#it might not even make sense but

[larcenywrites]

It’s so interesting because I was just talking about this with my friends last week, and to finally see it here, in a way that I knew I eventually would, is still surreal. We were wondering if we’d already seen AI generated texts and writings like this that might have felt a bit off or bland, but something that could’ve been brushed off as a new writer or perhaps someone who’s writing is just Like That or they just weren’t feeling it when they wrote it. I feel like to write something is a little harder than something so visual like paintings and photographs, and if we’re lucky it’ll have a couple more years to look as fleshed out and/or real. But it sucks to think about it, nonetheless, because I can understand the temptation to want to use AI to draw your OC or write a fic, because maybe a person isn’t “good” at drawing and/or writing, or they aren’t “creative enough”, and this way they can avoid learning how to do something that takes time and instead can do it NOW within MINUTES rather than paying someone or asking someone and waiting HOURS or DAYS, perhaps even weeks or months, and can play around with any modifications as it comes in and ensure they are getting exactly what they want rather than relying on someone else to properly interpret their wants! But… that’s not the point, and a lot of the people doing this don’t seem to understand that the point isn’t pumping out content just to have something pretty to look at, or make a quick little profit off of the mangled accumulation of humanity’s passions that the AI sifts through, because they don’t do this work themselves and have no foresight as to what doors this opens. They don’t care that people do this (unpaid or paid) because they simply have a love for doing art, they want to pour all of their love into what they do, they want to interact with the likeminded people that do this same work AND the ones that consume the content. That’s what makes a work of art a work of art! Because in a way, it wasn’t just one human that created it, but the draws of passions and interests and support and idolizations of the community(ies) surrounding it. That’s what makes it both human and impressive and awesome, even if it’s something you personally don’t enjoy!

It’s honestly unfortunate that these technologies are being used for this, because I genuinely feel like these incredibly smart AI can be such a good thing that can improve a lot of of the good aspects of humanity, the workplace, even the environment if we do it right. But… a good portion of this isn’t being done right, or taught right, and because of this there’s so much disinformation and well-deserved fear being placed around it. I think it can become a good supplement to human creation— perhaps to help out a severely understaffed team at times or ease an overinflated budget in some cases— but to be able to override that, and simply attempt to take the place of human passion and creativity is disturbing. Not because it succeeds in doing it pretty well- perfectly to the untrained eye- but because so many people are okay with letting it happen. With teaching it how to overtake us this way. All because a few people thinks it’s cool to teach a rock how to paint (and honestly, yes, it is fun and impressive to experience its process), and all because a few people want that instant gratification and ignore the human passion for creation, the want to interact with those that create and consume, as well as ignoring the many jobs that this will take. It’s already hard enough for people who do any type of art FOR FREE to get exposure and requests and whatever. It sucks because I’m not afraid of AI and these technologies, and I don’t want people to be afraid of them because I believe that ignoring it completely could set us back even further! But I can’t come up with an argument to ease this fear when suddenly we can create perfect headshots out of thin air, sometimes of people that don’t even exist, and it was done for cheap or even free by a computer within less than a day, and with little to no effort other than some typing and coding and perhaps a little photoshop and with very little energy exerted. It is impressive, but not because it’s human. Because it’s a rock. With no feelings or thoughts or even hands. Until you look closer and realize, if course, that, because it has no thoughts, it had to learn and take from humans and their love and creativity. Because for some reason, of all the artificial shit we already have right now, these people think humanity should now be artificial. How long before the next movie is completely AI generated and doesn’t even feel like it? The next New York Times Best Sellers? Even those of us that do this for free, because we simply love to create these worlds that we’re building with the creators we’ve always followed and with those that simply follow us won’t be safe, I’m afraid. You can’t replace that genuine interaction with the artist, or chime in on the inspiration/creation process, world build with your followers, and see your love and passion in the end result that you had fun creating, and feel proud and loved when others feel it too! …right? I’m not sure anymore. We work with this stuff all the time, and report back on how to make it better, smarter, how to make it feel more human. And it’s succeeding, but is it succeeding in the right ways that we wanted it to?

Saw my first post with someone admitting they used chatGPT to ‘write a fic’ which they then shared here on tumblr and on Ao3.

To be clear, using AI to churn out a piece of fiction is not writing.

Using a bot (possibly one that was trained using a scrape of Ao3, that is to say, the theft of work from every writer who has posted their work on Ao3) is NOT WRITING.

It is theft. It isn’t creation. It’s a regurgitation of the consumed collective work and effort and heart and time of every writer who has shared their work on Ao3.

‘I’m not a good writer’ is no excuse.

Want to be a writer? Put in the time everyone else does to practice.

Don’t feel confident in your work? Open yourself up to the same vulnerability and risk that the rest of us do.

You don’t get to use a fucking bot to vomit out an approximation of a story and pretend you’ve got skin in the game.

The sad thing? This bot-assembled fic wasn’t bad. It was bland, but it had internal logic, some passing context to character and canon. It wasn’t like those early AI art pieces that had surreal compositions and extra fingers. It wasn’t immediately obvious it was made by a bot.

In this instance the person who posted it admitted they had used a bot. Which, actually, I have some respect for. But it probably isn’t the first and it won’t be the last.

I don’t know that there’s a solution to this, but it is both hurting my heart and enraging me.

[mochasucculent]

Was looking at refs and since Viktor has two different leg braces I was wondering, do we think he wears them simultaneously?? The refs don't perfectly line up perspective-wise so it's hard to tell but parts of the one he wears during the Hexcore scenes look like they could maybe line up with the brace that he wears over his clothes, but also some parts really don't and look like they'd be super uncomfy. Also HOW does he take these on and off. Experts weigh in

[soupinaboot]

In my opinion, Bruce should be above average height or at least average. But since he surrounds himself with demi-gods, aliens, meta humans, etc, he's just dwarfed next to them. Like maybe about 6'1 or 6'2, but that's NOTHING compared to Diana '7'3 feet tall' Prince. Or Clark '6'9' Kent.

All the tabloids claim he has to be at least 5 feet tall because the only photos they can get of him are when he's next to his giant ass friends.

It is also my personal headcannon that all the robins stay shorter than him, except Jason, who should be at least 4 inches taller.

[kr-starz]

Sick and TIRED of people claiming Ekko loved Alternate Universe Powder and not main universe Jinx. Throughout the series Ekko has continuously proven that he cares for Jinx dearly, through both canon actions and deleted scenes we know that Ekko cares deeply for Jinx.

Within the AU we're able to see an emotionally available Powder who was able to have a stable support system alongside a flourishing relationship. Which shows that Powder, Jinx, is fully able to be a good person. A normal human girl. Ekko is finally able to see this, that Powder is only so happy because she's lived so peacefully. He's always had a crush on her, it's lingering and it's never gone away. During the bridge scene, and Jinx's debut, we notice that Ekko freezes up both times when seeing jinx face to face. That she's able to draw out strong and violent reactions out of him that aren't exactly rational.

Usually people aren't able to do that to him, he's confrontational and stern because he's the Firelight leader, but we notice that most all of his decisions so far have been well thought out and responsible. In s1e4 we see him look at his stopwatch, see he has little time left before their crystals break, and he STILL goes to pursue Jinx. This is probably because he still harnesses strong feelings of hate towards Jinx, shock and frustration overwhelm him. Because it's Jinx who's done this, one of Silco's goons, but most importantly his childhood friend who's become so twisted. Scar is forced to grab Ekko and stop him before he goes too far, which shows off that Jinx does cause an especially strong emotional response for multiple reasons.

But the bridge scene shows that Ekko still does see the girls he's loved inside of Jinx. He hits her twice, neither time's does he get a good look at her face. But as he's winding up to hit her a third time, he pauses, he looks at her desperate face and he see's nothing more but an innocent girl. Which is why he stops, he still bears affection for her, clearly. The rest of the bridge scene is intimate enough but if I do have to mention anything, people who don't bear feelings for each other don't smirk at the other person like that.

When Ekko finds himself in the AU he's able to see Jinx/Powder in her most healthy form, finding ways of mourning and coping considered healthy. He see's pieces of Jinx inside of this Powder, her potential and what she could be. That's not something you do with someone you don't bear affection for. You don't look at the seemingly perfect version of someone and say that there's something missing; something missing that only versions that have gone through hell have. Pieces of herself that can't be replaced. Ekko doesn't just love Jinx.

He loves her entirety, he loves her innovative mind able of creating the worst war weapons. He loves that she's able to push herself to limits that he couldn't dream of, because he loves her for who she is. In both universes, what we notice is that they're both artists, they're both creators. Powder doesn't discard her love for gadgetry because she didn't experience atrocities, she's still unbelievably smart, being able to help Ekko create the anomaly. Being able to follow along while not knowing anything beforehand.

Jinx is able to crack hex tech with nothing more than Viktor's notes and some tinkering, this shows that no matter what universe, Jinx/Powder is an unbelievably talented and smart girl who could do so much.

Ekko is able to recognize that with Jinx's Genius it comes madness, and he simply would rather have her be both rather than an assistant. Not saying that he wouldn't love Alt Powder, I'm just saying that Arcane Ekko wouldn't be nearly as happy with her rather than Jinx. Because with Jinx comes crazy ideas and a leadership that matches his. That's the Jinx he never fell out of love with.

Even in both of these characters, Jinx and Powder have never been different. In each universe, they never got to blossom yet they're one bud. Two sides of a coin who'd never know the other existed if not for "what if's"

Powder is what Jinx is if she was happy, soft and delicate, she still holds the potential to create extraordinary devices, yet she doesn't because she never had the need to.

Jinx is what Powder would become if she was put under tremendous stress and trauma, devoid of a support system she turns to her gadgetry and weaponry, while slowly losing the part of herself that could be soft.

They both exist in one person, and Ekko is able to see both of them, and give them what they need in order to bloom. He's able to give Jinx unconditional yet not unhealthy amounts of support, and he's able to give Powder the push to expressing herself through her inventions more harshly.

Ekko realizes that Jinx is still Powder, no matter how many times she changes her name. Us as the audience is able to realize that Jinx is still able to love for Powder, because we've seen her interact with Isha. Isha is similar to Powder which is healing for Jinx. When Jinx loses Isha, we can see that she never truly let go of Powder, that Powder was never different from Jinx. That they're simply a part of herself she never wanted to accept until she saw it from another perspective.

But Ekko doesn't know this, yet he still has continuous faith in her that she's capable of change. We see Ekko actively pursue Jinx in order for her not to kill herself, because he loves her. He cares for her deeply and he wants to redeem himself by simply being there, even if he's late. Because what Jinx has needed all along was an unconditional companion. Which is what Ekko can be.

Being the support that someone needs, unconditionally.

If that's not love then I don't know what is.

[teddybeartoji]

been thinking a lot abt fwb!gojo today.... this is his first time ever doing this kind of a thing btw. i do not think he sleeps around AT ALL. but with you, he just... you start off as very good friends but then it keeps escalating – you start sitting closer and closer, your thighs always touching as you lounge on the couch. his hands seem to always find your waist in public, your seem to be in his hair more and more. and the thing is... satoru isn't all that good at deciphering his own feelings. he isn't entirely sure what this is; the butterflies in his stomach whenever you laugh at his jokes, the warmth that spreads under his skin whenever he sees you bend over. it's weird. he doesn't know what to do.

so, when one night you inch closer with your hand on his thigh, he lets you. he welcomes you with open arms. you ask whether it's okay or not and he lets out a shaky yes, his cheeks burning with something new, his eyes low and heavy as he stares at your lips. you feel so good on top of him, your body flushes to his and he thinks about how perfect this is. how much he likes it. the night is like a wet dream for him, something he's always dreamed off but when you leave the bed and hop into the shower without giving him a kiss, he doesn't even know what the weight on his heart means. where it comes from. he doesn't ponder over it for too long though as you step outside the bathroom in a shirt way too big, his shirt. he watches you get dressed and hums when you joke about his bed hair. he thinks you look gorgeous. he doesn't ask for you to stay – if this is what you want, to leave without the desire to continue your adventures from the last night, then so be it. satoru wants you to be happy. you tell him it was good and that you'd like to, perhaps, do it again and he can taste you on his tongue when he says that he feels the same. satoru will take every crumb you'll give him with a smile on his face. he won't complain and he won't ask for more, not yet at least. for now, he'll be completely and utterly at your mercy, a lapdog for you to play with whenever you so desire to do. a selfless kind of love.

[petr1kov]

here's the scene i've mentioned before where nemesis and melinoë talk about hypnos, for those who wanted to see it!

[slavhew]

i may not show it but im

perpetually insane about them

[gros-chat-fait]

Fire Keepers --- Since this is the third one I've made for this cross-campaign theme, I guess it's officially a series. Commence the links! Blue Healers | Wind Walkers

[paragonraptors]

for science (because im curious)

if you have more than one worldstate, pick for the one you consider your "main"/"canon" worldstate or the one you plan to use first for da4! also feel free to lay out your reasoning in the tags gushing about your dragon age runs is accepted and encouraged here.

[dairyfairyy]

20 years isn't that old.

18 (and 1/2) is only two years less than 20. At eighteen, Two-bit lived in his laughs and jokes as the world around him deteriorated. The two kids he once babysat would be torn apart. He would say his goodbyes to one without knowing it, leaving the other dead inside.

17 is three years younger than 20. Dallas Winston and Steve Randle would have been in their last two years in high school. The two, instead of worrying about their futures, were forced to run, both taught how to keep their hands visible and keep their heads low when sirens passed by them on the street.

16 is four years younger than 20. Johnny Cade and Sodapop Curtis, the second youngest group in the gang. One dead in an attempt of being a hero, the other working to the bone to be the other pillar of support to help sustain a household. Sixteen is much closer to twenty, but still not far from ten.

14 is six years younger than 20. Ponyboy Curtis, not even fourteen for over two months, living through the unthinkable. Nearly burned alive, five people dead in less than a year, all but forcing him to live a nightmare.

20 isn't far off from 18. 18 isn't far off from 17. 17 isn't far off from 16. 16 isn't far off from 14. 14 isn't far off from 20.

Darrel Shaynne Curtis Jr. was 20 years old.

[douwatahima]

the theory that stede is writing his letter to ed on the back of the wanted poster here absolutely kills me because can you imagine seeing a poster with a drawing of your face made out to look much scarier than you actually are, with a list of your crimes, the reasons why people consider you a monster, underneath only to turn it over and find a lovingly handwritten note written by the only person who you felt ever really saw you that begins with the words "i love everything about you"

[mettywiththenotes]

I see some people asking "when are we going to get a Bakugou moment where he encourages Izuku??" But didn't he already have it?

I believe he was the one who started the whole "do your best" thing off before 422

[shalom-iamcominghome]

I've been doing a lot of reflection as of late, especially after this past class.

This past class was about the Torah and Tanakh in general, and the way the rabbi talked about the commandments (specifically the ten commandments) has made me really reflect on how I interpret them, specifically the fifth commandment, or honoring your mother and father.

This is a commandment I have wrestled with for a long time - in fact, it brought me away from g-d at multiple times. I was severely abused when I was incredibly young by my mother, and I used to feel insulted at the implication that I were to honor her while she got to live a better life. It was hypocritical, in my eyes.

But this rabbi surmised that this particular commandment was because parenthood is an act of creation, something that is like the g-d from which we come from. My realization is this: I don't think we're necessarily meant to take even these commandments literally.

I this particular commandment is more of a call to honor creation - creation is a gift, and like any gift, many people simply will not like it and will discard it. The person who abused me created me, but she did not honor creation. She didn't honor me, but I can still honor it.

I have started to honor creation much more. I'm too young, too unstable, not mature enough to be a father (though I fantasize about it), but I create all the time. I create relationships, I create with my hands through crochet. I create memories, I create my world. And I can honor who I am and where I came from that made me who I am. I've been learning one of the mother tongues of my family (Italian, since part of my family originates there) and it was judaism that inspired me to do this.

I don't think g-d wants me to honor my abuser. I think He wants me to remember the Holy action of creation. When I am a father, that act of creation will be Holy, and indeed, I am already joyful about the thought.

I have seen many people struggle with this particular commandment, but I think this perspective helps me personally. I don't think I ever have to forgive my abusers (plural), and I don't think I am commanded to simply because they happened to be family. I am commanded to recognize the holy, to elevate the mundane. In doing so, I will remember g-d. Through creation, I honor g-d and everything he has done for us, for me, and for our collective people.

[adrift-in-thyme]

Despite how obviously chaotic the other boys are I think that two things are actively disadvantaging and maybe even endangering Time rn

1) his worry for Twilight’s welfare and that of the others

2) his penchant for distancing himself from others.

He’s healed a lot from his adventures and the trauma of them thanks to time (heh) and Malon’s kindness, patience, and unconditional love. HOWEVER the things we endure remain with us even if they do not hurt quite so badly anymore (especially when they occur in such drastic ways during such formative years). Somewhere inside (perhaps not so deep now) is that terrified little boy who won’t allow himself to trust or love again. Who doesn’t want to get too close cause “nothing ever lasts”

He’s used to going it alone. He’s spent longer being solo than he has being married or teamed up with the other Links. His approach to tackling dungeons — whether chaotic or organized or somewhere in between — has always been the same.

Alone.

He’s the one who plummets down endless abyss.

He’s the one who bleeds and breaks and gets lost.

He’s the one who figures it out in the end.

And that’s okay. Because it’s lonely. It’s scary. But it’s only him who is in danger. And he can deal with that.

“You laugh because you know it’s true”

“You laugh because when it’s you who drags yourself home half-dead, it’s ok, it’s under control, but when it’s one of our boys…”

When it’s only him he doesn’t have to worry so much. He’s got a certain degree of control (real or imagined). And that is what he’s grappling for right now. Control to change a terrible fate he still sees looming. Control to keep his boys from suffering the way he has.

But now, with this last update, he realizes he doesn’t have it.

And while his expression here makes me laugh, it also saddens me. Four’s right and he knows it, he’s trying to resign himself to it.

Them remaining together — remaining with him, under his watchful eye — will end in their deaths at this point. It’s just not working.

He’s virtually powerless to keep them all safe. He’s the Hero of Time and he’s virtually powerless.

And that might just break him. Because the fear is still there. The fear that something will happen to one of his boys and he should’ve been there. He should’ve been there to stop it.

But he wasn’t.

Like he wasn’t there to protect the others from the Iron Knuckle

And that will consume him, weaken him. Until the Shadow can exploit it

Image credits @/linkeduniverse

[lesbians4armand]

once again i really do think armand’s morality and view of his own morality is summed up by “i tried to be good, am i no good?” because he KNOWS he’s not, but he so desperately wants to be good in any way he can be, so that he can be desired. and this in turn means he is deep in denial about any bad he has done other than the deep seated feeling that he is simply “bad” as a vague concept and not the sum of his actions. anyway who’s up thinking normal thoughts about characters.