#ones more supernatural Vs down to earth

[rennyrose]

Hi! I love your monster Trigun au so much!!! Could you tell us more about vampire vash in this au? Is he still 100+ years old?

Thank you I’m glad you like it haha- and he is yes-! There’s a lot of stuff I need to work out and fill gaps on but™️ here’s some recent art snippets and a tad bit of lore-

Vash and Knives were born sometime in the 1800s, and of course grew up together very close- However Vash became chronically very ill, and at one point Knives became very desperate and would do whatever to keep his brother alive

Knives also had a special interest in the occult/supernatural, which would result in sacrificing a piece of Vash so his brother could become something else- then shortly after to do the same to himself

Now Vash continues to attempt to live as normally as he can- (with the exception of helping a new friend struggling to handle beastie tendencies)

[jinjeriffic]

Dan Phantom vs. the Justice League

Most DCxDP fanworks gloss over how Dark Danny/Phantom kills the JL, or argue that TUE wouldn't play out the same way in the DC universe, since there are tons of superheroes and some would have a way of beating Dan. So let us dig into this with a shovel!

I would like to point out that we have seen plenty of apocalyptic/dark futures in DC. Even without Dan, that superhero multiverse is constantly teetering on the knife's edge of catastrophe! It feels like every couple of months someone has to stop the end of the world. Dan is just one more possible future to avert.

Dan is not a mindless monster, he is capable of planning, subterfuge and working with/coercing others to work with him (i.e. Fright Knight). He has both Danny and Vlad's memories, so in a crossover setting there is no way he wouldn't know about the public superheroes and villains at least.

Speaking of, DC is obviously crawling with supervillains and world destroying entities. Nobody said Dan had to conquer the world alone! I can totally see him working with and manipulating other villains to achieve his goals, only to stab them in the back later (ho-ho).

Dan's powers of invisibility, intangibility, duplication, overshadowing etc. make him an ideal candidate for infiltration, espionage and sabotage. Unless a person or location is specifically shielded against ghosts with tech or magic, he can get in and out without anybody noticing. Sure, someone like Batman probably had his home proofed against supernatural attacks, but surely not most of them! I envision him taking down Earth's heroes by extensively spying on them first.

Consider: Dan causes a major disaster that requires superhero intervention (runaway train, high-rise fire, sinking oil tanker etc.) and waits for someone to show up. When they do, Dan uses his duplicates to follow the hero(es) home/to work etc. Learn their identity, their weaknesses, their loved ones etc.

Dan could strategically leak hero identities to villains with a grudge who have no problem going after their civilian lives. This could also act as a smoke screen so the heroes don't immediately realize someone is targeting all of them.

Overshadow a loved one and use them to kill the hero - "Oh, Hero X got in an argument with their SO and their SO shot them in a fit of passion? Their SO claims having blacked out just before they picked up the gun? Trauma will do that."

Use intangibility to plant bombs, nerve gas, radioactive materials, etc. in the homes of various heroes and set them off in a coordinated strike.

Probably the biggest threat to Dan would be magic based heroes or supernatural entities (Captain Marvel, Doctor Fate, the JLD, etc.). They would also be the most likely to have countermeasures in place against ghosts, or a way to detect him. But they're also mostly suited for fighting the supernatural. I admittedly don't know enough about a lot of these characters - would say, Zatanna think to have a shield in place against sudden sniper attacks? Dan could steal some money and hire Deathstroke/Deadshot etc to blow their head off when they're out in the open.

Have I mentioned what a nightmare Dan would be in terms of security? I can totally see him say, breaking into the CDC and unleashing smallpox, ebola and any number of virulent diseases on the world. Cause some nuclear meltdowns. Knock down a dam. Steal some highly radioactive isotopes! Would the magic heroes be protected against something that can give you a lethal dose of radiation within minutes?

What I'm saying is, a clever and ruthless villain like Dan could unleash enough chaos with his OP powerset to overwhelm the heroes and then pick a lot of them off. He's pretty much the definition of someone who just wants to see the world burn!

[nuttylittlefruitcake]

The Narcissistic Abuse Believer To New Age/Alt-Right Conspiracy Theorist Pipeline

Let’s say that you are an abuse survivor. Let’s say that you had an abusive parent and/or ex. Let’s say you’re looking for support for abuse survivors, and a lot of the things you’re finding reference the concept of narcissistic abuse. You read more on the topic and begin to identify with a lot of what narcissistic abuse is supposed to be. You think to yourself “yes! this is exactly what I went through!” You research more about narcissists, how to spot them, what makes them tick, all the ways in which they would use and abuse you. You may not even know that NPD is a real disorder. You may not realize that narcissists are, more often than not, survivors of abuse just like you. Maybe you’re just genuinely misinformed. Maybe you just don’t care. A lot of people are here on the pipeline. Granted, this is not a good place to be (nowhere on the pipeline is) as it’s still incredibly harmful to pwNPD, but this is only the beginning.

Enter the Empath. The empath is allegedly a figure who experiences great empathy and compassion and, in turn, seeks to help others. They are generally portrayed as a kind and loving figure. Likewise, the Narcissist is the opposite. They’re evil manipulative abusers who only seek out vulnerable people to hurt, while not caring about the needs or feelings of others. You’ve been doing research for a while, and so you obviously know about the Empath. Let’s say you’ve internalized this idea that the Empath and the Narcissist are juxtaposed figures. Now, let’s take it a step further and say you’ve begun to believe that they have supernatural powers and that they use these powers for good/evil depending on their alignment. Let’s even say that you believe there’s a war going on between the two, that the empaths have to stop the narcissists from enacting their evil onto the world.

Supernatural powers like:

One very important thing we need to understand is that in New Age belief, The Empath and The Narcissist are two very particular figures that play a role in the belief system. To them, it’s not a disorder, it’s something else entirely. You might have noticed that the way some people talk about narcissists is wrapped up in spiritual, new agey language. Many years ago, I came across a YouTube channel that, in hindsight, was very new agey and ableist. I go back to that channel and what is the second video I see?

And if we go down a little further?

Spiritual language. Comparing us to demons, claiming we’re here to sabotage people on their (likely spiritual) paths. That is what a narcissist is in New Age belief. Empaths are here to do good and narcissists are here to do evil.

Now here’s where we get to the good part. If you reject the inherent truth that anyone has the capability of choosing to be a good or bad person, and instead believe that there’s a group of people sent here to do good and a group of people sent here to do evil, then I honestly don’t believe you’re too far off from believing in Starseeds vs Reptillians.

Starseeds are a concept founded in fascism, antisemitism, and white supremacy. It is believed that there is an ongoing spiritual war between the starseeds and the Reptillians, a group said to have been secretly running various organizations on Earth for thousands of years (sound familiar?) The starseeds want to help the Earth ascend to a new age, 5D, the Age of Aquarius, whatever you want to call it, while the Reptillians essentially want to keep that from happening. Honestly, just replace empaths with starseeds and narcissists with Reptillians and it’s pretty much the exact same thing. To New Agers, there’s practically no difference. And once you’ve made it to New Age territory, you might as well be knocking on the alt-right’s door.

There’s so much more about starseeds and Reptillians, and honestly New Age in general, that I just can’t fit into this post, but if you want to learn more, creature-wizard is a good blog with a lot of resources on the subject. I understand that it’s fun to joke about the ridiculous things people say about us (demons and such) but it’s also important to recognize how deeply dangerous narcissistic abuse rhetoric is, and that it leads to nowhere good for anyone. New Age ideology has always been ableist and eugenicist, and it’s been talked about how “starseed signs” are just autistic/ADHD traits, but I feel like the anti narc ableism also needs to be acknowledged. I’ll leave off with this:

If you genuinely believe in narcissistic abuse, then you are on this pipeline. Think long and hard about whether or not this is really where you want to be

[writers-potion]

Hi there! Do you have any tips on how to write a secret society? Whether it's a good or evil society?

Writing Sauce for Secret Societies

Secret (Hidden) vs. Secretive/Classified

An important distinction to make while writing exclusive societies is the extent to which they shirk the eyes of the public and/or government:

“Secret” or “Hidden” societies push their existence under the rug. No one but the members know of their activities at all. (e.g. Camp Half-Blood from the Percy Jackson series, the wizarding society of the Harry Potter series)

“Secretive” or “classified” societies exist publicly with a clear purpose. However, the specifics of their activities are only disclosed to his members. (e.g. the CIA, higher-ranked military organizations)

While secret societies are often illegal, rebellious, or anarchist, secretive societies are legal and institutional. 

Here are some other elements that I think a secret society requires. The specifics of how these are implemented will depend on the size of your society. 

The Origin Story 

What is the society’s motto? Who created it? Why do the members/the public need it? 

A goddess creates a secret society of demigods to protect them from monsters. 

A professor creates a secret society to teach illegal materials to his best students. 

A society of the undead striving for survival on Earth after the

Membership Requirements & Rules

How many newbies? How are they recruited? Any consequences if prospective members fail? Any initiation practices? Consequences for breaking the rules? 

Inheriting a particular bloodline: demigods, half-angels/demons, royal blood, etc. 

Becoming a supernatural creature: vampire, zombie, werewolf, etc. 

A rigorous interview/testing process (could be similar to a job interview)

Sending prospective members on a dangerous mission 

Existing members paying prospective members a visit in the middle of the night

Sending out dream messages and instructions for initiation constantly until potential members are obliged to come.

The Cover-Up Story 

How does your society keep itself hidden? How do they cover up for their mistakes if classified information leaks out? 

Killing any witnesses and outsiders. 

Exerting control over media/news/government organizations (either back-door or legally)

Using a magical cover: memory-redaction, mist/veil that manipulates appearances, etc. 

The power bestowed by the society upon their members are immediately withdrawn upon excommunication or if they break rules 

The cover-up story has to be stronger for larger, ancient secret societies to make it plausible that they’ve managed to survive hidden. Think of strong mechanisms that makes it the members’ own interests to keep the society protected, even though it may cost them their life. 

Funding and Maintenance

Where does the society get its money/weapons/materials from? 

Generational wealth that the members’ family possess. 

Secret governmental/university funding, obtained under someone else’s name

Having members who are placed in high-ranking position in companies, banks, the government, etc. 

Could be as simple as a trust fund/endowment fund run under a fake name (e.g paper company, a fake family name that is handed down from one society leader to another) 

Hope this helps!

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* . ───

💎If you like my blog, buy me a coffee☕ and find me on instagram! Also, join my Tumblr writing community for some more fun.

💎Before you ask, check out my masterpost part 1 and part 2 

[manwiththemagic]

The writers of s11 were cowards. If IIIIIIIIIII was in charge I'd made Lucifer's weird obsession with Sam show up more. Like the writers have very obviously included it and yet when Lucifer is processing the same vessel as cas, and therefore pretending to be cas, he just fucks off and tortures Crowley with fucked up bdsm pet play.

Like the few times casifer and Sam interacted were GOLD. because Sam sees it as his best friend cas, and Lucifer (who keeps talking about Sam like they're toxic ex's) is pretending to be him!! Although not to well. Like his freaky smirk when sending Dean into the past and coming back to harass Sam? Dude lives off of sadistic pleasure.

The way he full on LAUGHS when Sam says he trusts him bc Sam thinks it's cas?? Like gold!?!? Don't know why the writers didn't do more with that.

Also why not do more with the 'lucifer sent Sam visions to get him down to hell'. Like Lucifer is Obsessed w/ sam because that body/vessel is "supposed to be" his. And yet after revealing himself he doesn't try and convince Sam anymore?

He's just given up? Like nah man I don't believe that. I feel like he woulda fucked with Sam more in cas' body. And like it woulda been a way better not-romance-romance plot then whatever the fuck Dean and Amara were..

Like that came outta no where... I mean I get it.. but ew?? We saw her grow up, and maybe id argue "well there were two versions of her!! One physical on earth, the other her actual form and memories as a celestial being!!" BUT NO. SHE CALLS CROWLEY UNCLE CROWLEY.

cause he like raised her for a day or wtv..

Idk s11 is better than s10. Like the episode from baby's prospective?? PEAK CINEMAAAA!! also not that I dislike s11, no I quite love it, I just wish the dean plots were more fleshed out, and that it was more "Dean and Sam vs the world!!" Then Dean vs Sam yk??

Like where's my dynamic duo??

That's part of why I didn't like s10. Like no I loved the IDEA of Mark of Cain dean, and demon dean was hilarious (although I HATE him) but it was just Dean vs Sam, Dean vs cas, Dean vs the world. And idk I liked the idea, cause this time it was sam doing everything to save Dean, but man I just didn't like the fighting..

Also s11 had a mention of TMNT, S10 did not so... points!!

S1 and 2 of spn were peak ofc, and s3 was good but not really memorable for me?? Idk I'll go back and rewatch once I finish the series (just finished s11)

S4 and 5 were also really good, we got Castiel who is peak, blood junkie Sam, which was one of my favorite plots!! And of course a lot more bobby. Rest in peace king!

And unlike some I loveeeed s6-7 like.. the soulless plot, and death? Dean dealing with soulless sam?? Chefs kiss I mean mwah. Then Sam tweaking because of hallucinations. NOT TO MENTION GODSTIEL?? loved him sm stg.

8-9-10 is where it kinda fell off. I mean idk the leviathans?? Weak. Hated them ngl. Idk if they were s7 but either way.. mid. I didn't like purgatory bc no way Sam would do that?? But I did like how it developed deans character..

I don't remember what happened in what season but I lovedddd kevin, hated metatron (but in the "it's because he's well done" kinda way), the tablets were aight, Mark of Cain was uh... something.. (I hate demon dean but he was peak..)

So like idk.. show is peak though, I'm just at that point in the hyperfixtion where it's like "BUT I COULD DO IT BETTER!!" ykwim?? NVM I'm sick with a fever, supernatural is all I have going for me man.

[drawnfamiliarfaces]

How do the girls get along

Pretty great actually!

Jenny and Kim are very good/close friends, since they met relatively early compared to others (they actually met each other first out of everyone, then others at one point and another) and had a shared adventure sometime after the ends of their respective shows (wink wonk).

But, their first meeting was not actually very um, positive. There was some conflict, but after it was resolved both of them gained a very solid friend for life!

Jenny, was glad to meet someone else (beside Brad) who treated her like a person/normal teenager (instead of an 8th wonder of the world or a freaky robot) and not to mention she got a fellow superheroine girl friend! After Misty, she kind of missed having someone like that to kick butt with (considering that like, 70% of her friends are dudes) or just hang out.

Kim was fascinated by Jenny, not because she is a robot (tho she does think its pretty cool) but because it kind of gave her a contrast to her own life in a weird way? Like, Kim was a normal teenager who got into superheroing on accident and just went with it, while Jenny was created with a goal of being Earth's defender but rebeled to have some sort of normal life. And now they both live those weird semi-normal lives, that led them to meeting each other.

Jun is around 5-6 years their junior and while they met each other much later on, when Jun was a little older (like not 11-12 age of the show), she still kind of looked up to them and both Jenny and Kim felt an instant kinship with the girl.

Before she met Jenny and Kim, Jun only knew a couple other guys as fellow heroes/magical protectors (guess who ;D lol), and while she had plenty of female role models (Ama/Jasmine being the most prominent) and friends, she kind of enjoyed meeting some cool older superheroines to bond with! It also helped that despite the age difference, both Jenny and Kim never looked down at her when it came to superheroing/fighting, but respected her abilities and expertise (considering that Jun was practically an apprentice to her Ama since at least 8-9ish of age, when her powers first awakened, she has a lot of experience).

They both are kind of like cool older cousins to her, who travel a lot for their work and come visit to hang out often and tell/share stories about their adventures. Their and her lines of work while similar, also run in completely different circles (human/interplanetary vs magical/supernatural), so its always a treat to hear about the things they do.

(And yes sometimes she feels jealous about the fact that both of them get to travel all over the world, and despite the developments, more often than not she has to stay town locked and limit her excursions to magical realms.)

Silly thing, but Jun absolutely adores Jenny, for one simple fact that she can travel to space just like that (she and Danny, fellow astronaut/space fans, share that, despite the fact that Danny kinda can travel to space just like that too.)

[shaylogic]

DBDA Season 2 Wishlist Part 2:

Seeing the inside of Charles' Bag of Tricks and learning more about the mechanics of it

Charles running into one/some of the bullies that killed him. They're much older now. Maybe he has realizations about them like Edwin did with Simon. Or maybe they're still scum attacking people, and Charles poltergeist-haunts their asses

Finding out more about how Edwin learned all these languages, magic tools, and supernatural creatures lore. Did he pick it up in Hell or after he got back from it?

On that note, what exactly went down with him in Hell? "--traded to a demon who traded me to another demon who traded me to something WORSE than a demon!"

Crystal family/ancestor tree realm and powers. I'd love to learn more about each woman at the table, like Avatar past reincarnation life flashbacks

Niko new character love interest?

Mission to help Tragic Mick. Maybe we get to see Sedna?! Crystal could potentially make that happen, since she addressed Lilith and the Forest Spirit.

The Dandelion Sprites/"gods"? become cursed to be mortals and now they have to figure out how to navigate the world as attention-seeking assholes. Maybe they work with Crystal's parents lol

Crystal and Charles really make a go at dating to see if those feelings can really go anywhere, but there ends up being quite a bit of conflict and difficulty. Still, we get lots of nice ship moments in the early half of the season.

Edwin has started accepting and leaning into modern gay culture and tries chatting up guys to distract himself from Charles and Crystal (trying to be a good friend to Charles, especially).

If they can get the copyright permission, please gods give us Edwin and Niko watching Heartstopper together. Charles happens to witness a bi Nick scene when he's walking through.

More Niko & Charles friendship development. They didn't get enough moments together in season 1.

More ghost possession! The Night Nurse is already well aware of them, so they're not alerting her. But of course she would not allow it.

Night Nurse refuses to be a secretary and forces the boys to do paperwork after every case. They've got homework now.

Also, in s1e1, there's a pregnant pause between Edwin and Charles talking about the dangers of possession. There's a story there, and I need to know it in season 2. What did Edwin do? Who'd he try to possess?

More clear explanation to the audience of how touch works between humans/ghosts and ghosts/ghosts on various planes (earth vs hell for example, so we can go back to scream and cry at s. 1)

Crystal and Niko girls' day sightseeing in England!

Now we're in London, we're back on the boys' turf. Where are their main hangouts, contacts, and magic shops? Do they have any place special to the two of them with nostalgic memories? It's been 30 years!!!

We've seen some Edwin culture clash (and I want more!) but also more Charles culture clash with modern times (charles: "😮‍💨 Can you believe they don't make mixed tapes anymore?" Niko: "🥰they do playlists online now. I'll make you one! " Crystal: "👀 You made mixed tapes, Charles?")

Cat King and Meowpheus interaction

Domestic friend fluff (core four all in a big bed together watching movies)

Feel free to add your own wishlist in the reblogs/comments! <3

[marlowethelibrarian]

Writeblr intro!

Hi, I'm Marlowe, they/them, late 20's, not white, not straight, not cis. But I am a magical wizard. (also i have an MLIS degree though im not currently working in a library)

I've been writing this n that for a long time now, but I'm starting this blog now bc I wanted a place to aggregate and post some of my stuff as I continue to work on my writing. I usually write adult fantasy or scifi, though I guess it might play to a YA audience. I like to look at themes of trauma and scarcity and what that does to a person.

I also like to analyze and liveblog about stuff that I am reading/watching and pick apart writing decisions, so that's going to go here too.

------------

WIPS

Raviaki Versus

Status: Waiting for Round 1 results

Word Count: Approx 30k words

Warnings for: Disease, eye trauma

Project Tag | Character Tag | Worldbuilding Tag | Snippet Tag

My contribution to the storytelling competition, the Summer Leagues Original Character Tournament.

Ravi, the genius halfling alchemist and unrepentant drug dealer has been sacrificed to seal the plague goddess Irra. However, they get the opportunity to enter an interdimensional tournament with a blanket wish as a prize. Is it their opportunity for freedom or are they simply providing Irra an opportunity to escape?

Available to read here:

Now available on Ao3!

Currently up to: Round 2 vs Kiriata and Aztachronopilas

_________________

Project: Salted Earth

Status: First draft in progress

Word Count: ~33k atm

Genre: Queer Adult Fantasy, Political intrigue

Warnings for: Infanticide, violence, implied sexual assault, abuse, transphobia and ableism

Project Tag | Character Tag | Worldbuilding Tag | Snippet Tag | WIP Intro post

The story for Project Salted Earthcenters on a pair of identical twins, separated by birth. One raised in the temple of Suyo as a talented priestess, the other a genius alchemist that has run out of luck and time and realizes they have an uncanny resemblance to the up and coming priestess…. However, they find themself with more than they can chew, as the aging queen priestess and her heir are at odds with each other, and their twin is being groomed to possibly replace the crown priestess.

_________________

Project Hail Mary

Status: Draft 1

Word Count: 5k currently

Genre: Horror

Warnings: Gore, Weird Pregnancy, transphobia, claustrophobia

Project Tag | Snippet Tag

Inspired by a spooktober challenge with the words RIP and SPORE

A team of five scientists and engineers travel to the depths of the Hail Mary Cavern system, in order to help establish a habitat away from the ravages of climate change on the surface. Things don't go as planned.

Project: Void City

Status: Draft 2

Word Count: 4k

Genre: Supernatural Urban Fantasy

Warnings for: Gore

Project Tag | Character Tag | Worldbuilding Tag | Snippet Tag

An old short story, How to Break a Vampire’s Heart with some potential to rework

Adrian, supernatural cop with an unusual super power faces down a real vampire at the vampire costume contest

[finalgirlsamwinchester]

Thoughts on a potential Sam & Benny relationship? Platonic or otherwise? 👀✨

Hi!!! thank you for asking this hehe. See Benny falls under the category of characters 'assigned' to Dean who personally, to me, also have a lot in common with Sam when you really look beneath the surface (Cas is another character who falls in this camp). And what he has in common with Sam is just. a lot more thematically meaningful to me lol. Also I'm sorry... this is gonna be mostly literary analysis because i'm a real freak who judges ship potential between characters according to ~themes~ 😔

Benny, like Sam, is a character who's born from liminality. He's forced to occupy that space by the nature of his existence, but just like with Sam, his ambiguities aren't allowed to remain within the narrative. I'm using liminal here as a catch-all to cover both the idea of ambiguous identity and ambiguous zones between bordered territories, regions that in essence don't 'belong' anywhere.

Both Benny and Sam are not-monsters. Sam is the human who's never quite human, Benny is the monster who's never quite a monster. It's interesting to me that on a narrative level, Benny has to be 'exorcised' from the story first before the show fully leans into the stable home territory of the Bunker. From that point in the story onwards, any ambiguities in Sam's identity get squashed too. He's forced to occupy a rigid, unquestioned sense of belonging now - to the hunter community and to his family. His monstrous associations are something purely referred to in the past tense (i'm not referring just to the demon blood arc here, but how his soulless and hallucifer arc frame him as something 'dangerous' to the narrative).

Benny's introduction alone renders him a liminal creature, he comes from Purgatory, an 'in-between' realm sandwiched between Earth and Hell, a place of perpetual fighting, journeying and movement. there is no real home to be found in Purgatory. There's no place for rest. And when we learn his backstory, we learn that he was a literal sailor, a monster pirate hunting on open waters. He is a displaced person without a nation, no stable 'home'. The ocean doubles as another form of Purgatory; a liminal space for travellers, where one is always journeying and vulnerable. In that sense, he's a metaphorical double for both Sam and Dean, stuck journeying forever in their car, moving from one liminal space to the next (for them, in the form of motel rooms. there's a great chapter in the book TV Goes To Hell: An Unofficial Roadmap of Supernatural on this).

On a surface level, Benny embodies the type of free, rugged masculinity Dean has always idolised and aspired towards. On one level, he fits neatly into the same category as Gordon, Ketch etc. under the category of guys who just hearken back to John. But the added dimension of him being a non-practising vampire is what ties him to Sam, and what makes him an engaging side character to me. (Like, the literal denying-themselves-of-blood of it all). Real belonging will always come at the cost of erasing some integral part of who they are, a part of them that marks them as non-human.

Benny's brief subplot also directly mirrors Sam's arc in early s8 - both of them try to settle down and try and place roots. For Benny, it's with a descendent in Louisiana (a migrant trying to reconnect with his roots? [sniper on the roof takes me ou-]). But for the both of them, Dean is the ghost of hunting who disrupts this false, temporary sense of settlement. For Sam, it's Dean's return from Purgatory that pulls him away from a 'false' peace. For Benny, it's his association with Dean that draws hunters upon him (through Dean comes Sam, then Martin). Hunting in Supernatural is the boundary enforcer, the border police, the violent vigilantism that draws strict lines in the sand between humanness and monstrosity - a functional metaphor also for the ways we define who gets to be considered a citizen vs. an illegal alien.

(Also all of this fits into a meta I'm currently trying to write where I'm parsing my own feelings on why Sam's isolation/ambiguity resonates so particularly with dilemmas around identity and isolation as an immigrant child of migrants, compared to a character like Dean. So a bookmark here for further meta on a deeper reading into migrant narratives present in Benny + Sam's arcs?)

tldr; imagine if there was a single person of colour in the Supernatural writer's room (lol) damn what could've been!

[halfbakedreviews]

Half Baked Review: Miss Night & Day

Length: 16 episodes | ~ 30 min/episode Half Baked Jury: It's fun Emotional Investment Level & Binge Degree: Grill Cheese Sandwich Overeasy (Low to Medium) + Serial Murders FL: LOVE! ML: We love a strong lead 2ndML: He exists Genre: Rom-Com, Fantasy/Supernatural, Murder Mystery,

Characters Ingredients:

☀️: FL day time, ~ 50 years old 🌙: FL night time, ~28 years old ⚖️: ML, tall prosecutor 🎤: 2nd ML, kpop star with anxiety 🔪: murder, murderer 🚨: police

Plot Synopsis Instructions w/ a Dash of Spoilers

Okay so... 🌙 is an unemployed 28-year-old, and it's not because she hasn't been trying. 🌙 lives with her parents and becomes the victim of a scam and that's how she meets ⚖️. It's a really cute meet cue in all honesty. Anyway, 🌙 meets a magic cat and falls down a well and magically inherits a body that turns 50 years old in the daytime and then 28 years old at night. At first, 🌙 upset but then she gets over it and then finds a job at the ⚖️ office when she is ☀️. Her parents freak out though. ☀️ takes the name of her missing/deceased aunt as an identity. ☀️ is great at her job, she is really excited that she can land a job as an older woman and finally fulfill her dream of working as a civil servant (sort of). ☀️ is full of stamina and eventually gets promoted. ⚖️ is a bit ageist (just a heads up). Anyway, ⚖️☀️are chasing a drug/murder case by day, while ⚖️🌙 are catching feelings at night.

This is a fun light-hearted drama with a really interesting murder mystery in the background.

Recipe Hiccups

It seems that drug addiction is something that is being shown more and more in South Korea. Interestingly, there is a juxtaposition that is explored here -- drug addiction that is part of a societally rejected subculture vs. drug dependence that is a result of mental unwellness. Personally, I think this is a really sticky issue to be black and white on because everyone has their own story and struggles. I just hope that the portrayal doesn't result in continued misunderstanding. K-drama writers, what is it with dismembering bodies?!!! I will say this particular serial killer's approach is different & weird (hint it includes drugs and hacking of body parts). The only thing I can't wrap my mind around is why the two were combined. Are they making a case that drugs and heinous crimes are correlated? Is it an attempt to create a unique psycho? did the K-drama generator insist on the two?

Beware of the hideous CGI cat and some annoying people who thought beating up a cat was a good idea. There is a special place at the bottom of earth's broiler for people like that.

Baked till Golden

I love love love love love it when k-dramas explore different stories. This k-drama we get to interact with older folks in such a delightful way, it's almost like sitting in a high school cafeteria. The title sequence is so cute. It's a mashup of Sailor Moon influence & comic books. super cute 🥹✨💕

Jung Eun Ji APINK queennnn is our FL so obviously it's wonderful and so is Lee Jung Eun one of the Greatest Actress of All Time (prove me wrong).

If I said it wasn't chef's kiss I would be lying, these ladies really carryyyy the story and I am eating it up. The pace of this drama is nice. This is a gimme the recipe kinda of drama. I recommend it. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ happy watching! 🍪

[defining-skyology]

Defining Spirits.

[[[Long read/article ahead]]]

[[[>Continue-Read]]]

Hello all of my two readers, welcome back!

Please observe the following definitions from Google for the word "spirit".

Got it all? Some kind of understanding? Good, because we're actually going to avoid using ANY of these specific definitions for this post. Enjoy the word vomit~ ❤️

When writing fiction, the concept of death can be molded in so many different ways.

Whether your character's death is literal or figurative, material or spiritual, alarming, unsettling, uncomfortable, horrifying, somber, sacrificial,

Or sacred, important, meaningful, glorified;

Death always marks the end of one story.

But in many stories, it also then marks the beginning of a new one.

Let's make a bold beginning statement to start off our Defining process with this term, something to rattle the house.

Ancestors =/= Spirits

From now on within the blog, we will understand that the difference between our Ancestor, and the Spirits of our Ancestors, is extremely important to acknowledge.

They are physically, vitally, spiritually, and thematically, different characters from each other.

While Ancestors have solid bodies that are often believed to be a composite combination of both Light and earthen matter, Spirits have broken free of their earthen shell with the help of the Descendant.

We've deemed in the last post that earth + Light (plus an affinity for humanity) creates an Unnatural Being somehow. If this is the case, then without that earthen cover, the Being is now left as just '100%' Pure Light.

In other words, Spirits have become Natural Beings, compared to their mortal coils from before.

A common misconception I've heard among the community over the years is that they (the Spirit) would likely be 'just' a fragment, 'just' their Soul left over, split from their body. The major reasoning behind this thought process is the most common, stereotypical definition of Spirit that we discussed before; either just as a synonym for Soul, or as a description of a ghostie "manifestation".

I personally see this as a disservice to the wonderfully crafted design of Beings of Light. The Light substance that has escaped the shell of the dead Ancestor is not just an 'energy', not just a spiritual concept, not at all. Physicality and Spirituality go hand in hand in the Sky universe, because Light does not die or shrivel; and at most can only be contained. All of this is why I believe that

Spirits are still 'proper' Beings.

Please Observe the Merriam-Webster definitions for the word "spirit". You will find that the word can be a lot more contrived and technical than the specific, stereotypical ways that most people and cultures use it, and the first two potential definitions given are the vibes I want to go with. The vibes that I (personally) believe match the most with what Spirits (as a concept within the Sky universe abiding by the laws of Light-substance 'science') were intended to be.

They are entities that are 'alive'.

Pure Light essence. Supernatural but not immaterial. No less Pure than the Creatures who dance in eternal wonder for the Megabird; no less free than the Descendant. They are now a part of the Megabird's plan; the true Nature of all things.

As before, Natural Beings are one with the Light, fully Connected to all extensions of the Megabird. This Connection is magnified by a direct Connection that Descendants make with each Spirit when they help them Ascend. Though this is getting into more complicated territory for a much later day, in short,

Spirits are Projected down from the Sky when the Descendants call upon them, through this Connection.

This strong visual theme occurs every time they appear and reappear in front of us within the world, and just like the discrepancy of Spirit vs. Ancestor, I believe that it would be a mistake for us to ignore just how intentional this visual theme of them Descending down from the Sky is.

It must not be overlooked.

Alright, well so far we're making pretty substantial ground towards a nice, clean, single sentence Definition for our term.

Here's what we know so far:

- Spirits are Natural Beings that are rejoined as a part of the Megabird.

- Spirits are projected from the Sky. (In some strange direct relation to us.)

But... Why do they come back down into the world if they're already Ascended?

The Answer lies within the word I've been using to describe their arrival whenever they appear; they are being Projected. By what?

By us.

Our Connection with them after we save them allows us to call upon them (and I'd like to believe that, canonically, this can be done at any time) and have them be Projected down into the world from the Light.

We know that the reason the Spirits come back is to spend time with us. Yes, that is genuinely what I believe is the flat canon reason why Spirits can just casually exist within the world as we see them do in Aviary and other places and events. They are trying to help us through our journey, and the most important thing that the Descendants need right now in this era, above all things, is to stay mentally healthy.

They want to make sure that we don't ever have to feel alone.

And unlike us as the Descendants, the Spirits aren't programmed with a mission. The Spirits are free now, just like the Creatures. But they still want to help us. They want to be with us and spend time with us. If that isn't love, I don't know what is.

So now that we know why, we have all the pieces.

- Spirits are Natural Beings that are rejoined as a part of the Megabird, freed out of their earthen shell.

- Spirits are projected from the Sky.

- Spirits descend from the Sky in order to help the Descendants.

🎉🎊🎂🎆🎈🎉🎊🎉🎉

And there we have it folks; the Definition for our term "Spirits", and what that means to Sky.

Another day another article. I seriously do not have the ability to just make a short bitesized, digestible post.

But that's okay. I think giving myself the time to pour a bit more actual love into each post is a lot nicer in its own way anyways.

Thank you so much for reading, and have a good day/night!

[aufi-creative-mind]

How would Magic and Deities originate per say in your Botw-Totk worldbuilding project? Plus if the past games are canon in your stuff or not

Oooooh yes! I love these kind of worldbuilding questions. I have a lot to share for my BotW-TotK worldbuilding project (and this also relates to my BotW-TotK Family and Legacy series), so I'll try to break them down into three topics.

(I will also keep this spoiler-free for TotK lore since it hasn't changed much of my ideas)

--

Firstly, yes! The past games are canon to my worldbuilding. They all happened in the "Age of Myths" as described in BotW lore. I imagined that there was a cataclysmic "convergence" event when the multiple timelines were weaved together into one singular timeline prior to the events of BotW-TotK. Sort of similar to the Dragonbreaks from the The Elder's Scrolls series - where time was broken into multiple timelines before they somehow converged back together into one singular timeline. And everything that happened in each timeline are all true and did happened - despite contradicting one another.

So.....try not to think to hard on that one. Very few people in the BotW-TotK Hyrule know about the "Convegence" event. And most view the stories of past games as fairytales or folklore.

I had an idea that the story of Majora's Mask is a children's tale that a lot of kids would pretend-play as "Majora VS Fierce Hero".

--

Secondly, magic, I'm gonna be very honest. I haven't put much thought on how magic works in this version of Hyrule and sorta took the soft worldbuilding path of how magic works in this world Essentially, magic does exist in Hyrule but how a person can use it is rather unclear.

There are magic gifted ones like Zelda and her Sealing magic, Mipha with her healing and Urbosa with her lightning powers.

Then there are supernatural abilities like Link and his Flurry Rush which in my headcanon, is a time-based power.

And then there are abilities that can be taught. For example, the Yiga Clan's teleportation techniques and Revali literally created his own power of Gale through great effort and sheer will.

And then, there's the whole magic-tech aspect as well with the Ancient Sheikah tech and later, the Ancient Zonai stuff with TotK. So I can't really say much other than "game mechanics I guess?", without hurting my poor brain even more.

--

And finally, DEITIES.

The way I approached the deity / faith sytems of Hyrule is sort of like a softer worldbuilding version of The Elder's Scrolls' faith systems. The deities such as Hylia and the three Golden Goddesses are worshipped by the many peoples of Hyrule but not really present beings themselves (besides speaking via the Goddess Statues to the blessed few...and Link).

How they are being worshipped differs between different races and clans.

The universal Hyrulean creation story is about the three Golden Goddesses. Din, the Goddess of Power, created the material realm and the red earth. Nayru, the Goddess of Wisdom, created the laws and brought order to the world. And Farore, the Goddess of Courage, created the life forms to live on this new world. When they departed from this realm, they left behind a fragment of their divine essence in the form of the Triforce.

In the Hylian faith, they worship the Goddess Hylia as their chief deity who was blessed with the power of the Triforce to protect the land of Hyrule from the evil darkness. And so for the Hylians, they hold Hylia to a very favourable view as a Goddess of Light and divine protector of their homeland of Hyrule with the Queens and Princesses - many named Zelda - are seen as living incarnations of Hylia or even as her "daughters" with her divine blood. (Also my headcanon is that the name "Hyrule" is short for "Hylia's rule")

However for the Sheikah, my headcanon is that their faith follows a theme of duality that is not often present or spoke about by their Hylian counterparts. Perhaps for them, Hylia has "light and shadow" faces - she is the Goddess of Light that loves and protects her people, but she is also a Warrior Goddess that defends and judges those under her gazes. Thus, Hylia isn't seen as an "always good and loving" goddess and is instead recognised as a "benevolent but has a harsher side" entity. To love and to fear.

And this is just for the Hylian and Sheikah clans. The other races may have their own interpretations and pantheons - the Zoras may see Nayru as their chief deity as opposed to Hylia. Or the Gorons may put Din as their cheif deity. And heck, the Gerudo may have their own pantheons of gods or even ancestor worship that differs from Hylians.

(That being said, my Ordon worldbuilding project does has its own faith systems that is separate from the Hyrulean faith. And it focuses on the four Light Spirits as the divine guardians of the region. But that deserves its own post).

[smowkie]

finished the first bingo card for the summer from @ficreadingchallenge! thank you for such a fun challenge ❤️

list of fics under the cut

1. fluff

A Handful of Halloweens by WonkyElk

McShep, SGA, 2,592 w, teen

summary:

John and Rodney share a few Halloweens.

2. rec'd by a friend - thanks, @novemberhush ❤️

Warmth by bccalling

Buddie, 911, 699 w, gen

summary:

A tiny little fluffy snapshot of a Buckley-Diaz family camping trip and a chilly night out by the campfire.

3. superpowers / no powers au

Superteam! series by WonkyElk

McShep, SGA, 16,784 w, teen

summary of part 1, We’ll Name It Later:

“So, all four of them …” she indicated the members of her premier Gate team, all currently cuddled up asleep in infirmary beds and looking so peaceful and cute and so painfully vulnerable, that she almost wanted to slip them each a snuggly teddy bear, against bad dreams, “have, in entirely separate incidents, each somehow acquired a superpower?” Carson shrugged helplessly at her. “It’s been a really weird day.”

4. rarepair

One Functioning Human by TwoTales

ZelenKay, SGA, 848 w, teen

summary:

“You just had to touch the fucking plant, Radek.” Radek’s eyes stung, his ears ringing. Tears tracked down his cheeks as he lay on the ground. “Do not talk, it hurts too much.” Radek opened his eyes and peered over at him. Rodney’s closed eyelids and the skin around was hot pink, his face wet with tears and snot as he wheezed.

5. long fic (>25000 words)

Everything Changes (And You Gotta Be Ready) by Temaris

McShep, SGA, Doctor Who, Torchwood, 25,083 w, teen

summary:

When Sheppard is lost between Gates, McKay moves heaven and earth to get him back.

6. found family

He's Ours by Brumeier

SGA, 929 w, teen

summary:

LJ Comment Fic for Scary Wednesday prompt: Any, Any Character(s), fear of intimacy In which John learns that his fear of intimacy has been subverted, when he wasn't paying attention.

7. newest fic in the tag of your choice - #Twenty Years Later

wrong side up by dedkake

SGA, 2,800 w, gen

summary:

“Colonel,” Teyla says, stopping him outside the gathering tent with a hand on his elbow. She searches his face for a moment, her smile softening at whatever she sees. “Please consider what he has to say before you respond. This opportunity—I think it is what we have all been waiting for.” or, things are coming together for this alternate timeline.

8. fic from your first fandom

Reunion by JaneDavitt

Wincest, Supernatural, 342 w, mature

summary:

Dean's taking a much-needed shower and Sam's remembering too much. Credited as the first Supernatural fic, and so the first Dean/Sam fic too, which is something I only discovered much later.

9. inspired by another fanwork - inspired by 12. de-aging / kidfic What Happens in the Clubhouse by skoosiepants

The Knights of the Pegasus Galaxy vs. the Chicken Pox by DevilDoll

McShep, SGA, 5,906 w, teen

summary:

After the worst was over, having space chicken pox was kind of awesome. A Clubhouse universe story.

10. didn't know they were dating

it started out with a kiss by beckybegins (QueenTheatrics)

Buddie, 911, 5,457 w, teen

summary:

It’s a normal day when Eddie decides he’s going to blow up his life. OR The fic where Eddie kisses Buck, panics, and speed runs a relationship.

11. gift giving

like a freight train by dedkake

McShep, SGA, 536 w, gen

summary:

It could've started before the storm. or, Rodney's in panic-mode and John interrupts.

12. de-aging / kidfic

What Happens in the Clubhouse by skoosiepants

McShep, SGA, 5,981 w, teen

summary:

Right, yes, because traveling through the eleven miles of forest between here and the 'gate will be a piece of cake when we're roughly the size of dwarves, with all the strength of a bundle of sticks!"

free space

Cake or Death by Brumeier

McShep, SGA, 2,494 w, teen

summary:

It was just a piece of cake, but for Rodney it was far more dangerous.

13. BIPOC main character

Pegasus Miracles series by A_Storm_of_Roses

Aiden/Ronon, SGA, 8,445 w, explicit

summary of part 1, Pegasus Miracles:

After 6 years, dozens of planets, and countless dead Wraith, Aiden Ford returns - quieter, lonelier, and unsure. After 7 years as a Runner, Ronon thinks he might just understand. Or Aiden and Ronon get the happy ending they both deserve.

14. enemies to friends / lovers

Hope by badly_knitted

Teal'c & SG-1, SG1, 405 w, gen

summary:

When Teal'c meets the strangers, he feels the first real stirrings of hope for his people.

15. magic

Achilles’ Heel by WonkyElk

McShep, SGA, 8,495 w, teen

summary:

He’d learned a few things over the past six months. How far dragonfire could reach and how it cooked you so fast, you were dead before you finished screaming. How the claws and beak of a griffin tore through flesh like it was the smoothest of butter. Most of all, he learned that life would be a whole lot more bearable if he could manage not to care.

16. space AU

Following the Stars to Home by WonkyElk

McShep, SGA, 16,197 w, mature

summary:

He was almost out of the landing zone, when a murmur of rippling excitement caused him to look back. Apparently, the Rusty Bucket - or whatever it was called - wasn’t the only ship to have picked today to visit the dullest planet in the known universe.

17. hurt / comfort

Distraction by laceymcbain

McShep, SGA, 9,064 w, mature

summary:

“Have you tried ear plugs?” Rodney asks. “It’s in my head, Rodney. Ear plugs don’t do a lot when the voices are inside your brain!”

18. gen fic

Reckoning by tacit

SGA, 5,375 w, teen

summary:

Written December 2007 for the SGA H/C secret santa. Everybetty requested gen Shepwhump featuring Beckett, that didn't skip over the medical details. This is what came out. Nb: At the end of The Defiant One, McKay nods to Sheppard's gun shot wound and asks if Sheppard's okay. Sheppards replies, "Other than this and a few cracked ribs," which seemed eye-rollingly over-stoic, to me. I've taken a bit of poetic license with the severity of Sheppard's injuries.

19. werewolf AU

when the autumn moon is bright by callunavulgari

McShep, SGA, 2,881 w, teen

summary:

There weren’t, strictly speaking, supposed to be wolves in Atlantis.

20. secret relationship

Magic Marker by trinityofone

McShep, SGA, 1,711 w, teen

summary:

John’s eyes were wide with horror. “You’re telling me that I walked around all day with ‘Property of Dr. Rodney McKay’ written on my ass?”

20. secret relationship - again, i couldn't decide which to use, so you get both

Jane Wyatt did it first by mayachain

McShep, SGA, 243 w, gen

summary:

It's not that they're being subtle, exactly.

21. under the influence

Deep Space Malady by LogicGunn

McShep, SGA, 3,332 w, teen

summary:

Rodney swears when the extension in his assigned room rings at stupid o’clock in the morning, waking him up from a deep sleep (and pleasant dreams about messy-haired Colonels) barely half an hour after his head had hit the pillow. He fumbles for the receiver in the dark and hisses at whoever is at the other end of the line.

22. new (to you) fandom

Crossing the Line by Zilentdreamer

Rysposito, Castle, 2,311 w, teen

summary:

There is a line that divides us from want we want. Sometimes we don't even realize its starting to blur until its gone.

23. video edit / fanmix

Run Baby Run by randommindtime

McShep, SGA

24. epistolary

Beach Real Estate by ficontessa

McShep, SGA, 3,405 w, gen

summary:

If you're going to go all in on wacky AUs, why NOT one where John is a beach realtor? This is ridiculous and I'm not even sorry.

[aina-otsuki]

I may or may not have gotten off track and made a fanfic about “A Kairos Moment”. @avaetin ever since your created that fanfic and ship I’ve never been able to look back.

Anyways anyone know a the show Star VS The forces Of Evil? Now imagine Nico’s family born from the “failed” clay prototypes made from the escaped essences of Earth, Sea, Sky, and Pit. Making them have magic but they were able to create their own ancient type of magic. Which like in the show they have a wand passed down from each queen. But instead of having a single wand passed down why not have them create their own wand along with their own spells to back up their own creation. I see Nico as the family’s Eclipsa (Queen Of Darkness) and Celena (the Shy). I think he’d be Eclipsa because why not. Also I think he’d look wonderful with an umbrella. Celena is mainly because of what’s said about her in that one episode where Star’s inside the wand and like reading stone texts about each wand user. I like started writing a bit of a fanfic about it.

Oh! Totally almost forgot about the kingdom his family has. So the Kingdom’s name is Eclipsara bc why not. Now kingdom is know to be hidden in the shadows and within plain sight. It’s where light and dark take a dance in a perpetual waltz. The capital is called Nightspire. It’s where all the most culture of the kingdom is held. Then there’s the major trading city that’s surrounded by a forest and near a river. Whisperwood is its name. It’s called this for a reason actually. The woods of that forest is where the trees whisper murmurs of secrets and where tales of yore are carried within its winds. This kingdom has all kinds of people from supernatural beings to normal people that live together in harmony among the rule of their dear Queen or King. OH!! The spells I wrote spells that are similar to the shows except they’re Nico’s spells and and like what if Nico took Aeon, and his children to the kingdom to let them have a “normal” childhood. Eclipsa was like hated for leaving her kingdom for the one she loved so instead of that for Nico. I’m going to have his family praise him for it. Like they did for Maria. Like they do for every family member who had enticed an immortal and powerful being.

Yeah, that’s about it. I’ll probably reblog the spells I made later.

Should I be working on my Jasico Fanfic instead of posting. Yes. Do I care and think everything I’m writing in the fic sucks and change sentences every few minutes. Yes. Should I not procrastinate and write my fic instead of saying I’ll do it later cause I have school work. Also yes! Anyways here’s the small part I started for this AU!

“A young girl stood in front of a tapestry. She was the oldest of her sisters. She, like her mother, was inevitability, the end. She was the fate others faced within their final breath. 

She was Atropos…

She looked at the tapestry with wonder. This was her mother. Her mother had titles her father hadn’t known of. She thought it was interesting to learn about this. She would admire the tapestry more later, for now she should read what her Mother’s people had to say about her. She looked down to read a tile of stone with gems and riches all around and a symbol of her mothers family. 

“Niccoló, Queen of Eclipsará. To an Eclipsaran King was wed but took a primordial for his love. And away from Eclipsará fled.”

Atropos felt like scoffing; they made her mother out to be someone bad. Leaving a kingdom for love doesn’t mean the person is bad. She disliked the fact they simply painted her father out to someone bad on the tapestry. Atropos thought they hadn’t known anything about her father. However, just as she was about to leave when she saw the stone change wording.

“Niccoló, the Flower and Star, he who hides behind a shadowed umbrella. The hand that does sweetly hold, a trove of cosmic secrets that have never been told.”

It wouldn’t let me upload my picture of the docs. So I had to copy paste which sucks. Anyways I bid everyone goodbye.

[ananke-xiii]

Form and Void... and Hands and Hearts.

Intro.

I really like "Form od Void" from S11. It's one of my favorite episodes and it enrages me to no end that it was Andrew Dabb who wrote it. Sometimes a girl just wants to be a hater. But I don't have it in me :(.

Talking about H-A-T-E...

The episodes starts with this word:

H-a-t-e. It was with this left hand that old brother Cain struck the blow that laid his brother low. L-o-v-e. You see these fingers? They're arched. These fingers has veins that run straight to the soul of man. The right hand, friends -- the hand of love. Now watch, and I'll show you the story of life. These fingers, dear hearts, is always a-warrin' and a-tuggin', one against the other. Now watch 'em. Old brother left hand -- left hand hates a-fightin'. And it looks like love's a goner. But wait a minute. Wait a minute. Hot dog! Love's a-winnin'. Yes, siree. It's love that won. And old left-hand hate is down for the count.

This little monologue here is taken from "The Night of the Hunter" by Charles Laughton, his first and only movie. Laughton was bisexual and I'm telling you this because it's relevant to the usual queer stuff happening in SPN and to the point I want to make in this post.

The title of the episode, "Form and Void" , refers to the Genesis but it contains a meaningful omission. The King James version reads:

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

Earth is without form, and void. This changes everything because the subject of the sentence is the earth but here we're talking about "form and void" as nouns, not attributes. It's a brilliant call-back to the Genesis (therefore to the beginning of time and the beginning of SPN) and to the dichotomy of God and Amara but it's a smokescreen. The episode abounds with biblical references but there's more, at least to me. There is a secret.

If we look a little beyond Christianity the terms "form and void" are used in one of the most important sutras from Mahayana Buddhism. The Prajñāpāramitāhṛdaya, "The Heart of the Perfection of Wisdom", or simply called "The Heart Sutra".

I think you know where I'm going with this. The heart of the Heart Sutra is the following: "Form is emptiness (śūnyatā), emptiness is form". Sūnyatā is such a vast concept that I cannot possibly even IMAGINE of summarizing it here. Just for the sake of my argument I'll say that it's often translated as emptiness, vacuity, void... without form. Very broadly (and I'll go to different kinds of Hell in different religions just talking about this stuff in relation to fucking CW Supernatural LOL) it means that ultimate reality is EMPTINESS because there is no FIXED reality, no STABLE self and EVERYTHING is connected and dependent on something else. Therefore form is emptiness and emptiness is form.

You undestand that in this light "Form and Void" is no dichotomy, thefore the episode is telling us to subvert how we view things. And it starts with that quote from "The Night of the Hunter".

Little useful background: the movie is about a fake preacher who preys on two children to get to their father's hidden treasure. He's the big wolf in disguise, a hunter wearing a preacher persona. So we need to take what he says with a grain of salt and he says a lot.

Right hand vs left hand: the preacher/hunter says that the right hand is the hand of love and the left hand is the hand of hate. This follow a well-know misconception regarding everything associated with the left as "sinister" and satanic. It's a Christian view of the world. He also says that Cain killed his brother using his left hand while the right hand has "veins that run straight to the soul of man". This man is conning people.

Notoriously, the hand that has veins that run to the heart is the left hand. This is the reason why people put their wedding rings on their left hand's...ring finger. It's an incredible old assumption that has been debunked by science but we don't care about science here. We care about symbols. And symbolically-speaking the left hand is the hand of the heart and love, not the right hand.

Now where in the hell does this idea of right and left hand? And am I crazy for seeing hints of Buddhism in a story about the Christian God? No.

The left-hand and right-hand paths are two approaches to magic and Western esotericism in general. They're called this way because people in the '800 got interested in Tantrism and translated the sanskrit terms "vāmācāra" and "dakṣiṇācāra" respectively "left-hand path" and "right-hand path". I'm not gonna go into details but I think you understood by now that the "left-hand path" was the "evil" one, the one with sex and other Very Bad Things, while the "right-hand path" was Good and Sexless and Serious and Real. In other words, the right hand represents White Magic and Controlled Sexuality while the left hand represents Black magic and Uncontrolled Sexuality. Practitioners of black magic were evil AND gay.

LOL.

Let's go back to the serial killer preacher: he says that Love wins and that it's the right hand that triumphs over the left hand. All these fingers connected to the soul that are always tugging and warring and getting entwined and hot dog! it's hot in here! But, remember folks, he's conning people. So what he says it's the opposite of what we should understand.

the preacher shouldn't be talking about this stuff in front of children. but then again, he's a predator.

Wait there's more: do you want to know if you're left-hemisphere dominant or right-hemishpere dominant? All you gotta do is to weave your fingers. If your right thumb goes over your left one then you're LEFT-dominant. If your left thumb goes over your right one you're RIGHT-dominant.

Confused much? As you know left emisphere controls controls speech, comprehension, arithmetic, and writing while right hemisphere controls creativity, spatial ability, artistic, and musical skills. It's the opposite of what we might think (because of the stupid assumption according to which left is Bad and Evil. Well, ACTUALLY left is rationality and control so the joke's on you, stupid assumption).

The dear preacher over here is right-hemisphere dominant. It may possibly mean that he's LEFT-handed and thus this image is a huge foreshadow of his "evilness" and his eventual demise. It also means that what he's saying is bullshit.

So to sum it up: in this episodes there are hunters and preachers that aren't really hunters and preachers, there are innocent children who might be seen not as innocent, left hand and right hand are subverted and they mean the opposite of what they should mean thus actually meaning what they mean, the title refers to something AND to something else and this something is very much related to hands and love and hearts...

In just one fucking scene we are told the whole episode and I H-A-T-E-that Dabb wrote it, have I mentioned it?

[imsparky2002]

Canon vs Creepster: Kagami

Canon!Kagami *Bowing gracefully* You have quite the extrodinary outfit. I have a love for western films, watched them all the time back in Japan.

*Kagami Herushingu smiles, surprised at how... calm this girl is to see another version of herself. She tips the hat in response*

Herushingu: Well, thank ya kindly, darlin’! Name’s Herushingu, pleasure to meet ya!

Canon!Kagami: Kagami Tsurugi. I must say, your accent is lovely, yet is quite different from your name. Are you by any chance American?

Herushingu: Yes’m, Born and raised in Texas!

Canon!Kagami: Hmm... how interesting. I don't sense any sort of falsehood about you. Clearly this is the result of some sort of accident. Are you by any chance from an alternate reality?

*Herushingu's eyes widen in surprise. She's right on the money!*

Herushingu: Just precisely, ma’am. Where I’m from, my kin are monster hunters, same as I am ma’self!

Canon!Kagami: Oh! And by monsters, you are referring to more supernatural species? In our world, the only sort of monsters are those who were changed by the villainous Hawk Moth.

*Thinking of the butterfly, Herushingu can't help but snigger a little*

Canon!Kagami: Yes, yes, he looks as stupid as his name.

*Herushingu sobers back up and tells her counterpart about her team and the type of monsters they face*

Herushingu: Exactly right on that front, darlin’! We’re talkin’ real monsters, vampires, phantoms, demons! The kind that live to terrorize the in’cent folk! Not to mention the most vile. Human killers!

Canon!Kagami: What gives one person the right to decide when another’s life should end. It’s just…dishonorable!

Herushingu: S'like my mama says. "Humans are the only 'monsters', because they have no reason to kill."

*Canon!Kagami looks a little jealous and sad that her mother isn't as close to her.*

Canon!Kagami: Does your mother treat you well?

*Herushingu frowns, looking concerned for her counterpart.*

Herushingu: Yeah, she can be a bit rough on the edges sometimes, but we get on just fine! I get the feelin’ ya need someone to talk to, hon.

Canon!Kagami: *Trying to stay strong* I... I try hard to stay strong, in order to make her proud. But sometimes... *voice quivering* I feel as though I am nothing but a disappointment.

*She desperately hold back a sniffle, as Herushingu embraces her, letting the girl sob into her shoulders. It pains her to think of a world where her mama would treat her with such cruelty.*

Herushingu: Here, now, that’s a load’a nonsense! I’ve only just met ya, but so can already tell ya got a fightin’ spirit! The only person who’s standards ya need to live up to are your own, and I’m sure you got plenty to be proud of!

Canon!Kagami: *Sniffing* I... I'm sorry for breaking down. That isn't like me. *Trying to regain composure* I... I suppose I like fencing. I mean... my mother made sure that happened. *Frowning once again* Do... do you like fencing?

Herushingu: (smiles) I do love a good sword-crossin’ every now and again! But if I’m bein’ honest, my trusty guns get me through the most battles!

Canon!Kagami: What is a... gun?

Herushingu: (Blinks a few times) Oh, boy…

Canon!Kagami: *A little bit later* So, do you have heroes you fight alongside? Some sort of team?

Herushingu: (Smiles) Yeah, I got ma partners, Marinette and Adrien.

Canon!Kagami: *Feels a quiver in her stomach once again.* Oh... what are they like?

*Herushingu tells her about their jobs and personalities, and notices Canon!Kagami looking sadder and sadder as she continues*

Herushingu: Well, Marinette’s real spunky, she’s somethin’ of a mad scientist! Sometimes I don’t know what she’s talkin’ about, but it’s cute how excited she gets! And Adrien…well, he’s one of a kind. So sweet, but so lively at the same time! Don’t know what I’d do without em to be honest!

*Canon!Kagami sobs once again. Memories of events from canon are flashing through her mind. Herushingu frowns. What on earth happened between her and her partners in this world?*

Herushingu: What... what's wrong?

Canon!Kagami: It's... it's complicated.

*Herushingu's eyes narrow. Something happened to this girl, and she wants to know what*

Herushingu: Please tell me... if ya want to.

*And she did. She told Herushingu everything that had gone down. All of the highs and lows.... and Herushingu was PISSED*

Herushingu: Darlin’…I don’t even know WHAT to say. They put you through hell emotionally and yet you still stand by em! If they don’t realize how lucky they are to have you in their lives, I may do something I’d regret later!

Canon!Kagami: No... please don't. They're perfect for each other, just not for anyone else. Focus on your own partners, keep taking good care of them.

Herushingu: (Sighs) If you say so, lil lady!

Canon!Kagami: ... Is there any way I can visit you?

Herushingu: Well, here lemme give you my number. I got a few friends who know some witchy stuff, so they should connect across dimensions. Call whenever ya want!

Canon!Kagami: I will, thanks!

And that’s the last of the trio meeting their canon self! I feel that Kagami was done dirty in the show. Not just by Marinette and Adrien, but also with how the writers decided her and FELIX would be a good idea. I may do the villains and classmates as well, but I don’t know yet. Once again thank you to Weeby for assisting with the writing, and make sure to check out the previous crossovers with Marinette and Adrien. Reblog, reply, post and ask to spread the love. @artzychic27 @msweebyness