#and its nice when the people/citizens get involved :))

[cosmicrhetoric]

finished dressrosa on my lunch break......shrek 2 ass arc.....waauahg !

[see-arcane]

I am almost fine with people saying he has one brain cell, because I have seen dozens of people make the worse claim that he is "an arrogant, smug, proud of his rationality Victorian who laughs at the locals for their superstitions."

It is such a prevalent assesment that it's now considered a core character trait of his. When today's entry indicates nothing of the sort.

UH OH, YOU’VE ACTIVATED MY TANGENT CARD

(Text Brick Incoming)

Jonathan’s fundamental flaw at this stage does involve looking down on or viewing the locals and their traditions as quaint/idolatrous/ridiculous et al. He uses poor terminology too, owing to the Doylist reason of his author’s knowledge and biases, while the Watsonian reason is easy enough to read as Jonathan 1) Having to rely solely on biased/incomplete knowledge from his homeland’s writings on the place and 2) What I think is him trying to overcompensate as a trained reflex

I’ve always pictured Jonathan and Mina as having not only a lower social and monetary standing, but possibly a hindrance of race. (Case in point, I suspect a certain unique prop Jonathan brandishes later on is something he inherited, not something picked up by happenstance.)

That said—they are poor, they are not the idealized picture of the fair English Citizen…but they are both polite, charming, hardworking, and masters of ~making friends~ as a defense mechanism. And I’d bet money that included relying on what few positive nods their peers allowed.

“You’re so nice! So industrious! Your physiognomy really counters your origins! And you are wise enough to look down on those silly foreigners, aren’t you? Of course you are! You’re one of the good ones.”

Now, regardless of what headcanon is landed on as far as race/ethnicity/other backgrounds go, those last points are key. Because they go towards Being a Good Englishman/woman. Being wiser than to buy into fretting non-English superstitions. Knowing to ogle the people of other lands like curiosities in a zoo. Judging people by their face or the shape of their skull. This is the Norm. This is Good of the Victorian Englishman Abroad.

And we see Jonathan hold to all these stereotypes…to a degree. But we see within these same early entries that his instincts and general good nature chafe against that social training. He’s too much himself to do entirely as a Proper Englishman should.

He went out of his way to study all the limited info he had access to, incomplete or half-informed as it was. He delighted in learning everything he could of the places and people as he traveled, wanting to embrace and be educated on the land. And even when a lifetime of advising against it, of insistence upon derision, tried to take over when the crucifix was offered? He still accepted it. He still wears it even when the old woman departs, whether or not he believes in its importance.

And, vitally, his instincts are very Very awake to the fact that Something is Off. A Proper Englishman (and many an oblivious or stubborn dad in a ghostly horror movie) would shrug this unease off at once. But Jonathan doesn’t. He remains on Dracula’s route only because he has no other choice. All he does is mention quietly that he hopes Mina gets his diary if he happens to die on this journey.

Imagine that. Bracing for and acknowledging the sense that You Might Die on This Little Business Trip and just…having to go along with it. Because what will you tell your boss otherwise? What will you tell your fiancée?

These aren’t the concerns of a well-off stuffy snob of a man. It’s the resignation of someone who understands they live on the lowest rung of the ladder and that they will risk losing what little progress they’ve made if they dare to turn back.

As for sneering at the locals’ superstitions, period, consider: How likely would anyone really be to suddenly believe in monsters after coming out of the background Jonathan has? What could possibly have convinced him of the reality of the situation OTHER THAN SEEING IT IN PERSON? (Note, a key plot point for certain other characters later!)

The point of his being unable to take the supernatural aspect at face value is that, well, Why Would Anyone Immediately Jump to a Supernatural Conclusion in His Place?

What possible context does he have here!? Maybe he should have read Dracula first, ha ha—

Oh wait. He can’t do that. Why?

Because this man has never read Dracula BECAUSE HE IS LIVING AND WRITING THE BOOK DRACULA!!

Anyway.

tl;dr: I am very tired of both the Stuffy Victorian Snobprick and Oblivious Idiotbaby takes on my good friend Jonathan Harker

[shakirawastaken]

dsmp if... they were spiderman

i love spiderman just like every other bitch out there

dream: - do not be surprised if he comes out one day and claims hes a demigod and superhero and a wizard - cause if its anybody its this guy fr - if he was spiderman he wouldnt have the main and basic color scheme - hed go green like everything - green is the main color like the evermore green and black/white as the accent colors - his string also wouldnt be normal spider string i feel like itd be neon ish like miguels from the movie - he would also avoid telling you that he was spiderman till the very last moment - he would wanna keep you safe the best he can - would nEVER swing by your house - but he keeps an eye out on you when he knows ur out and about walking - but when you eventually figure it out? boy oh boy - cornering you in the street and pushing you into an alleyway - spiderman poses in front of you, hanging from his web - gives you upside down kisses???? sign me tf up - hed also get himself just the right amount involved in the crime he fought - he knows how to balance his life out, and he knows how important it is to be able to balance his life out like that - hot as spiderman  sapnap: - a reckless spiderman - leans vigilante  - out of all of them he would be the one with the suit closest to the spiderman - but im not feeling the blue - marroon and black or some other brighter color - a rash spiderman - fights crime like no business, but kinda makes a mess along the way - its okay bc the people love him - loves loves LOVES arguing with cops - tells you almost immediately after becoming spiderman bc he has to tell someone - breaks every canon event - trash talks every criminal out there - but is nice to every citizen he sees - likes webshooting your wrist to the counter or something so you cant leave or go out or smth - forces you to spend time with him :) - likes to keep out of interacting with people as spiderman  - but will use it as argument bait in day to day life - makes a hammock out of webs and lays there between two buildings - overall 7/10 spiderman

george: - is barely spiderman but when he is hes darn good at it - he leaves a lot of the petty crime to the cops - only goes out for the big stuff - dark navy blue suit with black accents - stays in the shadows/on top of buildings - doesnt interact with anyone if he can help it - the more secretive he can keep the better - he told you a fair amount of time after he went out as everyones crime fighting superhero - but he doesnt like to talk about being spiderman  - and youre fine with that, as long as he stays safe - he swings to your window every night after hes done being spiderman - hed rather be with you than someone else after the hard night hes probably had - has a habit opening your window without knowing and jumpscaring you accidentally LMFAO

karl: - oh he LOVES BEING SPIDERMAN - hes the spiderman to be on every cereal box and phone cover and talk show - loves taking pictures especially with little children in their own spiderman costumes - after he captures and ties up every criminal he leaves a little goofy aah note for the cops to laugh at - unlike sapnap he has a great rep w the cops  - he told you after he “test” ran it - actually he just showed up with the mask on and you were like “SPIDERMAN OMG LET ME CAL MY BF” - and then spidermans phone was ringing and you were like - “what” - “im spiderman!” - “WHAT” - his suits like - i feel like it changes color in the sun - its one of those suits - and hes the only one out of all to have an assistant ai thing in his suit to lead him through crime - he might be a more light hearted spiderman but he still deals with the same dangerous crime

quackity: - this guy loves to swing - he will put his headphones on and jump off the nearest building - mona lisa by dominic fike - soars to the ground and then swings up at the last moment - swings to the beat of the music to relax - he has the normal suit i think - but he has his hair comin out of the suit like pavitr  - loves to take you swinging - even if you may find it terrifying - he likes the feeling of sharing with you his favorite activity - fights crime like no ones business - he told you like a few months after being spiderman - he just jumped down from the ceiling  - “? what” - “spiderman!” - “...what” - yeah  - idk all i can think of is that quackity likes to swing around the city just for the heck of it - “WOAH ITS SPIDERMAN��� “YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA” 

wilbur: - has a black suit like miles - tommy is his guy in the chair LMFAO - in his ear like “SWING LEFT I MEAN RIGHT I MEAN LEFT” - mutes tommy half the time - leaves you little messages in web on the walls of the house - “love you!” but its in spider web - actively holds a conversation with the people hes fighting - “so hows your day?” *PUNCH* “hows ur kid doing?” *OBLITERATES* - uses physics and shit to his advantage cause hes not that built - another one whos hot as spiderman - never EVER brings you out as spiderman - EVER - will bring tommy tho - cause tommy annoys him into doing - “BIG UPS WILBUR!!” “SHH TOMMY” - is spidermans biggest fan even though hes spiderman - “they will never suspect spidermans biggest fan as spiderman!” - smart ngl 

guys all i can think about is spiderman its a dilemma an issue a problem  sorry for the short headcanons i had to get my thoughts out of the way!

[astro-pioneer]

Hello! Nice to meet you!

Could I request Kaveh, Ayato, and Zhongli's s/o telling them "You're not royalty, but you are the ruler of my heart!"?

king of my heart!

not being royalty doesn’t concern him when he’s a ruler in your eyes (and heart). 『kaveh, ayato, zhongli』

kaveh!

All Kaveh did after the Interdarshan Championship was mope, and it was starting to aggravate Alhaitham. In his eyes, it made no sense to be upset about something you did yourself, but he knew that sharing his thoughts to the blond would do nothing but cause him to start a petty argument that only he's involved in. He doesn't know how you deal with him most of the time, if he's honest.

Luckily you invited Kaveh over to your house. It was mostly to help Alhaitham more than your boyfriend. "You know," you started while at the stove, "the things you did were very noble." His head perked up from where he was setting a plate at the table. "Sure, you don't have that insane amount of wealth that was promised or were able to parade in the diadem, but who cares? You're great in my eyes, and you don't need the money or crown of a king to rule my heart."

Sniffles sounded from behind you before his arms were wrapped around you, his pretty face damp with tears. "Oh, you're so lovely! Where would I be without you?" You extinguished the fire in front of you before moving away from the hot metal on the burner. You didn't want to reply and stuck to comforting him, but he'd probably still be moping on the couch in Alhaitham's house until he got sick of it and locked the blond out.

ayato!

He was known to be the head of the Kamisato Clan, used to working more behind the scenes for the more draining issues regarding the nation. However, even though that was the role he preferred to play, it was not hard to see that the male wished to be recognized for his accomplishments.

Ayato allowed you to hear his thoughts late one night. He clarified that no, he does not regret any choices that got him in this position. That'd basically be saying that he regrets every moment he experienced while being in this position. That'd basically be saying he regrets ever meeting and falling in love with you. He also spoke about Ayaka being the main public affairs leader and that he doesn't wish to have her role either (he was also told by multiple people that he can be seen as a little intimidating with how he does things).

Ayato wishes for more recognition for the job he's had to bear and a horrifically young age. Despite how it seems, many Inazuma citizens appreciate what he does; it's just hard to express that appreciation with a figure of high authority that no one really sees. He poured out his insecurities that tender night, and you were right there to soak it all in and comfort him. "My dearest Ayato, though you have these doubts, please always remember that even though you don't think of yourself as royalty, you'll always be the ruler of my heart, no matter what."

zhongli!

Zhongli was lost when he stepped down from his spot as archon. While observing his people when he was getting accustomed to being a normal mortal, it did not allow himself to see the more emotionally intimate parts of humans. The parts of insecurities, times where unknown feelings introduced themselves.

They first appeared while you were enjoying a night out at the harbour. He mentioned it out of the blue, quiet enough for no other patrons to hear him. "Darling, do you see me as less than since I stepped down?" The look you gave him was enough for him to go back to the story being told, but not for you. You didn't want to allow him to feel even an ounce of worthlessness without you reassuring him that the thoughts are lies.

"Less than? Archon, adeptus, funeral parlor worker, whatever you wish to be, you'll always be Zhongli to me. Besides, even if you no longer rule over a nation with the title as 'god', you'll forever rule my heart." His gloved hand interlaced its fingers with yours, his thumb rubbing soothingly on the back of your hand. It was silent, the thank you, but it was there and that's all you needed.

[justmeinadaze]

Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites (Steddie X You)

A/N: This is that idea I told y'all about when my PTSD was really bad last week. I actually liked writing some of this out <3. It did help a bit. I wish I had them and a Red to help me through those rough days.

I did set this after the events of Season 4 so slight spoilers involving Max mostly. Im kind of excited to explore a bit more of Steve's PTSD involving the show. I did it a bit here. I also chose to utilize my own trauma as the readers trauma. I'll delve a bit more in the warnings.

Anyone struggling with their mental health, you are not alone <3. You're feelings are valid and we just have to take things one day at a time. I love you :)

Warnings: Steddie X Fem Reader, No smut yet, Fluff with the reader trying to make them feel better and vice versa. Angst, trauma involving the show is mentioned especially with Steve's feelings of what happened to Max, mentions of Eddie being blamed and the town treating him like trash, he does talk about his abuse as a child very briefly as does the reader. No details are mentioned just that it happened. Reader has a panic attack that the boys help her through.

I do expand on symptoms of PTSD and how the reader feels. Symptoms of mental health can be different for everyone so I focused more on what I experience with my own PTSD. As I progress in the chapters and she becomes more open with them I will most likely talk about things that happened to me. I didn't want to generalize what she was going through mostly because its hard. PTSD and trauma are complicated in it of its self so...

Word Count: 5314

You had been coming to this group for years because of your mental health. Your doctor suggested it stating that it might help you to hear from other people going through the same thing you were. Truth be told it never worked. The other people in this post traumatic stress support group were mostly military vets or officers who had just moved to Hawkins to “get away from the chaos.” You imagined it was a quite a shock for them when the earthquake hit…

While a lot of their symptoms and aftermath stories were similar to yours, you struggled to connect. If anything, you felt more alone. So why did you keep coming back?

Routine, maybe. Or the need to have any kind of human contact since you spend the bulk of your time by yourself at home. Hell, you even worked from home so the only living thing you interacted with on a daily basis was your service dog, Ren. You rarely ever spoke in group, choosing to sit there and listen to the other people speak. 

Since the earthquake, however, more people had joined to your dismay. Most of the citizens that came in took up most of the time talking about the event and how scared they were about what happened. You tried not to let the disgust show on your face when they spoke, understanding that everyone experiences things differently but they didn’t really know. 

They didn’t know what it was like to spend years replaying an event in your head even when you’re asleep. To have those moments where something that would be random to someone else meant something significant to you triggering a panic attack that knocked you on your ass for the rest of the day. They didn’t know what it was like to be so scared to even go to the fucking grocery store to get essentials without the fear that everyone is talking about you and judging you because you’ve been standing in front of the canned goods for a little bit too long wondering if you buy this will you actually eat it or will it just sit there for months at a time because some days you don’t feel like eating. 

Your PTSD consumed a lot of your life for most of your life whereas these people were just now stepping into it and were most likely going to step right back out. After a few months, you were correct. All those citizens gradually stopped coming in till it was just the regular survivors once again. 

After grabbing some coffee, you and Ren sat in your usual spot, waiting for the meeting to start. The dog grabbed your attention when he whined and without warning placed his head on the stranger beside you. 

“Oh. Hey, buddy.”, he coos as his big hand reaches down to pet his head. 

“I’m sorry. He probably senses your anxiety.”

“Well shit. He’s not wrong. I’m not really good at any of this.”, he gestures around the room. “But some of my friends insisted we come so…”

“We?”

“Yeah, um…” The boy’s eyes glance up towards someone headed for the seat next to him and it takes you a moment to realize everyone else’s eyes on him as well. 

You recognized his face immediately, Edward Munson. The metalhead had been accused of being a satanic worshipper who murdered a bunch of teens a few months ago. He had been cleared of those charges thanks to the help of the old police chief, some detective journalism by Nancy Wheeler, and his friend… “Steve Harrington?”

“That’s me. Do I know you? My memory isn’t what it used to be.”

“She had school with us and graduated along with you, Harrington.”, Eddie sighed as he folded his arms.

“Oh. I’m sorry. What was your name?”

“You look different.”, you blurted before turning away from him and closing your eyes. “I’m…I’m sorry. Sometimes…my mouth moves before…before my brain catches up.”

Ren senses your heightened anxiety and places himself between your legs so you can pet his head, down his back. 

“Alright everyone, let’s get started.”, the overly cheery coordinator grins as he sits down and crosses his legs. While glancing at his clipboard, he addresses the circle. “Does anyone have anything they’d like to share before we get going?”

“Why is he here?”, someone sneers as they point towards the metalhead. 

“He should be in a cell not in group therapy.”, says another.

“Hey now. Mr. Munson is entitled to care just like everyone else and I expect you guys to treat him with the same respect we do everyone else. If that’s going to be a problem, I completely understand, feel free to leave and meet us at our other scheduled time on Thursday.”

Half the people in the room stood up and walked out, the last person slamming the door of the room for emphasis. Out of the corner of your eye, you see Steve pat his back comfortingly as Eddie lets out a deep, heartbroken sigh.

“Would either of you like to introduce yourself to the rest of the group?” 

The metalhead continued to glare forward as Steve spoke up. “As some of you may know, I’m Steve Harrington and this is my friend Eddie. Our other friend Robin suggested we try this since we, uh, we’ve been having some trouble lately.”

“Good, very good. Nice to meet you both. This is a safe space so please feel free to be open here.”

“Thank you.”

“Let’s, uh, let’s continue down the line here. Y/N? Do you feel like talking? I see Ren is on duty today. Something you’re anxious about?”

“Everything.” The man chuckles as people around the room nod in agreement. “I’m ok today, thanks.” 

The remainder of the meeting goes by smoothly without any incident and as it ends everyone rises to leave except the two people next to you. They expect you to leave as well but when you stand, instead of heading for the door you place yourself next to Eddie. He doesn’t move or make any gestures to acknowledge your presence and you’re ok with that. You aren’t really one for small talk or anything like that but something about his demeanor gave you a gut feeling that you decided to expand on. 

Your therapist was always preaching about learning to trust your gut and positive self-talk making your eyes roll every time. 

“Um, this is Ren. He’s a service lab for me because I, uh, I get shaky and anxious really easily. He can sense when I’m nervous or about to have an attack so he helps ground me. I can just pet him or he’ll let me hold him. At home, he’s trained to bring me my medication.”

Steve watches you speak, seemingly trying to get a read on you while Eddie continues to stare straight ahead. You can tell he’s listening though because his head tilted ever so slightly towards you as you began explaining things. Personally, he was so ecstatic to hear a stranger talk calmly with him but he couldn’t display that for fear of ruining the moment or worse, it being a lie.

“Do…do you want to pet him?” 

His head finally whips around to look at you as his eyes scan yours. Swallowing nervously, he sat up straighter, rolling his eyes in faux frustration as his palm reached out to pet the dog’s head. 

“Why Ren? How did you come up with that?”, Steve asked.

“The morning before I got him, I saw Footloose at the cinema. I like Kevin Bacon’s character and his name was Ren. Do you want to see something cute?” Without waiting for an answer, you stood in front of them and motioned for the lab to stand in front of you. Holding out your hands, you sang the Footloose theme song and he jumped up to place his paws in your hands to dance with you.

Both men smiled and you knew you’d never be able to explain why but it comforted you. 

“I, um, I know this town can be full of assholes but I hope you do come back next week. Craig, the coordinator, will take care of you. He’s a little quirky but he’s nice.”

Again, you don’t wait for an answer as you gather your things and Ren before heading out the door. 

****

When Steve got home that night, he immediately went on the hunt for his yearbook. 

“What are you doing, man?”, Eddie whined as he threw himself on the bed. 

“Looking for my yearbook. I’m surprised I don’t remember her. The guy said Y/N, do you remember her last name?”

Of course, he did. When you were in school together, he had a few classes with you especially English. Junior year you wrote a story that the teacher made you read in front of the class about a girl who was hiding in a forest behind a tree as she watched two monsters argue about how they were going to eat her when they found her. The other kids thought you were weird but he identified with it; picturing his parents fighting as you read.

Eddie never found the courage to speak to you but he was always your hidden knight, watching over you. One of the party boys had talked about how they fucked you and how much of a freak you were so he slashed the kids tires and spray painted “Asshole” in big, bold letters on his car. You probably didn’t remember but on valentine’s day he had slipped a note in your locker that was a drawing of you battling your monsters you had written about. 

“No. Come on, Harrington. It doesn’t matter. It’s not like we’re going back anyway.”

Steve paused his search as he sat down and crossed his legs. “Why wouldn’t we go back?”

“I don’t know if you noticed but people weren’t exactly excited I was there.”

“Fuck those people. At least one person was excited. Two if you count the dog.”

“Yeah sure. Let ruin that by bringing her into our shit. Plus, it’s not like we can tell anyone or talk about what really happened.”

Steve sighed as he got up to sit beside him. “Ed, first off, there isn’t shit to bring her into. Vecna’s dead; we killed him. Secondly, we don’t have to talk about what happened…just what happens after.”

“Really? You want to play that game, Steven? He may be dead but we still got shit. Max is still in a coma, Dustin is still struggling, the town is quite literally cut in half, and ALL of us still have fucking nightmares with all that other fun post traumatic shit. Things are still so out of whack we haven’t even told our friends about us yet.”

“They have enough on their plates.”

“Exactly. So, I reiterate, why do you want to bring this girl into our chaos?”

The man sighs again as he hangs his head making Eddie feel a little guilty as he leans his head on his shoulder while reaching for his hand.

“I don’t know. There’s just something about her that makes me feel comfortable and safe.”

###########

“You came back.”

“Yeah, it took some convincing but…”, Steve grinned. “Hey Ren. May I?”, he asked before petting the lab when you nodded. 

“How are you feeling today, Eddie?”

The metalhead softly smiles at you as he tilts his head in your direction. When the meeting begins you can already feel that the energy is different. One of the regulars is extremely agitated today as his leg bounces and he folds his arms. As soon as Craig reaches him, he shouts his problem as he struggles to control the volume of his voice. Your eyes close as you try to stay present and remind yourself that your safe.

No, no, no. Please. I can’t have a panic attack here in front of all these people. Everyone will look at me. They’ll think I’m weak. No, no, no.

“Y/N?”, the coordinator calls your name and you fold into yourself. “Y/N, you’re ok. You’re safe.”

Ren places his front paws on your knees as he rests his head on your shoulder. You couldn’t do this, pushing him back as you stumbled out the door into the hallway before sinking to the floor.

Your service dog continued to do what it was trained to do as he ran after you and laid beside you in your arms. The sound of your bag and a bottle of water being placed beside you startled you but you couldn’t move to acknowledge it.

You felt your head being lifted and placed on something relatively soft as you continued to try and calm down. It took a few moments but once you felt like you could breathe you opened your teary eyes to see Eddie looking towards the window.

“Hey, hey, take your time.”, Steve soothed in a soft tone when you tried to sit up. “I grabbed your bag and some water. Do you need your meds or anything?”

“C-C-Can you help me?”, you asked as you reached your arms back to try and push yourself to a sitting position. He leaned over to help you adjust as you laid against the wall with your head on the metalhead’s shoulder. “I’m sorry.”

“Nothing to be sorry for.”

“I didn’t want you laying your head on the hard floor. I hope that was ok.”, Eddie tenderly grinned. 

You nodded, watching heavily as Ren dug his snout in your purse before producing your medicine and placing it on your lap. 

“Good boy. Steve, in there is his treats. Can you give him one?”

He smiled as he did what you asked and your dog wagged his tail happily. 

“Do you need help?”, Eddie whispered.

“I don’t want to be any trouble.”

Without saying a word, he grabbed the meds from you lap and opened the bottle, shaking one into his hand and popping it closed. He placed the pill near your mouth and your eyes met his as you slowly opened, allowing him to place it on your tongue before holding the edge of the water to your lips and tipping it back. 

“You’re not any trouble. I…we…appreciate you being as kind as you have been to us.”

As he extended his arm to place everything back in its proper place, his jacket sleeve slid up and you noticed some slight scaring around his wrist. When he felt your eyes on him, he followed your glance, quickly covering it up as he leaned back. 

“Thank you for coming out here. You didn’t have to. I struggle with aggressiveness like what Jeremy did in there.”

“Is that not normal for him?”

“Usually, no but I imagine this earthquake and the aftermath hasn’t helped him with his flashbacks.”

“How has it been for you?”, Steve asked.

“Um, not to chaotic. I had a harder time a few months prior when this town was going crazy and playing police officers like they were the law or something. Oh shit. Eddie, I’m so sorry. I didn’t even—”

“No worries, sweetheart. I’m used to it now; the stares, gossip, and questions.”

“Should you be?”

His eyes met yours again before quickly looking away as the door to the group area opened and people filed out. The man who had been yelling came over to where you were sitting and apologized in a much more gentle tone then he had previously. After accepting it and smiling towards him, you slowly wobbled to your feet with Steve helping to guide you.

“Are you ok to drive? We can take you home if you’d like.”

“No, I’m alright. I just need to eat something and get a little energy back.”

“Would you like to have dinner with us?”, Eddie offered carefully.

“Sure.”

***

As the three of you entered the restaurant, your eyes darted around as your brain did its regular anxiety check. You made sure to clock where all the exits were and how to get to them, scanned the current patrons to make sure no one was someone who would hurt you, and marked which seat you would prefer to be in just in case you needed to run. 

When you glanced towards Steve, you blinked back surprise when you realized he was doing the same thing. 

“I have to leave, Harrington, but get it to go and we can eat in my van. If that’s ok with you.”

You nodded, panicking slightly as he walked back out the door, unsure of what he was hiding from. To avoid another episode, you did the same leaving the other man to order. When you made it outside you found Eddie in the driver’s seat smoking a cigarette, his eyes darting to you when you climbed into the passenger’s side. 

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. I saw Jason’s parent’s eating at a table so…”

“I never thought you killed those kids.” As soon as the words blurted out, your eyes squeezed shut. “I’m sorry. I’m so fucking sorry.”

Finger reached out to touch your arm causing your eyes to open again, meeting his kind chocolate-colored ones. 

“You don’t have to keep apologizing.”

When you apologize again, both of you let out a breathy, genuine laugh. 

“When I saw on the news what happened to Chrissy, I knew you couldn’t have done it. Yeah, you were always loud in school but you were also really sweet… at least from what I remember.”

You two jumped when Steve opened the back of the van and threw himself in. “Eddie, go.”

Without any hesitation, he started to put the vehicle in gear but he wasn’t fast enough as Jason’s father appeared by his window and aggressively knocked on the glass. 

“Where do you think you’re going, freak?! You’re the reason my son and his girlfriend are dead!”

“Go, Eddie!”, Steve commanded.

The metalhead slammed his foot on the gas and sped off with the man shouting behind him. The rest of the ride was silent until he parked near the hill that surveyed the town. You watched as he continued to grip the wheel like a lifeline as his chest rose and fell. You wanted to help but you didn’t know exactly how. They only thing you could think of was to grab his palm and place it on Ren’s head. The dog was used to limp pets as Eddie’s hand lazily fell down his back but he promptly rested his head on his lap as you praised him. 

Steve leaned over the seat and placed his arms around him as he whispered things in his ear furthest from you. After a few moments his hand began to move against Ren’s fur making the dog’s tail wag as the other boy released him from his hold. 

“Come on. Let’s eat.”

############

It was actually the perfect evening for eating outside. The van doors remained open as the three of you munched on your meals in the back. From this spot Hawkins looked different; less chaotic than it was.

While you guys ate you casually talked about yourself. They told you some general things about themselves and you did the same. Even though you felt safe with them you didn’t want to bombard them too much with the mess that was your life. You felt like they were holding back as well, omitting certain information they were afraid to tell.

“You can work from home, you know?”, you mentioned after Eddie brought up how hard it was to find a job because of who he was. “That’s what I do.”

“I could do that.”

“Wouldn’t that be hard for you, Ed? You’re very talkative and outgoing. Don’t you like thrive off of people or some shit.”

“Thrive off of people… No, Harrington. I’m not a vampire.” They grinned at each other when you giggled. “I mean it wouldn’t be much different. Everyone already thought I was a freak beforehand. Now I’m just a murdering freak.”

Everyone went silent as the metalhead turned away to glare outside. 

“You should stop saying things like that.”, you murmur. 

“It’s how they feel.”, he shrugs.

“Who cares how they feel. What matters is how you feel and the truth. You didn’t do it so stop saying it.” Eddie’s eyes jerked towards you as your tone got more agitated.

“Yeah, well, what would you know?”

“Eddie, stop it.”, Steve warned.

“It’s ok, Steve. I can handle this. I’m mentally ill not weak.”

“No one said you were weak, Y/N.”

“What makes you so confident I didn’t do it, hm? You weren’t there. Maybe I did.”

“Eddie…”

“No, Harrington. I’m curious. What makes her so confident? I have to know because besides my friends and my uncle you are the only person in this town who believes I didn’t do some satanic ritual to murder Chrissy, Fred, Patrick, and Jason. That I didn’t hurt Max to cause that fucking earthquake. Why?”

Steve angerly threw the water bottle he was drinking from hard against the inside of the van making you jump.

“Jesus Christ. Are you fucking kidding me, Ed?! We finally find one person who believes the truth and you have to fucking question it! Who gives a fuck why she believes you! Just embrace it.”

He crawls out of the vehicle and begins to pace as he lets off steam. Ren puts his head on your lap and you pet him as you watch Eddie climb out as well and hug the boy from behind, resting his cheek on his back. 

“I’m sorry if I startled you.”, Steve apologized without looking your way. 

“You didn’t. I…I feel safe with you, both of you. That’s why I believe you. I can’t explain it, Eddie. I wish I could. My therapist says that because of my trauma I had to learn how to read people so I could protect myself and prepare just in case. You two…I just don’t get this vibe that I need to be afraid of you.”

“Like a superpower?”, the metalhead grins softly as he comes to sit back beside you. 

“You could say that.”, you giggle and his heart melts. Abruptly, you lean over and wrap your arms around his shoulders, feeling his body stiffen only for a moment before fully accepting it. “You’re a good person Edward Munson.”

Steve watches you both as he stands in front of you, also taken aback when you turn your love towards him by hugging him to, circling your arms around his lower back.

“You to, Steve Harrington.”

****

The following week you were happy to see they attended group again and seemed so much lighter than they had the other times they had come. As the meeting started, once again you felt that shift in energy. 

“Y/N, I know you don’t talk much here and that’s absolutely fine. I was hoping maybe we could talk about what happened last week.”

“Oh, um, I don’t want to make Jeremy feel bad.”

“I’m ok. I want you to talk about it. It helps me understand…”

You gnaw on your bottom lip at his answer as Craig looks at you with earnest eyes. “I, um, he got aggressive and I panicked.”

“He did get verbally confrontational. Was it the yelling or what he was saying that triggered you?”

“The…yelling doesn’t…doesn’t really bother me or what is said. It…how it was being said.”

“Huh. Interesting. Please, go on.”

“My mom…was always kind of…forceful with her words…”

You don’t see it but both the boy’s protective modes had kicked in beside you especially Steve’s. It takes all his energy not to comfort you in some way. Yesterday, you had hugged him and Eddie but you three had been alone. Right now, you were in room full of people and he didn’t want to make you uncomfortable. He settled for casually extending his legs a bit so his knee was just barely touching your own. 

“I don’t want to talk anymore if that’s ok.”

“That’s fine, Y/N. How about you Steve? I noticed you and Eddie got up pretty quickly to make sure she was okay. I’m sure she appreciates that. Are you usually the protector of your friend group?”

He smirks slightly. “They would probably say I’m more like the babysitter.”

“That’s funny.”, the coordinator laughs. “I have seen you around town with some of the younger kids like Dustin Henderson and Mike Wheeler. You and Mr. Munson there.”

“How’s Max Mayfield doing?” Both their heads shot up to look towards the member that asked the question. “Is she doing any better? I heard her mom is wreck.”

“Jackie, you know the rules. We don’t gossip in here.”, Craig scolds. 

“I’m not gossiping! Max was dating that Sinclair boy, right? Who hangs out with Michael and Dustin who apparently hang out with them so…I just want to know.”

Ren, who had been laying on the floor by your feet, suddenly sat up and waddled between Steve’s legs before lifting himself up so his head was on the man’s shoulder.

“Hug him.”, you whisper as you reach out to rub the boy’s back.

Slowly, he wraps his arms around him and pets the dog’s head. “Good boy.”

“Let’s, uh, Let’s move on to someone else.”

As the coordinator began talking to another person, Steve got up to leave as you and Eddie followed behind. Unlike you, instead of sitting in the hall, he continued to the parking lot towards his BMW. 

“Steve, wait. Wait a second!”, the metalhead called to him trying to keep up.

“I’m fine. Let’s just go home.”

“If you’re fine then why are we leaving?”

“Because I know they are going to ask about her again and I don’t want to hear it so…”, he aggressively gestures towards the car. 

“Isn’t that the point of this therapy group bullshit? To talk or whatever the fuck you said. This was your idea. You can’t just drag us here and then leave when it gets hard.”

“Ok, well, you know what? You were right, okay? We can’t talk about what happened so—”

“But they aren’t asking what happened. They are asking how she is. They already think they know what happened.”

“Fine! Fine, Eddie! Let’s go back in there and answer her question! ‘Oh yeah, Jackie, Max is fine. Just all of her limbs are broken and she’s in a fucking coma but hey the doctors say she’s not brain dead! Always a silver lining!’”

“Steve…what happened to her wasn’t your fault.”

“Fuck this. I’ll walk home.”

The metalhead ran in front of him, trying to block him with his body. “What happened to her, me, Dustin, and Lucas wasn’t your fault. You killed him. You, Nancy, and Robin saved us all but you’re not fucking superman, babe. You can’t be everywhere at once and can’t protect everyone.”

Steve’s head hung and they clung to each other as Eddie embraced him. When they disconnected, they were almost startled by your presence, forgetting you were there entirely. 

“Hey, um, before my brain glitches, I drew you something last night.” Eddie digs in his pocket and hands you a folded piece of paper. 

When you open it fully, you softly smile at the image of you in boots and a superhero style outfit with your palm in the air as a zig-zag force field surrounded you. Next to you was Ren with his tongue hanging out and mask over his eyes. At the top was bold 3D lettering that read “LADY EMPATHY” with smaller print underneath; “Senses Emotions and helps heal the innocent with her trustee four-legged side kick Anti-Depressant.”

You didn’t know whether to laugh or cry but you loved it. No one had ever done something nice like this for you except that one time someone slide a drawing into your locker.

Your eyes met his as a light bulb went off in your head. 

“Do you two want to come over to my house? We can hang out and eat some food. I would like to show you something.”

Eddie glanced at Steve who nodded his approval. 

“Ok. Sounds like fun.”

****

“Wow, this place is really nice.”, Steve muses as he looks around. 

“Thank you. I don’t have much but I don’t need too much so…”, you shrug as you watch them move around. 

“You seem to like a lot of movies, huh?” Eddie walks around looking at your posters hanging on the wall. 

“I do especially the fantasy ones. It’s nice to hide from reality in movies like The Never Ending Story or Dragon Slayer. I can’t wait for Labyrinth to come out. You know that new Bowie movie?”

The metalhead chuckles when Steve shrugs. “He doesn’t know who that is, sweetheart. Steve isn’t exactly well versed in most media.”

Your eyes widen as you head towards your sound system and push in a cassette. “Let’s Dance” flows through the speakers and he bobs his head he listens. “Pretty cool.”

Eddie laughs harder when you playfully sigh as his musical ignorance. “Yeah. Welcome to my world. What did you want to show us?”

After disappearing into your room, you come back with a frame in your arms, the image facing your body. 

“When I was in high school, I was pretty good at being invisible but sometimes I wasn’t so lucky. The jocks would pick on me a lot and pretty girls like Tammy Thompson would make my life hell.” Steve sighed praying that he wasn’t one of the people who hurt you. “That was nothing compared to what I was dealing with at home. My parents…they, um, they weren’t nice with each other and sometimes…my mother would take that out on me.”

“I always loved English class because I could write about what I was feeling. One day a teacher had asked me to read something I wrote in front of everyone. I told him no but he insisted and as I stood there, I could hear people snickering. It was awful; I hate talking in front of people. But anyway, a few days later, I found this in my locker.”

You turned the frame around to display the image Eddie had drawn for you as you slowly moved toward him. 

“You have no idea what this did for me. In a world full of people where I felt like no one cared, this showed me someone was listening. Someone out there did care…at least enough to take the time to draw this and give it to me.”

Eddie’s eyes met yours as he spoke. “I related to it, your story about the monsters and the kid hiding. My father used to scream at my mother until it escalated. I would always hide in my room hoping I wasn’t next.” Steve came over to stand next to him and rub his back comfortingly. “Turns out I can’t fight any monsters, can I, Stevie?”

The boy growled under his breath as his hand fell. 

“You were always amazing to me. You seemed so smart and strong; I was so afraid to talk to you. I couldn’t stop thinking about your story so I drew that and slid it into your locker.”

“So…my superpower works? I was right about you. You are a good person.” You smile when he smirks in your direction. “You guys can talk to me…about anything. I won’t judge you or hurt you or anything. I trust you and I hope that you can trust me.”

They glance at each other and you see the hesitation in their look. They a definitely holding something back but you pray that one day they’ll feel comfortable enough to let you in. Little did you know, the massive secrets they could tell.

[xf-cases-solved]

S2E3: Blood

Case: In, ah—one sec... Franklin, Pennsylvania! It's in Pennsylvania, definitely remembered that on my own accord. Anyway, in Franklin, Pennsylvania, a bunch of people are losing their marbles and murdering people in seemingly random attacks. What ties these crimes together is that right before they went murder hobo, they were in a situation that exacerbated their biggest fears, and also they hallucinated technology telling them to kill, which is very entertaining bc it's the fucking 90s, so the technology is very silly on its own, but is even sillier when it says "KILL 'EM ALL" in big red letters, but I digress. Mulder—with continued secret help from Scully on the side, as well as the Lone Gunmen (!!)—begins to suspect that these killings might actually be related to a pesticide the government is testing on people, but you know how the government gets when you try to claim they're involved in some big conspiracy, la dee da, so it goes.

A man gets laid off work, but that's the least of his problems as technology keeps telling him to kill people; a microwave tells a lady to stab Mulder to death; Mulder gives Frohike Scully's phone number; my notes say there is a handsome cop with nice hair, but I don't know who I was referring to or why I wrote that down; and Mulder's work on the case is ALL DONE. BYE-BYE!

Does someone die in the cold open: He got laid off so he's probably dead inside, but physically everyone is alive. (This does not last long.)

Does Mulder present a slideshow: Still no one to watch. Maybe he makes them for himself and plays them alone in his office and cries.

Does the evidence survive the investigation: Mmmmmmm, not sure. My guess is that the government is planning to get rid of any evidence that they were allowing chemicals to be tested on its citizens, but I'm not sure if Mulder held onto anything or not. I mean, he usually doesn't, so probably not, but -shrug emoji-.

Whodunit: Subliminal messaging caused by a pesticide that the Pennsylvanian government okayed to be tested on the town's residents. I think.

Convictions: None, but the government has to stop spraying people with LSD.

Did they solve it: I'll give it to 'em, why not? Mulder knows what caused it; more or less got a confession, or at least got them to stop doing the thing; and I feel like his report would be one of the less annoying ones he's submitted in his time in the FBI. Good job, Mulder! (And Scully, but unofficially.)

[how do i determine if a case is solved? check the scale here: x]

THIS EPISODE IS SPONSORED BY: Not being a test subject for government issued pesticides. I mean, like... you can try, but in the end, is it really up to you? What is the government testing on you right now? What have you been exposed to against your will? Is it LSD? It might be LSD, but who's to say for certain?  Not being a test subject for government issued pesticides — honestly, you're fucked, so maybe you should just... kill 'em all*... *This company does not endorse homicide, even if those homicidal impulses are the government's fault. Please don't sue us.

***

General Total Stats:

(green means stat has changed since last ep; red means new stat added to list)

Total Cases *Definitively* Solved So Far: 14 (two in a row!)

Total Number of "Mulder/Scully, It's Me": 6 

Total Number of Times Scully Has Conveniently Not Seen Something Crucial: 6

Total Number of Times Mulder Has Been in Mortal Danger: 8 ½ (i mean, technically that lady came at him with that knife so i'll give him a half point, but i doubt she would have ever been able to actually mortally wound him) 

Total Number of Times Scully Has Been in Mortal Danger: 8

Total Number of Sexually Charged, Uncomfortably Intimate, and/or Flirty Moments Between Friendly Coworkers: 13

Total Number of Autopsies Scully Has Performed On Screen: 5 (and there were no worms in the body!)

Total Number of Times Scully Plays Doctor: 2

Total Number of Times Mulder Talks to an Informant: 16 (x come back, bb, i miss u)

Total Number of Times People Making Out in a Car Are Hurt or Killed: 2

Total Number of Times Someone Correctly Guesses a Password: 3 

Total Number of (Plot Relevant) Nosebleeds: 5 (changed stat to specify plot relevancy, so i can get away with not counting it if someone gets beat up and their nose happens to bleed or something. the nosebleed in this one did make that man homicidal, tho, so i will up the stat lol)

Total Number of Times Mulder Has Tasted/Sniffed/Touched Something Questionable Without Following Proper Safety Procedures: 3

Total Number of Times Someone Says "Trust No One": 3 

Total Number of Times Someone Says "I Want to Believe": 3

Total Number of Times Someone Says "The Truth is Out There": 2

Total Number of Cigarettes Cigarette Smoking Man Has Smoked: 8

Total Number of Maggie Scully Sightings: 1

Total Number of Lone Gunmen Sightings: 2!

Total Number of Alex Krycek Sightings: 0 (BUT GUESS WHAT NEXT EPISODE IS???!!! 😀😀😀)

Total Number of Times I Had to Look Up What State the Episode Takes Place in Even Though I Literally Just Watched It: 10½ (shut up) 

Total Number of Times I Had to Look at an Episode's Wikipedia Page to Fill This Out Because It Was Fucking Confusing and/or Too Boring for Me to Pay Attention: 5

[starrspice]

👀👀👀 nice ocs! mind sharing the lore with the class?

Hi yes hello Anon I would be delighted to share the lore with you all excuse me while i foam at the mouth

Please enjoy my brainworms about my precious precious babies (lore below the cut)

SO they are a group of mercinaries called The "Universal Freelance Operation Specialists" aka the U.F.O.S. and despite being mercinaries they honestly do just about any job you're willing to pay for big or small

They all just live and travel in their Ship hopping from galaxy to galaxy looking for jobs to snag and making friends and enemies along the way

You have Mars, the "captain" of the ship and the boss of the whole organization Who is an exhiled warrior from one of the most reserved and unstudied planets in the universe. Not much is known about her home life or her history since she's very tight lipped about it, but one thing is for certain. If you're the bottom of the barrel and feel like nobody in the galaxy would ever want or need you for anything, chances are you'll find a place with Mars in the U.F.O.S. even if you don't stick around. Mars is an excellent leader and knows how to orchestrate plans including every member and their own unique set of skills. She knows her group is rag tag and often considered the bottom of the barrel but holds them all dear regardless of what others might say. She's often very stern and stoic, usually acting aloof to trick people into thinking she's oblivious. She's firm but fair and loyalty is extremely important to her. She's got a kind heart and a soft side she's often afraid to show as its been used against her in the past.

Next up is Ango, a reject from a planet of one of the most intelligent species known throughout several galaxies. He's not quite as highly intelligent as some of the top scholars on his planet but he's the planet's equivalent of a mad scientist. Now he uses his high intelligence and skills with tech to tinker and invent a broad range of odd but useful devices that could change things for better (but more often for worse). He's considered extremely dangerous and somewhat mad by his own species. He's Mars's second in command and the resident Repair man (cuz stars knows stuff gets broken non stop, especially Zai and Gidget. Mars and Zai traveled together for years before eventually finding and recruiting Gidget, and later on Zai. Just like Mars he's pretty reserved with his past and gets squeamish talking about it. He tends to be a bit hot headed and exentric at times often blowing his top and making a mess of things that could've easily been handled diplomatically.

Gidget (Formally known as Aza) is a scrapped Childcare Android who used to belong to a very Wealthy politician and was in charge of caring for, raising, and befriending the politician's daughter. Gidget deeply cared for the girl and was absolutely devastated when she was thrown away after a new intergalactic law made Androids official citizens with basic rights (requiring any owners of androids to pay extra and provide for the androids they owned). Found by Zai and Mars in a sorry broken state and living on stolen charges, the pair took her in and repaired her, eventually completely rebuilding her with a new and more durable body. She became the glue of the team and helped mediate and problem solve whenever Ango and Mars reached an impass but she is the teams self proclaimed "demolition" specialist and tends to enjoy any job involving explosives, but also often plays nurse and patches up her organic teammate's injuries after a rough job

Zai is by far the newest member of the team (as well as the youngest) but is still a very capable and resrouceful member they can't do without. Often called "the muscle" of the team Zai is the combat specialist, easily able to handle large swarms of enemies on his own whether it be armed or bare handed. Humans are an extremely rare sight across the universe as earth is seen as a semi-primitive planet not yet considered suitable for intergalactic travel and Extra terrestrial interaction, so humans are usually abducted from their planet and sold as illegal and exotic "pets" to rich and powerful people. Zai however, was unfortunate enough to be abducted and tossed into what is essentially an intergalactic dog fighting ring. He spent his teenage years and early 20s fighting for his life in the arena, and was frequently augmented and experimented on in attempts to make him stronger. Eventually the other members of the fight ring came to stop calling him by his real name (Austin Beckett) and began to call him "Zai" which means "Champion". He kept the name ever since. Eventually the fighting ring was busted by the authorities, and Zai desperately made his escape during the raid (knowing if he was taken in by the police he'd be treated like a glorified animal since humans were considered largely unintelligent). By the time he was freed from the ring he had so many of his human body replaced with machines and augments, most notibly his prosthetic mechanical arm, leg, and eyes as well as his cerebral implant (which he later removes himself). With no way to go back to earth and nowhere to go after he was freed the U.F.O.S. took him in and adopted him as part of their little team (which he considers as his family) and although he is often very friendly and optimistic he has extremely violent tendencies especially when it comes to protecting his family. Despite their constant bickering Zai and Ango are probably the closest out of the bunch and spend the most time together

While they usually just run around doing oddjobs, their lives were forever changed. They were hired for an amount of credits one could only dream of to retrieve a "top secret super weapon" but would ultimately end up being the most wanted criminals in the universe after stealing it from the intergalactic federation. Their lives are turned upside down as they're forced to go on the run (and keep this "weapon" from everyone, including their original employer)

[supernatural-bias]

Do you recall the restaurant mod video Tom made?

With Schlatt running a Schlottzky's? Do you have any HCs regarding them as a team at the restaurant?

- 🕷️

art in the middle by @/waddei on tumblr!! not mine

• I'd like to imagine that you'd work as an inspector of sorts—visiting once every other week to check on the place and talk to Schlatt behind closed doors

• You don't spend nearly as much time at the restaurant compaired to if you were a full time employee at the establishment, but you still see enough to feel like you're a part of the chaos in some weird way

• It probably all started on your first visit to the place—when you were grabbed at the wrist by a frantic Charlie just as you stepped through the doors to the diner; afermentioned man screaming (in a very high pitch) at the top of his lungs as he ran from Schlatt chasing after him with you as his human shield. All the while yelling something about how he didn't want to be circumcised again

• That was just your first time meeting them

• Schlatt had apologized to you at first after he had caught up to Charlie and sent him back to the kitchens where he would deal with him later. But after learning that you weren't going to press charges, and honestly found the whole thing kind of funny, he stopped giving a so much of a shit

• "Oh, you're one of those laid back asshole up at the Big Corp? That's nice, that's nice. Business can always recognize business, as I say here at Schlottzkys." He had cackled, popping open a bottle of something from behind his desk to pour in what looked like an alcohol glass

• "With all due respect Mr. Schlatt—"

• "Call me Big Man, toots."

• "—the most business I've seen from you was threatening to circumsize your employees."

• He laughed loudly before changing the topic, still leaving you to wonder what all that had been about to this very day

• Eventually on your second visit back, this time to answer a complaint a customer had sent straight to corporate about a dangerous looking stove, you got to meet both Tommy and Niki in the kitchens

• Tommy was as energetic as a fast food employee could be, which was still overwhelming to say the least

• The first thing he asked you after shaking your hand at the speed of light was if you wanted to see how he cleaned the bathrooms. Only after catching Niki vigorously nodding for you to say no out of the corner of your eye did you politely decline

• Niki was a sweet person in herself, if not very outwardly disturbed. You could see that Schlottzskys had taken its toll on her, and the more you stuck around the longer you wondered if it was the restaurant doing that, Schlatt, or even the customers

• Seriously. Some of the customers you had had the pleasure to meet were downright crazy. One was even dressed up as a milkman carring what he called his 'blood boy' around. The last you saw of him was through a cracked door to Schlatts office. And personally, you didn't want to get involved with whatever that was

• Schlottzskys is filled head to toe with crazy people, questionable morals, and was probably being run by some sort of weird citizen mafia. But the longer you spent ganging around the place, the more you found yourself growing attached to the joint

[krispysweetrollenthusiast]

Controversial opinions:

Trump supporters have seriously damaged the economy. These electoral nominees are nothing short of ridiculous. Trying to harm other races, genders, etc., is not what Christianity is about. If the Bible is open to interpretation, then why choose the side that makes everyone your enemy? How could you be against gay people existing when it happens in nature? You don’t have proof that it doesn’t happen in nature, but we have entire encyclopedias that say it does. Christianity, to a non-Christian, now sounds like a death cult, which is particularly harmful because its preacher is an egocentric murderer who would punish you with a cold shoulder for not believing in them, despite there being no physical or metaphorical evidence they exist in that form. You can’t be a Christian and not be a pacifist—have you ever read a history book? Christianity and its denominations have persecuted more faiths and people than the number of ants that could fit between Earth and Alpha Centauri. So don’t talk to me about "Christian erasure."

When Trump was young, he admitted the economy was better under Democrats in an interview. Literally every claim he has made about immigrants or any other minority can be refuted. Schools having litter boxes? Schools say it was never a thing. Haitians eating pets (which is a wild and xenophobic claim)? EVERYONE in the town disagrees with it! Even the person who made the claim admitted lying. They literally helped fill the unemployment gap in a nearby factory (which is why they were brought here in the first place), and officials and citizens alike love them. Those talks about taking hotels? Straight-up false. They weren't involved in any major gangs nor were they carrying heavy weapons. I doubt they were even carrying any, but I would need to research further. All this man does is lie, and yet you still voted for him and his populist rhetoric.

Let me get this clear: Democrats were voting for everyone, even for things that probably wouldn't affect them. But Republicans voted because they hated everyone and wanted a man who would let them do whatever they wanted. They knew all along about Project 2025, which, if you actually read it, would affect you too. If you want non-native populations to get out of the country, then I hope you have a nice trip, you colonizers.

Oh, and a few more things: King James was Protestant, meaning he believed God was a God of freedom and that man has the choice to respond to His love or not. So I guess that blows away any argument you had about the Bible being unaltered. We would have no problem with you existing alongside us for a long time, but you decided our rights were worth less than the price of eggs. Have a horrible day with eggs that spoil too soon. And when we come back to this in a few years after the world takes a hit, I hope you have enough dignity to spare to get down on your knees. We could have had free healthcare and education, we could have had a approach to Gaza better than Trump's, we could have supported our NATO allies in the proxy war against Russia in Ukraine but all you did was ensure that noone different from you enters the country or could exist how they want to while you suffer for it! I hope you like not having a women president you worms, we could have for everything the founding fathers stood for, equality, freedom, and liberty bur you just had to mess it up because you lack the diplomatic skills to come to a consensus and were only driven by fear

[anthonybialy]

Ivy League in League with Hamas

I hope Columbia students are as dedicated to their studies as they are to LARPing.  I doubt it.  They seem to not know much of anything.  Portraying aggressive foes of Israel confirms such.  Refusing to move from ground that was never theirs shows commitment to the cause.

College brats crave pretending they’re something other than political science majors doomed to beg Joe Biden for debt evasion.  A university that wanted to continue to pretend to be taken seriously would deny outdoor squatters the right to Sha Na Na presale access codes.

Instead, expect a flurry of senior theses based on how leaving plants unwatered in an Amsterdam Avenue apartment for three or four days allowed the non-Israel parts of the Middle East to finally prosper.  This is the school where a showy phony lied about being raped so she’d have an excuse to drag a mattress around campus as a regrettable standard of performance art, which makes today’s showy truancy unsurprising.

Acting violent while pretending to not be reflects a wholesale refusal to interact with reality.  True cosplayers act just like their beloved terror cause.  Man, they are focused on playing along.  Their habit of harassing Jews shows solidarity.  Claiming they were the victims all along is what the keffiyeh represents.

Tom Wolfe’s ghost has never been busier.  Earth’s most entitled brats throwing a tantrum while camping on Manhattan’s Ivy League grounds to show fondness for an invading terror squad means he’s still releasing novels a page at a time as news reports.

A Peoples’ University doesn’t sound quite elite.  Those seizing land are presumably honoring prominent Democratic activist Jim Jones’s naming conventions without realizing it.  Like every other contemptible notion that preening quad radicals believe, the inadvertent hilarity stems from their patent ignorance.  While it’d be nice if they were informed, the rest of us can use the laughs.  What are they supposed to do during college: learn?

The sort of students you’re glad you never drank with get to pretend they’re doing something righteous with a lawn campout.  Guilt over unbelievable privilege leads to fretting about the less fortunate.  Enrolling in a moral vacuum prompts sympathy for terror instead of victims.

Columbia students think The Diary of Anne Frank has a happy ending.  Confused reading list participants know what they would’ve done during World War II, namely defend Normandy from invaders.  The claim that 2020’s city torchers were the equivalent of Allied soldiers got sillier just when you thought that was impossible.

These advanced times sure are unenlightened, at least for those at the costliest and therefore best colleges.  Society regresses without learning from primitive times.  Let’s say there’s precedent involving campus radicals defending terror movements.  Collegiate nitwits once again romanticize ghastly assaults against decent people in respectable societies.  A useful degree would feature learning how many of them are not.

Praising the terror side is how the smuggest brats from your high school class battle for the underprivileged.  Hamas engages in rather intense bullying they’d surely condemn if it involved misgendering.  Total non-anti-Semites just happen to be ganging up on the one Jewish state.  Tormenters get every last detail wrong, including which side features people who want to be left alone.

Students fume about a sliver of land that at its narrowest is smaller than the island upon which Columbia lies is long.  It’s not just the lack of real estate that makes Israel an underdog.

The one Middle East country that would tolerate idling undergraduate uselessness can afford to on account of that whole natural rights bit.  Citizens could claim it was awful without consequence.  Go ahead and hold a pride parade in Tel Aviv.  I’d envision a permit tie-up for anyone trying the same in Gaza. Rather confused observers add exercising the right to self-defense to their appalling list of reasons they loathe Jews.

Idle grifters with student IDs get to pretend they’re standing up for a noble cause.  The side against Israel is way less nicer, and underdevelopment must be the fault of oppression.  That sort of logic is common amongst attendees at more prestigious schools.  Ignoring what happened at the music festival to people about the same age helps maintain consistency.

The Morningside Heights campus of Hamas University is a popular study abroad program.  But enrollees can only harvest so much knowledge.  An internship would help.  They can learn from their heroes.  Columbia campers should transfer to Gaza colleges.  There’s a hospital on every corner, which means there must be at least that many schools.  You know it’s bad when the rest of 2024 New York City seems sane by comparison.

Class is boring.  Learn about the real world out on the Columbia quadrangle.  It sure is fun camping out while shrieking insults at civilization.  Real-world experience is supposed to be school’s goal.  Professional terrorists blaming success is the default Columbia student ideology in practice.  Feeling insulated on campus leads to guilty role play.  Flaunt uselessness in the name of awfulness.  This is the best time to dine at Katz’s, as none of the uneducated students will be there.

[sisteroutsiders]

Audre Lorde's 1989 Commencement Address to graduates of Oberlin College

Audre Lorde

Oberlin College

May 29, 1989

I congratulate you all on this moment of your lives. Most people don't remember their commencement addresses. Next year, when someone asks you who spoke at graduation, I wonder what you will say. I remember she was a middle-aged Black woman. I remember she had a nice voice. I remember she was a poet. But what did she say? After all, there are no new ideas. Only new ways of making those ideas real and active through our lives. What you most of all of do not need right now is more rhetoric. What you need are facts you don't ordinarily get to help you fashion weapons that matter for the war in which we are all engaged. A war for survival in the twenty-first century, the survival of this planet and all this planet's people.

Thanks to Jesse Jackson (Poem)

The US and the USSR are the most powerful countries in the world but only 1/8 of the world's population African people are also 1/8 of the world's population. 1/2 of the world's population is Asian. 1/2 of that number is Chinese. There are 22 nations in the Middle East. Not three.

Most people in the world are Yellow, Black, Brown, Poor, Female Non-Christian and do not speak english.

By the year 2000 the 20 largest cities in the world will have two things in common none of them will be in Europe and none in the United States.

You are all so very beautiful. But I have seen special and beautiful before, and I ask myself where are they now? What makes you different? Well, to begin with, you are different because you have asked me to come and speak with you from my heart, on what is a very special day for each of you. So when they ask you, who spoke at your commencement, remember this: I am a Black feminist lesbian warrior poet doing my work, and a piece of my work is asking you, how are you doing yours? And when they ask you, what did she say, tell them I asked you the most fundamental question of your life—who are you, and how are you using the powers of that self in the service of what you believe?

You are inheriting a country that has grown hysterical with denial and contradiction. Last month in space five men released a satellite that is on its way to the planet Venus, and the infant mortality rate in the capital of this nation is higher than in Kuwait. We are citizens of the most powerful country on earth—we are also citizens of a country that stands upon the wrong side of every liberation struggle on earth. Feel what that means. It is a reality that haunts each of our lives and that can help inform our dreams. It's not about altruism, it's about self-preservation. Survival.

A twenty-eight-year-old white woman is beaten and raped in Central Park. Eight Black boys are arrested and accused of taking part in a rampage against joggers. That is a nightmare that affects each of our lives. I pray for the body and soul of every one of these young people trapped in this compound tragedy of violence and social reprisal. None of us escapes the brutalization of the other. Using who we are, testifying with our lives to what we believe is not altruism, it is a question of self-preservation. Black children did not declare war upon this system, it is the system which declared war upon Black children, both female and male.

Ricky Boden, eleven, Staten Island, killed by police, 1972. Clifford Glover, ten, Queens, New York, killed by police, 1975. Randy Evans, fourteen, Bronx, New York, killed by police, 1976. Andre Roland, seventh grader, found hanged in Columbia, Missouri, after being threatened for dating a white girl. The list goes on. You are strong and intelligent. Your beauty and your promise lie like a haze over your faces. I beg you, do not waste it. Translate that power and beauty into action wherever you find yourself to be, or you will participate in your own destruction.

I have no platitudes for you. Before most of you are thirty, 10 percent of you will be involved with space traffic and 10 percent of you will have contracted AIDS. This disease which may yet rival the plague of the Dark Ages is said to have originated in Africa, spontaneously and inexplicably jumping from the green monkey to man. Yet in 1969, twenty years ago, a book entitled A Survey of Chemical and Biological Warfare, written by John Cookson and Judith Nottingham, published by Monthly Review Press, discussed green monkey disease as a fatal blood, tissue, and venereally transmitted virus which is an example of a whole new class of disease-causing organisms, and of biological warfare interest. It also discussed the possibilities of this virus being genetically manipulated to produce "new" organisms.

But I do have hope. To face the realities of our lives is not a reason for despair—despair is a tool of your enemies. Facing the realities of our lives gives us motivation for action. For you are not powerless. This diploma is a piece of your power. You know why the hard questions must be asked. It is not altruism, it is self-preservation—survival.

Each one of us in this room is privileged. You have a bed, and you do not go to it hungry. We are not part of those millions of homeless people roaming america today. Your privilege is not a reason for guilt, it is part of your power, to be used in support of those things you say you believe. Because to absorb without use is the gravest error of privilege. The poorest one-fifth of this nation became 7 percent poorer in the last ten years, and the richest one-fifth of the nation became 11 percent richer. How much of your lives are you willing to spend merely protecting your privileged status? ls that more than you are prepared to spend putting your dreams and beliefs for a better world into action? That is what creativity and empowerment [are] all about. The rest is destruction. And it will have to be one or the other.

It is not enough to believe in justice. The median income for Black and Hispanic families has fallen in the last three years, while the median income of white families rose 1.5 percent. We are eleven years away from a new century, and a leader of the Ku Klux Klan can still be elected to Congress from the Republican party in Louisiana. Little fourteen-year-old Black boys in the seventh grade are still being lynched for dating a white girl. It is not enough to say we are against racism.

It is not enough to believe in everyone's right to her or his own sexual preference. Homophobic jokes are not just fraternity high jinks. Gay bashing is not just fooling around. Less than a year ago a white man shot two white women in their campsite in Pennsylvania, killing one of them. He pleaded innocent, saying he had been maddened by their making love inside their own tent. If you were sitting on that jury, what would you decide?

It is not enough to believe anti-Semitism is wrong, when the vandalism of synagogues is increasing, amid the homegrown fascism of hate groups like the Christian Identity and Tom Metzger's American Front. The current rise in jokes against Jewish women masks anti-Semitism as well as women hatred. What are you going to say the next time you hear a JAP story?

We do not need to become each other in order to work together. But we do need to recognize each other, our differences as well as the sameness of our goals. Not for altruism. For self-preservation—survival.

Every day of your lives is practice in becoming the person you want to be. No instantaneous miracle is suddenly going to occur and make you brave and courageous and true. And every day that you sit back silent, refusing to use your power, terrible things are being done in our name.

Our federal taxes contribute $3 billion yearly in military and economic aid to Israel. Over $200 million of that money is spent fighting the uprising of Palestinian people who are trying to end the military occupation of their homeland. Israeli solders fire tear gas canisters made in america into Palestinian homes and hospitals, killing babies, the sick, and the elderly. Thousands of Palestinians, some as young as twelve, are being detained without trial in barbed-wired detention camps, and even many Jews of conscience opposing these acts have also been arrested and detained. 

Encouraging your congresspeople to press for a peaceful solution in the Middle East, and for recognition of the rights of the Palestinian people, is not altruism, it is survival. 

In particular, my sisters and brothers, I urge you to remember, while we battle the many faces of racism in our daily lives as African Americans, that we are part of an international community of people of Color, and people of the African diaspora around the world are looking to us and asking, how are we using the power we have? Or are we allowing our power to be used against them, our brothers and sisters in struggle for their liberation?

Apartheid is a disease spreading out from South Africa across the whole southern tip of Africa. This genocidal system in South Africa is kept propped into place by the military and economic support of the U.S., Israel, and Japan. Let me say here that I support the existence of the state of Israel as I support the existence of the U.S.A., but this does not blind me to the grave injustices emanating from either. Israel and South Africa are intimately entwined, politically and economically. There are no diamonds in Israel, yet diamonds are Israel's major source of income. Meanwhile, Black people slave in the diamond mines of South Africa for less than thirty cents a day.

It is not enough to say we are against apartheid. Forty million of our tax dollars go as aid to the South Africa-backed UNITA forces to suppress an independent Angola. Our dollars pay for the land mines responsible for over 50,000 Angolan amputees. It appears that Washington is joining hands with South Africa to prevent [the] independence of Namibia. Now make no mistake. South Africa, Angola, Namibia will be free. But what will we say when our children ask us, what were you doing, mommy and daddy, while american-made bullets were murdering Black children in Soweto?

In this country, children of all colors are dying of neglect. Since 1980, poverty has increased 30 percent among white children in america. Fifty percent of African American children and 30 percent of Latino children grow up in poverty, and that percentage is even higher for the indigenous people of this land, American Indians. While the Magellan capsule speeds through space toward the planet Venus, thirty children on this planet earth die every minute from hunger and inadequate health care. And in each one of those minutes, $1,700,000 are spent on war.

The white fathers have told us: "l think, therefore I am." But the Black mother within each one of us—the poet inside—whispers in our dreams: "I feel, therefore I can be free." Learn to use what you feel to move you toward action. Change, personal and political, does not come about in a day, nor a year. But it is our day-to-day decisions, the way in which we testify with our lives to those things in which we say we believe, that empower us. Your power is relative, but it is real. And if you do not learn to use it, it will be used, against you, and me, and our children. Change did not begin with you, and it will not end with you, but what you do with your life is an absolutely vital piece of that chain. The testimony of your daily living is the missing remnant in the fabric of our future.

There are so many different parts to each of us. And there are so many of us. If we can envision the future we desire, we can work to bring it into being. We need all the different pieces of ourselves to be strong, as we need each other and each other's battles for empowerment.

That surge of power you feel inside you now does not belong to me, nor to your parents, nor to your professors. That power lives inside of you. It is yours, you own it, and you will carry it out of this room. And whether you use it or whether you waste it, you are responsible for it. Good luck to you all. Together, in the conscious recognition of our differences, we can win, and we will.

A LUTA CONTINUA [The struggle continues].

[domoz]

Alright, @firecoloredwater tagged me in a self-recc meme for fanfic, so:

Rules: Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass this onto other writers. Let’s spread the self-love

Tagging uhhhhhhhh @hashiramashonkers if you want to!

Posted in chronological order because it makes as much sense as anything else:

Hesitation - Critical Hit Included not because I'm still particularly fond of the writing in it, I've definitely improved a lot since then, but because the era of me writing for Critical Hit and the audience of 'literally myself because i need to get the ideas out of my head, and if other people even SEE this it will be so cool' was very formative for how I approach writing now. Summary:

The portal home stands open, but Ket, unclear on what he’s meant to do, hesitates. In just one moment, his window of opportunity has passed. And that is how Ket spends the next five years trapped in the feywild with one Orem Rivendorn.

My Boyfriend is (not) a Vigilante- BNHA I just still think I was so silly for this... It was just very fun to write. I feel like if I had to pick a most underrated fic of mine (at least for this fandom) it would be this one. Summary:

In which pro-hero Chargebolt takes the night shift, meets a cute guy, gets radicalized, and totally forgets that underground heroes exist.

Just a Concerned Citizen -BNHA ...The popularity of this one kind of speaks for itself, I think. It's the first fic where I got an idea, sat down, and wrote the whole outline, and its not perfect, but I think it feels more cohesive story-wise than anything that came before it. Plus its long and it's DONE. Summary:

Midoriya Izuku is a normal, quirkless, college drop-out. He's not a vigilante. Everything he does is perfectly above board and totally legal -- He's double checked. It would be nice if everyone else could see it that way, though. (Izuku becomes an informant, sort of. Trouble follows.)

Hand Over Hand Over Hand - Naruto (Founders) Oops, an unfinished fic slipped in here. Weirdly it's sort of the opposite of the last fic, where the outline is so much more vague than I normally make, but I like writing it, and I like thinking about it, and it is my sincere hope that I can make something good enough that it will make people ship the pairing(s) involved like I do.

Summary:

Uchiha Hikaku, asked by his clan head to join his household as a dignified beta, does not think of saying anything other than yes, knowing he will have no opportunity to ever be closer to Madara than this. His duties will include caring for the household, including Madara's new mate. Which is perfectly fine, Hikaku can deal with that easily. At least, he can until Tobirama turns out to be nothing like he expected, in ways that really shouldn't be a problem, but are. It is a decision he may, or may not, come to regret.

The Bandage the Holds Together - Naruto (Founders) One of those fics that was just an idea that wouldn't let me go until it was written, but this one was actually at a reasonable scope. For the first chapter, then I thought "what about Hikaku's POV" and did it AGAIN, and it turns out the difference in how characters think about stuff is fun to think about. Summary:

Soulmates are rare and prized in the world of shinobi. The healing and implicit loyalty always makes for something powerful and prized -- and not something that's supposed to be found between two members of an enemy clan. So, no. Tobirama wasn't expecting this.

[snaziestbean]

ali informations post :3c

(reminder that ali is supposed to look like a human but i hate drawing humans so i draw them and my other sillies as cats most of the time. i think i have a few drawings of ali not as a cat though, if you wanna look for them)

immortal. they really dont want to be though(L). i'll hopefully make a better information thing about how that works in the future, but for now you get this: there are technically a few ways for them to be not immortal anymore, one being to give the immortality "curse"(which is what i'll be calling it from now on) to someone else, the other is having someone else who has the curse basically ripping it out of them. with the first method they would age normally from where they left off and just be kinda normal-ish, but the second would kill them instantly. when someone gets the curse they become stuck at whatever age they were when they got it(both mentally and physically. this is how ali is both 16 and millions of years old at the same time) and their body cannot change in certain ways(no scars(except for what killed them, if they got the curse from being killed and infected) actually the scars thing was the only one i really thought about. something something no change is permanent, no marks or blemishes remain, unchanging husk of a person, haha angst). there are also two ways to get the curse, someone who has it gives it to you and loses it themself, or someone kills you and infects you with it(which can sometimes happen unintentionally depending on the person(ali has not, to their own recollection, ever done this. and if they have they very quickly corrected their mistake(probably through murder))). also the curse basically inflicts eternal bloodlust(not really sure how to phrase it lol), so anyone who has it has constant uncontrollable urge/need to killing murder(and also eating people). for some reason(probably something to do with them being one of the first to get the curse and/or partially the fact that they killed the god that made it) ali manages to not succumb to that and is fairly in control most of the time, though they do have that urge(and they do killing murder, but like. by choice. and not random innocent people or whatever). after learning about how shit works ali took it upon themself to wipe out every cursed immortal so that no one else would have to suffer eternal life having to kill people against their will(or if they kill people willingly/are not willing to give up the immortality ali just takes it by force. though they do prefer not having to do that, and most people who get the curse dont end up wanting to keep it(if they ever wanted it in the first place). also ali didnt know about the "giving up the curse to someone else" thing for a long time so they did just kill a lot of the people lol). when someone gets the curse they also kind of become something technically different, example ali used to be human but because of the curse they technically arent anymore. the curse basically makes them a whole new thing. any name this thing may have had before is long forgotten and ali cannot be assed to come up with a new word for it

extra thangs:

ali(short for alias) isnt their actual name. it is (haha) an alias. they dont remember their old name and dont care enough to try to come up with a new one to permanently go by. they kind of cycle through random names(one of which was dun. short for dunno lol)

gender: who cares

sexuality: no

doesnt actually like killing/hurting people, but its pretty much become a part of who they are now and violence is very useful for getting shit done

helped many revolutions, ruled a few kingdoms(kind of. mostly a figurehead/symbol, but tends to be very involved in whats happening with citizens so nobody fucks anything up. it usually starts sneakily but people usually figure out its them pretty quick, and the weird ruler/god/whatever coming by the local cafe for a nice chat and a cup of tea is just normal)

raised a kid for a few years once. did a pretty alright job considering the circumstances. kid ended up hating them though(reason for that wasnt related to how they raised them, but because of the circumstances that led to ali raising them(in a war, some asshole military guy wiped out the kids town before he could be unmilitaried, because military guy was under ali's command they were widely considered responsible for it)

lots of dead besties L

would probably be a lot more stable if they werent resisting the killing murder eating people

has killed several gods. including the one that originally made the whole immortality thing(which didnt used to have the extra effects of craving violence always, that was actually something that was added because said god got really pissed or something. theres a whole origin story there that i dont have the energy to explain)

got a fun extra thing(likely gotten from the whole "killed the god that made them immortal" thing) where when they kill someone/something powerful enough they might get one of that someone/somthing's abilities. but they dont ever really use the abilities because it feels awful and makes it harder for them to keep control

gets wings sometimes. the amount of time they have the wings for varies a lot, and usually they only lose the wings when they are literally torn off

acts like a freak on purpose to try to prevent people from caring about them

so fucking tired all the time. this bitch gets no sleep ever

witness to many many many many many horrors

does not in any way see themself as a god/higher being of any sort. sometimes people will think they're a god or something and they dont like it, they are just a guy who happens to have weird shit going on and is immortal

theres definitely more stuff i could put in here but i cant think of it rn. i also made something i intended to be an ali ask blog but the chances of ever being able to use it are very low because there probably wont be enough people seeing it to make it work ;w; (the blog is @ali-alias)

[sloshed-cinema]

Infinity Pool (2023)

It’s small wonder tourists can have a bad rap. A sense of entitlement can accompany traveling, visiting a place not to experience other parts of the world or cultures, but rather to exploit them, to punch down on the locals while enjoying the good things in life. Li Tolqa affords its visitors a unique opportunity to turn the country into a playground: for a fee, a surrogate can be made to take the draconian punishments meted out by the local government. What initially seems like a frightening and disorienting experience becomes with time a way for a corrupt government to line its pockets and turn its citizens into fodder while allowing wealthy foreigners to explore their most depraved urges. This is an unnerving landscape. Inside the compound of resorts is a festival of cheesy cultural appropriation, all performative diversity and niceness. Beyond is a network of barbed wire and industrial pipes. The region is coded as vaguely Southeast Asian in its local script and the aesthetic of the resort, but shooting it on the craggy Croatian coast with its coniferous forests makes for visual dissonance.  For the clique that down-on-his-luck writer James Foster becomes entangled with, appropriation of Li Tolqa culture through consumption of its ritual drugs and exploitation of the doubling tradition is an outright sexual fetish. They romp their way through crimes and transgressions, and the punishment becomes an elaborate roleplay situation involving local law enforcement. Not too much time is spent on the cloning process aside from some disgusting goo and a sweet dental dam, but that vagueness works for the story: these people don’t care about how it works, they just want to ride the high of feeling untouchable no matter what they do.

Any time cloning or duplication is brought up, the existential nature of that duplication follows. Whether the clone or the original is the “real” individual gets probed in everything from the Star Trek transporter bay to The Prestige. Infinity Pool acknowledges that in its doctor character, but goes a different, more interesting direction. The question is never really whether James is the “authentic” James, though there is some fear in his identity being ‘raped’ when the group make clones of him without his foreknowledge. Instead, this self-surrogacy becomes an exploration of James’ fragile identity. He goes along with the group haltingly, always on the border. When he exuberantly beats up the “police detective,” brutalizing and pissing on him, he reacts with horror when he’s been abusing himself. Later, he has to fight his own animalistic self, the savage id that these people are trying to instill. By the close, this is all he can be, sitting by himself on the rain soaked beach, empty and alone.

Why Infinity Pool? The title refers to the fateful pool constructed by Alban, an accident during its building causing the sentencing which set in motion a chain of events leading to this film. But perhaps there’s something more. This sort of pool, an artificial, luxurious structure, is designed to give the illusion of connectedness to a larger body of water like the ocean. There’s danger in the ocean, and uncertainty, but people in the pool can feel a connection to that danger while remaining safe and comfortable themselves. This is what the Li Tolqan justice system allows these libertines to experience: their own infinity pool of sex and violence.

THE RULES

SIP

Gabi says “JaaaAAAAAAmesssss”

Ritual or custom are mentioned.

Li Tolqa is named.

Someone puts on or takes off a mask.

A duplication is completed.

BIG DRINK

The group leaves the compound.

Weird cheesy resort activities because THIS IS DEFINITELY A NORMAL PLACE.

[tgammsideblog]

Tgamm S1 Ep 15-B ¨The Bad Boy Bobby Daniels¨ Episode analysis

Molly and Scratch learned about Patty’s old love, Bobby Daniels, who left her without leaving explanation when they were young. The duo decides to look for Bobby but they find themselves involved in more complicated story...

This episode is one of those cases the show takes a break from the main characters and decides to explore the lives of some of the Brighton’s citizens. In this story the duo gets to learn more about Patty, a support character previously introduced in Episode 3 (Getting the BandShell Back Together/ The Greatest Concert Ever). Worth of noting Patty’s backstory was hinted in the same episode when she briefly mentioned her past.

Patty explains to Molly how she lives by the idea of ¨Not regerts¨. She took every chance she got to try new things and lived her life at its fullest. She shared many of her adventures with her best friend, Linda, who she has known for more than 60 years. However, there is one thing that she regrets and that’s not ever being able to see her young love Bobby again since he left Brighton.

Based on this information, Molly and Scratch look for Bobby. They find him in a near city working in a library. Molly brings up Patty and Bobby expresses that he would like to see her again but he is afraid because he isn’t the ¨Bad Boy¨ he used to be. As much as the duo tries helping him, there aren’t able to bring ¨The Bad of Brighton¨ back. Nevertheless, Molly is able to come up with a plan that makes Patty and Bobby meet again and the two start hanging out just like they used when they were younger.

It’s nice to see this message of ¨it’s never too late to fall in love¨ explored with these two characters. After years of not seeing each other, Molly and Scratch encourage them to get back together and start over that relationship they lost years ago. It’s sweet that after all that time they still remembered the other, showing how certain people can leave an impact in our lives and that stay with us.

The musical sequences involving Patty and Bobby are adorable, showing well how they love each other. It has that cheesy old music vibes that fits well with the characters’ age and their relationship. The first sequence does a good job at telling the story of their love and how it ended so abruptly.

However, Patty is reminded of the moment Bobby left Brighton and asks him why he did this. Bobby shows her a note that she ¨wrote¨, telling him that they should end their relationship. Patty points out the letter wasn’t written by her since it says ¨regrets¨ when she uses the world ¨regerts¨ instead. Suddenly someone in scooter wearing a helmet takes Bobby and drives out the city. In a fun sequence Patty, Molly and Scratch chase after the mysterious person who turns out to be Linda, Patty’s best friend. Linda explains that she feared Bobby ¨stealing¨ her friend, that’s why she wrote the note to make Bobby leave Brighton and Patty. This has been her only big regret: Lying to her close friend and keeping it all a secret all these years, being too ashamed of telling her. Patty tells to Linda that she isn’t going to stop being her friend but they are going to talk about the situation later. Linda leaves the group and goes back to the nursery home.

This is another message that this episode has. Instead of living a life regretting something, it is better to take action to fix the mistake we made or talk to that friend with had a fight with. If either Patty or Bobby had reached out the other sooner, they would have found out it was all a huge misunderstanding and they could have been together. The same applies to Linda, who was afraid of telling Patty the mistake she made. That’s a good lesson. Take the opportunities you have instead of living a life full of regrets or what could have been.

On small observation, Scratch gets very invested in this ¨Bad Boy¨ persona Bobby used to have. He seems to be very inspired by it. He changes his form to look like the ¨Bad Boy¨ because he thinks that it was very cool. What it is more, he is seen crying near the end of the episode when he sees Bobby and Patty leaving together. There could be different reasons he does this: Because he got emotional or it reminded him of something from his human life. His crying isn’t exaggerated for the sake of comedy. It’s potrayed as a genuine moment (if short) for him.

In conclusion, ¨The Bad Boy Bobby Daniels¨ is able to tell a nice romantic story between two side characters without making it feel too dramatic or cheesy. The twist near the end it’s quite interesting and a bit unexpected. It’s a good example that the series can tell stories without having to be about the main characters.

[forlix]

hi! I'm back 🐼 and don't apologize, please, everyone has their hard days and weeks (even years sometimes)! I just hope you are good now and everything worked out fine!

firstly, I'm a real person indeed! and yes you do remind me of him somehow, idk maybe is the bubbly vibe or how sweet you are to everyone? idk, it just gives off lix's vibes and STOP!, you are not undeserving of it! you deserve all the great things that come to you! (also I'm not always the mom friend per say, but I'll def hurt people who hurt my friends type of person 🫣 also, PLEASE! Minho is my bias, this is too much! 🤭 but I wouldn't mind being the Minho to your Felix 👀🫂)

secondly, I'm always happy when people talk about going to international relations, it's so exciting! I finished my course a while ago, but I never actually left, I love it so much! I always loved non-governmental organizations, but after my exchange program I fell in love for real with the whole concept of War&Peace, my thesis was actually regarding how multicultural countries can be a blessing and curse depending on how you manage them, in the end it was about how the multicultural situation affects society, focusing a lot on the internal conflicts before, during and after the whole thing, so i I analyzed the rising and fall of the country viewing the multicultural aspect. sorry I'm rambling, but I just love to talk about it! I loved the course so much and all the people it gave me thanks to it, I honestly have such great experience about it, even after I had one specialization, during an MBA and starting my literature studies I met and became friends with such amazing people doing that course for the first time. I hope you have great memories of it!

lastly, it wasn't really a conversation per say, bc I'm a bit shy with people idk or don't feel completely comfortable (unless they are mean, then I'm their personal nightmare if I want to), but I did ask you to add me to the spy x family au taglist, I think I commented after a while you had posted saying you were gonna write it, and you said you'd add me to the overall taglist, so yeah, that's all, wasn't an ACTUAL conversation, but you were so nice regardless, either way, I'm happy I found you and your tumblr, I hope you receive as much joy and happiness you give us (⁠｡⁠･⁠ω⁠･⁠｡⁠)⁠ﾉ⁠♡

- 🐼

first of all, WAHH YOU'RE REAL! AND WAHH YOU'RE THE MINHO TO MY FELIX! application accepted with unbounding enthusiasm hehe LOOK it's us ily and i would hold you in the palm of my hand any day

sticking the rest under the cut bc i wrote u an essay (so NEVER APOLOGIZE FOR RAMBLING i can't hold anyone else to any standards in that regard i am the No. 1 perpetrator of that crime)

you are SOOOOOOOO COOL. oh my fucking god. i've always been curious about ngos and i would love some more of ur perspective on them - what about them did you love? and what do you recommend are the best ways to get involved? that's definitely a bucket list item for me once i find a cause i'm passionate enough about

and war and peace!!! oh my god!! in the least weird way possible my interest in ir has always centered around conflict, so we have that in common for sure! the most impactful classes of my life were about modern chinese history, about how china became the nation it is today and the role it's come to serve in the world over time, and american foreign policy, basically about how the u.s. found a new way to royally fuck everything up with every international conflict it got involved in. both were so interesting and changed my world view in irreversible ways. my specializations are 'east and south asia' and 'social development and human well being' btw

your thesis sounds INSANELY cool. on the note of multiculturalness i've been reflecting on the united states as a country and its citizens as a population a lot recently 1) because of biden's active promotion and enablement of israel's war crimes and 2) because i just came back from spending three months in east asia so there's been a lot of comparing and contrasting to do in terms of lifestyle, culture, society, etc. idk if it would be too much if u gave me the thesis statement or primary argument or maybe even the abstract of your thesis bc i'm so curious about your thoughts on this. but also totally TOTALLY okay if not!!! i feel like i'm overstepping just asking sorry i'm letting my ir nerd get the best of me

and AH. I THINK KNOW WHO YOU ARE 💡 and you're so so fine, bb, you will never receive any pressure from me to come off anon or interact with me in any shape or form that you're not absolutely comfortable with. "unless they're mean then i'm their personal nightmare" LMAOOO AS YOU FUCKING SHOULD THAT'S ON QUEEN BEHAVIOR!!!! make that two. if anyone is mean to you i will Find them and Hunt them like a timber wolf awoo. mark my words

i'm the one who should be happy that the universe brought you to me, lovely! thank you for being you, as always; i'm reciprocating every ounce of your warmth and light in your direction!