#employee vindicated

[thoughtlessarse]

In March, after a Justice Department employee wrote an op-ed criticizing the Biden administration over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, her supervisors accused her of violating federal law. Last week, the Office of Special Counsel squarely rejected that allegation, but the investigation sent a chilling message to other federal employees organizing around Israel and Gaza. Emma West Rasmus, a longtime Justice Department employee, wrote an op-ed in early March for The Hill about a recent visit to Palestine with her church. “I decided in November, and am surer than ever in March: Unless the Democratic Party and its leaders call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza and a lasting end to the Israeli occupation of Palestine, I will not vote for Biden or any Democrat,” she wrote. The article, which published on a Friday, initially included a note stating West Rasmus “works at the Department of Justice and is a member of the Israel/Palestine Mission Network of the Presbyterian Church.” The following Monday, West Rasmus was accused by senior Justice Department attorneys and ethics officials of violating the Hatch Act, according to records reviewed by The Intercept. The Hatch Act prohibits federal employees from using their “official authority” to engage in certain political activity, especially advocating for or against a particular candidate or political party. “When you start your federal government service,” West Rasmus told The Intercept, “on your very first day you learn about the Hatch Act.” In November, the Office of Special Counsel, which investigates Hatch Act violations, put out guidance explaining that federal employees could express their views on Israel and Gaza without running afoul of the law. OSC also clarified that the Hatch Act only limits partisan political speech “while on duty or in the federal workplace.”

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[orcelito]

Took a few months but the situation at work is finally truly blowing up

I may or may not join in a workplace abuse claim against my old boss using old blog posts and discord messages of me venting as proof ☺️

It'd be me burning the bridge of having him as a reference later down the line, but honestly I think I can get by without him.

[protocolseben]

.

[locusustus]

sorry for projmoon doomposting I'm just depressed

[bg3-npc]

Is Theo Soloman (Wyll's voice actor) the ONLY employee through Larian that actually likes Wyll????? Like, I loved the writing for Wyll and felt bad that his writer didn't get to create more and develop him further.

That response to the article though?? It's one thing to not take your characters seriously all the time when you've made it clear you care about them. It's another when a majority of fans are extremely hostile to them and your response is to laugh at a joke made at their expense. You're telling those fans, "Hey keep antagonizing them, it's not only deserved but funny."

If he came to Wyll's defense no one would take note, but joining in on the mocking of him only makes the aggressive (and extremely racist) fans feel vindicated in their treatment of Wyll. You're adding fuel to the fire.

Theo is the only one who (when even invited to speak) talks about Wyll with care and sincerity. He's the only one that when he does poke fun at Wyll, obviously comes at it from a place of love and understanding for the character. Never from a place of indifference or carelessness.

Theo Soloman thank you for everything you have done and continue to do for Wyll. I'm so sorry the people who made your job exist only ever invalidate and demean your work.

[m1ckeyb3rry]

── THE GLASS PRINCESS // TWELVE

Series Synopsis: You wake up in a strange room with no memories, broken glass at your bedside, and a prince named Zuko as your only chance at figuring out who you really are.

Chapter Synopsis: The Tales of Ba Sing Se: The Tale of Princess Y/N

Series Masterlist

Pairing: Zuko x Reader

Chapter Word Count: 5.1k

Content Warnings: complicated relationships (strangers to friends to lovers to enemies to strangers to lovers to enemies to lovers), amnesia, alternate universe, lots of secrets and lying and mystery

A/N: going to say it right here right now…this chapter is 75% crack and goofy nonsense shenanigans LMAOAO. mostly because zuko and y/n’s relationship is so i see the light from tangled across the stars from star wars etc etc but the main man of this chapter & y/n are just the subway surfers theme song personified

“I’m very confused,” you said, sitting on Quynh’s front paw and gazing up at her beseechingly. “I need your help, Quynh.”

“I was questioning why you stayed here with me instead of running off to that tea shop you love so much,” she said, inclining her nose towards you. “What is the matter?”

“It’s about the tea shop,” you said. “Or, specifically, a certain employee.”

“That boy you met? Lee?” she said. Her muzzle wrinkled, though it was with concern, not anger. “Has he done something wrong to you?”

“No, not at all,” you said. “Well. Maybe a little bit, but he’s not quite aware that he’s done anything. And then there’s the whole problem with the Blue Spirit…”

“Your mysterious savior? What is his relation to the situation?” she said. “Dearest Y/N, you must explain at once before I am irreversibly angered.”

“Lee makes me feel bizarre!” you said, throwing your hands in the air. Quynh blinked at you.

“Makes you feel bizarre?” she said.

“Yes,” you said. “Incredibly so.”

There was really no other adjective for what it was. It was unprecedented, the kind of emotion you had never felt before, not for anyone – bar the Blue Spirit, but it was different even then. Of the same foundation, but taking a different form.

“You’ll have to explain a little more,” she said.

“It’s like my stomach is in knots,” you said. “And as if my heart has turned to a bird and is fluttering its wings about! What is this power that he has, that he can send my body into fits? But, for all that, I still want to be around him. It matters not what we are doing; as long as he is there, I am happy. Yet how can I be happy? He is driving me to failure! Why, for all I know, he really might bring about my death!”

For a moment, Quynh was silent, and then her body began to rumble. You were vindicated for a bit, thinking that she was growling with protective instinct, but your temporary satisfaction immediately vanished when you realized she was laughing.

“For a girl who spends so much time reading about so many different topics, you know so little of the world,” she said. “Though then again, this is the kind of thing that you have to experience to understand.”

“What are you talking about?” you said.

“He doesn’t have any special powers, and you aren’t going to die,” she said. “If I had to hazard a guess, I’d say you like him.”

Your mind blanked. The thought of you liking Lee was utterly preposterous. Lee, the snarky tea server? Lee, the passionate super-fan of The Mask of the Blue Spirit? Lee, who’d just as soon say something rude as he would something kind? If Quynh was to be believed, then that Lee was someone you liked, but that just wasn’t right.

“No way!” you said. “I can’t have feelings for Lee.”

“Why not?” Quynh said.

“He’s Lee!” you said helplessly. “It’s just — it’s just not how things are supposed to go.”

“Then how are things supposed to go?” she said. “Why is there a certain way that it must all happen? Things are rarely if ever set in stone, even in a kingdom made up of Earthbenders.”

“The Blue Spirit,” you said. “It’s supposed to be him. He’s the one who’s saved me, the one who knows the truth of my bending and my identity. He’s the one I’m meant to like.”

“You told him you’re a bender?” Quynh said. “That’s a new development. I thought you didn’t want to tell anyone.”

“It’s that there was no one I could trust to tell,” you said. “Until him. If a man has saved your life twice, then you can expect that he will do so a third time as well, right? So I did not feel afraid in revealing that part of me to him. I’d reveal anything to him if he asked.”

“Then there is a conundrum,” Quynh said.

“Exactly. That’s why I can’t like Lee,” you said. “It’s the Blue Spirit. There is no doubt in my mind that he is the person you foresaw me finding.”

“Hm,” Quynh said. “Do you think so?”

“I don’t know,” you said. “Lee reminds me that I am more than just a princess. I can live a different kind of life when I am with him — a happier kind. But the fact is that I am a princess, and the Blue Spirit shows me what that genuinely means. The reality of the world beyond the palace walls…if it were not for him, I’d still be blind to it all.”

Quynh sighed. “It’s not like you know who the Blue Spirit is.”

“No matter who he is underneath the mask, he’ll always be the Blue Spirit. He’ll always be the person who saved me,” you said, and then you slapped your hand over your mouth. “Uh-oh.”

“Uh-oh?” Quynh parroted. “Why are you saying that?”

“I just — I just accidentally quoted Jin!” you said. Quynh, who, being a bear spirit, was not exactly well-read, huffed at you.

“Am I meant to know who Jin is?” she said.

“She’s a character in The Mask of the Blue Spirit,” you said.

“Okay,” she said.

“That line is a part of the ending I detest! Have I become such a shallow person that I bear a resemblance to her of all characters? What will Lee think? It’s our greatest point of contention, that we do not agree on the ending, but if I’ve gone and adopted her worldview, then that means I do subconsciously like it!” you wailed.

Once more, Quynh began to laugh, nudging you and knocking you over, though she caught you in her other paw before you could hit the ground. Putting you back in your comfortable spot nestled against her fur, she continued to chuckle as she spoke.

“Quoting a single line does not mean you agree with everything a character has done,” she said. “And what does it matter to you what Lee thinks?”

“It just does,” you said. “It really matters to me.”

“Princess, I think that your dilemma is not a dilemma at all,” she said.

“Huh? Yes, it is!” you said.

“It’s not,” she said. “If you search within yourself, you will know the truth. Even in just this conversation, even without seeking it out, I have found it. And no one can know your heart better than you, so there is no reason that you cannot do the same.”

“I’ve been searching! But no answer has made itself apparent,” you said.

“Keep looking,” she said. “One day, it will. Until then, you needn’t decide anything. No one is forcing your hand.”

That was true. It wasn’t as if you were being threatened into a decision, into an acknowledgment. If your feelings really were the kind that Quynh was suggesting, then things would be spoiled, so you vowed to push them aside for now and focus on other, more pressing matters.

“That’s not the only subject that I have been mulling over recently. Quynh, do you think I would have made a better queen than Kuei is king?” you said. Her ears pricked, and her voice took on an alarmed cast when she responded.

“I know you don’t mean to be seditious, but the implication is there,” she said.

“Maybe it is seditious, but I still want your answer. The Earth Kingdom was built on your back; you’ve witnessed every monarch’s reign, every king’s rise and fall, every war and each bloody moment in the land’s history. No one would know better than you if I made the right decision all of those years ago,” you said.

“It’s not so simple,” she said. “Every king has inherited a different world than their predecessors. Some anre easier times than others, but all have their variances. Kuei is not a bad king, believe it or not. He is an uneducated one, an ignorant one, perhaps even an inept one, but he is not a bad one. He was one born to rule over a world at peace, one born to mature slowly and reign in old age, and he was given none of those considerations.”

“What about me?” you said.

“You are a princess who wants to love her people very much,” she said. “There’s always a place for that kind of royalty. However, there’s no saying what kind of ruler you would’ve been; the likelihood is that you would’ve been the same as your brother. Children are not meant to rule, dear girl. Remember it well; a boy should not be king any more than a crook should.”

You swallowed. “If only our father were still here. Things would be better.”

The father who you had never met, yet whose absence you mourned daily anew. If he were still alive, then would Ba Sing Se be as troubled as it had become under your brother’s command? You tried to imagine what kind of a man he would be. The 51st Earth King…you had read the stories and the songs until you had memorized them, but they were flimsy replacements for knowing him, for loving him.

You envied Kuei in that sense. He had met your parents. He had loved your parents and been loved by them in return. Neither of them had even known you long enough to love you. Were it not for Quynh and Kuei, you wouldn’t have been loved by anyone at all.

“They would be,” Quynh said. “But your father is gone, Y/N, and you cannot change the past. For better or for worse, your brother is the king.”

“Ba Sing Se is falling apart,” you said. “The great capital that you and Shan built is crumbling under Kuei’s control. The worst part is that he does not even know it, and he would not believe me if I told him! Isn’t it a sad twist? That I am the one with the knowledge but not the power, and he is the one who knows nothing yet has everything!”

“You are still a princess,” Quynh said. “Not a king nor a queen, but you are still the second-most powerful person in this kingdom. You are not as helpless as you are determined to believe yourself.”

“What can I do?” you said.

She angled her paw so that you slid off of it and onto your feet, and then she curled back up in her usual position. A door opened, one that must’ve led to Ba Sing Se, and she let out a gravelly exhale.

“If there is a problem, then you must understand it,” she said. “Only then can you begin to fix it. Do you understand what is happening in the city at present? In your own palace?”

“Not really,” you said. “Do you?”

“I do, but I also do not,” she said. “It’s an internal knowledge that I cannot explain to anyone else, but I am aware of it. Like an itch on my back which I cannot reach.”

“Spirit nonsense,” you said. “No matter. You’re right; even if Lee cannot tell me, there must be some way I can suss things out.”

“It’s a large city,” Quynh agreed. “There will be someone willing to help you. You only need to find them. As you found the Blue Spirit. As you found Lee.”

“Do you think I can?” you said.

“I think you can do a lot more than you are aware of,” she said. “You remind me of someone else. Someone I knew a very long time ago.”

“One of my ancestors?” you said.

“My own brother,” she said. “It has been ages upon ages since I saw him last. I thought that I could not quite recall his face anymore, but then I saw yours, and I knew that it had to be the same. I knew that he had come to be at my side again, however briefly.”

Her brother — Shan. The founder of the Earth Kingdom, who had against all odds taken a continent at war and turned it into a single nation that was united and powerful beyond even the wildest dreams of his contemporaries. What kind of equivalency was that? Who would think to compare you with the legendary first king?

You thought that Quynh’s passageway would lead you to the tea shop, as it usually did, but instead it spit you out in front of a building far too elegant to be in the Lower Ring. That meant you must’ve been in the Upper Ring, where the wealthier residents of Ba Sing Se stayed.

“Why am I here?” you muttered. Reading the sign hung above the door, you saw that the building was a girls’ poetry house. When you strained your ears, you heard the dulcet tones of recited haikus being whispered back and forth, though an unexpected addition made you pause. “That’s an awfully masculine sounding girl…”

All of a sudden, the door slammed open, and a man in a security uniform tossed out a boy clad in blue. Your eyes widened as he came flying at you, knocking you to the floor beneath him with the force of the guard’s throw.

“Aw, man,” the boy groaned. “I was just trying to show my appreciation for poetry — woah! When did you get here?”

His eyes were a bright, clear blue, though it was not the dark shade of the Blue Spirit’s mask, but rather a luminous, glittering color that pierced straight through you. For a moment, you thought that he must’ve known your every secret and intimacy — such was the depth of his gaze. But it only lasted for a moment, after which you remembered that there was no way he could’ve come to know it all just by looking at you.

“I was just passing by, and then that boorish security threw you at me!” you said. The boy leapt to his feet and offered you his hand, pulling you up when you took it and giving you a wide grin in return.

“It’s nice to meet you,” he said, shaking the hand he had already captured in his own vigorously. “I’m Sokka!”

“Y/N,” you said. He narrowed his eyes at you, leaning closer and scrutinizing you, an ordeal for which you stayed entirely still. Only when he was finally satisfied did he straighten, though he was still frowning slightly.

“That name is mighty familiar,” he said. “Have we met or something? I feel like I know you.”

“I…used to be in the circus?” you said, silently apologizing to Lee and Mushi for stealing their personal backgrounds for your cover story. “A very well-regarded one. I was, um, famous. For my acrobatics. That’s probably where you recognize me from.”

You hoped Mushi wouldn’t be upset that you had just appropriated his identity. It was the only one you could think of without the time to prepare in advance, and even then only because it was on your mind due to how absurd you had found it when Lee had mentioned it.

“We haven’t visited any circuses on our trip,” Sokka said. “So that can’t be it.”

“I’m a household name!” you said. “The main attractions tend to be, you know. Everyone across the Earth Kingdom knows who I am.”

This was actually not a lie. It would be difficult to find a single family who had not at least heard of you, but it wasn’t because of your nonexistent acrobatic prowess. Either way, it must have been convincing enough, as Sokka just shrugged it off.

“If you say so,” he said. “Can you do a cartwheel?”

“Not in a dress, I can’t,” you said. “Don’t be foolish. How would I possibly maneuver my limbs in that way with all of this fabric obstructing me?”

“Aw, I was really hoping you could show me how it’s done! I’ve always wanted to learn how to cartwheel,” Sokka said as the two of you began to walk away from the poetry house. He swung his arms by his sides as he walked, with a lackadaisical looseness you had never observed so closely before. Even Lee, Mushi, and the Blue Spirit had neat, contained manners to their gaits, each movement done with purpose, but Sokka was haphazard and almost unwieldy in his grace.

“If I were wearing pants, I might be able to demonstrate, but as it is, you’ll have to find another teacher,” you said.

“Wait! I have the best idea ever!” Sokka said. “You’re going to love this.”

You weren’t sure what you were expecting when he said that, but whatever it had been, it was not this. It did not come as a surprise that you did not love it; in fact, you were more befuddled than anything.

Sokka’s clothes did not by any means fit you properly, and the same could be said for your dress on his frame. He did not seem to mind, though, giving you a double-thumbs-up when he emerged from behind the wall where he had changed.

“You look great!” he said.

“I don’t know that I can say the same about you, but in the interest of being polite, I should like to tell you that you appear radiant at the moment,” you said.

“Why’re you speaking like you’re about to give a speech or something? Seriously, you Upper Ring folk are so weird,” he said.

“Aren’t you also one of the Upper Ring folk?” you said. “Considering I’ve met you here, you must be.”

“Nah, I’m just a visitor,” he said.

“But a very important one. Not everyone is lodged in the Upper Ring,” you said. Sokka blushed and waved you off.

“I know a guy or two,” he said. “No biggie, just another day in the life. But enough talking! Let’s get to cartwheeling. This is a moment I’ve dreamed of for a long time!”

“I hope you’ve been dreaming of being disappointed for equally as long,” you said.

“What’d you say?” he said.

“Nothing,” you said.

“Then what are we waiting for?” he said. “Show me how it’s done!”

There was a problem: you had no idea how to do a cartwheel. If only it were Mushi in your place! According to Lee, he was supremely flexible, and he had his circus training. As well, his patient and kind demeanor meant that he would be uniquely suited to being Sokka’s cartwheeling mentor. At any rate, he’d be better than you at the job, though that wasn’t really a high bar.

“Here goes nothing,” you said, taking a deep breath and raising your arms over your head. Trying to emulate what you had heard about the movement, you took a step forward and tried to push off with your back leg.

Somehow, it happened that your slipper came flying off, smacking Sokka in the face as you lost your balance and landed in a heap on the cobblestones of the street. Sokka shrieked as he, too, was knocked over, though through the dim awareness you had of the situation, you could not quite discern how a mere shoe had been enough to warrant that much of a reaction.

“I think you’re bad luck,” he said, rubbing his head. “No wonder you left the circus. I can’t believe they kept you around for as long as they did!”

“I’m out of practice,” you said, accepting the shoe he passed you and putting it back on. “Could I have my clothes back, perhaps? Or have you taken a liking to them? Because I do not think you wear green as well as I do.”

“Hey!”

Once you and he were back in your regular clothes, you readied yourself to wish Sokka farewell. You weren’t really sure what he was doing or why he was in the Upper Ring, but you thought it was safe to say that he was not the person Quynh was talking about, the one who would be willing to help you in solving the problems of your kingdom.

“I still can’t shake the feeling that you remind me of someone,” Sokka said.

“Do you have any siblings?” you said.

“A younger sister,” he said.

“It’s probably her. I’m a younger sister, too,” you said. “If you’re not an avid circus-goer, then that’s the only other option I can come up with.”

“That’s another thing! I’ve never heard of circus performers speaking so fancily,” he said.

“You said it yourself that you haven’t visited any circuses on your trip, so how would you know?” you said. “It’s a shame that you have these stereotypes in your head. You should do some introspection about where they originate from.”

“What — no, I’m not — that’s not what I meant! There’s just something about you that I’m this close to figuring out!” he said, holding up his thumb and pointer finger, pressing them together for effect.

“You’re not getting paid for it, so why waste the effort?” you said.

“I’m just a curious — duck!” he said.

“Duck? Do you mean a turtleduck? That’s an interesting way to describe yourself — oh!” you said as he pulled you to the ground and out of the way of an incoming boulder.

“Whose bad side did you get on, huh?” Sokka said, motioning for you to run along with him. It was nothing like when you and the Blue Spirit had fled from the assassin’s previous attack; you didn’t have that implicit trust in Sokka to protect you, and for his part, Sokka was just as panicked as you were, so all told it was a much less graceful exit as you charged through the streets of the Upper Ring.

“A bunch of assassins!” you said. “They’ve been chasing me on and off for weeks now.”

“Assassins?” Sokka wheezed out as you increased your pace. “Just what kind of acrobat were you?”

“One that made a lot of enemies — look out!” you said, jumping into the air to avoid the stone gloves that reached for your ankles. Missing their target, they slammed into the wall and burst into smithereens.

“We’re almost at our guest house!” Sokka said. “The others should be able to help us if we haven’t lost these freaks by then. We just have to reach there before getting, y’know, crushed!”

“That’d be ideal!” you said, covering your head with your hands as you rounded a corner. Sokka kicked the door to a luxurious villa down, shoving you in and then slamming it shut behind him, pressing his back to it as the three occupants of the home gave you both alarmed looks.

“Assassins — rocks — cartwheel instructor!” Sokka said, heaving for breath and pointing at you. You waved at the trio, who must’ve been the friends that Sokka was visiting Ba Sing Se with.

One was a beautiful girl who bore an uncanny resemblance to Sokka — indubitably, this was his sister, though unlike Sokka, her eyes swirled with something lively and unsettled, as if they were twin seas set in her sweet face. Beside her was another girl, this one with fine features like a lady but a rough aura like a wrestler, and on her right was a boy with the blue arrows of an Airbending master running along his body.

“You’re going to have to repeat that,” Sokka’s sister said. “What’s going on? Who is this?”

“My cartwheeling instructor,” Sokka said.

“In a manner of speaking,” you said. “I didn’t really teach him much.”

“You know how to cartwheel? I love cartwheeling!” the Airbender said.

“Why didn’t Sokka ask you to teach him, then?” you said. The boy shrugged.

“Dunno,” he said.

“We were in the middle of a lesson—” Sokka began.

“As I recall, we were about to part ways,” you interrupted. Sokka shushed you impatiently.

“Like I was saying, we were in the middle of a lesson when, out of nowhere, pow! There was a boulder flying at our heads, and then boom! We almost died from it!” he said. You decided to just be quiet and let him tell the story; he had a flair for dramatics that you could not hope to match.

“What? Why?” his sister said.

“No idea! She said that she’s been being chased by those assassins for a while now!” Sokka said.

“Did you bring a criminal into our house?” his sister said, arching a brow at you. “Are you a criminal?”

“Not as far as I know,” you said. “I suppose I’m not really meant to be out here, but it’s not against any significant law for me to be. It’s just a family rule I’ve broken.”

“You said that they’re assassins?” the younger of the two girls said. “There’s no way. I didn’t sense anyone coming near us except for you two and some of the Dai Li agents.”

“They must be super sneaky!” Sokka said. “Right, Y/N?”

“Hm, it might be,” you said, lost in thought at this suggestion. Though you had no idea what she meant when she said she had sensed the Dai Li’s presence, you also had no reason to think that the girl was lying. There were two things that that could mean if what she said was correct, and neither of them were options you wanted to be true.

“Sokka,” his sister said. It was then that you realized that she, the Airbender, and the other girl were staring at you. “What did you just call your new friend?”

“You’re right! I can’t believe I forgot to do introductions! Y/N, this is Aang, Toph, and my sister Katara. Everyone, this is Y/N,” Sokka said, pointing at everyone as he said their names.

“Hello,” you said. “It’s lovely to meet you all.”

“Sokka!” Katara said. “You dumb, idiotic genius! We’ve been trying to talk to the king for ages, and you just happened to meet his sister while out and about!”

“That’s where I knew your name from!” Sokka said. “Princess Y/N, duh. Wait! You’re Princess Y/N!”

“Um,” you said, swearing internally at the fact that you had not thought to come up with a new name to go along with your alter ego as an acrobat. “No, I’m not.”

“She’s lying,” Toph said. “I have seismic sense, so you can forget about trying to make things up, princess. I’ll be able to tell in an instant.”

“You don’t know how good it is to meet you!” Aang said. “We’ve been trying to talk to your brother for a while now, but it’s not been going well.”

“Why would you want to talk to Kuei?” you said before you could stop yourself, rolling your eyes at the mere thought of anyone actually desiring to speak with him. “He’s not the most stimulating conversationalist.”

“You’re Princess Y/N!” Sokka said again. “You’re the princess of the Earth Kingdom, and I made you wear my clothes and do cartwheels!”

“When you put it like that, it does sound like a grave offense,” you said. “Shall I have you executed for it?”

“No!” he said, falling to his knees and bowing. “Oh esteemed, valued, generous, kind, benevolent princess, please spare my life! Please please please please please please—”

“I was only joking,” you informed him.

“We have to speak to the Earth King,” Aang said. “Do you think you could get us an audience? It’s urgent. If it helps, tell him the Avatar is the one making the request.”

“You’re the Avatar?” you said. Aang nodded at you, his expression grave and at odds with his youthful countenance. “For some reason, I thought you’d be older.”

“He’s technically 112 years old,” Sokka piped up from where he was now supine on the floor by your feet. “So there’s that.”

“I see,” you said. “You look good for your age, then. My apologies for making assumptions.”

“It’s complicated,” Aang said. “Do you think you can help us, though?”

“We’re kind of at our wits’ ends,” Katara added.

“Those Earth Palace dolts are the next level of stupid,” Toph said. “It’s all a bunch of bureaucracy and rules. Blech.”

“I can’t guarantee it,” you said. “I’m sorry. I’m not even allowed to be here right now. You see, I’m forbidden to leave my chambers. It’s only through the power of a spirit named Quynh that I may enter and exit without detection — though, I’m beginning to doubt how true that part is, but that’s an issue for me to work through on my own time. I’ll do my best to help you all while I’m at it, but for the most part, my hands are tied.”

“Okay,” Katara said when it became obvious that the others were too disappointed to come up with a response. “There’s nothing more we can ask of you. Just — it’s really urgent. You have to mean it when you say you’ll do your best.”

“I do mean it,” you said. “But in case, is there any other message you’d like me to pass along?”

“There is a war,” Aang said. “He has to ignore everything that he’s been told and realize that. There’s a war going on, and without his support, we’re going to lose it.”

A war. Of course. It made so much sense. The refugees. The injuries. The state of Ba Sing Se. It all pointed towards a distant yet rapidly encroaching conflict. That was the problem. That was what you needed to understand, or at least begin with understanding — there were other things that the Avatar and his friends had accidentally or purposefully revealed, smaller details that you would pick at and dissect until their natural conclusions, but this was the main point.

Not yet, though. These were things best done in the harsh, inescapable brightness of day, and tonight’s twilight was already waning. Soon, it would be time for the daily lighting of the Firelight Fountain’s lanterns, and there was something else you wanted to do before that.

Blending into crowds when you could, creeping past checkpoints and keeping your head lowered to avoid detection, you snuck into the Lower Ring, making your way towards a certain place, Quynh’s words coming to mind all of a sudden.

He would be starting his evening shift soon. You could picture him putting his apron on, rolling up his sleeves and complaining to his uncle about how much he hated his job and how they deserved to be somewhere else — the circus, perhaps? You weren’t sure, for he never really elaborated, but that was because the alternative location was not as important as the dissatisfaction he felt.

Despite your best efforts to quash it for fear of looking like a fool — what normal person was so excited by the prospect of apologizing to the dourest boy born to humanity? — a smile formed on your face as you began to walk faster, towards the tea shop where you knew Lee would be waiting.

taglist (comment/send an ask/dm to be added): @rinisfruity14 @c4ttheart @blacky-rose @shizko @marsbars09 @happyplaidpersonfestival @catborglar @camilleverreault @nerdybouquetofkittens-blog @lovialy @heart4hees @stefnarda @ioonatv

[rapeculturerealities]

Woman Who Was Charged With Murder After Abortion Sues Texas Prosecutor - The New York Times

A woman in Texas who was falsely charged with murder over a self-induced abortion in 2022 has filed a lawsuit against the local prosecutor’s office and its leaders, seeking more than $1 million in damages.

Lizelle Gonzalez was arrested in April 2022 in Starr County, near the southeastern border with Mexico, and charged with murder after using the drug misoprostol to self-induce an abortion, 19 weeks into her pregnancy. She spent two nights in jail before the charge was dropped.

Self-induced abortions can refer to those performed outside of professional medical care, including the use of abortion pills. Under Texas law at the time, abortions after six weeks were illegal, but pregnant women are exempt from criminal prosecution. (Health care professionals who provide abortion procedures and medication, and others who help someone get an abortion, can still be liable.)

Ms. Gonzalez, who was known as Lizelle Herrera and 26 at the time of her arrest, filed a complaint on Thursday against Starr County, along with its district attorney, Gocha Ramirez, and assistant district attorney, Alexandria Lynn Barrera. She argues that the arrest and charge resulted in her suffering reputational harm and distress, and seeks to “vindicate her rights but also to hold accountable the government officials who violated them,” according to her lawsuit.

Ms. Gonzalez and her lawyers were not immediately available for comment on Saturday.

Mr. Ramirez and Ms. Barrera also did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the lawsuit. A month ago, the state bar of Texas found that Mr. Ramirez had unlawfully prosecuted Ms. Gonzalez without probable cause and fined him $1,250. His law license will also be held in probated suspension for a year, which means he must comply with specific requirements but can practice law during that time. That period starts April 1.

According to the complaint, Ms. Gonzalez took the abortion medication in January 2022 and went to the hospital for an examination. Doctors found a positive heartbeat for the baby and no contractions, so she was discharged the next day. But later that day, she returned to the hospital with complaints of vaginal bleeding, and doctors performed a C-section to deliver a stillborn child.

The Food and Drug Administration has approved the use of misoprostol and mifepristone, another commonly used abortion pill, through 10 weeks of pregnancy, under the supervision of a health care provider. But the World Health Organization endorses self-induced abortions in pregnancies of up to 12 weeks without medical supervision.

Ms. Gonzalez says in the lawsuit that the hospital employees reported her self-induced abortion to the district attorney’s office, in violation of federal privacy laws, though her lawsuit does not name them or the hospital as defendants.

The lawsuit says that neither the Starr County Sheriff’s Office nor the Rio Grande City Police Department performed an investigation with sufficient facts or circumstances surrounding the murder charge against her, and only relied on reports from the hospital. Ms. Gonzalez also accuses them of misleading the grand jury with false information to secure an indictment against her.

“The fallout from defendants’ illegal and unconstitutional actions has forever changed” Ms. Gonzalez’s life, the complaint says. She “was subjected to the humiliation of a highly publicized indictment and arrest, which has permanently affected her standing in the community.”

When the charge against Ms. Gonzalez was dropped, Mr. Ramirez said that it was “clear” that she “cannot and should not be prosecuted for the allegation against her,” and acknowledged that “the events leading up to this indictment have taken a toll” on Ms. Gonzalez and her family. At the time, the anti-abortion group Texas Right to Life supported Mr. Ramirez’s decision to drop the charges, saying Texas’ law “clearly prohibit criminal charges for pregnant women.”

Ms. Gonzalez’s indictment occurred several months before the overturning of Roe v. Wade, and before Texas’ near-total ban on abortions went into effect. Even with the stricter ban, those who get an abortion cannot be criminally prosecuted.

Melissa Murray, a law professor at New York University, said Ms. Gonzalez’s lawsuit could serve to raise consciousness in Texas and beyond, to “understand that we are moving very quickly into a kind of dystopian, post-Dobbs landscape.”

“I think she could be very successful here,” Ms. Murray said of Ms. Gonzalez. “And if she isn’t, even if it doesn’t make it to trial, she could make him pay to settle this,” referring to Mr. Ramirez.

The lawsuit could act as a deterrent to other officials around the state, Ms. Murray said. But it could also “have the effect of spurring the anti-abortion movement to lobby the Legislature to actually make pregnant people subject to criminal or civil liability.”

Roni Caryn Rabin, Giulia Heyward and Sophie Kasakove contributed reporting.

[sureuncertainty]

so as a former employee of RMS Titanic Inc, I have some thoughts I need to get out about this whole current situation, or I will literally explode.

for context, I worked for RMST Inc. for a year and a half as a tour guide and artifact specialist. The company owns the salvage rights to the wreck site, and partners with Oceangate and other companies to retrieve artifacts. the artifacts are used for educational purposes only, in the museum that I worked at, although they weren’t above selling little bits of coal from the Titanic in stupid little tchotchkes like snowglobes and hourglasses.

i dedicated so much of my life and passion to that company and that museum and was treated like absolute dirt lol. and I didn’t even get the worst of it, I had friends and coworkers whose safety and wellbeing was consistently disregarded for the sake of profit, fighting desperately for corporate to stop pretending to care about the legacy of Titanic when all they really cared about was making money

so despite my initial shock at reading about what was going on with the missing submersible, I can’t say I’m surprised. This is what fucking happens when you cut corners and put profit over everything else. If only there was some big historical event that we could look to that would show us just exactly how dangerous that can be...  oh wait.

Jack Thayer, who was 17 when he survived Titanic, said that “the world woke up on April 15, 1912″, which pretty much sums up how SURE people were in 1912 that they would never make those same mistakes again. They realized had gotten complacent and swore things would be different. They enacted safety laws, pointed fingers at survivors, created conspiracy theories to try to explain what happened, all out of fear of it happening again. And yet, history always repeats itself

and now people are fucking OBSESSED with the Titanic, they find it fascinating,  they won’t fucking leave it alone, and the company I worked for, and Oceangate, and others, capitalize on that because they’re greedy and want to make money off of it. all they care about is how to profit off of it. they PRETEND to care about Titanic but they don’t. They never did.

I also actually have a personal connection to one of the five members of the team in the submersible. I met P.H. Nargeolet at the event our museum did commemorating the 110th anniversary of the sinking, I spoke to him and heard firsthand some of his accounts of dives to the wreck site, I even took a picture with him. He cared, he cared so much about Titanic and its legacy, and so do I and so did so many of my friends I worked with. The company we worked for took advantage of our caring, it took advantage of how passionate we were about it in order to line its executives’ fucking pocket

I’m horrified, I’m devastated, I’m vindicated.

on the one hand, I hope this ruins them. i want to watch the company die. there’s a satisfaction in that. but the shitty thing is how much suffering has to happen for things to change. i just wish good people didn’t have to die to make change happen. I wish people cared first, before tragedy strikes. I wish our world wasn’t so fucked up and shit like this didn’t happen. But it did. And it does. And money won’t save any of those people any more than it saved John Jacob Astor or Benjamin Guggenheim, or any of the other rich greedy assholes who died on Titanic. I’m not celebrating their deaths. But I won’t ever forget who suffers the most. The coal trimmers and the stewards and the minimum wage guest service associates at the museum I worked at.

I’m glad I don’t work there anymore. But some of my best friends still do. And I don’t want them to suffer more because of this. All I can hope is that it enacts meaningful change that actually lasts. But I know that’s just wishful thinking.

[lord-squiggletits]

The funny thing about Pharma and the Delphi situation is that that's where the concept of the DJD was first introduced (with the first scene with the DJD at work happening literally the issue afterwards, issue #6) and literally the more you learn about the DJD the more it vindicates Pharma in his paranoia and being convinced that he couldn't ask for help like

In the Delphi issues we learn that the DJD hunts down Decepticon turncoats/traitors/etc and that Ambulon, one of the Delphi staff, was a Decepticon traitor. We also learn that their leader is evidently terrifying in addition to being a t-cog addict, but that's it.

Except in the subsequent issue #6 and all issues with the DJD afterwards, we learn a variety of fun facts about the DJD such as

Several of the members either literally transform into torture equipment or have said torture equipment built into their bodies

Their leader, Tarn, the guy with the t-cog addiction that forced Pharma into blackmail, can kill people with just his VOICE

We later learn that the DJD have a fanatical devotion to the Decepticon cause/Megatron such that they literally worship an idol of Megatron

Even later on, we learn that Tarn's kill-you-with-his-voice powers work both over the phone and via recordings of his voice

Tarn is also very talkative during torture sessions and he seems to find pleasure in his stupid, smug-smart guy persona where he likes to describe to victims what's happening to them and why. And there's no reason he wouldn't apply this to Autobots just as much as he does to Decepticon traitors

The DJD have access to signal jamming technologies that make it so that even if their victim can get a help signal out, no one will receive it until weeks after the fact

Their entire system of hunting people down is based on pursuing them no matter what, isolating them from any help, driving them mad with psychological terror, etc

They're capable enough warriors to slaughter an entire ships' worth of people, apparently without sustaining any meaningful casualties

They're drug addicts that are prone to overdosing and/or losing control and slaughtering people while they're under the influence

So like???

If Pharma was only privy to HALF of the things that we as the audience know about the DJD, it's perfectly reasonable to assume that Pharma probably wanted to call for help at some point, but was convinced that doing so would lead to 1. the signal being jammed/blocked so no one would help anyways 2. him and everyone else at Delphi (including the TRAITOR WHO IS ONE OF THEIR EMPLOYEES) would be horribly tortured to death by fanatical Decepticon torturer freaks.

Like I get that in the text Pharma only says that he did the Red Rust stuff so that he wouldn't be caught/blamed for the t-cog deal and is prideful about how he stopped the DJD from murdering Delphi, but like...... there's no fucking way that Pharma going "oh I didn't want to get in trouble and also I'm better than everyone" was his PRIMARY reason for everything on Delphi. Pharma didn't go from perfectly normal/sane Autobot doctor to raving egotistical maniac because he was always an asshole and he decided to solve the DJD issue in an asshole way. It's bc according to all canon evidence we have of the DJD and the way they react to traitors/Autobots, Pharma had every reason to fear for his life and believe that no aid would come to him.

[chaifootsteps]

I just can't wrap my head around the Viv dickriders. When someone has countless ex-friends, ex-employees, and ex-colleagues all repeating the same stories about a person's behavior, you just need to face reality. There is no grand conspiracy or collusion to cancel her. She is simply a bad person who has treated a lot of people poorly and this is the result of it. I don't get the mental gymnastics her cultish following has to do to think she's innocent and everything that comes out about her is 100% fake. Whatever happened to the saying, "where there's smoke, there's fire"? Weirdly, she reminds me of Ellen. A lot of people thought there was something off about her for years but most everything you'd see about her was positive aside from a few people who had spoken out. Then a bunch of her staffers finally spoke out, and that led to more people sharing their experiences, and finally she was exposed to the public for her horrid behavior. I can only hope there is a reckoning at SpindleHorse soon and the first few people that spoke out against Viv get vindicated.

If you smell shit everywhere you go, check your own shoes.

And same. Ken and Erin and the rest, I hope history treats them well enough to make up for all of this.

[princessfroslass]

Honestly, I really want the Husk-Alastor dynamic to be explored completely differently than the Val-Angel one.

Not only because, well, originality lmao and because let's face it, Alastor is a fan favorite. He is THE favorite of the creator, and the one that sells the most merch. His huge scene with his slave in episode 5 wasn't really about Husk, but about HIM. Showing how he has his secrets and how scary he can be. Husk is left shaking and visibly traumatized on the floor and in the next scene he is with the guys eating popcorn and seeing how Alastor kicked Mimzy out is seen as his "vindication". In Finale we have this little moment where him and Lucifer are comically "Oh great, this guy again..." like both treat him like an annoyance. Alastor will never be vilified like Valentino is because Valentino is a villain first, a character second. Alastor is a character first, an anti-villain/villain second.

The first time we see Alastor in animated format he is shown preying on Charlie's whole televised fiasco, then he shows up, Vaggie info dumps about how DANGEROUS he is and shit.....and then Alastor sings a tune to charm Charlie in. He is not MEANT to be seen as a good guy, he is meant to be SHADY, and manipulative, and clearly our sweet naive protagonist is making an deal with the Devil. We know this guy has bad intentions, but Charlie herself open the question that if he is really unredeemable, what the hell are they doing there? It keeps you aware he is bad news, but is quite charming and could be an interesting character to explore, since his motivations are so obscure and we don't really know if he is truly unredeemable since all we have are rumors and an scene of him getting rid of the guy that attacked their hotel.

The first time we saw Valentino in animated format he was sexually assaulting his employee.... yeah, is very clear the show is point-blank telling you this guy is NEVER seeing the pearly gates, there is no point in even bringing the question up, what matters on this story is not him, but how Angel copes.

Hazbin has the subtly of a frying pan to the face. Alastor LIVES in the same space as Husk, if they were meant to be a Valangel 2.0 Husk wouldn't be allowed to say shit when Alastor is in the same building other than nod and do his job. He wouldn't be able to be so vocal about it and, even if Alastor was just saving face, Husk wouldn't be so willy-nilly to have a one-to-one with him alone. Again, Hazbin has the subtly of a baseball bat to the knees, they go out of their way to show how absolutely terrified of Val Angel is, even when he stood up to him there were frames where he was visibly shaken and unsure about the whole thing (pause Val convocates the chain and ESPECIALLY after he hits him, you can see his bravado breaking) so I always found that they NEVER show Husk scared of Alastor until he literally has a chain around his neck very strange, considering they had been together for years.

So, since it's clear that Alastor will never be vilified like Val is, what can we do with this relationship? Simple, we EXPAND on it. Why is Husk perfectly chill to insult this sociopath who literally owns him to his face? Why does Alastor even keep him around rather than disappear him like he did with so many other OverLords? Was it just entertainment?.....Company? What does he GAINS from dragging Husk around? Where does Nifty fit into all this? How much does Husk knows about Alastor's shady business- what was he doing the 7 years he was disappeared?...is there any feeling of endearment among either of them? And how does this relates to Husk's past as a overlord....does he sees this as some sort of Karma? Does ALASTOR see it that way? EXPAND ON THIS SHIT-

Also, this difference could create some interesting shifts on HuskerDust dynamic. Imagine Angel, being so used to dealing with his absolute abusive of a boss/ex-boyfriend and now aware that Husk is owned by Al, is visibly confused by Husk casually talking back to Alastor. Maybe even further into their relationship he would jump all "Al he didn't mean to-" only to get promptly shrugged off. Think of how he is the one to appease Val's anger whenever is redirected to someone other than himself. Maybe they have a fall off over it cause "You have NO idea what is like to be in my place!" because- yeah, is true, their situations would be similar on the basis that they are slaves- but their relationships with their masters is completely different. Husk would wish to be given the ""freedom"" Angel gets by only being owned by Val at the studio, not UNDERSTANDING why he goes back when he lives with the princess of Hell who wouldn't doubt to protect him if his abuser came looking for him- basically, not understanding that Angel LOVES his abuser. That, like Blake Roman said, "loves the parts of him that he doesn't hate". And Angel's thoughts could go a... darker place. Let's just say that when one is so hurt, having someone that is treated the exact same way as you despite being on a similar position can be....triggering. Obviously knowing your pseudo-boyfriend isn't sexually assaulted on the daily should be a cause of relief -and it is! again, Angel is very protective of those he gives a shit about- emotions are a bitch and can be super treacherous, especially accompanied by an already explosive temper as Angel's.

But going back to the main duo-Is often interpreted that Al uses Husk to do his dirty work for him from time to time, and I think it would be interesting that if that is case, to show how Husk goes from uncaring and annoyed that Alastor is using him like this to genuinely- disgusted by it. By his old self. And how he would respond to it after like a year or so of simply bar tendering and being everyone's drunk grandfather- cause Alastor literally owns him. I think that is where he would take a more active role in getting out of his contract and even reforming, as Alastor himself spirals.

I find the Valangerl dynamic very interesting cause it's very clearly an abusive couple from the get-go, so now that we know that Valentino is an irredeemable piece of shit, what does this subplot tell us about Angel's character? That he is a man so starved for love that abuse can taste like it, he is VERY aware is destroying him- but thinks is all he has, just like the drugs that killed him in the first place. How did he got to that point? Angel is very clearly street smarts, he comes from a mafia of all things and had been in Hell for over 3 decades before Val even died, how he got the point of trusting someone he gave HIS SOUL for is what is really interesting about this dynamic. The before, the during....the after. The balance of hatred and love, the obsession, all. And how the only thing keeping an horrible person for ruining someone they once proclaimed love to....is power (look how Val is seen as a pathetic man child whenever he is with Vox and Velvet, his equals, compared to how he is seen by Angel. A literal shadow with glowing red eyes that towers over him)

What makes Al and Husk's dynamic interesting is what it can tells us about how their view of their world through men that are both on the highest and lower of Hell's Sinner chain. Of how while Alastor's situation made him more obsessive, more controlling and yes, more abusive -cause I am not about to brush THAT scene under the rug just because it seems to be an isolated incident- Husk just grew numb to it. He doesn't care anymore, just do whatever he is told to while complaining and drinking the whole way, but eventually is welcomed onto this new family, changes his ways, all the good stuff....

Hell, wouldn't it be hella interesting if it was HUSK who kickstarted an hypothetical Alastor's redemption arc? Kinda of how Verosika was the one that truly made Blitz aware of his behavior in HB. And like in that show is not that they become FRIENDS or anything just- Husk is allowed to go and do his life with the person he loves and the friends he made, while Alastor is left alone staring at nothing and Thinking(tm)

[istadris]

Hello!

Ok, so...if it wasn't a problem, do you have something you would like to share about "Accidental Ghost King Luigi"?

I saw that you mentioned it and it really caught my attention, a lot of thoughts came up when I finished Luigi's Mansion 3 and I love expanding them.

So most of the ideas were discussed here, but I can scrounge up some more.

TL;DR for this AU : E.Gadd passes away, leaving in his will everything he owns to Luigi, who is now probably the richest man in the mushroom kingdom between the estates, the cash and the employees, living or not. (Spoilers alert : once Luigi realizes exactly how much he owns, he freaks out so much he hides under his blanket for several hours, with Mario patting the bundle and occasionally slipping snacks under it).

Then once he calms down enough, he wants to give everything away but it turns out to not be that simple, explains the Toad in charge of giving the will to Luigi:

"What if I DON'T want all of this ??"

"I don't know about the ready money or the coffee shop, but by all ghost and Boo laws, you are the rightful master of these places that you earned through Right of Conquest until someone else comes to dethrone you."

And it turns out, yes, by beating King Boo three times, on his haunting ground, with the last time being a direct challenge to Luigi and his kin, Luigi effectively conquered him, with all of his ghosts and Boos. And King Boo was a very powerful ghost. Luigi is now King Luigi.

"Why was E.Gadd even the owner of these places then, he wasn't the one chasing ghosts there !"

"Oh, he wasn't the actual owner of anything: before the dark moon incident, the ghosts were not agressive and let him play around, and afterwards, he acted as your steward to maintain your domains in your absence"

"Wait, is that why King Boo keeps coming after me ? Not just by revenge?"

"Oh yes, definitely, you dethroned him three times, that's a bad number for a spirit."

Peach, who has to deal regularly with a king ruling over a place where 90% of roaylty dealings involve kidnapping : "oh, Luigi dear..."

Except E.Gadd comes back. As a ghost. And he's still obsessed with science, but now without any of these pesky mortal ethics or boundaries. To the point his experiences go from "eyebrow-raising in the methods but ultimately for the greater good" to "mad scientist except this one is perfectly aware of what his potential enemies can do and acts accordingly."

At first he seems relatively reasonable...until Luigi refuses to give him back Gooigi AND the rest of the ghosts, too. Maybe he has grown fond of his new "subjects", or maybe he senses giving E.Gadd full control of the ghosts is a bad idea.

"My boy, do you think you could use my own creations against me ? I know them better inside out than you can ever do !!"

E.Gadd doesn't take it well.

E.Gadd is now very curious and vindicative towards this meddling new Ghost King who dares to get in the way of his research.

E.Gadd issues a challenge. And by challenge we mean that he takes possession of Luigi's territories. Probably kidnaps Mario & co, AND Polterpup (he knows how to capture ghosts, and he knows how helpful the ghost pup is to Luigi). Oh, and he steals and breaks all existing Poltergusts.

Now Luigi is stuck in a dangerous place with a mad ghost after him, unarmed, alone...except for King Boo, still stuck in his container, that he managed to grab on the way out of the laboratory.

King Boo is angry at Luigi for stealing his title, but he certainly isn't going to let the professor beat HIS nemesis!! What will the rest of the spectral community say if the one who defeated him loses his new title so fast?? Luigi isn't sure about the logic behind this reasoning, but he'll take any help he can get.

So now it's the team up of the century, and by that I mean King Boo snarking and loudly complaining from his container, asking again and again to be let out, while Luigi tries to survive and to keep KB inside the container (he has enough on his plate, he doesn't want another mad ghost after him); all while KB actually guides Luigi through the mysteries of ghosts and spectres, as well as the intricacies of the Ghost King title. But even after King Boo manages to get out of the container at some point, he still sticks by Luigi. You can guess why.

A Very Important Plot Point: King Boo gets frustrated by how much time Luigi takes and decides to shove some spectral power in him to level the field.

That's a fun surprise : King Boo's spectral essence boosts up Luigi's Thunderhand (that he had stopped using due to how taxing it was on his body; but now the Boo power helps circumventing this energy tax). KB acts as the new "source" and makes it way more potent, especially given his own affinity with lightning.

"Isn't that cheating ?"

"Have you even MET ME ??? Here, have some of my power, it should AT LEAST give you a boost so you won't die right after touching a gho-"

*huge thunderbolt crashing on the house frizzing everything electrical device*

"....WHAT WAS THAT"

"Uh....it never did that before."

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN "IT NEVER DID THAT BEFORE ?? YOU COULD HAVE TOLD ME YOU HAD LATENT MAGICAL ABILITIES!!?? WHY DID YOU NEVER USE THEM AGAINST ME !!!???"

Later, when they manage to free Mario, KB eyes Mario suspiciously for a loooong moment as both brothers look in hope.

Then he shrugs : "Nah, not gonna happen"

"What?? Why ??"

"It's more fun if Luigi gets my power, he's my nemesis. Just ask Bowser to lend you fire powers next time you see him"

"That's ridiculous, with everything at stake..."

"More seriously, you are NOT my nemesis. You did NOT deal with my powers as intimately as Luigi did"

"Don't put it that way please"

"Even if I wanted to provide you power, Mario is much weaker to my powers, he wouldn't be able to harness them."

[nerves-nebula]

Someone was being annoying in my notes so here’s a kinda petty rebuttal below. Under the cut if u don’t care about my opinions on bdsm & kink as it pertains to abuse (short of it is is that “abusers can use this to hurt people” is true of basically everything and so is “abusers are drawn to positions of power in this communtiy and take advantage of peoples good will”)

Not sure what caused this person to reblog this from me and go on this whole rant but it’s an easy way to get blocked by me :3 anyway kink is also like wrestling in that abusive dynamics can and do exist in it and communities around it. And that people with more power (for whatever reason) can abuse those beneath them.

Because abusive dynamics can exist everywhere. Abusers are drawn to power, that power doesn’t have to be something “bad” like physically hurting people it can be something like psychologically tormenting your employees.

This is not something unique to BDSM communities because they “encourage hurting people” or something it’s something that can and will happen in basically any community at all if you don’t have safeguards against it, and maybe even if you do. Please stop acting like BDSM is somehow inherently more likely to have this shit happen. If you wanna talk about BDSM communities and accountability maybe think about how it’s harder to call people out in a community where you could all go to jail for consensually “hurting” each other if word gets around. Idk.

Also it’s not condescending to point out that two things that are play acting and agreed on beforehand and both cary risk of bodily harm are similar.

Everything that’s said here about abuse in kink is also true of professional wrestling as an industry (have you SEEN WWE???) and is also probably true of like, someone’s local high school or a poorly run McDonald’s or something.

Also also: this is written in a weirdly childish way. And i mean that as childish morally. like, “bad people” is such an odd choice of words here. It’s so non specific. I don’t care about hypothetical Bad People in a community cuz that’s a useless boogeyman. Talk about how anyone, even designated “good people” could be drawn to take advantage of power structures and think about potential ways to rectify that.

How many times do i have to say “abusers will use this to abuse someone” is true of literally everything. “Bad people” would use fucking word girl to groom a kid if they thought it’d work. “Bad people” would use baking to abuse someone if it’d get them what they wanted. Abuse is situational and abusers will use whatever works!

These tags read like someone who’s been waiting for the chance to make this spiel and idk what happened in their life to make them feel vindicated but I’m glad they showed their colors so I could block them 👍

[whumpshaped]

whumptober 14

prompt list masterlist

tw intimate whumper, knives, death threat, talk of murder

"Just hold on."

Whumper returned the employee's — Whumpee, according to their name tag — polite smile and nodded, watching them disappear behind a heavy metal door. 'Employees only'. Of course. They'd never thought about unlawfully entering that room, not even once. They'd never thought about how nicely that door would keep sounds in and intruders out. They'd never thought about following Whumpee inside and painting the whole room red as a nice little surprise for any other employee.

Okay, maybe they'd thought about it once. Maybe a couple times. It wasn't like thoughts had ever hurt anyone, right?

Whumpee came back out empty-handed, looking very apologetic. "I'm sorry, we don't have any in store. We'll get a new delivery on Friday, if you're interested."

"Can I check?" they asked, not even waiting for the answer before they took a couple steps forward, backing Whumpee into the room they'd just come from.

"What? No, this– this is a restricted area, I'm gonna have to ask you to leave."

"That wasn't very convincing." They closed the door behind themself, sealing the two of them off from the rest of the already quite empty shop. "It'll just be a minute, really."

"Sir, I'm gonna call–"

Whumper pulled out their pocket knife, cutting the monologue short. "It's not worth it, right? You wouldn't defend a shop with your life." Whumpee shook their head frantically, making them laugh. "Yeah, that's what I thought. So? Will you show me where the product should be?"

"Y-yes, sir. Do I– do I have to show the way? I'd feel more comfortable if you walked in front of me and I could just navigate–"

"Whumpee..." They stepped closer, and Whumpee backed into one of the shelves, startling them.

"I'll lead!" they said quickly. "Don't– don't hurt me, don't hurt me, please, I'll show you, please..."

"Good! After you, then."

They didn't necessarily want to take advantage of Whumpee not being able to see them, really. But now that they made it clear that they were very afraid of that happening, well, they couldn't pass up the opportunity to vindicate them.

As soon as Whumpee turned around, they grabbed them by the hair, putting the blade against their throat as they struggled in their hold. "Don't scream," they whispered. "Shh, stop it. Stop."

The knife must've had a grounding effect, because Whumpee went limp in their arms almost immediately. All they did was mutter little pleas and prayers, which was kind of endearing.

"Are you religious?" they asked, smiling when their new friend nodded. "What d'you think would happen to you if I killed you now?"

Oh, bad question. Whumpee instantly began sobbing, and Whumper didn't know whether they could get them to stop any time soon. They were just curious! Was that a crime? As much of a crime as their thoughts, apparently.

"Don't cry, love... You're being so dramatic right now, horrible customer service. Stop it."

"I'm sorry," they choked out. "I don't know– I don't know..."

"Mmm... You don't know..." They tilted their head to the side, pouting a little. "Why don't we find out, then?"

~

general drabbles taglist: @ashh-ed @whumpsday @whump-queen @the-scrapegoat @hidden-dreamland @rosewriteswhump @dismemberment-on-a-tuesday-night @whumpkinpie @delicateprincepaper @whumppmuhw @whump-em @cyborg0109 @morning-star-whump @justanotherlokifan @2in1whump @lthrboy @justletmereadmywhump @florissimps

[stabbyfoxandrew]

~*~and one more dealers choice. write whichever is your favorite at the moment you decide to write for this one~*~

WIP Wednesday (9/13) | Mafia Restaurant AU

“It was him.” Andrew says, absolutely positive. “Unless there’s some idiot out there so obsessed with him that they’d get a tattoo to match him. Well, besides the one the Ravens buried two years ago.”

“Um,” a pair of blue eyes widen at that statement and Andrew is vindicated. 

“Um?” Andrew repeats.

“We… don’t have any employees named Kevin,” the waiter says, glancing over his shoulder at the door. “But if you need anything, please let me know.”

“How are we going to do that if you’re hiding in the kitchen?” Andrew asks. Aaron laughs and Nicky makes a noise across from him.

“Jesus Christ, Andrew!” He says with a look before turning towards the clearly exasperated waiter. “I’m sorry about him. He’s just hangry. The salads look great. Thanks.”

“You’re welcome,” says the weaselly waiter. And then he hightails it back to the kitchen. Andrew watches him go, appreciating the view. He only picks up his fork once the door shuts between him and the only bit of decor this restaurant seems to have.

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[samanthahirr]

HR Complaints Against MI6 Staff Headcanons

The repeated complaints lodged in Q’s personnel file from various members of Q Branch all share a similar theme: harassment outside of work hours. While no malicious intentions have been ascribed to the quartermaster, his lack of respect for his staff’s work-life balance has resulted in Q texting and emailing his team hours after their shift ends—sometimes even in the middle of the night. HR has given the quartermaster a stern admonishment that he is not to contact his subordinates off-duty unless it is an emergency worthy of contacting Mallory first. In the year since this edict, the incidences of after-hours contact have dropped precipitously.

Gareth Mallory is always in a hurry, and finding parking in London has worse odds than roulette. In his first year as director of MI6, Mallory's corporate car was repeatedly ticketed, clamped, and even towed, for double-parking around London. The resulting expenses forced the head of Accounting to make an official note in Mallory’s personnel file: the director of MI6 must no longer have access to a corporate car…unless it also comes with a driver from the motor pool. 

James Bond’s file includes an official HR reprimand for flirting with a female visitor to the executive floor. A visitor who turned out to be the operations manager’s wife. Heh’em. While the lady was far from displeased with the attentions, the manager was very cross indeed, and he lodged a strongly worded complaint with HR about Bond’s harassment of women within the building. Bond felt awkward enough about the misunderstanding to cancel the date he’d made with the man's wife. Knowingly cuckolding someone who coordinates all of his real-time mission support seemed...unwise. 

Only last month, Alec Trevelyan got written up for flashing. His explanation for the event is that he’d been sparring with Bond…and then showering with Bond…and—as implied by the eyebrow waggle—having sex with Bond. And by the time he’d shaved and left the shower, his clothing was missing, along with every towel in the locker room. Even though Alec was ostensibly the victim of a prank, it was deemed unacceptable for him to walk naked through the halls of MI6, loudly demanding the return of his clothing, and showing his bits and bobs to all of the employees on the lower two floors of SIS.

When Bill Tanner was first brought on as M’s secretary, another member of staff accused him of repeatedly stealing her lunch from the fridge. Tanner was instructed by HR to stop the uncivil behavior forthwith. He tried explaining to the employee that he wasn’t the food thief, but the woman wouldn’t believe him. So Tanner took matters into his own hands and, on a day he knew she would be out on leave, he put his own meal in the refrigerator, laced with laxatives. The resulting mess proved the culprit to be the woman’s cubicle mate. Tanner warned the culprit to stop the food thefts or Tanner would expose them to HR, to their victim, and to M. The culprit transferred to a different branch on a separate floor after a few weeks. The complaint in Tanner’s HR file was never expunged, but he feels satisfied with his own self-vindication.

Eve Moneypenny’s first few weeks transitioning from the field to the executive floor as M’s secretary were…rocky. She’d spent the preceding five years on active field duty for various military and SIS divisions. Receiving passive aggressive response emails from the deputy director’s secretary Bethany—or more frequently, having her emails ignored by Bethany—got under her collar a bit. Moneypenny may have caught up to Bethany in the parking garage one evening and given her a piece of her mind. But it’s not like Moneypenny pulled a weapon or laid a hand on the woman! (She made sure all of her threats were only implied!) After the complaint, assignments were realigned so Moneypenny no longer works directly with Bethany; that dubious pleasure falls to Tanner. Despite the black mark in her personnel file, Moneypenny has to think things worked out in her favor. 

Doctor Hall has over two dozen complaints against him in his personnel file, all from disgruntled double-0 agents immediately following their mandatory psychiatric interviews. Field agents don’t like being asked prying questions—no one does!—but Doctor Hall has a diagnostic protocol to follow; it isn’t his fault that they’re already so stressed when they report for their appointments! He fretted over the complaints for a month, until M dismissed them as irrelevant bellyaching. He now considers the complaints an indicator of the agents' psychological stability that they’re threatening him with professional repercussions instead of the guns and knives he knows they’re illegally concealing under their tailored suits and dresses.