#have immediate and direct consequences to themselves and everyone around them

[persimminwrites]

another one of the reasons i really like andor is because small, seemingly insignificant actions have consequences in andor. in the first episode, cassian kills two security guards. in any other star wars film or tv show if that happens, we cut to the next scene. the protagonist is already moving on, the story is moving on to the next beat, the dead guards don't matter lets get to the main plot!

and to be fair, in other star wars media it probably doesn't make a whole lot of sense to focus on such a small action. luke skywalker kills two of jabba's guards as he makes his escape and because of that another guard in jabba's palace vows vengeance..... nobody cares lets get to the main plot. we're here for the epic family drama.

but in andor, our main character isn't a skywalker. and the makers of andor are telling us a very different story compared to the one we're used to. in this story, every small decision has impact. cassian killing those guards creates a domino effect that leads to him ultimately joining the rebellion. even his decision before that, going to morlana one in the first place, directly impacts the story. because of cassian's actions, he brings syril and his security officers to ferrix and so many other people are impacted. people are forced to make choices and the plot truly just unfolds from there.

i love this because its just such a fun and compelling way to tell a story. its really character focused, and when you have well written characters and compelling dialogue paired with it - you really care. you care what happens to these people. you care about what decisions they make and what consequences they'll face. there's nothing inherently wrong with the approach of other star wars media that takes a large scale approach to storytelling, but for me andor's grounded storytelling is just so much more fun to watch. it works hand in hand with the other choices the creators made to keep you invested. it builds tension because you're always waiting to see what cassian will do and how it will affect the world and people around him.

i love this decision for this show because instead of the story and the choices of the protagonist being controlled by the powers that be (the force, destiny, a prophecy, etc etc) it puts the power of decision and control in the hands of cassian

[faunandfloraas]

Birth date analysis // Seungmin - September 22nd: The Day of Restless Drive.

September 22 - Virgo/Libra

The Day Of Restless Drive

Those born on September 22 have a restless drive. Usually they bring the one they are working on to completion only to immediately set out on a new one without rest. They are also capable of handling several projects at the same time. Those born on this day have a low boredom threshold, and consequently demand challenging people and situations. They can be outgoing and dynamic types at one time, and solitary and unapproachable at another. In either case, their strong character is unmistakable.

Often September 22 people oscillate between an offensive and defensive posture. In one sense, such postures may be one and the same since a good offense is the best defense and vice-versa. Whether in a broad social context or on a personal level, the issues and ideas those born on this day are most often concerned with involve fairness and equality. In general matters pertaining to the delegation and exercise of power. In putting forth their arguments, they can be very ironic, witty and outright funny. Their humor, however, is not for everyone as it is liable to be off-beat, sardonic, perhaps even macabre.

Those born on September 22 can hide a warm heart under a forbidding exterior, but generally will only open up to people whom they deeply trust and value. Even then they may find it difficult to open all the way, principally because their orientation is highly realistic and the ironies of life all too visible to them. This day carries insight and clarity of vision both literal and figurative. September 22 people are excellent judges of character, and capable of sizing people up very quickly. Those few friends whom they allow into their inner sanctum they value most highly, usually for life.

September 22 people can often have a greater effect on those around them than they realize, and indeed can register a high degree of shock value. Because of their often disturbing impact, they should seek to be more aware of their effect on others, both friends and foes alike. True warriors in the battle of life, they must take stock of their armaments and defenses, using them judiciously and effectively, and avoid isolating and alienating themselves.

Strengths:

Individual

Perceptive

Well-directed

Weaknesses:

Guarded

Acerbic

Dark

[lakemojave]

Tonight at 6pm Pacific: The Direct Actors, A Baldur's Gate 3 "Adventure" pt. 21!!!

After a nice relaxing day at the circus and a HELL of a chat with our divine overlords, the team is ready to hit the pavement and work their way towards Baldur's Gate! Come see @radiofreederry as Dhudlei Durite, Elf paladin, @mayflowers429 and Nana as Leviathan, Dark Urge monk, @caputvulpinum as Micah Harper, Tiefling wizard, and myself as Delilah "Mama D" Harper, Halfling bard!

Character art by @bijillion, recap under the cut!

LAST TIME: After a troubled rest the night before, the day began with Leviathan calling Micah to sit down and talk. What at first began as an admission of his status as Bhaalspawn would turn into a genuine heart-to-heart between the Dragonborn and the tiefling, with the former finally opening up about aspects of his past life as a performer, orphan, and member of the church of Elistriae to the boy. Additionally, Levi pointed out that Micah Harper had been using him as a "human shield" against The Green Knight for the past few days, keeping the lizard between the teenager and the Champion of Ilmater. He offered to continue playing this role, but suggested that the younger Harper be wary of the consequences.

Meanwhile, Mama D was gathering her suspicions about the Green Knight's behaviors, but seeing how much of the group were tired and overworked from a long journey to the Gate, suggested they relax and let loose, enjoying themselves at a circus. While Micah and Dhudlei were initially opposed to the idea, one glimpse of the circus' gates quickly had the former changing his mind, having never known that circuses might incorporate undeath and necromancy to such an extent. Between mummies, the dark arts of cheesemancy, cheating a djinni at his own game, statues of their favorite bard, assorted wonderful performances, and--of course--finally succeeding in preventing the deaths of innocent children at the hands of the Cult of the Absolute--the group reconvened back at camp, with Micah expressing that, for what might have been the first time, having a good day.

However, storm clouds had been brewing on the horizon as Mama D worked with Micah and Leviathan to determine the true cause of The Green Knight's strange behaviors, confirmed on a highly dramatic, cinematic showdown on the rooftops of the camp, with the goddess Shar gloating at her ability to take control of Ilmater's Chosen's body, taunting the rest of The Direct Actors the entire time. With Mama D striking the final blow, Dhudlei Durite remembered his name, purpose, and place in the world, and immediately attempted to apologize for what he had done. Before actually accepting this, Micah prompted Mama D to banish Dhudlei to the realm of Martyrdom so that the paladin could instead confront his god and let everyone begin to soothe the raw edges of everything that happened.

After Dhudlei's return, his subsequent apologies and renewed devotion to his oath, and Lae'zel confronting and swearing off her former god-queen Vlaakith, the party spoke as a group together, affirming to Leviathan that they believed in him and his ability to be a good person in spite of the coiling influence of Bhaal wrapped around him. And after a brief private discussion between Dhudlei and Micah--where they both confirmed that, whatever they each might have felt for each other when this journey began, such feelings had left them--Leviathan had a long, meaningful talk with Mama D about the nature of her impending death, expressing sympathy and concern for her even as she attempted to brush it off. In the end, they both reached a better understanding of each other as friends and companions in their own right, rather than by necessity and circumstance. However, Micah returned from his talk with Dhudlei with frustrations and skepticism, telling Leviathan that while Dhudlei expressed atonement, Micah's own wounds would need more time and effort to heal...

Will the party's camaraderie continue to hold? Will we learn more about Leviathan's past, when he's held it so close to his chest for so long? Will Mama D memento mori? Will Micah Harper ever have another good day? Will Dhudlei be able to mend the rifts his actions have caused? Will the mysterious "Mister Yellow-Eyes" finally be brought to the surface, now that we begin to close the noose around his wayward sister Orin? Find out in another exciting installment of Baldur's Gate 3, starring The Direct Actors!

[thegermanwriter]

Task Force 141 Cashier AU Headcanons

Soap and Gaz are like the sunshines of the entire store. When those two first joined, everyone was surprised by how much better the atmosphere became. Everyone’s mood lifts by about 80% when those two are on shift together. Everyone warmed up to them immediately, and Ghost gets along with Soap the best. You can just take their interactions from the game and plant them into this AU: all the banter, jokes, and light flirting. Ghost isn't as closed off as he was before, and Price and Laswell are in the back patting themselves on the shoulders for a job well done recruiting these two.

Soap's all chatty, smiling at the customers, greeting everyone with a big smile, and joking around with them. The customers love him the most, and he probably has like four reviews praising him highly on Yelp or some shit like that. The newbies love him too.

Gaz isn't as energetic as Soap, but he’s also friendly and always ready to help. Both he and Soap make the best work buddies, and Gaz is secretly Price's favorite.

I imagine Soap and Gaz are always competing against each other for fun: who cleans the store the fastest, who scans items faster, who makes more money by the end of the shift, who restocks the shelves the quickest. There's a clipboard in the break room where the rookies keep a list of their ongoing competition.

Their charisma and good mood is also one of the main reasons why they mainly work at the registers and not in the back. That's where Ghost works most of the time, always filling up shelves or planning the next day ahead with Price in the office. It’s just better for everyone that way.

Ghost probably has a resting bitch face and looks annoyed and ready to run someone over with the pallet truck 24/7, but he’s actually really helpful if you ask him something. He’s the type to walk customers to the items instead of just pointing in the general direction. Nice elderly people love him, and kids and young adults immediately jump onto the shelves to make room for him when he needs to get by. Ghost is probably that silent coworker you’re never sure if he hates you or tolerates you, but I’m sure he gives the best advice to the rookies next to Price.

When dealing with difficult customers, Price is the best at handling them—always level-headed and cool, never losing his composure. Not even Laswell is this patient, and the woman has probably been in the industry the longest.

Now, Soap and Gaz? They don't take disrespect. They try their best to stay friendly, but they know "The customer is always right" is not the full quote, and they make sure the assholes know it too if they go too far. Price has to intervene every single time before shit really hits the fan. I haven't seen much of Gaz, but based on the bit of gameplay I saw, Soap is probably the worse of the two. Gaz would probably get all sassy and sarcastic, and Soap would just speak his mind, damn the consequences.

Ghost, on the other hand, never lashes out at anyone. It doesn't matter how difficult they are—he’s the type to just stare them down quietly and wait for backup so he can retreat in peace and let someone else handle the mess, mostly Price or Laswell. But that doesn't mean he isn't pissed. He gets broodier than usual, and to cool off, he just waits for Soap to have his break so they can talk shit and gossip together.

Shepherd is probably that asshole manager who visits from time to time and always finds something to complain about. Graves is that one exchange coworker from another store who sometimes gets sent over when the personnel won’t be enough for the shift. At the beginning, everyone liked him, especially Soap, who got along with him like they were long-lost brothers, but Graves said some bullshit one day or did something disrespectful, and now everyone hates him—Soap especially. My guy doesn’t forgive nor forget, same as Ghost. Everyone else just tries to ignore Graves to the best of their ability.

When the shift ends, they always stay behind and talk a bit about work or life. It’s the most wholesome shit. Soap's probably the guy to come to work on a bike, but I think after everyone got comfortable with each other, Soap either lets himself be driven home by Gaz (Soap has some serious gas money debt) or by Ghost.

[silverynight]

Tainted souls

(Angst with a happy ending. Slightly dark fic)

Aoi knows black magic is too powerful to be contained or defeated and even so Tanjirou, a white magic user, managed to defeat Muzan, at the cost of his own life. It doesn't surprise her, but it still hurts her deeply, because Tanjirou was nothing but kind to her and everyone around him.

The hashira, the strongest white magic users, couldn't make it on time to protect Tanjirou; Muzan is finally dead, sure, but none of them are smiling or celebrating.

They stay still for what it seems to be an eternity, as Tanjirou's body lies on the ground; he doesn't breathe anymore. Kanroji is the first one to kneel next to him and take him into her arms. She's crying, tears falling from her eyes as she presses Tanjirou's cheek against hers and screams in agony.

It's too painful to watch, but none of them look away, not even Aoi, who feels like an intruder in someone else's pain.

They were all in love, of course they were. Still are. They fell in love with Tanjirou and helped him as much as they could to find Muzan; some of them lost their eye, their arm and part of themselves in order to keep their precious sunshine and their sister safe.

Tanjirou realized it and got tired of it; he didn't want anyone to sacrifice their life for him so he went after Kibutsuji alone and paid the consequences of it.

"Let me see him! Let me see him!" Nezuko screams for the first time since Aoi met her; the spell Muzan had on her is gone now; she can talk again thanks to her brother's sacrifice.

Although Aoi is sure she would've preferred to stay cursed for the rest of eternity instead of losing Tanjirou.

With the stone staff in his hand, Himejima makes sure Kibutsuji's body dissappears completely, nobody wants to see that again. If he was still alive, Aoi is sure they would torture him first, but there's no point now.

"No point at all," Tokito mumbles, light green eyes still fixed on Tanjirou's face.

After Nezuko hugs her brother, the brokenhearted Pillars kneel next to him and give him a goodbye kiss on the forehead, one after another.

But then, when it's Rengoku's turn, he stops and looks at the others with a fierceness in his eyes that makes them look like they're on fire.

It's not a surprise since he's a flame sorcerer.

"I refuse to accept this fate," he says out loud, prompting Aoi to gasp.

"There's nothing you can do," she dares to say, but he ignores her completely.

The other hashira turn immediately towards him and nod. Iguro already has the black book they took from Muzan in order to weaken him.

"What are you doing?" As always, Aoi seems to be the only voice of reason among them. She can't believe what she's seeing. Surely they don't plan to use that cursed thing. "That's a book of black magic!"

It opens right on the page for the spell they're looking for.

"Necromancy is forbidden! What would Tanjirou say?"

"He doesn't have to know," Uzui says then, without even blinking. Iguro, Kocho and Tomioka, the ones who can learn spells faster, are already drawing the circle with all the proper runes in it.

"It'll taint your souls forever!"

"Kyojuro, keep Tanjirou's body warm," Tomioka tells the other sorcerer, not even looking in Aoi's direction.

"Are we casting the spell together?" Himejima asks.

"The more magic, the easier it'll be," Kanroji says. And like madmen, none of the Pillars hesitate to stand around the circle.

Shinazugawa takes Tanjirou's body and places him in the middle of the circle carefully. Aoi has never seen him act with that much kindness before.

"The use of black magic is what turned Muzan into that–"

Pointing at Aoi with her staff, like a threat, Kocho glares back at her one more time.

"If you're not going to help, then leave."

Despite being scared of her own master, Aoi turns towards Nezuko and pleads one more time.

"Stop them! Tell them this is a mistake!"

Nezuko's eyes get darker for a second. She ignores her too.

"Do it! Bring Tanjirou back to life!"

Crazy. They all have gone completely mad, but Aoi can't do anything about it.

She can't leave them either.

"Does anyone have a magic dagger?" Tokito asks as if he's not about to lose his soul to a ritual that goes against nature itself.

After Iguro takes out one and cuts his palm with it, he gives it to the next Pillar in the circle; all nine of them use their own blood to taint their staffs with it.

And just like that, Himejima starts with the incantation; Aoi doesn't recognize the language but as the other join him it starts sounding more like a curse.

The wind blows around them; their eyes turn completely white as their colorful magic turns black for a moment.

The moon looks like it's slowly bleeding until red is the only color they can see in the sky.

There's no turning back from something like that. Aoi knows none of them will be the same.

With a grunt, each of the Pillars manages to drag their staffs down, until they touch the circle, that turns as red as the moon above. Their magic links immediately and their voices, so different before sound like one for a moment.

A light blinds Nezuko and Aoi and the next thing they know is that the hashira are on the ground, unconscious and Tanjirou is gasping for air.

He's confused, but alive and before Aoi can do anything to prevent it, Nezuko runs towards her brother to hug him. The commotion gives the Pillars time enough to wake up and realize that the spell worked.

The love of their lives is alive.

Aoi has never seen them that happy before and even though she'd like to be happy for them too, she can't, at least not completely.

After Nezuko gets tired of pulling Tanjirou into her arms, the hashira get their turn too.

"I thought I was going to die!" Tanjirou says, confused as Shinazugawa takes one of his hands and presses it against his own cheek. The wind sorcerer even leans into the touch, with his eyes firmly closed. "How am I still here?"

"That's because your body is as stubborn as you are," Kocho smiles.

Of course. Aoi shouldn't be surprised. They won't tell him the truth.

Tanjirou nods, accepting that response without even asking more because he's still too kind to think his friends would ever lie to him.

"I missed your scent!" Tokito comments, burying his face in the curve of Tanjirou's neck, making him giggle.

Rengoku kisses him all over the face as Kanroji cries again, but this time out of happiness.

"He's tired, we should take him home," Himejima mumbles, carrying Tanjirou in his arms.

Tanjirou falls asleep a couple of minutes right after that and everyone looks back at Aoi.

She knows she has to keep the secret too.

***

Almost losing Tanjirou makes the hashira a little bit more bold than before and they confess their feelings for their sunshine just a few weeks after what happened.

They're going to marry Tanjirou (yes, all of them) in spring because it's Tanjirou's favorite season.

Tanjirou still has no idea they risked their souls for him or that their magic is tainted now.

Aoi hasn't seen that cursed book again, but she knows they haven't destroyed it yet.

Even though she knows they will never hurt Tanjirou or even Nezuko, she wonders now... if they're capable or sacrificing anything for Tanjirou, they're capable of anything.

They're dangerous now. Perhaps even more than Muzan ever was, because he was selfish; doing everything for himself.

The hashira are different; love is want motivates them to break and bend the rules of nature.

It's mortifying, at least for Aoi; there are no limits to what they can do for Tanjirou.

That kind of love can be dangerous and terrifying too.

***

Patreon

[itsclydebitches]

The Ring

Summary: Omeluum gifted them one ring of protection... and seven people need it. Pairing: Gen, but there's Tav/Astarion if you really squint Word Count: 1,491 Part of the Little by Little, Step by Step collection

“So,” Karlach said, knocking her boots together. “Who gets to wear it?”

Everyone sat in a circle around the fire, staring at the ring Tav had set delicately on a pillow. It was an ordinary trinket by all appearances. Brass. Small, emerald insets. Yet they could feel the Weave pouring off of it—wave after wave of tingling energy that set their teeth on edge and left a chill sinking into the back of their neck.

Tav couldn’t be sure if they had an innate aversion to the ring simply by virtue of not practicing magic themselves... or if that feeling stemmed from the parasite lodged in their brain. They suspected the latter if the others’ expressions were anything to go on.

Halsin coughed. “I really have no say in the matter...”

“Don’t you?” Wyll lifted his head so that the fire left warm shadows across his cheeks and sparks settled on his horns. “You are a member of this party, are you not? You may not be infected, Halsin, but you reap the benefits of our triumphs; you suffer the consequences of our mistakes. You have as much right to help us decide this as anyone else.”

Lae’zel released a low growl in the back of her throat. “What is there to decide? The ring goes to our leader.” She stuck her nose in the air, a gesture which Tav had learned wasn’t a haughty expression, but one of respect for the Githyanki. “You demanded the right to be cleansed first and instead suffered a psionic attack within the zaith’isk. You drank the Mind Flayer’s toxic brew and came out the other side alive, but with your parasite stronger than ever. You alone have the honor of receiving that which might cure us—or destroy us.”

Well, that was certainly one way of putting it. “Thank you?”

“You are welcome.”

“Yes, just take the thing, darling.” Astarion waved a languid hand towards the ring. “The Gods know I don’t want it. A bauble that interferes with the influence and powers of the tadpole? No, no, no. You won’t catch this vampire handing over any weapon in his arsenal.”

“It is not a knife,” Shadowheart hissed. “It is not a sword, or a spell, or anything else we can wield with confidence. You think of the parasite as a key but it is truly the shackles that bind us!”

Astarion’s eyes narrowed. He smiled, but there was nothing there except the glint of a fang. “Do not talk to me about shackles, little girl.”

Tav saw Shadowheart’s dominant hand twitch and instinctively threw out an arm between them. They’d learned the hard way that Shadowheart could be goaded into a fight with almost no provocation and she wasn’t above cheating to win. Clashing that against Astarion’s own dirty style and supernatural advantage was a recipe for disaster. “You can have it then,” they said, noting that the others had begun preparations for an intervention as well. Tav re-directed their barrier hand to nudge the ring towards Shadowheart.

All at once the fury on her face melted away.

“Ah... no. No thank you, I suppose. It’s just... well. I’ve already lost so many of my memories. I don’t relish the idea of putting another barrier around my mind. Even one that Lady Shar would approve of.”

Astarion let out a dismissive scoff.

Determinedly ignoring him, Tav let their gaze drift to Karlach. She immediately threw up her hands.

“No way, soldier. There are three things I never touch: cursed books, watered-down beer, and Mind Flayer rings dosed with enough magic to give you a headache.”

Oh, Tav had a headache all right, but it had more to do with this conversation than the ring. They cut their gaze to Wyll.

To his credit, he seemed to give the offer some thought. “I stand by what I said before,” he finally said, nodding towards Halsin. “What we do we do as a group. We share the wealth we accumulate, the armor collected, the reputation earned—and any chance at salvation most of all. It does not sit right with me that only one of us should be protected.”

Astarion scoffed again. “Seriously? If we can’t all survive we should just die together? What sentimental rubbish.”

“So I take it you’d like the ring?”

“No. I just need you to understand what an idiot you are.”

Tav resisted the urge to rub their eyes. “Astarion, play nice or I’m not feeding you tonight.” Ignoring his head whipping around in shock they nudged Gale’s knee with their own. “Any chance we can... duplicate it? Or divvy up the magic somehow?”

Gale had been staring intently at the ring this whole time. Now he gave Tav a familiar look. It was his You Know Shit-All About the Weave and Are Embarrassing Yourself look.

“No,” he said shortly. Then he continued because Gale, by his own admission, had never been concise a day in his life. “If rings this powerful were easy to replicate don’t you think everyone would be doing so? Just imagine it. Instant protection! Instant profit! No, Omeluum was right when he said that this artifact is nearly priceless. Dividing the power? Well, then we’d have seven rings, each with a seventh of its former protection... and functionally useless. Even if such a thing were possible it wouldn’t benefit us. As for whether I myself would take it," Gale smiled sadly, gesturing to his chest. "A bit of a moot point, don't you think?"

Silence descended.

Astarion practically crawled over Lae’zel—eliciting another growl of disgust—and squeezed himself between them, swinging an arm over Tav’s shoulders. “I think what our dear leader meant,” he said, “is that not everyone has a Gale to do the duplicating and that this ring is clearly so powerful that perhaps splitting it would be negligible. Isn’t that right, darling? The boorish, downer wizard just didn't catch your brilliance.”

“Sure,” Tav drawled. “Also, your attempts to butter me up aren’t subtle.”

Halsin let out a sound suspiciously like a cut-off laugh.

“Whyever would I need to butter up so talented, intelligent, and gorgeous a specimen as yourself? On a completely separate note, I couldn’t help but hear the words ‘nearly priceless.’ If none of us will wear the damn thing, why not sell it?”

Wyll immediately shook his head. “And draw that much attention in the process? Not a wise decision, my friend. Besides, who do you propose we sell it to? No one we know would be able to afford it. A buyer might be found in Baldur’s Gate, but...” He spread his hands and as one the group let out a sigh. Yes, if they were in Baldur’s Gate many more problems than just a ring would have been solved already.

“Can't we just... give it back?” Karlach asked. “I felt kinda bad taking it in the first place.”

Astarion gasped. "Give it back?"

“I doubt Omeluum would accept it." Shadowheart worried at her bottom lip. "We traded for it fairly and though I know little of Mind Flayer honor—”

“They have none,” Lae’zel spit.

“—I would assume it wouldn't allow one to re-take what was given in good faith.”

Astarion swept out his arms, nearly whacking Gale in the face. “So let’s trade it back! I’m sure that tentacle-y scholar is loaded with interesting goodies. Oh yes, we could squeeze a fortune out of the squid."

Tav watched fondly (despite themselves) as Astarion seemed to sink back into the shadows after speaking, the move as thoughtless as it was effortless. It was a real shame they hadn’t had a chance to make use of his skills lately.

A real shame he’d been pissing them off too.

“I have a better idea,” they said sweetly.

***

Omeluum paused in the act of casting. Something was... different about the Weave around it. It didn’t take long to pinpoint the source and Omeluum lifted a familiar ring from the folds of its robs.

“Fascinating,” it murmured.

Blurg hustled over at the word, like a bloodhound on the scent of intellectual discovery. “What is—oh. Didn’t you give that to our mutual friends?”

“Indeed.” In fact, it had seen the band of adventurers just fifteen minutes before. They had been purchasing supplies from Blurg before seeking the duergar across the lake. The invaders’ defeat was a perilous task they had agreed to undertake and Omeluum had noted, in a detached way, that they seemed to be missing their vampire. Surely they would need him to return victorious.

Evidence. Hypothesis. Proposed conclusion: the vampire had indeed been among them, performing an action quite contrary to its nature.

“I believe,” Omeluum said, holding the ring up to one of the crystal’s light, “that I have been given a gift.”

Blurg smiled up at it as Omeluum slipped its ring back onto its chain. As the familiar weight of magic settled around it, it felt a stirring of... something, deep within it.

An emotion, it thought, though not one it had any name for yet. It was warm, and heavy—like a well-made bedroll—and it was, unfortunately, quite distracting.

This required further study then. Clearly. Omeluum only hoped it met the adventurers again soon so that it could continue such interesting research.

[trans-queen-administrator]

My favorite manga ended after 6 years of me following it, so y'all get to hear me ramble about how Falin from Dungeon Meshi and Noelle from Worm are counterparts. Major major major spoilers for Dungeon Meshi, just a warning. And Worm I guess, but I just kinda assume anyone seeing my posts knows about Worm.

So first off, super obvious comparison, they're both women who have had their lower halves replaced with a massive monster body that's a mishmash of multiple animals that is so large their human torso is dwarfed. Falin has a rather coherent feathery and scaled chimera body, and Noelle has a mass of meat and mouths and limbs that's constantly expanding. Both of them got this lower body through some sort of fucked up life-saving medical procedure too. Noelle was dying and needed to drink her vial to heal, and Falin was a completely deceased set of bones before Marcille revived her. Both of them immediately seemed better in the aftermath, only for the consequences of drinking half a vial/repurposing dragon flesh to regrow a human with dark magic to show themselves after a short period of relief. The two of them are both taken over by their monster half as well. Falin's soul is overwhelmed by the dragon soul and her orders now that she's part of the dungeon, and Noelle is slowly subsumed by her broken connection to her passenger that takes away parts of herself until she's a violent and aggressive mess with barely anything of Noelle left in her.

Noelle and Falin are also the heart of their groups. Noelle was the common friend among everyone in the Travelers, and Falin was was similar with her being generally friendly and very important to Laios, Marcille, and Shuro. Both groups immediately start looking for a way to save them, but I think it's rather interesting how the relationships strain in different ways. In Dungeon Meshi, when Falin died the adventuring party fractured. Namari and Shuro left, and Chilchuck only stuck around because he had been paid in advance, and when she was revived into being monstrous there was consideration of giving up. The adventuring group in Dungeon Meshi weren't really friendly at first with Falin gone, they were co-workers who argued and bickered and stuck together out of obligation. Marcille thought Laios was crazy, Chilchuck thought he was dumb, and Marcille and Chilchuck were often getting on each others nerves, but through their quest to revive and then to un-chimera Falin they all bonded and actually grew close and cared deeply about each other. The Travelers are similar, they were all friends before their wacky psychological body horror isekai, bar Cody and Krouse, but once the group was put under stress and the heart of the group in Noelle got her condition they began to grow apart. By the time we see them in canon, none of them really like each other and they all feel alone despite being in the group, but they remain because they don't have anywhere else to go and most of them care about fixing Noelle. Both groups go from being friends, to having something horrible happen to the common uniting factor in the group, to being strained and disliking each other. The difference is though, Dungeon Meshi has them grow to like each other beyond their bond with Falin, and they make new friends along the way, but the Travelers just become more and more resentful of each other and can never really bond with anyone else on Earth Bet. The groups have the same starting point, but they travel in opposite directions and reach opposite destinations. Noelle doesn't get cured, but Falin does.

This is a Dungeon Meshi post, so I have to make a comparison to food as well, I'm legally obligated to. Falin is saved by being consumed, with everyone coming together to eat her lower half, and it's a proper meal. Noelle though, she mindlessly consumes with no purpose. She feels a constant hunger and is sustained with insane amounts of meat, eventually consuming people as well. It's not a meal, it's not a way to spend time with others and appreciate the effort put into food, it's just consumption with no joy or meaning. It's an odd parallel. One of their monster halves eats, and the other is eaten.

Another fun little parallel is how the adventurers line up with the Travelers in some ways. Both groups do some pretty illegal shit in their quest to save their giant monsterified friend, but I think there's especially a fun line to draw between Krouse siding with Noelle when she was fully gone and rampaging and Marcille becoming the lord of the dungeon with saving Falin as one of her main goals, and then they both get sentenced to super mega turbo jail after it all. Marissa and Laios both get the fun little moment of "resolving to kill their former closest friend because she's completely gone, only for her to appeal to their bond," but Marissa incinerates Noelle anyway while Laios hesitates. Marissa also parallels with Marcille because both of them have massive codependent desperate crushes on their respective friends turned into mindless monsters, and Laios parallels Krouse in being a leader that the group often hates, there's a lot of ways to twist those 4 around and look at them for funsies. Beyond that there aren't really any easy parallels to draw between the group members. Cody could be Shuro because they both have a crush on Noelle/Falin that goes completely unrequited, and they fucking hate the leader of the group. Jess could be Izutsumi because they both resent their bodies and desire freedom. Luke and Chilchuck both want to leave the group when everything goes to shit, and retire from adventuring after the experiences. Oliver is Senshi because they're both eye candy.

Ultimately, I don't have a point here, I just think that it's nifty that I can draw so many connecting lines between these two groups in vastly different media. Its neat seeing how having the central member of a group be put through the horrors can either fracture or forge friendships, and I like how they both turn out in such vastly different ways despite the similarities. Rip Noelle you would have loved Dungeon Meshi.

[linkspooky]

Jujutsu Kaisen, Chapter 205 Thoughts. 

AND IT’S YUKI TSUKUMO WITH THE STEEL CHAIR!

So this week we continue with more fighting, however rather than the powers and strategies used in the fight itself, let’s look at the two special grade sorcerers fighting Tsukumo Yuki and Kenjaku. The matchups in Jujutsu Kaisen are not just about power levels, often the characters fighting foil one another in some way, so let’s analyze Kenjaku and Yuki the old school and new school sorcerers. 

1. Thinking outside the Box

Considering half of this chapter is Tsukumo and Kenjaku analyzing each other’s strategies and cursed techniques before either of them throw the first punch to the point where the above image has their faces exactly aligned like they’re the left and right lobes of the same brain. 

This happens every time Kenjaku and Yuki interact, down to the first time we see them meet in canon. Despite the fact they are clearly on opposing sides, they discuss their plans and theories like they are a pair of colleagues aruging with each other rather than on opposite sides of the battlefield. 

Besides the fact that they have completely different ideas on what they think (the next stage of humanity) should be, they still talk and pick apart the holes in each other’s plans. Yuki grasps immediately that if Kenjaku were to try to optimize cursed energy, the people around the world would start targeting sorcerers as sources of cursed energy because they are almost exclusive to Japan. 

She in effect predicts a part of Kenjaku’s plan far ahead of time, his going overseas to get world superpowers interested in harnessing energy from cursed sorcerers in Japan. Whatever Kenjaku’s actual objective is with introducing armies from foreign nations into the culling games, Tsukumo was able to predict the inevitable next stage of his plan through sheer guesswork. 

On top of that, Kenjaku himself comments that he and Tsukumo think similiarly and that makes him happy because and this is just supposition he believes that few sorcerers in history have ever truly looked at the world the way he did. 

The most famous appearance we have of Kenjaku in history is when he took Noritoshi Kamo’s body, and was reviled by the world around him for his experimentation with cursed energy. Living a thousand years body hopping he has been a social pariah for a long time, for good reason.

 Kenjaku himself does not make social connections, and does not usually care at all for the thoughts and feelings of other people. He sees everyone as tools for furthering whatever result of his experiment he wants to bring about, and seems to judge people on whether they catch his interest or not. The fact that Tsukumo Yuki intrigues him when he dismisses his own children as boring is definitely something. 

What unites their thinking is most lilely that they are both outsiders to the current world around them, seeking to bring about a change, though they obviously have opposite ideas of what that change might be. Yuki is similar to Kenjaku in the fact that she is a big picture thinker who is less concerned about the individual lives of people involved in her plans. 

Yuki warns the main characters themselves that she’s not on their side. She also says that as a special grade she could have intervened and acted sooner, but she chose not to at the consequence of everything else. Considering that Kenjaku reconfigures Tenge’s barrier into a movie theatre, both of them tend to act as watchers from the outside rather than direct players. 

They are like scientists observing the result of an experiment and therefore they minimize their involvement until absolutely necessary. Though, I’m sure the people who died in Shibuya aren’t really appreciative of the fact that Tsukumo didn’t play her hand sooner because she wanted to watch what happened next. Not that I’m saying it’s her fault directly but she herself admits she could and should have done something earlier and holding back to just watch was a mistake on her part. 

She also at one point casually considers researching Toji as a test subject. Part of me wonders what that experiment would have been, considering that her ambition to change the whole world is probably more important in her mind than the life of one person. 

However, Yuki at least seems to have some morals whereas Kenjaku is literally amoral ( driven by no sense of right and wrong or moral standard everything he does is just based upon his own personal desires and objectives), Yuki takes a firm stance against the senseless sacrifice of life. 

2. Eros and Thanatos 

Yuki and Kenjaku also oppose each other thematically, Yuki is a character surrounded by symbolism associated with life and the proliferation and preservation of life, whereas death haunts Kenjaku’s character itself where he may be a force of death itself bringing tragedy and destruction to the lives surrounding the main characters. 

In Freudian Psychoanalytic theory, we would call this Thanatos and Eros.  

With the publication of the book “Beyond the Pleasure Principal” in 1920, Freud concluded that all instincts fall into one of two major classes: life drives and death drives - later dubbed Eros and Thanatos by other psychologists. Eros was the god of love, fertility and passion in ancient Greece. Thanatos was the human manifestation of Death. [X]

Yuki is painted many ways as the Eros of the story, it all starts with her question. “What kind of girls are you into?” Both her and her student Todo constantly interrogate others about this question, and this question itself is symbolic of Libido, while her cursed energy makes little hearts. 

In psychoanalysis Libido is the energy of sexual drive as a component of the life instinct. Quite simply, in order for all human life to continue people have to reproduce so early, early psychology theorizes that sex drive is influenced by psychological factors. Aoi even goes onto explain this question in basically terms of the Freudian idea of libido, that a person’s attraction to others is influenced by personality. Regardless of if this is actually true in real life or not, Megumi himself shows that his own personality has an influence in the kind of person he’s seeking a relationship with, because he wants a compassionate person. 

Aoi just like Yuki is surrounded by ‘Life” symbolism. Todo explains cursed energy to Yuji in cooking metaphors (you have to eat in order to survive) he loves passionate people and takes no interest in people who are boring / have no passion for life. Food, love, sex, passions are all things that make life worth living. 

Todo is also the most cooperative of all the Jujutsu Sorcerers as shown in his teamwork with Yuji, because the social cooperation that humans are capable of is also considered to be part of the life drive. Humans are a social species, no man is an island as they say, they have to cooperate together in society in order to survive. Yuki herself unlike Kenjaku cooperates with allies including Larue a former member of Geto’s family that has hearts on their nipples (recurring heart symbolism again). 

When Kenjaku tries to paint Yuji as the center of all that disaster and death brought upon the world, then Choso corrects him and says that Kenjaku is the one who brings death to everyone around him, a symbolic bringer of death himself like a Grim Reaper or a Shinigami. 

Kenjaku is surrounded by death symbolism, he  is literally inhabiting a dead body as we speak. His nine children are named after the Death Paintings, which are named after the Kusozu (Nine Phase Diagram) , a budhist serious of nine paintings that depict the stages of death and decomposition of a corpse. 

Kenjaku may seem like a life giver, because he is a single mother of one Yuji Itadori, and father to the Death Paintings, but what he does is actually a perversion of life. Succesful procreation requires that your children after all, he abandons the Death Painting Sibs to death, and sets up Yuji as a sacrifice to die. Even the curse painting sibs themselves aren’t properly born, they all in their cursed womb forms look like aborted fetuses in the nine month stages of fetal growth, which probably gives you a hint of how they came out of the mother. 

Kenjaku prolongs his own life at the cost of other lives, he kills people and steals their bodies, and does the same for the resurrection of old sorcerers they have completely overtaken a host body in order to continue living for the culling games. 

The death drive being the opposite of the life drive, drives people towards risky behavior, death, destruction. Which fits Kenjaku as his whole goal itself is to create risks, trying to bring something unexpected into the world. 

The ultimate irony in Kenjaku is that while his goal seems to be creating something new, a future he can’t see beyond the chaos, a cursed spirit with an unexpected face, he himself is incapable of creation his methods are just destruction. He creates children and then abanons them when they disappoint him, he creates Yuji just to die. He is a perversion of motherhood, and he is a perversion of a creator too. He doesn’t create so much as destroy what is already there, recklessly, hoping that will lead to something new. 

Yet, death is one half of life. 

 Everything life positive (love, social cooperation, etc. etc) is done by human beings, and everything that creates death (murder, violence, self-destructive behavior, addiction, risk taking) is also done by humans as well they make up two aspects of human lives. All humans want to live, and yet all humans also are aware no matter what they do they may someday die.

Which is why despite having opposite goals, Yuki and Kenjaku exist as two sides of the same coin. 

[melonteee]

Gotta be real, One Piece has a really big flaw in that there's no real threat to losing... characters never die, even after making a big hoopla about 'if that hits you you'll die!' or what have you. The only deaths to stick were Whitebeard and Ace, but they're the exception that proves the rule at this point. There's no threat or tension to characters losing a battle. This is particularly bad in the Skypia arc, where every time a character was struck down by Eneru, it was treated like death... only for everyone to be 100% okay, zero lasting damage. Or Luffy vs Bellamy in Dressrossa - 'the next hit will kill you' - nope he's totally fine afterwards. While I totally appreciate Oda avoiding needless, gratuitous death, he's swerved way to hard in the other direction and now losses have zero tension. No one ever dies or suffers grievous injuries that can change the story. Something like Zoro losing his eye would actually help this, a loss that leaves actual lasting damage... but nope, it happens totally off screen and is never mentioned or impacts the story. When every loss is treated like a death, but isn't, how are we supposed to 1) know when characters are *actually* killed and not just (handwave) hiding and 2) care about possible loss? It feels like being asked which hand Oda holds an apple in, but he can just change the hand if we guess right and tell us we were wrong. And if every battle wound can just be rested off, why should we care about bad wounds? After big battles, they immediately party when it would be far more impactful to show characters weak and recovering but peaceful in their success or something - again, Skypia is a big offender in this and Wano is bad about it as well.

Sorry, I hope this makes sense. I've just been watching One Piece and I can't bring myself to care during battles. There's no risk! It's one thing to avoid unnecessary character death, it's another to have loss have zero lasting consequences. Even the few that do happen, like Luffy's shortened lifespan or, again, Zoro's eye, just don't really effect the story. We were never going to hang around to see Luffy grow old regardless...

I have no idea what you're talking about because if Luffy loses the world is fucked. Were you not on the edge of your seat for his fight with Crocodile? Or his fight with Enel, trying to ring that golden bell? I guess if you focus on the characters themselves and their injuries, yeah it wouldn't matter, but these fights aren't ever just about who gets the biggest wounds. The tension in each fight and battle relies on everything else happening around them, they rely on what the characters are saying to each other and the events that have taken place for these fights to be happening. I also couldn't care less about how many wounds one gets, I couldn't care if Luffy loses and arm or Zoro loses a leg - the emotional and world impact of these fights is what we're looking at.

Law lost an arm against Doffy, did he sew it back on? Yes, but we're not meant to give a shit about that. What we're meant to care about is how much Doflamingo had scarred him, both mentally AND physically, and how he was finally free with Luffy defeating him. Bellamy didn't die because Luffy didn't want to kill Bellamy - that was VERY purposeful - because Luffy's main target was Doflamingo, and Doffy even laughed at how Luffy 'wasted time' not wanting to kill a 'friend.'

One Piece's fights are not something I look at on a physical level, and I don't think that's what they're meant to be. These fights are the cultivations of every single story point we have seen reaching a climax. These fights rely on the mental state of these characters MUCH more than the physical, with a good example being how Zoro was so fucked up after Kuma beat him, that he rushed in head first in Sabaody due to not wanting to be weak.

Luffy's fight with Doflamingo not only had the entirety of the Dressrosa country on the line, but Law had literally been mentally beaten to hell and back due to Doffy's abusing of him. The conversation Law and Doffy had the whole time was fucking terrifying with how Doffy was manipulating him.

Ace's death wasn't even meant to be a 'threat' of the moment, but the most important part was the follow up of how Luffy was mentally distraught from it. I guess if you see it on a simple fighting level, yeah I can see where you're coming from, but death is not the end all be all of consequences and stakes - especially in One Piece's world. I feel SO MUCH tension with every fight in One Piece due to seeing what all these people have been through, due to knowing what will happen if Luffy DOESN'T win, and whether Luffy comes out of it fully healed or not honestly doesn't matter to me. There are huge wounds in all these fights, they're just not physical ones, and Wano especially is a great example of just how everyone was grieving until Kaido's downfall.

This is why I always say, you need to focus on the dialogue more than ANYTHING during fights, because there is TONS of tension there. At least, tension I felt, and risks I could see, but maybe it's just me idk. I don't tend to care about battle shonen to begin with, so obviously One Piece is doing something right in its battles to make me care lmao

[mdhwrites]

Luz's impulsiveness and lack of interest in other people's feelings in the face of her grand fantasies - and the fact that she is rarely, if ever, taken to task for it - is one of the reasons why I never fully got into TOH from the get-go. (And then the hype train took off and I got even more frustrated) So I thought that the direction her arc would take was realizing that "understanding" is a two-way street. If she wants to be understood, she has to come to terms with the facts that:

a) Her actions have consequences for other people.

b) Sometimes (not always, just SOMETIMES) she has to compromise on her fantasies for the good of herself and others. Meet them in the middle occasionally.

c) Other people are more willing to put in the work to understand you if YOU also put in the work to understand THEM. It's easy to blame others/society for being misunderstood/feeling like an outcast. It's harder to accept that the way you behave is not serving you or your relationships and some part of it needs to change if you want to grow as a person.

But from the sound of the finale (I haven't watched TOH consistently since the first part of season 2) Luz's arc is that she is perfect and doesn't need to improve whatsoever and everyone else needs to get on her level? Am I getting that right?

You are! And... Especially when contrasted with Amphibia, the reason you are is actually BIZARRE because both TOH and Amphibia do something different besides the normal teenage character form of growth... Kind of. See, everything you just described actually doesn't need to be the main thrust of Luz's character arc but it doesn't it mean that it's unreasonable to ask for. After all, just about EVERY teenage protagonist undergoes one form growth (not an arc. Honestly I need to do a blog smacking people about the term): Maturity. This is just inherent to where they are in life because they're about they have the proper experience to attempt to be mature but are still young enough to make the basic mistakes that come with learning how to be a person with other people. This is actually the main thrust for character for Aang, Katara and Toph in Avatar because, to briefly go into it, a character is about real change in a character. Something fundamental shifts in them. That's what makes it an arc because usually the process of changing that sort of thing is painful and takes time and does need to be more pronounced. This is why Zuko, and Sokka to a lesser extent, undergo character arcs that do genuinely shift who they are as people. It makes Sokka less misogynistic (because that was a part of his character before the Kyoshi) which in turn leads to him changing his definition of a great warrior which is a big deal to him as a person. And Zuko... *gestures at the whole sad boy* But maturity is more about refinement which is about growth. It's effectively the difference where in episode one a character might entirely ignore or not want to discuss problems that they're having but then in S2 they've learned enough and grown close enough to those around them to be able to actually talk about the issue and seek help instead of thinking they have to do everything themselves. This is where Katara gets her proper understanding of people and loses more and more of her anger so that when she is angry, it's for the right reasons. It's Toph not needing to show off as much and keep focus. It's the fact that despite the fact it would hit him on a personal level, if Aang hadn't found a harder, more dangerous out for beating Ozai... He would have been willing to kill him when in S1, something so painful would have immediately made him want to abandon the idea entirely. But none of these change the fundamental aspects of the character. That's why Aang, Katara and Toph mostly still behave 1:1 in regular situations than when they were first introduced because they're still kids and they have time to stop being childish or not because like Bumi demonstrated, childishness isn't a bad thing so long as it doesn't blind from the necessities and other people. That's how a lot of shows can have character growth while keeping their same tone because the core of the character doesn't need to change. Amphibia subverts this in S1 by explicitly making it an arc. Anne is a bad person at the beginning of the show. Period. She isn't just a goofball teenager, even if what she does doesn't make her a villain either, but she is manipulative, lazy, harsh dismissive, etc. because of what she's picked up from Sasha. But over the entire course of S1, we see everything that indeed changes her so that she is more mature, even to the point where if Anne HADN'T gone through her arc... The plot of S2 wouldn't function because she wouldn't be the heart at that point. It's REALLY impressive frankly how well Amphibia actually tackles what's happening in the background of these characters.

Meanwhile... TOH subverts by not having it happen. This is actually a little funky to talk about with Luz because S1 makes it look like they're doing what most kid's shows do. She's making mistakes rooted in being a teen and who she is and she's theoretically learning while fixing the problem and having hijinks. This is a LOOOOOT of Molly McGee and that's not a bad thing since I could also list off a dozen cartoons that are like this.

But I did say theoretically, didn't I? That's because of two problems going on. The first is technically not a problem in concept because Luz is part of a larger cast. Some of those lessons are going to go to other people like Amity, Gus and King. The main problem with this is that Gus doesn't matter and Amity's 'growth' is made problematic by the fact that it's more about retconning her first appearance than it is actually about growing because 'She was actually always a good girl. We swear.' This is why I still argue Amity doesn't really have an arc. It's not that something fundamental is changing about Amity, it's just that we're getting introduced to who she really is. (I actually have a blog specifically about this like I do about Hunter, or I thought I did, but I couldn't find it so have me talking about character arcs by contrasting Amity versus Anne) Either way, it makes it so that the lessons being learned aren't really being carried forward at all. Just look at how little Amity actually gives a shit about Willow post her lesson in Understanding Willow.

The other problem is the Fluttershy Effect as I will call it because that's where I first heard this. It's where the same topic gets addressed over and over again with nothing changing. Now, TOH actually gives few shits to having blanket in its episodes so the fact that it exhibits this anyways is really bad. Just look at Luz and Eda's relationship. In the first season, there's multiple episodes spent on "Hey, maybe you should listen to your mentor when she talks about magic," or "don't take shortcuts on magic." In S2, that shifts to "Trust Eda" because despite Eda not thinking Luz is weak and giving her substantially more freedom, there's still multiple episodes where the tension is Luz giving Eda the middle finger about thinking she's weak before going and proving herself, which was already a thing in S1 PLENTY. It's just now shifted that Luz isn't mocked into proving herself but being a mad girl. This repetition shows a refusal to grow.

To mature. The real capstone to this is effectively what the human realm becomes what she perceives as her greatest mistake. She ran away to another world and didn't have to suffer for the consequences for her actions once so she could live out a fantasy rather than actually having to try to grow as a person and relate to other people like she would have had to at camp. Her decision to stay in the human realm and never face the Collector, who she blames herself wholly as why he exists in the first place, is just another run around of that. Even if she technically didn't choose to come back to the human realm (in a moment I find frustrating when an episode before that she quickly thought up a complex solution to be the hero and save Hunter while in distress and on a time crunch but can't ask the simple question of "WHAT TO DO YOU EXPECT TO DO AGAINST A GOD!?"), her choosing to stay still counts, even when given the option to go back. And then we get to her character finish where actually... At first it looks like it's going to salvage itself. The whole process to get here will still have been bad but accepting mistakes and moving on is actually a sign of maturity. Camila has a GREAT point that is directly addressing a human problem for the majority of her speech that would have actually resolved Luz's problems and at least made it so that the show's failed attempt at an arc with Luz coalesced into something.

But it instead ends with the idea that Luz being understood is all that's important despite no one besides bad guys, at best, showing any amount of push back on her for over a season by then. The closest it comes is Amity asking Luz to STOP LYING. And even then, Luz doesn't face consequences for it for more than five seconds which gives Amity saying she doesn't want to be around her the feel of "We need to get to a more meaningful and romantic spot for me to a perfect girlfriend again." *hurk* And the attempt in general with Luz's character arc in S2B shows her just regressing as a person. Doubling down on her worse traits and then learning nothing because the show has a finale for the arc in mind and refuses to let anything budge until then. That or because they aren't really willing to criticize Luz as even S1 struggles to properly criticize Luz as it muddies its morals or just shifts Luz's perspective a little but that her heart was in the right place.

It's just a disaster and frankly probably one of the biggest reasons why if I had to say if TOH is good or not, even from a basic perspective... No. Because it's a kid's show that reinforces the worst parts of childish behavior, avoiding consequences, listening, understanding, responsibility, etc. and wanting all the glory without putting in the effort. It's a show that I don't think would make a kid necessarily a worse human being like Teen Titans Go might but... It's not something that will make them a better person. And TOH IS a kid's show. That cannot be ignored, especially when there are PLENTY of writing choices that are only acceptable, at best, from a kid's show in it. Not that TOH wants to admit it.

=========

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[justanotherrpmeme]

Neutral Good starters

"I don't care much for rules, but if they help us do more good, then why not?" "Everyone deserves a chance at redemption. It's never too late to do the right thing." "Sometimes, you have to bend the rules a bit to make things better. It's for the greater good." "I'll stand up for what's right, even if I have to stand alone." "Freedom is valuable, but it should never come at the cost of others' well-being." "Sometimes the law needs a push in the right direction" "Kindness is a strength, not a weakness. It's what binds us together." "I won't let a broken system prevent me from doing what's right." "Helping others isn't about rewards; it's about making the world a better place for everyone." "I believe in second chances, even for the worst among us. It's about healing, not punishment." "We can't ignore the suffering around us. Let's do something about it." "Even in the darkest times, there's always a glimmer of hope. We just need to find it." "I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty if it means protecting those who can't defend themselves." "Rules are a guideline, not a straightjacket. We should use them for good, not blindly follow them." "I won't turn a blind eye to injustice." "Silence can be as harmful as the wrong actions." "Sometimes the greatest acts of rebellion are the ones that bring about positive change." "I may not be the hero everyone wants, but I'll strive to be the one they need." "Compassion is our greatest weapon against the darkness that seeks to consume us." "We're all in this together. Let's make it a journey worth taking."

[SUPPORT] The sender offers a helping hand to someone struggling, no questions asked. [PROTEST] The sender joins a peaceful protest to stand against an unjust law or policy. [INTERRUPT] The sender steps in to stop an act of cruelty or discrimination they witness. [GUIDE] The sender provides guidance and mentorship to someone in need of support. [DONATE] The sender contributes time or resources to a charitable cause. [DEFEND] The sender confronts a bully or wrongdoer to protect the vulnerable. [NEGOTIATE] The sender mediates a dispute, aiming for a fair resolution for all parties involved. [INFORM] The sender exposes corruption or wrongdoing. [COMFORT] The sender consoles someone who is going through a tough time, offering emotional support. [RESCUE] The sender risks personal safety to save someone in immediate danger. [EDUCATE] The sender shares knowledge and educates others about important issues. [ENCOURAGE] The sender motivates others to join a cause for the betterment of society. [ACCEPT] The sender forgives someone who has genuinely shown remorse for their actions. [PROTECT] The sender shields a vulnerable individual from harm, even if it means facing consequences. [VOLUNTEER] The sender actively participates in volunteer work to make a positive impact. [CONFRONT] The sender challenges authority figures who misuse their power for personal gain.

[joysmercer]

between the Sinners and the saints

it takes, and it takes, and it takes.

sometimes, the best of motives have the most disastrous of consequences.

(the breakdown of three relationships that were meant to withstand the test of time.)

——-

She’s cornered by her (disheveled and dust-covered) roommate an hour after everyone wakes up. “Try to forgive the others,” she’s told, “they weren’t themselves.” She doesn’t quite know what to make of that. Not when the person she had loved—first platonically, then romantically, and finally back down again—hurt her as he did without an ounce of remorse.

He walks up to their group afterward. Her group, now, so different from the one she had just two years prior, but somehow her closest friends nonetheless. He smiles, although she can’t be sure if it’s directed to her or to—

Yes, there it is, a cup of hot chocolate passed to the other girl, arms quickly and casually thrown across shoulders and wrapped around waists. She watches them walk away, waiting for the familiar twinge in her heart to appear. But it doesn’t.

As her own boyfriend presses a kiss to her forehead, she realizes that there's no fondness for him, or any ounce of longing, left. He’s just some person that she used to know (but doesn’t anymore).

He finds her afterward and offers to help her wash up. She shrugs. He takes a sponge.

“I have no idea what I said to you earlier, but please know I didn’t mean it,” he starts. She raises an eyebrow.

What kind of apology is that? How could he just forget?

He sighs. “it’s a long story,” he attempts to explain, but she shakes her head. She’s so tired of the drama and the lying and the going-behind-her-back of it all.

“Listen, I saw you earlier. I’m happy for you, truly,” she mutters, then brushes past him before he stares at her with those chocolate-brown eyes she used to love and realizes she’s only ambivalent toward the situation, toward him, at best.

—-

It starts as a small crack (a hand suddenly pulled away, a smile doesn’t quite reach the eyes), then a larger rift (suffocating clinginess, an obvious look over the shoulder anytime they venture out), and eventually, a gaping hole (the screaming match in the living room heard by every house resident waiting anxiously for Victor’s 10 o’clock pin-drop to put a stop to it).

She whips around to face him, cheeks hot and hair, released from its careful style, blazing behind her. “Do you even see me anymore?” she asks, a growl in her voice. “believe me when I say she’s gone?”

His silence speaks more than his words ever could.

“Recently,” she whispers, so softly he startles at the sudden change in volume, “I’ve been wishing you left me trapped. Whatever hell awaited me there is certainly better than the one I’m living now.”

She’s halfway up the stairs when he calls her name and she turns, immediately cursing her innate reaction to soften at the sound of his voice.

“This isn’t my fault,” he reminds her. As if that fact hasn’t been weighing on her mind every day since she woke up.

“I know. but it isn’t mine, either.”

“I’m sorry,” he says simply, shoving his hands in his pockets. “I didn’t mean for this to happen.”

“No,” she nods. “That’s exactly the problem.”

----

they once thought they were invincible together. the two of them against the world.

Now they sit on beds across from each other (one in a room that isn’t even hers) wordlessly, each wishing they were alone.

Finally, the smaller one breaks the silence. “You should have been there for me. Stopped it from going so far.”

“I couldn’t, you know that,” the other says, exasperated. They’ve had some version of this conversation for weeks. Doesn’t she understand?

“You always have a choice. I had one, and you did too,” the first responds, voice dripping with vitriol. Her eyes narrow into a familiar sneer, though this is the first time it’s directed at the person in front of her. “You just made the wrong one.”

(She knows, in her heart of hearts, that that isn’t entirely true. But it isn’t entirely false, either).

“And where were you?” the second snaps. “When I needed someone to talk me off a ledge?” She shakes her head and laughs hollowly. “No, we haven’t been that person for each other for a while. I think it’s time we acknowledged that.”

A look of understanding passes between them. For the first time in ages, they’re on the same page.

Something has irrevocably changed here, for the worse.

Finally, the one closest to the door takes a shaky breath, then does what she does best. She runs.

The girl she once considered closer than her own sister watches her in silence, resisting the urge to follow.

What can she do? There’s nothing left to say.

[talenlee]

Keitaro Urashima

Keitaro Urashima

The conversation around representation is often a thing that involves talking about the very real ways in which the people who see themselves unrepresented in media, or only ever represented in a negative way, can have negative consequences, even to the extent of them inducing PTSD experiences in particularly long-exposure. The way that trans people, people of colour (and we’re going to go in on that when it comes to anime some day), ace people, and – you know, everyone outside of the rudimentary accepted dominant hierarchy get to be represented. But there’s another element of representation where the stories you absorb can often give you a symbiotic relationship to an image of who you are and who you can be, and this can show up in the way that a lot of guys, particularly guys in my general category of unremarkable basic dudes who like anime and felt lonely in their teenage years, thought that being a creepy drip was, y’know, understandable.

And there’s no patient zero here, this is all fluid exchanges of the gas that is culture, I’m not trying to pretend that this is one person’s fault, but there was definitely a person who I think I can point to as a very reasonable exemplar of a trend that kicked off and is still showing up in anime culture to this very day.

I refer to the crappy mediocre dude that is Keitaro Urashima.

I’ve been thinking about Love Hina a lot recently, for some reason. I once mentioned this venerable procession in the ecosystem of the harem anime genre when I talked about Tenchi Muyo, the first anime Star Wars, But Only Kinda.

Don’t worry, I’m not doing a story pile on Love Hina. That’s a big ask and it would require me to rewatch Love Hina and then reread the manga (which is honestly, pretty better). Plus, looking at Love Hina as a whole is challenging in its own way what with the weird racism and the awful characteristics of the women in the series and also the way that the story bifurcates and the whole characteristics of the world itself rather than just focusing on Keitaro and the kind of dude he chooses to be, or rather, doesn’t choose to be.

If you’re not familiar, Keitaro is the protagonist of the early 00s harem anime, Love Hina, remarkable mostly in that it was successful and seemingly set up a trope style for romantic anime of its genre since then. If you’re mad about Rent-A-Girlfriend right now, I think you can trace the genealogy of that now to the soggy, pathetic wet babyman shoes of Keitaro Urashima, even if we know a lot less about how much wanking Keitaro does.

Keitaro, at the start of the series, is described as a ronin, a term used for a university student who isn’t in university, someone who failed their first entrance exams. In Keitaro’s case, he failed his first entrance exam and his second entrance exam, all while aiming for the most prestigious university in Tokyo, the University of Tokyo (Tokyo daigaku, abbreviated todai in venacular). His parents decide that two years of trying to get into a university and pointedly not having a job sucks, so they kick him out and direct him to go spend time with his grandmother, who has a job for him. She takes him on as the caretaker for an apartment building she owns, where he needs to ‘maintain’ the building (but also, pointedly, not manage it, that’s done by his cousin-aunt (it’s weird, don’t worry about it (oh no we’re in multiple parenthesis help this is going to look antisemetic if I end it badly)) Haruka (phew)). Now he’s in charge of ‘caretaking’ for this building in which a bunch of girls aged 14 to 19 live, and he’s told what to do, in terms of repairing things, all while he continues his studies in an attempt to get into Todai.

This job is pretty wild when you consider that in addition to being a full time live-in job that gives him a place to live and food to eat while he studies, and is also in a super sweet Onsen but also puts him in the immediate proximity of a gaggle of extremely attractive girls he is ostensibly likely to wind up in a relationship with, as long as he can spend some time interrupting the way he keeps winding up touching them inappropriately accidentally. And I mean that, this is a universe bent around a corkscrew shape to ensure that if somehow Keitaro can grab a boob when he’s trying to interact with literally anything else then yes, that boy is going to wind up grabbing a boob. This challenge gets made more complicated when some of the characters are too young to have meaningfully large boobs for the grabbing but they find other ways for him to sexually harrass the children (but accidentally). Then they hit him and that’s all okay.

See, back when he was a little babby kid, a girl and he promised each other they’d get into Todai together and fall in love and be happy forever after (or whatever), and that promise is why he’s trying so hard to get into this university. This moment is super important to the telling of the story, because this moment is also the first time and last time in the entire narrative of Love Hina in which Keitaro Urashima commits to a course of action rather than falling dick-first into every single other part of his life at the behest of other people who are sick and tired of seeing him being a big pathetic slop who suffers so much and struggles to contend with a reality that is handing him his life on a platter.

This guy gave me and so many dudes like me so many bad ideas about how to be a dude. If you look at the show and disengage from the framing of the comedy beats, where Keitaro is hilariously and comically unlucky (something I’ve been thinking about for other reasons lately), and you start thinking about how life is like for the girls living in this house, where you can just randomly get your tit honked or your towel dropped by a schlubby guy that the show somehow describes at first as unattractive and then eventually as ‘quite handsome actually,’ who got the job because he’s the failgrandson of the building’s owner and the cousin-nephew of the manager and he’s kind of useless at doing the things that constitute his job.

Keitaro spends a lot of time feeling bad about his life, about how terrible and pathetic his life is because That Feel When No GF, and how hard it was to pursue his goal of getting into uni to re-meet with his promise girl. This is the fundamental dramatic arc of this series: Ya Boy, Keitaro, as he tries to find love, and the way that non-stop coincidence follows this boy around. For example, did you know that the girl of his promise might be one of the girls at the apartment complex? And how then another girl who might also be the promise girl stumbles in and finds him and she just happens to be like the other one but really nice as opposed to really PRONE TO RESPONDING BADLY TO HAVING HER TITS RANDOMLY GRABBED?

You need to understand just how common the gimmick of ‘Keitaro gets hit for doing something perverted that isn’t his fault’ in this series. Like, if you were in this universe and didn’t see the buildup and you kept seeing this dude winding up in these situations, you wouldn’t fucking believe him anyway.

What this meant is that there’s this whole story about a lonely boy who is doing his best and isn’t hot and doesn’t have any natural advantages as he responds to a non-stop barrage of abuse from an unreasonable world that will hurt him so much for no good reason. It’s also the story about a cute boy who never explains himself or acts to prevent and protect himself from the appearance of problems and literally failed his way into a full-time job with extremely nondemanding requirements and eventually through sheer engine of coincidence winds up finding true love and also having five different girls of a variety of types crushing on him.

It is a pitiful story, where Keitaro benefits from overwhelming privilege and support, and it, I think, taught a lot of people in that era that the way you made a likable boy character in a romantic story was to make someone wretched so the audience could not possibly be anything but sympathetic to them. You don’t need a drive or an interest or a focus or things you care about or do with your free time, you don’t need to have things you like to do. What matters is being sad about being lonely and you can build the scenario out from that.

Going back and looking at anime I watched before Love Hina came out, and then the anime that came out afterwards I’m kind of shocked to see how many of those earlier anime are full of characters who have like, really notable opinions and preferences? They are people who are trying to do things, not just having things happen to them. And that can be a problem when you start to think of these characters as not just characters but also the kinds of things that say, isolated people think of as a template for how to be. Keitaro, if you fell into this emotional groove at the wrong time, told a lot of guys a really awful way to be a guy.

That’s not what I wanted to talk about though.

Did you know that Love Hina is set in the same universe as Negima? Like the last trailing part of the Love Hina story, after we grapple with the whole adopted-sister incest angle oh yeah that’s a thing too, it’s weird, don’t worry about it, not doing parenthesis joke again, it comes up that yeah, this is a universe with weird stuff in it. Keitaro is able to take the galactic beatings because he’s probably an immortal.

Weird, huh?

Check it out on PRESS.exe to see it with images and links!

#Media #Anime

[nicki0kaye]

I've been thinking a while about why this became a thing, and there's been a lot of great posts about it, but I want to try and untangle where this misconception may have sprung from.

We know for a fact that if one has access to media that portrays a minority group as respectable AND entertaining, the audience is more likely to form a positive parasocial relationship with that character and carry that parasocial relationship into the real world. Will and Grace had a big impact on the general American population getting comfy with the idea of Gay ppl just being People who are Gay. This is, to the best of my understanding, what's at the core of 'Representation Matters'. If you show an outside group favorably, there are real world benefits. Negative portrayals of minority groups also have direct, real world consequences, mostly by reinforcing biases and unspoken reasons why the minority group doesn't deserve respect. Good intentioned portrayals can still reflect negative cultural assumptions about a group.

This is where I think good intentioned teens and other literal thinkers get hung up. Because a 'good' portrayal can have real world benefits and a 'bad' portrayal can have real world consequences, obviously we want more good shit and should shun and avoid bad shit. Instead of this being a general rule of thumb, its a black and white issue where any 'bad' attributes immediately knocks a piece of media out of the 'good' category, when...that's not how media works. There's also the flattening between characters and real people inherent to this kind of thinking; if you don't treat every gay character like a 'real' person, ie portray them favorably in ur piece of media, you hate real gay people.

Applying the knowledge this way has fucked everything up, bc it ignores a super important part of Why Representation Matters; it helps convert assholes. People who already know gay ppl are just normal ass ppl don't need to have their hands held or be coaxed gently towards the conclusion that everyone deserves basic human rights. Gay ppl obviously benefit from seeing themselves reflected in media, but that INCLUDES 'negative' portrayals in a way that would-be converts cannot benefit. The converts are still freshmen in Ethics 101 and everyone else is speeding through their AP college electives.

ultimately, the characters and what happen to them Do Not Matter, if you're mature enough to realize Fictional Characters and Real Life People are two completely separate groups. One of them are objects by default and the other are subjects by default. We want less assholes treating real human beings like objects, because it is always, always the real world ppl who matter the most.

Messy, awful, fucked up media exists for a reason. It inherently serves an emotional regulatory function. It is helpful for us as humans to experience scary, fucked up things from the safety of an observer/audience. It is helpful to express awful feelings and beliefs through fiction bc it can help process those things without endangering Real People. The problem has Never Been the messy, awful, fucked up media. It Has Always Been people using that media as an excuse to be asshole to real ppl, either intentionally or unintentionally. This is why fetishes are fine so long as every Real Person involved has consented. The second you transpose your fetish onto someone who did not sign up to be your fetish object, that's the very second you become an asshole no one wants around. That is literally the line. Making the media is not an inherently evil act, consuming that media is not an inherently evil act, Treating Real People like shit is fucking evil, so don't maybe, idk

I really think everyone needs to truly internalize this:

Fictional characters are objects.

They are not people. You cannot "objectify" them, because they have no personhood to be deprived of. They have no humanity to be erased. You cannot "disrespect" them, because they are not real.

[inspireofficespace1]

Navigating the Future of Work: Exploring the Pros and Cons of Virtual Coworking

Introduction of coworking space

Everyone is familiar with the experience of working in a coworking space. This includes obtaining hot desks for individuals or renting an entire managed office space for a team. However, imagine if we could conduct all these arrangements online.

This is the fundamental distinction between physical coworking and its online counterpart. With virtual office spaces, employees are not required to be physically present at the same location as their coworkers to collaborate effectively.

To determine if virtual office spaces could be the future, it is essential to assess both the challenges and opportunities they present. 

Let's examine both aspects of this situation.

The Challenges:

Lack of Co-ordination:

While adopting this mode of work may appear attractive, it comes with its own set of challenges. 

The primary concern is coordination. 

The employer must actively engage with the team on a daily basis to receive updates. 

Conducting virtual stand-ups, scrums, and lunch bag meetings are options to facilitate team collaboration. 

However, employees may find themselves reporting their work through multiple channels and coordinating with various individuals, which can lead to increased frustration rather than achieving mental peace.

Project Delays:

The delay in projects is a direct consequence of the previously mentioned coordination challenges. 

Handling a virtual team demands considerable effort, particularly in monitoring the progress of work at managerial levels. 

The continuous need for updates on daily tasks can be demotivating for employees and may even lead to a sense of disengagement. 

Consequently, this situation can give rise to friction among colleagues, especially for seemingly trivial tasks that could have been easily resolved in a traditional office setting.

In a virtual environment, timely communication and effective task management become crucial. 

Without face-to-face interactions, there can be delays in obtaining essential information, clarifying doubts, and making swift decisions. 

The absence of immediate feedback or guidance can slow down the workflow and hinder project progress.

Additionally, since virtual teams might span different time zones or have varying schedules, coordinating meetings or collaborative sessions can be challenging. 

This can lead to prolonged decision-making processes and potential misunderstandings due to delayed responses.

In order to tackle these challenges, it is essential to take proactive measures such as establishing clear communication channels, setting expectations, and implementing efficient project management tools. 

Encouraging regular check-ins, providing necessary resources, and fostering a sense of teamwork can be instrumental in mitigating the adverse effects of delays in virtual projects.

Lack of work-life balance:

The concept of working from home may seem like an ideal scenario, granting people the flexibility to manage their work around personal commitments. 

While this option has the potential to offer such benefits, in many cases, employees find it challenging to maintain a proper routine. 

Often, they become less productive, taking frequent breaks and ultimately stretching their work hours, leading to an all-day-long working situation.

Difficulty in understanding employees' well-being:

Prominent and successful organizations share a common trait that sets them apart: their ability to empathize with their employees. 

Understanding the emotional state and well-being of employees is crucial for assessing their efficiency. 

Observing their emotional intelligence, stress levels, body language, and more helps in building a connection with them and gauging their potential. 

However, remote work environments make it difficult for employees to interact face-to-face and hinder the accomplishment of this essential understanding.

Embracing Online Work during the Challenging Times of Coronavirus

Amidst the difficulties posed by the coronavirus pandemic, virtual coworking has emerged as a valuable solution. With social distancing measures in place, working from home has become the norm, providing an opportunity for employees to explore the concept of remote work. 

Here are several ways in which it can prove advantageous:

Increased Flexibility: 

Virtual offices offer a high degree of flexibility, allowing employees to work from any location and at any time. 

While core working hours demand colleagues' collaboration, individuals can complete the rest of the work based on their preferences.

This is especially advantageous for night owls who thrive in late-night working environments. 

Furthermore, during regular circumstances, employees can step out to work from a cafe or garden, introducing a change of scenery and providing a breath of fresh air. 

The freedom to choose their work environment motivates employees, leading to higher productivity and a stronger connection to their job.

Enhanced Creativity: 

Being freed from the confines of a physical office space can reduce both physical and mental stress. 

With this saved time and mental energy, teams can focus on more critical tasks and foster creativity. 

Engaging in online collaborative activities can also strengthen team bonds and provide much-needed breaks from the workload.

Enhanced Team Inclusivity:

The online mode proves particularly advantageous for organizations with employees hailing from diverse cities and countries. 

It fosters inclusivity by accommodating various cultures from around the world. 

A team comprising diverse backgrounds and perspectives can unleash creativity and bring fresh, innovative ideas to fuel the company's growth.

Environmentally Friendly Impact:

One of the most significant advantages of virtual coworking is its positive impact on the environment, leading to reduced pollution. 

Several reports have emerged indicating the healing of the ozone layer and the improvement in air quality due to the shutdown of industrial activities and the ban on commuting.

Eliminating the need for daily office commutes substantially lowers the carbon footprint, aligning with global efforts such as India's pledge in the Paris Agreement to reduce carbon emissions by 33-35% by 2030. 

By cutting down on electricity consumption in office spaces, organizations can take a significant step towards fulfilling these environmental commitments.

Overcoming Challenges and Preparing for Emergencies:

Though adopting this working system may present initial challenges, virtual coworking proves to be a highly beneficial and viable option during emergencies and crises. It can effectively address situations like heavy monsoon floods, transportation strikes, and the unprecedented COVID-19 outbreak. Preparing the team to embrace remote work or even transitioning entirely to this new working style is a wise choice. Embracing remote work not only helps corporations thrive but also nurtures a sense of community among team members. For these compelling reasons, it is time to seriously consider and prepare for the transition to remote work.

[wososage]

A Team Effort: USWNT x Reader

So this doesn’t completely line up with the request but this is definitely something... Anyways please send me some requests. I’m taking a break from school for medical stuff so I need some sort of distraction.

Request: ok this is perfect because I love baby reader and smut just makes me uncomfy so I’m not a fan of it. I’m going to go pretty vague so you got some creative freedom- I loved the one about the team being clingy but I want to flip it and reverse it some. Reader is the baby and the shortest and she is sick/hurt/something one day and is just tired around. Always clinging to someone and being carried, passed around so no one can hog the snuggles, etc

Warnings: none

Word count: 747

“Lyssa!” Y/N calls out. “Will you carry me to the bus?”

Alyssa obliges, because one, everyone loves Y/N snuggles, two, one day during Y/N first camp the team agreed that they will do anything to see a smile on Y/N face after a particular incident showed the not so good side of Y/N’s life, and three Y/N is Alyssa jr.

As soon as Alyssa and Y/N get on the bus, Y/N gets passed to one Kelley O’hara, who has a great impression of a toddler with her pout and grabby hands. Kelley, who is very excited to get to spend time with her little squirrel, immediately starts tickling Y/N, which eventually devolves into Y/N and Kelley trying to wrestling… on a moving bus.

It's Becky who steps in with a raised eyebrow telling Kelley and Y/N that if they continue acting the way they are, they will not like the consequences. After forcing the squirrels to separate, Becky takes Y/N to the front of the bus where Becky reads to Y/N, continuing the book they were reading the day before.

After training is nap time. Y/N is always willing to fight this, even though they never win and a post-practice nap always happens even if it means someone has to tie them down to a bed. Today, however, a promise of a surprise from Lindsey and Sonnett leads to Y/N only protesting slightly before getting in the middle of them for a snuggle pile.

After waking up, Y/N finds out the surprise is being allowed to go to the mall without ‘adult’ supervision. Which is fine. Totally fine. Until it isn’t. The kids are loud and have a lot of energy and add that to being in a mall with so many stores and so many people and so many noises coming from all directions, it doesn’t take long for Y/N to become overwhelmed. It’s Kristie who notices first. Wonderful, wonderful Kristie who prides herself on being the mom of the kid's group, takes Y/N to a bookstore where they can have a chance to center themselves before heading back to the hotel.

At dinner, Y/N ends up at a table with Pinoe, Alex, Charlie, Crystal, and Marcel. Apparently, Pinoe is Y/N’s pseudo-parent for the night and is in charge of Y/N getting the proper nutrients (everyone teases Y/N about needing to grow up big and strong since they are so small). This is a hard task, one that is often left to someone who won’t give in to any of Y/N’s pleading to not have to eat fruit, which is why it's often an older person on the team who ends up taking on this task. Tonight, after a second attempt of sneaking their fruit to Charlie, Pinoe manages to wrangle in Y/N with a withering glare and a threat of something Y/N won’t like if they reach strike three. Y/N tries to convince Pinoe that because they are dyed hair bros, Pinoe should let Y/N get away without eating the fruit. (it doesn’t work)

Y/N's reward for finishing their meal (with only a little fussing) is hanging out with Tobin and Christen, which is really Christen babysitting two over-excited children who want to paint, but they aren’t allowed to after an incident with paint ending up on surfaces in which the paint wasn’t meant to be.

While Becky is Y/N’s roommate, its long been decided that someone besides Y/N’s roommate is in charge of forcing Y/N to keep up any sense of personal hygiene to keep the general order of camp correct. That's why Rose has once found herself pleading with Y/N to get into the shower for the third night in a row this week. It ends with Rose holding Y/N through a panic attack after Y/N managed to get into the shower for a few minutes.

And the day ends with Becky, who reads to Y/N until they fall asleep. And wakes them up during particularly bad nightmares. And lays on top of Y/N to keep them from getting out of bed at an obscene hour of the morning because Y/N is incapable of sitting still when awake (and asleep but that is what the location tracker is for) but also needs to get more sleep.