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insipid-drivel · 5 months ago

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Horses: Since There Seems To Be An Even Wider Knowledge Gap Than I Anticipated

...And actually find it really exciting that I have a reason to expand and address some comments and questions from my first post!

This is a sequel/addition to my original post, "Horses: Since There Seems To be A Knowledge Gap". I want to address more horse-related knowledge gaps, common misinformation and mistakes made by well-meaning and very skilled creators that wouldn't know otherwise unless they worked with horses directly. You should not have to work hands-on with horses to learn some of this stuff, but the fact remains that horse facts and riding knowledge is often underdiscussed and usually only shared by other people that work with/around horses. A lot of this information should be within easier reach for writers and artists, too!

Before I begin, I'd like to thank all of you that politely reached out in the comments, tags, and my DMs/asks with your thoughtful additions to details I forgot/left out/hadn't even considered, and your brave questions posed to me personally that I was more than happy to answer. I'm truly thankful to all of you who contributed with a positive energy, or that had the courage to reach out to me - the OP - with questions my first post didn't manage to help you with. I will never punish, shame, or otherwise mistreat anyone who comes to me with an earnest question or correction in good faith, anonymous or not. If you're polite to me, I will be polite to you. I will try my hardest to answer questions I may not have much experience with, but I will still do my best to research the answers so you don't have to, and tag/cite/refer you to people, books, or other knowledge sources that have more answers and experience than I do if I can't.

So, what more is there to know about writing and portraying horses? I'll just get started off the top of my head with some of the most frequent additions other tumblr horse folk have been hollerin' at me about, and with good reason, because you guys were right to point out what you did and really got me thinking!

-Spurs: My Second Take. In my original post, I voiced my personal distaste for the use of spurs in riding. Spurs, for those who don't know, were traditionally made as sharp metal pinwheels that attached to the back of riding boots for enhanced communication between the rider and the horse, much like how riding crops are used. I, personally, have had a lot of bad experiences seeing riders misuse spurs to hurt horses that I cared for as a stable hand and genuinely loved, and so I've been very shut down about the topic of spurs for many years.

Several people spoke up in defense of spurs as riding and communication tools, and I honestly believe that you guys were very on-point and made some great arguments: Spurs are only as harmful to horses as the intent the rider has in applying them, and I didn't have enough updated information about the different types of spurs that can be used nowadays that are not designed to be sharp or uncomfortable for the horse! I always grew up around traditional Cowboy-style spurs, which are sharp, stabby, star-shaped wheels, and can wound a horse and draw blood if used too aggressively. Tragically, most inexperienced and newer riders will use spurs too forcefully and wind up hurting the horse, and it's largely because new riders are inherently scared of riding, and over-rely on tools like spurs and crops rather than trust the horse to know what it's doing and be intelligent enough to know how to care for a human rider's safety.

Now, I've since learned that there are spurs with rubber wheels, blunted tips like those on the ends of safety-fencing foils, round metal bumpers instead of spurs at all, and even spurs that sport rotating metal balls that just feel (to the horse) like someone rolling a large ball-point pen over their sides, and more! So, to those of you that spoke up in tags and comments, thank you for doing so in a way that got me to open my own mind and check myself and my bad memories. You guys taught me something really cool and valuable that genuinely changed my perspective and opinions, and that's a really good thing!

-A Group Of Zombies/Unarmed Humans Can Take Down A Healthy Adult Horse. This is specifically aimed at The Walking Dead, but... yeah, you know the second episode when Rick rides a horse into the zombie-overrun Atlanta and the only way he's able to survive is when the zombies are distracted taking down and eating his obviously-jello-and-rubber horse?

Yeah, no. That is not how it would happen. At all. I think any biologists in the audience would back me up on that.

See, horses are prey animals, and they are herbivores. We're often used to thinking of herbivorous prey animals as shy, retiring, vulnerable animals that will simply keel over and die of fright when cornered by a predator. In reality, the opposite is often the case! Predatory animals tend to be much more shy, and much more cautious with their physical safety and wellbeing than prey animals tend to be, and that's usually because predators need to be able to remain uninjured and able-bodied enough to hunt again later, or else they and their babies may starve to death. Prey animals, especially herbivores, have evolved to deal with being hunted, and inherently don't need to be quite as healthy and able-bodied as a predator in order to avoid starving in the wild. Grass and leaves don't run away or try to fight back (unless it's like, poison oak or something), so an herbivore can generally recover from more environmental beatings than a predator typically can.

When cornered, horses very often only understand one thing: Murder. That's why you need horse whisperers and stable hands that know how to "gentle" a panicked horse as essential personnel at boarding and teaching ranches. While a horse can absolutely love and adore even the smallest of children and never harm them (at least intentionally - accidents happen), they can and absolutely will kill in order to defend themselves if running isn't an option. Horses can kick with up to 2,000lbs/907kg of force with their back legs. That's enough to break bones, shatter skulls, insta-kill grown men, and if you're kicked in the chest? Cause spontaneous cardiac arrest. Horses kick so hard and so fast they can literally make your heart stop from the speed and force of the impact alone: not from tissue damage. Horses will also paw and stomp with their front hooves until the Threatening Thing is effectively a mincemeat pancake, bite hard enough to take off fingers and hands, and can even cat-jump into the air off all four hooves in order to kick outward with all four legs at once. Spanish cavalry officers traditionally trained their horses to cat-jump on command in order to prevent them and their horse from being surrounded by footsoldiers in battle.

Horses will also use their body weight to roll, crush, scrape, and flatten anything or anyone that they don't want holding onto them. They will use environmental objects like trees, fences, or the corners of buildings to scrape unwanted hangers-on off into bloody smears (my mom's horse actually did this to a guy twice and he wound up in the ER with severe lacerations, bruises, splinters, and worse). Basically: a horse will use its entire body and the weight that comes with it as well as the entire world around it to fucking OBLITERATE anything they see as an unavoidable threat to their safety.

Without heavy-duty ropes, weapons, or tools, a group of adult, living, human men the size of football (the fake kind) linebackers wouldn't be able to successfully wrestle a fully-grown, panicked horse to the ground, much less a bunch of undead, mostly-decomposing zombies that only know how to bite and scratch. The horse Rick is riding on looks like it's probably a Quarterhorse, too. Quarterhorses are very sturdy, moderately-sized breeds that are also the iconic Cowboy Horse. They're tough, they're brave, they're hearty, and if they snap, they can and will kill both other animals and humans.

A horse's skin is so thick and tough that it's virtually impossible for a human to successfully bite or scratch hard enough to puncture through their outer dermal layers. As stable hands, a regular tool we use for getting mud out of a horse's hair is a literal metal wire brush that can rip open our skin if we try to use them, but the horses lean into them without even a hint of damage to their skin from doing so. There may be some tiny welts and a little bit of blood if a human tries to claw and bite at a horse, but horses do far worse to each other when they're just playing! Our fingernails and jaw muscles just aren't strong enough to do much damage to a healthy horse's skin.

-Horses aren't domestic animals.

...Yes they are. But just like other domestic animals, there can be wild populations of them that have had little or no human contact or intervention. Genetically speaking, however, horses are indeed domesticated. They're large domestic animals , but they are very much domesticated. Humans have been working alongside horses for at least 6,000 years. Domestic cats have only been domesticated for about 10,000 years. Truly wild horses in herds today, sadly, are pretty much 100% descended from domesticated horses. The recently-reintroduced-to-the-wild Przewalski's Horse is probably the closest genetic link to the original wild horses native to what are now modern Mongolia and Kazakhstan. Even the revered American Mustang is the product of domestication and planned breeding practices by both white colonists and Indigenous Americans over thousands of years, but Indigenous Americans were capable of maintaining a healthy balance between their personal horses and the essential need for herds of wild horses for the environment, too. White colonists did not understand this and intentionally stripped the North American frontier of its herds of wild horses, and are the primary reason the Mustang is only recently reappearing in wild herds in North America.

Sheep are domestic animals. Cows are domestic animals. Goats are domestic animals. Just because an animal has hooves and doesn't usually live in your house with you does not mean it isn't domesticated: You've just never had to live in an environment where they're essential to daily life or considered welcome companions, so they seem more like wild animals than cats and dogs. Hundreds of years ago, before modern building techniques created houses that could stay sustainably warm year-round, it was very normal for families to bring in cattle as large as horses and cows into their homes and sleep in the same rooms together for security and warmth, dookie and all (horse and cow poop doesn't smell as rank as dog or cat poo; they're herbivores, so it just doesn't smell as foul, and happens to make very good fuel for the fire). We don't do that anymore for health and safety reasons, and so horses, among other farmyard and "rural" domestic animals have become increasingly alienated from most people's psyches as being animals just as capable of being pets as your dog or cat.

-You can calculate how long a horse can run or work every day. This one is largely in response to some well-meaning questions I got from anons that seemed to want me to give them precise hourly work rates and mileage horses can tolerate. I was frustrated by questions like this, because it's a really cool subject to discuss, but not an easy question to answer. Horses are not machines, and "horsepower" is a unit of measurement derived from horses - not applied to them. "Horsepower" is a term used in machinery like tractors and cars. The total horsepower of your average horse is... well, 1, because that's how many horses a single horse can be without getting into some Welcome To Night Vale shit, which I'd love to do, but is a bit too far off topic for this particular post.

A horse's capacity to work or travel is heavily determined by outside factors, as well as organic factors in regards to the individual horse. How old is the horse? How heavy is it? How heavy is the rider? Is it also carrying cargo, like armor and camping supplies? Is it working on a farm and pulling a plow? If so, what quality is the soil? Has it been plowed before? Does the farmer own more than one horse? Is it hot outside? Is the horse going up and downhill? Is it fly season? Is the ground rocky? Are there burrowing animals in the area? Is there clay in the soil? Did it rain recently? How well-kept are the roads? Are there roads to use? What time of year is it- Aaaaaaah!

Ultimately, the answer is: A horse can work as long as it's willing to, and as long as its owner/handler judges is safe for the horse. A horse may be able to pull an old-fashioned plow through well-tilled soil for most of a cool morning before needing a break to cool down, eat, and rehydrate. It takes the judgment of the person commanding the horse when to call for a break or a full-stop to working for that horse by observing how tired it is (is it panting? Sweating? Slowing down? Are there any signs of strain in the hooves or legs?) or if it's in any way injured or in pain. The same applies with traveling long distances: It's up to the rider's judgment and how forgiving the environment is on the horse's body. In some cases, a riding horse may not be able to be ridden safely if the road is too treacherous or uneven for the horse to handle balancing its own weight and the rider's. In those cases, it's better for the rider to get off the horse and gently lead them through the bad terrain until it smooths out.

Also... horses can just... choose to quit. Some are quite sassy or very clear about their boundaries, and if they don't feel motivated or get too bored, they won't cooperate at all. The only way to deal with this is by letting them go do their own thing in the paddock until they decide they wanna cooperate again. Abusive people my try to whip or spur a horse into working past its limits, but humane people just let the guys take a break.

-Two adult people can ride on the same horse for a long time. GOD NO. PLEASE GOD NO. DO NOT DO THIS. PLEASE DO NOT EVER, EVER DO THIS.

Horses can only safely carry a maximum of about 30% of their total body weight on their backs without risking severe spinal damage, if not a broken spine altogether. A Thoroughbred - the iconic racing horse - typically maxes out at about 1,000lbs total in weight as an adult. Thoroughbreds are fairly tall compared to other fast, hot-blooded horses, like Arabians. That means that, at best, a perfectly healthy, not-too-old, not-too-young Thoroughbred horse would not be able to carry a total weight of more than about 450lbs, including the weight of its saddle and other tack, supplies carried by the rider, armor or other gear worn by the rider, and the impacts of gravity and the shocks of the rider's weight on the horse's back when it's moving at any speed. In the vast majority of cases, two adults cannot safely ride on the same horse for more than a very short distance before the horse enters the danger-zone for suffering severe and permanent spinal damage that can result in euthanasia. An adult carrying a baby or toddler is different, but two adults? Please don't. Please. Even if you're getting married and the owner of the super-huge pretty draft horse you're renting to take a gallant shared ride with your spouse with for pictures that reassures you it's fine, do not do it. Please just rent a carriage or pay extra for two horses. Please.

-A paddock with grass is all a horse needs to meet its nutritional needs. If that were true, horses would still be kept as pets more commonly around the world than they actually are. Unfortunately, to really thrive in the wild, horses need hundreds, if not thousands, of hectares of territory they can freely travel around in, while most paddocks are rarely larger than 10-20 acres when you're not talking about generational wealth or land. One of the reasons domestically-raised horses are almost entirely dependent on humans for food is due to the restricted spaces they're kept in. Grass only produces nutrition when the soil itself is fertile, and we humans don't necessarily have the natural ability to sense when soil is too nutrient-deprived for the plant life growing from it to be enough to provide just one horse with the vitamins and minerals they need on a daily basis to be healthy.

Another fact largely lost to history is that, back when most families had to farm to survive, farmers would store green leaves from various healthy and tasty trees and bushes in the boughs of other trees within their cattle paddocks and fields. By doing this, it kept large amounts of pests like rats from infesting the leaves, and keeping the cut branches and leaves stored within other leafy trees actually kept the greens fresher much longer than if they were stored on the ground or in a storage room. Horses would then graze from the leaves in the trees above their heads as well as the grass.

Stable hands and private owners keep rigorous dietary routines tailored to the needs of each individual horse. We're usually up and feeding the horses by dawn at the latest. The horses are usually given a few scoops of oats (not too much, because oats bloat up when they absorb liquid, and too much of that can give a horse colic), carrots and other vegetables for extra vitamins, salt licks (which are infused with extra minerals like a giant multivitamin), and even vitamin tablets/powder that goes straight into their dinner hay or alfalfa. Vets are essential for evaluating a horse's specific nutritional needs, so horses can actually get "prescriptions" for specific ingredients in their regular meals given to us from licensed large animal veterinarians, and not just a wealthy owner's best guess.

-Horses can throw up. Nope! It's not even physically possible for a horse to spit up food! That's part of why stable hands and owners have to be so careful in maintaining a regular, stable, healthy diet for their horses and keep their pastures and paddocks checked for toxic substances like poisonous plants that a horse may not know is toxic, or notice in the grass it's munching on.

Because they have such long necks and tall legs, horses need special muscles in their upper GI tracts in order to graze and drink water without constantly choking and fighting gravity. By having an esophagus that's one-way-only, as well as a muscle that clamps their stomachs shut at the top called a French Tie, horses hold down anything they swallow, even if it's enough to kill them.

-Horses are the best farm animals for a pre-industrial setting. Goodness no! Not at all! In fact, horses didn't start really replacing oxen on farms until the dawn of Draft Horses in the Victorian Era in the West. While many Eastern countries still retain the use of oxen for farming, Western European farmers fell prey to what we all dread: Peer pressure.

When Draft Horses started to appear in the scene in formal horse fancier associations, they were readily advertised as being excellent replacements for oxen (neutered male cows; so, a bull that has no balls). Oxen can be very stubborn, yet affectionate animals, and newer farmers often struggle more with handling oxen compared to horses. The Victorian Era saw a small boom in private farms, and so there became an increasing demand for "easy" farm cattle for newbie farmers to employ.

The other factor that played into horses replacing oxen in Western farming was clout. Horses are more expensive than oxen and generally seen as more prestigious to own. So, farmers often wound up "upgrading" from oxen to horses when their financial means allowed them to. The problem was that, in order to do the same amount of farm work with horses, you need more horses to replace exhausted or injured horses throughout each working day compared to how many more oxen you need to swap out throughout a day of heavy labor. But, nonetheless, horses took over for being "more trainable" and "more intelligent" than oxen (admittedly, oxen can be trickier to work with, but that does NOT mean that horses do a better job at hard field labor), and the Western oxen training industry has almost completely gone extinct.

Really, oxen do a lot better at extremely heavy jobs like tilling and plowing soil for growing crops and hauling large, heavy weights. Because oxen have cloven (two) hooves, they're a lot better at gripping the terrain and avoiding injury to their feet when they're working hard at awkward angles or on rough terrain. Oxen also pack on a lot more muscle and fat around their entire bodies, and so they have fewer vulnerable zones that can become irreparably damaged from exerting a lot of muscle power. Horses, only having a single hoof, can be rendered completely incapable of working or even running just from fracturing a hoof or stepping on a sharp object, like a nail.

-Any leg injury means instant euthanasia. No! No, no, no! There are lots of ways to treat a variety of injuries and illnesses that present in a horse's leg or foot. Especially nowadays, thanks to advances in all forms of prosthetics and 3D printing, horses are euthanized less and less for increasingly severe leg injuries courtesy of prosthetics and mobility aids! Some advances have been made so far that a horse that loses the lower portion of its leg can live a healthy life with a prosthetic!

Don't believe me?

Even in history, there have been treatments for leg and foot ailments for horses used before any talk of euthanasia is brought up. Remember: horses are often beloved service animals to people, today and a thousand years ago! Would you jump straight to euthanizing not only your best friend, but your primary mode of transport, as well as your extraordinarily-expensive ESA?

It's only in cases of severe breaks in a leg bone that injury-related euthanasia is discussed for a horse. Smaller fractures and hoof damage can actually be treated and healed, especially with modern veterinary science, and some fractures can be so successfully treated that a horse can return to riding and competing after recovering!

-Bits are cruel.

Look. There's one person that raked me over the coals in the replies for being ignorant in espousing bits as essential parts of a horse's bridle. I know who you are, and honestly, I feel the compassion you have for the animals... but you're still sipping a little much from PETA's kool-aid and did not convince me over to your side.

Yes, there are bridles that do not require bits to control a horse's head and communicate with it. Yes, there are riders that prefer them, and there are horses that can only be ridden with them due to bad experiences with bit-training or past dental problems. No, it's not cool to tut your fucking finger at me and call me ignorant when I assert that it's a very normal, standard part of tacking up and riding a horse, and the worst a bit can do is pinch the corner of a horse's lip or tongue if you are a jerk with your rein-etiquette. There are bits, just like I observed with spurs, that are specifically designed not to hurt or cause any distress to the horse, so if the person that dumped on me in the last post reads this one: Calm the fuck down and go take yourself on a walk along with your horse. Have an apple. You've clearly been in your stall too long.

As I was saying: Yes, there are different kinds of bits that are specifically designed not to harm a horse. Sometimes horses with smaller mouths or wrinklier lips (it's a thing) can have a hard time with specific bits due many of them sporting hinges where they wrap around out of the horse's mouth and connect to the bridle. This can be easily addressed by switching to a different kind of bit that's less harsh and more flexible for the sake of a horse's comfort, or getting rid of a bit altogether and swapping to bitless bridles. Ironically, I've met horses that actually stim with their bridles; they play with the bits with their tongues when they're excited before an event, kinda like they're grinding their teeth.

And yes, some horses can still have bad sensory issues with bits, and can need bitless bridles, and that's okay! The important thing about bridles in general is that they're the primary way a rider can communicate with the horse's head and show them where they want to go. As with riding, horses tend to go in the direction their heads are facing; they don't usually walk while looking sideways, but rather stand still to look sideways before turning back to the direction they want to go in to walk or run. A lot of riders are taught the phrase, "Head like a princess, hips like a whore," as a reminder to keep their hips loose and moving with the horse, but their heads focusing on where they want the horse to go, rather than looking at the scenery. Most riders, even those that are very experienced, can get distracted and accidentally put a little too much pressure on the horse's bridle and side in the direction of where they're looking, and that causes the horse to go off course, too.

-Horseshoes are incredibly painful and must be replaced only when absolutely necessary. Not at all! A horse's hoof is basically like a gigantic fingernail. While the inner core of the hoof, which is typically concave with a V shape in the middle and needs cleaning by stable hands on a regular basis to keep gunk, debris, and dangerous stuff like nails out of their feet is vulnerable to pain and injury, the rest of the hoof is literally a giant fingernail! A ferrier specializes at grooming a horse's hooves and trimming them so they don't overgrow (which can happen if they spend a lot of time on soft surfaces like grass), and many ferriers also specialize at setting and replacing horseshoes. A horseshoe specifically sits around the outer edge of a horse's hoof - specifically where a hoof is least sensitive and most likely to split or become damaged while riding and lead to infection and pain later - where the horse has no nerve endings. The nails that go into the horseshoe to hold it in place are actually very short and narrow at the tips, and only go into the solid nail a couple of inches into that same nerveless outer edge. The shortest horseshoe nails I've seen used are only 1.5 inches, or 4cm, and the largest around 2 inches, or 5cm and the worst a horse feels when a shoe is being set or replaced is a dull thudding from the tapping of the small hammer used to set the nails. A horse can literally go right back to business after their shoes are fitted, although a ferrier may recommend having them spend some quiet time in their stall for a couple of hours to really make sure the shoes are set properly and the horse is comfortable if something like a trip caused the original shoe to come off (the technical term is "casting a shoe").

My evening meds are kicking in, so I'll stop this very, very long sequel here.

As before, feel free to send me asks with more questions. I'm sure there are even more things I'm too sleepy to remember right now, and this post is running incredibly long.

#horses #horseback riding #writing tips #writing #long post #sequel post #horses: since there seems to be a knowledge gap #god this is gonna turn into a series isn't it

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ohnoitstbskyen · 2 years ago

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In your opinion what makes a good Isekai?

To further the question what makes a good overpowered Isekai?

There no one thing that makes a good story in any genre. It depends what the story is trying to do.

For example, lots of Stupidly Overpowered Protagonist isekai suck because they try to draw their narrative tension from battles, and the stupidly overpowered protagonist completely undercuts any sense of peril. Reincarnated As A Slime is one of my personal bugbears on that front.

Bofuri, on the other hand, cheerfully overpowers Maple in the dumbest ways because it doesn't need her to be vulnerable in combat. It's an anime about cute girls hanging out in a video game and being friends, its drama is social rather than action based, it actively does not WANT to have tension. It's a chill hangout session, and having Maple be OP as hell supports that concept by sapping all tension from combat scenarios.

There's been a bunch of Slow Life style isekai doing the same kinda thing, and it makes the OP protagonist way more fun than your SAO knockoffs, or that horrid trash genre of revenge porn fantasies like Redo of Healer or Shield Hero.

The OP protagonist is a power fantasy, so what matters is what that power fantasy is used for. In Bofuri it's "being the social binding joint for a group of friends doing activities together."

In Reincarnated As A Slime and many other bad isekai of its kind it is "be the coolest most great dude who's great at everything and everyone thinks he's cool and wants to bang him because he's inherently better," which to me is just tedious ego masturbation. I can't find any joy in it.

I really like Campfire Cooking In Another World With My Absurd Skill, whose OP protagonist fantasy is "cooking really nice meals for people and making them happy," and I did enjoy the low stakes lesbian-coded family building of I've Been Killing Slimes For 300 Years And Maxed Out My Level (I hate the titling convention so much though).

To return to your question, what makes isekai good are the same things that make anything good: interesting characters, compelling plot, strong themes etc. But one of the common isekai pitfalls is using genre tropes that actively undercut the tension of the story structure. Like an OP protagonist who makes all battle tension meaningless in a story that draws its narrative tension exclusively from battles.

(side note: I have deeply fallen for the Reincarnated As A Villainess In An Otome Game subgenre, so readers, recommend me good ones if you have them!)

#tb answers #isekai #anime #tropes #manga

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wiltkingart · 2 years ago

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Hey, I just wanted to let you know that your trans Leon art has significantly changed my life. Being able to look at his body and see just a cool guy chilling has let me look at myself in a different way and start to respect myself more. It's massively helped with dysphoria and I don't shower with the light off any more or get so frustrated when I look in a mirror. I didn't realise how much I needed to see art like this to understand myself more, so I wanted to let you know that this is one of the most important pieces of art to me and has made my life so much better. Thank you for making it.

hey. i've been trying to come up for a response to this, because this is something that is so far from what i expected when i started drawing this kind of stuff. those trans leons were especially impulsive and driven by personal need. knowing that they've had such a big impact on you and others is... i don't have the words. i'm still grappling with the reality of it. and it kind of makes me want to cry.

honestly i was in a bad place when i started drawing non op chests. i had to stop binding a long time ago because of rib pain (even though i thought i was doing it safely and wearing the right sizes) and about 7ish years later i still can't wear anything with a wire or elastic that goes over that rib. so no sports bras or bralettes or binders for me. i've been free balling this whole time letting those beasts hang and i won't lie and say it's always been easy because it wasn't, especially in the beginning. but my art of these bodies has been my stubborn way of clinging onto a confident and comfortable and joyful existence that i believe is possible. it's the life that i wanted for myself; for trans men to be able to exist with visible chests and still be seen as men. for me to be able to exist with my chest and still feel like a man. and i'm in a much, much better place now because of it. these days i can actually see a future for myself, living as a guy with my tits in both hands, in peace and harmony and all that. my art is no longer an idyllic dream or a stubborn, desperate wish, but my truth. i'm living in it. and it makes me astronomically happy knowing it has helped other trans guys feel this way too. we're deserving of this. stay strong brother <3

#ask wilt

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angelphonia · 9 months ago

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Okay, I've been binge watching the Stop!!Hibari-kun anime and I've got some thoughts I need to let out.

Firstly, watching the anime makes me appreciate the Manga a hundred times more. Sure, the Manga had its problems, mostly the racism and the casual homophobia jokes and transphobia, but you could save stuff from it, like that even though there were homophobic jokes there was a gay woman who wasn't mocked because of her attraction to Hibari, or that despite the transphobia Hibari was never outright shown as being wrong by being herself.

Now, the anime does a lot of things I dislike. Firstly they make Kosaku's reactions be way more negative than in the Manga. While yes, he reacts negatively he is also seen blushing a lot when Hibari flirts with him. I may need to read the Manga for fourth time, but I also don't remember Kosaku constantly mentioning Hibari is a "guy" everytime she did anything.

There is a lot much more racism in the anime. There were problems with this in the Manga but it just feels way more present in the anime.

This one doesn't bother me too much, but I'm pretty sure the chapters do not align with the Manga, but again, this doesn't bother me.

I also noticed way more incest jokes, I don't care about them. Also the Seiji chapter where he falls in love with one of Hibari's bullies when she's 15 and Seiji is around 25/30 is very questionable. Again, this is a work of fiction so while I was like "why isn't this seen wrong?" I wasn't really uncomfortable. I do gotta say that in the Manga when the Japanese mob grown manchild son asked for Hibari's hand in marriage, it was inmediatly said he was 28 and Hibari was super taken aback. This doesn't happen in the anime, his age is NEVER mentioned. I can't quite remember, but I am sure Hibari also doesn't go on a date with him.

Oof, but here we go with the thing that has bothered me the most. The REALLY bad erasure of Jun's story. They absolutely took away her lesbianism, making it seem as if she was only interested in Hibari because of her volleyball abilities. They also totally changed the episode and made Jun be deeply ashamed of her family, that while in the Manga she was a bit embarassed it wasn't a main focus. In the Anime it was, even making her leave the volleyball club, which is crazy to me. Oh, and I'm NOT forgetting that they made Hibari enjoy getting gropped in the bus, when in the Manga she was clearly just disgusted by it.

I haven't finished it yet, may edit this post with more complains. Positive things? I'm sure Seiji and Sabu didn't have names in the Manga, so now they have identities. They try and give them more backstory, even adding an eye scar to Sabu, which was appreciated. Hibari's voice is absolutely the cutest. I liked the wrestling episode. Oh, the episode with Hibari's mother and her father was a delight, she didn't express this much emotion in the Manga, so actually seeing how she feels was great, and her end interaction with her father was adorable.

Can't remember anything more rn. As a side note, I've developed a little crush on Sabu and I'm gonna draw him. Hope you enjoyed my rambling!

EDIT:

Remembered the Honda thing. In the Anime he almost reaches his 1000 girls flirted with, but with one it is half a girl. In the Manga this was because he looked at a 5 year old by accident and she fell in love, while in the anime they made it so he flirted with a new half. For those who don't know, new half is an old Japanese term for transgender people, mostly trans women who were post op. In the subtitles this is translated as crossdresser, which I don't like. This isn't the first time this term is mentioned, in the spartan son episode, he calls Hibari a new half, which Kosaku tells him to not do. In another chapter there is a trans woman, and she refers to herself as New half, which again is incorrectly translated to crossdresser for some reason.

Even then there was some sort of minimal knowledge of trans people, not only with this, but in the Manga the addition of Genkijirou being a canonical trans man in hormones. Eguchi was aware and while his first idea was to make Hibari a feminine man, it obviously end up with her being a trans woman.

#stop!! hibari kun!#hibari oozora #Hibari kun #Rambling

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thespiritualfives · 1 year ago

Text

Bad Batch Head Cannon - Blazed

Hey! This is my head cannon on what i think the Bad batch would react while being blazed! Enjoy my thoughts haha GN!Reader

Also i can take request if you guys have any other head canons you want, i can pretty much write for any clone! :)

Warnings: Suggested actions (Just in case), Smoking, GNreader, fluff, Slight angst.

Crosshair

Crosshair, man when he takes a drag off of his joint he likes to draw it out as much as he can. He would purposely blow smoke in your face in hopes of getting a rise out of you.

He's incredibly affectionate while high, rather it be carelessly laying his head on the nape of your neck while you're sitting on his lap and he long lanky arms are tightly around your waist.

While he's perfectly fine being vulnerable with you, being away from the other in your own secluded section of the ship. He hates if his brothers catch him being this vulnerable with you, but he can't bring himself to stop even when being caught.

He can appreciate the fact you put up with his snarky comments, occasional cold shoulder, sometimes even walking off without saying a word to you. You knew ever since he was rescued from the grasp of the empire it would take time for him to re-adjust back to being with his brothers, so you were more than happy to put up with it knowing there is a light at the end of his dark tunnel he had been traveling since Order 66 was issued.

Hunter

Hunter is the same as Cross, he likes to take a drag out of the roll he made, he will keep the smoke away from you if it bothers you at any point, honestly the smoke bothers him but he hates they way edibles make him feel, he took one once and he swore he would never do it again.

While smoking bothers him he is able to relax after a moment and let himself be engulfed in the haze. He thinks it is worth the smell for the feeling that puts him at ease.

Hunter would never do this infront of Omega, he wanted to keep the appearance of being a father like figure to her, not a lazy laid back sergeant who will just go with the flow and with no plan.

When it comes to you he's possessive, good luck going to the refresher and not having the Sergeant posted outside the door. He will make sure to cuddle you while you are trying to do you work on the holopad, he doesn't care if his brothers stubble upon him in this state but he does care if Omega is within his hearing radius, he will quickly attempt to sober up and act like his normal attentive self. If omega is on the ship at the same time hunter is in this state he will remain quiet while twirling his vibro blade between his fingers acting like nothing is wrong and that he's not soaring among the stars.

Tech

Oh my boy Tech, while he doesnt see a need to become under the influence, he slowly gets curious about the effects it would cause for him and how he could use this as a learning experience. He pops in an edible and oh he was FLYING.

Tech wants to make sure he is documenting every aspect of this experience while he can, he has seen based on your previous highs that there will be a point to where all you wanna do is cuddle or sleep or even both.

Tech feels his mind that was once racing with so much information, is starting to finally slow down for him to take a deep breath. While he's in this mindset he seeks out comfort from you in the form of just talking and holding your hand. He's not one for cuddling out in the open of the ship so he just ops for holding your hand. While you both talk about nonsense from the previous missions and how things could've gone differently.

After a while Tech will motion you to join him in the now empty cockpit of the ship orbiting through hyperpsace, after you join him Tech takes a seat in his respective chair and pulls you down to sit in his lap to where your back is facing him. He sighs a gentle sigh and will rest his chin on your shoulder while watching the lanes of hyperspace pass you by.

Wrecker

If this man gets a hold of an edible he is gone, He is instantly just mush and a bombshell of emotions. As soon as he devours the edible he is instantly by your side and ready for the effects to take place. He will lazily drape his arm over your shoulders since he essentially loses his ability to walk and have balance.

You and the boys hid all the explosives you could prior before wrecker can get the idea of going out side and having explosive lessons with Omega.

Wrecker is a huge cuddle bantha when he is in the mid state of his daze. He will do his best to keep awake and to keep you wrapped up by his side so that way he knows you're safe and that you are still there. Sometimes he will lay there in his bunk with you wondering out why you are with him and not one of his brothers. His insecurities will get the best of him but you would be there to wash them away and to make sure he knows why you are with him.

Once wrecker calms down from his panic attack he starts to drift off to sleep shortly after you do with your head on his chest, he makes it his goal to make sure you are asleep first before he can drift off to sleep himself. Knowing that you are safely in his arms is all he needs to know before he drifts off.

Echo

Echo refuses to take a drag of a blunt, eat an edible or even play with the idea. Until one day he had just returned from a mission and you could tell he was not okay, he was on the verge of tears, you knew he didn't fully cope with the fact of him losing his twin Fives and you could tell it was finally catching up to him. As you sit down next to him he asked you quietly if him and you could go to your personal space on the ship, once you reach the area he asked if you would let him try an edible, he was desperate enough to try anything to ease to pain of losing Fives.

Echo sits down in your bunk as you join him, he lays his head on your should in defeat and before you knew it Echo started telling stories of him and Fives from during the war. He told you everything from when they were in Domino squad all the way up to Echo's very last moments at the citadel. You knew it was the effects of the daze he was in that was making him talk about the past and based of how Echo was telling the stories and a few chuckles in between his stories you knew Echo need to talk about his brother in order to process and grieve.

Once Echo was in the mid of his daze you could tell there was a shift in his dimeter, he would lift his head from your shoulder, ask if you wanted to play a prank on one of the other members of The Bad Batch, he would have a well developed plan in store for every member even a contingency plan in store. You could see a glimmer of the man who use to be prior his capture to the separatist. Granted you never knew Echo from before, but by how he is being devious right now is a nod in favor to his lost brother Fives.

Before you can even attempt any of the pranks to the other Batchers Echo is finding himself drifting off in your bunk, he has your hand in a death grip almost as if he is afraid that if he lets go you will also be nothing but a memory. So you do what you feel is natural and lay beside him as he starts to lull himself to sleep, as you get settled laying on your back you all of a sudden feel arms around your waist and Echo's head now resting on your chest.

*If you made it this far welcome to my mind (scary place right?) Not going to lie Echo was the fun one to write for in this head canon. If you want SUMT (18+), Fluff, Angst etc…. then all you have to do is request it! Super simple. I can write for any clone you have your heart set on! Till next time :)

#bad batch hunter #fanfic #sw tbb #star wars smut #hunter x reader #star wars #star wars the bad batch #tbb crosshair #tbb tech #tbb wrecker #clone force 99 #the bad batch #bad batch #tbb hunter #headcanon

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lover-i-lover · 1 year ago

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Bad case

Everything's blurry, really blurry. That's all Spencer knows as he stumbles out from the club. The unsub in toe, who called himself William Dane, hand in hand. He knew this has going to happen, it's part of his MO, Spencer knew he was going to be drugged in some way. But he's what he didn't know was he was going to be drugged with more then just a roofie. He knows he's been given more then just a roofie, some kind of cocktail of drugs.

Spencer shakily grabs his sheer black jacket. It's not his, it's from then undercover closet but whatever. Spencer almost trips going out the door, but William grabs him around the waist. Spencer tries not to vomit, laughs instead, "Thanks hon" Spencer gently reaches back and pets his shoulder. "Think I've had a bit too much" He doesn't sound like himself at all, or really feel like himself. But he's pretty sure that's the point. He can vaguely hear this William say something about taking Spencer home.

Spencer giggles and drags him out on the curb side. He knows the team is around the corner, Spencer just needs to get to that alleyway, then he can get to an ER. "hey, so..." Spencer tries to roll his eyes a little sexyliy, is that word? Spencer thinks so. "My place's that way" Spencer draws the words out, nodding towards the alley. William moves Spencer the other way, Spencer can't stop him, his legs are just following him. "I know" William's voice chances as he tightly grabs onto Spencer's waist. "I really, um, get nervous at. Um, i really need to get home"

"I'm not stupid Spencer" William reaches out and grabs the tiny mic off Spencer's shirt, tossing it on the ground. His heart almost jumps out from his chest. "T-That's no-not"

"Your name is Spencer Reid not Daniel Lous, you're 27 not 25, really thought I'd believe your little fake ID?" William grabs onto him tighter and Spencer tries to push him away, at least. But it's no use, Spencer's legs refuse to work with him. "Don't fuss now, if you're lucky, you'll leave in the morning"

Spencer knows he should scold this William, the profile says that should make him back off. But the profile also says that when he's caught, he's likely to fight til his death. That would mean he would just kill Spencer in any alley nearby. That can't happen. Spencer thinks for a second. Then deicides if he's really dying tonight, he wants to know why.

"Well, just-oh" Spencer grabs onto William as they step down to cross the street. William looks to him with curiosity.

"You, said, if I'm lucky, that means there's something I could do that would turn you off enough to let me go, what is it?"

William laughs. "How do you know I meant I'd let you leave alive and not in a bag?" Spencer stumbles and almost falls over again, but he's caught before he hits the ground. William pulls him along the street. Where's the team?

"You used the the word lucky, if I'm lucky means it would be something I'd do, and not you being nice"

"If I tell you, what do I get?"

Spencer leans into him, not because he wants to, but because he needs to in order to stay on his feet. So it's a game. He's a sexual sadist, what is the best thing for a sexual sadist? His victims were tortured for hours, and the in tapes, he made them beg for it.

"I've taken an acting class or two, If you tell me what it is, i will make it feel real for you" Spencer promises, letting one of his arms go slack against his legs, gently toying with the hem of the shorts he also got from the undercover closet, turning on the back op mic / tracking thing that he insisted on having when he was sober. He made it look like he was just showing off a bit more his thigh.

"You've seen the tapes, right?" William asks, slipping a hand down to touch Spencer's ass. Normally he'd yelp, being touched in such a place. "More then I'd like to admit" Spencer bites his inner cheeks, knowing it'll make his outer cheeks a bit red.

"But they weren't listening to you, I'll listen, I'll listen real good, I can take it" Spencer continues, sticking his butt out against his hand, hoping that he shows interest he might let him go anyway.

William smiles in a sadist manner. Spencer's struck gold. "If you begin praying, I'll throw you out the window, and while it'll be painful, it won't kill you"

"I've never prayed"

Where

the

hell

the

team!

"Does that mean, that you have to kill me now? Because that would be sad....I might have dated you otherwise" Spencer lies through his teeth, he has and never plans to talk like this again, he feels like a child.

Suddenly, William's pushed Spencer to a wall, there's a knife at his throat. Spencer can't keep his eyes open much longer. There's only noises and touches. Morgan's yelling for William to drop the knife, another person is yelling for Spencer's attention.

It takes Spencer way longer to id the voice then it should.

Hotch, Aaron Hotchner is yelling for him.

Spencer's cold, so cold. Who wears shorts to a night club? There's a hand on his waist, forcing him to stand against the cold brick wall. It's a painful sensation, his whole body held op by one point of contact. Spencer lightly kicks at William's leg, but he doesn't even react, only threatening to kill him if the team doesn't back away.

The hand on his waist moves away for a second and Spencer's legs give out under him. He slips down the wall before William can grab him again. There's a loud bang right in front of him. William's been shot, or at least scared enough to fall onto his back.

Spencer takes a second to rub his eyes, shivering. There's a hand on his arm, a soft voice is calling to him. Spencer blinks and looks to his right. He shivers again, his whole body shaking. Hotch lays a jacket over him "Reid?" Hotch is right beside him on the ground, gently tucking the jacket over his chest and legs. Spencer opens his mouth to speak but can't manage to say anything.

Hotch turns to Morgan who's pulling this William op from the ground. "Where are the medics? We called them 10 minutes ago!" Spencer can't hear what Morgan responses with, only leaning into Hotch for warmth. Hotch is very warm, it's so nice.

An arm slips in under his knees and Spencer's not entirely sure he's doing. Then Hotch slips an arm under Spencer's and in one, way too swift move, Spencer's been hoisted off the ground and is now resting against Hotch's chest. Spencer just about manages to throw his arms around Aaron's neck. Aaron's chest still laid over Spencer's upper body. He yawns, his whole world almost gone, only hearing the sounds of sirens as he tries to sleep.

Suddenly, he's being laid down, the jacket still there to keep him warm. He can't open his eyes, it's too much work. Something is placed over his nose and mouth, a mask, an oxygen mask. Someone's holding his hand tightly, Aaron, it's Aaron. The hands are too big and rough to be Derek's or Luke's. And yet too soft to be Rossi's. It's got to be Aaron. He knows he lays there for a few mintues. The air is warmer now, and they're moving. Shit, he's in an ambulance. Is that really.....

"Spencer?" There's a hand on his face, his cheek, gently petting it. Spencer's confused, he just wants to go home now, why can't he can go home? He blinks, attempting to open his eyes. "There you are Spencer" The lady says. She's in a medic's unifrom, she's a medic. Spencer yawns, his head rolling in a circle.

"I can see you're tired but you need to stay awake"

Spencer huffs softs, it's unfair. He's done good work, he deserves to sleep. Why can't he sleep? Oh! Right! The drugs. Because of the drugs. It's not safe to pass out after being drugged with unknown drugs.

"Spencer, Spencer stay with me okay?" Why's Aaron saying that? He tries to open his eyes, it's hard, but he opens his eyes enough to see Aaron looking worried. He squeezes his hand the most he can, which isn't much. Aaron smiles slightly, eyes still filled with worry. Spencer closes his eyes again, he's so drowsy, he just wants to sleep. Maybe it's a good time for a nap. It's okay. He can sleep, he's sure he can. "Spencer!" Aaron squeezes his hand tightly. Spencer whimpers, it hurts to have his hand squeezed so tightly. "Spencer, Spencer stay awake with me? Okay? Please?"

Spencer's head is pounding, he blinks his eyes open to see he's in a hospital room. He's alone, but the room is filled with at least 7 different vases of flowers. He's had visitors. Spencer pushes himself op. He can't quite remember everything yet, he was drugged, the unsub made him, and he went to the hospital.

Should he press the call button? No, he's fine, or maybe, his throat. He needs water. Spencer slowly turn just enough to press the call button. A nurse comes and he's given water. As she hands it to him she says. "You had a lot of people worried about you kid" Spencer smiles weakly, he's sad to have worried the team but also happy that they cared.

Aaron is the first to vist him while he's awake, with a bag of snacks. Spence smiles slightly, looking down, embarrassed as he slowly remembers just much of a scare he gave the team. "Hello Hotch" Spencer says politely, siting op straight as if he was at his desk. "Don't strain yourself for my sake Reid" Hotch says, siting down in the chair by his bed, setting the bag down on Spencer's bed, right by his legs. Spencer relaxes slightly and leans back to rest against the rough hospital sheets. "Thank you"

"You, certainly gave us a big scare" Aaron say, gently petting his shoulder. Spencer smiles sadly, he really didn't wish to scare anyone "I'm sorry, it wasn't intentionally" Spencer mutters. Aaron gently squeezes his shoulder. "Of course not Reid"

Aaron spent the next 30 mintues explaining just how they solved the case while Spencer is in the hospital. They found William's hide out, all 8 bodies, and a 9th grave freshly dug that was suspose to be for yesterday's victim, Spencer.

It all makes Spencer so tired, so tired and angry to know that no matter what, he would have died if he wasn't FBI. A few mintues later, the whole team comes crashing into the room with hugs, and more 'get well' gifts. When Spencer is released, Aaron is the one to take him home, with all 7 bouquets of flowers in the back seat of Aaron's car. Spencer still kinda out of it, if he had the energy he would have argued to have thrown the flowers out. Aaron's backseat is filled with the flowers, boxes of chocolates and fruit.

Spencer's been draped with a jacket. Aaron's big, warm, dark jacket. He's not sure why he's still so tired, his last sedative was over four hours ago. Maybe all the hugs and affection wore him out more then usual. Spencer leans his head back, struggling to keep his eyes open. "You tired Reid?" Aaron asks, buckling Spencer's seatbelt for him. Spencer would blush, but he's too tired to care. Spencer hums in agreement as Aaron tucks the jacket snug around the younger man's body.

Spencer's rudely awakened when the car abruptly halts. Spencer yelps on, instincts grabbing for the celling handle to stable himself. "Sorry, Sorry!" Aaron says, gently putting the jacket back around Spencer. Aaron shakes his head at the car in front of them. "Man just, stopped in the middle of the road without warning" Aaron gently pets Spencer's shoulder. "Go back to sleep, alright? It's still gonna be a few mintues" Spencer doesn't protest, only shuting his eyes.

Spencer is gently roused as the jacket is pulled away from his body. Aaron's gently rubbing his arm to wake him, Spencer blinks his eyes open, still so tired, his eyes so gosh damn heavy. "Spencer, I've taken the gifts inside, think you can get op or do you need some help?" Aaron asks sweetly, unbuckling Spencer's seatbelt. Does Spencer look tired? He feels tired. He can't get op, he's too tired. Spencer leans his head to the side.

Then Spencer's being carried, his boss, is carrying him inside. It's strange but nice. Spencer rests his head on his warm chest, the fabric of Aaron's shirt is soft against his cheek. Spencer's back hits the soft sheets of his own bed, it's so nice to be home again. Spencer whines as Aaron undoes his tie and vest. "Shhh, just relax" Aaron shushes. Spencer squirms as he's undressed. More out of instinct then anything else. Aaron continues to shush him the way you would a fussy child.

"Shush, Spencer, quite down now, you're tired"

Spencer lays as still as possible as Aaron redresses him in soft clothes, he doesn't bother opening his eyes. Why would he? He trusts Aaron to not mess with him. New, non-sweaty socks are slipped onto his feet. Spencer blinks his eyes open for a few seconds. Aaron's standing above him, tucking him in. "Go back to Sleep Reid, you need it"

Spencer closes his eyes, a kiss is pressed to his forehead. "Sleep tight, I'll be by in the morning" Aaron whispers. Morning? It's already night? How much as he slept in the last few days? The world gets darker, Aaron's drawn the curtains. So it's not quite so late. Spencer's body is so heavy, very heavy. Another kiss is pressed to his forehead, a hand runs over his hair lovingly.

"Goodnight Spence, I'm so happy you're alright"

#criminal minds #spencer reid #dr spencer reid #aaron hotchner #aaron hotchner x spencer reid #hotchreid

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chained-sweater · 4 months ago

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remake of my angieboy headcanons because my last post was BAD.

notes: tagging @fictionalcharactergraveyard bc on my og post they asked for these hcs, and since i like, uh..deleted my old post i need to like—let them see this one.

— angela has a lot of nicknames for ponyboy, and vice versa. they're either very cute/sappy or it sounds like they're insulting each other. there is no in between.

— very, very cuddly couple. they're always cuddling. ya walk into the room and boom: pony and angela are snuggled up on the couch.

— the reaction their siblings had when they found out they were dating, oh lordy loo.

· tim gave pony the classic 'older-brother-talking-to-his-little-sister's-boyfriend' talk, but other than that, he's fine with them being together. ponyboy is intimidated by him and every time he tells angela 'i think your brother hates me' angela's like, 'which brother?' pony says, 'tim' and angela responds with, 'you're fine, he likes you.' yeah, tim's pretty chill w/ it.

· CURLY ON THE OTHER HAND.....

↑ let's just say pony's lucky to be alive. curly's their #1 op, fr.

· darry doesn't care, tbh. he's just glad pony's in a happy relationship.

· sodapop, however, is very wary of angela. he was still recovering over sandy at the time and he's worried that pony would go through something similar to what he went through with sandy.

· don't even get me started on the gang, oh jesus.

· two-bit literally starting cheering and gave ponyboy a big bear hug. he then proceeded to start gushing about how adorable they were 'n stuff. (i can't, i love two-bit sm.)

· steve was just like, 'yeah, whatever.'

· dallas was all, 'ooh, you go horseman.' ponyboy threw a book at his head.

· johnny was still recovering at the hospital (yes, ofc he and dally live), and when he found out, he was SO jealous. *heather by conan gray starts playing in the background.*

— pony and angela never get past the puppy-love stage of their relationship. that is their relationship. (they're so cute, omg.)

— ponyboy gives angela some of their drawings he made (they're of her) and she keeps every single one. she pins them on the wall above her bed in her and curly's bedroom.

· curly's all, 'FOR FUCK'S SAKE, ANGIE, TAKE THEM DOWN' and angela's just like, 'no.'

— you do not want to see these two on a date, sweet jesus christ.

· THEY ARE SO MUSHY, ISTG. THE PDA IS ASTRONOMICAL.

· dally once went to a restaurant to grab some dinner and when he walked in he found angela sitting on pony's lap and they were feeding each other and giggling 'n shit and istg dallas gagged. (tbh, i don't blame him, i would of done the same. 💀)

— angela made them matching bracelets. ponyboy (and angela, ofc) never takes theirs off.

— holding hands is like, their lifeline. they're always holding hands. (i'm making myself feel single writing this, smh.)

— it's basically your average middle school relationship, but it's actually successful.

#the outsiders #the outsiders headcanons #ponyboy curtis #angela shepard #darry curtis #sodapop curtis #dallas winston #johnny cade #steve randle #two-bit mathews #tim shepard #curly shepard #angieboy #ponyboy × angela

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spectorcsm · 2 years ago

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AvA6 EP1 SPOILERS

Alright peeps I'm joining in this chaos and you should all fear me This post has no plan or path this is just a ramble analysis of things I notice in the new episode so :D

EXPECT MAJOR SPOILERS, PLEASE WATCH THE EPISODE FIRST ^-^

Ok so like first off guys- maybe like- don't fire your glitch weapons in the middle of a crowded city?? This seems like a bad idea?? You guys are worse than the Avengers when it comes to collateral damage smh

Ok but Chosen stopping mid-chase to save that civilian by destroying the debris really goes to show how he's improved as a character, this guy went from destroying Alan's PC, to rampaging various sites with Dark, and now to this. Glad to see him as a proper hero now :D

I'm happy to see the ice powers coming back cuz after that one time he froze the Firefox I thought they just forgot about it lol

Chosen is Zeus now Also he just like creates a glacier 2 seconds later cool

Also quick shoutout to Alan's Desktop organization He has come a long way

I find it funny how much everyone focused on this clip in the trailer especially, like "Oh no does Orange get mad at Alan again?? Is this related to Vic???" and the reality of it is "lol wanna fight me guys?" "Sure sounds fun :D" Alan you have bamboozled us again

I find this moment rather interesting So after Alan pulls up the thingy and sends them all flying then crashing down, Red appears to be acting like they hurt their head and Yellow notices and crawls over to see if they're ok (Awwwijascsdhljw) but as soon as they do Red just punches em?? However then Yellow puts their hands up in a way almost to be like "whoa whoa it's just me" and then Red accepts the comfort. Idk I just find it interesting, like Red is still in fight-mode after the sparring match and doesn't quite register that it's Yellow touching them at first XD

Chosen: "COME ON DO IT, DO THE EYE THING" Orange: "WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT IDK HOW TO DO THAT" Chosen: "YES YOU DO JUST DO IT, LIKE THIS:" Orange: "AAAAAAAAA" *Tries to do laser-eyes with every ounce of focus they have*

Red: "uhhh are they ok-" Green: "Maybe you should stop them?" Blue: "yeahhh maybe-" Yellow: "Hmm, yes. Interesting"

Chosen: "UGH FORGET IT YOU'RE COMING WITH ME" Sticknapping 101

Aight but like where did this guy (Btw I'll call him Striker cuz that name was going around and it's cool) get this stuff? Has their group attacked a Desktop before and managed to steal enough UI to make this guy OP? Cuz he uses a lot of really crazy stuff during this fight and I can't help but wonder what poor animator woke up just to find the entire UI on their software missing lol

I love how Chosen really just pulls the "Throw the kid in the pool to teach them how to swim" on Orange and his powers here lol Then to Chosen's surprise it does not work "Aw shoot the kid is drowning now I gotta save them smh"

YEAHHHH ART POWERS Ok but actually though I find it interesting how differently the Pencil tool works outside a Desktop, like usually Orange like speed-draws the whole entire thing but out here it's like Ah yes, line scribble = E e l I mean it actually kinda makes sense, in the 3D world it'd be really difficult to draw anything really so the Pen just changes function a bit based on the environment

Poor Green does not enjoy climbing it seems :(

This guy can forever one-up everything "Ok but have you beat up a shark with your bare hands and won?

Ok but this guy's style is just like tribal or primitive and it's honestly pretty cool I have no clue what to call them though so that's up to the rest of the fandom to decide ':D

Also someone else on a different site suggested the name "Warnman" for this guy cuz he looks like the typical hazard sign guy who's always showing the dreadful things that will happen if you don't obey the sign and I think the name fits so Warnman is honestly my favorite of these guys just cuz of how wacky they are lol

Also this guy has to be like Anime Stick or something I do not understand this dude at all but they're sick

Let it be known that Warnman is canonically 2D

Dude how much charge do those electro-bullets hold if that thing is STILL zapping Chosen This poor guy Also the way Striker fights throughout this whole scene is so cool

I find it interesting and I think Alan pointed out in the reaction video (really funny btw you should go watch that too) That Striker is totally just messing with them before that, like sure he probably has to be close to the target to use the Pause attack but I like to think he was enjoying the fight before that and is only just doing it now cuz he's bored lol

Aight so the Rocket Group is the one hunting Chosen I wanna know though- why Chosen specifically? Are they just after all Hollowheads with the powers or is it just Chosen they want? Maybe they're after all of them but Chosen is the only one with a super known presence? Also who are these guys?? They seem to be just some independent group but do they hold any sort of actual authority over Stick City? Man I have so many questions

How do you pause fire-? Does it still burn? I assume not cuz I think it woulda burned the guys bringing him by now Man that's wacky but cool Also another question here is like, is that white box a containment unit or some sort of display case? I'm thinking more along the lines of containment but like he's already paused and they left the door open I think??

Aight now we're getting to the theory-fuel Why are they studying all this UI? Where'd they get this UI? Why do all these sticks look exactly the same??? Like I get that it's just supposed to represent a large group of workers and stuff but they are all exactly the same shade-

A h a A h a a a . . . VICTIM???? VIC MY GUY WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE HOW ARE YOU ALIVE?? LIKE I GET YOU'RE PROBABLY MAD AT ALAN LIKE KILLING YOU AND ALL BUT WHAT DO YOU WANT WITH CHOSEN AND EVERYONE?? I have many questions Also I am wondering if all the UI decor in his office is just art or what, are they trophies maybe? They probably had to get the UI for Striker's setup somewhere, did they raid Desktops before? Are those trophies from animators he's beaten? Man Idk but this is so interesting My final take on the episode: AAAAAAAAAAAAAA LET'S GOOO AvA 6 HYPEEE :D

#ava 6 spoilers #animator vs animation #alan becker #reaction #analysis #ramble :D #I am so excited for the rest of this series #These sticks are better than all of cinema you can never prove me wrong

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twoidiotwriters1 · 7 months ago

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The Curse of Oenone (Leo Valdez xFem!Oc)

A/N: Something something they're all sad -Danny Words: 2,081 Series' Masterlist Previous Chapter // Next Chapter Listen to: 'In My Place' -by Coldplay

LII: I Might Lay down and See if This Fixes Itself

"You know what pisses me off?"

"Many things nowadays," Leo replies from the crawlspace where he works.

"This project," Ara continues grumpily. "What the hell, dude? We're supposed to be honest with each other!"

"We're supposed to be boyfriend and girlfriend and you still call me dude," the boy responds, crawling out covered in grime and scowling. "What's your point?"

"Why didn't you tell me you wanted to rebuild Festus?"

Leo seizes the cloth hanging from his toolbelt and cleans his hands. "Festus was your baby first, I couldn't tell you and then fail—Didn't want to look stupid if it didn't work."

"Then why are you telling me now?"

"Because you think I don't know what I'm doing but I have a good plan here!"

"I don't like this thing you're doing to us."

"Ain't doing nothing, doll..." he walks past her. "It was done to me too, remember?"

Ara follows him downstairs to the cabins. "I don't think this is the best idea you can come up with, that's all. I think you're going easy on purpose."

He steps into his cabin and leaves the door open for Ara. "I thought Ithaca would help, and it didn't. We think wrong sometimes. You should bribe Janus so he tells us what to pick."

"Oh, don't get me started on that guy! He would make things more difficult for us on purpose, he thrives on indecision—all shades of gray and stuff." Ara looks around the room and gets distracted. "Gods, Leo, how do you sleep with all this mess?"

He snorts. "I don't. I just work here."

The girl gets confused. "You've only slept two nights in my cabin this week—where do you spend the night when I say no?"

Leo changes the subject. "I work better around clutter. If I don't figure out a way to make sure Festus won't crush me to death—"

"Have you been sleeping in the engine room?"

The boy raises his voice in frustration. "Listen to what I'm saying!"

Ara looks at the bulletin board: Leo's drawing of the Argo II is accompanied by a picture of the crew who built it and another of Ara hugging Festus's head. She doesn't want to listen, Ara wants to hide under the blankets with him until the war is over and wants to go back to New York, hand in hand with Leo.

Ara longs for the little things, and at the same time, she hates them because they make the things she aims for look frivolous and selfish. When Leo met her, she was obsessed with being useful and giving meaning to her death since she'd already concluded her life would be short and dramatic, yet uneventful when it came to being normal.

Who is she to tell Leo not to aim for the big flashy sacrifice? In short, she's going insane. "I can't listen to this. I'm sorry."

Leo doesn't look surprised, this conversation has happened twice since he returned from Ogygia. Ara isn't ready to face what's coming, and Leo doesn't know what to do to help. The boy sighs, then pinches the bridge of his nose, he looks ten years older. Ara's ashamed of her cowardice, she could talk if they had a clear path ahead, but there is only a pitch-black void.

"I need to know," Leo is extra careful with his words because Ara won't like what he's about to ask her. "If I die for good, are you going to erase me from your stories like you did with Mike?"

Ara's gaze fires up like gasoline, but she says nothing at first. Her feet backtrack, like they always do when an argument hits too close, and then she freezes. Ara counts to five, if she doesn't take a second to think, she'll say bad things like she always does.

Once her heartbeat is regulated she forces out a response. "I can't escape you like I escaped Michael. Helen left Troy but the guilt never left her. My soul has never known peace when it comes to you."

She thinks of her innocent memories with Leo, holding each other close until they couldn't keep their eyes open. She can't stand how much it hurts even while he's still with her, and it scares her to think it'll only get worse once he goes away.

"I've always been on the run, you know that," Leo sounds so serious it makes her skin crawl. "You're also the only person on this ship with whom I can act how I feel, and I need you to let us be ugly for once, or what we have is gonna rot no matter what we choose."

Ara runs her hands over her face. "I don't want this curse to be the thing that gives our relationship meaning—It will ruin it."

"We were never a perfect couple," he walks past her to exit the cabin. "But only you see that as a bad thing."

Ara gets to the Mess Hall and opens her mouth to speak, but a voice screams before she can even utter one word. "PUT SOME CLOTHES ON!"

"Jesus fuck!" The General jumps out of her skin.

"I thought you were getting rid of that stupid hologram." Piper glares at Leo.

"Hey, Buford's just saying good morning," he grins, stuffing his mouth with a brownie. "He loves his hologram! Besides, we all miss the coach. And Frank makes a cute bulldog."

Their friend turns back into a human and scowls. "Just sit down, Leo. We've got stuff to talk about. Ara, ready when you are..."

The girl sits at the head of the table, placing both hands on its surface to gather her thoughts. Leo sits between Jason and Hazel and grabs a bag of fonzies, a healthy breakfast to begin the day.

"How are you feeling, Jason?" Ara asks, trying to ignore how Leo didn't switch seats with Frank to be closer to her.

"I'm still breathing," Jason answers shortly. "So... we're going to stay airborne and drop anchor as close as we can to Olympia. It's further inland than I'd like—about five miles—but we don't have much choice. According to Juno, we have to find the goddess of victory and, um... subdue her."

"Defeat Victory," Ara already hates the idea. "And subdue her?"

"I'm cool with fighting the occasional goddess," Percy shrugs casually, "but isn't Nike one of the good ones? I mean, personally, I like victory. I can't get enough of it."

"It does seem strange," Annabeth agrees, anxiously tapping the table. "I understand why Nike would be in Olympia—home of the Olympics and all that. The contestants sacrificed to her. Greeks and Romans worshipped her there for, like, twelve hundred years, right?"

"Almost to the end of the Roman Empire," Frank nods. "Romans called her Victoria, but same difference. Everybody loved her. Who doesn't like to win? Not sure why we would have to subdue her."

"She's probably going insane over which side should be winning," Ara reasons. "The children of Nike are all competitive and they don't stop at nothing. I'm sure she's ten times worse."

"How do we defeat victory?" Piper asks worryingly. "Sounds like one of those impossible riddles."

"Like making stones fly," Leo retorts, "or eating only one Fonzie."

Ara and Hazel look at him with vastly different expressions. Hazel scoots away. "That stuff is going to kill you."

"You kidding? So many preservatives in these things, I'll live forever."

"That'd be convenient," Ara mumbles, stabbing an apple with Lily's dagger.

No one knows how to reply to that, except Leo. "You think Nike can give us pointers on how to defeat death? 'Cause that'd be promising."

Ara wants to dismiss his comment knowing he's just taunting her, but it makes sense. "That's... not a crazy idea. Desperate times..."

Frank raises a brow. "You think Nike would be willing to fight death?"

Annabeth makes a face. "Her kids never turn down a challenge. They have to be number one at everything—I wouldn't be surprised if she agreed."

"She sounds like Birdy," Percy smirks. "Are we sure you're an Aphrodite?"

Ara cuts a slice of apple with the knife and sends an unamused glance at her brother. Hazel continues. "But we've got to get the Greeks and Romans on the same team, right?"

"Maybe she's the problem," Jason suggests. "If the goddess of victory is running rampant, torn between Greek and Roman, she might make it impossible to bring the two camps together."

"How?" Leo asks. "Start a flame war on Twitter?"

"Maybe she's like Ares," Percy explains. "That guy can spark a fight just by walking into a crowded room. If Nike radiates competitive vibes or something, she could aggravate the whole Greek–Roman rivalry big-time."

Frank points at Ara and Percy with his spoon. "You remember that old sea god in Atlanta—Phorcys? He said that Gaia's plans always have lots of layers. This could be part of the giants' strategy—keep the two camps divided; keep the gods divided. If that's the case, we can't let Nike play us against each other. We should send a landing party of four—two Greeks, two Romans—"

"Ara shouldn't go," Jason says promptly.

The girl cuts another slice of the apple and frowns. "Elaborate?"

"I think—and I say this respectfully—that your fatal flaw would get everyone killed if you were to face Nike."

"Ambition and victory don't mix," Percy nods in agreement. "You should sit this one out."

Ara leans back, popping the slice into her mouth. "First of all, I never said I should go. Second, I never said I wanted to go. We should be careful to send a group that doesn't clash, so if I were you, I wouldn't send those two either," she points at Annabeth and Percy.

"Hey!"

"No, she's right," Annabeth sighs. "Athena and Poseidon have a rivalry, we don't know if Nike can use that on us, Percy. We don't want to do anything that might make the goddess, um, more unstable."

"I'll go," Piper offers. "I can try charmspeaking."

"Not this time, Piper," Annabeth shakes her head gravely. "Nike is all about competition. Aphrodite... well, she is too, in her own way. That's why Ara is so alike."

"I love being present for these conversations," Ara says sarcastically, driving another slice into her mouth.

"Who should go, then?" Piper insists.

"Jason and Percy shouldn't go together," Annabeth continues. "Jupiter and Poseidon—bad combination. Nike could start you two fighting easily."

Percy gave her a sideways smile. "Yeah, we can't have another incident like in Kansas. I might kill my bro Jason."

"Or I might kill my bro Percy," Jason replies.

"Which proves my point," Annabeth sends an annoyed glance their way. "We also shouldn't send Frank and me together. Mars and Athena—that would be just as bad."

"Okay," Leo sighs. "So Percy and me for the Greeks. Frank and Hazel for the Romans. Is that the ultimate non-competitive dream team or what?"

"It could work," Frank looks at Ara for approval. "I mean, no combination is going to be perfect, but Poseidon, Hephaestus, Pluto, Mars... I don't see any huge antagonism there."

Annabeth is waiting for her response too. Ara shrugs. "Well, if it were Hephaestus and Ares maybe there'd be a problem, but let's hope Roman and Greek don't click like that."

"I still wish we could've gone through the Gulf of Corinth," Hazel sighs. "I was hoping we could visit Delphi, maybe get some advice. Plus it's such a long way around the Peloponnese."

"Yeah." Leo's shoulders fall. "It's July twenty-second already. Counting today, only ten days until—"

"I know," Jason says defensively. "But Juno was clear. The shorter way would have been suicide."

Leo opens his mouth probably to joke about how he's doing that either way but his eyes find Ara's and his statement dies before it can even reach his vocal cords.

"No one is blaming you, Jason," Ara stares at her partially eaten apple. "Delphi wouldn't've been of any help. Something's going on, I think Apollo messed up one too many times."

"Juno said the twins might be willing to help us," Jason reminds her. "Perhaps that's what she meant. We help Apollo and he'll help us in return."

"A lot of unanswered questions," Frank mumbles. "A lot of miles to cover before we get to Athens."

"First things first," Annabeth's posture changes to one more energetic. "You guys have to find Nike and figure out how to subdue her... whatever Juno meant by that. I still don't understand how you defeat a goddess who controls victory. Seems impossible."

Ara and Leo lock eyes immediately. The masters of unlikely smile at each other, and Ara's expression is enough to lift Leo's spirits in a way no amount of good fortune could.

"We'll see about that." The boy winks at her before leaving the Mess Hall. "Let me get my collection of grenades and I'll meet you guys on deck!"

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