#and full of personality as a main character!!

[beingatoaster]

Re: how you skip a section and keep on writing: you determine enough about the skipped section's progression to know what the next point will be, and then start at that next point, without sorting out the exact details of that progression. E.g., for the aforementioned WIP, I have a written section where two characters wrap up a date they went on together and agree on the date for the next one, a scene break, a couple notes in the style of the OP about what scenes I want in the week in between, another scene break, and then I start back to writing in full narrative form about the second date.

...I was starting to describe it vaguely but hey, you will recognize the fandom, so:

As if setting that plan was a cue, Diluc starts to clean up the remains of the picnic, and Jean leans in to help him. He takes the two boxes the skewers had come in and carefully divides all the food out between them, handing one to Jean before tucking the other into his basket, and rises to offer Jean his hand. She lets him help her up. Together, comfortably discussing their tortoises, they head back to Mondstadt. *** [her evening with Barbara! maybe could lead to the 'keep Barbara from coming along' later on] [Kaeya is doing things to try and make the situation up to her, which Jean can tell he's doing and wants him to stop -- second Kaeya scene, with him taking work, moves here] *** On her next day off, Jean rises with a refreshing sense of anticipation. She picks through her civilian wardrobe for something practical for the trek down Drunkard's Gorge and wrangling tortoises. Even if it has to be practical clothing, though, it's nice to plan for this trip without automatically donning her uniform.

Now, those notes in the middle aren't clear here because I already know what tensions I'm pushing with these scenes (the main plot is Jean dating Diluc out of hanahaki-based obligation; Barbara is oblivious and happy for her, while Kaeya talked Jean into doing this but is now very guilty about it) and thus I don't need to describe them in more detail to myself. But I know what they are, I know what they're doing, and I don't need to know the exact wording of the dialogue or the exact actions taken in them right now to move on with the main-focus relationship, which is Jean and Diluc and the slow-motion train crash that is occurring between them.

And because said slow-motion train crash is the main driver of the plot, I can skip the side-character scenes for now because as long as I know what they're doing in the larger scheme of things (adding friction to the wheels such that individual cars on this train are beginning to tilt under the pressure), I can go back and fill in the exact details later. The Barbara scene needs to have her induce guilt in Jean about the lie. The Kaeya scene needs to emphasize that their relationship is under strain, leading later to Jean not being willing to trust him with a future plot development. I can write the guilt and the reluctance into later scenes knowing that in the second draft, they'll have a basis.

(I would bet every single example in OP's work is not a "I have no idea what goes here," it's a "I know that X needs to be here for Y reasons," but the note, like my notes, is just a placeholder in the text for that line/scene's actual story-function as they have it in their head.)

Also, a smaller within-scene example that works the same way:

"Thank you," Jean says again, less formally, a tightness in her throat. She hesitates there, not sure what else to say, what else she *can* say without further thinning the line she has to walk. Diluc solves the problem for her. "You'll have to handle the clean-up personally to be sure it's done right," he says, and that sounds irritable, this time, but at least his irritation isn't at her. "I'll do a final sweep for any stragglers. I expect managing other Knights' incompetence will take you the rest of the night." [some transition that DOESN'T include negging the Knights, that makes her think of the flower and/or how they're focused on the same goals] "Wait," Jean says, as he turns away.

I can figure out the exact dialogue I want to put there later--what matters is knowing what it does to move the story forward. Since I know what effect it will have, I was able to carry on with that scene and into the next one it effects without getting bogged down in the exact verbiage, which wasn't coming to mind at the moment.

So I guess the point is, you can leave blanks to fill in later as long as you know what those blanks do. Scenes/moments in a story are links in a chain, and you can always temporarily loop some baling twine in to connect lengths of a chain together until you have time to go to the store and buy a replacement, but that doesn't mean you aren't continuing the chain. I still think of myself as writing this story in order! It's just got a lot of baling twine in it right now because if I stop to go to the store while counting links, I will lose all forward momentum and won't continue on down the chain.

...Which is, to be clearer, why I'm suggesting trying this for motivation problems. The moment I hit friction when I'm writing a first draft, my motivation starts to die. On the other hand, once I have a finished first draft (by which I mean, still with these notes and unwritten bits scattered through, but with all the main scenes written and a solid ending), going back and writing those bits is not "friction" but "enrichment." Which may also prove true for you.

Or it may not! Your approach to writing is fine if it's working for you! Or if the reason it's not working for you is because something completely different is tripping you up and you need to troubleshoot from that direction. I'm just talking on and on about my approach because it's the only thing I know that works for me, and also I love navel-gazing. XD;; Hopefully you can find something that works for you!

me: yeah I'm pretty close to finishing this fic

the fic:

[impsandstars]

Communication through dance

One of my absolute favorite tropes is when some form of dancing is involved between the main characters.

Moments where one of the main characters has to watch their love interest dance with someone else (looking at you Apology Tour).

Moments where the main characters dance but they are currently on rocky ground, unsure of where they stand with the other person (looking at you Sinsmas).

Dancing is one of those socially acceptable forms of prolonged touch that always create great moments of revelations or moments of connection; newfound potential or reaffirming something that has been there all along.

The scene of them dancing at the end of Sinsmas is much more than just their verbal exchanges. First and foremost the fact that Blitz asked Stolas to dance at all instead of going back inside (even when Stolas was like it’s okay, I’m good, go enjoy the holiday) says a lot. Blitz cares about him so much, wants him to be happy even though he knows life is a dumpster fire for him right now. And maybe he is also making up for the fact that he didn't get to dance with Stolas at Verosika's party (and saw Stolas react as if he had never been asked before). It's a relatively safe way to show his affection for Stolas without it being taken as too intimate or sexual. Stolas could back down if he wanted to, say no thank you, which allows him to have some agency.

Then we get to the actual dancing. It’s not just swaying back and forth, head on shoulders so they can’t see each others faces. They are moving as if they have done this dance before. Seamlessly changing hands, twirling, steps fluid (Blitz doesn’t even once miss his footing on the thin railing) and staring right into each others eyes.

They fall back into a routine, semi-flirting, touching and holding each other because they are familiar with the others body and how it moves.

And the dip! Stolas laughing! His little leg lift!! It was a moment of connection for them, soft, transcending them to a moment where all their worries have been swept aside and they just have each other. A subtle reminder of the way they were before, of the ease with which they work together.

Then, THEN, we get to the end, breathing slightly elevated, eyes widening and staring at each other lips (this is my favorite moment of any dancing trope, the realization that 'woah now, there is something here; I can’t stop gazing deeply into your eyes'). They both realize at the same moment that that spark between them hasn't fizzled out just yet. The potential for more is still there.

But Blitz, my beautiful lizard man, knows that he needs to take this slow, that jumping into anything more right now is moving too fast. There is still so much that needs to be figured out and healed. So he ends their dance with a hug. Comfort and love. Ugh these two.

And all of it is done under the warm glow of a full moon. (Or is that the portal to heaven?) Either way it’s implied that they are dancing under the full moon. And of course the lyrics (Sam Haft I see you) "truer love is hard to find".

[astroeleanor]

Zodiac Signs Who Will Be The Main Characters of 2025 🏆✨🎉

🎄✨ Can you believe it? Christmas is around the corner, and guess what? Just like every year, I’m thrilled to offer Astrology + Tarot Xmas Bundles.

🎁 This season, I have an exclusive offer for you! Two Readings for the Price of One! Ready to align with the stars? TAP HERE to get yours.

🥇 PISCES (Moon, Rising, Chart Ruler)

SATURN IN PISCES (January 2025-May 2025) + (September 2025-February 2026):

Taking responsibility for your life, focusing on personal growth, developing resilience, defining who you are on your own terms, building a solid foundation for the future, turning your visions into reality.

VENUS & MERCURY RETROGRADE IN PISCES (Retrograde Overlap from March 14th 2025-March 24th 2025):

An important moment for reflection, taking a closer look at your relationships and the ways you communicate, revisiting old connections, rediscovering forgotten passions, slowing down to realign with your inner truth.

LUNAR ECLIPSE IN PISCES (September 7th 2025):

A powerful moment of culmination and transformation, sudden shifts and insights about your identity and personal path, shedding what’s holding you back so you can step into your next chapter with purpose.

🥈 ARIES (Moon, Rising, Chart Ruler)

SATURN IN ARIES (May 24th 2025 - September 1st 2025):

The beginning of a new cycle in your personal growth, taking responsibility for your goals, stepping into a leadership role in your life, confronting self-doubt, maturing or redefining your sense of self.

NEPTUNE IN ARIES (March 30th 2025-October 22nd 2025):

A wave of inspiration and imagination, dream big and align your actions with a higher sense of purpose, reconnecting with your intuition and spiritual potential, reimagining who you are and how you present yourself to the world, visionary thinking, taking inspired action.

As Saturn dips back into Pisces (September 2nd 2025-February 14th 2026), you’ll revisit some emotional or spiritual themes from the past to tie up any loose ends. This reflective period will prepare you for the full-on Saturn in Aries experience (starting on February 15th 2026-April 13th 2028), where you’ll step into greater authority and responsibility.

🥉 GEMINI (Moon, Rising, Chart Ruler)

JUPITER IN GEMINI (May 26th 2024-June 8th 2025):

A year of personal growth, stepping into your confidence, expanding your horizons, embracing the best version of yourself, discovering what makes you shine and leaning into it, feeling more open to explore new ideas or even physical experiences, an excellent time for networking and claiming the spotlight.

URANUS IN GEMINI (July 7th 2025-November 7th 2025):

A preview of revolutionary changes to your identity, the urge to break free from old roles or expectations, reinventing yourself, adopting a new look, a shift in how you express yourself, taking center stage in your own life, redefining who you are, reclaiming your narrative. Consider this your “trailer” for the personal evolution and breakthroughs ahead. This energy will play out fully starting on the 26th of April 2026.

🎖 CANCER (Moon, Rising, Chart Ruler)

JUPITER IN CANCER (June 9th 2025-June 30th 2026):

Amplified confidence and sense of self, focusing on personal growth, improving your self-image, taking bold steps toward your goals, a renewed sense of purpose and an inner glow that others can’t help but notice.

SATURN IN ARIES (May 24th 2025 - September 1st 2025):

Confronting situations where you need more courage and determination, feeling the pressure to balance ambitions with your emotional needs, a period of setting boundaries and taking responsibility for your future, stepping into a more structured, ambitious version of yourself without losing your emotional depth.

🏅VIRGO (Moon, Rising, Chart Ruler)

ECLIPSES IN VIRGO (March 29th 2025, September 21st 2025):

A year of personal reinvention, pivotal moments where you’re inspired to redefine your personal goals, a fresh chapter, prioritizing your needs and embracing your strengths.

SATURN IN PISCES (January 2025-May 2025) + (September 2025-February 2026):

Taking responsibility for your life, making tough decisions, a test of boundaries in relationships, reevaluation of partnerships, dealing with external pressure, assessing who you are, what you want, and how you show up in the world, letting go of limiting beliefs.

[autisticshadowthehedgehog]

yes the plants take the gem but what does that have to do with sonic and tails can you explain I'm very intrigued

i'm assuming you're referring to this post!

In the anime Sonic X, the third season was dedicated to a completely original story. (also obligatory "please watch the subbed version, the dubbed version got censored heavily" mention) The spoiler-free version is that group of aliens in fucked-up robot armor, led by Dark Oak, descend on Mobius to try and steal the Chaos Emeralds. In attempt to save the universe from these freaks, Super Sonic scatters the emeralds across the galaxy before crashing to the planet (he's fine tho). The aliens, known as the Metarex, then attack the planet and steal something from its core, causing the plants to slowly wither and die.

Around this time, a refugee from space crashes on the planet, looking for Sonic. An anthropomorphic plant, her name is Cosmo and she is the last survivor of her race after the Metarex attacked her ship. She knows Sonic as the only person who can control the chaos emeralds, and begs him to help defeat the Metarex. Turns out these guys have been planet-hopping and genociding as they go, but their main goal is to steal the Planet Egg, which is a magic thing at the core of each planet that keeps it alive and thriving. She currently doesn't know what they're using them for but it's not for anything good. And, well, now they're hunting chaos emeralds... and, as we find out later, making fake ones.

Tails happens to have a spaceship so the whole gang goes into space to fight the Metarex. This takes up the entire season and it fucks severely. Again, the English dub was heavily censored; the og Japanese has constant death and shit. In the last of the spoiler-free bits, I will say that if you have ever heard of "Dark Sonic"... this is where he appears.

The entire season is extremely dark but extremely well-written, which makes it very popular in the fanbase. Ian Flynn has previously stated he wanted to adapt this arc to comic but Sega wouldn't let him; us seeing the Chaos Emerald surrounded by plants, along with fake chaos emeralds and Dark Sonic-implications, is making us wonder if Sega's let up and we might get this arc after all.

Now, spoiler version, though I really do suggest you watch the subbed version of this season bc it's a fucking masterpiece:

We find out late in the season that Cosmo and the Metarex are the same species. In this species, the sexual dimorphism is a different "final stage" of their life cycle. The "male" plant-creatures enter their final stage as basically a kaiju, in order to defend their society from threats; the "female" final stage is turning into a giant fuckin tree in order to reproduce with seeds. The downside is that once you enter this final stage, it is FINAL, and you die shortly after.

However, when their planet was attacked by an unseen threat (it's never clarified, but a lot of people theorize it to be the Black Arms considering Shadow 05 was about to drop), they were all about to get wiped tf out. Dark Oak started experimenting with the Planet Egg in order to stay permanently in kaiju version without dying. His wife, Earthia (or "Ashia" in Japanese, but it just translates to "Earthia") is fucking horrified that he's fucking with the life of their planet like this. While he convinces the "males" to join his side, Earthia escapes with the girls and bombs their planet to kill Dark Oak and his new monsters. They survive though, and Dark Oak starts leading them to steal more planet eggs.

Turns out their plan is to use the power of the eggs and chaos emeralds (fake or real) to do a full-scale attack on the entire fucking universe, which will kill all animal-people and turn every planet into overgrown plants. We actually see some characters from a Shadow one-off episode being killed and violently turned into trees in one scene. Fucked up. That's what they want to do to everything.

And Cosmo? Well she didn't just happen to be a survivor; turns out Dark Oak spared her from the attack on her ship, semi-possessed her in order to spy through her eyes and ears, and yeeted her down to Mobius. He's been using her to spy on the Sonic Crew this entire time, against her will and without her knowledge. It fucks everyone up a WHOLE lot.

Anyway there's like a three-part finale where Super Sonic and Super Shadow are desperately trying to keep these fuckers from Mass Genociding. Finally, Cosmo realizes that she's the only one who can stop this and sacrifices herself; she goes into her Final Stage, turning into a tree but trapping Dark Oak in there with her (it's a long story, he kinda turned into a meteor). She then appears to Tails, the ship captain, and tells him to fucking shoot her to kill both her and Dark Oak, saving the galaxy.

The problem is, Tails and Cosmo have had a bit of a romance over the course of the season. It's been fucking adorable, and Tails became extremely protective of her after Shadow tried to kill her (long story). There's an uncomfortably drawn-out scene (and I mean that in the best way) where Tails is like. Emotionally broken and trying to figure out any way to do this without killing Cosmo. Eventually, he has to give in and fucking shoot her, blowing her and Dark Oak up. It saves the galaxy but traumatizes the hell out of him.

Super Sonic and Shadow contain the blast, and Super Shadow chaos-controls it away and disappears (this is likely bc they were setting up for the Sonic Heroes arc, where Shadow would have to appear out of nowhere again). When Sonic returns to the ship, Tails meets with him, desperate for him to say he saved the day last-minute and brought Cosmo back. Instead, all Sonic could find was a single seed– considering how the Metarex reproduce, it's probably Cosmo's child, but it's never clarified. This causes Tails to have a complete fucking breakdown.

The season p much ends there. They show everyone starting to heal on Mobius, have a bit where the anime-exclusive character Chris has character development and leaves to go home, and then go "and now we're going to have more adventures!! yay!!" before panning to a potted plant in Tails's workshop, showing that the seed has sprouted.

As I said, it's very dark, but VERY good, and thus we all really really hope that it's what Sonic IDW is building up to. They've been building up fake Chaos Emeralds, Tails blaming himself for things outside of his control, and Sonic being 110% done. I didn't even get into the Dark Sonic stuff, cause it only appears briefly in one episode and then is never mentioned again, which you'd think would be bad writing but no it just raises so many questions and you know that was what was intended by it.

The arc is really beloved but because it only appeared in a 2005 anime (which was heavily censored in English, and the og Japanese didn't air officially until a couple years ago), not a huge chunk of the fanbase knows about it. Which means we really want to share it and get more people into it and how good a character Cosmo is. So yeah that's what we're excited for.

[twomiddlefingersforthehaters]

Masashi Kishimoto Naruto Art Book (part-6)

This is a piece where I was able to really show Naruto's personality in his pose and expression. I'm super pleased that I managed to draw something truly Narutoesque. The tension in the arrangement of Kakashi and Obito is also great. It isn't often that the entire composition works this well, so it's my favorite.

It was fun drawing all of them as kids. I really like the contrast of adult Obito and child Obito facing different directions, indicating that his path and focus changed.

I like this one a lot, because you can really feel Nine Tails' immense size and Naruto's mischievousness. I had fun drawing it because of the visual gimmick. I had forgotten that if you look closely, you can see Kakashi, Sakura and Sai.

Enough people told me this was good that I started thinking so myself... Yeah. (LOL) But it was nice to illustrate a scene of family life, particularly because I didn't have many opportunities to draw something like that.

I thought that Naruto was still too young to wear banana hammocks, so I ended up with this. When I actually tried to draw it, it creeped me out. Making Sakura wear a bikini was kind of embarrassing, so I opted for the shorts for her too.

I drew this picture of Naruto, Kakashi and Sakura lined up to show how much each of them have grown

This picture of Sasuke appeared as part of a composition for a Shonen Jump front cover alongside images of Naruto and Gaara. Due to space considerations, I ended up drawing Sasuke in a long, vertical pose. One problem here was whether or not the sword Sasuke's holding would fit in the scabbard--- I remember I had to carefully measure the length of both the sword and the scabbard. Also, the picture appeared somewhat plain alter coloring it, so I made Sasuke's sash red. Because of that detail, this may be a pretty rare picture of Sasuke.

Cherry blossoms in full bloom...it's springtime in Kanohagakure. My concept for this picture was the characters having a cherry blossom viewing party, so I gave them some objects to suggest that. Naruto has a drinking cup, Sasuke has a Japanese musical instrument, and Sakura has a bento box containing rice dumplings and other foods. Fun, lots of fun. Kakashi was...actually kind of a distraction in this one. But I felt bad for him and decided to leave him in (laugh). And I showed that there's a breeze by drawing the cherry blossom petals as if they are being blown. It feels good when I can make the wind blow in a picture.

I wanted to keep this picture looking like a pencil sketch. I lightly colored in the already fully shaded pencil drawing, I tested out a method of using two similar colors for each character's hair, skin and clothes, and another similar-toned pair of colors for the background. I tried to make the picture look three-dimensional by changing the level of contrast in these colors. I made one large mistake though I forgot to draw Ino's earrings (laugh).

Team Asuma was the main focus in this volume. It makes Naruto look like a side character...

[plurapony]

Introjects. Let's Talk.

There are SO many assumptions based on introjects. It seems many believe that in order to have an introject of a character you must know absolutely everything about the character, you must be going through horrific trauma, introjects must be one to one of the character and that is extremely rare to have introjects in the first place.

All of these assumptions are (obviously) BALONEY!

Splits are caused by ANY stress/trauma. They are negatively induced but they also can be for very mild reasons, it all comes down to YOUR brain and whether you have a low or high split tolerance. It simply happens whenever there is a problem your brain needs to fix and none of your parts/alters would fit to role required, your brain will then create a new one! And sometimes it happens to take inspiration from someone that already exists either in fiction or the real world - it's really not that revolutionary, quite simple actually. And I have a hypothesis that autistic people have a higher rate of introjects due to inability to conceptualize but unfortunately no research has been done as of yet so.

For this particular post I want to introduce you to three of our parts. Adrian (he/she), Ash (they/he/she) and Kaya (she/her). All three of these parts are introjects that are based purely on perception rather than what is canon!

Adrian is an introject of the character Rookie from Club Penguin. As we never ventured into the lore of the penguins in the game, our brain made assumptions based on appearance. Adrian's main role in the system is to be silly and lighthearted - to just be unapologetically himself.

Ash is an introject of the character Ashley Graves from The Coffin of Andrew and Leyley. This is a game we have never played and know very little about! However it is a game our wife enjoys and we had seen the image of Ashley a lot. During the time Ash split we were feeling a lot of pressure to be good, to be sober, to work full-time and Ash split to rise against that and remove some of the overwhelming emotions we were experiencing. Our brain again made assumptions based on the characters appearance and that was what worked for us!

Kaya is an introject of the character Kayo Majiba from Machimaho: I Messed up and Made the Wrong Girl into a Magical Girl! We've never read the manga she is from and have only seen some panels, but apparently that was enough for our brain! Still relatively new compared to the other two but we believe she exists to be a pure ball of rage that just wants the world to burn.

INTROJECTS ARE SO NUANCED! They can be exactly like the character they are sourced from, they can be nothing like the character they are sourced from! You can have watched every single piece of media of their source, or watched none at all! There shouldn't be such in the box assumptions made about a category that is so wide!!!

And to everyone out there that has introjects that don't act like the pre-existing character/person they have introjected from, have introjects of a character from a media you have never partaken in, or anything else that goes against the norm of what is assumed about introjects - please never forget your validity. Someone else's misconceptions about how the disorder works will never be a valid reason for fakeclaiming.

Introjects in general! Your existence shouldn't be questioned based on dumb presumptuous opinions online!

[devilith]

crazy how this unhinged rant manages to not only be objectively wrong, but also somehow queerphobic and misogynistic all at the same time. wild

mc is NOT a "total pushover" there are many many cases where you get to directly call out the brothers bullshit to their faces. the characters DO apologize for shit, just not at every single opportunity for every single slight up to your personal expectations. its almost like they are flawed characters. its almost like theyre DEMONS. its almost like them not being wholesome, pure, untrained, and virtuous is literally the entire fucking point

obey me has never been "aimed at women" and the players pronouns have ALWAYS been they/them in the game from day fucking one. no idea why youre lying about "getting to change mcs pronouns later on" because that has literally never been a thing, not ever. the people who made the game have explicitly said that they made the decision to have a genderless protagonist early on in development and that inclusivity was their main goal. the only reason obey me gets classified as an otome game is because the love interests are all men. the player is not not supposed to be a woman and the game has been intentionally, deliberately aimed at men, enbies, and queer people in general since before it even came out. shut the fuck up about this "ultimate female fantasy" about men groveling because youre talking out of your ass. thats some radfem terf shit and you have no fucking idea what youre talking about

"ooohhhh the world is full of nasty evil male cruelty, and the pure angelic afab girls are desperate to have their suffering eased by anime characters prostrating themselves" this is actually so hilariously bad i dont even know where to start. shut the entire fuck up forever

women are not pure, wholesome, simpering angels and men are not ontologically evil monsters. shove your disgusting bioessentialist and genderessentialist radfem terf shit up your ass. afab ≠ women, and dont fucking erase and speak over obey mes VAST audience of men, trans folk, enbies, queers, etc

the obey me characters HAVE growth and development, youre just too fucking stupid to read the words that the game puts in front of your face

the reason why "theyre demons" is an irrefutable argument that you cant counter is because THEY ARE LITERALLY FUCKING DEMONS and their flawed negative character aspects ARE THE ENTIRE FUCKING POINT. you cant just disregard the fact that theyre demons as if thats just a piece of bad writing, ITS LITERALLY THE ENTIRE POINT OF THE FUCKING GAME. theyre SUPPOSED to shitty, bad people. if that doesnt please your delicate sensibilities then play a different game

"oh, those poor stupid afab women are too corrupted by the fictional anime demons. obviously theyre just coping because they dont know whats good for them and theyre too dumb to understand the themes of an anime mobile game. those helpless, incapable girls need me to be their divine savior and tell them whats actually good for them, otherwise theyd never even know what they REALLY want. they need me, a misogynistic radfem, to utterly police their every thought for their own good"

you should be fucking ashamed and embarrassed

stop writing fucking call out posts for fictional anime characters as if theyre real fucking people causing harm in the real world. this is the most egotistical, performative bullshit just for you to play moral police over how random strangers play a god damn mobile game. you are a fucking joke

I think why we all feel unsatisfied with Obey Me is honestly just the lack of accountability or closure on ANY conflict. The characters are never really held responsible for any of the shit they do to MC, MC is a total pushover who endlessly forgives them, and we never, NEVER get a single apology.

It doesn't matter how suave or romantic they make any of the boys: the most vital requirement of any romance aimed at women (because OM was originally written for a female protag even if they let you change pronouns later) is The Grovel. The ultimate female fantasy is accountability.

In a world awash with male cruelty in our daily lives, what so many AFAB players ache for in romance media is just an apology, an honest to god admittance of "I hurt you. I'm sorry."

The most beautiful phrasing of the Grovel Trope I've ever seen is this post:

--and it's the mark that Obey Me just fails to hit over and over. Real growth means accountability and there is none.

What I see behind every "well thEy're dEmoNs" and "if they were NiCE wouldn't it be boRiNG?!?" is a lot of AFAB people learning to cope with never getting the real satisfaction they crave.

[dollarstoreartsupplies]

i’m a little late to this but i’d love to hear your hc’s for any of the main npmd characters!!! (especially grace or pete!!)

oooooohhhh baby hell yeah hell yeah

hyper specific pete headcanons:

sits crammed into the tiniest ball possible, like, full knees to chest, arms wrapped around shins, hunched tiny -- he's so damn tall that it looks WILD but he Cannot and Will Not Sprawl

left handed, but very aggresive about it, he owns literally every left handed tool; scissors, notebooks, etc..

really only likes sweets, he has to actively make himself to eat shit that isn't just insanely sugary (and, like, he doesn't hate everything savory) but if he didn't need it to survive i dont think he'd eat anything but desserts

really good dancer techncially, but he has a ton of trouble doing anything artistic with his movement or expressions

always cold at all times forever

cannot and will not get his drivers license

grace:

in love with esther from veggie tales

loves cutesy things like sanrio and strawberry shortcake from an aesthetic standpoint but she doesn't ever really buy anything specifically branded, and refuses to go into stores like hot topic where they'd sell it becuase she think's they're satantic

her and her parents always watch old movies from the 40's and 50's when things were 'simpler' and more 'wholesome' (a lot of the very rauchy innudendos packed into said movies go right the fuck over her head)

she's one of those girls who in, like, 6th grade decided she wanted really neat handwriting, so she practiced that specific handwriting that's all round and cutesy and even

she uses a tinted lip balm and feels really rebellious about it (and slightly guilty)

loves those grandma strawberry candies

has a really, deeply, intensely curated pintrest and NO OTHER SOCIAL MEDIA

steph:

dyed her hair that specific purple-red color in middle school that every cool, edgy tumblr girl did

she eats like a person who got her menu straight from tiktok, like takis, monster, airhead sour strips,,,,, she does think this makes her cool and unique

prefers ankle socks but she wears crew socks when it became clear people thought that they looked cooler

vapes the fruitests, most artifically flavored shit

she has not left the house without eyeliner on since she was 12

she plays guitar and sings really well (it's her mom's old guitar; her mom was a honey queen winner and handed her the guitar to hold onto for 'just a second' while she went to do things with roman murray,,,, she did Not Come Back)

her car keys are on a lanyard with 400 million key chains

ruth:

she loves primary colors and painting her nails bright, mismatched colors and fun patterns, so she owns a lot of fun clothes/makeup/nail polish, but she gets too into her own head about it and never wears it out of the house

the physical embodiment of waiting until everyone leaves the house and taking out her laptop to sing along to musical theatre karaoke tracks

misses popcorn so bad :(

big dc nerd, but she does love the marvel hero squirrel girl

her first 'porn' was gay newsies smut fanfic

she's a middle child (OBVIOUSLY), she has a little sister whose really sporty and popular (and she's really jealous of her) and an older sister whose in college (the older sister is the hatchetfield bee from tgwdlm)

she probably vaped once a theatre cast party and had a panic attack in the bathroom

richie:

bleaches and dyes his own hair So! Badly! like his forehead is blue constantly and it turns green in a day and every surface of his home is stained blue

has spent hours trying to get the marble out of a ramune bottle

inexplicably knows a lot bird facts

had a close up magic phase as a kid which does impact his current day

has a samsung with like four million phone charms

he's the friend with a car but good fucking lord he's a bad driver it's so bad for his two friends with anxiety disorders

horrible with money, he spent like all his bar mitzvah money in a day on like a thousand dollar gaming laptop and a really rare anime figurine

wants to be a streamer so bad

i feel like he's an oldest child but in the way where he's the older twin or something and then has one or two little siblings, like it's a very vauge version of oldest

pierced his own ears and it went badly

[lanawinterscigarettes]

Blair Waldorf dating a chubby gn reader

Warnings: mentions of body image issues/insecurites, mentions of eating disorders, some suggestiveness/references to sex

A/N: requested by me because I'm chubby and wanted to write something like this <3 if you guys ever want me to do headcanons like this for other characters feel free to let me know!

First and foremost just know that you being chubby would not bother Blair at all, nor would she ever make fun of you or judge you for it despite her usual cruel demeanor toward others

She knows firsthand what it's like to have people commenting on her body so she'd never want to make you feel bad about the way you look

If she ever found out you struggled with body image issues or disordered eating then she'd try her best to help you through it (even though she might not always seem like the most sympathetic person around she's pretty good at comforting you because of her own struggles with that kind of stuff before in the past)

No one, and I mean absolutely no one would ever be allowed to make any kind of snide comment or mocking taunt about your body without Gossip Girl getting a sudden tip sent in about said person

Blair is absolutely not above destroying other people's reputations if they ever make you feel bad

That includes servers at restaurants and assistants at clothing boutiques who think it's funny to mutter something snarky under their breath about what you look like (they soon find themselves without jobs, courtesy of Queen B herself)

Speaking of which, you never have to worry about running out of clothing because she's totally got you covered

Fashion is incredibly important to her and she knows how important it is to only wear things that you feel absolutely amazing in so naturally you're given a closet full of brand new clothes the second you start dating her

Everything is tailored to fit you perfectly, and she only picks out clothing for you to wear that she knows you'll enjoy and feel comfortable in (sometimes she even gives you some stuff that goes with her own outfits so you guys can match)

Her hands always tend to linger on any area of you that's particularly chubbier than the rest whenever she's cuddling with you or adjusting your clothing out of instinct, such as your stomach and thighs (those are also places that get special attention whenever she's placing kisses on your body during certain activities)

Adding onto that she absolutely praises you during sex and worships your body the same way she wants to be praised and worshipped herself because she definitely thinks you deserve it

Often there's not really a power imbalance or struggle so much as it is the two of you just taking the time to appreciate the beauty of each other's naked bodies as you pleasure each other

All in all Blair values your love and devotion for her above what you look like, which is something she always takes the time to remind you

End notes: these are a little short but I think they're pretty cute regardless <3

Likes < reblogs | comments are greatly appreciated | requests are currently open

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🏷 taglist: @missmewts @ghot-girl @gilmore-angel @pvnk-whvre @alexxavicry @noisy-dumb-piece-of-shit @theonetruepotato87 @caplanreblogsfics @samcvrpenters @bleachxbunny

[tessa-liam]

Royal Adventures 

Season’s Scrambles

Chapter 2 

Books: Choices, The Royal Romance Finale, Choices, The Royal Holiday 

A Smoke & Mirrors Series Alternate Universe 

Main Pairing: Liam Rys x F! MC Riley Brooks-Rys

Series Inspiration: Royal Misadventures, Smoke & Mirrors series 1-shot 

Series Premise: 12-year-old Crown Princess Eleanor Rys of Cordonia has officially started her Royal education. Tutors that had been personally selected by His Majesty King Liam Rys and Queen Riley Rys were set to begin her royal lessons, and her days were packed full. The young princess was a natural leader, and the King and Queen could not be prouder.   

Royal Adventures Masterlist 

Smoke and Mirrors Masterlist 

Rating:  M, not Beta'd-please excuse all errors    

Category: On-going series, fluff 

Warnings: swearing, drinking, sexual innuendo 

Most Characters belong to Pixelberry Studios 

Chapter Inspiration: National Lampoon’s ‘Christmas Vacation’ 

Katie Campbell – Theme Song 1989 

Royal Adventures 

Season’s Scrambles, chapter 2 

Chapter Summary: Olivia invites the Royal Family, Leo & Amalas, Drake & Delaney, Alex Cossoy, Hana and Maxwell to the Dukedom of Lythikos to enjoy the winter season for the holidays.  Ellie, along with Drake, Leo and Maxwell decide to have a sledding competition. In secret. Olivia and Ellie conspire to grease Maxwell's sled with a super slippery substance where his sled flies down the hill at an extremely fast speed. 

A/N: My submission for King Liam Appreciation Week 2024, Day 1 - Baklava 

A/N2: My submission for @choicesholidays, @angelascribbles -Week 5- Prompt: New Traditions 

A/N3: My submission for Choices December 2024 Challenge, Prompts: 4-Traditions/5-Baking/8-Spices/21-Tree/26-Hot Chocolate/10-Snow,      All I Want for Christmas is You (Mariah Carey) 

@lilyoffandoms 

Words: 2445

 Lythokis Keep, Lythokis, Cordonia 

Carefully laying out the phyllo dough, Riley hummed a Christmas tune as she started to layer the ingredients for Baklava for Liam. The sweet honey drizzle and cinnamon made her mouth water. The smell of his favorite dessert would draw him into the kitchens quickly. Luckily, he was off to fell a talon tree with Leo, Drake and Alex, having left at the crack of dawn, not expected to return until later in the afternoon. 

"Baklava?" 12-year-old Ellie asked, as she watched her mother gleefully preparing her father’s favorite sweet treat. Sitting on the stool next to her mother, Ellie sighed, “I love Baklava,” looking longingly at the sweet confection. 

"Of course you do," Riley chuckled, nudging her shoulder. "I'll try to save you some," as Riley continued to sprinkle chopped pistachios onto the dish. 

"Thanks, Mom!" 

"I want to lick the bowl." Stefan said, jumping up and down. 

"No way!" William cried. "You always get to lick the bowl, Steffie." 

"Stefan, you can't eat it all," Riley said, looking down at her youngest. "This is your dad's and he's going to be hungry after felling that tree." 

"But I love baklava," Stefan pouted, his eyes tearing up. 

Riley looked over at him, seeing the tears in his eyes. She knew that look anywhere. 

"Stefan, no..." she warned. 

"Please?" He begged. 

She shook her head, chuckling. 

"Go ahead." 

"Yessss!" Stefan cheered, leaping into the air. 

Riley grinned and finished placing the top layer. She took the pan and placed it into the oven. 

"So," she said, turning to look at her children. "What's on the agenda for today?" 

"Auntie Livie invited Micaela and I to go sledding," Ellie said.  

"Oh really? Okay, before you go, please help your brothers with their skates.” 

"Sure, Mom," Ellie nodded agreeably.  

Riley took a sip of her coffee and walked away to get herself dressed for the winter chill, leaving the kids to their own devices. 

"Alright, boys," Ellie said, walking over to them. 

"We wanna go sledding!" William whined. 

"I'll help you get your skates on," she said. "Then you can go sledding." 

"Promise?" 

“Yes, I promise." 

❄️❄️❄️ 

"Alright, boys," Maxwell said, standing in the middle of the ice rink with Hana and Amalas, holding his nephews' hands. "Are you ready to learn how to skate?" 

"Yes!" Stefan yelled. 

"No!" William cried. "It's cold out here." 

"You won't even notice once you get started," Hana said, kneeling next to him. 

"Really?" 

"Trust me." 

"Alright," William said, nodding. 

"Come on, you two," Riley said, taking their hands. 

"Mom," Ellie said, grabbing Riley's hand. 

"Hmm?" 

"When is Daddy coming back?" 

"In a few hours, sweetie," she replied, rubbing her arm. "He should be done by lunch time." 

"Ok." 

"Now," Riley said, standing on the ice and taking the twins' hands. "Let's go." 

"Wait," Stefan said, stopping. 

"What's wrong?" 

"How do we stay up?" 

"Don't worry," Hana said, sliding next to him and taking his hand. "We've got you." 

"I'm scared." 

"Just relax and don't think about it," Maxwell said. 

"Just like when you're walking," Riley said. 

"Just don't fall," Stefan nodded. 

"Stefan," William groaned, rolling his eyes. "Don't say that." 

"Why not?" 

"You'll jinx us." 

"How would I-" 

"Hey," Maxwell said, crouching in front of them. "Look at me. Do you know who I am?" 

"You're Uncle Maxwell," Stefan nodded. 

"Do you know that I'm not going to let you get hurt? Or your mom or your Aunt Hana?" 

"No." 

"And you trust me, right?" 

"Yeah." 

"Then you have nothing to worry about," Maxwell said, winking at him. 

"Okay." 

"Good." 

"I want to go with you, Auntie Hana!" Stefan said. 

"Me too!" William cried. 

"Ok, ok," Hana chuckled. 

As the twins began to glde with Hana, Riley looked up at Maxwell and smirked. 

"Race you." 

"Oh, you're on, queen Riles," Maxwell said, smirking back. 

They sped off across the ice, the kids squealing as they picked up speed. Amalas slid next to Hana, smirking. 

"How much did you bet on this?" 

"1000 euro," Hana smirked. 

"Excellent." 

Riley and Maxwell were neck and neck, their kids cheering from the sidelines. 

"Last lap, Beaumont," Riley breathily laughed. 

"Whatever helps you sleep at night, Ri," he responded cheekily. 

Riley laughed and sped up. She passed him and he tried to speed up as well but instead lost his balance and fell on his face. Riley burst into giggles, falling onto the ice as well. The twins cheered, hugging their aunt tightly. 

"You beat Uncle Maxwell!" 

"I told you, Mom's the best!" 

"Thank you, thank you," Riley chuckled, bowing. 

...Meanwhile, Olivia was preparing Maxwell's sled as Ellie watched closely.

"So, it's a secret sled?" Ellie asked.  "What are you spraying on the bottom of the disk? 

"This," Olivia said, holding up a can. 

"What's that?" 

"Graphite oil spray. It's not even for sale in the Capital. It's just something I had on hand." 

"Nice," Ellie grinned. 

"Now, we just spray it on the sled and voila." 

"It's not gonna look too obvious, right?" 

"Don't worry," Olivia said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "He won't know until he's already halfway down the hill.... and by then, it will be too late." 

"Perfect," Ellie said, clapping her hands together. 

"Now, we go over the plan again." 

"Exactly, good thinking." Olivia nodded. 

"And if it works, we get to win the bet with uncle Leo and uncle Drake? And they will have to be our personal butlers for a week?

"Yup." 

"But Uncle Drake and Uncle Leo will hate us forever." 

"Oh ... not forever," Olivia chuckled. "Just until the next competition. And they won't win that either. They will not be pleased." 

"This is mean." 

"It's a bit mean," Olivia cackled. 

"But I still think it's a great idea." 

"Good. Now, let's go over the plan again." 

❄️❄️❄️

As Liam, Leo and Alex was returning to the keep, the sun was setting and snow was falling gently from the sky. Riley and the kids were standing on the balcony of the grand suite, waiting for their arrival. 

"Look, boys," Riley said, pointing down the path. "There they are." 

"Where?" Stefan asked. 

"Right there." 

"Daddy!" William yelled. 

Liam looked up, waving to them. Riley and the kids waved back, the kids jumping up and down. 

"Daddy, Daddy!" They shouted. 

Liam walked noticeably faster, the other adults quickening their pace to keep up. He made it to the stairs, climbing them two steps at a time. Once he reached the top, the boys ran and leapt into his arms, hugging him tightly. 

"Hi, Daddy," Stefan said. 

"Hi, boys," Liam chuckled. "Have you been good?" 

"Uh-huh." 

"Yeah, Daddy." 

"I'm so glad." 

"Did you have fun, Dad?" Riley asked, leaning against the rail. 

"I did," he said, nodding. "Leo almost fell off a tree, but other than that, we had a lot of fun." 

"Uncle Leo almost fell?" 

"Yeah." 

"That's hilarious!" 

"You're telling me." 

"Come on, boys," Riley said. "Let's give your father a break and get him some hot chocolate." 

"Hot chocolate!" They yelled, running down the hall. 

"Ahhhh ... there is my beautiful bride." Liam placed a sweet kiss on her cheek as Riley wrapped her arms around his neck. 

"I can't believe this will be our first year spending the holidays here since after our wedding ... and that was our first holiday as a married couple." 

"What special traditions will you make this year, love." Liam wrapped his arms around her waist. 

"I'm ready to make some new traditions with you." 

"Oh yeah, I can't wait, love. So, what did you and the twins do while we were gone?" Liam asked. 

"Went ice skating." Riley grinned.

"Oh really?" 

"Maxwell taught the boys how to skate," Riley said. "He kept them occupied while Amalas, Hana and I had some girl time." 

"Sounds like fun." 

"It was. How was your time with the other men?" 

"It was interesting," Liam chuckled. "Alex and Leo tried to make a tree fort, but Alex fell through the roof." 

"Wow." 

"Yeah." 

"So," she said, stepping closer to him. "Did you bring home the prize?" 

"We did," he nodded. "A 20 foot talon tree." 

"Excellent." 

"Mm-hm," he murmured, leaning forward and kissing her. 

"Come on," Riley said, taking his hand and pulling him to the hall. "Let's get you warmed up. I have a surprise for you." 

"Ooh, what is it?" 

"If I tell you, it's not a surprise, your Majesty." 

"Fair point," Liam chuckled, following her down the grand staircase. 

Once they were in the kitchen, Liam's eyes landed on the counter. 

"Is that...?" 

"Baklava," Riley said matter of factly. 

"Really?" 

"Really," she nodded and smiled coyly. "Made it this morning. Our new holiday tradition: freshly baked, homemade baklava." 

"Oh, baby, you are the best," Liam sighed. 

"I know," Riley giggled. 

"Mom!" 

Riley turned and saw her sons walking into the room. 

"Daddy, do you want to come sledding with us?" William asked. 

"Can't," Liam said, picking up a slice of baklava. "I've got business to take care of." 

"Oh, please," Riley said, looking up at him. "Come play with us." 

"You don't have to convince me," he chuckled, popping another bite into his mouth. 

"Yay! Come on, Daddy!" 

"Ok, ok," Liam laughed. 

They put their jackets and boots on and walked outside. 

Olivia, Ellie, Micaela and Alex were standing on top of a snow hill planning the race, surrounded by lots of freshly fallen snow. Drake, Maxwell, Hana Delaney, were chatting and drinking Lythikos nog. Leo and Amalas met Liam, Riley, William and Stefan to take them to watch the race.

"Are you ready?" Olivia called, looking down the hill. 

"Bring it!" Drake yelled. 

"Oh, you're gonna get it!" Ellie shouted. 

"Alright, let's start this," Maxwell said, clapping his hands. 

"Who's racing?" Maxwell asked. 

"Me, you, Auntie Laney, and Uncle Drake," Ellie said, hopping up and down. 

"Oh," Maxwell said. "Then it's three against one." 

"Yeah," Olivia smirked. "I'm rooting for my niece." 

"Same here," Amalas chuckled. 

"Oh, boy," Maxwell groaned. 

"You've got this, Ellie!" Micaela cheered. 

"We'll win this," Delaney said. 

"Suurre, you will," Drake said. 

"Oh, we will," Ellie countered, nodding. 

Alex placed the circular discs in a line, 10 feet apart for Ellie, Maxwell, Drake, and Delaney.

Olivia and Ellie looked at each other, smirking. 

"On your mark," Alex said, "Get set. Goooooo!" 

They pushed their sleds down the hill, the cold air hitting their faces. Olivia looked over and saw Maxwell's sled was flying down the hill, far ahead of the others. She and Ellie looked at each other, laughing. 

"He's gonna crash," Ellie said. 

"He's not gonna stop," Olivia chuckled. 

"You're right," she sighed. "He's gonna wipe out." 

"Hopefully he'll learn his lesson." 

"What lesson?" 

"Never bet against us," Olivia smirked. 

"Yeah," Ellie chuckled. 

As they neared the bottom of the hill, Olivia saw Maxwell's sled skid off the side, sending him flying into the air.

Maxwell was having a blast, the speed at which he was barreling down the hill was exhilarating.

"Woo-hoo!" He yelled. "I'm flying!" 

"Not for long!" Ellie laughed. 

"Huh?" 

Suddenly, Maxwell's sled flew off the side, sending him tumbling into a snowbank. 

"Maxwell!" Riley cried out, running to him. 

"Ouch," he groaned. 

"What happened?" Liam asked. 

"I don't know. My sled just shot off the hill." 

"He's fine," Riley said. "I'm sure it's not the end of the world." 

"Yeah," Maxwell nodded. 

"Oh, man," Ellie chuckled, nudging Olivia. "Good thing they can't prove anything." 

"I agree," Olivia whispered. 

"You are a bad influence, Liv" Riley said, noticing their devious expressions 

"Maybe." 

"Alright," Drake said, stepping next to the snowbank. "Who wants a turn?" 

"I do!" Ellie cried, leaping into the snow. 

Liam stepped up and stopped his daughter from lifting the fast disc.

"Ellie, hold on a second," Liam said calmly. 

"Why, Daddy?" 

"Because that's not a toy, and it's dangerous." 

"I can handle it," Ellie said. 

"You need to be careful." 

"I will be." 

"No, Ellie. Just use the slower sled." 

"But-" 

"I won't tell you again." 

"Fiiinne," Ellie groaned, trudging over to the slower sled. 

"You know, Li, you never used to be so strict," Leo said, stepping next to him. 

"Well, times have changed." 

"True." 

"I can't risk her getting hurt." 

"Of course not," Leo nodded. "But she's your daughter. She's gonna want to try new things and get out of her comfort zone." 

"I'm aware." 

"So maybe let her have a little more freedom. It's not going to kill her." 

"I'll think about it." 

"Good. But remember, we did a lot of stuff we shouldn't have when we were kids." 

"Exactly.” 

@choicesficwriterscreations @choicescommunityevents @kingliamappreciationweek @choicesholidays @choicesmonthlychallenge @choicesdecember2024 @choicesprompts

📌tags in the comments

[thedirtiwalkoniswet]

I've talked in great detail about Ahsoka, Obi Wan and Acolyte, and while I've pointed out many details in Andor I loved, I haven't made a similar lengthy post about it. So get ready.

The writing, the strongest part of the show. Star Wars is so notorious for having bad writing that Andor is in very stark contrast to this. Arguable the most well written show I have ever watched. No other show has captivated me this much with it's dialogues/ monologues as Andor. So many lines stuck with me. I already made a post about my favorite parts, so I will keep it at that. Something that could be criticized, is that it is sometimes very heavy with preachy monologues. On the other hand is it so well written that I don't mind it at all. If it was written worse, it very much could be something to criticize.

It also doesn't hold your hand, it doesn't explain everything right away and you learn organically what they are talking about. It allows it to have a much greater rewatch value.

Next up, the characters. Every single character is full of personality, even when they only have 5 minutes of screen time, in matter of seconds you already know who they are, what purpose they serve, what relationship they have to each other. It's the combination of the fantastic writing and incredible acting. We also see the motivation behind every big decisions a character makes, nothing comes out of nowhere.

Many of the live action star wars shows suffer from having antagonists that feel flat and one dimensional, whose motives are shallow or none existent. When Syril was introduced, we understood why he's doing what he's doing. When Dedra was introduced, you find yourself rooting for her. It was such a genius introduction, seeing her react to the only other woman in the room speak. She is a minority in this room. You watch her fail to someone who in this moment seems more 'evil' than her, so you want her to win. And then you do watch her win, by being smart and cunning (something a lot of star wars villains are not). But then you realize that her winning means others have to suffer, Paak and Bix first and foremost. You don't root for her anymore.

There aren't just the good guys and the bad guys in Andor, they all have layers. Syril obviously belongs to the bad guys, but he doesn't know that, he believes he is doing the right thing. Luthen is ready to sacrifice many lives to destroy the empire. Almost taking this Robespierre approach, where the violence of the rebellion is affecting the allies negatively as well. Making you question if the position of power he has build for himself is going to corrupt him in the future. Which he is aware of and even addresses, something that still differentiates him from the imperials or Saw Gerrera, who refuses to see any flaws in his believes.

Another thing Andor shows, which is missing in many other shows, is culture. It organically integrates parts of Chandrillan or Ferrix culture. The drinks, the way marriages work in Chandrillan culture, the fact that it is very heteronormative. The way people of Ferrix warn each other about imperials, the tradition of funerals, which is an incredible concept by the way. Also seeing how people live, their homes, something you see so rarely in Star wars since so much takes place on ships. Syrils, Mon's and Ma's homes, all widely different and adding so much to the world building, by doing such a small thing. Additionally do you see how the empire works on a more in depth level, without the focus on wars or the elimination of Jedi.

The empire is a real, suffocating threat. The rebels in this show have to go through great lengths just to communicate with each other, they need to slip through tiny cracks to get around the empire. And even then they sometimes fail, like Kreegyr or Bix did. Half of the rebels attacking the garrison died trying. It's not easy, it's messy, dirty, it took great sacrifices.

And that is the main theme of the show - sacrifice. Tying back to the fact that Cassian ends up sacrificing himself for the rebellion. Everyone sacrifices something to help the greater good, wether it's money, relationships, inner peace or lives.

On a more facile note, the costume design is amazing. We all already know that Mon's closet is incredible, but so is the one of her husband or Tay Kolma. The same goes for the people of Ferrix, who have a clear style that adds to the beauty of the planet and culture.

I also think it was a smart decisions not to have aliens among the main cast, since bad make up or cgi can ruin the vibe to a degree. But the ones we do see all look great. They can also save budget focusing on other things instead.

There is so much good in this show, so many details worth mentioning, I could go on forever. It's not going to be the last time I praise this show, that's for sure.

[starrieisdelusional]

why kairi might be the one who manipulated sora's memory

yes you read that right, and no i did not mis-type this (if you're thinking hey that should be namine!)

i was going back a few times to kh3 and i found many patterns and cutscenes in 3 that can be compared to previous installments of the game, even side by side, this one particularly caught my eye:

crazy am i right

so remember that scene in 3 where sora falsely exclaimed "the light in the darkness" to be kairi? (it's actually riku) where sora and kairi goes enters the light to made it back to the real world

previous clip in link because tumblr isn't working with me ("riku, answer me!!" comparison with "okay! i have to protect them (aitsu)! Namine can you hear me?")

as you've seen in the comparison i realized it probably a direct paralell to namine's fake meteor shower scene back in COM Sora's side. And these lines of dialogue in particular interest me

it got me thinking, and i think that kairi purposely did something to sora's memory at some point in their lives. The exact when i'm not too sure, but she had inserted herself into some of riku's part in sora's life as sora's taisetsu na hito (special someone)

i know this sounds crazy, but i think there's a valid reason to this theory

Why??

the motive is clear: that kairi is lonely. i personally relate to her character struggle, loneliness can be suffocating, just like how namine portrayed hers that resulted to the events in COM

kairi's main theme has always been about 'seperation' and being left behind by sora and riku. so it would make sense for her to crave attention

kairi might feel sad that sora and riku doesn't pay attention to her unlike how they pay attention to each-other, so i don't see it as off character for her to insert herself into a fake picture if she had the chance, especially as the love interest of her crush

she even said this back in KH1 which sora responded with "Huh!? What's gotten into you?"

or is it done out of malicious intentions? there might be a possibility for that, but i don't think it is as it goes against kingdom hearts thematic story that stays consistent over the years, that portrays every character struggle in a sympathetic way that honestly you can relate too

(xehanort is even a subject to this in dark road)

i think that kairi felt really guilty about it and didn't realized the impact that she had done to sora and riku's relationship. or maybe she thrived for it, because even if the affection is not real, kairi is still loved and remembered by someone as their precious person, and it feels nice especially with someone like sora

snippet from kh3 novel

in the novels, there's a strong hint that kairi cut her hair because riku cut his, which contributes a lot to the theory of kairi wanting to be sora's precious person (riku) where she somewhat mimics his behavior (she probably realized deep down sora cares more about riku than her)

Passing Memories

i think this also made sense lore wise, because why else would sora suddenly lost his memory of riku? and i don't think sora's sort-of infatuation with kairi is caused by comphet alone

forgotten promises is a recurring theme in sora and riku's relationship, everything up to this point has always leads to hidden thoughts and burried memories, you have to dig deeper if you want to find a connection between sora and riku, the examples currently are:

whatever is happening between soriku

passing memories jp name of oblivion keyblade that is owned by roxas

riku is the TRUE light

necklace theory: the fact that THE necklace is everywhere in the game but is never brought up like ever

aitsu (check full discussion on the internet)

COM the game (just everything related to COM, the only game with riku and sora beside DDD? it's sus if you ask me)

compared to sora and kairi who's relationship always seems shallow and on the surface. i think it made more sense with the 'why' factor answered, because every time sora is thinking of riku, kairi would replace herself in his position, just like the light-tunnel scene in kh3

the 'oathkeeper' (promise charm) and 'oblivion' (passing memories) also reflected sora keeping his promise to kairi, but forgetting about his to riku, riku might not be affected in the same way that sora does, so this happens:

+ the multiple and many instances, riku is straight up covered by kairi

some of those instances:

kairi is true darkness (ex: sea is metaphor for darkness)

xion (is said to be kairi but proven also to also be riku)

the final world

Power?

honestly, i think kairi is more than she lets on (like LUXU), let's talk about her nobody:

i think it's already suspicious that namine has the power to mess with sora's memories (because she's from kairi's body and sora's heart?) when existing nobodies like roxas and xion for example has powers directly tied to their somebodies (kingdom key), xehanort doing xehanort things, marluxia possessing the same rose petals as his somebody counterpart, (and a lot more...)

so, with a game like kingdom hearts, does namine's powers really came out of no where? we know that sora doesn't have the ability to manipulate people's memories, so who else could it be?? kairi's powers might even be more powerful

this would also aligns with the theory 'riku is light-kairi is darkness' because even at front value the game is telling you 'hey kairi is LIGHT and riku is DARKNESS' time and time again its always the reverse in certain situations, but you never got to wonder what it actually mean

yes riku is the light, but why is kairi the darkness?? yes she sort-of brings demise as xehanort's pawn, but is it really just that?

lastly, kairi is a princess of heart, and might even came from the lost masters era as it is decorated and spammed with stars (every symbol is replaced by stars i'm not joking)

it's very on-theme with the 'traitor' plot point that has been consistent in every khux game, so... (i have a theory that kairi is master ava, or master ava is her grandma, OR kairi is mom... or skuld)

in addition to all of this, i also think that kairi can also be a creature, maybe she's actually a chirithy:

however i do think as opposed to riku as a dreameater (spirit), kairi is a nightmare chirithy, as seen in their color pallet (might be a coincidence but who knows)

[al-n-cartoons]

For this example, I think there's actually a pretty good explanation for why the exception can be made and why it's a problem.

The exception comes because the fake Ed is using incredibly powerful alchemical amplifiers, which are inherently hazardous. Alchemic is powered through life energy (souls, whathaveryou) and the argument could be made that the true cost here is the life of the land which has been steadily poisoned, leading to a long series of diseases and lethal infections. These particular amplifiers is derived through poisoning expecting mothers and extracting the product from their (either the miscarriage or placenta, I forget).

Are the main characters aware of the concept of amplifiers? I'd be surprised if they weren’t, given that they comment at some point that there are amplifiers in the pocket watch (I forget which episode) and that Ed had unfettered access to the research library of a state alchemist who would oater go on to help manufacture a similar amplifier.

The more likely reason why Ed views this with hostility is because we've seen him break the laws of alchemy before and know the consequences. There is a law against transmuting gold, Ed broke this law to buy the mining town, and that transmutation undid itself after a short period of time.

We think of alchemy as a chemical process in which an item is changed into something exactly the same; this is an incomplete exclamation. Alchemy is a trade of an item through the gate for an equivalent item, and those beyond the gate can realize they’ve been cheated and take bake the exchange.

If you do this to people's work equipment, especially their wheels to their vehicles, they can get hurt. They can get into crashes and be injured.

Plus, we know that alchemy draws on something from the person who is transmuting, given that during the alchemy exam we see someone who makes an impressively large transmutation and be unable to proceed because he'd lost the strength to stand. For Russel to do this is to flagrantly disregard safety precautions in a very public manner, meaning someone who tries to follow his lead (without his amplifiers) is endangered.

The laws of alchemy aren’t hard-set rules out of literal mechanics, they are safety precautions. They are what a person needs to know when messing with the Gate because the Gate is full of vindictive forces who will tear you to pieces if given the chance.

Wait wait. If, he's ignoring the Law of Equivalent Exchange, that would suggest it's not a law. I can't ignore the law of gravity or thermodynamics. If it's in fact, not a natural law, but more of a guideline or rule, that would suggest that alchemy is less scientific than you make it out to me and maybe a little more slotted in the magic column.

I would not argue this point so hard but for the fact that Ed is such an ASSHOLE about other people having faith systems and how cool and scientific alchemy is, when this is like the Law of Don't Do Bullshit. That's more of an ethical guideline, actually, and not a law. This is not a scientific natural law. I feel like I am losing my fucking mind here.

if you're sitting here going, "Hoilligay, PLEASE quite harping on how the equivalent exchange rule is ridiculously narratively flexible to the point of being insulting" PLEASE TELL THE SHOW TO QUIT DRAWING EXTREME ATTENTION TO IT. It's easy enough to ignore inconsistencies if a story does not insist upon them. Sure, whatever, i've read stuff before that breaks rules here and there. I don't always love it, but I can live with it fairly easily. But this keeps continually bringing my attention back to it, and telling me it is a real thing, while NOT MAKING IT A REAL THING. I feel like that fucking guy in the Monty Python skit with the dead parrot am I just losing it here?

Girl help.

Please read me before commenting or sending an ask! (i respect your right to be contrarian but bear in mind you’ve probably seen this anime 87 times and I am watching it virgin-style. There’s a link to the discord on the advisory)

[umblrspectrum]

hi heres art so you pay attention to me now go read the tags

[turtleblogatlast]

Something I like about Leo is that he’s honestly really chill? It’s easy to remember the moments where he’s being obnoxious or excitable but I feel like most of the time he’s incredibly “go with the flow” and has an overall affable demeanor.

[quietwingsinthesky]

Dean is such a paradox for me because on the one hand, I have been actively triggered by him in the show, there are moments where, intentionally or not, the writers managed to create a portrayal of manipulation and abuse and control issues that it sets off actual alarms for me. And on the other hand, I would not have him any other way. There is something — not comforting, that’s too soft a word — about knowing where Dean’s actions stem from, having seen and learned all that we do about his childhood neglect and parentification and the trauma he goes through repeatedly in the show, and that he doesn’t come out clean. He comes out a goddamn mess who ends up hurting the people around him in reaction to his own pain!

There’s a reality there that’s. Almost nice, actually. Distressing to watch, but it is a fucking mess, it’s a good mess! He’s got zero healthy coping skills and a healthy relationship with say, his brother, is terrifying because it leaves him open to abandonment!

I’m not sure I’m wording this correctly. There is a way to be a good abuse victim. Take the pain, martyr yourself on it, and then, even if you have no support or idea how to, then you have to become a Good Person who never hurts anyone the way you have been learning to your entire life. Simply toss everything that shaped you out the door and emerge a saint with a tragic backstory. And Dean is not that. And that’s so fucking good. Everything that he has gone through continues to effect the way he treats the people around him, and he can’t fight the behaviors he might recognize as harmful because he also sees them as protecting him (or protecting Sam by keeping Sam with him.)

And sometimes, idk. It feels good to see a guy who didn’t heal the “right way.” Who mostly didn’t heal at all, just keeps the wound open because it’s easier that way.