#and the concept of parenthood and the concept of being someone's kid

[navree]

This is his dad in there, the first man he ever called Dad, at any rate, and even after everything, booze and jail and Bruce and death and then death again, there's never going to be a part of Jason that isn't gutted that he's dead. One night, a wraith in a red helmet slips onto the grounds of Blackgate Penitentiary to steal one specific thing.

Fandom: Batman - All Media Types, DCU (Comics) Pairing(s): Jason Todd & Willis Todd, Jason Todd & Bruce Wayne Words: 2,822 Chapters: 1/1

[olderthannetfic]

if you don't mind me sending yet another personal questions on anon... i'm in my mid-20s, single, and pro-abortion because i'd rather fetuses not be born rather than abandoned or died of hunger or stunted from malnutrition. i'm from a third-world country so it's very common here and it's very sad to me. i'm not exactly poor though, more like middle class, i guess?

recently my coworkers talked about getting married and having children. one of them said "i've seen old people without children and no one takes care of them. also, an old person's happiness is mostly from watching their children grow up. that can never be replaced with anything." it sounds a little bit weird to me, but i'm not sure if it's because i'm single and have never looked up about parenting and children before, so i asked "but isn't it selfish to give life to children because you want someone to take care of you/you don't want to die alone? and aren't there other sources of happiness?" they reiterated that watching your children grow up is a different kind of happiness and that "having someone to take care of you is not the main goal, but it's gained anyways" but the way they said it sounds like it's the main goal to me because they don't state any other goals like "i want a footballer kid" or "i want a kid to take them on trips" or even "to continue the bloodline in the name of evolution". i honestly don't really get it.

i mean, they're free to think whatever they want as long as they don't abandon their children, but it brings me to a dilemma. i'm scared of dying alone and missing out on watching my own children grow up. but also, i don't think i'm ready to have children due to my mental capacity and lack of parenting skills. i'm scared of being selfish; what if my child turns out unhappy and depressed like me? what even is MY main goal? i have so many that i want to do, like travelling around the world, but eventually all my goals will be fulfilled and i'll have spare money, but i'll be less mobile when i grow up, and being pregnant is more dangerous as you grow older.

i'm still single so i think i have time to think about it, but it creeps on me like a ticking timer. since you and some of your readers are older and have probably went through this dilemma, what do you think? what even brought you to the point where you're set on having/not having children?

--

Yes, people are absolute morons about children.

In the context of the US, we have shit health care and a shameful dearth of ways to care for our elderly, disabled, or terminally ill. Most of the work falls to family. It is absolutely true that people with kids have a better shot of reasonable end of life care...

However, that's going to depend on where you live, and you could easily end up estranged from your kids or your kid could get hit by a bus or something. Treating something as major as parenthood as a guarantee of in-home nursing is fucking stupid in any country.

Different kind of happiness, my ass.

I'm happy I managed to have a kid after leaving it pretty late. My baby is delightful. I still don't see how this is that different from a best friend or a hobby. I think a lot of people are just boring and have no idea how to be rabidly passionate about their hobbies. They also have no idea how to build emotional intimacy. If they can't make a bff who'd nurse them through cancer, they probably can't instill those feelings in their kid either.

Most people find conception just fine up through the mid 30s. Late 30s even. I had to do IVF because I waited into my 40s. The pregnancy was still fine. The birth sucked because I didn't yell at the hospital staff forcefully enough or have a good enough advocate with me, but it still turned out okay. The medical part should be a relatively small part of your calculation unless you have reason to think the local medical system will make pregnancy particularly dangerous.

--

For me... I'd always assumed I'd have one. I didn't find the right partner, but I did run out of time. I pictured what my life would look like in five years with a kid. What would we be doing together? And I liked that picture, so I went for it.

One thing that helped a lot was that my mother was perpetually too busy running a business but did genuinely care. She left me alone to pursue my own hobbies a lot and did not hover because she was always doing ten thousand things, including her own stack of hobbies.

Most parenting content is about as pleasant as cleaning out a latrine. It's all full of "Do these seventy-two things every single morning or you're a Bad Mother™" and pretending like kids need your overbearing personality squashing them 24/7.

I like to joke "Well, you have to know which end goes up, and you have to feed them occasionally."

Thousands of years of imperfect people did manage not to drop the baby on its head. We even have vaccines now. You would be fine.

Also, my mother absolutely did drag me around the world when I was little. She got a chance to go visit Indonesia with a gamelan she used to play with when I was four and a half, so off we went. I had to completely change how I ate because it was all random homestays in the mid 80s, and the food they had was the food they had. Mom didn't think twice about this.

The biggest parenting error people make—not just personal happiness error but child emotional health error—is stopping living their lives because kids somehow need some bullshit normie fantasy of staying home forever and doing nothing interesting. You need to make a lot of time to do things with the kid, but those can be the things you actually like, not shit from a canned list of child appropriate activities.

If you are never "selfish", you will only teach your child that they cannot have both a kid of their own and a life.

Children need consistency, but that consistency is you caring about them and being around, not you giving up ever having personal time or interests.

[pixelatedraindrops]

Baby Makoto AU Doodle Dump🐣

Hiya everyone! So, I’ve been busy working on some art of this new little concept of mine. It’s been in my head for a while. Ever since I found out Makoto is in fact canonically 3 years old. And then thinking of Number One being a doting single parent to his tiny homunculus clone whom he adopts to keep safe from further experimentation and raises as his own 🥺💕

I’ve seen other people (specifically on twitter) come up with this thought as well. Makoto as a 3 year old child with Yuma as his parent. Honestly other than drawing my favorite characters being sick, drawing them as little kids also brings about a nostalgic comfort to me. Not nearly as much joy as drawing sickies brings me, but it was fun to draw the all powerful CEO as a little toddler curious about the world. He's just a little baby <3

Now I am actually a bit shy and insecure about this idea. Mainly due to people possibly confusing it with infantilization and/or age regression. This is neither of those things. It’s an AU where he just happens to be a toddler. If anything I picture little Makoto to be similar to Anya from Spy x Family. (and the fact they both share a Japanese VA makes this connection even cuter, and he's only one year younger than her x3)

Anyway, I hope you all will indulge in me as I share the art I’ve done of this tiny little homunculus. I probably won’t talk about this au or draw it often due to feeling shy about it, so I just made a full on thread of the doodles if you want to see. I keep them under a read more to prevent spam (and I know not everyone is a fan of this concept)

But if you look, I hope you enjoy!

A little reference of sorts I made of my toddler Makoto design. (though he wears different clothing in every art I do of him lol this just connects his normal purple flowery attire) He is exactly 2 feet shorter than his usual height making him pretty small for a toddler. (but yuma is pretty short too lol and I want him to be able to carry him ;w;)

He has 2 special toys that connect to his other mask designs in the concept art. The teddy bear is his very special possession that Yuma gave him as a present, and the puppet teruteru-bozu is something he made together with Yuma when crafting on a rainy day. (he is so talented preparing him for the future when he actually develops products for the company he will run) The melon ball is based on his favorite fruit, and he has socks and a fuzzy blanket with the pattern of his mask.

In this AU, Yuma retains his Number One persona. He’s not meek apologetic and unsure, he has the confidence of the ultimate detective. But is he confident as a parent? Not in the slightest. But taking care of Makoto teaches him more about being kind and empathetic towards others, and eventually over time he becomes super protective and even at times doting towards Makoto.

Making his personality a bit more bright and pleasant, much like the kind and gentle Yuma that we all know and love. Parenthood causes the serious detective to soften up a lot. And of course this causes Makoto to love and depend on Yuma in return and never want to cause him trouble. (So he puts on a tough act a lot ;w;) However, he almost never calls Yuma dad. He just calls him Yuma. Its very rare that he refers to Yuma as his dad but this is perfectly okay by Yuma. (But when Makoto does call him dad? Yuma feels such unexplainable emotional discord that he almost cries.)

Some more doodles :3

Such a silly little family. I love them so much <3

Why did I think of this AU? Because I want Makoto and pre-game Yuma to not be lonely, be happy together, and for Makoto to have a childhood. Honestly Makoto seems a bit childish and playful in canon too so...

I think I'd like him to have an actual childhood where he grows up comfortable and happy. And in the care of someone who loves him 💜

[judasgot-it]

Dad! Jouno headcanons...

He just looks like a stressed as hell father here. Someone help him.

Before ->

To be totally honest, I don't think Jouno would ever plan to be a father. He would never plan to be one simply because he is completely aware of how horrible of a person he is

Why would he bring someone into the world who could be exactly like him? Or worse, he would end up being a horrible parent?

He would just avoid any topic about it.

So parenthood is 100% an accident. Also, this guy would probably try to convince his gf to get an abortion at some point, cause he probably thinks he would make a child that's just that horrible

I feel like the best chance of him becoming a parent would be him not knowing about it when he got arrested and was forced into being a hunting dog. Can't tell your gf to abort when you're in jail ig. Also now he is legally obligated to pay child support. GOTTEM!

Personal theory tho.

He probably wouldn't be jumping for joy at the thought of parenthood tbh. If anything, he is freaking out. I feel like he's in between denial and freaking out. Probably gave some weird rant about the government.

During pregnancy ->

If he's miraculously there (I think the last part is more plausible. This would be his #felonera) then he would be stressed as hell

Dude knows that it's inevitable (unless he throws her down the stairs. or smothers the baby. He probably thinks some weird shit it's Jouno sorry) so now he has to prepare for a very near future of being a father

He can't have sex for what might be the next few years. He has to learn how to take care of a baby. He's made Tecchou-like food combo's now. His life is hell.

Jouno I think would only be dramatic for a month and then get over it quickly -> he has two people relying on him now. Even past his kid being born, he will inevitably have to take care of his baby mom for a while after and will have to provide. Like a dad.

He probably loves the attention and the title it gives him. Probably starts owning it and is thinking 'yeah, actually, I'm going to be an awesome dad' because he gets brownie points for doing the bare minimum as a man

Dude would be kinda ridiculous and do lots of shit just so he can get praise. He's going to be a great dad, so yea, ofc he's going to buy weird useless shit no one would actually use. It's what good dad's do (he's not even pregnant and is suffering from baby brain I think)

Is probably terrified of touching his gf because he is more than aware that his child is in there and it unnerves him. Probably is super freakish about the most random shit, like drinking coffee or going up and down stairs since he can hear whats going on.

His normal level of anxiety goes through the roof during this time. I feel like they won't ever go back down again.

During the birth he would probably be supportive although I think the sounds and smells would be so horrific for him that he would vomit and be kicked out by nursing staff

I feel like the birth was so bad for him to hear (sensitive hearing would be terrible. and smell) that he would be crying as if he pushed a baby out of his hole

Raising that Child (early years) ->

The early years are the worst for him. He still is in a stage between "I want to be a good dad" and "I'm a horrible person I literally have fucking killed people. He doesn't know I have killed people and enjoyed it"

Would have this crisis with a literal baby btw. Probably has full on very serious conversations with his kid about morality when his kid still drinks from the tit

I don't think he'd enjoy being around his kid fully until he starts actually forming full thoughts. Obviously, he loves him, but he enjoys weird kid questions much more than a baby who shits himself

Eggs him on too, tries to make him think until his brain hurts. He thinks it's funny, making a seven-year-old wrap his head around the concept of global shipping and LLCs.

He wouldn't give his kid normal child entertainment. It's all educational and weird shit. Also is very picky about their toys, he's basically a beige mom but its about noises and smells. NEVER give his kid something like slime, he'll go insane.

I think he's 100% the 'bad cop' parent because he would have a lot of rules that a little kid wouldn't get. I feel like the other Hunting Dogs would get on his ass about it

I think Jouno probably worries a lot about giving his kid a good childhood since I doubt his was good - he was alive during the great war as a kid, he turned into a criminal, and he's an ability user. not the best circumstances.

100% has been forced to bring his kid to his job, but he doesn't actually introduce him to any of his actual duties. Torturing? He can't know about that.

Jouno lets his kid hang out with his colleagues -> probably Tachihara, who I think would play the best 'uncle' role out of all of them

Later years ->

Personally, I think Jouno would have a son, but I don't think its a curse. I think it would actually be a sort of blessing, because Jouno was probably a lot nicer of a person before whatever fucked up shit happened that made him the way he is now.

Mentioning this cause I think his son would probably be a direct reflection of who he could have been -> more happy and carefree, and less on the offensive about everything

So when his kid gets older, Jouno is probably some weird guy who tries to tell his kid everything he 'wished he knew at that age'

Probably got his son to have a sex talk from one of the hunting dogs doctors. it was a traumatic bonding experience for the both of them.

He definitely fake kidnapped his kid like 3 times in case something happened. Jouno is a super soldier, but his son is not. He needs to learn how to stab people.

Gave his son a gun/knife. Insists he brings it school, no he does not care if it's against the rules - he literally is the law. His son is also a target, so it is necessary in his eyes.

God please someone stop him he thinks someone is going to murder his son every second of every day

I'm pretty sure his son is some dweeb that Jouno is almost jealous of - like he never got the opportunity to be a dork who cries about homework. he was too busy killing people in his gang at that age

Jouno definitely drops the most insane dad lore. "I killed werewolves in Kenya once" while in the middle of a PTA meeting

Worst PTA mom btw. He WILL interrogate his sons teachers and pull up their records, he is the worst parent. He really shouldn't be allowed there actually

Is a lot nicer to his kid when his son is older.

He isn't his 'best friend' but he tries to do everything he can to be a good dad -> he lives everyday thinking that it'd be his last one with his family, so he tries not to leave with a bad impression

Jouno probably lies awake at night with the thought of what his last words could be to his family

The bitchy teen years would be the worst cause Jouno would probably have the best comebacks, so any sort of argument would be shot down immediately.

i dont think he lets arguments fly at dinner. If he's even there. He would be very busy, so I think his schedule would be erratic. Although I think his son would be the same and stay up at 3 am and get a lecture from him

The hunting dogs all try to teach his son about basic things like shooting and self-defense -> Teruko definitely shot at him once or twice so he knows how to avoid an assassination attempt.

Was actually really proud that his son graduated from school and is a relatively normal member of society. He never even killed someone, that's a high achievement!

[burningcheese-merchant]

Xcuse me but I forgot very important questions about BS parenthood.

Does he teach the kids more things besides fighting? Is he a cool dad, stoic dad, protective dad or "over-the-moon" dad? Does he gives romantic advises to his son? Does he let his little beast princess play with boys her age? Does he dreads the day when she falls in love? (I have the headcannon over my own BurningCheese fankid that whatever girl/boyfriend she gets they need to AT LEAST be able to put up with him in battle)

Yay, more questions from my buddy Almellow 🗣️🔥🙌

Spice is 100% "over-the-moon dad" when they're babies. It's a pleasant surprise to many to see him so genuinely bubbly and smiley (not to Golden, though, she knows his soft side by now and is just happy to see him enjoying being a father). It's really cute. (I like the concept of hyper-masculine men being soft and loving towards their families ok)

As they grow up, he becomes a mix of all those dad modes, really. Mostly Cool Dad, because having your kids look at you like you're larger than life is just the best. (He's also not the best at disciplining them a lot of the time tbh. He wants to indulge their foolishness, it's more fun. He ends up acting like a child himself, wanting to have fun with his children. And then they all get chastised by Golden together after they break something lol)

He's less protective than you'd imagine him to be; not because he doesn't care, but because he really does have that much faith in their strength right from the get-go. It's actually Golden that's the overprotective one, at least when they're little; he had to coax her into letting them start their warrior training because she kept wanting to push it back and making excuses to do so. (She just can't bear the thought of her little ones getting hurt. She's lost so much already. If anything happened to her children, her little gems... Spice is the one to convince her to have faith in the kids and let them do things. Of course they'll get hurt, she and him get hurt all the time still and they're adults. But they'll be fine. They're tough. They have to nurture that toughness, not stifle it. They can't protect them forever... But they don't need to. The kids can stand on their own two feet. He's never doubted either of them for a second, for any reason. She shouldn't, either.) But make no mistake, Papa Bear is alive and well, just dormant. Only coming out when necessary. You want to see the old Burning Spice? You want to see the Beast of Destruction again? Hurt those kids. Harm a single hair on their heads. Make them cry, make them bleed. Knock on that devil's door enough and Burning Spice will answer it, and he will greet you with that axe of his and that fiery, seething hatred that once consumed his soul and helped burn away countless others'.

Burning Spice trying to talk to his son about love is a really amusing thought lol. I don't think he'd go out of his way to do it until he actually notices his son expressing some form of interest in someone, then it's honestly 50% Lighthearted Dad Mockery™️ and 50% Actually Trying to Teach My Son How to Be Smooth™️. Pepper Jack is having less than none of it, this is all embarrassing as hell, he doesn't want to hear a damn word from his father's mouth (he's a teenager by this point, what teen wants their dad to try to coach them on how to flirt lol). He tries to shut Spice down with sarcasm (Jack is the KING of backtalk and smartassery when he's a teenager, he's a damn menace) or just questioning his wisdom in general. He likes to bring up how annoying and gross Spice and Golden always are (unapologetic PDA constantly lol). He's already forced to witness what "love" and flirting look like, he doesn't need his father pouring salt in his wounds

(Jack once made the mistake of going "didn't you used to be weird and creepy towards Mother" once, as a sort of "gotcha". It made Spice genuinely upset and angry and he tore Jack a new one that lol. Jack felt bad (and kind of scared. Spice never really gets truly angry with the kids, but Jack has seen him get angry with others, and... Oh Lord) and apologized, promising he wouldn't say anything like that again. Things were cold and awkward between them for, like, a week. And then Spice got over it and went back to annoying his son like usual lol)

As for Matar Paneer... She's his princess. His little girl. His little flower. (He has nicknames for both of them lol. He really does love them very much.) She can play with who she wants, so long as she's happy and no harm comes to her (but again, he believes in her strength wholeheartedly and expects her to kick ass if trouble comes by). But... Oh. When she's old enough to date... Poor Spice, he's so miserable lol. He would unironically own and wear this shirt:

If Burning Spice is saying he'd gladly go back to prison for something, you best believe he's being sincere lol

It's Golden that has to step in here. Before, he was the one soothing her worries; now the roles are reversed. She needs Spice to understand that Paneer is a becoming a young woman and she has the right to pursue and be pursued if she wishes. It's ok to care and worry, but he has to let her live and grow. (She's her mother and has always been a girl's girl, she knows what's up and will always be 100% in Paneer's corner in this regard.) Spice once asked her to have more faith in them, now she's asking him to do the same. (And, of course, he can brutally murder whoever hurts Paneer, if that really does happen. But he'll have to wait his turn, because Golden already plans to do the same ☺️)

And yeah, of course Spice teaches them stuff besides fighting. He's happy to do so. He teaches them how to meditate (he gets back into that after he reforms. Jack picks it up a lot faster than Paneer does lol). He teaches them to make the traditional Wild Spice dishes he still remembers how to do himself (he lets the other spices teach them the rest). He... teaches them about history. About the Wild Spices' history, and about history in general. He sounds so... somber when he talks about things like that. It's strange to them. They're used to seeing him act lively and wear that sharp-toothed grin he's always got. But it must mean that what he's saying is really important, right? He wouldn't look and sound like that if he wasn't being serious, right?

[quitealotofsodapop]

Variant of my Laima Touden idea, inspired by comments by @tsatsked and @oceanqueenmusical;

Dunmeshi spoilers obvs:

instead of having kids like in the prev idea - Laios/Laima simply never had (or can't have) kids during their rough early years. This leaves them with the conflicting desire of wanting children/becoming a parent, but relief at not becoming a parent at such a young age or with someone they didn't love.

The Winged Lion senses this complex desire, and is intrigued... As a off-shoot of a greater being, it's never understood the concept of parenthood and children. It might as well have budded off from the greater cosmic Demon like coral polyp.

So when a certain battle of appetites occurs; the Winged Lion offers Laios a deal. The demon won't take away the tallman's greatest desire - but in return Laios must become his new "blood host". Whatever the hell that means.

Laios accepts the deal. The Winged Lion's heart and soul is eaten whole by a man with a monster's appetite.

The Demon goes quiet.

Laios is left with biological remnants of his chimeric form. Namely feathers upon his collar much like Falin (they now joke that it's a familial trait), wolfish body hair, powerful claws and teeth, etc...

Also he's nauseous, can't stand certain smells and food, craves others like they're vital to his life force, has a constant ache below his stomach, and his ankles are swelling.

Turns out what the Winged Lion meant by "blood host" was "birth parent". XD

Chilchuck screams in horror as he recognises the symptoms of pregnancy upon Merini's new monarch long before they do.

[txttletale]

This is not meant as a gotcha- and it's totally fair if the answer is 'idk' because it's not your responsibility to be the sole person who figures out all the kinks in the proposed idea, but if you already have thoughts on it I'm curious: you've mentioned a communal child-autonomy focused style of raising kids rather than nuclear family with stringent abusive "parental rights" and my only concern with that is healthcare. Kids don't understand why they have to get shots that hurt which keep them safe from polio, but because their parents are legally allowed to drag them to doctor offices and MAKE them sit there and get these shots, we almost eradicated polio entirely up until ableist anti-vaxx moms messed it up for everyone. But I digress.

I'm all for eroding parents rights which are used mainly for abuse. But what about dentistry, vaccines, life-saving surgeries, etc? It sucks that these are done through coercion and force, but that's the only way most 5 year olds will let it get done because these concepts are too complicated and long-term for most children to comprehend. Do you have any thoughts on a balance for that problem while still respecting children's autonomy more? Something closer to faith in community, blind trust to let them fill in cavities? I don't know that I'd agree with letting a kid stubbornly waste away because they can't understand wide-spread infection, in the name of autonomy, even though once someone does understand the concept I'm strangely okay with being sad but letting someone refuse to take care of that aspect of their own health without any forceful measures. I guess it's the knowledge gap that really gets me. For death with dignity you gotta have informed consent, which means the person has to truly understand the medical advice and treatment they're refusing, and many kids simply cannot do that. It's a wrench in the cogs of my understanding your ideas. Thoughts?

obviously i am very harshly skeptical of rhetoric that children need their autonomy violated 'for their own good' but obviously there are situations where, for example, extremely young children cannot feed themselves or locomote and are physically incapable of autonomy -- but i think this is where a family abolitionist view is most useful, because it prevents you from defaulting to 'family' as the solution -- strip all the cultural baggage from the institution of parenthood and you realise that when faced with the problem "sometimes, children cannot physically excercise autonomy, or might be too young to recognise their exercise of autonomy is harming others (e.g. vaccines)", it is actually an insane and silly solution to say "every child should have 1-2 designated Autonomy Violators, assigned at birth and for life, with no qualifications, training, etc".

[tellmeallaboutit]

Does Judith love any of her children with Raphael? How does she truly feel about any of them and do you think she would be able to try and be a good mother?

(I really wonder if you are the same anon who asks me all these great questions about HWLL / knock knock. I mean, I appreciate someone taking such a genuine interest in my works just curious if you are the same person).

Now, to your question (I love it, btw!). Allow me a short preamble: I was once at a birthday party of my school friend when her father stood up and toasted: "My darling daughter, you were the one to give me the true joy of parenthood and showed me what meaning of being a father".

It was very endearing.

She was the fifth and the youngest kid.

Two others were also at the table. You could hear a pin drop in this room.

This is very much what inspired the story of Judith, Raphael and their five kids (see the post on them).

So, see, Samael, his whole conception story was not very fortunate (duh) and then he was sent to be raised by a different family. Judith would only get to know him when he would be about thirteen years old, and it's a bit too old to get a genuine connection.

The twins were conceived at a turbulent time where Judith and Raphael had to fight for their position of power in the hells, get out their debts to Mammon, manage the legions loyalties between Cania and Avernus. Judith didn't have much time for them, so yeah, there is that.

Now, first daughter, Morana, she was born after Raphael and Judith got separated for quite a bit, and Judith is still not sure who exactly the father is, he or Valefar. Baalphegor got her claws immediately in the girl, thinking of her as her one grandchild, while Raphael and Judith were working through their issues.

And then... you guessed it...

Fifth child. It's time. Judith is thirty now, it's time to actually give it a try. Incarna is an adorable blonde devil baby girl. Now it's time to do contact sleeping, breastfeeding, braiding, now it's time to atone for your mistakes and be a better mother than Celeste was (this bar is buried underground). Judith would give her everything to Incarna, which is easy, because Incarna is perfection. Beautiful, smart, charming, talented, a musician, a sorceress, now that's a child you could really love (nothing wrong with Incarna at al... yeah... nothing at all...).

If you ask Judith, she loves all her children equally. But you, know, just in different ways.

If you ask Raphael, Incarna is the one with which he understood the joy of being a father.

[illmasc]

in regards to the fear and fetishes thing, yeah absolutely I think they can be connected. I have, like, a little saying that's like "revulsion plus curiosity and time equals attraction."

I also personally have a irl fear of getting pregnant but a huge breeding kink. relatively recently I actually had a lil revelation about it, cuz my personal kink has less to do with having a kid, being a parent, etc., it has more to do with submission and not being in control of my body. like especially when it includes other, admittedly somewhat fantastical, elements like getting knocked up the moment they cum in me, feeling it take root in me, or the number growing inside of me being determined by how many loads they shoot into me. like, idk if this makes sense, but I realized I almost think of it more as like a very sexy virus or parasite or other kind of corrupting influence that also just comes with the bonus of leaving a living, growing, moving thing inside of my womb

ANON COME OFF OF ANON I WANT TO SHAKE YOUR HAND. you get it. i don’t talk about my preg kink much bc breeding concepts alone are just frankly hotter to more people but i think for me it’s also that i really fear not having control like you said! i’m someone who struggles with control/independence issues like if i feel like my personal independence and/or autonomy is at risk i immediately go into crisis mode. i’m trying to work on that part of myself but it can be hard. especially when. i live in the US. and have a uterus 🙃

i feel like kink is a safe space for me to engage with those anxieties head-on. at this point in my life it is genuinely my worst nightmare to be raped and get pregnant and have to keep it, but i can mess with that scenario in a setting where it’s not real and i think maybe that’s what’s so appealing to me? (i also agree that the kink is not about parenthood for me)

tldr: sexy virus/parasite and loss of control (with a little sprinkle of probably transgender-related body horror elements for me personally idk about you)…you hit the nail right on the head

[crowleycorvid]

I hope the more we learn about the source dragons the more they suck. Like morally

But I mean in the same way FSM sucks. I really really really like it when godlike beings are so detached from the reality they created that they're not INTENTIONALLY doing anything bad or harmful, but they simply don't conceptualize right and wrong the same way mortals do

Like. FSM did not talk much to his kids for literal years after the scroll of forbidden spinjitzu incident. That is a canon thing that happened because he's p much god! He's a shitty parent because he has no point of reference! The concept of parenthood is like not a thing for him in the same way, honestly would not be surprised if his main intention for having Wu and Garm was to have someone protect his realm when he died. That's really bad in hindsight! But he was born and there was immediately a war fought for his favor he does not know anything else because he is not mortal!!

Idk that level of detachment when it comes to godlike beings especially those who are meant to represent the concept of "goodness" and creation and all that is far more interesting to me than when they are objectively good and do only good things

[positivelybeastly]

As a Hank McCoy stan, I must ask your opinion on a little idea.

A fan film about Beast.

No action, no battle, some drama, but overall a far quieter X-Men film that explores a side of Hank we don't see much if at all. His parental side.

Maybe he finds a lost or abandoned child and takes them under his care. But because this new character is human, this causes some problems. But in the end, Hank and the child agree to face the future ahead of them, no matter how hopeless it may seem.

What's your input?

First off, nice to meet you! Always a pleasure to see a fellow Beast stan in the wild, so to speak - and I like that there seem to be more of us over time; we're gathering strength, it seems.

Secondly, I think there would be a lot of mileage in this sort of project! X-Men is, at its heart, a metaphor about racism, prejudice, civil injustice, and I think it would be really interesting to examine those themes through an under-explored lens (at least in comic books), that of interracial adoption and parenthood.

You would, of course, have to be careful about the line to be struck between allegory and reality - this is always something I try my best to keep in mind when writing Hank, because yes, he is visibly mutated, and yes, in-universe, he is subject to prejudice as a result, but you generally have to make the struggles unique to the mutant race while being reminiscent of the struggles faced by other minorities.

For example: when talking about the multiple mutant genocides that have taken place in X-Men comics, I've often perused quotes that I think would be impactful for Hank to use, to communicate his state of mind, and I come across quotes that I think would be apropos, but because they're specifically about the tragedy of, in that instance, Native American genocide, I've felt uncomfortable using them.

Yes, they would be impactful, but I personally feel (as a white cis man) that it would be inappropriate for me to use them in relation to a genocide against a fictional minority, especially in dialogue spoken by someone who is, when boiled down to it, also a white cis man.

You would have to be very careful about making creative decisions like this one if you wanted to make a fan film - this is the definition of delicacy and sensitivity, and it can be hard! I don't really agree with the idea of 'kill your darlings' in fiction, but when it comes to media that wants to examine societal themes, sometimes, you do have to cut things that you think would be really impactful because you have to consider how it reads to other, real minorities.

That being said! Don't let this idea discourage you. Examining the way that Hank would be perceived around a small human child, examining the potential prejudices that would be levelled against him if he wanted to try and formally adopt them, examining the way that it would affect his work and cross over into his heroic life - and, of course, examining the way that this interacts with his own concept of himself as a parent.

Remember, after all, that Hank has complicated feelings about parenthood, and for good reason.

Like, there's a whole thread to be unravelled here, about Hank's feelings that he can't be a good parent because he's (in his mind) a chronic screw-up, because his bestial mutation could pose a potential threat to the child if he ever lost control, because he's a publicly known superhero with enemies (including another self who wouldn't hesitate to kidnap said child for nefarious reasons, I'm sure)

And what would those doubts look like to the kid in question? Would they interpret it as a lack of desire for a child, a feeling that they're a burden, making Hank's life that much worse by being there and relying on him?

But then there's all the sweet things, too!

In summation? There's a lot to unpack here - but provided it's done with some real care and attention to detail and sensitivity, I think you'd be looking at something really quite special, with a subject matter that, quite frankly, no MCU-Hollywood movie is going to tackle in the same way.

[roll-for-gaslight]

I feel like there's something about this being the fairy-tale season and almost every character having the concept of childhood play a pivotal role in their story. Red and Pinocchio are the most obvious because they're still children and they are actively fighting against the role of obedience so often blindly given to children in stories with no more complex thought than "children should be obedient". Ylfa who is experiencing the horror that is female puberty, of growing up a woman. Ylfa who is learning to have a voice of her own rather than letting authority figures speak for her, who says "I might try to defy you every now and again" and is growing to be big and bad but at the same time is just learning to make connections to other children. And Pinocchio who has only ever been around other children and latched onto people who he thought would take care of him. He never wanted anything but to be a kid and be taken care of, and no matter what he does he's always tossed aside and treated badly. And there's not even a good reason for it, the world just sucks.

But what about Rosamund? Rosamund, who is a princess who has been taught by everyone her whole life that she's only valuable if she's beautiful enough to get a prince. If she's pretty and patient, she will be saved. Rosamund, who is only a child really, and her story echoes that of every young adult who was given similar advice in school that as long as they stay the path laid out for them everything will work out fine. She doesn't know who she is or what she wants and the system that is supposed to take care of her just isn't doing it. She's having to make her own decisions for the first time ever and she has no idea what to do with that.

And what about Gerard, who was changed into a frog as a young child and living as an animal forced him into survival mode. He was forced into cowardice, with no choice and no childhood and no one even looking for him. His whole self-worth is tied to someone who fell in love with him young, and then things got scary and of course he hid with the children. He basically skipped straight from child to adult with no growing up in between and so of course he wouldn't go towards the dogs. Of course he wouldn't go towards the giants. That's how you die, and when all you have in your life is your life you can't die. You have to hold onto something and a will to live is as good as anything. He's only now growing from a scared child to one of the grownups who wants to protect the children.

And then there's Timothy, who's story is about his son's childhood and trying to navigate parenthood and trying to remember how to support and care for children when they aren't who you expect them to be without erasing any part of them. He knows what it is to love unconditionally but not know how to show it and how to guide the people who are relying on him the most.

I don't even know what point I'm trying to make. I just can't get it out of my head.

[brittanyautumn333]

Generation Alpha are the most difficult generation in the history of education

I have attempted to go into education TWICE. When I first started student teaching (2016), I noticed behavioral issues in the 4th graders that I was teaching. I witnessed a 4th grader tell another teacher that she was NOT going to be doing the assigned reading, and if the teacher didn’t like it, she would tell her mom and her mom would have her fired via the school board. Children were noticing power dynamics, even then. Parents would rather have educators lose their livelihood than creating a possible confrontation with their children, over the concept that adults are authority figures worthy of respect. I continued with my education program, but I did not get licensure. Even then, school administrators took the side of parents/students and distributed limited disciplinary actions, citing the school-to-prison pipeline. Even when these students were a PHYSICAL danger to not only well-behaved students, but their teachers as well.

Millennial parents were raised by the overly strict, irrational boomers. They aren’t even realizing that they’re creating the same entitlement within their own children, simply through emotional unavailability and lack of structure. Parenthood is more than cute photos for Facebook and Instagram, and many millennials that I know had children wayyyy before they were ready. Gentle parenting is entirely different than PASSIVE parenting. Difficult conversations, tears, and learning experiences are all a part of childhood. Mind-numbing technology does not make developmental requirements go away. Generation alpha has been stripped of the true opportunity to learn and develop. Learning opportunities have been replaced by mind-numbing technology. These tablets produce the same responses in the brains of these children as DRUGS. That is why they can’t focus on school. Imagine taking a drug away for 8 hours, and being expected to learn more information when you were not even set up for success since being a toddler. The expectations seem unfair to them, understandably. They’re children, and new to many things. Millennial parents do not generally have knowledge on childhood development, and what are developmentally appropriate behaviors vs inappropriate behavior. Your child does not need to see a doctor, YOU need to sit with them and identify their emotional and behavioral patterns. Not every child needs medication, but all children need discipline and structure. That requires uncomfortable emotions, from both parent and child. There are times where you and your child will not be “friends”.

Generation alpha doesn’t retain information because they go home, and are handed a tablet. They have 0 social skills because they do not have many opportunities for socialization. Not even from their parents. Many of their social opportunities are with OTHER kids who also have extensive internet access to inappropriate and mindless content. I know middle school teachers who teach 6th graders on a 1ST GRADE READING LEVEL. No more than 2 parents even show up to parent teacher conferences. Parents are unresponsive via emails and phone calls. These kids are being set up for poverty. Respect, reading comprehension, and following directions are essential for even retail and restaurant careers.

Gen-Z does not use nearly as much technology in parenting. We were the first generation with unrestricted Internet access. We have seen horrible things on the internet. My best friend and I watched someone get beh***ed at 11 years old. We also watched our parents (Gen X) become emotionally unavailable due to technology and social media. Our hobbies, interests, and achievements were reduced to Facebook and Instagram likes. Gen Z understands the importance of QUALITY TIME in parenthood. Gen Z is not having children, because we take it seriously. We understand how hurtful it is to not be heard by our parents. We understand how awful the internet can be. We understand social media’s unfair and unrealistic expectations on the youth.

Charlottesville High School in Charlottesville, VA has had multiple days of classes cancelled due to a teacher walkout. There have been multiple VIOLENT fights that have broken out. A teacher was seriously injured not even 2 weeks ago. A suspension for these students hasn’t even been handed out. We need to protect educators (the very few that we still have) and students who show up willing to learn.

[glasswinggames]

What are their thoughts about marriage and kids?

I want to caveat all of these answers in regardless of what I write in these asks, you are more than welcome to ignore these completely, and they'd be more than fine to go with what the Reader wants.

Athy: She has never really thought about getting married, it wasn't something that was really a concept for her family or in the place she grew up in. Love was seen as fluid and shared, her three parents were seen as unusual for committing to each other even in the informal way they did. But she is not against it, and she enjoys wedding scenes in books, so if you were to recreate a storybook wedding (with all the drama included) she'd actually be excited--

Kids she has no desire for - it's very complicated.

Cai: So, generally, they have no desire for parenthood or marriage. Ideally they would be immortal and not need an heir, and they see themself as above everyone so they wouldn't marry anyone that they don't see as their equal, because they don't want to share their power. However, when they actually fall for someone, they wouldn't dislike the idea of marriage anymore, in fact they'd love to show off both themself and their partner and want it to be a whole week long affair. As for children, at most they'd have one child who was their heir. They don't want more and to have any competition for the throne, they've experienced the consequences of that firsthand.

Helios: He is a family man at heart, and also secretly a romantic, and very much wants that marriage and family life. He would want to propose, because he feels it's his responsibility to do it right this time, but he would be flattered and a little flustered if the reader proposed. As for his kids he'd want two or three children, maybe even four, to match the family dynamic he grew up in.

Jed: Jed doesn't know what marriage is... so unless the Reader brings it up don't expect him to propose on his own. He'd be disinterested in the concept unless you pitch it in a certain way that appeals to his chaotic, monstrous tendencies. As for kids it's the same kind of thing, plus... he also wouldn't be a very good parent... /see previous chaotic, monstrous tendencies. (Oliver would want to be married and would be a great coparent though if you're in a poly with them both!)

Il: As soon as he knows you would say yes he is already on one knee. Being married to the Reader would be a dream come true and he has definitely thought about it more than once. With children he is conflicted because he doesn't want to share the Readers affection... but a little mini version of them would be the most adorable thing ever. So he could be convinced!

Farren: She wants to be married, but for her it would be important to be married in the eyes of nature rather than the law. It's a specific magical ceremony that bonds a soul to another, essentially forging them as soul mates. It's something she'd only do with someone who she believed she would be with forever, so she takes it very seriously and wouldn't say yes easily. For children, she'd have a whole coven of babs if she could-- her and the skellies would be the best family a baby could have.

Eos: They tend to avoid any process that involves the law, and marriage isn't excluded. They'd prefer a less formal, non legal ceremony, but regardless marriage isn't really something important to them. Same with children, they are much older so feel they are passed that point of raising children, and they feel like they've adopted half the young'uns in the city as it is... so they already feel like a parent. It's not something they'd be against though, and would make a good parent. They'd teach their child card tricks and how to pickpocket--

Noah: Maybe in another life, in another world, he'd love to be a husband and parent. Both of these are dreams he gave up a long time ago though, and it would take a lot to convince him that he can have that still. It's all... very complicated and I can't explain why he feels that way without major route spoilers 😅

Thank you for the question 🥰

[softshuji]

omg hi i’ve been seeing ur account for the past few days and i love ur content honestly its pretty cool lol😻 and i’ve got something to ask… what do u think of hanma with kids yk.. i think it’d be wholesome even tho he hateess to admit 💀

hiiii!!!! thank you so much! welcome to my humble chaotic blog lol

hmmmmm hanma w kids? Thank you for this lol, I absolutely picking his brain apart lmao

I am so sorry for long this random analysis became

I think, if in all honesty, the idea of having kids scares him a bit at first. I think he's the type to say he doesn't want them, they're a distraction and he's not interested in what he calls 'brats' running around, but part of me feels like that comes from two things, and that is a) an awareness that there are many irresponsible parents out there and too many kids without parents too, and he is self aware enough to know (in his head) to believe that he can't be the type of parent that a child might need. Plus he likes the fast life and the concept of being a father terrifies him when he is very much a danger - or at least his lifestyle is. Besides, why give up what he likes? The cars, the danger of his lifestyle.

However I think the second reason he might be averse to kids at the start might have something to do with his own upbringing, or rather lack of. I have always hc'd him as the child of a mother who left him (this is something I minorly explored in my Coin Lockers fic here- it's a concept I absolutely adore thinking about and if you do get time please do go read Coin Locker Babies by Ryu Murakami which is where I originally got the idea from) but to me, his aversion to kids might come from both of these reasons. I feel like he tells himself often that he doesn't need 'any of that shit' partly because it's just easier than to admit he holds resentment that he assumes he shouldn't. He has virtually no ties to anyone or anything- to me this has always been evident in him hanging out with Kisaki despite him not being so nice to him all the time, a willingness to let himself be used for what he can offer if it means experiencing something- being kept around for usefulness because it is better than being left. Of course this is just my own thoughts, and lmao I do have a reallllyyyy particular version of Shuji in my head. He plagues me daily lol.

I feel like this changes once he meets someone he loves though.I think it would take LONNNGG time for him to warm to the idea of family and if i'm honest I think the whole kids thing would come as an accident rather than something him and his partner talked about, I don't think he would plan something like that at all. And I do think it would freak him the hell out to find out his partner was pregnant, scare the daylights out of him to actually be responsible for a whole 'nother human. BuT, I think he'd actually make a good father, and I think his willingness to try is why. He's aware that he's a danger, that there's tonnes he has to learn and honestly, there are habits he's not going to change and many mistakes he's going to make- but I also think he has the tenacity to keep attempting to do things. I think he makes conscious efforts to be gentler even though he's so rough around the edges especially with his partner. He's learned how to be softer and a bit more attentive, being observant by nature definitely helps here but there's also a lot you have to teach him about both partnership and parenthood. But he tries and tries, and that's the best thing about him. But don't ever tell him he's softened up a bit or he'll just deny it. Cutie pie.

Plus the idea of him with kids and as a dilf makes me want to eat my own arm lol so there's that too.

[arkhammaid]

okay, so it took me maybe a little longer than the hour on the train BUT i've successfully navigated the murky waters of the markoscar grid family tree!! (i potentially made a visual guide to my findings https://imgur.com/a/oQpo8SQ 😅, also couldn't help myself and put Brocedes as the resident DINKs of that universe in the corner of the map) he hem...

After long hours of research i have come to the highly scientific conclusion that Nando didn't just adopt Max and Oscar but that there has been an immaculate conception. The three most apparent clues of this hypothesis is the ruthlessness in driving, the "no fucks given" attitude and the lack of good dance moves. (Nando has also an adopted son, Gabriel "Gabby" Bortoleto, which therefore is part of the family tree).

Charles later legally adopted Oscar but without knowledge that Max is Oscar's brother. If he'd know, the adoption wouldn't have come to completion. Luckily, since the adoption only originated from Charles and Max, as Charles husband, refrains from adopting Charles' children, there exists no paternity from Max to Oscar, which only leaves them as brothers.

It get's complicated though on another part of the family tree, since Max has already adopted his very own grid child, Liam. This relation makes Oscar both Liam's adoptive uncle AND step brother (and Mark Liam's aunt and sister-in-law).

We also cannot forget Yuki, who was adopted by Oscar's biological mother Nicole after Oscar's adoption by Charles, which makes Yuki Oscar's brother by association.

Oscar and Mark themselves have no biological children of their own yet, but with the addition of fellow Aussie Jack Doohan and the brewing baby fever of the couple, there is no doubt that the couple will adopt the rookie in the near future to "try out" parenthood.

I also want to point out a distantly related but equally interesting part of the family tree. Nando was once married to Jenson, who brought his son Lando into the relationship who once was Oscar and Max's step brother. After the amicable divorce, Jenson found love again in form of his young boy toy Logan, the best friend of his former step son, which now makes Logan Lando's step father.

Thank you for listening to my thesis defense 🧐

With love, 💫 anon

picture link

okay so first of all... bit smooches to you for doing this. it looks AWESOME and it totally makes sense, which, a round of applause to you!!

nando really laid claim on oscar much much earlier (remember the helmet swap...) and charles 'just' adopted him. nando's genes are strong because all his kids are big talents. respect to him

and of course charles wouldn't know that max and oscar are brothers... they didn't really know themselves LMAO. they need to fix that marriage first you know. better communication and all that

and as for jack. this is so big brained. mark doesn't become his manager but both oscar and mark would totally form a connection with jack simply because they are all aussie. wow. wowow. oscar sees mark babying jack and instead of being hit with jealousy, he's hit with the nastiest baby fever.... someone save him

also logan being lando's step father is fucking hilarious to me, i love you for this

no notes, full marks, absolute perfection. thank you so much for this 🫶