#so there will be... a lot of meaning when we start diving into the concept of her taking Matt's last name

[pastafossa]

HELLO PASTA 🩷🩷 i just had a random thought but like since jane hind isn’t (her? my?) actual name, in the future when she and matt get married and she becomes mrs. murdock, which name is the one that gets changed? the jane hind one or the real one? i imagine getting jane hind changed to jane murdock would be difficult since it’s a fake identity and name after all, but then again idk how all that stuff works legally so i was curious on your thoughts!!!

also, thank you for the newest chapter!! 💜 i am extremely excited to see what the outcome of this attempted mugging will be 🙈🙈🙈

The good news is this is going to actually become a plot point as we slowly explore the deepening themes of identity and the way all of us wind up having to choose who we are.

Her name is a false one, a name she took on that basically means 'Identity Unknown'. It's her own in-joke that she has no identity, no connections. In that way, it's incredibly symbolic. She's getting used to it, don't get me wrong. She's been wearing it for a few years by this point (the longest she's ever used a false name now), and most of us would start seeing it as our name after that long. We've also seen how the lines are starting to blur as she lets more of herself out and the Jane Hind identity adjusts to those gradual changes. Is she becoming Jane Hind? Is Jane Hind becoming her? Or is this still just a part she's playing?

So what happens when, yeah, she suddenly finds herself wanting a name, Matt's name, not because she needs another fake name, but because taking it would mean she was loved, cherished, and had found a place she belonged? She's only ever changed her name by burning the last one and moving on to a new identity, so the question fo what to do here is a difficult one. In theory, she could make an attempt to change her name to Jane Murdock, but there's a risk her identity wouldn't hold up, and then it might all blow up in her face, whether that's legal charges or something far worse. But if she wipes out the Jane Hind identity and 'reappears' as herself, well, there's not exactly a lot of legal documentation for that life either (since it's not like Cyrus James handed her her birth certificate or social security number when she escaped). She also barely knows that old life. Would it feel just as much like a false identity as all of the others she's worn before?

All in all, it's a very thorny issue at the moment, and while I won't spoil what's going to happen, I can at the very least confirm that Jane is going to have all the same questions, and the problem is eventually going to be solved in what I like to think is a really sweet, meaningful way. ❤️

And thank you so, so much! I've got part of that attempted mugging already written and let's just say I've had a lot of fun writing it. The muggers are admittedly having much less fun, but hey, that's what we're here for. 🤣

[obbystars]

Encounter Nihilism

Synopsis: “Just because they don’t have any eyes doesn’t mean they don’t have other senses. Come on, you should know that by now.” Z-13 (Sebastian Solace)

Notes: Not exactly a Sebastian Solace x Reader fic but you can read it as such / read When Light Fades before reading this / Reader deaths, nothing too angsty though / Sebastian being an asshole (and we love him for it) / Experimental deaths + cutting off limbs / Brief angst at the end / may be a tad bit shorter than my usual (it bothers me)

Credits: dividers by @cafekitsune

(Is it obvious this is self indulgent? I really love When Light Fades, super proud of it. I haven’t decided if I’m gonna take this concept and use it for an OC yet, but oh boy, it’s getting strong. Anyway, this fic’s meant to explore more on the reader featured in When Light Fades while also continuing to experiment with Sebastian’s character.)

As you swam to the next door, you hear strange noises coming from the other side. It’s not the Good People, they can’t come into the flooded rooms. It doesn’t sound like an angler either. You continued forward and the next door slid open. Your eyes widened at the sight of the creature on the other side as it looked at you.

Panicked, you try to climb into a locker. You don’t make it in time as you feel its tentacles wrap around your head to crush your diving mask, but that isn’t what kills you. The creature manages to trick the operator behind the PDG by attempting to remove it, causing immediate detonation.

You woke up with a gasp in an all too familiar room.

“I heard that,” Sebastian leans on his hand as his lure flickers on, “What’d you run into this time… Ah,”

You looked down as he slides over the document. An image of the creature you encountered is shown and beside it was another photo that was redacted. Maybe in another death you’ll see what that other photo is.

Nihilism was the codename Urbanshade had given it. A lot of the text within the first page was left redacted, and only a few lines were on the second page were visible.

“If by chance any operative encounters Z-8 within any flooded rooms, it is advised to remain still and turn off any light source currently in possession. Wait for Z-8 to pass.”

That was the only line you were able to read. Sebastian begins to tap his finger against the desk. You sit back and he takes that as the signal you’re done, but it’s not like you read much anyway.

He sighs as he closes the document, “Think of if as Red Light, Green Light. Surely you’ve played that game before,”

“Ugh, this feels worse than Pandemonium…” you groaned, leaning on the table.

“Pretend you’re a corpse floating in the water. That should be pretty easy for you, yeah? I mean, you have died quite a lot,”

“Screw you…”

Upon your next life, you find yourself in the trench tunnels about 20 doors in. It was an area in Hadal Blacksite you despised since it showed you that the anglers can attack from the front. You stepped out of the locker once the angler passed by and turned on your flashlight. There’s no squiddles in this room so you decided to look through the drawers for anything useful.

In the corner of your eye, you swear you saw something moving in the dark water. It wasn’t the Eyefestation as you didn’t see a green glow. Instead, it was Z-8. You freeze once you finally realized it, and you clicked your flashlight off. They looked like they were just passing by, but they suddenly turned to look at your general direction. Did they somehow sense you turning it off?

“Are you alive?”

You actually freeze up this time. It was a voice inside your head, but it wasn’t like Eyefestation where it tried to mimic the voice of the person in the PA. This was its own voice.

“I can sense you there,”

You start taking shallow breaths, almost resorting to holding it.

“Don’t worry. I can’t reach you. But when I do, it’s not personal,” it continues, “We’re both fighting for what we want, right? Freedom from this place?”

You try to not listen, thinking it’s only try to persuade you into meeting up with it. Maybe even striking up some sort of deal.

“I wish this wasn’t how we met, but I owe Sebastian. This is my favor to him,” its tone suddenly changes, “We can’t let you get that crystal,”

“…they owe Sebastian?” You whispered to yourself.

The Eyefestation suddenly emerges from the dark, and Z-8 swims out of her way as her eyes turned red. A new voice cried inside your head, pleading for you to look into its eyes. The next thing you knew, you were back in the room with Sebastian who stifled a laugh as he slides over the document to you. You had questions concerning what Z-8 had said, but maybe now’s not the right time to ask.

“For unknown reasons, Z-8 is somehow able to communicate with Z-317 “The Eyefestation.” Should operatives see Z-8 outside the windows, or hear its voice, DO NOT LISTEN and keep moving forward as they cannot reach you. They have already called “The Eyefestation” and are trying to keep you in the room.”

Sebastian closes the document, still trying to keep himself from laughing, “A tag-team! Who would’ve thought, huh?”

You rolled your eyes, “I can’t believe that’s how I died,”

“Like a deer in headlights,” he smirks as he leans closer, “Happens to all of us, but man, I thought you’d be used to seeing that shark considering the amount of times you looked at her,”

“She just startled me! I’d love to look at her if she wasn’t able to kill me just by making me look at her,” you shrugged, “She is a beautiful shark,”

Sebastian gives you an odd look and groans, “Get out of here already,”

“Fair enough,”

The next few deaths to Z-8 were more of trial and error. In your most recent death, you learned the hard way that Z-8 does not like the flash beacon and did not hesitate to detonate your PDG. You felt like it was a strange reaction considering it took them a moment to even react when you used any other light source.

“Got grabbed again, did ya?” Sebastian laughed.

He then slides the document to you, now revealing the entire document with some text still left redacted. Some documents contained those, such as his own, and you learned to stop caring about it. At least it wasn’t like the Multi-Monster. Previously redacted photo was now uncovered. A person whose face was obscured.

Z-8 - Codename: Nihilism. Real name: ▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇

In early 2011, five LR-Ps were selected to be a part of an experiment to achieve immortality. Out of the five selected, only Z-8 survived the first round of tests. Z-9, Z-10, Z-11, and Z-12 all succumbed to different effects as each subject was given a different dosage. Although Z-8 survived, they were not immune to the effects their dosage brought. As a result, the experiment was left on hold until researchers found a better source to reach the desired goal.

By 2013, the experiment resumed using the immortal jellyfish as originally planned along with the mimic octopus, the ▇▇▇, and ▇▇▇▇. Z-8 was used again for the next test and hasn’t experienced any side effects on the first day. Two days later, a guardsman escorting Z-8 noticed they have been stumbling and bumping into the walls. On the seventh day, Z-8 had gone completely blind. However, it has been noted that Z-8 is capable of sensing where there is light and where someone is even if they are not moving.

Z-8 soon began to struggle walking and can’t seem to have a tight grip. It didn’t take very long for them to lose all feeling in their arms and legs. They were still able to move their torso as well as their head. They were still capable of speech, but Z-8 has been refusing to talk.

Z-8 was meant to be executed due to the state they were in, but thirty minutes after their heart seemingly stopped, it soon started to beat again. They wake up an hour later as if they had just taken a nap with all of their memories still intact, but Z-8 still cannot see and still cannot walk or move their arms. This resulted in having to move Z-8’s location into a more suitable cell for testing.

Z-8 has endured 5 deaths before changes in their body started becoming clear. Shortly after, testing and studying the regenerative properties Z-8 should have began. Due to poor execution during the procedures, Z-8 ended up enduring 7 more deaths. By the 4th death, a new side effect to Z-8’s resurrection was noted. Upon death, coral (polyps) begins to form on their body.

Their body soon takes the form of a humanoid jellyfish, leading to having to relocate them again. Z-8 no longer turns to others when they are near until they shine a light. The behavior they show gives the impression they like the light and often try to follow it, sometimes moving their head or even their entire body.

Z-8 will then be used to study the regenerative properties further until it can be refined in a way that is desirable.

Before the lockdown was in effect, Z-8 was going to be sold at The Anomalous Auctions as Z-8 had been deemed of no monetary value, nor can be used for work. 5 hours into the lockdown, camera footage caught Z-13 transporting Z-8 to an unknown location.

If by chance any operative encounters Z-8 within any flooded rooms, it is advised to remain still and turn off any light source currently in possession. Wait for Z-8 to pass.

DO NOT move as Z-8 can sense you nearby, but they can’t differentiate between a corpse and a living person until you move.

Turn off any and all light sources in your possession as Z-8 can sense it and become curios. Your window to turn it off is narrow, but it’s still wide enough to not raise their suspicion.

There is a chance where operatives may find Z-8 roaming in a dark flooded room with S-Q. If the room prior has lights on, Z-8 will go into that room. It is safe to move in the dark room as Z-8 cannot tell the difference between you and the S-Q.

For unknown reasons, Z-8 is somehow able to communicate with Z-317 “The Eyefestation.” Should operatives see Z-8 outside the windows, or hear its voice, DO NOT LISTEN and keep moving forward as they cannot reach you. They have already called “The Eyefestation” and are trying to keep you in the room.

Unlike Z-13, operatives are instructed to contain Z-8 as it is impossible for the subject to stay dead.

You’re not exactly sure what to say to all of this. Sebastian is being much quieter than usual too, not even closing the document when you sat back. You look up at him, building up the courage to speak.

“So that’s what they meant when they said they owe you…”

“They don’t owe me anything,” his voice lowered into a growl, “It was their choice to stay much like that shark,”

You look down at the document again and sighed, “Kinda feels like there’s much more than that,”

“Don’t you have somewhere to be?”

You sighed again as you stood up to leave. Sebastian watches you go and looks back down at the document, then closes it without another word.

[honeytonedhottie]

HONEYS IT GIRL MAGAZINE august edition⋆.ೃ࿔*:･🎀

welcome back to honeys it girl magazine, this is the august catalog. get ready for the inside scoop on data that i've collected, things i've learned/started doing, and just general info like that organized in kind of a teen-magazine inspired fashion. a magazine for it girls ✨ and now please enjoy, the it girl magazine.

WHAT UR DREAMS REVEAL ABOUT YOU ;

have u ever woken up from a vivd dream and thought "what does that even mean?" yeah same. so i decided to dive into this for this catalog and here's what i found. dreams represent unconscious desires and wishes. we have dreams that mirror our emotional state.

three of the most common dreams that people have are falling, being chased, and dying. which are all inherently negative things. when u dream of falling, it shows a loss of control over an important situation. when u dream of being chased, thats ur brains way of telling u that ur stressed out. and when u dream of dying, it could represent a part of you that is dying or something you'd like to escape. 

and dreams about death are the most scary to me cuz i have MASSIVE fear of death but there are more than just negative dreams. usually my dreams consist of things that radiate positivity, or my dreams can be flat out weird. either way, if i remember my dreams i like to write them down and yap about them with my friends.

HAIR HEAVEN ;

i thought that since its leo season and leo's have the BEST hair its only right that hair is the topic of this month's beauty section. so im going to focus on talking about styling, treatments and general care.

how you style ur hair is SO super important to ur whole vibe and aesthetic. hair styles look different on everyone for a multitude of reasons but one of the most obvious is that people have different face shapes and different styles are flattering on different faces.

remember, u dont have to get the same haircut as ur favorite celeb bcuz its so much more cute and original when u get ur own haircut…💬🎀

now unto hair treatments. hair treatments are so important to keep ur hair healthy and lustrous and just well taken care of. so im going to give some hair mask and treatment recipes to keep ur hair healthy and radiant…💬🎀

now finally lets talk about some general tips to keep ur hair gorgeous and lovely on a day to day basis.

♡ use scrunchies instead of elastics when u can to avoid putting strain on ur hair

♡ incorporate collagen into ur diet with supplements or vitamins because its rly rly good for hair skin and nails

♡ when using heat on ur hair, use a heat protectant and try not to apply heat to ur hair on a daily basis

AUGUST MUSIC ;

this month i've really been listening to CHECK by the girl group FLO and let me just say, that song is an absolute MASTERPIECE. the music video was amazing. i love love the cinematography and the concept cuz its super hyper girly just like me and the girls looked so amazing and beautiful.

one of my favorite albums that also dropped this month was latto's sugar honey iced tea album. latto is so so talented and gorgeous and she rly ate down with this album so i highly recommend it to anyone who's been thinking about giving it a listen. my favorite songs on the album are shrimp & grits, look what u did and S/O to me.

BACK TO SCHOOL SEASON ;

for a lot of us, its back to school season and its the time to kind of transition from summer -> into the school year SO here are 5 tips on how to seamlessly transition from ur hot girl summer into a successful school year…💬🎀

♡ get urself an established routine

get urself an established routine 2 weeks before u start cuz the earlier u start ur routine, the quicker it'll be for it to become a habit. adjust ur sleep schedule by sleeping a little earlier, and going to bed at a reasonable time.

♡ reflect and write down some goals

reflect on ur last school year, what u did good and what u did not so good and based on that formulate a couple goals that u can commit to and hold urself accountable to so that then ur making progress thats trackable.

♡ be organized

organize ur notion, ur space, ur school bag EVERYTHING. organization is so crucial especially for school and can protect u from feeling overwhelmed and cluttered.

♡ brief review

im not the kind of person that like summer work, in fact i hate it. but a week or two before school starts i'll do a quick refresh or research the classes that im going to be taking to kind of set myself up for success.

♡ fix ur attitude

stay POSITIVE and dont take on a bad approach to this school year before you've even started. believe in urself, ur discipline and ur abilities and stay in a good mindset.

i have lots of back to school content planned still that hasn't dropped including studying, resources etc so that we can slay this school year…💬🎀

BACK TO SCHOOL FASHION ;

details for back to school fashion/academic princess style :

♡ plaid

♡ grey, pink, black and white color scheme

♡ collared shirts and jackets

♡ pleated mini skirts

♡ sweaters

♡ headbands

♡ knee/thigh high socks

long bouncy curls with a headband that matches something on ur outfit. ballet flats and leg warmers. baby pink gloss and square shaped french tips, delicate necklaces and bracelets…💬🎀

when i think of pink academia fashion the first person that comes to my brain is cher from clueless. here are some of her most princess academia moments in the movie.

cher emphasizes literally everything i've talked about in the pink princess school fashion scheme. the pretty socks, fluffy pens, collared shirts and pink->white->grey color scheme. even the way that she does her hair is very very pretty and flattering.

WHATS MY HOROSCOPE (AUGUST 25-31) ;

♡ you’re the star of the show this month, virgo! it all begins on august 4th with a leo new moon that awakens your zone of spirituality. you could be focused on sacred release to clear space, welcoming in new beginnings. confidence is cultivated through deep soul-searching. on the same day, venus enters your sign, bringing a boost to your energy, creative projects, and style. mercury stations retrograde, also in virgo, encouraging self-reflection.

♡ for aries, it’s an exciting month ahead! the action begins on august 4th, when the leo new moon activates your zone of pleasure, inviting you to follow your passions! a playful approach in romance and creativity can inspire new beginnings that feel fun and stress-free. on the same day, venus enters virgo and visits your sector that rules self-care, encouraging you to embrace healthier habits. In the evening, mercury goes retrograde in virgo, signaling a time for you to get centered.

♡ for taurus, it’s an emotionally powerful month. it all begins on august 4th, when the leo new moon activates your zone of intuition, bringing major insights that lead you to new beginnings. with your environment in the spotlight as well, you might use this time to beautify your living space, pulling in bold animal prints and patterns. later in the day, love planet venus enters virgo, activating your zone of pleasure. take a practical approach to love, money, and creativity. then, mercury stations retrograde in virgo, urging you to release perfectionism and rest.

♡ for gemini, his month is full of connection! the magic starts on august 4th, when the leo new moon activates your communication sector, inspiring you to shine your light, share your ideas, and express yourself. leo’s passion blends with the fresh slate of the new moon to bring you an exciting new path to explore. later, venus enters virgo, awakening your intuition so you can manifest! mercury stations retrograde in virgo as the evening comes to a close, marking a period of rest and awareness.

♡ for cancer, success is yours this month! it all begins on august 4th, when the new moon in leo visits your money zone, inspiring you to share your talents and build up your resources. the bold expression of your skills impresses others and serves as a beautiful boost of confidence for you too! you’ll crave more meaningful conversations when venus enters virgo, awakening your communication sector. mercury stations retrograde in virgo at the end of the day, signaling a time of required pause.

♡ for leo, it’s an expansive month! the excitement starts on august 4th, when a new moon in your sign ignites a path to new beginnings. you’re stepping into the most confident version of yourself! set intentions for the future with courage and inspiration. on the same day, venus enters practical virgo and visits your financial sector, helping you organize money matters and work projects. mercury goes retrograde in virgo that night, encouraging you to embrace stress reduction and physical relaxation.

♡ for libra, it’s an enlightening month ahead, libra! the leo new moon on august 4th activates your friendship sector and invites you to step into the social spotlight. you could be making plans with friends or passionately helping others. set intentions for the future and remember that dreams do come true! venus enters virgo later to help you get grounded as you explore your emotional realm. mercury stations retrograde in virgo that night, highlighting the importance of practicality.

♡ for scorpio, prepare for a month of empowerment! the leo new moon on august 4th inspires you to showcase your talents. by doing so, important people take notice and doors of opportunity open. don’t be afraid to courageously share your expertise. venus enters virgo later in the day, enhancing your powers of negotiation as well as your charm. mercury stations retrograde in virgo before the day ends, signaling a need for patience.

♡ for sagittarius, it’s an adventurous month! the fun begins on august 4th, when the leo new moon lights up your travel zone, encouraging you to explore on physical, intellectual, and spiritual levels. embrace new beginnings that bring abundance into your life. venus enters virgo on the same day, inviting in well-deserved acknowledgment and opportunity. mercury stations retrograde in virgo, asking you to review your long-term commitments and responsibilities.

♡ for capricorn, it’s a month of personal growth, capricorn! the leo new moon on august 4th awakens your zone of transformation and brings change. you could be healing your relationship with money or crafting a plan to tackle debt. when you surrender into evolution, manifestations become reality. venus enters virgo later and lands in your adventure zone. seek out experiences that feel fun, expansive, and abundant. mercury goes retrograde in virgo before the night ends and asks you to slow down.

♡ for aquarius, your relationships are highlighted this month, aquarius! the leo new moon on august 4th activates your relationship zone and opens new paths in love. create heart-led manifestations and enjoy quality time connecting with others. venus enters virgo on the same day and visits your sector of intimacy, encouraging you to bond beyond the physical plane. communicate with care when mercury goes retrograde in virgo that night, marking a time of potential misunderstandings and snafus.

♡ for pisces, get ready to fall in love this month, pisces! it begins with the leo new moon on august 4th that encourages you to love the most important person of all: you! this is the time to take excellent care of your mind, body, and soul so you can feel rejuvenated. venus enters virgo the same day, activating your relationship zone. strengthen your bonds! mercury goes retrograde in virgo that night, marking a time of healing.

CELEBRITY GOSSIP - BLAKE LIVELY ;

this month the movie "it ends with us" was released starring blake lively and justin baldoni and it has been gaining LOTS of traction on the internet for a multitude of reasons. i haven't been to watch the movie yet but if u have, tell me how it was!

the reason why im going to be talking about this in the celebrity gossip section is because of the fiasco blake lively and how out of touch she is…💬🎀

blake is getting called out for how shes been acting during her press tour for it ends with us and her past actions and behaviors that rly showcase how tone deaf she is. the movie is based on the book it ends with us that was written by colleen hoover, and in the book it explores topics such as domestic violence, emotional abuse etc. because of the serious nature of the movie, her saying "grab ur friends, wear ur florals" was a tone mismatch.

a clip of her is going viral where she was asked by the interviewer on, what was the best way someone who understands the themes of the movie, could talk to her. and she responds with literal sarcasm. leaving everyone confused and kind of put off. furthermore during the filming for the movie about literal DOMESTIC VIOLENCE. she launches a haircare brand. which could just be unfortunate timing but i feel like with how good marketing is, this wasn't a coincidence but thats just my opinion.

the last thing i wanna talk about is an interview a while back when blake was pregnant. the interviewer congratulated her saying "congrats on ur little bump" which is so sweet. blake responds "congrats on YOUR little bump" which was SO uncalled for because one, the lady wasn't pregnant and two, the lady literally couldn't have kids. throughout the interview blake just continued to be absolutely obnoxious, ignoring the interviewers questions and just being such a horrible guest.

anyways i'd love to hear ur thoughts and opinions on this situation in the comments and if ur kinda curious about the celeb gossip i recommend watching this video bcuz d'angelo rly explains everything well.

STYLE DISSECTION MARILYN MONROE ;

marilyn monroe is an absolute ICON and legend in literally every form of the word. shes an amazing role model and something that i rly rly love about her is ur style and her beauty which is why im doing this month's style dissection on her…💬🎀

one of my favorite marilyn monroe outfits was her gorgeous deep burgandy silky dress in the film how to marry a millionaire. in this film we get the ICONIC diamonds are a girls best friend and honestly they're right. marilyn sports GORGEOUS diamond jewelry in this movie that rly tie her outfits together and give the air of luxury and opulence that is so so hard to recreate which is why no one can do it quite like marilyn.

marilyn rly made the iconic 1950s glam what it was. everything from her signature platinum blonde bob to her gorgeous, feminine allure. in her film gentlemen prefer blondes shes wearing an absolutely stunning orange dress that shows off her body. it has a super flowy mermaid cut at the bottom which compliments the snugness of the dress around her waist, hips and chest.

i could talk for HOURS about the fashion icon that marilyn monroe is but we dont have that kind of time in this years august issue of the it girls magazine…💬🎀

[poppitron360]

Hot take but the whole “who is the most powerful demigod” debate is stupid.

Percy is not the most powerful demigod. Nico is not the most powerful demigod. Leo- despite vaporising a primordial goddess with his bare hands- is NOT the most powerful demigod.

The whole POINT of the Seven is that they’re all meant to be EQUALS in power. Or at least that’s what they are in theory, but in a desperate attempt to keep Percy as the main character they nerfed everyone else.

They each have unique abilities, which complement and contradict each other- working together as a team. They all have their own specific set of skills that they bring to the table. Neither should be more important than the other.

Yes Percy almost killed the goddess of misery with her own poison. Yes Nico can kill a person with a touch. But Hazel prevented Gaia from rising another seventy years. Piper can charmspeak literal gods. Jason defeated Krios single-handedly (we never see it but we’re told about it). Frank had to be given a physical handicap from the UNIVERSE ITSELF for being too powerful. Reyna has two ferocious robot lie-detector dogs, lived on Circe’s island so knows some magic and shit, lived with Pirates for a while, single-handedly ran CJ for eight months while trying to keep Octavian off her back AND led the legion into battle when the time came- not to mention the fact that she can basically amplify anyone’s strength/lend them hers. We don’t even have TIME to dive into all the times Annabeth has been seriously OP. Plus, Leo has a 60-tonne fire-breathing dragon, is the first fire user in nearly four centuries AND defeated Gaia.

I would’ve loved it if they’d all played equal part in the final battle against Gaia instead of Leo doing all the work. While I’m not complaining that Rick made my favourite character the most important in the end, I kinda think that if you’ve got a concept of Seven demigods each with their own role to play you should actually make their roles all equal- not just wait ‘til you find out who the fan favourite is and then give him the most significant job.

GIVE EACH MEMBER OF THE SEVEN EQUAL NUMBER OF POV CHAPTERS IN THE BOOKS PLEASE.

Perhaps it’s my neuros diverging, but I HATE it when things aren’t mathematically equal or don’t line up correctly. Fold a piece of paper in half all wonky-like in front of me I dare you.

The Lost Hero? Flawless! Each character gets two chapters, and it all rotates in the same cycle until we end up back with who we started. Admittedly Jason gets two extra chapters at the end but that just means we can give Piper and Leo more chapters in the other books. Son Of Neptune? Great! Percy gets a few more chapters in ratio to Frank and Hazel, though. Mark Of Athena?… All the Greek demigods get a POV! That’s fine! But where’s our book dedicated to just the Roman characters? House Of Hades? FANTASTIC! Everyone in the Prophecy gets a POV.

But wait! There’s more! Now there’s two new characters who need POVs, making the fandom have to write out a whole “the seven plus Nico and Reyna” thing even though the series is literally called Heroes of Olympus and so you could just call them that but that’s besides the point. Controversial, but I don’t mind the lack of Percabeth POVs in Blood of Olympus. We kinda already know a lot about them already and I wanna give my other pookies a time to shine. But the fact that Frank and Hazel only get TWO books with POVs meanwhile Leo and Piper get FOUR-

As much as I love them all, I just think that nine characters in five books might’ve been Rick biting off more than he can chew. We know this because of how hastily they had to wrap up Leo’s arc and the “oath to keep with a final breath” line in the Prophecy in the last chapter, and how Frank, Hazel and Reyna don’t get completed arcs until TOA.

But anyway, I think that “Percy is the most powerful”- while I know it’s an opinion most of the fandom share- is actually erasing the whole concept of HOO. Seven characters, equally powerful, for different reasons. And if Rick had just stuck to that concept, it would’ve been much more stylistically pleasing (with an equal number of chapters for each character) and be able to shine a light on characters like Frank and Hazel who are kinda pushed to the sides in the books. It made the final battle kinda anticlimactic just to have the Lost Trio and mostly Leo defeat Gaia, and just kinda made the ending underwhelming imo.

[pedgito]

heyyy, idk if you're still taking requests but I haven't been able to get this thought out of my mind for like a week:

"fuck me like you want me"

"but I do want you"

"...wait, what?"

a friends w benefits to lovers w eddie?? reader catches feelings for him after a little while & is going to call it quits on the situation they have going until eddie confesses his feelings in the middle of what she thought was going to be their last time? idk if the concept is good but like I said I can't get it out of my head & i hope you'd be willing to write it. Ur an amazing writer <333 hope you're doing well lovely

author’s note: i actually really loved this idea!! writing has been a little tough for me lately, just with focusing but i really tried to do something short but sweet with this and i hope you enjoy!

cw: 18+ (minors dni), fwb to lovers, confessions, angst/fluff, protected sex, just lots of feelings, if i missed anything lmk!

word count: 1.3k

You wouldn’t even let Eddie pull you past the threshold of his room, adamant on where you stood by the front door, telling him this would be quick. And he’s got that look on his, always smiling at you like he wanted to say more, but he was being polite, listening to whatever you had to tell him.

It was a blindside, honestly. Eddie couldn’t remember the last time he’s remained this oblivious, missing the signs, the obvious distance you were trying to create, how quickly things went from good to bad, the awkward stage in between where you didn’t want things to stop, but you weren’t sure how troublesome things would become if they progressed.

So, you call it quits.

“We can’t do this anymore.”

Your voice doesn’t waver, no hesitance in your tone despite how horrible it felt saying aloud.

“What?”

Eddie doesn’t want to believe it himself, face contorting into a mix of amusement and confusion, grinning like an idiot. It was the same dopey smile he always had, never anything less than.

“This, we can’t.” Your finger wags between the both of you, “The sex—I can’t.”

“Are you—are you disgusted or something?” Eddie asks, his smile faltering, “Does this mean we have to stop being friends too?”

Eddie hates himself for feeling upset over it, doing his best to mask whatever hurt was radiating throughout him. The problem was, unfortunately, that Eddie had dived into this with feelings pre-established. He was reckless and agreed and threw himself into a mess he couldn’t escape—not that he wanted to, but it had never been just sex for him.

He’s never had friendship like this; he’s had friends, but the levels at which you and Eddie understood each other, it was hard to recreate.

And you loved Eddie, that much was true. But, you couldn’t stand the idea of the feelings not being reciprocated, cutting things short before they transformed into something you couldn’t snuff out.

It was preemptive—and maybe you were jumping the gun, but you didn’t have any other choice.

“We agreed on no feelings, right?” You ask to clarify, his face softening at the inclination—everything that was unclear shifting into place.

Feelings. Stupid fucking feelings.

“Yeah, but—“ Eddie starts to defend.

“I mean, we probably should’ve expected it, right?” You ask with a weak smile, “One of us was bound to catch feelings—“

The only thing Eddie can focus on is losing you.

In his mind he knows—you’d never really leave. And you had feelings, feelings for…him? For the sex? But, he can see the look in your eyes, the hesitancy you feel to move toward him, within his reach.

Eddie can’t take it, saying what you both were feeling.

“Is it selfish of me to ask for one last time?” Eddie asks, “Before things go back to how they were?”

How they were—when things were normal, if you could call it that.

You find yourself nodding before you can stop it.

And for a moment, everything else is forgotten.

Eddie kisses you like he always had, full and attentive, teeth dragging against your lip and his touches all consuming, traveling amongst your body with no real path, touching you, trying to remember you—but when he finally breaches your entrance after a few minutes of shaky hands struggling to open the condom wrapper, the head of his cock pressing inside you finally, everything’s different.

Eddie doesn’t realize how much of a mistake it was until this moment, your eyes connecting with him intensely, face contorted in an expression of confusion as you examined the frown on his face, wondering why he looked so perplexed.

“At least fuck me like you want me, Eddie.” You plead softly, his thrust slow and languid.

He’s not trying to hide from you, but he's definitely not here with you, in the moment.

He forces a smile and buries his face into your neck, pressing warm, soft kisses into your skin in hopes that you’ll change the subject, his hands adjusting your legs around his hips as he moves against you, more forceful than before.

“Hey, hey—“ You urge, pulling his face away from your neck until his wide eyes are on you again for a brief moment before his eyes travel to your chest, your thumbs rubbing at his temples, “what’s going on with you?”

Anywhere but your eyes. He couldn’t keep himself together with you looking at him like that.

“Nothing.” He persists.

You shake your head, breathing your nose in frustration despite how hurriedly Eddie was moving inside of you, grunting softly under his breath.

“You wanted this,” You remind him, “you can’t even look at me right now—Eddie—“

He collapses slightly, forehead resting on the pillow behind your head as he squeezes at your thigh, shifting his hips at angle that has you both gasping momentarily, your hands shifting to his shoulders for purchase, the dullness of your nails sinking into his skin.

“I do—“ Eddie mumbles into your skin, muffling the rest of what he says, only feeling the vibrations of it against you.

“Eddie, I can’t hear you.” You plead, brushing his hair behind his ear, rubbing tenderly at the shell.

Sex had always been slow, intimate—despite the obvious stipulations to your deal and maybe that was the problem.

The sex was fun at first, easy—and it stayed that way, but it ventured into more, always needing to touch and feel and connect, whether it be your lips or your eyes, it wasn’t just sex to either of you, and Eddie couldn’t handle it anymore.

He couldn’t do this, but he couldn’t not have you—even if it meant he risked embarrassing himself.

“I do want you.” He confesses, head lifted slightly so you could hear him more clearly, his gaze still avoiding yours. “I don’t just want this.”

“Wait,” You laugh short, annoyed, “what?”

“I always have,” He continues, “It’s never—it’s never been just this for me, I know it was stupid of me to agree and drag you along but—“

You shove his shoulder lightly, stopping his movements momentarily. He’s looking at you know, hair askew and his eyebrows furrowed in surprise, “What the hell?”

“You let me embarrass myself like that?” You say seethingly, though the anger doesn’t reach your face—you can’t be upset with him, not with your current situation.

Or ever, really. It was to hard to stay mad at Eddie.

“I come here and tell you I have feelings and you’ve felt that way the entire time?”

Eddie’s at a loss and maybe it’s the arousal running through his brain but he can’t help laughing, a soft chuckle as he falls against you, his chest against your own as his fists dig into the mattress.

“I’m sorry.” He says endearingly, “You know I’m not good with feelings, or talking, or words—“

You sigh heavily, palms coming up to cover your eyes.

Eddie smiles slightly, using his nose to nudge your hands away from your face, leaving kisses as he finally breaches.

Against your nose, “Sorry,” down to your chin, “so sorry,” before pressing a deep kiss to your lips, tongue slipping inside and causing you to sigh out into his mouth, “really, really fuckin’ sorry, okay?”

Your fingers dig into his hair, pulling him away until you can see his face, scowl deep set into your features but still soft around the edges.

“I’m here mourning and you’re harboring secrets like that?”

Eddie hangs his head in shame, leaning down briefly to press a kiss against your collarbone.

“Apology accepted?” He asks hopefully.

“No, absolutely not.” You reply stubbornly.

Eddie snorts out a ridiculous chuf of a laugh, “Fair.”

“We’re finishing this,” You tell him, making your point by squeezing your legs tighter around his hips, forcing him to groan pathetically, “and then I’ll think about forgiving you.”

Eddie nods obediently, eyes squeezed shut for a moment as his languid thrusts become more pointed and precise, his warm palm settling in your knees to spread you apart to his liking.

“Let’s see how much I can make it up to you then, yeah?”

He snaps his hips once, harshly, forcing a broken whine from your lips. You nod fervently, mouth hung open and any previous anger forgotten for the moment.

“I’ll show you just how sorry I am.”

Please consider a reblog if you enjoyed this fic! It’s makes a huge difference. ♡

[stories-and-chaos]

Shrike: How to Train Your Exorcist

[Hazbin Hotel reader insert as Alastor’s “darling life and death partner” Ace x ace relationship, both parties are moderately sex favorable.]

[One shot, word count 1425, Cw: mild cursing]

—————

There was barely a month before Extermination Day. The Hazbin Hotel was packed for the first time with residents; cannibals and your avian demons, preparing to defend against the exorcists. The cannibals were used to ripping their prey to shreds. They needed practice hitting weak spots and wielding angelic weapons instead of their teeth and claws.

Your flock had flight and agility but the majority relied on hit and run tactics. They needed to learn not to dash off but continue their attack. Fortunately a couple of your followers had a more hawk-like design and the hunting ability to match. And you of course had the look of a butcher bird; you had plenty of experience taking down opponents.

“Alright you lot! We’ve got techniques you need to learn if you’re going to last longer than thirty seconds on extermination day. Angels are used to being unopposed in the air; they fly down, attack, then fly off to their next victim. So we take advantage of that.” You paced in front of the gathered demons.

You were short, but most of your people weren’t much bigger. “Exorcists aren’t going to be looking above themselves for targets. Even a small fighter diving at high speed can knock their target out of the sky. If we can grab and spin them, we might even break bones when they hit the ground.”

Some of the more delicate members of the group looked at each other dubiously. “Not to mention, they don’t fight together. They hunt down targets individually. Which means we can team up against them.” Now they looked more curious. “We don’t even have to make direct contact; two or more of us diving right next to them at top speed is going to hit them with our wakes. Knock them off balance and they’ll be easy targets for Pentious’ ranged weapons.

“We’re all going to have angelic steel weapons. Slash at them as you dive by, you might hit limbs or a wing. If you’re lucky, you’ll hit the neck. Ultimately, our goal is to disrupt them in the sky and get them to where the cannibals can finish them off. Now, let’s start with diving runs.”

You ended up holding multiple target dummies aloft with little whirlwinds. The demons weren’t very accurate at first, but they picked up the concept quickly. Before the week was out, more than half were knocking the dummies off their perches and almost all were trying weapons during their dives.

Alastor was doing his own preparations, but he did help setting up the targets. His tentacles held them in place when you needed a break. He also amused himself by making surprise attacks to keep the fliers on their toes.

You hauled Husk over at least once a day to join the flight group. He still didn’t like having wings, but you pointed out he needed every advantage he could get. And you knew how rusty the former Overlord was. So you shoved him right into the lot for practice.

The one you couldn’t get a hold of was Vaggie. She was spending all her time instructing the cannibals, then working with Charlie after. You’d seen her new wings and according to her royal girlfriend, the former exorcist had been in Hell for years. If Husk was rusty, Vaggie likely was too.

Ten days before the early Extermination, you walked up to Vaggie after the group’s lunch break. “Let’s leave the troops to Charlie for the afternoon, ma petite. You’re overdue for some time with me.” You linked your arm in hers and essentially dragged her with you. Charlie tried to come with you, but you waved her off. “Not to worry princess, I’ll give her back in one piece!”

“What the hell are you doing?” Vaggie didn’t really sound angry, just annoyed at your pushiness.

“I am giving you something you badly need.” You brought her to a patch of grass near your flock’s training area. You had told everyone to clear out of the sky in this area; this wasn’t a group session. “You’ve got those pretty new wings, cher. Let’s prove they’re not decorative, hm?”

With that you launched into the sky, hovering about twenty feet above the ground. “I know how to fly, Y/N.” Her voice turned harsher than usual as she joined you. “And Carmilla already showed me how to fight angels.”

You smiled, got a bit more altitude, and raced past her in a dive that sent her spinning in the air. “Carmilla, for all her skill and charm, is sadly limited by gravity,” you said, pulling out of your dive. You grabbed Vaggie’s arm as you passed her again, this time pulling her up with you. You brought her face close to your own. “We are not.” Before she could respond, you grabbed her shirt, spun her in the air and threw her toward the ground.

She managed to get control and brake before she hit the ground. “Allons’y cher. You know how to beat angels?” You summoned a stiletto in each hand. “Let’s make sure you can beat them where they feel strongest; the sky.” Vaggie pulled out her spear before launching herself at you.

She was right; she did know how to fly and fly well. It seemed flying was like riding a bike, you never really forgot. But she was also out of practice and had never sparred with someone like you. Someone willing to fight dirty, with tooth, talon, wings, and every bit of strength in your small frame.

That first day, she could barely touch you. But by the end of the day you could tell she was getting more fluid before the tiredness set in. She had a grin on her face as she begrudgingly said, “Okay, you’ve got a point. I need practice.”

“So you’ll be here tomorrow afternoon?” She rolled her eye and agreed before finding Charlie. You stretched your wings out and Alastor manifested behind you. “Looking like you were enjoying yourself today my dear.”

“I did, cher. Husk refuses to spar with me and none of our followers can quite keep up. Despite the situation, it’s fun to find someone who can.” You smiled up at him and placed your hand in his outstretched one. His shadows enveloped you, delivering you to the hotel suite.

Alastor led you to the table and pulled out your chair. “We’ve hardly been able to spend time together recently. Will you let me have your attention for the night my dear?”

“Gladly, darling.” After dinner (gumbo that reminded you of quiet nights both in the living world and Hell), the two of you relaxed on the couch together. You each had a book to read; the only sounds were the turning of pages and the chirps and drones from the bayou. Just being in each other’s presence helped calm your nerves about the upcoming battle.

The following week was packed with training and preparing the hotel’s grounds for the attack. Vaggie showed up every day after lunch to practice with you. As a former exorcist, she was experienced with various weapons already. She picked up on your style without too much difficulty.

Two days before the deadline, she grappled you in midair. Her remaining eye glowed as she continued her movement, spinning you with her own body as the axis. Like you had to her the first day, she flung you to the ground, her rotation giving the throw more force.

Too close to brake, you resorted to cushioning your fall with wind. Once your head stopped spinning, you looked up at her and started clapping. “Well done, cher!” You rustled your feathers, getting everything back into place before taking to the air again. “Now, let’s make sure you can do it again.”

It turned out she could. Neither of you could manage too many in a row without getting a wicked headache. But Vaggie had a grasp of everything you could show her in those ten days. Much of what you had practiced together was new for her, meaning it was one more way to catch the angels off guard.

Inevitably, Extermination Day arrived. You waited with the rest of the defenders. Vaggie had her wings hidden for now; none of her former comrades knew she could fly again and she wanted it to be a trump card.

Golden light rained down, Vaggie rallied those around her with Charlie, you and yours took to the sky to teach the rest of the exorcists a lesson.

——————

@whitewolfsoldat @edgyboi10000 @ch3sire-blu3 @clearly-awkward @badatpunz @bengewatch @chewbrry

[bloodyopvs]

The Sanguinarch isn't a bad villain or a cliched one.

The only thing that his writing suffers from is the fact that a lot of the finer points in his characterisation were easily missed or flew over our heads due to Arknights's ambiguous writing — I also had to do some deep lore diving to the Arknights Terra Wiki to be able to piece a more coherent picture of him, something more profound than merely 'he's just a mindless psychopath and a remorseless war criminal'.

And it strikes me what he was actually meant to be, in Chapter 13, where he was the main villain.

He is, for lack of a better word, an inverted Jesus figure.

There's a lot of things supporting this.

First, we have the crown of thorns (actually the thing that got into this rabbit hole) that his chibi, boss sprite wore in his second phase. His artist, Chuzenji, also drew him with the same thing. The crown of thorns's symbolism is obvious. Jesus wears one, including his depiction in the famous movie, The Passion of the Christ. Though, it's probably not that special on its own; but it's only the tip of the iceberg.

Then we got the meaning of his name, a portmanteau of a Hebrew word and an angel's name —— 'Dook', meaning pierced, and Ariel, an angel whose name literally means 'Lion/Hero of God', at least according to the Terra Wiki —— and things are starting to get intriguing. Put together, 'Duq'arael' means 'Pierced Lion/Hero of God'. The angel's name aside, the lion is an animal that symbolised 'God's strength and command', one that was closely related to God, to the point where C.S Lewis, author of the famous Chronicles of Narnia, use Aslan, a lion, as a stand-in metaphor for God.

And yes, the deeper you go into Sarkaz lore, the more you discover that it was heavily inspired by the lore of Abrahamic religions in real life, although I won't delve too deeply into this or start drawing parallels to real life events, since it's an extremely sensitive issue. But my point is that Arknights has always been deeply influenced by religious mythology and symbolism, and Duq'arael's name goes deep. It hinted at us on his true character——how he views himself.

(Him killing his own elder brother, who was an 'ideal' King of Sarkaz, was also a clear allusion to the story of Cain and Abel, and ties in with the occult theory that Cain was the first vampire in history, but that's an aside. Though this also serves to strengthen the point that Arknights has always been deeply influenced by religious mythology and symbolisms.)

Back to the topic, I would also argue that his design cleverly reflected this hidden allusion. His uncanny colour palette—white, red and black—could be interpreted as a reversal, so to speak, of Jesus's darker robes and dark hair (as he was so often and popularly depicted to be). His entire design screams vampire nobility, but there's something uncanny about it, which was highlighted when we were first introduced to him in Chapter 10 (or was it 11?). He was described as an ordinary-seeming nobleman, one who wouldn't look out of place speaking about current politics in Victorian telly.

More than that, though...although he wears black and red, 'traditional' vampire colours, his main colour is obviously white. White hair, white clothes.

Both the absence of colour, and the colour of purity, innocence, and rebirth.

Duq'arael is also the 'Prince of Blood'. Amiya, during their confrontation in Chapter 13, asks him what does blood means to him. As a concept, as a symbol——a meaning. Now his answer here isn't that important (although it's curious that he equates it with suffering, especially that of the Sarkaz's), but there's a hidden symbolism bomb here: Blood symbolised passion. When someone angers us, for example, we say that it makes our 'blood boil'. When our lover arouses us, or when we were afraid during a horror movie, we say that it gets 'our blood racing'.

In line with this, Dukare's goal——what he hopes to achieve by sacrificing so many people, including his own people——is to give the Sarkaz, who had been robbed of not only their homes and lands but also their entire identity, who had been brutally dehumanised and discriminated against for centuries, salvation.

At least in his perspective. He spilled a single drop of blood for them, a drop of pure Teekaz blood, in order to give them this salvation as well as to once again summon their original sin in the form of the first Originium. He even goes so far that this is their curse——the curse of being a Sarkaz, the curse of Originium. The implication here is that he wanted to SAVE them. But because he's twisted, because he's 'inverted' Jesus, he accomplishes that by sacrificing others on the cross instead of himself. A selfish 'saviour'.

He also blesses the Sarkaz with his blood, granting them strength. Once more: misplaced salvation.

But wait, there's another layer to this.

Duq'arael's the ONLY one who saw himself as such. He has a saviour complex despite his pretenses to be indolent, and obviously, due to the crimes and sins he committed, others saw him merely as a murderer, a monster, and a blood purist. Someone who can't let go of the past, and is still heavily fettered by it——someone who blatantly refuses to let go.

He, after all, killed his elder brother out of disappointment. He also testifies that he saw several other Kings of Sarkaz come and go during his long life, and with each passing one, he grew more and more disappointed, more and more disillusioned. More and more jaded. That is why he wanted to kill Amiya too; obsessed with slaying her, even. Not because he's blindly obsessed with murder in itself (perhaps not only because), but because he's past the point of saving. Which was his tragedy, and one that Amiya and Logos mourned after they pushed him off the Feranmut.

This motivation of offering salvation is also likely why he agreed to help Theresis take Londinium. He had alluded to it himself; his ultimate goal or even his motivation wasn't to rebuild Kazdel, especially not as the shitty mobile city that most recent Sarkaz remembered it as.

No, he wanted to 'save' them. To offer them salvation; to return their birthright, which is the entire world of Terra, to them. Back from the hands of the Ancients and the Elders, outworlder races who once wrested it out of their grasp and then proceeded to give them misery for centuries. Millennias, even.

Again, that is his role——The False Saviour.

I don't get why Chapter 13's title was 'The Whirlpool That Is Passion' at first, but then I realised that HG was being sneaky. They couldn't possibly call it 'The Passion of the Vampire', which would be TOO on the nose, so that's why they call it that:

The Whirlpool (symbolising Dukare being twisted by his past and his disillusionment) That Is Passion (the Jesus symbolism). It's very clever.

In addition to all of the above, on their 4th Anniversary art, his artist drew him with a white lily. The flower of (you guessed it) purity, innocence, and most importantly, rebirth. It does work with his image as a vampire, plainly speaking, and the Master of the Crimson Court who's obsessed with the purity of the blood, but I'd say it's more than that, since the white lily is also Mary's flower. Mary, as in the Mother of Christ.

So, no, The Sanguinarch isn't a bad villain. While he is undoubtedly a war criminal (wouldn't say that he's misunderstood, since he's an absolute dipshit nonetheless), he's not 'just' a psychopath.

[sproutedlavender]

Need quantum jumping or reality shifting inspiration?

If you're in need of reality shifting or quantum jumping inspiration, you've come to the right place. First of all, let me just start by saying, if you're into reality shifting and the idea of parallel realities, you NEED to watch Everything Everywhere all at once.

This movie completely surpassed any expectations I had. Not only is it a great movie on it's own (not me fangirling) but it also dives deep into the idea of parallel realities and accessing them to shift your life.

Of course, let me also say WARNING. This movie is kinda insane (in a good way) so if you're not into people with sausage fingers, talking rocks and raccacoonie (ratatouille???) you might be in for a surprise.

But strangely enough, the weirdness of this movie actually gets across the idea that ANYTHING can be a reality. For every thought exists a reality out there and we can tap into those realities whenever we desire. Things that seem strange to us are only strange because those are our beliefs. If we grew up in a reality where people could fly, that wouldn't seem strange at all, in fact it would seem strange is someone couldn't fly.

The idea of reality shifting and quantum jumping shouldn't be all that strange, although if your new to the concept and can definitely seem a little iffy.

It's no surprise that our actions create our reality, each decision we make leads us on a different path. But what would have happened if you had taken another step? Made another decision?

These decisions, taken or not taken split off into alternate paths, other lives, other version of ourselves that we can step into whenever we want. Shifting realities is not something new, people have known about this for years.

Manifesting is just the same, stepping into an alternate timeline where your desires are already there because, funny enough, you're not actually ever creating anything.

Although a lot of manifestation people (myself included) say that you are creating your reality, that's really just a way to get people to understand their power and the influence over their life. But in reality, you're not actually every creating anything because everything is already done.

Law of assumption anyone?

Anything you desire exists already. You 'manifest' and 'create' by deciding to do so and stepping into that new reality.

Still with me?

Reality shifting and quantum jumping isn't difficult or unique, we're doing it all the time, so image if you start doing it consciously???

Reality shifting and quantum jumping doesn't always mean waking up in a completely different reality overnight, (though I have heard of people doing that) it often begins with an inside shift. Something within you that just feels different.

You wake up and you feel reborn like a completely different person because you ARE. You're memories don't feel like your own and when you look back on your life it can often feel like watching a movie. You can sympathize and laugh with the main character but you don't feel it personally because it's not your story. At least not anymore.

When you shift the energy inside, from wanting and chasing to having and knowing that you have shifted into a completely different state of mind and, therefor, a different reality, it's only a matter of time before your outward reality shift to match your inside energy.

So, moral of the story, shift your mind and your reality changes. Simple, right? 😉

Of course it's not always easy . If you need some help on how to manifest (whether an object, a new version of you or a new reality all together) I wrote a post on the Law of Assumption and the Law of Attraction to hopefully help you guys out❤️

P.S Don't forget to watch the movie, you won't regret it!

Law of Attraction Post

Law of Assumption Post

[yello-123]

Something I am just beyond obsessed with this Shauna Shipman being a dog that bites (specifically the hand that feeds her), a violent dog, a losing dog, etc, whatever the Tok Tok dog trend is this month. If there’s an unfortunate dog allegory— boom she’s there. Shauna’s just got that dog in her like no one else before her.

That being said, my favorite one to dive into is that she bites that hand that feeds her. Any individual who shows her genuine kindness, care, and affection she both fails and hurts horribly. Off the top of the dome:

Jackie Taylor- Jackie adored Shauna. Just adored her. I mean they shared a lot of history and their relationship was complex and toxic, but Jackie doted on her and more than that depended on Shauna for emotional support, camaraderie, and idk homoerotic tension. When Jackie’s mental health and significance/popularity began to decline in the group she needed Shauna, she needed her best friend and Shauna refused her. Shauna, finally in possession of a role outside of Jackie (more importantly one that outshined Jackie’s) and weighted down by a guilty conscious, grew more and more distant. I mean that’s just to start, not even mentioning how she emotionally butchered (don’t get me started) Jackie in front of the whole team, led directly to her death, ate her, and then lived her life. How Shauna specifically “bit” Jackie’s “hand” just needs to be its own discussion so I’m going to move on.

Jeff— Oooo I’m discussing Jeff in a serious light the Yellowjackets police are going to come get me. He’s a more interesting character than most fans give him credit for— sue me! Jeff, although a cheating lowlife in high school, is a brilliant husband to Shauna. Like I dare you to show me a more loyal and devoted husband. If you do, I owe you whatever you want from Panda Express. Jeff knows everything that Shauna’s done and still does everything he can to give their family the best life he can possibly provide. He may not be the sharpest tool in the shed, but the lengths Jeff goes to are astounding. I mean even on the mundane level, he goes to marriage counseling and puts forth his best effort to keep their marriage afloat. What does Shauna do to repay this care and effort? Cheats on the father of her child repeatedly and pulls him into her life or crime. Essentially it was like “Hey honey, I cheated on you then murdered him! Would it be any trouble to help me do a cover up?”. The man is literally willing to lay his life down for a woman that barely can stand him.

Callie- Speaking of the happy family, Callie may be one of the worst victims of Shauna’s hand-biting propensity purely because she was fucking child. Honestly, I’m surprised Yellowjackets hasn’t leaned into exploring concepts of mother-daughter relationships more because, I mean, look at the audience. That aside, we don’t really see it much until S2, but Callie seems to have inherited Jeff’s unearned devotion and loyalty to Shauna. Shauna straight up tells people that she doesn’t like her child and pulls said child into her life of violent crime, and her 1990s-all-women-wilderness cult shit. In addition to this, Shauna’s worst crime against Callie may just be the genes she passed down to her. Callie, a pretty typical teen, asks Jeff, “Am I like mom?” And soon thereafter we see her shooting a gun at live people. Idk the mommy issues go CRAZY. They also deserve their own discussion post.

Ok, this sat in drafts for like a week so it would no longer be "off the top of my head" if I continued. Other victims of Shauna Shipman's hand-biting habits are Lottie and Adam. Every single individual in this post (esp Lottie, Jackie, and Callie) deserves their own full explanation post and may one day get one.

[genericpuff]

So I just read episode 275 and I’m sort of confused?

(I took screenshots, but the ask won’t let me include them so) At the end of the episode Hera summons these little balls of light(?) , maybe small stars(?) and then she casts them down onto Kronos.

I feel like that was really anticlimactic and not illustrated well. Along with the viewer not seeing Hera fight Kronos, a God that’s been tormenting her, her last attack(?) doesn’t feel right — like, there’s no power behind, if anything, I’d compare it to what a healers animation in a game looks like.

Rachel even emphasizes how strong and brilliant Hera is with Persephone, but then doesn’t show us anything. I know the scene was split between Hera and Hades dealing with Kronos physically and mentally (asleep), but it was sort of disappointing.

What I think really sucks about the setup for the Hera vs. Kronos fight is that, as cool of a concept as it is to have Hera and Hades both fighting Kronos in separate timelines, it fails on multiple levels:

1.) All the build up of Hera saying "I was created to destroy you" winds up meaning nothing because it cuts away to Hades for the entire fight

2.) When it does cut back to Hera, she's just kinda... sitting on Kronos? Like what did she do besides just breaking one of his fingers? Why weren't we allowed to see that? I think this is more so clearly Rachel's inability to write/draw fight scenes showing through, so she relied entirely on the Hades' sequence which was less physical fighting and more just Hades monologuing before turning Kronos into a diamond.

3.) And speaking of the diamond thing... so we're just expected to believe Hades could turn not just people, but Titans into diamonds? This whole time? How is he just suddenly able to do this? It feels like a shonen anime where the main character has a flashback to a scene from 3 seconds ago (in this case, Hades' conversation with Melinoe) and then unlocks a new special ability through it, but it somehow feels even less earned than it does in anime (and trust me, I can't stand that anime trope at the best of times LOL) Like at least in something like Naruto it's like... okay we have this ability Naruto's been trying to master and we've seen him work at it for a few episodes so seeing him finally nail it on the brink of defeat is like, really hype and fun. But Hades just turns Kronos into a rock out of nowhere when we had zero reason or build-up to believe that would ever be possible. Why not, IDK, have Morpheus finally master her ability to dream dive and use that to trap Kronos in an eternal sleep? At least that would have had some pre-existing foundation especially with how much of S3 was focused on the dream diving shit. IDK, the whole thing's really contrived and silly and relies a lot on the reader just going "okay! yeah that makes sense!"

4.) So Hades turned timey-wimey Kronos into a diamond... but then it cuts back to present Kronos who's just been somehow defeated by Hera through ✨magic✨ and that's just it? What about present Kronos? Is he just still trapped in Tartarus now? Why isn't he also a diamond if Hades turned some past form of Kronos into a diamond? Or was the goal just to free Melinoe so present Kronos couldn't keep using her powers? But who's to say Kronos can't just do what he did again by reaching through time to grab Melinoe and start the whole thing over again? Especially now that Melinoe doesn't remember what happened and would be none the wiser that Kronos has attempted this before? Is it because this is present Kronos whose time abilities were 'exhausted' to him 'long ago'? Then how was he able to pull Hades into the time-bowl to begin with? Again, just like the diamond thing, this entire conflict relies a lot on readers just shrugging and accepting it because there's zero foundation for the concepts that are being portrayed and thus zero logic besides "just go with it".

I can go on and on about it but at the end of the day LO just isn't a comic that should have attempted having any big Marvel fight scenes. This is an issue in a lot of romance comics that have gone on too long, they start to lose the plot around their third season and then just throw everything out the window for some other big plot that makes no sense within the context of the story. Somehow LO, a Greek myth fantasy adaption, made fighting the God of Time seem out of place and boring.

God I can't wait for Hades 2.

[sarshles-cheescake-li]

The Chen Xiao dive makes my head hurt

This post was originally going to be about different hypotheticals as to how Cheng Xiaoshi's possessees feel after the fact. It was great! I had a nice little three-items list, a brief text-to-world connection about dissociation, and a solid two jokes in there. But then I got sucked into the problem called The Chen Xiao dive, and then it was over. So… let's get this started.

Chen Xiao's dive introduces two major pieces of evidence to us, which each support two different models of how Cheng Xiaoshi's possessions work. One supports the theory that the people he possesses don't remember the experience; the other one supports that they do. Let's start with the one that doesn't involve time paradoxes.

During episode five's ending, we see that Chen Xiao has a ring on during the train scene, and also a child to whom he sings the same lullaby as his mother does. If we go back to episode three, when he was approaching Qiao Ling, we notice that he didn't have the ring on, in either the close-up of his left hand or any of the wide shots, whereas in episode five he had it on in both. This, combined with the framing, heavily implies that the dive Cheng Xiaoshi performed granted him enough closure to get married, have a child, the whole nine yards. Now, since Cheng Xiaoshi's actions only really influenced his memories, we can conclude that Chen Xiao remembers everything that Cheng Xiaoshi said to the dead, proving that Cheng Xiaoshi's possesses remember the experience afterwards.

On the other hand, Chen Xiao's dive is unique in that the memories of the dive nullify itself. Let's call Cheng Xiaoshi's dive point A, and the day of the earthquake -- exactly the way it had gone without Cheng Xiaoshi's influence -- point B. Point A is caused by Chen Xiao seeking out the protagonists' services. He does so because of point B, which left a lot of regrets for him. But the moment point A occurs and Cheng Xiaoshi dives, point B no longer exists, because Cheng Xiaoshi has replaced it with his own version of events. But since point A only occurred because of point B, that means point A doesn't occur, so point B occurs, but then point A does occur… etcetera etcetera. Essentially, Chen Xiao can't both remember the day as Cheng Xiaoshi modified it and seeked him out to change the past; it's one or the other. If this paradox looks familiar, it's a version of the grandfather paradox.

This then presents a problem. The ring says that the dive must've changed Chen Xiao's life substantially enough that he spawned a whole child into existence. The concept of causality says that the dive must not have changed it enough to affect his decision to seek out Cheng Xiaoshi (or, more accurately, Qiao Ling). So he both remembers and doesn't remember the dive. That's wild, man.

So the simple solution to this is that the production team didn't think that hard about how possessions affect the clients' memories, or about time paradoxes, for that matter. I kind of doubt this one, just because of how… metaphysically rigorous Chinese media can get. Like, do y'all know how many times I've been randomly hit with a complex. internally consistent, metaphysical model of sentience or time or whatever while consuming Chinese media? A weird amount.

So we're going to assume either case, and try to find solutions to the paradox in either situation. The first assumption (because it's easier) is that we're going to assume Chen Xiao didn't keep Cheng Xiaoshi's memories, and still remembered the original day. Solutions include:

He wasn't wearing the ring when he approached Qiao Ling for whatever reason. We only see him wear the ring while he's in his own apartment and with his own child, and in all other cases post-dive his left hand is either covered or way too small to tell. So it's possible he wears his ring somewhere else -- like on his neck -- when he's out.

The dive changed something about his life which caused him to meet his fiancé. For example, Lu Guang says that in the original timeline, he had been at a noodles restaurant when the earthquake happened. Assuming Lu Guang wasn't lying, maybe being in his own house when it collapsed caused him to meet different people once rescued, and one of them was his fiancé.

Although Cheng Xiaoshi's memories didn't transfer, having Cheng Xiaoshi tank the day's trauma and also grant him some closure might've changed the way Chen Xiao was able to cope after the fact. Even if he still remembered the original day, the emotional shock might've been dampened enough to allow him to move on a bit more.

Production staff genuinely just forgot to animate the ring during episode three (I hope this isn't the case, because then this post would be embarrassing)

I'm leaning towards the third option, just because as a (hobbyist) writer, it makes the most sense to me. This is especially since it seems the show goes out of its way to demonstrate that the dive changed his life. So the lack of a ring during the opener wasn't a coincidence. With that in mind, unless it's a red herring, it wouldn't make sense to go with option 1. Option 2, though, remains fairly open.

Next, we'll assume the second case, that Chen Xiao did keep the memories of the dive. This one requires a lot more time-stuff, and it heavily depends on how Link Click handles its time travel.

Option 1: Photos themselves contain timelines, and Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang Don't Play By The Rules

The Chinese character introduction sheets refer to Cheng Xiaoshi diving not "into the past" but "into the world of photos". As far as I see, the English translation is less explicit but also refers to him "dive back into photos" and not "dive back in time through photos." This is… a fascinating way to phrase things. This implies the photos themselves have something to do with the past, beyond merely being an access point for Cheng Xiaoshi. Maybe, in cases like Chen Xiao's, where Cheng Xiaoshi dives back and technically causes the dive to not occur, there's no need for it to occur "again" in this new version of events -- the photo "has already" been changed, and contains the information to change Chen Xiao's life. This also makes sense with Cheng Xiaoshi's power's limitations -- once he's rewritten the world inside of a photo once, he can't do it again.

As for Cheng Xiaoshi and Lu Guang, we can already assume that, whenever their dives change something about their past -- like with Xu Shanshan, or Cheng Xiaoshi's dive into Lu Guang in season two -- they both remember the "original timeline" instead of the modified one. That's generally a given with time travel stories. In this hypothetical, then, Cheng Xiaoshi's dive does cause his dive to not occur. However, both him and Lu Guang still remember the request and remember performing it, since it was part of the original timeline. And since the change is stored in the photo, Chen Xiao's life is permanently altered despite the dive now "not occurring."

This is my favourite theory, because it is supported (or, at least, not contradicted) by two details from the show. One is when Lu Guang hands Cheng Xiaoshi the photo to dive into it, Cheng Xiaoshi remarks "hey, isn't this the photo that I developed a few days ago?" This seemed weird at the time, but it establishes something: that Chen Xiao had already visited the studio, even without the intention to request for a dive (assuming that wasn't part of the "research" he was doing on if the witch was real). This makes it so that when Chen Xiao comes back later to develop the old photos in the camera, it's not strange that he chose this studio in particular. He did already come here once, after all.

Second is when Lu Guang informs Qiao Ling that they won't be doing any more requests for a while. She says: (I'm going to use my own translation here, because I think the English translation doesn't get some of the implications across）

Qiao Ling: “What are you doing? You're quitting just like that?" (implication: quitting casually and without cause. The direct translation is literally "you say you're quitting, so you're quitting") Lu Guang: "We just want to rest. The normal operations of the photo studio will continue." Qiao Ling: "Cheng Xiaoshi. You also want this?" [awkward head tilt] Qiao Ling: "Ah, fine. We'll start again whenever you're adjusted."

Qiao Ling acts a little weird here. If I were her, and my surrogate little brother and his partner suddenly stopped wanting to fulfilling commisions, right after finishing a commission, I'd probably assume they wanted to stop because of something to do with the last commission. This isn't me hating on Qiao Ling, either. It's that her behaviour makes a bit more sense if we assume that, from her perspective, Lu Guang and Cheng Xiaoshi just came up to her one day and went "we're not doing this anymore" out of nowhere. This supports the idea that to everyone else, the dive might as well have never happened -- only Lu Guang and Cheng Xiaoshi remember it. Side note, tying the dive to the photo itself also works well with Lu Guang making sure the photo wasn't destroyed during the Xixi dive. I think that this is the most plausible theory, and the next two are more interesting hypotheticals than possible theories, so feel free to skip them.

Option 2: Dives are simply incapable of cancelling themselves out.

There's a few ways this can be achieved. One is that if a dive changes the past sufficiently enough to cancel out the original reason that led to it occurring, some sort of time-maintaining… thing gives it a new reason to happen. For example, maybe the version of Chen Xiao that remembered Cheng Xiaoshi's dive approached him to get him to try to save his mother, or not bother his crush's family, or something. This is somewhat conflicted by the fact that Lu Guang made an effort to make Cheng Xiaoshi pick up the photo during his dive into Li Tianxi -- one would think that, even if he hadn't, it'd be fairly easy for the timeline to go "heehee hoohoo Qian Jin picked it up later" or something like that. But -- no! Cheng Xiaoshi had to go pick it up! Lu Guang does say "If the photo is gone," though, so you could say that maybe the father would've destroyed the photo if Cheng Xiaoshi hadn't picked it up.

Overall, this theory is interesting and makes sense from the universe's perspective. Like, if I were a universe, I would preferably not give some random dude a power that could totally break causality and cause me to collapse. That seems a bit… excessive. However, while this works for niche cases, it really doesn't work for the more general possibilities of Cheng Xiaoshi's power. It just seems way too contrived, and require more and more contrivances the more you go through layers of dives and justifications. Because then Chen Xiao basically always needs a reason for Cheng Xiaoshi to dive, no matter how the day had went in the first place. It also would change what exactly Cheng Xiaoshi dives for, which is, again, messy…

Option 3: Causality has low RAM. This one really lays it on thick with time-physics, so, be warned.

Let's sit through a hypothetical together. You and I are gods. There is a switch with an on and an off state between us. I am the god of the Switch Being On. You are the god of the Switch Being Off. If the switch is On, you turn it off, but then I turn it back on. Then you turn it off. I turn it on. Ad nauseam towards infinity. My action causes your action, nullifying my own; your action causes my action, nullifying your own. Neither of us can be satisfied at the same time, so we keep on going back and forth, forcing the switch between these two states -- on, off -- forever.

Back to the time travel Donghuas featuring doomed men. Think of the timeline's two states as "Cheng Xiaoshi dives" and "Cheng Xiaoshi doesn't dive." The Gods pushing it back and forth between these two states are causality and… causality again. Except -- this is where the low RAM bit comes in -- causality isn't instantaneous.

Many of us are familiar with the concept of time being an extra dimension that we move through. But what if there was a fifth? What if time itself had time? If we treat a timeline as the same as any other simple object, we can think of the concept of causality, some force which makes it such that the timeline's events have logical order to them, as just like any other process: the melting of ice; the wilting of leaves; the erosion of rock. If this is the case, it's possible to have a paradox like this one. Below is a diagram:

Let state 1 represent the "original" timeline where Cheng Xiaoshi doesn't dive, and state 2 represent the one where he does. The black line represents the time that Cheng Xiaoshi dives at, and the "beginning" of the timeline represents the day of the earthquake. The end of the timeline goes into infinity We can see the changed version of events propagating through the timeline via causality. But the moment* it hits the black line -- Cheng Xiaoshi's dive -- it immediately changes the starting point of the timeline, which starts also propagating at (presumably the same) speed.

*"The moment" here referring to some point in fifth-dimensional time.

So then the timeline, or to be precise, the version of the timeline the protagonists exist in (as of episode five, season one) would be anywhere in between the fifth and the ninth timeline on this diagram. And depending on whether or not you assume there to be higher dimensions past the fifth, the laws of causality in those dimensions, how you assume memory to work -- and how the memories of time travelers work -- this model can… do a lot. In terms of plausibility, I'd rank it the lowest, just because it's functionally a truncated version of my personal pet theory of time (if versions of it exist in other media, I've never seen them), so it's pretty unlikely Link Click follows it. Also, the extended version of this theory does imply things which aren't evident in Link Click. So.

These are all the theories I'm gonna cover. If we get into all the different models of time and the likes, we'll be here for something like another couple thousand words. There are just some loose ends I want to wrap up:

Emma questions Cheng Xiaoshi if "you were the one who sent that text" (paraphrased because I don't want to go back to the episode to check phrasing), suggesting that she doesn't remember getting possessed by Cheng Xiaoshi. It supports the first assumption, that possessees don't remember what happened during the posession, and remember the original timeline. If possessees do remember the original timeline, it's possible that they might still feel somewhat dissociated from those memories, which may lead to them coming to the conclusion that someone else was in their body at the time, like Emma does.

Lu Guang makes a big deal of not changing the timeline when they dive. Assuming the universe hates time paradoxes, and doesn't allow them to exist, this could be him worried about the butterfly effect or, as he says, rendering their present future nonexistent. If the universe generally copes fine with time paradoxes, this could be him worried about the effects of "playing god" in a sense of the word, or about affecting the timeline in unpredictable and potentially negative ways.

[bonesbonesbones69]

A GTN Fanmix

It's done!!! I can't believe it. I spent so much time on this, I had so much fun. I'm still doing final touches on the HTN playlist but it will also be done so soon. For now: Gideon.

Track list:

The Legend of Chavo Guerrero (The Mountain Goats)

Bitter Rivals (Sleigh Bells)

Hast Though Considered the Tetrapod (The Mountain Goats)

Mark on You (The Mountain Goats)

End Love (Ok Go)

Clear the Area (Imogen Heap)

Ask (The Smiths)

Anything For You (Ludo)

Everything I Am is Yours (Villagers)

Matilda (Alt-J)

Bleed Out (The Mountain Goats)

I know that's a lot of mountain goats. But this is my playground and I'm doing whatever I want, and you can't stop me.

Song breakdown under the cut! I get wordy, i've put a lot of thought into this playlist. Like a really embarrassing amount of thought. It's long. but also truly optional, this playlist can be enjoyed without my deep dive!! Enjoy!!

Yesssss you looked under the cut! Welcome to every thought i've ever had.

THE LEGEND OF CHAVO GUERRERO - THE MOUNTAIN GOATS

One thing I love about GTN is Gideon vs. her comic hero fantasies. It's heavily themed throughout this playlist, so we're starting with the concept.

I lose my mind thinking about Gideon spending her whole life dreaming about BEING someone and MAKING SOMETHING of herself through living out the action hero stories in her comics. That's what it means to be important and wanted, to fight and win and be covered in babes. Like they do in the comics.

Lyrics:

Before a black and white TV in the middle of the night I'm lying on the floor. I'm bathed in the light The telecast's in Spanish. I can understand some And I need justice in my life; here it comes

And then of course in the months between when she leaves the ninth and when dies, she lives the action comic hero scene by devoting herself dramatically to her necromancer and dying in battle for her - a short and tragic twist on the glorious victory found in comics, but also exactly what Gideon wanted from the comics: meaning to her actions. Being someone and making something of herself.

That shit makes me emotional so we're starting here, with the legend of chavo guerrero, and Gideon's childhood hero dreams.

BITTER RIVALS - SLEIGH BELLS

Ok the playlist is about "Gideon as the Action Hero" but its ALSO OF COURSE about Gideon + Harrow's relationship because I have the same disease about it that you all do. If you clicked down to read this stupid fanmix deep dive I can guarantee you also have this disease. the disease where we love Gideon + Harrow's relationship.

So here's a song about it :)

You are my bitter rival But I need you for survival

What else can I say??

This playlist is more or less chronologically aligned to GTN itself, which is something I love doing with playlists. Accordingly, this ones about them hating each other (yet... homoerotically?) and being inextricably tangled in each other at the same time. but don't worry, I have some gooier songs later.

HAST THOU CONSIDERED THE TETRAPOD - THE MOUNTAIN GOATS (AGAIN)

But not yet! Before we get to gooey love songs we have to listen to more child abuse songs.

Held under these smothering waves By your strong and thick-veined hands But one of these days I'm going to wriggle up on dry land

And it's also about maladaptive daydreaming and the persistent belief that there is a better future for you out there!!!

Playlist title is taken from this song - "I am young and I am good" as a self-identifier in the context of escaping and growing beyond an abusive household feel so right for Gideon, who is hungry for glory, but even more hungry to just be useful and acknowledged. To show that she is good and be validated as good. She hasn't had much opportunity in her life so far, which is SO unfair, because she is young and she is good!

MARK ON YOU - THE MOUNTAIN GOATS (GET USED TO IT)

When this is over, when we leave this all behind us Deep in the moonless night, when the rescue team finds us It's gonna get so dark for you I'm gonna leave a mark on you

What's perfect about this song is how threatening it is, and the implied violence... but also how in the same breath it implies an emotional footprint and no violence is ever confirmed. Do I even have to say that it's on here as a one-two punch referencing both harrow + Gideon's fighting and ALSO Gideon's sacrifice?? Of course that's why it's on here!!

It also gets bonus points for being off of the mountain goat's album 'bleed out', which was inspired by classic action movies. The action movie vibe comes through in the song, and therefore is a beautiful head-nod to Gideon the Action Hero at the same time as its a tragic foreshadowing to the nature of the mark that Gideon does in fact leave.

END LOVE - OK GO

Ok we're getting a little romantic. It's time for some songs about BUILDING TRUST ON PURPOSE

Cause no one's gonna save you, if you don't swim for the boat No one's gonna save you, if you won't take the rope No one's gonna find you, when you're hiding in the dark No one's gonna find you

The most romantic shit in the world to me is the combo of Harrow choosing to be vulnerable on purpose, and Gideon being so ready to accept and guard that vulnerability. Harrow's choices to let Gideon in are of course so delicious because theyre marinated in how absurdly difficult it is for her. And she does it so deliberately. She does it because she NEEDS to. Because the alternative (not having Gideons partnership) is so much worse. And that's romantic to me.

ASK - THE SMITHS

If there's something you'd like to try If there's something you'd like to try Ask me, I won't say no, how could I

Ok cmon. Right??

It's the other overwhelmingly romantic thing. The thing where Gideon is so ready to be there for harrow, when she's given the opportunity. When she's asked. And this is also STILL about having to be vulnerable and purposeful to build trust. Or the bomb will get you, or the whatever.

CLEAR THE AREA - IMOGEN HEAP

Ok here's the thing - I don't believe in criticizing your own art. Like posting something and saying 'oh its so bad' or pointing out all the stuff that didn't turn out right. It's self-defeating to give everyone the first impression that the thing you made is bad, before they have a chance to create their own impressions.

HOWEVER

The tone of this whole playlist is whack. Each song alone is great, but overall, the vibe is kind of sappy and idealistic and sweet - which feels so disparate from the tone of Gideon herself. I stand by the song choices I made but god I wish the vibe was more defensive, more funny, more bitter, more irreverent, more STUPID. ‘Bitter rivals’ is the only song on this playlist with the energy I dream of. I looked at some other riot grrl music but couldn’t find anything I loved. Ok I got so mad about this that I made a second playlist just now with only 'Gideon vibes' and no songs that have anything to do with shit that actually happened in GTN. Its here, it took 10m, and its very good.

Anyways, I’m telling you now because the song 'Clear the Area' is truly guilty of being too sweet and sincere.

Having said that, it absolutely belongs on this playlist anyways and I will defend it!

You find your way back down And I'll keep the area clear. When you find your way back down, in one piece Then I'll just be waiting here, right here.

This incredibly soft song is still solidly on the track of 'building trust on purpose or else the bomb will get you'. even more than that, it's about protecting and loving someone who is so wrapped up in their own shit that they do a very bad job of reaching out. and what about that DOESNT belong on a GTN playlist!!!

ANYTHING FOR YOU - LUDO

I don't have specific lyrics I want to share out for this one, but the entire thing as a whole deserves some attention: the singer lists fantastical and daring and victorious scenarios that they, clearly an adventurous hero, has completed, and then easily says that they'd give away all best things from their adventures for the song's subject.

It's an "all in" pledge that fits comfortably in with the cavalier oath. It's the commitment!! The gravity of devotion!!

and it's ALSO ABOUT IMAGINING YOURE A HERO yes thats right we are BACK to Gideon and the Action Hero. The song doesn't actually say that all the scenarios are imagined, but the variety and fantasy hint that they could easily be imagined. At the very least, they're supposed to make us think about adventure stories and that's good enough for me.

A fun little bonus for this one is the line "but the best story I could ever tell is the one where I am growing old with you," which I'm calling out because I get a little kick out of the 'growing old' theme. There's also a line in the legend of chavo guerrero, "I don't know but i've been told, it's real sweet to grow old". Between these two songs, the easy coupling of 'I dream of heroic deeds' with 'I will grow old' is... I mean.... tragic. I'm having fun, are you having fun?

EVERYTHING I AM IS YOURS - VILLAGERS

This is one of the first songs I put on this playlist. It's significant that this song has stayed on so long, I started seriously working on this playlist a month ago (in tandem with an HTN playlist) and i've removed and replaced most of the songs I started with.

There were times when I did consider removing it - I wondered if this song was a little redundant with 'anything for you'. Both are songs about devoting yourself fully to someone else. But what this song has that 'anything for you' doesn't, is the idea that 'everything I am' comes with the bad as well as the good. It's a promise and also a resigned statement.

I find it hard to say what's going on inside Got these little walls, couldn't break them if I tried But I promise I'll be true. And I promise I'll be right Sickness and in health. In the darkness and the light I give you every side 'Cause everything I am is yours

MATILDA - ALT J

OK WAIT HEAR ME OUT WAIT HEAR ME OUT WAIT WAIT IM SERIOUS ABOUT THIS ONE

It's a little high concept but whatever this is my playlist and I can do whatever I want!! you're welcome its not another mountain goats song.

The song Matilda by Alt J is not only a classic indie hit from 2012 with lyrics so warbly theyre basically nonsense, it is also explicitly about the ending to the 1994 action film 'Leon: The Professional'. Which I am about to talk about, so if you don't want spoilers, don't read the rest of this section!

So what happens at the end of the professional (and i'm stalling writing the sentence in case you are trying to skim over this to avoid spoilers), is that Leon (the professional himself) dies taking out an enemy with a grenade. This action saves the life of a young girl (Matilda) who he's taken under his wing, and who has brought new meaning into his life. Before blowing himself up, he hands the pin to the enemy, saying 'this is from Matilda', it's beautiful i cried blah blah blah

Put the grenade pin in your hand, so you understand who's boss. My defeat sleeps top to toe with her success Oh this is from, this is from, This is from Matilda

By now we're all on the same page, it's a song about dying so that someone you love will stay alive and finding meaning and purpose in that action, it's a song about what happened at the end of GTN.

AND it's a song about an action hero

AND it is itself the artistic reverb that the action hero had throughout pop culture!!!

Alt J saw 'the professional' and thought holy shit thats meaningful i'm gonna write a song about it. Gideon read comics and thought holy shit thats meaningful someday im gonna put my own life on the line for a necromancer. Then she DID, and DIED. Which is INSANE and I cried way more than I cried at the professional.

And the playlist ends on the next song for the exact same reason.

BLEED OUT - THE MOUNTAIN GOATS

What can I even say!! I'm only gonna quote a couple lyrics here but I could really go line-by-line for this entire 7 minute song.

There was a chance we'd make it through this It's safe to say now that we missed it And I will never lose hope, and I haven't lost hope I'm just realistic I will go down punching, but I will go down and my corner man won't bring me back around Bleed out I'm gonna bleed out

This is the second song on this playlist from the action-movie inspired album 'bleed out', and this song is about the endings to action movies where the heroes die. It's about the trope that happened to Leon and Gideon. It's a little tongue in cheek, it's funny, extremely genre-savvy, long, slow, and sad.

The tone, content, and meta commentary about action heroes all make this one of my favorite songs on the playlist.

Every story needs a child who believes The brave hero's gonna be just fine You only have to check the papers to see Some of these children end up just like me Bleed out I'm gonna bleed out

I was sooo close to naming this playlist “every story needs a child who believes” but it’s a mouthful. So let’s just take a moment here, deep in the playlist footnotes, to think about it.

Are you thinking about it? I'm thinking about it.

Anyways, that's the whole playlist. If you read this (any of it), thank you, I love you. I am going to miss this playlist now that I'm casting it out into the wild. But it's time. I think it's complete.

See you again when I get the final touches on the HTN playlist. which has just as many mountain goats songs. and is even better ;)

[trans-luis-serra-navarro]

@anininas I’ll answer your ask (which TOOOOOOTALLY isn’t almost a month old NOPE) here to keep things organised but I. Dived into a little bit of a rabbit hole with this one and debated posting about it for a bit cuz I realised WAY TOO LATE Oh. You probably mean like. Fantasy cowboys not real-world cowboys HXNSHENDJDJ but let me ramble anyways!!!!

So the origin of ‘cowboys’ as a concept comes from Mexico but more specifically when the Spanish colonised Mexico they brought with them a bunch of cattle that obviously needed to be hearded so over time the Vaquero tradition of horse-mounted herding evolved from there, which is more or less how we’ve gotten the modern idea of stereotypical rootin-tootin cowboys. That’s obviously like a VEEEEEEEEEEERY watered down explanation and I would REEEALLY recommend you go researching the topic yourself if you’re interested cuz I am FAR from a historian HXBDBDNDNXN [Heres the Wikipedia article (I know) if you need a starting point: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaquero just keep in mind it’s also pretty bare-bones too]

But it’s why you’ll often see a similar floral pattern on Luis’ jacket on Western saddles

It’s a kind of leather carving that was APPARENTLY inspired by old medieval Spanish saddles, which would make sense cuz Y’know,,,,, it was Spain that colonised Mexico BCNDNNDS

I’m gonna make a post specifically about this and the designs on Luis’ jacket later so hold onto that thought BUT ANYWAYS. IF WE’RE TALKING LIKE. FANTASY COWOYS. FICTIONAL NO-CONSEQUENCES COWBOYS I HAVE A LOT TO SAY

I imagine even in canon Luis PROOOOBABLY knows how to ride horses. I don’t think we actually SEEE any horses in Valdelobos but it’s a mountain terrain village with the nearest town being god knows how far away so I don’t think it’d be totally unreasonable to assume Luis knows how to ride a horse which is PERFECT FOR US cuz then we don’t have to wonder how he learnt in a theoretical cowboy au

I can also imagine Luis- now hear me out- being more of a dressage rider than a cattle herder. Have you ever seen those funny videos of the horses at the olympics doing a silly dance to rave music???? That’s dressage, which originated vaaaaguely around Spain and France during the medieval period and people SAY it was to evade attacks during battle but like. How true that actually is is up for debate BCNDBENSJJ

But dressage is a lot like dancing. Which Luis. Obviously knows how to do BXNSHNSS so in MY HEAD they make a perfect duo- which makes the mental image of Luis becoming some kind of outlaw similar to canon VERY funny BCNDHSNSJ like I don’t think it’s be very hard to spot the man on his dancing horse Y’know but I digress. I can imagine he probably got taught how to ride by his Grandfather and then got taught how to be a rough-and-tough cowboy by Leon even with his pretty boy fancy horse which IF WE’RE TALKING ABOUT HORSES

Andalusians were bred in Andalusia, Spain (duh) and are used in dressage and showings A LOT. Like go to any big regional tournament and you’ll probably find at least one amongst the crowd. I have no clue realistically how popular they’d be in 18th century America if they were there at all even, but I literally can’t think of a better horse for Luis

ANYWAYS UHHHH THATS IT. THATS ALL IVE GOT. THANK YOU FOR LETTING ME RAMBLE ANI I WILL FOREVER BE IN YOUR DEBT

[miraculouslbcnreactions]

What's your opinion on malewife/house husband Adrien posts? I asked this to another blog, and like I said to them, I find them a guilty pleasure: The concept is cute, but I know that would be the last thing Adrien would ever wanna be after all his dad put him through.

I don't think that it would be the last thing that Adrien would ever want. I actually think it suits his character in a lot of ways, you just have to handle the topic with care.

First let's talk about why it suits him.

Miraculous has totally failed to give Adrien any sort of career-based passion and - if we ignore the senti complication - I honestly love that for him! I want more characters with no major life ambitions to balance out the Marinettes of the world!

I think that society places way too much pressure and value on finding the perfect career that fulfills us in every way while also allowing us to put food on the table. Most people will never find that and that's okay. It doesn't mean that you've failed or that you're lesser. For most people, the goal is to find a career that pays the bills and that you enjoy enough that you don't hate doing it 40hrs/week. Along similar lines, for most people, your passion will be something that doesn't make money. It will be something like a hobby or spending time with those you love or analyzing badly written French TV shows.

This brings us back to Adrien.

Adrien seems to get a great deal of joy from being around his loved ones and making them happy, so I can absolutely picture him finding a lot of joy in running a home. This is extra true because Marinette is pretty clearly career driven and she's planning to go into a creative field, so she'll probably have a pretty crazy schedule and struggle to stay on top of it all. Having a loving husband to take things like cooking and cleaning off of her plate would be a blessing and a gift that she'd greatly appreciate, but that would feel unbalanced if Adrien was working, too. (Yes, they could hire staff, but that risks the secret identity thing, so I don't see them doing that.)

If they both have power careers, then they'd barely see each other and I hate that for them. I think that it would make Adrien incredibly sad and depressed. Plus, while Marinette thrives off of competition and staying busy, only needing occasional breaks before diving right back in, Adrien seems to hate busy schedules and heavy work loads.

Given all of that, I think that there's a lot to be said for Adrien stepping away from the working world. Especially since he's been in it for years and being a child celebrity is no joke! I think it would be nice for him to escape from strict schedules and expectations. Dinner fails? Order takeout!

While we're on the topic of food, I really like the idea of Adrien falling in love with cooking. Dude needs a creative outlet and that's honestly a great one (I hate it when people write characters as unable to figure out cooking like it's some cute quirk. While an initial struggle is believable, it's not a mystical art that takes years of practice. Between YouTube, the wider Internet, and maybe some classes if he wants to get fancy, I think that he'll be fine.) There's so much variety with what you can do in the kitchen and the end result gets to be shared and appreciated by those you love. It just seems like a perfect fit for him, but I would never make him a professional chef because the hours are insane and the pressure to be perfect is high. I only see him loving it as a hobby where he can go at his own pace, take days off, and make lazy meals when he's not feeling like being a show off.

The big concerns that come with making him a homemaker are a lack of financial independence and a lack of socialization. I don't see the first thing as an issue for Adrien since he comes from a wealthy family, so that one doesn't phase me.

The isolation could very easily be an issue, but it could just as easily be a problem if he started working, too. It's not as if a job is a sure way to have friends or even just consistent positive social interactions, which is another reason why I don't really see a need to give him a traditional job. You can get a vibrant social life in lots of other ways.

Here are the two big things that I keep in mind when writing an Adrien-as-a-homemaker or similar setup as it is where I tend to have Adrien land for all of the above reasons:

Adrien needs to be active in some organization or project. Volunteer work is a good fit as is being an active stay-at-home parent or some combination of the two. Voice acting is also on my radar, but my default is to have him act as the head of team miraculous' out-of-battle activities. Scheduling meet and greets. Going to see sick kids. Jetting around the world for humanitarian aid missions. Basically let Chat Noir be his "career" which gives him a lot of much needed flexibility for making his own schedule, especially if he's a stay-at-home parent to any eventual kids. I also like the poetic nature of Adrien finally being proud to be the face of a "brand" via his hero side while his civilian side becomes just some guy that people kind of remember from old ads.

Consider having a non-traditional living arrangement. I am a big fan of hero teams living together, so my default is to take the Agreste mansion and remodel it into a secret HQ for the team. Adrien and Marinette would have their own apartment/wing/whatever, but they'd still be surrounded by their found family on a near-daily basis, so that social isolation is the last thing on Adrien's mind. There's almost always someone to hang out with! You could also just have Alya and Nino or other friends live in the same apartment building so that they're over a lot/Adrien has a place to hang when Marinette is working late because you know that she'd do that.

Basically, Adrien's rich, so he doesn't need to make money and he doesn't seem to have any interest in a normal job, so I really like letting him having a unique life where he doesn't have a traditional job. He is a superhero, after all. Unique career paths are pretty par for the course. You just have to be careful to make sure that all of this feels like his fully informed and carefully considered choice and not like you forced it on him to make Marinette's life perfect (I only brought her up earlier because this is a story and it makes sense to design characters around each other). I usually do this by sending Adrien to therapy in his late teens or by giving him some other parth of self discovery.

Do note that all of the above is inspired by my read of Adrien which may be totally different from your read of him and that's fine! I just can't picture him as someone who thrives in a traditional career path based on knowing people who strike me as similar to him and from whom I draw my understanding of how to write that part of Adrien's character. I think that he'd be perfectly able to have a traditional career path, but I also think that he'd be pretty miserable for a lot of reasons.

I'll also note that I'm not sure what posts spawned this ask, so there may be elements of those that I'd have criticisms of. This post was about the general concept of Adrien being a homemaker. I tend to avoid the broader fandom for my own sanity and the use of the term "malewife" has me concerned that I'm implying support of something I wouldn't actually support because that's a new one for me and it sounds incredibly sexist.

I'm not a fan of implying that the default definition of "wife" is "submissive homemaker" so a man taking on a homemaking role is clearly submissive and acting like a woman does while his aggressive, domineering wife is acting like a man, which is the definition of this word that I'm finding online and yikes! Wife and husband are legal/social status in my book. They are not clearly defined jobs/roles/personality types, so I'm not a fan of using gendered terms to refer to stuff like this especially since I do actively try to use gender neutral words in my own writing whenever I can, though I'm certainly far from perfect on that front.

I also don't see homemaking as a submissive act. It certainly can be, but that's not how I picture Adrien at all! I picture him as relaxed and plesent, but 100% in charge of the home and all choices about how it's run. I also see him being in charge of their finances like homemakers often were in the "old days" since they were the ones in charge of things like scheduling cleaners, buying food, and other things that needed strong budgeting skills while the person who worked wasn't actually spending money or managing the home since they were at work. I like to think that Nathalie would prep Adrien to be a wealthy man and so he'd have strong skills in finance management.

[duhragonball]

What’s your overall opinion on Jiren as a character and an antagonist?

I think a lot of Jiren critics miss the point with the guy. In particular, Team Four Star keeps trying to reduce Jiren to some cutting soundbyte. He's boring, he's like U11's Superman, he's an inversion of Goku, etc. You're never going to appreciate a character unless you're willing to meet the concept halfway.

In brief, he's the Man to Beat in the Tournament of Power. Unlike the other 69 opponents in the event, who resent Goku for getting them into this mess, Jiren finds Goku to be a nuisance, unworthy of his time or effort. Jiren can sweep the entire field by himself, and he knows it, but he's so bitter and depressed that he takes no satisfaction from any of it. This is just another job for him, one more chore in a long list of tasks that only he can do.

Jiren's sick of it. He suffered all this tragedy in his past, and now he's achieved seemingly ultimate strength, and it feels pointless to him. He wants to protect his universe and uphold justice. I think he's got that much in common with the Pride Troopers at least. But there's no joy in it for him. His victories are meaningless and hollow to him. Defeat is virtually impossible. Fighting the Tournament of Power is no better or worse for him than sitting alone in his room, staring at the wall.

I think that's what frustrates a lot of fans, because they want Jiren to be this exciting and charismatic figure, a cartoonish supervillain like Vegeta, or Frieza, or Cell, or a bizarre monster like Broly, or Buu, or Janemba. But Jiren flips the script by not giving a shit about Goku. He's not mad at Goku for causing the Tournament of Power to happen, he's not excited to fight Goku, he's not charmed by Goku's enthusiasm. He just wants to dominate the Tournament and leave. Not that Jiren has anything better to do with his time. He just wants to get it over with.

I think that's what makes the Vegeta vs. Jiren segments of the tournament so fun to watch. Look, I'm a big fan of Vegeta, but nobody thought he was going to be the one to take Jiren down. Vegeta's job was to try anyway, and get beat down to show just how tough things would be for Goku. And yet, we kept seeing Vegeta diving headlong into the fray anyway. He'd fight Jiren solo, he'd double-team him with Goku, he'd watch Goku fight Jiren and look for openings. Vegeta kept coming back for more, taking any action he could get, often with a big smile on his face.

Why is it so satisfying when Vegeta manages to get those small little victories against Jiren? He never came close to winning, but he still managed to find openings in his defenses, and he kept coming back for more, and in the end, he gained Jiren's respect. Why does this matter? Because Vegeta's loaded with passion, passion that Jiren lacks. He does take satisfaction from winning, and he does care deeply about the stakes, and even if this battle were just for funsies, he'd still give it his all because he enjoys combat for its own sake. That's what makes him so tenacious, even when he doesn't stand a chance.

And that's what stymies Jiren, because on several occasions he wonders why his opponents refuse to just roll over and accept defeat. That's what he'd do in their shoes, after all, because for him victory and defeat have lost all meaning. There's similar moments with 17, Frieza, and Goku, but I think the moments with Vegeta are especially prominent, just because Vegeta is so laser-focused on defeating Jiren personally, as opposed to merely winning the tournament or running down the clock.

Ultimately, what turns Jiren around is when Goku and the others manage to win him over with their fighting spirit. Once Goku surpasses him with Ultra Instinct and he starts to despair, his teammates cheer him on, and he forges ahead. He loses the battle and Goku praises him for his performance, and he finally understands what it is that drives the others. Then he confides in Toppo that he has no friends and Toppo's like "We're your friends, dummy." So Jiren still has a long way to go, but at least he's beginning to climb out of his rut.

And that's what makes the character interesting. For his opponents, he's this wall they have to break through, but for him, it's about rediscovering something through the course of the battle.

Is he a good villain? No, but he's not supposed to be a villain at all. He's an antagonist in a story without a bad guy. He's an opponent who lacks the passion that the main cast have, and that's a weak point he discovers as the story wears on. It's a very cool thing we see. I don't know how that will work for future Jiren stories, but that's a problem for another day, I guess.

[tripleglitchwriting]

My earthspark Season 2a thoughts

Warning: SPOILERS FOR THE WHOLE THING!!! And a lot of rambling. And negative thoughts.

As much as i hate to admit it, I was kind of disappointed. It’s not that it was bad, I did still enjoy it, but I feel like there was so much missed opportunity.

The show wasn’t well advertised for, especially season 2. I have a feeling Hazbro doesn’t really care much for it. I think the team that works on the show is great! They’re obviously very talented, passionate, and hardworking, but (so far) season 2 saw a definite downgrade from season 1.

The animation is the first thing that comes to mind. While it is still tv show quality, when compared to season 1 in some parts it feels clankier and less polished. Though I don’t know much about 3D animation other than it’s hard, so I suppose I can’t really critique something I have no practice in.

Then I come to the characters. Here I see the seasons biggest flaw. Starscream’s character arc got completely obliterated, (though they did at least mention his interaction with Hashtag) Nightshade got sidelined compared to the other terrans, and Breakdowns character arc also got the boot.

Breakdown interacted with Bumblebee once, and it was in the finale while they were fighting in the background. If it were just this plotline that got pushed off, I would be fine with it. It’s hard to fit in every single character thread in 9 episodes while also introducing new things. Except it wasn’t just this.

In season 1 they set up the perfect redemption arc for Starscream. Him finally meeting someone that actually listens to him, Megatron’s past abuse and Starscream feelings about his subsequent redemption, it was really interesting to see! But then he pulled a Steeljaw and decided to make New Cybertron. Character wise, sure, I can see why he would want to do that. However, it totally disregards his past interactions. We don’t even know how he found out about the titan, there are so many missing pieces.

Then there’s Cosmos. I think Cosmos is great! I think it’s cool that his voice is Weird Al! I was so excited to get to the next episode and see him take Robbie’s offer to join team Terran and the autobots… and then we don’t see him again. They even set up a potential conflict with Megatron being redeemed! And then nothing! My theory is they couldn’t afford weird al for another episode. Maybe he’ll be back in 2b?

Personally, I don’t like the chaos terrans. It’s an interesting concept, and it isn’t executed as poorly as it could’ve been, but they just fell below the bar for me.

Aftermath has one character trait and it’s hitting things. For the start of his character, that’s fine! Having him only see value in destruction is an interesting foil to Jawbreaker and the rest of the terrans. However, even after the episode with him and Jawbreaker, he doesn’t change. He steals the cave water (which, by the way, how do they get fuel now???? Does it come back???) and goes back to being terrible. I can see what they were trying to do with him, it’s cool having a character that was made to be evil go up against characters who try and Steven universe anybody that shows a hint of the possibility to change. But there’s just nothing interesting about Aftermath. They don’t even dive into his relationship with Breakdown that much after his debut episode.

And then there’s Spitfire. I have mixed feelings about her. On one hand, shes pretty much the shape the hedgehog of transformers. She’s the mean edgy version of an already established ‘good’ character who is designed to be better than said already established good character. On its own that’s pretty overdone, and so is the body switch troupe. It’s a good hook but super predictable. She’s more interesting than Aftermath, at least she has a reason to stay evil, but she just feels like a plot device to create conflict rather than an actual well-formed character. Maybe that’s what she is? On the other hand, her debut episode is really well directed! It was some fantastic shots and combat sequences! I absolutely love what they did with that! The fact she nearly killed Wheeljack was really surprising (in a good way) to me! It even played to Wheeljack character by having him be the first to figure her out!

A good amount of the episodes were as well directed as episode 6. They have a lot of good moments! Some I even laughed out loud at! It may just be the fact only half the season is out, but really 2a felt a bit empty. We got no new characters other than Cosmos (who had like 10 lines and then dipped) the chaos terrans, and the fairmiestero. There were a lot of missed opportunities in that department and in the department of pre existing characters.

Nothing new about Megatron (though I did enjoy the part we got to explore cybertronian culture with the polyhex tournament!) and no comebacks of older characters (where is prowl).

I thought the quintesson lore was pretty interesting though! They will probably be the villains of 2b. I still have hope for the series. They could right a lot of wrongs with the next part of season 2. I sincerely hope these loose ends get tied up.

I’m tired, I have more to say but the energy to type it all out is not there. I also didn’t proofread this so sorry if it’s just rambling and spelling mistakes haha.