#like i get why and id never blame her for anything ever but

[hearts401]

wow nao really fucking got him jeez

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for "unknowingly" cheating on my girlfriend?

🤍🍇 so i recognize post

preface: yes i am, theres no excuse, i just want to hear more ppl's thought because different ppl in my life have very different opinions on this??? even though i think cheating is cut and dry?

earlier this year, i (20nb, tho i was 19 at the time) was in a purely monogamous relationship with my ex (19f). there were ups and downs, i had some issues that i really shouldve talked to her about, but overall it was the best experience. id never dated anybody before. she's the only person who ive ever loved in that way. i think shes the best person, funny, smart. i was really lucky to have her.

i have another friend, who i'll call H (21f), who has been my friend for years. we're really close, and we've shared a lot with each other. i also love her deeply, though in a different, entirely platonic way. she has told me that she loves me, and has loved me in romantic ways, even though i've never reciprocated (im fine with that, everyone in my main friend group is a little bit polyamorous).

there were two main incidents that happened between me and H. the first, i didnt really understand what was going on or that it was entirely wrong. we were cuddling, which i do with all of my friends, and she started getting really into it and getting on top of me. she asked if she could kiss me (on the lips) and i said no, partly because, well, i had a monogamous partner, and partly because i hate kissing on the lips. i probably shouldve entirely cut it off at that moment. my only excuse (which is pretty flimsy) is that, im kinda aroace so physical affection and the difference between platonic and romantic have always left me a little confused. i kinda thought this was normal, especially because H is polyamorous and in several relationships that heavily blur the lines between platonic and romantic.

then, about two weeks after that, H and i hung out again, but this time we were smoking marijuana. weed makes me highly suggestible and also incapable of remembering anything past about five seconds. not that im blaming the drugs, just describing the situation. basically, H and i were cuddling again when she decided to move on top of me and got flirty, with a lot of touching sensitive places for the purpose of getting a reaction (all above the belt). i went along with this because i respect H, ive known her for a long time, and i didnt want to say no to her. again, not an excuse, because she didnt force me to do it.

in the moment, i didnt think this was cheating. we werent doing anything explicitly sexual, we weren't making out, but we were definitely frisky and i know H was horny at the time. a couple hours later, when i sobered up, i suddenly realized what we had done and asked H if i had just cheated on my girlfriend. she also seemed to realize what had just happened and we agreed that i had cheated, that it was entirely wrong, and we should never do it again.

i decided to tell my ex about this immediately, because i thought she should know. i asked if she was in a position to hear bad news, and when she was, i was completely honest. she obviously didnt take it well, mentioning how she felt like she could never trust me again despite being the person she trusted most in the world. she loved me but this was unacceptable and a huge violation. i agreed, and after a bit of thinking, i told her that i thought we should break up. i had terrible guilt about what i'd done and assumed that we'd never recover, and it didnt seem like she could pull the plug, so i did.

she proceeded to get even more mad at me because of this, which in hindsight is completely understandable. from her perspective, i had just dropped two emotional bombs on her, and maybe i was implying that i liked H more than her. i wasnt, and i dont, but i know why it came across that way.

my other friends agreed with me that i shouldve broken up with her after that. in hindsight, i dont know if it was the right choice. i miss her dearly and wish i had worked more on the relationship.

we've since talked about it. i told her that i still loved her (bc i do, very deeply, and i dont know if i'll ever get over her) but said that i dont expect anything, dont expect a relationship, etc. she was okay with this because, in her words, she trusts me to not make it a big deal or awkward. we hang out frequently now, we watch anime together, and we get along well as friends. i feel so lucky that she is willing to spend time with me, that she still enjoys my company even a little bit.

the confusing part is that i told my dad about this and he basically said, "you were 19yo in a long distance, online-only relationship. this was inevitable and you shouldnt feel too bad about it. it was wrong but not the worst thing ever." i dont really agree with that, because it was a pretty serious relationship despite being online. we even met up at a convention and spent several nights together in a hotel. it was the happiest weekend of my life. i thought i could marry her maybe someday. and i dont think being 19yo justifies it. 13yo maybe, but i was old enough to know right from wrong, even if my knowledge about romantic and sexual relationships was underdeveloped.

basically, im looking for nuanced opinions. i fully expect the results to be YTA. im hoping ppl can give me any sort of insight in the comments.

PS: H is partially to blame bc she knew i was in a monogamous relationship but please dont hate on her too much in the comments, we've had a lot of talks about this and what happened drastically changed the way the both of us see relationships and each other. basically, she learned her lesson and she was never trying to be a bitch or a homewrecker. i know her well enough to know shes a good person at heart. she's also not on tumblr to see any of your comments. direct all of you criticism towards me, please.

What are these acronyms?

[scarasbaefy]

linger

chars; scaramouche/wanderer

; fem reader, angst

note; I AM NEW TO THIS !! i neefd more angst i love angst so im doing it myself. emoly if u see this, HI !!!

Ⰶ

sitting on the bed you shared with your “husband” is all you seemed to do these past few months. scaramouche is rarely ever home. when he is, he doesn’t even bother to greet you. not a smile on his face, and no word is exchanged between you. there hasn’t been any intimacy either. no kisses, no loving touches.

“why don't you just leave him? it’s obvious you’re miserable.” tartaglia said as he seen you walk out the infirmary. he had no idea what he was talking about. he doesn't even know the feeling of loving someone so much that you don’t want to let go. “i love him.” you stated, no emotion present in your voice. who can blame you? you were in a loveless relationship. tartaglia felt bad for you but didn’t say anything more. you stared at his back, watching him as he continued to walk down the hall. everyone was worried sick at your depressed state, except of course scaramouche.

tartaglias words lingered in your mind. maybe it wouldn’t hurt to ask scaramouche why he was acting this way towards you. was it the girl everyone had been talking about? you’d occasionally hear other harbingers talk about a mysterious traveler ruining their plans. 

you walked back to your room with the mystery girl in your mind. sometimes you would read reports from scaramouches missions that had been mailed in for filing. the way he wrote about her and complimented her skills made you slightly jealous. ‘it’s okay,” you told yourself, “soon, she’ll be the furthest thing from his mind!”

before him becoming distant, he would talk to you with the happiest look on his face. he would bring you gifts and strike down anyone who dared to look at you the wrong way, never failing to bring butterflies to your stomach. the memories of the past made you tear up. “i miss my husband.” you whispered as you rubbed your stomach, trying to soothe the sudden cramp you had been getting for a while now.

“i’m right here. stop crying. it’s making you look pathetic.” scaramouche said as he slammed the door shut. “do you know how embarrassing it is having a crybaby wife like you? lumine would never do this. everyone looks at us with pity and i hate it, and it’s all your fault,” his words dripped with venom. 

you felt your heart drop. you didn’t know he was coming home today. the plan to tell him the news you found out from the infirmary suddenly slipped out of your mind, fear of what he’d do to you replacing its spot. 

“i-i.. when did you arrive? i thought you wouldn’t be coming home for another week or so,” you said as you wiped the tears from your eyes. 

scaramouche walked in front of you, grabbing ur face with one hand while rubbing the tears away rather harshly. you immediately tried prying yourself away from him. “stop! you’re hurting me!” you shouted, grabbing his wrists and forcing his hands off your face. “oh give me a break,” he started, “now i can’t even wipe your tears away without you acting dramatic? isn’t this what you want anyways? god, how much more useless can you get? if i knew you were going to become like this, i wouldn’t have married you. id rather walk this land alone a thousand times and witness my friends get killed, than to be seen with a person like you.” your heart dropped for a second time. this time, the aching pain lingered longer. 

you slowly smiled at him. one of those smiles you give when you’ve had enough. months without him talking to you and this is how he treats you? scaramouche furrowed his eyebrows at your reaction. no one should be happy after being insulted. 

“okay.” you said, the smile turning into a bitter expression. you stood up and shoved him away from you. “take your lousy ring,” you took the ring off your finger and threw it towards his feet, “i’m sick of this, and you, and everything you haven’t done. i haven’t done anything to you to deserve this,” scaramouche stood there with a surprised face. he stumbled as he reached to catch your ring, regret immediately washing over him. never in a million years did he think you’d be capable of talking back. you’re a sweet person with no room for hate. “don’t look for me,” you continued, “don’t follow me. don’t even bother mentioning my name,” you made your way towards the door, hand reaching for the doorknob, “and by the way, don’t be surprised when one of your subordinates reports back to you telling you they spotted me with an infant that resembles you.” the electro vision on your back flickered before the sound of thunder roared and lightning replacing where your body once stood, teleporting you out of the building.

[urbestestwindgod]

tw for discussion of rape and all and a hot take i guess

ok i dont rlly like to get serious or anything on this blog but i just wanted to mention that even if it was left up for interpretation if calypso raped odysseus or not, the stuff she still does isnt okay. like she still holds him captive, she still harasses and tries to coerce him after knowing that he is married and doesnt want her. she holds him captive KNOWING IT MAKES HIM SUICIDAL. thats not haha girly things that called being an abuser. yes, holding someone captive and trying to manipulate them out of suicide (as opposed to support them) is abusive.

i know she has a pretty voice but like, did you think jorge would cast a random untrained smoker from an opium den to play her so we know that this isnt a good character? and also you can compliment people’s designs of calypso without being ok with rape, because its just a design, but when its “shes my wifey” and “ii love her” its suddenly not like any other epic villain simping because the thing is she isnt a god sinking his ships or lighting bolting his crew to death; shes sexually abusing him (i am also not going to debate if sexual harassment is different from sexual abuse because its not. even if she never raped him she was still trying to coerce him and harassed him; which is abusive)

if there’s anything i dont fuck with its sexual misconduct. rape, harassment, abuse, all of it. dont give me that shit. the only thing that irritates me more than “haha id dropkick that child in self defense” is any victim blaming or pro rape statement that i displeasurably have to hear. like back to “her voice is so pretty” or just “shes so pretty” hey yea thats what most male rape victims are told. that she was so hot though, so he must have liked it. shes not “just a girl” shes an abuser.

now i know people where a little peeved that jorge removed rape from the circe saga; but i think its reasonable why he did. the epic community is very connected and always has memes for the situations odysseus is in. which, when its haha his friend was killed by a cyclops, or his crew was killed by an angry father, or his men where turned to pigs, or haha hes sad at whatever fantastical situation hes put in; we can laugh at it. because not only is it not real because its a story, but also no one has ever been through that. no ones ever faced off a cyclops in a cave before.

but people have been raped. men have been raped and heard the whole “shes so pretty and sweet thoo”. thats real. and with the circe saga jay knew that putting in rape, so early in too, that it wouldn’t be a plotpoint that fit in because that isnt an epic misfortune they face! thats a real situation; not the men to pigs and sea witch stuff, but being pressured and coerced into sleeping with someone? that is a real situation that real people are put in.

and i know male sexual assaults are iffy to people somehow. so lets say that a woman was in odysseus’ place and circe/calypso were men. does that make it worse? because both are bad. i dont fuck with rape towards ANYONE. regardless of gender, i dont think in 2024 we still should be debating is men can be raped

but back to jorge; i think he was brave for making love in paradise go how it did. i think even implying rape was a brave choice for the musical; especially with a very unserious and jokey fandom (not saying its not also serious but still) but even if you interpret that calypso never touched him. in the odyssey she did, and how tf do you LIKE a character who in the source material was a rapist? shes not “allowed to do bad” shes not “just a girl” shes a predator, and idn something about seeing her get support despite that reminds me of people like my uncle, my brother, my friend’s stepdad, a classmate or two. my uncle being able to have a restaurant, my brother having “a bright future” a certain classmate who got a girl pregnant and then went on to go to prep school. while she carried a child from a random guy in another state. you can support and joke about poseidon from epic and all, but when you start talking about calypso the same way you aren’t invalidating odysseus because hes not real. but you are invalidating countless real life victims.

and these are bold words from someone who isnt even mad about zeus of all people, because i know the culture he was from and i know that he was a metaphor/symbol to said culture. but the odyssey was a story with characters who survived by virtue of extending past that cultural bias. i can pull away from the odyssey as a piece of its time and understand that calypso wasnt probably seen as a rapist back then because the term didnt apply, but as a character i hate her like i hate theseus

and i know calypso was technically a goddess but that didnt mean much for her except immortality and being able to sexually abuse better. she wasnt worshipped (to my knowledge?) or exactly metaphorical. and epic is a modern retelling; so modern standards apply; shes a predator. i wont be taking any counter points because like i said dont do me with that shit

tl;dr your support for fictional rapists extends to what real victims have gone through, and check your lust because backing up every pretty voice/face is a rape culture classic

also im not saying that if you like calypso youre a pro rape asshole, dont think that. but i am saying youre not helping anyone and more hurting than anything by treating a character who is a sexual abuser like just another fantasy villain

[heartsforandrewgarfield]

Happier Than Ever | Rafe Cameron Headcannon ✧

Happier Than Ever by Billie Eilish is what i imagine a toxic relationship between pogue!girlfriend and rafe cameron. hear me out..

Note: This is my first time writing anything on Tumblr lol! Let me know how to improve, I really enjoy writing :333, also i was thinking of writing a blurb on this too so send me a message!

When I'm away from you, I'm happier than ever

Wish I could explain it better

I wish it wasn't true

I can imagine his girlfriend being care free with her friends but once she’s with rafe, she feels trapped and claustrophobic.

she doesn’t realize she’s in a toxic relationship though, she thinks that his aggressiveness and controlling nature is just the way he shows affection.

of course she still loves him unconditionally but she often wishes he’d be kinder.

i knew when i asked you to,

be cool about what i was telling you,

you’d do the opposite of what you’d said you’d do,

and id end up more afraid.

whenever she would hang out w the pogues, rafe would blow the situation out of proportion and start arguments. she argues back, telling him to calm down, but it only makes him angrier.

no matter if she’d let him know in advance, he’d always be pissed.

of course her friend would question why she would stay w him. sometimes she would avoid the pogues just so rafe wouldn’t get upset.

Don't say it isn't fair

You clearly weren't aware that you made me miserable

honorable mention.

You call me again, drunk in your Benz

Driving home under the influence

You scared me to death, but I'm wasting my breath

'Cause you only listen to your fucking friends

Rafe would totally call his girlfriend while high/drunk driving to make her feel worried for him just to have a laugh with his kook friends.

he’d do it just to show topper and kelce how he has her at his fingertips.

And I don't talk shit about you on the internet

Never told anyone anything bad

'Cause that shit's embarrassing, you were my everything

And all that you did was make me fucking sad

the internet reference would totally be the pogues. his girlfriend would defend his name whenever they would bring up how shitty he is.

time and time again, she would be proven wrong by his irrational behaviors.

You ruined everything good

Always said you were misunderstood.

rafe would be the type blame his aggressiveness on his daddy issues and constantly justify himself for being a dickhead.

he would rant to his girlfriend about his problems to make her feel guilty and make feel like she needed to stay.

the pogues definitely, eventually get tired of his bullshit.

currently cooking up fic ideas for this..

(can y’all tell i love this song?)

all credits to their owners!!

[lovebombs4life]

hate sex with luke 😙🙏🏻🩵

animosity - l.r.h.

requested: yes! thank you for the request, and keep sending them in :)

a/n: y’all love the hate fucking concept LMAO i can’t blame you.

cw: SMUT!! slight angst, rough sex, swearing, choking, reader goes into head space, fluffy end

———

i had never met a person who was more insufferable than luke hemmings. i tried to be nice to him, i really did. i don’t know what i did that made him hate me so quickly, but i know he’d rather die than be alone in a room with me.

we had met because of your mutual friends. michael had introduced me to the group, and i had been so excited to meet them all. when i had met luke, it was like he decided he hated me, right then and there.

i had made efforts to talk to him and involve him in conversations, but he would only glare at me and respond with a dry tone.

the decision to hangout with everyone tonight at michael’s apartment was a bold one. i knew luke was going to be there, and i knew he’d avoid me the whole night if i was lucky.

sometimes he’d pretend i wasn’t there. other times, not so much. he would mock me and just be a massive dick.

i decided to not worry about that for tonight, and continue getting ready before heading to michael’s.

i had put on my usual mascara and eyeliner, and decided on wearing one of my favorite cardigans over a tank top, and a small flowing skirt.

as i left my house, i texted michael letting him know id be there soon. once i arrived, i knocked on the door, immediately being let in, and pulled into a hug by michael. i laughed at his actions.

michael was almost like a little brother to me, despite him being a few years older. i walked through the door, seeing everyone was already here.

“we were just getting drinks out, want one?” michael asked. i glanced over at the group, seeing luke’s eyes already burning into mine. i looked back at michael, nodding my head.

he passed me a shot, giving me a wine cooler afterwards to get the taste from the shot out of my mouth. i walked to the living room, sitting down on the floor, leaning my back against the couch.

luke’s eyes still stuck on me with a scowl. i ignored it, trying to enjoy my time with my favorite people. we sat there drinking, talking about anything and everything. at this point, i was the only person truly sober, besides luke.

we all started gossiping, talking about people we knew and didn’t necessarily like. “i swear, the chick next door to me is actually crazy. she’s got this boyfriend who just yells at her constantly and just spews insults at her, yet she’s still with him!” i spoke in disbelief.

“maybe you guys have something in common.” luke muttered. heads turned to him, confused looks on everyone’s face. “what does that mean, luke?” i questioned.

he smirked, knowing he was about to get a rise out of me. “i mean that you’re both crazy.” he spoke flatly.

“and why is that?” i continued asking. he just chuckled before answering me.

“she’s crazy in the sense she lets this guy keep coming back. you’re crazy in the sense that you think any guy will come back to you.” he spat.

“what are you trying to say about me luke? that im desperate?” i asked. he shrugged.

“if the shoe fits. i think we all know you’re a bit of a slut, y/n.” he spoke. tears pricked my eyes.

“woah, no one, and i mean no one, thinks that about y/n.” caluk spoke up. i bit down on my lip trying not to let luke win and see me cry.

he continued smirking, knowing i was holding back. i stood up, walking to where he was. once close enough, i stood there staring down at him.

he raised an eyebrow, curious what i was doing. i quickly pulled back my hand, slapping him hard across the face. “fuck you, luke.” i spoke, walking to michael’s guest room, closing the door.

i had sucked back the tears, now only letting myself be angry. what the hell did i ever do to him? why did he hate me so much? why did-

my thoughts were cut off by the door opening. i turned my head. of course it was him. he quickly crossed the room to me, grabbing my wrists.

“you think you can just get away with that? you’re sorely mistaken, darling.” he said darkly. he pushed me to the wall, kissing me hard.

i gasped at his actions. if he hated me so much, why was he doing this? it was almost as if he read my mind.

“wanna know why i fucking hate you, y/n? cause you act like you’re so fucking perfect. like you’re too good for anyone. too good for me.” he growled. i raised my brow.

“i tried to be nice to you, luke. you’re just a fucking asshole.” i spat back at him. he pinned me to the wall with his hips. i gasped at the feeling, taking notice of his hard cock.

“i knew you were a fucking slut.” he smirked, seeing my reaction to him pressing against me. he grabbed my throat squeezing it harshly.

i let out a moan, my eyes rolling back. he groaned, kissing me again, roughly. i whimpered as he held onto my throat, making him laugh darkly.

he pulled away, staring into my eyes. “so gorgeous.” he cooed, making my face heat up.

“what, so the hating me thing was all an act?” i teased.

“don’t test me, y/n. it may be all an act but i’m gonna fuck you like it wasn’t.” he spoke boldly, making me melt into his touch.

he swiftly pulled my top off, throwing it across the room. he kissed down my chest, leaving rough hickies along my neck and collarbones. i gasped, loving the feeling.

he slid my skirt off, dipping his hand underneath my panties. his fingers rubbed my clit, causing me to moan. he continued suckling on my neck, purple marks already showing.

without warning, his fingers slipped inside my heat, curling upwards. my knees weakened, causing luke to grab one of my thighs to hold me up. i tugged on his hair, pulling him back to kiss me.

“please, need more.” i begged. he laughed, continuing his actions. “you think you’re gonna get what you want?” he asked. i pouted, making him bite down on my lip.

i squealed, throwing my head back. he removed his hands from me before i could get close to cumming, causing me to whine.

he picked me up, dropping me onto the bed. he pulled my panties off, unbuckling his belt afterwards. he kicked his jeans and boxers off, making me squeeze my thighs at the site of him.

his dick was hard and red, begging for attention. he stroked himself a few times, before slamming into me. i let out a scream, but it was cut short as luke cupped his hand around my mouth.

he smirked at my position. “so fuckin pretty. this is why i’ve hated you baby. cause i haven’t been the one wrecking you.” he grunted, pulling my leg above his shoulder.

i gasped as he hit deeper, and at such a fast pace. the pain and pleasure sent my head spinning. tears fell from my cheeks, making luke laugh as he wiped away the tears.

“don’t cry angel, you’re taking me so well.” he praised, still slamming into me. i cried out in pleasure from his words.

my eyes started rolling back, and my head felt fuzzy. i felt my stomach tighten, signaling that i was close. “g-gonna cum.” i squeaked, feeling myself release on his cock.

he squeezed my thighs, pulling out as he came on my stomach. i was still gasping for air, my head still feeling foggy.

i stared off at the ceiling, my body still shaking. “y/n? you in there?” i hear luke ask me. when he didn’t get a response from me, he sat up, shaking me. he started panicking. grabbing me, and pulling me close.

“angel, you’re scaring me. need you to use your words, are you alright?” he questioned. i slowly started to come down, squeezing his shoulder as he held me.

he sighed in relief, stroking my hair. “was i good?” i asked meekly. he nodded his head.

“did so good. might’ve fucked you too good.” he boasted. i smiled into his chest.

“so you don’t really hate me?” i looked up at him. he shook his head, kissing mine.

“i only hated you because you weren’t mine.” he whispered.

“i wanna be yours, luke.” i said softly.

“then be mine, y/n.”

[mariatesstruther]

I honestly don't get why Maria was so anti-Joel oh he's a horrible person he's done horrible things he can't be around us, but accepted Tommy fully to the point he's the father of her child when both did the same things, ran with the same people and all of that.

I mean I love the character, but that confuses the hell out of me. Why's Tommy accepted but Joel damned?

okay, so… this response took me like half hour to write. my wrists hurt, my jaw is clenched, my brain is hot. i love u anon thank u very much for this chance to vent about just why my girl maria has been so misunderstood. let’s go

i personally think this is where many people fundamentally misunderstand maria’s perception of joel. she’s not cautious of him primarily because of tommy or anything tommy has said, in my personal opinion—she’s cautious of him for and because of ellie

ive said this on my blog a few times and i think so have @steeb-stn and @clickergossip (and maybe @liveandletcry23 and @bumblepony i have a shit memory so tagging just in case) so im gonna tag them to credit their words and ideas about maria as well, but the FIRST time maria sees joel, he’s with this rando twelve year old girl who he is seemingly so protective over that she cant even be sniffed by dogs who are just trying to detect infection, which would be good for ANYBODY. that’s his first strike for untrustworthyness, because why the fuck wouldn’t he let this girl be tested???—we know why, of course, but maria doesnt. shes working on the very limited info about joel/ellie’s relationship that she has from just her own observations, and i think we need to remember that as we go through analyzing why she moves how she moves

shes knows from tommy at this point is that joel had a daughter, but it is definitely not this little girl. so why the fuck are they so close. what have they gone through. are they okay. is ellie okay. is their relationship safe for her??? THAT’s what she’s thinking about, in my opinion, while shes staring joel down at that dinner table. she’s reasonbly suspicious, and i can’t blame her for it.

i had to cut this it’s literally maybe my longest post ever so. heres the cut

ALSO, it’s not like she’s a straight up bitch to joel like some of y’all seem to make it out to be??? she never says or implies that “they can’t be around” or anything like that. she offers them clothes and food and supplies. she sets them up in a house. before dinner, she gives them a personal tour (which, to be fair, she did because she was probably trying to keep an eye on them and figure out more about whether or not ellie is safe, but who wouldnt???? i know tess would! and yall would love her for it!). tommy literally says to joel before they leave that there will always be a place for him and ellie in jackson—you cannot tell me you believe he said so without already have maria’s green light for joel and ellie to stay

ALSO, i wanna consider some other things that i haven’t seen many ppl talk about. on that walk she takes with tommy and joel and ellie, she makes it sound like tommy has been with them for at least years AND she maintains the confidence to say that residents in jackson stay off the radio—i could totally be wrong, but it seems to me from the look tommy and joel share right after that it’s obvious tommy has been talking to joel BEHIND MARIA’S BACK???? did no one else catch that??? am i misinterpreting big time??? id assume because theyre married and from the way tommy talks about jackson that he’s been in jackson for at least 3 years maybe, and we know that he only stopped radioing joel a couple months before the show’s main plotline starts, so timeline wise there had to be some overlap of tommy still radioing joel from/around jackson. idk if anyone of my mutuals has thoughts on this but i personally think it’s important to point out, because it establishes that maria likely doesn’t know or think tommy and joel kept in contact, at least not as recently as up to some months ago. she knows that tommy and joel are close, but at the same time, she doesn’t think tommy really knows or talks to joel anymore, either. so how is she supposed to extend him any trust as tommy’s brother????? how and why would she give this man any benefit of the doubt???? it wouldn’t make any sense. she’s more practical and discerning than she is naive and kind, and y’all can think what y’al want about that but i love her for it. it’s very necessary for a woman like her to be the way she is

okay, so back to your question. back to why joel is “damned” and tommy is “accepted.” let’s talk about joel for a sec

y’all like to babygirl and idolize the absolute fuck out of this man

we know that not only was he a smuggler, but he killed and tricked and took advantage of people, shamelessly and brutally. we know that tommy did so too. maria knows that tommy has done the same things. maria also knows that tommy left that life because he couldnt do it anymore, and joel continued because he could

point blank period!!!!! yall can argue with me all u want but tommy left that murder life and joel did not. im not saying this makes either brother good or bad or better than the other, i love joel sm and i think both of them have an undisputed capability to do unspeakable things in order to survive. but tommy got to a point where he hit a limit, whereas joel doesn’t seem to have one. this is at least my personal interpretation of their conversations in the game and the show

tommy DID join the fireflies, which we all know now is not any fucking better than whatever the fuck joel was doing—the difference is the reasoning, though, and considering tlou is all about reasoning and the why, we need to consider the reasoning behind tommy’s decision: he wanted to do something better, something good, something he thought had a purpose. we all know now that the fireflies are bullshit, their purpose is bullshit, and they’re willingness to kill a child for the sake of the “cure” is it’s own entire paradox of bullshit. but they were a rebel organization fighting fedra, who fucking suck, and probably had somewhat of a better reputation back when tommy was interested in joining—or maybe they didn’t, to be fair, i don’t know! the point is, tommy went to them seeking some sort of better purpose, some type of redeption; in joel’s own fucking words, “tommy’s what we used to call a joiner. had dreams of becoming a hero... wants to save the world.”

tommy is idealistic. he’s romantic. he’s optimistic, almost to the point of being fucking naive. thats why he enlisted in the army, thats why he enlisted in the fireflies—he wanted to feel good about himself and the world he was living in. he needed it to have some light at the end of the tunnel for all the bullshit to make sense. and yeah, he was wrong both times in joining up. we know that, joel knew that while it was happening, and tommy knows that in retrospect, too. i think jackson is the first place he really found true, real purpose—not the kind that is propagandized to you and goes up in smoke, but the kind that is well and truly earned. that’s why he is so loyal to jackson and to maria—they finally gave him was he desperately spent his life searching for

and im just saying, from maria’s perspective, she’s someone who lives for purpose. she lives for jackson and for it’s people and for it’s future, and she has to maintain some sense of idealism in the face of all that fucking ugliness to be able to mentally live im and run a place like jackson, to believe that it’ll work. i think that idealism she has, she sees reflected in tommy’s desperation to be a better person who’s fighting for a better life. she sees that need for redemption and goodness in him, that need for things to be fucking worth it, and hears she hears it in his story. she gets to relate to him with this in a way she doesnt GET TO RELATE with joel YET (we STILL HAVE TIME PEOPLE. WE HOLDIN OUT STRONG FOR THE JOEL AND MARIA BEST FRIEND AGENDA)

but to continue, THEN maria spends YEARS with tommy, getting to know him, getting to know his guilt. just like tess with joel, she’s sees the worst and the best of him and gets to fall in love with all of it. so of course there’s gonna be a bit of a bias and a blindspot, towards him—just like any of are other characters have weak spots for the people THEY fucking love

so that’s i guess why i think tommy is “accepted” by her, i guess, and there’s honestly way more them and their romance that i could make a whole separate post about but i’ll leave it there for now. back to joel and why he’s “damned,” which i don’t think he is

again, from what maria knows, he made an active CHOICE to stay in the lifestyle of smuggling and murdering and QZ bullshit, even after tommy chose to leave—and idk what y’all imagine joel and tess to be doing in those many years on their own, but it’s not fuckin picking flowers, for me. they’re dangerous, dangerous people—more dangerous that fedra, and more dangerous than the fireflies, if we’re being fucking real about it. and we LOVE tess and joel for this, or at least i do

but jackson is not a place where people get by with smuggling or backstreet deals or threats. it’s not supposed to be that place. we all LOVE jackson in fics and hcs and aus because it’s literally a place where joel and ellie finally get to breathe and not worry about their safety/survival first. and you know who keeps jackson that way????? MARIA. AND HE BEING FUCKING PICKING ABOUT WHO JACKSON LETS THE FUCK INSIDE

so yall just expect her to by YIPPY SKIPPY when joel, THE JOEL THE SUPER SMUGGLER MURDER COWBOY, strolls into town????? WITHOUT TESS, WHO WAS SUPPOSED TO BE THE MORE PERSONABLE AND REASONABLE ONE???? what????? she’d be crazy not to at least try to be a little intimidating, to make it clear to joel that he will not get away with any of that qz bullshit here. she’d be naive not to, and maria is anything but naive

and i know most people don’t like her for that “a bad reputation doesn’t mean you’re bad” “not always, at least” line, but i actually think it really fits so well in establishing that she’s not afraid of joel, not afraid of challenging him or making him own up to things he’s done. it’s just so so cool to me, i just can’t hate her for that????? she’s establishing with him that she knows what tommy knows about his time in the QZ, and she’s letting him know if that joel shows up here in jackson, there will be fucking problems for him. which i think is a completely fair warning????

so let’s continue. let’s talk about The Scene, the one with her and ellie, the one with the “tommy was following joel” line. ONE thing i’d like to point out about this scene—MARIA IS THE ONE TO TELL ELLIE ABOUT SARAH, NOT JOEL. AND THAT IS A BIG BIG BIG REASON FOR WHY SHE WARNS ELLIE NOT TO TRUST JOEL COMPLETELY

we know what joel and ellie have gone through, at this point, but maria has barely any idea. she sees that ellie has this fierce protectiveness and lots of secrets when it comes to her and joel, which like—can we all be fucking objective here for a second. this can SO easily and SO reasonably be interpreted as something sketchy going on between joel and ellie that maria should be concerned about.

(slight tw about older men-younger woman relationships bc im gonna be personal for a sec, its quick) we don’t know maria’s past or what she has seen or been through, but personally as someone who has been in a situation where an older man has taken advantage of my naivety in the past, i am now extremely hyper vigilant when it comes to young girls around older men in my personal life today. ellie and joel’s situation and how it looks would raise MJAOR red flags for me personally, if i was in maria’s position. that’s just a personal perspective have that really affects the way i view this scene (end tw)

and so maria finds out that joel has kept the fact that HE HAD A WHOLE ASS DAUGHTER from ellie?????? WOULD THAT NOT BE SUS AT ALL TO YALL???? i mean we know why joel doesn’t tell ellie, as gameplayers and watchers of the show, but again. maria is operating on the info she has right in front of her, which is that joel has been omitting maybe the biggest fact of his life from this young girl who is willing to defend and trust him with her entire life, even after she finds out she’s being lied to. this is alarming

so at this point, she’s questioning joel’s intentions with ellie, and in my opinion, it’s not at all unreasonable for her to do so. she then continues to press, because the red flags are flying and she wants ellie to be crystal clear on the kind of man she’s traveling with (“there are CLEARLY things you don’t know about joel” — “so then you understand my concerns”)

AND THEN ELLIE. BLESSED SMART AMAZING ELLIE COMES IN WITH THE DEFENSE—“and tommy did it too, are you worried about him?”—which like, i love this line. i love this moment. i think because i go so hard for maria a lot of y’all think i’m blind to when ellie is making points, but i 100% cheered her on when i first watched this scene, like i’m sure y’all did—because it’s true! it’s fair! if maria is going to judge joel for those things, she needs to extend the same judgement to tommy

the thing is, it’s still fucking true that, as i said earlier, tommy left that life. both the smuggling, and the fireflies—he chose to stop, while joel didn’t—he was smuggling literally up until the day him and tess found ellie, so. there’s that. she continues to judge joel and not tommy because she knows for sure that tommy has changed. she doesn’t know joel enough yet to see that he has changed, too

so then, the dreaded line: “tommy was following joel.” let’s talk about it.

i don’t love this line either, tbh! i think it’s a weak defense on maria’s part, and a weak line on the tlou hbo writers part—probably my least favorite line of maria’s overall. but i do get why she says it, and i kind of think i get the purpose??? i think????

it reminds me a lot of joel’s line, earlier, about tommy being a “joiner,” and i think it’s funny that, as opposite as joel and maria like to think they both are to each other, the way they describe tommy is pretty much the same. tommy is a “joiner” to joel and a “follower” to maria, and in all respects they both love and hate him for it. idk where i’m going with that exactly, just something interesting to think about in terms of the joel and maria best friend agenda

but i also think this line get’s taken out of context a lot, because the full line is “tommy was following joel, the way you are now.” maria says this line to lead into her main point, the really fucking important line in this scene: “be careful who you put your faith in. the only ones who can betray us, are the one’s we trust.”

WHICH IS TRUE. IT IS THE POINT. AND WHEN JOEL LIES TO ELLIE, HIDES SOMETHING FROM HER YET AGAIN at the end of the season/game, IT BECOMES A THEMATIC CLIMAX POINT THAT CONNECTS BOTH OF THE GAMES

maria is not saying this to “damn” joel—and i personally don’t think she is “damning” joel in the way you imply here, as there’s definitely potential for them to develop a relationship in s2 once she has more information about the truth of how he thinks of ellie. i think she’s warning ellie not to trust joel, because she doesn’t trust joel, at the end of the fucking day—and that’s about it. she trusts tommy in a way that she can’t quite trust joel yet, and why would she, at this point? it would make no sense for her to

so y’all can blame her and hate her for her distrust all you guys want (btw not necessarily talking to you, anon, ive just gotten some very nasty asks about maria from others so im talking to them rn!!!!!!!), but i’m sorry—you can’t tell me that it doesn’t at least make sense. she’s MARIA. she’s MADE OF SENSE

[iratusmus]

so bizarre to me when people give fiona a redemption arc like making her evil wasnt literally like the fundamental core of making her an actually interesting character. like . ok actually i was mostly planning on just leaving the post as this but im going to make a proper post whining about this because ive seen it far too often for my liking.

it appears to me that a lot of people do this because they dislike fiona/scourge which is like. sure i get it. but you could literally just... break them up . and have her continue being awful on her own. like scourge is not the reason she switched sides and i find the idea. 1) a bit misogynistic frankly but thats more of a personal gripe than anything else like god forbid a woman make bad choices of her own volition and not because a man forced her hand into doing it (YES i am aware that abuse makes this more complicated than that but also we .... already have a relationship in archie sonic that fits this exact bill. yes it wasnt written well but the wonder of fan works is that you can always make it better. so why are we repeating it again 1:1) and 2) demeaning to the point of her character.

like. ok. lets go over the facts real quick. as a kid fiona got put in robotnik's salt mines and got accidentally left behind bc sonic & co couldnt find her. she realized that nobody was going make the effort to go save her, so she dug herself out and started life on the run as a treasure hunter/thief. she didnt ever really accept the fact that sonic and mighty not saving her wasnt really their fault, and even after becoming a freedom fighter, nobody ever said anything or apologized or said "hey wow that kind of sucks you went through all that". she never really made any actual friends within the ff or formed any meaningful bonds. she starts dating sonic, but its pretty clear that the only reason they're dating is that she's his rebound post The Slap. the moment her history with bean & bark came up - after she used that knowledge to save everybody - sally immediately turns on her and sonic is the only person to try to stick up for her. as bark and bean leave, bean also insinuates that fiona isnt really a freedom fighter, and that she's still basically one of them.

fiona is a "bad" trauma survivor. when i say "bad" i mean in opposition to the ideal tumblr trauma survivor - the sad poor uwu bean whose trauma only inclines them hurt themselves and they become more sympathetic kind etc. as a result. fiona, on the other hand, blames sonic (whose fault this is, frankly, not) for her experiences, and becomes more jaded and mean. she has no real support system and people repeatedly tell her that she hasnt changed and that she wont change and she cant change. shes already got all this baggage by the time her relationship with scourge starts carrying actual weight - he's offering her a way out. if none of them are ever going to really accept her being "good", then she might as well just give into her worst impulses and join hands with scourge, who, notably, has no stake in this - he doesnt have any obligation to be her friend like the freedom fighters, and more than that he likes her specifically because of the part of her that everybody else hates. the important part here is that he encouraged her to switch sides, he didnt make her switch sides.

id say fiona's character in a writing sense is an exploration of the failings of the freedom fighters to support a trauma victim, and how those failings, while unintentional, lead that victim to specifically turn against them. she says "ok actually screw all of you guys" and gives up on trying to be good because nobody ever gave her any real encouragement and decides to put herself on a path of self-destructive revenge and inflicting her misery onto the general population. we can also recall at this point that this motivation is entirely removed from scourge and you can literally break them up and still keep her evil.

the other important point here is that she purposefully chose that path of turning evil as opposed to leaving the freedom fighters or going somewhere else or like literally doing anything else. she literally could have just left but she did not and thats what makes her Interesting. prompted by her unhealed trauma and personal baggage she made those bad choices for herself, and frankly i cannot for the life of me understand why people think that walking back that character development (and yes i mean character development. character development can also mean getting worse) for ..... what. snarky but with a heart of gold generic protagonist girl? come on guys

[pixelchills]

My Celestial mutants got isekai'd last night.

You know how my dreams tend to be so vivid and have actual clear storylines that inspire me with a lot of my stories sometimes. Last night I had one of those dreams. I kinda blame the concept for binging Lookism the other day, but somehow my brain generated a whole new story loosely based on that, my Animutant AU, and the celestial characters in it. 

So, in this universe, Animutants were not lab-created creatures, but born to human families yet treated like a “curse”. Animutants were not ageing slower than humans, nor were they bigger than them like in my original AU. They were immune to most human illnesses, but somehow the people seemed to think they were just abominations; most of them were hunted, killed, and banned from cities or public places. No rights for almost anything. 

I think this could’ve been because they were alien offspring or something.

If an Animutant baby was born to a family, the government would pay the parents for killing it. The reason why they were so hated was never fully mentioned, but I might need to work on the details if I ever wish to expand this story. 

Animutant kids were not allowed to attend schools, and adult Animutants couldn’t really get almost any type of job. Most bigger cities and towns had them banned from entering completely, leaving most of them to live in smaller villages, the mountains and the woods or small abandoned islands. 

Sunrise was a human, 20 years old when the dream started. He was a high school dropout, living with his abusive alcoholic father after his mother had left them when he was in middle school. Sun worked as a cashier in a convenience store, and did a lot of babysitting on the side. 

He was nervous, clumsy and wimpy, liked superhero comics and art. He was trying to save the money he got from his jobs to move out from his dad’s place, but his dad kept stealing his paychecks as “rent” for letting Sun live with him. 

Not was he only abused by his father, but the reason why Sunrise had dropped out of high school had been bullying, and his old bullies seemed to somehow torment him once in a while even when he was just working his jobs. His life was really just miserable. 

Then one night he has a really weird dream, and in the morning, when he wakes up, he realises he is no longer a human.

Panicked about his sudden change in appearance, he calls work sick, and hides in his room trying to do research. He realises he has been turned into an Animutant. He reads about all the horrible stuff that happens to Animutants in places where they’re not allowed to be, like his city. 

Sun runs away from home.

After days of dodging cities he’s not allowed to enter, he finally arrives at a small village which claims itself to be Animutant friendly. He tries to book a room from the motel in the village, but his ID doesn’t match his face, and he’s denied the stay. 

Before he continues looking for a place to stay he is stopped by a woman, who asks if he's a friend of the (Surname missing) family, because his facial features remind her of their son, who was born as an Animutant. 

“That poor family,” she said. 

Sun gets the address of the house and rings their doorbell. If they had decided to keep their son, maybe they wouldn’t mind him staying over for a night or two if he pays them. 

Moondrop opens the door, and Sun is immediately taken back by his pretty pretty eyes. A bit of an awkward first meeting, just like in the original story, and Moon’s mother invites Sunrise to come in. 

Moon’s parents let Sun stay over, and he tells them about his issue of suddenly turning into an Animutant despite being born human. Moon’s parents don’t think he is lying, but tell him about this Animutant traveller who stopped in their village about 10 years ago, who was also born human but turned into an Animutant overnight. They said the traveller had been rumoured to settle somewhere in the mountains, but no one knew exactly where. 

Moon was going to be sent to the mountains to work for this “mage” after his 21st birthday. Because getting money as an Animutant was a difficult thing, most parents who kept their children would usually send them to work to another family and get the money from it, and Moon, who clearly loved his parents, wanted to support them financially. 

Sun learns that Moon was homeschooled by his mother, because Animutants were not allowed to attend schools. I think Moon also had an older sibling, and their family had a lot of cats. Sun is so taken by the difference between his own father, and Moon’s parents, who were supportive and not even a little bit abusive to their son, who wasn’t even human. 

Sun gets to stay with them until September, when Moon turns 21 and leaves to the mountains. Moon becomes Sun’s first and most important friend during the summer they spend together. Moon’s parents wrote a letter to the mage for the boys to take with them, asking him to let Sun stay with the mage until he figures out how to turn back to human. 

The mage approves it, but only if Sun will work for him too, yet refuses to pay Moon’s parents more than originally planned. So Sun works for the shelter and meals. 

Their job is basically to just take care of the house; do firewood, cook, clean, take care of the garden etc. 

In their freetime they explore the mountains, looking for the traveller for answers. Eventually they meet him (it’s Solar!) and get some answers about a some sort of spell casted upon Solar and Sunrise by a goddess of unfortunate souls. Solar said he has given up looking for the goddess to revert the spell, and doesn’t mind his life as it is; a bit lonely at times, yes, but at least no one bothers him. 

Eventually Sun and Moon finally get a hold of this goddess (the details how exactly they did that are missing). When she asks Sun if he truly wishes to return to his life as a human and get back to the city, Sun becomes hesitant. As much as he has tried to pursue his goal to return to being human, he has also been given a life he would’ve never been able to have as a human. And he has fallen in love. 

He needs to choose between his own humanity, or staying with Moon. 

He chooses the latter. 

At the end of the dream, they got married! What a wonderful ending! :D

If I ever decide to write an original book, this is the story I���m going for. 

[maize-is-lost]

I've recently started working on a Pikmin AU story. Not quite done with the first chapter but I figured it would be fun to post what I've got so far.

-

There’s something funny about how different characters will start the same story. No matter how far apart they live, no matter how they were raised, no matter what they’re doing at the start, eventually they will all spin into the same yarn.

For Olimar, the story begins with an unexpected banging against the hull of the S.S. Dolphin as it flies through deep space. 

For Louie, the story begins when he’s called to the President’s office for an “imperative” mission.

A little over a month has passed since his coworker’s disappearance. At first he doesn’t realize anything’s wrong. Anyone who’s spent any time with Olimar knows how much the man loves his family; and while he loves his job, he often laments how it keeps him away from his wife and children. When he doesn’t come back from vacation on time, Louie just assumes the man had quit and moved on to better things. He wouldn’t have blamed him. The assumption explains why the President becomes more and more nervous in the following days. What it doesn’t explain is why Olimar’s wife keeps showing up at Hocotate Freight’s headquarters to yell at Louie’s boss.

His first thought is that maybe she was just that salty over how much her husband had been overworked these last few months. 

Then he realizes the S.S. Dolphin isn’t where it’s usually stored. Olimar loved that ship, but he definitely wasn’t making enough money to buy it off of the company.

There’s whispers of a lawsuit.

Or worse, an internal investigation.

The company must have hooked her up with some really good insurance though, because she stops coming around after a few weeks. Everyone who didn’t quit during the chaos breathes a sigh of relief. It’s pretty easy to move on after that, they just have to work a little harder while the company hires new workers to replace what they’ve lost. 

Not long after that, people start receiving The Transmission.

Yeah, capital “The,” capital “T.” It’s necessary.

Most people hear about it from, well, the news. Louie doesn’t watch the news, though. Instead, he gets called up to the President’s office.

“Louie, my boy, you remember Olimar, don’t you?” Louie nods. He’s never been the best at remembering faces, but he imagines he could pick Olimar out in a photo (as long as he was surrounded by people who looked nothing like Olimar. It had been almost two months since he’d last seen his coworker, after all). “I’m sure you’ve been worried sick ever since he disappeared, I know I have!” the President wipes a nonexistent tear from his eye. Louie tries to keep from rolling his.

“Anyway, some great news has just come in. Have you seen Space Broadcast Inc.’s latest report?” Louie shakes his head. The President picks up a remote and turns, switching on a large TV on the other side of the room. It flickers on to a news report narrated by a woman with a swoop of pink hair covering her face. “Looks like they’re showing it again,” the President chortles.

“Earlier today, several parties received a mysterious transmission from a previously undiscovered planet,” the pink haired woman reports from a spaceship launch site. “This transmission shook the stars when it was discovered that it was sent by a missing captain from Hocotate Freight.”

Louie’s stomach turns. It hasn’t escaped his notice that he’s the only person the President called. He doesn’t like where this is going.

The video of the pink haired woman changes to a split screen. One side shows Olimar’s work ID photo while the other side shows captions as the transmission plays.

“My name is Captain Olimar. I am a delivery pilot with Hocotate Freight. While traveling, I crash landed on an undetected planet. I have limited life support remaining and am unable to repair my ship. Please send help as soon as possible.”

This time, Louie can’t help but shiver at the voice that plays while his coworker’s face is on screen. The audio is crunchy, but he can tell that the speaker’s voice is a smooth baritone, like honey dripping off a spoon. It’s oddly calm given the situation that had been described. 

There’s one thing he knows for certain.

That wasn’t Olimar’s voice.

The two of them hadn’t spent much time together in the month after Louie started working at Hocotate Freight, but what time they had worked together had often been filled with Olimar’s anecdotes or analyses. The man filled the silence wherever he went. At the time, Louie hadn’t minded. Olimar never expected him to respond verbally like most other people did. He wouldn’t have minded working with Olimar longer, really. But either way, Louie had heard enough of Olimar’s voice to recognize it even after all this time. The voice in the video was similar, sure, but it wasn’t nearly as expressive as the Captain’s. And there was something about the tone, something he couldn’t place, that didn’t settle right in his stomach.

Louie opens his mouth to say something, but the President has been talking this whole time and doesn’t notice Louie’s poor attempt to interrupt.

“-anyway I read the data logs he sent with the message and it looks like this mysterious planet is full of treasure! Enough to pull us out of debt and keep us out of the red for decades! So as soon as I heard other crews were heading to that planet I decided that I’d send you, one of my best workers, to find Olimar and track down that treasure!”  

Louie leaves the office with a mission and a newfound sense of dread. He doesn’t have long before he’s expected to leave, and there’s no telling when he’ll be back. He needs to pack. He needs to call his grandmother.

What are you supposed to say to someone when you don’t know if you’ll come home alive?

(Update: second part has been posted)

[silver-wield]

Hello, i was just curious about something & id like to hear your opinion of it. About the wolf rings, we knw that Cloud gave one to Tifa, Marlene (also to Barret?). Did he also have one for himself? Or it is just his wolf earring? Did he gave one to Denzel? B'coz in ACC Denzel was seen wearing necklace with wolf ring, i read somewhere that it was Cloud's ring that he left to Denzel when he ran away at the end of CoT but idk if its true. Id like to knw more about this since it was not mentioned in OTWTAS but somehow we knew even from before that Cloud gave it to them & the reason Marlene is not wearing her's is b'coz it too manly for her.

I became a fan of FF7 after watching AC back in 2005, back then i didn't know anything about the game OG, KH & Ltd. I didn't even knew who Aerith was since her name was never mentioned in AC. But i knew back then that Cloud & Tifa were a couple. After I read CoT it was very clear from the start that Cloud was already considering Tifa as her gf, and since he's given her a ring then that should further solidify the level of relationship they have to each other (engaged/married couple). That's explains why Tifa was described as someone's sweetheart & a woman who was left by a man when Cloud ran off. Why do you think Nojima did not include this in CoT? This would've cleared the Ltd & maybe make the other ship to shut up once & for all.. just musing 😄

Cloud didn't give a ring to Barret. There's literally no info about Barret's ring, where he got it or anything behind who gave it to him or whether it's his or Marlene's. None of his costume information in any AC ultis mention it, so the only thing we can say is he's wearing the same type of ring as the others. He wears it on his middle finger.

Denzel is wearing Cloud's ring. This is the only note about the ring, so we don't know when Cloud took it off, but the typical narrative for a ring being removed is when someone leaves the partner they take off their ring and leave it behind.

The only other person wearing a cloudy wolf ring is Tifa. It's visible in every scene where her right hand is shown.

I started the comp with AC too, so I never thought of Aerith as anything but someone who died. She's Zack's counterpart in the film and they both have an equal number of scenes with Cloud, so I didn't give it any thought beyond them being people he knew who died and he blamed himself for it. When I saw the scenes of Cloud waking up in the bed beside Tifa I was like oooooh they're a thing! And then seeing their conversation it was clear they were having marital problems and needed to work through some shit. Although I also thought Cloud was a miserable git and Tifa deserves better so I didn't understand everything happening in the film, but the main points were simple.

I wish Nojima had done a scene between Cloud and Tifa where he gave her the ring or there was more romance between them, but I guess that wasn't a priority at the time. Since then Nomura and Ayumi Ito have received death threats and all sorts, so Nojima has probably decided to sledgehammer people with Cloud's feelings for Tifa so idiots finally stfu.

Ever Crisis will have episodes from AC so it's possible otwtas will feature too and we'll finally get that romantic scene between them in chibi form 😁❤️

[thatbitchsimone]

re gypsy rose: being center of attention is all she knows. i can't blame her for being attention seeking, because that's her whole damn life. she has always gotten attention from doctors, from people, from news, ever since she was a child. first she was the sick child and now she is the woman who was forced to fake being sick child who killed her mother, she lost the opportunity to normal life and normal behavior long, long ago. i can't blame her for going to the news or talking about herself, how can she know anything else?

thats also a really good point and theres probably at least some truth to that but idk if i agree that shes attention seeking in that way. like i dont personally think she craves fame or whatever i just think shes like… a normal girl i guess. like yeah she got onto social media right away, but tbh she would most likely do that even if she was completely unknown bc most women her age use social media and ofc she would want to participate and post cute instagram photos with her husband and pretty selfies etc bc why not? its what everyone does and shes finally free to take part in normal life.

and the reason shes even doing these press tours is to promote her docuseries which is where she for once gets to speak out fully and tell her story in her own words and be truly heard. she knows her story has been told by others, she knows about The act and the documentaries and how viral her story went while she was away, and now she wants to take her story back and tell it herself which is only fair and id probably do the same if i was her

and yeah she wants to meet taylor swift. well duh what taylor swift fan would not want to meet taylor swift? shes just sharing her dreams. shes always been a dreamer like that, and honestly if she gets the chance to actually meet her fave singer ofc she will take it. anyone would lol.

but anyway, she is used to having the spotlight on her just like u said but i guess rn thats almost a blessing in disguise in a way since that means she kinda knows how to handle it better than most. like id be overwhelmed as fuck in her situation but thats bc ive always been a private normal person who has never been in the public eye but shes sorta.. accustomed to it which is sad bc as we all know she never should have been bc she should never have been in that horrible situation in the first place but at least now that can be an advantage for her during the media hype. shes being smart with it and she wants to use it to help others and be an advocate which i think she will have lots of success in and do lots of good in the future.

i guess what im trying to say is that in my opinion shes not seeking the attention, the attention is already on her and shes just embracing it and making the best of it in order to do something good and to finally have her voice heard for the first time in her life. when u have gone through abuse and have had to keep quiet about it and keep it inside ur whole life ur gonna have that urge to scream it out and let the whole world know whats been done to u and its healing and freeing and empowering to do so when ur finally safe and ready to. she needs to be heard and seen for once and she deserves it bc everyone deserves that. its very human

[callieponders]

NGL sometimes I look at the crew's tweets about him needing to stop being in anger mode 24/7 and reintegrate into society, and I wonder: are we supposed to expect him to work through that by himself? Do we expect great emotional regulation and self-awareness from an elementary schooler in an abusive household? He absolutely shouldn't be redirecting his anger at the people around him (note: Hazel. she didn't deserve that ire at all and doesn't owe him any patience about it), but I can't help looking at him and thinking that he needs, like. I dunno. A therapist. An adult. Someone or something that's actually guaranteed to help him out a little. The adults present in the show... didn't seem very interested in doing that, despite seeming to know what his actual core issue was? Maddening. Anyway

(disclaimer before anything i say. i just need yall to know this show could be the worst thing ive ever seen and id still hope the best for the crew bc its their job and people need to eat alright. that being said i do enjoy the show, please dont take this as me saying they need to NEVER WORK AGAIN ala nostalgia critic style or something)

that wording is so funny though, reintegrate into society... the boy is a small child not someone coming out of prison

but seriously this is exactly the type of stuff im thinking, i dont really go on twitter much anymore because i dislike it so i wasnt aware of the things the crew said (and dont envy them because oh man this was a divisive finale it seems). i dont expect an episode like "dev goes to therapy" and the wacky adventures of him going to therapy or something, but im really hoping in s2 they have peri held more accountable for majorly screwing up here and trying to do right by dev with another chance given to him.

the frustrating thing is i cant blame people defending the choices because some people are genuinely really bad at voicing their opinion/critique, especially because it feels like a lot of people arent having the balls to actually point out peri, even cosmo and (frankly the worse one of the two bc she was so much harder on dev) wanda are a bigger blame for the situation with dev. of course people are gonna assume people are putting the responsibility on hazel, id also be defensive about that because thats a ridiculous thing to expect, but like nah its clear its not her responsibility. she is also 10 and has a world outside of dev, and dev SHOULD be held accountable for his actions in regards to lashing out at others around him when hes upset. the fact hes given more critique than the adults around him that are meant to guide him and help him is the bigger issue than that alone.

on that same note, hazel should also be held accountable for the same things, like saying devs problems werent that deep and having wanda, a FAIRY GODPARENT, basically agree??? also when she was like "oh friends work things out" i didnt hear no apology for not hearing dev out or at least for leaving him in the dark on if theyre friends or not. and the thing is i dont expect her to do that on her own, because shes 10, but theyre fictional 10 year olds who will have more maturity than most real kids either way, so like... yknow?

additionally its kind of a double standard either way, if you dont expect hazel to act mature, why on gods green earth would you expect DEV to??? and hazel, compared to dev, has people to guide her the right way and people that are patient with her, meanwhile dev doesnt get that, the most hes ever gotten is hazel and THATS NOT HAZELS JOB!!! im not saying the writers are claiming it is, its just that its frustrating that the writing has ended up with her feeling like the only person who really gives a damn yknow

[v8mpvrse]

just when u think you’ve healed and moved on something happens.

thank u halsey for releasing music reminding me im very much NOT over The Situation!!! ty!!!! appreciate it!!!

(cobwebs crowd our old chat as i click on it excited to talk about it bc she’s ur favorite artist but then oh. right. that’s not a thing anymore. our old messages that haunt me. that i can’t bring myself to delete even if i never click on it bc what if. what if one day u text me again. what if one day i text u back. what if one day u ask why i left in the middle of the night. you’re still everywhere i look. six months later. i can’t listen to her albums without feel sick to my stomach bc. ashleys ur favorite. she means sm to u. bc i’ve fallen in love with her art BC of u. sm of who i am now are pieces of u that are like shards of glass imbedded in my skin. i bleed u. and it’s so ironic it’s halsey bc the last straw was u using our song for someone else. and it was from ur favorite album of hers. ironic that now i’m biting my cheek, hoping the taste of copper and the pain can get me out of the pain loop. but it wont. it never does. no matter how much i pretend im angry about it. at u. as if its not more hurtful than anything. i’ll blame u. and maybe it’s wrong. maybe i played a hand in the destruction of us. maybe i should’ve known. i did. that’s the worst part. i knew it was a bad idea but god. u made me feel seen and loved and fuck. fuck. fuck u. fuck. you. and fuck me for knowing damn well id do it all again. knowing how it would end. i would. i would maybe say more i love you’s than normal. try to facetime more. memorize ur face. memorize ur voice. i’ll end up in my bed crying about it, hating myself bc im the ppl i used to make fun of. crying over a relationship that was never a relationship? pathetic. pathetic the way i loved and still love u.)

(i still haven’t listened to the new song. and i don’t think i can ever listen to her without my heart hurting bc i’ll be thinking of u.)

[bafflement]

Ozqrow Week Day 6 - Text Messages

Went in a rather different direction for this one, but eh, It is what it is. Eleven down, six to go. (The missing one will be posted later, it sort of, well, evolved.)

When the urgent text came through to Qrow’s scroll it was unexpected enough that he almost dropped it. Robyn sniggered at him, watching him fumble and he sent her a wounded look as he righted it, checking to see who had texted him at this time of day. He blinked at the sender ID, why would Oz need to contact him now of all times? Weren’t they all on the way to Vacuo anyway? His stomach sank at the implications, but surely everything would have gone just fine? It always had before… oh why hadn’t he been there? Yeah, that was right, he was worried his semblance would screw things up. He hadn’t been there, it was just a text to let him know everybody was safe… right?

The message blinked at him, unopened. The tag marked it as urgent and Qrow swallowed hard, tapping it with shaking fingers.

‘Qrow. Get to Vacuo, they… some of them fell, I couldn’t save them, I just… just get here. Please?” Qrow felt his heart shatter, knowing by the fact Oz hadn’t specified who the likely victims were. If it hadn’t been the girls, then Oz would have reassured him. As it stood… who else had they lost? I could feel Oz’s heartbreak through the text, as few words as it was. Had he lost Weiss, too? WERE the girls okay? He fumbled to call him, to ask for an explanation. He had to know if he’d lost one or both of his nieces to this. They’d been so young, far too young to die like that.

No, no he couldn’t think that, they would be okay. They had to be, right? It was Yang and Ruby, they were fine. His girls, for all that he wasn’t actually their parent, they were still his as much as they were Tai’s. As much as they had been Summer’s. Far more than they’d ever been Raven’s.

Oz picked up on the second ring, his voice sounding raw as though from hours of sobbing. It was worse than even Qrow could have thought. Not just Yang and Ruby and Weiss, but Jaune and Blake, too? They’d lost over half the kids, just getting to Vacuo? He wanted to scream at Oz, to blame him but brothers, he had sounded just as broken as Qrow felt. Besides, he knew damn well that Pocketsized would never have left them to fall under his own power. However he’d got through the portal, Qrow sincerely doubted it had actually been by choice, Oz would never have left his students, would have gone after them. What the hell had happened there, then? Oz had said something about Cinder, though from the roaring in Qrow’s ears, he hadn’t really heard all of it. They’d fallen, he’d lost them. The closest things he had to daughters. He stared into the distance as the call disconnected, Oz’s frantic apologies going all but unacknowledged. Oh, he knew none of this was Oz’s fault, but still… he had been there, he should have protected them. Yes, Qrow needed to get to Vacuo, needed to ask those left behind how the girls had died… vanished. They’d vanished, they’d disappeared. Oz had only said fallen, after all. He’d never actually said they were dead.

Robyn was staring at him, looking deeply concerned. She’d only heard about half the conversation, but from what she’d gathered, it was bad. Part of her wondered why the half heard voice on the other end sounded like Wintertip Pine of all people, not to mention why Qrow was calling him Oz, but that could wait in the face of his obvious grief. She opened her mouth only to close it again, she would be no real help right now. She rather doubted anything really would.

Qrow sobbed for half an hour or so, his mind conjuring up worse and worse scenarios. Oz had seemed pretty certain that the girls weren’t actually dead, but ‘not dead’ wasn’t really the best of situations either. He could think of a great many scenarios that might make mere death a mercy, oh how was he ever going to tell Tai about this? He’d been charged with protecting them and, even by staying away, he had failed in that task. He punched the tale next to him hard enough to splinter the wood, wishing it was the spirit that had given the kids the means to travel to Vacuo. Why hadn’t he realised that there would be a trap? He knew why Oz hadn’t, he always believed the best in everybody, even after that whole… thing… with Jinn. But Qrow? He’d always prided himself on being more cynical than most, more cautious. Why hadn’t he questioned the plan the kids had made more carefully? Yes, he’d still been in Atlas, but still… why had he hesitated? He groaned to himself, already making plans. He needed to be in Vacuo, if nothing else, maybe he could ensure that the last thing his nieces might have ever achieved would not be in vain? They had worked to give hope, it was about time he worked towards that same goal.

And who knew, if they really were all alive, maybe Remnant would end up getting that happy ending?

[blueamphibians]

My moms brand of homophobia is the only kind i will ever accept. Its so weirdly wholesome.

Despite her being hardcore christian, she actually never bought up LGBTQ stuff to me and my sister--not in the "its taboo" way, but in the "i am more focused on instilling proper morals in my children and LGBTQ stuff isn't even on my radar."

So obv that meant i had a super positive exposure to it when i found out, because no-one had ever told me it was bad. I found out gay people existed and went "makes sense" and moved on yk?

But back to her homophobia: She lives by a very strong rule of "its not my place to judge them, it's gods," so while she does think being LGBTQ is against the bible, she also doesn't think its her place to comment.

She DOES however think that its her place to be gracious to everybody because God is going to judge HER too, at the end. So this brings me to my favorite story ab her, right.

So our country is VERY conservative to the point where being LGBTQ can get you quietly fired or in extreme cases deported. The place she works regularly flies in staff from abroad though, and they're usually highly LGBTQ-friendly.

So my mom comes home one day, more stressed than usual, and i ask her whats up. And she goes "I had to warn one of the abroad staff not to talk about gender studies with the locals here", and i got prissy and went "why? because its wrong?" and she looked at me and went "No, because they're being nice to his face but what if they go and say something behind his back?"

Like her first instinct was to protect this man who didn't realize just what the environment here was like. And then she drove him around the city trying to help him find a touristy gift for his husband and even suggested different places to try even though she didn't have too.

Like sure my mom is homophobic but her morals clash so STRONGLY with the ideas of hate that she ends up being an ally. I lowkey came out to her one day by going "what would you do if i liked girls"

and she said "well. Id be sad because its wrong and I want you to go to heaven."

and i said "but how would you treat my wife? would you be nice to her?"

and she went "well, yes, of course--" and i went "what if i don't think its wrong?" and she went "well i cant force you but id like if you read the bible more :("

its worth noting that she was so uncomfortable during this conversation, which was so surreal for her, that she started cry laughing in the coffee shop because i was being really intense.

My mother is homophobic but shes also tolerant and so fucking kind and yk those are the kinds of people i can coexist with. She's the kind of person to see a gay coworker get fired and get upset, not because he's gay, but because her workplace had the audacity to fire somebody so experienced.

All this to say: I love my mom.

Side note, my roommate is homophobic (i don't blame her, and its not like shes doing harm) and I'm actually really open to being friends with her because shes kind as fuck and tactful. So yeah, its nice to coexist i guess

EDIT: also. My mom is like, really bad at being homophobic. Like she "knows" its wrong, but she gets really confused when she tries to explain why. And she doesn't actually...do anything homophobic. She sees men in heavy makeup and goes "wow....his eyeshadow is so good..." and then Side Eyes Me

idk. Shes a really good person. The only people I've seen her go "they should be harmed" about is like, r*pists and shit. Doubling down: I love my mom.