#each of them had an important role at some point in my life

[professorcalculusstanaccount]

Tintin Tarot - A Fool's Journey, Part One. A collaboration with @josephscoat who knows a lot about tarot and other spiritual and cultural topics. They're a very talented writer too, so go check them out!

They first pointed out how perfectly the Fool tarot card mapped onto Tintin himself, and it led to me illustrating the Major Arcana as Tintin characters. I'm surprised Moulinsart hasn't released an official Tintin tarot deck yet, though knowing them if they did they'd probably just reuse existing art...

I wanted this set to reference the Rider-Waite tarot deck, as it's iconic! I tried to keep as much symbolism from this deck as possible, while incorperating a lot of appropriate Tintin references. It was important to us that none of these felt like a stretch, so we tried our best to find the best fit for each card, including the card's reverse meaning!

The Fool - New beginnings, taking risks, embarking on a new adventure, independence and blind faith. He even has a little white dog. Of course Tintin is the Fool! The yellow tights indicate he moves forward with self confidence, even if forwards means off a ledge. He carries a white flower, symbolising purity.

The Magician - Manifestation, creation, resourcefulness and inspired action. Calculus's inventions behind him are a nod to each element - the shark submarine represents water, the moon rocket represents fire, the sound weapon represents air and the white roses he creates for Castafiore represent earth! On the table we have Didi's sword, a bottle of Loch Lommond whiskey, a pentacle and King Ottokar's sceptre. This card is my favourite!

The High Priestess - Mystery, intuition and the subconcious mind. Madame Yamilah was the obvious pick, being canonically psychic! I incorperated the curtains from the theatre she performs at, as well as the columns Haddock knocks over, now in black and white to represent light and dark.

The Empress - Motherhood, protection, femininity. There aren't many parents in the Tintin universe, probably by design. Mrs Wang came to mind. I used phoenix motifs in her headress as in Chinese culture they are symbols of femininity, and are distinct from the fiery immortal birds from Greek mythology.

The Emperor - Fatherhood, authority, structure, control. Mr Wang runs a crime fighting organisation and is Didi and Chang's stern father. Dragon motifs represent masculinity, and I referenced ancient Chinese armour as a symbol of protection.

The Hierophant - Tradition, conformity. The Prince of the Sun sticks closely to ancient laws and traditions, but like the card's reverse, is open to new approaches, such as when he takes in Zorrino. I gave him some elements of the priest's clothing to symbolise the Prince's role as a religious leader.

The Lovers - Partnerships, duality and unity! Despite being identical, the Thomsons aren't related. They in fact come from different countries - one is from France and the other is from Switzerland. Me and my friend confirmed this fact at the Herge museum in Belgium! The card's reverse meaning, disharmony and loss of balance, is also very much in line with the Thomsons. I included the internet famous Gay Lions in the background!

The Chariot - Direction. Control. Willpower. These are the perfect descriptors for Arturo Benedetto Giovanni Giuseppe Pietro Arcangelo Alfredo Cartoffoli, the Italian driver that helps out Tintin and Haddock in the Calculus Affair. He may have only appeared for a few pages, and I may be the only person to get this reference, but he is a perfect fit. He drives.

Strength - Compassion, bravery, endurance. Not only has Chang demonstrated these qualities in Tintin in Tibet, he's had to endure a lot of hardship throughout his life, being orphaned, swept up in a flood and watching his home get torn apart by imperial forces. He still comes out the other side patient and compassionate, being one of the few people to recognise a form of humanity in the Yeti, and possibly being the one to change Tintin's entire political journey! Chang is draped with juniper berries.

The Hermit - Laszlo Carreidas is a lonely and isolated millionnaire who goes through a huge personality change. Being drugged with a truth serum makes him more honest and open. His base personality before his development fits with the card's reverse - isolation and a loss of direction.

Wheel of Fortune - Alcazar and Tapioca's conflict is an endless cycle of war for political control. The Wheel of Fortune represents cycles and inevitable fate. Reversed, it represents a lack of control - both Alcazar and Tapioca cycle between having absolute power and no power at all. I dressed Tapioca as Anubis as a nod to the original card!

Justice - I picked Miarka to represent Justice as she and her community are wrongfully accused of crime due to being profiled. Instead of a sword she weilds the golden pair of scissors she is accused of stealing, and the gemstone representing a third eye is the Castafiore emerald. The owl, a symbol of wisdom, and the magpie from the Castafiore Emerald sit beside her.

[lemurchick]

Another 'wonderful news' from Russia for your consideration! This week, the BRICS forum on traditional values took place in Moscow. And it was fucking insane.

In short, the opening meeting was BRICS countries representatives verbally jerking off on how well they oppress or plan to oppress their people especially women. The only person who bothered to contradict this narrative was Egyptian female writer Doha Mustafa Assy.

I will translate some quotes from the russian article. https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/7311174

Russia: "At some point the roles for women have begun to change towards independence and self-sufficiency. We, of course, love and respect our women very much, but we want them to pay more attention to their families, men and children. We do not want them to strive for business, politics, economics, power, or culture. <...> The main traditional value is the preservation of natural purpose, where a woman continues the family line and a man inspires her to give birth to children."

Pakistan: "Any traditional religion upholds and promotes social values and traditions. No father would want to harm his family. No mother would want to break up or disintegrate her family. This <rejection of family values> is deliberately imposed on us and promoted by some power circles”

Ethiopia: "In our country it is traditionally women who do the cooking, teaching children and other family duties. So the man's role is not as big as the woman's, and this tradition gives the man the freedom to behave like a child." (?????)

Uganda: [This country experience is “extremely important to the discussion of legislative protection of religious values,” emphasized russian politician Dmitry Kuznetsov, referring to the fact that in Uganda same-sex relations are prohibited, and in some cases violators face life imprisonment or even the death penalty.] “We did this to make sure that the country would be preserved. I would encourage countries to behave in such a way that the culture that exists in each country is not imposed on others.” btw Brazil and South Africa representatives didn't say a word here even though their countries legalized same-sex mafrriage years ago.

Brazil: "Marriage in no longer a goal for our citizens and the country has the highest divorce rate in history. Meanwhile, children are most often left with their mothers, with fathers unwilling to take part in their upbringing. As a result, many Brazilian boys are growing up without a father figure and 9% of male inmates in prisons don't even know their father's name. Shifting the balance in favor of women leads to the fact that the position of feminism is growing, and the number of people who identify as LGBT people is growing.” At the end of his speech, he marveled, “This is my first time in Russia, and I didn't know you guys were so conservative. I'm so happy, it's so impressive!” He also admitted that “the people of Brazil know nothing about Russia,” and Dmitry Kuznetsov promised: “We will come to you and tell you all about our saving conservatism.”

Egypt: As I mentioned in the beginning the only person who actively argued against this trend was Doha Mustafa Assy. She said: "We on the contrary has a struggle against patriarchy. Tradition and religion are not on women's side, they help men. A lot of women in Egypt ask for divorce only because they feel like slaves at home. He (the husband) has the right not to let her leave the house according to tradition. BRICS is India, it's China, it's Russia, it's Egypt. We are very different. And maybe what you are trying to do in Russia has already became a problem for us”.

To be honest I don't know what will come out of this forum. Maybe it's just empty posturing, maybe BRICS countries just sent people who had free time on their hand here as a formality. But I despair reading these quotes; twenty years ago we sent a singing duet posing as lesbians to Eurovision; ten years ago I was watching lesbian drama Blue Is the Warmest Colour in a full theater. Soviet Union gave women some attempt in an equal rights in fucking 1917 and we were the first country to send a woman in space. What happened? How has it turned this way? We are now friends with some of the most patriarchal countries in the world and with fucking North Korea. They are planning to remove the Taliban's terrorist status.

What the hell.

[accio-victuuri]

「 I AM NOT HERE 」 clowning post part iv. aka the main candy compilation now that we have the whole song. here’s part one & two & three for reference which are very short ones.

before we dive into the cpns, i wanna congratulate yibo for another exceptional song! the lyrics are so good and his voice??? his voice??? you all know the part i’m talking about— it’s singer yibo!

let’s start with this ⬆️⬆️⬆️ i think the side by side photo is self explanatory. you have xz drawing the mountains and yibo integrating himself into it and became the mountain himself. i like this whole concept of him being in nature, being all around this person even if he is not there physically as himself. this is so special too considering we always clown about them loving camping & hiking — and other outdoorsy stuff. it may be that nature reminds yibo of those happy times they spend together exploring that environment.

now let’s move on to a very yizhan-y interpretation of the song…

1. some fans have pointed out that it’s 2000 days since the 12.28 tencent starlight awards where they were together. it was post-cql and them going into new roles — a start of well, more complicated times, but they had each other. i don’t really believe too much in these anniversary cpns but i will just leave this here.

2. comparing the water theme & mountains from xz’s photoshoot before that had us all going 🥵🥵🥵, it matches the imagery from yibo’s song.

3. the official description of the song provided by music platforms gave a solid perspective of what it is all about & it’s not far off what we think it is when the teaser/s came out.

“I" is rooted in this land, connected by veins, and time and space are close to each other. "I" live in symbiosis with the mountain, breathe with you, and experience the ups and downs of life. We go through the ups and downs with all things, so the green mountains are flat, and "I" is always present.

I am here, a dialogue with the world. I AM NOT HERE, but I will always be there. This is what "I’m here" is all about. So darling, DON'T BE CRYING, Because this song is a symphony between you and me.

Let me just sit and think about this. It’s such a beautiful meaning. Their love goes beyond the romantic and it’s real. You can see it all around you.

4. Time to dissect the first half of the lyrics 🎶

Many years later // Where will I turn back and look? // Holding flowers I've never seen before // Facing toward you

this reminds us of their first meeting in the field of flowers. out of all the things he can start with, why this? also the graphics for xz’s album is an eternal flower. if we look at it further, it’s more than the literal sense too. the flower he hasn’t seen is this new feeling and having this one person that is became so important to him. the first line is also telling, cause it’s like he is looking back at that moment, many years later, out of all his time, that time is what he wants to recall.

Waving my hand // Don't stay on the lonely island // I'll become a small boat to take you to find the oasis

we knew of this line already and it’s still so romantic. it’s this person who is alone but wyb wants to take him away and help him find that oasis. oftentimes, people tend to have that selfish type of love where they want the other to be isolated. but yibo is not like that. he wants to take the person outside, see the world and fins that happiness together. and him being a small boat is too cute! like he knows he is not that strong but he will do his best to make a difference in his (xz) life and give him freedom & happiness.

My heart enters the mountains / My body sinks into the sea / All to reunite with you and return

the integration of himself with nature. how he has to sink into the sea so he can reunite with that person.

5. second part of the lyrics 🙌🏼. just a disclaimer that he had someone working with him to create this song and the lyrics, but that doesn’t mean he had 0 input. we all know how yibo is at this point and something as personal as his year-end song definitely had his approval with every line.

Falling, scattering into dust

And then being reborn

Pointing at the fireworks

in the sky, never fading

Are you there?

You just need not cry

You just need to bloom

And I will never leave

Don't be crying x 3

You don't need to wait

I'm here

I'm here

Don't be crying

i am weak for that first line, the thought of scattering into dust and being reborn. that’s some eternal love right there! we have reincarnation cpn at some point in the fandom so that feeds into that. the idea of yibo believing in that kind of love, never ending, not even in death makes me feel some type of way 🥹🥹🥹

next up is the imagery of fireworks. something he seems to be fond off per that video ybo shared before. also connect that to when xz was watching the fireworks during shooting wrap.

then it moves into him telling the person to not cry, you just need to bloom and he will never leave. I have explained the very real cpn about this whole crying thing before and it’s such a sweet sentiment! it’s a simple and honest promise, i will not make you cry. you just have to do what you want. yibo is there and will support xz as he succeeds (blooms).

and the last part is the nail in the coffin. you don’t need to wait, i’m here.

well who do we know at some point said that waiting is romantic?

hmmmmm. xiao zhan 🥰🥰🥰🥰

waiting. this word is very charming, it encourages people to expect. if you told me, someone is waiting for me, i would feel very moved. whether it’s my parents, or my lover, i feel that “waiting” is a very romantic word; to have something beautiful in the future waiting.

so this is yibo’s answer. you don’t have to. I’m here.

I hope everyone is having a fun weekend right now! listening to this new song, watching ETU and later follow yibo along at an event 🥂

-END

[skay-ali]

The idea of ​​a very stubborn reader sounds very interesting.

like taking bad injuries in your life if it means being able to have fun and forget about your fucking family.

Thirteen is a great example of the new behavior she would take, trampling the rules and doing what she wants along with her friends, I also see her taking on the role of queen bee of her school.

always being the image of a perfect teenager with a wonderful life, that everyone envies.

Although I think her entire group of friends knows her true situation, I think they all know about each other's lives, something that makes them closer.

I imagine that all of them always have the same class schedules, they always go shopping together, pick-up parties every weekend or attend parties all together and abandon it to go to any of the houses of one of the girls in the group.

the idea that they are all cheerleaders together or have created a club just to be together.

Maybe it will become real that best friends get sick just like the movie Sweet and Dangerous.

Maybe in a small possibility that all of them gained some power or something similar and became heroines.

The point is that I see ___ being happy with her friends and her crazy life.

I can already imagine her entire family, from her brothers to her father, watching the young woman glued to her phone with a drink and dressed in a very different way from the strict and elegant one she had before, maybe that sets off her alarms.

ohhh just the possibility that all the girls have robbed a bank easily, embarrassing security by taking millions from the safe, extra points if they belong to the Waynes or some other millionaire family.

I can see all the girls enjoying their vacation after disappearing after robbing the big bank in their city.

the faces of the heroes who investigate the case when they see that only a group of girls achieved a great feat.

the look of the batfamily when they saw one of their own being one of the criminals they were looking for.

the moment when they realize that they actually ruined one of the family members with all their actions.

and reader seeing them with an angry face like "damn they are recognizing me as one of the best thieves, I am the center of attention, but they do anything to make you the important ones" when he sees them in the middle of their collapses and descent into obsession .

I think I like the idea of ​​criminal best friends better. like the girls being processed while Bruce and his fellow heroes watch as his daughter poses for the criminal record camera with her friends, as if her case and crime were not serious.

I don't know what a stupid idea in my urgency to write something and have fun.

[doberbutts]

hello! I'm the one that sent you that ask a week or so ago. Sorry I didn't check to see if you'd answered for a while because I was just so upset and had to take a second. I will say I scrolled through a bunch of helpful posts you reblogged before I even found the ask again that helped a LOT.

Two things I thought you might want to know is that it wasn't speculation that you'd blocked the weirdo blog that sent me your way: they literally have "proudly blocked by doberbutts" in their bio which was why i felt safe coming to you lmao. Second is I guess my struggle with this issue was an overall struggle with how bad wider misogyny has gotten in general and how muddied it's gotten with the "male loneliness crisis" and like, centering men's issues under patriarchy and just how insanely upset it's been making me. Seeing cis MRAs identify with trans men freaked me out because like, yeah it's important to talk about how (cis) men suffer under patriarchy but it's just so rare for me to find men do that without devolving into misogyny, and I start to feel so helpless because I know validating these issues matter but women are being literally dehumanized openly. I do play oppression olympics with this specific issue and just of COURSE women suffer more under patriarchy, but the same men who demand space to air how they suffer won't acknowledge that truth. (sorry for soapboxing; some of them do! It's just...things are so bad for women rn lol it's really hard to have compassion when it feels like none is being given to me).

So the more I see this issue the more I think people are being affected by larger misogyny like I am, but are doing the typical thing that happens where you lash out at a group you can "reach." Policing and harassing trans men's behaviours is way easier than cis men. I've also been seeing some parallels between this discourse and the "gay men vs lesbian women" discourse. It's not really a one-to-one but the discussion of the role of misogyny re homophobia towards gay men who still have male privilege but, come on, if they have feminine affectation it's Different and the back and forth that used to happen when gay men and lesbian women did oppression olympics, it just feels similar.

idk as i type this I hope I don't come across disingenuous or like, my Too Casual Overly Respectful tone is trying to subtly incept you. I worry my vibes are too "women first" but I just can't help it misogyny really is ruining my life 😭. Anyways I'm very grateful for your perspective and your blog. I feel more settled and equipped to push back against anti transmasculine behaviour with rhetoric that can actually challenge people

To respond to each point in turn:

1: Again I still don't really know who that is, though I am somewhat bemused by the idea that someone I clearly don't really remember is still so obsessed with me that they're proud I've blocked them. For the record, my block list is as follows: people who send anonymous hate, people who continue to harass me after I've told them to stop, people I catch with posts containing inexcusable bigotry, obvious trolls, self-identified zoophiles and MAPs, and people who repeatedly send me fundraisers after I have already said I only share fundraisers from people I know and trust. Being on my block list is, um, not really good company, so it's kind of funny to me that someone is proud to be there. Yeah I'm sure they'll fit right in with the neo-nazis and dogfuckers and cyber bullies. Oh and I guess my ex but I only blocked them after they started harassing me about our failed relationship years later. Enjoy block hell I suppose.

2: I'm not really here to play who has it worse, not because I don't recognize the wider understanding of privilege vs oppression but because I think it is a self-defeating thread of thought because you will always find a "more oppressed" example, and I think that people should be allowed to talk about their hurts regardless of their status of "more oppressed" vs "less oppressed". Talking about the ways society has hurt them is not what makes MRAs dangerous. What makes them dangerous is who they blame, how they go about fixing their problem, and the solutions to their problems they come up with.

To be quite frank, the majority of MRAs are men who have experienced some form of social rejection or isolation. Most have been sold some patriarchal lie about how by being men they inherently deserve good sex with hot women on demand, a wife at home to keep barefoot and pregnant, a high paying job where they are respected and valued regardless of the effort they themselves put into it, and all the luxuries that lifestyle can afford. This is a fantasy, you and I both know it. And when these men realize the hard reality that we live in an age of extreme social isolation, that in order to have a partner you need to actually have more personality than a used dishrag and with only half the mess at max, that good sex is about give and take and not just yourself, that these high paying jobs are few and far between with most takers being born into some level of wealth rather than any merit they themselves have earned... they lash out.

It does not at all help things to understand that many of these MRAs are themselves marginalized in some way, but their framework not only doesn't let them see it but also advocates a harsh rejection of anyone who is self-aware enough to realize it. A lot of these guys are undiagnosed, have trauma, and are just as affected by the systems of racism, classism, homo- and trans-phobia, xenophobia, sexism, and ableism as the rest of us.

Quite frankly, I'd rather these dudes see a group of (trans) men fighting for our place in society by joining hands with other activists with more feminist, black-friendly, disabled-friendly, gay- and trans-friendly in an attempt to lift everyone out of the pit rather than continuing to fight over scraps... than to see them continue to blame women and Jews and then go shoot up a school or a mall about it. One of these helps. The other just kills people and excuses rape. There's a lot of value in deradicalizing people by offering them a path to resolving their pain that is perhaps less destructive and more constructive.

This is also why the constant comparison to MRAs annoys me. MRAs kill people in senseless acts of terror and despair because they're upset that they're not having the sex fantasy the patriarchy sold them. Trans men talking about our oppression- regardless of the word we use to express it- are mostly talking amongst ourselves about suicide and rape statistics and sharing ways to get hormones and surgery despite unwilling doctors and insurance companies. We're talking about how our social groups rejected us the moment we came out, or how people use us being men against us in ways that was not happening before we came out or passed. These are not at all equivalent conversations.

3: Again I ask you- I see people using both cis and trans feminist frameworks to hurt other people. Where is your concern for that? I am equally concerned about TERFs as I am about MRAs, as they have driven multiple transgender people and our allies to suicide and even have committed acts of violence against people irl as a result of their ideology. Most TERFs will also be the first ones to tell you that they have been hurt, deeply, by men and that they also are frequently undiagnosed or untreated, traumatized, and affected by the same systems of oppression. Does their existence and their determination to latch onto every feminist conversation including those of people who are staunchly against them then poison all feminism to you? If not, then why make that distinction for trans men and MRAs?

I am black. I am Indigenous. I am transgender. I am gay. I am disabled. I am poor. I suffer. People hurt me. I see every day how bad things are. Do you think I cannot see it, or that my ignorance is the reason for my request for compassion? Perhaps consider that it is rather my knowledge and my lived experience that fuel my call for compassion, instead. I never said it would be easy. But I do think it would make a better world.

4: I do actually agree that it is very similar to the gay man vs lesbian conversation and have said for a while that it's the same queer infighting discussion we've already hashed out for the last 50 or so years, but the target groups just swapped out. It's just butchphobia, it's just biphobia, it's just aphobia, it's just panphobia, it's just nbphobia- it's the same fucking shit over and over and over again. It was shit infighting before and it's shit infighting now. Privilege is a conversation that depends so heavily on context, and the way it has been bastardized by the internet's poor understanding of political frameworks developed by women of color and their allies into cute soundbites and phrases rather than a deep, nuanced knowledge will never fail to annoy me.

Do gay men have privilege over lesbians? As a class, sure, they would have male privilege. But what do we mean by male privilege? The privilege to not worry about being assaulted on the street? To walk home late at night unbothered? To marry who they want, to have the romantic partner they desire, to feel safe within a domestic partnership? You and I both know that doesn't quite match up to the lived experience of gay men worldwide or even here in the "gay paradise" US. How does this interact with other marginalizations? Does a black gay man have privilege over a white lesbian? What happens if he's a drag queen dressed up for an event and she's a butch that passes for cis male? Does that change retroactively if this "gay man" figures out she's actually a transbian 5 years later, and the lesbian is a TERF? I'm not saying this breaks the framework of male privilege- I am saying that sometimes the theory doesn't match the reality, and a nuanced and intersectional understanding is required when talking on an individual scope rather than class politics.

Additionally- as a side note- it is also incredibly annoying to watch people act like privilege = oppressor = dangerous, and oppressed = victim = safe. Privilege, and whether or not you have any, is not a moral indicator nor is it an indicator of the safety of the person you're interacting with. I have privilege over people who cannot walk, because I can. I am not objectively or systemically oppressing people who cannot walk by the use of my legs in my day-to-day life. Oppression is action- if I vote for policies and politicians that removes ramps and safety regulations and provisions to assist wheelchair users? Now I am oppressing people who cannot walk. If I block or move or interfere with the disability aids, if I mock people or assault or harm them, if I dump them out of their mobility aids or break them, that is oppression. The act of climbing the 3 stairs on my front porch to get into my house is a privilege, but the oppression stems from the people who built my house to even have stairs on both exits.

5: lastly to end a very long post, I don't actually think there's any harm in centering yourself when discussing things that objectively affect you, as long as you remember to include others who are affected and let them have their floor to also center themselves when they need to speak up. I am a black trans man. My politics are pretty centered on black feminism. I don't think that is objectively a bad thing. I prefer to let the demographics with similar problems speak for themselves- I would rather my trans fem friends get the mic when they open their mouths, my lesbian friends, my Jewish friends, my latino and asian and arab friends. I don't think there's anything wrong with them centering their own problems and outlooks, as long as they recognize that there's shared space to be had with others who feel similar hurts. I think it's pretty normal to center yourself. I think the difficult thing is knowing when to relinquish the megaphone to someone who's been dying to use it, while you yourself still have so much to say.

[justallihere]

Okay, I did some laundry, I've had lunch, I've breathed fresh air and taken some deep breaths (did not touch any grass because it's covered in snow), and we're back. My wrap up thoughts of Onyx Storm are below! Be warned it's chock full of spoilers, and these are all my honest opinions. I haven't even given this a rating yet because I don't really know what I want to rate it! Nothing's really in order so sorry about that. But I look forward to hearing everyone else's thoughts!

I loved that the importance of the bond between dragon and human was emphasized so heavily in this book. That Asher called Aimsir Lilith's first love, Violet telling Tairn he's the gift of her life, that even Halden knew that the true barrier to her would be the dragon bond - and especially that when Xaden channeled again, in a way that he knew would irreversibly damn him, he did it for Sgaeyl. To keep her safe, because she chose him before and above everyone else.

I adored the Riorgail of it all. They were open and honest with each other, saying I love you practically every other breath, declaring their loyalty and devotion to each other in front of anyone who would listen. I loved that we got them as a team, facing stuff together and trusting that what they couldn't the other could handle it.

On the other hand, it may just be me but they didn't quite feel like themselves. Maybe because it was the first time we've truly seen them be public about their feelings, but they didn't feel like the same Xaden and Violet from the previous two books. Xaden felt so intense that everything he said gave me anxiety, devoted to the point of obsession. I would actually call Violet morally gray here, but it came out of nowhere; there wasn't a great transition into that change in her character, none of the hesitation or guilt I'd expect.

In short, they kind of felt like my Xaden and Violet and not canon? I loved them, but I'm not sure it matches what we know of them from FW and IF and the change in character didn't feel entirely smooth.

But Xaden IS her sword!!!!

The worldbuilding was ridiculous. Violet was dropping facts left right and center like the details of the aristocracy and politics at play were common knowledge - and maybe they are in world, but if they're that obvious then I feel like those details should've been worked into earlier books. I felt like I was floundering trying to keep up with all the new names and titles and roles.

In the same vein, the lore about magic made no sense. So only the Continent has magic but why? Was it drained from other places? Does it only occur naturally in certain areas? Dragons don't have magic that exists within them - they also draw from the source which? Hello hypocrites much? That was another thing that was said so casually, but that should've been one of those things we learned in Fourth Wing, at Threshing or right after.

There was too much happening with the plot to the point that I lost it completely. The trips to the isles were overwhelming. I know the venin and the irids were tied together, but those two things competed so much that I kept forgetting about whichever one we weren't talking about. Literally just. . . forgot about the venin there for a bit in the middle. We were looking for a cure but we were looking for Andarna's kind but we were trying to stop the venin and we were also gathering allies and making trade deals and none of those points were fleshed out completely.

The ending was vague and confusing in a way that made me frustrated instead of interested or anticipatory. I read the last two chapters three times and I still don't know what the fuck was going on there. So the Sage is. . . Fen? Is Garrick the one who also turned? Bodhi? Brennan? Ridoc? Fuck if I know. I understand the point of the marriage, to give Violet control over Tyrrendor legally, but I'm also pissed at the way it happened.

I know we don't want anyone to actually die, but I literally didn't even flinch when Mira's throat got cut open because I figured she'd be fine. There were no important deaths. Trager and Quinn didn't hit that hard. Not putting any of the main characters in significant danger makes the stakes feel lower than they should.

The fan service made me roll my eyes. I get it to a certain extent, but there were several times when I legitimately kind of felt like RY had been in fandom spaces or someone on her team was just feeding her popular theories to include.

The marked ones having second signets was. . . not my favorite choice, because logistically it doesn't make much sense. We should statistically see at least one of them go mad from the power instead of developing a second signet. And I actually think if that had been included it would have been more interesting! I'd like to see the reality of the risks that were taken to make the rebellion happen, but instead they just got really really lucky a bunch of times?

The use of the word Riorgail in print sent me to the fucking moon. No.

Violet's second signet. . . I don't want to talk about it.

Actually no I do. Since when are signets based on situational need and not who a person is at their core? Was that not what we were told previously? Am I tripping? I don't mind the power itself but I am confused.

Professor Riorson had me on the ground laughing. What the hell was that. There are enough barriers to their relationship, and that one felt too forced (but great fodder for smutty fic).

The characters and their relationships are the standout of the book and the series. I already said I loved Xaden and Violet here, but I also loved their friendships and how real especially the relationship with Brennan and Mira and Violet felt. The humor and the quips and the squad's constant support of each other was wonderful.

I'm holding onto those Sloane and Dain crumbs like a teddy bear you all have no idea. I love them.

Aaric being the one with precognition I didn't see coming, but I surprisingly liked it! I loved him stepping more into his role as prince and seeing how cunning and smart he really is.

Halden was unnecessary but I live for possessive and jealous Xaden.

Overall I think the pacing was crammed and the worldbuilding left me with more questions than answers, but did I still like it? Yes! I don't think it's my favorite in the series but it still was an enjoyable read. I'll want to read it again at some point I think, but not immediately!

[buddieism]

tommy's character, bucktommy's inherent flaws, tommy & eddie as mirrors and buddie endgame; a (lengthy) meta analysis

honestly, what's really confirmed my feelings about tommy (and the imminent bucktommy bones -> buddie pipeline) is that there have now been multiple opportunities for the writers to actually make tommy a likeable/serious love interest for buck and they just…haven’t. because while fans are naturally going to overanalyse every little thing, the vast majority of the show's audience are regular viewers who consume the show at face value and don't think twice about it -- so if tommy was intended to be buck's endgame or anything remotely close to it, they'd absolutely want to make the most of his (very limited) screen time to present him in the best light they could. think about karen, the only non-main LI, and how she was introduced to us -- despite hen's cheating, we can see how dedicated karen and hen are to each other and how karen is a complex character in her own right who is immediately easy to root for and love.

comparatively, when we look at tommy's s7 appearances and specifically his interactions with buck, it becomes abundantly clear that there isn't really much depth to their relationship at all. which is fine! it's just... you know. fine. let's get into it.

following the cruise arc, we watch tommy through buck's eyes in 7x04 where he's basically wining and dining eddie -- flying him to vegas, getting them front row tickets to a fight, sparring with him in muay thai, playing pick up basketball with him -- tommy and eddie are so similar (which we'll come back to later), and we even get that line from eddie about how well they "click." as the audience, we are being subconsciously told to align tommy and eddie together -- and furthermore, we are told that tommy can easily make grand gestures when he wants to. now let's compare that to the bucktommy moments of the season.

bucktommy's first date: tommy makes a shady comment that would have outed buck if eddie or marisol caught onto it and then proceeds to abandon him on the sidewalk because he thinks buck isn't "ready" for a relationship with a man

i'll be objective here -- i understand in a show like 911 there's always going to be "unnecessary" relationship conflict for the sake of drama and i can also see how buck trying to play off their date as platonic to eddie might have put a bad taste in tommy's mouth. but we hear from tommy himself that he struggled with being open about his sexuality when he was at the 118 so he could have absolutely extended some sympathy towards buck for not wanting to come out on the spot to his best friend -- especially when tommy fully knows how important of a role eddie plays in buck's life. at the very least, he didn't have to leave buck alone on the curb. this isn't me trying to woobify buck because yeah, he's a grown man, he's fine -- but that doesn't mean it still isn't a bit of an asshole move.

the bachelor party: tommy doesn't dress up for the theme and dismisses buck when he's clearly disappointed about him doing so

tommy showing zero interest for the bachelor party buck planned is practically the writers waving a massive red flag in front of the camera -- him having to leave because he's on call is an understandable 'conflict' plot point but why not have him show up in an 80s themed outfit? it wouldn't have changed anything except that he and buck would have had a positive interaction; buck would have been happy that tommy cared enough to make that small gesture and it could have been a cute way to establish their relationship as one built on mutual effort. (btw, the bucktommy hospital kiss could be seen as a big gesture, sure -- but from a more practical viewpoint knowing how rushed this season had to be, it was also just an easy way for buck to "come out" to the rest of the 118 without having to spend too much episode airtime on it.)

the medal ceremony: tommy says 'enjoy it while it lasts' (which, LOL) and also is not shown reacting to buck receiving his medal. he also has a conversation with henren in a deleted scene.

again, i'm going to try to give tommy the benefit of the doubt -- i'm not saying he has to be sunshine and rainbows all the time and i have no issue with a character having a snarky/sarcastic side. but when his screentime is so minimal, every line of dialogue matters. and it's pretty damning that the writers aren't taking those few chances to give us something to appreciate about him. with buck, tommy makes a dismissive comment for literally zero reason, and with hen and karen, who are rightfully looking out for their friend, tommy refuses to take them seriously at all.

bucktommy's dinner in the finale: buck displays some vulnerability about losing bobby, and tommy... really doesn't seem to care.

honestly i refuse to rewatch this part of the ep because it really icks me out on another level but iirc: buck says he's glad bobby's okay because bobby is like the father he never had -> tommy says "your father's alive" -> something something joke about daddy issues. ignoring #that joke entirely, it's really insane to me that they have tommy even acknowledge the nuclear bomb that is buck's relationship with his parents. yes, we had a bit of a ham-fisted 'redemption arc' in s6 but that doesn't negate the buckley parents being absolutely heinous and the fact that buck verbalises how bobby played the role of the father figure because philip didn't -- all for tommy to basically deny that to his face -- is absurd. tommy has expressed on multiple occasions that he's jealous of the 118 family bond, so this line is just... very interesting to me.

now, let's recap all these events and bring eddie back into the mix!

post-bucktommy's first date, buck is more torn up about the fact that he lied to eddie than the actual date to the point that he has to vent to maddie about it. he then comes out to eddie, who is incredibly supportive (and oliver and ryan make some very curious acting choices indeed). eddie is reiterated as one of buck's most significant relationships.

pre-bachelor party, eddie is the one to suggest he and buck dress in matching (queer-coded) costumes. he then stays by buck's side at the party when everyone else leaves and although we'll never get to see it (tim minear i'm inside your walls👹), they sing an absurdly romantic karaoke song together. eddie is reiterated as one of buck's most significant relationships.

during the medal ceremony, when the camera pans to each member of the 118's love interest/family, it is eddie we are shown smiling at buck, not tommy. this is especially interesting considering we get buck reacting to tommy. i honestly can't get over how a reciprocated tommy reaction would have been an easy yet significant moment to cement bucktommy as a relationship, but they gave us eddie's instead (with chris in the background and marisol conveniently obscured, mind you). eddie is reiterated as one of buck's most significant relationships.

in the final episode, when eddie is experiencing his personal worst nightmare, buck is the one at eddie's side every step of the way. buck talks to christopher, buck reassures eddie (without judgement), and it's made clear that buck will be there for eddie, whatever he needs.

at every possible opportunity, we the audience are being implicitly told that eddie is buck's person. he is his place of support (buck having his more vulnerable coming out scene with eddie rather than his sister); he has buck's back (the bachelor party); he is his family (medal ceremony reaction), and ultimately, this goes both ways (finale).

some other things worth noting: when buck has his coming out scene with maddie, she tells him he's confused about his feelings in a way that seems to indicate she's talking about his feelings towards eddie ("if you there's something you need to tell eddie, you will"). in bobby's conversation with buck in the firehouse, he's verbally supportive of tommy and even asks if buck is going to see him, but buck goes to eddie's house instead. these were deliberate choices made by the writers; eddie has been consistently intertwined in bucktommy's relationship both overtly and subtextually throughout the entirety of s7. and let's not even get into the whole 'evan' thing, because that could be a whole other post in itself.

from the first moment we start to learn about tommy's character (beyond his... coloured past), we find out that he and eddie are practically mirrors. why not make tommy and buck share similar interests? why not give them something to bond over? why present tommy and eddie as almost identical in every way? because tommy is a placeholder for eddie. buck's initial bisexuality journey can't happen with eddie when eddie still hasn't come to terms with his own feelings. so, in the meantime, tommy is the "safe" choice in buck's mind because buck has nothing to lose with tommy whereas he's got everything to lose with eddie. buck can't confront what he truly wants yet because the risk factor is far greater and it's been repeatedly asserted that buck has an issue with people in his life leaving -- he would never do anything to jeopardise his relationship with eddie.

but ultimately (and in my opinion, fairly soon), we are going to get that moment where it "clicks" for buck and he realises that it is eddie he has feelings for. and when that happens, there's basically only one way it can go. we know buck can't keep secrets from eddie; we know eddie is going into s8 feeling "isolated"; we know tim loves making his characters suffer before they can be happy. in my mind, the narrative is going to go something like this: buck feelings realisation -> pining buck era -> eddie healing journey and a reevaluation of what buck means to him -> some insane life-threatening situation that really doubles down on how buck and eddie care more about each other than anyone else because it is 9-1-1 at the end of the day -> love confession induced by their dramatic near-death experience -> #BUDDIE_CANON !

when we factor in how there was a possibility of eddie having the sexuality arc this season instead, how tim has said buddie is one of his favourite dynamics of the show, and how supportive both oliver and ryan are of the ship, i really can't see how everything isn't building to buddie endgame. every other main pairing of the show has had seasons of development, of conflict, of bonding moments. buck and eddie have gone through that with each other time and time over (tsunami/lawsuit/shooting arc etc), which is why every other random love interest that's introduced for either of them falls flat in comparison. they quite literally are exactly what the other person needs; buck wants the stability of a home, a family, and unconditional love; eddie wants someone he can trust, a caretaker for his son but also a partner. buddie is the ship the audience wants to root for, because we know they work! now that we have canonically bisexual buck and eddie finally having to face his complicated feelings about losing shannon, buddie isn't just the logical conclusion -- it's the inevitable one.

[set-wingedwarrior]

My most important sapphic ships post before Pride Month ends

What the title says, studying kept (and still keeps me) busy so we gotta go fast lol

Bumbleby (RWBY)

to the surprise of absolutely no one, they get first place (despite me not going in a particular order) because of reasons. They're perfect. Soulmates. Slowburn of all time. Yin and Yang. Eyes the color of each other's souls. Truest OTP to ever OTP in my book. ∞/10

Konosetsu (Negima!)

I already talked about them in their own post, this scene changed my life leading to my self-discovery and it still lives rent-free in my mind.

Kyosaya (Madoka Magica)

I'd also add MadoHomu but I'm trying to keep it to just one for each fandom. That said, they still make me mentally unwell. I love them, and I did for a long time now. I can't wait for the next movie to come out and suffer.

Ruby and Sapphire (Steven Universe)

These bitches had the first cartoon gay wedding and kiss DO I NEED TO SAY MORE???

Korrsami (Avatar)

Still down the queer cartoons making history path, these two made me insane back in the day because I still didn't understand I was queer and lots of sapphic couple were starting to appear in media, and I remember jokingly say how "lesbian ships were hauting me". All I can say now is "Thank you" lol. Anyway, they were incredibly important and all the people criticizing how little queerness there's in the show will never understand just how massive this scene was.

Catradora (She-Ra and the Princesses of Power)

Friends to Enemies to back to Friends to Lovers. Iconic. I still want a movie with their adventures bringing magic back to the universe.

Hollstein (Carmilla)

My third beloved blonde with a cat gf ship. I miss this web-series every day. Also, Natasha Negovanlis played an immense role in my gay awakening.

Ellie and Riley (The Last of Us: Left Behind)

Ellie and Dina are adorable and I love them, BUT I just will never get over these two. That dlc fucked me up. (also, they're in the same category with Korrasami as "gay ships that hauted me before I realized I was queer" lol)

Lumity (The Owl House)

I remember starting this show feeling it as the successor of Steven Universe, at least to me. We could say that at level of mistreatment from its parent company, it defenitely surpassed it, but at least I'm glad I was right and we got Luz and Amity becoming canon. I love these two and not a day passes without me yelling at Disney for what it did to them.

Bubbline (Adventure Time)

I actually watched Adventure Time fully only recently, but I always loved them even when I watched the show randomly when it appeared in tv back in the day. Getting to see the progression properly just made me love them even more.

Yasammy (Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous/Chaos Theory)

Incredibly recent addition, but I am so glad that I checked out Camp Cretaceous and got into it. It's a nice show and these two are a really cute couple, their confession and especially Yaz's internal turmoil were just so on point. I was really happy to see them go still strong in Chaos Theory, and I can't wait for next season.

Pricefield (Life is Strange)

These two caused me pain in the best possible way. I felt literal heartbreak at the Bay Ending, and I was just as emotional at the Bae one (Bae > Bay Forever) I hope the new game will respect their relationship OR ELSE.

Wow, this is quite the list. I do have an amazing taste, if I do say so myself, ahah!

Well, I guess this is it for now, glad I could make it before Pride Month was over! Knowing myself I might have actually forgotten some though, so keep an eye out for possible updates (what makes me even think that you'd care? lol).

That would be all, be gay and do crimes! Bye!

[jewishconvertthings]

I can't remember if I've posted about this before, but tonight I was reminded by a class of a thing that I think may be helpful for some folks.

Because converting is *so* permanent and irreversible, and one should take it at least as seriously as entering a marriage (with the understanding that there is no divorce, only alienation), I think it's honestly a good idea to wait until you've had a major fight with your Judaism before you complete your conversion.

It's the same principle as wanting to wait until you've been sick with the flu together or had a major life setback or are lost at 2 a.m. on a road trip with your fiance before you actually get married. In that case, you want to know (1) what does this scenario bring out in them? (2) what does this scenario bring out in you? (3) how do those things interact with each other? and, most importantly: (4) how do you resolve it together?

With Judaism, it's easy to fall in love with Torah. It's easy to fall in love with an idealized version of your community. With the rituals and the liturgy and the music and the ruach.

It's harder to learn a point of halacha that hurts deeply and to be forced to reconcile what you know in your bones is right with the reality of the words of Torah and its interpretation by the rabbis. It's harder to meet your congregation in love and tochecha when they have fallen short of their vision and failed you in important ways. It's harder to force yourself to engage in mitzvot that you don't see the point in or that are boring or repetitious or do not spark joy.

And until you know how you will react when (not if) that happens, until you know how you will resolve it - or if you will even want to - you aren't ready to commit to something you can't just take off.

Sometimes it sucks to be a Jew. Sometimes Torah is more yoke than honey. Sometimes you're just not feeling it. And that's okay! That doesn't make you an imposter or a bad Jew; it makes you human. But you still need to address it, because that day will come.

I love being Jewish with all my heart, but there are parts of Torah that are like a knife in my soul. For me, the way I resolve it, is that those things in particular are the shards my neshama was sent to liberate the sparks from. We live in a broken, unredeemed world, and sometimes you should feel that, acutely. That is part of being a Jew, that you are sensitized to the world and its suffering. But it should still, in the end, lift you up. It should not break you, and you should not have to cut off major pieces of yourself to fit the role. Hitting that wall and feeling that pain before you immerse in the mikvah can really open your eyes to what kind of Jew you want to be - or if you actually want to carry this burden as well as taste its sweetness.

[owlwithanapple]

Blossom ❤️‍🔥🌸

Content : First love/Young love/Kissing...

Characters : Jonathan Kent x Y/N Wayne

17 years old—

“Everyone, sit down. We have a new student in our class today.”

“Damian! It’s a new student!” Jon said excitedly.

“I know… no need repeat it.” Damian said impatiently.

The moment you stepped into the classroom, saw your twin brother Damian Wayne. After writing name on the blackboard, you turned to your classmates with a bright and sunny smile on your face to show friendly attitude. The classmates focused attention on you. What was shocking was you and Dami had a very different personality. You were optimistic and positive, while he was cold and indifferent. Although were twins, but still different.

Jon was surprised and pulled Dami's sleeve and whispered, "She's your sister?!"

Dami covered his head and sighed helplessly, "Shut up, Jon."

Daddy once said you are the type of person who is charming and will attract a lot of attention. You are the only one in family who has the biggest contrast with them. Your optimistic and cheerful personality attracts the attention of many classmates. During lunch time, everyone gathered around you to chat. You didn't know how to get rid of them, until your brother walked into the crowd.

"Hey. Get out of my way. Stay away from my sister." Thanks to Dami's help, your classmates finally gave you some space.

"Dami... I..." You looked straight at his expressionless face.

"You're welcome as usual." He teased you with his hands in pockets.

"Haha, thanks for the compliment?" You laughed for some reason.

"Hello, Damian's sister! My name is Jonathan Kent, just call me Jon." The boy with glasses who stood behind Dami greeted you warmly and cutely.

"Hi, just call me Y/N. Dami's friend, also my friend." You said generously.

Jon had a smile on face but suddenly became shy and hid behind Dami to secretly look at you. He was Dami's good friend, and personality was opposite of your brother's. It was impressive when first met him. Dami glared at you and left the class. You understood what he meant so you left your desk and followed him. You walked to a quiet place, where you two were alone. To be honest, your brother's personality was so arrogant and unique charm.

"Father arrange it?" he asked.

"Yes. He wanted me to get in touch with ordinary life." You smiled calmly.

"TT. Come to school, and same school." He covered his forehead and sighed.

"It's just class, as a leisure and entertainment." You swayed back and forth in front of him.

"What about Robin?" he asked.

"Hmm... I want to try, wonder if dad will allow it." You turned around and looked at him.

Suddenly, an inexplicable fierceness surged, you knew where it came from, you stared at your cold brother with a smile in your eyes. You knew very well how important Robin was, he relied on dad very much, wanted to be the best Robin and fight side by side with Batman. But you are not interested in the role of Robin, just curious.

"Don't worry, I have the ability but won't snatch it. There are so many Robins, I will look inconspicuous." You enjoy the solemn atmosphere he brings without worry.

"I'll give you a piece of advice, if you want to snatch it, do your best to snatch it. Robin is not as simple as you think." His tone became heavy.

"That's why I said I won't snatch it." You smiled.

The brother and sister are not arguing but enlightening each other. Each has own mission. You have your own sense of propriety. It is a wise choice not to intervene in the dispute. There must be conflicts between people, but you choose to maintain good communication with others, whether family or friends. The greater the ability, the greater the responsibility. You have secretly reminded Daddy and Dami several times, but didn't stop them. With your ability and wisdom, there is no need. Mommy's education is different from Daddy's philosophy, and your point of view is also different.

"Hey~ Damian! Y/N!" Jon ran towards you two.

"Tsk, the annoying one." Dami scratched his head impatiently.

"Jon!" You were jumping and laughing enthusiastically.

"Hey... Hey... Hey...!" Jon braked and stopped in front of you, not daring to raise his head.

"Hey~ Jon." You leaned close to his face and blinked, keeping a close distance with him.

"Wow!" He blushed and immediately dodged you, hiding behind Dami.

"Don't get so close to me, it's hot..." Dami complained reluctantly.

"Sorry..." Jon apologized like a puppy.

The interaction between the two of them is really good. Such a stubborn and arrogant brother can become friends with Jon who is lively and cheerful. Your brother is the least good at dealing with the character and one of the least suitable people for Jon to meet. It is really an interesting combination of two people. Your stomach is rumbling, you leave that place to find food and fill hungry stomach, before run far, you turn back smile and wave goodbye.

"Tsk..." Dami looked at your back indifferently. At this time, he noticed Jon's face was red and full of joy. He pushed Jon with his arm to pull him back to reality.

"Sorry! What's wrong!" Jon was panicked.

"Since my sister came into the class, you acting weird." Although Dami is very indifferent, he still cares about his sister, not completely zero.

"It is ...?" Jon whistled in his mouth to ease the tension.

"I'm warning you, don't think about my sister." Dami left these threatening words, and Jon realized he was really in trouble.

At night—

You followed dad to the Batcave, Batman's hideout. Looked around and were shocked by these technological caves, which were filled with countless efforts and sweat from your dad. You had underestimated your his ability, but now have seen it with your own eyes and realized how good he is. You looked carefully, everything was unfamiliar.

While you were appreciating these wonderful moments, he took you to a room with many glass display case containing equipment. Many equipment of Batman and other partners were gathered here, you walked forward curiously to observe carefully. It was the first time in your life that saw such a huge base, and this was the meaning of Dad's protection.

"Y/N, come here." Dad stood next to a glass display case.

"Here we go~" The equipment lights up your eyes. The R design on the chest represents Robin, the bright yellow cape, the red and green combination, the mini skirt and the black tight pants, just like the image design of the male version of Robin in previous generations, then mix and match the female version.

"Do you want to put it on? It's customized for you." Daddy waited silently on the side.

"I want it!" Daddy avoided it, and you put it on quickly. You look at yourself, reflecting the vivid brilliance on your body. The bright colors are as eye-catching as the first generation Robin. The brothers used to debut with Robin, now they are expanding themselves in different fields.

You stepped out of the door, turned around and put hands on waist, posing your own unique posture, showing energetic and charming temperament. Daddy walked forward with a smile on face to help you adjust cloak. He held your shoulders looked at you as he had something to say but couldn't express.

"Little princess! It suits you so well!" Your brother Dick Grayson, Daddy's adopted eldest son, Nightwing himself. He rushed over give you a big hug, lifted you up in the air and turned around a few times before putting you down.

"Thank you for the compliment." You turned around gracefully and saluted.

"Wow, my little princess has become Robin~" He expressed his opinion proudly.

"She's just doing an internship." Dad on the side interrupted.

"Hm, that's right. The little princess has no actual combat experience." He touched your head regretfully.

"Can I go out with brother tonight!" Your eyes are shining, even dad and brother have trouble controlling them. The two of them discuss it while you wait and do warm-up exercises.

"Little princess, come with me today!" Dick was very happy.

"Keep an eye on her. If something goes wrong, retreat and don't force it." Dad warned you two.

"Wish me good luck~" You pecked Daddy on the cheek, and excitedly went to the scene to experience Robin's busy life.

After reaching the high place, Dick introduced the Robin equipment one by one. The Grapple Gun on your waist is a must, allowing to fly and escape at high altitudes at will. You took it out and shot it towards the opposite side, tightened it, ran at full speed, turned over in the air and swung in that direction, and landed there smoothly. You opened arms and looked at Dick. He came in front and touched your hair several times.

"Good job! You are so brave!" He applauded you repeatedly.

"Hehehe! ~" You are full of confidence.

"If you perform well, maybe Batman will make you Robin." Dick brought up the topic that you care about.

"Nah... I'm just curious." You hesitated a little.

"Don't you want to be Robin?" He asked you curiously.

"I haven't thought about it. I'm just curious what you do every day? And why Dami is so determined to help dad?" You responded to his answer with a question.

"Hmm... I see. I thought you moved here for this reason."

"Nah... I'm here to enjoy life." You curled lips and smiled.

"Nightwing!" A familiar voice caught your attention.

A boy with a red cape and an S logo on his chest, holding a boy with a black cape and an R logo like you, landed in front of you from a high altitude. It was your brother Damian Wayne and Superboy. Superboy admired Nightwing very much and quickly ran towards him quickly. The two hugged each other happily. Dami stared at your whole body to see what was going on. You posed for him to see, he shook head helplessly.

"Hey, why she come out with you?" Dami walked towards Nightwing and was about to scold him.

"Come and experience it, it's okay." He convinced Dami with an optimistic attitude.

"You just spoil her too much. You know how dangerous our job is!" Dami complained to Nightwing.

"Only tonight. I will keep an eye on her. You can rest assured." The two seemed to be in conflict or in negotiation...

There was a gaze staring at you for a long time, from Superboy. You walked up to him and observed him carefully, he kept avoiding your gaze. It was indeed him, Jonathan Kent, your brother's friend. You met him for the first time in this way, which shocked you. You approached him, and he dodged you again.

"Jonathan Kent!" You called him.

"I'm here! No! How you know it's me!" Jon looked surprised.

"Hahaha, come on, it's already been exposed." His innocent and naive look made you laugh.

"...I still want to show my handsome side." Jon frustrated.

"Then how do you know I'm Y/N?" You leaned close to his face.

"I..I..." He blushed, could it be...

"Are you using your X-ray vision on me!" You said loudly, covering your chest.

"You dead bastard! Using X-ray vision on my sister?!" Dami grabbed Jon.

"You'd better explain it, otherwise..." Nightwing suddenly became a different person.

"Absolutely not! I...!" He wanted to say it but was shy.

Your two dear brothers started to pick on Jon because recognized you right away and they were very curious. The situation was two large dogs surrounding a cute little dog, which looked really pitiful from the perspective of a bystander. You stepped forward pushed them away, pulling Jon aside.

"Can you tell me?" You leaned close to Jon's face.

"I... you will be very surprised to hear it..." Jon scratched his head and his face turned red.

"I don't mind." You encouraged him optimistically.

"Your... heartbeat..." He clenched his hands and lowered head with a blushing face.

"My heartbeat?" You were confused.

You were stunned. He recognized you by the sound of your heartbeat. This is the power of Superboy. It was really shocking and touching. You looked at the other two who were whispering, their eyes full of curiosity. It really exciting to see brothers around you. You just made up a random excuse to dispel their curiosity.

"He recognized me by my hair color." You pointed to Jon behind you.

"Ah? Oh oh oh! Yes! Just as she said!" Jon straightened his spine.

"If you dare to look at my little princess's body with X-ray eyes, I will pierce your body with Kryptonite. Do you understand?" Nightwing lowered his voice to threaten Jon.

"I will tie you to a chair and stuff Kryptonite into your mouth, so you can know for yourself." Dami also joined in.

"Stop! Enough! You are scaring Jon!" You opened arms in front of Jon to save him from the innocent.

"Hey, little princess, you are biased~" Nightwing pulled you.

"I'm not biased. I'm trying to stop you two from bullying my friends" You confessed earnestly.

"Y/N..." Jon behind you showed a happy face.

"Now let me ask a question. Dami, aren't you supposed with Daddy? Why with Jon?" You put hands on waist.

They stared at each other, obviously hiding something. You walked towards them step by step, but Dami stopped you, "Superboy and I have something to do."

"Something? Is it necessary to be fully armed?" Nightwing interrupted.

"I see. You're doing it in secret, right?" You realized something and snapped fingers.

"Eh!" Jon's expression was completely exposed, as you guessed.

"Explain. Do Batman and Superman know where you two are going?" Nightwing leaned against the wall and became serious.

With no other options, Dami and Jon confessed. They said there was a rumor a factory was producing counterfeit drugs, they were going to investigate the matter before reporting to Batman and Superman. Nightwing said he had indeed heard the rumor, but no reason to interfere without a precise statement. Dami couldn't wait and took the initiative, Jon came to help as a partner.

"You all go back. I'll take care of the rest." Nightwing walked towards them.

"Wait a minute! We're going too!" Dami and Jon shouted at the same time.

"How about we go and see it? It's just a look." You raised hand to comment, out of curiosity whether it was true or not.

"Little princess, you..." Nightwing held your shoulders tightly.

"If something happens, I will notify Daddy and Superman immediately. Besides, you want to handle it, so having a few more followers to help won't get in the way, right?" You turned to the other two and blinked, Dami shook his head because he was very knowing your rhetoric, Jon nodded seriously.

"Fuck...I know. Remember, don't rush into the vanguard. If something happens, I will open a way for escape. You must escape, do you understand?" Nightwing scratched his head and pointed at you.

"Yes!" You and Jon saluted Nightwing.

"It's so noisy." Your noise made Dami speechless.

After some thinking and analysis, Nightwing has no choice but compromise. You arrive at the rooftop where Dami said, it's suspicious. You notice Dami's focus there, the hound is on the target. At this time, you and Jon's eyes meet, he smiles, you smile too, until Nightwing comes between you.

"Enough of the flirting?" Nightwing whispers.

"I'm not!" Jon yells shyly.

"Shhh!" You cover Jon's mouth with your hand.

"Rooftop! Shoot!" shouts from below.

The people below fired at the rooftop. Nightwing reacted quickly and pulled you away. Jon and Dami dodged the rain of bullets with agility. No one was hurt, for now. You followed Nightwing to a safe place. Dami jumped in without following the rules. Jon had no choice but to keep up with him.

"That guy didn't intend to stay still from the beginning!" Nightwing complained.

"Nightwing..." You held him.

"Little princess, I'll deal with it. You notify Batman about this, stay here don't run around. Do you understand?" Nightwing held your hands tightly.

"Got it." You nodded.

He rushed inside. You turned on the communicator contact Batman and Superman. If they knew Dami and Jon were messing around like this, they definitely be scolded.

"Speak." Batman and Superman answered the call.

"Batman, it's me. There's a suspicious pharmaceutical factory here. Nightwing, Robin and Superboy are currently taking action to fight."

"Jon is here too?!" Superman screamed.

"Hahaha... I just found out..." You're afraid of being scolded, especially by your dad.

"Turn off the communication device, or your throat will be in danger." With a knife on neck, your whole body stiffened. You had no choice turn off the communication device and raise hands in surrender.

"I turned it off." You stayed calm.

"Eh?" Jon, who was busy inside, heard your heartbeat.

"Hey! Why are you in a daze?!" Dami kicked the enemy away with a flying kick.

"Y/N she..." Jon was very uneasy.

"Don't move! Otherwise, I won't care if her head is smashed!" A gunshot instantly attracted the attention of the three people, you were threatened by the enemy with a gun on your head.

"Damn you!" Nightwing clenched the weapon in hand.

"Tsk..." Dami clenched fist.

"Put your hands up! Or I'll kill her!" He fired a gun beside your ear.

The gun was only a millimeter away from your ear. When fired, the sound of gun went straight into your ear, causing tinnitus. The ringing sound in mind kept repeating. You closed eyes in discomfort and wanted to cover your ears with both hands. When you opened eyes again, the gun had been crushed into pieces. A pair of bright red eyes appeared in front of you. It was Jon.

Jon threw the broken gun on ground and punched the person who threatened you. You were so surprised that forgot how to blink. All the gunfire focused on Superboy and you then started to shoot randomly. He used his steel body to protect you from any bullets hitting your body.

"Jon..." You looked at his face.

"Don't worry about me, I'm invulnerable." He smiled to reassure you.

You used the hacking technology Tim taught you to hack into the circuit of this factory and temporarily shut down the whole factory, plunging into darkness. The enemy began to panic. You felt someone grab your arm, and didn't know who it was in the darkness. You struggled to shake his hand off.

"Don't afraid, it's me." Jon's voice is right next to you.

"Nightwing! Now!" The vision is black, but it can't affect the actions of the other two.

"Ok!" Nightwing responded.

"Don't move here." Superboy quickly knocked down the others.

After the circuit returned to normal, it was bright and peaceful again. All the enemies had been annihilated and fell to the ground. You stood up saw three of them were safe. You walked slowly towards them. Suddenly, one of the people screamed like crazy and grabbed your feet, attracting the attention of the other three. You kicked his chin and made him faint.

"Are you okay?" Nightwing hugged you worriedly.

"I'm fine. Thank you." You patted his back to comfort him, looking at Jon standing beside and winking.

"Really, how could you be caught so easily?" Dami came forward.

"You blame me. You acted on your own." You stuck out tongue at Dami's stinky face.

"The most important thing is that everyone is okay." Jon came forward to comfort everyone.

Everyone went to investigate the situation separately, and just as the rumors said. You collected all the information handed it over to the police and dad later. The other three tied up the enemy who fell to the ground. You moved closer to Jon to help him. He would sneak a glance at you from time to time, so you seized the opportunity to make eye contact with him.

"Got you!" You laughed playfully.

"Eh?! Haha... Sorry..." He lowered his head shyly.

The other two who were busy, you closed the distance with Jon. He dodged you again, and you moved closer again until he gave up. He kept avoiding you, even his ears were red. You reached out to touch his ears, and his body trembled and turned head to face you. You finally waited for this moment.

"Thank you, Jon." You leaned close to his face.

"Well, you're welcome." He smiled and didn't avoid you.

Suddenly, the door was blown away by some strange force, and a gust of wind rushed inside. Jon hugged you tightly block the sudden attack prevent you from being hurt by the impact. When everyone entered a state of alert, two tall figures and familiar voices stepped in. They were Superman and Batman.

"Father!" Dami stood up straight.

Batman walked up to you, and said coldly, "Too tight, let go of my daughter."

"Ah! Sorry!" Jon quickly let go of the hand that was tightly holding you.

"Little princess, are you okay?" Batman knelt on one knee on the ground.

"I’m good." The serious daddy called by your name, and the gentle one called you little princess like Dick, you smiled and shook head.

"It seems we don't need to help." Superman walked towards Nightwing.

"Yes. Thanks to them." Nightwing said politely.

"Them? You mean Robin and Superboy?" Daddy's face suddenly darkened.

"It's not good to make decisions on your own." Even Superman had a blank expression.

"Everyone go back to the base." Batman helped you up.

The four of you all returned to the base, and all defeated by the aura of Batman and Superman. All of you stood there silently, waiting for their terrible punishment. Daddy's quiet look is always scary. This time Superman was so quiet. Everyone is really finished.

"Dick. I told you to keep an eye on her and retreat if something goes wrong. I trusted you to take care of her, why did she get involved in this situation?" Daddy stared at Dick, you didn't dare to speak at all.

"I did, but one of them caught her unexpectedly... It was my mistake, sorry..." Dick blame himself and helpless.

"Damian, Jon. Why are you two handling this matter?" Superman questioned them.

"We just want to investigate the truth of the rumor, just..." Jon lowered his head.

"The incident happened as the rumor said, the enemy has been captured, and the evidence is conclusive, which means the matter itself is over." Dami said.

"Damian, can you think about the consequences when do things? Your sister is there, she inexperienced, what will happen if something goes wrong!" Daddy stood in front of Dami.

"Jon blocked the bullet for her, she was unharmed, isn't it okay!" Dami angrily retorted to Daddy.

"Damian!" Nightwing hugged Dami to comfort him.

"Bruce..." Superman stepped forward.

"This time it's my fault. I didn't stop them." Dick told dad guiltily.

"She is your daughter who you raised with your own hands. Her life is more important than my contribution. Even the identity of Robin should be given to her. Am I right!?" Dami roared.

"I instigated it!" You shouted.

"Little princess?" Dick called, everyone looked over.

"I told Dami and Jon the rumor, then used a bunch of twisted logic to convince Dick to let us go. I wanted to take this opportunity to get Dad's attention." You clenched your hands and looked at Dad.

"Y/N. Bear the consequences of what you say. Do you understand?" Daddy glared at you.

"Everything I said is true. You can punish me however you want." You curled lips and smiled.

It has always been everyone indulges your willfulness and unreasonableness. This time have to pay the price for them. You did have idea to convince them to solve this matter, but realized they were all trying to protect you. This fault cannot be entirely blamed on them, even if you are lying or true.

"You are grounded for a week. Put all your equipment back and go back to your room." Daddy said and turned his back to you.

You put away the Robin suit, a feeling of frustration surged in your heart. Perhaps this is the best ending. You didn't want to be Robin, just wanted to wear that suit and run around. Experience the adventures that your brothers experienced. You kept smiling said goodbye to them and left the Batcave.

"Y/N!" Jon caught up.

"What's wrong?" You held hands tightly behind, not wanting to show your emotions.

"It's not your fault at all! Why did you do that!" Jon's voice was messy.

"Nono... That's fine." You put your index finger on Jon's lips.

"But..." Jon's expression was solemn.

"Thank you for saving me, Superboy." You hugged him tightly to express your gratitude.

After letting go, you immediately back to room and lay on the bed, wanting to cry but not letting the tears flow. Dami was reckless, but the matter was perfectly resolved thanks to his efforts. Jon risked his life to block all the risks for you, and the innocent Dick almost took all the blame. At this time, there was a knock on the door, you opened the door and Dick walked into your room sat on the chair.

"Little princess. Why did you do this?" Dick questioned you seriously.

"It's not your turn to say." You sat on the bed.

"This was done without permission. I have the responsibility and obligation to stop and protect, but I didn't." Although he looked solemn, but still kept a gentle tone.

"You were instigated by me. Don't forget that I convinced you." You shook your feet to ease mood and smiled.

"Little princess, you making excuses?" He smiled.

"No, I'm adapting to the situation." You said with ease.

"Are you imitating Jason?" He leaned back in his chair.

"Oh, you caught me." You laughed.

"Have a good night's sleep, little princess." Dick gave you a goodnight kiss and a hug before leaving the room.

Jon POV

I clenched my fists, feeling very resigned. It was clearly our fault, but Y/N had to bear the consequences. Damian's twisted thoughts and the words he yelled. I couldn't understand why he had such negative thoughts about Y/N, why he was obsessed with getting his father's approval over his sister.

"Why do you say that?" I stepped forward block Damian's way.

"Get out of my way, I have nothing to say to you." He glared at me with hatred.

"What about your sister? Why didn't you admit that we acted on our own?" This was the first time I was unwilling to accept it for someone else.

"Is it necessary?" I was furious when heard this, I grabbed his clothes with fighting spirit.

"Jon! What are you doing!" Dad rushed over.

"Why is it not necessary! Batman, you know!" I roared at them.

"Is it wrong I don't want her to become Robin! She is very good and smart, and she meets the requirements to become Robin! She will be hurt after becoming Robin, but am I wrong if I don't want her to be hurt?!" Damian's explanation shocked me, this was the first time.

"Y/N refuses to become Robin." Batman, who was sitting next to him, finally spoke.

"Eh?" Damian and I looked at Batman at the same time.

"I won't give Robin to her either." Batman looked at us calmly and said.

"Father..." Damian's heartbeat calmed down.

"Then why punish her?" I asked.

"It's a good thing my daughter rebelled against her father for the first time." He curled lips and smiled.

"You have a really bad character." Dad stood aside and laughed.

"Jon, thank you for protecting my daughter." Suddenly Batman expressed his gratitude to me.

"I...!" I wanted to explain but was interrupted by Damian.

"Even save my sister, I still have to warn you not to think about my sister." Damian told me fiercely.

Y/N POV

You were so bored lying on the bed staring at the dark ceiling. Everyone was busy, but you were bored and lonely. At this time, there was a knock on the window. You got up from the bed in shock. This was the third floor, why would someone knock on the window? You went over carefully, opened the curtains and saw Jon floating in the air, you quickly opened the window.

"Jon? Why are you here?" You were surprised.

"I came to find you. Do you want go out and play together?" Jon told you shyly, scratching the back of his head.

"Unfortunately, I'm grounded." You sighed helplessly.

"It's okay if you're not found~" He showed a bright smile.

"You're so bad, Superboy." You smiled wickedly.

"Let's go, Y/N." He approached the window and stretched out his hand to guide you away.

You chose to go with him without hesitation. He hugged you and flew to a distant place. The panoramic view of the entire city from high above were so beautiful. You looked at Jon, who was full of confidence and looked so handsome. You didn't expect that he would block all the gunfire damage for you. Wonder if he would feel any pain.

"We're here!" He landed on a quiet beach.

"Wow~ amazing. You got here so quickly." You told him excitedly.

"Just a small matter." He said shyly.

You stood on the beach, the sea water rushed to feet, enjoying the coolness brought by the wind, and there was a crisp sound from the sea water. There was no one on the endless seashore, only you and Jon. You opened arms to embrace the world, and screamed loudly to vent the emotions that had been suppressed in your heart for a long time.

"Jon, thanks for bringing me here." You turned around and smiled at him.

"I should thank you." The sky was dark, and Jon's smile was very moving.

"It's me who should say it. You stood up to protect me, don't know how to express my gratitude." You told him sincerely.

"Then... how about staying here with me?" Jon smiled.

"Okay. I'm happy to." You laughed along.

A plan emerged in your mind, turned around and splashed water on Jon. Jon, who was splashed with cold water, laughed loudly, and he ran over to play with you. You accidentally fell into the sea, Jon quickly pulled you out of the water, you looked at him, he avoided your gaze again.

"Jon, look at me." You hold his face.

"Y/N! I..." You can feel his face is warm.

"Why did you recognize me through the sound of heartbeat?" You look expectantly.

"Because... you. Y/N, you are very special." He leans on your forehead, closes his eyes and breathes gently.

Your heartbeat speeds up as if it is about to jump out of chest, feel unimaginable and indescribable emotion. His breathing is so calm, and your heartbeat is agitated. The simple close distance at the beginning has a different feeling compared to now. You can't think calmly, heartbeat is messy, as if your emotions are about to burst out at this moment.

"Jon, you're so weird." You curled lips and smiled.

"Because you... I'm weird... only for you." When he opened his eyes again, you were really caught in his eyes, you wanted to possess him.

He shyly lowered his head to your face, because of him your face was also hot, couldn't take your eyes off each other anymore, it seemed confirmed that the two of you hearts belonged to each other. The two of you gave up all feelings for this wonderful encounter, kissed each other's lips, leaving a sweet mark.

"Y/N..." He called your name again after kissing you.

"Jon..." Not only his lips, he kissed your forehead.

"It's you. Only you." He hugged tightly and whispered softly in your ear.

"Jon, that was my first kiss just now." You blurted out, and he was shocked.

"Really?!" He shouted nervously.

"Really." The two kisses made your heart beat.

"We..." He looked at you with a puppy dog ​​expression.

"I don't have any idea about love yet... How about we get closer first?" You said shyly.

He smiled with eyes shining, this side of him left a deep impression on you. His sunshine-like gentleness and strong body kept making your heart beat. You held his hand and kissed his cheek, his shy expression turned into a smile, and his smile also infected your heart.

You returned to the beach, he used his super breath to blow out a strong wind to dry your wet body. If he hadn't held you tightly, would have been sent away. After dry, he picked you up, floated in the air, moved towards home. He opened the window, and you quietly stepped into the room when no one was there.

"Goodbye, Y/N." Jon said goodbye to you reluctantly.

"Good night, Jon." You were reluctant but still smiled.

Jon POV

A good night makes me look forward to tomorrow, want to see her soon. I flew home and went in through the window, changed into pajamas and wanted to drink a glass of water, went downstairs saw my brother Connor Kent and dad Clark Kent sitting there. I walked to them with the water, wanted to get some advice from them.

"You're late, I thought you would be home first." The first thing my father said, I left earlier than my father and went to Y/N's place before going home.

"Where have you been fooling around?" Kon said with a smirk.

"I have something to talk." I sat up straight.

"Tell me." Dad put down what he was holding and listened carefully.

"I fell in love with a girl." I blurted out shyly.

"Really? Who!?" Kon pulled me closer.

"Falling in love is a happy thing. Who is the lucky girl?" Dad looked at me with a kind expression.

"Damian's sister...Y/N." I said.

"No hope." Kon made a conclusion at once.

"Huh?! Why?" I stood up in surprise.

"It's a bit difficult indeed." Even my father said so.

"Y/N Wayne. The little daughter of the Wayne family. She has a father and four brothers, the most vicious of whom is Jason Todd. You have encountered a problem." Kon's words made sense.

"Jon, you are fine, there will be no problem." Dad put his hand on my shoulder gently comforted me and gave encouragement.

"Take it step by step, maybe soon Batman will recognize you as his future son-in-law~" Kon curled his lips and smiled.

"Future son-in-law!" I became shy.

"Hahaha, still a long way to go and a lot of tests. Especially her family, you know..." Dad encouraged me but was a little confused.

"I know. I'll try my best!" I was full of fighting spirit. Since I love her, can't give up halfway. I have decided she is my life partner, no matter how terrible her family is, I still have to do my best.

"So passionate." Kon laughed at the side.

"Who wouldn't chase love madly." Dad looked at Kon.

— The End —

🖤Like and Reblog to motivate me🖤

AO3 Heroes in Love by owlwithanapple

[rin-and-jade]

Are You? What about You? Them? : A Post about Differentiating Types of Parts.

We all know that spiderman meme where they pointed to each other because they share similar qualities that confuses their selves;

Like this. Right?

They all sounded so similar that we neither knew which is which at first glance..

And so, at the end of this post you will be confident in pointing out who is who, just like a spiderman who can tell apart from its own multiverse friends, that is. So let's get pointing to the smaller details!

How it works..

We know what it's like to be conscious, yeah? What if i were to tell you that yes, there are varying degrees of consciousness, and that we all can fluctuate on those levels too?

The levels of consciousness can vary from only being aware of its physical surroundings and react instinctually (lesser level), to being able to self-introspect and understand what they like and dislike (higher level). This is all dependent on many different factors and i want to clarify that it takes more than just 'awareness' to tell a fragment apart from an alter for example. But, still important to know what level its at.

This explains why shards, and fragments are less flexible when facing an issue, as they're more limited or not as equipped as an alter in terms of reasoning or level of logic/knowledge. So why is that? It can be from the intensity of dissociation, and other things like how much implicit and explicit memories it retains, this includes experiences.

How to tell them apart..

Sure, theres a spectrum to this too, as every type of part can be a bit different though still can categorized loosely, not meaning it has to fit perfectly to the box :

1. No sense of identity and, or tangible form/shape outside of performing a specific task, or hold a single memory/mood. (Shard)

2. Small sense of identity (a trait that is distinctive/distinguishable), possibly have a less blurry appearance than level 1 and still performs specific tasks, have little to no memories/range of emotions. (Shard)  

3. Mish mash of small qualities, but not enough to encapsulate an identity/personality, may have a sense of existing, and can emotionally react to environment/situation. Usually have a defined innerworld form, and may retain some memories but depends on origin, still fixed on role. (Fragment)

4. Has a developed dominant facet, which can be seen more lively and autonomous compared from level 1-3,, but still a bit rigid and have a narrow/limited view in general. Can distinguish and identify feelings, and have goals/hobbies/interests, self curiosity/exploration to function outside role. (Fragment, leaning to alter)  

5. Has a multifaceted personality in which it cannot defined by one word, fully knows its likes and dislikes, long term goals, morals, and a complex view on life. May have developed purpose outside role job, pursuing self-fulfillment. (Alter)

So in conclusion, shards are not wholly self aware and rely on current implicit memories, from my own system experience shards feels so blank, lifeless, somewhat robotic. Fragments have a partial sense of autonomy, it can rationalize and react to its own accord, reason, and learn/explore,, though had not fully know who they are. Alters are like any other usual people, where it has accumulated knowledge and experience that had shaped then throughout existing, reinforcing a faceted sense of self and purpose.

Growth to perfection..

Are you also wondering if shards and fragments can grow to an alter? The answer is, yes! Though some can be stuck in a certain stage, which is nothing to be ashamed about, and doesn't need changing.

Though, this takes a really long time and process, i note my own fragments will reach to a stage where it barely matches the loose category of an alter in 6 months, and to be a fully developed alter, it might need a whole year (okay this is my own calculations, other people will have it slower or faster).

To grow a shard towards a fragment category, my theory is that you have to interact with, and let them immerse/exprience the real world by supervision (outside of its role task) to develop more environmental, and self awareness. They will be very limited in terms of knowledge and names so this is a good time to start introducing these, and they may not even realize they exists themselves before sometimes,, try nudging them activities to experiment, and foods to taste, examine emotion wheel.. theres a lot to start from.

To grow a fragment to an alter, start introducing other views and complex topics, the goal here is to create a more developed understanding of life. From my experience, all my fragments have a dominant facet, e.g. angry dog vibes; and slowly let them learn how to be soft, or act more polite,, it will slowly solidify as a new facet, now capable of being kind and not always behaving threatening/i-will-still-bite-you attitude to every situation, as it now can be more flexible which facet it should use depending on situation.

Last words..

So, you are now an educated spiderman who can not only point out, but understand the basics of why,, and how to grow a part to have a better sense of awareness!

Let me know in the comments, i would like to hear why the part you had specifically picked/chose is possibly a shard/fragment/alter from your own reasoning and interactive mini discussion with me,, lets finally put them into real practice yeah?

Also, Happy Valentines, *offers you a free heart chocolate*

- j, your educational fiancée

[avengersome]

OK, having scrolled the ACGAS tag, I see that I completely disagree with numerous opinions of episode 5.05. So here are my thoughts…

Miss Grantley was, in my opinion, not a ‘love interest’ she was a ‘plot device’. The same way Gerald was, in the end, also a plot device.

Gerald taught Audrey that she could have love again. That she could be loved again. That she could once again build a life with a man. And the fact of her going to leave with him, then changing her mind, taught her what was truly important to her, and what she couldn’t live without.

G’s mere existence also taught Siegfried what was truly important to him, and how much he needed Audrey.

Miss Grantley was of interest to Siegfried, yes. A beautiful brunette, animal loving woman who knows her mind and speaks it. Hmm… who does that remind us of? Anyway, for the first time in a couple of years Siegfried actually came out of his shell and showed an interest in somebody. At no point did it seem she was romantically interested in him, however. In fact she suggested that she thought him inferior to her, when she gave him the book to read, and Siegfried looked a little hurt by that. He also ditched the book the moment a family trip to the Drovers was suggested.

I’ve seen somebody say that they thought this was a classist bit of writing. That it showed that Siegfried only would go with somebody ‘of his own class’. I don’t see that. In fact I see the opposite. He turned to Audrey for advice about Carmody, listened intently, and thanked her for said advice. And then when she asked him directly if they should join the others at the pub he eagerly agreed.

I’ve also seen it said that this is too slow a burn and no progress has been made. Again I disagree. Siegfried has been obviously smitten with Audrey for two series now, and this year they have been closer together, despite her having a new role that takes her out of the house for some evenings. Several times we have seen her gazing at him with a loving smile, or giggling at what he says this series. We saw her teasing him lovingly in the car in 5.02 as well.

An episode titled ‘pair bond’ ended with the two of them together, talking about their family, and then going out of the door to the pub. All after he had unceremoniously dumped Miss G’s book in his office without a second thought, brushing it off to Audrey in a not overly flattering way, preferring her and his family’s company.

I personally loved this episode. It appears many really didn’t. But to me this was just another delicious step on the road of this wonderful slow burn. Yes, it’s been 5 years, but there have been much slower burns in other shows over the years.

And frankly, even if they never get together, I am just going to enjoy the ride, because their love for each other in any and all forms is beautiful. They are a pair bond already. It may not (yet) be romantic, or exactly the same feelings on both sides, but they are happiest together, that much is obvious.

[survivalove]

We know why Aang fell in love with Katara! But what about Katara? Can you give me five reasons why Katara fell in love with Aang? We see her love grow throughout the seasons until she threatens Zuko, willing to kill him for Aang.

ummmm sure! why not?

1. Vulnerability

I think it’s safe to say Katara was infatuated with Aang from day 1. Starting on the basis of him being ‘new’ and later, on him being the literal savior she’d been dreaming of.

But love isn’t based on infatuation. So to me, what made Katara fall in love with Aang was getting to know him as a real person, his strengths and his vulnerabilities. Katara was the only person to whom Aang told the truth about his disappearance and I think that was the start of her falling in love with Aang, the boy, not the Avatar.

2. Unconditional Support

As soon as Aang meets Katara he immediately offers to help make her dream come true with no strings attached. Keep in mind, since her mother passed, Katara had been forced to inherit a motherly role both in her family unit and in her tribe, learning to put others before herself. Then here comes a boy, foreign to this dynamic and is ready to put her dreams above whatever it is he has to do.

I think that would make any girl fall in love especially one in her circumstances. Also helps that Aang is very consistent in supporting Katara, so much so that she expects him to be there for her when she needs him, without asking. This also ties into my 3rd reason.

3. Trust

Katara and Aang are friends first which is very important to their relationship and some may say supersedes their romantic arc. Katara always trusts aang to do the right thing and be a good person, not just towards her but to those in need. We can see with her that this is very important to her in the Jet episode and is in fact a dealbreaker for her when Jet ends up breaking her trust. Aang however, never betrays her. In fact, her trust in him is only rewarded time and time again, so why wouldn’t she fall in love with him?

4. Childhood Hero

Not to contradict my first point but Aang being the Avatar is still kind of an important factor, just not the most important one. The fortuneteller is the first episode where Katara sees Aang in a romantic light and it’s after he defeats a powerful force of nature almost single-handedly. We see that Katara is very pleased when Aunt Wu tells her she will marry someone very powerful and who’s more powerful than the literal Avatar? I think it’s rather natural that Katara would fall in love with the hero she’s been waiting for her whole life, especially when he actually lives up to everything she dreamed he would be and more.

It’s like when you meet your favorite celebrity and they’re actually a nice person which makes you like them even more? In this case, Katara’s favorite celebrity just happens to like her back so

5. Wisdom

Lastly, I think what helped Katara fall in love with Aang is that he is someone she can learn from him and he learns from her as well. They’re both steadfast in their beliefs even when they contrast each other’s. Katara has always shown an interest in spirituality and other cultures and here comes a boy from a time before war who can show her the way things were back then, takes her around the world to explore other cultures that she was never exposed to, validates her belief in spirituality and even better, humbly accepts her as someone she can learn from as well.

i hope this response is satisfactory to you anon 😂

[yrrtyrrtwhenihrrthrrt]

I've seen some people making some very good points about Vander and his role as a parent to Powder and Vi, especially related to criticisms about how he wasn't as stellar of a parent as the narrative portrays, specifically that he was emotionally neglectful, parentified Vi and failed to connect with Powder. While I think these points are worth discussing, I'd like to offer my own perspective.

Disclaimer: I am not justifying any behavior in the context of a real-life relationship, only within the narrative presented

First off, I don't disagree. Vander doesn't appear to have made a tremendous effort to connect with Powder, and seems to be much closer to Vi and Claggor than her and Mylo, putting a significant amount of responsibility on them (especially Vi, as the oldest) and Vi is definitely far more responsible for her siblings than she should be at her age, with Vander barely supervising them.

However, I think there's a lot of context people like to ignore. First off, this takes place in Zaun. From everything that's implied about Zaun, people don't typically live into old age. If they survive the street violence, enforcer violence, and unsafe working conditions, they're still likely to die or become incapacitated early as a result of Gray poisoning/horrific pollution, as we see with Viktor. Vander worked in the mines, which would make him even worse off.

It's common for average parents, who had their children in their mid-twenties to mid-thirties, to live to see their kids well into middle age, when they will be reliably established as adults and able to care for themselves without guidance. This privilege does not extend to Zaunites. As someone with older parents at birth, I know the importance of older siblings in that situation. Vander needed to prepare Vi and Claggor to be responsible for their siblings and guide them into adulthood, because he knew that he was unlikely to be able to do it himself.

Second, one of the big ethical issues with parentification is that you chose to have kids, and should not subject your older children to the consequences of your choice. Vander... Vander didn't choose to have kids, they're not his biological children, he took them off the street because they had nowhere else to go. I think in real world adoption, the principle still applies, because adoption is also a choice and a lengthy, procedurally dense one at that, but that's not the case here. It really wasn't a choice for Vander, these kids had nowhere else to go. And this is a common theme in Zaun, there are just feral children everywhere, and people just take them in because it's the right thing to do. Everyone is responsible for everyone else. So, his kids needed to learn that same principle, to be responsible for each other, to look out when they are able for those who can't.

And lastly, as for his overall lack of supervision of his ankle-biters, I think... I think that's just a Zaun thing. I'm always so bamboozled when I hear people compare THIS aspect of his parenting negatively to Silco's, when Silco didn't supervise Jinx either. He let her hang out on a giant fan blade like 60 feet in the air and wander off to explode shit whenever she wanted. Benzo also doesn't appear to supervise his very young child, who doesn't even have any older siblings to watch him, and neither Jinx nor Sevika feel the need to keep one single eye on Isha as she runs around the underground doing as she pleases. It seems to just be a part of Zaunite culture, people lose their parents and their parental figures all the time, so they need to be able to look out for themselves.

All this to say there are definitely things worth criticizing about Vander's parenting, but I feel like people are being a little unfair about it.

[dementedspeedster]

I realized I've never compiled all of my Twin Verse images into one place, so I'm doing that now. (The last one is a new addition.)

Twin Verse Summary:

Twin Verse: A universe in which Thad accepted Max’s offer to live with him, Helen, and Bart and learns to become a hero, though not without difficulties. Thad and Bart share the role of Kid Flash / Flash in this universe.

General History:

The history/events within this verse follow the events of Impulse and basically Bart’s life. Thad lives with Max and Bart in Manchester, Alabama during the events of Impulse. He begins to learn about becoming a hero under Max’s tutelage and very slowly develops a bond and rivalry with Bart. They’re not immediately brothers, but just learning how to live with each other and both of them want to make Max proud the best way they can though they still but heads with each other. When Max’s body is taken over by the Rival he moves in with Jay and Joan along with Bart. Max’s disappearance is what solidifies a bond between them. They’re the ones who are concerned and care about Max. Who refuse to let him be forgotten and for some time try to find him. Max is important to both of them and through their mutual love of Max as a parental-like figure they bond and stick together as each other’s most trusted person in their life because they know what the other is going through. When they grow older they both take up the role of Flash. (Which is quite helpful for their personal lives, but also keeping their identity hidden as they can use the other to keep the idea that the Flash and their civilian identity are separate. Ex: They’ve both been seen with the Flash on separate occasions, therefore neither of them could be the Flash!)

Additional Notes:

'Two Flashes?' I hear you ask? Yes, two Flashes working at the same time. Now as for why (other than the fact I think it's a fun idea)?

1. Because as I mentioned it's incredibly helpful in keeping up the illusion that neither Bart nor Thad is the Flash when it is initial assumed that there's only one Flash.

2. I like the idea of how it messes with villains outside of Keystone or Central City. I think the Rogues and local villains would definitely know/figure

3. I didn't want them to fight over the mantle. They both deserve the mantle in a scenario where they wanted to take on the mantle of Flash and give it their own spin rather than it being a contentious point between them and their growth.

4. It could keep up an even more solid illusion of the Flash can be everywhere at once.

I also think the local public would either know that there are two of them or have theories. When the Flash is out though you just don't know who you're getting. It makes for the potential for them to have different fighting styles, strategies, and how they deal with villains. But also the similarities between them. They might handle press different. Other heroes differently. Have different relations with other heroes and villains, etc.

Ex: Neither Bart nor Thad pulls their punches, but Thad is definitely softer on younger villains and tries to steer them toward reform/just steer them in a direction that doesn't lead them to a life he had in his youth.

[prettyboykatsuki]

wyll, in my opinion, gets the standard fare treatment for characters that are unequivocally good. i.e. people think he's boring and uninteresting. standard fare might be kind actually given the level of racism and unexplained slander (which is often just more thinly veiled racism). his reputation about being boring is not helped by the very blatant neglect of his storyline post his rewrite and release. as a wyll enjoyer i am hyperaware of the sorry state of his current story in all three acts

despite all of that and the glaring flaws - i still believe that wylls storyline is worth of being engaged with and explored.

one of the reasons (not the most major one, but one) i think wyll experiences so much neglect as a companion stems from a wider idea that "goodness" is always the uncomplicated, easy choice.

it's something i see a lot. wyll is boring because of his archetype as a princely and universally righteous guy. and this is interesting, because it always seems to functions under the assumption that wylls moral character is innate. that his heroic and righteous actions are in some capacity, uncomplicated.

uniquely among the male origin companions, through the course of wylls story - there is never a point in which he is at risk of making a truly 'bad' choice. both gale and astarions story have them at risk of making choices that are ultimately bad for them and others (especially tav when each character is romanced). gales godhood and astarions ascension are their in game moral failings. they are the result of having not broke the cycle and are 'bad' choices for the individual character.

wylls main choice is however his pact and the choice to break that pact. notably - wyll is never at risk of making a bad choice, only a selfish one.

from the critique i see of wyll - it seems like this is the element of him people find most egregious. he's too smooth, not rugged enough, not gritty enough. but i don't think wyll's character needs grit, necessarily.

if you take any time to dissect wyll at all, based on dialogue and character interaction, many of his choices put himself at the forefront of sacrifice. the game strips wyll of a lot of agency, but wyll also always abides by and sticks to his core belief. so often towards his own detriment.

not only does wyll bear the consequence of being turned into a devil (stripping him of the last remaining shred of identity he's ever had and one of the most important things in his life), he bore the burden of being banished when he made his pact, and was willing to do the same for the sake of his father when he is taken to moonrise.

and unlike gale (who i adore, to be clear) who's concept of self-sacrifice stems mostly from a low self-worth - the belief that dying is the best he can do - wyll truly views that it's better him than them.

wyll does not think twice about allowing himself to be the one to take the fall. he can play any part, take any role, even when these choices haunt him so obviously. wyll claims that he forgives his father, but opens up to you about fearing his feelings of missing him are one-sided. he believes that making his pact was the right choice, the one he would make again - but doesn't deny the obvious pain and solace that came along with being a wandering traveler and banished son.

wylls goodness is so deliberate. he is so staunch in upholding and acting on his beliefs that it is always narrative to his own detriment. when you view wyll like this , and view his choices with regards this character attribute, it is imo very hard to hate him.

wyll's goodness is his double edged sword. it makes him heroic, brave, fearless. and it makes him scared, uncertain and lonely. again, the story itself is bare bones and i understand that - but it is so very beautiful to me thinking of him and tav or just his general romance.

as wylls romance partner, encouraging wyll to break his pact is as tragic as it very beautiful. tav is wylls one selfish thing. one of the only reasons that would move him to not give himself up. one of the only reasons he is okay with forgoing his beliefs. he loves tav enough to break his own oaths, and make choices for himself and no one else. not as the blade, or as a ravengard - but just as wyll.

and that aspect of him is in my opinion, enforced, by the mindflayer tav ending. in which wylls monster-hunting and morals are made exceptions with / for tav. my enjoyment of hero corruption might be speaking for me, but i digress.

in every way though - i truly love wyll as a character. and while im well aware of the critical flaws in his in game story state, i think it's both unfortunate and unfair that people call him boring. to me he is anything but