#but only because it was so fragile they trashed better elements to make it work

[fidget-scribbles]

Fighting back to back against Melon Lord!

"Being part of the group means being part of group hugs"

Zuko holding Katara back from nagging at Aang!

(Katara listening to him!)

Sleeping next to each other on Appa!

Choosing to go after Azula together!

Zuko and Katara's relationship should be a big deal, even if it's totally platonic and they're romantically with other people. Even if there are zero smooches and zero yearning, it's a cool relationship. And their other relationships should be strong enough to support that.

Like, on a Doylist level, the endgame pairings should make sense even if the characters maintain their canonical relationships with family and friends. The writers should be able to show me Katara and Zuko trusting each other with their lives, caring deeply for each other *and* still wanting to be with other people.

In-universe (Watsonian) their partners should be strong enough people to support and encourage their other attachments. Aang in particular is a huge believer in the power of friendship, it seems like he would be super sad if Zuko and Katara grew apart after all the work and drama that went into them becoming friends.

(okay Mai can be kind of a bitch about it, I guess. I'd prefer to see her unfazed, but hostile wouldn't be OOC and I support her choices. Goth bitch supremacy🖤)

Personally, I imagine platonic adult Zutara and as the kind of high drama ride-or-die friends who have massive fights that everyone knows will get resolved and would still knife a bitch for saying the wrong thing even when they're the one who started complaining. (And like occasionally they do little a morally gray ninja mission together.) Their respective S/Os are patient and secretly a little relieved they have another emotional outlet.

Aang like 'Hey Zuko, how about yoooou tell Katara we have to split up the colonies? That was your idea, right?'

Mai 'Oh. You're disappearing for a weekend 'vacation' right after some terrorist attacks? Sure, whatever. If you get blood on the carpets again I'm not covering for you anymore.'

Zuko and his protectiveness over Katara backfired on the show

I think we're all quite aware of the fact that Zuko is canonically very protective over Katara

Exhibit A

When he saves Katara from falling rubble in the Western air temple.

Exhibit B

When he protects Katara from flames in that same episode when she is about to blood bend that fire nation soldier.

Exhibit C

The famous Agni Kai where he take lightning for Katara

Now why are these so significant? I think these are big gestures are to show Zuko's efforts to make amends after what he did to Katara. It could be argued these are very extreme ways of making it up to her because these came at the cost of his life. But this also goes to show his character development, as he is willing to protect Katara from danger. For me, one of the reasons why I ship them is because of his protectiveness. It's refreshing to see a character that has always been there to help and to be a support system to others be protected by someone else. I think it can be very fulfilling as a viewer. This effort that was made to write their relationship was so genuine, and it felt so heartfelt as the viewer, that it just made their dynamic one of the strongest in the show. Whether that be romantically or just platonically, their dynamic is probably one of the best in my opinion.

Now, with all that his protectiveness towards Katara immediately evaporate after the last Agni Kai which was pretty shocking, as they didn't get time to be able to talk about what happened. I feel like it removes a piece of genuineness from the show that the characters care for each other. And of course I know a reason why this could have happened is because, well, Kataang and Maiko exist. I think what made their dynamics so strong is because of their protectiveness for one another. Especially, Zuko's protectiveness over Katara. When it was removed in the comics, it felt like a bond had been destroyed because a big part of their dynamic was protecting each other and being there for each other, and having that level of communication. They were protecting each other through their communication and through their support for one another.

How I feel like it backfired on the show is that it created a bit of an emptiness in both of the characters. Especially when they interacted, it felt more distant in the comics, and it felt as if they were strangers. Zuko's writing, which leads to him being protective over her, is so poignant in their relationship that once it is removed it creates a hole in a way it makes his character feel more hollow in his relationship with Katara. It feels like an effort to create a divide and an erasure of their past and how significant his taking lightning for her was. A show that is built of meaningful character relationships took a piece of its own heart out and of its own show and stabbed it in front of all of us when it came to the erasure of Zutara. So they could push the canon ships. They were willing to remove that important element of character relationships for 2 poorly written couples.

I think it creates a level of ingenuity in this show. That is not shocking as many of Katara's other love interests met the same fate of ingenuity, whether that be Jet or Haru. Where she's never able to show her feelings about these people. Which I find quite strange seeing how the show aims to create depth and talk about feelings that actually provoke feelings in you. They don't actually go in-depth with what the leading lady's thoughts are about other people. For all the sake of keeping the focus on Kataang it costs the good writing for Katara to be able to feel complex emotions about the other male interests in her life. And it leads to a rough ending for a strong dynamic like Zuko and Katara that shows their desperation for Kataang at the cost of good writing especially for Katara.

[depressedoverdrawings]

Can you hear the tumult of our youth?

KazeKi is the first romance I’ve ever enjoyed, or rather, that I emotionally connected with, as “enjoy” is a funny word choice for a work that made me feel so miserable. Personally, I’ve never enjoyed media that focuses on relationships and love, were they movies, TV, or literature.

But after I discovered KazeKi, I found myself drawn to it, almost involuntarily so. It was as if a spell had been cast. I suppose what superficially drew me in, at first, was the art. It had the charm of retro manga (I absolutely love retro manga/anime looks, IMO they have so much more character than most modern anime and manga), the nostalgic elegance of the idealized upper-class XIX century, and the unrelenting beauty and cuteness of all the boys.

It was mildly surreal and highly entertaining to witness the seed of so many shounen-ai visual tropes: The flower motifs, the flowery poetry, the impossibly pretty boys in dramatic embraces and breathy kisses, the aggressive frenchness of it all. Even it was shocking to me how these elements, instead of striking me as the tired, sappy tropes I saw them as, were now all genuine and beautiful, somehow. Even those silly sparkles around pretty boys seemed fitting. I realized these weren’t tropes back then, but elements of a sincere artistc vision. However, while the art was mesmerizing to me, I came to realize that what drew me in deeper, and kept me anchored to KazeKi, were the themes explored, and the character-based drama, the very stuff I had always avoided.

Without getting far too personal about it, Kaze to Ki no Uta was the first romance that struck something within me, somewhere personal. Now, I certainly have never faced trauma and pain anywhere near to what poor Gilbert and Serge face in their absurdly depressing story, but I definitely wouldn’t call myself emotionally and sexually resolved and healthy, and once upon a time I was a closeted boy in a catholic school, so I guess there’s space for a little bit of self-identification. My coping mechanism to my personal woes had always been to just bottle them up and distract myself with entertainment and art. And that was exactly what I was doing, browsing music on YouTube, when I stumbled upon the KazeKi OVA’s soundtrack.

I found myself listening to this gorgeous arrangement of a Chopin piece, and thought to myself, staring at the angelic figure looking back at me, across the screen: “Gee whilikers, that’s sure is a pretty drawing of a pretty girl”. Then, after reading the comments, I found out that was a boy. As much as the “draw a girl, call it a boy” school of drawing pretty boys makes me groan, I could still feel it, that first hook of interest, stabbing me. As the slideshow enticed me with pictures of Keiko Takemiya’s gorgeous art, I found myself enamoured by it. It was a particular drawing that made KazeKi finally snatch me: that same boy, lounging angelically on some sort of abstract architectural design; in the background, a neoclassical vase flanked by two neoclassical girls, and, above and below, this stunningly beautiful vegetation. So much care, skill, and good taste, concentrated in just one image! I’d have it as a poster, if I could. So, I googled “Kaze to Ki no Uta”, unwittingly throwing myself in a rabbit hole I could not have prepared myself for. Trying to read it was in itself a journey, but, to sum it up: I managed to read it about as well as one can, if they don’t speak japanese and have no access to the spanish and italian translations.

It had been years since I had started feeling emotionally numb. My most extreme displays of emotion came in the form of quiet, teary eyes, reserved for those rare, impactful pieces of art, and those rarer moments of despair-inducing introspection that I couldn’t manage to suppress, but even those lasted little, as I fought to recover my composure. By the end of Kaze to Ki no Uta, I was a sobbing wreck, doing my best (and failing) to contain my ugly crying. Ugly crying, for god’s sake. I was ugly crying, actually sobbing like a kid, because of an yaoi manga. Crying in the shower, even! What kind of weeb had I degenerated into? It hurt. It deeply hurt, in a way I hadn’t been made to hurt in a long, long while. KazeKi had impacted me to the point that I wasn’t just sad, I was scared too, as the waterfall of emotion opened the path for that deeper, personal darkness to come out. And it did.

Now, I admit I’d been a little bit more emotionally fragile than usual right before I read it, due to the effects of the quarantine and the previous consumption of a highly depressing piece of media: Les Amitiés Particulières, which is probably even more depressing than KazeKi as it deals with a much more grounded homophobia-induced tragedy based in real life. Somehow, it didn’t impact me as much as KazeKi, however. Also, it was definitely what influenced my personal YouTube algorithm to recommend me the KazeKi soundtrack, so I wouldn’t know of KazeKi if it weren’t for Amitiés. But even then, it felt unnatural to, well, feel so much. I hadn’t felt this invested in and attached to fictional characters ever since I was a little kid, too young to realize those people in the TV weren’t real. In the following couple of weeks, I was crying over these boys, spending whole days feeling like trash, feeling mild anxiety spikes whenever I remembered about KazeKi, having (even more) difficulty falling asleep, and utterly failing to avoid thinking about my deep-seated intimate issues, all because of these dumb, pretty anime boys. Not even my trusty prayer of “they’re not real people, stop being stupid” worked. In an attempt to stop wallowing in this shounen-ai hell, I decided to consume a whole lot of escapist media while I deliberately avoided any activity related to KazeKi, be it reading the manga, listening to the OVA’s soundtrack, looking at fanart, or even just thinking about it. It “worked” for a month or so, but now I’m back here, wallowing in KazeKi’s painful beauty again, stalking the other seven people in the western world that seem to care about KazeKi, and distilling my thoughts in this bizarre textwall, in an attempt to work it out. If you’re one of those seven people, please don’t refrain from talking to me, if you feel like it! I’ve had just one opportunity to have a conversation about KazeKi, and it was in YouTube comments, for heaven’s sake. I’ve come to the conclusion that I’m this afflicted by KazeKi due to its unrelenting, merciless, cruel beauty. Everything about it is presented in this assembly of pure beauty and lost perfection, this painful nostalgia that is present in its aesthetics of an idealized Europe which lives only in its surviving art, that is present in the story which ultimately tells us of the loss of love, and is present in the fact that the whole story is a broken man’s reverie about the past. Tragedy might make me sad, but tragedy with beauty will destroy me. Bittersweetness is just so more cruel than bitterness. And it was this masterpiece of sadistic bittersweetness that permanently broke something in how I deal with my emotions. Kaze to Ki no Uta touched me deeply, to the point of leaving a permanent impression, I’m afraid. I can count in one hand the pieces of art that have punched my soul in the face like KazeKi did. I am honestly flabbergasted over the effect it had over me. At first I felt embarrassed over being emotionally obliterated by a freaking shounen-ai, but I’ve since come to the conclusion that KazeKi is a work of art, a genuine, sincere work of art, deserving of the title. Now I just hope I’m not alone in being emotionally obliterated by this freaking shounen-ai. After everything they went through, the personal fights, the shaky development of their relationship, the undeserved ostracism at Lacombrade, Auguste’s demonic persecution, the escape; how could it be that Gilbert’s life would end in such a horrible way, and that Serge would be left alone to face the full, unbearable weight of his grief! Why?! Keiko Takemiya, you’re a vile sadist. You’re a genius, too, of course. But you’re a vile sadist.

I knew that a happy ending wasn’t going to happen. The horrible ending was a pretty early spoiler, really. Unfortunately for me, I couldn’t stop myself from reading on anyway, and I couldn’t stop myself from having an inkling of illogical hope. Even if my logical self knew a happy ending wasn’t gonna happen, it couldn’t prepare me for just how tragically their love would end, and how awful it all would feel, once I knew their full story.

It’s all the more bitter because of how close Serge came to saving him, too. Having escaped together to a place where they could’ve built the nearest thing to a normal life a gay couple could have, back then. But in the end, not even Serge’s love could mend Gilbert’s mutilated soul. Those boys deserved so much better, especially Serge. Serge, you sweet angel! You were created to suffer.

KazeKi really is a masterpiece in how it explores its extremely heavy themes and the minds of its characters, and how it flawlessly meshes that with perfect art. There are many moments in KazeKi that haunt me: Serge letting that bird go, Serge’s vision of Gilbert at the Lacombrade grounds, Gilbert running into the carriage, angel wings behind him; Serge laying alone on the bed in Room 17. I cannot look at those pages without tearing up and feeling this horrible feeling in my heart, and this feeling is literal: My heart actually feels heavy and constricted when I think about it, it can’t be healthy. Up until now, I thought “cri evrytiem” was just a meme. KazeKi has woken me up to the fact that bottling up one’s own personal issues will inevitably end with them exploding out, leading to something much, much worse. I am scared by the prospect of facing my personal issues. To me, they are horribly strong, and seem incredibly hard to solve, if they’re even solvable at all. I’m horrified by the prospect of facing them, working to solve them. I’m so scared, that simply thinking about it, right now, gives me this awful weight in my chest, and makes me want to cry, again. But I know now that I have no choice in this matter, as the only alternative is that abyss I dare not speak of, and one cannot return from. Melodramatic? Yes. But I did just read Kaze to Ki no Uta.

Thank you for getting this far, whoever you are.

I’m forever haunted by Serge’s words to his long-gone Gilbert, right at the beginning:

“Gilbert Cocteau, you were the greatest flower to ever bloom in my life. In the faraway dreams of youth, you were a bright red flame, blazing so fiercely… You were the wind that stirred my branches. Can you hear the poem of the wind and trees? Can you hear the tumult of our youth? Oh, there must be others who so remember their own days of youth…”

[notyetneedcoffee]

Soul Seer, Pt. 8

Pairing: Loki x Reader

Warnings: NSFW, 18+, Loki Smut

Author’s Note: Takes place right after Avengers 1, with time travel elements and hints of Infinity Wars. Does NOT follow cannon after Avengers.

You helped one of Tony’s many administrative assistants clear away the dinner containers from the caterer. Nine local officials and the Avengers group continued to work, despite the late hour. Your head ached and eyes burned. Tony’s guess proved correct. Emotions ran high, and just getting some of them to just sit in the room with Loki turned out to be exhausting.  

“You know you don’t have to do this. I can take care of it.” Andrea, the assistant, smiled at you. “You should probably take a break while you can.”

“Thanks, but this is a break.” You smiled back. “Not to make you fill uncomfortable, but you give off a nice calm aura. It’s a relief after dealing with everyone else.”

“All that mediation and yoga is paying off.” She chuckled. Piling up the empty containers onto a cart, she glanced at you from the corner of her eye. “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“Is he really going to help?”

“Loki? Yeah, he is. I know it’s hard to believe that he wants to, but he does. He may be trouble where a lot of things are concerned, but he will honor his vow without being forced. Even if people doubt it, they can trust in Dr. Banner. He can command Loki to fulfill his commitment.”  

“Okay.” She seemed to consider your answer. “That makes me feel a little better.”

“You didn’t feel particularly upset, I mean more than would be expected after aliens invaded.” You added the last of the dinner trash to the cart.

“I’m in an office with Iron Man and Captain America, in a building full of soldiers. There’s worse places to be.” Andrea grinned. “One of the perks of working here.”

“Healthy way to look at it.”  

“Don’t let the assholes get you down.” She muttered as she left.  

You sighed, dropping into the conference chair. Everyone was beginning to gather again after their break. Loki and Banner spoke quickly and quietly in one corner. One of the Police Chiefs retuned to the room. He glared Loki’s way before veering off to get a late cup of coffee.

As he walked by, he muttered into his coffee cup. “If it were up to me, you’d be locked up.”

It was obviously meant for you, even though he never made eye-contact. The hatred radiated off him. You sat up straighter, turning fulling toward him. “Excuse me?”

He just stopped and stared for a moment before he growled quietly, “You’re - consorting – with a terrorist, an alien invader – you're no better.”

“I know you’re upset, but-”

“Don’t fucking patronize me! Good people died!” He grabbed your upper arm hard, shaking you. Angry spittle hit you in the face.  

Almost instantly, a hand gripped the Chief by the throat, lifting him effortlessly off the ground. You were knocked back a step. Loki stood between you, coldly glaring. “Do not touch her.”

He lowered the man to the ground but didn’t let go. Guns were drawn. Tony was screaming “Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!”

Banner shouted, “Loki!”

“Get your hand of me, freak!” The Chief croaked.

Loki leered. Without effort he lifted the man onto his toes. “You dare order me, mortal?”

He choked out a gasp.

“You forget yourself.” Loki growled. When you placed your hand on his arm with a light pressure, he lowered the man to his feet again. Without moving his predatory glare from the man’s red face, he inquired in a gentle voice. “Are hurt, my dear?”

“No.”

“The truth, little one.” His voice was calm but insistent.

“I will likely have bruises where he grabbed me and his words were cruel, but it’s nothing lasting and nothing I would give him the satisfaction of saying did me harm.” You answered more thoroughly.

“Loki, let him go.” Banner spoke softly from the other side of the room.

He released the Police Chief immediately, but remained where he stood. It forced the man to step back and stumble into a chair. “That bastard should be locked up.”

“Seems like you started this.” Banner wiped his glasses on his shirt.  

“We made so much progress today. Dammit.” Tony shook his head, shoving his hands in his pockets. He looked around the room as people reholstered guns or stepped back in from where they’d darted out into the hall. “So, does anyone else have the same issues as Chief Ryan here? I just need to know who else we’ve got to replace.”

“Stark, listen...” The Chief turned angrily but was cut off by a heavy set older man.

“Chuck. Go home.” The Commissioner ordered. “I’ll pull in McFadden.”

“But...”

“We’ll talk about this later.” The Commissioner ordered again. “Go home.”

After Chief Ryan stormed out, everyone else began moving to their seats. No one outwardly stared, but everyone stole glances at the enraged God of Mischief. You could feel the fear and animosity flying around the room. Loki’s cool hands on your cheeks helped you center yourself and block out energy from everyone else.

“Stark,” He spoke quietly. “We will return momentary.”

“Yeah, sure.” Tony quirked an eyebrow at you. “You okay, Buttercup?”

You smiled at the nickname he’d given you after hearing Loki say “as you wish” a few times. Neither of you explained the reference. “I’m good.”

Following Loki from the conference room, he led you to a quiet office across the hall.  Shutting the door with one hand, he pulled you close with the other. Your arms wrapped around his trim waist and slid up his strong back. Nuzzling into his neck, you breathed deep.  

Loki held you close to his chest, a palm at the back of your head and his nose in your hair. “Let me see where he hurt you.”

“It’s fine, really.”

“It’s not.” His low voice rumbled. “No one, man nor god, will lay a hand on you. Were it not for the restraints of my vow, I would have snapped his neck.”

You pulled back to see his face. “I would not like that. I don’t want someone to die because their senses have been clouded by fear and pain.”

“People do the very worst things imaginable when their senses are clouded by fear and pain.” Loki stated with heavy knowledge.

“The punishment would not be equal to crime.” You shook your head. “He just grabbed me, he doesn’t deserve to die over that. I would not want to live with that.”

Loki sighed, nodding. “I will just break the next person’s arm.” When you opened your mouth to protest, he held you back far enough to look at your arm. “Will you show me, or shall I remove your clothing for you?”

Sighing, you unbuttoned your blouse and lowered it off your shoulders until he could see. There were bruises already blooming on your skin. “It doesn’t hurt, Loki. Really.”

“Midgardians are so fragile.” His brow tightened. “Thankful, I can help some.”  

One hand slipped behind your neck while the other ghosted over the marred skin. He pressed his lips to your forehead and you shivered. You opened your eyes to his smile.  

“Better?”

You looked at your arm, no evidence remained. Your skin appeared as unblemished as it had been that morning. All soreness gone. You breathed, “Wow.”

Wrapping your arms around his neck, you mumbled a thank you against his lips before kissing him. His large hands slid around your waist, spreading over your back, to pull you tight against him. Instantly fevered, tongues battling, you moaned into the kiss. He growled as your fingers knotted in his hair, pulling. His teeth nipped your bottom lip.

You felt the repressed rage from earlier flare into intense desire. It poured over you like hot sin, lighting your nerves on fire and melting your resolve. Still, a whisper of lucidity remained. “Loki, we have to go back.”

“They will wait.” His mouth traveled along your neck.  

“Loki.”

He sighed, closing his eyes momentarily. You saw his aura flare with intent. “I have sent a duplicate to provide ours excuses and bade good evening to the others.”

Loki pulled you against the hard evidence of his need, hand digging into your ass. His other hand buried in your hair. His nose ghosted over your face as his inhaled. He growled. “You are mine.”

His feelings washing over you as he spoke those words made your stomach flutter. It made you feel precious, valued, desired, worthy of protection. Your tongue slid along his lip. Something close to a purr escaped your throat. “You are mine.”

When Loki pressed you back against the wall, your bare flesh hit the smooth cold wood. Magic. His fingers dug into your ass, lifting you off your feet. Your legs wrapped around him as his mouth nipped and suckled at your neck. Shivers ran down your spine, the deep hum of his satisfaction traveling through your bones.

Your fingers pulled at his hair, tilting his head back so you could drink his kiss. Tongues sliding along each other, wet and messy, you moaned into his mouth. The tip of his cock slid along your folds, teasing. Nibbling to his jaw, biting his ear, you wanted more. “Please.”

“Please what, my pet?” Loki chuckled, the tip of his cock barely prodding your opening. Your cunt clenched with need. His voice dropped, low and smoky. “Do you need me to fuck you? Do you need me to push you over the edge until you drench my cock? Until you cry that you can come no more?”

His voice, his words, soaked into you, coiling your insides and soaking your cunt. Your fingers clung to his shoulders as you tried to push deep upon him. Loki held you firm, impossible strong, denying you. “Yes, Loki. Please, please fuck me.”  

One mighty thrust and he impaled you balls deep on his cock. It tore a cry from you lips. Loki pushed into you, fast, deep, on the edge of brutal. You could only hold on. His pace overwhelmed you. The rush of pleasure caused you to pull at his hair and bite his shoulder to keep from screaming.

“Norns, yes!” Loki growled. He spun you around, dropping you on to the table and pulling your legs high over his shoulders. His large hand cupped your hips, holding you in place and angling you up. His cock pounding against your g spot, rough and hard, fast. Your legs shook. You tried for something to hold onto but found nothing, instinctively and out of desperation, finally clutching your own breasts. You came hard, flooding over Loki, shaking and out of control.  

He growled, low. “Again.”  

Heat flooded over your body. You could not tell if from you or Loki. Like rubber band you stretched taunt and snapped, coming again without warning, without mercy. Every nerve, every fiber, exploded. You felt another flood squirt over him. Loki’s back went rigid as he thrust into hard, deep, twice more. He held you there, buried deep, groaning out his own release.  

Twitches and aftershocks dance across your body. Loki licked the sweat from behind your knee. “Oh my god,” you breathed. “I don’t think I can move.”

His delighted chuckle made his cock jump where it still lay buried in you. “Then I shall carry you.”

“Oh,” realization of where you were came back. Still, you could not move or care too much. “Oh no, we’ve made a mess.”

“As much as I would love to paint everywhere we go with the scent of you, my pet, I will take care of that as well.” He kissed your other leg.  

“Good.” Your eyes drifted closed, feeling sex drunk and boneless. Loki slipped out of you and you whined at his absence. Though as he lowered your legs you felt, the hot slick seep from you. As you tried to sit up, Loki gathered you to his chest with an arm behind your back and under your knees. Your head lolled to his shoulder, eyes closing.

Almost immediately, he lay you back down upon the smooth sheets. You opened your eye to the room you shared. A giggle bubbled up as you pulled his face closer to yours for a tender kiss. “Magic. So cool.”

Loki smiled, mischievous and delighted. “When we are allowed of here, I will show you how much so.”

TAGS

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[gplewis]

maybe sculpt something on the page, do my job for a change

You fit well in my heart and my day, I am impressed with my digging and now see how someone like you (again I am still in awe...of how real you are, it’s amazing to see the cost by which I mean the symphony of choices and glances and insistences and asks you make. It is divine - beyond divine - human - glorious - to see you make your life every minute. I see it. I am grateful for the weekend you created for us and all the careful brave actions you took your whole life leading up to this moment of being able to have me here. Thoughts from the car

-->

my heart like yours (anyone’s; you’re not personal; the you I ‘use’ and address is not you in real life; you...you

man lost in overloaded pronouns, holders for someone;

getting lost for a living, disappearing and seeing possibility clearly ~ and i know how obnoxious lovers can look; dare I dare to build a life on the relaxed raw output and let it come? Yeah, sounds fun, more fun than timing the market and waiting for outcomes to come down from outside, — I prefer to live at the bubbling up from inside

[i spend too much time thinking about what a finished thing does; i like doing nothing, pushing nothing, selling nothing, wanting nothing — and these words are trash once my life implodes, destructs, is ripped off the moors ~ or I just get older; we get older; growing up does cost layers: personal skin and bones. It makes music make sense

i don’t fear being offensive anymore; a reader will find herself or himself in the flow of my words, if anyone even reads my words, given how other things appear to be the things that participation in which will save you. I return you to the source

what i hated most about our time together was being human, messy, mad, stupid, selfish, distant, dark — the things i am. i refused to be loved. i am love but i don’t believe it yet; i don’t like being human ~ and i’m too old and mature and professional to dramatically walk away from my art where i didn’t like being human; i’m too old to not just keep growing through it and appearing stupid and unlovable if I must. So, call this diary, journal, reflection, practice sharing, the shadow side of content or real life; still i swab that nexus with gaze, penetrating to the fundamental elements — music is infinite, these lives are not

real sound makes you present; presence is everything

live is everything

to live is the thing.........

how to discard pictures and accept they aren’t as real as life; to ask yourself if you don’t actually want to live. Life is this familiar thing after a while; this verges on boring — the weird thing I have to trust again: if you keep going, it gets better, and you see what to do with what’s been done to do the good right next thing; morality is the true journey which is private; being cool is overrated, it always depends on appearing. 

I don’t concern myself with what I’m writing as long as I’m going; no solo is a mistake, no progress is in the wrong direction

finally I know how to be in love: keep working, keep growing, shed, take risks...it isn’t easy and can’t be made easy, it only gets weirder ~ easier, weirder, simpler...heroic, unprecedented, unsafe, not guaranteed

but the truth has not killed me yet, I am still here with it — do I care too much about ‘the truth’? Clearly I’m not afraid of boring you, dear reader; maybe because I know I cannot be disconnected from you; I know you’re out there and more come to the party. We are not metrics. Measuring and comparing doesn’t make one glad to be doing it;

fragile is the thing that can’t be fixed

[blog-sliverofjade]

Hearth Fires 17: Savages

Summary:  Lorel Maddox just wants to live as a human, run her bakery in peace, and forget. Unfortunately, the alpha of the local leopard pack has very different ideas.

Remi Denier doesn’t know what to make of the female Changeling who wants nothing to do with him or the RainFire pack. He does know that he has a driving need to protect her. Even if it’s from herself.

While they’re embroiled in a battle of wills, there’s a war brewing on the horizon. The outside threat could not only destroy everything they hold dear, but tear apart the fragile new bonds of the Trinity Accord, plunging the world into bloodshed to rival the Territorial Wars of centuries past.

Word count: 2698

Hearth Fires Masterlist

Content warning: fantasy racism, racial violence, slurs, kidnapping, torture, and murder.  More notes at the end of the chapter.

Beta read by the awe-inspiring @pandabearer​

        Until further notice, anyone with less than junior soldier rank must be accompanied by at least one other able-bodied adult while off pack lands.

       -RainFire daily e-bulletin, three days prior

         Lorel’s stomach filled with cold dread at the sight of the throng of people in front of the bakery.  The mass of bodies parted to let her through, several turned to stare at her, heads swivelling to follow her as she parked.  Murmurs surrounded her as soon as she got out of the car, too low for human ears, but she could still hear clearly.

       “I heard she’s dealing drugs out the back…”

       “Probably pissed off a customer, or her dealer…”

       “…can’t be sanitary to let animals work with food…”

       The wall of scents and sounds pressed palpably in on her.  Cold sweat prickled her scalp.  The walk through the crowd seemed to take an eternity, like the nightmares when she was back in school and called up to the board in front of the class, only she was naked, the distance stretching further and further with each step. 

        Her cat prowled, tail lashing back and forth; it was agitated and ready to hunt, and, lacking an obvious enemy, regarded the gawkers with suspicion.

        Chloe stood silently by the front, allowing Lorel time to process what she was seeing.  Glittering glass crunched underfoot as she walked through what had once been the door; the windows were shattered, as were the display cases.  The antique hutch she’d lovingly refinished and used to display packages of cookies, candies, and other shelf-stable goodies lay face down on the floor in several pieces.

        Waves of hot and cold washed over her.  Crimson spray paint splashed the words “GET OUT” and “HUMANS 1ST” across one wall.  An inappropriate part of her wanted to giggle hysterically at the ambiguity of “FUCK ANIMALS” carved into the ashwood counter she loved. 

        Shelf-stable stock was scattered everywhere, some missing a single bite before being tossed on the floor to mix with the glass and other detritus, then covered with urine.  Frosting painted the walls with colourful streaks.  As she continued to the kitchen, she touched the battered counter, holes punched into the drywall, the remains of a table to confirm what she saw was real.

        The sleek, new equipment she’d been so proud of lay like battered corpses on the kitchen floor, computronics ripped out like entrails.  Flour and sugar-coated everything like a dusting of ash, cocoa mixed with it like fine charcoal.  It was appropriate since her life had effectively burned down around her ears.  Lorel sank to the floor, barely sparing a thought to choose a space relatively free of debris, and stared at a mound of what had been passionfruit mousse.

        Chloe crouched next to her and said something.  She managed to respond, but the words soon dissipated like fog in the morning sun.  Time sped up again, coming in fits and bursts.  She remembered speaking with Enforcement but retained nothing of what was said.

       She found herself standing in the kitchen again.  Or had she merely imagined the police interview and hadn’t moved?  A hand settled slowly on her shoulder and she scented Chloe.

        “Here.”  A cool bottle pressed into her hands.  “Drink.”  The cold water was delicious, and she quickly drained half of it, only stopping to gulp in air.  “Better?”

       She nodded and looked around, blinking.  Yep, the place was still trashed.  It wasn’t a horrible dream.  “I need to call the insurance company,” she muttered and headed towards her office.  The computronics in there were damaged too, but the overall damage was less, and she could close the door to shut out the worst of it.

        “I’ll start cleaning up,” said Chloe, heading for the cleaning supplies.

        “No, you need to look after your own shop.”  It came out a mumble because she lacked the energy to raise her voice to a normal speaking volume.

        Turning back to her, Chloe’s jaw firmed in the way it did when she was digging her heels in.  Too tired to fight, Lorel shut herself in the office to make the necessary phone calls and left her friend to do as she would.

        When she emerged some time later, she found Chloe had conscripted several of the looky-lous into cleaning up.  The floors were swept free of glass shards and the debris was piled into two stacks: one of what looked like salvageable pieces and one that looked like scrap.

        A man was on the sidewalk taking a rubber mallet to a bent chair leg, pausing occasionally to apparently discuss structural integrity with a woman in coveralls looking over his shoulder.  Inside, a couple of people she recognized as customers, but didn’t know, were scrubbing the walls.  Plywood, presumably for boarding up the broken windows, was stacked in a corner.

        Chloe and her husband, Buck, were behind the counter and looked up when she stopped to take in the changes.  The storm of emotions she held inside felt like she was being torn in five different directions.

        "This isn't very deep," Chloe tapped the scarred counter with a lilac lacquered nail.  "It should sand out."

        “And I have a half-can of paint kicking around that’s near ‘bout this colour.  That and a bit of primer should cover that up pretty good.”  He handed over a minty-blue paint chip and pointed to the graffiti. The colour would blend in well with the whitewashed walls and ashwood detailing; thankfully, those elements were left more or less intact.  “Won’t be ‘nough to do the whole place but could do one of them whatchamacallits.”

        “Accent wall,” Chloe supplied and tucked herself against her husband’s bigger body; he raised his arm for her to duck under and held her to him.  The casual affection was almost without thought and developed over years of growing into their love.

        Her colourful friend and her flannel-clad husband seemed like total opposites, but they fit.  Their adoration for each other was present in small touches, the woollen hats, gloves, and socks she made for him, the way he made sure she remembered to eat.  Chloe would get caught up in a project and lose track of time, forgetting to feed her body anything other than tea. 

        Lorel wondered what it would be like to know someone that completely.  Ever since she met the couple, a secret desire had grown in her, stunted and broken parts of her stretching to aching, painful life.  She dreamt of something she never thought she could have: a home filled with the love that she had never known. 

         Remi waited until he had all five miscreants back on pack territory and some distance away from the Glade, the main clustering of aeries, before tearing into them.  Not all of them were dominants, which meant he had to hold back some of his ire.  As word of the horrific attacks spread, the non-dominants stuck closer to home more and more.  While that made it easier to protect them, they were still cats who needed their freedom.

        That didn’t mean that they weren’t stuck with the worst shifts he could come up with: scrubbing bathrooms for the juveniles and dish duty (a chore usually reserved for juveniles) for the submissive. The soldiers, a couple of junior rank, were on the farthest, most isolated perimeter watch.

        “I put the pack on lockdown, and they go and lose their goddamn minds over some humans running their mouths at the bar?” growled Remi.  He’d called up Lucas once he was back in his own aerie and could be as snarly as he wanted without making submissives flinch or cubs ask him why he had “angry alpha face.”  “Another changeling’s gone missing, a solitary snake outside of Gatlinburg.”

        Lucas’ response turned the air blue.  “Do you want to borrow a couple of my people?”

        The offer was a mark of the level of trust the DarkRiver alpha had in him.  The practice wasn’t unheard of, yet neither was it casually done.  Remi forced himself to be logical and think it through rather than rejecting it out of a knee-jerk reaction to appear the ever-capable, always-powerful alpha.

        “We just hammered out an alliance with StormWillow so we have more resources now,” he shook his head.  Bringing in outsiders might seed distrust in their new allies.  “Though I might take you up on that if we’re still running into dead-ends.”

        Scrubbing a hand over his face, he sank back onto his cushion and told him about Lorelei.

        “I can’t have a submissive mate.”  Many alphas had mates, or long-term partners, but none of the ones he knew of were building their own packs.  And sometimes alphas outlived their mates.  It was rare, but when it happened, it broke something fundamental in them.  He’d watched his father grow colder and harder, as if everything warm and good in the man had died along with his mate. 

        “I’m mated to Sascha,” Lucas reminded him.  While empaths weren’t necessarily submissive, neither were they typically dominant, closer to healers when it came to the hierarchy.  Dominants felt protective towards them and when it came to health and safety, they could even overrule the alpha without coming across as a challenge.

        “That’s different, she’s a cardinal.”

        “Not a martial one.  Disciplining Naya ties her up in knots,” he shook his head in fond amusement at his soft-hearted mate.  “She’ll cut you up like she’s torn your heart out to keep as a trophy, but she’ll also make you feel whole until you wonder why you’d never realized part of you was missing.  She’ll make you stronger.”

        “What if I hurt her?”

        “Submissives aren’t as fragile as we dominants like to think,” grinned Lucas, misunderstanding Remi’s concern for physical harm instead of emotional damage.  Then, after looking at someone off-screen, “Hold on a second,” and the screen went dark.

        Remi couldn’t speak of what he truly feared.  It had already taken everything in him to admit that not only were things getting worse but that he’d found his mate.  He couldn’t expose any more vulnerabilities, not even to a friend. 

        How the fuck was he going to court her?  Being of their animal selves, the mating bond didn’t require love to come into being and she could always reject him.  It was up to him to get her to trust him that deeply to accept the bond.

        If only she didn’t react to him like the most feral alley cat; it was a good thing he liked her wild.  It meant she could hold her own against him as long as he didn’t pull rank, which he certainly had no intention of doing without damn good reason.  His dominance level was magnitudes greater than hers.  Bullying someone so far down the hierarchy wasn’t who he was, wasn’t what any alpha worth their salt was.

        And yet he was driven to distraction knowing she was alone and unprotected.  It would be easy for someone to take advantage of her touch hunger and his claws threatened to slice out.  The leopard inside his skin clawed at him, certain that she was in danger every minute she wasn’t in his sight; it wouldn’t rest until she was in its lair.

        The man knew it wasn’t as easy as that, the bond would require more of him than simply protecting her.  How could he be vulnerable to her and be the alpha RainFire needed?  Was he even capable of the kind of vulnerability that the mating bond demanded, of the bone-deep love?  The shortcut around her walls would make it so easy to hurt her on the deepest level, in a way that neither of them would ever recover.

        “The DNA you sent over?” Lucas said, coming back on the line.  “There’s a match.  I’m sending you the details now.”

        Remi bared his teeth in a feral grin.  This was exactly what he needed to purge the fire in his blood. 

        “Good hunting, mon frère.”

        A mere handful of hours later, the RainFire alpha stood over Joseph Christian in a cabin on a remote section of pack territory.  None of his people would be forced to see the uglier side of what it meant to protect; not like he’d been forced to watch “discipline” meted out as a cub.

        “Tell me why you did it.”  A quiet, almost gentle tone.  Only the will born of years of struggling with his anger, burning deep within him like a subterranean river of lava, managed to keep him from tearing into the man.

        The human was as undistinctive as the tract housing Theo and Elijah had found him in; with his nondescript brown hair, flat blue eyes, average height and weight, he would blend into nearly any crowd in the area.  It was a stark reminder that evil didn’t always show on the surface, sometimes it hid behind familiar faces.

        “Please don’t kill me,” he begged, snot oozing into his goatee.  Remi wondered if he’d grown the facial hair to individualize his otherwise bland features.

        “Why not?  You could easily have killed them, and one of them was human, not changeling.”  His tone was a velvet-wrapped blade.

        “You-you and the psy treat us like trash.  You think you’re above the law like what you’re doing right now!”  Christian looked around with wide eyes to indicate his surroundings.  “You savages only understand violence!”

        The ripples of recent upheavals in the psy-net affected the other two races.  Humans were treated as worker bees by the telepathic race- and, to a lesser extent, by the shapeshifter race.  While the psy restructured their society, it affected humans financially.  On top of a century of abuse and exploitation at their hands, some humans became radicalized in the wake of global change.

        “The law gives us the right to meet violence with violence,” growled Remi. 

        Christian’s face went even paler.

        “Lemme get this straight, you’re enjoying a night out, relaxing over a couple of beers, but you want to end it on a real banger, so you get a baseball bat and put two men in the fucking hospital?  A shit-for-brains like you couldn’t come up with any other fucking ideas?” Elijah said.

        “I don’t think he’s smart enough to even think of that on his own,” Remi drawled.

        “There-there was a-a-a video!  Someone shared it in a forum.”

        “What video?”

        “Uh, it’s on my phone.”

        Remi nodded to Elijah, who handed the cell to the human.  They hadn’t tied him up; the day Remi needed to restrain one human to maintain control of a situation was the day he stepped down as alpha.

        Christian kept one eye on the device and the other on the predators who watched him in turn.  In short order, he placed it on the small table to show the video playing on the device, which Remi took, leaving Elijah to keep an eye on the fonchock.

        On the screen, a changeling was chained hand and foot with reinforced metal cuffs to a wall, a strip of duct tape over his mouth.  Three men wearing non-descript black clothing and balaclavas stepped forward.  One of them pressed something to the victim, apparently a taser because he spasmed, hitting his head hard against the cement wall.  Remi’s claws sliced out. 

        That was when they went to work.

        Each scream was a knife to his gut, but he would not look away, not when there might be clues that could be used to hunt the killers.  And there was no doubt in Remi’s mind that the changeling would not be walking away at the end of the video.  A human would have died, but the victim was obviously a dominant predator to withstand the torture, bits of his body hanging in ways that no limb ever should, and entire portions of soft tissue gouged out.

        When the show came to its gruesome end, Remi noted the forum for investigation later and tucked the phone into a pocket.

        “Us ‘savages’,” his lips peeled back to display his teeth in distaste at the slur, “will at least make sure you make it to a hospital instead of leaving you to bleed out on a sidewalk.”

 Mon frère - my brother Fonchock - dumbass

Again, I drew on real-world instances and in order to alleviate how problematic fantasy racism can be, here's my rough bibliography:

Black business owners often face prejudice like the association of Black people and drugs and crime. The rumours at the start of the chapter I took from an interview of a young Black woman who was recently attacked and the cops assumed she was buying drugs.

The comment about "animals working with food" is the combination of the misconception that the natural hair of Black people is "unclean" and dehumanizing Blacks, Indigenous people, and people of colour (another reason why fantasy racism is problematic).

The graffiti is based on instances of Islamophobic and anti-Black graffiti throughout North America.

Joseph Christian is taken from the name Jeremy Joseph Christian, the known white supremacist who in 2017 stabbed 3 men, killing 2, who intervened when he harrassed 2 Muslim women on the Portland metro. My spouse knew one of the victims.

The ideology he spouts is largely from The Proud Boys and other Islamophobic trash. Reading up on that trash made my brain go blue screen of death at the "logic," such as rampant grammatical and spelling errors and then turning around and telling women that we're dumb, especially when it comes to writing. So if it seems a little incoherent, well, look at the source material.

"Savages" has historically been used as a slur against Indigenous people and justification for colonialism. (Fun fact: the Proud Boys patent response to criticism of colonialism is "you're welcome!" because they believe in "civilizing" the rest of the world 🤮) I have issues with what I read as Singh's coding changelings as Indigenous (this ties back into why fantasy racism is problematic), so I did not use this word lightly. I want readers to think about why Black, Indigenous, and people of colour are often characterized as being inherently violent whenever they perform any type of demonstration (the comments will not be a platform for debating acceptable forms of resistance). If any Indigenous reader objects to this usage, please call me out on it and I will try to come up with another term.

And on a completely random note, I've had Savages by Snotty Nose Rez Kids stuck in my head while editing. If you like hip hop, check it out.

[peachesnbasil]

having a moment of Big Love for drang and sturm and twitter will not let me properly rant and i have so many feelings so i need to let it out here because. wow i love them SO MUCH. this is extremely long and sorta disjointed but it’s here.

i’ve always been a sucker for ‘complementary flaws’-type dynamics and they fit into that like a glove, and the more we learn about them the more i love the ways they move together like. here are two kids. one’s an only child from a rich family who was unloved by all but one person who died when he was still young. the other is the eldest of six (!) children in a family with nothing but so much love. by the time we meet them they’re adults- one is an obnoxious, affectionate attention hog and the other is an aloof, hostile tsundere who claims she only cares about her job. and esp with their recent event, mapping out how those children became those adults is just. excellent. sturm is a pretty honest person. she hates expressing her emotions, but she’s no liar. she won’t admit to caring but she cares deeply, and she holds herself to her own moral standard. drang is a liar. his whole behavior is a façade. he acts stupid because he knows it lowers your guard. he acts sweet because it makes you think you can trust him. he’s smart and cunning and his morals are malleable. he’s always hiding, even his design speaks to this- while most erunes have at least their backs out, drang is so covered only part of his face and one hand are exposed. all the best façades have an element of truth, of course, and we know drang cares as well. he’s unreadable to most characters, but as the mc we see more of him, and we know he cares. he gives ferry back her name even though he decides not to tell her about their connection. and there’s such an old hurt there- as a child, in his fates, he speaks to ferry like an imaginary friend, promising to come find her, to take her sister back to her. but of course that never happened, because the sister in question passed away, and drang was alone with parents who did not love him. in one of his bday dialogues, he casually mentions that his grandmother was the only person to even acknowledge his bday, and we see him in his fates crying because his father ignores him and his mother only yells at him. there’s no reason offered for this; he was just a lonely and miserable child. 

sturm was loved, and she loved her family dearly. her father worked as a mercenary and was often away from home, but he would come back and ruffle her hair and teach her swordplay. her mother was fragile after the birth of her last child, but sturm was praised for always helping with her siblings. when her father died, and her mother soon after, sturm remembers a time of heavy grief. but she was with her siblings, and she was loved, and it gave her the strength to do what she had to do. she began mercenary work early, and she took on whatever jobs she could find. we know this didn’t always end well for her. we know there are people who hate her, and call her a monster, and are even willing to retaliate against her, like the draph in her fate eps. and she just accepts this! it comes with the job. she’s not expecting anything else. in her own bday message she notes that she’s surprised her association with you has lasted so long, and when she is confronted in her fate eps she doesn’t seem to think that drang would believe her side of the story, even though by then he’s already been following her like a puppy. sturm doesn’t trust easily and she doesn’t expect others to trust her. she’s been a mercenary long enough to know vulnerability can be exploited. but her siblings still write to her, and she can support them, and so she bears it all. 

drang? drang ends up running away from home. he hides himself, he cuts his ties to everyone and everything, because in his head that’s how he protects himself. he wasn’t good enough to be loved so he will not put himself in the position to be loved. he becomes bitter and cynical and still lonely, because he thinks in this way at least he can be free. but he isn’t, and sturm is the ONLY person who can break him of this, because she is everything he isn’t. 

and they meet, for the first time, on opposite sides of a battlefield, because we’re here for the high drama. sturm is doing a job, drang is just doing whatever, floating and aimless. they clash, and drang thinks he can talk down to sturm about her job, about how she’s just here for the money, or else she’s only doing this to support someone, and isn’t that just a burden. and she just won’t take the bait! she doesn’t care! because she knows better. 

her family isn’t a burden. her love for them is not a burden. it’s a strength, and it gives her the conviction to take him down when no one else could. ‘cutting ties with others won’t make you free,’ and it doesn’t matter how powerful he is, this self-taught genius mage, she flattens him! she doesn’t even know how accurately she gets him, because she’s too busy doing her job, but she gets him right in the heart. she’s the proof of everything he isn’t. in some families, children are loved, and she’s the proof. for all her harshness, sturm is still proof of love.

and drang is so taken with her. ‘damn she’s cool’ when she beats him to the ground. follows her back to the mercenary guild. changes his name to match hers and devotes himself, all the way to the present, to being her partner. he builds his fighting style entirely around hers. as much as he teases her, as much as she attacks him, he is always by her side. ‘you’re everything to me now, sturm’ and he MEANS IT. he’s always praising her, always cheering for her, always wanting to talk about her. when he visits his grandmother’s grave, he tells her about sturm. he describes being with her as ‘liberating’- and for him, she really was. he is free now, he has ties now. there is someone he loves, now.

sturm is allergic to expressing emotion, but she expects him by her side now. he has become a comfort, as much as he is still an annoyance. he believes her. he knows her, because he tries to, unlike everyone else who is put off by her harshness. he notices the sparkle in her eyes when she gets her letters, even though he doesn’t press her about it. when she’s worried, he knows, even when she can’t express what’s wrong. and he follows her everywhere. she wants to trash their own reputation? sure, he’s game. and that means more to sturm, who is loved but was alone for a long time, than she can express. she tells him he doesn’t need to be introduced to her family, because she writes about him in her letters home. 

as long as they are together, they’re okay. a laughing liar and a grumpy hard worker. they just keep building people they care about- they love orchid so much, and they try their best to help apollo, and slowly they become friends with you and your crew, too. one’s strengths match the other’s weakness, in battle and in life. there’s so much trust and love there, and it’s a dynamic that just makes me so happy.

in conclusion i don’t really know how to end this except by saying i love them and i’d like them to hold hands and also hug. they deserve it.

[vuelie-frost]

Frozen 2, the spoiler debacle, and the dehumanization of Elsa

Hello there! Let’s talk. (Warning: this post will contain some of the leaked spoilers. Read at your own risk!) You may notice this is my first and only post on this blog. I started this side-blog just to iterate my opinions on Frozen in an anonymous setting, and my main account isn’t suited for that. As for me, I’m a 26-yo Frozen fan. Elsa is my favorite fictional character of all time; she means a lot to me. By day I work as a graphic designer in the southern US, by night I struggle to sleep. Really exciting life. 

Anyway, because I’m human trash, I read the spoilers. I sought them out. I kind of regret it. Initially I was shocked, hurt, betrayed, and uneasy about the apparent direction this movie is going in. And the more I read about people’s backlash & opinions, the more my understandings were bolstered. People have a lot to say about this. People get very up-in-arms about the direction their fictional characters take. 

Let me start by saying that if you are staunchly opposed to the PERCEIVED ending of the movie, I’m probably not going to change your mind. I’m writing this for those people like me who are just confused, uncertain, worried, and anxious. After all, we have a whole month until this movie is released. Are we going to have to live in this limbo for another month?

After reading a lot of accounts & interpretations of Frozen 2, I want to say: no. 

If the implied ending is in fact how the movie ends- separation of the sisters, Anna as sole monarch, Elsa as the fifth spirit- I’ve made my peace. And you can too (Excuse me while I sound like an infomercial.)

First, let me play devil’s advocate and pull some of the speculation apart from the facts:

- Regarding the pages from the art book, we don’t know if Elsa relinquishes her title to Anna. There’s nothing saying they’re not co-rulers. It notes that Anna inherits the throne from the “queens before her,” including Elsa, but this could be interpreted as “Elsa was queen first,” NOT “Elsa is no longer queen.”

- We don’t know if Elsa becomes a goddess, immortal, or some ethereal being. There is mention of her becoming the fifth element, but this could be a descriptive characteristic, NOT prescriptive (ie, she doesn’t need to “transform” to become it, she is it by simply being herself.) If that even is true. It’s just as likely that the bond of Elsa-Anna is the bridge/fifth element, not Elsa herself. AND if the fifth element is the harmony between humanity & spirit, Elsa can’t become un-human to fulfill that role, or she becomes wholly spirit... which is what Pabbie warned against in “losing herself” to magic. Also note that “transformation” was used to describe Elsa in her Ice Palace in the first movie. It didn’t mean she became inhuman, it meant she became more herself.

- We don’t know the nature of their “separation,” if there even is one (the leaked book pages talk about different roles only, and the Foreword of the art book only alludes to them living different lives.) The picture of Elsa riding away on the Nokk & waving? That doesn’t mean she’s leaving forever. Hell, she could be off to save Olaf from a wolf. 

- We don’t know that there are two separate Epilogues chronicling their separate journeys. The Color Script page has two boxes labeled “Epilogue.” It also has two pages labeled “Dark Sea.” Are those two separate scenes? Or just two color schemes? Given the context of the sheet’s title... I’m going with the latter.

We know very little about the context of the movie to make these judgements anything more than speculations. Take a deep breath. The movie isn’t ruined.

However, if these things turn out to be true, we can still be at peace with the decisions made at Disney Animation by preparing an open mindset. Here's how I’ve been processing it, and how I’ve come to defend the creative team regardless of their decisions for Elsa & Anna. The Perception of Wrongdoing There are a few specific implications in the spoilers that rubbed me the wrong way. I’d been optimistic for the movie until this morning when I pored over everyone’s interpretations. I don’t like the idea of the girls being separated. I don’t like the idea of Elsa no longer being queen (at least, in royal title via her family line. Snow Queen is a different honor.) I don’t like the idea of Elsa becoming something more than human, a spirit or goddess or force of nature. Elsa is beloved because of her humanity. In fact, I think the first Frozen was beloved because of its humanity. We saw the weaknesses and vulnerabilities of its two heroines and we fell in hard, deep love with the story. We’ve had so many years to marinate on that story over and over again that it’s become cozy and familiar, a hygge of itself. 

And when we’re faced with the prospect that our favorite story’s world is about to be flipped on its axis, we panic because it feels vulnerable. We’ve put so much love and time into this franchise and we feel helpless to watch other people- the people who are, in fact, in charge- make decisions about it. Dehumanization

Because of my love for Elsa, I’ll speak about her as an example, though this applies to any aspect of the story we feel is “wrong” in the sequel.

There are two ways to dehumanize someone. One is to think of them as worthless; the other is to idolize them. 

It’s not a secret that Elsa is one of the most idolized fictional characters of our time. Some of her creators even fell a little bit in love with her, as admitted by Jennifer Lee. She was written as someone who is inherently beautiful, but fragile and unsure of herself. She is kind, gentle, wise, and compassionate. Even her flaws- her penchant for being too reserved, her anxious and worried nature- are romanticized into beauty. Moreover, her flaws as characteristics rather than actions make it difficult for us to perceive her as anything other than our perfect, honorable Snow Queen.

Codependency, by definition, involves the idolatry of another human. Obviously Elsa being fictional doesn’t make her codependent to anyone, as it’s not a mutual relationship. But the idolatry is there. We feel we “need” her to be and act a certain way to fulfill our desires. 

So when we hear word that she’s acting in a way we don’t like? We get scared. Perhaps we didn’t understand her the way we thought we did. Perhaps we’re not as “close” to her as we thought. Perhaps it feels like a betrayal. 

Jennifer Lee & Christopher Buck know Elsa better than we do. We project our own experiences onto the character of Elsa because she’s so unique and still relatable. But her creators are the ones who know her wholly, truly, as she is. Jennifer Lee wrote journals to “listen” to Elsa & Anna, and their respective stories. They employed mental health professionals to analyze the characters and help determine arcs that would make sense. They care a lot about what these sisters do and feel, and no one- not even you or me- is more committed to playing these characters truthfully.  This is something that idolatry blinds us to. The image of Elsa in our heads doesn’t match the expression in the sequel, and we get scared of the cognitive dissonance. Who is Elsa if she’s not the Queen? Who is Anna if she’s not living with her sister? We panic because what we THOUGHT we knew is suddenly revealed to be a lie. We imagined the ending of Frozen 2 to be an idyllic family setting, when in fact it might stretch our definition of “family.”  All that to say: it’s okay to be scared of what this movie might reveal about characters we thought we knew. The familiarity of the first movie is being challenged. But growth can’t happen without some sort of variable change. It’s okay to disagree with how the creators specifically do that, but be aware of why they chose to make those decisions in the first place.  The trailers have been alluding to a separation of some kind, with Elsa’s “What would I do without you?” to Anna’s “you’ll always have me” as foreboding clues to the movie’s interpersonal conflict. For reasons we don’t know, this is the route the creative team has taken. It might feel unfair, but we don’t have the whole story. And whatever that story is.... it will all be okay. Jennifer and Chris will make the right decisions for their characters. The sisters will be happy in the end because this is a Disney movie (do you really think they’d be happy separated against either of their wills?) They’ll be a family regardless of the circumstances. It might not be how you or I would have written it, but that doesn’t make it a bad story nor an invalid one. And we can be content with that for another month. (I have a working hypothesis that we’re all going to be happily surprised by the ending’s larger meaning, once it’s revealed.) Wait, isn’t this just a kid’s movie? Shouldn’t we just suck it up and move on? Elsa may be fictional, but that doesn’t mean she’s not real. She means a lot to a LOT of people because of her very real relationships with herself, her capabilities, her power, and her family. It’s not silly to worry about her arc, nor Frozen 2′s arc as a whole.  Stay Mindful

If you’ve been scouring Tumblr & Instagram all day today in a panic trying to decide how to feel about the Frozen 2 leaks, please get off the echo chamber that is the internet. Eat a chocolate chip cookie, meditate, sit outside with a cup of tea- enter back into the “real world.” It pains me to say this because I’m talking to myself as much as I'm talking to anyone else, but: Frozen is not the determinant of your existence, nor your happiness. It’s one story among SO many, all of which have the potential to form and influence us in various ways.

In closing:

- keep in mind that most of what’s circulating on Tumblr is part of a rumor mill, and not to trust anything that doesn’t come from Disney themselves

- context is key to everything, and until we see the movie, we don’t have the knowledge to make major decisions about how we feel about Frozen 2

- It’s okay to feel worried or scared that the story won’t be what we were expecting- but that doesn’t make it bad, and it doesn’t mean we’re destined to be disappointed

- be mindful of whether you’re putting the characters/movie/franchise on a pedestal of unsustainable adoration. It can be unhealthy and painful to come down from that high.

[elisaphoenix13]

Against All Odds (Ch. 5)

Stephen and Quill stayed with Scott until Sunday, and after being told by the junior to stay home on Monday as well, Scott was back at school on Tuesday. The cotton in his head was gone, and his sore throat not as bad but still bothering him since he was still coughing. His cough was still present and a little congested but he felt a lot better than he did over the weekend and he had more energy. At least enough energy to get through school without collapsing or passing out. The cough was the bigger issue.

Scott coughs into his elbow after he opens his locker and a small bag half filled with individually wrapped cough drops in thrust right in front of his face. He follows the arm connected to the hand and blushes bright red when he finds it attached to Quill. The football player already spent his weekend hanging out at Scott's with him and Stephen to help take care of him...and now he was giving him cough drops? Why? Did he feel bad that Scott didn't have parents to rely on and Stephen had the right idea about stepping up? Scott didn't want his pity. He's been just fine all these years.

"I figured these would help you get through the day."

"Why are you doing this?" Scott blurts out before he can stop himself.

"I've only known you for a week, but I like what little I've gotten to see...and I want to get to know you better." Quill says and Scott looks away to grab his books out of his locker.

"You've seen everything. Even the bad parts."

"Not everything." Scott stiffens when the senior shoves the bag of cough drops into the front pocket of his sweater. "I have yet to see you smile." Quill smiles at him. "I'll see you after practice."

Scott watches in bewilderment as Quill walks away, and he pulls the bag of cough drops out of his pocket after closing his locker. There was still some extra weight in the pocket of his sweater though, and when Scott stuck his hand back in his pocket, he came away with a Capri Sun. He definitely didn't come to school with it, so the only explanation was that Quill snuck it in with the cough drops. Now Scott just wanted to know if it was another kind gesture or if Quill somehow found out that he loved juice.

Either way, they were both nice to have. Especially the drops. They lessened the frequency of his coughing and were heaven on his sore throat, but no matter how much relief they brought him, Scott seemed to have a bigger...problem. People were looking at him. In class, in the hallways between periods, everywhere. Everyone whispered to each other as they watched him walk by and it had Scott extremely uncomfortable. Why was he suddenly visible to everyone? He doubted that they noticed he missed Friday and Monday because he was sick, and he had a feeling that it didn't have to do with that anyway. Maybe.

It was even worse at lunch. The staring was more obvious as he walked to the corner of the lunch room to his and Stephen's usual table, and he hated it. While Stephen was right when he said Scott wanted some kind of attention, this wasn't the kind he wanted. This was specifically why he made himself invisible. Scott just wanted to know why everyone was suddenly looking at him so he could make it stop. He wasn't about to ask though. He just took to ignoring the stares as he picked at his food and waited for Stephen to join him.

Ten minutes into lunch, Scott only managed to eat half of his meal before his throat started to protest and Stephen still hadn't shown up. He was possibly caught up with a teacher like Scott had been last week and Scott didn't want to be in the cafeteria any longer than he had to be. He could go to the library until lunch was over, as most students that suddenly realized he existed were ones that wouldn't go there unless it was required of them. Sometimes not even then.

Scott gets up from the table with his tray and backpack and as he gets closer to the trash cans to dump his tray, the head cheerleader and a couple of her friends step in his path. He attempts to move around them, but when they continue to block him and then fold their arms, Scott glances at them warily. Every one of his nerves screamed at him to run when he saw the nasty glares the cheerleaders were giving him, but he was frozen to the spot. What did they want with him?

"So you're the reason Peter didn't come to the mall with the rest of us like he said he would." The head cheerleader (Rachel, Scott finally remembers) says with a grimace, and holds her hand up when Scott opens his mouth to defend himself. "I don't want to hear any of your lame excuses or your lies." It was now that the cafeteria had grown dead silent because Rachel was extremely loud and calling attention to herself...and Scott. "I saw you with him in the library but I let it slide because it looked like you were just helping him with homework. But then one of my girls saw you with Peter at the grocery store."

What? He was seen with Quill twice in one day, on the first day their tutoring sessions started? Just how much free time did these people have?

"I let that slide too. I thought maybe it was a coincidence or he was thanking you for the help. But then he never showed up at the mall on Saturday." Rachel continues, and Scott was wondering why Quill not being there was such a big deal. "I found out yesterday it was because he went to your house. Not even for homework help either. He went because the only friend you have told him you weren't at school. He ended up staying all weekend because you were sick and no one was home to take care of you."

Scott gulps visibly, agitating his sore throat, and he had to hold back the urge to cough. How did she know that? Stephen wasn't one to tell, so maybe Quill did? Not that Scott believed Quill meant for this to happen. His football buddies probably asked where he was all weekend and Quill told them. It was very likely a simple question he answered was overheard by the wrong people and rumors spread like wildfire. Of course in just a few hours, everyone would know that Scott existed and it wouldn't be in a good way. How much did Rachel know?

"It doesn't take much to look into someone here. I know all about your parents. They're still not home are they?" Scott's eyes widen. "You know you were an accident right? The reason your parents are almost never home anymore is because they don't want you. They never did. How sad is it to have parents that have to leave their own house to get away from you?"

Deep down Scott knew that. It was the explanation. But to hear it from someone else? It brought the harsh reality crashing down on him and breaking his very fragile bubble of feigned ignorance. He knew he shouldn't listen to her, but unfortunately, her words were almost positively true.

"You're worthless. You mean nothing to your parents, the only friend you have is only your friend because he pities you, and Peter is only nice to you because you do his homework. You might as well be nothing."

The cafeteria remained silent. The tension hung heavily in the air, and Scott had to actually hold back his tears. He knew he wasn't wanted. He knew that he could very easily step outside the school's front doors, never come back, and no one would notice or care. He could run away and no one would even file a missing persons report on him. Just five minutes ago he thought maybe at least Stephen would notice, but the older boy wasn't even here right now and it made Scott wonder if Rachel's claim about Stephen was true too. That Stephen only pitied him. That he only took the time to make Scott feel less invisible because he was there. If Scott did leave, Stephen wouldn't have to put the effort in anymore.

The silence was finally unbearable and Scott set his tray as calmly as possible on a nearby table and made his way toward the cafeteria doors...and found Quill standing in the doorway. Had he overheard what Rachel said? If so, why didn't he say anything? Why didn't he stop her?

Because Rachel was right.

Scott swallows thickly as he pushes past Quill (and actually heard the senior yell "What the fuck did you say to him, bitch?!" But he was now convinced that was his imagination), and bolts for the stairs leading to the roof. He needed to be alone. Somewhere where absolutely no one would be, and the roof provided that. Too many people were in and out of the bathroom and the library would have some people in it during lunch, so he had to choose the roof. Even if that meant exposing himself to the elements.

The moment he stumbled out the doorway to the roof, he had just enough sense to prop the door with a nearby cinder block so he wouldn't get locked out, and went around the corner to sit against the side of the entrance. He pulled the hood of his sweater over his head to at least keep the rain from pelting his skin directly, and then pulled his knees close to his chest to rest his forehead on them.

Get small. Make yourself invisible again.

Could he even do that anymore? Maybe if he distanced himself from Stephen and Quill it might work. Push them away and then blend into the background again. People would forget about him again. All of this happened because he allowed himself to open up just the tiniest bit, and Rachel just had to get one of her claws into the stitches of his insecurities and rip him open for everyone to see. No matter how much she poked and prodded at his biggest insecurities, he would never let them see him run or cry. Even now he refused to cry. What was the point?

He didn't have a parent to talk to. The school wouldn't do anything about it, and he didn't want to bother Stephen or Quill anymore. They had their own groups of friends they could spend time with, and Quill could easily find someone else to help him with his math homework.

To think his life was somewhat normal and quiet just a week ago. Now he would give anything to be non-existent to everyone again. The attention wasn't worth it. It was negative and only made him believe that any love he saw in the world was a ruse.

Not only does high school suck, but so does the world.

"What are you doing out here? You're going to have a relapse." Scott slowly looks up from his knees and finds Stephen standing in front of him. "Come on, back inside."

"I don't want someone to be my friend because they pity me." Scott bites out.

"Well it's a good thing I don't." Stephen grabs one of Scott's arms and pulls him to his feet before dragging him back inside and out of the rain. "Scott."

Stephen stops them just inside the building and Scott looks down. "This is why I liked being invisible." He whispers.

"I know." The older boy mutters quietly.

Then the unthinkable happened. Stephen grabbed Scott again, gently this time, and pulled him into a hug. Scott actually stood there with his arms hanging at his sides as his brain tried to process what was going on, but then he finally managed to lift his arms to return the hug. He was hesitant at first, but the longer Stephen held him there, the tighter Scott made his arms until he was fisting the back of Stephen's soaked sweater. Scott still refused to cry (it was tempting though), but he still enjoyed every second of the hug. The first one he ever had and it was better than he imagined. The reason for it sucked but it definitely helped him feel a little better. It was proof that at least Stephen still cared about him.

"Would you notice if I disappeared?" Scott mutters into Stephen's shoulder.

The older teen snorts. "Please, I would find you and drag you back kicking and screaming."

The hug lasted a good couple more minutes until Stephen finally pulled away and held up the younger's backpack.

"We have permission to take you home." Stephen says softly and Scott furrows his eyebrows.

"We?"

Stephen motions toward the stairs and Scott finds Quill on the landing below. "I'm not the only one who would notice if you disappeared."

Scott looks down and away from the senior and stares at a stain on the linoleum floor. "That's probably not a good idea."

"Hey." Quill says and Scott looks back over at him. "Don't worry about Rachel. Everyone knows she's just mad that I'm more worried about my grades than I am about catching her STD's. Do you have any idea where that has been?" Quill half jokes.

Scott couldn't help himself after that. He snorted in amusement before it evolved into a small fit of laughter that ended in some wheezing when it caused another coughing episode. Stephen gently patted his back until Scott managed to catch his breath again, and then to his surprise, asked him to take off his rain soaked sweater. Scott did so with a frown.

"I don't have anything else."

Stephen sighs. "It's better to not wear it while we get to the car than to wear it and make yourself worse."

"Hold on." Quill says and climbs the stairs up to them as he takes off his own sweater before holding it out to Scott. "It's clean, I promise."

"Thanks, but--"

"It's fine. I run pretty warm and I can stop by my house after I drop you off at home."

Scott sighs and then finally takes the offered sweater, and after he pulls it over his head, he looks up at Quill and thanks him quietly. The moment he did though, he saw a weird flash in the older teen's eyes. A trick of the light maybe? There was supposed to be another thunderstorm today, but when he looked around the immediate area, there were no windows and the other two didn't look up at the lights. Maybe Scott was just tired and his eyes were playing tricks on him.

He was sick and had a really shitty day anyway.

"You're cute when you smile by the way." Quill says as he starts back down the stairs and Stephen looks at Scott with a knowing smirk when the youngest blushes.

Was Quill flirting?

[ganymedesclock]

Do you like Lotura?

I’m reasonably partial to it.

Considering how hurt both of them were leaving the situation, they may never hook back up again, but, I think in a meta sense there’s no particular reason to doubt that those feelings were genuine, both ways, as Lotor says they are- yes, he had an ulterior motive for Allura’s trust but the way he opened himself up and made himself vulnerable to her in a way she was immediately able to hurt him over is actively contrary to those ulterior motives.

He needed Allura’s help, but by the time things went downhill, she meant infinitely more to him than just a meal ticket. Considering we see their first kiss after the point the jig’s decisively up, it would make total sense for the writers to inject some thread of sinister insincerity into his behavior- we’d be on high alert for it. And yet that entire scene is...

Part of this is just the architecture of Lotor’s face and the expressions he makes, but he looks exquisitely vulnerable. Even when they’re so much closer, just like he did in s5e5, he’s holding her hand only by the very tips of her fingers- just this time he has them curled to his chest.

And yes- Lotor’s a damn good actor when he wants to be. It’s fair to question his sincerity. Except... if we look at Lotor’s established patterns as a character, two things stand out:

1. He tends to try and hide genuine vulnerability

and

2. When Lotor feigns or plays up vulnerability he is always trying to bait someone to attack him

Given that he (at least claims to) have set up the situation with his generals’ betrayal, it’s worth noting the way he talks and acts in s5e1- he repeatedly emphasizes how powerful and helpful he is. Even dealing with a bunch of avowed and dedicated protectors, Lotor never once frames himself as a vulnerable person in need of help, even when the situation is basically driving home how vulnerable he is.

To me, I think that’s the damning evidence of how much Allura meant to Lotor- because repeatedly throughout them growing closer we see Lotor put his vulnerability in Allura’s hands.

This is repeated throughout their interactions, and it is repeated very meaningfully at one particular point:

This scene.

See here’s the thing: Lotor is a quick-witted, light-footed agile combatant. Allura’s no slouch remotely- but you’d expect a direct engagement between them to be more drawn out.

But Allura drops him in one hit.

Why?

Because Lotor’s set wrong, he’s overbalancing forwards, and because he gave Allura the arm that she’s using as a leverage point to throw him.

This is a direct illustration of “Lotor openly made himself vulnerable in front of Allura and considering she was able to exploit it to actively drop him as an opponent, that was not a ruse and not according to plan.”

Now, I’m not saying that to tear into Allura about “how could she”. Because- we know exactly why she could. Allura doesn’t take kindly to people she trusted and respected breaking that trust. And however you think about the colony, however much more to that situation there might have been... it stands that, even in desperation, even in fear, even in feeling out of options, Lotor did something terrible.

It’s something he himself sees as terrible. The scene when he comes to collect Bandor’s body, he is not acting like he did catching Raht, or how he tends to be closing a leak in a plan. He has an empty, despondent stare, and without particular energy or zeal, just sets himself about doing what has to be done. Cleaning up the body. Destroy the evidence. 

And maybe I’m beating a dead horse, but I come back to: we should not be defending Lotor by defending the colony. One of the people most avidly responsible for hurting Lotor, Haggar, was the only one to insist Lotor’d done nothing wrong, had “furthered [her] work” and he snarled at her and laid on some pretty significant threats in response. The most Lotor sees harvesting the colony as is a necessary evil.

And we see back in s6e1 how obsessed he is with the rift, and how unhappy he is at the idea of postponing it even for incredibly necessary operations. When Allura says that his plan has waited this long, it can wait longer... that takes a very different context when we consider that Lotor knows what Allura doesn’t- the price he paid to “wait” this long.

Every time Lotor time-crunches a delay, he’s weighing the possibility of having to add more names to that stone. 

That might seem weird to talk about in Lotura meta, but, there’s a point to it.

Remember how Oriande was basically Lotor’s dream, but he gave up on it so quickly, and pronounced that only for Allura? Again, Lotor’s known about the colony this whole time. He’s had that thumping away under the hood. He knows what he did, he knows what, even if he harnesses the rift and is able to heal those who aren’t completely consumed, is not going to go away. And that’s a pointed concern because the two people Lotor hates most in the universe- Zarkon and Haggar- are both unapologetically parasitic people. They’re people who kill others for their own gain.

Knowing that he’s emulating them in that regard does not sit well with him, and I think this affects a lot of how he views Allura.

Because Lotor does a lot of fantasizing. About living in Altea before the downfall. About being a hero, a defender of the universe just like Voltron. About knowing Alfor and studying under him. About helping people.

Allura is most of what Lotor wishes he could be. She is that hero, that savior figure, widely beloved and recognized, a child of Altea who was protected, carried away from the war, so that she never had to struggle those long years alone and was able to wake up and immediately do something to fix the nightmare of the universe.

So I think in their interactions, there was genuinely an element of Lotor just being absolutely awestruck by Allura. And jealous of her- incredibly jealous! And that jealousy is a lot of what we see come out when they actually come into conflict. But admiration and envy are two sides of the same coin.

And on Allura’s end of things?

For Allura, Lotor’s something she never even let herself believe she might have- someone who’s able to understand her life situation. And Lotor’s royalty, and Lotor’s handsome, and, as they start working together, he’s actually quite well-mannered, and Allura’s used to this sort of thing- courtly love, expressing interest in people. She plays, he responds, move a little closer, see how he’s feeling. 

And I think she could tell, once she got close to him, how miserable he was, and how he didn’t think very highly of himself- that’s when she starts talking about how she wouldn’t be able to do this without him. She doesn’t know the root of that guilt, that there’s a reason beyond abuse that Lotor thinks poorly of himself. But she found herself wanting to encourage him, because for Allura, ideals, values, these things are very important. It’s appealing to her that Lotor is so obviously trying to better himself.

But that’s just it. Allura’s ideals are very important to her.

We see basically an ongoing trend that Allura as a person is prone to sacrifice. If she’s challenged to decide between comfort and the demands of her campaign against the darkness and injustice of the universe... the comfort has to go. Her father’s AI, her castle, her crown... she surrenders these things not because they’re meaningless to her, but, because there’s something so much more important on the line- her allies’ lives, the fate of the universe, Shiro. She isn’t thinking of the circlet before Shiro goes into a seizure, and she doesn’t think much of it afterwards, from what we see- she just sees him buckling on the table and they’ve got to do something. 

And that, I think, is the disservice people pay Allura towards Lotor. Allura didn’t suddenly decide her prince was actually a piece of shit and threw him out with the trash- but that relationship with Lotor was another sacrifice Allura made.

Because we see exactly where Allura’s eyes go before she makes that decision.

It’s this very specific shot of Romelle.

Now, the thing about Romelle is she puts a very brave face on things. She’s stubborn, she’s peppy, she’s got a lot of convictions. And in s6e4, the entire time she’s been trying to move forwards, trying to do what’s necessary. This isn’t doe-eyed fragility she’s showing. But what it is, is at a point where Romelle is awaiting Allura’s judgment. Everyone else has basically told her they cannot and will not make a specific move against Lotor while Allura’s with him.

And here, in this moment when Allura hesitates, Romelle’s brave face cracks just a little. The way her eyebrows are set, the stiff way she’s standing, looking like she’s bit her lip to try not to cry.

It follows the same formula. Allura’s not making this choice because fuck Lotor actually. She loves Lotor. She genuinely wants to hear him out, she genuinely wants to believe in the sincerity she’s seen out of him before.

But there’s a price tag attached to that, and that price is Romelle.

Allura cannot turn her back on someone who’s vulnerable like that. And yes, in this situation she’s caught in a double bind- someone has to go down here.

But her reflex, her knee-jerk sentiment- she can’t leave Romelle here. Romelle’s not begging her- but if anything, that failed attempt at stoicism pulls the heartstrings even more. The camera frames how Romelle looks in Allura’s eyes- and we see her as very small, and very alone, and very scared, and trying not to let it on how much she is any of those things.

Now, the second disservice people do Allura in this situation is they act as if Allura decided then and there Lotor had to die and she wasn’t going to hear him out. She dropped him, but she wasn’t about to kill him, and neither was the rest of the team- they started easing up and lowering their weapons once Lotor went down. Allura incapacitated him- the next step, given how our team operates, would probably have been detaining and questioning him. 

(And we have to remember, at the end of the Sincline-Voltron battle, the team did not want to kill Lotor and didn’t even question whether or not they wanted to save him- just whether or not they could. The one time they talked about ‘destroying’ him, that was the rift getting to them and Allura immediately pointed it out as such)

They didn’t get to do that, and that was not on Allura, nor on Lotor. And it sure as hell wasn’t on Romelle, either.

It was on Honerva. She set off Shiro, she had the generals attack the base.And any analysis that tries to tackle the end of s6 without acknowledging Honerva’s role as a saboteur- a role she has often taken for Lotor- is one that doesn’t grasp the full scope of the situation. With dragging Lotor and the Sincline ships away, she guaranteed that when Lotor made it back to Allura, it wasn’t a stable situation, it was an armed standoff. 

And Lotor’s hurt, and Allura feels betrayed, and if there’s one demon Allura definitely has, is that she doesn’t take betrayal well at all. And Lotor- there’s only so much he can deescalate without feeling struck in the heart himself because he’s got ten thousand years of instincts that say “don’t leave your heart exposed” and the way he relates to Allura, he’s been doing just that and he can’t just go take-backsies on all of those feelings. So it’s an armed standoff where both parties are bleeding from the heart and loading their weapons to make sure the other person hurts just as much.

So... at this point, I don’t really know where canon is going to go with these two. I’m deeply skeptical this is the end of Lotor’s story, especially with the Altean colony significantly stepping up in importance, but, while I’m hopeful that Lotor and Allura will have some manner of reconnecting, it may be they’re not exactly endgame ship here. Given Allura seems to be moving towards Lance now (making her earlier “oh...” in response to hearing he was in love with her more conflicted than distant) and the recently introduced Altean character seems an awful lot like Queen Merla, who’s fairly consistently been a love interest to Lotor, the point may be this is the end of the road for their romantic relationship.

Which is fine- because whatever form it takes in canon, I think their interactions and their dynamics are very interesting. I might explore AUs or fics where it works out better for them, but I’m not abjectly dissatisfied with what canon did to it. I can just be hopeful they do get to rekindle at least a platonic rapport- especially because given Lotor’s history in other continuities, it would be really interesting if VLD ends on a note of him genuinely accepting Allura likes someone else, seeing someone else himself, and moving on.

In many prior continuities, Lotor has been written as an egregiously entitled person who in part out of his own misery, obsesses over Allura. So if VLD ends with Lotor building a new relationship with, presumably Merla, and him and Allura merely ending on a note of friends or at least allies, it’d be a nice way to meta-nod to “Lotor is healing as a person” and also “being able to take no for an answer is an important skill.”

So TL;DR, Lotura- at least with this incarnation of the characters- will always inhabit a warm place in my heart, but it’s not crucial for my enjoyment of the series that it also inhabits a warm place in canon.

Also Allurance is kinda cute too and I genuinely didn’t think I was gonna say that but VLD’s admittedly done a bafflingly good job selling me on ships I didn’t think I’d get into.

[rosariomiddleton1-blog]

Searching for Excellent Advice About Plumbing? Check out Out These Useful Solutions!

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The ideal way to fix this dilemma is to hire a licensed plumber who is educated to repair the leak. If your pipes freeze, turn on the h2o from the faucet closest them to permit water out when they start off to thaw. This will relive some of the stress, and could avoid cracks from appearing. Find a much better way to discard of cooking oil instead of pouring it down the drain the place it can very easily clog your pipes. Maintain a espresso can or other steel container useful to pour grease into soon after cooking. Place the can in the freezer to harden the grease and when it's entire, discard it with the trash. Examine your taps for leaks. Check the knobs and the faucet alone. Hundreds of gallons of h2o a working day can be wasted because of to leaks and that is not excellent if you might be spending your water monthly bill. By halting a leak now, you can conserve oneself a whole lot of funds. Leaks can expand more than time as properly, so steer clear of a disaster and check all taps for leaks! Check out your gas h2o heater periodically to make sure the pilot flame is lit. The appropriate color for this flame should be blue. The tip of the flame need to be yellow. If you uncover that you are only looking at a yellow flame, you may possibly want to phone a skilled for safety factors. Have all your plumbing wants scheduled all at once. Of course, our natural inclination is to deal with difficulties as they arise, but it assists to get every thing carried out at when. Even if you only have one visible dilemma, you can nonetheless get a plumber to inspect other places. Most plumbers have an hourly charge and a flat rate for the journey: asking a plumber to fix several difficulties in one particular vacation is less costly than contacting them more than when. Make sure that your device box is ready for any project you are getting ready to do. The final thing you want is to be knee deep in a occupation only to locate that you are missing the 1 tool you want to finish. Be certain to have a variety of dimensions of pipe wrenches that can be employed to total any job. If you have drains in your home that have not been used for a extended period of time of time, pour 1 gallon of h2o by way of them to maintain them purposeful. Additionally, this will have the included benefit of decreasing any odors from coming into your house from absence of use for the duration of the calendar year. Do you have a frozen drainpipe? You can use a backyard garden hose to thaw it out. 1st of all, remove the lure from the drainpipe and insert the hose right up until it will not go any additional. Even though lifting up the other conclude of the hose, pour hot h2o down it. Preserve pouring sizzling drinking water down the hose until finally the drainpipe thaws. To save time with cleanup, maintain a bucket underneath to catch the water that overflows. Many individuals question where the fruit flies are coming from. Every plumbing fixture has a self-sealed reserve that retains about two cups of drinking water. If those pipes are broken or do not seal off, then odors and residue can cause fruit flies. It is advisable prior to anything to thoroughly clean your pipes using bleach. If the flies appear again, make contact with a professional. For men and women who stay in an condominium intricate, plumbing is often neglected about. The very first time they go into a house they are not able to resolve any small plumbing problems, due to the fact they have never ever dealt with this type of factor. It is good to get a standard comprehending when shifting into your very first residence. Insulate your pipes properly. If the temperature drops under fifty 5 degrees, your pipes could freeze. This makes pipes extremely fragile and increases the chance of leaks and damages. The pipes inside your residence need to not freeze but take a search at a program of your plumbing system to see if you have any pipes outdoors of your property. If the h2o strain on your avenue exceeds 60 pounds, you a lot of want to think about setting up a pressure reducing valve. Also much h2o stress is truly damaging to your plumbing system and could trigger surplus drinking water force. A pressure lowering valve cuts down your water pressure by nearly 50 percent. You could want to consider tankless h2o heaters if you want to conserve h2o in your residence. These type of water heaters warmth up your h2o as before long as it is being used, so you are not throwing away energy on trying to keep your h2o hot when it is not becoming utilised. To examine for rest room leaks, specifically if it would seem like your rest room is chronically operating, use a number of drops of foodstuff coloring in the toilet tank. If drinking water is leaking into the bowl, you will see color in about a 50 percent hour. Changing tank elements can repair leaks and significantly preserve on h2o consumption. In conclusion, you want to take the time now ahead of there is an situation to learn about plumbing so that you know what to do when something happens. When you are panicked or when your property is at threat, you will not be in the very best mode for understanding. With any luck , this write-up aids you immensely.

[ayersschofield8-blog]

What You Should Know About Dealing With Your Automobile

Wondering how to proceed whenever your automobile fails is a kind of style for a lot of. Improvements could be quite expensive, and completely wrong techniques could cost you even a lot more. So, how would you like to manage the next repair? Can you instead not think about it? Rather, why don't you learn new things and then deal with everything appropriately the next time about. Be extremely careful when coming in contact with the electronic digital pieces on your automobile. You must not effect cables unless the whole method is turned off. You must take note of the alert labeling around the various areas of your vehicle holding some parts could be dangerous even when your vehicle is switched off. Be sure your auto professional is capable to work towards your particular vehicle. Motor autos are complex equipment with each brand name has exclusive characteristics. Some manufacturers demand specific instruments, parts, and procedures. A lot of standard car technicians both lack these materials or do not keep these things easily available. Without the need of these things, they can't fix your car. When using your car or truck to the mechanic's, you must not keep just before developing a complete diagnosing what has to be set. In case the mechanic refuses to look at the car immediately or fails to want to offer you a quote for the issues he clinically diagnosed, find someone different. If you want an important repair carried out, get many estimations. Though aspects are reliable on the whole, you might continue to find yourself spending in excess of you ought to. Find a go shopping that has a reputation for deal with your make of auto. These shops are in a better position to handle your automobile maintenance. Make sure that you clear your car during the cold months too. Although it might appear ineffective, the wintertime months could cause lots of problems. Road sea salt and sand cause rust and abrasion. Take care to free of moisture your car before driving a car it yet again. You wouldn't want ice-cubes to make. You are able to resolve tiny dings by using a suction cup ding puller. This usually works for tiny dings that can easily be covered with the suction power mug. When the mug fails to work, you should utilize some filler in the damage, fine sand and painting till it gets unseen. Listen for any peculiar disturbances that your particular car can be making. This can be popping sounds, knocks, squeals, or something in addition. They can be absolutely signs of some sort of issue that requires vehicle restoration. Have a log of whenever you pick up them, and be aware the kind of driving you had been carrying out when they occurred. click here can help the car retail outlet detect the situation appropriately. You can easily fix scuff marks oneself. You will need to complete the mark using a primer that corresponds to the colours of your respective car, utilize some fresh paint when the primer is dried up and yellow sand the complete location. Start with a great beach sand pieces of paper and increase the grain gradually before waxing. In case you have by no means accomplished any auto restoration all on your own, you need to keep with tiny careers and do a great deal of research to learn how to do larger careers. Be certain to not begin to take your vehicle aside should you aren't positive how you can put it together again. Prior to starting any car fix career, ensure you supply the required parts and tools in position so you know specifically what you need to because of full the job from start to finish. Generally ask for a thorough costs to the fixes carried out to your automobile. Go over the costs having a auto mechanic and request queries should you not comprehend the type of work that had been completed on the auto. Check with the time was invested in each and every product and make certain this results in everything you were charged for labor. If you take your car or truck to an auto repair shop to obtain one important thing fixed and so they inform you that other improvements are essential, thank them for that information and drop any additional services. Head to other locations and have quotes well before letting them do any more work with your vehicle. Watch out for signs by using a technician. There are many indications to find once you speak to them about your car. Once they consider talking truly quick concerning the necessary repairs, can't appear you in the vision when talking for you, or try and clean you away from, you must get yet another auto technician. They may be camouflaging one thing or they can only value the funds. There are a few shady mechanics on the market, and they can resort to severe lows to obtain your hard earned money. If a technician informs you that your particular axle boot is split, question to discover it. A real damage will be jagged and fatty. If it is a direct minimize, inform them you are aware of they do the harm and you will definitely talk to a attorney when they don't fix it totally free. Speak with the producer when you have a safety problem which could be lethal. This is usually a recall scenario but the manufacturer demands to be familiar with the matter for the recall to take place. The manufacturer may possibly repair the problem at no cost to you personally. Even though it is attractive to utilize less expensive upgraded components in your car, it is advisable to opt for Initial Devices Manufacturer (OEM) elements. They are parts designed by the maker of your respective auto. The suit is ideal. To get a equipment as expertly designed as a present day auto, this will expand the lifestyle of your own auto. Make your rate very low through the original 1,000 kilometers from the dealer. This is recognized as the split-in time and is a fragile time. Relax along with your vehicle through these very first 1,000-2,000 kilometers then feel free to tear it loosened. Naturally, this is only if you wish to maintain your vehicle in best-situation so long as probable. When you are looking at an auto maintenance commitment, be sure that it says endorsement should be given on paper prior to work can be accomplished. There are many mechanics that will consent to execute a career at the specific cost, however they are doing far more and let you know that the retail price has risen. Should you move up to a service station while their tankers are still there, take-out and are avalable back one more working day. The original day time although tankers continue to be filling up the tanks on the service station, the strain will mix the grime and trash towards the bottom from the below ground aquarium. Car difficulty might be infuriating. But, for those who have some basic understanding of car fix, there is no need to be concerned. Always keep this article helpful for periods when you need a simple hint.

[bleedingcoffee42]

16 or 29 for royai, if you want?

#16 “It doesn’t look like you’ll beneeding stitches.” and #29 “Anything but that”

I went for my Archaeologist AdventurerPlayboy Roy and Colonel Hawkeye AU for this.  

xxxxxx

Roy didn’t take his hand away.   Hewatched the care in which Riza was picking out shards of glass fromhis hand and how focused she was on her task.   The sun was shiningabove and the hole in the collapse roof was shining around them,surrounding her her in stream of light that looked like something outof a painting.   “You never cease to amaze me.”

Riza didn’t lift her eyes away from hishand.   “Neither do you.  Picking up some fragile artifact andhaving it shatter in your hand…like an amateur.”

He shrugged and she made a noise at himto chastise him for moving while she was working.   “Usually flasksare sturdier than that.   Considering they were used for chemistry,for it to be that brittle negates it functionality.   The people ofXerses were known for their intelligence and craftsmanship, a glassblower making supplies for the alchemists of this city would havenever allowed something like that into circulation.  It would havebeen melted down.”

“It’s been hundreds of years.” Riza said as she picked up the forceps from Roy’s archaeology fieldkit to remove the smaller particles from his hand.   The hand wasbleeding but it was helping her note where fragments could be becauseof the flow of blood and from and around pieces.   She had alreadyused her canteen water to wash off his hand once, it didn’t lastlong.

“Xerxes glass will be around forthousands and still be usable.”  Roy said and looked at the pile ofglass shards that used to be a flask.   “Something had to happen tocompromise the integrity of that glass.  Either something in itor something outside of it weakened it.  Colonel Hawkeye, Ithink we’re getting close to what we’ve been looking for.”

The expedition had gone on for monthsand she knew everyone was beginning to question Roy’s motives here.  It had become a little too obvious that she and the playboyadventurer were romantically involved.   Roy’s reputation made manyof her officers question if he would even hesitate to prolong anarchaeological dig just to spend more time with her.   Her menbelieved in her, which was the only reason reports had not been sentback to HQ about Mustang misusing army funds and time.   She felt himstart to fidget, excited that he had found a solid lead, even if itdid bite him back.   It’s why he went back to formalities.   “Sitstill!”

Roy obeyed and looked around the room. “This isn’t some trash pile, this flask was deliberately in thecenter of this room.   This had some major significance.  The factthat it’s still here, while the rest of this room was ransacked meansit’s significance has been ignored by vandals for centuries.”

Of course they were alone here withoutany backup, he had insisted on doing some exploring with her to talkabout the civilization that had just vanished without a trace.   Hespoke of it with reverence, his eyes seemed to see this place in it’sglory days instead of as the sand battered ruins it was today.   This was why the military wanted him here, they wanted someone whowas going to see what nobody else had in all the years these ruinshad been explored and picked over.  It was also why they had her hereinstead of anyone else, because they knew the only reason he wouldwork for the military again was to be with her.   “Is this what weare here to find?”

“Yes.”  Roy said definitively. “Whatever cause the disappearance of the Xerses people started inthis room.”

Riza sighed as she picked another pieceof glass from his hand.   She put the forceps down, it was the bestshe could do.   “And it was probably in this flask, or on it.  Thanks for injecting it into your flesh so you can expose yourselfeven more thoroughly to whatever caused it.”

“I promise, I’ll only ever exposemyself to you.”  He whispered and she gave him an admonishing lookthat said she was not in the mood for his jokes.   So he wassurprised when she put her hand in his jacket and started to feelaround.  “Wow, really?”

“I need your flask, the one withalcohol in it not some civilization destroying virus.”  She saidand took the beautiful silver flask Roy’s mother had given him fromhis pocket.  

“If it was a virus, it wouldn’t havesurvived the elements this long.  A virus wouldn’t have been able tocompromise glass structure like that.  Whatever did this could havebeen a chemical weapon gone wrong.”

“Even better.”  She said andunscrewed the cap in preparation of cleaning the wound with whiskey.

Roy focused on what was happening andpouted. This was going to hurt.  “Anything but that.”

She took a hold of his hand and pouredthe contents of the flask over it, listening to him suck in air asthe alcohol stung the woulds.   She took the scarf she carried tocover her face in the sandstorms and shook it out, it had beenfreshly cleaned after their last adventure.   She wrapped his hand upin it and tied it closed.    “That should work until we get back tocamp and a doctor can look at it.”

[thisweekingundamwing]

Gundam Wing July 9th-15th 2017

Here’s this weeks round up! Enjoy!

(Okay, so I tried to get old art/official art love for this week in on this one... and just doing it for the day I had the idea... yeah, that’s a little much. So, if you would like things like that to be listed in the weekly recap, tag us or submit it please!)

~Mod Hel

Fanfiction:

@ahsimwithsake​ Chains (Chapter 6) http://archiveofourown.org/works/10884354/chapters/25733592

Trowa Barton has a secret--one he has kept his entire life. A single operation brings it all to light.

In which Une and Trowa handle the aftermath.

1X2, 2X4, 1X2X4, 5X6, 3XOC

@amberlyinviolet​ Knife in Hand (Ch. 21) http://archiveofourown.org/works/6068848/chapters/25668318

When Duo learns there's a hit out on him, he turns to the only person in Chicago he believes capable of helping him. But will the cost of the Broker's help be too high?

2X3

@anaranesindanarie, Death Unspeaking (Ch. 1) http://archiveofourown.org/works/11483196/chapters/25754169

What happens when a Gundam Pilot is mute? What happens when the other Pilots look down at him because of it? Will he overcome the odds or will the odds overcome him?

Duo Maxwell

Random Works (Ch. 7-9) http://archiveofourown.org/works/11011338/chapters/25760454

Duo Maxwell, WuFei Chang

Death, PTSD, M/M

@anaranesindanarie, @rhysgalentalcernunnos The Maxwell Twins: Shi and Duo (Ch. 7) http://archiveofourown.org/works/11026149/chapters/25320114

They didn’t know anything about their parents or if they were even related, but they couldn’t deny the fact that they looked alike. Or the fact that they only had each other.

NSFW, twincest, 2x2

@chronicwhimsy Saudade (Ch. 3) http://archiveofourown.org/works/11352189/chapters/25742919

Nice is nice. Except when Trowa and Duo start to wind each other up. Trowa considers Yogic Punching as a therapeutic method.

Trowa Barton/Quatre Raberba Winner, 3X4

Trowa Barton, Duo Maxwell, Quatre Raberba Winner, Catherine Bloom, Heero Yuy, Chang Wufei

Trowa is a good bro, Duo is a terrible bro, but he tries very hard, Confident!Quatre, circus shenanigans, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, thin line between being a good wingman and interfering, Mentions of Underage Sex, Underage Drinking, Duo and Trowa Bromance 5eva

@claraxbarton Offstage (Ch. 9) http://archiveofourown.org/works/7693540/chapters/25718937

Duo Maxwell/Zechs Merquise, 6X2

Warnings: Angst, language, sex (the usual)

Cypress (Ch. 2) http://archiveofourown.org/works/11110803/chapters/25689645

For Sunday Sinning on Tumblr… but then it got long… 3X6

Young Gods (Ch. 2) http://archiveofourown.org/works/11023167/chapters/25813725

A Phoenician relic finds its way into Dr. Relena Peacecraft's hands. An unexpected group must decide the fate of the world. Full of sex, adventure and sass.

Wufei Chang/Duo Maxwell, Trowa Barton/Relena Peacecraft, Meilan Long/Hilde Schbeiker, Zechs Merquise/Quatre Raberba Winner

Duo Maxwell, Relena Peacecraft, Wufei Chang, Trowa Barton, Dorothy Catalonia, Catherine Bloom, Meilan Long, Hilde Schbeiker, Zechs Merquise, Treize Khushrenada, Quatre Raberba Winner, Lady Une, Lucrezia Noin, Heero Yuy

Urban Fantasy, Alternate Universe, Drug Use, Supernatural Elements

Gundam20012005 Anime-Corner-Gundam-Wing-Part-1 http://gundam20012005.deviantart.com/journal/Anime-Corner-Gundam-Wing-Part-1-691618137

Mobile Suit Gundam Wing Part 1 Episodes 1-5

Anime-Corner-Gundam-Wing-Part-2 http://gundam20012005.deviantart.com/journal/Anime-Corner-Gundam-Wing-Part-2-692451860

Mobile Suit Gundam Wing Part 2 Episodes 6-10

HatariHatari [Podfic] Put Up Your [Daisy] Dukes http://archiveofourown.org/works/11453445

3X4, Trowa Barton, Quatre Raberba Winner, Original Characters

Summary from original fic: Quatre is a small-town, southern boy with aspirations that don't include spending the rest of his life as trailer trash, but for now, he's forced to wait tables at a dive in rural Georgia until he can save enough money for college. Though with a hot new bouncer on the payroll, maybe things are finally looking up.

18ish minutes. Original Fic by @noelleian.

@kangofu-cb​ Mission Redacted (Ch. 11) http://archiveofourown.org/works/10872516/chapters/25648503

The team is off to try and rescue Relena, capture Von Holck, and generally take care of business.

Pairings: 2x5, background 3x4 and RxD

Warning: none specific to this chapter.

@lifeaftermeteor Snippet Saturday (Unknown) https://lifeaftermeteor.tumblr.com/post/163034043541/location-unknown-presumably-still-honduras-date

WuFei Chang

Luvsanime02 Maneuvers (Ch. 2) http://archiveofourown.org/works/11385195/chapters/25684290

Heero and Relena are ready to start up their business. Their first client? Dorothy Catalonia.

This is the sixth story in Navigation, a fem!Heero series.

@morbidbirdy, @the-notorious-bhg Something About us (Ch. 9 & 10) http://archiveofourown.org/works/11333262/chapters/25780473

Five Years after Operation Meteor the fragile peace between Earth and the colonies is once again threatened when a beloved prominent political figure is assassinated. The former Gundam pilots come together again for a new mission, which forces unexplored feelings to arise between Heero and Trowa.

1X3

Where I Belong (Ch. 16-19) http://archiveofourown.org/works/10691187/chapters/25235595

In the year AC 205 the status of the Earth-Sphere remains relatively peaceful thanks to the efforts of the ESUN and it’s peacekeeping organization Preventer. The five young men who had once fought together for this peace now work quietly behind the scenes to maintain it. Despite their new roles in this world, Heero and Trowa struggle to establish a comfortable place in it. In the process of finding themselves they eventually realize that their place is with each other.

1X3

@nekoflashficcing​ Permission http://nekoflashficcing.tumblr.com/post/162497732412/gw-permission

Post-canon/future - To foster good relations with the public, Preventers came up with an idea.

WuFei Chang, Duo Maxwell, Heero Yuy

genfic set in post-canon, Preventers

Curiosity Kills http://nekoflashficcing.tumblr.com/post/162537467540/gw-curiosity-kills

Archaeologist/Translation problem AU - They found a mysterious door to the rumored Fallen Paradise.

Duo Maxwell, Quatre Raberba Winner

archaeologist/translator problem au, swearing

On Edge http://nekoflashficcing.tumblr.com/post/162842503123/gw-on-edge

Their fight was bad.

Heero/Duo, unrequited Wufei/Duo

angst fic for an otp challenge, prompt “making up afterwards”

Late http://nekoflashficcing.tumblr.com/post/162844367216/gw-late

A late night visitor to Trowa’s bed.

Trowa/Quatre

a gen fic for an otp challenge, prompt “spooning”

Seraphiczero New Mobile History - Gundam Wing: The Sword (Ch. 1) http://archiveofourown.org/works/11455014/chapters/25677795

After the formation of the ESUN, Heero Yuy still finds that he cannot let go of his old ways, and he struggles to become an ordinary man. However, trouble is brewing in the background, and he may not be able to give up The Sword after all.

Heero Yuy, Quatre Raberba Winner

Post-Anime, Mecha, Canon - Anime, Post-Endless Waltz, Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz, Outer Space, Space Stations, Suffering, Peace, Soldiers, Veterans, Video & Computer Games, Protests, Psychological Torture, Dogs, News Media, Propaganda, War, Post-War

ShenLong Bound, Bonded, and Betrayed (Ch. 58) http://archiveofourown.org/works/7188593/chapters/25691214

Heero is the eldest son of the King of Colonia. His 21st birthday is approaching and as tradition dictates his betrothed is soon to arrive. However he is also bound by tradition to select his own personal slave. The events that unfold lead him down a path that not only tests his sanity but his humanity and love as well.

Heero Yuy/Duo Maxwell, Relena Peacecraft/Heero Yuy, Trowa Barton/Quatre Raberba Winner, Treize Khushrenada/Lady Une

Chang Wufei, Zechs Merquise, Hilde Schbeiker, Dorothy Catalonia, Lucrezia Noin, Sally Po

Sap, Angst, Bondage, Slavery, Yaoi, Lemon, Lime, Het, Violence, Fluff, AU, OOC. - Freeform

Signifying_nothing Live http://archiveofourown.org/works/11474925

“If it was anyone but you, Yuy,” he says, his voice rasping and hoarse. “I'd have shot you.”

“You're full of it,” Heero says, moving closer. Wufei is sweaty, his lips are chapped. “You can't even lift a gun right now.”

1X5

SkullQueen_Loritta The Trials and Errors of Memories (Ch. 1) http://archiveofourown.org/works/11196309/chapters/25002504

It's A.C 197 and our favorite gundam pilots are now part of society. For them life is calm.

Too bad calm never stays when it comes to them.

After several incidents of spacing out, Heero discovers that he is suffering from a form of brain damage as a result of his failed self detonation attempt during the war. A side effect is that Heero can't clearly remember his memories from before the war but he does remember two things: That he has a brother and that he knows a girl that he has a connection to. When a search ends up revealing a place called Kaweneshi City, the pilots decide to take a journey there to find answers. Will Heero find the answers he needs or will the trip be for naught? Or will the pilots find something else along the way instead?

1XOC, 2XOC, 3XOC, 4XOC, 5XOC, Lots of Original Characters.

Thehiddenbaroness Resurrecting the Viper (Ch. 9) http://archiveofourown.org/works/10938852/chapters/25805931

Following a routine visit to Vingolf, Orga, Mikazuki and Merribit are surprised by the sudden appearance of a practically naked, injured woman. Although Artima seems to have full recollection of who she is, she does not seem to understand the outside world. Against Orga's better judgment, the Isaribi is soon entangled in Artima's quest to find and destroy her old mobile suit - and discover both she and it are relics from over three hundred years ago that could hold the key to Tekkadan's future.

機動戦士ガンダム 鉄血のオルフェンズ | Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans, Gundam Wing

Orga Itsuka, Eugene Sevenstark, Mikazuki Augus, Merribit Stapleton, Norba Shino, Akihiro Altland, McGillis Fareed, Original Female Character(s), Heero Yuy, Duo Maxwell, Naze Turbine

Action/Adventure, Crossover of a kind, Science Fiction, Cryogenics, Revenge, Drama, Political Intrigue

Crossover fic

@weiclown Dead End http://archiveofourown.org/works/11312295

Trowa and Quatre are sent in on a simple ‘infiltrate, get the data, and get out’ type of mission. Someone at Preventers was grossly misinformed, and things go FUBAR pretty quick. Will they be able to get out together, and in one piece?

Post-Endless Waltz, Attempted Rape/Non-Con, Brief mention of attempted rape, Violence, Murder, Major Character Injury, Ambiguous/Open Ending, Preventers (Gundam Wing), Dark, Wilderness Survival, Forests, Blood and Violence

Trowa Barton, Quatre Winner - No pairings

xKamiixChanx Aunque no te pueda ver (Ch. 4) http://archiveofourown.org/works/8234525/chapters/25684680

1XRelena, 2XHilde

((It’s in Spanish, I literally have no idea, but I’m not gonna leave it out.))

Zennelia Hinter dem Horizont (Ch. 6) http://archiveofourown.org/works/10336529/chapters/25688181

"What do you see beyond the horizon today, Heero?" she asked.

"Our world," he answered solemnly. "Filled with so much mixed emotions of people."

She smiled, prompted, "Do you feel today?"

His voice was no more than a deep whisper, deep in thoughts when he answered, "Always. I have always been feeling, Relena."

A deeper explore into these notions; a struggle to a mutual peace. In the short time they were given, Relena and Heero found their love overcame the hardships they went through together; being each other pillars. But in the end, people die, and when the time comes, they both embraced the death with dignity - because their love was beyond death to be cheated, and it would last forever.

1XRelena

Family, Hurt/Comfort, Philosophy, Drama, Post-War, Preventers (Gundam Wing), Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Action/Adventure, Medical, Fluff, Romance, Post-Endless Waltz, Post-Canon, Real Life, Friendship, Character Death, Character Development

Fanart:

@chronicwhimsy http://chronicwhimsy.tumblr.com/post/162747709402/trowa-likes-kitties-and-kitties-like-trowa

Trowa Barton, Kitty

Dairugger http://dairugger.deviantart.com/art/Taurus-Mobile-Suit-Crossbone-Vanguard-691912241

Taurus Mobile Suit Crossbone Vanguard

http://dairugger.deviantart.com/art/Gundam-Heavyarms-Kai-Zanscare-Empire-691908546

Gundam Heavyarms Kai Zanscare Empire

http://dairugger.deviantart.com/art/Gundam-Heavyarms-Titans-691679223

Gundam Heavyarms Titans

http://dairugger.deviantart.com/art/Gundam-Heavyarms-EFSF-691675520

Gundam Heavyarms EFSF

http://dairugger.deviantart.com/art/Gundam-Heavyarms-Kai-EFSF-691577954

Gundam Heavyarms Kai EFSF

@downwarddnaspiral http://downwarddnaspiral.tumblr.com/post/162729019471/downwarddnaspiral-relena-darlian-peacecraft-as

Relena Darlian/Peacecraft

@endlesschaosart https://endlesschaosart.tumblr.com/post/162988498976/so-its-finish-i-did-it-gosh-that-was-a-hard

Trowa Barton, Heero Yuy

Jack-stark http://jack-stark.deviantart.com/art/03-Quatre-Gundam-Wing-691841101

Quatre Raberba Winner

@lbro009 https://lbro009.tumblr.com/post/162994476920/preventer-water-sally-po

Sally Po

@maevemauvaise http://maevemauvaise.tumblr.com/post/163008966351/kangofu-cb-okay-so-here-hilde-is-only-a-week

Hilde Schbeiker

http://maevemauvaise.tumblr.com/post/163009892546/claraxbarton-so-um-rey-from-that-rxh-silver

Relena Darlian/Peacecraft

Soltian http://soltian.deviantart.com/art/13-and-5-691694756

WuFei Chang, Treize Khushrenada

Trav3000 http://trav3000.deviantart.com/art/XXXG-01D2-Gundam-Deathscythe-Hell-691914900

XXXG-01D2 Gundam Deathscythe Hell

Cosplay:

@shinigami-of-excellence Treize Cosplay, http://outofworkshinigami.tumblr.com/post/162402987842/more-photos-of-treize

Treize Khushrenada

Tigerofsnow http://tigerofsnow.deviantart.com/art/Gundam-Wing-691545026

Zechs Merquise, Quatre Raberba Winner, Trowa Barton, Duo Maxwell

Photosets/Screenshots:

@gundamwing-ellesmith http://gundamwing-ellesmith.tumblr.com/post/162901443984/heero-has-a-problemalso-how-come-hes-so-pale

Heero Yuy

@the-notorious-bhg http://the-notorious-bhg.tumblr.com/post/162922626916/the-notorious-bhg-trowa-asks-the-deep-questions

Trowa Barton, Lady Une

Photo Prompts/Prompts:

@claraxbarton http://claraxbarton.tumblr.com/post/162880110780/so-trowa-resigns-from-preventers-gets-a-van-and

Trowa resigns from Preventers and outfits a bus for camping/travel.

Photo Prompt, Trowa Barton, WuFei Chang

@laurathia http://claraxbarton.tumblr.com/post/162958492310/laurathia-claraxbarton-laurathia

@kangofu-cb https://kangofu-cb.tumblr.com/post/162748269162/14-and-2x5

Prompt response for @chronicwhimsy

2X5

Head Canons:

@chronicwhimsy http://chronicwhimsy.tumblr.com/post/162894399077/chronicwhimsy-i-dont-normally-write

Relena Darlian/Peacecraft

@mariana-oconnor http://chronicwhimsy.tumblr.com/post/162898264127/mariana-oconnor-chronicwhimsy

@renmaxwell http://renmaxwell.tumblr.com/post/162900455221/chronicwhimsy-chronicwhimsy-i-dont-normally

@gundamwing-ellesmith http://gundamwing-ellesmith.tumblr.com/post/162911392631/headcanon-heero-is-prone-to-panic-attacks-yeah#notes

Heero Yuy

@helmistress https://helmistress.tumblr.com/post/162895704609/helmistress-fuck-im-so-lame-just-realized

Waffle topping preferences

Triton Bloom/Trowa Barton, Duo Maxwell, WuFei Chang, Catherine Bloom, Heero Yuy, Mike Howard, Hilde Schbeiker, Sally Po, Lady Une, Lucrezia Noinheim, Quatre Raberba Winner, Relena Darlian/Peacecraft, Zechs Merquise/Milliardo Peacecraft, Treize Khushrenada, Dorothy Catalonia

@morbidbirdy https://preventeragenttrowabloom.tumblr.com/post/162881030530/trowa-headcanonquatre-has-been-teaching-trowa-how

Trowa Barton/Bloom

@the-notorious-bhg http://morbidbirdy.tumblr.com/post/162887618411/the-notorious-bhg

@claraxbarton http://claraxbarton.tumblr.com/post/162952453915/morbidbirdy-the-notorious-bhg

@renmaxwell http://renmaxwell.tumblr.com/post/162880492961/updated-thoughts-on-relena

Relena Darlian/Peacecraft

@the-notorious-bhg http://the-notorious-bhg.tumblr.com/post/162919864586/imo-you-cant-have-an-ic-heero-yuy-unless-he-cares

Heero Yuy, Relena Darlian/Peacecraft

Chats/Dialouges:

@softnocturne https://softnocturne.tumblr.com/post/162918654320/dialouge-prompts-you-loved-them-didnt-you

Heero Yuy, Trowa Barton

Calendar Events:

Gundam Wing Block Party!, @gwblockparty https://gwblockparty.tumblr.com/post/162765659606/gwblockparty-tropes-guidelines-what-a#notes

Entries due September 1st-4th!

Check out the blog for more info and prompt ideas!

Old Art/ “Official Art” that got Love this week:

(In retrospect... this one may be overkill.)

@01xr https://01xr.tumblr.com/post/154685968967/artwork-by-aeolian-harp

Heero Yuy, Relena Darlian/Peacecraft

https://01xr.tumblr.com/post/154641223625/artwork-by-kajika-ono

Heero Yuy, Relena Darlian/Peacecraft

@outofworkshinigami

@fuckyeah01x02 http://fuckyeah01x02.tumblr.com/post/8464953437/a-long-flight-home-by-subomouse

Duo Maxwell, WuFei Chang

@the-notorious-bhg, @rhysgalentalcernunnos

@heartcoma http://heartcoma.tumblr.com/post/108230219410/facetime-with-the-bae-3

Lucrezia Noin, Zechs Merquise

@lifeaftermeteor, @the-notorious-bhg

@luckyxiii http://mmatopgun.tumblr.com/post/88674377864/this-is-too-adorable

Duo Maxwell, Hilde Schbeiker

@outofworkshinigami

@ningyou22 http://ningyou22.tumblr.com/post/44409110068/todo-un-dia-pintando-con-photoshop-o

Heero Yuy, Relena Darlian/Peacecraft

@the-notorious-bhg

@noromax https://noromax.tumblr.com/post/155209544387/d

Duo Maxwell, Heero Yuy, Quatre Raberba Winner, WuFei Chang, Trowa Barton

https://noromax.tumblr.com/post/154898140282/%E3%83%8F%E3%83%83%E3%83%94%E3%83%BC%E3%83%9B%E3%83%AA%E3%83%87%E3%82%A3%E3%82%BA-happy-holidays

Heero Yuy, Relena Darlian/Peacecraft

@outofworkshinigami

Original creator deactivated http://outofworkshinigami.tumblr.com/post/162959451497/althorein-but-my-heart-it-hasnt-changed-a

Relena Darlian/Peacecraft

@outofworkshinigami

@the-notorious-bhg http://the-notorious-bhg.tumblr.com/post/162959265281/the-military-use-of-children-takes-three-distinct

Heero Yuy

@remsyk-blog

http://the-notorious-bhg.tumblr.com/post/162959172921/lady-une-gundam-wing-endless-waltz-gol-scan-and

Lady Une

[rainbowravioli]

Do you have any fanfic recommendation especially with Yuri!!! ON ICE and Voltron? I think you have a good taste because your meta analyses are always a great read. Aside from art, do you also write fics? Sorry for the many asks. Thank you!

Awwwww you flatter me anon! I never really wrote fics. Well ok, not entirely true, I wrote some pieces for friends in the past. I’m really really insecure over the idea of writing in something that’s not my native language. I still mess up English a lot. You know anxiety and all that.

Don’t apologise for sending asks, I’m always happy to get them. I’m sorry I took a while to reply, but I was compiling a list and I don’t have an ao3 account so tracking down fic I previously read is a bit difficult! 

About Voltron fics. Since I don’t engage with the general fandom much and stay in my safe corner, most of what I have to rec is Sheith. I don’t know if you ship Sheith, so here’s my non-sheith recs (if you do though, feel free to come back and ask for my recs on that)

Give Them Shelter by BossToaster (ChaoticReactions)

Have some freakin’ gen fluff, you goddamn animals. In response to Day 15 of legendarydesvender’s Inktober

The paladins explore the castle and do adorable some team bonding.

Making the Rounds by Kiaxet

When Shiro has trouble dealing with his past with the Galra, he heads to engineering for company. Pidge and Hunk…aren’t quite sure what to do when he just…hovers. (Cuddles. Cuddles forever.)

Very sweet and amazingly in-character “team looks after Shiro” piece.

the fear of falling by amillionsmiles

Keith can pull off a downward spiral. It’s the kind of maneuver he does in his sleep.

Brilliant character study and backstory exploration of Keith. 

i miss you sideways daily by amillionsmiles

“I know how it is,” she sighs fondly, snatching up the empty plastic bags from the table and throwing them in the trash as they exit the cafeteria. “The three of you just zoom off to your own little world sometimes.”

“As long as we come back, right, Mom?” Katie teases, already thinking of next year, when she’ll don the orange and white uniform as well.

Her mom smiles, rising on her toes to kiss Matt’s cheek, pinching Katie’s side with her other hand.

“As long as you come back.”

(or: Katie and Pidge and her family. Before, after, and from now on.)

Outstanding, well paced, super emotional character study! The incorporation of science and technology in the story is brilliant. 

Your Princess Is In Another Castle by VelkynKarma

Part of the paladin’s mission is to spread peace and diplomacy. Allura has trained for years to be exceptional at it, in all situations.

A perfect demonstration of the importance of Allura’s role (with bonus importance of Shiro’s political role as the Black Paladin) and how utterly amazing she is.

Fragile Atlas by Pie Badger

Stranded on an unknown planet, Shiro struggles with the ramifications of Zarkon being able to take control of the Black Lion.

Shiro and Black talking and bonding over shared pain.

As for Yuri on Ice, I had a previous rec list here (x). Here’s more, under the cut because it gets really long

Complete

Like a Fairytale - lucycamui

In which Prince Victor gets swept off his feet at a royal banquet and will go to any length to find his ‘Cinderella’ Yuuri.(And Phichit is the fairy godmother who has no idea what he’s doing).

“The crown prince of the Nikiforov kingdom, infatuated with a mystery pastry chef he’s only just met. This is exactly the kind of scandalous love story my life has been missing… So, what’s he look like? What exactly is Prince Victor’s type?”

“…Sweet.”

“Well, he does make pastries.“

This is super sweet, adorable fluff! Lovely, smooth, whimsical writing style that really had me feeling like I was reading a fairytale. The whole thing just melted my heart. It’s also really funny.

Beside the Dancing Sea - lily_winterwood

He’s finally here in this lovely and quiet little beach cottage, and the rest of the year seems to stretch out infinitely before him. Time will pass, though, and it will pass faster than he realises, but in the meantime he will stop worrying about writer’s block and deadlines and not even having the foggiest clue what his next novel’s going to be about, and live.New York Times-bestselling author Viktor Nikiforov arrives in the sleepy seaside town of Torvill Cove to cure his writer’s block. After encountering local wallflower Yuuri Katsuki at a party, he discovers that this mysterious dark-haired man has a couple secrets up his sleeve.And Viktor will be damned if he doesn’t find out just what those secrets are.

This fic emotionally drained me and ruined my sleeping schedule. I adore it! It just has all these elements that I love so I may be biased, but I really feel like the writing is beautiful and evocative and the take of the mythology is very unique and heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time and the whole story and character arcs are just really well-crafted. I wish this fic was an actual original novel so that I could buy and keep in my shelf forever.

Wanted: Skating Lessons - slightlied

Hi. I am Victor and I need to learn how to skate before Saturday. My parents have been paying for me to get skating lessons every week for the last fifteen years but I never actually attended any of the lessons and I spent the money on marble busts instead. Now they want me to perform to ‘Stammi Vicino’ at their wedding anniversary on Saturday.

If you can teach me, be here at Ice Castle tomorrow at 7:27am with an extra pair of skates. I am a fast learner (well, at least my dog Makkachin is–it took me only two weeks to teach him how to roll over) so I am pretty sure I will pick it up quickly. In return, I can teach you how to say some pick-up lines in Russian or tell you some facts about my love life. Whichever you prefer. Not both, though.

Yours sincerely, Victor

PS. I’m a size 8

—

Or, Yuuri answers an ad he sees on Ice Castle’s community board.

This is adorable and really funny.

Twenty-Five Hours by 0lizzybennet0

In which Yuuri spends a 25 hour flight next to Victor Nikiforov, skating legend, and feels it might simultaneously be the best and worst thing that has ever happened to him.

This fic messed with my heart beautifully. But I must warn, this is angst based on a misunderstanding/Yuuri deciding to be a big liar and taking the lie too far, so it’s certainly not for everyone since I know it’s a trope that a lot of people really dislike. That said, this has probably one of my favourite portrayals of the Victor/Yurio relationship I’ve ever read.

Here And Human by TreacherousGnome

aka ‘Viktor is a baby when he’s tired and Yuuri can’t *believe* that doesn’t bother him more’

This fic includes several things I’m weak to - filling the gaps in between episodes we didn’t get to see, Yuuri dealing with his growing feelings, mentions of the banquet that Yuuri doesn’t get, and literal sleeping together.

not gold like in your dreams by ebenroot

“Victor, you could have let some psychopath into your apartment.”

“Oh come on, he’s not a psychopath,” Victor chides. Christophe makes a gesture with his hand that says ‘are you seriously this naïve or are you drunk at work again?’.

“Victor, you don’t know that. You don’t know anything about him. Whose name am I going to give to the police or face I’m going to describe to the sketch artist when they find your body chopped up like Hannibal Lecter’s side dish?”

–

in which Victor and Yuuri are roommates and Yuuri has a secret

This is the Penelope AU we deserve! Even though I knew the movie, this fic still kept me on the edge of my seat and messed with my emotions and had me both cheering and bursting into tears. Great pacing, great writing style. I love it enough that I’m willing to overlook that this is a villain!JJ fic.

The Tsesarevich lives! by mtothedestiel

An Anastasia AU. Victor is an orphan with no name, no family, and no memory of a time before he was ten years old. Could he really be the missing Nikiforov heir? An adventure across Europe with two conmen will lead him to the answer.

I mean, entertaining the idea of an Anastasia AU for YoI is not hard if you’re a fan of both, but I always had reservations on how to execute it properly. This fic more than succeeded! It knows where to be faithful to the original and where to deviate, fixes a lot of the problems I had with the movie and even adds actual historical context and addresses the issues that come with it.

Unworthy by heartsdesire456

5 Times Victor Overheard People Saying Yuuri Wasn't Good Enough For Him and 1 Time Someone Told Him Yuuri Was Too Good For Him

My favourite fix-it fic for the finale, with Yuuri being a very accurate insecure mess, the world accurately doubting Victor’s intentions, Yuuri’s friends being amazing, Victor being smitten and Yuuri winning gold. I’m still amazed this was written before the finale because it has this one piece of dialogue that echoes it, except it’s much better. 

improbable by themorninglark

The first words Phichit Chulanont says to Seung Gil in over a year are, “You literally have only one photo on your Instagram.

This is probably my favourite characterisation of Seung Gil I’ve ever read and the whole thing is both funny and adorable.

if love is king, who wears the crown by Crollalanza

“Second is seen as nothing,” Christophe had derided.

“But that moment you glide onto the ice, that hush of the audience, and that expectation, isn’t that worth something?”

“You speak as if you know. You used to skate?”

Past tense. It still stung, even if it was expected.

Minako knows exactly what it’s like to be at the top of your game, and she remembers the descent just as clearly.

Chris feels and Minako feels and just…my heart aches for both of them.

Ongoing

The Rules For Lovers by ADreamingSongbird

Prince Yuuri Katsuki has a duty to his country, above all else (his desires, his dreams, and his happiness included), and he knows this alliance will help to ensure the safety of his people. That’s the only reason he accepts Prince Nikiforov’s hand in marriage. The pleasant surprise, of course, is the part where they fall in love along the way. The unpleasant one, well…

That’s a long story.

Suffer with me. In the best way possible. The writing is beautiful, the relationship build is so well paced, the setting is great with its mix of modern day, alternate history, magic and technology, even the OCs are brilliant. This fic is amazing, but god does it stress me out with its cliffhangers and the plot and political intrigue and suffering! I’m holding on to that “angst with a happy ending” tag to keep me going.

My Hero, Yuuri by Abarero

At the age of 23, Yuuri Katsuki is certain he’s just a dime-a-dozen hero that will never make a difference. Little does he know that the moment his path crosses with legendary hero, Victor Nikiforov, both of their lives will begin to change for the better.

A perfect combination of two things I love - Yuri on Ice and My Hero Academia. It mashes the two universes brilliantly, managing to keep tie-ins and references to both while still being very much it’s own (amazing) thing. It has made me laugh out loud and warmed my heart and manages to keep surprising me.

Trade Your Heroes For Ghosts by Naamah_Beherit

Having endured what was probably the worst day of his life followed by a night he does not remember, Yuuri wakes up with a hangover of the century and a desperate plea for the world to forget about his existence. Alas, the world has other plans.

So does a certain Russian skater.

Canon divergence where Yuuri and Victor keep contact immediately after the banquet and Yuuri is made aware that the banquet happened. This is beautifully written. It flows so nicely, especially the dialogue. The characterisation of both Yuuri and Victor makes my heart ache in the best possible way. I’m so eager to see where this one will take me!

empty spaces between stars by astudyinrose

Victor gets just as drunk as Yuuri at the Sochi Banquet, and they disappear together after the dance-offs. They wake up the morning after with rings on their fingers, and pictures of them kissing after getting married the night before are all over the tabloids… but neither of them remembers a thing. They decide to stay married for a while for the sake of Victor’s sponsorships, and in exchange, Victor coaches Yuuri through nationals…

Do you like fake relationships, slow burn and mutual pining? Do you like going through an emotional rollercoaster of one minute melting over how adorable and romantic a moment is to screaming at your screen in frustration the next? Then this fic is the one for you!

The Power of Love by kiaronna

“The two Japanese singles medalists make a beautiful pair! Here, at the 2009 Tokyo GPF, we have the start of this power couple’s reign!”Yuuko and Yuuri dominate the singles skating competition as Japan’s power couple—except they aren’t a couple, and when their old skating idol stumbles into their personal life, everything rapidly goes downhill.

A fic that includes Yuuko and focuses on her friendship with Yuuri is already a fic after my own heart. This is Victuuri, and although it’s dipped in the angst you would expect from massive miscommunication and assumptions (and the fabulous game of “how hard can Yuuri’s anxiety misread a situation” which kills me every time), it’s still so sweet and heartwarming. Though the angst destroys me. But my favourite part of this fic is the friendship. Not just between Yuuri and Yuuko, but also between Detroit trio once Phichit comes into the picture. It’s deep, loving friendship portrayed really well.

Fatum ad Momentum by maydei

These are the moments that were lost in the rush for the Gold, and the things that were built within them. A re-evaluation of everything, from day one, the real day one. From, “Be my coach, Victor!!” And how trust, friendship, and love were built from there. Through Victor’s eyes, the story unfolds—the journey and experience of knowing Yuuri.

Really lovely Victor, really interesting take on his POV and the series’ missing moments, and the Victor in Hasetsu scenes my heart has been craving. Just, the whole fic really warms my heart and it’s an absolute joy to read.

[ruffoverthinksthings]

What are some of Claudine's likes and dislikes? I love how you craft her to be spicy and saucy with her tongue, yet accomplished in her studies and quick on her feet (literally and figuratively).

All that reading of the Bible and being secretary to administrative work, listening in to speechs of a very well-spoken and well-read man, and having to defend her faith and later on seduce and manipulate people paid off dividends.

Likes

Books.

After being forced to read and study the Bible and other (verystrictly curated) books about Christianity over and over again, andbeing denied all manner of literature that ends up on thebarges--either overrun copies of cheap/generic adventure/romancestories, or hardcover copies of serious texts like that of history orphilosophy--Claudine finds herself enjoying finally seeing all the“blasphemous and subversive” material that Frollo has so warnedher will corrupt her mind and turn her away from God.

Philosophy interests her primarily, as she’s always been toldthat there is but One Truth, and that is (the Christianinterpretation of) God, and seeing all the many different ways peopleinterpret the meaning of life, what is our purpose, and the manydifferent explanations as to why we do the things we do interest her.

She develops a great interest in Psychology, especially theconcept of “mental gymnastics” whereby people bend overbackwards, go through hoops, and perform all manner of impressivefeats of reasoning and justification just to defend their beliefs,their choices, and their worldviews.

Of particular interest to her is religious extremism and hypocrisyin Religions of all forms, though for obvious reasons she studiesChristianity first and foremost, and second is the way Auradon’s peoplejustify their unfair and inherently skewed social order.

On a leisurely reading note, she really likes romancenovels, adventure stories, and “slice-of-life” works that showher how relationships are supposed to be, protagonists overcomingoverwhelming odds and their own hang-ups through determination,personal growth, and friendship, and how life is supposed to be whenyou’re lucky enough to be born into a (mostly) well-functioningfamily.

Fashion

Because of the limited materials on the Isle, Maleficent having amonopoly on most supplies, and the Evil Queen taking the lion’sshare of good stuff for herself and Evie, a broke and withoutconnections girl like Claudine was forced to rely on just two fashionstyles:

Highly conservative and simple dresses with long sleeves andskirts, and repurposed linens, and of course

Heavily modified and scandalized school uniforms that theiroriginal owners had outgrown and couldn’t find anyone to hand itdown to

She really rather enjoys the expanded choice she has here inAuradon, access to raw materials and fashion from all over the worldas now she can go to all the Well Intentions branch in Auradon Cityand pick-up all the “pre-loved” items for a pittance, planoutfits in advance without fear of it getting stolen, and justgenerally mix-and-match with more styles, designs, and moods than sheever thought possible

It also helps that Esmeralda bonds with her by doing each others’hair and make-up, making outfits for each other that express thesexuality they’re so comfortable with than hide it like mostAuradonians do, along with assisting the drives for collecting goodsand items for the less fortunate

This is both for the ostracized and forgotten of Auradon, and thepeople of the Isle of the Lost. “True, they could just scavenge itfrom the trash, but it feels so much better to open a box that wasmeant for you specifically.”

Confident and Principled Public Figures

Personal bias: Claudine is a VERY big fan of my interpretation ofElsa in the Descendants universe, modeling herself after her assomeone who is not willing to just let awful systems thrive andquestionable decisions be because “that’s just the way thingsare,” be able to ignore her “Pharisees” without even givingthem the time of day, and she also rather enjoys the fact that theIce Queen is a Mistress of Sick Burns.

After living in a congregation of Yes People that just constantlyexcuse and justify everything in their mind so their fragileworldviews are never shattered, Claudine finds great admiration,respect—and if we’re being totally honest, sexual attraction—topeople that are willing to stand by their beliefs in the face offerocious unpopularity, threats and insults, and have unshakablefaith to one thing:

“The Actual Truth”

In her words, “What can I say? I get wet for someone whorises up and doesn’t back down until you give them a damn goodreason.”

Other people she admires for similar reasons include Queen Tiana,Queen Merida, Mulan, Consort Jasmine, Flynn Rider AKA King EugeneFitzhebert, Queen Rapunzel, King Aladdin, Queen Elena, Queen Belle,Maid Marian, Megara, King Ben, and Jordan

Peopleshe respects, but has something of an intense non-romanticlove-hate-but-mostly-hate relationship with include Sebastian, Zazu,Cogsworth, and Rafiki, all of whom have at some point or another beenher mentors in the art of logic, reasoning, politics, publicspeaking, and philosophy

(“Ifyou’re going to curse like a sailor, at least enunciate your fourletter words properly!” - Cogsworth)

Shehas something of an odd inter-generational friendship with Lumiere,as her premiere sparring partner for “swords and slander” alongwith bonding over his checkered, “not entirely legal” past, andthe fact that, true to the stereotype, is her primary source ofromantic advice

Dislikes

RealityTV

Assomeone who dislikes plasticity, hypocrisy, and shallowness as muchas Claudine, Auradon “Reality TV” REALLY gets on her nerves.While nowhere near as trashy or awful as that of Jersey Shorehere, the point still remains that a lot of this shows areshowing carefully planned, scripted, and highly exaggerated versionsof events being pedaled as “the real, unedited thing.”

Claudinecan see right through the bullshit of the adventures of “The GoodSamaritans” with a quick Google search about all the good thingsthe show has actually done, and whether or not their workstuck after the end of the episode, and it gets even worse when shereads about (and sees for herself) the kind of complacency, lack ofcritical thinking, and shallowness excessive TV watching breeds.

Anddon’t get her started with the replies and the messages sentwhenever she criticizes the shows on Social Media…

Alongsideher fellow 3rd Wave VK Anthony Tremaine, she utterlydespises “the boob tube” and how something so good on paperbecame something so horrible in reality.

SocialMedia in General

Claudinedespises Social Media.

Shehates the careful cultivation of personas and outward looks thatdon’t nearly reflect the ugly realities, the careful cutting andpasting of which elements of your life to show off to others tryingto do the same. She hates the constant emphasis on number of friends,likes, and shares, as if that actually meant any sort of meaningfulachievement. She hates the fact that echo chambers, bias, and trollsare a thing there, constantly getting into arguments that she can’tend with her ultimate, never-fail rebuttal:

Kickingsomeone in the crotch, before flipping the bird at them.

Shehates how it just grows all the insecurities she has about beingostracized and left alone by everyone all over again. She hates thefact that it makes her hyper-aware of her appearance, that it bringsup her self-image issues when someone criticizes her for being toorisque, and she hates the fact that she finds herself constantlycomparing to other, prettier girls, with seemingly more perfectlives, and definitely healthy, happy, and not-abusive-nor-crazyparents and family lives.

Butmost of all, she hates that she can’t quit it.

Shehates the fact that “Outcasts” like her all over Auradon tend toconnect with each other on Social Media and the internet for avariety of reasons. She hates the fact that it’s one of her onlyreal platforms to express her opinion, use the voice that has beenconstantly shushed by her father and the congregation for so manyyears. She hates the fact that this very same thing that helpscultivate the “it’s always sunny and happy in Auradon” is alsothe one thing that is rapidly helping dismantle it as the Outcastsare now finding their voices once more, joining in solidarity withthe VKs to finally make Auradon a paradise for everyone.

Inher words, “I know I’m on Storybook like 16 hours a day,everyday—WHY DO YOU THINK I’M SO PISSED OFF ALL THE TIME?!”

Hypocritesand Opportunists

Thisis the reason she does not get along very well with Audrey, Chad, orher fellow 3VK Richard “Rick” Ratcliffe: they’re incrediblyhypocritical, engaging in mean and cruel behaviour despite seeing andthinking themselves as “Good” people; incredibly keen on jumpingon every last opportunity to better themselves and will flag fromtheir principles as soon as it proves more convenient to switch sides when the going gets tough; or both.

Shehas lived ten years of her life praising and loving a man whoespoused himself as the epitome of Goodness and Righteousness in aland of Sinners and Heathens, and from both personal experience andhearing the other side of the story, learned just how much his actiondoesn’t match his rhetoric, the things he will believe and tellhimself and others in order to justify doing the exact opposite ofwhat it is he’s supposed to be doing.

ThatFrollo was also indirectly responsible for Claudine almost dying in afire doesn’t help.

Inher words, “You can’t do anything with someone that’ll get softand back down at the first sign of trouble, and you don’t wantanything to do with someone that’ll do everything and believeanything just to get their way.”

[bestforlessmove]

Moving Across Town Checklist: 10 In-Town Moving Tips

It's no secret that when moving from one home to another, the move distance between the two homes will determine, to a large extent, how the entire move will be carried out.

In reality, there's a substantial difference between preparing for a cross-country move where the final destination (the new home) may be hundreds or thousands of miles away AND getting ready for an in-town move where the new apartment or house can be just down the street or, in the worst case scenario, to another part within the same town or city.

Even though you're moving only a short distance away, you should still expect to face and overcome a number of relocation challenges – difficulties that we are going to address here.

So, to be prepared for your upcoming in-town move in the best possible way, check out these top 10 tips for moving across town.

1. Prepare for your in-town move (Moving Checklist)

The much shorter move distance will be a huge bonus for you when moving across town. First of all, you will save a lot of money from the transportation costs compared to a cross-country move. And second of all, you should be able to finish the house move within several hours and certainly within the same day as opposed to days or even weeks when moving long distance.

Nevertheless, the success of your same-town move will still depend on how well you organize your time and how many essential moving tasks you'll be able to tackle prior to Moving day itself.

And, of course, the best way to use your pre-move time efficiently is to follow a detailed moving checklist.

The good news is that it's relatively easy to create a moving checklist and to use it as a guide throughout your preparation. You simply write down, either on a piece of paper or on your preferred electronic device, all the important tasks that you will need to take care of before the day of the move.

Make sure you prioritize those move-related jobs so that you can guarantee the completion of the most critical ones. To get good ideas about what a high-quality moving timeline should look like, take a peek at our moving checklist – interactive, printable and 100% free of charge.

2. Organize a DIY in-town move (Option 1)

Because of the fact that you're only moving a short distance within a town or city, you should be well familiar with, it'll make all the sense in the world to try to organize a self-move.

Moving across town can be a good opportunity to try to organize a DIY move.

In fact, moving across town by yourself is a great opportunity to show your organizational skills and to prove to yourself that you are perfectly capable of overcoming a few move-related obstacles along the way with the purpose of saving money in the process.

Secure a moving vehicle. You'll need to arrange for a moving vehicle in advance: either rent a truck from a local truck rental agency or borrow a pick-up truck or a freight van from a friend. If you don't intend to move any large furniture pieces, you can try to transport some of the boxes and smaller household items with your own car.

Ask friends for help. Moving by yourself, be it even a short distance, is not something you should try to do entirely on your own. You'll still need to lift, carry and load large boxes, big furniture pieces, or possibly some household appliances as well. Stay safe by securing the help of a few good friends during the day of the in-town move.

10 tips for moving on a low budget

3. Hire cross-town movers (Option 2)

Needless to say, the easiest way to move across town is to leave everything to experienced local movers. Despite the fact that you're moving within the same town or city, there are a number of factors that may get you to rethink your decision to pull off a DIY move.

Heavy furniture. If you've made up your mind to take with you some of your large and heavy furniture pieces, then it's a good idea to hire professional movers for that task. Some of the bulkier furniture items will probably need to be disassembled properly and then packed correctly to survive the local move unscathed. Moreover, moving heavy furniture around poses real dangers for property damage and risks of personal injury if not done by experienced hands.

Special items. If you're planning on moving some special items to the new in-town home – for example, a piano, a grandfather clock or antique furniture pieces, then you shouldn't risk possible damage to some of your unique and even priceless possessions in a desperate attempt to save a few bucks.

No friendly assistance. Your friends may not be readily available and willing to rush to your rescue when you need them the most. Instead of getting angry with them, get experienced professionals who will finish the task much more safely and at least twice as fast.

7 simple steps to finding cheap movers

4. Create an in-town moving budget

When moving across town, you may be quick to assume that moving without professional assistance will always be the cheaper option for you. That's not necessarily true, of course, as things are never that straightforward when it comes to moving to a new home.

To make the best possible decision under your set of unique circumstances, it's important to create a cross-town moving budget and see which home-moving option will be better for you in terms of money, time and safety.

How much does it cost to move across town?

How much will your cross-town move cost?

DIY move. Make sure you factor in the cost of renting a moving truck, including the price you'll pay for the vehicle insurance. Also, you're going to need to rent the proper moving equipment (a furniture dolly, furniture sliders, moving straps, etc.) and purchase the required packing supplies to keep your things protected at all time.

Local movers. Don't forget that local movers charge by the hour so TIME will be the major factor that will determine how much your cross-town move costs. Most additional moving services such as furniture disassembly and re-assembly, packing or unpacking are also charged on an hourly basis. You may or may not need to purchase extra insurance and you should, in most cases, be ready with some cash to tip your in-town movers.

In any case, request in-town movers quotes to get a good idea about how much your cross-town move will cost when you've made up your mind to use professional assistance.

What are the average hourly moving rates?

5. Purge any unnecessary items

Whether you realize it or not, the short local move happens to be a great opportunity for you to declutter your home and purge any items that you have not used for a long time. Doing so will save you valuable packing time and energy, and will also enable you to save money – the fewer hours the local movers work on your move, the less they will charge you in the end.

Besides, what's the point of moving items that you won't need ever again? You may have never liked or needed those things in the first place. So, now it's time to do something about it.

Inventory your home to see many items you have in total and how many of those items you can live comfortably without. Moving experts are unanimous that if you haven't used something for over a year, then you don't really need it. This is only a general rule, of course, but when you're moving just across town, it can help you save a lot of money.

Consider selling or donating all the items that 1) you don't want or need to move to the new in-town home, and 2) are still in good condition and would be a waste to just throw them away.

How to get rid of items when moving

6. Get the right packing materials

Despite the very short distance of your move across town, you're still going to need to protect your items in case you've decided to complete the home packing job on your own. Remember that you can save yourself the trouble of finding the appropriate packing supplies and then working days on end to pack up your things by requesting the packing service from top-rated local movers.

Safe packing is all about having the right type and amount of packing supplies.

The major packing materials you're going to need are cardboard boxes of different sizes, clean packing paper as the first layer of protection and bubble wrap as the preferred protective material when packing extra-fragile household items such as kitchen dishes, glassware, delicate furniture elements and so on.

You'll be glad to learn that one of the cheapest ways to move across town is to spend less money on packing. Do this by getting hold of free moving boxes – either from friends, colleagues, and neighbors, or from local businesses (grocery stores, bookstores, electronics stores, etc.) that have excessive amounts of cardboard containers and are required by law to recycle them properly.

Cut your packing expenses even further by using, whenever applicable, pieces of clothing instead of bubble wrap and plain newspaper as a filler instead of blank packing paper.

Where to get free moving boxes: Full checklist

7. Pack for a move across town

Once you optimize the number of your household items and get the right type and amount of packing supplies, you'll be ready to initiate the packing task in case you've weighed in your viable options and have concluded that not hiring professional packers will make more sense for you.

Here are the best packing tips for moving across town:

Begin packing as soon as your cross-town move becomes only a matter of time. In other words, don't lose precious time by postponing for tomorrow what you have to do today. /What to pack first when moving/

Consider the cost-saving idea of using the same packing boxes multiple times. How? Since you're only moving within the same town or city, you may choose to do several small-scale trips to the new home, thus emptying the filled boxes and using them again on your next relocation trip.

Pack your hanging clothes, still on their hangers, in clean trash bags straight from the dresser. This packing hack will save you A LOT of time and will lower the packing costs. /How to pack clothes when moving/

How to move furniture across town? First of all, move only the furniture items that you really like and have a special meaning to you – like antique furniture, for example. Second of all, measure up the furniture pieces to make sure they will fit and match the new in-town home. And finally, disassemble partially the largest pieces to get them safely and easily to the new residence. /How to protect furniture when moving/

The best packing tips for moving

8. Transfer the utilities

There are so many things to do when moving across town that it's easy for an important task to be forgotten in the whirlwind of activities surrounding the move. This is why, as recommended above, you just have to create and then stick to a moving checklist – the only proven method that will guarantee that no essential tasks are left behind.

Remember to transfer the home utilities to prevent unpleasant surprises at the end of the move.

One important job you may forget to take care of is to transfer your home utilities to the new residence. You surely don't want to find the new house or apartment with no electricity and running water, as well as unheated – especially if you're moving during the cold months of the year.

First, create a list of your home utilities – electricity, water and sewage, gas, cable TV, Internet, telephone, etc., and then go through it carefully to decide if you're keeping all of the utility services or not. Then, contact your current utility providers in town and schedule the disconnection of the utilities in the place you're leaving and their re-connection at the place you're moving to.

Because you're only moving to another part of the same town or city, you'll only need to transfer the utilities to the new house or apartment, not change them. By keeping your current utility accounts, you won't have to pay, at least in most cases, a cancellation fee or a connection fee.

9. Change your address

When planning a move across town, don't forget to change your address with the USPS, preferably before the move has taken place so that you don't lose any important pieces of mail during the prolonged move-out and move-in period. The thing is, even if you're moving a few blocks down the same street, your postal address will change after the move is complete.

As a rule of thumb, you're expected to change your address approximately 2 weeks before you move out. Thus said, you can still make a change of address (COA) request with the United States Postal Service (USPS) after you've moved to the new home.

Basically, you have 4 options to change your address when moving across town:

Change your address online. By far the easiest way to get this task out of the way. Simply head to the official Change of Address page of the USPS to do it fast and securely.

Change your address in person. Whenever you find some free time, visit the nearest local post office and fill out a PS Form 3575 form to initiate the procedure. To save time, download that form in advance (from here) and take it to the closest U.S. post office already filled out.

Change your address by phone. Just dial 1-800-ASK-USPS and follow the pre-recorded instructions.

Change your address by mail. Print out and fill in by hand the PS Form 3575, then mail the completed form with First Class postage to POSTMASTER, United States Postal Service.

10. Save BIG on your cross-town move

The best way to move across town? Hire affordable local movers.

Ultimately, your cross-town move will be about spending as little money on the local move as possible. And regardless of which relocation method you choose in the end – moving on your own or hiring cross-town movers, you'll need to be extra careful with your moving expenses.

To really save hard-earned money when moving across town, here are the top 3 cost-saving tips you'll do good to follow:

Hire affordable local movers. Request in-home estimates from 3-4 local moving companies, then compare the quotes carefully to choose the one that best fits your budget and your requirements.

Move only the things you need. Why should you pay to move things that you won't ever need or use again? Purge your home of unwanted items and do consider selling some of them to earn some bonus cash.

Get free moving boxes. Don't pay for something that you can get for free. Cardboard boxes will be your biggest expense when it comes to packing supplies, so getting them free of charge will definitely turn things in your favor when you're moving across town.

20 simple ways to reduce moving costs

The post Moving Across Town Checklist: 10 In-Town Moving Tips appeared first on The Moving Blog.