#but today. love

[nellasbookplanet]

While I think the execution could at times have been better I really enjoyed the imodna arc which, to me, was both verbalized and problematized with the 'maybe it’s our destiny to harness it'/'maybe it’s our destiny to fight it'/'together either way' exchange back during their first kiss. No moment better crystallized their likenesses, but also their differences. They were both lonely figures tempted by dark powers who found a kindred soul in the other but, crucially, their responses were polar opposites. Laudna, with her lack of self-worth and seeing herself as a dead end, was seeking comfort that Imogen wouldn’t judge or hate her when she inevitably gave in. Imogen, meanwhile, was seeking comfort that Laudna understood the temptation and likewise wouldn’t judge, but ultimately had no plans to give in to predathos. She saw the temptation for the self destruction that it was, and as she came to love Laudna she wanted to live. Laudna saw her own survival and happiness as an impossibility, and her love for Imogen became an excuse to embrace self destruction in the name of self sacrifice, not understanding that this harmed not only her but Imogen as well.

This dichotomy became more pronounced throughout, and was in the end something they had to face and grow out of. When it became clear Laudna was barely fighting back against Delilah anymore, endangering both herself and the party, Imogen all but broke up with her. She could not make Laudna see sense, but she could stop enabling her. She could show that, were Laudna to continue in this direction, Imogen would no longer follow. Still love, and never hate or judge, but not follow. Through this, Laudna was forced to see Imogen didn't want her self-sacrifice, but rather for her to allow herself to be a burden, to accept help to deal with Delilah. In the end, she chose not to die for Imogen, but to live for her, allowing herself the vulnerability of seeking happiness and self worth.

Later, Imogen asked if Laudna would be prepared to fight her if she was corrupted, showing she wouldn’t want Laudna to follow her if she ultimately gave in to temptation either. And Laudna does help fight her in the predathos fight, just like Imogen helped fight when Laudna was overtaken by Delilah in Aeor. But that fighting was also what helped them pull the other back out. If they had simply accepted that their loved one gave in to evil temptation for power, they truly would have lost each other. Only by challenging and demanding growth (admittedly mostly from Imogen towards Laudna) could they actually hold true to their promise to be together either way.

[nothorses]

there is a judge in Seattle who does the weekly name change hearings, and who says it's her favorite part of the week. she says she doesn't read out previous names, or ask about the reasons why people want to change them. she says it's a beautiful moment, and a celebration; a claiming of a new identity, or a reclamation of an old identity. she encourages the room to clap for folks. then she welcomes everyone up, one by one, by last name and with warmth; she shows them the court order where nobody else can see, asks them to double check the spelling, and then they're done! do they want a picture? do they want their friends and loved ones who came with them to be in it too? do they want the court order in the photo? she helps everyone pose, shakes hands and stands with them for as long as they need to take it, recruits the clerk for help taking photos of the folks who came alone. then she tells them where to go next, congratulates them, and claps along with the rest of the room.

probably three quarters of the people there were trans, and she centered their experience quietly, with love and joy.

I think I'll be thinking about her a lot this January, and for a long time after. it's good to know she's there.

[kaogens]

i love you weird long miku

[squidflavoredsoup]

mama n her babies

[brainrotcharacters]

When irl pisses me off, I rewatch the Honda Odyssey scene to relax

[happyheidi]

𝖠𝗋𝗍 𝖻𝗒 𝖠𝗇𝗇𝖺-𝖫𝖺𝗎𝗋𝖺 𝖲𝗎𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗏𝖺𝗇 | 𝖨𝖦: 𝖺𝗇𝗇𝖺𝗅𝖺𝗎𝗋𝖺_𝖺𝗋𝗍

[thatjayjustice]

A sweet interaction today--an elderly Thai man held the elevator for me when I got off the Skytrain. As we rode down, he asked in English where I was from and if I'd come to Thailand alone, so I replied in Thai that I had moved here with my wife, who is Thai. He assumed I had used the wrong word for spouse and tried to helpfully correct my Thai, so I explained that we are lesbians and his eyes lit up, he shook my hand excitedly and said "Oh!! Oh congratulations!!" 🥹😭💗🏳️‍🌈

[carouselcometh]

Devastating! Art museum gift shop doesn’t sell prints of specific and unpopular painting that struck a cord with you!

[frenchublog]

[oboeonecannoli]

i changed my mind. sevika be upon ye.

[spontaneousmusicalnumber]

There are ten trillion pictures of flowering trees to the point where they sometimes seem trite and overdone. But then you see a tree in full flower and go holy shit this rules and I've gotta show this to everyone so they can experience the same magic and wonder and there are ten trillion and one pictures of flowering trees

[mariobrojr]

Need to clean my keyboard, got a dust bunny problem

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Hey now, Let her cook!

[nipuni]

"I am a higher dimension life form, I am a complex space-time event"

A step by step process of this will be available at my Patreon next month, you can find prints of my work at my Store 😊

[humanjarvis]

you’d been perplexed when sylus had called you in the middle of the day—which was usually his favorite time to rest. 

“can you come to the base, sweetie?” he’d rasped, voice thick with ruined sleep. “i need your help with something.” 

your confusion is all the more reason for you to head to the base. when you arrive, you let yourself in and greet mephisto with a poke on the beak before hurrying to sylus’s bedroom.

“is something wrong?” you breathe, all but barging in. quickly, you scan the room for threats or intruders before your eyes land on the hulking figure in front of you. 

the hulking figure who’s uncharacteristically hunched over his bed, head bent and looking defeated. 

at your voice, he looks up, and you know him well enough to see the relief and slight embarrassment in his ruby eyes. 

“…sylus?” you ask hesitantly, “what’s going on? you should be sleeping right now.” 

“i was asleep,” he agrees with a slow nod. “and then…i ran into a slight problem,” he responds carefully, eyes flitting forlornly to the side of the bed.

curious, you come to stand beside him, placing a hand on his sagging shoulder. it takes a few seconds, but then, you spot it: trapped between the dark oak boards of his bedframe is a small brilliant red gem, glittering slightly in what little sunlight fills the room. 

“are you able to retrieve it?” he asks quietly. “it must have fallen earlier. when you’re not here…i can’t sleep without it.” 

“o…kay?” you reply, your confusion only doubling. taking a moment to study him, you notice the small pout on his face and stroke his slightly mussed hair. “of course i’ll get it. just a sec.” 

a moment later, you’re kneeling down to stick your hand in the bedframe and wiggling your fingers until you feel the crystal’s cool surface. you pull it out in one fluid motion, blow the dust off, and deposit it into sylus’s waiting hand. flashing you a tired, grateful smile, he immediately places it securely under his pillow. 

“there you go!” you chirp, pleased to have helped him. “but…can i ask something? why didn’t you just fish it out yourself?” 

avoiding your gaze, he clears his throat before he speaks.

“…my hands were too big.”