#she's the activist out of the two of them which is why she works for Magneto.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Dean Obeidallah at The Dean's Report:

On August 20, a little before dawn, 87 year-old Lidia Martinez was abruptly jarred awake by an unexpected knock on her door. The longtime activist who for over 35 years has worked to expand voter registration among seniors and veterans in south Texas, cautiously peered out the door. Standing on her doorstep were nine police officers dressed in tactical gear and carrying firearms. After showing her a search warrant, Martinez’s home was searched as she was forced to stand outside in her nightgown in her driveway in full view of her neighbors. Martinez was later questioned for three hours after which the police seized her phone, computer, personal calendar and more.

[...]

These bad faith searches orchestrated by Paxton were predicated on the claim that the people being investigated were registering non-citizens to vote—despite zero evidence presented of wrongdoing. Very alarmingly, if Donald Trump and House GOP have their way, these types of raids would be happening nationwide with federal law enforcement under a GOP President.  That is why GOP House Speaker Johnson is now demanding the proposed SAVE Act be included in any deal to provide funding to keep the government open.

To be clear, federal and state law already makes it a crime for non-citizens to vote. But this new federal legislation would establish criminal penalties for registering an applicant to vote in a federal election who fails to present documentation proving U.S. citizenship.  That means that what we are seeing in Texas is coming attractions of what the GOP wants to do nationally.

Keep in mind despite Texas AG Paxton’s two year investigation, no charges  have been filed against any of the people whose homes were searched.  Indeed, there may never be charges because even Paxton’s basis for the search is BS. In his press release announcing the investigation, the Texas AG presents no evidence of wrongdoing. Instead, Paxton makes baseless claims like these organizations have set up voter registration booths outside state agencies where people could register inside. Paxton’s press release literally includes this question with no answer: “Why would they need a second opportunity to register with a booth outside?” But nowhere in his press release does he even allege any criminal conduct—only questions.

And Paxton—a close ally of convicted felon Trump—showed his bad faith earlier in August on a radio show when he peddled lies about non-citizens voting. Paxton declared, “There’s a reason Joe Biden brought people here illegally. I’m convinced that that’s how they’re going to do it this time, they’re going to use the illegal vote. Why were they brought in, why did he bring in 14 million people?” adding, “He brought them here to vote.”   That is nothing more than the type of BS you hear on Fox News. But now Paxton has weaponized government by targeting people registering those he believes will vote for Democrats. The backlash to Paxton’s actions have been swift. LULAC requested that the Department of  Justice investigate Paxton's office for Voting Rights Act violations. LULAC CEO Juan Proaño and the group's national president, Roman Palomares, summed up well what is really going in their letter to the DOJ: "These actions echo a troubling history of voter suppression and intimidation that has long targeted both Black and Latino communities, particularly in states like Texas, where demographic changes have increasingly shifted the political landscape.”

The Texas GOPs voter intimidation tactics are based on the faux outrage campaign against noncitizen voting.

[feminist-space]

Article by Fortesa Latifi:

"Being the child of an influencer, Vanessa tells me, was the equivalent of having a full-time job—and then some. She remembers late nights in which the family recorded and rerecorded videos until her mother considered them perfect and days when creating content for the blog stretched into her homeschooling time. If she expressed her unease, she was told the family needed her. “It was like after this next campaign, maybe we could have more time to relax. And then it would never happen,” she says. She was around 10 years old when she realized her life was different from that of other children. When she went to other kids’ houses, she was surprised by how they lived. “I felt strange that they didn’t have to work on social media or blog posts, or constantly pose for pictures or videos,” she says. “I realized they didn’t have to worry about their family's financial situation or contribute to it.”

Vanessa, who requested anonymity to speak freely about her family dynamics, says she helped create content for huge companies like Huggies and Hasbro when her mom landed endorsement deals. When she reached puberty and began menstruating, her mother had her do sponsored posts for sanitary pads. “It was so mortifying,” she says. “I just felt like I wanted to crawl into a hole and never come out.”

Being part of an influencer family changed everything about her life, Vanessa says. “Sometimes I didn’t know where the separation was between what was real and what was curated for social media.” And her mother’s online presence indelibly warped their relationship. “Being an influencer kid turned my relationship with my mom into more of an employer-employee relationship than a parent-child one,” she says. “Once you cross the line from being family to being coworkers, you can’t really go back.”

...

Khanbalinov has had zero new offers since he took his kids offline. “When we were showing our kids, brands were rolling in left and right—clothing companies, apps, paper towel companies, food brands. They all wanted us to work with them,” he says. “Once we stopped, we reached out to the brands we had lined up and 99 percent of them dropped out because they wanted kids to showcase their products. And I fought back, like, you guys are a paper towel company—why do you need a kid selling your stuff?”

The law has woefully lagged behind the culture here, but there’s signs that policymakers might finally be catching up. In 2023, in addition to Illinois, three other states—New York, Washington State, and New Jersey—proposed bills to protect influencer kids. Contrast that with the flurry of legislative activity in just the first two months of 2024. Seven more states—Maryland, Georgia, Ohio, Missouri, California, Arizona, Minnesota—have introduced similar legislation. Some of the bills are going one step further to protect the privacy of the kids featured in this content. In some states, proposed legislation would include a clause that borrows from a European legal doctrine known as the “right to be forgotten”—it would allow someone who was featured in content when they were a child to request that platforms permanently delete those posts. None of the current legislation introduced, however, would outright bar the practice of featuring minors in monetized content.

...

The movement on this issue was glacial for years, but it finally feels like the ice has thawed. Much of that progress is thanks to activists like Cam Barrett (she/they), a 25-year-old creator (@softscorpio) who uses TikTok to talk about her experience of being overshared in their childhood and adolescence. Barrett doesn’t go by her legal name anymore because of the online history it’s tied to. “I love my legal name,” Barrett tells me. “I just don’t love the digital footprint attached to it.” Last year, Barrett testified in front of the Washington State legislature as a proponent of a bill to protect influencer kids. This year, they testified again—this time, in front of the Maryland legislature.

“As a former content kid myself, I know what it’s like to grow up with a digital footprint I never asked for,” Barrett told the Maryland House of Delegates Economic Matters Committee in February. “As my mom posted to the world my first-ever menstrual cycle, as she posted to the world the intimate details about me being adopted, her platform grew and I had no say in what was posted.” And yet, Cam says her activism has been healing.

For Cam and other influencer children, getting a paycheck won’t give them back what they lost—a normal childhood unobstructed by the cameras pushed into their faces. But it could be the beginning of some version of restitution. “My friends say I’m fighting for little Cam,” she tells me. “It feels very healing because I didn’t have anyone to fight for me as a kid.”"

Read the full article here: https://www.cosmopolitan.com/lifestyle/a60125272/sharenting-parenting-influencer-cost-children/

[thelilylav]

In a Darabella mood lately I guess so I'm just gonna rant a bit more about them.

I feel like people genuinely underestimate the effect that Daring had on Rosabella when they get together, because a really common criticism I see of the two of them is that Rosabella doesn't get much out of the relationship and ends up kinda parenting Daring, but I really think this is a misunderstanding of her character?

Rant continues under the cut cause it turned out super long lmao

Now, I'm gonna admit this right now, but Rosabella was a huge favourite of mine when I first watched the show. Her, Maddie, Raven, Cedar, and Darling were my absolute favourite characters, so I do have a bit of bias in her direction. But I also think people don't really understand what I thought was pretty obvious about her personality. She's a huge animal rights activist, but she's also just big on social justice in general, and because of this she's a pretty big outcast among the other royals. They're friends with her, sure, but apart from Darling we don't really see people reach out to her until something goes wrong in their lives, and then they come to her for her to fix it. This is a role I'm sure she's played for the majority of her life, so she's probably used to it by now, but she also just genuinely enjoys helping others. Still, even though she puts all this effort into helping others out and making Ever After a more accepting place, when she actually tries to speak out on problems that she cares about, everyone tunes her out. We see this especially in A Semi Charming Kind of Life. Even Darling, who I would say is her closest friend, does this, although she seems to have mixed feelings on the whole thing, which makes sense considering she's going through her own doubts about the royals at the time.

A little bit of a personal rant here, but when I was a kid I was really into environmental activism. As in, went vegetarian and would try to start up protests for environmental rights and was the head of that club. I also got bullied for it, which didn't really register as bullying at the time, but seeing a character like Rosabella on screen was really refreshing for me, because that is what kids are like sometimes. Not trying to make this too personal, I just wanted to point out that she's not that unrealistically written, because there are people like her irl (like me!). She's a teen, a young teen at that (I think I said in another post she's fifteen cause I thought she was Darling's age, but then her wiki says she's seventeen, so idk how old exactly, but either way she's in high school), and teens are kind of known for having a lot of big emotions about the things they care about, even if they don't express that in the best way. So while I understand critiques against her character saying she's a bit abrasive with her advice, I honestly always saw this as intentional writing, because her telling people what they need to work on (even if they may not have asked for her advice) is part of what ostracizes her from the other royals.

So what does Daring have to do with this? Well, his first interactions with Rosabella are pretty similar to every other royal. He dismisses her and her interests, and doesn't see why animal activism is so important. This changes in Epic Winter. I've got my own issues with how they wrote that special, but I think Daring and Rosabella are actually written pretty well. Daring's going through an existential crisis after Dragon Games, and this leads to him regressing in character a lot, but that's a reasonable reaction for someone who essentially just got told his whole life is a lie. Rosabella sees him struggling, and does what she always does. She helps.

Where people get this wrong, imo, is that she doesn't do this out of a sense of obligation, she does this because that's who she is. When something goes wrong, she tries to help as much as possible, because she enjoys helping others. It's not taxing for her to reach out to other people. Was her advice to Daring a little assumptive? Yeah, but if you look at the interactions they've had in her diary and Darling's diary before that point, you can kind of see why she would think Daring's just another big-headed prince, and wouldn't understand why he's spiraling this badly. The thing about this is that I think she wasn't actually expecting Daring to take her seriously. She berates him the whole special, but he keeps pushing off her advice because he's knee-deep in an existential crisis, and nothing about his behaviour seems to surprise her. That's because she's used to this. It's what every royal has been doing to her for her entire life.

And you see her surprise when he starts to take her words to heart! She's surprised, because she's been tuned out by so many people for so long, and Daring has done the exact same thing to her time and time again. If I had to guess, she was probably expecting him to brush her words off and go about his daily life. But she tried reaching out anyway, because she can't help herself. She saw that he was hurt, and she cares about him because she cares about everyone, so she said what she thought would help or set him on the right path. He rolled his eyes like always, and she shrugged it off and kept trying anyway.

So imagine you're her for a second. You're passionate about acceptance and social justice and you care about everything, and your whole life this has been seen as a negative quality by all your friends until it serves them. So, you accept it. It's the way life is. Then, you see your roommates brother feels terrible, so you try to help him because you help everyone, and you expect him to not take you seriously because he hasn't every other time you've interacted, but he does. He takes you seriously, and it's probably the first time in your life someone other than your parents has actually taken your advice to heart and listened.

That's why she likes him. Their relationship is built on helping each other, I think people just don't see how Daring helps her, which is such a shame. He gives her acceptance and understanding, true understanding, for the first time ever. And to someone like Rosabella, who wants to make a positive change so badly? Imagine how much it must have meant, for her to realise that she actually had an impact on someone.

I dunno, you guys don't have to agree and I'd love to talk about it, these are just some thoughts I've had about her for a while.

[nothorses]

youre the first person ive seen since biden drop out who seems genuinely positive abt it, everyone else ive seen is being rlly negative or making jokes and it scared me a lot.... can you explain, or link to another post or article, that explains why its good that he dropped out? i keep seeing everyone saying that biden didnt do anything, then that he did so many things, thrn stuff saying kamala is a bad choice to endorse then you sounded so positive abt her and im very confused ): i avoid politics a lot cuz i live w a very protrump dad and its so difficult to find accurate information that isnt seaped in memes and sarcasm and pessimism but you sounded very genuine! thanks for any help <3

I went into more depth over here! I also wanna share a couple of videos I've been getting these perspectives from, because these folks are a lot more educated on the topic than I am.

I first heard the perspective that Biden was woefully unlikely to win from Olayemi Ulurin, in this video. She has a kind of "I can't blame anyone for not voting" perspective that I do think I agree with, largely because she's coming at it with nuance: Biden is not a compelling candidate, he's not likely to win, it makes sense people don't wanna vote for him, and the Democrats need to get their shit together and pick someone else.

She also posted this video (below) that goes way more in-depth into the issue, and which I think reflects (and GREATLY expands and adds to) my personal stance on the "vote blue no matter who" thing: i.e., voting is ultimately about making the fight easier for activists who are working for real change. It's important for that reason, not because the person you vote for can be trusted to do anything helpful of their own volition.

If you're gonna watch any of the videos I link here, watch that one.

The other source I've looked to a lot recently is Some More News, which is where I initially heard a lot more detail on the "Biden should drop out oh god oh please it's our only hope" perspective.

First was their podcast episode immediately following the recent Biden/Trump debate, in which they delve (somewhat casually, but thoroughly) into why Biden's 2024 campaign was so fucking terrifying for everyone who needs a Democrat win:

They also get into more detail on the topic here, in another podcast episode:

Those two videos are great just for understanding this election and why Biden dropping out is very much the best thing that could have happened. That's basically the topic for the full length of both podcast videos (where Olayemi just kind of touches on that specific question, in comparison). If you just want more details on that question and only have the capacity for one of these, you could probably watch either podcast video (I personally have only watched part of the second one, and all of the first one).

I'd also recommend these two channels for political insight in general.

Olayemi is great because she comes at things from an explicitly activist perspective, and she has a huge personal background in very grounded, concrete political activism, especially as a black immigrant woman. She brings in a lot of other experts as well, often themselves marginalized political activists, which is just a fantastic way to be exposed to a really awesome diversity of knowledgeable perspectives without having to look very far on your own. She's also relentlessly hopeful- and grounded in that hope- which is so, so important and refreshing.

Some More News is a good supplementary to Olayemi, imo, just in that they have a good, upbeat (and again, very grounded) energy, and they cover a lot of very current political stuff in an easy-to-digest kind of way. I find both them and Olayemi really fun to watch, but the vibes are definitely different between the two, and they're good counterpoints to each other- plus they tend to cover different stuff, which just helps broaden your awareness of what's going on, again without needing to look super far.

I know this is a lot of information; hopefully I've made it possible to sift through for the piece you actually want to start with, though. If nothing else, I really encourage folks to check out Olayemi and see if any of her videos catch their eye. She's really fantastic, and her stuff scratches my "video to do laundry to" itch while also being, like, a really valuable watch overall.

Best of luck!!

[eldewinddolly]

🦎 Half-goblin Holly backstory headcanons 🦎 (including some more general goblins headcanons because actual canon is *not it*) (very long post ahead, but I felt it was due time to expand the lore of my beloved half-goblin Holly) - Her dad's name is Lezzare. Holly was very close to him as a youngling ; he used to affectionately call her "B'wa-biba" (darling sparkle) - He made all her childhood clothes himself, as per the goblin tradition of mending : goblins love to patchwork their clothes with visible stitches, and fabrics passed down in the family from generation to generation - to allude to how their skin shed naturally and symbolise the love and protection of the family allowing them to grow. This tradition is mostly seen as an excuse for poor craftsfaeship compared to the more sophisticated, gold-thread embedded clothing of the elves and centaurs, but many goblins are actually very skilled at sewing. - He and Coral met at the university, at a marine biology class - Coral attended as a student and Lezzare as an auditor (goblins basically aren't allowed to pursue higher education in Haven because they are deemed too stupid) - Lezzare was an activist fighting for goblins' rights, and advocating for a demilitarised Haven (arguing that the People should only defend themselves against mud people as a united front, and not further the divides between the fairy families according to the "nobler" elven values and morals). - Even though he was a pacifist, he was sent to Howler's Peak after a mass arrestation following a deadly terrorist attack, when Holly was still quite young. Coral joined LEPMarine and moved to Atlantis with baby Holly so they could go visit Lezzare more easily. - Holly still loved her dad, but the stigma of being a goblin hybrid and her dad being in prison slowly started to take a toll on her ; especially since Coral was gone working most of the time, and Holly spent a lot of days with various LEP officers both being very dismissive of her and her father, and encouraging her to join the LEP like her mom. - When Coral died, Lezzare was allowed to attend the funeral, which absolutely didn't sit well with Coral's family who hated him and disapproved heavily of their daughter's relationship with a goblin. At the funeral, Lezzare started performing a goblin fire grieving ritual which was interpreted as an aggression attempt, causing an absolute riot between him and Coral's family and LEP coworkers, with Holly torn in the middle. - Holly was extremely mad for a very long time at her father for ruining her mother's funeral. Lezzare was also really upset that she chose to join the LEPrecon after everything they did to their kind. - I believe they were strictly no contact since, and for at least the first three books. But after meeting Artemis, and the B'wa Kell rebellion, Holly starts to see things a bit more differently, and a bit less black and white. Julius' death, then the events of The Opal Deception leaving her out of the LEP and more isolated than ever, as "the goblin LEP experiment that ended up being a murdering failure like every other goblin ever is", really changed her entire perspective. - Now she sees her dad more often ; mending their relationship takes time but they find things to bond over, and it gets better 🧡 ... That's it for now ! Please tell me what you think about all this ! Also, I've started working on a feature film two weeks ago that's why this piece took forever to finish ; even though I'm really done with it, and I think I could have done better with the color palette (too same toney imo), I'm pretty happy with how vibrant it globally turned out. And I'm also quite happy with Lezzare's face 💚

[sitp-recs]

I grew up as Draco/Hermione shipper (since I was very young) but when I last reread HP, I became Harry/Draco shipper! I can't explain why I used to be Dramione shipper (when all the vibes are always between Harry and Draco). Now, I realized that Hermione is still my fav characters but I don't ship her with anyone now (since I was young, I always dislike Romione ship and hate it when that ship was canon at the end). Sorry for my rant.

Thanks so much for your Drarry fics recs! Can, I ask for Drarry fics where Hermione have an important role, too? Oh yeah, between Harry and Draco, who do think is the one who fell first and fell harder?

Hi anon! I’ve never been into Dramione myself, but I feel like the Dramione -> Drarry pipeline is very common in this fandom! I also love Hermione as a character (I don’t identify with her as much as I used to as a kid, but I still find her fascinating and love seeing her portrayed as a complex, layered character in fic!). Despite also loving Ron and the “idea” of them together, I don’t care much for canon straight ships in general so I tend to read her in femslash pairings. Nothing wrong with that, the heart wants what the heart wants :)

I’m reccing some of my favorite Drarry fics with Mione as a relevant character, I hope you enjoy these. As for your last question, I’m super flexible with those headcanons because I’ve read all kinds of tropes and loved them all! Personally, I lean towards the idea that Draco fell first and Harry fell harder ☺️ what about you??

Intelligence by aideomai (T, 6k)

“I don’t believe it,” Ginny said, voice low with venom and fury. “Did you know?” “I knew there was a spy,” Hermione said.

Find The Balance by lauren3210, Obliviate_Amores (M, 15k)

After Harry gives Draco his wand and goes back to using his own, they both start having trouble making them work. Finding out why is a lot simpler than fixing the problem.

Turn From Stone by @harryromper (M, 45k)

Harry knows there’s nothing he can do to stop Hermione (war hero, historian, author of the reissued “Hogwarts: A History”) once she sets her mind to something. Even an extremely risky last-ditch effort to restore the ancient castle and lay its newest ghosts to rest. What he wasn’t counting on was her insistence that Draco Malfoy be part of the plan.

The Pure and Simple Truth by lettered (G, 65k)

Harry, Draco, and Hermione go to a pub. Harry, Draco, and Pansy go to a pub. Harry, Draco, Pansy, and Hermione go to a pub. Harry, Draco, Hermione and Ron go to a pub. Harry, Draco, Hermione, Ron, and Pansy―you guessed it―go to a pub. I could go on. In fact, I did. Harry, Draco, Hermione, Pansy, Ron, Blaise, Luna, Goyle, Neville, and Theodore Nott go to a pub. In various combinations.

Cauldron Full of Hot, Strong Love by @aibidil (E, 80k)

In which a group of wizards' rights activists goes on the offensive after a prohibition against love potions, forcing the magical world to confront the horror of magic's role in sexual assault and the murky legal nature of consent. Ron, Hermione, Harry, and Draco are swept together to solve the case, and in the process they're made to confront their own love and lust—with and without potions.

Two to Lie and One to Listen by @fluxweeed (E, 85k)

It’s weird when Hermione announces that she and Ron have broken up. It’s weirder when this is followed by the revelation that she’s already moved on—and the new object of her affections is Draco Malfoy.

Azoth by @lol-zeitgeistic (E, 88k)

Now that Harry is back at Hogwarts with Hermione for eighth year, he realises that something’s missing from his life, and it either has to do with Ron, his boggart, Snape, or Malfoy. Furthermore, what, exactly, does it mean when one’s life is defined by the desire to simultaneously impress and annoy a portrait? Harry has no idea; he’s too busy trying not to be in love with Malfoy to care.

From Ashes by Caedes12 (E, 150k)

When Draco comes back for eighth year, he starts an unexpected friendship with Hermione Granger. Between his new friendship and his parents kicking him out of the house, Draco's life starts down a new path.

[snowblossomreads]

Day 14 - Deceptive Kindness

Pairing(s)/Character(s): The Interrogator x Fem!Reader

Summary: In where the Interrogator gives his prisoner a most unusual solution to her current problem.

Tag(s)/Warning(s): Abuse of power, slut shaming, shaming in general, political prisoner, unjust arrest, sexual harassment (even if reader is like this man is hot), mentions of physical assault, gaslighting sorta?

A/N: BHWHAHAHAHAH. This prompt is literally perfect for this man, do you see that smile below in the gif?? Mans is literally being deceptive and kind!! This prompt is him LOL. Enjoy this unhinged alan character 😏

"So let me get this straight? Your officers broke into my house in the middle of the night! Arrested me on false pretenses. Blindfolded me, slapped me around, spit on me, and gagged me and you're saying this might be all a misunderstanding?"

Fuming. 

"That would seem to be the case. Though again, I would have to advise you not to use such pointed language. There is no proof my men did these things. They are strictly professionals. No other person has said they've done anything like that before."

Dismissive.

"Professional? Professional?! If they were so professional they wouldn't have broken into my house just before Christmas and chucked me in a van accusing me of what propaganda? Ohho just wait till my lawyer hears about this! I'm going to press charges again-."

"You're going to do what?"

Warm eyes became cold and narrowed at her words, and she stuttered to a stop at the change of demeanor that gave her a bit of whiplash. He had been pleasant, almost kind to her during his interrogation of her, even offering her some broth, which she didn't take.  But the harsh look in his eyes that were hidden behind dark rimmed, glasses seemed more alive with this attitude than the kinder one before. 

Had she been deceived by him? By his kindness and let's face it, a handsome face that also seemed as confused as she was. 

Maybe, but most people would be too if they were dragged out of bed in the middle of the night kicking and screaming.  

"I-I said I'm going to complain about the officer…that's all."

"I see, well that is your right after all. To complain that is."

It didn't feel that way, but she wasn't going to bring that up.

"But still," he continued, flipping through some documents that she was curious about, before turning his gaze back at her. "We need to figure out why exactly you're here and that's my job to guide you. Now come on along, the sooner you cooperate the sooner this can all be over with."

They seemed to not have the same definition of sooner though, because it seemed more like hours of them going round and round in circles.

"So you're not a part of any activist circles?"

"No, I already told you I wasn't."

"Of course, but it seems like multiple people you work with are though, and you seem to be good friends with them as well."

"And what of it? Their business is their’s and I've already said I'm not a political person! Why won't you believe me? And wait a minute have you been spying on me? How do you even know who my friends are?"

He turned another page ignoring her protests. On and on it went until,

"Tell me do you like sex?”

"E-excuse me?!"

This was becoming more absurd by the minute, and she wanted to think she was on some kind of prank show. Where were the cameras? Were people watching? When was the cast going to pop out and have a laugh about this?

"It's just a question," he asked nonchalantly, leaning back against his chair, as a tiny smile formed on his thin lips. He folded his arms across his chest as his white button-down tightened around him, giving her a nice mental image of what he might look like underneath that pristine shirt.

Oh, for the love of god could she not lust over a man who had just asked her the most out of pocket question?

"It's just that, you seem to have a lot of men coming in and out of your house every so often. Every other night, actually. Sometimes two at a time." 

The smile still hadn't left his lips as he stared at her, with a glint that made her stomach twist and flip in both an uncomfortable way, and another way that made her want to bang her head against the table.

"I'm not answering that."

"Why not? It's human nature, nothing to be ashamed about."

She kept silent.

"Hm, all those people." His eyes felt like they were boring a hole in her skull as he leaned forward, hand on his chin as he watched her. "Tell me [Y/n], are you lonely?"

"What's that got to do with any of this?"

"It matters, now come on tell me. Were you lonely growing up and it made you this way now? Trying to fill that loneliness up with something but nothing sticks?"

Again, she kept quiet, though this time it was harder to do so, as she could feel the temperature rising. Whether it was because of her becoming furious with each question he asked, or something else. She wasn't sure, but if there was one thing she knew, it was that she had no intention of answering him.

Or so she thought. 

"[Y/n] I don't want to use force, but you've truly been uncooperative this entire time. It seems like you don't even want to help your case."

"Well, if you ask me questions about my case, rather than who I've been fucking then maybe I would be a bit more cooperative. Ever thought of that?"

"But that's just the thing," he hummed, that smile that held no joy still lingering on his face as he stretched his arms above his head.  Her mind again, went to how his shirt stretched with him and the suspenders he wore. "We've been watching," he continued, "all those people in and out, in and out, several of them part of the resistance we've been told."

She gritted her teeth.

"So you see, those people that you've oh so eloquently put, fucking, are part of your case. Pity they couldn't help you fill you with something other than- ."

"Stop."

His smile still held no joy, only because it held a terrifying amount of malice in it, like he was ready to devour her whole. And it made her shiver.

"So, you are lonely aren't you?" His fingers tapped the desk surface repeatedly as he stared at her even as she averted his gaze. "Lonely with no one wondering where you are, or what's happened to you."

"Stop it." 

The words came through gritted teeth, as she continued to stare at her hands that were balled tightly together as they rested on her lap. 

"We could keep you here forever and no one would know. No one would care where poor little [Y/n] had gone."

Heat bloomed all over her face at his words. How pointed they were, how cruel they were. How true they were.

"Please stop."

"What a shame, such a pretty thing, yet so lonely. Hmm, maybe I could help with that?"

With how fast her head lifted from its bowed position, there was no way to deny how his words caught her off guard as she stared at him bewildered. It also made her dizzy as well, but that wasn't the most pressing issue at hand.

"I-I'm sorry what did you just say?" She asked, stumbling over her words, as a look of satisfaction crossed his features from the confusion he had caused her. 

Pushing himself away from his seat, the man, whom she still had no name to, stood up, stretching his limbs after sitting in the seat for over an hour. Again, she wished she could take her eyes off of him, be sick of him from everything that had happened but he was gorgeous. 

God, maybe he was right. That there was something wrong with her, as she watched him approach her. His strides long and languid, as his fingers glided against the edge of the table as he made his way toward her. 

She thought once the table ended, he would stop but to her surprise, one that sent a shiver down her spine and had the hair on her arms and neck stand up, he didn't. Instead, soft fingers stroked all the way up her bare arms at a leisurely pace as he walked around her.  

Up her arm, shoulder, then behind her neck, where his hand stayed slightly cupped around the back of her neck. A thumb stroking the skin causing her toes to curl and her to bite her lips. 

What was this man up to, and shouldn't she scream at him?

That thought was immediately left on the drawing board, as she felt his head hovering next to her ear before he spoke again. 

"Such a lonely little thing," he purred, his fingers stroking up and down her neck, causing her to bite her bottom lip and sharply inhale through her nose. “If it was loneliness you were trying to get rid of with all those people, maybe I can help."

"A-and how…just how are you gonna do that," she answered as steadily as possible, which was almost impossible as she could already feel her body begin to respond positively to the attention he was giving her.

"Oh, I think it's easier to show you than tell, and plus," he added, his voice doing something serious to her as her stomach clenched with how low it was. "I think it be good for your case. Show them that you did it for loneliness, not because you were up to anything. Much more preferable to be a whore than to be part of any resistance group."

Most people would have blown up being called a whore or anything like that but not here. Being a slut wasn't punishable by death, but being against the government? Yeah, that was an issue. And she was going to choose her fights wisely. 

"I-I told you I'm not a political person or in a resistance group!"

"Show me then," he purred in a tone that had her close to caving to the idea.

Again, she should have been disgusted by herself, with the way her thighs clenched at the idea of him using her. Yet, she only thought of all the things she let him do to her now that he was asking, and considering it was possibly the only way out of this mess well…

At least she could make herself feel better about it whenever she looked back on this and thought about her actions. 

"It’s a win-win solution, isn’t it? You're cleared of anything, and you get the attention you crave? Come on now we don't have all day my shift ends soon and I might not be as forgiving next time."

Releasing the shaky breath she had been holding at the feeling of the tip of his nose slowly caressing her cheek and down her neck, she slowly began to loosen up the fist she had balled in her lap. His lips continued to hover over her bare shoulders, blowing warm air on the chilled skin, and causing goosebumps to grow as he waited for her permission.  

Like he needed it anyway. She was just his prisoner. If wanted to, he could take her by force…but it was nice at least…to be asked. 

Plus, what did she have to lose at this point?

"Okay."

A/N: uh oh poor reader, did she not watch the movie? Let's say his tastes are a bit on the more extreme side huh? 🤪🤪

[beyondflashpoint]

Yoooooooo.

I’ve been bitten by the bug, and ye olde nostalgia got me thinking about Danny Phantom again, so I decided to play into that. I recently found the Show’s Pitch Bible, and it got me thinking about how I’d handle the reboot. On top of tweaking Jack and Maddie to make them less bumbling morons and more eccentric geniuses, I’d be aging up the crew, and settling Amity Park in Arkham County up New England way.

Danny, as you can probably tell from his human design, would be somewhat milquetoast, with grungy alternative leanings. Good at science, bad at math. Danny is, at his core, a good kid who loves his family. But he is still a kid.

I’ll probably go into them more as I work on the other characters, but I want to give Tucker, Sam, Jazz, and the Fenton parents more to do, even if it is just in the background. But for now, the Fenton parents definitely have only recently started Fenton Works. It’s been a lifelong dream, and between the two of them they’ve reached a point with their savings that it’s now a possibility. Maddie is a respected physicist, and Jack is… a bit of everything really. Test pilot, super spy, but mostly he’s an engineer. Maddie figures out how a thing works, and Jack can build it. The world of academia was… shocked when the most prominent scientific super couple announced they would be devoting the rest of their lives to pursuing superstitious pseudoscience, and this announcement has called their previous credibility into question, but no one can deny that Dr and Mister Fenton get results, if anyone can prove the existence of the supernatural, it’s the Fentons. Both are haunted by a supernatural experience from their youth.

Tucker Foley would probably have escaped the nerd label by his sheer programming and tech repair skills alone, if it wasn’t for the fact that he’s also a total anime geek, and a self proclaimed furry. Tucker is an unabashed nerd, and not the suave tv friendly type. Cosplays, ttrpg, mmos, comic and action figure collecting, you name it, he does it. Proudly. And he’s been Danny’s best friend since they were in diapers. Inevitably some of that has rubbed off on Danny.

Sam Manson is relatively new in town. She moved in with her grandmother midway through freshman year after things finally came to a head with her super conservative parents. Falling somewhere between socialist and anarchist, classic goth and punk, Sam is a rebel, an activist, and everything your parents warned you about. She’s also the coolest person Danny and Tucker know. Sam has a borderline obsession with the occult, ghosts, demons, witches, you name it, she can’t get enough of it. Which may or may not have something to do with a family secret relating to why certain members of the Manson family have purple eyes?

Jazmine Fenton is Danny’s smarter, prettier older sister. Fascinated by psychology, and obsessed with figuring out the inner workings of the mind. In high school she was a geek. In college she is thriving. Fortunately, Fenton Works is close to the university she’s attending, and that means she’s never far from home, and more importantly never far from her family. Though her relationship with her parents is rocky, she’s been trying to mend fences after getting some perspective on the world. She and Danny were close growing up, and shared everything, so his recent trend of playing everything close to his chest is unnerving for her. She doesn’t understand when she stopped be Danny’s best friend.

That’s alls I gots for now. Maybe I’ll play around with writing a fic, or maybe a comic or something. We’ll see how this all develops.

[dipstar1489]

Gotham Villains Headcanons

Got a couple of warnings. I won’t go into detail about the triggering topics, but best to get them out of the way now: references to death (specifically murder), mention of abuse, and a reference to cancer.

The Gotham villains are only famous in Gotham, so whenever a tourist questions why a circus clown is the greatest villain, you can bet that Joker would personally go after you and make it clear his a force not to reckon with.

Most of the villains have a bit of a friendly rivalry with the Bat Family. Like, both sides would ABSOLUTELY destroy the other, but if one side would come to battle while obviously severely injured or isn’t in the mindset to fight, the other would call it quits and wait to battle them till side one gets better. Joker used to have this relationship with Batman up till Joker mercilessly damaging the Robins some time before he killed Jason.

Joker can be actually funny and he crimes would be hilarious if not the circumstances.

Riddler and Joker meet at a puzzle competition before they became evil and the Joker won by cheating hence Riddler’s hatred for Joker.

Joker’s first and most consistent crime he commits is identity fraud and even he doesn’t remember his true name. The only thing that’s consistent is that he ran away from home, but the circumstances are always shifting.

Penguin, Riddler and Bane work together. Penguin is the owner of the club, Riddler rigs the games and Bane is the bouncer. Bane is also Penguin and Riddler’s third wheel.

Penguin hates Catwoman because of she’s a cat lady. No other reason.

Penguin will always close his business for a week while he mourns the extinction of a bird.

Penguin would 100% buy Elton John’s bird outfit if given the chance. Riddler poked fun at him for wanting such a ridiculous costume, until Penguin brought out the spandex, to which shut Riddler up quickly.

Penguin has been referred to as Mary Poppins way too many times and he owns it.

Never hurt or insult a bird in front of Penguin or you’ll be his number one target. Doesn’t matter if it’s a rubber duck, he’ll go after you.

Most villains are an activist and will actively defend their cause. Poison Ivy with nature, Harley and Two-Face with abuse survivors, Penguin for birds conservation, Catwoman with animal shelters (cats are just her specialty), Mr. Freeze with ending cancer and global warming, and Riddler with mental health.

Two-Face and Catwoman would occasionally play with kittens together in their free time.

Harley Quinn as bat family’s personal therapist with the family using their hero names. For example, first name Night and last name Wing.

Harley is basically the villains’ therapist as well and overcharges her clients if they personally offend her whether it be murder or killing one of Ivy’s plants. The only person Harley will outright refuse her service to is Joker and that’s because she knows what that asshole can do.

Jason sees Harley and Ivy as aunts if they become allies and he will call them in when Bruce disagrees with him, resulting in a chaotic coparenting system of “Well everyone’s gonna blow out someone’s brains eventually,” “Not when we’re trying to order a chicken sandwich Harley!”

[msweebyness]

for the writing challenge and myvan may, just mylene and ivan.

Let’s goooo! @imsparky2002 @booksrbetterthanpeople @nerdy-chocomallow

Mylene is Ivan’s greatest inspiration for his songs and poems. He’s written so much about his love for his girlfriend that he could probably fill multiple books with just the highlights

Mylene was never a huge fan of rock music before she started dating Ivan, but he was able to bring her around to it. She’s especially developed a love for Joan Jett, Green Day and Bon Jovi

Neither needs a single word to know when the other needs something, whether it be comfort, affection, support or whatever else it may be. They know each other’s tells and act on them before ever needing to be asked

The two are fiercely protective of one another, no matter what the situation. Anyone who upsets or does anything to hurt Mylene will find out exactly why you should avoid making DuPont’s resident gentle giant angry. And anyone who tries to dismiss Ivan as a mindless brute or even goes the opposite way and insults him for being too “soft” will be torn a verbal new one by the tiny activist

They trust each other implicitly and completely, and tell one another everything. Mylene was the first person Ivan opened up to about the situation with his biological father, and she can always talk to him about her struggles with anxiety. They also don’t keep things from each other. (When a guy from her junior theater troupe asked her not to tell her boyfriend after he made a physical pass at her which she refused, that didn’t work out for him)

These two are huge cuddlebugs, especially with one another. They’re almost always curled up in each other’s arms. Whether he’s picking her up or she’s pulling him down for a hug, they feel secure in each other’s arms

If there’s a day where they don’t see each other, they make it a point to at least try and text each other to ask about their day. Just some assurance that they’re doing alright is all they need. One will also usually call the other to say good night as well, just to close the day on a good note

They often talk about things like their future wedding or what their lives together as adults will be like. They know without a doubt that they love each other and can already envision spending life by one another’s side, so talking about these things isn’t daunting to them

Even before they revealed their identities to one another later on, each felt a strange sort of protectiveness towards the other while in hero mode. Even with the magic of the Miraculous, they could subconsciously recognize the one they love

[pangaeaseas]

5, 6, 13, 14 for Lily?

OOOOOH

This is for the headcanon ask game --so these are all headcanons lol. some of them have textual support but they don't need to.

5: Face/Looks

Lily is pretty but not stunningly beautiful (by stunningly beautiful I mean like so beautiful it would be regularly remarked upon, perfect features and skin, etc). The most notable feature of her face is her famous pair of bright green eyes. She has a few freckles but not many. She got horrible acne as a young teen and spent a few days locked up with Snape inventing her own anti-acne potion.

6. Hair

It's red. Obviously lol. I think she sometimes uses charms on it to put it in crazy styles or like make it glow. But otherwise she wears it loose or in a braid.

13. ideals or philosophies

ooooooooh I love this. Lily values kindness and loyalty --she thinks of herself as a 'decent' person and tries to be kind and polite to most people (which is interesting bc she can be a pretty rude person! so she has to TRY to be kind.) She tries to be always friendly but is pretty introverted and closed off imo--she is always nice to people (except when she's annoyed lol) but has few close friends. Loyalty is a core value for her: loyalty to her friends, to her family, and to communities she considers hers. She also values honesty and authenticity. She likes when people say what they mean and stick to their guns. Authenticity is huge for her I think--she despises Petunia for her fakeness. She also likes when people are blunt, so she has a difficult line to straddle in terms of being kind and being honest: and she generally skews towards honesty lol. She also has a strong sense of justice and chivalry: both in terms of standing up for the weak and in terms of trying to consider things fairly. She'll acknowledge when her enemies have good points, for example. She values both physical and moral courage (hence why she's a Gryffindor). She also values intellectual curiosity. She also values practicality and finding practical solutions to her problems. I think basically she thinks a perfect world is impossible but is determined to strive to be the best person in the world she's living in that she reasonably can.

She went through an existentialist chain-smoking Sartre-reading period after the dissolution of her friendship with Snape. She also had a Nietzsche period. (and she reads a lot of Dostoevsky ofc). She has a strong sense of working-class politics--class solidarity, she supports unions and strikes, flirting with socialism. And when she learns about feminism she considers herself a feminist. She started off as pretty apolitical or politically naive in the magical world, but the end of her friendship with Snape and political developments over that summer (the end of a period called the Truce where Voldemort had stopped OPENLY attacking Muggles and Muggleborns to 'negotiate' with the Ministry. of course he was still attacking just in secret. This period was like 1973-ish to 1976 and came after his first burst of open violence that started in 1970) made her connect more with radical Muggleborn politics and the anti-Voldemort opposition. By the end of her life she was committed to opposing the Statute of Secrecy (which is the marker of most radical political movements in the WW).

14. goals and intentions

Like I said earlier, Lily's intentions are generally to be the best person she can be in a cruel and unforgiving world, and to be kind and open to her friends. (She is not as successful at being kind and open as she wants to be lol). She tries to give people the benefit of the doubt (which sometimes works out poorly for her, see Snape.)She also intends to try and bridge her two worlds and to maintain relationships with Petunia and her parents. She also intends to be something of a breadwinner for her parents (especially when the Cokeworth mill shuts down).

Lily wants to be either a scholar or an activist (or both) but also make enough money to have social mobility and support her parents on her own--she gets a job after she marries James on principle because she wants to stand on her own two feet. She would have definitely done a lot of really interesting magical research had she lived. Her goals in life are to resist oppression, gain knowledge, and be a good friend. Sometimes those goals conflict ofc.

[threesthoughts]

…Yapping about Peep: take 4

A quick yap session In celebration of the 2004 Cartoon’s 21st Anniversary since it’s premier

Also this is 2 days late because my other ones kept getting deleted idk what this even is

(A/N: Author tends to ramble about who knows what? Also, i refer to the show by its full name or as Peep, which was its name at some point in production) I tried to keep it brief.

Peep and the Big Wide World is a cartoon that is built on one principal: "Just because you're four or five years old doesn't mean you're not a scientist." Peep is all about fostering curiosity, discovery, and innovation- while having an absurd amount of fun doing so. Chances are you won't even realize you're learning! It is witty, fun, and optimistic- a perfect cartoon for kids, and you'll be hard-pressed to find anyone that watched it that it didn't make an impact on. Peep is a cartoon that doesn't talk down to kids. It never belittles their intelligence, it's not afraid to use more complex words. Lessons are never explicitly stated, instead they are allowed to come naturally, a nice breath of fresh air when it is so much easier to make cartoons become preachy instead. The animation itself is colorful, yet calm is a gentle pace. The music, art, lessons, all wonderful. Peep is all around a incredible cartoon. That's why I would like to open this post with a brief rundown of the people behind the show.

And of course, we start with none other than Kaj Pindal himself.

Peep and all his friends were first created by Pindal back in 1962. Pindal began as a cartoonist creating many anti-Hitler cartoons, even though at the time, Denmark, his homeland, was under German occupation, making this very dangerous. Pindal was an animator, teacher, and activist, who worked for many projects with the NFB- many to serve as activism, speaking out against car culture, tobacco, and to educate about safe sex practices, and HIV/AIDS. Pindal recognized the sheer power that animation held. I present to you this story taken from Pindal's Blogspot:

"In the mid 80s, As Kaj was working on the direct-to-video version of “Peep and the big wide world” at the NFB studio in Toronto, a gentleman came to see producer Mike Scott, his name was Peter Dalglish. Although Dalglish went to law school, he decided the world didn't need another corporate lawyer, so he founded "Street kids international". At the time he was working with kids in Sudan, The problem of AIDS has come along at the time, and he realized how big a problem that was. He needed to inform the kids about protection. But he also knew it wasn't easy for white westerners to deliver messages to these kids worldwide, as the kids wouldn't relate easily...but he noticed how much they liked TOM & JERRY cartoons, and seeing how fascinated the kids were with Animation, Dalglish concluded he has to warn them about AIDS through animated cartoons."

Knowing this, there's no surprise that Peep and the Big Wide World turned out the way it did. It was the recognition of the power of art and the desire to create something great with it that made it- despite Peep! a show focused on STEM concepts- so great. It is the art- the writing, the animation, the music that brings it to life and connected with so many people And we have Pindal to thank for that.

(I STRONGLY advise you go check out his blog- complied by two of his (former) students. There is a treasure trove of information about him. I could talk so much more about him.)

Moving on from Pindal, we have Karen Worth, another key player in making Peep the show that it is.

Worth was the PatBWW science advisor. While Pindal created the 1962 and 1988 short films, it is Worth that carries the show in terms of scientific content. Peep, was underwritten by the NSF- the National Science Foundation. Worth is the author of the book "The Essentials of Science and Literacy" and specializes in science literacy connection for young students. I'm going to link a list of the books she wrote or helped to write if this part is especially interesting to you.

Finally, I want to talk about Joan Cusack.

Cusack is the narrator of Peep, and she is critical to the success of the show. Humor is important. Especially to a show that appeals to young kids. But Peep is also a show that is very much focused on the adults watching as well. I'm referring more to the parents, guardians, and educators rather than the Tumblr Fandom, but I digress. Peep was made to be an anywhere tool: In classrooms, at home, etc. Adult support is key in child development, and it is the adult encouragement and guidance that can do absolute wonders in instilling a life long love of science.

Having Cusack around really helps at retaining adult interest , her delivery and talent shine though in every line, and she delivers something with a edge to it, a mild contrast to the childlike wonder of the other characters, but it's never to the point of being cynical or distracting. Cusack's narration offers something for the adults at home to connect to, (she is a Golden Globe and Academy Award nominee, after all,) connecting parents to what their kids are watching connects them with their education, and their kids all at once.

Of course, there are so many people that are involved with the making of a show- writers, storyboard artists, directors, voice actors, the kids that have their two minute segments between the Peep episodes, and so many more people. These are but three.

The eponymous Peep and all of his friends are our guides though their- and our- worlds. After all, good story is nothing without good characters- and Peep certainly has good characters.

Quack:

Quack is the fan-favorite. There is no doubt in my mind to this, it’s basically a given. Even if he isn’t your favorite, there’s always something to say about Quack. Like Cusack, I strongly believe he serves as a bridge between show and parents and teachers- though let's be real, EVERYONE gets a kick out of Quack.

“There’s nothing better than ducks”

Quack is the arrogant, sometimes mean, egotistical know-it-all of the three main birds, but he has a heart of gold and will always come though for his friends. Also, did I mention he's absolutely hilarious yet? Because he is. Sometimes, Quack can be egotistical and mean- but he never gets too badly scolded for it. Which I can appreciate it. Quack is young. Lots of kids tend to have egos to them at this age- the show doesn’t feel the need to lecture its audience for it- it does a wonderful job at show, not tell when it comes to his pride and his jerkish tendencies. He is the oldest of the birds, and can sometimes come across as pessimistic, but he's never above joining in on the fun with his friends, and still has a strong childlike innocence to him.

What I love about Quack is that even though he can be very strong in his beliefs and convictions, but isn't above giving other opinions a chance. Of course, he tends to have a lot of blind spots, and tends to rely on the most basic principals and generalization too much, but he's still learning.

His voice actor is phenomenal. I cannot think of a better voice for Quack.

Even though Quack is undoubtedly the comic relief of the trio, and often the most childish, he is still knowledgeable, especially about ducks and swimming, and for some reason jokes and other human expressions.

My favorite parts is when he does feel and not being so cocky. I much prefer when he’s insecure, sympathetic, sad, but these wouldn’t hit so hard without his attitude, would it?

My favorite Quack episodes:

The Fish Museum

A Daring Duck

Peep's Can

Quack's Stuck Stick

Give Me a Call

Quack interestingly also got more episodes about him than Peep- even though Peep is the main character

Chirp:

Chirp is a savage. Like lowkey she I think she has some of the best lines. I personally think Chirp is like, the coolest character. In the fandom she seems to be generally liked, with only a few people that don’t like or care for her much.

“I came here to explore, and I’m going to explore!”

Chirp- the knowledgeable, determined one of the trio. She is the most book smart and socially intelligent of the three a good majority of the time. She is generally kind and hospitable, but quick to temper and obsession, and very assertive with her beliefs. She also has very strong convictions- dare I say even stronger than Quack? Maybe. What makes Chirp so compelling is her overarching story.

Hooboy.

Chirp wants to fly. Over the whole series Chirp wants to fly. This leads to some very interesting character moments where we see her determined attitude, but we also see doubt and hurt. This is makes her a very real and relatable character- we see the dream, the effort, the pain. We see Chirp be reckless, we see her be defensive. We see all sorts of human emotion- her story is one that can apply to any one of us- i love this for Chirp. I love that her dream to fly- and feelings associated with it- can be applied to all sorts of stories in real life. There is obviously how kids want to grow up and have more freedoms and escape the injustice of youth,but you can also read into it as an exploration of identity- gender, race, class, anything, because Chirp’s story might be case specific, but there’s still so many people that can connect to it for completley different reasons.

I personally like the duality of Chirp. She seems to operate very smoothly- almost suave around nearly everyone- even dangerous characters like Tom, but she still gets flustered around the likes of Robin and Hoot. She’s practical, but still young and still full of whimsy

Favorite Chirp Episodes:

Chirp Chirp, Tweet Tweet, Chirp

Peep:

Wow. Peep. Peep is one of my favorite protagonists ever. He’s the baby of the group, leading him to be gentle and easily distracted, but he is still the most observant of the trio. He is a quiet protagonist. Despite his quiet, observant nature, Peep still is an active character in the story, but it never puts pressure on Peep to need to save the day all the time.

"Yes we will! I know we will!"

Peep is agreeable, gentle, and sweet. He is often the most reasonable and rational person of the group, but he still recognizes emotion and tries to keep everyone happy- even at the expense of his happiness sometimes. He is always ready to help his friends. He is a quiet extrovert. He is fair and just. He is the embodiment of Peep and the Big Wide World’s message. You can be great even if you’re young.

As I said, Peep is one of my favorite MCs ever. Shows have a tendency to put their main characters on a pedestal or have them preach at you. Sometimes shows- and people put a lot of pressure on observers. You better have something amazing up there, or else you’re boring. Weird. Bad. This never happens. The narrative allows Peep to simply be… small. To just be. Because not everyone is a talker in real life, and I feel thats even rarer in media. Of course, in a show all about science, observation is a huge part of that, so the reasoning tracks. It’s still something i appreciate though.

Even if he isn’t very relatable to everyone, he still manages to be enjoyable. Literally impossible to find a Peep hater. He still is a great character to connect with the audience.

Interestingly, in the 1962 version, he was a boy, in 1988, she was a girl, and in 2004 was reverted back to being male.

Peep is one of the most whimsical characters i have came across. I love him, he’s amazing. We should all aspire to be more like Peep. He teaches that the mundane and small is just as amazing and has the potential to be exciting and new as any ‘big’ adventure can be.

HE LIVES IN A CAN??? CAN WE TALK ABOUT THIS MORE

Favorite Peep episodes:

That’s a Cat

Smaller than a Peep

All Fall Down

Group Dynamic:

This photo does a good job, i think.

I would say that these three and their dynamic are what hold their show together. It’s a good balance. The way they play off of each other is enjoyable, fun, and heartwarming. 10/10 group of friends here. They all have a unique role and the group feels incomplete without anyone of them.

Peep and Chirp are the most standard dynamic. They’re very supportive, kind, and have the same thirst for adventure, but they still round each other out well. Peep is gentle to Chirp’s aggressive. She’s cunning to his naive. Their moments in the show are some of the sweetest things to watch in it, they literally just have fun together and vibe together.

Quack and Peep work well because they’re so different. There’s a nice/mean, street-smart/book-smart dynamic to it. I love them because Peep, by simply existing brings out a side to Quack that we’re not every accustomed to, a good majority of his sympathetic moments are because of Peep. Peep also is genuinely kind and tolerant of Quack, and respects him a great deal. They're both comedic and heartwarming.

Chirp and Quack at first look like polar opposites. Chirp is the sky, Quack is the sea. Chirp is fire, Quack is water. But when you really watch them they’re not as different as you think, they’re very similar despite it all and they still have a great bond. Also: they straight carried this show. I’m sorry not sorry, their banter is too good. Still the funniest thing to me

The trio: Peep, Chirp, and Quack work because they are so genuine. Their relationship feels natural, and while it does have its rough patches, they smooth it out. What i like it that it shows Peep, Chirp and Quack smooth things out alone, with no interference from older characters- even if Peep has to serve as the mediator on occasion, it still feels true to the schoolyard struggles kids have- there is the kid initiating, there is the one with the temper, there is the on stuck in the middle. Their relationship exists because at the end of the day, they’re friends. They want to have each other in their lives. They always return to each other because they’re friends. And i love that for them.

Other Characters:

The characters in Peep are amazing. Aside from the main trio, we have Beaver Boy, Hoot, Newton, the Raccoon, Skunk, Squirrel, Squeak, Nellie, the fish, Tom, the Ants, the Bunnies, and I’m sure I’m still missing some. I love these guys. There isn’t a single character i dislike.

My personal favorites are Newton and Beaver Boy- Beaver Boy has a similar arc to Chirp and is just really funny, but he also is just so hecking wholesome it’s not even funny. Newton is also hilarious. Other characters, even the ones that are disliked like Pink Quack or the Robin from Big Bird never overstay their welcome. The side characters keep the stories fresh and help Peep’s world seem so much realer.

Okay AND this is a sub section but the MUSIC in Peep. The sound direction. It’s actually so good. Again, never too much, never distracting, but it elevates the show past infinity because it works so well with the world. Thats not even mentioning the theme song and Quack’s songs!

That theme song is one of the CATCHIEST things ever and i’m not even a huge fan of country. It is actually so much fun. It’s upbeat anf energetic but it’s not overwhelmingly hyper, and it’s fun to sing along to. I recommend checking it out in other languages.

QUACK QUACK QUACK QUACK’S SONGS QUACK’S SONGSSSSS

CAN WE DISCUSS

THE ABSOLUTE B A R S

THAT QUACK PUTS OUT

THERE’S NOTHING BETTER THAN A DUCK YO

They’re catchy as hell. Oh my god- they have no right to do this to me.

“I wish i were a duck

Hey look i already am

What a stroke of luck

Glad i’m not a purple ham“

All in all 10/10 show I need to yak so much more about Peep in so much more detail but this is long enough for now, so i’ll just end things here.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Molly Parker at Capitol News Illinois, via ProPublica:

CARBONDALE, Ill. — I grew up off a gravel road near a town of 60 people, a place where cows outnumber people. Southern Illinois University, just 40 miles north, opened up my world. I saw my first concerts here, debated big ideas in giant lecture halls and shared dorms with people who looked like no one I’d ever met. Two of my most influential professors came from opposite ends of the political spectrum.

SIU was the only four-year college within reach when I enrolled here in the fall of 2000 — both in miles and cost. And it set me on the path to who I would become. That’s why I accepted a job here teaching journalism two years ago. It is still a place of opportunity, but I was struck by how fragile it had become — a fraction of its former size, grappling with relentless enrollment and budget concerns.

Now, it faces new threats. The Trump administration has proposed cuts to research and labs across the country; targeted certain schools with diversity, equity and inclusion programs; and signed an executive order to eliminate the U.S. Department of Education, which manages student loans. State officials estimate that proposed funding reductions from the National Institutes of Health alone would cost SIU about $4.5 million.

In addition, conservative activists are on the lookout for what they deem “woke” depravity at universities. This is true at SIU as well, where students received emails from at least one conservative group offering to pay them to act as informants or write articles to help “expose the liberal bias that occurs on college campuses across the nation.” Schools like SIU, located in a region that overwhelmingly voted for President Donald Trump, may not be the primary targets of his threatened funding cuts, but they — along with the communities they serve — stand to lose the most. There are nearly 500 regional public universities across the U.S., serving around 5 million students — about half of all undergraduates enrolled in public universities, according to the Alliance for Research on Regional Colleges at Appalachian State University. These institutions of higher learning span nearly every state, with many rooted in rural areas and communities facing high unemployment, childhood poverty and limited access to medical care. They play a vital role in lifting up struggling individuals — and in some cases, entire communities that could very easily die out without them.

While Trump’s actions have primarily targeted high-profile institutions like Columbia University and the University of Pennsylvania, some regional schools are also under investigation for alleged racial discrimination tied to DEI programs. (So far, SIU hasn’t been named in any federal probes.) “This is definitely one of those baby-in-the-bathwater moments,” said Cecilia Orphan, an associate professor of higher education at the University of Denver, who is a lead researcher with the regional colleges alliance. While the administration has “a bone to pick with a particular type of institution,” she said, “there are all these other institutions that serve your community, your constituents.” Regional schools like SIU tend to operate with fewer resources than their counterparts, relying on federal and state money to support both the students and the school. Greater shares of students rely on need-based federal financial aid like Pell Grants, low-cost student loans and subsidized student work programs. And in terms of research, while attention goes to large, elite schools, hundreds of the schools spending at least $2.5 million on scientific studies — the threshold for qualifying as a research school — are regional public universities. SIU pumps $60 million annually into research. About a quarter of that money comes from the federal government.

At SIU, as at other regional universities, many research projects focus on overlooked issues in their own backyards. Here that means studying ways to help farmers yield stronger crops, to deal with invasive species in the waterways, and to deliver mental health care to remote schools. “We are at a crossroads and facing a national crisis. It is going to have far-reaching consequences for higher education,” said Mary Louise Cashel, a clinical psychology professor at SIU whose research, which focuses on youth violence prevention among diverse populations, relies on federal funding. Supporters of Trump’s proposed research funding cuts say schools should dip into their endowment funds to offset the recent cuts. But SIU’s $210 million endowment, almost all of it earmarked for specific purposes, is pocket change compared with Ivy League schools like Yale, which has a similar student population size but a roughly $41 billion endowment. At present, SIU faces a $9.4 million deficit, the result of declining enrollments and years of state budget cuts; there is no cushion for it to fall back on.

Intertwined with SIU’s fate is that of Carbondale, a town of 21,500 about 50 miles from the borders of Kentucky and Missouri. Since its founding in 1869, the university has turned Carbondale into a tiny cultural mecca and a powerful economic engine in an otherwise vast, rural region that has been battered by the decline of manufacturing and coal mining. Three decades ago, SIU and Carbondale felt electric: Lecture halls overflowed; local businesses thrived on the fall surge of students; The Strip, a longstanding student hangout, spilled over every weekend, music rattling windows into the early morning hours. The “Dirty Dale,” as the town is affectionately known, still carries traces of its college-town energy, and SIU remains the largest employer in the region. But there’s an undeniable fade as the student population is now half the size it was in the 1990s. Some of the local anchor establishments along The Strip have vanished. Now, more cuts threaten to push the university, and the town that depends on it, to a breaking point. [...]

That’s because diversity also means something more in regional public universities: Many students at SIU come from families that are poor, or barely middle class, and depend on scholarships and mentorship to succeed. Paul Frazier, SIU’s vice chancellor for anti-racism, diversity, equity and inclusion, said the way DEI has been politicized ignores what it actually does: “Poor doesn’t have a color.” But beyond helping students, DEI is also about the school’s survival. In 2021, SIU Chancellor Austin Lane rolled out Imagine 2030 — an ambitious blueprint for rebuilding SIU Carbondale. It called for doubling down on research, expanding student success programs and, at its core, embedding diversity into how the university operates, including in the recruitment of students, hiring and training of faculty and staff, and creation of programs that offer extra help to students struggling to keep up in their classes. It also called for growing SIU’s enrollment to 15,000.

SIU won’t reach that goal without targeted recruitment. “You can’t do that without bringing more of the largest-growing population, which is Latinx and Hispanic students,” Frazier said. “It’ll be like an old Western,” Frazier said of the risks of further eroding SIU. “It’ll be a ghost town.” SIU is offering marketing materials in Spanish for the first time in years. Similar efforts are going into reigniting passion for SIU throughout Cook County, home to Chicago; near St. Louis, and in high schools close by. While the plan was new, the desire to bring in students from a wide range of backgrounds was not. From the start, SIU grew against the grain by embracing diversity in a region that often didn’t. [...]

Clawing Its Way Back

It’s easy to destabilize a school. But restoring it? That’s a much harder challenge. Still, recently, it has felt like SIU has been clawing its way back. There have been two straight years of enrollment gains, driven in part by an influx of students coming from Southern Illinois and again from Cook County, as well as by growing online programs. And in late February, the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, which ranks universities by research spending, elevated SIU to its “very high” Research 1 status. In academic circles, it’s a big deal — putting SIU on the academic research map and bestowing it a status symbol that helps recruit top faculty and students. “It’s a great day to be a Saluki,” SIU President Dan Mahony said, referencing SIU’s canine mascot, at a February celebration of that promotion. Then there was a pop, and confetti rained down. But the federal financial directives and cultural wars roiling higher education are, once again, unsettling the campus and wider community. Things escalated earlier this month when SIU became a new target for the right: A social media account known for targeting LGBTQ+ people and DEI initiatives, Libs of TikTok, posted about an SIU professor who had uploaded explicit photos of himself online. The post, about an openly gay School of Medicine professor who has been publicly critical of Trump, took off, racking up more than 3 million views and hundreds of shares and comments. “LoTT INVESTIGATION: LGBTQ professor at a Public University posts extreme p*rnographic videos of himself m*sturbating ON CAMPUS,” it read. His employee profile quickly disappeared from the school’s website, and within days, SIU officials announced he was no longer employed by the university; he was subsequently charged with two misdemeanor counts of public indecency, and an arraignment hearing is scheduled for late April. But the controversy made SIU, not just the professor, a target. The post also took SIU to task for promoting itself on a hiring website as an “anti-racist” community. “SIU receives tens of millions of dollars from the federal government. SIU is violating Trump’s EO and should be stripped of their federal funding,” it read, tagging Elon Musk’s cost-cutting federal Department of Government Efficiency. The irony is high: While Carbondale, where the school is located, is a solidly blue island, it is surrounded by a conservative rural region hanging in the balance.

ProPublica, in conjunction with Capitol News Illinois, reports on how Carbondale and SIUC are fighting to survive Donald Trump’s assaults on higher education and diversity, equity, and inclusion policies.

[leonstoenailunderhisbed]

Insurgency: Serpent Killer

Summary: A totalitarian regime reigns over a South American country in which the virus is being distributed to its citizens at the pretense of a “cure.” Leon was sent to retrieve a sample of the virus mutation when he stumbled upon a group of anti-government activists whose main goal is to overthrow their government. Will Leon help the cause or will he fall down with the government as well?

Warning: Mentions of mature themes. Read at your own discretion. Slow burn. Age gap (Leon is 38 and reader is 21+). Reader is female.

Word count: 1,598

A/N: this one’s short but pls bear with me it’s for the plot.

[part one][part two][part three][part four][part five][part six][part seven][part eight][bonus]

“I am constantly trying to communicate something incommunicable, to explain something inexplicable, to tell about something i only feel in my bones and which can only be experienced in those bones," - Franzs Kafka, Letters to Milena

The Insurgents went off to their control panel to deliver the message to President Mendez. Everyone could tell how hurt and angry you were. You were out for blood, and you didn't care about anything else other than seeing the president's head off of her body.

"Tonight, we will storm the tower and end things once and for all. I don't want more innocent people dying," you said and then turned to one of the insurgents, "Tell everyone to get ready for battle."

The insurgent nodded and you watched as everyone got to work. Leon could only stand behind you as he watched you become so blood thirsty.

"Y/n..."

"Leon," you turned around to look at him, "We can handle this ourselves. You are still an important factor for us and I don't want anything to happen to you."

Your tone changed. You didn't sound like the girl he kissed back in San Jolonia. But he knew better than to say anything. He nodded and then took a step towards you.

"I need to complete my mission," He spoke quietly as he leaned down to your ear to whisper, "Remember when I said I was a government agent?"

You nodded and waited for him to proceed, "I need to go to a research facility and extract some information, think you can help me?"

You looked at him with furrowed brows before silently nodding, "Fine. You've been helping us, guess it would be fair to help you as well."

Leon nodded, “Thanks,” he mumbled before he walked away from the room. Now that you were alone, you couldn’t help the surging thoughts running rampant in your mind.

More people dying. More blood. More battles. War.

You were angry and you needed to do something now.

-

The insurgents prepared their own artillery- tanks, bombs, guns. Anything they could use for battle was ready. As their new leader, you checked that everything was good to go before finally proceeding with the storm.

This was it.

“Alright people, let’s get a move on!“ the people began to move after your order. The sound of their footsteps echoing through the gates as the tanks and vehicles exited first.

You marched with the Insurgents as Leon wandered off to god knows where. You trusted him and right now what you needed to focus on was the fact that today is going to be day where war will take place. Right in the heart of Pruye.

-

The President received the war declaration and she wasn’t all too happy. She’d thought that after seeing the murders of the innocent civilians, everyone would stop defying her. It only caused the opposite to happen. She quickly turned to her assistant,

“I want you to bring the Membario test subjects. They want a war? I’ll give them one…”

-

Leon went back to San Jolonia. When you brought him there for scouting supplies, he saw a research facility and he knew that’s where he had to go for his mission.

He hadn’t forgotten the real reason he was here. All he needed to do was get the sample and go back to you for battle, it was that simple.

As he walked through the rubble of the ruined city, he was wondering why there weren’t any signs of B.O.Ws yet. He’d thought that he would see one by now but so far he hasn’t. Which was unsettling, by the way. Something felt sinister about today but he couldn’t put any reason behind this feeling. All he could do right now was enter the facility and hope to find a sample of the virus.

-

Bombs and bullets went off as you and your people marched through the gates of the inner city state. The tower had been protected by soldiers and tanks.

Smoke filled the air as the ground shook from all the explosives being exchanged on either side. Soldiers and insurgents dying left and right.

But they didn’t seemed to have noticed you sneak inside the tower, ready to climb up the endless stairs. Right towards the president’s office.

-

The research facility was abandoned but it still had many of its records. It was as if the place was still used. Leon walked around the place and briefly looked over some scattered files, which all contained relatively the same thing. All about Membario and the test subjects.

One paper in specific stood out to him.

Test Subject 119: Subject has responded to commands and has been subdued.

He furrowed his brows as he read the files, more confusion strikes him and he didn’t know what else to expect from all of this. Sure, he knew a war was coming, but what type of experiments happened down here? He only hoped that whatever it was, that it only got scrapped and forgotten.

The further he walked down the facility, the more eerie it got. And that’s because of a green light emitting from a room.

With quiet steps, he slowly approached the room with his gun at the ready. Slowly entering, he made sure to sun his gun at any potential threat. After noticing that nothing came at him, he lowered his weapon and began to look around the room.

In the center of the room, stood a cylindrical tank with green liquid inside. And inside that tank was a mutated humanoid that resembled an all too similar monster- a bio organic weapon.

The hairs of his neck stood up as he felt a chill run down his spine. It wasn’t like anything he fought before. It was more evil and looked almost human. He knew for sure that this must’ve been something related to the government, why else would they keep this hidden?

He needed that sample but he didn’t know how to get it. Instead he just walked away towards one of the computers and hooked up a secret device he hand at the bottom pit of the pockets of his pants. For once he was glad he didn’t have to fight something- or someone- for a sample.

Once Leon hacked the information into his device, he made a swift exit. All while taking a mental note of that humanoid B.O.W.

-

You barged into the president’s office with your gun pointed and aimed in front of you. Gasps were heard all throughout the room.

And there stood President Mendez.

It was overwhelming. You desperately wanted to pull the trigger but you knew better. Instead, you spoke up, “I’ve got you now… if I were you, I’d be careful with my next choice of action.”

The President chuckled as she lifted her hands beside her head, “I was waiting for this moment… I knew one of you would come and try to pull this stunt.”

Her laugh only made you more angry. You gripped the handle of your gun and took a step forward, “Release everyone and I’ll consider letting you live.”

President Mendez stopped laughing and stared at you with amusement, “I don’t think you’re in any position to make threats like that…” her smug smile irritated you. You felt nothing but rage building up inside you.

You pointed your gun at once of the soldiers next to her and shot him right in the head before turning your attention back to the President, “The difference between you and I… is that I do not hesitate,” you seethed through gritted teeth, taking another stop closer.

The President remained silent as she observed you for a good minute, “You won’t win this fight, you know that right?”

Your eyes narrowed at her statement, “Says who? Because so far, we’ve been beating you and your idiots.”

She laughed at you once again before lowering her hands, “Oh c’mon, take a look. I’ve won even before all of this started. I have connections, I have supporters, I have power. And what do you have? Dreams and a toy gun. You’re nothing compared to me and you’re a fool for believing you can even amount to anything near my level.”

Silence overtook the room as you glared at her.

“Let’s be real, shall we? I have the Americans on my side. The weapons that you and your little friends have come from me,” she walked around her desk to stand in front of you.

“Do not forget your place,” she whispered in your ear. With an angered huff, you swung the back of your gun at her face. President Mendez stumbled back and two soldiers ran up behind you. Each solder took your arm and held you in place. “You bitch!” You yelled at her as you thrashed around.

The President held the side of her face where you hit her and with anger she spoke, “Take her with the rest of them. I want her executed by tomorrow.”

The soldiers nodded before they started to drag you away, “YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS!!” You yelled right before the door closed and the soldiers dragged you down the stairs.

-

The soldiers took you down to their cellars and threw you into a cell with other people. Some were men and women and others were just children. It broke your heart and it only caused your anger to rise.

You are to be executed tomorrow and there was no one who could save you. You were angry but also disappointed.

-

Leon ran back to San Bandero where the Insurgents were fighting soldiers to storm the tower.

He decided to be useful and help kill some soldiers.

Unbeknownst to him that the new Insurgent leader got captured by the president.

[mezmer]

Here I will explain why my blog banner describes me as an anti sugar activist. I try to be as "scientific" as my brain and heart allow, but I value my experience over scientific studies even if they support my view, huge ridiculous autist sugar post incoming

Sugar is highly addictive for most people. The problem is way more dire than we act like it is. Added to foods you wouldn't even think to include sugar. The link between sugar and obesity, endocrine disruption, general inflammation and malaise, disease, diabetes, your teeth rotting out, and even cancer, is undeniable no matter what articles or studies you try to dig up. not many people want to admit how bad it is. People who enjoy sugar, who might say "you only live once! It's not like I'm shooting heroin" suffer weird problems and assume it's something else. Children set up for a lifetime of failure because their parents don't pay attention to their sugar intake at all. I have a very drastic example of this I won't go into much detail about, but a set of parents close to me are feeding their daughter extreme amounts of sugar. She has a learning disability and is a very intense child. I've hinted at the sugar link and everyone is in denial.

I have baby sat this child and gotten her to eat organic wheat bread PB and J with a no sugar added, all fruit jam.. happily told her parents who did not care at all. It was such a feat to me. Everyone knows a picky child. It's worse than you think. This is a gateway drug and I'm totally serious. I said I would not go into great detail... I too was raised on welch's fruit snacks, "pancake syrup", sprite, Kool aid, and worst of all I was allowed to put as much sugar that I wanted into my tea. My parents were wonderful, they just didn't think or know how bad it was to do this

I've struggled with a sugar addiction before and since getting clean from drugs and seen the effects of it firsthand. The most obvious to be seen from the outside that I can make people believe is my struggle with acne. We know bacteria feeds off of sugar. This is why people who drink sugary drinks are at risk for UTIs. If bacteria enters their bladder, sugar makes it grow. Well no amount of washing my face, bentonite clay masks, washing my pillow cases, wearing a bonnet, would make the acne go away. Recently I tried to only eat a certain pint of ice cream thinking less sugar would help. It didn't and I'm over two weeks off of all sugar that isn't naturally occuring in honey and fruit. Crazy how natural sugar does not feed the bacteria and hormonal disruption. I've been in this cycle more than once. Not only does the acne go away, my face appears radiant every time. Breakouts as soon as I relapse. Maybe you are thinking, this is a bunch of hogwash and I eat little cakes often without a problem. That's fine. I know addicts who have used meth for 30 years and you wouldnt wonder much about them. Smokers who lived to 80. Sugar doesn't do me any good at all.

Neither my mom, who was just put on a medication with awful side effects because she is developing diabetes. Her doctor (doctor she's had for decades who is a total piece of garbage and prescribes dangerous cocktails of conflicting medications !! That's a whole other post!!!! Put my grandma on pills which nearly killed her! Plus other people HAHAHA) saw her coming up with high blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol without thinking to suggest a diet change first. My mom is overweight and likes to eat sweets. My mom told me, I can still eat sweets, I just have to eat less. I did tell her that didn't work for me. I quit because I don't want to end up sick this way. Diabetes runs in our family. The prescription is making my mom nauseous and dizzy. Insane to me right?

Why aren't the dangers of sugar recognized? Why am I the only advocate I know? I would shut the fuck up if the dangers were believed by more people. Is it Because Sugar Taste good? Not seen as a vice. We accept that corn syrup is not so good. Canola oil pretty bad. Dyes in food causing children to develop ADHD and autism, or whatever. Is there no risk in consuming sugar? Many health professionals don't want to admit it? I feel strongly. I feel sick when I eat sugar but I can't find myself able to stop unless I truly try. We are all convinced that it's just a danger to your teeth if you don't brush enough. MIL is a sugar addict who buys birthday cakes on clearance and clears the whole cake in a few days, a twice daily flosser and brusher, who has lost over half of her teeth to extractions, sees the link, and has no intention to quit.

Finally, I bake yummy dessert recipes excluding half the sugar while using honey, maple syrup, brown sugar for what is left (which is slightly better than white sugar from my understanding) and I have never made a baked good that is ruined by doing this. You can't even tell that I've excluded sugar and the foods have more flavor because sugar doesn't overpower the dish. They don't make your teeth hurt. You can eat more cookies because there is less sugar and they taste better. The texture is the same. Bakers will tell you this isn't true and you need to use the whole amount of sugar so the cookies and cakes arent ruined. Yes, you need torched sugar on creme brulee. Fine.

Do you ever find yourself scraping icing off of a cake? I have baked more than one birthday cake for loved ones excluding sugar and adding natural alternatives (NOT stevia or monkfruit which taste like shit and suck) and ive gotten nothing but compliments. My brown sugar maple cake with cream cheese icing using very little sugar was a hit for my partners birthday that everyone probably ate too much of. This isn't a brag, it's an idea for anyone who bakes to try and change your recipes. It hasn't failed for me. Ok SOrry

[rottenraccoons]

Not sure if this has already been asked yet, but how did the team come up with the four love interests in the first place? I feel like the hardest part of developing a character is figuring out how to start. All four feel so wonderfully complex, and are not very "trope-y," which is what I struggle with the most. Thanks!

Aw, thank you! I love answering stuff like this, so I decided to go through my process on Keir and rambled a bit. I'll put my answer under a readmore for brevity.

For us, we started building Obscura with the idea that we wanted to do something dark and mature, and began with developing a setting. Once we picked and started building out the marketplace under the mountain, we could start asking ourselves "why would anyone go to this place?" and work from there. (Vesper's fractum anima is one answer to this question that we really liked for the MC.)

"Thief" feels like a pretty natural role for a marketplace, and Tobi made it clear that she wanted to develop a very dark character, so I thought a more heroic Robin Hood-type character would be a nice contrast. My original concept of Keir was for a thief who burns for justice in a deeply unjust setting; think shounen-anime hero and you're in the right neighbourhood. Pretty tropey, and I say that with love! Proto-Keir would be a delight to write in a different story.

But the rest of the team didn't think that type of character really suited the dark tone we wanted to work with, and they were right. So we took the trope and twisted it. Yes, he's a good man who burns for justice in an unjust world; and he is extremely burned out. And that twist on the formula unlocked Keir for me and the rest of the team. Burned-out Keir could be exhausted and sarcastic and even cynical about the world, bitter about the state of the marketplace and very protective of Mouse Hole as a place he can improve.

This isn't to say that "burned-out activist Robin Hood" is an original characterisation that's never been done before; TV Tropes has a whole page on the Knight in Sour Armor, which deals with similar characters. But it was the foundation we could build on as a team to make a character that felt strong enough to be a romantic interest.

I've mentioned this before, but one of the inspirations I draw from when I write about the marketplace is the awful Web3/crypto environment, a topic I enjoy reading about mostly for the schadenfreude and ended up learning about as a consequence. For Keir, I use concepts like activist burnout and compassion fatigue, things I learned about much more intimately in 2020 (you can guess why). Taking these real life ideas and bringing them into my writing is my favourite way to add depth and texture to characters and settings. If you're looking to do the same, try looking outside fiction and see what things interest you, then bring them back to your fiction.

Not to say that tropey characters are a bad thing! I could write a whole other essay on the utility of character tropes, especially in the world of romance games. Tropes can be a great place to start constructing characters to ensure that they all have their own appeal, and they're just fun to experience as a reader, especially when it's one of your faves. There's no shame in being a bit tropey, if it suits the story you want to tell!

(And if you're looking for a bit of extra ~secret sauce~: give your characters two things they want super badly, but getting one thing will compromise the other. Safety and love are a classic pair; safety often means staying closed off from other people to avoid being hurt, love requires opening up to others. Then let them struggle with those competing wants.)