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Nova's Notes - North and South - Chapter 3
Last time we saw our heroine Margaret, she had just received word that Henry Lennox had come to call on her. Let's see how it goes!
So, she is excited to see Henry, as she has just been thinking about him and his promise. Margaret is a little surprised though, since he's supposed to be off with Edith and his brother on their honeymoon.
*record scratch* Hold up, he was accompanying them on their honeymoon??? I know right! And not just him, but his uncle as well? What kind of monster is he?
Well, five seconds ago, I would've agreed with you, but I was able to find this article that points to this being a fairly common practice in order to ease the woman into the marriage (not exactly an academic source, but the first one I found). So, he's not intruding or third-wheeling, but instead helping grow the marriage. What a nice guy, right? Well...avid readers of this will know I'm not Henry's biggest fan, and in the first few sentences he -- again -- says something that raises my hackles a bit.
ā'Oh!' said he, more lightly, 'our young couple were playing such foolish pranks, running all sorts of risks, climbing this mountain, sailing on that lake, that I really thought they needed a Mentor to take care of them. And indeed they did: they were quite beyond my uncleās management, and kept the old gentleman in a panic for sixteen hours out of the twenty-four. Indeed, when I once saw how unfit they were to be trusted alone, I thought it my duty not to leave them till I had seen them safely embarked at Plymouth.'ā
Oh no, our couple has done the horrible problem of -- *checks notes* -- having fun on their honeymoon...? If their version of a "prank" is ditching their relatives to get some alone time -- uh, yeah, I would too!!! I mean, I guess I can see where he's coming from on some of these points if they truly are taking dangerous risks, but it honestly sounds like they're trying to sneak in some alone time here and doing fun couple activities together. It's not good that the uncle is panicking, but his brother is in the army. Surely he's prepared for things like mountain climbing and saying they're "unfit to be alone" is quite ridiculous. If he's worried about them doing...other kinds of activities while alone...I hate to tell him, but they're already married so that ship has sailed (literally). If he's truly worried about "danger," how is he -- a lawyer -- more prepared to face it than his brother who's in the army? (Not that lawyers can't face danger, considering Jonathan from Dracula is a lawyer and he just climbed a castle wall not too long ago, but that's a different book/genre lol). Also presenting himself as a "Mentor" (capital M) is HILARIOUS to me considering a) he's younger than at least one of them and b) mentor to what? Being married??? Henry???? He probably means climbing or sailing, but my version is funnier -- just saying.
I guess he might also be kidding about some of this, which is something I should have considered but didn't because I don't pick up well on social cues (I'm like Margaret in that way: we'll get there :D). So if he is kidding, sorry about that, but if I'm to take what he's saying at face value here, he just sounds like a nuisance to the couple. He says he's now "relieved of many responsibilities" but it just sounds like he put those responsibilities on himself.
He then gives her a note from Edith and she doesn't want to read it in front of him because she "half wish[ed] to read it alone and unwatched". I find this interesting that she has to make up an excuse to get away from him here, just to do so! Is it because Margaret doesn't feel comfortable reading letters in front of people in general, or because Henry specifically causes the discomfort? Gaskell doesn't elaborate, but I'll keep an eye out for if she feels comfortable enough to read a letter in front of anyone else in a future chapter, because either could be valid.
Henry begins to look around the room in "his scrutinizing way" and notices how "poor" the place looks, even when the light is hitting it, which should make it looks its best. Then he says this (with a sigh):
"'The living is evidently as small as she said. It seems strange, for the Beresfords belong to a good family.'ā
Oh, no! You've just activated a red flag!!! This whole reply is a red flag, but I want to highlight the main problem area (in my opinion) -- the "as she said". What's the problem with this?
To me, this indicates he didn't listen to her when she told him how small her living was the first time around. He assumed she was downplaying it and would come back to find something more like Harley Street. I suppose that was the fashion back then -- to act of more humble means than you were -- but here's the thing: Margaret isn't like that. She says thing as they are and if he knew her as well as he thinks, he would've taken her words at face value. I know that just from three chapters of reading about her!! If he doesn't believe this one thing she says now, how is that going to work later if they foster a relationship (again, we're getting there)? I also just don't like that Henry is pulling a surprised Pikachu face here!!! And while I know good family = wealthy in this time period, still not a great thing to say. Like, hmm her family is poor that's weird :/. He's acting like he didn't get what he wanted for Christmas or something. Definitely not the reaction I would want from a potential partner.
Margaret, meanwhile, is dealing with a problemTM. Namely, her mother. Apparently she gets into moods where everything is an Issue and Henry is considered an Issue -- so, she refuses to see him. This is a dilemma, because Margaret had told Henry that her mamma would LOVE to meet him and will meet with him shortly. I may not know much about etiquette, but I know this is a snub if she refuses to meet with him now. Plus, her dad can't help because he was already in a bad mood (seems like something we'll unravel later) and Mrs. Hale made it worse by commenting *once again* on moving, which caused him to ask her to please stop speaking against the place. So yeah, this isn't going well!
Margaret "listen[s] patiently", but she has to figure things out somehow, so she pulls a problem-solving move. She proposes that after a quick meetup with Henry and her mom (as for it not to look weird), she and Henry can go out sketching, which will mean less interaction for her mother to worry about. Then, even though they only have cold meat for lunch, they can still make that work for the meal, since light food was usually expected at the midday meal (from what I could find -- correct me if I'm wrong) and Henry will expect it that way. That's when Mr. Hale will join them, having had enough time between 10:30 and 2:00 to compose himself.
I love seeing this side of her! We've already seen glimpses, but I think it's the first time we've truly seen her go into what I would call a "problem-solving mode". I would definitely add that to her list of qualities!
"He evidently expected to be asked to spend the day, and accepted the invitation with a glad readiness that made Mrs. Hale wish she could add something to the cold beef. He was pleased with everything; delighted with Margaretās idea of going out sketching together; would not have Mr. Hale disturbed for the world, with the prospect of so soon meeting him at dinner."
I wonder if it's apparent to everyone involved Henry wants to be asked to stay the whole day, or if it's just Mrs. Hale? It makes sense that he wants to since he said he would be checking up on what Margaret does all day. I don't know much about calling hours or social etiquette in the Victorian era, but from what I could find, he's making a "morning call". Usually a man in this situation should leave after 20 minutes. However, he's family, so I believe this allots for staying a few hours, including dinner (again, correct me if I'm wrong -- I tried to find sources for this, but there wasn't much available for a morning call from family). Does it seem interesting how eager it is how "pleased" he is by everything just after he thought about how poor the family is? Yep! But we don't have time to unpack all of that just yet.
"'Now, please, just stop here for a minute or two,' said Margaret. 'These are the cottages that haunted me so during the rainy fortnight, reproaching me for not having sketched them.' 'Before they tumbled down and were no more seen. Truly, if they are to be sketchedāand they are very picturesqueāwe had better not put it off till next year. But where shall we sit?' 'Oh! You might have come straight from chambers in the Temple, instead of having been two months in the Highlands! Look at this beautiful trunk of a tree, which the woodcutters have left just in the right place for the light. I will put my plaid over it, and it will be a regular forest throne.' 'With your feet in that puddle for a regal footstool! Stay, I will move, and then you can come nearer this way. Who lives in these cottages?'ā
I feel like this conversation parallels their awkward interaction from chapter one, though now the shoe is on the other foot. And by "shoe", I mean the whole "shutting down the conversation" thing. To be fair, this is probably Henry joking and being lighthearted, but again -- I'm having trouble reading it that way. She's trying to sketch two cottages that she thinks are pretty, but he's kind of mocking them for how decrepit they look. Fair, I guess, but the fact that she chooses to mock him by saying he's "come staight from chambers in the Temple" (which I believe is a reference to the Temple in Jerusalem and to me, signals she's mocking his loftiness) says she's not entirely happy with this either. Plus, yeah, he just spent time in the Highlands, shouldn't he be used to forest by now? And when she wants to make a "throne" out of a tree stump, he comments on the puddle on the ground. Chivalrous to ask her to get out of the way, but he's not playing along with her game of pretend like he seemed to want her to in chapter 1. I wonder what's up with that? Or maybe I'm reading this all wrong and they're both enjoying this banter -- I don't know, it's really hard for me to tell!! Keep in mind, I'm biased and don't really like Henry, so everything he says annoys me. It's a problem I'll try to work on šš
She goes to talk to one of the men at the cottages, and Henry quickly takes his opportunity to add her to his sketch. Afterwards, she notices and comments on it. He replies:
ā'It was irresistible. You canāt know how strong a temptation it was. I hardly dare tell you how much I shall like this sketch.' He was not quite sure whether she heard this latter sentence before she went to the brook to wash her palette. She came back rather flushed, but looking perfectly innocent and unconscious. He was glad of it, for the speech had slipped from him unawaresāa rare thing in the case of a man who premeditated his actions so much as Henry Lennox."
I will admit, this is rather cute: him taking the opportunity to sketch her and then saying something without thought! It's a sweet moment and I think I would like the two of them together if they had more moments like this.
When they return back, both Mr. and Mrs. Hale are in much better spirits. Margaret sees her father and while she stresses that he's put aside his worries (they're not taken care of), she can't hide her pride at seeing him because he's always able to impress other people! What a sweetheart, love her for that.
Mr. Hale sees their sketches and when Mr. Hale sees the one Henry drew, Henry comments this:
ā'I should say that a likeness you very much wish to take you would always succeed in,' said Mr. Lennox. 'I have great faith in the power of will. I think myself I have succeeded pretty well in yours.'ā
I may not read social cues well, but this one I do get: I like you and want to draw you well. However, I know that because I've picked up on it after seeing Henry's inner thoughts. I'm not so surprised she doesn't get it because, as we'll see later in the chapter, she doesn't see him that way. So this compliment -- while nice -- wouldn't mean to her what he's trying to communicate. Why is this important for me to emphasize? Well, listen to what this guy says next:
ā"A regular London girl would understand the implied meaning of that speech,' thought Mr. Lennox. 'She would be up to looking through every speech that a young man made her for theĀ arriĆØre-pensĆ©eĀ of a compliment. But I donāt believe Margaret,'"
Lol, lmao even. HENRY, buddy, we've been over this -- you should know her better than this by now. I'm not trying to pull a "she's not like other girls" thing, but you started it. She doesn't have the same communication style as the "regular London girl[s]" you're thinking of! If you want to communicate something, you're going to have to be more blunt.
Also, if we continue with my thread of Margaret being neurodivergent-coded (and Henry being neurotypical-coded), this comment is something a lot of NTs often get frustrated by: that NDs don't pick up on the nuances of their interactions. This comment right here really cements this dynamic for me.
To me, itās understandable she wouldn't pick up on this being flirting because it's subtle to begin with and ND people often have trouble picking up on social cues like this. I do find it interesting how he also expects her to be picking apart his speeches for compliments. Also "arriĆØre-pensĆ©e" means "a concealed thought" or "ulterior motive", by the way!
Quick note: the quote is cut off deliberately like that for a reason, he doesn't finish his thought.
Luckily (or unluckily, depending on your view), he decides to try a different tactic. She has been gathering roses to "adorn her morning gown for dinner" and he takes this opportunity to help her with some she can't reach (relatable!) and puts a couple in his button-hole. While this isn't exactly a declaration of love, I do think this is another sweet moment. This could almost be a better show of affection than words for some.
Dinner is a very nice affair, with everyone talking very agreeably, enough so to make Henry forget his feeling of "disappointment" of Margaret's living being so small. Like she had told him. Ugh.
However, there comes a bit of a hitch when dessert comes around. Mr. Hale becomes fixated on the idea of dessert -- which must be pears from the garden. However, they already have dessert served behind him: biscuits with marmalade. Mrs. Hale worries that this pear idea will make their life seem "impromptu" and dessert "unusual" (which will not shine a good light on their living situation, I imagine).
Henry actually steps up with a solution this time: they should eat pears in the garden in order to give them the full experience. Though Mrs. Hale doesn't quite like this idea (she wants to end dinner the ceremonious way), Mr. Hale doesn't give her time to argue: he simply gets up. This shows me that Mr. Hale is probably still not in the best of moods, and likely put out with her as well for what she said in the morning. Either that, or he's so absorbed by his own worries that he isn't thinking of hers. Eep, not good.
So Mr. Hale, Henry and Margaret go out into the garden to enjoy some pears. While Mr. Hale grabs the ripest pear (to get over his anxieties -- relatable), Henry makes eyes at Margaret šļøšļø. He then takes her to stroll while Mr. Hale sits on the garden bench. Oh no! What can this mean? Well, for Margaret, she just thinks this is a friendly chat. Hmm....
He immediately starts by idealizing her country life and scorning his "city life" (comparing himself to a Cockney), ending with insinuating he would want to live here as his "reward" for all of his hard lawyer work.
She replies by shutting down the fantasy (lol), that the beauty he sees isn't always there and besides, didn't he mock her village before and call it out of a tale? Once she makes it clear she saw it as disrespectful, he "warmly" states he'll never do it again.
I do like that she's comfortable enough with him to feel able to tell him she felt disrespected by his words: that's a good sign, at least. And while he doesn't exactly apologize, he does back down once he realizes this was genuinely negative to her. Gotta take our wins where we can!
""I could almost wish, Margaretāā' he stopped and hesitated. It was so unusual for the fluent lawyer to hesitate that Margaret looked up at him, in a little state of questioning wonder; but in an instantāfrom what about him she could not tellāshe wished herself back with her motherāher fatherāanywhere away from him, for she was sure he was going to say something to which she should not know what to reply. In another moment the strong pride that was in her came to conquer her sudden agitation, which she hoped he had not perceived. Of course she could answer, and answer the right thing; and it was poor and despicable of her to shrink from hearing any speech, as if she had not power to put an end to it with her high maidenly dignity."
I love this passage for so many reasons. For one thing, it has that relatable feeling one gets when you have that one guy friend who hits you with the "I have to tell you something..." and even when you don't know what they're going to say, you also know what's happening...
But I love that she has that scared moment and then she's like -- wait a minute? This is me -- Margaret Hale -- we're talking about and I will say what I want and it will be right because I make it so. I will not shrink from any speech coming my way and if I have to, will put an end to it with my high š maidenly š dignity š . What an ABSOLUTE QUEEN FOR THAT!!!!! I aspire to be like her; why wasn't I told what an absolute girl boss of a role model this fictional character was? And I don't just mean like before I read this (I was given some notice), I mean like why isn't she given more love in pop culture just for this passage alone? (I could speculate why, but I don't want to get sad about that lol). If I didn't already love her, this right here would've made me love her. This passage is definitely something I will be remembering when I feel anxious about difficult conversations! Just, WOW, chef's kiss.
Forgive me, it's going to be a lot of passages from here on out, but I really want to analyze the exact wording here.
"'Margaret,' said he, taking her by surprise, and getting sudden possession of her hand, so that she was forced to stand still and listen, despising herself for the fluttering at her heart all the time; 'Margaret, I wish you did not like Helstone so muchādid not seem so perfectly calm and happy here. I have been hoping for these three months past to find you regretting Londonāand London friends, a littleāenough to make you listen more kindly' (for she was quietly, but firmly, striving to extricate her hand from his grasp) 'to one who has not much to offer, it is trueānothing but prospects in the futureābut who does love you, Margaret, almost in spite of himself. Margaret, have I startled you too much? Speak!' For he saw her lips quivering almost as if she were going to cry."
Okaaaaaay, that escalated VERY quickly -- Margaret didn't even get time to put a stop to it!!! I can't blame her, he's not giving her the chance to speak. So, the fact that he grabs her hand so she's "forced to stand still and listen"? Yikes. Her heart is "fluttering" and she hates herself for it? Also yikes because I doubt it's fluttering from liking him. I could be wrong, but I'm like 99.9% sure her heart is like that out of nerves.
Not to mention his speech: Henry starts off by being upset she likes Helstone and seems happy there -- you know, the place where her parents are??? Her hometown???? The place he just yapped on and on about being the best place ever and seemed like a reward to him? What happened to that? Swift 180 turn to me. Oh, and let's not forget he doesn't like seeing her calm and happy -- uhhhh...ok?
Now I know what he's trying to say here: he doesn't like seeing her happy here in Helstone because he wants her to be so miserable that she'll want to come back to London (and be with him). If she's miserable, it'll show she cares for him. Here's the problems I have with that logic:
Who's to say she doesn't miss her friends and she's just hiding it? Some people are better at hiding their grief than others.
Margaret is a very "live in the present" type of person; it's not that she doesn't miss Harley Street, but tends to just kind of live in the moment. Him not realizing that -- or wanting her to be miserable despite knowing that -- shows that he probably doesn't know her or care for her as much as he says he does a couple of sentences later.
She hasn't lived with her parents for years and spent most of her childhood without them being a large part of her life (I'm assuming from the limited text we have). Why doesn't she have the right to be calm and happy while living with them? It's pretty understandable she would be more happy with them because if anything *they're* the ones she was probably "more miserable" without. I'm sure she was fine at Harley Street, but she really seems to love her parents and her first night at Harley Street as a child seemed difficult: I'm not surprised she's happy at Helstone! This guy has some audacity to be like "aren't you miserable without me though š„ŗ" when like -- SHE'S VISITING HER PARENTS???!!?!?! It's been three months, calm down dude.
Let's imagine a world where Henry's completely right (a world I'm glad we don't live in, personally) and she's totally miserable because -- oh, Henry's not at Helstone š„ŗš. Even so, when you visit your friends/crush/whatever that you've missed and you haven't seen for a while, do you act miserable and talk constantly about how much you miss them? I mean, I don't! I usually try to keep up appearances if I am sad, but I actually almost always brighten up around the person I'm with because they make my day better. I get excited and in my element; to the outside person, you'd never know I'd be totally upset when they left because that's how happy I am! Of course, I'd say I miss them or whatever, but I wouldn't make a scene like he seems to want her to.
Going off of that, if you truly cared for someone, wouldn't you want them to be happy? Like he tells her he loves her but starts off his whole speech before he gets to that point with "I wish you were less happy and more miserable because that means you'd miss me and give me a chance" and that's...I don't even know what to say to that. I didn't think you could get worse than Mr. Collins or Mr. Darcy's failed proposals, but I think that beats it. In Mr. Collins's case, at least he starts off with compliments (though they're backhanded and he doesn't really mean them, lol) and at least with Mr. Darcy, he starts off with "I love you" and lists the reasons before he starts insulting her family!!! I guess it's a "pick your poison" thing, but seriously, what a way to start off a love confession speech/proposal.
Then -- and this is what really gets me here -- he notices her trying to get him to release her arm: another sign she's not enjoying this. Now, she's doing this in a quiet but firm way, not wanting to make a scene -- but not backing down, either. Instead of doing the decent person thing and letting her hand go, he keeps his grip and tells her to listen more "kindly". He takes this as yet another sign she didn't "miss him enough" and WOW. Um...I don't have much to say to this; I think it speaks for itself. I will say, everytime I read it I'm filled with an immeasurable amount of rage, if that tells you anything.
He also ends his very touching and heartfelt speech (/s) with saying that he loves her "almost in spite of himself". Aaaaand we're back to Mr. Darcy with his whole "yeah your family is below me and an insult to the human race and I actually wish I could stop thinking about you but in spite of all of that I love you whoops". I think he means this in more of a "I'm not a feelings person, so for me to be in love with you is a big deal" (we'll get to that speech of his soon), but it still comes across wrong to me. If you're going to say that, please clarify what you mean!!!
And THEN -- as if that's not bad enough -- he sees her lips quivering as if she's going to cry and after asking if she's startled (not the emotion I'd be asking after, but ok), he commands her to speak. As someone who gets overwhelmed easily, I would actually hate someone doing that to me!
And if we continue the thread of Margaret being ND, what if she's not able to speak because she's too overstimulated from whatever the heck that just was? I know she just hyped herself up -- and that's amazing, don't get me wrong -- but it could very well be difficult for her to communicate using spoken language and the fact that he wants her to speak right now is a bit reminiscent of how NTs will often force NDs to "act neurotypical" in difficult situations (e.g. "make eye contact, speak on this" etc.) and it's heartbreaking to read using this lens.
Even if we don't read it in that vein, who sees someone about to cry and goes "Speak!"? Get a grip, man.
"She made a strong effort to be calm; she would not speak till she had succeeded in mastering her voice, and then she said: 'I was startled. I did not know that you cared for me in that way. I have always thought of you as a friend; and, please, I would rather go on thinking of you so. I donāt like to be spoken to as you have been doing. I cannot answer you as you want me to do, and yet I should feel so sorry if I vexed you.'ā
I feel for her here: Iām glad she takes a moment to be calm, but I imagine it must cost a lot of emotional effort to do so. If I were in her shoes, I donāt even know if I could manage it!
Also, her speech itself is a masteclass in kind ā but firm ā rejection, in my opinion. Notice how she answers his last question first: that yes, she was startled. That is easiest to answer, so she focuses on it. Then, she expounds on it by letting him know she wasnāt aware of his deep feelings, which caused her to be startled.
Thatās when the boundary-setting starts! She sets two of them: in order to ākeep thinking of him as a friendā, he will need to discontinue his advances and then she states she doesnāt like the way he has been speaking to her ā aka, all of the ways he just offended her in that last paragraph? Stop it immediately.
She ends it by affirming that she cannot give him the answers he desires, but does not want to āvexā him. Just to be sure I was reading her meaning correctly, I looked up the meaning of vexed:
āto bring trouble, distress, or agitation toā
So, sheās worried about troubling him. Yes, distress is in there too, but I think itās interesting she uses that word to describe how he will take her not returning his feelings. Historically, women do have to worry about how men will react to them not returning feelings -- sometimes to an extreme degree -- and it can feel as if itās more of a case of them being troubled/agitated rather than distressed. I canāt speak for everyone of course, but it sucks that women have to feel so responsible for menās happiness to the point of saying āsorry for the troubleā if the feelings arenāt returned! (And yes, I know this issue can happen regardless of gender, but Iām focusing on this dynamic since thatās how it appears here.)
So, how does Henry react? Does he reassure her that he isnāt entitled to her feelings? Asks for space to deal with his own emotions, perhaps? Nope!
āāMargaret,ā said he, looking into her eyes, which met his with their open, straight look, expressive of the utmost good faith and reluctance to give pain, āDo youāāhe was going to sayāālove any one else?ā But it seemed as if this question would be an insult to the pure serenity of those eyes. āForgive me! I have been too abrupt. I am punished. Only let me hope. Give me the poor comfort of telling me you have never seen any one whom you couldāāā Again a pause. He could not end his sentence. Margaret reproached herself acutely as the cause of his distress.āā
Itās interesting to me that Henry decides not to ask if she loves anyone else because he doesnāt want to insult āpure serenityā of her eyes. Some may call this nice, I call this asking for a punch in the face. It rides a bit too close to the āpurity cultureā line for me and I donāt like it. It seems as if Henry thinks she has too much good faith to ever be āunfaithfulā to him by even entertaining the thought of someone else. Perhaps Iām wrong, but this is how it reads to me.
Then he asks for forgiveness and says heās been too abrupt (ok, good start) but says heās punished. Punished how? Punished for what? If you mean sheās punishing you for speaking to her a certain way by not returning feelings ā just NO. Thatās not whatās happening here!!!! She doesnāt return your feelings because she doesnāt like you, just accept it.
Thatās when Henry really drops the hammer of ācan you give me hope and return my feelings one day š„ŗā which ā oh, boy. On one hand, I can feel for him here, but itās strange to me that he also wants her to promise that sheās never seen anyone that has caught her fancy. Itās a very āif I canāt have you, no one canā mentality. It even causes Margaret to get mad at herself for ācausingā him to be so upset ā which, again, he is not entitled to her feelings and she is not responsible for his happiness.
āāAh! if you had but never got this fancy into your head! It was such a pleasure to think of you as a friend.ā
āBut I may hope, may I not, Margaret, that some time you will think of me as a lover? Not yet, I seeāthere is no hurryābut some timeāāā
She was silent for a minute or two, trying to discover the truth as it was in her own heart, before replying, then she said:
āI have never thought ofāyou, but as a friend. I like to think of you so; but I am sure I could never think of you as anything else. Pray let us both forget that all thisā (ādisagreeable,ā she was going to say, but stopped short) āconversation has taken place.āā
Ok, so Iām going to take Henryās side for just a second on this ā hear me out. I think itās a little mean for her to call his feelings just a āfancyā as if he thought of it one day and, on a lark, decided to confess his feelings. I donāt think thatās fair of her to say to him. You canāt help your feelings and itās not entirely fair of her to expect him to keep it bottled up inside. While his confession speech has been pretty abysmal (sorry itās true), I donāt blame him for having those feelings, just the way theyāre expressed.
On the other hand, Iāve been in Margaret's exact same situation and have almost wanted to say the exact same thing! Like āwe had such a good thing going and this came out of nowhere; whatās up with that?ā I didnāt though, because I realize thatās kind of invalidating to hear. I also think thatās her being blunt and not filtering her thoughts, which is understandable given the heightened emotions (and even more so, if we read it in the lens of her being ND).
Henry insists on the point of her being able to love him romantically sometime in the future, to which she has to think about. Iām glad she actually takes the time to examine her own feelings before answering. She already knows the answer, but itās good to be sure and honestly give it some thought.
Thatās when she drops a hammer of her own: she has only thought of him as a friend, does so now, and is certain she can only do so in the future. She also wants to set this conversation behind them ā almost calling it disagreeable in the process. She stops herself short, but I believe she makes a face or something in her demeanor registers it as such, because Henry picks up on it. Again, sheās being blunt, but this time sheās able to catch herself and spare his feelings a little.
āHe paused before he replied. Then, in his habitual coldness of tone, he answered:
āOf course, as your feelings are so decided, and as this conversation has been so evidently unpleasant to you, it had better not be remembered. That is all very fine in theory, that plan of forgetting whatever is painful, but it will be somewhat difficult for me, at least, to carry it into execution.āā
Itās telling that he becomes cold once he realizes sheās serious about staying friends forever. Itās sad that this 180 degree turn from Henry is still so relatable in todayās age! He does agree to her wishes, albeit reluctantly due to it being difficult for him. This I can understand; once you confess your feelings for someone and are subsequently rejected, it's a bit hard to just "forget" the entire conversation and go back to normal. Unfortunately, that's the consequence you have to face if you're going to confess to your friend like that; I think he was just so confident she'd return his feelings, he assumed this wouldn't happen.
ā'You are vexed,' said she, sadly; āyet how can I help it?' She looked so truly grieved as she said this, that he struggled for a moment with his real disappointment, and then answered more cheerfully, but still with a little hardness in his tone: 'You should make allowances for the mortification, not only of a lover, Margaret, but of a man not given to romance in generalāprudent, worldly, as some people call meāwho has been carried out of his usual habits by the force of a passionāwell, we will say no more of that; but in the one outlet which he has formed for the deeper and better feelings of his nature, he meets with rejection and repulse. I shall have to console myself with scorning my own folly. A struggling barrister to think of matrimony!'ā
Her grief does cause him to realize that he needs to stop making her feel bad about this -- or, at least, broadcast a facade of good cheer -- if they're going to have any hope of keeping the friendship. After all, they're still in Helstone's garden with Margaret's dad not too far off!!!
However, he's not able to cover up his "disappointment" entirely and it shows as "hardness in his tone". He doesn't apologize for giving her grief, but instead asks her to make "allowances" for him. I don't like this for a lot of reasons (why does she have to make allowances for you when you don't seem to give the same respect back?), but what's even worse is that he says one of those allowances should be "for the mortification...of a lover..." UM??? If Iām reading this right, he wants her to allow for him feeling like he was her lover and now having to deal with her rejection of romance. Henry, let me break it down for you: you were never her lover -- ever. If you felt like her lover, that is your issue, not hers, to deal with. The fact that you're admitting that aloud is appalling and the fact you want her to allow for that problem is even worse. Itās almost like he kept up a pretense of friendship and all the while imagining they were lovers. Thatās so weird!!! And again, remains relatable (unfortunately).
The other allowance, which I mentioned earlier, is that heās not a big āfeelingsā person and since he got carried away by his passions, she should understand why he feels crushed that the one time heās swept off his feet by romance, the feelings are not returned. I hate to tell you, Henry, but just because youāre more āworldlyā than the rest of us doesnāt mean youāre going to get a girlfriend faster: just a pro tip!
Both of these allowances are quite silly, in my opinion. Yeah, so you have a crush for the first time and you thought of her as your girlfriend and the feelings werenāt mutual. What is she supposed to do, give you a cookie? Iām being facetious, of course, I know what heās actually hoping is for her to change her mind and be like āI had no idea I was your first crush š„ŗ wow, since Iām so special to you, of course Iāll court you!!! šā¤ļøā which ā ugh. I want to say he doesnāt understand how women work, but Iām hard-pressed to see how this would work on anyone!! Maybe in his head it would work on one of those āregular London girlsā (which Iām beginning to think is just a made up notion in his head of women anyway), but Iāve said that Margaret is not one of those women (if they do exist) and never will be. The fact that he thinks he can make her be one or she will become one in time is concerning: what would he be like if they did court? Would she be expected to change for him? Or even if he does like her as is, would she be expected to āact differentlyā in front of his friends and other relatives? Again, reading this in a NT/ND lens really adds another layer of meaning to how this would affect Margaretās mental health in the long term.
He ends this by saying heāll have to āconsole himself by scorning his own follyā and scoffing at the idea of a struggling man in his job thinking of marriage. First of all, she has literally said nothing about your profession ā you brought that up briefly before in your confession (I didnāt mention it because I didnāt have anything to say on it) ā but she never said āIām not going to court you because youāre a lawyer struggling to make ends meetā. Of course, youāre going to think that because itās easier to think of her as shallow (only after men for their current money) and the āproblemā as something you can fix (he can fix a money issue, canāt fix her thoughts of him being a friend), but really: how in denial can you be?
Secondly, this is the first time heās brought up marriage. Of course, in the Victorian age thatās where courtships were supposed to lead, but still. Itās interesting that he waited until now to drop that last bit in; it almost seems like a last-ditch lament to be like āwoe is me! How could I think anyone would ever marry me š„ŗšā which would pull at the heartstrings. Of course, Iām likely reading too much into this because Iām reading it in the tone of him doing anything to try to get her to court/marry him, even using manipulation and guilt tactics to do so. Is it likely heās just upset and saying whatever comes to mind? Sure. But some people will do anything to get their way and so far he hasnāt shown himself to be very graceful in dealing with rejection.
āMargaret could not answer this. The whole tone of it annoyed her. It seemed to touch on and call out all the points of difference which had often repelled her in him; while yet he was the pleasantest man, the most sympathising friend, the person of all others who understood her best in Harley Street. She felt a tinge of contempt mingle itself with her pain at having refused him. Her beautiful lip curled in a slight disdain.ā
I suppose Iām not the only one getting bad vibes from this last speech. Margaret sees the worst parts of him ā the little things that had always bothered her about him ā and while she still feels bad about hurting him, she canāt help but visibly show ādisdainā for the way heās talking to her now.
Suddenly, they come upon Mr. Hale and Margaret feels as if she's had an out-of-body experience, comparing it to an Eastern tale of a king who went through an experience of a lifetime just by dipping his head in a magical basin of water. In other words, she is not the same as she was when she last saw her father!
Of course, due to the amount of emotions with everything that has just taken place, she is quite unable to speak and lets Henry and her father do most of the talking. Henry notices her quiet and morose look and:
ā"I am not so indifferent to her as she believes,' thought he to himself. 'I do not give up hope."ā
Oh...oh no. Henry, literally just accept the no. She told you no -- JUST ACCEPT THE -- ok, I need to calm down. This man is fictional. The problem is there are men -- nay, people -- who think like this. Who will hear a "no" and then see the person's face and have such a cognitive dissonance IN THEIR BRAIN that they're like "nah, they actually totally want me, THEY just can't see the truth yet." As if they know better.
It's really hilarious Henry thinks he knows Margaret's thoughts and feelings better than *she* does considering he doesn't even know how to talk to her without her shutting him down because he accidentally disrespected her small town (rhyme not intended but a pleasant surprise). How does he think a relationship with a foundation like that? I realize they are good friends and get along in other ways, but it is sooooo telling to me that the *second* he flirts, she either becomes uncomfortable or straight up doesn't get it (or pretends not to, depending on how you read it). How could they be married like that??
So yeah, unfortunately, Margaret is not even allowed to look sad without Henry jumping on the chance that she'll want him someday. I'm almost 100% sure this would've happened regardless of the facial expression she had. Happy (from trying to keep up a cheerful facade)? "Oh, she's actually super happy I confessed my feelings and will love me soon, just watch." Mad? "She's actually mad at herself for refusing me." Confused? "She doesn't know what she wants, she'll choose me eventually." That's just the kind of person we're dealing with here.
"Before a quarter of an hour was over, he had fallen into a way of conversing with quiet sarcasm; speaking of life in London and life in the country, as if he were conscious of his second mocking self, and afraid of his own satire."
Ok, so this passage is really hard to decipher for me and I might need some help figuring ot out! From what I'm able to gather, he's mainly mocking both the country and London, but maybe in also a self-depricating way as well (this is the main part I'm stuck on)? What I do understand is why he's doing this; Henry is a man who's default is to mock and be sarcastic. It's his coping mechanism for when things get too "real". We haven't seen him be as such yet because he hasn't needed to be around Margaret. However, now that he's been thrown off by her rejection, his way of dealing with it is to slip back into empty sarcasm.
Mr. Hale notices this change and is quite put off by it, even being relieved when he has to leave. He notes the change from the "lighter, clever, more worldly man" he saw earlier and at the wedding breakfast. It's interesting how a lot of people tend to use sarcasm to seem more clever and worldy, but Gaskell sees through this and contrasts them as opposites in this chapter! What a callout! She's so real for that.
At the last moment, Henry Lennoxās real self broke through the crust. āMargaret, donāt despise me; I have a heart, notwithstanding all this good-for-nothing way of talking. As a proof of it, I believe I love you more than everāif I do not hate youāfor the disdain with which you have listened to me during this last half-hour. Good-bye, MargaretāMargaret!ā
First of all, describing the weird sarcasm thing he was doing as a "crust" is funny and interesting to me -- I didn't know that could mean "harsh" or "surly": the more you know! Secondly, love that he calls out his own coping mechanism while still having done it -- progress, I guess? And third -- best of all -- Henry, my guy, my dude, why on earth would you tell her you love her while also saying you might hate her because she hasn't been happy with you for the past 30 minutes???? I am truly baffled. Has this man ever wooed a woman in his life? For the sake of the female population, I truly hope not because if THIS is how he does it -- YIKES!!!! Luckily, he probably hasn't considering his whole "i'M a lAwYeR wHo dOeSnT hAvE bIg rOmAnCe fEeLiNgS" speech.
And that's the way the chapter ends, so I'll end with a couple of points I want to make clear.
I know I've been super hard on Henry and -- to be fair -- I think he's deserved some of it. But I don't think he's a bad person. So far, Gaskell has written all of her characters with a complexity and depth that shows you're supposed to root for these characters (more or less), while also understanding their flaws. There were times I pointed out when Margaret wasn't at her best either; while she isn't entitled to return Henry's feelings, she was sort of trivializing them and I wouldn't like that either. I think the problem with Henry is that he's used to getting what he wants and when he doesn't get it, he gets upset and lashes out the way he did with Margaret. I do honestly think he needs to work on himself and not think of romance right now because it sounds like he has deeper problems going on; if Margaret's rejection causes him to act like this, it's not just her rejection that's bothering him. I noticed that he talked about how he's currently struggling in his job and I think that can also account for him getting upset -- perhaps he had hoped for this to be a "good thing" to focus on instead of his work that isn't going well. I'm glad Margaret didn't return his feelings in that case because having one person the sole source of your happiness is never healthy and running away from your problems won't fix them! So yes, while I'm hard on him I do still think he has good moments and can be better: we're just seeing him at his worst. Still, that doesn't excuse his behavior, just explains it.
I also want to clarify for those who think I'm being too harsh on Henry and am doing so because I "don't understand what it's like to be rejected romantically". As a quick personal aside: I've been on his side of a romantic confession and was also rejected by someone who was my friend. And it hurt -- badly. Especially because there were many "signs" I read too much into as romantic (flirting, holding hands, etc.) so said rejection was not what I saw coming, much like Henry. However, when I realized that this person only saw me as a friend and wanted to keep it that way, I immediately told them "ok, I understand" and then took some time to myself to sort through my feelings. These were mainly embarrasment, shame, sorrow, and anger -- not at the person, but at myself for potentially ruining the friendship over this.
My main problem with Henry is that he reacts to Margaret's rejection with disappointment, anger, frustration, and hurt. These don't seem like the kind of emotions that come with an unselfish love, I hate to say it. I know there is likely more feelings bubbling beneath the surface, but if he's going to react that way and realizes he's hurting her in the process (which he does), he should ask for space while he sorts himself out. I get that wasn't "the thing" back then so I guess it's a bit harder for me to say "oh, Henry should've just left!" when no, he can't just abruptly leave like that and "oh, Henry should just work on his mental health" when that was very much not talked of. I'm just trying to think of ways he could've better handled this situation; he can't help his feelings, but he can help how he acts on those feelings. And it's not fair to Margaret to continually pressure her into a relationship she so obviously does not want. Additionally, the way he makes his confession/proposal frustrates me too because he mainly makes it about himself and his feelings. He wishes she wasn't happy at Helstone, he loves her, he's not a romantic person so it's a big deal for him. I mean, he doesn't even talk about her good qualities or what he likes about her: even Mr. "and what excellent boiled potatoes" Collins did that!!!!!
As a final note, if you're reading Dracula Daily at the same time as North and South Weekly, you may have noticed a few parallels between this failed proposal and Jack Seward's failed proposal. I want to dive into them and why I respect Seward's more than Lennox's, but I don't want to do it here because this post might be my longest to date and I'd rather make it a separate post anyway!
So yeah, another great chapter, excited to see what happens next week!
#sorry this took so long#it was a lot and life got in the way#also sorry if some of this sounds more like a rant#but Henry Lennox brings that out in me I suppose#long post#north and south#north and south weekly#margaret hale#henry lennox#novas notes#cw ableism mention#more implied but tagging in case
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Shen Jiu and his plant son Shen Yuan <3 (ft. a bonus of YGY and LGG's very different methods of babysitting)
[ID: A Scum Villain Drawing. Shen Jiu holds Shen Yuan is his arms, staring towards the audience with a slightly scary, unamused expression. In his arms, Shen Yuan, dressed in Qing Jing teals and greens, appearing to be around the ages of four-six with a darker skin tone, a mole on his forehead and a green sprout popping out of his head, is gazing and reaching out amazedly at a demonic butterfly. End ID]
[ID: A Scum Villain Drawing. The top half depicts Yue Qingyuan, cradling a Shen Yuan that is wrapped in blankets and smiling. Then leaning in to give him a forehead kiss. The bottom half depicts Liu Qingge lifting SY by the ankle, much to SY's delight, and then moving him around to the back of himself with a faintly amused expression. End ID]
#svsss#scum villain#shen jiu#shen yuan#shen qingqiu#yue qingyuan#liu qingge#qijiu#implied#sj had to get another persons dna to get sy from somewhere wink wink#mxtx#myart#love plant baby shen yuan aus/fics with a passion so threw my hat in the ring with my own#dont know if having sy makes sj better or worse but he would 100% destroy the sect if anything happened to him so-#plant baby sy au#<- starting this tag on my blog now in case i draw more for this#and fun fact since this is my first time posting ygy i give him a grey streak from the time he used xuan su against tlj#svsss au
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#āļø: polls#self ship#self shipping#self ship poll#whump#<- more implied but i'm still tagging it just in case#cw blood#blood cw
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Worlds most hyperspecific au that drives me crazy GO
#nautdraws#block tales#block tales chapter 3#just in case. its implied spoilers#phighting#medkit phighting#shuriken phighting#subspace phighting#ask me about me and my two beasts (cinni and pink)ās hyperspecific au#its driving us all insane#knockoff rgb au#<- tag for it if i make more posts about it
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Cyborg boy
#emd au#even more of a disaster twins au#leoichi?#onesagi lol#emd au one#emd au Usagi#he thinks robots are cool (does not elaborate)#teaaart#rottmnt separated au#tw open chest#?? most of it is covered though#tw surgery#just in case#tw implied gore#struggling w the tags here lmk if I should add anymore warnings
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insp šø
#byler#mike wheeler#will byers#elmike#el hopper#stranger things#kydraws#reddit link jumpscare /hj but i couldnt find another place to link im too sleepy š©#some notes! due to misconceptions ive seen:#in my mind this is meant to be a mike centric piece representing him feeling torn between his feelings for will and the sortve#the comfort of normalcy he has being with el? (+ societal pressures).#the painting replaces the sword here to symbolize like the *thing* setting things off in mike's mind if that makes sense#the want and hope that the painting was a gift from will (the one he wants to be with) yet dealing with the conflicting feelings#of the painting actually being from el (obviously this isnt the case but lets say he fully believes will's lie about it being from her)#which is why both will and el are touching the painting but will has the paint on his hands (as well as having more of a grasp on it)#this is not meant to be a humorous piece! idk why i saw ppl implying this is meant to be a joke or mean towards el bc its absolutely not om#aand the from el tag was just mean being in a goofy mood lol wanted to add more cheesy symbolism#oh oh! and you can absolutely view this with bi mike in mind šš
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So..... I think you mentioned once before that Elizabeth is not William's.. wife's.... daughter.... I have questions.....
ouhh, yes, i wonder where else she could have gotten her ginger hair from... quite the mystery, isn't it? š
#oooopsieeeee daisiesssssssss.......#eheheehehe :3c#asks#toxi.txt#toxi fnaf lore#my art#henry emily#i wont tag willry but its implied#and in case i still haven't made it obvious by now - william is trans<3#ms paint doodle i put more effort in than i'd care to admit LMFAO
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ignore the fourth image i needed to format + i dont want to draw anything else
#mine#chiaki nanami#nagito komaeda#makoto naegi#junko enoshima#shuichi saihara#partial nudity#? just in case#kaede akamatsu#komanami is implied in all art i draw of them breathing near each other but i dont wanna clog the tag more than i do#just know my intent (autisc peoplekissing mwah mwah mwah mwah#please dni if ur like a pr.shipper lol . sorry i feel the need to say this on all my v3 posts based on bad experience š„#im posting this at the shittiest hour for interaction ever . to the queue you go stupid bitch
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spreen: but someone had to bite quackity for this to happen!
roier:
quackity:
roier attempts to convince spreen that, really, this is kind of his fault too since he never explained that part of the werewolf rules. spreen attempts to kill him.
#qsmp#qsmp monster au#quackity#roier#spreen#spiderduck#(not really? mildly implied?)#(more of a ājust in caseā tag)
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i want you to love me
#reanimator#reanimator 1985#herbert west#my art#im trying not to post much of my zine here before its done but ive had this concept in my head for too long i need 2 unleash it on the world#sorry for giving this movie even more of a Case Of The Genders than it already had i dont know how else to live#implied danbert#but not enough to go in the tag lmfao
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āI. Am going. To kill that rat.ā āWhat was that, Boss?ā āI said, BACK TO YOUR POSTS NOW!ā āY-Y-Yes, sir, right away, sir!ā
(ID: Kirby series fanart comic, four borderless panels featuring Dark Meta Knight, Mirror Axe Knight, and Mirror Mace Knight, in which the latter two comment on their leaderās interesting new battle scars, much to his restrained dismay. Transcript below the cut. END ID.)
Good thing his minions arenāt the brightest bulbs in the bunch - otherwise theyādāve found out about all the friendly hugs heās been getting in his off-time.
(ā¦ this isnāt too much, is it? Stars, I hope not. I tried to keep it vague enough that it doesnāt have to mean anything spicy. Maybe it was just a very competitive game of tag. Or maybe DMK couldnāt quite reach an itch between his wings and Daroach got a bit overenthusiastic trying to help. Basically anything that could ruin his ābig scary cool toughguyā reputation. As long as DMK is too embarrassed to admit to it in front of his crew, theyāre all viable options, haha.)
Started 12/25/23, finished 12/28/23, updated 01/04/24, updated for color correction 11/02/24. NOTE: This was originally posted on my deleted account on 01/04/24. | Kintsugi AU Masterpost
ā
Transcript:
Panel 1
*DMK walking forward towards our left, M!Axe and M!Mace passing by in the opposite direction, M!Axe waves cheerily to DMK, who glances at them over his shoulder*
M!Axe: Oh, Boss, there you are! Hey, how was the fight? Didja win?
DMK: Hm? Whatāre you talking about?
Panel 2
*reverse shot of DMK, still glancing over his shoulder, several pink scratch lines can be seen on his back and the base of his wings, each in sets of three*
M!Mace: Got some new scratches on your back, Boss. Nasty ones, too, by the look of it.
M!Axe: (laughing, impressed) Ha! Musta been one heck of a scrap to leave marks like that! Iād hate to see what happened to the other guy, haha!
Panel 3
*front shot of DMK, his eyes shrunk to dots in realization, as a thought bubble hovers over his head - a simple headshot of Daroach, grinning roguishly beneath the shadow of his hat, showing off his claws as they glint sharply*
Panel 4
*front shot of DMK, sweating and glaring fixedly off to the side, eyes still shrunk, a vivid blush inside his visor, while M!Axe and M!Mace stand where they were before behind him, heads tilted in innocent confusion*
DMK: (strained) ā¦ ā¦ ā¦ Yes. ā¦ ā¦ A fight. ā¦ Thatās what happened.
#veins art#veins ships#veins fanart#kirby series#kirby#dark meta knight#mirror axe knight#mirror mace knight#(not tagging them as OCs since they're not really different from their counterparts here; plus there's no more tag room)#daroach#dark meta knight x daroach#darkroach#AU#kintsugi au#comic#(almost didn't post this one not gonna lie)#(I generally prefer more fluff-centric stuff)#(since even implied spice tends to make the ace brain leap into panic mode)#(plus I don't wanna y'know... accidentally set some kind of weird precedent regarding my art?)#(basically I'm overthinking things again)#(but these two have a *very specific* relationship in my headcanon)#(at least when compared to MetaDede or Marxolor for example)#(not to say there's no fluff btw them - it's just more... neutrally physical? than what the others have)#(āfriends with benefitsā fits best I think)#anyway - panel 3 DMK face is my favorite thing ever I've decided#suggestive#<- (just in case)#veinsfullofstars
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Reconciliation
Old dome squadmates Trito and Kinoga get together at Tritoās place to catch up after years apart and a meeting by chance on the surface.
ā ļøWarning for suggestive content below + implied chest trauma
After several weeks of chipping away at this, the comic is finally done! Very happy to have rendered a full 7 pages of oc stuff. Please give it a read!!
read the full 7 page comic on twitter! <-please do not click if you are a minor and view at your own discretion, this link contains explicit 18+ content. Thank you!
For the lore, includes stuff from splatoon Octo Expansion: Trito and Kinoga were a part of an octarian military squad living in the domes, Kinoga being their squad leader that many looked up to and admired. There were 6 of them who considered each other to be their closest friends. Upon hearing about the tests from Kamabo Co. and the allure of the Promised Land, Kinoga wished to seek it out in order to find a better life for their squadmates. A difficult decision, since it meant leaving them all behind, promising to come back and take them there.
Kinoga enters the metro trials and soon realizes that the Promised Land isnāt what they expected, their hope crumbling when they encounter one of their sanitized squadmates Agara, who followed suit to the metros soon after. Kinoga narrowly escapes, eventually making a break for the surface, carrying the shame of unwilling to return for their squadmates with them (itās justified, of course, there might not be an easy way in, they might get caught again, Agara is gone)
Trito enters the Metro not too long after Kinoga does, wanting to catch up to them, and an accident that occurs in a test early on results in Tritoās near sanitization, giving him his scar. Terrified, and realizing what happens to his fellow octolings, Trito is unable to return to his squadmates, not wanting to break the news of their loved onesā untimely fates. He hides away on the Metro until the events of OE happen and Agent 8 dismantles Kamabo, opening an opportunity to escape to the surface. Unwilling to face the possibilities of going back, Trito takes his chance to leave, starting a new life and feeling that itās for the best if he doesnāt acknowledge it, though he missed his friends dearly.
Years later, Trito and Kinoga run into each other on the streets of Splatsville by chance, and the implications of them both being on the surface and alive hit them, having to carry the burden of leaving their loved ones behind and finding out the truth, knowing the other felt exactly the same, not knowing the fate of their squadmates and not wanting to think about the possibility of them being gone. They have a tearful reunion about it, and set up a meet later, to sit down and really talk, and get into a brief argument when the topic of returning to the domes comes up. Tritoās in disbelief that Kinoga never went back down to check on the rest of their squad, wanting them to have been a better person than him, who was too cowardly to do so. Eventually they do reconcile, and end up at Tritoās place to hook up, where the above comic takes place :]
#my art#my ocs#splatoon#suggestive#trito#kinoga#aaahhhhhh this is finally done!!!!#a small drabble turned into a sketch turned into a full fledged rendered comic. blowing up#in any case I hope people enjoy this as much as I doā¦they are so everything to me#splatoon ocs#I have so many thoughts about these two that I could not articulate in a tumblr post. they miss each other so so much#its about the. Iāve known your body. and coming back after years and going ohā¦this is newā¦#thereās no context where trito would be able to reveal this to kinoga except for boning#only kinoga could look at it and immediately understand. sparing him the pain of explaining what happened and reliving it#if it had been anyone else he probably would have stopped them the moment the hand went under the sweater#but heās just so so caught in the moment of the reunion. and the everything . Auughhhh#stealing this from a friend but theyve changed and they havenāt changed at all. Iām going to be ill#chest trauma#āwhat if they explored each others bodiesā or whatever. okay#if it wasnt clear enough or implied trito and kimoga are octolings from the underground domes#nsft#oh and the. really long lore explanation <33 teehee#they are so so much#not partners but more than friends. secret third thing. guh#its about holding each other so tightly and physically for confirmation that they werenāt seeing things and that the other was Really There#like the fate of their friends not on their mind constantly and then it all comes flooding back and all of a sudden it opens the door#for finding the others and now they wonāt have to go back and face the possibility alone#IM GOING TO BE SICK!!!!!!!!!!!!#this has got to be the most ive rambled in the tags Iāve just been rotatinf them with fado for the past barely a month and they are#tritonoga
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"If a man talks shit then I owe him nothing,
I don't regret it one bit cause he had it coming"
@shsl-islandmode-events
#drawganronpa 2024#day 3 let's goo#I really really wish I had time to more#I had some ideas but they didn't turn out good because they were rushed#we'll see#anyway#killer Miu because she deserved this#implied danganronpa v3 spoilers?#I'll tag it just in case#danganronpa v3 spoilers#tw: pink blood#tw: blood#danganronpa#miu iruma#danganronpa v3#danganronpa v3 fanart#quote from I did something bad by Taylor Swift cause Miu is a reputation girlie#matyldaarts
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Abel offered to pick him up. Old habits.
Antonio told him that he would pick him up that evening, but not at the airport. Older habits.
So, Abel would wait. He would wait as he always waited, in the end, and give Antonio what he wanted. That was perhaps the oldest habit they shared.
[ read on ao3! ] [ for @hetaberia-week! ]
#hetaberia week 2024#hws netherlands#hws spain#nedspa#hetalia#cw implied drug abuse#pls do check the ao3 tags as well just in case!#this one's a bit angst/hurt/comfort of me but in the end we must all regress to our most base forms#and i do so love me some of that :3c#also. NEDSPA! ive only ever written a short ficlet or two i think from prompt requests#so it's nice to write something a bit more substantial#but while also exploring my boi a bit more#:3c#helia writes
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Hanichi in a nutshell....
#hanichi core#really wanted to do one of these cause i have a folder full of these...gotta get more#Hanichi are losers and I gotta explode them...#tw sui implied#putting that tag in case!#ask for tags!
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Novaās Thoughts - Dracula Daily - August 23
In which Renfield is hunted for sportā¦
Not Renfield subverting their expectations by not escaping just because they opened a window. Sooooo iconic of him šššššš«¶
I feel like he can āappreciateā you letting him free from restrictions even if you think he canāt, Seward ā letās not be condescending hereā¦
LOLLLLL heās escaped! I love Seward and I know he wanted him to escape butā¦hereās live footage of me high-fiving Renfield for being funny and frankly, a boss:
Renfield: *sees Seward* *instant rage* Seward: huh wonder what thatās aboutā¦ā¦. Me: YEAH I WONDER WHY couldnāt be because you locked him up with chains right and treated him as subhuman RIGHT?!
Also this is really the first time weāve seen Renfield get mad at Seward specificallyā¦or *show it*ā¦interesting. My guyās had enough, and who can blame him?
How many bats have you seen to know how they fly, Seward? Are you a bat expert?! *coughs* nerd (affectionate)
I do also wonder if Renfield calmed on his own knowing his master was the bat, or if he was influenced by Dracula? Same result I guess š¤·āāļø
Also, is Seward shaken by the āominous calmā or the fact that his favorite āpet projectā turned against him? Hmmmmmmm
#also yes I still love my man Jack he just really needs to make better life choices š«¶š«¶#I criticize because I care#<3#count dracula#r.m. renfield#jack seward#dracula daily#dracula#novas thoughts#cw ableism#ableism#cw dehumanisation#dehumanisation tw#(more implied but tagging in case)
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