#not being extra was not an option

[kneesocktango]

Took me two months, but I finally finished knitting Hector's sweater from Great God Grove! I'm very proud of how it turned out, especially since it was a surprise gift for a dear friend!

Pattern: Calculate by James McIntosh

Yarn: Lion Brand Superwash Merino Yarn in paprika and mustard seed

Check your gauge! I ended up going up a size for both needles.

Washing instructions under the cut feat. the bizzyboys!

[mythicalcoolkid]

You don't wish your disability was worse or more visible, you wish your disability was taken seriously. Please stop confusing the two, I guarantee you would not get the support you need JUST by being more severe or more visible. Please listen to visibly disabled people when we tell you it isn't better on our side

[bisexualchaosdemon]

Friendly reminder that reading the aftg ec is not for the faint of heart!

One minute you're looking for a line you know is in there, and the next thing you know it's been two hours and you're giggling about the Foxes going skiing but then suddenly you discover that Andrew broke his leg and arm as a kid and– oh God.

I was looking for "This was part of the deal. His hand was not part of the deal." btw

[sleepyorchidmonster]

So, with Chapter 7 being (another) event of Cataclysmic proportions on a global scale, I can't help but wonder about the direct fallout to the whole thing, be it the world's opinion on Malleus and the fae, how S.T.Y.X. will handle everything....

...and whether we may end up meeting Mrs. Rosehearts by the end of the book or not.

Since she is a famous magical healer/doctor, and her son is currently on Sage's Island, it'd make sense for her to work alongside other paramedics when help finally breaches the barrier (especially considering how she doesn't take no for an answer).

The main problem is that, after finally dealing with an overblot of such magnitude, the last thing anyone needs is another potentially triggering situation (and we saw what happened with poor Trey in Riddle's dream).

So here are my ideas:

1- Mrs. Rosehearts makes an appearance, but manages to keep things professional and just hugs her son before going her merry way (she's wondering why so many students are glaring at her, though);

2- Mrs. Rosehearts attempted to join the paramedics, but S.T.Y.X. vetoed the idea and were quite adamant about it;

3- Mrs. Rosehearts makes an appearance, but the other members of the cast hide Riddle from her (he's so tiny he can just stay behind Adeuce and be done with it) while Chen'ya kidnaps Trey and takes him to Heartslabyul to bake the stress away;

4- Mrs. Rosehearts makes an appearance, causing Adeuce to panic and throw Riddle out of the window (the Tweels had to fish him out of the lake);

5- A combination of options 3 and 4: Adeuce throws Riddle out of the window, but Cater manages to save him. Now Riddle is hiding behind Leona or Idia while Cater scolds the freshmen;

6- Idia undergoes a character development arc and stands up against a Karen (he just fought Malleus Freaking Draconia, he's not afraid of her).

[withthewindinherfootsteps]

Wei Wuxian and Narrative Agency – Part Three

For Xiantober Day Five: Past and Present, in which the author gets very unhinged about what parts of the past are shown and how that’s affected by the present!

(Part One | Part Two | Full version on AO3)

The Power of Agency: Shaping the Narrative

When I've discussed Wei Wuxian's agency previously, I’ve talked about how what’s shown and omitted tells us about a character, and we’ve talked about the character himself. Though this is a niche topic, it’s not necessarily something out of the ordinary to analyse, and we can assume everything up to here has been in some way intentional.

This? Linking structure to a character’s in-universe preferences?

This is where we get unhinged.

Before I start, let’s quickly establish something which will be important later: although Wei Wuxian is the central character, MDZS isn’t strictly from his POV. While omitting events a character doesn’t like to dwell on and concealing things the character wishes to hide is common in books with only one narrator, MDZS has multiple narrators which it switches between relatively quickly. This includes Wei Wuxian, but it also includes nearly every major character that appears in the story, and omniscient narrator as well. As a default, this format doesn’t lead to this deliberate shaping and omission because of one character’s preferences, since we have many other sources of information and events – which is what makes Wei Wuxian’s influence over the narrative and structure so interesting. We could have access to a lot more information, and access to it at different times, than we do (and that’s not an insult, quite the opposite!).

To begin: we’ve established that times such as Wei Wuxian’s time on the streets, his three months in the Burial Mounds and his loss in the Siege aren’t shown because Wei Wuxian has little agency there. But that’s not the only special thing about them. They’re also the three most traumatic times in his life, and so moments Wei Wuxian himself either can’t remember, or doesn’t like to dwell on.

This is why discussing Wei Wuxian’s treatment of tragedy in his life was important. Firstly, it shows he doesn’t focus on the tragedy in his life, so the idea that the narrative not focusing on this tragedy relates to his character has merit; secondly, it affirms that this is not a passive trait, but a choice. Therefore, when the narrative omits events due to this aspect of Wei Wuxian, it’s respecting not only a character detail – which would be cool by itself – but also an active decision. One that shapes the story it’s made in.

In other words, its very structure is respecting Wei Wuxian’s agency!

Now, of course there are flashbacks to other moments of his past he probably wouldn’t like to dwell on, too. But within the structure, they’re only shown when Wei Wuxian is thinking about them (or when he has reason to)!

Wei WuXian hadn’t woken up yet. His eyes were still tightly shut, yet his hand didn’t let go either. He seemed to be dreaming, muttering, “… Don’t… Don’t be angry…” Lan WangJi seemed somewhat surprised. His voice was gentle, “I am not angry.” Wei WuXian, “… Oh.” Hearing this, as though he finally felt assured, his fingers loosened. Lan WangJi sat beside Wei WuXian for a while. Seeing that he was motionless again, he was about to stand up when Wei WuXian grabbed him with his other hand, hugging his arm and refusing to let go. He shouted, “I’ll go with you, quick, take me back to your sect!” Chapter 63, EXR translation

Which, of course, is him dwelling on…

Lan WangJi spoke one word at a time, “Go back to Gusu with me.” Hearing this, both Wei WuXian and Jiang Cheng were surprised. Quickly afterward, Wei WuXian laughed, “Go back to Gusu with you? To the Cloud Recesses? Why go there?” He immediately seemed to realize, “Oh. I forgot. Your uncle Lan QiRen hates crooked people like me. You’re his proudest disciple, so of course you’re the same as him, haha. I refuse.” Chapter 62, EXR translation

…the painful flashback immediately preceding this. The third set of flashbacks (which are also painful) are a similar case. Look at the contex:

He lifted the bottom of his robe, revealing a prosthetic leg made of wood, “This leg of mine was destroyed by you, that night in the Nightless City (…)” (…) “Wei WuXian, I won’t ask you if you remember or not. Both of my parents died by your hands. You owe too many people. You definitely won’t remember them either. But, I, Fang MengChen, will never forget! And never forgive you!” (…) “In the fight at Qiongqi Path, my son was strangled to death by your dog Wen Ning!” “My shixiong died by poison, his entire body festering due to your cruel curse!” Chapter 68 (immediately preceding the flashbacks), EXR translation

And Wei Wuxian’s own thoughts and words:

Wei WuXian looked at the cultivators before the Demon-Slaughtering Cave. Their expressions were the absolute same as those of the cultivators from the night of the pledge conference, pouring their wine on the ground as they took the pledge to scatter the ashes of the Wen Sect’s remnants and him.  (…) Wei WuXian, “Now it’s time to ask just whom it is that treasures it so much. It’s like Wen Ning. Back then, some certain sects or so were scared to death of the Ghost General. They said they’d kill him on the surface, but behind their backs they hid him for over ten years. How strange. Who was the one that said his ashes had been scattered back then?” Chapter 79 (immediately succeeding the flashbacks), EXR translation 

Once again, Wei Wuxian’s own thoughts relate to the flashbacks we’ve just been shown. And, as I previously mentioned, though all the events which are shown are tragic, they’re also events which Wei Wuxian’s own choices and actions shaped – which he has this to say about:

“The things I did, not only do you remember them, I remember them too. You won’t forget them, and they’ll stay even longer in my mind!” Chapter 82, EXR

Admittedly, this applies more to the third set of flashbacks than the second (which is still fitting as the third set was the most recent), as in the second, although he still had agency within and influence over his circumstances, the majority of the pain was caused by others’ actions (excluding, of course, the Golden Core transfer… which is something we know stays for a long time in his mind, albeit with a caveat we’ll soon discuss). But it’s still important to note – especially considering that otherwise, focusing on this very painful time in his life wouldn’t seem like something very in-character for Wei Wuxian to do.

Of course, this can all just be explained by good writing. It is best to insert flashbacks when they’re relevant to the characters and events in the present day! But it is interesting to compare these to the start of the (not painful) Gusu flashbacks, which open this way:

At a later time, Wei WuXian pondered upon the reason why his relationship with Lan WangJi wasn’t good. Getting to the root of the matter, everything started when he was fifteen, coming to the GusuLan Sect with Jiang Cheng to study for three months. Chapter 13, EXR

Again, considering the circumstances around which these flashbacks take place – returning to the Cloud Recesses for the first time since the lectures, and meeting Lan Wangji once more – it makes complete sense for Wei Wuxian to be thinking about these events*. So it does fit the pattern of Wei Wuxian dwelling on something, thus leading to the narrative dwelling on it, too (and being shaped by his thoughts)… but there’s another layer to this. Importantly, it is the only flashback where Wei Wuxian’s present thoughts don’t lead to this happening, with his thoughts at an unspecified future time leading to it, instead. I like to interpret this as the text saying that, since these events aren’t something Wei Wuxian wouldn’t focus on in normal circumstances, he can dwell on them at any time. Therefore, they’re free to come up in the narrative at any time as well, even if he’s not dwelling on them in the present moment!

So, to summarise: Wei Wuxian’s decision not to focus on the painful times in his life directly influences the narrative to not focus on these times. When painful times are brought up and shown to us, it’s in the context of him thinking about them in the present day, and even then, his most painful moments still aren’t shown to us. His agency in this regard is still respected by the narrative structure.

This is the main way his agency influences the structure of the narrative, but I’d like to talk about the revealing and concealing of information, too. For example, I said I’d talk about the Golden Core transfer – though Wei Wuxian does think about this many times, as evidenced by his internal narration in Chapter 103. But unlike everything we’re shown through the flashbacks, this is something Wei Wuxian is actively trying to hide from others. And the narrative respects this choice (Wei Wuxian’s agency, again), never reveals it even when it would be relevant in the flashbacks, and we find out not through narration, but through a character’s dialogue!

And to clarify – I know these aspects may not be in the book for this exact reason. Showing flashbacks in relevant moments is good writing, concealing an important plot point you want to do a reveal for is necessary writing, and MXTX has said she didn’t want to write about Wei Wuxian’s time in the Burial Mounds, due to not liking to write transformation sequences (and also because it would not be pleasant at all, which likely also applies to Wei Wuxian’s death). That doesn’t prevent it from also being intentional – MXTX’s intelligence is shown in many aspects of this book, and there’s nothing disproving it – but there’s no proof for either option, so I won’t pretend there is. I bring this up because I know this feels like I’m overanalysing, as I feel that way as well.

But, whether it’s intentional or not, it exists in the text, and I adore it – so, regardless, it’s something I’ll explore. Because taking this into account… We aren't just told about Wei Wuxian having agency, we aren’t just shown it in the text, we aren’t even just shown it through which parts of his past are shown and hidden in the structure of the text (as I talked about in Part One). The parts of the past that are shown and hidden also have an in-universe reason for being shown and hidden, this reason being the choices he makes! Agency is the ability of a character to influence the story they’re in, but Wei Wuxian’s agency, as a property of a character who only exists in-universe, shapes the out-of-universe structure as well! That’s how we’re shown its importance! How cool is that?

At The End Of The Road: Summary and Final Thoughts

In this essay, we’ve covered how important Wei Wuxian’s agency is not only to the events of the plot, but to the structure of the narrative as well. The narrative omits periods in which Wei Wuxian has little or no agency, in favour of showing us periods in which he does, even when important events happened in the former. This indicates that who Wei Wuxian is without agency isn’t important enough to be shown to the audience, and therefore that his agency is an integral aspect of his character in MDZS. We’ve discussed how both in-universe and out-of-universe, tragedy does not define him – out-of-universe, the tragic events in Wei Wuxian’s life are used not to build sympathy but rather to show his strength of character and who he still is despite going through them; and in-universe, he chooses not to focus on the negativity and resentment caused by his circumstances or others’ actions, instead staying true to his moral compass and enjoying his life in the present day. Finally, we’ve also explored how this choice is another reason for the omission of certain events from the narrative, resulting in his agency shaping the story in a very literal way – it affects the out-of-universe structure, as well.

It’s quite fitting, for a story whose essence is about defying a conventional narrative – that of righteous clans rising up and defeating a great evil – and about a character who defies many conventional narratives on his own – that of status defining how skilled you could be, that for a golden core being necessary for cultivation and other paths being unavailable, that of a tragic but complete story of someone killed for staying true to their moral code (instead, that character returns to life and has a happy ending) – to have its own narrative play a role in such an important and interesting way.

(Or, if an image would be preferable:)

Thank you for reading!

(Part One | Part Two | Full version on AO3)

--

*This strong relation to the present day circumstances is another reason I love the flashback placement so much (and why I think it’s such a loss both screen adaptions altered it so strongly)! 

[velvetwyrme]

Ohhh no, I forgot about combining

How big would the gestalt be if they Did combine though. Fuck a dragonfly (vortex) and a moth (swindle) don’t seem like a bad combo but what are the other 3 (onslaught/blastoff/brawl).

I thought I just had to deal with swindle stealing my valuables and maybe eating my more expensive fabrics and maybe walking in on vortex doing degenerate bug stuff on his own or with the little red and white bug he brings.

If I see some shin to knee high bug in my house I’d have punt that thing so hard metal be damned. The broken/sprained foot would be justified to me.

PL anon

it's bruticus' house now!!!!!

uhhh quickfire round of bugs because its 2am. blastoff. also moth but much bigger. onslaught like many other bugs that exist in our world and also the world of cybugs is likely to be some sort of beetle.

brawl... wait what does he look like again

thanks google for this snippet from tfwiki, that helps a lot. he'd be an amazingly cute bug of mass destruction.

[xxplastic-cubexx]

I yearn for wheelchair Charles in Marvel Rivals but also, I don't trust the general population to be normal about him using a wheelchair, Like I'd love it, but also dear god the amount of people I'd have to report for hate speech would triple overnight as soon as he got added

people will simply just have to deal with the fact charles is a wheelchair user like thats a THEM problem. give me grandpa in his chair im styling on everyone and making them mad twofold about it

[gammija]

musing about what a translation of the silt verses would sound like and immediately running headfirst into the problem of whether and how to translate 'Sister Carpenter'

[rudeboimonster]

YESSSSS my Halloween order from @waywardstation came in!! Picked up some charms for a pair of friends to take advantage of the discount, oh these are such cute charms, I'm so glad I managed to have a lil spare change for these!! ;w; The bat clips are such a lovely little touch, and these definitely feel like sturdy lil guys!

And omg, all the little bonuses were such a pleasant surprise!! (Editor's note: the joltik plushie was not included in the bonuses lol I've had that for like 7 years.) The joltik clip is also so cuuuute, I'm tempted to super glue a magnet onto it so I can put it around my desk :3c

[sysig]

i want to go on a big and elaborate date with papyrus SPECIFICALLY bc of the way u draw him bc he’s so bbg cutie patootie

PapyrACE 💚💜 Happy Valentine's Day!

[wildflowercryptid]

sometimes, i think about the extra bit of depth alex's romance is given when you date him as a guy and i just gotta. stare at the ceiling for a bit...

[benevolenterrancy]

*glances at svsss' vol 4 worth of extras, aka 'the whump and smut pile'* you haven't seen anything yet

You guys are seriously taking an axe to my self-control;;; I'm trying to make this series last longer than a single month!! I'm trying to savour things!!! I'm trying to read something else and give the series a bit of breathing room before I pick up the last book but I want the "whump and smut pile" I want that so much I feel like a dog that's getting a treat waved in front of its face .·´¯`(；´д｀)´¯`·.

[tommyssupercoolblog]

i love your post about dnp’s relationship!! i feel like people don’t really understand the true level of love people can have for each other outside of just a regular romantic relationship

we live in a society that constantly shoves the concept of romance down our throats, that we are all made to believe that people are either in a romantic relationship, or they’re not. we can all agree that everything is on a spectrum, so why can’t we do the same for relationships?

dan and phil very obviously love and care for each other in a very special and beautiful way. there is no more that needs to be said.

another thing that i find kind of annoying is when people say that “the only reason they call each other ‘best friends’ is cause they haven’t hard launched yet, and they call each other boyfriends/partners/husbands/etc in private”. i say this so many times, and ill keep saying it, everyone has their own definitions of labels. “best friend” can feel so much more intimate, meaningful, and personal to them than any other label, and that is beautiful! of course, like you said, this isn’t to say that they’re “definitely not” saying those things, it’s just something to consider

i could also very much be projecting, as i’ve been slowly figuring out i may not be as alloromantic as i initially thought, but i digress

i could also be totally wrong!! the beauty of having such a caring relationship with another person is knowing that no one can ever truly know the extent of your relationship besides each other. that is a remarkable thing, and should be enough for everyone to understand, and respect everyone’s theories/opinions/experiences without hate ❤️

i’m sorry this is so long, i really hope it made sense, i rambled for quite a while, but oh well, thank you for reading :)) <33

No I get it! That's why I said something haha

Thing is they absolutely could be dating in private and to be completely transparent I do have some suspicions they might be. But it seems to be a very black and white, and very CERTAIN, issue with a lot of people. Some folks said they were worried about Dan and Phil being all "no homo" about the conspiracy theories as if it'd destroy the relationship they have if they did, and it made me think about how...if they don't consider themselves a couple that doesn't mean they don't consider themselves soulmates and very important to each other- they obviously do, they've said it over and over. Nothing can erase that.

I did have someone say they think the idea of a QPR is unlikely because they never expressed interest in one and while I don't think they have actively said that, they also generally have kept things private until necessary, and also....QPRs are not in the public consciousness. Do you have any idea how many people found out about the aromantic and asexual spectrums for the FIRST TIME EVER from Jaiden Animations' coming out video? And that didn't even mention QPRs. Queerplatonic relationships are NOT common and they aren't visible to a lot of people, even other queer people.

Talking about a queerplatonic relationship would require a lot of setting groundwork and sitting down and EXPLAINING, similar to how Jaiden had to explain things in her video. It's not enough to go "this is a queerplatonic relationship" if no one knows what the fuck that is, you have to thoroughly debrief everyone, so if that is what going on I could see why it wouldn't be so casually brought up. Like, they would need to feel comfortable and ready to sit down and explain it to people.

There's also the fact, as they mentioned in the tags as well, that if they were a man and woman people would already assume they were together as fact; but that's just as much amatonormativity as it is homophobia. That assumption, that a man and woman who act like Dan and Phil would be together, shouldn't go unchallenged. The difference in assumptions often comes from homophobia, but the assumption wouldn't exist in the first place without amatonormativity.

(Same person also mentioned they aren't aroace but I'm going to discount that critism entirely as you don't need to be aroace to have a QPR in the first place, they just come up more in those spaces because people are already critiquing the idea of relationships and what they mean.)

I just don't want anyone to lash out if it's a QPR, and I also want people to remember (or learn!) that QPRs are an option, because it's not discussed often and this is a pretty good opportunity to broach the topic. They could be dating, they could be in a QPR, we don't know. And the thing is, we can't know- that's what I'm saying- unless they elaborate we'll never know and that's...okay!! :D

I have no problem with posts calling them a couple or anything, I reblog those a lot, I just felt I should mention this option too.

Regardless they're still our silly gay little YouTube blorbos and that's incredible :3

[seventh-district]

babe wake up a new Venti-coded song just droppped

“I’m as sober as a drunk.

I’m as high as rock bottom.

Free as a man with his hands handcuffed to the bar.”

[ricksanchezbignaturals]

as an effeminate trans guy i've never played another game that gave me the kind of gender envy i get from cyberpunk 2077. if you don't know, the gender of the player character, v, is determined by which voice you pick, not which body. and male v with a female body type goes so incredibly hard for me

like running around the city dressed however you like, with gavin drea's hotsexy deep voice and a pair of fat tits, getting he/him'd and "mr. v"d no questions asked is literally ideal. the fuckin street goons that shoot when you get too close know that you're a man, idec that it's a dystopian nightmare world take me to night city bruh

[ohheyitsjustbear]

I just think being edged by a cute girl while she simultaneously makes herself cum for every edge she forces on me and makes fun of my whining and begging would fix me 🤷‍♀️