#it's still fiction after all

[tea-cat-arts]

Shen Yuan getting transported into pidw isn't "the system punishing him for being a lazy internet hater," but instead representative of "step 1 of the creative process: getting so mad at something you decide to go write your own fucking book" in this essay I will

[fictionadventurer]

Maybe the problem with Christian fiction is that it's non-denominational. People are just "Christian", with no effort put into showing what practicing that religion looks like for them specifically. No indication that there are other Christians who could have different beliefs. No wrestling with differing ideas and the struggle of how one should live out their Christian faith. And that makes it unrealistic and unrelatable.

[shima-draws]

I’ve mentioned it before but I’m a fucking sucker for unhealthy dependent relationships. There’s just something about them that is so. Chef’s kiss 👌

Anyway I’m still thinking about how Law was so attached to Cora and was so traumatized by his death that he literally devoted thirteen YEARS of his life to revenge killing Doflamingo. Even though all Cora ever wanted was for Law to just be free and live his life happily. And Law spending all his time in a hateful revenge spiral is literally the exact OPPOSITE of what Cora wanted for him. BUT WAIT THERE’S MORE. If the thirteen years of endless devotion to avenging his savior wasn’t enough Law 1. Named his pirate crew the Heart Pirates in honor of Cora, 2. Covered himself in permanent heart-themed tattoos in honor of Cora, and 3. Fashioned his Jolly Roger to be a mockery of Doflamingo’s and ALSO to honor Cora. Homie is a walking memorial for a man he only really knew for six months and again crafted the most intricate plan known to mankind to murder Cora’s killer. Because losing Cora fucked him up THAT much. Because even though Cora set him free, the moment Doflamingo shot him Law was chained to the memory of a man who no longer existed. Law literally fashioned his entire life down to his own appearance after Cora and it makes me so insane. I cannot even imagine what went through his head after Dressrosa I mean how do you move on after a thirteen year grudge is put to rest. What is he supposed to do now. Avenging Cora was literally his entire existence, his entire reason for living for half of his life. He needs therapy probably. If Cora somehow ever did come back to life Law would lose his fucking mind. The dependency is SO unhealthy and I am SO here for it

[skunkes]

[dxxtruction]

"Louis acting like a pimp to Armand" And what is a pimp exactly? Quickly. And, oh so sexual trauma survivors can't engage in kink now without it being all about that? Pet names? They can't be submissive anymore? Consensually? Sexually healthy? Be serious. I'd hardly say there's much power difference between them during all this anyway, except that Louis is freer than Armand and it's been putting a strain on their relationship. Louis wants more from Armand, and less of this 'being his past' for them both, and so helping Armand with this could fix that. It's healthy to want to help your partners get out of a rough patch?

I mean, the whole exchange was very clearly set up as a "I want to help you" after such a great moment of vulnerability Louis feels just how much Armand is desperate for it. Louis called Armand so they could work out a plan together.

And the bit with the umbrella was Louis' way of asking 'are you willing to listen to me?' and Armand said yes by unfolding it. Louis goes on and explains, Armand is allowed to argue against it, but Louis makes his point. And then he gives Armand a way to make his own choice in it too. Armand's already decided 'I want you, more than anything else in the world', but Louis still asks after if he's sure of his choice, and with a name, Arun, that is the one of his fullest agency, running the point home. Honoring the situation Armand calls Louis Maitre - as a way of being like 'I'll do as you've said then'. To make this work he's going to have to give Louis some of the control, yes. But it's the first time such a role is ever established, and it was his choice to do it. So so what if they do it in a very suggestive way? They can't like doing that? I think it's them having fun.

I struggle to find how Louis is being overly domineering here when really he's giving and offering Armand the most agency he's ever had. Same with finding it manipulative. The manipulation was more earlier in the episode I think, when he was stringing him along, giving mixed signals. He's no longer toying with him like that. Louis might be pushing Armand, leading him on to make a decision, but he doesn't mean bad by it.

But back to this pimp thing. I find it frankly offensive that this is where people are going with this. I get it, but to run with it being the case is, on many levels, wrong.

Louis told us episode 1 this was the only sustainable line of work to support his family and keep their standing, at the time. It was never his choice to be doing this either but his blackness allowed no other options. He did what he did so his family could stay in that house and maintain all their same comforts. It gave him privileges most black men didn't have at the time that he wanted to maintain and even have more of. Anyway, it doesn't and had never defined him the way 'being good at running things' had. And in that case he just likes having that kind of control where he can get it, which makes sense.

The world is what placed that kind of role onto him of what he was allowed to be able to run, not himself. And on that he actually treated the sex workers he employed well and respected them enough to give them more opportunity.** He recognizes they don't have much in the way of options either.

Louis employed sex workers, yes, but he didn't subject them to abuse, (like how Armand was)*. He didn't oversee things in a way that would go against their consent (see; episode 1 again)**. Sometimes a job is just a job. And Sex work is work.

Armand's particular past with sexual abuses may strike a particular cord with Louis, given all that, but the very last thing either is thinking is that Louis' pimping Armand out here. This is merely their decision as companions, and had nothing to do with adding another line in a laundry list of selling Armands body out to people at the command of someone else. Armand rescinds some of his control to Louis' wishes, because he wants him, and he trusts him, that's all.

If you aren't allowing Armand that choice, and are doubtful it's fully his, you're putting him right back in the box of being defined by his abuses. Putting him back into that space where he isn't given any agency over what he does. (Which is exactly opposite of what the intent of this scene is for)*.

*: (edit) added for clarity.

**: (strike through) numerous people are saying I'm misremembering these points so disregard it. (Thought he was siding with Bricks, it was the other way around). (Technically one aspect of those opportunities were for getting around the law). I don't have a perfect memory, it happens. Let's not get mad about it. Doesn't change much of the point which is that Louis, now, Louis then, was always considering more about the running things and for stated purposes. So I guess I'd say he may only have respected the SWers enough sometimes for what allowed him to do that, and there are moments he certainly expressed remorse over the fact, but he has a great deal higher respect for Armand that is genuine. It's incomparable. Please read my added notes in the tags, it should address most other concerns.

[writeouswriter]

The curse has lifted (finally wrote more than like 10 words on something)

[pwurrz]

being obsessed with yakumo is a job and baby i’ve never called in a sick day!!!!!

[aq2003]

i saw a post saying boom was good bc it feels like it could be done with any doctor/companion duo and honestly that was one of the things i felt was wrong with it

[v-67]

Sleep deprived thoughts 101 idk?

So in the reality, in the actual world which consists of no superheroes w crazy powers

The people who are crazy rich are equivalent to the rich superheroes (i.e maybe batman?) w/o the element of justice to them (and maybe their parents not being killed off)

So at this point it would be nice if one of those guys just pulled a gag of dropping hints that he's batman and they have enough power to pull this off by manipulating newspapers to publish rubbish articles about themselves? Or even just Instagram bullshit? (Now that I think about it, maybe someone might have done this lol) (But it should be someone so influential that it breaks the boundaries throughout the world, everyone, like every one should be talking about it kinda thing)

So they can just make up something, something really really obscure superhero thing and for legal purposes add that this is a bit or something if it wasn't clear enough

And then another billionaire would join in and it would be like a funny thing going on about who actually is batman

While DC would sue them both by some legality loophole and they'd settle the matter or pursue the legal battle

So DC would be like their antagonist?

And they'll keep paying DC off because they're so rich and all that

And it would be so funny

And DC would still not come up with a good movie with all that money (no hate, just a joke)

[cosettegf]

i love the penumbra podcast and i love second citadel and i really enjoyed listening to the finale but i feel. weird about the way this show treats its female characters???

[peony-pearl]

yeah I’ll say it again: there was no reason for Azula to be put in an asylum for a year and still be going through it that bad all for a breakdown that took, what, less than a month? If we take Zuko’s betrayal, then Mai and Ty Lee swapping sides(? we never really see them “turning good” they just prevent Azula from hurting Zuko and the Gaang but that’s a different discussion) and then her father’s denial of her joining him to the Earth Kingdom (then feeling like she’s being treated like Zuko - thus she’s suddenly lesser in his eyes) followed by Zuko defeating her (which, in her mind, is a whole new failure and she probably feels like she failed her Nation)... yeah that’s stuff that, if given proper therapy, she could have just stayed in a hospital, and within a year, possibly even be living back in the palace with a whole new outlook on life. The writers make it sound like Zuko just wanted her out of his hair which is not how you want to write your hero whose arc is based around growth and wanting acceptance and is forgiven by a family elder after he hurts him. Yes he’s a new Fire Lord and he’s got a lot on his plate, but to just handwave his sister away after he knows the pain of being denied by his family is... bleh (also you all know how much I hate Iroh's canonical endgame)

And I know that there were talks of a fourth season in which she got her healing arc (which would have been really great to see); but it’s such a mess that the comics just kind of decided ‘nahh let the teenager who’s been locked up for a year keep her antagonist role, that’s fresh right?’ Not the girl who was put on a pedestal until suddenly everything she did was wrong (which... yeah, she WAS doing wrong; but she’s been raised to believe everything she was doing was for a greater good for HER nation and the world. She believes she’s a hero because she’s doing what she was raised to do, and to them she IS a hero. She has daddy’s ‘love’ so long as she’s perfect and amazing - and then suddenly all of that gets absolutely obliterated right in front of her one at a time as she realizes everything she’s been doing to maintain her power is also driving people away. Being 'the good kid' until suddenly you aren'twill unravel you.). Zuko knows how that feels, to feel like everything he did was wrong. He knows how it feels to have to break away from realizing he’s been hurting people; to learn from that and how he needs to change his ways.

And not only that but the way they write Azula as a villain in The Search is just AWFUL like it’s boring af. They recycle the same beats over and over and no one gets the bright idea to stop the cycle it’s AWFUL everyone in that comic is a raging idiot.

idk I could keep going in circles and we already know the comics are awful but there’s my extra 2 cents on the matter. They took a character that was already entertaining and fascinating and denied her a really great potential arc to make her one of the best allies the Gaang could have (and Zuko could have some FAMILY) but nope. Let's retread the show but instead let's make it bad.

[fictionadventurer]

Top 5 tropes, top 5 dog breeds, top 5 saints

Tropes

I have forgotten every single trope, and can't decide exactly what counts as a trope, so I'm just going to list five story elements that usually capture my interest.

The tension between idealism and practicality

Morally upright heroes

Trickster heroes who use their powers for good

Time travel (specifically when time travel is explored as a story element, rather than just as a means to get to another time)

Arranged marriage romances

Dog Breeds

Mostly listing types of dogs I've known personally and had good experiences with

Collie

Black lab

Golden retriever

German shepherd

Basset hound

Saints

Since I've made this list a few times before, I'm going to list some saints who have captured my attention lately.

St. Thomas Aquinas: Mentions of him kept popping up in my life, and Chesterton's bio of him made me love him as a person. Plus, some prayers by him have become important parts of my prayer routine lately.

St. Frances de Sales: I read only the first part of his very first book of apologetics before it went back to the library, but since then, I think about it at least on a weekly, if not a daily basis.

St. Michael: He's always been a presence in my family's devotions (several family members have him as a patron, and he's patron of a local parish), but looking up Michaelmas traditions this week drew me to him in a much more personal way.

St. Mary Magdalene: I've always liked her, but lately I've been drawn to her in a more unique way

St. Theresa of Calcutta: I saw a documentary about her that felt very relevant to my life and work, so I've felt a new closeness to her since then.

[i-write-shakespeare-not-disney]

I think chuuya has a right to be more fucked up actually. I have so many thoughts but it's so hot rn I can't fully form them into a cohesive line of thought but like. I gotta re-watch everything with this new view of him

[joyfuladorable]

Summer Dresses for Casey Jones ☀️☀️☀️ (plus funky randomized color palettes)

And bonus caprisun!! ^w^

[gaycrittercentral]

sameth and maximus !! doing some old timey stuff in the old times, I feel like I could see them getting up to some charlie chaplin type hijinks lol

Oh hell yeah I love those guys!! :D their designs are so delightful teehee

Although admittedly I couldn’t think of any very good shenanigans for them to get into, so here’s my best attempt ^^; phonograph fun ehehe

I know swing dancing is more of a 20's thing, but I just keep seeing them doin’ that in my mind’s eye. Maybe I just miss cotillion lmao. Or I just really like jazz. Or both

Btw if anyone can think of other stuff to draw them doin I’d be totally down!! They’re just charming ^^

[triglycercule]

i know jk fashion au doesn't have any angst and all and i do not plan on ever making it have angst but whenever i listen to kamihikouki by pepoyo i can ONLY think about the jk!mtt. its gotten to the point that im planning on making a drawing of them based on the song after i finish this horror one because they just remind of it,,,, so,,,,, much,,,,,,,

like they wouldnt DIE and be regretful and all that enough to do a group jumping off roof stuff but like. its the sentiment ok its the SENTIMENT. they wouldn't BUT in an alternate universe,,,,, there would be an alternate triglycercule who would see them doing that (probably because i did make jk fashion au to have angst in said parallel universe)