few days?

Sara notices the look on your face, giving you a teasing look. “What? Concerned for him?”

You feel your cheeks warming up, grabbing the packed meal instantly. “Of course not. I’ll be back soon.”

Or so you thought once again.

It took a while to look for the cavalry captain’s home, but you could’ve gone back instantly once Kaeya opened the door and grabbed his meal, if it weren’t for him dragging you inside for you to suddenly become his caretaker.

“I’m starting to think you only ordered the soup because you wanted me here.” You commented with a raised eyebrow as you blew the soup gently before moving the spoon towards his mouth.

“Is that what you think? I wouldn’t mind that enticing thought.” He retorts with a small smirk before opening his mouth to eat the soup.

“You can eat the soup yourself, Alberich.” You rolled your eyes,

He swallows his food. “How can I do that when I’m terribly sick?” Kaeya asks with a chuckle.

You rolled your eyes once again before feeding him. “Because you can, you’ve done it for the past few days, haven't you? You only used this opportunity to make me spoon feed you.”

“If that’s what you want to believe, ( Name ).”

Yet despite knowing the fact that Kaeya is capable of taking care of himself (after catching him opening a bottle of wine while standing up), you found yourself sticking with him the whole day, helping him in every way you can (not without you two replying to each other’s comments every now and then).

As much as you didn’t want to admit, you missed talking to the cavalry captain after not seeing him for a while. It’s no lie that you always find yourself spending time with him despite always claiming he’s just trying to find a way to tease you whenever he gets the opportunity to.

Perhaps that’s why you’ve been unknowingly smiling the whole day, something that Kaeya noticed very well.

By the time night comes, it is time for you to come home.

“I have to go now.” You said, packing your things up. “You’ll… be alright here alone, right?”

“Why? Are you worried?” Kaeya comments teasingly.

You chuckled in response. “In your dreams. I’ll come back tomorrow morning with breakfast.”

“Oh what would I do without the ever so caring ( Name )?”

“Crash and burn, maybe.” You then bid Kaeya goodbye before walking out from his room.

If only you knew it’s the world he’d crush and burn had it not been for you.

I could destroy the world for you.

It’s no lie among those in Inazuma that THOMA has a huge crush on you, an infamous novelist.

People could see how the way he looks at you is reserved for you. Whenever you’re in the same room or area as him, he can’t stop looking at you even if he doesn't want to. He’d sometimes suddenly just smiles when you come to his thoughts out of nowhere, feel like he’s on the verge to faint from even just talking to you—

Ah, he’s so helplessly in love!

Every week, he’d come to where you are and help you with whatever you need, be it shopping out with you, cleaning your place, taking care of your plants, accompanying you on your daily strolls around the city, and so on. It’s honestly one of the only ways he gets to spend time with you and hopefully get to know you more.

The thing is, you really thought he was just doing this because he’s a fan of your work and because of how he always helps people out, so you never considered that he’s doing this because he has a thing for you. He probably sees you as a weirdo for your exaggerated words.

A shame really, you have a thing for him.

It wasn’t until he confessed when you realized how wrong you were about him.

The two of you arrive at your home after having dinner together at Komore's Teahouse when Thoma suddenly confesses out loud.

“What?” You ask in disbelief, eyes widened in surprise.

Thoma shyly looks away from your gaze, laughing nervously. “I have… feelings for you, ( Name ). I want to be more than just friends, but if that’s not what you want then—”

“Why wouldn’t I want that?”

The blonde-haired man looks at you in surprise. “What?”

You start to grin, cheeks warming up. “I have feelings for you too, you silly man.”

Thoma’s eyes brighten. “Re-Really?”

You laugh at his reactions. “Yes. I love you just like one of my characters loves their love interest in the story, I could destroy the world for you!”

He laughs at your exaggeration. “Oh I wouldn’t want you to do that.”

“Take me out on another date next week, then maybe I won’t destroy the world.” You said teasingly.

He nods eagerly. “How does 15:00 on Wednesday sound? My treat of course!”

As SCARAMOUCHE’s lover, you are not exempted from his harsh demeanor.

Of course, his treatment towards you isn’t as harsh as how he treats others, and you really didn’t mind since his “harsh” words don't affect you. Besides, should there be a situation where he’d cross the line, he’d apologize through physical affection and a sweet quiet apology.

You really didn’t mind, because there are many things as to why you love your lover so much and many things for him to show you that he cares.

He just came back to your shared home when he noticed how you didn’t greet him, much to his confusion. He looked everywhere the house and found you by the bedroom, wiping your eyes as if there are te—

Are you crying?

“Why is this happening to me?” You asked quietly as you tried your best to wipe your tears away, your back facing him.

Scaramouche didn’t know what to do, wondering what on Earth is making you so sad. Is it because of something he said before he left? Is it because of your insecurities? Or… Is it because someone hurt you?

He doesn’t really know what’s wrong, humans are so complicated with their emotions and feelings.

But.. He wants to be here for you.

He slowly walks towards you hesitantly before giving you a hug from behind, causing you to gasp in surprise.

“Kunikuzushi? What…?”

“I’m here for you.” He said quietly, trying to not feel embarrassed. “I don’t know why you’re crying but if it’s because of something I said, I’m sorry. I… I didn’t know you got affected by it, I’ll try harder on not hurting your feelings anymore. But if it’s because of someone, you know I could destroy the world for you, rig—”

“What are you talking about?” You asked, turning around to face your lover. “I’m crying because I was yawning a lot.”

…

Oh.

Scaramouche feels like a part of his soul passed away when he heard your reason.

“…So you’re not sad?”

You furrow your eyebrows. “No…?”

He immediately turns away from your direction. “I’m gonna go out again.”

[bigskydreaming]

Okay, so you know “Justice League meets Batman’s kids, who they’d previously been unaware existed” AUs?

So picture that.....but this time, instead of them just having no knowledge of any of these other Gotham vigilantes at all....the Batkids all migrate to various cities as they get older and become known as their protectors - Dick in Bludhaven, Tim in San Francisco, Cass in Hong Kong, etc....

Meaning they’re all established figures, the Justice League are aware of them as solo local heroes who stick to their cities and so they just don’t interact with them much if at all, or else some are members of team lineups but are particularly vague about their histories or life outside of the team’s adventures....

So the big reveal isn’t that they become aware of all these other Gotham vigilantes all at once....its that some big conflict or whatever requires a huge team up of all available heroes, and in the aftermath, they figure out that like.....despite being known as solo heroes who work alone or loners outside of their team settings, 80% of these heroes all not only seem to already know each other, they seem to be related.

And so naturally they all turn to Batman, who has profiles on every known hero and they thus figure had researched these individuals too and just never mentioned this little detail, and they’re like, “Did you know about this?”

And then Nightwing turns to him too, arms crossed and is like, “Yeah Dad, did you know about this?”

And the infamous Red Hood is all: “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I have never met any of these people before in my life. Lives? Whatever.”

And then Red Robin moodily grates out “I have no siblings.” Since he’s nursing a grudge since Dick and Jason broke into his apartment the night before and replaced all his custom Red Robin gear with Darkwing Duck merchandise and his vengeance will be swift and also totally disproportionate because things escalate quickly in this family, that’s true in every universe.

Cass meanwhile has deftly skewered Jason’s lie by walking over to him and brazenly patting down the man with many many guns with no fear whatsoever. He squawks and futilely attempts to bat her hands away as she riffles through his many pockets, but he doesn’t seem shocked, just annoyed. Eventually, she pulls away and triumphantly reveals a box of Hello Kitty themed band-aids.

“So these are yours then? Just for you?” Black Bat asks smugly. Red Hood squints at the box.

“What the fuck? How long have those been in my jacket? Why are those in my jacket? Did you freaking plant them in my jacket just on the offchance you could at some point in the distant future use them at my expense?”

Black Bat frowns, puzzled. “Yes?”

“Oh come on, Dead Hood,” Spoiler says with an exaggerated toss of her head meant to convey she’s rolling her eyes beneath her own mask. She skips her way across the room to Black Bat and then drapes herself languidly all over the smaller woman. Who in turn doesn’t so much as twitch beneath the sudden added mass as Spoiler holds out her hand towards the box of band-aids. 

“One please. I have a boo-boo,” she says with easy familiarity straight into the intimidating cowl of Black Bat. Only then does she deign to finish her train of thought with Red Hood.

“I mean seriously, are you saying you don’t have potential blackmail set-ups, pre-rigged releases of incriminating material, and a random assortment of traps, pratfalls and mortifying scenarios in place for the express purpose of being able to humiliate any and all of your siblings at any given moment, without any need for additional prep time?”

“Is this true, Little Wing?” Nightwing whirls on the larger Red Hood with a faux-scandalized gasp. The founder and leader of the Titans, formerly the Teen Titans, renowned for his stratagems and calm competence when directing squads of supers in the heat of battle while he keeps pace with nothing more than naturally acquired acrobatics and a utility belt that apparently uses the same technology as Wonder Woman’s invisible jet....now appears to be....staggering with the back of his hand pressed to his forehead, moaning about how he felt....faint? 

What is happening right now, several dozen superheroes want to know. Is this a drill? Are they supposed to be checking for signs of a mental ambush from undetected psychic saboteurs? Did they all hit their heads at the exact same time and are now experiencing some kind of shared mass concussion?

Look, that wouldn’t be the weirdest thing to ever happen on the Watchtower. 

“Have I failed you so utterly?” The veteran child hero bemoans with a dramatic twirl - that when contrasted with his stern demeanor of a mere ten minutes ago - makes the fears of telepathic infiltration seem less paranoia and more....concerningly probable. “Did you learn nothing from me? Did you learn nothing from B?”

He stops and jabs a finger up at the sky. “Quick, everyone! What is the very first rule of Living While Batty?”

As if by rote, over a half a dozen voices chime in from all over the room, causing various heroes to jump. Spooked by yet more and more vigilantes joining in some kind of mass recitation like they and they alone have some kind of clue what the hell is going on and everyone else just hadn’t been invited to the party. Which is just rude, honestly. Nobody likes feeling like they weren’t invited to the party. Not even superheroes. 

“If you’re not going to bother preparing for every possible contingency and at least six impossible ones, you might as well just stay in bed.”

Even the Red Hood joins in the Illuminati chant or Cub Scout pledge or demonic ritual or whatever the fuck that just was, though his slumped and exasperated posture gives away every hint of sulkiness his headgear otherwise would have kept safely hidden. He’s surprisingly more...expressive, than most who’d only known of him by reputation had expected him to be. The day continues to yield surprises.

“Of fucking course I do,” he growls out, snatching the box from Black Bat. She doesn’t even fight to hold onto it, just lets it go with a knowing smirk. “I wasn’t surprised by the idea of it, I was just surprised she bothered with such a weak effort. Like yeah whatever, actually those could be mine. I use those all the time at home. So what?”

He aggressively yanks one of the band-aids out of the box, fumbles with the peel-off strips with one hand and he roughly rolls up the sleeve of his jacket with the other. Then just slaps it on his forearm and raises said appendage high, showing it off this way and that. “See?”

“Oh yeah, for sure,” Signal drawls from the other side of the room, nodding his head approvingly. “Totally convincing. Nice job walking that one back, you really showed them.”

Red Hood’s head snaps in his direction with ominous intent. “Watch it, Day-Glo.”

Signal just snorts.

“Yeah, like I’m gonna take constructive criticism on my name and costume from a dude who’s spent the last several years calling himself Red HOOD while running around in a freaking HELMET.”

“Its not meant to be literal, you fucking pedant.”

“So wait, its not literally a helmet? Huh, does it at least protect your head literally, or just like...symbolically? Like if Bane were to clock you across the head, would your concussion just be a metaphor? What’s the treatment protocol for a metaphorical concussion? Fluids, bedrest and a philosophical prescription of two chapters of Chicken Soup for the Soul as needed?”

“Laugh it up, KC and the Sunshine Band,” Red Hood bats back. “You just got yourself disinvited from Thursday night’s poker game.”

Signal just grins and folds his arms over his chest cockily. “Please. You’ve been looking for an excuse to ban me for weeks, cuz you know until you can prove I’m using my ghost vision to cheat, you can’t actually bring suit against me for it in Family Court.”

“That, and also Family Court isn’t a real thing, you toddler. Stop validating Wing-a-ding-ding’s obsession with Shitty TV Nostalgia and just call it that thing where Oracle traps us all in a room until we settle our latest fight without anyone getting stabbed.”

“Yeah, but like, say that five times fast,” Spoiler pipes up. “Its just not practical. Family Court’s way easier.”

“Says the one who’s not even in our fucking family.”

“And yet I grace you all with my sublime presence anyway,” she blows a kiss at him, beatifically unbothered. “You’re welcome.”

The Red Hood scoffs and rounds on his heel, zeroing in on Batwoman in the far corner.

“Hey Auntie B, my siblings are all dead to me and I just helped stop an alien invasion so I deserve nice things like a fun Saturday night. Can you get me into Dad’s fundraiser so I can crash it? He won’t put me back on the list until I promise not to bring any C-4 with me and I won’t promise not to bring any C-4 because he should just trust me that I won’t when I say I’m not gonna and he won’t trust me that I won’t until I admit I shouldn’t have brought any to that sting last month where three tiny little yachts blew up through barely any fault of my own, and I’m just not gonna do that ever because I have convictions and I feel I shouldn’t have to be punished for that. Y’know?”

Batwoman blinks at him. “Kid, I’m not gonna lie to you. You’re my nephew and I love you, but I stopped listening three seconds into all that.”

“Ugh, fine. Can you help me crash Dad’s event tonight so I can teach him a lesson about why he should just trust me not to make a scene so I don’t have to always make a scene to make a point.”

“Tempting as you make that sound,” she says wryly, “I have a strict policy for dealing with you lot and your......everything. I only worry about tolerating one of you at a time, and there’s seven of you, and seven days in the week. You each get your own. You know perfectly well its Robin’s day today. You get me on Tuesday, just like always.”

“Auntie B, we’re not like other families, are we?” Red Robin’s delivery is sarcastically childish and his question clearly rhetorical. Most of his attention is fixated on whatever it is he’s doing with his wrist-mounted computer. 

“No sweetie, we’re all severely fucked in the head and a little bit too comfortable with that.”

“Just checking. Oh hey, Hood, I just emailed you a patch for the hole in your firewall I exploited when replacing all my shit using your accounts just now.”

“You did what?”

“Used your accounts to pay to replace all my stuff that you fucked with last night?” Red Robin says slowly. “Did you not realize that I’ve been sticking within ten feet of you for the past five minutes just so I could clone your devices and do all that while BB and Spoiler kept you distracted? I gotta say, bro, I feel like that’s on you then.”

Red Hood swivels his helmeted head in the direction of the aforementioned two. Black Bat waves. Spoiler shoots him an utterly unrepentant thumbs up.

“You’d side with your ex over me? That’s what its come to?”

“My only allegiance is to chaos,” Spoiler says brightly. Black Bat shrugs.

“Plus he bribes better.”

“Hateful,” Red Hood points at Black Bat, moving on to level the same finger at Spoiler, who curtsies in acknowledgment: “Hateful-er.”

Then the finger rounds the bases to aim judgmentally at Red Robin. “Hateful-est. And that was all Nightwing’s idea anyway, not mine.”

“Oh, I assumed as much,” he says casually. “Your idea of a prank tends to have more of a Carrie vibe. Or be a literal literary reenactment.”

“Its called an homage, 4chan.”

“Whatever, plagiarist. And anyway, I couldn’t go after ‘Wing for payback on this one. He used an Immunity card. If you didn’t want me getting back at you, you should have used one too."

Red Hood looms aggressively. Red Robin ignores willfully. Round and round they go. Superheroes who can survive excessive G-Forces are getting dizzy just watching them have a largely motionless stand-off. That shouldn’t be how that works, but whatever. All the most infamously reclusive and isolated heroes in all hero-dom are apparently part of the same one big reclusive and isolated family of fucked up weirdos and they’re all officially bonkers. Nothing makes sense anymore. Reality broke. Try another stall.

“Okay, but see, in order to have an Immunity card, I would have to participate in one of you losers’ stupid Immunity challenges,” the Red Hood drags out with exaggerated patience. “And I’m just not going to do that, on account of those all being fucking stupid. You see the problem there?”

Red Robin just shrugs. “I don’t know what to tell you, bro. You can have principles or you can have an Immunity card. You can’t have both.”

Meanwhile, on another side of....the same room.....look, its like, an octagonal room, probably. It has a lot of sides. Robin fends off questions from an aggrieved looking Superboy.

“You never told me you had a bajillion brothers and sisters!”

“Yes but I never said I didn’t either.”

Superboy rolls his eyes. “Oh yeah, so I should just assume everyone I meet has a bajillion secret brothers and sisters?”

“Well clearly it would have worked out in your favor in this instance if you had, now wouldn’t it?”

“Assuming of course that you can trust what has been said or implied here today and I am actually related to any of those numbskulls. Which I am not actually admitting to,” Robin tacks on hastily.

Superboy eyes him dubiously. “You joined in the same creepy chant all the others did and then got super self-conscious and looked around to see if anyone had noticed. Which uh. I did.”

“First off, your interpretation of body language is abyssmal. I do not get self-conscious,” Robin says with a delivery that probably could have benefited from being a little less self-conscious. “And second....that proves nothing. I guessed what they were going to say.”

“Word for word,” Superboy says super-skeptically.

“I’m very good at guessing things. You know this.”

“Okay. Guess how much I believe you right now then.”

Robin glares and folds his arms grumpily across his chest. 

“And what was that anyway? Was that like....you guys’ family motto or something like that?”

“Oh no,” Spoiler pipes up. “That’s much shorter.”

Superboy balks at that. “Wait, you guys actually have one of those for real?”

“Yup,” Steph says, counting out the words with her fingers. “He who laughs last....probably works for the Joker. So tranq him just to be safe. See? Only sixteen words. The first rule of Living While Batty is way longer, and what we said was just the abridged version. You should hear the original, before Black Bat put her foot down and refused to memorize it unless sizable edits were made.”

Superboy hovers between her and Robin now, both in mid-air and on the verge of taking Spoiler’s words as an invitation to hear just that. A low growl arises from Robin’s direction.

“Must you?” He asks the older vigilante, with a most put upon expression.

She looks at him pityingly. “Do you actually need me to answer that? Like, we’ve met, right? Hi, I’m Spoiler.”

“Wait, so Robin said that I just never specifically asked him if he had a bajillion brothers and sisters, and that’s why he didn’t tell me, so that means he wouldn’t have just lied and there’s not some code of secrecy that flat out forbids telling other people stuff, right?” Superboy realizes excitedly.

“Yes, excellent direction. Go on,” Spoiler says, steepling her fingers. Robin buries his face in the palm of one hand.

“Soooo, what other stuff could you tell me about Robin’s super top secret family that I wouldn’t think to ask about but that he would tell me about if I knew what questions to ask?”

She claps once, lightly but with emphasis. “Well done. You’ve passed the first barrier. Untold secrets await you behind just a few more.”

“I’ll get you for this,” Robin vows calmly. She waves a hand at him.

“Yeah, yeah. Just make sure you do it before January 1st, remember? You’ve promised retribution like ten times already this year and those don’t roll over, y’know. Rules are rules.”

“Enough!” Thunders a voice then, from the front of the room. Well one of the fronts anyway. Like sides, it has a lot of them, but this is the one where Batman’s standing. All eyes snap to him. Which is kinda just what eyes do when Batman says stuff like that. Its like his superpower, except he doesn’t actually have superpowers, which is what makes it scary. But where the snapping of the eyes (directional) is usually followed by Batman saying something else besides just “hey look at me,” here he pauses in the wake of his own call to attention’s waning reverberations. Uncharacteristically silent.

Not that, y’know, he’s normally Mr. Talkity Talk, but usually his silences feel like he has the words to fill them, he’s just withholding them. This though, this feels more like he doesn’t have any words at all. And he’s as confused by it as any of them, and most everyone else is confused by Batman being confused, and its this whole trickle down economy of confusion and its wrecking havoc on the value of the golden silence standard.

Of course, not everyone present is rendered spellbound with confusion.

“C’mon B,” Nightwing cajoles, leaning forward and practically radiating delight. “I think you know what you have to do now. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Its not likely to come around again.”

Red Hood snickers beneath his helmet and chimes in. “Yeah Pops, go ahead. You do this and you’ll actually have my respect for a whole twenty four hours. No, wait. Sixteen. No! Eight. Yeah, eight. Still a good deal.”

“Carpe diem, B,” Red Robin grins, leaning back as if to enjoy the show.

“Hey! Infringe on my trademark one more time, dude,” Signal throws a faux-glare at the former. Red Robin just quirks an eyebrow.

“And what, you’ll start saying Yum every time you eat a burger? Oh no. I’m hoist by my own petard.”

Signal flips him off with a grin and then redirects his attention back to Batman. “Yeah seriously though B, you kinda gotta do it now. Because if you don’t do it, then you’ll forever be the guy who didn’t do it, and you don’t want to be that guy, do you?”

“Yeah you really don’t want to be that guy,” Spoiler shouts out. “Nobody likes that guy. He’s the worst.”

“Do it, do it,” Black Bat starts chanting beside her, steadily picking up speed and volume. Several others start joining in. Even Robin appears to be slightly anticipatory, albeit trying very hard to hide it.

Batman sighs, and somehow everyone manages to hear it. Stills. Waits for....something? Nobody but them seems to have any clue what, but the air is thick and heavy with portentiousness. Something is about to happen, and all most of the heroes present could say for sure is it was something they never would have in a million years seen coming.

Finally, Batman straightens with the resigned air of a man about to have oh so many regrets. He crosses his arms, shakes his head, and in an absolute deadpan monotone, says:

“You are awful children. You know you’re killing me. You’re killing your father.”

[the-lone-witch-and-secret-room]

Camila Noceda and Flawed Parenting

A perspective by a flawed person with loving but extremely flawed parents

I’m genuinely baffled at some people’s hostile reaction towards Camila. Like… do any of you have flawless parents that always know the best solution instantly, make no mistakes and never get emotional?

My parents are great. They’re super supportive and I love them very, very much. Overall I think I got very lucky in the parents department.

But god, they are far from flawless. I still live at home, and despite all the good, there’s moments when I can’t take my dad anymore. He’s the kind of dad that stayed up until two am to help me with homework when I was in school, and he does so, so many things to make sure I’m happy. I know that. But despite all of this, I have told my mom in emotional moments before that I’m not sure if I can keep living with him, because for all his good sides, he has a couple of fatal flaws that sometimes make him unbearable.

My mom listens to me and is very open to being educated on certain topics, but she has her flaws, too. She hates when I fight with my dad, and gets so torn up about it that I’ve once apologized to my dad out of fear of her getting into a car crash otherwise. She’s very vocal about certain flaws of mine, and sometimes uses the things she does for me as leverage against me when she gets very emotional.

And both of my parents pay a lot more attention to my brother because he needs it more, because he’s more of a “problem child” while I “seem so capable” even when I’m not.

And guess what? I’m not a perfect child. I make mistakes sometimes, some of them pretty severe. Just like Luz, I’m the kind of person that struggles to communicate certain issues of mine to her parents. I’m stubborn, and when I get emotional, I say very hurtful things sometimes. So do they.

And this has nothing to do with my parents being horrible or abusive. They’re neither of those things.

The takeaway from this should not be that my entire family is made up of terrible people, but that we’re all flawed in our own ways, despite loving each other and trying our best. There’s things about my parents I wish I could change, and there are things about me that my parents wish they could change. And to an extent, that’s perfectly normal.

In our strengths and flaws and frustration with each other, we’re all human.

Specific, spoiler-y Camila and Luz things under the cut since this got very long.

We have no indication that Camila has a pattern of emotionally manipulating Luz. Her “emotional manipulation” as I’ve seen some people put it, is people for some reason thinking that the second you become an adult, you’re suddenly perfect and can no longer make mistakes, lest you’ll be dubbed horrible and abusive.

The whole concept is absurd to me. There is no perfect way to parent. There simply isn’t. Of course, there’s some genuinely abusive patterns that are horrible and inexcusable. But out of the parenting styles that aren’t, which one works depends on a number of factors, one of which absolutely includes that every child is different and has different needs. Camila is an amazing parent for Vee, giving the kid everything she’s ever longed for. She’s not an ideal parent for Luz. And that’s because Luz and Vee have fundamentally different needs.

Likewise, Luz is a pretty great child for Eda, but not a perfect fit for Camila. Luz relates to Eda a lot more than she relates to her mom, and that’s why the two of them have an easier time understanding each other. Both of these mother-child relationships exist, and one is not more doomed to fail than the other, but I think you’ll agree that the better you understand someone and where they’re coming from, the easier it is to communicate, pick up on certain signs, etc.

As mom and daughter, Camila and Luz are both flawed and have issues seeing the other’s perspective because of how different they are. And we should simultaneously acknowledge both of their roles in the issue and give both of them the space to learn and grow past those issues.

Luz struggles to communicate her problems. She doesn’t want to burden people in the demon realm, and it’s a given that this started out as not wanting to burden her mom. So she keeps quiet about her issues. Camila tries hard but can’t read her daughter’s mind, so there’s only so much she can do to understand and help the way Luz needs her to. Hell, Eda, who Luz is a lot more open with than her mom, struggles to help her, because Luz doesn’t tell her what’s wrong. I don’t see anyone calling Eda a terrible mom for that.

Camila tries her best, but she struggles to understand her daughter because of this, and because of how fundamentally different they are. She loves Luz’s creativity, we actively see her supporting it in the new episode—she keeps the weird stuff Luz made because she thinks Luz will regret throwing it away, and even plays along in what she assumes to be some elaborate role play because “she’s glad Luz kept her creativity even though it’s not made things easy for her at school”. But at the beginning of the show, said creativity got out of hand and people got hurt. Luz could’ve gotten hurt. So of course Camila had to interfere. I love Luz dearly, but she thought it was okay to bring snakes to school and set off fireworks inside a school building. Creativity is great. Doing reckless stuff that causes people to get hurt is not.

In sending Luz to camp, Camila tried to have someone else fix her issue because she didn’t know how to help Luz. That was a mistake, and a bad one at that, but she’s realizing that. She looks disheartened when Vee tries to throw out Luz’s stuff, because she never meant to change her daughter or take that part of her away. She just thought Luz needed a reality check—which, for the record, is something the narrative actually agrees with.

Luz spends her time in the demon realm getting reality check after reality check, realizing that even her ideal fantasy world where she has everything she always wanted doesn’t mean she’s free of consequences. She goes overboard constantly, causing:

-Eda to be forced to fly into a trap because Luz is chasing a fantasy (Witches before Wizards)

-Eda to almost be branded by her sister because Luz doesn’t think through why Eda doesn’t use magic to publicly announce her presence constantly (Once Upon a Swap)

-Eda and the twins to get kidnapped by a Slitherbeast because Luz stole Amity’s wand (Adventures in the Elements)

-Her friends to get hurt when she goes overboard trying to help Willow (Wing it like Witches)

-Eda to be captured and almost petrified because Luz thought she could just steal from the Emperor with no consequences in an attempt to help (Agony of a Witch)

I’m like 90% sure these aren’t even all. None of those make her a terrible person, for the record, but as all humans are, she is flawed and makes bad choices. She learns from these experiences and matures, just like her mom had hoped she would at camp. She’s also made friends there, which was another thing Camila wanted for her daughter.

You’ll probably realize that a lot of Luz’s behaviors I mentioned follow one of two patterns: 1. Luz’s idealized fantasy world causing problems, when she walks around with rose tinted glasses and gets people in trouble in the process because she hasn’t thought about the consequences, and 2. Luz trying to help someone she loves, but instead making things worse in the progress. The issue with this one is often that she doesn’t communicate her ideas/listen to the people she’s trying to help—like when Willow and Gus said they’ve had enough of Grudgby, or how she never actually talks to Eda about the healing hat idea before doing something reckless.

…does the latter one sound familiar to you at all? No? Because it’s the exact same thing that Camila did.

Some of the things Luz does are reckless and actively endanger others and herself, and that’s something that I think we need to acknowledge before judging Camila. As Luz’s mom, it’s Camila’s job to interfere in those situations. That she made a mistake while trying to protect Luz doesn’t make her a terrible person, especially as, again, the narrative proves her right to an extent.

I’m not saying her making Luz promise to come back and stay isn’t something that hurt Luz—it absolutely is. But it was born out of desperation. She’s emotional and in shock. She’s so full of pain and regret. She just wants her fourteen year old daughter home safe, and there’s nothing abusive or even morally ambiguous about that.

From Luz’s perspective, what she says is absolutely heartbreaking, but from Camila’s, it’s perfectly reasonable. I doubt Camila has the full picture, but even if she does, she’s had a full fifteen seconds to process that her daughter has not only been lying to her for months, but chose to leave her, and is in the demon realm of all places. Of course she’d be emotional and upset about that! Who wouldn’t? Camila isn’t a robot. If she’d been calm about this I’d be way more concerned, honestly.

My parents don’t get mad that easily, but if I would lie to them for weeks on end, they’d be pissed off too, not even taking the running away from home part into account. That’s a normal thing. People don’t like being lied to. Camila is absolutely devastated in that moment because she’s scared that Luz left because she hates her, when Luz actively states that her leaving wasn’t about her mom—which is another thing we should really be acknowledging.

Abusive parents suck and abuse should obviously never be apologized or trivialized, but saying something hurtful in the heat of the moment isn’t the same thing as being an abusive parent. My parents have done this. I’ve done this. And yes, those things can be emotionally manipulative, but there’s a huge difference in whether that’s a habit or a person speaking out of hurt and desperation in a very specific context. I doubt there’s anyone on the entire planet that hasn’t had a bad moment where they’ve said something like this because they were hurting. People lash out when they hurt, and they beg for reassurance when they’re scared. That’s something we all do.

The whole mindset of “all parents have to be perfect and can never get upset or make any mistakes” is harmful as hell, and honestly also very unrealistic. No parent is perfect, and especially people like me who have a relationship with their parents that’s very good overall should know that.

Once you have a child, parenting is a non-stop learning process, every day for the rest of your life. Taking away that room to grow and expecting perfection isn’t helping anyone, especially not struggling single parents.

And I see Camila as someone who is very willing to learn, because at the end of the day, all she wants is for Luz to be happy. Let’s give her some time to wrap her head around this whole situation. Let’s see what she says once she sees for herself how happy Luz is in that world, may it be via the videos eventually coming through or Camila visiting and meeting Luz’s found family, her friends and her girlfriend.

Ultimately, I don’t think Camila will force Luz to stay at home, but we have to give her some time. She wants what’s best for Luz, and she’s gonna need some convincing that a dangerous magical world is what’s best. I feel like that’s very normal considering the circumstances.

Her and Luz need to work on their communication on both ends, they both have things to learn, but I’m certain they’ll manage to fix their relationship in the long run.

If the bunk bed is any indication, I think Vee is gonna stay in the human realm permanently while Luz sleeps at home but keeps attending Hexside in the daytime. That feels like a solution that keeps everyone happy, and allows Luz to spend time with all the people she loves. I can’t see her being forced to choose at the end.

As a closing statement: Eda isn’t an ideal mom, Amity isn’t an ideal friend or girlfriend and neither is Luz, Lilith isn’t an ideal sister… but that’s because no one is ever an ideal anything. Being flawed is a big part of being human. Everyone has different facets to their personality. Their flaws are what makes them such great, relatable, believable characters.

And I feel the same way about Camila. She’s an extremely believable character that reminds me of my own parents, flawed but very loving nonetheless.

(Also honestly, I think it’s pretty telling that some of you guys immediately bash the black single mom that’s obviously trying her hardest while giving the benefit of the doubt to Alador, who has been portrayed as neglecting and threatened his six year old daughter on screen. This was already a thing before we knew much about either of them, and I’m disappointed but unfortunately not very surprised that it still is.)

[hotcrosscorgibuns]

I never post on this account myself, but i’m too lazy to deal with my alts. And these RiseOTMNT boys have a firm chokehold on my brainworms atm. Here’s an Oc/self insert/persona, whatever you wanna call it! As well as some additional Krang doodles, i’m slowly building a massive google doc of Krang lore/headcannons so please feel free to hit me up if you are interested in pink bubble gum eldritch horrors and how they expand their alien dictatorship! Enjoy some ramblings below the cut, im sorry its so long lmaooo:

Aven is an alien species of my own imagination, i suck at making creature names so for now I call them Vixens! Gen bits:

Vixens are extremely flexible/adaptable genetically! Over time they can shift and voluntarily change their molecular structure to assimilate with new environments/species! (While also maintaining access to their OG genetic make up)

They are a highly emotional/social species, essentially empaths. They can weaponize their/others emotions in order to defend themselves or manipulate their environments. 

Her home planet was invaded by the Krang long before the failed first Earth Invasion.

During the invasion she, along with a mass amount of others were captured to be assimilated into the Hive. Her assimilation attempt failed to bond her to the Hive and instead ended with a split bond to the Krang that initiated the parasitic implant (”C”/Ceasar)

Krang are a parasitic Hivemind based species, they are also extremely adaptable and use assimilated species to expand the Hive’s library of genetic advantages.

Older techniques of capturing/brainwashing specimens involved a direct implant of physical/genetic material from a Krang donor. 

While “C” was attempting to complete Aven’s implant the emotional feedback from her abilities/defense mechanisms caused an instinctual panic/flight response. The implant’s physical bond was completed but the link to the Hive was not.

Aven and “C” very quickly realized that attempting to remove the implant risked both their lives. Staying during the invasion was also a death sentence, the Hive would hold no mercy for a member with such a weakness. Both were forced to flee, “C” effectively becoming a defector.

They’ve been on the run, staying on random planets in random galaxies for years/centuries. Neither know that the Krang/Hive was eventually captured in the prison dimension, they eventually end up on earth much much later. They just think they’ve been lucky to escape this long.

In cannon show/move/timeline plot Aven + “C” have been living on earth for only 10yrs (their present day being the year that Casey is sent back in time to). As soon as any sign of Krang invasion shows up on the news or otherwise both of them are evacuating NYC as quickly as possible, cant risk getting found.

They dont meet the turtles/any main characters until months after the Krang are defeated and they feel like it’s safe enough to actually return to their lil apartment in the city. It’s a dramatic, accidental meeting, and it takes a long long time to convince anyone that they arent affiliated with the dictarotship and just wanted to get mcdonalds. 

[illuminatedquill]

Extracurricular, An Analysis

Oh Ji-soo and Bae Gyu-ri

“Love is the ultimate outlaw. It just won’t adhere to any rules. The most any of us can do is sign on as it’s accomplice.”  - Tom Robbins 

You know the story. You’ve heard it before, right? 

Boy meets girl. 

Girl finds out that boy is running a side protection business for prostitutes. 

Girl decides to blackmail boy into letting her join his business. 

Classic high school criminal shenanigans ensue leading them into more dangerous situations where they are forced to make desperate decisions to stay alive. 

Oh, and they fall in love along the way. 

Oh? You haven’t heard this one before? Then let me introduce you to this delightful kdrama called Extracurricular. 

I watched this one while waiting for the newest Hometown Cha Cha Cha episodes to drop and ended up binging the whole series in two days. There are many remarkable parts of this series: it’s a crime drama, first and foremost, that showcases high school teenagers caught in a cycle of violence and crime, abandoned by the society and adults that are supposed to be protecting them. There are no clear good guys and bad guys in this drama; everyone is cast in shades of grey. Our main leads, Oh Ji-soo and Bae Gyu-ri, run the prostitution business, and are both from broken family backgrounds. Their actions are morally questionable at best, but the top tier performances from Kim Dong Hee (you might remember him from Itaewon Class) and Park Ju Hyun make you cheer for them anyway. You want them to have a happy ending, despite the horrible things they do. The audience is always reminded that despite how clever they are in staying ahead, their actions have consequences, and they’re just high school kids. The drama never pulls it punches. 

But, weirdly enough, it’s also a love story. And that’s the part the really sticks with me until now. (The chemistry between the main leads is absolute dynamite and I could watch ten episodes of them just verbally sparring with each other. They don’t even kiss. They’re that fantastic when together on screen.)

I’m writing this because this is undoubtedly one of my all time favorite kdramas and I have a lot of feelings about our main pairing, Ji-soo and Gyu-ri. I can’t call them a couple (wait, didn’t I just say they fall in love) because their relationship can’t be labelled simply as that. Think of it as something similar to the main leads in My Ahjussi. Two people who should have become soulmates, yet met at the wrong time. 

This kdrama is not particularly happy, and while I do encourage people to watch this, I am warning that the subject matter is extremely dark. If you’re sensitive to scenes depicting sexual assault, graphic violence, or anything in that zip code you’ll want to steer clear. 

Also, I’ll be diving into spoiler territory in this analysis. So if you want to go in clean, then stop reading here. 

Still here? Awesome. Let’s dive deep into the messy, amazing pairing that is Oh Ji-soo and Bae Gyu-ri. First, let’s do a brief character background on our two main leads, starting with Ji-soo. 

Oh Ji-soo is one half of our main pairing and this story starts with him. He lives by himself and has been essentially abandoned by his only parents; his father is a failed businessman who gambles whatever money he acquires on scams and his mother ran away. His apartment is small, sparse, but functional. He owns only a few outfits aside from his school uniform. The only unique item he owns is a pet hermit crab that he takes care of. His life outside of school is non-existent; he has no friends, no one to hang out with and do typical high school teenager activities with. He takes care of himself and lives only for himself and his “dream”: to graduate, attend college, get married, and have kids like a normal person. 

But to do that, he needs a large amount of money. He has no other financial means to do so (his father is largely absent, as is his mother), so he decides, at some point, to start up this protection business for prostitutes. The drama doesn’t go into detail about the how and why he came to this conclusion that this was the best way to make a lot of money in a short amount of time, so you’ll have to suspend your disbelief from the get go. Considering the themes of the story (how youths abandoned by society tend to act out in extreme ways to make it in this world), it’s not hard to believe his desperation would drive him to make such a decision. 

Ji-soo, despite his shady business, is actually a decent person. There’s a streak of humanity that exists inside him that refuses to go out, despite the increasingly dark and bleak events that start to overtake his life. He’s attached to his hermit crab, cares for his “employees” outside of them being tools to make him money, and doesn’t want to see anyone get hurt. He goes above and beyond what’s required to help out people at the risk of his own life (in particular, Gyu-ri, and we’ll get into that shortly). 

What we learn from the first few episodes is that Oh Ji-soo is extremely smart and methodical in how he approaches his life. At school, he is known as a model student - quiet, top of the class in terms of grades, doesn’t draw any attention to himself, always follows along with what the teachers ask of him. Only his homeroom teacher, Mr. Cho, seems to consider his quiet style of existence to be concerning and tries to make him less socially awkward by pairing him up with another student in a new extracurricular club. This leads to the introduction of Bae Gyu-ri, Ji-soo’s longtime crush and future partner-in-crime. 

Meet Bae Gyu-ri, the other half of our dynamic duo. Her introduction into the story kickstarts the entire plot, as one of her earliest actions leads to a domino effect that spells increasing doom and tragedy for our main leads. She messes with Ji-soo’s operation at a critical moment and she spends the rest of the drama doing her best to make up for the consequences that follow. 

In my personal opinion, she is probably the best main female lead I’ve ever seen in a kdrama. Hands down, no other character exists (currently) that rivals her sheer cunning, wit, and badassery. Gyu-ri is Crazy, capital C, and is the chaos to Ji-soo’s control; the fire to his ice. Despite being the direct cause of half the events that happen to Ji-soo in the drama, he can’t help but need her because of what she offers. They make an incredible team. Her competitiveness, her need to win no matter the odds, helps them survive time and time again. 

Gyu-ri is from the opposite end of the spectrum of Ji-soo; he’s dirt poor and she’s insanely rich (always nice to see a reversal of typical kdrama tropes). Her mother and father run a successful entertainment company. Gyu-ri is popular at school, friends with seemingly everybody, pretty, cheerful and gets along well with her teachers. Ji-soo, and the audience, believe from the beginning that she has the perfect life. It’s not hard to believe that she’s just involving herself in Ji-soo’s business because she’s bored and needs an outlet, at first. 

We soon learn otherwise. Gyu-ri has more in common with Ji-soo than he initially realizes, in that they’re both trapped in circumstances beyond their control - it’s just that Gyu-ri’s cage is gilded, whereas his is not. Her parents are strict and have her life planned out for her, all without her consent or input, leaving her feeling frustrated and powerless despite her rich lifestyle. A suicide attempt hasn’t done much to change her parents attitude towards her, only serving to further their control over her life. 

So, when she learns of Ji-soo’s operation she immediately seeks to angle her way into it. First, she tries to rip him off, believing that he’s an evil “pimp” and thus deserves it. But after spending some time with him, she changes her mind last second and decides to help him out instead. 

And, now, let’s get into their relationship, which is one of the best (if not the best) aspect in the entire series. 

I need to be upfront about something: the relationship between Ji-soo and Gyu-ri is not exactly healthy. I wouldn’t describe it as toxic - the circumstances surrounding them aren’t exactly the best environment to encourage open and honest communication - but it’s definitely not what should be considered ideal, especially for young adults, and especially for young adults who are dabbling in crime instead of studying. 

So, why do I love them so much? If you’ve read some of my previous posts, you know that I loathe toxic relationships in kdramas, so I understand if you think I’m coming off as hypocritical here. Why do I like Oh Ji-soo and Bae Gyu-ri when I didn’t like, for example from recent history, (oh boy, here I go again on my Nevertheless BS) Park Jae-eon and Yu Na-bi?

First, Ji-soo and Gyu-ri are way cooler than Jae-eon and Na-bi ever could be. They run a criminal enterprise that involves having a high amount of intelligence, cunning, and daring to do so. Do Jae-eon and Na-bi run a criminal enterprise as a side business? No, they don’t, because they’re boring art students. 

Secondly, Ji-soo and Gyu-ri actually progress in their relationship and change their views as they learn from each other. Now, granted, that progress isn’t towards becoming better versions of each other - quite the opposite. But at least they have progress. Jae-eon and Na-bi stayed in the same stupid cycle for the whole series and then decided that it was better staying that way as opposed to trying for something else. 

Last, but certainly not least, Ji-soo and Gyu-ri are actually interesting to watch for me. The chemistry between Park Ju Hyun and Kim Dong Hee is explosive and they way they spar, exchange looks, and just generally exist around each other on screen is something I can watch forever. I’ve said this before but Han So Hee and Song Kang’s on screen chemistry, outside of their intimate scenes, really didn’t impress me. 

Okay, back to Extracurricular. This relationship, man. It’s all I can think about (other than HomeCha’s Du-sik and Hye-jin, but that’s another post). Ji-soo and Gyu-ri are so good together. 

I’ve noted before that Ji-soo is methodical in how he approaches his life; he plans out everything ahead, and rigs any situation as much as he can in his favor. It’s brilliant, but when a crisis happens, he doesn’t know how to deal with it effectively. He panics and flounders; becomes indecisive at a time when clear, decisive action is required. 

Enter Gyu-ri. She quickly becomes the partner he never knew he needed. When there’s a situation, she becomes invaluable in her quick thinking and wit, coming up with solutions on the fly. It’s not perfect, but it keeps them just one small step ahead of whatever is coming their way. 

The only thing preventing them from becoming unstoppable is the lack of communication and trust they have with each other. A lot of that has to do with how Gyu-ri entered Ji-soo’s business - she blackmailed him first, and, when that failed, she strong armed her way into getting him to accept her help. It’s implied in the drama that Ji-soo has had a crush on Gyu-ri for a while (since ninth grade, I believe) and in the first episode he actually gets the chance to spend time with her outside of school on a sort of quasi-date. 

It goes sideways pretty quickly because of some shenanigans from his business, but not before she gets to know him and says some pretty touching words regarding his situation. Poor guy is head over heels - even after finding out that she’s the one blackmailing him, his feelings are only dampened, not extinguished. When he catches a glimpse of her family’s situation, he gains a deeper understanding of her and why she acts the way she does. Even more importantly, Ji-soo treats her the same after finding out this information which, to someone like Gyu-ri, means more than if he comforted her about it. 

If you want to see a physical representation of how he feels, other than paying attention to his actions, you can see it in him keeping mementos from Gyu-ri. She has an interesting habit of folding bags into origami shapes and giving it to him. Even after the blackmail reveal, you can see that he continues to keep these in a container on his desk. It’s really cute that he keeps these, when it probably doesn’t even matter that much to Gyu-ri. 

Towards the end of the drama, Ji-soo prepares to turn himself in to prevent Gyu-ri from being implicated in the crimes they committed. And it costs him almost everything to protect her. Ji-soo, the quiet, nerdy kid, puts himself on the line time and time again to protect Gyu-ri, knowing that it puts his life and his dream at risk to do so. And all for what? For some girl that he thinks doesn’t even like him in return? 

Well, let’s talk about that. Because I’ve seen some comments that Gyu-ri was only using Ji-soo for her own selfish gain. And I can agree that was how it was at the beginning for her; she definitely was only interested in acquiring money, like Ji-soo was, in order to achieve her own goal of being free from her parents. 

But, oh man, that is not what is motivating her at the end. 

It’s actually pointed out relatively early by some of her friends that it’s obvious that she likes Ji-soo more than he likes her. Understandably Ji-soo is keeping her at arms length from him given the whole recent blackmailing, so it would make sense that it looks that way. 

Further questioning reveals what she likes the most about him: 

“It’s not like I’m crazy about him. He’s fun. And amusing. He’s smart. And there’s a certain charm he has. He also has a wolfish side to him. But he thinks he’s a puppy.” 

- Bae Gyu-ri

But, as she gets to know Ji-soo better, you can certainly see that she starts to fall hard for him. As a cover story for why they hang out so much together during and after school, Gyu-ri states to everyone that they’re dating. The reactions across the school definitely imply that this is a shocking development, which means that Gyu-ri hasn’t dated anyone before. So why Ji-soo other than the reasons she herself states? 

He challenges her, just as she challenges him. Gyu-ri may be the more dynamic, quick thinking of the pair but Ji-soo is every inch her intellectual equal - just in different ways. She doesn’t seem to be the type to be easily impressed, but you can tell that she’s definitely impressed by Ji-soo’s operation and how thoroughly set up it is. When Ji-soo is frustrated at the beginning by his setbacks, he blows up at another student (knocks him out in a crazy punch) and immediately walks over to Gyu-ri afterwards (who saw the whole thing) to inform her that she is now his partner in crime. 

The look in her eyes, and the small smirk she has speaks volumes about her attraction to him in that scene. Smoldering. 

And, oh yes, she’s prone to jealousy. Another classmate, Min-hee, gives Ji-soo a present out of the blue (it was supposed to be for her boyfriend, Ki-tae, but that’s another sub-plot) - all within view of Gyu-ri. It’s hilarious how she tries to brush it off. Later, for plot reasons, Ji-soo has to spend more time with Min-hee which only furthers Gyu-ri’s annoyance. 

And her motivations stop being entirely about the money and more towards helping preserve the dream that she and Ji-soo share about being free. There’s a scene in episode 8 where it’s revealed that, due to a business partnership with a local gang (set up by none other than Gyu-ri herself in a desperate move), Ji-soo would have to drop out of school permanently to work on their behalf. Gyu-ri overhears this and, despite badly needing the gang’s help in sustaining their own business, immediately terminates the partnership. 

All because it would interfere with Ji-soo’s dream. 

Man, if that isn’t love. 

In the following episode, Gyu-ri, and later on Ji-soo, is kidnapped by the same gang in retaliation for terminating their partnership. Ji-soo comes to her rescue but Gyu-ri is already almost free (again, she’s really, really badass) and is demanding that they bring Ji-soo to her instead of running for her life. 

Surviving this latest attempt puts the two in a reflective, vulnerable mood and Gyu-ri asks Ji-soo why he keeps saving her. Ji-soo asks later on why she keeps risking her life to be with him. They don’t say the answer in words but in an almost kiss (yeah, you read that right - almost). 

And then, if you aren’t already convinced, Ji-soo crosses his one last remaining line in an effort to keep Gyu-ri safe; he accidentally pushes a fellow classmate down some steps and, instead of helping her, leaves her to die after grabbing the evidence she has on him and Gyu-ri. 

Extracurricular pulls off quite the magic trick here, hiding this well done love story in the middle of a serious crime drama. 

The real tragedy is that Ji-soo thinks that Gyu-ri views this whole business, and by extension his life, as one big game. It’s something that she takes offense at, visibly becoming upset when he says that. 

But even if that were true, he should be assured since Gyu-ri doesn’t like to lose. 

As they hurtle towards the end and face up to the consequences of their actions, Ji-soo and Gyu-ri undoubtedly lose sight of their original goals and dreams. They do some fairly horrible things to stay alive and ahead of the police who are close on their trail. You can’t really blame them for doing what they did; in the face of a society that has abandoned them, what they’re doing is a logical outcome to gain what they want so desperately and deserve so much: the chance to be free to live like normal, care-free people. 

I can’t say for certain that they achieve that. The drama is serious in consequences and, at the end, the net around them is drawing tighter and tighter. I won’t spoil the ending scene for you, because I highly encourage you watch this drama yourself but I will say this: Ji-soo and Gyu-ri seem stuck in an impossible situation with nowhere to go, and no one to help them, with a clock ticking down towards either death or discovery by the police. 

But, all the same, I’m always the optimist. They’ve gotten through situations like this before and they can certainly do so again. Maybe not as bad as this one, but not too far out of their league. And, like I mentioned before, Gyu-ri doesn’t like to lose. Especially when it comes to Ji-soo. 

Their relationship is truly dangerous, as Ji-soo himself notes. Them being together is the source of their problems; they’re too much alike now, as opposed to the beginning of the drama where he stated that they’re too different. Their love is the kind of love where both of them are willing to burn the whole world down if it means keeping each other safe. 

I’m a real sucker for those kind of love stories. No one’s a hero here. They’re just kids in high school, doing the best with what they know. 

Who are we to judge what is right and wrong? Especially when the one committing the acts are high school kids who don’t know any better and just want to save each other? 

Do we have that right? 

Do they really deserve that punishment? Shouldn’t we be pointing fingers at the society that forced them to act this way? 

Extracurricular really makes you think about that. Is it really so outlandish and terrible what Ji-soo and Gyu-ri do to survive when the adults who are supposed to be protecting them, teaching them better, have failed in their duty? 

Maybe they really did win at the end. Not so much in succeeding in their goals but in gaining something that not even regular people are likely to find - a partner, a soulmate, someone who will stand by you no matter what. 

If you do watch the ending, and are not an optimist like I am, then all I can say is this: whatever happened, they were together at the end. 

They were together.