#honest parenting

[mfrance-writes]

Thank You, Honest Parents

In American society, people like to perpetuate this stereotype that childfree-by-choice people are always trying to convert other people to our way of life. People make it seem like the childfree-by-choice community is actively trying to discourage everyone else from having children. I haven't found that to be true. Contrary to popular belief, it's never been the childfree-by-choice people that have tried to discourage me from having children.

You know who has tried to actively discourage people from having children the most? Parents...well, the honest ones anyway.

Other people try to paint a rosy picture of parenthood in an attempt to convert childfree-by-choice people. When the rosy picture doesn't work, many try shaming us into feeling immense guilt, so we cave to societal pressures to have children. But not the honest parents, bless their souls. They validate our feelings.

Lately, I've seen so many people that have children on social media sites like TikTok showing glimpses of their lives with children: the feedings, the messes, the chaos that is their normal, the lack of sleep, the crying from exhaustion because parenting is difficult and never-ending, the overdrawn bank accounts because of baby necessities, the cost of labor and delivery, the changes to their bodies...all the things that other people pretend are "so worth it" to have their children. Then they'll end the TikTok by saying something like, "Don't get me wrong, I love my child(ren), and I wouldn't change my life. But...if you don't already have children DON'T DO IT."

I've got to be honest, it's nice to have a moment with a random person who understands something so important and validates those feelings. It's nice to see someone who made a choice show you why the choice they made isn't for everyone, even when they themselves don't regret their choice. The honesty itself instead of the extreme cognitive dissonance that we usually see from parents is such a breath of fresh air.

[counting-stars-gayly]

I’m actually LOVING how Rick Riordan, and the other writers of the show, took his initial concept of a Percabeth rivalry fueled by that of their parents and kind of turned it on its head?

Now, instead of Annabeth being wary of Percy because he’s a son of Poseidon, he’s wary of her because she made a callous impression on him. They get off to a rocky start even before finding out who Percy’s father is, and when they finally do, Annabeth doesn’t care. Instead of them fighting because of who their parents are, they’re fighting over their own opposed worldviews.

Then, instead of them arguing over which of the gods is cooler and who was right in the story of Medusa, they realize that, just like Medusa, Annabeth is a victim of her mother and that, unlike Medusa, she is a far kinder and stronger person, unwilling to repeat the cycle of hurt. They realize that, like his father, Percy often acts without considering potential consequences and that, unlike his father, he is a far kinder and stronger person, willing to step up for someone he wronged and whom he cares about.

Instead of Percy and Annabeth’s rivalry being focused on that of their parents, it’s focused on who they are, themselves. But the path to friendship is still the same: a realization that they have each other’s backs, no matter what, because they’re not their parents after all.

[crispydinosaurstrawberry]

Long week - Covid 19

Last week didn’t get off to a great start. I had been feeling run down for a few days as our youngest wasn’t sleeping properly again. We spent most of last weekend taking it in turns to stay up with him as he kept getting up. Looking back, it might have been a sign of what was to come. On the Monday night, I was having some muscle ache which was a bit out of the ordinary, but I put it down to…

[ofswordsandpens]

oh and I sincerely believe that Poseidon telling Percy "You're my favorite child" was absolutely a manipulation tactic/power play and it worked

[littlemagics]

Planting seeds.  Seeing familiar faces in unfamiliar places. Neighbors delivering gifts to neighbors.  The trust of an open door. Small world moments.  The magnitude of having people who people who have your back. Fresh starts and new beginnings.  Getting presents from your kids.  Working through hard stuff with your kids.  The graceful bending of the willow in the wind storm. How she dances and lets it huff and puff right on by.  The winds of change.  Grateful memories of ancestors and their living presence now.  Sweet sleepy breaths next to me. 

[artiststarme]

Steve’s parents kicked him out one afternoon. After being gone for months and ignoring their son, they came home one random day with anger on their mind and words of vitriol on their lips. They spewed hateful slurs and rants of disappointment before warning him to be out before dinner. His pleas and promises fell on deaf ears as they immediately went back to ignoring the son they never wanted in the first place.

But Steve didn’t have anywhere to go. He could have gone to Robin’s but her parents wouldn’t want him there and it would probably be awkward for her. He could’ve hidden in the Wheeler’s basement like El had way back when but he didn’t really want to cohabitate with his ex and her parents. No, it was better to spare everyone the grief of having him around.

It wasn’t a surprise when he found himself at the edge of the quarry. His feet were dangling on the edge and the knuckles on his hands were bruised from fights. With a cigarette between his lips and a beer in his hand, he thought to himself, ‘would it even matter if I jumped?’

It really wouldn’t, would it? He was just a side character in everyone else’s story anyhow. The kids would be fine without him, Robin would move on, and his parents probably wouldn’t even notice. Hopper was gone, the Byers had moved away, and not many people liked him beside them. He wasn’t a friend or a mentor, he was only a bother kept around to protect the kids when the world fell apart. No one needed him around anymore. After that revelation, it wasn’t a will to live that kept him seated on the edge but only a desire to finish his last cigarette.

When the cig was burned down to the filter and his beer was drained dry, Steve stood to his feet and looked into the distance. This was it for him, the end of his story. He lifted his foot and…

He might’ve jumped had it not been for Eddie Munson’s freak antics. The man appeared seemingly out of nowhere with haphazard pulls and tackles. He bodily hurled Steve away from the edge and frantically rambled in a way that would only rival Robin’s word vomit. The comparison confused Steve enough in his forlorn state to be thrown into a smelly van filled with marijuana and screamy rock music.

And when Steve finally caught a glimpse of the man’s long curly hair, ringed hands, and long throat, his mind stopped working.

Did he get kidnapped? Yes.

Did it cause him to have a sexuality crisis amidst everything else? Yes.

Did he eventually get an unexpected boyfriend out of the deal? Also yes.

Perhaps his parents kicking him out was the best thing that could’ve happened to Steve. He moved in with Eddie “the kidnapper” Munson and his parental Uncle Wayne that took Steve under his wing immediately. He evolved from his darkest thoughts and started thinking of the future. And when the Upside Down came around again, he was approaching it from the best headspace he could. Through it all, he had Eddie by his side and he’d appreciate that for as long as he had him.

[bunnieswithknives]

OH MY GOD??? HAS IT SERIOUSLY BEEN A MONTH????? I am so sorry guys

Prev | Next

[stil-lindigo]

it’s 10pm. do you know who you are?

[rebouks]

Previous // Next

Courtney: I was thinking-.. maybe you don’t need to get the snip after all. [Oscar paused for a moment; brow raised] Courtney: Don’t get your hopes up! Oscar: Getting mixed messages here, Cookie. Courtney: I went to the doctor a few we-.. months ago. Oscar: Uh-huh? Courtney: She thinks I’m going through the change, or at least the beginning of it. Oscar: Oh. Courtney: It makes sense, I started early and I’m almost forty-five. Oscar: Why didn’t you tell me sooner? Courtney: ‘Cause I knew it’d make you sad, and with everything else… [Oscar grumbled reluctantly, supposing he understood why she’d kept it to herself] Courtney: Awh I’m sorry, Oscy.. I know you wanted more. Oscar: No, it’s fine-.. I just love ‘em when they’re new n’ tiny, and you look extra cute when you’re pregnant. Courtney: I never felt cute. Oscar: Well, you were-.. I don’t blame you for not wanting to go through it all again though. Courtney: [snorts] Yeah, ugh-.. but I’ve been thinking about something else as well. Oscar: Careful how much you use that smooth brain of yours. Courtney: [laughs] Shut up-.. maybe when the kids are older and we get empty nest syndrome, we could foster? Oscar: That’d be pretty neat, actually. Courtney: We’ve been through it and we’ve still got a lot to give, right?

[artbyfuji]

ask about her bottle opening tricks 🌻

[luxaofhesperides]

We Are Robins meeting to Signal apprehending Danny ; requested by @zylev-blog!

“Hey, Danny. How are you feeling?”

Danny gives Duke a tired smile, his head falling back against the wall. He’s sitting up today, which is good. It’s definitely an improvement from the many days Danny was unable to do much but lie down and grit his teeth through the pain as Duke checked on the gunshot wound. It’s a good thing Danny’s a meta with a healing factor, or nothing Duke could have done would have saved him.

As it is, the wound was severe enough to keep Danny vulnerable and unable to move on his own without making it worse. Though Duke has looked, he hasn’t had any luck in finding whoever did this to Danny. He hasn’t brought it up to the rest of the We Are Robin gang, but only because Danny only let him help if he kept it between the two of them.

What’s another secret? If it lets him stay close to Danny and make sure he’s healing well, then he’ll keep quiet and carry on the search by himself. He’s got plenty of practice in doing things on his own.

“Busy out there?” Danny asks as Duke sits down next to him, dropping his backpack onto the ground. 

“Yeah, it’s tough with the cops after us, but someone needs to help Gotham and with Batman gone…”

A pained expression crossed Danny’s face. Eyeing him carefully, Duke opened his backpack and pulled out a few protein bars and sports drinks for him. Once Danny takes them and began eating one, Duke takes out the first aid kit, always kept at the bottom of the backpack, and sets it in front of Danny.

The most he can do is offer supplies and company at this stage of Danny’s healing. He gets twitchy and tense when Duke tries to tend to his wound, and seems to have plenty of practice in patching himself up. 

He didn’t answer when Duke commented on it once, so Duke let the matter drop. 

Metas may have legal protection, but that doesn’t stop people from targeting them. Duke has no intention of pushing Danny into remembering unpleasant things while he’s already wounded, hiding out in the upper corner of an abandoned warehouse taken over by a group of homeless people. Most aren’t inside during the day, choosing instead to be out with the rest of the city, which leaves them alone. 

Duke keeps an eye on the ground floor of the warehouse, making sure no one comes in while Danny tends to his wound. When he peeks back, he can see that it’s much smaller than it was the night Duke found him, crawling down an alley with one hand clutching his side, tears slipping down his face. There had been so much blood that Duke was sure he had just stumbled upon someone dying and froze, horrified. 

And then a shout down the road prompted him to move, hauling Danny up and helping him into the warehouse to hide. 

For a normal person, if it didn’t kill them, the wound would still be raw and bleeding, larger than any gunshot wound he’s seen before. But Danny’s wound is closing up quickly, no longer bleeding, the edges a healing pink.

It doesn’t look like it’s going to scar, either. 

“Think it’ll be all healed up by the end of the week?”

Danny glances up, then continues covering it with new bandage, large enough to cover the entire wound. “Hopefully,” he says. “Then I’ll be out of your hair and can figure out a way to get home.”

“Your folks gonna look out for you?”

“Probably. I’m not planning on telling them, though, since they’ll get way too overprotective. The only reason they’re not tearing Gotham apart looking for me is because I came here with my godfather and he told them we’d be gone for two weeks. Can’t believe he tried to kill me on day one…”

“Your godfather tried to kill you?”

“Yeah. Not personally, or anything, but he definitely hired the guy who shot me. Though he also yelled at him for shooting me? Not sure what that’s about, but I never trusted the guy and he didn’t try to help me afterwards when I ran away, so. You know.”

Duke wants to have a conversation with Danny’s godfather. Maybe bring the other Robins along to make sure the message sinks in: Don’t touch Danny.

But Danny, acting so casual about his godfather trying to kill him, would be unhappy about it, and Duke would really rather be able to take care of him than be shut out for trying to take control of the situation.

“Shit, man, that sucks,” he offers, instead of prying for details so he can hunt down his godfather. “You want a hug or something? I can’t really do much else, but if it can make you feel better about all this…”

Danny brightens and shoves the first aid kit away, his shirt (one of Duke’s old ones he offered up to replace the bloodstained one) falling to cover the bandage. “Please. I would love a hug, dude, I don’t remember the last time I felt so lonely.”

Carefully, Duke wraps his arms around Danny, leaning back so Danny could relax fully and not worry about holding himself up. Danny sighs into the hug, going fully limp as he drops his forehead onto Duke’s shoulder.

“Thanks for this. And everything,” Danny says some time later. He doesn’t move to pull away, so Duke stays as he is, watching the weak sunlight slowly move across the warehouse as it spills in from dirty windows. 

“You don’t need to thank me. I mean, I’m a Robin.” He brings up a hand to tap a finger against the R embroidered into his jacket. “It’s what we’re here for.”

.

.

.

It’s been years since he saw Danny. After he was fully healed, Duke helped him get to city limits, watching as he boarded a bus and disappeared down the road, leaving his life just as suddenly as he entered it.

After spending so much time together, quiet hours of stillness just looking out for each other, his life feels emptier without Danny in it. He knew it wouldn’t last, that Danny would go home eventually, but it didn’t make the parting any easier.

Even now, as Signal, taking a break from going on missions with the Outsiders to spend some time with the Bats, his thoughts drift towards Danny, wondering if he’s alright. In his darker moments, he wonders if Danny’s godfather has tried to kill him again, if he’s succeeded. In calmer, happier moments, he remembers Danny’s quiet stories about his family, his town, all his dreams and hopes for the future, remembers the easy company and how Danny didn’t look at him with pity when talked about his parents, just quiet and contemplative. 

Sometimes, he can’t resist the urge to look him up, but there are so many Danny’s out there that he doesn’t know where to start. He never got Danny’s last name or learned when he came from.

It’s not like he can just ask the Bats for help finding a guy he knew for two weeks before he ever joined them. They’re all busy with their own missions, and definitely don’t have time for Duke’s reminiscing. 

“Just caught sight of the truck entering city limits,” Oracle says in his ear. “It’s heading towards the Coventry.”

“On it. Any movement from the mobs?”

“None yet. I expect this to change soon. Red Hood and Black Bat are patrolling nearby if you need backup.”

“Got it. Signal out.”

His comline shuts with a little click, and then he’s grappling over the roof tops, keeping an eye on the roads in search of the truck. He doesn’t have time to think of Danny anymore, not when a shipment of new, experimental weapons is passing through Gotham. Spoiler had heard a few whispers of it and Red Robin helped find more solid details; the mobs are all looking to take the shipment for themselves in an attempt to get the upper hand in the nonstop fight for control of Gotham’s streets. 

It’s passing through during the day, visible and a good move to keep from being ambushed at night, but it’s not enough to stop mobs hoping to take out their competition with new weapons. Duke enters the Coventry just as his comline beeps once and Oracle begins giving him specific directions, along with a brief description of what the truck looks like. 

Apparently, the weapons are being moved in a U-Haul rental truck. That is… certainly a Choice™ to make for moving weapons around the country.

He follows it from the rooftops, but nothing happens. The truck passes through the Coventry without incident and takes a turn that keeps it away from Crime Alley and the Bowery. It gets to the middle of East End then pulls to a stop in the parking lot of a diner. 

Two people get out and stretch, then head in to get something to eat.

It would be the perfect time for someone to break in. Duke pulls the light over himself, manipulating it to make him disappear from sight as he looks down from the edge of the rooftop, tense and prepared for anything.

He almost doesn’t see it at first. It’s just a flicker, a flash of color, a shift in the shadows across the street. But he does see it, even if he can’t find it again, and drops down from the roof, creeping towards the truck.

Duke waits, holding his breath, off to the side of the parking lot. 

A minute passes. And then a figure materializes out of thin air, floating right behind the truck. All Duke can see is white hair and a black body suit; they’re either a meta or an alien, but either way, Duke is ready to take them down.

The figure lifts their hands and a bolt of neon green energy hits the truck, melting the back and leaving a large hole that gives them direct access to the weapons. And then they shoot again, destroying the weapons.

“Phantom!” someone shouts, and the truck driver comes tearing out of the restaurant, a white gun in his hand. His companion follows, her gun also out, and the begin shooting. 

Phantom dodges the blasts, then vanishes from sight. He reappears behind them a moment later, tackling back of them into the side of the truck. 

“No you don’t!” Duke say, rushing forward as he pulls at the shadows around him then sends them racing towards Phantom, restraining them. The driver and his companion collapse onto the ground, groaning weakly, and Duke grits his teeth. “O, send someone to look after the people moving the weapons. Apprehending an attacker now.”

He doesn’t wait to hear a response, tightening the shadow’s grip on Phantom, who struggles fiercely.

“We can do this the hard way, or the easy way,” he says, pulling Phantom closer to him.

Phantom doesn’t answer. They just scream, the force of it making Duke fall back. His shadows dissipate, and Phantom flies up.

“Get back here!”

Duke gives chase, dropping in and out of shadows, throwing some at Phantom in the hopes of catching him again. But Phantom is fast and it takes all he has to keep up as they cross Gotham.

He thought Phantom was flying around blindly, but the way they move across the roofs and then through the streets are too confident, too focused to be anything other than someone with a destination in mind. But where? Where could they be going? If they’ve been in Gotham, then Duke would have heard of them.

A flying, powerful meta with a multitude of powers? Yeah, he would have known about them.

Phantom flies through a wall and Duke curses, going onto the roof and looking around, waiting to see them fly out. But they don’t and Duke finds a broken skylight to drop in from, landing on the support beams of the warehouse, well above the ground.

He knows the warehouse, he realizes suddenly. It’s the warehouse Danny hid in while he was healing. Duke hasn’t been back in years.

“Just listen to me, please,” a voice says behind him, and Duke tense, spinning around to face Phantom, floating just out of reaching distance. “Those weapons are dangerous. No one should have them, it’s why I had to destroy them. Please, you can’t let them get those weapons out.”

Duke stares. Something about Phantom is familiar. The shape of his face, maybe. His voice. Maybe it’s just because he’s in the warehouse again, with someone pleading for his help.

Maybe it’s all in his mind.

“Danny?”

Phantom flinches, floating back a few inches. “What— How—”

“What happened? Is it your godfather again?”

“My— Duke? Is that you?!”

He definitely shouldn’t be doing this, but Danny’s here. Danny’s here in front of him, needing help, and he doesn’t need the Signal. He needs Duke.

He pulls off his helmet and lifts his bare face to Danny.

“Oh,” Danny breathes. “Well. I guess I should have known you’d be a hero. Can you help me one last time?”

“Yeah, of course Danny. Tell me what you need.”

“Those weapons, they were first made to kill me and others like me. It’s a whole thing I don’t have time to explain. But they’ve been changed to affect humans, all types of people, as well. I can survive a few hits from those weapons, but for most people, it would kill them instantly. I need to destroy all of them and stop any further production before the rest of the world gets a hold of them.”

“That’s why you—”

“They have to be destroyed,” Danny says. “And the people making and selling them need to be stopped. I can’t do it on my own. I’ve tried, but…”

“I’ll help,” Duke says, “I’ll help. This is a big enough problem to bring the Outsiders into it. Or the Bats, but they like to stay in Gotham.”

Danny floats closer, looking painfully relieved. “Really? They’ll be able to put an end to this?”

Duke reaches for him. “Yeah. they can do it. I’ll make sure of it.”

Danny’s feet land on the support beam as his hand meets Duke’s. They balance above the rest of the warehouse, drinking in the sight of each other. Duke rubs his thumb over Danny’s knuckles in soothing circles and watches as the tension begins to fall away from Danny’s shoulders.

“Duke,” he whispers, “I’ve missed you—”

The door below is kicked open, and a gunshot rings out. 

Moving on instinct, Duke tackles Danny, wrapping him up in his arms as they fall off the support beam. They hit the ground hard, rolling a bit, and Duke tucks Danny into his chest, bodily protecting him.

“Narrows!” 

The Red Hood stands over him, menacing, a gun pointed at him. 

“Hood?” He loosens his grip on Danny. “What the hell was that for?” 

“Thought you needed back up. You chased after our guy and lost your helmet, I think I’m right to be a little worried about you. So, who’s this?” There’s a hard edge to his voice, and Duke realizes with a sinking heart that all anyone else sees is an aggressor, a meta who attacked a truck full of weapons, attacked two people, and had to be chased down by the Signal. Jason’s seeing a threat and acting accordingly, putting Duke’s safety first. 

And with his helmet off, identity clear, Danny’s even more dangerous now that he has this knowledge.

“I’m sorry,” Danny whispers to Duke. He doesn’t have time to ask for what? before Danny’s shooting another beam of green energy at Jason then taking off, flying through the roof and out of sight.

“Shit,” Jason mutters, straightening up from where he ducked to avoid being hit, then puts his gun away and kneels next to Duke. “You alright? Why’d you let him go? I thought you had him.”

“I’m fine. He’s not… He wasn’t going to hurt me. He just needed help.”

“Sure. And what are you not telling me?”

“I knew him. He’s a good person, but he’s been in danger for a long time. This was him trying to protect others from what he went through.”

Jason takes off the helmet and stares at him. Then he sighs and reaches a hand down to help Duke to his feet. “Alright,” he says, “Let’s head back to the truck. You have until then to convince me that they’re the problem, and if they are, then I’ll help you blow up more of their weapons.” He claps a hand on Duke’s shoulder, then pulls his helmet back on. “Grab your helmet. We’re wasting daylight, Narrows.”

There’s nothing else he can do, no way to search for Danny when there are other leads to chase, so Duke grapples up to the catwalk where his helmet landed and grabs it.

Just before he puts it on, he sees a flicker of white just outside the window he’s facing. He ducks his head to hide a smile. It’s almost like he’s stepped back in time; Danny’s here in Gotham, needing help and asking for it in the warehouse. 

And though so much has changed in those years, there’s still one thing that Duke will ensure never changes: he’s Danny’s hero. Above Robin, or Signal, or anything else, Duke is Danny’s hero.

This time, he has the power to actually help Danny. He’s going to make sure no one ever hurts Danny again.

“Let’s go,” he says, jumping back down to Jason, helmet on. “I’ll tell you everything you need to know.”

[howlonomy]

How would Starlo's family react to this new monster kid that is a cross between a fox, bird, and whatever Starlo is? Cause I'm just saying, Clover does share his tail, side head things, and yellow spots with Starlo, so it's safe to assume that Clover related to Starlo, from their perspective at least.

Or do they already know about the whole situation?

Either way, I'm imagining Starlo's parents looking at Clover and thinking "this is probably the closest we'll get to grandkids" and just start doting him.

IM SO GLAD U ASKED ABOUT THEM BC I WAS THINKING HOW SWEET THEY WOULD BE!!!! and then i got to draw it >:]

they are so smitten with clover after they get introduced by starlo. they kind of met with clover in the underground and after starlo told them all what happened, they respected clover a lot and saw the change they made to ceroba and star. so once theyre back they’re like welp. new grandchild!

orion (i think thats his name?) is like the older cousin u have that just thinks the younger kids are cringe. he cares but does not show it at all. crestina is NOT letting starlo say anything bad to clover. solomon big fun grandpa :]

[crispydinosaurstrawberry]

tears and frustration

[arthursfuckinghat]

The whole conversation between Arthur and Dutch on the way to Lagras in Country Persuits really is just the "I give you food and a roof over your head, you have no right to question me" argument you have with your parents

[music-movies-mayhem]

Thinking about Archer letting go of the idea of finding out who his father was vs. making sure that AJ will always know who her father is.

Thinking about all the holidays and lacrosse games Malory missed because she couldn’t let go of work vs. Archer finding time to take his daughter to the zoo even when he’s the target of an international man hunt.

Just thinking about Archer and AJ on this fine post finale evening.

[ovenproofowl]

holy shit happy father's day to Brainiac I guess ??