#they’re so causal coded

[padchai]

Can we all agree that Casual by Chappell Roan is their official song?? They didn’t have that car scene for nothing 👀

[memescomicswriting]

Okay, but here me out … modern!Aegon x reader Casual coded

I know that our Queen Miss Roan did not write this song about a man and the fandom has dubbed it one of the Rhaneyra x Alicent songs. However, as a bi I can attest that this song can apply no matter the team you bat for. It especially applies when the situationship is with someone who’s emotional attachment skills fluctuate whenever the wind blows. So Aegon.

Modern!Aegon, maybe you met in college through overlapping friend groups. He likes to party, your friends like to party. This continues past graduation.

My friends call me a loser/ 'Cause I'm still hanging around

Whether you’re still in uni or not, your friends think it’s time for you to mature and move forward from this cycle you have with Aegon. He’s not good for your health.

I've heard so many rumors/ That I'm just a girl that you bang on your couch

Your friends fill you in on what’s being said about you as a part of their reasoning.

“See how he talks about you. And you stay?”

I thought you thought of me better/ Someone you couldn't lose/ You said, "We're not together"/ So now when we kiss, I have anger issues

You confront him about what he’s been saying to his mates, but that silver tongue of his can smooth anything over. When you’re alone, he’s so sweet and you’re putty in his hands.

You said, "Baby, no attachment"/ But we're/ Knee deep in the passenger seat, and you're eating me out

Aegon’s got big Peter Pan energy. He bolts at any form of responsibility and that includes the responsibility of maintaining a relationship. He doesn’t want to grow up, his partying years to end, and to take on the role his parents have carved out for him. He’s afraid that if he commits to you it’s a sign he’s ready to commit to his future.

Is it causal now

He likes you. He wants you. Maybe as close to love as he can get. But he’s Aegon, so he keeps you at arm’s length despite demanding the intimacy.

Two weeks, and your mom invites me to her house on Long Beach

However, you’ve been around long enough that his parents do know you. They’ve seen your face enough. When he has an event that needs a date he always brings you.

I know what you tell your friends/ It's casual

It’s what he tells them when they’re high at 3am and the question comes up again. He can’t bring himself to say it’s anything more.

Then, baby, get me off again/ If it's casual, it's casual now

You always fall back into his bed. He’s addicting. You love the rush and thrill being with him gives you. You crave it despite the burn you receive every time you crash out.

Dumb love, I love being stupid/ Dream of us in a year/ Maybe we'd have an apartment/ And you'd show me off to your friends at the pier

Despite your better judgment, you still go to that delulu headspace. It’s the post orgasm high and he’s being so sweet and gentle. Maybe he’s finally changing.

I know, "Baby, no attachment"

And then his words are bringing you crashing down into the reality of it all.

Knee deep in the passenger seat, and you're eating me out/ Is it casual now?

And yet he gives you these intimate moments. They almost feel sacrosanct. And you’re thrown in the whirlwind of emotions again only to be smacked down.

It's hard being casual/ When my favorite bra lives in your dresser

You’re with him so goddamn often that his neighbors think you share the apartment.

And it's hard being casual/ When I'm on the phone talking down your sister

You’ve been at this for so long. You know him. You know Helena. She treats you as if you’re some pillar, some constant, someone who’s always been in the family.

And I try to be the chill girl/ That holds her tongue and gives you space/ I try to be the chill girl

You try so fucking hard to please him. You’re trying so goddamn hard to suppress all your desires that will scare him off. It’s like he’s given you a 4x4 dimension of space to take up in his life, but you’re a 5x5. You’re tipping over and bleeding out.

But honestly, I'm not

For some unknown reason on some random day, the scale finally tips to far. Like a spring that’s been coiled and tightened as far as it can go, you bounce back with force.

I fucked you in the bathroom when we went to dinner/ Your parents at the table, you wonder why I'm bitter

Maybe that was the moment. You’re thinking he’s finally taking this seriously if you’re having a one on one dinner with his family for no special occasion. His parents compliment his growth. You’re more than willing to comply when he drags you off to the bathroom. You think you’re both caught up in the evening. When return is when you realize it was all to antagonize his parents. You go home alone.

Bragging to your friends, I get off when you hit it/ I hate to tell the truth, but I'm sorry, dude, you didn't

You confront him the next time you see him. For the first time you actually catch him talking with his friends about you. He’s gotten bold to do it with you around. You nearly blackout while burning with rage. You’re spewing every hurtful thing you’ve ever thought while he’s dragging you into a private space.

“What the hell was that?”

I hate that I let this drag on so long, now I hate myself/ Hate that I let this drag on so long, you can go to hell

The invisible string that’s connected the two of you, he’s stretched so far that it’s finally snapped. You’re furious but you’re finally free. And you leave him. Not like any other time before, where you were meek and teary eyed. There’s no “I love you, but…” No, you’re red faced, voice hoarse, no decorum letting him have it. Everything.

You leave him a stuttering mess. Nothing left to say. Nothing to go back to. You’re broken but you’re free.

And his pain is just beginning.

[ohmerricat]

more unprovoked unhinged takes about The Show™️… i like whittaker well enough, she’s fine, but i think what would really have been perfect is for twelve to have regenerated into michelle gomez. missy made such a profound impact on his psyche story-wise that it was the memory of her calling for him that eventually got him to wake up in twice upon a time. her life ended in tragedy because the master’s (literal) self-hatred was too strong to overcome, but right before the end, even after he was led to believe she’d betrayed him, she stood up for what’s right, without hope, without witness, without reward. and i think that the doctor’s subconscious in the process of regeneration would have carried that message forward, especially since we know from caecilius that the faces the doctor chooses aren’t random: they’re there to embody an ideal or code to swear by. ten’s face, for example, was a representation of the man that would be perfect for rose (because that was the first face she saw on new year’s eve 2005, the year that changed her life: the mysterious handsome drunk stranger that promised her a wonderful year. it’s the sweetest ever causal loop) sorry i veered off-course a bit there but ah well, always gonna use an excuse to mention rose

anyway, gomez would make a brilliant doctor from what we’ve seen of her acting, her charisma and her redemption arc. it would give the new thirteenth doctor plenty of angst opportunities and regrets every time she looked in the mirror, and she could get a mini-arc over the course of her first series in which she faces up to her past and recognises that they really weren’t so different after all. and… i’m still on s11 so i haven’t met dhawan!master yet, but it could make for some great mindbending comedy-drama if he believes her to be his previous self when he first meets the new doctor, and she goes along with his mistake to deceive him, realising she’s ironically becoming more master-ish as she brings that plan to fruition (which would inspire another minor identity crisis, and don’t we just love it when the doctor isn’t quite sure of who they really are)

anyway, i don’t quite know where i’m going with this. my pfp speaks for itself. ideal parallel universe where thirteen was michelle gomez, basically

[eddiediazismyhusband]

These people will never experience the pain hearing from the causal viewers and THE SR that we who view those characters as queer, are delusional. We were told, it’s in “our heads” and what you see “is your interpretation” NOT what’s on the script. OH CANT FORGET MY FAVORITE, “go write your own SHOW”. Imagine for 6 years viewing buck as queer coded and told you were dumb and “it’s never gonna happen”. For 6 YEARS!!!! It literally took them ONE EPISODE AND MOVING TO A NEW NETWORK for bibuck to happen. And these people think this couple who ONLY HAD 3 dates (1 of them a failed one), and 2 kisses is endgame? 💀💀💀imagine your ship not having any depth to where they stopped caring about them after making buck bi💀💀💀. Where are their scenes? Oh it’s “enjoy it while it lasts”. It’s them having barely 20 minutes of screen while the “non ship” has x2 has much in 10 episodes. Did they forget their fav said this💀💀💀💀

💯no notes agree with everything you said 👏👏👏

and also even that lfj quote pissed me off when it came out bc i was like “how are you gonna stand here and tell me to be grateful for a relationship that came out of left field with no chemistry?” like even if it does lead to buddie i will still hate that whole arc because it could have been handled SO much better and without bringing back a racist character, played by a problematic person, ON TOP of causing the biggest shipping controversy to ever hit this fandom… that man has given me the ick since day one of s7 and when the cameos started and he started encouraging his fans and egging on the bullshit i was done w him.

it pisses me off bc they act like buck has to go through some sort of “queer bootcamp” before he can date eddie and im like…. no he doesn’t?? he doesn’t need some sort of “gay yoda” or whatever they called t-rex in the beginning bc there is no rulebook to being queer… so the whole notion of “working out the kinks” (which is an extra level of icky coming from someone like lfj, and looking back after the daddy joke in 7x10) never sat right with me… and the whole “what if buck got with eddie and didn’t like it?” if he meant that literally as “what if buck didn’t like it” my brother in christ theses are fictional characters, they’re not sims, the writers have full control over literally everything that happens… why would they write them if buck “wasn’t gonna like it” (which is bullshit bc we all know he 1000% fold immediately if eddie kissed him)… if he meant “what if the fandom didn’t like it” (which is an odd way to word that question if this is what he meant) WDYM IF THE FANDOM DOESNT LIKE IT EVEN HALF THE BT SHIPPERS HAVE BEEN SHIPPING BUDDIE FOR ALMOST SIX YEARS????

the whole situation drives me up s wall bc not only have we simultaneously gotten so close yet so far to getting buddie, we also now have to deal with these wack-ass fans policing people, calling queer people homophobic, sending death threats and violent hate speech to people who don’t like their ship, actively talking bad about oliver bc he clearly isn’t a fan of lfj or the way this storyline was handled, on top of having to deal with the show’s retconning of typhoid’s character and trying to brush his shit under a rug using queerness as an “excuse” and thus enabling these people to use the “homophobia” rhetoric when someone doesn’t want a boring ass rewash basic ship.

[svechnikovvv]

when in chicago

pairing: quinn hughes x actress!fem!reader

warning: profanity

summary: chicago was a magical place sometimes

a/n: i’ve binged 11 episodes of chicago pd today, so that inspired this. also, this is just so you guys can have some sort of content out there.

masterlist: here

*in this, the character you play is, hmmm let’s say detective amelia thompson*

“okay, camera’s rolling in one… two… three!” you quickly get into character.

“jay,” you say warningly before he gives you a kiss, then pulling back.

“amelia,” he says in the same tone.

“you know what will happen if voight finds out.” he gives you another kiss

“lucky us, he won’t.” he smirks down at you

“he’s a fucking detective. he’s gonna find out.” you harshly whisper, turning your back to him and going back to making your coffee. his arms wrap around your waist and he rests his head on your shoulder.

“look, babe, i have it all under control.”

“the last time you said that to me, you lost my cat.” you then hear footsteps nearing and you & jesse quickly separate as you finish making the coffee.

“morning sarge,” you call out, getting a grunt in response. you then give jesse a pointed look and walk out the small office. the director then calls cut and you find somewhere to set down the mug. jesse walks over to you and sits down on the edge of the desk.

“what do you have planned tonight?” he asks you

“nothing, honestly.” he nods

“be ready at 6.” you raise a brow at him

“jesse, are you taking me on a date?” he shakes his head

“it’s a surprise.” you roll your eyes

“what’s the dress code?” he shrugs

“causal, but warm.” you give him a skeptical look, but are cut off by the director telling you to get in your places. the rest of filming goes by smoothly and around 5, you all call it a day.

“i’ll be at your place in an hour. that sound good to you?” you nod your head at jesse and he bids you goodbye as you both go your separate ways. your hair was wavy from the stylists on set, so you figured you’d keep it this way for whatever he had planned.

causal, but warm. what does that even mean? you rummage through your closet and grab a pair of jeans, your favorite pair to be exact. you pair them with a black v-neck and your converse. okay, so there’s casual. now, the warm part. you find a light, white jacket and add it to the outfit. giving yourself a pat on the back, you change into the outfit. 40 minutes until you have to leave.

to pass the time, you make yourself a light snack and catch up on some reading. soon, knocks echo throughout your apartment and you get up, unlocking the door and swinging it open.

“ready?” you nod and lock up your place behind you, heading out the apartment complex and to jesse’s car.

“seat warmers asap.” you rub your hands together and buckle up your seatbelt. before jesse drives away, he reaches into his backseat and grabs a bag, setting it in your lap.

“what is it?”

“just open it.” you open the bag and pull out a quinn hughes jersey. you gasped and looked at him, mouth agape. maybe you let it slip one drunken night that you had something for the canucks’ defenseman. you didn’t think anyone would remember it, though.

“they’re playing against the blachawks tonight and i thought you should have a jersey to wear to the game.”

“what do you mean wear to the game?” he then holds up two tickets to the canucks v blackhawks game and you went silent. you then reached across the console and engulfed him in a hug. he laughs and then you sit back down in your seat.

“now we should get going before our seats get cold.” you laugh at his awful joke and he pulls out of his parking spot, heading to the arena.

when you arrive, there’s already a lot of people flooding in. you and jesse navigate your seats and get comfortable.

before the first period starts, your and jesse’s face light up on the jumbotron.

“from chicago pd, please welcome jesse lee soffer & y/n l/n.” a lot of people cheer and the two of you smile and wave.

soon, the first period is underway and you see that familiar number 43 that, until now, you’ve only seen on your tv skate out onto the ice.

“there’s your man,” jesse nudges you, and you hit him playfully as he laughs.

“he probably has no clue who the hell i am.”

“he’ll know who you are after tonight.”

“what do you mean by that?”

“just that i pulled a couple strings so you could meet them after the game.” your eyes go wide and he shrugs. you squint your eyes at him.

“you want something. why else would you be kissing ass?”

“can i not be an amazing friend?”

“i’ll let it slide this once.” you two go back to watching the game and right before the first period ends, beauvillier scores a goal and you stand up and cheer. the buzzer then goes off, signaling the end of the first.

“you cheer this loud at home?” jesse asks and you nod

“a lot louder, actually.”

“i find it hard to believe that you can cheer louder than you just did.” you roll your eyes and jesse gets up

“i’m going to grab a drink. you want anything?” you shake your head and he nods as you keep yourself occupied with your phone. you feel a light tap to your shoulder and you turn around to see a little girl no older than 9 standing there shyly.

“hi, what can i do for you?” you smile at her and she looks up at the older man standing beside her that you didn’t even notice.

“she watches the show and loves detective thompson.” your heart warm at the words and you look at her.

“do you want a picture?” she nods and you turn in your seat and she comes and stands beside you.

“what’s your name?”

“amelia.” now it makes sense why she likes you so much. your character has the same name as her.

“like detective thompson,” you say and she nods.

“okay amelia, let’s smile.” the two of you smile up at the camera and her father takes a picture.

“what do you say, sweetie?”

“thank you,” she says and you nod. they then walk away and jesse’s back beside you.

“met your first fan of the night?”

“a nine year old girl named amelia.” he chuckles

“how ironic.” you nod. the two of you continue to converse and before you know it, the second period starts. the blackhawks managed to score, tying the game. the rest of the second goes by and nobody else scores. it’s down to the third period and pettersson scores for the canucks, giving them a 2-1 lead. but then someone else on the blackhawks score and the game’s tied yet again.

looks like they’re going into OT because the buzzer goes off. end of regulation.

you see that quinn is on the ice and the puck is being passed to him. now you’re on the edge of your seat. he moves it down the ice and he goes to shoot and you feel yourself holding your breath.

he makes it in.

you stand up and erupt into cheers just as he skates over and makes eye contact with you. he points at you and you point back at yourself, brows raised. he nods and tosses his stick over the glass and you catch it, looking at jesse with a shocked face.

“you look like a kid on christmas.” you nod

“i feel like one.” he laughs and you look at the stick in disbelief. jesse then stands with you and the two of you look for some kind of guard and when you find one, jesse flashes the pass he has and they let you by. you bet you look like gandalf walking around with a hockey stick.

the players start to trickle out of the locker room slowly and soon you lock eyes with quinn. his brows furrow slightly and he walks over.

“thanks for the stick, by the way.” you say and he smiles, nodding.

“you were the first person sporting a canucks jersey—mine at that—that i saw and the adrenaline rush took over, i guess.” you let out a quiet laugh

“i’m sorry, where are my manners? i’m y/n l/n and this is my costar jesse soffer.”

“costar?” he questions and you nod

“we’re from chicago pd.”

“that cop show,” it’s like pieces connect and you nod.

“my mom’s a big fan. you mind if i take a picture with you two?” your jaw slightly drops and jesse nudges you, making you break out of your trance and you nod. quinn laughs and hands his phone to elias who happens to be walking by.

“can you take a picture?” he nods and jesse stands at one side of quinn as you stand on the other. he snaps a couple photos before handing quinn his phone back and saying his goodbyes.

“i was wondering if i could get a picture too?” quinn nods

“absolutely.” you hand your phone to jesse and quinn throws his arm around your shoulders. you’re now realizing how he has some inches on you. you scoot closer to him and jesse snaps some photos before he nods and hands you back your phone.

“well, the two of us have to get going, but it was nice to meet you, quinn. thanks again for the stick.” he nods and the three of you say goodbye to one another. before you even get to round the corner to head to the exit, quinn calls your name. you turn around and walk over to him.

“yeah?”

“i was wondering if i could get your number?” he sheepishly rubs the back of his neck and you feel your heart do cartwheels. you nod and put your number in his phone and he smiles, before saying goodbye for real this time. you join jesse again and now you two head towards the exit.

“what was that about?” he asks as you’re leaving through the doors.

“i may or may not have just gotten his number.” jesse stops in his tracks and looks at you.

“for real?” you nod excitedly

“i told you you’d get your man.” you roll your eyes and set the hockey stick in the back of jesse’s car, sliding back into the passenger seat. he takes you back to your place and you tell him goodnight.

you were settled in bed when your phone pinged, lighting up your pitch-black room.

1 notification

hey, it’s quinn. mom said she can die happily now that you know she exists

you laugh at the message and shoot a text back before you turn your phone on silent, heading to sleep. when you wake up in the morning, you see another text from quinn.

good morning :) our plane boards at 12, so i was wondering if you wanted to catch some coffee before i left?

you smiled at his sweet text and told him to meet you at the cafe you and the cast went to sometimes.

when you get there, quinn’s sitting down in the back with a cup in front of him. you order your drink then make your way over to him, taking a seat in front of him.

“there you are,” he smiles.

“wouldn’t be anywhere else.” the two of you continue to talk about anything and everything and he’s such a sweet guy. you still don’t know why in the world he asked for your number, but you’re glad he did.

he checked the time on his phone and got up.

“i have to leave now, i’m sorry. but i’ll text you, okay?” you nod and he gives you a hug bye. his cologne was comforting and you just wanted to stay there forever. you order another coffee and make your way to set.

“woah, you look like a sad puppy. what happened to you?” patrick asks as you take a seat beside him.

“something tells me a certain someone had to leave.” you shoot jesse a look and he holds up his hands.

“i’m sorry, who?” patrick asks

“you know that hockey player y/n likes a lot?” patrick nods

“quinn hughes, right?” jesse nods and gives patrick a look before he prices things together.

“you’re seeing him?” he gasps out and you shrug

“i mean, we’ve been texting and we got coffee this morning before his plane boarded.” as if on cue, your phone dinged and you looked down to see quinn sent you a picture of an advertisement for chicago pd at the airport.

thinking of you

you can’t help but smile at the text and patrick rips your phone out your hand, gasping. he then hands it to jesse and jesse looks at you, smirking.

“are we playing hot potato? no. give me my phone.” you take it back from them “you two are like children.”

“but you love us,” patrick says and you give him a side-eye.

months pass and quinn and you texted everyday. somewhere around the second month of talking, he asked you to be his girlfriend. to say the least, you were over the moon. you haven’t seen him since he left chicago that one day. so to say you missed him would be an understatement. 

“cut! okay everyone, take a break.” you walked off set and made your way to where the snack table was. you’d been eyeballing the plate of strawberries. you grabbed yourself a bowl and loaded it with them, your stomach growling loudly. 

you then felt a tap on your shoulder and you turned around to see quinn standing there. your jaw drops and you set your strawberries down, engulfing him in a hug. he smiles and wraps his arms around you, resting his head on your shoulder. 

“hey gorgeous.” you pull back from him and cup his face in your hands, scanning him over. 

“how’d you even-”

“jesse helped me.” you're still in shock that he’s in front of you right now. he chuckles and leans forward, pressing a kiss to your nose. 

“i’ve missed you,” he whispers and this makes you smile. 

“you have no idea how much i’ve missed you.” you completely forgot that there were other people around you… like your costars who, other than patrick and jesse, had no idea you were seeing someone. 

“y/n, who’s your boyfriend?” 

“guys, this is quinn. quinn, these are my pains in the ass costars.” he gives them all a wave and they all say their hellos. 

“how long have you two been together?” 

“six months” they all gasp  

“and here i was, thinking you’re like, celibate or some shit.” you all laugh and quinn laughs as well. marina then gasps

“you’re the hockey player y/n wouldn't shut up about!” oh no. quinn looks at you, an amused look on his face as you bury your head in his chest. 

“quinn… quinn hughes!” 

“that’s me.” everyone pieces everything together. “you said she wouldn’t shut up about me?” quinn questions, laughing, and you start to drag him to your traile, grabbing your strawberries as well. 

“it was nice meeting you guys,” he waves at them. quinn takes a seat in the chair you had, pulling you to sit in his lap. you rest your head on his shoulder. 

“i still can’t believe you’re here.” 

“well you better believe it because i’m yours for the rest of the week.”

“but hockey?”

“it’s my bye-week. mom said as long as we facetime her once a day so she can talk to you, she won’t be mad at me for not coming to michigan to spend the week with her and dad.” you laugh and pop a strawberry in your mouth. 

“you want one?” you ask him, mouth full. he nods grabs one, putting it in his mouth, humming in satisfaction at the taste. 

“what did they put in those strawberries? they taste better than usual.” 

“they’re always this good. i don’t know what they do to them. but they better keep it coming.” 

when in chicago, you may just meet the one. or your favorite hockey player. 

tags: @goldenbrokenheart @woodruff-edwards @marsthehockeywhore @samosmackie @hughesx3 @jayda12 @theywantedplayer @austinbutlerscaresme @jackhues @jackhughesily @babydollmarauders @equallyshaw @astars-things @akengii

a/n: this was so long, i got carried away. anyways, tumblr messed up so half of this is pasted from google docs so if something pasted twice or the formatting is messed up, i apologize.

[cadmusfly]

ASK GAME BE UPON YOU

List 5 things that make you happy, then put this in the askbox for the last 10 people who reblogged something from you! get to know your mutuals and followers. (No pressure ofc)

Ooh, thanks!

Uh let’s not go for the obvious here

1. Ternaries. I love using ternaries in code. I think they are sexy and elegant, I know they are just if statements, I still think they are nice

2. Executing a smooth turn into a side street while driving so that I don’t overshoot the turn and the car that was behind me doesn’t have to slow down

3. A snail that is snailing along happily (but not if they’re in the mailbox eating letters)

4. Managing to paint the eyes on a mini satisfactorily without having to melt its face off three times

5. Seeing people do things downstream of things that I have done, because it’s nice to be reminded that I am part of a causal chain

Thanks for the ask!

[baddygab-bi]

Fox’s Bones:

The Part in the Sum of the Whole

“It has to be you, you’re the gambler”

… “I’m the gambler… I believe in giving this a shot.” “What? Us?” Kiss

Fox’s 911:

Eddie and Buck gambling.

But sure, I bet it’s nothing. Just two bros hitting the tables. Sitting side by side when the rest of the table is open. Just super causal, platonic, not romantic coded at all.

Also Bones lines are from memory so they’re probably only like 98% accurate

[thosesillylittlegayghosts]

My (positive only) thoughts on the rwrb movie

BAD REPUTATION

I’d be down’ and ‘actually I’d argue that-‘ is so on brand for Alex I love him already

The lil intro thing is jokes

It’s giving MAJOR early 2000s romcom vibes and I’m LOVING it

DAVID BOWIE

Shaan taking none of Alex’s shit what an icon

We love Henry being a lil history neek

His mum outranks my mum HENRY STOP I LOVE YOU

‘Means you’ve got good taste Alex’ is so crushing Henry coded

‘And why do you dislike me?’ He sounds like a bratty three year old I’m howling

‘I need to get out of here’ BECAUSE HE WAS CRUSHING I CANNOT

I’m sorry what the actual fuck was Henry talking to that kid about? Cause I heard ‘it’s so sticky as well’

Wait is Miguel Liam? Also bestie Alex why are you admitting this was a cover up so easily my guy you are in PUBLIC

Oh yeah no it is those two have definitely hooked up

EYELASHES

What an entrance to his dms Henry truly (also what is that bitmoji bestie 😭)

HRH PRINCE DICKHEAD

BUT WE WERE EVER SO CAREFUL DEAR WE ARE FUCKING WINNING BOOK FANS

No because this is such a cute way of showing the text messages?? Like Alex and Nora hanging out and Henry just ranting cause he’s all Alex can think about is adorable

‘Bellend’ please he’s so British

HENRY ON ALEXS BED AS THEY TALK I CANNOT THIS IS BETTER THEN ANYTHING I COULDVE IMAGINED

That entire convo was gold

Okay so then making Nora June with pez confirmed?

GET LOW YESSSS

Henry’s awkard dancing I actually adore him he’s so me

THEH GAVE US THE MUSIC FADES OUT ONLY FOCUS ON THEM MOMENT LIKE WE KNEW WE WERE GETTING IT BUT STILL

Oh ok so Alex and Nora aren’t gonna kiss it’s just random girls

Are Alex and Nora exes in this or no?

I’m half an hour into this and it’s taken me an hour cause I keep freaking out

‘Made me understand the difference between rugby and football’ Alex bestie what the hell are you going on about?

‘I can wrap my head around being low level into guys’ ‘I’ve been with two guys’ ALEX

wait so is Liam like a different person still? The guy from high school and Miguel is just another guy?

AMY WALKING IN ON THEM PLEASE

FUCK OFF ok so we might not of have got Henry singing the national anthem but we got ruining the names of a bunch of British landmarks so yay! Ig?

I love how in the book he’s early and in the film he’s late? Like what?

So they’re just gonna casually mention Henry ‘fancying’ Alex since the beginning (is that what we’re calling it these days?)

As gay as maypole, ok so we’re not getting that line later then

HANOVER STUART PLEASE ARE THEY NOT ALLOWED TO USE MOUNTCHRISTEN WINDSOR BUT ALSO WHY OF ALL THE OLD ROYAL NAMES THOSE TWO?!

HENRY YOU ARE ALSO IN PUBLIC

OMG ACTUAL CANON CONFIRMATION THAT PRINCE HENRY AND HENRY FOX ARE DIFFERENT PEOPLE?! LIKE ACTUAL EXPLICITLY SAID?!

This is not very causal friends with benefits of you I’ve gotta say, it’s giving major love of my life deep convos

LANA DEL RAY 😭

DEAR

Bestie this is really not very casual of you

Slay politics talk! (I have no idea what any of this means I’m way to English for this shit)

Omg Alex being a politics nerd! Also why does he know his mum better than she knows herself 😭

Don’t he’s so happy to be back in Texas I’m gonna cry when he gets fired

EMAILS THE EMAILS ARE STARTING

HE DID THE LINE HE DID THE SHOULD I TELL YOU THAT LINE

NO SHIT HES ABOUT TO START TALKING ABOUT ARTHUR

Ok wait not he’s not it’s fine

Bloody love zahra

LITTLE LORD FUCKLEROY

His mothers book?

ALEX WAS READING ONE LAST STOP I LOVE IT WHEN AUTHORS DO THAT

There’s a distinct lack of Bea in this movie

THEY MADE HIM SING BADLY POOR NICHOLAS

KARAOKE BITCHES

Alex while Henry is singing is the DEFINITION of ‘Alex is so in love he could die’

Ok so they just changed Oscar to senator of Texas rather than California

Honestly props to Nicholas cause you can see him rethinking all his life choices that led him to that moment

He fr went peace and jumped and I love him for that

NOOOOO HENRY

also did he just like leave pez there or what?

Please for the love of god put Bea in a leather jacket I beg

AHHH HES PLAYING THE PIANO

Slay prince Henry bbg

I CAN LOVE YOU AND WANT YOU AND STILL NOT WANT THAT LIFE YES THAT IS MY FAVOURITE PART OF THAT SCENE IM SO GLAD ITS THERE

Okay so they’re going straight to the v&a? Slay ig

Literal tears in my eyes over that MINUSCULE Arthur fox mention

They changed your song 😭

Okay I actually like this though

HISTORY HUH BET WE COULD MAKE SOME YES THIS IS PERFECT (but also does this mean no one’s gonna know about that line?)

If I had a nickel for every-time one of the guys in a queer couple said I love you in a hug….

Nah this is gonna be it isn’t it

Shit shit no I’m not prepared for this, not from Henry’s pov fuck off im already nearly crying and I’ve got it paused

NO NOT PHOTOS OF THEM AT THE V&A THAT WAS MEANT TO BE JUST THEIRS

is this how people know about history huh?

Also I’m sorry but Reddit? Really?

Okay yep I cried

PREACH ALEX PEOPLE NEED TO HEAR THIS

I fucking love zahra

‘Mooing over the prince like a cow in labour’

Alex is gobsmacked

WE GOT A BABY GUYS

Them playing the national anthem together was not on my bingo card

Also the subtitles say it has an actual name?? I legit just thought it was called god save the king/queen respectively

‘My affection comes with strings’

YESSS SLAY SHAAN THE OG BOYFRIEND ON A STRING

Also we love to see firstprince gossip

Okay that shot of Henry going to twist his ring only to pan over to Alex twisting the ring means SO MUCH TO ME ITS UNREAL

Minor slay to the king for putting Philip in his place (never thought I’d say that)

The way Henry slouches before he asks that question makes my day

‘Homosexual’ im sorry that prononciation has added years to my life can we all say it like that now please?

Not them swapping the motorbikes for bicycles 😭😭

[butchblueboy]

okay i’m sure this has already been hashed out many a time before but i just rewatched good omens and i know the argument goes back and forth are they gay are they just best friends does it matter they love each other regardless and yes BUT. upon the second watch so many things stand out to me that i guess i missed the first time? the number of times aziraphale is referred to as a pansy (“southern pansy”) INCLUDING the times he refers to himself as a southern pansy! the time when witch hunter shadwell says something like Aziraphale must be seducing women and he replies that he MUST have the wrong address. hello!! idk, even if they’re not “gay” in the way that they are celestial beings without human gender or sex, they’re??? still like really gay coded. like aside from their romance and devoted friendship, like these characters are written in very stylistically queer ways. there are tons of other things too like Crowley’s gender switching as the babysitter, his gay ass saunter like straight men do not move their hips like that in causal walk sorry, and don’t get me started on the music choices and constant Queen songs. like Neil Gaiman might be right that they’re not gay technically because they’re not human but by all other accounts and stylistic choices these men are totally represented as gay!! idk i just feel like watching it a second time it totally hit me over the head with how clear it it. pls chime in also i’d love to hear other people’s thoughts!!

[twdmusicboxmystery]

Recent Social Media Odds and Ends

@galadrieljones

Also, Gimple has been nostalgia posting on twitter a lot lately, talking about how he got his start on the show and about the end. He posted this tweet which I don’t think is any sort of smoking gun but it just reminded me of one of the most mysterious quotes of the entire show, which is when Sasha says, “We don’t die.”

In those big moments for Rick, the quotes seem to be teaching him something. Shane gives Rick strength by talking about Judith and loyalty and inspiring in him the darker side of survival where things get done. Shane is interesting as the anti-Rick but the most compelling message comes from what he says about the Third Man. “There was a third man,” which he says “changed everything.” Then, Hershel assures Rick that he doesn’t need to worry about Maggie, that he knows it’s been hard, but doesn’t need to worry because “We’ll get there. All of us.” 

After that, it’s Sasha who delivers the final message: “We don’t die.” I don’t know why it’s Sasha. But it is. All the messages seem to be telling us not to worry, but to pay attention, because there’s something at work that we don’t see, and it will change everything (the CRM). But they’re also telling us that everybody is still alive? In some way. It is a message about the kingdom of Heaven, God’s house, just like Gabriel’s sermon in WHAWGO, which is also about that which goes unseen. Idk the messages just seem to be about a reunion. Or telling Rick that this is all some sort of illusion. That they’ll all be together again someday, or that they never were actually apart? It’s so mysterious.

@wdway:

Does Gimple substitute numbers in his Twitter post often? 442. S4 series episode 42 was Dead Weight, the second Governor episode. Might not mean anything but the numbers just stood out to me.

@galadrieljones:

He did it a lot in this thread. Here’s the whole thing:

@wdway:

First block 1:4. S1e4 Vatos. Second block 12 series number 12 was Secrets. 2/3, s2e3 wastage the Last One.

@galadrieljones:

I have no idea if he’s put code in his tweets. He could be referencing 1.1, 4.12, 4.4…

Also I am once again thinking about Blair/Gina and morphic resonance. Like that there are multiple “tries” at work here, multiple threads of reality under the surface. In one of those threads they’re all still alive and together. They get the happy ending because they make the right choices. It’s what WHAWGO is all about. Martin tells us that our choices matter. He doesn’t get enough credit for that.

Bob seems to represent fate (It happened because it had to, because it was always going to), Martin represents free will (maybe if you’d made better choices, Beth would still be alive), and the Governor represents karma (you have to pay the bill). It’s sort of like A Christmas Carol, in which Tyreese sees the ghosts of the past, present, and future. Beth and the girls just represent temptation, ie: “It’s okay, Tyreese. It’s better now.” Innocence achieved through death, a clean slate, an indication that if you die, it will all just go away.

Idk where I’m going with this. It’s just ideas.

A Christmas Carol is also about getting a do-over, and alternate realities and causal loops.

Re: It’s a Wonderful Life, Lexmas, etc.

Groundhog Day, Mystery Spot, all stories of causal loops that have to be broken

@twdmusicboxmystery:

Also, I’ve been following the AMC account that has been counting down the top episodes. I’ve wondered what their number 1 would be. I didn’t really expect it to be Coda or anything super Beth related, but they went with 9x05: What Comes After, when Rick leaves. 

That seems very strategic to me. Like, it’s less the “best” episode of the series (even though it was definitely a very good one) and was probably chosen more to kick us into the CRM storyline. 

Also, let’s remember that Emily’s voice is in that episode, but she’s not identified as Beth but as a weirdly mysterious “woman.” And of course we also see her lying not far from Daryl in Rick’s dream, with blood on her arm. So, it feels significant that they chose that episode.

https://www.instagram.com/p/ClMUGlBOg5T/?igshid=MWI4MTIyMDE=

@twdmusicboxmystery:

People are sending me this on IG. This video was posted by the official AMC account about 6 hours ago. I’m not sure if it’s the one I sent you above, but they’ve posted a whole bunch of montage videos today. For this one; it has lots of stuff in it. Not just Bethyl. But they used Daryl carrying Beth as the thumbnail that shows in the wall. 

Hint: IG will pick a default image to the be the thumbnail of the poster doesn’t pick one, but it always asks you specifically if you want to pick one. Which means either way they specifically picked or agreed to using this as the thumbnail. I’m just saying.

Next, @katkhaos posted an interview Norman gave to Vanity Fair in the group. You should both read it when you get a chance. Lotss of good stuff in it. But here are some things that jumped out at me. First, Norman uses the term "coda," which is always nice to see. He's talking about the Rick and Michonne bit of the finale, but still.

Next, I really loved this, even though it's not particularly TD. He talks about a small, angry group of people who are convinced he and the other actors and AMC are lying about why Melissa is not in the spinoff. He says they're simply wrong. But it also shows that they know these are just the outliers, not most of the fandom. That's nice to have confirmation on.

 Finally, what Kat points to in the group is that he zeros in on the line Judith says about Daryl deserving a happy ending. He says that, more than any other line in the show, will lead into the spinoff. Honestly, Gals, I've wondered a bit if the spinoff will truly be about Beth. Not that I'm doubting her return, but rather I'm just wondering if the spinoff will be about something small and then we'll get Beth at the very end, and have to wait until the next thing to get their story or something. But this definitely shows that the spinoff will be about Daryl's "happy ending," and we all know that will include Beth. ;D

@galadrieljones:

Not really news but some confirmation on Rick’s location in the coda.

https://twitter.com/twalkingdworld/status/1595205710530289664?s=46&t=Ra_ilvCGb2OAMY3oVgK1kA

@wdway:

Rick is on the opposite side of the Delaware River.

 The first time I actually sent the painting with Washington this one is actually Rick. And who is that behind him, Jesus or some would say Christ and who is the Christ figure=Beth..

@galadrieljones:

Hey everyone! Hope your night before Thanksgiving is going well Here’s a Gimple tweet I appreciated. Not Bethyl but he has been tweeting a lot lately so I’m hoping this trend continues!

@twdmusicboxmystery:

Lol. Love it! I wish Gimple was on social media more. Glad to hear he’s tweeting.

@wdway:

Hopefully what they are doing is making it obvious for us. Here's our bone. I hope they keep coming and get meater as time goes by.

Guys I hope this means just as Michonne stumbled across Rick's boots and cell phone Daryl will have a similar parallel in finding Beth things. My bet is one of them will be her necklace. Her boots are very distinctive but would that be overdoing it, way too obvious or are we at this point of be damned let's go for it.

@twdmusicboxmystery:

Let’s hope they continue to go for it! I’ve been thinking about Rick/Silas parallels and how the actor who plays Silas jokingly suggested we would see Rick in the TWB finale. I can’t help but wonder now if it was less a deceptive tease and more a hint. Like maybe the TWB actors already knew more about the Rick/Silas parallels than the GA does. No way to know either way, but it seems really convenient for him to have said that, with what we know now.

@boltthrutheheart:

I know that I have told you before that I sometimes play the Walking Dead Slots game. I believe I have even shared something similar before. In the game, they have a mini game featuring characters from the show that you can level up and send on missions to get free coins. They call the different collection of characters “seasons”, each of them have a cohesive theme, and each season lasts a couple of months. 

Beth was included in a season before that was themed for the farm. It has been a while since she has been included in the mini game because they focused on the Whisperers, Alexandria, and some other themes, but she is in the latest season (which has been going on a few month’s, I have just been a little absent minded in sharing it). 

So Beth is currently in a character collection called “Fallen Heroes”. The funny thing about it is, not all the characters in it are “fallen”. The characters included are mostly characters that there is no doubt about being dead. They were very very dead the last time we encountered them. There is Glenn, Abraham, Carl, Enid, Jesus, and Hershel. 

Then there is Beth. She of course is in a grey area since we didn’t see her in a very dead state or buried like we saw the other characters. The final “Fallen” character they included is Rick, and Rick is very much alive. I just thought that this might be of some interest to you. I have some screenshots to share, but I don’t play enough to have all their characters leveled up (although you can tell who they are in the silhouette that is there).”

@twdmusicboxmystery:

I just think it's a super cool clue that in the Fallen Heroes group, all of them are very obviously dead and could not possibly come back, except Rick and Beth. And Rick is very clearly alive. Yet another clue to Beth's survival. That's all. ;D

@wdway:

Loved this. All of these small hints/clues that keeps Beth's character front and center to a smaller to diverse TWD audience. I would never have seen this because I'm not a gamer. Gamers are an area that they're covering bringing in that fraction of the fans.

@galadrieljones:

I do enjoy how they seem to be keeping her alive here

@wdway:

I'm going to start off with something that has just been replaying in my mind since I read it the other day. I'll give you the whole little sections of question and answer from Gimple instead of just what I zeroed in on.

It's the last paragraph that stood out to me. They're talking about announcing early with the spin-offs and how Jeffrey was very upset about it. Gimple is saying that because so many people have seen Lauren and Jeffrey filming in New Jersey that people would have known about it anyway but then he goes on to say he would have been crazy enough to announce that it was going to be a sitcom between the two. 

What struck me is that he's actually admitting to lying about a certain story lines in order to keep what's going on on the down low. I realize we've known this for a long time or suspected greatly that he bends the truth to fit how he wants things to be presented or hidden but here we have him actually saying that's what he would have done if not for that fact it had already been announced.

https://www.facebook.com/1491451041161527/posts/pfbid04uLcRDhf46ugYX8rKexasJBqCJha32tQZCquoRFDDPYozaoP3xogc8BWSHsYzmYil/?mibextid=Nif5oz

This explains a lot about the people seeing older characters during filming. It also may explain why there was reportedly a script called Atlanta.

@galadrieljones:

Interesting. Personally I don’t like massive time jumps so I’m glad they didn’t do that. Just my opinion. Ofc I’m also glad the story isn’t over, and in a way, I feel they was perhaps why the shows ending felt strange. Because it isn’t over? It’s unclear which aspects will go away and which will continue to develop, especially outside the characters who we know will be in spin-offs.

I get they wanted to do the show justice with an appropriate emotional ending, but I feel as if it opened more doors and asked more questions than it answered.

Like Judith telling Daryl he deserves a happy ending, Daryl leaving, Negan just wandering off, etc.

@wdway:

I think the original plan ending for the series would have been to pacify the comic readers.

@twdmusicboxmystery:

This is all super interesting! Thanks for sharing it. I agree about Gimple bending the truth. We've known that for a long time, but it's nice to have some confirmation we can point to. 

It reminded me of the way they originally marketed the Carol/Daryl spinoff, calling it a "road trip" show. For me, I think that was a hint that Carol and Daryl would leave together to find Beth, like they did in S5. That's what they originally planned, but of course it has changed now since MMB backed out. But I think the "road trip" thing was exactly this. It was Gimple being satirical, as he would have been had he announced that the Maggie/Negan spinoff was a sitcom. 

I've said this before, but Gimple doesn't have the best comic timing. I think it makes him lovably nerdy, but it also means that sometimes, when he makes jokes--such as on TTD--they don't entirely land. And I think this is a similar thing. He'll say something tongue-in-cheek about some part of TWDU, but people have a hard time telling when he's being serious and when he's teasing them. 

I mean, they keep saying the spinoff will have a very different tone from the main show. And of course it will. How can it not, given that it's in France and deals with different characters than we've seen before (other than Daryl)? But that doesn't mean it will stop being TWD. Every episode of Tales had a different tone than the main show, but it's still very recognizable as TWD.

Anyway. As for the second article, I agree with you both. I'm glad they didn't go with that ending. For me, it would have been somewhat deceptive to viewers. We would have seen the grown kids, and most people would have assumed that Daryl, Rick, and Michonne never made it back to them. 

They shouldn't assume that. As 20-somethings, the kids could be out on their own looking for survivors, and Rick and Michonne and everyone could be back at Alexandria waiting for them. No reason to think all the adults didn't make it back only a few months after Daryl left. And that ending by no means suggests anything would have changed in the spinoffs and the way they're expanding the universe. It only would have suggested that the kids survive into adulthood, so anytime they're in danger in the show, we'd know they will be fine, lol. 

But if it didn't specifically show the adults returning, you know plenty of people would have assumed that and been up in arms about it. There would have been a lot of resulting drama in the fandom. So again, I too am glad they didn't go that route.

I’ll stop there for today. What do you think of these social media tidbits?

[thesereveries]

Repression

Imagine a woman suffering in late-19th century Austria. Let's call her Anna. Whenever her husband approaches her in bed, it becomes difficult to breath, and she wishes she weren’t alive. Why is this happening to me? she despairs. It doesn’t make any sense, for she loves her husband so. When Anna confides in her friends, they insist that this is to be expected, given her belonging to the more delicate sex. Or, they insist that she must be neglecting her religious duties, and she should pray more. This makes invisible the actual reasons. Unbeknownst to her, someone made her perform sexual acts when she was a small child. She can barely remember this, let alone be able to connect it up to why sexual activity comes with anxiety or depression.

Freud comes around. He convinces the intelligentsia that their culture is overly repressed. When people lose opportunities to figure out what they’re emotional about, this amounts to an obstacle dropped, stopping people from using their emotion as a pathway to discovering forbidden, significant parts of reality. Repression can allow forms of cruelty, like sexual abuse, to perpetuate. 

To address this situation, Freud offered a framework for making sense of our emotions in terms of various “complexes” (e.g, neurosis, hysteria) and methods for working out their causes (e.g., dream analysis, free-association). While I believe that the practice of unpacking emotion should be normalized, and Freud helped get us there, the exact diagnoses and methods he proposed are limited, and even dangerous (I’ll return to this below).

This wave of repression, which Freud responded to, arose from the moral codes of religious institutions. Sex is not a topic that could be talked about, back then. Now, there is another wave of repression. This time the wave arises from the practical codes of scientific institutions. Rather than being told that our depression and anxiety is caused by the natural order (e.g., Anna is told that her suffering is part of the innate relations between men and women), today we’re told that our emotional suffering is caused by serotonin imbalances, not getting enough exercise, or not eating right. We’ve swapped out one natural order for another. While such physical factors can influence our suffering, these are not the ultimate cause.

When we’re told that our emotional suffering stems from past trauma, this is better. But there are two issues with trauma talk. First, trauma is often mentioned as if it were a mechanical cause, as if we were clockworks, and our trauma is a loosened gear. A single past traumatic event, we think, can cause depression and anxiety. Belief in this causal picture is dangerous. It prevents us from realizing our freedom and from healing (an idea I’ll return to below). 

Second, emotional trauma is often conceptualized as a local, personal event, like a wound on one’s body. Trauma not like this. Rather, it is like a massive project collectively undertaken. Think of mass hysteria or mob mentality. Under our collective projects, we take for granted that there are certain goals, and that certain resources ought to be used to achieve these. Compare this to a cult whose members believe that they must pray in order to stave off the apocalypse. These people pray hundreds of times a day, and are even competitive with one another about how much they’re praying. None of them realize how their goal is pointless (there is no such thing as an impending apocalypse), or that their means are ineffective (even if an apocalypse could happen, praying won’t make a difference). Likewise, in our society at large, we’re all obsessed with certain aims, whose futility or danger to our well-being we can’t see. We waste our lives, without realizing it, as much as these cult members do.

Sometimes, these soul-sickening projects spontaneously arise and consume a society (think about torture practices in fraternities). Other times, they are designed by individuals abusing their power (think about cult leaders or the ultra-wealthy who hire lobbyists). Always, these soul-sickening projects are shaped by historical inequities and neglected infrastructure (think about racism and economic disparities). 

What are the collective projects, exactly, which explain our emotional traumas? While I’ll mention some tentative ideas later, in conclusion, in general it is difficult to identify them. The current wave of repression stands in the way. The path emotion could offer towards uncovering the wrongs of reality is blocked. Moral codes of religious institutions cut off this path during Freud’s day, and now the practical codes of scientific institutions have cut us off. 

The scientists are not at fault. Culture shapes all of us, so that we expect that, as long as we pay enough money, or swallow the right pills, we can be relieved. We demand technological fixes. It is easier on the conscience to believe that depression or anxiety is caused by the brain than to believe that we’re responsible for our suffering, that we’ve brought it upon ourselves. Repression is all the more tempting under this incentive structure. None of us want to believe that the cause of our suffering is something that no one can fix. 

Facing up to this fact, however, is not all doom and gloom. We’re partly responsible for our own and each other’s suffering. While no individual can save us, we can save each other. 

How are we to do this? I think that while it’s useful to appeal to the psychoanalytic tradition, we ought not revive this tradition. Psychoanalysis places too much weight on the power of introspection and one-to-one therapy. It is committed to that our suffering ought to be accompanied by certain symptoms and is normally caused by certain stock narratives (e.g., specific phobias and fetishes; forgotten childhood sexual trauma). 

Moreover, this tradition promotes that emotional suffering is a clinical or medical issue, as opposed to a personal, societal, or spiritual issue. When it’s made medical, we’re encouraged to think that only medical experts can help us. Psychoanalysis limits us. In contrast, when emotional suffering is made a personal or societal issue, we’re encouraged to look into the matter ourselves, or with our friends and family. We’re given the creative license to make discoveries; scientists can’t figure this out for us, because their methods are tailored for understanding biology, not the mind and soul.

We ought to shift the weight, instead, onto the power of culture, community, and family. We ought to see how what authorities tell us about the nature of our emotional suffering can engender certain symptoms. Consider the history of hysteria and multiple personality disorder. Both consist in a set of behaviors, deemed as a scientifically or medically legitimate disorder in society. When people were diagnosed with these, they suddenly found themselves beset by the symptoms named by the scientists. Once these disorders were debunked by scientific authorities, these symptoms virtually vanished from society (Hacking 1995). So we shouldn’t think that any particular “complexes” or disorders named in psychoanalytic theory are scientifically legitimate. When people seemed to have these disorders, their symptoms were “brainwashed” into them by authority figures, like therapists and psychiatrists. There is a lesson to take away from this bit of history: The forms of our suffering are malleable to the touch of authority, or the people we trust. 

In light of the complexity and open-endedness of emotional suffering, we ought to stay curious about the causes of our suffering. There is no mechanical cause, like a screw gone loose in one’s head. Any event in the world which contributes to our suffering has causal power only insofar as we have perceived and made sense of it. For example, a mother sees in her neighborhood a man open-carry a gun. This strikes fear in her heart; in the past, she lost a child to gun violence. In contrast, fellow gun owners will be delighted by this very sight of open-carry in the neighborhood. No stimuli can have emotional power without our backgrounds giving stimuli this power, any more than random words can amount to a story without an author arranging the words into a story.

We are each like an author translating a story from a foreign language. The story is our sensed reality, and the foreign language is the world itself. Moreover, culture will impose certain aesthetic sensibilities, which affects the choices the translator makes. Similarly, our culture imposes certain desires and expectations, which affects how we uptake events and determines whether we suffer in consequence. So we should be humble before any cause that we (or a therapist or psychiatrist) has identified as the cause of our suffering. Any conclusion we’ve made should be only “for the time being.” 

I can’t write this post without emphasizing that repression can be good, even essential to well-being. Often, we’re not equipped with the background knowledge—or willingness to look beyond what’s comfortable—necessary for figuring out the causes of our emotion truthfully. By being curious about our emotion, sometimes we can end up believing that we’ve figured things out, which only reinforce a prior delusion. By repressing, in contrast, we can prevent a deranged author of our lives, who is invisible from us, from writing forth the details of the world in which we find ourselves, like characters of this author's creation. When should we repress our emotion, and when should we be curious? It is very difficult to know. All we can do is to be experimental in our approach and open-minded when trying to piece together the effects. 

Above all, it is key to doubt psychiatrists and therapists. These professionals are trained in the practical codes of scientific institutions, as priests are trained in the moral codes of religious institutions. Trusting these authority figures pulls wool over our eyes and makes us deeply repressed, to an extent which allows cruelty to perpetuate beneath the surface. Back then, when priests ruled over our emotional suffering, such cruelty included incest and sexual abuse (which Freud focused upon). Today, if I may hazard a bet, such cruelty includes extreme self-centeredness and loneliness. We believe that rationality is a matter of self-interest, and that we should unequivocally prioritize an individual's autonomy above all else in cases of ethical ambiguity—as if we could be absolutely autonomous, as if culture doesn’t influence us.

There is much to be said about what we should do, in light of this current wave of repression. Minimally, we need to be curious about our emotional suffering and courageous in finding what's there. We need to turn towards people who know us personally, and not only to people who know us clinically (whether they are a priest or psychiatrist). Loving each other and de-clinicalizing emotional suffering would be a beginning to push against this wave of repression and to stop perpetuating the cruelty this wave hides.

Bibliography & further reading

Freud, Sigmund. The Ego and the Id. Translated by James Strachey. The Standard Edition of the Complete Psychological Works of Sigmund Freud. New York: Norton, 1989.

Hacking, Ian. Rewriting the Soul: Multiple Personality and the Sciences of Memory. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1995.

Harrington, Anne. The Cure within: A History of Mind-Body Medicine. Paperback ed. New York: Norton, 2009.

Tomasello, Michael. Origins of Human Communication. The Jean Nicod Lectures 2008. Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press, 2008.

Williams, Bernard. “From Sincerity to Authenticity.” In Truth & Truthfulness: An Essay in Genealogy. Princeton, N.J: Princeton University Press, 2002.

[selormohene]

day 3 (thursday, july 6th 2023)

It’s curious how the mind (especially the subconscious mind) works. The intention to write about whatever comes up, including the less savoury parts of your psyche, has a way of surfacing neuroses which you didn’t even realise were there. It’s also curious that when those things come up, working them out consciously doesn’t really do much and can even worsen the situation, but very often trying to think through them and experience them, and then forgetting about them and having a few good nights of sleep and ideal some sort of activity that takes you out of your mind, ends up working much better.

It’s also interesting that I don’t think I can really say with any causal clarity how anything I do on a daily basis is related to how I feel or what I think about, but everything resolves itself eventually into a long-term trajectory with clearly discernible patterns. One wants to be able to notice those patterns while they’re being created and played out in the hope of being able to steer their direction (or at least steer into the good ones and away from the bad ones), and some people seem to have a preternatural ability to do this, and I’m not sure why I find such difficulty with it, at least at this point in my life. But it hasn’t always been so and it needn’t always be so. Part of this might be related to the fact (I take it to be a fact, an overlooked one) that intelligence is actually a capacity and not merely a skill. In other words its fulfilment is in orientation towards its proper end, which is truth and reason — what is actually the case and what actually follows from what. What I’m saying is that what seems like the capacity to steer into good patterns is perhaps partly a consequence of having been socialised into good patterns at a time when your capacity for discrimination and choice with regard to such things isn’t strong enough to guide you on its own, and having the strength, once you’ve been socialised into those good patterns and while you’re still strongly adherent to them — the straight and narrow path, so to speak — not to wilfully jump into the void. There’s a problem though of what this is meant to imply for people trapped in cults and so on, people who are stuck in a given pattern which is destructive through no fault of their own but which seems to provide the scaffolding by which they can evaluate what is good for them.

This is the problem with the risk of living, and for instance being unable to avoid the possibility of messing up your kids even a little bit.

I suspect that this effect generalises, but something about studying math which gives you a confidence that can be hard to find otherwise, but which is indispensable to continuing with the expectation of success and actually finding that success, is having done it for a long time and remembering how things which seemed mystifying to you once are second nature to you now. It reminds me of that Grothendieck quote about feeling like a dumb ox labouring up a hill, trying to master all the things he’s been told he has to learn, and going on to achieve more than those who appeared to have been more talented than he was. Obviously he had no idea how talented he really was. But the point is that I remember once having no idea how long division worked, and even when I memorised the algorithm I had o idea why this helped us divide numbers. But now it’s all hard-coded in my memory. Even some of the stuff I studied in undergrad and was completely lost with, stuff like basic metric topology and analysis, aren’t quite second nature to me now but are absurdly close to it considering how little I thought I’d be able to understand them when I was struggling with them. And realising that all I have to do is keep solving and reading and thinking and eventually the neurons will sort themselves out in the background has been immensely freeing, or at least could be even more so if only I internalised it. Knowing or being aware of things is one thing, internalising them is quite another.

High-achieving cultures can arise for spontaneous reasons. The maintenance of a high-achieving culture comes from a continuing culture of high achievement. The greater the concentration of high achievement the more robust and reliable the institutional memory and implicit communal knowledge and competence surrounding guiding people towards the sort of high achievement in question. Individualist explanations which focus on the individual characteristics of the people in question fail to realise this. Obviously someone with talent and drive has a higher chance of success even in the face of obstacles but people do not at all realise how much having an environment in which success is expected and support for it is freely available and so taken for granted as to be invisible helps.

[alicanta77]

NCT Dream Reaction: Dating Jaehyun’s younger sister

Mark:

ok this is probably his worst nightmare

like 7 billion people on this planet

7 BILLION

and mark somehow managed to fall for his bandmates sister

he 10000% did the biggest face palm in history when he realised he had feelings for you

takes him about a year to feel even slightly relaxed in a room with both you and jaehyun in at the same time

he just feels like he broke the bro code

even though jaehyun has said to him multiple times it’s okay

he can’t relax around him for a while

eventually tho he gets over himself with a LOT of convincing from you and jae

and things become much less tense

and it probably ends up with a really nice dynamic

it’s essentially the Ross, Chandler and Monica dynamic from Friends

when mark hadn’t seen you in a while cause of work, jae would be the one to invite you over

jae would be the one to help convince management to let you visit them on tour

and he would often offer to go out on your dates so that people didn’t question it if you were spotted

he essentially does everything he can to help your relationship cause he loves the both of you

Renjun:

would really love it if you didn’t tell him

like ever

but unfortunately you have at some point

so you drag a whiny renjun to the 127 dorms to tell him

jaehyun probably only annoyed that it took you so long to tell him

he wants to know what’s going on in your life so that he can support you

however happy jae seems to be for the two you

renjun still thinks that jaehyun is orchestrating his death for the next four months

‘why do you think he wants you dead???’

‘because i’ve corrupted his baby sister!!!! everyone knows he’s protective of you!!!! why wouldn’t he want me dead???’

‘because he can see i’m happy???’

this is basically how your conversation goes everytime

until hyuck causally drops into convo that jae was talking to the guys about how much he loves that you’re dating renjun

and renjun feels like he just got a blessing from god

feels the need to see you immediately

‘HE DOESN’T HATE ME!!!’

‘thank god you realised! if only someone had been telling you that for the past few months!’

yeah he just shuts up you sarcasm with a massive kiss

not that you’re complaining

Jeno:

goes straight to doyoung for advice on how to tell jaehyun

doesn’t appreciate doyoung laughing at him because jaehyun’s going to kill him for dating his baby sister

when doyoung realises it isn’t a joke he probably freaks out

‘YOU’RE AN IDIOT OH YOU ARE SO DEAD!!! YOU’RE DATING JAEHYUN’S SISTER?’

‘huh?’ *jaehyun walking into doyoung’s room*

both jeno and doyoung just sit there staring at him

‘jeno, are you dating my baby sister?’ 

jaehyun’s eyes start narrowing as jeno’s are widening in fear

‘possibly’ *voice crack*

‘oh thank god it’s you, i thought it was doyoung for a second and i would have hated that!’

jaehyun’s laughing and ruffles jeno’s hair while jeno tries to catch his breath as his soul returns to his body

the boy’s just realised he’s not going to be murdered

‘you- you really don’t mind?’

‘no i always thought the two of you would end up together, i’m just glad you figured it out quickly’

after this jaehyun can’t help but see how much jeno’s smiles around you

and how you always seem to be in a good mood around him

and he decides that he doesn’t want see the either of you any other way

Donghyuck:

as teasing as donghyuck is

i think it would take him a while to become teasing about this with jaehyun

he just cares about you so much and doesn’t want to lose you

so he refuses to do anything that may give jaehyun a reason to take you away from him

literally goes to the length of acting as jaehyun’s personal slave for a week until jae feels too bad to let it continue

‘haechan, i’m not going to make her leave you. you don’t have to do this’

hyuck relaxes a bit after that

but i think he would be one to avoid talking about your relationship as much as possible

jaehyun probably has to find everything out from johnny

he probably pretends to switch rooms with johnny for a night just to mess with hyuck

after that it becomes a slight war

that poor you becomes stuck in the middle of

you act as a mediator for their arguments too

every so often hyuck forgets you’re jaehyun’s sister and makes a joke or something

‘sorry boys, gotta spend some time with the old ball and chain’ *wink*

‘WHAT?!?!’

‘no wait i was joking please don’t take her away from me i love her so much’ *on his knees*

jae would definitely abuse enjoy this new found power over hyuck

Jaemin:

im pretty sure jaehyun is jaemin’s favourite hyung

they have a v cute dynamic and have mentioned that they were close in trainee days

so i think jaemin would be absolutely terrified for jaehyun to find out

like properly terrified

like, when he does find out jaemin just accepts that the relationship is over, terrified

so you have to calm him down and talk to your brother and bf separately

jaemin would probably also do some nice things for jaehyun leading up to when you’re planning to tell him

such as buying him food and stuff

poor jaemin’s really bricking it

but after jaemin realises that jaehyun isn’t going to kill him and you aren’t going to leave him

he relaxes into the ultimate bf material that we all know he is

isn’t shy about showing his affection for you around jae

but always makes sure to keep it respectful

jaemin easily proves to jaehyun how much he loves you

and it takes jaehyun very little time to become so damn supportive of your relationship

it’s probably jaehyun who argues with management about letting the two of you go out in secret

so now you’ve got both your brother and boyfriend who are willing to do literally anything for you

Chenle:

jaehyun has said multiple times that chenle is his favourite younger brother

so i feel like out of all the dreamies jaehyun is probably most relaxed about chenle dating you

the one thing that does send jaehyun through the roof however

is that chenle doesn’t live in the dorms

he is at his own apartment

alone

with you

and little supervision

his older brother senses are tingling

expect phone calls from him so that he can check you two are being appropriate

and god forbid you miss a call from him

‘WHY DIDN’T YOU PICK UP???’

‘YOU HAD JUST HUNG UP FIVE MINUTES AGO!!! YOU DON’T CALL ME THIS MUCH WHEN YOU’RE IN A DIFFERENT CONTINENT ON TOUR!!!’

you end up shutting your phone off and telling him off when you get back

other than that it’s probably surprisingly chill

like even the others members are impressed with how little of a deal it is

chenle and jae don’t deliberately avoid or talk about it when they’re together, they just continue as normal

overall a nice, low pressure, casual environment

and you best believe jae is your number one shipper

Jisung:

is probably too nervous to tell jaehyun himself

makes you do it by yourself even though you wanted to tell him together

but sung hits you with the pout and big eyes while he begs you

and of course you caves because who wouldn’t

but the first time he saw jae after he found out about the two of you, jisung was contemplating moving countries

HE DIDN’T KNOW WHAT TO SAY

HE DIDN’T KNOW WHAT TO DO

HE DIDN’T KNOW HOW TO ACT

he just panicked went the most formal he had ever been in his life

bowed so low so quickly he thinks he cracked his back

spoke with every formality in the book

jaehyun was watching him in so much confusion

‘sung, you know i’m okay with you dating my sister right?’

‘HUH????’

‘yeah didn’t she tell you? i’ve been rooting for you guys for like two years now’

sung looks to the side

just to see you watching him laughing to yourself

‘why would you do that to meeee?’

‘make me tell him by myself and i’m gonna get payback somehow’

huffs and pouts into the night so you make sure to give him extra lil kisses to make up for it

[cipherstarker]

NFF, TW: Cheating (Not between Peter and Tony but between Tony and Pepper) or Peter Parker is Tony Starks fiancé's step-brither (SIM!Tony Stark)

Tony Stark finally meets Pepper Potts' reclusive step-brother, Peter Parker, at a dinner to celebrate their engagement. Everyone who is important to both Tony and Pepper is there, but Tony finds himself falling into conversations over and over again with Peter. Meanwhile, Peter is just trying to prove that Tony isn't good enough for Pepper - but my god, is the man making it hard. He knows physics and mechanics, showed Peter J.A.R.V.I.S on his phone and Peter can't help the feeling of awe. (He must not hide the feeling well, cause Pepper comes over to tease him about it.). But at the end of the night, Peter catches a blue glint in Tony's eyes and knows the man has something to hide...

Peter tries to find out what's wrong with Tony for months afterwards while the wedding is being planned. He gets closer and closer to Tony to find out more, trying to push aside any growing feelings into a deep, dark cage in the back of his heart. He comes over to help Tony in the lab, they're messing about with robotics - trying to build a sister for Dum-e and U - when Peter notices some data hidden in plain sight on a holographic screen (And honestly that was genius, hiding such important information out in the open where no-one would look) and it's only cause Peter, after months of intense workshops in the lab, knows Tony's incryption code so well that he works it out so quick. Tony - distracted as he was - must not notice the 5 seconds it takes for Peter's brain to catch up because by the time Peter looks back, Tony is still bent over the table fiddling with a loose screw.

It's after, once they've finished the binge in the lab, and they're sat on the couch watching Star Wars. Peter had carelessly thrown his legs over Tony's and now his thumb was causally stroking the reveled skin at his ankles. The fireplace is roaring and the whiskey is going down quickly and the next thing Peter knew he was on his back on the softest rug ever, the warmth of the fireplace stretching over him, as Tony fucks him.

Peter knows it's wrong - Tony is his step-sisters fiancé and he's been injecting himself with some kind of 'inhancement' drug - but Peter is too far gone to stop. In fact he's begging Tony, scratching at his back as he thrusts faster, to fuck him. To mark him up. To bruise him and use him beyond compare. Tony does all that and more, fucking into him like a cheap hooker as he whispers praise. Peter finds out he likes Tony's sex voice, its deeper and more husky, especially as he groans 'Good boy, you feel so fucking good, my Peter' in his ear.

[the-chocoholic-writer]

Madripoor

Zemo and Sarah’s time in Madripoor

Warnings: SPOILERS FOR EP3, violence, flirting, ect.

Words: 3527

“He’s just through that corridor.” The security guard points to a door down the large hallway. Sarah stand between Sam and Bucky as the guard stops walking.

“Alright. Give us a sec.” Bucky turns to the two as the guard walks off. “I’m gonna go in alone.” Sam and Sarah look at Bucky like he has lost the plot.

“Why?”

“Cause you’re Avengers. You know how he feels about that.”

“Buck it’s not like you two were known for frolickin’ in the sun together.” Sam gestures to where Zemo is.

“This is dangerous Bucky... HE is dangerous.” Sarah states, looking at Bucky, concerned.

“He was obsessed with Hydra... We have a history together. Trust me...” He looks at them. “I got it.” He walks off before they can say anything.

“I hope he’s alright in there...” Sarah says to Sam, after Bucky leaves the pair alone.

“He will be... He’s Bucky.” Sam places his hand on Sarah’s shoulder and gives her a soft smile.

~Later~

“What are you talking about? You wanna break Zemo outta jail? Where the hell are we, Buck? Have you lost your mind?” Sam shines a torch around the large empty room.

“We have no leads, no moves, nothing.”

“What we have is one of the most dangerous men in the world behind bars.”

“And we also have eight Super Soldiers that are loose.” Sam covers his eyes as Bucky shines the light at his face.

“Sarah how do you feel about this?” Sam turn to Sarah. Sarah quickly turns to Sam.

“I don’t think it’s safe to break Zemo out... remember what happened last time we dealt with him?” The pair look at Bucky.

“Exactly. Zemo’s gonna mess with our minds. Especially yours. No offence.” Bucky flips a switch and these large lights begin turning on. The three switch their flashlights off.

“Offense.” Bucky glares at Sam. “Super Soldiers go against everything he believes in. He is crazy, but he still has a code.” Bucky walks away from Sam and Sarah.

“I’ve been on the wrong side of that code, Buck, and so have you and Sarah. He blew up the UN, he killed King T’Chaka and framed you for it. Did you forget that? You think the Wakandans forgot about it? It’s a rhetorical question. They didn’t. I know why this matters to you, but c’mon it’s pushing you off the deep end.” Sam takes a step forward as Bucky opens his arms.

“Sam, we don’t know how they’re gettin’ the serum. We don’t even know how many of them there are.” He sighs softly.

“This is a little too crazy Bucky... we will figure it out okay? We don’t need Zemo.” Sarah steps forward and gives him a soft smile and she rests her hand on his arm.

“Look, let me run you through a hypothetical. Can I run you through a hypothetical?”

“Bucky...” Sarah’s smile turns into a frown, as Sam turns to look at him.

“What did you do?”

“I didn’t... do anything...” Bucky loos to the left, refusing to make eye contact.

“The weakest point in the system isn’t the software, the hardware, it’s the meatware. The human element. Now, in this lockup, it’s nine to one, prisoners to guards, and if two prisoners start fighting then the protocol says four guards have to respond.”

“So why would two prisoners start randomly fighting at that moment?”

“Who knows? There could be many reasons...”

“What I’m hearing is that you started it.” Sarah crosses her arms.

“The point is, these things escalate.  Lockdown procedures would have to be initiated, and with all those bodies flying around left and right, it wouldn’t be hard to slip down a hallway or two.” Sarah shakes her head and facepalms, exasperated. Bucky starts up again. “And if the fire alarm got tripped while the prisoners were being separated... someone could use the chair to their advantage.” Bucky does a small shrug.

“I don’t like how causal you’re being about this. This is unnatural. Are you... And where are we, man?” Suddenly, a door loudly opens.

“Bucky, you didn’t...” Sarah gasps at him.

The three look over at a plastic curtain, seeing the silhouette of a man grow smaller the closer he gets, until HE emerges.

“Whoa. Whoa, whoa. hey! What are you doin’ here?”

“No, listen. I didn’t tell you ‘cause I knew neither of you would let this happen.” Bucky looks at Sarah, who is staring at Zemo, eyes wide, knowing memories of what he had done were running through her mind.

“What did you do?!” Sam gets in Bucky’s face.

“We need him, Sam... Sarah.”

“No, Bucky, this is crazy. Even for you!” Sarah growls, a glare plastered to her face.

“You’re going back to prison!” Sam points at Zemo.

“If I may...” The man in question begins.

“NO!” The three yell at him. He looks a little startled by the sudden synchronisation but nods softly and whispers out a small “Apologies.” Bucky turns to Sarah and Sam.

“When Steve refused to sign the Sokovia Accords, you both backed him. You broke the law, and you stuck your necks out for me. I’m asking you both to do it again.”

“I really think I’m invaluable...” Zemo once again interrupts. Sarah groans softly as Sam turns to him, with a glare.

“Shut up.” Zemo squints at him. Sam looks at Bucky and sighs, shaking his head.

“Okay. If we do this, you don’t make a move without our permission.”

Zemo makes a face for a second and nods.

“Fair.”

“I don’t like this...” Sarah looks at Bucky and Sam. The pair shrug and turn back to Zemo.

“Okay, Zemo. Where do we start?” The three look at him as he smiles.

“So our first move is grand theft auto?” Sam looks at the large number of cars.

“These are mine. Collected by family over the generations. I spent years hunting people HYDRA recruited to recreate the serum.” Sarah, Sam and Bucky look around at all of his cars. “Because once it’s out there, someone can crate an army of people... Like the Avengers.” Zemo looks at Sam, his eyes flickering over to Sarah who stands beside Sam. “I ended the Winter Soldier program once before. I have no intention to leave my work unfinished.” He grabs a large coat from the top of his car. “To do this we’ll have to scale a ladder of lowlifes.” He begins walking away from the trio and the car.

“Well, join the party. We’ve already started.”

“First still is a woman named Selby. Mid-level fence I still have a line on. From there, we climb.” Sarah looks at Sam and begins to follow Zemo, Bucky and Sam right behind her.

The four walk towards the door of a private jet where an older man stands, waiting.

“So all this time you’ve been rich?”the look of confusion on Sam’s face made Sarah giggle softly, to herself.

“I’m a Baron, Sam. My family was royalty until your friends destroyed my country.” Sarah watches as Zemo and the older man talk in Russian, happiness and comfort evident on the Baron’s face. “Please.” Zemo gestures and leads the three up the stairs of the jet.

Once the four are in the jet, Sarah sitting across from Zemo. The older man explains the fridge is out.

“If it doesn’t pass the smell test... give it to them. But not the beautiful woman.” Zemo smiles as the older man laughs and leaves. Sarah zoned out of the conversation for some time, translating Zemo’s words and tries to figure out if he had actually meant to say beautiful or not. She is only snapped back to reality when she sees Bucky with his hand around Zemo’s throat.

“I’ve seen that book. It was Steve’s when he came out of the ice. I told him about Trouble Man. He wrote it in that book. Did you hear it? What’d you think?” Sam looks at Bucky expectantly.

“I like ‘40s music, so...” Bucky shrugs.

“You didn’t like it?”

“I liked it..”

“Trouble Man is amazing.” Sarah states.

“It is a masterpiece, James. Complete. Comprehensive. It captures the African-America experience.” Sam and Sarah look at Zemo confused for a second before they turn back to Bucky.

“He does have a point.” Sarah agrees with the Baron.

“He’s out of line, but he’s right. It’s great. Everybody loves Marvin Gaye.”

“I liked Marvin Gaye.”

“Steve adored Marvin Gaye.” Sarah shakes her head softly, takes out her phone and headphones out and puts on some ‘calming’ music by Pan!c at the Disco, trying to delve into her own little world as she looks out the window of the jet.

~~In Madripoor~~

“We have to do something about this. I’m the only one who looks like a pimp.” Sam complains.

“Only an American would assume a fashion-forward black man looks like a pimp. You look exactly like the man you’re supposed to be playing. The sophisticated, charming African rake names Conrad Mack, aka the Smiling Tiger.” Zemo shows Sam a picture of the man he is impersonating on his phone as the four continue walking.

“He even has a bad nickname. Hell, he does look like me, though.”

“Well you aren’t the only one who hates this plan, Sam...” Sarah walks in between Bucky and the Baron, in a small black dress and black heels that Zemo had bought for her to wear. “Do I really have to wear this? And who the fuck am I supposed to be?” She looks at Zemo, an annoyed glare pointed at him.

“Yes, darling. And you are my fiancée, it would be too suspicious for a new face to show up without a specific reason. No matter what happens, we have to stay in character. Our lives depend on it. There’s no margin for error.” Zemo states as a black car pulls up in front of them. He reached forward and opens the door for Sarah, who nods at him as she climbs into the middle seat, between Sam and Bucky. During the car ride, Zemo’s eyes flicker up to the mirror, watching Sarah. She notices his staring and she looks down, a soft blush covering her face. Suddenly, a group of motorbikes come out of nowhere, surrounding the car.

The car pulls up and Sam, Bucky and Zemo climb out of the car. Sarah turns to climb out after Bucky but an outstretched hand stops her. Specifically Zemo’s hand, waiting for her to take it. She reaches out and places her small hand in his and he helps her out of the car, wrapping his arm around her waist. Sarah tenses and he leans down, lips millimeters away from her ear.

“You’re my girl here, that’s your character.” He whispers huskily. The hand on her waist gives her a soft squeeze. She takes a small breath and leans against him, as the four of them walk along the walk above the large crowd of people.

As the four of them walk into the Princess Bar, Zemo’s grip on her tightens, pressing her close to him. The fur on his coat tickles her cheek and neck. “Here we are... Ready to comply, Winter Soldier?” Zemo asks as he leads Sarah, Sam and Bucky to the bar, still holding the woman’s waist. As the four make it to the bar, the bartender walks over, surprise written all over his face.

“Hello Miss, Gentlemen. Wasn’t expecting you, Smiling Tiger.”

“His plans changed. We have business to do with Selby.” The bartender looks at Zemo with suspicion, then looks at the Sam.

“The usual?” Sam nods.

“Ah... Smiling Tiger, your favourite.” Zemo says, watching the bartender cut open a snake, using it to make the Smiling Tigers usual drink.

“I love these..” Sam says with slight hesitation. Zemo lifts his drink.

“Cheers Conrad.” Zemo drinks his own as Sarah sips on her drink, watching the two. Sam hesitates, then takes the drink like a shot, giving the bartender a thumbs up.

A man walks up behind Zemo and as he turns, moves Sarah out of the way of any possible harm.

“I got word from on high. You ain’t welcome here.”

“I have no business with the Power Broker, but if he insists, he can either come and talk to me...” Zemo gestures to Bucky.

“New haircut?” The man questions Bucky.

“Or bring Selby for a chat.” Zemo watches the man. He looks at Zemo, then at Bucky, then Sam and lastly towards Sarah who is peeking out from behind Zemo’s protective stance.

“A Power Broker? Really?” Bucky looks at Zemo, obviously done with this situation.

“Every kingdom needs its king.” Zemo slides his arm back around Sarah, softly and sneakily massaging the small area on her waist. “Let’s just pray we stay under his radar.”

“Do you know him?” Sam questions.

“Only by reputation.”

“That doesn’t sound to good.” Sarah mumbles, taking another sip of her drink.

“It’s not. In Madripoor, he is judge, jury and executioner.” Zemo looks around the room and then turns back to the bar. “Winter Soldier. Attack.” The moment the man roughly placed his hand on Zemo, Bucky’s metal arm shot out, grabbing his wrist and twisting, pushing the man to the middle of the floor.

Sam, Sarah and Zemo watch as Bucky kicks ass left and right, causing not only damage to the people but to the furniture around him. Zemo leans close to Sarah and Sam.

“Didn’t take much for him to fall back into form.” Zemo states. Bucky slams a man down onto the bar, then the sound of guns cocking. Sam and Zemo look around the bar at everyone and Zemo grabs Sarah, pulling her close, trying to protect her. Sam places a hand on Bucky’s arm.

“Stay in character or the whole bar turns on us.” Zemo whispers to Sam, then he turns to Bucky. “Well done, Soldier.” The bartender watches as Bucky doesn’t let go of the man.

“Selby will see you now.” Bucky let’s go of the man, slowly.

“Thank you.” Zemo nods and gives Sarah’s waist a squeeze. Sam turns to Bucky.

“You good?” He says softly. Bucky looks at Sam quickly before following Zemo and Sarah. Sam following shortly after.

“You should know, Baron. People don’t just come into my bar and make demands.” The woman, Selby, state as the four enter the room.

“Not a demand. An offer.” Zemo sits down, Sarah sitting down on his lap.

“A lot has changed since you were here last.” Sarah decides at that moment to play the character she was given and rests her head on Zemo’s shoulder, playing with the ends of his hair, sneakily paying attention to the entire conversation. Sarah then slides off the Baron’s lap, he gestures for her to sit back where he was sitting and he walks over to Bucky.

“And I give you him.” He walks around, behind Bucky, who looks like a statue. “Along with the code words to control him, of course. He will do anything you want.” Zemo runs his fingers over Bucky’s chin, softly grabbing and wiggling the end.

“Now that’s the Zemo I remember. I’m glad I decided not to kill you immediately. However, I want something else to go along with him.” She smirks at the two men, slowly turning to look at Sarah, who is still sitting on the chair opposite her. “I want that pretty little thing as well.” Zemo walks away from the soldier and Sarah scoots out of the chair for him to sit, taking her original place in his lap.

“Not this one, she’s mine.” His hand cups Sarah’s butt and squeezes, as a way of staking his claim in front of Selby. Sarah, deciding she didn’t like the way the woman talked about her as though she’s an object, steps in.

“I belong to my Baron.” She runs her fingers through the back of his hair. Selby looks disappointed by gives Zemo the information about the Super Soldier Serum and a man called Dr. Wilfred Nagel.

“You can’t find Nagel without me.” Sam’s phone vibrates suddenly.

“Sam? Who’s Sam? Kill them!” Suddenly Selby is on the floor dead with a bullet wound and then chaos ensues. Bucky and Sam take out two of her bodyguards as Sarah pulls a knife out from under her dress and stabs another in between the eyes. She lets the body fall and hit the ground, turns to look at the three men who came with her, staring at her in shock.

“Did you three REALLY think I was coming HERE, defenceless??” Sarah rolls her eyes. The four move towards the exit.

“They’re gonna pin this on us.” Sam states, leaning against the door. Zemo sighs, as Sarah sheaths her knife, the three men’s eyes lingering on her exposed thigh.

“We have a real problem now, so leave your weapons and follow my lead.”

Bucky, Sam, Sarah and Zemo quickly leave the area, the sound of phones receiving messages going off all around them. Zemo’s arm is once again around Sarah’s waist.

“This is not good...” suddenly the light above them go out and multiple gun shots are heard. The four duck and Zemo turns and drags Sarah off down an alley, leaving Bucky and Sam.

“Zemo wait! I can’t run in the-“

Sarah trips, her eyes closed as she waits for the rough impact but instead feels the soft fur from Zemo’s coat. He caught me... the two stare at each other for a moment before Zemo picks Sarah up and continues running down the alleyway.

Finally they got to the end of the alley and turn the corner to see Sam and Bucky standing there, as a body falls.

“You seem to have a guardian angel.” He points out.

“Well this is too perfect.” The last person the four expected to see was Sharon Carter to walk out of the shadow. “Let go of Sarah and drop it, Zemo.” Zemo puts the gun down and lets of Sarah reluctantly.

“Sharon?” Bucky takes a step forward.

~~~~ skip forward to the party at Sharon’s~~~~

Sarah stands off to the side of the crowd still wearing the dress Zemo bought her. Bucky and Sam are talking as she looks around at the dancing crowd only to see Zemo...

Sarah let’s put a tiny laugh, shaking her head at the sight. When she looks back up at him, he is gesturing for her to come dance with him. Sarah thinks for a second before a goofy smile appears and she pushes off the bar and joins Zemo in the crowd.

“Those are so great moves!” She calls out to him over the crowd, he grabs her hands and continues dancing.

“Then dance with me!” He calls back, a large goofy smile on his face. The pair end up dancing and looking at some of the artwork together until they meet up with Sam and Bucky, waiting for Sharon.

“Hey, guys. I found him.” Sharon motions for the four to follow her. Sam turns to Bucky.

“Here we go.”

“Alright, he’s in there. Container four-two-six-one. Sarah and I will keep an eye out while you guys talk to Nagel. But hurry. We’re on borrowed time.” Sharon holds out her palm with five ear pieces for everyone. Sarah, Sam, Bucky and Zemo take theirs and Sharon leads Sarah away from the group, noticing how Zemo watches as the two disappear.

Minutes later, Sharon turns to Sarah.

“So, Zemo seems to have taken a liking to you?” She smirks.

“No he doesn’t.” Sarah shakes her head as she looks around, guarding the shipping container. “It was Allan act. I had to pretend to be his fiancée to get into the club.”

“It’s pretty obvious it wasn’t an act, when I showed up pointing that gun at him, he was being protective.” Sarah rolls her eyes as Sharon nudges her.

The pair are oblivious to the fact that their earpieces were still on and Zemo, Sam and Bucky could hear everything. Sam and Bucky turn slowly to glare at Zemo and if looks could kill, he would have been dead already. However he isn’t paying attention to the two, instead distracted by the voices in his ear and the burnin blush covering his cheeks.

~~~ After the explosion and Zemo’s scene of him kicking ass ~~~

Zemo pulls up in front of the group and shrugs.

“Supercharged.”

Bucky climbs in the passenger seat and Sam climbs in behind him, Sarah walking around the front of the car. Before she opens the passenger door behind Zemo, he opens his door.

“Come here for a second.” Sarah looks at him inquisitively but complies, standing in front of him. Zemo reaches up, grabs her waist and pulls her onto his lap, passionately kissing her for a minute, Sam complaining in the back. He pulls away and smirks, giving her a small wink. She blushes and he pats her ass, for her to climb into her seat. She does so in a daze and once she is buckled in, Zemo takes off.

[stillness-in-green]

Ahistorical, Absurd, and Unsustainable (Introduction and Part One)

An Examination of the Mass Arrest of the Paranormal Liberation Front

INTRODUCTION

The title states my premise here: the breezy way My Hero Academia presents and resolves the mass arrest of the Paranormal Liberation Front is ludicrous. If taken as presented and allowed to stand without being further addressed, it serves as a breaking point from which the series will be incredibly hard-pressed to recover. Why, you ask?

From a logistical standpoint, it strains credulity. From an ethical standpoint, it suggests deeply troubling problems with the state of Hero Society. From a thematic standpoint, it unravels whole portions of the narrative’s spine. I’ll be looking at each of these facets in turn to discuss the questions they raise which My Hero Academia has not yet seen fit to answer. Many in fandom don’t seem to be thinking about it too hard, so I’d like to lay out—in exhaustive detail—all the reasons I find this plot element so wildly out of touch with causal reality.

Please note that while they are discussed when relevant, this essay is not principally about the named characters in the League of Villains or the erstwhile high command of the Metahuman Liberation Army. The sorts of consequences Shigaraki Tomura or Re-Destro would and should be facing in a courtroom are orders of magnitude beyond what Random Liberation Warrior X would be, but it’s the mass numbers of Random Liberation Warrior Xs that this essay is most concerned with, as they are the ones most in danger of being swept under a rug and forgotten by the series in its current state.

Further, be advised that this essay in its full form is both very long (about 21K words excluding Sources and Further Reading) and will contain extensive discussion of real-life Japan—comparisons to historical events, minutiae of its legal and carceral systems, and general cultural views on criminality. This will include references to imprisonment, government oppression, and incidents of terrorism both real and in the context of My Hero Academia.

Being as it is about quite a recent event in the series, it will also contain heavy spoilers all the way up through the most recent chapter as of this writing, Chapter 310. It likewise contains spoilers for the spin-off series My Hero Academia: Vigilantes up through Chapter 95.

The essay will be posted in parts on tumblr and in full on AO3. For the tumblr posting, I will provide links to other tumblr posts as I reference them; however, as I would like this to actually show up in the tags, outside links containing my sources and further reading will be provided in a separate post following the conclusion of the essay.

Lastly, I spent an entire month writing this as a fan who is sympathetic to the villains in general and the MLA in particular. If your response to the very concept of this essay is anything to the tune of, “Who cares what happens to a bunch of disgusting quirk eugenicists?” know that you and I have radically different views on the MLA, and the role of the justice system in general. You are, of course, welcome to read the essay anyway, but, having said my piece about the MLA and their relationship with quirk supremacy elsewhere, I will not be engaging with arguments or gotchas on that subject here.

PART ONE: The Facts at Hand

Before we get too deep into things, let’s lay out the basic facts: how many people are actually involved in the arrest, as well as some comparisons to real-life events to contextualize that number and provide some referents for the issues the arrest raises.

Re-Destro gives the numbers of the Metahuman Liberation Army as 116,516. A lot of people go on to die in Deika, though we’re never given a solid count. The biggest batch we see killed in a single go are the press of sixty or so people Shigaraki decays, then the sixteen-ish Toga drops, though some of those might possibly have had quirks that allowed them to survive. Any number of people certainly died as well simply in the moments we didn’t see, and who even knows how many were caught in the radius of Shigaraki’s last attack.

Further, there may well have been a measure of organization bleed when the MLA became the PLF (though I imagine trying to leave was a very dangerous proposition, giving an additional reason to stick it out on top of the general cult-like mindset the MLA displays); likewise, I find it hard to believe that there wouldn’t have been some deaths at the Gunga Villa, be it from Gigantomachia’s departure, Geten cutting loose, or combatants—be they hero or comrade—overcompensating somewhat in the middle of a chaotic melee.

I suspect it’s overestimating the depletion, but for the purposes of simplicity, let us call it 115,000 remaining members at the time of the raid.[1]

We are told that, in all, 16,929 people were captured at the villa—just about 17,000. 132 escaped in the confusion; this is a fairly negligible number, save for the fact that it includes high-ranking advisors, but not Machia and those of the Front that were with him.

We are further told, and I quote, “Their bases scattered around the country were hit too, and the sympathizers rounded up.” Horikoshi did not provide any solid numbers for this,[2] but if we’re to assume that it is just the rest of the group (more on the logistics of that bit of spycraft later), “the sympathizers” would be 98,000 additional people.

However, 98,000 may be a significant underestimation. It’s based, after all, on a number Re-Destro cites to describe “warriors lying in wait, ready to rise to action.” This begs the question: is Re-Destro quoting the entire membership of the group, or only those who actually are ready to take action? In other words, does his number account for non-combatants? Is he counting young children? I tend to assume the MLA doesn't have a retirement age as such,[3] but if they do, does his number account for the elderly?

How many more people might be “sympathizers” to the PLF insomuch as they are e.g. the six-month-old infant daughter of an MLA couple? What about the ninety-year-old man in the retirement home whose only real act of war these days is tying up the phone line at City Hall to complain about repressive quirk use laws? How about the fired-up fifteen-year-old that was going to get their official code name next month, just in time to join the first wave of attacks? If he’s being literal in his usage of “warrior,” the actual count of the MLA could easily be twice as high as the number he actually gives.

But okay, maybe Re-Destro’s number does include absolutely everyone. Maybe he’s just being rhetorical—maybe, in his mind, even the six-month-old is waiting to rise to action; she’s just going to have to wait a bit longer than the rest, is all. For simplicity’s sake, let’s stick with the numbers we have: a low-end of 17,000, a high-end of 115,000, captured not merely in a single day, but allegedly in the span of a few hours.

I’m sure I don’t need to stress that that is a lot of people. But how many people is it, practically speaking? Is there a precedent? Anything we can look to for guidance on how this kind of thing would go in real life?

Comparative Analogues

The PLF is tricky to categorize for the purposes of real-life comparison, especially compared to how they’re treated in-universe. In some lights, they resemble a protest movement; in others, a terrorist group. Just looking at the way the government reacts to them—and certainly in terms of their combat capabilities—they might as well be an all-out insurrectionist uprising! Below, I’ll examine a handful of historical incidents that cover that spectrum; they will continue to provide useful reference points throughout the rest of this essay.

The March 15 Incident

In the first half of the 20th century, Japan saw a huge uptick in socialist and communist activity, much to the general dismay of the ruling powers. In response, they passed a series of laws commonly referred to as the Peace Preservation Laws, designed to better enable authorities to suppress political dissent and freedom of speech, particularly that of leftists and labor movements.

The Japanese Communist Party was founded in 1922, but outlawed in 1925. This merely drove members underground, however, from which position they pointed supporters towards the numerous other parties with more legally tolerated leftist policies that had cropped up in the wake of the JCP’s dissolution. Following the February 1928 General Election (the first in Japan held with universal male suffrage), those parties supported by the JCP saw enormous gains in representation in Japan’s National Diet. Alarmed, the Prime Minister declared the mass arrest of known communists and suspected communist sympathizers. Accordingly, on March 15, 1,600 people were arrested throughout Japan.

Over the course of twenty years, some 70,000 people would be arrested under the auspices of the Peace Preservation Laws, the majority of them in 1925 through 1936. The laws would eventually be repealed by American occupation forces after WWII, and the JCP allowed to operate openly once again.

The Rice Riots

In 1918, an inflation spiral had driven the price of rice out of control, exacerbating economic insecurity and hardship. Farmers were being paid a pittance of the market value of their crop by rice buyers and government agents, while urban consumers were being charged an exorbitant price for the staple food, as well as a great many other consumer goods, and their own rents. In response, a series of riots ripped across Japan in late July through September. Beginning with peaceful protesting in a small fishing town in Toyama Prefecture, the unrest escalated to involve riots, strikes, looting, even bombing in demonstrations that reached major cities like Tokyo and Osaka. The scope was and remains unprecedented in modern Japanese history, seeing some 25,000 people arrested.

The Sarin Gas Attacks

If you’ve heard of any of them, it’s probably this one. On March 20, 1995, members of the cult Aum Shinrikyo released sarin gas on five different Tokyo Metro trains in the middle of morning rush hour. Thirteen people were killed and over 5500 injured, about a fifth of them moderately to severely so. If not for small errors in the production of the gas and the rudimentary distribution method thereof, loss of life might easily have been catastrophically higher.

Aum Shinrikyo was a doomsday cult, but the motives for that particular attack were much baser than bringing about the Apocalypse: at the time, the organization was under police investigation for its involvement in the kidnapping of a public official. Its leader, Asahara Shoukou, hoped that the attack would divert police’s attention from a planned raid.

It did not do so; police executed raids on numerous of the cult’s compounds, arresting many of its senior members both immediately and over the course of the following months as the investigation unfolded. In all, over 200 members were arrested of an organization that counted its membership prior to the attack as numbering 11,000 people in Japan.[4]

The February 26 Incident

There have been a significant number of uprisings and violent protests in Japan’s modern history; when looking for a representative example, I focused my attention on the military coups of the 1930s and 40s, largely because they took place in what was closest to the modern Japanese legal context.[5] Of that subset, I chose the February 26 Incident for the severity of the government response. The others disintegrated before they could be properly carried out or were met with sympathy for the dissidents despite the obvious illegality of their actions. The February 26 Incident, however, was when they finally became too troublesome to dismiss, and the Emperor himself ran out of patience.

In this period, the Japanese military had become drastically factionalized into two main groups—an ultra-nationalist group, largely powered by a group of young officers, which supported the Emperor and wanted to purge Japan of Western influences, and a more moderate group mainly defined by their opposition to the above faction.[6] Occurring in 1936, the February 26 Incident involved the young officers, believing that they had tacit approval from higher-ranked officers of their own faction, launching assassination attempts against the nationalists’ most prominent enemies in the government (six assorted Ministers and former Ministers in the Emperor’s Privy Council and the Diet) and a bid to seize control of the administrative center of the capital and the Imperial Palace, after which they planned to demand the dismissal of more officers and the selection of a new Cabinet.

The seven ringleaders had convinced eighteen other officers to lend their forces to the attempted coup, a total of around 1,500 men, calling themselves the Righteous Army. Several of their assassination attempts failed, however, and while they succeeded at taking the Prime Minister’s residence and the Ministry of War, they did not manage to secure the Palace. The outraged Cabinet demanded the Emperor take a hard line with the rebels, and by the 29th, the Righteous Army was surrounded by 20,000 government troops and 22 tanks. In this hopeless situation, the officers dismissed their troops; two committed suicide (a third attempted it unsuccessfully) and the remainder were arrested by military police.

International Examples

For obvious reasons, I prefer to limit my examples to events that happened in Japan. However, I will also be briefly referring to a few international incidents of mass arrest, taking place in India, the U.S., and Egypt, respectively.

In the following parts, I'll use these facts and comparative analogues to take a closer look at what readers were told became of the Paranormal Liberation Front.

Part Two

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Footnotes (Part One)—

[1] Over three months’ time, they likely gained some new blood also, simply in the course of their usual recruitment tactics. You don’t get an underground organization that size by sitting back and waiting for people to come to you, after all. I don’t know a practical way to calculate that, though, so just bear it in mind for when I talk about new members later.

[2] Possibly because he was aware that 17,000 people captured in one fell swoop was difficult enough to swallow without adding on more than five times that number.

[3] We do, after all, see some very aged people fighting in the streets of Deika.

[4] They were considerably more international than you may have heard. They had 50,000 members at the time, some 30,000 of them based in Russia.

[5] The Meiji Constitution was ratified in 1889; universal suffrage (for men) was granted in 1925. The modern constitution was enacted in 1947.

[6] More moderate, mind, in the context of the Imperial Japanese military. Neither of these factions had any time whatsoever for leftist movements, hence all those suppressive crackdowns.