#i love women who can eviscerate me

[calithso]

RESIDENT LOVER MIA WINTERS HAS ME IN A CHOKEHOLD

[pepprs]

beaver gnawing on wood noises

[di-kot-o-me]

Thoughts on Matt Gaetz and US Democracy...

"I'm a lawyer. Hearing that Trump nominated this pedophile thing to be the nation's attorney made my stomach hurt and it has not stopped hurting since.

I found myself in law school and I marveled at the ability of words and laws to shape justice. I was radicalized when I was supposed to be studying something but sat on my bed, my books ignored, transfixed watching Anita Hill explain why Clarence Thomas was a vile man unfit for the highest bench in the world.

I carry a copy of the Constitution in my purse. I have parts of the Declaration of Independence memorized. It sounds like poetry to me. It was written by a great mind (but a flawed man) writing a great idea.

America has always been an idea. (Aarons Sorkin said that in an episode of The West Wing, which I'm rewatching on HBO Max because I so need a real President now, and Jed Bartlet is better than most, even if fictional.) So far we have done a really shitty job of translating that idea into a reality. But we have never scrapped the idea.

But that's what we did on November 5. People are so offended by transsexuals, people with dark skin, women, and the cost of eggs being inflated by bird flu, that they're willing to give up on the idea. They went with a game show host and the prize he will award to America is hate, despair, racism, and fascism.

2016 Trump was hot garbage. But there were guardrails. He had a team that didn't so strongly resemble the Star Wars Cantina Band. There was Congress. There was SCOTUS. There was the fact he had to run for re-election. That's all gone. He outsourced the actual thinking about governing to the Heritage Foundation and they came up with a doozy of a plan. A fine blueprint for a Fourth Reich. AG Matt Gaetz will be a big part of that. But Trump's so chaotic he may go off script and make things even worse.

And I keep hearing in my head that line that Trump said. "I am your retribution." Trump is a man well acquainted with hate. His own siblings and parents despised him. He is thin-skinned, insecure, and bitter. And he spews out, without shame, who he hates. Taylor Swift, for pete's sake. Trump will give orders that hurt people he hates, and he will get actual pleasure, perhaps sexual pleasure, from watching people he hates suffer. There are names for those people. Biden. Obama. Harris. Clinton. You don't think they'll be exempt from retribution, do you? AG Gaetz will sign their death warrants.

There are no guardrails. Law should be a guardrail. Good lawyers should be a guardrail. That's all gone. Trump's at he head of the most powerful nation in the world, and he has nothing but hate as a motivation. He has no love for America or its people. It has provided him some good money and some adoration. But he's not capable of love, or honor, or even imagination. He is incapable of understanding the idea. He hasn't read the poetry. He doesn't have an American soul. I don't think he has a soul at all, TBH.

What does this mean? It means the Constitution in my purse is about to be a forgotten idea. It means that the fundamentals of this nation are about to be eviscerated. Things will be worse than we can imagine. People will die. Democracy will die. The nation will die. The idea will die. The poetry will die."

-PersimmonTea

[lostinthesasuke]

I just saw your Sasuke as Joan of Arc art and first of all I LOVE IT second of all I think it gave me a new kind of brain worms. Begging you to elaborate on what you mean by Sasuke would understand how Joan of arc felt, please I feel insane.

first of all thank you so much, that means a lot to me. <3

second of all, not sure if you know the can of (brain)worms u just opened. this is long so buckle up.

joan of arc was born into a century long war between france and england, and saw her home destroyed.

sasuke was born into a military state where children are primed to be perfect soldiers the moment they are old enough to hold a kunai. the state groomed his brother into a murderer, stripped his home and family from him.

throughout her life, joan of arc saw visions of saint michael, telling her she would be the one to lead france to salvation. joan vowed to avenge her country, and petitioned the king. at seventeen, joan was sent to war. at seventeen, she was victorious. when france was triumphant, she was beloved. when the tide of battle turned, she was blamed. she was burned at the stake.

sasuke was plagued by visions too, images of his family eviscerated at the hands of the most important person in his world. burned into his eyes like a brand, forced to watch on repeat.

with that, he resolved to wage his own war.

joan, who was once revered as a pure maiden and was made a symbol rather than a girl, became despised; villainized, and accused of demonic possession.

sasuke was made a symbol, too. the last of his clan, a powerful asset. an uchiha, a holder of a desired kekkei genkai, not a boy. he fled. like joan, he sought a powerful entity to gain strength, to forge his path in battle.

at seventeen, he learned the truth about his clan's state-sanctioned genocide. at seventeen, they called for his execution, too. discarded once he no longer served konoha's purpose, had abandoned the so-called 'will of fire'. the illustrious uchiha name tainted by blood, by a farcical "curse".

his opponent used the very power stolen from his kin, their doujutsu embedded in his arms. joan's detractors still benefited from her name long after her demise, too.

joan's emergence was prophesied, a legend of a virgin who would bring peace to france and end the war.

a virgin, pure. 

sasuke's ideological purity is a topic that has been debated at length by both his supporters and critics, both in the text and real life (and kishimoto himself.)

sasuke's "purity" and the morality of his actions are always under scrutiny. which follows since his clan name has been "dirtied". 

joan was also forced to defend her purity. a maiden and a virgin, she was put on trial for her supposed lack of virtue with her life hanging on the verdict. they labeled her a heretic crossdresser perverted by satan because she kept her hair cropped short and wore only men's clothing. they killed her for it.

sasuke and joan both blur the lines of gender. sasuke is portrayed as a heroine and a femme fatale, and objectified for his looks and his body (whether for power or other nefarious reasons). he is more scantily clad than any of the women characters, and cast in a lascivious light.

joan rebuffed suitors and refused marriage all her life. similarly, sasuke rejected all advances from women throughout the manga (post 700 doesn't exist to me) despite the intensity with which he was pursued.

joan's righteous fury at the british, at the wars that claimed her childhood, are all reflected in sasuke's motivations. in his quest for justice, in his resolution to bring peace to a war torn world, to make those in power pay for the suffering that they are complicit in and dismantle the very framework that allows it.

at seventeen, sasuke decided to become a martyr for the world's hatred. he decided he would be the one to shoulder it all, to purify the world of conflict by taking all of the animosity onto himself. like joan who believed she was sent by g-d to end war, sasuke resolved to become a savior.

a martyr like joan (like itachi), whose guilty verdict was only overturned long after her death. who was canonized as a saint long after mobs raged against her. who became a symbol of freedom and revolution enduring hundreds of years, her name a rallying cry despite the vitriol that claimed her life. 

sometimes when you're seventeen, the voices in your head tell you to start a revolution. sometimes, they're right. sometimes the institutions upheld by those in power need to be cleansed by holy fire, and maybe sometimes something better can rise from the ashes.

[bonefall]

even though I've never read the books, i love how you handle the women in this series.

The utter lack of interest in the internal lives of women characters in WC kills me. If you don't read the series it's hard to put it into words, but it really does not value women on the same level as their male counterparts

I think the best example I can use is Turtle Tail. All of her choices, from going to live with Bumble, choosing a "cruel man" as a mate, and even her grief when Bumble dies, all only happen as accessories to Gray Wing's arc.

Living with Bumble was because Gray Wing was obsessing over a woman who didn't love him, neglecting Turtle who does

Choosing Tom the Wifebeater was also because Gray Wing didn't appreciate her enough

She accepts that her friend's murder was just an unfortunate accident and her emotions carried her away in the moment, because Gray Wing needs to be right that his brother is a good boy

In this way, Turtle Tail's emotions and motivations aren't allowed to really be about her. They're about how her romantic interest influences her. And then she's crushed by a car for his man pain after they've explored every other way her life could make him sad.

This does not happen with men. Even characters like Stemleaf and Larksong, whose primary narrative purpose is dying for their wife's pain, have functions outside of that. Stemleaf gives his life opposing the tyranny of the impostor in a rebellion, and Larksong has input on The Kin, SkyClan, and even serves as a source of comfort and support to a son who he's never met in contrast to the unreasonable mother.

There's just so much more respect and reverence to the toms in this series. You have to be in the POV of a molly to get depth, and even then, they nearly always (exceptions being mothwing and mistystar) include a major conflict over romance and/or parenthood

(And they usually get punished for their choices a lot harder than male counterparts. Directly contrast Crookedstar and Sparkpelt, who both distance themselves from their children out of grief, but only one has to deal with the lasting consequences of being a "bad parent")

Anyway, enough wistful analysis. It is MY kitchen and I get to choose the conflicts. It is my personal mission to write lots and lots of women persuing a higher education in STEM. Sadism, Torture, Evisceration, and Murder <3

[sedateandslice]

I want to wake up nauseated, confused, and in a lot of pain in a post anesthesia care unit.

For a long time I drift in and out of consciousness, moaning groggily about the dawning pain in my swollen abdomen. My incoherent cries join those of ten or so other women who are waking up to the unpleasant post surgical realities of sore throats from being intubated, sharp plastic tubes up pee holes, and the start of wicked gas pains against hysterectomy incisions. I notice sort of distantly that the woman behind the curtain next to me is sobbing and begging for pain meds and hope that my own pain levels don't get that bad.

I don't take anesthesia well so I'm down for the count in recovery for a while. Every once in a while I come back to consciousness just enough to remember the hysterectomy I've been planning for months is over and that's why I'm lying here in a hospital bed, moaning about the pain in my belly and the rough feeling in my vagina. I cry when I'm jostled as they remove the catheter.

My wife later tells me that I moan and cry the entire time the medical team helps me into my mesh underwear and my street clothes to go home. It's still shocking to me that 5 hours after my gynecological organs were sliced out of my vagina guided by a camera through my belly button that my bloated and barely coherent body is being loaded into a cab to recover from major abdominal surgery from home.

I lay in my wife's arms and cry the whole excruciating way downtown. The four incisions in my abdomen have become very apparent and the ominous pain deep inside my belly is getting worse by the minute. The gas pains come so sharp I can't help but cry out "it hurts!" every couple of blocks. I'm painfully aware of every bump and when the cabbie hits a particularly bad pothole, I suddenly feel my poor, eviscerated insides slam against my belly and, inexplicably, my entire vagina alights in agony.

"BE CAREFUL, I JUST HAD A HYSTERECTOMY!"

I cry incoherently, holding my puffy, aching belly, until we get home. I feel like my insides are going to fall out of my vagina as I walk into the house.

My wife is finally able to settle me in a comfortable position and put ice packs on my swollen belly and vagina. I'm so dizzy, barely clinging to consciousness, as she tries to get me my meds and some food. I can sense she's desperate to bring me around a little bit more.

But the gas pains are SO BAD. I can feel every internal stitch on my vaginal cuff incision because of the air bloating my belly. The best solution, walking, makes me want to cry. I'm in so much pain I can't imagine moving.

When I finally do make it to the toilet to take my first of many post surgery pees, I cry out when I sit and my vagina is hanging down over the toilet. It burns inside and, frankly, feels like I just got roughly fucked. Which I did, albeit with two weighted speculums.

I'm bleeding pretty badly into the mesh panties the hospital provided but I just let my wife change the pad because I'm so groggy and in so much pain she practically has to carry me to bed. I moan in gratitude as she places a heating pad on my aching belly and an ice pack in between my legs.

My pain remains uncontrolled all night -- I'm sure the neighbors loved me screaming "oh God, the gas hurts so bad" at the top of my lungs at 2am -- and I wake in the morning bleeding heavily and so sore I'm unable to get myself out of bed. My vagina is on fire and I still feel like my organs are going to fall into my underwear. When the gas pain comes it grips me to point where all I can do is fold myself over my screaming belly and pray it passes before I pass out from the pain.

Turns out having your gynecological organs sliced out hurts, no matter which way you do it.

[beevean]

So between Alucard with Greta and Richter with Annette it seems like the moral of the story is that the best way to get over your trauma is to hook up with a person who mocks you for it!

Greta joked about Alucard's rape, while Annette insulted Richter's inability to use magic knowing it was tied to the trauma of seeing his mother getting murdered when he was a kid!

It's incredible how the show has no accidentally toxic relationship that isn't explicitly presented as being cute or romantic outside of Striga and Morana, who are barely characters, and maybe Olrox and Myzrak, though the former's behavior is a bit questionable at points

These guys are fans of Berserk, they've read the waterfall scene with Guts and Casca, yet they write ships like these. Never let them even a mile within Casca's general vicinity

She counts too! Don't ignore her just because she was the one who caused the trauma in the first place :)

But yeah, there is not a single relationship in both shows that is fully healthy and believable except for Striga and Morana, and I honestly wonder how come they can be genuinely loving, affectionate and respectful towards each other while no one else can. Best I can think of, the fact that they're both women means they couldn't be forced into the mold of "sassy woman insults stupid man".

"but beev this is an edgy show about vampires and assholes why do you want relationships to be wholesome i thought you were a freak who loved problematic shit" because it's what the show wants me to believe! When Sypha calls Trevor a deformed pet bear, it's meant to be cute! When Alucard uses dolls to hurl vile insults at both Trevor and Sypha, it's meant to be funny! When Greta responds to Alucard's very real, very painful recent memories of being assaulted in his own bed, she makes a tasteless joke about her fucking a married man, and he laughs at it because it's meant to be quirky! When Annette is a giant piece of shit hitting Richter's insecurities where it hurts, no one in-universe questions her, because god forbid Annette's real flaws are presented as such - it's fine, Richter still loves her enough to use her memory to unlock his magic, the very thing she mocked in the first place! Lisa literally says that her husband is worse than Satan because he's real and she warns the bishop to not kill her because she knew Dracula would snap and retailate in revenge, and then it's all forgotten in the name of a cutesy ending! I think I've eviscerated the absolute dogshittery that is Lenector in S4 to last me a lifetime!

You want your characters to be assholes and monsters? Commit! Don't shy away from how miserable all of these people should be for the sake of some half-assed ship tease!

[mcusoulmateau]

Can we talk for a minute about Betty Ross's story?

I mean her meta narrative, really, how she is in comics defined by the relationships to Thaddeus and Bruce, two men with so much potential to hurt her, and she's powerless.

She gets experimented on and turned into the Harpy, which is just loaded with sexism. Angry Woman = Evil Scary Beastie of Myth. And then she's fixed and back to being powerless.

Over the decades, she has good moments and bad, getting married and divorced, the usual "I'm in danger bc I love a superhero" angst, standard comic women stuff.

She becomes Red She-Hulk, in which she is once again defined by the men in her life. Now she's just a mash up of Thaddues and Bruce instead of getting a name or powerset unique to her.

(Ok I know the whole Hulk Family is pretty derivative with naming conventions, but "Red She-Hulk" feels so clunky to me that it's hard to see it as anything other than defining Betty by Thaddeus and Bruce.)

More recent comics have seen her become the Red Harpy, a blending of the Harpy and Red She-Hulk personas, and Betty is absolutely feral. Some of the Red Harpy panels haunt me. And I fucking love it.

Red Harpy is decades of simmering female rage. She's a woman who was constantly held back by men, defined by men, used by men, and now she has CLAWS and will absolutely murder you. She feels very Jennifer's Body, you know? Watching Red Harpy eviscerate the Hulk is heartbreaking, but also kind of a vicarious thrill. Like the ultimate "good for her."

And then there's MCU Betty, who wasn't so much mistreated by the male writers as she was.... forgotten. Until the Russos said in an interview that she was dusted in the Snap, that is. Liv Tyler is rumored to be coming back in the next Cap movie, and I am eager to know if this Betty Ross is also given talons. I mean. I'm almost positive that they'll mishandle her no matter what, but it would be nice for then to at least remember her existence.

[kwillow]

Answering Some Asks!

Forever ago, I said I'd try to answer more of the asks I get with text, so I don't have them sitting around for years on end. Then I didn't do that. Well... gonna try to do a few now!

Character Stuff

Probably not, since it's solid all the way through, so there's no space for the air to vibrate and make cool sounds. It'd be like flicking a column of glass or gemstone, probably just make some tapping or "thnk" noises and that's it. Alas!

Beggars can't be choosey.

But more seriously, probably words of affirmation/compliments or quality time. Though he doesn't believe compliments often even if he wants them - he's more apt to believe he's just being mocked or manipulated unless he already trusts someone (and even then, he has his doubts).

I talked a bit about this in the tags of this drawing, though I can elaborate in a bigger font size as well, haha.

As his story stands now, he has exclusively pursued women as partners. I tend to think of him as straight.

That said, I'm not opposed to his hetero being flexible if, in the future, a story opportunity popped up where he'd need to be curious about a man. (Jack, another character of mine, started off as straight and then slid inexorably to "bisexual, heavy on the girl" so it has happened before, haha.) AND if other people want to write/draw/think of him as straying from straight n' narrow that's obviously fine with me. :P

He's not a royal - he wishes, haha. He is nobility, though! His father his a marquis, which gives him the courtesy title of count (or "comte", using the French variant) until he inherits his father's title (though the Old Kingdoms are destroyed before that ever happens). Tough when he's much older he just assigns himself pope-kingship so I guess that counts as self-appointed royalty.

BUT ANYWAY

Yes he's had crushes, infatuations, love affairs and flings. Too many. Though it's interesting you bring up status - as a lot of his crushes tended to be on people from lower societal positions than he was. His first crush, and one of his longest (and most tumultuous) relationships was with a stablehand's daughter. When he did get infatuated with well-born women, it tended to be women who were already engaged, married or otherwise unavailable for him to marry. He's just got a taste for things he can't have...

It was extremely infuriating for his father.

(Of course, another part of his lack of discrimination between noble and common ladies might be due to him seeing himself as above ALL mortals, so what's the difference between a peasant and a noblewoman, really?)

Non-Character Stuff

Hahaha well I welcome that! Ambroys should be bullied on as many fronts as possible.

Thank you! It's a combination of purposeful research while also ignoring what I research for stuff I think just looks fun. Admittedly, I also am bad at drawing things consistently, so in some ways it's easier for me to just put a character in an entirely new outfit instead of trying to draw an old outfit the same way again, ha. xD

Not to sound like a soccer mom, but I'm a fan of Pinterest for browsing and collecting reference images of outfits that just "feel" like a character, so you have a broad visual library to draw from. You should also pair that with research into how the clothes you want to draw are supposed to fit. For historical outfits, you can get a lot of mileage out of the blogs of historical fanatics who enjoy eviscerating movie costumes from their period of interest. For modern day clothing, you can look at style blogs and tailoring information to learn how clothes are supposed to fit - and then break those rules if you want (for example, in mens' suits, the pants are not supposed to be bunched around the ankles, but I draw Theo's trousers that way to emphasize that he has unusually short legs).

My secret tip for coming up with lots of outfits for characters while keeping them cohesive is to determine a few things about their fashion sense (using Theo and Ambroys to contrast with each other):

What cuts/kinds of clothing do they wear often? What's their "taste", basically. For example, Ambroys wears tight pants/breeches, ostentatious coats and vests, lace and lots of jewelry. Theo, on the other hand, always wants to wear formal clothes that cover most of his body. From that, you can find other clothes that fit that mold and take inspiration from them, expanding what kinds of clothes they wear while still making it feel like "them".

What color palettes do they tend to wear? Theo wears dark colors and red and purple pretty much exclusively, while Ambroys wears a lot of colors, but only in light shades.

What thematic elements can you incorporate into their outfits as decoration? For Theo, I tend to include blood-drop designs and heraldic symbols like the ermine spot, while Ambroys is associated with flowers (especially roses), eyes and wings. You can add these elements to outfits to add a little extra spice (there are a lot of Ambroys' outfits that are really the same thing, but in one I put daffodils on him and another I put feathers on him, for example).

I hope any of that is helpful!

Thank you so much! I honestly have no clue what I'm doing when it comes to rendering, so I'm glad it's looking okay, heh!

I've heard Gravity Falls is great, but like many shows that I've heard are great, I have never made time to watch it. I know vaguely of Stanley Pines, though.

But thank you so much for saying you like Theo. He's a nasty little guy but he's very near and dear to my heart, and it really touches me that you see complexity and charisma in him. I do aim to make characters that are textured, weird little bastards.

And I don't mind you roleplaying with Theo, I think it's sweet. xP I'm glad he got to enjoy some pizza.

[wuxiaphoenix]

A Few Isekai Grumps

I love a well-done isekai. But there are a few samples that have annoyed me lately, so... here we go.

Grump Number One: While I recognize that a certain amount of suspension of disbelief is needed for the whole “transported to another world” plot in the first place, please try to make your characters plausible. A long-haul trucker with a few years on the road under his belt, even if he’s young, is not going to be relying on his GPS. Those things can kill you when they go wrong.

There is no way a trucker is not going to notice he’s being directed to the Nevada Test and Training Range.

...Yeah. That smack you heard is me facepalming. Again.

Grump Two: Why, oh why, are so many women In Another World portrayed as more horny than the sex-pollened protagonist of an extra-spicy romance? Yes, probably the bulk of the target audience are guys, but there are female nerds too. We’d like to see some neat Other Worlds without wading through constant power fantasies of “everything female and breathing wants me”. Not to mention it sets up male readers for horrible disappointment when they try to apply these techniques IRL.

(Yes. They do. Nerdy gals are tired of that, too. Let me drop a clue that may have escaped so many writing men: Great sex is not nearly as attractive as, “I will always help you do the dishes so you have a clean kitchen first thing in the morning.” And then doing it.)

Grump Three: Foul language, foul language everywhere. Seriously, it is physically possible to get through days, even weeks, without resorting to so-called “four-letter words”. (I grant you may break the streak when you drop a hammer on your toe.) A character using curses in every other sentence doesn’t sound edgy, he sounds stupid. Specifically of the “if I shock people enough they’ll give me all the attention I want” variety. And that... no. It may work somewhat in the here and now because few people are willing to risk jail time to enforce what used to be customary social norms. It will not work in a more “primitive” culture where honor is taken seriously. Violently seriously. No matter how OP the protagonist is, someone will give them an educational beatdown. And if said someone can’t, then your protagonist has become a threat to existing power structures and will soon be Public Enemy Number One.

On top of that the constant foul language makes a character unpleasant to be around. Why would I stick with a story where I can’t stand the characters? Being able to thoroughly and elegantly verbally eviscerate your enemies without ever using an indecent word used to be an admired skill. When did people decide it was more appropriate to use unskilled curses instead?

Grump Four: Stop making isekai protagonists Convenient Experts in Everything. How many people in real life do you know who know how to make steel? Not stainless steel, or airplane alloys - just regular good-grade knife steel? Right.

I know; with all these grumps, I’m obviously not the target audience. And if it annoys me so much I should just write my own. As soon as I come up with a good plot for an angry catgirl who’s no sex kitten - believe me, I’m tempted!

[randomnameless]

Beating a dead horse but seeing a post this morning (and an earlier fanart) made me think about it -

In good or in Bad, Nopes has characters mentionning how having a crest makes them “monsters” (in good it’s when Miklan supports someone and calls them super rad, in BaD it’s when Uncle Rufus insults Dimitri).

But it’s also, more or less, the same thing happening in the Momo paralogue - we have mentions of how Momo was “turned into a beast” due to his Crest power :(

We also the biggest fuck you - if the player knows everything about the lore though, where Marianne goes :

The Wandering Beast's eviscerated body... Only human bones and this sword remaining.

This “sword” is also a bone, but not a human one so we don’t give a fuck?

Anyways, more about the inital point to make : 

Many times in the Fodlan games’ script, we see the association that Crusts or Relics make people “monsters” and not “humans”.

And while we can muse and legit angst about the crested humans who are basically “insulted” because of their blood, what about Nabateans themselves?

In a verse where Supreme Leader and the Mole People keep on calling them beasts/creatures/other beings without “humanity” or capable of “human feelings”, how do they react to someone, maybe Miklan meaning it as a praise, calling a crested peep a “monster”?

Nabateans have crests, of course, and aren’t humans. Does this automatically make them monsters? Can’t they coexist with humans or even live with them, because they are “monsters” and not “humans”?

Are they still “monsters” when they are the one who look after humans abandoned by their own kin ?

Marianne ultimately goes :

The blood of a beast no longer flows through me. I feel human for once.

But what should Flayn or Seteth (or even Billy) think about this line? What does it mean to “feel” human? Seteth is a “beast” but writes fables for children, are his feelings “human”?

They are not bio-humans, so are their feelings automatically “not human”? Or something that is removed or cannot be understood by “humanity”?

(this reminds me of something in a certain route...)

Of course a positive point can be inferred from Marianne’s paralogue, who says this last line after having put an end to Momo’s sorry life who uwu “suffered for his murderous past” (nothing about Jack the Nabatean of course, it’s not like the games give a fuck about them, nor like Marianne reacts to Rhea’s infodump about her shiny sword and Momo’s sin) - was Momo a beast because of his “murderous past” and not because of his appearance/nature ? 

I’d love to believe it...

But FE16 reminds us that Miklan “turned into a beast” after using the Relic - or at least that’s what we’re told. Miklan was still “human” when he did his thief things, pillages and, in FE16, seduced women - but the second he transformed that’s when he became “a beast”.

We know how transformation in a demonic beast happens - when a human holds a crest stone or uses a relic - but in a way, Rhea’s lies also made sense : transforming in a black beast is a sort of punishment because the human who transforms, naturally, aka not Waldified, was in both instances we see, someone who was already a “monster”, albeit not biologically, but someone who killed/pillaged/did bandit things.

Something like “you act as a monster, then your body shall reflect it”.

Tldr : in a game where there are non-humans, what does it mean to be human? When so many characters angst about not being “humans” due to crests and whatnot, why does it matter at the end of the day?

Yes, Flayn is not human, but she has more compassion than the entire cast reunited given how she “died” to heal everyone once. Is she a monster because - assuming she has one - she can enter a bestial form, even if she has “human” feelings ?

Imagine Marianne or Claude telling a Nabatean, like Seteth, Momo turned into a Monster because of over usage of his relic, and Seteth being in a better game, reacting with something like “Maurice became a monster the day he participed in the genocide of a tribe of people living in mountains, feasted on their corpses and descrated them to craft a weapon, regardless of his outer appearance”.

No wonder after 1000 years of humans angsting about “no i have a crest i am not a human i am a monster :( :( :(” Rhea was afraid Billy would reject her after knowing she is not a human, having witnessed her “other form”.

And again, sure, Dimitri, Uncle Rufus, Miklan and the student cast (save for maybe Claude but the “humanity” nonsense was added by Pat) don’t know about Nabateans or the fact there are “non-humans” living with them, but Doylist wise, we’re still playing a game where Nabateans are “othered” and treated like “abominations” for the sin of not being humans, and humans feeling like “monsters” for having nabatean blood... and Nabateans themselves are never allowed to react to this.

As cute as Flayn’s supports with Dimitri were, we don’t have something where Flayn tries to ask him - in a roundabout way - if he would still be her friend if he knew she was not human but a “beast” (and Dimitri laughing at her because come on, Flayn, being a beast/monster? and then what, she roars? Monsters are people who slaughter others and love violence, even if she was made of, say, sugar cubes, or could transform in a giant wolf, she’d never be a monster!). 

Is it because of Earl Grey, or because this question trumps everything about “we want to tell a story about a 3 way war” and makes everything else pointless?

[yourtoradorasextendedwarranty]

"Men are the problem with the gaming community"

*Sigh* people make it really hard to not discuss this stuff. Really and truly is love to never talk about men's and women's issues at all. Because it's always stupidly divisive. What's more, I two to be as middle of the road as I can be on all of this. This despite having claims levied against me that I hate women. I don't. Not even remotely. However, I can't ignore stuff like that above quote because I have nephews who I want to grow up in a world where they don't have to feel like predators and evil people for just existing.

This video showcase a woman talking about how "men are the issue with gaming communities and she feels physically unsafe in gaming lobbies"

First of all, no you don't. You have a mute button and a block button. Hell you have a MUTE ALL button in most lobby based games. But gaming started as mostly a male thing. Contrary to what a lot those that won't agree say, having never had to make a shift towards advertising to men and boys because it has always interested men and boys. That's not to say in any metric that women were never interested in video games at all but that number was significantly less. Men involve themselves in a lot of banter and generally trash talk one another quite a bit. And the important point about all of that is the fact that men have a tendency to speak incredibly harshly when they don't mean it. Because they know how they talk to one another that's why whenever you hear some of the most vile stuff in a Halo or call of duty lobby, people will literally start laughing. Because it's so offhanded and unhinged that it's funny. And 99.99% of the things said in a call of duty lobby outside of maybe making plans with IRL friends tends to be random nonsense.

But the fact of the matter is men don't make gaming communities worse. But a lot of men are not going to temper their speech just because women are in their spaces. Yes, gaming is very much a shared space and that has been something that men have wanted for a long time. Having said that however men have wanted their cake and eat it too in this particular instance because a lot of women that end up as influencers like the one featured in this video tend to be the worst kind.

Because not only did she blame all men for being evil effectively, but she also went out of her way to say that she wanted to make sure that her and her partner did not have a cis male child. She wanted to make sure that they do everything in their power to make them trans or gay. With someone coming around to try to say that it was a joke but had none of the signs of a punchline. Not just that but she sounded 100% serious in saying it and did not have a joking tone or demeanor at all. As such I'm going to take her at face value because she's not a known comedian like Ryan Reynolds who does dry humor. The difference is he's funny. Joking about making your kid trans or gay so they don't end up being cis or straight isn't a joke and it's not even remotely funny.

However I should say this. I do not believe in any capacity that gaming should be a male only or completely male dominated by force space. However people need to understand that men and women fundamentally communicate differently. Even as young as teenagers and before. That's just truth.

But I also want to add this, the idea of men patrolling other men and gaming spaces just seems and feels dishonest to me. If you can't stand the heat get out of the volcano. (I feel like the proper version of this phrase would be in poor taste). Men do typically patrol other men and manners that actually matter. But you need to realize one very specific thing. When men stand up to other men for shit talking women, especially in places where it is typically male-dominated, the end result is that man getting absolutely eviscerated because he is seen as a white knight. Because I don't know about you but the women that I know in gaming spaces can give back as well as they can get. And they shit talk like one of the guys. And honestly I have a lot of respect for them because of it. Because if you can't handle it maybe the spaces aren't for you. Or you can play without voices on lobby.

But this very much sounds like a case of invading a space and demanding it changed to cater to what you want. Yes, there are men out there that are complete shitheads. And I'm not going to say that that's not the case. And if one of those people in game finds a way to stalk you or otherwise that's something entirely different. And in cases like that you will have men stand up and figure out how to communicate with this person and deal with them. But people need to very much understand that there is a difference between bullying/harassment, and trash talking. And when it comes to FPS games and fighter games trash-talking is par for the course.

[zalrb]

Anon-Requested Love Island USA Review - Episode 3 (out of, like, 8 million)

"Are you a fuck boy?" "I've been nice to you!" Fuck boys don't BEGIN mean, Hakeem.

"I'm with Hannah right now but your boy, Hakeem" I like how Connor and Hakeem have to be friends for no other reason than that they arrived on the island together.

"Promise not to judge me? I really like books on serial killers" So, crime novels or true crime nonfiction.

So, it didn't take Hercules coming in for Coye to feel stressed. Just a man who eats a cookie once in a while.

"He, like, set up a little, like, secret thing at the dock" he literally just asked you to meet him there. It's like when everyone freaks out because the Beast showed Belle his library. He's just letting her go to another room in the castle he's locked her in.

No but really, why are you waking up and hugging each other? LOL. You just slept. You didn't go away. What? Idk I'm not a morning person. I understand hugging before sleeping more than hugging after waking up.

Aaron, get that toothpaste off of your mouth PLEASE.

Why do you need a signal? You came in and gave avocado toast and then left and now Leah is gone too. You think people won't know where she went? Also, if you're all about honesty you should just be like, Leah can I see you for a second?

"We're locked in ... ... but we will talk to other people." So you are not, in fact, locked in.

A CUSTOM LOUIS VUITTON HOLDER FOR HIS BLUNTS? Leah, WHAT? You spent a grand on WHAT?

Did you buy him a house or something?? Aaron, she spent 2,500 dollars.

Why are you mad that Kaylor spent 5 grand on a man? That means she could spend that much on you??

We're going to find out what your girl's body count is. IN 2024? WHY?

"I swear to god she lied to me. She's a fucking liar." Coye, SHUT UP. Why does this MATTER?

"Let's find out how many times your boy has ghosted somebody." What, do they count? How would they know? How do you know it's exactly 50 women you've ghosted. How do you know that it's 1001 women you've ghosted?

"He's giving a wholesome king energy." Mmhmm. His body count is high.

Aaron's body count: 75 Kaylor: *let's out of a wail of despair*.

He was questioning ME about MY body count, well in that case you should eviscerate him.

Connor who apparently slept with 53 women thinks a woman sleeping with 15 men is too many men? "It LoOks LiKe A dOuBlE sTaNdaRd" because it IS, you dickhead.

Let's also apply the American Pie "Rule of Three" to the men.

Hakeem: It shouldn't be more than me! What if she's just a better closer than you, though?

TEN, AARON? WHAT IF SHE, LIKE YOU, WAS HEARTBROKEN? "I don't actually care" you put down a number.

YOUNG KING, YOUNG KING. Don't make me laugh.

Coye is RIDICULOUS. The amount of women you slept with could be the size of a church congregation, gtfoh.

JaNa was throwing shots at you. Coye: idgaf. I'm 6'8.

Coye, I know you're 6'8 but you still have to SPEAK. "I don't want to open up too fast" but you need to say something.

JaNa: I want clarity. Coye: How much clearer can I be? I am 6'8.

"I told him I had a good conversation with Connor and he was like 'cool' and it's like FIGHT FOR SOMEONE" lmao, see, Brucas shippers, it's not just a Lucas thing.

We are conveniently going to take a selfie on the balcony where we will just HAPPEN to see Leah and Rob together on one of their dates where Rob does literally nothing but just ask her to sit.

But good news, the fellas' body count will go down! No, it will stay the same.

JaNa, Coye is not a 10/10 he is just 6'8.

Aww, Serena and Kordell.

These re-couplings are not very dramatic so far. Where is the twist.

Wouldn't it be funny if Leah didn't choose Rob?

You can explore different people but if you're feeling someone more, just say that. Literally, though.

There is NO REASON why this music should make me feel like I'm watching a Christopher Nolan movie. SETTLE DOWN.

I'm glad she chose Connor. I don't trust Connor because while Rob is a serpent, Connor may be a demon because LOOK at those EYES

but Coye was BORING and arrogant. The 6'8 sway can only last so long, sir.

JaNa: I'm sorry. Coye: It's all good. (he's 6'8. he'll be fine.)

[shivunin]

The Heart Grown Fonder

A single letter folded into the cover of a book on Ferelden tax law in Vigil’s Keep: 

My dear Warden, queen of my heart, rarest and most beautiful of women, 

I trust this letter will find you, because I will have hidden it in a crate of supplies bound for your Vigil’s Keep. If someone else is reading this, I will retrieve it from you soon enough and you will not like the manner I use to do so. 

Mi vida, life is dull and grey without you by my side in Antiva. Fighting is tragically bereft of people shouting things like “desperation is an ugly perfume.” Such things always gave me something to ponder while we cut down our foes, and in their absence I find combat less than stimulating. What does that mean, by the way? And why did you say it so often? This is not a criticism, you understand; if you were to appear at my side tomorrow and say such things again, perhaps while eviscerating someone twice your size, I would be delighted beyond words. 

Can you believe that the Crows have not given up on me after all that? Such a shame, when you cannot trust a man at his word anymore. I have dispatched perhaps half of those who continue to pursue. If matters remain on track, I should be able to stroll back over to your side of the sea sometime in the next few months. 

Stay strong, my steel; I know that you are simply wilting without my tender care to nourish you. Please, permit me a moment to remind you of what I might do if I were there with you now: 

First, I would unbind your hair and loosen it over my fingers. I am certain it has grown even longer in my absence, and you know how I enjoy feeling it trail along my skin. Then, I would kiss you as you deserve—slowly and with feeling, for as long as you can stand it without—

The message continues at some length, ending several pages later:

It is my wish that my words will offer some stimulation until I may return to your side once more. Take heart, mi vida, my steel; you are always in my thoughts even though you are not in my arms. 

Trust that we will see each other soon. 

—Your Zevran

A series of letters bound together with a dark blue ribbon:

Zevran,

Did you read a naughty broadsheet and decide to stuff all the endearments you could manage into one letter? Words don’t warm my bed, Zev. 

I’m fine. Everything here is fine. 

Take care of yourself. Let me know when you’re planning to come back. I’ll be here.

Ser Grr misses you.

—Arianwen

Zev, 

Scratch the last letter, if you get yourself killed, I’m stuffing Justice in your body and killing you again. Consider it a threat and a promise.

—Wen

Zevran, 

I’m told that these are meant to be longer. I’ll try that this time. 

Justice says that the letters Kristoff received from his wife had descriptions of her day and hopes for the future. I don’t know what that means. I spent most of the day trying to vet candidates for the Calling. It’s not the Blight anymore; it’s important that the people we choose are able to stick it out and hold their own. The Wardens must have a stronghold in Ferelden or what happened to us will happen again, with no guarantee of success next time. 

So—that’s just about every day now. The rest varies, I suppose. Mostly annoying administrative nonsense. Nobles love their paperwork, it turns out. You don’t want to hear about that.

I’ve made friends with the chef. You were right: it’s important to know the person who is most likely to poison your food. She’s nice. Made it out of Highever before Howe destroyed it, which is good for her and us. Makes a damn good stew. Reminds me of the days on the road when we all had to tolerate each other’s cooking. I haven’t gotten any better at it, for the record, but I can peel a potato very quickly now, when called upon. 

Speaking of friends, Isabela stopped by on her way across the sea yesterday. I understand she came to Amaranthine to meet a smuggler contact, but unfortunately I already killed them. Anyway—it was nice to have dinner and catch up. We talked about you. Good things, not that you’d think otherwise.

I meant to say earlier—Justice doesn’t talk about Kristoff much, but he told me a little about what his life was like. Being a Warden and married and all, I mean. It sounded nice. Except for the part where he’s dead, I mean. That’s…not great. I’m glad I didn’t know him before everything else. It’s easier that way. 

Anyway. I hope this was better. I still don’t get the point of these. Why not just wait until you come back to talk about all this? 

You’d better come back. 

Not now, I mean. Eventually. When you’re ready. 

Whichever.

—Arianwen Tabris, Commander of the Grey, Hero of Ferel

Ignore all that. I’m getting too used to signing formal reports.

Zev, 

Did you know that ship captains can perform marriages? Isabela told me yesterday, but I thought she was joking. Nate agreed, but he could also just be fucking with me. I wouldn’t put it past him. I hesitate to ask, but do you know if this is true?

I think about that last trip back from Antiva very often. Maybe if I’d known Nevermind. I miss you. That’s it.

—Wen

Zevran, 

I tried to track down the messenger who took that letter before he could get on a boat, but he made it out of the country first. I’m told I am not allowed to go after him. 

So ignore all that instead. Just pretend you didn’t read it and I sent you a sketch of my chest or something.

—Arianwen

Zevran, 

If you’re getting these letters, please reply. I know I’m not very good at this, but I need to hear from you. 

Just—please.

—Arian Your Arianwen

And finally, tucked into a stack of neatly folded underthings in an armoire in Vigil’s Keep:

My Arianwen, 

If you find this before I find you, I owe you something special. If not—well, you will have me here, either way. 

I am only sorry it took so long. I am certain we will find a way to make up for the long absence.

—Zevran

P.S. Your sentries never even bothered to check the wall they stand on. You should correct this, or instruct your stoneworkers to make the bricks more difficult to climb. I would hate for someone less well-intentioned than I to take advantage.

(For @14daysdalovers day 9: Longing.)

[gatheredfates]

🎵 It's hard to choose an oc so dealer's choice! Pick one you're dying to share!

I thought about linking one of Sarrai's death-related songs but, on considering it, I thought that would make it too easy. It's pretty obvious on meeting her that she's obsessed with death, necromancy and bone collecting, but another huge part of her persona I love to explore is the horror associated with hypersexuality and femininity.

Sarrai as a character is seeped in femininity — she cloaks herself in a layer of pink and pastel that is disarming to people who first meet her; they think to themselves, 'oh, she's a young woman, she doesn't know any better' all the while, she has been tutored by her father to be a viper in the den. She plays on those preconceptions of femininity; that she must be darling, sweet, kind... but, in donning herself in pretty jewels, furs and makeup she must be naïve. There are characters, whether by their own volition or by how their players see the world, treat her like a bratty child... and she does nothing to assuage their opinion. She wants them to underestimate her — to think they can take advantage of her — because it makes it all the sweeter when she eviscerates them.

God make me pretty, you made me mean. Hate me because I'm beautiful; bitch, I don't like you either. Tell me how my ass tastes little bottom feeder!

With a lot of femininity, including traditional/pastel femininity, there is an undertone of innocence. Sarrai knows the horrors of the world in her own past; it is a deliberate choice for her to try and be 'palatable' in her conduct. So many people, however, try to push that down. They try to undermine her confidence, challenge her beliefs or condescend her because they're 'realists'. They see her focus on beauty and decay as strange and otherworldly. They don't think she takes it seriously, or that she is desecrating or being disrespectful. In spite of this, she will still try to be sweet and explain her stance until the point she realises there is no point, and then she will be cruel. She refuses to be underestimated because she chooses this line of femininity, though she is constantly bemused at how often that is the default. Either her innocence needs to be kept, or it needs to be ripped from her. There is no in between.

Sexy, cute, popular to boot Cup of Drano, lips turn blue Filler, snip and glue Am I fuckable enough for you?

There's a horror in that choice, right? If you play right into the pastel, pink 'cute' femininity, you have to accept that people will see you as a sex object. Sarrai knows this. She's also not opposed to it. But if you want to fuck her, you have to accept all of her — not pick and choose or try to mould her out of it. You have to look at the skulls on the walls and watch her wade through the muck of her mushroom collection and not be daunted by it. She has the filler, the snip and the glue because she wants it; she is mortified by the concept that other women might do it under the whim of a man. She knows, in the end, we're all going to die. What is the point of trying to appeal to a future corpse when she can live for herself and what she wants?

I'm not a girl, I'm a swarm of bees. Wrapped in a skinsuit, perfect teeth.

And that's like... the point, y'know? Femininity and sexuality deserve to be a choice: something personable that you feel, experience and give to the world; not something that is forced or expected of you. Sarrai is a girl, but she is also not a girl. She is beautiful and plays right into the concept of womanhood, but she is also just a meat sack with a bone interior like everyone else. It is important to her that she is no less feminine in high fashion sitting to her father's right than she is covered in muck after summoning a bone construct from a bog. They call it mother nature.

[motheatenscarf]

Oh, FF14. You almost had me convinced you knew what you were doing with your complicated traitor women.

Doing post-Stormblood story content. I really like how they're handling Fordola's atonement, her inability to control the artifical echo she let the Empire instill in her is making it so that she is constantly drowning in the memories and emotions of those around her- those she's wronged. She's at the mercy of an unrelenting torrent of grief and pain, all of which she caused these people, in her misguided efforts to try and carve a place for Ala Mhigans within the Empire's ranks.

That's a BRUTAL punishment and deeply compelling!

Then her using that artificial echo to help kill primals, while being reassured, "We don't forgive you... but if you want to help, we'll thank you."

Hell yeah!

That's redemption done RIGHT! Forgiveness isn't part of the package, it's not about that, it's about doing whatever you can to try and undo or make right the harm you've caused.

Between that and Raubahn's compelling struggle of desperately wanting to come home but knowing that he swore an oath to Nanamo, and her trying to prove to him that she's not a child anymore, and that he needs to go where his heart calls him, this is actually good! I don't love Godbert's little bootstrap speech and I don't love that we've decided salt mining is the way to make Ala Mhigo financially independent, but I do like that Alphinaud has learned his lesson about taking money from monetarist cronies in Ul'dah. I especially like Lyse being the idealistic leader Ala Mhigo actually kind of needs, making sure EVERYONE has a seat at the table and including the beast tribes in her new republic modeled after what Aymeric helped build in Ishgard!!! Consistent character growth all around! Hooray!! This is GOOD, I'm invested in this, this was what I wanted the whole time!

Annnnnnnd then I went to go find Gosetsu and now I want to find whoever was responsible for this and rip their heart out of their chest in front of the other writers as an example.

I... miss when Yotsuyu was a blood-crazed psychopath turned on by violence against her own people. Because at least she was a mentally competent woman in charge of her own faculties and in possession of agency for her choices.

Robbing her of her memories, turning her into someone who is described as "child-like" who "follows Gosetsu like a puppy," while having everyone recount her life as a subservient, "doll-like" sex-slave who was empty behind the eyes, being described BY her father, WHILE he sold her, as "No longer a maiden, but still has some use in her, " is... VILE? I, I don't have the words to describe HOW angry this makes me.

I had to walk away from story for a bit and I haven't gone back because I know they're not gonna give her any justice because it's either "Oh, but look how innocent she once was! The perfect docile woman~", or "Blood Psychopath Turned On By Violence", with no in-between.

I hate this!

I hate this so much!

I want to personally eviscerate whoever was responsible for this!! I want their kneecaps! I want their SKULL

I especially hate that we meet the man who ran the brothel she was sold to, and CAN'T make him suffer, and THEN he's defended by Hien as "well, we've only known him as honorable and courageous; I won't defend what he did, but I know he's trying to make amends," and okay, yeah, NOW I hate Hien! Good job, game! You made me hate him!