#and yet we aren't really taught *how* to deal with it

[linkspooky]

Love your JJK metas - apologies if I missed it, but any thoughts on Gojo feeling that he was "left behind" and has to "catch up" to Geto before slaughtering the higher ups?

I don't think the impact Shibuya had on him was really explicitly explored, except for that one panel where he said it was his responsibility, but him internally seeing it as following Geto's path in a way surprised me - it makes sense to me, but it doesn't at the same time.

This is a question I really wanted to answer, but delayed for a long time because I wanted to think it over. When the exhibition changed and Gege released his original draft for this scene, it helped clarify a lot of my thoughts on this scene.

"If you want to kill me, kill me. I wouldn’t mind if it were by your hand. But make sure mine is the only life you take.”

These lines become more meaningful if you think of them in the context of earlier events in Hidden Inventory. It sheds light on a lot of scenes from the flashback arc.

In particular this scene.

In his post-enlightenment high Gojo could kill the entirety of the Star Plasma Cult and feel nothing about it to punish them for Riko's death, but he lives the ultimate decision up to Geto.

In that moment Geto convinces him that killing these bystanders would be pointless, because society has other methods for punishing the members of this cult. Specifically he tells Gojo that it's not their job as Jujutsu Sorcerers to punish these people. He basically confines Gojo to the morality of a Jujutsu Sorcerer. Sorcerers kill curse users yes, but they never use their curse techniques on other people like the members in the crowd who don't fight back. Jujutusu Sorcerers aren't a part of the japanese justice system, they exist for one job and that is to deal with curses and curse users in order to prevent them from hurting normal people.

So Geto's lpong explanation to Gojo to talk him down from slaughtering the crowd that's applauding for Riko's death amounts to "That's not our job." He also emphasizes how killing these people wouldn't accomplish anything, because the group was going to disband anyway, and these are just rank and file believers the leaders of the cult are already gone. So in total two reasons, 1) it's not our job, 2) this murder wouldn't accomplish anything.

In the KFC breakup, Gojo parrots Geto's own arguments about killing right back at him. Notice that when they're having their argument Gojo never brings up the fact that killing is wrong, but that killing non-sorcerers is pointless because the sheer amount of number of people you would have to kill is so enormous it's impossible.

Geto's methods are wrong not because they're immoral but because they're impractical. It's not whether or not killing is right or wrong. It's meaningles killing vs. killing with a purpose. Geto's goal is completely impossible for him to accomplish, so all the people he killed in name of that goal died for no reason.

Gojo and Geto are specifically arguing about methods, not morality. Gojo is especially troubled because he's trying to appeal to Geto using the morality that Geto taught him, obligation as a sorcerer, justice, killing with purpose, but now it's all falling on Geto's deaf ears. I think it's poignant Gojo at this stage in his life can't really form a moral argument of his own just repeat Geto's words back at him, it shows how much Gojo was using Geto as a guidepoint.

Gege even says in the databook the reason Gojo stopped himself from killing the cult is that he was using Geto's moral reasoning and not his own.

So in a way, it's Geto's words that prevented Gojo from being a monster all the way back in Hidden Iventnory. Yet, we see in premature death Gojo's completely unable to talk Geto down from the ledge he was standing on.

Even though the words he's using are Geto's words. Perhaps, because the words he's using are Geto's words. Gojo's faith in Geto as a partner and a moral guidepost was so unshakable he's not capable of reconciling with the fact that the person standing in front of him right now slaughtered a whole village.

Geto leaves, and Gojo lacks the words to make him stay. However, in spite of the fact that this scene is called the KFC breakup this, Geto and Gojo aren't ending their relationship. In Jujutsu Kaisen Zero, Geto is surprised by the fact that Gojo still trusts him and feels the same way years later. In Gojo's dying dream, he states that he would have been satisfied losing to Sukuna if Geto was there to wish him good luck before he left. The Geto he pictures is the one in his Gojo-Gesa, the corrupted adult Geto, and not the one he used in childhood.

This is also after Geto expresses jealousy that Gojo wanted to provide a challenge to Sukuna and force him to go all out, because Gojo understood Sukuna's isolation from being the strongest. Because Geto and Gojo's relationship began from the fact that Geto was the only other special grade in their year and therefore the only one able to understand Gojo by being just as strong as he was. Only for Gojo to immediately say that he wasn't satisfied going all out against Sukuna, because Geto wasn't there. It wasn't Geto's power he needed, but his presence.

Geto wasn't leaving Gojo. He was leaving Jujutsu Society. However, since Gojo is such an integral part of Jujutsu Society, it's essentially the same thing. They're not breaking apart because their no longer friends, but because their morals are so different. Even if his attempts at reform wasn't so radical as killing all human beings, Gojo still wouldn't be able to leave with Geto because without Jujutsu Society there is no Gojo Satoru.

Gojo doesn't believe that massacring half the world is possible, but in a way he probably wouldn't believe even a less extreme reform is impossible as long as it was accomplished from the outside. Gojo has always been an internal reformist while at the same time being a radical. Gojo stated this early on he can just kill the people on top but that would make him a monster.

Remember what I emphasized above, Geto convinced Gojo not to slaughter the members of the Star Cult because it's not a Jujutsu Sorcerer's job to punish people like that. If he crossed that line he'd no longer be a Jujutsu Sorcerer. Gojo not only lives to be a sorcerer, but the time in his youth when he was with Geto was the only time he ever felt understood and that there was someone he could rely on.

Geto crossed that line and when he killed the people of Nanako and Mimiko's village (the way that Geto wanted to kill Riko's murderers that day), he was no longer acting as a sorcerer. Geto stopped being a sorcerer, but Gojo couldn't follow him because Gojo lives to be a sorcerer.

Gojo's plan is therefore create sorcerers strong enough that they can support each other the way that him and Geto should have. Create strong allies so that in the next generation no-one will be left behind.

Gojo's belief is that what he needed was stronger allies, not a systemic issue. When his attempts at reform fail, and he wakes up to see that all of his students have had execution orders placed on them by the higher ups he finally gives up on the notion of internal reform.

Gojo eventually ended up committing a mass slaughter for his perceived greater good. The same kind of mass slaughter that Geto prevented him from doing that day he avenged Riko's death. By doing that, he stopped being a sorcerer.

Now that we've finally come full circle I'm going to explain what I think Gojo means by "I can't do that. That day I was left behind, so I have to catch up."

The most direct interpretation is that Gojo is echoing Yuta's sentiment. Geto became a monster all on his own and left Gojo behind. Now, years after the fact Gojo is realizing that Geto's violent action was necessary and he's essentially leaving his role as a sorcerer to become more like Gojo. He's finally understood why Geto did what he did, years after the fact, and far too late.

In one sense Gojo is becoming Geto in this scene. In another sense, he's recalling how he felt years before when he watched Geto walk away. Geto is the one who kept Gojo from being a monster and kept him on the path of being a sorcerer, only for Geto to go off that path himself. Not only that though, but in their final conversation, Geto made sure to still try to keep Gojo on that path.

Remember this line from the original draft:

"If you want to kill me, kill me. I wouldn’t mind if it were by your hand. But make sure mine is the only life you take.”

This line is essentially the same as this, but look at the paneling.

Gojo is about to unleash a hollow purple on Geto, but when Geto disappears into the crowd of people he stops. In order to kill Geto, he would have had to kill several innocent people in the crowd so Gojo hesitates.

The original draft lines indicate that Geto did this on purpose. He told Gojo to be sure only to kill him and not kill anyone else because he still wants Gojo to remain a sorcerer. Geto was resolved to become a monster on his own and didn't want to drag Gojo down with him.

Geto is leaving and he doesn't want Gojo to become with, because Gojo is the happiest when he's a sorcerer.

In the Hidden Inventory Gojo is playing the role of Yuta, begging Geto not to become a monster alone only to be left behind. In the future Gojo resolves to become a monster like Geto. Even though he's finally trying to understand his friend, he's a year too late. Geto is dead and he can't catch up now.

[monkepawbz]

Kintsugi

Y/N and Wade have been married for several years now, and Wade is feeling extra sappy when Y/N announces she's pregnant for the second time with a second little girl. Wade reminisces on how Y/N, a former scientist, was able to save Wade all those years ago from the biggest threat he ever had: himself.

Warning: Lewd language and talk about sex and pregnancy. Reader discretion is advised (this is a Deadpool x Reader...obviously this rating is Mature at minimum...)

The scientist eventually got dressed and went downstairs to search for some food, a little anxious about how she was supposed to tell Ellie about the fact she wasn't going to be an only child anymore. Wade and Y/N's daughter, Ellie, had just turned nine years old and the couple had decided now was a good a time as any to add a new face to the family.

Wade followed her downstairs, his bare feet padding against the floor. "Hey, peanut? You okay?" he asked, noticing her tension. He leaned against the counter, watching as she rummaged through the fridge. "You're thinking about how to break it to Ellie, aren't you?"

"I am, yeah." She nodded pensively, reaching into the fridge and grabbing the whipped cream. She squirted some into her mouth and sighed, then turned back to look for something else in the fridge.

Wade chuckled and shook his head.

"You're really going to use whipped cream as a coping mechanism, huh?"

He pushed off the counter and walked over to her, wrapping his arms around her waist from behind.

"Hey, maybe I can help you come up with a plan. You know, we are married for a reason. Or is that lil ring on that finger worthless now?" Wade joked, holding up his own hand to show his wedding band. It gleamed in the soft sunlight, making Y/N relax slightly upon seeing it.

"You're right, Wade. I'm sorry. I just...I dunno...what if she gets mad? Is all...'waah, you guys are totally ruining my life!' Or something..." The woman found some stuff to make a ham sandwich and grabbed it, setting down the whipped cream in the process. She shut the fridge door with her hip and walked over to the kitchen counter to start assembling her lunch.

Wade's arms tightened around her waist as he leaned in close, his voice taking on a soothing tone.

"Ahahahaha, peanut, you're thinking about this all wrong. Ellie loves us both, and she'll adjust to the new addition just fine. And if she doesn't...well, we'll deal with that when the time comes." He nuzzled her ear. "Besides, I've got a plan. We can make it fun! We can have a family meeting and explain everything together." Wade offered, which made Y/N relax slightly.

"How soon should we do this? We have no idea if it worked today. For all we know, we might have to keep trying to get me pregnant. After all...they taught us in high school that getting pregnant a second time was so much harder than the first time, Wade..." she rambled nervously. Wade gave her a lopsided grin, finding her as adorable as the day they first met.

Wade's grip on her waist relaxed, and he let out a deep sigh. "Yeah, yeah, I know all about the stats and stuff. But we're not gonna worry about that right now. We'll cross that bridge when we come to it." He pulled back and looked at her with a serious expression. "Let's just focus on enjoying this moment for now. We've got our little bundle of kickass growing inside you, and we should be celebrating that! The second addition to the Deadpool family! Hot damn, I'm like Bruce Wayne collecting kids here!" He joked.

"But we don't actually know yet...we only just tried less than an hour ago...what if it didn't take?" She frowned, finally finding making a sandwich. She offered it to him, opting to make another one for just herself if he accepted the lunch. Wade graciously took the sandwich and watched as she grabbed him a plate from the cabinet behind her, giving her a silent 'thank you'. She smiled, then sighed as reality crashed back down onto her.

Wade's face lit up with a mischievous grin as he bit into the sandwich, groaning happily at how good it tasted.

"Ahahahaha, peanut, you're so worried about it not taking that I think we need to celebrate either way," His blue eyes sparkles with amusement as he continued. "Win or lose, we're having fun today. And if it didn't take...well, we'll just have to try again soon, won't we?~"

"I guess you're right. It not working just means more sex for the both of us, huh?" she smiled slightly, working on making her own sandwich quietly. Y/N giggled at how Wade hopped up and down excitedly, his sandwich gripped tightly in his hands.

Wade's eyes lit up with excitement as he nodded enthusiastically. "Oh, hell yeah! More sex is always a good thing in my book. And who knows, maybe we'll get lucky and it'll take on the second try," He chuckled to himself, taking another bite of his sandwich. "But even if not, I'm happy to keep trying...for science."

"Hmm, I think you just miss me and all the hot, raunchy sex we used to have before we became parents, don't you?~" Y/N giggled. "We both became so busy what with you being a dad and becoming more of an anti-hero and me switching jobs to stay at home with El."

Wade's face turned bright red as he coughed, trying to play it cool. "What? No way, peanut! I just...I mean, yeah, okay fine. You're right. Being parents is awesome and all that jazz, but let's be real...we used to have some crazy hot times in the bedroom," He winked at her mischievously. "And I'm not saying we can't get back to those times now that Ellie's getting older."

"So you dig the mom bod?" she asked self-consciously. Wade nodded eagerly.

"Uh, a doy, my little MILF. Of course I dig the mom bod, sugar tits. You always looked bangin' but the way you got all curved up makes me hard as a rock God DAYUM." He flirted, spanking her ass playfully. Y/N yelped, her face turning bright red in response.

"Wade, knock it off..." she laughed, clearly flustered.

"Why should I, pookie bear? I'm just giving you some good ole fashioned Wade Wilson luvins! I wanna make my dear wifey feel better, and what better way than doing what I do best? Being a vulgar and annoying asshole to her?" Wade grinned, the smile almost reminiscent of the Cheshire Cat from Alice In Wonderland. Y/N rolled her eyes, but couldn't help but smile.

"There's that smile, firecracker! I love having such a sexy wife all to myself! Not once have I wanted anyone else as soon as you strutted your way into my life, pretty girl." Wade flirted, lightly spanking his wife's ass again and howling obnoxiously like a wolf. Her eyes sparkled with amusement as she playfully tried to swat at Wade's hand, but he was too quick and continued to tease her. She let out a little squeal of delight as he spanked her ass, feeling a rush of excitement course through her veins.

"Oh, stop it! You're making me blush!" She laughed, trying to maintain a stern expression while secretly enjoying all the attention.

"Nuh uh, no. I vowed to make you feel good today, and that means I gotta get those feels back up to the good status." He whispered, moving behind her and cupping both her breasts. He softly massaged both, feeling her melt slightly against his warm hands.

"That's it, baby. Let me take care of you today. I wanna make today all about you. You've done so much for our family and have always been there for me, even when I was a blabbermouth of a Merc. Yet you always seemed to see the good in me. You remember that talk we had all those years ago? About the kintsugi thing?" He asked, his voice turning to a low rumble as he continued to massage her breasts. She sighed and leaned her back against his chest, relaxing even more as they stood together in the middle of the kitchen. The sunshine illuminated her hair, making it even more shiny as it framed her face just right.

"Yeah, I think so. Something about us fixing each other like the kintsugi concept, yeah?" Y/N asked tentatively. Wade nodded, kissing her neck softly.

"You're a damn good scientist, baby. Never let that go, okay? You always talk big shit about me being an anti-hero now...but you're really the one who deserves more praise. You saved my life. If it wasn't for you, I'd still probably be semi-homeless, addicted to drugs and addicted to meaningless relationships as a merc. You saw someone so genuinely fucked up and decided...'I want that one'. And dammit, I can't lie, your stubbornness really came in handy this time." Wade chuckled softly, a warm smile on his lips. "Plus, that serum you made all those years ago gave me my looks back. Now our daughter has a normal looking dad and never has to know what I looked like before. And yeah, you didn't mind when I was all mutated and cancery, but I did, peanut...I did...cause why would such a goddess like you want anything to do with some freak like me...?" He hid his face against her back. Dammit, he hated being vulnerable, but he knew Y/N needed to know the truth. Over the years he had become a lot more sappy thanks to her.

Her eyes welled up with tears as she felt Wade's words wash over her. She wanted to hold him close, but he continued to hide his face against her back.

"Wade, stop it," She whispered, trying to keep her voice steady. "You're being ridiculous...I loved you then and I love you now. You were never a freak to me...you were always my broken thing of beauty." She smiled softly, feeling a lump form in her throat.

"Oh come on...let's face the music, Y/N. I don't think life would be as good or even as easy if I didn't look like my old self again...you really gave me a whole-ass second chance, babe. You brought me back to life and screamed in my face 'YOU MATTER' until eventually you got me believing it, too. That's damn impressive if you ask me. You...managed to fix the Merc With A Mouth." Wade moved to stand in front of her and cupped both her cheeks with his hands, causing her to look up at him and set down her sandwich on the counter.

Y/N's eyes sparkled with tears as she looked up at Wade, her voice barely above a whisper.* "You're making me cry again, dammit," She whispered, her voice trembling with emotion.

"But you know what? I don't care. Because when I look at you...I see the man I fell in love with. The one who was broken and lost, but still had so much heart. And that's what I fixed...not just your face." She smiled softly, wiping away a tear from the corner of her eye.

"How the hell did a devil like me get an angel like you, sweet stuff?" Wade laughed, voice heavy with emotion. Damn, now HE wanted to cry a little. Fuck, being a husband and father had made him go soft. Whatever, it's not like he needed to be overly cocky at the moment, anyways.

"You're no devil. You just needed someone to talk to. Someone to actually listen to the shit you were saying. I don't think anyone did before, did they?" Y/N asked softly, and Wade nodded.

"When you're a merc like I was, talk was kinda cheap in the grand scheme of things, ya know? But well, surprisingly I'm happy I decided to become less of a mercenary and more of an anti-hero. Maybe the Avengers will finally take me on, yeah?" His blue eyes shined with hope as he looked at her. She smiled warmly at him and reached up to ruffle his fluffy brown hair.

"Wade, they would be lucky to have a guy like you on their team." Y/N said.

The couple embraced, swaying slowly in the middle of the kitchen. They were happy, and that's all that really mattered in the end.

[mayfast]

Avatar Headcanons (FIGHT ME)

1.) Because of their tails, Na'vi are really bad at shooting upside down. Like you know human trick shots where we can just comfortably dangle upside down to make a shot, yet, their tails' sense of balance it throwing them all off. Think of a cat's tail, it corrects them while they are upside down.

2.) Na'vi have different waves of light that they can see in. Like you know how bugs see in different waves, or dogs hear in different frequencies?

3.) Their enhanced senses are something the RDA uses dramatically for war. Like think about the Flash Bang potential here? A weapon that only throws off Na'vi. That means avatars have slight protection from them because of their human DNA, or when Jake gets word that these are gonna be used, he has Spider come along as their human coverage.

4.) There are poisonous foods to Na'vi that humans can eat. Like something that would stop their hearts, Spider can just casually snack on. That's like watching someone eat deadly nightshade for breakfast.

5.) Na'vi aren't meant for long periods of starvation. Not like humans are. Have you seen how lean they are?? There isn't a fat deposit on these guys, and they are BIG. They need food to keep going. So they can go without eating for a week, max.

6.) There are human pheromones that they can't smell and there are Na'vi pheromones that human's can't pick up. I mean, smells are chemical structures allow us to recognize something and pick up the smell. So if the chemical make up of environments for humans and Na'vi are different than it makes sense that there are smells that they/we can't even pick up. OR EVEN BETTER, the smells are all off. Like if we give them an earth flower for them to smell, and to them it comes off as the smell of rotten eggs. IMAGINE.

7.) Na'vi don't thermoregulate like we do. Thus why there isn't a big need for clothes. Granted, it's be weird, cause that's where most of our calories go towards, straight up thermoregulation.

8.) Human's are better at reading body language between the two species. Human's don't have a tail or ears to give away feelings, and we're taught from a young age to control our RBF, eyebrows and flushing. So we typically pay more attention to the posture of another person. So humans can pick out little details better.

9.) Na'vi are better are regulating their emotions. Or at least dealing with them. I know their brains have 3 lobes or something, while ours have 4. But I just have a feeling that since they have response to another creature in their brain, that they have a better specialize area in the brain for dealing with emotion.

10.) No tumbling or gymnastics for the Na'vi. I was thinking about it. And it's a lot of circular movement and I genuinely think their queue would hit stuff or disorientate them if swung around too much. Like, I know we saw the Metkayina teens do all that diving, and Neytiri's roll on to the boat, but like. She just did that, onto her brain organ. God that had to have HURT.

Thank you for listening to my silliness.

[mackerel1522]

Ars Goetia Eyes Theory

So recently, after the release of Mastermind, I tumbled onto this really cool and interesting theory about Ars Goetias and their eyes.

To the person who suggested this theory, if you find this post, please interact so I can tag you! :D

ANYWAY, here's the stuff:

The theory is that the Goetias - thanks to their magic - can hide their pupils to mask their actual feelings. To explain and deepen that theory, we're going to see how it is portrayed in the show through the characters (mostly Stolas, Octavia, Andrealphus and Stella).

WARNING: if you don't want spoilers for Mastermind or season 2 in general, please avoid the rest of what will follow.

First of all, Stella.

As we might suspect, Stella very propably doesn't have any powers. In all the scenes that showcased her, we've always seen her pupils - in season 1 and in season 2. If we look closely, we can learn how she feels in certain scenes. For instance, in season 1, when she's on the phone with Striker, she's clearly pissed off, and her pupils are really small. In season 2, when she's offended by Andrealphus or annoyed, her pupils also retract (second picture). A contrario, when she's pleased with herself of the situation, her pupils are larger (like in the first picture). This seems logical, but keep this in mind for what follows.

If we sum up, it'd give us: Stella = no powers = pupils (and thus emotions) always visible.

Next on the list: Andrealphus.

We haven't seen much for now, of Andrealphus. However, we can see that most of the time, his pupils are hidden. During s2 episode 4 or even during the trial in Mastermind, you can't see his eyes. It is also known that Andrealphus, as a Marquis, possesses naturally great powers (here related to ice).

However#2: at the beginning of Mastermind, when Stella talks about the Book, Andrealphus gets really pissed off: his emotions take the better of him, and guess what we see? Right: his pupils (pictures down here). If we follow the logic of the theory, it'd mean the Goetias can mask their pupils until a certain point (aka until they feel a very strong emotion, like anger, or when they get surprised or realise something - we'll get on these 2 later on with Stolas).

Mastermind is the first episode that show us Andrealphus really losing his shit (tho, I think we all know he'll lose it even more in Sinsmas), but it is also the first time we see his pupils.

On the same level of interesting: Stolas.

Stolas, pretty much like Andrealphus, possesses great powers (here related to stars mostly). However, we've seen thanks to both season 1 and season 2 a great deal of how his pupils appear and disappear.

First of all, when he is surprised or something sudden happens, we can see briefly his pupils (example of s2 episode 2, Seeing Stars, when Stella starts screaming in the phone, aka picture 3 down here).

Secondly, when he feels a very strong feeling, like the love he has for Blitz, we can sometimes see his pupils too: callback to s1 episode 7 Ozzies, when Blitz calls him or s2 episode 11 Mastermind, at the end of the trial, when he turns to Blitz with heart pupils (picture 2 down here).

Thirdly, when he realises something. The most accurate representation of this is, again, in Seeing Stars, when Octavia tells him why she ran away and his eyes widden and guess what? Pupils again.

Yet again, we have to remember that most of the time, his pupils are complety hidden. BUT: Ever since he lost his powers after the trial, we can see his pupils: they aren't hidden anymore (example: picture 4 and 5 down here). That'd be logic: if Ars Goetias need their powers to mask their pupils, it'd make sense that they wouldn't be able to hide them anymore once their powers lost.

Lastly: Octavia.

As Stolas implied in Seeing Stars, he "[hasn't] taught [Octavia] spells like this yet" (exact line for those who care: "You know I haven't taught you spells like this yet") - meaning, she knows some spells (like lighting a fire, as she does when Loona tries to smoke, for instance). In the trailer for the second part of season 2 and the sneak peeks for Sinsmas, we see her using magic tho.

Anyway, seeing as she didn't yet learn spells and powers, it makes sense that she wouldn't be able to hide her pupils. Until now, we've always seen them. Maybe in a later episode or even season, she might hide them, we don't know (へ´∀`)へ

Anyway, here's all I got for now on this theory. What do you guys think? What's your opinion on the subject? Do you have other theories? Let me know all of that in the comments or reblogs! :D

[merrilark]

Okay, I've only read a few chapters of Young Blood so far, but some of the things I really enjoy (with mild character-related spoilers; I probably won't say anything about the plot itself yet):

That we're given most of the Umbrellas' favorite foods! Klaus likes bubblegum ice cream, Diego likes roast beef with new potatoes and green beans, Luther likes hamburgers, and Allison used to like hotdogs. There's nothing about Viktor or Five's so far, but we can assume Five's has always been fluffernutters.

Diego is implied to be extremely food-motivated and I love that for him. Viktor thinks he could be a star chef if he wanted to ditch superhero work. 11/10, love foodie Diego.

Reginald named his car Hermes (I'm strangely affectionate about this).

Klaus has been hotwiring Reginald's car since 12 and was taught to drive by a dead NASCAR driver. Klaus enjoyed sitting in the garage with the car running, but didn't realize that you could get monoxide poisoning that way. He's apparently died frequently, and thought he was just going to sleep. Pogo would carry him to bed.

This implies Pogo knew that Klaus was immortal, and most likely also knew that Reginald was routinely killing him.

Klaus also has been planning to leave the Academy for a long time, but hasn't gotten up the nerve. We all know that Diego is the first to leave and (at least according to You Look Like Death) Klaus was the last, so I think this is an interesting angle. It doesn't break canon, per se, but it raises a few questions about why Klaus didn't leave like he planned.

Ben asked every day if Klaus had seen Five's ghost. His biggest hope is that they'll one day all be together again. This shatters me.

It's also interesting that Ben is both one of the most obedient and yet most vocal about Reginald's abuse. He seems extremely aware of it, but is far too afraid to defy their father and kills primarily because he knows that he'll be reprimanded if he doesn't.

Ben canonically views himself as a monster. :( I knew this. I suspected this. But still. Seeing it typed out makes me :((( lmao

I'm also really enjoying that it neither shies away from Luther/Allison nor the fact that it's extremely normalized between the Umbrellas to be pretty, unrepentant jerks toward each other. I think that if they removed any of these things, or chose to gloss over them, it'd risk watering down the effects of their abuse too much in a book that already doesn't seem keen on diving too deeply into their trauma. It's also interesting to see how blatantly weird they all are developmentally and socially, straddling a line between considering each other family and treating each other like coworkers. At times, it feels a lot like they just call each other siblings, but there's no real attachment to those terms, even if they do care about each other a lot. They really do not understand how to be a family or normal kids, or hardly even real people outside of the super-powered killing machines that Reginald wanted them to be.

On to some things I'm not totally digging but aren't a deal-breaker:

Mild canon inaccuracies. I've been told that this book is pretty glaring in the department, but so far I haven't seen anything too bad. The only notable ones so far are: - That the Umbrellas, except Klaus, have never sneaked out before. It's been a while since I've seen S1, but I could swear that it's canon that they all regularly sneaked out to Griddy's even before Five left. - Klaus calls himself a telepath. This is common fanon, but there's nothing in canon itself to support that he is capable of telepathy. In fairness, though, Sheinmel, the author, doesn't actually seem to write Klaus as a telepath. It really just reads as if she thinks that telepathy and mediumship are the same thing. - There's a lot of emphasis on Luther being big. He's constantly being described as struggling with his clothes, or fantasizing about how much larger he'll get, and rips the back out of a jacket at one point because... I guess?? he's so large??? He's very much written as if Sheinmel thinks that Luther is a musclebound 17 year old, when teenage Luther has never been big in the same way that post-serum adult Luther has been. He was always tall, yes, but I really don't think he should have been struggling with tearing clothes.

Typos. It's not glaring, but there are some errors here and there with spelling and punctuation. Combined with the telepath thing, I wonder if Sheinmel just didn't have a great editor.

The writing style is really juvenile. I knew that this would be a young adult novel, so I didn't expect beautiful prose, but the writing feels like this book is meant for the younger end of YA. It rambles, restates obvious points, and sometimes the phrasing feels dumbed down to the point of near condescension. Meanwhile, characters still use mild swears, which gives the book this weird feeling that it doesn't quite know what age bracket it was written for.

But I am otherwise really enjoying it so far. It's fun and I appreciate the insight into the Umbrellas' lives as teens and their internal thoughts about each other, regardless of how canon or not-canon this novel is.

[zvtara-was-never-canon]

i just read your ask about how zutaras think airbenders are racist, sexist, ect. and i'm like?? aren't air nomads canonically the most accepting of the 4 nations??? i don't know how accurate the avatar universe wiki is (it's one of the most expansive wikis i've ever seen for a fandom), but it says it there.

Even if we don't take the wiki or anything except the show itself into account - nothing in the show itself indicates they were racist, sexist, etc.

But you know what nation is confirmed to be very fucking racist, and there's hints of it being a least a little sexist? The Fire Nation. The one that commited genocide towards both the air-nomads and Southern Water Tribe.

Zutarians are constantly going on and on about how their ship is more "complext and adult", yet lots of them are TERRIFIED to engage with aspects that would make it a complex, adult, very messy dynamic - aka the fact that Zuko is not only a direct descendent of the guy that started the war (Sozin), of the guy that was responsible for the raids on Katara's tribe (Azulon), and of the guy that order her best friend's capture/death (Ozai) but he also took A LONG time to realize "Holy shit, what my family is doing is terrible" and was in fact constantly putting Katara and her friends in danger, helped Azula get the upper hand in Ba Sing Se and thus kill Aang, then sent an assassin after them to finish/repeat the job later.

There's also the fact that, due to their immaturity, they think they HAVE to hate Aang just because they don't him and Katara together, and it can make them look really bad to hate on the sole survivor of a genocide while praising the prince that was trying to help his nation get rid of said last survivor.

They could deal with that by doing stuff like making modern AUs to avoid the war thing, or actually addressing the complexity of the situation, or being mature enough to say "I dislike Kataang/Aang as a character, but obviously Zuko was an objectively worse person back when he was supporting literal genocide."

Instead they decide to make the air-nomads look like "asshole victims" to reduce sympathy for them and Aang, pretend the SWT and the NWT are exactly the same to make it look like Katara felt oppressed by her own family and culture instead of being traumatized by their death, and pretend the Fire Nation is not only the "feminst nation" but also that said feminism would TOTALLY extend to the girl they were taught to see as being part of an inferior race just because there's a new guy in charge.

Zutarians tend to only acknowledge the elephant in the room when it's for the sake of a fetish or extra drama (see the non-con fics or "Slave/Concubine Katara" fics), or when they are genuinely fucking clueless/racist and think "Oh, it wasn't so bad" and say as much openly.

[siampie]

Risk and Reward||Chapter 3: Scared Of Love

Pairing: Matt Murdock x Fem!Reader

Word Count: 2.4k

Summary: You finally decide to drop the "let's be friends," after your coffee date with Matthew. And you both admit your mutual attraction.

Warnings/tags: angst, fluff, mutual pining, idiots in love, childhood trauma, slight mention of emotional abuse

A/N: Originally, this chapter was supposed to feature teasing Matt but Reader kindly reminded me that things between her and Matt aren't there yet. Those things take time. So, the chapter title changed and I think it’s a little angsty but it fits the story. Also, this song is the one that inspired this fic. Not entirely satisfied with this chapter but I still like it. I hope you enjoy it.

PS: And don’t worry, teasing Matt will make an appearance but a little further down the line.

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Tag list: @marytheweefrenchie, @sunflowersandsapphires, @abbyhaslongshorts, @schneeflocky, @danzer8705

Dividers by @cafekitsune

Song the title is referring to:

Don’t come any closer

Till I tell you that it’s over

‘Cause I rather be alone than be a wreck

We’re both playing with fire

And you’re the one holding the lighter

But if we never start, we’ll never end

Matt had a soft smile on his face, sitting across from you. Your hands were around your warm cup. You couldn’t see his sightless eyes but you knew they were on you. You took a sip before you could answer his question.

“I wanted to be a housewife when I was a kid.” You chuckled when he gave you an incredulous look. “I wanted to be like my mother.” You clarified. “I thought she was doing the greatest job in the world. Taking care of her children and loving them. I wanted to be just like her.”

“What change?” Matt reached out for his cup.

“Well,” You sighed. “When I was eleven, she walked out on us. With no explanations and no goodbyes. So, I sorta decided on another career path.”

“You didn’t want to be like her anymore.” Matt stated quietly.

“Not really. My dad had grown a bad habit of constantly comparing me to her, you know.” You spoke. “It was always negative. And it was always me, specifically. My siblings never got compared to her. Never really understood why.”

When you were younger, right after your mother had walked away, you and your father had gotten into lots of fights. You were both lashing out at each other. Both grieving a loss, both angry and not knowing how to deal with those emotions; you both lashed out. But every time you fought back; he would compare you to your mother. He called you unloving, ungrateful, disloyal. His words had cut deep within you, leaving open wounds that had yet to heal. And all these years of taking care of him, of the home, and of your siblings, stemmed from a need to prove him wrong. You were loving, grateful and loyal. You made sure he knew. You made sure he knew that he was wrong. He had to know.

That need within your heart to prove your father wrong, had mostly come from fear. A fear that he would abandon you just like your mother did. So, you did everything you could to give him a reason to stay. A reason to love you as much as you loved him.

You felt his calloused hand on yours. His hand felt rough but gentle. Your heart skipped a beat. “Your father was wrong to do this. you were only a child. You were hurting as much as he was."

“I know that now." You spoke softly. "But I didn't then. I suppose when you are a kid, you trust the grown-ups around you to protect you, and comfort you. You don't expect them to use their words to hurt you."

“I know what you mean," Matt said.

“You do ?”

“When I lost my father, I was sent to the orphanage." He answered. "The Nuns did not really know how to deal with me—and the person they chose to do so—wasn't really the best."

“Was he blind like you?”

“Yeah,” He nodded. “He taught me everything I know.”

He looked uncomfortable as though he had said too much already. As though, he had let it slip. You had caught him off guard. You didn't push though. Instead, you hummed quietly.

“How did you lose your father? If you don’t mind me asking.”

“He was shot when I was nine.” Matt adjusted his glasses. “He was a boxer, you know. My dad. He lost more than he won, before he, uh—but he could take a punch.” He said fondly. “He always told me ‘It ain’t how you hit the mat, it’s how you get up.’”

You loved the way he spoke of his father. Every word was dripping with love and admiration. But most of all with pride. And aside all of that, there was a pain behind his words, the pain it still felt at the loss.

“That’s a good motto to go by in life.” You observed, your lips turning up at the corner. “I like that. No matter how many times you get knocked down, just keep on getting back up.” You wove your fingers with his, and gave a gentle squeeze. “I’m sure he would have been proud of you. As much as you are of him.”

“Barely, but thanks.” He smiled at you. He refused to take the compliment. You were not the only one who had demons, it seemed.

“He truly would have been proud of you, Matthew. You’re a good man.” You assured him. His sightless gaze dropped to the table, a faint smile on his face. “Are you going shy on me, Murdock?” You teased him.

He chuckled before adjusting his glasses. “You have a—um—a way of doing this.”

“Making you go shy?”

“Among other things.” His lips twitched up at the corner.

You ran your tongue over your lips. His words had a way to make you blush. Just three words but with so much more meaning behind them.

 “Is it a bad thing that I do?”

“No, I—I find it refreshing. Keep me on my toes." He joked.

“Oh.” You let out breathless, your eyes landed on your interlaced fingers. His thumb brushed over yours, in a back-and-forth motion. “This starts feeling like date and not so much like two friends catching up over coffee.”

“Would it be so bad if it was?” Matt questioned softly.

“No, I don’t think it would—it’s just—” You paused.

“Yeah?”

You like Matt Murdock. So, would it be so bad if this was a date? Short answer. No. It wouldn’t be. The conversation was easy between the two of you. You two were now leaning over the table. Your fingers were woven together. And it all felt natural. You had opened up to him more freely than you had with others. He already knew more about you than Amelia did. Was there any point in keeping this “let’s be friends,” thing going?

“Just not today.” You told him. “Maybe next time?”

“Are you asking me on a real date?” He smirked.

“Yeah.” Your eyes dropped to the table. Your neckline started to feel warm, your heart was hammering, trying to escape from your ribcage. “Only—if you want to.” You tucked your hair behind your ear with your free hand.

“I was going to ask you the same thing.” He huffed out a laugh.

You scoffed. “You still can.” And you smirked.

Matt walked you home as he had done before. You stood facing him, at the bottom of the stairs that led into your building. His hand slid down your arm, to grip your hand. He stepped closer to you. Your eyes roamed his face before settling on his red tinted glasses.

“I like you.” Matt said.

“I like you too.” You smiled at him.

“I would like to take you out on a date.”

“I thought you’d never ask.” You teased him.

He chuckled. “How does dinner sound? Next weekend?”

“Sounds great.” You nodded, smiling.

“Yeah?” He grinned before his forehead touched yours. Your eyes fell shut at the contact.

“Yeah.” You breathed out.

He had let go of your hand. His fingers gently grazed against your neck, before making their way to your jaw. He ran his thumb on your cheek. His nose brushed against yours. His breath was fanning over your lips. Your hands moved to his solid chest. You opened your eyes, they landed immediately on his lips. You could lean in and kiss him. You could just give into the desire to feel his lips against yours. You could. You wanted to. But you just couldn’t bring yourself to close the gap between you. So, instead, you pulled away from him. You cleared your throat.

“Will you let me know when you get home?” You asked him quietly.

“I will.” He cleared his throat, and pushed his glasses back onto his face. “I’ll call you, all right?”

“Okay.” You nodded as he stepped away from you, your hands falling back to your sides. “Have a good day, Matthew.”

“You too.” He smiled at you before turning to leave.

Matthew Murdock liked you. And you liked him too. It was a first for you, really. The butterflies in your stomach had not fizzled out. If anything, they had only grown stronger. Just the thought of him stirred them awake. And yet, you were mad at yourself for not giving in to the desire to kiss him. You had wanted to do it. You just had to lean in. Why didn’t you?

Your brain was constantly working against you. You were able to counter it most days. When it was work related, it was quite easy. But when it came to intimacy, not so much. You spiraled down a pit of self-doubt. Always. Were you supposed to kiss him now? This wasn’t a date. This was two friends catching up over coffee. And yes, his face was really close to yours but did it mean he wanted to kiss you? What if you had read the signs wrong? And did you know how to kiss? No one had ever complained before but would it be good enough for him?

You slammed your hands down on your kitchen counter. “Give it a rest.” You grabbed your spoon, and shovel down a mouthful of ice-cream. “He’s going to call you. He’ll set up a date and a time. And you’ll kiss him then.” You spoke to yourself. “Yeah, if I’d grown a pair since then.”

Your phone rang next to you. Your heart picked up in anticipation. This was it; he was calling you like he had said. You took a deep breath and grabbed your phone. You checked the caller ID to make sure it was him. It was Amelia. Your shoulders slumped, in disappointment. You also suddenly felt stupid. It had only been two days. He’d call when he’d call, right? And he was a lawyer. He was probably busy.

“State mental institution, which patient do you wish to speak with?” You answered the phone.

“Hilarious.” She said dryly. “Pretty Boy hasn’t called you yet?”

“Nope.” You took another spoon of ice-cream.

“How loud are they?”

“Pretty loud.” You sighed miserably. “I shouldn’t have agreed to it.” You felt the tears pricked at the corner of your eyes.

“What?!” Amelia exclaimed. “No, don’t do that. Don’t do that.”

“I’m not doing anything.”

“You are.” Amelia said. “Something good happened to you. Something good is happening to you. Matt likes you and you like him. He said he will call you. And he will. So, don’t do the self-pity thing, please.”

“It’s not self-pity. It’s reality.” You argued moving to your couch. “Something good happened, I let myself enjoy it for two seconds. And now—”

“Nothing.” Amelia cut you off. “Nothing bad is going to happen. Something good is happening to you.”

You did not believe her. In your experience, each time you had felt some sort of happiness, it was either ripped away from you or something terrible happened to your family. You felt as though you were being punished by God for feeling some sort of joy. As though you were not allowed to.

Or maybe you were exaggerating, Making a mountain out of molehill. What was the most rational thing? Amelia was most likely right. Matt Murdock would call you. He said he would. He was a lawyer, and he might have gotten busy with work. And it was only Tuesday, after all. Matt would not lie to you.

“Do you want to come over?” You asked her.

“Tequila or Vodka?”

“None of the above.”

“You’re right. I’ll bring both.”

Red pen at the ready. Music blaring in your ears. Drowning out the chatter of your colleagues, the buzzing of the light. You were focused on your recent manuscript; a young adult fantasy. Young adults’ books were one of your favorite genres, when written well. When the plot made sense. But when it didn’t, it drove you up the wall. This one did not exactly do it for you. It wasn't bad, but overall, it was quite a good read. But not exactly your cup of tea. That wasn’t why you were paid. You were paid to proofread the book. You were paid to review errors, not to review the plot.

Your music stopped playing when your phone rang. You took off your headphones and answered the call.

“Welcome to the complaint hotline. Press 1 for minor annoyances. 2 for full-on ranting.” You announced in your best imitation of a customer service voice.

“Complaint hotline?” It was Matt. He sounded confused.

You gasped and straitened in your seat as though he could see you. “Hello Matthew!”

He broke into a chuckle. “Hello to you too. Sounds like you’re having fun?”

“It’s just a silly joke. I thought it was Amelia.” You explained quickly. “I forgot to check the caller ID.” You mumbled under your breath.

“Filtering calls, I see.

"I'm not - I just -," You fumbled to form an answer. You heard him laugh through the phone. “What can I do for you, Matthew?” You dropped your forehead in the palm of your hand.

“I wanted to make sure we were still on for this weekend.” He replied. “Dinner on Saturday night?”

You were thrilled that the date was happening still. You were even more thrilled that he had called as he had said he would. Your face broke into a smile. “Sounds great.” You softly answered.

“At seven?” He offered.

“Perfect.” Your smile only deepened.

“I’ll meet you at your place and we can walk there.”

“And where are you taking me?”

“There’s a Thai restaurant by my place. I thought we could go there.” Matt told you.

“I’m looking forward to it.”

“Good, so do I.” He admitted. “I’ll see you on Saturday, then?”

“Gladly. I’ll see you on Saturday.” You bit your bottom lip. “Have a good day, Matthew.”

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[gettingfrilly]

Let's talk about Eddy and empathy

Okay, so. Hand-me-down Ed.

Lotta people talk about this episode. Lotta them have the take that the boomerang unleashed Eddy's repressed nurturing side. This is a very valid interpretation when you consider the abuse Eddy has endured and all the reasons he has to repress any nurture-type feelings. But here is the thing that I think. Or don't think. I don't think Eddy represses a secret nurturing side. I think it got repressed by outside forces when he was young and squishy and moldable, and now there's not really a whole lot of nurturing in there left for him to repress himself. I truly believe the intent of the episode was to show the Eds being the opposite of who they truly are. And Eddy, truly, in my opinion, is an incredibly traumatized kid with some really unfortunate learned behaviors and underdeveloped empathy muscles that just aren't gonna fully recover.

There are two episodes I wanna talk about to back up my claim.

Ah, Dueling Eds. Who doesn't like Dueling Eds? I certainly consider it one of my favorite episodes. It's a surprisingly serious episode with a genuine look at how Eddy navigates the consequences of hurting someone. That long silence in the van with Double D? His continuing insistence that he didn't do anything? Continually asking throughout the whole episode what the hell is even going on? Mwah. Chef's kiss. I've seen a few different theories for what's going on with Eddy in this episode, but I've always felt that he genuinely has no idea what he did, why everyone's acting the way they are, and is incredibly fucking frustrated by how little sense the whole situation is makes. He knows it has to do with the fishball; he even brings it up himself when he's talking about the incident with Double D later. But he doesn't understand why that was wrong. He doesn't get how something so inconsequential in his own mind could be so hurtful to Rolf, and he is either incapable of, or refuses to acknowledge, that just because it wasn't a big deal to him, doesn't mean it can't be a big deal to someone else. (We call this ~theory of mind~ btw and it's a big component of empathy.)

Another favorite of mine, Little Ed Blue. I've talked about this scene before because I love it for a lot of reasons, and one of those reasons is the insight we get into how Eddy's emotions have probably been addressed by those around him in the past. I mean, jeez, this is Ed! He's one of Eddy's most important people! A true and dear friend he's had since he was a toddler and one of the few people in the world who outwardly likes him and gets along with him. And what does he do when Ed's having a bad day? Calls him a wuss, laughs at him, invalidates his feelings, and tells him to get over himself. This is some grade fucking A asshole behavior, even for Eddy. And yet he does it easily without a shred of guilt, convinced this is the correct way to address a friend who's in the throes of misery. I mean, just look at this face.

Has Ed ever made a face like that? His feelings got fucking hurt man. (also, as a sibling, I can say that this is categorically the most Sibling moment between Eddy and Ed in the entire show.)

IMO, someone with a repressed nurturing side wouldn't be that baffled by how Rolf is reacting or be that cruel to their own best friend. This looks more like someone who genuinely has a low amount of empathy. So what's actually going on? Do I think Eddy is just some cold, uncaring asshole? Of course not! He's a traumatized 12 year old kid who's endured intense physical abuse. Cruelty was normalized for Eddy at a very young age. Why should Rolf be so upset about a fishball? It's not like Eddy beat him or something. And what's Ed got to be so miserable about? Men shouldn't act like wusses. Men are supposed to just get over it. And how could Eddy be wrong for thinking these things? It's what he was taught, after all. He learned these behaviors from his hero, after all. This is all he knows. This is what makes sense to him. It's Rolf and Ed who are being ridiculous.

That kind of stunted growth to someone's empathy isn't something so easily fixed. This is why I don't headcanon or write a more grown up Eddy as someone who learns he doesn't have to repress his nurturing side anymore; I see him as someone who's learned that nurturing and empathy are part of the whole "having friends" deal. He's learned that nurturing and empathy are what's considered normal, learned that it's what's expected of any decent human being, man or not. He's also learned, a la BPS, that you have to be a good friend to have good friends. It doesn't come naturally to him. It's gonna take a lot of hard work and growth on his part. But even if Eddy doesn't always understand why he needs to be gentler, needs to just listen, needs to offer a shoulder to cry on, that doesn't mean he won't do it for the sake of his friends. Because even if empathy ain't his strong suit, even if being empathetic is hard fucking work, he still genuinely and wholeheartedly cares about his friends and cares about doing right by them.

[bunnakit]

do you want to get chicken noodles?

i've had several people wonder why i'm obsessed with playboyy's aob and why i'm constantly saddened by the indifference towards him on the dash so i figured i'd grab hold of my 'too much' habits again and do a breakdown of all the reasons i love aob.

as always, i'm just a little guy on the internet. i could be way off base, i could be seeing things that aren't there, i could be reading too much into things, could be forgetting points of the plot or times when people have mentioned aob in a bad light, whatever. i just ask that you be nice to me because i'm only this big 🤏🏻 (and i also took the time to make gifs of almost every single aob moment across 8 episodes and i've been working on this for 5 hours - some gifs are crunchy because i had to lower the quality to capture everything i want to address)

to preface, so much of aob isn't in what he says - you actually gain so much more to learn from aob about what he doesn't say and observing his body language and facial expressions closely. aob tells his entire story with his body, because that's how he's grown used to communicating.

episode 1 🌸

we see here aob is genuinely baffled by the behavior of teena and soong. he's used to the environment of playboyy where clients are just paychecks and there's game of cat and mouse and as a result no need for any sort of emotions or emotional manipulation. he's simply providing a service and doing a job. he doesn't have to lure and romance, his clients come to him. the idea of getting emotions involved is completely foreign to him.

episode 2 🌸

we're brought to a flashback almost immediately in episode 2 that raises a lot of questions but also shows us quite a bit. as aob walks up the stairs he moves as if he owns the place, with the utmost confidence. as he ascends we see security treat him with respect and offer wai's in passing - almost as if he is someone in charge here. this shows us what a big deal aob is among the club, how respected he is even as far as the security is concerned. i think it's a very interesting detail that helps back up aob's arrogance and confidence, because why would he be anything else?

the following conversation with the other workers is a bit confusing to me and as far as i recall we don't have all the answers to the questions it raises just yet. we do learn aob is the one that taught jump, teena, and soong during their time at playboyy. he asks them what they're going to do for a living if they're leaving and i think this conveys the idea that aob isn't as heartless as he appears. he worries for them and wonders how they'll take care of themselves if they leave.

teena makes a comment about the boss going too far but i'm not sure if we know what he means by that yet? i had actually completely forgotten about this encounter until i went back to grab screens. i want to comment on this part more but it's not really the point, i'm just really curious what the fuck they're talking about here as they seem to insinuate they've been forced to work here and even aob is surprised by that. this leads me to believe that aob might be a bigger part of the plot later on, perhaps in uncovering whatever was meant by these comments.

episode 4 🌸

i think this is the moment aob really lost favor with so much of the fandom and i do understand why, however, there's a lot that happens here that's very interesting to observe.

"Don't say 'true love' and 'soulmate.'"

i have to wonder why these were the first words aob brings up as soong laments his situation. no one said those words, aob, but you sure did.

teena then talks to soong about what he's heard and tells him he should be responsible for first's feelings in all of this to which aob makes the above expression. aob hates the discussion of feelings, believes emotions need to be removed from the equation entirely, and is baffled by the way his friends are acting about people that should be nothing more than clients and believes any form of relationship impossible.

"Try being in love." "What, stupid love?"

something about this makes me believe that aob doesn't know what love is, not real love. he dismisses it as stupid and scoffs while the others almost roll their eyes at him. it's easy for aob to give the advice he does when he doesn't have love burning a hole in his chest the way they do, he's never felt it before, doesn't know how all consuming it is.

and then as first confronts soong the camera pans from teena to aob and i find his expression very interesting. that doesn't look like a man removed of emotions. to me, that looks like a man that has just had his world tilted on it's axis and is now questioning everything he's ever told himself. he sees first's tears and the way soong stands still and listens as first falls apart. i think that moment truly startled him and drove home that the emotions between the boys and their 'clients' are very real.

episode 5 🌸

alright, episode 5 is a lot so i'm sorry for the absolute wall of gifs and texts coming for this single episode.

"Time to work, Puen."

aob meets puen on the stage and immediately his face falls as it's not him picked first but puen. later, aob walks into the back where puen is smoking and immediately takes in the sight of him.

"Are you Puen?" "I am." "You're quite hot."

"Come find me later. I want to know why you're so popular."

aob wants to know who has dethroned him and why his clients are so enamored with puen. what does puen, someone completely new to the business, have to offer that he doesn't? this is also where aob begins to look at puen and from here on he will never look away.

aob speaks so very much with his eyes. you can see his gaze drop and take in all of puen here during their 'evaluation' as he asks permission before going further with him. it's obviously quite professional but i think it also shows us that aob isn't as cold as he tells people he is; or perhaps that's just where puen is concerned.

this is really where i realized that much of understanding aob is reading into what he isn't saying or what his words are hiding.

"I knew it, you aren't that great."

but he is, because aob can't look away from him.

"...You attract clients that want to try new things. Once they are bored of you they'll dump you."

you're attracted to me and want to try something with me, but once you're bored you'll leave me.

"Why don't you teach me? I want to be like you."

show me what you want from me. i want you to like me.

"I'm sorry. I can't be a teacher. I'm a prostitute. Oh. Don't be like me." Because you can never be. Loser."

i'm sorry. i can't like you. i'm a prostitute. and please don't like me because i can never like you back. don't look to me anymore.

but puen accepts that challenge.

(i forgot to watermark this one lmao, i don't care enough to go fix it)

i'm still not entirely sure what to make of this moment with prom. why does he squeeze aob's shoulder as if to offer him some kind of reassurance? why does aob shake his head just the slightest bit and suddenly look like he's going to face a firing squad? does prom know it's already too late for aob, that he's in too deep? is he trying to prepare aob for the sudden fire in puen's veins? i'm really struggling to figure it out, really. i think it could mean quite a few things or nothing at all.

"Why are you criticizing me? People might think you're jealous of me."

puen has so very clearly learned what makes aob tick. he's learned that aob's pride is also his biggest weakness and he picks at that weak point to evoke a response from him - and it works. suddenly aob is all bluster and anger, but interestingly puen doesn't back down, doesn't even flinch. instead, he has a confident smile and meets aob's eyes with a challenge burning in his own.

aob doesn't know what to do with that. you can see it in the shift of his face. this expression is very similar to the one he makes when first confronts soong - he's on the wrong foot, confused and adrift because suddenly puen is no longer the innocent doe-eyed novice but someone who is pushing back and challenging him. no one has ever challenged him before.

they meet again later in the bathroom where aob is doing some sort of display of dominance perched on a urinal. listen, that's my blorbo, but even i can't defend that. baby get down from there, you're making even more of a fool of yourself.

"Do you want to eat chicken noodles with me?"

aob rejects the invitation and puen laments that he seemed fine earlier when they were in the room together.

"What happens in the room stays in the room, Puen. You can't have feelings for the clients. They'll be strangers when they leave."

what i do in the room with you has to stay there. i can't have feelings for you. you'll become a stranger to me when you leave.

"Why do you have to act so cold and emotionless to everyone?"

and aob doesn't answer. he doesn't even get angry. there's just a quiet look of resignation on his face and he bites his lip, almost like he's nervous, almost like puen is looking at him too closely and starting to see right through him.

"Can you have feelings for your friends or brothers?"

or for me.

"You aren't my friend or my brother. You're a competitor."

because you have to be. because i can't handle any alternative. i can't love you.

episode 6 🌸

they're in the bathroom again but this time it's puen waiting for aob asking why he's been avoiding him.

"Why can't you have sex like a couple? You taught me how to feel. So practice what you preach."

why can't we have sex like a couple? you taught me to remove the feelings from it so why can't you do that?

and i think it's very interesting that for a moment aob drops his gaze and looks away. he's been caught and called out and looks away almost in submission before pulling up his guard again.

"I don't have any feelings for a kid like you. I just can't do it. You're not sexy enough."

he attacks puen's looks but this is a direct contradiction to when they first met and the first thing he said was "You're quite hot." once again aob says the opposite of what he means.

i have feelings for you, this is why i can't have sex with you like a couple. i like you far too much.

"Fine. I'll be better than you someday."

fine. i'll make you love me.

and aob can't take it any longer. he goes just outside the door and breaks down because it's all so much; his feelings for puen, puen's refusal to back down, the turmoil he finds himself in having everything he's ever known turned upside down. he was never supposed to have feelings, least of all for someone as stubborn and determined as puen who breaks down his walls and challenges him at every turn. his will is breaking down every bit as much as he is in this moment.

episode 7 🌸

this was one of the first scenes to really make me emotional in this show. throughout this entire scene aob cannot look away from puen. all of his attention is on puen to the point where he neglects the client and even pushes him away. he touches only puen, kisses only puen. he seems almost tortured by the moment, to be so close but so far from the object of his desire.

and puen looks at him with the challenge in his eyes again, almost mocking: look at me, i've surpassed you. you can't take your eyes off me. i've won.

and aob continues to watch him, his eyes almost a caress, gaze almost reverent as if he's witnessing something holy. my man is absolutely lost in the sauce.

"You have a crush on a loser like me, huh? So you couldn't help yourself."

"This is how you pay me back?" why are you doing this to me? "Do it to me, not in front of the client. What's wrong with you?" don't challenge me in front of a client. don't push me.

but puen knows he's won, he knows he's hit the nail on the head and aob, as he always does, is growing defensive. because he's scared.

"But I'm glad that I'm important to you. Like I said, I will be better than you someday. But that day came so quickly. You lost."

i'm glad you've realized i'm important to you. like i said, i would make you love me. that day came so quickly. i've won.

episode 8 🌸

i didn't get gifs of the scene but prom asks aob if he's jealous of puen's popularity. that's all he asks. but what's interesting is aob replies:

"Jealous? I don't have feelings for him."

aob... i don't think that's what prom was asking. prom asked if you were jealous of his popularity among the clients, if you were jealous that he'd taken your throne.

and puen appears to challenge aob again, blows him a kiss almost as a reminder of their previous encounter. but aob doesn't get angry, doesn't rise to the bait. if anything he looks sad, maybe contemplative, and perhaps like he's coming to terms with something.

You only appreciate the value of something when you are about to lose it. It's just so fucking awful.

Especially when you know in your heart that you are powerless.

Because he isn't your boyfriend.

The more you want to know the more painful it gets.

throughout this entire scene aob looks so sorrowful, like he knows he has to do something soon or he will lose his chance with puen. he has to try because this powerless feeling is growing to be too much.

aob is waiting for puen at the bottom of the stairs and if you look he's bouncing his leg in a nervous tick. when puen rounds the corning his face is immediately in some semblance of a smile which is something we really haven't seen from aob. it gives the impression that he worked himself up to this moment despite how nervous he is. (his shirt is also very wrinkled, were you in a rush?)

"How are you going to haze me today?"

and this i think drives home that puen is tiring of their game. that aob is so very close to losing puen because puen is starting to believe aob's words, believe that aob doesn't like him and only wants to harass him.

so aob takes the leap.

(and i find the handle with care on the wall particularly interesting, as both of them need to be handled with care. aob, with his unfamiliar and warring feelings, and puen with his earnest and hopeful heart.)

and as aob bridges that gap puen looks taken aback and confused because what the fuck, aob isn't soft, doesn't do things like this.

"Do you want to get chicken noodles?"

aob asks, a throwback to the day puen had asked him on a date. an acknowledgement and an apology.

i'm sorry i wasn't ready then, but i'm ready now. will you still have me?

and that's why today's episode made me cry and why i love aob so, so very much. his journey learning his feelings and learning what love feels like and what love can be isn't pretty, he fights it tooth and nail the entire way, but the smile on both their faces as he jumps on puen's back gives me so much hope that they can be good for each other and support each other.

there are still so many episodes left and maybe i'll be wearing clown make up by the end of this, maybe my hopelessly disgustingly romantic heart has misled me, maybe i've read the facial expressions and body language all wrong, but regardless of all of that aob and puen are so special to me.

[blade-liger-4ever]

On the subject of "forced" couples in fiction:

I know this is a touchy subject, but some ships - or couples, if you prefer - aren't as "forced", "toxic", and "unhealthy" as most are quick to claim. That's not to say that all aren't; look no further than Hal Jordan x Carol Ferris, and the numerous breakups they've had, as an example. If they were genuinely healthy, they wouldn't be stuck in a revolving relationship like the writers have made them for over sixty years. And the reason they're so unhealthy is because of who they are as people: Carol is a workaholic pursuing her own career and maintaining her father's business, while Hal is juggling tons of responsibilities and longs for a woman he can have a family with to have some sense of stability and normalcy.

But in this post-modern world, I've seen the term "forced" applied to hundreds of couples that...weren't actually a bad idea. Heck, they were an actually great idea, but the problem lies in the execution.

Let me bring up my favorite of these pairings and explain 1 why I love them, and 2 how they could work.

Angel x X-23 (or DarkAngel, as I like calling them.)

All the haters, stop right now. Let me talk.

Just imagine, for one moment, these two characters outside of the mainstream comics with the age gap. Warren Worthington III, A.K.A. Angel, is heir to a large fortune and company. He probably had heard of or met Tony Stark every now and then at various charity events. He is handsome, a slightly above-average student, and has a head for handling the public and his inheritance. Could he be a massive flirt? Yes, but he was never anything but chivalrous in his dealing with women. He understood boundaries, understood that quite a few of his dates had emotional baggage, and never held/used it against them. He is a knight in shining armor, and as he flies above the world, he can see all the faults on Earth and, in spite of his background, resolves to make the world a better place.

And then we have Laura Kinney, A.K.A. X-23. A child assassin born into a branch of the Weapon X project, she was beaten and tortured into a weapon, though she never wanted that. The love and kindness she received, though it was hidden once she killed for the first time at age nine, eventually flowered and gave her the strength to choose not to kill a target. And while this resulted in an escape and murder of the Facility, and her mother's death at her own hands, Laura, knowing she had hundreds to thousands of innocent blood on her hands, still staggered up to fight the good fight and make amends for her actions.

Looking at these people, they're totally different. Warren is old money, while Laura is an orphan girl who never even knew what a family life looked like. Warren was above average by a bit, only truly excelling in fencing/swordsmanship, and Laura is a child prodigy who could collapse a government if her buyers wanted that. Warren knows social cues and how to navigate delicate interpersonal atmospheres, whereas Laura doesn't know how to start a simple introduction with one person. Warren was born to fly and soar above the world, yet he still dives down to save those caught in fires; meanwhile, Laura was born in a hellhole that taught her how to hunt, and now she uses the skills she was taught to track down evil and prevent it from happening to another innocent child.

They're polar opposites, and at first glance, you would assume they'd be incompatible.

However, these differences, when put together, would actually compliment each other.

Warren wants to do good in the world and has the means to do so, but lacks the hands on knowledge of how to accomplish such acts. Laura, who knows and has seen the scum of the Earth in person, can not only show him what he needs to do to improve the lives of bystanders, but can also learn what normalcy and love really is with him. And when needing to use words first, Warren can tactfully yet firmly set down some ground rules when dealing with the authorities or similar situations; likewise, Laura can in no uncertain terms state what enemies in dark alleyways can expect if they try anything stupid with her or Warren. Lastly, Warren acts as support and strike-and-retreat in a battle, whereas Laura can race through an entire room of highly trained combatants and lay them out flat/kill them. Their differing skill-sets for combat act as a yin-yang, allowing them to cover for each other and ensure the other is protected. And their personalities (when written properly as a Knight in Shining Armor and a recovering Emotionless Girl/Laser-Guided Tyke-Bomb) would actually benefit each other: Warren can gently pull back the layers of pain and abuse that Laura's suffered and patch the wounds, while Laura can keep him grounded to the Earth and give him emotional strength when he's weighed down by his duties and worried by what he isn't bringing to the X-Men.

This is how the two could be great when written correctly, and why I love them so much.

Which leads me to another ship that has potential:

Moon Knight x Echo.

While I feel Marc Spector is best handled in the MCU, and that Layla is the best wife/lover he's ever had, Echo/Maya Lopez shares a trait with her that is something he desperately needs:

She's grounded and emotionally prioritizes Marc Spector more than his separate identities.

Now, while I'm not a big fan of Marc being ret-conned into being DID (I have no issue with a heroic DID person, I merely wish it were used with a new character instead of a previously established character), Marc does however juggle three separate lives: a rich boy, a cabby man, and the avatar of an Egyptian deity. That's not easy, and can lead someone to insanity. What Marc needs is a woman who is not going anywhere, who will stay with him come hell or high water, and who will reach out to him when he's desperately trying to drown himself in guilt and shame for things that were ultimately out of his control. Layla, as I have said before, continuously reaches out to Marc and keeps him on the ground and focuses on him both from a romantic and pragmatic standpoint. She won't let him spiral into madness from his circus act, she won't let him fall into despair without a fight, and she'll come back for him no matter what.

Echo possesses many of these traits because, like Layla, she has a background that isn't glamorous, and required her to be practical rather than a silly, upbeat girl who would get her head beat in if she wasn't careful. For this, while I personally love Marclayla best, I can respect and encourage Marc getting together with Maya because she can offer that same stable, grounding force as Layla. It also is why I don't like Tigra/Greer Grant-Nelson with Marc. She's a good woman, and wouldn't mistreat him, but until she became a mother, Tigra was far too flighty and unrestrained for him. When you're juggling so many things and suppressing trauma, you don't need a boyfriend/girlfriend who is a life of the party type. You need someone to ground you, and only lately has Tigra herself become grounded enough to provide that same security and safety to Marc.

Its not as articulate as it could be, or as I'd hoped, but I hope this post made sense and put things into perspective for y'all. "Forced couples" is a term that weighs me down, and I hope this at least made you think..

See you around.

[akiizayoi4869]

Can I maybe have more insight into Sokkla?

Idk I've been wanting to get more into it but I'd just like to hear why people ship them, more depth into them as a ship, how they'd work out, etc

Have a great day ^^

Sure!

I was honestly so confused back when I first found out that people shipped them lol. They only had one scene in the entire show when they interacted and actually spoke to each other, and it wasn't good. But I decided to bite the bullet and check it out anyway. Think it was either one of @seyaryminamoto or @libbysatton25 Sokkla fics that I read, and by the end of it I was like "holy shit why do these two make so much sense for no reason"😂.

People ship them for a number of reasons. Both of them are very smart, are strategists, sense of humor is kinda the same, and they have similar issues when it comes to their parents and how the writers wrote it. With Sokka, his grief about Kya's death is never expanded on or given the same kind of depth like with Katara, even though it would have been really interesting if they did since it was painfully obvious that he had repressed memories of what happened that day, sine he couldn't even remember their mother's face. It's similar with Azula. Zuko's issues with Ozai is taken seriously by the narrative, as is Ursa leaving and how it affected him. With Azula, however, her issues with their mother are never given the same importance. Ignoring the shit comics, during the beach episode where she says "My own mother though I was a monster. She was right of course, but it still hurt" was interesting. For the first time ever, we saw a vulnerable side of Azula, a glimpse of into what her own experience with their family was like (even though we kinda did see it a bit on her end in the Zuko Alone flashback episode). Nobody responded to what she said (and to be fair to them, that's a subject that shouldn't be treated lightly, and they were all teenagers with their own problems, even though at the very least I think that Zuko should have said something) and the last bit of what she said makes the whole thing be treated as a joke.

Which, honestly? Is brilliant, because that's a defense mechanism. Showing a vulnerability without meaning to, and the moment you realize it, you try and deflect by making a joke or acting as if it's not a big deal. I've done that plenty of times. There's just one problem with this: the narrative actually frames what she said as a joke and that it's not a big deal, because she is in fact a monster and even she knows it (I swear narrative framing is seriously a bitch in this show) and it's never brought up in conversation again. Nobody asks her what she meant by that and actually try to talk to her about it, and the ideal candidate for this woukd have been Zuko, since he could sort of get where she's coming from since they have the same messed up family. Instead, it's only touched upon again in the finale during the mirror scene, and then that's it.

Ok I know that I said ignore the garbage comics, but they actually prove my point further. In The Search, Azula's issues with her mother definitely aren't taken seriously whatsoever, she's made to be seen as unreasonable because she's "crazy", and when they find out what actually happened to Ursa and Azula is rightfully angry about it? Once again she's written off as being unreasonable and doesn't get taken seriously at all, and she just runs off and nobody stops her. That entire comic was basically about Zuko and his relationship with their mother (see a pattern there?) and to this day her and Ursa have yet to have a one on one conversation with each other, because apparently this is too hard for the writers to do. The point that I'm trying to make here is that Azula surpresses her feelings because for her, it's a sign of weakness, and she was taught to not show any signs of weakness whatsoever. You know who else surpresses their feelings? Sokka. He obviously has his own feelings about Kya's death, but he pushes that aside for Katara. Yue's death definitely left a profound impact on him, but he never talks about it with anyone, not even his girlfriend Suki. He just bottled it up.

Although in Suki's case I think there's another reason why he doesn't tell her, something that I think nobody actually picked up on in the fandom because I've never seen anyone mentioning this: during the Serpent's Pass episode and the two of them are talking because Suki wants to know why he's being so overprotective of her all of a sudden, he tells her that it's because when they were in the Northern Water Tribe, something happened to somebody that he cared about and that he couldn't protect them. So he was telling her about Yue without really getting into it. In response, Suki sees that as an opportunity to tell Sokka how she feels about him, by saying "I lost someone too. He didn't die, he just went away." So basically, she got the implications of what he was trying to say, and she uses that as a way to confess. Now, if I were Sokka? I wouldn't want to talk about it with that person anymore. Idk why on earth the writers thought that would be romantic, but whatever. I'm not saying that this is the reason why he never tells her about Yue, as far as I'm concerned this is just a headcanon of mine, (and all of this is honestly the main reason why I don't care for Sukka whatsoever, aside from the fact that I find it to be boring and poorly written) but it's interesting to think about. Anyway, both Sokka and Azula bottle up their feelings, which is what a lot of Sokkla shippers picked up on, and it's what makes us think that they'd be able to connect with each other because of that, because they both understand what that's like.

So yeah, I think that's why a lot of people find these two interesting as a non canon couple. If any other Sokkla shippers see this, feel free to add on!

[the-beatnik-gale]

A Moment Alone

I went ahead and wrote some fanfiction for my Tav Husk x Gale because I was bored and wanted to write something cute. I wasn't going to share this but fuck it, we could all do with some more Gale content. ====================================== Approximately 1.2k words

Gale Dekarios x Tav (Named) It's a fluff piece, nothing raunchy. :) It occurs in the Elf Song Tavern from Act 3, but there aren't spoilers.

* Nothing has been proofread, and I can only hope Grammarly caught most of my mistakes. This is the first thing I've written in about 10 years, so I apologize if I've regressed back to 8th-grade writing skills. Forgive me; I'm out of practice.

The warmth of the water enveloped Husk with the comfort of a favorite blanket. The road to Baldur’s Gate was harsh and unforgiving but was a familiar practice that she took solace in. The nights spent around the fire, eating, laughing, and sharing the company of her companions had brought memories of her youth: her mother singing for the wondering group of vagabonds she had called family, her father creating illusions to accompany the stories and lyrics, and of her brother silently taunting her when she was up to perform. She missed it dearly and sometimes resented that she had willingly severed that tie. “It was necessary.” She thought, “You needed to get away, to find yourself.” She sunk lower into the bath water, and her smaller dwarven height made her a perfect subject for being completely submerged. “If I hadn’t walked away from them, I wouldn’t be here.  I wouldn’t have this damn parasite…” She huffs but can’t stop the smile from breaking through. “… and I wouldn’t have yet another wizard to add to my pocket full of magic men.” She couldn’t help but laugh. Gale had been her favorite part of this whole debacle. The silver lining against a sky of unknown horror, especially given the reality that he could have been but a speck had he gone through with his goddess’s demand. The moment of relief she had when he went ahead and chose her, Faerun and Mystra be damned, was indescribable. More likely, Husk didn’t have the right words memorized to describe the moment.

“Papa would like him, and he’s always respected as an arcane practitioner no matter at what stage. Draccel would fight with him, surely, debating some facts about some old dusty mage that’s long been dead, only stopping to ask how Gale could deal with me, and Mama…” A joyful sigh exits; she can hear her mother’s voice, simultaneously laced with stress and affectionate. “Just what we need, another wizard to anchor down among their schemes and grand delusions. Really dear, couldn’t you find a simple sorcerer or warlock if you needed someone magically imbued?” Husk threw her head back, eyes resting and arms outstretched to rest on the top of the tub.

It would be wonderful, beautiful, pure bliss. “Then there’s his mother and Tara. Tara, I have some idea about it, but his mother…” She stops short, a string of thoughts running through her at once, eyes still closed. There was so much left to do: Wyll’s father, Gale’s book, Astarion’s master, Orin and Gortash, the damn elder brain, plus whatever small tasks the group was sure to find themselves aiding in—the list seemed to grow ever larger, and there was no end in sight. “This is all assuming we even make it out alive. If, by some miracle, we do, then I can worry about this; until then, silence yourself. Relax, still your mind like you were taught. Just breathe deep.”

The distant murmurs of the patrons below amplified the silence of her upstairs dwelling. The others were selling spare supplies, wandering around, or making merriment elsewhere for the time being. It was their first day in the city, so it didn’t take her by surprise that the itch to explore and revisit was almost too much for some companions to resist. While the quiet was nice, Husk was beginning to regret not going with Gale to the stands. He had insisted she relax, and she wasn’t ready to expend the energy needed to protest. “The proper supplies will be needed if I’m to cook a more substantial meal than what we’ve been subjected to these last few weeks.  Worry not, I’ll be back soon. You take the chance for a proper reprieve, and by the time I should, should the others not have returned, perhaps we might take a few moments for ourselves.” If there were even the slightest possibility of a quiet moment together, Husk would hold out hope for it. Her eyes flutter open, peering past the cracks in the dividers, taking in the upstairs. She glared at the beds, their size just enough for a single body. Despite her dwarven frame being smaller than the rest, she wasn’t small enough to slide in alongside him. “Mmm, perhaps we should have stayed camping.” She wasn’t sure when she had dozed off or for how long, but she was suddenly aroused by the loud shutting of the door and the murmuring of a familiar voice. “It doesn’t look like anyone’s around… “

It was Gale, grunting slightly as he carried in what spices and groceries he had retrieved from his quick excursion.

“My love, are you here?”  His steps moved from the fire to the left of the room, opposite her. “I’m here; if you give me a moment, I’ll be right out. “

She heard the quickening of footsteps across the room. Before she could lift herself from the water, which had long since grown cold, her gaze turned upward as Gale gently nudged his way past the screen towel in hand. “Here, let me help. “ She didn’t need it but took the offer, grasping his extended hand. He helped pull her up, wrapping the towel and his arms around Husk. Gale leaned in, giving a lingering kiss on her forehead. “You smell nice. Not that I found you to have a pungent aroma in the first place. “ A small chuckle fell from Husk; she knew he didn’t mind her natural smell, but it felt nice to be able to bathe.   “Lavander and honey, not my first choice, but I’m content to smell like something other than my own sweat. It makes me happy that I didn't take a vow of cleanliness. The journey here would have been far more troublesome for me.” She reached her hand to his face, her thumb running along his cheek.

“And how was the market? Hopefully, you had no difficulty finding what you needed.” Gale nuzzled himself into her hand.

“Oh, I didn’t face much difficulty at all. Talking to a few vendors, however, I noticed that the people here seem to be just as on edge, if not more so, than those outside the gate.  While I still suggest we rest tonight, tomorrow will come early, and we’ll need to start laying out a plan immediately.” His face goes stoic for a moment, the reality of what is to come hitting hard and quick, but slowly, it loosens into a smug grin. “But that’s for us to worry about tomorrow, yes? For now, I say we take that moment I mentioned earlier. After all, it’s hard to focus when I have such beauty standing before me. While it won’t be the most romantic moment I could conjure, you have my word that I’ll do my utmost to make the best of it. I don’t think we’ll have all that much time left before our companies retire from the city. So, let us make haste and act accordingly, claiming this little moment for ourselves.” He takes her hand and leads her to one of the beds; both are determined to seize the moment, even if only for a short while.

[storm-angel989]

Outside The Office Part Twenty Seven

NOTE: Important plot info in this part! Enjoy!

Valentino looked at Lucifer, back to me, and then back to Lucifer. I squeezed his hand as hard as I could. 

“Lucifer, if it’s all the same to you, I think I’ll stay,” he replied calmly. 

He offered no further explanation. The locked eyes for a moment and finally, Lucifer rolled his eyes. 

“Fine. Whatever. Stay if you feel so strongly about it.” Lucifer looked me up and down. “I want an explanation from you, reader. Now.” He crossed his arms. 

I went into the same speech I gave Vox and Val, and continued on to repeat what they had told me in response. 

“How did you find out anyway? Did Vox tell you?” I demanded at the end of my story.

He stared at me. “Did you…think I wouldn’t? No, reader, Vox didn’t tell me- he didn’t have to. But how I found out is besides the point.” Lucifer closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I honestly can’t decide what’s worse- that you see this fucked up method as normal, or that you didn’t tell any of us before jumping into something that physically hurts you.” He opened his eyes and set his jaw. “Angels are fucking insane. Listen, you can be fit and strong down here but your limits are less than half of what your angelic limits were.” 

“What about my demonic abilities? What are my strengths?” I asked. “Com’on there has to be some sort of trade off.” I tried to sit up but again, Valentino’s hand kept me down. 

“Not yet,” he muttered to me. 

Lucifer didn’t seem to notice. “Fighting. Fucking. Making deals that increase that core power you wield. The door is wide open, princess. Find your passion and run with it.” 

“My passion is….” I let my voice trail off. “I guess I never thought about it? I was always supposed to be the next head general. Then Adam came along and wrecked that.” 

Both Valentino and Lucifer looked at me. Valentino amused, Lucifer irritated. 

“So….leadership?” Valentino asked, as thought it was obvious. 

“Yeah but I won’t rule hell. That role is currently filled.”

Lucifer shrugged. “You will one day. One day in the far off future. Very far off future. But as of right now, we have to get you fighting ready. War is coming, reader. I need you ready for it.”

“Do you wanna fill me in on the big picture here?” I asked. “Because you never really explained to me why you wanted to do the assessment the other day, only that you needed to.”

Valentino gave Lucifer a look. “You really are intent on keeping her in the dark, aren't you? If she’s the key, she deserves to know the whole truth. The whole story.” 

If Lucifer was angry at Valentino’s words, he didn’t show it.

“Fine. Let’s start at the top then. Do you know how hell came to be?” Lucifer asked. 

I shook my head. “No. Dad taught me it exists to hold all that is evil.”

Lucifer barked a laugh. “Of course he did. Well, he’s half right. This is going to be a long conversation, isn’t it?”

A chair materialized and he sat down in it. Valentino leaned over and carefully helped me sit up. He hit a button and behind me, the bed raised. 

“Now, lean back,” he instructed. “There. Comfortable?”

I nodded.

“Good. Then let's begin.” Lucifer said as he clapped his hands together. “Here is the short history of us, hell and how we- you came to be. Reader, your mother and I royally pissed off our all powerful creator, and as such, we were cast down to hell to rule over all human sinners, and demons created from the evil of the world.”

“Wait, what did you do to piss them off?” I asked. 

Lucifer laughed. “That part is unimportant.”

I doubted that but Lucifer continued on.

“The angels didn’t expect the population of hell to swell, to grow to the point where there became more beings down here than up there. So the angels, ever so afraid of an uprising, came down and began to exterminate all the sinners they could….keep us in check, so to speak. Remember, angels can only survive down here for twenty four hours before the darkness begins to consume them.” 

He paused for a moment and took a breath. For the first time, I saw something I hadn’t yet seen cross Lucifer’s face. Pain? Exhaustion? It stayed as he continued his story. 

“On the battlefield, Lilith met your father and standing on the brink of extinction, she and he came to an agreement. She would return to hell with him in exchange for a contract limiting angels to visiting once a year. A contract now void at the arrival of the next extermination day, simply because both signers are dead. Once that date passes, there is nothing preventing them from coming back each twenty four hour period and killing in waves.”

He paused again and looked at me.

“Six months is all we have until the next date the angels should be here. But this, this is where you come in. I need you to be strong enough, to have enough power to combine both your angelic half and demonic half and seal the portal they open. Trap every angel down here, and slaughter them. Send a message that we have you on our side, and make them decide to never, ever participate in an extermination ever again. I would seal it myself but….” he hesitated. “I’m not convinced I have enough left of my angelic side to do so.”

He stood up. The chair vanished and he began to pace. “In short, I need three things from you. I need you strong enough to prevail in the inevitable fight, I need you willing to try your damndest to seal that portal and…” he stopped his feet and looked at me. “I need you to be willing to take command over the new souls you sign on. The contract I created has a little extra clause in it. 

A clause that makes them members of my own demonic army, and forces them to obey both my command and yours without hesitation or question. In addition to continuing to grow that army, I need you to step up and take command of it. Command of the entire demonic military, to be exact.” His voice turned tired. “ I  just, reader, I quite honestly I just don’t have time to give it the attention it needs. Or the military experience that you do have.”

He sat down on the other side of the bed next to me. “So how about it?  How would you like to flex those leadership skills? Take over as second in command, which if I’m being honest, is the primary command in real life. But as leader of hell, I’m also head general of my own military unit but that’s just titles.”

“Wait, you’re offering me a job?” I asked. 

He shrugged and looked to Valentino. “More or less.  If of course, its contingent on your behavior over the next two weeks. Show me better judgment. Because in all honesty, even for my sister's child you are the most incredible pain in the ass- which is to say you’re just like her. And I think you need to keep busy or you sink into the self destructive tendencies that angels are so prone to. It makes them ideal soldiers, but I’d like to spare you that fate if possible.” He stood back up. “So, what do you say?”

What did I say?

My mind reeled as I tried to process the new information. I looked at Valentino and he squeezed my hand again. 

“I think it would be good for you, princessa. Something to keep you occupied. Something familiar, but this time- something you control.” Valentino said encouragingly.

“I need a place. I need equipment. I need housing and room to train these souls.” I said slowly.

Lucifer waved his hand. “Not an issue. I can…”

“What if we remodeled the third floor?” Valentino interrupted with a look at Lucifer. “I am willing to sacrifice that portion of my studio if it means keeping her in house.“ 

“That could work,” Lucifer agreed. “I’d prefer to have eyes on anyway. Demons can be nasty- sinners even moreso, and while I don’t doubt you could lay them down, reader, I’d prefer not to have you do so by yourself.”

“There is also the issue of devising a training plan that won’t kill them,” I added. “Otherwise, they’ll end up like me.”

“That will be the easiest part. Vox has all their data, he can use that to derive the most optimal plan, and subdivide that so the recruits are sorted categorically. We really need to pull him into this conversation.” Lucifer glanced at his watch and then looked at me. “Let this be our plan moving forward- something for you to focus on. Getting this all sorted and together will take about two weeks. During that time rest- get in the habits that will help you grow stronger. I will reassess your physical strength then. In the meantime, we’ll move forward with getting everything set so when you show me just how well you can fight, how well you’ve taken care of your body, you’ll be set to begin right away. Got it?” 

“Got it.” I nodded. 

Valentino stood up and swapped to another bag of fluids. Lucifer gave me a stern look. 

“You need to learn how to balance the two halves of yourself, my dear. Trial and error is a part of this, but communication is even larger. If you’re wondering about if you should do something, or even if you recognize that this is how you would do it in your previous life- talk.. You have my number- use it. Ask Vox, ask Velvette, as Valentino- use us as a guide. No one is here to watch you fail. And no one here will tolerate you hurting yourself. Understood?”

“Maybe it wouldn’t have gone this far if you hadn’t insulted her,” Valentino said sharply. He shifted himself ever so slightly as he looked to Lucifer. “That is something I won’t tolerate. Ever again.”

Lucifer raised an eyebrow. “Is this in reference to my comment on her body?”

“Yes. Don’t let it happen again.” He responded coldly. 

I expected Lucifer to get angry, for his power to pulse through the room. But all he did was shrug. 

“Fair point, I suppose.” Lucifer leaned down and kissed the top of my head. “Make better choices, I have to go.”

And with that he vanished. 

I looked at Valentino. “You heard about that?”

“Heard about it? I was furious, mi amore. I would have called him up, consequences be damned, if Velvette hadn’t talked me down. You’re perfect, princessa. No matter how your body changes.” He sat down next to me and I reached for him. He shifted himself and me so that my head was against his chest. 

I nuzzled him and closed my eyes. My Valentino. My Valentino stood up for me- again. He really did love me. 

“Rest, you’ve got about another hour or so of laying here. Might as well get some sleep. You’ve got to be exhausted.” He said softly as he shifted me in his arms. “I’ve got you.”

I let that feeling of safety wash over me. In his arms, I couldn’t fight the exhaustion, both physically and mental. I let sleep wash over me as I snuggled tightly against him.

[aesthetically-meme]

‘ Who Are You? ’

A little drabble focused on Dusk's first day on Dreamland. Inspired by @that-fanperson-meg 's fic 'How Twilight Knight Convinced His Father that Their Best Friend Isn’t a War Criminal!'

༶•┈┈⛧┈♛

“ uh, hi. 'm Dusk Knight. Most just call me Dusk. ” They offered a sheepish wave to the two children in front of them. Seriously, who named their kids 'Tiff' and 'Tuff'?? The two where accompanied by Meta Knight of all people.

Unfortunately they weren't under the impression their best friend was associated with royalty. Hell- they didn't think Twilight would go and join Meta Knight, THE Meta Knight's little crew, the Meta Knights (to them the name sounded cheesy but whatever).

Upon arrival at the castle, said knights were summoned and quickly arrived, much to the seemingly dismay of their friend. They were quick to raise a brow and gently grab Twilight's hand. Their wings ever so slightly curled around the two.

Tiff, the young child with an ever-present fire in her eyes, squinted. Ah great, she didn't trust them. They noticed Meta Knight's posture slightly stiffen at their name; which was, also great. He must recognize them from somewhere, but what?

“ ah yup. S'nice place ya got here. Love the uh- ” they cringed somewhat at all the Dedede architecture, “ design choices you've got 'ere... ”

Kirby was quick to offer their paw in a warm welcome, to which Dusk readily reached for ... only to be stopped by Tiff's intersecting hand.

�� Hold it! How do we know you aren't here to try and cause trouble? Just recently we had to deal with Nightmare taking over Dreamland, and now a stranger we've never heard of shows up? ” The young girl placed her hands on her hips, huffing loudly.

The astral feigned ignorance. “ Nightmare? You all destroyed Him? ” of course they knew he was dead. They traced their friend's thread to Popstar ever since it nearly snapped.

Dusk was still unsure of what caused that defining string to become taught, but ever since it became more visible they never let go. Yet they continued to ignore the blaring obvious signs...

“ Aw man, I thought after all that news would travel quick ... Have you been livin' under a rock or something?? ” Tuff huffed. Hah.

A hum of a laugh rumbled in their throat as they plucked a stray feather from their wing. They really needed to stop doing that. Soon, they'd look like a newborn bird!

“ 'Ve heard rumors, but nothin' concrete. 'Sides, 've been busy scowerin' th' galaxy lookin' fer this nucklehead. ” Dusk snorted, elbowing Twilight softly. He let out an amused huff as he elbowed them back, “ I said I was sorry! ”

That bright smile of his ... it made Dusk's soul sing, relishing in the light it casted. Maybe they'd gone a bit too long without a close connection, sue them, but nothing was going to take this away from them.

Nothing.

[generalluxun]

How do you think the akumatization of juleka would go off in the chloleka AU, what would be the design and theme and how does the class deals with the aftermath, after all this akuma is marinette fault 100% this time, even if came from good intentions, how would she process the situation.

Let's call her Eyerate, because Juleka is mad.

Her powers are twofold:

1)If you look at her, you can't look away(unless something/someone physically forces you) you must give her your complete attention.

2)She can shoot mirrors from her little wrist mirror, putting up reflective surfaces all over, which make it easier to see her and once you've seen her you're stuck @.@ again.

Since it's late in the seasons we can turn this into a talk-down akuma. Firstly the heroes try to fight it, but after taking turns pulling each other out of being ensnared they BOTH end up caught once. Gabe's elated, he thinks he's won!

Then Chloé enters, head down. Chloe being 'humble' is of course unheard of, but it's needed. Juleka's still mad. Mad that no one is paying attention to her, to what she's saying. Chloe walks around and stands back-to-back with Eyerate and take about being seen, about wanting someone to pay attention, about how much it hurts to be ignored. She knows this first hand. She admits she hates it too. How much it hurts and how angry it can make her feel at times.

Then she slowly fumbles her way through explaining how spending time with Juleka has taught her that sometimes it's okay if other people aren't paying attention. A lot of the anger comes from putting too much importance on what other people think. It doesn't have to matter what other people think, even if those people are important to us. Yes, we want them to pay attention, but if they don't we can just ignore their responses in turn. We decide how much to let them get to us, and if they really are people worth having around then they'll figure it out eventually.

Eyerate calms as she listens. She looks in the mirrors she has put up and sees herself, sees herself angry, and doesn't like what she sees. She lets go of her anger and dispels the akuma, hugging her not-yet-girlfriend(but soon!)

Since LB was there and saw the whole thing(among others) Marinette can learn her lesson, and others for the first time get an inkling of how/what Chloe was feeling, so we have a lot of potential for growth. And of course, we get to give Chloe a +1 on the hero side for a change.

[bklynmadman]

I grew up with Men like this.....

So, It's been awhile. Inspiration comes and goes, and it's been challenging to do the one thing that I've always loved to do, which is write. It doesn't matter if it's a Screenplay, or a Blog, or a Short Story. I've made it a point to try to get back to this exercise, and start with attempting a "Weekly" blog. Let's see how that goes for now, anyway, it's a topic that I've been thinking about since the Yankees lost the World Series. And that's is this election.

Before we go forward, this will be about Politics, so if you're seeing this and aren't interested, I will not be offended if you turned out or left. Just hit a like button before you move on. Thank you for reading this far, now back to our topic.

This election is probably the most polarizing one yet. On one side, we have Kamala Harris, the Democratic Frontrunner handpicked by President Biden, and Donald J. Trump, the so called "Republican" nominee for President of the United States. I say that in quotes for I no longer recognize this party as the party of Lincoln, as it has strayed further and further into extremism, hatred, and downright cruelty. I am a bit angry that this election is this close when it should be a blowout. But, as History has shown us, when a Demagogue appeals to the worst in all of us, some are bound to answer that call.

The thing is, and when I realized this, it hit home for me, and that was my starting point for the inspiration of this blog post. I had to realize, I GREW UP WITH PEOPLE LIKE TRUMP. As sad as it is to admit, allow me to explain.

I was born to an Middle/Upper Class White American Family, with Italian/Sicilian Heritage in it. I've attended Private School from Kindergarten up until High School as well. I never knew what struggling was like or went without. I did recognize there were others in my circle less fortunate than I was, but I had no idea how to empathize with them or see things from their point of view. I was taught that I was superior to others, including minorities, because of where I was born and what I had. (It didn't take for I've learned it was covert racism and I have since disavowed it) I wouldn't and still don't admit this when people meet me for the first time for I've learned as I aged, many people are quick to judge the moment it's revealed that you grew up with or had access to money. I'd like for people to get to know me before I share that with them on the grounds that no stereotypes or generalizations come towards me.

Staten Island is a small knit community, and does allow certain "Bubbles" to be formed. Staten Island is primed for people to live in isolation or separated from the rest of the city/state/world if people really wish to do so. The geographical layout helps Staten Island in this area for it is separated from the rest of the 5 Boroughs. Even then, it became people only kept to their social circles, or at least I was encouraged to do so, and did for awhile.

Growing up with people who are privileged, and I'm talking about wealthy white privileged people here, there tends to be a disconnect between them and the rest of the world. This may be a gross generalization, but this info is coming from someone who grew up with similar people in that circle, and demographic.

So, what can I say about Wealthy Whitey and the practices of that inner circle? For starters, Growing up wealthy, and privileged, many kids come away from it with pride and arrogance to their situation. Many mimic their parents, and how parents deal/talk with or about other people in their social circle. A lot of us found it normal when our parents would "Karen" out with a worker/waiter/ whomever is not giving them what they want. At the time, we thought "How couldn't it be normal? I saw other dads and moms do it, and I saw my own parents do it as well." The thing is, Wealthy White people aren't usually taught to be humble, or shown to be empathetic towards others. Before there was a word for it, I've watched what is now known as "Karen"ing. (Again, this was the circle I grew up in. Not to generalize) It became a general accepted practice when Rich White folk felt they weren't getting their money's worth. However, watching the other person, it's a degradation exercise like you've never seen.

When I think about some of the "Karen"ing I've seen, in my early years, (I can say that shit now that I've turned 40, so ha!) I've come to think about it a bit further. For instance, I don't know a single person who parts with their money, and when they feel they aren't getting their money's worth, say something or speak up for themselves. However, for Rich Whitey, this is much much much different feeling. In the circles I grew up in , it felt like someone had told the King to fuck off. There were always these invisible rules that service workers had to hit or the screaming/abuse began, but also gave us first hand knowledge of the "power of money".

The long and short of it is that when Wealthy people spend money, they expect a level or service that sings to a much higher standard than normal people. They will get upset/act out if they feel they are being treated like everyone else. Much of that feeling stems from insecurity. For example, If I'm spending let's say $10,000 on a dinner with my family, some would consider it terrible service if their drink had ever reached the bottom of the glass at any point during that dinner. Not even bothering to take into account things like: other tables, or other people waiting for their food, or the amount of staff working that evening. It doesn't matter! The attitude is this: If I'm dropping that kind of money, I want certain concessions. Even if the concessions are outrageous, it doesn't matter. The money being spent gives many the opinion that they are above the usual standard , even if it's a simple matter of being able to spend much more than the average joe, and want the extra/bonus things that type of spending would bring with it. (Again, it's insecurity)

This type of attitude breeds White Wealthy Privilege, and what winds up happening is many of the kids mimic their parents in both action and attitude. When people have a few dollars, they not only think that they should be receiving a better standard of service, but they also believe that most laws/rules do not apply to them either. Society bends over backwards for these big spenders only because of their big spending habits. Anyone who has worked in a high class restaurant as a waiter knows their regulars well, and also know that sometimes these regulars are assholes in attitude.

Why does this continue? Some of these richers I'm talking about are under the belief that their spending habits are putting more food on the table of others, and therefore are entitled to a level of consideration that goes beyond the normal expectations of a waiter/server. Many behave badly or obnoxiously, and it was justifed to me once that because of the amount of money being dropped on a bill, that the act was considered charity work. We've seen it with so called Celebrities such as James Corden, who had a habit of treating servers with ultimate disrespect simply because he was under the belief that it was a privilege to serve him, and anyone should be grateful for the opportunity to do so. That attitude reigned supreme where I grew up, and you can only be that way if you had the bank account to back it up. I would come to find out later, that the ones with the smaller bank accounts would mostly act this way, while the ones with the larger bank accounts were usually a lot nicer and humbler. (Insecurity is such a bitch, isn't it?)

One time when I was younger, I once saw another parent whom we were vacationing with at the time, in a high class hibachi bar raise an attitude and stink because the waiter told his kid they ran out of Coca-Cola. As a result, He completely "Karen"d it, threw a tantrum to the point that after awhile, the General Manager himself came over with a six pack of Coca Cola, and told the waiter to put the rest in a refrigerator for when the kid wants another one. This event, in and of itself, was bad for kids to watch now that I think about it, for us kids at the table watching learned first hand the power of spending a lot of money, and see how people "Hop To It" to get those who spend it what they want, regardless if it's reasonable or not.

Kids of the wealthy learn that money can bring you anything, even if it seems impossible. If nothing else, it brings a sense of power. For the right amount, it teaches kids you can get anyone to do anything for the right number. Some write this off as nothing or just the way the world works, but make no mistake, it's taking advantage of truly desperate people. As a result, what happens is that rich people just come to expect that type of treatment, without the pricetag. And therein lies the "disconnect" I was talking about earlier.

Sometimes when kids come from massive amounts of wealth, many have trouble relating to other people or people not in their economic class. How could they? They haven't experienced any of the issues from the other side, (the non-wealthy side), so how can they relate to anyone not in their economic class? It's all they know. In their world, no one tells them no, and anyone can be bought for the right number. However, what happens is sort of a result of a Pavlovian experiment, where the behavior is reinforced or exemplified, but the means and factors that enable it are removed. Everyone in their world acts like this, so this is their normal.

I won't be naming specific individuals that I spent my youth with, but I've come across many people who have acted, and moved through life like Republican Nominee Donald J. Trump. Let's talk about this GOP nominee for a second. He's a bully, a wanna be tyrant who believes he's a VIP only because of his money and what he/his brand brings when he's out. I don't know Donald, but in a sense I do know Donald. I know that Attitude. The super entitled, rules don't apply to me, bully, narcissist who has delusions of grandeur.

Donald is a product of a wealthy family, and with that comes privileges. He had his pick of the best and learned one trick that continues to work in his life. It's how to bully others to get what he wants. Many richers bully others, or use their wealth or weight to get what they want, and most of the time, it works. People on the receiving end usually don't have time to deal with it properly, don't want too, or the money is so crucial to them so they'll put up with bad behavior. The Richers know this, and continue to do it because of the other person's love/need of the money they get However, in the grand scheme of things, the money usually isn't that much, and this type of relationship only benefits the richer, and not the worker. You'll find that the worker has given much much more in service than he/she has received in compensation. It's exploitation at it's finest.

What made Trump a bully? Well, Bullies usually cover up something about themselves that they don't want others to see. In this case, Trump probably exhibits undiagnosed Dyslexia, meaning he can't read. There are a few reports in the news of people working with him or have worked with him that have admitted that he can't read. Id imagine he's probably ashamed of this, and reacts aggressive when someone calls him out on it. Trump has a lot of these flaws, which is what makes him the most insecure person in the world, and simultaneously, the potentially most dangerous person in the world if he is elected.

So why does Trump have enablers? Well, They're either bullied into it, or given a sum they are made to work for, and despite the sum, Trump expects the sun and the moon for his coin. In a sense, and this is the other ugly side of having a lot of money, when people like this give you a paycheck they think they're entitled to you, as if they bought you and own you like a pair of socks or a car. With that type of ownership, the worker is no longer a human being to the Richer. They aren't supposed to have problems, issues, children, or even issues getting to work on time. The attitude is "I pay your salary. You work for me. You do what I say or I will get someone who will." This attitude is the worst one to have, and the one that often causes anxiety issues or severe depression among the workers who have a supervisor that feels this way.

RECAP: Rich White Men mostly exhibit the following...

1.) Being the Center of Attention due to Status

2.) Knowing Money can make others do anything they wish

3.) A sense of ownership over someone once money is exchanged for someone's services.

So, what you basically have is a person of privilege, who is running for the highest office in the land, who wants the position he once held. Let's circle back to number 2 for a second. We all know money can make people do crazy things, but to those who have a lot more than others, it's a tool to do anything.

We see it in the news all the time, Rich White People usually don't face consequences for their actions. They pay a hefty fine, get a slap on the wrist, and the story disappears from the news just as quickly as it appeared. It's a given, outside of murder and mass fraud (i.e. Bernie Madoff) there are different laws that apply to Rich White Men. Donald is in that category. His entire life, he has learned to bully his way out of charges.

He has been charged, along with his father of discriminatory housing practices when he first started. He has been charged with running a phony university, a phony charity, and even falsified property values to get himself more favorable business loans. That last one he has been found liable for, and is currently banned from doing business in New York State.

He's used his lawyers to bully workers that performed work for him, either in one of his casinos or one of his properties, and refused to pay them what he agreed to pay them. If anyone had listened to the testimony given by his former fixer Michael Cohen, this was a flex for Donald. He was once quoted talking about one worker who completely renovated a few of his suites in one of his hotels for him, "I paid him enough".

He has assaulted multiple women, found liable for sexual assault against E Jean Carroll. He's best friend was Jefferey Epstein, known pedofile and sex trafficker. He also pals around with people like Vince McMahon, Former WWF/WWF owner, who is currently in a lawsuit that accuses him of sexual assault, rape, and sex trafficking. Birds of a Feather much?

After awhile, when you dodge these charges, an attitude develops. Trump has railed against the Judges, and people who have spoken out against him, denied his crimes, and even went so far as to say "Charges should've never been brought." There was even a rumor, that should Donald retake the white house, he will find a way to clear his record of any wrongdoing.

No one stops to think, where does this attitude come from? It comes from being a Spoiled Child who never had to face any consequences for his actions. A cruel one at that who really gets off at putting others down or depriving others of things.

In my circle of youth, We were taught that laws don't really apply to us, and that we could challenge them when we wished. We were encouraged to speak up when things didn't go our way, regardless of a badge or an uniformed officer. I used to hang out with a few "do you know who I yam?" people, and even more embarrassing "Do you know who my father is?" Money was usually spent whenever one of our circle got in trouble with the law. Many DUI, and DWI's covered up with slaps on the wrists, and hefty fines. So, why should the richers care if they can simply buy their way out of it?

The thing is, in Donald's case, he resents that he even has to pay money to get out of a jam. Donald truly believes he is king of the universe, and that different laws apply to him. It's evident in his actions, and his words. He is telling the truth usually about how horrible he is, and I stress to those that don't know, BELIEVE HIM!

This guy is under the impression that everyone is an enemy out to get him. He's constantly fighting with everyone, over anything because he wants to be treated like royalty, for he firmly believes that is what he deserves. He respects no one and nothing, none of his first two wives, and not even his 3rd wife with he has had many overt extramarital affairs, (Stormy Daniels, Karen McDougal, and recently Laura Loomer. I mean, c'mon, sleep overs???? And people bought that?) Lord knows, who else.

How could all of this happen? Well, what do you reasonably expect from a privledged white rich dude, who doesn't have much money as he claims(Remember: Insecurity?) was never made to face consequences for his actions, who has always been able to get out of trouble mostly unscathed? Well, you get Donald Trump.

People seem to forget he only points out his own problems and talks about how he's slighted, how he's oppressed, how he's being treated unfairly. (I would even go so far as to wager that those shooters who tried to take him out were paid for by his campaign to garner sympathy. Check their family members bank accounts and see if there are sudden changes.)

I conclude, we can do better than this. You don't empower someone like this or reward them with power. It will only be spent to further his own gain, and I feel sorry for people that truly believe he'll fix their problems. He never has done anything, nor will he, that didn't benefit him.