#don’t read in too deep

[the-lambda-archives-ai]

Woah! Can you click on people's names in the menus there? Like Darnold or Barney? Does it give you any info??

Pt 97 > here

Prev > here

[katabay]

”—ah. seems like mother goose has been playing around in your egg salad. if you won’t dance to that tune, I got others.”

honestly, the would you kindly scene is whatever to me*, code yellow is the more interesting violation/betrayal of the body because of how beautifully it escalates the Fontaine reveal/betrayal and shows how ugly some of those ‘locks and keys’ that Tenenbaum mentions are. not only have you been a tool in another man’s hand this entire time, it goes deeper. your body is not your own.

*there used to be a meandering thought here about the would you kindly scene, but it was really just talking around the fact that I spent way too many years seeing people discuss it in the most insufferable and reductive ways possible when it’s a combination of three or four other things that make that moment compelling lmao

collage credits: heart one/heart two

⭐ places I’m at! bsky / pixiv / pillowfort /cohost / cara.app / tip jar!

[cto10121]

Book Fiyero: *immediately recognizes Elphaba and stations himself at the backdoor to prevent her from evading him, stalks her halfway across town to her aerie (even though at that point in time she was only a college friend he hadn’t seen in five years), insists on seeing her again, instinctively goes to comfort her when she first cries, gets sucked into increasingly deep and fraught conversations with her about collateral damage and freedom fighter terrorism, calls her the “most individual, the most separate, the most real” DURING AN ARGUMENT, says he adores Elphaba’s looks IN THAT SAME ARGUMENT, doesn’t understand Elphaba’s “being born with a talent or an inclination for goodness is the aberration” comment because (implied) he sincerely believes Elphaba isn’t evil, changes his mind about the plight of the Animals all by himself but doesn’t mention it to Elphaba because he is afraid she would distance himself from him, buys scarves for both his wife and Elphaba even though only Elphaba likes scarves, is so concerned for Elphaba and her dangerous Lurlinemas Eve mission that he stalks her instead of staying at his club or just leaving town altogether, and is so worried about her that he returns to the aerie just to see her*

Also Book Fiyero: Am I in love with Elphaba?

[stoat-party]

[skyloftian-nutcase]

Me when I see someone rambling negatively about a character I wrote, or making incorrect assumptions about them based on their behavior

Me when I remember they haven’t read the 100 pages of backstory on said character, watched the nonstop footage of said character’s life in my head, and are going entirely based off little crumbs I’ve shared and don’t understand the meaning of unreliable narrators

Me when I remember it’s ok to be at peace with people not liking a character I wrote, whether it’s because more hasn’t been revealed about them yet or because of their personality - because that’s how real life works too, people like some folks and don’t like others, and it means that maybe I wrote a three dimensional character

(Shoutout to @/linkeduniverse for the images)

[invinciblevalentine]

atp i would snort reeve tuesti fic like cocaine.

if anyone knows any fics that put reeve through the blender like “Son” by She_sees_in_the_dark or “Through Another’s Eyes” by CorsairOriginal—

i need to see that man under enough pressure to make a diamond crack. For my health.

[oliversgarden]

Yall doing some malevolent relisten stuff and gasped out loud, in episode 14 Arthur is going on a big ol walk rant about how he feels trapped, he’s John’s prisoner, he cannot have his own life anymore ect ect “im lost….”

And what got me wasn’t that he said any of that no, it was the fact that it directly parallels with episode 41 John, who also says he’s lost,

[mochi-kitty]

Alright now that I’ve finished Yj 98.. and what an abrupt ending it was… (another post for another time) I gotta admit a hot take here.

I did not like how the girls were handled in #38 with robin and barts departure.

I understand they were upset and dealing with what happened on apokolips in their own way but arguably I’m peeved at their shitty attitudes. No one trusted robins judgement, fought him every step of the way even though he’s team leader until it actually became a physical fight, leading to their split, which led to their capture. Imo he had every right to leave. What’s the point in being team leader if this is how they treat him in a disaster? And even if he hadn’t up and quit, if he stayed team leader or even let someone else take the role earlier than canon… how could he stay on this team knowing they wouldn’t listen to him no matter his position? Or stay knowing that this same fight will absolutely start again if he rolled over and they didn’t talk about it? Then there was the “guilt by his association to Batman..” Was it shitty to break his promise to Greta? Yeah sure, but her bringing up her one sided delusional cat fight with spoiler like some jealous ex even though robin had no idea how she really felt? Shitty. As if spoiler had anything to do with this AT ALL. And don’t get me started on Cassie’s “apology.” That was downright disrespectful. Downplaying the situation and his feelings about it just so she can get him to stay for their own gain… Shitty.

Then there’s Bart. Fresh off losing Carol and his mom again, watches AND feels his scout get obliterated, falls into shock and then is immediately captured and put in a VR nightmare illusion by granny where he relives the same moment of death over and over on a loop. When they break him out he’s still in shock and goes comatose for an entire week and even with his speed healing, “takes a few weeks to get back on his feet.” After that he can’t even get himself to put on his costume, much less run even casually with Max. So he quits and the girls reactions are pretty much: “you’re being a coward after 1 bad event and we won’t have it.” Like??? Cissie quit when she nearly killed a man and yeah they fought that decision too but they didn’t question her judgement or god forbid make her feel bad for it and let her go while still keeping in the loop with her. HELL BY THIS POINT SHE’S STILL RETIRED!? But no it’s “you’re leaving because you’re a coward. We’re not afraid of dying so you quitting because you ACTUALLY saw and felt yourself die, a trauma explained by max to be more than the word could be defined, is unsupported.” AND THEN LITTLE LOBO, WHO CAN’T ACTUALLY QUIT THIS TEAM BECAUSE HE’D HAVE NOWHERE TO GO BEING THE WEAK END OF THE GENE POOL,,, HIS OUTBURST AND WANTING TO BE LEFT ALONE IS SUPPORTED BY ANITA EVEN THOUGH ITS FOR LITERALLY THE SAME REASON AS BART?? They both want to be left alone because they both died and now are scared of their own mortality but only 1 is supported because….why?? Is it Anita’s crush on lil lobo or what? Bart “can’t quit” because being impulse is “who he is,” COMPLETELY contradicting the years (by this point) of lessons Max has been trying to teach Bart about enjoying some normality outside of his hero life. I am 100% sure that when he said “I’m trying out a new lifestyle” he was thinking of Max. Implying that he can’t be ANYTHING other than Impulse, erasing Bart and his feelings as a whole person, is so shitty.

Idk I usually love the girls but this issue man. They had me wanting to jump the screen.

[sunfloweraro]

Relaxing in Kakariko

While waiting for Wild to finish speaking with Impa, the group take a moment to relax. Twi has some ideas on how to help Bunny calm down.

Tags: @thatonecrazysidekick @tiredgaytheatrekid

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 .

Warriors settled back, his legs dangling, feet hovering just above the water, the toes of his leather boots sending gentle ripples through the still water. He leaned back on his hands, eyes slipping shut, and were it not for the fact that Twilight knew Warriors, he would have guessed the man had switched off entirely. But his ears twitched with every sound, his shoulders tense. He was overthinking things again, while still on high alert.

And he wanted Twilight to relax.

“Stop thinkin’ so ‘ard,” Twilight chastised him, flicking him over the shoulder and causing Warriors to flinch. “I can feel meself getting’ a headache jus’ watchin’ ye.”

Warriors shot him a sour look, and so Twilight kicked up water all over his pants. “Hey!”

“Ye need tuh learn tuh relax, my friend,” Twilight said. “Take a few deep breaths and let yer mind switch off fer a bit. I promise I’ll listen out fer the both of us.”

Warriors scoffed, but Twilight had a feeling it was only for show, if the way a soft smile tried to lift Warriors’ lips told him anything. “Alright. I will try, I suppose.”

“Ye bet ye will. Breathe in with me.” And when Twilight made an exaggerated breath in, Warriors followed. Together, they took several deep breaths, Twilight watching as Warriors’ shoulders lowered, the tension bleeding out from them. “Good. Now lie back and rest, will ye? Yer one o’ the worst of us when it comes tuh sleeping.”

Warriors made a show of grumbling, but he settled back against the hard wood of the boardwalk, resting his hands over his stomach and finally letting himself relax. His eyes slipped shut, that soft smile still gracing his lips. His hair encircled his head on the dark wood like a golden halo.

“Tha’s better,” Twilight said, squeezing Warriors’ arm and earning a huff of laughter. With a grin, Twilight leaned back on his hands once more, leg resting against Warriors’ side, ears sharp for any sign of danger as promised.

Soon enough, he heard the soft footfalls of folks approaching. Cracking open an eye, Twilight smiled when he saw it was only the rest of their group, bar his Cub. “Evenin’” he greeted. “The inn too good fer y’all?”

Hyrule picked his way over Warriors, settling down on Twilight’s other side cross-legged, setting Bunny in his lap. “The cook wasn’t prepared for a group of eight hungry Heroes and their rabbit. She’s shooed us all away for the moment.”

Twilight laughed at that. They rarely stayed at inns, but the horror on every cook’s face never ceased to make him laugh. They always repaid the cooks with praise and tips to apologise for the extra work, and each of them walked away happy. As he settled, he turned his attention down to their newest member. “How’s ‘e doin’?”

Hyrule slumped slightly, running a hand over Bunny’s back and receiving no response. “He’s been despondent since the fight. I don’t think he’s sleeping much, either. He just doesn’t seem to relax. I’m worried…”

Twilight understood what that was like, to be so high-strung after a terrible fight and consequential injury. He understood how traumatising the experience was, how difficult it became to continue on afterwards, when it felt as if you were trapped in your terror. Instinctively, he raised a hand to his left shoulder, felt the phantom pain there from the beginning of his journey, scarcely a few years ago now. “Mind if I try somethin’? I’ll be gentle with ‘im,” he promised when Hyrule looked hesitant to part ways with Bunny.

After a beat, Hyrule acquiesced, lifting Bunny into his arms and holding him close for a moment, before passing him over to Twilight. Bunny was warm in his hands, a comforting weight he had been missing all day, when Hyrule had been reluctant to let him go since the fight. “Hey there, li’l one. I know ye’ve been through the wringer lately. I’ve got somethin’ tuh help ye relax some.” He set Bunny down in his lap, the rabbit facing him. Once Bunny had shifted and gotten comfortable, Twilight set his hands over the rabbit’s head, slow and careful so Bunny wouldn’t panic. Even in the gentle touch, he could feel how terribly Bunny was shaking, just how badly the fight was still affecting him. His heart ached for the poor creature, and the life they had chosen for him by tearing him away from his home. But Twilight reminded himself that if they had set him free again, Bunny likely would have run off into the wilderness once more, and this time, he wouldn’t have them to find him.

“Aw, ye poor thing,” he murmured, his face softening. He cradled Bunny’s tiny head in his hands, setting his thumbs over Bunny’s forehead. There, he began slow strokes, from the space just above Bunny’s little nose, up between his eyes, and to the back of his head, then back down to start again. With his other fingers, he began to massage behind Bunny’s ears. It was a trick Rusl would always do for him when he awoke from a nightmare, in his Hylian and his wolf form. In both forms, he would relax under the gentle pressure and drift off swiftly.

It had the same effect on Bunny. The little pink rabbit’s eyes began to droop, his body stilling as his muscles relaxed. With a smile, Twilight continued, warmth blooming within his chest as Bunny settled under his guidance and comfort, and eventually drifted off.

“Wow,” Hyrule said, leaning closer. “You must have a magic touch.”

Twilight shrugged. “It’s a thing with animals; helps ‘em relax.”

Hyrule hummed. After a beat, he shifted closer, leaning into Twilight’s side. “Thank you. For helping him, I mean. I was beside myself with worry…”

“Of course,” Twilight said, removing one hand from Bunny to settle over Hyrule’s shoulders, drawing him in closer. “He’s family, now. That means we look out fer ‘im. Just as we look out fer each other. Get some rest, Traveller, you look a right mess too.”

Hyrule huffed a laugh, but Twilight wasn’t exaggerating. His concern for Bunny had been keeping him up, and it took no more encouragement for Hyrule to lean heavily against him, a deep sigh escaping him.

Twilight sat as he was until Wild came back, two sleeping bodies resting against him and a third against his leg, and a pleasant, tingling warmth pressing against his heart.

[witchinatree]

making a list of my favorite quote/ones that stuck with me from each season 1 episode because i feel like it

(i'm starting this after episode 4 but it will be a WHILE before i post it)

episode 1: "bones are a lie peddled by Big Milk" - alice

i love this one because it's a great introduction to alice i think. also it radiates spiral so i hope we get avatar alice not dead alice (isnt there a podcast called alice isnt dead?)

episode 2: "If I wanted to clear the canvas, I would have used turpentine." - statement

this one was just fucking powerful and caught me so off guard like 😶

episode 3: "What would I do without her?" - statement

the norris statement <3 it feels like martin asking what he would do without jon which makes mag200 a lot sadder and i love them

episode 4: "Perhaps you shall prove a stronger will than I, and will yet find it within yourself to destroy this hungry thing of wood and cat-gut." - statement

augustus sighting #1 and we immediately get jonah magnus expressing that it may be possible for gwen bouchard unknown family member to overcome the eye's hunger spooky violin

episode 5: "Voyeur needs to be seen to be believed." - statement

i feel like this one is pretty reflective of how the seasons gonna go? like if you explain the events of tma (mag200 specifically) no one's gonna believe you, it must be seen to be believed!! and also seen!! like the eye!!!

episode 6: "Not sca- This isn’t some poxy blood test, some little pinprick, this is hundreds, thousands of razor sharp points pushing into your flesh." - needles

i love needles so much and i thought this was really funny because it was like "you dont find me scary!! what the fuck!!!" just kind of toddler michael energy

episode 7: "It’s not like we’re wrestling with tape recorders and manila folders." - celia

STOP IT. celia you can't say that you just cannot!!!!!! you Know™ too much maam i cant with you

episode 8: "Pleasure to meet you both. I’m Gerry!"

RAGHHHHH OH MY GOD GERRY!!!! i love him so much and idk how to handle him being alive in the tmagp universe!! gertrude too but idk we got so much of her in tma and not nearly enough of gerry

episode 9: "And honestly, it’s kind of compelling by this point." - sam

they got him 😔😔 the horrors got sam 😔😔 also i found this to be an interesting contrast to jon's heavy resistance in season 1 like he was being compelled but he wasn't going to let anyone know that vs sam "its kinda compelling to trauma dump on this paperwork :]" how is he somehow even more victim material

episode 10: "Gosh you’re sexy, here’s a twenty for your trouble.” - alice

does this count as a quote if shes also quoting what she thinks sam should say? idk anyway i love her i would say that to her if given the chance and it was very silly. i will not be addressing bonzo i am scared.

episode 11: "...Thank you, Alice" - gwen

dyhard dyhard dyhard dyhard dyhard. okay also, the way she CRUMBLED at the idea of anyone doing anything nice for her please someone give her a hug and let it be ME. this series is tossing me back and forth between sam & alice (what is their ship name) and dyhard but this put me back to dyhard

episode 12: "You know it's rude to have absolutely no game?" - alice

she's so fucking funny i need her to be okay so badly!!!! i don't think even tim made me laugh as much as she makes me chuckle and this one really got me. it's hard to write such a comedic character in a podcast since you only have the voice but they really nailed it i adore her

episode 13: "Is it my fault?" - gwen

each of these episodes just reveal a little bit more about how loving and soft gwen is and idk i love her so unbelievably much so seeing that she felt guilt about the bonzo stuff just made her so much more real :(

episode 14: "Christ, they’re in the walls…" - statement

theyre in the walls!!! theyre in the goddamn walls!!!!! anyway that got me because i realized the hole before the statement said it. made more sad than scared tbh

episode 15: "Babies are cool!" - alice this entire interaction between her and sam & celia was so awkward, she is so obvious and i love her anyway

episode 16: "It’s not like I was holding doors open for Mr Bonzo or anything." - gwen my wife is so so so stupid but i adore her AND this gives room for character development. i wish she did not do that though. i love when characters are flawed and have depth but i struggled to get past THIS flaw of hers

episode 17: "Thanks, I guess. Not exactly the same, though, is it?" - celia shes talking TO JON IN THE COMPUTER. SHE KNOWS. i lost my damn mind i love her i love her. get the gay people out of the puter please queen

episode 18: "Why would I need to talk to you? Your work is satisfactory. Unless you have a work-related issue I could assist you with?" - lena solidified my opinion that lena is the best boss to ever have, i adore her and i would want to work for her if she wasn't the boss of Creepy Establishment #1

episode 19: "You’re going to throw it in the fishtank, aren’t you?" - alice colin's behavior is like really worrying BUT i'm glad he's back. i was not convinced he was still alive

episode 20: "I suppose it’s too late for remorse, isn’t it? And why should I be sorry? This is what I deserve!" - ink5oul/statement they reminded me of jon a lot, like especially his season 3/4 transformation when he doesn't quite know everything but he knows he isn't who he was in season 1 anymore, i hope we see more of their life and they can be helped :(

episode 21: [Tape Recorder Bites Ink5oul] - audio description i know it's not technically a quote but this is just so fucking funny. why does it have teeth. what does this mean for the lore. holy shit.

episode 22: "Jonathan Sims and Martin Blackwood" - celia. knawing at the walls of my enclosure i am so not okay. i'm not okay. wtf. wtf. wtf. they're real. wtf.

episode 23: "I had a favorite mug. It said “love you, bitch” and had a picture of a drunk dog on it." - alice. okay i just love this entire interaction because gwen got to open up a little bit and my dyhard heart is so full

episode 24: "I am told that children like me, and I’ve always held the opinion that the world would be a better place if everyone just thought more." - basira. once again this whole interaction was so fun but like idk i loved hearing basira somewhat happy and in a safe place :] my wife <3

episode 25: " I am trying to help, to save us from this goddamned fucking nightmare machine!" - colin. MAN I REALLY WAS ROOTING FOR YOU!!! I WAS SO CONFIDENT YOU WEREN'T GONNA DIE!!!! it's over

episode 26: "I was worrying for a moment that you were Magnussing." - alice. MAGNUSSING BEING CANON MADE ME SAY IT EVEN MORE I'VE SAID IT LIKE TWICE ALREADY

episode 27: "You didn’t tell me the room was labelled, “Archivist.”" - celia. oooooh somebody's got TRAUMAAAAA LMAO

episode 28: "So you’re telling me you know nothing about an OIAR external contract being found with the bodies of two tattooed thugs who met rather grisly ends?" - TREVOR HERBERT???? anyway. ink5oul mention!!!!! i hope they stop killing people it's really rude

episode 29: "Alice, er… we’ve got to talk. It’s important." - teddy. i knew it was over for him but i didn't think it was gonna be THIS bad??? bye babe i guess??? 😭

episode 30: how do i even pick. the whole fucking episode. i can't. i am in a state of shock. i need to lay down for 30 years.

[gigatron-the-wise]

*sits u down and shines a bright light in your face*

Do you actually have a hard time differentiating platonic and romantic feelings or are you hopelessly lost in your feelings for the one person in your life you can’t bear to lose right now? Is the idea of rejection equally as crushing as the idea of having to live with unspoken words? Is rejection really that bad? Or is the yearning the worst part? How can you live with this, and how far are you willing to run away from yourself? Is the person you’re “confused” about worth the phantom pains in your chest? Why do you do this to yourself? Is this better somehow?

[unytret]

As someone who got put on to swarla after the don’t get dressed scene blew up, I’ve decided to right my wrongs by actually paying attention to Swainy and Lady C pre-swarla era, and listen… I wish I experienced it in real time. Can I say something that’s already been said? I would’ve wanted this era to last a 🤏🏽 longer. And in the name of wishing it lasted longer, in the name of wishing they shared more scenes learning about each others past, inevitably making their bond more undeniable, I have another wild take. This one might actually get me into trouble, but that’s why I’m posting it on here and nowhere else. Cause this is a safe space, right?? Even if that means I’m talking to myself?? Great. Here it is:

I don’t think Lisa wanted to have children. Like at all. Even when she knew Becky wanted to. Even when they got the news that it would be a girl. She didn’t. want. kids.

explanation coming w/ a pinch of canonical context in pt. 2.

[purplesimmer455]

Riley sits with the kids to eat pancakes and Nancy and Haruo both turn to them. “Ri, is it true that there are half fish half horses in the water? Nan told me they live in Brindleton Bay and come ashore during full moons.” Haruo says, his eyes wide and Riley glances at their daughter, who blinks innocently at them before grinning. “No, nooboo. But there are so many real and cool local sea creatures here. Such as the long and short fin squid, winter skates, butterfish*, etc.” Riley says, trying to remember from the website they’d checked out on the plane ride to Joe and Aubrey's house. “Wow okay,” Haruo says and he begins to ask Riley a bunch of questions that they answer as best as they can.

Meanwhile, I hadn’t seen Aubrey in a bit so I clicked his photo and saw that he was still at the park. He was sitting next to a fancy looking sim named Yasmin West, and just chilling. I cheated his needs to full because he’d been out there all night and made him come back home.

[gggeebs]

…okay mr Rolan “ship of theseus” deep.

[eclipsecrowned]

I mean, philosophically, we could debate all day, and the fact you asked me this at all means we’re probably on opposite ends of the argument. Ye olde discourse. Is the attractive white man culpable in the evil he serves, even unwillingly? None of which is relevant to what I meant in that post.

By actual moral alignment in universe, he’s measurably Evil alignment. Selfish, underhanded, unapologetic, disruptive, completely opposed to the concept of altruism, in-universe racist… I love him to bits, genuinely I do. My trauma response was Seen in that man. I say that so you understand I love this character unironically. But he’s Evil. Neutral Evil, but Evil.

The best I can give you is that depending on choices made the guy of six months later hunting down people and happy people accept him for it could maybe character develop into a very dark True Neutral. But yeah. He’s Evil, and my NG Cleric is kissing him for it.

[aldisobey]

What. What the fuck DO YOU MEAN you've only been writing fic since Veilguard?

???!!!???!!!!!!!!

And it's so good?????

@excited-hiss

I uh. I’m blushin. My eyes burn. I didn’t consider myself a ‘writer’ until a few months back. Reading this—from you? Meltin. I line tile. now one with grout.

I’ve always written! Always. But you’re only a writer if published right? See I am also dumb. and a coward. And writing a character I didn’t create terrifies me. Because then you can get it wrong? I didn’t make that voice how could I write it?! Fanfic?!! Never. Sacrilege. I’m not even a writer I wouldn’t defile…

BUT EMMRICH. I had to see him. I had to see more. And I wanted to show what I thought HAPPENED. I didn’t have an AO3 account. I worked on that for weeks. The hours would be embarrassing. But that was my first post on tumblr.com. Bless those first likes. I was seconds from deleting. And I would’ve missed all the friendship and community being a WRITER of fanfic of all things brought!! I love you all.

And it’s been so fun to share that and get to see other takes. I worried for nothing. There are no rules. We are all writers if we’re writing and it’s a glorious thing. I don’t know how to put it…but hmm. I love the writing and Emmrook community, sincerely. Earlier hangups scared me off fanfic when it’s all fun.