#and inventing new horrible crimes

[whetstonefires]

i mean i am not immune to the appeal of Feanor and the idea of him maybe not fucking it up so bad if he got another go, but also one of his most iconic lines is "no other race shall oust us!"

(spoken to a crowd of armed supporters) ((soon after this they fell ass backwards into stabbing the neighbors for their stuff)) (((feanor EMPHATICALLY did not return the stuff)))

so i try to keep my expectations grounded ykwim?

[flamingpudding]

Fictober23 Prompt: 27 - "I don't know if they will accept this."

Fandom: DPxDC

Rating: T

Warnings: -

A/N: Started writing this yesterday and finished it during lunch break today. So I decided to take a break tomorrow and post this early :D

Danny nervously poked his scrambled eggs as he sunk just a little lower in his chair. His eyes flicked back and forth between all of his new siblings that were currently in a heated discussion not noticing his slow withdrawal from the discussion and acting like he really didn't want to get noticed by them.

"Have you seen Mister Freeze's new sidekick? The white haired one that's probably a Meta with ice powers?"

"You mean Wraith?"

"Wait, I thought the kid was Ivy's sidekick? He helped blow up a facility last week!"

"No, no, no, no! Isn't he with Scarecrow?! I am sure he accidentally screwed up with the Fear Gas ten days ago so no one go harmed! But Scarecrow screamed at him that being new to the job wasn't an excuse."

"Didn't he help Catwoman steal two artifacts a couple days ago? One of them wasn't cat themed though I am pretty sure he was with her that time…"

"Wasn't he also the kid that was with Joker the last time he broke out? You know the white haired kid that was forced to assist him and tripped him right into his own trap and made the whole arrest a lot easier and quicker than usually?"

"It's like the kid switches who's sidekick he is every week…"

"Maybe he is interning with villains before breaking off to do his own thing? We better keep an eye on him."

Danny sank just a little bit lower in his chair and avoided looking at Alfred. Of course Danny knew about his new family's night time jobs, well day time in Duke's case, but when they had asked him if he wanted to take part in it he had declined. They didn't know about his second form, they only thought of him as a Meta with ghost powers that just escaped a horrible situation and now wanted a quiet and somewhat normal life. So they had accepted his decline in going into hero work, especially Alfred and Bruce appeared to be most relieved and happy about that decision at first.

But what Danny hadn't told them was that he might have declined going back into hero work, that didn't mean he would stay completely out of that side of his new family's life. The half ghost hadn't planned on it but it had all started with him accidentally coming across Poison Ivy. She reminded him of Sam in her values, so before his brain was able to catch up Danny asked if she wanted help blowing a facility that was pumping toxic waste into the water. Years of helping Sam with organizing activist protests did that to his brain.

One thing led to another and somehow Danny found himself more often than he liked in his phantom form acting as a sidekick or assistant to the rogues this family was fighting. In a way Danny felt like he was now more of an anti-hero than a hero, still fulfilling his obsession of protecting by finding creative ways to foil the rogues' plans if they get too dangerous or murderous but not really doing the whole righteous hero stick either.

Plus by working with Mister Freeze and Scarecrow at times he also gets to fully live out the mad scientist side of his brain. With them especially he gets to create whatever his weird wired brain could come up with, though, he did 'accidentally' leave behind USBs or papers with his inventions for Tim to find at the crime scenes.

What his new brother did with them was none of his business. If the Bats and Birds suddenly had new equipment in their arsenal that looked eerily similar to his inventions than that was that.

The problem was… his new family probably wouldn't like or accept that kind of turn of events. They were righteous and defenders of justice with moral codes and standards, Danny wasn't sure he could fulfill at the moment. Watching his new siblings arguing back and forth about Wraith, his new anti-hero alias Selina, Harley and Ivy had come up with, made his stomach sink every morning. In fact Danny was getting more and more scared with the passing days that his new family would kick him out the moment they learned about it just like his former parents had done.

He wished he had Jazz's contact to talk this over with her, but because of his situation Bruce found it better to wait a little longer before he could safely reach out to her. Maybe he could ask if Harley could talk with him instead.

A cup of tea was placed before him and Danny's head snapped up (when had he started to look down?) to find Alfred smiling calmly at him. "Master Daniel, I believe a nice cup of tea will help calm down your nerves."

"Thanks." Danny mumbled his hands cupping the cup and letting the warmth of it seep over his hands into his arms to comfort his nerves. He took a sip, eyes going wide for a moment before he looked over to Alfred who was currently taking away Tim's third cup of unfinished coffee while the other was distracted with the ongoing discussion. The old man gave him a knowing smile and Danny couldn't help the small grateful one that formed on its own, though he also couldn't help the slight feeling that Alfred knew what was frazzling Danny's nerves so much.

"Jason, maybe you can get into contact with Wraith?"

"Why the fuck should I?"

"You have a different reputation than us as Red Hood. He might be more willing to talk with you, to figure out his motives and such."

Danny choked on his tea, hurriedly placing the cup back on the table before pounding his own chest in a desperate attempt to get any tea that went down the airpipe out.

"Danny! Are you okay?" Dick was instantly on him, worried older brother vibes and all that.

He wheezed before breathing in relief once he stopped coughing, giving the oldest a barely hearable "I'm fine."

"<tt> Try not to die stupidly like this, Fenton." Damian clicked his tongue and Danny gave him a toothy grin.

"I am already half dead." He heard Jason snort. While the family thought Danny was just a Meta with ghost-like powers. Danny had explained his accident to them and how he died and revived with powers through it when they asked him why he was insisting through jokes that he was half dead. Jason and Dick were the only ones who really enjoyed his death related jokes and puns, the others were more worried about his mental state.

"Leave the death jokes to Todd, Fenton."

"Oh come on, don't ghost me like that! My jokes are just as much to die for then his are!"

"Fenton."

Danny just laughed, while the previous discussion made him fear for the future, he still loved the family he had gotten added into by sheer luck. He had come to quickly love them all and felt like his own weirdness fit perfectly into theirs. It truly made him hope that he could stay with them for a long time and maybe even add Jazz into the picture as well once his whole situation was more secured and Bruce would allow him to contact her and his friends.

Later that day Danny was in the library reading a book on Molecular Structure of the human biology and how it can mutate depending on external influence, as a preparation for his next endeavor as Wraith with Killer Croc, when he felt tapping on his shoulder.

Turning his head slightly Danny startled finding Cassandra in his personal space sitting next to him with a mirthful smile. She gave him a small wave as a greeting before sitting back a little, apparently satisfied with the fact that she sort of scared him there a little.

"Hey Cass." He smiled, putting one of the many bookmarks, Jason had distributed and stored away everywhere in an effort to stop his siblings from creating dog ears in books, on the page he was on before closing the book in his hands.

"You worry too much, relax." She signed with a reassuring smile once Danny had turned his full attention on her. Confused, the half ghost on the other hand tilted his head, puzzled about what Cass was going on about. He did feel rather relaxed right now.

"You being Wraith." Wide eyed Danny hurried to cover Cassandra's hands, like one would cover another's mouth if they blurred out a secret. His eyes hurriedly darted around in their surroundings but aside from the shelves filled with books Danny couldn't see nor sense anyone that might listen in on them.

Cass was shaking in silent laughter as Danny nervously turned back to look at her. "How…"

Slowly she freed her hands from his and patted them comfortingly before beginning to sign again, smiling knowingly. "I saw. Your body language is the same."

"I…" How was he going to explain this? He had gotten found out, was Cass going to tell him to leave now? Was this the end of his new found family life? It came sooner than he anticipated. Blankly he stared at his hands that uselessly lay in his lap on the book cover, one hand slowly moving to nervously trace unseen patterns on the books spine.

Danny did not see how Cass frowned at that action, all mirth gone from her smiles. She did not like her brother was drawing into himself, doubt and fear started to radiate from his body language and Cassander didn't like that even more. She moved a little closer, so that she would have an easier time to reach Danny and poked his cheek mercilessly until her little brother looked back up at her.

"No need to explain." She actually spoke instead of sign just to show Danny how serious she was. "It's fine. Funny even. Like Selina."

"But…" A lump formed in his throat and he swallowed, trying to find the right words. Cass waited patiently for him. "Mom and Dad… my former parents… they didn't accept me as a ghost hero…"

Cassandra nodded but didn't sign nor say anything, seeing that there was more her newest little brother wanted to say but still trying to find the right words for. It was something she could relate to. Unable to find the right words, hadn't she been through that before too. She lay a comforting hand down on Danny's shoulder, once more waiting patiently.

"I… I don't know if they will accept this… this turn of events. Especially in this family. You all are taking the Hero route and I…" Danny swallowed once more. "I can stop, I can change. I just don't… I don't want to lose another family…"

Before Danny knew what was happening he was enveloped in a warm hug, he blinked several times before realizing that Cass was hugging him tightly. He was held like this for a while before she drew back from him, poking him once more to make him look at her once more.

"No need. Don't stop." She spoke her voice, soft and smoothing while smiling at him brightly.

"But…" She shook her head, silencing whatever Danny wanted to say before giving him a mischievous smile, her hands letting go of his shoulder so sign her next words. "You are not hurting anyone, you keep them from killing, from being too dangerous to civilians, not really breaking any big laws. You help us in your own law breaking way. Like Jason does."

"I am not as good as him…" Danny mumbled still unsure but Cass only smiled fondly ruffling her little brother's hair.

"You started to smile more since you became Wraith." She flat out told him, causing Danny to look up at her stunned and she laughed silently. "Keep going. If you go too far, I will be there to pull you back."

"You're like Jazz…" Danny mumbled, finally with a little smile on his face and Cass returned it with a satisfying one of her own before pulling him in for another hug, he returned this time.

That night, Orphan watched happily how her little brother laughed carefree and freer than he had in a month sitting on Killer Croc shoulders, testing out his newest invention while the rogue was trying to get him off, unsuccessfully so far. Her other brothers surrounded the two and tried to figure out what was going on since Wraith was supposed to be their rogues gallery sidekick and not challenge them like that.

She laughed even when suddenly out of nowhere a USB-Stick hit Red Robin in the face. Obviously she had caught Wraith flinging it in his direction, but she was not about to tell them that. Orphan would let them figure that out on their own, meanwhile she was going to enjoy watching her newest little brother smile and laugh while being the chaos gremlin she had seen in him from day one as he was messing with the rogues as well as vigilantes / heroes of Gotham.

[degloved]

the main "criticism" (term used loosely) of saw x by and large seems to be not the cruelty of the traps themselves, but the utterly inadequate time given to complete them. cruelty does sort of come with the territory & debating the "right" dose for a saw movie is an exercise in futility, yet the almost laughably and woefully meager three minutes on the clock seem to be something of a hang-up to most people. "how were they meant to beat these traps?" "shouldn't john have given them a chance?" "valentina came so close, she did everything, it's not fair" which, while seemingly reasonable questions, all find their answer in one small fact: john kramer has an insatiable hunger for revenge. this is a character flaw that he himself cannot abide by, that he finds… distasteful. the jigsaw dogma is a metaphorical wool that he pulls over his own eyes, it's a distraction from the truth, it's his copium. the man invented a pseudo-religion to justify his crimes, which is… well, haven't men been inventing religions for this express purpose since the dawn of time? it's only in line with the trend.

point being, his gracious gift of a whole three minutes to saw one's leg off and extract bone marrow, to saw one's skull open and pick out brain matter, to break one's bones while being cooked alive by a radiation machine—it's… for his benefit more than anyone else's. deep down, he's never expected them to beat their tests. he never expects anyone to do so (but if they do, it's whatever at that point—because at the very least they've suffered.) though that's a tough pill to swallow, and he chooses not to. time and time again, he chooses not to. when he sat on that bench in that park, enjoying a lovely day out while fantasizing about a petty thief getting his fingers broken one by one & getting his eyes sucked out, he revealed everything. he revealed how much of a farce rehabilitation is, he revealed how much he'd rather see a person killed horribly than anything else. he revealed that he too likes how brutality feels.

he'd have us think the victims are picked somewhat at random, that he's simply being a good samaritan giving any old lowlife nobody a "new chance at life." he's not! cecil caused the death of gideon. amanda was one of the reasons cecil did what he did (and btw do not for a second think that hoffman was going to tell john something he didn't already know. amanda died for nothing in iii, because why else would have john targeted her in the first place?), easton and his buddies fucked john over insurance-wise, bobby offended john's sensibilities, kerry was too deep in the case, lawrence was a bit of a dick to him at the hospital... so on and forth. every last one of them a target of john's revenge fantasies, even if they did arrive wrapped up in layers of delusion and grandeur.

he still loved amanda though. and make no mistake abt that

[physalian]

Another 5 Character Types the World Needs More of (Part 3)

Part 1 Part 2

I did not expect these two posts to continue getting notes. So. Here’s some that didn’t make the cut and a few new ones.

1. Character who is immune to everyone else’s bullshit

This can either be funny or a breath of fresh air. I’m talking your drama cast of 15 all losing their minds over “he said/she said” and fixating on so many ridiculous and arbitrary problems… meanwhile Chuck over here is skinned with teflon and completely immune to tropes like manufactured miscommunication or drama, who’s juuust shy of being genre savvy to Get Shit Done like this is their second time around the block and they are not happy to be back.

The first one to pop into my head is Soundwave from TFP. He has no voice actor for 99% of the show and doesn’t have a face and is only the focus character for like, 2 episodes, but whenever he’s on screen you can just see “I’m surrounded by idiots” playing on repeat in his head. This con is brutally efficient, never messes up, and is never wrong and while everyone else is caught up on ladder-climbing and revenge quests, Soundwave is over here vibing and keeping the whole cause together.

2. The Femme Fatale, but a man

This is not sexy suave abusive asshole hero you’re supposed to root for, who’s a male power fantasy. This is literally the exact same trope, but a man. Meaning, he gets the same revealing uniform, the same “I’m letting you think you’re in charge but really I’m pulling all the strings”. Crucially, he’s straight, because most of them are gay-coded (because the man being in the submissive, ‘girly role’ is horrifying, he must be gay). This dude weaponizes toxic masculinity, making the villains extremely uncomfortable and throwing the villain’s own power fantasy back in their face.

This dude unabashedly flirts with his captors just to get in their heads, removes all concepts of personal space, and makes straight villains seriously question their sexuality. He has social engineering down to a science. I’m sure there’s one that exists, but every one I can think of is already queer-coded and that’s not good enough. So just. Black Widow. But a man.

3. Mary Sue/ Gary Stu who becomes the villain

Since these characters are the product of insecurity and lack of self-awareness… the example for this trope is Titan from Megamind. This character is absolutely the hero of their own story, practically perfect in every way. They think they’re the best at everything without trying, flawless in features and personality, and everybody loves them. And genuinely, they are just that good.

So good, that they live long enough to become the villain. Obviously people who write Mary Sues with full sincerity have no idea that anything’s wrong or problematic, but a genuine Mary Sue whose perfection is their greatest flaw without them even realizing it would be an interesting villain because I’m getting sick and tired of “sympathetic” villains who are really starting to feel like excuses for abusers to be abusive because they were smacked around as a kid.

4. Paragon who is wrong, but also right?

Apparently I’m in a Transformers mood today. There’s an episode where the Autobots’ medic/second in command does the whole “desperate scientist tests their invention on themselves with horrible results” trope and he gains the strength and speed he otherwise hasn’t had in like, eons, and starts kicking ass and taking names (and committing war crimes) to the point where his team is like “uh, buddy, slow down a bit, you’re starting to act like a Decepticon”.

The best part of that episode is where Ratchet (medic) completely unloads on Optimus about how he’s too soft, about how he’s had a million chances to end the war and murder Megatron (which is true) and yet Optimus lets the window pass again and again still hoping for Megatron’s redemption… while in the process, countless Autobots keep dying, collateral keeps happening, all because Optimus is stubborn and won’t just get it over with.

We know Ratchet is right, because throughout the next season, Optimus is a bit more… shall we say, ruthless, in trying to legitimately end the war, Megatron’s redemption be damned. But that episode ends with Ratchet nearly dying when trying to kill Megatron himself, and understanding that the Autobots are Autobots for a reason, because they’re “good,” and sinking to the enemy’s level won’t be a good foundation for a peaceful post-war survival of their species. Point being, sometimes being a Paragon is an incredibly selfish virtue.

5. Parents who know what’s up

So, while I am a firm supporter in the dead parent cliché because parents are super inconvenient sometimes, when it’s not that kind of story and the parents are a big part of the plot… while also being idiots (like Disney and Nickelodeon sitcoms circa 2008), just to make the kids sound smarter, it’s just been done to death. Everything you could think of, your parents probably did when they were your age so having competent parents in the plot as a well-meaning obstacle that continues to surprise the hero is pretty rare in stuff like YA. Usually it’s “I must lie to them to keep them safe” meanwhile Sally Jackson is over here murdering her husband with Medusa’s severed head.

They don’t have to join the hero team, but parents painted as bumbling idiots is a disservice to the mischievous teenagers they used to be. Or just the parent who really does know the kid better than they do, like when kids anxiously come out and the parent is like “honey I knew since you were 3 let’s go get ice cream”. I didn't watch Glee but that one dad who was like "son all you wanted was a pair of sensible shoes, I knew." So yeah. Smart parents. More please.

[allthebrazilianpolitics]

What do the misogynists who threaten Maria da Penha, the woman after whom Brazil's domestic violence law is named, want?

It even sounds like a movie plot: a woman, after suffering numerous attacks and two murder attempts by her then husband, becomes paraplegic as a result of the crimes, but does not lower her head. She goes to fight. And her battle for justice is so strong and important that she becomes the name of a law that criminalizes domestic violence against women. And it changes women's rights across the country for the better.

I'm talking about Maria da Penha Maia Fernandes, this incredible activist who gives her name to Brazil's Maria da Penha Law. This woman should be celebrated as the hero she is and today, at 79 years old and still fighting at the head of the institute that bears her name, and should receive only our tributes, honours, and respect.

But no. Last week, the Minister of Women, Cida Gonçalves, confirmed that Maria da Penha would be included in the state of Ceará's Program for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders (PPDDH) after receiving online attacks and threats from far-right fanatics, including incels, red pills, and other types of woman haters.

"It is unacceptable that Maria da Penha is going through this process of revictimization even today in Brazil, 18 years after lending her name to one of the most important laws in the world for preventing and combating domestic and family violence against women", stated the minister. And she's right.

Fake news

Attacks don't happen out of nowhere. They follow a very common logic to attacks carried out by digital militias. At the end of last year, Maria da Penha's attacker, Marco Antonio Heredia Viveros, who was sentenced to eight years in prison for trying to kill her and has already served his sentence, filed a request for a review of the case, claiming that he was innocent and victim of a flawed process.

Along with this, there are several theories circulating on social media that Maria da Penha was the victim of a robbery and not a crime committed by Viveros. The Public Ministry of Ceará rejects these statements: "The process took place with all the possibility of contradiction and ample defense, on both sides. Upon analysis of the evidence, the Court determined that Maria da Penha's ex-husband committed a double attempted murder against the victim." I'm talking about serious institutions of law and the rule of law. He was convicted. The Public Prosecutor's Office claims that the trial followed all the rites and was correct. End.

But, in times when the truth is worth so little and hatred is on the rise, websites and channels linked to the extreme right in Brazil have started to raise suspicions about the process. Maria da Penha would be a big liar. And her aggressor, the victim. In the narrative spread throughout the basements of the internet, Maria da Penha became a villain, a horrible woman, who allegedly set up a plot against a "poor man".

This is not a new procedure in times of fake news (and I repeat that I am sticking to court decisions here and not to fanciful stories).

It is also not uncommon for women who are victims of violence and abuse to be "revictimized" in abuse proceedings. From victims, they become evil women who invented things, to crazy women (and many other misogynistic clichés used against women).

The reason for so much hate

The story of Maria da Penha is old. She suffered murder attempts in 1983. But her strength is still enormous. And for that very reason, she is attacked. How dare she fight for justice? Who does she think she is?

Furthermore, there is also, obviously, an attack on the Maria da Penha Law. Calling into question the honesty of the activist who names the law is a clear attempt to discredit the Maria da Penha law.

Other than that, threatening to kill activist Maria da Penha is still a symbolic way of trying to end a law that is so good for women and so bad for its haters.

After all, for those who like to attack women with impunity, this law is quite a problem, isn't it? What do they want? To attack women without paying for their crimes? For women not to have the "privilege" (sic) of defending themselves from their abusive husbands or boyfriends? The return of "in a fight between a husband and wife, no one interferes?" The most radical ones, yes. On X (formerly Twitter) there are several comments to this effect. “F*ck Maria da Penha, I’m going to hit her in the face anyway,” says one guy. Is he talking about the activist or the law? I think both.

In a country where several feminist women are threatened with death, it is not surprising that the same thing happens to Maria da Penha. But how violent is that?

The activist, let's remember, is once again a victim of misogynistic crimes, more than 40 years after surviving two femicide attempts, when she is attacked online (threats and defamation are crimes, although many ignore this fact).

But you can even understand why there is so much hate. Maria da Penha (the activist and the law) mean respect and justice for women. Everything that misogynists hate most and also want to destroy. They won't make it.

Source, translated by the blogger.

[alparlaboratories]

Even when I write him doing unspeakably horrible science in my stories, I can never get over how funny Colress is as a character. Mr. Malpractice himself. One day he figured out he could do as many unethical experiments as he wanted if only he worked for evil CEOs and ecoterrorists and he never went back. My man didn't hesitate for a second.

His MO is to develop and then sell dangerous tech to evil people, then hit the bricks right before they get beaten up by a 10-year old and eventually arrested. He has one of the highest bounties at Interpol HQ. He can't wait to invent new ways for Pokemon to explode shit and devastate everything around them. He's a really pleasant guy if you put the war crimes aside. His hair looks like that.

How can you not love the guy.

[prisoner-000]

speaking of milgram characters being mischaracterized, i really hate when people either stick new headcanons on characters that make them lose agency in their crime (making them appear more 'innocent') but also i hate when people try to just completely make shit up about a character because "what we've seen of this character isn't 'guilty' enough".

example 1: people inventing a specific bully/abuser for fuuta that forced him to cyberbully other people. his whole character revolves around group pressure and how much the will to impress your friends can harm others - making up a new character to effectively shove all this blame onto one person kind of ruins the message about that. no one person was at fault for fuuta's murder; that is his dilemma.

example 2: ...a LOT of kazui theories. examples i've seen include: him being a p*do, him being a sexual ab*ser, him being a misogynist, a creep, or a stalker. kazui's whole deal already is morally gray enough!! whether you forgive him or not for essentially faking his wife's dream life with their empty marriage is up to you, but so many of these theories are just made up to make him appear less forgivable (most of the time because of some pre-existing bias against him as a character). it's frankly baffling because most of these theories have no connection to canon, only really carrying over the 'forbidden desire' aspect.

example 3: mahiru plays both sides of this. some people insist that her boyfriend was abusive and she was just playing along, while others insist that she was a crazy stalker murderer who abducted her boyfriend and made him fall in love with her by force. one of these completely strips her of her agency as a character, the other makes her into a generic yandere character who is violent and cutesy for the sake of being violent and cutesy. these both look past mahiru as a person first and a girlfriend second. she grew up isolated from people she could get into a relationship with, according to societal norms, and jumped at the chance to get into a relationship. she didn't mistake kidnapping a person for love, she didn't immediately fall for a horrible person. it's a complicated situation she finds herself in, not her or her boyfriend are the villain.

(i could also get into muu here, amane, kotoko... any character really.)

it's extremely frustrating to discuss milgram with some people who do anything to make their favorite character appear as a perfect angel or completely put down other people's favorites for non-canon reasons. it's a project you can draw your own conclusions from, sure, but a writer is still writing milgram. it's not all up in the air and vague.

[space-blue]

I'm so glad there are people discussing the politics of Arcane! It's something that bothered me too while watching. One thing I wish they had portrayed more fairly was Silco's time in power. I mean, we only get one montage of the more advanced industrialized Zaun with clean air stations, and only one mention of "Silco the Industrialist." Meanwhile his Shimmer business got episode upon episode of "look at how evil this is".

It even seems to be common for watchers to think he was ONLY doing Shimmer. So many people didn't pick up on the industrialization of Zaun, the cars and new machinery, nor the clean air stations. To the point that it's common to say he only destroyed Zaun and did nothing to improve it. I'm just like.... why did the show not put in more effort to portray both sides of the coin of Silco's operations, especially when his faction is the ONLY one specifically fighting for independence from their oppressors. Just seems like an odd choice.

I feel like Silco has more implied time in the way he talks to the chembarons. He makes it quite clear that HE brought them up here, and they're now corrupted by their time in the sun. And it's set in a gorgeous cultivair... So I think Silco making the Lanes wealthy is really undeniable. It's just that making crimelords wealthy is dodgy in itself, even if we assume that everyone got richer and better.

But honestly I want to say... People have a tendency of forgetting that Silco is a private individual. It's not his job to make people richer or to modernise the Undercity. It's not his responsibility to keep the streets clean or control crime.

That's the Council's.

The scene where Jayce looks in wonder/disgust at all the children in the shimmer factory always strikes me as a great moment for him. I've seen a lot of bad takes on it, making Silco EVIL for having kids working there and Jayce GOOD for feeling bad. Like, flashnews, Silco is providing them with stable income! Kids in his factories don't need to steal or prostitute themselves.

Wouldn't it be great though if they didn't have to work at all? No shit. Shall we ask the Council why there is ZERO social wellfare programs for such poor kids in Zaun?

Well, probably because when they don't work at Silco's, they work at Piltovan factories and mines for scraps. Because Piltovans don't have a normal relationship with Zaunites.

Silco is basically the head of a mafia, and he operates in a power vacuum left by Piltover. If the council took an active interest in the well being of Zaunites, if they weren't starved and beaten and killed point blank for wanting rights, there would be no need for Silco's dream, and no show.

I think even if the show made a greater effort to portray both sides, people would still vilify Silco, because "drugs" have such a demonic reputation. What bums me out more is that they made no effort to make separate chemicals, and ended up making shimmer into the philosopher's stone. WHY wouldn't you make shimmer??? It powers crazy cool engines, saves people from imminent death with no visible bad side effects, gives people a strength boost, and is a cool party drug?

Those are all things we're shown as well. It's so weird.

It really bums me out how Ekko talks about the horrors of shimmer, what it did to Zaun as it flooded the streets, and yet what we're shown is a camp of a dozen people, and a couple homeless people begging in the street when Heimer visits. As well as a violent fight.

Like... Yes? Zaun apparently has been the pits for generations. Is that truly the worst you have? A few addicts and 1 homeless beggar? As well as being "told" it affected families?

I totally get this is horrible, but we are shown a lot more screen time of shimmer being super OP when well used, and used for years without bad effects at that, via Sevika. It makes the criticism sort of moot, especially after one drop of shimmer saves Vi from a horrendous gut wound.

I highly doubt Silco invented poverty or addiction. The show makes it seem like those are his responsibility in equal measure because he commercializes shimmer (which is true) and because they need him as a villain. If shimmer is too good, then he'll become a straight up hero, instead of an anti-hero in villain clothing.

The show just wouldn't commit to have the third act fully go with 'the council are the villains, Silco is in the right', and I genuinely think it's because Riot is an American Company owned by a Chinese one, and that nobody up the foodchain really wants a story in which an underdog character is morally justified in exacting violence on the powerful.

It's my tinfoil hat theory. The hopeful tinfoil says that the writers did their best to give us that story but couldn't realise it fully. The dark tinfoil says that everyone involved is too far deep the neoliberal hellhole to escape centrist narratives (in which Ekko and his useless, powerless artsy rebels are the true heroes).

I'm happy to take the show as it is though, and fill in the blanks my way. I don't have to bend the canon's arm too much to tell a politically charged story that fits my desires!

[cadmium-free]

I was born in exactly the right era. If I had been born 100 years ago, I would have been heterosexual married in a loveless relationship where I pioneered new crimes against food with my white mediocrity. I just googled “are there any recipes that combine eggs and cool whip?” with the aid of the internet and smart technology. Take me to 1950 and I’ve got no wifi, I’m just experimenting. I’m serving up an aspic recipe out of the magazine Helen from next door loaned to me and I’m making a side of Whipped Cream Scrambled Eggs and serving it up to my horrible husband and horrible children. Flash forward to 1966, cool whip has just been invented, I’m still a diehard jello fan, and I’m hosting an evil dinner party of experimental cool whip eggs with spicy strawberry crab jello. By 1970 I’m dead because my undiagnosed autoimmune disorders of the digestive system could not handle my trailblazing culinary skills. Also I’m dead because god decided I was too powerful for the digital era and I had to be stopped.

[elohyou]

yknow what would be a really silly goofy rottmnt (could be for all iterations but. Im a rise artist) au???

so theyre still turtles. but only if they. i dont. know. come in contact with. pizza. or something.

MORE UNDER CUT

so its like that h2o series— theyre humans most of the time but secretly theyre turtles that fight crime in the night but to do that they have to consume pizza

THIS COULD CAUSE SOME FUNNY MOMENTS LIKE. IN SCHOOL OR SMTH THEYRE ALL KNOWN AS THE KIDS WHO ARE ALLERGIC TO PIZZA. which makes them very sad because they Love pizza so if theres like pizza for lunch or smth THEY CANT EAT IT (its okay guys school pizza’s mid anyways) or if theyre hanging out with friends or at a bday party. THEY CANT HAVE PIZZA… OHHHH THE HORROR…… CUZ THEYRE TRYNA KEEP THEIR NINJA TURTLE IDENTITY A SECRET

imagine if a friend comes over and see pizza boxes in the recycling… like maybe:

friend: hey why are there pizza boxes in the recycling? i thought you guys didnt have pizza

the turtle boys:

the turtle boys: our. dad. ate it.

friend: your. barely 5 feet tall father ate 3 boxes of pizza

the turtle boys: yes.

AND LIKE THE AMOUNT OF PIZZA THEY EAT = MORE TIME AS TURTLES…. OOOHHH AND THEY EXPERIMENT A LOT WITH WHAT COUNTS AS PIZZA SO THAT THEY COULD HAVE PIZZA ON THE FLY SO LIKE THEYRE FIGHTING CRIME AND IN THE MIDDLE FO THE FIGHT THEYRE JUST LIKE “hey gimme a second” *eats a frozen solid pizza pocket* “alr we’re good”

maybe donnie invents some kinda compact pizza cube thingy (with mikey’s help for Flavor) too…

AND MAYBE THE TOPPINGS OF THE PIZZAS GIVE THEM A LITTLE BOOST ON A CERTAIN ASPECT OF THEIR POWER OR SMTH… LIKE RED PEPPER FLAKES/JALAPEÑO GIVES AN OOMF TO THE RAW POWER… MUSHROOMS… increase their size hehaha mario ETC

i think i came up with this au because i had pizza for a solid 2.5 meals today. It was the same exact pizza as well. Bbq chicken. I DONT LIKE BBQ CHICKEN. BUT I HAD IT ANYWAY. CUZ IT WAS PIZZA.

Anyways tldr its tmnt but theyre humans sometimes and cant have pizza in new york! Im thinking the name will be teenage mutant pizza turtles— no thats horrible… BUT IT FITS. IT FITS.

[yourpalmickeymouse]

Mickey, who would you say is your worst foe?

Mortimer, Pete, the blot, Julius, the mad doctor, or-

.....Other names I can't think of right now.

P.S, is it possible to be asking you too many questions? Don't wanna be a bother!

Hello hatred-n-hav0c,

Don't worry about askin' too many questions. I like answerin' them. Though it may take me a while to get to them all, haha. 😅

As for my worst foe. Gee, that's a toughie. I deal with a lot of terrible people who are all awful in different ways, it's hard to compare 'em. It doesn't help that it seems like every year each one tries to outdo themselves in horribleness.

I mean just goin' the list you mentioned, like Mortimer...

Well... So listen, Mortimer definitely can be a pain in the butt and I definitely wish he would get a clue and leave Minnie and me alone, but I dunno if I would call him my worst foe. To be honest he is more of an annoyance than anything. A BIG annoyance mind you. But nothin' I can't handle. He usually ends up embarassin' himself anyways haha.

Pete on the other hand is a piece of work. He's a big bully who uses his larger size to beat his way into what he wants. It doesn't help that he's a pretty crafty menace. Able to come up with all sorts of new ways to commit crimes and teamin' with just the right person to help him with the job. I've definitely dealt with him way more than I wish and would definitely put him up there near the top of my list.

In fact there's a lot of people I would put up there, Doublejoke with his nasty tricks, Miklos with his frustratin' mimicry, Portis with his immoral experiments (I think this is the mad doctor you are talking about?), Sylvester with his sinister schemes, Dr. Vulter with his harsh cruelty, Ecks, Doublex, and Triplex with their inhumane inventions (they could be the mad doctor I guess), The Rhyming Man with his... evil rhymes... I'm gettin' off track

To answer your question, I really think any of these guys could be my worst foe on any day. Dr. Vulter and the Rhyming Man are pretty particularly awful, but I feel like I don't see them as much. I mean Pete is more of a consistent threat in Mouseton. I feel like he is the one I have to deal with the most. I feel kinda connected to him as if we've been foes in many timelines or some nonsense like that. But I feel like the severity of his crimes varies, and sometimes he could even be reasoned with. I guess that leaves...

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention...

Him.

I talked 'bout him before. But the Phantom Blot is one of the worst. He's a twisted megalomaniac with no sense of morality and just doesn't know when to quit. I have to be vigilant when I am on a case he's involved in, or risk dealin' with a vicious surprise attack or trap he planned for me. I don't know why he specifically makes me feel this uncomfortable, but he just does. Honestly, sometimes I wish I didn't have to deal with him at all. Yet I oddly feel drawn to him. But someone needs to stop him, and I have a better record than most when it comes to handlin' him.

But maybe I shouldn't pick a "Worst Foe". Wouldn't want any villain to read this and try to outdo the others to get the number one spot. 🙄

[tstain-is-an-idiot]

The Fine Line Between Hate and Love

Melvin Sneedley had never been thought of as a “creative” kid, despite being known as “that nerdy kid who invents things” by the rest of his classmates and teachers. Apparently, inventing things didn't count as “art”. It didn't mean he didn't enjoy art. In fact, he somewhat appreciated it, even reading the comics created by George and Harold. Though he barely understood most of the jokes written by George, it was a different story for Harold's illustrations. At first dismissing them as nothing more than childish slop he was too grown-up for, he found himself growing to admire the talent and effort put into them as the drawings slowly started improving. The anatomy and linework got better and cleaner, and the colouring went from hastily scribbled (in order to push out a new issue of whichever character the boys had fixated on that week), to carefully inked between the lines with markers, leaving no white gaps in sight.

Of course, he'd never let the two boys know he had taken an interest in their comics (particularly the artwork), instead opting to read them whenever he felt there was nobody around to judge him, mostly in his room after school. That was exactly where he was headed as soon as he'd finished up the last of his extra homework (which he'd stay after school to do in an empty classroom, occasionally peeking under the desk at the cover of the latest issue of Captain Underpants that he'd managed to snag earlier), until he heard something coming from across the hall. Melvin quickly buried the comic deep into the back of his schoolbag. Someone else was still there. He listened. It appeared to be coming from the music room. He discarded his pencil with an annoyed sigh and got up from his desk before making his way across the hall to where those horrible sounds were coming from. Closer now, he started to make out the sounds as some people messing around with the instruments that had been gathering dust for years, in particular the sounds of someone attempting to play the piano. Key word being “attempting”.

The door to the recently re-opened music room had a window, but the thick layer of dust it had accumulated over the years it had been locked shut made it difficult for Melvin to make out the figures darting about inside at a first glance. There were two of them, probably fourth-graders the same as he was, and they were darting around the room, messing around with the various instruments and laughing like hyenas at the noises they were making. Well, at least one of them was trying out seemingly every instrument. The other appeared to be sitting at the old piano, trying to figure out the notes, only stopping to giggles at the antics of their crazy friend. Melvin soon recognised the giggles as coming from Harold, meaning that the other kid in the room was probably George, Harold's partner in crime (at least, that's how he'd describe the two of them together).

He thought about going in there and telling them to shut up (because unlike some people he was trying to do his homework in peace, like they should be doing after school), but he decided he'd rather live with the cacophony they were causing than them finding him and figuring out that he read their comics. He slowly slunk back to his desk in defeat and continued his work, gritting his teeth in frustration. He waited until he heard them leaving the school grounds about an hour later (they sprinted down the hallway, as usual disobeying the many ‘’no running' signs that were plastered everywhere) before he, too, made an effort to leave school for the day.

The next week, it was the same story. George and Harold took to the music room the second the bell rang to signal the end of the school day. And then between them they would play ALL of the instruments in the room (at times sounding like they were attempting to play them all at once) for an hour or so before heading home afterwards. This would become a weekly routine for them, much to the annoyance of Melvin. Instead of engaging with the troublemakers (dealing of them for six hours of the day was bad enough as it is), he opted for bringing in earplugs and wearing them during his after-school homework sessions. They weren't the most comfortable things in the world, but anything was better than putting up with George and Harold for an extra hour every week.

A few weeks later, as Melvin had gotten accustomed to his new homework routine, it all changed. To the surprise of everyone, Harold had shown up at school George-less. Apparently George was off sick or something. Melvin scoffed. He wouldn't dream of skipping school just because he was sick. He was the type of kid who, unless he dropped down dead right at that very second, would not miss school due to something as trivial as a cold. He smirked in Harold's direction. The blonde was moping at his desk, clearly upset that his best friend wasn't there with him to joke around in whatever classes they had that day. Melvin breathed a huge sigh of relief. Today was going to be a doozy.

The bell rang at the end of an uneventful school day (thanks to half of the class' comedic duo being absent), and the kids all grabbed their stuff and left the classroom as fast as they could, because anywhere was better than school (unless of course, your name happened to be Melvin Sneedley). He took a relaxed breath as he pulled out his extra worksheets. He figured he wouldn't need the earplugs, as he assumed Harold would have bolted out of school the minute it ended so he could visit his sick friend. The first few minutes of Melvin working on his homework were the most peaceful few minutes the kid had experienced since George and Harold had discovered the art of pranking. That was how he liked it, just him and his work in complete silence. He could already taste the extra credit.

About ten minutes in, as per previous weeks, he once again picked up a sound coming from the music room, but this time it was different. Yes, it was the familiar sound of the keys of the old piano being pressed, but it was like the person playing the notes was genuinely trying to learn how to play a coherent tune. Aside from the odd wrong note and the slam of discordant keys whenever the player obviously felt that they had screwed up, whoever this mystery pianist was was actually sounding pretty good.

Curiosity got the better of him, and he once again abandoned his work to go and see exactly who was playing the piano. Aside from the few teachers who stayed behind after the school day to grade papers and host extra-curricular activities, he couldn't think of anyone else (besides himself) who would willingly stay in school after the day was done.

The door to the music room had slowly but surely began to lose it's coating of dust in those previous few weeks, due to being in constant use once again. This time, Melvin was actually able to clearly see into the room. There, sitting at the piano, trying his best to play a simple melody was none other than Harold Hutchins. The bespectacled fourth-grader let out a quick gasp before ducking out of sight and comprehending the scene he had just witnessed.

Harold playing the piano? He had no idea Harold even had the attention span to learn the piano, but no, there he was, gently pressing the keys in order to play a short but sweet little tune. Melvin let his breath catch up with him before slowly resuming his position of staring through the glass window of the door. He could see Harold's determined face as he tried over and over again to get his song just right. Melvin caught his reflection in the glass pane as he was staring at the other boy. His usually pale cheeks were gaining a little bit of colour, and he got a weird sort-of feeling in his chest. He quickly dismissed any thoughts he had in that moment and dashed back into the classroom across the hall, vowing that no matter what he would bring his earplugs in and not let some silly music distract him from the more important things he was supposed to be doing.

Unfortunately the next week, he ‘accidentally’ left them at home, meaning he once again had to be subjected to the mayhem of the music room after school. George had returned to school that week, but fortunately he had ditched his assault of the instruments in favour of brainstorming new comic ideas, so Melvin could hear the beautiful sounds of Harold's piano playing. Scratch that. They weren't beautiful. He kept telling himself that he only listened to his piano playing because it was impossible to block out the sound of it, it certainly wasn't because he enjoyed it. He'd already decided to never go near the music room after school again, but for some reason he found himself returning again. And again. The same time every week, just to hear the (mostly) delicate sounds of the piano that stood in the old music room. Was he more drawn to the melodies, or the boy playing them?

With every passing visit, that line slowly became more blurred until eventually it ceased to even exist at all. Harold really was improving each time he played, and for some reason even in class Melvin couldn't help but direct his gaze towards him when he thought no-one else was looking. It's as if the blonde had unintentionally put some sort of spell on him, causing him to gradually notice (and eventually admire) his many quirks, both physical or otherwise.

The way he'd stash coloured pencils in the curls of the absolute mess of golden hair he had. Or how when the light hit them just right, you could see that his eyes were in fact two different colours, one green and one blue, resembling the colours of the globe that sat across the class from them at the teacher's desk. How his face would light up whenever you brought up marine biology, and how he would always end up shifting the conversation towards being about dolphins. What the rest of the class failed to notice, was that just as one face sparked with joy when marine life got brought up, so did another. A freckled face, usually covered up by a book and a mildly unamused expression would light up in almost the exact same way as his vastly more popular classmate's did.

A warm feeling tickled Melvin's cheeks once again, dusting them a soft shade of pink as he recalled the smile of the boy who had somehow stolen his heart… wait, no! He didn't have a crush on Harold Hutchins of all people, did he? One of the boys who was responsible for countless pranks directed at himself and most of the school faculty, and a constant target of his tattling? That would honestly be the most embarrassing thing to ever happen to him, possibly even more so than the possibility of being found reading Captain Underpants comics, and yet there he was, blushing like an idiot over him and possibly missing out on some extra credit, just to stand in the doorway of the music room listening to him repeat the same set of notes over and over again on the piano.

George was usually blocking the way to Harold, lying down and furiously scribbling what Melvin presumed to be new ideas for their latest issue, but the ginger didn’t mind. After all, it wasn’t as if Melvin wanted to be closer to the piano.

Although, when George decided to move his usual spot, Melvin couldn’t help but notice that if he wanted to he could enter unseen. Despite their excessive use of the room, they never turned on any lights but one, possibly to not attract the principal’s attention, and he was a rather small fellow to begin with.

Without realizing it, he took a step inside, just barely across the threshold. Just like expected, the darkness engulfed him and the two remained unbothered, too busy in their heads as always. Harold was still covered in more shadows than Melvin liked, but now he was only half hidden.

As his fingers danced across the keys he softly hummed along to the tune, so quietly you would miss it if not actively searching. His singing was soft and melodic, a sharp contrast from his loud and bombastic voice Melvin was used to. It was fragile and delicate, almost as much as glass. The melody itself was upbeat and gorgeous in its own way, which fit Harold in that aspect, he mused.

Heaven knew that he had the attention span of a goldfish, yet he hadn’t taken his eyes off his hands, focusing on it more than he’d ever focused for a test. It felt almost wrong, for the boy to not glance around the room and fiddle with whatever he had on him constantly. Furthermore, his smile was small and gentle, nothing like his infuriating smirk he wore when setting a prank or successfully annoying Melvin.

Before, Melvin would believe it didn't fit on such a person, but recently he observed the same expression when talking about what he liked, sketching, or seeing a friend. Unnoteworthy, but certainly there once you looked for it (in fact, that seemed to be true with a lot of his quirks.)

He hadn’t noticed, but he slowly inched his way closer to the piano, now only a few yards away. Snapping out of his trance, he tightened his hold on the books now against his chest, turning around to leave. His homework wasn’t going to do itself, and he wouldn’t dream of letting some stupid music drag his GPA down.

He tip-toed away, cringing when a book slipped out of his grasp and clattered to the floor.

Frozen like a deer in headlights, he didn't even get to turn around before his fears were confirmed.

“Hey.”

[velvetvexations]

"I haven't heard from the pro-kink/ship crowd since it came out that"

listen

pal

unless they invented a brand new never before conceived violation of human life and dignity this is unlikely to be the crime that changes my mind about jailing people for writing noncon

like I think there's been enough horrible stuff IRL and throughout literally every single day of human history since the species crawled out of the primordial ooze that it's gonna be hard to bring something new to the table you feel me

[transthadymacdermot]

Tagged by @spideronthesun! rules are to bold each thing your oc has done

Let's go with Lazarus for this :)

Killed Someone Under Orders | Had Someone Killed On Their Orders | Killed Someone In Self Defense | Spared Someone’s Life | Invented Something | Been Hungover | Kissed Someone | Slow-Danced | Been In A Long-Term Relationship | Had Sex | Had Sex And Regretted It | Had A One-Night Stand | Had A Threesome | Experimented With Their Sexuality | Had A Kid | Adopted A Kid | Wanted To Have A Family With Someone | Done Something On Impulse They Regretted | Gone Traveling | Had A Bounty Put On Them | Eaten An Insect | Been Groped/SA'd | Been Dumped | Dumped Someone | Smoked | Gotten High | Put Someone In A Headlock | Won A Bet | Lost A Bet | Forgiven Someone Who Wronged Them | Indulged In Petty Revenge | Hallucinated | Gotten A Noticeable Scar | Kneed/Hit Someone In The Groin | Had An Unattainable Crush | Laughed Themselves To The Point Of Tears | Been Kidnapped | Been Brainwashed/Hypnotized | Had A Recurring Nightmare | Been Bullied | Bullied Someone | Experienced Survivor’s Guilt | Been Tied/Chained Up | Given Someone A Massage | Received A Massage | Been Backed Up Against A Wall | Shot Someone | Stabbed Someone | Saved Someone’s Life | Cheated On Someone | Been Cheated On | Been In An Open Relationship | Had A Friendship With Benefits | Been In A Queerplatonic Relationship* | Had A Stalker | Been Betrayed | Been A Traitor | Been Possessed | Been In A Bar Fight | Been Thrown Out Of A Bar | Been Arrested | Broken Out Of Jail | Been To A Funeral | Been To A Brothel | Had Surgery | Broken Someone’s Trust | Broken Someone’s Heart | Had Their Heart Broken | Broken/Damaged Something Out Of Anger | Broken/Damaged Something Out Of Spite | Gotten A Piercing | Gotten A Tattoo | Used A Fake Name | Been Beaten Up | Been Tortured | Tortured Others | Been Abused | Been Blackmailed | Gotten Away With A Crime | Framed Someone Else For A Crime They Committed | Shared A Bed Platonically | Been In Love | Suffered From Sleep Paralysis | Been Forced To Flee Their Home | Learned A New Language | Joined A Rebellion** | Fought On The Losing Side Of A War | Fought On The Winning Side Of A War | Become A Godparent | Become An Aunt/Uncle

*unclear whether or not his horrible relationship with Brendan counts as this or not

**eh... could be depending on your political opinions. the following 2 "won a war" and "lost a war" are both also borderline cases because of this

Tagging @orphanheirs @fortunatetragedy @saturnine-saturneight @davycoquette @talesofsorrowandofruin and anyone else who wants to do it

[sarahowritesostucky]

"Censor-shipping"

Thing that pro-censorship people have told me I'm not "allowed" to write, because reasons:

m/m

a/b/o

rape

dub/con

infidelity

drug use

religions

self harm

violent crime

polyamory

abortion

underage

polygamy

slavery

incest

crossovers

cannibalism

Guess how many I decided to not write about?

(Hey, you guys! I invented a new term: it's "censorshipping" 😂)

OOH, one of the trolls came out from her bridge as soon as the above post came off my queue:

I HAVE to imagine it is either a relatively unintelligent teenager, or else god help us if it calls itself an adult 😳

I don't think it understands that books are constantly being written with horrible things that happen in the plots. Including each and every one of its personal squicks.

Does it ever go to the library??

Does it belong to Moms for Liberty? I bet it's a card carrying member of Moms for Liberty 😂

Ignorant cowards hide their hate behind anons 🥱

[youareunbearable]

By the good grace of Brennan Lee Mulligan I give thee this idea to play with and contemplate

Think of Feanor, if you will. Prideful, Villainous, who burns and rages and consumes and destroys and is as fleeting and lasting as his namesake, lingering like a warmth in the bones of the story after a campfire is dozed.

But just as fire is destructive, its also beneficial, needed in many cases to allow new growth to sprout forth from the ashes of those the Flames had consumed, and in turn sacrificed itself for these new sprouts.

Picture Feanor. Feanor who, in the halls, watches all the events of the First Age and seethes. He sees the so called Gods, the Valar, those who promised his father and that generation peace and prosperity and everlasting life in paradise then did nothing to uphold those promises once they came under question, he watches those very beings do NOTHING for his children, his little sprouts. He sees his eldest tortured for 30 years, only saved by the prayers and blessings of his half-nephew. 30 years Maedhros spent begging, pleading, every moment he spent away from the attentions of Melkor or Sauron in supplication to the Valar in hopes that he may be gifted death. Ignored, tossed aside like trash if it were for Nolofinwe's spawn.

His Second Son, tortured by the weight of the Music, the Song of Creation, in his heart and ears and forced to lament his crimes forevermore. Forever separated from his family, forever an ocean away, forever reminded of his guilt and crimes.

His Third, Fourth, and Fifth sons, deemed nothing more than villains, criminals and boogeymen, tales to be told to scare mortal children into staying in their beds at night. Cold blooded killers, snakes in the grass, greedy and unsympathetic.

His Sixth and Seventh sons? Discarded, forgotten and unremarkable, not memorable to the Valar and those that record their histories. Even though they were loved so dearly by those that knew them. How their loved ones fought and begged and cried and screamed to have them on their side when everything was now dark.

Picture this Feanor, who has seen how his Sons were spurred and left and discarded in favour of his Half Siblings children and descendents, to new shiny playthings in Beleriand. Picture how he would seethe at the injustice, how his kin alone are branded while the others remain sin free to the Valar, to History

Picture then, his response when the Valar offer him a redemption. For Feanor was beloved, once. He was brilliant and shiny and the Valar used to marvel and coo at his inventions and creations. How they coveted the work he put his whole soul and being into.

Imagine then, from behind the bars of his cage in Mandos Halls, how he would spit at these "Gods" and their forgiveness towards the "troubles" he caused. He would burn and loathe and hiss at these creatures that offer him a redemption, after he watched them stand by and watch as his Sons were beaten, killed, and left to rot while they tended to others.

But, we have pictured this Feanor, we know him and what he will do, and what he has seen. We know this Feanor, a narration that has survived long past the End of Middle Earth. His name and his influence reach for and wide, even of they don't know his deeds, or his story. The Feanor we picture, is alive in our minds and hearts, flickering like a little candle flame that just burns hotter with each breath we take as we keep his memory alive

Picture Feanor, immortal, and powerful, and known far better than these "Gods", these Valar. Feanor, with one loyal son still roaming the world, singing of his horrible and wondrous deeds. He would sneer up at these unfathomable beings offering him forgiveness and redemption and snarl:

"To reach a hand down to somebody, they need to be Beneath You!"