#like the broken sense of family here is absolutely insane

[cgogs]

Im sorry but the sheer thought of briar coming back home from a long adventure to return nettle (the sister he never wanted, the final straw that broke his and mom's connection) safely to her parents (HIS parents first) and just jtdktxjtzitxegagdsh nettle keeps saying dream is dying and briar just having a very spiteful but horrifically sad thought "i knew sam would kill him sooner or later" like KILL MEEEEE FUCK

NO THATS EXACTLY WHAT HES THINKINGGGG THATS EXACTLY IT like he thinks sam did something Bad. Nettle eventually tells him hes just really, really sick and they cant figure out whats wrong. Ok thats easy, sam ruined his immune system. Hes getting older. Its been 15 years. Come on.

And he keeps this hardened persona towards his mom until hes standing on the hill looking at his house and his little sister lets go of his hand to go running down yelling for her daddy and he realizes his mom is RIGHT THERE and sam is killing him whether literally or not. Hes got to go.

[anna-scribbles]

Any songs on the tortured poets department or the anthology that remind you of Emilie agreste or any other ML character? (though I know Emilie’s your special interest) I feel like the albatross and I can do it with a broken heart remind me so much of Adrien, and I always love your Taylor swift lyric analysis posts.

EXCELLENT question considering taylor swift just released an emilie agreste album. (and you’re so right about the adrien songs i definitely thought so too.) there were 6 songs that stood out to me as emilie songs, the first being:

I Can Fix Him, No Really I Can

this one is. well. it’s obvious that emilie is into toxic men. i love the idea that when she first got entangled with gabe, he was just an absolute broke problematic punk bisexual disaster (we can't ignore the harriel evidence) who her parents hated sooooo bad. and like literally everybody was so right that he was bad news but emilie was so confident that she could fix him until she finally realized that she was fr dying and he was actually going to terrorize the world about it. oops.

I Can Do It With A Broken Heart

already mentioned as an adrien song (which it is) but emilie and adrien are admittedly very similar and this song hits on exactly why. it’s about having such a tight control on how you’re perceived by others, putting on a fake persona that can be idolized and adored by everyone no matter how you’re feeling inside. it’s about being SO good at your job that you can’t actually get out of it. accidentally mythologizing yourself. losing your grasp of what is performance vs authenticity. you get it

Clara Bow

OKAY THIS ONE MAKES ME CRAAAZY. okay okay okay. so SPEAKING of accidentally mythologizing yourself, the song clara bow hits on a lot of the same themes as icdiwabh but there's this added sense of inevitable circularity to it that just drives me insane. I especially think a lot about adrien almost inheriting his mother's space in the public eye - the way emilie's acting career and universal adoration paved the way for adrien to be famous from birth, the kind of fame that makes his life almost unlivable at times. the whole bridge articulates it beautifully, I think - "beauty is a beast that roars down on all fours/demanding more" and "it's hell on earth to be heavenly." the idea that the world demands beauty from emilie, and she gives and gives until her ambition eventually breaks her, and she passes the performance down to adrien. and he takes up the mantle. the future's bright, dazzling.

Chloe or Sam or Sophia or Marcus

so again, we return to the alleged bisexual punk disaster youth of gabriel agreste😭 this song is mostly related to my personal way that I imagine gabe and emilie's early years lol. I imagine that one of the things that drew emilie to gabe initially was that he was so opposite of the way her british nobility family was, and she was trying to escape that life. but eventually, once the money and success got to him, he became someone exactly like the family she once ran from. and she became different too, in a way she always regretted. hence the "say that I loved you the way that you were." the part of this song that feels VERY emilie to me is the "I changed into goddesses, villains, and fools/changed plans and lovers and outfits and rules/all to outrun my desertion of you." I think that emilie is very malleable, easily adapting her personality and presentation to fit whoever she's trying to please at the moment. but she never plans to stick around for long.

I Hate It Here

this one makes me laugh bc "I'd say the 1830's but without all the racists😒" ABSOLUTELY feels like something emilie agreste would say😭 and feel like she cured racism. but as for the actual song, I see emilie as always tending toward escapism. no matter how content she's trying to be in her situation, she's always stitching together an escape plan in the back of her mind. she doesn't like being tied down. she's such a romantic, and constantly disappointed by reality. always planting secret gardens in her mind

The Bolter

THE BOLTER!!!!! IS THE EMILIE AGRESTE SONG OF ALL TIME. TO ME. okay okay every single line but especially verse 2. "he was a cad, wanted her bad/just like any good trophy hunter/and she liked the way it tastes" just SAY gabriel and emilie. just say it. also the "splendidly selfish, charmingly helpless" SCREAMS emilie to me. one of the first things that ever came to me about emilie was her being flighty and kind of unreliable, as well as deeply attention seeking. I think of her as someone who gets restless if she's in the same place for too long, who has trouble with commitment. it's easy for her to feel trapped, and her impulse is always to break free. thinking about how content she was to leave behind her loved ones, "there's an escape in escaping" really defines her character to me. and of course it bleeds into adrien's struggle with confinement and tendency to run away when he's feeling unwanted etc etc <3

THANKS FOR ASKING A QUESTION SO RELEVANT TO MY CURRENT INTERESTS<3 umm I will throw in a bonus adrien song which is robin. ok goodnight

[sombredancer]

Asian dramas and familial dynamics

There are my favorite familial dynamics as a list.

Brotherly love

Drama: The Untamed / 陈情令 Characters: Wei Wuxian & Jiang Wanyin Screentime: Secondary

My favorite brother couple! They tore my heart into million pieces and it's still broken. There is jealousy and love and difficult moral choices between them. Wei Wuxian is an extraordinary man, as the main hero should be. He is brave enough to go against the rules if he feels it's right thing to do, also he is ready to sacrifice himself for the greater good and hides all of his pain tightly inside. Jiang Cheng is a mere person. He is not strong (or insane) enough to put everything on the line, because he shoulders responsibilities for his sect. Although they love each other, Wei Wuxian is ready to die for the truth and chooses to fight if fight is inevitable. Jiang Cheng tries to go the path of "minor evil" and sacrifice his sense of justice in order to save as much as possible. The both views are OK and each goes the chosen by himself path and bears consequences of this choice. Consequences are awful. They are traumatizing. And, what is the biggest pain of mine, they never discussed it. They never found out about sacrifices they both made for each other. They never found out that they still love each other as brothers.

Drama: My Journey to You /云之羽 Characters: Gong Shangjue & Gong Yuanzhi Screentime: Secondary About these two I wrote two posts here and here . In a nutshell: one is carrying the responsibilities for everything and anything, strictly follows the rules and teaches his younger cousin how to live this life. The little cousin is yandere, who is obsessed with his older cousin, has no conscience and does his best to make his cousin's life better. I like this unusual dynamics: they both love each other and care for each other on the same level, even if one of them is yandere.

Master-servant relationship

Drama: Word of Honor / 山河令 Characters: Gu Xiang & Wen Kexing Screentime: Secondary I like this type of dynamics when servants become someone more than just servants to their masters. Chinese drama makers love it and use it a lot, but this scene was so powerful that made me cry. Beautiful transformation from a servant to a family member (unfortunately, post mortem).

Seeking out love

Drama: Word of Honor / 山河令 Characters: Xie Wang & Zhao Jing Screentime: Secondary

Zhao Jing adopted a very skillful and absolutely ruthless killer as his son. The killer is self-confident and does his job playfully, but his weakness is his passionate desire to be loved by his adoptive father. He feels that Zhao Jing just uses him for his skills and will throw him away as soon as his adoptive father will not need his skills anymore, so he even paralyze his adoptive father to force him being always near. He ends up not being capable to choose his life over his father's and dies with him. A very sad type of addiction with "A little mermaid" type of moral: you can bring the whole world upside down, but if one doesn't love you, one will not, no matter what.

Drama: Painted Skin 2020 /画皮 Characters: Wang Sheng & Xiao Wei Screentime: Main In this B̶L̶ version of Painted Skin Chinese legend the fox demon is male and wants to get one of the humans that brought him home. But humans love each other, no one is interested in a fox demon, so he makes them pay for their previous kindness with blood, sweat and tears. In the end the demon gets a human heart, feels something (e.g. how hard it is to be a human) and makes up one more lie, giving to the soul of the man he wanted for himself a strand of his own hair instead of human's wife's hair in order to meet him in another life. The same moral as in the previous drama. The same sadness.

[stuckysimp]

Azzano

Summary: Stuck in Azzano, Bucky reflects on the horrors of war

TW: Torture, war, mentions of suicide

Word Count: 1112

Despite all the stories, the propaganda, and the warnings of veteran soldiers, absolutely nothing could have prepared Bucky for this.

The long, treacherous walks, the sleepless nights in tents on the hard, unforgiving earth, and being cramped up in those trenches next to dying men, just praying desperately that he wouldn’t have to be sentenced to a slow death. He knew that even if he somehow survived this, somehow got back home, there would always be some piece of him stuck back here amongst the gunfire and screams of broken men.

He hated the trenches the most. Being stuck, confined, with absolutely nowhere to run. Forced to kill, to watch as men were blown up, shot, and died of disease. Eating the horrid, shitty rations that were portioned out, clinging to the small hope that they would last. Having little rest, constantly on alert in case of an attack. Even when he did sleep, it was never for long, constantly plagued with nightmares and paranoia. Always ready. Always fighting.

He wished he didn’t, but he understood now.

He understood why the men who’d come home had shot themselves, woken up screaming, begged with wild ramblings not to go back.

To never be sent back.

The worst of it was that Bucky didn’t even really have anything to go back to. He hated it, but it was the truth. Both of his parents had passed, and his sister had her own life with her own family. All he really had was Steve and he knew, deep down, that even when he’d left Steve didn’t have long. In the best case scenario, he’d come home to have maybe a couple more years with him before he was killed by the fucking flu or something. It was so unbelievably stupid and horrible, it made Bucky want to scream, to cry, to just end it all. But he didn’t. He just kept moving. Kept fighting. Kept talking with the other soldiers. Kept singing their songs to keep the facade of hope. Kept listening to their stories about their families, their lives, and their partners waiting back at home for them. Kept going forward.

He supposed it was something. At least he had the other soldiers with him. He had some sense of friendship, some way to not be completely lost, completely alone. He just hated seeing them die. Losing his friends… fucking hell, they were more than that now. After everything, they were practically family.

In the end, despite everything, it didn’t matter how hard he tried. It didn’t matter how long he’d spent trying to cling to his own delusional hope that he’d get back home, that he’d get to be with Steve, hell maybe even have something resembling a family. It didn’t matter how many nights he’d spent curled up on the ground, under the sheet that was barely enough to protect him from the wind, the fucking sheet that he’d dared call a tent. It didn’t fucking matter.

Hydra had gotten to them anyway, and as Bucky had sat in the cramped cells with the other soldiers, he knew he was done for. He’d heard all about the experiments the Nazis and Hydra were doing on their prisoners through the stories that had spread through the camps.

He was a fucking goner. He was going to die. In some alien country. All alone.

He had seen Hydra agents begin to take soldiers away. At first, no one knew what was going to happen, it seemed like Hydra was slowly picking them off, one by one. Then it started in small groups. The worst part was, none of them came back, so the remaining soldiers could only assume the worst. They didn’t even know how much time had passed, it could have been days, weeks even. All they could do was sit and wait, sit and wait for whatever the fuck waited for them once they were taken away. He’d seen some soldiers try to take their own lives, driven to the point of insanity by the confinement, and they’d all been dragged away with their screams echoing down the halls.

He was just glad he didn’t have anything to throw up.

Bucky didn’t regret much in his life, not really. All in all, he’d had a pretty decent run considering the circumstances. The only thing he wished he’d done before he’d left, was tell Steve how much he meant to him. How much he loved him.

He’d heard a bat, scraping against the bars as Hydra soldiers approached the cells. He knew what was coming. He knew he would be next, he could feel it, in the pit of his stomach. He wouldn’t be granted the mercy of a quick death. No, the world wasn’t that kind. Maybe his fatigue would take him before the Nazi assholes got the satisfaction of taking his life. At least then he wouldn’t have given himself to Hydra. He wouldn’t have let them win.

When he was grabbed and dragged out of the cell, he’d wedged his foot in the door, shoving them off him before trying to scramble for a gun. If he could save someone, anyone, then Hydra wouldn’t win. He couldn’t let them win. Dammit, he couldn’t let them win!

His attempts had of course been futile, and he’d been quickly knocked unconscious. The rest of it was a blur, in and out of sedation. He remembered needles, pain, echoing voices, and harsh lights. He remembered a chair, he remembered struggling, he remembered feeling like he was dying. Was he dying? Was he finally dying?

The training was one thing he was glad for, it gave him something to focus on, just a few simple things to remember.

“Sergeant James Barnes, 32557038.”

Over and over again.

It meant that no matter what they screamed at him, no matter what they hit him with, no matter what they put him through, at least he wasn’t a traitor. He wasn’t a bad soldier. He wasn’t a bad person. He had to make him proud. Steve, he had to make him proud. That way, when he got the letter of his death, he’d at least know that he’d died fighting. He was sure he’d know. He’d feel it. His Steve, he’d feel it.

Even now, lying on the cold metal of the table, he could just focus on those words.

“Sergeant James Barnes, 3…32557038.”

He could drown out the pain, ignore his aching body, the ringing in his ears.

“Sergeant… Sergeant J-James Barnes, 32557038.”

The world was murky, fading in and out of his vision, like he was underwater. Drowning. Was he drowning?

“Sergeant James Barnes, 32557038.”

[yurisorcerer]

I think Girls Band Cry has finally edged out Jellyfish as my girl band show of the season, and probably my favorite overall as well. I caved and caught up with the other group doing fansubs (their translations are on par, although the subs themselves aren't as fancy), and I just....wow. There's a lot to process here. This post is going to be long.

So, Nina's pa is aware of her faltering grades and now that she's talked to her sister about the band, her family is probably going to know all about that soon as well. Naturally, she has not told any of this to said band. The girl's natural inclination to simply Not Tell People Things is going to absolutely blow up in the second half of the show, I'm sure.

The use of traditional flat animation to convey the past---bygone periods of one's life, memories that have gotten hazy in the recollection---is probably the smartest thing Girls Band Cry does visually. Other uses of 2D animation in the series can feel like a concession, these very much do not.

Of course I wrote that and then they did the broken glass split shot thing when Momoka announced she was leaving the band, so I don't know. The series is just very inventive, visually, and I like that, even if most of the visual symbolism is not necessarily subtle.

Mine, the character in red who's given a supporting role here for what is honestly not a ton of screentime, makes an immense impact in the brief amount that she's on screen. We have somebody here who is herself not "successful" in the broad-stroke pop star sense, but who is clearly at least getting by and making a living with her music. It's inspiring, in a way, and I think that Nina might feel that way too.

I've avoided using the P-word much in my writing lately, because I think it's easy to attribute to passion all sorts of other emotions that might be described better with other terms, but if we read this work as a reflective one, we can assume that the people working on it feel similarly to Mine about their own profession. Things can be difficult, they can be hard, but you push through for your own sake. Because, if you're really that devoted to what you're doing, you almost have to.

In another piece of awesome yet obvious visual symbolism, when Nina redoubles her commitment to the band, she runs to a nearby lake and happens to catch the start of a fireworks show. I kind of love this series.

In episode 7's final moments, in the middle of a concert, the band, which has remained nameless for the entire first half of the show, is finally (and hastily) christened Togenashi Togenari. A literal line-of-sight name, because Nina is an insane person.

Episode 8 opens on a flashback, immediately reflecting Nina's current desire to drop out of school with Momoka's past plan to do the exact same thing. This entire section is flat animated, which to me is enough evidence to confirm that the show's usage of 2D animation to represent the past is an intentional stylistic choice.

Momoka remarks that if Diamond Dust gives themselves an escape route from their desire to make it big, they'll definitely end up using it rather than succeeding, so they shouldn't make one. It's interesting to note that this is the same philosophy that no less an artist than Eminem once advocated. I'm not sure it's the best advice, necessarily, but you can't deny the drive.

Subaru correctly points out that Nina's drive to succeed isn't as far-fetched as it seems, given various factors (those listed include; Tomo & Rupa being somewhat notable indie musicians, Momoka being an ex member of Diamond Dust to begin with, an endorsement on Twitter from another singer, etc.) Nina's plan is no plan---the same that Momoka had as a teenager---no escape routes, no backup plans.

It's notable that Nina's memories don't get the 2D treatment, and I think that may be because unlike Momoka, she's not romanticizing her own past. Momoka, we can clearly see by this point, is guilty of seeing Nina as a slightly younger version of herself in too literal a sense. She thinks that because she failed with Diamond Dust, she'll fail with Togenashi Togenari too, and that Nina will fail with Togenashi Togenari too, because "that's how these things go." She fails to consider that the only data point she's operating off of is her own, and what the final scene---and the inevitable confrontation with the renewed Diamond Dust---tells us, which is that the original group splitting up might have been best for both them and Momoka.

And then there's the final scene, which I find hard to put into words. It's just so much. Momoka cranking her own old song, crying her eyes out, as Nina says she loves her (!!!!!) as they speed down the highway. This show is unhinged. I love it to pieces.

Truly we are in the middle of a girls band revolution. I never like to promise these things, but I might review this when it's over.

Worth noting! The show TRENDED ON TWITTER FOR SEVERAL HOURS after this episode aired. It really does feel like an *event.* I haven't seen this many people pop for an original anime in ages.

[imjustwritingg]

After that episode, what are your thoughts on Petrovic? I feel like I start to like her then she does/says something and my opinion on her changes. I think if she was staying next season and Tracy wasn't leaving, it could have been an interesting partnership for them going forward

I once again went on a bit of a tangent, so my response is below the cut. 🫶🏼

TW // alcoholism, addiction, drug use

I was indifferent about Jo at first because I knew I wouldn’t be watching after Tracy was gone and I didn’t want to get attached to a new character, but she has grown on me and I really like her.

I hate that we only just met her halfway through the season because I really like who she is and her story, and I would have loved to see more of the dynamic between her and Hailey. I feel like they work well together, and there are similarities between them that really allow them to resonate with each other with Jo’s struggle and Hailey’s past with her dad. They just mesh well and like I said in my unofficial review, the chemistry between Bojana and Tracy is absolutely insane to me, and so incredible. It’s a shame we won’t get to see more of it because I agree with you in that Hailey and Jo could have had a really interesting partnership, maybe even a solid friendship between them.

I think the way Jo’s character speaks and acts and how she deals with things is unique to her situation as a functioning, but still struggling alcoholic. What they’re doing with her is oddly comforting to me in a way because I feel like they’re doing it the right way. So far, at least.

Alcoholism is a crippling disease. It destroys people, it destroys families, and takes years to rebuild the relationships and trust that have been broken because of it, if they can ever be rebuilt at all. I don’t think you can truly appreciate or understand Jo’s character to the fullest extent if you haven’t known someone in your life who has struggled with addiction, or you haven’t struggled with it yourself.

I’m gonna get personal here for a second, but for me it was my biological mom. She has struggled with alcohol and drugs her entire life and to this day, I don’t have a relationship with her. Which is why it was so easy for me to clock what Jo’s secret was, because I’ve lived with it and have seen it firsthand.

I don’t think people gave Jo a fair shake when she first appeared on the show. I saw a lot of people kind of just write her off and say, “oh, it’s Tracy’s replacement,” and while that may be true if she sticks around, I don’t think it’s a fair thing to say. We knew Tracy was leaving, and Jesse was already gone, so it makes sense for them to bring in new blood to the show the same way they did with Torres’ character.

I’ve also seen people make jokes and comments about Jo and how she’s a drunk and a floozy and give her awful nicknames because of it, and I think it’s an incredibly ignorant take, especially for those that struggle with the disease in real life.

Maybe I’m biased because I can relate to Jo’s story, but all this to say, I like the character and I like what they’re doing with her and I really hope they do the character justice with the story they’ve presented. Bojana is an incredible actress and she can clearly pull it off, the same way Jon Seda did when the writers went the route they did with Antonio and his drug addiction. I don’t think they handled that storyline as well as they could have, so hopefully they do it better this time around.

[ananxiousgenz]

SONG FOR A CAGED LOVEBIRD: PART 15

wow. wowie wow wow. this section got me up to a little over 19,500 K. that's fucking INSANE homie!!!

this section took me a while to work out bc i knew what points i wanted to hit but not the order I wanted to do them in, so I had to break some stuff apart and rearrange it. hopefully this makes sense? this sections got a weird energy to it and i'm not sure why. but we are in the home stretch of this fic guys!!!! maybe like 3 or 4 more chapters max and then it is FINISHED, which is so crazy to me

alsoooo enjoy some bonus content!! aka me singing a lil bit of epic iii in honor of this absolutely insane milestone

HEY GANG IT'S FRESH FOOD: @smidgen-of-hotboy @ceaseless-watchers-special-girl @urjover @waters-and-the-wilde @gwenlena

@demonic-panini @the-private-eye @one-joe-spoopy

Voices singing in harmonies, orbiting in perfect rhythm, chasing like the sun and moon across the sky, echoed in the deafening silence of Hadestown.

The workers had stopped showing up a few days ago. Wouldn’t pick up their pickaxes or lay a hand on their wheelbarrows. Slowly, the factories ground to a halt. The furnaces died down. The wall stopped being built. And for the first time in a long, long time, the workers didn’t care.

They took beatings from the executives with a smile and a song on their lips, a song that spoke of unity in the face of loss with a melody that grew like creeping thyme through the town. It had been a while since Peter had heard Juno’s voice, but he knew. Even from this distance, he knew it was him. His strong, clear voice helixing through the air with another voice that he assumed must have been Ben’s. And the world stopped its ceaseless grind and listened.

And from his gilded cage in Slip’s office, Peter watched with no small amount of pride as his beloved husband brought the hell of Hadestown to a screeching halt.

Slip stormed back and forth in his office. Nureyev had been up here for…. Well, he wasn’t quite sure, but his best guess was a week. Slip had taken him up here after his executives had beaten Juno and left him for dead. Something about how he didn’t want him associating with those kinds of people anymore. 

Nureyev knew that was bullshit. There was something else at play here, something he saw as clearly as if the sun were shining down through the rock overhead.

Slip was afraid of Juno. 

He could see it with every furious step and angry huff. An undercurrent of fear laced his every move. Juno had crossed some sort of line, broken some sort of spell that Slip was afraid might never be put back into place. He was getting more erratic and scattered as the days went by. And for some reason that Nureyev couldn’t quite explain, a well of dread was beginning to bubble up in the pit of his stomach.

After all, it’s the scared animals that are the most dangerous.

“Godsdammit all, why won’t they work anymore?” Slip snarled, steps heavy but quick as he paced across the room.

Nureyev turned his gaze coolly away from the window. “Don’t know. Maybe they realized the lies and bullshit you’ve been feeding them!”

“Keep talking like that and I’ll leave you right where I left your precious husband.”

“Oh, I don’t know, he seems to be doing quite well for himself so far, considering he’s brought your whole town to a standstill.”

Slip stopped pacing like a frustrated predator and stared at Nureyev. Nureyev wasn’t scared. He’d already lost so much to this man he could barely remember. What was losing a little more? He stared right back, almost daring Slip to make a move.

“What else did you expect, Slip? You lie to these people for years, force them to work for nothing, keep them away from their homes and families, and expect they’ll be happy? That they’ll listen when you speak? That they’ll care about you and your opinions?” His motions were jerky with a deep set anger and hurt that was starting to burn hotter than the heart of the Hadestown furnaces.

Slip’s jaw was beginning to tremble, but in rage or fear or pain, Nureyev couldn’t tell.

Go on. Tell him. Tell him what he needs to hear.

“How long did you think they’d put up with this before they turned on you? How long do you think they’d wait for you to change?”

How long did he think you’d wait for him, little songbird?

“They’ll put up with it for as long as I am in charge of this town.”

Nureyev sighed deeply. “You don’t get it, do you?”

“What is there to get, Petya? That these people don’t comprehend the logic of a business?” 

Slip threw his arms open wide. Even now, even with all his power and might and control, he still looked like what he had been the last time Peter had ever really known him: a small, scared kid.

“They’re going to destroy everything I’ve ever worked for. Everything I ever built for you. And all because of that husband of yours and his fucking music.” 

“Everything you built….for me?”

Slip sighed, and his expression softened slightly. “Of course. I made this town for you. I was going to show you all of its wonders. But you never came to find me, like you said you would. Remember?”

Peter couldn’t. Not at first, anyway. But slowly and surely, a memory began to creep back into his consciousness. 

He was young. Couldn’t have been more than 12 or 13. The last of summer was still in the air. Slip had just finished telling him the old Story of Hades and Persephone, a story the two of them shared like their stolen food and blankets. Peter had cracked some kind of joke, something about the two gods in the story being a perfect pair because one could kill you and the other could dispose of your remains, and he and Slip were howling with laughter.

When the laughing had died down, Slip turned to Peter, suddenly serious. “Petya, can you promise me something?”

“Of course, my love, anything.”

“If one of us dies before the other… can we send a message to them from Hades? So the one that’s still living knows to go get them?”

“Slip, don’t talk like that. No one is going to die!”

“I know, I know, but…. Just in case, you know? If I die, I’ll send you a sign. A huge sign. I’ll…. I’ll get rid of the spring altogether! I’ll keep Persephone locked up in the underworld until you come to find me!”

That sent them both into another peal of unstoppable laughter.

And then the memory faded away, and Nureyev was left standing in the office, facing a man he had known so well decades ago, but didn’t know anymore.

“I should have brought you down here sooner, you know,” Slip said, chewing on his lip. “I thought, if I can take Persephone’s reincarnation and keep him down here, and change the world above, he will notice and come for me. Surely, if I just hold out a little longer, if I just let the winter go a little longer, let him starve a little longer, he’ll remember the promise he made to me. He’ll come to find me. But no.

“Instead, you moved on. Grew up. Got a respectable job. Even got married! All while you left me to fester down here. But it’s okay, my love. I don’t blame you. No. It’s all that Juno Steel’s fault.”

Nureyev suddenly realized his mouth and throat had gone bone dry, and a slightly manic gleam had entered Slip’s eyes.

“He stole you away from me. He’s what’s keeping us apart. You know, I should have killed him when I had the chance. Maybe I can still kill him now. You wouldn’t happen to know which of my workers he’s associating with, would you, Petya, dear? Maybe I could hurt them too.”

Peter’s whole body went rigid with fear. 

“Don’t you fucking dare.”

He could barely make his hands shape the words. The sudden adrenaline rush made him shiver. He could barely imagine the pain Juno felt when he woke up and discovered his lover was gone. He couldn’t imagine having to go through the same pain.

Slip just looked back at him, face calm and still and eyes shining as he slid into the chair behind his desk, and Nureyev knew. If he made one false move, Juno would suffer the consequences. He swallowed hard.

An executive rapped on the door. “The leader is here to discuss negotiations, my associate.”

Slip’s eyes never left Nureyev’s face. “Of course. Bring them in. You might want to stay for this, Petya. I’m sure you’ll find it interesting.”

Nureyev didn’t move a muscle.

A moment later, Juno stumbled through the door, an executive hot on his heels, and Peter couldn’t decide if he should let out the breath he was holding or grab his lover by the shoulders and sprint out of the room. Maybe both.

Once Juno regained his balance, he glanced around the room until his eye rested on Peter, and a soft, relieved smile inched onto his face.

“Hey, babe, what’s going on? Where have you been?” he said gently, taking a few steps in Peter’s direction. 

Peter wanted so badly to run to him, to kiss him, to leave town and never look back. But Slip’s threat had been genuine. He knew that. He stayed where he was, silently willing Juno to read the room and get the hell out.

“Mr. Steel. I will kindly ask you to keep your conversation directed to me, seeing as I am your host here.”

The smile fell from Juno’s face, and a mix of determination, fear, and hope appeared in its place. Simultaneously, a wave of dread crashed over Peter like a tsunami. Gods above, he wanted to throw up.

Juno bowed his head slightly in a greeting. “Slip.”

Slip bowed his head in response. “Let’s skip the pleasantries, shall we?”

“Sounds like a plan to me.”

“What the hell do you mean by shutting down my whole town, Mr. Steel? I knew you were a troublesome one, but I never knew you had the guts to take it this far.”

“Oh, this isn’t my doing. It’s theirs,” Juno said simply, pointing out the window to the gathered crowd of workers partying in the street. “They decided they’ve had enough of being treated this way, so they decided to stop showing up. I had almost nothing to do with it.”

Slip leaned forward over his desk. “But you are the one who taught them that song, right?”

“And what if I am?”

“That still makes you an accomplice. You gave them the song that they unified around, and that would be considered a crime down here. And now that I’ve got you in my office, right in front of me, well…. I suppose it only makes sense that I punish you. I suppose you’ve been told how we punish those who step out of line down here?”

Juno’s jaw was set. He nodded. Peter wanted to scream.

Slip stood. “Very well then. Do you have any last words before we dispose of you?”

And suddenly, Juno looked very calm. Calm and careful, but still living up to his last name, with features set like quenched metal.

It took a moment, but Peter realized knew that look. He knew it very well. He knew it from all the nights of playing cards with Buddy or figuring out how to stack a new shipment of crates or watching him discover a new piece of the never ending puzzle that was his song.

That look meant that Juno had a plan.

The smallest spark of hope ignited in Peter’s gut.

And then Juno opened his mouth, and began to sing the song of spring.

[classificationhell]

HELLO DEAREST! Good evening/day I just wanted to say that YOU ARE SO CREATIVE WITH YOUR MEMES don't ever stop AND I CAN'T STOP WHEEZING BECAUSE IT'S SO CUTE, YOU SO CUTE😭😭😭😭💛

Anyway is it ok to ask what if reader was isolated in the palace(because you know why) and reader had enough and let her curiosity win over her gut so when Lucifer was asleep hugging/cuddling her behind she slowly escaped from his iron grip. Got the keys and the only thing to do was unlock the door, since she thought it was just another room because of Lucifer gaslighting, blinded from the light that was from the other side she took a step forward as a rushing adrenaline rushed through her veins "oh shit luci will be mad mad" "I sense danger so what do we do? CORRECT GO TOWARDS IT"

Reader got her phone and went to charlie's hotel, excited to see Charlie again reader didn't realize the angry devil behind her.

Okay I reread this and I'm very flattered about everything and wheezed for a good five minutes, but I kinda don't get the ask.

Mourningstar is yandere and since his family is dead that Reader can't escape to a hotel. However, normal Lucifer could probably become yandere given enough push, like if Reader got really hurt by Sinners, maybe almost killed with an angelic bullet or something, he'd freaking lose it and might like Reader away under the guise of safety. In this case, Lucifer would absolutely freak out when his Little is missing. What if they regressed somewhere dangerous?! What if they got caught in the crossfire of another gang war?!

Charlie would be happy to see Reader but concerned with her father's behavior. Obviously she still loves him thoigh and doesnt want to see him completely broken, or want him to go on a rampage so she cant just keep you a secret. She'll let him know where you are, but won't agree to giving you back. She says he's welcome to visit or move in, but you need interaction with other people, or it's neglecting your social needs and might drive you insane after a while.

Of course, this would lead to him moving in, and he'd keep you cooped up in the Hotel, but hey, at least there's other people here now, and your gilded cage is a lot bigger. I mean, it's progress right?

[eldenturtle]

My husband is playing Jedi survivor and I’m sitting doing nothing but drinking coffee, so here are some thoughts I have about characters in Elden Ring, and other stuff (Feel free to correct me if I’m wrong):

I feel like in a lot of ways, I respect the bosses when I’m fighting them or even when they’re dead bc they did put up such a challenge and you have to really learn them and their moves. Now this doesn’t make me not have “STUPID FRICKIN BOSS HE’S SO STUPID THATS BROKEN UGH I HATE THIS” moments, but like even Margitt who drove me insane, I kinda respect.

I feel for Godrick because in his family (and in the game) he’s so bad and weak (not that he isn’t hard to beat, but come on, in comparison?). And you can even tell he’s done the grafting to gain more power and try to be stronger. When he kills you in his second form he asks if Godfrey is watching, which I think points to his desperation to be recognized among the demigods as an equal to the others. He blows chunks, but I just kinda feel for him

Rennala was the most confusing to me absolutely bc she’s so chill kinda?? But then you learn she’s been abandoned and now here she is, and suddenly things make a bit more sense. And all she really wants to be is a mother. I got to her and I was so confused, but I get it. She’s not like, evil. She’s just messed up.

Radhan makes me sad (although I was fussing and hitting pillows bc he kept killing me dead). Because he was this great and powerful guy and now he’s just cursed and miserable?? He used to be kinda a hero and now he roams and eats like a beast and can’t remember himself. I feel like this is such a horrible way to be, I almost think he’d be relieved to be killed if his spirit can go back to normal once his physical body is dead. Idk how any of that works.

I also get emotional about it bc I have grandparents who have suffered from Parkinson’s and they forget themselves and the world around them. My grandma thinks I’m my mom. Or she doesn’t recognize me at all. She calls the nurses at her nursing home useless and yells at them for trying to help her. She breaks into other people’s rooms and doesn’t register what she’s doing wrong. She wasn’t always a nice lady, but she didn’t used to be like this. This is different. My grandfather (on the other side) loved his wife and was faithful to her his entire life. When his mind started failing, he started flirting with other women and grabbing women’s behinds (something he’d have been mortified to know had he been cognizant.)

The loss of self is a kind of recurring thing that really is getting to me. Hits me in my emotions in all the ways. I want to kill Radahn, if only to give him relief. I want to become Elden Lord just to restore the life of the world. When the Shattering happened, the realm and all its inhabitants lost themselves. I really am into it.

[sanguineterrain]

omg just a random ramble (and a bit of a request hehe) about your recent fic about "this is for your own good" Jason:

i don't know if you've seen this scene: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqK4UOMha2Q which is basically where Jason confronts the Joker in Death in the Family (2020) [i think this is the timeline where Bruce is the one who dies but we can take these scenes out of context JSHJS]

But I really, really found the idea of memory repression super interesting - and mix a little pit madness maybe 👀 Think about it, after everything's done, Red Hood's debut and with the finale between him and Batman, Jason comes to and realizes the fucked up things he did to Vigilante!R (the drugging, the chains) while Vigilante!R's left with being a compliant and dependent shell of themself; how do you think he'll approach this? Will he decide to keep her "safe"? Would he try to rehabilitate her himself? Would he let her go? I find it terribly heartbreaking for him to see one of the most important people in his life broken because of him

[also btw, i absolutely love how you characterized Jason here because he seems so detached despite being so obsessed and how there's this false sense of security ughhhh; i feel like the neuron activation monkey every time little details and the sentences you put connect with like with "This is a man who was trained by Batman." to Jason saying "'I know my mistake.'" which then leads to the drugging because that moment was so terribly Batman I could probably write a thesis about it if i had time 🥸 anyways, hope your week was great!]

Oooh just watched that scene! Wow, Joker's dialogue was amazing. I miss the days where superhero movies had meaningful dialogue 😭 absolutely diabolical of him to manipulate Jason like that. The way Jason became a child again when Joker got inside of his head (and he really is young to begin with!) ohhhh my boy 💔

Anyway, I think it's so interesting that most of the reactions to my fic have been requesting a fix it. It's like we love Jason so much, we can't bear to see him go dark 🫶

In my universe, Jason never "realizes his mistake" because I think he'd be in too deep at that point to face what he's done. And protecting someone he loves by any means necessary is very Batman-esque of him. Jason genuinely believes he's doing the right thing, even though it's causing R mental distress. I actually like the idea of the entire Batfamily going dark and helping Jason if the Reader ever seriously escaped. I also think it's interesting if the dynamic shifted over time and Reader used Jason's guard dog personality for their benefit. Jason is truly dedicated to them, that's no lie. They'd make each other worse 🥰

But let's say he did realize his mistake! Honestly, I think Jason wouldn't forgive himself and he'd let them go before doing something really self destructive. Reader would be the only one who could pull him back, and after everything, it's hard to say if they'd want to do that! Jason would've caused them a lot of grief at that point.

But yeah. Maybe I'll write a niceys Jason fic next because it seems like dark Jason makes all of us sad 😂 I admit that it felt weird to write him this way but I enjoyed it too. I think my favorite iteration of Jason is where he's insane and dedicated and wants you soooo bad but he tries so very hard to be normal. He would kill and die and eat people for you but he's super normal :) prommy!

[polysyndetonaddictsupportgroup]

hi hello im back after rereading glaze defects for like the twentieth time at like one am and just!!!! just. this line really struck me: “Stick was a huge dick. He did what was expected for someone who found a kid with no family and superpowers, and he took advantage.”

something abt matt thinking this is expected. not just that if someone knew abt his powers they would exploit him and use him but that it’s something to be expected. from anyone. not that stick was uniquely abusive and terrible but that anyone would do it. i!!!!!! hhhhhhhrn i continue to be So Insane abt this character study apologies for coming here to scream abt it so often. ANYWAY anyway merry christmas if you celebrate that and I hope the end of the year is kind <333

So, you actually pinpointed one of the things that I think is a core trait of Matt Murdock, and one of the biggest distinctions between him and Foggy.

Whenever I'm writing characters in the same story, I always pick a few like, baseline perspectives that are different and filter their world through that. I'm not even gonna take credit for this, because I'm so convinced that it's fundamental to the characters of Matt Murdock and Foggy Nelson that it's all already there.

I think the difference is this:

For Foggy, people are good until proven otherwise, and for Matt, the opposite is true.

And I want to be clear—this isn’t about naïveté, or about trust issues. This is the most base, default world approach as you can get.

It’s like this: 

Foggy's a good person who grows up in a family of good people. They don’t have a lot, but they have each other. The Nelson clan is a big, and they’re people who take care of other people. So, Foggy probably grows up watching his parents give people breaks when they can’t afford full price in the store. He grows up with siblings cousins who probably cover for him when he’s in trouble, who lend him money when he needs it, and who grow up to be the kind of people that he can call up to give free repairs to Karen Page when her apartment is broken into. 

There’s a lot of little moments in life where you can pick to help people, usually at some kind of cost to yourself. Foggy is the kind of person who says “Yes,” to helping those people time and time again. He grew up surrounded by examples of people who did the same. 

Of course, he’s met plenty of people who don’t help people out. But those moments aren’t the expectations. It’s just a day where you ran into one of the assholes of the world. Having people who hurt you, who take advantage of you, who just suck--it’s exceptionalized, in that sense. It’s not rare, but it’s out of the natural order. And they prove it to you that they’re the assholes of the world, so he can take them out of the default pool and into the asshole pool. 

And, again, that’s not to say he’s naive. He’s not. It’s just the mindset at the first meeting. All things being equal, the first time Foggy mets you, he assumes you’re human, and that human beings are people who give each other a hand when needed. Distrust is a learned phenomenon. You have to give Foggy a reason to not trust you. 

Matt, meanwhile, is shown to already be afraid of making rent while he’s growing up. He has no expectation of being given a break. We don’t know the details of what happened after his accident, but we know that his Dad is still worried enough about money that he literally dies putting away money to send Matt to college, so they absolutely got fucked on any settlement. And then, growing up, he gets a front line scene to a bunch of uncomfortable, private moments where people are not their best selves. Matt lives in a world where people don’t give each other breaks. He has people who do, of course--but they’re the exceptionalized ones to him. I think Matt grew up in the kind of world where people had to look out for their own interests, which were never your own. All things being equal, the first time Matt mets you, he assumes you’re human, and that human beings, at the end of the day, look out for their own interests. You have to give Matt reasons to trust you. 

And that’s not to say that Matt thinks people are inherently bad or he’s less kind than Foggy. I think canon shows again and again that, out of the two of them, Foggy considers Matt the soft-hearted one out of the two of them. 

There’s that scene, right? Season 1, Matt and Foggy are walking home having just started their practice, and Foggy’s talking about how he thought it’d be different from bailing out guys who get drunk and burn down their own house, and Matt’s talking about how his wife just left him, right? And later, Foggy’s talking to the guys in the hospital who are about to knife each other, about how not even his soft-hearted partner would take their case. 

If Foggy had to pick a rule of thumb of the universe, he’d say that people generally do good things but sometimes have fuck ups, and he wants to help them in those moments. Everyone has those moments that they regret, right? The bad choices. For Foggy, those are out of the ordinary. The little blips in people’s lives. 

For Matt, I think that’s how people are, and sometimes it’s interrupted with good choices. And he wants to help them anyway. Matt Murdock has incredible anger, but he’s also got an unimaginable amount of kindness to him. He wants to help people, and I think at the same time he does not trust them an inch to not hurt him.

He’s the billion dollar payout, is the thing. Like, I am so convinced that government agencies would kill for Matt Murdock’s power set. You could pour in thousands of hours of manpower and millions of dollars into an espionage operation, and it’s less effective than having Matt Murdock sit on a park bench outside of the Capitol building. That’s not even taking into account his fighting ability.

Matt’s in the uncomfortable position where people have a huge incentive to fuck him over, and not a lot of cost at doing so. All it costs is hurting him, and he’s someone with no resources, no family, no one to miss him--no consequences. And we know from Stick that it wasn’t exactly hard when someone tried to actualize it. Like, you have people in his life, normal people, people who are poor and middle class and rich, and he’s someone who could be a pretty spectacular golden ticket if they figure out the right person to make the payout. And he’s the problem child. The troubled orphan, always fighting, always in trouble, never with a place to stay. Disabled, poor, drain on the fucking system. It’d be so much easier for people to sort of allow themselves to do this bad thing, justify it to themselves as not that bad, and take the big bag of cash and walk away. No one’s looking, because no one’s looking out for Matt. 

Again, this isn’t about whether Matt and Foggy think people are inherently bad, or whether one of them is kind--it’s just the default they start from. Foggy’s waiting for people to give him a reason not to trust from. Matt’s waiting for a reason to trust them--and the bar is just as high as the stakes. They’re several paradigm shifts away from each other, and I think that’s one of the reasons why their love for each other is so radical, and why they clash so much at times. 

I think that’s one of the reasons as to why Foggy was so betrayed by Matt, not telling him all those years. It’s not that he doesn’t understand the importance of not sharing this around--he’d get that the stakes are high, it takes some pretty understandable caution. But Foggy’s known Matt for years, and he’s secure enough in the kind of relationship they had to know that he hasn’t given Matt a reason to distrust him. Matt, meanwhile, just gave him a reason to distrust him. 

Anyway, I think it’s interesting, anyway. The idea that Foggy walks up to people and like, finds them generally trustworthy until they do something two-faced, and Matt probably needs to find a really fuckin’ good reason to start trusting them. It’s one of those really basic ways of viewing the world that people probably don’t consider as something they may be at odds with others about. 

And Foggy’s started to realize it, in glaze defects. Like, there’s this bit about him talking about how horrifying it is that matt grew up waiting for a windowless van to take him away--like, he’s just now realizing that that’s how matt’s always lived. He looks at the world, and he expects people to hurt him, and he doesn’t even particularly hold that fact against them. 

[iwritesmutnottragedy]

It had been almost a week since Sara and Ian's wedding. Her days were spent trying to find her place among the community in Fraser's Ridge, learning the different daily tasks that were expected of her to help maintain an 18th century household. All the while carefully avoiding Ian's cousin Brianna.

She had seen Sara's tattoos the day of the wedding and knew that there was more to her than met the eye. They needed to talk it out and have her explain everything to the curious, intelligent woman, but she was struggling to find the words. After nearly a year of keeping her secret she didn't know how to bring it up.

Though it turns out she didn't have to. One morning while carrying a fresh basket of laundry, Brianna pulled Sara aside so they could speak privately behind the house. "Alright, tell me-- you're not from this time, are you?"

Sara had balked and sputtered out a broken explanation, but Brianna cut her off quickly. "Tell me the truth, please."

She hesitated, stomach tightened into knots. "It's…complicated. but I'll tell you everything-- just promise me you won't tell Ian." Sara begged.

Brianna's words came out of nowhere, catching Sara off guard. But there was no point in denying it, Brianna already sensed something was off about her.

"What makes you think I'm not from this time?" she asked, even though knew the answer already.

Sara took in a deep controlled breath, and looked around to make sure that they were still alone. If she was going to be honest with brianna, she couldn't risk anyone else hearing what she had to say. She gripped the laundry basket tighter in front of her and the words began to spill out of her like a bag of cut sand.

" I was born in the United States of America in the year 1999. " she spoke slowly so that none of her words would be misunderstood. To the average person what she said would sound absolutely insane. But what she didn't know was that Brianna, her mother and her husband were all also from the future. Only, Brianna had been born in 1948, decades before Sara's time.

"I woke up in this time almost a year ago after having gone on a camping trip. Camping is - " she was about to explain when Brianna suddenly interrupted her.

Brianna's eyes widened slightly as she listened to Sara's words, but her surprise was mixed with a hint of understanding that only came from someone who knew the secrets of the stones.

She raised her hand, stopping Sara's explanation. "I know what camping is," she said, a small but understanding smile on her lips. "Please, continue.”

Sara froze in her explanation. Her eyes going comically large as her mind tried to understand this sudden turn of events. "You…you what? How?"

Brianna smiled gently at Sara's bewildered expression. She knew how confusing this all must be for her.

"I know all about the future," she said softly. "About America, and camping, and all the other modern things. I'm not from this time either… not originally." Her tone was gentle, patient even.

She stepped closer to Sara, putting a comforting hand on her arm. "I know all about the stones and what they can do," she continued. "I was brought here through them, as I imagine you were too.”

"What?" She felt like the breath was being sucked out of her lungs as she stared into Brianna's knowing brown eyes.

"You-- what about your mom? Is Ian from the future too?" Her mind raced and everything she thought she knew was suddenly pulled into question.

Brianna's nodded, understanding the confusion and surprise in Sara's voice.

"My mother, my husband and myself are all originally from the future too," she confirmed. "We all passed through the stones at different times. My fathers family is fromthis time…Ian doesn't know."

She waited a beat, giving Sara some time to let the information sink in. However she still had questions, most important of which;

"Why did you and Ian get married? Considering this revelation I'm guessing it wasn't exactly a love match." A little bit of icy suspicion slipped into Brianna's tone.

Despite Sara's best attempts to explain the situation and reason behind her decision to marry Ian, Brianna's tone made her feel like a naughty child caught with her hand in the cookie jar.

"I understand," she said, her voice firm. "But we should talk."

She took Sara's by the arm, her grip firm but not unkind. "Come. Let's go somewhere we can speak."

With that, Brianna led Sara further away from the house, towards a secluded spot in the surrounding woods.

They walked in silence for a few minutes, the only sounds coming was from the rustling of leaves beneath their feet.

Finally, Brianna stopped at a small clearing in the woods. The area was secluded, and the only company was a small stream that ran nearby.

Brianna gestured for Sara to sit on a nearby log. "I think we can talk freely here.”

Sara sat down heavily with a shaky side and clasped her hands tightly in front of herself between her knees. Her eyes were large and lost as she looked up at Brianna. Taking one more deep breath to collect yourself, she started to recount the events of what had happened to her the past year. Of how she had been camping at a music festival in New York and gone for a afternoon hike and then the next thing she knew some buzzing stones had hurdled her centuries into the past.

It had taken some time to find her bearings and once she had, Sara had decided to make her way back to the most familiar area she had knowledge of in this time- North carolina. Brownsville had been just establishing itself and the residents didn't ask her too many questions when all she offered them was a pleasant smile and a cold drink. Only when her employer decided to try and sell her off to one of the more wealthy patrons did she finally risked breaking her cover to ask you for his help and protection.

"So now I'm married to a wonderful man who has no idea I'm lying about who I a-am." Her voice wobbled on the last word and tears threatened to break out of the corners of her eyes.

Brianna listened to Sara's story intently, the pieces of the puzzle slowly falling into place as she heard the tale of her arrival in this new time.

As Sara told of her marriage to Ian, Brianna's heart clenched in sympathy. It was clear that she truly cared for him, but her deception weighed heavy on her shoulders.

Brianna sighed quietly, the sound barely heard over the rush of the nearby stream.

"And tell me, Sara," Brianna asked, her voice gentle. "Why haven't you told Ian the truth yet?”

"How can I?" She knew the question was a reasonable one but couldn't help but feel like she was being tested. If Ian's own family hadn't told him that they were from another time, how could Brianna expect her to? She shook her head and denial and hugged her arms tighter around herself, doing everything in her power to stop herself from rocking and attempt to self soothe the nerves overwhelming her.

"Why haven't you told him?" She countered.

Brianna took a moment to think before answering. "That… is a complicated question," she said slowly, her tone carefully measured. "But in short, it's not my secret to tell."

She moved to sit down beside Sara, her presence a calming one, despite the heaviness of the conversation.

"And now that you know, it's not just your secret either." She gave Sara a knowing look that sent in icy chill down her spine.

"I know how hard it is to keep such a secret," Brianna continued, her tone softer now. "To have to lie to those we care about, especially about something so big."

She reached out and placed a hand on Sara's shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. "But you can't tell him about this. I don't know why my father never told him but I know has to be a good reason.”

"You…you can't be serious." But even as she said the words she knew Brianna was. "How am I going to hide it? We're married!"

As Sara protests, Brianna's eyes flicker with a mixture of understanding and a firm determination.

"I am serious," she says, her voice steady. "And yes, it's going to be difficult. But you've managed so far, haven't you?"

She paused, her gaze turning thoughtful. "Perhaps you need a cover story. A way to explain certain things you may do or say that aren't exactly 'conventional' for a woman in 18th century.”

It could work…maybe. It had been her mode of operandi so far but something about lying to end indefinitely felt wrong. It made her stomach churn and her whole body just feel.. icky. But Brianna's expression never wavered and she knew that if she were to expose them that it would be his entire family against her. Sarah's shoulders slumped in a mixture of defeat and resigned acceptance.

" And.. I guess I also just have to never let him see me naked. I don't think there's any cover story in the world that will explain a watercolor photo realistic tattoo of a roaring jaguar on my hip in the year 1770. “

"No, probably not," she agreed, a touch of wry humor in her voice. "A jaguar tattoo would definitely raise some eyebrows."

She studied Sara's face for a moment, taking in her expression of defeat and resignation. It was clear the weight of the secret was weighing heavily on her.

"I know it's hard," she said softly, her tone turning gentle again. "And it's not fair, to you or to Ian. But it's the situation we're in."

She offered her a small, but sympathetic smile. "You're just going to have to learn to hide things and make excuses. And hope that Ian never finds out about this.”

Just hoping for the best certainly wasn't her strong suit but she nodded, agreeing with her new relatives words. It was nice to know that she wasn't alone and she could always go to Brianna or her mother to speak about their predicament or if she was particularly missing her own time. But knowing that the one person that she really wanted to share everything with, she was forbidden from telling the secret - felt like a knife to her heart.

They parted ways on good terms and she took the laundry to be hung up before returning home. Ian's had been spent between his usual hunting and helping around the ridge, and meetings with his uncle looking for the best plot of land to begin building them a house. She would often be waiting for him when he got home, and their nights had been spent for they're getting to know each other in all the best ways.

But that evening when Ian got home Sara was busy doing anything in order to avoid looking his way. Every time she did a wave of guilt threatened to overtake her and she wanted to run. Back in her own time that would have even been an option, just walking out the door and taking a walk for miles until she felt like she could breathe again. But here all she could do was straighten and tidy the place until there was nothing left but moving small things, never content with how it looked.

" Maybe we should move the bed closer to the window? That way you won't ever accidentally sleep in too late when you have to get up early to hunt. " she suggested, fully succumbing to the manic energy that buzzed inside of her. It was late, there was no reason to move furniture in their room but she was still looking for anything to do that would distract herself from her circling thoughts.

Ian raised an eyebrow at the suggestion, a mix of perplexion and concern in his expressive eyes. He had returned home that evening to find Sara in a state of hyper energy, fidgeting with every little object she could find.

As she suggested the idea of moving the bed, he couldn't help but frown.

"Move the bed?" he repeated, his tone slightly bemused. "It's late, why in the world would we be moving furniture at this time of night?”

He walked over to her, his steps steady. His eyes searched her face, looking for the reason behind her agitated state. He could feel the nervous energy radiating off her in waves, and it worried him.

"Sara…" he said slowly, reaching out to take her hand in his. "Is everything okay? You seem, ah, rather on edge tonight.”

The way he was looking at her with such tender concern while she was a terrible liar, made her feel physically ill. She'd known she couldn't tell Ian before, but now that it was an order only intensified her need to come clean. But Brianna's words from earlier kept replaying in her head. "I accidentally tore a hole in one of your shirts while doing the laundry today."

It wasn't the confession she needed but it was true none the less. "And I'm only just getting the hang of sewing. I know you could fix it better than I could I'm..I'm.." Her voice got tighter and smaller like a dying flame. "I'm a terrible wife."

Ian let a small huff of laughter at her words, shaking his head softly. "You're not a terrible wife," he said, his tone reassuring. "You just… have a lot to learn."

He pulled her close, his arm wrapping around her shoulders in a comforting gesture.

"And I don't expect you to be a perfect housewife right away," he continued. "We both knew you weren't experienced in these kinds of things, but that's okay."

He squeezed her shoulders gently. "We'll work on it together. One step at a time.”

His eyes widened at her question, a mixture of surprise and confusion on his face.

"You want to go hunting?" he asked, his tone betraying his surprise. "But… that's a man's job, not a woman's. Women stay at home, take care of the housework, tend to children when there are any. “

A dangerous fire ignited in her gaze and she took a step out of his grasp. "Excuse me? Do you think I can't do it?"

She had been hunting before as a teenager but never actually shot anything other than a paper target. Still, she figured that made her more capable than most women. "Brianna hunts."

Ian's initial surprise turned into a slight frown at her reaction. He folded his arms across his chest, a hint of defensiveness in his stance.

"Brianna is exceptional," he said, his tone a little firm. "Hunting isn't a game, Sara. It's dangerous. Women like you should stay home and leave hunting to men.”

"Women like…me." She repeated, crossing her arms over her chest. She knew she was struggling to learn the basics of life on the Ridge but she didn't think Ian had such little faith in her. A part of her clung to the argument, needing any way to take out the turmoil inside.

"Just, a weak little woman who can't take care of herself. Got it." The words were a bitter callback to their original arrangement. It was a low blow and she felt guilty the moment she said it but her back remained straight and jaw set in obvious anger.

Ian's eyes narrowed as she repeated his words back to him, her bitter tone cutting deeply. His jaw tightened, and for a moment he was silent, his gaze boring into her with a mixture of hurt and anger.

He unfolded his arms and stepped closer to her, his voice low and tense. "That's not what I meant, and you know it," he snapped. "But you are not a hunter, Sara. You're not trained for it, you don't-"

He let out a sharp sigh, running a hand through his red hair in frustration.

"You're not meant to be out in the wilderness hunting," he continued, his tone a touch gentler. "You're a woman, a wife. Your place is here, with me, not out there, risking your life.”

She could understand his perspective, but she didn't like it. And she wasn't willing to bend to that way of thinking. She had made so many compromises since arriving in this time and to be forced into a role she didn't want in her marriage was something that she couldn't take. She missed when she could dream about working for herself, and not being completely dependent on Ian and just waiting for him to come home. She had heard the term kept woman before but she didn't understand it would make her feel like such a.. pet.

"But what if that's not what I want?" she asked and went over to sit on the bed with her arms still crossed. Her dark eyes looked up at him, completely guarded.

"What if I wanted to go back to work? What if I wanted things between us to be more.. equal? " she asked, knowing that even as progressive as Ian was that would be a step too far giving her history of being abused by employers.

Ian's expression hardened at her words, his eyes fixed on her with a mixture of bewilderment and stubborn resignation. "Work?" he echoed, his tone a mix of skepticism and a hint of frustration.

"Sara, women don't work, especially not women like you," he said flatly. "Women like you marry, they bear children, they take care of the home. That's your place. You're my wife, not a worker.”

He began to pace the room, his movements restless and fraught with tension. "Besides, you don't have any skills to work," he continued. "You can't read or write, you're not trained in any trades. What kind of work could you possibly do in the first place?”

She itched to correct him but as far as he knew, all of that was true. What use would a tavern wench have for reading and writing? Her knowledge of those things would just make her even more of an oddity in this time and have her scrambling for explanations on how she learned such things.

Her shoulders slumped as she realized he was right. She didn't have any skills that transferred over to this time, except maybe being able to draw. But a woman and an artist? That wasn't a profession, that was a hobby.

Still, she cloned the anger. Because if she didn't feel that she would be forced to feel the endless amount of guilt that threatened to swallow her whole." So.. you want me to just stay home take care of the house, have babies, that's it?”

"Yes," he said bluntly, his pacing coming to a stop as he turned to look at her, his expression firm.

"That's exactly what I want. You're my wife, and that means you'll take care of our home, our children, and me. It's your job to take care of domestic matters, that's the way it's always been, and that's the way it will stay.”

"That's the way it will stay," She mimicked childishly. "I don't think so. You don't control me, Ian Fraser Murray."

Ian's eyes narrowed at her childish mimicking, his patience clearly wearing thin. He stopped his pacing and stood before her, his expression hardening.

"You're my wife," he repeated, his tone a mix of frustrated and stern. "And that means I do, in fact, control you. You're my responsibility, and I will decide what's best for you. And what's best is that you stay home, take care of the household, and do as I say. “

Sara stared at him with her mouth agape. She couldn't believe he was saying this. Stung, she whispered; "You really feel that way?"

But her anger was not a thing to be trifled with and an angry sneer twisted her features. She seemed to almost curl in on herself where she sat on the bed, a hot little ball of rage. "Well fuck that."

"And what are you going to do about it?" he countered, his own anger starting to rise to match hers. His hands were clenched into fists at his sides, his shoulders tense with the effort of holding back his temper.

"You're my wife," he repeated again, his voice a growl. "You are mine. You will do as I say, whether you like it or not.”

"The hell I will!" Her voice was a hiss of scalding fury. Sara's fists clenched at her sides and she wanted to scream I'm frustration. "I'm mine and I'll do whatever the fuck I want. If you don't like that we can end this shit right now and go back to our original arrangement."

A wife in name only.

She didn't mean to say the words but as soon as she had there was no taking them back. Her heart broke and cried out for her to stop, to do anything to fix this. But the mixture of pride and Brianna's words from earlier won out. Her dark brown eyes stared at Ian with defiance, daring him to either match her fury or bend to it.

The mention of their original arrangement hit Ian like a punch to the gut, and his eyes widened in disbelief. His heart clenched at her words, and a thousand emotions roiled through him – anger, hurt, disbelief.

For a moment, he simply stared at her, his jaw tight, his body taut with a mixture of emotions. Then, very slowly, he spoke.

"Is that what you want?"

His voice was low, his tone almost dangerous.

No! Her mind screamed but Sara just stood silently for a minute, seething that this was where the night had ended up. Her whole body felt shaky, her nerves jumping under her skin like a live wire.

"Maybe that's for the best. I obviously can't give you what you want."

Ian's eyes darkened further at her words, his jaw clenching tighter. The tension in the room was palpable, the air heavy with a mix of anger and something that was almost like grief.

He stepped forward, stopping right in front of her, his body only inches away. His voice was a harsh whisper, almost a challenge.

"And what do you think I want, Sara?”

Her heart heart thudded painfully in her chest. She knew this was a defining moment and she could choose to let him in…or push him away for good. Her voice shook but her expression was pure steel. The secret she kept was like an evil whisper in her mind. Hurt him. It said. Hurt him now she will not feel it later.

"I think…" She took a deep breath, preparing herself for the impact her words would have. "I think you miss Emily, and I'll always be a shitty second best."

Ian's breath hitched in his throat at her words, his eyes widening imperceptibly in shock. The mention of Emily's name cut through him like a knife, reopening old wounds that had never really healed.

"Don't," he growled, his voice thick with an anger and pain. "Don't say that. Emily has nothing to do with this.”

His hands were still clenched into fists at his sides, his body tight with the effort of keeping his emotions under control. His gaze was fixed on her once more, his eyes blazing with a mix of anger and hurt.

"This is about us," he said, his tone firm but quieter now. "This is about you not wanting to be my wife, not accepting your place as such. This has nothing to do with Emily.”

"I think it does. I think you want what you had and I'll never be that." Her face held a sort of broken resignation to it. As if she were just now seeing the truth. "I'll never be enough, Ian."

Ian's expression darkened further at her continued insistence on bringing Emily into this. His eyes were slits, his jaw tight with a mixture of anger and anguish.

"You have no right," he said, his voice a guttural growl. "To use Emily as some kind of weapon against me. You will not take her memory and twist it to your purposes."

He stepped closer until they were almost chest to chest, his gaze fixed on hers, his voice low and intense. "If you wish for us to return to how things were, you only needed to say so.”

The anger and pain in his expression were plain to see, but his offer stood nevertheless. He stood so close to her now that their bodies almost touched, his hands still clenched at his sides, his body tense with the effort to keep from either shaking her or pulling her into his arms.

"I think…that's best." She whispered, the words swallowed up in the tension between them. Her heart ached and tears burned in her eyes but there was no going back. There was no way out.

"I'll…I'll sleep in the arm chair tonight. You were hunting all day…you should take the bed."

Ian's jaw clenched tighter as she suggested she'd sleep in the chair. The thought of watching her sleep on the chair while he lay on the bed, unable to touch her, was almost too much to bear.

"You will not sleep in the chair," he said, his tone firm. "You are my wife. You will sleep in our bed. With me.”

She wanted to argue more but Sara was suddenly just so tired. Her chest ached from the pain their fighting had caused and she had tears burning behind her eyes. Though they only provided fuel for the glare she leveled in Ian's direction. With a huff she practically stomped over to the bed and undid the ties of her dress with shaky hands.

Once it had dropped to the floor in a pile she kicked it away and climbed into bed, never once looking in Ian's direction. She felt like if she saw the hurt and anger still on his face her resolve would shatter. Her back stayed turned to him as she heard him also undressed and felt the mattress dip as he climbed into bed.

With one last shaky breath and a silent tear running down her cheek, Sara whispered bitterly. "Goodnight, husband.”

Ian watched her, his eyes following her movements as she prepared for bed, her anger and frustration clear in every gesture. He felt the familiar stab of hurt in his chest at the sight of her turned away from him.

His own movements were slow and deliberate as he undressed, his gaze occasionally flickering to her still form on the bed. He could see the tension in her body, could almost feel the anger and sadness radiating from her.

When he got into bed, he left enough space between them, so they weren't touching. He laid on his back for several minutes, staring up at the dark ceiling before forcing himself to drift to sleep.

[i-simp-4-psychopaths]

IT’S THEORY TIME CHILDREN!!!!!

so first off, Dark Sun (Or Solstice as I’ve been calling him for the past week) hates Moons. He says that. We even see his Moon destroyed. Near the beginning of Solstice’s appearance when New Moon went to his dimension, he had said that his Moon was still trapped in his head still. However, in this episode, we can see that he is very much not in Solstice’s head and instead is absolutely broken in the parts and service room. So, even before this, we knew that he lies, a lot. It’s also easy to tell that he is very manipulative. All I’m trying to say is that he is always many steps in front of everyone else, including the fans. Usually, we can see or guess what the villain is planing, but similarly to the Ruin situation, we probably won’t know what he’s doing until it’s too late.

However, there is something that many people (almost everyone), including myself, have noticed. Solstice is manipulating Nexus into working with him. It was almost confirmed in the episode when Nexus changed his name. But when looking back to this episode, we can see that Solstice hates Moons. So, why is he working with Nexus instead of taking whatever brain juice he has? I don’t know. What I think is that the chip that Solstice took out has something to do with the duo working together.

Solstice sees everyone as a tool. Just pawns in chess as he is the queen. However I think Sun seeing the shards of the wither storm is going to help them beat evil him. Yes, even though Solstice and Nexus have a storm themselves, it is but a baby. I thing the shards that Sun is collecting would make a fully grown wither storm.

With the creator harassing the family, mostly Lunar, I have two theories for him, one of which ties into the Solstice problem. I think the Creator is trying to get power, Ex: Lunar and the universe destroyer that Ruin had, to try and stop Solstice. That would be a way they could stop him. If they use the huge destroyer, they could destroy his universe, killing Solstice with it. The Creator and the celestial family could team up against Solstice and Nexus. If they killed the former, that would leave Nexus. I think by that time, Solar would have been rebuilt by then and could talk some sense into him. The whole reason why Nexus became evil is because he went insane after Solar died.

However, the Creator had stated that he had much work to do because of the death of the Creator counsel. So the more plausible theory is that the Creator stays a villain on TEALS, not TSAMS. After the whole Taurus/Leo/Astrals in general thing going on.

Going back to the Creator and TSAMS/TEALS team up, that would probably happen after October takeover. My prediction is that Solstice and Nexus would take over on TSAMS, and Evil Lunar and Evil Earth (I haven’t thought of names for them yet) would take over on TEALS. Speaking of dimensions, Lord Eclipse might also come into play here. We’ve seen him twice already, one of which was kind of important. We know that him and his world is still alive due to the Creator either being dead or just not a problem there. Eclipse has the Star, he reset the world, so it’s also likely that the Creator hadn’t even been born at this very moment.

Dropping October takeover, I want to talk about Nexus and Solar.

I feel like when Solar comes back, he wouldn’t have the same kind of bond with the Old Moon as he did with New Moon. We’ve seen that the two Moon’s act differently compared to the other. New Moon/Nexus is less sassy, slight dummer, in general, likes different things compared to Old Moon, and he might not be Aro/Ace. When we look at Old Moon, he is one sassy bitch, he is very smart, goes by They/Them (or he/they) but is Aro/Ace. Now, I get the fact that Old Moon is 6-ish years old and Nexus is about 1, but they still have their differences. One of the main ways that Solar and New Moon bonded was when they were working together. They would bounce ideas back and forth between each other. They had around the same intelligence, maybe more so for Solar, but they were in different skill sets. Solar and Old Moon might not bond as much due to Moon just being way smarter than Solar. Solar comes back and Nexus finds out, I think he would start doubting what he’s doing. This all started when Solar died and Nexus trying to get him back from the dead. It could lead into Nexus having his redemption ark.

Anyway, sorry for the random dump here. My thoughts are scattered. Please ignore this

[slytherinshua]

Ah I loved that, thankyou!! I feel like Yechan would hate me tho because I LOVE to tease. I am a menace to my younger sister (I once convinced her for about 5 mins that she didn't actually know what her middle name was, but then again I'm am extremely gullible and my brother has convinced me of things that I have believed for years 😭). He would definitely be so supportive though and I feel like it would be so interesting to have convos about music with him!

Sangyeop definitely strikes me as the reliable "I'm here if you need me" type of of guy. He would definitely be such an interesting person to talk to, the amount of random knowledge that he must know could keep me entertained for hours lol

I need Wonsang to help me through my fears even now lol. He's so sweet and I could see him being so patient with you while trying to get you to face them, why is he not in my life 😭😭

Songwriting with Gwangil would be so fun! And the amount of inside jokes you would probably have is amazing. I definitely agree with you, I think his hugs could solve anything and I absolutely need one lol.

I'm glad piano has been going well! How are you finding the teacher, do you like them? Ooh that's cool, do you have a lot of arm muscles from that? I always imagine that tennis players must have insane muscles but I could be wrong lol. That's so interesting that you lived overseas, can I ask where you lived? I'm sure it must have been hard to adjust! 2 of my best friends also lived overseas with missionary parents, but I don't think they struggled too much since the were so young and then moved back while they were still in primary school. I'm good! Not up to much either lol. I went on a mini roadtrip with two of my friends (funnily enough the ones I just mentioned). It was really good, but also really funny to see them interact with eachother since they are sisters. One is a year older than me and the other is a year younger, so being in the middle of it always very fun. I still live with my brother, but even then we hardly interact lol. Somedays the only interaction we have is when he's filling his bottle up before he goes to bed at like 1am and that's very short lol. We definitely have the same (broken) sense of humour, there was a period of time when we were constantly rickrolling each other and we both became very paranoid messaging each other ahaha. That's definitely the thing with family though, they are so annoying and some days you just want to slap them, but you also love them so much and would fight for them. If anyone touches my baby sister (who is only 3yrs younger lol) there will be hell to pay 😡😡

lmao yechan would lose patience fr 😭😭 my older siblings always gaslit me when i was little OMG like they fr convinced me my nose was blue and now they wont let it go even now like 13 yrs later 😭😭😭😭😭 yeah sangyeop is so sweet and reliable :( and hes so smart too i feel like he'd advice for anything!!! wonsang is the sweetest like stop.... im so sad :( gwangil has so much fun around the people hes close to but he can be so quiet to others i love him </3

i really like my teacher!! i had her back in 2020 too so its not completely new <3 i don't lol it doesn't take as much strength as you would think to hit the ball you just need to practice to get the timing right and accuracy down then its pretty easy in terms of strength!!

yeah i lived in the philippines for 3 yrs and i've also been to some other south east asian countries like indonesia, singapore, and cambodia <3 i remember having so much fun living in the countries and i would make friends really easy but the problem was i would always be moving away so i was never able to keep any friendships. even now im scared to make in person friends cause im scared im just going to move away again, so that's why i only have online friends :( its like a security net ig... cause i know we wont just lose contact one day <//3 omg that's so fun i miss roadtrips!! and i miss having in person friends too lskdjsk

yeah i live with my two closest brother and sister in age but sometimes we don't even see each other in a day not because we go outside but because they're sleeping... 😭 i love broken senses of humor tho like i fr have a teenage boy sense of humor with my best friend 💀💀💀 sibling relationships are so precious imo and so unique to any other relationship out there cause they could be so different from you that if you weren't siblings you would never be friends. but because you are you get along with them and love them to death <3

[whiskeyswifty]

Adele being in the top 3 most successful female artists got me thinking about how insane her success is when taking into account how little people care about her as a Celebrity and how comparatively little she appears to be in the public eye. It feels very "organic" in that way, which is not to say that she is a better artist than Taylor or that Taylor's success is manufactured, but Taylor is actively hustling for those numbers. Which is core Taylor Swift modus operandi and her work ethic and business mind is awe-inspiring. I just sometimes feel like Swifties act like everybody wants to be as successful as Taylor but only she is able to achieve that, which... doesn't feel true? Obviously she is a once in a generation talent, but idk if every artist is automatically envious of her level of success, if that makes sense. But maybe that is also me projecting my anti-grindset on other artists lmao

haha i'm also exhausted by her grind, don't worry. i know i sound like a broken record, and a coward maybe, but i think even throwing adele in there, the three of them are incomparable. I totally get the urge to compare them 1:1:1 but it's nearly impossible to do so fairly. you say taylor is a once in a generation talent.... and she is.... but so is beyonce... so is adele. the key thing is each of them have talents the others don't have. I guess bey and adele are the most comparable because they have exquisite voices, but also very different voices even within that parameter. i'm not a vocalist so i can't give you an expert breakdown of all the technical terms for what make them unique and yet still exceptional in their uniqueness, but even i can hear it as a layman. I've seen Adele in concert too and it's mind blowing just to hear her booming voice reverberate through an arena. but yeah, i can see how her success may look like it just "happened" to her while taylor had to claw her way. idk if that's the reality though!

Taylor has a once in a generation songwriting skill maybe.... idk if i feel comfortable even saying that. There are songwriters out here that blow me away all the time and for me, taylor's lyrical hit ratio is not high enough to say she's the ultimate and nobody can compare. i think it's tricky to talk about what her talent is exactly, compared to how easy it is to talk about the other two women, because it's a combination of not easily meritocratic things. bringing up her work ethic and business acumen is a huge component i think. Songwriting alone doesn't make her a once in a generation talent, which she's in the top echelon for absolutely but has many peers at the top, no matter who you ask. In my opinion, her "talent" is the combination of her ear for melody and pen for lyrical deftness that is also achingly sincere, a charisma that is utterly charming in irresistible to most, her acute understanding of how to market herself and her personality, her strategic approach to nearly everything to maximize profit and all the hoops one must jump through to achieve that (maintaining relevance, operating in multiple sectors, etc), and her burning desire to prove.... something idk what but it fuels her to keep pushing herself and challenging herself. i totally agree it's not manufactured, thats not the right way to put it. but it IS a hustle and by that i mean it's hard work! she puts in an INSANE amount of work to get where she is today, every single day i'm sure. and her team is incredibly small for someone at this level, which means she and her family shoulder even MORE of the work than a typical popstar would. i think what makes her once in a generation is that she possesses all of these traits at the same time, at a young age as well giving her acres of a head start, making for a deadly combination that has kept her a permanent fixture in the pop music world, and at this current time, the main fixture of the pop music world.

so in that way i'm not sure other pop stars want to be on that particular grind as hard and as constant as taylor is. it's admirable absolutely! and many of them sing her praises for how hard she works. but yeah, id say most singers know what it takes to have what taylor has, and they don't want to sacrifice certain things to get it (down time with their family/kids, work/life balance, constantly being on trial in the court of public opnion etc). i'd venture to agree that most singer/songwriters just love the creative expression and have no desire for giant lumps of money or smothering fame. that's also not to say that even if they hit the grind as hard as her, that they could achieve what she has. again, she has that deadly combo that makes her uniquely apt.

but i'd say one correction to the notion that "taylor is the hardest working person in music" and that's that many artists do work just as hard as her, just in other ways. what taylor does is not the only way to be a musician and her success is not the only kind of success that matters to an artist. since she's already in the mix, particularly Beyoncé. she works just as hard if not harder in certain areas, depending on what they're both working on. bey is equally as in control of her creative vision as taylor is, and there are hundreds of accounts for both women that can attest to their work ethic. They're both the hardest working women in music, in their respective ways. You may hear taylor brag about it more maybe, or show off more of her work ethic i guess, but i think you also may not be paying enough attention to beyonce who has countless docs and behind the scenes pieces that show how she is in total control. the shitty anon who brought up beychella ironically brought up a great example of that in action. the interludes show months of preparation, rehearsal, reworking choreography and the logistics of the stage. all for just two weekends of performance. all the ways beyonce crafted that performance to be exactly what she wanted, convey exactly what she wanted to say, and was fine tuning it down to the last second. Taylor has the chronic Good Student desire to show her work, which is relatable, and also her process is fascinating to watch! but other artists not exactly willing to show their work doesn't mean work isn't being done of the same caliber and effort. idk it just really is a thorn in my side when people say taylor works hard and other artists don't work as hard as her (which is not really what you're saying, i'm just bitching in general). I'm sure there are other artists who also work incredibly hard to achieve their versions of success that i'm not aware of, Adele for one i'm sure, I just don't know much about her processes. Just because they aren't working as visibly or working on the same pieces of their career as taylor is doesn't mean they're not working hard in other areas! areas you might not be privy to or aware of or know how hard it is to pull off so it might look like they're not working as hard. but they most certainly are and imo it's an inaccurate thing to say so generally, that taylor's success is cuz she works hard and everyone else doesn't lol.

one final little general tidbit i can't resist adding; as someone adjacent to her world and in the visual media world myself, just know that if it looks seamless or like it just came together organically... that doesn't mean that it did. it's actually much harder to achieve the illusion that something just happened, fully formed, organically like that. it incredibly tricky to pull that off and fully immerse you in it to the point that you don't notice the wires and the seams and the brush strokes holding it all together. it takes incredible skill and that just means those artists are VERY very good at their jobs and they actually had to work even HARDER to make it look that way.

[transboysgetknives]

the trb plot from memory instead of chemistry revision that desperately needs doinh

We begin with psychics. They do not tell precise futures, not usually anyway. They aim for the nonspecific, unless your name is Blue (named after your aura), in which case, ever reading been done for you is very positively conclusive: one day, she will kiss her true love, and he will die. A semi-famous and semi-aunt of Blue’s shows up.

It’s an unimportant April day, Blue is wearing her most sensible fingerless gloves, and Neeve is creepy. Blue has been dragged along because she is made of magic, and she makes other magic stronger. She informs Neeve rather curtly that she does not go to Aglioby, because that is for the sons of Oil Barons and other assholes. The ghosts begin walking. Jesse Dittley. A boy in an Aglioby sweater- it’s damp, and Blue can see him. We all know what that means. Gansey, that’s all there is.

The Pig is broken, Gansey is on the side of the road listening to his silly tapes. He knows he is going to die this year, though we don’t know that he knows that he is going to die until book four. He phones Ronan, who oddly picks up. Rescue time. There is a burger, no sauce. Adam Parrish, a lowly mechanic, Ronan who is pissyabout his dashing older brother, something about Ashley. Gansey makes his own sly remarks. Adam is the only useful person, fixes Gansey’s. at temporarily, suggests a psychic.

Hmm. Hmm, Hmm, Hmm. WHELK that turd. His parents did him a solid and named him Barrington, as if that would give him a single advantage in life. Now here he is, stuck as a teacher, no money, no prospects. And, he’s going to beat up some kids.

This one is an Adam chapter because he was absolutely insane. He’s the love of my life. No one does it like him. He’s at Monmouth, I think. Ronan still plays tennis, allegedly, and Declan Lynch (regular Tumm’s consumer) pops by, for some reason needing to introduce the newest Ashley to the only thing that resembles a family. Oh that has just turned sad. Gansey is Gansey, there is no investment in living in a dorm, Noah has cold hands, and for some reason Ashley knows who Glendower is. Adam is getting some spidey-senses. It’s pizza time.

Pizza time! Back to Blue. I can’t believe how much of this I’m remembering. President Cell Phone. He’s tapped in her shoulder- big no-no. He wants her to talk to his friend. The one who is bright red and not looking at her. Blue Sargent is not a prostitute and jesus christ Aglionby boys are miserable. A pretentious notebook is left behind.

Now things are rocky. I haven’t read this book in ages. Wait, I know! Scratch the book thing. Declan is just looking for a fight, and Ronan is throwing trash cans in trees! Typical. Declan looks like lobster tonight. The cops won’t be called tonight… At what point does Blue give Adam her number? Dangerous thing that is.

I have forgot something... 'Hey Tiger'. Adam won’t leave with Gansey for good, but he will leave for psychic stuff. Adam has a dog. He asks Blue if his bruise makes him look tough, Ronan answers because he is an expert in what Adam Parrish looks like (don’t tell anyone though). I think this is where this bit comes in. Time is a circle anyway.

The boys are at the psychics house. Ronan and Calla are awful to each other. The ladies will not help Gansey. Blue, who has read his diary and wants to make her own future, did not agree. She’s chased them down. It’s time for a helicopter.

Adam Parrish hates flying and Ronan Lynch is always straight. Gansey is his mothers gift, and Helen thought glassware would be a good gift, even though Mrs. Gansey doesn’t collect glassware. Get it together Helen. 'Hey that looks weird, stop here! It’ll only be a few minutes!'

Magic forest! Fish change colors, the seasons are strange here, and the trees speak broken Latin. Make way for the Raven King? My memory is poor. It’s beautiful anyhow. The water runs uphill, Gansey wishes he could pee in the same manly way that Adam does. Clocks stop working. Either they were in there for hours and came out and it was minutes or the other way round. Noah is there more.

Gansey looks at a windowsill. There is a wasp. Ronan, with perfect timing, leaves his room, kills it, gets rightfully angry at Gansey being a dunce, and then storms off back to his room. He’s building a ramp with Noah? Noah gets thrown out of the window at some point. Possibly now?

Neeve does creepy weird things. Calla and Blue do some super spy work. Does Adam get involved? Also, she is looking for a particular squash, one I am not fond of. Ronan teaches Adam how to drive.

Ronan is failing school. Gansey thinks the school might want some aqua-nautical fiction. Ronan wants to not go to school ever again. I am feeling that same way right now. I should be studying for my exam!

Wait what? You're telling me that the boy who no one knows anything about, who's never in any classes, who is always cold, doesnt eat, and introduces himself with 'ive been dead for seven years' has ACTUALLY BEEN DEAD FOR SEVEN YEARS????

Adam has a shitty dad who does shitty things. Fuck him. Ronan drops him off. Wait, he is swinging! Throw those punches! Wee woo, the cops are getting called. For the first time ever, Adam tells the truth. Ronan, feeling some sort of way, actually goes to go study. Adam’s hearing is half as good as before, and now he’s living in the most goddawful frat house that doesn’t have a separate kitchen/bathroom. But he loves it for some reason.

At some point Blue and Adam are talking about kissing and Ronan sits right between them and turns their attention onto his punk ass bird.

Neeve eats crackers in Whelks car. the gang is also there almost. There is a gun. Whelk is free, he’s pointed a gun at Gansey, Ronan starts swinging but his head isn’t harder than a bun, so he crumples. Neeve has disappeared. Adam sacrifices himself, his friends are like ‘wtf Adam’ and then he kills doesn’t save his Latin teacher. Adam is the hands and eyes of Cabeswater. I dont remember if Adam moves to St Agnes in this book. He doesn’t stay at Monmouth more than a week, so he must’ve moved. Ronan figures out hes hella gay for Adam and fucks off to do cool car chases and get high with his other more scary boyfriend.

Blue kinda realises that maybe somehow slightly that she likes Gansey and is of course doomed by the narrative.

i still dont remember the plot of this book