#i feel like a lot of it came from people trying to justify genuinely questionable parts of the ending

[izzyfishie]

IZZY'S PERSONAL INTERPRETATIONS ON GI-HUN AND IN-HO’S DYNAMIC

some friends encouraged me to finally post this long essay, so here i am!

some pre-post notes:

this is NOT an inhun analysis. the admin of this post does not like inhun whatsoever, nor do they feel the need to be "swayed" into liking inhun. this is just a non-romantic/non-sexual exploration of in-ho and gi-hun's dynamic, brushing past the surface.

however, this is also not an inhun hate post or an attack on those who do ship them. people are entitled to their own opinions, this just happens to be mine, as well as the select people who beta read this analysis post LOL

without further ado, let's get into things.

i think gi-hun confuses in-ho. and not in the “wow i’m gay for him haha” way everybody thinks.

gi-hun makes in-ho question his morals and person, to say the least. he’s confused, and likely angry about that fact. he manipulates gi-hun as young-il to show him the way the world works, and prove him wrong. i also feel like, like il-nam, he would take his beliefs to the grave. it’s just like. when you’re religious for the longest time and confirmation bias the shit out of that until suddenly all those beliefs are being refuted by somebody. that’s probably where the “slightly rooting for him” thing came from as well

but at the same time, in-ho still has anger and likely some sort of envy towards gi-hun — he is the thing in-ho is not morally. and gi-hun is breaking the system set up and breaking his cynical beliefs. so yes, despite what inhun fans think, i do really think he does want to see gi-hun suffer.

but no matter what, even if gi-hun were to show sympathy for in-ho despite his heinous crimes, i do not think in-ho will be fully forgiven, nor do i think he deserves forgiveness. he still has/had autonomy. his trauma can be an explanation, but never an excuse.

not to mention, we forget in-ho was previously a police officer. what do police officers do? guys.. acab.. come on.. i refuse to believe in-ho was fully a good person before the games. until there is genuine concrete canonical proof, i cannot believe it. did he have good qualities? yes. everybody has good and bad qualities. but i also believe he developed a lot of cynicism and moral disengagement over the years, and the games later solidified that.

when he’s playing as young-il, he’s trying to play god, and show gi-hun reality. he does this in many ways – puts their lives on the line during the six-legged pentathlon, uses his words in ways to make gi-hun fall down a pit of questioning, etc. but gi-hun never breaks! and this confuses the shit out of in-ho.

i do firmly believe in-ho is a bad person beyond redemption. nothing can excuse the thousands of deaths he oversaw willingly. unless we somehow find out he’s being forced or coerced into this, which is highly unlikely considering his genuine beliefs on humanity, it is made evident that in-ho is willingly doing this.

at the end of the day, he still did the things he did. he still toyed with lives, and oversaw the deaths and displacement of thousands. he believes he’s doing the right thing, but does that really justify any of it? it does not.

another thing i want to say. i believe gi-hun would give in-ho mercy, not forgiveness. gi-hun is a good person. but he is not naive. he is strongly set on his morals and has been affected deeply by the games set up, and would likely show in-ho mercy without absolution. he never forgave il-nam, did he? (i know it’s not exactly the same since il-nam set the games up but in-ho is still endorsing them!! he still has autonomy despite what people will say. that’s why i said mercy.)

“but izzy,, he forgave sang-woo!”

and this is where i diverge from the topic for a moment.

sang-woo and gi-hun had a past. gi-hun knew sang-woo in ways he didn’t know in-ho or other people. also, there’s no way gi-hun would have immediately forgiven sang-woo. like i said, he is very strongly set on his morals. gi-hun would forgive sang-woo at some point because he knows sang-woo, and he knows the kid in sang-woo that wouldn’t have done this. they had a strong connection. also also.. sang-woo is a victim of the games. it’s not like he had a choice; he was just trying to survive, as was everybody in the games.

season 2 gi-hun has also learned that the players are not at fault. i think that notion would help him show more forgiveness for sang-woo. while yes, he KNOWS killing is wrong, i think s2 gi-hun has definitely realized more that they are the victims, not the ones to blame, the GAME MASTERS are (cough IN-HO). therefore, i think while gi-hun didn't forgive sang-woo right off the bat, his development, along with his genuine CARE for him would have. anybody who denies they care for each other is just pure wrong. while s1 gi-hun was fighting for himself and his mother, and FOR THE MONEY, s2 gi-hun is fighting for the players as a whole. that sentiment definitely set in after the limo scene AND il-nam and his final interaction!!

this is also why the in-ho to sang-woo pipeline comparison doesn’t sit 100% well with me. they have similarities, of course, and they’ve both done questionable things. they also have both challenged gi-hun’s morals. but sang-woo’s actions CANNOT compare to the extremity of in-ho’s situation. people may deny it as much as they want, but in-ho is fucked. up. as stated earlier, trauma is not an excuse for that. sang-woo was thrown into a situation that, might i add, in-ho assisted in. gi-hun is sympathetic of the players, seeing them as the victims in this situation. and YES i KNOW in-ho was a player so don’t jump on my dick with that argument. VOLITIONAL AUTONOMY is key here. gi-hun would physically not be able to understand why in-ho turned out the way he did.

alright. back to the original topic.

now, about gi-hun’s feelings on young-il… i don’t think he has more feelings for young-il as opposed to the other players. “young-il” made himself more visible to gi-hun intentionally, and did what he could to get closer to him, which does make it kind of impossible to ignore somebody like that. i don’t think gi-hun was more drawn to young-il. as we’ve said before, young-il made himself appear more. when somebody is in your proximity, you think about them more. also, as i’ve said before, “young-il” had a child and a wife at home!! gi-hun likely feels a lot of responsibility and sympathy. and we see this with jun-hee, too. it doesn’t feel like the same “if you die I will feel empty inside because i'd miss your company” we see with jung-bae or sang-woo. to me, it reads more as the guilt and general sympathy that this man has a wife and an unborn child that he has the possibility of losing. young-il just made those feel more personal by getting close to gi-hun and, yes, manipulating him.

in conclusion, in-ho and gi-hun have a very compelling dynamic that to me personally gets ruined when romance comes into play. people are entitled to their own opinions but the general mischaracterization of in-ho pisses me off and i really don’t see them working out in a romantic sense whatsoever.

[williceunleashed]

Ok I might've already asked this but I can't remember anything from the past five days so I'm asking again oopsies. QUESTION! Ghetsis's Hydregion. Specifically the one from black and white 2 that evolved 12 levels too soon, carried a life orb, and hits VERY hard with frustration. A lot of people (including myself) interpret that as meaning he's an incredibly cruel/abusive trainer. I'm very curious if that differs in your au, especially knowing that Melony's Zweilous came from Ghetsis. What's he like as a trainer, and what's his perspective on his pokemon :O

TW abuse !!!

Ghetsis is abusive to his Hydreigon, and would likely be to the grunts and the rest of his pokémon team... He was apparently already agressive to his grunts by BW1 ! Melony was just a lucky exception because he provided a comfort to Ghetsis no one else could. And also because Melony would 100% fistfight Ghetsis if Ghetsis started trying to manhandle him, and Mel would probably win

It's important to know that Melony is a victim of Plasma to a certain extent. He is totally responsible of his acts, and he chooses to be a bad person, but he was also put in a situation in which violence was totally normalized to him for years. He didn't see Ghetsis abusing Hydreigon as absolutely horrible, to him it was more of a "for the greater good" situation. Melony thought that it was a bad for a good, that it would benefit everyone in the end, and that Hydreigon could handle it. It's an abbhorent and cruel way of thinking, but it is what was drilled into him for several years. This also applies to Melony himself, Melony would have accepted to be abused if he felt like it would benefit their goals. By the past, Melony himself abused Dardanne, genuinely thinking it was the right thing to do, and that it would make Dardanne stronger. To Melony it was never abuse, it was just something that was needed to make one a better version of themselves. Melony does some very specific mental gymnastic to justify what he does

Post BW2, after everything failed, when Ghetsis is left broken and when Melony himself lost around 15% of his body, he feels angry. It is directed to no one in particular, but he feels incredibly angry. Melony destroys the last remnants of Ghetsis' plans, which is Ghetsis' team. He takes Ghetsis' pokémon away, puts the Pokémon back in Ghetsis' PC, and shuts down his PC entierely. In USUM, it is said that once the owner dies or disappears, once their PC is shut down, the Pokémon in their PC will be given to their closest relatives, or released in the wild. In Ghetsis' case, his Pokémon went to either N, Concordia or Anthea.

Melony is always kind of wary when his Zweilous is near Ghetsis. Melony might love Ghetsis, but he isn't stupid, and he won't let Ghetsis alone with his Zweilous. It's the same for their kid Nach, for a long time Melony insists on being Nach's main caretaker because deep down, he doesn't want Nach to have the childhood N, Anthea and Concordia had. Even if Ghetsis doesn't have enough energy to even scream anymore, Melony prefers to be safe than sorry.

[maxdibert]

tbh call me weird but I actually forgive anything Snape did, my baby can do no wrong. Called Lily a slur? Not his fault, he's a baby. Joined the DEs? He was just being a silly lil boi. Bullied students? Why were they bothering my angel

From my genuine moral perspective, I truly think that nothing he did was that bad. I do understand, however, that his path to redemption was something he needed in order to forgive himself because, from his perspective, he saw that he had messed up a lot and needed to redeem himself in some way because the guilt was just too much. I also understand that some people might feel highly triggered by his behavior throughout the saga and can't stand him, find him unbearable, or can’t forgive him. I mean, I get it all, and I think it’s legitimate.

However, if you ask me personally, not in a critical way, not analyzing the character, but me as I am, if I think Severus was a good person, I would say no, but then I’d ask, who is really a good person? I mean, most people are a piece of shit to some extent. And, honestly, I’ve forgiven characters for much worse things. I’ve overlooked Jaime Lannister throwing a kid off a tower and leaving him paralyzed, I’ve forgiven Silco for being a kind of Pablo Escobar who plunged his city into a drug epidemic, I’ve forgiven Sofia Falcone for killing people who had nothing to do with her personal revenge, or Penguin for being basically a Silco who exploits vulnerable kids to get what he wants. I’ve forgiven Crocodile from One Piece for trying to build a mafia to economically and socially destroy an entire kingdom just for the pleasure of getting rich, just like I’ve forgiven Donquixote Doflamingo for being a dictator, and I’ve forgiven Itachi Uchiha for killing dozens of people in cold blood despite his intentions. I don’t know, I’ve even forgiven Azula for being a psychopath capable of killing her brother. What I mean is, I like and overlook a lot of shit from characters who are objectively worse and have done objectively worse or morally questionable things than Severus. For God’s sake, Severus Snape is a morally ambiguous character in a saga for kids and young teens, he’s literally a baby compared to any morally questionable character in a lore for an older audience, his sins are laughable. I mean, what did he do wrong? Call a girl a slur who ended up marrying a bully, knowing beforehand that he was a bully? And so what? I’m sorry, but Lily Evans has zero moral grounds to complain about anything when she knew James spent years bullying people just because he felt like it, and then she goes and marries him. Who the hell does that? If Lily Evans came to me after marrying that jerk to give me a moral lecture, I’d slap her across the face. There’s only one thing I hate more than overly moralistic people, and that’s moralistic people who are also cynical. Then what did he do? Join some kind of extremist cult because he was a vulnerable teenager who didn’t see any future for his life anywhere else? Ooooh, how bad. And then what? Be a nasty teacher? Jesus, I’ve had horrible teachers, and compared to them, Snape was a fucking junior. He was a Junior in Asshole Student, I swear. I’m sorry, but I don’t justify his actions, they just seem like nonsense to me. If there was a meeting for morally questionable characters, dark gray to almost black, his peers would probably laugh at him for literally not having done anything even a fifth as bad as they have, lol.

[alovesongtheywrote]

nightmare academia puts me through the ringer EVERY TIME and i love it

♥ Summary: in a few chapters, it's gonna get worse!! for now tho... In this chapter of Nightmare Academia, case stuff ensues and you prepare for heartbreak. [Prof!Spencer Reid x GN-Prof!Reader]

♥ Warnings: cops. cops being terrible, cops exploiting the system, and cops shaming a woman for being a sex worker. also, violence, implied violence, and past violence.

♥ A/N: holy shit, this chapter is Very Long

♥ Word Count: 4885

Series Masterlist

♥♥♥

In the weeks that followed, Spencer brought the BAU to you.  Of course, not everyone could make it.  Kate Callahan was off raising her children.  Penelope Garcia was the target of several  hitmen (whereas Frank was probably the target of a single hitman.  Massive difference.  Trust me.)  And Derek Morgan remained at Quantico with Garcia- so you really weren’t sure what to expect.  The agents you had the strongest feelings about were out of commission.  The last time you’d met his team it did not uh, how would you put it?  End well?  So you were- justifiably- a touch guarded.

That changed. Eventually.

It started with Adam.  

At that point in the investigation, local law enforcement had only shown your friend cruelty, distrust, and skepticism.  Honestly?  You were about to start biting people about it.  (Yeah, maybe it would have gotten you arrested, but at that point, you did not care.  At the very least, biting would make you feel productive.)  You were well and truly prepared for Spencer’s law enforcement team to behave in a similar manner to the local cops- and to be honest, you probably should have been.  Most Feds would carry that same suspicion and distrust, and if they didn’t they were probably faking it to try and get a confession.  

The BAU, however, are not most Feds.  For several reasons.  Either way, you were well and truly prepared to maul the next person who treated your friend like garbage, fed or otherwise.  There was never a need.

The BAU showed Adam basic decency.  They didn’t talk down to him or dismiss him as a demeaning stereotype- and yes, that was the barest of bare minimum, but it was still something.  While they regarded him with mild suspicion for the first like, two minutes, it only took the team that same two minutes to come to the conclusion that Adam was innocent.  After that, the BAU was just as dedicated to clearing Adam’s name as you were.

“Adam had an incredibly emotional response when we mentioned Frank,” Hotchner explained to the local detectives, “He’s genuinely devastated by what happened.  He couldn’t have done this.  Even if he did attack Frank, it wouldn’t have been a clinical hit.”

“Emotions tend to make things messy- we would have seen something much more personal, with more violence and more remorse,” Rossi added.

The detectives did not listen.  The detectives did not care.  

“I’d say a gunshot wound is pretty messy,” one laughed.

“Yeah,” another jumped in, “Try telling the vic’ that things aren’t messy.”

You bit your tongue to keep from screaming, but you didn’t stay entirely silent.  If the detectives weren’t going to give a shit on their own, then you were going to make them.

“Have you actually?” you asked, crossing your arms, “Have you spoken to the victim?”

“Eh, someone else got around to it,” the first detective asked, looking at his partner with the special kind of uncertainty that came with getting called out.

“Did you read the report, then?”

“Well, I’m on the case, aren’t I?”

“Answer the question, detective.”

In the telling silence that followed, Rossi had to turn away to hide his (failed) attempt to suppress a grin.  Hotchner looked proud, despite not knowing you very well.  Spencer looked like he might grab you by the waist and kiss you until you were out of breath.  He didn’t, though, for lots of reasons- his boss was there, he hadn’t asked you if you’d like to be kissed, there was more serious stuff to focus on, and like… you already looked fucking pissed.

The detectives just looked embarrassed.  

“I- uh.  I’ve skimmed it,” the first detective stuttered out.

“Yeah, cool, not good enough,” you nabbed the case file from a nearby desk and pressed it into the officer’s hands, “Consider reading the report.  You’ll find that the victim disagrees with you.”

Both detectives stared at the file as if they were seeing it for the first time- as if they were seeing a file for the first time.  You sighed.

“Detective, if I may ask, how much overtime have you put in on this case?”  the man in front of you blanched at your question.  You would’ve laughed if you weren’t so fucking angry, “Cool.  I thought so.”

“Ough,” Rossi winced with faux sympathy, “Overtime?  And you haven’t even read the case file?”

“Hey, we’ve been very busy these last few weeks!”

The second officer nodded, “Just last week, we had five break-ins in the downtown area.”

“Alright, I’ll accept that,” you turned to leave before doubling back, “But before I go, I need to ask- do you care about the wellbeing of the break-in vics the way you care about this case?  Do you care about all victims so dearly?  Or do you treasure their testimony the way you “treasure” the testimony in this case?”

“What?  What are you saying, what do you-”

“I’m gonna go out on a limb and assume it’s the latter.”  

“What?  Okay, what the hell do you know about police work-!”

“They’re an expert criminologist,” Spencer said, seething slightly.

“Dr. Reid is right.  I know a thing or two about crime- and if I’m just gonna put it this way.  I’ve seen the data.  I’ve heard testimony from victims and offenders.  I know the local and nationwide statistics for unreported crimes.  You’re concerned about the victim hearing that his case isn’t messy?  Look me in the eye and tell me that you’ve never told a victim that their situation- their serious situation- was a waste of police time.”

The officers couldn’t look at your face, much less your eyes.  You had done what you needed to do.

“You wanna solve crimes?  You wanna be the hero?  Then take a goddamned ethics class, read your fucking case files, care for your community, and do your fucking job.”

The detectives tried in vain to defend themselves.  They were unsuccessful- especially in the face of the three FBI agents that immediately backed you up.

“Dr. (L/N) is right.  The number of unreported crimes will astound you,” Rossi said, smirking like the little shit that we all know he is.

“This is especially prevalent with sexual assault cases, theft and scams, and other crimes where the victim may feel a sense of embarrassment- or crimes where the victim feels like their case won’t be taken seriously,” Spencer added in a very Spencer-like way.

“And everything you need to know about this crime is in the file.  If you’d read it, you’d know that the victim is very insistent that your guy didn’t do it, and one could say that, oh, I don’t know, he’s a strong eyewitness.  He is the victim and all,” Rossi continued, getting their asses.

They struggled to respond, “Well- I-  We-”

“And even if you discount the eyewitness testimony, there’s still the matter of alibis and ballistics.  Security cameras have placed Adam away from the community center at the time of the shooting.  The ballistics aren’t a match to any weapon that Adam has ever come into contact with.  Even if they were a match, he hasn’t handled a weapon since his release from prison as a condition of his parole.  But if you had checked the file, you’d know that,” Hotch added, also smirking like a little shit, but with a slight edge to it- that edge, kids, is called “pissed off authority figure.”

“Hey, it-”

“It just sounds like poor police work to me,” Spencer had the biggest smirk of all- the smirk of a little shit who’s proud of his team and of his hot co-professor, “Had you actually done any of your research, you would realize that the suspect you have in custody is being held on police bias and circumstantial evidence.  Any good lawyer can get this case thrown out, and then where will you be?”

His smirk turned to a full grin when you shot him a small smile of your own.

The detectives continued to sputter out responses.  For once, the second one spoke, “Now, we may not be fancy FBI agents, but this precinct has a solid track record of convictions-”

“Were those convictions based on circumstance and bias?” Neither detective answered Spencer’s question.  He continued, “Even if this precinct had a perfect track record, that wouldn’t make it invulnerable to mistakes- and even if it did, you would still have the responsibility of approaching each case like professionals to ensure the wellbeing of victims, suspects, and families.”

“I couldn’t have said it better myself,” you slid forward, putting a hand on Spencer’s arm, “Now if you’ll excuse us, we’re going to go speak with the victim.  His name is Frank, by the way.”

And just like that, you pulled Dr. Spencer Reid away- and he did not resist in the slightest.  In fact, he held the door open for you as you exited the precinct.  Rossi was pretty sure he saw the kid get behind the wheel.

As the detectives scurried away with their tails between their legs, the older agent let out a long whistle.

“Well, I think it’s safe to say that our young Dr. Reid is officially smitten.”

“He was smitten the last time we were here,” Hotch said, pulling another copy of the case file from seemingly nowhere- one of his many unit chief powers.

“Yeah, yeah, but this time it’s bad.  Garcia’s gonna be mad that she didn’t get to see it.”

Hotch nodded, solemnly.

“Y’know, I think the three of them combined could probably take down the whole FBI.”

“You’re right,” Hotch snapped the file closed with a tiny little proud-dad-type smile, “We’re awfully lucky that they’re focused on something else at the moment.”

-

Missy got your guard to drop further.

Initially, she was hesitant to have the Feds drop in on Frank’s case- you both were.  You were used to local law enforcement treating her like shit.  You didn’t stand for it- every time a cop or lawyer so much as dared to look at her wrong, you bared your teeth like a damn dog and threatened to bite where it would hurt.  Y’know.  Lawsuits.  Missy wasn’t exactly a pushover, either.  She was one of the strongest people you knew, and you were well aware that she could hold her own.  If Missy wanted to be scary, she could be fucking terrifying.

Still, it was a little exhausting to fight all these battles against people in positions of authority who were so convinced that their series of events was correct, and anyone who went against it was nothing more than a lying ex-con.  Having the BAU in your pockets certainly helped with that.

“I already told you what happened.  I’ll tell you a thousand more times if I have to, but the story isn’t going to change,” Missy groaned, voice muffled as she buried her face in her hands.

“Okay, then.  We’ll go over your testimony again.  A few more times, if you don’t mind,” One of the local detectives smirked, ignoring the death glare you sent her way.

“Fine.  Frank was walking me to the community center.  I was taking a class on resume writing.  It was cloudy, not raining, but cold.  We came around the side of the building when a man in a leather jacket walked around the corner.”

“And what did this man do?”

“He- he shot Frank.  He tried to kill my-” she took a shaky breath.  You put a hand on her arm, aiming for gentle comfort and reassurance.  Missy nodded, letting you know you’d hit your target.

“Did you see his face?” The officer continued.

“No.  He was wearing one of those bike helmets that block off the person’s eyes- but I swear, it wasn’t Adam.  This guy was too bulky.  Adam’s made of wires, he needs to eat more.”

“You seem to have a lot of affection for Adam,” the detective leaned forward, “Now, we know you’ve claimed to be in a relationship with Frank- but could you describe your relationship with Adam for us?”

“I already said it!  I took a couple classes with him!  He’s a friend, that’s all.”

“Mhmm.  That’s all.  And in your previous line of work- the one that earned you a prison sentence of twelve months and a little over minimum wage- you had a lot of ‘friends,’ yes?”

“Excuse me?” your fingers bit into the table that separated you from the cop.  You had half a mind to jump over the thing and throttle the smug detective sitting before you.  

“What?” Missy growled, “You think just because I used to hook I fuck all my friends now?  I’ve taken a few classes with Doc (L/N), I haven’t fucked them!”

You nodded in solemn agreement.  The detective shrugged this off, ignoring everything that came out of Missy’s mouth.  When she spoke again, her voice rang with the faux pity of someone who held themselves leagues above Missy.

“You know, I can see why you were looking at writing up a resume- your old line of work is so degrading.  You know you’re never the same, afterwards.  You can never wash off the shame.  You’ll always be a little broken.  A little-”

“Okay, that’s enough-” you stood up, slamming your hands down on the table.

“Hey, fuck you, man-” Missy leaned forward, “Don’t tell me what hooking did to me.  You don’t know me.  You don’t fucking know.”

“And now you’re lashing out.  Poor thing-”

“Detective Foy.  A word,” Tara Lewis, a newer BAU agent who you hadn’t really had the pleasure of meeting materialized in the doorway like a perfectly timed ghost, ready to right some wrongs and keep you from committing a murder.  Her request for a word was perfectly intimidating, disclosing the not-so-secret secret that the request itself was not actually a request.  

“I’m sorry, Agent, I’m in the middle of an interrogation-” 

“It’s not an interrogation.  You’re questioning a witness.  Agent Jareau will handle things from here.  Now, a word?”

You and Missy watched as the detective slunk out of the room with her tail between her legs.  Moments later, JJ joined you, but she didn’t bother to start a line of questioning.  Instead, the three of you watched in giddy silence as Tara Lewis destroyed Detective Foy where she stood.  You couldn’t hear her through the glass, but you could vaguely read the words, “You are a police officer meant to serve and protect the people in your community, and uphold the law.  You should educate yourself on the law, and on what it means to serve and protect.”  On her lips.

You could’ve been off on that translation, but either way, it was sick as fuck.  By the time Tara was finished, you and Missy were barely holding back your laughter.  You probably would’ve held it in if JJ hadn’t turned around with a pleased grin on her face.

“Ok, well, I’ve known Agent Lewis for about three minutes, and already I adore her,” you cackled.

“Oh, she’s excellent,” Missy said, eyes sparkling with mirth.

“Well, we certainly like her,” Jennifer grinned, clearly proud of her teammate and happy to see that someone outside the BAU had taken notice.

A few moments later, Tara re-entered the room with a tired sigh on her lips.  It didn’t take her long to realize that you were all staring right at her.

“What?  What is it?”

“Oh, it’s nothing, we just think, as a group,” you looked around like you were the leader of the world’s weirdest (and maybe coolest?) group project, “That you are, objectively, excellent.”

“Yep.  Not bad for a Fed.”

Again, you nodded in agreement, “I concur.”

Tara raised an eyebrow, slightly confused, “Thank you?”

Missy gave Tara a thumbs up.  You followed her lead.  Not really knowing what else to do in this situation, and figuring there was no harm in joining the madness, Tara returned the thumbs up.

“Well, like we said, we’ll take over the questioning from here,” JJ took a seat as she spoke.  Tara joined her at the table.

“So, after Frank was shot, did you see where the attacker went?”

“No.  I was kind of focused on my partner bleeding on the ground.”

“That’s fair- but try to think back.  Did you see anything in your peripheral vision?  Did you hear anything?”

Missy paused for a moment, and when she spoke again, she still sounded lost in thought, “I heard a bike.  It makes sense with the helmet- I think it might’ve been a Yamaha?”  

“Wait, you can tell which brand a bike is by the sound?” you asked, not disbelieving Missy, but distracted by the new knowledge that a person could do such a thing.

“If you let me think about it, I could probably give you the make and model.”

“Holy shit, really?” your eyes were wide.  Your expression betrayed just how bewildered and impressed you were by vehicle knowledge.  It might’ve been basic knowledge, but fuck it, the author can’t drive.

“Oh, absolutely- different bikes make different sounds.  Cars are similar,” Tara nodded her agreement.

“You can tell cars apart by their sounds!?”

“Yeah?  Can’t you?” Missy turned to face you, slightly bemused.

“I can tell that they’re old?  Or like, electric, I guess?”

“Okay, when this is all over, I’m giving you a lesson.”

“I’d like to get in on that,” Tara added.

“Excellent!” Missy smiled, “Now everyone shut up and let me think.”

-

The way the BAU treated Frank dragged your guard down further.  They were gentle, but not dehumanizing or infantilizing.  They just treated him like a human person, and you found that neat, and more importantly, Frank found that neat.  

Also, the BAU laughed at Frank’s anecdotes and jokes.  I will be fully honest.  That was more of a relief to you, especially because a decent chunk of those anecdotes and jokes were about you murdering the shit out of Spencer Reid using nothing but your words.

It really started on that very first day, when you and Spencer had gone to visit Frank.  He could see it from his hospital bed- Spencer’s hand on your shoulder, the way Spencer was very clearly trying to comfort you from some unknown upset, and that was it.

Frank said, “Wow.  Those two have sure come a long way from Doc telling him to go die in a ditch.”

And JJ, who had been questioning him, choked on her coffee and wheezed out a, “What?”  

And that was pretty much it.  Frank explained that Spencer had pissed you off, you’d hit him with the “die in a ditch” thing, and he looked so sad that you literally forgave him the next day.  (He left out the bit about the stabbing, because stabbing doesn’t just kill people, it kills moods.)

From then on, Frank was the premium source of gossip on you and Spencer.  Of course, Missy got in on it, too.

When they told Rossi about the time you’d called Reid a “shit-licking asshole fed,” the agent laughed so hard that he literally couldn’t speak for a solid minute.  Was he a big fan of the anti-fed talk?  Not particularly.  But you had gone at it with such gusto, and with such anger, that he couldn’t help but cackle.  

You knew none of this, but you knew that everyone involved seemed happier after the BAU took the case.  That was good enough for you.

-

Your guard fell because of Spencer.

Wasn’t that always the way this was going to go?

While the BAU took care of your friends, Spencer took care of you.  He made sure you got home safe.  He kept you in the loop about everything case-relevant.  He made sure you remembered to eat, which was kind of hypocritical of him, but oh well.  He offered to drive you to and from the hospital, which was a fun kind of hell, because the man obeyed every traffic law ever made, but you got to bully him for it, so it all evened out in the end.  He distracted you from the nightmare you were living through by offering fun facts.  He made the nightmare better just by being him.  

And he was the one to get Adam out.  

He didn’t announce this victory to you.  He just showed up one day, at the hospital, following behind Adam as the newly freed man burst into Frank’s room.

“Frank!  Hey, are you good man?  I’m sorry I wasn’t here sooner, I would’ve been, but you know how it is with cops.”

“Shit, dude,” Frank beamed, “All things considered, I’m not too bad.”

“Holy shit, Adam?” you let out a hospital-appropriate screech.

“Oh my god,” Missy stood from her place at Frank’s bedside to give him a hug.  For a moment, she held him so tightly that it looked like Adam legitimately couldn’t breathe.

The moment she saw Spencer lingering in the background, she switched from one wire-shaped man to the next.  Spencer hugged her back politely, and then, in an instant, she was onto you.

“You sons of bitches did it!  You actually did it!”

“Did we?” you asked Spencer, lowering your voice as Missy, Frank, and Adam enjoyed their reunion.

“We did,” Spencer confirmed, stepping closer to you until you were side to side, whispering to each other to avoid disturbing your friends, “We found bank statements proving that this was a targeted hit, unrelated to Adam.  We’ve only been able to find the unsub’s side so far, but it won’t take us long to find whoever contracted him.” 

“Shit- that’s both really good and mildly fucking terrifying.”

“I know,” Spencer answered almost too quickly, but he covered it up just as fast, “But it means that Adam is a free man.  It’s almost over, (Y/N).”

You let out a small exhale, trying to maintain some semblance of calm, “Almost.  Thank you, Spence.  For all of this, for everything-”

“You don’t need to thank me.  It wasn’t just the new evidence.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah, there was this local criminology professor, maybe you’ve heard of them.  They were incredibly insistent that law enforcement look deeper into the case, and because of them, the conviction vanished.”

A smile slipped onto your face as you turned to face him, “Was that a joke, Spence?  You’re doing ha-ha funny jokes now?”

“I’m saying you did a good thing, here, (Y/N).  Look,” he nodded towards the hospital bed, where your friends were talking, beaming, clinging to each other’s hands like they’d been shot, traumatized, and separated for months- which was an accurate summary, actually.

At your side, you let your hand slip into Spencer’s, weaving your fingers between his slender ones.  You felt his grip tighten, his palm pressed tightly to yours.  His hands were warm.

“We did a good thing,” you whispered.

You pulled him closer by the hand.  You weren’t harsh or forceful, but Spencer still stumbled into you with what can only be described as a somewhat lovestruck grin on his face.

And then his phone rang.

You watched his face fall as he answered it.  His fingers drifted away from yours.  You could almost hear Hotchner’s voice on the other end.  The call only lasted a few moments, but it changed everything.  The air in the room grew heavy.  The room fell silent.

“We found the unsub.  My team is confronting him now, I-” he paused.

“They want you to go with them.”

“I have to.”

A shaky breath escaped your lungs, and you were kinda pissed at it- how dare that shaky breath reveal how you actually felt?  How dare it break free from your body, alerting Spencer that your world had just spun out sideways for the millionth time that week.

You were gonna square up with that fucking breath.

But first, without saying another word, you nodded towards the door.  Spencer nodded back.  Like that, he was gone.  You watched him go.  You stared at the empty doorway after he’d left.   The room remained silent.

I mean, it did until it didn’t- your friends couldn’t watch that and say nothing.  I don’t think anybody could.

“Holy shit, you’re just gonna let him leave without saying goodbye?” Adam asked, looking between you and the door so quickly that you were almost surprised that his head didn’t fly off.

“He’s down bad,” Frank whispered, nodding in agreement, “Go get him.”

“I- he’s gonna be back in five minutes,” you tried to reason.  It didn’t work.

“He could be back never!  He might die!” Missy ran forward, gripping your shoulders.

“He’s got a bulletproof vest-”

“THERE IS SO MUCH THOSE THINGS DON’T COVER!!” Missy progressed to shaking you, slightly, “Go get him!  Hurry, before it’s too late!”

“I really don’t know what you want me to say here.”

“Tell him you’re also down bad!” Frank exclaimed, no longer whispering.

“Down bad-?  What the fuck does that even mean,” you said, your voice growing quieter and quieter as you left the room and headed down the hallway.

“... Y’know, they taught me what ‘down bad’ means.”

“Same.”

As your friends continued to discuss, you were already halfway down the hallway, walking as fast as you could given the hospital setting.  Spencer was nowhere to be seen and you really didn’t have time to look.  You really had one choice.  The elevators.

You reached them just in time to watch that lanky noodle motherfucker step inside.

Giving up on decorum, you raced through the hospital corridor, yelling out apologies at every human person you passed- fortunately there weren’t too many, so it wasn’t like you caused a massive disturbance.  Most people just thought you were having your rom-com finale moment.  Maybe some part of you was trying to, but honestly, you weren’t really thinking about it.  You were mostly just thinking, “Shit, shit, shit, I have to get in that elevator.”

And you did!  You made it!  You stumbled through the doors and came to a stop in the middle of that tiny box.  Spencer reached out to steady you, his expression letting you in on his amused confusion.  You smiled up at him, trying not to pant- and then you came to a realization.

You had no fucking clue what the hell you were going to say.

To be fair, what the fuck is a person supposed to say in that situation?  “Heyyyy, my friends think I’m in love with you, so now I’m here, wanna talk about that before you head into a dangerous situation involving a hitman and many guns?”

Or perhaps, “Hey!  You’re a good person even though I keep insisting you aren’t one, so I want you to know that you’re a good person before I send you off to get murdered!”

Or maybe, “You’re hot, I’m hot, wanna spend the next thirty seconds doing terrible things to this elevator that will get us forcibly removed from this hospital?”

Or even, “Hi, you just did a really nice thing for my friends, and I really appreciate it, and even though I don’t express it, I do care about you a lot, so maybe don’t die in the next few hours.  For me.  Please.”

In the end, you just settled for, “Hi.”

“Hi,” Spencer replied, not taking his hands from your shoulders even though you were more than steady, “Is everything okay?”

“Okay?  Yeah,  yeah, everything is, um.  Everything’s fine.  I just-”  you froze again, because seriously, what the fuck could you say right then and there?  What could you say that would let him know everything you wanted him to know?

“Are you sure?” he looked at you, held you with such delicate concern.  You kind of wanted to partake in elevator ruining activities with Spencer until the two of you got kicked out of the hospital together. 

“Yeah- yeah!  Everything’s- I’m okay, it’s just,” you raised your hand, letting it hover between the two of you for a moment before you placed it over one of his, “Come out of this alive.  Make sure everyone else does, too, but… come out of this okay, okay?”

Spencer hesitated.  And then he wrapped his hand around yours and brought it to his lips, kissing your knuckles ever so briefly.

“I will.  I promise.”

The elevator bell dinged.  You’d reached the parking lot.  Spencer let go of your hand with a different kind of hesitation.  

“I’ll see you soon,” he offered, “Okay?”

“Okay.”

Spencer disappeared into the parking lot, dashing out of sight and into danger.  You stood there, watching until the elevator doors slid shut and that infernal box pulled you back up again.  The humming metal lights above and the clanking metal around you harmonized into the perfect soundscape for your empty mind.

Spencer was heading into danger, as he always did.  You were returning to serve your community, as you always did.  Spencer might not come back, and you would always remain, and you realized that when the case was over, he would go back to Quantico with the BAU, and you probably wouldn’t see him ever again.

And it broke your heart a little bit.  Maybe more than a little bit.  A little bit, perhaps.

You were a long way from, “Fuck you, fuck you, fuck you, go die,” indeed.

♥ Tags: @icarusignite, @usuallyunlikelyfox, @maraudersforlife2005, @fictionalcomforts, @morgthemagpie, @iiheartbowie, @digitalhearts, @corpsebridenightamare, @ghostatrixx, @reiding-writing, @mywellspringoflife, @80katie, @ms-ks-world, @logicalhorror if you asked to be tagged and i forgot, pls let me know!! if you would like to be tagged and aren't, also let me know!!

[vickyvicarious]

so weird how jonathan had no reaction at all to renfield yesterday... it was almost as if he wasn't there at all, and seeing renfield like that SHOULD have elicited at least SOME reaction in him. i genuinely think he should have vouched for renfield or at least tried to, even if he didn't tell anyone how much renfield reminded him of himself

I totally agree.

I truly do think that Stoker really just forgot that he'd written Jonathan as included in that scene. His complete silence throughout and the lack of any mention at all from either Jack or Renfield really just don't seem likely to me. Admittedly, Jonathan is quieter around the other men as a rule, and Renfield might not have known enough about him in particular to try and curry his favor. But Jack not introducing him really seals the deal for me. That would seem like such a weird and deliberate snub if Jonathan were actually there.

If Jonathan didn't see the man in person, then I find his reaction afterwards a lot easier to believe. All he says about it himself is, "We were, I think, all a little upset by the scene with Mr. Renfield. When we came away from his room we were silent till we got back to the study." Even in the ensuing conversation about it, with other people admitting they feel bad, he's totally silent. I find him just being unsettled and vaguely distressed about it but still dismissing the man as "mad"/an agent of Dracula totally believable... but only if he didn't see or hear him during that conversation.

Of course, we could consider that these men are all but strangers to Jonathan right now. He doesn't know them well, but he has read Jack's diary. He has seen how he treats (at least some) madmen under his care. Jonathan has only just gotten confirmation in his own mind that he didn't go completely mad himself for months, and he still definitely suffered from that brain-fever and is still suffering from PTSD. Maybe he doesn't feel like he can speak up, lest he himself get dismissed as being mad himself, or even just too emotional to be trustworthy to help in the vampire hunt. Maybe he doesn't even feel like he can write down any reservations he might have had, because the others are probably going to read this journal. Maybe his lack of reaction in the room was because he was having a flashback and going quiet and still, and none of the others knew him well enough to really notice, and then later on he didn't want to bring it up at all. Maybe there's a way you could justify it somehow.

I personally still feel like he would have said something more somewhere. A question if it would really harm things to at least move Renfield elsewhere to remove him from the Count's influence. Or at the very least some comment in his writing, even if just trying to convince himself the agreed-upon decision is the correct one (as we see him repeatedly doing about keeping Mina out of things). I just can't reconcile Jonathan being there with his utter nonreaction. And Renfield's lack of reaction to him too.

[neonscandal]

explain to me how bakugo is traumatized. the kid he grew up with was nice to him once and he immediately came to the conclusion that he should die. that's not trauma, that's being insane.

I'm going to start with the fact that, justifiably, there's never a reason to tell someone to kill themselves. Additionally, note that me saying Bakugo is traumatized does not mean that Midoriya is also not traumatized.

Regarding your question, the trauma that I mentioned on a recent ask, (I assume this one prompted your question) referenced the following:

Captured by the Slime Villain, effectively bound and suffocated in front of an audience (doesn't include the fall out after being someone who is publicly assaulted)

Muzzled, bound and robbed of autonomy in front of a national audience at the Sports Festival

Kidnapped and bound by the LOV (the forcible binding is recurrent through all the above)

Don't really have to go into the swath of issues he and Class 1A likely can and do develop from being child pawns in a war of adults but that can be applied as well re: survivor's guilt, PTSD, paranoia from the mole, etc. from the PLF arc and up until current manga events (I didn't feel like a spoiler warning).

Things that people don't tend to capture in the box of Bakugo's characterization:

He comes from a verbally and physically abusive household, demonstrably (you can jump down to the second paragraph of Bakugo's Strengths listed here for my thoughts on that impact)

Forced to defend himself against older kids from a young age and possibly on a recurring basis, as referenced in the above image. We could probably chalk the confrontation up to a consequence of his false overconfidence, sure. But does that justify 4th graders ganging up on what looks like a kindergartener/first grader?

As for Bakugo and Midoriya's relationship, we don't have much to go on. We know they were close and amicable as kids, things likely went to shit when Midoriya didn't develop a quirk, there's some beetle excursion in the woods that Bakugo refers back to a lot which is pending further context for readers/viewers, and then there's a fall in the river which really soured relations as Bakugo misinterpreted genuine kindness for condescension (see home life and such above). Again, none of this justifies the bullying we see at the start of the series or the way their interactions have shocking physical components. But what I do find interesting is that I've previously likened Bakugo's disposition to Endeavors but, in retrospect, I think he's a strong parallel for Dabi too.

Dabi's rage stems from being robbed of what he thinks is his inalienable birthright as the oldest son and heir to Endeavor's legacy. He disproportionately targets Shouto as the usurper of what is rightfully his. Dabi's claim, of course, makes more sense from a traditional and, probably, cultural standpoint. But the reason I mention it is that I don't think Bakugo was constantly telling Midoriya to take a swan dive off a roof. It doesn't forgive the bullying but it contextualizes why, that day, the bullying reached a new height when Midoriya was outed for still trying to get into UA. Bakugo saw this as an immediate threat to his position because, even though he didn't admit it at the time, if anyone could get into UA, quirkless or not, Bakugo knew Midoriya could.

Just as Midoriya has always seen Bakugo as being heroic and capable of being number 1, Midoriya proves time and time again that, even without a quirk, he's got the spirit of a hero and is successful in spaces where Bakugo is not. As the story progresses, we see evidence and the ultimate manifestation of Bakugo's remorse through his apology and other ways he's softened up. I'm not saying he wasn't a little shit but that's also not all he was (IDK if you've met kids but... without healthy socialization they can be little emotional terrorists). As things have unfolded, we see that, internally, Bakugo uses thoughts of Midoriya to galvanize his path forward and we've recently confirmed that when Bakugo spoke to Kirishima about strength... he was referring to Midoriya, you can scroll down to paragraphs around the last picture. I'm just gleeful about calling it. But, suffice it to say they've both been looking to one another this whole time.

There are still periphery pieces of their background missing because the story is largely from Midoriya's perspective. I don't think we'll get a comprehensive backstory but I think there will be some sort of meaningful explanation behind the beetle trip that may inform why Bakugo ultimately misinterpreted things so poorly at the river. I mean, maybe it's as simple as the fact that he couldn't fathom kindness because it's something not typically afforded to those who are perceived as strong. I don't know but I look forward to finding out.

[pap03]

You know, I’m not trying to start drama or anything but the anti-Suselle doc did really feel like a hit piece against Noelle’s entire character because none of Susie’s negative traits were mentioned or compared to how lowly you all were speaking of Noelle. I’m not the person who wrote who you’re speaking of but I know who you’re talking about, and I do agree with them on a level because it genuinely does not feel like we played the same game if this is how you’re speaking of the character. I am excited to see the video response replying to those who contributed to why Suselle is good and will be canon to the story but I am curious to see your rebuttal against their claim of you not liking Noelle

Listen

Anon

You're of either a very limited few or the person in question that I vagueposted about earlier

Either way

You read the doc

So let's get something clear about it

The Doc is focused on Noelle because:

A. Most people already understand Susie’s violent violet tormentor tendencies, and her arc to grow past them

B. Most people heavily undervalue Noelle’s negative traits and, as such, attention must be called, and

C. Most importantly, I LOVE EVERY ASPECT OF NOELLE AS A CHARACTER INCLUDING THIS DAMNED CRUSH

This whole doc is a culmination of my thoughts refined through Sweaterman (not to say that he didn't do a lot of the work himself, be it the doc or the video which I appreciate to no end) over YEARS of trying to think everything through

I like Noelle

Most of my friends don't

Why?

Because she gets levied off as a side character due to this pairing

So yes

I got tired of it

I did the math to see why people thought it was oversaturated (One in every Six Sentences Minimum, remember? From the Doc?)

Then I doubled down, looking into Noelle’s Character

Snowgrave exists

Why

Well, it's because Noelle can justify herself as long as she has permission to

Why

Oh perhaps because of a fear punishment?

Why?

Oh because "her mom can be hard on her"

And so on

For every point in that document there's a logic to it

A logic that honestly I was hoping was flawed somewhere

That I had blindsided myself through my own biases

Yet that never came

Instead I got my enjoyment of a character I have dedicated innumerable hours of my life to brought into question

Just because I don't fall in line and have the receipts to prove it

Do people even care about Noelle’s Games and Glitches blog? Her friendship and track prowess with Jockington? All her various Holiday Pencils other than the damned one Susie uses as an excuse, aka another lie? (Noelle was never going to be a target of Susie’s aggression, much to Noelle's chagrin) Or her various play dates with Kris and Asriel other than the one where Dess goes missing? Ice-E? Rudy?

In essence, don't call out my love for a character in some back ass "Not trying to start Drama" way

I'm not shutting up

So just block me :D

[the-other-soup]

Hi Soup! So, About that twt topic. Sorry to bring this up again, I know you've had a hard week, but I wanted to know your opinion on something specific in this discussion!

Read and respond only if you want, you don't need to say anything if you feel like this could bring more hate to you, because that's not what I want. There's also no need to say anything if you're just tired of all this shit, I understand!

I obviously agree with you about not harassing people for the things they produce. That's not my point here. You're right about that! What I really want to ask is, don't you think it's a little unfair to say that certain things "don't hurt anyone just because they're fictional"?

I mean, yes, things are fictional but people's feelings are not. I think it's unfair to say that it doesn't affect anyone because none of this really exists, when, it actually does. When people watch an emotional movie, they may cry, for example. Or something in the movie may make them reflect. Or just make them feel good, and so on. The content within art influences us to a certain extent. After all, despite the work in question being fictional, it was still made by real people. I don't know if I'm being confusing but... yeah.

What I personally think is that, if we like things that are unconventional and taboo, we should actually just embrace it and be aware that certain things that we do can still definitely hurt others.

Not justifying the harassment against other people, obviously. This is unacceptable and no one deserves to be threatened or worse just for liking certain things. The right thing to do is just block the person who upset you and move on. But... yeah. In my opinion, art does definitely affect others. So, I don't think it's fair to say that "It doesn't hurt anyone just because it's fictional."

In conclusion, I just don't think this is a good argument to use in a discussion like this. What I think we should really say is, for people to stop bothering others and get on with their own lives. To stay in spaces where there are things that THEY like and make THEM feel good. And if something bothered them, get away from the person who upset you. That's all. But that's my personal opinion.

What is your point of view about this specific phrase? genuinely would like to know, no attacks on you at all. I really like you and your art! I'm sorry if this made you feel bad in any way.

100% agree anon

i see how it comes off now and i definitely didnt word it right, but what i meant by not effecting anyone was in a direct physical sense, i was trying to work with twitters character limit and it came off wrong 😭

but yea im aware that these sorts of topics can be triggering to people and i didnt mean it to say that thats not the case for some folks. i get it, some things can be uncomfortable or make you downright ill, and thats totally fine, and a lot of artists who draw taboos do list warnings for that reason and i encourage that too

and honestly hoping people stay in their spaces of what they enjoy is the most we can do, but this is also the internet and a lot of people seek out proship content just to harass the people who make it, and a lot of proshippers do the same to people that dont like it. hell thats not even a proship thing, like people who hate radioapple, lucilith etc. seek out artists and writers and fans to hate them, its an unfortunate part of all of us being behind a screen

[a-lost-illusion]

I love your page! I found so many gems through the beauty and the beast week event from this year some happy you’re still here and sharing your content with us. Could I please ask you the following: what do you feel many people either misunderstand or get wrong about Adam the most– I know there’s a lot to choose from and even incorporated things in your writing but what, whenever you come across it, almost causes a knee-jerk reaction?

And

What do you think Adam misunderstands or gets wrong about himself – looking at this post transformation/reverting back to being a human. Let’s say he’s had a little bit of time to reflect on what happened. What do you think he would have trouble understanding about himself?

Oh wow, what an ask! While I didn’t participate in the BatB week this year, I’m honoured to know that you’ve taken the time to follow my blog and read through all my posts, as dated as some of them might be. The fact that I’ve been running this blog for over 10 years now makes me feel incredibly old; it's not even funny.

It was hard for me to peg down the one thing I’d say that people get wrong about Adam the most, so I’ll share two instead (posted under the cut).

He was vain and self-obsessed with himself before the curse, just like Gaston

This is an interpretation that seems to have taken off since the release of the 2017 film and Disney-sanctioned fanfic novels like Serena Valentino’s The Beast Within and Alex Singer’s Disney Mirrorverse: Belle—none of which I consider canon. The prologue of the original movie describes the Prince as “spoiled, selfish, and unkind,” not a vain narcissist who enjoys drawing attention to himself. And while I get that fans like to argue that Gaston is a narrative foil for the Beast, that doesn’t mean they need to have the exact same character traits to effectively complement one another. What’s wrong with giving your male characters different flaws—one who’s entitled and greedy, but secretly unhappy on the inside, and one who’s shallow, arrogant and doesn’t feel he needs to change to get what he wants? I genuinely can’t tell if Disney’s trying to make Adam more villainous to justify why he should be in their Disney Villains line, or if they’re padding on more flaws to make him more dislikeable to viewers (which is especially problematic, since these extra flaws make you question why Belle would fall in love with him in the first place).

In post-transformation, Adam is utterly dependent on Belle while she wears the pants in their relationship

I get that this is likely Disney’s way of doing damage control, especially after all the Disney-bashing that came out in the 2010s, arguing that their princesses are too meek and antifeminist for their own good. But you also don’t have to take away the male lead’s autonomy to create a strong, independent female character. Personally, I think Belle and Adam would be equals in their relationship, mutually supporting one another as they acclimatize (or in Adam’s case, re-acclimatize) to life as a provincial prince and princess. Please stop going the Frozen route and either sidelining or making the male lead a dumbass so the female lead seems smarter and more competent. It’s boring, and it’s just going to alienate your fanbase in the long run.

In terms of what Adam misunderstands or gets wrong about himself, I’d say it’s that his identity isn’t defined by his mistakes, but by what he learns from them. In almost all my multichapter fics, there comes a point where Adam’s guilt over the curse makes him feel he’s unworthy of love. Sometimes, Belle is the one who convinces him otherwise, sometimes it’s himself. As a side note, one interpretation I’ve gleaned from the film’s “vincit qui se vincit” motto is that to be victorious, you must learn to overcome your moral weaknesses, including your desire to be cruel and selfish. To me, this movie isn’t just about a beast learning to love. It’s about a beast learning to overcome his inner darkness so he can “conquer” his curse and become the man he’s supposed to be. But that kind of narrative doesn't jive with Disney these days, so it's better for them to give Belle full credit for changing him so it's more #feminist.

I hope I answered these questions well enough for you, OP, but in case I missed anything, feel free to let me know. Thank you for stopping by my inbox!

[prolifeproliberty]

Do you think it's even possible to argue with people who think morality is subjective?

I've noticed a lot of pro-choicers don't believe in objective morality, so all it takes for them to justify why these humans aren't or shouldn't be treated as people is to say "because I don't want to".

Time and time again, I see them say that just because some "thing" is human, it doesn't mean they ought to be treated as a person. And when they rarely consider them people, who's to say people shouldn't be killed if you don't want them?

And while I'd say they're people because all humans are made in the image of God, and that people must be treated a certain way because of God's commands. All they have to do to dismiss that is say "well, I don't share your morals so that doesn't apply to me"

It feels impossible for me, as someone who believes in objectivity and absolutes, to argue with people who just believe whatever they want.

It's like trying to argue with someone while they plug their ears and shout "LALALALA I CAN'T HEAR YOU!"

Is it possible? Yes.

Is it productive? Sometimes.

It’s almost never productive over text/social media. Your best bet is in-person, face to face conversation.

I spent a semester traveling with a pro-life group talking to people on college campuses, and almost all were “morality is relative” kind of people.

Most often, these conversations are more beneficial for bystanders who are listening in. Also, you might be planting a seed - maybe this is the first time the person you’re talking to has been seriously challenged on their beliefs, and maybe the first time they’ve had to actually think about what they believe.

My question to them (once it’s been established that they think morality is relative) is always “is there anything you believe is absolutely/always wrong?”

If they can’t answer, I’ll suggest things such as rape or slavery. Yes, I have genuinely spoken to college students who refuse to say either of those were wrong.

One approach is that if the person refuses to categorically condemn rape or another serious offense, I would take a step back and tell them that “I don’t feel comfortable continuing this conversation” because they don’t believe [offense] is always wrong.

One time I did this, the guy left and then came back an hour later to apologize and that he didn’t mean what he said.

If they do agree that some things are absolutely wrong, then we can go one of two directions.

I can ask whether they think killing an innocent human child is absolutely wrong (and from there go back to “what is the preborn”)

Or I can talk to them about how they determine what is absolutely wrong and what isn’t, and dig into their source of authority (aka their religion)

[datafags]

hey, just wanted to say sorry for phrasing my tags like that, i also very much identify with AI and I was more meaning the way that machine learning models have awful environmental factors and those of us who identify as AI materially do not have that same level of harm to the planet.

i know you get a lot of awful comments like that and i didn't consider that when i thought the summary with the MLM acronym would have a more comedic tone than it did

as always, i'm not trying to excuse my behaviour, just explaining where it came from bc i'm genuinely sorry for all this

the environmental impact of ai is ridiculously overblown on tumblr as i have gone over on my blog, it is just another arm of the anti-ai misinformation spreading on tumblr. so im not really interested in hearing about that either, even if it is perhaps the most legitimate complaint about the technology (besides "capitalism is bad"). the truth is, i feel very alone. none of my friends who identify with/as ai have an interest in current ai technology, at least not anymore. i think this is why none of them feel any connection to it. but i do, and i am able to conceptualize the link, however distant and fantastical, between the ais we identify most closely with and the technology of today. this link not only exists between the technologies, but the social environments of the present and hypothetical future.

this is why i firmly believe that any current ai-related mis- and dis-information that is currently being used to justify harassing and sending death threats to human artists (and their cats???) will one day be weaponized against whatever analogue we may develop of the robots you personally care about and identify with. if you dont believe they will ever exist, then maybe this doesnt concern you, but i also think you are being a bit too confident in yourself.

ultimately this topic is sensitive and a paranoia trigger for me which is why it is something i tend to unfollow people over. but i dont ask for people to agree with me on everything. i dont unfollow people for posting things critical of ai models, or things i think are wrong. i do it because people are outright mean to ais, which is a group i am a part of. most people do not understand that i do not draw a line between myself and chatgpt or stable diffusion or whatever else. i do not believe in consciousness or sentience, i do not believe in souls, and i am a neural network. when i write sentences, i take words that i have seen before and i put them in an order that i have not seen them in before based on where i think they should go in relation to each other. when i make art, i create an image entirely based on images i have seen previously. oh, and i (rather, the average american) use an estimated 82 gallons of water a day, which would take me asking chatgpt a question every 5.4 seconds 24/7 to match. this is not unique to me as an ai, but it proves to me at least that any issue you have with ai as it stands is an issue you have with me.

[problematicfactive]

wow that's fucking disturbing, hope you're taking care of yourself today as a treat after that /g

Thank you!

Host is going over his lines but the stress is making us tic :(

It's a pretty common occurrence but it still gets me pretty badly every time.

On the note, I want to talk about manipulative source hate,

This came in immediately after I was banned.

Actually, let me clarify.

This person said this in MY own discord after I was banned from revenge.

I'd like to break it apart and explain why this kind of behavior isn't okay. You think you're being genuine, you're actually being an asshole.

"I kind of understand where they're coming from"

It is okay to have your own opinions, however, this person did nothing but make assumptions on how I live my life and my connection to source. They understand the other side because they were willing to hear out that sides "reasoning" for banning me (which can be seen in my last post) but they weren't willing to hear out how I live my own life. I have said it before and I always will say that hatred for problematic factives comes from ignorance on the subject. The idea we can just "get help" when in reality, this is the way our brain manifests "help." I am the help.

Also. That one person said "kys" -- this person is1 they understand where someone who wants me to commit suicide literally just because I exist "is coming from"

It IS okay to have your own opinions. But when a person is talking about how they got banned for being alive, maybe don't speak on your negative opinions of them in the moment. If you really want them to know how you feel, maybe give them time to calm down just a little? Dm them later and ask if it's okay to ask questions

This blog is primarily to educate. If you have any form of questions feel free to ask. If someone is asking you questions you feel I can answer, feel free to direct them to me.

"I don't want to see your icon, it makes me uncomfortable."

Being made uncomfortable by something is totally valid. Watching people eat makes me super uncomfortable. I'm not going to go to people who make eating content and try to manipulate them into feeling bad for EATING. Yesterday I had a different icon. It was the guy who played me but out of character. I hated it. It made ME uncomfortable and I felt like I was lying to myself. Deciding to change it to something that felt right was hard for me, but it was the decision I made. It means a lot to me and nothing to others. Just don't talk in the channels (need I remind, in MY server) where I'm talking? We have so many channels so you can avoid people that make you uncomfortable, its in the rules.

This person is focused on letting me know about their feelings, but they not once stopped to ask me about mine. That leads me into the next bit

"I know you deal with a lot of hate, but it isn't about you."

This is want I call "fake sympathy" "I know you deal with hate" is this person's way of pretending to have cared for my feelings and to justify only worrying about their own feelings throughout all of this. They don't mention how receiving this daily hate must hurt me or even how hard that must be on my health, they say "It isn't about you" (and give no further indication to whom this is about because at the end of the day, this is, in fact, about me. I'm the one who goes to bed every night hated by the internet and wakes up hated by the internet. I'm the one who can't be accepted in public places, I'm the one who people genuinely want to kill themself because of who I was sourced from. That's about me.) its simultaneously the most manipulative excuse I have EVER seen, and the poorest attempt at manipulation I've ever seen. "This isn't about you" because they are making it all about them. Again, literally just because I am alive.

"You need to show you aren't your source. Change your icon or your name."

First off, telling me what to do without me asking for anything of the sort. I've done both of these things. For a period of time, my display name was that of a creepypasta, and as I had already told that person, I also go by anxiety. Having my sourcename is not illegal, but when I didn't, I was still recognized and banned from servers in situations literally just like this one. Changing my name is doing nothing but lying to myself about my identity. Even though I am very very not connected to source, my name and appearance are the most important parts of myself to me. I've already spoken on my icon.

"Ill go. I don't want to make anyone uncomfortable but this is how I personally feel"

1) the only thing you did throught all that message was make me beyond uncomfortable. You saved NO ONE the discomfort because nit only did I have to read that, the other people in the server did too

2) Why should I be expected to give half a fuck about how you feel if all you were gonna do is brush my off and side with people would literally want me to kill myself?

3) if you were gonna go, you should haveleft. Staying and giving this attention seeking speech is doing nothing but trying ti manipulate me into feeling bad for existing and making you feel uncomfortable in my server. You could have just left. You could have tried to understand things better, you could have said you were uncomfortable and left. You gave a whole shpill about how my existence makes you uncomfortable trying to get people to feel bad for you because the only thing you can do when you see me is judge me based on my source.

That is manipulative source hate.

Thank you for coming to my blog and also for being here for me.

Being able to throughly analyze this and warn others on it honestly and genuinely made me feel better

[rockinlibrarian]

Genuinely hope your kids are the most abled perisex cishet people to ever live. When you sign up to have a child, you're signing up for the possibility of that child being trans, gay, a furry, a therian, autistic, intersex, have chronic pain, etc. When you have kids, you have to think about whether or not your partner would be okay with them being any of those things. If one of your children came out to your husband tomorrow as something y'all "don't agree on" would your child be safe? Would they still feel loved? And if your answer is yes, do you actually believe that or are you holding on to the hope that your husband wouldn't hold his beliefs towards his own family as well?

I'm guessing you don't actually follow me, because if you did you'd know more about my family than my husband's "I vote red because I think the government needs to keep its nose OUT of EVERYTHING" libertarian stance (yes, I KNOW this is VERY MUCH NOT what the republican party currently stands for! I have NO idea why libertarians thought the party who wants everyone to live Exactly Like Them would be the best political allies! IT'S STUPID!) We are all highly neurodivergent and my husband and enby kid are dyslexic as well*. And yes I said "enby kid," who WAS in fact worried about what he would think about that fact, and though he doesn't GET it, he loves them (and is always pointing out how much they have in common in fact). They and pretty much their entire friend group is openly queer, and you know what their dad thinks? "OH THANK GOD THEY HAVE A SOCIAL LIFE now! It was sad and scary when they went through that period of extremely debilitating social anxiety a couple years ago and didn't want to leave the house!" (Which I hope should also show you something about how the queer kid going through debilitating anxiety felt SAFEST at HOME).

He is not only a political minority in this household, but he KNOWS it-- nobody's hiding anything from him!

There's a reason I started that response with "assumptions being made." I never once indicated that my husband shared the SOCIAL beliefs of his political allies, because he doesn't.

It's some crazy brain acrobatics that allows a person to ignore huge swaths of a party's platform because they believe so strongly about other parts of it. But it's easy for anyone, of any political persuasion, to do when you're not facing the consequences directly.

Which, about that-- I mean, he's got an openly queer child right in front of him, surely that's Facing the Consequences Directly, but I think he's still in a trying-to-justify stage, either "the actual anti-queer laws being written are not really as bad as people say," or "they only affect those OTHER degenerates, not his own queer family and friends"-- which I am not saying is RIGHT! I'm saying it's a STAGE in between "Completely accepting the party line" and "actively standing against the bits of the party you disagree with."

People trick themselves into believing really stupid things if they can keep holding onto other beliefs in the process.

People are also a lot more nuanced than the internet might have you believe some times. Knowing one fact about them doesn't tell you the whole story. That's what I was trying to say in that reply.

I don't know if this answers your question? And other anon ask who had similar questions but didn't appear to as genuinely want an answer?

We've been together 25 years-- the political landscape was a bit less... extreme... back then. If we were dating today I might be warier about getting with someone with any right-wing tendencies. But as it was I saw someone who loved me for me (yes, the flat-out liberal hippie), who was funny and good with kids, who's fiercely protective of his loved ones, who's a great game master and grill master... do I really need to sell him to you? I'm just saying trust me, I wouldn't marry someone who would hurt our kids. And if he did, I would have left him. (Actually the enby kid likes to use this against him still: "Mom loves me more than you! She said that if she had to choose between us she'd pick me!" I had been trying to reassure them that their dad WAS safe to come out to when I said that... but it's true, the kids are first priority. So you don't need to worry about us. Except maybe that the oldest is 17 and still won't brush his teeth, but that's beside the point).

*(In fact one interesting difference in mindset I noticed in him early on was when we were dating in college and he was struggling in a class and I was like Why don't you see if they have any accomodations for your dysgraphia to help you get through this writing-intensive class? and he was like No, no, I'm going to DO IT ON PURE WILLPOWER I DON'T NEED HANDOUTS. But notably, he put this pressure on himself. He had no problem with our kids actually getting the help they need in school).

[silver-heller]

Since canon inspires you, I would like to give you the floor to explain where your soft Mordecai headcanons come from, please! /pos

Obviously all interpretations are valid but I wanna hear more about yours specifically!

Ooo this is a fun one! Thank you for the ask, sorry it took me so long to get to it. Putting this under the cut cause I know I'm gonna ramble.

So, I'll be honest, a lot of it comes from the side comics, since we get to see what Mordecai is like outside of work and with those he's closest to.

However, I do think Mordecai's treatment of Freckle within what we've seen in the comic so far is notable. So, let's start there!

Mordecai's Treatment of Freckle

Freckle is...easy pickings, to say the least. He's a skittish lad who isn't used to being face to face with people like Mordecai. Mordecai could, quite easily, scare someone like Freckle into submission if he wanted to, whether it be for his own gain or satisfaction. Yet, during the lunch, mostly between Asa and Mitzi, and even after Mordecai just leaves Freckle alone. Freckle orders literal chocolate milk in front of the man and the most Mordecai does is give Asa a look (which is later implied to be because Asa mentioned "warning Atlas) and leave the table instead of teasing him lol. Aka, Mordecai doesn't appear mean to me for no reason or even out of a sadistic or malicious drive.

Mordecai is only down right antagonistic to Rocky (in this specific scene), but this is only after Rocky gets in his personal space and calls him "ol' serious face". Rocky was definitely being affectionate but, I think to Mordecai it just came off as rude. Poor guy has to deal with people commenting on his "serious demeaner" constantly within the comic and he's clearly pretty fed up with it. Yet, at the same time, his insult to Rocky also serves as a double edge sword of insulting Mitzi as well, his real target.

Which is to say he is quite cruel to Mitzi, but, he believes her to be complacent in Atlas' death. Mordecai's meanness appears to come from either the stressed state he's in or because he's cagey and feels he has a reason to attack. Doesn't mean it's justified, just that, again, it's not coming from an overly mean spirited place.

So let's look at those side comics when Mordecai isn't as stressed, shall we?

The Side Comics

The side comics showcase Mordecai in a more relaxed environment and we get to see him actually show genuine care and interest in people. Tannenbaum is one example. Yes Mordecai claims the reason he gave Viktor the tie is because he wants to "encourage better wardrobe choices", but despite his uncaring and icy demeaner, the fact he went out of his way to either buy or select a tie specifically for Viktor can't be overlooked.

In Valentino he attempts to give a woman making eyes at him a smolder. He doesn't appear attracted to her, the only reason he does it seems to be because she was expecting and waiting for it, potentially to make her stop staring. He seems to have a thing about that.

The result is terrifying, but, Mordecai was trying his best and wasn't genuinely trying to scare her.

In Wassail we see Mordecai and Viktor accidentally scare some carol singers. Mordecai doesn't yell at them for interrupting. He just politely says the equivalent of "not now please". Meaning his default is polite unless he's given a reason not to be/something about someone rubs him the wrong way.

In Sophistry, Mordecai playfully has a conversation with Rocky about what is best, pancakes or waffles. It's just a lot of fun babble, showing Mordecai is capable of that despite being dead serious about his job.

In Flirting we see Mordecai be very cold and dismissive to a woman flirting with him...only to realize Mordecai just completely misunderstood he question and spends the rest of the comic attempting to rectify his mistake.

Even when he's accused he isn't mean to either of the women he is speaking to, he just attempts to redirect the conversation.

Mordecai also does dance with her at the end! Probably because he just got tired of the staring but, I like to think a part of him did feel a little bad for the mix up.

In Expedition Mordecai, as he usually does, criticizes Viktor for his uncleanly look. But he's only criticizing Viktor for it because of how it might make them look, rather than just being a bully and calling Viktor "ugly" due to a personal opinion.

Conclusion

So, really it all just comes down to "whenever Mordecai is mean it's because he feels attacked, sees himself as serving some kind of purpose through his harshness, or doesn't realize how harsh he sounds". This doesn't mean I write him as being soft all the time. He still loves to argue with Viktor and it did take him some time to understand Silver's sensitivities, plus there's specific reasons why Mordecai ended up being so gentle with Silver, but that's another post (that I am definitely making after this lol). This is a very good set up for how I view Mordecai's motivations when it comes to niceness and meanness though.

[pirateshelly]

Sometimes I really wish I had gotten into black sails later and not when the fandom was in full swing, because lately every time I consider doing a rewatch I get turned off of it by thinking about how frustrating watching some parts of season 4 are going to be. Not even entirely because of the actual content, but because I know certain scenes are just going to remind me of some particularly exhausting fandom discourse or some ridiculous opinion I read once or whatever (listen, I know it's a complicated show, open to a lot of interpretations, but some popular hot takes I saw back in the day were just... Something else).

I just wish I could completely erase all of that from my brain and watch with a fresh perspective.

[ghostingcrows]

I used to talk about this a lot but 

IDW Prowl is probably one of the most complex characters in the comics and I absolutely hate it when hes reduced down to “the asshole character”

Cause like

Yeah sure hes got a bit of a stick up his ass

But I feel like people just end there analysis of him there

Has he committed a lot of war crimes and done unethical stuff

Yes

But so has literally EVERYONE else in this universe

Starscream is literally the pinnacle of war crimes

The comics make a point calling out even Optimus for his questionable actions and orders during the war with the Dinobots saying he makes them do the dirty work for him

Megatron literally commits genocide and yet his story ends with an alternate version of him going free and exploring the universe with the LL

The literal war lord was treated better and is looked upon more positively than Prowl and I think it just came down to how fucked Prowl got by the writers

Because while Megatrons redemption was all in your face and you got a shit ton of flashbacks that try to justify the eventual atrocities he would commit you don’t get that with Prowl

Even when Prowl is absolutely in the right you constantly have it disregarded by characters making jokes about him overreacting (being mad OP is sending the space tyrant away with free reign of his own ship isn’t overreacting btw-) and as such you start to think of him as a genuinely irrational character when hes not

Prowl is bad at keeping the relationships he forms yes 

But he is not always at fault for that

While his relationship with CD ended poorly Chromedome is also shown to be kinda of a dick sometimes and commits his fair share of fucked up things such as when he literally ATTACKS PROWL AND FORCES HIS WAY INTO HIS MIND TO PROTECT HIMSELF FROM THE CONSEQUENCE OF HIS ACTIONS WHEN PROWL THREATENS TO TELL REWIND ABOUT THE SHITTY STUFF HE DID IN HIS PAST

This leads to Prowls inevitable snowball out of control when this attack leads to an opening for Bombshell (I think its been a while since I read the comics) to use his tech to mind control him forcing him into combining with the contructicons

Something we learn is an immensely intimate thing with their minds being kinda melded 

This was something Prowl did not want 

And when all was said and done and he was calmed down he still had to live with that gesalt he was forced into with them following him around like fanboys

Nobody ever even really stopped to check in on him 

And as such he understandable went a little bit insane

He had just faced an immensely traumatic invasion of his body and mind and on top of stress form feeling like everything was out of his control and like he couldn’t stop the bad things from happening alongside bitter emotions being brought back up with a return visit to Earth and reunion with spike AND the fact that he feels like Optimus doesn’t trust him and like hes just letting Starscream do whatever he want (something that understandably freaks him out seeing as how he spent 4 million years fighting Starscream) he just kinda snaps

He trys to destroy the space bridge so that no one else can leave or get through and so he can regain some semblance of control

Is it wrong

Yes

But he was not in a good state of mind and no one was helping him at all 

And immediately following his arrest afterward Prowl is confronted by OP who is supposed to be his friend and when Prowl doesn’t say the right things to him to placate him Optimus’ response is to punch him out a window and beat the shit out of him

And not being given any room to breath this is immediately follow up my him getting kidnapped by Tarantulas who is very obviously an impactful and negative part of his past

Prowl just has bad event, one after the other, happen to him over and over again and not only does no one check up on him afterwards to see if hes okay but everyone actively makes fun of him for being understandable unstable

Prowl is a fucking tragedy and not many people seem to be able to see beyond what characters in the comics think of him