#anyway ty anon i've been meaning to make this post for a while

[minotaurcircuits]

*free pass to yap about any character/ship you want*

actually maybe this is my excuse to ramble about to break in a glove for entirely too many words. sorry if you wanted something else, anon, i've got fucking Thoughts

so like, to break in a glove isn't my favorite song to listen to off the soundtrack or anything, but i do fucking love how it's positioned as like, an exploration of larry's parenting strategies and his grief, and it's really good at doing that, and it also works as a great high for evan before everything finally crashes down around him

however, it also buries the lead in the first few lines.

"but he left it in the bag, with the tag still on"

so, we learn in the novel that connor's an artist, a reader. the various stage sets of his room reflect this, with the space largely populated with books over any other sort of clutter. evan even comments, when he's in connor's room for the first time, that he feels a kinship with him, because there's absolutely nothing sports related in connor's room, which is something they have in common.

and yet, larry's attempt to reach out was a baseball glove

there's also the inherent specificity in the fact that larry tells evan to keep it. despite the way larry says he bought the glove "a thousand years ago", it's an adult sized glove, if it had been bought for a little kid, it would be of no use to evan, so larry wouldn't have offered it. this wasn't like, trying to get connor interested in little league when he was a kid, this was bought recently, after connor developed a personality, at a point at which larry should have known at least the broad strokes of connor's interests

or at least, he'd know that connor doesn't play any sports, and really never has.

just, that continuing thread of the way people wanted connor to engage on their terms, and never engaged with him on his.

there's also the way it works as an evan-connor parallel moment, especially with the context that evan also doesn't like, really actually do sports either, because connor clearly saw it for what it was, a gift for the son his father wanted instead of the one he actually had, overly self-indulgent, more a gift for larry than for connor, and thus, he left it in the bag without a second thought, because he had no interest in it.

evan, though, who hasn't had a dad solidly in his life since he was little, is bonding with larry in this moment, and sees the glove as, this symbol of a father-son relationship that he's never had.

actually while i'm talking about parents and evan-connor parallel moments. god there's this BRILLIANT bit in the novel, when connor's hanging around the hospital, afterwards, and sees heidi looking up those college essays for evan, and comments on how he can't picture cynthia doing that sort of thing for him, "even though i was her life's work". just, the way that completes the parallel between connor and evan, the way evan wanted the stability of the murphys, but connor just wanted the sort of affection and care that heidi offers, that willingness to engage with evan on his level, in a way no one ever engaged with connor.

(which frankly i think could be a fucking fascinating dynamic to explore for someone writing one of those fandom-classic "connor lives and also him and evan actually become friends" fics, because holy shit the potential, but i digress)

my point with this whole post, is that the baseball glove is a microcosm of the failures that led to where connor ended up. that unwillingness on larry's part (on everyone's part, really), to engage with who connor was instead of who larry wanted him to be. like, yeah, the baseball glove was a genuine attempt to reach out to his son, but the fact that it was a baseball glove, singularly one of larry's interests, instead of anything that might actually bridge a gap between them, is a sign of how everyone ended up where they did.

yet another sign of the way people refused to meet connor where he was.

[darkstar225]

Twice's 10th member's love language is touch but Tzuyu's isn't 😓

A/N: Hey guys, I'm sorry for disappearing but I got my wisdom teeth out so yeah- lol. Anyway- I got an ask on Tumblr and I loved writing it, ty anon! :D

The request: hii if your requests are open can i request something? maybe a fic with tzuyu where reader really wants to be affectionate, but knows tzuyu isn't very keen on that so they hold back until tzuyu starts to notice that somethings wrong and asks reader. then tzuyu is kinda like "why wouldn't you tell me this?" and reader admits that they didn't wanna make her uncomfortable, then tzuyu holds them until they fall asleep

PS: Tysm for everyone that reads what I write, I hope I can bring a smile to your faces every time I post! I'd like to thank whoever sent me this idea 'cause I loved to write it <3

__________________________________________________________

In the heart of bustling Seoul, the vibrant energy of the city met the soothing tranquillity of a well-maintained apartment complex. Here, in this abode, lived Y/N, the youngest member of the global sensation TWICE, and a girl whose heart held a secret she yearned to share.

Being the maknae of the group, Y/N was practically bubbling with youthful energy. Her days were filled with laughter, music, and the kind of friendship that made her feel truly blessed. Among the group, however, there was one member she looked up to more than anyone else, Chou Tzuyu. Tzuyu, with her elegance, poise, and that quiet strength that resonated with the younger girl, was someone she held dearer than just a fellow idol.

Y/N admired Tzuyu to a level that transcended mere fellowship. In her eyes, Tzuyu was the older sister she had never had. Every smile, every word, and every action of Tzuyu seemed like a guiding light to TWICE's child. And yet, she held back, for she knew Tzuyu wasn't very keen on excessive displays of affection.

It wasn't that her unnie was cold or distant. She was just more reserved, more comfortable with her personal space. Y/N had picked up on this early, and while her heart ached to shower Tzuyu with the affection she felt, she restrained herself. She didn't want to make Tzuyu uncomfortable. She didn't want her older sister figure to feel burdened by her affection.

Days turned into weeks, and the secret Y/N held started to weigh heavily on her heart. Her bright eyes carried a touch of sadness that only the perceptive eyes of Tzuyu could detect. It was during one rehearsal, as they were running through their choreography, that Tzuyu finally noticed. 

The way her sister seemed to hesitate before engaging in a group hug, the subtle sigh that escaped her lips when her hand brushed against Tzuyu's, the almost imperceptible flinch when Tzuyu playfully ruffled her hair. All these signs were like a mosaic of emotions that Tzuyu began to piece together. (finally)

After practice that day, Tzuyu waited until the others had left. She turned to Y/N, her gaze soft but probing. 

Tzuyu - Darling, can I talk to you for a moment?

Y/N looked at her with wide eyes like a deer in the headlights, momentarily caught off guard. But then, she smiled, though it didn't quite reach her eyes. 

Y/N - Of course, Tzuyu unnie!

They sat down on the edge of the practice stage, the silence between them comfortable yet tinged with an unspoken question. Tzuyu fiddled with the edge of her water bottle, glancing at the youngest from time to time. After some time, she spoke first.

Tzuyu - Is there something bothering you, darling?

Y/N bit her lip, her gaze fixed on the floor. She hesitated for a moment before her heart won over her apprehension. 

Y/N - Tzuyu unnie, I... I want you to know how much you mean to me. You're like the older sister I never had, and I really admire you. But I know you're not very comfortable with a lot of physical affection, so I've been holding back. *pouts*

Tzuyu's eyes softened, the realization dawning on her. She placed her hand gently on her sister's, causing the younger girl to glance up, her eyes swimming with vulnerability. 

Tzuyu - Bae, why wouldn't you tell me this?

Y/N's voice trembled slightly as she answered. 

Y/N - I didn't want to make you uncomfortable, unnie. I didn't want to burden you with my feelings. 

Tzuyu sighed, a mixture of understanding and exasperation. 

Tzuyu - You silly girl. You could never burden me with your feelings! If anything, you've just reminded me how much I cherish our bond.

As Tzuyu spoke, Y/N's heart felt lighter than it had in weeks. She blinked away tears, a mixture of relief and gratitude flooding her. 

Y/N - Really?

Tzuyu chuckled softly, the sound like a melodic jingle. 

Tzuyu - Yes, really. And you know, it's not that I dislike affection. It's just that sometimes, I get caught up in my own head. But for you, I promise, I'll try my best. 

Tzuyu's words were like a warm embrace, a comfort TWICE's angel had been yearning for. The weight she'd carried on her heart began to dissipate, replaced by the genuine affection that flowed between them. At that moment, Y/N realized that her admiration for Tzuyu was not one-sided. Tzuyu cared for her just as deeply.

Y/N - Can I hug you, unnie?

Tzuyu smiled, her eyes crinkling at the corners. 

Tzuyu - Of course you can, honey.

And so, in that empty practice room, the pair shared a hug that spoke volumes. It was a hug that carried the weight of unspoken emotions, the depth of their connection, and the promise of a bond that would only strengthen with time.

As they pulled away, Tzuyu's hand found its way to Y/N's hair, ruffling it playfully. Y/N laughed, a sound that echoed with newfound joy. Tzuyu's smile was brighter than ever, a reflection of the happiness she felt in being able to offer comfort to the girl who she saw as a younger sister.

Tzuyu stood up and extended her hand to Y/N. 

Tzuyu - Come on, let's head home. I'll make you some of my special tea. *smiles with her sweet dimples*

Y/N took her hand, a radiant smile gracing her features. As they walked out of the practice room, side by side, it was a picture of sisterly affection that neither of them would ever forget. And when they finally settled down with cups of tea, Tzuyu held Y/N until she fell asleep, the bond between them stronger than ever, bathed in the warm glow of a newfound understanding and love. As the older members woke up the next morning, they saw this image and could only have a single thought:

We love our maknaes.

A/N: I apologise for any errors, English is not my first language. Pls, let me know if there's something wrong, ty for reading <3

[misc-obeyme]

hi ur writing is literally amazing can i ask u some stuff regarding it/how you go about writing/advice? feel free to ignore this if its not something youre comfy with

were u ever nervous to post fic? i just posted my first one and am like. super embarrassed (i also have a Guilt Complex that influences that lmao). if so, did you find it easier as you kept writing?

also how the hell do you write endings/get the motivation for them? youre really good at tying things together nicely at the end (or the occasional Leave 'Em Wondering) and im curious about your process for it. i can pretty steadily get up to the scene i started the fic to write but after that brain and motivation go honk mimimi

anyways thank you for sharing your work with the internet! i love reading your stuff its always a highlight in my day :)

Hi there, anon!

So first of all, I absolutely LOVE questions about writing, so please always feel free to send me any you may have! I'm such a nerd, I really love talking about the process and I'm happy to discuss it or share advice and so on!

Secondly, omg you're so sweet! Thank you, I'm so glad you like my writing!

Now then, lemme answer your questions! I apologize in advance for the LENGTH of these answers, but I seem to be incapable of writing about this sort of thing without it turning into an entire essay.

Yes, absolutely, I was extremely nervous when I first starting posting my fics. Some of that may have been that I hadn't written fic in a while and I was nervous enough about sharing, but I was extra nervous about messing up characterization. I wasn't used to writing for characters that I didn't create myself. I got nervous again when I started posting smut, too lol.

The thing about this type of anxiety in general is that exposure therapy really is the cure. It's like that for a little bit at first, but the more you do it, the more you prove to yourself that it's no big deal. Nowadays, I have almost no anxiety when I'm posting something fluffy and even most smut pieces are easier for me to post, too.

Another piece of this is remembering that the reason you write fic is for your own enjoyment. You're putting it on the internet on the chance that someone else might like it, too. But really, you have to focus on the things that make you happy. It's easier to deal with posting anxiety if you keep your focus on the joy of creation rather than the adrenaline of sharing. It's hard to do, but it gets easier the more you do it!

Okay, so endings! Uh, here's a fun fact about me, endings are my weakness lol. I have a lot of practice starting things and then never ending them because I absolutely get bored at a certain point. So I know exactly what you mean by the brain going to honk mimimi land.

For me, the trick was to write short stuff. Most of my fics are just scene length. This allowed me to get some practice with writing more endings because I didn't get bored when I was pretty much just writing one scene. So I found a couple things that I like to do for endings specifically, but then I also discovered a way to sort of keep my brain engaged while writing longer stuff.

It kinda all comes down to what you want to leave the reader with. That final paragraph or sentence can really deliver an impactful emotion. So you kinda have to think about what the rest of the scene is about, what specific feeling do you want the reader to have when they get to the end? If you're not sure, you can also frame it as what kind of feeling do you want to have at the end?

One technique I like to use is tying everything back to the beginning. I've used it multiple times, but it's probably most obvious in this Barbatos drabble. The first and last sentences are the same, but you don't have to be that blatant about it lol. That was mostly a stylistic choice. But if you look at the third paragraph and the last paragraph, they are parallels of each other, but they're different. What they convey is that something has changed by the end. So by repeating pieces of the beginning at the end, I'm deliberately illustrating what changed in the middle.

It's like thinking of the ending as a sort of summary of everything that happened in the middle of the story. If you're writing something longer, you can apply this to individual scenes as needed. But you might end up with an entire scene at the beginning and an entire scene at the end that do the same thing (rather than a couple of paragraphs).

Another thing I like to do is leave an implication of further action that isn't included. Something like "You wouldn't leave his room until morning." or maybe "You had a feeling something like this would happen again soon." Like this isn't really the end, but the rest is up to your imagination!

This is more specifically about the last paragraphs/scene/sentence, though. It's good to think of a way to recall the entirety of the story you just told, leaving the reader with the overall feeling you were going for.

But when it comes to longer stories, if you're finding you make it to one scene and then stop, well, that might be the end of your story. For this kind of thing, it really helps me to think about what the end game of the story is. For instance, in my longest fic, The Threads That Bind, I knew it was a Barbatos x MC love story. So the "end" couldn't happen until they had confessed their feelings to each other. A lot of other stuff happened before that, but it all contributed to that final plot point. And there isn't much story after that. The final scene is their confession. (There is a spicy epilogue, but that was just a bonus lol.)

So if you can decide before you even start writing what the goal is, you can write to that goal, filling in a bunch of cool scenes along the way. It doesn't have to be that you know exactly what happens or what the final scene is. When I started writing Threads, I had no idea how the confession was going to go. I just knew that Barbatos and MC had to end up declaring their love somehow.

But I tied that into the rest of the story with the theme of the threads. It was a visual anchor as well as a metaphorical one - magic let them see threads binding them together, but the feeling of belonging to each other was kind of the point of it all. So I was able to take that concept that I'd already used and incorporate it into the final confession scene.

NOW THEN all of this might also be easier if you're an outline type of person, but I most definitely AM NOT. Other writers swear by an outline and you'll probably find a lot of information on how to use one if you Google it.

But outlining for me is like pulling teeth, so I never do it. I write my first draft in a fever dream, with the end goal and a handful of ideas about overall themes and a couple things that I just think would be cool or fun to write. I spend a lot of time daydreaming about the story first, too, but I don't write anything down until I'm writing that first draft.

I could probably write a whole book on my methods for writing, but my biggest piece of advice for this kind of thing is EXPERIMENT.

The best part about writing is that aside from the basic fundamentals (spelling, grammar, sentence structure, etc), there are NO RULES. So if you're finding you're always struggling with finishing, try out anything and everything that might help you with that. Try writing outlines, try not writing outlines, try ending your story with the scene you were working toward, try thinking of a new scene you want to write as the ending scene. If it works, great! If it doesn't work, no problem! Just chuck it and try something else.

Sometimes the best thing for me to do is to ask myself what would be the most fun to write next? And then just going for it. My opinion is that you can always edit things later!

Anyway, I hope some of that helps! I'm sorry I really rambled quite a bit, but like I said, I love talking about this kind of thing lol.

Good luck, anon, and I believe in you!

[lizpaige]

hiii

not sure if you’ve done this before, but would you mind recommending me your top pynch fics? Please and thank youuuuu

hi anon! thanks for the ask! I haven't done a "top" or "favorites" list but I just made my trc/tdt bookmarks on ao3 public so feel free to check those out. i normally bookmark fics i want to re-read and i've been sometimes posting a "fics i read this week" post where i bookmark fics from my history to post here on tumblr.

if you want to stay for a while i can tell you why i don't like top/favorites lists but no worries if you wanna stop reading now 🙃 and also i def dont mean to project any of this below toward you, anon, i really appreciate the question! however, when someone asks me something (esp on anon), i wanna be able to share my feelings on the subject, so here are just my thoughts on the topic of this.

i don't like favorites/top lists in fandom for a number of reasons:

I am SUPER indecisive - I read fic all the damn time and I have loved so many fics I read that if I made a favorites list, it would be 100+ long haha not super digestible for folks to read/pick and choose from. My bookmarks, for example, is over 120+ at the moment and I add to it nearly every week.

I am SUPER forgetful - I sometimes forget to bookmark or save a fic that I read and loved and then it feels like its gone forever. My bookmarks is not a solid list of every fic I've read and loved and people remind me of fics that I think "OMG I LOVED THAT ONE" like every week and I realize I didn't save it so even if I did make a favorites list it would probably be the faves I remember at that moment and not an accurate representation of all the trc fic I've been reading since 2021.

I am SUPER against it - this could just be from my experience in the marauders fandom, but I hate when authors are put on a pedestal or seen as "the best of the fandom" because I don't want to deter anyone from writing fic or creating content in the fandom they love. I've been writing fic since I was 13 (I am 30 now) and we didn't have influencer culture or rating fics on goodreads or speculating authors irl identities on tiktok. (Again this is mainly hp/marauders fandom toxicity hence why I'm outta there, but I think this must also permeate other fandoms - thankfully not trc that I've seen.)

Anyway, my point being - creating content (fic, art, music, etc) for a fandom you love is BEAUTIFUL and I don't want to contribute to the emphasis on number of kudos, bookmarks, and/or comments - that stuff shouldn't matter to readers and it shouldn't matter to writers either. And sometimes when these "favorites" lists come out, it makes the creators (artists, writers, etc) feel like their stuff isn't good enough. With the trc fandom already being so small (I think? where is everyone?) I don't want to contribute to that narrative.

TLDR: Liz, it's not that serious. I know but I was in the marauders fandom around the big boom of ATYD so like I've seen some toxic-ass shit. ty 💕

[psychewritesbs]

Hello, I wonder what do you think of Megumi, Hana and Noritoshi as a trio? I know they're a weird team but tbh I've always wanted Gege to explore Megumi's parallels with these two. Hana representing the childish naivety of Megumi's tendency to put 'good' people like Tsumiki and Yuji on a pedestal (I'm not sure if it was linkspooky or you who pointed this out, or maybe both) and Noritoshi Kamo mirroring Megumi's circumstances as someone whose origins tie him to the big clans (like Naobito tying Megumi down to the Zenin by making him a clown head). And while they both went about this particular circumstance differently, I still believe there's so much similarities to explore between them.

I think if Gege plans on showing us Megumi's progress of growing out of his initially flawed and childish mindset, that seeing him grow alongside Hana and Noritoshi would be really interesting. And personally I just want some love shown to Noritoshi and esp. Hana. Like the hate on her in this fandom is so disheartening to see. The way people mock her for falling to Sukuna's obvious honeytrap and comparing her to Nobara. Like I get it jjk fans like strong, no-nonsense, I don't need no man female personalities, but I feel like it's being over-glorified to the point of absurdity y'know. Like anyone who falls short of that category is immediately a bad character. And in Hana's case it's almost as if character backstory doesn't matter.

Nonetheless, I hope Hana and Noritoshi's continued existence in the manga means Gege still has something planned for them. And I hope Gege will finally explore Megumi's dynamic with other characters more upon his return.

Anon! Love the thoughts! Thanks for sharing them.

To be honest I had never given much thought to them as a trio, but I love what you've written about them as if they existed on a continuum with Nori on one end (responsibility), Megumi in the middle, and Hana at the opposing end (naivety).

I have to say that one of the things I did like about Sakurajima was getting to see Nori more deeply as a character. Especially after he had been kicked out of the clan and how that had affected his sense of self.

As for Hana... le sigh. Tell me about it anon. I think I posted about it before but to me hating on Hana looks like hating on one's own naivety and vulnerability.

I just get the sense that Hana sees herself as a magical girl and was naive enough to think her power of love and friendship had managed to save Megumi. So it's almost like she felt like she had been able to do for him what she had done for her.

That's not to mention that Sukuna fully intended to fool her, so this literally shows why Sukuna thinks love is useless.

As per usual, I think this might be a case of "people can only see things as deeply as they see themselves".

Also, I so love your comment on how a character that doesn't fit that specific mold (strong, no-nonsense, I don't need no man female personalities) is considered bad writing.

The "bad writing" allegations in this fandom often come back to "I didn't like it or it didn't live up to my expectations, so therefore it's objectively bad".

I can see why the execution might feel sloppy, and why people are tired of the "girl pines for boy" trope in animanga, and she does suffer from side af character syndrome, but Hana is by no means a bad character for having a crush on Megumi.

Anyways! Here's to seeing other characters support Megumi in the future anon! Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts.

[tentajack]

This week on Tentajack Z

It's been a while since I've posted about my life stuff

-I'm currently decompressing all the stress from the holidays due to my job, which has left me in what I can only call my 'brain dead' mode while I try to get my shit together again. I'm not doing this shit again next fall/winter so I need to find a better job in the next few months, I WON'T stay where I'm currently working

-Confirmed I'm running the CYOA I've been talking about sometime in the next two weeks, no matter if I don't have everything done (At this point it's just character portraits as I'm swearing off all backgrounds/environmental art except for the opening bathroom scene and a shot of the entire front of the hotel building, and I still need to make those too.) If I don't get it done in time, then tough shit I'm going forward anyways!

-I've only made a few mentions of it on this blog, but the cyoa will be run on 4chan over on /mlp/. I know not everyone is comfortable with that, but this style of cyoa requires all submissions to be anonymous, and the only other viable place that lets me do that is tgchan (Tempted to run there sometimes but I would need to lurk there first to get a feel for it). That said, getting people from over here means some of the dumber anons won't be the majority of responses, so I do invite everyone to give it a try once it's live.

-I had a strange dream series last night, first it was minecraft (did you know I've never played with somebody? Only solo? It's so lonely), then it turned into a strange mix of pokemon and MMBN while taking place in a smoothed over version of the minecraft environment I was in? There was much rollerskating involved and it was so cool. Then it all melted away into a little house in a sky-like void with a pool where the deeper end had algae but I was just chilling and having a fantastic time with the dream people there. I miss people.

-I had like 2 fanfic WIPs I was working on up until all my energy got squeezed out of me by my job, I feel really bad about not finishing them but if I don't work on this CYOA project I'm going to scream

-I still don't have a date for the release of the zine I made an entry for, and while it's nobodys fault (If you're reading this bezka I'm not mad at you at all, I'm just frustrated with the circumstances), I did learn a very hard lesson about tying project start dates to the end dates of other projects; something about my ADHD made it very hard to backpedal from the 'no working on anything else just in case they need you' mindset I made for myself.

-I crave death so badly, but I want to live! whenever or not I can is an entirely different question. I'm going to need to get all my doctor stuff set up like I've been meaning to do for months now

[mbti-enemies]

Hello, I've been following you for a while now in a very ghostly way, and for once I'm going out because I don't understand why you mostly have weird or mean anons ?? (I'm not saying all but mainly ?)

You are all fun, nice, and adorable (yes even you intj and I accept the fight when you want haha)

Frankly keep being just you everyone, you get to make me smile and I always look forward to reading you !

(P.S : Sorry for my bad english

P.S #2 : I will probably die for your xnfp, seriously)

Hellehellohello whatdowehavehere (infj here btw) and TYSM your mail is so very much loved by me and liked by intj and..... yeah-

(we only had one weird ask but that wasnt anon but also it was supposed to be funny (and intj and i cracked up when we heard so) and the asker cleared that up with us)

IM SO GLAD YOU LIKE OUR BLOG, i love you love our blog, we love our blog too i think and its brilliant, think of every post as a little laugh from us to you (though we have a very beautiful aesthetic-vibe one sitting in drafts rn so there's that too)

Heyaaa intj here and uh well ...okay so sorry this took so long thats my fault... but only cause im at a loss of words cause someone *glares at infj* took all good words first which is rather unfair ik , anyway tho i just wanted to say TY FOR ACC ENJOYING OUR BLOG and tbh idk what we like more, you, the way that you actually wrote what might be the best ask one could get , or the fact that we get to make you smile and give u a lil something to look forward too (so thank YOU)

(P.S your english is perfect

P.S #2 we agree with the infp thing

P.S#3 our next post (we think is wonderful and hope youmai do too) is dedicated to you

[spooky-drusilla]

What do you think of Dru only contacting Kit after they needed his abilities? Idk, I kind of feel like people are,,, overreacting?

Hey anon! I believe you're talking about this post from my friend @thefoxandthefound. I didn't see any issues with it??

I think this is mostly bc of different interpretations of the character. Rua believes that the other characters only contacting Kit when they need him for something could potentially worsen his issues with not feeling loved and appreciated for who he is.

(And, if I picked up correctly on her posts, maybe that's even one of the most integral parts of these issues? But I'm not sure if Rua has ever said that, I'm only trying to interpret things through my memory of her posts akhsksjs. I'm also not sure what has already been confirmed by canon and I just didn't pick up on it. Rua, feel free to correct me if you see this! )

Anyway. I've never really interpreted him that way. I mean, it's canon that he doesn't feel loved, but I'm not sure if those interactions would make it worse. For an example, I feel very loved when people find me useful - my abilities don't tend to help people a lot, so, when someone feels like they need me, I like it. In contrast, I can feel kinda awkward when they just ask stuff about my personal life - especially when I haven't seen them in a while, like Kit hasn't seen Dru. So that specific interaction would make me very happy if I were Kit.

But I'm not Kit, and I haven't been through the stuff that he's been through. None of us is. Some parts of his description stand out to us more than they stand out for other people, due to personal preferences and different realities. I'm sure Rua has her reasons for interpreting that interaction the way she did - I mean, she writes amazing posts about TSC. Have you seen her series about floriography?? Amazing. And I have my reasons for interpreting him the way I do, and to remember certain canon traits of him more clearly than others.

Either way, I know Dru didn't mean that. Rua also says that she knows this wasn't Dru's intention, so I'm really cool with her interpretation. Talking about ghosts and prioritizing the shadow world problems over your personal life are kind of Shadowhunter things to do, right? I don't blame Dru for thinking that way, and I'm sure no one else does. So that's what she did: she wanted to solve the ghost problem, remembered of an old acquaintance that could help, so she hit him up, made some polite chat, and then asked if he could help. That's all.

(okay this is the part where the post gets way too long and none of this part is necessary, just thoughts, so I'm gonna cut here)

And also let's remember that they aren't really friends?? Now I know I'm extending this post past the need to, but bear with me.

So, Dru and Kit only really became friends in qoaad. Until then, I don't think they even interacted?? And, in qoaad, Kit mostly did the role of getting Dru closer to her brother. They liked each other and cared for each other, but they weren't ✨besties✨ like we made them out to be. Don't get me wrong, I love that idea, and I want them to be besties in TWP, but they aren't there yet. I don't think he and Dru would have a good conversation about him and his life bc I'm not even sure if he would be comfortable with that?? They certainly didn't have any moments like that in TDA

So, in my interpretation of Kit, what was going on in his brain? "Ah, wow, Dru sent me a message. Cool cool cool. I liked Dru. Fun Girl. A cool Blackthorn. Sister of Tiberius Blackthorn. Which I left hanging to come to Devon. Wow, I should probably mention that I'm adjusting to being a Brit. Ah wow I really left Ty for this huh? Well it was for the best. I shouldn't have opened up for him the way I did, bc I never open up to anyone, and that really hurt me. Oh god what if he told Dru what happened?? I should probably tell her I'm over him. Let's mention my girlfriend. *Has a whole convo about Mari*. Ghosts?? Did she mention ghosts?? Oh no we really are talking about Ty, aren't we. I'm gonna ask that. Oh no, she's lying to me saying it's not. I gotta go."

So, yeah, no space for that specific type of insecurity. And no space to expect or even want Dru to give him attention as a person. But if you hate my interpretation, that's okay. Not all of us have to interpret his text messages the same way akhakshskhsks it's all fine, and I'm not one to start fandom wars over that

Yeahh so I didn't feel like Rua was overreacting, she was just seeing another chance to confirm her suspicions that her interpretation is correct. Which I think it's very cool and amazing of her

[butterflies-dragons]

That was a heartbreaking read :( Enlightening tho, TY!! While I was aware of the parallels between Marillion & hound's attacks, I hadn't noticed the recurring themes leading up to the hound's attack. I've seen others speculating about nightmare wrt Jonsa and IA with you that nightmare is Sansa's way of processing her trauma. But I also think it could be part of the "Jon is a foil to Sansa's false beasts" motif. Two men with scarred faces forced Sansa onto her bed & assaulted her, but the 3rd 1/2

Hello Anon,

Many thanks for your words.  Here is the post for anyone interested.

About scarred face men around Sansa, Jon wouldn’t be the third, in any case the forth or even the fifth, but Sansa could meet others before her reunion with Jon, a man from the Mountain Clans of the Vale for example, like the Burned Men.

So far we have:

Ilyn Payne has a scarred face (pockmarked).   

The Hound has a scarred face (burned).

Tyrion Lannister has a scarred face (noseless).    

I also suspect Lothor cut Marillion’s face while saving Sansa.

Illyn Payne didn’t try to rape Sansa but his interactions with Sansa are surrounded by rapey and phallic imagery... I know, it’s disturbing...

Sansa always feel naked next to Ilyn Payne:

“The king is gone hunting, but I know he will be pleased to see you when he returns,” the queen was saying to the two knights who knelt before her, but Sansa could not take her eyes off the third man. He seemed to feel the weight of her gaze. Slowly he turned his head. Lady growled. A terror as overwhelming as anything Sansa Stark had ever felt filled her suddenly. She stepped backward and bumped into someone.

(...)

There was general laughter, led by Lord Renly himself. The tension of a few moments ago was gone, and Sansa was beginning to feel comfortable … until Ser Ilyn Payne shouldered two men aside, and stood before her, unsmiling. He did not say a word. Lady bared her teeth and began to growl, a low rumble full of menace, but this time Sansa silenced the wolf with a gentle hand to the head. "I am sorry if I offended you, Ser Ilyn," she said. She waited for an answer, but none came. As the headsman looked at her, his pale colorless eyes seemed to strip the clothes away from her, and then the skin, leaving her soul naked before him. Still silent, he turned and walked away.

—A Game of Thrones - Sansa I

This line: “His pale colorless eyes seemed to strip the clothes away from her” sounds very rapey... And the reference to his “pale colorless eyes”  next to this line: “and then [strip] the skin, leaving her soul naked before him”, sounds like Bolton imagery, colorless eyes and flying skin.

Also, Ilyn Payne having Ice has a powerful and disturbing phallic imagery:   

The serving girls tried to talk to her when they brought her meals, but she never answered them. Once Grand Maester Pycelle came with a box of flasks and bottles, to ask if she was ill. He felt her brow, made her undress, and touched her all over while her bedmaid held her down. When he left he gave her a potion of honeywater and herbs and told her to drink a swallow every night. She drank it all right then and went back to sleep.

She dreamt of footsteps on the tower stair, an ominous scraping of leather on stone as a man climbed slowly toward her bedchamber, step by step. All she could do was huddle behind her door and listen, trembling, as he came closer and closer. It was Ser Ilyn Payne, she knew, coming for her with Ice in his hand, coming to take her head. There was no place to run, no place to hide, no way to bar the door. Finally the footsteps stopped and she knew he was just outside, standing there silent with his dead eyes and his long pocked face. That was when she realized she was naked. She crouched down, trying to cover herself with her hands, as her door began to swing open, creaking, the point of the greatsword poking through …

She woke murmuring, "Please, please, I’ll be good, I’ll be good, please don’t,” but there was no one to hear.

—A Game of Thrones - Sansa VI

Ned used Sansa to kill Lady, Sansa’s direwolf, a part of her soul.  So, in a way, Ice has cut Sansa already.

Later, Ilyn Payne used Ice to kill Ned, Sansa’s father.  So Ice is painted with Lady’s and Ned’s blood.  And a bloody sword is also a metaphor of a phallus deflowering a maiden:

"Brandon loved his sword. He loved to hone it. 'I want it sharp enough to shave the hair from a woman's cunt,' he used to say. And how he loved to use it. 'A bloody sword is a beautiful thing,' he told me once." 

"You knew him," Theon said.

The lantern light in her eyes made them seem as if they were afire. "Brandon was fostered at Barrowton with old Lord Dustin, the father of the one I'd later wed, but he spent most of his time riding the Rills. He loved to ride. His little sister took after him in that. A pair of centaurs, those two. And my lord father was always pleased to play host to the heir to Winterfell. My father had great ambitions for House Ryswell. He would have served up my maidenhead to any Stark who happened by, but there was no need. Brandon was never shy about taking what he wanted. I am old now, a dried-up thing, too long a widow, but I still remember the look of my maiden's blood on his cock the night he claimed me. I think Brandon liked the sight as well. A bloody sword is a beautiful thing, yes. It hurt, but it was a sweet pain.

—A Dance with Dragons - The Turncloak

In contrast to Ned cleaning Ice after using the sword, Ilyn Payne keep it bloody:

Sansa had not even seen Ser Ilyn return to the hall, but suddenly there he was, striding from the shadows behind the dais as silent as a cat. He carried Ice unsheathed. Her father had always cleaned the blade in the godswood after he took a man’s head, Sansa recalled, but Ser Ilyn was not so fastidious. There was blood drying on the rippling steel, the red already fading to brown. “Tell Lady Sansa why I keep you by us,” said Cersei.

Ser Ilyn opened his mouth and emitted a choking rattle. His pox-scarred face had no expression.

“He’s here for us, he says,” the queen said. “Stannis may take the city and he may take the throne, but I will not suffer him to judge me. I do not mean for him to have us alive.”

“Us?”

“You heard me. So perhaps you had best pray again, Sansa, and for a different outcome. The Starks will have no joy from the fall of House Lannister, I promise you.” She reached out and touched Sansa’s hair, brushing it lightly away from her neck.”

—A Clash of Kings - Sansa VI

Sansa even dreams having her wedding night with Illyn Payne: 

“Once she dreamed it was still her marrying Joff, not Margaery, and on their wedding night he turned into the headsman Ilyn Payne. She woke trembling.”

—A Storm of Swords - Sansa II

So I think we must count Ilyn Payne in the scarred face men with rapey/non con connotations surrounding Sansa list, next to the Hound, Tyrion and Marilion that later also lost his eyes. 

And in AFFC Sansa meets another scarred face man: 

The gaoler Mord came with him, a monstrous man with small black eyes and a lopsided, scarred face. One ear and part of his cheek had been cleaved off in some battle, but twenty stone of pallid white flesh remained. His clothes fit poorly and had a rank, ripe smell. 

A Feast for Crows - Sansa I

Sound familiar?

Anyway, let’s talk about Jon now.  

Among all these men, Jon’s scar in his left eyes, a gift from Orell’s eagle, is almost nothing.  He is not disfigured like the Hound (half face burned), Tyrion (noseless) and Marilion (lost his eyes).  But there are theories that he could lose an eyes, like Waymar Royce his look-alike, an Jonnel ‘One Eye’ Stark, his ancestor and almost name-sake.   

Also, among all these men called beast in figurative sense, Jon’s beastly status is about him being a warg, a skinchanger.  Jon is both Beast and Man. That’s why there are theories about Jon’s soul living inside Ghost after his physical death.  

And finally Jon is the only hidden/secret prince that is a very significant parallel with the Beast from the fairy tale “Beauty and the Beast.” 

You can read more about jonsa and “Beauty and the Beast” in the following links:  

In the original fairy tale ‘La Belle et la Bête’ written by Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve, Beauty and Beast/Prince are cousins.

There is a version of Beauty and the Beast where the Beast is a white wolf.

Other ship questioning jonsa and its connections with Beauty and the Beast.

Other ship questioning jonsa and its connections with Beauty and the Beast II.

Other ship questioning jonsa and its connections with Beauty and the Beast III. 

I agree that Jon won’t assault Sansa and that she will probably sing to him spontaneous and willingly.  Also take note that the Beast from “Beauty and the Beast” was very courteous, he needed to court Beauty and make her see him beyond his beastly appearance, in order to break his curse.           

Even in GRRM’s favorite version of the tale, the 1946 French film “La Belle et la Bête” directed by Jean Cocteau, “The Beast invites Belle to dinner, where he tells her that she's in equal command to him and that she will be asked every day to marry him. Days pass as Belle grows more accustomed to and fond of the Beast, but she continues to refuse marriage”.

So, Jon won’t be part of that long list of butchers around Sansa. 

I got your point, you made sense, don’t worry.  But I refuse to associate Jon with traumatic Sansa’s nightmares.  I wish for him to be A Dream of Spring.        

Thanks for your message.

[b-rainlet]

Just want to say I love your blog. Your TUA content is lovely and I can't say what a breath of fresh air it is to find another Luther champion. The fandoms treatment of him, istg, some of the most ludacris nonsense I've ever had to read. Especially love how you point out he's ALWAYS been so sweet and selfless when it comes to Allison and her personal happiness. Anyway I saw you say you seem confident alluther will actually happen. I sure hope so, but why do you figure? The antis are so loud.

Awwwww, thank you anon, you’re so sweet! Yeah, this blog is on 24/7 loving Luther lockdown! I feel like the antis are easing up a little bit after S2 aired because most of Luther’s scenes were used as comedic relief and the faves he was clashing with (Diego and Vanya) seem to have a better relationship with him now, so it’s not as bad anymore, but I have to admit I never ever go into the main tag so I can’t be 100% sure. 

Maybe you should try looking through the ‘Luther Protection Squad’ tag to find some more like-minded people? I swear there are more of us out there!

But to come to the Alluther question: 

I know that the antis are loud and I’ve noticed that most of them have counted S2 as a win for them, talking about how Allison ‘moved on’ and how Alluther won’t happen but I disagree (and I will now launch into a rambly post about why lmao).

WARNING: CONTAINS S2 SALT. PROCEED WITH CAUTION

All of this is based on the assumption though that they will be somewhat consistent in their writing regarding Alluther and S2 taught me that that isn’t very likely, so maybe I’m completely wrong and Alluther will never ever be mentioned in S3, but based on what happened so far, I could see them as an endgame couple. 

I mean in S1 they were a pretty big plot point so I don’t think I have to say anything about that but even though the Alluther scenes have been toned down in S2 they were there. 

Let’s see what antis would say about why Alluther won’t happen: 

Allison is married

And? Allison has been married before and still mentioned comparing every man she ever loved/dated to Luther. Allison has been married and she has had a kid with another guy and still Alluther was going strong. 

Not to mention that the end of this season has made it very clear we won’t see Raymond again.

Raymond (and Sissy) are temporary love interests for this particular season and both of them cannot leave their timeline without majorly fucking things up - at least according to Five, but the whole timetravel rules can change at the drop of a hat - but more importantly, both of them had a talk with their respective lovers about wanting to stay in their timeline. 

So unless Allison will return to the 60s (which doesn’t seem likely tbh), Raymond is gone for good. 

 Raymond was her true love tho! Like Klave!

I don’t think antis actually word it like this but I’ve noticed how all of them hopped onto the Almond train immediately and keep gushing about how good and cute they are and that’s great! You can ship what you wanna ship! But I think a lot of the love for this ship has to do with how it prevents Alluther from happening. If Allison is deeply in love with this wholesome man, she can’t ever like her brother. 

But tbh….I didn’t buy Almond. For two people who are happily married they crumble and burn awfully fast. 

And tbh, I was thinking about making a post about this so I’m gonna add this rant here but I just wanna preface this with the fact that I don’t hate them and I don’t hate people who ship them, I’m just….using this opportunity to poke some hole into their relationship. 

I think it would’ve been more believable if Raymond and Allison would be in the early stages of dating while all of S2 goes down. Think about it.

They are married? After one year? I mean, as far as I know, Allison has been in the 60s for about two years - since Luther was the first one who arrived and he spent 3 years there??? But I am not fact-checking this, so correct me if I’m wrong - so she had time to get used to being there, adjust to having no voice, meet Raymond, fall in love with him and get married to him. 

And considering she could already talk again it must’ve have been a while before she started talking to/dating Raymond? I don’t think a wound like that wouldn’t take a while to heal but with this show’s consistency, maybe it did. 

I was actually hoping Allison would stay mute for a while longer but alas

So, they got married pretty fast imo, and you could argue that it’s the 60s but 

Allison isn’t from the 60s

Allison just got out of a bad marriage. There’s like, a year?? maybe?? between her first marriage and her second one and tbh, I don’t think Allison would get married again so fast, tying herself to someone again almost immediately, especially if you consider what getting married in the 60s means for a woman and her personal freedom (it’s hinted at with Sissy but not with Allison and even though Raymond was probably a good husband who let her have her freedom and her say in things - as we can see with their movement - it’s still the 60s. Women couldn’t earn their own money. They couldn’t even spend any money without having to ask their husband. They were basically property of their husband and I can’t believe Allison would immediately jump back into being married, no matter how nice and good the guy is). 

“That just means it’s true love! That’s why their marriage may seem rushed!”

Yeah true love. I also keep secrets from my true love.

I mean, I understand that Allison couldn’t start talking about time travel or Raymond would’ve started thinking she’s crazy or something - and maybe would’ve sent her to a mental institution as is his right as a husband, so good idea getting married! - but she didn’t mention stuff like “I had a child.” or “I lost my family.” either and those are vague enough to not raise questions.

I mean, she could’ve lied! She could’ve said Claire is dead, which considering the apocalypse was what they were escaping is true!

She could’ve talked about how she had a family, but they kinda lost each other - maybe talking about how they all moved away and she doesn’t know where they are now, even though she misses them terribly. 

I mean, I simply can’t believe that she had to grief for her own child all on her own and she didn’t even tell her husband (and she couldn’t even properly be sad about it since Raymond and her lived together, so she probably didn’t have many moments where she could think about the future and the things she lost without the possibility of being walked in on). 

And how much it would’ve meant if there would’ve been a scene of her crying over Claire when she thinks she’s alone, but alas.

Then there’s also the whole added drama to their relationship. Which was btw, so unnecessary.

@showwriters: Why do you establish a relationship you obviously want to be viewed as full of love and instead of letting it be the steady rock the character can lean on during all the already ongoing chaos, you add drama to it and let it fall apart as a side plot which immensely suffers from not being shown/explored enough. 

I mean, we already have relationship drama with Vanya/Sissy and that relationship feels more natural because their obstacles are outside forces and not...one of them distrusting the other. 

You know, I get why Raymond is suspicious, I totally do! I just don’t think it makes the relationship believable. 

Once again, if they would’ve been in the early stages of dating and suddenly Allison’s weird brothers appear and she seems to be in cahoots with the cops, I would also think ‘???’ and it would’ve made perfect sense for Raymond to be confused and distrustful and not want to talk to Allison. 

But they’re married. They’re married and they vowed to love each other in sickness and in health and yet Raymond immediately jumps to ‘Allison is a spy’.

The woman you love enough to marry. That’s your first thought. Okay. 

(And if you wanna compare that to Vissy...Vanya suddenly drives off in the night to meet her family and disappears for a while and she apparently did something to Harlan and now he’s behaving weirdly and has powers….and she’s talking about taking Sissy and him to the future…..and yet….Sissy trusted Vanya). 

And tbh, I was done with their whole relationship the moment Allison spent the whole night calling every single hospital, trying to find out whether her husband was in one of them - was even alive - in tears and close to breaking down because the last time she saw him they were both involved in a riot and the possibility of him being in jail or hurt is very high only to find out…..

…..he had a meeting with their group without telling her because he doesn’t trust her. 

And what? He couldn’t have called her to at least tell her he’s okay and he’s gonna stay somewhere else overnight because shady shit did just go down that they need to discuss but he wants to be alone for now? That’s the bare minimum and yet he doesn’t do that. He doesn’t even call to make sure she is okay since running away doesn’t mean she couldn’t have accidentally been dragged into a brawl and hurt. 

Once again: They are married. 

So tbh, all I got from this relationship is the feeling that Allison simply didn’t wanna be alone in this new timeline and that isn’t an explicit point against Alluther. 

Okay, but….Allison moved on! So she still won’t get with Luther!

Did she? Did she really? I don’t think so. I mean, one of the first things we get from Allison aside from ‘She’s married’ is ‘She looks at the moon so often, her husband notices and gets her a book related to that’. 

That’s one of the most blatant ways they could’ve said: ‘She misses Luther.’

And Luther only. Not the whole family, Luther. If they wanted to somehow make this platonic or familial, they wouldn’t have taken the character she is canonly interested in romantically (which she is and has been since S1, no matter what antis say). 

I mean, if they only wanted to show ‘She misses her family’ they could’ve added a scene where she listens to the kid next door playing the violin or sees a boy in schoolboy shorts or maybe mistakes someone for Diego or whatever, endless possibilities. But they didn’t. 

They made it very clear she misses Luther and I don’t think she had a scene that shows her missing any of her other siblings in such a way (which is btw paralleled by the scene where Luther mistakes someone for Allison, which is also the only scene where he’s shown thinking about one of his siblings to the point he thinks he sees them - as far as I remember). 

But that’s probably only a coincidence, right?

Then there’s them meeting for the first time. I mean, they hug and the rest of the world disappears.

They took the time to shoot/cut this scene in a way that, when Allison and Luther hug after years of not seeing each other, everyone else isn’t in the shot anymore and it’s just them. Because they tried to make this as platonic as possible. 

(In comparison, Allison and Diego don’t even hug. And Klaus and Allison do hug and it’s a happy moment but there is no romantic music and it’s more focused on them being happy to see each other and not framed as a romantic scene. I mean, I have no clue regarding things like ‘motifs’ and ‘scenery’ but just watch those two hug scenes back to back and you know what I mean). 

Then the scene proceeds and they talk and sit down and Luther mentions her marriage and Allison tries to apologize. 

Just think about that. She doesn’t outright apologize but she does try to explain why she got married by saying how hard it was and is only stopped by Luther telling her he’s glad she wasn’t alone. 

How….how can you read that as a platonic convo between brother and sister? Just replace Luther with Klaus. Why would she feel the need to explain herself and seems guilty about being married? Is it because it implies she gave up on finding her family? If so, that would be her reaction with every sibling but she is explicitly like this with Luther. She tells Klaus she’s married too, and in that scene it’s definitely a ‘siblings catching up’ moment and it’s a happy moment and she doesn’t seem apologetic about being married. 

She is with Luther. 

Because they both know that there’s something between them and has been for a long time, to the point that Allison is visibly jealous when Luther has other relationships (his one-night-stand in S1) and this is the second time Allison has turned towards another man instead of waiting for Luther. And that’s why she tries to apologize. That’s why she tries to explain that she couldn’t know whether they - whether Luther - would ever show up, so she tried her best to move on - but she didn’t really, hence the moon scene. 

(This is also the scene where Luther could’ve been angry with her - and she probably would’ve thought he’s in the right - since during the days leading up to the apocalypse it seemed like they were slowly working towards being together - even if the kiss never happened, there’s still the phone booth scene which is basically Luther confessing his feelings - and now she once again leaves him standing alone, waiting for her to possibly return to him. 

But he isn’t, he just tells her he’s glad that she wasn’t alone. Because he is the actual embodiment of a gentleman and this world doesn’t deserve him). 

And this is just what I remember from watching the season once and then not really engaging with it, I can’t understand how antis can see those scenes and come to entirely different conclusions. But I guess, you really only see what you wanna see, huh?

But, but…...Incest is disguting! Even their siblings think so!

They don’t. They really don’t. There’s a gifset on tumblr somewhere compiling the scenes in S1 that show how chill the sibs are with Alluther, but let’s disregard those and just focus on S2 since they changed up a lot from the prior season and antis seem to think S2 was them finally saying ‘No Alluther’. 

I guess there’s the hair salon scene where Vanya, Klaus and Allison talk about relationships and Klaus lightly teases Allison for liking Luther. 

Now, he mentions Allison crushing on their brother in the same sentence where he talks about Vanya and her ‘Farmfrau’ and unless I missed it, he doesn’t change his voice. He doesn’t suddenly sound completely disgusted, or like he wants to vomit or whatever people think, so either, he thinks Vissy is as ‘disgusting’ as Alluther, or, he thinks both are simply relationships his sibs are interested in pursuing and he teases them about them like a sibling may do. 

And then you have Allison’s reaction. 

She doesn’t go: ‘Oh yeah, that was gross, what was I thinking’, she doesn’t make a face or disgusted noises or what, no, she tries to defend herself and her feelings. 

Which tells us: 

Despite popular belief to disregard Allison’s say in the Alluther relationship, she wants the relationship and she is obvious enough about it their siblings know (and Klaus makes it a point to say ‘Allison is into Luther’ and not ‘Luther likes Allison and Allison tolerates it). 

Alluther is brought up while they talk about current relationships, implying Allison still feels this way (especially because the way she reacts doesn’t make it seem like it’s a long over relationship with no longer relevant feelings. But again, I watched the season once and I don’t remember everything that was said. I think this is telling enough though). 

So..tell me again how everyone thinks Alluther is disgusting?

By now anon is thinking: ‘What is the point of all this rambling?’ 

And yeah, I am sorry for going way too into detail but I just wanted to make it clear that if the writers were intend on killing Alluther off in S2 - like antis believe - then everything I just mentioned wouldn’t have happened.

(And that’s without even mentioning the cpr scene). 

Alluther did get reduced but it didn’t vanish even though they decided to completely erase other things (like Claire and Eudora who are barely or not at all mentioned or things like Kliego being very close). 

This would’ve been the best opportunity! They re-meet in the 60s and Allison is happily married and takes the time to tell Luther he should move on. Or both are single and Luther tries to ask where they’re standing and whether she would like to try with him and she goes ‘This would be a mistake’ and that’s it.

(I am making Allison the one who ends things because it would be ooc for Luther to just end the possible relationship after waiting for Allison for years and there needs to be some consistency even in the mess that was S2). 

But! This didn’t happen!

Alluther is more or less back where it was in S1. Allison isn’t in a relationship anymore and won’t get back with the guy and Luther loves her no matter what. And the cheek kiss seems to leave them both on a hopeful note of finally getting together. 

So unless they use S3 to once again redo the show, it feels like Alluther is set up to be endgame. Like, I am getting ‘star-crossed lovers’ vibes where you’re just waiting for them to finally get together - because they just belong - but things keep getting in the way.  

You could compare it Diego/Lila in that regard, I think it’s pretty obvious those two are gonna end up together too. 

I have another ask about how they could get together, where I will definitely ramble more, but this shall be it for now. I hope it was halfway consistent. (And doesn’t have too many typos, I’m too lazy to check).

Also the formatting is shit but idc, I spent like two hours on this

[midnight-in-town]

Is there anything in the flashback arc of AnE that you've found particularly notable or surprising? I've been pleasantly surprised by how likable Yuri is and how successful Shiro used to be at picking up girls.

Hey Anon! And same for Yuri, I absolutely love her when I couldn’t stand her in the anime, which is why I’m really enjoying this huge flashback! 

Tbh, Yuri was a question mark I was really scared to ever see being addressed in the manga after what the anime showed us of her character. She’s barely mentioned for so long too that when she’s finally hinted at for the first time…

I remember the fandom’s huge (positive) reaction to that. 

Then we got ch89, which was the first time we saw her in the manga thanks to Shura’s flashback…

and the fact that she and Shiro seemed to have these complicated romantic subtones between them pleased me a lot, so I stopped being scared of manga!Yuri possibly being too similar to anime!Yuri. 

The current flashback presents her as a kind-hearted, strong and brave woman, which is something I will never dislike anyway, even if me loving her will just make it really harsh for my heart when she is to die. :/ 

So yeah, Yuri is amazing and I love the fact that Rin, who was so scared to know anything about her since he could guess this wouldn’t be a happy story, came to love her too almost instantly. 

But I’m scared to witness Rin witnessing everything that has yet to happen. T_T

Otherwise, besides Yuri who was really one of the biggest mysteries, I don’t think the flashback brought us anything surprising since it is all about tying the different plot points. I do think we’re in for surprising plot twists, but in my opinion it will be about how the twins came to be born and the Blue Night mainly.

Like, clearly, Shiro decided to raise the boys because he loved Yuri. He may have tried to justify it differently to other people, just like Mephisto, because presenting the boys as weapons for the Order was the only way to guarantee their survival, but this is about Yuri first and foremost and I love how the flashback is slowly building up to that…

Because I think these conclusions are something that Shiro was told by Yuri as she died, or something that he came to understand by himself after she passed away and he decided to raise the twins for her (or for both of them and as a huge ‘fuck u’ to Section 13, idk). 

And that’s why this whole flashback is killing me. Satan may be the twins’ biological dad, but the main reason the boys are who they are now is because Shiro and Yuri loved each other (and actually I have trouble understanding why some readers see Satan/Yuri in a positive light, but this isn’t the point).  

It’s @blueexorshit who made me realize that as Satan claims that Yuri belongs with him, she hesitates a second before saying okay because…

…she thinks about Shiro and I died inside when I read that.

One thing I think some readers (Satan/Yuri shippers mainly) may have gotten wrong is that Yuri didn’t go to Satan or said “okay” about staying with him because she’s in love with him. I mean, sure, she still sees him as Rinka, a precious friend

but what she’s after by literally sacrificing herself is…

saving people from him. Because for her that’s what an exorcist’s job is all about (see her argument about that with Shiro in ch102) and also because that way she can protect all the other people she cares about (like Rick and Shiro of course).

Anyway, sorry, I don’t know why I turned this answer into a Shiro/Yuri essay, but… wait actually I think that’s what I found the most surprising about the current flashback. xD I was expecting answers obviously, but of the same tones than those Mephisto gave to Lightning and Suguro before. 

Instead, Sensei decided that her answers were to be given by focusing on what sort of dynamic went on between Satan/Yuri/Shiro. So I really wasn’t expecting to have so many feelings about Shiro/Yuri or to realize that the fact they loved each other…

…basically led to the whole plot of this series, even if they were out of luck and that didn’t end happily for them.

It’s both beautiful and tragic and we’re not even there yet. ;_; Even Shiro picking up girls that you mentioned is something that we got a throwback on, since he clearly stopped doing that (maybe by the time he started to fall in love with Yuri) + years later he also advised Shura not to do the same (ch78).

Everything is being tied together and I love that and the way Sensei chose to show it to us (and Rin). Still expecting plot twists though, as I said (like Yuri running away because she realizes her sons are to become vessels or because Satan will try to kill powerless!baby Yukio, idk, anything or even how this all ties to Mephisto’s plans), so there may be more surprising answers coming towards us. We’ll have to see. :)   

Amongst other things I found particularly interesting was the focus on Shemihaza out of all the Grigoris, since I believe like many others that it is related to Shiemi’s arc, as well as the introduction of almost all the other Baals (we’re only missing Beelzebub), because this is also relevant to the current timeline that Rin left behind for a little while.

I’m also very curious about seeing Angel in the past, or what this guy…

was up to, being by Lucifer’s side to protect him, since we know Mephisto and Lightning are still after another traitor who helped/still helps the Illuminati. 

And the thing is, I don’t trust that Jeremiah dude in the slightest considering how happy he is to see Shiemi again when he’s literally robbing her of her freedom in the present timeline…

As for Arthur, I don’t believe in his amnesia explanation and that’s why I want to see what happened to him. 

If he truly was a Lucifer clone of Section 13, then he has a lot of reasons to pretend not remembering anything while plotting his revenge against Mephisto and the higher ups. His distaste of Shiro doesn’t help his case, since we know that Shiro ended up taking Mephisto’s side by choosing to raise the twins. 

It was also very interesting to understand where all the guys who helped Shiro raise the twins came from…

and finally, I’m curious to find out if Shura being “abandoned” by Shiro is pre or post Blue Night, as in:

did he really jump on the first chance he got to leave her behind?

or did he realize Yuri was right and maybe, as he got the Koma sword and the order to kill Yuri/Satan’s kids, he decided he couldn’t get her involved?

or did he decide to leave her behind because he took on raising the twins and getting Shura involved was out of question there again?

Because I do think that Shura ended up being like a daughter for Shiro, she was really like an introduction to him becoming the twins’ father, so him leaving her behind (which created a lot of resentment in her) might have a more significant side to it. Or not, we’ll see. xD

Aaaaand I think that’s it! Sorry for rambling. ^^” I hope this answers your question. 

Have a nice weekend Anon! :))

[zvaigzdelasas]

hey so, I saw ur post abt liberals being bad and like? I always assumed I was liberal but we seem to agree on a lot of things judging by what I've seen of ur blog, so would u explain how you define a liberal? genuinely curious, ty for ur time

Yeahsure anon! within the political mainstream in the US, “liberal”tends to be the default identity that people hold towhen they don‘t outright support screwing people over in moreobvious ways, so I understand that confusion – I used to considermyself a liberal too (at one point i even considered myself alibertarian but that‘s a whole other bag of worms lol). Thisis gonna be a lil bit lengthy but i hope u find it helpful!

There‘sa lot of problems with liberalism, but most of them really stem fromthe belief that the reasons the world is cruel are because the systemisn‘tworking as intended, and if we were to grease the right wheels andtighten the right screws, things would be prettymuch ok.

„Ifwe vote for the right politicians, things would be fixed!“ whileeven the most genuinely well-intentioned politicians (who are a tinyminority anyway) still have to work within the frameworks of theState which are largely determined by Capitalism, and any reforms tomake things work more for ~the people~ are necessarily temporary, andcan be rolled back when someone without those same good intentionscomes into power. Looking at the US today is a pretty stark example,but you can even see this when  you look at the liberal wonderland ofSweden: in the 70‘s-80‘s their famous social safety net wasreally at its peak, they were even moving to gradually move businessownership from the Capitalists who owned them to those businessesbeing owned by the workers who did the work. It was like the shiningmodel of how successful Democratic Socialism could be. Butnow if you look today, Sweden has one of the highest wage inequalitygaps in the entire world, and all the social safety net programs havebeen decaying into privatization over the last couple decades. Why?That‘s a natural bridge into another major weakness of liberalism:it ignores (or at best, drastically underplays the importance of)structures of Power in our society.

Thereason that Swedish workers were able to gain so much in the70‘s-80‘s wasn‘t because of some benevolent politicians, it wasbecause they were able to organize strikes, work stoppages, and thelike to such a degree that it threatened what fundamentally gives theCapitalists (by which i mean those who „own“ factories,businesses, and everything else which allows people to exist insociety, and who employ others to supply the labor to run thosethings) power in a Capitalist society – that is, their control overthose Meansof Production (afancy term for the aforementioned factories, businesses, etc), whichis intrinsically tied to their profit. By showing their ability togrind that profitability to a halt, the workers were able to forcemuch more concessions in quality of life than the capitalists wouldfind ideal („ideal“ being as low a quality of life as possiblethat wouldn‘t immediately kill them). So what changed? If you‘refamiliar with global economic history over the last few decades itshouldn‘t surprise you to hear that the answer is Neoliberalism.I‘m not gonna go too deep into that tho bc this is getting longenough already, but basically powerful nations (led mostly by the USand UK) forced a global reorganization of class power back into thehands of the Capitalists, enforced through liberal institutions likeNATO and the IMF, anda lotof violence.

Anyway,back to why liberalism is bad. In response to the epidemic of policebrutality, the liberal response is „more cameras“, „better/moresensitivity training“, „demilitarize the police“ (whatever thatmeans), etc, instead of asking the more difficult core question of„What is the role of police in our society?“ and „Do we needpolice?“ If you‘re approaching the question from a liberal lenswhere capitalism and the sanctity of Private Property is taken as agranted, then yeah of course we need cops! Who else would preventhomeless people from just living in one of the empty houses thatoutnumber them 7-to-1 in the US? Who else would prevent people fromjust taking food or things they like? But if you can imagine a worldbeyond capitalism, where everyone has food and housing, wherepeople can meaningfully take control of and direct their own lives,then what? „well what about the murderers/etc?“ is the firstquestion bc that‘s what we‘ve been told is the primary role ofpolice (despite violent offenders being a tiny fraction of thosearrested – and a decent amount of that violent fraction ismotivated by things like poverty) – well, is putting every singleone of them in a cage where they do work that benefits corporationsthe best way of dealing with them? Is that gonna change theunderlying behaviors? I think if you really reflect on it, the answeris gonna be „no“. And that‘s not even taking into account thewhite supremacist nature of the police, especially in the UnitedStates – which is a majorpart of their role in society.

Icould go on and on about how liberalism‘s love of Capitalism andPrivate Property relies on things like war, exploitation of workersinthe global south,deportations, environmentaldestruction, all while lending lip service to how bad those thingsare, especially when conservatives (who at least are more up frontwith their shittiness) are in power. Liberalism acts as if the way toa better world is gradual change within the same paradigm, but inreality it‘s that paradigm itself which is messed up. Instead ofdoing whatever possible to preserve that paradigm, we need to changethat paradigm and change our society.

Here‘sa couple other articles and stuff that elaborate more: [x] [x] [x] [x] [x]