#but the level on which people feel the need to justify themselves is just... interesting

[yesimwriting]

Do you think best friend!felix would kiss the reader “for fun” but really…

hm. good question bc i really had to think about this bc if anyone can get away with platonically kissing someone it's 110% felix, and it does feel in character

i was on the fence until i remembered that the first (and only) guy i dated started off as a really good friend and before dating we'd kiss at parties and laugh it off the next day bc of the alcohol/atmosphere so it's very much realistic bc i did not notice for an entire semester😭

so let's discuss!!

felix would definitely hide behind the "for fun" defense by being as casual as possible with it. while out partying/drinking, he'd kiss reader so briefly the reader can barely register what's happening until it's happened. also this is mainly done after a particularly good/happy moment,, maybe after you two take a shot together, with that touch of adrenaline and the sting of alcohol still lingering there. would definitely do this if he felt jealous/saw someone checking out reader.

now, if we're talking actual, more intentional kisses that are harder to explain away....i think these are a definitely a lot rarer, but for sure have happened.

still uses the "for fun" argument if it's a party thing, like if everyone's kissing someone (like a NYE kiss) or it's bc of some party game, then he's lingering/being touchier than usual bc he can get away with it.

also not to take this a step further and make it even more difficult to justify, but i think there's a level of intimacy to it bc felix is so touchy/open with everyone, that eventually the only way to be particularly close to someone is to do more.

so,, and this is definitely the rarest type of kiss ( like it's happened at most 2-3 times) after drinking/smoking together, felix will kiss reader when they're completely alone, with no one to blame or goad you on or interrupt. these are slow and heavy. concentrated.

there's always an emotional component,, maybe reader had been poorly trying to hide their mood because felix had been a little too into being admired recently. or maybe felix feels left out about something and needs to find a way to feel even closer to reader.

after felix is definitely being more open than he usual is, telling you things like "i trust you more than i've ever trusted anyone, you know that right?" and "it's just you and me."

the first time this happened is the first time reader has a oh my god?? do i actually have a thing for felix? moment,, and after felix finally falls asleep, reader freaks out bc what if what happened ruined your friendship?

but then the next morning comes and it's like nothing happened, he doesn't even do that guy thing where they ignore you the next day, it's literally like nothing out of the ordinary happened and out of instinct, reader follows felix's lead

then reader convinces themselves that it's not that weird by telling themselves that felix has probably at least kissed most of the people that are around him for long enough which is kind of true and you know several people that he still hangs out with that he hooks up with on and off,,

so, with the amount of time you spend together,, it isn't strange. not when you know felix the way reader does.

when taylor wrote “and you kiss me in a way that’s going to screw me up forever” it was for felix

----

this might be a little much,, but i can see it for felix tbh 😭

anyways, if anyone's interested in a drabble based on any part of this, lmk!!

[commsroom]

OK I need you to point me to the nearest entry point into this fandom. I don’t know what this is, but you popped up on my dash.. and I need to know what this is. Please lead the way.

oh!! that's exciting. yes. okay!! wolf 359 is a science fiction audio drama about the isolated and questionably competent crew of a deep space research station, the u.s.s. hephaestus. the initial four characters are comms officer doug eiffel, 'everyman' pop culture guy who really, really hates his job; commander minkowski, who cares about her job and the rulebooks that come with it a little too much, and desperately wants to feel like she's keeping everything under control; dr. hilbert... eccentric? station medical officer and mad scientist whose methods and mission objectives are not entirely above board; and hera, the station's mother program, who struggles with her job and the ways she's perceived by others.

there are other characters who show up later - i would say only three of the above characters are "main" characters, while the actual fourth main character is introduced in s2 - but that requires way more context, and i don't want to get into spoilers, obviously.

wolf 359 is a character drama - it's my personal gold standard for character writing - and the brief descriptions i gave you are the most surface, surface level parts of them. the writers once said something about it, like... that they weren't interested in subverting typical sci-fi character archetypes so much as looking at them and asking "why would a real person behave that way?" and i think it really worked. whether i like them or not, they all feel like real people to me. it has great sound design and a lot of "physicality" in the performances for an audio-only show, which i think comes down to gabriel urbina's film background and the way the scripts are written and performed. (and alan rodi's incredible soundtrack and sense for music cues.) you can't see a lot of what's in the scripts, but they're acted out in a way that you can kinda feel it anyway. i love that.

here's a fan made trailer that i think captures a lot of the right energy. it's a show about a lot of things, but some of the primary themes are communication + music, and i think the collaborative nature of the show itself adds something very sincere to that. it's also about corporate and medical exploitation, resisting dehumanization, what makes us human, connection, identity and autonomy, guilt and accountability, the stories people tell themselves to justify who they are or what they feel it's necessary for them to do, and, of course, the enduring philosophical question: "what's wrong with handcuffs?"

you can check it out at the website i linked above, or anywhere you can listen to podcast feeds! it's free, but they added ads a few years ago, which i hate, so you can pay a dollar here for the ad-free feed if that'll make a big difference in your ability to enjoy it: https://www.patreon.com/Wolf359Radio

it's a sequential story, nothing you really need to know about listening order except that i recommend not skipping the mini episodes (they have important character context and are where they are in the feed for a reason) (with the exception of mission mishaps ones near the end; those are comedy bonus episodes you can listen to whenever) and that you should definitely watch the live show after ep 26 and listen to special episode change of mind between s3 and s4.

i also have a folder here of every recording script where i edited any parts that were different from the show's dialogue + added transcripts for the ones that didn't have available recording scripts, if that's something you'd find useful! i also recommend checking them out just to see what i mean about how they're written.

the first season is pretty short, so i'd say stick with it until at least episode 12/13 (two part finale) if you can - i love the first season, personally, but that's the point it really becomes serialized, and so that's where i think you can safely say if it's something that's going to capture your interest or not. ... and that's it! sorry this is kind of an essay, but i got excited about it. i hope you love the show, please keep me updated, and let me know if there's anything else!!

[a-sad-mage]

Rewatching Slugterra lately, I find it has such untapped potential. I understand it is meant for younger audiences, but if it were instead for from young adults on, it could have truly turned out beautifully, and I'd just like your opinion on that.

First of all, Eli as a character could be much more layered, conflicted and interesting. We have this hero burdened with a legacy he doesn't even fully know the details of, seing the world in black and white terms, but realizing his father operated in a grey area at times, and struggling to understand his own place in all that. Darker sides of him would for sure surface at times, including self doubt which is hardly ever explored.

Also, the dynamics within the gang and its members themselves could have been much more complex. Racism and trolls for example, the whole idea of Pronto leaving his kindgom behind, and some backstory for Trixie which we didn't have. And about that, I honestly think it would be natural for her and Eli to get involved sooner or later. Too many interests and traumatic experiences shared, adding to the fact that the Shane gang would hardly casually go on dates with other people when busy literally saving the world. I see them having something similar to what hiccup&astrid have (I'm referring to the httyd franchise) in a near future.

Also, countless other characters have such great potential in terms of more mature storylines. For example giving Twist a redemption arc, exploring all the shadiness about will shane, the balance between business and darker interests for Black, just to name a few. I also find the Game Master a very interesting character, potentially taunting the gang in a squid game fashion.

Besides, slugs are well and good, but what about real harm? Ghouls are more powerful, but would Black go as far as using them to kill people?

I also find the whole idea of legacy, for eli but also for many of his antagonists, very intriguing and potentially leading to complex plots.

There are definitely so many shows out there, but I definitely feel like, if slugterra was meant for older audiences, it could really have been something, I'm talking Hunger Games-like fame, which was liked by both teens and adults. Other shows similar to Slugterra don't have the same potential imo. For example, Storm Hawks doesn't have that many realistic premises (the binding of capitalistic interests and darker deeds for one). I already mentioned it before, but I find it could have been as known as how to train your dragon (a cartoon liked by basically all ages, each group of which grasps different levels of complexity): the bonds between creatures and their riders/slingers are there already, as well as a tight-knit group having each other's backs, with a gentle giant, a comic relief, a badass no-nonsense female second-in-command, and a reckless protagonist male character (I know many would hate this idea, but I find Junjie's character pointless in a situation where so many other things could have been explored before going to the other side of the world).

Since you seem to have so many interesting takes on slugterra generally, I would like yours! Long message I know, but unexpressed potential taps right into unmentioned things.

Long rants how I missed thee-

also, swears near the end becase I started ranting lmao

Anon, all phenomenal points, that are on point.

Eli is one of those characters who, in my opinion, had a lot of right to get like, extremely angry and lash out justifiably on several occasions, for multiple reasons.

Kid needed, and quite frankly needs to be an angsty, moody, angry at the word teen but was essentially forced to be an adult.

And you may argue yes, Eli made the choice to follow through and take The Drop at 15, but you also kinda have to acknowledge, he like every Shane before him, for as long as they where acting as protectors, was basically groomed to become Slugterra's Protector from a young age.

Said it once, I'll say it again, Eli is justified to have a crash out, and even pull a Spider-Man and quite being Protector for however long he wants, till he genuinely wants to go back to being The Shane. If at all.

-

The relationship and dynamics of the Shane Gang are important and im tired of pretending it's not.

Four very different individuals, a Moleinoid, Cave Troll, Human male and Human female, all live under the same roof, all with different experiences, issues, baggage, and stories as to why they ended up the way they are.

In less than a month they are living together, and it's only hinted at briefly in the first handful of episodes that the shift to all of them living at the Hideout was difficult. They have clear house rules about what not to do in the house, the food preferences the building of small team tradition like a big dinner before an important mission, and so many other little things.

I mentioned briefly in another older post, but you can only take so much living with the same people for so long, no matter how well you all get along. Hence, all the pranks.

Pronto clearly has some self-worth issues, hence his need to be the center of attention.

Kord relies on being the tech guy, because if he's not that, than what is he?

Trixie, while I lover her, her need to film and make it big one day as a real director and not a Slinger implies her want to leave something tangible, and real behind so she is remembered as more than just a Slug Slinger or a member of the Shane Gang. To be more than a foot note in history like many other Slingers.

Personally, while I ship Eli and Trixie, I also do just enjoy them being platonic best friends, as i genuinely love good, well-built friendships with members of the opposing gender without romance, especially since romance was not the focus of the show.

hot take, but romance for the sake of romance is shit and can ruin a character especially if it ends up becoming a main focal point and fuck up a character, especially the 'woman' in the relationship.

[I love HTTYD, it's awesome but the Race to the Edge ep Mi Amore Wing pissed me the hell off because of what it did to Astrid.

While yes, season 5 and 6 had a focus on Hiccup and Astrid's relationship, and how it affects not just them, but the team a whole, something that was carefully developed, but having Astrid becomes self conscious, insecure just because her relationship with Hiccup isn't all lovey dovie was like Mala and Dager's, causing her to act like a brat while they where dealing with something arguably more important, in the middle of what's essentially a war and race to find the King of Dragons was stupid and just drama for the sake of not explicitly having it. it was such a dumb reason for Astrid to be angry at Hiccup I'm sorry. like I get it was also about Hiccup needing to be able to pay attention to the people in his life, and not zero-in and hyperfocus and communicate, but there where just so many better ways to do that,- ]

Not to say I hate romance or no to it entirely, or the idea of Eli and Trixie becoming cannon/getting together. it, like everything needed to be handled carefully, and not rushed, trauma bonding be damned

That's why Aerrow and Piper's relationship felt so organic and natural in Storm Hawks, it was never the main focus, but it was hinted at, the affection was there, and real, and had a purpose. Because yes, a relationship in any story needs a purpose outside of just 'getting to together to the sake of getting together'. Romance outside a romance Story has to have a meaning, hell even Romance's in a Romance have to have substance, out side of the pairing being lead boy and girl, boy and boy, girl and girl or so on and so forth. And while Eli and Trixie have chemistry, it very surface level to me, nothing that tell's me they care about each other more than friends and teammates. but that's just my interpretation of their relationship.

But yeah, the development of their and the rest of the Shane Gangs relationship as a whole is important. And I wish we had more-

And FUCK YES- RACISM BETWEEN CAVERN RESIDENTS- its real, it's so freaking real because of stereotypes and preconceived notions- HOLY FUCK MAN- CONFLICT!

Don't get me started on Twist and EVERY OTHER MINOR VILLAIN/CHARACTER-

Twist's redemption would have been grate as the seeds were planted with the looks of hesitant on his face. I have mentioned it before with him being the Azula to Blakk's Ozai but give him Zuko's redemption arc. And would elevate his character. for me at least I don't know about others-

More and more Blakk Industries workers and highered marks slowly realizing Blakk is a nutcase who had become obsessed, and trying and failing to leave.

Game Master is Jig Saw but rated E for everyone.

As a Caustic main in Apex Legends, and a Toxzon from MaxSteel(2013) sympathizer, I have a special love for Blite.

And just, so many other minor villains/antagonists in the show who, quite frankly where done dirty, like Saturday and his Smoothie obsession. The show introduces so many cool characters but doesn't use them to their fullest of potentials.

And a lot of that has to do with run time, and them making more specialized characters than the story necessarily needs, and giving them complex stories and concepts without the proper help that is minor exploration of the character threw showing up again.

we see this in Storm Hawks. it's a fairly large main primary cast, for the main hero's you have 6 of them, 4 main villains, and serval minor supporting secondary characters and antagonists that all make reoccurring apparencies, with tertiary characters who appear once to fulfill a particular role, for a given storyline that they can't reasonably exist outside of. Like Princess Perri.

Slugterra's problem is that all its secondary and tertiary characters can exists out of their debut episode and relevant story lines, and have reasonable excuses for them to be present in almost any episode.

Also the noticeable lack of 'villain focused' episodes/segments. Storm Hawks had an episode dedicated to the Cyclonians, multiple scene with them to build of their characters, and dynamics as well.

sure Slugterra had it's villain scean's, but they where not all that insightful outside of a few instances, and didn't serve much of a purpose, outside of showing some details, some of which where never followed up on. like Twist's hesitance.

thus leaving a lot be desired in terms of character development and world building. especially when you have to deal with a PG/Teen rating to maintain.

You can very much to talk/reference more mature topics and dynamics with media like Slugterra, and have it be able reach all preserved age groups, while still being tasteful about it.

(don't ask how I know this, I just watch a lot of old cartoons, read a lot and know a weird amount of random shit-)

-

Junjie is love, Junjie is life, I cherish my emotionally unstable Champion of the East, but I fully understand your point, because I'm similar with Tad Blakk. That being said;

Junjie in a lot of ways mirrors both Eli and Twist.

Eli for obvious reasons and Twist for his desire for revenge against the Emperor, as compared to Twist's desire for revenge against the Shane's. Junjie, like Twist, let's his anger get the better of him on a few occasions during the first Eastern Caverns Arc of the show. Do the others draw him back to his senses?

Sure but he has his moments. If the Gang was not there to keep Junjie in check he would be acting impulsively, and making dumb choices, just like Twist. and yes, Twist make's dumb, impulsive choices, even if we see him like, three times-

love my disaster boiz, but DEAR GOD THEY ARE TRAMATIZED IDIOTS

-

Blakk as a character has always been my favorite.

for the simple reason being he came from nothing. and made a name for himself. and the best part, he kept his fathers name and the insignia of the Viggo Dare. The two men who treated him like shit, and out did them in both Slinging, leading and Business, keeping both name, Blakk, and insignia as a massive fuck you.

he became better then them, but also way worse, and I love that for him.

I know it doesn't seem like it, but I am a villain apologist/sympathizer

-

but yess, Anon thank you for sharing! your points where very interesting and I very much so enjoyed reading and overanalyzing it, and everything else!

as always, floor is open to the opinions of others in the community to discuss, add to or just talk about in general!

✧˖°. ⋆｡˚(✿ᴗ͈ˬᴗ͈)｡･:*˚:✧｡

[read tags]

[lost-inanotherlife]

I need to know your opinion on Jack's and Juliet's weird relationship

Because for me it looks like most of the time Juliet doesn't really likes Jack that much- not even romantically but like, in general, doesn't like being around him very much (which, fair)

While Jack obviously is interested in her because of Kate's partial rejections and his time with the Others

But also on the flashsideways they are divorced and have more or less an amicable relationship and share a child, and given than the flash sideways is the happy eding every character wanted then it means is mutual and that Juliet did appreciate Jack on some level, but it just doesn't looks like it?

Hello Anon, thank you for the ask, this is a good one!

I need to make a little detour before answering it but I promise it'll make sense in the end.

So. The way I see it, LOST is the "unlikable characters who cry a lot" show. You see, all LOST characters are, from the start, morally grey but, perhpas, some are "greyer" than others. In this show the main characters are cheaters, con people, torturers, murderers etc. and you see them "crying" over their own "sins". There isn't much space for victims and justice in LOST and you're either okay with that or LOST isn't for you. Like, the whole premise of the show is that these people HATE themselves, they hate their past and they hate their lives. The character arcs end the moment they stop hating themselves, hence the importance of the flash sideways (and, imo, the writing cop-out that they are but that's for another day, not blaming the writers because they were in a tight spot but I'm not the number one fan of what they came up with, sorry).

Having said that, we can put up with the fact that we're watching the story of people committing horrible things because their story is tragic. As in, seriously, these people had it bad, like reaaaaal bad. And this is the second point of the show: bringing people to the extremes, forcing them to make a choice and therefore involving the audience in making a choice with the characters as well. It's not always pretty, in fact it's never pretty. We as audience are complicit in what our characters do and we can all together drape ourselves in the flag of tragedy and "justify" the characters' actions to feel less bad about them.

But, you see, among all these tragic characters Jack and Juliet's stories seem to pale in comparison. Like, their lives pre-island weren't exactly amazing but they were... ordinary. Loveless marriage, cheating, substance abuse, parent issues, sick relatives... I mean, this is "normal" life. So what I personally like to look at when I think about Jack and Juliet is that they're tragic because they're prisoners. Symbolically, they're prisoners of their own choices because they're incapable of moving on, "realistically" speaking they're literal prisoners of the Dharma initiative and, at large, of the island.

So, anon, you are right when you say that their relationship is weird because they're both prisoners and wardens of themselves and... of each other. There is no other impending tragedy over them: they seem to do okay in terms of finance, they're both extremely intelligent people with an impossibly high potential, they could do anything they want with their lives and yet they're stuck or, if we want to be corny, they're lost.

For Jack and Juliet the island is the embodiment of everything they've desperately tried to figuratively run away from and that they must face now. There is no escape, quite literally. This is why Jack "has to" go back: the island is his "purpose", something that, unfortunately, he could never find in the "real" world. This is also why Juliet "must" die on the island as well: on a symbolical level "death" means "accepting and letting go" (btw, I don't condone this specific usage of death in fiction, I have lots of things to say about it because I think it conveys a very twisted message wrt self-sacrifice/suicide but that's not for today).

So what's up with Jack and Juliet, then? Well, the thing is that they serve as a constant reminder to each other of who they are and of the things they should do to move on. It's not a coincidence that they "meet" in an aquarium/prison where Jack is written as a parallel to off-island Juliet: a "person" of science abducted and taken as prisoner on an island (they're on Hydra island by now) to help with something related to the specific field of medicine they're expert of.

This means that, the way I see it, it's not that Juliet doesn't like being around Jack because she doesn't like "Jack". As a matter of fact, I think she does like him as his own person but she doesn't like what she sees when she sees him because she sees herself in him. Also, another thing that I always say is that, to me, everybody on the island is a little bit in love with Jack but not everybody "likes" Jack. This is because getting to know the "real" Jack is a. very difficult and b. as much as I love him with all my heart, Jack isn't exactly the life of the party. Like, it's not easy to take to Jack, that's what I'm trying to say.

While Jack represents for Juliet a "bad omen" that says "you have to deal with your stuff or you'll always end up being a prisoner in situations you don't like", Juliet represents for Jack something akin to "hope". This is because Jack has an ambiguous relationship with the Others/the losties/ with the world in general, lol. He wants to desperately belong but... "he walks among us but he's not one of us". Unlike Juliet, Jack is actually "willing" to be a prisoner if this means that he could belong somewhere. This is why he's so tethered to the island in a way that Juliet both can and can't understand because she's on the opposite end of that spectrum (the difference being that she didn't "simply" crash to the island, she was unwillingly "complicit" in her imprisonment and she can't forgive herself for that).

Here comes the perfect metaphor in the flash-sideways: the divorce. Divorce is great, I love divorce. There should be more divorce stories. In the context of LOST, divorce, for Jack and Juliet, means that they can finally let go and move on, that they've failed and that's okay because failing doesn't mean punishment for life. It means that you can leave situations that aren't for you anymore and that's not the end of the world. As a matter of fact, it's actually best for you to do so. So yes, Juliet does appreciate Jack but she can't be with Jack despite the fact that she'll forever be bound to him (the island/the son they have in the sideways). And this is because, surprise surprise!, Juliet and Jack are the same character. In order for them to "grow" and complete their arcs, they must let themselves go, they must divorce "themselves". While on the island this is translated into literal death as I said above, in the flash sideways the writers opted for something a little bit more poetic: love. Love is also a form of letting go and embrace the unknown. Love is a form of meeting... the Other and... having faith in this encounter.

Kate and Sawyer are Jack and Juliet's respective Other, aka they're the ones who can help them move forward along their journey (and viceversa can be said for Kate and Sawyer, of course).

So, yes, anon, you got it right when you spotted the "push-and-pull" dynamic between them. I personally think they're attracted to each other but, as I tried to explain, they can't ever "like-like" each other because if they did, it'd mean that they like... themselves, which they don't (this is the characters hating themselve show as I also said above). The ultimate point of the show is for the characters to overcome this self-hatred and accept themselves for who they are. Hence, the divorce metaphor: Jack and Juliet will always be connected but, in order to move on, they have to let themselves go.

[dchan87]

The incendiary political climate surrounding Israel/Palestine since October 7th, 2023 needs no introduction. For the better part of a year, the war in Gaza has dominated the discourse and maintained a fever pitch of emotional intensity like few issues in recent memory. Amid the blistering outrage of the war’s most vocal critics, one of the world’s most intractable and longstanding conflicts gets reduced to a bumper sticker. The Western, pro-Palestinian left takes a complex history spanning over 75 years and more than a dozen wars and armed conflicts and collapses it into a simplistic moral binary in which Israel is the evil, oppressive empire and Palestine is the helpless, oppressed victim. Indeed, the loudest voices on the front lines of the pro-Palestine movement see themselves as kindred spirits of the Rebel Alliance from Star Wars, the resistance fighters from The Hunger Games, and the Fremen from Dune. This is the level of sophistication they bring to the issue.

None of this should be especially surprising given that the core of the Western Palestine movement is driven by young people. They believe a fictional version of history in which Israel is a white European colonial project, never mind the fact that half of Israeli Jews are Middle Eastern Mizrahis or that 18 percent of Israelis are Muslim. They don’t know which “river” or “sea” they’re chanting about. They don’t know that the Palestinians rejected a chance at a state of their own on no less than five occasions, each time preferring war to peace. But The Hunger Games — that they know. And so they engage in the most loathsome behaviors, trafficking in anti-Semitic tropes, harassing random Jews, and rolling their eyes at rape victims without regard for principles or decency. The worst part is, none of this is even about Palestine.

You can tell a lot about what people actually believe by looking not at what they say, but at what they do. And just like pro-life “family values” congressmen who secretly get abortions for their mistresses, we can see by the actions of pro-Palestine protesters that they don’t really care about the cause to which they profess. They may think they do, but their actions do not reflect a sincere desire for lasting peace. The movement is not just immature and profoundly unserious — its atrocious behavior and lack of clear goals actively works against the interests of the Palestinian people.

I used to think that anti-Zionism was separate from anti-Semitism, but October 7th changed that. After seeing the naked anti-Semitism of the pro-Palestine movement spring to life on October 8th, before Israel had even responded to Hamas’s attacks, I began to question my priors. I saw actual swastikas on display. I saw demonstrators justifying the slaughter at the Nova Music Festival. I saw protesters throwing Hitler salutes. I saw Holocaust memorials defaced, holocaust ceremonies picketed, and Jewish businesses attacked despite no apparent ties to Israel. At a certain point, it became impossible to deny: a virulent hatred of both Israel and Jews is rampant in the pro-Palestine movement.

Whenever these blatantly anti-Semitic actions are called out, we hear the familiar chorus of “anti-Zionism isn’t anti-Semitism.” But with every heil Hitler shouted at a protest, it becomes less and less credible. If this overwhelmingly leftist movement was consistent with its own purported anti-fascist values, such anti-Semitism would be swiftly shut down and forcefully kicked out of the movement, not downplayed or denied. Years ago, there seemed to have been some daylight between anti-Zionists and anti-Semites. Right now, the Venn diagram between the two is fast approaching a perfect circle. For all the valid criticisms that could be levied at the Israeli government, it has sadly become rational for Israelis and American Jews (91 percent of whom are Zionists) to feel that anti-Zionists are simply anti-Semites.

The fact that the pro-Palestine movement is fine harboring racists isn’t just a moral problem — it works against their own stated goals. When the most vocal and visible advocates are the worst people imaginable — tearing down hostage posters, blocking traffic, telling Jews to “go back to Germany”, and protesting an exhibit for massacred partygoers — any sane observer will be turned off. Viewed from the perspective of wanting Palestinians to have a real shot at peace and an independent state of their own, the movement’s repellent antics and lack of realistic and achievable goals make no sense.

If, however, we view the Western pro-Palestine movement not as a serious campaign for justice, but rather as a masturbatory exercise in virtue exhibitionism, the pieces begin to click into place. Evaluated by their behavior, the real goal of the protesters is not to affect change, but to be seen among their peers as a Good Person™ who is opposed to all the Bad Things™ — colonialism, fascism, capitalism, you name it. The war in Gaza is just the latest convenient excuse to take to the streets and call for revolution — or in this case, intifada.

This is by no means a new phenomenon. The activist left has always been a haven for the rudderless children of the upper-middle class with a penchant for role-playing. Whether it’s burning cities and decapitating pigs to defund the police, or defacing the Mona Lisa and Stonehenge to stop fossil fuels, the point isn’t to find a realistic path to change. The point is to gorge on what Aldous Huxley once described as “the most delicious of moral treats”:

“The surest way to work up a crusade in favor of some good cause is to promise people that they will have a chance of maltreating someone. [...] To be able to destroy with good conscience, to be able to behave badly and call your bad behavior ‘righteous indignation’ — this is the height of psychological luxury, the most delicious of moral treats.”

What makes Israel/Palestine unique is the combination of issues it weaves together in the minds of young leftists. Pro-Palestine activism ties the war in Gaza to Western imperialism, Islamophobia, US-style racial identity politics, and anti-Americanism. Israel, in this view, is an apartheid state, a settler colonial regime as bad as the Nazis, genocide and all. That European colonialism never once involved a land where the colonists had cultural and religious ties dating back thousands of years, not to mention a continuous presence, or that imperialism is in no way specific to white European countries, is lost in the shuffle. As is the fact that the Israel-Palestine conflict is more geopolitical than religious (Israel has normalized relations with Egypt and Saudi Arabia, both deeply religious Muslim nations).

The accusation of apartheid likewise falls flat upon considering that Israeli Arabs have the same rights as Israeli Jews. As for the absurd charge of genocide, much has been made of the case brought against Israel by South Africa in the United Nations’ International Court of Justice (ICJ), as though the mere accusation of genocide was ironclad evidence. But far from proving these serious allegations, the president of the ICJ who presided over the case clarified that it “didn't decide the claim of genocide was plausible.”

What illustrates the anti-Israel fetish on the Western left is the near total apathy for the world’s many other — and often far worse — humanitarian crises. Where is the outcry over the Yemeni Civil War, a war involving slave-owning terrorists that has seen 377,000 dead? Where are the protests over the Syrian Civil War, which saw a staggering 617,000 dead? Or the ongoing oppression of the Uyghur Muslims in China? Or the Sudanese Civil War? Not a peep. None of this is meant as a whataboutism. 600,000 dead in some other war doesn’t give Israel carte blanche to kill civilians. But to have activists so passionate about one conflict that they’re literally setting themselves on fire while completely ignoring all others is eye opening. It’s hard to see the Palestine movement as a principled opposition to oppression and civilian casualties rather than an unhealthy fixation on the world’s only Jewish state.

For all that the pro-Palestine movement calls for “peace” and “ceasefire”, they have little to say about Hamas’s role in the violence. Imagine if Hamas laid down its arms in surrender instead of trading Palestinian civilian lives for anti-Israeli PR. Imagine a Gandhi-like peaceful Palestinian resistance. The international pressure behind them would be overwhelming. Israel would lose all justification and have no choice but to back down. But Hamas would rather continue seeing their own people butchered in the crossfire of urban warfare, because Hamas doesn’t want peace or coexistence — they want the complete eradication of Israel and the Jewish people. And the Western leftists who support them don’t want a negotiated peace — they want Israel abolished, with no thought for what would happen to the Jews living there now. The pro-Palestine movement does not want a Mandela-like figure building reconciliation. They want a Robespierre-style revolutionary to burn the entire system to the ground.

Consider, by contrast, Martin Luther King and the Civil Rights movement. Although fiercely controversial at the time, King’s activism and the broader protest movement of which he was a part ultimately paved the way for reforms that ended Jim Crow. How? Because King had a brilliant strategy with a clearly defined, achievable vision. With a principled commitment to non-violence, protesters forced the authorities to make the first aggressive move and thus traded their own suffering to change hearts and minds and create political pressure. It was brave, intelligent, and most importantly, effective, because the movement had concrete goals and a realistic method for getting there. None of this ethos is present in the pro-Palestine protests. They would much rather chant “there is only one solution” or pointlessly occupy a university building and then demand the administrators feed them. There’s a reason why the protesting intensified the moment the weather got warm and finals were around the corner. It’s all so endlessly sophomoric.

In a saner world, I would be a moderate on Israel. I oppose the settlements in the West Bank and think that Israel’s far-right Likud party and its obstinate leader Benjamin Netanyahu have been obstacles to peace. I believe in a two-state solution, and acknowledge that in this long and bloody conflict, neither side’s hands are clean. But because the far left would rather engage in apologia for terrorists than learn the most basic nuances of the conflict, I come across as a pro-Israel hawk, which is a sign of how unhealthy the discourse has become. Israel is stuck in an impossible situation, surrounded by hostile actors and under constant bombardment by terrorists. That doesn’t justify the loss of civilian life in Gaza, but I have yet to see a single pragmatic solution to the war coming from the left that doesn’t amount to Israel willingly exposing its throat to those who would gladly cut it.

If I thought that Hamas would honor a ceasefire, I would call for one too. But as the world saw on October 7th when Hamas broke the previous ceasefire, they are not a party that can be reasoned with — they must be defeated. And their Western supporters, who couldn’t discredit the Palestinian cause more if they were Mossad agent provocateurs, are only making that fate more likely. 

Every principled supporter of Palestine should look to the comrades at their side and ask, with friends like these, who needs enemies?

[mageknight14]

I think what’s interesting about Neku as a protag is that while I’ve seen some people talk about how he’s one of the deeper/most complex characters in the franchise, I’d argue that he’s actually one of the most straightforward characters in the TWEWY duology-and I don’t think that’s a bad thing. That’s not to suggest that he doesn’t have depth, far from it. His trauma and the way that he goes about in trying to dissociate from others while still genuinely loving them deep down, even if he says otherwise, is genuinely interesting to see in action, especially in how he approaches his relationships. But compared to the others, I don’t find him as fascinating to explore in comparison to, say, Shoka, Joshua, Sho, Kanon, Motoi, Shiba, Mr. H, or even Rindo as a protag, even if his reappearance in NEO as well as how he tries to keep his trauma/emotions under wraps is still interesting to see in action.

That said, he’s still one of my faves for how much he embodies TWEWY’s themes in general, his development just being great to see in action, and the impact he has on the people around him in various ways. In a series where a lot of the characters like to hide parts about themselves and how those affect the relationships around them, Neku in the first game is blunt to a tee, almost to a fault, and confrontational, which makes him the perfect receptacle for the themes/lessons the game imparts on him. We're privy to almost every single one of his thoughts, feelings, and emotions throughout the game, to the point that it almost becomes a first-person narration at times. He hates lying and it shows because when the characters have doubts about themselves, he’s the perfect guy for the job of setting them straight instead of trying to dart around the issue, getting them to look at themselves and try to press forward anyway.

This is also part of what makes Rindo such an effective foil to him as a protagonist. Like I said in another post, while Rindo SEEMS more socially well-adjusted compared to Neku on a surface-level, once you look into his actions and mindset, you can see that he's also quite the dysfunctional mess. Whereas Neku is blunt, brutally honest, and incredibly confrontational, Rindo is much more passive, self-contradictory, and incredibly insecure about himself and the people around him, which feeds into how he puts people at arm's length, including his supposed best friend. The kid can't even tackle a simple-ass puzzle without needing to consult his online friend first or ask them about their identity because he's afraid of rocking the boat. Whereas Neku is alone AWAY from the crowd, Rindo is alone IN the crowd.

This also extends to their inner thoughts, where Neku will let us, the player, view into his mind and have him lay out exactly what he's feeling, the conclusions he comes to, and be confident enough in what he's feeling to then express himself in exactly that manner (with some exceptions such as some of his interactions with Joshua, which is justified because he doesn't want to risk anything happening to Shiki if their partnership goes south so he tries to keep what he says in check, even if it internally kills him inside, and even then he still spills out how PISSED he is with Joshua towards the end.)

Meanwhile, in NEO, while we do play as Rindo and get the majority of the story through his perspective, we don’t get to see his inner thoughts/turmoil as much as Neku’s…because he DOESN’T want to recognize his issues, instead trying to rely on everyone else to solve his problems for him so that they can take the fallout in case something goes wrong and a lot of it shows through his actions/outspoken dialogue instead. Nagi’s Dive and Haz’s conversation with him are some of the only times someone directly calls him out on his flaws within the main story but when you pay attention to how he acts, his flaws pop up quite a bit. For example, how he claims that An0ther's quote of "never miss your chance to make a friend" is one of his favorite quotes yet he balks at the idea of recruiting other potential team members as well as grimace at the concept of the first game's Reaper's Game.

So we have a guy who’s constantly internally struggling with himself while putting on a cold/blunt persona because he doesn’t want to get hurt and recognizing that maybe he’s wrong on a point and letting us in on how he's feeling a vast majority of the time in his head versus a guy who constantly bitches and moans internally while passively going along with everything in spite of himself, constantly self-contradicting/being hypocritical without recognizing himself as such until he gets a much needed wake-up call later and I think that’s really interesting.

[marreddream]

Housamo Fic - Two Dog Warriors Walk Into A Cafe

Ding-a ling~

Shinya Tennoji is picking up empty cups and plates from the tables when he sees a small pink and a large brown Therian enter his cafe. Hazelnut strawberry and matcha dark chocolate. They make a rather charming pair, he thinks.

“Oh my, Tanetomo and Yasuyori! It’s so nice to see the two of you again!”

Yasuyori beams. Tanetomo scoffs. 

“We’re just here to use the coupons you gave us. We happened to be close by, so we figured we’d scope your place out.” 

Shinya’s glad to see them, and glad they hadn’t shown up until a good amount of time after the Valentine’s Snowball Fight Shinya had met the two at had passed. Days after an absence of his at the cafe were always busier than normal, to speak nothing of a missed Valentine’s Day shift. 

“Aw, I’m happy to hear that! Yes, see what on the menu you’d like, and order at the front when you’re ready.”

“Shinya Tennoji. I hope for your sake that what you just said was a simple case of you automatically rattling off whatever generic customer greeting phrases first popped into your brain when you saw us, and not you assuming me to be so moronic I never learned how to order from a cafe.”

“Ahaha, it was most definitely a case of the former, Tanetomo.”

“Well, perhaps Yasuyori might have needed the assistance, so good on you for being such a diligent and attentive employee.”

“Counselor! You have seen me function perfectly well at the plenty of other establishments we have been to together before!”

There are some minimally subdued rumblings from the regulars about the fresh faces who have entered the cafe. 

“At least...not fawning…Shinya, but…” “Treat… more respect…holes…” “...think they’re …type?” “… are pretty cute…”

Tanetomo’s ears twitch at the last comment. He does a hair flip and a whimsical 360 degree twirl for the crowd as naturally as he draws breath, which is to say: effortlessly yet with intention, before returning to scanning the menu. 

Taromaiti is at the cash register. She observes this action without judgment or reaction. Hermes isn’t here today, but it’s what you could call a slow day, so Shinya doesn’t particularly mind. Kalki is busy preparing food and cleaning dishes in the back, so he does not get to witness this 10s-across-the-board maneuver.

Cafe Asterism’s patrons tend to get upset when Shinya isn’t the server or cashier, but he wishes he could be on cooking duty during cafe hours more often sometimes. Oh well. He wishes for a lot of things that can’t come true. He returns to what he was doing before hand, and Tanetomo and Yasuyori make their order.

“Iced coffee. Grande. And a bread pudding.”

“Could I have… a venti sized matcha frappuccino? Five Monte Cristos, and two shortbreads, please.”

Yasuyori pays for them both, and they take a seat. 

“Oh, 1 hour seating?” “Well, we won’t be staying long. Anybody who could find something in here even remotely interesting enough to justify spending over an hour in this place (aside from the presence of yours truly, of course) would have to be quite the simple minded kook.”

It’s a subtle dig at Shinya, and the corners of his lips curl up a little. But, for somebody whose goal was to win over Shinya’s “adoring throng of fans to show them who was truly worthy of their love”, as Tanetomo had put it, Shinya wasn’t quite sure if…ah, what was it called? If, “negging”, was the right direction to take.

The people seated nearby Tanetomo and Yasuyori smile upside down. There are definitely some unsavory feelings to be felt in the air, but romantic rival nor direct threat to Shinya’s life/ego (it’s the same thing to them really) Tanetomo does not yet appear to be, so they keep to themselves.

Shinya drops off crockery in the sink, and Kalki has already completed the preceding order for Shinya to serve. Kalki’s insane multi-tasking skills are one thing, but that combined with his four, rugged, heat-resistant arms puts him on a whole nother level when it comes to cafe work. Shinya could sing his praises about Kalki all day long, but not out loud. Kalki would explode the world from embarrassment before any of Shinya’s fans could do it for him in a fit of an envious rage. So Shinya settles for a simple ‘thank you Kalki’ and serves Moe-chan her order, who smiles and says thanks.

When Tanetomo and Yasuyori’s orders are completed, Shinya brings their food over.

“Wow! It looks so good! Thank you, Tenn-”

“Taste test for poison.” Tanetomo spoons a scoop of pudding into Yasuyori’s mouth, and then a strawful of iced coffee. 

“Gulp. Delicious! No poisons identified, Counselor.” 

Shinya wonders if this is Tanetomo’s roundabout way of sharing his food with Yasuyori, some sort of twisted display of dominance, or if poisoning attempts really are frequent enough to be something they actually needed to watch out for. Regardless, it’s a somewhat endearing scene, in a darkly comedic sort of way. 

They are in dangerous territory too after all, Shinya acknowledges. He smiles at the two and leaves them to go attend to the other customers.

Yasuyori takes a small sip of his frappe before setting it down on a coaster. The drink is now already half empty. 

“Give me some of your drink.”

Tanetomo has already snatched it before his sentence is even finished and tries some. He drinks a quarter of it, and Yasuyori nibbles on one of his cookies before giving it to Tanetomo.

The two of them efficiently dine and chat. As Tanetomo consumes the bread pudding and his drink at a surprisingly fast yet visually refined pace, Yasuyori piles three Monte Cristos on top of one another to impressively bite down on all at once, and then hands the remaining two to Tanetomo who proceeds to do the same.  

Wow. Shinya can already feel his jaw locking from just looking at them, but it also kind of makes him want to try it out as well.

Yasuyori finishes his sandwiches and cookie first, and then stares at the one he had given to Tanetomo. Tanetomo purses his lips and tells him to go buy some more for the both of them to-go. Yasuyori complies.

To Shinya’s surprise, Tanetomo calls out to him.

“Don’t think I haven't been seeing you side-eye us the entire time, Shinya Tennoji.” 

Oopsies. Looks like Shinya Tennoji got caught. He wasn’t bombastically ‘side-eyeing’, as Tanetomo had verbally interpreted it as, but he really thought he was doing good about not being that obvious observing them. He hopes the other customers haven’t been as perceptive and paranoid today as Tanetomo is in general, but he’s been pretty good about personably interacting with everybody so he thinks it’ll be okay. 

“So was the entertainment of our dining in your establishment to your satisfaction?”

“Aha, sorry, sorry. It’s not like I wasn’t looking, but the two of you seemed like you were having a lot of fun. I always want to see my customers having a good time at Cafe Asterism.”

“Hmph. Is that so.”

Well, yes. That is so, Shinya thinks. He most certainly does not like to see people having a bad time at Cafe Asterism, when the reasoning for most everybody gathering here tending to be because of him.

“Ahhh… could it be that... that wasn’t the case for you two today?” 

His hands come up to his chin. It’s an endearing pose that he finds tends to quell agitated customers, but it only serves to scrunch up Tanetomo’s expression even more. Shinya holds back a smile.

“The atmosphere here is not to my standards. The interior design doesn’t help either.” 

Shinya’s proud of his quaint little cafe, but he knows it’s just that. A quaint little cafe. That also attracted a lot of… rather strong-willed habitué . So he can acquiesce to that opinion. And besides, Tanetomo was not saying Shinya’s decorating was making the atmosphere worse! He can take that part as a compliment.

Anyways, the only opinion on his cafe that truly mattered was Retail Food Health and Safety Code’s opinion, and Cafe Asterism was up to snuff.

“Aww…. Tanetomo, I’m so sorry to hear that. I’d love for you and Yasuyori to come again sometime… but if you’ve lost all interest in returning to Cafe Asterism, then I completely understand.”

He doesn’t want them to never return again. But it’s not a bad thing to let people run while they still can either.

“I’d be significantly more incentivized to return if I had some more coupons to use at a next visit. The food is up to par, I can at least say.”

“Hehee. At least that can be arranged.” He pulls some from out of his apron pocket. “Here you go, Tanetomo.” 

He smoothly plucks them from Shinya’s fingers and looks them over. 

“You just give these out to whoever asks?” “When I feel like…I have extra, I guess.”

Shinya feels a presence behind him and turns around. Oh, it’s Moko.

“Sh…Shinya… sorry, cuz’ I overheard…but could…. I have a coupon, too…?” 

Moko gets the words out just audibly enough for only Shinya to hear, but Shinya knows it’s only a matter of time before people will begin to gather round, and Tanetomo seems to sense this looming phenomenon as well.

“My, one’s heart can't help but be tugged at by such pitiful displays of desperation…”

Yasuyori returns with a paper bag of confections in hand, and Tanetomo gets up to leave.

“I’m off.” He spins, his hair elegantly following in a curve, and heads to the exit.

“Farewell Shinya!” Yasuyori gives a friendly wave goodbye, and Shinya turns around to reciprocate.  

When he turns back to respond to Moko, and Sumael, Amon, and Rue who have also begun to crowd around Shinya, he hears the bell of the exit door ring as it is opened and Tanetomo calls out from behind.

“Customer service wasn’t bad either. Give my regards to Miss Taromaiti and the chefs.”

The door closes shut. 

“I was still right here to give regards to, you know,” Taromaiti remarks amusedly from the front register. 

Shinya proceeds in the distribution of coupons to his patrons who have circled around him.

[disneymbti]

hi! could you do jane grey and guildford dudley from the tv show my lady jane? thank you ⚘

Hi there, sweetie! I really hope you like this a lot!

Jane Grey's MBTI Type, Big Three, Enneagram Type and Moral Alignment Type

MBTI Type: INFJ [The Advocate]

Introverted INFJs exhaust quickly around people and recharge by spending time by themselves.

They tend to overlook small details and instead focus on the entire perspective. They love to see how everything connects together.

Advocates prioritize their emotions. They tend to base decisions on what they feel is right rather than what might be logically sound, making them very empathetic.

They are also very structured and organized. INFJs like to plan ahead and follow processes and schedules.

Big Three: Libra Sun, Aquarius Moon and Scorpio Rising

Libra Sun: Libra is ruled by the airy part of Venus, making them bon vivants, critical, and artistic — as well as forever stylish.

Aquarius Moon: Logic or emotion? Why not both. The Aquarius Moon integrates logic with sentimentality in order to attain a deep understanding of their inner lives.

Scorpio Rising: Prone to turning heads, Scorpio ascendents ooze with magnetism and dynamism. They're not known to back away from a challenge.

Enneagram Type: 5w4 [The Philosopher]

Basic Fear: Type fives with a four wing are afraid of being helpless and incompetent. They tend to overcompensate for this by spending their time developing new knowledge and skills to feel useful and worthy.

Basic Desire: Their basic desire is to feel helpful and able. They express this by passionately pursuing knowledge and understanding of the world.

Philosophers tend to guard themselves by withdrawing from others, which may lead to loneliness.

Moral Alignment Type: Chaotic Good [The Rebel]

These characters value freedom and kindness, often challenging laws and order to achieve just outcomes.

Guildford Dudley's MBTI Type, Big Three, Enneagram Type and Moral Alignment Type

MBTI Type: ENTP [The Debater]

As extroverts, ENTP types have higher levels of energy and love being around other people. They tend to avoid being alone.

They are more interested in the big picture than on specifics and details. They love solving complex problems and have a great sense of intuition. 

Debaters make decisions based on logic. They care less about what makes people happy and more about what’s right.

They dislike schedules and routine, preferring to keep their options open. They love surprise experiences and challenge the need for rules and regulations.

Big Three: Capricorn Sun, Aries Moon and Aquarius Rising

Capricorn Sun: Capricorn is ruled by authoritative Saturn, which is why they tend to work hard toward advancing themselves in earthly matters. 

Aries Moon: Aries ascendants are known as the go-getters of the zodiac. They don’t let anything stand in their way of achieving their personal goals.

Aquarius Rising: This rising sign can speak lucidly on a number of topics, using their lofty knowledge to charm crowds and solve problems alike.

Enneagram Type: 7w8 [The Opportunist]

Basic Fear: Seven with an eight wing fear being deprived. They want to pursue new opportunities and avoid being controlled by schedules.

Basic Desire: Their basic desire is to content and satisfied. They love experiencing the world by traveling and going to parties.

Opportunists defend themselves by justifying others’ negative actions and rationalizing away bad feelings.

Moral Alignment Type: Neutral Good [The Benevolent]

These characters seek to do good, but are flexible in how they achieve it, valuing both order and freedom.

[magicalbats]

Kinktober Day 4: Rimming

Rating: R-18+

Word Count: 4357

Warnings: Afab!reader, rimming, handjob, the deeply flawed relationship between Albedo and his assistant

A/N: I'd actually wanted to keep these about the same length, but somehow they're just getting longer xcnvdjkjnv

⭐

“How is this?” 

“Good, I think.” 

Albedo sends you a slow, vaguely amused look over his bare shoulder. “You think? Are you not supposed to be the expert here?” 

You feel your cheeks start to become warm, that borderline playful smile shattering your closely guarded clinical facade more so than the words themselves. He was teasing you, yes, and you could deal with that. Probably. But the faint gleam of mischief in his sparkling spring eyes was another matter entirely. How were you possibly supposed to maintain professional impartiality when he looked at you like that? 

“Forgive me. I just, ah … I’ve never quite done this before.” 

“That’s alright. Then it will be the first time for both of us. We can figure it out together.”

His optimism on the matter should have been reassuring. In any other situation it likely would have been, but this … 

Slowly, you drag your gaze over his body, admiring both his perfect, creamy complexion with nary a single flaw or blemish in sight, and his attractive physique. His proud, perfectly composed posture doesn’t so much as waver even when he’s stark naked and presenting his backside to someone who was effectively a stranger. You’d known him for some time now but never in any meaningful way. The two of you would have been hard pressed to even consider yourselves friends, let alone whatever level of acquaintanceship was needed for this. Either way, you were coworkers at best. 

Somehow, it felt like you’d missed more than just a few steps in this process. 

But saying Albedo had taken a keen interest in the subject of human sexuality would have been something of an understatement. You really hadn’t expected as much when you’d first floated the idea by him, subtly making the suggestion one evening when you were tinkering around together in the small alchemy lab sequestered deep in the knights headquarters. You’d tried to tell yourself it was just meant as a joke — and had then tried to convince him of that as well when he’d sent you a long, unreadable look over the workbench. A number of frantic thoughts had run through your mind all at once, each more alarming than the last, but then, to your slack jawed surprise, he’d actually expressed a certain amount of curiosity on the subject. 

That was the very last thing you could have ever anticipated, and the following discussion leading into an impromptu hands on demonstration had come as an even greater shock. Really, you aren’t sure what you’d thought would happen considering how unhesitatingly he always seemed to throw himself into any new pursuit that came along until it soon lost its luster and shine, but you’d effectively backed yourself into a corner with this. 

Not only was he eager (in his own strange, offbeat kind of way) to learn more about the methods which people copulated with one another and why, but he also assumed you would be the one to carry out these experiments with him. Although you had been the one to bring it up, perhaps foolishly so, that didn’t necessarily mean you’d been volunteering your services. Not that you were complaining, exactly, but you still couldn’t quite shake the feeling of being in way over your head with this. 

Frankly, you still couldn’t quite seem to grasp that it was really even happening at all but, as they say; in for a mora, in for a pound. You’d already gone this far so there wasn’t any justifiable reason for you to stop now. 

Gathering your inner strength and steeling yourself, you shuffle across the floor of his captain's office to approach him from behind. He’d initially expressed some doubt about this particular activity after happening upon mention of it in some book — which book, you did not want to know — but he now seemed perfectly willing to humor it long enough to find out if it would net any results or not. You, on the other hand, were far too embarrassed about it to offer yourself up for the initial trial and had instead been delegated to the active role of principal investigator for the time being while he played test subject. 

You’d tried to tell yourself that this was fine. Surely being on the giving end wouldn’t be half as bad as on the receiving, but looking at him now … oh, you were so flustered you didn’t even even know where to start. 

“Is something the matter?” He prods after a long stretch of terse silence, well after it had become awkward and uncomfortable. 

“No, no,” You rush to say. “I’m just trying to figure out how to begin. I mean, usually there’s a buildup leading into something like this, right?” 

Noising a thoughtful sound, Albedo idly touches fingers to his chin in consideration. “I see what you mean. The literature I’ve read on this topic always had some kind of precursor beforehand to build tension and set the tone of the encounter. However, I think introducing anything else to the parameters of the experiment might skew the results. For example, if I were to kiss you right now that could spark a pleasure response that would carry over and interfere with our findings so it’s probably best if we stick to the task at hand.” 

Somehow listening to him talk about this from such a detached, purely scientific standpoint does absolutely nothing to put you at ease. In fact, it actually seems to make it worse, and your stomach fiercely cramps with the sinking feeling of dread that settles over you. “Understood. Then I’ll get started right away.” 

Glancing up at the dejected tone in your voice, he offers you another of those vaguely sly smiles that would seem to imply he found humor in this. “That’s not to say I have no interest in kissing you at all, though. Perhaps we can revisit that matter when we’re through here?” 

You duck your head, embarrassed all over again as you shuffle the last few steps to close the distance between you and him. “If that’s what you want, Captain Albedo.” 

Tentatively reaching out, you place your hands on his narrow waist with careful intention. He doesn’t react to the touch alone but he seldom does anyway. Usually it takes a bit of effort on your part to get any kind of physiological response out of him, or at least a more direct sort of stimulation than this, but he doesn’t show any signs of discomfort either. You also don’t see any of the anticipatory tension thrumming through his body that you otherwise would have expected in just about anybody else and, more for your benefit than his, you slide your palms down to cup his firm ass in your fingers. Taking your time with it, you gently massage the skin and knead into the muscle underneath, giving yourself one last chance to calm down before taking the plunge.

With a quiet sigh, Albedo relaxes against you almost imperceptibly so and you take that as your cue to proceed, slowly lowering yourself to kneel on the floor. On your knees, you grab two handfuls of his backside and squeeze, marveling at the way his fair skin reddens slightly where the pressure was applied. He was so beautiful it seemed to defy all logic and reason, and his attractiveness certainly made carrying out these experiments together a much easier task than it could have been with someone less to your liking. Momentarily forgetting how to breathe, you gently spread his cheeks apart to expose him to your voracious eyes, greedily drinking in the sight of his vulnerable and defenseless little hole. 

He’s all pink and smooth, the faintest hint of peach fuzz interrupting the otherwise unnatural perfection of his body. If you didn’t know any better you would almost think it was manufactured, how picture perfect and flawless he was. You even have the half delirious thought that perhaps he’d been made in a lab, painstakingly designed to be a gloriously sublime specimen in every way imaginable from his beautiful face right down to his evenly spaced and distributed toes. If you hadn’t been looking right at him, you never would have thought it was possible for someone like this to even exist in the first place.

“Ready?” You softly venture, figuring it couldn’t hurt to make absolutely certain he wanted to go through with this.  

“Yes, you may begin.”  

Well. That took care of that. 

Slowly inhaling, you settle your weight to ensure you wouldn’t lose balance and tip over, then lean in to dip your face between the pert cleft of his cheeks. Your tongue slips out and you drag the flat of it over that tight pucker, some amount of surprise washing over you when it twitches faintly at the contact. Albedo doesn’t react beyond that though, neither issuing any sounds that might indicate his thoughts nor any shifts in his posture to denote pleasure or dislike. It was the same as every other time you’d found yourself in these predicaments though, and your cunt gives a muted throb at the memory of that first threadbare moan he’d finally let out when you sank down on his cock in the alchemy lab. That felt like eons ago, whole lifetimes in the past, but in reality it had only been a few weeks. 

But that distant reminder is enough to spurn you on, evidently, and you feel an odd spark of determination light up within you as you lean into the task. You wanted to hear him sigh and huff in pleasure again. No matter how fleeting or quiet they were, the sounds he did make were unlike anything you’d ever heard before. Intoxicating the way fine aged wine is. 

So you lap at his hole, swirling your tongue around the outer rim until you feel it soften and puff up under the ministrations of your mouth. You attack the center then, just barely dipping into the tight heat of his body and then pulling back out to encourage it to open up for you more. Unexpectedly, Albedo pulls in a quiet breath at that, so you do it again, worming your tongue a little deeper this time. 

“That’s … a somewhat odd feeling.” He murmurs, not quite surprised but — curious. Like he’s actually struck on something that was of interest to him and he was fascinated by it. Archons help you, what have you gotten yourself into? 

Pulling back for a much needed pause, you take a moment to study him again. The faintly raised rim of his hole gives another brief twitch, no doubt at the rush of cool air coming in to replace the warmth of your mouth, and you quickly swallow down your last remaining nerves. Hands sliding down to grip the backs of his thighs, you lean in and flick your tongue over the puffy muscle, teasing over the center of it with alternating fast and slow kitten licks. You try to get a feel for what he might respond to, try to work through the problem at hand, but he doesn’t give much away at all even when you seal your lips around the pucker and suck at him. It was like you were effectively doing this blind, and the difficulty of breathing with your face smothered in his ass wasn’t exactly helping you think straight either. 

That is, until, his hips give the briefest little jerk at something you’ve done, and you moan into his skin when he subtly rears back against you. 

“I see,” He seems to marvel, apparently still more focused on evaluating the results than actually enjoying the feeling itself. “It’s not necessarily pleasurable as a stand-alone but the nerve stimulation in the target area does encourage responses elsewhere. I also have reason to surmise that a large factor of the appeal has to do with the mental state of the recipient more than anything else.” 

Leaning back with a wet, faltering gasp, you have to take a moment to catch your breath. “What do you mean?” You finally manage to croak.

“Hm? Oh, I just mean that this is a rather demeaning act, isn’t it? Someone doing such of their own volition — outside of experimental parameters, mind you — would probably denote a great deal of self deprecation and perhaps even fatalistic submission to the recipient's power over them. Is it possibly just a simple method of asserting dominance?” 

He issues a faint hum into the room, clearly getting lost in his own thoughts, and you ponder over his hypothesis for a moment before carefully choosing your next words. “I think that could be part of it. Maybe even a big part of it for most people who engage in … this. But I don’t believe it’s out of the question that some might actually enjoy it.”

A stretch of quiet and then, “Do you like it?” 

“Well, I wouldn’t go that far,” You stammer, glad he can’t see the fluster on your face. “But it’s not terrible either. Depending on the dynamic between participating parties, it’s very possible to simply get off on making your partner feel good.” You hesitate before adding, much more quietly, “I’d say that’s about where I fall in this.” 

Shifting his weight, Albedo twists around to look back at you and the bright glint of fascination in his eyes quickly makes you regret having said anything at all. You were just further humiliating yourself every time you opened your mouth it seemed. 

“It’s not just physical response that drives one’s sexual impulses, then. The preoccupation with your partner's enjoyment plays a role as well.” He seems to mull that over for a long beat, and you can practically see the gears grinding away in his head, trying to work out the full implication of what the logical conclusion to this new information would be. You aren’t sure what he’s going to come back at you with when he eventually draws a deliberate breath, but it’s certainly not, “And if I were to tell you I was feeling good?”

You blink up at him owlishly. “I’d be happy, of course. But …” 

“But? Please, you can speak freely here.”

That was certainly easy for him to say. 

“Well — being told something like that isn’t exactly bad or anything, but I’d be even happier if it was apparent. Rather than being told you feel good, it’s nice to see it. Remember when I climbed on top of you down in the lab … w - well, you made this noise. This breathy little groan that I haven’t been able to stop thinking about since, if you want the truth. Knowing I made you feel good based on the sounds you made is what made me feel good too. Or part of it, at least.” 

Slowly, his brows lift with understanding. “Ah, so that is what you were referring to. Subconscious reactions instead of deliberate acknowledgments or praise. I see.” 

Your heart gives a lurch at that, and you rush to amend yourself. “Oh, that’s not quite - -“ 

“Let’s resume the experiment. I won’t intentionally withhold my reactions from you this time, and I hope you continue to do the same. I'm quite curious to see if it changes the results when I’m freely expressing them or if they stay the same.” 

Well, you couldn’t exactly argue with that, now could you? 

Especially not when he decisively turns back around, indicating that the decision has already been made. 

You take a moment to draw a deep, steadying breath to ground yourself and then lean forward, bracing your palms on the backs of his thighs again. But this time you don’t immediately put your mouth to work, and instead give him a brief nudge. “Bend forward and brace your hands on the arms of the chair. That should make this a little easier for both of us.” Since he was so damn determined to see this through to the end. 

Evidently recognizing the wisdom in that call, Albedo does as you’d requested with a quiet hum of acknowledgment, and you suddenly have to fight very hard to keep the intense flush that tries to claim your cheeks at bay. Not only does this position present his ass on perfect display, but you’re also now afforded a shamefully tantalizing glimpse of his smooth taint and the fleshy hang of his testes, and you can also see his cock where it dangles between his legs. To your staggering surprise, he’s stiff and hard, the glans flushed a pretty shade of pink where it’s peeking through the slit of his foreskin. That must have been what he’d meant about ‘reactions in other areas’ earlier. 

“Is this agreeable?” 

You swallow. Hard. “Spread your legs further apart.” 

He complies once more, and you feel undeniably dizzy at the sight of him spread open like this. His perfection had never been more apparent than in that moment when you could see all of him without interruption, no clothes or furniture in the way to obstruct your view. It was like looking at a painting come to life, every inch of him so picture perfect it was uncanny. Disconcerting, in a way. 

Shrugging off that feeling, you go up on your knees again and shuffle close, leaning into him to kiss at the swell of one cheek. You were starting to get an idea, formulating a plan in the back of your mind that you were sure would net the desired results you suspected he was secretly hoping for. While it was true he wasn’t half as expressive or easy to rile up as most men, that didn’t mean he was totally immune to having his body stimulated. The cock subtly bobbing between his thighs was proof enough of that. You could see how this was going to end now, and you had a feeling he would be quite pleased with the results this time. 

Gradually pecking your way over the swell of his pert ass, you finally reach Albedo’s cute, puckered little hole again and you seal your mouth against him, applying a faint amount of suction. You feel him twitch under you, hesitate to do it, and then let out the softest, barely there groan you’d ever heard. So he did feel something from that. Good. 

It had been a bit uncertain as far as moans go, yes, but you knew he wasn’t used to freely expressing himself in such a way and it was just nice to know you were doing something right. Tongue snaking out, you flick it over the raised up muscle for a long moment until he eventually twitches, gasping quietly at the sensation. You can’t help but feel undeniably pleased as you work the tip of your tongue into the center of his hole next and press in, slowly breaching the defenses of his body. He lets out a breathy, almost whiny sound when your face presses flush against the upturned curve of his ass, as far as you can reach, and that’s when you bring your hand up. 

Taking hold of his cock, you give it a tight, savory squeeze and start to tug at it. Albedo offers up a tiny little start and looses the most surprised sound you’ve ever heard him make, higher in pitch than usual and faltering. Evidently he hadn’t expected you to attack him from both sides like this … and, evidently, you hadn’t been prepared for your plan to work so well, because that noise catches you off guard and your pussy clamps down hard in response. Groaning into him, you have to pause a moment and find your bearings again before it bowls you right over, and it still somehow nearly succeeds. It was even more tantalizing than that huffy moan you’d heard him make down in the lab. It was like something divine, straight from the mouths of the gods themselves. 

Surely you weren’t currently eating out one of the sevens’ creations … were you? 

“I thought we agreed on — nghh! Staying on task today.” He murmurs, but makes no move at all to stop you. Alright, so he hadn’t accounted for the variable of a handjob in his calculations or hypotheses for this experiment, and how could he have? Clearly these were all unknown factors to him and he was relying on you more than anything else to set his expectations for what sort of results would come of it. But that wasn’t your fault. He’d never asked you directly or outright. 

That thought sparks an almost mean, petty light within you, and you pull on his cock a little harder in response. Wriggle your tongue a little faster. You could feel the muscles of his entrance gradually slackening around the intrusion, becoming increasingly soft and pliant, and you find that you can move around a bit more freely as it does. Now that he’s not squeezing you so tight, you start bobbing your head back and forth to tongue fuck his hole, slowly pulling all the way out and then pushing right back in. 

Albedo’s hips give a sensitive jerk at seemingly random intervals, his breathing a bit labored now, but you soon pick up on the pattern. If you time it just right and shove your tongue into him at the same moment your palm passes over his glans, rubbing the foreskin over that sensitive tip, it makes him react. You feel devious with this knowledge, quickly adjusting your rhythm to match this newfound information, and the results are glorious. 

You think he might actually collapse into a boneless heap right then and there when his knees seem to buckle, threatening to give out under him, but he manages to steady himself with the help of the chair. Leaning heavily into it, he lets out a flustered string of hot, breathy whimpers and groans that seem to steadily build into something a bit more dire, a bit more urgent, and you have to force yourself to maintain the pace you’ve set when your jaw starts to ache. 

He hadn’t exactly been wrong to call this demeaning. If it had been anyone else other than the Chief Alchemist himself you certainly never would have entertained the thought. But because it’s Albedo you put your all into it, determined to show him the results he wanted, and maybe even earn something more meaningful than the title of research assistant in the process. Perhaps something a bit more personal. Intimate. 

“Oh, dear - -!” Softly wheezing, he gives his narrow hips a stuttering thrust that fucks his cock down into your hand. He twitches harshly at the sensation, a distant, uncharacteristically vulnerable whine rising in the back of his throat as he repeats the motion at a staggeringly slow speed. It’s like he can’t seem to decide which way he wants to thrust, forward or back, and you make the decision for him by simply adjusting your rhythm to match his. 

The way you move together becomes seamless, perfectly timed to compliment one another and feed off the kinetic energy between you two. When he rears back on your tongue you’re already there, shoving it as far up his ass as it will reach while tugging down on his cock at the same time. When he stutteringly thrusts out, you drag your hand straight down to the base to peel back the foreskin and expose the glans in the same motion. Like this, it doesn’t take long for his sounds of stuttering pleasure to climb higher and higher, until he finally lets out a strangled, heaving grunt. 

Albedo cums, just like that; rocking between your mouth and your hand. You can’t quite tell where you’ve got his cock pointed like this, unsure if he was ejaculating all over the seat of the chair or the floor, but you don’t stop milking him until he finally issues a vaguely frazzled sound into the room. Only then do you disengage from him, pulling off his ass with a much needed gasp of fresh air. 

You’re a little dizzy after that. A bit overwhelmed by what had happened, how lost in the pleasure he’d allowed himself to become. But most of all you were insanely wet between the legs and you whimper softly as you settle back to sit on your butt, trying desperately to collect yourself. You’d thought that first time in the lab had been like a horny dream come true but this … it felt like you were losing your mind. 

“My theory was correct.” You croak once you’ve finally managed to catch your breath. “It’s not only possible for the active participant to get off on it without any power dynamics being involved … but it’s also not out of the question for the roles to be reversed either.” 

Albedo seems like he still hasn’t quite recovered yet, quietly panting where he’s still leaning over the chair, but that does manage to catch his attention and bring his head up. “What do you mean?” 

You laugh, breathless and thin. “I turned the tables. Even though you were on the receiving end and arguably in control, I took that power away from you. There at the end you were completely at my mercy, weren’t you?” Giving your head a quick shake, you reach up to wipe some of the half dried spit off your chin. Archons, you couldn’t wait to freshen up. “Something like that can be used to assert dominance, but it’s not a guarantee. I’d say the end result depends entirely on the individuals involved.”

And you feel pretty damn proud of that up until he slowly straightens and turns, pinning you with an enigmatic but no less sly look, and your heart promptly skips a bit. If you didn’t know any better you’d almost think he was smirking at you. 

He wasn’t actually smirking at you, was he? 

“Why don’t we test that theory then, my invaluable assistant? I wonder how much you’ll be at my mercy if I do the same to you.”

⭐

Crossposted here

[ladyazurith]

Totally agree with you about Cater in Book 5. I always found Ace and Deuce's inclusion on the team extremely forced and contrived. Realistically speaking, neither of them should’ve ever made the cut. Neither one of them have any singing or dancing training. While they did practice a little, there’s no way in hell someone would ever become a professional level dancer in the matter of a couple of days, even with the best teacher in the world. 

I’m 99% certain that Yana only did that for plot convenience, because that way she wouldn’t have to craft two new characters to fill in the roles on the team. While I can understand that logic from a real world game development standpoint, like you said, I still don’t understand why someone like Cater could’ve taken Ace’s spot at the very least. Cater is in the Light Music Club, so he has a background in that area. His VA is a professional singer. Cater making the team wouldn’t be as big of a stretch as Ace. It’s not like Ace did much in this arc other than cause trouble and insult Deuce, anyways, so anyone could’ve taken his spot. 

The other question about ch 3 is going to take a bit more thinking, cuz I've tried to make it work before in various stories, but this seems like a complete rework kind of answer is needed.

And yeah, I made a post a while ago about how Cater had to feel about the VDC, and it's something I tackle in some of my fics. Because I don't know how he can look at what happened and who got picked and not come to the conclusion Vil just hates him? Like this man is so driven to win that he's willing to do anything...except let Cater on the team.

And given I ship the two of them primarily their dynamic is something I've put a lot of effort into figuring out. The only thing I've found to justify it is that Vil doesn't like the idea of dating someone just for PR/fame. Because the way he talks to/reacts to Cater is just... not in line with how he treats everyone else. He constantly calls him shallow or implies he's only after fame which is just a wild take.

That he would let someone like Rook be his friend who 100% comes off more like a stalker fan type than Cater. And Rook doesn't even hide it. Like I get they bonded over Theater but it's not like Vil and Cater have no common ground at all. Cater's shown to be into fashion and design, given they go out of their way to mention Cater came up with Heartslabyul's Halloween costumes and designed their LMC clubwear (When for the most part that's all just assumed to be Crewel)

And then there is his friendship with Kalim like I've pointed out. And Lilia which Vil admits is someone he's interested in getting to know better himself. Hell Cater and Rook are friends? Like none of it makes sense.

Especially when Vil also has no problems with associating with other people who are clearly out to use him?!?! Like Azul, Jade, Ace...even Leona? But nah we're gonna hate on Cater. When he's always you know ASKED to take Vil's picture, even in situations where he wouldn't have to ie in public spaces and what not. He's never just taken it without permission.

In the end, despite the fact that Vil calls Cater shallow he's the one that comes across as incredibly shallow about the whole thing. Especially when we have Cater talking about what he sees in Vil and what he appreciates about him and why he looks up to him...and none of it is really shallow? He definitely sees more in him than just a quick ticket to fame.

It just seems so weird when Vil otherwise seems to put effort into helping others better themselves. He can be incredibly generous and thoughtful in certain situations. AND HE KNOWS THAT CATER IS LIKELY DEPRESSED. And that's what he's hiding behind his cheerful facade thanks to Cater's Labcoat personal story.

It's just like consistency, please. Anyway you probably weren't expecting this rant sorry XD It's a sore spot for me if you can't tell lol

[triviareads]

the battle against projecting too hard on romance heroes and heroines continues— I was talking to someone about The Moon & His Tides and this person expressed discomfort with Sebastian's age (18) when I know FOR A FACT they've read many a book with an 18 year old heroine and an older man. When I pressed, she immediately said "but I'm almost twice his age! He could be my son!" to which.... I mean, no one was asking if SHE'D fuck him, and romance-wise, he's a GREAT fit for a 34 year old woman and 28 year old man who don't... regard him as their son in the least.

The thing is, I do think Giana Darling also played into this when she likely predicted some level of discomfort and though she stuck with the age and the age gap, she did A LOT to make Sebastian seem more mature than he was, save a few moments where his youth really shined through. Some of the in-text reasons for this make more sense than others— he had to grow up too fast because he was raised in poverty and the local gang was trying to recruit him. Some of it makes less sense, like, how does an 18 year old fuck like a champ and have THAT level of emotional maturity?

But that's playing into the fantasy of it all, isn't it? Giana does not need to justify herself (think about all the very talented virgin heroes and heroines out there), and I imagine she wrote this with the intent of the reader putting themselves in Sebastian's shoes (if at all) as he's swept up in a romance with this older, powerful couple. It's just really interesting to see readers who'll basically read anything express limits of this particular variety and it does play into the patriarchy of it all, not to mention people feeling some kind of way where young MEN are involved vs. young women where certain behaviors and situations are almost... expected.

[flowmystique]

Let me start by saying, this is a Libra STAN account 🗣...I've always identified as a Scorpio (Tropical) sun, but ever since I finding out i'm actually a Libra (Sidereal) sun, I've been diving deep into learning more about Libra energy. I've always had a little interest in it, being that I was born on Scorpio-Libra cusp.

Scorpios may have a bad rep for their darkness, vengefulness, and secretive nature, but it turns out that Libras have it even worse 🙃 From the term "lying ass libra" to being labeled as shallow, fake, and two-faced, Libra's reputation is not great. Honestly, I get it and understand. I've definitely been guilty of all the stereotypes, and I've been actively working on correcting them as I grow/evolve. But I can't help but get frustrated by people's narrow-minded views (and that goes for all pop-astrology btw) to think that all people of one sign all behave the same way is nonsense...The sun is in it's detriment in the sign and as a Libra sun, throughout my life, I've felt a constant struggle between my true self and the expectations of surroundings. It's not about being fake or two-faced, but rather, I've come to realize that I possess a chameleon-like ability to adapt to any environment. I actually really appreciate this trait as it has allowed me to explore various experiences and meet new people due to my open-mindedness.

When it comes to being shallow or a people pleaser, it's actually deeper than it seems. Personally, I consider myself an empath, cliché as it may sound. Putting myself in someone else's shoes is my natural instinct. So even if someone annoys or upsets me, I can put on a nice face and keep the peace. Why? Well, first of all, I don't like upsetting people. But it's also a peace thing for me. Trust me, it's not just about being shallow or wanting to please others. It's about empathy and finding harmony. It's exhausting argue and go back-and-forths with people Sometimes, it's just easier to handle things with kindness. I know it's not the best approach, and it is one of my toxic traits. Not caring about people's opinion is a challenge, but I'm improving over time. I admire those who speak up for themselves, even if it leads to conflict. I'll get there. However, I also value my peace, so I'll always choose my battles wisely. One thing I've stopped doing is talking shit behind people's back after playing nice. It's not something I'm proud of.

Another point to make, and it might upset some people, but whatever. We have this reputation for playing both sides of the fence, which makes people think we're disloyal and fake. But the truth is, we can see things from all sides and look past the surface. Sometimes people will vent to me, but they get annoyed when I try to understand the other person's perspective or point out their own misconceptions. Then, will try justifying their delusions or getting mad at me for not taking their side. I'm done with it now. As adults, it's crucial to empathize with others before shaming/invalidating them. I'm all about playing devil's advocate, especially if it helps someone confront a harsh truth they need to hear. I used to bite my tongue, but now I couldn't care less. Especially when it comes to people close to me, honesty is key. No need to sugar coat things just to make yourself feel better. And I hope they'd do the same for me. That's what keeping the balance is really all about, in my opinion.

Ok my last & final thought is Libras are definitely not as shallow as some people think. I mean, seriously, have you ever actually tried to have a deep conversation with a one? When it comes to delving into the depths of our minds, it requires a certain level of comfort and trust. And trust me, my mind is always spinning, and it can get pretty damn dark. I thrive on deep conversations and can go for hours about a topic. I have a few people that I go there with, and even then I usually wait for that opening or invitation to go deep, and then it's off to the ocean floor we go. It's all about the vibe I get from the person. So, don't underestimate Libras, because there's more depth than you think.

Wow, i wasnt expecting to go in like that for my first post lol. This was in no way a sympathy call for Libras, but its been on my mind and i felt the need to let it out. I love all astrology takes so feel free to express your feelings/thoughts.

[aromantic-pantyanarchy]

Hi, so I just read your post on your experiences as an aro person and it was really impactful for me. I’m still a teenager so I’m figuring things out but I’ve never really had a crush or liked anyone romantically and I feel like I’m aro but I don’t really know whether I can define myself in that way yet because what if I’m still too young to know? Then there’s my sexual orientation which I’m clueless about but that’s fine because I know I probably am too young to know that yet. To add to that, my friends are all queer and a lot of the fandoms I’m in are quite queer and I’m afraid that if I did end up being aro and heterosexual I wouldn’t be accepted as being queer or that I can’t call myself queer. I’m also realm afraid of being lonely when I’m older because I’m not really close to that much family and I’ve struggled to keep good friends for a long time so I just worry about the future a lot sometimes and that I’m going to be sad and alone. I’m really sorry this is so long I just needed to rant to someone and I was really glad to be able to find someone who’s aro who I can talk to about this stuff.

So, here's my advice. Mainly, tl;dr, nobody knows you better than you do.

It's absolutely fine to ID to aromantic even if you feel too young (trust me, I've had a couple moments in school where I justified myself as "being too young to be into girls yet" that seem really obviously aro in hindsight), but if you do end up developing a different way, in finding attraction to people specifically or broadly, then you can just redefine yourself. There's not gonna be any aro cop who comes around checking your aro license and making sure you still adhere to understandings of yourself from last year. More than anything it's only human to gain understanding of something through continued experience, and that goes for your own self as well as anything else in the world.

For friends, well that's a complex issue that ultimately comes down to what you (and your friends) want, I can only really talk about my own experiences. But most of my friends are queer, we didn't meet in queer spaces or become attached because we were queer, we just met from mutual interests and they found out things about themselves and I found out things about myself, but there's no expectation of a mandatory level of queerness among us cause that's a really unreasonable thing to ask of someone. There's even completely hetero cis straight people still hanging about, and they're cool too. And I totally get feeling like you don't form attachments that strongly, I certainly don't have a best most closest friend ever that I'd die for, just, like, people I enjoy spending my free time with. That's enough.

I know it doesn't mean much just saying it, there's not much I can do to properly boost your mental from the other side of a computer screen, but like. Try not to worry about shit, ya know? Take life as it comes. Some things might not work out, but spending all your time fearing about everything going bad is just piling on extra stress you don't need.

[nerdfighterwhatevernumbers]

Finally watching season 5 of Miraculous Ladybug, I'm only halfway through but I'm so glad the show is finally validating Marinette's choices.

Multiple episodes in earlier seasons like Glaciator and the ice skating episode frame it like Chat is this poor heart broken boy being hurt by a careless girl even though she clearly tells him all the time she's not interested, he just doesn't listen or is upset that she doesn't change her mind. Then in Weredad Marinette's mom validates CHAT being in love with someone else and rejecting Marinette when no one validates LB being in love with someone else- Even when Chat says he's fine with it, he's still pouting and flirting in later episodes about it.

FINALLY Alya says Marinette should get to decide for herself instead of just doing what's convenient for other people. Marinette gets to insist she wants to choose and not be told how to feel. It's great! She and Chat are both in a messy place right now, so it's not like the ice skating or glaciator where he's being unreasonable and the writers act like he's not (which is obviously sexist but young fans would take at face value). Of course Marinette hates being told she can't really know Chat- not only does she actually know him more than he thinks, but how many times have we seen the superhero tell his love interest being with her is too dangerous instead of letting her decide on the danger for herself? Marinette wants to decide for herself what she can emotionally handle and it's heartbreaking to her that no one seems to listen or understand. I love when she and Chat calm down later and she's in a place to accept it's not about his idea of what she can handle or understand, it's about his comfort level with dating someone with a power imbalance in the relationship. It's perfectly done to justify how upset Marinette is and validate her feelings and choices while also making it clear Chat is exactly as valid as Marinette. It's not one-sided or unfair, they're just messy and upset and I love it.

I'm also extremely excited Marinette's behavior around Adrien does seem to be pathological. So many people in the fandom for years dunked on Marinette for being 'annoying' and 'creepy' and not deserving their poor sadboy Adrien, and I really like that it's exploring her neurotic behavior as a genuine psychological block she'll need several episodes to work through. Episodes like Chat Blanc make it seem like if they just knew everything she'd stop being a freak and maybe she would, but it comes off like Marinette's the problem to some people, like she'd stop being annoying and weird if she wasn't the one enforcing this strict identity rule and she's just causing everyone problems. Granted, I've been in the fandom from the start so maybe some people have outgrown their sexism, but the adult writers themselves haven't framed Marinette as sympathetically as they could a lot of the time. The depth, the emotional angst and troubled life, that's all saved for Adrien. It was great when she finally broke down and needed to tell Alya about her secret Identity in season 4, but we still don't get as much analysis on what Marinette is going through, it tends to be more surface level.

I LOVE being able to go through an arc about soul searching and mental quirks and self esteem with Marinette, it feels like the show is taking her more seriously and taking what felt like just an obvious awkward gag and really exploring it as a pathology. It's so interesting and gives more meat to Marinette, I'm so into it

[archivalofsins]

Man, Mikoto and Amane are both going down now. It's kind of interesting to see. Mikoto's decline is more steady, though. Personally, I kind of understand why people would be on the fence about them. Their situations are typically difficult for people in general to fully grasp. So, the first instinct is to deny it.

However, it does highlight an interesting trend. Because it seems like more people are willing to give a day one innocent verdict than a guilty one now. Regardless of if they're personally undecided still or not. I've discussed this I private and somewhat publicly.

Yet, it's interesting to think about Milgram in terms of forgiveness. Not because guilty and innocent are too black and white or anything like that. It's actually the contrary.

Framing it as forgiving or not forgiving is so much harsher, in my opinion.

Because I think forgiveness, honest forgiveness shouldn't be contingent on what the other person can do or if what they did can be justified. The only thing it's contingent on is if people on an individual level are willing to forgive it.

I think the best example is when a social media influencer does something wrong. In my case, it'd be when they do something that is objectively racist. At which point I tend to see many people usually not from the minority group that was discriminated against are quick to say we forgive you. This has led to discussions around who can accept apologies and in what circumstances.

Is it right to accept or deny an apology that wasn't made to you? Is it right to forgive something that happened to another person who no longer has the chance or ability to forgive it themselves. It's something that living relatives of victims of violent crimes have to grapple with all the time. Would my family forgive you I don't know because they'rs not gere to ask anymore? The only thing oeople who go through that sort of loss can do is default to when that person was around and the character they displayed and decide from their or decide based on what's best fkr them mentally.

It begs the question of-

How do you forgive someone when they never even say sorry? They're not even sorry. They don't seem sorry. In fact, they seem to be having a great time. Making it pretty apt that Milgram would tackle this concept in the way it does. As if asking if feeling entitled to forgive or not forgive in matters that didn't involve oneself is on its own a sin.

From the beginning, asking the audience to look past their egos when it comes to these things. Have characters point out how we wouldn't understand whether to forgive them or not because we haven't been through what they have. That they shoul have just minded their own business instead of concerning themselves with things that didn't impact them. Or we'll understand if we're human. That last one is even more apt.

Because being human is a very subjective concept, and it's easier for humans to consider others less human than they are. So it raises the question for me-

When did their victims stop being human to them? When did those people's humanity begin to matter so little that they basically tore it away. That they snuffed out that life. From the concept of a murder maliciously being committed. From the concept of someone no longer being alive to discuss what being human is to them because of something all ten of them directly did whether one believes they killed them with their bare hands or not. These ten sit here speaking on and on about their feelings ans what they had to go through. What it was for them.

Yet, they're still breathing some very comfortably while fully knowing at times someone or multiple people are dead because of them. When we objectively step back and think about forgiveness as a concept in milgram. It truly does just highlight why no one here deserves it. Except probably Yuno is you subscribe to the theory that her murder was just an abortion which I don't. I just feel the need to specify here that I am assuming everyone here has killed a very real other person with a life and family of their own even if they were a part of the prisoners' families.

So, no one goes, but some of them didn't directly kill. This is also a good way to still cover well yeah even if they didn't do it directly someone can no longer live out the rest of their lives due to their actions and that's still fucked up. In everyone else's case, but again, Yuno's.

Thinking about it from this perspective simply makes it more messed up that they can sit here and say the things that they do, knowing that someone else can't talk at all anymore because of their choices. That's the heavy thing about deciding whether one can forgive someone for something that results in another person's or multiple persons death or not, in my opinion.

Because forgiveness isn't about if something can be justified. It's not if the person's feelings were valid. It's about an individual choosing to see the negative outcome of another person's behavior and excuse the transgression. It's about recognizing that people will be flawed and understanding that they very well may continue to be.

Regardless of how many times they're forgiven or told that the behavior is detrimental to themselves or those around them. Such as with the behavior we see Mahiru exhibit in I Love You. It's about knowing that just because you extend forgiveness it doesn't mean you endorse or allowed whoever you forgave to do whatever they did after that point. Like with Kotoko.

It's about asking where your line is? How many times can someone say sorry just to do something worse before you go actually I'm not forgiving you. Because forgiving someone is never the problem. Condemning or excusing an action is never the problem.

How people continually exploit forgiveness being extended or denied is. There's only so far an apology can rightfully go.

In example-

If I broke my neighbors window by accident. It'd be pretty easy to forgive me and sort it out with words. Yet if I did that and then each time I went over or passed their home after that point things pf theirs kept winding up broken at a point I have no one to blame but myself for them not wanting to forgive me. Forgiveness isn't a green light to keep making the same mistakes. It's not an endorsement of the behavior or a pass to go and do it again.

It's a recognition of someone making a mistake and a personal choice to go,

"I recognize your error here, and I forgive it."

What people do with that after isn't indicative of the character of those who forgave them. It's indicative of their own character. If people were kind enough to forgave someone, and that someone then went and did the same thing again. That's a sign that the problem was fucking them to begin with. We can all choose to forgive or not, but we just aren't entitled to having individuals respond how we believe they should to that choice.

If someone uses you forgiving them as an excuse to do the thing again. That is literally the definition of a bad person. They know the thing was wrong. They know it hurt people. They recognize it ended lives. Through doing it again after having their apology accepted, that person is showing everyone that they do not care.

It does not matter how many people get hurt, how others feel about it, or how it makes them look. They're going to keep doing it because it is simply what they want to do. Full stop.

That's the tricky thing about making Milgram about forgiveness to me. Because when it truly is about forgiveness, literally everyone here would be the definition of unforgivable. Unless I was extending immense benefit of the doubt. Assumed they never meant to hurt anyone and that they aren't here for murder but just a bunch of everyday things that Milgram has arbitrarily decided to compare to the worst crime imaginable simply because someone happened to die "technically". I say technically because again still don't consider abortion murder and would not consider aborting a child a death as a result but fuck it Milgram might.

In that case, the entire series is simply using the word murderer really loosely at that point, and none of them should be here.

[fiannalover]

Okay. You got me and I am now very curious on your input. Please explain more on why Keith is a male power fantasy because I feel like Logy fits the bill more (plus Felt from Iris 2) more than he does. Frankly, I think the opposite of that, which is why I ask, but again I would like to see things through your perspective. Thanks!

Alright so, first of all, I haven't played Iris 2 or Escha & Logy yet (I'm busy on Ayesha NG+) (because I killed Nanaca's cow and missed Keith's postgame by saving Nio too early…), so this won't be as much of a compare-and-contrast as I'd want. Secondly, this is all obviously very subjective. Third, I DO like Keith, and I would consider this les negativity and more discussion. That said, let's go.

I'll grab the concept "male self-insert fantasy" character and split it into "harem", "power", "relatability" and "aspiration", categories/spectrum. They aren't mutually exclusive, quite often they ARE fully together, but I feel like the distinction matters here (it was born from Strong Opinions about Mana Khemia I will share some other day). "Harem" could also be called "Romance", but I personally feel like "Harem" goes better with the level required here. It is probably what Logy falls into: some dude is there, a lot of girls get a crush on him, you know how it is.

Keith mostly falls in the "Power" and "Aspiration" category: he is a man that men find cool and wish they could be like. Just look at how TV Tropes talks about him for out of text evidence. In-text, Keithgriff is consistently rude to people, does whatever he wants, has an "I'm the only one who understands this ancient art" cause justifying his actions, is the strongest fighter in the game and has whatever skill is needed to solve the plot. In fact, though Ayesha grows more skilled than him in some areas, Ayesha's Bad End consists of him Doing Everything Himself.

The moment where I started seeing him this way was the first Odelia malfunctioning event, where and Ayesha+Keith go do a factory reset on her. It is not only very focused on Keith being Cool, it ends with him doing a full-body study of her to fix her, which is implicitly likened to sex up to her wanting him to take responsibility for her as her new Master.

Putting Keith in this area is complicated because of the overlap with him being the Mentor. Of course he is super strong, knows a lot of stuff and pretty much is the sole instigator for 60% of the plot, he is the Mentor character. Of course he is a dick to everybody, he has reasons (reasons that straddle the line between "genuine respect for ancient art" and "superiority complex"). But I think that when you look at it all together he is the character in the game that hits the most "man that the writers think is cool, excusing everything else about him" points.

Again, this is all subjective. And I like Keith too! I think he is an interesting type of tsundere "doesn't like anyonne but at the same time cares quite a bit" character. This is just why I personally started looking at him in a different way post Odelia Malfunction and why I personally think the writers gave him a very clear role in relation to themselves and the audience.