#did I write this instead of studying?

[drowninginthoughts27]

10/9 Pottery Word Count: 376

@jegulus-microfic

Before James and Regulus started dating James would bring Regulus little pieces of pottery that he had hand crafted in an attempt to woo him.

It started slowly. A small dish here and a cat sculpture there. But Regulus continued to accept them, James continued to make and gift them. By the time they had started dating Regulus had a shelf full of the trinkets. He wasn’t complaining though.

After they got together James began to give them just cause but also as anniversary gifts. Larger things like plates and mugs.

One day during one of their late night pillow talks Regulus asked James why he made so many different pieces of pottery if only to gift it to Regulus.

It took James a minute to respond but when he did he had said…

“I honestly don’t really know. I started making them in 6th year. I needed an outlet, something to do with my hands. To release all of my pent of energy. During that time I developed a massive crush on you, as I’m sure you are well aware. I guess I just wanted to give them to you. I have so much love to share and I’m not always the greatest with words so I chose to give things to you instead. As a way to show my love, express every ounce of love that I could, ya know?”

This answer had taken Regulus’ breath away. It was one of the most meaningful things someone had ever said to him. And it made the little trinkets James had gifted to him even more special. Something he didn’t know was humanly possible until then.

When James proposed he did so with a little ceramic box he had made to hold the ring.

And since then James had given Regulus a piece of pottery he had made on every one of their wedding anniversaries. He has yet to break this cycle.

This year it’s their 25th wedding anniversary and they’re 48 and 49 years old respectively.

Every year James’ anniversary pottery project gets more and more elaborate.

This year James gifts Regulus a vase. Intricately hand painted with stars and suns. Already holding a bouquet of pink roses. Regulus couldn’t ask for anything more perfect.

[plutoenjoyer]

jooyeon — bothering you while you study

𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒

genre: fluff, suggestive 𓇬 wc: 1.2k tags: female reader, college student!reader, fluff, drabble, established relationship, slightly suggestive, hair playing, wearing his clothes, reader wears glasses (in general or just while studying, up to you), not proofread lol warnings: none summary: jooyeon pesters you while you're cramming for a test because "he's bored" but in reality, he really wants you to hang out with him because he can't stop thinking about how cute you look wearing his big sweatshirt and pajama shorts. plus if he doesn't get attention he will die

𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒

you're sitting on the floor on the coffee table of your living room, glasses on and pencil in hand trying to write down and remember as many things as you can for a big test the next day. jooyeon, who's been mindlessly scrolling on his phone for the past hour and a half, starts poking your arm with the end goal of annoying you into giving him attention.

if you were paying more attention, you'd know he's actually totally checking you out right now. truthfully, he likes how you look when you're focused. and your glasses being slightly crooked on your face is cute. you don't think twice when you steal one of his sweaters or hoodies from his closet now that you've been dating this long, but you fail to realize just how much it affects him when you do so, with the knowledge you're not wearing much underneath.

when you don't respond to him he blows on your neck which earns him a dissatisfied glare, but you can't stay mad at him for long because after the pestering doesn't work he's fully given up, his forehead hitting the table with a dull thud.

without him knowing (so you don't give him any more fodder to start bothering you again), you glance at his head face down on the table. his hair bulks up against the surface and you truly wonder how it looks so full and healthy and soft when it's been bleached so many times. and you keep watching him as he chooses to take a nap next to you, shifting his face so his cheek is squished against his arm.

you really, really try to keep studying but the pitiful sight before you has you exceedingly distracted. he's like a sad puppy. you would have no heart if you let a sad puppy keep being sad. not that you really wanted to stop studying for this stupid test. of course not.

he's so handsome when he's quiet, you think to yourself with a silent snicker because you know he'd make a big deal out of it if you said such an underhanded compliment.

before you know it you're petting his head, running your fingers gently through his hair and just barely scratching his scalp. and when his eyes open to look at you, blearily, he asks you questions but it comes out more like dull statements, "why are you petting me. aren't you too busy for me right now." he goes back to sulking.

"you seem to like it, though?" you lack the self control not to tease him when he gets like this, so in a way he did successfully distract you. but that self-aware thought doesn't pass your mind, because he gives you an unnecessarily attractive groan of displeasure before burying his face deeper into the crook of his arm, and you have to kick yourself before your mind can wander. "jooyeon," you coo at him, "baby."

okay, fine you get why being ignored could be annoying but in your defense you had good reason to (plus, you know him. he will not relent if you even give him the tiniest reaction).

roundabout way or not, you now have your full attention on him. you put your pencil down and think about how amusing this will be.

you decide to play footsies with him, as your legs are tucked under the coffee table. you run your foot along side his calf and nudge him a little, quietly giggling to yourself when you see his shoulders tense just a bit. you use this opportunity to twirl his hair around your finger. "joo, come on," you make it a point to push the notebook further from your body and adjust yourself in your spot to face him better, "look, you got me. i've done enough notes for the night. if i cram any more i think my head might explode,"

finally, he shifts his head just a bit to look at at you, eyes obscured by the mess of his bangs, "are you sure?"

"super sure."

he immediately perks up with a sparkle in his eye, "finally! i thought i was gonna die."

"what, youtube shorts isn't enough to keep you entertained?"

"i mean, yeah, but at a certain point i feel my brain start to melt," he huffs. "and not just that, it's impossible to just sit on my phone just waiting around when my hot girlfriend is sitting next to me literally wearing my clothes."

"wow. i'm sure flattered." you give him a sarcastic snort but truthfully the compliment sends butterflies down your tummy. you prompt him, a suggestive tone taking over your voice, "you like me wearing your clothes that much, though? care to tell me more?"

any other time he might have just rolled his eyes at you playfully or stuck his tongue out with a 'you wish' but for some reason he chooses to take your request seriously. an arm comes up closer behind your back, and he uses that as leverage to lean into you. "yeah," he begins, and your eyes follow his gaze when he looks down to your legs. with his palm, he ghosts his hand from just above your knee and then into your inner thigh, stopping just before he makes contact with anything more sensitive. your breath hitches ever so slightly, but then his hand changes course to your hip and pushes the sweater up a bit more. you can feel the slight breeze against your waist, "you look good in it. i can take one look at you and know you're mine,"

"joo." you say his name in a way that wants to scold him, but it comes out much weaker and more lovestruck than you'd have liked, "i-i was just joking."

he leans his body closer to you, lowering his voice in your ear. you can feel his breath against your neck as he gives you a downright seductive laugh, "but baby, you asked." he shifts even closer to you so that he can have better reach of your waist. you're more than happy to welcome the feeling of his hands roaming your body.

you're doing your best not to look at him because you just know that it's obvious he's getting to you. you feel your face and neck getting hot. you adjust your glasses on your face. "okay, yeah, i did," you admit, pursing your lips, and finally look to his face to see his beautiful thick eyelashes looking up at you, giving you an insanely sultry look and you still can't believe he's a real man that exists because of how unfathomably pretty he is. your stomach does a flip because fuck this, and you blurt out, "are you gonna kiss me or what?"

he bursts out laughing. and though the thick tension in the air breaks, it doesn't change the desire radiating off the both of you. he'd give you anything you wanted if you asked. and so, his lips are on yours. the impact of it causes you to have to lean against the seat cushions of the couch behind you for support. you're immediately enveloped by him relentlessly searching for the warmth of your mouth, with his hands eagerly slipping under the sweater and ghosting over the soft skin of your abdomen.

for the rest of the evening the notes on the table remain unfinished.

𓈒⠀𓂃⠀⠀˖⠀𓇬⠀˖⠀⠀𓂃⠀𓈒

masterlist | request rules | inbox

thank you for reading! <3

[multifunctionalnitroglycerin]

The Radiant Dawn, Leona of the Solari – an analysis

Leona, Leona, what to do with you, oh Radiant Dawn, daughter of the Sun-forgers? You who scorn love so, in the face of duty?

What with the latest season of Arcane having fully come out, and many of us still grasping to comprehend the ending of that wonderful series (I will maintain that it’s probably one of the best pieces of media I have ever had the joy of consuming), I got to thinking about another military dictator that leads a scourge against her lover’s people. So, strap in and grab your drinks, cause this is going to be a long one.

I have seen some funny posts juxtapositioning Violyn/ Caitvi and Leodia, and while one cannot deny the first glance similarities in the stories, especially with the new route Piltover’s finest took, the premise of their stories is at its core different.  BUT today we will not explore the similarities and differences in the premise of the broader systems that both stories take place in, but rather take a deeper look into our beloved obstacle of a Targonian “cult leader”, Leona.

            Now Leona’s character in league is rather…unremarkable at first glance. More of an obstacle than a worthy adversary, a mindless cultist that perpetuates the oppression against her peoples’ sister tribe, too blind to see past that, even when her lover begs her to. Personally, I prefer to think of Leona as an unremarkable character with remarkable potential, should Riot decide to ever do anything with it. The roots of a good story have already been planted. Because yes, in Arcane we also talked about oppression, class stratification, abuse of power, and a twisted corrupt judicial system, but now, in Targon, we’ll talk about cults.

I am no expert, but cultism and totalitarian regimes do have a few common points in the way they function, thus the perceived similarities between the two storylines. However, I feel in the hands of capable writers the Targonian storyline can become a beautiful story about religious fanatism, and cultism, the struggle of individuality, and how challenging it is to escape from them, if at all… (I do like some tragic lesbians, sue me. A happy ending that does justice to the inherent tragedy of those two will have to be earned, and if a tragic ending is what does them justice, I will accept it.)

It’s high time we got this party started though, isn’t it?

Leona is born in the Solari tribe of Targon, a tribe that venerated the Sun more than any other upon the mountain. Which at first glance seems innocent enough, right?

Cults in principle, and to my limited understanding, are authoritarian systems that revolve around a particular belief, that have rules and dogma and encourage their members to isolate themselves from would-be questioners of their faith. By taking a look at what we know about the Solari, most of these terms seem to be fulfilled. An authoritarian system based around the worship of the Sun, with strict rules, rigid principles, and rituals, led not by one charismatic leader, as many cults are, but by a council of elders, that determine what is acceptable and what not in Her worship. While they also take care to mindfully curate the available information in the temple and discourage or silence those that oppose their teachings.

Leona is a child born to the Sun-forgers Melia and Iasur, and takes to her parents’ faith with a stride, comfortable in its rigidity and its unrelenting structures. She is reportedly as seen both through her bio and the letter to her parents in “Rise with me”, a near perfect acolyte, her devotion, and excellence in seemingly everything but that one oration class, inspiring envy in her peers, and admiration in her elders, all of them certain that she would one day become a Ra’Horak, a holy warrior of the Solari.

The thing is, that children growing up in cults are a tricky thing to write despite its supposed straightforwardness. Especially if you want to create a character as complicated as I hope Leona will turn out to be. The basics of it are things we already know; children are extremely vulnerable to adult influence; their minds are sponges and their parents’ world is their world. They listen, observe and absorb the behavior, the views and opinions of the people around them, and accept them as reality, because they are children and do not know any better. As one might imagine, the extent of fanatism that Leona grew up with is variable, depending on how her own parents acted and how deep in they were themselves. Now I am a bit rusty on Rakori and Targonian lore, but if we take the short story “Rise with me” into account, I think it is safe to say that Melia and Iasur were in pretty deep.

Another thing to note about children that grow up in cults is that the cult leader and the cult’s needs come first. Which means that the child rarely enjoys their parents’ attention, much less love and affection. Something that in my humble opinion would drive some of them to strive for perfection and trying to satisfy their parents’ every wish and every whim, in hope of getting even a hint of affection. That is something we can see rather clearly in the story if we want to examine a bit Leona’s relationship with her Dayblessed parents.

Before we dive into that, however, what we can summarize from all of the above is that Leona is, in principle, a person that likes rules. Someone that grew up heeding them. That thrives in hierarchical systems, and well-structured environments, with clear denominations for right and wrong, for what one should and should not do. According to the bio this rigidity brings her comfort, and solace. Because it is familiar and comfortable. It’s what in all probability she grew up with. Moreover, Leona is a perfectionist. Something we are told, through her bio, and her own letters and diary, but we can also see when looking at her through the lens of Diana’s eyes.

To continue with my previous point, though, when looking at her relationship with her parents…well, I’ll let you figure this out on your own. We only have her diary entries and letters sent and unsent to garner information from, but that is enough to paint a detailed enough picture of what her relationship with her parents entails. Even without looking at it from the “child that grew up in a cult” angle, we can see there is little affection between them. Even from her first letter, we can feel the clean-cut, prim and proper courteousness of their communication, accompanied by the hints of affection every child holds for their parents. It is, however, far from warm, or heartfelt. It seems more like kind interest, than any real investment, in her parents’ or siblings’ wellbeing and then proceeds to become a report on her achievements and perceived weaknesses. Even the title of the section, the opening of the letter, “Letter from a devoted daughter” holds no personality, as if Leona’s entire being can be compressed and described by those two words.

We do get a similar impression from the letter Polymnius sent to Melia and Iasur. The letter itself contains the priest’s thanks for the new lanternglass crafted by the sun-forger, and also devolves to a report of Leona’s progress after his communication with all of her instructors, and his observation of her skills in battle. Now on the one hand, Polymnius could be just a family friend or the priest responsible for communicating with the acolytes’ families. On the other hand however, one might start questioning just how much control Leona’s parents can exert over her life, even in their absence. Do they hold sway with the priesthood? Are their immense expectations passed on through priests and teachers, adding more and more to the pressure Leona faces every day? To be strong, devout, worthy and good? And again, the letter ends with  “I know you would be proud.” I am sure they would Polymnius, I am sure they would.

            At this point I’d like to point out that he is probably the only person that worries that Leona is taking her duties far too seriously and needs to take a few steps back to relax and delight in the Sun’s gifts. (And honestly, same.)

Moving forward we have the Letter from Sunsworn Priestess Nemyah to a shining pupil, that once more applauds Leona for her achievements, with little to no fanfare. And again we note that sense of depersonalization, of Leona being defined by those characterizations, by her achievements, her rights and wrongs. 

            And then of course we get into the fight between Leona and Diana and the disciplinary letter sent to her by her parents. Which honestly goes about as well as you would expect,

We know that you are capable of better and expect you to rise to the occasion. Leaders in Her Light do not run into impediments that they cannot overcome, nor do they get hindered by such earthly mischief as “a shouting match at school.”

And of course

…will speak with you about how better to secure your future then.

So much for parental love… If anything, it’s a declaration of disappointment, with clear expectations and measures to be met, We know you are better than this, we expect you to be better than this, leaders do not fumble. Sounds particularly loving, doesn’t it? Definitely not like they worry about their reputation, and their image in the community more than their daughter’s wellbeing and most certainly not like they have her future already decided for her. A future they can benefit from, of course.

I will try to keep this at a reasonable length and will not overly analyze Leona’s own unsent replies, for they are pretty straightforward. They are characterized by Leona’s anxiety, fear and guilt for disappointing her parents and failing to reach the tremendous expectations they have set for her.

            So to sum this part up, Leona was raised by overly strict parents, in an environment in which she received little to no affection and positive reinforcement, even for her achievements that far exceeded those of her peers. She has also been burdened with a set of rather impossible expectations, that she strives to reach no matter what. We saw that Iasur and Melia are quick to discipline her and voice their disappointment, rather rancidly might I say, and yet made little to no mention of Leona’s multiple achievements that have been noted by multiple instructors as well as Polymnius. As for Leona herself, one might say she is afraid to be herself and express her own thoughts. Even when she writes a letter that truly encompasses her thoughts and feelings, in that same letter she resolutely states that she will not send it.

So insofar we have an affection-starved, rule-loving perfectionist, that probably hasn’t had any positive reinforcement since she was like 5 and has her parents and everyone around her connect and define her worth as a person though her personal achievements and services in Her light. It would be safe to assume that from a point on, Leona herself starts putting herself in those boxes, limiting her sense of self and worth to the glass ceiling of their expectations, adding more and more expectations on herself, back bending further and further back, until inevitably reaching her breaking point. And of course, this is all she has ever known. The rules, the hierarchy, the expectations, the dogma, is what she grew up with, is what feels familiar, and in a twisted sense, “right”.  We could thus somewhat explain why Leona holds her duty in such high regard. She has come to define herself and her worth as a person, through it. It’s all she has ever really known.

            Not to say that things are as bleak as they seem at first glance. For there is one shining light in Leona’s life, one guiding beacon that tries to break her out of the glass cage, at least at the point in time when Rise With Me takes place, and it is none other than Diana.

            Now, according to Leona’s bio, she saw in Diana an ever-curious spirit devoted to the search for meaning, and the truth, and that’s sth that holds up in the short story as well. Diana’s ingenuity and unique perspective of things, her being the one dissonant voice in the harmonious chorus of the elders’ teachings, intrigue young Leona.

When looking into the respective missives that Leona sends to Diana in respects of their shared oration class, starting from the first one even, we can see that despite all the greatness she has achieved, all her triumphs, and graces, she remains shy, and humble. Even knowing that she is amongst the best of her peers, and the priests’ favorites, she does not brag, does not demand, does not exert any power or control. Instead, she approaches her faults humbly and asks for Diana’s – the outcast’s - help in a respectful manner. She does not let her shortcomings define her or hinder her. She recognizes them as something to improve, and humbly asks for help from someone she believes she can benefit from, someone that will help, and not just shower her with mindless praise.  She recognizes Diana’s ingenuity and applauds her argument construction; while pledging to help her in return should Diana need assistance herself.

Leona is humble and kind. Though to a certain degree we might even consider her having a bit of a people pleasing attitude accompanied by a slight lack of confidence. Perfectionists as a rule hate making mistakes or seeming inadequate. It’s a big blow in their confidence and the sense of self they have constructed around the concept of said perfection. After living for so long in an environment of such heavy expectations, it’s no wonder one might start second-guessing themselves, no matter how good they are, even for the smallest of mistakes.

            Back to Leona though, she is humble, kind and considerate, perhaps even to a fault. There is this sense of her not wanting to impose on Diana’s schedule, on which she rather insists. She doesn’t want to be trouble, she does not want to be a burden, and of course she then offers her own help in return should it be needed, which is the decent and honorable thing to do.

            Leona’s diary entry where she considers asking Diana to the festival is what also gives us a glimpse of the person behind the armor, behind the rule abiding student, behind the mask of achievements and perfection. To no surprise, we get a more in depth perspective of Leona’s own thoughts and feelings, as long as her take on “how to ask the girl I like out without coming across like a total fool, or indoctrinating asshole?” She is anxious, thoughtful and tender, considerate and sweet in her approach, and a little bit hopeless, but I think we can forgive her. She is downright smitten and hasn’t realized how much just yet. She even goes through with one of her plans to ask Diana to practice with the shields, and well, forgive me if I say it is adorable.

            Diana’s presence in Leona’s life and story, however, is not important because the will-be Aspect of the Sun is absolutely smitten with her, or even because she encompasses the total opposite of what Leona is (which let’s be honest, she doesn’t. They are complimentary to one another, not opposites), but because Diana makes Leona think.

            That’s the reason Leona approached her in the first place, her ability to think and construct cohesive and compelling arguments. Something that Leona herself is lacking in, because alongside most of the other Solari acolytes, she lacks critical thinking. An essential component of trying to construct an argument of any sort - if you do not want to parrot something you learned in a book once.

            Diana’s arguments, thoughts and criticisms on their given materials have Leona thinking, examining what she is taught, and what she says in oration class herself. Diana teaches Leona how to think, she teaches her how to construct arguments, how to reinforce them, to find fallacies in arguments and counteract them. In her quest to learn how to defend her point, Leona starts learning how to look deeper into things, to examine their essence, and construct counterpoints. And we can see that she starts thinking about it, if only superficially. She doesn’t go full out critical thinking, or questioning everything she has ever known, it doesn’t work like that, but the seed has been planted.  “Why do you think I need to go deeper than that when it’s widely known already?” It’s not much but it is a start to the path of critical thinking.

And then after an undetermined amount of time, comes their shared ascension. And that’s where the discrepancies in the story start. Mind you the bio was written a few years before the short story came out, so the characterization obviously is not entirely in line with what we know.

            This Leona is one that debates with Diana still, but wants to persuade her not to look further into their faith, and just accept it as it is. At Diana’s sharing the secret of the alcove, Leona is a stone wall of resistance urging her friend away from the climb, afraid for her wellbeing should she inspire further ire from the Solari. When Diana inevitably climbs the mountain, and while her first instinct is to alert the elders, Leona resolves to help and protect her friend instead and follows after her into the night. Against all odds they manage to reach the peak, and she is wreathed in golden light, fighting tooth and nail to keep her sense of self intact. And she wins.

            At this point, I think we can all see the difference between bio-Leona and the Leona that the short story sets the foundations of. Obviously for the sake of storytelling and with some tweaking these two could co-exist as canon versions of Leona in different times of her life. We could potentially be talking about a tragic story about how religion and blind adherence to duty and tradition drive a wedge between two people that very much love each other. Or the bio could be a bit of a “historical account” of what happened, and Leona having had to care for Diana after her punishments one too many times puts up a wall of resistance, an ultimatum of the “I don’t want to lose you” kind.

            No matter the case, and despite of what Riot might decide to do to expand on their story, and either give us a critical thinking Leona, or a very good reason for not having a critical thinking Leona, the point is that Leona is incredibly loyal to those she cares about.

            And now comes the point of the ascension. The critical point in their story, where instead of going with Diana, and living their happily ever after away from the system that tortured them both, albeit in completely different manners, Leona chooses to stay.

            And I think sometimes when thinking about Leona, we do not always recognize that this is the point where everything is going down. This is the point where everything we have so far discussed comes into play. Because their ascension is a traumatic experience. One that upends everything Leona has ever known. The process of their ascension is traumatic, the very essence of it, bloody terrifying. Because it is a jump into the unknown. It challenges the truths that she has constructed her whole sense of self around, demolishes the very principles that she grew up enforcing.

            There is this interaction in Legends of Runeterra, where Diana urges Leona to understand that Day needs Night, referencing the visions they both saw upon Targon’s peak. And what does Leona reply? “Visions from memories not my own.”

            Full-blown denial. Not that I particularly blame her initial reaction. Because what is it that we have here? We have that affection-starved perfectionist that grew up in a cult, that wounded inner child that has come to tie her worth as a person to the degree of her personal achievements. We have that honorable, rule abiding, and duty loving person, a person that finds solace in strict structures and hierarchies, that thrives in them, thrown into absolute CHAOS.

You have Leona, that rule abiding idiot, that transcends her own limits that takes that one calculated risk to follow Diana and save her from the mountain’s clutches and ends up with watching a blast of divine light slamming into Diana. She goes to help, and before she can help a blast of divine light slams into her, filling her head with a second divine conscience, with visions and memories of other Sun Aspects, of times when truly the people of the mountain were united. And then the onslaught ends, and she faces a Diana different from the one she knows, a Diana dressed in the colors of the enemy.

            So Leona, bearing all of the characteristics we mentioned above, is bloody terrified out of her wits. She is faced with such terrifyingly foreign notions, with such stress, that what is she going to do? She regresses back to what she already knows. And what she knows are the elders and the Solari, and the priests, the rules, the scriptures, the dogma. In face of that terrifying truth she regresses back to the perceived safety of that toxic and unhealthy system -that on top of everything is a cult- that she grew up in.

            Now this brings forth this thought about ignorance. Because Leona is ignorant of the truth. She is, however, intimately familiar with the narrative she has grown up with. People are familiar with their ignorance, and oftentimes they choose to bear the ills of what they know than to fly to others that they know not of. And thus, they are cowards. (Hamlet anyone?)

Leona is a prime example of that. Instead of sitting down and considering the new information, the truth revealed, the unknown future ahead, she clings to her ignorance, to her half-knowledge of the story, because it is familiar, and safe. And she is bloody terrified of the new unknown that Diana proposes they follow.

Now that is not to say that everything we have discussed boils down to Leona is a coward. Though that is partly true. But she is also a kid that grew up in a system that fostered that kind of cowardice. She is someone that grew up in an environment of cultism and religious fanatism, and she grew up ingrained to it. Contrary to Diana as one might point out. And these are all things we need to take into account when handling a character like Leona, and care that we do not flatten such immense complexity of conditions and circumstances, such depth of thought and emotion to “brainless genocidal cultist”. 

(Now if you ask, why does Diana have critical thinking, why did she not get ingrained and lost in that system despite growing up in it for as long if not longer than Leona, what is it that makes her different from the other cult kids, I have absolutely no idea, but that’s not the point of this particular post.)

To finish this off, the point of this post is not to excuse Leona of all the horrible things she has done, or even to argue that she is not a genocidal cultist- she very much is, and the point is definitely not to say that it is not her fault and she was just a product of her circumstances. We all are products of the circumstances that surround us, but we are not passive participants in those conditions. No, the point is to try and understand where Leona might be coming from, and to demonstrate that even the simplest and most obtuse of character concepts can have an intricate and complicated story behind them.

If you did manage to reach the end of this, congratulations! Have a cookie and don’t forget to hydrate!

[drurrito]

you in a honky tonk

an: all mistakes are mine for sure

warnings: alcohol...

----------------

It's your first night off in weeks, and you're spending it in some country bar in the middle of nowhere. Sam didn't need much to convince you. Your original plan was to waste away on the couch watching Gossip Girl reruns.

You're two drinks in by the time you're hitting a line dance with Sam and Carol. The rest of the crew watches on from the safety of a long table.

Clint has a trucker hat pulled down just enough to cover the bruise that some heavyweight painted around his eye last night. Bucky flicks the brim of the tan cowboy hat that he "borrowed" from a nearby table. Yelena keeps picking at the frayed bandage on her hand to the tune of Natasha scolding her every other minute for doing so.

"Stop your fussing, go out there already," with a huff, Yelena nods towards the dance floor. Natasha spares half a glance, and it's enough to catch the way your smile gleams under the colorful lighting. For a second, Natasha's heart thumps in double-time with the music.

"I don't dance," Natasha takes a swig from the beer bottle in her hand and focuses on it while the music slows and the dance floor begins to clear. The DJ pitches a one-liner about slowing it down for a couple songs to give people some reprieve. You only make it a few steps towards the table when Carol stops you with a hand on your arm.

"Wanna dance?" she asks like she already knows the answer. You match her lopsided smile with one of your own.

"I'll lead."

You take her hand and follow her back to the dance floor. Natasha watches the way you twirl Carol under your fingers with a natural ease. Even the way you two-step in tandem with Carol seems practiced, Natasha looks at Yelena's wounded hand to keep her mind from galloping off into the sunset.

Carol is hardly around. But when she is, it's a whole thing. She always hand-picks someone to be a lucky participant--last time it was Steve, this time it must be you. Of course Carol likes to go dancing--turning heads everywhere she goes has always been her M.O.

"Your face is going to get stuck like that," Yelena quips. She takes a sip of her drink and then licks at the Whiskey glossing her upper lip. Natasha spreads and flexes her fingers so they don't ball into fists.

"All eyes on her, just the way she likes it," Natasha does a piss-poor job of trying not to sound like a grump.

"Maybe," Yelena takes another sip, "she just likes to have fun, and doesn't care about who is watching."

Natasha entertains this with a hum and ignores the tender spot where Yelena's words dig. Carol just wanting to have some fun could (very likely) be true, but that would mean cutting this pity party a lot shorter than anticipated. Natasha's worked too hard these past few weeks to not indulge herself.

She is toying with the bottle in her hand when Yelena jabs an elbow into her arm. Natasha glares at her and then looks over in time to catch you dipping Carol as the song ends. She feels her jaw twitch as you pull Carol up with a laugh. As if on cue, Carol's hand finds the center of your chest and her lips stretch into a smile that is far too wide.

"Now's your chance, sestra," Yelena sings into the mouth of her glass but knows better than to look her sister in the eye at this point.

One time. Natasha smiled for a little too long after talking to you one time, and Yelena has never let her hear the end of it.

Carol and Sam slide into a seat at the table. You're about to do the same until a slow and sweet tune fills the room.

"I love this song," you look towards the dance floor to find people already pairing off.

"Need a dance partner?" Yelena hardly tries to hide her enthusiasm as she points at her sister. Natasha thinks about the force needed to bend Yelena's finger backwards so it looks like she's pointing at herself.

"If you'll have me."

You're earnestly smiling like you didn't just ask Natasha to embarrass herself in a bar filled with strangers.

"I would, but I can't dance," her eyes stay on yours. Even under the funky bar lighting, the way your eyes crinkle with your smile makes her stomach twist something awfully spectacular.

"That's okay, just follow my lead, you'll make it back in one piece," it's at this moment that Natasha realizes she can't even pretend like she can say "no" to you.

Natasha downs the rest of her liquid courage in one gulp to wordlessly take your hand without a second thought. Yelena bites her lip with amusement. Bucky puts his hat on your head when you're not looking. Natasha takes this opportunity to adjust it while she makes you promise not to get upset if she smashes your toes the entire song.

"You watched me get choke slammed by a guy five-times my size less than 24 hours ago and you're worried about stepping on my toes?"

Natasha hates how easy it is for you to make her laugh while she's looking down the barrel of public humiliation. You test the waters with a few steps before spinning Natasha into your side. You can feel how stiff she is against you.

"I got you."

The confidence in your voice makes Natasha's shoulders instantly depart from her ears. You sway and step together for a few beats and then raise both of your arms and spin yourself so you're in front of her again. For a split-second, Natasha thinks she's getting the hang of it until she steps on your foot while you're trying to twist her one way and then the other.

"It's okay, it's okay," you quickly soothe, pulling her closer than she’s ever been to anyone in the observable universe.

Natasha has no time for regret when you throw her arm around your neck with ease and spin the two of you across the dance floor. She can faintly hear the chorus as your hand slides up to her shoulder and your face is barely an inch from hers. Natasha can feel your other hand ghost the outline of her ass, travel the length of her thigh and arrive at the bend in her knee. Her breath is about to catch in her throat when you honest to god dip her like something out of a movie.

Without thinking, Natasha throws her head back like she's done this before as you lower her close to the ground.

"See? You're a natural," god, that makes her blush. Natasha's not even thinking about how her front melts against yours when you pull her back up and sway like that for a couple bars. You tangle and untangle yourselves again before letting her go with an encouraging "spin, spin!" and catch her with a proud smile that touches your ears.

Every time you hold out your hand, Natasha takes it without question. It makes sense when you grab her waist and her arm drapes over your shoulder. Where you go, she goes. You're a very good dancer. She starts to wonder if the chemistry she saw between you and Carol was all in her head.

"You trust me?" Natasha stifles a shiver when your lips brush against her ear.

"We're about to find out," she fights off another shiver when you respond by breathing out a laugh against her neck. You take a few steps with her, twirling her away from you. When you pull her back, you sweep her off her feet until she's almost upside down.

"Hold onto me," is all you say before bringing her back up. Natasha's death grip on your tricep relaxes when her eyes are back on you once more. She forgets the crowd and doesn't realize the song is ending as you spin her around and around until both of her feet are on solid ground.

"Not bad for your first dance. My toes made it out unscathed too!" You share a laugh on your way back to the table. You're both tapping a foot to the music as you talk. Natasha stiff arms Bucky so she can keep you in that hat on for a little longer.

[smilerri]

many thoughts about epic: the musical...

i am once again in the middle of essay writing but plautus is boring and my friend introduced me to this album so u already know I binged the entire thing

(quick warning for spoilers of homer's odyssey? if that's necessary?? man idk whatever)

first thoughts naturally concerned odysseus. i have hated this man with a burning passion ever since I started studying classics - i think he is irredeemably selfish, a liar masquerading as a 'resourceful hero,' and basically just a twat all around. that being said, i respect that epic is not an exact replica. in fact, i like that about it!

readings of odysseus as a loving husband and father, and a man who cares deeply for his crew and fellow warriors is one i would love to see reflected in the source text (though i admit i have only read two different translations so far, so this is subject to change depending on translators choice!), if only because it would be so so refreshing. and epic does that extremely well! i find epic's odysseus to be far more likeable, insofar as he is fueled not by greed for glory (kleos for the nerds out there) but rather the desire to return to his wife and son. (I personally would argue that, while homer's odysseus is indeed fueled by a desire for homecoming (nostos), it is not for the sake of penelope and telemachus, but rather concern over the security of his status and position within the household (oikos))

i also very much enjoy that the love he holds for his family is not an inherently positive trait. in the aeneid, and often in myth, it is achilles' son, neoptolemus/pyrrhus who kills the son of hector and andromache, astyanax by throwing him from the walls of troy - less common, it is odysseus (which i did not know until i googled it just now oops). homer's odysseus does not reject the gods. he is beloved by some, hated by others - he receives their boons and curses as they come. he revels in the attention of the divine, no matter positive or negative, for it is proof of his kleos. epic's odysseus is so much more... human. he doesn't vie for glory that reaches the skies. if anything, he rues it. in the horse and the infant he supplicates himself to (who i assume is) zeus - which is such a loaded act i am genuinely struggling to think of how to articulate it, but boy am I gonna try my darndest.

the act of supplication and guest-friendship (xenia) is a very key theme within the odyssey, and to a point in the iliad also - essentially, if a traveller were to arrive at your doorstep, you were obliged to let them in and provide food, drink, and lodgings to that traveller, no questions asked. in return (because reciprocity is VERY important in homer especially), the guest would provide entertainment, tales of their travels, etc, and would be respectful of their host. the patron of these travellers was zeus. any violation of these terms, on part of the guest or host, would be met with divine scorn. for odysseus to supplicate himself to zeus is therefore meta as hell, but I would instead bring attention to the echoing lyric "hes bringing you down to your knees." 'he,' assumedly, is astyanax. his father, hector, is dead; as is his grandfather, priam, and all of priam's other sons. at this point, one could assume that it is astyanax who is ruling troy, who is now the host of the city that odysseus, a traveller from another land, has entered and ransacked. zeus' 'prophecy' of astyanax growing old and seeking revenge (reciprocity! homeric greece had a 'revenge culture' - essentially 'an eye for an eye' as well as 'you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours,' though not always so clear-cut), therefore, would be odysseus' punishment for violating the terms of xenia.

supplication, however, is not limited to guest-friendship alone. for example, in odyssey 22, when odysseus slaughters the suitors occupying his home (is that spoilers?), their priest leodes supplicates himself at odysseus' feet, begging to be spared. odysseus takes his head from his neck in an instant. odysseus' kneeling before astyanax, therefore, is no simple act between a guest and his host - perhaps he is begging the infant for mercy, for forgiveness, or perhaps he is positioning himself for punishment; in killing astyanax, odysseus accepts his own death. perhaps this means his fate (which, in case of homeric epic, refers to the time and manner of one's death), or perhaps it is a part of him that has died. in just a man, odysseus asks "when does a man become a monster?" his killing astyanax prevents the boy from ever becoming a man, and spares him from a life fueled only by revenge and the need to regain his glorious birthright, and it turns him into a monster. just as he says he would, he trades in the world where he is 'just a man' for a world where he is a cruel beast, all for sake of his family.

(quick detour but i really like how odysseus' focus is primarily on penelope rather than telemachus. [insert deadbeat dad joke here], but in reality, he doesn't even know the boy. penelope he chose to marry and fall in love with - it's no question that he loves telemachus, but after ten years, it is only natural that he would miss his beautiful, tricky wife with more fervour than the child he never had the chance to love. it shows he is imperfect, even illogical - the son is the father's entire legacy. just as odysseus is 'son of laertes', so will telemachus be 'son of odysseus', the protector of his immortal heroic legacy. yet it is penelope whom odysseus yearns for.)

(another detour but "i'm just a man" is such a juicy lyric, because the entire message of homer's odyssey is that odysseus is not any man - he is a man that the muses deem worthy to inspire great poets to compose epic poems that persist through thousands of years and a million different voices - a hero. but epic's odysseus is not that hero. he is a man, trying to go home, craving comfort and the warmth of the hearth. these 'flaws' humanise him more than homer's odysseus could ever imagine.)

skipping over to polyphemus, odysseus violates xenia once again by killing polyphemus' sheep, albeit unwittingly. homer makes this violation very obvious - odysseus and crew eat polyphemus' cheese and wine while polyphemus tends to his sheep, knowing that the cave is obviously inhabited, and they even wait for polyphemus to return to ask for more. it is worth noting as well that, at this point, odysseus and crew are still jubilant about their victory, and unlike in epic, these 'detours' are purposeful, specifically so that odysseus can scope out the islands for anything of interest he can snatch and add to his spoils of war, adding to his kleos by means of physical wealth (timē) - which makes odysseus' offer of treasure to appease polyphemus all the more baffling in epic. this odysseus is a leader who prioritises the lives of his men over his own kleos, which makes the final lines - "you shall be the final man to die" // "what?" // "watch out!" - all the more heartbreaking. he wants to protect his men, so that they too may return to their families back on ithaca; the prospect of watching them die before his eyes after he already witnessed so many lose their lives in battle must be so utterly terrifying.

polyphemus is so excellently creepy as well! i loved him in the odyssey - this was where I really started to dislike odysseus, actually. he's a cyclops, obviously inhuman, yet he rears sheep and makes cheese and wine and weaves wicker baskets to keep them in, trying to play at humanity. i really did sympathise with him from the first time I read it. epic's polyphemus is similar, so very calm in his anger yet ruthless all the same, and demonstrates great restraint in comparison to his counterpart in the odyssey, who gets filthy drunk after mashing six men dead and allows odysseus+co. to fashion a stake with which to blind him. much of the violence against polyphemus, as well as the violation of xenia in homer's odyssey is 'excused' by the fact that polyphemus is a 'barbarian', to whom concepts of civilised people do not belong.

(very quick detour but polyphemus' first admonishment of odysseus - "you killed my sheep" up to "take from you like you took from me" - makes such heartbreaking parallels to astyanax's murder and the sack of troy. it almost provides a visualisation of the guilt that odysseus must still be battling. i would have loved to have been in his brain when he heard polyphemus say that.)

the mercy odysseus shows polyphemus is particularly interesting - homer's odysseus leaves him alive and tells him his name purely so that his name will spread and his kleos will grow. but epic's odysseus, despite his conviction to kill in survive and to avenge is fallen comrades in remember them, spares him. in part, this is to assure them an escape, so that the cyclops' giant body does not block their exit - but athena's interruption makes clear that this is not all. she criticises him, remarks "he is still a threat until he's dead." no doubt this calls back to zeus' warnings about astyanax, hence his refusal (or inability?) to commit to slaughter. for a homeric greek hero to allow a foe to live on after his allies had been slaughtered is a grave failure of reciprocity, casting shame on both the hero and their enemy. homer's odysseus escapes this with his reputation intact, since as a result polyphemus curses him to face poseidon's wrath - as I mentioned, for a hero, even negative attention from the gods is a good thing as it proves that their reputation/glory is known all over, even in olympus. but, as we have established, epic's odysseus cares not for kleos. the decision to tell polyphemus his name is entirely impulsive and irrational, grieving his comrades, hence athena's outrage.

the relationship between athena and odysseus is founded entirely on the principles they share, described in warrior of the mind (if anyone can lmk whereabouts this song fits in the timeline I will be so grateful, I'm stupid unfortunately :/). they value wisdom, reason, and rationality over brute strength and bloodlust. epic's athena becomes odysseus' patron goddess with the goal to "make a greater tomorrow" and "change the world" - aspirations that are entirely foreign to any homeric god. gods in homer do not care about the wellbeing of humans unless they are directly related to them, and they certainly don't care about the wellness of humanity as a whole. humans are toys and tools of the gods. the amount that athena cares for odysseus, even in the odyssey, is unusual, demonstrative of how much she cares for him, yet epic makes their comradery more obvious, even going as far as to (tentatively) call them friends. my goodbye frames athena's anger as disappointment at an experiment failed - calling back to warrior of the mind, where she claims to have "designed" him - but odysseus' replies to her makes clear that it is far more personal. perhaps, to her, odysseus acting so irrationally is even a betrayal; odysseus is abandoning the principles of reason they both once held and thus is forsaking all that they once shared and that she, as the goddess of wisdom, stands for.

ive always considered athena to be a very interesting goddess. she is a patron of both war, which in homer is only carried out by men, and weaving, the traditional work of women within the household - her very nature is a contradiction of masculine and feminine. although it is ares who is considered the 'black sheep' of the olympians for his brutality in war, epic's portrayal of athena through odysseus' lens paints her as lonely and ostracised - "since you claim you're so much wiser // why's your life spent all alone? // you're alone." It is clear that odysseus here does not view her as his patron at all, rather as a friend - and to that she takes offence, because she is a goddess, eternal and all-powerful. she does not need friendship or comradery; those are mortal concerns alone. personally, I see epic's athena as incredibly insecure. she cuts odysseus off because she cannot bare that a mortal has been able to read her so clearly, to see all the ugly parts of herself that she keeps hidden to retain the facade of the perfect goddess. she knows the paradox within herself - warrior and woman, immortal and alone - and rues that odysseus was able to see it as well. the cruellest part, the most ironic, is that his being able to figure out the true, imperfect nature of a god shows that he has not abandoned the path of the warrior of the mind. in fact, his wisdom extends beyond mortality into the realm of the divine. but athena is blinded by her anger and insecurity, and she says her goodbyes. she disappears from there, only to appear again to try to warn odysseus of his crew opening the bag of winds given to him by aeolus in keep your friends close, once again demonstrating her care for him, despite her anger.

the amount that odysseus cares for his crew is demonstrated time and again throughout the album, yet in the end, he still slowly loses their trust. aeolus' winds are the first sign. his crew betrays his orders upon the first whisper on the wind that he might be keeping treasure from them. the next sign, in puppeteer, is eurylochus' confession upon arrival to aeaea (circe's island), which odysseus brushes off, much as he brushed off eurylochus' concerns in luck runs out. then, in a matter of moments, 600 men are reduced to forty by the wrath of poseidon - which in itself is a significant change. while odysseus in epic is explicitly blamed for failing to kill polyphemus, homer's odysseus takes no responsibility for the deaths of hundreds of his men. it happens when they arrive at telepylos, which, unbeknownst to them, is home to the laestrygonians, a race of cannibalistic giants. odysseus, apparently sensing something off (who tf does he think he is, spiderman?), allows his entire fleet to enter the bay of telepylos while his ship alone remains outside - and when those ships are attacked and trapped, he alone takes his single ship and escapes, allowing twelve ships of men to be ripped apart and eaten by cannibals. an act which he shows no remorse for.

in my interpretation of homer's odyssey, it is this slowly slipping trust that eventually leads to his men ignoring his warnings and feasting on the cows of helios which leads to the deaths of all his remaining crew, including eurylochus and polites (spoilers? idk). so, once epic: the musical catches up to book 12 of the odyssey you WILL be seeing me again I hope ur excited.

there is definitely more i could say here, especially about the circe saga bcs ohhh my god I love circe and I love this circe especially (a female character with actual motive other than being a victim? homer could never) but unfortunately I'm running out of steam and I do in fact have 3 essays due this month (help) so I will probably return to this later !! hopefully its readable bcs I'm not going back to edit any of this ;)

[ibijau]

the beauty of a creative hobby is that it will motivate you to do literally anything but it

[danidoesathing]

hey remember that one horror fic i mentioned i was doing like a month or two ago. yeah finished it

[dazais-guardian-angel]

Well, at least Fukuzawa got his wish granted, I guess.... he's finally inside Fukuchi <3

[novelconcepts]

Had this screencap living on my phone for art purposes, and I just lost like twenty minutes staring at their hands. These are some of the gayest hands in human history. An entire Pride month could be dedicated to these hands. Put this shot in the MoMA, dude.

[toxintouch]

As I am writing this next request, I find myself pondering about the actual canonical abilities of each of them and I'm thinking that:

Mhin is the only one who can reliably cook or bake.

Tho maybe Ais can make dog soulless treats (anonymous meat jerky?) on a good day.

I wonder if Mhin actually would actually like to bake, since baking is said to be chemistry but edible? And Mhin has an interest in alchemy which is the predecessor of chemistry irl... (Though I'm sure there will be some extra fantasy elements to it in canon) All I'm saying is: it is relevant to their interests, a practical/valuable life skill and they get a sweet treat out of it.

[baura-bear]

I made a slide show presentation with a run down of the UKsies cast for anyone trying to familiarize themself or for anyone trying to help out a friend!!! I have a slide for every member (hopefully I didn’t forget anyone lol!) but this is a great source if you’re trying to memorize names and faces! I even have a fun little game at the end! This was super fun to make!!!! 

[princess-of-purple-prose]

HIII writing prompt “monster” and 7? 💕

Giggling the teensiest bit, I love you <3 No, really, I love you, because 7 was, amusingly, the wildcard number, so randomly picking landed me on TIM STOKER, and I don’t think I’ve ever written in his pov before but this CONSUMED ME?? I haven’t written this much in one go in weeks, forget this fast?? This also, uh, turned into full-out jontim, which was a complete accident because this was SUPPOSED to be a meditation on him mid-Research era. Aha. Enjoy!!!!

“—and that,” Jon declares, “is why it’s so vital to continue establishing Hope Spots, not just in spots ripe for ecotourism, but across the world.” He takes what must be his first breath in ten full minutes, and it’s only then that he seems to register Tim and Sasha’s twin gleeful expressions. His own expression goes a little funny. “Tim, Sasha, please tell me you weren’t—”

Sasha is already stabbing at her phone, fumbling a little before she actually hits the right button. “Twelve minutes and forty-six seconds! A new record!”

“The man’s a monster!” Tim toasts Jon with a whoop, and Jon—there’s really no other word for it: he fully pouts at Tim, wrinkling his nose so primly it makes Tim want to bear-hug him right then and there. He sublimates the urge by being even more over-the-top, trying to see if he can make Jon’s nose scrunch up even more. “Attenborough who! I want all my documentaries voiced by this man!” Opposite him, Sasha dissolves into tiny giggles, sweet and delicate as a spray of mayflowers.

“Sasha missed the ‘stop’ button about five times, you can’t call that—” Jon snorts, but his cheeks have turned the rich cherry of his desk back at Research, so he can’t be that mad about their subpar timekeeping of his latest incredibly disorganized, incredibly endearing overview of the last documentary he watched.

“Jonnnnnn, take the win!” Tim cries, and he gives in and slings an arm around Jon’s shoulder like it belongs there. God, the man’s teeny, they need to make sure he gets some carbs in him. On that note— “Take some chips, too, you’re built like a bird!”

“And you’re built like,” Jon grumps, “a—a—” He scowls and takes a chip, presumably only to cover the fact that he’s too drunk to come up with a simile. Contrary little bastard, he is. “Get off me, you arse.”

Tim makes a complaining sound even as he immediately pulls away—only for Jon to jolt and then practically butt up into Tim’s hovering arm, far more housecat than bird. Tim freezes, not putting any pressure against Jon even though they’re skin-to-cardigan again.

“Jon…?”

Oh, there it is, there’s that wrinkled nose. Tim loses his breath, a little bit. “I didn’t mean it,” Jon says, scowling even harder than he’d been before and refusing to look Tim’s way. “It’s—It’s cold in here, alright?”

As a matter of fact, it is a comfortable degree of stifling in here, and Jon is in a cardigan that’s more than enough to ward off the mild autumnal chill and drunk besides. Jon seems well aware of this, or maybe not aware at all, because as Tim settles tentatively against him again, he grabs for his long-forgotten glass and downs the rest of it. Tim gives Sasha a wide-eyed look, only for her—traitor! Disloyal turncoat!— to smirk back, propping her chin up with a hand and arching her perfect eyebrows at him.

“Oh, shut up,” he snips, cheeks warming, just as Jon sets down his now-empty glass. Jon turns to him curiously, having entirely missed the exchange, and Tim turns his brightest beam on him and coos, “Not you, you’re a delight and I’m glad you’re sitting next to me and not”—he aims another scowl her way, and Sasha sticks her tongue out at him—“Sasha over there, because she gives me a hard enough time without you there to egg her on worse.”

Sasha smirks harder. Tim wishes he could kick her under the table without Jon noticing.

“I’m perfectly capable of siding with her even while sitting practically on top of you,” Jon sniffs, drier than anyone should be capable of being with that quantity of liquor in them, and Tim gapes in outrage even as delight fills him up to the tips of his ears to match Jon’s still-red cheeks.

“That’s what I like to hear, Jon!” Sasha cheers, raising her own empty glass to him. Jon quirks a wicked little grin and does the same.

Tim emits a high-pitched squawk of disbelief. “With friends like you, who needs enemies?” He sags dramatically against Jon, relishing in his little grumble of annoyance as he gets crushed. “What’s a guy to do?”

“Buy us more drinks?” Sasha suggests innocently to the tune of Jon’s sniggering, and Tim groans theatrically even as he flags down the waiter for another round. Monsters, the both of them! he laments to himself. He wouldn’t have it any other way.

[disenchanted-youth]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: ลางสังหรณ์ | The Sign (TV 2023) Rating: Explicit Relationships: Phaya Chadayu Kamonwipak/Tharn Wansa Raksil Additional Tags: Canon Compliant, Plot What Plot/Porn Without Plot, this is just shameless smut, Morning After, phaya is whipped, and tharn is trying not to be but failing miserably, there really is nothing else to tag

Summary:

“Awake?” Phaya asked, his face and neck glistening with sweat, a wide smile on his face. “I went out for a run,” he added, catching Tharn's frown, “I wanted to be back before you woke up, didn't want you to think I ran out on you.”

---

The morning after they have some fun again before leaving for work.

[liesonthefloordramatically]

tired of having a gender at work; I don't want my colleagues to perceive me anymore

[tinemilk]

Respect the source material

Over the years there have been many adaptations of books, comics, video games, and much more. There are many adaptations that are good or decent, however, there are many that disregard the original material.

When it comes to adapting something that already exists in a different form of media than film or TV, is that there are expectations. Expectations of a dream cast, the set, music, storyline, you get my drift. Of course, it is impossible to meet everyone's expectations of the above, yet there is one expectation that is not impossible to meet and that is to follow the source material. So many movies and TV shows forget to follow the source material, there was a reason it got popular in the first place. It became popular because people liked the original material. (Even if it wasn’t major popular, if it has original material that is what should be what is strived after.)

Many adaptations get rewrites that completely crash with the original material and such rewrites most of the time lead to it being a bad adaptation, or at least a disconnected adaptation. Adaptations are not the writers' or showrunners' own story being brought to life, it is someone else's, and that should be respected. Because if it isn’t respected it comes off as "we just wanted an already established fan base to get money from, but we don’t care for the material you are fans of. So, sucks to be you." Which is, to be honest very off-putting and sad. Because they take away the joy by dismissing the core fans. Yes, a show or movie should be made so that everyone can understand the plot and more without being die-hard fans, but that is very much possible without disrespecting the material. Also, it is always going to be the established fan base that is going to do the unpaid and sometimes unnoticed promoting of the adaptation. So, adapting a movie or show that is as close to the original material as possible is just being decent.

There are of course allowed liberties if they do not change the story or character into something/someone new. Everyone understands that a word-by-word adaptation is impossible. But striving to have a very close adaptation should be the goal.

I think most people agree that The Last of Us is a very good and close adaptation. It has taken liberties but kept close to what the material. (I haven't played the game, just watched reviews on YouTube and talked with others about it.) (I just know more about F&B and hotd, okay so I can actually talk about it.)

House of the Dragon is a show that has done the opposite, it has taken too many liberties. While it is decent, but a rush show on its own. It is very far from the book. While I know that the book is written by an unreliable narrator, there are still many changes from what is reliable. There are many examples of how many liberties the showrunners have taken. Timeline, character relationships, changed entire events, characters have been altered, costumes have been lacking, and so on.  These changes take the show more and more away from the original material and end up at "yeah we just wanted an established fan base". There is such a difference that one has to clarify if it is the book or show canon, and when that happens you know it failed to bring the source material to life.

Fire and Blood even has lots of room for liberties since it is written by an unreliable narrator. They had every chance to show how Rhaenyra is slandered by history and men for the simple fact of being a woman (who liked being a woman), and how victims are not always the perfect victim. They had the chance to create a TV show that focuses on power intrigues and relationships between characters. They had a chance to show how war changes people even if they live in a violent society. Love stories of both romantic and platonic feelings. HEALTHY FEMALE FRIENDSHIPS! RHAENYRA AND LAENA. What I am trying to say is the possibilities for liberties that make the original story more were there, but they did not take them. Because they disregarded the material.

RESPECT THE FUCKING MATERIAL. THERE IS A REASON PEOPLE LIKED IT IN THE FIRST PLACE.

this is about showrunners and actors who think that the og material isnt that important

[lattehearted]

A.OMARIS THE BRUTE OF THE ABYSSAL PLAINS, LORD OF DRAGONS AND KING OF THE DEMON WORLD

S.am A.nderson, lil babby boy who likes to sneak into a guest room of his castle to cuddle with his wife in human form instead of, you know, ACTUALLY being a king