#i had a lot to say about this apparently lol

[resident-idiot-simp]

Vanessa's co-workers POV

(x)

@shy-canadian-snowflake had somewhat similar conversation about this with him so kudos for that lol

Vanessa was well known at the office for being blunt and honest to the point of hilarity. She would tell you what she thought with no care of how you felt about it. She also had some borderline insane stories she would share that she didn't seem to think much about.

One off comment too that would bring people up short because….what?!

Things like getting kidnapped and held hostage by a maniac, or being shot and almost dying because she was with the wrong person.

She talked about hanging out with mutants which some people in the office had problems with. Vanessa just asked those who scoffed if they had an issue with it and to speak up if they did. Vanessa didn't take very kindly to anyone talking bad about mutants. People suspected it was probably a personal thing and wondered who exactly in her close family was one.

That question was answered one day if she was leaving with everyone else. A man in a hood and sunglasses was lingering around the exit and a lot of people were nervous. Vanessa wasn't however as she lit up when she saw the figure.

“Wade!” She called and the huge man looked up and smiled. His face was shadowed but from what they could see it was just scar tissue. Vanessa ran to the figure and the man opened his arms for her easily.

“Hey Nessa, how was work?” The man asked his voice chipper as he placed an obnoxious kiss on the top of her head which caused Vanessa to giggle. The other workers were just staring in confusion.

“Fine, I didn't know you would be here today.” Vanessa said with her hands on her hips after she pecked him on the cheek.

The man, Wade, sighed obnoxiously, “What, I can't surprise my best friend by walking her back to her apartment after treating her to dinner?” He asked, faking as much offense as he can manage.

“Just us?” She asked as she crossed her arms.

The others watched the interaction like a tennis match.

“Everyone else is busy besides we've not had dinner together in a while. Unless of course it offends your delicate sensibilities.” Wade shot back and Vanessa just laughed.

“Fine but I have to tell Dermot.” She says and the man shrugs easily, “Of course I'd be worried if I were him. Hell you know how I was with you, still am even.” He agreed.

“Oh I know I was engaged to you for a long time.” She shot back and he just laughed.

Everyone shared wide eyed looks at that. Vanessa had mentioned having an ex fiance and this was apparently him.

“Are you going to look like a creep the whole time?” She asked him as she pulled out her phone. He just shrugged, “Don't want to scare anyone.” He said softly and Vanessa rolled her eyes, “Yes because someone as big as you wearing what you are isn't terrifying.” She sassed back.

Wade just sighed dramatically and took off the glass and hood. “Happy?” He asked, his voice tense as he looked at the others still watching. He was covered in scars but that isn't what caused the others to come up short. No what caused that was the fact that was fucking Deadpool.

Everyone looked to one another alarmed but Deadpo-Wade just ignored them as he looked back at a smiling Vanessa. “There's the man I know, come on I'll call on the way, when are we eating?” She asked as she started walking and Wade hurried to catch up cursing as he went.

The next day the office was abuzzed with questions. She answered some of them and ignored others. She had been with Wade before he was Deadpool and then after. They had split on good terms and had just grown apart romantically, but she still said they considered themselves best friends.

Her new boyfriend didn't care they were close because he trusted her and also not that it mattered but Wade had another partner now anyways. They were really close sure, but they didn't have any romantic feelings.

When asked about Wade's new partner she just shrugged and said they'd meet them eventually.

It was a few weeks later when they did in fact meet the partner. They were all leaving and there was a motorcycle idling outside. A man was leaning next to it in flannel jeans and a leather jacket. Vanessa had just smiled when she saw him, “Logan good to see you.” She called as she walked over to him.

He smiled and showed off too sharp teeth, “Hey Ness.” He greets easily as he gives her a hug and rubs his face on her. She giggles and wacks him lightly, “That shit tickles asshole.” She grouches.

He rolls his eyes at that. Vanessa graciously ignores it, “How's Wade?” She asked and the man just groaned. “Obnoxious as always but fine, he's at Sister Margaret's collecting money for a job we did.” He explained as he took off his jacket and handed it to Vanessa who put it on.

It swallowed her completely but she didn't seem to mind. Logan got onto the motorcycle and Vanessa was quick to join him wrapping her arms around his waist. They were off moments later leaving the stunned group to share shock looks.

“W-was that the Wolverine?” Someone asked in complete shock. “I think it was.” Another answered in a whisper.

Vanessa had been questioned about Logan and had admitted that yes he was Wade's new partner. She didn't explain more than that no matter how many times they asked.

It was another month before anything else interesting happened. That being a young lady who showed up. She had asked for Vanessa and it didn't take long for Vanessa to come and see what she wanted.

“Laura hey I didn't expect to see you here. Are you okay? What happened?” Vanessa asked as she approached and looked the girl over. She allows Vanessa to look her over but reassures that she's fine and nothing happened.

“Just wanted to know if I could hang here until you get done. Papá and Pop are being obnoxious and are probably going to fight and I personally don't want to see the aftermath.” She explained and Vanessa had just laughed, “I'm sure it will be fine we've only got an hour left.” Vanessa told her.

A few people shared worried looks but figured if it was really bad they wouldn't be laughing about it. Laura was a kind young lady who seemed out of her depth with her sounding and stuck close to Vanessa. Laura looked almost identical to Logan which didn't go unnoticed but people refrained from commenting about it.

Laura didn't cause any issues and even helped Vanessa with a few things before the day's end. Vanessa thanked her for the help and she smiled happily showing off familiar too sharp teeth. They left together and it was Monday before they got answers.

As they suspected Laura was Logan's daughter and thus Wade's too. Vanessa explained she was really happy for Wade because he'd always wanted a kid. Apparently he was amazing with Laura which most people were dubious at but no one said anything.

Vanessa never became less mysterious if anything it was the opposite. The more they learn the more questions they had.

Tags: @twoarrsandonesea

Added stuff and posted it to ao3

[astrologicalsstuff]

Composite chart observations

(18+ mdni)

Conjunctions are great but look at what’s involved in the conjunction

Debilitation within conjunction could bring down the whole thing

Debilitated mars may make getting started extremely difficult

I had an exact conjunction (sun mercury venus mars all in early degrees cancer like 0-2orb) with a scorpio moon (mars and moon debilitated mutual reception) eventhough everything trined it took us forever to get started (Saturn conjunct jupiter in the first) we finally hooked up after 3 years we barely talk and every single conversation was either arguing or sexual. Mars really did its thing there.

I think the mars being debilitated overpowered the sun mercury and venus who are all okay with being in cancer but the mars caused these angry and sexual feelings to linger for a long time also the scorpio moon added to the inability to let it go. But it could also be because that scorpio moon is super important

Venus conjunct sun in composite is better than in synastry. Venus and sun in synastry can cause idealization but in composite it’s a little more mutual. (Can be superficial though)

Anything in the 7th house for a composite chart shows how you guys deal with third parties. From my experience

Pluto in the 7th house indicates a lot of possessiveness

Mars in the 7th people might not like the relationship.

Mars or Pluto in the 7th, 10th, or 11th people probably want to break you up.

Moon in the 7th? My relationship with this one we literally dealt with feelings through other people (we were poly and he would talk about how he felt about me to the other girl but never me).

We had 5th house stellium in cancer our relationship was mostly about sex in the house never anywhere else.

And 5th house ruler (being very important in this chart) in the 7th was a heavy emphasis on other people. I had a falling out with the girl and the relationship with him did not feel as interesting.

11th house placements talk about community. I had neptune in the 11th house and we knew about eachothers friends, but never met them. (Distance)

Chiron or Lilith in the 7th can indicate 3rd party involvement maybe Neptune too

Stellium in the 7th could be a very social relationship?

Venus conjunct moon has a deep intimacy to it

Me and one of my guy friends have a stellium in the 5ths but Aquarius rising with Uranus in the 1st and we are solely friends but the sexual tension is so real and we always pretend to be dating and like post eachother and stuff. He’s like my boyfriend but not fr.

I have a lot of 5th house stelliums in synastry apparently😂. Me and my guy friends have 5 planets in the 5th house and north node and they are all opposite Pluto and when he mentions another girl I get so tense and idek why lol. we’re not dating or anything I just get soooo triggered I had to stop talking to him for like 6th months cause he broughtt his girl best friend around me. But he’s like the same and he’s literally always going off on someone who hits on me every time we hangout. And my friend says she feels weird cause whenever she talks to me he like places himself right between us. We should never date cause it would be a nightmare😭.

At the same time we are always posting dates together (5th house stellium) and it makes people so jealous (Pluto in the 11th).

Saturn in the first house composite has been such a let down for me. On the one hand the relationship has longevity, but on the other it takes sooo long to get started that it’s over before it even begins and then it takes sooo long to move on from. I think both people put a lot of effort in and they don’t want to let go.

That’s all for now let me know what you guys want more of!

my chart readings are available:))

[7-deadly-cats]

killing me softly (part one)

pairing: rafe cameron x fem!introverted!kook!reader

cw: swearing, very indirect subtle mention of sexual activities (no actual scenes), mention of drug usage (no actual scene)

synopsys: it's the last year of high school and y/n is paired up with rafe cameron for a 2 week project in art class. this wouldn't be a problem if y/n wasn't awkward as hell and well ... if there wasn't her big fat crush on him.

word count: 2144

a/n: i haven't written this kind of stuff since like 8th grade (i recently graduated from university sooo yeah) but i kinda felt like it now and idk. there are so many smut involved fics on here (which isn't bad, i just need more softer slow burn stuff). not saying there won't be any smut in future parts hihihihi. also i have no clue how the american school system works (i'm from europe) so pls just accept this lol. and kelce's last name is statter bc apparently it was never mentioned in the show. anyway, this is for all my introverted and overthinking girlies (who may or may not be little freaks) <3

*****

Fuck my life.

That was the only thing on your mind as Mr. Smith announced the partners for the upcoming two-week art project. In pairs, you were supposed to create a reinterpretation of the Greek gods.

The assignment wasn’t the problem. In fact, it actually sounded kind of fun. But your partner? Yeah, that was the real issue.

Fucking Rafe Cameron.

Of all the people in this class, it had to be him. You didn’t even know why he'd chosen this class. Rafe was probably the last guy you’d expect to take an art elective—well, right after Kelce Statter.

He'd probably thought it was an easy class to boost his GPA. Rookie mistake.

Okay, whatever, it was just a small project. You could handle this.

NO, YOU COULDN’T, HOLY SHIT.

The thought of working with Rafe Cameron made your skin crawl. In all your years at Kildare Academy, you'd maybe exchanged two words with him—and that was only because he'd mistaken you for another girl.

"Y/N, right?" Rafe appeared at your desk at the end of class, a bored expression on his face.

Okay, okay, just act normal. Be nice. You nodded. "Yeah."

Rafe stared at you for a moment, like he was waiting for you to say more. His eyebrows furrowed slightly before he tilted his head. "Cool, okay. Let’s just meet up during lunch break and get this over with."

Did he seriously think you could finish a two-week project in one lunch break?

When he saw the look on your face, he raised his brows in amusement, his tone teasing. "What? You too busy?"

Your cheeks heated up as you shook your head. "No, lunch sounds good."

"Okay, then let’s meet after the fifth period." Before you could ask where you should meet him, he turned around and disappeared out of the classroom.

You frowned. This was off to a great start.

Just two weeks, you reminded yourself as you slung your bag over your shoulder and headed to math class.

On the way, you unlocked your phone to text your bestie Cara:

You shoved your phone away and tried to ignore the uneasiness creeping into your stomach.

You didn’t usually have trouble talking to guys but Rafe Cameron was a whole different story. Not because he was "too cool" or some dumb shit like that.

No, Rafe was just... intimidating. Not in that bad-boy, cringe Wattpad kind of way. It was something else, something you couldn’t quite put into words.

He wasn’t arrogant—he was proud. He was loud, but not in the annoying way Kelce Statton was. He wasn’t rude—he just said whatever the hell was on his mind.

He was just ... himself. And yet, somehow he wasn't. It felt like there was a lot more going on beneath the surface.

Maybe that was what made him so interesting to you. Sure, he had a nice face and a well-known name, no doubt about that. But more than anything, you wanted to know why he was the way he was.

Was he just a blunt person who didn’t give a fuck, or was there more to him than his looks and his last name?

So yeah, maybe a part of you was curious about him. But he had such an overwhelming presence, you wouldn’t even know where to start.

In the past, he'd had a few friends-with-benefits situations, but none of them had lasted long. And that was definitely a path you didn't want to go down. Under different circumstances, maybe you could but you've never even held hands with a guy, let alone kissed one or—yeah, no, not going there.

Okay, chill. Internally, you cursed Cara for fueling your delusions.

You had more important problems at right now anyway. Like math class with Mrs. Richman. And no one could claim you were a star student in that subject.

----

The lesson dragged on, your thoughts constantly drifting. After class, you were supposed to meet Rafe.

Rafe, who had PE right now.

Shit. You tried not to think about a sweaty, heavy-breathing, and—NOPE, NOT NOW.

"Okay, that’s it for today. Don’t forget about the math test next week. But for now, go enjoy the nice weather," Mrs. Richman announced, dismissing the class.

Your hands felt clammy as you got up to leave. What the fuck is wrong with me?

You headed to the restroom and washed your hands. Why were you so nervous about spending one lunch break with Rafe Cameron? Fuck you, social anxiety.

"Everything okay?" A soft voice pulled you from your thoughts. "You look kinda pale."

You turned to see the pretty face of Molly Crane. Red hair, cute freckles, and a super charming smile. She was one of the few Kooks (if any existed at all) who was genuinely nice.

You forced a smile. "Yeah, yeah, all good. I think I just ate something bad for breakfast."

Molly didn't look convinced. "You sure? You look like you’ve seen a ghost."

"Really, thanks, Molly. I’m fine now." With an awkward smile, you excused yourself and headed out—only to realize that, well… great, you and Rafe had never picked a meeting spot.

Brrrt.

Your phone had been buzzing since math class. Of course, it had been Cara.

You rolled your eyes with a smile and texted back.

Should you really wait in front of the gym? That felt weird af. But at the same time, you didn’t want to miss him and end up having an awkward conversation about it in the next art class.

The cafeteria would've been the most obvious meeting place, but would Rafe actually look for you there?

You pressed your lips together. Fuck it.

Heart pounding, you headed toward the gym.

Good thing your body totally knew how to distinguish between social interaction and actual danger.

When you arrived, you heard muffled voices of the boys inside, along with Coach Brown’s instructions.

Just breathe, it’s just one lunch break, you told yourself. Then again, this was probably how the next two weeks were going to feel.

You held your breath as the gym doors swung open, and a crowd of sweaty—oops wrong, freshly showered—boys streamed out.

You awkwardly stepped to the side, ignoring the curious glances thrown your way.

No sign of Rafe yet. A sick feeling settled in your stomach. Even worse than being here and having to explain HOW you knew that he would be here, would be explaining why you were standing there if he didn’t actually have PE right now.

But then relief washed over you when you spotted Kelce Statter and Topper Thornton. And right behind them—Rafe Cameron.

You tightened your grip on your bag. Okay, okay, I can do this. They’ll probably say bye to Rafe and leave for lunch now.

They didn’t. Great.

When Rafe saw you, something flickered in his gaze that you didn’t want to analyze. You expected him to just walk past you but instead, he headed straight toward you—with Kelce and Topper right behind him.

Just smile. No, not like that, you probably look like a creep. Oh god, okay.

"Hey," Rafe greeted you with a slightly puzzled smile as the three of them stopped in front of you. "I didn't expect you here."

In other words: Did you stalk me or how did you know I was here?

Kelce and Topper eyed you with amusement. This is so unbelievably embarrassing.

Blushing, you pointed at the gym bag slung over his shoulder. "Well, I saw you bringing a sports bag today, and PE is usually scheduled right before lunch ... so I just assumed you’d be here."

Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Kelce stifling a laugh. You wanted to disappear from Earth, no from this universe. No way anyone would believe--

"Right," Rafe replied with a lopsided grin. "I would’ve just waited in the cafeteria."

So you had been right. And you could've saved yourself this painfully awkward moment. G-r-e-a-t.

"Good thinking though. The faster we get this project over with, the better."

Shit, did Rafe just compliment you? Then again, why did the last sentence sound like he didn't want to work with you?

You smiled awkwardly. "Exactly."

"You're Y/N Y/L/N, right? Your mom owns Y/L/N Yacht Sales." Topper’s voice cut in, and you were grateful for the topic change.

You nodded. "Yeah."

Was that admiration on Topper’s face?

"Ohh, a business Mommy, I like that", Kelce said, and both Topper and Rafe eyed him with shaking heads.

Topper blinked at him annoyed. "Bro, shut the fuck up for once."

Kelce just laughed.

"My dad bought a Grady-White from you guys recently," Rafe remarked, and your gaze flicked back to his blue eyes.

Jesus, he wasn’t just looking at you—he was staring into your soul. If he was always looking at girls like that you'd gladly be his friends-with-benefits-girl.

You prayed to whatever gods were listening that you didn’t blush. "I remember. A 456 Canyon."

The corner of Rafe’s mouth twitched up. "Yeah, a pretty model."

Your cheeks warmed, and either he didn’t notice, or he chose not to comment on it.

"Oh shit, that sounds like a boat party," Kelce chimed in with a grin and looked at you. "If I were you, I’d have thrown a dozen parties by now. So many possibilities…"

Rafe scoffed amused. "Good thing she isn’t, or her family would be broke by now."

You allowed yourself a small smirk.

„Hey, I’m just saying.“ Kelce raised his hands innocently.

Topper tapped him on the chest with the back of his hand. „Okay, dude, and I’m saying we’re leaving now before you say more stupid shit.“ Then he looked at you apologetically and turned his gaze to Rafe. „See you later.“

Rafe just gave him a short nod, his expression hard to read, before turning back to you with a tired smile as Kelce and Topper disappeared behind the gym. „So, you hungry?“

Why did this situation suddenly feel so… intimate? It wasn’t. Definitely not. There was absolutely no reason to feel weird about this. And yet—standing here alone with Rafe Cameron was… a lot. Maybe it was the way he looked at you—calm, focused, as if he was actually paying attention.

Or maybe it was the damn wet strands of hair falling into his forehead after his shower.

Get a grip.

You nodded quickly, trying not to overthink it. „The cafeteria has quinoa veggie bowls today. Or fries, if you’re not into influencer food.“

Oh God. Was that your attempt at being funny? Tragic.

Rafe’s lips twitched with amusement. „So, you’re assuming I don’t like quinoa bowls?“

Oh. Oh no.

Heat immediately rushed to your face, and you could feel your cheeks burning. Why the hell did you say that?

„No—I mean…“ You let out a nervous laugh, which sounded more like a weird cough. „Not that you wouldn’t like it, but you’re just more like—uh, not that I’m putting you in a box or anything, but you don’t seem like someone who… uh…“

Rafe raised an eyebrow, his smirk widening. „Someone who eats quinoa?“

You sighed. „Forget it. I’m just talking nonsense.“

„No, no, now I’m curious.“ His voice was amused, almost teasing. „How exactly do I seem?“

You swallowed. Shit.

„Uh…“ Your eyes flickered over him for a second—his broad shoulders, the damp strands of hair falling into his forehead, the fresh polo shirt fitting way too well against his body—oh God, wrong direction.

„I just meant…“ Maybe you should just stop talking and dig your own grave. You sighed and smiled awkwardly. „Okay, look, I'm sorry if you’re actually a secret quinoa veggie bowl advocate. I didn’t mean to sound condescending.“

Rafe laughed. Not in a mocking way—no, it was real, warm, which somehow made it worse because it only made you more nervous.

„No, no, I get it,“ he said, shrugging with an amused smile. „I guess I need to work out more if I’m giving off ‘fries guy’ vibes.“

Your eyes widened, and you quickly shook your head. „That’s not what—“

„Relax, I know what you meant.“ He cut you off, tilting his head toward the cafeteria. „Come on, you can keep judging me in there.“

I am the most embarrassing person alive, you thought, face still burning.

Still, you fell into step beside him, gripping the strap of your bag a little tighter. Brain, could you please shut the hell up? Thanks.

It didn’t.

Because why did Rafe’s presence feel so overwhelming—in the best way possible? And why did his ridiculously good aftershave still linger in the air between you, like some kind of cruel distraction?

And most importantly—how the hell were you supposed to survive two whole weeks of this?

[sam-the-friendly-ghost]

Hello! this is your random anon question of the month! (or however often it ends up being.)

YOUR QUESTION IS:

Do you find character sheets help you when you are designing OCs? What are usually the most important things you'd put on a sheet if you use one? If you don't use one, how do you organize OC lore?

Oooo! This is a really good question.

When I am designing characters I don't tend to make ref sheets anymore! This is mostly because I like the freedom of changing their designs as I work out their story. I do doodle them, and come up with a simple here's what they generally look like, but it might not be coloured, or be really sketchy, or just be a portrait. I also find character sheets really boring to make, so skipping that step makes it easier for me to keep motivation. I do often still end up with a design I'm happy with, but I don't like to "finalise" anything, unless another person is involved in which case I'll make a character sheet. Also that doesn't mean I don't draw my OCs a lot, I just don't make a red sheet for them.

I don't make character sheets, but I do write down basic information about them at the top of my document. Generally it goes something along the lines of: name, age, gender, pronouns, sexuality, some important traits, and then maybe some fun facts at the end. I remove traits that aren't strictly necessary to the story though. The important traits are generally tied to the story, or things I need to keep consistent, like "this character injured their right arm," or "this character is autistic, here are the symptoms they have." This means as I work out a story I can reference these points as I go.

Anything that doesn't have to be EXACTLY the same throughout the story, or might change as I go more in depth doesn't get written down as a note. I might like the idea of a characters favourite colour being blue, but maybe I find that the story works better if they prefer purple.

Note: I do change the format of my notes depending on how much information needs to be consistent and number of characters. For example (although not my OCs) for "Integration" I have note categories like: schedules, diagnosis, and opinions on plot relevant problems." This means I can more easily find how these characters opinions differ, and write medical scenes because their diagnosis are all in the same place.

After I have some basic information down, I just start writing, or drawing! I find it a lot easier to make good characters if I don't assign them personality traits, and instead think of them as people. This stops me from making flat characters that don't hold weight. If I have an idea (like a character liking he colour blue) I might draw/write a short blurb that's relevant to that idea so it's down, but it feels less official than a note. This also keeps my notes tidier so I can find information that is actually relevant and necessary.

Ex) Unless a character is gonna need a blood transfusion multiple times and I want to mention their blood type I don't need it in my notes, but maybe I'll write a blurb about them donating blood and get an idea of how they would handle that situation. That gives me the chance to think about details like: are they scared of needles? Would they be upset if they don't get the good kind of juice box? Why are they donating? After that I can draw parallels between that blurb and the plot to see how they would react to larger things. If they are donating because they wanted free food, I might be clued into how they would react to their rations running low while adventuring.

To sum this up: I don't create official sheets for anything I might want to change with time, but if it is set in stone and needs to be consistent, I will write it in my official notes where I can easily reference it. This helps me to be creative and change character traits for the story, but also keep important details consistent!

Ex of a ref I have below the cut!

This one is interesting cause it shows the flexibility of this system! In this story the characters more represent ideas. Leslie represents denial, and accidentally causing harm. Her story shows how by acceptance you can have healthier relationships and stuff. The sketch shows her general demeanor and an example of something she might wear. I know I want her to wear black and white clothing to represent the harm of black and white thinking. The sketch is there to remind me of that them in her clothing, but it isn't clean enough for me to feel bad about changing anything.

Thank you for the ask!

And if you read this entire thing... Congrats! You won reading a giant info dump about organising character info! (Thank you!)

[cy-cyborg]

Disability Tropes: The Miracle Cure

The miracle cure is a trope with a pretty negative reputation in disability circles, especially online. It describes a scenario in which, a disabled character, through either magic, advanced technology, divine intervention or some combination of the three, has their disability cured throughout the course of the story. Sometimes this is literally, as in the disability is completely and entirely cured with no strings attached. Other times, it looks like giving an amputee character a prosthetic so advanced that it's basically the same as "the real thing" and that they never take off or have any issue with, or giving the character with a spinal injury an implant that bypasses the physical spine's break, or connects to an exoskeleton that allows them to walk again. Sometimes, it can even look like giving a character some kind of magic item or power that negates the effects of the disability, like what I talked about in my post about "the super-crip" trope. Either way though, the effect is the same: The disability is functionally cured and is no longer an "issue" the author or character has to worry about.

But why would this be a bad thing? In a world with magic or super-advanced tech, if you can cure a character's disability, why wouldn't you?

[ID: a screenshot of Roy mustang from Full metal alchemist Brotherhood, a white man with short black hair in a hospital gown. In the corner of the screen is the hand of another person holding a small red gemstone. /End ID]

Well there's a few reasons. First, lets talk about the purely writing related ones. If you've been around the writing or even media critique communities for a bit, you've likely heard people voicing their frustrations with tropes like "The fake-out death" where a character is either implied to have died, but comes back later, or is explicitly shown to be dead and then resurrected. Often when this happens in media, it leaves the audience feeling cheated and like a character's actions and choices don't really matter if even the worst mistakes and consequences can be undone. In the case of the latter situation, where they die and are brought back, it can make the stakes of the whole story feel a lot lower, since even something like death is shown to be reversible, so the audience doesn't really have to worry about anything bad happening to their favourite character, and once you've used this trope one time, people will constantly wonder why you wouldn't use it every time it comes up.

The same is true for "fixing" a character's disability. It sets a precedent that even things as big and life-changing as disability aren't permanent in this setting. We don't have to worry about anything major happening to the characters, there's no risks associated with their actions if it can all be undone, and it will lower the stakes of the story for your audience. Personally, I also feel like it's often used as a cop-out. Like writers wanted to include a major injury the leads to something big like disability for shock value, but weren't sure how to actually deal with it afterwards, so they just made it go away. Even in cases where the character start the story with a disability and are cured, this can still cause issues with your story's stakes, because again, once we've seen you do it once, we know its possible, so we won't feel the need to worry about anything being permanent.

Ok, so that's the purely writing related reasons, but what if that situation doesn't apply to the story you're writing? What if they're "fixed" right at the end, or the way they're cured is really rare, so it can't be used multiple times?

I'm glad you asked, because no, this is far from the only reason to avoid the trope! In my opinion, the more important reason to avoid it is because of how the a lot of the disabled community feels about the miracle cure trope, and the ideas about disability it can perpetuate if you're not very, very careful.

You might have noticed that throughout this post, I've put words like "cured" and "fixed" in quotes, and that's because not every disabled person wants a cure or feels like their ideal to strive for is able-bodied and neurotypical. For many of us, we have come to see our disabilities as part of us, as part of our identities and our sense of self, the same way I, as a queer person might see my queerness as a part of my identity. This is an especially common view among people who were born with their disability or who had them from a young age, since this is all they've ever really known, or who's disability impacts the way they think, perceive and process the world around them, how they communicate with people or in communities who have a long history of forced conformity and erasure such as the autism and deaf communities. Many disabilities have such massive impacts on our lives that we literally wouldn't be who we are today if they were taken away. So often though, when non-disabled people write disabled characters, they assume we'd all take a "cure" in a heart-beat. They assumed we all desire to be just like them again, and this simply isn't the case. Some people absolutely would, and there's nothing wrong with that, but it's not as universal as media representation makes it out to be.

Another reason it's so heavily disliked is because this trope is often used in conjunction with other ableist and harmful tropes or it's used in ways that perpetuate misinformation about living with a disability and it can have ableist implications, even if that's not what the author necessarily intended.

If the miracle cure is used right at the end of the story for example, as a way to give characters a happy ending it can imply that the only way for a disabled character to be happy in the long run, is for them to be "fixed", especially if they were miserable all the way up until that point. If it's used earlier in the story as a way to get said character back into the action, it can also be read as the author thinking that disabled people can't be of use to the plot, and so the only way to keep them around is to "fix" them.

Of course, there's also the fact that some authors and writers will also play up how bad being disabled is in order to show why a cure is justified, playing into the "sad disabled person" trope in the process, which is pretty much what it says on the tin. Don't get me wrong, this isn't to say that being disabled is all easy-breezy, there are never any hard days and you should never show your character struggling, not at all, the "sad disabled person" trope has it's place (even if I personally am not a fan on it), but when both the "sad disabled person" trope and the miracle cure trope are used together, it's not a great look.

This is especially bad when the very thing that cures the disability, or perhaps the quest the heroes need to go on to get it, is shown to be harmful to others or the disabled person themselves. Portraying living with a disability as something so bad that it justifies hurting others, putting others at risk, loosing yourself or killing yourself in order to achieve this cure perpetuates the already harmful idea that disability is a fate worse than death, and anything is justified to avoid it.

I've also noticed the reasons the authors and writers give for wanting to cure their characters are very frequently based on stereotypes, a lack of research in to the actual limits of a person's disability and a lack of understanding. One story I recall reading years ago made sure to tell you how miserable it's main character, a former cyclist, was because he'd been in a car accident where he'd lost his arm, and now couldn't ride bikes anymore, seemingly unaware of the fact arm amputees can, in fact, ride bikes. There are several whole sports centred around it, and even entire companies dedicated to making prosthetic hands specifically for riding bikes. but no, the only way for this to resolve and for him to be happy was to give him his arm back as a magical Christmas miracle! It would be one thing if the story had acknowledged that he'd tried cycling again but just had difficulties with it, or something was stopping him from being able to do it like not being able to wear the required prosthetic or something, but it really did seem as though the author was entirely unaware it was even possible, which is an issue when it's the whole point of your story existing. This happens a lot more often than you'd think, and it's very clear when an author hasn't even bothered to google search if their character would be able to do something before deciding the only solution is to take the disability away.

There's also the frustration that comes from being part of an underrepresented minority, finally seeing a character like you on screen or in a book, only for that representation to be taken away. Disabled people make up roughly 16% of the population (though many estimate these numbers are actually much higher), but only about 2.8% of American TV shows and 4.1% of Australian TV shows feature explicitly disabled characters. In 2019, around 2.3% of films featured disabled characters in a speaking roll, and while it's slowly getting better as time goes on, progress on that front is very slow, which is why its so frustrating when we do see characters like ourselves and so much of their stories focus on wishing to be, trying to become or actually being "cured".

An finally, there's the fact this is just a really common trope. Even if we ignore the issues it can cause with your story's tone and stakes, the harm it can do to the community when not handled with care, the negative perceptions it can perpetuate and everything else. It's just a plain-old overdone trope. It shows up so often that I, and a lot of disabled people, are just getting tired of seeing it. Despite everything I've said, there are valid reasons for people to not want to be disabled, and just like how I made sure to emphasise that not everyone wants a cure, it's important to recognise that not everyone would refuse it either. So long as it's not done in a way that implies it's universal, in theory, depicting someone who would want and accept a cure is totally fine. The issue is though that this trope is so common and so overdone that it's starting to feel like it's all we ever see, especially in genres like sci-fi and fantasy (and also Christmas movies for some reason).

[ID: A Gif of a white man in a top hat nodding his head with the caption "Merry Christmas" down the bottom. /end ID]

Personally, because it's so common, I find even the few examples of the trope used well frustrating, and I honestly feel that it's at the point where it should be avoided entirely where possible.

Ok but Cy, you mentioned there are ways to use this trope well, what are they?

So, like I said, I'm of the opinion that this trope is better off not being in your work at all, but if, for whatever reason, you can't avoid it, or it's use is really that important to the story you want to tell, there are less harmful ways to implement it.

Don't have your only disabled character take the cure

If you really must cure your disabled character's disability, don't make them the only disabled person in the story. Show us another character who, when offered the same cure, chooses not to take it. This at least helps push back a little against the assumption of "of course everyone would want this" that these kinds of stories often imply and doesn't contribute (as much) to disability erasure in the media.

Don't make it a total cure

In real life, there are cures for some disabilities, but they rarely leave no trace. For example, an amputee's limb can sometimes be reattached if it was severed and they received medical treatment fast enough, but it usually results in at least a little nerve damage and difficulties with muscle strength, blood flow or co-ordination in that limb. Often times, these "cures" will fix one issue, but create another. You might not be an amputee anymore, but you're still disabled, just in a different way. You can reflect this in your fictional cures to avoid it feeling like you just wanted to avoid doing the work to write good disabled representation.

Do something interesting with it

I got a comment on my old tumblr or possibly Tik Tok account ages ago talking about their planned use for the miracle cure trope, where their character accepts the cure at the cost of the things that made her life enjoyable post-disability. Prior to accepting the cure, she had found other ways to be independent to some extent and her community and friends helped her bridge the gaps, but they were all taken from her when she was "cured" forcing her into isolation. Kind of like a "be careful what you wish for" sort of thing. The story was meant to be a critique on how society ignores alternative ways of getting the same result and how conforming to other people's ideas of "normal" isn't always what you need to bring you happiness. This was a genuinely interesting way to use the trope I think, and it's a perfect example of taking this trope and twisting it to make an interesting point. If you must use a trope like this, at least use it to say something other than "disability makes me sad so I don't want to think about it too much". Alternatively, on a less serious note, I'm also not entirely opposed to the miracle cure being used for comedy if it fits the tone. The Orville has some issues with it's use of the Miracle Cure trope, but I'd be lying if I said Isaac amputating Gordan's leg as a prank, knowing it could be reversed in a few hours did get a chuckle out of me.

If your villain's motivation is finding a cure for themselves, don't use it as justification for hurting people

Disabled villains need a post all their own honestly, but when a villain's motivation for doing all the terrible things they do is so they don't have to be disabled anymore, it's especially frustrating. Doubly so if the writer's are implying that they're justified in their actions, or at least that their actions are understandable because "who would want to live like that?" Honestly, as a general rule of thumb, avoid making your villains disabled if you aren't disabled yourself (especially if they're your only disabled character), but if they are disabled, don't use the disability as a justification for them hurting people while finding a cure.

So are there any examples currently out there to look at where the trope is used, if not well, at least tolerably?

Yeah, I'd say so, but they're few and far between. Two examples come to mind for me though.

The Dragon Prince:

[ID: A Gif of Ava the Wolf from the Dragon Prince, a light brown, fluffy wolf who is missing her front right leg. /End ID]

The Dragon Prince on Netflix uses the miracle cure twice, but I still really enjoyed the show (at least I did, up until my Netflix subscription ran out, so I've only seen up to season 4). The first time the trope is used in the series, it's actually a fake-out. Two of the main characters, while looking for someone to help them heal the dragon egg they're carrying, encounter a young girl named Ellis and her pet wolf Ava. The two explain their egg is not looking good and they need to find someone to help it, but no one they've found had the knowledge or ability to do anything to help. Ellis says she knows a healer who can help them, and tells them that this healer even restored Ava's amputated leg when she was a pup. When we actually reach this "miracle healer" however, she is revealed to be simply an illusionist. She explains that Ava is still missing her leg, she simply made it look as though she had restored it because Ellis's parents were planning to throw the puppy out, believing it would not survive with its disability and would only be a drain on supplies. This was not actually true and Ava adapted to her amputation very well, she simply needed more time, and hiding her disability and making her appear abled gave her the time she needed to fully recover and adjust. When they return to the healer with the main characters, she removes the illusion and explains why she did it, emphasising that the real problem was never with Ava, but with how people made assumptions about her.

While I do feel it was drawn out a bit too long, I do appreciate the use of the trope as the set up to an overall positive twist. Disability does come with down-sides, it's part of the deal and it would have been nice to see a bit more of that, but for disabilities like amputation in particular, the worst of our problems often come from a lack of adequate support and people's pre-conceived ideas about us, and it was nice to see this reflected, even if it is a little overly simplified.

The second time this trope comes up in the series is when one of the antagonists, Soren, is injured during a fight with a dragon, becoming paralysed from the neck down. His sister, Claudia is absolutely beside herself, believing it was her fault this even happened in the first place, but Soren actually takes his new disability very, very well, explaining that he understands there are things he can't do now, but that there's a lot of things he can still try, that his previous job as a soldier just didn't allow time for. It's possible this reaction was him being in denial but it came across to me as genuine acceptance. He is adamant that he doesn't want a cure right from the beginning because he knows that a cure would come at a cost that he doesn't want his sister to pay, and that he is content and happy with this new direction his life will be going in. Claudia, however, is not content. It had been shown that she was already using dark magic, but this event is what starts her down the path of using it in earnest, disregarding the harm it will cause to those around her. She ignores Soren's wishes, kills several animals in order to fuel the healing spell that will "fix" him, and Soren is pretty clearly shown to be horrified by her actions. What I like about this use of the miracle cure trope is that it touches on something I've seen happen a lot to disabled people in real-life, but that rarely shows up in media - the fact that just because we accept ourselves, our disabilities and our new limits, doesn't mean our friends and family will, unfortunately. In my own life, my mum and dad were always accepting of my disability when I was younger, but as I got older and my support needs changed, my body took longer to heal and I stopped being able to do a lot of things I could when I was little, they had a very hard time coming to terms with it and accepting it. I'm not alone in this either, a lot of disabled people end up cutting contact with friends and family members who refuse to accept the reality of our situations and insist "if we just try harder maybe we won't be so disabled" or "Maybe you will get better if you just do [xyz]". Unfortunately however, some disable people's wishes are ignored completely, like Soren's were. You see this a lot in autistic children who's parents are so desperate to find a cure that they hurt their kids through toxic and dangerous "treatments" or by putting them through abusive therapies that do more harm than good. Claudia has good intentions, but her complete disregard for Soren's decision still harm them both in the long run, leading to the deterioration of their relationship and causing her to spiral down a very dark path.

Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood

[ID: A Gif of Ed from full metal alchemist, a white boy with blond hair, staring angrily at a jar of milk on the table. His brother Al, a sentiant suit of armour, is in the background looking directly at the camera. The caption, spoken by Ed, says "So we meet again you little bastard" /end ID.]

The show does begin with Ed and Al looking for a way to cure their disabilities (which they gave themselves when trying to resurrect their mother as children went horribly wrong). However, when the boys discover that the object needed to do that - a philosopher's stone, can only by made through absolutely abhorrent and despicable means, and using one, likewise, comes at the cost of potentially hundreds or thousands of people's souls, they immediately stop, and shift their focus on finding the stones that had already been made so it can't fall into the wrong hands, and preventing the creation of new ones. The core theme of the show is that everything has a cost, and sometimes the cost is simply too great.

However, right at the end of the show, several characters are healed in a variety of ways. Ed gives up his ability to do alchemy to get his brother's body back, as well as his arm so he can save his friends in the final battle, but neither of the boys come away from this completely "healed". Al's body has not been used since he was a child, and so it is shown he has experienced severe muscular atrophy that will take a long time and a lot of work to recover from, acknowledging that he has a pretty tough road ahead of him. When we see him in the epilogue, he is still on crutches despite this being several months after getting his body back. Likewise Ed is not fully healed, and is still missing one of his legs even if he got his arm back.

The more... interesting use of the trope, however, is in the form of Colonel Mustang who was blinded in the final season. Mustang is shown to take to his blindness pretty well given the circumstances, finding a variety of ways to continue doing his job and reaching his goals. When other characters offer to let him use the philosopher's stone to heal himself however, he takes it, acknowledging that this is a horrible thing to do and that Ed and Al would be extremely disappointed in him if they ever found out. He uses it both to cure his own disability, and to cure another character who was injured earlier in the show. While I'll admit, I did not like this ending, I can at least appreciate that the show made sure to emphasis that a) Mustang was doing fine without the cure, and b) that this was not morally justified. The show spent a very long time drilling into the viewer how morally reprehensible using the stone was, and it didn't try to make an exception for Mustang - you weren't supposed to like that he did that.

When I talk about these tropes, I do try to give them a fair chance and discuss the ways it can potentially work, but I really do want to reiterate that this particular trope really is best avoided. There are ways to make it work, but they will still leave a bad taste in many of your viewer's or reader's mouths and you have to be exceptionally careful with your wording and framing, not just in the scenes where this trope is used, but in the lead up. If you really must use it, I highly recommend getting a few disability sensitivity readers and/or consultants (yes, even if you are disabled yourself) to help you avoid some of the often overlooked pitfalls.

[skyward-floored]

Hey what are your thoughts on the groups from the latest update btw?? 👁️👁️

- hero-of-the-wolf

They’re really interesting!!! Some of them were pretty unexpected, but I’m excited to see how they all unfold.

I made a post about this already but Time putting Sky with Twilight was so smart of him. Sky is the best swordsman and best equipped to take care of the Shadow if he shows up, and I’m sure Time is remembering how Dink was actually running away from the Master Sword in shady escape. Dark Link is really unlikely to mess with Twilight with Sky there, and I appreciate how Time figured that out so well. I’m also curious about what kind of conversations they’ll have without Time or the others around, I’m betting the Master Sword will come up again 👀

Legend and Hyrule seems like an odd group, and Time even mentioned he regretted that he had to put such experienced people together, but aside from boomerang shenanigans it actually kind of makes sense. Legend is okay-ish with teamwork, but Hyrule seems like he’s allergic to it. Putting them together will hopefully make them realize it’s not a solo mission this time, and they’ve got to rely on each other’s instincts and knowledge. Plus downfall duooooo I can’t wait to see what they get up too AAAH

Warriors pointedly chose Wild to go with him. Obviously he’s finally going to follow through with his earlier statement from Sunset pt.5:

—and Wild (and Wind lol) knows it.

(I love Wind’s little “oooohhhh you’re in trouuuuble)

There’s been a lot of discussion about how Warriors is going to lecture Wild, and I personally think he’s going to be firm, but not mean. He’s not going to blow up at Wild, that’s not his style (unless Wild argues back and Warriors roses to the bait, but I don’t... think that’ll happen). I think he mostly just wants Wild to understand what was—and is—at stake.

Warriors is military. You follow orders in the military. When you don’t follow orders, you get yourself and others killed. You have to rely on your fellow soldiers and your plan of attack, you can’t just run off by yourself and deviate from the plan and Warriors knows that. He went through something similar on his adventure, he got cocky and thought he was invincible, started disregarding anyone except for himself. He nearly died because of it, and in this instance, Wild could have died because he was blinded by his emotion and risked being injured just as badly as Twilight.

It’s not exactly the same, but I’m sure Warriors is looking at this and going “well crap that’s me”. So I think he’s going to give Wild a quick “here’s what you did wrong and don’t do it again because I’m trying to keep us all alive and you’re making that difficult so try and listen to orders so we can accomplish our mission here???” lecture. And I’d bet good money ol’ Dink is going to interrupt him partway through because he’s out for both Warriors AND Wild now for multiple reasons and they’re totally doomed :D

Aaaaand Time Wind and Four. I think they’ll be really fun to follow, I can’t wait to see more of Four and Wind together especially. Maybe they’ll FINALLY NOTICE EACH OTHERS’ SHIELDS and put together maybe being related. I’m hoping. I’m hoping so bad. I’m also eager to see Time and Wind interact some more (yay!) and also Time and Four because we haven’t seen a lot of them together yet. Maybe even some realizations that Four comes before Time..? Maybe. We’ll see. I bet Four will have to shrink for a puzzle though.

So yeah I’m really excited to see how things are going to go :D

[vaguely-concerned]

I'm fairly sure I'm less than half way through act 1, and already so much of my mental health hinges on getting to have lucanis' soft weirdly low-key voice in my ears saying absolutely insane shit and delightedly whispering 'buddy baby what'

(he genuinely does see deicide as just another part of his 9 to 5 and while not humourless in general does not understand why anyone might find this idea odd or humorous, is the best way I think I can describe his vibe. have you ever seen a man so beautiful and so autistic and also he murders people mostly politely and then goes back home and makes everyone a nutritious family dinner afterwards. add in some acute sleep deprivation and that's it that's the whole guy)

[spaceorphan18]

The Lady Whistledown Papers : 2x01 Capital R Rake (Part 4)

Welcome back, Gentle Readers, to The Lady Whistledown Papers, where I’m taking an in-depth look at Penelope Featherington and Colin Bridgerton’s character arcs and romance within the show Bridgerton!

For previous issues, follow tag : The Lady Whistledown Papers

Portrait of the Featheringtons

Lady Whistledown is particularly vicious -- going after Anthony (Pen and Anthony don't really get much interaction, it makes me wonder what their dynamic is like) and then continues to goad the Queen (which, girl is getting incredibly bold). Meanwhile, we cut to the Featheringtons lounging around -- and I feel like is this what they do most days? It seems like a very boring existence.

While reading LW, Finch giggles and snorts as Penelope has made another plant pun in her writing, to which he appreciates. I kind of love that he is a LW fan, and really, he seems to enjoy Penelope in general. I kind of love that. Penelope is thrilled as his amusement, and is glad someone appreciates her cute, little plant puns.

But maybe more importantly, the juxtaposition is that at the ball, she's being clever and witty, while being ignored not only by suitors but by literally everyone. Meanwhile, as LW, everyone is reading her, and enjoying her. And, I should say -- the usage of the same kind of plant pun humor is also a reminder that Penelope and LW are the same person.

Btw, I love her little smirk and book snap as she jumps up at Finch's compliment. She must really enjoy when her family actually appreciates her.

Penelope might be in good spirits, but Portia is not -- and begins asking Varley if they can get anything for the candlesticks, as she's now starting to sell anything she can to get some income.

Penelope notes this - and while her sisters aren't alarmed, she is, and she is well aware that her family needs some good fortune and quickly.

Also, side note -- I want to know what Penelope is reading!! We get no good shots of the book. Though it looks like the book she was reading at the very beginning of the episode.

[I just want state that the scene in between this one and the next is a delightful Bridgerton family scene -- I still adore all the family dynamics, as it remains one of my favorite parts of the show. Also, Anthony is a great main character.]

Letters

Can we take a moment and appreciate how beautiful Pen looks in this scene? Like, seriously, look at this girl. There's a reason they show puts her in ugly dresses and has her hair in weird configurations -- because it'd be hardly believable that anyone wouldn't notice her if she looked like this at the balls.

Anyway, Penelope's in her room when she hears Prudence's irritating singing coming down the hallway. (Omg, I love the throwback to Season 1.) She just knows Prudence is going to be a nuisance, so she has to act quickly, as she's doing some LW things. She scurries to get the floorboard closed and covered again.

And... this makes me curious. Did the house just happen to have a loose floorboard there, and little Penelope discovered it one day and uses it for her secrets? Or did she make an effort to cut the floor open to have herself a hiding spot? Yes, these are the kinds of questions I think about.

So, Prudence does barge in and the first thing she asks is why Penelope is being so quiet. And... it's a very weird question. How could Penelope be loud? I realize Prudence probably spends a lot of her time singing badly, but there are only five of them in that very big house -- it's hard to believe there's any way that any of them could be making that much noise.

But anyway, Penelope tries to ignore her and states that she is reading. Prudence continues being invasive, stating that Penelope is incredibly boring, and then goes on to why she's really there -- she wants to complain about how Phillippa is now preoccupied with Finch -- and I have to imagine that Prudence isn't really thrilled that she's losing the sister she's bffs with.

Also, the look of annoyance on Penelope's face when Prudence says petrified wrong. Like, the levels of her sisters' stupidity grate on her ever last nerve.

Prudence then decides to snoop on Penelope's desk, and finds that there's a letter there she's amused by. I kind of wonder if the show wants you to think that Prudence has found a Lady Whistedown column? But I mean, Penelope is pretty smart and would never leave that writing out for her sister to read.

It is interesting, however, that she leaves her letter to Colin out in the open, however. But I suppose that is less scandalous? (Though it's pretty scandalous -- as unmarried men and women who weren't related to each other and aren't courting don't write letters to each other. Just another example of the two of them breaking the rules.)

It's also interesting that -- Penelope has been writing him for months now, and no one in her household has noticed. I'm guessing that Penelope is always jumping for the mail first, because he's definitely writing her back, and there's no shortage of letters there, and she must be getting the mail every day, because I'm sure someone would be suspicious that Pen would be getting so much mail.

I also kind of love that this is such a sister moment with Prudence taking the letter and Penelope crying for it back. Idk, it just reminds me of the times I've fought with my siblings like this.

The noise brings Portia into the room (and, lol, Portia looks like she's got a constant headache these days) and wants to know what the fuss is all about. Prudence spills the beans about Penelope writing Colin.

Portia's reaction is... fascinating. She isn't really that alarmed by it, and the first thing she notes is that all the letter writing has gotten her hands dirty. And then she kind of eye rolls about it -- as though she doesn't understand why Penelope would be wasting her time and energy.

Penelope defends herself -- exclaiming that Colin is her friend (which is kind of an extraordinary statement for the time period).

But, I mean, I love LOVE that the show made sure to add this piece of their relationship. The correspondence that Penelope and Colin have been doing while Colin's been traveling is so important and so special. (And I kind of wonder who started writing to who? Did Colin think to send her a letter as something reminded him of her while away? Or did Pen start writing him after Eloise grew bored of giving responses? I'm so curious as to how this all happened.)

The letters, however, are integral to their story. It's a place where the two of them can be themselves without the confines of what society allows. It's a chance for Penelope to be her clever and witty self and express the person she is without fear. And ironically (?) it's the same voice that she probably uses for Lady Whistledown.

And I'm of mind that through these letters are how Colin really fell in love with her. And it's somewhat fascinating that he unknowingly fell for her and Lady Whistledown at the same time. It's clear that he never reads the column, because how could he not pick up on the same phrases and the same sense of humor and the same writing style. She probably does not mask her writing as her Lady Whistledown persona is a reflection of her true voice, and undoubtedly her letters to Colin would be the same way.

Anyway, these letters are something that is very important to her. If you watch how she clutches the letter as her mother scolds her about it, how she has it close to her as she defends herself, and calls Colin her friend. The fact that Prudence is making fun of her and the fact that Portia is completely dismissive of it is incredibly hurtful to her. This relationship means everything to her.

It's interesting that Prudence rolls her eyes -- thinking that Colin would waste time on her, because clearly she doesn't notice the amount of mail that Penelope is getting back. But also doesn't notice that the only one who does pay any attention to her is Colin Bridgerton.

And another side tangent though - I do wonder what Prudence and Phillippa's opinion of Colin is, especially after the whole Marina thing. I mean, I don't think it's much -- but they are aware of how much Penelope spends time with the Bridgertons. And I can see them thinking it's hilarious that Penelope seems to be infatuated with her bff's brother. (I'm guessing, too, that Eloise didn't spend too much time over at the Featheringtons -- and encouraged Pen to spend time with her family instead.)

But, I mean, again while Portia is a bit blind to it -- she becomes completely distracted, asking if she could sell the books because the money issue is way more an actual thing to be concerned about, I do wonder if Penelope's sisters picked up on her feelings towards Colin. At least as so far as her being enamored when he was around would be another thing for them to make fun of her about.

Anyway, Portia scolds Penelope for wasting her time with 'silly letters'. And declares that if Colin is her friend -- then she is, in fact, Catherine the Great. And, I mean, that's the saddest thing. Her own mother doesn't take her seriously. In any other context, this would be seen as a scandal, but Portia finds it frivolous. She doesn't believe that her youngest daughter would find any kind of connection with a man and that's just... sad.

And poor Penelope is just deflated. She had been riding high on all the success of Lady Whistledown, but the reality is that in reality, she is just a girl clinging on to what little stability she has while those who should love her the most mock and ridicule her. It's incredibly disheartening.

Portia leaves by telling Penelope to clean her hands because how dare anyone think she would be a commoner. It's like the finally needle into Pen's side, like Portia has to take one last jab before she leaves. And, oh, how Penelope just has to stop and take a deep breath to reorient herself. She has survived another day of torment.

Penelope uses writing as a way to escape her life, and as a way to deconstruct the world around her. It makes me wonder what she does next -- write a scalding LW column to release her anger? lose herself in fantasy writing to Colin? Or does she have a journal for thoughts too private to even share with anyone at all.

[super-rangers]

u said in a comment on ur fic that you don’t know if Janis has actually began to consider that Regina might be gay yet. how much gay shit do you think Regina would have to do/how much gay shit could she get away with before janis is willing to consider it??

it’s like the other side of regina’s whole “what do you mean :) im not gay :)) i just think Janis is really pretty :))) that’s all :)”

is Janis just like “what :) regina is straight :)) we just cuddled :)) it’s fine :)) she just caressed my tattoo in the woods a little bit :) but she’s not GAY :))” ?? lmao

I think it's kinda like Janis is so unwilling to see Regina as queer that she insists on explaining it all away. It's a whole 'well, straight girls can be really touchy with their friends. Regina constantly holding me or touching me is just normal straight girl stuff and I'm being really gay and need to stop' sort of thing. It hasn't yet occurred to her that Regina is Not a touchy person normally lol

Once Regina comes out, she'll start recontextualizing all the gay little moments they shared and be like 'oh.....Regina was being gay" while trying not to think about the fact that that means Regina probably was flirting with her, because that would break Janis' brain a little

But there’s also the added layer of Janis’ experiences with Regina in relation to her queerness that’s stopping Janis from considering it. Poor girl hasn’t had one positive experience with Regina and sexuality. Like, in Janis’ mind, Regina is a deeply homophobic straight girl who has just started getting over that prejudice.

Regina is Janis’ ultimate straight girl crush, forever unattainable and forever making it impossible for Janis to move on because she keeps flirting and touching her.

Mostly, at this point, Janis is just gay and confused 😅

So I guess the answer to your question is that it would take a lot of gay shit for janis to get suspicious lmao

[supersecretnerd]

Ok so these designs are cute as hell, the Internet is just mean

I have too many thoughts about a game I still need to watch

[jasontoddenthusiastt]

I always smh at people who dub Jason as “whiny” “and therefore ooc” in tt 29. If you died and all everyone did was taint your legacy, and not a single person remembered you fondly or deemed you worthy of commemoration after your death, wouldn’t you be a bit upset too?

[obstinaterixatrix]

mom’s telling me about the brief time we went to church and just dropped that she actually hated the people there and because of the experience she has an aversion to christianity & I was like huh?? I thought you got baptized just in case?? & she was like no it’s because they wouldn’t stop harassing me. I met a lot of evil people in the church. I’m taking it back. & I’m like you’re un-baptizing yourself??? & she’s like yeah.

[madebysimblr]

👖 Are you a planner, plantser, or pantser? Is it consistent?

:0 i had to go look up the other two terms b/c i had no idea what they are, i now know some new lingo weeee.

probably in between! There are a lot of things I plan out sometimes months (or years if I'm slow) in advance. Sorella's current woes I had planned out earlier this year! (maybe end of last year?) However, I do change a lot of stuff as I go along. And for the most part I don't write out more than a little bullet point of plot.

So for instance in my outline for Sorella's YA years the most recent arc was:

First: Sorella's Birthday. Turning 21, Alex surprises her. Second: Mt. Komorebi Trip! NYE roommates go snowsportin'. Alex surprises her again. Interlude: Sorella being busy with school, the show, and work Third: Maia's Hospitalization. Something serious, she's admitted the morning Alex is supposed to leave. He stays. She says ILY one night half asleep. And then the shoe drops: He returns home, (says ILY back) Charlotte comes to town asking why James Montgomery was on her floor that's so weird! Envy looks up who that is and the cat is out of the bag.

from that I built out more in between scenes, and changed things as I went along and got ~reactions~ to the story as it was posting :D (notably adding in the character of Takuya in an effort to make jimmy seem more legit)

Most recently I had the issue of about to start working on the next part, and realizing slowly whilst making poses that I didn't like the plan as it stood, and felt like i should change it. And I have this weird thing of wanting to stick to the plan if I've been thinking about it for that long BUT I did end up changing the plan, and it's for the better who woulda thought :0

[dolichomorph]

manifesting a new bee!chloe in season 6 🕯️🙏🕯️

[fantomette22]

Also kind of funny how people say i’m quite discreet and don’t talk a lot when i’m afraid i talk too much (maybe too loud or too fast) and afraid i ended up annoyed them. (Can smn explain pls xD)

anyway it’s late i apologize if it doesn’t make so much sense it is late)

[throes-of-warm-tornadoes]

the 2001 planet of the apes is so good to me. like, the 1968 version will always have a special place in my heart because the makeup magic was... dare i say... very magical, but i liked how the 2001 one leaned into a more biologically accurate angle. like, those are straight up apes. no wonder humans aren’t speaking as a survival tactic, those things could hurt you without even trying. again, the 1968 one was so good and impressive but the fact that taylor could overpower the actors that were playing gorillas was a little jarring lol. which makes sense, cos so much of his escape plan relied on him being strong enough to push people out of the way.

this isn't a complaint btw! they're just people in costumes---they are still very much giving ape, but there wasn't much they could do about that on a physical level. so, when the 2001 had these big hulking gorillas and more accurate looking chimpanzee faces on the screen, i appreciated that detail about the humans exploiting their fear of the water. it leveled the playing field without making the fight against the apes look like a losing battle