#i think the one piece children are how you really know they're a second generation weeb bc i don't think they air that on cartoon channels

[hua-fei-hua]

was working the clicker counter for our halloween trick or treat event last night, and the amount of harry potter costumes was like. frankly baffling, and the only reason i didn't go home depressed abt it was seeing all the young weebs coming through in their cosplays, sometimes with their parents also in cosplay... i love you second generation weebs...

[cipheramnesia]

This is the process my brain goes through every time I see anything about Netflix Avatar The Last Airbender.

My first reaction is always: Why? The original, although not without flaws, doesn't leave a lot of room to improve. A good remake or adaptation usually involves an updated context or change in perspective that adds to the original work and gives it new meaning. It's a risky undertaking because it usually involves wanting to take on something established as iconic and make it your own. But Netflix is a corporation and seems very risk averse for the most part. Its only investment is in the name recognition of AtLA. It's hard to visualize Netflix deliberately taking a big risk on an expensive show.

My second reaction is: How? The original series is about 1400 minutes over 61 episodes, and it still had to rush the ending. We're looking at 8 episodes of roughly 45-60 minutes per episode for season 1, which would require Netflix to let it run more than 3 seasons, if the series has similar pacing. Historically however Netflix shows have glacial pacing, and rarely make three seasons. Not really sure how they plan to tell the story if the series is anything like the average Netflix series, meaning it either needs to undercut the story or let the series breathe for at least five seasons. But nothing Netflix has done makes me want to watch anything they make as an ongoing series? Why bother, they cancel everything I enjoy. So I wonder how. What's the hook to say "this will be able to provide something new and interesting compared to the original, and will be allowed to tell the complete story."

Which leads me to think, but you can't judge if something is good without seeing it. Except none of this is about whether it's good, I just find myself wondering what are the odds it's worth the effort? They're low, and it has nothing to do with whether or not it's even any good on its own merits.

Following this, I ask myself, what would a good version of this be. Imagine you are making a live action series with eight hour long episodes per season based on a children's cartoon with 20 thirty minute episodes per season. You are trying to encompass a story which was presented over three seasons as a cartoon, and you do not know if you will have more than those eight episodes. It's made for Netflix which, in terms of a company which will protect the hard earned fruits of your artistic labor, is the fox guarding the henhouse. What do you do?

If you are looking to make something good, that respects your audience investment and your own work, you make radical changes to the story. You change the pacing, the character arcs, the plot arcs. You make sure you deliver a complete story in those episodes with as much respect for the original work and as many new ideas as you can.

Except, at that point, what is even the point of a remake. The only way to work with it is either to trust Netflix allowing you to finish the story (which you'd need to be incredibly naive to do), or tell a story so different it may as well be wholly original. And that's where I always end up. Like, it'll probably be fine, but what's the point of it all? Another vanishing digital property to get canceled because of some undefinable failure to return on investment.

I think about it a lot because the two ends of the spectrum seem to be "dunk on every new piece of information" or "wait and see" but the only conclusion I can ever reach is "why even care?" That's been the lesson to take home from digital streaming in general when it comes to series, but Netflix in particular, and honestly for movie series too. If it can't be self contained, the companies who produce and release these kinds of series just cannot be trusted with it, and there are too many good original stories being put out to care anymore about big budget promises that one day they will definitely for sure deliver a finished story, this time for real.

I care enough to think about why I don't feel anything at all about Netflix Avatar. It'll be fine, whatever else. Just fine.

[elkieselkiewrites]

As per my previous post, have some family drama in dribs and drabs!

This is all the threads for one piece of drama involving the second son, Taran. I have some more about Ungus and Eithi written, and a bit on Derelei, and even a little on Luan, but they're even more fragmented, so just have Taran drama for now!

This is some 18+ content so CW for language, relatively explicit sex right off the bat, off-screen character death, and people generally being arseholes.

~*~

"You're getting fat, love." Taran said as he thrust into her, hand cupping her belly as he held her body close to him. But the flesh under his palm wasn't soft padding from a season's good eating, rather it was the hard swell of a familiar problem. He groaned, his nose in her hair, panting hard. "That had better not be what I think it is."

She gasped a humourless laugh between the snap of his hips. "Well you put it there, Taran, so if you have an issue with it, that's on you."

"Fuck, Claray, a baby? How far along are you?"

"Far enough along for you to finally notice." She said. "Oh, fuck off Taran, did that turn you on? Does it get you going, the thought of knocking me up like this?"

In lieu of an answer, Taran groaned loudly as he came, hand still cradling the swell of Claray's stomach.

"You can't be pregnant, Claray." Taran said at last, his breath still coming in haggard gasps.

"It's a bit late for that, Taran. If I'm right about when you spoiled me, I'll be due around Winter Solstice."

"I haven't even broached the topic of a second marriage with my father, there's no way he'll let us marry soon enough to get away with this."

"You'd better find a way to convince him then, because I can keep this hidden for another few months, if I'm careful, but this baby is coming whether we are wed or not, and you know how your mother feels about bastards."

"What of your father? Will he allow it?"

Claray shrugged. "I'll beg and cry if he protests, and if he refuses I suppose I'll have to tell him we married in secret already, and I'm already gone."

Taran mouthed her shoulder affectionately. "Would you marry me in secret?"

"No, Taran. It's bad enough that I won't be your First Wife, I'll not degrade myself further."

They were both quiet for a moment, their skin still cooling in the night air.

"Why didn't you tell me before?" Taran said at last.

Claray rolled her eyes. "All I heard from you last year was how much you hated your existing brats, and never wanted another child. Sorry that I didn't take that to mean you'd be excited to be a father again."

"It's different with you, Claray."

"Really? Because you didn't seem all that happy when you worked it out."

"I was just surprised!"

"Taran, we've been sleeping together for the best part of a year, surely it can't be all that surprising. You already have two children, you know how it happens."

~*~

"Father, I need to speak with you about something important."

Glancing up from the table, Ungus saw Taran haunting the doorway and gestured for him to take a seat.

Taran did so, but remained silent for a moment before taking a large, steadying breath. "Father, I wish to take a second wife."

Ungus regarded him carefully. "Is there something wrong with the one you have? Ferelith has given you healthy children, she is still young and beautiful, what need have you for a second wife?"

"I married Ferelith for political reasons. I wish to marry Claray for love."

Ungus gaze sharpened under his large, fiery brows. "Claray? The High Priest's daughter?"

"Yes, exactly!" Taran replied quickly. "She's pious, well-educated, she has excellent connections, and is already familiar with court life."

"I do not think that the High Priest would allow his only daughter to be married off to a second son, let alone as a second wife."

"He would if you entreated him to. I want to marry her, Father. You always spoke about falling in love with Mother, and I never understood until I met Claray."

"If I agree to this, and I mean if Taran, it is likely the High Priest will want a full courting period, hefty betrothal gifts, the kind of pomp and circumstance that could take two seasons or more. Would that be an issue for you?"

Taran hesitated.

Ungus sighed. "Tell me you did not get a bastard on the High Priest's daughter."

"It won't be a bastard if you let me marry her."

"Salt and surf take you, boy! You have a high-born wife to give you babies, why did you go behind her back to get another woman pregnant, and why did that woman have to be the High Priest's daughter?"

"I meant to wait, to court her properly, but I saw her at the Spring Equinox celebration last year, the way the firelight caught her hair when she was dancing, I thought she was a fae creature sent to spirit me away beyond the veil."

Ungus waved him off with a large, calloused hand. "Alright, enough with the poetics. How long have you been bedding her?"

"Since the Spring Equinox last year."

"When did you knock her up?"

"Spring Equinox this year."

There was a pause. Ungus' response was dry as bone. "Taran."

"I thought it was quite romantic." Taran said weakly.

"I'd tan your hide if I thought it would make a difference, you idiot boy."

Taran felt his hackles rise. "At least I got a bastard on a woman of calibre and not a damn serving girl."

"You will not talk of your Third Mother so disrespectfully."

"Third Mother is young enough to be my daughter, Father. If Vurgist had given you grandchildren when you wanted them they'd be of an age with her. Surely you can see why Mother disapproves."

"We are not speaking of my marriage, Taran, we're speaking of yours." Ungus said, firmly. "I will agree to this, and I will agree to a bride price far exceeding what she's worth, but do not think that matter is settled. There will be consequences."

"For love?"

"For indiscretion!"

~*~

"You have poisoned my daughter!" The High Priest cried, finger wavering as he gestured towards Taran. "I see how your eye follows her and I see how her belly swells! Your seed rots inside her and the daughter I knew is dead because of it." He turned to the Lord of Isles, face just a shade off puce. "I will have recompense Ungus, or there will be hell to pay!"

"Your Grace," Taran began. "I love your daughter and would have married her a year ago if I thought we would have been allowed, but Claray told me in no uncertain terms that you would not accept my suit."

"She was correct. My daughter is a pious, well-bred girl and you have spoiled her! She should have been First Wife of a man of good standing, but you are now suggesting she be Second Wife of a rogue and a scoundrel? And I have no choice, for who will marry a woman with her leg broken above the knee?"

"Hendry," Ungus interjected. "Can we speak not as Lord and High Priest, but as father to father? I love my children, but I know they have their flaws. Taran is impulsive and romantic, to be sure, but he has offered to take responsibility for this… accident. Surely that speaks favourably of his character?"

Instead of being mollified, the High Priest laughed bitterly. "Oh, I should have expected that a man who has only recently broken the leg of his own wife's serving girl, then attempted to set it with a sham marriage, would take the boy's side. The acorn hasn't escaped the shadow of the oak, it seems."

"Remember your place, Priest." Ungus growled. "The gods you serve blessed me with these isles, and with these children, you would be best to take note of that before offering me insult."

The Lord of the Isles took a steadying breath. "Your daughter will marry my son, as is proper, and I will welcome your blood into mine through our grandchild. Your line will be as blessed as mine, Hendry, that is a good thing, is it not?"

The Priest seethed silently for a moment, calming his trembling hands.

"Claray's mother died in childbed." Hendry hissed. "If the same fate befalls my daughter I will curse your bloodline for twenty generations!"

Ungus nodded wearily. "So be it, Hendry. So be it."

~*~

The night the second wife of the second son of the Lord of the Isles died there was no deluge or great crash of thunder, the sky was clear and the wind a bare breath through the open shutters. She had laboured through all of the previous night and day, and by the time the sun had sunk once more below the serene sea it was clear that there would be no babe. By the time the sun returned, bathing the islands in a warm, golden glow, Claray and her child were dead.

The wailing grief of the High Priest was comparable only to his fury, the cold kind that could stem only from something as keen as the loss of a child. He spat curses at Taran and Ungus until his chapped lips cracked and bled. He called upon every god he served to salt the earth beneath their feet, to strike some down where they stood and keep others tethered to life only to prolong their suffering. He screamed for his daughter until his voice grew hoarse and he fell to the ground beside her body and let unconsciousness take him at last. When he awoke, he spoke no more, as though every word he had in him for the rest of his days had been spent in cursing the Lord of the Isles and all his kin.

Ungus turned away from the scene to his First Wife, silent tears brimming in her eyes, but not falling. "This is a grave loss to be sure, but he simply a grieving old man."

"No." Came a voice from behind them both. "There was power in his words. I felt it."

Looking back, Ungus could see his Third Wife, skin as pale as her hair, watching the body of her daughter-in-law in its stillness on the bed.

"Eithi, now is not the time for such superstition." Ungus replied, voice low and chiding, but Lorna stopped him with a firm hand.

"The girl speaks true, which you'd know if you weren't so removed from your roots. She is of the islands, as we once were, and she feels their power more acutely. You should trust her." Lorna turned to Eithi, her expression still stern, but softened. "What do you feel, Eithi?"

"He's old, he's been faithful to the gods most all his life. They know him, they know his words and they know his blood. They may take his life as tithe, but I believe they'll heed his call. I fear he's doomed us all."

Ungus scoffed and cried nonsense, but Lorna nodded gravely. "Gather the little ones. We'd best make our way to the temple. We'll need to beg for forgiveness before this curse takes root."

[persephoneism]

There's this one person, who really grinds my gears. They are very anti- Leto and Rhea (?!)

And their posts are so uninformed with no lack of proper understanding. The worst part is they try to sound smart and give niche sources but ignore the context of them if they go against their argument.

Fore example, they say Demeters relationship with Zeus happened before his marriage to Hera (They cite the theogony) so therefore it wasn't an affair. But they actively dismissed the Theogony as a reliable source when it comes to Leto's relationship with Zeus becauseit goes against the canon. They also call her a rape victim when... baby that's Orphism which if you actually paid fucking attention to the text you'd realize it also "goes against the canon". More on that in a bit.

They argue that Hera can't fight back or directly retaliate against Zeus because he is the king and therefore more powerful than him, but then they bash Rhea for not doing anything punish Zeus (like girl what is she supposed to do, if Hera can't do anything what makes you think that Rhea can) and by that logic why did literally any other god not do anything like Hestia and Demeter? On top of that, they criticize Rhea for not preventing Zeus’s assault on Demeter and Persephone... but in the source, they outright say that Demeter is Rhea, and she did try to prevent Persephones assault like wtf?! They don't read the shit that they're citing. Rhea helping Zeus' children isn't her supporting him or his mistresses. It's literally her protecting the children. Harming children and pregnant women isn't girlboss behavior.

They also go on a whole tangent that Hera is so much better than Leto because she has a throne on Olympus, her husband's support, and her cult is way older and independent from her children. They go into actual history when it comes to defending Hera but ignore Leto's, who was seemingly an anatolian mother goddess and a recognized consort of Zeus. In the Theogony and the illiad, she is called the wife of Zeus alongside Hera. In the hymn to Apollo, she literally has a seat besides Zeus. She isn't just a side piece.

I have no problem with people critiquing the gods, but I find it intellectually insulting to see someone misuse primary sources to defend an unnecessary argument.

Ahh, pretty sure I know who you're talking about. Their posts popped up in tags I track so I just #blocked them. Not before reading their uninformed takes, unfortunately.

In the end, the big issue here (aside from the ever persistent "THIS god is good and THAT god is bad" pattern) is that people treat the gods as characters. They expect them to be consistent in their behavior and actions, and then complain when they don't act as they think they should. I've talked about this before, but the characterizations of the gods in ancient texts tend to be kind of vague, or they all more or less share the same traits.

Another point I cannot stress enough is that events unfold the way they do in myths for a reason. They can't happen any other way because they are events of pretty much cosmic significance. The birth of a major god like Apollo, essentially the original hero and monster slayer, cannot be an ordinary, unremarkable happening. And if you think about it, most important second generation Olympians have very curious tales surrounding their births.

And although there is a general accepted mythological "canon," there are variations depending on the time and place, yet still some key occurances remain unchanged (Hephaestus' fall from Olympus, Persephone's marriage, Leto's difficult labor etc.)

So, sure, you can write Hera accusing Rhea of not supporting her while Zeus sleeps around with other women in your retelling, but your retelling is not a corpus of stories (or even pre-historical "events") meant to explain how the world and the divinities that rule over it came to be.

[beevean]

you know, I actually think there's a lot of juicy merit to the idea of the belmonts not being the righteous heroes we always thought they were. maybe after many generations of triumphing over evil, they let it get to their heads that they were unfallible, that their judgements were always correct, etc. the concept of genuinely making them morally grey has so much potential from a storytelling angle, it's just too damn bad the only media that ever attempts this is fucking netflixvania. outside of like, less than 5 throwaway lines about baby vamp skulls and dark magic sealed doors, IT'S NEVER BROUGHT UP AGAIN. you had an idea and it sounded cool in your head, but no genuine clue how to actually WRITE it so some editor just overlooked the few lines you shoved into the script on a whim. as it stands now it feels like one the shows many attempts to shit talk the source material for the thousandth time. and aside from trevor, everyone is dead! how are we meant to criticize the dubious heroes when we can't even see how they behaved/what their practices were?? why should we even CARE???

The vampire kids is just proof of how shoddy the lorebuilding is. Once you get past the initial shock of "OMG the Belmonts killed babies??????", you think for one second "wait, the vampires can't reproduce, so... where are these children coming from?". And no matter the answer, you eventually realize that they deserve to be mercy killed 💀 (unless they're dhampirs, but that would be an even worse piece of information to relegate to shock value for 5 seconds)

There's also Julia, mind you. Who was apparently racist against vampires lmao, and killed Olrox' poor bf who was so nice and wanted equality and revolution, really! I don't even know how bad we're supposed to feel lol, because unless I'm mistaken, in that scene Olrox also reveals he turned his bf against his will...

Anyway. I get your point but... I don't trust like that anymore 😅 once again, I'd rather extrapolate on what the games left us. Trevor, as pointed out here, is an absolute savage in CoD, like he sounds so bloodthirsty for no reason! And he's the first Belmont who has killed Dracula, he's not even burdened by his own legacy, he's one of the founders of said legacy! And Richter's flaws are infamous, the way he enjoys the thrill of the fight just too much, the way his identity is wrapped around his destiny, the way he falters under Dracula's manipulation... Even Juste, you can see him as being a hothead and too willing to forget about recent events in HoD, indicating either denial or a sense of overprotectiveness.

Basically, giving personal flaws to the Belmonts is more than welcome. You can use these flaws to paint them as not completely pure, even, although personally I'm tired of the stereotype of the arrogant superhero. But NFCV just... doesn't like the Belmonts, at all, and that "oh they kill innocent vampires" tidbit that Alucard so despises, while I'm sure it's meant as a way to flesh out the "heroes", comes off to me as the show siding too often with the antagonists, and downplaying the Belmont's genuine desire to do good. Or turning Trevor and Juste into cynical washouts because we just like that archetype I guess :\

[tobiasdrake]

Deeper into Mesa Island, we go.

Uhhh.... Can we help you?

Should we be stopping this? I feel like we should be stopping this.

And they're gone.

Great. They expect me to do all the work of springing the deadly trap on myself. Typical.

This is the Elder Mist all over again. Fucking lazy-ass ambushers.

Fine, I did your yardwork and raised your lunar sigil. Let's go, up and at 'em. Come bite my face off. I don't have all night.

There we go, that's more like it. Consider this hedge pruned! See, the problem with making me set up my own ambush is that it gives me time to prepare for it.

In any case, that happened. Remind me next time we see Dickface Minstrel that I owe them a flute shoved down their throat.

And I pay my debts. Just ask the Numerology Cult.

Oh, I guess it's flashback time. Sure, why not. It's a bit of a hike to Peach's Castle, so now's as good a time as any to reminisce.

Oh, shit. Is this....

It is. This is the Strife cleansing. This is when Momo died. Along with many of her colleagues.

Oh, that confidence. >.< Oh, Moraine. Time will not be kind to you.

Another reminder that Erlina is stronger than Brugaves. She took to the magic more naturally than he did.

No, you don't. Not this battle, you don't.

People keep mentioning the twins. I don't think they're anyone we know. Probably died in the Strife battle.

They have to be important, though. The way they keep coming up implies that the plot wants us to be aware of them.

The sole survivor. I think this is where everything fell apart for our timeline. If Solstice Warriors are Resh'an's pieces and Dwellers are Aeophorul's pieces, then the near-total annihilation of all Solstice Warriors in exchange for a single Dweller, no matter how strong, was a cataclysmic loss for our team.

All that was left of the entire order was one traumatized Lunar warrior and two kids who didn't even really want to be here. This was where the ball began to roll downhill.

The friction was there from the beginning. Erlina never liked Moraine. I can't blame her. I hated his guts too. Sole survivor with PTSD Moraine is not well-suited to teaching the new generations, but he's literally the only option there is.

We didn't survive the Strife battle. We only thought we did. But the Dweller had mortally wounded the order. A wound whose lethality would only become clear twenty years later.

Shades of our own childhood plan to go sail the world with Garl instead. Every kid can feel how suffocating Mooncradle truly is.

I said before that Moraine is not very good at indoctrinating children into the order's belief system. Erlina and Bugraves turned full-on traitor, while Zale and I were out of Moraine's sight for five seconds before we recruited our non-Solstice bro that he explicitly forbid us from recruiting. Nobody cares about what Moraine thinks.

I stand by that remark now, but it's accented with a heavy dose of tragedy. He was never qualified to be a teacher. But who else was there?

Unfortunately, Evermist Island is a fucking prison colony of a place, so it's not exactly easy to escape from. These two had to become Solstice Warriors because there were no other options available. In Mooncradle, you're either born to become a Solstice Warrior or born to serve Solstice Warriors.

That's it. Solstice kids and non-Solstice kids alike, your path is set in stone from birth. Because this isn't a village; It's a factory for mass-producing Resh'an's chess pieces as efficiently as possible.

...oh, the vials that created Mooncradle were TIA's potions. I just got that. Yeah, he probably is the Great Eagle. Or controls it. Or something.

Aww, it's me! I'm so precious. I am the cutest baby that's ever been dropped off by the Great Eagle, and I will bite the shins of anyone who disagrees.

Confirmation that I am, in fact, the older sibling. Chew on that, little brother.

[kawarikisaki]

Funny thing given how knights work and your theory that Kid is a queen in chess the knights are the Detective Boys so despite his name Hakuba isn’t a chess knight. (Works even better because when Kid wanted to have them unwittingly help him acquire a big jewel he put all but Conan in a corner. (Given that knights in a corner are tricky at best.) Then he put him in a metaphorical corner by tasing him. Which I think which convinced Agasa, Conan and Ai to not allow the kids involved in Kid heists anymore because they don’t want that to happen to literal children. Because at that time Kid didn’t know Conan is actually about his own age.)

Alrighty, so you said a lot of stuff there but my brain is only really latching on to one part of it. So you're getting another round of me kinda debating myself. And the topic this time is: We don't actually know whether or not Kid knew Conan's identity at that point. We do know that he knows now, after all in Fairy's Lip heist Kaito's internal monologue acknowledges that he's up against two high school detective's. But that was fairly recent (2019) in the grand scheme of Detective Conan. So when did he find out? He found out in Movie 3, so it could be argued that he's known since then (which is generally what I go with since there's never anything that contradicts that), however the movies are second degree canon (I could probably do a whole ramble post about what I think about the movies and their canonicity), so it's not really solid that he learned at that point.

That said, if that movie isn't when Kid officially found out Conan's identity then we don't actually know when he did, because we're not shown it. But Arguments can and will be made: 1. He's known since the black star pearl heist. After meeting on the roof Kid looked into Conan and those he was staying with as part of the process that led to him disguising as Ran on the ship- with how intelligent Kaito is it's not unreasonable to consider that he may have learned that had a childhood friend that went missing around the same time that Conan showed up, and Kaito knows magic is real so it's not too much of a logic jump for him to put two and two together. 2. He needed to see him in action a few more times before he made the connection, but knew before the gathering of great detectives (just because if he didn't know at that point it's super weird that Kid included Conan in the phrasing of 'they're like lovers that you don't want to meet'. No Kaito, don't compare someone you think is a child to a lover, not good.) 3. The hint that Conan gave durring the Ryoma heist/case about his mom gave Kid the pieces he needed to make the leap in logic. (Already after the heist with the detective boys at this point) 4. Somehow he didn't know but then seeing how Heiji and Conan interact in the aforementioned Fairy lips heist Kaito just kinda went 'oh, they're bros- wait did he just call the little meitantei 'Kudo'???' And while the idea of option 4 amuses me to no end. And the same with if considering the possibility that Kaito could have tazed Conan thinking he was a real 6 year old. .... I already mentioned that I'm on team 'he figured it out in the movie'.

[chimericchaos]

Minor rant, yes I did just come from the Big Tugg video on how english is stupid and I entirely agree with him on that

What I do not at all agree with is the opening of the video entirely dedicated to hating children - he just goes out of his way to say "oh yeah before I start this video, I fucking hate kids" and then gives a list of things kids don't know, (because, they're kids) and dunk on them for not knowing stuff

And I find it kinda ironic the person who says that kids should not feel proud of learning- sorry, memorizing- the alphabet, also mispronounces the word Celtic not ten seconds later. Perhaps we all could learn a thing or two by expanding our general knowledge and studying cultures and languages outside our own?

Speaking of languages, side-tangent-within-a-side-tangent, removing s or k and compounding them both into c is a shit take that I'm seeing way too much, when the obvious answer is to get rid of c, it only functions as a replacement for s or k and in either function it creates unnecessary problems (it's really unnecessary for "unnecessary" to be spelt like that but different topic) and that's why a Bunch of fucking languages around the world do Not include a c, such as the language I was forced to learn since birth and Still cannot speak: Afrikaans. There is not a single c in that language and I have never had a spelling mistake from s or k ever. Other mistakes sure but not concerning those.

And you may be wondering "well why can't we just contract the sounds into less letters to save space in the alphabet?" Because while that would not necessarily be so bad, that shit gets real out of hand real fast the more you do it, and all I'm saying is don't come knocking when you can't spell doodle when your a's are also e's and your u's are also i's

Anyway back to the topic of hating kids

This may seem like a wildly specific rant about one youtuber mentioning it offhand once, but I assure you this is not the first time today I've heard this. I hear this multiple times a week. From different people

For some damn reason it's kinda always been a popular take to hate kids and openly talk about how much one would like to see them suffer, and I don't fucking understand it at all???

Like, ok, you find their constant questions and mumbles and movements and other weird sounds very annoying, cool, I find the several cats outside my window doing many unsavoury things to each other each and every night annoying but I still don't talk about it like it's ok to hurt them

And maybe we can take a moment to rationalize the fact that kids tend to ask a lot of dumb things and say a lot of dumb things, because they're dumb?? they have far less experience on this earth than anyone who knows the definition of "economy", and do not yet know how to do basic living shit like how to cook a whole ass chicken, and they don't need to just yet, that's the point

People who don't know shit are going to do and say things as a consequence of not knowing shit

And this is very much a long-winded vent about something that doesn't really effect me at all, but I do in fact see it as a personal problem because not too long ago I too was a kid that didn't know shit, and I was a piece of shit because of it, sure, but something I very much remember is having to deal with people who hated me simply for existing, and I no longer have to deal with people hating my existange as a child, yes, but I still have various other unchangable things about myself that people hate me for, so through that experience I don't think it's a good thing to hate kids just because they're kids, regardless of how annoying the youtube comments are, and at the very least if you're going to think the spawn of your fellow humans are actually the spawn of satan, please do not talk about like it's a normal ass thing

And hey, maybe there's also a part of my brain that has yet to even fucking register that I'm in my roaring 20's now, so that may be why when I come across people hating kids I feel personally attacked

So with that knowledge, if you say to me that you hate kids, for whatever reason, rest assured I already hate you

[serenanymph]

writeblr positivity tag

tagged by the lovely @macabremoons! gently tagging @lyssa-ink, @reneesbooks, @scroll-of-aves, @space-writes, and anyone else who wants to hop in! this is gonna be a long one so I'm gonna leave it under the cut.

1. What motivates you to write?

All the lovely comments I get!! I honestly just love seeing how people react to my writing. Also just thinking about my characters in general. They're just a bunch of silly little guys <3 (they are unbelievably traumatized). And thinking about those specific few scenes I'll get to write later in the book too!!!

2. A line/short snippet of your writing that you are most proud/happy of. If not maybe share a line of someone else's work you love (just please credit them)

Uhh honestly I have mostly forgotten and all the good lines really only make sense with context, but I guess I am?? Mildly proud of this bit??

The air smells of sweet perfume. It’s a sharp, potent scent, thick and cloying, overly concentrated and enough for Beatriz to choke on. That’s the first thing she notices. The second things she notices is everything buried beneath it – dust, the faint, lingering tang of chemicals stinging her nose. Decay and rot. The air smells like death.

3. Which OC makes you smile every time you think/talk about them and what are they like?

Wait is this your own OC or someone else's. Okay I can't really pick between my children BUT I do really love @reneesbooks Birdie!! Smol chaotic magic child, absolutely adorable. I want to give her all the pastries she could ever desire

4. What process of writing do you enjoy the most?

On one hand, creating the first draft from scratch is really fun, but on the other, working on later drafts with the knowledge you're refining something and making it better is also so satisfying. Hrm. I'd say first draft wins but only by a small margin (because nothing in the latter stages will exist without it).

5. What part of writing do you think you are the best at? (Yes stroke your own ego it's okay)

Uh. I have no idea but apparently a lot of people have said I'm really good at descriptions?? So. Descriptions. I guess

6. What is something in the writeblr community is most enjoyable?

Honestly I think everyone's answers are gonna be about the same but, y'know. It's the community. Everyone here is genuinely so friendly and talented, and all the games are really fun!!

7. A writing tool/device you use that helps you with writing? (It could be speech to text, a writing program etc)

I use microsoft word which is like. About all I use. Really boring ik but I'm used to it and for whatever reason I think it came with the laptop?? So yeah

8. A piece of worldbuilding that you like in your own story? (It could be the magic system, a particular place in the story, a law etc)

I really like exploring the magic system!! Magic for Beasts is largely emotion-based, and can be affected by a variety of factors (everything from target to affinity to environmental conditions) so it's been really fun figuring it out, but still making sure it doesn't become overpowered or a deus ex machina. There's also magic for mages which is a lot more precise and restrained. You can kind of think of it as Beasts having powers while mages have spells.

9. What piece of advice would you say to encourage others to write if they are having a rough patch?

Honestly most people would probably say something along these lines as well - even though I don't know what's causing your rough patch exactly, the only way to solve this not-writing problem in the end is to write. If you write, you can make it better. If you write, someone out there is bound to find it and love it. So, y'know. Just write. It can only go up from here.

10. Tag some people whose works you love/have been your biggest supporters

Okay so first off, @allianaavelinjackson (though she isn't really part of writeblr), for always putting up with my insane ramblings about the little people in my head, losing it when reading about the little people in my head, and just being a really great cheerleader. Love ya. Also @lyssa-ink for being one of my first mutuals and having really interesting story ideas!! And @reneesbooks for her continued support and just being a super talented writer (seriously, lacuna lives rent free in my head). Plus @squarebracket-trick, @e-klair and @space-writes for all the STS questions giving me a chance to yell about Beast at someone, and lastly tagging back @macabremoons for all her support!! I could really go on and on and on but then this post would never end but to all my mutuals!!! Know that I love and appreciate every single one of you and y'all are awesome people!!

BLANK QUESTIONS

1. What motivates you to write?

2. A line/short snippet of your writing that you are most proud/happy of. If not maybe share a line of someone else's work you love (just please credit them)

3. Which OC makes you smile every time you think/talk about them and what are they like?

4. What process of writing do you enjoy the most?

5. What part of writing do you think you are the best at? (Yes stroke your own ego it's okay)

6. What is something in the writeblr community is most enjoyable?

7. A writing tool/device you use that helps you with writing? (It could be speech to text, a writing program etc)

8. A piece of worldbuilding that you like in your own story? (It could be the magic system, a particular place in the story, a law etc)

9. What piece of advice would you say to encourage others to write if they are having a rough patch?

10. Tag some people whose works you love/have been your biggest supporters

[captainclickycat]

Whoops turns out I have Further Thoughts on this.

So, here's the thing. We could argue a lot about whether or not characters in horror films make stupid decisions and how it depends on the individual film and what have you all day long. And I'm sure we could come up with a few examples on either side of the argument.

But I think there's a broader point here which is that when people say "what if there was a horror movie that featured a convenient and straightforward way for the characters to get out of trouble without making any sacrifices along the way, so they did that and were fine, the end", and especially when they present this as some kind of refreshing new take on the genre...

Well, aside from the fact that this would make for a very boring and disappointing story for anyone who actually wanted to watch a horror film, it has the same energy as those people who are presented with moral dilemmas as a thought exercise and get fixated on "what if there was a way to stop the trolley and save all six people" "what if you could replace the Omelas kid with a robot" and so on. It's a copout, and it really does come off more like they're balking at the idea that suffering is sometimes unavoidable, that sometimes there are no easy answers and any decision you make comes at a cost.

It reminds me of this other post that was going round a decade or so ago, where the title was something like "horror movies for our generation" and the gist of the whole thing was essentially "if millennials were in a horror movie scenario we'd be able to fix everything and save ourselves straight away because we're so smart and progressive and have the best resources!" (Which to add a bit of extra context was clearly pushing back against a lot of the "millennials are stupid children who don't know how to do anything" think piece discourse that was floating around at the time) and a lot of people in the notes (possibly even including me, at the time) going "omg I need this!! I'd watch the shit out of this!!" which, when you think about it, is really weird when you acknowledge that the scenarios being described were essentially just "what if something that claimed to be a horror story actually just had no plot."

The idea of a horror story where the characters make sensible, realistic, understandable decisions is potentially a great premise (and again, there are plenty of existing horror stories that already meet that criteria.) Crucially, though, that can't be enough to get them out of trouble, at least not instantaneously.

If you could avoid getting lost in the scary woods just by using your trusty functioning gps tracker, there would be no story. So in an actual horror story, the gps wouldn't work, or it would be hijacked by some sinister entity and end up landing the characters right back where they started, or lead them further into danger. The characters happen to have the exact right combination of personalities and skillsets to instantly defeat the monster and go home? Well, first of all that's just dumb luck, and second of all that can't work right away either. There would be a different monster that they can't defeat so easily, or they simply don't have enough information or opportunity for most of the story to be able to actually use their collective skills against it. You managed to evade the killer and get out of the creepy log cabin unharmed? Congratulations. Your best friend is still in there, though, and they might be injured. Are you comfortable leaving them behind and hoping they can fend for themself while you get away? What if it's your child? Sometimes the "stupid" decision is the one you wouldn't be able to live with yourself if you didn't make.

I'm going to give the "cozy romance" person props because at least they're honest about the fact that they don't actually want a horror story, and at least the story they're proposing would actually have a plot, just not a horror one. I can see where their thought process was going; there is something cool about the idea of a secret secondary plot going on in the background that the protagonist managed to narrowly avoid, that we can put the pieces together about if we pay close enough attention. (It's not the best example, there are undoubtedly better ones, but it reminds me a bit of Shaun of the Dead where we get these hints that there's a doppelgänger squad running around in the background, and it seems like just a one-off joke until one of them shows up at the end with the military in tow.)

But the thing about that example and a lot of the other ones is that there's eventually a payoff. Ultimately it does affect the protagonists in some way, even if it's sometimes a subtle way. And there's something sort of weird, and just a little jarring, about the idea of reading a story where you're sort of vaguely aware that horrible things are happening to some poor bastard in the background, and your only takeaway from that is supposed to be "oh well, sucks to be them. Let's continue to enjoy watching these Sensible people kiss! Yay!" Apart from maybe being a cool sort of easter egg, what exactly is the point of this subplot, besides imparting the profoundly unsatisfying message of "you can easily avoid danger and have a wonderful life if you're just smart and sensible enough!" when that's so often and so tragically untrue in real life.

And that's why I feel like this would be a much better premise if the horror eventually caught up with the protagonist. Because sorry folks, but escaping the genre unscathed is too easy and too unsatisfying. It has to at least be a challenge, or there's no story worth reading.

You can't just replace the Omelas kid with a robot.

people are so mean about horror movie victims like. sorry but if i had gone to a cabin in the woods with my friends as a teenager you couldn't have stopped us from reading aloud from the evil tome. how were they supposed to know the ancient curse was real they're like 17

[staringdownabarrel]

You know, thinking back on the Riftwar cycle, one of the surprising things is how few children most people have. This is a slightly niche thing that most people who see this probably won't be super interested in, so the rest is under the cut.

Much like in the modern day, it seems like most people in Midkemia are perfectly fine with stopping after two or three kids. This is true of the nobility like most of the characters, but it's also true of the rank and file citizens of the Kingdom.

In the Serpentwar Saga specifically, Roo was an only child, and Erik effectively was despite having noble half-brothers. Later on in the Conclave of Shadows trilogy, I believe Talon had been an only child as well, and I forget if he ever had more than one child. None of these examples are ever commented on as being particularly remarkable.

This is quite a contrast to how things work in real life. I mean, in real life, the fertility rate has generally been decreasing over time. Here in Australia, the fertility rate in 1800 was something like 6.5, but now it's below replacement levels, and this is hardly a rarity in the developed world. In a world like Midkemia which is very loosely based on medieval Europe, you would expect smaller families with 1-3 children to be the rarity rather than the exception.

The other surprising thing is that this seems to be true across the board. It's true in fairly peaceful parts of the Kingdom, and it's also true in more dangerous areas where family members could potentially be conscripted or die in a cross-border raid. While this is never explicitly stated, it's certainly implied by the fact that when main characters from other parts of the Kingdom are heading through the Vale of Dreams where this sort of thing really is common, they aren't struck by how much larger families in this part of the world are.

From this, we can draw three conclusions. The first is that infant mortality is likely to be very low, to the point where it'd probably be comparable to what it is today in the real world, only without the benefits of our modern medicines.

The second is that industrial accidents must also be extremely rare. This generally tracks with how there generally aren't characters who are introduced with disfigurements they got from working the fields or anything like that. Usually, if someone's disfigured, it's a combat related injury. Nobody's ever mentioned to have lost a parent to an industrial accident, either.

This contrasts sharply with what happened in the real world. If you were a European peasant in the fourteenth or fifteenth centuries and you survived early childhood, the next most likely reasons you'd die are either giving birth (if you were a woman/were female presenting), from a work accident in the fields, or drowning.

So while the average Midkemian doesn't seem to have access to anything resembling modern medicine and rarely has access to a wizard who can fill the gap, they're still less likely to die young anyway. This probably means that either safety precautions in manual labour are more common, that the average piece of farm equipment is safer to use, or some combination of the two.

The third is that major wars really are a rarity. That's explicitly the case anyway, given how delicate the balance of power is and how everyone goes out of their way to avoid upsetting it too much, and given how major wars are talked about when they do happen. Even in the Chaoswar trilogy when Kesh actually did try to do that, it was only under duress, and the common reaction to what was actually a fairly well thought out invasion route was, "They wouldn't actually do that, would they?"

Besides the fact that major wars seem to only ever be started by otherworldly powers, it also seems like the low-level conflicts really are low level conflicts. Beyond the disputed border between the Kingdom of the Isles and the Empire of Kesh, there's also the regular/semi-regular goblin raids against the fortifications along the Teeth of the World, and before the start of Magician, the threat of the Dark Brotherhood in the Green Heart. All of these are probably low level to the point that combined, it'd be a particularly deadly year if their combined deaths hit the triple digits.

The fourth conclusion I'd draw from this is that famine is rarer, too. There's only one famine known to have occurred on Midkemia (in the Far Coast province during the Serpentwar saga), and it was a big enough event that the powers that be were trying to keep it quiet. The stated reason was that they didn't want to cause panic.

Given that this is the same approach they took to the ongoing war preparations for an upcoming major invasion and that wars on that kind of scale are a rarity, then it could be taken to mean that famines are a rarity, too.

I think this is on shakier grounds, though. This is something I want to get into separately in a different post, but I think there might be some other mitigating factors as to why famine seems to be such a rare thing in these books. The very short reason is that I think the urbanised population of Midkemia is probably a smaller percentage than what the urbanised population in Europe in the Middle Ages was, so chances are there was more of a chance to stockpile grain. Maybe famine was more common but the effects were more easily mitigated.

When I read A Kingdom Besieged, one of the things that sorta got me going from a world building perspective was that Crydee's population was mentioned to have only risen around 10% from the time of the Riftwar. This struck me as odd because the thing is that given the only major disasters that directly impacted Crydee in that 100 or 120 year period seem to have been the Riftwar itself and the famine fifty-ish years later.

However, now I think a lot of it can be explained by two things. One is a particularly high death rate from the war and the famine, and the other is a fairly slow birth rate. I think it needed to be both, and there is some tenuous canonical evidence to suggest the average family size probably was quite low throughout the series.

The one big trouble with all of this is that it also seems like the population of the Western Realm can jump back fairly easily despite a low birth rate and the occasional major war that lowers the population. I think the mitigating factor here is that three of the major wars detailed over the course of the saga were followed by fairly large migration waves: thousands of Tsurani settled around Yabon after the Riftwar, a large chunk of the Emerald Queen's army likely settled around Krondor after the Serpentwar, and a large number of Keshians around Crydee after the Chaoswar.

I think over the long term, the population effects of these migration patterns probably did spread out. The general pattern of migration in the Kingdom seems to be people heading out further west, so chances are there probably were other people who got sick of living in the Eastern Realm for whatever reason who decided to fuck off out west.

So while it would seem like the Kingdom's overall population should be on a decline, those migration waves were probably enough to at least keep at an overall static level. This is oddly true to life, because migration really is the thing keeping the population of most developed countries rising.

The thing with that is that if you take a broader view of that, it probably would require that the Eastern Realm to have a higher birth rate. It is known that the East traditionally does have a higher population than the Western Realm. There isn't really enough canonical evidence to say whether or not this is still true in the period the Riftwar cycle takes place in, but it probably was true in the period just before it.

Beyond just raw imperial ambition, this actually could have been a factor in why the Kingdom expanded westward to begin with. There could have been a view that the extra population would eventually need somewhere else to live, even though the East was still extremely empty. Having to massively increase the size of the country seems like an excessive move for that, but it could be explained by being a cultural hangover of a country that was initially limited to one island.

My gut feeling is that while there probably was a point in time when the population of the Eastern Realm was rapidly increasing, that probably wasn't as much the case once the Riftwar cycle started. Some of that was probably just because a huge chunk of the population had already moved westward, but I think it would have been changed cultural concerns, too. While in the period before the expansion westward, the implicit cultural concern would have been making sure there was enough people to defend the country if the Keshians invaded, afterwards that didn't matter because the vast size of the Kingdom and the ongoing issues in the Keshian Confederacy was the defense.

Still, the core thing that started this--how few children people on Midkemia seem to have--is something I wonder if Feist ever actively thought about when he was writing the books. I get the impression he was mostly trying to write about a country that was, on the whole, the nicest possible country you could live in in this sort of setting, and the way he did that was to carry a lot of modern/then-modern American cultural and legal norms over to the Kingdom--they have the fantasy versions of the First and Thirteenth amendments at the very least, for example.

The thing with this though is that this sorta requires the Kingdom to have gone through a very different cultural evolution. Because the birth rate resembles a modern industrialised country's (or at least attempts to), it means there was very little disease, very little war outside of the occasional blowout, and less religious pressure to go forth and multiply. Because there were elements of what we'd recognise to be democratic freedoms but apparently no real civil rights movement outside of that for even further reforms, there probably was an almost unnaturally complacent population Kingdom-wide.

Stuff like this really does make me wonder how much of this Feist planned outside of the overall main plot of the cycle and how much of it really did just work out that way. I'd like to think most of it was planned to be picked up on at least in passing, however I suspect that once you get out of the broad strokes of the story arc, it probably is mostly just how things turned out with the series.

[mythicalninjas]

Bloody Season

Donnie and Mikey X fem!Reader.

This is a serie of three chapters about Donnie explaining to his brothers about menstruation. His such knowledge was given by reader through a doubt he had during her period, and from deep researches.

Warning: SFW, blood mention.

Cramps, loss of appetite, lack of good humor, a heat bag being held against your lower abdomen to assuage the anguish, feeling that affliction hot liquid between your legs, "weak stomach", menstrual diarrhea; and also the pre syntoms: sore breasts, desire of sweets; should I continue?

It's frightering of how both body and mind change during the bloody days.

"I don't-".

"You need..." Donnie said softly while hold a sandwish to you.

"Donnie, I... I'm not hungry".

"You haven't eaten yet, Y/N".

"But-" You sighed "Okay..." You whispered, groaning while make effort to sit. You are curently in the Lair on a sofa of the main space. With shaky hands, you pick the delicious looking sandwish and spend a few seconds staring at it, forcing your stomach groan by hungry—which never has come. Being vulnerable and painful throughout those days of the week is something we could only get used a while after; it seems we never get used of it, like it is the first time every month we go through.

All your stomach does is protest to not receive the food, but you have to. Or you would get weaker than before. You bite, chew and swallow; again. Bite, chew and swallow; slow moves.

"Enough" you murmmured, handing the half-eaten sandwish towards the purple clad humanoid mutant turtle, who was only watching you all the time "I don't want it anymore". Donatello could see the discomfort in your eyes "It's okay. At least you have eaten something and this is what the matter" he assured, taking the sandwish and placing his massive hand on your shoulder and pushing you down carefully, making you laying down again. "Rest. If you need something, call me".

You share a weak smile as he walks away. Donatello is the only one besides April who understand perfectly your mensal unconfortable situation; the others know as well but not as much as their smart brother.

"Hey, Don. How's Y/N?" Mikey asked as soon Donnie enters the kitchen area.

"She is okay. Just tired" he explains "Not hungry as normal".

Mikey hummed in confirmation, nodding. Even being difficult to get exactly what is happening to you, Mikey has a deep respect for you; giving you space, silence, sharing support. Because he knew what is going on, but he doesn't know the why of it.

He wants to ask, but a feeling of shame prevents him to do it.

"Don bro..." he called.

"Hum?" Donnie answered while take a simp of coffee with milk and holding a piece of bread with Nutella generously spread over it.

"I know that Y/N suffers by... uh... menstrual season or whatever. But can you explain me why does she has it every month?".

Donnie almost choke with his coffee, wide eyes right at his younger curious brother. Menstruation is kind of thing that just women have, and it might be a delicated subject to be debated about, mainly among men.

"Well, I will explain. But I'll say what Y/N has told me, okay? I'm not an expert on it".

Mikey nodded, taking a seat as prepares himself for the "class". Donnie did as well, picking another free chair and sitting on the other side of the table, right in front of Mikey and signing with his finger for his young brother to lean closer.

"Okay, imagine..." Donnie starts, whispering near to his brother's face "Imagine you have an organ within you, lower in your abdomen". Mikey looked down at his plastron with a question expression "This organ is called uterus, and it was made to create, carry, and support a child" Mikey looked up at Donnie, with many facial expressions traveling over his cute face "Okay so, period is a woman body's way of releasing tissue that it no longer needs. Every month, the feminine body prepares for pregnancy. The lining of the uterus gets thicker as preparation for nurturing a fertilized egg. An egg is released and is ready to be fertilized and settle in the lining of your uterus. When the fertilization does not happen, the uterus eliminates all its stuff it had done. This is why women bleeds in this season" he finished, taking a bite of the bread with Nutella.

Mikey did not say a word, just stared at his brother's eyes.

Donnie tilted his head, waiting for Mikey comment.

"I didn't get it yet" Mikey said quietly.

Donnie groaned "What did you not understand?".

"How a woman can create a child alone?"

"Mikey!"

"Sorry! I know women don't make children alone. There are a fucking rush of questions running in my head now".

Donnie shook his head, biting another piece of his food. He doesn't blame Mikey at all, he knew that he's new into this kind of conversation.

"Okay, well..." the genius continued, calmly "Women are the only one who contain this organ-".

"This is what I was already aware." Mikey said.

"Good. So, the period is kind of "punishment" for women for not get pregnant" the nerdy summed up.

"Really?".

"Yeah".

"That's awful".

"Indeed''.

''But... Why they feel pain? Like, not just cramps, but others stuff".

"What they feel is similar—or same—to pregnancy symptoms. Actually it depends from each woman. For example, Y/N" he points at you "She feels weak, she has loss of appetite, cramps, etc. There are days that she feels okay during her period, but during others days, it looks like she couldn't even leave bed''.

Mikey glanced at you with sad eyes "Poor Y/N. And thinking that she has to go through it every month. I guess I wouldn't handle with it tho".

Donnie shrugged in agreement.

The both turtles spent a few minutes observing you sleeping, their minds—Mikey mostly—lost in a sea of imagines and questions. They want to ask you more about period, but they are deel timid for it. It is weird when men ask women about menstrual cycle, but it could be important to know what happens to women body during this time.

"So, when Y/N will get pregnant to not feel those stuff?"

"Excuse m-!"

They jumped as you aproach to the kitchen area, a tired face and messy hair difining your current mood "Hey, guys..." You greeted, walking towards the fridge.

"Hey, Y/N" Donnie smiled "W-Why did you get up? You had to have called me to reach you something".

"No problem, Donnie" you said with a hoarse voice "I have to make my body move a bit. I was too motionless. I'm okay" You take a simp of water, walking back to the coach.

"Hey, Y/N. Can I ask you something?" Mikey's question makes Donnie feel shivers running down his spine. The genius immediately grabs Mikey's arm to pull him closer and threatened quietly "Don't you dare ask that!".

"Sure. What ya wanna ask?" Noticing their sudden change of behavior, you quirked a brow edge "Is everything okay?".

"Yes!" Mikey responded quickly, and Donnie shares a dork smile.

You shruged, heading back to the couch. You knew they're hidding something, but you're not expecting what is coming soon with Mikey's curiosity.

[clown-moss]

It is 6 AM and I can't sleep therefore I'm going to ramble about whatever stuff crosses my mind.

I don't understand childish games like "Inny Minny Moe" or stuff along that variation, you can easily manipulate the odds and boot out the person you don't like with a simple change of a number, in no shape or form is it fair so why use it as a way to be decisive? I suppose it is a children's game but it still does not make a blink of sense to me decisive and mathematical wise, there's nothing random about it! It's a pattern!

Same with Rock Paper Scissors, how do paper beat rock? A rock could tear up a piece of paper without strain, scissors beats paper makes sense and rock beating scissors makes only a small bit of sense in different forms. Example, if the scissors are strong like kitchen scissor for example a rock wouldn't be able to put a dent in it, if the scissors were weak like hair scissors it was be easy for a rock to break it. The same goes for rock, if the rock was big and study it'd ruin both types of scissors, if the rock was small and fragile it wouldn't break any kind of scissors. Clearly it makes little sense with some thinking, also a friend of mine said that he understands why everybody thinks I'm Autistic after bringing up this argument.

Speaking of which, as a child I'd always walk on either my heels or my toes and I've just been informed recently that this is a sign of autism? How? Is it a common thing children with autism at a young age do? I'm genuinely curious about that and I'd love to know more! Also clothes. Just clothes. Some clothes feel so gross and weird and I do not understand why some humans would ever wear it! If it looks nice I'll wear it even if it has that gross feeling to it but I'll despise every second of it.

I am very particular about how I dress and such, it's very important to me to at least look somewhat presentable while also casual, it's more of a personal flaw thing but I don't mind it. While we're talking about my clothing why do you people hate my shoes so much? They're very comfortable and I don't have to tie shoelaces! Not that I don't know how to tie them I just hate tying them in general, they make me feel as if I'm walking on a cloud and despite knowing the materials of why it feels like this I still enjoy it none the less.

Also horror movies or just movies in general, I understand some people love watching stuff like that with all the moving, colours and whatnots but I just do not care for it, I'd rather read a book and besides, I can't sit still a watch a movie fully anyways. While we're on books an acquaintance of mine lended me their copy of "warrior cats" and I enjoyed it thoroughly. Back on the topic of movies, I do not understand the infatuation with celebaries. To me none of them look romantically or sexually appealing, it might just be my inner demisexual speaking but I just don't understand it nor could I care for it.

Also with sexually appealing, apparently some of you humans find Pokemon sexually appealing? If so please go die in a ditch, I will not be kind with it, if you SA a fellow friend of mine expect me to be at your door with a dented metal bat. Why is it dented? Nobody knows. On the topic of Pokemon, who thought of Pokemon battles!? Who just decided one day while waking up "I'm going to make creatures fight to the death for money and fame"!? It's just illogical! But that's all for another post I suppose.

Also with planets and such, beautiful things but I'm talking about horoscopes and such. How does the day of birth and the way the stars align change and sculpt your entire life? Are humans really that predictable that were able to predict their behaviours in such a way that it's covered by a guise of insane Tumblr girls? It's fascinating!

I am now tired and I will sleep now, farewell and may we meet again through another one of my posts!

-Mod N

[liptonsbabe]

Chains of a family [B.W]

Bill Weasley x Grant! Reader

Chapter 1, Chapter 2

Summary: Molly knows about the reader’s relatives and she’s not so sure to put her trust in a girl that had just betrayed her own family

Word count: 1.9K

Warnings: Swearing

A/N: Hi! i’m so happy that you guys liked this thing! thank you so much for your support and, again, if you want to keep reading this let me know. Same note as ever, english not my mother language, so tell me if something’s is wrong.

Chapter 2: Not your family

The next morning turned out to be quieter than you imagined.

You slowly got out of bed and looked at everything around you noticing how quaint Bill's old room was. The ceiling was lined with grainy wallpaper with stacks of photographs of Quidditch players hanging from the reeds that moved from side to side, simulating the playing field; the right side of the room had a huge hole behind the small stool that tried to hide it, and from that hole a small garden gnome was sleeping peacefully with a small piece of cloth on top of his head. You stood up, walking towards the huge window that gave you a beautiful view of the Weasley's garden that at that moment was covered by a thin layer of drizzle that had fallen during the night.

Molly's fruit trees gleamed under the faint rays of the sun and you saw how a doxy from between the leaves poisoned Mrs. Weasley's apples, causing them to fall from the tree branches in a thick black mass with a foul smell coming out of it. You shook your head, excited to witness a very different way to wake up.

Even though several minutes have passed since you woke up, the house continued to remain in a strange silence that made you think that the family had decided to leave the burrow with the intention of buying more supplies or something like that. You knew that Bill wasn’t at home precisely for his obligations within the Order, so you didn’t worry about looking for him around the room, so you decided that a better option was going down to the dining room and know what was happening.

As you went down the spiral staircase, you cursed in a whisper when you forgot to put on your slippers before leaving the bedroom cause the floor was so cold that you slipped a couple of times. Back in the days, when you were still welcome in your parents' house, you had many servants who did all the things for you - putting on your shoes as soon as you woke up was one of those things - but now that your life had changed so much, you assumed that you would have to adapt and start taking care of your own needs.

Your curious eyes roamed the walls covered in family photos that caused a big warmth in your chest. In each of those photographs, all of Molly's children appeared along with their father, smiling for the camera and sending effusive greetings. A pic was hanging at the fireplace were Molly and Arthur were carrying a small white bundle crying his lungs out. You assumed it was Bill as his parents seemed too young back then and even as a small baby, you could recognize those tantrum features anywhere.

A giggle escaped your lips when you noticed a funny sequence from that same photo in which, even with Bill crying in his mother's arms, his father tried to carry him for a moment to calm him down, however the baby's cries didn’t stop. The baby was so annoyed that he ended throwing up  the milk ration that he must have had before the photo session on his father's neat shirt.

You laughed because you knew that William's impertinence was something he had carried with him for several years now.

"Bill hates those photos." You jumped in your place scared to see Molly standing behind you. Your cheeks turned red “He says that it’s embarassing but i think that’s nonsense. He was an adorable baby”

"he was," you answered, looking anywhere but into Molly's shrewd eyes. "but I guess displaying them in the fireplace isn’t the right thing to do."

“Is it not?

"No, they should be at the front door where everyone can see them”

Molly giggled as you watched the sequence of photos over and over again. A silence settled between you, but surprisingly it was not an awkward silence, but one that was allowing you to create a bond that neither of you expected. Mrs. Weaslsey brought up a rag, wiping it around the corners of the photo from the dust.

"Arthur and I had to save up for months to take those pictures," she mentioned wistfully, "we just had Bill and it seemed like a good idea to welcome him into our family with a gesture like that. Arthur was new in the ministry and wasn't earning too much, but we had that quirk and decided we could afford to skip certain things to pay for the pictures. It cost us ten galleons and it still took us four months to gather them”

“Oh” You didn't know what to say, but you just kept looking at the photograph feeling a bit uncomfortable. You never had those problems at home because your family was insanelly rich thanks to the inheritance in life that your grandfather Tim had left to his son and later to his grandchildren. Even the descendants of your grandfather's servants came to work in your house, reason enough for you and your siblings to grow up with no sense of responsibility other than your own wishes. Molly sighed remembering those times when life seemed to be easier.

"So when Bill asked me to remove it from the fireplace, I refused. He doesn't know how hard it was to raise that money, but I think he has nothing to be ashamed of, he was too adorable!

"I don't doubt it for a second, Mrs. Weasley."

"You can call me Molly," she said, walking back to the kitchen where you continued watching the way the pans moved back and forth preparing breakfast. You were not very good at cooking - in fact, you had never cooked before- however, that didn’t stop you from offering your help. So you took a pan, placed it on the stove, and decided that you would find a way to make a good mountain of strawberry-filled pancakes just like your dear nanny did. Molly observed you carefully. "I think that now that you are living with us it is appropriate to have a more cordial treatment.My son told me a lot about you”

“Just the good things, i hope”

“Kind of” You stopped mixing ingredients to look at her carefully” He told us a bunch of marvelous things about you and how you two met. Actually, what worries me the most is what he didn’t tell us”

And there was the recrimination you were waiting for. You were aware that it had to arrive sooner or later, however, you would have been grateful that it did it when Bill were by your side to give you the opportunity to defend yourself properly. You cleared your throat uncomfortably, knowing that what Molly needed to hear from your own lips was which family you came from. You continued your task with the pancakes, turning out as bad as you expected.

"I'm sorry it turned out this way, Mrs. Weasley."

"Molly," he corrected.

"Molly" you smiled slowly "But believe me when I tell you that it was me who asked William not to mention anything about my last name or where I come from. I know that in this case, with the war above our heads, it is necessary to be certain of the people who enter your family and I apologize for that, it's just ... Bill is very important to me” Molly's eyes narrowed “Since we met ... I have found a home in him and well, all that feels when someone is in love. "Mrs. Weasley shook her head, understanding the feeling." I have experienced the rejection before. When people know that Tom Riddle is my family ... they run away in fear, curse my family and even walk away from us, as if sharing a blood bond makes us as evil as he is.

“And it’s not like that?” Molly asked with a hand on her neck. She didn’t want to be like the others and judge you without knowing the full story, just as she had promised Bill the night before that she would, but it was so difficult not to remember the death of his brothers by Voldemort’s hands and to pretend nothing had happened in the past. You sighed because the eggs you cracked on the bowl got mixed with their own shell “ I've heard of the Grants before, they're all Death Eaters, including your siblings!”

“It is difficult to have to choose a side  when you don’t have your own convictions”

"And you have it?"

You looked at Molly in pain. Of course you expected those reactions from Bill's mother, she was within her right to be upset that her oldest son never told her that he was in a relationship with a girl who seemed to have the most fucking powerful and evil wizard in the world as a great-uncle. No, Molly wasn't mad, she was deadly angry, she felt like she was bursting!

Her hands became fists and without knowing how, you found yourself between the wall and Molly's big arms from one second to the other. The pancake batter was forgotten, as was the woman's promise to treat her son's girlfriend in a good way.

"How is it possible ..." Molly questioned in an agitated voice, pressing your arms against the wall, "... that a single deer leaves the nature of its own herd?" How can you ensure that one rotten apple even in a gold container doesn’t rot the others?”Your breath caught at the questions of the woman in front of you. Once again, you were aware that your presence wouldn’t be good news to them, but at least you hoped they understood your motives before judging you “Explain to me, (Y/ N) Grant, when have you seen a pig away from his equals?”

Your words caught in your throat at Molly's fierce question. Bill had talked a lot about the temper of his mother. Even if she could be really grumpy at times, she was in general a very sweet, pleasant and maternal woman with everyone; however, you didn’t fit into that generality because it seemed that the woman was determined to kill you with her own hands.

"If my presence bothers you so much, then you shouldn't have let Bill and I to stay here."

“He's my son! All I want for him is to be happy, and that's why I don't understand what he managed to see in you”

"Maybe the same thing you saw in your husband." Molly's lips twitched in anger, but you didn't stop. You hoped that she would at least understand what your words meant, because that would make it easier for both of you to try at least get along better, even if Molly seemed not to want to do it under any circumstances. How is it that this haughty little girl dared to compare herself with her dear and wonderful husband? "I'm sorry, but I don't think this conversation is going to take us anywhere."

"If someone betrays his own family ..." Molly stopped you before you walked out the front door. The others got down the stairs, seeing the scandal formed in the kitchen “The rest of us can't expect too much, can we?

Your eyes blured.

[asphodel-night-adder]

You literally advocate for killing human beings while they're not fully conscious or able to defend themselves. Do you actually comprehend how awful that is? You're advocating for eugenics and literal murder. That logic applies not only to babies but to people in comas, elderly people, handicapped people. They are all people and deserve to be treated as such. Maybe you don't know but it is possible to care about both mother and child rather than one over the other.

Get off the internet and live life and actually talk to people who have experienced these horrible things.

... y'know I've spent the entire week thinking of this anon and thinking of how I'm going to respond such an idiotic, sexist, piece of shit this ask is.

Anon, you do not fucking know me.

First, you claim that I'm advocating for eugenics. Second, you act like I don't think that the elderly, disabled, and people in comas don't deserve to live. And worst of all, you fucking assumed that I myself don't have personal experience with abortion.

I'm sorry that abortion is an uncomfortable subject for you to understand. I'm sorry you aren't able to have compassion for women who have to have an abortion. I'm so very sorry that you pick and choose when the child is able to have a say in what goes in their lives. I'm extremely sorry that youd rather have your actually brain dead loved one be forced to use a machine to keep them alive because accepting that they are actually gone is too much for you to handle.

Abortion is a difficult decision that most women wouldn't want to make for themselves. Yes, many women hate going through it, I've met those women and their struggles and hardships are often unheard of by pro-choice people because they can't handle the fact that abortion isn't actually an empowering experience and is in fact really traumatizing. But like, pro-life people don't get it either. Most of them don't give two fucks (yeah I'm fucking generalizing, most of y'all don't care what happens to the women or child, y'all just can't handle that your abstinence-only religion riddled sex Ed backfired on this fucking country, and hate seeing a woman taking matters into her own hands).

Pro-life people all talk a big game about "oh think of the disabled kids, won't somebody please think of the disabled kids???" Maybe when the fucking doctors stop acting like a child that gets diagnosed w/ autism is the end of the fucking world. So many people get children hoping that they end up "normal", and get so unreasonably devastated when they aren't. But like, children are hard work and disabled children are harder. Many parents are alone when dealing with their disabled children, some facing the reality that their children is never going to be independent. It's expensive and many people often act like there's no value to these people.

It's wrong, it's horrible, it sickens me to my core, but like this is what happens when society severely undervalues neurodivergent people. You really honestly think a women who's feels like abortion is the only way for her, has a support network that can help raise her disabled child? I'm sorry, but no she often doesn't.

Adoption needs to be talked about more, because you as a birth mother can choose your parents. But like, most women don't know that and most pro-life say they want more people to give their babies up for adoption if they honestly can't take care of them, but irl, y'all shame and bully women who do. Many women often feel like adoption isn't an option and it's either take care of a child you never wanted and will grow to resent the child, or go through a very painful and isolating surgery.

You wanna see abortion rates got down? Promote actual sex education. It's the only fucking way. Talk about birth control, contraceptives, adoption options, government services to poor parents, single mom support groups, and so much more.

But nah, y'all just want to shame women.

Go fuck yourself anon

[vvatchword]

Kinda feeling strange about big tentpole media, including TMNT. I think I'm going to end up leaving TMNT. Just don't know how yet.

This feeling originated from my general grumpiness about capitalism in general and my hatred of the stream of remakes coming out of big-budget entertainment. Which is weird, really, considering i don't watch shows or movies much. Not sure which came first, the distrust of establishment and disgust at unfettered consumerism, or my disdain of milquetoastery.

Problem one: I'm a completionist. I long to understand everything possible about the things i love. It's fucking compulsory. I've tried not to care, but soon i find myself researching and reading and then I'm gone for months. I love context. It's the second-biggest reason i can't get into Marvel or DC--because the histories are too vast.

That is when i discover that everything is shit and it's shit all the way down--and not the good shit that entertains, either. I also start to see how I'm being manipulated, which i resent. Manipulate me to forget I'm part of the world? Yes! Manipulate me to buy garbage? Fuck off. Manufacture the most carefully bland piece of media to draw in the most people possible, removing nuance for the sake of overseas markets? Fuck off, but twice.

Problem Two: i have a deep aversion to boardroom art. it's the same reason i don't trust corporate Twitter or upper management: separation from real human behavior, needs, and complexity, in a bid to make money. Not to have fun, not to explore concepts, not to understand others or themselves better, just: this is for money's sake. What is human is anathema, messy, and frightening, and such groups/people generally irritate me by the levels they're willing to put between themselves and a genuine human experience.

It's been really hard for me to get back into the IDW run of TMNT because i can so easily see all the tentpole IP criteria and the boardroom decisions. The first-arc plot (up to the final battle between Shredder and, uh, everybody else) is chock-full of callbacks and nostalgia-bait. So chock-full, in fact, that there isn't room for anything else. There's no real human feeling, few long-term transformations that could disrupt the status quo (and those that do occur are essentially meaningless when it comes to character transformation), and worst of all, milquetoastery. Because we don't dare offend anybody in any way at all. (And lest you read this the wrong way: I'm not talking about progressive representation. I'm talking about an IDW series where Leonardo is A Bad Guy but does very little that is Truly Bad, because if he did Real Crime he couldn't come back to the team and reset everything Back to Normal.)

Problem Three: it just reminds me that I've been longing for a very specific kind of TMNT since childhood, and that it's never, ever, ever going to happen. What i wanted was TMNT that grew up with me--except with camp and violence and sex and brokenness and vulnerability and fuckups and Big Angst. But TMNT only had one chance to be that way, and that chance is long gone. Now it's both not allowed to die and not allowed to change. It's been overtaken by a kids' media conglomerate and it will never be for adults again and there will be no long-form evolution because long-form entertainment with stakes is so difficult and risky to do. And since it's easy money, why chance the golden goose?

Problem Four: The quality and output of TMNT material has improved, but the material is so safe that i can't begin to care.

What do i like about TMNT canon? Vanishingly little. Mirage-era TMNT and most films are objectively 99% garbage. The TV shows tend to be good, 1987 aside, but they're also for children, with all the awkward bits that make children's media unpalatable. IDW TMNT is just boring. And if i had to make a choice between garbage and boring, I'd pick garbage every time.

Garbage is actually pretty fun because at least it makes you feel something; at least it's messy, and there's something real and human and confident there, and it's fun to try and figure out what everyone was trying to do and what inspired them. At least someone is standing for something, even if that something is completely misplaced. I still remember the failed joke comic where Raphael runs into aliens, and the one where the boys all become home appliances, and Raphael turning into a dinosaur. I barely remember anything out of IDW. It just kind of exists.

Problem Five: All of this said, i realized that the problem lay with me. Plenty of people like all the stuff i despise. So, since this is all my problem, i decided to interpret myself.

I thought about my relationship with Star Wars since it's a touchstone. In high school, I read tons of Extended Universe novels, owned a book about Star Wars tech with every piece lovingly drawn out in technical detail, and watched the re-releases of the original films in theaters. I was deeply in love with the universe and how it could unfold in complicated glory--a lot of it messy and broken.

And then the prequels happened, and i felt oddly betrayed--surely not the first instance of nostalgia-baiting, but the first time i realized my loves could be manipulated by people who wanted my pocket change. Then i got a little older and i tried to return to the Star Wars EU only to realize that the books were not well written at all, actually. Eventually i realized that i had created an entire meaning for Star Wars that stood completely separate from what Star Wars really was, and it only lived in one place: me.

Every now and then the Star Wars love in me wakes up and kicks--The Mandalorian and Star Wars: Fallen Order most notably stirred something up--where suddenly i love it completely with all my being and i long desperately for a version of it that could only exist for one specific time in my life. It's incredibly painful. Probably why i feel like i have to leave it completely.

I just can't enjoy Star Wars, even when i try to separate only the stuff i like. I realized that just because i liked the OG trilogy, I don't need to be a fan of the whole thing. Except apparently when i leave fandom, i gotta leave everything behind, including the material i do like.

I suspect TMNT will be the same way. As will BioShock, for which I'm feeling similarly, i just now realized. For that matter, i gave up on The Legend of Zelda at Twilight Princess.

Problem Six: My biggest problem is perfectionism. I'm either all in or all out. It's either completely worth it or must fuck right off. And that's just not how life works. I may gravitate to certain fiction, but it wasn't technically made for me, and it's presumptuous for me to expect any fiction to scratch all of my unique itches. A lot of different people can go to different fiction for different reasons, including the og creators of the og works themselves.

I don't really know what to do about this. I don't actually like being a huge snob, but i also seem incapable of controlling what's fun to me. Sometimes i think that what i should do is try and write the fiction i want to see, but I'm such a slow worker...

I think I'll leave TMNT somehow. I actually thought about selling my comic book collection, which is saying quite a lot--it's nearly complete, IDW covers aside. Because if the only version i love is something inside of me, why worry about canon at all? Why worry about what it contains at any point? Why not just delve into private worlds?