#the conflict with this person is family but they are also crossing to many lines and seeing how seth will respond to that is interesting

[curryshesus]

bts fics that give me life in a drought

(aka my favorite fics of all time) pt. 2

didn't expect to make a part 2 so soon but seeing how much recognition the first one got, here we are! some of these contain a hearty amount of angst, and oh they're just simply divine :( once again, please make sure to show your love and support to these lovely authors if you enjoyed any of these reads as much as i did!

➺ knife’s edge - by @readyplayerhobi

| jungkook x reader, jimin x reader | 141.8k

mafia au, fluff, angst, smut, violence, series

>> summary: "the jeon clan is family, built on blood and loyalty. it’s been an unspoken fact that one day you will marry the heir to the clan, jeon jungkook. you would be a fool to deny that you love him, but what happens when you meet a blue haired man who offers you a chance at normality?"

this fic absolutely BROKE ME. i was so conflicted all throughout and deadass went through all the 50 stages of grief. the angst was unparalleled. the fluff had me giggling like a madman cuz jk is an absolute sweetheart :( jimin is too :(( y/n is dumb and so is her situation :((( i cherish this fic sm

➺ novocaine - by @kinktae

| jimin x reader |

1990s au, exes au, angst, eventual smut, series

>> summary: "going home was hard – painful even. but falling back in love with jimin, the boy you left behind? downright gut-wrenching."

➺ ghostin him- by @adonis-koo

| namjoon x reader (taehyung x reader) | 26k

angst, angst, as well as angst. comfort too dw, one-shot

>> summary: "life is nothing more than dull colors for you, your world shattered and laying in the shards of what once was rather than focusing on what is. that is until you meet kim namjoon, who is immediately taken by you without realizing you’re a girl with a whole lot of baggage, through tears and many sleepless nights you’re faced with a choice of hanging on with bleeding hands, or accepting what is, and letting go."

ohmygod the writing hello? the amount of soul, depth, and sheer utter beauty in missy's words are beyond me. had me sobbing every other line and my heart aching all throughout and boy was it worth it.

➺ take five - by @jiminrings

| yoongi x reader | 10k

angst, fluff, unrequited love, pinning

summary: "dr. min yoongi's a board-certified dermatologist; skilled, renowned, and in-demand - oh and also, he's divorced."

➺ page turner - by @gukslut

| taehyung x reader | 13.6k

teacher!tae/ librarian!reader, fluff, smut, minor angst

summary: "corny romance and a zillion cheesy Romeo and Juliet quotes and references."

my tainted hopeless romantic heart ugh. they're so cute.

➺ bloom- by @hobidreams

| namjoon x reader | 20.7k

assassin!reader x florist!namjoon, smut, angst, action, sprinkles of fluff

>> summary: "family is who you kill for. who you die for. in this society, you and your kin are shadows, clinging to the darkness to obey orders absolute. but when such orders command you to abandon what little honor remains for wealth and notoriety, you find yourself lost in lonely uncertainty about the only vocation you’ve ever known. that is, until you meet a man with gentle hands, a poet’s heart, and a love for coaxing the world into bloom."

➺ counterfeit culture - by @ggukcangetit

| seokjin x reader | 29k

modern day au loosely based on jane austen’s pride & prejudice, e2l, fluff, smut, comedy

>>summary: “for as long as you can remember, you’ve always known right from wrong, good from bad, and woke from entitled/ignorant. but when you continue to cross paths with Kim Seokjin - the apparent antithesis of everything you believe in - certain walls begin to crumble. and over time, you come to realise that the world isn’t black and white, first impressions can be misleading, and that you are just as guilty as each person you’ve judged so harshly. realisation brings acceptance, and maybe, just maybe, acceptance can bring something more.”

➺ if i told you - by @gukyi

| jungkook x reader | 22k

friends to lovers!au, college!au, fluff, comedy, angst

>> summary: "in order to pay for university, jeon jungkook decides to market his most valuable asset to the wealthy socialites of campus: himself. donning a suit and tie, tousled hair, and glasses (to look smarter), he becomes every rich daughter’s dream: the perfect boyfriend to bring to balls, dinners, and business gatherings. all while you watch from the sidelines, only able to dream of having that much money to buy yourself what you really want: him."

➺ to hold a dragon's heart - by @softlyjiminie

| taehyung x reader | 19.1k

dragon prince!kim taehyung x warrior princess!reader, smut, angst, fluff, forbidden romance, dragon shifter!au, royalty!au, enemies to lovers!au

>> summary: "two kingdoms, two hearts and the world between them. your whole life has been a challenge, never an easy moment on your road to becoming queen but will one decision, one encounter with the man you were destined to hate, change the fate of your worlds, forever?"

[kismetconstellations]

There are so many ways that Voltron: Legendary Defender failed its characters. From the unfathomably idiotic decision to kill Allura off in the finale, to putting Coran through the pain of losing his family twice over, to all of the "jokes" at the expense of Hunk's anxiety, weight, and stomach problems.

But, to me, the most egregious example of this will forever be the numerous ways that Shiro was mistreated, even though I fully believe that most of them were unintentional and the fault of incompetence, rather than maliciousness.

I never expected a show with a TV-Y7 rating that was made to sell toys to children to address this character's extensive trauma in any meaningful way. And, perhaps there was a push behind the scenes to sideline him in order to bring Keith to the forefront, due to Keith being the head of Voltron in previous incarnations, and Shiro essentially being a Canon Foreigner created exclusively for this series.

But, when you have: - A poorly executed attempt to recreate Shiro's fight with Zarkon in the Astral Plane, void of the stunning visuals, impressively fluid fight choreography, and emotional and narrative stakes.

(Shiro fighting the show's main villain and his predecessor hand-to-hand for control of one of the most powerful weapons in the universe, vs the Paladins fighting shadowy, faceless foes that none of them- aside from Allura- have any personal connections to or conflict with, even once their identities are revealed, with long-range weapons, inside of Honerva's head.)

- Shiro, the previously "undefeated" Champion of Zarkon's gladiatorial arena and a highly trained and skilled martial artist, being slapped across the bridge of his own ship.

-Shiro's personal abuser telling him that the arm that was forcibly grafted onto his body in an attempt to turn him into a weapon for the Galra Empire is "the strongest part" of him,

Slav, an ally, echoing the sentiment and arguing that Shiro would be "even stronger with two robotic arms", and the first half of Season Seven confirming as much by depicting Shiro standing, often completely mute, on the sidelines

until he's outfitted with a new prosthetic arm. Only then is he actively allowed to participate in combat, again, and promoted to Captain of the Atlas.

-Shiro winning an intergalactic arm wrestling tournament to prove that he isn't a washed-up retiree (at the ripe old age of twenty-six), with that prosthetic.

-Said prosthetic being a mirror of his abuser's.

-No acknowledgement of Shiro's essence being transferred into the body of his clone that is down an arm. Or, how he's coping with not only not having a right arm at all, but also having been dead for a huge chunk of time, trapped inside the consciousness of the Black Lion and watching on helplessly as someone wearing his face tried to kill everyone he loves, and then resurrected to be suddenly "retired" through no choice of his own.

-Aside, of course, from an all-too lighthearted and chipper comment on routine helping him get through "being in the infinite void of the Black Lion", and a throwaway quip about how "having my consciousness transplanted from the infinity of Voltron's inner quintessence into the dead body of an evil clone of myself" has left him "a little out of sorts".

-And, Shiro not getting to kill his abuser, or even best him in combat.

Instead, he lies beaten and helpless, once again, as Keith, his replacement, takes Sendak out.

It crosses the line from clumsy writing to infuriating negligence and ineptitude.

The repeated violations of Shiro's autonomy, and what seems by all rights to be unintended ableism, even though it borders on outright disrespectful, went above and beyond any terrible writing and direction that I anticipated gritting my teeth and slogging through when I decided to finally bite the bullet and watch this show. It's utterly baffling to me that no one seemed to stop and realize that, "Hey, maybe introducing and then reinforcing the sentiment that a disabled man's prosthetic is the 'strongest part' of him, and he's effectively weak and useless without it, is a bad idea", at any point in the creative process before these episodes made it to air.

I wholeheartedly believe that as much as other characters were wronged, Voltron: Legendary Defender and its notoriously hellish fanbase that was more concerned with who these characters were having sex with than the actual plot, did not deserve Takashi Shirogane.

Shiro; a gay man, ace pilot, ambitious space explorer, and scarred trauma survivor who was abducted and forced to kill for the entertainment of his captors, subjected to unimaginable torture, and had his body modified without his knowledge or consent twice, yet never let any of his experiences, no matter how grueling or dehumanizing, stop him from being gentle, compassionate, noble, brave, self-sacrificing, and everything that epitomizes a True Hero, right to the bitter end.

[marvel-starwarsfangirl]

Why Crosshair Will Live

(aka an essay by a Crosshair girlie who loves her clone husband too much)

So, I've been thinking long and hard about the final season and how it could end. Obviously, it's gonna be an emotional rollercoaster and all that. However, there's always going to be discourse about who's gonna bite it, especially since our main characters don't have plot armor and this show is allowed to go way darker than Rebels. Crosshair is my favorite character and I don't hide that at all. He's all over my page. But looking at his character, there's a part of me that believes he actually might make it out in one piece. Let's get started!

"Redemption Equals Death"- Out of all the tropes, this is the one Crosshair embodies the most. He was the villain for a season, but now he's changing his ways. In past seasons, I would've said this is how his story ends. His brothers find him and Omega on Tantiss and he goes out protecting them, proving he deep down he still loved them. But after season 3, I don't think that's the case anymore. I think he's passed the point. Crosshair in season 3 is actively redeeming himself through his actions and words with his family and the other clones. We don't need to see him go out in some big self-sacrifice because we already see the person he truly is inside. More importantly, his family sees the person he's become. He's already proven it in so many ways. Crosshair openly admitted his mistakes, saved Hunter from the wyrm, is very protective of Omega, and saved his brothers, Omega, and Rex + Howzer from CX-2. At this point, Crosshair has passed the "redemption equals death" marker. His redemption is playing out and the people around him are seeing the changes.

His Character Arc- Crosshair's character arc has always been about loyalty and identity. Go all the way back to season 1 with the infamous "this is who I am" line and his whole spiel about the Batch not being loyal to him. "Aftermath" shows us this poor man already beginning to struggle. In season 2, Crosshair is going through every hurt no comfort fic trope in the book. This man was pushed to the brink, with every sense of his being questioned. And he almost didn't make it. Crosshair in "The Outpost" was so close to dying after trekking through the blizzard and shooting Nolan. He's suffered through so much already from being severely burnt to freezing, and now almost drowning. Pretty much half way through season 3 and Crosshair's trials aren't over. His hand is still bothering him and he's still trying to find himself.

Although Crosshair has made peace with his family, I believe he still needs to make peace with himself. He's been humbled sure, but there's more to go. Who is he if he isn't a soldier or sharpshooter? Crosshair's arc will probably finish with him realizing being a soldier isn't entirely who he is. His hand tremor still could be related to his internal conflict, we don't know. So far, he's doing a great job. We've seen Crosshair begin to find peace on Pabu and comfort with Omega. It would be so satisfying to see him make it out of this mess alive. My best BB ending would be him (and his brothers) alongside Omega retired somewhere. They have each other and that is enough.

His Poster and Theme- Crosshair is the only character as of right now in the Batch who has a separate poster for season 3. Not even Omega has a separate one (although I can see her getting one later). In fact, Omega shares her with Crosshair. Both are wearing their prison outfits, showing their shared situation and stand against a white/grey backdrop. We also see Cross gripping his right hand, referring to the issue he's having with it. However, he also has one of himself in the same golden lighting as his brothers. Crosshair stares at his helmet with a calm look on his face and appears to be contemplating. That has to mean something. From my POV, I get the sense he's wondering about who he is. Wouldn't it be a great ending if Cross finds himself and lives to see that self be happy?

He is also the only member of the Batch (Omega aside) to have his own theme/leitmotif. He has two actually: his Imperial one and his heroic one. His heroic theme aka the "Mayday" theme is stunning and highlights his struggle perfectly. You can actually hear it in season 1 fun fact but it's faint. The fact that he does have a separate poster and theme from the others does give me hope that he will make it. Not to say that the others aren't important, but something about Crosshair and his journey is very meaningful to have warranted this. You can argue that he shares the title of "heart of the show" to some degree because his arc is the most dynamic of all the Batch. His struggles and fight back towards the light truly raise this show to greatness.

Crosshair is also season 3's "Batcher of Year" award and so far, they're doing everything we wanted and more. For two whole seasons, his character has been building and building towards this season. And they better give us a great payoff. Crosshair's character going to continue to soar as the season progresses. I can definitely see him making it through to the end because of the focus on him.

Omega- how can we forget about the kid who never gave up on our grumpy sniper? Omega (and we can argue Cross to a lesser degree) is the heart of the show. She gives the Batch a new outlook on life and it is through her that they grow and change. Omega brings out the paternal and softer side in each of her brothers. Crosshair, however, takes a bit longer to get there. He's the only character whose main development happens away from Omega. When he finally gets home, he becomes Crossdad. But Omega is still a kid, despite her capabilities. If the other Batchers die, who will take care of her? Omega being on her own just doesn't feel right. We also know going off with Rex wouldn't feel satisfying either even though he would take really good care of her.

Now that Crosshair is back, it feels like the show is propping him up to take over Hunter's role. Hunter parented for 2 whole seasons. As the mentor figure, he might bite it. But wait! Crosshair is still here. There is no way the writers would just let Omega finish alone or get killed off. She will have someone with her. Crosshair, having spent the majority of the show away, will probably be the best candidate narratively speaking. As mentioned above, he gets two posters showing just how integral he is this season. He's also been getting a lot of screen time with Omega. So, I can definitely see the show ending with just the two of them left. It would be bittersweet, but still satisfying.

Disney- let's ask the question: would Disney kill off an entire family aside from their child? My best guess is no (this isn't a Disney movie with a prince to save the day). Tying into my last point, I can't see this family-friendly company letting a literal child lose her entire family and end up all alone in the end. We all saw Rogue One and we know that this is a plausible option. However, I'm beginning to think that they aren't gonna do that because again, Omega is a child. She's gonna hopefully have one, if not all, her brothers alongside her. And I swear, if they give her to someone else not named Crosshair, Hunter, Wrecker, or Echo, I will blow a gasket. She needs her family. Disney and Star Wars is all about hope and it's not very hopeful to me if all of the BB but Omega dies.

Rebuttal- let's get this out of the way: if Cross dies, it will be with his brothers, protecting Omega, and defeating Hemlock. There is literally no other way he could go out that would be satisfying. He's redeemed and fought the Ghost of Crosshair's Future (aka CX-2). Backpedaling on his character arc would suck. If he dies, it will be as a Bad Batcher, a loving brother, and the best sniper the galaxy has ever seen.

But I don't think that will happen. I do genuinely think Crosshair has a chance to survive. But what do you guys think? Obviously, I'll still be nervous about the whole thing, but I'm trying here.

[therentyoupay]

Hiiii I need help

I’m having trouble writing a fight scene between two characters in a relationship. I don’t want it to be a break up sort of fight, just a healthy spat between lovers that will make their relationship all the stronger after they resolve it. But I’m not really well versed in “healthy conflict” so I was hoping you’d have some questions to keep in mind/tips experience you could share because you’re an amazing writer 🙏🏻

HELLO MY DARLING

first, thank you so much for your sweet words. 😭😭😭😭😭😭🙏 second, i have been pondering your question for a day and a half!

i have been really thinking about it and i have some initial thoughts… but i am sure that this post will just be the start of an ongoing conversation. i think the word i have been chewing on is “healthy.” on the one hand, there are certain things that most people might universally agree as “healthy conflict” in a relationship (or nearly universally), and then there are things that are very culture-dependent (and i do not mean this necessarily in the essentialist sense, i.e., nation-state-as-culture, but also in terms of ‘doing culture’ according to family, friends, region, socioeconomic status, social rank, behaviors, etc.). and then there are things in each relationship that may be less healthy than the ideal but still healthy in the long run, in the sense that it provides space for growth; couples have horribles fights that nearly tear them apart but, for whatever reason, don’t. in my experience, both in life and in fiction, sometimes i think these can often be the hardest, toughest fights, because they have the lowest lows but the highest potential for hope/resolution/something better.

if i am thinking on what it is about these fights that make them so painful and exhausting and “i just want to find a way to fix this but i can’t see the way forward and i am going to stay because i love them but i don’t have the tools right now to get out of this hole,” here’s what comes to mind:

both people are in pain

somehow, trust has been lost to some degree

one or both people do not currently feel safe, either from judgment or abandonment… maybe both… maybe something else too

a disagreement may turn “ugly” so quickly when things that are shared in confidence are thrown back in someone’s face, or some vulnerable sticking point that is supposed to be protected is being used against them in the heat of the argument because things begin to escalate so quickly

at what point can one person step in and find a space to pause/timeout; table the conversation; de-escalate? if neither can, the fight gets worse. if at least one can… that could be the turning point for a softer resolution, even if the other person needs additional coaxing or convincing to join them in the de-escalation. can both suddenly or eventually pause and de-escalate? through humor? through a release of emotion at the core under the anger, like tears and sadness?

at some point during these fights, or perhaps after, one or both might start to feel shame… for their behaviors, their reactions, their words… how can one person bridge the gap that was created when one or both crossed a line? (or many lines?) sometimes all it can take is a hug to lessen the divide, and sometimes apologies are necessary, and plans for changing behaviors, and explanations, or any combination. so how does one (or both) handle their apology? are they both good at taking accountability and learning at this stage in their relationship? do they make good on their promises to change, or at least try? (we are human after all!)

does the resolution match the degree of the fight? if something was weaponized, has it been dismantled by the end, or is it left hanging in the air, even after the apology or de-escalation?

definitely lots to think about! i think the degree of “healthy” is going to depend on a lot of factors, and will inevitably also be influenced by your readers’ personal experiences and what they bring to their interpretations! but definitely things to potentially keep in mind: who is in pain and why? what tools do they have to resolve the pain? are they scared to solve it or not solve it (or both)? how well can they solve it at this moment in time—or later?

thank you for the ask!!!! 💕💕💕💕 good luck and keep me posted!!! i hope these are helpful. 🙏🙏🙏🙏

also, others: please feel free to add additional thoughts and considerations!!! 🙏🙏🙏🙏

[stirringwinds]

i know people talk a lot about the us and UK special relationship but it kind of fell after the Suez and France kind of sneakily stole it didn't he? I mean did the same before the wars

thanks for the ask! ngl, as a londoner, i've always personally felt the representation of the "Special Relationship" as this mega-close and affectionate dynamic is kind of...an un-holistic understanding of the UK or England, as well as of the United States. don't get me wrong, it's one of their most important relationships and there's a lot of deep history there—my issue is mostly with rose-tinted interpretations underpinning it and what biases they showcase. these were heavily biased by Churchill's (imperialist) gaze of envisioning Anglo-American affinity and leadership on the world stage. this interpretation quite significantly downplayed the rivalry, power struggles, conflicts and differences that historians existed between the US and the British Empire, or how US presidents tended to see it in far less majestic terms. like, Churchill rather downplays FDR's vehement disagreements with him over the issue of Indian independence lol or decolonisation (because the US was eyeing the world as a chessboard, re: new markets and also whether or not support for the old colonial power would be a bulwark against or risk soviet or other communist influence).

so, while you're right that Suez was a pretty low moment in US-Britain relations due to the US being pissed at Britain and France jeopardising its ostensible goal of swaying Egypt away from the Soviet sphere of influence (sidenote: Egypt itself was trying to navigate the mess of the Cold War rivalry to secure its interests), i don't really see it as "falling" after Suez or stolen by France simply because that dynamic Churchill painted a picture of never really existed in that way. plus, Europe (France included) and the ex-colonies of the British Empire (like the dominions and India) weighed heavily on British foreign policy/its national outlook too; i tend to find an overemphasis on a rose-tinted view of the "Special Relationship" leads to a lot of US-centrism that shuts out this understanding. to me, Arthur and Alfred's relationship is most interesting when we situate them properly amidst all these other imperial and geopolitical cross-currents. of which Francis is an important one, from the time he helped Alfred during the Revolutionary War, to the Entente Cordial, WWI and the post-WWII world of NATO, the EU and so on.

in hetalia-verse, it's one of the reasons I personally headcanon Arthur and Alfred as father and son. their bond is lasting, forged by the blood, steel and saltwater of empire, and all the familial, deep and troubling implications that implies. they are "stuck" with each other in some ways, because post 1945, it's a familial dynamic of the old king and the young, ambitious crown prince who thinks his father is out of time—and out of line. francis never really "steals" anything because he and arthur's relationship is on a very different axes: francis is the neighbour who has been by arthur's side as his enemy, friend, lover, rival in imperial douchebaggery, ally (for better and also for worse, like in suez...)—and everything in between. whereas arthur and alfred have some real patricidal/regicidal, titanomachy-level father-son power struggles going on, mixed in with this dysfunctional level of understanding and them also colluding together shadily (you are different from him in many ways, there are many things he'll never understand about you—but you are your father's son, alfred; to be powerful is to be tainted).

so in conclusion, i see alfred-arthur and arthur-francis as both very important foundational dynamics crucial to arthur's character, but conceptualised differently from that understanding of the "special relationship" because they're two different kinds of relationships, even if there is the overlapping dynamic of power, rivalry and empire. ✌🏼

[gatheringbones]

[“One author of the Clinical Psychology Review article was Shira Maguen, a researcher who began to think about the moral burdens of warfare while counseling veterans at a PTSD clinic in Boston.

Like most Veterans Affairs psychologists, Maguen had been trained to focus on the aftershocks of fear-based trauma—IED blasts that ripped through soldiers’ Humvees, skirmishes that killed members of their unit. The link between PTSD and such “life-threat” events was firmly established. Yet in many of the cases she observed, the source of distress seemed to lie elsewhere: not in attacks by the enemy that veterans had survived, but in acts they had observed or carried out that crossed their own ethical lines.

Soldiers were not, of course, the only people who risked committing such transgressions. All of the counselors I interviewed at the Dade Correctional Institution struggled with inner conflicts related to horrifying things they’d witnessed but failed to prevent. What kind of person was she? Lovita Richardson wondered after seeing a prisoner bound to a chair get bludgeoned and not intervening to help him. “Why didn’t I do more?” Harriet Krzykowski asked herself after learning about the “shower treatment.” Many of the prison guards I’d interviewed had alluded to incidents where they’d done things they knew they shouldn’t, as when Bill Curtis slammed a man to the ground, nearly fracturing his skull. Moral injuries were an occupational hazard for anyone whose job involved “perpetrating, failing to prevent, or bearing witness to acts that transgress deeply held moral beliefs.” For most dirty workers, that is.

Among the veterans she counseled, Maguen grew particularly interested in the emotional toll of killing, which was sanctioned in the military but not when defenseless civilians were involved. “I was hearing about experiences where people killed and they thought they were making the right decision,” she told me, “and then they found out there was a family in the car.” To find out how heavy the burden of killing was, Maguen began combing through the databases in which veterans of conflicts dating back to the Vietnam War were asked if they had killed someone while in uniform. In some cases, veterans were also asked whom they killed—combatants, prisoners of war, civilians. Maguen wanted to see if there might be a relationship between taking another life and debilitating consequences like alcohol abuse, relationship problems, outbursts of violence, PTSD. The results were striking: even when controlling for different experiences in combat, she found, killing was a “significant, independent predictor of multiple mental health symptoms” and of social dysfunction.

Later, when she started directing a mental health clinic at a VA hospital in San Francisco, Maguen convened groups where veterans came together and talked about the killing they had done. In the VA no less than in the military, this was a taboo subject, so much so that clinicians often referred to it euphemistically, if at all. To ease the tension, a scene from a documentary was shown at the beginning of each session in which a veteran said, “Out there, it’s either kill or be killed. Nothing can really prepare you for war.” Afterward, Maguen would ask the veterans in the room a series of questions about how killing had impacted their lives. Some reacted angrily. Others fell silent. But many seized the opportunity to talk about experiences they later told Maguen they had never spoken about with anyone, not even their spouses and family members, for fear of being judged.

The veterans in Maguen’s groups didn’t talk a lot about fear and hyperarousal, emotions linked to PTSD. Mostly, they expressed self-condemnation and guilt. “You feel ashamed of what you did,” one said. Others described feeling unworthy of forgiveness and love. The passage of time did little to diminish the depth of these feelings, Maguen found. Geographic distance didn’t lessen them much either. Maguen recounted the story of a pilot who was haunted by the bombs he had dropped on victims far below. What troubled him was, in fact, precisely his distance from them—that instead of squaring off against the enemy in a fair fight, he had killed in a way that lacked valor. Obviously not all pilots felt this way. But the story underscored the significance of something Maguen had come to regard as more important than proximity or distance in shaping moral injury—namely, how veterans made sense of what they had done. “How you conceptualize what you did and what happened makes such a big difference,” she said. “It makes all the difference.”

Unlike PTSD, moral injury was not a medical diagnosis. It was an attempt to capture what could happen to a person’s identity and soul in the crucible of war, which is why it struck a chord among veterans who did not feel their wounds could be reduced to a medical disorder. “PTSD as a diagnosis has a tendency to depoliticize a veteran’s disquietude and turn it into a mental disorder,” observed Tyler Boudreau, a marine officer who served in Iraq and came back haunted by doubts about the war’s morality. “What’s most useful about the term ‘moral injury’ is that it takes the problem out of the hands of the mental health profession and the military and attempts to place it where it belongs—in society, in the community, and in the family—precisely where moral questions should be posed and wrangled with. It transforms ‘patients’ back into citizens and ‘diagnoses’ into dialogue.”]

eyal press, from dirty work: essential labor and the hidden toll of inequality in america, 2021

[seasaltmemories]

The Question of Dark Aono's Role

I don't want to make any definitive statements towards Dark Aono's role in the story on either a literal or metaphorical level. It feels like there is still a lot Shiina is holding back about him; however, I feel like for all the terrible horrors he could represent, at this it is pretty clear Dark Aono is not just a simple abuse allegory

Like I get why it might appear that way early in the story, we don't actually know Aono that well, and neither does Yuri, and stories of men turning "into completely different ppl" once locked into a relationship do exist, what Aono does with his limited agency speaks in direct opposition to that. When he feels he crossed a line, he isolates himself from Yuri and tries to stay away from her. In the cannibalism dream sequence he begs Yuri to run away from him even when she is determined to feed herself. Much of his greatest conflict is about being stuck in this monstrous role and trying to self-sabotage himself.

And like perhaps this could be a seen as a messy representation of the honeymoon phase of abuse, where apologies are made and the abuser is extra affectionate to make up for it, but I lean away from that bc we have much better representations of that in the familial stages. Midori and Hitomi both tend to follow up the worst of their wrong-doings with explicit apologies and excess affection, sometimes immediately after the incident. The Aono to Dark Aono cycling doesn't hit nearly the same beats, even when taking into account the supernatural elements.

While I don't want to lock myself into one interpretation before the story is finished, I always come back to the stairwell incident. Where Dark Aono is shocked in Aono when Yuri informs him he sounds like Midori for saying exactly what his Mother used to tell him. I think of how when he regains control, it is usually followed by shame and self-loathing, sometimes simply saying that his behavior was "weird' or outright calling himself a conman.

It is such a tricky situation bc to me Dark Aono has distinctive quirks and differences from our Aono in attitude/speech/everything, even when both characters try and manipulate others, they do it in very different ways. Yet for as drastic as the switch can be, he is never so clearly an alternate personality or entity taking over. Aono has stated outright that the further in the story he goes, the more aware he grows during this shifts, and many take place specifically due to Aono's emotional state rather than any outside taboo breaking. Dark Aono is both something alien, something intrusive, yet also a painfully familiar thing that clearly originates in himself

In the end I am reminded much more of how the aftereffects of abuse haunt even relationships formed years after escaping the situation. Aono was taught love is choosing one ultimate idol and doesn't realize how fucked up that is until he finds himself parroting the same words back to Yuri. Aono reverts to a child-like state and tries to prove both to others and to himself he is worthy of love when he realized he fucked up in some way. He excuses all his self-destructive self isolating coping mechanisms as necessary even while calling out those same traits in others

But as man-painy and gross the premise of "guy keeps hurting his gf even though he doesn;t want to bc mommy issues and that makes him sad" could be, what makes Shiina's writing compelling is she makes it clear that the one suffering the most here in the present is Yuri. Having sympathy for Aono doesn't make her situation any less worse, and from where volume 10 ends off, there are things Aono needs to answer for that can't be explained away by spooky occult shenanigans. I feel like Aono's ultimate role as either ally or antagonist will be determined by his choices in the end, no matter how many or few he has. There haven't been any easy answers in the story and so I don't except to suddenly discover them this late in the game. But regardless of how it plays out I can't help but already praise her for putting such an interesting and unpredictable spin on "dark alter egos" in a genre that can be overstuffed with them.

[firewalkzwit]

runt // jonathan crane x reader. (1)

Chapter 1. Prelude

cross-posted on AO3

masterlist

Meticulous analysis of her own motivations had driven Y/N to come to the conclusion that her hatred was justified. Nothing was done without something profoundly belonging to one's own unresolved conflicts being involved in the decisions and paths of choice. Such was the case of the Batman, she'd concluded. Whoever he was behind that mask, he was not pursuing his role as a masked 'protector of Gotham' without a great degree of personal motive beyond selfless devotion to the wellbeing of the city. Long had she studied this concept meticulously, as to do introspection on her own reasons behind her new objectives. The Batman and herself found congruence in the belief that violence was an indispensable tool to maintain order, humanity after all was nothing but an attempt to break a deeply embedded bond with primitive, animal instincts, such as sin. However it was this particular ethic that took from Y/N the only person who stood by her side since the day she was born.

Her brother, like a forbidden fenix, had found in the drug business what was ethically questionable, but an opportunity to a new life at last. Poverty had reigned in as many generations as their family registered for, which were not many, but enough to bring a loss of hope at ever escaping the circumstances. The drug business was dangerous, but her brother was sly and grown to be a street-smart individual, he knew where he could mess and where he couldn't. Finding also a strike of luck in the fact that where they lived -a little apartment above a Chinese-owned laundry shop, was a precarious condominium where a low-ranked pawn from Carmine Falcone also had his home. This kid had befriended Y/N's brother and recommended him with Falcone, being the crucial connection to begin working for the druglord.

While unable to approve of his line of work, Y/N couldn't find it in her morality to refuse his dirty money. Like Tony Montana he'd return home with the fruit of his criminality and she'd accept it like a gift, one with a catch, but her brother always managed to sound reassuring enough to make the odds of something happening to him seem lower than they were. Oh, was it such a crime to be gullible and young, and believe your older brother? Y/N had once tried to believe that she simply didn't have what it took to stop him, or that it wasn't her place in his story, fate had planted it's seed on him and his demise was only meant to happen the second he agreed to dance with the Devil.

Despite her brother's rapidly increasing earnings, she felt it a moral obligation to maintain her job as a janitor in Gotham University. She was no Will Hunting, but she did find a particular itch of interest in the fields of sociology and psychology; studies of human condition. The job allowed her to ocasionally lean besides the auditoriums to listen to the lectures of intellectual professors. Her mind was like a sponge, and her curiosity drove her to absorve every drop of information she'd hear, and study it later in her free time.

It was one of those days where she spent some hours off the clock on campus, long done with her cleaning duties yet attentively listening to the lesson behind the door. Had she left on time maybe the butterfly effect that spiraled into the end of her brother's life could have somehow been different. Had she left later, perhaps, something in the trail of events could have flipped a switch to prevent what happened to him. But she didn't, she stayed and listened to a seminar on social conducts and masses, while somewhere in Gotham her brother received punch after punch from the Batman as God's punishment for his temptation and greed.

If the Bat had intended to kill him or not was not of her concern, as intentions didn't free the vigilante from having her brother's blood on his hands. It was while checking the stock of a recently dropped off container in the portion of the port Falcone had used his filthy money to buy that Batman had striked. Her brother tried -in a naive act of loyalty, to defend the property of his employer. Poor boy, forgotten as another dog of the drug world, but to Y/N a victim of his circumstances trying to make the best out of the little life had to offer for them. Died in the hospital as he awaited for interrogation, his insides mashed into a gorey pureé of organs that spat their own blood and failed to survive the brutality of their wounds.

Sure, the Batman may have saved damsels in distress from having their purses snatched by low life thieves, or prevented a hypothetical drug addict from getting another taste of their self-indulgence, but was he really saving people? Doing something worthwhile? For all she knew, all his masked activism was of no use if they had no effect in the long-term and the masses, and in the process took the lives and resources of hard-working low income people. She was no fool, Y/N had obviously assessed the possibility that maybe what happened to her brother was, again, a matter of fate, a divine punishment for succumbing to the desire for easy money. But then again, his motivations were only honest, and he was looking out for his and his family's best interest. What more does a man have to do to be noble and worth of living without being punished for collateral misdoings that are only human?

Falcone had presented his distant condolences in the shape of a young man knocking at her door, offering the drug lord's words of comfort and a pitiful offer for a job in his headquarters at The Penguin's Iceberg Lounge. "A pretty face like yours could be pretty popular." spoke the raspy voice of The Penguin as his grotesquely large fingers held her chin. The Iceberg Lounge didn't belong to Falcone, but his connections allowed him to offer Y/N a job as a waitress in the place. Had she any choice? Not really, with her brother now dead, the income as a janitor was not nearly as much as the inviting sum of tips that sweetened her ear with the same voice of temptation that once spoke to her brother. Besides, she did need the money, and building links -even if they were mostly symbolic, with the Bat's enemies could grant her a closer look to the new channel of all her hatred.

It was once that Y/N begun to work for The Penguin that she fully committed in the sinful night-life. Her entire scheme and survival now relied on crime, sin and immorality. She had now signed her own contract, and indulged fully into the world of darkness and depravity, one that was once unknown to her and was now tied to her identity. She fed off of other's lust and crime, making her a criminal herself. But she no longer felt the fear or rejection for the underworld her brother's job had once made her feel, she now embraced it as her own for the sake of greater motivations. Like a legacy she had chosen to carry on, taking the job got her to quickly see first-hand the very embodiment of hedonism and sheer self-indulgence. The energy in the club was heavy, dark and evil, but Y/N resisted her days through it and engaged in her friendlies as a standard procedure for the night, meeting interesting people in the process.

[maximumwobblerbanditdonut]

Rebus – BBC picks up new series

BY IAN MCARDELL FILED UNDER NEWS

Richard Rankin takes on the role of the famous Scottish detective

The BBC acquired the Scottish crime drama Rebus. Made by Eleventh Hour Films for Viaplay, and based on Ian Rankin’s novels, the series stars Richard Rankin (no relation) in the title role.

The detective has been previously played, as an Inspector, by both John Hannah and Ken Stott.

Rebus

The six-part series has been adapted for the screen by Gregory Burke who reimagines the character earlier in his career. Detective Sergeant John Rebus is drawn into a violent criminal conflict that turns personal when his brother Michael, a former soldier, crosses the line into criminality. Rebus finds himself torn between protecting his brother and enforcing the law to bring Michael to justice.

Gregory Burke To Adapt Ian Rankin’s Rebus Series as Eleventh Hour Drama Black Watch. Both adaptations, have Richard Rankin’s participation. Based on interviews with former soldiers, it tells the story of troops from the then Black Watch regiment serving in Iraq. The play toured around the world and went on to win four Olivier Awards.

Richard Rankin as John Rebus (Image: Mark Mainz/Eleventh Hour Films)

The series promises to explore family, morality and class in an emotionally charged story, set against the Scottish landmarks that Rankin’s readers know so well.

Joining Richard Rankin (Outlander), the series also stars Lucie Shorthouse (Bulletproof), Brian Ferguson (The Ipcress File) and Amy Manson (The Nevers). Plus, Neshla Caplan, Noof Ousellam, Stuart Bowman, Caroline Lee Johnson, Sean Buchanan, Thoren Ferguson and Michelle Duncan.

Filming took place in Glasgow and Edinburgh last year.

Author Ian Rankin says:

“I’m thrilled that Rebus is coming to the BBC. A great cast and a compelling story – I really can’t wait for viewers to see it.”

This is the first time the BBC has adapted Sir Ian Rankin's detective novels. 📸 Getty Images

Actor Richard Rankin adds:

“I am thrilled that Rebus will premiere on the BBC. It’s been an honour taking on the role of Ian Rankin’s renowned John Rebus. A character enjoyed by so many in such a fresh and original adaptation.”

The six-part series is directed by Niall MacCormick (Wallander) and Fiona Walton (Shetland) and is produced by Angela Murray. Paula Cuddy, Jill Green, Eve Gutierrez, Tomas Axelsson, Isabelle Hultén, Niall MacCormick, Gregory Burke and Ian Rankin are the Executive Producers.

Rebus will air on BBC Scotland, BBC One and BBC iPlayer later this spring.

I'm waiting and watching 🍿

#Rebus #BBCScotland #BBCOne # BBCiPlayer #JohnRebus #DetectiveSergeant #Ian Rankin #novel #RichardRankin #EleventhHourFilms #Viaplay

[lloydfrontera]

If og lloyd returns to his body after suho crosses the reincarnation gate what do you think will the frontera family and javier feel? Would they be glad for og lloyd's return? Particularly julian and javier?

so uhm. tumblr ate a similar ask i received before this one. like. the same premise so. i'm gonna assume it was by the same person. hopefully. sorry. anyway.

this is an evil scenario. i kinda dig it.

if lloyd crossed the gate and og lloyd returned to his body at that moment,,, there would be many, many conflicting emotions.

i'm gonna take the premise of the other ask and say the og lloyd that returns is the one from right before he got kicked out of his body. this is an og lloyd that didn't see lloyd save the estate countless times, didn't see the effect he had on everyone around him, that never had any reason to regret everything he'd done.

for arcos and marbella i think it would be an extremely bittersweet situation. they would be overjoyed about having their son again, they were absolutely devastated when they realized they'd lost him so i have no doubt they would be so, so happy if he came back. but at the same,,, it would be dampened by their grief over losing lloyd. they came to love him just as much as they loved their biological children, so they would mourn him just as much as they mourned og lloyd. and they would have to be very careful about how they express that grief lest og lloyd take offense to it and believe they'd rather have lloyd with them than him.

plus. well. og lloyd is,,, an asshole. and would presumably resume his terrible habits and attitude immediately, which would be jarring for everyone, but especially for arcos and marbella who deeply love their son and whose grief over suddenly losing him would probably made them romanticize his memory a little bit. it's a natural thing to do, everyone is a saint once they're dead, and while i don't think they completely forgot how terrible og lloyd was, it's a different thing to remember it while you're grieving and missing them than to see it in person again.

i think they would try their best to repair their relationship with him, grateful for the second chance they got with him, but i don't think they would get very far. the problem never was that they didn't care for og lloyd or didn't make an effort with him, it was that og lloyd wasn't interested in reciprocating those efforts. and it's really hard to make a relationship work when only one party is invested on it.

as for julian,,, it's hard to say because we never get to see how he feels about lloyd replacing his brother in the first place, which i think it's a shame cause he's one of the people who by all means has the most extreme response to lloyd in the entire novel. i think his perspective would've been really interesting to have but alas.

but,,, i don't think he would be happy at all. not even a little bit. maybe a part of him would be relieved his brother isn't dead, but that would be it. assuming this is in line with canon where julian has no idea his brother had been replaced, he'd first have to grapple with the fact that the person he came to love and admire was someone completely different than the one he thought.

that the brother that physically and verbally harassed him his entire life never changed. that the person he forgave and made peace with is not the one that hurt him in the first place. that the one that should've apologized and made amends with him is still the same and has no interest in changing.

that would alone would fuck anyone up, but then he has to also grieve the brother he'd come to love and really admire while having to watch the brother who he hated with a passion walk around like nothing happened.

julian hated og lloyd. he had an extreme hatred for him. and he was completely in his right to do it. so add to it the mess of betrayed feelings he would have plus the grief for lloyd plus a healthy dose of resentment and misattirbutted blame towards og lloyd for being alive when lloyd isn't anymore and,,, yeah. i don't think julian would have any positive feelings in this situation.

i think he would stay just long enough in the estate to be with his parents while the worst of the grief passed and then leave, with no plans of coming back unless his parents needed him to.

also i like to think that at one point julian snapped at og lloyd for one reason or another and when og lloyd went to hit him like usual not only did julian not flinch like he used but also sheherazade went absolutely ballistic on his ass. straight up trying to cut off his arm for it. javier was quick to stop her but like. it was a close thing even considering he's a grandmaster at that point.

after that og lloyd just avoids julian like the plague which suits all of them just fine. sheherazade especially. scary wife privilege <3

as for javier. god javier.

if arcos and marbella were happy about og lloyd coming back and julian was upset about it, javier would fall somewhere in the middle and also create a metric of his own.

just,, imagine the devastation he felt when lloyd crossed the gate on his own, his despair at not being able to protect the person he swore he would die for, then the bright spot of hope and relief when he sees him open his eyes and wake up, thinking that maybe, just maybe, fate was kind to them this time, maybe they get to have this one miracle, maybe they both get to life and be together like they wanted to... only for the slow and terrible realization that this isn't the lloyd he was hoping for. it's not his lloyd.

i think for one brief moment of grief induced insanity javier would genuinely consider throwing og lloyd into the reincarnation gate and see if that would bring back his lloyd. he doesn't of course, he immediately shakes himself out of it, but... the thought would've definitely crossed his mind.

because the thing is, while i've talked before about how javier wasn't glad about og lloyd being replaced and genuinely felt guilty for not being able to help him and for choosing lloyd over him, that's not,,, really because of og lloyd himself. like. it sounds harsh but javier kind of really hated the guy's guts. he cared for him as a member of the frontera family and would've genuinely tried to protect him had there been any need, but it would've been strictly professional and out of duty and loyalty towards arcos, not to og lloyd. which i don't really blame him for tbh! you reap what you sow and og lloyd earned himself nothing but javier's disdain with his actions and words.

but the point is! javier's interest in og lloyd is directly related to him putting his loyalty to arcos above all things. in the hell railroad arc that's his main reason to feel so conflicted about who to choose.

but at this point in the novel javier's loyalties have shifted. he's still extremely loyal to arcos, he still loves the frontera family, he still would protect them with all his being but... now his heart's loyalty belongs to lloyd.

I want to protect him. Lloyd is my true master in my heart.

and i think that, for one split second at least, the part of javier who would do anything for the people he cares about and is loyal to, would genuinely contemplate throwing og lloyd back into the reincarnation gate if there was even the slightest chance it would bring his lloyd back.

but he would quickly snap out of it. he is still very loyal to arcos and marbella, and this is their son, he's still a part of the frontera family and javier cannot, will not, risk his life on the small possibility it will save someone else. not even lloyd.

he would even feel guilty for having considered it in the first place, for letting himself be swept by his emotions, for being so selfish as to think about trading the frontera's son for the chance to get lloyd back. for knowing that even though he didn't do it, a small, grieving and half mad part of him still thinks it would be worth it.

i also think he would have a very hard time being around og lloyd but even a worse one trying to stay away from him. being in the same room as him would be bitter, disappointing and painful, but not being there would be maddening, every instinct telling him to go back, to see if he's alright, to be at the side of the person he'd spent the last few years protecting with everything he had. the one he'd been planning on staying with the rest of his life.

i think it was hard for him to come to love someone wearing the face of a person he hated. but it would be excruciating to see someone he hates wear the face of the person he came to love.

all in all. not a good time for anyone! which i think fucks i love this scenario it really woke up the brain worms <3

[gegegegegesworld]

Apology to the fandom

Hello everyone, I am Panda (Potaxiepower formerly known as Kimetsunozushi69) and I want to write this post in order to own my mistakes and to apologise to the ones involved in this situation.

First of all, I am aware of my humour, which has crossed the line many times. I want to seriously apologise for the disgusting jokes that I did without any consideration of people's feelings. I want to clarify that I am not racist, I have no intention of discrimination against anyone.

I will never cross the lines ever again, and I will face the consequences of my actions which harmed many people in this fandom.

I do not expect people to forgive me, because what I said was truly unforgivable, but from now on, I will mature and I will become better.

In regards of others aspects, I want to talk about the way I treated the members involved in this situation, I am sure you all know this, but I was accused of being abusive to some members of this fandom, which I will admit that my behaviour was unacceptable, and my personal struggles and my own problems do not justify the actions that I committed against the people involved.

I admit that I was a very toxic friend, and I never knew how far my actions were until I realised that my harm to them was scarring and traumatising. I admit that my behaviour towards them is irredeemable and that not an apology can fix the consequences of my actions.

None of them truly hurt me, I was the one who was in a bad mental state and because of that I started to wrongly accuse them of things that they were not, and also badmouthing them and manipulating the situation to favour me, which after months of reflection, I realised that that was truly despicable behaviour.

I admit that I did all of this based on my own envy over them being better artists, academically brighter and better writers than me, which made me have an inferiority complex against them and because of that I was acting toxic towards them. 

Even when they supported me in my hard times, I was ungrateful and despite them showing emotional and financial support, I was not willing to recognise their efforts to be my friends, because of my ego.

I understand why this situation is happening, because I cannot escape from my actions, I do not expect the fandom to ever forgive, and I understand that, I will face the consequences of what has happened this summer time.

I am sorry for ghosting the victims of the situation after doing enough harm and not apologising genuinely because I was a coward who did not want to accept my mistakes, and I understand why the situation escalated to worse after months.

I also understand why everyone in this fandom is currently furious over this, because I escaped and deleted everything without any explanation, this time, I will face the fandom and listen to your complains, I also will leave the fandom after this in order to start a new phase of my life where in the future I will not commit the same mistakes again.

I also want to clarify that none of my old followers or friends stalked any of the members, I was not aware of them facing harassment online, I am not lying when I say that I had everyone blocked which made me not interact with their posts or be interested in what they were posting, because I didn't want to see what they were doing (because I was ghosting) and I admit that I was talking bad about them behind their backs despite me promising to them that I would not talk about them, but I did not send hate because all the frustration that I had was thrown towards my close friends who were not interested in creating conflicts.

I recently found out that they were receiving some hate regarding the call-out, I did not send anyone. I promise everyone that I was inactive online and was scared of looking at what was happening, and I was with family members and real life friends these past two days.

MeitoMela and Meerudraws are innocent, they never had any vile intentions nor any interest in engaging in discourse, and them being friends and mutuals with me does not mean that they are on my side, nor do they agree with my actions nor are they interested in engaging in this.

Thank you very much for reading this letter, and I hope that the victims of this will find peace and help, and I wish everyone the best and happy holidays.

@irithnova

@tianshiisdead

@miyuecakes

[invested-in-your-future]

I may need to finish reading the fanfic but I have to wonder.

Imo the decision to have Ruby leave her family at the end of v3 exists to challenge her, to have her question whether family is more important to her than being a hero. If leaving it is what it takes to be one. Especially considering even in one of your pre-v4 chapters one of Ruby's deepest wounds: "Did Mom care more about being a huntress than about them?"

And surpringly afterwards there are lack of Ruby's deep thought about her family. Ruby keeps seeing Pyrrha's last gasps for air in the former's nightmares. Meaning she could' help thinking about it. But not Yang's face wincing in pain and blood seeping through the bandages.

How will she live now that a part of Yang is gone? Who was it that threw her into the depths of ptsd? It wasn't Grimm, it was a person. Whether she'll return alive and see her dad and sister again. Whether their last interaction was how things will end between them, with her favorite person in the world despising her. Whether she should put a halt to tracking Cinder and come back home, after honoring Pyrrha. Whether she's even strong enough to do it and look her in the eyes again. Whether her wild-goose-chase of a journey is just an excuse to not face her own sister.

Also, I assume RWBY-r!Ruby didn't write any letters from Mistral to them? I personally can't imagine Ruby downright ghosting Yang, considering she knows her history with being abandoned by people (Her mother and Blake). And again, there's a risk she might never return again. The only explanation I can think of why she didn't is because she doesn't want to leak her location. But otherwise it gives an impression that the conflict between them isn't that big of a deal and they’ll reconcile and move on quickly when they reunite.

I'm going to sound a bit cruel, but Pyrrha's death distracts Ruby from the modicum of other issues and trauma she has lined up. I think I mentioned before that it's a sort of bottleneck for her as Ruby loops what happened to Pyrrha over and over again.

Within psychology, there's this concept that if you were to introduce stimuli rapidly one after the other, the subject would showcase a significant slowdown in reacting and dealing with other ones as it deals with one of them. It applies to many things (ex: talking on your phone and driving), but it also applies to emotions.

Ruby hasn't seen Yang get hurt or the recovery period when Yang woke up and discovered what had happened. The main thing Ruby has is feeling guilty that this happened to Yang. Meanwhile, Pyrrha died steps away from Ruby.

What happened to Pyrrha is so vivid for Ruby that she can't quite process a ton of other things that plague her now. She hasn't even dealt with Penny's(one of her closest first friends!) fate either and that also happened in front of her eyes.

For now, the only thing she could do was irrationally focus on Cinder with every ounce of her being - otherwise, she felt she would break apart. It's why she has such a strong reaction to Jaune questioning that goal - turning back doesn't even cross her mind at this point because of how fatal that is to the core of her identity for now. This journey will solve everything after all! (or so she thinks/copes). Ruby's committed to this fever dream until the reality (once again) hits her in the face reminding her what she is avoiding dealing with.

She does think about Yang, but those thoughts are also tainted by their final confrontation before Ruby left and by projection. There's an intentional mismatch between the things Yang and Ruby project onto their idealized images of each other and their actual realities - both would rather reinforce and project than deal with what had happened.

Ruby hasn't written any letters. She doesn't want to give away her location and there are very few avenues to actually send a letter right now - It's only been a few months and Vale is still a mess. And due to towers and the closed ports, once she's in the sea and further east - it becomes physically impossible to do so. With the way towers work, each Kingdom is essentially a black box right now. And even if she were to send one via the smuggler ship she had arrived in Mistral in, due to what happened that wouldn't work.

I don't think Ruby is even capable of processing what happened with Yang for now. Their final confrontation at Patch only pushed Ruby to take on this fool's errand of a journey in the first place. Ruby has shut off herself into a tunnel vision of nothing but traumatic memory loops and she needs to break out of that before she can parse...well, the rest of her trauma.

V4r is Ruby's journey from facing (part of) her grief to her deep-rooted family issues. In part it's all about bringing her to a place where she can actually think about those things. Hopefully Ruby can realize that she can't avoid looking inward and facing her demons.

Just like her Semblance there's only so much she can do by blindly rushing forward, ignoring everything in between her and her destination, before consequences knee her in the gut.

[conundrumscience]

DC StephCass [QuickWiki]

Hey, Bat-Fans! Today, we're going to talk about a dynamic duo that has captured the hearts and imaginations of many comic book fans:

Cassandra Cain and Stephanie Brown

the Batgirls of Gotham City. While they have had their own unique journeys as crimefighters, not a lot of casual comic fans have read much about them! So, who are they?

"If you came looking for a monster, you're on the wrong trail. Go away."

Cassandra Cain, also known as Batgirl or Orphan is the daughter of the notorious assassin David Cain. She was trained from a young age to be a lethal weapon, however, she broke free from her father's control and chose to use her skills for good, becoming a highly skilled martial artist and one of the most capable crimefighters in the DC Universe. Cassis known for her stoic and silent demeanor, but she has a deep sense of justice and a strong moral compass.

"Everything doesn't have to be about fear. There's room in our line of work for hope, too."

Stephanie Brown, also known as Batgirl, Spoiler, or as a Robin is known for her witty and upbeat personality, often injecting humor into her crime-fighting endeavors. She's an experienced acrobat and skilled in hand-to-hand combat, and has proven herself as a capable hero despite facing challenges and setbacks. Stephanie is also known for her determination, intelligence, and her desire to make a difference in Gotham City.

The relationship between Cassandra Cain and Stephanie Brown in the DC Comics universe is a complex mix of camaraderie, conflict, and mutual respect. Cass and Steph have crossed paths as crime-fighting heroines in Gotham City, teaming up to take down criminals and working together as members of the Bat-Family. However, they have also clashed over their differing methods and ideologies. Despite this, most recent content showcases their strong allyship (alongside Barbara Gordon, a fellow Batgirl)

In recent years, Cassandra and Stephanie have been featured in the Batgirls comic series by Michael Conrad and Becky Cloonan, which explores their partnership in more depth. The series delves into their individual struggles, interactions, and dynamics as crime-fighting partners, and has teased many a reader to interpret their relationship as romantically inclined (stephcass is real in our hearts) Fans continue to be intrigued by their complex relationship and eagerly follow their adventures in the world of Gotham City!

Batgirls Reading List Cassandra Cain's Wiki Stephanie Brown's Wiki

Let me know if I should make more posts like this! Send in comic characters or groups you'd like to see in this style of post. Might make some of this stuff for other fandoms as well!

[scoffingatgravity]

Orm for the ask game bc I’m curious 👀

It’s been a minute since I’ve read the New 52 run & Mera: Queen Of Atlantis, but I’ll endeavor to answer for New 52!Orm & DCEU!Orm.

sexuality headcanon: As with the majority of my faves (unless canonically stated otherwise), I headcanon Orm as bi - especially DCEU!Orm.

otp: I am an OrmErin lover. I understand some people like the idea of Orm being forever bound by Orvax’s ideas of duties to Atlantis, but I personally believe in Orm finding happiness and getting to grow as a person. I don’t really ship DCEU!Orm with anyone, but I was hoping to see Orm bump into Erin at that pier. 👀

brotp: DCEU!Orm is easy. I love the aquabros and wish we would’ve had another movie to develop the family dynamic further. I also wanted to see him and Mera become close again. I’m honestly drawing a blank as to anyone that stood by Orm in the New 52 run, but I read Murk broke him out of prison, so probably him.

notp: Any and all incest ships involving Orm. I might not ship some others, but none of them inspire the disgust response as when seeing how many people ship Orm with his brother.

first headcanon that pops into my head: There’s no way he’s neurotypical.

favorite line from this character: As much as I hate what comes after, it really tugs on my heart when New 52!Orm’s response to saving Arthur from a Trench creature is that Arthur’s his king now, too. A favorite DCEU!Orm line is probably his whole speech against the pollution from the surface. Patrick Wilson knows how to work a monologue.

one way in which I relate to this character: I, too, am conflicted (emotionally) and am the baby of my family. I’d also give myself impressive stats compared to my sibling.

thing that gives me second hand embarrassment about this character: It’s not embarrassment exactly, but I groaned when they had Orm double cross Mera and get locked up again. However, that’s on the writers at DC. They refuse to let him be happy. DCEU!Orm’s earlier attempts at running were more cute than embarrassing, so…

cinnamon roll or problematic fave?: problematic fave, but he also did nothing wrong (okay, maybe DCEU!Orm a little bit) 🤷🏻‍♂️

[sharkiegorath]

ok I read the whole Forgotten Realms Avatar series and at the start it's not what i'd call good but it’s entertaining. the third book is decent and fun. then the last two books are suddenly very good and i am scurrying like a rat

from the start I was struck by how similar the mortal Midnight was to Gale: Mystra’s Chosen with a volatile magical item grafted onto her chest, indignant about the gods but determined to finish her duty even if it's certain to kill her, arrogant and reckless but so good-natured it doesn’t really show until the stakes escalate, probably falls in love too easily, purple seems to have been her favorite color... also love the irony of how widely hated Mystra is by BG3 fandom, because at the start of Midnight’s tenure as Mystra she is THE god breaking rules and making divine enemies to try to help mortals and minimize damage. In Prince of Lies she even has an arc about struggling to convince other gods and concluding that godhood is a type of single-minded insanity but thankfully she won’t lose her sense of humanity hahaha ha ha. I need to read the later Elminster books to see exactly how the personality merge worked, but the way it’s described on the FR wiki and cross-referencing BG3 and this series, I assume Midnight is still a strong element of current Mystra. (ok confirmed by Ed Greenwood but i need to talk about this more in another post bc it's giving me extreme brainworms)

Shadowdale is meh but not the weakest book. Adon and Cyric had interesting enough arcs. I think Midnight and Kelemvor do have chemistry based on their banter and basic dynamic, it’s just rushed and bogged down with standard straightmalewriteritis. Kelemvor is a blatant misogynist to drum up initial conflict with Midnight, a trait completely discarded and forgotten in the subsequent books; they somehow missed the obvious hook that maybe Kelemvor is wary of female mages because of his family curse. I did like how by the end of Shadowdale he was about to go to battle and he was staring at puddles thinking “if my situationship was here she could do magic and turn them into steam :(" And I was pleasantly surprised by the ultimately inconsequential character arc of Bane relearning mortality and bonding with a follower, only to accidentally kill him, because magic is unstable because of what Bane did. 

Tantras is largely irritating besides Midnight and Adon's friendship and Cyric's series of successful deception rolls. The underlying plot actually isn’t bad but there are way too many characters holding the idiot ball and not communicating for contrived reasons. In Shadowdale, almost every newly introduced sympathetic character ends up dying shortly afterwards, like they’re just lining up to speedrun emotional investment; it's even more obvious in Tantras. Worst of all, there's very little buildup to Cyric’s villainy after his heroism at the end of Shadowdale. It's frustrating because his corruption could make perfect sense but it was so flat and clumsily executed. Then Kelemvor's curse is resolved anticlimactically. I vaguely recall the story getting better towards the end, when Torm appears, but nothing gripping. There was one cool perspective trick where the story rewinds to show the same mundane scene from Midnight, Kelemvor, and Adon's eyes before they go off on mini solo adventures.

I like Waterdeep, but my opinion is probably improved by comparing it to the previous books and knowing it was written by a different author. There’s still an overuse of epithets, but there’s a noticeable improvement in characterization and narrative logic. Cyric acts more like ‘himself’ in his first scene compared to any point in Tantras. Midnight, Kelemvor, and Adon actually act like friends. I appreciated how they grapple with the ethical consequences of removing Kelemvor's curse, though their Cyric debate feels drawn-out. Waterdeep is also much better at introducing secondary characters, giving plenty of space between their introductions and deaths, and surprisingly making the deaths meaningful later on. The ending manages to make Midnight's ascension feel more tragic than triumphant.

Prince of Lies is great. There's a sharp improvement in how it utilizes POV and weaves a complex story. It might even work as a standalone, but I appreciated it more because I already knew the backstory and characters. There are multiple storylines satisfyingly coming together; all of the new POV characters hold up to the originals; the prose is good; the dialogue is engaging; everything about Cyric is appropriately unsettling and he largely manages to not feel like a cartoon villain. I've already mentioned how I enjoyed Mystra's ominous idealistic arc in this book and I was surprised by how invested I was in the other gods, especially Torm, Oghma, and Mask. The only things I actively dislike are the casual fatphobia throughout and the conclusion of Mask’s role. Now that I think about it, Cyric's arc throughout the whole series and Mask's involvement would've been better if we ever, ever acknowledged that in PoL Mask was basically Cyric's lover (non-physical) (fake cursed sword) for ten years. like what was up with that. hello

I spoiled myself for over half of Crucible because I was getting fatigue from this series fsdoufsdifas. I was hesitant about the start, because it seemed so different from Prince of Lies, but it quickly won me over with the unreliable narrator and scope. At its best, it’s the exact kind of artsy metaphysical fuckery I love from The Elder Scrolls. Cyric genuinely believed in the propaganda version of himself, subtly recontextualizing everything he does until the end! He does a freaky heart swap with his tragicomedic best follower ever! He drinks his not-exes' breakup tears transubstantiated into their last pieces of humanity!

The trial plot is clever, but it stumbles with Mask's involvement - disappointing, because he was a fun character for most of PoL, but he keeps tripping over his own plans and doesn't have meaningful enough connections to the main characters. Overall, though, I love it. It explores why a good person would be a bad god, demonstrating exactly how it disrupts 'balance' instead of leaving it as a vague abstract concept. The ending is brutal, without violence or death or straightforward fates worse than death. It's theological horror, something similar but distinct from eldritch or psychological. It upends the earlier high fantasy and B-plot romance to tell a bonkers story where the biggest betrayals come from within. For all of Cyric's gore and insanity, it's also horrifying to watch Kelemvor systematically closing himself off (even if it's for the greater good), and to see Mystra trying her hardest to be a 'good' god but having her compassion warped through her power and responsibilities.

The thing is, Crucible wouldn't hit as hard without the previous books, including the first two. Midnight and Kelemvor frequently clashed over morality as vulnerable, desperate humans. They developed and matured as people, but it comes full circle as gods. Their friendships with Adon demonstrate how far they come and what they've lost by the end. More controversially, I think I had so much fun partially because the first two books were janky and the third was only kinda good. It was fun seeing the quality go from mediocre generic sword and sorcery pulp to occasionally poetic and absolutely bonkers. On an unintentional metatexual level, it reflects how the characters and their world changed for the better - so the emotional bus crash at the end of Crucible felt more tragic and earned. If the series had been obviously good from the start, it would have to maintain that quality, and the last book would have to work harder to land.

tl;dr i love divorce and that "truly great TV is 200 episodes and 40 of them are the worst you've ever seen" post is onto something

[dnangelic]

the nature of dark's existence is still technically, inherently, one of a curse. within the context of dnangel dark and krad are literally the product of a mistake, but metaphorically can exist as the punishment for the hikari and niwa family line's fatal 'sins' : the hikari for crossing forbidden lines, playing god and instilling life and magic into their artworks; the niwa for being thieves and interrupting the process and letting things go out of control while attempting to steal the kokuyoku. both dark and krad are entities that are described as hindering their host clan's prospering; dark is meant to obstruct by the transformation gene (more specifically, how uncontrollable it is since the hikari can transform too,) while krad shortens his host's lifespans down to practically nothing.

i joke about daisuke being a magical girl and like he totally does fall under the classification (iirc even asuka tags dnangel as a magical girl manga odhgsbdfkjf) but his burden is much heavier and. well. darker because what he's hiding isn't just an alter ego or like, cute cat features that pop out sometimes, instead an entirely conflicting-seeming 'self' that's regularly guilty of crime and extremely easy to reject or revile and accuse. smth smth 'why was i bound in chains in this cold and dismal place / not for any mortal sin but the wickedness of my own abhorrent face.' dark can look scary! he can totally look evil! he's flat out not human! and this is something that can get daisuke into serious trouble no matter dark's own attempts to protect daisuke within him; even a monster with a human heart can still end up being treated as a monster.

conflicting appearances aside, dark occupies the entirety of daisuke's life: he takes it, possesses it for himself and his own inherited intentions; daisuke isn't saving the world or fighting crime or villains, he is the crime, the infamous azumano troublemaker; was destined and raised for it thanks to dark and his ancestors, and this is an inescapable truth, part of the curse that has remained unbroken for 2000 yrs. dark's appearance or personality being one that's easy to completely villainize is just another aspect of the curse itself; i know that just about every satoshi develops a sense of bitterness, envy, or frustration over dark and daisuke's relationship for their getting along with each other better than the hikari's relationship with krad, and for daisuke, the curse truly is, in a way, 'broken' thanks to his being surrounded by so many people who support and accept him (his family, the other artworks,) but dark absolutely still has aspects of himself that serve to be more curselike than any sort of blessing, something to hide, something negatively and maliciously-twinged, in tandem with the way dark is also daisuke's aspiration and dream. as much as dark constantly supports and goads daisuke on, pushing daisuke's back and helping him to keep going -

he's still getting in the way, in his own subtle, manipulative ways sometimes.