#i hate using the word purist. i really do

[lullabyofthejotnar]

I remembered that one time when someone did a little bit of a rant on my post about media refusing to have accurate mythology depictions and it got me kinda thinking. Alongside the "Anti-DEI" Gamerbros, you have the "myth accuracy purists". Now, the difference is that usually, unlike the Gamerbros™, their complaints are not coming from their bigotry. But, they can still be annoying to deal with. I get why someone would be dissapointed with inaccurate depictions — Especially since there are some straight up horrendous and popular ones, which caused people to spread misinformation to the point said misinfo is accepted as the correct one.

What I don't get, however, is knowingly engaging with a series that advertises itself as being pretty much a mythology fanfiction or even a satire of them. Then getting mad there's no accuracy.

[lurveinn]

I’m so curious about Wizarding fashion. JKR isn’t very physically descriptive- we just know that wizards wear robes, which are outlandish to muggles, and pointy hats, but what does that really mean? What kind of robe? Magical fashion clearly isn’t very gendered, since Harry remarks on a man at the Quidditch World Cup wearing a dress and insisting that it’s unisex (certainly not the case in Britain at the time), but we don’t have any other parameters. Keeping in mind the uniform from the movies, and the fact that in SWM, Snape isn’t wearing any trousers, here’s what I think wizards wear:

1. Flowing silhouettes and cloaks; clearly, wizards love a good statement cloak. Think tassels and frills (not like Ron’s Yule Ball fit!), massive extended sleeves and lots of draping.

2. Skirts: let’s be honest, just one singular robe, without any layering, doesn’t give us much to work with. Skirts go with the general silhouette, explain why the World Cup wizard thought muggle men wore dresses, and keep with the no-trousers thing from SWM. I’m South Asian, so I like to have a little fun with it and think of wizards in ghararas (my favourite item of clothing); the Wizarding World is quite insular, travel is relatively unrestricted (hello, they have magic!), everyone has a common enemy in muggles (and other species- goblins, house-elves) etcetera, so race probably doesn’t function the same way and I headcanon a lot of cross-cultural exchange. Plus, wizarding fashion isn’t restricted by weather- they have warming charms- so wearing clothes made for hot climates in England, for example, wouldn’t be a problem.

Plus, I actually think saris are a natural fancy dress option- flowy, drapey, colourful. Speaking of which-

3. If there’s one fanon idea that I hate (aside from fanon!Sirius, of course), it’s this image of wizards (specifically high society wizards) as reserved. Sorry, did we read the same books? Wizards, even posh, rich wizards, like the Malfoys and Blacks, are camp and very outlandish. They do house-elf taxidermy, they keep their wands in canes. Just because Hogwarts uniforms are black doesn’t mean that people dress like they’re in mourning all the time. People can be total snobs and obsessed with their image and still wear bright pink, insane robes, because guess what? They have different social conventions than we do. Men and women dress basically the same, so there is no reason to believe that a man wearing a flowing robe would be against the norm. I say this as someone who believes misogyny and homophobia are well and truly alive in Wizarding society, especially in pureblooded families where the emphasis is on continuing the line; they definitely exist, but they probably look different.

4. My personal obsession and headcanon: rich wizards wearing bones. Look, I might not think of them as racist in the traditional sense, but they are undeniably speciesist, if that’s a word? They think of themselves as superior, and other sentient magical species either work under (goblins) or are enslaved (house-elves) by wizards. We only see Veelas very briefly, but despite them being admired for their beauty, I doubt wizards treat them very well. So- show me blood-purists wearing corsets made of goblin bones and teeth. Show me Veelas being hunted for their blood to stain and dye clothes with. Show me exotic “magical creatures” that are humanoid and capable of reasoning and should have rights, like mermaids and werewolves, being hunted for their scales and pelts while also being ostracised for being ‘non-human’. It’s terrible, but that’s the kind of archaic jewellery and fashion the old families that the fandom likes to fetishise would like to wear.

[hollowed-theory-hall]

what’s your opinion on draco x hermione as a couple? sorry if you’ve answered this before but i haven’t been able to find an answer 🤔

Hi, and no I don't believe I have spoken about Dramione before.

As with all shipping things, ship whatever you want these are just my opinion.

With that out of the way, I honestly, I have a little soft spot for Dramione. Now, do I think it makes sense in canon, not really, but I don't mind them as a side pairing. Like, you won't find me reading/writing fics specifically for Dramione, but I'm fine when they are there.

You see, Dramione hits a very particular spot for me. That spot is that I like both characters about the same amount (which is I think they're written alright for what they are, but I find them kinda annoying in the books). That places them as equals inside my head and makes shipping them with each other easier than shipping them with characters I like more than them. This is just how shipping works for me sometimes.

As for the character personalities themselves, I think Draco and Hermione have a surprising lot in common with each other.

Draco is implied to be a top student (he's in Potions NEWT class, for example), like Hermione, meaning he's also very academically inclined. But neither of them is some brilliant strategist and while they can come up with creative solutions, they don't think very far ahead with these solutions. They don't necessarily complete each other intellectually, but I think they're about equal to each other, I think. Both are brave when the situation calls for it. Hermione hangs out with Harry and Ron, who never really had money growing up, but her family goes on ski trips. She's the only daughter of two dentists. You just know she lives well and is used to comforts at home.

Both, while having very loving parents, feel isolated from their peers growing up. You can tell Hermione was likely bullied in her muggle primary school and while Draco hangs out with Crabbe and Goyle, he isn't actually close to any of them. Both of them also share the experience of loving their parents, and yet having a great divide between them and their parents. Hermione's parents love her, but they could never connect to the wizarding world fully. Lucius and Narcissa love Draco, but once Voldemort returns, I think Draco feels more and more distant from his parents because he isn't actually a blood purist. We see that when he's truly alone and seeking comfort and a friend in year 6 he talks to Moaning Myrtle, who is a muggleborn.

I think, like Myrtle, Hermione could appreciate that Draco is sensitive. This is something I feel might get on Harry's nerves on occasion considering how he hates Cho being all weepy, but I think Hermione would find it sweet.

I do like that Hermione is the more ruthless one between the two. Like, she is the more willing of the two of them to come up with some crazy idea that is most difficult illegal (like trapping Rita in a jar or setting Snape's robes on fire). Like Draco would be horrified at the thought of breaking into the ministry, Hermione would consider it a challenge. This dynamic could be really fun.

It's a dynamic that doesn't exist with Drarry or Dron in the same way since Harry and Ron, while both are more ruthless than Draco and also break into the ministry do so out of necessity and usually would try to avoid danger. Hermione, on the other hand, is more willing to go in headfirst into crazy dangerous shit like the Gryffindor she is. I think Hermione is less hinged than Ron, and Harry is what I'm saying, and it's one of my favorite aspects of her character. And while Hermione can be ruthless, and even violent, she's also weird about violence. She has a certain line she is terrified of crossing; that line is around killing and Unforgivable curses. I think terrified is the right word because I think she knows she could cross it and it scares her. We see Harry cast Unforgivables, and while I think Hermione could cast them if she was pushed to it, it wouldn't be something she tried on her own accord. I also think she'd be more horrified with herself for succeeding than Harry is. Draco is similar in that he can cast Unforgivables when pushed to, but he's disgusted with himself over it and feels sick. What I'm saying is that Hermione is softer in that respect (but also wackier in her plans), which I think would be very interesting when paired with Draco.

Both of them could be incredibly stubborn, which I think they'd both enjoy. Both Hermione and Draco are very verbal characters, they love talking and blabbering on and that would help them connect to each other because they would just start talking about something, and just, never really stop talking because both of them are like that. I think Draco would also enjoy bantering and arguing as a playful pastime the way Hermione and Ron do, which is also a point in Dramione's favor.

Hermione is less forgiving than Harry is, though, but she is capable of forgiving Draco, I don't think it's beyond her. Yes, slurs and all, I think it's in character for her to forgive him under the right circumstances.

So, like, while they're not a pairing I read all that much, they do compel me a bit. My main problem with Dramione is that often when they're paired up, both of them are too out of character for my liking.

[buffyfan145]

Word of warning we just got a ton of possible leaks about season 2 of "Rings of Power" coming from The One Ring Net source. However, I will point out while a few of these seem possible this reminds me a lot of other "leaked" things for my other fandoms, especially DC and Marvel movies/shows, and most of those turned out to be false and fans just posting things for their own enjoyment. However, this is how it first leaked that Halbrand was Sauron before season 1 aired. Some of these do match scoops/spoilers we've gotten from Fellowship of Fans an interviews with the cast, but some of these are so out of left field. I'll post a breakdown under a cut of the major ones but you can see the post in full here. But I will point out some of these would be massive changes to the lore that even I'd be shocked if they do it, so again we'll see.

So the first thing that matches what FOF and even Charlie Vickers teased is that season 2 is going to show a lot of Sauron flashbacks and tell his side of the story and that we'll be in on his plans the whole time. But according to this post the Mairon version is a separate actor and that Gavi is actually the Annatar version but Halbrand/Charlie is still the main one going forward.

They're saying the Tolkien estate gave Amazon more access to "The Silmarillion" and we will see all the Valar, Maiar, Eru (he's just a voice though so we won't see a person), Melkor/Morgoth, Mairon (even called this name), Gandalf/Mithrander (who is Daniel's The Stranger), and even Ungoliant as we get this full backstory in the show.

Halbrand will go back to the dwarves and reveal he's Mairon to them and they truth him because of Aule.

It'll be revealed that Sauron/Mairon had a son and Adar killed him, which was why the line Adar said about "a woman or a child" was said in s1. No idea who the boy's mother is but possibly Amelia Kenworthy's character. This is a huge departure but would be interesting to have Sauron/Mairon/Halbrand actually have been a father and the 2nd Maiar besides Melian to have children.

Gandalf/Mithrander will also have flashbacks, including that he almost sided with Mairon, and even introduce Shadowfax.

Tom Bombadil and Goldberry will appear, which we already saw a leak about this possibly happening last year.

Supposedly Halbrand/Sauron does keep up his infatuation with Galadriel but actually goes back to Eregion not as just Annatar but as Celeborn!!! 😮 So they don't rescue Celeborn after all but it is Sauron/Halbrand and it's making it sound like there's romantic scenes between them but again it's actually Sauron/Halbrand with Galadriel and not Celeborn. I know some of us Haladriel shippers have written this exact thing in our fics and if this really does happen that again hints that Sauron/Halbrand really could be Celebrian's biological father which I would be shocked if the show did this even though I'd also love it. LOL Then add in if they do this change where Sauron had a son that died and possibly ends up having a daughter with Galadriel. It does sound like the real Celeborn does come back too at some point so if this happens this is going to be interesting, even though I know a lot of the purists and regular LOTR fans might hate it.

The season does end with Sauron forging the One Ring, which FOF has also been speculating. The thing is if Galadriel will be with him when he does as FOF reported on her being captured by Adar during the Battle of Eregion with this also confirms happens in the last 2 episodes.

They're also saying too that the season will also end with Galadriel making a choice to save either real Celeborn and/or Sauron/Halbrand as Celeborn, which again could point to above that she gets captured and then decides to stay with him. So this is going to be very interesting if any of these turn out to be true.

[midnightstargazer]

thoughts on sunshine james

I mean, it's not canon. I can see where it comes from, but it's not the James we see in the few actual flashbacks of him.

James, in canon, was very loyal and selfless towards the people he loved the most. He treated Sirius like a brother and welcomed him into his family's home when Sirius ran away. He accepted Remus when he found out he was a werewolf and went to great lengths to help him. He fought and died in a war that he could have opted out of, probably for Lily's sake and because it was the right thing to do. And, of course, he never questioned whether he could trust Peter, to disastrous results. This is where the sunshine characterization comes from, I think.

But he was also someone who had very black and white ideas about right and wrong. The other Marauders + Lily showed a capacity to see gray area when it came to the people they were closest to, or just in general.

Lily was friends with Snape for years, even after he started hanging out with the future Death Eaters' gang, even knowing he was using Dark magic.

Remus understood that the Marauders' bullying was wrong, but did not stand up to them about it and still saw them as good people. Later in life, he was able to tolerate Snape and trust Dumbledore's judgment on him.

Sirius gave us the line "the world isn't split into good people and Death Eaters" and was pretty forgiving in his assessment of Regulus ("stupid idiot" is a very mild insult to be immediately followed by "he joined the Death Eaters")

Peter - well, Peter betrayed them to Voldemort, so obviously he wasn't very concerned with morality.

James, on the other hand? Saw the world in black and white, not a lot of nuance. He absolutely despised pure-blood rhetoric and Dark Arts and wanted nothing to do with people who aligned themselves with those things. No exceptions. And while he was generous and loyal towards his friends, he had no problem being cruel to people he deemed bad. It's very strongly implied that his reasons for targeting Snape were connected to Snape's interest in the Dark Arts and use of the word "mudblood." He felt like it was acceptable to bully Snape because Snape was not a good person.

(I think there was definitely also some personal dislike involved, which would have existed regardless, hence the "it's more the fact that he exists" comment. But still, Remus and Sirius seem pretty convinced James hating the Dark Arts had a lot to do with it).

This sort of "it's okay to do bad things to bad people" mentality is pretty much opposite of what sunshine James usually ends up looking like in fanon. Largely because sunshine James is usually paired with Regulus. And, obviously, to make that work, even with the softer versions of Regulus that usually go with the ship, James has to be a very forgiving sort of person who's willing to see nuance and give people a chance, not someone who takes a hard line stance against blood purist ideology or Dark Arts.

This is why Jegulus doesn't work for me unless it's very far removed from canon. Because if Voldemort exists, and the war is happening, and they both have their canon views on blood purity and Dark Arts and join their respective sides, I just don't see it. If Regulus survived his trip to the lake and was actively working against Voldemort in the long term, then maybe. If his views also changed quite a bit. But even then, I still think James would be starting with a negative opinion of him and it would take a lot to get him to reconsider. I'm not saying Regulus doesn't deserve a second chance, or doesn't deserve to be loved by a good person. It's just... not how I see James at all.

tl;dr - canon James is a good and loyal friend but not an all-loving ray of sunshine who wants to see the best in everyone. The sunshine characterization makes Jegulus possible with a closer-to-canon plot and setting, but it isn't really compatible with James's canon characterization.

[oh-my-bindery]

I clearly had a little late night rant to myself so I decided to share it…

Drarry and how I see them and why they are SO IMPORTANT to me

Draco

Draco is sheltered, an only child, he is spoiled, he has been fed blood purist nonsense all his life by his family and those around him. Which is so relatable to me as I am an ex-catholic who not only had extremely clouded beliefs about race, but also sexuality and religion. I said awful things to people, I was being fed that by teachers, parents, newspapers, Catholic Church, school classmates and teachers. Everything around me was that way. I was a very closeted trans gay man who eventually lost it and wanted to burn all those beliefs down once I figured out what I his deep down about myself and became more aware of people, suffering and prejudice.

I used to use my words to protect myself and even being nasty to people, wanting to hurt them so they couldn’t hurt me. I was a very closeted gay and transgender person. I really relate to Draco.

Draco’s humanity/ vulnerability

The turning moment for me seeing Draco differently (or having a chance of change) as it was for Harry in the books, was seeing the humanity to Draco.

We never truly see Dracos humanity or how he is on his day to day basis (we do get some scenes that shape him as a person and present wider outlook on his character) as the book is written from Harry’s perspective and JKR really hates Draco.

Which is awful, she never gave him a true redemption despite hinting at it, building it up over the 6th, 7th book. Draco stops eating in his 6th year (it’s not directly stated but it is said that he looks “sick” which could be taken is such which addition to not sleeping and overwhelming stress and pressure clearly visible on him), he is forced to become a Death Eater and given the mark as a punishment to his father, he becomes panicked and miserable and acting out of paranoia and not doing a great job. He cries so much so, he becomes friends with Moaning Myrtle and even she says how sad and depressed he is, how lonely he is. Which leads me to conclude that either a) he distanced himself from his friends b) his friends are not his real friends but only friends with him bc of his high up status as a Malfoy or they have been family friends for years due to their parents being friends. c) both. At first maybe Draco felt like he could restore the good family name to his family. He was proud. But then he realized what all of it meant it meant that he would have to kill and he is truly not capable of it.

Draco’s wand working for Harry very well/ being a light side wand

Let’s take a look at what Harry Potter Wiki says about it first.

“Draco Malfoy's wand was 10" long, made of hawthorn wood, and had a unicorn hair core. “

“Hawthorn wands are said to be "most at home" with a wizard passing through a period of turmoil. During the last couple of years of owning this wand, Draco Malfoy was under enormous pressure to murder Albus Dumbledore, and immediately afterwards suffered through Voldemort occupying his family's home. Harry Potter claimed mastery of this wand at a time of great turmoil as well, undergoing a robbery of Gringotts Bank and the Battle of Hogwarts within a short time of gaining this wand.”

What can be told about Draco from it is that he not only was going through some turmoil when he was chosen by his wand at 11 but also continued to do so in Dracos darkest time in 6th year.

What we can gather from this regarding Drarry is that they are both going through the worst. They would understand each other.

Then we move on to:

“Wands with unicorn hair as its core are the hardest to turn to Dark Arts. Although this would seem ironic at first, as Draco's inclination to Dark Arts during his early to middle years (and his success at casting the very dark Imperius Curse) his last years at school led to a change of his lifestyle that made him realise he had gone further than he expected, and henceforth turn away from the Dark Arts.”

Draco was opposed to Dark Arts from a young age even though his father was most certainly very into them. Which is extremely interesting. What was Draco like before he came to Howarts? I can only assume his mum was a good and living influence on his life (she’s definitely flawed and believing in blood purity, but she will give up her own life and happiness if it means Draco is alive and happy).

And yeah Draco was always a terrible Death Eater because his heart was not truly in it. He wanted to save his family and himself from dying.

Draco’s wand in Harry’s hand (GET YOUR MIND OUT IF THE GUTTER)

“Harry looked down at the hawthorn wand that had once belonged to Draco Malfoy. He had been surprised, but pleased, to discover that it worked for him at least as well as Hermione's had done.” - Deathly Hallows

IM SORRY BUT DRACOS WAND CHANGING ALLIANCE TO HARRY IS THE GAYEST THING EVER.

Wands to tend to have difficult time switching masters. Yet Dracos wand doesn’t. It works great for Harry despite Garry not winning it fairly.

Draco’s wand is one that is the least likely to turn into dark arts. The wand chooses the wizard. On the topic of wands Dracos wand felt the most friendly to Harry and he defeated Voldemort with it. Dracos wand also is said to have a very hard time to switch owners/ sides yet there was no problem of it when Harry took it from Draco. Draco didn’t even fight back enough for it. Almost as if he wanted Harry to have it. Which would make sense that the wand worked so well for Harry as Draco wanted it to work for Harry. It only makes sense that way. It may have not been intended by JkR to write that but it’s what she wrote.

Not Identifying Harry in the Malfoy Manor

Draco lies to his family risking his own and his family’s lives to give Harry time to escape the Manor. He knows Harry is Harry but instead says he “can’t be sure” which is the only response he could go for in order for Harry and his friends not to be killed. If Draco said that Harry was not Harry, him, Hermione and Ron would have been killed because they are useless to the Death Eaters and Snatchers.

Draco is top student in some of his classes from what we know. He is smart, he must have known how to deal with this situation. He also was terrified when he saw Harry as Harry noticed.

“… Draco… approached.

“Well, Draco?” said Lucius Malfoy... “Is it? Is it Harry Potter?”

“I can’t—I can’t be sure,” said Draco….

“But look at him carefully, look! Come closer!… …Draco, come here, look properly! What do you think?”

“…Draco’s expression was full of reluctance, even fear.

“I don’t know,” he said, and he walked away…”

-Deathly Hallows

Harry noticed so many of Dracos emotions, more than anyone, they both read each other so well. Know each other by their breath, by their slight movement (main piece of proof is the emotive HBP). They know what the other is going to say or is thinking. Harry knew Draco was terrified and didn’t want to torture Rowle as his punishment. He could see it on Dracos face in his visions after the Manor escape. So far so Harry felt bad for Draco, it hurt him to look at it and he had to cut off that connection it hurt him so much.

“

“More, Rowle, or shall we end it and feed you to Nagini? Lord Voldemort is not sure that he will forgive this time. . . . You called me back for this, to tell me that Harry Potter has escaped again? Draco, give Rowle another taste of our displeasure. . . . Do it, or feel my wrath yourself!”

A log fell in the fire: Flames reared, their light darting across a terrified, pointed white face — with a sense of emerging from deep water, Harry drew heaving breaths and opened his eyes.

He was spread-eagled on the cold black marble floor, his nose inches from one of the silver serpent tails that supported the large bathtub. He sat up. Malfoy’s gaunt, petrified face seemed branded on the inside of his eyes. Harry felt sickened by what he had seen, by the use to which Draco was now being put by Voldemort.” - Deathly Hallows

Also going back to Draco, he had to live with Voldemort since his fifth year. Terrified, watching people die in his house, terrified that his parents or himself will be tortured or killed. And let’s not lie he probably was tortured himself by letting Harry get away. Draco is a skilled at occlumency so he could probably hide his feelings towards Harry from Voldemort or his father.

Harry saves Draco from the Room of Requirements and then again even tho Draco is talking to a Death Eather saying he is on their side. Harry cares about Draco not dying. He risks his own and his friends lives to save Draco. I’m pretty sure Harry would not to that to other people he hates and he didn’t- not Crabbe or Goyle. All he cared about was Draco. This boy is not just a noble Gryffinor and his Harry-self who is adamant about saving lives. He cares about Draco more than he does for other people that are not his friends or family.

I can definitely continue but if people want to add to it, please feel free as I WOULD LIVE IT!

[ceilidho]

Twenty questions for fic writers

thanks @kneelingshadowsalome !!!! @ohbo-ohno @charliemwrites if u guys wanna do this go ahead. or anyone else that feels like it

1. How many works do you have on Ao3?

47 LMAO

2. What's your total Ao3 word count?

a staggering 583,382

3. What fandoms do you write for?

call of duty basically exclusively now, but i used to also write for star wars, shadow & bone, spiderverse, rings of power, and the last of us (may write more for tlou in the future)

4. Top five by kudos.

dead ringer, take me home country road, red dawn, ghost prompts, and landscape with honey.

5. Do you respond to comments?

god i used to all the time ages ago, but now i don't. i truly just get so overwhelmed and it exhausts me. i will respond to the odd comment now and again though, and i read them all obsessively.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

"the terrible nature of ghosts" for sure

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

i guess "landscape with honey" ended on a sweet note. or "birdsongs". i like writing fics that have endings that feel neither happy nor sad; i'd like to think that most of my fics end on a note that make you feel mildly uneasy but overall good.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

i have blocked an UNTOLD amount of people, so not anymore. but every now and then i'll get the stray "you're evil and the shit you write is fucked up" comment. people tend not to do that when you moderate comments though.

9. Do you write smut?

well now, that's my bread and butter

10. Craziest crossover.

i'm with salome on this one - i'm a purist. not interested in crossovers.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

ages ago when i was younger sure. not since then thankfully.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

maybe?? i know some people have asked and i've given them permission but then they've never come back to tell me whether they did it or not.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

yes!!! i wrote "dead ringer" with a friend and it's my most popular fic lmao. i love love love co-writing with people, but i rarely do it because your style kind of has to match the other person's in order for it to work.

14. All time favorite ship?

god reylo was really it for me for the longest time. i'm not sure any non x reader thing will ever top that. i do LOVE abby/ellie from the last of us, but there's hardly anything for them.

15. What's a wip you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

any reylo incomplete fic, im so sorry. it's just not gonna happen.

16. What are your writing strengths?

detailed descriptions. introspection and character analysis.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

DIALOGUE. i don't know how the fuck people talk sometimes. also longer plots. and i'm not amazing with visualizing how houses and places look for some reason so i really need to get better at that (i'll be honest, i still don't FULLY know what the town in "country roads" looks like so i try to describe it very vaguely).

18. Thoughts on dialogue in another language?

i really only enjoy it when it's used effectively - when the audience is supposed to be aligned with the main character in not understanding what's being said.

19. First fandom you wrote in?

teen wolf!

20. Favorite fic you've ever written?

"saltwater" my beloved. or "auribus teneo lupum" from my reylo days.

[imaginejamesandsirius]

Sirius was 16 when Regulus was born, and ran away when Regulus was only a couple of months old. He and James are happily married and have a son together, Harry (who was born 1980, like canon).

One day Sirius is visited by a Wizard Solicitor with a Will telling him that he’s inherited half of the Black fortune, and is now also has custody of his younger brother, who is a about 8 at this point.

Sirius assumed that his brother had been the perfect child for his parents, he expects a blood-purist spoiled brat — instead he’s got a child who’s abuse makes his own (which was already severe) seem like nothing.

Just Sirius feeling guilt for abandoning Regulus, feeling responsible for his abuse, and he and James trying to give him the best life possible — and Harry being adorable, and Regulus and him becoming the best brothers, which makes Sirius feel complicated feelings.

((A/N: Mentions of child abuse))

Anger and discomfort. That's what Sirius felt when his father pushed a week-old baby into his arms and said, "Hold him until your mother gets back."

The new baby, his new brother, sixteen years younger than him, Regulus, whimpers pathetically. He tries to rearrange his arms so the baby won't start screaming, but does he know anything about babies? He's never really been around one before. This is maybe the second time he's held one, and he would've been happier if it had stayed at one.

"Why can't you bloody hold him?" Sirius asks as Orion backs away. "He's your stupid son."

"As are you," Orion replies dryly, a familiar angry glint in his eye. "So do as I say and hold your sodding brother while I get a drink." He leaves, long strides taking him from the room far faster than Sirius can chase after him. He doesn't like the fact that he has a sibling now or that he's supposed to wait here until Walburga gets in-- whenever that's supposed to be-- but he doesn't want to bash the baby's head into the door, so he has to stop following their father and wait in the room as requested.

He sighs, gives the door an impotent kick, then gingerly makes his way to a chair. It's easier to hold a baby while sitting, right? He's heard that somewhere. Maybe, if he's lucky, Regulus will stay asleep. Or is he awake and just not crying? It's hard to tell which when his face is so scrunched up. Sirius isn't sure. As long as he's quiet though, he doesn't care.

He knows what a new sibling means. His parents didn't say it in as many words, but they didn't need to; he knows that he's a disappointment to them. He's said a hundred times (to James), that if they could replace him, they would. And now they have.

His parents don't like each other. They don't have sex for fun. They purposefully conceived Regulus so that, once Sirius is gone, they'll have a new heir. Sirius knows that he won't be here much longer. It's a toss up whether he runs or they throw him out. He thinks he's going to run; he'll be able to pack all of his things that way.

He glances down at the (thankfully) still quiet baby in his arms and hates him, just a little bit. Right now, he's fine. He's a baby. He doesn't have personality, he's trying to figure out going to sleep and eating when he's hungry. But when he grows up? Sirius turned out alright, in spite of their parents. Regulus probably won't turn out the same. Andromeda noted to him once, in the corner of one of their family gatherings, "It's fifty-fifty if one of us isn't utter shite. It's like, you and I turned out good, so Bellatrix and Narcissa have to be piss." Sirius laughed, knowing the truth in her words; Uncle Alphard, present but apart from the others like they were, was a clear sign. They could turn out good, but it wasn't a guarantee.

If Sirius is fine, then what does that mean for the future of this newborn baby? He'll grow up under Walburga and Orion's watchful eyes and the 'benefit' of hindsight that raising Sirius will have given them.

Sirius will grow to hate him. That stir of anger, to that future, to their parents, is still there. "Sorry, mate," he whispers. Angry or not, he pities him.

*

There's a knock on the door, and James answers. "Hullo. Erm, can I help you?"

"I'm a solicitor, my name is Joe Byrne." He holds a business card out. It's a deep green, almost black but its colour is visible from the sunlight shining on the doorstep. "I'm here to speak to Sirius Potter."

James takes the card and glances down at it. The sigil stamped to the background and the skate of magic underlining his information like an errant drop of water mean he's old money-- which means he's likely connected to the Black family. "I don't know what business you could have with him."

"I presume you're his husband, James Potter?"

"That's correct."

"Mr. Potter, are you aware that his mother recently passed?"

"Yes-" it was in The Prophet "-but she disowned him. I know children are usually in the will even if they're estranged, but this isn't a usual situation."

Mr. Byrne doesn't appear bothered by this. "The will has been read. What Walburga Black may or may not have done to disown your husband in a social manner wasn't reflected legally, so I need to speak with him."

James knows he's being overprotective by thinking anyone connected with the Black's-- even professionally-- is bad for Sirius. So he swallows it down, tucks the card in his pocket, and says, "Okay. Please, come in. Would you like a cup of tea?"

"Please. Thank you."

James waves his wand to get things started in the kitchen and leads Mr. Byrne to an armchair. They're both quiet as he sits. Another wave of his wand brings the teapot out, the tray and cups trailing behind it. He can't remember if it's polite to pour for him or not; it's been so long since he tried to be proper, and that was occasionally, not all the time. Bloody hell, he shouldn't care about this, and he doesn't, really, but he's nervous. Sirius's parents are an old scar, but they are a scar. What's the point in putting pressure on that scar again? For a single galleon that his mother left, just to spite him? "Go ahead," he says, motioning to the tea service, "and I'll go get Sirius."

Mr. Byrne thanks him, so even if it was a mistake, it's a small one.

James isn't looking forward to this. To any part of this. He didn't even want to let the solicitor in, but now he has to tell Sirius that he's here, and he likes that less. He heads to the backyard, where they were soaking in the sun for a few hours while Harry's at the Longbottom's.

Sirius glances over when he walks out, then frowns. "You alright?"

"There's a solicitor here for you. From Walburga."

"I don't imagine we'd have anything to discuss."

"I said the same to him, but he claims you're in the will." James holds out a hand to him and tries to smile. "Best to get it over with."

Sirius sighs but agrees, taking his hand and joining him inside.

Mr. Byrne introduces himself to Sirius before opening his briefcase and removing a sizeable folder. "I apologize for coming to your home to discuss this, but my letters didn't receive any response and certain matters need to be taken care of quickly."

"We received quite a bit of post after her death," James says by way of apology. None of the letters were welcome; they'd burned the lot of it without sifting through to check senders.

"I understand," he replies, accepting. Then he looks to Sirius. "In summary, you are now the Head of the Black family. There's quite a bit of details to get through in relation to that, but we can schedule an appointment for that if you prefer. The most urgent matter is that of your younger brother, one Regulus Black. Since your mother's death, he's been staying with a member of S.U.B.S., but the hope is to transfer him into your custody as quickly as possible. There are a few forms I need your signature on, and then you'll be his legal guardians." Mr. Byrne is very efficient about the whole matter. As he's speaking, he retrieves a quill and inkwell from his briefcase. By the time he's done, the inkwell is unstoppered, and the corresponding forms are facing Sirius and James.

Two minutes ago, they had a three year old and struggled with that. Now they're being told they have to raise another kid, one who's older and they've never met.

Sod everything.

*

Sirius and James have a certain idea what Regulus will be like. Sirius was raised in that house, he knows what life was like before he went to Hogwarts, and Regulus is eight. He was snooty and cold and unused to anything like James and Sirius as they are now; Regulus will be the same, possibly worse.

The first glimpse they get of Regulus makes them rethink that assumption.

The first conversation they try to have with him crushes that assumption beneath a harsh hammer and grinds it up afterwards. At first, Regulus is too loud, too aggressive. Then, he's quiet, almost not daring to breathe, and he shrinks away like he expects pain. When none comes, he flees to the loo with a murmured excuse.

"That's not normal," Sirius whispers to James. They need to talk about it, but he doesn't want Regulus to overhear. And, given what just happened, he doesn't want to go too far from him.

"Definitely not," James whispers back. "D'you think they hurt him?"

"That's what it looked like, but it doesn't make any sense. They wanted to make him the perfect son to replace me." He shakes his head. "This doesn't follow."

"Maybe he's skittish from losing his parents and living with strangers," James says, but he doesn't sound like he believes it.

Sirius doesn't believe it either, but he says, "Yeah. Maybe."

*

"Are you going to lock me in the basement?" Regulus asks one day over lunch.

Sirius wishes Harry weren't here for this, and James wishes that there was a warning before someone asked something so horrible like that.

"There's no basement," Harry informs him. "Uncle Peter's house has a basement, but he says I can't go in." He's too young to understand the horrible implications in Regulus’s question. To him, it's a question on the same level as 'can I go in Dad's potion lab' or 'can we have dinner early today'.

James tries to smile. "Right. Like Harry said, no basement. I don't know why we'd do something like that to you anyways."

"The full moon is tomorrow night."

His stomach sinks, because that didn't sound like a different topic, and he doesn't want to ask, but he has to. Sirius braces himself and asks, "Why is that important?"

"They put me in the basement for my transformations."

He blinks. "Transformations?"

"When I become a wolf." Regulus said it as if this was information they already knew.

Sirius and James both force themselves not to react; there's no point in making him think it's a bad reaction. "Right. You don't have to do that anymore, we have something else worked out." They'll have to figure it out tonight. It'll be easy, since they can both transform and keep him company, but finding a suitable location will be a bit of a challenge-- and finding someone to mind Harry while they were both gone, helping Regulus, won't be easy because of the short notice. 

*

"I should've taken Regulus with me when I ran away from my parents," Sirius says, staring up at the ceiling and hating himself for something eight years past. From the corner of his eye, he can see James pause.

"You're not blaming yourself, are you?"

He says nothing.

James sighs, a quiet, sad thing, and pads over to the bed. He sits and places a hand on Sirius's shoulder. "We were sixteen. We couldn't have raised a kid."

"We would've figured it out," Sirius says stubbornly. He's convinced that it's true. They had Harry a little earlier than was wise, but they had each other, so they were able to get through it. It would've been the same with Regulus; they would've been scared and stressed with juggling everything, but they would've managed it.

James lays down. He throws one leg over Sirius's and curves his arm to smush between them so he can hold his hand. He should probably look up at the ceiling with him, but instead he stares at Sirius. His jaw is set, eyes tight, and he's glaring at the red paint like it's done him wrong. "I know you feel bad for him. I do too, but there's nothing we could have done-"

"We could've helped," Sirius cuts in, voice hard.

Mm. He isn't going to make this easy, is he? James keeps himself from sighing again, knowing it'll only make Sirius more defensive. "Okay. Humour me. You're sixteen, and you show up at my house with a baby in your arms. My parents let you and Regulus both live there. We-"

"I know that it wouldn't have been easy with Hogwarts, but-"

James is the one to cut him off this time. "I wasn't talking about Hogwarts, I was talking about Walburga and Orion. If you'd brought him with you, that would be kidnapping. Do you really think they'd let that slide? The law would've been on their side, and they would've wanted him back."

"They treated him like rubbish!" Sirius says, turning his head to glare at James instead of the ceiling. "He's a werewolf; they wouldn't have raised a finger."

"He wasn't a werewolf back then."

A retort is on the tip of his tongue, but he hesitates when that penetrates his fog of guilt and self-recrimination. James is right; Regulus wasn't a werewolf. He doesn't know when he was bitten, but it had to be after he left. "I still think I should've been able to do something," he eventually says, feeling helpless and hating it.

"You didn't know. And it doesn't seem like anyone else knows; they kept it locked down. All we can do is focus on how much better parents we're going to be to him," James says with a grin.

Sirius snickers. "Yeah. Doesn't sound like it'll be hard."

"We'll blow them out of the water."

*

Harry thinks it's fun to have Regulus around. Where James and Sirius are sometimes too busy to play with him exactly the way he wants, Regulus is always free-- and, importantly, always willing. Regulus and Harry both are enjoying the novelty of living with someone close to them in age. Hell, Regulus is enjoying playing. So much of it, he seems to be experiencing for the first time (like he's never had a playmate), but sometimes he does act the five years older than Harry that he is, knowing what Harry wants before he says a word.

It's pretty damn cute no matter which way he's acting. He talks more now, which is a marked improvement on when he first moved in. He doesn't fully trust Sirius and James yet, but they've got plenty of time to build off that, and he does trust them a little. He doesn't expect for them to berate him over nothing; he doesn't expect for them to lock him away on full moons or when he gets 'too annoying'. James gets frustrated with the slow pace sometimes, hating that Sirius has to remind him that baby steps are the only way they'll make progress. Raising Harry is, by comparison, easy. He's known them his whole life, never had reason to doubt that they'll be there for him or keep him safe. Dealing with raising both of them at the same time, with these differing viewpoints, isn't easy, but they're surviving.

Regulus and Harry wore themselves out playing. Sirius, as Padfoot, joined the fun, and he's feeling lethargic as they head inside. When he curls up to take a nap, Harry joins him automatically, pillowing his head on thick fur. When Regulus sees the way Sirius doesn't shake him off, he joins them, arm over Harry and head resting on Padfoot's gently moving chest.

James comes home, takes a photograph before any of them can wake, then tiptoes around the house, wanting them to have as much peace as they can. It's not an easy family, not one he ever thought they'd have, but it's good. Regulus fits in, taking on the role of Harry's brother, with Sirius more like a father.

[darklinaforever]

Why are you all so serious when it comes to imaginary characters? This works for both teams btw. It's okay to love books, characters, and so on, but you act like we live in real Westeros and choose who will rule us. Or as if the Targaryens are your real relatives during a real war. For God's sake. The fact that people love the blacks does not give them any moral superiority. The fact that people love the greens doesn't make them immoral or anything.

In fact, you really don't read any of my posts, and are you really content with the fact that I'm team Blacks and loving Daemyra to spit your venom in anonymous messages in fact ?! It’s just crazy at this point. You look like a bunch of weirdos.

I never claimed to be morally better, or that people who liked the Greens were immoral. Liking the Greens doesn't make you immoral. They are good villains, and most people, including me, like good villains. I'm literally a fan of the real Alicent in the book. She's a great villain that I love to hate.

And for your information, I also never said that Team Blacks were morally superior people. My god, I even once had an argument with a pro team Blacks and pro Daemyra person who hated the Velaryon children and the fact that they were illegitimate ! I never decreed that those who liked the black team were 100% good people VS those who liked the greens as bad ! Where does this bullshit come from ?!

On the other hand, what I denounce are those who claim that the Greens are not villains / antagonists. When that's literally what they are. This is their narrative function. They are not morally gray characters, anti-heroes or worse yet, misunderstood virtuous characters as some like to claim. Once again, there is no problem with liking Team Greens, but there is a problem with believing that they are justified in the story for doing what they do and that they are anything other than villains / antagonists. If you read Fire and Blood and end up being Team Greens at face value, you either have questionable beliefs or you simply have significant problems with reading comprehension (and I hope this is generally the second case for the ASOIAF and Fire and Blood community). The Greens are literally a bunch of misogynists fighting for patriarchal traditions, are blood purists and mostly rapists like Aegon II and Aemond.

The Blacks team is not perfect. Certainly, there are noble people among them, but also and above all morally ambiguous characters. However, they are not the antagonists and villains of the story. They are the protagonists. Team Blacks fights for a woman's right to ascend the throne. About keeping your promises and oaths. And even if it is not for feminist purposes, Rhaenyra on the throne would have given a precedent for women to subsequently also have the right to power. In short, Rhaenyra on the throne would have set a precedent to probably improve the situation of women in Westeros in the lines of succession. To be Team Greens in the first degree is in fact to deny power to women and change in a society. That's what it implies narratively.

It's the same thing for those trying to say they are neutral, trying to make people believe that the two teams are on the same level, probably to avoid feeling guilty for loving the Greens beyond simple villains, refusing to see them as such. To speak of being neutral is to deny that the Blacks are fighting for a much nobler cause overall than the Greens. Once again, the Blacks are fighting for a woman's right to the throne and respecting her words and oaths. While the Greens are literally treated misogynists and usurpers who fight for patriarchal tradition... Just like the simple fact that the number of war crimes are not at all equivalent depending on the team.

It's not the same thing. These are simple facts.

The narrative purpose of GRRM's for the Rhaneyra character is simple. She was usurped because she was a woman. By misogyny. And people who are first degree team greens or neutral have this great tendency to deny it. Simply because otherwise, they couldn't justify defending the greens.

Reading Fire and Blood and ending up at first level being team greens or neutral, once again demonstrates a huge reading comprehension problem. GRRM didn't write this story thinking that the Greens were right or that both teams were on the same level, otherwise, the Greens wouldn't get karmic punishment.

I realize that everyone can see what they want in a fictional work, but there are limits to stupid interpretation. Fire and Blood is very clear that the Greens are the villains / antagonists with very bad motivations, going against the law itself. Because yes, the word of the king is the law. Supporting the Greens or being neutral at first glance, without seeing them as villains / antagonists, is at this stage being willfully blind, unless once again you have questionable values ​​or quite simply very, very poor reading comprehension, which you should be worried about.

The excuse of "it's fiction, so we can think what we want, it doesn't matter" is bullshit. An excuse for not thinking about the fiction you consume. This is proof of intellectual laziness. Do you really think GRRM wouldn't want you to think about his work ?

It's a naive and simplistic way of thinking, designed to justify supporting a misogynistic team, wishing to maintain patriarchal traditions. Once again, either it comes from your own problematic morality that you do not accept, or it is simply not having reading comprehension and supporting the fact of not thinking about what you consume in order to avoid not be aware of the problematic things about what you love in order to simply not give yourself a bad conscience.

Again, there is nothing immoral about liking the Greens. Most people like a good villain / antagonist. I've always said it. On the other hand, yes, it is problematic, to pretend that the Greens are not villains / antagonists, then trying to make them pass for more complex characters than they are, even anti-heroes, or worse, downright misunderstood characters who would be morally superior to the Blacks team. That's always what I talk about. Nothing more. And if this truth bothers you, you should question yourself...

Reflecting on the fiction we consume is not stupid. That should be the basis. And I won't apologize for thinking about what I consume.

And it's still cheeky to come and tell me that I'm lecturing people when it's me that people come to harass with private messages to wrongly explain to me that I romanticize grooming, that I'm a Bitch who doesn't understand anything about the characters I'm talking about, that I should be ashamed, close my tumblr, that Daemon Targaryen is the real rapist from Fire and Blood and that Aegon II is just a normal prince of his time doing his best. Ironically, it's the Greens and Neutral team who always come to me to spew their superior morality to apparently understand that poor little Aegon II is a complex and tragic character while Daemon is the real monster of the story and that the real The goal of Fire and Blood is to choose your favorite war criminal. Lol. That couldn't be further from the truth, and it's complete bullshit. Who once again tries to impose moral superiority on others ? (And again, I'm also entitled to this for liking Kylo Ren / Ben Solo and the Darkling) I think you're clearly talking to the wrong person in terms of promulgating moral oaths.

Love what you love. Just be aware of what it is and think about it. That's all I'm saying.

Once again, I have nothing against those who like the Greens. I have a problem with those who try to make people believe that they are not the villains / antagonists that GRRM made them out to be in the story. To try to make them appear as complex characters, anti-heroes, misunderstood characters who would have reasons just to act as they do. Worse still, to come and tell me that their favorite characters are morally superior to those of the Blacks team or even on an equal footing. Things that are completely false. And if these simple truths bother you that much, don't read my tumblr ! It's simple to do, isn't it ?

At this point of stupidity, I'm going to end up losing my faith in humanity...

@aleksanderscult

[netflixonyourcouch]

So, since I can't sleep and I have time, I'm gonna go through this and unpack it the best way I can. And in order for me to do this subject the most justice, I feel like we have to start from the last slide.

Men too often grill women in what can be considered niche/nerdy or otherwise male-dominated interests such as video gaming, metal and hardcore, and men's sports. There's an expectation for women to prove themselves, they get subject to questions about their knowledge and their credibility is called into question. I fully understand this and its role in this situation, with perhaps the ease in which the heckler dove into the comments to disparage her.

This situation does have more angles to explore, so I'll put a "Read More" here:

Now let's address her chief complaint, which is being a public influencer and being subject to harsh criticism. The way I feel is that if you are a creator, in the very broad sense of the word, like anywhere from being a content creator to a music or visual artist, or even a creator of products or creator of cuisine - If you have *ANY* product that others consume, there will always be haters, and there will always be critics. Period. I think that's inevitable and I think you have to say fuck the haters and accept the critics.

Anthony Fantano faces similar backlash on his music reviews. His supporters often say, "But how are you upset? It's just his OPINION!" not realizing that his OPINION is also his PRODUCT, his BRAND. He's not simply doing this in a vacuum and neither is Kelsey. I think she is learning what it feels like to be scrutinized as a public figure, but I also think, like most other public figures, she should avoid reading the comments or she'll continue to find herself getting hurt by disparaging comments.

This doesn't contradict the first point I made. She definitely is coming under fire for being a woman and giving her opinion on Beloved Male Band #342 or whatever (I'm not even sure what band they're talking about, but it doesn't really matter as it could be any band really). I would hate to see these haters tear her passion away, and if she thinks these type of call outs will help filter her fandom out, then who am I to stop her? I'm just saying, if I started going viral for music opinions and I started getting racist microaggressions and overtones in my comments, I don't want to take time out of my day to address them. BUT I'm not saying she's wrong for doing so. EYE am just saying I have a difference of opinion in how I'd react to haters in my comments.

FINALLY. One last thing to say, and again, I need to work this as carefully as I can.

As a music critic, which Kelsey doesn't think she is (and we'll discuss that too), you have a certain duty of how you approach music that is revered in music culture. Now, this is perhaps not agreed upon except for the most hardcore music purists, many of them pretentious as fuck. But as a recovering pretentious music snob (I promise I've gotten better over the years!) there is a salient point to be made here.

I have older white friends who didn't really "get" Kendrick Lamar and their chief complain was that they didn't really like his music because it heavily features "the n-word." Imagine that. Pulitzer Kenny! He won the fucking Pulitzer Prize, but your perception of his art completely reduced to "oh, he uses the n-word."

It's not valid criticism. It's your opinion, one that I can't take away from them or try to argue differently but it is in fact REDUCTIVE of Kendrick Lamar and his accomplishments as an artist.

So there's always gonna be artists and artists' works you need to approach with a certain reverence and "show your work" so to speak that you tried to consume their art completely. Like if my white friends did that, they'd realize there are several phenomenonally written Kendrick songs that have a substantial amount of depth beyond the fact that he (as a fucking black artist, mind you) uses nigga in his songs.

Kelsey disagrees with this responsibility because she doesn't fashion herself as a critic. I agree somewhat. If she doesn't want the critic tag and she's purely making content for fun and engagement then so be it. *then why spend time getting angry at the trolls if you're not even trying to be what they are assuming you to be.* If your position is "hey, I'm not a critic, these are just my silly little opinions" then STAND ON BUSINESS THEN. If you listen to 8-10 minutes of Sgt. Pepper and you think it's too whimsical and too psychedelic, then if a hater blowing smoke in your comments about how you didn't listen to it long enough, STAND ON BUSINESS.

But even moreso than that is the philosophical question of *how* should one react to albums. My disposition is this: Critic or no critic, if you have a public platform where people are consuming your content, you have a duty of care to react in a way that says you understood the damn assignment. Once you reach a certain level, you simply can't hide behind "this is just me sharing my opinion" because it's not just your opinion. You are in a position of authority, like it or not. And Kelsey doesn't seem to really enjoy the position of being in authority. But I would argue that you better figure that out before you build out a viral platform, or you better stand on what you post and be able to back your shit up with the fact that you don't care to do it in a traditional way!!

It is my opinion that people who are spotlight music influencers give up their right to have opinions without consequences. In other words, you can say fuck everybody in the club, but you cannot then walk back to your car!!!

This sounds NUTS to someone who doesn't see music opinions as a big deal, and think opinions are just personal and "aren't that deep." Kelsey, you have hundreds of thousands of people following you. Like it or not, you're in showbiz now and your opinions hold weight. You are in the unique (best, very fortunate) position to inform the masses about a subject and have them actually LISTEN to you. You can't misuse your platform by saying (for example, she did NOT say this!!) that Joanna Newsom wasn't your cup of tea because you found her voice to be grating.

"BUT IT'S HER OPINION" you might say. "If she didn't like her voice, you can't force her to like it!" Yeah, and I understand that. I don't like Diamanda Galas because I think her voice is too intense. But I'm also NEVER gonna use my platform and say all that without also acknowledging Diamanda Galas being an important avant-garde artist and nobody should speak on Joanna Newsom if they don't address the complexity of her lyrics and music composition.

It's not just Kelsey. I don't think Gen Z values having a responsibility of holding a music opinion like older generations of music enthusiasts do. But it's ok. I think she'll be ok in the long run, but she's gonna have to shake the haters off and respond to criticism much differently than she's doing here. That's if she wants to keep her current approach of reacting to shit that people hold near and dear to their hearts with silly little videos (her words, not mine).

Like if I was starting a fun film platform, I'm not about to react to watching The Godfather and go, "Eh, not my cup of tea, it was too slow."

But that's just me. Some people would say that's a perfectly valid opinion to have, and I would say they are wrong. And though we might not agree on that, that vast difference of opinion is the entire purpose of this rant.

Also, it goes without saying that all of this would apply if she was a guy too. Like I said, Anthony Fantano faces similar backlash as your stereotypical white male music nerd.

[kobblefort]

Rushsly: The Early Days 1

So as you can see from the hatch covers I've established a glass-making economy!!! I also catastrophically fucked up trying to dig a moat and make a bridge over it. I think those merchants are just stuck. Well I got them out by designating the bridge+paved road to be deconstructed. Now I have to just make a big-ass bridge which is going to take forever and I don't know if it actually makes a difference but it feels like bigger bridges are slower/less reliable to me. I quite honestly find making defenses very annoying but if all my kobbles died I would be sad so oh well.

I appointed this zesty girl to the position of "Caravan Tactician" (militia commander for you dwarf purists out there) literally just to make her move out of the construction area, but she has "Unmet need: Fight" so I think this could be good for her. She disdains romance AND friendship, I really like her vibe. Well let's hope that fucking bridge gets done soon and for real this time.

Here is my tavern/dining hall overlap (I Don't Give A Fuck) which the kobolds decided to call "The Permanent Snack." The kobbles drink Dwarven wine and rice beer out of green glass goblets. I'll admit I went a little crazy with the jet blocks but when you find jet you make jet blocks and when you make jet blocks you use them, it's really just that simple. Ok? Don't freak out. It doesn't have to be a problem. You can just let things happen. Struggling for control will only tear it away from you sooner. I should know. Dwarf Fortress is a game about how you can do everything right but then your little guys all decide to just jump over a wall and get killed by zombies. You have to just "let the world be" as Big Boss says at the end of Metal Gear Solid 4, which is a game I fucking hate but we don't need to get into that now.

Speaking of rocks and also things I hate, mining has been making me miserable because of this fucking kaolinite shit. This and the plaster-making rock which is named unfortunately close to an anti-Romani slur are the bane of my fucking existence because it means I have to set my auto-mining designations really carefully and specifically instead of just dragging out a big box over the entire floor once I've dug out the shafts.

Here is a good example of what I was just talking about with the whole not having control over things. You might notice how the planned bridge is one pixel taller now! Well you see the kobolds decided they were simply not going to build it. They just automatically suspended construction every time it was ready because of "item blocking site." Can you see the item that blocked the site? I sure can't!!

It's not on this Z-level either!!! But you have to just be thankful for what you have sometimes and you can't forget about that. Green glass isn't the most wildly profitable crafting material or anything but it's functionally infinite. So even if the canceled work orders notification window keeps filling up because your little guys keep forgetting they have entire hordes of charcoal and coke and bags of black sand it's okay, because eventually they will make coffins and statues and altars and serrated discs. Have you ever had the guy at a head shop try to prove how good American-blown glass is by just straight up dropping a bong on the floor and being like "that cheap Chinese shit would have just Shattered bro!" because I have, and I'll give you a word of advice, don't buy that fucking bong, the damage is already done, the only question now is whether it shatters right there in the shop or when you're home and it spews putrid bong water everywhere because you're a disgusting 19 year old bachelor who hasn't learned to actually take care of himself or his things and maybe never truly will. But maybe that's the specialty of American glass. You can pretend it's not broken, and it can pretend it's not broken, and for a while even though it is functionally broken and going to explode at just the clinking of a little ice cube a little too hard, you can tell everyone it isn't technically broken despite the structural damage being certain and irreversible since three weeks ago. I have this weird feeling that we pretend all sorts of things aren't broken in America

Why the fuck is my main production floor like this, what the fuck is wrong with me lol.

The glassblowing floor is quite nice though. I still need to make offices for my little buddies I'm not sure whether I should do it on a stone floor or just carve out into the one loamy sand floor I haven't touched yet.

THEY'RE HAVING A PARTY!!! I love the song that plays when they do this. The way they "dance" by just shuffling positions around the room is also very cute and funny to me. I should probably tell them to pick up those dead critters though I don't know if they'll do it themselves. Probably not, right? What's a dead lizard on the floor at a party, right? A skink is a pretty big lizard to be quite honest. I dated a girl who had a pet skink and I remember being so surprised when I touched it. Their scales are very smooth and supple but completely firm. I mean they've got no give at all. Something about the skink was just like, this guy is harder than he ought to be. I forgot his name. I wish I was not such a shitty partner who took everything personal and broke up over fucking Facebook messenger but you can't turn back time. Besides she isn't even the one I became pitifully, embarrassingly obsessed with for the rest of my life. Parties are a time for socialization so let's learn about some more kobolds! It is almost the end of our first year and we received eight migrants.

Man the cards sure are stacked against her!!! This is Osgi Ritelurk. She is a "competent weaver" but I feel like her miserable hater energies would be pretty well suited to the military if I end up taking that whole angle seriously instead of just focusing on moat + traps. I haven't built a good trap corridor in a while though so that might be what I end up doing instead. Do people still say "trapping out the bando" do people still say "bando." Part of me never left 2014. Why would I? Things still seem like they're going to turn out alright there

On Speechlessmonstrous wants to help, but she also wants to fight. Been there

oh my fucking GOD WHY ARE THEY DOING THIS AGAIN WHERE IS THE ITEM??? SHOW ME TE ITEM YOU DENSE MOTHERFUCKERS

Kikli is a complicated woman. She's like "I don't like to be tied down" but then she owns a pet cat. I guess that's not that weird. Cats will kinda figure their own shit out, they don't need all that much attention. Dogs you have to walk several times a day every day or they're going to go insane and apparently the only way you can deal with that is to just leave them in your apartment building hallway to bark it out for a few hours! It's not like that's a nightmare for the neighbors when it happens at 5 in the fucking morning several times a week or anything. Like sorry guys but you know how dogs are! Just put them in the fucking hallway and make them everyone else's problem like the fucking dad of the serial killer from Heavy Rain. Sorry. I swore I wasn't going to talk about David Cage. I'm not going to talk about David Cage.

Her name is Ty Lovelyseduce

Vala Knitpolish is 9 years old but has two lovers that's kind of fucking weird what kind of mod is this????? I guess it's not that weird if they're her age. I don't know. I don't think children should ever do anything. I think they should be basically hermetically sealed so that you never embarrass yourself and nothing fucked up ever happens. Well for a kobold 9 years old is not a child. She also already has the right political ideals. Again another good candidate for the military if I do one. Peasants always make me mad, like get out of the way and let someone actually good at things do them.

"I'm killing you. I'm killing you. I'm not thinking about anything else. My programming is just, get that fucking guy" - Germ 98

Some rabbits came to trade! I have to resist the urge to kill them. It's not their fault my stupid fucking piece of shit kobolds won't just build a fucking bridge and have to just manufacture imaginary reasons that they can't no matter how I set it up or what materials I use or fucking anything. They have nothing to do with it! But anger like electricity seeks the path of least resistance and I am angry enough to rob these fucking bastards for all of their shit and then put them in cages and throw the cages down a hole. But why would I do that

Yeah come on in guys welcome to Rushsly I'm just trying to figure out why the kobolds have marked some of these tiles of the world just completely fucking forbidden and never to be touched!!!

These tiles!!! These fucking tiles!!!

Trying to get them to remove them led to this fucking disaster

Col Lashshimmers: she was "often lustful" and "found the whole idea of introspection offensive." That's all we ever really learned about her I guess. She gets a green glass coffin in the floor I was thinking about putting offices on. I like to use the same layout for tombs as I do for bedrooms. Don't read too much into that please.

I set up a lever to knock out the supports which I don't know why I built instead of sacrificing any more kobolds to these stupid fucking Cursed Tiles That Must Never Be Touched. Well I guess I get why they were superstitious now! Even though it's kind of their own fucking fault! I mean it's my fault I should have designated that more carefully so that they wouldn't just run out and kill themselves. There's always something you could have done. You didn't have to let anything happen, ever. If you had the courage to say "do you know how fucked up this is" instead of just running away and letting him dig his claws in deeper and convince her YOU were the problem. If you took a deep breath and slowed down and thought about what to do instead of just freaking out impulsively you wouldn't be here playing Dwarf Fortress alone until 4 in the morning, you'd be asleep in the arms of the only person you've truly loved for maybe your entire life. Sorry. I said I wasn't going to talk about David Cage.

I don't know, I guess let's just try the bridge from another angle. Oh you guys are still here? Yeah, hold on, sorry for the wait and that you had to see a woman die in a construction accident. We'll sell you a box full of gems in exchange for a bunch of fruit, meat, booze and cheese please.

I know they're rubbing their paws together pleased as fuck that they managed to pass off a barrel of "tomatillo wine" on us, that sounds fucked up. Well I don't know, I guess Bloody Mary's are supposed to be good. I've never had one and I probably never will.

Destroying the fucked-up failbridge was strangely cathartic. Except we kind of might have accidentally hurt the lapine merchants. Well to be fair it said they "embarked on their journey" a while ago then they just sorta didn't. Like guys don't just stand around, it's fucking dangerous, you literally just saw someone die here a couple days ago, leave.

We get a big fucking migrant wave which means I have to update the pasture which is already feeling like I built it too small because of fucking course I did but I don't want to break into cavern layers yet so I don't know, maybe we should actually just butcher some animals and eat meat. I think the horses should die first because they are horrific grotesque creatures from Hell that were spurned by God. (You can look this up, it's in textbooks)

Lots of new faces!

This bitch's job is Gelder. Her entire job, her purpose and passion in life, is chopping off the fucking nuts of animals. That's how she's made it this far. 28 years old. Gelder. Proficient gelder. Society has a place for each and every last one of us. It's just up to the stupid fucking socioeconomic systems we live under whether we actually get to get in or you just carry boxes full of phone cases back and forth until your legs give out and a guy who walks directly into walls because he's too busy staring at The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy on his phone to look where he's going calls you stupid because you can't figure out what the fuck he meant by his genuinely fucking inscrutable barely-English (even though English is his first language) instructions. Maybe your calling really is to chop the fucking balls off bulls but then you just have to tank emotional abuse from wine-drunk boomers at TGI Friday's until you die because you never met anyone who needed to hire a girl to cut their bull's balls off.

"Sloppedshower" is such a funny surname that I'll resist my deep-seated impulse to kick this wet fucking blanket out. One of the things about hunters and rangers is that they clog up your notifications and waste all your ammo with their shitty hunting, and they LOVE to start guilds and demand big fancy guild-halls even though they contribute less than your average peasant because those guys are at least around to move stuff. How dare they unionize, even though it's actually just a minor annoyance to me that can be, 9 times out of 10, solved by allocating some resources I literally wasn't even doing anything with. I wonder if this is how the capitalist feels about my life, too. Does Kroger too function just the same as the petulant manchild playing his numbers-go-up game with the fake/abstract little people? "I love Undertime Sloppedshower," lol.

I've hit the image limit so I'm probably going to stop here for the night. Osgi Ritelurk was taken by a strange mood. This is her chance to make it in the world. Once you create an artifact you've got it made. I've never seen a dwarf or kobold or whatever else recover from failing to make an artifact though, their tantrum usually just leads them down a spiral so bad they eventually just die because they stopped eating or whatever. I don't know if that's realistic or not. Maybe I failed to make my own artifact a while ago and everything since has been one long slow death spiral. But I don't know, life is full of second chances, especially when you don't think you deserve them. Was it actually squandered if it brought you here? You're still alive. You're not a simulation of a kobold or a dwarf, at least I don't think so, so you can tell yourself "oh well, let's try something else" instead of just going out and punching a guy who is carrying a big sword. Maybe you haven't even been taken by the strange mood that leads you to create your artifact in the first place yet. Maybe I haven't either. Maybe this could be my artifact. Oh jesus fucking christ I hope not

[gilbirda]

20 questions for writers, tagged by @gremlin-bot

1. how many works do you have on ao3?

83!!! But a lot are crossposted from FFN, and not ALL of my FFN stuff is there.

2. what's your total ao3 word count?

753,449

3. What fandoms do you write for?

At the moment dpxdc, but I have projects for DP in progress. I have some really old Inuyasha stuff, and Twilight, and a Gravity Falls fic that I def will continue? but mostly dpxdc :D

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Clown around and find out (Kudos: 8,524)

Mondays, am I right? (Kudos: 8,080)

Employee of the month (Kudos: 7,865)

Can't have shit in Gotham (Kudos: 7,343)

How to confuse a Bat (Kudos: 6,749)

Unsurprising xd

5. Do you respond to comments? why/why not?

I usually do the week when I post a fic, but i stop after that period of time. I don't respond mostly because I dont know what to say... I love each and every comment!!! I just get nervous.

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Hmmmm, I'd say What could have been. It's a DP fic from Phic Phight 2022 and the prompts I used weren't necessarily angst material, but I tied them together in a story meant to leave you empty.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

I don't do "happy" endings? I think I do "realistic" endings - main quest is conquered but we lost and gained things in the way.

I do write a lot of fluff and unapologetic one shots, so I would consider all of those "happy" endings.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Yes.

Fortunately is not a normal event in my fics, but now that I have dipped my toes in comic book fanfiction I've gotten my fair share of purists and know-it-alls that come to my comments to educate me on what it's "canon" and explain to me how my interpretation is wrong.

That aside, I'm not afraid to portray "problematic" ships and delicate situations ,mainly mental health stuff. I'm not the first or the last person that pour themselves in their writing and use fictional characters as a medium to work on some personal things. Of course that's gotten me enough comments telling me how disgusting I am and how I'm writing XYZ wrong.

9. Do you write smut? if so, what kind?

Yes. I don't have a lot posted, but I have WIPs.

Mostly BDSM and how important it is to trust your partner.

10. Do you write crossovers? what's the craziest one?

Mostly DPxDC!

I did have an insane crossover between Twilight and a book not a lot of people know. TBH im keeping that information to myself xd.

11. have you ever had a fic stolen?

Yes.

There's a russian website that reposts fics.

And also people reposting my stuff in wattpad with a "credits to the author [name]" but they never asked me for permission.

12. have you ever had a fic translated?

Yes! To Russian!!!! Made me so happy ヾ(≧▽≦*)o

13. have you ever co-written a fic?

Yes! I'm co-writing a fic with some close friends and my girlfriend. And another fic with just my girlfriend, but I'm so slow with it lmao

14. what's your all-time fave ship?

I'm a multishipper but usually I have 1 OTP that im Very Normal about in every fandom and then I'm just okay with everything else.

Some examples are:

KogKag, SessKag (Inuyasha)

Hardcover (JazzxJason)(DPxDC)

PrussiaxHungary (Hetalia)

Mabill (Gravity Falls)

HikaHaruKao (Ouran HSHC)

Deckerstar (Lucifer TV)

15. what's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you will?

I don't want to jinx myself.

But probably the DP longfic. It's just. So long.

16. what are your writing strengths?

I've been told that my characters feel very real and that I write dynamics in a very organic way. In romance, I think I'm very good at portraying falling in love.

In general I've also been told I describe things in a way you can feel it, like you really are there.

17. writing weaknesses?

English is not my native language and I make a lot of mistakes, grammar wise. Or I let my weird miss matched speech patterns bleed into my characters and make them sound not quite right.

18. thoughts on writing dialogue in another language?

Again, I'm native Spanish speaker, so I do write in English regularly xd

Other languages, I'd need someone that speaks that language to help me.

19. first fandom you wrote for?

Inuyasha. I was about 11 years old. Those fics were written in Microsoft Word 2003, in script format (aka "theater" format), and every character had an assigned color and I would switch colors every dialogue line.

20. fave fic you've ever written?

Difficult to choose.

I love a lot of my fics, even older ones.

If I have to pick just one, I'm picking Friendly neighborhood vigilante

Tagging!

Not feeling like tagging today, and grem kinda stole the people I was thinking I could tag.

So, if anyone wants to do this, go ahead!

[horizon-verizon]

I really hate when I keep seeing Green stans constantly claiming that Team Black and Targ fans are hypocrites because they unironically love and stan Maegor and other bad Targs yet, at the same time, unfairly hate on Aemond…when it's actually them who stan Aemond (and Aegon II) despite him possesing every single bad character they condemn the rest of the Targaryens for. You're obviously right about noticing Aemond's parallel with Maegor. There are even more if we think about it: they both killed their nephews and became kinslayers, both usurped or helped usurping the throne, both unfairly massacred the ruling houses of Harrenhal causing them to go extinct (Harroway and Strong), both claimed the biggest dragon alive at the time and, overall, both had quite similar personalities. Yet, Green stans keep being even more obtuse and say it's actually Daemon who is the second coming of Maegor and a villain. Aemond is, after all, just a misunderstood young man who became a war criminal because he was bullied as a child. Oh and he was also NOT a misogynist and a rapist because he loved and married Alys despite her being a bastard and because he listened to her once when he didn't kill a messenger once…

All of this bullshit is because they stan the villains of the story and do not want to admit it.

What's funny is that those green stans would be taken at their word more concerning some black stans unironically liking Maegor's cruelty that's based on patriarchal entitlement, even if he did war against the hated Faith, its High Septon, its Militant and Poor Fellows for most his reign. Because I do agree with the sentiment. If one likes him ironically, I can get behind that.

But when green stans are saying it, it's more to discredit their vision of what the Targs are and they often perform much of the misogyny and blood purity that Aemond had though their making illegitimacy a son in heir langauge and arguments and slut-shaming Rhaenyra, trying to discourage support for her at every turn through shaming people for acknowledging that she is the protagonist and the one we are supposed to root for. Etc. It's obvious that they don't care about any progression but are tradfems, tradCaths, and political conservatives once you spot how they try this puritanical shaming so they can then argue they can ship a worse character themselves and agent way with their bigotry.

Because of their real concern was how misogynist this black stans are, then the themselves would not advantage for the continuation of gender violence, female chastity and slut shaming, women purposefully trying to strip other women from autonomous power using such patriarchal/blood purist standards AND targeting her children.

[wizardyke]

honestly silent hill 4 and walter sullivan's chaarcter just comes off to me as cheesy. like i really hate to be one of those "1-3" purists but what made alessa and james' stories so compelling is that they started out with a nugget of realism and truth, and then spiralled out of control. child abuse is very much real, but sacrificing her in purifying flames isn't. the conflicting feelings and pain and selfishness that comes about watching a loved on succumb to a terminal illness is very real, but very very few people kill them outright.

walter sullivians character feels like they were just desperately trying to come up with a backstory for an already established unrealistic situation. (because thats what happened, walter was introduced as a throwaway background detail in sh2) and imo the story and thus the symbolism/horror falls really flat for me. silent hill 1 and 3 did the mother symbolism better too, and to have a third game based around mother inagery just makes me wonder abt wtf is up with team silent

i also think it suffers from the same problem apollo justice has, when the protagonist isnt actually the focus. 4 is undoubtedly walters game and thus henry has fuckall to do or say. like sure he wantd to get out of his apartment and then later save potential next victims, but why? silent hill is such a character driven series so it REALLY fucking suffers for it. even if you cant name much about harry mason, his motivation is so clear that even the game pokes fun at it (have you seen a little girl? short, black hair?) and james sunderlands turmoil is palpable in every single inch of that game. heather has the benefits of being a dorect sequel to 1, and also being the first and only teen girl protag to make her interesting and sympathetic. (i mean killing off her dad , who we also know and love is really good for explaining what would draw a 17 year old to a dingy abandoned resort town)

tbh there is an argument that most silent hill protagonists are everyman /self inserts , because their decisions are distinctly that of just Some Guy rather than The Right Thing To Do (harry walking out in fear of lisa even though it leaves her desolate and alone in what seems to be her final moments, james sunderland not summoning the right words to say to angela on the staircase) but henry ????????? it just comes across as weak and strange. theres definitely better ways to portray "guy who shouldn't be caught up in all this mess but somehow is" (something akin to james' "leave us borh the hell alone" wouldve been nice)

[crystalmaiden77real]

Hypocrisy really bothers me:

" I personally always think it's fair to compare adaptations to the source material. " -Game Purists basically say

" I hate they're comparing adaptations to the source material in a way that has them say they're doing better than the source material in any way! What absolute parasites! I wish I lived in a world where anything other than the source material of a series I liked didn't exist! I'm sure it'd be fine if the company that made them had a lot less money to make stuff I like. " -Also Game Purists, who'd logically hate Shrek fans and Harry Potter fans and Jaws fans and fans of every superhero series ever made...

" She's like a conservative mom, thinking, ' He broke the rules, he must be immoral! " -Game Purists insulting a character from an adaptation

" The adaptations broke the rules, they must be immoral! " -also Game Purists

" These people are so stupid, they're always refusing to acknowledge anything is a problem with what they like and blindly worshipping it! At least we're intellectuals who care about good writing. The difference in intellectual capacity between us is pretty clear. The jokes in this comic are offensively stupid because they're making jokes at the expense of characters I like. Why won't they just admit there's bad things about this stuff they like? " -Game Purists

" It's just a joke, why would you ever be mad that she's outrunning Sonic when she's chasing Sonic with a hammer? It's just a kids' series, you're worthless if you think about it and want better. There's nothing wrong with this story making a joke at the expense of these two characters I think I like! It looks like a Saturday morning cartoon so why would you ever want it to take itself seriously? It's fine when the games are dark though. Shadow didn't take itself too seriously when it had aliens invade the entire world, because at least it didn't show Maria getting shot! "-also Game Purists

" There's nothing wrong with the plot of Sonic Lost World! Tails never acted egotistical in it, what are you talking about? Why would I explain why bragging about reprogramming a computer isn't egotistical and out of character for someone who's humble? I'm too above you to do so. " -also Game Purists

" Why is SHE SO LAME HERE? She's not fighting these two at all, she's just lame! " -Game Purists

" (sees the same character in a game cowering in front of robots she fought fearlessly in a previous game) This is written so much better than the comics! This is awesome, because at least she's not crying waterfall tears. That was the only problem we had with her in the comics, I think? I can't remember because I'm looking at a game. Anyways the comics are dumb and stupid and bad and garbage. If anyone criticizes the games at all I hate them. " -also Game Purists

" I wish stans for stuff I hated would stop treating me like they're better than me. Good thing I'm a good person. " -Game Purists

" Anyone who doesn't like what I like is a retard and evil. " -also Game Purists. People have to walk on eggshells talking to them about the games and redundantly praise it just to futilely try to get it through that they do like them. Yes they literally say the R word about it. And still complain " y'all said ableist slurs about us! "

" I wish stans wouldn't hate people over the most milquetoast of criticism of the stuff they like and just assume they hate it even if they don't. These guys are always in bad faith when they see people insulting stuff they like, they'll never admit a criticism isn't in bad faith. Why can't they treat people with respect? "

" (any criticism of the source material is read) Fuck him for hating the games! I don't even need to do any research on him, I already know this! (said person says he doesn't hate the games and says you can like things for different reasons) " You're LYING! (sees someone drew a picture of Tails hitting Chaos 0 like a badass) This guy's an asshole who hates the games! Every single one of the over 70+ games in the series is something he actively looks down upon! Anyone who hates one game hates the entire series' premise and all of the characters in the games at once! " -also Game Purists

" Why can't people like this new concept the game introduced? Why are people complaining about this character? " -Game Purists

" Every new idea the adaptations introduce sucks. None of it is good because the games didn't do it first. They can't ever introduce a good new character. " -ALSO Game Purists

" This character's being written like shit. He's so Flanderized it's ridiculous. " -Game Purists

" (they see the character in the game being reduced to just one trait or making a stupid mistake that his friend warned him not to do) This is fine. (house is burning) " -also Game Purists when watching Generations or Colors DS.

" The fanbase is so lame, they believe in headcanon... " -Game Purists

" Tails wasn't egotistical in Lost World. Pontac and Graff just wrote him to be pretending he was egotistical because he was actually insecure! It's brilliant! " -also Game Purists

" ... I wish they would just remember the games better and actually look at the contents of the games instead of trusting their terrible or selective memory and never doubting themselves enough to fact-check. " -Game Purists.

This is showing what happens literally right after Knuckles said there's no need for the Resistance. " Hold on, there's still a lot we need to do! We're just getting started! " How is there any room for interpretation here? I don't even love all of the Freedom Fighters. Most of them I don't even feel anything for in concept.

Honestly if Sega confirmed that what this line actually meant was what people only interpreted because they know adaptations exist and can't handle it, then that'd be one thing. But if that was true they'd have said so, and it keeps pissing me off that they always omit this panel and never talk about it every time they talk about Forces at length, even after discussing the cutscenes one by one. Why is that? Why are you afraid of presenting anything that weakens your argument when anyone who agrees with you always will anyway? I don't want to hate a person. I hate when someone seems disingenious. Or delusional, both are pet peeves of mine.

The truth is the most valuable precious thing in the world and it keeps being treated like it's evil by people who can't handle the massive traumatizing thing of, fiction being criticized. That's mature.

" I feel like I'm taking crazy pills! " How do they think they make other people feel?

" I wish stans of these adaptations wouldn't harass me. " -Game Purists

" (talking to a fan of an adaptation) Thanks for saying you hate the games, asshole. " -also Game Purists " I don't hate the games. " -is the response every single time.

IGN critics admit they hate Sonic, if people hated the games they'd happily admit it! What's with all of these conspiracy theories, like saying Sega doesn't make royalties off every issue of a comic they had exist, which one Google search result brings up two articles debunking it? https://www.creatorresource.com/licensed-comics-101-with-sarah-gaydos-the-publishing-side/ The people who pay the licensing fee get part of an 11% cut every time an issue is bought.

" The company that licenses the product owns nothing, but they get a percentage of sales after they pay 1) you, 2) all the associated printing fees, 3) the initial cost of the licensed deal to the IP owner, and 4) the royalties they will owe the IP owner. You doing a service like writing or drawing for this book gives you, and the comic company, zero ownership over it, because neither of you own anything to do with the ownership of the initial property. " If Sega was the exception that'd make literally no sense, why wouldn't they demand royalties and say they'll walk otherwise?

" Fans of adaptations are so arrogant! Anyone who even sounds like he's arrogant shouldn't even get to post anything online! " -Game Purists

"... because I'm literally always right and always winning! " -a Game Purist literally said this.

" Are people seriously saying that if you hate Lanolin, you just hate women? Only a jerk would accuse someone of bigotry that he doesn't even know based on no real evidence! Is that the only argument they've got, just strawmanning us? Looks like they don't have any real ground to stand on! " -Game Purists

" Everyone who likes American Sonic is Japanophobic. Every time, without fail. " -the Same Game Purist

" Look at this girl character imitating Sally. I'm gonna pop an aneurysm. " -Game purist

" Amy's so much better since she started to insult Sonic for wanting to save Tails instead of help some ghosts. She's so much better after she analyzed some data in Forces. Lost World fixed this girl who I think needed to change, I'm so glad she's now someone who would keep her crush on Sonic subtle and despair that he won't be able to save the world and try to say she loves Sonic. What are you talking about, that's never been Sally! Sally's just evil, and she's got no other personality traits than being mean to Sonic! There's no way she's any better in the comic than she is in a kids' cartoon. " -Game Purists

" I hate that these fake fans don't do any research on how the characters in the games are before claiming that the comics are accurate. Why are these fans basing their idea of a character like Sonic from the games on cherry-picked screenshots of the games that ignore how he is everywhere else? If I saw someone try to prove that Sonic wasn't humble based on all of the cocky lines he had in the games, I swear! " -Game Purists

" Why would I do any research on how Sally is in the comics most of the time she's around? Obviously she is evil most of the time, because everything I think is right because I thought it and I saw a couple of panels from the comic out of context that were given to me by people who hated it. Why wouldn't that count as a crash course in a comic? All I'd have to do to learn about the Archie Andrews comic would be browse out of context Archie on tumblr. " -also Game Purists

" Play the games! Why would these people keep being ignorant of the games?! Sega should have people on staff who have played every single one of the games and have it all memorized just to give the writers notes every time they get something wrong! Or the writers themselves should have to do so! Screw them if they get anything wrong. It's not Sega's fault for wanting the comic to say the games had taken place in its past. These writers just need to git gud. It's absolutely unacceptable to see them be wrong about any of the games. It pisses me off every single time. " -Game Purists

" Why would I read every important issue in Archie Sonic or STC? I don't need to do that to get the proper perspective on it. The proper perspective is not knowing if it has any good stories and just hating it because it's a bad adaptation on paper, that's all I need to think! And fuck you, I hate you as a person for even suggesting fact-checking. I'm much happier to just sit here and stay blissfully ignorant thank you very much. I'm proud of what I'm doing for a hobby instead. Like, saying how much Flynn sucks for not doing any research to get the Encyclospeedia error-free. I wish he would die. If someone's a jerk he should have to do research! Good thing I'm not a jerk to anybody. " -Game Purists if they were corrected by anyone who actually read an issue of that comic before.

" I don't care that this is mostly like the source material. It's still not good enough. I don't care that Sonic X takes place in Station Square, it's still not like the games. Why is Sonic powering up to destroy a robot in one hit with a Ring? That's not in the games. Why is Sonic living in a mansion with Chris? That's not in the games. Why is Amy bossing Tails around in Season 3? That's not in the games. Why is Sonic acting way too scared of water? That's not in the games, he's not opposed to the idea of learning how to swim. I can't possibly imagine why something that looks like a Ring would let him power up. If it's not the games it doesn't deserve the benefit of the doubt. " -Game Purists. (I just think the show is boring because its pacing is too slow and the characters are exaggerated but that's not what they focus on.) -Game Purists

-The Same Game Purist:

" I LOVE the Mario movie that just came out! Why can't Sonic adaptations be just like that? All I have to see is environments that look like the games and have the power-ups and I'm absolutely ecstatic!... Why would I care that Peach and Mario are out of character compared to the games? I love that Peach isn't the one who was kidnapped, and is a fearless girlboss going on the adventure with Mario, because that's so much better than the game! Peach sucked ass in the games because she lets herself get kidnapped! I can forgive Mario not having an Italian accent. It's fine to remove something that made a character appealing in an adaptation I like. "

" Why would I care that Bowser didn't kidnap Peach because she's the only one who has the power to stop him? That was in a dumb video game from the 8-bit days. It doesn't deserve to be translated to the big screen! It's in a video game where the plot was all in the manual, so it's just objectively better that he kidnapped Peach because of the crush on her. Why would I care that only the RPGs said he had it? People like the movie, shut up! "

" I love seeing the main character of the franchise get smacked around all the time and be helpless and look terrified, that's hilarious! Yeah fine he was never like that in the games, but why would I care?! Everyone in the theater was laughing every time that happened! But I'd never think they don't respect Mario. That'd be taking it too seriously. I love that a Toad is accompanying Mario on his adventure! That didn't happen in the game! So that means it's better than the original! I mean, he didn't do much. But it's still not like the game so that means it's good anyways. It's great that the movie lasted longer because he was saying stuff. I'm grateful for every second of getting to see what looks like Mario on the big screen! "

" Why would I even care about the fact that Mario doesn't lose his power-up the instant he gets hit literally every time? The games don't deserve to be translated 1 to 1 on the big screen. Who cares about consistent rules in a dumb kid's series? Mario plots suck so it'd be stupid to expect the level of quality Mario has in its games from any plot involving him. I don't think there's ever been a Mario game with a good plot. Why would I ever care that they could've just used the Star the second they saw Bowser coming and prevented the whole movie instead of holding the Idiot Ball? It's not supposed to win Oscars. Cool I love that it had Donkey Kong characters in the Mario movie. That's better than that lame game because it didn't do that. "

" I love that they had a Mario Kart tournament that could've been cut out of the plot without anyone noticing a difference, because that's so much better than that lame 8-bit game, and Mario games in general are lame for not having a Mario Kart tournament and Donkey Kong characters in them now that I think about it. And just looking at Mario Kart makes me happy, unlike how those Flynn stans make me feel, with their liking stuff just because it has references in it. Morons. Well Mario's better than Sonic, so any references would be better than Sonic ones! "

" I can just tell the people who made this love the games. I can just FEEL it, because I can see the levels and powerups from the games. You can just feel when someone respects the source material! I'm glad feels alone have never led to a wrong opinion. OK when I have an opinion because of my gut instinct it's still gonna be right because I'm smarter than those parasite adaptation fans who only like stuff because of the vibes they get, who think the characters in the source material being smacked around too easily in the comics is just fine. (laughs) Mario's getting smacked around by Donkey Kong! What a loser! He could never hold his own against a guy the size of Bowser! "

" I love the part where I got to see Mario's family, because that never happened in the game! Thank god Sonic doesn't do that though! I'd HATE it if I saw Sonic or Knuckles being hugged by his parents! Ooh Bowser's threatening to nuke the Mushroom Kingdom. That's so gutsy and edgy. I love when he did that in Mario 1. Oh wait he didn't do that, in any of the games come to think of it. Well that's better than the games because Bowser was too much of a wimp for not trying to nuke a kingdom! If Sonic had a story where a place got nuked it I'd roll my eyes, but Mario's so much better than Sonic. This movie is so much better than Archie Sonic, and its nukes. It's so faithful to the games. "

" Fuck everyone who hates the Mario movie, what buzzkill douchebags. Well now that I'm done hatewatching a cartoon to trash it for the day... What do you mean they originally planned to make Peach even more better than Mario and Mario even more incompetent? Nintendo rejected that? Why? Mario sucks! They shouldn't have stuck to Nintendo's vision. "

" The movie is better than the game because if they just made Peach get kidnapped and had Mario go through the adventure alone and not be afraid of it, I'd hate it, because then it'd be just like the Mario games. And that'd be stale and boring, because the Mario games are stale and boring, just saving Peach on your own every time from Bowser. The entire premise of the Mario series is repetitive and boring! I only like it for the gameplay. Glad I watched this movie. Ugh, fuck this guy, he thinks it'd get boring if Sonic vs Eggman was the only story in the series. Who wants anything but Sonic fighting Eggman? Other villains than Eggman suck. "

I actually do think the creative elements of the Mario movie are what's great about them when they're not at the expense of a character. Peach being the one who was kidnapped would've been mocked because she's a girl and her being kidnapped because she had magic was esoteric and vague and makes me wonder why she didn't use said power to defeat him when he went to bother her. But it wasn't creative enough, it was still based on a story that already exists, so I didn't go see it. Shouldn't have to clarify this but Mario movie stans are as defensively rabid as the stans of everything else.

" I hate people who say Sonic has always been inconsistent. Look at how stupid they are. ' Sonic haz alwayz bin inconsistant! ' " -Game Purists

" Mario's always been inconsistent so why would I care that the movie was inconsistent with how long it takes to get him out of a power-up or how Bowser's fireball should've roasted him easily in the final boss fight? Bowser's stupid anyways! Any stupidity he has is just in-character. All the video game characters suck. Anyways I'm gonna watch this movie again because just seeing the levels on the big screen is making me ecstatic with happiness! I'd hate to have to see the levels in shitty 8-bit graphics. " -Game Purists as well

I had to get this off my chest. Hypocrisy annoys me so much that it's hard to stop thinking about even when I don't want to, it's not someone's fault if his personal preferences are a certain way but hypocrisy and being a stan is unacceptable. And it isn't a good look because it's distracting constantly. Even good people can be hypocrites, but it's always annoying when it happens. It's also why these same people never see themselves in characters that are the same way. IDW Sonic is called a hypocrite by these people.

[notveryfish]

opium war representation yay. as a hongkonger with an extremely weak grasp on hk history, thumbs up on that front

details about cantonese and mandarin were also cool (in the social context)

references to chinese sayings and idioms were very nice

some of the lines about the mc's struggle with his identity hit [find quotes for that]

academia: i love academia but I do not love how academia was done

footnotes were a weak 'selling point' or even feature at all of the novel, considering how the author barely uses them how they were intended, this book has turned me into a godforsaken footnote purist

haven't read JS&MN and i haven't been especially attracted to the contemporary dark academia genre, but i don't see the revolution of the genre in this book - maybe a halfway subversion

they could have involved more than professors and staff - bursars, accountants, the board, etc. as the institution of oxford is complicit in the exploitative power of the empire, how do they expect to jump to that?

in an effort to make a nuanced story, the author handwaves towards the topics of nuance but does not develop her thesis any further in the novel

addresses the peace/violence debate, but since the novel engages with the themes through the main character as a device, the passivity of robin really doesn't allow an exploration of these topics

footnotes: had a great opportunity to flesh out the environment of her world, which is one of the best parts about fantasy/historical fiction to me; show research/sources; further reading

some of the footnotes were alright. most of them were really bad. I hated them.

pacing

should have taken over one or two years at oxford - i know it was to enable silverworking, but it is set up to be so simple (find words and write them on a bar) that it feels plausible that they could simply learn theoretically about silverworking and figure out the craft itself with hermes

inch resting caveat about match pairs>??

translation as a loss? grief? i really liked the insight into translation and the struggle of a translator

also still waiting on what to do with silver. Considering the historical setting, could opium not have been replaced with silver? Added properties of silver? It seemed like the silver was an extension off an allegory of opium trade. With virtually nothing unchanged, and the simplisticity of the magic system...

A tale of 2 substances

dunmeshi worldbuilding has spoiled me so if you can't think of a plausible reason of why magic is in your world, how has magic affected the entire history of the world, how is silver use entrenched in society deeper than simply using it everywhere, the sources of that magic, the history of developing that magic....then i dunno man i won't be invested. even fantasies without a solid-ish foundation into the world like deeplight were at least immersive enough.

allegory > narrative

one-note characters with predictable personalities: descends into outright tribalism at points

biracial = torn between identity?? THANKS?

white = fundamentally racist and destructive

depth attempted; to make her sympathetic by placing her as a victim of misogyny and an abusive father, but even the characters skim over her harassment by other male students. it seems like the author is setting the characters up to be competitively prejudiced against - a-ha, but you're gentry and you're white, so you cannot possibly be tainted by the prejudice us people of colour must face. just mean spirited

also the writer does not write romance convincingly at all her little crush came soaring out of left field. i did not like that. it was a weak motivator. i did not like that. why did she even love him in the first place she believed in the fundamental inferiority of his religion and his race???

the mc does not work well as a vessel for the story considering how passive he is for most of the book . the author has a really annoying habit of forcefeeding robin a lot of someone's opinion, then summarising his thoughts in an open question that provoked thought but didn't really add much to his character

conflicting loyalties: why is he so easy to win over? where is his complicity?

found family (marketed that way but not necessarily chosen by the author)

friendship felt perpetually in a state of conflict

author's montage-esque sequences of their buddy-buddyhood was not convincing im sorry

i just genuinely cant fathom why they kept Letty around at all, shes constantly abrasive, doesnt develop at all during her entire friendship, she just seemed like a chekhov's armoured tank for the twist betrayal. youre saying the worlds unsubtlest white girl can keep her plan to get her friends killed and arrested under wraps til the last moment when she was blubbering over them being discriminated against like a child whose icecream dripped onto the pavement. and i dont think that she is THAT naive to believe they won't get hung drawn and quartered or the 19th century equivalent for Literal TREASON!

ridiculously modern opinions, portrayals, and identities IM SORRY i had to say it. you think 1830s england had the same binary of race as 2024??? No!!!! give me racially incorrect colonialist assumptions of foreign identity!!!! that shit is yummy to me im singing food glorious food like im an orphan in a production of oliver!!!!!!! HISTORY!!!!!

hated the dumb ass nickname ramy gave to robin im pissed about it forever im not even finished with the book but i know there will be a dramatic scene where he goes Birdie.....and ill have to launch my phone at the damn wall

Evie Brooks as a character that haunted the narrative in showing how her story was told by either Lovell or Griffin was cool. Gold star to the author for doing one of my favourite tropes and the bare minimum at that because i was expecting it good job.

i think the author should have been better able to balance allegory, narrative, characters, and world, in order to refine her message. the links were too weak for me to be convinced, and her intention of creating silver as complete allegory or supplemental device to the plot falls short imo

the title of 'the necessity of violence' sort of already defeats Anthony's points about campaigning and using political manoeuvres. Was the reader to expect an inevitable descent into violence?? Was the author just highlighting the eventual conclusion she would contrive her blank slate mc into making???? Man i dont know

author's voice too modern and intrusive to feel immersed in the narrative

Footnotes: propelled the conclusion of her story before the main character has even developed enough to be conscious

Narration: interruption of third person limited broke the flow of the story; it felt like a premature summary of the same old points

audience????

the book felt simultaneously like an education into the evils of colonialism. but the author must have assumed that the reader was already educated in these points with randomly dropping snide remarks before her entire thesis could even be concluded.

with the author's marketing of a diverse cast, i'm guessing more conservative readers would be turned away, BUT why make the novel about the mc's enlightenment to the evils of colonialism, rather than setting out his goals rightaway to dismantle the system? this would have saved him chapters of glacial character 'development'

It was not a novel. It was a collection of essays, sometimes objective, sometimes a lesson plan for a PSHE session, masquerading itself as a novel, with cardboard sheets that are named human names but do not serve as human characters in the story