#backstabbing friend

[remithequeerdude]

hey everyone who is reading, this is a rant

Hi everyone how is it going? How has your day been so far? So about a hour ago I just got home from school. I am so annoyed. So who here had read heartstopper by alice oseman? So I was carrying the book into school when the main bully let Call him Freddy pointed at the book and yelled "Ayy yo look what remi is reading? a gay book!! That so weird bro" except he did not use "remi" he used my dead name so I said "that is not my name and so what? maybe one of the characters is gay but why does it matter to you the content of my book" I said something like that and he stormed off. I told the teacher and they spoke to him but I am so mad he knows nothing about heartstopper not one thing!!!!!!!! Now I am going to talk about something else to get this off my plate. So I have two friends that are girls right I am out as trans to both of them. One of them is really cool about it lets call her Olivia but the other one Ava (I have talked about her before the one who kept using my old pronouns my wrong pronouns well she stopped at least) So Ava and Olivia were fighting they do this everyday but they were fighting at our lunch table and they just would not stop. I forgot what they were fighting about I think its because Ava said short people cant play basketball but Olivia who is not the tallest plays basketball so they were yelling and I was kinda like don't-drag-me-into-this-but-if-push-comes-to-shove-i-am-siding-with -Olivia yeah I had that kinda vibe as I tried to make them stop. Because I am always the peacemaker. Then Ava said"why are you even friends with us aren't you just a cross-dressing girl we want a girl who knows she is a girl" Ava said and I am/was so mad I was like okay this is the end of our friendship I am going to find new and better people so screw you! I said something or the sort so Olivia sent me a i-am-so-sorry-that-was-unfair-i-will-avenge-your-honer -see-you-in-a-sec if a look can say all of that but then I had no where to sit then my neighbor and friend likes call him John waved me over so on the plus side I had friends. on the bad side a "friend" I had known for years was a backstabbing traitor face. But this made me feel so much better thank you for reading it means a lot!!!

-Remi

[starcurtain]

Some Speculation on Kaveh’s Father

I actually started this post right after the Parade of Providence event last year, but never got around to finishing it. However, in light of Kaveh still not appearing on a banner, I decided to dust this one off and get it finished, so that I’d have at least a little Kaveh content in my life after being so cruelly denied by Hoyo.

So, without further ado, some stuff about Kaveh’s father I did not see discussed elsewhere but which I think is especially interesting.

1) Kaveh’s father likely first became depressed/disillusioned with humanity after witnessing (or possibly being the victim of) a murder attempt.

Without knowing the full situation and reading all the additional text from the Parade of Providence event, I feel like this might have been easily missed, but the entire “Kaveh’s dad became disillusioned and depressed and retreated to the desert to help people” seems--at first--like it came out of nowhere. He had a lovely family, was the pride of his darshan, and was eager and excited to win the crown to bring it home to his son. Yet theoretically, he did not win the crown (and, in fact, the crown was stolen before the last event and may not have been there during the Avidya Forest fight, so when, as the non-winner, would Kaveh’s father have come into contact with it to encounter Sachin through it in the first place?) Why would Kaveh’s father’s personality take such a massive turn all the sudden? What would drive an excited, happy person to suddenly withdraw from everything he loved and everyone who loved him, if he didn’t actually win the diadem to be influenced by it in the first place?

The event implies there was a trigger:

Huvishka’s friend (who is described as “honest and kind but vulnerable and sensitive”--obviously Kaveh’s father) went into the Avidya Forest with the other contestants, where no one was watching, and we’re not told what happened except that the Akademiya responded to whatever occurred by shutting down the entire competition and banning any sort of events in the future that cause contestants to become so desperate they would “fight to the death.” 

This is a pretty obvious implication that Kaveh’s father either witnessed two other contestants attempt to kill each other or was the victim of an attempted murder himself, which prevented him from winning the competition even though he was the favorite to win by a long-shot. This feat of betrayal, demonstrating the depths to which humanity would sink, likely shook the idealistic world views of a sensitive person such as Kaveh’s father. This brush with death and with humanity’s capacity for evil in the forest would have been the exact trigger needed to make Kaveh’s father particularly vulnerable to Sachin’s message of nihility and despair, leading to the downward spiral that sent Kaveh’s father into the desert.

- 

2) Sachin may have way more culpability for Kaveh’s father’s death than Kaveh realizes. 

For a while after the event, I was under the impression that Kaveh’s father must have met Sachin’s consciousness through the diadem and that’s where he got the idea to go into the desert. However, something was always a bit odd about the timeline, because...

Sachin was still alive when he gave the Akademiya his estate. This is why no one actually knew/believed he was fully dead, even to the present--because he willed the Akademiya the estate while he was alive and told them he was going to be personally watching over the contestants to award his estate to them if he deemed them worthy successors to himself. 

So did Kaveh’s father run into a fragment of Sachin’s consciousness... or did he run into Sachin himself? The game doesn’t really clarify:

The fact that Sachin’s recording recognized Kaveh’s appearance as familiar makes me think it is much more likely that the consciousness preserved in the diadem already had knowledge of Kaveh’s father at the time it was preserved. Aka, Sachin actually met Kaveh’s father in person. This also makes sense of why, even though the diadem was stolen away during the last event and Kaveh’s father did not win it, he would still know about Sachin and Sachin’s research. (However, as a counterpoint, I guess we could say that the Diadem!Sachin had enough sentience to maybe have its own memory, separate from the real Sachin? And reached out to Kaveh’s father mentally even though he didn’t win the diadem? Maybe?)

Still, there’s one really notable aspect of the timeline that I think is important: Right after the Interdarshan Competition twenty years ago, the one which Kaveh’s father competed in, we know that Sachin went back out to the desert. 

Who else went out to the desert exactly 20 years ago? Kaveh’s father, obviously.

This overlap in the timelines makes it seem very likely that Kaveh’s father, who failed to win the competition because of a murder attempt (and therefore never got the diadem), was nevertheless reached out to by the real Sachin, who saw in Kaveh’s father the kindred disillusioned idealist he was looking for to pass his research torch onto. From this connection, Kaveh’s father was driven to either directly accompany or at least pursue the still living Sachin into the desert. (This works even if we say it was only Sachin’s consciousness he was contacted by--in either case, he would have been driven go to out to the desert to meet the real, temporarily still living Sachin to join his quest to help the desert people.)

Only for Kaveh’s father to meet his end there while trying to aid a caravan that had fallen into trouble. What a tragic coincidence, a completely unpredictable twist of fate.

Or... was it?

How odd, in the same quest that Kaveh’s father’s connection to Sachin is discussed, that we’re given an account of a caravan that appears to have been deliberately sabotaged, where money was taken (from Sachin) and somehow sparked a betrayal, a “trial of human nature” that caused many people to die, with the takeaway being the exact belief Sachin wants to pass on and reinforce in others, that humans are horrific creatures who can only make the world a worse and worse place. 

We know that Sachin’s “research” specifically consisted of doing this exact thing, manipulating situations to test humans’ moral character, conducting trials/experiments on “human nature” to reinforce his belief that humans were fundamentally selfish beings.

(It’s no accident the merchant ledger we receive uses the exact same words as Sachin does, “trial of human nature” and “experiments on human nature.” We’re supposed to assume what happened to the caravan in the note was deliberate sabotage on Sachin’s part, to create a scenario where he could observe the cruelties of humanity.)

Why would the game go out of its way to give us an account of a caravan being deliberately sabotaged and used as an experiment if there was no connection at all between what happened with this caravan and what happened to Kaveh’s father, who was also killed helping a floundering caravan?

It’s just too much of a coincidence to accidental. I think the implications of the ledger Dori gave us and the similarities in the language on that ledger to Sachin’s ideas was supposed to lead the audience to wonder:

Could Kaveh’s father have died in one of Sachin’s final “human nature experiments”? 

Was the caravan Kaveh’s father tried to help one that Sachin deliberately sabotaged, expecting to observe humanity’s selfish, self-preserving nature?

I think there’s enough evidence in the story to suggest that we players are at least supposed to consider this a possibility. (There’s no reason to give us the ledger about the manipulated caravan otherwise.) And if you consider this a possibility, it would mean that Sachin didn’t just indirectly cause Kaveh’s father’s death--he would be the direct cause of Kaveh’s father’s death, an actual murder brought about by Sachin’s beliefs that humanity’s self-centered nature made everyone beyond saving.

This idea transforms Kaveh’s father’s sacrifice into the ultimate rejection of Sachin’s beliefs. This would mean that, even in a situation manipulated to bring out the worst in human beings on purpose, Kaveh’s father gave everything to protect the lives of others, for no gain at all of his own, doing everything he could just to desperately try to make the situation (the world) better.

SO yeah. I’m not saying we have hard evidence here, but I think the quest was trying to lead players to speculate very, very hard on the possibility that Kaveh’s father’s death was no accident.

-

3) Finally, a cuter piece of speculation to brighten things up after that despair bomb I just dropped: it’s highly likely that Kaveh’s father had more than one Aranara buddy!

During the Parade of Providence, we hear about an Aranara who learned to read from Kaveh’s father:

However, this is a bit confusing, because later in the event, we hear someone else say that Kaveh’s father taught an Aranara to write specifically when he was a child:

While of course it is possible that Kaveh’s father taught the first Aranara, Arakasyapa, to both read and write, I think there’s also another possible answer here about why Kaveh’s father would separately mention teaching an Aranara to write:

Because there is an entirely different Aranara in the story which was taught to write by a “good Nara” who was a child--Arashakun, from the quest “Courage is the Heart.”

In this sweet little world quest, the Traveler discovers a flower talisman that has been snatched by some hilichurls, and seeks to return it to its rightful owner, a timid and shy Aranara named Arashakun. 

We learn that Arashakun once had a kind-hearted “good Nara” companion who taught him to write (sound familiar?), and who, in order to encourage the poor Aranara, gave him a single flower dubbed “courage.” In describing this child companion, Arashakun specifically states that his companion was no strong warrior like the Traveler’s twin, but instead a gentle, comforting presence who never teased the Aranara.

All of these descriptions line up particularly well with Kaveh’s father, who the game repeatedly describes as vulnerable, kind-hearted, and giving to others.

To drive home the possible connections to Kaveh’s family even further, this quest takes place very, very near to the Palace of Alkazarzaray. 

Although we don’t have any guarantee, I think it is strongly implied that the “good Nara” mentioned by Arashakun is indeed Kaveh’s father, and the “courage of the heart” that he extended to Arashakun as a child is the very same courage, kindness, and generosity that drove him to reach out to the people of the desert, hoping to make a difference in their lives--even at the cost of his own.

The takeaway? Kaveh’s father was a truly good person who aided everyone he came across, from timid Aranara to people whose very lives were in danger. He never meant to leave his family, and especially not his son, but repeatedly fell afoul of the worst humanity had to offer and was driven into a situation in which all he could do was offer his very life to uphold the altruism that was central to his idealism--the same idealism and goodness that Kaveh carries as “courage” in his own heart.

[chronologiical]

my traum mvps!

[radioactivemelody]

I've seen the theory that Madoka probably knew that Homura would pull her godhood snitching stunt since she's everywhere (past, present and future)

however, I like the idea of Rebellion’s ending being something so unpredictable that God herself didn't see it coming

[tiredtriedfailures]

team teenagers who are revolutionarily humanist at core and would party hard

[ninugh29]

I’m surprised there’s not more Kayleigh Day content considering she’s such a blank slate with a badass back story. Like she co invented a WHOLE SPORT??? We need to talk about her more!!!

What do we think her childhood was like? What was it like raising Kevin on her own? How hard did she have to fight to make her voice heard? To make the old men listen to her and appreciate the potential exy had?

More on Kayleigh Day and her tragic death on the cusp of the exy rise to fame!!

[red-red-spout]

god it must be insane having like. actual enemies

[bleue-flora]

Wait I actually love how Sam and Quackity are Dream's safe people in the playdate au :[ 'cuz when he's feeling bad Sam will keep people away and Quackity knows how to keep company while being quiet so he doesn't get worse :[[[

Idk why but I keep imagining the kids somehow showing up on the real dsmp and the shock on everyone when all the kids immediately want Dream (because Dream is safe and he doesn't let people be unfair. Even when he's a stick in the mud he's safe)

(Sorry really really spinning them in my head. Baby Quackity hiding on C!Dream's cape and on his head C!Dream is just chanting "Don't flinch form the baby don't flinch from the baby don't flinch from the baby dont-")

Rude how can you forget Punz, Dream’s bff lol XD. But I mean safe people may be a bit of a stretch. Sam is also autistic (wait did I mention Dream is autistic? Oops yea that’s why he is often seen as weird by the other kids and manages to kinda get isolated even amongst people as a result) so he also understands and respects the need for peace and quiet from people. He can often just go home when he gets too overstimulated but Dream doesn’t really get that option (since Vik and Lazar take naps in his room), hence why he hides in the slide, so Sam often keeps him company and keeps people away when he’s having a meltdown. Sam is also a peacekeeper as well as the one helping everyone with their creations and stuff whether they need help tying their shoes, help blowing up a floaty, sewing one of Michael’s eyes back on after Sapnap was a little too rough with him, or fetch the water for Foolish’s sand castle.

Quackity on the other hand is very competitive and devious. Like the boy who’s always playfully fighting with other boys and making everything a competition. He’s also the - I learned this new cuss word our parents don’t want us to use and I saw these older kids playing this game of two truths and lie where if you get it wrong you get slapped (or something I don’t know… hopefully you know that kid I’m talking about). He’s also the one to throw out insults and start fights easily. He often ends up having to come apologize to Dream later and check if he’s okay and tries to cheer him up with some new game he learned.

Now that’s an insane idea, though the dsmp is far too explicit for them lol. (No babies btw just kids some pretty young like Lazar, Vik, Schlatt, George and Jack, with Slimecicle as the youngest but he still walks and talks and plays with his older brother, Quackity, before his oldest brother, Purpled, puts him down for a nap.) They all just huddle behind c!Dream, scared of the other members. And Dream is just trying to remind himself that the kids behind him are not trying to stab him in the back. They just want to go home to the real world or get food or whatever and their Dream was always the one to go to. C!Dream is definitely not bitter by this btw nope, definitely not, not sure what you’re talking about, he is absolutely 100% not jealous of everyone being kid Dream’s friend…

Imagine they come to the dsmp when c!Dream is still in prison and they break him out (get c!Techno to break him out like he does in canon) because - Dream is the safe one who usually has all the answers surely he knows how to get us back to our world… When c!Techno shows back up to the audience of anxious kids waiting inside his house with c!Dream hidden in the cape in his arms, c!Philza rushes all the younger ones over to his house so they don’t see the bloodied and injured shape he is in. They tell them c!Dream just needs a bath and rest instead of that he was tortured and needs medical attention. C!Techno and c!Philza being the bad parents they are (they did not sign up for this!) don’t push back against the oldest kids being stubborn and demanding what’s going on. They ended up proving to be helpful hands at least… When c!Dream is healed and wakes up, the kids pounce on him asking numerous questions in excitement and apprehension. On one hand he hasn’t had positive human touch in ages and welcomes it, on the other there are too many hands everywhere and he can’t watch them all. They think the scars are really cool, poking at the sensitive tissue and asking where they’re from, he’s forced to make up wild stories of adventure, pretending their trophies of long ago and not torture from a month ago. He tries not to flinch everytime someone refers to one of the kids as Quackity…

[svampira]

normalest friend group

[cakemousse]

I'll tell you something about my good name // It's mine alone to disgrace // I don't cater to all these vipers dressed in empath's clothing // God save the most judgmental creeps // Who say they want what's best for me

You shit-talked me under the table // Talking rings and talking cradles // I wish I could un-recall // How we almost had it all // Dancing phantoms on the terrace // Are they second-hand embarrassed // That I can't get out of bed? // Cause something counterfeit's dead // It was legendary // It was momentary // It was unnecessary // Should've let it stay buried // Oh, what a valiant roar // What a bland goodbye // The coward claimed he was a lion // I'm combing through the braids of lies // "I'll never leave" ... // "Never mind" // Our field of dreams, engulfed in fire // Your arson's match your somber eyes // And I'll still see it until I die // You're the loss of my life

and basically almost the whole of The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived

[hadesknockedupintheunderworld]

"But why would Sonic still be friends with them why wouldn’t he denounce them or treat them like the villains they are? Why won't he realize they're just evil?"

First of all, has it perhaps occured to you that Sonic loves/cares for them no matter what they do and doesn't want to hurt them if he doesn't have to? Has it perhaps occurred to you that he doesn't see them like irredeemable villains and it's not because he's a dumb dumb idiot?

Second of all, haha keep talking and I'm gonna unroll my character analysis essay. "They're just evil" yeah that's rich. Bet you thought the ending of the series was about "redeeming" them too, huh?

[quillkiller]

yeah sorry having transfemme lucius and bella thoughts. yeah. sorry

[bloodwards]

d&d tonight was.

[candlecove-weaintdeadyet]

Something fascinating on the Wiki, re: Poppy and Percy's relationship

I know we all like to joke here about Poppy and his shit treatment of Percy and general lack of redeeming qualities, but I noticed something in the Wiki's episode synopses that kind of surprised me because if you ask the fandom it doesn't add up:

Yeah, in Season 1, Poppy generally treats Percy like garbage (save for the ending of Percy Plays Piano, but there he had an ulterior motive (using Percy as an anti-Horace weapon)), we all know that, but in s1e7 (The New Ship) after Janice calls him out on his bs and he takes the time to think...

well first he does the unthinkable (for an early 70's kids' show, at least) and apologizes to Janice, at least, for his weirdly cagey behavior. And even though neither he nor Percy properly address or even mention their absolute mess of a dynamic, afterwards he seems a fair bit...I guess nicer is the right word, to Percy.

In late Season 1 into Season 2, whenever the two interact (which is a rarer occurrence after that point, I've noticed. Seems Poppy mostly leaves Percy to his own devices for the most part), Poppy is noticeably calmer and more charitable-in The Map and The Key he's willing to humor Percy and his (apparently unwarranted, according to the ending) excitement, he either barely notices or doesn't care that much about Percy's nervousness in A Hole in the Ship when otherwise he'd have snapped at him about it-hell, in a scrapped synopsis for Milo's Race (curse ye, PirateJet, taking all the good plotlines from us!) he states outright that he cares about Percy, and was apparently fully ready to keelhaul Milo for hurting him had the trap chest worked as intended.

We love character development (and hate stupid retcons that get rid of it) in this house.

[angelscovee]

my friends are so untrustworthy.. i told them i found tru fru at my local sams but my momma didnt let me get any so ima get some next time and i jokingly said

"guys i found tru fru at sams but my mom didnt let me get it 😢😢 i need to make sure kk and paige dont find out about it or theres gonna be none when i go back"

she put me on blast and sent a dm to kk and paige exposing the tru fru location??? 😕😕😕

[negativepeanuthoarder]

All of Q’s friends keep trying to reach out to him and it’s making me so sad :(

like he’s not going to respond, he!s not going to come back, yet they keep throwing him life rafts and olive branches in the hopes that he’ll grab on and come back to them.

Dream called him hot in that TikTok to try and welcome him home. Karl is leaving hearts in his chat in the hopes that he’ll notice and return his messages. They still care about him, even though he’s been hostile and antagonistic towards them.

someday they might realize their efforts are in vain, but someday Q might realize what he’s lost and come back to them… we can only hope for the better outcome :(