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msommers · 1 year ago

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intimacy, friendship, fate for maeve, riya and meredith!

this time i just forgot to hit post whoops. thank you alana!! xx // oc asks: relationships edition

Intimacy: Is your OC the type of person to engage in long-term relationships, or are they more casual in their intimacy and affection? How do they feel about intimacy and relationships in general?

MAEVE — the thing is that maeve could engage in relationships outside of the long-term, but there would be nothing casual about them given that It's Maeve. any partner of hers is going to be spoiled with affection, attention and goods lmao. 90% chance she's gonna write something about them. i’ve written essays on maeve's feelings on this subject, so to keep it simple: she's in love with love, intimacy is her middle name, she collects relationships like pokemon, and would probably perish like a fish out of water if she was starved of these things.

RIYA — her history has definitely been more casual, there have been one or two people that she'd mess around with sporadically over multiple years, but even then it was just for reliable fun and victor was the first time she entered anything of the Committed type. i don't think she consciously noticed her views on intimacy evolving while with him, but they did and those changes will become more apparent to her now that all she can do is sit with the memories. she'll start to understand there's a difference when it comes to Romantic intimacy and that’s going to be something she misses whenever that it becomes relevant.

MEREDITH — i don’t know if she’d be able to handle a casual relationship. meredith's friendly and relatively open to folk, but if she lets somebody approach anything near intimate then they've been Chosen, y’know. she doesn't want anything fleeting, she needs loyalty and consistency and dedication. she'd sooner take intensity over casualness tbh. she takes comfort in the intimacy that comes from relationships, in knowing someone wants to display affection for her and knows how she'd like to receive it.

Friendship: What's your OC like as a friend? How are they at making new friends? What are the most important friendships in your OC's life?

MAEVE — she's steadily racked up an egregious amount of friends through the years due to her charm and being such a goodie good. that type of person in the group who can go "i know a guy" about nearly anything. i won't give names because all of her friendships are equally valued in her heart (i lied, grey's her most treasured friend 💜). she's kinda the dream friend?? she'll pay for any of your outings, is the kindest shoulder to cry on, is incredibly attentive to your feelings and needs, will bend over backwards to help you whenever necessary no questions asked, etc etc. just don't ask her to help make the holiday dinner the friendship will be ruined just let her host the party

RIYA — the friend who's there to gossip or get petty if you need that energy. happy to include you in her expensive activities because she likes spoiling people close to her. always ready to throw down for you even if you don't necessarily ask for it. riya's either very good or very bad at making friends and that depends on the type of crowd she's in, because uh. she's not everybody's cup of tea. her most important friendships are those with her family members, and now the warden squad for obvious reasons.

MEREDITH — she’ll go on whole ass quests for her friends, feels like that explains a good deal itself. everybody needs that one friend who will defend you in encounters, go to the ends of the earth for you at a moment's notice, and be unafraid to call you out on some nonsense you're pulling lmao. she's superb at making friends, that charisma and insight will take her a long way if she's not speaking to a baddie (derogatory). alistair, nathaniel, leliana and teagan are her most important friendships probs.

Fate: Does your OC believe in destined meetings? True love, soulmates, hearing the bells? Have they ever experienced this?

MAEVE — cannot be stated enough how deeply she believes in it all lmao true love's kiss being magic, people finding each other through fate, having multiple soulmates, you name any sappy trope and she's a believer in it. of course she's experienced these things because maeve's living a fairy tale 90% of the time and it's what she deserves. anything with ilya is the prime example but she's been given multiple soulmate related things bc i myself (and other enablers) like to spoil her 🥰

RIYA — she for sure believes in those things just because she believes in destiny overall. umm. i don't think there's any like #canonevent that has occurred with fated moments so far that,,,but if you think about it,,,,if you squint. kinda wild how riya ended up in the company of a supportive dreamer mage 🤔 exactly when she needed that kind of aid 🤔🤔 kinda sussy. (she’s gonna find a reason to think so many things are destined, people are gonna hate it)

MEREDITH — she’s more of a butterfly effect kind of lady, i think. actions have reactions and consequences that all lead somewhere in the end. it wasn’t destiny that had her marching around ferelden during the blight, it was just highever being the first domino to fall. true love tho, that she can get behind. you don't have to be written in the stars to find somebody who will become your other half with plenty of trust, time and effort.

#ch: maeve sommers #ch: valeriya de clairmont #ch: meredith cousland #can't wait for the future where it's rich brat riya talking about how fate brought them all to the hell that is a blight #everyone's gonna love that talk

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holocened · 2 years ago

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fah sarika sathsilpsupa. cis female. she/her. presenting lady SURIN KACHAPRAI, thirty-year old earthbender and researcher from ba sing se. inquisitive yet obstinate, they find themself apprehensive to fire lord chaesan’s reign. will this be their salvation or their undoing ?

howdy !! i’m mitzi (they/she) and i’m v excited to be here with surin ^___^ haven’t been in rp for a hot minute and tumblr’s new look is v much throwing me off so sorry in advance for any mistakes :[ anw!! everything important can be found on her about page but i’ll include some more details and tidbits here too for funsies (+ convenience lol). if you’d like to plot, then pls hit the like button and i’ll drop by your dm’s !!

long story short: noble researcher from ba sing se conducting not-so-legal-or-permitted research on dragons and how to weaponise them for the earth kingdom :grimace:

backstory wise, she’s the bastard child of a minor house in ba sing se that specialises in research and allegedly espionage (if i have the dates right maybe they have connections with the dai li?). her biological father is the head of the house and her biological mother is someone she’s met only once—resulting in the scar across her face.

when she was eleven, her biological mother tried to come back for her and things got out of hand resulting in a destroyed wing of the house, a missing person, and a kid with no recollection of what happened other than the literal mark it left on her.

nineteen years later and she’s more or less “over” what happened, considering 1) she doesn’t even know what happened cos everyone just said it was an accident 2) she’s a bit too busy trying to uncover state secrets to even be curious about her own background lol!

has an awkward and tense rl with her family, feels obligated to carry out everything as instructed seeing as it was her father who got her her job in the first place (plus success in this specific task means there’s less of a focus on marriage). her loyalty to the earth kingdom (+ attitude towards chaesan) is v much influenced by them.

been in the fire nation for around 3 months now under the guise of doing research on *waves hands around* something vaguely ecology-related idk

but her actual expertise is in social and environmental history so she’s a bit like 🧍 w the current task (even more so seeing who the new crown prince is). it’s v intriguing nonetheless!

reports back to her father plus another senior researcher who haven’t proposed the findings (cos theyre still a wip lmao) to the royal family & co., so it’s pretty unlikely that other earth kingdom nobles are aware of this

doesn’t necessarily have the mannerisms of a typical noble considering she barely attended any events beyond the ones she had no choice but to + was taught to remain somewhat unnoticeable and inconspicuous for various reasons. being from a minor family makes that a lot easier too.

good with books and information, alright with most people, absolute flop at earthbending aside from tricks for convenience and some defence rip

+ gets shit done, calm & easygoing disposition, fantastic at compartmentalising, meticulous in even the most trivial things, willing to risk certain things if that means she can carry out her task as needed

- loyal to a fault, stubborn when she doesn’t have to be, a bit of a poor communicator, not as efficient as she could be, prone to falling for the finer things in life as a means of stress relief (it’s abt rituals y’know)

as for potential plots... erm.... let’s leave that for brainstorming <3

#riseintro

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therosefrontier · 3 years ago

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Whumptober Day 5

No. 5 - I’VE GOT RED IN MY LEDGER

betrayal | misunderstanding | broken nose

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Genshin Impact | Zhongli and his memories

(crossposted to AO3)

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“I met with Azhdaha again yesterday.”

Zhongli started his story while seated on an old stone platform in Guili Plains, a low crumbling stone wall behind him, an ancient tablet the only company by his side. “Virtue grows tall like a tree, though there be shade it will flourish forever,” the dome-shaped tablet read. At times like these, he often wondered at what all the author of those words had in mind when she wrote that.

“I…assumed this would happen, one day. Elemental spirits are nigh immortal beings, and it would be foolishness to assume that a sealed spirit won’t some day find their way out.” Zhongli paused for a moment, his words feeling heavy on his tongue, as if someone really were here that he had to explain this too. “He…left, of his own accord,” he finally said. “His spirit is once again sealed in the mountain. Although, we may very well meet again. I simply might dare to hope that next time, it would be under better circumstances.”

“My life is nigh on eternal. I will go on with the infinite flow of time. And you, Morax... You too will live for many a day to come.”

But Azhdaha would never again be free. This…this was their contract.

Zhongli looked down at his hands and at the ground, the events of many centuries earlier being all too clear in his mind. The events of yesterday were but a brief addendum to what already happened. Azhdaha’s roar of rage and pain, his accusations of treachery, the underlying grim reality of knowing that all of Liyue could be in danger if he didn’t end this here and now…all of that happened, already. Yesterday, Azhdaha was divided, his rage and his benevolence split into two beings. The first time they fought, the benevolent and wise Azhdaha that he once knew was nowhere to be found.

“I never thought I’d be able to speak with him again, like he was. Well, it wasn’t his form necessarily: his consciousness had possessed a random human, but still, once his memories were regained, the words and the voice were most certainly his.” Zhongli smiled weakly. “I must admit, that despite the inherent peril of the situation leading up to this meeting, I was glad. To see him, that is. It…was as if he were still alive.”

“Rex Lapis, we are at your command,” Moon Carver assured him with great gravity, he and Mountain Shaper and the other watching the approach of the rampaging earth dragon with a steeled gaze, ready to fight.

Rex Lapis hesitated only for a moment. Only for a moment did he allow his heart to twist in pain, did he allow his eyes to lose their vivacity as he looked down from the sky at the dragon who cursed his name through his own unfathomable anguish. There was no solution, he knew. Erosion was something that could not be reversed. But he didn’t want to believe it. Not for Azhdaha. He didn’t want to lose him, too.

“We will lure him into the cave underneath the mountain. Follow my lead.”

Zhongli found Azhdaha as a spirit sealed deep in the earth, a simple but unique rock without sight or motion. His stirrings had been the cause of many earthquakes and tremblings, so Zhongli thought it fit to draw the spirit of stone up from the earth and grant his wish, to give him a chance to be free in the world outside. They made a contract, then. Zhongli always made a contract, with those he invited to join him. There was only one for him for which such an agreement was delayed…only because at first, he did not know what their partnership was even to be called. It was one of many ways that Guizhong confused him.

But for the great stone dragon, their agreement was clear. If Azhdaha ever endangered Liyue and brought ruin to order, he would once again be sealed in the dark.

Zhongli always kept true to his contracts.

“Come, I wish to show you something,” Morax beckoned him with a slight smile, bringing his friend up to a ledge overlooking the waters, the sun setting over the mountains in the distance and washing the sky with color.

“What is this?” Azhdaha asked in a deep and booming voice, although its powerful aura was perhaps mitigated by the way he spoke with the curiosity of a child. “I have seen this water before; now it is different?”

Morax chuckled softly. “Take a moment and have a look.”

Azhdaha came up over the ledge with thundering steps. “Your sun looks different. The color has changed. Is it nearing death?”

“No, no, not at all,” Morax explained with a slight touch of amusement. “This is a sunset. The sun will soon disappear over the mountains. You asked last night why the light leaves the sky in such a way. So, I thought I’d bring you here to watch. Of course, the motion of the sun can be observed anywhere, but it carries a different effect, in some locations. The sun will change its color now, but after it disappears, it will come back the next day just as it was before.”

Azhdaha hummed in acknowledgement, then plopping down onto the grass with a shaking of the earth. “So now, we sit and watch?”

“Yes, I say we shall.”

“Morax, how do I look? Unimposing? Like a true human?”

“You look very well,” Morax agreed with a smile. It was in an elemental spirit’s nature to be able to change shape and form, but this was Azhdaha’s first time doing it on his own. His human form wasn’t exactly all that ‘unimposing,’ being that of a man quite large and broad-shouldered, but he looked enough like a human, at least.

“Mm, that is acceptable.” Azhdaha put his newfound fists on his hips and looked down at the Guili Assembly plaza down below. “It is time to interweave myself with humankind. I wish to first try the foods that people keep telling me about. I do not see the appeal of this ‘Grilled Ticker Fish’ that Pervases speaks of, as it is merely a single fish, but I wish to obtain this first, so that I may give him my full opinion!”

“Sounds like a suitable plan,” Morax agreed with a nod. “Then, let’s not keep our human and adepti friends waiting.”

Zhongli remembered his form then, strong with a youthful wonder that wizened into ancient wisdom over the passage of time. It was so startingly unlike the form half of him took yesterday, of a child with a bitter glare in her eyes.

“So here lies the wisdom of the gods? Destroy all deemed redundant, enlist tyrants to ravage the wilderness!” Jiu mocked in her (his) fury.

Zhongli had a contract to keep. He had to seal Azhdaha away. There was no choice.

“Is once not enough!? You would forsake me again!?”

It wasn’t what he wanted. But was there…really nothing he could have done? If he had stopped the humans from mining in the Chasm, if he had noticed the change in Azhdaha, if he had just taken the time out of his duties to pay him a visit, then maybe…

“Erosion ground Azhdaha’s consciousness into oblivion. Slowly, he forgot the face of his old friend, and his memories of defending Liyue Harbor disintegrated,” Azhdaha in Kun Jun’s vessel recounted his own story with a faint smile of regret.

Zhongli couldn’t stop erosion.

And yet…he mourned what came to pass.

Zhongli had known, for a very long time, that he would never again be able to mourn as a mortal would. Azhdaha was far from the only one he has lost to time and conflict. The name he called him, “Morax,” was a stark reminder of this, that name which he had walked away from a long time ago but never truly shed. Morax was a god of war, a slayer of thousands. Morax had for a long, long time grown used to the bloodshed that was Liyue’s reality, as god fought against god in the Archon War and sacrificed hoards of soldiers as pawns. Morax felt no disgust or horror when he walked through a battlefield after the fight was over, stepping over bodies and walking through pools of blood and entrails as he coldly assessed the damage done.

In some ways, Rex Lapis was no different. For that matter, neither was Zhongli. Although his thoughts on war had changed—he would avoid it through the employment of contracts and words, if at all possible—he could never feel the same revulsion towards death and bloodshed as a human would.

Rex Lapis saw many scores of yaksha and other adepti swear fealty to him over the millennia. They would give him their loyalty, and he would make a contract with them, and he would know, because of how many times it had happened already, that they might give their lives in his service. They might fall to the evil that plagues the land in battle, or they may be consumed by the very filth they faithfully eradicated. Rex Lapis did not consider their deaths to be meaningless, nor did he ever wish to sacrifice his subjects as a pawn of war, but…he might have accepted, at some point long ago, that such deaths were inevitable and necessary.

He could not mourn as a human would—or rather, as a human without authority might. A war god had to know, lest he be blind, that he was sending his people to possible death.

He bore that weight, and he accepted that responsibility.

But in that responsibility…what did that mean for Azhdaha? Whose soul was crushed not by the many battles they fought together, but by the erosion of the earth itself?

He was sealed forever by Zhongli’s own hands. That was their contract. That was justice.

He always kept his contracts. No matter the price, no matter what he had to do…even if it was a pact paid in blood with Celestia, he did what he must for the sake of Liyue…

But was it true? Did Zhongli, in that near-final meeting, betray Azhdaha?

“I did what I must,” he spoke again to the stone tablet, cold and motionless despite the warm words inscribed upon it. “Virtue grows tall like a tree, though there be shade it will flourish forever.” But how did one define what “virtue” meant? How much of this “shade” was acceptable? This increasing debt, made in blood…

“His anger, however, does seem justified, in a certain way.”

“Guizhong?” He looked up, a small drop forming in his near-human eyes. “Did I do the right thing?”

#whumptober2021 #no.5 #betrayal #fandom #fic #genshin impact #zhongli #zhongli quest #musings #azhdaha #zhongli has sadness

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hobbitkiller · 5 years ago

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She-Ra, Supergirl, and Tangled: A Tale of Three Female Relationships: Part 2

*SPOILER WARNING FOR SHE-RA, SUPERGIRL, AND TANGLED: THE SERIES*

For those of you just tuning in, I’m taking a deep dive into 3 female relationships in 3 of my favorite tv shows that all turned into toxic messes at some point. The point of this series of posts is to exam these relationships, where things went wrong, whether there’s a chance for redemption, and what conclusions, if any, we can draw from these relationships about media’s representation of female characters and female relationships.

Oh, and shipping, ‘cause this is tumblr after all...

So, in Part 1 I gave a summary of the female relationships in question in these three shows (Adora and Catra, Kara and Lena, Rapunzel and Cassandra). I also summarized how these relationships began and when they started to go wrong. If you already know that stuff because you love these shows too, you don’t necessarily have to go back and read it, but doing so is always encouraged.

In this installment, I will be exploring 3 themes related to the festering resentment within these relationships: Mother Knows Best, Chosen Ones, and Itty Bitty Boxes. Follow the jump to get started!

PART III: MOTHER KNOWS BEST

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I’ve heard a few people claim that Mother Gothel is not a top tier Disney villain. She doesn’t have the following that characters like Scar or Maleficent have. However, at the same time, I’ve heard many people saying something along the lines of “This is my mother.” There’s something uncomfortably familiar about Mother Gothel in Tangled. I recognized the same putdowns and microaggressions that I used to get from my stepmom in Gothel’s targeted jabs at Rapunzel’s confidence throughout the movie...all done with a smile and “It’s for your own good” attitude.

A lot of media focuses on the relationship between fathers and sons. Mothers in Disney have historically been silent or dead. (Except Perdita. That bitch was awesome).

This, of course, makes it interesting that 5/6 of these characters have verbally (and in some cases physically) abusive, manipulative mother figures. And for Adora and Catra and Rapunzel and Cassandra, that mother figure is the same.

Here are our three abusive mothers:

Shadow Weaver who raised Adora and Catra:

Lillian Luthor who is Lena Luthor’s adoptive mother (and played by the absolute joy to watch that is Brenda Strong):

And, of course, Mother Gothel who kidnapped and raised Rapunzel for most of her life and is the SPOILER biological mother of Cassandra:

There are, of course, good mothers sprinkled in. Rapunzel’s biological mother, Queen Arianna is great once she actually gets lines in the TV show. Lena’s birth mother was also, by all accounts, a very kind and loving person. Kara has two moms, and while both have flaws, both are inherently good people (particularly Eliza Danvers, her adoptive mother).

However, in spite of the presence of some positive examples of motherhood, the relationships between all three of these pairs is heavily influenced by the three narcissistic women above.

All three of these women are dishonest, withhold affection only to give it away as a special treat, and actively manipulate their children. Yet, at the same time, the children can’t help but seek approval. Adora and Catra both feared and desperately sought approval and affection from Shadow Weaver. Lena tries to cut ties with her family, but keeps being drawn back in when Lillian admits pride at her accomplishments or that she does, in fact, care about her. Rapunzel sought affection from Gothel growing up because she was her one human contact, and, when Cassandra learned the truth of who her mother was, Cassandra desperately wanted some validation that the mother who abandoned her loved her on some level.

These mother/daughter relationships scarred 5/6 of our characters (Kara has her own hangups about her mother, but not on the deeply psychologically scarred level as the other five.)

Adora is mockingly called paranoid by Shadow Weaver for understandably thinking the woman who lied to and manipulated her her entire life was up to something. Catra pushes everyone in her life away emotionally for fear of being hurt (only to create a self-fulfilling prophecy when they leave due to her behavior). Lena is constantly scared of being “betrayed” and manipulated. When she’s hurt by Supergirl asking Lena’s boyfriend to snoop on her, she says it was “something my mother would do.” When she and Kara first became friends, Lena was reluctant to do so because of the trust issues from her family (Lex Luthor is obviously also a manipulative, abusive jerk). Even Rapunzel, the embodiment of sunshine, has lingering trust issues. In the Season Three episode “Beginnings” she explains to Eugene that one of the reasons she likes Cassandra is because Rapunzel spent 18 years with someone who lied to her, whereas Cassandra was forthright and said what she was thinking.

Cassandra’s mother issues are a little more complicated. When she was four, Gothel abandoned her in order to kidnap Rapunzel and Cass was adopted by the captain of the guard. Cassandra has deeply repressed this memory by the time we meet her when she’s 22/23. Then, she’s given a glimpse of what life was like with Gothel:

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Early in the series, Cass talks about how her father instilled in her the value of “earning my keep.” It’s clear here, though, that love as a transactional relationship had been instilled in Cassandra early in life: “And when it (love/affection) came, it came with strings.”

This transactional view of relationships is something shared by all 5 members of our “bad moms” squad on at least some level. Adora constantly feels the need to fix things and be useful to her friends. Catra thinks if she just wins enough or is good enough, maybe Shadow Weaver will finally love her. Lena’s approach to relationships largely revolves around buying things for them and trying to unilaterally solve their problems for them without their input. Rapunzel has to go through an entire episode to learn that you can’t buy friendship through doing nice things, and that she doesn’t have to. Cass ties her self-worth deeply to her usefulness to others. They all struggle to find internal validation at times.

The other way mothers play a part in the downfalls of these relationships is the element of competitiveness. This is an issue with Adora and Catra and Rapunzel and Cassandra. As previously stated, both of these couples share a mother figure. And, in both of these couples, there is a deep resentment on the part of the non-golden haired child toward the other. Shadow Weaver did not hide that Adora was her favorite. She frequently praised Adora while berating and abusing Catra even when both had done equally well. Even when Adora abandoned Shadow Weaver and Catra for the rebellion, SW was more concerned with getting Adora back than appreciating the loyalty and accomplishments of Catra.

Mother Gothel literally gave up Cassandra to take Rapunzel.

Both Catra and Cassandra feel completely overshadowed by the blonde in their lives, and part of them can’t help but think that, if only Adora or Rapunzel were out of the way, or had never existed, maybe they would have been chosen as the favored one.

This, of course, brings us to our next topic:

PART IV: CHOSEN ONES

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I’ve never been a big fan of Ron Weasley. I didn’t read the Harry Potter books until I was in my twenties (yes, compared to many of my readers, I’m old), and I think this lead to me being less charmed by his humor or bullying of Hermione than I otherwise might have been. I found his temper aggravating and he is just...the worst...in the sixth book. Like, he purposely starts dating someone to punish Hermione who had already asked him to Slughorn’s party because Ginny pointed out that Hermione had probably kissed the guy she was dating TWO YEARS AGO. No, seriously, read that book again. That’s what happened. Then the seventh book happens and it turns out Dumbledore KNEW Ron was going to ditch the team at some point...

That being said, as I sat down to write this novel-length meta, I found myself thinking about what it’s like to be the support team for the “chosen one.” In the seventh book, Ron could have stayed at home with his pureblood family. He would still be in some danger due to their involvement with the Order of the Phoenix, but it would have been a lot safer than traveling around with “Undesirable No 1.″ Yet, because he loves Harry, he chooses to go on this mission.

In the three pieces of media we’re discussing, 2/3 have literal chosen ones--characters with specific destinies of supernatural origin: Adora and Rapunzel. Kara also largely fits into the trope as someone sent to earth from afar to “save us.” As I somewhat jokingly said in the first part, all three of these pieces of media feature a blond super-powered person who needs to save the world.

Can you imagine what it would be like to be the best friend or “sister” of the person who’s “burdened with glorious purpose”?

On the one hand, it’s constant fear over that person’s safety and wellbeing. On the other, there’s a bit that can’t help but feel resentful. Imagine having a friend that overshadows every accomplishment you’ve ever had seemingly by virtue of just who they are.

Now, of course we know that it’s no easy road being a chosen one. There’s a lot you have to sacrifice, and it usually involves injury, near death, and a boatload of trauma. And the support teams know this. For some, it’s never an issue. But for others...

In She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, Adora, to Catra, always had the presence in her life of a chosen one, even before she got the sword and became She-Ra. Shadow Weaver had sensed something powerful about Adora when she was a baby, and thus treated her as the “Golden Child” to Catra’s “Scapegoat.”

This idea of the “Golden Child (GC)” versus the “Scapegoat (SG)” rolls a bit into this issue with “chosen ones.” In toxic, narcissistic families, parents often hold up one child as the great one while the other is the one to blame for their problems. Think Olga and Helga in Hey Arnold! (Is that reference too dated for some of you guys? Man, I’m old. Also, I remember finally being old enough to realize Helga’s mom was an alcoholic and it blew my mind.) This also usually entails encouraging a level of competitiveness between the siblings.

In some ways, it’s like a “chosen one” is the whole world’s golden child. Anyone who researches this dynamic knows it’s abusive to both the GC and the SG, which is clearly displayed in She-Ra when Adora is stressed by the pressure of expectations and the knowledge that her mistakes will most likely be taken out on Catra. That doesn’t change the fact that Catra resents the positive attention (the adoration if you will) Adora gets--that, no matter what Catra achieves, it will be nothing compared to Adora. This resentment is a big part of what fuels the escalation of their personal conflict leading to one of the saddest pieces of animation since Fry’s dog died sad and alone on Futurama. In the Season 1 episode “Promise.” (This is, by far, the best episode of the series), Catra airs all of her feelings she’d been repressing about what it felt like living in Adora’s shadow--how it made her feel like a “side kick,” something Adora never consciously tried to do and is shocked to discover.

Cassandra on Tangled:The Series has similar feelings about her role in Rapunzel’s life. Not only is her best friend the one with the magic hair and great destiny, but she is also her boss and monarch. Aside from the two songs I included in my last post, “Waiting in the Wings” and “Crossing the Line,” this conflict is best demonstrated early in Season One in the episode “Challenge of the Brave.”

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Cass didn’t suffer abuse in quite the same way Catra did (though Gothel was the worst mom for her first 4 years), but she does feel disrespected and overshadowed by Rapunzel even before learning about Gothel. In “Crossing the Line”--a song many likened to “Let it Go” when they first heard it, Cassandra lays out these feelings further:

There’s a line between the winners and the losers.

There’s a line between the chosen and the rest.

And I’ve done the best I could,

but i’ve always known just where we stood.

Me here with the luckless.

You there with the blessed.

Now, when this song first came out, there were negative reactions from some fans. How could Cassandra call someone who had been kidnapped and locked in a tower with the neglectful and verbally abusive Gothel for 18 years “blessed”? But, from Cassandra’s perspective, Rapunzel still gets everything, power, respect, etc., purely because she was born a princess while Cass has worked incredibly hard her entire life to achieve one goal, becoming a guard, and is constantly denied.

With Lena and Kara in Supergirl, the resentment, again, is mostly between Lena and Supergirl for most of their relationship. Multiple times during the show’s run, Lena has expressed concern about human’s relative helplessness in the face of aliens like Supergirl who have power. This is why Lena sees some of her shadier actions such as making Kryptonite or trying to give humans super powers as justified. She doesn’t go to the extreme levels of hatred that her brother Lex does, but that distrust in those who are naturally more powerful runs throughout the family as does the resentment that aliens have seemingly usurped the leadership role among humanity that should have belonged to the Luthors.

What makes this interesting is that, in most of her relationships, Lena, as a billionaire, is the more privileged and powerful one. This is really best demonstrated in her relationship with James Olsen, whom she orders around as his boss while buying him expensive gifts and going behind his back to fix his legal problems. And for much of their relationship, this is how Lena sees her relationship with Kara. It’s not a manipulative or cruel thing. Lena just sees Kara as her adorkable reporter friend who is hapless in the face of danger.

Then, all of these preconceived notions come crashing down when Lena learns that Kara is Supergirl. Suddenly, she learns that her hapless friend was actually playing her the whole time--that she was stringing Lena along and pretending to be only human.

Lena’s resentment may not be as explicit in this case as Catra’s or Cassandra’s, but it is layered within all of the emotions Lena Luthor is pretending not to have.

This, of course, leads us to our final subject for today.

PART V: “ITTY BITTY BOXES”

I’ve mentioned a few times throughout this novel-length meta the word “repressed.” Catra, Lena, and Cassandra are not good at expressing their emotions in a healthy manner. Much of this can be blamed on the aforementioned mother figures and the trust and intimacy issues that having narcissistic, abusive parents can lead to.

Narcissistic parents often place the burden of maintaining the emotional wellbeing of the family on the children. It is your job as the child to make sure they don’t get upset. It is you who has to keep the cool head and maintain the facade of positivity. Parents like Shadow Weaver, Lillian Luther, and Mother Gothel do not see it as their responsibility to help their children regulate emotion or address it. To them, “negative emotions” are character flaws.

Of course, anyone who’s watched Inside Out knows that emotions aren’t inherently good or bad and feeling, addressing, and understanding them are vital to good mental health.

Too bad Inside Out wasn’t there for Catra, Lena, or Cassandra growing up.

Instead, each of these characters has learned to bottle up and hide emotions like sadness, fear, hurt, and true, deep anger. Lena even outlines her approach to such feelings when helping Brainy, an alien who is basically like an organic computer, solve a problem:

youtube

I was not the only person that was reminded of this gem after that scene:

Putting emotions away in an imaginary box is a real technique for keeping yourself from becoming overwhelmed in a situation where you need to focus. However, “forgetting the box existed” is not the appropriate use of the boxes. They need to be opened, and the feelings addressed.

Catra is interesting, because in some ways she’s very vocal about her frustration and anger. Yet, that surface level frustration manifests in yelling at her friends and subordinates over their job performance or just being a general jerk. It’s not an expression of her true, deep feelings. Catra doesn’t let anyone see the deep levels of hurt she feels when Shadow Weaver manipulates her to join Adora. Instead, she just almost destroys the world...as you do. Season 4 in particular features a Catra who is more mean to her friends than ever before, yet she is still repressing so much of her true feelings to the point of mental and emotional collapse.

Cassandra also struggles to express her feelings, particularly to Rapunzel. Part of it might be because Rapunzel is her princess, and it’s not Cassandra’s place, but it’s also something she struggles with in general:

The above line occurs in an episode where Rapunzel knows Cassandra is mad at her and keeps pushing her to share her feelings. As we can see, Cass is not a big fan of that. Even though they talk at the end of the episode, it’s clear that there are still some hurt feelings on Cassandra’s side that she doesn’t express until she has electric blue hair and is singing a rock ballad about “Crossing the Line.” This is also fascinating because, as previously stated, one of the reasons Rapunzel likes Cassandra is her honesty. But, like with Catra, Cassandra can be honest about surface level annoyances, but intensely represses anything deeper.

All three of these characters let their emotions fester until they become deadly infections that poison their relationships, not just with their best friends, but with everyone. Many of these relationships could have been diverted from their dark paths if there had been more honest and open communication both between the characters and internally. If Lena acknowledged the real reasons why she was hurt when learning Kara was Supergirl, if Catra had been honest about feeling overshadowed and pitied by Adora, if Cassandra had expressed the pain she was feeling in her relationship with Rapunzel, things could have been different. Instead, those feelings have turned toxic.

NEXT TIME IN THE NEVER-ENDING ANALYSIS:

Blond Bulldozers

I Don’t Care (I ship it)

Just going to do 2, because 3 subjects were a bit much.

Hope to see you there.

#she ra #spop #adora #catradora #catra #shadow weaver #supergirl #supercorp #kara danvers #lena luthor #lillian luthor #tangled the series #rapunzel's tangled adventure #rapunzel #tts cassandra #cassunzel

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chwrpg · 4 years ago

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It’s about time. We’ve been waiting for you guys. -- Nova Lisbon

A NOTE FROM ADMIN B: If anyone can hear screaming in the distance don’t worry it’s just me!!!!!!!!! It’s no secret the Lisbon sisters are the loves of my life so I’ve always wanted to have the full set on the dash to really get into that family dynamic of theirs. And now, thanks to resident angel™ Tiff, we’re one step closer! I love the way you’ve written Nova-- like the other sisters she has that enigmatic manic pixie dream girl facade, but there’s so, so much more behind what everyone else projects onto her. I cannot wait to see her finally get the attention she deserves.

OOC NAME/ALIAS, PREFERRED PRONOUNS, AGE & TIMEZONE:

That Bitch FKA Tiff . 26 . CST

DESIRED CHARACTER:

Nova Lisbon

HOW ACTIVE WILL YOU BE?

SECONDARY CHOICE:

DESCRIBE THE CHARACTER:

If John Green had ever met Nova Lisbon he would have had a field day with that one. Everything about her from the way she walked with a little skip in her step to her more arbitrary habits like the way she dotted her i’s with hearts and took Buzzfeed personality quizzes when she was bored in class was more than enough material for her to inevitably become someone’s manic pixie dream girl. It wasn’t even that there was necessarily anything special that made her stand out from everyone else, people were just naturally attracted to her because she was an enigma; an experience that they could talk about at class reunions in the years to come. The Lisbon sisters were known in town for the air of mystery that followed them, enticing those who enjoyed a challenge to go to great lengths in hopes of catching the attention of one of the elusive sirens. Catching the eye of one of them was like winning a lottery ticket or climbing Mount Everest. While her sisters preferred to shy away from this portrayal that had been placed on them since their move to Rosewood, just trying to live normal lives, Nova reveled in all of the extra attention, more than happy to take her sisters’ share. Being caught smack dab in the middle of so many personalities made it so that it could be difficult to not get overlooked and that soon became one of her biggest fears, being forgotten and ultimately left behind, even by her own family. A fear that she never shared with any of them out of fear of sounding more irrational than her mother often made her feel. How could she tell them not to be themselves because it made her feel small compared to them when their parents had already stifled almost all enjoyment out of their life? Instead she began doing outrageous things and getting into unsavory habits for the sake of standing out. And in a way showing that she had control over her life, that no one told her what to do, even her parents. Though as mature as she tried to come off she was still a naive, hopeless romantic who could easily be taken advantage of. She fell in love easily. It seemed almost weekly. Unfortunately all of those people were out of her life about as fast as they had come in. But in that desperation to become a person of importance in others lives, in fighting so desperately to not become just another passing flavor of the week, she gave pieces of herself. Until she had given so much there was nothing left to give. Until all that was left was for her to get her shit together and pick up those pieces herself. And slowly but surely she was learning to do that. No offense to Alaska Young, but she was going to become the one who would control the narrative to her own story.

SAMPLE WRITING:

When Nova had first proposed the idea of a peer counseling program she had been met with a couple of chuckles, little bouts of amusement which soon took an awkward turn when the realization hit that she was completely serious. They were completely in their right to believe that she had been joking of course. Up until recently she wasn’t known for taking anything too seriously, much less known to dabble in humanitarianism. How on Earth did this girl, the same girl who throughout high school threw fits mid lecture over something as simple as a break up note think she was equipped to share any kind of advice with anyone? But that was exactly why Nova thought she was a prime candidate to participate in a peer counseling program. While, yes, she had been raised in an extremely sheltered environment she had somehow managed to find herself going through certain hardships that weren’t universally shared in such a short amount of time. Sure, as the whispers around town had led everyone to believe once the girls had all effectively left their time in captivity in their house, there probably wouldn’t have been so many speed bumps along the way if she had just listened to her parents. But she also wouldn’t have learned any of the life lessons she had if these experiences never occurred. For as much as she had been shamed at the time for her mistakes she felt no regrets. These moments and lapses in judgement that she was demonized for, especially by her mother who constantly berated her for being a free spirit, had molded her into the person she was today. The thing with Nova was that she stopped letting herself be bound by the rules the moment they settled down in Rosewood. Which really should have come as less of a surprise considering the compounding frustration that had slowly built up in the girls, passing on the baggage from the sister before them like a rite of passage.

Being part of such a tight knit family had always felt like both a blessing and a curse. The Lisbon sisters had always been as thick as thieves, so close that growing up Nova even believed they all shared a soul. That they all took different parts of it and together completed a whole person. Tessa had snatched up the compassion and understanding, Marina the brutal honesty and vicious protectiveness, Bridget the loyalty and adaptability, and Cecily the courage and patience. At least that was how she coped with their situation, by doing what she always did and romanticizing everything. Perhaps that was where the real problem lied though, that their codependence ran so deep they lost their sense of individuality. But what else were they supposed to do when their growth had already been stunted so severely by denying them the ability to form any true relationships outside of their own household? Even Nova had always been more open to the public than her sisters left a lot of things unsaid, things she didn’t think were of much importance but explained a lot about her character. Things she wanted people to find out about her by looking deeper than surface level. She left hints here and there, little moments with different people, like a scavenger hunt waiting to be solved. It was a path many had tried to venture but very few actually made headway along.

These who truly got to know Nova knew she was like a hurricane; calm and still at times like the eye of the storm, the still point in the turning world as one of her many suitors once stated. But destructive in passing, wearing her heart on her sleeve, and often making a scene when she felt like she was being played. Maybe that was why no one could quite understand why it was she felt the need to start the peer counseling program. Was it to gain some kind of karmic retribution for all the lives she had turned upside-down? Or was it to live vicariously through the lives of others by listening to their stories like they were retellings excerpts from books in some vast library of life? The truth was much more simple than that. Nova just loved people. And she liked to help them, not out of self interest despite this desperate need to be loved in return, but because she was fundamentally a caretaker.

This was how she found currently herself the only running some errands for colleagues and shopping for holiday decorations to spruce up the little office they used as the peer counseling center. She had taken a bit of a detour in the beauty department when the wails of child snapped her out of her own thoughts. Turning to scan down the aisle and see where the ruckus was coming from she spotted a little girl, no more than two or three years old. Around how old her child would have been had things turned out differently. The kid seemed to be lost and crying out for her mom but there was no one in sight who seemed to be coming to her rescue. She shuffled back awkwardly to the end of the aisle, looking all around to see if anyone was making their way back over for her or even if there was an employee whose attention she could get, but there was no one. Part of her told herself to just go and pretend like she didn’t see anything, it wasn’t her business anyways. But this wasn’t something she could overlook, it didn’t sit right to not do anything. Seeing this tiny person so upset because she was lost and didn’t know what to do reminded her of herself, and how she felt growing up.

“Hey sweetie…Did you get separated from your mom?” She asked timidly, slowly making her way closer to her, crouched down slightly so she was level with the kid to not make her feel too intimidated of this stranger coming up to her. The little girl simply nodded in response, wiping at her eyes and nose with the sleeve of the jacket she had on. “Okay. I’m gonna take you to some people that are gonna help find her, alright?” The Lisbon girl offered in the most reassuring tone she could muster up to reassure the child that things would be okay. Gracelessly she led the little girl through the store towards the front, to the customer service area where she knew the girl would be safe and there were people who were more trained on what to do in this kind of situation. Whose hearts probably wouldn’t be on the brink beating out of their chest from anxiousness of having someone else’s safety in their hands, especially when the girl reached up to clutch her hand only managing to hold onto a few of her fingers as they walked.

As awkward as she herself felt, the unknown leading the unknown, she did her best to keep a brave face all the same. The same forced smile she plastered on whenever she went back home, which she hadn’t been back to since her miscarriage. Nova had never been great with kids. They were a huge responsibility, they required lots of time, they were very dependent. They asked for much more than she currently had to give, more than she thought she would ever have to give. And quite honestly she hadn’t had the best examples of parenting. The fear of screwing up another life because of her own damage was real. It was why as shitty as she felt thinking it she was actually sorta relieved when she miscarried. It was a sad situation knowing there had been a life inside of her and losing it from one minute to another. But it didn’t feel sad to her. To be honest she didn’t really feel anything when it happened other than a weight off her shoulders. It felt like she had been granted a second chance at life. A chance to do everything over but better this time. But currently this tiny person was being so strong and entrusting her whole life with someone she didn’t know. The least she could do was act like she had her shit together for a few moments.

When they made it to the service desk the employees got straight to making an announcement calling for the girl’s mother. Nova turned to head back to finishing her errands but stopped in her tracks when she felt a tug on the back of her shirt. It was the little girl. She begged for her not to leave and Nova didn’t have the heart to tell her no. So she stayed and played the few schoolyard games she remembered, like patty cake and rock paper scissors, with her until her mother arrived.

The mother’s face was covered in tears as she scooped up her kid and held her close. She thanked Nova over and over again. “I don’t know how to repay you.” She said through her tears.

“That’s not necessary, ma’am. Seeing how happy you two are is enough repayment for me. Just remember to cherish her the same way you are now always. Even when she gets older and starts giving you a hard time.” She said with a soft laugh and warm smile. As happy as she was for the happily reunited family she felt a pang in her chest as she thought about how broken hers currently was, everyone going in completely different directions once they had left home. It pained her heart to see someone have the kind of relationship she had always wanted with her mother, to see someone be revered simply for existing and not looked down on as if she was a mistake.

Maybe this was a sign. She had overcome every other problem in her life. Maybe it was time she faced the last one holding her back. Letting go of the anger she felt towards her parents. Or at least confront the issue instead of running from it. She pulled out her cellphone and dialed the number of the one parent she wasn’t scared out of her mind to talk to.

“Hey, Dad…How are you?” She asked softly into her phone.

ANYTHING ELSE?

1985

#accepted #submission

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namjoonchronicles · 6 years ago

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beautiful, tragic | yoongi

✿ pairing: yoongi x you ✿ genre: domestic, yoongi as a husband, fluff, suggestive content, slight smut ✿ words: 4k ✿ summary: it’s hard sharing your musically talented husband with the world, and this is your story.

Stay home. He says. Watch the house. He says.

You’re stuck, scrolling idly on your phone with your drama on Netflix long abandoned on your 85” Sony LED Screen, equipped with the sound system that would surpass Dolby Surround System if it ever went on competition with each other.

Apart from the boring international celeb news, who broke up and who got divorced, the politic scene is too awry for you to read and you were not prepared for that headache so early in the day. One particular headline caught your attention, though.

Billboard Judge, Music Producer Min Yoongi Purchases USD$3M UN Village Villa In Cash.

Excuse me, what?

Screenshot. Clicking the home button on your phone, you tapped on Kakao Talk app next and ignored the messages from your ex-classmates group that has mounted to 120 unread texts and straight to ‘Fish’ ID.

You had sent him the screenshot of the news clipping, and proceed to multi-text him the following:

????????? Why wasn’t I informed?? Yoongi. What did I tell you about purchasing things without a proper discussion? Behind my back?? The nerve?? Bitch, square up when you get home. I also have watched five episodes without you. Fuck you.

Delivered. The anger had made you toss your phone to the side on the couch. This stupid huge ass house he is never in. You grind your jaws, glaring at your wedding picture on the top corner of your wall. And he dares to buy another one. You can hear him whispering a silent fuck from the distant. Fuck--is quite right, Yoongi. Your phone dings a new message in less than twenty minutes. He had machine-gunned you with replies that your phone had trouble keeping up with. You crossed your arm, scoffing at the sight of his name blinking on your screen. Oh, now you want to call me.

Volume : 70%, 75%, 85%. Netflix show has dimmed the sound of his calls and desperate texts.

He just never learns, does he? You’re starting to feel like he feeds on these little arguments like ginseng soup--has to have it when he’s unwell or deprived of something. Now that’s something you didn’t share with him. Yoongi’s work prevents him to be home as often as he’d like, requires him to befriend sketchy men and women with hidden agendas, they also constantly separate you and him--all this, you know and understood from the beginning. But like flying kites, when kites with strings tend to stray too far, and stretched too long, it snaps. Especially when you’re the one at the end of the string, holding him down to earth with a promise of a golden ring, always the one waiting for his return. When the blizzards come, the storm arrives, you gripped tighter, but there’s no guarantee that he felt the tug even if he should.

Here lies his expertise on words. Here lies the test of loyalty. Here lie your trust and his devotion. Love is a gamble, isn’t it?

It was supposed to be a surprise :( I wanted to take you there when I come home, but the news spoiled it :( :( Good news is, it’s not fully furnished and we can go furniture shopping… I know you love decorating the house :) I’ll forgive you if you watch the same 5 episodes with me later Babe? :( :( You’re still fetching me at the airport right? Right, sweetie?

He sends a screenshot of his expected arrival time, and you skimmed pass the message with a blank look. You tap the camera icon and took a selfie of your middle finger.

Fish was immediately typing…

OK, but it’s difficult with jeans on.

You gawked as you realized that he was talking about fingering you. You snarled against the screen and tapped video call button.

But it was declined. And he replied immediately.

Can’t. In a crash meeting with the staff.

You put your phone close to your lips and tapped voice recording icon. And Yoongi knows better than to play it in the midst of a meeting. You’re roasting him and for that, he’ll keep for his lullaby on the way to the airport later with his good headphones on. He gave a goofy smile on the screen when you replied with middle-finger emoticons. “God, I love her…” he stares fondly at your ID.

Flight JN1741 from Amsterdam arrives at Incheon International Airport on 2:00 PM. Passengers begin to rise from their seat before the ‘fasten-your-seatbelt’ sign was turned off. Already, Yoongi’s massive entourage are receiving calls within the moving but landed airplane. His staff is dependable but workaholics, like he is. He was just worried that his wife won’t show up because she’s mad. But he’s also certain that she will be there at the arrival. He likes that you make him nervous this way. He likes that he could mean everything to the world, and has his words as law to others, but won’t necessarily have the same effect on you. He loves the fact that you keep him on his toes and make him chase. He also loves the fact that he knows you’ll be waiting at home where he left you as he works.

Loving and having are different things.

Yoongi of all people knows the constraints of having a serious relationship in his hectic life will be hard to manage. When he couldn’t meet his lady love, he relies heavily on her profound loyalty and his blinded trust. God knows that both of you tried. Both of you really tried to keep the passion alive, never to fizzle out. But distance could make or break a relationship--and Yoongi really wanted this. This battleground he chose to live in. He was lucky to have the best of both worlds. Most couldn’t experience that. To him, the game is only over when the other stops playing.

A conversation is a conversation, even if its a fight.

He refastens his black facemask, his black hoodie and stood up as the manager asks him whether he needs a ride home or not. The 40-year-old man walks away once Yoongi said that his wife is fetching him.

“Also, hyung...can you bring the iKey to the Apple Store I bought it in? It had malfunctioned again. I left the warranty card inside the pack,” Yoongi politely asked. “Every single time we leave Amsterdam… Yoongi what did you do with it?” The manager pulls the bag out the compartment above the head. “Work I guess…” Yoongi shrugged and fiddled with the straps of his black backpack.

Most of the passengers had left the airplane. But before Yoongi leaves with his manager, something metallic clinked on his sneakers. His manager crouched down before he did and picked the object up.

“Can’t forget the ring when you’re meeting the wife...take it from me,” his manager returns Yoongi’s ring to him. “It keeps slipping out my finger, I think I’m losing too much weight,” Yoongi chuckled short and put them back on with a small wiggle. “VIP arrivals that way…” His manager pointed the way out, “Tell her we missed her around.”

Yoongi nodded, feeling rather bashful and shy. That’s right. You used to work in his entourage as medical staff. Until he had you hitched and away from the stressful job that costs you your mental health. Now, you review staffs’ health records from home and frequently, his. You fell sick prior to the world tour he led, so that’s why he had you staying home. Not that you tailed him often when he works. He just prefers you doing your own thing. His work requires a lot of movement while you had to be static in one place to finish your writing or reading. You were that hot white coat bearer with a sexy full-rimmed glasses and spoke medicine parseltongue. Every time you share a piece of medical knowledge with him or explain a medical condition, Yoongi drools like a lovesick puppy dog inwardly. He can’t wait to have you explain liver cirrhosis everytime he brings up how much he drank when he was away. That was his version of dirty talk.

But where’s my lady love? Yoongi hums. Scanning the room for any glimpse of you. Could you be standing nearby a coffee vending machine, or would you be in convenient stores searching for a mint? Or are you strolling idly in the expanse of the airport in slow, relaxed strides?

No, you’re walking straight towards him with your arms crossed from the entrance, your hair flew back at every trudge you make to close the distance between him and you. He fumbles with the strap of his bag, and a bit slouched to the side. Having to push his head back to see your face from the beak of his black cap and hoodie, while you draw in, closer and closer.

Your hand came in contact with his at the handle of his roller bag first, before you leaned up to his ear and he lowered himself down, “You and I have a lot of things to talk about.” You snatched the roller bag from his grip roughly and Yoongi watched your back getting smaller and smaller as you stormed away. He pouts at the sight and gripping his bag strap tighter, firmer. You passed an acid glance once and expect him to follow closely with a glare. Yoongi’s pouty lips slowly form a smirk and a naughty cock of his eyebrow. He really enjoys it when you’re angry.

The trunk opens with a hydraulic rise, and he helped you carry his own bag inside. It slammed shut and you dashed to the driver seat, knowing that he is often exhausted after a long flight. Engine purrs on, and your focus was interrupted by the sound of his seatbelt clicking. He’s here. He’s really home.

“Do you want to eat anything? Some fast food or anything like that?” You asked. “Yeah, but she’s driving…” He glanced outside the car window like he had said nothing explicit.

“Ha, very funny…” the car reversed and exited the parking lot with no hiccups, but the situation isn’t going to be smooth on the inside, “Don’t think that snarky remarks will get you anywhere near this coochie.”

Yoongi let out a tiny scoff to the window, shifting in his seat as the view of the city he calls home, come to sight. Miraculously, he has made it home within a month. Although the reunion was bittersweet and that he landed on soil knowing that you’re mad at him, he is well-informed by your passive behavior when you missed him the most. That much is true. And it needs no extra explanation.

How was Amsterdam?

“Cold. Great sound system… decent steak,” he answered. You smiled to yourself, noticing how much you missed his aloof response. Few words, big heart. That’s Min Yoongi for you.

“I think I made a great steak a few days ago…” you took the chance to brag on yourself and Yoongi switches to the side where you sat driving. Hands between his knees, eyes doe and soft.

“Tell me more about what you did…” he said, in a gentle voice.

“Nothing much. I proofread a medical article, cooked for myself, write a bit, stare at the 2 selfies you took last two years. Sniff your hoodie, organize your shoe collection, vacuum GeniusLab2, visit Holly at your parents. I made him this cute ass leash that I knitted on my own. He had stomach flu, so I took him to the vets. He’s okay now, though.”

“I wanted to video call more, but I didn’t have the time…” Yoongi complaints.

“You don’t remember?” You crumpled your face at the road before glancing briefly at him. You could see Yoongi’s confused expression. Head tilted to the side, his mouth opens and closes several times without a word uttered out. He really didn’t remember.

“Baby bear, you called me twice in a drowsy state…” you offered a line of explanation but the contortion on his face suggests that he requires more, “You drunk video call me to tell me you had a sandwich and fell asleep before you could tell me what was inside… Three days after that, you called me again but you were already snoring when I answered.”

“I don’t recall…” he hums.

“Anyways, whatever… that’s cute though. Also, this 3 million villa you bought, what’s the story?” you snapped, at the same time, you turn at the corner of the city smoothly.

“It’s not a penthouse like you said I shouldn’t get, so technically, I didn’t go against your words,” he sang. “How on earth did you carry 3 million in cash?” You scowled. “With many briefcases,” he retorted with a thin smile.

You pressed your lips together to stop yourself from laughing because you wanted to be focused on being serious and mature. But the quick reply had you snickering. Such a matter-of-fact answer. His face lights up at your response.

“You said that we’re going to furniture shopping. Do you even have time to do that?” you stopped at the security cottage and flashed your residence card on the pad the divider retracts open.

“I knew you were going to make a dispute out of it. So I made sure Namjoon allows it,” Yoongi laced his fingers together, and made a dark chuckling sound.

“What did you do to him this time…” you felt uneasy already. The last time he wanted a day off, Yoongi hid Namjoon’s passport so the trip could be delayed for a day or two. He purchased a movie on Netflix and wanted to watch it with you.

He simply gave you that creepy smile and you already know.

“You put laxatives in his drinks, my god.” “It is my most brilliant plan of all.” “Yoongi!” “What...he said he was constipating. I am doing him a favor.”

Why wouldn’t he constipate from the amount of caffeine he had been consuming. You thought.

Everyone’s definition of success is different. Everyone’s definition of married life is also different. The married life you shared with Yoongi was entirely on a different level. There are no guidelines for marrying a music producer this world famous. So you focused on being a wife. If everything else in his life isn’t normal, then being married is.

The moment he steps inside the home he shared with you, you noticed he stifled a yawn. His eyes falling droopy at the sight of his long sought after nest.

“I’m going to get a late lunch going, and you can go lay down on the bed in your indoor clothes…” “No, I want to help in the kitchen…” “Look at your eyes, they’re barely open… go rest.”

But he wanted to unpack because he got you something.

“It’s a cross-stitch table runner…” he lays his head on his palm, curled on his side, watching your big grin as you unravel the precious gift. He remembered that you wanted to buy this the last time you were there. He got the correct design and correct color too.

“You got them custom-made,” you gasped excitedly, and then shrink your voice at him, “Thank you...it’s so pretty.” Pulling the runner into a hug while Yoongi chuckles sleepily.

Yoongi was less interested in his stories and more engaged in yours. All his relatives that he can call strangers because they rarely meet, his family members that have seen you more than they’ve seen him. He silently is grateful for you being here, being the glue between his family and close friends, an invincible knot that keeps him grounded and gave him the sense of belonging.

He drifts mid-through your stories and latest gossip. As you sat on the floor next to the bed, unpacking his luggage one-by-one, you no longer hear his response. You glanced to the side and saw him sleeping soundly. You could only imagine how many hours he could when he’s away in a foreign country. Yoongi somehow can appear to be sleeping but is in fact, listening to all the conversations surrounding him. You and he share that talent. But this time, he slept for real--the energy replenishing, body rejuvenating sleep. There’s soft snorings and little shudders from time to time. Your gaze fell from his fringes to his brows, down the slope of his nose and his doll-like lips.

Last clothing to be unpack looked familiar. It was yours. That’s endearing. He always packs one clothing that belonged to you. You know, for when he ‘misses his wife so much he could die’ moments. You don’t know when he snuck them in, but it’s probably when you’re busy at the living room, or the bathroom, making sure he didn’t forget anything. The luggage is taken away from the bedroom and into his home studio, where it stays until its service is required again--which you suspect, won’t be long.

You slid the blanket above his shoulder, and tuck him in like you would a child. He looks so tired and it breaks your heart that he has to leave again. It’s like a cycle. At least you can see him eat today, with your own eyes, so let’s get started with the lunch.

Nothing extravagant. Just broiled spinach, fermented white baby radish from last week, and warm chicken soup with ginseng to help him re-energized. But he isn’t awake yet. That’s alright, you can reheat everything when he’s up. He still needs his much-acquired sleep. With that thought, you disappear into the bathroom and undressed. Sweating from cooking, body sticky with remnants of watery expels urged you to shower before the sun is completely down. You don’t usually shower this early, but with Yoongi around, you felt self-conscious. He doesn’t know this, but you will always want to smell nice for him. Isn’t that the very core of being a wife? Being extra hygienic for the hubby? To keep him interested? Especially Yoongi, because he is constantly away and accompanied by many attractive females?

You discarded the dampened shirt outside the door of the bathroom and swung it shut as gently as you can. Off goes the bra, then the panties. The shower head expels drizzling liquid, the steam floats up to the ceiling and the glass door get fogged up from the heat. Water pools at your feet as you readied your face underneath the shower to come into contact with the sprinkles. The pleasure of a simple shower after a good sweat is ultimately unmatched.

So endorsed in your time alone, Yoongi pushes the door wider. He had come awake when he heard you turned the knob shut. He discarded his pants on the way, and pulled his black shirt over his head, charging forward like a soldier on his way to a battleground he intends to win. Then he discarded his last piece of clothing, his boxers. Afterward, he trudges into the shower cubicle where you were standing, facing away from him. “You thought I was too tired for a shower session with you?” His voice deeps lower than usual, as he snakes one arm around your naked waist, skin to skin, Yoongi sunk his teeth on your shoulder and you turned around wearing a big smile to greet him. “No I thought you wouldn’t be able to handle any sessions with me…” you smartly replied. Yoongi smiled into the kiss that began innocently enough and gradually increase in intensity and power as the seconds passed. Your arms slick against his shoulder as he held on palm flat on the walls of the shower, he stands directly underneath the shower head now--refusing to let go of your lips even when you tap out for a breath. A seasoned rapper’s lung capacity isn’t a shy away from a Navy diver. Provided with the long abstinence and accumulating want, Yoongi isn’t just going to stop here in the shower, best believe, he is going to continue making love to you in all the rooms available in this house until he’s finally sated.

His handprints on the fogged glass door is significantly larger than yours. The slippery sound of sliding skin filled your ears, and your strangled moans could only suggest an impending euphoric sensation you had longed for, since the last time he’s here. And Yoongi is a determined soul. The thrusts are languid and deep. From the way he buried his face in the crook of your neck, eliciting heavy desperate pants implies that he had been imagining this on his lonely nights for too long. His touches were too precise and calculated, coming from a veteran lover who knows his wife’s body like the back of his hand. Yoongi’s glazed orbs that greeted you in the midst of the steamy love-making, felt foreign yet familiar. But his lips that conquered yours right after the heaty glance was definitely, without a doubt, Yoongi’s. The time apart had made him a stranger to your body, and the passion that almost fizzled out from the distance had reignited to another degree.

“Fuck I miss you,” he breathlessly says against your ear. You didn’t stutter or faltered back into the lust like you used to when you first dated him. Instead, you smiled into his confessions and bit your grin--no longer shy to show how much you love having these moments with him. More, you encouraged him with your touches and sweet mewls.

I like the whispers you added at the end. She says.

No matter what the public critic might say, Yoongi’s only verdict comes from his wife. His true achievements and outcomes of his work rely heavily on what you may say. But your words can be sarcastic and Yoongi doesn’t like having to guess what you truly meant.

“You always say something like that…” “I don’t know what you want me to say,” you shrugged as you scooped out a bowl of rice for him, “I like the whisper part and that’s the truth.” “How many times did you listen to it… be honest,” Yoongi took his bowl from you.

You tipped your eyes up to the ceiling and clicked your tongue. Somehow Yoongi caught the expression.

“Are you serious…” he began, eyes following you as you pulled the chair next to him out, “Okay, fine. Do you listen more of Jimin’s Promise or my collab song?”

You added a long hum, not intending to give him the answer he wants to hear. “Technically, Jimin’s Promise came out first--”

“--don’t talk to me,” he darted.

Instinctively, you covered his knee with one palm, to soothe him. But of course, Yoongi wouldn’t let you console him that quickly.

“I spent nights writing that song while touring… Am I asking too much of you, to just listen to me more than you do Jimin’s, but no. Ultimately, I’m always the second choice for the industry AND my wife. Fine, I don’t care...I don’t want to care anymore. I worked so hard to earn money for you to spend, and all I’m requesting is that you be my harsh critic but you’re apparently too busy to listen to my songs. Hmm, I see how it is.”

“To even things out, you never told me you’re releasing a song…” you shrugged.

Yoongi set his chopstick down, clinking while you continued eating.

“To top it all, you watched dramas without me,” he tipped a glass of water into his mouth like he would a cup of soju, “Our drama.”

You knew he is just picking fights with you because to him, a fight is also a conversation.

“Gosh Alexa, this is so sad, play Seesaw,” you exclaimed with a forlorn sigh, “What do you propose I do? Wait for you until you come back? The second season would have begun by the time you returned, Yoongi… You have cities to tour, fans to meet and stages to check, and what about me? I have this house, Netflix and the chili plant outside. You’re being a little mean to me right now… my priorities aren’t always you, you know.”

Yoongi was deafened by the last sentence you said, that he couldn’t hear the rest of the off-topic conversations you promptly added after it. You didn’t seem to notice that you’ve hurt him. That’s the inspiration behind his rap verse ‘my razor tongue wife with a stone in her hand’. He likes that you’re honest and has trained you to be tougher, but the blade he sharpens strikes him once in a while when needed. He doesn’t apologize, he makes amends with his actions. He tries to be ultimately present when he’s here. When he’s home.

Like now, he sat on the floor, with a writing pad while you washed dishes.

“Turmeric powder. Can you check if it’s on the grocery list?” You raised your voice a little so he could hear from the living room. He puffed his cheeks with his cap turned backward, scanning down the awfully long list of things you needed to get for the family dinner this weekend.

“Nope,” he writes them scraggly underneath your neat writing. Then he heard you listed a number of things and gifts you planned to get before the weekend comes. Presents for your parents, and his; his nephews, his older brother’s birthday that he himself didn’t remember, a flower bouquet for his aunt who just opened a restaurant. He made a mental note to transfer a large amount of money into your account later.

“Is the villa far from here?” you asked him, wiping your kitchen stove down, spotless. “Not very… you’ll see when you drive there later,” Yoongi murmured to his chest, filling colors on the heart he drew on the grocery list, next to “Yoongi’s wife grocery list”.

“Also, I wanted to get grilled beef slices in that restaurant…” Yoongi promised to take you to the restaurant you had been wanting to go to, in two days time. Until a message from his manager came.

“...it would taste so damn good…” your mouth waters at the thought of it but when you looked across the counter at Yoongi perplexed gaze sitting on the floor there in the living room, you somehow caught what he didn’t, or rather--couldn’t say. That look could only mean one thing.

That the luggage you pushed into his studio is going to get another traveling sticker. That the restaurant trip is not going to happen. That you will be strolling aimlessly in this huge house. That you will be visiting the villa he bought alone. That your wedding picture and ring will be the only proof that you’re somehow married.

To the worldly loved, worldly known...the beautiful tragic, Min Yoongi.

Because he couldn’t keep his promise, you had him doing something similar to it. Peeking at his bobbing head, through your iPad playing Candy Crush, you smiled to yourself.

“Make sure you get all my toenails trimmed and neatened,” Yoongi lifts his head up short, sitting on the floor, with your heel digging onto his thigh as he nodded. “What color do you want for the polish?” He asked, getting cross-eyed as he hones the sharp edges of your nail, shorter.

“Your hair color right now…” “Babe, this is out of context…but” he dragged, “remember the voice note you sent me during the crash meeting with the staff?”

“The one I cursed at you? Yeah...why?” “It turns me on,” He hides his smile by lowering his face from you. What a strange yet tantalizing thought.

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prettycottonmouthlamia · 5 years ago

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So since people are making Foreigner fanservants...

Follower of Dagon

Name: Follower of Dagan Alias: "Ariel" Class: Foreigner Base HP: 1743 Base ATK: 1936 Max HP: 11,779 Max ATK: 13,050

NP Gain: Attack: 0.77% Defense: 5.00% Star Weight: 153 Star Rate: 15.00% Death Rate: 7.00% Attribute: Sky Traits: Female, Servant, Humanoid, Beast, Sky or Earth, Threat to Humanity

Quick: 3 hits Arts: 3 hits Buster: 3 hits Extra: 3 hits Noble Phantasm: 3 hits

Mana Burst (Water) A+ Increase Buster performance for 1 turn (20-40%) Increase Arts performance for 1 turn (20-40%) Restore HP (1000 - 2500) 7 turn CD

Demonic Body (Sea) A Apply Buff Block (1 turn) to an enemy when taking damage (1 time, 3 turns) Restore HP (2000 - 3000) Gain Critical Stars (10) 7 turn CD

Progressive Transformation EX Next turn, Increase ATK for 1 turn (20-30%) Increase DEF for 1 turn (30-40%) Apply Invul Pierce for 1 turn 7 turn CD

Passive Skills Existence Outside the Domain E Gain 2 Critical Stars per turn Increase Debuff Resist by 2%

Beast Form EX Increase Buster Card effectiveness by 12% Increase Critical Star Drop Rate by 12%

Presence Concealment (Water) C Increase Critical Star Drop Rate by 6% Increase Critical Star Absorption of Arts cards by 100%

Divinity E- Apply Damage Plus 95

NP Syh'lng'thyth Dagon l'y-a "Cry Out, Blasphemers of Dagon" Arts Apply Special Attack [Holy] (1 turn) <Overcharge> (50-100%) Deal significant damage to all enemies <LEVEL> (450-750%) Inflict NP Seal (1 turn) Inflict NP Damage down (30%) and Skill Seal (1 turn) if [Holy]

BBAAQ

Character Info: A nameless Dagon follower who lives in a secret, underground theocracy. Calls herself "Ariel" ironically.

Parameters Strength: C+ Endurance: D Agility: B (A++) Magic: B Luck: E-EX NP: E-C

Background 1 Height & Weight: 170 cm, 82 kg Alignment: Lawful Evil Series: Original Gender: Female Origin: The Shadow over Innsmouth Region: South Atlantic Comment: It is strictly unknown where her home lies, she was merely met in the South Atlantic.

Background 2 Normally enigmatic and paganistic, the Dagonites have lived mostly quietly under the depths of the oceans for millennia, choosing to minimize contact with human civilization. Their purpose in allying with humanity now is unclear, although they seem to hint at potential greater calamity if events are continued to unfold. The named characters in The Shadow over Innsmouth were purely fictitious, however, the Dagonites were not. Hence, a nameless follower and warrior were summoned, instead of Barnabas Marsh or other characters. Much about Dagonite society is secret and hidden, and the nameless follower has repeatedly chosen to stay silent on these matters.

Background 3 Mana Burst (Water) A+ The ability to not only release mana in the form of powerful jets of water but also the ability to effortlessly release mana while underwater. An ability that is versatile in both land and water combat, although it is far more effective in water combat. The process of creating and expelling water also flushes out toxins and poisons, restoring health.

Progressive Transformation EX The ability of a normal hybrid child to slowly change from a typical human form into that of a Dagonite. While not strictly shown in a fully transformed Dagonite, its effects can still be observed as a passive evolutionary ability that allows for quick bursts in evolutionary adaptations to accomplish goals. Similar in nature to Self-Evolution, however, effects are long-lasting and can be extended over time to fulfill more distant goals.

Background 4 Syh'lng'thyth Dagon l'y-a "Cry Out, Blasphemers of Dagon" Rank: E-C Type: Anti-Army, Anti-Belief Range: 1~25 Maximum Targets: Unknown

The followers of Dagon rise up and attack the enemies using their sheer power to overwhelm them. The intent is not only to inflict carnage and death but fear and disbelief in other belief systems, looking to convert more to Dagon worship. Its rank is highly dependent on how many Dagonites are called to the attack and the rank of the one who called them. It is believed (although this has not been corroborated) that if this Noble Phantasm was used by a high-ranking member of Dagon himself, massive parts of the world could be affected and converted quickly.

In this work, it does more damage against those with devout religious beliefs.

Background 5 "Ariel"'s opinion of the Master is one of hushed bemusement. She cannot deny what her Master has done in order to save humanity, however, she mocks him for his effort, feeling it will inevitably go to waste. Despite this, there are no issues with loyalty in terms of following orders, but her attitude can almost be considered as a neglectful mother towards a child...

She holds Katsushika Hokusai in high regard and avoids Abigail for whatever reason.

[Holy] Servant: A Servant with a strict faith and belief system. It does not necessarily imply Divinity. Gilles de Rais (Saber), Atalante, Georgios, Boudica, Martha (Rider), Gilles de Rais (Caster), Cu Chulainn (Caster), Hassan of the Cursed Arm, Jeanne d'Arc (Ruler), Orion, David, Arjuna, Karna, Brynhild, Amakusa Shirou, Rama, Geronimo, Jeanne d'Arc (Alter)(Avenger), Angra Mainyu, Hassan of the Hundred Persona, Xuanzang Sanzang, Ozymandias, Nitocris (Caster), Hassan of the Serenity, Martha (Ruler), Vlad III (EXTRA), Ishtar (Archer), Quetzalcoatl, Jaguar Warrior, Tiamat, Goetia, Solomon, "First Hassan", Nitocris (Assassin), Ishtar (Rider), Parvati, Mochizuki Chiyome, Houzouin Inshun, Ereshkigal, Walkure, Scathach = Skadi, Jeanne d'Arc (Archer), Jeanne d'Arc (Alter)(Berserker), Sitonai, Shi Huang Di, Quetzalcoatl (Samba/Santa), Benienma, Kama, Astraea, Great Statue God, Arjuna (Alter), Ashvatthaman, Asklepios, Space Ishtar

#fate grand order #fanservant

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whispered-into-the-void · 5 years ago

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Okay, so apparently Brie Larson said at some point in the past that Captain Marvel could lift Thor's hammer and some people got pissy, but like, according to the MCU version I don't see any reason she shouldn't? like, going off of what we've seen of MCU Mjolnir Captain Marvel should absolutely be able to wield it, and here's why

Firstly, the inscription. Obviously, put on just to ensure that, when Thor was "worthy" again, he'd be able to lift it, and not until then. This also put it in a position that Thor was the only person on Midgard who should be able to lift it, preventing any mortal from using that power. Now obviously, we know from Captain America that this isn't necessarily true, but I hold that more to Odin's arrogance than Steve truly being the only Midgardian worthy, but we'll get back to that in a second, because first we have to analyse what worthy means here.

Based on Thor's progression, we can see exactly the lesson Odin was trying to teach him, because it's one that not only Thor learns over the movie, but Odin learnt himself in the past; that someone worthy to be King of Asgard, or wield Thor's power, has to not be the aggressor. again, we see this both in the movie and in Odin's history; Thor is cast out due to his attack on Jotunheim, and Odin enslaved his own daughter in an attempt to put his history as a warmonger behind him. However, both based on the comics and the MCU, we know that it's not simply not acting as an aggressor; it seems to me that worthiness in this case is not only knowing the value of a life, but knowing when taking one is absolutely necessary. Thor shows no qualms with killing when he has to, and granted that none of the other Avengers particularly seem to either, but with Thor and Captain America you see the truth of the matter; while someone like Tony or Nat is willing to kill to accomplish their objective, come Endgame they see it as a last resort that they are absolutely willing to take.

I find it difficult to believe anyone would argue that the MCU Captain Marvel wouldn't fit this. with the Kree brainwashing, she was turned into a soldier, like Steve or Bucky; As a result, it's pretty apparent that she wouldn't be above killing if it absolutely had to be done. At the end of her own movie, we also have seen both what she fights for and her approach to killing; firstly, she fights not out of loyalty or revenge, but out of a sense of what's right, hence her decision to change sides and help the Skrull escape the Kree. Secondly, while it would be completely understandably for a brainwashed soldier to kill the person responsible, she instead chooses to spare Yon Rogg's life. Again, we see a character willing to take life, but only when forced to in order to save innocents.

It's this distinction that, I feel, puts Thor, Captain Marvel and Endgame!Captain America in the right moral area to wield Mjolnir, because I think ultimately it's the lesson we can see from Odin's enchantment on the hammer. If Odin just wanted to teach Thor a lesson on his past behaviour, he could have made the enchantment temporary, until Thor lifted it again, or removed it once he'd proved himself worthy. Instead, the enchantment on the future king of Asgard's weapon was permanent, to ensure that no matter what, the kingdom would no longer be based in violence. The enchantment would ensure that, if ever Thor lead a knowingly unjust war, or attempted to take a life when it wasn't justified, the hammer would remind him of the greatest lesson his father ever tried to teach him.

There are a few issues with this idea but most of them are explainable or lend credit to the idea that the enchantment is pretty flexible as these movies go on. The first point I want to talk about is in the Garden, when Thor kills Thanos. At this point, he isn't putting up a fight; the job is done, so what does he care? and yet, Thor kills him where he stands. hardly worthy based on the definition above, right? how come he's still worthy, as we see later?

This I chalk up to a case of timing. Obviously, he wasn't using Mjolnir at the time, so we wouldn't find out for a while whether this knocked him out of the boundaries for worthiness or not. But more importantly, it's the distinction; yes, killing an unarmed foe in vengeance when the threat has passed and lives have already been lost might not be worthy, but by the time Thor gets Mjolnir back, the circumstances have changed. Lives once lost can be saved, so if he were to kill Thanos at this point, I feel as though he'd be worthy.

The final point I can think of to justify this is, again, to point out the inconsistencies regarding MCU Mjolnir. The most obvious example that springs to mind is how, in AoU when Quicksilver grabs onto Mjolnir, it starts acting more like an actual projectile than we normally see from the weapon, whereas in Endgame Spider-Man can swing from it and it continues flying in the vaguely fantastical way were used to. Again, this shows either an inconsistency in Mjolnir in the MCU, or simply that the requirement of "worthy" is actually less strict than we've outlined here. Yes, Spider-Man is a great hero, but we already know that earth-616 spidey can't lift Mjolnir because of his unwillingness to take a life. I can see this not being an issue for MCU Parker, simply because we see him in that same scene activating "Instant Kill Mode," but even then, Captain Marvel definitely lies closer to Thor on the worthiness scale than Parker.

tl;dr: Captain Marvel absolutely can wield Mjolnir and if you doubt it you're just Afraid

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boglog · 6 years ago

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Utopia (2013) notes

Despite the infantilised female assassin w a father complex trope being the Bane of my Existence (re: Hanna 2011) and the fact that she Literally has Ramona Flowers hair, Jessica is God and we stan

I don't understand this bizarre little peck she gives Becky's head in the last ep and I don't need to. Queen of emotionally stunted social skills.

We also stan reverse-eugenicist Ygritte and her manic pixie faux suicide at a black tie gala

We do not however stan Wilson whose motivations and subsequent double agency didn't make sense to me as much as Milna and Philip's philosophy

Which is sort of a tragedy considering he's one of two major characters of colour but considering we still have Ian we don't necessarily fall into the "The Brown Guy Was Evil All Along" horror trope

Necessarily

And upon finding out that not only is Philip Roma but also that Milna has "been in a genocide" meaning that she is probably for sure Jewish, I'm sure the show is framing Utopia as revenge for WWII, esp given that the adjustments to Janus is literally going to wipe out everyone who isn't Romani.

So wi this context, Wilson's sudden support of Janus is also revenge on white supremacy, colonialism, and genocide, and later his entire character is deliberately turned into a caricature with the fedora and the eye patch and the tattoo

Not to mention Wilson's name is itself a joke and perhaps a reference to Cast Away's greatest inanimate imaginary friend: the Wilson volleyball

Grace Lee of What's So Great About That made a Utopia analysis where she states that the show's colourful composition and stock characters are meant as an uncanny valley contrast to its realism and violence

And wrt to how it portrays violence I think it's well-done in that rather than feeling gratuitous its lack of theatre makes everything uncomfortably real and sometimes the quirky neons add to this tension

But with Wilson's character his goofy attributes feel like forced inconsistencies, as an antagonist he cannot carry the show's final stretch w as much authority and intimidation as Milna nor does he have the depth equivalent to her inner conflict about being in love w Phillip

There's nothing poignant or scary or ironic about him he's just so flat my belief has gone past unsuspension and lies dead on the ground

I know him cutting mr rabbit into his own chest was supposed to be visually symbolic but I actually thinks it takes away from his authority, his vanity making him more vulnerable than Milna whose identity as mr rabbit was ultimately hidden for three decades bc guess who didn't tattoo "rabbit" onto her chest????

I'm going to admit I didn't pay very good attention to some of finer plot details bc here's the next point, the overall thesis of my Wilson meta:

The show is overly complicated while being a very bad comedy: tone what is it

I think when it's playing it straight as a conspiracy thriller it's great (see also the infodump flashback episode 0201)

But whenever it's trying to play off its quirky ensemble cast of Girl Next Door, Nerd, Freaky Prepper and Violent Ten Year Old (occasionally ft The Whitest Family on Earth) there's something so flat and genuinely boring about all of them

And the characters forcing a sarcastic familiarity between each other with monickers like "shithead", "twat" etc? When they've known each other for 5 minutes? That's a CinemaSin ™ :/

Dialogue wise we could've toned down some name dropping and on-the-nose-ing

It's a v ambitious outlandish magical realism comedy v dark film noir balancing act that doesn't always land esp wrt its final antagonist which imo is the show's biggest flaw

The soundtrack as well is great but a little overused

Another problem I have is Becky's accidental addiction to opium, I'm sure I missed something obvious like maybe her "dealer" was connected to the network ? but when I saw it the twist felt tangential to the show at best. We know Becky is naive but to the point of being manipulated into a drug addiction? Wasn't she supposed to be intelligent? It would be smart if it weaved itself into the plot a bit better

Overall I think it's thematically tied to how we're easily manipulated esp via Big Pharma so I guess...? I guess that works? Kinda¿

The oddball family tableau near the end with Jessica, Milna, Phillip and Arby is thrilling and complicated by the internal conflict of wanting to kill each other out of their contrasting ethical beliefs and wanting to love each other out of a vague sense of loyalty / longing bc they're all lonely af

V surprised that I did not feel cheated at the reveals that Phillip was in fact alive and in a psychiatric ward (cliché) it was perhaps awkward that he was found in someone's basement, and meanwhile Arby's secret family felt totally normal AND Milna's hesitation to kill Jessica out of her love for Phillip ALSO WORKS

The intensity of the relationships btwn the family who've barely spent a second around each other for years is thrilling and to be honest way more interesting than anything else the show offers so it's a shame they didn't try to focus on that more but that's just me being predictably drawn in by dysfunctional families

So on the bright side the show is visually stunning, uses inherently interesting premises and parses out the information in a clever pace, Milna's entire arc must be my favourite bc everything about it was incredible, the chemistry between Milna and Philip was perfect (although an answer to why they never officially got together and ended up w different people other than plot convenience is still up in the air)

Ian faking a Somali accent when he's caught committing data theft is iconic and equivalent to when Chelsea Manning labelled the CD filled w war crime scandals as "Lady Gaga"

Jessica: [hardened by a lifetime of torture, slides her chained hands across the table and asks for the Bible because she's bored] / me: 😳

That one hacker guy who swears at his mother is the face of the far right movement

The blonde guy who was about to leave his family to die as he went into hiding in the Bahamas looks like Stan from The Americans so he kinda deserves that

And finally I would like to remind everyone that the notion of blaming global warming, plummeting economy and ressource scarcity on overpopulation is a bourgeoisie lie

It's their fault

We literally have enough food and water and shelter for everyone if only the 1% would put down their million dollar martinis

Once I eventually rewatch it and manage not to be overwhelmed by worldbuidiling I might have a better opinion

Thank you for listening to my TEDtalk

#eugenicism m #holocaust implied #utopia 2013 #utopia (2013)#utopia #im sorry this show is crazy ok #u #c #onion post

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maneaterwithtail · 6 years ago

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Episode Appreciation- Duck of Always

Really when you get right down to it there's a lot of positives about this episode and it also shows the series stepping up its game and promising what I think is its best qualities.

I've said before that I think fangbone being an episodic series that focuses on just being really good at action adventure means that it doesn't hit the highs of some of the animation nerd Darlings such as Adventure Time, Steven Universe, or Gravity Falls or what have you. But it also avoids a lot of their pitfalls in particular where there's this sense of nothing happening with character or normie Focus episodes. Basically this happens because you need to be able to put out General episodes were the characters just play off of each other and setting. But if you have radical changes then we want to see those changes even if that runs the risk of undermining the initial setup of the series

well the collective internet criticisms circle were scarred forever due to some long-term hiatuses such as I think it's called the three years summer I Harry Potter fandom and then there was the ridiculous filler Arc that happened in Naruto.[can skip next paragraph]

*When you get to Naruto it's not so much that the series is bad so much as it was such a radical departure for anime consumption as a whole. This was the rise of digital fansubs so we were getting the equivalent of one episode a week when before we were getting maybe two or three episodes every two months and having to pay nearly $50 for them. Add and what we thought we wanted for actual translation and it was an enormous departure. Especially because instead of getting a series completed we were following it along with no real understanding of what went on behind it. It really did change the overall perspective and how we experienced it. So when we hit the enormous filler Arc after sasuke defects... especially considering all that happened before there's a real sense of failure and disappointment for the enjoyment that the audience could get. We work constantly getting more on a developing and expanding world we were sort of stuck on a treadmill period and not a very fun one either*

Really when you get right down to it a lot of it is the sudden change from expectation. And just remember these were high-end professional Productions that had lots of money behind them with teams of people. And they built up a ridiculous amount of bad will just for not even being absent in Naruto's case but the sudden quality shift or overall flow of progression changing.

this is very important for the up-and-coming or amateur Tumblr artist. I completely understand that real life gets in the way but just a reminder in real life if your product isn't regularly available you will lose customer loyalty and just simple attention.

people will forget about you. Sometimes this is necessary many musical artists choose to take a step back behind the scenes or not pop out big billboard topping sort of work so that they can just sort of focus on the craft or just do something else.

And then they pop up again

All this rambling is leading to a point.

Here's the thing when lapis lazuli gets out of the mirror in Steven universe that hints at a large and enormous change that unfortunately the show often feels the need to walk back or not actually follow through on. Which is so frustrating. we just learned that there are now aliens and life forms in space and that there are captured gems that can eat up entire oceans and or heroes are behind and involved in it?. And now we want to go back to who's going to get the next slushy?

After those highs going back to regular can feel really out of place. To be fair this is kind of the point of the series how the day-to-day General Life and how the magical meets the mundane and the ideal perfect has to deal with regular reality and how they relate to each other has been something that Rebecca sugar has pointed out from the beginning. Hence why super goddess rose quartz Falls for what could look no more Mortal and disappointing Then Greg universe.

However that still doesn't mean that it's not a really difficult thing to deal with when effectively the results and consequences of these big events are constantly kicked down the line or ignored so that that way we can keep focusing on what feels like a completely divorced normal. I mean after jailbreak there is no reason why everything should be the same again next episode

I mean these people just experienced the equivalent of Hurricane Katrina tearing down their town in the form of an alien invasion. But don't worry the only person who cares is obviously a self-obsessed nerd so the problem is him

Getting this to actually Fangbone the series The Duck of always represents one of those changes, first two part episode, but it's not that radical one even if there's a lot of new and big stuff thrown in. First we establish the city of minkwater then we established the secret society of the Shadowsteppers then we have to establish Sid herself as well as her Mission and relationship to one-eye.

In fact what's interesting is that arguably the biggest changes are the stuff that's on the margins. When you get right down to it the duck of always it's just another new monster of the week. one that's giving a lot more character and they definitely take advantage of both the humor and strategic potential of an immortal waterfowl. But for the most part we spend a lot of it just examining the characters and what they want to do. How they do it. Why and their attitudes.

It's not an entirely radical change of the setting so much as it is a change in our perspective of the setting and characters that when we inevitably step down after the events it won't feel as if we're ignoring anything that's happened. Sure the duck of always isn't going to be a regular, but it's been established why. he's going to travel the world in order to enjoy new life with A New Perspective.

Moreover the ending and implications of this isn't much different than in the first episode or at least the first double episode that I can buy squeak of Might and lies of Truth. There it is established that bill has a spirit companion that's going to come to his rescue in a time of great need and that there is a vagabond clan of skullbanians on Earth. With the implication that there may be new connections that will appear on Earth that aren't related to drool directly and Fangbone and bill influencing each other

The result is without a necessarily intense serial ongoing story we can then go back to relatively episodic adventures and they acquire a sense of depth while at the same time not feeling like we're ignoring any of the big events.

The character growth and change in perspective is something that you can integrate and examine with the characters and story elements that are staying. And it's actually going to be followed up on. Maybe not immediately but in ways that will be established further. Fangbone suddenly takes a love of knitting? Well guess what happens a few episodes later? it turns out that Ms. Gillian sees his talent as being a very creative artist! Or even earlier than that, this helps establish more of the characters of the class 3-g and Fangbones relationship with them.

Of course they will use the character of Sid to good effect off and on as a pretty good guest star in order to spice things up. Particularly as she comes from Skullbania but comes from a different perspective on everything. Which also does a good job of fleshing out the entire fantasy world and the conflicts that are going on there. In fact it establishes a nice third faction which keeps things just a little bit more interesting. by tapping into the implications of the Shadow steppers fangbone's homeland becomes a richer world

also it feels we really get to expand the character Arc for Bill dealing with well his uncertainty about being able to keep the mission. This replaces the giant cave ape with horns and a helmet from birthday party of dread but it is a similar plot with a waterfowl but that's good because, as I established in the adaptation project, it gives us more motion and set pieces to integrate with. Since the real focus is in fact on bills changing perspective and understanding of what the hell's going on it also means it doesn't feel like we're keeping everything locked behind doors after we've had a peek inside of it. No person who can give us a non crystal gem perspective flying off into literal outer space only to be hinted at knowing things and then turn out to know nothing later. or no desperate science experiment that's on a Doomsday Clock that will create evil monsters more powerful than any that have been faced suddenly having to be interrupted because we've run out of manga to adapt so let's have I don't know let's say vampires.

We don't necessarily hit quite the same Highs but the overall average is very solid because the focus stays on the main characters and the main characters get to understand or do whatever is happening in are the main focus. also on a more appreciative note of what the show does when running through the cliche o matic. Fangbone keeps on saying Bill shouldn't fear failure and he shouldn't give up and all this stuff. But it's not just enough to say The Virtue we get to see Bill work it out and understand what it means to him personally. So it feels as if we're not just getting a moral platitude but we're getting to see someone, to a certain Journey.

@cordset pointed out that arguably Bill actually coaxes the equivalent of a world-weary war veteran out of suicide. I hadn't considered that perspective and for again a relatively simple tail that ultimately is centered around a conflict such as Monster of the week plus an additional interloper it's pretty interesting. And the shadow steppers are used to good effect as well because it actually makes us wonder if this is a good plan having the toe kept with Fang bone

This is a very complete story that feels like it goes through so much and it's just a basic 22-minute piece. And again the focus is aside from the interruption of Sid a standard monster-of-the-week sort of plot. All of which is used to give time to characterize everyone going forward. This will be how fangbone would use its big events. When things are over we will go back to normal. But that's true for even the animated Darlings which will reveal big amazing things and then after the break will be back to episodes like who wants to go on a date or something. Because it doesn't promise to do something so radically different it can actually focus on the changes that it can do or the effects that it will use

At least to me

@ericriverava @wkdart @wedgekun @cartoonemotion @sunder-the-gold @g-00lden @pame-chan-xx @chikachika6

@redlydoom

Basically like I always I want to get some discussion going what are your thoughts on the episode The Duck of always? What did you like about it who did you like about it? How do you think it compares to other series or just in general

@pirateshenani

#episode appreciation #fangbone!#fangbone #duck of always #series appreciation #animated series #ramblings #not educated on this at all

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fire-lady-ilah · 4 years ago

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(Accidentally responded on my main, oops)

Your theories are definitely far more... historically accurate (it’s not history but it’s based off history) than mine! I personally have a very idealized view on Azulon and Ilah’s relationship, especially since I’ve further fleshed out their characterization in my mind since originally writing this post. (Shameless self promo: I wrote a whole 15k fic about their betrothal), and of Azulon himself.

Aaaand. Stop now if you don’t want to read long rambling about characterization that is not at all based in canon. It’s been a while which means I have a lot to add to this post.

I view them both as complex people, Azulon as loving of very few people (but endlessly loyal to those he does love), and uncaring of all others unless they mean something to him or those he loves. Even in that, he is incredibly selfish about it (in my HCs he kills his older brother without considering the emotional effects it would have on his older sister, despite loving her), doing what he thinks is best for them rather than what necessarily would be best for them. My Azulon (which could be different from canon Azulon, even though he becomes canon Azulon. He changes a lot after Ilah’s death) would never commit marital rape. I honestly just chalk Ozai up to them being sloppy regarding protection. If he wanted another heir, he would be fully within his right (and he would, since he only cares for those he loves) to take a concubine for the purposes of having more heirs, and those heirs would still be in the line of succession. Despite this, both he and Ilah welcomed the idea of a new heir.

The issue for them came when Ilah got sick during the pregnancy and, in her weakened state, it only got worse and worse. He very much blames Ozai for his mother’s death (especially because Ozai inherited a lot of her gestures and expressions without realizing it). This is also when he stops trying for peace and immediately sends Iroh away to restart the attack on the Earth Kingdom. Iroh doesn’t blame his brother, but he isn’t around much, he’s too busy fighting.

I also have Ozai raised partially by Lo and Li in my mind, although to me they’re his cousins, the twin daughters of his aunt Anzu (Azulon’s older sister, who I have written multiple fics about as part of the ATLA OC Week). I also have him being heavily influenced by pro-war tutors. Azulon himself refused to pay much attention.

Ilah, on the other hand... okay, so I have her as a waterbending princess from the Northern Water Tribe. She’s the youngest daughter of the Chief, with two older brothers and three older sisters, one of whom already has two children at the time of her betrothal to Azulon. She is also utter garbage at healing, despite being amazing at other aspects of waterbending, This results in her being very good at political maneuvering in order to get her voice heard, even if it is a man that actually ends up speaking it. Like Azulon, she only cares about what is hers, though that does extend to the people of the Northern Water Tribe and the Fire Nation, rather than just a few specific people.

Her marriage has her in the Fire Nation in 18 AG, which means she has two years of constantly being at Azulon’s side in order to give him her views. Azulon is a force for peace in the beginning, although he’s also not willing to give up the colonies or any of the ocean they’ve claimed, which makes the discussion slow.

It’s important to note here that Ilah’s loyalty does not extend to the SWT.

In 35 AG, SWT assassins try to kill Iroh (and Ilah but she cares less about that). Azulon is the one that issues the vicious attacks on the Southern Water Tribe. Ilah is the one that whispers that, without their waterbenders, the tribe cannot fight back in any meaningful way. She is the one that gives the information needed to effectively fight waterbenders, being one herself and watching her older brother train in combative waterbending as a child. She is the driving force behind their destruction.

The only reason Ilah wanted peace is because it would be best for the people of the Fire Nation and for any children she had. She’s not a good person, neither is her husband. But they love each other fiercely.

She suggests he get concubines for more heirs as they are having trouble conceiving more (and they had trouble with Iroh), Azulon is the one that refuses.

Completely unrelated, but Iroh watching his mother waterbend as a child and teen is why he thinks of waterbending as an inspiration for lightning redirection.

I have more but this is probably getting boring already, hah. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to rant about my stupid fire boy and water girl.

Assorted Fire Nation Royal Family Headcanons

Azulon was the youngest of Sozin’s three children that survived past their birth. He had one sister and one brother.

His sister, while higher in the order of succession than him (the Fire Nation didn’t change the order of succession due to sex), stepped down from her position after their older brother’s completely natural death.

In 15AG peace talks began between the Fire Nation and the Northern Water Tribe in order to remove a front in the war. While the Northern Water Tribe knew they could withstand the attacks from the Fire Nation, they knew the Fire Nation would only continue to grow. These peace talks were headed by Prince Azulon, newly his father’s heir.

The talks culminated in a peace treaty being signed at the end of 15AG with a betrothal being made between 15 year old Prince Azulon, Sozin’s youngest, and 13 year old Princess Ilah, youngest daughter of the Chief of the Northern Water Tribe.

Azulon crafted Ilah her own betrothal necklace of red silk and a charm made of pure gold. He had multiple drafts of it, all critiqued by his older sister before he eventually sent her the final necklace.

Azulon and Ilah truly loved each other and their marriage was viewed as the first love-marriage in the Royal Family in three generations (everyone knew of Sozin and Roku’s love and it’s tragic end).

Upon Iroh’s birth in 35AG, Azulon became more concerned with the war, sharply increasing military expenditure and effort. He put his focus on destroying the Southern Water Tribe, their biggest threat. He wanted the war to be finished before his son reached adulthood.

Simultaneously, he began approaching the idea of peace with the Earth Kingdom, starting by relaxing the rate at which advancements were made on their borders and reopening some trade. This move was supported by his wife.

When Ilah died while giving birth to Ozai in 55AG, the nearly completed peace treaty with the Earth Kingdom was burned. All ideas of peace in Azulon’s mind died with his wife. His attacks on both the Southern Water Tribe and the Earth Kingdom increased in intensity.

Iroh had been raised with ideals of peace, though he still joined the military. Ozai, on the other hand, was raised with nothing but conquering and violence.

Prince Lu Ten was born in 73AG and his mother died in the same way as his grandmother. Despite that, it didn’t lead Iroh to hate Lu Ten as Azulon hated Ozai. Instead, he pampered him.

When Zuko was born, Azulon was the one that forbade him from killing the child. He saw no spark in his eyes, but his saw his late wife in how the child was quiet, watching. He secretly hoped the child was a waterbender like Ilah.

When Azula was born, Azulon didn’t have to stop Ozai from killing her. He was happy she was a prodigy, yet all he could see was his older brother in her, in the way she smiled as she tormented her brother. But maybe that was for the best.

Lu Ten excelled in school, going to the Royal Fire Nation Academy for Boys. He skipped three grade levels, in a class with 10 year olds at only 7 years old,

There he became best friends and rivals with Wei Zhao. The two constantly competed for top spot in the class, equals in firebending and history, with Lu Ten excelling in mathematics, and the arts. Wei, on the other hand, was intelligent and ruthless when it came to battle strategy.

They began dating in their last year of school. Wei Zhao became Private Zhao after school, immediately enlisting in the navy. Lu Ten chose not to immediately enlist, instead focussing on his princely duties.

Despite being in the navy, Lieutenant Zhao had been pulled from his ship to join the siege of Ba Sing Se due to his firebending prowess and Lu Ten’s own request.

Zhao could do nothing as he watched Lu Ten breathe his last breaths, buried in earth and trying to reassure him he’d be okay.

#azulon #ilah #azulah #headcanons #my headcanons #atla #avatar the last airbender

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imagine-valhalla · 7 years ago

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BEING HARALD’S AND HALFDAN’S LITTLE SISTER WOULD INCLUDE:

◾ Being apart of such a dysfunctional family would be challenging. Many people would fear you and your brothers, due to the savage reputation that they have conjured up over time.

◾ Your older brothers would often tease you, ultimately being more protective of you than necessarily needed.

◾ This at times would annoy you deeply because you don’t enjoy being teased by your brothers, since they seek out to embarrass you until your wits are dizzy. Yet also, you would not be allowed to grow close to many people, the brothers often mistrusting everyone else.

◾ This would often lead to your lovers being slaughtered or anyone who stabbed you in the back to be executed in a way that you would not wish upon your enemies. (This would also include people who grew too close to you.)

◾ You would fear your brothers at times, but you would also find comfort in them. They’d show how much they care for you in their own ways, and you would definitely feel that love.

◾ You would often find your eldest brother, King Harald, to be the more overbearing one of the bunch, and much more annoying than Halfdan. He would jibe at you, just to see you blush and to creep under your skin. No one would have seen such a playful side to the King if it weren’t for you.

◾ Halfdan would be the one that you went to in order to be listened to. Harald is much more charismatic, able to throw his opinion around without even giving it a single thought. Whereas Harald would often listen to you, being silent before giving you his view - if he even had one -.

◾ It would be certain that you would bring a more pleasant side to your brother Halfdan the Black. People would get to see a side that would almost make them look twice. It’s not that he would be soft, but you would get him to let his guard down, having him be more talkative than him being around Harald.

◾ Halfdan would definitely back his brother up in taunting you, often being the one to go after you once things had riled you up and you stalked off in a huff.

◾ Your brothers would forbid you to be in any battle or raid with or without them, or at all. They would appear caustic about the topic, but in fact - deep down - they would love you with all their hearts, too afraid to lose you.

◾ Even the thought of seeing or hearing of you being in harm, having you die, would force them to tumble down to rock bottom, making them all the more unstable.

◾ They would often undermine you because you’re their little sister, they think they should be the ones to protect you, often surprised when you are the one protecting them.

◾ You would certainly not be a fan of Elisif, - along with your brother Halfdan -, you would find her unsuitable, seeing through her lies and games. You would feel sympathy for your brother; and you would have voiced your distaste for her, only for Harald to grow so cross with you that you daren’t bring it up again.

◾ Anybody who decided to pursue you or even insinuate affections towards or about you would feel their merciless wrath. They would be cruel about it, terrifying anybody that dared to speak of you or be around you in any context.

◾ But that isn’t to say that they wouldn’t warm up to someone who did truly love you and would treat you right. It would take a millennium for them to even grow comfortable with the idea, but if they saw that they treated you right and that you were happy, they would consider not killing or torturing them.

◾ But one whiff of anything fishy and they would end them.

◾ Even though your brothers would not like you to come along, they would find it hard not to travel anywhere without you. They would enjoy your company, finding that the only way to ensure that you are protected whilst they traveled was to have you close.

◾ Yet if they deemed it too dangerous, they would leave you behind (especially during raids), stating that there wasn’t any place for you there, damaging your confidence. They would keep you under the watch of some of their best warriors and shield-maidens, ensuring that you do not perish or have harm come to you.

◾ Despite the fact that Harald and Halfdan are quite inhumane at times, (particularly on raids and towards Christians) they would shelter you from certain things and I believe this strongly because you’re their little sister, they wish not to have things haunting you.

◾ You would certainly know the wrath of your brother’s and would witness much of it.

◾ Your brothers would keep you under their watch at all times. You would not even be able to dream of wanting to wander off and explore or get away from it all. They’d always be there to stop you.

◾ “What do you think you’re doing, dear sister?” Halfdan’s eerie and husky voice appearing to your left from out of nowhere.

◾ “Must I be watched over like I am an infant? Can I not explore Kattegat on my own?” You would state back, rolling your orbs.

◾ You could be just as fierce as your brothers, but much gentler too. It all depends solely on your mood.

◾ You would often spar with your brothers. They wouldn’t let you win, they’d take a fatherly role of making sure that you could defend yourself better than they could.

◾ Harald’s sword impaled the ground beside your head with a thud that caused pain to rattle through your body. “And now, you would be dead.” He would spit down at you, sweat coating his flesh, his eyes burning strictly down at you as you stared at him in horror.

◾ “I-I tried my b-best.” You’d gulp out, too afraid to move.

◾ “Trying gets you nowhere, sister.”

◾ The loyalty between yourself and your brothers would run thicker than any material upon earth. Nothing could break you apart from them.

◾ If you put yourself in harms way, your brothers would lose their minds.

◾ “What do you think you are doing?!” Halfdan would bark at you, eyes darker than the chilly darkness of night.

◾ “If I do not do something, Harald will be a dead man! You saw the way he killed Elisifs’ husband.” You’d retort sharply at your brother, wheeling around to face him.

◾ “What is in those chambers is not for you to involve yourself in. I strongly suggest that you stay out of it.” He’d growl, pushing past you.

◾ “And when will you and brother quit acting like I am a child!” You’d shout after him, rage burning your insides out.

◾ “It will happen the day that your mind quits mimicking one of stupidity.”

◾ If your brothers saw you crying or hurt in anyway, they would get their men and assemble a plan to kill whoever upset you; and it doesn’t matter who it is.

◾ If you were afraid or terrified, your brothers would pick it up in a heartbeat. They’d be uncomfortable in comforting you but find someway to calm you down.

◾ “I swear to you that Ragnar Lothbrok will not kill me. So you have not to worry.” Harald would smile at you, patting your head in a way that was a softness only reserved for you. “Do not jump forward into what you do not know.” He’d hum to you.

◾ “It was only a dream, little one.” Halfdan would mumble from the opposite side of your chambers, frightening you witlessly. “If you are crazed enough to believe that we would let even a phantom in your wake, you are sadly mistaken.” He would lean forward, black orbs hypnotizing yet soft.

◾ You would always find the courage to tease your brothers back. It could often surprise them with the mouth that you have, but depending on their mood would be whether they take it lightheartedly or not.

◾ You would not always bear well with the rules your brothers imposed upon you. You would find them useless, not understanding that they are only trying to protect you. You would often sneak off when their attentions are whisked away, trying to escape from their opposing decrees.

◾ Even though your brothers would grow relentlessly angry at you for running away, you would fire it back upon them, showing them that you could be just as heartless if you wanted: Also reminding them that you weren’t their prisoner. You were their sister and as their duty as brothers, they were to let you be happy.

◾ They would make sure that you are taken care of at all times, even in the harshest of environments.

◾ The reason for their alarming protectiveness over you is due to the way you all grew up. Once Harald became king, it made you three a target. They had to protect you to whatever cost.

◾ If your brothers were upset, you would often annoy them with how you wished to comfort them. They would shake off how they felt, burying it away, which you would advice was not the best. However, they were already unsettled, not right in the mind. So what more damage could it do?

◾ Sometimes they would come to you to help with strategies and such, because you are wise and they trust your intuition. They may not always listen but they secretly know that you are right.

◾ You would stand up for your brothers even though they could do so for themselves.

◾ “If you are not aware, King Harald is my brother.” You’d spit your poison so venomously. “You’d be a fool to double cross my brothers, but even more so a fool to have me hear about it.”

◾ They would show their affection for you with the ruffle of your hair, hugging you to their sides, clapping your shoulder, giving you a softer look.

◾ “I want you to remember that I only love three people.” Harald would hum deep in the night when the fire is burning out and Halfdan is asleep. “You sister, Halfdan and my princess. You are the only ones that I ever will.”

◾ Besides one another, you would actually be their soft spot, a weakness of theirs. They would do anything for their little sister.

◾ Despite anything, your brothers would truly love and care for you, even if they appeared cold and with no feelings. Anybody who would think that they didn’t care for you would be sadly mistaken.

king harald finehair & halfdan the black gif : source - 🏹

hope you enjoyed! please follow for more, lovelies.

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metawitches · 5 years ago

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Star Trek Picard S1E1- The Blue and Red Skies of Picard’s Dream

From the first moments of Jean Luc Picard’s dream in the pilot, Star Trek: Picard has been using a color scheme as part of its symbolism. Picard’s dream about Data, 5 queens, drinking tea and the attack on Mars is one prescient symbol after another. In this post, let’s examine how the creators of the show are using color.

The most symbolically important colors are red, green and blue. Gold/yellow, orange and white also play a lesser role. When the colors mix, the message is more complex. Fire/flames/explosions and the use of lighting are closely tied to the use of color. Often color will be expressed through lighting, sometimes as a hazy wash of colored light. Gold is particularly used this way on Chateau Picard and in Picard’s holographic study on La Sirena. Green is almost exclusively used in Romulan lighting, except for the greenery on Nepenthe, a few items of green clothing and Soji’s eyes. Red can be in the form of light, but if it is, most often it comes as a form of fire, tied to red’s core meaning of “real”.

Red Is Real: Truth, Passion, Humanity, Valor

Deanna with her homegrown tomatoes on Nepenthe.

Rios’ Red Is Real cigar box with all of his important memories inside.

The color red has the most distinct imagery and symbolic meaning, having been spelled out clearly twice by trusted sources. In episode 7, Nepenthe, Deanna and Soji discussed the “realness” of the bright red tomatoes grown in Deanna’s garden. Deanna told Soji that the tomatoes are real, but real isn’t necessarily better than synthetic, since a positronic matrix could have saved her son’s life. In episode 8, Broken Pieces, Rios’ cigar box of keepsakes is red, with the word “real” printed in large letters on the outside. What’s inside the box is what’s real, as opposed to the manipulations of the truth happening outside, and the box’s red exterior signals that we can trust those keepsakes and the memories attached to them.

So what does “real” mean, in this context? Picard is also real. He wears a deep red/burgundy sweater early in episode 1. Chateau Picard is laced with flowers in the red family. As noted above, Chris is also real, with his red cigar box. He’s bleeding red blood when we meet him, illustrating the reason why red is the color which symbolizes humanity, authenticity, truth, passion, human emotion and being a flesh and blood living being.

There is also an element of straightforward morality, as Picard sees it, associated with red. Picard himself is the symbol of Gene Roddenberry’s original vision for the Federation and Starfleet as a society of beings who have evolved into a level of maturity and self-control that lets them rein in their baser instincts the vast majority of the time. It’s important to remember that those baser instincts still exist. What has evolved is the determination to suppress them and continue the ideas of the Enlightenment, such as individualism characterized by an emphasis on science, rationalism, personal and religious freedoms, self-governance and equality.

The values associated with red mean seeing the synths as equal citizens deserving of their rights. The Romulans believe this will lead to disaster, so red spans the continuum from the deep red warmth of family and acceptance, which we’ve seen Picard wear, to the fiery red harshness of exploding planets in the Admonition. Deanna wore a soft peachy pink when she was in her garden at her family home. Soji and Dahj’s orchids were both also in the softer end of the red spectrum. Laris wore a rusty red turtleneck, signifying her fiery personality.

Fire has been used in mild situations such as the candles on the Troi-Riker dinner table and the fire in Chateau Picard’s hearth, as well as cataclysmic visuals such as the attack on Mars and the mass destruction of the Admonition. There must be some important truth in each of these situations along with their human emotion.

Soji wore a bright red hazmat suit to work in the reclamation zone and when she spoke to Hugh about some of their more subversive ideas. Romulans are rarely associated with red and generally only briefly. Narek and Narissa had a heart made of light between them when she told him not to fall in love with Soji. The heart was as important as the color, showing the importance of love and family to all three people involved, and perhaps hinting at the direction of Narek’s true loyalty.

Click on any image to enlarge.

Green Is Complexity and Often Morally Gray or Worse

The Romulans love green. They keep the Artifact swathed in this color that represents moral complexity and mind games. It often signifies the presence of lies, oppression, deception, enslavement and cruelty. Occasionally it denotes a deception that is for the greater good or to save someone’s life.

The main uses of green have been in the control holograms and force fields on the Artifact and the plant life on Nepenthe and Earth. On the Borg cube, the Zhat Vash were deceiving Soji and the xBs into thinking they were helping the xBs when their real motive was to find and learn about Soji. They planned to destroy the cube and all of the xBs once their mission was complete. Narak and Narissa lied and played mind games with Soji while the entire Borg Reclamation Project was a ruse in pursuit of their larger goal.

Seven with Borg Life Signs

On Earth, Jean Luc fooled himself for years that he could be happy on the vineyard, growing grapes, if he just tried harder. Raffi used her snakeweed vine as her vape addiction, carefully tending the vine so it would continue producing for her. The snakeweed kept her numb to her own circumstances for years.

On Nepenthe, Will and Deanna’s home is surrounded by forest and green plants. At first I didn’t think this example fit with the green symbolism. But now I have a couple of ideas. The canon solution is that they pretend to be a happy, intact family in the woods, despite their deep sadness over the loss of their son, Thad. Kestra plays the outdoor games she used to play with her brother and pretends she isn’t lonely. This fits with the other uses of plants in Picard: people using greenery as a form of comfort to deny loss.

I wonder though, if the green might signify that in addition to the family’s natural sadness and stress from Thad’s illness, they are deceiving Picard and Soji. It’s possible that Thad is alive and his parents sent him to stay with Captain Crandall while Picard was there. Then they sent Kestra into the woods to slow Picard and Soji down while they hid any signs that Thad is alive. Since they would have had to use illegal methods to save their son, they might not be ready to share the news with Admiral Picard. Take a look at the wide section of green between Picard and his old friends in the photos, which shows the distance that’s grown in their friendship.

Rios wore green when he visited Bejayzl and Mr Vup on Freecloud to help con them into freeing Bruce Maddox. Ian, the emergency engineering holo, also wears green, so we should wonder what he’s keeping from us. Dahj wore a green cloak when she was on the run, probably because she herself had been and still was being deceived.

The Zhat Vash use green acid slime in a crush capsule as their murder-suicide weapon of choice. In fact, it may be the Zhat Vash who have the affinity for green rather than the entire Romulan species, since most of the Romulans on Picard seem to also be Zhat Vash spies. Narissa is generally surrounded by green lights. Since Narek is under cover, his true affinities are harder to tell, but his scoutship uses green lights.

Narek might actually be the best example of green – complex and opportunistic. He’s working toward multiple goals at the same time and some of them seem to directly contradict each other. Is he a double agent? Will he defect to the Federation? Will it be part of the plan if he does? He seems to have plans within plans within plans and very few absolute truths.

Zhaban, a former member of the Tal Shiar whose mother told Laris about the Zhat Vash, wore green the morning of Picard’s big interview, the one that went so wrong. I have my suspicions about him. Picard drank tea while Zhaban was partially obscured by a holo screen, which suggests that at the very least Zhaban hasn’t been fully honest with Picard.

Mark my words, Zhaban turned off the alarm before the Romulan assassins entered the house in episode 3. Maybe Oh forced him into a mind meld and blackmailed him, promising that he and Laris could stay safely on the vineyard. Or maybe he’s been a spy for her or someone else all along.

Green is complex, so it’s important to remember that the vineyard is a happy place for Laris and Zhaban (and has generally been a mixed bag for the Picard family); Raffi’s snakeweed vine is an innocent plant with a pretty flower; long friendships among colleagues like those between Deanna, Will and Jean Luc tend to be complicated anyway; and Narissa, Narek, Laris and Zhaban are all spies by training, with a love of secrets and their own plans. The Zhat Vash are good guys in their world, whose mission is of such vital importance that the ends justify the means. The Borg cube is actually an inanimate object, when all is said and done.

Sometimes we can understand the motives associated with green and sometimes we have to let things play out.

Green circles within circles in both star displays and Enoch’s astronavigation code has been tampered with.

Though they seem to be opposites, red and green frequently appear together. Life is complex and frequently morally gray, even for Picard.

Click on any image to enlarge.

Soji’s green eyes and red lips are an unusual example of red and green playing off of each other. Seen here during her conversation in sick bay with Agnes, the color of her mouth reminds us that she’s made of flesh and blood, like a regular human being. But her green eyes are a signal that she’s something more complex than simply human.

Her eyes aren’t blue or brown, which might be neutral or just signal intelligence. They aren’t yellow like Data’s and the synths’ Agnes and Bruce made to work on Mars. Yellow would signal that Soji is an artificial life form.

According to the code of Star Trek: Picard, green eyes mean that Soji is someone to keep an eye on. She can take care of herself and she will. She’s proven herself equal to the Romulan spies and the Federation do gooders. Next up- the Vulcan strategist.

Blue Is Reason and Clarity

If red is associated with humans and green with Romulans, blue is the color for Vulcans. Even though Commodore Oh seems a strange choice to associate with reason and clarity, she is a half-Romulan Vulcan who believes she is following an essential course of action. She has followed a secret, calculated path for decades in order to impose the will of the Zhat Vash on the Federation. Just as importantly, the legendary father of Vulcan civilization, Surak, is associated with the color blue, thanks to Rios’ book, titled Surak and Existentialism.

As with science and philosophy, blue is morally neutral. Agnes, a scientist and reluctant spy, is strongly associated with the color. She wears two different blue coats and Oh gives her a blue tracker to chew and swallow. She sits under blue skies at the Daystrom Institute, picnicking. Like her colleague Bruce Maddox, she seems to care much more about the science than about who’s paying for it. I believe her allegiance is currently to herself and to Soji, because Soji is the culmination of her life’s work, even if Bruce finished the project alone.

Click on any photo to enlarge.

Each color not only appears at times with the other colors, at times its meaning intensifies until it becomes its opposite. Thus, blue is the color of science, logic and philosophy, but also religion, mythology and belief. It’s associated with both the Borg Collective and the Free xBs.

Say what you will about them, the Borg have clarity of purpose and the xBs are newly free, in search of their own identities. They are at risk for joining cults or forming one themselves, as has been seen previously in ST:TNG. But they are also seekers who will sift through multiple philosophies and religions to create an inner monologue that fits their own experience. Isn’t this what Surak did for the Vulcans when they were at risk of destroying themselves through violence and chaotic thought?

Raffi’s colors, when she has her addiction under control, are the same as Jean Luc’s: blue and red. She wears a purple sweater in episode 5, the combination of the two colors. She uses logic and reason intensely in her analysis of everything she comes into contact with.

There were purple flowers at Chateau Picard. Picard is a philosopher and a humanist.

In episode 7, Deanna Troi wore blue in the latter half of the episode, suggesting she felt more professional and neutral as the Admiral’s visit continued.

Narek is also occasionally associated with blue, since like Agnes, he is both a scientist and a spy.

Gold Means Safety and Security But It Can Also Be an Illusion

There haven’t been many uses of colors in the gold/yellow family so far, perhaps to give the color an impact when it is seen. Mainly Data and the Mars synths’ skin. Plus the golden light at Chateau Picard, a fake version of which now shines in Picard’s holostudy on the La Sirena.

Gold is also the accent color for the security and engineering departments in Starfleet, as we’ve seen it on Oh and Narissa’s uniforms.

The meaning of gold is derived from the Starfleet uniforms: security and safety. But it can also mean the opposite, as it would when the starship’s engine fails or it’s invaded by hostile forces. Then the sense of security that the crew feels turns out to be an illusion. Illusions and other mistakes made by the mind are running themes throughout the season.

There were touches of yellow in Data’s poker hand of 5 identical queens of hearts in Picard’s episode 1 prophetic dream. The sands of Aia, the grief world, where the Admonition takes place are a soft gold. After enduring both the Admonition and assimilation, Ramdha spends her time seeking to see the future with tawny golden pixmit cards that may or may not give her accurate predictions.

That would bring us back around to the artificial golden light of the holostudy vs the real sunlight at the actual vineyard on Earth. The two rooms are twins to the naked eye of TV viewers, but in reality they are far different.

Someone who is physically in each room could tell the difference, because they could smell the air of the vineyard, feel the breeze and the warmth of the sun, hear the small noises that it would be difficult for a holosuite to replicate perfectly. On the ship, you’d feel the small sensations that signify motion.

In the same way, this season has used twinning and mirroring over and over.

There are many Rios and Sojis. Despite the tragedy which brought them together, the two characters have a strong connection. There are still many questions about what really happened on the Ibn Majid and about the rest of Rios’ background. It was a surprise to hear he has no family. He and Soji are both searching for identities and families. It’s suspicious that the drawing is of those two, as if they were the pair of synths. I can’t see how that’s possible, but maybe Rios DNA was used?

Narissa and Narek are siblings with opposite approaches to life. Narek told Soji he’d lost a brother in the recent past, but Narissa has never mentioned him. Narissa is devoted to Ramdha, but Narek keeps his distance and doesn’t admit she’s family.

Ramdha named Soji as an important twin, The Destroyer, but Ramdha’s mind is confused and Narek says it always has been. We saw her turn to madness. Narek may have lied to Soji on the surface, but he also told her more truths than I think even he realized. But he is also clearly devoted to Narissa and their cause. Ramdha, Soji, Narissa and Narek form an impossible box rather than a traditional love triangle. A box should be secure, but this one is full of treachery.

The synths on Mars, such as F8, mirrored Data externally but were much more simplistic internally. That external twinning allowed the conspirators to convince the Federation that they were capable of a rebellion. The A500 model synths were very purposely made as fool’s gold rather than real gold, but Starfleet and the Federation succumbed to the lie that they could evolve and rebel.

Very few people in the Federation would have known Data personally, but many would have known of him and seen his likeness. If Commodore Oh and other Vulcans in Starfleet forced the Admonition on others and are able to alter memories, then either plant hypnotic suggestions or blackmail others into doing what they want, as they did with Agnes, then they could quietly take over Starfleet and eventually the Federation. We saw Oh and Narissa wearing that gold uniform. How many more are there? How many can force the Admonition onto unsuspecting, unprepared citizens?

Star Trek Picard S1E1 Data Shows Picard His Hand- 5 Queens of Heart

Rios’ Red Is Real cigar box with all of his important memories inside.

Orange and White, the colors just to the other side of yellow, follow from its meanings. Orange, like the jumpsuits worn by the synths on Mars, means danger. White pulls yellow to the security side of the spectrum and tends to mean innocence or the medical field, when it has a meaning. In a show full of neutral colors, sometimes white is just a background color. Rios’ drawing of himself with Jana was on a white piece of paper.

What Do We Do With All of These Colors? Red Still Means Command, So We Follow (Picard) Red

We’ve been told that red is real, but real isn’t always better. Gold is good, but it can turn on you. Green’s games can be fun, until they betray you. Blue is smart, but it tends to hang back, saying it doesn’t want to get involved, until the fight comes directly to it.

So who is a TV viewer to trust for clues to this mystery? My money is on Jean Luc Picard’s instincts overall. As a leader, he still knows what he’s doing. He’s assembled a crack team, almost despite himself and them.

However, he is truly aging and ill. Now he’s best as an administrator, rather than a man of action. The Charlie to his Angels. He needs to set his team up with a mission, inspire them, keep them on the right course when necessary, but otherwise stay out of their way.

There’s nothing wrong with that. That’s the real part of reality. They all respect what he has to offer and where he is physically. Every elderly and disabled person should be so lucky.

With Picard’s wisdom and impeccable instincts to guide them, Rios’ heart/compassion and leadership skills, Raffi’s sheer intelligence and analytical skills, and Agnes’ science and robotics skills, they have a good team. I suspect Soji is the best fighter on the ship and will be great at leading away teams, plus she’s still Dr Soji Asha, xenoanthropologist.

Picard- red

Agnes- blue

Soji- gold

Raffi- green

Rios- Between the holos and the items in his room, Rios is both red and all of the colors and skills. He’s an international man of mystery and captain of the ship. Just don’t ask him for Yridian tea.

I expect more crew will be along any time now, but maybe Seven and Elnor will keep the cube.

Images courtesy of CBS AllAccess.

Star Trek: Picard- Color Theory Explained Through E8-Starting with Bing Crosby singing Blue Skies during Picard's prophetic dream in the pilot, the show has used red, blue, green and gold symbolically. Red is real. #StarTrekPicard From the first moments of Jean Luc Picard's dream in the pilot, Star Trek: Picard has been using a color scheme as part of its symbolism.

#breakdown #color theory #commentary #meta #metacrone #review #science fiction #Star Trek #Star Trek: Picard #Star Trek: Picard- Color Theory Explained Through Episode 8

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fear-god-shun-evil · 5 years ago

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Is Working Hard Equivalent to Obeying God?

By Jinyan

Li Xin is a co-worker in a church. Over the years of her belief in the Lord, she has always enthusiastically expended and worked for the Lord and has suffered and paid a price for Him. No matter what the church needed her to do, she would actively do it; even when faced with the danger of being arrested and persecuted by the CCP, she still persisted in spreading the gospel. She firmly believed that her forsaking and expending for the Lord was obeying God, that the Lord would definitely take delight in her, and that she would surely have a place in the kingdom of heaven in the future.

One day, she went to support some weak brothers and sisters with Sister Lin. On their way back, they bumped into Sister Dong, and then the three of them began to chat while sitting on an out-of-the-way lawn.

Out of the blue, Sister Lin asked, “Do you think that our forsaking, expending and working hard for the Lord means that we are people who obey God?”

“Yes, of course. The Lord Jesus said, ‘Truly I say to you, There is no man that has left house, or parents, or brothers, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God’s sake, Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting’ (Luke 18:29–30). The words of the Lord say it so clearly: Genuinely expending for God requires us to forsake everything. Since we are still able to persist in preaching the gospel to bear witness for God and expending for God in persecution and tribulations, this is truly obeying God and also is partaking in the adversities, kingdom and patience of Christ. This is something that God commemorates the most, so we will surely gain God’s approval and blessings and be brought into the heavenly kingdom by Him!” After saying this, Li Xin then asked in confusion, “Sister Lin, why did you suddenly ask this?”

Sister Lin said, looking distressed, “I also used to firmly believe that as long as we toil and work for the Lord, then we are people who obey God and will certainly be approved by God. But recently my husband told me that although we are able to cast aside everything, spend and work hard for the Lord, this doesn’t necessarily mean that we are obeying God. The Pharisees also worked hard and traveled all over the lands and seas to spread the gospel for God, but were they people who obeyed God? They were actually not approved by God. Hearing what he said, I didn’t know how to respond. So I’ve been pondering these days: Is toiling, working, forsaking, and expending for the Lord really the same as obeying God?”

Li Xin opened her mouth but didn’t know what to say, and she then sank into deep thought.

Sister Dong said, “I always used to be perplexed by this too, but after fellowshiping several times with my cousin, I finally figured out this issue. It seems from the outside that we are obeying God by forsaking, expending, suffering and paying a price for Him, but can we guarantee that there are no personal intentions within it? If we abandon everything and expend ourselves merely to gain blessings and enter the kingdom of heaven to receive rewards, or for our own interests and selfish desires, then can we say that such kind of suffering and expenditure is obeying God? Can we be approved by God and enter the heavenly kingdom? Let’s talk about the Pharisees. They had expended for God for generations and traveled to the ends of the earth spreading the gospel for God, appearing on the surface to have endured much hardship and paid many prices. But when the Lord Jesus came, they, in order to protect their own status and livelihood, not only didn’t lead the common Jewish people to follow God’s work, but instead took every opportunity to condemn and oppose the Lord Jesus. Would you say that their expenditure and work was obeying God?”

“No,” Sister Lin shook her head and said.

Sister Dong went on saying, “From this we can see that, if our intentions in working and expending are incorrect, which are not to love or satisfy God, but for our own profits and extravagant desires, then we can’t say that we are obeying God. For example, there are many people who forsake, expend, suffer and pay the price on the outside, but their purpose is to obtain blessings and rewards, and to enter the kingdom of heaven and gain eternal life. Therefore, when their families are peaceful and God’s blessing and grace are with them, they vigorously expend themselves for God. But once they encounter disasters, refinements, or trials, they are able to make complaints, resist God, and rebel against God at any time. Even if they continue to expend for God after that, they no longer do it willingly and happily, but become slack in their work and just muddle through. Obviously, this sort of expenditure is not out of consideration for the Lord’s will or to perform their duties as created beings, nor is it out of love or obedience for the Lord, but instead is for the sake of receiving blessings and rewards. They see toiling and working as a bargaining chip to enter the kingdom of heaven, trying to use their forsaking and expending to conduct transactions with God and obtain blessings in the kingdom of heaven. Isn’t that using and cheating the Lord? The Lord Jesus said, ‘Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name? and in Your name have cast out devils? and in Your name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess to them, I never knew you: depart from Me, you that work iniquity’ (Matthew 7:22–23). Why did the Lord call those who spread the gospel, exorcised demons and performed miracles in the name of the Lord evil people and say He never knew them? This is because although they might appear to give things up, expend themselves, preach and work for God, their motive is not to satisfy God, but for their own personal interests, and is merely to gain blessings and enter the kingdom of heaven to get rewards. Therefore, even if they could expend their entire lives for God, they would never gain God’s approval. This is enough to show that, those who haven’t had their corrupt dispositions cleansed and whose expenditure for God contains their personal motives and adulterations cannot become people who obey God, so how can they be qualified to enter God’s kingdom? There is a passage which explains this issue very clearly. Let me read it to you.”

While saying this, Sister Dong took a tablet out of her bag and began to read: “If your faith is not built upon the foundation of obedience to God, then you will ultimately be punished as a result of opposing God. All those who do not seek obedience to God in their faith oppose God. God asks that people seek the truth, that they thirst for God’s words, and eat and drink God’s words, and put them into practice, so that they may achieve obedience to God. If your motivations are truly thus, then God will surely raise you up, and will surely be gracious toward you. No one can doubt this, and no one can change it. If your motivations are not for the sake of obedience to God, and you have other aims, then all that you say and do—your prayers before God, and even your every action—will be in opposition to God. You may be soft-spoken and mild-mannered, your every action and expression may look right, you may appear to be one who obeys, but when it comes to your motivations and your views about faith in God, everything you do is in opposition to God, and evil.” Sister Dong then fellowshiped, “God examines our innermost hearts. If we work and expend ourselves in order to love and satisfy God and to carry out His will, then God will bless and grace us. But if our motivation is to enter the kingdom of heaven and receive rewards, then this type of forsaking and expending carries Satan’s tricks and is out of the desire to gain blessings. We are just using superficial good behavior to cheat and defy God and conduct transactions with Him, so we will never be able to obtain God’s praise.”

After listening to this, Li Xin sank into deep thought: “All these years, I’ve always believed without doubt that since I can make sacrifices, bear hardships and pay the price, I am carrying out God’s will, and that I am someone who truly obeys God and will definitely have a place in the kingdom of heaven. But what Sister Dong fellowshiped also sounds reasonable and I can’t say anything about that …”

Li Xin calmed herself down and said, “Sister Dong, the passage you’ve just read is very practical. I’ve never realized that my abandoning everything and working hard for the Lord is not done out of love or obedience for God, but instead is done to strike a deal with Him and to obtain a righteous crown in return. Thinking about it now, I see that working with a transactional motive is indeed not obeying God.”

Sister Lin said, “It’s true. It turns out that those who expend themselves for God with their own intentions cannot obtain God’s approval at all. After listening to your fellowship, I feel much brighter in my heart. It seems that obeying God isn’t as simple as we imagine. So Sister Dong, can you tell us what it means to truly obey God?”

“Yeah,” Li Xin went on to say, “this is also what I wanted to ask. Hurry up and tell us!”

Sister Dong said, “In regard to this question, let me read you a passage of sermons: ‘Truly obeying God is acting completely according to the meaning of God, with none of people’s meaning mixed in; truly obeying God is obeying God’s orchestration and arrangements absolutely, with none of people’s choices; truly obeying God is completely dedicating oneself and being loyal to the doing of God’s will until the very end; truly obeying God is the exclusion of people’s intentions, not subject to the control of any person, matter or thing and acting entirely to satisfy God. In true obedience there is no disobedience, no resistance, no trading and no conditions; there is only loyalty and obedience. It is being completely considerate of God’s intentions and completely satisfying God, just so that the will of God may be done. People who show such obedience are truly obedient to God.’”

Sister Dong then fellowshiped, saying, “We can see from this passage that, true obedience is dedicating one’s all to loving God and satisfying God, without personal motives and adulterations or any requests of God. Those who are able to achieve this have true faith in God and can submit to God’s orchestrations and arrangements unconditionally, and they are people who truly do God’s will. When God commanded Noah to build an ark, for example, Noah simply accepted and obeyed what God said. Even though he knew it would take a lot of time, work and money to build such a big ark, he never gave a thought to his own profits but simply did as God instructed without reservation. When God told him that He would destroy the earth with the flood, he didn’t consider how his end and destination would be after the ark was completed. Noah listened and obeyed for the sake of satisfying God; he neither considered his own personal interests nor made plans and arrangements for his own future. In the end, he was blessed by God and his family of eight survived. Peter is another example. He spent his entire life spreading the gospel and watering and shepherding the churches for the Lord, during which time he suffered a lot and was imprisoned several times, and his life was constantly in danger. Despite this, he was able to obey without fear or cowardice and only wanted to satisfy God and complete His commission. In the end, when he escaped from the prison and was about to continue working for the Lord, the Lord appeared to him. Having understood that God’s will was for him to be nailed to the cross, he did not give any thought to himself but returned to the city of Rome without hesitation. Finally, he was crucified upside down for the Lord and achieved the ultimate love of God and obedience to the point of death.”

Hearing this, Li Xin nodded involuntarily and said calmly, “Thank the Lord! Sister Dong, after hearing what you’ve fellowshiped today, I’ve finally understood that those who truly obey God are people who expend for God without making any demands, and who do not blame or resist God no matter the environment but are able to put all their hearts and strength into fulfilling their duties as created beings to satisfy God. But look at myself—although I am expending for God on the outside, my intention is not entirely to satisfy God. When my work bore a little fruit, I felt that I would surely receive great blessings in the kingdom and maybe could rule eight or ten cities, and the thought of this gave me more zeal to run around and do works for the Lord. However, when my work didn’t bear fruit or when I encountered failures or setbacks, I would become negative and wonder whether God had forsaken me. Although I didn’t dare to make complaints, in my heart I blamed and misunderstood God, losing my strength to work and expend. It seems now that I am a far cry away from truly obeying God, so how can I possibly be qualified to enter the kingdom of heaven?”

Nodding, Sister Lin said with emotion, “Thanks be to the Lord! Through today’s fellowship, I’ve understood what truly obeying God means. I remember these words from the Lord: ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind’ (Matthew 22:37). Working hard is not the same as obeying God. Only if we have true obedience to God and love God with all our heart and soul can we become people who do God’s will, and only then will we be able to enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Li Xin and Sister Dong said with one accord, “Amen!”

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