#the settlers can go move somewhere else

[transrevolutions]

if your "military operation" results in civilian deaths over three times the number of "militants" killed, including children, your military is a fucking immoral failure. no wonder the palestinians aren't "peacefully protesting". you're fucking slaughtering their kids.

[meowthiroth]

been meaning to post these here for AGES now but I keep forgetting to. explodes 💥

but ANYWAYS! i redid the ref art for my Stranger oc from Myst/Riven! and also finally got around to drawing the aged-up version I thought up for him between Myst 3 and 4.

also wrote out a sort of messy bio for him a while ago, which i'll put under the cut since it's kinda long lol

ACE

Basic info

• Born October 7, 1782. He is 24 during the events of Myst & Riven, 33 during Exile and 42 during Revelation.

• He stands about 5’6” (1.6m) and is around 120 lbs. Pretty scrawny and definitely built better for agility than physical power.

• He is transgender and uses he/him pronouns. That caused quite a few problems for him back home, given the social climate at the time. He really doesn’t like to discuss his past or his birth family & will quickly change the subject if asked.

• He's very kind, easygoing and silly, and he loves to help others. But he can also be quite scatterbrained, forgetful, and prone to emotional manipulation.

• While he can be a bit absent-minded at times, he’s actually quite intelligent & quick-thinking, and he excels at problem- and puzzle-solving. He often cracks Atrus’s puzzles within mere minutes, but then can't recall his thought process when asked how he did it.

• Most of his favorite pastimes involve creating and fixing things. For instance, he’s very skilled with a needle & thread, and he makes and mends all of his own clothes. Drawing is another big one for him— his journal contains a lot more doodles in the margins than actual writing.

• He also LOVES animals, especially frogs, reptiles and bugs. He’s good at reading animals' behavioral cues and often has an easier time gaining their trust than most people would.

Early life/childhood

• His birth family were early settlers in the Northwest Territory, moving out west with him in tow when he was just a small child & starting a homestead there. His family consisted of his father, mother, and 3 brothers- 2 older and 1 younger.

• His gender identity caused friction with his family later in his childhood, since they had assumed he was just a tomboyish child and would eventually grow out of it. Obviously, though, he never did.

• His refusal to adhere to his assigned gender eventually escalated to his parents viewing him as hysterical & mentally unwell. Things only continued to get worse as he grew older, which eventually led him to go on the run. He kept a low profile & travelled mostly on his own for years, pressing farther into uncharted territory in an attempt to get as far away from his family as possible, which was how he first stumbled across the Myst linking book.

Life with Atrus & family

• Despite everything Saavedro did at the start of Exile, Ace still finds himself understanding of the man's predicament (perhaps relating the experience to his own upbringing in an abstract sort of way), and he takes it upon himself to help him get home by any means necessary. He often wonders how things worked out for Saavedro after their encounter & genuinely wishes the best for him.

• Slight deviation from canon- After the events of Exile, Ace got so worried about someone else coming after Atrus and his family while he was gone that he insisted on staying with them to help keep an eye on things. He moved in with them in Tomahna and helped out, both with Atrus’s projects and just general home/family things. He sort of took up the role of another older brother figure to Yeesha.

• Over time, he begins to view Atrus & Catherine not just as friends, but sort of as a new, more accepting family. He's definitely slipped up & called them “mom” and “dad” by accident before. SEVERAL times. He was really embarrassed about it at first, although they weren't bothered by it.

• He and Atrus work well together! Although Ace can’t write his own Ages, he often helps test Atrus’s creations and suggests ways he could potentially improve them. His ideas tend to fall somewhere in between Atrus & Catherine in terms of realism- a little wacky but still somewhat grounded in reality. He’s also quick to remind Atrus to take breaks & not get TOO into his work.

• Ace also spends a lot of time back home with Catherine and Yeesha. He does a good job earning his keep by helping around the home, and he and Catherine often like to bounce ideas off of one another. He finds her creativity super impressive, and a favorite pastime of his is to try & draw various creatures and landscapes that she describes.

• Since he lives with the family in between Exile and Revelation, Ace learns about what happened to Atrus’s sons much earlier than in canon, and he often tags along with the family when they visit. Usually he doesn’t go visit the brothers by himself, since he isn’t sure how comfortable Atrus would be with that, but he has offered to deliver things like care packages to them before & he’ll often stop to chat with them for a while.

• Ace has sort of always felt drawn towards Achenar. Despite the older brother's obvious shiftiness, Ace couldn't help but feel bad for him. He'd actually collected every blue page and was going to free him before he was (thankfully) stopped by Atrus. Despite being made aware of the attempted trick, Ace still forgave Achenar pretty quickly after seeing how much he’d changed over the years, and now he's always eager to go visit him with the rest of the family. The two get along surprisingly well & become close friends over time, and Ace will often stay behind to talk to him long after the rest of the family decides to head home from their visits.

• Ace, however, has always gotten bad vibes from Sirrus ever since he first arrived on Myst. He already has a disdain for greedy rich-guy types, and Sirrus always struck Ace as very disingenuous and closed-off, which further limited their ability to connect on an emotional level. Deep down, though, Ace still has a soft spot for Sirrus, and often displays it by teasing him in a playful little-sibling sort of way. While Sirrus generally finds his jokes more annoying than amusing, it clearly isn’t malicious and at least breaks up some of his day-to-day tedium, so he begrudgingly tolerates it.

[lesbeet]

i have a question about the list about zionism and antisemitism, the one that's dont "tell Jewish Israelis to "go back where they came from". i understand that there are jewish settlers that will have difficulty moving somewhere else, but doesn't this still perpetuate that colonizers have more of a right to the land than the people who they killed to take it? like the assumption is if we don't tell colonizers they should leave, then they have can stay and continue to occupy the land and resources that were stolen from palestinians

i feel like a palestinian person (or someone else who has been victim to colonization) can answer this better than i can, but i personally have never seen actual palestinians calling for all jewish israelis to remove themselves from the land completely. i don't think the only options are "jewish israelis stay and continue to oppress palestine" or "all jewish israelis vanish from the land without a trace" and imo suggesting so only perpetuates the idea that all palestinians/muslims hate all israelis/jews and have no interest or willingness to cohabitate in a scenario where all people are treated as equals (i'm not the person to ask regarding HOW to make this happen tho)

also like......i know this isn't the problem or responsibility of palestinians who lost their land to colonizers, but where should the jewish israelis go "back to"? setting aside the argument of jewish indigeneity altogether, as that post mentioned, many jews who initially relocated to israel (like post-shoah, not present-day) did so because they were being persecuted in the countries they were coming from. many of those countries are still not particularly safe for jews, and would DEFINITELY not become so in the event of a mass migration. i feel like you're picturing a country full of european and american olim who made aliyah in the last several decades bc of israeli propaganda/intentional annexing of land, but that's not the majority by any means.

again, that's not to say "oh well, they're already there so it would be pretty shitty to make em leave, palestine will just have to deal" but like. it's not realistic and it's also not what anyone is asking for. palestinians just want equal rights and to have stewardship over their ancestral homeland. and yknow, not to be physically and emotionally and socially eviscerated for the crime of existing in a politically frought (and politically advantageous) region. probably some reparations, and rightfully so. nobody is going to forcibly expel the israelis - if anything, some will leave on their own bc they're too racist to give up their privilege and continue to live there as equals, and the rest will be people living in a multiethnic, multifaith country

[aith-art]

Falloutober 2023 - Day 1

'War Never Changes'

@falloutober

Word Count - 713

With a single push of a button the Institute was gone. People had seen science as evil technology unchecked, as the source of all ills, all misfortunes. It was easy to understand why. The institute acted without reason, tore communities apart for fear of being challenged. Created killing machines out of people. They saw science as the last hope for themselves, and no one else. The Instutie refused to see and face their history and that was their greatest failure. Maybe those who survived the explotion will seek out their past, learn what science for personal prosperity had done to the world. 

The destruction of the Prydwen, the Brotherhood of Steel’s greatest creation, was a necessary sacrifice. The Elder had survived. He and what remained of the Brotherhood scampered back to the Capital Wasteland. They wouldn’t leave forever, but the Commonwealth would be prepared when they returned. While the Institute didn’t see the history of destruction they were fated to repeat through creation, the Brotherhood ignored the flaws in their beliefs and refused to see the hope in new technology and suffered for their hubris. To blinded by the rigidity of their symbol to see how the world was changing and rebuilding. 

In the confusion and rubble of the institutes destruction, the knewly rebuilt Minutemen offered aid and protection to settlers across the Commonwealth. Their aid was steadily accepted and Minutemen, under the leadership of General Preston Garvey, became a common site across the Commonwealth. With a military station at the castle and trade hubs to the north in Sunshine Tiding and the old Drive in Cinema, the Minutemen began to be seen as an honourable group once again. An old world history brought into the present with hope for the future.  

The Railroad continued to operate in secret, helping the last of the synths become part of the world. When the last of the known synth survivors had their lives rewritten, the Railroad disbanded. Many of the tourists returned to their lives, the agents that were left continued to monitor the synths they had helped, safehouses continued to operate for anyone who had helped the Railroad. 

 Dr Carrington found himself as the leading medic for the Minutemen in the Castle. Though he believed their goals were bigger than their capability, he commended them for all they had achieved so far. 

Tinker Tom joined Sturges in Sanctuary, though his ideas were more outlandish than Sturges was used to, the two got along well and the MiLA’s became a useful surveillance system for rouge synths, and threats to the people of the Commonwealth.

PAM was eventually moved to the Castle, despite Ronnie Shaw’s protest, and became an invaluable if not slightly disconcerting member of the organisation. 

Drummer Boy continued to operate the dropbox’s for the safehouses and agents that monitored the synths. He became an invaluable messenger to the Sole Survivor. 

Desdemona dissapeared into the wasteland. Occational a message would arrive for the Sole Survivor with tips on rouge synths and coursers, all marked with a D. It became the only inclination that she was still alive somewhere in the wasteland, hiding among the shadows as she had done for years. 

I’ve known nothing but war my whole life. I fought for the people I cared about, made mistakes I can never forgive myself for. War may never change, but I’ve seen people change. For better or worse, people are always capable of change. 

There was always something to fight for, a symbol to side with. It’s not hard to fight, to offer your life for a cause you believe in. But to let go, give up the anger and fire for something calmer, that is the real challenge of life. Finding a loving family and something to live for is difficult, but not impossible. Throughout my travels I have shown mercy and relentlessness. Kindness and ruthlessness. Love and hatred. I’ve cheated death, and face the consiquences of my actions whenever I look in a mirror. I have survived but never lived. 

Now I have a chance to live. People who love me and whom I love back. A real Family. 

As an old friend said, 

‘War Never Changes, men do, through the roads they walk.’ 

I think I finally found my road’s end.

[vonclosen]

when people are like “ugh america is so bad and shitty you should just move somewhere else” and what. leave turtle island so settlers can have it all. my ancestors suffered centuries of genocide and yet they stayed. i am a product of that suffering. i’m not going to leave now. i have work to do here.

[freefalasteen]

You know that people can't just go, get up someday and live somewhere else right? it doesn't really work this way. Are you 12?

Considering the fact that when trump was elected, i packed myself up and moved to europe until he was gone, yeah it is. Half the population are great grandkids of the european settlers who originally came to israel in 1948. Means many can be granted european citizenship by blood. They can go back to europe. Many more are converts/americans/other citizens that were able to move to israel just on the merit of being jewish. They packed up and moved there, they can move out. Living in the colonial experiment that is israel is contributing to the idea of zionism. The misconception that you have a right to be there at all is killing people.

[whitherwordswither]

Logs from the Starfields, III

Captain's Log #0.03:

After some heavy trading in New Atlantis, I picked up a contract from GalBank to get some con-man who defaulted in his loan to pay up. This had me heading out to Tau Ceti.

Of course, I can't just go somewhere with something else cropping up to distract me, now can I? As soon as I hit the system I picked up a distress signal. A local settler was having spacer trouble. So, naturally, I went to go see if I could help. Any day I can unload a few rounds in to a hostile spacer trash is a good day, I say.

Turns out him and three other families in the system are having a bad time of it. And on top of that they've been feuding with each other, or as it turns out, the guy who sent the signal for help had initially been kind of a colossal asshat to the others. But at least he's level headed enough now to admit his mistakes and wants everyone to legitimately survive. So not only do I have to get these grump dirtworkers to vibe together again, I got to deal with mucho spacer trash.

I set off to repair three satellites to restore communication lines between the families. Sadly, it looks like one family was already removed from the galactic equation. Each stop I made I blew some spacers out of the cosmic skies. Good riddance. The repair jobs weren't too difficult. I don't know why the spacers didn't just blow the transmitters up entirely. But I guess maybe they were gonna move in after their prey was hung up to dry? I don't know. Ain't no point in thinkin' too hard about it.

After getting all three family heads to meet up and cooperate, we made a joint run against two groups of spacer ships then almost immediately went all in for the kill and took out their base of operations aboard a derelict station. Another ton of haul this go. And the extra creds from the settlers was a nice boost.

Luckily, my initial contract is nearby in the system so I make a stop there to negotiate before heading back to New Atlantis. The target had himself holed up in a sparsely populated military outpost near a mostly abandoned mining facility of some sort. Not a whole lot of resources of note on the planet either. I manage to scan everything of worth on a short trek around the zone. Lady Luck must be on my side today. I was able to avoid a painful confrontation with the target and get him to pay what he owed without incident. Sometimes I'm amazing at my own talkin' skills. I'm glad he wasn't dumb about it. I hate to shoot someone, even if they give me a reason 'cause they got their head too far up their own ass.

As I'm leaving the planet I run in to some old friends of mine, coming to collect the bounty on my head. Jokes on them though, 'cause I've had enough excitement for one day. I ignore their comm hail and charge up my grav drive. While they're scrambling to get a target lock I'm skipping out of the system and back toward New Atlantis.

Sorry, boys. I got more creds to acquire and I don't feel like playing with ya'll right now.

Once I'm touched down at the Atlantis port I jog over and give the GalBank man his credits and get a nice little sum for myself. I might come back and take another job. Not that I enjoy helping the big bank corps or anything, but. My ship ain't gonna last forever and I'm gonna need every spare cred I can get to afford a new one. 'Cause god damn is they expensive.

I dump my haul at the local Trade Authority down in The Well, then head back topside. I run in to the scientist I helped the other day, who wouldn't you know, could use a bit more help! Heck, why not friend. I'm right here after all. And all he needs me to do is talk to an associate and get some data. Now, this associate don't like him much for whatever reason. Ain't any of my business. And as I'm talkin' to his associate friend… gosh dang. I'd really just like to punch him in the face. I almost had to to get that data. To think… he wanted me to break in to the apartment of his MAST supervisor and falsify his records so he could get a promotion. Boy. You just told me you got terrible performance reviews and you want me to make you look like a golden shiny apple? I don't think so. I had to a get a little grumpy with him, but I got the data. From the sounds of it, my scientist friend is on to something and may need my assistance again in a few days. I look forward to it! (Apparently something downright awkward is going on with this certain species of trees in New Atlantis and it could spell trouble for lotsa folks if something ain't done about it. So, of course, I'll help where I can.)

Now… I been doin' a lot of work around the New Atlantis area. I'm thinkin' I'm gonna head out and check out one of the other main hubs. See what else is out there. Atlantis is a nice enough place but. It may just be a little posh for my blood. And I'd like to, y'know, get my own place. Never owned a spot outright before and… I'm thinkin' maybe for once… I'd like to.

I'll catch ya up later.

End log.

[untitledgoosegay]

Yes! Sort of.

Desertification is the process of another habitat (wetland, grassland, forest, etc) turning into desert. I'm gonna come out with a hot take here and say that this isn't inherently bad. All ecosystems are dynamic and transitional; change is inherent and inexorable. There are also processes by which deserts stop being deserts, and turn into another kind of habitat! These things happen.

BUT,

In the present day, desertification is happening at an exaggerated pace, faster than surrounding habitats and communities can adapt and cope with it, largely because of imperialist exploitation & its consequences. Deforestation, which eliminates shade canopies that cool air and retain moisture, and root systems that anchor soils (especially loose, water-absorbing topsoils) and prevent erosion; climate change, which raises temperatures and disrupts weather patterns, further stressing and weakening plant communities and bringing about droughts; and, most importantly, settler-colonial disruption & erasure of traditional land management practices.

This is actually accelerated by attempts to forcibly and artificially "green" deserts. Go figure.

And when this is happening to places where people live and have lived for countless generations; when it's destroying lives and livelihoods; when people are watching their homes dry and harden and wither -- you can't blame them for wanting to prevent it!

Pouring thousands of gallons of water onto imported topsoil soaked in fertilizers and pesticides, all maintained by pumping fossil fuels into transportation and power, because you want a golf course next to the goddamn Pyramids, is a fucking horror. Golf courses delenda est.

On the other hand, for example, by digging earthworks with the stones you have on hand, as Yacouba Sawadogo and Mathieu Ouédraogo did in the Sahel, you can slow and trap water when you do have rain. This means the water can soak in and deposit the silt it carries, rather than racing across and scouring hardened soils. Looser sediments provide a more habitable place for seeds to settle and sprout, which further slow the passage of water, anchor sediment, and -- as their roots grow -- begin to break up that dry, hardened soil underneath. With a little effort, you can be sure the plants that take root are local species adapted to droughts and arid climates. With a little more effort, you can include natural sources of nutrients like manure; this gives even more encouragement to sprouting plants, and provides habitat for termites, who further break up hardened soils with their tunnels.

That's called zaï, and it's a centuries-old farming technology used by farmers in the Sahel. Sawadogo reintroduced & repopularized the practice in the 70s; adding manure was his own innovation, with astonishing success.

And this requires about as much effort as it takes to move the rocks & manure in the first place. Work you could (hypothetically) do by hand -- I've done a little earthworks construction, and it's tricky and labor-intensive, but possible. You're not pumping gallons upon gallons of water away from somewhere else that needs it; you're helping the water that's already there soak into the soil and do the work it needs to. Maintenance and management are an ongoing project, but the work wants to sustain itself. You're working with the land, not constantly fighting it. And you're not burning untold gallons of fossil fuels in the process.

tl;dr There's Nuance, but yeah, desertification is generally bad for people living in desertifying areas, and in the present day it's rapidly accelerating due to climate change & the erasure of indigenous management practices. Those same practices are the key to slowing and reversing desertification, because that's the very purpose they were developed for. And the return of indigenous sovereignty is vital.

It's all about context.

[maguro13-2]

Darkness Reborn Reboot ~ Origins of the Ink Demon Final Chapter Remake Pt. 2 ~

*Somewhere at Washington State*

[Weed Out by Kenichi Tokoi plays]

*Weapons clanging*

Sayaka : Had enough yet?

Kyouko : Not quite!

*weapons clanging*

Sayaka : So you felt like that one coming?

Kyouko : Maybe! *Evades* Ha! Too slow!

Sayaka : Prepare for the finishing move!

Kyouko : Here goes!

Sayaka : HUP!

Kyouko : Haaaa!!!

*SMASH*

Sayaka : WOAAAAAA--Augh! *Thud*

Kyouko : *points at Sayaka* And that's game, Sayaka.

Sayaka : Not bad.

Kyouko : So...Let's go back into...our casual clothing.

Sayaka : Oh...Hope no one would see us in these kind of uniforms.

*later*

Kyouko : Ha...Now that's more like it.

"Kyouko Sakura : Fourth of the Holy Quintet"

Sayaka : At least save me for one more.

"Sayaka Miki : Third of the Holy Quintet"

Sayaka : What can I say...I am intrigued that I was gonna meet the man of my dreams. But why did I ended up here anyway?

Kyouko : Because...This is the only place where we like to hang out. Your ancestor was the first of your kind to visit the great magnificent land of all time. So after my parents died, I found the only place where I can finally meet you in person. And this place was thought to be called Columbia, so the settlers decided to name this land...

"WASHINGTON!"

Sayaka : Washington? I feel like this is our first time that we met at Yakima, always the time that we had our first apple at the orchard. Get a load of this.

*photo showing the girls at a Yakima orchard*

Kyouko : What's that photo you got?

Sayaka : It's a photo of us, along with the mountains of the cascades. We usually get to see the mountains, I helped you out during your day job as an orchard girl.

Kyouko : That is when I had to get myself a guardian since I decided to live alone.

Sayaka : No you're not, silly. You decided to live with me.

Kyouko : Say what now? Like, how did you know?

Sayaka : I feel like that we should spend quality time here on our new future home right here in America. I'm lean and green, all I see here is the evergreen state! Verdant forest green, caressed by silver stream! That's how people would say that Washington's their home.

Kyouko : That would be the song of the state. Kinda feels like that this state wants us to call it home. Day after day, we have nothing to be shallow when our dreams of being the coolest of the coolest. Hey, how about it. How about some apple cider on the way back.

Sayaka : Nah, that's vinegar. How about a bottle of Apple Juice?

Kyouko : What do you think I am, a kid?

Sayaka : No, glass bottle of Apple Juice! It's for grown ups that what we want for the drinks and consider yourself lucky that might you feel like the kid inside you again, Kyouko.

Kyouko : Oh yeah, that reminds me, I got myself two bottles of apple juice in my bag. We once made it ourselves back at the orchard in Yakima!

*two gives each other bottles of apple juice*

Kyouko : Bottoms up, Miki!

Sayaka : Thanks!

*RUSTLING*

Kyouko : Eh? What was that?

Sayaka : Who's there? Madoka, Homura, is that you? The Police from Seattle are right behind and I'm not fooling around.

Kyouko : Don't worry, I got this, babe. I bet it's that Kyouske and his two time backstabbing harlot girlfriend Hitomi you were talking about.

*Kyouko summons lance and be prepared*

Kyouko : Okay, dumbasses! Stop playing around or else you want some of this! Come on out, I got a big lance from nowhere and I am not afraid to use it!

??? : Told you, I just made you look!

*STRONG KICK*

Kyouko: AAH!

Sayaka : Kyouko! *hears someone moving* Oh, hi! You are--

*Smash SFX : Blow landing*

Sayaka : What the...?

*Collapses*

*scene later changes*

Kyouko : (groans) What just happened?

Sayaka : *sniffing* And why do I smell a girl with no shoes.

??? : That's because we don't wear shoes, we are always barefooted. You two would make a great satisfaction if you would be pleasing us with the forces of light and darkness.

??? : Yeah, on any occasions, we do matters the most.

Sayaka : What do you want from us?

??? : The symbol of light and darkness Yin-Yang.

Sayaka : What? You some kind of hired mercenary from china...or do you know about the forces of light and darkness?

??? : I know it. It's the symbol of duty as heroes. It's what Izumi told us about the dangers of this quest. Restoring the items of the weapon of Xing, powered by the seven stars of the Big Dipper.

Kyouko : No way, I know you guys, you're one of FMA's stars. They've been retired along with Hero Tales.

??? : No? Not gone, but working with them. So with our combined efforts of friendship and bonding, i could get used to this and lead us out of the way. I'll use Yin...

??? : And I'll use Yang.

??? : [together] We could work this out two you know.

Sayaka : That's a good question, strangers.

Kyouko : But we know one thing's for sure. Uno reverse card!

*Reverse*

??? : AAAH! No fair!

Sayaka : This state, our rules.

??? : Okay you got us.

Kyouko : Okay, strangers from FMA. You got a name or what?

Lan Fan : L...Lan Fan...I am Lan Fan from Xing

Winry : And I'm Winry...Automail Mechanic Winry Rockbell.

Kyouko : I knew you guys are from FMA. But Xing, that's also thing in the real world.

Lan Fan : But we're from another world where we meet Arakawa's other people. The chinese people of Juushin Enbu, translation : Hero Tales. But you don't know anything about our world, we come from another dimension where I got my arm fixed after a freakish accident. We are called the Yin-Yang Heroes duo.

Sayaka : Let us get to the bottom of you two EX-FMA stars come from another timeline through time and space. Over year ago, the people and world of Wuxia was one of China's greatest genres that becomes a fan-favorite to Chinese literature. They lost affiliation with the big dipper after the world of Wuxia disappeared. But I'm guessing that Dark Fantasy stories were meant to be edgy as hell.

Lan Fan : Not as edgy as it looks, we're trying to save the land of Xing from an evil sorcerer that broke the legendary item into seven items scattered throughout the land and it is our job to stop the forces of evil and had our friendship.

Winry : But more importantly, we even happened to bond each other's feelings.

Sayaka : Oh, I get it now. You two had a little "Intimate" relationship, going on women into other women. Doubt that Xing is also a real thing china from a state to being just a county within a province.

Kyouko : Let's add up the fact that Xing probably english for "Crossing". I'll let you know to cotinue the process on these details.

Lan Fan : After once we save Xing with our valorous effort, we will decided that it is time to break from the forces of Chaos, reclaim the clan and our position. But Xing will never be amazed that once we used the legendary blade of Xing that has been passed down for generations, that's why Yin and Yang needs us to get back to our world where we come from.

*Hears a Solaris Sound*

Sayaka : And that's...Evergreen's finest. Guess what, we might wrapped this whole Yin-Yang story up. It's a great story, bogus idea. You guys would be lucky enough to be the stars of a new kung fu movie in Seattle.

Kyouko : Well, certainly no more.

*the two turns to see Godoka in front of them*

Kyouko : Huh? Excuse me, tall goddess in a the dress, but you're see to--(look at Ultimate Madoka)

Sayaka : Madoka? What in the actual fu-?

Ultimate Madoka/Godoka : Hello, Sayaka and Kyouko. I am Madoka, ruler of the unvierse and co-creator of the New Era. But you can call me Godoka

"Godoka : Ruler of the Universe and Co-Creator of the New Era"

Ultimate Madoka/Godoka : It's been a long day since Homura started the new era.

[File Select by Koji Kondo]

Kyouko : Uhh, yeah. It is the 2010s alright, out with the old, in with the new. You know.

Sayaka : Uhh, yeah. We probably knew about that. Nothing's too big of a big shot coming around here, but are you sure this is the right place to be here? I mean...We're in the state of Washington State, but this isn't canada, just Washington. We're only west of the city of Seattle.

Kyouko : But how on earth did you find us.

Ultimate Madoka/Godoka : Because I am the one who brings those into hope, a gift from Angel Vibe, ruler of the realm of light. Mind if bring something closer to these guys.

Sayaka : Uhh, yeah. Sure! There's apple juice in the bag.

Ultimate Madoka/Godoka : Winry Rockbell and Lan Fan, a pair of two heroes from another dimension. I take it that you two has left the story and find it anew. You were also that great of a much bigger on saving the land what is known as Xing, once-known state in china that is alternative form of the country of China. Part of the FMA universe. Your actions deceive no minor details of you ending in Real World AU. Hopefully, there might be a place that we can find a way to get back to your own world. That gives me no credit whether you have what it takes to be heroes of Yin and Yang

Kyouko : Say what isn't say, you tell us. You're the very first to visit this beloved land. Fresh Verdant Trees, Rainy days, It makes the state of washington an enormous rainforest for all that we love the rain. Plus, I am expert training orcas at Puget Sound, Oh wait, Sayaka's the expert of Orca Whale training.

Ultimate Madoka/Godoka : I also humbly owed you any favors of saving your struggles, Kyouko Sakura. You two would great comeback as both girls who wanted to bring the balance of light and darkness to this universe back to the scales of Libra.

Sayaka : Wow. Okay, guys. Let's get this over with. I am feeling guilty about men going after women, I mean Hitomi got me jealous over the fact that why men would want to hurt me, so I ran away here in this northwestern state on the pacific.

Kyouko : Sounds like Kyouske and Hitomi were a bunch of Dolls to set this one up for her. I mean "Ouch". That's what happens when she said anything about true love. And that love is forbidden. Also it might've happened when these two girlies known each other for one thing.

*Lan Fan sneakily unties herself with her knight*

Mei Chang : There you guys! Thank goodness I've been worried about you two! We haven't have much time. But luckily I was able to find you two when your master told you about running away, but you didn't.

Kyouko : Alright, alright. If that's the case you all know the drill, then I'll play your part in this some kind of martial arts LARP from FMA, I get that well done. *clears throat* Alright, girlie--No wait, Hey you! Get your damn hands off her, little girl. You heard me, I said...Get your hands off he--

Lan Fan : --hmph!

*Smash SFX : Blows landing*

Lan Fan Hah!

*Smash SFX : Strong hit*

Kyouko : WAAAAH!

*CRASH*

Kyouko : (moans) My head.

Mei Chang : That all got you fired. So was that necessary of you, Lan Fan? Or you had something in mind?

Lan Fan : The Likely I know is that I like to see this girl to be putting her in place, I haven't gotten the glory of them all.

Kyouko : Oh man...that smarts...! Eh?

*Look at her picnic ruined*

Kyouko : That was a picnic for our date! Only between me and Sayaka! Alright that does it!

*Converts into her Magical Girl uniform*

[Guardian Robo by Sota Fujimori]

Kyouko : Alright. I don't care if you're the warriors of Yin or Yang, but that date is what we thought of it before and we had a date because Sayaka was never the right type of finding a girl. You, a chinese girl, have crossed the line, bud!

Lan-Fan : I won't recall on being your bud. But you calling me a chinese is way too far for yout stereotypes.

Mei Chang : So it's best that we decided make you not to interfere with our country! That's a political fact that you're still around the world and That's people of Xing to you, Redhead!

Kyouko : Just say when.

Sayaka : Hey, count me in, Kyouko!

*Converts into Magical Girl uniform*

Sayaka : I just wanted to get some action between two saying about interfering with one's country, but this is America and it's the land of the freedom and of course the meats, well at least there's internationals around the country tho. But let's get to the top.

Mei Chang : Here goes nothing!

"GET READY FOR THE NEXT BATTLE!"

*SAYAKA & KYOUKO VS. LAN-FAN AND MEI CHANG*

~ Day 1 : Enter the New Era ~

[wanderestless]

I was going through the Tsimshian tag (bc I like seeing what my cousins are up to) and saw your post about how you were researching William Duncan and I have some stories that I thought you might be interested in.

First, There are still Tsimshians who see him in a good light bc he learned our language and stuff(I don't know why either)

Second, apparently back in the old days, when William Duncan was leaving Met to go somewhere else, the village would send some kids to see when his boat left so everyone could take out their regalia and potlach till the sun came up lol

wow, thank you so much for sharing! the second story brings me so much joy, i can't say i'm surprised to hear it given how silly the 'model village' life sounds like. those nights must have been so healing and empowering for everyone. also, duncan was so self-assured ideologically that i'm sure it was pretty easy to move around in his blind spots, and he'd never notice.

i think i can understand how people could view duncan in a positive light, especially considering the way so many other missionaries, government agents, and general settlers behaved. the CMS which sent duncan to the northwest coast was unusual in its insistence that the missionaries learned Indigenous languages and cultures... the standard was at rock bottom, and by that measure duncan was (relatively) culturally openminded.

i stopped commenting partway through the book because the story gets worse and wasn't something i felt i could discuss lightly. however, the other thing that happened is that duncan wound up advocating hard against the Indian Act and Indian Agents, because they were clearly going to disrupt his control over the Tsimshian, and some of his ideology about how Indigenous people should 'modernize' ran counter to the way the reservation system would work under the Indian Act. because of this, a number of Indigenous groups in the region wound up coming to duncan for help while advocating for themselves - which I think may be part of the reason some people still think of him in positive terms. (that said, his motives were just as colonial and racist as the goals of the canadian government. they were just a different flavour. jean usher sucks, but the book does go into a lot of detail about everyone's varying motivations.)

thank you again for sharing these stories! i'm definitely interested in hearing stories like these. i hope my horrified posting about him isn't clogging up the tag too much.

[macrotiis]

Ppl rly don't understand that the redistribution of wealth isn't JUST for those of us in wealthy "first world" countries.

For the destruction of capitalism to mean anything, for socialism to mean anything, we in the global north need to be comfortable with giving up a lot of luxuries because all of those luxuries come from the theft of wealth from the global south.

Throw out the idea of post scarcity luxury communism, because that is not what's going to happen.

Learn & understand what socialists mean when we talk about imperialism. Learn & understand where your food, clothes, tools, everything you use in your day to day life. Where the food is grown, where the cloth is made, where the minerals are extracted from the earth. Learn who is doing the work to make what you are using now & learn who is forcing that labour on to people, learn how much these laborers are being payed, IF they're being payed at all & not just forced to work under threat of death.

Actually engage with the history of colonialism in places like Africa & South America. Colonialism is more than just settlers moving in & displacing people, it is also enslaving, forcing people to work to fund the economy of empire somewhere else while the enslaved don't get to see any of it.

You do actually need to acknowledge the blood that went into creating your smartphone or your laptop. Just because you never asked for these people to be harmed doesn't absolve you of complacency & when the time comes, are you willing to go without these comforts you've grown accustomed to so that the people who mined the ores, who weaved your clothes, who picked your food can live freely?

If you're expecting these people to continue doing all that work to fuel your lifestyle so you can live comfortably & you think that somehow they'll get a leg up, you're not being realistic.

Redistributing wealth means redistributing the wealth from the US, Western Europe & its colonies back to the places it was stolen from.

a lot of self professed socialists and left wing people have absolutely no consciousness on imperialism and when it comes down to it could easily be convinced of being fascists

[outletmilk-blog]

Why Some Forms of Knowledge are Privileged

One of my biggest and most freeing learnings this year has been that we think we 'know' and is 'truth' is actually just shared agreement amongst most of us. It's not stable, it's going to change - and a lot of the things we take as 'truth' is actually just privileged in this time and space. In fact it's changing now and will continue to do so for ever and eternity.

Okay, yeah...what? Think about it this way. Gravity was not a thing for humans 300-years ago. In fact, earth didn't move at all - it was flat and stationary (some of us still believe this.) What did move was the universe around us, and those twinkly things up there? They were bible verses or something. Regardless, God put them there. But until Galileo and Newton's apple fell off this tree, this was reality. Earth didn't move and stars and planets were God's realm - and if you said otherwise you'd be laughed at or whatever else they did to punish people in the 1600s.

I guess what I'm trying to illustrate is that we really don't know shit. We're constantly learning new things which inform how we construct and understand our own reality. Unfortunately somewhere along this path this meant that 'science' which has always conveyed itself as being the key to ultimate truth, became the dominant form of knowledge in Aotearoa and many other cultures.

Don't get me wrong, science has a lot of value - it's created vaccines that's saved millions and meant that psychological treatment has evolved from drilling holes into people's skulls (I wish I was joking.) Unfortunately though, this idea of science prevailing as the one ultimate form of knowledge has come at the cost of alternative forms of knowledge. Science exists in black and white. You test a hypotheses, it's true or false. So if science is the truth then every other form of knowledge that is not based on the same principles is "false."

It's also not a coincidence that science in the traditional sense is a Western concept. What comes to be regarded as truth in society can be seen as what the majority or dominant group believes and agrees upon. We see this in almost every colonised country with indigenous knowledge constructed as primitive or incorrect through systematic devaluing by settlers (that's another story, but look at how Māori have been portrayed in history books throughout time.)

People will often dismiss these alternative forms of knowing as not being 'evidence based' or not having the 'facts to back it up.' But even this conceptualisation shows that we have internalised knowledge as only being able to be proved by science. Aboriginal's used the Kakadu plum as a successful form of oral medicine for hundreds of years, not because they had tested it for it's high vitamin C content in a lab but because from the Aboriginal world-view bush-fruit symbolised health and vitality. Not only that but this fruit, and every other living thing in the world is "family" and has a place and role.

Similarly a Māori world-view has it's own laws of tapu. Hearing voices in Pakeha culture is seen as a disorder, but throughout Māori history hearing voices can be a normal part of the human experience. With acknowledgement of the close link between the physical and spirit world, these voices are often conceptualised as the voices of spirits or ancestors. Again, a Western knowledge base has similarly found that 3-5% of people hear voices. That's a lot higher than the diagnosed rate of schizophrenia or psychosis though (1%.) So can you hear voices and have them not be distressing? cross-culturally it appears so. But if we assume all voice hearing is a sign of illness, is that creating disorder where there is none?

While I'm not asking you to join the next flat-earthers meet-up, what I am asking you to do is consider why you may think what you personally believe is true. Some of us might believe aliens aren't real, but if those big-ass green motherfuckers turned up on your door-step your opinion might be changed. Knowledge is fluid and changing. Some people due to religion, culture or even damn interest may operate from a different knowledge base from you.

As usual it comes back to acknowledgement and respect. But it's important to be aware that simply because you have internalised one form of Western knowledge, this does not give you the right to devalue others.

[phoenixyfriend]

Jedi arranged/political marriage pretext I'd like to see more of: Jedi DO leave the Republic, and the marriage is of a Jedi, probably a council member, to secure the safety of their members on their new home planet.

The Mandalorian angle has the benefit of being less closely tied to Republic rule, and could be very tasty and easy to justify with either Obitine or Jangobi, both of which I enjoy. Depending on where in the timeline it happens, the spouse varies.

But I think that if it's Mandalore, especially Jangobi, a heavy part of the argument for getting the Jedi settled and making up for 'draining resources' is shoveling as many people as possible into Agricorp work on the deserts of Manda'yaim.

As an Obitine fic that takes place between TPM and AotC, it's really easy to justify?

Like just. The Jedi Council going "okay do we have any planets where we could move, and there's a primary ruler that would be open to marrying a Jedi for protection from the Republic and… wait. Someone get Kenobi."

(This also works for BailObi, but Alderaan is unfortunately still staunchly Republic territory, while Mandalore's status is a lot more vague.)

With the Jangobi angle, it would be a lot more "Mand'alor Fett captures a Jedi because he's been hearing rumors about them expanding their influence, gets the story that they're actually looking to move, and are basically going to be refugees, and decides that there would be no power move that would secure Mandalore's independence from Republic bullshit like getting their best warriors on his side, but he needs to prove that he's in control to the Death Watch-style extremists, so he's going to have to marry a Jedi for. Reasons."

IDK it's arranged marriage fic, we don't need a whole lot of justification.

God it's so easy to make these about Obi-Wan (consider: Quinlan/that one force-sensitive Stewjoni prince he saved and messed around with a few years ago), but it would be really funny to make this Anidala by shifting ages around a bit or starting the war later. Just like.

Naboo, the planet the Chancellor of the Republic is from, has taken in the Jedi, threatening secession, and refusing to give them back. Senator Amidala has married one of them. Everyone has questions but none of those questions are getting answered. Count Dooku of Serreno has made overtures to join the CIS but Naboo is uninterested. Amidala has been unavailable for her comment due to being on her honeymoon. Master Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi has only offered that this entire situation is a headache and he'd love to know where he went wrong.

I'm trying to figure out what other ships I could do with this. I think "senior padawan Barriss saves Tatooine's accidental ruler-through-incredible-violence Anakin from an attempt at retaking the planet by the Hutts, spills some personal woes while tending to his wounds (she can't leave the planet yet anyway and wasn't even supposed to be here), and he wakes up like 'hey if you need to move somewhere you can come to Tatooine, I'd marry you in a heartbeat'" would be a fun one, and also immediately collapse as like. A'Sharad overhears Barriss's report and goes to fight Anakin about it personally for inviting more settlers to a planet that's already trying to crowd out the native populace. That would need some tweaking... maybe Anakin's actually already done something similar, and led an exodus of Hutt slaves from Tatooine and settling them on a new planet, and needs help keeping Hutts and other slavers away from trying to take back their slaves? Not sure Anakin would suggest a marriage, though. Someone else might, but not him.

I considered Blyla, but IMO the plot only works if the Jedi are in decent standing (instead of suffering from war propaganda) with the galaxy at large and only need to escape the Senate's influence, not widespread hate.

OH wait if Anakin took over Tatooine when he was a teenager and then gave control to his mom, because she's the smartest obviously, and Qui-Gon survived Naboo, then maybe Qui-Gon/Shmi???

I'm struggling to think of more ships or pick one to drag on an AU adventure. Help. My brain is trying to argue that Obi-Wan marries Hondo and the entire Temple ups and leaves for Florrum.

[zvaigzdelasas]

genuinely asking here, do you think the inability to prepare food for oneself and take showers is a product of capitalism?

I think that 'product of capitalism' is a misleading way of looking at it - "disability" as a coherent category is a modern capitalist framework, so in that way yes. But as to 'would this have happened to my brain if I didnt grow up in capitalism' thats an abstract question bc if you grew up in communism you'd be a fundamentally different person than you are today, so it's an unprovable counterfactual & leads to a lot of kneejerk reactions. There is no universal "You" somewhere out there in the stars. You are a product of the world you live in.

In pre-capitalist societies, there wasn't an idea that all these different ailments (blindness, deafness, leprosy, mental illnesses, etc) were all a part of this one big umbrella, there was specific ways ppl would treat specific people, but no universally applicable category bc different 'disabilities' have different effects on people.

Now this isn't to say we should go back to that, obviously it was incredibly inadequate - it's just to show that having an umbrella category of "people with things wrong with them" is a social choice, and that social choice leads to the development of certain social institutions, social norms, and practices. It's a consequence of capitalism seeing every person as only 'worth' whatever they can contribute financially.

The word "ability" (and consequently "disability") was first used in this context in england to figure out whether a given person should be sent to the Work House or the Poor House, and it was explicitly used to be a quick guess of 'can we wring any sellable Value out of this one?' before moving onto the next one.

Thus, "ability" should be understood as "ability to be exploited" & "disability" as "inability to be exploited" ("exploit" in the marxist sense of, roughly, 'someone else wouldn't be able to make their living without your work').

(This is a good talk abt disability, capitalism, and pre-capitalist societies.)

So what would mental health look like beyond capitalism? Well as a first universal, people would have full control over the products of their own labor, and things would be made for their usefulness as opposed to profitability, so people wouldnt need to prove to capitalists that they're productive enough to deserve to eat (or pitiable enough to eat on someone else's dime).

"from each according to their ability, to each according to their needs" is the most disability-supporting maxim imaginable, and any society not living up to that is failing people.

Your brain is plastic, it is literally impossible for it to not change in response to a changing environment. That also points to your lived environment being an obvious major factor in developing your brain meat to the point it is today. "Nature vs nurture" is a false binary, you are Always & *Only* acting in response to your environment, in comparison to past environments. Plastic changes its shape, but not all at once.

As to "well what if the world got rid of capitalism tomorrow - would I still have trouble with X or Y" if you have trouble with it today, you'll have trouble with it tomorrow. The question is about repetition & the new environments your brain adapts to, as well as broader societal health (mental & physical) programs being a natural new focus, now that production is no longer oriented for profit.

The question is about how we live as vacuum-sealed individuals atomically living in our own individual worlds - that would change, you would be able to live and interact regularly with friends who know whether you experience specific problems & would be driven to check up on you about those out of love and comradery. Having everyone live in their own boxes, sealed away from each other is an ideal handed down to us by the Settler Colonial history of the US & the US's influence on global structures in the last 500 years. "You too can be the brave cowboy living on the frontier, not needing anyone else to take care of you".

Of course that image is completely inaccurate but it's what we have, bc it's also what's easiest to profit off of.

This is a great talk on neuroplasticity & the constraints set upon our neural development by capitalism, maybe a bit academic but it's got lots of good stuff

The question isn't so much "capitalism created x or y & communism will fix it overnight", the question is more about "how is capitalist society hindering each of our growths as individuals" by adding stresses, anxieties, and dangerous norms.

[thirsty4theextraordinary]

Come on love, let’s get this freak-show on the road

I’ve been replaying Fallout 4 for like the 100th time recently and again I have fallen in love with Hancock all over again. So this is a little one-shot I wrote up last night that goes through how Hancock is feeling about the SS. 

Hopefully you guys like it. 

Pairing: John Hancock X Female Sole Survivor 

Tags: Fluff, nothing else just some sweetness. 

“To think I ever doubted you.” 

That was how he had started this, how he had got to where they were now. Of course, she seemed unfazed like nothing had changed. It had been days since their conversation on the side of the road. They had made camp at a local settlement of hers, or rather the Minutemen’s. She chatted idly to the settlers as they sat beside the campfire, unaware of his eyes on her. She had achieved such an amazing amount since coming off of ice. 

When they had first met, she had come strolling into Goodneighbour with Nick Valentine at her side. She was beautiful, and fresher-looking than any woman he had seen before. Like a poster of one of those pre-war movie stars. Of course, he was attracted, you would have to be blind not to be but he kept it to himself. And that vault suit hugged her curves aa though it were painted on.  

Once they started travelling together that’s when things had changed. Into something that he had never experienced before. She was kind, intelligent, cunning and not afraid to hurt those who needed hurting. He had had pre-existing ideas of what the Vault-dweller would be like in a fight and it was nothing like this. She had the reflexes of a trained killer, and as much as he had thought he would be the one protecting her, it was sometimes the other way around. He couldn’t count the number of times she had stimpak’d him mid-battle, just to turn and shoot his assailant in the face, as though it was nothing at all. 

The more they travelled together the more he fell for her. It wasn’t like him, John had always been a lone wolf, content with the occasional one nightstand. He had no problems finding lovers, even turning Ghoul hadn’t dampened his chances. The sexy King of the Zombies had no issues with the ladies. So why was he so hung up on the woman in a bright blue vault suit? 

It was one night, when they had stopped to make camp and he looked over at her sleeping form, that he fully understood, that what he felt wasn’t just simply lust, like usual. At first, it disturbed him, he wasn’t used to feeling like this, this intense feeling was scary. The womaniser in him denied these feeling of course and he told himself that the last thing she need was the love of a Ghoul. While he had never had trouble finding lovers, he knew that not all soft-skins were so inclined to his kind. He wasn’t sure he could take the rejection from her. He huffed to himself, she had turned him into a teenager again, nervous about asking out his first girl.  John Hancock was a confident flirt, never had he questioned himself before, but then never had he felt like this. She really was something else.  And yet he had never expected her to say what she did. 

He hadn’t expected the conversation to lead that way, he hadn’t even led it that way himself. He just simply wanted to let her know what a great friend she was, how impressed he was with her moral compass, deep down he wanted to be a little more like her. He felt it was only right that he shared, after all, she had been upfront since day one about her past, and what she was trying to do out here in the Commonwealth. But up until this point, he hadn’t really told her much about himself, only how he had become mayor and why he had wanted to leave. He had just wanted to share, to open up a bit. He hadn’t expected her to turn it on him like that. He had been telling her about what had happened at Diamond City. 

“I felt like I was the only one who saw how screwed up things truly were, who couldn’t just pretend things were fine. Still feel that way… or I did. Until I met you” He mentally scolded himself for that last part would she notice, question him. But she just kept listening politely, she hadn’t taken it for any more than just a declaration of admiration. No feelings attached. So with a smile, he continued. 

“I know I run my mouth, but having someone who sees the world for what it is and is willing to do something about it. It’s meant a lot to me. I feel damn lucky to have you as a friend.” 

“And that’s what we are? Friends?” the words had fallen from her mouth like they meant nothing, like she hadn’t just propositioned him. He couldn’t help the flutter that he felt in his stomach or that grin that spread across his face, he felt suddenly exposed, was she playing with him. But like aways, John use crude flirting and overconfidence to hide his nervousness. 

“Well, now that you mention it, I have been having slightly more impure thoughts than usual. Maybe we’ll get to…. act on those. Heh,” He had said to her. It wasn’t that he regretted saying it, after all, it was the truth. Watching her ass bounce in the vault suit, as she ran and few yards ahead of him as they travelled had undoubtedly been the inspiration for a few impure dreams. But did he want her to think that was all he had to offer? A few nights of passion on the road, just friends until they got into the bedroom. He wasn’t really sure what it was she wanted, maybe that was all she expected, after all, he did have a reputation. He told himself that with any other girl, especially one that looked like her, he would be happy. But as the days went past and he saw her save people who needed saving and take out those that threaten them, he knew he would never just been content with a sex only kinda deal. But it’s not like that had happened either since their talk nothing had happened. But it had been a tough few days, maybe she was simply worn out, he couldn’t blame. Or maybe it was all just meaningless flirting.  

“I’m off to bed, thanks for the drink Ben” she suddenly announced standing from her seat beside him, the settler nodded his head to her. She turned to John and bent down.

“Goodnight, Hancock,” she said sweetly before she placed a tender kiss to his cheek. He couldn’t help but turn his head and capture her lips. Just because she made him feel something new, didn’t mean he had forgotten all his moves. She squeaked with surprise at first but kissed him back nonetheless. He pulled away, shooting her his infamous grin. 

“You can call me John you know,” he told her and she smiled at him blushing pink. 

“Goodnight, John” she replied trying his name out and he smiled like a fool. No one called him that much anymore, but it sounded so sweet coming from her.

“Goodnight, Sunshine” he replied. His whole life he had been running but at that moment he knew, he could never run away from her.  

She stood fully and without another word headed off towards the small wooden shack that Ben had offered them for the night.  With his mind whirling he took off after her. He closed the door behind him and she looked up from where she was sat on one of the mattresses on the floor. She was going threw her pack, checking out ammo supplies and the like. 

“Hey, when you got time, I got something I still need you to hear,” he said as he perched himself in the rickety chair in the corner and pull the slightly smashed packet of cigarettes from his pocket. 

“Is everything alright?” she asked suddenly looking a little concerned. God, why did she have to look at him with those big beautiful eyes of hers? He took a breath.

“Oh yeah. Better than that. This is just… tricky” he began. Pushing the cigarette between his lips and lighting it. He offered her one silently and she took both the pack and lighter from him without a word, lighting the cigarette and taking a drag. 

He found himself opening up to her again, telling her things only he really knew. Things he hadn’t really told anyone.  How he felt inside, not about her but about himself. He needed to know she understood, that she saw him for who he really was. All his self-loathing out in the open, the real John Hancock on full display.  How he was just running away, with no real destination in mind. She hadn’t just listened to him spill his guts she had consoled him. 

“You may have run, but you always ran for a reason,” she told him with a nod of her head. Hearing her say something like that from her, was like a warm shower, washing away his insecurities, his worries. 

“Been trying to convince myself of that for a long time, but hearing that coming from someone like you…. I don’t know if you understand what that means to me,” he said with a smile which she returned. Again he took a breath.

“So, lemme get to the point. Throwing in with you has been the best decision I’ve ever made. It’s like I found a part of myself I never realised was missing…. Which happened sometimes when you’re a Ghoul” there he was joking again, protecting himself. 

“If I hadn’t taken up with you, I’d probably be in a gutter somewhere, getting gnawed on by Radroaches. You have been one hell of a friend” He had used that word strategically, he hadn’t forgotten the stolen kiss they had just had but he needed to test the waters. 

“Have you ever thought about us as maybe more than just friends?” she said her face serious. Was she testing him too? 

“Heh. It that obvious? But come on. You don’t want to wake up to this mug every morning. Never wish that on anyone I cared for.” it was honest, there were no sexual undertones, no joking. He was checking, he knew he could charm the pants off most girls in the Commonwealth but this was more than that, he wanted to check he hadn’t made a mistake. 

“Who I fall for is my decision. And I’ve fallen for you” she admitted with a smile and he swallowed hard. 

“Wouldn’t expect that kind of lapse in judgement from you. But I guess that works out for me then, doesn’t it?” he joked, mentally he scolded himself he should have told her how he felt. What she meant to him. But she giggled at his joke and he couldn’t help but smile. 

“Heh. Moments like this, I know all that karma stuff is bull. Because no one like me should be this lucky.“ he said looking down at the lit cigarette in his hand, the long line of ash waiting to be flicked off. 

Her hand entered his peripheral vision and he looked towards her. She had thrown her cigarette away and she was holding her hand out towards him. He threw his cigarette out the hole in the shack wall and took her hand. She pulled him to sit in front of her. Her beautiful eyes staring into his soul.  

“Look John, I know you joke to protect yourself. But I’m going to be honest now” she said and he blinked his heart beating out of his chest, she was going to tell him that he meant nothing to her. 

“When I said I fallen for you” she began, he knew what was coming”

“I really meant it” she breathed holding his hand a little tighter. He let out a breath he hadn’t know he was holding. She meant it?

“I love you, more than I’ve ever loved anyone before,” she said and he smiled so brightly it hurt his cheeks.

“I love you too, Sunshine,” he said and she smiled.

“But I want to check what that means to you. What I mean is, I don’t one-night stands or friends with benefits. I’m either in all the way or not at all.  So what do you say?” she said her voice far less confident than he was used to hearing from her. Had she been having all the same thoughts as him? God, he was a fool. 

“You don’t know how happy you make me, saying stuff like that. With you, I’ve found the person I was meant to be with. My missing piece. I don’t want to ever be without you. So you wanna make this thing official?” he asked and she smiled so brightly he could feel the warmth of it. 

Without a word, she leant forward and captured his lips in a kiss he wouldn’t ever forget. It was passion-filled but loving, with a swift movement he pushed her back so she was lying, her back on the mattress and he hovered above her. He looked down at her grinning like a teenager, who had just seen his first boob. She giggled before she leant up and captured his lips in another loving kiss. 

[blackkatmagic]

“So you haven’t been eaten by a dragon yet after all,” Xiaan says, warm despite the wind A'Sharad can see whipping her lekku around her in wild gusts. “You had me worried, A'Sharad.”

A'Sharad snorts, tipping the holo a little as it fuzzes from the wind-blown sand. “You have more than enough to worry about already, Xiaan,” he says, and the distant hum of a speeder makes him raise his head, watching narrowly as a craft cuts across the top of a distant dune. Not close enough to be a threat, but—close. He’ll have to warn the tribe that’s hosting him. If settlers are encroaching, it might be time for them to move.

“Little enough that I can't worry about you as well,” Xiaan retorts, though she’s smiling. “Taking your leave right under the nose of the Hutts is a risk.”

“The Hutts won't bother the Tuskens,” A'Sharad says dismissively, watching her with narrowed eyes. She looks tired, and A'Sharad can't see much of the land around her, but she mentioned deployment somewhere cold. “You should wrap your lekku. If they get frostbitten, you're going to spend the next six months complaining about numbness.”

Xiaan rolls her eyes, just as there's a bark of laughter from somewhere beyond the projector. A'Sharad raises an eyebrow, well able to recognize a clone trooper’s voice, and says dryly, “I assume I'm not the first person to tell you that, Xiaan.”

“You're worse than Quinlan,” Xiaan complains, and then leans back. “Salvo, that was not an I told you so moment, you're not allowed to mark that down.”

“I did tell you,” Xiaan's commander says, leaning down into the projector and waving a heavy winter headwrap at her. “I said General Hett would tell you to wear a wrap. That’s a point for me.”

Xiaan pulls a face, but doesn’t argue as she takes the headwrap and slides it over her lekku, attaching it to her leather headwrap and then looping her lekku around her neck. “It feels stifling,” she complains, and Salvo snorts as he takes a step back out of view.

“So does the armor, General Amersu” he retorts. “But at least it’s warm.”

When Xiaan turns her scowl on him, A'Sharad raises a hand to fend her off. “You know what I normally wear out of respect for the elements, Xiaan. You’ll get no sympathy from me.”

That makes Xiaan pause, looking troubled, and her eyes sweep up and down A'Sharad’s form, then slide back to his face. “I do,” she says, and it’s even, measured. “Though I can't help but notice that you stopped dressing as a Tusken, A'Sharad. Even now that you're back on Tatooine.”

A'Sharad doesn’t answer for a long moment. It’s too easy to remember the roil of Skywalker's hatred, the fury he’d turned on the soldiers they faced. The fury he’d turned on A'Sharad, before knowing he was Human, and something dark and grim traced through A'Sharad’s bones can't help but draw connections in the fact that Anakin stopped trying to kill him once he knew he was genetically a Human. Even weeks together, with A'Sharad doing everything he could to teach Anakin, had been obliterated in a moment by Anakin's hatred.

It’s a powerful force. Too powerful, and A'Sharad has dealt with hate too often in his life, but—Anakin's unnerves him.

“There are fewer misunderstandings when I dress as a Jedi,” he finally offers. “I'm a Tusken, but…the galaxy sees Human and understands that more readily.”

“You were still dressed as a Jedi when you wore your Tusken clothing,” Xiaan points out, quiet. “You're a Tusken Jedi. Clothing doesn’t change that.”

The Order has certainly never objected to A'Sharad’s culture, or his struggles with anger in the wake of his father’s murder. Each Jedi is an individual, a Jedi first and foremost, but—none of them have ever had to give up the culture of their homeworlds.

Still, the memory of Anakin's fury and hatred, and what Anakin confessed, turns A'Sharad’s stomach, sends a thread of doubt rising. He’s a Jedi, and he always has been, has devoted himself body and soul to the Force, but—

People see the Tuskens as animals. Anakin saw nothing else, to the point that he slaughtered a whole tribe, to the point that he almost killed another Jedi because of it. The Order fights a war right now because there's no other option, and sometimes A'Sharad can't help but feel the emotions of those who stand against the Republic armies and…wonder. Wonder how much of the fear is because of what he is, and how much would be removed if he were simply Human. He knows how Anakin reacted to the removal of his mask, after all.

The pain of grief is something that A'Sharad can respect, and the weight of a secret that eats like acid at the conscience is a decent punishment, but his own decision to say nothing weighs at him. Anakin acted out of anger, and if anyone can understand the fall into Dark emotions, it’s A'Sharad. Repentance was lacking, though, and any sort of acknowledgement that the Tuskens he killed were sentient, and A'Sharad…worries. Worries what might happen if the war drags on, and Anakin becomes a Knight, and takes a padawan.

Rot spreads quickly, and the Dark Side is a habit too easily enabled when the whole galaxy lacks light.

“It’s your choice, A'Sharad,” Xiaan says, leaning forward, and her eyes are kind and a little sad. “But you should know that my best friend has always been a Tusken, and him dressing as a Human changes nothing.”

A'Sharad can't help but smile a little, and the ache of this war, of the loss of Bhat, of every clone trooper under his command, still lingers, but—death is a constant, and part of life. Bhat was taken by the desert, as he wanted, and A'Sharad saw to pyres for the troopers, and that’s the most he can do. They’ve departed, and he values them, so he’ll keep moving. And in the meantime, moments like this can offer a little bit of solace.

“Thank you, Xiaan,” he says quietly, and pauses, then offers, “Tell Commander Salvo that he is entirely entitled to his point.”

Xiaan makes a rude sound and closes the connection.