#these two are the ones reckless enough to show why it's a reasonable choice to make

[brionysea]

love this shot. it's like mike is inviting them into his mind/game ("alright, wheeler, i think we found your hub") + max and dustin are the ones who step into frame. i am staring at the implications

[lostdreamr-blog1]

Pinky Promise 2

Pinky Promise Part 1

Part 3

Summary: Part 2 of Pinky Promise. The two of you become close friends, but one night shows Jake just how much you trust him.

Word count: 2.5k

A/N: Hi friends! It’s been a hot minute since I have put something out but I promise you I have a good reason for it! I just had a baby and haven’t had time to sit down and write. But hoping to put out more content here soon! Thank you all for reading!!! - C

It was an ungodly time in the morning when you heard the doorbell ring. It took more will power than you would like to admit to even sit up in bed, head pounding with the slight elevation change. You wiped the sleep and last night’s makeup from your eyes, most likely smearing streaks of it across your face. And you sat there contemplating all of your life’s choices up to this point.

The doorbell seemed to yell at you, telling you that whoever was on the other side must have been impatient. A quick glance at the clock said it was 8:30 and you had to take a deep breath to not hurt the person who was making you get out of bed.

A few stumbling steps later, you opened the door to find a delivery guy with a bag of food. While you took the bag from him, the confusion was pretty clear. Even the guy who was turning to walk away could see it. “There is a note on the receipt.” And then he was gone.

Between the hangover from hell and very few hours of sleep you got; you were slow moving to get back inside. To anyone walking by you must have looked like you lost your mind with the amount of time you spent looking at the bag. But by some miracle, your legs took you back to bed while your mind was still reeling.

The bag didn’t have any sort of logo or name on it, but it did smell good. You opened it up and reached for the receipt first, trying to find answers.

The tacos I promised you. – Jake

A laugh came out as you put the piece of paper aside, making your way to the things that were making your mouth water. Breakfast tacos greeted you and suddenly being woken up was not a bad thing anymore.

You went to reach for your phone to thank the blond-haired pilot but stopped when you remembered exactly why you now had tacos. Your drunken self called your brothers most hated teammate last night because you didn’t want to get your brother involved. You winced at the thought of him finding out and pulled your hand back.

You dreaded looking at your phone, knowing Bradley most likely had blown it up after last night. So, instead of being a responsible adult who answered for her own actions, you turned your phone over. What you couldn’t see meant it wasn’t there. Denial was one of your favorite places to live in.

Jake seemed friendly enough, offering help whenever you needed. He also wasn’t quick to judge you like others. It wasn’t lost on you that Bradley had most likely told his teammates how “reckless and wild” you were, already painting a bad picture of you. But Jake didn’t make you feel that way. He actually made you think that you might be able to call him a friend, even if he didn’t see eye to eye with your brother.

Jake heard a knock at his door and tried to think who would be here at this time of night. The confusion only grew when he opened his door to find you walking past him and making yourself home on his couch.

“Ever think about how dumb Tuesdays are? Like the only thing they are good for is tacos.” Jake had to blink a few times for his mind to catch up to what was happening.

“I can’t say that I have. Did that burning question drive you all the way over here?” He closed the door and walked to the adjacent couch to sit. He had a feeling this was going to be a long visit.

“I had to thank you in person for the tacos since I’m ignoring my phone.” Jake’s eyebrows rose that comment and pushed you on it. He watched as you played with your hair, giving him a hint at one of your tells. You were either uncomfortable or nervous about your answer and he locked that piece of information away for later.

“Look, my brother can be a bit much sometimes and I didn’t have the energy to deal with him this morning. Then this morning quickly turned into this evening, and I figured it’s a lost cause now.”

Jake bit back a smile, “So, you thought ignoring him was your best option?” He thought back to his conversation with said pilot at work this morning and was surprised when he saw a new side of him.

Bradley at first apologized for “having to deal with you.” But once he realized he didn’t mind making sure you got home safe, he thanked him and said it won’t happened again. Jake brought up his sisters and how he would want to make sure that if they needed help, someone would be there regardless of how good of terms he might or might not be with that person. This seemed to clear the air between them a bit, making work a little easier.

“I know it isn’t exactly my smartest idea, but you can only be called irresponsible so many times before you lose it. Was he mad at you this morning?” Jake shook his head, “Thankful for getting you home. That’s all.” He watched you nod your head but could see you didn’t fully believe him.

“You pinky promise I didn’t make things worse for you at work?” Jake laughed at yet another pinky promise.

“Yes, I pinky promise. Have you eaten dinner? I have leftovers I was about to heat up.” And with that offering, it opened the door to a new friendship.

Jake often found himself answering the door to you, texting you at random hours of the day, and always making sure you made it home safely. The two of you quickly became good friends, making the random house visits become a normal thing. He started to look forward to you coming over, knowing that your carefree way of life would bring him some sort of interesting story.

Until tonight.

The knock on his door was a little later than normal. Typically, you made your way over right after he got home from work. But tonight, it was hours past that time. Jake opened the door expecting you to waltz right in, but instead you were stood rooted in place with your head down. Red flags instantly went up as he tried to figure out what was wrong.

“Hey darlin’. How about we head inside?” His heart dropped when you lifted your head up. A bruise was starting to form around your right eye and by the way you were holding yourself, he knew it was from something bad.

A million different scenarios went through his mind, each worse than the last. But until he could get to the bottom of it, he needed to make sure you were okay. The ever so confident girl he had come to adore was nowhere in sight as he fully took you in. Your arms were wrapped around yourself, almost as if you were trying to be as small as possible. Despite the swelling from the bruise, he could see redness around your eyes from crying.

He moved to the side as you slowly made your way in allowing him to close the door and give you his full attention. “Sweetheart, what happened?” You flinched as he moved his hand towards you, making him stop his motion and put his hand up.

“You know I would never hurt you. I just need to look at that eye.” He waited for you to give some sort of okay before he tried again.

“I had this date and he wanted to go back to his place. All I did was tell him no.” Your words came out as a near whisper, but Jake heard you loud and clear. He had to take a second to calm himself down to not scare you any further.

“Can I give you a hug?” His words surprised you. The two of you were never one to show affection but for him to ask permission before doing it solidified why you chose to come here. A small head nod and he pulled you into his chest.

“I am so sorry you had to go through that. No one should ever have to feel that kind of fear.” And that simple gesture pushed you to your breaking point. The tears started all over again, but this time you felt a sense of comfort as you let them out. He continued to hold you for a few minutes and when he let go, you could see just how much this had affected him too.

He couldn’t help but think about his sisters and what he would do if they were ever in this situation. To have someone hit them simply because they said no made him sick to his stomach. Which is why he knew he needed to let your brother know.

“Sit down on the couch and I’ll grab you some ice to help with the swelling.” You did as he said, and Jake walked into the kitchen to grab a bag of frozen vegetables for you. While he was in there, he sent a quick text to Bradley telling him he needed to come over now. Jake knew he would do it based on the zero interactions they have outside of work. Bradley would know something was wrong.

He walked back out and saw you curled up on the couch, wiping a few tears from your face. When he picked you up from that bar a few weeks ago, he never imagined the two of you would be here. But he was glad to be that person for you.

“Put this on your eye for fifteen minutes and it should help numb the pain a bit.” You took the bag from him and did as he said. “Also, your brother should be on his way.”

The look of panic crossed your face, and he knew there was a chance you didn’t want your brother to know.

“I know you don’t want him to find out, but this is something your brother would want to know. I promise you that.” He watched as you played with the ends of your hair.

“He is going to try and say it’s my fault.” Jake knew the two of you had a bumpy relationship with just how different your lives were. But he didn’t for one second think that your brother would ever blame you for this.

“Let me get one thing straight. This is by no way your fault. A man should never lay his hands on a woman no matter what the reasoning. You said no and he needed to respect that. End of story.”

A knock on the door made you jump, and Jake waited a second before he went to open it. He gave Bradley zero warning on what he was walking into, and you weren’t in the best headspace to begin with. He knew there was a chance this wasn’t going to go well, but your brother couldn’t be left out of this.

Jake opened the door and said, “Try and keep calm.” Bradley walked in and took one look at you and pushed Jake up the wall. “The fuck did you do, Bagman?” Jake knew the initial reaction was going to be rough, but he was hoping he would still be able to fly tomorrow.

You stood up and quickly tried to push your brother away. While he didn’t budge, you at least got his attention. “He didn’t do this. I didn’t know where to go so I came here.”

Bradley looked back to Jake for confirmation and then backed off. He ran a hand through his hair as he looked between the two of you. “Someone needs to start explaining. Now.”

Jake looked over to you to see what you wanted to do. He had no issue telling Bradshaw the whole story, but he didn’t want to step on your toes. You didn’t tell him the two of you were friends for a reason, and he wasn’t sure how much you wanted to explain.

You took a deep breath and tried your best to answer, “Ever since the night Jake gave me a ride home, we’ve been hanging out. He’s been a good friend, one that I probably don’t deserve, but someone I know I can go to. I had a date tonight and it clearly didn’t go well. I was going to go home but I knew it wasn’t the best idea. Here was the next best place.”

Bradley shook his head, “Why here? Why not to my house? You know you can come to me for anything.”

You looked down as you said, “You always say how reckless I am, and I didn’t want this to be another huge disappointment for you.”

You heard Bradley curse under his breath but couldn’t find the courage to look up. Which is why you let out a yelp when he put a hand on your shoulder. “I know I’m hard on you but that’s because you’re the only family I have left. I’m sorry I made you feel like you couldn’t come to me for things. That’s the last thing I ever wanted. But this? This is something I need to know, and I would never say it’s your fault. Something like this shouldn’t have happened and you best believe I am going to kill the guy who did this to you.”

You gave him a small nod and he turned your head to get a better look at your eye. “This is going to be a nasty bruise. Did he get you anywhere else?”

Jake watched in curiosity when your eyes seemed to light up some. “No. I stopped him before he could do anything else. Didn’t hurt as bad this time either.” The two pilots were confused until Jake looked down at your hand to see some slight bruising.

“Looks like you got him good.” Bradley caught on but then asked what you meant by “this time.”

You looked over to Jake for help explaining. “Killer over here has a nasty right hook. Said you taught her how to throw it.”

Bradley slowly nodded his head and almost looked excited when he asked if you used it on Jake. “You wish.” He chuckled some and then looked over to his teammate. “Thanks for looking out for her. Clearly you are doing a better job at it than me.”

Jake smirked, “Just one more thing to add to the list that I’m better at.”

A/N: Thoughts? Still deciding if I am going to add another one of these to the mini-series. Thank you so so much for reading!! - C

Tag List: @rosiahills22 @sunlitsunflowers @dempy @mamaskillerqueen @luckyladycreator2 @atarmychick007 @my-soulmate-is-mycroft @topguncultleader @alilstressyandlotdepressy @avengers-fixation @chaoticcassidy @alldaysdreamers

[ladyelissarose]

‘Reckless’

Summary; Miguel finds out why you’ve been too careless and reckless on missions..

Warnings: an argument between the two- its not to heavy.. mostly hurt/comfort

“Ow-“

You had just flinched your arm away from Miguel when he had grabbed it. You cradled it close to you as he then scolded you firmly, keeping an eye on you as you refused to meet his,

“You lied. It’s not a scratch!! You broke your arm and he almost had your head!!”

You rolled your eyes at his loud words and even scoffed, even though you winced when you tried to put your arm down, trying to show it was ok- which you totally failed at doing. Nonetheless you sighed, annoyance evident in your tone,

“Ok maybe I did! But it’s not that bad-“

With one hand on his waist and the other pointing at you, he snapped,

“You disobeyed orders! You’re making close calls and I don’t like it! Yes we can get hurt on the job, but not like this when you’re making poor choices.”

Feet planted on the ground you tried to keep a steady position and look strong, taking his yelling about safety and all, but in reality you were in pain and felt lightheaded, and slowly you were growing frustrated because of it as Miguel ranted on.

“Come on niña!! (Girl) what’s the matter with you-“

Finally you’ve had enough of his mountain of a man speaking down to you as you were of course shorter… but in his eyes all he saw was you being very careless.

The pain was getting to you, making your emotions swirl out of place, hence why you screamed,

“AND WHAT’S YOUR POINT!?”

Miguel flinched a bit at your unusual behavior with him, but he couldn’t help but let his ego bark back at you with some honesty to wake your head up.

“That you could’ve been killed!! That’s the point! Do you know what kind of problems that would’ve caused? Pain or anything? Cómo puedes ser tan imprudente y no preocuparte por las consecuencias, niña terca?!” (How could you be so reckless and not care about the consequences you stubborn girl!?)

Tears of anger and pain grew in your once sun-shining eyes as you shouted back, trying to reason out your deal,

“Because I have nothing to lose ok!?? Maybe that’s why I don’t care as much!!”

Miguel was about to yell back, but your words caught him off guard. Like if someone sucker punched him.

He didn’t look so bulky or so scary anymore, when he lowered himself onto one knee to get on your level, as he reasoned with curiosity, one hand resting on your good shoulder,

“And what’s that supposed to mean?”

His brown eyes showed his genuine concern for you, unlike anyone you’ve known. You wanted to keep tough and play as the fearless Spider-Woman you were, but it was made impossible when Miguel got a hold of your cheek, beckoning you silently to speak up.

So at last, you broke and confessed, like a little girl and no longer like Spider-Woman.

Letting the façades you wore tumble down through your tears, into his large hands that would catch and hold them all.

“Nothing.… that I have no one back at home.. no family to mourn me. Bury me. Cover my graves with flowers. Like if I had to put everything aside and boil it down for me- I’m… alone.”

His lips parted a bit, as his eyes searched yours, trying to find the right words to say.

It had been a while since he’s used good encouraging words while being kind, but suddenly it was like a switch that flipped in him, and almost immediately he found the words, and he patted your cheek gently as he cooed, his anger and disappointment long gone.

“You’re not alone. You have me.. and I’ll never leave you out like that. But even then I won’t ever do such.”

“Like what?”

He shrugged a bit and shyed out with his eyes everywhere but on you, mostly cause of the fear it caused him to think of you six feet under, and he knew it’d be seen on him.

“The burying thingy and all.”

‘Oh so he wouldn’t bury me then? Or what?…’

“Oh.. why?”

Disappointment was heard in your voice, and Miguel was quick to address with his eyes on you this time, wanting to show he meant it with every bone and vain in his body,

“Because Dulce, I wouldn’t ever let you die on me. You’re not allowed to die under my watch, te lo prometo.” (I promise you that.)

Shyness took over you as the realization of your craziness, thinking it was ok to give up everything of you, when you had so much to lose.. so you apologized immediately.

“I’m so sorry- I didn’t know what I was thinking-“

“Shh shh sh.”

He shushed you right away, letting you know that it was ok as he added,

“It’s ok now.. you’re safe, alive, and here… No más lágrimas mi amada.” (No more tears my beloved.)

With gentle hands he cradled your face and let his thumbs wipe your tears away, refusing to let them fall.

He now wanted to see you cheered up, so he offered with the best smile he could muster.. if not the only one he showed- but just to you.

“You want ice cream after we leave the med? It’ll help with the fever you got.”

Twinkles were shining in your eyes as you replied with a nod,

“please?”

He chuckled at the sight of joy beaming on you, and he then stood up to his full height and took your good hand in his, leading you out as he responded sweetly, squeezing your hand comfortingly,

“of course Dulce-“

Then with a smirk most likely painted on his face, he added,

“-ven mi shadow.” (Come my)

Miguel knew deep down he had thought the same thoughts once, but with you around and so much more? He’d rather deal with the the weight of the good and bad everyday, then leave empty.

[jozlyn-moon]

The Cipher Twins

Ford’s Journal Entry:

(It’s long! And one of the first Journal Entries I’ve gone fully into making!)

“How and Why that devil managed to “conceive”, and I use this term loosely, is beyond me. Especially when it’s taken in mind how careful with planning he chooses to be. But the outcome of two children that share such gains of his power is.. well- reckless, but that does give us a view that he isn’t as on his game as much as he once was, which in my eyes shows as a beacon of hope. Continuing though-

These two have been an eye opening pain in the ass to deal with in all the years that they’ve had to be in my life… and that’s saying quite a bit. From the oddities that sprout from their father’s genes to the oddities that come from each of their unique personalities that stem from their own special quirks, to study them has been an experience. Though, if I shouldn’t lie.. I may have chosen a favorite of the two for one reason or another and even if either manages to get a hand on my writing their opinion would not much matter in the end.

To begin on the first, Lily Cipher, a rambunctious but albeit pleasant kid to be around. An attribute which I could only give thanks to in the mother’s raising of both of the twins which I presumed had fortunately been enough to quell any evil nature that may have been held in her soul. Along with the fact that there had been no contact with the father in her and her sibling’s upbringing. Ignoring that fact- She can be described as a great help around the lab, seeing as age and stress have worn down my ability to keep steady with my motor and cognitive skills… she comes in handy as a shockingly fast learner, but to no surprise really as much as I don’t want to point the praise at where the origin of the ability may have come from, I do have my guesses to who it was passed down from.

She is a very curious and hyperactive child as well, being quite fascinated in the little things and anything that moves, she could only remind me of Mabel in her younger years in the most bitter sweet way possible. I pray for the moment that she’s alright.. but besides that point-

I find that she’s been a large help in also understanding, if not, being able to decrypt the genetics of my enemy, with her ability to shape shift into a form similar to the beings of Bill’s late home dimension, flatlanders as they’re called, she has given key samples of skin and DNA that have properties no normal being can handle nor have. I believe she and her brother are direct keys in Bill’s downfall. And while I wish to be optimistic to the outcomes of their existence at the current time, I do hold dread for whats to come. As while I may have positive outcomes with the more sweet hearted sibling… I have trouble describing the short tempered and snide one as such. Liam is another whole pile of bones to dissect but i’ll get to his summary soon enough.

Lily, and what baffles me the most about her, is how something so, well giddy and sweet by nature, can come out of such a creature that can be so, by choice, dangerously and maliciously evil. But then again, that damn triangle had always had his charms at his hand, so it wouldn’t be a complete surprise if that had passed along to his spawn.

And as much as I want to be paranoid of my enemy’s daughter, seeing first hand her grow up with no influence of her father’s morals and presence due to her mother separating from that devil before either of the twins were born- it lets me ponder on the thought of the nature vs nurture theory and how whether or not natures of the parents pass down to the kin and how much it actual effects their psyche.

Albeit with Lily, she works on her own will with a good moral stand point and natural urge to uplift others in sometimes slightly odd but endearing ways. Though i’m afraid that it’s her brother that leaves me still questioning the nature vs. nurture stand point, as I couldn’t say the same completely for her twin.

Liam Cipher, a more reserved kid but leaning on socially aloof by choice, is one who leaves me sleeping with one eye open. Literally. Seemingly gained the temper of his father along with a slew of other worrying traits that I would rather not be in the presence of while someone has lit his fuse. He is the sole reason why I had to ban or at the least limit the use of both of their magic to the mundane and simple party tricks after an incident with him that cost me half my sight with a fit he threw when he was younger.

Though as his mother insists to me greatly, it’s not the child’s fault for the traits he was born with, he can’t help himself she claims. And while true to some extents I can’t help but feel the dread towards the thought of another Bill like being sprouting due to the “freak accident” of them being somehow made into existence. From the personality to even the damn voice that the kid shares with himself and his devil of a father, I can’t just shake off the feeling of a tense shiver that always crawls up my back when thinking of him growing older.

The only saving grace, and what calms my already paranoid nerves falls upon the ones I could think have a good hand in quelling those unsavory traits, the one’s I label the family buffers. I.e his mother, sister, and at times the cousins that are there to talk him down out of a potential blow out. I couldn’t even dare muster the thoughts to wonder what he’d turn to if his mother nor his “siblings”, if I could even loosely consider the cousins as such, weren’t there to quell his snappy nature. But for the sake of my cortisol levels, I can’t let those scenarios overcome my already racing thoughts because I have enough to deal with now in taking care of both of the twins that have been enough of a hassle on my growing age.

Liam for the most part has made it clear that he has a distaste for me, I believe sprouting from my coldness towards his mother for being deceptive at the beginning of our begrudging guardianship over the kids. And he places it as if I have no good reason, if it wasn’t clear that I have some bother that hiding the children of that damned demon under my nose with what current family I have left wasn’t something to not be chastised for. Not to mention that her withholding from the implicit truth had allowed me and my great great niece and nephew to harbor an attachment to the twins which if I had known before hand their origin… would not have ended well for her.

But I am not heartless, I do understand the fears that may have accompanied the weight of telling the truth at the time. And I’ve learnt that I shouldn’t be one to not swallow my pride and say I know I would have probably acted rashly. But as someone who freshly lost what family they had left at the time I feel as if it would’ve been just.

I don’t hate either of them, even while one may be more a pain in the ass than the other. I do believe I care for them in some sense. Liam is a help to me greatly, I won’t downplay that factor at all, he’s the one that helps me draw in the newer journal entries and goes out to scout with Chloe to do some cartography of the surrounding landscape. A quirk he seems to be great at with a sense of great direction and keen eyesight, something even younger me couldn’t get down right away. My body can only do so much these days as I’ve already made my point earlier that my hands and even now legs can’t do what they did often like they used to.

He’s smart, more smart than he gives himself props for, he knows how to channel a certain charisma and silver tongue that lets him find the best supplies, of course if it isn’t the case that he had stole them in the first place. And like his sister, there is no second thought to where he got that ability from, but it’s better to not dwell on it, just for my sake at least.

Both are a handful in their own ways, but they have grown on me- and they do hold insight in how we may be able to stop weirdmaggedon once and for all.

And I pray that it can be in time.”

(If you made it down here thanks for reading it! I want to make sure I have Ford’s characterization down to some extent 😭 My grammar may not be all that great but I tried lol)

[azullumi]

wanderer and tighnari — boyfriend messages ☆彡

summary — phone calls and messages exchanged between you two.

characters — wanderer and tighnari (w/gender-neutral reader)

tags — fluff, modern au, established relationship, no use of emojis in text ; headcanons

word count — 704

note — i wrote this on a different time compared to the first part so the approach in writing is different! ^^ i'll be working on requests later on

WANDERER

Midnight calls. Late night texts. Random crack of the dawn messages. Everything that happens on a whim, you name it. The peak message activity between you two happens late at night until dawn and the time that you two would stop talking will depend on your plans or schedule for the next day—you have classes? You'll either fall asleep in the midst of talking or finish the conversation by 2 in the morning at max. It's the weekend tomorrow? Expect that the two of you would either be awake the whole night, doing something together and talking to each other, or sleeping quite early to make up for the hours lost from the past few days that you should have been asleep.

Being mean is the embodiment of his being and sarcasm is the mother language of his tongue. Even in texts with the restrictions of expression as it's all locked behind and washed down to just simple letters in a rounded-corners rectangle, he is able to express and convey the tone and feeling he wants to show—hatred, disdain, confusion, and everything.

One thing that he loves to do is to just be a little gremlin, sending random images or messages in class that either distracts you because you're trying to think of what it means or because you'll end up talking to him— your attention will be all directed to him and he loves it. He knows the effect he has on you and completely takes advantage of it because why not? The opportunity is there so why not make the most out of it?

Despite all of that, however, he still looks after you. Yes, he might be a little mean at times and he could act like some sort of menace but he cherishes you and loves you. It's just like when you'll mention how you want something on that day and he'll show up later on with that thing that you want in hand, messaging you to open the door even if it's already late at night—he'll end up having to stay over and sleep at your home.

TIGHNARI

Have you eaten already? How about breakfast? Did you drink enough water? Did you skip your meal again? Oftentimes, you find yourself being asked by your own mind if you're talking to your doctor or your boyfriend—though you do appreciate how he looks after and cares for you, making sure that you're eating properly and staying healthy, bringing you food and everything when you didn't get to eat earlier that time because you were busy and didn't have time to, or when he'll look after yourself every single time that you are sick and you have to listen to his nagging especially when he'll learn that you did something which put you in that situation.

He's just always so worried about you that he checks on you as much as he can—much more if you're a reckless and careless type of person. It just feels like it's one of his nature to look after his loved ones, especially you and though it can be overwhelming at first because you might think that you're being bothersome to him, trust me, he doesn't think of you like that, you're not some troublesome thing to him and he's doing everything on his own accord. It just puts his mind at peace and his thoughts silent knowing that you're safe, healthy, or away from harm—and knowing that he's part of the reason for those makes him proud of himself.

Even through his messages, you could feel the gentleness in his tone or way of speaking in general—his choice of words makes up for all of it despite not having the habit of using emojis nor emoticons. Perhaps it was also the way he adds sweet and affectionate messages in between like him telling you that he loves you after greeting you good morning.

He's very considerate of your feelings, always taking it into account before he does something. He's the type to message you and update you on what he's doing, telling and informing you if ever he'll become busy so that you won't wonder why he is not replying to you quickly or answering any of your calls.

© azullumi — do not plagiarize, copy, repost, nor translate any of my works.

[spop-romanticizes-abuse]

You got any examples of stuff Glimmer has done that people demonize her for but let Catra get away with?

of course i do. someone else may have already made this post but if not, it needed to be made.

in the span of the series, glimmer made two major mistakes that catra also did. let's start with the worst one:

1. jeopardizing the safety of etheria:

glimmer used the black garnet to enhance the princesses' powers to save etheria. was she still at fault for being stubborn and reckless? absolutely. but her intentions were pure and she was really in a tight spot.

“I'm the queen who's going to save Etheria.”

i think we've all been in a situation where we were backed into a corner and had to resort to a bad decision. glimmer was misguided but she was trying to do the right thing.

“We both want to save the people we love.”

she still loved her friends and she cared about her people. of course, it's not an excuse for what she did. but you really can't blame her when she was forced into being a queen at such a young age, because of catra. i swear, people completely forget the fact that none of this would have happened if catra didn't open the portal.

not to mention, glimmer's reaction when she realizes that she was wrong:

she immediately admits it. she doesn't try to justify herself, she doesn't shift the blame onto anyone else. glimmer may be stubborn, but she's humble enough to acknowledge her own mistakes. contrast that to catra's reaction to realizing that the portal was about to kill everyone:

that's right. she doesn't care. first off, she was not forced into opening the portal. she wanted to do it to spite adora. sure, she was in a very emotional low at the time, because of the whole "shadow weaver choosing adora" thing. i get it. but her intentions weren't good, they weren't even neutral. she actively wanted to end the world, as long as adora died with it. her reaction to being told that adora was right was this:

“Adora is right. (laughs) Adora gets everything she wants. But not this time. This time, I am going to win. I don't care what it takes. We are opening that portal now.”

also, of course she shifts the blame to adora.

instead of at least acknowledging that this was her choice, she refuses to take responsibility for it and instead guilt trips adora.

2. hurting adora

this is probably the reason why glimmer gets the most hate from the fandom. because, in a moment of grief and frustration, she says something hurtful:

of course, it was wrong. it wasn't adora's fault that angella died. but glimmer's anger was understandable, it was just misdirected. she was going through a lot (reminder: because of catra) and she wasn't even given enough time to grieve. she had to put that aside to focus on being a queen. also, unlike catra, glimmer shows immediate guilt and regret after saying that.

she immediately tries to apologize. no one needed to tell her that what she did was wrong, she realized it instantly. and again, i think this is something we all do. frustration and stress gets the best of us sometimes and causes us to say or do something we can't take back. what matters is if we acknowledge it immediately and try not to do it again.

which glimmer does. she tries to apologize to adora again, but adora is (reasonably) upset and hurt. glimmer is shown to be guilty throughout, and apologizes properly as soon as she is rescued from horde prime.

again, compare that with catra constantly mocking, belittling, insulting and guilt tripping adora.

she's doing this on purpose. some of it can be chalked down to her being upset in a moment of distress, but most of it is catra deliberately saying anything that could and would break adora's self-esteem. she even prides herself in knowing adora well enough to know what to say in order to really get to her. if you want instances of catra hurting adora, there are going to be thousands across the series, and that's not counting all the physical abuse and attempted murder.

meanwhile, people still hate glimmer for one (1) thing she said out of frustration, and holds her accountable even after she apologized and never repeated it. the double standards are really double standarding.

not to mention, glimmer has to face the consequences of her actions. bow is allowed to stay mad at her and only forgives her after she starts crying, admits her mistake and says that she doesn't expect his forgiveness.

but catra? little catgirl got rescued and lashed out at adora immediately after. the bfs risked their lives to save her, but she never even thanks them. instead she crawls into the room afterwards acting all cute and sad, so all is forgiven. glimmer, who blamed adora for the death of her mom, is suddenly besties with the very person who killed said mom. bow gushes over how cute catra is, completely forgetting everything she did in the previous seasons.

it's so clear that not only do the fans hate glimmer, but even the show seems to. the writers seem to hate every character except catra. and honestly? their favoritism towards catra only ruined her character. she could have been a great villain or heck, she could have even gotten a good redemption arc. flawed characters don't mean shit if they are treated like victims instead of having actual character development.

[next-autopsy]

A/N: Well, hi there! Another chapter, read away and lmk what y’all think!

Based on the actors portrayal/hbo show and written with no disrespect to the real life veterans. Also all images found on Pinterest.

TW: none I think

Tags: @malarkgirlypop, @panzershrike-pretz

Made of Glass

Chapter twenty six: Half an explanation

“Here.” Connie held her hand out, beads dangling from her palm. Birdie took them gratefully, thanking her friend for the rosary as she sat down on the pew the young blonde was perched on.

Birdie wanted to explain why she was late but the silence in the makeshift chapel was broken by the preacher beginning his sermon, So, Birdie stayed quiet. She listened to his words, letting each one soak into her mind while she fiddled with the borrowed prayer tool.

Bernadette enjoyed being in the chapel, even after the service, it was quiet; a nice place to reflect. The comforting feeling engulfed her, that place was sacred and Birdie always felt welcomed, even on her first visit. It was familiar and soothing.

Connie sat with her, mutely as the two women prayed. Both quietly counted their mumbled worship on the string of beads in their hands.

Guarnere and Muck made their way over to the ladies while everyone else filed out of the building. The two men shuffled into the pew occupied by the women and sat, the presence of her friend next to her broke Birdie from her thoughts.

“You got a lot of explaining to do, missy.” Bill leaned over to whisper to her, even though no one bar the four friends were left in the chapel. She inhaled to begin her explanation but Bill held up a hand to stop her, “You owe it to Toye too.” She shut her mouth.

Bernadette was not looking forward to sitting down with Guarnere and Toye and who knows who else and describing last night's events. She would definitely have to leave some stuff out.

—------------------------

“Jesus. You’re alive.” A sarcastic comment from Toye broke the weird silence as Birdie, Muck and Guarnere walked into the barracks.

“You thought I wasn't?” She was confused, why did he sound so angry at her?

Next to Toye she took note of several other men who all looked upset with her. Great, this was going to be one of those talks. Luz was fidgeting with the edges of his lighter, Muck sat down by Malarkey and Penkala on a random bed they claimed. Bull and Lipton were standing in the corner by Johnny who glared and huffed in her direction.

“You disappeared last night.” Don observed, he had an unspoken rule with the woman to find him before she left any bar or party they attended together and let him know where she was off to, which she typically stuck to but for some reason, didn't last night. He had taken it personally when she avoided him and worried an awful lot once he realized she had taken off without telling him.

“And you didn’t exactly give any of us a heads up.” Alex added. He had not worried as much as the others, knowing she could handle herself well enough and she wouldn’t make dangerous choices, but he still liked to be involved.

“When we got back to the barracks… Looking for you…. You weren’t even here.” It circled back to Toye, he was fuming, jaw clenched. He was definitely the most bitter about her disappearance.

“Well, I- '' Birdie attempted to get a word in but was very quickly cut off by her best friend.

“Do you know how freaked out I was?” Toye stood from his spot in the room and stepped towards her. Bernadette’s full focus was on him, she hadn’t realized he would get this upset about her going off to dance with Liebgott or she would have said something or just not gone at all.

“But-” The woman tried to speak again but was cut off once more.

“Where were you by the way?” Martin spoke up from his corner of the room, arms crossed over his chest and signature glare aimed at her. She wanted to shrink back or leave the room but she knew she owed them something. These men were her closest friends and she had caused them an awful lot of worry with her reckless departing.

“It’s-” For a third time Birdie started to answer and was interrupted, it was starting to get on her nerves.

“Oh and did you think we wouldn’t notice a certain someone was missing too?” The venom in Martin’s voice was unmistakable, he paced near her, stopping only two feet away from the lady. His next words not only shocked her but most of the room occupants, “Please tell me you didn't spend the night with him. Come on, you're smarter than that, Birdie.” That was the last straw, she wasn't willing to stand there and let him speak to her like that, not allowing her to say more than a word and assuming the worst.

“Would you shut up for a second?” It wasn’t a true shout but her voice did rise, “Firsty, I told Frankie that I was leaving and with who and secondly I’m a grown woman. I can make my own decisions, even ones you don’t agree with and I do not need to explain myself.”

“Okay why don’t we just cool it a little.” Lipton stepped between them, a gentle hand on both Birdie's forearm and Martin’s, “All we are trying to say is that we care about you. We were worried, that’s all.”

“So, you wanna tell us where you went?” Bull asked, the men stayed quiet awaiting her answer. Birdie huffed, rolling her eyes. She knew the real answer wouldnt land well so she padded the answer a little, leaving out key details.

“To Richard’s place.” It was the safest thing to start with. Dick was respectable and was a perfect chaperone so she wouldn't have to convince her friends she hadn't snuck off to sleep with someone.

“‘Richard? You mean Lieutenant Winters?” Don’s eyebrows rose, in the running bet of Birdie and Lieb; will they wouldn't they, Malarkey had his money on Winters. He didn't think Lieb would be nice enough to the woman and she’d ended up falling for a complete gentleman like their lieutenant. It wasn't the popular choice but that just meant more money for him when he won.

“Yeah.” She confirmed.

“Do tell.” Skip prompted, eyebrows wiggling.

“We left a pub and found Nixon stumbling around, too drunk to tell us where he lived. Then I remembered the family Dick is bilited with are off seeing relatives for the week so we took him there, and Dick made us stay the night cause…” Birdie trailed off, remembered the reason, not super keen to share as that would only lead to more questions, though it was a bit late now.

“Cause…?” Alex cued, he was invested as was Malarkey, Skip, Guarnere and Luz, all leaning forward to hear Bernadette speaking. The others, Toye, Martin, Bull and Lipton stood further back, mostly because Toye and Martin were all but growling and Bull and Lipton were trying to calm the wound up men. Birdie knew she would have to talk with Toye privately, smooth things over and explain herself properly without an audience, they both just needed time to breathe.

“Cause it was late.” She wanted to leave it there, not have to explain further but she knew her friends.

“How late?” George smirked, he knew what he was doing and Birdie gave him a look to say she knew what he was doing too.

“Like … I don't know… four something.” The southern woman mumbled, keeping her voice low in hopes that they didn’t hear even though she knew it wouldn’t work that way. Birdie didn’t miss the looks sent around the room, if the floor opened up and swallowed her right now, she would be grateful.

“My my, and what were you doing out so late, young lady.” Luz’s shit eating grin spanned ear to ear.

“Shut up, George.” Birdie got up to leave, trying her hardest to avoid the inevitable. She just knew George would weasel the information out of her and twist it into something it wasn’t.

“Oh! So it’s private, huh?” George followed her out the door, leaving their friends behind. Birdie headed toward the mess hall, determined to get her hands on a cup of coffee and maybe some peace from the chatty man, “So, what did you two get up to?”

“Oh Jesus! Dancin’, you happy? We danced.” The woman realised her friend would not drop the topic unless she gave him a few more details, so she went with the bare minimum. She wouldn’t tell him how they sat and talked for hours or about their nicknames for each other, how her heart fluttered when he called her doll, how she shared things with Joey that she hadn’t shared with most people.

And she definitely wouldn't tell Luz about the moment they shared, standing in the road under the stars, leaning towards one another. The moment that was interrupted but if they were given a few extra seconds alone, that moment would have been the beginning of something more. No, she would keep that for herself.

“Ohhhh… So it was a date?” His smug tone was giving her a headache.

“No!” Bernadette called out, louder than she was planning to. Her footsteps halted and she looked over at George before continuing both her words and walking, “No. It wasn't a date. Don’t be ridiculous.”

“So the two of you went off by yourselves to dance the night away and you don't think that was a date? Let me ask you something?.... Did you have anything to drink?”

“Yeah.” Of course they had, they were in a pub.

“Did he order it?” Luz’s smirk was becoming irritating and he had the ‘I told you so’ tone., Birdie was not enjoying this.

“Yeah…” She had a yucky feeling she was about to be proven wrong. But the previous night couldn’t have been a date. Joe hadn’t asked her out… well not specifically, not on a date. And if he had she wasn’t sure she would’ve gone with him. Fraternising was against the rules after all.

“Did you offer to pay for it?” George questioned, he already knew the answer. Bernadette always offered to pay, even though none of the guys took her up on the offer.

“Yeah.” She knew where this was going now. Opening doors for women and paying for their drinks was typical date behavior. The chivalrous acts showed romantic intention and was expected when courting someone you were trying to impress. But it wasn’t a fair argument from Birdie’s perspective, all the easy company guys bought her drinks and took offence when she offered or snuck off to pay before they could stop her.

“Did he let you?” He didn't have to say that but he really wanted to spell it out for Birdie, rub it in, prove his point.

Silence. Absolute silence while Birdie frowned and George grinned, holding back his laughs. He knew she wasn't telling him everything, he just knew Birdie had feelings for the man and now he could bring it up every chance he got and embarrass her. The perfect form of entertainment.

“It was not a date.” She growled out, stomping into the mess hall they had now reached, leaving George to chuckle at her reaction.

A/N: ooooo Birdie is in the doghouse! Lmk what y’all think of this chapter, love ya x

~ Nex ~

Chapter twenty seven

[elains]

Rhys=as++ole. Especially after hosaf. his reaction to Nesta (who saved his,his wife's child's life, is his sister in law,helped them many times) didn't deserve that treatment. get angry but not like this. argue human and careful and not scolidng like she is a little child. As for Cassian, we didn't really see enough. IDK why SJM made it like Nesta is a victim makes no sense (everyone scolds her(even AZ in the cave), but I can imagine Cassian looked pissed because of rhys as was Feyre thankfully

Okay so, you need to take a few things into account here: the one whose PoV we inhabit for the bonus is Ember, whose world Nesta just risked quite a lot to try to help out of sheer dumb faith. She is not am unbiased party in all this. She believes her daughter can succeed and that what Nesta did was right. Rhysand coming off as the big bad who is scolding Nesta for handing over theMmask is actually pretty reasonable within her perspective.

The other one is Sarah J. Maas herself and how she frames the narrative and is present throughtout it. Sarah always knew everything was going to work out, that Nesta's gamble would pay off, that Bryce would succeed and take down the Asteri. Nesta does come off as a victim because to the omniscient author who knows how things are going to work out, she took the choice that would lead to the best possible outcome: trusting Bryce. Nesta is a victim insofar as the good ending is a foregone conclusion and the author and us have this knowledge.

While I do think Rhys could have handled the situation with far more grace than he did, I maintain that their past animosity came to forefront. Yes, you are correct, anon: Nesta saved his family's lives, himself included, but gratitude and common ground are just a step in the right direction. Yeah, what Nesta did was MASSIVE, but some grudges have deep roots and aren't easily uprooted. This is human nature at its finest.

That said, I don't think he was being any more of an asshole than usual. Certainly not more than when he withheld pregnancy information for Feyre. This time around, Rhysand's reasons to be spitting mad are extremely valid and quite frankly, understandable. If there ever was matter to ge indescribably mad over, it was this one.When you look at it objectively, stepping back Omniscient Author or Reader's Viewpoint, you have this:

Nesta just gambled the entire safety of their world on a woman who has not shown herself to be worthy of any trust and who she knew for like two/three days most. Bryce offered no assurance of victory just her parents as collateral. That speaks of her determination; it does not speak of her actual chances.

It was a shot in the dark. It could have costed everything. We have the privilege of knowing it would work out. All the characters did not and if Bryce never returned, they would spend the rest of their existences in fear that the Daglan were waiting to show up on their doorstep.

My point, anon, it's that it's very easy to say "Get Angry, but Not like this" for us on the outside. For Nesta, who has the blessing of Sarah because it will all work out. For Ember, whose world she risked to save. For the people inside, Prythian, however, who are not privy to this knowledge... I can understand the absolute rage and thinking Nesta was a goddamn thoughtless, reckless for just handing over the Mask.

And Cassian... I understand he was in a tight spot and probably mad at the risk Nesta took as well but you know... I just wanted to see more. I didn't need him to be full on the Nesta Defense Squad, but more than what we got.

[mirrorbusterz]

No art today, but I've really been thinking about the rkn's characterization as of late.

They're honestly the antithesis of each other; their character traits clash and clash hard but I feel like that makes for a very nice sibling dynamic they have with each other. I also like to hc that their differing personalities was an intentional design choice by Wily.

I'll explain what I mean, just know that I'm not great at articulating my thoughts and this is more of a stream of consciousness than anything else. So! With that in mind:

Enker--Based on his CD data, we know that he's very dedicated to destroying Mega Man, and takes it very seriously; he's a hard-ass with a gloomy personality. Hell, if you know anything about Enka music in general you'd know he's pretty much a physical representation of the music's soulful but sad melodies.

He is so dedicated to his programming that he would rather put himself in harm's way (i.e. sustaining damage to use the Barrier Spear) if that meant he could destroy Mega Man. He is an agent of order dedicated solely to completing his tasks.

So, when said agent of order failed at his one and only task, it makes sense for Wily to overcorrect. Why not design a robot to be the complete opposite of Enker?

That's when Punk was created.

Punk--He's loud. He's brash. He's hates PTAs and the government. Ya gotta love him.

Anyways, he couldn't be farther removed from Enker. While Enker is stated not to stand out, Punk loves showing out, represented by his love of accessories. While Enker would prefer to uphold the status quo, Punk wants to shake it up and have fun doing it.

His personality is heavily based on his namesake, Punk music, which has its roots in anti-facism and rebellion against "the man." It fucking rocks. This is heavily contrasted by the melancholic, "refined," Enka music. Y'see where I'm getting at?

I find it interesting that Punk's entire existence is a paradox considering I'd imagine he has disdain for any kind of authority, Wily included, but must follow Wily's orders anyways. But that's a text post for another day.

Back to the main point, even his fighting style is contrasted by Enker's. Enker's has a level of elegance to it, while Punk just throws his entire body at you. However, this doesn't mean Punk is reckless. In fact, this attack is pretty safe considering he can't be damaged while in his ball form. This is contrasted by Enker's extremely unsafe, even reckless, method of attack, that requires him to sustain damage.

But even Punk, the agent of chaos, wasn't enough to stop Mega Man.

You probably noticed that I haven't touched on Ballade yet. And that's because he doesn't really have any contrasting traits compared to his brothers. Wily must've realized he swung too far in both directions with Enker and Punk, so he made Ballade as a nice middle ground between the two.

Ballade--doesn't really stand for much except fighting. He wants to fight a strong opponent, and views himself as the "strongest" robot, and because of this he can come across as single minded. He feels too standard, too plain.

But his complexities are revealed once he is beaten and realizes what he is fighting for is wrong. He respects Mega Man's power, something that neither Enker nor Punk did.

Maybe the reason why he was able to break Wily's programming was because he didn't stand for much, able to break his base instincts because of his "weak will."

Or maybe because his will was so strong was the reason he broke his programming. Was he, perhaps, tired of fighting for Wily, and saw self-destruction as the only way out? I haven't decided myself.

Whatever the case, in his dying moments he was able to stand for something: ending up on the right side of history by helping Mega Man.

So sorry if this was a rambling, confused read! I've got that RKN autism, lmao. Btw, I really wanted to dissect Quint some too since I consider him their adopted brother, but it was getting way too long. A text post for another time! :)

[foreverraisa]

Morning Digest from Rereading Ouran Koukou Host Club

It’s not a surprise for my besties that I’ve been a fan of manga and anime since childhood (I’ll be 30 this March by the way!)

This morning, I reread one of the greatest shoujo (intended to be read by young girls) manga ever in my teenage years. It’s Ouran Koukou Host Club (do check it! It’s full of social and psychological daily cases wrapped up in a beautiful slow-paced romance yet such absolute comedy)

--

Rereading and rewatching are always my two favorite things. Somehow, new perspective is applied because I’m now an adult. Things I didn’t realize were there now are seen clearer than ever, as the chapter I read just now.

--

Last year, someone I truly adore voluntarily gave me advice I couldn’t accept. It wasn’t an obvious advice, actually. He began by saying that men tend to like a woman who wants to be helped. They are not accustomed dealing with independent ones. Well, that time I could only grin. I guess that’s my way to show that I was trying my best to accept his point of view while at the same time realizing he doesn’t want to understand my position right now (and it’s okay because he’s no more available tho).

--

Rereading Ouran Chapter 8-9 was surely eye-opening. I never realized there’s such deep meaning behind the scenes when the female character is scolded by one of the male characters there after she did a reckless thing. I assume this might be “the men’s expectation”: to have their opposite sex ask for help. However, as the chapter went to its end, a certain condition revealed that this young girl has no intention to be reckless at all. She’s just accustomed of taking care of herself all her life. Well, being the only child of the motherless family is enough to explain “the why”, I guess.

And realizing her male friends’ point of view that the reason their friend was angry wasn’t simply because of nothing but worry, it truly made me realize, that an independent women found it deeply hard to know that some people truly love them and are of course capable enough to care about them.

--

I honestly admit that it’s soothing my soul witnessing how the boy in the story that was once angry came to understanding about the girl’s reasoning, as if I was the one being understood.

--

Finishing these chapters has given me new perspective I once didn’t find when I was a teenage girl years ago reading the same story. I can relate to what the female character did in this chapter, because whole my life, despite having been supported financially during the school years, as one of children of a single mother, I know I’ve been taking care of myself alone.

Somehow, Chapter 9 especially reminded me that a man that loves me will try to see my doing through my reasoning, that I don’t have to lower my standard only to find a typical guy that desires to apply his manly sides while not respecting my whole being as a woman having no choice but to be independent all her life. I hope there’s someone humble enough to see my independence as a strong trait, not a weakness :)

Good morning from rainy Jakarta <3

[admhawthorne]

“You’re insane,” Casey could feel the bile rising up with the level of his anger. “Everything you do is spiteful, narcissistic, and violent. These people have done nothing to you. They’re innocents. All they did was decide to take a bus home after a long, hard day’s work, and now you want to use them as some kind of catalyst to blow up the city? What is wrong with you, Connor? You do know you’ll die as well, don’t you?”

He stared at Casey with revulsion in his eyes. “Shut up, Casey!” He swung his knife around threatening the already terrified people huddled in their seats. “You don’t get it. You NEVER got it. For over two decades, I’ve watched as they’ve all fawned over you and your achievements. You were always praised for every little thing you did while all I got was punished for not measuring up.”

Griping tightly to a pole, Casey tried to pull himself closer to his brother against the centripetal force of the bus racing along the road. He needed to get closer to the driver’s seat. If he could make it up there, maybe he could stop Connor from enacting his plans. He just needed to keep Connor distracted until he could make it up there. “You remember things very differently that I do, brother. We had the same opportunities in life. We were raised by the same parents, went to the same schools, and had all the same options offered to us. The difference between us was always how we chose to accept those gifts.”

“Are you saying this is all my fault? Because it’s not!” Connor held his knife at an awkward angle as he tried to keep his brother away while he reckless continued to speed down the road. “This is YOUR fault for always being the favorite, the smarter one, the better one. Well, now I’m going to show everyone that you’re not smarter or better than anyone. You can’t stop me from forcing this bus to hit the gas terminal downtown, and you can’t stop me from killing a lot of people. You’re going to fail, and everyone is going to know it was you who failed.” He pointed to a camera installed at the front of the bus. “See? I was smart enough to hook this up to the bus wifi. We’re live streaming right now. Say hi to your fans, Casey!”

Grunting against the backwards pull from the bus’s speed, Casey finally made it to the very front to stand next to his brother. He tried not to show the fear he felt as the tip of the knife came into range of his chest. “Connor, this is between us. There’s no reason to bring anyone else into this. I’ll stay on the bus with you. Why not stop and let these people off?”

“No way, brother. We all got on together, and we’re all getting off together,” Connor declared with a manic laugh. “It’s just like you and me. We came into this world together, and we’re going out together. Twins until the end!”

“And there we have it; once again, your choices are going to end badly for everyone, including yourself. You know, you’re so selfish, Connor,” Casey threw his hands up and then slid down to sit on the bus’s floor just beneath the tip of the knife. “You always do this. You’ve always perceived us to be in some kind of competition with each other, but we’re not. It’s you. It’s all in your head. We were raised to be equals, but you chose to be lesser than for no reason. It’s like you LIKE being the victim.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Connor yelled back. “Now shut up or die early.”

“Then we wouldn’t have our little poetic ending, would we? You’re not going to kill me, Connor.” With a quick motion, Casey leaned forward, forcing the handle of the knife over his shoulder and surprising his brother enough to knock the weapon out of his hand. Quickly grabbing it, he stood, pointing it at his twin. “It’s over, Connor. Stop the bus.”

Connor glared at him. “Fuck off, Casey. We’re all going to die today.”

Casey’s jaw clenched. “Choices, Connor, you keep making shitty ones. Make a good one just once in your life.”

Again, Connor glared at his brother. “Fuck. Off. You don’t know the first thing about what it’s been like to be in your shad…”

“You fuck off, Connor. You know, you’re everything I could have been but decided not to be. Every bad choice you made was a lesson to me in how to make a good choice. It could’ve been the other way around. You could’ve seen the good choices I made and emulated that, but, no, you had to be a shit headed, self-centered, egotistical bastard. That’s on you. You decided to be that way. I had nothing to do with it, and, if you don’t stop this bus,” Casey stepped closer, putting the edge of the blade against his brother’s neck, “I will stop you by any means necessary because THAT will be the right choice.”

Silence filled the bus as the bus riders watched and the brothers battled against each other’s willpower. Finally, Connor relented, beginning to slow the bus down and pulling it over to the side of the road. Sirens roared in the background as the bus finally came to a stop. “You’re their hero now. I hope you’re happy.”

Casey sighed, shaking his head. “I would rather have been your brother instead of your enemy.”

[mainstoryarchive]

Ensemble - 130: Conclusion

Jin: 'Uh, ahem.'

[Read on my blog for the best viewing experience with Oi~ssu ♪]

Location: Auditorium (LIVE)

Jin: 'Uh, ahem.'

'The final match of the DDD has been heating up quite a bit… For the time being we'll be counting the votes.'

'As for the people in the audience, please sit in your seats while you wait.'

(Oh, this is impressive. A standing ovation from the audience? Is this really a live held by high schoolers…?)

(Even I have only seen this sight a few times.)

(Even though there are seats, people are standing up and jumping around in ecstasy.)

(Gathering the votes is gonna be troublesome, to be honest. As for me, I wouldn't be displeased with a 'you both did your best, you both win'.)

(But those kids wouldn't be happy with that, right? This isn't a child's imagining of the entertainment world, they've already put a foot in the eye-for-eye entertainment world.)

(Their childhood in which just working hard earned them high points has ended, and they leaped into adult society, where numbers, logic and the results are the only things that matter.)

(But well, if it's you guys… I get the feeling that you will be able to fly even higher than I did.)

(Your teacher is satisfied. You did well, youth sure is nice ♪)

Akiomi: Jin! Don't space out over there, come help out with the votes! Actually, first stop trying to crouch down like a delinquent, you're on stage, that's embarrassing!

You're a failure both as a teacher of Yumenosaki Academy and as a human!

Jin: Ehh, but Akiyan you're also saying a public taboo by saying stuff like delinquent.

A machine'll do the counting anyways, right? We should just lay back and wait ♪

Akiomi: We can't do that, real people should properly check it! Machines have malfunctions and errors, in the end we can only trust humans!

To think this would be the result… I can't believe it! Why is it those trouble-makers? I can't come to terms with this, we have to count again properly! One, two, three!

Jin: Oh, what's wrong? Could it be that Trickstar actually won?

Akiomi: Th-That's impossible!

Because of the fact that most of the audience gave both units the highest possible amount of points, the results are extremely close!

So much that the slightest calculation error turns the tables!

As such, Jin! You also have to help gathering the votes! We'll compare all the data and we'll calculate the results precisely!

Jin: Hmm. Akiyan, you're so fussy about the details, you'll go bald, you know?

Akiomi: Cut it out with the insults, I'll sue you for slander!

Jin: (He's on edge, well, we are encountering a situation that's normally unimaginable. Akiyan has been bad with things like that from the time he was still an active idol.)

(To think that those idiots… That Trickstar would put up such a good fight against Yumenosaki's top idol group, fine.)

(If we were at the horse racing track, the betting tickets would be dancing in the air ♪)

If it was such a close fight, then we might have to go into overtime.

Akiomi: That might be true, however Tenshouin-kun doesn't have enough stamina left for an encore.

Which means that if we go in overtime, fine will automatically lose… But that's physically impossible! I won't agree to it!

Argh, this is why I was opposed to this from the start! Because the DDD is composed of a harsh series of battles, it would be too reckless for the sickly Tenshouin-kun to participate in it!

As a teacher who has high consideration for his students' well-being, I should have stood more firm in stopping him!

Jin: Letting the students do what they want to do is also the duty of a teacher, right?

Tenshouin also had a reason to do this, even if it would be hard and painful for him. You have to respect his choice ♪

No matter what the result may be, he'll be able to accept it. Because this is the path he chose for himself.

…Isn't that right? But hey, you guys. You're not listening even though your teacher is saying something nice, are you?

More importantly, don't show your weakened self on stage. Though I do get that you're tired.

Subaru: … …

…You're noisy, Sagami-chan.

(I-I did everything I could! I don't know what the results are, but we were able to get through the live fighting with even more than everything we have! I'm feeling super accomplished ☆)

(But that tired me out! If even we are like this, what about the president that had already received damage consecutively before this…?)

[ ☆ ]

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[boasource]

TRANS: 20 Years of BoA, 20 Years of K-Pop On April 1st in Busan, a concert that is meaningful to the Korean music industry will be held - the 20th anniversary concert of BoA, the so-called “Star of Asia” who has gone beyond Korea and has worked actively in the world stage. [The concert] is an encore performance that was suddenly announced at the end of her Seoul concerts in early March, which had about 5,000 fans in attendance. Having first stood before the public in 2000, BoA’s 20th debut anniversary was actually in 2020. [Two Seoul concerts] must have not been enough for fans who had to wait 3 years to celebrate the [20th anniversary celebration] due to the spread of COVID-19. First of all, the concert is meaningful to the Korean music industry because it is no exaggeration that BoA’s life as a singer completes the history of K-pop. Over the past 20 years, her many songs have left many memories for so many people. As BoA continued to present different concepts and genres, K-pop has also grown through the years. 23 years ago, BoA, who garnered a lot of attention as a young 13 year old singer, crossed over to Japan where she also garnered a lot of attention. This period also saw the Hallyu Wave, which started with K-dramas, spill over to the music industry, as singers began to conduct activities abroad. These singers, however, were already established stars in South Korea. For BoA, the Hallyu Wave stars’ work at the time may have been the pavement that made it a little easier for her to walk barefoot in starting overseas activities without having to lay a firm foundation in Korea. Her start may have been reckless. It is not easy to walk a path that no one else has treaded before. In order to increase her chances of success, the localization strategy was employed. She sang songs made by local composers in Japanese to make a soft landing in the Japanese market. In order to do so, as a trainee, she had to focus on learning Japanese as much as she practiced singing and dancing. The context of that era, of it being the heyday of Japanese female soloists, also played a role in BoA’s success. BoA, who could compete with her vocals-focused peers even with her strong dancing, brought a fresh shock to J-pop. BoA’s first album, which was released 10 months after her Japanese debut, climbed the top of the Oricon charts, showing faster-than-expected growth. Concerns that debuting in Japan was reckless turned into expectations of [BoA] improving national prestige. The next six of BoA’s albums topped the charts, and her album sales in Japan have exceeded 10 million copies so far. Her U.S. album, released in 2009, also made her the first Korean to enter the Billboard Charts. No one can deny that it is thanks to BoA’s influence that overseas expansion has become a must, not just a choice for K-pop idols. But things are [now] very different from how it was when BoA first went to Japan. Social media makes it possible for Korean music to reach fans abroad, where lyrics can [remain] sung in Korea. This is the fruit of the hard work of many K-pop singers, like BoA, who pioneered the entrance [of Korean artists] in overseas markets. This is also the reason why K-pop can be expected to grow and change in the future.

[the-lone-witch-and-secret-room]

Camila Noceda and Flawed Parenting

A perspective by a flawed person with loving but extremely flawed parents

I’m genuinely baffled at some people’s hostile reaction towards Camila. Like… do any of you have flawless parents that always know the best solution instantly, make no mistakes and never get emotional?

My parents are great. They’re super supportive and I love them very, very much. Overall I think I got very lucky in the parents department.

But god, they are far from flawless. I still live at home, and despite all the good, there’s moments when I can’t take my dad anymore. He’s the kind of dad that stayed up until two am to help me with homework when I was in school, and he does so, so many things to make sure I’m happy. I know that. But despite all of this, I have told my mom in emotional moments before that I’m not sure if I can keep living with him, because for all his good sides, he has a couple of fatal flaws that sometimes make him unbearable.

My mom listens to me and is very open to being educated on certain topics, but she has her flaws, too. She hates when I fight with my dad, and gets so torn up about it that I’ve once apologized to my dad out of fear of her getting into a car crash otherwise. She’s very vocal about certain flaws of mine, and sometimes uses the things she does for me as leverage against me when she gets very emotional.

And both of my parents pay a lot more attention to my brother because he needs it more, because he’s more of a “problem child” while I “seem so capable” even when I’m not.

And guess what? I’m not a perfect child. I make mistakes sometimes, some of them pretty severe. Just like Luz, I’m the kind of person that struggles to communicate certain issues of mine to her parents. I’m stubborn, and when I get emotional, I say very hurtful things sometimes. So do they.

And this has nothing to do with my parents being horrible or abusive. They’re neither of those things.

The takeaway from this should not be that my entire family is made up of terrible people, but that we’re all flawed in our own ways, despite loving each other and trying our best. There’s things about my parents I wish I could change, and there are things about me that my parents wish they could change. And to an extent, that’s perfectly normal.

In our strengths and flaws and frustration with each other, we’re all human.

Specific, spoiler-y Camila and Luz things under the cut since this got very long.

We have no indication that Camila has a pattern of emotionally manipulating Luz. Her “emotional manipulation” as I’ve seen some people put it, is people for some reason thinking that the second you become an adult, you’re suddenly perfect and can no longer make mistakes, lest you’ll be dubbed horrible and abusive.

The whole concept is absurd to me. There is no perfect way to parent. There simply isn’t. Of course, there’s some genuinely abusive patterns that are horrible and inexcusable. But out of the parenting styles that aren’t, which one works depends on a number of factors, one of which absolutely includes that every child is different and has different needs. Camila is an amazing parent for Vee, giving the kid everything she’s ever longed for. She’s not an ideal parent for Luz. And that’s because Luz and Vee have fundamentally different needs.

Likewise, Luz is a pretty great child for Eda, but not a perfect fit for Camila. Luz relates to Eda a lot more than she relates to her mom, and that’s why the two of them have an easier time understanding each other. Both of these mother-child relationships exist, and one is not more doomed to fail than the other, but I think you’ll agree that the better you understand someone and where they’re coming from, the easier it is to communicate, pick up on certain signs, etc.

As mom and daughter, Camila and Luz are both flawed and have issues seeing the other’s perspective because of how different they are. And we should simultaneously acknowledge both of their roles in the issue and give both of them the space to learn and grow past those issues.

Luz struggles to communicate her problems. She doesn’t want to burden people in the demon realm, and it’s a given that this started out as not wanting to burden her mom. So she keeps quiet about her issues. Camila tries hard but can’t read her daughter’s mind, so there’s only so much she can do to understand and help the way Luz needs her to. Hell, Eda, who Luz is a lot more open with than her mom, struggles to help her, because Luz doesn’t tell her what’s wrong. I don’t see anyone calling Eda a terrible mom for that.

Camila tries her best, but she struggles to understand her daughter because of this, and because of how fundamentally different they are. She loves Luz’s creativity, we actively see her supporting it in the new episode—she keeps the weird stuff Luz made because she thinks Luz will regret throwing it away, and even plays along in what she assumes to be some elaborate role play because “she’s glad Luz kept her creativity even though it’s not made things easy for her at school”. But at the beginning of the show, said creativity got out of hand and people got hurt. Luz could’ve gotten hurt. So of course Camila had to interfere. I love Luz dearly, but she thought it was okay to bring snakes to school and set off fireworks inside a school building. Creativity is great. Doing reckless stuff that causes people to get hurt is not.

In sending Luz to camp, Camila tried to have someone else fix her issue because she didn’t know how to help Luz. That was a mistake, and a bad one at that, but she’s realizing that. She looks disheartened when Vee tries to throw out Luz’s stuff, because she never meant to change her daughter or take that part of her away. She just thought Luz needed a reality check—which, for the record, is something the narrative actually agrees with.

Luz spends her time in the demon realm getting reality check after reality check, realizing that even her ideal fantasy world where she has everything she always wanted doesn’t mean she’s free of consequences. She goes overboard constantly, causing:

-Eda to be forced to fly into a trap because Luz is chasing a fantasy (Witches before Wizards)

-Eda to almost be branded by her sister because Luz doesn’t think through why Eda doesn’t use magic to publicly announce her presence constantly (Once Upon a Swap)

-Eda and the twins to get kidnapped by a Slitherbeast because Luz stole Amity’s wand (Adventures in the Elements)

-Her friends to get hurt when she goes overboard trying to help Willow (Wing it like Witches)

-Eda to be captured and almost petrified because Luz thought she could just steal from the Emperor with no consequences in an attempt to help (Agony of a Witch)

I’m like 90% sure these aren’t even all. None of those make her a terrible person, for the record, but as all humans are, she is flawed and makes bad choices. She learns from these experiences and matures, just like her mom had hoped she would at camp. She’s also made friends there, which was another thing Camila wanted for her daughter.

You’ll probably realize that a lot of Luz’s behaviors I mentioned follow one of two patterns: 1. Luz’s idealized fantasy world causing problems, when she walks around with rose tinted glasses and gets people in trouble in the process because she hasn’t thought about the consequences, and 2. Luz trying to help someone she loves, but instead making things worse in the progress. The issue with this one is often that she doesn’t communicate her ideas/listen to the people she’s trying to help—like when Willow and Gus said they’ve had enough of Grudgby, or how she never actually talks to Eda about the healing hat idea before doing something reckless.

…does the latter one sound familiar to you at all? No? Because it’s the exact same thing that Camila did.

Some of the things Luz does are reckless and actively endanger others and herself, and that’s something that I think we need to acknowledge before judging Camila. As Luz’s mom, it’s Camila’s job to interfere in those situations. That she made a mistake while trying to protect Luz doesn’t make her a terrible person, especially as, again, the narrative proves her right to an extent.

I’m not saying her making Luz promise to come back and stay isn’t something that hurt Luz—it absolutely is. But it was born out of desperation. She’s emotional and in shock. She’s so full of pain and regret. She just wants her fourteen year old daughter home safe, and there’s nothing abusive or even morally ambiguous about that.

From Luz’s perspective, what she says is absolutely heartbreaking, but from Camila’s, it’s perfectly reasonable. I doubt Camila has the full picture, but even if she does, she’s had a full fifteen seconds to process that her daughter has not only been lying to her for months, but chose to leave her, and is in the demon realm of all places. Of course she’d be emotional and upset about that! Who wouldn’t? Camila isn’t a robot. If she’d been calm about this I’d be way more concerned, honestly.

My parents don’t get mad that easily, but if I would lie to them for weeks on end, they’d be pissed off too, not even taking the running away from home part into account. That’s a normal thing. People don’t like being lied to. Camila is absolutely devastated in that moment because she’s scared that Luz left because she hates her, when Luz actively states that her leaving wasn’t about her mom—which is another thing we should really be acknowledging.

Abusive parents suck and abuse should obviously never be apologized or trivialized, but saying something hurtful in the heat of the moment isn’t the same thing as being an abusive parent. My parents have done this. I’ve done this. And yes, those things can be emotionally manipulative, but there’s a huge difference in whether that’s a habit or a person speaking out of hurt and desperation in a very specific context. I doubt there’s anyone on the entire planet that hasn’t had a bad moment where they’ve said something like this because they were hurting. People lash out when they hurt, and they beg for reassurance when they’re scared. That’s something we all do.

The whole mindset of “all parents have to be perfect and can never get upset or make any mistakes” is harmful as hell, and honestly also very unrealistic. No parent is perfect, and especially people like me who have a relationship with their parents that’s very good overall should know that.

Once you have a child, parenting is a non-stop learning process, every day for the rest of your life. Taking away that room to grow and expecting perfection isn’t helping anyone, especially not struggling single parents.

And I see Camila as someone who is very willing to learn, because at the end of the day, all she wants is for Luz to be happy. Let’s give her some time to wrap her head around this whole situation. Let’s see what she says once she sees for herself how happy Luz is in that world, may it be via the videos eventually coming through or Camila visiting and meeting Luz’s found family, her friends and her girlfriend.

Ultimately, I don’t think Camila will force Luz to stay at home, but we have to give her some time. She wants what’s best for Luz, and she’s gonna need some convincing that a dangerous magical world is what’s best. I feel like that’s very normal considering the circumstances.

Her and Luz need to work on their communication on both ends, they both have things to learn, but I’m certain they’ll manage to fix their relationship in the long run.

If the bunk bed is any indication, I think Vee is gonna stay in the human realm permanently while Luz sleeps at home but keeps attending Hexside in the daytime. That feels like a solution that keeps everyone happy, and allows Luz to spend time with all the people she loves. I can’t see her being forced to choose at the end.

As a closing statement: Eda isn’t an ideal mom, Amity isn’t an ideal friend or girlfriend and neither is Luz, Lilith isn’t an ideal sister… but that’s because no one is ever an ideal anything. Being flawed is a big part of being human. Everyone has different facets to their personality. Their flaws are what makes them such great, relatable, believable characters.

And I feel the same way about Camila. She’s an extremely believable character that reminds me of my own parents, flawed but very loving nonetheless.

(Also honestly, I think it’s pretty telling that some of you guys immediately bash the black single mom that’s obviously trying her hardest while giving the benefit of the doubt to Alador, who has been portrayed as neglecting and threatened his six year old daughter on screen. This was already a thing before we knew much about either of them, and I’m disappointed but unfortunately not very surprised that it still is.)

[armenelols]

The first time I read The Lord of the Rings, I remember thinking 'why is everything so grey?' There was the Grey Company in their grey cloaks, Elrond in his grey mantle and Arwen in her grey dress; grey eyes, silver eyes, symbolism with night and evening and stars. Silver and grey were the colours appearing consistently though the trilogy, most often with the elves and Dúnedain.

So I wondered... Why?

I have said it before and I am saying it again - I am not a big fan of Elrond calling himself a fëanorian, nor am I a fan of him being considered a Noldo.

He is half-elven. It's referred to so often it is impossible to miss. He is called kin of both Elves and Men, and he associates with both.

But if we have to speak of Elrond strictly as of an elf, I do not think Noldor are the way to go.

In The Peoples of Middle-earth, chapter Problem of Ros, we can find this passage:

The names Elros and Elrond that Elwing gave to her sons were held prophetic, as many mother-names among the Eldar. For after the Last Battle and the overthrow of Morgoth, when the Valar gave Elros and Elrond a choice to belong either to the kin of the Eldar or to the king of Men, it was Elros who voyaged over sea to Númenor following the star of Eärendil; whereas Elrond remained among the Elves and carried on the lineage of King Elwë.

Note 19

And also that of Turgon; though he preferred that of Elwë, who was not under the ban that was laid on the Exiles.

It is said Elrond himself preferred his status as the heir of Elwë over Turgon - and while yes, this book isn't exactly full-canon and was posted after Tolkien's death, there are just enough quotes in LotR itself to prove which side of his heritage Elrond preferred.

'... Eärendil was my sire, who was born in Gondolin before its fall; and my mother was Elwing, daughter of Dior, son of Lúthien of Doriath...'

- FotR

Elrond names Eärendil as his father, yes, but that's it - while with Elwing, he names half of his family tree.

More than that, there are the connections of Elrond and his family to the colour gey - the colour of Sindar, Grey-elves, and their king Elu Thingol.

Almost every time a member of the House of Elrond appears, they are wearing grey or are described in relation to the evening, stars, night.

And while stars are associated with all elves, the combination of all those elements is most common with - you guessed it - Sindar.

[of Elrond] His hair was dark as the shadows of twilight, and upon it was set a circlet of silver; his eyes were grey as a clear evening, and in them was a light like the light of stars.

-FotR

[of Arwen] ... and the light of stars was in her bright eyes, grey as a cloudless night; yet queenly she looked, and thought and knowledge were in her glance, as of one who has known many things that the years bring. Above her brow her head was covered with a cap of silver lace netted with small gems, glittering white; but her soft grey raiment had no ornament save a girdle of leaves wrought in silver.

- FotR

[of Elladan and Elrohir] ...two tall men, neither young nor old. So much alike were they, the sons of Elrond, that few could tell them apart; dark-haired, grey-eyed, and their faces elven-fair, clad alike in bright mail beneath cloaks of silver-grey.

- RotK

Elrond wore a mantle of grey and had a star upon his forehead, and a silver was in his hand, and upon his finger was a ring of gold with a great blue stone, Vilya, mightiest of the Three.

- RotK

There are more connections - Elladan and Elrohir bearing a silver banner, the above mentioned Grey Company who are known friends of the House of Elrond, as well as descendants of Númenor, and others.

In Problem of Ros, we also have this bit:

Now Elrond was a word for the firmament, the starry dome as it appeared like a roof to Arda; and it was given by Elwing in memory of the great Hall of the Throne of Elwë in the midst of his stronghold of Menegroth that was called Menelrond, because by the arts and aid of Melian its high arched roof has been adorned with silver and gems set in the order and figures of the stars in the great Dome of Valar in Aman, whence Melian came.

More connection to stars, to Menegroth, to Elwing, to Thingol.

And of course, of Thingol himself:

... Elu Thingol he was called, King Greymantle, in the tongue of his people. They are called the Sindar, Grey-elves, of starlit Beleriand; and although they were Moriquendi, under the lordship of Thingol and the teaching of Melian they became the fairest and the most wise and skillful of all the Elves of Middle-earth.

- The Silmarillion

Greymantle. Grey-elves. Starlit Beleriand. Constant references of Thingol and Sindar being connected to the colour grey, stars. Another interesting thing people seem to forget is that Sindar were wise and skilled and not lesser than Noldor, just different - and even than not much as Noldor and Teleri were told to be alike. Daeron constructed Cirth and was a bard of great renown; Lúthien was... Lúthien, which I don't think needs an elaboration; Mablung and Beleg were respected outside of Doriath; Celeborn, called the Wise; Thranduil, a Sinda who would not fight a war over gold (which is always a smart decision); Elwing who was brave and did the best she could (and before anyone goes at me about Elwing, I recommend this post and reading the notes on it).

Outside of them, it is the House of Elrond and Dúnedain who gets connected to the colour grey the most. I don't think it is a stretch to say that of his elven ancestry, he prefers the heritage from his mother.

In the end I see him as a Sinda-Númenorean who has just enough eldtrichness to show he is a descendant of Melian - and maybe a bit more of it when needed. However, he respects all sides of his heritage - and despite me saying he doesn't see himself as a Noldo, he doesn't have any problem with Noldor, nor does he ignore or dislikes that side of his heritage. He is proud of it and bears many Noldorin traits. He taught his children to be the same. It just isn't the most prominent part of him.

I think his tendency to stand in the background rather than lead himself is also a trait more of Sindar than Noldor, for... Obvious reasons. Most of the Noldor in the First Age fought a battle after a battle, rushed into reckless valiant acts. But if we see Sindar in battle, it's most often because they were attacked first; as a last resort; unexpected kicking ass in Lúthien style; because they see no better option.

And in the end, grey is not exactly a distinctive colour - it tends to fade into the background, but is no less than important.

Just like Elrond. Just like Sindar.

[dekalko-mania]

On the Topic of the Ghost Portal

I've used this idea a few times in fics, but I have a theory that the Fentons built the ghost portal in Amity for a reason. Jack and Maddie live, breathe, and eat ghost (like literally, their food's contaminated lol), and after college, they decided to dedicate their lives to the supernatural. Meaning? They most likely chose to live there because the city had a special connection to the zone.

We know Maddie's not from there, and I assume Jack may not be either if they met at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Though people from Illinois tend to visit Wisconsin, so who knows, maybe he was from another part of the state and grew up hearing about it. There could've been other options, but if they planned to get married, then it needed to be a place where they could raise a family comfortably.

So that's my first reasoning as to why they moved there, but I think there was more to it. Even before the portal opened, the place had its lore. Ex. Sydney Poindexter as well as Desiree originating in a genie's lamp, not the zone. They could've been 'asleep' for years, with enough ambient ectoplasm to cause some controversy, but not enough to bring them to full power. All this to say, I think the rift separating these two dimensions was very thin to begin with. It's why natural portals are so common, why Pariah Dark was able to suck them into the zone no problem, and why Wulf is able to tear into it so easily. What better place to punch a hole straight through their reality, than one where half the work is already done for them?

The question is, why take this risk in the first place? Common sense dictates this is an obviously risky thing to do. You open a door, it goes both ways. Why would two people that absolutely hate ghosts...invite them in? They're scientists, and while they've shown to make some negligent choices, they're also incredibly intelligent. I'm inclined to think that they put more thought behind this decision, instead of going the show's route and saying they were being reckless. Again, just an idea though.

If they were going to do this, it could imply that the benefits outweighed the costs. My guess is that Amity was growing incredibly unstable, and that eventually, all that tension building between both dimensions would cause a catastrophe. It's like getting a flimsy bag and gradually filling it with water. Keep doing that and the whole thing will burst. So to counter that, what can they do? Create a stable portal that relieves just enough of that tension so that the dimensions are no longer in danger of collapsing into one another. Think of it as a controlled tear, like the one made by doctors when a patient's lung has too much pressure. It's why the portal requires so much maintenance, there was literally an episode where Jack said the ecto filtrator needed replacing twice a year, or the whole thing would explode. It's dangerous, but in theory both sides win. Jack and Maddie get their research, and the city becomes more stable. That's their simplified version at least, their poor son got stuck dealing with most of the fallout. Bet that's not something they predicted.

Side note, but it also explains the Fentons' arsenal of weapons and some of their biases. If they're gonna open this gateway, they need to prepare means of defending themselves ahead of time. Expecting the worst in the 20 years of planning this thing is bound to make one think the inhabitants of that dimension can only be evil.