#and like. of course i can believe that's how some women were especially given their religious inclinations

[azaharinflames]

I can see the show slowly banking away from the queer arc. A soft retcon of Bucks bisexuality would also be perfect to continue baiting without having to either follow through or fear queerbait accusations again. Buck continues to only date women from now on, they never mention his sexuality ever yet Oliver is free to play Buck as queer as he always wanted. And by that I think he meant sending horny looks Eddies way to keep his base happy and engaged. It's really win/win for them. They got all the cloud for it last season, they could bait for another 15 seasons now all while not having to actually put any thought in how to tell a queer story.

Hi, Nonnie! Thanks for the ask.

See, in my mind, there are again two creatures:

One agrees with you, and definitely believes from now on Buck will only have female LIs. Most likely short relationships to keep Buck as the eternal bachelor of the series (like @unfuckablebogtroll said, have him be the Olivia Benson of 911), and then they'll put together a last-minute LI once they know the series is canceled (perhaps a female LI no one really knows, like Natalia, perhaps Tommy in a rushed right-person-wrong-time SL. I can definitely see both). If someone asks, well - he's bi! so him dating women exclusively doesn't erase that. Which, true, but in this context it is all much trickier than that.

One that disagrees with you, if anything because I don't want to become too negative or too cynical*. Because, yeah, sure, they can move on from Buck's bisexuality, but that is an insane bad look on them. If they still want to be praised and be recognised for their diversity and inclusion, it won't be it. Because, as I said, as much as a bisexual person is still bisexual even if they only date people from the opposite sex, fact is that in television things are trickier. Because it isn't as easy as just knowing something, they have to show it. Things are held to a different standard, and that's just the name of the game. So if Buck were to only date women moving forward, that would mean 1. a bad look on them, kinda like they lured their queer audience in (some of which had given up on the series already), only to bait them and 2. I honestly believe they would face some serious backlash for this. Of course, I cannot say this will happen, but I would be surprised if it hadn't.

All in all, we know there is a rebound in the near future, and I will be honest, I'm fully expecting that rebound to be a woman. I will be pleasantly surprised if he rebounds with a man - as much as we know the relationship is very short-lived, as Tim has already warned.

We'll see - I'm one of them that believes that, for Buck, it's either growing back together with Tommy, or nothing. And nothing as in - he'll be the eternal bachelor until the series ends, because I truly believe they won't be able to find a LI that tops Tommy, or one the audience falls half in love with, in comparison to how much they loved Tommy. So. I might be wrong on this one, but I truly think that, long-term, it's either getting back together with Tommy, or a string of half-assed and unfulfilling LI until the very end of the series.

Oh! I also want to add - I don't see the 'throwing glances' at Eddie, mostly because I want to believe they are not that stupid. They're playing a dangerous game and are currently toying a very thin line here. We know they don't have plans to have Buddie happen, but if they actively start baiting their audience, it will look extremely bad on them.

My inbox is open for ranting, venting, or discussing! And if you wanna talk more things than 911, it is open for that as well!

Take care <3

*Disclaimer: not saying that you are being too negative or cynical. I 100% understand where you're coming from, especially after the way the show has dealt with all of this in the last few weeks. I see what you're saying and I partly agree with it.

[magstorrn]

about to leave a scathing review for a historical fiction book on goodreads (felt so strongly about it i made an account for the first time) then chickening out once i realised i'd put down my full name and i dont want to offend the author TOO much in case we end up working in the same field as historians

[inky125]

Mary Linton and Jack Marston meeting in 1922

Okay but these are just my headcanons for the very improbable scenario that they end up bumping into each other in the future. / My headcanons for what they would do with their lives after the events of rdr/rdr2

(I'm going to explain them under the cut)

Okay so, starting with Jack:

I want to believe Jack lived a more or less normal life after killing Ross, successfully getting away with this one (1) murder, and having that as a skeleton in his closet. Not finding peace really, so the whole revenge thing doesn't fix his miserable life but he can go on to try to do something with his life. Gunslinging doesn't really have a place anymore here.

When the US joined WWI I know that boy DID NOT join the US Army, he would NEVER join the group that killed his dad, or make the same mistake as him and make a deal with the government. He would rather be jailed for dodging the draft, what will they do, threaten him with what? He has nothing to live for really, so they can't make him. I don't think he cares much if he gets shot (he has a like saying as much in rdr when he duels Ross).

After the whole jail thing he'd go back to a more or less normal life, I'd guess he would have to have a regular job and write whenever he's able (I want to believe that one Easter egg in GTA is canon...it is to me...), but I don't think he'd be able to make a living just from writing.

As for Mary, I always wondered why Mary was dressed the way she was during the credits cut scene in Rdr2. Because I'm guessing it takes place in 1907 (given that most cut scenes appear to happen at the same time more or less than the epilogue). But I wondered why Mary was dressing in black; I mean, during the Victorian era there were very specific mourning traditions, especially for women. Wearing black was pretty much a part of a social thing, you'd publicly mourn. The extension of your mourning would depend on who died and what was your relationship with them.

And here is the thing, Arthur had died 8 years ago by then, we could assume Mary had found out shortly after of his dead because newspapers in the Rdr2 universe love to brag whenever law enforcement/Pinkertons kill renown outlaws. (Even Arthur and Hosea get mentioned years later in some sort of article in 1907 too). And additionally, we know that Mary kept up with how the gang, especially Arthur, was doing through the news on the newspapers. So again, it wouldn't be crazy to assume she knew about Arthur's death back in 1899.

So then, why is she wearing a black dress to visit his grave in 1907?. Black is the color of mourning, but as far as I am aware (and correct me if I'm wrong) it was not required to visit a grave back in the day. So I like to headcanon Mary mourning Arthur like a widow, because widows would have to wear their black weeds for 2 years (there were different periods of mourning, for instance Mary's clothes could be classified under the 'half-mourning' type, meaning there has been at least 6 months since her loved one passed away, meaning she could now wear some jewelry, other colours, ect.

But here is a little extra, Queen Victoria popularized among some women the practice to never abandon their period of half mourning, and especially, keep wearing black the rest of their lives even if they move on, as a sign of love for their dead husband.

Mary and Arthur never got married, but I like to think Mary lived as a widow for him. Continuing with her life as normal, of course, but always having that bittersweet ache in her heart, dressing in black out of respect and love for him and the life they couldn't have. Even if she had wanted to move on from him after she realized they couldn't be together as Arthur wouldn't leave the gang, I think she would have folded if Arthur had gone after her (I mean she did re-initiate contact after they were supposed to never speak again), and I think she was still preparing herself emotionally when she heard the news that Arthur was dead, ironically not moving on from him.

She didn't remarry, Jamie made good money and maintained her, Mary knew the kind of life she didn't want and she could be respectable and old as a widow. Plus marrying someone new at her age would be a titanic task.

I think Mary kept her mother's brooch Arthur returned for her as her reminder of him, given that she returned the picture and the ring. In fact she's wearing it when she visits Arthur's grave in-game!. So I kept that

It just warms my heart to think of the very few people left who knew about the gang finding each other in usual ways. Maybe next time I'd do Sadie or Charles. I'm just a sucker for this kind of things

[misshorrorotaku]

So i been seeing your post recently and...well.....do you not think whats hapening in palestine is a genocide?

No, I don't.

Firstly, the numbers of how many have died comes from Hamas. And I refuse to believe they can name every dead kid but can't name how many hostages are alive. And even if we humor the idea they're telling the truth, 30k is an INCREDIBLY small number in terms of conflicts like this and most likely includes Hamas fighters, who are dressed as civilians and of whom Hamas does not differentiate when counting these numbers, so the civilian death toll is far more likely to be around 15k, and that's a generous high-roll. It's also not really possible they'd mostly be women and children. Cuz if they were, this would mean either every man in Gaza is a Hamas fighter (unlikely) or most men in Gaza has somehow avoided death. An incredibly unlikely option, especially given Pro-Pals insistence that Israel is "carpet bombing" Gaza. If you're carpet bombing an area, it's not possible that adult men could almost all avoid death. XD that's just not possible.

Secondly, Hamas has been proven to be lying. They lied about Israel bombing a hospital pretty early (they claimed Israel bombed the hospital and 500 people died, but in truth, one of their missile misfired and hit the parking lot of the hospital they claim was hit), and ever since I have either seen multiple lies from Hamas or Pro-Pals claiming this building or that was destroyed, but a quick Google search of the building either provided oodles of proof it was not destroyed or that it wasn't even in fucking Gaza. I refuse to believe the side lying their asses off will be accurate when calling something a genocide. This doesn't mean I think Israel has never lied, but they have not engaged in nearly the same level of manipulation that Hamas and the Pro-Pal side have.

Thirdly, Hamas has been launching unguided missiles into Israel for over 20 years. This necessitated the Iron Dome, and Israel in the areas that were bombed even has alarms in every neighborhood and a bomb shelter in every house. Even so they have killed thousands over the years in this campaign of slaughter. They then capped this off with October 7th, a terror attack that claimed almost exclusively civilian lives. They raped, butchered, and even recorded themselves doing these things (which is of course ignored by Pro-Pals). They had journalists involved who warned no one and even posed with Hamas leaders and took pictures of themselves with grenades. Apparently there were even members of the UNRWA involved, tho I haven't seen full proof of that bit yet. This was a terror attack that killed 1400 people, innocent people who were just taking part in a music festival. Then they kidnapped over 230 more innocent people, all civilians, many of which weren't even Israeli's, and while yes they gave SOME back during the ceasefire for hostage exchange, they kept a lot of infants (yes, INFANTS) they took, separating them from their mothers, and didn't give back all the hostages, rejecting the offer to keep the ceasefire going in exchange for them all. And now, they won't even name how many as still alive!

And after this terror attack they retreated to Gaza, even taking some corpses of the people they killed, and went into underground tunnels so any reprise against them would hit innocent civilians. They even said on live TV that they view Gaza as a country of martyrs they're happy to sacrifice. And yet despite all of that, we get to point 4.

Fourthly, Israel warns people before attacking. This is unprecedented. Militaries the world over call it a stupid move, cuz tactics-wise, it is very fucking stupid since inevitably Hamas gets the warnings too. But Israel does it anyway in an attempt to prevent civilian deaths, with Hamas refusing to let a lot of the civilians evacuate so they don't die. And the ones that did? They followed them to Rafah, bringing hostages with them, making Rafah, by law, a military target.

Fifthly, Hamas steals the aid that gets in, Palestinians have even testified to this, forcing Gazan civilians to starve and get desperate. The most recent consequence of this is the "flour massacre" in which starving Gazans swarmed an aid truck, and the aid workers inside ran a lot of them over in a bid to escape. Pro-Pals of course spread the lie that Israel butchered them all.

And finally point 6, having to do with the hostages: Hamas lies about the hostages. They claim they're treated well, even forged a thank you letter. But one interview with a released hostage demonstrates that this is a blatant lie, the family of the hostage the letter was from even said it was a lie!

I refuse to believe a genocide is happening when all of this is true. People facing genocide don't engage in this level of manipulation. They don't take innocents hostage, rape them and kill their families and neighbors.

Yeah, Gaza military-wise is weak compared to Israel. And their government has no interest in protecting them whatsoever. But one side being weak does not make a war a genocide. One side's government choosing to hide in underground tunnels, launch missiles from civilian buildings, hide weapons and hostages in hospitals, schools, and children's bedrooms does not make it a genocide.

What is happening is awful and it needs to stop. but it's a war, not a genocide.

[purple-dreams9]

If Thea was Theo, a controversial opinion

I want to preface this post by stating that this is not meant to change anyone's mind or opinion. I am not here to tell you to like a character or to ship a certain ship. You are free to hate Thea, write her off your fics, ignore her existence, and ship Kevin with the milkman if you so desire. This is also not an essay. Instead, think of it as the thought dump of someone munching over it for days.

This all started with a conversation about Thea with a couple people on a Discord server. I've been mostly neutral about Thea, not understanding the overall hate but not knowing much about her either. It led me to read Nora's most recent post about Thea, the replies and the "Why do you not like Thea?" poll, and I've seen plenty of Tweets about her, too.

In general, I noticed one main element when people explain their stance: it is not because Thea is a woman and people want to ship Kevin with male characters. The real reason(s), branched in different directions: the age gap, the lack of building of her character, how little she shows up/how little we know about her/the feeling of her being shoo-ed in out of nowhere as Kevin's love interest, and her attitude (inc. her lack for communication with Kevin after he left the Nest, her comment to Jean in TSC, etc.)

I have been in many fandoms for over a decade, some with more prominent mlm ships, and to be honest, none of those reasons seemed to truly justify the dislike of Thea to the degree she is disliked in the fandom as a whole, especially as the romantic interest of a main character. It seemed to me that most of it is rooted in the desire for Kevin NOT to be straight, but to be gay and be with a guy (or bi, but I see more people using "gay" for Kevin. And some prefer Aro/Ace Kevin, but these fans are a bit more quiet and subdued with their headcanon.) See, even taking Thea out of the equation, there are no popular mlw ships for Kevin with characters from canon, and even in fanon ships the counterparts are mostly (if not all) men.

That got me thinking: "What if Thea was Theo? How would that change how fans interact with this character, even if her personality was the same? What about the relationship with Kevin? Would fans approach the ship differently if he had had Theo as a boyfriend instead of Thea as a girlfriend?"

Of course, it is all hypothetical. For one, a big part of her character is that she is a woman of color (note that I am not black, so I am in no position to talk about how her race plays out with her character) in a predominately male and white team (violent cult) that had to fight her way to the top. It wouldn't quite have the same weight or the same background if she was a male. For two, I am aware it would bring another discourse to the table, that of the "predatory gay men stereotype" (even though there was nothing predatory or "grooming" in their relationship, but that conversation is not for this post.) I am sure plenty of fans would still hate the Kevin/Theo ship, and Theo himself.

Still, I allowed myself to picture it. I read, once, that women used to ship male characters together because female characters were underdeveloped and were not interesting. I wondered if this applies to fandom as well, how certain fandoms prefer to develop and grow male characters.

Things like "lack of canon information about Theo" would not be an issue. Fans are very good at filling in the blanks and building a character from the few spare parts given by the source. This also applies to "there is almost no interaction with Kevin" because let's be honest here, guys, ships are sometimes made from nothing. Rarepairs exist, and even ships like pre-TSC Jerejean can explode in popularity.

With how big of a part Kevin plays in the books and how big his shipping fandom is, if Theo was a thing, I truly believe we would have seen him bloom in fanon spaces. He would have given space and opportunity to grow, change and develop both as a character and in his relationship with Kevin.

The "forbidden relationship" trope and the possibility for angst would have fans foaming, fics working around Theo's past and how he had to fight his way to the top would be written, AUs where he leaves the beliefs of the cult behind and reunites with Kevin would also exist. We would see stories about how his and Kevin's love story played out before and after Kevin left the Nest (at least one primarily focused on the notes they used to pass each other in secret). His mean comments and bitchiness would be ignored, played down, understood, forgiven, or found charming (like Andrew's throughout the series, or even Abby's in TSC.) In a few words, he would be more present and less disliked.

AFTG is a predominately queer fandom, and there is nothing wrong with wanting representation, but I also think it's necessary to use the same scale for female and male characters that are romantically or sexually involved with more popular ones. It's fine not to like Thea, but also to sit and think: would I asses a male character in the same way? How would my view of them change regarding their gender? Just food for thought, I guess.

Again, this is not a call to action of any sort. It is just me, rambling and putting my thoughts down. I can't see different realities so this is basically all fiction. I wanted to take it out of my brain, hear what others think and that's it. Ship what makes you happy. Create what inspires you. Curate your experience. All that being said, Id love to hear your thoughts, but I wont debate anyone's opinion because that's truly, not what Im seeking.

This got longer than I intended so I'll end this here. If you made it, thanks! I hope you have a nice day.

[feminismisstillahatemovement]

To circle back to soemthing from early : The writing of male characters by female writers have repeatedly made me stop reading , especially when I recongized what I like to call the 3 archetypes : The friend , the jerk and the lover , sometimes these mix together but rarely.

The lover : mostly found in YA novels but sometimes adult and potentially pre-teen aimed romances of stories , a guy who seems prefect in description and rarely if ever does anything to hurt or offend the protagonist who is usually a stand in for the writer. the few negative things you can say about him out of the story are treated either as quirks or endearing qualities by the end. Sooner or later the emotional sensitive side is revealed and boom even if they were "The jerk " they're now considered redeemed or potentially redeemed by love. Big example (and the most obvious ) Edward Cullen and Christian Grey are those.

The friend: usually nerdy , kind of fades into the background at a certian point after the protagonist is with the lover, is clearly romantic interest of the protagonist if it's a YA situation , but these feelings are unrequited, they're soundly rebuffed of admitted or it's ultimately a "you have to look into how they're written " to tell. If written at all back in, it's usually to help the protagonist get to the lover & usually ends up with a lover that's either very much like the protagonist , potentially the protagonist's best friend or family member, or someone completely unlike the protagonist. Big example :Jacob from Twilight

The jerk : the bad boy who may be at first seen as an antagonist/working with the antagonist, usually does soemthing notably evil in their first big solo scene. But then that slowly gets walked back especially if they're the lover by the end. Even if they don't end up as the lover they've been given enough pathos that some fans will even say they want the leading protagonist with them or will write oc self inserts trying to help them get better. Possibly may die at the end to help make sure the protagonist lives or ensure the big plan succeeded. Big example : Snape from Harry Potter.

Mind you these aren't solidified hardened absolutes. I'd definitely say, however ,if you look at like 5 or 6 female written stories especially multi book series where it's female character going on an adventure almost all the male leads who are the woman's age who aren't relevaties commonly fall into those 3.

Yes.

Of course, there are a bunch of cliched and awfully-one-dimensional female characters in most male-written fiction too, but for me the biggest difference is there have always been women, in every age, wondering aloud about how a particular male author writes women so well, whereas I really don't think I've ever read any male character in any work by any woman that feels believable and an accurate representation of the internal thoughts, behaviours and motivations of a man that I've been able to connect to. I don't think women are really capable or all that interested in truly understanding the Y chromosome experience, and so their male characters tend to read only like either slow-witted and defective women, cartoonish mustache-twirling villains or alabaster objects of wealth and success. Because of this, the women authors I like I tend to read for what they tell me about their individual female experience, not for what they tell me of the wider world outside of it.

[letters-of-libertas]

Handling relationships with women (tldr here) generally is a topic/question I've seen float around a lot in single childfree women spaces and if I'm being real as a single childfree woman if you're serious about committing to this; your circle of deep quality friends will be so small it'll practically be a dot because in a maIe supemacist society so much of female bonding relies on things that would center maIes (& uphold misogyny) so when you dont do these things of course you'll find yourself at odds with making good connections with women especially as so many women center maIes.

There will be a degree of being alone as a single childfree woman. Personally this doesn't bother me as I'm not someone who makes or want a lot of friends anyways; the ones I have in my life are amazing but I'm not a very social person or trust people. On the note on trust I'll add this comment I saw on the female separatist sub on reddit. I think it hits the nail on the head regarding female friendships generally.

Practically speaking, keep maIe centric women, women that ascribe to libfem politics, maIe partnering women etc at arms length distance. You can have good or decent relations with them & keep conversations on non-maIe or non-political things. Even if they circle conversations back to these things, try and take it away again but if it gets too much this is where boundaries come in and you can express that you dont feel comfortable talking about those topics or just walk away from the conversation & talk to them another time, no need to get into why beyond stating you're not comfortable talking about it. I have a couple friends who have boyfriends & they're generally cool. One of them whenever we'd hang out she'd ask how my love life is going (& my answer is always the same - there is no love life) & ik it's a general topic for people but eventually I told her I dont like talking about it & she was cool with it. If your friends rock with you they'll respect your boundaries.

One thing about friendships in real life is that they aren't like the movies where you get a gang of friends or a special friend where you just click & go through the ups + downs of life together. Finding quality relationships is hard especially as a marginalised person. I've realised you dont have to be close with people. It's okay to be an acquaintance or for people to have their roles & purpose.

So when it comes to dealing with maIe centric women generally that are your friends or that you've got a soft spot for, dont get too close to them, dont expect much from them but you in turn dont give too much to them. Keep them at arms length distance - this is important as some of these women can eventually screw you over badly. Be friendly acquaintances with them.

Btw even if you were gender conforming & did everything expected from women it'd still be hard to make friendships with other women given how toxic women can be towards each other, also eventually they'd prioritise maIes over you regardless but just use you in the end.

A while ago I spoke about how I believe this is a lifestyle that chooses you & while you dont have to be a recluse hermit it's not uncommon that women who tend to be introverted & keep to themselves are drawn to this lifestyle. There's less external influence from the maIe-centric world at large making it easier to prioritise yourself and build life beyond romance & reproduction.

[kvothe-kingkiller]

okay I want to preface this with: I am Against gender testing in sports, I believe this whole trans panic thing is transphobic/intersexist/racist/etc, and I support trans women and trans people in general being able to do sports.

With that out of the way, I feel like people just....get the facts straight up Wrong on so many levels with all of this. Ledecky would not beat (olympic level) men in any of the competitions she does. Here are the men's vs women's world records on some of the swimming events

100m Free: Mens 46.8 (Zhanle), Womens 51.71 (Sjöström)

1500m Free: Mens 14:30.67 (Finke), Womens 15:20.48 (Ledecky)

100m Butterfly: Mens 49.45 (Dressel), Womens 55.18 (Walsh)

100m Breaststroke: Mens 56.88 (Peaty), Womens 1:04.13 (King)

400m Medley: Mens 4:02.50 (Marchand), 4:24.38 (McIntosh)

The story is the same if you look up running times, walking times, jump heights, jump lengths, throws, skiing times, skating times, etc etc.

here's the gender gap in swimming race speeds and then track and field events over the last century (courtesy of buzzfeed)

As you can see, they get better over time, then plateau. While it's certainly possible they might come down to 0, I doubt it will be any time soon (Nature actually estimated in 2004 that they could become more equal by 2156 but that was assuming an increase over time that has since leveled off). Those slight humps are from before steroids and other drugs became more rigorously tested.

These of course include the intersex and high T perisex women who have competed and will continue to compete so it's not just to do with testosterone, there are obviously multiple factors.

Ledecky beating men was during practice, idk who she was practicing against (it was a comment made by a teammate and didnt say who the men were) but it wasn't phelps or any of the other top male swimmers. Then when you have things like shooting etc, the main reason that's segregated by gender is simply because more men are in the sport. If you have (numbers arbitrary) 1000 men wanting to compete and 100 women and you take the best of all of them, chances are you'll end up with 9 men and 1 woman. Segregating it by gender ensures 10 men 10 women.

Tennis and other things like that are harder to score up against each other since men tend to compete against men and women against women, except for the occasional m/f double match. But I think it's safe to say that with the evidence from power and speed differences from the above stats, men would likely beat women if you're comparing the top vs the top. Yes, even Serena Williams.

Once again, I am against gender testing. I am against the racist and transphobic shit you see in sports nowadays.

But it is simply untrue to say that Cis men and Cis women are on the same level when it comes to top sporting events. I am not saying women are weak or women are shitty and bad at sports I am literally just showing people the Correct numbers.

I do not know the answer to this. I do not know how trans people should be included without excluding others. I am neither an athlete nor a gender scientist.

However, I do know the rhetoric around this on this site is unhelpful given it's entirely based around incorrect facts (that in straight athletic competitions, cis men and cis women are at equal levels) and everyone that tries to say otherwise is either actually transphobic or gets dogpiled as Being transphobic even if they aren't.

(Also, this is just at the top of the top. When we're talking about highschool and Especially elementary school sports, trans kids should absolutely be allowed to play whatever team they want.)

[marchtomydrums]

Birthday

Cordelia Goode x Mina Venable x Billie Dean Howard x Reader

Today is your birthday and normally you don't make a big fuss about it. You love celebrating others but not really your own. Gift-giving others is always more fun in your opinion. However, your girlfriends had other plans. This was the first birthday you celebrated with them and they wanted to make it memorable.

Billie and Cordelia made sure to cancel all weekend plans for the four you to spend quality time together. They both cooked your favorite meal and Mina brought home some wines for you to try. It was the perfect night. Just a quiet night in with your three favorite women…what more could you ask for?

Billie cleared the table and then she came back quickly as Cordelia grabbed your hand rubbing it softly.

“This has been the best birthday,” you said smiling at the women.

“It's far from over babydoll.” Billie smiles.

“What do you mean?” you asked looking at them in confusion.

“Sweetheart you know how the three of us have our own special place in the house? You know our space for just us,” she says.

You nod. Of course, you knew this. When they bought the house it was just the three of them and each woman wanted a space that was just theirs. Cordelia had a greenhouse built for all of her herbs, and plants, and her spell books.

Billie Dean got her very own walk-in closet which was home to her many expensive bags, clothes, and shoes.

Wilmeina had her office/den that once she entered she was not to be disturbed. Unless you were dying or something. You had never even been in there.

“We wanted you to have your own space as well,” Cordelia says as she softly pulls you up and leads you down the hallway.

“We all thought long and hard about what you might want and we finally came up with an idea,” she says.

“You can change it if you don't like it.” Mine adds quickly.

The three women stand in front of the double doors which you now noticed looked different like they had just had a fresh paint job.

“The home offices?” you asked.

They smiled as they opened the doors. The smell of vanilla and books hit your nose as soon as those doors opened. The office had been removed into one huge library. The walls were floor-to-ceiling with bookshelves. The wood was a dark oak color and the shelves were deep. It looked old and expensive. Some of them had been filled to the brim with the books you already had which you had stashed down here. There was a ladder that would be able to slide across the room.

You smiled “Just like Belle.” you thought to yourself.

Two arms wrapped themselves around your waist as lips kissed your cheek softly.

“Just like Belle my love,” Cordelia said with a smile.

Normally you would be mad about her listing in on your thoughts but right now you were too happy.

You smiled with tears in your eyes as you looked back at them.

“It's so beautiful. I don't deserve all of this.”

“You deserve everything. “ Mina corrects you.

“I. I don't know what to say,” you said shaking your head.

“I. Thank you! All of you. I've never been given something so wonderful. So personal. I'm speechless.” you said looking around the room.

“We all agreed you deserve your own space plus you love to read,” Billie says kissing you softly.

Cordelia nods as she also gives you a small kiss. “Happy Birthday sweetheart.”

“Thank you.” you smiled.

“Thank you. Thank you.” you cheered as you ran and jumped into the fluffy oversized chair that you would definitely be living in once you were in this room.

They giggled “You're Welcome.”

“Listen I know this is my space and all but all three of you are welcome. Especially you Mina I know you love to read,” you said smiling up at the woman.

The redhead walks closer to you and leans down gently to kiss your lips.

“Thank you little one.”

“Thank you!” you smiled looking over the library once again.

“I can't believe y'all did this for me,” you whispered in awe.

The three women smiled at you and then at each other.

“We would do anything for you,” Cordelia said, and the three of them shared a silent agreement.

[neonscandal]

Okay, if you were asked who are in JJK & BNHA that you can see based on canon that are gay/bi/pan/demi, which characters are they?

For me satoaugu and bakudeku are definitely not straight (yes, I ship them but I don't think they "must be into women only" like a post I just saw). Also, kaminari, jirou, toga, nobara, megumi, kenjaku....

Ah yes, a person with discerning tastes. ✨ While this feels like a sure fire way to get me into some hot water, let's dive right in.

✨🌈 Happy pride to the queer people in my phone 🌈✨

But especially these

Megumi "Only Interested in Compassion" Fushiguro - pansexual (very much choosing to overlook very subtle implications of siscon as a red herring to, of course, further contextualize ItaFushi). See also Gojo and the uncharacteristic Miwa agenda.

Satoru Gojo - Let's be so for real. Man is down astronomical for Suguru but I think there's still evidence/reason to believe he could be ace or demisexual. Can strength be conflated with love?

Kinji Hakari - waving the white flag on this one considering I'm 4 weeks behind and I don't know if there's been further clarification that might swing this verdict one way or another but support Hikari's love regardless of Kirara's gender expression/identity. Also, given current events, it'd be pretty weird if Gege slipped that in out of nowhere.

Kenjaku - 🗣️ IF GIVEN ENOUGH TIME, DO WE NOT ALL BECOME A LIL GAY!? I understand straight people probably don't have such realizations so I'm just going to sit with that reflection.

Nobara Kugisaki - be so for real. I think she had a misplaced crush in her idolization of Saori that made more sense when she left the bumble fuck countryside and could live her best life, out and proud with her muscle mommy girlfriend, Maki. Also explains, a bit, why Saori was ostracized where Nobara may have lacked understanding/context.

Maki - Plenty of gay icons without last names, queen. This one just happens to also be gay.

Eijirou Kirishima is almost so straight that he unintentionally makes a hard U-turn into flirting with queerness. His phrasing is baffling as he tends to pop up in those threads frequently with assumingly unintended innuendos but it is also reminiscent about how no one third wheels harder than a dude's girlfriend when he's with his best friend? I don't know if that makes sense but I'm throwing him in the mix as someone who maybe just needs some time ✨ regardless of the BakuDeku to KiriMina parallels.

Denki Kaminari - This kid has eyes and he uses them, gender be damned. A bi-disaster if I've ever seen one.

Minoru Mineta - IDK if his Deku confession was a translation faux pas or if Mineta, too, has fallen for the male lead's quintessential charm that wins over hearts and minds. While the Council on Bisexuality would fight me on this one... his membership is still pending.

Izuku Midoriya - I have it on good authority that Izuku is Bakusexual. Flustered by girls in the same way that any awkward and bullied kid might when encountering the opposite sex but his heart has always had its allegiance to one person. Whether that makes him gay, demi or even bi, I think it tracks.

Katsuki Bakugo - bi, pan or gay, the consensus is he is Not Straight.

Kyoka Jiro - in Smash, Jiro is a total fujoshi (she just like us fr). If you'll allow submitting MHA Smash into evidence, coupled with the canon main story, I say bi. A girl who knows Momo is stacked but also reasonably wants the attention and company of a Class 1A boy as a girl would at that age.

Himiko Toga - one thing about Toga. She is going to know and live her truth. Confidently bi ✨

Ochaco Uraraka - SPEAKING OF LIVING TRUTHS. She a little late but she has the right spirit.

Bonus, if including Kirishima didn't some how get me booed, I was going to add Yuta Okkotsu too but I thought better of it. 👉🏾👈🏾

[ambers-archive]

who am i, darling to you (ii)

surrender to the sound

The low hum of the engine came to life as you found your seat on the plane. 

"So, let's go over what we know. The unsub targets honeymooning couples, but the question is, how does he manage to catch them off guard?" Hotch asked

He was seated across from you, and you pretended not to notice his eyes occasionally drowning into yours. 

You flipped around your case file, while your other hand was clutching onto your favorite book.

You know it inside out: it was your grandmother's favorite, and apparently your mother's as well. 

Some of the pages still smell like the incense she used, and her hair oil. 

It’s a relic, or time capsule you think. One of bedtime stories, sleepless nights, and memories just out of reach.

"Given the lack of signs of struggle at the crime scenes, it's possible that the unsub is either surprising them or has some form of control that keeps them compliant." Reid chimed in sitting next to you.

You two got along really well, he was the first one to strike a conversation with you since joining the team. Few days into your reassignment to the team he approached your desk. 

You were reading: And then there were none. 

He complimented your taste and went on to analyze it himself. "You know, one of the most intriguing aspects of the book is how it delves into the psychology of guilt and remorse. Each character in the story is haunted by their past actions, and their guilt ultimately becomes their downfall." 

And just like that he became one of your best friends. 

Emily offered you and Spencer some coffee as she took the seat across from you. You smiled at her; all of them were like family to you. Emily and Penelope, the sisters you never had.

And JJ like to the mother always wanted.

Sometimes you look around and can’t believe you have people around you, who love you, and want to spend time with you. 

It was nice, everyone on the team was really welcoming.  

Even Hotch, well as welcoming as he can be. 

At first you would get a brief nod from him, and sometimes when you delivered a profile correctly, a slight raise of his eyebrows and some stolen glances which you kept close to your heart. 

Recently though you’ve been getting occasional smiles, few compliments, and brief moments of laughter. But quick as they come, quicker they disappear. 

Morgan leaned forward from his seat next to Hotch, "But how does he target his victims in the first place? I mean, we're talking about well-prepared honeymooners, not easy targets."

"He could be monitoring their activities before attacking. The unsub might be studying them, learning their routines, and finding the perfect moment without raising suspicion." You said, it felt almost scary to you, the way you're able to dissect their behaviors, putting yourself in the mind of a serial killer, profiling, and going over the most heartbreaking cases.

You hunt, just like they did. 

And the patterns he left on the women are still stuck in the back of your head. He hates women.

(That much is clear)

"This type of power play, especially if it were done post-mortem, suggests a level of sadism." You continued. "These women most likely represent a source of his resentment." 

“So we're dealing with an unsub who targets couples, targets the women specifically, and is able to go into their rooms undetected." Emily said, "Should be easy enough." 

“Emily and I can go to the resort, ask for their security footage. There’s gotta be something we can find out.” Morgan said. 

“Since you have experience with sexual assault cases you and Reid go see autopsy results. See if these marks were post-mortem." Hotch said, looking over at you and Reid.

You were relieved you weren't paired with him, you overthought every decision around him.

And you could barely look him in the eye, your words often died out at the tip of your throat: impossible to convey words of much intelligence. 

The air in the coroner's office was thick. 

Of course temperature wise it was cool, and airy. Detached and void of anything warm. the victims bodies told so many stories. 

"These markings: they're deep stab wounds. They were also done post-mortem," Dr. Fields stated. "They are precise, not hesitation wounds—he knew what he was doing from the beginning."

"He seems to be targeting their femininity. This stems from a deep hatred for women," Spencer muttered.

"Or a woman," You interjected.

"You think these victims are surrogates for someone else in his life?" 

"The time and effort it takes someone to inflict these wounds takes determination. This sort is indicative of someone affected by past trauma."

"What can we know about husbands?" Spencer asked, redirecting the focus to the examiner. 

"Whereas the women died from strangulation, the men were drowned, and it's assumed they were drowned in their hotel bathtub," Dr. Fields responded

"So he takes his time with the women, gets it over with with the men?" Spencer asked. 

"The time of death for the male victims was hours earlier than their wives. Maybe he wanted to eliminate the competition, wanted to enjoy his time alone with them?" You suggested. 

ʚ ═══･୨ ꕤ ୧･═══ ɞ

"Strauss wants a briefing on this case." Hotch announced walking into the makeshift briefing room. It was a tiny station in a small town in Florida. 

Emily snorted, "So she can question everything we have so far about the profile?" 

"I'm not sure, but it sounded urgent that she wants to talk to the whole team." Hotch replied by opening the laptop and starting the call to Quantico. 

"Hello agents." Strauss said as the call came to life, holding up the case files. "The director called, he wants to consider you going undercover. Due to the high popularity of this resort, and the timing in which these murders are being committed-"

"We might need to understand his patterns from within the environment he operates in." Hotch finished for her, 

A collective pause filled the room, and their words hung in the air, an uneasy silence passed through the team.

The team hadn't gone undercover in years. 

"Undercover?" Morgan broke the silence, "This team hasn't gone undercover for years, Hotch and I are the one of the only ones who's gone undercover, but never as a team."

"Going undercover as a honeymooning couple could give us an advantage. It might put us right where the unsub is likely to strike." Emily responded

"It could help us observe the surroundings, identify any potential patterns or anomalies that we might miss from an investigative standpoint." Reid said, agreeing with Emily. 

"This only calls for a couple since the unsub is targeting couples. We need two agents to pose as husband and wife." Strauss said

You sucked in a breath, the thought of going undercover sent shivers down your spine, you've done stimulations before, but the real thing? You push the feeling down as soon as it bubbles up.

You only joined a year ago surely they would want someone more experienced, someone who's shown themselves proved themselves to the team more. 

But before your mind could fall deeper into your thoughts the sound of Hotch's name coming from Strauss stopped you. "Based on your experience and being Unit Chief the director wants you at the forefront of it." Hotch nodded, looking at the rest of the team. 

"I would like to take Agent Prentiss since she has experience with Doyle-“

"Actually Agent, I believe it would be better if someone else went in with you."

 And suddenly you were the only one in the room, a pair of uneasy green eyes met yours, Hotch raising his eyebrows ever so slightly. 

And if you were crazy enough you would think he looked worried.

 "With all due respect Ma'am I don't think she had enough field experience for this." 

"I am concerned about that, however it has been brought to my attention that our unsub has a type and they all have a resemblance to-“

"To me" You finished for her. trying to sit up straighter and slow the beatings of your heart as you meet hotch's eyes. "If we can use my cover as bait, I would know what to say and how to be careful around him-" 

Hotch looked over at you, calling out your name. "This is very risky, and dangerous not to mention doing a covert mission like this won't be easy." 

“I understand Sir, but-"

“I don’t want any of my agents going in a bait, the profile isn’t complete yet. We don’t know what we’re looking for.” Hotch responded, eyes still boring into yours. 

“Agent Hotchner we can’t wait until there are more victims, I’m sorry but it's the director's orders.” Strauss said, “We’ll send over the alias needed and with the information you have now it should be a simple task." And with that Strauss signed off, leaving only you and the team looking uneasy. 

"This could work, Aaron,” Rossi said, sitting off to the side scribbling absentmindedly on his notepad.  “While you two are undercover we can gather more pieces to the profile with your insight." 

"Let's go over the victims, affluent couples honeymooning, madly in love, never leaving each other's sides."

You only caught snippets of the rest of the conversation. You were too busy wondering why for the first time Hotch was avoiding you, his eyes were glued to the board not sparing you a second glance.

[lady-iskra]

How I entered the ship, and what I see in Zutara

I want to focus more on the positive things regarding A:TLA and Zutara, so I thought, why not writing down, how I entered the MSS Zutara? Well, here it goes:

I already felt a chemistry in The Crossroads of Destiny, but my ship started during The Southern Raiders. Zuko realized that he wronged Katara the most, and I totally understand why she still couldn’t forgive him while the others already did (tbh, I think they forgave him too early. While the field trip-episodes were excellent, the pacing in between those was still too fast, IMO, along with the comet countdown).

Anyway, Zuko asks how he can make it up to Katara and helps her find closure by accompanying her, only getting involved when necessary—like when he made the wrong guy tell them about Yon Rha, just as Katara was about to give up.

Other than that, he stood aside, asked if she is ready, told her to find some rest—for me, it seemed as if he wasn’t only concerned to receive her forgiveness, but also caring about her as a person.

Plus, his line towards Sokka got me thinking: "Your sister. She hates me! And I don't know why, but I do care what she thinks of me." I mean... you could interpret it as him being at least a little interested in her, even if he doesn’t realize it...

Katara opened up to Zuko during their journey by telling him the whole story of her biggest trauma. Something she hasn’t done with anyone on screen, and showed that she already felt completely understood by him. For me, it felt like a much deeper bond she already shared with Zuko in a short time as the ones she shared with the others from the Gaang. And, finally: she received her closure in her own way with his help; and forgave him. And, I mean, that deep look after the tight embrace... hello???

On top came that this is literally the only episode when it is about Katara alone: Not Katara helping anyone or fighting for women’s rights—after she gave so much, it was the one episode only about her and her trauma alone. And who gave her the chance to do all this, bc he understood what she truly needs: Zuko.

Funny, this coincidence... This is such a typical element of Enemies-to-Lover’s. Is anyone familiar with the "A court of thorns and roses"-series by Sarah J. Maas? This happens there as well ACOTAR spoilers following, I haven’t figured out how to hide spoilers; if there is a way, pls let me know, thanks: Turns out the former enemy-guy understood the protagonist deeply, more as her soon-ex-fiancé ever could; and with his help, she got healed from her trauma. The former enemy is the one who really listens to her, who sees her as an equal, and she starts to trust him deeply, more than anyone else. End of ACOTAR spoilers 

So, yeah, that is how my ship started, and the following episodes tightened it. It was also the other way around, Katara who comforted Zuko in the most understanding way, given him strength to face his uncle and ask him for forgiveness, agreeing without hesitation of supporting him in a fight against Azula. And last but not least: Their last interaction together is saving each other's lives in the most epic way.

Long story short: They showed me a deep understanding of each other, they shared their deepest trauma or worries with the other one, and their friendship grew with every episode. And especially bc of this deep understanding, I truly believe that their relationship would be a healthy one. Would they fight now and then, like every couple? Of course, and it would get heated and passionate, for sure. But since most fights in relationships stem from a lack of understanding, I think it would happen rarely. Because they know, they can tell each other everything.

My intuition when it comes to a growing romance is mostly correct, and the Zutara-situation is so Enemies-to-lovers coded that nobody would’ve been surprised if they ended up together. I realize that not many episodes were left to build up a romance, but most Zutara shippers, like me, would’ve been pleased with a slight hint, and maybe a kiss out of adrenaline and relief after the last Agni Kai on top.

[hyakinthou-naos]

I’m new so plz be patient

I’m kinda scared of the gods especially Apollo and idk what I should do

He’s are not always the nicest in the myths but idk how accurate some of the characters are. I’m scared of offending or angering him, but I also feel a connection to him

I was raised evangelical and they don’t have the healthiest relationship with their god so idk if it’s just my upbringing or not

Thank you ☀️(I’ve also asked other blogs in case you see the same question)

Khaire Miles, and thank you for your question!

I want to start by saying that it is okay to be afraid; there should be no shame in fear or trauma, and The Theoi should *never* be angry with you for having emotions.

A slight tangent, but (from a mental health perspective) emotions in it of themselves are neither “good” nor “bad” - it is what you do with those emotions that denotes morality*.

*Of course there is a lot of nuance in this type of discussion, but an important bit of nuance I want to add is that (in this context) emotions are not the same as beliefs.

As humans there is so much pressure to “control” and “fight” our emotions. But in my experience, it is much easier and more productive to allow yourself to feel your emotions without judgement and then try to understand why you feeling the way you are - instead of trying to “fight” your mind.

I also want you to know that you are not alone in how you feel! I was raised Roman Catholic, and I was scared/hesitant to work with any male divinities (Apollo included) when I began my venture into Hellenic Polytheism.

I was put off by the way myth depicted deities such as Lord Apollo, King Zeus, and even Queen Hera. These emotions and beliefs were due in large part to the fact that I was operating under the mindset of “mythic literalism” or “fundamentalism” (which is present in most Christian denominations).

“Fundamentalism: noun

a form of a religion […] based on the belief that everything that is written in the scriptures is completely true”

- Source: Oxford Learners Dictionary

However, current theories around ancient Hellenic worship - as well as the current worship by Hellenic Polytheists - tend to favor viewing Greek Myths through the lense of Mythic Symbolism instead of Mythic Literalism.

“Literalists tend to seek factual or historical bases for a given mythological narrative while advocates of one the many symbolic approaches prefer to regard the narrative as a code requiring some mode of decipher-ment.”

- Source: “The Flood Myth” by Alan Dundes

To simplify - if you view Greek Myth from a Literalist perspective, then you’re going to believe that Hades/The Underworld is a physical place you can get to if you dig deep enough below the ground. If you view Greek Myth from a Symbolic perspective, then you’re going to view Hades/The Underworld as a metaphor or symbolic explanation of what life is like after death.

So, did King Zeus literally cheat on his wife with dozens of women - ignoring his marriage vows and often assaulting women in these various myths? No.

Greek Myth existed and continues to exist as stories, to explore human morality - to explain that which we don’t yet understand - and to provide a framework for belief and ritual. The reason why so many myths portray The Gods in a negative light, is because the actions of The Gods are supposed to be a reflection of humanity. Humans can be terrible, we can cause unspeakable harm to ourselves and others - but humans can also be wonderful, creating joy and kindness in situations where these things are lacking.

This paradigm shift, from Mythic Literalism to Mythic Symbolism, is something that can be challenging and difficult to navigate. I was a practicing pagan for 10 years before I ever comfortably worked with a male deity - and now Lord Apollo is the principle god in my personal pantheon.

Lord Apollo is an incredibly complex and wonderful deity. He is artistry and creativity, he is joy and light - he can also be one who requests discipline and rigor, one who holds his ground and embodies social justice. He is many things to many people, but to me he is nothing to fear. I firmly believe he has been guiding me my whole life, and I would not worship him if I thought for a second that he was not a moral or just entity.

I hope this has been helpful to you in some way, if you have any additional or follow up questions please don’t hesitate to reach out.

Eirene - peace and farewell,

- Aön

[astra-galaxie]

Hello again! Loved the Jason HCs, he might be a parody but he needs more appreciation, the missed potential!!!

ANYWAYS another character for the ask game (I hope two back to back isn't too much, sorry if it is ;u;)

Specifically, my personal favourite, SILVERee! 🏳️‍🌈💔❤️‍🔥🖕😭😶

(Bonus notes: I have a theory surrounding him specifically! Also I do wonder, why was he never given a legal name? Surely it would've come up since he was in 3 cases. (I assigned him Shin Sang-jun personally))

Thank you! I'm happy to hear you enjoyed Jason Stone HCs! His character definitely had some missed potential!

I don’t mind people sending in multiple characters; I always get repeat customers!🙂

That said, I’ll see what I can come up with for SILVERee!

(I just assumed we never learned his legal name because he lives his stage persona, but if it had been revealed, I could see it being done in his third/last appearance. (Nice name choice! I love giving unnamed characters names!)

🏳️‍🌈 A sexuality headcanon

I’m not sure what I would pick for SILVERee… Maybe pansexual since he’s a big celebrator of love. But regardless of his identity, I see him having a preference towards women, but he is not oblivious to his attraction to men, non-binary, etc.

💔 An angsty headcanon

SILVERee’s manager was secretly working for SOMBRA. When he was starting out, he joined a talent agency to help him grow his fame. Unknown to him, it was a secret SOMBRA front to try and recruit unsuspecting youth. That’s how they were able to use his and others’ music to recruit more children. SILVERee never knew that his management team was so sinister, and after discovering the truth following SOMBRA’s Hunt, SILVERee’s career took a significant hit from losing his management team, and he had to start again almost from scratch.

❤️‍🔥 A romantic headcanon

While he can come off as a playboy and flirt, SILVERee doesn’t have time for relationships due to his busy schedule. But he would like to be in a relationship with someone who isn’t with him for fame. Of course, he knows it's unavoidable that his love life will be displayed for the world to see, but he would still like to find someone who loves his true self and not the singer on stage.

🖕 A headcanon relating to anger

SILVERee has a short temper, especially when things don’t go his way. It earned him the title of “diva,” and people know to follow his orders, or else he’ll (metaphorically) explode. But after receiving therapy for his trauma at SOMBRA’s hands, SILVERee also learned how to control his anger. He still has moments where he lets his anger control him, but he’s getting better at managing his temper.

😭 A headcanon about the worst thing that happened to them

During SOMBRA’s hunt, SILVERee watched a kid get shot in front of him. Their blood splattered onto his face and clothes, but he still believed it was all fake for the “show” and that the blood was artificial. When he found out the Hunt was real, SILVERee realized the blood on him was too. He had a panic attack, and the second he was able to take a shower, he nearly scrubbed his skin off, trying to remove the blood. Even afterwards, he could still see the blood and the guilt of leaving the injured child because he thought it was fake began weighing on him heavily.

😶 A random headcanon

He loves painting his nails. SILVERee finds it therapeutic to paint colourful polishes onto his nails and has even tried nail art. He’s not that good at making designs on his nails, but he’s getting better. He’ll also watch nail art tutorials to learn new tricks and how to keep his nails in good condition.

And that’s all I’ve got! Thanks for the request!

[thebirdscomeback]

okay, I think it's time to crack open my copy of MAAN and start doing some feminist analysis!

I want to think about how Claudio's accusations demonstrate a deep-rooted misogyny that goes further than slut-shaming (although that in itself is of course horrible) and is based off of pervasive ideas of gender, sexuality and heteronormativity. Ideas so pervasive in fact, that they transcend contextual and historical boundaries and we are left in 2014 with the same misogynistic expectations of women we were dealing with in 1599.

I’ll start with gendered expectations of sex, as inspired by @cardboardsean's awesome post on the topic. If we accept that Hero and Claudio aren’t having sex (which is explicit in the text) then Claudio’s anger takes on a layer of self-righteousness, of ‘deserving’ the sex he’s not getting, from a girl who should, on account of dating him, inherently want sex with him. Taking the idea that Hero’s virginity is something she ‘owns’ and can be ‘lost’ or ‘given’, heterosexual relationship dynamics assert that there is a correct person to whom to hand it over. And while of course cheating would be hurtful either way and in any context, the specifically gendered language and implications of Claudio’s accusation filled with metaphors of spoiled fruit in MAAN and promises in NMTD introduce virginity as a reason why Hero’s supposed transgression is particularly egregious.

Something I noticed more acutely watching this time around in real time is how little we see of Hero and Claudio after they get together. After the makeup tutorial, we hardly see them together as a couple and it seemed odd at first, making the audience feel less connected when we see them fall apart. On closer consideration though, it feels like an accurate representation of the path of their relationship and what is important to Claudio especially. For him, his struggle is getting the girl, and once he ‘has’ her, the hard part is over. Heteronormative ideas of relationships and marriage, where the man has to put in the work of courting and the woman has to put in the work of being the wife leave no expectation for the man to be a husband in any material sense. His job doesn’t require any upkeep of the relationship and this seems to be the figuration Claudio is acting under as well. He doesn’t talk to Hero about their sex life, or his concerns about her cheating; in fact, given his readiness to believe anything of her, it would seem he hardly talks to her about anything at all. It comes back to the discussions a few of the characters have around Pedro’s party. Most of them understand that Hero cannot be ‘had’ as if she’s property, but Claudio never quite seems to get the message. He brings up Hero and Pedro again at Hero’s party; he knows he was wrong but can’t let go of the idea that she was close to being ‘taken’ by another man (again, back to virginity). From Claudio’s perspective, it feels like he believes he won her before Pedro could. And well, if a girl is your property, you can treat her however you like, right?  

Along with her virginity, Hero’s attractiveness is used as another means to prove her guiltiness; a classic means of judging a woman’s morality. Play!Claudio uses it directly as a way to prove just how awful Hero really is, “If half thy outward graces had been placed about thy thoughts and counsels of thy heart!”. Appearance has long been used as a judge for women’s moral character, although there can be no winning (Heflick et al. 2011) (so glad to be paying so much money for university so i can reference my nmtd posts, it's all worth it!). While ‘ugliness’ has been used as a measure for a lack of morality, Hero’s beauty comes to demonstrate just how duplicitous she really is - she's a bitch and looks good while doing it! NMTD uses Hero’s sweet sixteenth as a way of really emphasizing this comparison of beauty and morality; she’s wearing the dress she’s been saving for a special occasion; she’s made herself look particularly pretty and girlish, highlighting a gendered innocence which will make Claudio’s accusation hit all the harder. Her baby blue dress stands in for marital (virginal) white, a teenage version of a bride who is judged primarily on her innocence, beauty and morality in the eyes of her husband.

Within this concept of gendered morality sits the idea that women are inherently sinful, yet something to attempt to keep pure at all costs. The (almost painful) heteronormativity of Hero and Claudio’s relationship comes up here again and Hero’s hyper-femininity, not only in looks but in manner is weaponised against her to demonstrate the extent of her moral failing. She performs her role of girl within perfect expectations – passive, mild and modest – which is used to dichotomise her ‘true’ nature. She appears chaste but in reality she is “more intemperate in your blood than Venus or those pampered animals that rage in savage sensuality”, as play!Claudio tells her. Here, Claudio invokes the highest form of female sexual energy, Venus, to assert the absolute inherence of woman’s untampered sin; not human but animal. And of course, Hero’s niceness means she has to be hiding something – if girls are being too nice they’ve got to secretly be a bitch, “you put on this fake little face. but underneath it, you're just a fucking slut”. Niceness, in a girl, then becomes both expected (god forbid she actually is a bitch) and untrustworthy. The immorality must be hiding somewhere, ready to show itself. And this passivity ties itself back to sex. If a girl is passive then she must be receiving sex from whoever wants it from her, and Robbie represents the perfect stand-in. He has all the normative masculinity Claudio doesn’t – confidence, bravado and sex drive. If Hero is the ‘perfect’ image of female passivity, then Robbie is the ‘ideal’ male figure to use that passivity. And again, Hero is Venus, she must be having sex with someone.

[spurgie-cousin]

ok my mom understandably had to go to bed (very late here in her time zone, and it's even an hour later in the one I'm used to) but I'm a mental masochist so I will trudge on until I can't physically watch Shiny Happy People anymore (and I'm just going to edit my comments instead of reblog bc so far there's really not a lot most of us aren't aware of):

- firstly, I knew Deanna was raised Christian but I didn't know she was raised VERY conservative Christian. Per Deanna, this is the reason Amy was allowed so much freedom; she didn't want to limit her as a female in any of the ways she was

- going off of that, I can see how that foundation would open Jim Bob up to a religion that is so insanely misogynistic

- I know it's a thing all of us who've been around a while have known, but it's all but explicitly said that the Duggar kids had any steal of rebellious beat out of them. By Michelle, regardless of what she sounds like.

- I can't help but wonder if this is the reason Michelle sticks so closely to this faith, even after all that's happened. Even as her own children have expressed how abusive their upbringing was. Leaving the ideology means admitting you were an abuser and not an educator.

- Jill felt like she lied in the Megyn Kelly interview. She didn't want to do it and said she wouldn't have without her parents urging, and she felt obligated to protect her family. She didn't want to do this interview, but didn't trust anyone else to tell the truth which, given her upbringing, I totally get.

- the interviews with other ex-IBLP kids are just as fascinating to listen to as Jill's (if not more bc a lot of them WANT to be there). Tia Levings in particular is so incredibly brave and wonderful, please follow her your preferred platform ❤️

- Mike Huckabee is an accomplice to abuse and ped*philia at best

- I know Derick can be insufferable but I promise he's worth listening to in this doc, at least so far (I'm halfway through episode 3). And he's a very serious Jill advocate, which I feel like all the Duggar girls need so badly.

- Jill didn't want anyone at her birth because SHE DIDN'T WANT TOO GO THROUGH WHAT ANNA WENT THROUGH. She agreed to a diary cam at most.

- For that work they did during their babies birth, the Dillards requested not a full paycheck, but a small health insurance renumeration fee from TLC, who asked them to do this work. TLC informed then that they had already paid all sums to Jim Bob.

- Jill has never received any amount of payment from TLC for all the time and work she had given them. Neither had Derick.

- this is probably a NO DUH for us around here, but here is a short list of IBLP/ATI approved lives of training, especially for minors who are doing work for free for other members of the organization (i believe the Bates kids are included in some of the pictures accompanyingthis part):

1. CoNSTrUCTioN!!!

2. Cosmetology (women only of course)

3. Ministry

4. Business?

5. Healthcare consultant

6. ALERT counselor

Secular college courses so not apply to accreditation in these fields

- other ex-IBLP members confirm that children were trained in construction trades and child labor was used gratuitously in the organization, for anything from repairs, to setting up conferences, to building actual buildings. And it was all, of course, free.

- ALERT confirmed as a purposeful paramilitary organization

- am ex-IBLP woman who was sent to ALERT states that they took tampons away from her, as they were a form of purity violation (she says they said she had purposefully taken her own virginity by using them).

- a woman raised in IBLP recounts a story at a conference in Oklahoma City where her roommate almost slit her throat with a knife over being a 'glutton'. Essentially, a teenage girl almost killed herself over not being thin enough to be 'godly'.

- David Green, the CEO of Hobby Lobby, is STILL IBLP's biggest donor. Don't fucking shop there!!!!

- a purposefully sanitized version of Bill Gothard's teachings have been and might still be used in elementary schools, prisons, police and military units as a way of indoctrinating those in attendance to be more open to absolute authority.

- All of the kids besides Jill & Derick might've very well signed a very lengthy contract that extends at least a decade. The Dillards didn't, and have received extreme yet Christian-flavored threats over it???

- The Dillards were using a food bank even after they asked Jim Bob for the most basic payment for their services to the show

- Jill, Derick, and others all agree tha Journey To The Heart was a vetting mechanism for Gothard's abuse victims