#maybe if I add a picture more people will be interested in the concept lmao

[lilybug-02]

I love flatland. <3

It's concept and world building is so unique. But one thing I've always found interesting is the concept of a 2D creature actually being able to SEE 3D when it is lifted out of it's plane.

In the book and in most interpretations, The 2D person is finally able to SEE 3D. But in reality it's likely that it would be physically impossible for them to see outside of their regular field of view.

Remember, a 2D person's eyes are also 2D, and because of this, they are specifically only able to see lines.

They're eyes have evolved this way, so when lifting them out of their plane of existence, they still can only see lines. These lines may change when flipping them around in space, but they'd never TRULY be able to see in 3D.

Not that I care too much, because it's a much more interesting concept to ignore the reality. But still an interesting premise....

......i hope at least one person even slightly understands what im trying to talk about.

[memento-morri-writes]

new WIP dropped??????please tell me

e v e r y t h i n g

also narrated by a Raven???? I'm so :ooo

have a good day/ night!

(@ink-fireplace-coffee)

hehehe, it's the one I mentioned a little while ago, somewhere on my blog as "high fantasy wip". I described the vibes as "Six of Crows mixed with a DnD campaign."

The problem is that I have no plot, other than that first little inciting incident that I mentioned. And I don't really have the other characters solidified yet either. This WIP is really me just trying to come up with my ideal book based on my current interests, lmao. So maybe my interests will change before I ever finish it, but idk. I just think we need more found family fantasy stories, and as of right now, most of the found family stuff I've read has been YA centered. Which is fine, but adults deserve some too, right??

(a lot of this is going to be repeated from this ask I answered for @rose-bookblood, but I'm going to add a lot more too.)

Anyways, I'll try and tell you some more! I'll list the character ideas I have right now:

Avidra (Avi): they/them, elf of some sort, former assassin, like 127 years old. (but their species isn't considered "adult" until they're 100 years old.)

Asra: she/her, human, in her 20's, talented thief.

Brynn: she/her, trans, human, late 20's or early 30's, former pit fighter??

Orion: he/him. Not-quite-human sorcerer with a talent for fire. Going through his gifted kid burnout arc.

Healer/nature mage who thinks they have to save everyone, and haunted by the one time they couldn't. (pronouns tba)

A warlock who made a deal with an entity years ago and is now terrified of being possessed by said entity.

(by the way, you should know that there are absolutely zero cishet characters in this story. everyone is queer somehow.)

Those last two characters I'm not settled on, but they're character concepts I love a lot, so we'll see what happens.

As for the raven narrator, uh, yeah. He works for the Raven Queen, who is this world's goddess of death. He's meant to collect people's souls when they die. He starts following the group after the death that happens on the first fucking page (here) and gets invested. In a weird way, he does care about the group, but also, he's an immortal collector of souls. He has a very matter-of-fact approach to death and such, and his way of "caring" or being interested doesn't necessarily mean he hopes they don't die. He just wants to see what they do before they die.

His narration is going to have footnotes, which are like his little comments or interjections. (these are in first person) I have a deep love for the use of footnotes in storytelling.

So, um, picture him as like, Death from The Book Thief mixed a bit with the narrator from The Nevernight Chronicles. Though in my mind, the best use of footnotes will always be The Bartimaeus Trilogy, which I highly recommend to anyone who hasn't read it! But also, throw in the 3rd omniscient-ness of Lemony Snicket in A Series of Unfortunate Events.

And I got this idea from falling head first into a hyper fixation with Critical Role. So, ummm.... this is going to be a wild ride. But if I can pull it off (or at the very least come up with a plot and develop the characters), I will be very, very happy and proud of myself.

Anyways, that's really everything I know about this story. Thanks for asking about it, Carmen!!! <33

[merakiui]

How did you manage to write Kazuha as a yandere? I'm over here restarting the chapter for the fourth time.

But enough of that. How are you? I hope you're drinking enough water and getting the right amount of sleep! And I would add more but I'm honestly kinda awkward when talking to people lmao-

Make sure to take care of yourself!

I won’t lie; writing that yan!Kazuha oneshot felt like such a fever dream. It happened so fast and I’m still surprised I managed to keep it interesting!

Maybe I just like it because the concept of yandere!Kazuha falling for a stowaway is neat to me. 😂 There’s so much potential! Kazuha thinks he has a little secret because you told him to keep quiet, so there’s this special connection between the both of you. And then you’re discovered by someone else and it doesn’t feel special anymore because the secret is exposed. :< Poor Kazuha, you’ll get the chance to have some inside jokes with stowaway!reader eventually… If Beidou found out about his not-so-healthy cute infatuation, I think it would be funny if she became his wingwoman!

But aside from that, I see Kazuha as more of a silent, reserved yandere. On the surface he’s very well-mannered and kind, but below that he harbors a sick obsession. He’s more obsessive than possessive in my eyes, but considering what he went through I can definitely see him slowly growing more possessive over you as time goes on. It’s especially difficult if you always find yourself in danger; that’s just more fuel to the fire for his need to protect you.

Kazuha thinks about you a lot. It’s usually little thoughts that come to him throughout the day. Things like what makes you smile the most, your favorite foods and hobbies, and even how you complete your morning and night routines. He’s reminded of you when he goes about his duties on the ship, when he’s fighting, and even when he’s drifting to sleep at night. When he looks up at the sky and sees the stars twinkling above, he can’t help but picture your amazing smile and uplifting energy.

Kazuha isn’t exactly a tough yandere. He’s not one for torturous mind games or extreme violence and threats. He’ll resort to emotional manipulation if he feels like there’s no other way to get you to see things from his perspective. Since he’s on the run, he wouldn’t want to settle down with you until he knows he’s safe and won’t be pursued. As much as Kazuha doesn’t want you to get caught up in his mess, it’s sort of unavoidable when he asks you to stay with him.

He’s surprisingly tame for a yandere. At least, until he’s pushed to act rashly. If the situation calls for drastic measures, then such measures will be taken in order to protect you from the cruel world. And though he’s seen firsthand how rough it can be, Kazuha knows that the world’s far better when he’s with you. You’re the reason he’s able to wake up with another purpose and maybe one day you’ll also wake up with him on your mind.

He likes to think that you’ll understand where he’s coming from, even if he’s a little obsessive and wants to constantly be around you. Kazuha knows he’s imposing and that being clingy is impolite and annoying. He tries to keep his distance, which often leads to him silently staring at you from across the ship or waiting outside your quarters like a diligent guard dog. His helpful and caring actions prove that he means well. It’s what he truly thinks that could be worrying, as this love of his is far from normal.

That’s the basic characterization I have for him so far! It’s bound to change once we’re introduced to him in the story, but I see him as a soft yandere who just wants the best for his darling no matter what. Although I imagine the calm and gentle Kazuha can get quite scary when he’s forced to act that way if there’s no other choice.

And I’m doing well! I hope you’re doing well, too! Please make sure to eat healthy, get plenty of sleep, and take care of yourself!!! （＾∇＾）

[juniors0possum]

I actually don't like doing show offs like that, but I really wanna show y'all what I got yesterday- even nobody cares lol

I got so much cool stuff and even I got a lot by myself or they were from a wish list I'm still in love

It's just interesting that I got more gifts than people actually congratulated me lmao (thanks for everyone again who thought about it tho!)

So here's most of my stuff:

I also wanna do a short reviews because all of it is so cool sksks

Nuka Cola Thirst Zapper - the part in the game may was the biggest pain in Fallout history, but I'd always wanted this replica because I'm such a merchandise obsessed haha It was often sold out, but my parents managed to finally get it and it's sooo cool! Maybe a bit small, but as huge Nuka World fan I won't complain

Funko Pops - I always loved the Korra one a lot, the design is amazing! And of course I needed Bruno as soon as he was published lol Both are pretty awesome and I'm glad to add them to my collection

Avatar Chronicles - A lot dislike Korras show, but it's definitely one of my a time favorites! I even love it way more than the original show oops- I actually didnt know about this book till it was recommended because of the Funko, but this book is definitely a must have for any Korra fan! I love it to much how it was made- you even have extras like recipes, letters or fake photographs in it! You instantly feel like being a part of that world

Riverdale Student Handbook - Also here, a MUST have for any Riverdale fan! It's sooo well made and again I love the concept they used because you really feel like being a Riverdale student! There's everything you need to know about the show and in such a good quality I can 100000% recommend!

CDs - of course I needed the new Bastille album (preordered it to get the autographs too) and I finally got doom days too! I'm sad you can't buy the second version of it anymore because I'm missing so many songs- but beside that, GMTF is really good and you def should give it a try! I listened to it every day since it came out and won't stop soon. And OneRepublic of course, how can't you love them- still mad that they chose the worst cities ever to make their tour oof

Marvel- my sister got me some Marvel stuff because she didn't know my HP house- but as Marvel obsessed I'm not complaining lol (she also got me a picture of my recent crush and I died so hard omg)

Washi Tape- there's no time where I won't get new tape. Tape is love. Tape is life. This time I got real cool background sceneries which are so aesthetically!

And yes, that's all- if you actually read this post here's some food for your work 🍟🍔🥓🌭🍕🥞 and something to drink 🥤☕🥛

Mentioning food, we also went to eat Ramen for lunch and it was a stunning restaurant! And the food was also tasty af-

Thanks for your attention lol

[waveypedia]

Leaving the Nest

Companion piece to The Family We Make (can be read in any order)

Ao3

Granny’s posture is as immaculate as always, but her knuckles grip the pan just a little too tight. To an outsider, she would seem the perfect picture of serenity, but Webby knows the tells that give her away too well.

Of course she does. Granny is Webby’s favorite person in the entire world.

Webby’s family has grown and grown over the last few years, and she wouldn’t trade that for the world. But if it came down to it, Granny is more her family than anyone else. Even the boys. Even Dad.

“Dear, I think we should talk about… the other day,” Granny trails off, awkward and lame. It would be disorienting to see Granny, normally so put-together and articulate, struggling with words. But a couple days ago, Webby saw her chained and captured, crying and beaten, forced to spill her darkest secrets and then knocked out. Manipulated. Nothing Granny does can faze her in quite the same way.

Webby takes a deep breath. “I… I think so too,” she says. “But, honestly, I don’t have anything to say. You’re my Granny.”

Granny’s shoulders slump in relief before she catches herself, her decades of SHUSH training snapping in, and she reorients herself to her ever-present poker face. 

“I’m not, you know,” Granny says quietly, her voice full of shame. Webby stiffens, and glances away before Granny can see the tears pooling in her eyes. “I- I stole you from a SHUSH compound. The photos you have of your parents were a lie. Just another lie among many.”

“I don’t care,” Webby snaps, with more anger in her voice than she intended. But as soon as the words are out of her mouth, she realizes that she truly does feel that anger. Not towards Granny herself, but towards the notion that Granny isn’t her grandmother.

“You’re my grandmother,” Webby declares passionately. “I don’t care if you’re not related to me. I don’t care if I’m a clone of Dad. You stole me from a FOWL compound because you cared about me from the moment we met. You gave up your entire life and a career you’d been working towards for decades for me. You raised me. You locked yourself in the mansion to keep me safe. You’re my grandmother.”

“I’m happy to hear that, dear,” Granny says in the softest of whispers. “More than you could ever know.” Webby thinks she hears Granny’s voice catch, but she can’t be certain. 

“But I lied to you, even after I promised I wouldn’t,” Granny continues, her tone more subdued. She crosses her hands in her lap, making a controlled effort to smooth them out. “You have every right to be angry with me.”

Webby reaches forward and takes her grandmother’s hand in both of hers. “I do,” she agrees. Granny’s head snaps up and she stares at Webby, eyes wide. Webby shrugs nonchalantly, shoulders loose, emulating Louie’s calculated facade of easy calm without realizing it. “But that’s not the kind of person I am, Granny.”

Webby glances away, pursuing her lips. She can’t bear to watch Granny’s face twist in pain. “I… I am frustrated that you lied to me and broke your promise,” she says slowly, haltingly, choosing her words carefully. She’s walking a thin line, basically a tightrope with no net, of expressing her feelings and not upsetting her Granny. “Just don’t do it again, please.”

Granny’s face softens. “Of course, Webby dear. No more secrets.” 

She reaches out to hug Webby, and Webby obliges, but she says stiff. “That’s what you said last time,” Webby mutters into Granny’s shoulder. Her words are almost too soft to be heard, but judging by the way Granny stiffens, she does.

Granny pulls back, her hands still on Webby’s shoulders. She opens her mouth a few times, frantically searching for words, some kind of placating promise that she didn’t already break.

 “You’re right. Of course,” Granny acquiesces at last, hanging her head. Strands of grey hair drip out of her bun by the pull of gravity. Webby swallows thickly, bile pooling in her throat. Granny is reacting perfectly, yet all she does is remind Webby of when they were stuck together in a dark FOWL interrogation room, a wall of pain and deception painfully thick between them.

Webby reaches out a small hand to touch Granny’s shoulder. “Granny, please,” she whispers. She’s not sure if Granny understands the true meaning behind her plea in its entirety, but she pulls herself back together nonetheless. For a few minutes, silence hangs between them. It’s not a comfortable silence, but it’s not stifling, either. It’s just… anticipatory.

“I can’t simply promise that I won’t lie to you anymore,” Granny says at last. Her voice is quiet and subdued, but honest and vulnerable. It’s open in a way Granny rarely is. “But I will do better from now on. I’ll prove my sentiments through actions, not empty promises.”

Webby smiles gratefully. It’s not her usual wide, face-splitting grin, but it’s soft and vulnerable, with layers and meaning behind it. “Thanks. I… I want to know things. About SHUSH. Classified things. The parts of my past you could never tell me, and new information, too.”

Granny’s gaze shoots away. “I-I can’t,” she replies immediately, and Webby’s heart drops. It must show in her face, because Granny’s own twists with guilt. 

“I- Well- I suppose I did just promise to, didn’t I,” Granny says, half to herself, with a small chuckle. There’s little humor behind it, but it’s fond. “I will do my best, Webbigail. But please understand that there is some SHUSH information that is simply beyond my classification to give you.”

“I understand,” Webby says simply. “But the information you can give me… I want to know, Granny.”

Granny’s fists clench and unclench in her lap. Webby knows how uncomfortable and out of her depth she must feel. She protected Webby with her life for years by hiding these secrets, and it takes time to undo such habits. But she’s trying, and that’s all that Webby cares about. 

“Do you remember the day I met the boys?” Webby asks, her voice lighter and more casual than she feels. There’s a pit of fear steadily growing in her stomach, but her voice is blessedly steady. 

Granny’s smile is small but fond. “You snuck out,” she replies, a hint of reproach in her voice, but no malice. It’s a wound long since healed, leaving only a soft scar as a reminder that it existed at all. “You ignored my number one rule and left the mansion for the very first time.”

“Yeah, and it was new and scary,” Webby replies lightly, ignoring the jab. “But you let me go, because you knew it was for the best. Because I was growing up.”

“Because Mr. McDuck could keep you safe,” Granny adds pointedly, but she’s smiling, if a bit pained.

“Yeah, and he did! I’m fine, Granny. Besides, I can keep myself safe.”

“Tell that to the you that landed yourself in FOWL headquarters with all your allies captured and no real clue what was in store for you,” Granny quips. “My worst nightmare, come alive right in front of my eyes.”

“I’m sorry,” Webby mutters, dropping her gaze to her feet. “But hey, if you’d told me the truth, maybe I wouldn’t have been so misinformed.”

Granny dips her head. “You make a good point. I concede that one.”

“Anyway, that’s just what this is like,” Webby continues. “It’s a big change. But it’s a necessary one. I’m ready for this, Granny.  You are too. And in time, this’ll feel completely normal, and we’ll have forgotten what it was like to live like we are.”

Granny is silent for a few moments. Webby glances up, nervous, only to find Granny smiling proudly, and wiping a small tear away under her glasses.

“Webby, dear, you are so wise,” she says, her voice thick. Webby’s heart clenches. “Aren’t I the one supposed to give you the deep, heartfelt talks and inspire you, and not the other way around?”

Webby gives her a small smile. “You’ve done it before, Granny. Don’t sell yourself short.”

Granny sniffles rather uncharacteristically. Without warning, she lunges forward and scoops Webby up in a tight hug. “Oh, my dear,” Granny says, her voice choked with tears. “You are just lovely, you know that? How did I ever get so lucky to have you for a granddaughter?”

“Well, it’s partly because of you,” Webby says, smiling into her grandmother’s back. “You raised me.”

Granny nods into Webby’s shoulder. “And it was lovely.”

When Granny finally pulls back, she tugs Webby back to face her, her hands on Webby’s shoulders. “You’re growing up,” she says thickly. “Oh, Webbigail, I am so proud of you.”

Webby beams at her grandmother. “I’m proud of you, too.”

“Oh,” Granny says thickly, and hugs her again.

~

HEY REMEMBER WHEN I SAID I WOULD WRITE THE CONVERSATION WITH WEBBY AND BEAKLEY WELL HERE IT IS :D (rip my poor math homework i’ll be up all night finishing that ugh)

i wrote this in like,, 45 minutes because i had to get the few sentences i was thinking about down before i forgot them and just,, kept going lmao. rip the webby & lena convo story i’ve been chipping away at that is going absolutely nowhere rn. i’ll get to it

webby and beakley’s relationship is SO important to me. beakley literally gave up everything for webby. it’s so obvious how much beakley cares about her, but also,,, they had this entire episode about trusting each other and then beakley promises not to keep any more secrets from webby and she has absolutely zero intention of keeping it. that always gets me. especially since webby is one of the most trusting characters of all time and would never doubt her grandmother of all people after they made up. i’m not salting on beakley or anything, but it’s very interesting to think about going forward since beakley will obviously try to do better, especially once the major factor keeping her quiet is gone, but she really doesn’t have a leg to stand on since she broke her promise. definitely an interesting concept we should talk about more

we talk a lot about how scrooge never apologized to webby after telling her she wasn’t family in last crash of the sunchaser and she immediately forgave him. scrooge def should’ve apologized but it’s interesting to note that webby basically can’t and won’t hold a grudge for the life of her, at least when it comes to the people she cares about (she definitely can with goldie DJDFKLSLDF). it’s sweet. i imagine beakley feels incredibly guilty after the finale but webby’s just ready to move on and to enter a new chapter of their lives where they’re completely honest and open with each other. i don’t imagine she’s not upset at the deception, but she’s not mad.

also man that interrogation scene? that probably traumatized webby. man. what a shitty situation to be in i can’t even imagine.

beakley and webby’s relationship will always mean the world to me, especially with the added context of their backstory. beakley literally saw one (1) baby and was like i’m about to end this man’s (me) whole career LMAO. it’s incredible.

[genshinimpactfanatics]

Genshin Boys and the types of social media they’d have

Diluc

Definitely the type to own a facebook page but… is never on it. You search his name and it’s just a blank profile with his birthday and ‘joined facebook’ date lmao the only photos of him online are like official photos and photos other people have of him

if anything he would probably have social media for his winery and bar but it’s for sure ran by someone who works for him. He’ll occasionally check the business instagrams and facebook pages but he has faith in whoever it is he’s hired to run them. 

Kaeya

Oh my god, instagram and facebook king. In fact, he’s probably the one who made Diluc the facebook page but gave up because he refused to let Kaeya get a good photo of him. His own pages on the other hand, absolutely popping with likes. 

Tons of selfies, definitely that guy who’s really attractive and knows it because he’s posting thirst traps on the daily. He may keep his facebook a LITTLE more professional but his instagram? Pls, more like sinstagram.

Arataki Itto

SNAPCHATTT! Lord the crap he would post on his story on a daily basis.  “runnin from the tenryou commission again lololol” and it’s just a super blurry picture of him running through the city with like 7 soldiers behind him

Also has streaks with almost every person he has on his snap. He takes it very seriously too, if he sees the little hourglass next to your name he will personally find you and force you to snap him before it resets. 

Kazuha

Probably doesn’t even have any social media, he might have a phone but he uses it solely to contact people and even then he just… doesnt text back?? Or call back?? Ever? You’ll ask him a question and he’ll respond a week later.

Xiao

Doesn’t own a phone, pls. Does not understand the concept of facebook or memes, but some adepti fans in liyue have tiktoks dedicated to him, just very brief clips of him being spotted, or him whipping around his spear to save some civilians. He’s got quite the following and doesn’t even know it.

Childe/Tartaglia

Snapchat and youtube guy for sure, constantly posting about his plan for world domination and asking people to pull up so they can get their ass beat lololol def has videos showing off his weaponry skills

But!! He does have a facebook strictly for his family, he doesn’t post too much on it but he’ll occasionally add some photos of him and his siblings doing fun winter activities or you’ll see him tagged in other people’s posts.

Albedo

Hmm, he probably TRIED his hand at social media just to see what it was all about but I doubt it’s something he’s actively interested in. Would maybe enjoy tumblr more than any other platform but he’s not gonna go out of his way to check his blog regularly. 

Theoretically though, he’d make an awesome tiktok page! People would find his experiments really cool and he’s probably gain a massive following. If anything he mght use these social media platforms themselves to conduct experiments but he wouldn’t use them for leisure purposes in my opinion.

Zhongli

Actually doesn't own a phone either. Has a facebook you made for him but thats it. It’s more detailed than Diluc’s at least though. He actually has a decent profile picture you took for him, and just a few posts but its like 3 really weird and profound statuses about osmanthus wine and an awkwardly angled picture of the sunrise

[dakt37]

Avengers Assemble - Feral Outlaw Stony

So I've been expanding on this concept I doodled before Christmas, where Steve goes with Tony into the no-tech dimension at the end of season 3. Probably a lot of stuff isn't canon-compliant (beyond the obvious change that is), but "It's an AU so I do what I want" rules apply. Anyway. 

The tl;dr is: The two of them spend a little time puttering around the weird no-tech dimension, and then get absorbed into Battleworld. They become explorers, helping people out and falling in love along the way.

(Once again, I feel like someone must have had this idea already, but I’ve never looked.)

Cut for excessive rambling.

~~~

Not all the areas we see in the show are present in Battleworld when Steve and Tony first arrive, so the boys spend most of their time traveling around, mapping the place out as it expands. A lot of my ideas rely on them still having little-to-no access to modern conveniences. Obviously someplace modern has to show up for them to get their hands on a pickup truck and a motorcycle, but I’m picturing a post-apocalyptic junkyard that’s been picked clean of anything obviously useful. They get the vehicles working by sheer force of “I’m Tony-fucking-Stark.” But like that fully functional NYC area is way too convenient, so it’s not around yet. (tbh I’m not even sure if it’s an alternate NYC or theirs, in which case it wouldn’t show up until the other Avengers do anyway) 

They get the low-down on the "Battleworld" concept by eavesdropping on one of Beyonder's* welcome speeches. They realize that they are uniquely off the grid, because Beyonder didn't know they were in the no-tech dimension when he added it to Battleworld. They decide it's advantageous to maintain this secret status, but they're still Avengers™️ so they can't NOT help out wherever they can. But they don’t stick around any one place for long. Basically, they become vagrant vigilantes in addition to surveyors. They get a lot of their “stuff” (clothes, tools, toiletries, etc) as payment for odd jobs, or gifts from grateful locals they rescue. They get some food from populated areas as well, but also rely on foraging and hunting while on the lam. They have definitely eaten dinosaur at some point.

(*He doesn't get the nickname "Beyonder" until the other Avengers show up. In this AU Steve and Tony refer to him as "The Entity" or "Suspenders." You can probably guess who tends to use which.)

On top of the survival story, it's also a getting-together story. Steve and Tony flirt and pine and bicker and flirt some more, until a squabble turns into a confession and they finally start kissing. There’s plenty of time for “it’s cold in this wasteland and we only have one blanket, oh no,” but they’re firmly established as romantically involved by the time the other Avengers show up and they have the final showdown with Beyonder.

Anyway a lot of the AU notes I've been making are about the functional side of their Big Camping Adventure. So here's a bunch of lists about vehicles, gadgets, and navigation.

~

Vehicle stuff:

If Tony is riding passenger on the motorcycle, he can clip his repulsor boots into special footrests that reroute the energy and give the bike a speed boost. 

The bike has a tow cable. Steve can harpoon things using a spring-action firing mechanism, including cliff faces to help him scale steep terrain. The cable can also be uncoiled manually, like when Tony takes flight while holding the end so he and Steve can clothesline hostiles. 

Steve can stick his shield several places on the bike depending on what’s convenient. On the front as a windscreen/battering ram, on one side for easy grabbing, and even on Tony’s backpack so Tony can snuggle in properly while riding passenger and keep both their backs protected.

They probably don’t even need a ramp to get the bike into the bed of the pickup. Steve just picks it up and puts it there.

The evolution of Marsha (the truck) into a full Hulkbuster-style mech takes a long time. For the majority of their time in Battleworld, it’s just a truck with an ever-increasing number of weird add-ons.

Marsha can function as a tiny camper home. The cargo bed liner is a false bottom, which can be pulled up and rearranged to form a cover/roof. Underneath the liner, the actual truck bed is about a foot deeper, with most of that storage space taken up by a mattress and bedding. 

Tony can pull a cable out of Marsha’s steering column and plug it directly into his arc reactor. This unlocks extra features and weapons. He generally has things balanced so that Marsha drawing power doesn't affect him any more than his armor drawing power would. But on rare and desperate occasions, he can overclock and hurt himself. Steve of course hates when he does this.

Turnabout is fair play though: at least once, something else damaged the arc reactor, so Tony plugged into Marsha to draw power from the battery for his electromagnet while he repaired the arc.

Gasoline can be difficult to procure, so both vehicles are hybrids. Tony just keeps adding new power conversion elements as they go along, based on what they can find. 

~

F in chat for Tony’s armor:

Tony dismantles the armor he’d been wearing when they first went into the no-tech dimension.

Obviously he keeps skeletal versions of the repulsor boots and gloves in-tact enough to function. 

He also keeps most of the helmet, for when he’s riding with Steve on the motorcycle. Mostly because Steve insisted. It's gutted of tech though, so if the faceplate stays as part of the design, the eyes are just holes (like in the classic comics).

The rest of the pieces are kept in a large packing trunk.

Tony repurposes some parts into useful gadgets for himself and Cap, plus the odd toy for other Avengers (like Widow’s new stinger gauntlets) because he’s optimistic like that.

Electronics use precious metals like gold and copper, so Tony scrapes some out to pay for things in certain areas of Battleworld, like the cowboy town or the pirate area. He might also barter with other general bits like wires and screws, but he avoids parting with any actual full tech.

~

Plug-n-play Gadgets

Since the power draw for Tony's electromagnet is actually fairly minimal, Tony makes use of the arc reactor as a charging station, mostly when he sleeps. It's not like there's a corner store they can drop by to get a pack of batteries. Things he charges include (but are not limited to):

Flashlight for Steve. The bulbs for it came from the eyes in the Iron Man helmet. Note: Tony doesn't need a flashlight himself because he can turn up his arc brightness apparently, lmao.

Camp stove. Steve questioned Tony building one for a hot second because hello we can build campfires to cook over? But then it’s raining and they're in a cave and Tony is like, "if you fill this space with smoke I will divorce you before we're even married." And Steve is like "camp stove wow yes okay." Also they had camp stoves in WW2 so honestly it was simply a Himbo Moment to disregard the virtues of one in the first place. 

Walkie talkies. I know they had Avengers comms but I like the aesthetic of walkie talkies more. Maybe the comms relied on satellites that they obviously don't have anymore or something.

~

Navigation:

Speaking of a lack of satellites, the GPS in Tony’s armor is rendered useless. Steve is real smug about it and pulls out his old-fashioned compass. But Battleworld also doesn’t have proper poles, so it just spins wildly for a few seconds and then points at Tony’s electromagnet. Not to be deterred, Steve declares, “Well, you’re never lost if you can find Polaris.” They look up and realize that the night sky, despite having stars and a moon, is not at all arranged the way it is on Earth. 

Tony takes this as a Challenge. He builds a sextant, then spends the next several nights in a row muttering math under his breath as he painstakingly creates a hand-drawn star chart. This, combined with landmarks, becomes the primary way they orient themselves as they roam around Battleworld.

Many nights, Steve and Tony lie in the bed of the pickup together and make up constellations named after other Avengers and friends. Steve makes a copy of Tony’s star chart and sketches artistic renditions of the constellations on top. To close this post with an interesting visual, here’s an example of what Tony’s star map might look like vs what Steve’s would more resemble:

[embraceyourdestiny]

I never finished this but I figured I’d post what I did get down anyway

fare warning that this was mostly rambles so it might not make sense lmao

things im noticing watching all of roxas’ cutscenes bc i love my boy

1). Sora and Roxas’ “Where am I? Who’s there? Who are you?” Literally never noticed this was them talking in Roxas’ heart the entire time

2). Things happening to Roxas and people telling him they aren’t both paralleling his time in the Org and Ventus’ time throughout bbs. I think it’s possibly a less intentional parallel on Ven’s side but just as effective because it draws similarities between them immediately; people don’t believe Roxas and Ven are experiencing the things they are (who intentionally tell them it isn’t happening) and it forces them to stray down the path those manipulating them want them to go down.

3). Considering everything, it’s still pretty funny that Riku literally jacked Roxas and as far as I know there was no reason for this lmao (I think it’s actually probably because he didn’t want him to leave the simulation if that was even possible to do with the train or because it actually wasn’t and DiZ couldn’t just make a whole Destiny Islands for him to play in which would have messed up their plans anyway, but it’s still funny lol. Also furthers Roxas’ alienation from his friends and his “life” and loops around to point two so)

4). Why?? Does the twilight gang eat sea salt ice cream?? Obviously because of Roxas but did DiZ consciously program that in?? He had to of, which just seems weird and kindly, which is very out of character for how I perceive him. If they took all of Roxas’ precious memories, then there was no need to add the sea salt ice cream right? Maybe deep down it would feel wrong but without prompting Roxas probably wouldn’t notice all that much. Then again, maybe it was intentional for Roxas to do what DiZ wanted, him planting an inkling of the bigger picture to get him to his end goal. Thinking of it like that, that seems much more aligned with the kind of person DiZ is lmao

Edit of this months after the fact: DiZ also loved sea salt ice cream so he might’ve just programmed his tastes into DTLTW lmao

4.5). Also, I think it’s really interesting how Kingdom Hearts consistently throws two conflicting messages at you in terms of memories; you’ll never truly forget what’s important but you can also completely forget everything you’ve ever known and possibly never come back from it without help. Obviously, “the heart never forgets,” but with the heart, body, mind, and soul all being present in Kingdom Hearts it’s an interesting thought to juggle with that even if you know in your heart something is right or wrong, your mind can still struggle with that concept and can easily be tricked into thinking otherwise, sometimes never coming out of that even if you know in your heart something’s amiss. It’s just really interesting.

5). Roxas sitting a considerable distance from Hayner, Pence, and Olette, showing his disconnect not only with his “life” in twilight town but his disconnect with life and general, and possibly even his disconnect from Sora

6). Roxas had an airplane in his room while Sora had a pirate ship. Besides the obvious parallels between Sora and Roxas and sea and sky, is it possible that because he was made from part of Ven’s heart and Ven was able to fly with his glider that some part of Roxas wanted to fly too? It makes me wonder how much of the room was based in Roxas’ genuine interests/subconscious thoughts and how much of it was programmed by DiZ because I don’t think he could’ve known that about Ven

6.5). More useless thoughts that probably even Nomura didn’t think of; just how much of this did DiZ program and how was that even possible? The town itself would be easy enough but the relations between the people, the banter between the gang and the tension with Seipher, how could he have done that? DiZ doesn’t seem the most... sociable person, he’s not someone who could accurately portray realistic relationships between real people, so was it like he simply got the code of the entire town and let it all play out? I guess he would’ve since in the real twilight town the gang still felt a connection to Roxas and I don’t think that would’ve been possible if they were entirely made of data, like from scratch. Wouldn’t that mean that somehow he was able to take the tiniest piece of their hearts and build from there? And that’s how they actually genuinely connected with him?

(The reason this stuck out in particular to me was the shopping scene with Pence and Olette. When Pence says “he’s stalling...” it implies that he’s done this before, which means they have history and prior experiences to go off of, and how Olette’s voice sounds when she responds. It’s teasing and knowing like a friend really would say it, so were their hearts really able to bond and determine their dynamics without actually living it? Anything is possible in KH lol)

7). ROXAS DOING VANITAS’ CARTWHEEL??? I actually screamed when this happened I never noticed it before omg!!!

Edit: part two/continued!

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #424

“got no superspeed, but i’m running this town”

What is the first line in the song you are currently listening to/last listened to? "I’m running out of time; I hope that I can save you somehow.” Are you an easy lay? Not in the slightest. What was the last reason you cried? Life and how inexplicably I'm failing at it. What’s hurting you right now? More like what isn't. Do you remember important dates? Only some. I'm awful with numbers. Do you own anything with the Playboy Bunny on it? No. Do you own a bean bag chair? No. Have you ever played Gamecube? At a friend's house. Have you ever played with toy cars before? Yeah, with my nephew. He LOVES monster trucks. Have you ever touched a caterpillar? Oh, definitely. I loved picking them up as a kid. What is your favorite kind of salad? Just plain 'ole iceberg lettuce with ranch, really. Are you any good at Ping-Pong? Holy hell no, I SUCK. What was/is your high school mascot? A firebird. Can you make cute little animals by folding paper? God no, I'm awful at origami. Like, I have zero concept of how to do it. What kind of music do you like? Various types of metal and rock. Do you like apple juice? Yeah. Do you like to draw? It's funny, like I do love it, but I barely ever do it because I get frustrated when I can't get what's in my head onto paper. What do you put on your french fries? Generally ketchup. How many people can comfortably sleep in your bed? Two. Do you want to have a big family in the future? I don't want kids, just pets. Probably a lot of pets. Is Vegas one of your must-see places? No. Pet rat: yay or nay? I've had multiple pet rats and I adore them. I've come to find I'm not the best at keeping rodents because changing the bedding so much sucks ass, but nevertheless they are fantastic pets for people who don't mind the maintenance. Would you call yourself a writer? Written any stories lately? Yes. I haven't written in a while, though. I just have absolutely zero motivation to RP. Are you good at reading people's body language? I probably overanalyze it, really. Ever threatened somebody and actually went through with it? I don’t threaten people. Does holding newborn babies scare you? Extremely. I feel like they're made of thin glass. Piercings: yay or nay? I LOVE piercings. They add an interesting touch to your appearance and to me just (usually) look super cool. There are very few piercings I don't like. Do you have a collage of pictures in your bedroom? No, but I want to make a motivation board very badly. Favorite Nicholas Cage movie? Ghost Rider. Were video games better in the 1980s, 1990s, or the 2000s? Why? '80s games bore me honestly, but I love some '90s and many 2000s games. I've got to say ultimately newer games win, because of graphics increasing immersion (no, I do not whatsoever believe graphics are everything or always make a better experience), voice acting improving immensely, etc. Have you ever watched The Beverly Hillbillies? Yes! Mom loves it so I used to watch it a lot with her as a kid. I'd still watch it. Did your mother ever sing lullabies to you when you were younger? Yes. Are you ready to get out of this town? I HATE THIS TOOOWN, IT'S SO WASHED UUU-UP, AND ALL MY FRIENDS DON'T GIVE A FUUU-UUUUUCK god hell yes get me the fuck out. Do you know anybody that is pregnant right now? Quite a few. What are you listening to? "Superluv” by Shane Dawson. Have you ever gotten a speeding ticket? No. Does your father have any facial hair? Yes. Did your grandparents teach you anything? My maternal grandmother, the only one I really ever knew, taught me I'm a disappointment, pretty much. And a bitch. Do you want/have a Bachelor’s degree? It'd be nice to have one, but I don't, and I'm not pursuing it again. I've wasted enough of my parents' money. Are you into superheroes? Who’s your favourite? Not seriously, but I enjoy them well enough. I like Spider-Man. What did you have for dinner last night? Mom ordered Mexican. I had two shrimp and cheese quesadillas and rice with cheese. Do you think you look similar to your siblings? No. Have you ever played Cards Against Humanity? Did you like it? Yeah, it's fun. Do you know your best friend’s middle name? Yes. Are you close to your father? I am. Have you ever had a serious conversation with your dad? Yeah. Would you rather have long or short hair? I enjoy having short hair way more. Who did you go/plan on going with to prom? I went with Jason twice. Have you ever been to a debate and speech tournament? Hell no, and I never would. Arguing makes me cry lmao. Are you someone who enjoys stand-up comedy? Yep. What’s one thing that scares you about living alone and being independent? A lot of things do, but one thing in specific that I fear is that I let the house become cluttered and messy. I'm so shit at cleaning, especially when I'm depressed. It's why my own bedroom isn't even fully decorated, and we've lived here since I wanna say last November. If someone offered you an all-expenses paid trip to one European country, where would you go and why? Germany, 'cuz I enjoy the culture and would love to try some foods and visit places. Have you ever won anything on the lottery? No. Are you interested in the World Cup? I couldn't possibly care less. What’s the longest time you’ve ever been on a plane for? Idk. Do you let your hair dry naturally or do you towel-dry it or blow dry it? I use a towel to dry it some, then let it really get the job done naturally. How many of the Harry Potter books have you read? None. Who last gave you their number? When I posted on Facebook about going on a mental health hiatus, my good friend Alon messaged me her number if I ever needed to talk. I was really thankful. Are you often the last one to understand a joke? Honestly yeah. I'm slow to grasp a lot of things. Your first black eye: Did you give it or get it? Never gotten or given one. Have you ever slept in a tent, indoors or out? Yes to both. Are you mad right now? I'm annoyed, but not mad. Are you allergic to nuts or dairy products? No. Has anyone ever called the cops on you? No. Do you ever actually drink milk alone? Yeah, I love milk. Do you have a sensitive gag reflex? It is EXTREMELY sensitive. What was the last situation to upset you? I'd rather not talk about it. Have you ever had an online argument? I have been heavily active on the Internet since I was like, 11. Maybe younger. I have been in plenty. Are you at risk for any medical issues? A lot of heart problems run in my family. I'm also suspicious I may develop diabetes, which also runs very heavily in my family. What were you doing at 7:00 a.m.? Surprisingly, I was asleep. Do you own a robe? No. What would you consider your life to be? A wreck. What is your favorite mark of punctuation? I like question marks. Who knows your biggest secret? Nobody. Do you think anyone has feelings for you? Probably not. How do you know? I just doubt it. I'm so unlikable right now. Could you go a day without eating? I don't think I could. I do not react to stomach pain well, and that includes when I'm hungry. How many bracelets do you have on your wrists right now? None. What’s your favorite drink? Strawberry Sunkist, but I don't allow myself to have it. I will DESTROY a can or five of it. Who was the last person that texted you? My mom. What are you craving? Nothing really right now. What was the first thing you ate today? An everything bagel. What was the last type of meat you ate? Pork. Have you taken any medication today? Yeah, I take some prescription meds in the morning and at night. Have you ever been to Hawaii? No, but that'd be cool. Do you know anyone who has diabetes? My mom, for one. Have you ever made a boy cry? Sadly. Who are you talking to? Nobody. Do you think you’ve ruined your chances with someone? Absolutely. Your parents split; would you want to live with your mom or dad? My parents are divorced, and I stayed with Mom. Would you strongly prefer to go out with someone of your own skin color/racial background? I couldn't care less. For you personally, is abortion an option in case of an accidental pregnancy? For others, absolutely. It's your right. For me myself, it's possible, idk. If I was God forbid raped, I probably would have an abortion. If I accidentally got pregnant in a healthy relationship, I'd probably have a "too bad, so sad" outlook where I'd suck it up and go through with the gestation because having sex and risking pregnancy was my own decision. Even if I'm pro-choice, I think I'd feel too guilty aborting, especially with the child being someone's I love. Is it a requirement that you communicate every day with your significant other (via phone, text, in person, whatever)? IF I had an s/o, no. I like to, but sometimes you just want space. Are you fetish-friendly? I'm not gonna lie, some fetishes are just too fucking weird for me. I TRY not to judge, because I doubt you can actually help fetishes, but I inevitably do sometimes. If you're asking would I engage in fetishes because my s/o liked them, possibly, but it would really depend on what it is. Have you ever cosplayed? No. I think cosplay is really cool, though. Do you support the exploration of outer space? If yes, would you consider taking a trip into space, or even to another planet? As creatures who crave knowledge and understanding of our universe, I do support space exploration, but I do NOT believe we should be spending as much money as we do on it. Taking care of the planet we're actually on is far more important imo. I wouldn't personally go to outer space. Is it okay for men to wear makeup? What’s your opinion of male crossdressers? It's totally okay! Guys with makeup can be super attractive. Crossdressers, too. Go for it. You’re in a new relationship and your partner admits that they have had 14 sexual partners. Does that sound like a lot to you? For me personally, yes. I don't even know if I'd date someone with 14 past sexual partners, honestly. I would admittedly question their loyalty. Would you let your children under 13 watch movies with full nudity? No. If someone asked you, “What’s the worst thing you’ve ever done?” would you know the answer right away? I would. What is your opinion concerning strip clubs? Not my scene at all, but so long as you respect the dancers, whatever. You do you.

[tonyglowheart]

This entire thing is a rant, feel free to ignore it, but I saw your post about how destiel fans can’t win in this context, and yeah. So have some rambles.

I’ve been thinking about the fact we (current spn/destiel fans) can’t win all night... I’ve seen so many people talking about how homophobic it is - and while I would very much like to argue, as every point I’ve seen made by a non-spn fan has been wrong so far, if I did everyone inside the fandom would agree and everyone outside would either call me straight or pity me for believing it’s okay.

(Cas wasn’t even sent to hell lmao. He was sent to angel death (the empty), a place he has escaped in the past. Other points, like that meta about spn has been predicting exactly this for months, that Dean ended up sobbing on the floor because he was so upset, like that death means next to nothing on spn, like that there is two episodes left, etc etc. you feel me right? I just don’t want to post wank to other spn blogs atm, we’re getting enough frustration as it is, no need to add to it.

It’s also worth pointing out that the bar is very, very low. Spn is a prominent TV show - not a Netflix show, or indie, or whatever - and it just said “main character in gay love saved the world”. [insert gif of ghostfacers dude saying that gay love can pierce through the veil of death and save the day here]

I just saw someone saying that spn having Naomi try to brainwash Cas out of loving dean makes spn homophobic (it is a conversion therapy parallel). My first response to that is that Naomi was the villain lmao? I guess we can’t write villains doing anything homophobic because having villains do homophobic things makes, uh - checks notes - villains look homophobic, and clearly we can’t have that.

There certainly are legitimate things to criticise spn about, but this isn’t it lol.

Also now some people are unironically trying to cancel Jensen because “his acting was homophobic, and so he’s clearly homophobic”, nevermind that he’s an actor and his character struggles with understanding his emotions (which I think he played excellently, myself. That scene had a very Dean delayed emotional response), nevermind the support he’s given to us queers in the past. Like. Idek man.

We would have been laughed at if we got no destiel, too.

It would have been worse, had the writers pulled a dumbledore. At this point I also trust the writers not to pull a GoT - they have explicitly criticised that ending in spn’s canon.

Spn’s writers did that by making the main villain of this season, Chuck / God, say GoT had a good ending. To reiterate a previous point I had: villains do bad things because they’re bad. And the bad things they do make them bad. For the people out there not still following, if someone does something in a story and it makes them a villain, that is explicitly telling you the story (and probably the writers) thinks that thing is bad. In this case, Chuck likes to write things for him, and we the audience have been shown and told that is bad.

Apparently thinking a gay confession is good in 2020 makes me straight. Seems unlikely, but whatever. Sorry for the length, I guess I went overboard, I’ve been holding it in lol. Anyway, DESTIEL IS CANON 💚💙 hope you have a good night

Helloo supernatural anon I hope you are living your best life right now. Yeah I’m like..... skeptical and leery myself but having lived through some absolute garbage discourse that is general purity wank, as well as the C/QL greater fandom here and on Twitter I find myself... much more wanting to question the “general wisdom” of things esp in terms of negativity, bc a lot of the time I find.... it’s wrong? Like so wrong. Or at least presents such an incomplete picture of the whole situation and also presents it in such a removed context that words that have meaning and are operationalized in a certain way for a reason, no longer have meaningful usage.

Anyway I don’t... know too much about the specifics of Spn but someone I follow is into it and talks a lot about the Gnostic stuff and that all was very fascinating to me, and I also have been grappling a lot with cultural Christianity bc of cmedia and the way ppl just *clenches fist* unthinkingly or uncritically slap some Christian norms on it and call it a day 😩 help I’m Tired. My thing here being... I actually got tired of the uncritical “superhell”s at some pt bc I am, in fact, incredibly exhausted with cultural Christianity, and because it does seem like, even possibly(?) without the Gnostic stuff it’s different from a “hell” or other Protestant-derived afterlife concept, and also yeah that it wasn’t seeded out of nowhere, it was set up to happen, which then... lends credence to the idea that whatever the current era of Spn is doing, the current showrunners are doing it with purpose.

And idk I just... refuse to believe the concept that ALL of the fans of Spn - esp the ones who have been following it still, or got back into it and are following it currently, are acting under delusion or are fooling themselves into liking it or thinking it’s good or whatever. I personally find that kinda infantilizing and patronizing and playing into issues of dismissing things women and/or other marginalized identities like.

Plus I find the concept that (from what I think I’ve been seeing Spn fans say) that the current era of the show is quite actively grappling with itself, its past, its legacy. to be very interesting and compelling; it hearkens back to like an old lore kind of feeling, of a thing that has grown into a nigh undefeatable monster and realizing that, also realizing that the only way to defeat itself is through grappling with its own nature and transforming and transmuting itself into something else. I personally find that more plausible and compelling than “Supernatural has been actively and continuously queerbaiting for 15 homophobic homophobic years., so right now we’re all very sorry for you because this maybe is no longer queerbaiting but it’s still homophobic and it can never be anything different ever.” I’ve been sort of tangentially aware of Spn thru the years and didn’t we agree, around the time of that in-universe play about Spn and with the lil Destiel shoutout, that Spn has come a ways as far as coming to terms with its fandom and working to treat its fans better? Why the sudden regression into “oh no, Supernatural is and forever will be homophobic and a hate crime”? 🤔 

The rest under a cut bc the ask is already long and then my rambling will get longer-

But yeah I mean..... I get that the legacy of Supernatural has been certifiably Rough, but I think people also forget how different of a time 2005 was? Hell, how different of a time 2015 was, even, prior to, say, Obergefell v. Hodges. Now I’m not saying that to blanket-excuse Supernatural, but like, you look at mainstream shows from the era and... there’s a lot of shit lmao. The fact that Supernatural has existed this long seems to me like.... maybe we CAN look at how it’s developed through the years vs just insisting it is what it was 15, 10, hell, 5 years ago. Especially since, to my knowledge, there’s been showrunner changes? Which seems to me like it would... affect things? I mean honestly, I remember back when I got into Spn for a hot second because of Castiel, I remember watching panel, Q&A, etc vids thru the years, and like... I thought we agreed that... it was the fans who were going a bit far pushing the shipping question like literally ALL the time to the actors, who are not in control of the show and.... like at the time.... that could have had personal implications for them? And yes homophobia bad, and people can still be allies despite that, but again like.... I do feel like - from what I’ve seen - that these guys were NOT ready to deal with a lot of that but they’ve (okay Jensen I’m talking about Jensen here) genuinely grown and learned? Also how many years ago was the essay autograph thing that people keep trotting out, like what year was it in and what year of spn was it, and what were the prevailing opinions on LGBT issues and bisexuality then.

I’ve been seeing some murmurings of identity politicsing surrounding ppl who enjoy Supernatural, and I’m sorry that that’s happening to you, it really fucking sucks and it’s also the dumbest way to “make” or “win” an argument because it shouldn’t ever be a final determiner, just factors to consider when considering what life experiences might have informed someone else’s PoV and views as well as maybe how you can better communicate with them. Instead of it being a “weapon” or “tool” to either dismiss someone or de facto validate an argument.

Also yeah I get it that you don’t want to send discourse to spn blogs bc I imagine you guys ARE actively grappling with all the bs rn and it’s a lot. Even just from like, the stuff I see around, I’m like tired of it. I’m genuinely having more fun with ppl who are having a good time with Supernatural than the ppl who are hating on it, even in this sort of backhanded “oh we’re not clowning YOU we’re clowning the writers and showrunners who think you should be satisfied with this,” when... yeah? the people who HAVE been watching the show and therefore... know what’s up.. DO seem to be? And all this based on *fake gasp* context. And that’s where the backhandedness becomes kind of poisonous to me, because it implies that it IS bad, and that you SHOULDN’T be satisfied, but poor little you are but don’t worry, we’re not making fun of YOU for liking garbage, you’re just the hapless victim who is consuming the garbage bc... idk, whatever reasons ppl are coming up with ig.

idk man it’s 2020. Fandom isn’t activism, performative or otherwise, it’s okay to let people enjoy things even if you think they’re “objectively” bad, and like... I don’t know if people can call something bad when they’re not even working with the whole context and instead are dealing with rumor and reputation. 

[eldritchsurveys]

996.

5k Survey LXVI

3351. True or false: When someone hates you it is because: they're jealous of you? the things you say are frightening to them because what you say makes them think about things they would rather avoid thinking about? they don't understand you? >> It could be any of those reasons, sure, but sometimes it really is about you, lmao. Sometimes you really can straight-up do something that makes someone else royally pissed off at you and you can choose to take responsibility for it or not. 3352. True or false: When you hate someone it is because: you're jealous of them? the things they say are frightening to you because what they say makes them think about things you would rather avoid thinking about? you don't understand them? >> I don’t hate anyone, per se, but there are people I’ve disliked for the first and third reasons (not too sure about the second, can’t think of any examples). I don’t make it their problem, though, because it obviously has more to do with me than them. 3353. Have you ever been fascinated by someone who hated you? >> I don’t know. Gonna guess not, but it’s possible, I guess. 3354. Since the human brain has defense mechanisms against feeling bad (meaning the brain lies to itself to avoid feeling bad about something it said or did) how can we ever know if we are truly being honest? How do we know our brains are not tricking us into believeing we are good people when we aren't all good?/ >> Well, I don’t bother with considering myself “good�� in the first place, so at least there’s that. Being aware of the defenses and rationalisations that the brain invents to protect itself helps to remind me that just because I see a situation one way doesn’t necessarily mean that the other person’s viewpoint (where I was in the wrong) is wrong either.  3355. How highly do you value innovation? >> I mean, not very? I like technology and shit but there are a lot of other things I wish society would focus on more intensely.

3356. Is there a name where all the people you've ever met haveing that name had something in common with each other(ex. all the jens you've ever met had blue eyes)? >> I don’t know, I’ve never thought about this and it would take a lot of effort to try and think of a pattern like that right now. 3357. Are you focused more outward or inward? >> Inward. 3358. What is the most affectionate nickname you ever came up with for someone? >> Liebling is probably the most affectionate thing I’ve called someone. 3359. Are the questions STILL still interesting this deep into the survey? >> The ratio of interesting to not-interesting questions is definitely skewing more towards the latter as it goes on. For me, at least. 3360. If someone else makes their desicions based on their intuition instead of on facts and proofs what do you think of that person? >> I think of people on a case-by-case basis, and this isn’t a detailed enough example for me to make a judgement. 3361. Do you trust your own intuition? >> I don’t know if I have any. 3362. Finish the phrase... danger is the: just keep: never trust: the way I live my life: don't change: maybe someday: 3363. Would you rather live in Frodo's world or Harry Potter's? >> I find Tolkien’s realm far more interesting than Rowling’s. That isn’t to say I’d want to live there, though... well, maybe if I could be an elf... or a Maiar. IDK. 3364. Do you believe that the dead are with us? If yes in what form? >> I haven’t formed an opinion. I, personally, have had no encounters with the dead that I know of (aside from Inworlders, of course). 3365. Do you believe that those who haven't been born are with us? If yes, in what form? >> I’ve never even thought about this. That, I think, would make slightly less sense. 3366. Are you made of timid stuff? >> I don’t think so? 3367. Is there anyone in this world who is not CRAZY? >> --- 3368. What word becomes shorter when you add two letters to it? >> Short. 3369. Can you mashed potatoe? Can you do the twist? >> I can do the latter but not the former. 3370. What does your family do for thanksgiving..or if you don't celebrate it what do you picture when you think of thanksgiving? >> Sparrow and I go to her parents’ house for Thanksgiving. Otherwise, I’d be perfectly content to not celebrate it at all (except to watch the parade highlights online, I guess, because I do still have a soft spot for that stupid thing). 3371. What is your earliest memory? >> Mehhh. 3372. Have you ever taken an IQ test? What'd you get? What do you think of those things? >> I was given one as a child, but I was never told the results. Which is just as well, because I grew up to despise the entire concept anyway. 3373. How do you make 'fishcakes'? Put the potatoe in the fish... >> What? 3374. Which is the better band..the offspring or the damned? >> I don’t care about “better”. I’m not familiar with The Damned (I know what they look like but not what they sound like), but I quite like The Offspring. 3375. Do you ever think about world destruction? >> Not really. 3376. Do you think humans are becoming more robotic? >> No????? 3377. Do you think we'll ever be replaced by robots? >> That’s a really absurd concept to me, if I’m honest. 3378. What do you feel a part of? >> Er. 3379. Does it freak you out to know that yogurt is ALiVe?? >> No, dude... 3380. What current band do you think is doing something particularly interesting or innovative? >> Obviously my fave, Zeal & Ardor ~ 3381. Golf course, do you remember? >> What... 3382. Which is more important, books and cleverness or friendship and bravery? >> ... 3383. If i promise to miss you, will you go away? >> ........ 3384. stool, ball, powder...Can you think of a 4th word that connects these three? >> No. 3385. Who's afraid of the big bad wolf? >> Hm. 3386. Why are blondes considered 'dumb'? >> I don’t know how that got started, but you could always google it. 3387. What's more important..intuitiveness/creativity or factual knowledge and practicallity? >> Why would one be more important than the other? 3388. Who are the two worst terrorists you can think of? >> ... 3389. What is jello made of? >> Bones. *shrug* idk, man. 3390. Pick a country: What do you believe is wrong with that country? >> Wow. 3391. Do you have strong opinions? >> Not usually. 3392. Do you do what it takes to stand up for those opinions? >> If I manage to have an opinion about something, I don’t see why I would need to fight with anyone about it. If someone has an opposing opinion that makes me feel unsafe (you know, racist opinions, that sort of thing), then I make sure not to deal with those people. 3393. Have you ever been to a rally, protest or demonstration? If yes was it effective and in what ways? >> Yeah. I don’t know if it was effective or not, it was so long ago I don’t even remember what it was for. 3394. When people say, 'yeah it sucks but there's nothing I can do' do you believe them? >> I mean, yeah? A lot of things aren’t in the average person’s control. 3395. Do you know what you can do to make this world a better place? Do you care? >> I’m not out to make this world a better place. Not to say that I want to actively make it worse, I just... am not focused on the world. I’m focused on my immediate life. 3396. Why is peace so important anyway? Why is freedom important? >> ... I mean......... 3397. As long as you have your house and your family and you can go to the movies and the mall who cares about peace and freedom. Right? >> That’s not my point of view, no. 3398.Do you try to avoid anything involving work? >> Kind of, lmao. 3399. If you are not actively wrking to stop the horrors and injustices of the world (war, hunger, poverty) than aren't you partially responsible for them? >> I don’t know, dude. Maybe I am. We’ll see how my points add up on Judgement Day, I guess. 3400. Are you in denial? >> About what?

[flying-elliska]

Hi Ellie!! I hope u dont mind this ask ❤Do u have any advice on how to do stuff on your checklist and not get overwhelmed? I can hardly do one thing out of my to do list and then i get severely depressed for not being able to do anything. i dont think i can function like a human being sometimes. anyway youre so cool ellie!!! i admire you loads!!! - help asked from one adhd struggling teen

HI anon ! I’m sorry for not answering sooner i had a beautiful answer ready and then Tumblr just ate it T_T anyway i don’t mind at all i think it’s awesome that you’re asking me ! this is honestly still something I’ve struggled a lot with. here are a few things that helped me (keep in mind i’m not a professional and this is only my personal, limited point of view) :

- ofc the first thing is to get as much help as you can, there are lots of people out there who can help. Generally talk to people around you about your problems ; often they want to help and just don’t know how : i know the tendency to feel ashamed and keep it in but that’s not good. Some people might be a bit ignorant so maybe keep a few ressources on hand you can send to people to educate them if that’s an issue ; and educate yourself so you feel more secure and legitimate in your opinions. 

- one thing that’s helped me lots is to go on #ADHDtwitter and #Neurodiversesquad because a lot of people on there are actual adults who are sharing both their struggles but also tips on how to actually manage the symptoms and have full and happy, if messy, lives. It’s very inspiring. It helped me a lot to feel understood, less alone and gave me a ton of ideas. Some accounts to start with : @ danidonovan - @ blkgrllostkeys @ ADHD_Alien (her comics are so cute) @ dustyexner plus lots of others

- regarding having trouble doing things, this is definitely a Big Damn Problem for adhd folks. the concept of the emotional Wall of Awful really helped me with this, you can find more about it in this Youtube video by the awesome How To ADHD channel (all her videos are so helpful !! have a look!) basically the idea is that we accumulate emotions linked to certain tasks based on unhappy past emotions that make it a lot harder for us to do things and that building it down takes a lot of time and effort but there are ways to work with/around that. learning to process, connect to and be more mindful of our emotions is a huge task, but it’s often a central one. 

- don’t try too hard to be neurotypical aka ‘normal’. find the solutions that work for YOU. If they’re a bit weird ? Whatever. The point is that it works. You will probably end up having weird routines that make no sense to others but it doesn’t matter as long as it helps you. Be creative and don’t be afraid to think outside the box. I’ll give you an example :  one of the reasons i hate going to bed early is because late at night is when i feel the most free of outside obligations and therefore i don’t want to give that up. So instead what i’ve been trying to do from time to time is a ‘clown hour’ where i basically give myself permission to do whatever the fuck i want (within reason lmao) but in an active way ; basically indulge my rebellious inner 8 yr old. Last time I ended up watching martial arts videos on youtube and practicing kickboxing kicks on the Mulan soundtrack and then put on funeral music and improvised my own eulogy by thinking about what i would like people to say about me after my death. Lmao that sounds completely wack when explained to other people but the point is - stuff like that really helped me reconnect to the idea that my time is mine to do with as i please, not just late at night. Anyway my point is : make it fun, make it a game, try things, experiment. Our brains crave novelty and if they don’t have it and feel burdened by shame, pressure and expectations of course they get depressed and stuck. Give your brain the fuel it needs to work. 

- just accept that sometimes you’re going to be a mess. it’s okay. you can be a bit of a mess and also live a fully, happy, joyous life. our society puts so much pressure on us to have this Perfect Instagram Life where everything is polished to unrealistic standards and gives us the idea that your morals are linked to productivity and if you are not constantly striving to be a Model Consumer Pretty Picture you are a Bad Person and a slob/lazy/unworthy/etc and all of that is...toxic garbage of the highest order that everyone should unlearn but especially us. related to that i would be careful with use of social media, tailor it to only give you content that makes you feel good/intellectually engaged/creative because it’s so easy for us to go into bad comparative spirals.

- tied to that be careful of your own perfectionist drives. it’s veeeeery common for adhd people to want to overcompensate their perceived shortcomings by wanting to be perfect. aka you haven’t done anything in weeks and all of a sudden you have this insane to do list where you expect yourself to turn your entire life around in a week. well, not going to happen. i’ve found it so important to limit myself. for instance what i do now is i forbid myself to put more than 5 items on any todo list. once i’ve cleared items i can add more, but not before. it’s a lot less scary that way. also prioritizing is very important so you don’t get bogged down in details.

- try to be mindful of your own energy. a big tendency of adhd people is to overpromise and underdeliver because we are enthusiastic and we want to please people but we are bad at estimating time/energy it will need. learn more about your own boundaries, what things are hard for you to do (for me, it’s socializing in groups) and what gives you energy (for me it’s writing, reading and walking in the woods) and try to balance that. learn to say no, it’s tough but necessary. So that you have enough left for the tasks you need to do. 

- create an environment that is benevolent and helpful for you in which to work/do things and that generates positive emotions. Get yourself a cute notebook. Put on happy music. Don’t forget to feed yourself. Don’t give into the urge of punishing yourself. You deserve happy good things - not overindulgence as escape - but our brains thrive on short term rewards. Bundle the unpleasant tasks with more stimulating stuff (for instance i always listen to podcasts while cleaning/grocery shopping etc). Create pleasant little routines for yourself (for instance one of the first things i try to do in the morning is do a little drawing of my emotions, it makes me happy, then i have tea and i plan my day.). Put on alarms constantly so you don’t lose track of time, but with a cool song. Find yourself cheerleaders who can encourage you in a positive way. Stuff like the pomodoro technique, timing yourself while doing a task, etc, can really help. Or telling yourself you will do a thing for ten minutes and stop when it’s unbearable, etc. Prioritize joy, pride, affection, desire to help, altruism, love, curiosity, interest and passion as motivators, instead of anxiety, guilt and shame. 

- find ways to build self esteem and confidence in your own skills. it’s often a lack of that that can block you from doing what you need to because you might be afraid of screwing it up. what I did for a while, for instance, is to keep a record of the stuff i did everyday and then extrapolated the skills i displayed from that. another thing you can do is make a list of simple skills you want to learn and find ways to do that, like youtube tutorials, etc. especially when it’s practical stuff and quick to learn, it can really feel so good, and make you more familiar with a sensation of success (and if you fail it can be a fun experiment gone wrong, and self discovery, you don’t have to be good at everything.)

- find ways to challenge yourself. depression happens for adhd people when we let ourself stagnate, isolate ourselves because of shame, and get into this idea that we are subhuman and we don’t deserve good things. that is false. you deserve a happy life. and our brains crave novelty. find your passion and indulge in it, find the things that make your brain come alive (as long as they’re healthy ofc). if you’re not sure what that is, just keep trying. you will find it. but resist the temptation to make your life smaller and smaller. you might mess up but that’s okay. it’s human and it will make for interesting stories later. instead of trying too hard to ‘fix’ yourself, focus on developping your positive sides. it will give you energy, self-respect and draw you forwards like a rocketship. we thrive on passion, not reprimand. 

- anyways : i know how tough it can be. depression is really something i struggle with, too. and doing things remains Hard. but my point is, you are not alone, and you are not broken. chances are you too, like most adhd people i know, are a fun, creative, compassionate person with a heart of gold and so much to give. our main enemy is most often the shame that comes with living in a world that is not adapted to us. but the truth is we are just playing the game of life on a much harder setting than a lot of people, and we don’t even have the manual. of course it’s going to create struggle ! so i think the best thing to do for yourself is cultivate a sense of compassion towards yourself, self acceptance, and humor. 

- as a teen you probably have a limited margin of autonomy to make your lifestyle fit your needs but - there is so much potential for it to get better ! as you grow in self knowledge and ability to make your own choices, you will find the right solutions and your life will get so much better. i have heard so many stories like this. since i got diagnosed, too, my life got a lot better. i won’t lie, it’s a lifelong process. but there is so much possible. give yourself time. you are so young, and you are definitely a human being. being human is struggling with being flawed and vulnerable and imperfect. i know the world can be shit sometimes, you probably got some negative messages - especially from your own brain bc depression definitely lies to you ! but don’t let yourself be guided by ignorance and fear. you deserve better. i bet you’re also super cool. the happier you are, the better off the world will be. so invest in yourself. educate yourself, develop your self knowledge, be kind to yourself, and keep making little steps. you’ll get there. <3

[sunshinedevotee]

yet another very necessary taehyung rant

i’m back! before i start i’d like to say i appreciate you all so much for the comments and such, even the ones who claim that tae isn’t underrated (begone thots), you motivate my procrastinating ass. you guys don’t need to thank me though i’m just doing the lord’s work. now i have things to talk about so let’s get started! 

if you’re new to these posts then this part 3 of what has kind of become a series (?), where i go on rants defending taehyung and explain why he’s kind of underrated. contrary to popular belief; as you’re about to see, boi needs it.

now i’m sorry, but before everything i really want to talk about this man and his precious dog!!

RIGHT MY DUDE TAEHYUNG DIDN’T JUST GET ANY DOG, HE GOT A FOSTER. LET’S PLEASE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT. he even asked the guy how to be a good dog owner, the same guy went on to say he didn’t believe he and tae were the same species lmao.

moving on to the sad shit

hate

i will never shut up about this. the popular members get hate too. honestly everyone will go on about how the hyung line members get hate (totally fair), but nobody wants to talk about the shit the maknaes have to deal with cause they’re popular. i’ve never seen someone as grossly sexualised as jimin is, i’ve seen many a horror. jk gets so much hate for having a lot of lines, as if it isn’t tiring and stressful for him. and honestly tae just can’t fucking breathe without getting berated for it. here’s a list of things he’s gotten hate for:

-suggesting a movie with a sex scene (which made him stop his film reccs)

-suggesting a song with sexual lyrics

-posting work from his favourite photography which contained nudity

fun fact; taehyung is an a d u l t, what a concept.

-showing yeontan in jin’s vlive 

-saying older brothers should care for their little sisters (they said he’s sexist)

-landing an acting role before jin

-winning face of 2017

some jk stans were mad cause jk got more likes on instagram (if you didn’t know the nominees’ pictures were posted on an insta account and people thought they were meant to vote for who they wanted to win.) jk had gotten more votes on his picture so people were mad that tae won, but apparently it’s not the case.

tldr; despite him being the most beautiful creature on this sad earth, it’s not just about visuals and it’s a big deal that he got chosen

general sadness

i’ll say this again. even though everyone thinks tae stans showing concern is twelve year olds trying to stir up drama, we have good reason to do so.

let’s take a moment to talk about stigma, the lyrics are already ambiguous and seemingly sad. this is what he said about it:

"stigma is about hurting. when i started creating it i wanted it to be about being cut over and over again. i wanted army to feel my hurting? in mvs I’m shown as a person who’s hurt, but it hurts so much that i become someone who enjoys that pain.”

and even that one time taehyung started crying when reading his letter to jimin on bon voyage S2, he started crying and talking about jimin being there for him when he was “crying in the bathroom”  uhh c h i l d

remember when the members jumped on tae to open up to them? the way they spoke...you can tell he had gone through something and it breaks my heart honestly, but it seems the members are caring for him. 

visuals

his visuals have gotten him far and this is just a fact. he must feel like his only significance in the group is being a visual. honestly when members are being acknowledged for things and it comes to him they’ll always say something like ‘thx for not being ugli lol’. 

i know this is a thing in kpop i guess but it’s as if he’s just there to look pretty and...growl? and what else? oh yes! be lol so random xd. this really pisses me off cause even in old interviews namjoon would introduce him as ‘the member responsible for 4d charms’ and you’d just see his expression drop immediately.

don’t get me wrong, it’s just a fact that he’s a popular bias cause of his looks, that’s just the way it is and i know it. we as people sub-consciously show bias towards people we find attractive in everyday situations. i’m pretty sure if he weren’t so stunning some people would probably bash him for his ‘alien behaviour’ rather than be like ‘oh ahaha tae-oppa is so cute l o l xd’ or some other cringy shit. 

anyway, he has a lot of fans because of his appearance, who probably think they’re the biggest stan just cause they’ve heard stigma like four times. maybe they watch some ‘taehyung extra compilations’ now and then, but they don’t actually know shit about him andng;sd’#;l#fdfd 

for those that don’t know, he had originally accompanied a friend to the auditions and had no plans to audition himself. he was spotted by an employee who told him he had to audition because he was so good-looking. his looks definitely got him where he is, i imagine it makes him feel like his only significant feature is the fact that he’s pretty. a lot of people have nothing good to say about him not regarding his looks/behavior. 

if you get really deep into it, i think he feels like his visuals are the only reason he’s loved by fans at all. although he doesn’t do it anymore, i’m pretty sure he used to exaggerate his attitude so that people would like him. i know this feeling all too well myself and while i obviously can’t pin point what’s going on in that pretty lil head of his, i think i’ve got an idea. you’re really just ‘weird’ and you try to pass it off as quirky then you’re like ‘oh you like this?’ so you keep acting that way, afraid you’ll stop being interesting. it was brought to my attention that people are actually dropping him cause he’s become more quiet recently :(. 

can i ask why? when taehyung is so beautiful inside and out, he’s definitely got flaws we all do, but while he isn’t perfect there’s just something so unique about him. he’s so clever sometimes yet he can have those dumb moments like forgetting what year it is, he seems like he’s just a cutie yet he’s so mysterious and vague. he’s this beautiful mess of self-contradictions and i love him for it, my favourite art hoe. i found a tae personality-analysis here on tumblr and it was an enjoyable read, op says they had a hard time with his mysterious ass haha

now let’s talk about tae being a golden maknae (hear me out!)

i got this comment

hmm i didn’t know that he auditioned as a rapper. [some of the members really came in with little to no experience in their field though, isn’t that impressive?] yeah that’s true, like i’ve said this before but tae is a golden maknae, he can rap okay? it only sounds weird cause we’re not used to it. even in the table room skit they did that freestyle rap and tae was really good, i’ve read that yoongi himself was really impressed with him!!

and he can dance pretty well too um why isn’t he dance line ???

tae’s been underrated since the start, he was even hidden at the start as he was a ‘secret weapon’, for what? surprise surprise; his looks :o i’m pretty sure he knows this, and it all must add more to the probable mixed feelings he has regarding his role in the group. 

singing

please talk about his beautiful deep voice, i didn’t even like deep voices until he came around. also let’s appreciate the fact that he came in with no experience and apparently originally auditioned as a rapper? 

C R Y S T A L S N O W though I mean oh my god.

my friend once said; ‘i cry every night at taehyung’s wasted potential’ ( @n-uee what’s good?) which is too accurate. i’ve said pretty much all i needed to say on this subject in the previous part. still though acknowledging his high note in stigma isn’t enough, please he is finally not being wasted on growling anymore talk about it

yeah uh finally finished i’ve been dragging this on and editing it for months lmao i’m such a procrastinator. anyway as i said he’s not just a pretty face and there is so much more underneath the surface. i wish tae well and await his next cover!

part 1 , part 2

ofcourse  none of these posts are complete without some pictures, so have taehyung with dogs aka my favourite concept in the world:

anyway he’s one of the only good things in my life in this god awful world and i purple him bye. 

[thoughtless-gay-frog]

((Anon who asked about victims))

Yay! I really like Manov too! He’s really awesome as a character, and i wish we could see more of him. It’s so sad that his brutal death was caused by his idol

(I just like aa victims in general lmao, too bad most of them are not talked about very often, so thank you for your answer on that)

So, another question if you don’t mind: what’s your opinion on spirit channeling in aa?

Yes!!! Welcome back anon, I’m glad you agree with me on Manov and I will gladly talk about spirit channeling!

Honestly it’s just such a cool concept. I overall enjoy the way they built the history of it throughout the games. It’s established in the second case of the original game, and it does not stop being important until the last case of Spirit of Justice (and maybe tgaa too, I just wouldn’t know lmao). While I’m not a big fan of Spirit of Justice as a whole, I do think it’s just so interesting how they continued to keep explaining the history of spirit channeling and how its origin of Khura’in ties into their entire culture, yet they’re two completely different ideologies.

This is more so a commentary on the contrast of Kurain and Khura’in, but I love the stark difference between how each country treats spirit channeling. Kurain is the first place we’re introduced to the channeling practice, and we’re supposed to feel bad and maybe look down upon Maya, just a little bit, for not being able to channel spirits. Because according to Kurain tradition, many women are able to do it, and as a descendant of the village leader, Maya should have been easily able to tap into her spiritual abilities whenever she pleased. We later meet other women from the village, like Pearl and Misty, who are very proficient in spirit channeling. The consensus of Kurain is that the lineage of the village leaders are all able to channel spirits, some like Morgan being an exception, but like. It’s not exclusive to them. They’re just the best at it, it runs mostly in their blood. Whereas we later learn that in Khura’in it’s the complete opposite, only the queen is allowed to channel spirits and any one else even considering it is blasphemy. Maya was very reluctant to channel for the sake of keeping their tradition alive. In Khura’in, spirit channeling isn’t necessarily treated better, it’s just treated like a perk of being royalty. Something the commoners could never hope to achieve. Which is such a different outlook than Kurain has and it’s just so interesting to me.

Global differences aside, I generally do just enjoy the concept. Like. It is so cool to know that the dead don’t really have to stay dead, if you suddenly lost a relative and never got to say goodbye you could do that. If you never got to make amends with someone who fell ill or got killed you have the chance to reconcile. And that’s just such a nice thought. And I appreciate that ace attorney didn’t just treat it like that, like something near and happy and picture perfect. That no, spirits can still deceive and cause problems when they’re summoned, taking over someone else’s body can cause harm and get one into a lot of trouble. It’s nice to see something so bizarre treated with realistic ideas, if that makes sense. I’m very glad that it stays throughout the games and continues to be messy and add onto trials, because yeah, if we had spirit channeling in the real world all kinds of wacky things would happen. People would try to use it to their malicious intentions. And I just really like how well the games dealt with that while still making it interesting and fun and something you want to learn more about.

[ironinkpen]

The Secret of the White Lion

Alternatively Titled: Local Girl Ignores Responsibilities in Favor of Overanalyzing Children’s TV Show

Alright so ever since we were shown this mural, which depicts Voltron fully assembled and a lion off to the side, some people have started discussing the possibility of there being a sixth lion. And since I have nothing better to do with my time (besides my midterms next week whaaaat), I thought I’d try to answer the question: if there is a White Lion, who would pilot it?

Now I don’t want to get too into the whole idea of “how likely is it that this is going to happen” because like? That’s hard to tell. But, I’d say that it at least makes narrative sense for there to be a sixth lion.

What Alfor faces throughout Zarkon’s fall is the very real possibility that the leader of their magic robot lion fighting team could easily end up crossing some sort of line and going too far. Alfor begins to doubt Zarkon’s leadership, and has several arguments with him about his judgment and his and Honerva’s hunger for power. It’s not that big a stretch for Alfor to go from “this dude could try to use Voltron for evil / go rogue / etc.” to “I need to have a back up in case he pulls some shit.”

And a hypothetical sixth lion could logically be that back up. If Alfor built one, the idea was probably for the lion to either be an alternative head for Voltron or just an alternative lion in general, in case any of the other lions were unavailable, so that they could still create Voltron even if someone went missing / ran off / turned evil. 

And there’s a pre-existing precedent for a physical white lion, too:

In one of the Voltron spinoffs / AUs / whatever (I’ll be real, I only know as much as the wiki page tells me lmao), there’s a White Lion, whose location is only known by Alfor. Alfor leads some guy named Rick Hunter to the lion and he becomes its pilot. 

And of course, in OG Voltron, there’s an episode titled “Secret of the White Lion” where Haggar makes a mirage of an actual white lion (ie not a robotic lion like the voltron lions), and sends it to Allura, who thinks it’s a reincarnation of her dad, to try and kill her or whatever. 

So the idea of a White Lion in our Voltron wouldn’t be completely out of the blue, and would solve the problem that Lance expresses in season 3: there’s six pilots and five lions, so who should be on the bench?

With a White Lion, the answer would be “no one.” But then the question becomes: who would be its pilot? And as far as I can tell, the answer is either Shiro, Allura, or Lance.

Alright, so I maintain that the Shiro that’s with the team right now is actually a clone, but, let’s say that he’s real. Or, rather, let’s say that when real Shiro comes back, Black still chooses Keith or someone else as the Black Paladin. Shiro could, in that case, fit the role of the White Lion’s paladin.

In OG Voltron (or, at least, the English dub, which combined Shiro with his twin brother), Shiro left Team Voltron and worked with the resistance, coming back in a final whammy against Lotor. While I do think that Resistance!Shiro is a completely interesting concept on its own, having Shiro be in the White Lion would allow him to not only be a fighting force for the resistance, but also be able to go back and forth between it and the team more easily, so we wouldn’t have to lose Shiro from the team dynamic. 

Having Shiro be in a lion separate from the main team would also allow more room to explore his lost memories and what happened to him during his year in captivity– he would have more mobility, and still be able to hold his own in battle, making it actually possible for him to run off on solo “let’s discover my past” adventures. And, given the original Voltron’s precedent for having Shiro outside of the main cinco, this would make sense.

Allura is another possibility for the White Lion’s paladin. One of the most compelling pieces of support in her favor is that the white lion story in OG Voltron was all about her. Her discovering the White Lion, her father’s final legacy, would be an interesting plot line. And I dunno, there's this sense that Allura has this unique place in the group that's almost separate or above Voltron itself-- giving her the White Lion would allow her to act independently but also continue to be a paladin (which is a role I love her in ahhh). She could lead without being in Black in that case, and I honestly think the mobility of being able to operate outside the main group suits her? One of my favorite scenes in season 2 was when the castle shorted out and she and the Blade ran off to fight Haggar.

On another note, having her in White and Alfor being its creator is in tune with something the cast said about why they “killed off” of the Alfor AI: he basically knew too much. What did he know? Well, maybe the existence and location of a White Lion, which his daughter would be the perfect fit for?

There’s also another neat theory that the castle could be the white lion. And think about it: only Allura can pilot it to its full potential, it’s linked to her quintessence, and is shown to have a mind of its own to an extent (seen when it actively tries to kill Lance and Keith during the Crystal Venom episode, showing an ability to reason to some extent). And, speaking of the Crystal Venom episode, it seems to mirror the events of the original “Secret of the White Lion” episode, where Allura is tricked by something she thinks is her father (in this case an AI) and almost gets killed.

Also, when Allura moves to Blue, she complains about how Blue’s controls are different from the castle’s in a similar way to how Lance complains about Red’s being different from Blue’s. The castle seems to operate pretty similarly to the lions. Coran mentioned that his grandpa built the castle but I don’t recall ever getting the exact timeline of when he finished. I don’t know, maybe Alfor could have jumped in and asked to add some aspects of the comet to it? It’s probably not all that likely lmao, but wouldn’t it be super fucking cool if the castle suddenly transformed into a magic fighting robot?

Anywhom, last possible pilot:

Lance has expressed on multiple occasions a sense of being a “seventh wheel,” or kind of separate from the team. In this scene, when talking to Keith about the whole five lions, six paladins situation, he puts up six fingers and, when he’s done, singles himself out as the one separate from the five others. And, interestingly:

The hypothetical White Lion is pictured as separate from the others as well. 

Lance seems to view Allura as Blue’s true paladin and Keith as Red’s, so he sees himself as not having a real place with the current lions. But, maybe that’s because he hasn’t found his real lion yet? 

(On that note (and this is sort of a tangent but still neat): look at the team’s color coding! Everyone else is color coded to their lions (Pidge wears a green shirt, Hunk wears a yellow shirt, Keith wears a red jacket and a black shirt, Allura’s outfit is Blue, and Shiro’s is Black) but Lance is color coded white)

Plus, if I’m right about the White Lion being an alternate head of Voltron / alternate lion in general, placing Lance in that position makes sense. The crew of the show has said before that Lance’s thing is filling spots that need filling. And, since he and Keith (if Keith is still Black Paladin after Shiro’s return) are something of a dynamic duo, having them being able to swap places would be a really interesting dynamic (and fucking hilarious).

Also, Rick Hunter, the pilot of the White Lion in the comic I mentioned earlier, seems to be a pretty similar character to Lance? Wiki says: “As a young man, Rick was good-natured, although he could be disrespectful at times… Throughout the course of the First Robotech War he went from being a relative pacifist into a full-fledged soldier, becoming a deadly ace who even the Zentraedi feared.” Good-natured, sometimes disrespectful, deadly ace… It’s food for thought.

I’d also say there’s something of a chance that Keith could be the White Paladin? I don’t have too much support for the theory yet, but his whole view of himself as the “loner” and the hanging plot line of his mother and his mysterious past would make him well-suited for the White Lion’s mobility.

Anyway, as with all of my metas this is Getting Too Long and doesn’t make sense lmao (sorry I just wanted to scribble this down before s4), so I’ll cut it off here. My point is that while I have no idea how likely it is that a White Lion exists (though again, I think it’s narratively possible and maybe even narratively probable), you could squeeze an interesting arc out of any of these possible pilots. Plus, having the White Lion (if it is an alternate lion) around would allow for a lot of mobility and give everyone possibilities for cool solo adventures that I think would be fun.

[waveypedia]

Have anything else for that Team Spyience au you made ages ago? Some writng or a bullet list? I crave angst.

The AU in question

Yes!! Aaaaahh i was so excited when I saw this ask because i’m so happy people still like it!! I’m definitely still thinking about it, don’t worry. The old AU hinges on the fact that FOWL doesn’t have a way into Scrooge’s company and family but uhhhh that’s not how it is now lmao. So I’ve been thinking about revamping it for a couple months now. I don’t want to do anything concrete until we know a little more about FOWL and how it works. We know who its agents are and a little bit about its goals but we really don’t know anything about its inner workings, what the Board’s dynamic is with their agents, what their dynamic is with modern SHUSH (if it even exists), etc etc. all of which are things that would probably be addressed in the Team Spyience AU! It is an AU but I’d like to build on canon as much as possible (unless there’s something that I really don’t vibe with) since it’ll be cleaner and less confusing that way. Like if I threw 2019 Team Spyience AU at you guys rn it would 1) be confusing since the FOWL structure and motives are completely different from canon and 2) be less interesting since there’s SO much potential for angst and drama with the Board, Rockerduck/Jeeves, and Gandra as part of FOWL. (and oh boy I’m so excited to work with that!!!)

(sorry for that long block of text sdfgfds i wasn’t sure how to break it up)

that being said I have built a bit of a shaky foundation for a redone Team Spyience AU for when we learn more!! and ahhh i’m so excited to share. For bullet points, here are some ideas swimming around in my head. these all could change with new information from the show or just if i think of something better tbh

so this might change when we learn more about the Board in general and the nitty-gritty of FOWL’s plans, but right now I’m thinking that the Board realizes that 1) Gyro and his ragtag band of science nerds are powerful and stubborn, and will most definitely get in the way of their plans 2) Gyro already hates the Board, and if anyone in McDuck Enterprises were to pick up on their treason, it would be him 3) They have a strong foothold for control in the company, second only to Scrooge (and even that’s debatable), but they have minimal control over Gyro and the science department. So this time around it’s less about needing to spy on Scrooge and more about wanting to control Gyro and Team Science. how that translates to “capturing them and forcing them to spy on their boss and his family” is still up in the air, but i’ll let you guys know when i figure it out! (and if you all have any ideas lmk)

we all know Gyro dislikes the Board but it’s mostly just annoyance/spite since they always shut down his inventions. Here, though, he would hate them. He would probably start like smack-talking them to everyone he can, especially Scrooge, which is his own way of trying to get them to realize the Board is evil without tipping the Board off to his treachery. Scrooge would be confused and it would be like the first crack in the Board’s carefully built facade, but it wouldn’t work for him. He probably just thinks Gyro’s being his mean self.

Huey, though... I’m pretty sure Huey’s gonna end up researching FOWL since it’s his season, and he spends enough time around Team Science to notice how off they’re all acting, without being too busy to pay it much mind (like Scrooge). so one of Gyro’s snarky remarks will tip him off, and he’ll start to view the Board with a little more suspicion each time. Until he comes to the conclusion through his research, and SHUSH resources like Beakley and Webby, that oh god that was an allusion to FOWL the Board is FOWL-

and then- wait is Gyro FOWL?? is Team Science okay?? this goes deeper than I thought-

so essentially the B-plot of this AU is Huey (with the help of the rest of the kids, but especially Webby, Boyd, and Violet) researching FOWL in the background and trying to figure out why Team Science is acting so weird lately, and there’s a lot of dramatic irony

FOWL definitely threatens Boyd to get to Gyro because I love me some quality Boyd & Gyro family content 😌

I originally thought about working a “Gyro is a former FOWL agent that got away by the skin of his teeth” aspect into the AU since I was really fond of that concept when it was a theory, but now it’s been disproven. It does make for a lot of extra drama and angst, but I don’t think it quite fits, so I might just make that an entirely separate AU. I might add some non-canon bonus content with this concept though!

The majority of Team Science’s dynamic throughout the AU stays the same - they’re all incredibly stressed and on edge and just in a really sticky situation, so they snap at each other and have a lot of petty arguments. But at the same time, they’re all in the really sticky situation together, and so they come out of this mess a whole lot closer. It’s sort of a “You’re the only ones I can be honest with without dire consequences” situation.

also re: that last point - CUDDLE PUDDLES. i’m so soft for them. i’m thinking maybe on a night when FOWL makes them all stay in the cells overnight as a punishment or smth, but they’re all in one cell, they just fall asleep all on top of each other and it’s just a really sweet moment made bittersweet by the circumstances. it’s also a testament to how far their relationship has come under pressure and how much they trust each other now.

Gyro is the only target originally (I’m thinking maybe Fenton, Manny, and Lil’ Bulb catch the Board in the act and it’s very dramatic and terrifying. i think they’re originally gonna kill Team Science, since FOWL has a very take-no-prisoners leave-no-loose-ends sort of mindset, but Gyro convinces the Board that the majority of Scrooge McDuck’s research team mysteriously dying in one fell swoop would be extremely suspicious, especially since Scrooge has an in-house former SHUSH agent. so they live, miraculously, but the Board lets all of them know in no uncertain terms that if it happens again, the other person dies. No ifs, ands, or buts. So Team Science is all very, very nervous and careful about what they let slip. They want to tell everyone, especially Scrooge, but they can’t because they care too much. (Hence Gyro making passive-aggressive comments about the Board to Scrooge.) and of course everyone else gets suspicious and resentful since they know Team Science is hiding stuff from them. so that leads to a lot of drama and arguments.

speaking of the drama and arguments from the outside, the kids are doing their own investigation, but I headcanon Della as friends with Gyro from before the Spear of Selene, and she has a budding friendship with Fenton too. So she’d notice they’re all acting really weird and bailing on all her plans, so she storms down to the lab and tries an aggressive tactic to get them to fess up. They don’t, obviously, so she goes on a little investigation of her own. I’m thinking she might drag Launchpad and Donald into it - Launchpad since he’s good friends with Team Science, and Donald because I love him and I want him involved they’re the Duck Twins and they work best together.

I have this scene floating around in my head where, in the very beginning, FOWL agents/Eggheads capture Gyro and drag him to FOWL HQ underneath Funzo’s to be briefed on his new situation. He’s stuck in one of those glass cells Launchpad and Dewey were in when Steelbeak brought them back in the Double-O-Duck episode. The Board knows he’s there, but Gyro has no clue they’re villains. So they come to the cell to brief and belittle him (let’s be honest here, they’ve never liked Gyro) and he just. He’s pissed. Spitting mad. He’s always resented the Board but never like this; never pictured them as actual powerful villains. He may be spiteful of them because they shut down his projects, but at the end of the day, they’re good guys. They’re on his side, and more importantly, Scrooge’s side. Right?

So Gyro is like, up against the glass, trying to punch them through the airholes. He’s just so fucking furious. He’s not really thinking straight and he doesn’t care about any dignity, he’s just angry. The Board is just overly smug and pleased with themselves. It’s a very stereotypical “You’ll never get away with this, you villain!!” picture, and very dramatic. And then the Board just walks away after giving him a bare-bones explanation of the situation that he doesn’t really process because he’s so mad and terrified. And they turn off all the lights and let him stew in there overnight.

Once Huey and the kids have finally put the pieces together, Webby comes to the Bin one day with Scrooge, and she goes to the meeting room to look for him. Only he’s not in there - The Board is, and they’re berating Gyro for sassing off about them to Scrooge or smth. Webby, with all her trained spy skills, hears their conversation and is able to avoid detection (although the Board is suspicious, and they start investigating to tie off any loose ends). Their conversation, though, would be suspicious to any oblivious passerby, but from all the research the kids have done, they know what’s going on.

That’s not the actual reveal - I think thematically that should go to Huey, since he’s the closest to Team Science and it’s his season. This would just chase away any last doubts the kids may have. And maybe Webby gets a voice recording as evidence? I just love those; they’re so dramatic.

this is one part that might not end up aligning with canon but I’m REALLY fond of the Akita FOWL theory. So in this AU, I’m thinking Akita was a really casual member of FOWL all along that recently got an updated agent commission. So there’s even more potential drama there, since Gyro utterly despises Akita now. And a bigger incentive to keep Boyd safe, since Gyro knows FOWL would be more than happy to program Boyd into a mindless attack robot.

in the old AU I was toying with the idea that FOWL didn’t know Fenton’s Gizmoduck until a big reveal, and it was a secret weapon of Team Science’s (but also a point for a lot of arguments, since Fenton desprately wanted to be out there protecting people at the cost of his own safety) but uhh... they definitely know now. In a bid to stop FOWL from taking control of Gizmoduck, Fenton claims the armor is out of commission and sabotages it. So Fenton’s heroics are temporarily halted while Team Science frantically tries to figure out how to keep FOWL from hacking/taking control of a new and improved Gizmosuit.

As for writing... I don’t have anything done, least of all anything for the revamped version of the AU, but I do have this wonderful writing prompt from @advisortotheadvisor that I started back in January 2019, when I was working on the old version of the AU, that I really want to do with the revamped AU. (it just fits so well ahhhh!!!)

["If you won’t do it, I’m sure your friend wouldn’t mind being in your place." + your FOWL team spyience au?]

Gyro crossed his arms across his chest, scowling to hide his fear. He’d gotten pretty good at it over these past few months.

Watching the halls was basically useless. Fowl was careful to keep Gyro and his team within the same halls, as to not be able to find their way out on their own. And Gyro knew the way to Steelbeak’s office well. He’d lost count of how many times he’d been marched here.

At least he wasn’t cuffed anymore, though he suspected it was only because the agents and their minions knew there was too much at stake for an escape attempt. It had been too long, anyway. That was an amaetur move. Even though he loathed to admit it, Gyro cared too much about the consequences - the people at stake - to even try.

It was just a well-aimed mockery. Like everything short of punishment seemed to be these days under FOWL’s watchful eye and careful thumb. Gyro scowled deeper and crossed his arms tighter and pretended in vain it didn’t bother him.

That was all he could do, really.

Okay that kind of got away from me haha. thank you so much for the ask!! It means a lot to me that people are still interested in this AU. definitely motivation to work on both the AU and that fic haha!! I’ll talk more abt this soon when I have more info/content