#okay i'm done ranting but i'll never be done being upset

[alchimistetyche]

Every now and then I think about the failed spn spinoff they were going to call "Supernatural: Bloodlines" and how outraged I was it never happened

I was watching that pilot ep (9x20 I think?) with my friend and I just kept going "why is it so different this is it's own show" BECAUSE IT WAS! AND IT WAS INTERESTING! AND I WAS ROBBED I NEVER GOT TO SEE RIVAL MONSTER GANGS AND A NEW HUNTER FIND OUT HIS FAMILY SECRETS!

As one can tell I am more than normal about this but I miss what never was tails i miss it a lot

[stop-breaking-my-heart-telltale]

if dorian didn't show up, do you think louis would have shot minnie?

I do. I know some people think either he wouldn't have or he would've missed so that's why the writers had him shoot Dorian instead, but mmmmmm no, I don't personally think so. I like to think that if he had taken the shot, his shaky hands would've caused him to shoot her fatally.

Mostly because I'm already so normal about the fact that of the Ericson crew, Marlon and Louis are the only ones with a body count. Well, that we know of, but shown to us in the game, at least. Plus, we know it's Louis' first kill.

Like yeah, Clementine and AJ become part of the crew and they have bigger body counts, and if we're counting indirect kills caused by actions, then Tenn has a count... and I guess everyone has blood on their hands for blowing up the boat... but I'm talking about killed directly with a weapon like....... I lied, I'm not normal about that at all, Louis and Marlon are the ones who have killed someone in Louis' route. I'm also not normal about the fact that Louis kills Dorian and then even as he's clearly in shock, he tries to go with Clementine to get AJ, and then later on when they talk about it, he says it feels like bile but not quite and he's glad he has it in him to do it.... listen, listen, listen... I'm obsessed with that.

Anyway, so if Louis shot Minerva, I think he would've accidentally killed her and can you imagine? He's already enough of a mess after killing the woman who pinned him down and tried to cut his finger off [or succeeded] but he knew Minerva, they were friends before the twins were taken. Even Violet couldn't kill her even though that would've been the smarter thing to do, and we know thanks to meta knowledge that killing her would've saved lives, but Violet couldn't, and I don't think Louis would intentionally either.

Speaking of Violet, if Louis killed Minerva, I hate to think about what that would've done to Vi. I think she might've actually left at that point, like what was planned before it got changed to her being burned. I don't think she would've attacked Louis over it, though, like yeah she attacked Clementine in the cell but Louis? I don't know, but I don't think so just because it's Louis and he'd be a mess about it anyway.

Though if he did kill her, it would be a neat parallel to draw... y'know, because Louis forgave AJ for killing Marlon even though he was pissed and heartbroken, and Violet was annoyed with him the entire time... but could she ever forgive Louis for killing Minerva? Y'know? We already have a similar parallel with AJ shooting Tenn, but still.

If Clementine killed Minerva in that moment, though, then I could see Violet attacking her since in her eyes, Clem proved her right.

So yeah, I get why they added the Dorian kill to his route. It adds another compelling element to Louis as a character, but we also need Minerva alive for episode 4; Louis can't kill her, he can't miss, and he's not going to stay with her because we need Violet to stay on the boat and him to be on shore for all routes.

[mmikmmik]

When Mirabelle chews Siffrin out in Act 5, she actually does correctly touch on a huge issue in their relationship that's prominent from at least Act 3 and arguably present before the loops.

From the ISAT script project (emphasis mine):

Mirabelle: Is something wrong, Siffrin? Did something happen? Did you have a nightmare or something? Siffrin: No, of course not. Mirabelle: Then what happened, Siffrin! Because clearly something did happen!!! Otherwise, i-if nothing happened, I'll have to accept the fact that I was wrong about you!!! Siffrin: (Huh…?) Wrong about me…? Mirabelle: . . . Mirabelle: You always tease me, Siffrin. And it's fine. Everybody does. I guess I have the kind of personality where it's easy to want to tease me. But I know people don't mean it. It's how-- It's how some people make friends. And I thought it was the same for you. I thought, "It's okay, they don't mean it, it's how they are. They tease me, but they're never mean. And Siffrin never really hurts me." "Would never really hurt me." Mirabelle: . . . Mirabelle: But now you have, Siffrin! Thinking I should be alone… Telling me I should be alone… Who do you think you are, to say this to me? Acting like-- Like you know better than me!!! Always soooo mysterious, Siffrin, always talking as if you're better than me! As if you know me!!! But you don't, Siffrin!!! You're just as lost and useless as I am!!! So stop!!! Talking!!! As if you know me!!!!!!

I think it's easy to miss because so much of what Mirabelle says is off base. Because Siffrin insists "no, I really did just decide to suddenly undermine your self-confidence and trust in me out of nowhere for no reason, on the day before we're supposed to fight the King together", Mirabelle goes off that premise and rants that they must never have really cared about her or their mission. Obviously untrue. I think even Mirabelle's dialogue here is hinting that she knows on some level that this is one of her deep insecurities coming to the surface and it makes more sense if something did actually happen that Siffrin is refusing to explain.

But it is true that Siffrin acts superior sometimes. At the start of Act 3, Mirabelle sees him freaking out after his first meeting with Euphrasie and tries to comfort him. She sees through multiple attempts to laugh it off or deflect her (i.e., lie to her); she coaxes them to talk to her, she begs them to talk to her, and finally gently but seriously tells them that the group needs to trust each other and share their worries. And Siffrin's take-away from that last tactic is... "[I] know why she's asking [me] this. Poor Mirabelle can't just say it, so [I]'ll have to do it for her..." and asks Mirabelle what she needs help with, to Mirabelle's visible and uncharacteristic frustration. What condescension! Siffrin was being way nicer about it when he was in a better mental space, but he was basically doing the same thing Mirabelle correctly accuses him of doing in Act 5.

To be fair to Siffrin, they seem genuinely confused in Act 3 when Mira is trying to convince them to share with her, so I think it's more about them being repressed and inexperienced with friendship than an ego thing. But I do think ego is part of it, if only in an "I like myself better when I'm making Mirabelle happy" kind of way. Whatever's going on internally, the bottom line is that Siffrin is not treating Mirabelle respectfully as his adult peer and friend.

Of course Act 5 Mira doesn't remember that Act 3 conversation, so given how she described the behavior, I'm guessing Siffrin has done this sort of thing occasionally before the events of the game. And I think you can see some similar behavior in earlier acts. Siffrin worries a lot about saying things that might have upset or embarrassed Mirabelle, and a lot of their non-plot-related dialogue variations I can think of are trying to be more encouraging towards her. That's more of a grey area, though - I'm not sure I disagree with him doing stuff like faking enthusiasm for the sleepover idea or calling her plant cute. It's kind of a red flag in the context of everything else, but I can't really blame him for it. Even if these issues were fully present before the loops, I think Siffrin and Mirabelle could have worked past them without having to have a really awful fight like that, if Siffrin wasn't falling apart so badly. I really, really like their resolution to be "feelings buddies" as a conclusion to this character arc - yeah! opening up! mutual trust and reassurance! willingness to be vulnerable with each other! Good for them!

[palettepainter]

How to train your dragon Live Action rant

Full disclosure, I've never really cared either or about the live actions, I'd rather they didn't exist but I'm not hugely vocal about it purely because I'd rather just draw or watch the originals. The only thing about remakes that, I guess, interests me are the soundtracks. Since Disney has remade a lot of their old classics made in the 1900's, I am always a little intrigued to see what they do with the songs since they're so iconic. But overall, still not a fan of the remakes, and would pick the originals anyday

But the HTTYD remake...I'm genuinely really pissed off that Dreamworks is now making live action movies. Not only that, but I've been seeing on instagram that there are now HTTYD BOOKS, with illustrations done in the style of the Live Action movie and, I didn't expect this to bother me so much, but it genuinely makes me feel sick and gross that this is happening to HTTYD

Whenever Disney has made a live action remake the internet is so quick to shit on it, and fair enough, why is it Dreamworks gets a pass?? I love HTTYD, the ANIMTED movie, but all I see for the live action movie is praise

I'll be one of the few to say it: This movie isn't that great. While Toothless's live action design is very loyal to the animated design in the original, his big eyed, round stubby design makes him feel off in basically his own movie. When you compared Toothless to the other dragons he looks cutesy-fied, which is likely for marketing, but Toothless in this live action remake just..doesn't feel like a nightfury. He doesn't embody the "unholy offspring of lightning and death itself" that made Toothless from the first movie so mysterious and cool!

I've said this already but Toothless in the original animated movie felt so swift and savage, elegant and fast. In the Live Action he feels too big and clunky, his design looks like he should be plodding along kinda like how a bear would move. He just doesn't feel right

The dragon designs outside of Toothless feel fine they look okay, but if you put them next to Toothless they look like they're from two different movies

The director of the live action is the same director who worked on the animated film, and has said that they're going to remain loyal to the original script. They have literally admitted they're recycling the script from the original movie, slapping some CGI in there, and branding it as a ''New Live Action Version'' - when no, that's not how you make a movie

With the bangers Dreamworks has been pushing out lately like The Wild Robot (though based on a book it is a stunning movie for the emotions it gives you), Puss in Boots: The Last Wish and the recently stylized Dogman (which I believe is also based off a book), as well as other amazing movies they've made like Kung Fu Panda 1 and 2, HTTYD 2, The Bad Guys, Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron, The Prince of Egypt, Megamind, I could go on...foolish of me to think Dreamworks would be above making the easy choice to create Live Action movies of already perfectly beloved animated movies they've made

I've seen people make complaints about Nico being cast as Astrid, which I don't think is even worth getting upset over, and is also hugely unfair towards the actress when you consider how I have seen NO BODY make this same fuss about the casting for the twins. It's just her that's been getting backlash as far as I know. To clarify, I've never been all that fixated on castings in movies, if an actor can successfully bring a character to life then fair play to them....my main gripe is that the actors also feel off in their performances, mostly Hiccup

Hiccup in the live action movie, based on the trailers, feels more like an angsty teenager. In the original animated movie Hiccup was seen as whimpy, but he had moxy, he was sarcastic at times but he was also a hugely anxious and awkward kid. In the live action, it feels like all his charm has gone

This entire film just feels so...souless and void of passion, the CGI looks great from a technology standpoint, but otherwise? There's no creativity in this film, they're just replaying the animated movie in a different way. And what's saddest is that I KNOW this movie is going to do well, it's HTTYD, I just know it's going to do well at the box office

Which means Dreamworks, especially with the opening of their new HTTYD park, will most definitely try to remake the second and third movie. Which we DON'T NEED

This movie is gross, uncreative, boring, garbage. It's made purely to cash in on nostalgia in an effort to make easy money from fans, branding it as Live Action even though 50% - maybe more - of the movie will be CGI to make it seem more "adult like" because "animation is just for kids" and can't be enjoyed by a wide range of ages

HTTYD the original movie is a heartfelt classic, and as a young kid, was not only the first dreamworks movie I watched that got to me emotionally, but also kicked off my dragon phase. I still had my Toothless action figure I got for my birthday

Live action movies can suck an egg, go watch the animated movie instead to give the finger to whatever shmucks at Dreamworks approved this idea

[k7l4d4]

K Reviews and Rants: Miraculous Ladybug Season 5! Episode 21

Alright, onto the episode that is supposedly meant to show Lila finally getting figured out.

Now, I'm gonna ignore the usual Lila Manipulates everyone BS. This episode has two big problems with it.

Firstly, it tries to present Miss Bustier and Damocles as reasonable authority figures... yet neither of them ever actually try and get the students' direct input or seriously question the out of character career requests for them. Additionally, it has Mylene get on a soapbox about kids "being forced to pick their futures so early in life" or something stupid like that. (Takes a deep breath) I literally had to change what I wanted to do for work three times growing up. Now, I'm not that old, I'll admit, but I have firsthand experience with having to make a change in career choice after making a decision. This episode treating Mylene as making some profound statement, when she's basically just rephrasing the simple fact that there's no guarantee a person is going to maintain the same career in life after school as some kind of criticism of the educational system. Now, I know NOTHING about the French Educational system... but when it tries to push an aesop like this right after literally showing everyone cheerfully and eagerly acting as if they didn't have a perfect idea of what they want to do in life, it just comes off as awkward. Oh, and them further making Adrien into a damsel in distress with nothing more of substance to him then his crush on Marinette was... uncomfortable on so many levels.

Secondly, this episode going full sympathetic retcon on Sabrina in the most blatant way possible. For a series that has done basically nothing with her besides have her be Chloe's goon, they are trying very hard to pretend she hasn't been Chloe's willing accomplice all this time. They are acting as if she's never gotten anyone hurt or damaged anyone's lives on Chloe's behalf before, despite this very season showing how she ratted out Marinette's "Crush" to Chloe in Derision and Chloe using that to play a mean prank on Marinette... and ignoring all the times she's lied and stolen on Chloe's request, without a hint of protest. It's hard to see Sabrina as an innocent bystander or dupe when this season is the first time she's ever shown any guilt or remorse for being Chloe's lackey... and it being the first time she's done something THIS bad doesn't really work when she's stating it's because her dad's a cop (when that's never mattered to her before) and because "helping Chloe has never hurt anyone" (which is just a straight-up lie). It feels less like she's turning on Chloe out of guilt or remorse and more because she's upset that Chloe is seemingly replacing her with Lila... when this episode really makes it feel more like Lila is making Chloe HER "Sabrina."

Anyway, rambling Forward over. Onto the review! As always, please forgive my profanity.

Episode 21: Confrontation

Okay, now we get the opening scene of Adrien struggling with an orientation form with Plagg pointing out how simple it is. Just... writing down your request for next year's school and your career goals. Admittedly, I can see why this would be hard with Adrien; bullshit writing decisions or not, Adrien struggling to figure out what he wants to do with his life makes perfect sense. Although I sincerely doubt that this would be a hardlocked "one and done" thing that is absolutely binding, because that would be utterly fucking stupid. Because if this kind of thing WERE absolutely binding, then you could have the biggest slacker in school write down the name of the fanciest, most exclusive school in the area that comes with a lot of perks and then slap down some stupid answer, and I doubt any school in the world would put up with something that easily abused.

...And we hear from Adrien that he isn't even writing down what HE wants, but what his father has DECIDED for him. REAL great development here, nice to know that the kid who literally BROKE OUT OF HIS OWN FUCKING HOUSE is still too chicken to figure out what he wants out of life. Also, the fact that they once again made Adrien's life decisions and attitudes be about someone else (how MARINETTE will feel about his dad making him move to London) is of course just fine. /s

Ugh, fine, I guess hearing Plagg show solidarity with Adrien is nice. Still kinda annoying, since Plagg is pretty much always just the goofball, rather than a serious individual.

Okay, so it looks like these orientation forms do have a safety check, in that the teachers review things with the students to see if they have the qualifications to go to their chosen school for their studies of choice... now how does this get ruined? Oh yeah, Marinette gets a "strange feeling" now that she and Alya aren't the class reps. Clearly this strange feeling has NOTHING to do with the person she KNOWS is a liar and manipulator who will screw over anyone for her own benefit is now the Class Rep, surely not!! Also, "entrusting us with their hopes and dreams!" Dramatic much? It's not as if they can't just apply to schools of their choice anyway... can they? I've got no fucking clue how the French Education System handles this crap.

Let's see what they wanna study...

Alya: Wants to be a Reporter, needs to specialize in Literature.

Nino: Movie Director. Weird how his love of music and DJing disappeared.

Mylene: "Defender of the Earth." Wow, they couldn't even pretend to have her put down a serious job, could they?

Ivan: Stay-at-home-dad. ...Huh, I honestly can't say anything snarky about that, it takes guts to be cool with that kind of life, I just hope he knows what that kind of commitment entails.

Rose: "Hairstylist," okay, not too weird... "For Unicorns." Never mind, they really aren't even pretending to have her be serious, they are straight-up insisting Rose is a delusional idiot. That might sound harsh, but come the FUCK on, there's a line between having an innocent idealism still, and unironically wanting a job that involves working with mythical creatures. Who knows, maybe Unicorns actually exist in MLB, I doubt that her job is even remotely applicable. Wait, she got told Unicorns don't exist... and changed it to "Hairstylist for Dragons."

Juleka: I couldn't even hear what she said, but given Marinette's comment on "that being SO you," I'm gonna assume it's something insanely stereotypically "goth."

Sabrina: A nurse. Because she "loves taking care of other people." I am cringing, because it sounds like they are trying to insist Sabrina being Chloe's enabler and minion is something positive that "Chloe tainted" or some shit like that. Also, she's never shown any indication of wanting to take care of people before, EVER.

Chloe: "I don't need to do anything since I'm already rich." They are seriously this fucking stupid. They can't even give her wanting to be something snobby and "powerful" that will let her pander to her own ego, they seriously are treating her like an unironic "Ideal Rich" stereotype. News flash, even RICH PEOPLE HAVE STUFF THEY LIKE TO DO. God fucking dammit.

Lila: I'm not even going to type her answer since it's a bare-faced lie meant to make her look good, which she even admits to.

Also, I'm genuinely confused on why we never got Nathaniel's, Max's, or Kim's. I'm not even gonna pretend to touch Alix's situation with a ten foot pole.

Seeing Marinette fretting about "entrusting her classmate's futures to such awful girls" really, REALLY annoys me. The entire fucking REASON that Lila is even class-rep is because of the authors trying to pretend that Lila transferred in BEFORE the elections for Class Rep took place, when I'm literally looking at the timeline and she explicitly came LONG AFTER.

Yada yada yada, Lila lying through her teeth again. Wow, not even ten seconds and she's having Sabrina destroy the original forms and forge new ones. UGH. "You're using too many words to explain your plan!" HAHAHA ISN'T CHLOE BEING A DUMB BLONDE STEREOTYPE HILARIOUS!? I AM ENJOYING THIS AND NOT PISSED OFF AT ALL!!! And WOW, Lila's "brilliant plan" is to just... frame Marinette for replacing everyone's forms with ones that would make them miserable. There are clearly no holes in this, certainly not the fact that Miss Bustier KNOWS now that Sabrina can and does forge signatures and handwriting, and that the whole "frame Marinette for doing something awful" routine only has a 50% success record, even with Lila's bullshit in effect. This isn't stupid, nope, not one bit. /s

And we get a reminder from Chloe that Andre is a stereotypical scumbag politician, it's been a while since the show has been willing to do that. I wonder if it has something to do with the show trying to pretend he's a good dad because of Zoe?

Also, apparently the lynchpin to Lila's plan is having Sabrina lie and say that MARINETTE made her forge the papers... wow, people will totally buy that the girl who does anything and everything Chloe says would ever take orders from someone other than Chloe, that's definitely what will happen. Much shock, much brilliance. /s

Wow, literally having Chloe gush over Lila's plan being "utterly villainous." They aren't even pretending to be subtle in the slightest. This is pathetic. And now Sabrina's blowing into her weird whistle in a panic because she "can't do this." Girl, you have been Chloe's lapdog and have had no problem with ruining lives in the past without a hint of regret, don't pretend you have a conscience NOW of all times. Also, what the FUCK is with that stupid whistle? Where did it come from, and why is it only NOW something so important to her??

"Helping Chloe doesn't hurt anyone" YOU LITERALLY TRIED TO STEAL MARINETTE'S DIARY IN SEASON ONE CUT THE BULLSHIT. "Forging documents and lying? It's different!" No. IT IS NOT. YOU HAVE LIED ON CHLOE'S BEHALF MANY TIMES IN THIS SERIES ALREADY!!!

And after a moment of pointless cruelty (and more "I didn't do anything wrong!!" whining from Sabrina) by Chloe, we are now back to the reappearance of... ugh. The "Resistance." What have these idiots accomplished again...? Oh right, they publicly harassed Adrien's father, fell hook line and sinker for Hawkmoth's idiotic "scheme" to conceal his identity again, lead a fairly pointless resistance against Hawkmoth after he gets the Ladybug Earrings... and that's about it. What a joke.

Okay, and somehow Damocles hears them and is looking for them on the basis that they are intruders. He's honestly not wrong, since I sincerely doubt they are supposed to be hiding in that weird nook in the school after class hours. Apparently Nino's "brilliant plan" is for all of them to go to the same high school... for many, MANY reasons, that feels utterly fucking stupid to me, since there's no guarantee that any of them would get schedules that would let them meet up, there's no guarantee that the school would be able to accommodate their future goals and ideals, and, oh yeah, THEY DON'T NEED TO GO TO THE SAME SCHOOL TO STILL BE A TEAM.

And it seems Damocles is a fan of their plan. Not terrible, but that feels like the kind of thing that's gonna get out of hand in the worst way VERY QUICKLY. Also, Nino thinking his plan will be able to fix Adrien's problem would be hilarious if it didn't illustrate how stupid the writers are making the cast for the sake of plot. And yup, the little problem of them having different dreams and goals that are incompatible with all going to the same school immediately crops up.

While Marinette takes a call, Mrs. Mendeleev is tattling on the "Resistance" to Mr. Damocles. For once, she's absolutely right that them lurking in the boiler room is unacceptable. Not only is it breaking several rules, it's just plain dangerous to be in a place like that without a good reason. And... Damocles is covering for them. That would be sweet if it weren't liable to get him in massive trouble. Oh, looks like Mendeleev is unsatisfied with how Damocles runs things. I mean, so am I, but I doubt she'd be any better given her track record.

"It's so unfair that we have to decide what we want to do so early on in life!" MYLENE, IF YOU THINK THAT THIS IS THE BE-ALL END-ALL OF YOUR LIFE, YOU ARE FUCKING DELUSIONAL. Changing careers and exploring different subjects and career paths is NORMAL. People who go into one thing and never divert from it are the EXCEPTION not the rule. I wanted to become a programmer, then got into IT, before I finally ended up as a Pharmacy Technician. Them acting as if "taking a bunch of different courses to figure out what we want" is this groundbreaking thing pisses me off. They come off as spoiled brats, especially when each of them had pretty clear ideas on what they wanted to do right off the bat. This is fucking stupid.

No no no. I'm not even remotely pretending to entertain them acting as if trying to "take a stand" against filing these forms THAT THEY ALREADY FILLED OUT AND HANDED OVER by "striking" is anything other then performative BS. I have had my fill of performative BS for a while now. Fuck this.

Seriously, why the fuck do they have Juleka speaking so fucking QUIETLY? This is just fucking bizarre. She's capable of speaking at a normal volume without issue, she's SPOKEN at a normal volume without issue THIS SEASON, why is she having this problem NOW OF ALL TIMES!? Ding Dong, Rose points out the fucking problem with doing a "strike" when it comes to something THEY HAVE ALREADY DONE.

And it looks like MAYBE Adrien has pushed himself to do something other then be totally enslaved to what Gabe wants of him... and we don't even get to see it. Who bets that it's Adriennette shit? ...Yup, it's Adriennette shit. He literally didn't even list anything, he just said he "wanted to be with Marinette." If that's supposed to be touching, it fails. It's just him basically wasting a form by treating it like a love letter.

And Chloe dumps the form in the emergency bathroom that she and Lila are hiding in. How did no one see them all enter at the same time, and why was no one suspicious? And I cannot repeat myself enough, them trying to act as if Sabrina just NOW has a conscience PISSES ME OFF.

And we get a scene of Caline taking Lila at face value. For fuck's sake, this better not be binding... and Damocles is taking Lila's bullshit rationalization on why Alya obviously put down "Optician" at face value, FUCK. THAT. THIS is why this guy needs to be kicked out of his position, he SUCKS AT HIS JOB. Seriously, why the fuck would ALYA WEARING GLASSES MEANS SHE WANTS TO MAKE THEM FOR PEOPLE!? And Mrs. Mendeleev just saying "her grades allow it" really proves she's no better at this job then Damocles is. Uuuggghhh... your JOB should be to call in Alya and TALK WITH HER since her homeroom teacher has literally JUST POINTED OUT THAT THIS IS UNUSUAL FOR ALYA. FUCK THIS SHIT.

"Juleka wants to repeat the year" NOPE. FUCK THAT. END OF FUCKING STORY. You do not get to CHOOSE TO REPEAT A YEAR!!!! FUCK THAT FUCK THAT FUCK THAT!!! WHY ARE THESE IDIOTS NOT QUESTIONING THIS!?!? Wow, the speech impediment that didn't exist until recently, truly a "brilliant reason" for her to want to be held back WHICH IS NOT A THING THAT HAPPENS. And another sign of Mrs. Mendeleev being just as useless as Damocles in that she doesn't oppose a child apparently sabotaging her own education.

And NOW we get the class reacting to the news!! How will the writers fuck THIS up, I wonder?

"You sure you didn't get mine by mistake?" Kim saying that would be funny if it weren't for the sheer stupidity of the teachers and Damocles apparently being dumb enough to just buy Lila's bullshit at face value AND Miss Bustier doing NOTHING to actually oppose it!!! Oh, and another Dumb Blonde joke, but this time it's Rose who's the butt of it.

And whatever drama this should result in gets sidetracked by what looks to be Juleka getting Akumatized. Let's see if that'll actually go through with it or if they'll bring back the Resistance's bullshit "tactics" again. Also, why is Gabe/Hawkmoth acting like he's got this history of akumatizing people during Teacher Rep Meetings when this is the first time these have ever even been MENTIONED?

And the magical charm proves to be immediately useless! Who didn't see that coming, show of hands!

And it's Reflekta again. UGH. Also, them trying to act as if not being (verbally) understood or listened to is a recurring problem with Juleka falls flat when she's never had this speech impediment prior to this season. Her issue was being SEEN, not HEARD, dumbass writers. Yup, they are using the dumb tactics, and putting themselves in danger in the process. Kiddies, it's WAY TOO FUCKING LATE FOR THAT.

Huh, they actually bothered to give an old Akuma an improved version of their prior power!! Now if only it wasn't the Akuma LEAST USEFUL TO GETTING THE MIRACULOUSES!!! Also, the fact that their classmates didn't immediately run when they saw that the Akuma was Reflekta, especially since this one operates as a hive mind it seems. It's also kinda stupid that they are trying to tie Reflekta's powers of image copying with the motivation of "staying with her friends" since it just plain DOES NOT FIT REFLEKTA AS AN AKUMA.

This plan is even stupider than normal. Not only was the Akuma taken out in less than a handful of minutes, they basically just got lucky that they took out the "real Reflekta." This was a waste of time.

Now back to the school, where Alya and the rest ask Lila what happened at the conference. SURELY this isn't a plot, SURELY this isn't all a trick- Oh who am I kidding, of course it is. Yup, Lila immediately passes the blame onto Marinette. And Chloe immediately pulls out the fact that Marinette's the only one with an unaltered form as "proof" that this is all her fault, and Lila says it's all because they voted her to be Class Rep. Wow, what a "brilliant plan."

Marinette immediately points out the obvious flaw in her being the one to make the fake forms. And when Lila tries to flip it on her, Marinette calls out Sabrina, who Chloe shoves in front of herself. HOW the class can't smell that this is staged, I have no clue whatsoever. AND SABRINA FINALLY GROWS A SPINE!! WHOOPDY-FUCKING-DOO!! WHO GIVES A SHIT!? IT'S TOO LITTLE TOO LATE TO GROW A FUCKING CONSCIENCE WHEN YOU'VE BEEN ACTING AS IF YOU'VE NEVER DONE ANY WRONG UP UNTIL NOW!!!

And Chloe, because of course they are still keeping her the dumb one, loudly calls Sabrina a traitor and says that "wasn't the plan." Lila tries to run damage control... by immediately throwing SABRINA under the bus and claiming that Sabrina is the liar, and was "just being used by Marinette." Seriously, CHLOE ADMITTED THAT THIS WAS THEIR PLAN!!! HOW STUPID IS THIS!? EXTREMELY STUPID!!! Also, wow, calling Marinette a "Civilian Monarch." She isn't even trying anymore.

And Sabrina, no, she is not turning everything you say against you, she's lying. Turning what you say against you is when you repeat what someone says in a way that means differently from what they intend. What she's doing is lying, blatantly, calling you a liar, and trying to gaslight you into going along with what she wants, and she's not being even remotely subtle about it. WHY ARE NONE OF THEIR CLASSMATES REACTING TO THIS!? WHY!?!?!

Yeesh, even if you ignore how stupid and blatant Lila's lies are, this is genuinely creepy how she's openly trying to gaslight and badger Sabrina into doing what she wants and agreeing with her. It's sincerely disturbing to see her being this fucking obvious.

Also, it's kinda weird how Sabrina emphasizes that her dad is a policeman.

And after Sabrina runs off, Chloe literally tells Sabrina to 'heel,' like a dog. THAT'S the Miraculous they think suits Sabrina best... how nauseating. No joke, this part of the episode is making me sick to my stomach.

Wow, a classic "I'll have my dad fire you(r dad)" threat from Chloe. Haven't heard one of those in awhile.

And after Lila begins bragging about how great of a liar she is (SHE REALLY ISN'T PEOPLE!!!), and threatens Sabrina, Sabrina springs her trap and reveals she engineered a public confession. This would be cathartic if it weren't TOTALLY STUPID HOW LONG LILA'S LIES HAVE BEEN MAINTAINED BY PEOPLE TAKING HER AT FACE VALUE OVER ALL ELSE!!!!

Yadda yadda yadda, Sabrina grew a conscience and revealed everything to Marinette, acting as if she hasn't tried to gleefully ruin lives and damage reputations at Chloe's behest before. And they seriously built an entire fake bathroom with a one-way window-mirror thing just to catch her. How obnoxious. Seriously, all they did was put up a "bathroom busted" sign and that was enough, and the school never tried to call a plumber or something!? THIS IS STUPID!!! They should've been aware this ENTIRE TIME that the actual bathroom was perfectly fine, making this entire plan of Marinette's as sound as a pile of SAND!!!

"I'll fix everything." Fix WHAT!? By all accounts you just faked the bathrooms being out of order, switched out a mirror for a back-up bathroom that never needed making and thus probably cost the school quite a pretty penny to make, and wasted several school hours by enabling Lila's idiotic plan involving those orientation forms WHICH SHOULD NOT HAVE ACTUALLY BEEN THAT BIG OF A FUCKING DEAL!!!

Caline says they owe Marinette an apology, they kinda do. They also probably deserve to be fired since they've shown nothing but raw, unfettered ineptitude THIS ENTIRE FUCKING SEASON AND EVERY EPISODE INVOLVING LILA!!! Wow, Chloe actually bothered acting on one of her threats to call her father!! TOO BAD THAT HER DAD DOESN'T HAVE THE POWER TO GET RID OF DAMOCLES!! I agree he needs to go, but Andre doesn't have the power to do that. Mayor of the year, people, Mayor of the fucking year.

I'm just tuning out the rest of this, since it's basically Damocles FINALLY bothering to act like a proper educator and Andre going back to his Season 1 days of being a slimeball politician that throws his weight around to keep his daughter's image clean. Oh, and it looks like the only reason he went along with it was because Audrey was coercing him with her present, CLEARLY they are "in love," and this isn't downplaying Andre being a self-serving spineless leech. Heck, this makes him MORE of a spineless leech since he's getting pushed around by Audrey FOR NO FUCKING REASON.

"Now you're not getting fired either!" Audrey, he's your husband, not an employee, and he has more authority than you. Fuck this bullshit.

And the entire class rallying around Damocles would be more touching if he weren't a fucking joke of a principal on every level. We also see the Magic Charms FINALLY BE FUCKING USEFUL!! Who knows, maybe this unknown until now power will actually be fucking relevant... yeah, I don't believe it either.

Yadda yadda yadda, character shilling for Damocles by acting as if he's always been a good principal and not a fucking joke with no spine. And now we get the scene of Caline joining the "Chloe is pure evil and always has been, so there's no point in trying to change her, point and scorn her as nothing but trash" club. And we get a "I thought you could change if people reached out to you!" speech which acts as if the token gestures that never went anywhere were really meaningful attempts to reform her, blech. And Caline's "punishment" for Chloe is literally just the "extra help" she said Chloe would need last episode reframed as a threat. Idiotic. And apparently Lila has an entirely separate identity as "Cerise" on top of her somehow tricking three women into believing she's her daughter and HOW MUCH FUCKING MORE DO THE WRITERS PLAN ON SHILLING HER AS THIS MASTER MANIPULATOR!? BECAUSE SHE AIN'T ONE!! SHE IS A TEENAGE GIRL WITH FUCKING DELUSIONS OF GRANDEUR!! GOD FUCKING DAMMIT!!!

[nozomi-kaizoku]

10/8/2024

I know this is probably gonna result in me losing a lot of people I care about, but I've pretty much came to accept and acknowledge something that I'm finally understanding.

I'm a bad person who does bad things. 

I manipulate people into either staying with me or getting what I want, I make insensitive comments (even if I didn't mean it that way), I don't respect boundaries as much as I want to, I talk about how nobody loves me all the time even if there are people who do love me, I talk about sex and needless drama a lot (even when I'm not supposed to), I'm mean to people when I'm angry, I ignore people on purpose if I find them "boring", HELL, I even use to emotionally abuse my (now ex) boyfriend and then call him the abuser when he tried to speak up about it, knowing damn well that this was damaging his well-being (and I wish i never did fyi, the guilt from the abuse I had done haunts me to this day and I feel like neither me or him can recover from that).

Not to mention that I am an egotistical attention seeker and I like to exploit my own mental health struggles for clout online (and making them worse in the process), sometimes even going as far as over-exaggerating it just so people can give me attention.

I am a major fucking red flag, but for some dumbass reason, people just love to throw on the rose-colored glasses and not only ignore those red flags, but instead blame the victims for what happened and tell me that I am a good person regardless, even though they know the truth about me.

It pisses me off how nobody even understands that I will hurt them, and I have flaws that will affect them, and it also pisses me off how people want to blame the people being hurt by my actions. HELL, EVEN MY THERAPIST IS TELLING ME THIS IS OKAY, WHEN IT'S NOT!

And the fucked up part?

I was doomed to be like this from the start.

I can't change myself because of the fact that a lot of my behavior stems from both my mental illness/disability and the environment I had to grow up in, and also I can't handle criticism for shit. Anytime someone calls me out for my shitty behavior, I tell them that they're a piece of shit and then block them before going on a rant about about how "oh, i'm so misunderstood and I'm trying to be good! please pity me and feed my praise kink for me!!! :(" and then continue to do the shitty behavior in question with no consequences.

I know i'm repeating this a lot, but I am genuinely so upset how behavior like this is so normalized and encouraged. People are being harmed by my actions yet I'm being told it's okay for some reason. They don't even bother to try and address my flaws and hold me accountable for jack shit, and it makes me wonder how far they're willing to go just to defend my actions...

So overall, I'm just stuck in this limbo of being aware I'm a bad person yet never being held accountable for it, and it's basically driving me insane. 

But at the same time, I'm terrified of abandonment, and if I lose the people I genuinely care about over this I'll just go into another crisis and threaten myself again, so I just force myself to take in the praise just to keep me alive.

I wish I wasn't like this, and I wish I could stop hurting people, it's killing me atp..

I'm not even gonna bother to use tone tags for this because it'll just sound like I'm making this a joke (fuck the people who misuse the /srs tone tag btw), feel free to interpret this however you want. I just needed to get this out of my system before it fucks me over again.

[touchstoneaf]

So... I think I'm quitting Doctor Who for a while; possibly forever. I haven't decided yet, but I'm definitely done for now. I got to the end of season 4, and I was So Freaking Excited to see Rose again that I couldn't even breathe for most of the season. Every time they teased it I felt like I was going to puke, I was so stoked and so upset about all the near misses... And when we got her back she was so capable and so awesome... Even though it upset me that they spent an episode & a half keeping them apart and wasting time, and, and... And she had grown So Much, and she was fighting So Damn Hard, even against the impossible, to keep her promise to him, to never leave him; the only person who ever really fully made that promise and worked so hard to do it that I know of (tho to be fair I didn't watch the Sarah Jane stuff or any of the earlier stuff yet... But still, it really hits, doesn't it?).... and I simply couldn't wait to see them back together again! And their mutual relief and joy in the reunion is so palpable... And then.

And then.

I CANNOT. I'm so pissed off at the way they ended it I was up all night pacing my room ranting to myself, and I can't even watch the final S4 episode; with him alone with neither of them. Alone again... because this one time, after fighting so hard to be back with him, Rose chooses an alternate version of him... and chooses to *leave him* by it?! I cannot watch Ten, having lost a new friend, but also having lost the person who was almost single-handedly responsible for the version of himself he is at that particular moment in time. I just...

I'm okay with and understand that Billie Piper didn't want to continue, but I just can't buy it. It simply doesn't wash for me. It seems wildly OOC, and just highlights how resigned the Doctor is to being deserted, and losing people, and I'm ANGRY. Nay, I'm FURIOUS. Honestly I don't think I can deal with the format anymore, after this. I can't watch him get attached to people and then watch him lose them over and over and over again. I just can't do it.

Tenrose broke me, and I don't think I can continue in the Whoniverse. It was a short journey, but if I ever want to return to that universe, I think I'll just rewatch the first two to four seasons (and watch him as 14, maybe). For one, I think I didn't give Martha enough props. I was too busy dealing with my emotions over losing Rose in Doomsday, and I didn't really pay enough attention to Martha to really give her what she deserved. And frankly, I probably didn't give Donna her props either, because I remained upset, and they were teasing Rose the whole time (which I'm glad they did, don't get me wrong; because otherwise I think it would have been too long of a gap without her for us to really fully remember till they were in the same scene together, what it was like with them. But still. It definitely impacted my ability to enjoy the Donna dynamic).

I will need to rewatch anyway to do my fix-it fic... this this being inevitable conclusion to my journey here. That's how i survive these sorts of things. I need to be able to sleep again. And I can't, as long as that infuriating ending is still in my head and playing behind my eyelids.

[final-girl96]

STOLEN HEARTS CHAPTER THREE

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April 19, 1984

I scoffed and pulled the leftover chinese out. "He was fucking late and we didn't even do any studying. But I'm meeting him at the diner on Saturday at one. So I won't be home until sometime in the evening." He nodded his head, "Are you sure you're okay with tutoring him? You seem pretty upset." I waved him off, "I'm fine, dad. He's just full of himself and so fucking annoying. He goes through girls like their fucking skittles or something. One after the other!" I started to rant.

"And none of them will admit that they've been with because that would mean social suicide for them. I'm admitting they had sex with the freak if Hawkins would be the end of their social life forever!" Dad held up his hand stopping my word vomit. "The freak of Hawkins? Why do they call him that?" He asked. I sat down on one of the stools at the breakfast bar. "Because he's a metal head and plays DnD and is in a band," I said.

He nodded his head and hummed. "So because he dresses differently and listens to metal and plays a game he's a freak? This town has not changed one fucking bit." He shook his head and I sighed. "Just so you know I've never called him that. I've never judged him for that. I only judge him for the way he thinks he's the god of sex and how cocky he is and how full of himself he can be. And he's mean to people too! And–"

Dad held up his hand again. "Okay, sweetheart, I get it. You don't like the kid…wait did you say he's in a band?" I raised my eyebrow. "You're just now realizing I said he was in a band?" I asked. "I don't like it. I don't want you tutoring him or being near him." I started laughing, "oh, my god, dad! I don't plan on doing anything with him. I'm going to make sure he passes the next two tests and the final and be done with him. I am not interested in Eddie fucking Munson."

April 21, 1984

"Getting ready to go meet that boy? The boy who also happens to be in a band and can't keep his dick in his pants." I choked on the water I was drinking and looked at my dad. I patted my chest to try and help my coughing fit. "Jesus, dad! His name is Eddie and I have to meet him in half an hour…at the diner…where there will be other people."

I left the kitchen and went upstairs to get ready to leave. After getting all my stuff together I headed for the front door. "I'll take you." I turned around and shook my head. "Absolutely not! Don't you have a new album to work on? Aren't the other guys going to be here?" I asked. "They can wait." I walked over to him, kissing his cheek and chuckling. "I'll be fine, dad. Don't worry I won't let the big bad boy who's in a band corrupt me."

When I got to the diner I was surprised to see Eddie already there. What I wasn't surprised about was that he was making out with some girl in the corner back the hall where the bathrooms were. I only knew he was there when I saw his van parked out front. When I walked in I didn't see him until I sat at a table in the back where I could see down that same hall. It wasn't hard to tell it was him, especially with the hair and the big Dio patch he sewed on the back of his demi vest.

I thought about going over and interrupting them but decided against it. Instead I just got my stuff out and waited. "What can I get ya, sugar?" I looked up at the waitress standing beside the table. She was an older woman with gray scattered throughout her hair. She smacked her gum and gave me a warm smile before leaning down closer to me. "You're daddy Jac Hexley?" She whispered. I looked at her with wide eyes and nodded. "I thought so. He used to come in here all the time."

I smiled at her and looked around before they landed on my hands that were in my lap. "Don't worry, sweetie. I ain't gonna say a word. Now what can I get ya?" I looked up at her, "I'm actually waiting for someone." I looked down the hall to where Eddie was and she sighed. "That boy can't seem to keep his tongue in his own mouth. "Well, if you change your mind just holler."

A few minutes later I saw her going over to Eddie and saying something to him. The girl looked horrified that she had been caught making out with "the freak". Eddie wiped the corner of his mouth m, smirking as the girl pointed at him while saying something. I was assuming it was something along the lines of he better not tell anyone about it. Then she ran out if the diner and Eddie made his way over to me. He slid into the seat across from me and leaned back.

"You're late," he said. I scoffed and shook my head. "Actually, I was on time. If you weren't busy sucking that poor girl's face off you'd know that. Now, let's get to work. I don't want to spend more time with you than I need to." I pulled out the folder Ms. Adler gave me and laid out the first paper. It was one of his tests with little notes on the sides. He got maybe six of the questions right.

"Okay, so it looks like you struggle more with the fraction part. I looked up at Eddie not even paying attention. "Hello!" I snapped my fingers and he turned his head to look at me. "I don't need to know any of this shit to be a rockstar. So what's the fucking point?" I sighed and set my pen down. "For one you need to pass this class to graduate. For two, math actually comes in handy in the real world. Even for a rockstar."

He looked away from me and looked out the window. "You're a musician, you should know that math is a big part of music. Especially fractions. I mean to be honest I'm a little surprised you're not better in math with being a musician," I said. He looked over at me, "and what would you know about music? Huh? Look, let's just get this over with I would like to take a fucking nap before my gig tonight."

It went like this for two weeks of us arguing back and forth more than actually studying. "All we do is fight! He's impossible, dad! I mean you would think he knows this stuff with him being a musician!" I was pacing back and forth in the kitchen. Dad and the rest of the band watched as I went on a rant about Eddie. "Well, honey, there's no shame in giving up on him." I stopped my pacing and looked at him. "Dad!" I whined. He let out a long sigh.

"Alright. Maybe you just need to find a way that he'll understand it," he said. Ash, the drummer in the band, nodded his head. "Yeah, the kids in a band right?" I nodded my head. "So, that means he probably writes his own songs. Maybe you can explain it to him with music and then he'll understand it." There was a collective Yeah and everyone started pitching ideas. I just looked at them until they all stopped. "How do you suppose I do that? I've never written a song in my life."

"Maybe your dad can help out with that," Bret, the band's bass guitarist said. Dad whipped his head towards him. "Excuse me?" They all gave him a look and he groaned. "Fine. Bring him by. Me and the guys will try and help." The other guys tried to protest but he gave them a look that sgur them up. "Bring him by this weekend."

[luminarychampion]

The Lament of an Ex-Deepspace Hunter

Okay, I've been holding this rant in for a while and yes, it's about Love and Deepspace.

I'll preface by saying that these are only my opinions and observations as an ex player, and that I've played since last February and stopped somewhere in January before Caleb's release. I'm not trying to rain on anyone's parade, your life is your own. If you still like the game and play it, then that's totally fine. I truly hope you win your 50/50's and get your guarantees.

With that said, read at your leisure and risk.

One day I didn't log in, and then one day turned into a week, and then a week turned to however many days it's been since I logged in, and honestly I feel SO FREE...free from FOMO hell, and it makes me sad because I still do really like the game for how innovative and fresh it is for the realm of otome games.

I'm upset with how much this game has shifted since early launch. Like I thought, the limited banners were bad but as time went on, it seemed to be a problem that didn't appear to be stopping any time soon AND got worse when Sylus came out and will only continue to worsen now with Caleb's release and whenever they release the last love interest.

Simply put, these devs have gotten REALLY greedy, and it's to a point to where I can't in good conscience keep playing, even as a F2P player, when I see how much money other players are pouring in and continue to pour in and not being treated with respect in return. As soon as you leave one limited banner, then, Oh! There's another limited banner, and it looks even better than the last one you pulled for!

Oh, and you better not have one than one guy that you like and you REALLY better not be a completionst because you'll be absolutely COOKED if you do unless you have a stable source of income, or you grind out gems every day.

Now before you start with "It's a gacha game," yes it's a gacha game, BUT thus far, Love and Deepspace is the ONLY gacha I've seen where RERUNS HAVE NEVER BEEN DONE BEFORE.

(Now someone can come correct me if I'm wrong, but I have yet to see it happen.)

For the sake of comparison, I'm gonna mention Tears of Themis.

(I gotta stop being lazy and progress the story again lol)

In Tears of Themis, while some of the higher tiered cards are unique in that they visibly progress the relationship with the MC, each love interest has their own separate story route that you can follow and essentially watch the blossoming of the relationship between the MC and the guy of your choosing, and it's more or less treated as a side story and separate from the main story continuity. So if you miss out on a card that might add details to the relationship, you don't miss out on being able to actually see the relationship develop more in depth and beyond what the card provides.

In Love and Deepspace, the cards are a part of the progression with MC and there's no concrete separate route that builds on anything. In fact, the story routes for each guy are still being developed. So as far as the main story goes, she's still pretty platonic with the guys, but as far as the banners are concerned, she's close enough to do the midnight tango with 4/5 guys, which totally screws with the continuity of events.

Not to mention that new cards are nearly always advertised as LIMITED and players are essentially forced into a constant state of FOMO (Fear of missing out) because there's an understanding that once the time is gone, it's gone for good, with no recourse advertised.

If you miss MC's first kiss with Rafayel in one card, then you can see her help Raf get through his moment of heat in another card. Then you're left with wondering, how did we get here AND IT'S ALL JUST SO TIRING!

"But the devs gotta make money somehow." Listen, this game makes stupid money as is just for the love interests being in 3D and would make more money if they did rerun previous cards for the sake of their newer players who have no context and no build up to what's going on. I think it's a terrible reason and an excuse for the devs to treat their players as disposable income.

The moment I knew that things were getting really bad was when the devs gave MC and the guys exclusive outfits, locked them behind paywalls AND of course they were limited time only. Did I mention that MC and the guys were in jeans...DEMIN JEANS...

Unfortunately, the greedy devs weren't the only thing that got under my skin...but the shift in seemingly prioritizing "spicer," content also was a bit of a turn-off for me personally.

I was actually in the minority that was actually a tad sad when the winter themed banner came, forget the name, and it was yet another spicy banner. (Now I'm not gonna act lie I wasn't freaking out when it came out because I was sweating a bit.) (Also I'm a Xavier girl but I Sylus won that banner for me.)

I wanted fluff, sweetness, warmth, and a snowball fight with one of them. And then the next multi was that wild banner for Valentines I guess (I only saw pictures and clips.) and that was even a bit jarring...I personally think the theme would have fit Sylus the best (that wolf cut on him is perfection) and the other guys could have maybe had another motif.

Point being, because sex appeal and innuendos sell pretty well, I personally worry that it's going to overshadow the sweet and soft moments and be labeled as 'boring,' because it may not sell as well and this fear extends more to the devs than the players themselves.

It feels like everything is moving so fast, and it doesn't help that there's no real way of knowing how much time is actually passing in game for each of MC's relationships.

Maybe it's because I also love a good slow burn and for that I feel like the kiss MC had with Sylus should have been its own banner and under different circumstances. To go from tsundere MC to her initiating a kiss with the man when she's still visibly conflicted on her feelings for him is a pretty big jump, my personal opinion.

I could go on honestly and I for the sake of this post I wont. This game has become incredibly predatory for both one's financials and their emotions and...if I'm keeping it a buck...I think the period tracker is...a bit weird...and feeds into the delulu a bit too much for my taste.

(To each their own, but I don't need anyone to remind me, I got a calendar for that. And yeah the guys become the calendar, but it's still weird for me personally.)

I still do enjoy the game from a storytelling perspective, the concepts they introduce and the guys. I miss Xavier's princely nature and his warm, inviting aura (sometimes his jealousy was a bit much, but he's still bae). I miss Zayne's dry humor, actually had me laughing at times. I miss Raf's dramatics whilst also being such a soft romantic. I miss Sylus and his sassiness, the man never fails to make me laugh. And I was looking forward to meeting Caleb firsthand on my own account...

Unfortunately...not enough to give these devs my time or my patience when they don't think much of it or my other fellow players, both F2P and the ones who have the finances to howl under the ocean.

I did get a few good memes out of this game, tho, and I'll probably add more to the folder if I come across some good ones. (...Hook me up if you got some...)

Personal favorite:

And with that I think my rant is done. I've got a serious love/hate relationship with Love and Deepspace because I know that it can be more than what it is right now. I do actually hope the devs listen more to the players moving forward, or maybe another developer can come and take the LaDS formula and improve upon it one day.

Discussion is always welcome, and I kindly ask that we keep things civil. Until next time.

[dragonmasterhiccup]

Her eyes went to where he pointed to in the map, and she nodded. “Sure, there doesn’t seem to be that much open sea,” she stated, looking up at him.

Her face fell slightly as she took in his saddened expression; She knew that he used to explore all the time before he became Chief, and with all the islands that had been marked down along with all the stories he had told her about his adventures, she could tell that he loved doing it. “Are you okay? Do… do you want to talk about it?” she asked, her voice nothing short of sympathetic.

She let out a soft chuckle. He seemed to be a mixture of upset and confused when talking about his and Astrid’s marriage, but she could try to lighten the mood as much as possible. “Well, at least she didn’t just outright say no, maybe she’s just… worried about something? I dunno.” She shrugged, taking a moment to think. “I mean, think about this; when she marries you, that makes her the Chieftess, which is technically second in command. That’s a lot. Maybe it has something to do with that?” She sighed. “Look, I’m not the best person to talk to about this stuff, because I will never, ever be getting married, that’s disgusting- okay, maybe not ‘disgusting,’ just not for me, I hate the idea of all that. I’m just saying maybe you should talk to Astrid, because this is literally marriage dude, that’s like, a lifelong commitment, you should talk about your concerns-“ She cut herself off, realizing that she was once again ranting. “Sorry, I honestly have no clue what I’m talking about,” she said, a nervous chuckle making its ways from her.

“Mhm, sureee…- Uh, excuse you! I am not a sore loser, I’m anything but! You should see me in training, especially with team drills, I have the best sportsmanship out of everyone there!” Which was half true. She did have good sportsmanship until it was one of the bratty stuck up brats who won, though she totally floored them with last week’s stealth drill.

She side-eyed him heavily. “Toothless is a dragon, dragons cannot talk, meaning that he did not name it. Do not try to throw him under the bridge like that. I get that you’re embarrassed by your horrible naming skills, but you don’t get to take it out on Toothless, he’s done nothing wrong.”

She shrugged. “I don’t know! Some people might think that it’s weird!”

Letting out a small sigh, he shook his head. "No, I'm alright. Thanks, though. I may miss the freedom of travelling, but the need of the many outweighs the need of the few. My place is here, in Berk now. Not many Vikings had the opportunity to travel such distances like I did, so I'll look back on those times as a gift, being grateful...not linger on what could have been." Okay, maybe he ended up talking about it a little bit, but it was unintentional.

Eyes down, he nodded in agreement. "It must be that, I just wish she'd tell me what was worrying her. But it's definitely not being Chieftess, she's never backed down from a challenge, and as my betrothed, she's already shouldering some of that responsibility."

At Danny calling marriage 'disgusting' he couldn't help but laugh lightly. "Well, I can't say I've ever felt the same way, but you never know what the future holds. You just might be surprised." For instance, he'd always hoped to be with Astrid, but when that day had finally come, he almost couldn't believe it. "I'll make sure to talk with Astrid, see if she can tell me why she says we're not ready...and if she doesn't... I'll wait until she says we are." Pausing for a moment, he timidly added, "and, when that day comes...you'll attend, won't you? The ceremony, I mean..."

"See, you say that, but you actually do give good advice, you know that?"

Eyebrows raised, and with a playful grin, he questioned her. "Oh, really? Well, maybe I should watch some of these team drills, see it for myself?"

Tossing a hand up and letting it fall, he protested. "Hey, Toothless may not speak with words, but we do understand each other. Right, bud?"

Toothless, who was still playing with Twilight, turned his head towards Hiccup in confusion before letting out a snort. The dragon then returned to playing with the Deadly Nadder.

"Okay, not the greatest example, but it is true, Toothless did name that island."

[faunastanza]

The Masked Sun pt. 2

(part 1)

All of a sudden we're back with Ms. Warmheart and Call-Clout. Warmheart tells Call-Clout to stop stalling and enough with the hyperbole. Call-Clout says it was very accurate, and Warmheart says she'd rather wrestle with rules. Call-Clout moans about how rules are boring, and can't they exist without them for once? Warmheart says they need to act around constraints or they won't be properly heard, and Call-Clout mopes about how they've heard this before, don't upset anyone who's trying to hurt you, blah blah blah.

Warmheart says that's not what she was trying to say. Call-Clout says that's effectively how it plays out if you only play by your own rules, and don't borrow the rules of those that are hurting you. Warmheart is silent, and Call-Clout says that it's fine and that she doesn't have to hurt anyone, I'll just do it for you, except I'll just do it for you is crossed out and replaced with "I'll just make them remember".

It then goes to a black void with more rhetorical questions, I'm not sure if Call-Clout is talking to Warmheart still or to the reader. They ask if you really want to understand what they did, or if you just want to play this stupid game forever. They ask if you like this fun game, and that they can treat it like a fun game too.

it's not very fun so far

Warmheart says this is very troublesome. Call-Clout says whatever, I gave you your outs, why don't you just play with me already. Warmheart says that we'll see, and that she isn't impressed with Call-Clout's conduct so far. Call-Clout says that she never is, so that's not a surprise. And then it just abruptly stops there. Okay.

The Show Must Go On (cont)

Out of nowhere, we return to Papaya and Quill. Remember them?? God knows how long it's been. It cuts right back to where we left off, with Papaya saying that that story about feeling ashamed about strong feelings wasn't about Quill. The page looks odd though, with the text bubbles done in mspaint in black and white. Papaya says that the story wasn't about Quill, but he understands the feeling, so now he knows someone else out there feels like he does. Quill asks if he's supposed to be happy that suffering has doubled. Papaya :/s at him.

Papaya says that misery loves company is when it's easier to bear painful feelings when you know someone else feels the same way. Quill says that's not what it means, then goes on a rant about how his ex-wife won't let him see their kids (the real life person that made Quill had this problem, if I recall), although "ruined" is copied and pasted over him. Papaya is fascinated and tells him to go on while getting a pad of paper.

It abruptly cuts back to Inkcat and Scissors in the train.

I'm freaking out!!

Tvscout keeps banging her cymbals, telling Inkcat and Scissors they're banned while they ignore her. They're looking for something but they don't know why they need it. Scissors asks why they're even getting it then, and Inkcat says Tox told them to, so they are. Scissors complains a bit, while Tvscout gets increasingly mad about being ignored.

We cut back to Toxinuate eating Paranoia. There's more weird rambly nonsense around her. Someone, Tox I think, asks how they can possibly get closer than this. Didn't you want to be noticed, what happened to your beauty, says someone. i don't know who.

Scissors asks Inkcat to guess why they need this macguffin they're looking for. Inkcat thinks it might be to fix the mural (Andre's mural?). Scissors says prove it, and Inkcat says fine, okay while knocking Tvscout out with their mop. Notably there's an angry looking little worm thing and it's going to be important in a bit. I know how that sounds but look. I didn't write this comic.

tvscout giving me yellow submarine vibes here

We go back to Toxinuate eating Paranoia, which is taking a suspiciously long time. More unattributed rambling happens. Someone says "you acted like it was fine when I did nothing. Well, then it wasn't fine. So what now? What will you do now?" "Aren't you happy that I see you?" "This will make me retch" and so on. The person says it was easy to see you, but whyyy wouldn't you ever see them? They say they can see and taste your fear and wonder why you won't let them in, and why you're making them consume everything and nothing instead.

Tox keeps swallowing and someone says oh, I thought it wouldn't fit, but I guess I'm just vacant. They then say that they didn't have to let you in and that they were the one with the choice. They say they don't have to do this at all, but they think it's funny that you act like you've already figured it out. This isn't about you! the voice declares, as if this isn't clearly about someone. One of those weird worm things hangs out in the corner saying that this has happened before, it's exactly different.

:V

Angel Box issue 2: SPECIAL DREAM ANNOUNCEMENT Edition

This has one of Pengo's characters on the front saying "No one has to know what I did to you, because I'm the one with the mic" while Glip is in the corner going "Feelings are fun" so. To give you an idea of what this one is about.

Nothing plot-related happens in here though. Glip writes an extremely long mspaint rant again, this time directed at Pengo and the beef they have with him and they rehash a bunch of drama that no sane person should care about. I don't. I will say that Glip comes off as kind of unhinged though. I don't think they realize how they come off in these huge screeds directed at whoever they're angry at this week.

Doctor's Without Borders group pic

I'm just bringing this up because it's a big group pic of everyone in Glip's discord who helped pitch in with donations to SGDQ one year which is great! Good for all of them! Donate to charity, everybody!

[eyes emoji]

It's just funny to me that later on Glip ended up doing a spiteful porn comic about that black and white character there after they had a falling out.

[saucedxll]

it's like 12:30am and im pretty sure im sleep-deprived but

been on the feminist side of pinterest and that whole man & bear debate is soooo dumb, every man boy who was upset or angry instead of questioning for even a second why a woman who feel safer knowing she's near a wild animal than a man should not have been validated, and all the reactions from different men kinda prove the whole reason this question was asked, women, how many times have you heard a man tell a rape joke along the lines of "well he's a man i mean what did she expect?" and there was not to nobody upset about this? cause i've heard it both in real life & on TV (i'm am a literal minor) sooo all the guys saying "what? do you think all men are wild animals who can't control themselves" need to see all those dumbass jokes and be honest about how many they found funny

in a church a old man can to the front and said this "there's more women wearing shorts and skirts than long dress, lemme tell you, if i'm on the court and you say you were raped and you were wearing that, i will let that man go free" not even lying, nobody was upset (atleast the people watching him say this) and that man is a PRIEST, people go to that man for advice!! how tf did we as a society fail so horrifically that we let a man saying thing's like "rape's ok if she's wearing revealing clothing" give people any advice?

also, if you're a guy that got upset and don't understand why women choose bear, lemme explain, a woman on twitter said that she choose bear and the men in the comment section said things like "boy, when i'm done w/ you i'll make you wish you picked the bear" or un-censored images of women getting mauled by bears, a child on tiktok said that she choose man, a quick look at her pf would have told you she's a minor, and yet multiple men replied with maid outfits + oil or descriptions on how they would "reward" her

in both cases the woman got harassed with threats, "oh well that last one wasn't meant to be a threat" 1: she's a minor & 2: saying fetish-y stuff to someone w/o knowing if they would be okay with that on a mass scale is harassment

also, ladies, this doesn't make hating men okay, if he's a pedo or rapist, hate all you want, but if it's just some guy you know nothing about then there's no reason to be hateful, also men, just being cautious is not hateful, things like "kill all men" or "women are better" are, and if you can't tell i have a tip for you: reverse the statement, "sorry i'm not gonna go home w/ a random guy" to "sorry i'm not gonna go home w/ a random girl" see, not hurtful or mean, "well you're a guy so i'm better" to "well you're a girl so i'm better" see, this is hurtful w/ malcontent behind it

any women who says men are useless except for their money are just as bad as guys who say women are useless except for their bodies, it's the same for race, if a white person says all black people are thefts or druggies they're racist, if a black person says all white people are thefts or druggies they're also racist, same with men & women, saying hateful thing against men are still bad and sexist, sexism against men is still sexism

also, trans people, if you question things because you just don't know or because it doesn't make sense to you, that's fine, if you try to make a trans person justify why they are the way they are to the point they're uncomfortable, that's not fine, same with gay person, non-binary person, transgender person, bi person, ace person, or just apart of the LGBTQ community, you don't have to accept it and if you think "man, i could never be gay or trans, that's weird" that's fine, you can think that, but all we ask is for you to be respectful, "so, how's did you find out you were trans?" is fine "trans people aren't real and you are still the same person you were before" isn't

anyways, thanks 4 reading my rant bye :D

[casspurrjoybell-24]

My Unwanted Mate - Chapter 38 - Part 1

*Warning Adult Content*

Calvin Frey

"Are you coming home soon, Papa?" Benjamin's little voice was sad over the cell-phone and I knew that he missed me.

I miss my pup more than he could imagine.

We have never been apart for this long.

"As soon as I'm done here."

My pup sighed loudly at my words.

I have said the same thing to him for the past three days.

He was confused as to why I was not home already but I could not tell him the truth.

I just had to make this right so I could return.

"Have you been good for your Grandma?"

"Yes but Toby is bad and mean and I don't want to play with him anymore," Benjamin ranted, going into detail about all the mayhem his little cousin had been causing.

I struggled not to laugh or else he would have gotten upset with me too.

"Don't be too hard on your little cousin, he's just a pup. Remember you're a big pup now and have to be a good example for him."

"No, he's a butthead."

There was a thud and then Benjamin screamed, dropping the phone.

From what I could hear it sounded like Toby was beating my pup up.

"Calvin," my Mom greeted, the sound of the fighting pups still in the background.

"Your brother called and told me everything that happened."

"I'm sorry," I started, prepared for a lecture.

I had purposely left out the details of why our trip was extended.

"Get out of my house with all that," Mom shouted at the rowdy pups and silence followed.

"Now, what are you apologizing for? Torin told me that the male was horrible. It is upsetting that you had to go to such lengths, I know that must've been hard for you."

The guard standing across from me tapped on his watch letting me know my time was running out.

"Mom, I can't talk much longer today. I'll figure this out and be home soon."

I hoped.

"Okay, pup, your dad and I love you."

She ended the call before I could respond and I sat the phone down with a tired exhale.

The waiting guard led me back to my cell, not bothering with restraining me in cuffs.

I have been compliant throughout this whole ordeal.

There was no point in fighting, it would only reflect negativity.

Robby said the council members were trying to build a case against me.

Something about disrespecting my superiors.

It sounded like a bunch of bullshit.

Alpha Shiloh Surez had come to see me the night it had happened.

He instructed me to take the Alpha position and to claim it was my right to challenge the male for it.

That is not what I want... I never wanted to be an Alpha... I am not an Alpha.

I refused and the male looked disappointed in my decision.

The morning after the council had sent a group of guards to detain me and Alpha Surez had no say.

Even on his territory, they are above him.

The heavy door shut with a resounding click behind me and I sat down on the cold metal bench, dropping my head into my hands.

Shit was fucked... I was not unfamiliar with being held in a holding cell but I was unfamiliar with being held in a cell designed to keep wolves locked in.

No metal bars or old cops were sitting outside joking around.

I was confined in a small square room, with white-painted cinderblock walls and a door inlaid with silver.

I could smell it and the offending scent alone kept me from going anywhere near it.

The camera in the corner followed any motion I made, the little red light on it blinking at me.

My Mom was wrong... the choice was not a hard one.

Killing was easy... too easy and deciding to do it had been easier.

I knew I could do it again without a second thought.

I almost wished I had drawn it out to make the male suffer through it.

He was pathetic.

How he could even call himself an Alpha had been the biggest joke.

The male did not even try to fight back.

The only thing I regretted was not thinking of my pup in the moment.

It was stupid... Benjamin will be devastated if anything happens to me.

The pup will never forgive me if I do not come home.

In the moment there had been no other choice.

Not when my hands were covered in Nathan's blood.

Even though he had given himself the injuries, I knew it was that piece of shit who had forced his hand.

It had all been a blur.

Seeing the male's hand holding Tatum's face in his tight grip had been the final straw.

All I could remember was the blood and my wolf's satisfaction.

Tatum's soft voice had pulled me out of that rage that had consumed my mind.

If he had stayed silent, I do not know if I would have ever stopped, maybe his Beta would have been next.

I hoped they were okay or as okay as they can be after everything.

Nathan should be healed by now.

As if thinking about the blondes summoned them, I looked up to see two identical faces peering in at me from the small square window on the door.

I stood up, running a hand over my wrinkled shirt before pushing it through my messy hair.

The guard that had led me to the holding cell unlocked the door, letting the twins in.

Their Alpha brother leaned against the wall across the hall, his eyes meeting mine for a second.

The door shut behind the twins, locking the three of us in together.

My eyes ran over Nathan, noting his smaller stomach, only a slight roundness remaining.

It was good he was up, moving around.

He still didn't look any better though.

Tatum refused to meet my eyes now that we were in the same room.

The twins kept a distance from each other too.

Not holding hands or leaning against one another like they used to.

They were not the same wolves I remembered.

Gone were their eager smiles and hopeful eyes and it was all my fault.

Nathan's eyes did not leave me as I lowered myself down onto my knees, tilting my head as my heart beat against my chest.

I could tell they were less afraid when I put myself below them.

It was easy to submit to them.

Whatever they wanted to do to me, I deserved.

Silence stretched and my palms began to sweat.

They could do what they pleased with me.

They could kill me now and I would accept it.

Tatum scoffed, his blue eyes icy as they looked over me. 

"They're going to kill you for killing an Alpha unprovoked," Nathan broke the silence.

I swallowed, my heart breaking for my pup.

He did not deserve the shit parents he had been given.

"You said you would do anything."

"I meant what I said."

"I never thought you would do it."

Was he upset that I had?

"What are you talking about?" Tatum turned those icy eyes onto his twin, his form rigid.

"I asked Calvin to kill Alpha Malore."

That and a few other things... I had easily promised him.

Whatever he wanted... whatever they wanted.

"When? When did you speak to him?" Tatum moved closer to his twin, his back now towards me.

Nathan's eyes scanned Tatum's face, his throat bobbing as he swallowed.

Whatever expression Tatum wore made Nathan nervous.

"When you left me with Momma?" Tatum asked, his southern accent deepening as he became visibly upset.

"You were talking to him," Tatum's finger pointed back at where I still kneeled on the cement floor.

"While I was... while... I couldn't find you..."

"I wanted to be alone. I wasn't looking for him."

"You didn't tell me."

Tatum's fists were balled at his sides.

He had shifted so that their faces were both hidden from my view.

"I never got the chance. I was busy trying to keep you from getting your ass beat and being locked in a fucking closet."

Tatum recoiled as if he had been physically struck by Nathan's words.

"We can talk about this later."

Nathan's face was blank but his eyes were full of emotions I could not even begin to decipher.

Tatum backed away with his head down, hovering near the door.

I wondered how he could stand being so close to silver.

Nathan sucked in a shaky breath, trying desperately to keep his expression blank but I could see that his eyes had become glassy.

"They won't kill you," he said to me, clearing his throat.

"They won't kill you if you tell them we're your mates."

"You don't want that."

I had fucked that up, a long time ago.

"I don't," he confirmed with a shake of his head.

"I want the freedom we can have, in the Killian pack."

[tb-gerschutz]

Chapter Two

Word Count: 4,216

Trigger Warning(s): language, pain & guilt, graphic depictions of violence, dr*gs

Summary: "Rocky" Crawford (aka "Agent Blackjack") and Agent Whiskey begin their mission by tracking shipments going straight to Balor Devlin.

**********

Four and a half hours can go by so fast, can it? That is, if you have the effort to make the trip seem so fun that no one wants it to end. Distracting the mind of the long-ass trip by having fun can make a world of difference.

And that certainly happened in Whiskey and I's case.

Through this four-hour trip, we did like any other normal pair of colleagues would do: talk about ourselves and reveal our deepest darkest secrets. Of course, I didn't spill all of my secrets, but it was enough to turn Whiskey and I's friendship into a bond stronger than Hercules on steroids. Sure, we may only be partners at this particular moment, but I had a strong gut feeling that that would change relatively soon. 

He doesn't know it yet (I hope), but I started to develop new feelings for Whiskey. New, romantic feelings. Throughout my short time of knowing him, I had already begun to think of him as a romantic partner. Could he be the one I spend the rest of my life with?

No! Snap out of it, Rocky! You have a mission to focus on. Don't be a hypocrite and break your own ground rules that you established!

As Whiskey continued to drive along the road ahead, I remained silent as I continued to try to make an effort in processing these new feelings for Whiskey. Was it love? Or was it some-

thing else? It was unlike me to remain quiet and shut-down since I was a pretty outspoken individual who had no speed bump between their brain and their mouth. I was the one who very rarely gave a damn about what I said and was also naturally tough-skinned when it came to others criticizing me; in fact, if they insulted me, I would probably sock 'em right in the mouth.

The point was, this new era of processing my feelings for Whiskey has definitely changed me as a person. Changed me as a whole...and will this era permanently change me, or will it change some parts of me that I never got in touch with?

"You okay there, sugar? You seem awfully quiet," Whiskey said, taking notice of my new behavior.

"Yeah. I'm fine. Everything's fine. It's just...I'm probably gonna get a lot of negativity back from this, but—I'm still trying to process my grief for my dead twin brother," I said. "I know, I know. You'll probably say, 'That happened a long time ago. You need to let it go', but the truth is, Whiskey, I can't! I can't let it go! He was my twin brother for Christ's sake. He was the one I had the strongest bond with since we grew up together and were each other's best friends. Now, he's in a coffin six feet under, while I'm up here on the surface, struggling to keep my head above water."

Caring enough about me and rightfully sensing an emotional outburst from me, Whiskey wisely pulled the car over to the side of the road. He put it in park and turned to me to listen actively, being very careful to not say anything that would upset me more than I already was. I continued on with my emotional rant as if I had no consequence in what I was saying,

"Now, God took him from me. That bastard! I hate him for taking away my precious, sweet twin brother who could do no wrong. I hate him for punishing me for being innocent. I did nothing wrong to deserve this, Whiskey! And I'll be damned if I let this guilt and heartbreak go away easily because this is something that'll stick to me for the rest of my life. So hell no! I'm not letting these feelings go. Because someone I treasured the most was taken from me, and now, I can't get it back!"

I pounded my fist on the dashboard in a fit of rage. "Damnit!"

Don't worry. I didn't break it. Apparently, Whiskey's ride is extremely durable.

"It wasn't your fault, you know," Whiskey finally said, chiming in. "He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"But I could've done something, Whiskey! I could've been there. I could've noticed him running past the coffee shop instead of being so absorbed in looking for a damn job in the Secret Service!"

"I know you feel guilty because it was your twin brother who died, but that's no reason to down yourself. It wasn't your fault. It was never your fault," Whiskey added on. "Don't you ever think that it was your fault that your twin brother died because it wasn't. You did nothing wrong. I want ya to know that. It was never your fault."

At that moment, I started to calm down, allowing my rage to disappear into a docile state. Now, I was reverting back to the Rocky that was present during my first meeting with Whiskey. Sure, I was still a no-nonsense, curse word-spewing, tough kid, but I, for the most part, kept to myself unless I was drawn in by an outside force. In this case, I kept to myself and tried not to get involved.

"You really think that none of my brother's tragedy was my fault?" I asked, as we kept traveling to Harlan.

"Of course it wasn't your fault, sugar. It was just an unfortunate matter of circumstance. He was in the wrong place at the wrong time. You couldn't have predicted that. Don't put yourself down over something you couldn't control."

When we finally arrived near the shipping hub, Whiskey and I made sure that we parked far enough away that the soldiers wouldn't notice our appearance. I carefully grabbed the weapons and resources needed just in case we had to make a break for it, which seems entirely possible. Clad in a brown leather jacket, black leather pants, and knee-high brown boots, I helped Whiskey gather our resources and shut the doors to his ride quietly. One loud and sudden move, and our cover would be blown.

"You think this is a good idea?" Whiskey asked, hesitating over my plan just a bit. "Tracking drug shipments that are going directly to where Devlin is located?"

"I'm not sure, Whiskey. I'm only a rookie. But I'm confident that this will get us somewhere in this mission," I answered confidently.

Once we found the shipping hub, Whiskey and I crouched down on a nearby hill, being especially careful not to be noticed by enemy soldiers. Wanting to see what these enemies were up to, I reached into my bag and grabbed out my binoculars. As I looked through them, I laid flat on my stomach to remain as obscure from the eye as possible.

"Oo-ee, sugar! Look at that cake!" Whiskey exclaimed, becoming distracted.

I gave Whiskey a stern yet funny look. "Can you please comment about my ass after we're done with this?"

I continued to look through the binoculars, as Whiskey refocused his attention on what the enemy troop was doing ahead.

"What do those drugs look like?" he asked, still crouching down near me.

I carefully examined the scene through the lens of the binoculars. "It looks like there's four different ones they're shipping. Marijuana, heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamines."

"Damn!" Whiskey exclaimed. "They're good, smuggling that over state lines."

"Smuggling it over state lines is a lot easier than smuggling it over country borders. There's no customs involved at state lines," I explained. "Unfortunately, our government could care less if drugs are being shipped from state to state. They only care if drugs are shipped between countries. They're trying to focus on the cartels and their shipments into the United States in Mexico, but they haven't succeeded yet."

I gave Whiskey my binoculars. "Here. Keep scoping out the scene. I gotta adjust the scope on my sniper rifle."

"I thought it was already adjusted," Whiskey said.

"Can't afford to make any mistakes, can we?" I said, reminding Whiskey of the words he taught me.

Whiskey nodded and went back to scoping the scene, while I made sure that the scope on my rifle was extremely precise. "Make sure you let me know if another truck of shipments arrives."

"Why's that, sugar?" he asked.

"Because I wanna pop the tires," I answered, beaming with menace and confidence.

"Pop the tires? I do hope you have some reasoning behind that," Whiskey said.

"Think about it. If I pop all four tires, that slows down the flow of the shipments. That allows us to go in and put trackers on shipments with the possibility that we won't be noticed. I personally think it's fool-proof, but go ahead and think differently if you want."

"I think it's a good idea," Whiskey commented. "Just make sure you pop all four tires instead of one or two. They can change one or two tires in a matter of seconds."

"Oh, I'm sure they can. Trust me, Whiskey. I had this all planned out on the way here. Every small detail had already been worked out in my head."

As I was fiddling with the scope on my rifle, Whiskey started to tap me on my left calf. "Time to rock an' roll, sugar. They're pulling in," he said.

"Perfect! Now, don't bother me while I'm popping the tires. If you do, I'll miss, and our plan goes to shit."

I then concentrated on the first out of eight shots. Two shots for each of the four tires. It wasn't enough to completely stop the flow, but it was enough to slow it down enough that Whiskey and I could make a quiet entrance and put trackers on the drug shipments headed for Balor. 

Inhaling quietly yet sharply, I took the first two shots, popping the front right tire. Then came the second pair of shots on the front left. Next, two shots on the back left, then two on the back right. The series of shots made the soldiers go into a frenzy, scrambling to try and figure out where the shots came from. This gave Whiskey and I perfect timing to sneak into the base with our weapons and resources in tow.

"I'll get the pot and smack. You get the meth and coke," I said.

Whiskey nodded, and we were off soon after that. I took the left side of the base to scope out my set of shipments, while Whiskey scoped out the right side for his set. As the enemy soldiers worked to change the truck's tires, I managed to slip by them without being spotted, looking everywhere to try and find the drug shipments that were going directly to Balor himself.

Then began the tedious work in finding the shipments. I carefully combed through each gray crate to find the drugs that were being shipped to Balor directly while also looking to see if I was in the clear. I had to be careful. If any enemy soldier spotted me, then everything that I had strategically planned out for this very mission would go straight out the window. When I snuck into the shed, all of my surroundings became very unfamiliar. Navigating this shed filled with crates upon crates of drugs and awful medication was an absolute bitch, but I somehow managed to come upon a crate of marijuana that had "To the Boss" in big, bold letters.

Yay! Just my luck!

Making sure no enemy soldiers were around, I placed the tracker on that crate and immediately moved on to try and find a crate of heroin. Again, one that is going directly to Balor himself. Anxiety rose up in my throat, and my heart was beating out of my chest with every step I took. I was worried to high-heaven that at least one enemy soldier would spot and try to fight me, and when I get worried and panicked, well...

...let's just say I start to develop symptoms that could be signs of a panic attack.

Yes. You heard that right. I may have an undiagnosed panic attack disorder, but that's not the point!

After what seemed like forever, I finally found a shipment of heroin that was going directly to Balor. However, there was an enemy soldier who was close to it. Damn, that threw a wrench to my hopefully easy plans. Then, I got the best idea. Calmly and collectively, I strolled up carelessly toward the crate, and the soldier stopped me. Just like I had planned.

"Hey! You can't be messing with these crates!" the soldier yelled.

"Oh, cool your tits, cadet! I'm just making sure these are being shipped directly to the boss," I snapped back, matching the attitude level of the soldier.

"I already made sure these were going to the boss," he snapped.

"But the boss told me that if any one of y'all mess up, then you're the next one on the chopping block," I answered.

The soldier looked at me curiously with a confused look, but he ultimately went along with my great white set of lies. I thought I had him fooled for a second, since I could sense that he didn't have the strongest of minds. Unfortunately, my aggressive impulses got the best of me, and I snagged the soldier, putting him into a chokehold. I had the intention of knocking him out and putting him to sleep.

"Go to sleep, you little bitch. Go to sleep, motherfuck. Go to sleep, you sack of shit. Shut your eyes, you motherfuck," I sang in a cheerful, sing-songy tone.

I dropped the soldier's unconscious body as I tried to find the nearest exit. I needed to find Whiskey and make a quick getaway. Before I could even execute my idea of escaping, I heard a familiar voice through my earpiece.

"Blackjack, cover breach. Cover breach," Whiskey said in a panicked tone.

"Do you need backup?" I asked.

"Yeah. Get your ass out here. I'm 'bout to get overrun," Whiskey shouted.

I made a mad dash out to the shipping yard, where I found that Whiskey was right. He was indeed being overrun by a slew of enemy soldiers. One by one, Whiskey would be taking out the soldiers using his high-tech lasso, which is something I've never seen before. Seeing that he was handling everything just fine, I decided to make a quick dash to Whiskey's ride and commandeer it. It was now our getaway vehicle.

To my luck, Whiskey left the keys inside the vehicle, so all I had to do was hop in and start it up. As soon as the truck rolled over, I slammed my foot on the gas pedal and made it my mission to get to Whiskey's location as fast as possible. Whilst Whiskey was using all the weapons in his arsenal, I wildly swerved directly into the action, even taking out a few soldiers along the way.

Hey! Job failed successfully, I guess.

"Come on! Get in! They're already on our asses!" I shouted.

Whiskey hurried into the passenger seat of the truck, and as soon as he got in, I once again slammed my foot on the gas pedal and sped off from the shipping hub. Adrenaline was coursing through my veins at damn near light speed since this was my first time in a situation like this one. Causing trouble and chaos was so much fun! As Whiskey kept pestering me to go faster, I tried my best to keep focused on the road ahead, but it was hard considering that Whiskey was fighting off the soldiers chasing us using all the weapons he had.

"Don't touch my rifle!" I screamed as I kept driving wildly.

"I ain't gonna touch your rifle, sugar. I got bigger things to deal with, as you can tell," he screamed back.

"No, I can't! I'm too busy trying to drive our asses out of this mess we're in," I shrieked back.

Whiskey sighed as he kept trying to knock off soldiers one-by-one. "Just keep your eyes on the road and get us to the highway."

"The big interstate highway?" I asked.

"That'll work. Just get us off of these backroads and out of their sight, for the love of Christ!" he shouted.

I continued to operate Whiskey's truck wildly along the roads, breaking every traffic law known to man. Although I was nervous about breaking every law, I knew that I had to in order to keep myself and Whiskey safe from harm. The soldiers kept chasing after us relentlessly, and Whiskey was fending them off from the back of the truck.

Luckily, I successfully managed to quickly merge onto the four-lane highway, somehow keeping Whiskey standing in the bed of the truck. Yes, the soldiers were still on our asses, but this was just a small victory that would hopefully build up to an even bigger victory.

"Have you popped the tires yet?" I asked.

"What are you talking about?" Whiskey shouted as he continued to fend off the soldiers that were closing in on us.

"Have you thought about popping the tires on their trucks to slow them down?" I shouted.

"Sugar, I ain't got enough ammo to do that!" he shouted. "We need to make sure that they are stopped dead in their tracks!"

As I kept passing cars and trying to avoid the enemy gunfire, my mind raced once again to figure out how to stop the enemies for good. Popping the tires won't do us any good, so something else had to be destroyed in order to neutralize the enemy. What if we cut the fuel lines? No, no, no. To do that, you had to pop the hood and reach in deep to find it.

Too much work for so little time we have.

What if we actually blew up the trucks? No. To do that, you needed some sort of flammable material. I didn't exactly have that because I feared getting burnt alive accidentally. After much deliberation, I finally got an idea.

"Whiskey! I got a heavy anvil in my bag. Grab it and tie it to that lasso of yours!" I screamed.

"Why do you have an anvil?" Whiskey asked.

"Just in case we had to shatter windows or somethin'," I answered back. "Tie that anvil to your lasso, swing it around, and crack the window. It'll distract them and give us enough time to lay the explosive spikes down for them."

"Explosive spikes? What the hell, Rocky?"

"Hey! We'll talk about it later. Right now, we have to get rid of these pests on our asses!" I shouted. "Just do it!"

I kept my eyes focused on the road, narrowly missing cars who weren't going the same speed I was; granted, I was speeding down the highway at dangerous speeds. I don't how I managed to stay off the highway patrol's radar, but I somehow did. Whiskey tied the anvil to his lasso, swinging the lasso around so it could go far enough to the windshield of the enemy's trucks. Plus, the anvil needed to project enough force for the windshield to shatter. 

If it didn't shatter, then Whiskey and I were fucked. I had no other plan other than this one, so I prayed to God that this worked. When I heard the sound of glass shattering, my insides jumped for joy. My plan was working perfectly.

"Good! Now, in my bag, do you see a bag of large thumbtack-lookin' things?" I asked.

"Which pocket?" Whiskey asked.

"Very front, in the zipper."

Whiskey dug into my bag and found the explosive spikes. "Yes. I got them."

"Good! Now, don't touch the spike part of them. If those spikes are touched, then, well...I guess you'll find out sooner or later."

Whiskey threw the spikes down on the ground behind us, letting the enemy trucks run them over. Once they did, large explosions followed, ultimately destroying enemy trucks and badly injuring the soldiers. Even though I couldn't see it because I was driving away from it like the badass I am, I could tell that Whiskey's face explained his reaction to these spikes.

"Christ! That seemed awfully excessive," Whiskey said, hopping to the passenger seat.

"Gotta stop 'em dead in their tracks. Never said how to do that. I had free reign, man."

"I do have to say, genuinely, sugar. Your driving skills are so wild and amazing! How the hell did you learn how to drive like that?" he asked.

"Secret Service training did me a lot of good," I said. "There, you had to learn how to do all these tricks and handle successful vehicular pursuits. What happened back there was no different, except for the fact that it ended in epic fashion, baby!"

"It sure did, sugar."

We continued to drive down the highway, calming ourselves down from the chaos that happened the moments before. I was glad that our plan worked, and the enemy soldiers were stopped successfully. Whiskey and I did it! We managed to work as a team and defeat enemy troops like we wanted.

"Hey, sugar. Can I turn on the radio?" Whiskey asked.

I didn't expect him to ask, but then again, it was common courtesy that whoever was driving had the right to control the radio. I grew up on that rule and loved every second of it whenever Devin or myself were at the wheel.

"Sure. Go nuts," I said, allowing Whiskey to take control of the radio. "I don't give a shit."

Whiskey turned the knobs on the radio, allowing the absolutely gorgeous melodies to cut through the air smoothly like butter. I loved music more than anything; it was the one thing that could keep me calm in stressful situations.

But this song was arousing emotions of bittersweetness. It made me think of my dear twin brother who's probably watching over me from heaven. God rest his gentle soul.

"Whiskey, not this song," I sarcastically whined.

"It was on the radio, sugar," he responded. "Why the connection? It's only Elton John's Goodbye Yellow Brick Road."

I drew in a sharp yet silent breath before I nearly broke character. "This was my twin brother and I's favorite song."

"Oh," Whiskey quickly and quietly said, feeling as though he had offended me, even though he really didn't.

I continued on with the story behind the song. "Me and my twin brother loved this song very much. So much that he used it as his walk-up song for baseball. Every time he'd walk up to the plate or hit a home run, he'd point to me in the stands and make a heart shape with his hands, showing that he loved me."

"So the song connected you and your twin brother," Whiskey assumed.

"Just one of the ways we were connected," I said back. "There's plenty more."

There's just this feeling of driving down a long, endless highway that somehow gets to you, no matter how much your mind is on something else. That happened to me. My mind had been shifted to start thinking about Devin and his love for baseball. He loved baseball as much as he loved me, which was a lot considering we were twins. Driving down the stretching highway seemed to allow me to think about it a lot more. It gave me another opportunity to deal with and try to suppress my grief over Devin's death.

Turns out, I couldn't get over it. I don't think I ever could.

As I kept my hand on the gear shift, my mind continued to focus on the road. That didn't last long, however. I felt something—I didn't know what at that second—touch and grab onto my leg. It grazed up and down my leg, and I took it as a sign of comfort and support. When I looked down, I found that it was Whiskey's left hand contacting my right leg. I didn't consider it inappropriate, no. I took it as a sign of affectionate support since I considered Whiskey a very flirtatious individual.

"If only he'd see what I'm doing now," I said somberly, coming close to crying.

Whiskey glanced over at me with the most sincere eyes I had ever seen. "Trust me, sugar. He's proud of ya."

"You think so?"

"Definitely," he said in a deeper, more serious tone.

Whiskey and I had a laugh about all the stupid antics me and my twin brother got into when we were younger. Sure, it was stupid, but it wasn't the kind of stupid that gets us in serious trouble. From pulling pranks on our older brother Andrew every April Fool's to hitting the town for a day of fun every other Saturday, both Devin and I considered ourselves "perfectly weird" kids.

"Wow. Y'all were crazy," Whiskey finally remarked.

"We did some crazy shit," I laughed, "and I still do that same crazy shit."

We kept laughing about it and continued to spill more of our darkest secrets. And in that moment of truly connecting with Whiskey on a spiritual level, I finally found the strength to put my grief away for the moment. Who knows? Maybe Whiskey is the very person that will help me make this grief of mine something that I can live with for the rest of my life. 

[caffeinatedopossum]

How not to binge- a sort of guide

These tips are intended for people with restrictive eating disorders who also binge and want to stop- just because that's what I have personal experience with- but it might be helpful for others who binge too.

Just a disclaimer, I am not a medical professional

(This is probably going to be long)

I'm just warning you- you're probably not going to like what you read here. I hope you still find it helpful anyways.

First off, let's start by defining binge eating- a binge is different from overeating- and a "binge" is also different for someone with a restrictive ed. In BED, an individual will typically feel out of control, overeating despite not being hungry, past the point of fullness and maybe to the point of pain or sickness. They will usually experience distressing emotions, like extreme guilt. However if you've been restricting for a long time your appetite and hunger cues are... unreliable at best. Even if you experience feeling out of control, eating past the point of fullness, distress and guilt- you ARE hungry. Your body and brain aren't working against you when you feel that desperate urge to eat everything, they are trying to keep you alive.

I understand how distressing it can be though so I want to help 💙 you deserve to eat but if you can't do that, you at least deserved to be comfortable. Okay now that I've ranted, on to the actual tips!

1. Assess why you binge- like *really* assess. Be honest with yourself even if it sucks. Are you hungry but not giving yourself permission to eat? Bored? Stressed or emotional? This is the most important step! My personal triggers that I identified were feeling full, pain (emotional or physical), exhaustion, and boredom. So the strategies I have are based off of those triggers- I try to avoid feeling full, take painkillers when I need them or talk to a friend for emotional support, get enough sleep, and keep myself occupied.

2. Take your fucking multivitamins! This isn't a cure-all since multivitamins aren't meant to supplement actual food but they will still help. oftentimes that desperate hunger is a sign that you're malnourished. I recommend taking gummy multivitamins as they're less likely to cause stomach upset

3. Electrolytes! Drink a sports drink or electrolyte mix that actually has a sufficient amount of sodium and glucose/sugar too, I don't wanna see any diet gatorade. If your electrolytes aren't balanced you'll be dehydrated at best and could literally die at worst. Salt is essential because it helps you retain water (yes you WANT to retain *some* water otherwise you're dehydrated-its a matter of balance) and sugar/glucose will help with low blood sugar. Also on this note of balance and hydration- don't drown yourself in water!! Only drink as much as you want/need, not more. Drinking too much can flush out essential electrolytes.

4. Give yourself permission to eat- (even if its still not a lot) plan out what you'll eat ahead of time so that you can feel prepared and be realistic about how much you can consistently eat without binging. Don't start a fast immediately after a binge either. Allow yourself to eat what you want too- are there specific foods that you tend to always binge on? Eat a portion of that food in combination with a safe food to feel less deprived

5. This is something that I never hear anyone recommend but it is SO IMPORTANT- and that's to not tell yourself that you will never ever binge again. I'm sure you've done this before, you feel awful, guilty, filled with self-loathing and the only comfort you give yourself is "I'll never EVER do this again" but you remember saying that last time and the time before and it just leaves you feeling worse- hopeless even. This makes a lot of sense because there are certain personality traits that predispose people to developing anorexia- specifically perfectionism and rigidity. But you actually need to get rid of that mindset to move on. Binging is not about "self control" or a lack of discipline or motivation or anything of the sort- it's more of a problem with self-regulation. Which is NOT something to beat yourself up over.

Here's some examples of what not to do and what to replace those thoughts and actions with to set yourself up for success:

- "I'm NEVER binging again!" > "I am no longer binging right now"

- "I fucked up again- I'm unbelievable!" > "I made it 4 days without binging this time- next I'll make it to 5 days"

- "I hate myself/I'm disgusting"/*insert self deprecation* > "what I did was understandable given my circumstances and I forgive myself"

- if you engage in purging behavior, try to do something else - maybe a bath, a nap, watch TV, or play a game- you have to teach yourself how to cope with the aftermath of binging in order to stop. You have to forgive yourself and show some self-compassion (it's not easy but it gets easier 💙)

Notice how far you've come, don't be afraid to feel proud of yourself for every victory no matter how small it seems. And if you read all of this, thank you and I hope it was helpful somehow!! ^-^

[bylerswiftie]

yes. it is okay for a character to be unlabeled. i've seen it in shows recently where they've done that very well (ex. Wilhelm in Young Royals)

here's the thing though. will has never been interested in girls. never. he's been very heavily queer-coded the whole show. he's been called slurs, he was even made fun of for being gay after his "death," and hell he pretty much has a confirmed crush on mike this season.

will is clearly, clearly gay. and to give no confirmation of that is wrong. his sexuality isn't up to interpretation at this point, it's pretty much shown through subtext and even just simply text.

so yes, a character can be unlabeled. that's fine! i'm even unlabeled!

but when it is super clear what a character's sexuality is and you just decide to "leave it up to interpretation" ???

that's bullshit.

i hate to be negative, i really do. but this sucks.

same thing with the whole vickie thing. they introduced a love interest for robin and she was only there for two scenes??? wtf????

the writers of this show are on thin ice.

im actually so tired of stuff like this happening, and honestly something like this might make me consider quitting the show and leaving the fandom, because shit like this is not okay.

it's not even good writing. sexual identity issues is one of will's arcs, it has been since the beginning. it was one of the things that connected me to his character, and for them to throw his sexuality under the rug as "up for interpretation" and "him just being confused"

it's tiring and boring is what it is.

again sorry for being so negative, this just really upsets me :/

not to mention the fact that they are sidelining will and even forgot about his birthday this season 🧍‍♀️ like it's actually getting ridiculous at this point. will is literally their punching bag and it's so stupid.

i'm not trying to sound ungrateful, but they had one job :/

i guess i'll wait and see in vol 2.🧍‍♀️love you bylers!

edit: ALSO WILLS WHOLE PERSONALITY SHOULDNT BE "third wheel 🤪" BECAUSE THAT IS SO DUMB AND HES MORE THAN THAT. HES LITERALLY THE START OF THE SHOW. WITHOUT WILL THERE WOULDNT BE STRANGER THINGS. IM SO TIRED OF HIM BEING SIDELINED AND MADE FUN OF LIKE ITS NOT EVEN FUNNY ANYMORE. sorry for the rant im just tired